Updates

I forgot how much more all-consuming babies become as they approach 6 months (holy bejeemenie Milo is almost 6 months old!).  These days, when I'm on my computer it is either because I am nursing Milo at the computer, I'm putting Milo down for a nap and am on my phone, or I am nursing Milo to sleep at night and am on my phone.  Returning emails, posting more than a sentence or two on facebook or my message boards, and blogging have all become quite a task!  I miss having these outlets, but I know that I'll get back to them at some point :)

Updates on the the fam:

Maya ~ Oh, the joys of having a 4-year-old.  She has learned that her tone can greatly affect all of our moods, and she is not afraid to use that knowledge!  But, she is sweet and loving and almost always wants nothing more than to make Milo laugh and to play "kid" or "princess" with Charlotte.  She learns more and more each day and loves to color, write letters and read books.  She desperately wants to know how to spell every word and is not satisfied when I try to start with things like cat or sun; she would much rather know how to spell reindeer or princess.  Of course when I sit down with an "I Can Read" book she wants nothing to do with it :)  We are currently deep into the process of trying to choose a kindergarten for next year.  Because Maya's birthday falls after our district's cut-off, we have to decide if we want to have her tested for early entrance, keep her in preschool another year or send her to private school.  I considered homeschooling, but at least for the time being am feeling like that's not the best option for us (even though I kindof always thought, in the back of my mind, that that is what we'd do).  I'm excited for her to go to school and to be a room-parent and on the PTA and all that jazz :)  We live in a great school district so I'm blessed and cursed to have plenty of options!

Charlotte ~ Oh, sweet Charlotte.  She makes me laugh and smile and brings such joy to our family.  Charlotte is adorable.  Her vocabulary and understanding have exploded recently ~ she went through a phase where I really thought there was something wrong...she would totally shut down in certain situations that I'm guessing felt overwhelming to her.  I asked mom friends and watched her closely and talked to my mom and sisters and in-laws and finally brought it up to her pediatrician.  I was getting the feeling that she had a *lot* of anxiety (not even a little bit surprising if you know me...apple doesn't fall far from the tree ;)).  But, as suddenly as she seemed to descend into herself, she has come out of that phase as a full-blown little kid.  She is full of opinion and imagination and my heart nearly explodes with joy at my fun conversations with her.  I love her funny answers to our questions (tonight at dinner she told us that her favorite part of the day was drinking from her water cup :)) and I really love eavesdropping when she and Maya play pretend.

Milo ~ What a joy he is!  I made no secret of wanting a 3rd girl when I was pregnant with Milo.  What will I ever do with a boy??? was pretty much all I could think.  I mean, I knew that I would love my baby no matter the gender, but was not so secretly hoping the ultrasound was wrong ;)  But once he was born?  Oh, the overwhelming love you feel when you meet your baby for the first time.  And in the almost 6 months since that amazing day, I have gotten to know the sweetest baby on earth.  All I want to do all day is kiss his soft baby cheeks and make him smile and play "peek-a-boo".  I am convinced that, while I love my girls more than I ever thought I could love anyone, boys are the sweetest.  Watch out future girlfriends, this boy is all mine ;)

On the update front for Milo, he is rolling and army crawling and trying to sit and generally being awesome pretty much all the time :)

Michael ~ Work has been busy.  Really busy.  I've been getting lots of extra quality time with the kiddos, though I have been assured that this will not last forever.  We are both in a competition at his work as well ~ "The Biggest Loser".  It's been fun and I've been impressed with his ability to drink his water happily while I try to convince him that what he really wants is ice cream or cookies or candy :)

Random pics!

My attempt to sabotage Michael ;)  These cookies, "Winter Energy Cookies", are amazing!

I of course had helpers in my evil plot!

On the healthy front, though, I made some awesome veggie burgers!  Black beans, sweet potato, quinoa, oatmeal...yum!

Looks tasty, right? ;)

Maya taking the lead on the playground.  I'm pretty sure they played "tag" after this.

Charlotte picks her own clothes these days.

mid-roll

"Where's your tongue?"

Quick Post

Life is flying by, as usual!  Right now I'm rocking a sad little boy who is battling his first illness.  Compared to probably any other illness we've dealt with, this one is mild.  But, my sweet boy is sad and needs to be nursed and rocked and held and bounced and "shhhh"ed (shushed?  that sounds so harsh, though...) and I just want him to feel better.  After being up a good part of the night coughing and wiggling, though, he fell asleep for about 45 minutes on Michael's chest this morning and woke up all smiles and giggles and was relatively happy for most of the day.  Now I'm gearing up for a repeat of last night, and as Mr. Particular is getting angry that I am trying to both hold him *and* blog (how dare I!), I will sign off for now.

Pictures:

Stuffed animals at "school"

The aftermath of about 7 minutes in the snow!  

Mommy!  Charlotte and I are hugging!  Take a picture!

I know this one is blurry, but I loved the moment :)  She and Charlotte were dancing around the office <3

And now, a string of Milo pictures, because he is adorable (and also because he pretty much stays in one place :))

Wow, somebody needs to cut his fingernails!

It's an amber teething necklace.

Overwhelmed, Abundantly Blessed

For some reason (or for lots of reasons, more likely) I am feeling extremely overwhelmed with life right now.  I don't feel like it is necessarily a bad thing, just a season that I am going through.  Some days it is all I can do to make a path through the clutter, both mentally and physically, and do the bare minimum of what needs to be done.  My kids are loved on and taken care of, my house not so much.  I find the former more important anyway so it works out ;)  Since Maya was born, I've had guilt that I should be doing more and being more when it came to motherhood, marriage, homemaking.  I beat myself up that I should play instead of clean, and then feel guilty because the dishes aren't done or that pile that I started to sweep in the kitchen stayed there for FIVE DAYS (true story) or Michael runs out of socks or it's 7pm and I haven't even thought of what we would have for dinner so we eat spaghetti again (I am seriously fortunate that my family likes spaghetti ~ and I'm talking a box of pasta and a jar of sauce, *maybe* some frozen meatballs ~ because we have it at least 2x/week).  

But, I'm starting to really believe that "babies don't keep" poem that I see quoted on other blogs and facebook so frequently.  Milo is almost 5 months old and I can't even believe that the time has gone so fast.  My one regret from the short time that we've had together is that I've stressed so much about what I should be doing instead of just enjoying his sweet baby scent, how his hair sticks up after a bath, the way he kicks just right so that jammies don't stay on properly.  Part of me wants to keep him little forever, but a larger part wants to just soak this all in and enjoy every little milestone as it comes.  After watching a friend work *so hard* with her son to meet milestones that come naturally for some babies, I really feel blessed and in awe each time Milo grabs for a toy or rolls over or scrunches up his face so hard to make a sound.  So, as much as I am overwhelmed, I am blessed beyond measure.

Song for a Fifth Child

Mother, oh Mother, come shake out your cloth,
Empty the dustpan, poison the moth,
Hang out the washing and butter the bread,
Sew on a button and make up a bed.


Where is the mother whose house is so shocking?
She’s up in the nursery, blissfully rocking.


Oh, I’ve grown shiftless as Little Boy Blue
(Lullaby, rockaby, lullaby loo).
Dishes are waiting and bills are past due
(Pat-a-cake, darling, and peek, peekaboo).


The shopping’s not done and there’s nothing for stew
And out in the yard there’s a hullabaloo
But I’m playing Kanga and this is my Roo.
Look! Aren’t her eyes the most wonderful hue?
(Lullaby, rockaby, lullaby loo).


The cleaning and scrubbing will wait till tomorrow,
For children grow up, as I’ve learned to my sorrow.
So quiet down, cobwebs. Dust go to sleep.
I’m rocking my baby and babies don’t keep.

~Ruth Hulbert Hamilton

Pictures...

Charlotte with "Holly" Pocket ~ neither girl will accept the fact that her name is Polly.

Charlotte made me dinner :)

<3

First real snow!

My little ballerina :)  She is *so proud* of her pointy toes :)

Saturday morning breakfast ~ yum!

 

Could she seriously be any sweeter???

The girls were having a snowball fight today with the last tiny bit of snow in the yard.  Maya was so sad that it melted!

I think Charlotte's snowsuit is hilarious.  I'm so glad it still fits this year :)