Life as a family of 4...

Things sure have changed around our house!  We started the year off as a family of 3, with a very pregnant Jessica!  Only 21 days into the year, and 3 trips to Labor & Delivery... we celebrated the arrival of Brayden Reade!  He made his grand entrance 5 weeks early, and boy were we glad to see him!  He was 6lb 10oz and 19in long... and healthy as could be!  We are very blessed to have 2 children born over a month early and have spent no time at all in the NICU! 
I spent most of my pregnancy terrified of how Abbie would handle the new baby being home.  Much to my surprise, she was beyond excited to meet him, hold him, & love him to pieces!  She ran around the house like a crazy person in excitement when my mom told her that mommy had the baby!  She wouldn't even eat breakfast!  She came to the hospital and ran into the room, with the sweetest smile on her face!  She said probably 100 times, "Hey Brady", and would kiss his head!  Then her phrase changed to "Hold Him", and she was so excited to jump up on the couch and hold the baby!
Since we have come home from the hospital, things haven't changed with Abbie too much.  She is such a big girl, and it is still hard for me to believe that in 4 days she will be turning 2 years old!!  She is such a great helper and such a sweet big sister!  Derik and I both have tried to give her focused one on one attention over the past few weeks, so that she doesn't feel like the baby has crashed her party!!  I think she is doing really great with the transition, much better than I ever could have imagined! 
Of course, nursing a baby has it's drawbacks.  I feel like I am sitting and nursing Brady for the majority of the day.  Most of the times that Abbie chooses to act out are when I am nursing the baby!  However, I have to keep in mind that she is 2, and those moments are to be expected!

The hardest change overall is definitely running errands!  Both of the times that I have taken the kids out... I left as the baby needed to be nursed, and of course forgot something!!  If it wasn't Abbie's paci, then it was Brady's diaper bag!  And the saddest part is... I had another adult with me!!  Doing errands with 2 kids... alone... scares me to death!!
I think one thing we tend to forget to factor into the equation when a newborn arrives is sleep deprivation!  I knew it was coming, and I thought I was prepared, but you forget just how hard it is to function with no sleep!  The toughest part about it this time is that with a toddler, you cant sleep when the baby sleeps!  You have a nap time that is scheduled, and that is your only opportunity during the day to sleep!  If you miss it, too bad!! 
I know that there are MANY more changes to come... potty training Abbie is one of the biggest changes next on the list!  Along with, getting rid of her paci, giving her a big girl room, starting preschool again, and of course the baby growing up!  I will admit though... I am in as big of a hurry for Brady to grow up as I was with Abbie.  Would I like him to sleep through the night... sure!  But... sitting up, crawling, eating solids... all of that can wait for a LONG time, and i would be happy! 
I am trying to enjoy my time with my kids as much as possible.  I love them both so much, and I just want to soak all of this in as long as I can!

 - Jessica