sibling love!

[ha!!! this is sooo them. she leans in for a sweet kiss and then he licks her. little brothers!]

[maddalena’s sweater dress // rocco’s plaid flannel shirt – both c/o garnet hill]

oooh, those little baby bunners of mine!!! i mean… i can hardly handle it, i love them so so much.

back when we just had our one little princess lady, i remember worrying about how things would eventually go when our firstborn baby girl was no longer an only child… how dynamics would shift, how she would respond! but at the same time, i knew beyond anything that maddalena needed a sibling. a best buddy of her very own. i saw her watching other kids and families and wanting to be part of something like that. and eventually, she got her own little baby rocco!

while changes and adjustments are never easy… gosh! watching both my babes develop their own relationship has been my favorite thing ever. he adores her more than anything, pushes her buttons just like little brothers do, and she takes care of him like the sweetest mini-mommy on the whole planet. he will do anything to make her laugh, and her sweet heart is always there to console him when he’s having a hard time. of course, she’s taken her share of flailing limbs to the head, and he regularly receives a slew of orders from the boss lady. 😉 but for the most part, they go through life holding hands and playing, and i do not take it for granted. it’s the best thing ever. and i know it won’t always be quite this way!

one of the hardest things about baby girl starting kindergarten this year has been splitting them up!! i mean, for weeks it’s been either me or rocco shedding tears in the car as we dropped her little independent self off. she even gave him a photo of her to keep while she was away at school… and as she headed into school one day, her backpack bouncing on her tiny body, he pulled it out of his tiny pocked and just sobbed for his sissy. it was so heartbreaking!! and so so sweet at the same time. attachment runs hard in our family, let’s just say!

despite the difficult adjustment, however, they are also both thriving individually. she is loving having her big girl world, and he gets the solo attention that second children rarely get. it’s a whole new balance! and then, the most fun part is seeing just hoooow happy they are to get back to their playtime when school is done. they jump right back into their roles and all is right in my world once again.

aaand, of course, those two have no idea what’s about to hit them in the next two months when their next baby brother is born. ha! i’m sure it will be a whole new interesting, snuggly little adjustment! and then one more little hand for them to hold. i kinda can’t wait. 🙂

sidenote! one of my fav parts of this whole new kindergarten life are the little uniforms they wear! so, after school and on weekends, we get to have a whole separate wardrobe going. some of our all-time favorite [not to mention best quality!] outfits have come from garnet hill, who so kindly sent us some adorable little fall clothes to get us going this year!! hallelujah! m’s little sweater dress and rocco’s flannel button up are both super soft and so perfect as we head into fall. also!! i just realized, m has had her little GH backpack since she was rocco’s age!! ahh, my baby girl!! we all her gear monogrammed when she started pre-k last year and it’s still absolutely adorable.

aaand while i’m at it! let me mention that through september 14, you can share your back to school photos with #GHBackpackGiveBack on instagram [hurry!! i went back and hashtagged ours, but you can also upload one on their campaign page!], and garnet hill will donate $10 for every photo to Kids in Need Foundation, which provides school supplies to students in need. you’ll also be entered to win a custom coffee table book of your child’s artwork!

so!! there it is. life right now. licky smooches, melting hearts, babes, wardrobes and all. life is crazy, yes? YES. now i need some more coffee. do i ever mention how much i love coffee? now more than ever, let’s just say! [and boy, pregnancy intake is just not quite enough!]

xoxoxo