Kindergarten

It was just yesterday that we found out you were a BABY GIRL! We shot an artsy video in France while Aunt Kiki was in town and played it via Skype for all the grandparents as our big GENDER REVEAL!

We JUST took your baby passport pictures and walked through St. Emillion like rookie parents with a stroller on a cobblestone street.

It was just yesterday that we moved across the WORLD with a 12 week old on an 11 hour international flight back to Texas.  (You slept the entire time!)

It was just yesterday that we drove 2 hours per day in a borrowed car to take Daddy to and from work because we had sold our cars before France and had nowhere to live and no money to buy a new car.

I still remember taking you to Square 1 at Watermark and meeting a ton of Mommas who actually live in Richardson and many are starting kinder with you this year!

I remember how "busy" you were.... You were an incredible sleeper but naps weren't really your thing. You and I ran all over town running errands and you were my little buddy.  Every time we got in the car I would announce "Stella! Time to go on an adventure!"

We moved to Lakewood in a tiny duplex that didn't have a BATH TUB so your whole first year you had to shower with me or your Daddy.  You still prefer showers to baths. :)

I still remember taking you to Baby Bounce at Northpark and it was an EPIC FAIL.  All these moms with well behaved children while you ran around in and out of the babies with your scarves over your head and wouldn't listen to one thing the music teacher was asking you to do. We never went back!

Then we had your first day at Mother's Day Out.  We would drive and get matching smoothies at Smoothie King or split a muffin at Starbucks and then I would drop you off, work as hard and as fast as I could and come back to pick you up.  You loved school from DAY 1.

You are also super flexible as we have moved 7 times in your 5 years of life so far.  When we lived in Lakewood you had this AMAZINGLY bright and cheerful bright turquoise room.  It was my favorite place in the world.

I still remember your 1st Halloween and your cute ladybug costume and how you charmed all the neighbors with how cute you were. Then we had your "ladybug" themed first birthday party in honor of your nickname Stella-bug :)



FAST FORWARD TO this week when I took you to get your nails painted and have your first proper tea party and Daddy took you to play your first round of Putt Putt and you loved it, despite the 99 degree heat.  It is a week of FIRSTS....




I am not sure how we got here, but tomorrow we send you off to your FIRST DAY of Kindergarten.  Each year you have grown, changed, made new friends, and become more and more your own little person.   You are ready.  You are going to be a light. We are SO proud of you. We know this is the right school and you got the perfect teacher.  We are praying for her and for sweet, lifelong friends during these elementary school years.

Soar, baby girl.  You were made to fly. We love you.

Our Newborn Photos: Andrew Moose

Cydnee Jex is the lovely woman who took both Chloé and Andrew's newborn pictures.  I wanted to write a post and praise her work because she has given us pictures (now twice!) that we will treasure forever.

Pictures for me and really important so I was wanting to find someone that would fit our budget and also do beautiful work and Cydnee was that person for us.

Some things that I love about her new in-home studio:
+ She has a HUGE assortment of blankets, props, swaddles, and backgrounds to make your creative vision come to life.  Also NO NEED to buy lots of hats and headbands... she has you covered. (See below!)
+ She has a connecting bathroom complete with a changing table, wipes, pads for Mom (since you are likely 7 to 10 days postpartum) and anything else you could ever need!
+ She keeps the room really warm and has a "Shhh!" machine to help keep the baby comfortable and asleep.

Some things I love about working with HER specifically:
+ She likes to meet with clients at least one time before the shoot to get to know you, the nursery theme and colors, and any Pinterest-inspiration you may have for her to tailor your shoot.
+ She is SO calm and LOVES babies.  I was SO stressed that morning (especially when Andrew started crying) and she never got phased or made me feel rushed or upset.  She let me nurse him for awhile until he was good and full and went back to making the magic happen.  She literally spent 45 minutes calming him down so we could get a certain shot I wanted for the birth announcement.
+ She has an assistant on set to help her so that you can relax or take care of the other kiddos!
+ She does ALL family photos first so that if you do have toddlers, you can get them over with and let them go play while she finishes the shoot.
+ The Photo REVEAL! She had me come to her studio for the reveal and had all the pictures printed out and matted/ displayed on the wall so I could see them, touch them, and choose my favorites.  I got to go home with the printed 5x7 images and she later uploaded the online gallery to share with my family and friends.
+ She has packages for every budget.

A few other facts:
+ She has the option for you to bring in one of her hair/ makeup ladies to prep you for pictures.  Likely since you are sleep deprived, you may not have the time and energy to spend on yourself.
+ She is located close to Little Elm so although it was a bit of a drive for us to get there, it was worth it!
+ She has GREAT printed options such as leather books, photo memory boxes, and some various rustic and modern frame options.  All really high quality.
+ She has built a really impressive portfolio of MATERNITY sessions and has lots of beautiful gowns to choose from if you want to look into her using her for that!  You can also use her gowns for your postpartum shoots as well since they are very loose and forgiving.

Below are a few of my favorite images.  I am saving the Birth Announcement images until we get them printed and mailed out because its my FAVORITE one! It was really hard to choose.

Thank you Cydnee for these priceless images.  So appreciate everything you have done for our little family.

You can find her here:

Website: http://www.cljphoto.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cljphotography/

Instagram: @cljphoto.tx

Email: cljphoto.tx@gmail.com

It's a BOY!

I am THRILLED to announce that we had a little BOY last week!

Tuesday, September 5th at 7:54am little ANDREW MOOSE MISEGADES came into the world while Hillsong's "Oceans" was playing.

He weighed in at 8 lbs 7 oz and was 19.75 inches long. (Our shortest but heaviest baby!)

We hired a photographer to capture the moment Logan told me as well as Logan's proud waiting room moment... Both of those experiences were exactly WHY we wanted to do surprise gender this time and it exceeded all expectations! Before I share all of those the pictures, I did want to explain the details behind his name.

ANDREW -

This is a story I have only shared with a handful of people.  Because we weren't sure on the gender, I was a bit insecure on sharing this yet.  In 2015 I was sitting in a sermon at our church in Southlake.  Chloé was only 5 months old so there was no future baby on our radar.  During the sermon, our Pastor was actually going through all of the disciples and how they died a martyrs death.  When he got to Andrew he choked up as he explained that "Andrew was whipped severely by seven soldiers in Greece and then crucified. His followers reported that when he was lead towards the cross, Andrew said these words 'I have long desired and expected this happy hour.'  He continued to preach to his tormentors for two days until he died." I don't know how to explain it but at the very moment I had the thought WOW what a man of faith, I feel like the Lord downloaded a promise into my heart.  In my heart and spirit I feel like He told me, You are going to have a son and his name will be Andrew.  From that moment on, I have held onto that promise.  I wasn't sure if Andrew would be this baby, a future biological baby, a future adopted baby, or a future boy that we mentored.  What has been cool is the timing of all of this.  He told me this is August 2015 and my anxiety/ insomnia started in September of 2015 and then last summer I had all my health scares surrounding my voice and swallowing.  I remember the darker days when I wasn't sure if I was going to make it through or wondering if I was about to receive a terminal diagnoses... The Lord would gently remind me that He was not through with me yet because I still have a son to be born named Andrew.  So in those valleys, I had a flicker of hope.... The promise of THIS little boy.  Andrew has never been on Logan's or my radar as a name ... ever ... but we obediently named him Andrew and it couldn't be more fitting because of the meaning and the Promise behind it.  He is our redemption baby.

MOOSE -

Moose is actually Logan's Mom's maiden name (Sherilyn Moose).  Pictured below is Grandpa Moose who Logan had a really special relationship with.  Growing up he was always jealous of his cousins who got the last name MOOSE because he thought it was so cool.  We are hoping our boy thinks the same thing! I mean he's bound to be cool with a name like THAT!  Another funny fact is that Logan out of all his siblings favors the Moose side of the family versus the Misegades.  So THERE is the mystery of "Moose" explained for everyone.

People have been asking what to call this little man of ours.  I want it to be organic.  I will refer to him as Andrew but we already have a pretty big fan club calling him Moose.  I am sure the "Moose" popularity will only increase over the coming years, especially when sports get introduced, ha! 

"Blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord." LUKE 1:45 

Milestones

Chloé Grace attended Camp with Big Sister this week! Outside of Sunday School, this was the first "school" type experience she has ever had! LOOK HOW BIG SHE LOOKS HERE?!?!?? Where is the time going... 

Her teachers said she was definitely ready for school. She plays well with others. Has LOTS of energy and great coordination. And somehow even took naps on her nap mat?!?!? I still don't know how teachers do this... toddler whisperers I suppose.  

This week gave me peace about the upcoming school year.  This Baby is due the FIRST day of school so I won't get to be there for their first week.  So excited for them both :) 

THREE YEARS OLD.

THREE. Three years ago, this beautiful girl made me a Mommy. We were in France and I had no idea how my life was about to change. Stella Rose Misegades, you are a JOY. I learn from you every day. You love fiercely. You laugh uncontrollably. You live LIFE to its fullest. You are KIND. Everyone (teachers and friends alike) talk about how much they love you and how much FUN you are. Your personality is spunky and outgoing and your smile lights up the room. You are also really tender and have a sense of concern when people around you are sad or hurting. You always sweetly hug, pat, and tell them its okay. I LOVE your sensitive spirit. 

We call you a "hurricane" because you are HIGH ENERGY almost all day, every day but I wouldn't have it any other way! I hope I never forget your "Stellish" which is quickly becoming sentences that we actually understand. You are in a princess phase right now and I am soaking it ALL in. Naturally you are "Princess Ariel" but your tail is pink instead of green. (Duh!) Your favorite foods include anything with Nutella, french fries, and mac & cheese. You are also the very BEST big sister to Chloé and I can't wait to watch your bond grow. She looks up to you already and saves her best laughs and smiles for you. 

Happy Birthday my precious daughter! Excited to celebrate you ALL DAY LONG!!! Love you to the moon & back! 

XO

Mommy

Stella Rose: 17 Months Old

Oh my how you have GROWN and CHANGED. The past 5 months have FLOWN by! This month you will be 17 months old!!! You are becoming ALL toddler these days and are super independent, vocal, hilarious, adventurous, and FULL of energy! 

These days you:

- Live on Spaghetti O's and blueberries
- LOVE dipping sauces like ketchup, hot sauce, and hummus… and you just like the sauce, not the item that goes WITH the sauce 
- Love playing at Splash Pads and swinging! 
- LOVE to dance… especially to worship music :) 
- Sing your ABC's, Old MacDonald (E-I-E-I-O), and Ring around the Rosie (Ashes! Ashes!)
- Take your lovies everywhere… When you wake up you scoop them ALL up to come with you. 
- Still don't like the car
- Still want a bottle every morning and evening and pacifier during naps and bedtime (We will cut you off eventually) 
- Your special treat every day is a cup of ice from Sonic - you are rarely quiet unless you have that cup of ice! 
- You can say: Daddy, Mommy, "Nana" (banana), "Tetta" (Stella), "Bahbah" (Bottle), NO!, "Mo" (More), baby 

Thoughts on Motherhood

I have been struggling with this blog as you have probably noticed.  I have SO many words trapped in my brain... So many reflections, struggles, thoughts... and yet NO time to do it.  It almost seems like I have SO MUCH to catch up on that I can get paralyzed and just don't post at all.   But writing is therapeutic for me so this afternoon I decided I would get some thoughts down on paper and see how it felt. So here we go! 

Motherhood did not come naturally to me. 

I think my friends and definitely my parents would correct me on this and say "YES! You are a natural! You are a GREAT MOM!"  The thing is, I know am a good Mom.  But it wasn't something that clicked for me, especially at the beginning. You hear stories about how you see your baby for the first time and everything changes and you have never loved something or someone as much as you do in that moment.... Well call it the hormones or my traumatic birth experience, but the beginning months were rough on me.  This baby turned our life upside down and it took time for me to get to know her.  She was a perfect stranger to me. She couldn't play, interact, and didn't have a personality really at all.  I found myself feeling guilty that I was so bored with her.  I could only read baby books for so long or stare at her on the play mat before I felt stupid... It just didn't come natural to me. I felt like I was forcing it or even at times, faking it.  I carted her around and sure, I thought she was ADORABLE and loved dressing her up, but for me, my goal each day was to feed her and try to stop her from crying.  I started feeling the "Mommy guilt" because I didn't have this grand attachment to her like I thought I would. I also didn't feel any different as a person.  I thought I would morph into a "Mom" and somehow feel like more of a woman after having a baby...but I was still ME... with a cute pet. 

But around 8 months, I started to turn a corner.  I noticed a little spunk emerging from Stella.  She started turning from my cute accessory, to my silly sidekick. I started calling our outings "Adventures" even if we were just going to the grocery store. She LOVED riding in the shopping carts and taking it all in and my heart started to swell as I watched her learn new things and take in the world around her.  She started crawling. Babbling.  Flirting with strangers. BELLY laughing. And WALKING. And NOW I can't get enough of her.  

I have been told that some people are "Baby Moms" and others are "Toddler Moms." I think it is safe to say that I am not particularly a "Baby Mom." In fact, I am in no rush to have another one (Lord willing) because I shudder to think of going through all of that again.... I am fully content and present and LOVING where we are at right now in toddler-hood.  Stella may not be able to really talk to me, but she can communicate.  She has started walking over to me and lifting her arms up.  And I know she is reaching up for ME.... because I am her MOM and she LOVES me. There is no better feeling in the world. 

So in case anyone still reads this dusty old blog and has struggled with any of these same sort of thoughts, but has been too embarassed or nervous to share them, know that I have NO idea if we are normal or not...BUT there is someone else out there in the world who has felt the exact same way.  If you are struggling and have a newborn - SOAK up the snuggles and enjoy the fact that you can actually get stuff done without cleaning up every 30 minutes .... AND KNOW, it is only a phase and they will be 1 before you know it! 

That's all I have for today...but it felt nice to share.  Thanks for reading!