4 years in the making {Jade turns 4}

Jade Marie how are you 4 years old?! Four years ago, you made me a Mom. A title I hold very dear and sacred. You are just so fiercely fun loving and we are so blessed to have you in our family! This year we have seen you grow so much, not only in size but also maturity.

As your 4th birthday was approaching, your Dad and I sat down and talked about all the wonderful things about you. We are in awe at who you have become and are still becoming. We narrowed down our endless list of beautiful qualities that you possess to our most favorite ones.

1. You are a true friend. Something in you values people and people value you right back. You are drawn to people, laughter, fun and bonding. I want to remind you that this is a very powerful tool that Heavenly Father gave to you to develop and use for good! You see people for the good in them and are kind to everyone around you and this is something our world needs more of. You are constantly reminding me that life is about being happy and enjoying the journey.

2. You are spunky. Spunk bursts out of your every pore. You are hilarious and creative and together it always makes for a good laugh. You like to make people laugh and it isn't hard for you to do.

3. You are resilient. As our oldest child. you have been through the most change and endured all our first time parent mistakes. You have always rolled with the punches and remained your giggly, silly, and smart self. May you always accept change and create success out of the ups and downs of life.


Some funny/cute things I have recorded you saying this year:

"Mom, Leo isn't choosing the right and it makes me sad."

After opening a Christmas present..."It's what I wished for! Thank you!"

"Chocolate isn't healthy for our bodies....but sometimes it is"

"Mom I like cutie oranges because me and Leo are cuties. So it's a match."

While staring at a boy at the park with braces.. "Why does he have a necklace on his teeth?"

"I don't want another brother I want a gihhhhl"

"Leo is my best friend."

"This is how I do"

"Everyday I grow bigger and bigger. Soon i'm gonna be an adult! Adults can drive!"

"Mom say please nicely and I won't cry"

"Mom go in your room and get some rest, i'll watch Leo and make sure he doesn't get dead"

On the way to the hospital because I was having a painful false labour.. "Mom, it's okay. Take a big breathe like this (takes a dramatic big breathe). You aren't going to die. It's gonna be okay."

After giving a homeless women some food and explaining to Jade that she doesn't have a house and sleeps outside.. "Mom, we can build her a house right?"

"Leo you're breaking my heart because you aren't listening to me."

"Mom my crack (a splinter in her toe) healed. Heavenly Father did it."

After telling Jade to not unbuckle her carseat while we are driving because a police officer might see and get us in trouble (Yes I use scare tactics).. "Okay i'll just close my eyes and the police officer won't see me"

"I'm gonna marry Leo in the temple"

"I'm holding Leo's hand like Daddy holds your hand."

"Mom your belly is BIG, I like it."

"My brother that's in your belly kicked me. He needs a time out."

After explaining to Jade that it is raining and so we can't go to the park until the afternoon.. "Mom it's okay i'm not going to cry."

"The baby in your belly is gonna get bigger and bigger and then it's gonna pop! Don't worry, it will only hurt a little bit. Not much."

Click to see Jade's birthday interview

Some pictures of Jade's magical unicorn ballerina birthday party!

Happy 4th Birthday Jade Marie!

Patent Pending

A girl can never forget the moment she sees two lines, +, or the expensive unmistakeable word PREGNANT appear on her pregnancy test. Emotions explode in a chaotic fashion. For some women, their emotions include (in no particular order):

Overwhelmed

Fear

Happiness

Relief

Shock

Guilt

Pride

Anxiety

Panic

Peace

Weighted

Courage

Power

Confusion

Lost

Gratitude

Love

Hope

Paralyzation

Loneliness

Regret

Shame

Eagerness

Humiliation

Self-consciousness

Excitement

Disconnect

Blindside

Robotic

Obsessiveness

Astonishment

Determination

If you're thinking, "Wow that's a pretty comprehensive list." Then let me tell you that a very important one was left out..

JUSTIFIED

Confused? You won't be in a second..

The alarm goes off (my husband reminds me for the nth time of the dwindling time left before we have to leave for church).

I fly around the house like every other Sunday morning, trying not to forget anything important that needs to be done before we can leave for church.

Roast in the oven. Check.

Feed the kids breakfast. Alex handled it. Awesome.

Slap on some makeup. Check.

Get dressed. Check.

Get the kids dressed. Again, thank you Alex.

Grab my Primary binder. Check.

Run a brush through Jade's hair. Check.

Grease up Leo's hair. Check.

Make sure everyone has their shoes on. Check.

And we are off, just like any other Sunday. 

A friendly church member gives Leo chocolate and Leo drools brown all over Alex's dress shirt. Normal.

Alex runs home to soak the stain and get a new shirt on. He accidentally locks the car and house keys inside the house. 

He calls me at church to tell me what happened. 

Next thing I know, I'm crying tears that can't be stopped. 

Alex calls me back to tell me that he got into the house through a window and is on his way back and all is well. 

I expect my eyes to dry up and to move on with the rest of church but instead the flow of my tears increase tenfold. Friends are stopping me in the hallway and bathroom to ask me what is wrong and I can't find an alone place to get myself together. 

I can't tell them what is wrong, because NOTHING is wrong. 

Then ah ha!! It all makes sense.

In all of my pregnancies thus far (3/3), I experience a complete out-of-body, who is this Tiffany person, studies should be conducted, water-works, red blotchy, make up smeared faced, always in public, cringeworthy moment. This moment, my friends, is more reliable and accurate than any store bought or doctor performed pregnancy test. This is my body's personal pregnancy test invention.

And this is how I find out that I am bringing another child into this world. 

Before any tangible evidence and tests are available to me, I already know that I am 100% PREGNANT! Patent pending folks!

I then wait the required few weeks before I can take a pregnancy test. When I see those already predicted two lines appear, I feel all the emotions over again but this time I also feel JUSTIFIED. 

We are VERY excited to bring a 3rd child into our family and I know a lot of you have some questions for me. Let me see if I can answer some of them. Yes I'm sick again, yes Alex is in his last year of law school and we are very busy, yes this was planned, but most of all YES we are oh so EXCITED and HAPPY! We find out the gender this weekend! Can't wait to see how the scales tip in our currently "even Stevens" family!

The results are in..

About 6 months ago, I was praying for guidance about Jade. Something just wasn't exactly right with her anymore. Her stamina wasn't as good as other kids her age, her skin was rough, her hair was brittle and her weight didn't seem like healthy baby fat anymore. I found myself getting hurt by some comments made by friends and strangers (don't worry friends, I'm long over it). Mama bear was on guard! I didn't want my little girl to feel the pressure and judgement of others or even me at such a young and tender age. I prayed and prayed to get some sort of answer even if it was peace and reassurance that everything was just fine.

I remember this one day where I couldn't get it out of my head that maybe, just maybe, Jade had Hypothyroidism (like me). She had all the right symptoms and the genes to inherit it. I took Jade to her pediatrician and shared with him my concerns. He told me that it was very unlikely that Jade had Hypothyroidism because usually they are diagnosed as babies or much later in life. He didn't want to test her for it but said he would just to clear my Mom worries and probably to shut me up.

Blood test #1 results: 
Low thyroid

They said they wanted to get another test to make sure it wasn't just some freak result.

Blood test #2 results:
Low thyroid

They told me that her levels changed dramatically and wanted to get one last test done to see if it would fluctuate again.

Blood test #3 results:
Low  thyroid

This is when they diagnosed her with Hypothyroidism and filled her an ongoing prescription for Synthroid.

Let's just say I thoroughly enjoyed my next pediatric appointment. My doctor apologized for not seeing the signs himself, for discouraging me to get her tested and congratulated me on my intuition. I felt like Super Mom leaving the doctors office that day. Take that medical school, sometimes Moms know best!

I'm grateful for family and friends who kept me positive during those dreadful blood draws and for a loving Heavenly Father that guided me along the way. We are very excited to know that Jade's body is getting what it needs and happy to have the healthiest Jadie girl possible! That girl deserves the best of everything!

Leo's First Birthday!

I HATE when babies turn one. All of a sudden they stop being babies overnight. But you can't stop time so Leo is now our one year old boy! This boy of ours is a gem and a half. He is a different breed than his big sister. They both have their own strengths and I enjoy learning their strengths on what sometimes feels like a daily basis. Some ways to describe Leo would be:

Active! Leo is one active boy. He likes to be included in all things. We have a couple rooms in the house that we don't like him to go in and when he sees us close the doors, he throws is head back in an all out rage. Poor guy! Lucky for us, he doesn't stay mad for too long, he quickly moves onto something else. 
Quiet. Yes this is a strength. It might be because his sister does most of the talking in our house. 
Happy. 
Smart. For example, one day I opened the front door and ran to get something from our car and he followed me, climbed down our front porch stairs and was at my feet before I even got what I needed from the car. I had no idea he knew how to go down stairs. 
Observant. I only have to show him once how to do something, and sometimes I don't have to show him at all and he learns.
Problem solver. I love how he doesn't demand my help for every little thing. He tries to solve problems himself first and usually succeeds. 
Playful.  He loves teasing!

He loves:
balls, Jade, meat, water, straws, baths, climbing(he can already get onto the couch, tables, beds and chairs), he also loves going up and down stairs, slides, getting dirty and most importantly his own reflection.

Updates:
Has 4 teeth (although I think he only had two on his birthday)
Sleeps well
Says mama, dada, duck and hi
Waves
Claps
High fives
Shakes his head
Eats anything
Walks (this started a month after his birthday)

We are so blessed to have Leo in our family.  Nothing but unconditional love for this sweet boy.

Jade Marie Stevens is 3 years old!

Oh the joy that Jade brings into our lives!! For those of you who don't get the pleasure of knowing Jade, let me paint you the picture that is Jade Marie Stevens.
Imagine a short little bouncy haired girl with a tiny yet LOUD voice. She doesn't do ANYTHING unless it's recognized, because what's worth the effort if you don't get praise right? I can't imagine Jade ever going through a hard time in life and not being able to overcome it. She finds it easier to be happy than to be unhappy. Her laugh is my life's theme song. She giggles at anything! She makes babysitters, aunts, uncles, grandparents and friends feel like the funniest people in the world. But she truly thinks they all are! She is always looking to make a room laugh. She loves her brother Leo, but not in the motherly, nurturing way. She loves him in the be my best friend, always inclusive, party with me way. When Leo was born I thought my attention sponge of a daughter would have a hard time sharing the spotlight..but she didn't! When she sees me gooing at Leo, she either joins in or compliments his cuteness. I see many qualities that will stay with her forever because she just came with them. She will ALWAYS be:

Beautiful
Giggly
Funny
Helpful
Observant
Talkative
Smart
Musical (this girl can sing and entertain at the same time, I see theater in her future)

Some of my favorite things I have recorded Jade saying this year:

Don't rush me, I'm laughing

(while pointing at herself in a picture) Dad, that girl is hungry.

I love you TOO much mom.

All of my friends are beautiful.

I'm happy because I'm Jade.

I talked to Jesus and told him that I puked in a bowl.

(Grandpa asked Jade when she is coming back to Brazil) I can't, we don't have any money.

(After a very traumatic experience getting her blood drawn) Dear Heavenly Father, Thank you for this day. Doctors are mean. I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ Amen. 

We threw a barn yard bash party for Jade. We brought the jump house and decorated it to look like a barn (we forgot to take a picture of this..oops!), had farm animal cupcakes, broke open a pinata, and cuddled with our then baby chicks. I spent way to many hours making stick horses for the kids to take as their take home gift(major back pain, major regrets). Thank you for all who helped me decorate, take down, came and spoiled celebrated Jade!