I mentioned that Annie had pictures taken last week, and here they are! I narrowed it down to 20 of my favorites.

All of the kids are crazy about Annie, especially Luke. He adores his Annemarie. He often uses her full name because he “really likes Marie.”

He’s always checking up on her and asking to hold her.

It’s pretty much the sweetest thing ever.

Annie was the only kid not kept awake by all the fireworks tonight.

Happy 4th of July! We had a very low key day here. Annie had an appointment for pictures this morning. Then we all went out to lunch this afternoon. It rained this evening and all the fireworks shows we found didn’t start until 10, so festive attire was the extent of our celebrating.

I had to take three versions of this picture, since each of the older kids insisted on holding Annie. She’s a very loved baby.

She was also pretty tired of pictures. She did well this morning at her photo appointment. I’m excited to get those pictures back. We have another session Thursday to finish up, since she only made it through about half our time today before she decided she was done.

Happy first fourth of July Annie.

And here are the other three kids at the same age.

Annemarie Audrey joined our family on June 19th at 8:11 am.

The nurse brought Annie over to me and let me hold her while we were still in the operating room. It was the first time I was able to hold one of our kids before Dave.

The kids were all super excited to meet their new little sister. Luke asked if he could hold Annie as soon as he saw her.

Maggie insisted throughout my pregnancy that the baby was a girl. We tried to prepare her in case she ended up with another brother, but it turned out she was right all along.

Unfortunately Annie had a little bit of trouble with her breathing. Her respiratory rate was too high. After a chest x-ray and a consultation with the local children’s hospital, they decided to transport her to the NICU there.

Annie was not a fan of being hooked up to all the monitors and pulled out her nasal cannula several times (feisty girl) and later her IV too.

Thankfully they were able to get everything sorted out (they are pretty sure it was all caused by too much fluid in her lungs) and Annie and I ended up getting discharged on the same day. Dave actually drove to the children’s hospital and picked up Annie and  then the two of them came to get me.

So the two of us came home together.

Here are some more pics from Annie’s first (almost) two weeks.

How old is Daddy?
Adam: 40
Luke: 29
Maggie: Um, I think he’s old. I think he’s 12.

 How tall is Daddy?
Adam: 4 ft 6 in
Luke: 21 ft
Maggie: He’s long and wiggly.

What color is Daddy’s hair?
Adam: Black
Luke: Black
Maggie: Brown

What color are Daddy’s eyes?
Adam: Brown
Luke: I think brown.
Maggie: Brown

What is Daddy’s favorite color?
Adam: Orange
Luke: Orange
Maggie: Orange

What Daddy’s favorite song?
Adam: That brand new 21 Pilots song that was in that movie.
Luke: He never told me that.
Maggie: Old MacDonald

What is Daddy’s favorite TV Show?
Adam: Sports
Luke: Sports
Maggie: Basketball

What is your favorite thing to do with Daddy?
Adam: Do sports.
Luke: Go on adventures.
Maggie: We like to play games.

What is something Daddy always says to you?
Adam: I need to work on my throwing in baseball.
Luke: Clean up after myself.
Maggie: Go away. Go to the store with me.

What is Daddy’s job?
Adam: Air Force
Luke: To take care of people.
Maggie: To guard the house and keep us safe.

What is Daddy’s favorite food?
Adam: Salad
Luke: Salad
Maggie: Peanut butter crackers

What is Daddy’s favorite drink?
Adam: Diet Coke
Luke: Soda
Maggie: Tonic Water No idea where that came from.

What does Daddy like to wear?
Adam: Black shirt and red shorts with a white stripe.
Luke: His work suit.
Maggie: A shirt.

What does Daddy do for fun?
Adam: Play video games.
Luke: Play with his friends.
Maggie: Watch us.

Where does Daddy like to go?
Adam: To the park with us.
Luke: Red Robin.
Maggie: To the park.

What do you do to make Daddy laugh?
Adam: Sometimes some stuff I say makes him laugh.
Luke: Make grown-up jokes.
Maggie: Tickle him.

What makes Daddy so smart?
Adam: His brain.
Luke: Going to work.
Maggie: Because he likes to be smart.

What makes Daddy happy?
Adam: Seeing us.
Luke: When I bring him stuff.
Maggie: The boys and me.

Why do you love Daddy?
Adam: Because he always tries to help me do stuff better and watches TV with me.
Luke: Because he loves me.
Maggie: Because he likes to play games with me.

And here are the responses from the past few years:

2016
2015
2014
2013
2012

Luke finally got the hang (pun intended) of the monkey bars this week.

If you look on the left hand side of the video Adam is watching Luke. Both boys were wearing camouflage shirts and shorts – so you might not be able to see him.

The boys’ had a Spirit Week earlier this month. Monday was Crazy Hair/Hat day, but we all forgot about it and Adam had a field trip that day anyway.

Tuesday was Career Day. Adam dressed like a baseball player and Luke was a teacher. Luke has the purest motives for wanting to enter the field of education. He says that he wants to be a teacher because “then whenever it’s someone’s birthday, they bring you cookies and cupcakes.”

Wednesday was Decade Day. They just wore jeans and tie-dye and we called it good.

Thursday was Sports Day. Adam is wearing a football hat and a soccer t-shirt with a basketball jersey on top.

Friday was School Spirit Day, so they both wore shirts with their school’s name and logo on them. Adam found a four-leaf-clover at the bus stop that morning.