Cole's Baptism

Cole was baptized on November 21st, and, as with our other kids, it was a special time. I love being reminded of God's love for our children and His mark on their lives as participants in the community of faith, even at this young age. And it is a blessing to hear the congregation commit to helping us point our children toward the Lord as they grow up in His church.

This was our first moment in front of others as a family of five. Some juggling was required to satisfy the desires of each one to be held!

We're so thankful for the people at Covenant Church and for Ryan, who did Cole's baptism.

And here's an attempt at a new family picture - it turned out... just okay. We'll keep working on it!

Playmates

Laine and Mead are beginning to enjoy their time together more and more. Their most recent activity was jumping in the stuffed animal crate and pushing each other around the house. They're so cute together (most of the time!)

Oh, and Laine has decided it's no longer cool to smile for pictures. Great!

Firsts

Cole's first three weeks has brought several firsts with it.

First bath.

First tummy time - met with relative success!

First visit from Grammy - thanks for coming!

Monkey Joe's

Laine and Mead went to a birthday party at Monkey Joe's last week. Laine has been there one time before, so she knew what to expect. Mead had never been before, but she had a great time.

You can see their different personalities come out even in their approaches to the slide. Mead, the cautious one, approached with a little trepidation but thoroughly enjoyed it.

Laine, the daredevil, plunged right in without hesitation!

Straight ahead

Here's a couple photos of Cole looking straight at the camera. The first one was taken at 2 days old, the second one at 2 weeks old. Hard to believe how quickly he's changing!

Stroller craze

Mead is very excited about her stroller these days. She often pushes it around the house, both inside and out. Laine went through a stroller phase too. We'll see if Cole does the same when he gets bigger - I've heard with two big sisters it's almost inevitable!

First time out

I've taken Cole to a few doctor appointments since he's been born, but this Sunday he made his first big "appearance." He got all dressed up, and we headed over to church for the morning. It was so fun to walk in the door and be greeted by so many friends - everyone oohed and awwed over Cole! We have been loved so well over these past few weeks by everyone at church. It's made the transition to three a whole lot easier!

Look at that handsome boy!

The girls continue to be super excited about Cole, and they love on him every chance they get.

Siblings

Laine and Mead love Cole - it's so sweet to see them excited about him. They light up when I bring him into the room in the morning, and they give him kisses throughout the day. He's gotten a few bumps too, but in general they are gentle and loving with him. Let's hope it stays that way!

Comparisons

We've taken relatively the same picture with each child during the first few days of life. It's fun to see how they compare to one another. Let me know what you think.

Happy Halloween!

As promised, here's a few pictures of the girls in their halloween costumes.

Laine was super excited to go out dressed as a unicorn. Mead, on the other hand, wasn't so sure why she was wearing a bunny rabbit costume!

She caught on quickly though, and the girls had a good time walking around with Daddy.

Here's Mead in all her fuzzy cuteness!

And our door was ready to welcome visitors, though no one came - probably because our driveway is on a very busy road!