Easter: Part 2

Our ward meets at 1pm. Not a good time for napping toddlers. As the morning wore on it was apparent that a nap was not going to happen for Max and Kate. They were happy and playing so we decided to just go and see what happens. I put out the kids' Easter clothes and we commenced the circus of dressing everyone. Neither of them wanted to wear what I had chosen, naturally.

Before we headed to church I wanted family pictures. Kate was having a tantrum about what shoes she wanted to wear and we were beginning to regret the no nap business. The boys and I headed out front to snap a few shots and Phil handled the shoe crisis.

Earlier in the morning Max wanted to dress himself and he chose his khaki church pants, a plaid flannel shirt and his navy baseball tie. He looked like an 80s high school teacher (plaid flannel, mismatched tie) or a la Kurt Russell from Overboard.

I was going to let him go to church like that since I thought it was hilarious but he changed. Still a handsome fella though.

Rocks are very distracting.

Please indulge my multiple photos of the same scene. I just love my kids, love that I am in the picture with them and each one has adorable faces that must be shared. It took several attempts with the kids but I finally got one of all the kids looking at the camera, I only had to switch out Rhett's eyes on this last one since he was mid blink and out of focus. So, yes. I cheated, thank you Photoshop. But! They were all looking and a little eye swap is nothing.

Pictures done, we loaded up and went to church. We were actually on time! This never happens since the kids usually nap and we let them sleep so we can survive the remainder of the block. We made it through most of the first hour and it was rough. I used all the books, quiet toys, colors, snacks, etc in the first 20 minutes. As the meeting progressed Max was getting more disruptive and defiant. Rhett was fussing and I stepped out in the hall and a few minutes later Phil comes out with a kicking and screaming Max. I take him outside and soon Phil returns with Kate and our bag. Max continued to put on quite a show, he was past his limit and screamed all the way home. I put all the kids down for a nap, Phil returned to church for his nursery calling and I prepped dinner. Disjointed church and spotty attendance. Story of our life.

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Last Saturday we drove to Mesa for the Gunnell Easter get together. The kids had fun playing with cousins, we enjoyed visiting and good food. I love family gatherings and wish we did them more often. And with three kids to tend to I always leave feeling like I didn't get to talk to anyone. (Of course I visit, but never as in depth as I like and there so many interruptions I feel like a space cadet and can't hold a coherent conversation.)

The kids had so much fun playing and getting loves. They loved the pinata activity. Each child got to swing 5 times, starting with the youngest and the oldest grandchild, Kyle, got to finish it off and break it open.

Apparently swinging a bat requires intense concentration and tongue action.

Candy!

I love that Grandpa Great was on the floor playing with all the kids. They love him.

My kids are so loved. I love our family.

Thank you Andrea for taking a family shot.

Easter: Part 1

Easter Weekend Midwestern University had their annual Egg Fest, a really fun family event with an egg hunt, pictures with the Easter Bunny, games, crafts, etc. Last year we were 10 minutes late and we missed the entire hunt for our age group. I talked to Phil about going this year and he couldn't afford to take off time from studying. I accepted that and was just going to stay home with the kids. I wasn't really wanting to go solo with three kids to a busy public venue in case of unpredictable toddler tantrums.

The kids and I were just hanging out at the house and I guess I got a wild hair or something but on a whim I decided to just go for it. I put on my big girl panties, loaded up the kids, BOB stroller and baby carrier. Phil helped buckle everyone in and as I was getting into the truck he said "don't come home mad!". Meaning: you are crazy, if things go awry there is no one to blame but yourself.

We pulled into the parking lot, unloaded and walked to the center of campus. We were already 20+ minutes past the starting time so I didn't expect to see this scene as we rounded the corner.

Eggs everywhere! I quickly sprinted back to the truck, pushing the double stroller and wearing Rhett, to grab the closest thing we had to gather eggs in; the kid's sand buckets. One quick swipe with their hoodies to get rid of most of the dust inside and we hustled back to the scene just in case it was starting soon.

The hunt wasn't starting for 30 more minutes so we headed for the shade of the main ramada, spotted some friends and sat down to color. Then we went to decorate a sugar cookie and Max and Kate sure enjoyed that! Too busy eating to look at the camera.

Patiently waiting for the hunt to start.

Finally it was time! The announcer exclaimed "Go!" and I told Max to run, run, run! He interpreted that literally and just took off! He then got to the center and was overwhelmed by the masses and started crying. I called him back over to us and we got busy gathering eggs. I was too busy helping Kate to snap pictures of the start but my friend Julie was on the other side of the lawn. I saw this picture on her blog and had to steal it since we were all in it.

They scored stickers and fruit snacks in their eggs. No chocolate. Which was smart since the eggs had been sitting in the sun all morning, the fruit snacks were melting so I was grateful for less mess.

The hunt was over in minutes and we went back to our table to examine the spoils.

Rhett was happy to sit in the stroller, play with toys and "eat a wrapped granola bar. Loved that crinkly noise.

We chatted with friends for a little while longer and called it when Rhett was ready for a nap. 

I am so glad we went! The kids did great and I am sad that this is our last event on campus. My only regret is that Phil wasn't able to join us.

10 on 10: April

One photo every hour for 10 hours on the 10th day of the month.

(Er, more like 10 on the 14th but whatever...)

I totally spaced this project until I saw my friend Lori do her post. I figure it is more important that I do the project than worry about the actual day it is done. Here goes.

Toddlers and boxes = endless entertainment. These are their "beep-beeps". Last week Max pulled a box over his body and started driving around. Brilliant! We got out the crayons and colored the boxes, I cut out yellow circles for headlights and they helped glue them on. Then a week later I stole them so I could ship some textbooks. Shhhhh! So these "beep-beeps" haven't gotten the full treatment yet. And they most likely will not be embellished due to the extreme likelihood of my using them to pack something.

Packing with little helpers is fun!

Max: "What you doin' Mom? What you doin' Mom?"

Me: "Packing, Max."

Max: "Ohhhh, packing?"

Repeat 12 more times. :)

Rhett was down for a nap, I snagged a shower and then came out to the hall bath to supervise the natives and try to get ready. Try being the operative word. I got as far as one coat of mascara and blush.

Easter cupcakes ready for transport to Mesa for the Gunnell party.

(Let's pretend this was taken in the 12 o'clock hour, close enough)

I put Max and Kate down for their nap which they vehemently protested, wailing toddler obscenities at me. I shut the door on them (hooray for being in cribs still!), walked away from the ruckus and grabbed my babe who was also going to go down for a nap. We like to play in the mirror, there is always a really adorable baby smiling back at us.

Short nap for Rhett and a phone call from a friend has us going for a truck ride to help move an armoire.

*Missing a few hours due to two big kids who played for 2 hours in their beds instead of napping, preparing for the road trip to Mesa and actual driving. All three kids crashed 15 minutes into the drive. Phil studied for his boards and I obviously drove.

Max and Stanley at Grandma and Grandpa Gunnell's house.

The rest of our evening was fun with family, food and a pinata! We packed up three tired babes after 8pm and headed to our Talbot house to snag more moving boxes. We didn't come prepared to tie them down in the bed of the truck so we shoved them all in the back seat with our kids. Crazy. They were good sports about it and we couldn't see them with the cardboard limo window we had going on. Home around 9:30pm, jammies, brush teeth, nurse the babe and everyone in bed. Phew! I will be happy when going home from family events means just a 5 minute drive.

Rhett: 6 Months

I am at least 2 weeks overdue with this post but I couldn't post without pictures, naturally.

Rhett's 6 Month Stats:

Weight: 16 pounds 9.5 ounces, 23%

Length: 26.25 inches, 32%

Head: 17 inches, 25%

The babe is still happy and healthy.

My biggest stress this past 6 weeks has been with nursing. Rhett will only nurse for a few minutes and then refuses to nurse longer, I am talking like 2-3 minutes. Drives me crazy, worries and stresses me at the same time. We all know that I like to worry about things and this "problem" is nothing different. I think it is a combination of needing to extend the time between nursing sessions, a busy baby who doesn't want to sit still to nurse well and I also suspect that my supply was getting a bit low, probably because he wasn't nursing well. Supply and demand! I have since started taking fenugreek, an herb that helps boost supply and I can tell a difference. As for Rhett, we have good nursing days and bad. I just get out my little manual pump to help when he is being stinky. I know it doesn't do a good job but it is better than nothing.

Sleep has been improving. A few weeks ago, when he first turned 6 months, he was still getting up 2 times a night and now we are down to 1. Even then I think he is capable of going all the way through, I am happy to nurse him before I go to bed but if he wakes in the earlier morning, around 4-5am then it interferes with the wake-up feed and I would rather we both sleep through. The other night he slept from 11pm to 6:30am! That was glorious but I am still exhausted. I have a lot of catching up to do on sleep.

He loves food. LOVES food! He eats a good variety of purees though I have noticed that all the first foods that babies can eat are orange. Squash, sweet potato, carrots, peaches, mango, etc. With Max and Kate they loved sweet potatoes so much that I overdosed them on beta carotene! Seriously, they were turning orange. Ahem. We promptly stopped feeding them sweet potatoes, so I am leery about how much Rhett eats. I guess if you are going to OD on something it should be vegetables, right? Someone please tell me if my baby is turning orange, thank you.

We have let him suck on cantaloupe, pineapple and apples. He is in heaven and will grab our hand to make sure we don't take it away from him. His eyes track every bite you take and you feel compelled to share. His love of real food definitely supersedes his love of nursing. Sad for me. I had to break in blogging this post since he woke up from a nap, we nursed and then he ate. I let him try some of my coconut popsicle and he pretty much took over the thing. Little babe, I love him so much.

Rhett rolls and scoots all over. He can sit up for brief moments alone and otherwise needs light support. He loves to watch Max and Kate, thinks his daddy is pretty awesome and I like to think I'm his favorite. We had a fussy day where he only wanted to be held and it made me grateful for how happy and easy going he truly is. We have it easy with this kid.

I feel like I have finally figured out his day, it has only taken us 6 months! His naps had been so unpredictable in length and I was feeling frustrated that I couldn't set up appointments or outings since I didn't know when he would need to nap or how long he would sleep and I would inevitably feel bad that he was getting crap naps on the go. I am a creature of habit and thrive on structure so I am happy to have a handle on the boy's life for the time being.

He takes three naps a day; morning nap is a catnap-no more than 45 minutes. Then he will generally take a longer mid-afternoon nap, almost perfectly synced with Max and Kate's (can we shout hooray?) and then finally another catnap in the late afternoon which allows me to prep dinner. Mighty kind of him to be so accommodating. He is up each morning around 6:30am and down to bed around 7:30pm.

I swear the kid is growing up much faster than his siblings. He seems to be in a hurry to do everything big like Max and Kate. I put him in the tub with Kate one night and he had a blast, splashing, laughing and eating toys. Kate enjoyed it too.

He just gets more fun and energetic as he gets older. He is our sunshine and brings happiness where ever he goes.

Chaos: Home, Body, Mind and Spirit

I have touched on this before but I am going to revisit it again. There are days I feel like I am drowning. It is all I can do to keep my head above water with these little kids, three of them by the way. Three under 3. Help!

Lately my patience seems to teeter on the edge and I lose control more often than I care to admit, certainly here on this ol' public blog. I am snappy, snarky and often unkind in voice and action and after my outburst I feel shameful and hate myself. This behavior feeds into a vicious cycle and I feel like I am unable to get a firm grasp on steadier ground.

It isn't all bad and we certainly have happy moments but at night when I replay the day as I am lying in bed the grumpy, sad moments take precedence. I take complete responsibility for my actions but I know that they are heavily influenced by my lack of sleep. This one simple requirement turns out to be vital for my well-being. I do not properly care for myself in regards to exercise of body and nourishing my Spirit. I turn to food in moments of stress and grab quick carbs to keep me going. This feeds my dissatisfaction with my present physical state, which in turn touches every aspect of my life. It is a nasty, downward spiral. I know how to get out but seem to lack the motivation, energy and time. Even then I know it is a matter of priority and the kids always come first.

Rhett is up 2-3 times at night and it is time to get serious with sleep training. I cannot function any longer and be my best me. It isn't fair to anyone in our family and I know that the babe is capable. I have enabled some bad habits and it is going to be rough on both of us as we work on breaking them. But I know it will be worth it in the end.


Those Amazon.com smiles show how we feel about moving: happy-sad.

Packing is in full swing. Boxes are lining the garage wall and littering the hall. The house is cluttered, chores delayed or ignored. There are times when I feel in complete control of our upcoming move, lists are made and items checked off. And then I look at the calendar, we have 22 days! Get a move on girl! I am most productive when the kids are all asleep and last night packed up a few kitchen cupboards. I have stopped shopping for our regular grocery items, only fresh dairy and produce. Meals are planned around the meats in the freezer so it will be empty come April 25th. It is strangely satisfying to me to finish up a box of cereal, jar of jam, a bottle of lotion, etc. in light of our move. It makes me feel more organized and efficient as I am packing to know that we aren't bringing along nearly empty items. But then I also remind myself that we are moving across town, not cross-country and surely an extra box of pantry items isn't going to matter. I also lay in bed at night mentally setting up our house, organizing the new play area for the kids, day dreaming of redecorating with our nonexistent budget.

I got my camera back and I feel more complete. The weight of it in my hands feels so familiar and wonderful to me, a piece of me was missing with it gone. Sounds silly but it is true for me. I have things to write about, life to document but packing and exhaustion supersede.

I am putting a lot of hope into our move back home. For some reason I feel that life is going to get easier when we return? This is surely false but I still cling to it. Phil will be starting rotations mid-summer and that will be wonderful for us all, but mostly for him. I know he will be happier and feel more productive applying the knowledge he has worked so hard to attain these past two years and also gaining more clinical experience. Rhett will be in his own room! I want to get a treadmill and establish an exercise routine. Our Talbot house has a bit more storage and I feel like order will help tame the crazy around here. But that all rides on my shoulders so I'd better get busy. But perhaps after a nap, this mama is tired.