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.

The Miracles Behind Mohawk

I haven't been able to tell the masses the full story behind our recent move so I thought I would take a minute this morning and walk you through how it all happened... IN SIX DAYS.

In order to do so, I need to back up.  61 days before Andrew was born, our landlord told us that he wanted to put our house on the market and we needed to be out in 60 days.  This was my SECOND time to move in my third trimester and I was a mess about it.  Due to the timing, we were not able to be picky about the neighborhood or the house.  Thank God we had a couple from our community group who had a GORGEOUS rental home available right away! It was (and still is) the nicest and most updated home we have ever lived in.  They were so gracious and didn't make us sign a lease or put down a deposit.  We had no idea how long we would be in that home and it felt nice to just LAND somewhere and figure out the rest later.

Fast forward to February of this year.  My sister was approaching her due date with her first baby and the second she went into labor, I was going to hop in the car with my Mom and Andrew and drive to Illinois to be at the birth.  As we were all sitting around waiting for Dottie to make her appearance, I was able to go to our neighborhood Kindergarten roundup.  Originally, I was not supposed to be in town for it.

But God...

TUESDAY 

I will leave out the name of the school, but I left kinder roundup crying.  Although we were living in the most beautiful home, I did NOT have a peace about the school.  I also put our name in a lottery for the local magnet school, but there was no guarantee that we would get into that school.  The beauty of that school was that we would not have to move so Logan and I started researching the school, taking tours, and going to info nights there.

For some reason I STILL did not have peace.  Paperwork for the magnet school was in but I was not settled in my spirit.  The VISION I had for my family was to live in a neighborhood with a lot of young families.  I also dreamt of a "front yard neighborhood." One where people were outside and interacting with each other instead of isolated within their homes.

WEDNESDAY 

On Dottie's due date, I  got a text from a good friend of mine that Mohawk (which historically NEVER has spots for incoming kinder) had an unusually small kinder roundup and that I should get my transfer paperwork ready.   I talked to several folks within the district about transfer approvals in RISD.  Well, let's just say... They don't happen.  You have to have a family member on staff or a signed lease or contract on a house in the neighborhood in order to transfer to a school.  The reason behind this is to encourage neighborhood kids to attend their neighborhood school.

So transferring was out of the question and I nervously brought up the topic of moving (AGAIN) with Logan.  It was the only way I knew we would for sure get into the school.  Now I know that for some, kindergarten is not a huge deal.  Logan was not thrilled but he could tell that putting Stella in the RIGHT school was very important to me.

THURSDAY

My friend Ashley told me about a rental house ACROSS THE STREET FROM HER.  I went to look at the house by myself on Thursday night.  It was essentially a 1965 home that had been minimally updated but possessed a ton of character.  It was hard to grapple with going from a very updated, modern home to what I endearingly called a "grandma house" but my friend reminded me that this decision needed to be for STELLA and NOT for me.  Humbling and SO true.

Logan told me that night that he would be open to seeing it but he was not about to sign a lease on a home if I had never stepped foot inside the school.  So Thursday night I called and left a message to see if I could come take a school tour sometime soon and that we were considering moving to the neighborhood.

FRIDAY

On Friday, both of my parents made the decision to go ahead and drive to Illinois since Katy was now several days PAST her due date, it was the weekend and that would ensure they would likely be AT Dottie's birth instead of in the car.  I knew that I needed to get this kindergarten thing wrapped up so I told them to go ahead without me.  Funny enough, the PRINCIPAL called me on Friday and asked if I could come in for a tour with her later that afternoon.  So I said YES!  Meanwhile, Logan found a ROUND TRIP AIRFARE TO ILLINOIS FOR $90.  That is including taxes. WHAT ON EARTH!!! This was not only in our budget, but saved Andrew and I from 2 very long car rides that I was anxious about with a baby.

I completely clicked with the principal during the tour and by the end, I was completely drinking the Koolaid.  Everything about their approach to education to the fact that most families walk to school every day, had me SOLD!  I left giddy and came home and told Logan I don't care if we live in a shoebox but our kids need to go to this school!

SATURDAY

Logan and I went and looked at the house and filled out a rental application.  Word was getting out that Mohawk had kinder openings, so there was increased interest in the property and we were just praying it would work out in our favor.

SUNDAY

We got chosen for the house and had the lease emailed over to us.

MONDAY

I went up to Mohawk and enrolled Stella in kindergarten.  ALSO THE SAME DAY THAT MY SISTER WENT INTO LABOR!!!!

TUESDAY

My $90 flight was already scheduled for Tuesday morning so I got to meet Dottie when she was just 24 hours old!

MIRACLE UPON MIRACLE. 

Some may call all of this coincidence, but I know it was God very clearly directing my steps.  I think Dottie going past her due date was all part of His plan.  Had Katy gone into labor the week before, NONE of this would have happened and the rental would have gone to someone else.  I think the wisdom my friend Ashley spoke over me. The timing of the school tour. The rental house. The $90 round trip tickets.  ALL OF IT. He orchestrated FOR ME.

God is in the details, friends. He cares about every aspect of our lives. And I have never been more certain that this is where He has us.

We couldn't be more thrilled with our new neighborhood.  We have had cookies, brownies, a goodie basket and candle delivered as Welcome gifts.  Neighbors continue to come over and introduce themselves.  My kids played basketball with our backyard neighbors this weekend and we found out that they also go to our same church.  Never in our 8 years of marriage have we lived in such an inviting and warm neighborhood. The house might be more outdated than our last house, but it feels like HOME. We intend on PLANTING here.

HOW TO DO THE TEXAS STATE FAIR WITH TODDLERS

We ventured to the State Fair this year with a 4.5 year old, 2.5 year old and 4 WEEK OLD! Yes... you read that right! I was not willing to give up one of my favorite fall traditions so we strapped Andrew to my chest and went for it!  I wanted to share a few things that made our time at the Fair enjoyable and FUN as a family!

#1 - Weekday.  It is substantially more crowded at the fair on the weekends.

#2 - Plan 3 or 4 things that you want to accomplish.  There is no way you are going to be able to SEE and DO it all.  Our list included:  1) See Big Tex 2) Eat a Fletcher's Corn Dog & Cotton Candy 3) Ride a few rides  // Although my hubby would have loved to walk through the Car Show and see more exhibits, we adjusted our expectations for this year so that no one left frustrated or in "meltdown mode."

#3 - If you have a wagon or double stroller, BRING IT! With 3 kiddos under the age of 5, we were able to easily keep track of everyone by having the girls in the wagon and wearing Andrew.

#4 - Pack water bottles!!! No need to pay for drinks at the fair.  Pack your kids their favorite thermos and spend your tickets on the food and rides!

#5 - This changes every year, but we brought canned goods on Wednesday and each got in for $4! The State Fair can add up, so this was BIG Savings for our little clan!

We went at 4:30 and left by 7pm.  It was genuinely an ENJOYABLE and beautiful night for our family and Gigi!

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 

Maternity Pictures

5 Days to go Ninja Baby. 

So thankful we had these taken.  Dorly you are magic.  These pictures will make me smile ALWAYS.  

Margot or Andrew? 

Either way, you are loved FIERCELY! We know you are STRONG. BIG. And WIGGLE A LOT! 

All my love, my dear XX

Mommy

Gender Predictions for Bébé 3

Old Wives Tales

Heartbeat (Always around 140) - BOY (Both girls were 160s)

Chinese Calendar - BOY

Necklace Test (Circular vs. Linear) - BOY

Morning Sickness (I had ZERO but was very nauseous/ had food aversions with both girls) - BOY 

Complexion (Minimal Breakouts + "Glow") - BOY

Sweet (Girl) or Salty (Boy) - GIRL (definitely wanting all the sweets!)

Carrying High (Girl) or Low (Boy) - BOY (both of my girls were wedged way up in my rib cage)

Statistics (If you have had 2 of the same gender, you are 80% likely to have a 3rd of the same gender) - GIRL

So (almost) all of these point to having a B-O-Y!!!! Logan and I both think it is a boy but we are wrong every time haha! We thought both Stella AND Chloé were boys before we found out... SOOOOO I wouldn't trust us haha!

Regardless we will be thrilled!

I WOULD LOVE FOR YOU TO PLAY ALONG WITH OUR BABY HUNCH POOL --->

If you'd like to play, simply click the link provided below to submit your hunches!

Once you visit the page, click 'Enter New Hunches' to submit your hunches...

BABY HUNCH GUESSING POOL

30A Vacation Roundup

Santa Rosa Beach 2017

+ Sunshine
+ Netflix
+ Seaside Shopping
+ Seafood
+ Rainy Days
+ Cousins
+ Oysters
+ Noodle Light Saber Wars
+ Double Red Flags
+ Tide Pool "Ride"
+ Mermaid Spa Pedicures
+ Blake Shelton Essentials on Apple Radio
+ DADDY arriving on Wednesday vs. Friday!
+ Ice Cream
+ Aloe Vera
+ Back porch cookouts
+ Pool Time

Thank you Gigi and Opa for a WONDERFUL week!