Thursday, November 10, 2011

In Time


It has been such a long time since I sat down to write for myself, that I am almost unsure of what to share! There are many things going on in our little part of the world, like today (in only a few minutes, actually) I will be dropping the kids off with a good friend so I can go tour an ELEMENTARY school for Little Dude.

Is that even possible, that my Little Dude is starting school? I swear we just brought him home...

JR is also in a fun school program that is free through our school system, so twice a week we go to JR's school-after dropping Little Dude off at his preschool. Being the "big school kid" makes JR's chest puff out, which by default makes mine putt out as well. There is such a proud feeling I get from seeing my children find pride in their abilities.

And Champ, well, he is quite the little Champ! He is crawling everywhere now; and crawling quite quickly, if I do say so myself! He is all about food and LOVES to grab food on his tray. He will actually cause quite the fuss if he does not have something to try and eat at meal times. He also now realizes when I am not holding him and should anyone else try to hold him, well, he will do his best to wiggle all around to make sure he lets EVERYONE know he would rather have me.

It is amazingly cute and annoying at the same time. I try to focus on the cuteness of it though, since I know soon enough he will not want me snuggling him.

This morning JR came into my bed and snuggled with me for a few seconds. It was heaven. Then he proclaimed he had to fart, started laughing and then told me quite seriously that he was wasting away and needed food.

Oh boys.

Monday, September 26, 2011

Hey Monday 6 Months

My littlest little man is 6 Months today.
ignore the dirty mirror.....



It seems crazy that he is already that old, I really feel like we just got settled.

  • He is rolling all over the place and scooting with a determined efficiency.
  • Bouncing is currently his favorite thing to do, and he likes to turn his head sideways or upside down to look at people. We have to be constantly ready to keep a hold of his ever twisting and turning body weight. 
  • He LOVES to watch his brothers and they are still every enchanted with him; that makes my heart so happy.
  • He gives HUGE toothless smiles all the time and I am cherishing them all, as I know from the amount of drool and chomping he is doing that teeth will probably be emerging soon and that lovely newborn-ness will be all gone then. 
It is funny, but I have a deeper appreciation with my third child. With my first, Little Dude, I was just trying to figure everything out; with  my second, JR, I was SO SAD to see him grow, as it went by much to quickly in a whirlwind of activity. With Champ though, even though I hate to see the stages pass by, I am making sure to take the time to enjoy it and to ENJOY his growing. Through our little blog-o-sphere here, I have met far too many moms and dads who have lost children to illnesses, experienced great loss, or pushed through still births.

I've connected with so many, and know there are so many more out there. So while I can't believe 6 months have already flown by, but I am, at this moment, so grateful that I was given these past 6 months and I am hopeful I get to see his next 60 years.




*The post title is from a song that came up on Pandora today called 6 Months by a group called "Hey Monday". You can hear/see it here: http://youtu.be/W3svr_CUhxo

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

I See The Light

Summer has offically ended for me. Little Dude is in preschool, our little neighbors started REAL school, and now JR's preschool starts today. (JR is going one day a week, that is all I could handle, with Little Dude being gone 3 days already).

So now, for Wednesday mornings, it is just me and Champ.

And part of me wants to soak up every minute I get with JUST him, but then, another part of me starts a HUGE list of what I could maybe get cleaned, wiped, dusted, worked, DONE while my other two tornadoes are gone at school.

My compromise? Oh yes, my good friend saves me-my Mei Tai. I love it, and will be spending today working on the computer, doing laundry, mopping, and maybe even FOLDING laundry-while Champ snuggles close in my Baby Hawk.

And now, a random cute photo of Champ sleeping during our walk yesterday: 


Sunday, September 11, 2011

Where I Was

For some reason, the 10th anniversary of 9/11 has been more important to me; more meaningful somehow. Not that others weren't, but I suppose I looked at all of those anniversaries as more of a "We made it! This far!" kind of anniversaries.

This one, the first one with Bin Ladin dead, just hits me as overwhelmingly sad.

Now that I'm a mom to three little guys, I have made many many trips to visit fire fighters and I am seeing the anniversary a bit differently.

I've realized that when I watched the second plane hit the other tower, that I watched not just people die, but mothers, fathers, sons and daughters.

I had just gotten out of class super early because the teacher was sick, and I thought my luck couldn't get any better when I strolled through the brickyard to grab breakfast, and realized there was NO LINE for food. I obliviously got in the empty line and picked out food, not realizing until it came time to pay, that everyone, including the food staff, were clustered around the tvs.

I remember putting the food down and coming over to see that there had been a horrible accident, that a plane had just crashed into one of the twin towers. Then, as the tv reporter talked about the confusion and lack of details from air traffic control, we all watched, in shock, as a second plane appeared on the tv screen and careened into the second tower.

I remember the silence in that usually packed and noisy student center. I remember the one girl next to me holding my arm and starting to cry.

I remember the tv changing the headline to "America Under Attack". I remember the reporter's voice cracking as he asked if there was more information as the news of the Pentagon came flooding in.

In a quiet terror I walked alone back to my apartment and watched tv with my roomies, all of us glued to the news, in shock that we were under attack from a foe that would attack normal citizens on their way to work.

10 years alter, I realize, that maybe someday, if my sons continue their passion for fire fighters, maybe one day, they will be running into a building that is collapsing, just in the hope of saving one of those mothers, fathers, sons and daughters.

This year I am just so very sad about it all, but I also see how this anniversary is a celebration of heroics and bravery, from not just firefighters and police, but from us all.

We have survived 10 years of facing a hidden foe. Of fighting a war that really can't be fought or won. Fighting someone that doesn't "fight fair". There is no exact military targets or armies to face. The "bad guys" aren't in uniform for us to pick out. They don't care if women and children and babies are the subjects of their attacks.

It has been 10 years, but more than any other anniversary, for me it feels like I just walked back to my apartment and finally grasped that the things falling out of the twin towers were mothers, fathers, sons and daughters.


Monday, August 29, 2011

Parent Guilt

Even though I stay home with the kids, I do work from home. And that means that every Monday starts out with me feeding the kids quickly, grabbing a cup of coffee for me, and running downstairs to my office to start sending out client retainer hour reports. And then I make a gameplan for what items I need to complete for the week, what projects need more attention, check on time for other projects, discuss SEO items with my bosses and clients, and more.

What are the kids doing during this time? Eating alone upstairs. Or watching tv downstairs. Or playing outside without me (in our privacy fenced backyard), or simply reading stories in their room.

My point is though, that it is WITHOUT ME. Like right now; I am in the middle of writing some SEO blog posts on a ton of condo spotlights for a client (and thus taking a quick break to jot this personal blog post down) and the kids are outside playing without me.

Champ is here sleeping next to me (since he is a baby with older bros, I never leave him out of sight for long, lol) But I feel GUILTY.

Guilty I have to work.
Guilty I have to make the kids go do things without me.
Guilty that I have to say "I can't play right now, Mommy needs to work"
Guilty I have to say "Go find something to do"
I'm guilty that I can't keep the house spotless or the laundry caught up.
I'm guilty that I can't always have dinner done on time
I'm guilty that I get behind on work for work!

I'm just guilty all the time, and feel like I just can't measure up or get everything done.

And I know I would feel differently if I worked outside the home. Then I know I would give myself a break on some of those things, like dinner, or laundry, or even having to tell the kids to go play.

Most of my guilty feelings come from the fact that I AM home, I'm HERE, and I should be more engaged in all the household stuff, all the kid stuff. Surely, as a stay at home mom, I can find the time to read some stories during the day? Right?

But there are some days, where the only stories read are right before bed. And I feel ever so guilty about it.

I don't remember my parents ever playing with me or my sisters. I remember being told to go away A LOT and it kills me when I have to tell the boys I can't play. That I have stuff to do.

And yet, somehow, I can never catch up.

I feel like, since I am at home, that I should have all the HOME stuff taken care of for Bill. He shouldn't have to come home and help with laundry (in my mind) because I"M HERE. I should do it. It is part of my stay at home job! Dinner should be done, the vacuuming done. The dishes done. The kids mostly clean and letters practiced, books read, and some time spent at the park. That is my opinion of what a stay at home mom DOES.

But throw work in, and somehow, I lose most of my time to do those other household things, which is fine and understandable, but I just can't get myself to accept the fact that I am WORKING. I can't do it all, all the time; I realize that. But somehow, deep inside, when I see the boys playing alone, or Bill coming home to a stack of dirty dishes, I get hit by huge waves of guilt.

Guilt that just won't go away.



Monday, August 1, 2011

Month ONE

The Bros:


It amazes me all that they can do now; especially Champ. Time with him has just flown by. Even though now, Bill and I feel like we really are more relaxed about everything and enjoying the infant time tremendously, it just seems like we have blinked and it is half gone. Soon Champ will be 5 months, JR is now well into "3" and Little Dude is about to be 5 in just a few short weeks. Most of our little friends start school this year, so it will be an odd transition for all of us (me included) to get used to not having mid day play dates anymore.
Almost time to start solid food with Champ, too. Where does the time go?


Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Month FOUR

Four months! Can it  have already been that long? It feels like Champ JUST came home AND has been a part of our family forever; all at the same time.

When I started the photo session, this is what I got:



Champ was not happy at all, so I was a bit scared I wouldn't be able to get my fun monthly photos done (and I realize too that if it didn't happen today, I would likely forget to do it another day....) Luckily though, once I broke out the blocks, Champ got super happy, per is usual self:
Then he was all cuteness with fun poses and hand moveemnt:

He is so full of energy and personality now. Tons of smiles, rolling (his first full roll was on the 16th of July!) And he is starting to scoot around on his tummy.He is in love with his little soft books, and still enthralled with his brothers. I am waiting for him to just jump up and start running after them; I know it is coming soon!


Our sweet boy, getting bigger by the minute!

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Tangled

I know, I still need to upload my July month photos of the boys AND Champ's 3 month photo. I do have them, they are just on my camera still, and I am just always forgetting to grab the camera from my purse and upload the photos.

Anyways, what have I been up to lately? What is my excuse for not uploading super cute photos of the boys?

The Social Security Office.

I'm telling you, that place is Hell on Earth. Yes, caps are needed, too. I just spent another 3 hours of my life waiting in line, and 2 hours before that on the phone, just to make sure I had everything I needed for getting Champ's social security number.

Apparently though, 2 hours on the phone and 3 in a line filling out paper work-all the while with a security officer making you change seats and move around WITH THREE KIDS all in tow-are just not enough minutes of my life. They apparently want more.

Evidently, even though I ASKED WHAT PAPERWORK I NEEDED, and spent another 2 hours earlier this morning at vital records and the doctor office to get the said papers I needed, I did not have everything, because their policies have JUST CHANGED and the idiot I talked to before chasing down all the certified, stamped, sealed, crap-ola paper work didn't remember to tell me that NOW I must also have an insurance card with the child's name on it.

Cause, you know, that proves the child is alive. As a birth certificate, immunization records, and sealed biography/life records form his doctor doesn't. OH, and the fact HE WAS THERE WITH ME and I had my driver's license and passport.

And you know the whole reason I am needing to chase down a social security card? BECAUSE I WANT TO ADD CHAMP TO OUR INSURANCE-AND THUS GET AN INSURANCE CARD WITH HIS NAME ON IT.

Shoot me now.

And you know why I even have to jump through all these hoops and spend days dragging kids all over down town? Because somehow Champ's social security card/number got lost between the Federal side and State side of processing. So, right now, he is halfway processed, and there is a flag on his account saying he had a number, but because everything wasn't transferred between the agencies correctly he now needs to apply for a NEW number.

So, instead of just applying for a first time number, as the hospital did for us with simply submission of his birth certificate, NOW I have to have a stupid crazy amount of certified documentation to prove he is alive and a US Citizen.

Seriously, shoot me now, because I have already pulled out my hair into a tangled mess. AND I have to continue this stupid paper chase tomorrow or Thursday.

Can someone just direct me to a nice Latino* that could hook me up with a social security card? I would probably be able to get Champ's original card number that way, since apparently all his info is just floating around out there between Federal and State Hell.




*My grandma is Latino, so don't say I am hating anyone; I'm just speaking from experience. Most Latinos I personally know could hook me up with fake id in two blinks of an eye, and I am THIS CLOSE to just buying a card off one of them instead of facing the social security Line Of Hell again. And yes, bold caps were needed.

Friday, July 1, 2011

Month ONE



July 1st photo; I can't believe how big everyone is getting:



Wednesday, June 29, 2011

Once a Band Geek

So it has been almost 4 years since I really played the French Horn-and let me tell you, I sound pretty horrible right now.

But, I found a local band that only requires high school level three music capabilities. I know I once HAD that skill, so I am hopping I can come audition tonight and be allowed to join.

I swear I haven't been this nervous in a long time....especially since in the photos section of the site, everyone looks pretty old...which in my head is translating to: THEY ARE FREAKIN AWESOME

I hope I'm not too embarrassed trying to sight read tonight.

I'll let you know if I make it :)

PS, update at 10pm....I made it :)


Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Raising Sons

I'm really quite amazed an entire month has gone by, and I haven't really found the time to blog much. Honestly, I am blogging now only because I felt I should have more than one post under June!

Anyways, here are some quick updates:

The boys are all getting huge. HUGE, I'm telling you! How in the world did that happen? Champ is starting to move around on his back, and no longer stays in one place now....I am going to have to start figureing out the baby gate situation quickly. What did other people do with kids and babies and stairs? I hate to trap the big ones up stairs and have them needing me every second to open/close it for them (and I'm scared they either won't close it OR they will try to climb it...ahhh!)

In the past with babies and crawling, early walking times, we lived out of town in apartments/ one story houses for Will's job....so I have yet to really need to master baby gates.....now with number three being HERE in our split level entry house...I am quite wondering how to set it up.

If you have brilliant thoughts, please share them.

Other updates include that Little Dude is going to start soccer camp in a few weeks-I am really excited for him to get some kind of energy sapping activity going. I'm not sure if we will sign up JR yet or not, I might see how he feels and maybe do another session in the fall with him while Little Dude is in preschool. We shall see. JR will be doing a little preschool baseball weekend session and we are all quite excited about that.

It has suddenly gotten super hot here and I am trying to come up with fun things to do that don't require me seating like crazy, since the kids don't seem to notice. I think there will be many future visits to museums.

In the cloth diapering world, the cloth wipes I am trying out is going great. I am actually really liking just throwing the wipes in the wash as well, and not having to keep them separate, etc. I got some great bottom cleaner spray, called CJ's Carcass Cleaner (nice name, eh?) and used an old body spray bottle (and old one from Bath and Body Works) and I am doing the dry method of wipes. So I take my baby wash cloth or infant diaper insert (those are working GREAT as wipes, by the way) spray down Champs bum, wipe away, and toss everything my wet bag til wash day. For super poops I spray the cloth AND his bum, but so far we have only had one. I think my cleaning spray will last a super long time too. I also got CJ's Bottom Butter in the sea spice scent and it SMELLS SO GOOD. I use some even though he hasn't had any diaper rash as of yet, just because it makes him smell so wonderful.

So far, having a house full of boys is extremely fun. It is usually a super hero, treasure hunting, saving the world kind of day around here, and I love how serious they get about fighting bad guys.

Last week we had JR's birthday party and it was all super hero themed-Oh the kids all had such a great time! I will put on pictures of JR in his batman cape and mask; it is really just too awesome. Little Dude is loving JR's Captain America shield and mask, so I am going to hunt down a Captain America cape on etsy for Little Dude's birthday. Don't tell him though :)

I am also already training them to hold the door for me (and all ladies) and making sure they understand that they can't ever hit a little lady, even if she DOES bite you. I am constantly reminding them they are gentlemen and must act that way.

My sons' future dates can all thank me, as the boys mostly do act like gentlemen to all our little lady friends. I can't; however, be blamed for the toliet seat, I am convinced forgetting to put it down is just a genetic makeup for boys; just be thankful they pee IN it.

So, that is all that is going on here. Beyond keeping the kids alive, trying to put laundry away so Bill thinks I'm productive, and keeping up with my paying job, I really don't have much time to blog as I would like.


Sunday, June 26, 2011

Month THREE

Champ is three months now! He is smiling now and LOVES bath time. He has also become very VERY aware of his big brothers. I am convinced Champ is taking notes so he can quickly try to join in the fun!

Champ is also starting to roll a bit, though he looks very surprised when he gets to his side, and he hasn't quite made it all the way to his tummy yet. Soon though! He has also found his thumb.

After this weekend there will be no more nights in the bassinet in our room, as we are passing the bassinet on to my sister in law, Corina, who is due with a little boy in October! I am terribly sad to not have Champ sleep in our room anymore, but for now Bill is letting me keep the doors to our bedrooms open, so I can hear him just in case Champ needs me during the night.

Did I mention he is already basically sleeping through the night? He gets up around 4 to eat, and then sleeps again until about 8. OH, and bedtime is 10, so we are doing great!







Wednesday, June 1, 2011

Month ONE

My three cute boys posing so nicely (for once)

I can't believe it is June already. In a few days I'll be 30 (gasp!) and already Champ is 2 months old. Plus all of a sudden the other two have become KIDS, not just preschoolers or little kids, but full fledged KIDS.

They are just ginormous to me now.

Bill and I celebrated our 7 year anniversary (Yippie!) with a night free from kids (double YIPPIE!) and now for the past few days I have only had little Champ here, while Little Dude and JR have stayed at Grandma and Grandpa's.

Did I mention they suddenly seem so big to me? Talking to them on the phone yesterday didn't help any.

Anyways, I took this photo right before we left for their stay at the in-laws, since I knew I wouldn't see them til later this week. The kids got all into the photo shoot this time, with the nice one up above, and the silly face fest going on in the photos below. Enjoy!



JR (L) and Little Dude (R) thinking up poses

This is more the type of photo pose I usually get

These are "mean" faces; I tried not to laugh

These are "sad" faces; again I tried not to laugh.

This was taken as they contemplated what poses to do for me. They are such a team and I love they are such good friends. Champ is just putting up with it all.














So, yes, I usually never get all three looking at me, and generally one is making a weird face while the another starts to scream. This was supposed to be silly faces, but JR wasn't into it as much as Little Dude.




JR thought up mean faces-I can't actually tell if he is smiling or growling....hmmmm. I love how Little Dude added "claws" to his mean face-it kinda looks like Champ is making "claws" too, which Little Dude thinks is great.








Sad faces, which just make me want to laugh.

Thursday, May 26, 2011

Month Two


Out little guy is two months! How did the time go by so quickly?

I realized today that I have settled into quite a nice routine, and somehow appear to have it all together. I guess that is half the battle, right? Today at the doctor for Champ's two month shots, I ran into another mom who was in awe that I had three kids under the age of 5, and had somehow gotten them to the office all by myself.

She and her husband had her 6 month old and her 4 year old little girl, and admitted they couldn't imagine taking both kids alone anywhere.

And while I completely understand the sense of being overwhelmed and wanting help, I have to say, a little part of me wanted to be smug about how well behaved the boys were (they even held the doors to the doctor's office for all of us ladies), but I know that being smug about their behavior is the quickest way to get them to show me that I truly have little control over how they decide to act.

In any case, it was fun to talk to the couple and their little girl, who seemed pretty chill, to me. According to mom and dad, she is impossible to take anywhere-I wanted to laugh and tell them to wait til their boy got older and started playing super heroes, then they would see wild, but I didn't.

I just nodded sympathetically and listened, because, really, isn't that what we all need? Just and ear now and then to let us know we are doing a good job and raising our kids OK? Reassurance that it's OK for our kids to not be perfectly behaved every second, and to hear other battlefield tales from other parents in similar situations?

I think it is important to let other parents know that we can't really compare ourselves to each other-we and our children are all different. All we can do is offer support when it is needed.

On that note, here is cuteness:
Two months, just crazy how quickly that went by.



Monday, May 23, 2011

Cloth Diapering and Cloth Wipes

I've been cloth diapering for a few years now; we started with Little Dude was a year old, right after we found out JR was on his way! At the time, I didn't know anyone that cloth diapered, but had seen a lady in TN (where we lived for Little Dude's first 9 months) doing it, and I was a bit intrigued, since she had all these cute covers.

Anyways, after realizing we were soon going to be doing double diaper duty with two under the age of two, I started adding up the cost and figured out pretty quickly that even with increased water, electricity, and detergent usage to do the extra loads of laundry, by FAR we would save a TON with cloth diapers. Especially since I got a lot of mine as "pre loved" ones from http://www.momforlife.com and ebay. Germ-a-phob that I am, I of course washed them with bleach a few times before ever using them on the kiddos.

So, now four years later, I am still super happy with all my cloth diapers and wet bags. LOVE doing it.

But as much as I love doing the cloth diapers, using cloth wipes never crossed my mind, for some reason. Now though, that the cost of the baby wipes I normally get have jumped up a bunch and the fact that I only have one diaper wearer now as apposed to two (yay, JR is out of diapers at night too now, YAYAYAY!)I am really considering the cost, and trying to figure how I can make it as cheap as possible.

So here are my thoughts:

One, I am going to use baby wash cloths (I have a ton for some reason, though I only use his mickey mouse one at bath time) and the "newborn inserts" that came with my cloth diapers. Now that Champ is bigger and peeing more, he is using just the regular insert folded to the small size setting, so what to do with all the newborn inserts? I am thinking they will be perfect baby wipes.

Two, I am so tired of pulling out the baby wipes from my wet bag before washing diapers, or worse, pulling them out of the diaper Velcro after being washed (the Velcro won't stick when the wipe is all stuck in it, so you have to pull every.little.bit.out. ugh.)

Three, I want to cut our costs more and as a bonus reduce the amount of trash I am creating for landfills.

I am also going to use a solution of baby wash with water in a recycled regular wipe container (I will test its water holding power in the sink before putting it on Champ's dresser, hopefully it will be water tight)and then just place the newborn inserts/wash cloths in there as needed.

When done? I'll just throw them in with my diapers in the wet bag as normal, but instead of pulling them out of the wash or bag later, I can just wash everything with no worries about my Velcro getting messed up. Yippie!

I did go ahead and order a travel wipes spray for the diaper bag, though I am fine with using regular wipes just for travel if needed.

So, off on the adventure of cloth wipes I go. I'll let you know how it turns out.

Sunday, May 15, 2011

Thor, Flash Storm, Ant Man and Wasp

The only non-blurry photo I have of the elusive Iron Man

Apparently, I missed out on a lot of fun growing up without any boys or male playmates. Even in school I always had girl friends and never really felt comfortable around boys; thus I missed out on some of the coolest stuff ever.

Like super heroes. Who knew there were so many? With so many skills? There is even a girl named WASP who seems infinitely cooler than Super Girl (or even Bat Girl...remember the Alicia Sliverstone movie? *shudder*)

Anyways, super heroes are ALL the rage at our house right now. On a minute to minute breakdown through the day I take on a slew of super hero identities to match whatever theme the boys are on-they are Batman and Robin? I'm obviously Bat Mom (with the ever present Champ playing the part of Bat Baby). The boys are Thor and Ant Man? I am obviously Wasp, who, with the help of Baby Wasp, stings bad guys to death, flies around and can shrink to fit in tiny places-no bad guys can escape the wrath of Wasp and baby Wasp.

And yes, there actually is an ANT MAN-I too had thought the boys made him up until we saw the Avengers cartoon. I'm telling you, I lived a sheltered life of tea parties and My Little Pony.

I have to say, I am a little sad to see JR skipping the Thomas the Train and Sesame Street stage-he is up to whatever Little Dude is up to, so now that Little Dude is "waaaaaaay to oooooooollllllddddd for Elmooooooo" (direct quote, by the way, given exclusively to me when I asked if they would like to watch said show...) it seems that all kinds of bad guy hunting must take place.

Luckily, firefighters are still a huge hit here, since they are "life like super hereos" (again, direct quote from my eldest....) So, when whatever I try to entertain with bombs, an impromptu trip to visit our favorite living super hereos can get even the worst rainy day blues to go away.

It is super cool to see all the pretend play and super hero stuff. And now that Disney bought Marvel (or has the license rights for awhile)I have been having fun pricing super hero gear for the boys' birthdays! Yay! I am also super excited to see what costumes Disney has for super hereos around Halloween-score!

I, of course, will be a princess again, since I am, after all, the princess of all my men.

And now, back to being Iron Man Mom, as I can hear two Iron Man-s (Men?) still running around upstairs with Iron Man Dad and Iron Man Baby just started to cry for food. The secret life of a super hero. Now you know.

Friday, May 6, 2011

Fleeting Newborn Stage

I tried to get this onezie on Champ today and couldn't get it over his big head. A head that has grown by leaps and bounds already-along with the rest of him. I picked another favorite outfit of mine and couldn't get it pulled down enough to snap.


This was taken a few weeks ago; a few weeks is all it takes for that sweet newborn stage to swiftly disappear. I have to admit, I'm having a tough time with it. I know Champ is *most likely* our last one. Can't say for certain, but as I get more and more exhausted at the end of the day, even though I want nothing more than to cuddle babies all the time, I also want sleep. And a break in the constant motion of the older boys would be nice.

And to somehow have answers to the billizillion and counting questions the other two ask me *just about super heros*. Good grief, I am in huge trouble when they start asking questions I can't just make up answers to.

I had a huge stand off fight with Little Dude today over a *crack* in his sandwich bread. He didn't want to eat a non-perfect piece of bread. I wanted to clobber him for throwing such a whiny, screaming, kicking infested, "YOU'RE AN AWFUL LUNCH MAKER, THERE IS PEANUT BUTTER EVERYWHERE ON MY BREAD" yelling tantrum.

I actually found myself lecturing about children starving in Africa, Japan and Hatti. Yes, I went there.

Lucky for Little Dude, I am literally too tired today to deal, so I sent him to bed *without lunch*, to more screams of "I'M HUNGRY I WANT----".

I shut the door to the room. And snuggled with Champ while JR finished his lunch and then asked to eat his brother's. I talked JR into an orange, since hopefully soon Little Dude will decide he is hungry and can manage to eat a peanut butter and honey sandwich with one crack in the bread.

So, I want more babies, and I really would love to have a fourth, but to be honest, I don't know that I would be that sane of a parent with 4 headstrong kids. I have 2 to contend with already and I know that Champ will not be far behind.

I just really wish I could freeze these baby days a little longer. The thought of packing up the newborn clothes for the last time makes me want to cry. Even the no sleeping at night; I will greatly miss it when the time comes for him to shout about some injustice served in the form of a sandwich.

Sigh. Good thing it is Friday.



Sunday, May 1, 2011

ABC Easy As 123

Somehow an entire month has gone by since Champ made his debut. It has gone by very quickly and at the same time, has felt pretty normal.

Some things are crazy still. Like the fact it takes me 2 hours to get everyone dressed and out the door somewhere.....or the fact that laundry has somehow grown by a factor of 20 to the 10th power. Literally.

But, I am getting everyone to preschool on time, and getting dinner done, and grocery shopping done. And let us not forget just simply keeping everyone alive. That really is a feat in and of itself with two boys that are rough and tough and want nothing more than to hug their baby bro a LITTLE too tightly.


Saturday, April 30, 2011

Star Of Mommy's Blog

Champ seems to be contemplating being the current tiny star of my blog:

My mom is putting my baby photos on the internet? Oh my.


Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Month One

We made it a month! How did a month go by so very quickly? It really came as a shock when I realized that Champ was a month old already! So, as any dutiful parent of three would do, I pulled out my camera and took a ton of photos, in hopes that made up for the lack of photos taken all month long.

I am going to do my best to get a photo of all the boys together each month, and I'll show another group shot on the first of May, as I am going to try to get in the routine of doing it the first of each month. I've had a lot of online friends to this and it has been super cool to see all their kids change though the years and I'd really love to have the same type of photos.

So, without further ado, here are photos of Champ at One Month old:












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