The Life of Riley

He came out screaming! Definitely the most vocal baby out of the 3. As soon as Chad brought him over to me he stopped crying and opened his eyes and starred at me.  It was amazing! My pumpkin boys born 4 years and 3 days apart! Elijah finally held his brother once we were home, he was not quite sure about him at first.  He's here! Our newest addition was born October 18, 2014 at 9:20 a.m. weighing 7 lbs. even and 19 inches long.  He is our perfect peanut! He came early, my little 38 weeker, totally surprising us and taking us off guard. My c-section was scheduled for the 22nd, and we were planning on using every last minute to prepare ourselves and our house for his arrival.  Never did I think he would make an early appearance! Here is his birth story... I woke up Friday the 17th with a bad migraine.  Sat around most of the day drinking water and trying to get my migraine to go away.  Tylenol wasn't helping and of course takin...

My sweet boy. My firstborn son who blesses me on the daily.  I don't want to forget this sweet phase (hopefully he'll never stop) so I had to write myself so I remember.  EVERYWHERE we go, he finds me flowers and picks them for me.  Now this ins't something new necessarily, but the intention behind it definitely is.  He loves pleasing his Mom, we have a sweet special connection and something about seeing me smile makes his heart burst. We will be in the Costco parking lot and will manage to find a weed growing between the asphalt and he'll present it as a beautiful flower.  It's the dearest thing.  He shares with others as well.  A couple days ago in the middle of his swim lessons he leaned out of the pool and pulled his swim teacher a flower.  His kind heart and loving spirit is sure to give me lots of sleepless nights once he is older, ladies are going to flock to him (I mean, they already do!). Thanks baby boy for being the love...

Where do the days go?! I feel like the weeks and months fly by, and all the time I think I will have to accomplish things just ends up flying past me! Could it be that I have two toddlers boys that keep me on my toes? Possibly.  Life with them is so exciting and totally exhausting.  I am blessed to stay home during this season of my life and just be a part of their everyday life.  I thought I would miss working, and although at times I do daydream about the life of a busy OR nurse, I really feel like this is where I am called to be right now.  People often say being a stay-at-home-mom is thankless, and although I can see that point, I more often then not feel appreciated.  My boys show me with their actions how grateful they are that I am home with them and they aren't with a stranger or in daycare.  Not all people have that opportunity, and it took us making some big changes in our life to get to that point, so I continually recognize how blessed my family...

My boy! You are 2! Oh my, time flies. I like writing you and your brother and Daddy letters for your special days so you have something to look back on and understand what was going on at each period in your life. And so you know how much I love you and how that never changes from year to year. The modern baby book! :)  The day you were born was magic. Daddy and I knew exactly what to expect, we really felt so prepared and ready for you. We were calm and even taking selfies in the hospital while we waited to go back to the OR. You had been giving me lots of hints you were coming for months, but you were good and stayed in my belly until our scheduled day. Keeping us on our toes even before you were born! I saw your face and instantly loved you, all the worries about not being able to love two babies the same completely went away. I loved your cry, I was praising the doctors and nurses and just filled with so much joy. I wept on and off for hours after that and was maniacally joyou...

Well, I'm supposed to be napping according to doc's orders (aka- Chad) but I have a very active baby boy in my tummy and I'm feeling nostalgic. Does that ever happen to you when are sick? Just no energy to do anything but think? Anyways, it does me! I think it's the wannabe philosopher in me!  I can't believe it's almost July! What in the world?! This month has been incredibly busy, I have so much I want to catch up on in the lives of my loved ones but not finding the time I need! Thankful for social media so I can watch from afar, but even lately I haven't had much time for that! We moved into our new home a few weeks ago and just love it. It's so spacious, charming and peaceful here. Poor neighbors, nothing about our kids is peaceful. Sorry about that guys! They think the backyard is a literal forest(which to a One and three year old, it totally is!) and they enjoy playing Tarzan and riding their motorized quad and jeep through the trees. To me, it...

Well it's been a month since I updated last, gosh time flies, it feels like I just posted yesterday! Hawaii is, well, just rad! A lot of beauty that I have to remember not to take for granted.  We've been busy enjoying this massive open land.  We have met some new friends and that has been fun getting together for play dates.  So thankful for that, as most of you know I am quite a social person, I can't help but book myself solid most days of the week! I have missed the social aspect of life the last few months, but we're getting there.  The dramatic change has helped me remember that being too busy is not a good thing.  I really need to take the downtime to develop my relationship with God, enjoy my family, and find some pleasure in the simple things. So, with that being said, I took up sewing! I know, never in a million years would I have imagined I'd be sewing either.  But I love it! It's fulfilling making something homemade that's one of a kind! I'...

The boys at Hapuna Elijah literally rolls in the sand, covering his whole face.  He is such a beach bum! I have a few minutes to sit down and actually have complete quiet! What a rarity these days.  Elijah is down for his nap and Kai went with Pa, Meme and TT (Bre) to check in to the Hapuna Beach Hotel.  I thought I could give a quick update about how us 4 Riley's are doing.   Chad began his job a few weeks ago and really likes it! He is home most days on time and gets weekends and holidays off! He is on call from time to time but it is nothing like his previous job.  I thought I would miss the overtime pay but I could care less! We are all loving him being around more.   Malakai is just funnier then ever.  I can't believe how grown up he is.  Everyday he asks when his "sister and brother" are coming.  Cool story-- when I found out I was pregnant Chad and Eli were out at the store, so it was just Bubba and I.  I saw the res...

Chad and I have been asking ourselves this for the past month. It's hard to believe that this place of paradise and beauty where so many come for their dream vacations is our home!  It's been almost a full month now and we are all adjusting well.  The boys of course love it, they love playing outside and going to the beach etc.  Although, Kai has asked several times to go "home" to play with his neighbors Sofia and Nico.  We need to meet some friends his age, and fast! We got invited to a 4 year old boys birthday in our neighborhood next weekend so I am really looking forward to that, and Kai can hardly wait.  He asks to play with Colton everyday, and he hasn't even met him yet! We are hopefully going to make it to the church tomorrow which will be great for him to play in Sunday school and hopefully get connected with some great families.  In the meantime, it has been awesome exploring our new home and going to the beach as often as possible.  We all ...

Well, we are doing it! We are packing up our stuff and our two boys and taking them to paradise!! Most of you know that we have always loved Hawaii and dreamed about living there someday.  Now that dream is becoming a reality! Chad got a job offer we couldn't resist and we listed our house and went into escrow within a couple days! God has swung the doors wide open for us, and we are so grateful for his faithful hand guiding us into this awesome adventure!  Our boys are already barefoot, shirtless wanderers so we know they will fit right in on the Big Island.  As most of you know our parents live there so we will be staying with them for a short time as we look for a home.  We will be on the Kona side of the Island, hopefully in a town called Waimea/Kamuela which is "paniolo" or "cowboy" country.  It looks like something out of Montana, with rolling hills and open pastures, horses and cows and lots and lots of land for our kids to run around wild and free. ...

Oh how I love my little Lijey.  He is such an angel, an angel with sass I should say.  I can't believe my baby is 18 months old.  Where does the time go?! He is such a joy to Chad and I.  So easy going and laid back and loves to be dirty and messy.  He will literally find the 1% chance anywhere he is to get messy and go for it.  I love it, he is definitely all boy.  He keeps us all on our toes.  He is an eater, and although he can be picky at times he is pretty good about eating a well rounded healthy meal.  He enjoys so much just being outside, whether we are at the park, beach or in our own backyard.  We can't wait to go camping again soon because he just loves being wild and free and running around with his bro enjoying nature.  He just got his first haircut because the top of his hair is so straight and was in his eyes causing him to run into things.  Poor boy, we waited as long as possible to see if it would curl like br...