cormac finn

Where do I begin? I went back and forth over what I felt the gender of the baby was. All I knew was that I felt so different and huge. And pretty gosh darn uncomfortable. My due date was January 6th, but this new doctor scheduled me for a c-section on the 7th.

Scott was in charge of pictures. I love that he took a selfie.

I was a ball of nerves. It was the fear of knowing. 

Cripes. My eyes are filling with tears as I type this. Here HE is. Cormac Finn. A boy. Our not so little boy. 10 lbs 12 oz and 22 1/2 inches. I couldn't believe it. Oh man do we love him. 

They asked if we wanted our picture taken. Ha ha! What an awkward angle. This was right before I started to dry heave. And Scott started to laugh.

The THRILLED big sisters. They waited with the rest of the family for hours and hours. I was in recovery for way too long for a little hiccup. They couldn't contain themselves.

Cordelia visiting the next afternoon.

Bea visiting the next afternoon.

Just look at him!

This is one of my favorite parts. His soft shoulders and neck crease.

Grampie Mike and Big Mac. Talking about how his ears are perfectly pressed against his head, ready for a football helmet. 

His baby widow's peak really gets me. And his skin looks air brushed.

big sisters

nye

We rang in the new year with Netflix kid's countdowns, sparkling CHAMP-pain and some noise makers.

snow time

I asked Cordelia to show me her snow face. I meant an expression, not to white wash!

christmas

This is it, only a few pictures to capture Christmas Eve and day. Thankfully Megan was able to get one of the four of us before we became a family of five.

zoo lights

Lincoln Park Zoo Lights is not really about the animals. At least for us. It's all about the lights, music and possibility of snacks with cocoa.

Cordelia wanted to get her picture taken in front of every single display. I obliged until my battery died.

medinah christmas party

The kids and adults look forward to this event every year. It really is quite the setup. I love that the boys went for the "elf" face paint.

Look at this twosome. So innocent.

One of the last pictures of my BABY. 

Bea bypassed the face painting and opted for the hand painting. It was a beautiful nighttime reindeer scene. But we weren't allowed to talk about it or even ask her about it. Getting this blurry picture was even a challenge. 

A life-size gingerbread house! There were ropes and signs that clearly stated to not touch it or go in it. But neither myself nor my children saw them. It never dawned on me that they wouldn't want you feeling it and sniffing it.

Santa knew what he was doing. He had a whole system for getting individual pictures with the kids and then one of all of them. It was so seamless.

REAL reindeers!!! This one had twigs for antlers...NEXT.

This one was more like it!

After the kids see Santa, they get age and gender appropriate gift bags. These three set up camp behind our table to go through their loot. 

Since I never get these three together, I wanted a picture. We asked Bea to show us her proud older cousin pose. Evie gets it.