Hazel is One!

Our third child turned one! She is a happy girl with serious love for her older siblings. Three kids is hard, but she certainly keeps up laughing.

Our third child, Hazel Christine, is officially 1!

We are not ones for big birthday celebrations, but we decorated the kitchen table with streamers and balloons and let Hazel smash a cupcake. The celebration seemed to be more fun for Zoey and William who love having any excuse to sing the happy birthday song, blow out a candle, and eat a sugary treat.

Before I dive into all the Hazel details, I will say that this year did not go fast. Going from two to three kids under the age of 4 has been a serious adjustment, one I was nervous about from the moment I found out I was pregnant with our third.

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There are days when I feel completely overwhelmed by it all, overly frustrated, and questioning my decision to be home. There are also days where I cannot imagine doing anything else, am completely calm through the tantrums, and enjoy being so needed by my three tiny humans.

The days have felt long, the nights long, and caffeine is a new dependency for me, something that I barely touched just a year ago.

However, I am slowly finding my groove with three kids. I am leaning into these days at home with them, releasing many of my expectations, and rooting myself in being present for the kids right now. I am still not great at it, but have been much better at not running lists in my head while we play on the floor or sneaking off in a rare moment of independent play to check on Wrecking Routine.

Now on to all things Hazel. You can read all about Hazel’s birth story here.

Personality

I have always loved watching these teeny tiny babies develop into their personalities. It fascinates me that you can really see who they are from infancy.

Hazel is an independent woman. She will happily crawl and cruise around the playroom moving from toy to toy on her own. She plays with intensity as she empties entire toy boxes, jumps into play with her siblings, and ultimately finds a lap to be near.

While she is quite independent when we are in the playroom with her, Hazel likes being close to people, especially mom. If I head to the kitchen to start making lunch or preparing dinner, there is a little Hazel face peeking around the corner to find me and come sit by my feet while I chop. If I am working at my desk and she is playing with Dad, she crawls over to sit at my feet under my desk and play with some books.

I find Hazel hilarious. She is definitely a little girl who likes to make people laugh and will go to great lengths to make faces, play peek-a-boo, and make silly noises to get your attention and get you to smile. It is a character trait I hope she keeps forever of being a jokester who is always ready for a laugh.

Playing with Zoey and William

I am beyond impressed with how Zoey and William have adapted to having Hazel in their lives.

Zoey took to her right away, being the oldest and having been through this before. All Zoey wants to do is help with anything related to Hazel from changing diapers and clothes to making bottles and preparing her food.

Hazel adores Zoey and the two of them will sit together and “chat” or play a game while touching each other in some way – hand on the leg, shoulder to shoulder, Hazel in her lap.

William was slower to adapt to his new sister. To his credit, William was only 19 months old when Hazel was born. After a bumpy first month, William is now Hazel’s biggest protector. He often is aware of her needs before I am, being on high alert for her noises of frustration or disgruntlement.

Whenever William is playing with his pile of trucks and cars, Hazel always wanders over to join him making full vroom sounds as she moves a truck along the floor. Hazel also loves to beat William up a bit like poke him in the eye, pull his hair, or lightly smack him. He lets her do it and does not attempt to fight back, which I find completely endearing.

Sleep

None of our children have been good sleepers until at least two years old. Even with trying all different kinds of sleep training methods, they just do not take to it.

Hazel is following suit. She prefers to be held at night, at least to fall asleep, and is currently in the throws of teething, which is making for some long, uncomfortable nights for her.

Yes, Rob and I are tired, but I honestly do not mind the night time snuggles. It gives Hazel and I some time together, just us, in the quiet house.

Random Facts About Hazel

• Her “tricks” include sticking out her tongue on command, raising her arms over her head when asked, “How big is Hazel?”, gives cheers with her cup, and waves goodbye.

• She has really sweaty feet. Has since she was born.
• She likes to talk really loudly right before she falls asleep.
• She constantly gives big open mouthed kisses to everyone on legs and arms.
• She loves music and instantly starts dancing and smiling.
• She can stand on her own but is not yet walking.
• She is not a big eater with real food unless it is fruit. She still loves her regular bottles.
• She does not have any words yet, but regularly says, “Mama.”
• She absolutely loves the snow and sledding. If the sled she is sitting in isn’t moving, she will try to get it moving on her own.

Daily Schedule

I am pretty strict about our daily schedule as both the kids and I thrive on it. We all do better knowing when snacks and meals take place, when quiet time is, and what activities can happen within our play times of the day.

Our current daily schedule looks very similar to this toddler schedule we kept when Zoey was little. Things have not changed much in that respect in about four years.

5-7am: Hazel gets up at some point within these hours. Rob usually takes care of her, or she plays under my desk while I work.

7am: Zoey and William are allowed out of their rooms. They are usually awake 30 minutes to an hour before this, but cannot come out until 7. They each have an Ok to Wake Clock that we love.

7-8:30am: Diaper and Pull Up changes, breakfast, teeth brush, getting dressed, tidying rooms, Hazel has a bottle.

8:30-11:30am: On Zoey’s preschool days (which are 3 mornings a week), we get out the door for drop off and then William, Hazel, and I play around the house. On non-preschool days, we all play around the house and get outside for a bit.

If this was not winter and a pandemic, these hours would be spent at playdates, at museums, hiking, or exploring something out of the home. There is a snack at 10am.

12pm: Lunch. All the kids sit down for lunch together. They listen to a kids short story while they eat.

12:30pm: Hazel has a bottle and goes down for a nap while the big kids read together on the couch.

1pm: Zoey and William have an hour of quiet time. Zoey plays and reads in her room. William reads and plays, but most often takes a nap.

2pm: Zoey and I have time just the two of us while the little ones nap. We usually do some school work, read, or cook.

3pm: William gets woken up from his nap. If we do not wake him up at 3, he will be awake until 10pm. Hazel gets up around this time also.

3-4:30pm: I workout while the kids play. They go in the bounce house, we read, we play. In nicer weather, we go back outside.

4:30pm: I start dinner once Rob gets home. He plays games with the kids while I cook, but Hazel and William usually wander over to the kitchen and play at my feet.

5:30pm: Dinner. We eat every night as a family. It is the highlight of our evenings.

6:30pm: Everyone heads up to bed for teeth, PJs, room tidying, and books.

7pm: Hazel has a bottle and goes to bed (on a good night). Zoey and William get tucked in. Zoey usually crashes right away, or reads for a few minutes in bed. William is typically awake until 8:30, but he has to stay in his room to read or play.

7:30-8pm: I start working on Wrecking Routine.

10pm: I head to bed (on a good night).

10:30pm: Hazel wakes up for a cuddle and sometimes a bottle. During the rest of the night, Hazel gets up a few more times or she sleeps through. It really is a roll of the dice and not consistent.

Favorite 1 Year Old Toys and Activities

We are a screen free family, which you can read about here. We also start reading 1,000 books before kindergarten with each child around one year old.

• My First Fidget Cube – William also loved this when he was one.
• Musical Instruments – Hazel loves music and these instruments are her favorite toy apart from all of William’s trucks and Zoey’s stuffed bunny.
• Ball Pit Balls – She adores putting them in bowls.
• Bowls and Kitchen Utensils – What you already have in your kitchen is perfect, but we have this set and love its durability.

• Board Books – Specifically Baby Faces, If I Were A Lamb, and the First 100 Words series
• Push and Spin Toy – We have a legit salad spinner that all the kids love, but Hazel has adores ones like these when she see them.
• Spin and Learn Flashlight – All the kids have loved this flashlight. We have had it since Zoey was little.

Hazel is such a red-headed light to our family and seems to be fitting in seamlessly with her siblings. She is full of kisses, cuddles, and is just happy to be part of whatever is going on around her. Her little personality continues to show up as she learns more, grows more, and understands more. This go with the flow lady loves people and her independence.