Asa is 1!!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BIDDY!!! Look at my last two posts below and you'll see what life is like with four kids. You may be wondering why there have only been two posts this past year. There would have been more if it wasn't for the human vacuum cleaner crawling all over the place putting EVERYTHING and ANYTHING in his mouth! I mean... Seriously?... Do you really want to brush your mouth with the toilet brush?!!! Yuck! What could possibly seem appealing about that?!!!

With his siblings jumping over him, tackling him, dragging him all over the place, Asa has learned to hold his own pretty impressively! Being that he is our fourth, and FINAL, child, we're trying to keep him our baby (or as my wife calls him - Biddy) as long as possible. The other three were walking between 9-10 months. We're not officially knocking him over (like in Life As We Know It where Josh Duhamel pushes the baby when taking its first steps), but Asa is CONSTANTLY being held (not by our choice either though). You should see the guns on my wife from holding him so much!

Well, we're having his birthday party this weekend, so I'll post some pictures afterwards. Assuming he doesn't eat my cameras! Happy Birthday my Asa "Mad Dawg" Maddox!

Devotion & Redemption

The Miracle on 116th St.

March 30^th, 2010

8:31 p.m.– A miracle took place as the glow of the sunset streamed through the window of our living room. Tears roll down the cheeks of a wide-eye woman embracing a fragrance of peace and redemption named Asa. I sat there in awe of God’s creation and what just happened. My beautiful wife just gave birth to our fourth child… my third son.

I can’t help but think of what the future holds for him. The love, the pain. The joy, the sadness. The hope and eternal life that comes from the Lord, as well as the emptiness and suffering caused by this world.

Asa, the name of a biblical king who obediently served God. Asa, the name of a baby born in a house of God, of love, an older sister to motherly protect, and two big brothers who – well – do the things that brothers do. Asa, my son – my son.

Asa Maddox McGuckin

10 lbs. 3 oz.

21.5 inches

He even took time to pose with his big brothers!

A similar shot was taken when he was still in the belly!

Asa with the ladies of his life!

POSERS!!! The "not so camera shy" siblings are always game for a picture.

Anxiously Waiting

There aren't many things in life that make me anxious; however, this baby couldn't come soon enough!!! These past few weeks we've had great family time and I've been able to have a good chunk of that time with just me and the kids. We can't stop thinking/talking about our newest addition and the impact it will have on our family.

First, we're excited to find out if it's a boy or a girl!!! (For the record, my guess is a girl.) The dynamics of either one will change our family in an exciting way.

Second, we can't wait to meet its personality! With Libby being such a bright 'Type A' personality, then Charlie a loving 'Type B" personality, and AJ just 'ALL BOY', it's hard to imagine what the next will be like.

My favorite thing about this pregnancy for us is seeing how truly excited the kids are for the baby to come. We've been blessed so far to not have any issues with the addition of a new sibling taking over, and we look forward to that continuing. The kids love on Mama's baby-belly so well and say the sweetest things to the baby. This child better be ready to be attacked with LOVE!!!

Days and counting...

THE MOST BEAUTIFUL PICTURES IN THE WORLD!

I've taken some amazing photos of some of the most beautiful people in the world, but none of them compare to the beauty captured in the photos of this family below. This family has been blessed by God in many ways with another bundle of life expected to enter this world around the end of March. The affection the kids in this family have for their Mama and baby can not only be seen in the images, but can be heard through the stories and prayers they pray upon their arriving sibling. From the belly kisses to the slobbery zerberts, this child needs to be prepared to be showered with love. The number one reason why this family is so precious to me... is because it's mine!

Little Love

The love of a two year old is such a powerful thing! Tonight, while cuddling with AJ, he took my scruffy face and just held it in the palms of his tiny baby-soft hands. My body grew limp and for a bit, there was nothing in the world that was more important than that moment. All worries faded. The past didn't exist. The future didn't exist. It was just that moment. I felt like God was holding my face reminding me about the precious gift I have in my family - my wife - my children. Little Love can go a far way.

ALRIGHT!

It's time I got back onto this blog. Forgive me that it's been awhile! Tonight was a good reminder to me for why I need to keep posting here. Today, Aiden, stood up on his chair and mooned me at a restaurant! All this, while singing "shake your booty, shake your booty". I'm sure with the holiday season upon us, there will be many more stories to come. Stay tuned...

My Son's "Wife"

So my boy Charlie, top picture below, apparently got married the other day while over at his friend's house.  I was a little offended that I didn't get to be their photographer, so I made them pose for a few pics.  She is a very stylish little girl (as you can tell by her new, and fake, glasses she's sporting)!  It is amazing watching these two together!  They crack me up!!!

They both have older sisters going through the adorable age of toothlessness!  A tooth here, a tooth there, no tooth in between.

And then there's my dark blue-eyed boy sporting my favorite shirt on him.  I'd say that his irish eyes are smiling, but when he smiles, his eyes disappear!  But when they are open, boy do they glow!

I LOVE THESE KIDS!!!

THESE KIDS ARE CRAZY!  We had a great winter and are anxiously  looking forward to a warm Spring!!!  We never got around to building a snowman this year, but covered the snow-angels and sledding (without too many injuries)!  Here are a few pics when we had a snowday and were trapped in our house.  They're all a little ready to be outside running through the field, planting a yummy garden, and roasting marshmallows/hotdogs!  So Am I!   

Charlie is 4!!!

Well, after a week and a half worth of celebrating, Charlie finally turned four!  It's so much fun to see how excited kids get and to remember the joy in birthdays.  It seems as you get older, birthdays tend to be more of a reflection on life, not enough celebration.  As the kids get older, each year is my favorite, but I'll miss the ages they were.  

Charlie had plenty of John Deere celebrations filled with multiple deserts and remote controls!  Happy Birthday Little Buddy!!!

Papa's Pumpkins!

Really, I promise.  I do try to post more.  Hopefully once I get my iPhone, that will help.  

This past weekend we went down to Brown County to visit family and pick some pumpkins along the way.  It was much needed family time.  Of course I just happened to have my camera so I snagged a few shots.  My little pumpkins are so cute!  AJ and his shirt are the feature for this post.

It's been a while!

I know. I know. It's been a while since my last post. If you've spoken to us over the last few weeks, then you know what's been going on. We're trying to get settled and bring peace back into our lives.

I came across these shots of Libby I took when we went on a "Photo Date" the end of June. Rebecca picked out this hat and it was perfect. This six year old looks beautiful, yet shows attitude at the same time. The good looks are obviously from me and we all know where she got the attitude from! (Okay, so it's switched around.)

Anyway, here are some of the shots of my little girl. She survived her first week of first grade already! Man, I'm getting old!

Learning to Fall

The other week Charlie and I converted his sister's Dora bike into a man's bike...John Deere!  I must admit I'm pretty impressed with the paint job and how a few stickers off an old toy can be given new life.  

Well, Charlie was anxious to ride so he jumped on the next day and took off down the sidewalk.  I was impressed to see him riding up and down as if he had done it for years...until...he hit the edge of the grass and fell over.  I got him to get back on pretty easily, but he continued to fall a few times and became more hesitant.  Then I realized something...I taught him to get on and ride, but never took the time to teach him to fall.

In life, we need to learn how to fall.  It's often when we fall that we are able to get back up and soar to new heights.  I take this opportunity with my children to tell them how we're going to fall a lot in life and it's important that we know how to get back up and try again.  

Finally, after holding the bike in the grass and tipping him over till he learned to put his foot down and catch himself as he was falling, whenever Charlie falls now he calls out with a big smile "Papa, I put my foot out!"  Now he knows how to fall.  

Happy Father's Day

How could I not post about Father's Day on my Papa Blog?  I'd like to say that it was a special day, and it was; however, every day is like Father's Day for me at my household.  My beautiful wife always takes care of me and sacrifices so much for our family.  The kids always greet me with singing a song called "Papa's Are Special".  

Father's Day is something that I'm only able to celebrate because of the ones that have made it all possible.  Thank you Rebecca, Libby, Charlie, and AJ for giving me the honor of being called a Papa. 

Happy Father's Day to you all and to my fathers in Heaven, my dad and my Lord Jesus.

American Idol's Jason Castro Has NOTHING On Us!

So by now, you've probably all seen and heard Jason Castro play the Ukulele on American Idol.  Not too shabby, but wait a few years till Libby is the winner of American Idol Season 27 and she thanks all the little people (ie. ME) for their support.  Last week we finished up a brief month of Ukulele lessons downtown Noblesville at The Wild.  It was great papa/daughter date time together.  We even got to keep the Ukes!  Supposedly we learned how to play a few songs?  My goal this year is to learn a Jack Johnson song from beginning to end.  It's gonna be awhile. =)

The Next Jackson 5!

Look out Donny & Marie!

So, I slam it down like this...right?

Faith, Family, & Football

There are three things in my life that are a huge part of who I am: Faith, Family, & Football. Sometimes I don't always prioritize them in the order they should be. I recently made a difficult decision that shows I try to practice what I preach. Over the past few months, Charlie has been waking up and immediately asking Momma "Where's Papa at?" She gives the usual response of "Charlie, where's Papa?" And he responds back "At work with the kids."

During the day, I call home to catch up on their day and see how things are going. Libby is usually at school, AJ is usually being held for the 6th hour straight, and Charlie gets on the phone and asks "Papa, when are you going to be home?" This boy is starving for me! I feel such great love from my kids!

My typical work day in the fall would consist of teaching, then coaching football, coming home when it's dark out for a brief visit with my wife and kids before bed, and working on some photography business. Because I have some students multiple periods throughout their day, I spend more time with someone else's kids than I do my own! Something was wrong with that!

Following my priorities, I'm obeying my faith in what I believe God wants me to do as I spend more time with my family by resigning from coaching football for a few years. Instead of investing that time with someone else's kids, I'm going to go home and play catch with my own!

What priorities are you trying to keep straight in your life?

Cute Cheeks!

I was gone all day shooting a wedding and haven't seen my kids more than 5 minutes. I came home to download the pictures and opened up my program to this picture of AJ, cute cheeks and all!
AJ has been such a blessing in our lives. He brings such joy with his smiles and laughter. No kid smiles as much as him! He's catching on quickly that Papa is a photographer. He's got the smile down and is used to me holding this thing up to my face. My kids are pretty photogenic, so I like to take advantage of it!

Here's another picture that's a little more rated "G".