Things are back in full swing in the Russin house. Cordelia and Anthony are back in school; Lydia is at home with our Au Pair, Maria; and we welcomed our new baby Natalie! Obviously, we’ve been very busy with baby prep and newborn care. Grandma and Grandpa Powers blessed us with their support by watching the kids while we were in the hospital and continuing to help out during our first two weeks after Natalie’s birth. We’re looking forward to a two week visit from Mimi and Papa in October.
Cordelia has really been enjoying school. She’s also doing very well at her piano, swimming, and gymnastics. She is very excited to have a new baby sister and spends time with her in the evenings after school.
Anthony also has been doing great at school. He switched to a boys’ gymnastics class this month and that has been very fun for him. He’s also enjoying his piano and swim lessons. Anthony also started a new activity this month, Royal Rangers and has become very excited about going to that each Thursday evening. Anthony enjoys having a new sister and was especially struck by how small she is (and how big he is by comparison!).
Lydia has really gotten into puzzles this month. She’ll spend long periods of time putting puzzles together with Maria. She also continues to love wearing dress-ups. She really enjoyed having Grandma and Grandpa visit with their dogs. She really likes playing with dogs. Lydia has been very sweet with Natalie, but we have had more trouble with attitude from Lydia. All part of the adjustment process and we’re trying to be consistent with our discipline.
Natalie arrived on September 16 at 11:22 am! She surprised everyone by coming in small at 7 lb, 1 oz and 19 inches. She has been very healthy and doing well. Like all newborns she spends her time eating, sleeping, and going through over 100 diapers in the first two weeks.
Alicia certainly remained busy during the month. She was able to get the house ready for the new baby. And in addition, Alicia continued with her role in AWANA as Sparks director by organizing paper work and putting clubbers in groups. There was a lot of preparation work to get the club year started. Alicia was able to be in person for the first club night to get things started on the right foot. With Natalie’s arrival Alicia is transitioning to a behind-the-scenes role. Alicia had a smooth delivery with no complications. She’s been recovering well over the past two weeks and is getting into a routine with Natalie.
Tim remained active and busy at work during the month. He continues to be the go-to person and has been pulled in to support several projects. He has taken the last two weeks off from work to help with Natalie and it has been nice having more family time. In addition, at home, he continues to maintain the yard and has taken care of some small house tasks that have been lingering. He also has been maintaining his new exercise regime of lifting weights and running. Starting in October, Tim will be fully stepping into the in-person Sparks director role to support Alicia on the front lines.
We are very thankful that the transition to four kids has gone very smoothly so far over the first two weeks. We pray it will continue to be smooth and we will get into a new routine that works well for everyone. We are thankful for the support we have from both sets of grandparents to come and help us out as we go through this adjustment period. We are blessed to have so many friends and neighbors who have supported us and provided us with various baby items as we welcomed Natalie into our family.
