Lion County Safari

This batch of pictures is all from Lion Country Safri outside of West Palm Beach - we absolutely loved it there!! They had a drive through safari where you could stay in your own car and drive through the animal habitats and see all the animals up close and personal- it was so crazy waiting for rhinos and ostriches to cross our path and a herd of zebras a foot outside our car window. The kids absolutely loved it, and so did Chris and I :) 

In addition to the safari ride this place also had a huge water park play area, rides - dumbo and a merry go round which we couldn't get Blair off of, boat rides, mini golf, animal exhibits and shows, and giraffe feeding area which was so exciting for the kids. Would highly recommend this place if you are in the WPB area! 

Afterwards we hit up downtown West Palm for dinner. Had some great NY style pizza at Pizza Girls right in City Place where we sat outside and people watched all the crazy people dressed up for St Patrick's Day. After dinner we let the kids run wild through water fountains while Chris and I sat underneath lighted palms :)

Florida!

On our very long drive back home from a wonderful, much needed family vacation in the beautiful sunshine state. I have so many pics in my phone so I'm posting in a few batches- this first batch is from Port St Lucie where we stayed with my parents for the first week. The beach pictured here is Walton Rocks Beach, a beautiful (teal water!) dog-friendly beach right next to Jensen Beach in Stuart, FL, a super cute little beach town with small outdoor shops and restaurants. 

We also hit up Sailfish Water Park which had a lazy river and a huge scary water slide that Landon was actually tall enough to go down all by himself. He absolutely loved it and kept going up and down all by himself over and over again - how did he turn into a KID so fast??? 

Chris and I also went on a date night out at a Mets Spring Training game at Tradition Field....where they got crushed by the Washington Nationals but we nonetheless had such a fun night out

Their first, long awaited, Daddy Daughter Dance

First Look

Blair & Chris went to their first, long awaited Father Daughter Dance last night and can't get over the few pictures I took before they left! Blair was sooo excited ever since she knew they were going and kept asking every day if that day was the day. I wish I had a protographer with them at the dance because Chris reported that it was in fact the best night of her life so far and that she was a dancing queen, and that she didn't want to leave when it was over (an hour past her bedtime), and that she made him stay until they were the last ones out, closing the place down. I also heard stories of her double fisting ice cream, being thrown up in the air during every chorus of 'baby you're a firework', and Chris serenading her with 'My Girl'. 💖

Three's Company Too :)

Welp.....WE'RE HAVING ANOTHER BABY!!!!! 

So excited to finally announce on here! I feel like I have been a complete zombie or more accurately a sick, barely functioning zombie for 10 weeks and I am FINALLY through the toughest first trimester of my life. Coupled (tripled?) with the fact that we were mourning a death in our family and I caught a terrible, vicious virus (maybe bacterial infection but we will never know since I couldn't have taken antibiotics anyway) that lasted a whole month. It was very difficult to move from my couch for several weeks and any amount of doing anything requiring any small bit of energy or movement had me feeling like I was hit by a bus. But I'm finally over that virus and (think) I'm finally turning a corner with all the morning sickness. 

So the story behind it all:

For a long time after Blair was born I really didn't think I could have any more kids. It saddened me, as I always wanted one more, but she took so much out of me and I really struggled with the transition from 1 to 2, as it was much, much more challenging than I expected it to be. We moved twice while Blair was a baby, which was stressful, and getting our first, new dream home was and is amazing, but required/s Chris to work more, leaving me home alone much more with both kids. Blair never took to a bottle and she was up nursing every 2-4 hours for almost a year and a half. So Chris could never really help with the nighttime feedings, and the lack of sleep for so long definitely took a toll on me.

But then between 16-18 months we weaned, and I finally got Blair sleeping through the night in her own crib, and the heavy fog I had been carrying around with me for a year and a half somehow just lifted. I spent the summer enjoying that new sense of freedom, of sleep and of being able to leave Blair with a babysitter, of having my body back and not having to nurse her every few hours. I got her on a nap schedule and had 2 hours every afternoon to relish in -- aka do laundry and emails and clean and cook -- (but seriously, all of which are actually enjoyable and deeply gratifying without a baby attached to your hip or nipple). Chris and I resurrected date nights and started seeping in the same bed again. I went to play dates, I hosted play dates, and I began leading a group of women at MOPS at my church every other Friday morning. But after a few months of enjoying that season, the coziness of fall and the holidays set in, and I felt I had the space now that I could fit in another child, and grow our family. I felt like I could do this again and I was ready! Well, in the sense that any of us are ever really ready for a new baby. 

I found out I was pregnant mid-December, before I even missed my period and was completely, utterly, over the moon with thankfulness, excitement and happiness. I waited two whole entire days to tell Chris as I wanted to surprise him in a fun, creative way....which was awesome and I wish took a video of it. It was right before our 5 year anniversary and he made a big stink to me about how he reallllly didn't want me to spend any money on a gift, so I wrapped up the positive pregnancy tests inwrapping paper and a pretty bow and wrote him a super sappy poem. I'll spare you the whole thing, but the last line read:

"So for loving me so well for the past 5 years, I wanted to give you all the presents under the sun,

But I know that's not what you wanted so instead I promise to more joyfully and lovingly serve, You, Landon, & Blair, and our next little bun.

(In the oven). Now open your present :) "

He was in complete disbelief at first and then so, so thrilled. Landon knew the two days before him and was so excited we were finally spilling the beans, dancing and jumping around the kitchen singing, "We're having another baby!! We're having another baby!!"

I felt really great -- completely elated -- for about one-two weeks. And then it set in. The nausea, the vomiting, the dry-heaving, the tiredness that only a pregnant mother with multiple young children can understand. All.day, every.single.day. Mostly everything around me just smells horrible and makes me want to throw up....there are smells I never even remembered noticing before that now trigger such a strong visceral reaction it's unbelievable. But all my senses are so enhanced and there have been a few smells, touches, or tastes that have been equally amazing.....new clean flannel sheets on my bed, a heavenly-scented candle, or satisfying a deep craving with delicious, fresh, quality food.

Although mostly, it's really been a rough past 3 months. But at 12 weeks, I'm starting to lose some of the nausea and gaining a little more energy during the day, and I'm so hopeful for an energetic, healthy second and third trimester.

When I think beyond the pregnancy, about another baby and person in our lives, there are so many things I'm afraid of -- Will I actually be able to do this all over again? Will I have enough of me to go around? What will it be like trying to fit in naps while carting Landon and Blair off to all their activities? Will he/she be healthy? Will it be a new baby brother or sister? Will we have enough room in our house? What new challenges will a third child bring to our marriage, to our finances, to our friendships, to our family relationships? Will I be able to give this little one enough, & Landon and Blair everything that they need, when I already feel stretched thin?

But at the same time my mind is harassing me with all these fears and questions, there is something inside of me, it may be my hormones or it may be the Holy Spirit, but it tells me that of all the things I can't do and will never be or be able to do, that I can do this. I can be a mother as many times over as God graces me to be, and that same grace will carry me through the hard, through the sleepless nights and through the juggling demands and through the challenges it has already carried me through before. 

I can do this. We're ready for you, baby Bauman #3. We're ready for the snuggles, the smells, the sounds, and the love, that is going to turn us completely inside out all over again. 

Bits of Life Lately

Baptizing our new godson Johnathan Vincent! 

Smoothie face (favorite recipes here)

Hosting our first MOPS dinner & freezer meal exchange! Each woman came with 4 frozen meals and left with 4 different meals & recipes for their own family (& sanity) PLUS each woman here made one EXTRA frozen meal so that we are able to bless FOUR different new moms with a dinner casserole when they get home from the hospital or in other times of need! Love serving alongside such amazing women and so grateful for that prompting to get involved in the first place :) If you are local and interested in being a part of Willow MOPS you can check it out here!

Twinning in our Sorels

New, meaningful custom made decor for the home inspired by It Is Well by Kristine DiMarco. (Handmade by Kim Art)

The best mornings 💝

 Another beautiful hand painted addition to our home, by Ines at BellySketcher

Smoothie Recipes

Been mostly at home for the past month getting over a nasty virus between everyone and have been making lots of smoothies every morning to help a little. It's been a great way to kick start our vitamin C intake, and they've been feeling very good on our sore throats, and the kids love them too. They're quick and easy to make and all you need is some juice, frozen fruit, and a dollop of yogurt, and there you have it.
Here are two recipes for our two favorites, A Pomegranate Berry Smoothie made with R.W. Knudsen Family's Just Pomegranate Juice, and Strawberry/Banana/Peach/Mango Smoothie made with R.W. Knudsen Family's Peach Mango Juice. We love R.W. Knudsen Juice brand because they stand by wholesome ingredients without any artificial flavors or preservatives - they are made from organic single-fruits, with no added sweeteners and completely sweetened 100% by the juices straight from the fruit, and they taste absolutely delicious. The R.W. Knudsen Family offers over 100 types of equally amazing, natural, organic fruit and vegetable juices, elegant celebratory beverages, bubbly Spritzers, and natural sports drinks, and you can find them now at local grocery stores, Walmart, and Target.

Pomegranate Berry Smoothie: What You Will Need:
- 1 large dollop of plain Greek Yogurt
- 1/2 cup Pomegranate juice (R.W. Knudsen Family Just Pomegranate Juice is our favorite)
- 1 cup frozen mixed berries
- 1 banana

Strawberry/Banana/Peach/Mango Smoothie: What You Will Need:
- 1 large dollop of plain Greek Yogurt
- 1/2 cup Peach juice or half peach half mango juice (R.W. Knudsen Family Mango Peach Juice is our favorite)
- 1 cup fresh or frozen strawberries
- 1 banana

Some other optional healthy add in's are a tablespoon of coconut oil, a tablespoon of hemp seeds, a tablespoon of chia seeds, and/or protein powder.

Directions:
1. Place all ingredients in blender. Cover and process until smooth.
Enjoy!

The Afterglow

I know I've been a little absent here lately, as we all got hit with a terrible virus the day after Christmas, and then Chris' grandmother suddenly passed away on New Year's Day, which left us all extremely saddened and preoccupied in grief and tying up affairs. Although she wasn't my own grandmother by blood, I truly felt like she was. She and I shared a special relationship and I am so grateful for everything I shared with her and learned from her in the 7 years of knowing such an amazing, strong, fiercely loving woman. It has been a hard, grieving time for us all, but amidst the tears and sadness, we've been spending hours upon hours together, creating poster boards filled with pictures of her life, and a video compilation of many, many moments to be played at her funeral. It was as if going through all those past memories with her, seeing all the joyous times, seeing all her love everywhere that trickled down to three whole generations -- it made it a little bit easier. Her life had an epic quality to it, a quintessentially American story, a nostalgic and charmed quality, a life filled with family and music and weekend barbecues with friends and grandchildren. We can't stand in the way of death, but when it comes, we can stand in its face together, and celebrate having loved fiercely and expressively. And that is exactly what we did. When her funeral finally came I was a weepy mess the entire time. I couldn't hold too many conversations with people and was mostly trying to catch my breath and composure. When it was my turn to stand up and give a reading, I somehow pulled it together and read the entire thing, smoothly, without choking up once. The second I began walking up to that pulpit, I received a new sense of pride in that moment -- that I was chosen to stand up there in front of all these people she shared life with and play an important role in her service. I was proud to have known her, to have learned from her, to have been a recipient of her overflowing love and affection, to have played a small role in such an extraordinary story. My husband posted this on Facebook after her death and I thought he said it best, and wanted to share it here, "God called my husband's Grandmother home to be with Him on New Years Day - After having spent 94 years on this earth... We were fortunate to have all just shared what she described as a 'perfect Christmas' together only a few days earlier... My grandma was a truly an amazing women ... she drove a car until she was 90 and managed to maintain a social calendar that continuously put mine to shame... She lived alone independently in the same childhood home her children grew up in until her very last moments... They say 'behind every great man is a great women' which was true with her being the loving force behind my incredibly talented Grandfather, but really what she taught us so well is that 'behind every great family is an unstoppable, powerful force of a women'. She was that and so much more everyday during her almost century-long adventure building our family to what it is today... Despite the terrible pain she carried with her after out-living my Grandpa and both her children, my mother and uncle – she continued to find joy in the small moments of life, took so much pride in our ever growing family and the many, many cherished friendships she had - this joy was especially noticeable when she spent time with her great grandchildren sharing the special, gentle love they had for their 'Nana'. We created this video as a memorial to honor my grandmother.... It was played at her funeral and I wanted to share for anyone who was not able to attend or simply is interested in her fantastic story.."