Logan

My sister had her first baby last month, and I got to meet him over the long President's Day Weekend! While it was of course so special to finally get to meet my sweet nephew, it was even more special to get to see my sister in her new role as mommy.

Derek stayed back in Las Vegas with our three crazies, so I could make the solo trip to Georgia. It was so nice to be able to get that uninterrupted time with my sister--to actually have a complete conversation with her instead of having to stop mid-sentence ten thousand times to tend to my kids. ;)  Not to mention, it's amazing how different a four hour flight with three young children feels in comparison to that same 4 hour flight BY MYSELF!!

My days are typically spent dealing with tantrums and keeping a certain toddler out of drawers and cabinets, taking the girls to and from school, and trying to maintain some shred of sanity amidst whining & arguing kids. Please know that I wouldn't have it any other way and I don't take it for granted for one second that I get a front row seat to kids' childhoods, but it was such a treat to be able to snuggle a sweet sleeping baby Logan who just wanted to be held + get lots of sister time. I have to admit though--hearing Emily's stories from the trenches of newborn life takes me back to my days when Shelby was a newborn, and I want to start pulling my hair out just thinking about it! Having a newborn is HARD, people! I always hear people lament how tricky life is when you add a second or third baby to the mix, but for me that was a cakewalk in comparison to having a newborn for the first time. Bringing home a newborn the second & third time around was still hard of course, but it wasn't such a shock to the system like that first time was!

The other highlight of my visit was getting to see my parents by myself! I wish we'd taken a picture to commemorate it, but I got to go out to dinner with my parents on my last night in Georgia--just me and them. I can't even begin to think when the last time that had happened was. It was such a treat. When I got home and was recounting my trip to Derek, he kept saying that maybe I should do this again--make a trip home to GA without him or the kiddos. Living so far away from family, we don't get to see everyone very often; so if we're going to make the trip home, of course we all five want to go! But it was such a special trip to go and spend time with my family and just be me. I don't know if or when I'll get the chance to see my mom, dad, and sister again without simultaneously wearing my mom hat, but I'm so thankful for the time I had!!!