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dear parker,
i’m not really sure where to begin. as i sit here thinking about what just to say you are sitting across from me watching ninja turtles and carrying on and on to yourself. something about nun-chucks and turtle power. your imagination boggles my brain. i have no idea where you get it from. your personality is like none other truly.
and today, today you are four. and today, today i am heartbroken.
i have no idea where the last four years have gone, but i know they are going too quickly. and i begin to think how quickly the next four will go. and the four after that. and the four after that. your sweet innocence. your outspoken honesty. your very, very loud mouth. the sound of your little giggle. one day i will look back and miss it all. i adore you little man. the sweet way you walk into our bedroom and say good morning. the way you look at me and say please. the way your little fingers twirl my hair at any given chance. and while i know we have rough days, i wouldn’t trade anything for the world. i’m sure a day will come when i actually miss the sound of you arguing with your brother over toys. but until then i’m begging you to stop growing up. please. because the day we discovered i was pregnant feels like it were only yesterday. sadly though, that day was almost five years ago. and on this day, for years ago, i will never ever forget when your eyes met mine for the first time. you were mine. i was yours. and i loved you with every fiber of my being. and i still do. and if it’s humanly possible i love you more with each passing day. you are amazing, parker. you have given our lives so much meaning and definition. and while i look forward to your future and all the amazing things i know you will do, and accomplish and be – i can’t help but to be a teenie tiny bit selfish in hopes that you would stop growing up. stay little. stay innocent. stay naive to the world around you. because parker, you are perfect just the way you are. i love your sweet disposition. the way your little arms wrap perfectly around my neck. your mischievous little grin. the way you wear your ball cap to the side.
so today, on your fourth birthday, i wish you nothing but a bright future filled with good and happiness. i promise to always give you the world. i promise to always protect you. i promise, that even on our worst days, to always love you. to always kiss you goodnight. to always, always be your mommy. i love you parker. i love you more than you will ever, ever know.
held an impromptu session with my family over the weekend. sunny and 80 in november doesn’t happen everyday. neither does family pictures. so we took advantage of it.
see the post {HERE} and enjoy.
it’s been awhile. sorry. i’ve been swamped with work. speaking of work. i did just purchase a new lens. an amazing new lens. and just in time for halloween. so enjoy just a few random pictures and i promise to write more often.
parker just wrapped up his first season of soccer. and he loved it. i mean loved. the kids is a natural, too if i do say so myself. he should be. after all, we do have a goalies net in our living room. oh the things we do for our kids. anyway, yesterday was his sports banquet. a little lunch and awards. parker received his very own medal. now. he wanted a trophy, but after some serious convincing that “medals are way cooler” he finally came to grips with it. and now. now he’s very proud. and so am i. and yes, i cried.
what a beautiful day. warm. sunny. clear skies. happy kids. what more could you ask for? then throw in a family outing to a little place called rombach farms for pumpkin picking. i adore this little farm. it’s small. quaint. just perfect. so doug and i took our knuckleheads to pick pumpkins. it’s an annual tradition. this year we picked four. and just wait till you see pictures after we carve them. they are going to. be. good.
a perfect day with my little family of four. i would have spent it no other way.
we did the glow run over the weekend. um. beyond fun. we took the boys. dressed in our best neon apparel. joined the sea of other crazy and colorful individuals. and at 7:15p we ran the streets of downtown lighting the way with our glow sticks, glow wigs, glow makeup. glow everything. it was awesome. my boys had a great time just taking it all in. the best part – they each got a finishers medal. that obviously made parker’s entire night. after all, he did “win” the race.
we hosted carter’s party on a saturday afternoon. on his actual birthday. lucky kid. i wanted to do a carnival theme without the carnival. so. all you can eat snow cones, popcorn, pixie sticks, suckers, sugar, sugar, sugar. mother of the year right here. and we were so blessed to have all of our family and friends here to celebrate. we gathered round, sang happy birthday (i cried) and watched as my baby devoured his smash cake.
what an incredible day we had. so much fun. so much laughter. so many people coming together for one special little man’s birthday. thank you to all who shared it with us. we love each and every single one of you. and carter, happy birthday. we adore you more than you will ever know.
i never, ever, EVER thought i would want to, say i would, or attempt to run a marathon. i never, ever, EVER thought i would actually cross the finish line at one, either. but this weekend. well. i did. and not only did i cross the finish line, but so did my incredible, loving, inspiring, strong as a rock husband. oh. and parker, too.
we decided some time ago we would set out to do a marathon. why? who in god’s name knows. it always sounds like a good thing at the time. it sounds cool. like, “hey, i’m going to run a marathon in september.” then september comes. then the weekend of the event comes. then the morning of the event comes. and moments before the bell sounded i remember thinking, “oh lord please just let me cross that finish line. pleeeaaassseee.” i knew deep down i could do it, but in all honesty i surprised myself. i think i even surprised doug, too. he says he knew i could do it, but i i didn’t. i was so afraid of letting him down. letting my kids down. my family. myself.
the bell let out a loud whistle and we were off. surprisingly i felt great. i was at mile 5 before i knew it. then mile 8. then mile 11. 12. and there it was, the finish line. then i felt it. a snap. like a rubber band. in my left leg. i looked at doug and winced. whatever it was, it hurt. so we walked for a few minutes, but i was so close i could taste it. and i swear i could see parker and carter cheering me on. i think i may have teared up a bit, too. i know, i know. i’m a sap. so i sucked it up and we were off. doug and i were in the home stretch. they had the entire finish line flanked with these large jets. just lined up. running under the wings of history. it was incredible. then i hear it “i see parker!” i look over and there are my babies who are held so proudly by doug’s parents. cheering us on. that’s all i needed to get me through. i scooped up parker and we ran. hand in hand in hand. we crossed that finish line together. parker was so excited. his face lit up like christmas. he was laughing. people were clapping for him. cheering for us. this. this is what got me through the last 13.1 miles. the last 2.5 hours. this. this moment. i had done it. we had done it. it was amazing.
what an incredible weekend in ohio. would i do it again? not tomorrow. but yes, again. i will definitely do it again.
last weekend doug and i made our way up to chicago with the boys. doug was going to be participating in his first triathlon. talk about impressive. i’ve watched my husband train for months and months and months. seriously. a long time. and finally the time had come.
we loaded the kids up at 6am and were on our way. we landed in chicago right around lunch time. so of course we walked down to al’s beef. um. delish. the rest of the weekend we just wandered in and out of stores. shop. eat. shop. eat. so on and so on.
the day was upon us. doug woke up and made his way down to lakeshore drive at 4am. myself and the boys were soon to follow around 7am. we made it just in time to wish daddy good luck and give hugs and kisses. before i knew it the horn sounded and he was off. we followed along side the lake watching him swim. cheering him on. once done we waited for him and as he came out of the water we exchanged high-fives and went to the next transition. he was on the bike and gone for about an hour. next thing i know we see him running our way. he looked incredible and had a huge smile on his face. he was doing great. some more high-five’s and lots of cheering was exchanged, then we made our way to the finish line to wait. i’ll admit. i cried a little. i’m so proud of him. as i walked up to the finish line i looked around. i was surrounded by 20,000 people. it was an incredible vibe. we snagged a spot right on the finish line and waited. then we saw him. he did it. he looked over at us cheering him on and i saw a huge smile come across his face. he had done it. i can’t even begin to imagine how he felt. but i know what i felt. proud.
1 mile swim
26 mile bike
6.2 mile run
3 hours 17 min
babe, congrats. you did it. you can cross it off the bucket list. we are so proud of you and you should be so proud of yourself. you worked hard. trained hard. you deserve this. congrats a million times over, shugs!
parker graduated gymnastics last night. another big sniff sniff. gosh. it’s hard watching him grow up. before class even started i teard up a little thinking about it. sigh. he loved this class. and the teachers. saints. the amount of patience these kind women have is beyond me. we now practice flips and balancing and hanging from just about anything at home all the time. i’m so proud of him. he’s getting so big so fast. seems only like yesterday when my eyes met his for the first time ever.
parker just graduated swimming school last night. sniff. sniff. i’m so proud of him. he adored each and every second of it and might i add he not once had to sit in timeout. that’s impressive in itself. i cannot thank miss amanda enough for the love, support and endless amount of patience she gave to my child. i can’t wait for class to start back up. until then, enjoy some photos of my little guppy.
last weekend doug and i took the kids to the ozarks. my aunt and uncle own a beautiful home there. so they invited us to bring the kids down to play. and play we did. what a wonderful weekend. sun. water. and great, great company. parker is my water baby and this weekend was no exception. he strapped on his life jacket, hopped on that jet-ski and drove it like a pro. it was nice spending the weekend with my family. i grew up on the lake when i was kid. so it was great driving through town and seeing some of the old stomping grounds. it’s been years and years since i’ve last been. lots of great memories there. i can only hope to make more.
what a wonderful weekend. thank you a million times over to my family for opening their hearts and homes. we had an incredible time.
last weekend my nephew brodie had his first communion. see. brodie is the first of 5 grand babies. he is the little man that has paved the way for the rest of the rottens. he’s teaching them all the ropes of suckering grandma and grandpa into just about anything. including m&m’s for lunch. and the next day was ralph’s baptism. ralph is the newest baby. #5. he’s very sweet, very small, and very quiet. i just love him. what a wonderful weekend full of celebration, tears (of happiness) and making memories to cherish.
enjoy. see them all here.
for parker’s third birthday, we decided to have his party at doug’s work. for those of you who don’t know, doug is a helicopter pilot for the city of st. louis police department. probably one of the coolest (if not coolest) job around. which makes parker a very, very lucky little boy. can you imagine how cool show and tell will be one day?
we had bbq, cake, balloons and even a little helicopter show put on by daddy. the kids went crazy. they sat in them, asked lots of questions and had fun just in general.
i wouldn’t change a thing about the day. it was hands down perfect. a big thank you from doug and myself to everyone who came. family. friends. we were surrounded by a massive amount of love.
see them all here.
so on parker’s birthday we had the family over to our home. and because parker and nuna (grandma) share a birthday, we celebrated two amazing people. my house was filled with good food, love, laughter, rotten children and of course — cake. presents were open. some were put together. happy birthday was sang. and as i snapped pictures a few tears clouded my vision. the entire day i would look at the clock and say “this time, three years ago, my water broke” or “this time, three years ago, i was being wheeled in to the OR for a c-section” or “this time, three years ago, my baby’s eyes met mine and i was smitten”. it was such a bitter-sweet day. my baby was three. three. three. three. three.years.old. and i could not even begin to tell you where the past three years have gone, but they have gone by quickly.
happy birthday parker and nuna. you both mean the world to me.
enjoy.
today my baby turns three. three. three. three. three.years.old. my heart cannot handle it. no one tells you 1. how hard parenting is or 2. how quickly it all passes you by. so today when i woke up i peeked in my three year old’s room to find him still snoozing away, i began to sob. i mean sob. then i came downstairs to find a note on the kitchen counter.
on the front it reads–
“happy birthday parker!! mommy, please read this for parker. xoxo”
then i open it up to find this —
“dear parker,
happy birthday buddy!! daddy loves you so very much! i can’t believe you are already three! i can tell you one thing…the last three years have been the best three years of my life. i never thought being a daddy would be so cool, so much fun, sometimes so hard, but i wouldn’t trade it for the entire world. i look forward to seeing your little face every morning and every night. i could not imagine my world without you. i look forward to wrestle bed, kick kick, doing big air and everything else you want to play. buddy, you are my best little buddy in the entire world (of course your brother too)!! i am soooo proud to be your daddy and cannot wait to watch you grow up and turn into a big guy, but don’t do it too fast. happy birthday little buddy. daddy will never ever forget the day you came into this world. i have never been so proud, but each day i become more and more proud at the little man that your mother and i are raising. happy birthday, parker.
with love,
daddy
xoxo”
sniff. sniff.
since i can’t really see due to tears clouding my vision, i will just add that three years ago today was one of the single most amazing days of my life. i love my little boy and the little man he is becoming. i wouldn’t trade even the worst of days for the world. i love you p. more than you will ever know.
happy easter from the reinholz clan.
last weekend carter found jesus. and by found jesus, i mean he was baptized. in the church doug grew up in. in the church doug and i were married in. in the church parker was baptized in. all by the same man. msgr. bommarito. carter even wore (albeit a tad snug) doug’s baptismal gown that parker too wore. we could not have asked for a nicer day. sunshine. family. fried chicken. cake. it’s how we catholic’s roll.
a huge thanks to mom and dad r., god mommy (“aunt” mary mo) and god daddy (cousin danny), friends and family. carter is so loved and we could not ask for anything more.
see more here. enjoy.
on wednesday my boys woke up in outstanding moods. with the weatherman predicting a gorgeous day (in the 80’s) i decided that we would be spending the day outside. so i loaded the stroller, the 4-wheeler, 2 children, a diaper bag, snacks, and more. off we went. less than one mile from the house and “POP!”. there goes my tire. 3 hours later we were on our way to the trail to enjoy the rest of this beautiful day.
by the way – before you make fun of parker for his four-wheeler please keep in mind that he owns a (much) bigger one but would (much) rather ride this sad little thing. it took us about an hour to go about a quarter of a mile. but it was still enjoyable and i wouldn’t have had it any other way.
it’s been a little while since i’ve updated this blog with family photos. well. by family i mean the kids. and by the kids i mean BOTH kids TOGETHER. that never happens. never. i guess i caught parker in a good mood because he was all smiles and proudly yelling cheese with each click of the camera.
see more here. enjoy.
5 months. already. sigh.
well. i finally busted out the play-doh. why? because. because we got 3″ of snow today and the entire city freaked out, shut down, sat in traffic, so on and so on. and because i don’t deal with the daily commute, myself and kiddos spent the entire day in our pajamas playing with play-doh. snow, feel free to stick around. i love the time i get with my children. it’s invaluable. especially the stay in our pajama snow type of days.
just a few pictures of my boys. i adore them to pieces.
yes. i do know christmas has come and gone. i have just been one busy wife. and mom. and photographer. so, just a few shots of the kiddos christmas morning. oh, and yes, they made out like bandits. literally. for anyone who knows me you know i am very ocd. i (almost) had an anxiety attack just looking at the mess. but, they are happy and that is all.that.matters.
went to breakfast with santa last weekend. now parker is not a big santa fan. we went to branson for thanksgiving and there was a santa in one of the shops. i spotted parker talking to him and i almost died. i could not get my camera fast enough. so, i thought that maybe, just maybe, i’d be able to get a halfway decent photo of my boys on santa’s lap. i was wrong. i also thought i’d get a shot of all the kids on santa’s lap. i was wrong. again.
in honor of someone’s first christmas (and some inspiration from my newest addiction, pinterest) i set up a little photoshoot last night with the littlest of reinholz boys.
feliz navidad.
that’s what little boys are made of.
or so they say.
but one look at these little faces says otherwise.
today marks carter’s 6 week birthday. 6 weeks? insane. he is growing so fast right before my eyes. he is such a happy baby. smiles. coos. snuggles. and the best thing – he sleeps. a lot. at night. when i want to sleep. i’m talking in bed between 9p-10p and up between 7a-9a. it’s amazing. a-ma-zing.
parker is incredible. he is so smart. each day i find myself thinking “where did he learn that?” or “what did he just say?” he’s such a little boy. talking non-stop. carrying on conversations. playing soccer in the backyard. wrestling with daddy on the bed. he still adores his monster trucks. and with each day is a new (and funny) adventure with him. he is hands down one of the funniest people i know. the kid is a riot.
the newest addition to the reinholz clan is one month old. already. where does time go? i mean, really? where does it go? at one month i have already cried thinking about just how big he is getting. then of course i instantly begin thinking about him going off to kindergarten. his prom. his wedding. his babies. sigh.
i’m happy to say he is doing great. he is an easy baby. he’s also very happy. smiles a lot. coo’s a lot. and is very strong. he’s been holding his head up since he was born. he sleeps well – typically 3-5 hours at a time. and i think he is finally getting his days and nights figured out. he is a lot more awake and alert during the day. and the last two nights he’s slept 8+ hours. thank you baby jesus.
and finally, at his one month check-up he weighed in at 13.2lbs and 23.5″ and we were told he’s in the 99th percentile across the board. our big chunker.
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