The Grabenstetter 6

Did you hear the news?

We are going to be a family of Six!
To the people who think we're crazy:
Yes, we have our hands full, but we love it.
Our children keep us busy, but they keep our hearts full.
This was our plan from the start; to have a big family.
We're a Big, Happy family -- and we totally love it that way!

To the Judgmental Mom With the Newborn:

Your kid will act up some day, too.

Yesterday was Mother's Day! Yay!
I am a mommy of three ( and 1/4 if you count the growing one in my belly, and I totally do )
So, an almost mom of 4.
We went with our entire family out to Mother's Day Brunch yesterday at Wildlife Prairie Park.
I had made the reservation well in advance to accommodate 12 people. Yes, we had 12 people.
My parents, my husband's parents, my sister's family and my own.
I chose the park because I thought it would be a great way to spend the day, and the kids would enjoy going to the park and seeing the animals, etc.
I was right. It was a great time had by all. It was a little chilly but no one complained or even seemed to notice.
There were lots of families out for Mother's Day brunch.
Families with older children, families with small children, large families, small families, all kinds of families.
Right when we got there my oldest decided that she was going to throw a fit. She sometimes gets a little anxious in social situations where there are a lot of people. She has melt downs. She decided that this was the time and place to do so.
She just needed to be calmed down. We had to decide where she was going to sit and what she was going to drink. This took a good while to accomplish, and she was still whining and grabbing a hold of my leg the entire time. Finally she calmed down and sat in her chair and was able to talk to family and eat her brunch.
In the midst of all this I noticed a small family sitting at the table next to ours. They had a newborn baby who was probably only a couple of weeks old.
I had noticed them for two reasons:
1. Because they walked in right before us, and had been given the LAST highchair in the place for them to flip it over and place their car seat in it. We obviously needed it for our 14 month old to sit in the high chair to be able to eat, because she isn't capable of sitting in just a booster seat a lone yet. So, I was a little peeved about it because I had called over a month in advance and requested a high chair. No matter. Baby would sit on Daddy's lap and we would wait for someone to be finished with theirs.
2. While Ellie was throwing her tantrum, I noticed that the mother looked over at my red-headed child in complete horror as she grabbed hold of my leg and whined endlessly. I overheard her comments about how I needed to learn to control my child ( or something to that extent, because I wasn't really paying complete attention to her at that moment )
I just smile at people that give me the horror look. I think its kind of funny for them to think that my child is misbehaving and that I am in total control and should just snap my fingers and they will whip into shape.
It's quite comical to think that actually happens. Maybe in Disney movies. I do not live in a Disney movie, and frankly, you don't either.
( if woodland critters do your housework for you, and you are able to whistle while you work, in perfect pitch and tune please let me know where you live! )
I wanted to say something to that mom. I wanted to walk over there, point at her newborn and say "You don't have mind control over that child. Your child will do what they want, when they want, and it won't always be in the privacy of your own home. Your child will have tantrums. Your child will have instances where they embarrass you in public. It will happen. It will."
And then  I wanted to waggle my finger and walk away, my screaming kid attached to my leg like something out of the movies.
I didn't. I bit my tongue and smiled a thin lipped smile.
I also smile at other moms whose children are throwing fits somewhere. I smile the "I'm Sorry! I know your pain" smile!
You can always tell when another mom gets your sympathetic smile because they give you one back that says "thank you."
I don't, however, understand the looks from people who look at you as though you are beating your child to elicit such behavior.
"Yes, I am a bad mom. The reason she's acting like this is because I pulled her hair and threatened to chain her in a dungeon." Duh.
Geeze, people. She's Four years old. She's not entirely in control of her emotions at this point in time, and this is the only way she knows how to deal with it. Just like a baby cries to let you know they need something, a child acts a specific way when they can't communicate their needs.
SO, to the judgmental mom with the newborn:
your time will come. And instead of giving you a look of distaste and horror, I will offer you a sympathetic smile, and hope someday you will do the same for a fellow mommy, because we're all learning as we go.

My Beauties and me for our Mother's Day photo shoot. 

photo taken by: 

Mary Morris of Seth Morris Photography

My Halloween Decision

I think the hardest decision I make all year is deciding what to be for Halloween. It's already April and I am pondering all of the possibilities.
Last year, if you didn't know, we went as Monster's Inc! It was awesome - check out my first blog entry to see photos.

I always toss around several ideas before ultimately asking my oldest daughter what she thinks we should be.
This year she's telling me that she wants to go as "Plants Vs. Zombies" characters.
If you're not familiar with the game, you plant different plants on your lawn as a defense against different kinds of zombies. There's a slew of plants or zombies to choose from. She wants to be a blue frozen pea shooting plant.
It's a thought. I would have to make almost all of the costumes from scratch because I'm pretty sure there aren't blue frozen pea shooter costumes in the stores this season. :)
I have some ideas if we need to be plants vs zombies.
I am leaning towards trying to get the kids on board with being characters from Peter Pan. You know, Peter Pan, Tinkerbell, Wendy, Captain Hook, Mr Shmee, the lost boys. There's so many that we could go with.
We already have a skunk costume if one of the kids wanted to go as a lost boy.
We also have several TinkerBell costumes as well.
And to tell you the truth, I kind of want my husband to be Captain Hook and me be Mr Shmee. :) I think it would be pretty funny.
No, he's not going to be Peter Pan. I can't get him to agree on that one. Sorry. :)
I think I might be able to talk the girls into being Wendy and Tinkerbell, and one of the other girls be Peter Pan. This may be a hard sell, though. They love Tinkerbell pretty equally, and I'm sure a fight would happen if I tried to let one of them be TinkerBell over the other. This is why I think I may have the baby be TinkerBell, and the other two girls be a lost boy and Peter Pan. That way, there's no arguing. :) Ellie should be Peter Pan. She'd be so cute. :)
But then again, there's Tiger Lily. So, if I need another girl character, I could always use her. Maybe I will end up talking Andy into being Peter Pan after all?! :)
See how I go back and forth over these things? There's a terrible war going on in my brain over it all.

I'm sure that there will be many more idea that come to mind before the Halloween Season hits. Sept 1st for us is "Halloween Season, " and when I start putting up all of our Halloween decorations.
Well, the Halloween decorations that aren't out all year long. Because there are still a lot of those.

Only time will tell.

Here's a photo I found online of a family Peter Pan costume idea:

And here's Plants Vs. Zombies. 

A list of only a couple of characters. 

There are way more. 

Too many choices. How will I ever decide just one idea this Halloween?!

Bad Days. We've all Got 'Em.

I was having a bad day today.
I may still be having a bad day later, the day isn't over yet.
It didn't start out too bad. All of my kids woke up happy and smiling!
The sun was shining and the birds were chirping. I was ready for a downright Disney kind of day!
You know a Disney day, where everything is going your way... zippity doo dah!
Well, DDay quickly turned into D-Day : Dooms Day.
The kids started fighting over everything. There was physical violence involved and time-outs started immediately afterwards. I made coffee, got breakfast for the kids and then things went down hill even more....
Cereal was dumped on the floor. Bananas were smashed into hair. The baby pulled things from the table onto the floor and ripped up bits of paper. We call that "Rippy Bits." It's a no-no in our house.
Then, it was time to clean. Instead of cleaning, the kids decided it was time to break toys and scream and fight again. Even the baby. She was shoving the other girls to get to toys. Screaming and shoving always turns into hitting and pushing onto the ground.
More Time-Outs.
In the midst of all of this I still hadn't had my coffee and I was getting a little anxious about it, and my fuse was getting shorter and shorter.
I separated the girls into their own rooms, and while I sat with Georgia in her room to clean it, Ellie went into hers. I would give her 1 thing to do, then she was to complete it and report back to me.
Instead she went into her room and pulled all of her books from the shelf.
I went into the bathroom to clean the toilet and the floor that my 2.5 year old had just peed on because she waited too long to go to the bathroom. When I got back into her bedroom, the baby had pulled every single diaper off of the changing table.
Can you feel the weight of the day pressing down onto my shoulders? Sheesh, I can!
And this is all before lunch!
So, I picked up all of the diapers, instructed the kids to pick up their books and Barbies and Ponies.
I went into the basement to move laundry around. You know, move dry clothes to the hamper, clean and wet  clothes to the dryer, and dirty clothes to the washing machine. I realized that there had been a toy in the washing machine that was no longer going to work again. ( a favored toy, of course. )
There was also a pair of jeans that turned some other items in the dryer a dark blue. They have been washed several times before on their own, but today they decided that they needed to release their dye into my zebra print pajama pants and my brand new pair of underwear from VS.
Wonderful.
Not to mention the dog getting too excited to see me when going into the basement to feed him breakfast, he slammed my leg between himself and the wall. My ankle has a nice scrape and bruise on it.
Back upstairs. Remove baby from Pack and play because she's screaming.
Coffee..... My cup is dirty, I have to wash it.
I break the sponge/soap thingy I use to wash dishes. Oi Vey.
I use a dish cloth, no biggie.
The girls' rooms are destroyed with toys now, even more of a mess than when I left them.
I instruct them what needs to be picked up and put where.
Laundry folding time. One of the drawstrings from a pair of sweatpants has managed to ensnare several other pieces of clothing and ripped a hole in the sweatpants. My dryer eats clothes for every meal.

The thing is, these chain of events just kind of spiraled out of control for me and I felt like a runaway train. I had to sit down and recollect myself.
I felt like all I had accomplished since I woke up that day was just picking up after kids and nagging them to pick up their own toys.
I once devised a chore chart to help myself from being overwhelmed, but that was when the baby was an infant, and immobile. Now she can go from room to room, Godzilla'ing the entire room in a matter of seconds. I'd like to run away like a scared villager... but instead am shaking my head in the wake of the destruction. And at that moment, I feel bad for Godzilla's mom who has to clean up Tokyo after his destruction.
Nowadays all I do is cruise from room to room, picking up all the small messes that the kids have made.
Small messes in every room really add up to one big mess.
The days that the kids refuse to help are bad ones. I try to explain to them the fairness in it all, but they are 4 and 2.5 years old. They don't understand that because they made the mess that they should clean it up. They want me to do it because they've seen my do it since they were babies.
I don't mind picking up after babies. They can't do it themselves. It's when they're older that really steams me when they're capable of picking up their own toys, but don't.
So back to today.
I made lunch. ( I still haven't gotten my coffee )
I made PB n J with trail mix and strawberries.
The baby finished her lunch, so she went down for a nap.
I got out a small rug that has tea party place settings on it, and placed it in Ellie's room.
I put their food on the place settings on napkins and led them into the room.
Ellie said "You're the best, mom!"

So, here I sit, watching them eat their lunches. My day got a little better.
But like I said, the day isn't over.... who knows what other torments are waiting for me.
If you have any bad news for me, save it for tomorrow. I don't think I can handle much else today.

Dear Tokyo,

I am very sorry for the actions of my Godzilla. The terrible twos!

Whatchya Gonna do, right? Right?

Love, Godzilla's mom.

Godzilla's Mom

I Yike Houp ( I like Soup )

I Yike Houp is how my 2.5 year old says "I like Soup."
It's terribly adorable. I like to linger on how adorable it is, and then turn around the try to help her say it the correct way. We're working in it.
Anyway, I DO like soup!
If you ask my husband ( who isn't really fond of soup )
... its not that he isn't fond of soup, he just doesn't agree that soup is a meal. He is a steak and potatoes or burger and fries guy. Porkchops and applesauce. You get the gist...
My husband would tell you that I would eat soup every day. because I am so fond of it. I try to make it for lunch on weekdays because he isn't home. When I make it I usually eat it all in one sitting, too. What can I say? I yike houp.

I made this one today: Coconut Shrimp Soup. It sure is tasty. I got the recipe from a website that I found on Pinterest. But after having made it a couple of times, I have perfected the recipe to make it even better!!

Here goes:
1 Tbsp Vegetable Oil
1/2 Tbsp Ginger ( the original recipe calls for fresh ginger, but I always have a squeeze tube of ginger handy so I use that instead )
2 cloves minced garlic or 1/2 Tbsp ( the same here; I have a jar of minced garlic because I can't stand my fingers constantly smelling of it, so I keep a large quantity handy. )
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes ( if you can stand it to be hotter, go with 1/2. I don't make it hotter because the kids eat it, too )
2 carrots peeled and sliced thin. ( I chop the ends off the carrots and then use the peeler to make thin slices of carrot )
1 Tbsp Corn Starch
1 Tbsp Water
2 Cups Seafood or Chicken Broth
1 Can of Coconut Milk
1/2 Cup Chopped Frozen Spinach
1 tsp salt
1 tsp of pepper ( or more, if you like pepper. I do )
1-2 Tbsp of Parsley ( optional and only if you don't have the spinach )
2 Handfulls of Shrimp. Peeled, De-veined and the tails pulled off
A small handful of Angel hair pasta, broken into thirds. ( roughly about the width of a quarter )

I start by heating up the oil in a large pan or pot. I add the ginger, garlic and pepper flakes. When the ginger becomes aeromatic and the garlic starts to brown ( not black, don't burn it! )
Add the carrots and stir a couple of times.
Add the coconut milk and stir in.
Wait about a minute and add your 2 cups of broth.
In the meantime, dissolve 1 tbsp of corn starch in 1 tbsp of water.
Once the soup comes to a boil, add the cornstarch/ water mixture.
Let simmer for about a minute.
Add the spinach and stir.
Break your pasta into thirds and add it into the pot.
You're going to simmer about 3-4 minutes, stirring every so often.
Add your salt and pepper, stirring to mix.
After 3-4 minutes, add your shrimp.
If you're not using spinach, you will add your parsley here.
Let simmer an additional 1 minute.
And Viola! You're done.

The original recipe called for lime juice and cilantro. Not a fan. So, I eliminated them and added the spinach. I also substituted the broth instead of the 3 cups of water that the recipe called for. It made it runny and not that tasty. Watered down? Yes, it was.
So, the seafood or chicken broth adds more depth of flavor to the soup.

If you don't eat it all in one sitting, the soup will thicken up over time. So, you may have to add some water or more broth to thin it back out upon another heating.

                                Super Good. Souper easy. ( <- See what I did there? Eh? Funny. ) :)

                                     Don't Forget to take the tails off. It makes for easier eating!

Something Cute.

Last night when we were visiting my in-laws house, after dinner we were all just sitting around conversing about the norm. How the girls are doing, who is getting married, having babies... etc.
We started talking about photos, and Andy pulled out his wallet to show his mom the new photos of the girls that I had taken. While flipping through the photos I came across my Senior Picture. I had given this one to him after we had already been dating, well into our twenties. His mom asked if that was the photo I had given to him in highschool. Although it wasn't he actually DOES have a photo I gave to him in high school.

- Mini Back story here : If you didn't already know, Andy and I have known each other since Freshman year of high school. -

I had about 5 different photos of my to give to people for my Senior ones. You know, the wallet-sized photos you pass out to friends your Senior year. I had several poses. One of the photos that I had taken for my senior portraits was me in a baseball hat. I was a tomboy. I loved baseball hats. I used to have really long hair and always wore a pony tail with it. It was my favorite photo. It was fall, I was wearing an old sweater that I had gotten from Goodwill ( gosh I loved shopping at that store and getting second hand T-shirts and sweaters )
The photo was so me. Tomboy and in a sweater, in the fall with the changing leaves. That's why I loved it.
The hat that I used in the pictures was one that I had found in the parking lot at school one day. It was a beat-up, blue ADIDAS hat. I used to wear it all the time, it was awesomely worn in and comfortable. I didn't wash it. I just found it one day and plopped it on my head. The hat was immortalized in one of my senior pictures.
I lost the hat. I don't know where it went or if I left it somewhere, etc... but it is gone. I was pretty upset about it. But I imagine that the hat had to make its way onto someone else who was to love it. You know, kinda like a traveling hat who wandered its way through life to people who needed it. ( this was the story in my head )
Several, several years later, after I had started dating Andy, he was looking through some pictures of mine and came across all of my senior ones. He got to the one of me in the blue hat.
"I had a hat JUST like that." He said.
I joked that it probably was his hat because I found it.
"That IS my hat!"
Come to find out, he had lost his hat when we were in high school, right around the same time that I was to find that blue adidas hat in the parking lot at school.
We're 100% convinced that the hat that he lost was the hat that I had discovered.

We told his mom that story and she smiled the entire time.
"It was fate"
Perhaps. But it is a pretty good story to tell people. Maybe we were meant to end up together.
It's kismet that something that belonged to my future husband would be photographed in my high school portraits.
And I am sorry I lost his hat. It would have made an even better one if I still had it. Now That would have blown everyone's mind. I still would have kept it, though. You know, finders keepers and all.  I would have let him borrow it from time to time. I joke with him that if I would have known it was his hat, I probably still wouldn't have given it back.

And these are the new photos of the girls that Andy is now carrying in his wallet, a long with a photo of me when I was 17.

I had a Baby, One Year Ago Today.

Today my baby girl turns one!
Oh Delilah. ( No, she's not named for the Plain White T's song "Hey there, Delilah" )
She's just Delilah, and she's the smallest blue-eyed girl in this crazy family. Today she turns one!
It's such a cliche' to say, but where did the time go? I feel like every year the time speeds by faster.

When I was kid I remember sitting in my kitchen, waiting to go to a Halloween Party for Andrea Johnston. I think I was a kitty. My mom had painted whiskers on my face and I sat in the kitchen, waiting for the party.
"Mom, when do we get to leave?"
"When the big hand is here ( points ) and the small hand is here."
UGH! REALLY?! THAT'S FOREVER!
So, I did what any kid would do... sat and watched the clock tick by the minutes. Staring it down, hoping that by doing so I could somehow harness the force and make it go faster.
I think that it was only like 45 minutes or something that I had to wait; but that might have well been 5 hours as far as I was concerned.

Why can't time be like that anymore? 45 minutes? That is how long it takes for me to get myself and three kids prepared to leave my house. 45 minutes? That's nothing! I blink and 45 minutes has passed me by.
Maybe its because my time is more precious these days. Maybe its because the time is more meaningful and I spend it doing more than just sitting, staring, and literally counting the minutes as they tick by.
I have so much more to do these days, and what seems like so much less time in order to do it all in.

Delilah turns one today, and it feels like she was born yesterday.
Just like yesterday when Andy and I took the girls to his parents to spend the night, and we went to eat dinner one last time as a couple who had only two children; soon to enter the world as parents of three. We would soon be outnumbered by our kids.

It hasn't really gone away in the blink of an eye. I have cherished and held every moment in my heart of the past year. She has gone from a tiny infant, barely able to do anything, to a walking and talking little person. She eats solid food and drinks from a sippy cup and walks, runs and gives high-fives. She laughs at things that are funny. She smiles at people, and scowls at them when she's examining them. She dances and sings. She beats her sisters right back when they get too rough with her. She loves fruit and vegetables. She doesn't like her drinks too cold. She only like to cuddle when she gets hurt and thinks she can do it all on her own. She doesn't need your help, so independent. She talks alll the time, baby talk right now with some words thrown in here and there, like: mama, dada, oma, bang, lilah, baba, hi, and byebye.
What seems like yesterday when this tiny baby came into our lives... today stands a rambunctious little person capable of great things.

Happy Birthday, Delilah. I promise not to blink to miss anything. I'm sure it won't go by too fast for you, but it already is going by too fast for me.

                                                                     Delilah Eileen

The Small Stuff

We all have bad days.
I feel like sometimes the bad days are really bad.
And when I mean a bad day, I mean when the kids have trashed the house, I need to do so many household chores, no one is bathed, I haven't even gotten out of my pajamas, the kids won't eat and are yelling and being clingy, someone peed on something or threw up on me.... and the list goes on.
These are the days when I really just want to go sit in the bath tub and take a mommy time out for myself.
Does anyone else ever feel like they need a time out for themselves?
When this happens I just have to take some deep breaths and count to ten and recompose myself.
Sometimes that doesn't always work.
When it doesn't, I just keep on keeping on... and keep on doing what I need to do in order to make it through the day in one piece.
Often I tag my husband when he gets home. You know, Tag! You're it! So that I may retire somewhere for 5 minutes of me time, whatever that may be.

Last week I was having a particularly bad day. My husband was on a business trip and had been gone for two days; with the prospect of impending snow canceling traveling looming over our heads. Turns out, his flight got cancelled and he was unable to come home. Awesome. Now to explain to my 4 and 2.5 year old daughters that even though I promised Daddy was coming home tonight, now he isn't. Parent Fail.

But that's not the point here.
That was a bad day, and I had no one to tag to get a peaceful moment to myself. It was starting to build up a little bit. At one point I sat down on the floor in my daughter's room and I'm sure was staring blankly off into space. One would not put their shoes on, the other wouldn't put her socks on and one was screaming bloody murder because one pushed her.
My middle child took this opportunity to come sit on my lap and smoosh my face towards hers. ( She does this now so that she can make sure you're looking at her when she talks to you )
She smooshed my face with her little hands and looked right into my eyes and said : "Mommy, be happy."
I smiled, and laughed. I so wasn't in a place to do that at that moment, but I did. Those teeny little hands and those adorable chipmunk cheeks! She smiled the biggest smile and I smiled even harder.
Then, after she was done smiling at me, she turned back around and did it again. This time she said : "Mommy, I Yike You."
My heart hurts right now even talking about it. Every ounce of tension and anxiety that had been building up inside of me went away at that exact moment.
I gave her a huge hug and said "Mommy yikes you, too Georgia. I love you."
It was something really small that made such a huge impact.
Yep. Maybe it wasn't such a bad day after all.

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The girls, waiting for Daddy to come home!

The Harder the Job, the Greater the Reward.

Okay, so I don't have a traditional "job" in the sense of the word. I don't get paid for what I do. I don't make  money or bring home the bacon. I am a mommy. I stay home every day and take care of my children. This is my job. This is my profession. I chose it, it chose me. I like it. I LOVE it. Sometimes I have some complaints, but who completely "loves their job?"

I looked up the word in the dictionary and this is the first definition: a piece of work, especially a specific task done as part of the routine of one's occupation or for an agreed price.

So... no. I don't have a job by this definition.
My "job" is taking care of my children. And it is hard. Some days are harder than others.

My job lets me hold many titles such as:

Chef - I make about 98% of all of the dinners, lunches, and breakfasts in my household. I am constantly looking for new foods for the kids to eat, and for a variety of things so we aren't always eating the "same 'ole thing."

Doctor - I am not a legit Doctor. I didn't get a Doctorate or a PhD or anything like that. But upon one of my kids getting a boo boo, I administer care to them. Band-aids, ice packs, treats, kisses, etc...
I also have to determine when one of my children needs a referral to someone who is actually a Dr. Then I become a

Chauffeur- I drive my kids around to places they need to go, and places I need to go. Well, until they are 16 and able to drive me around.

Maid - I clean up after my kids, and my husband all the time. I do all the household chores ( my husband does help me, he isn't exempt ) I do dishes and mop and sweep and dust and vacuum and fold laundry, do laundry, clean windows, scrub the toilet... etc... the list goes on.

Entertainer - I dance when a song comes on that I like. I make the kids dance with me. I read to them and put on plays and play peek-a-boo with them to keep them entertained. I am waiting for my Oscar for best

Actress. I should be getting it some day soon. I put on a good show. I can't sing, but I am quite funny. Just ask my kids.

Teacher - I teach my children things that they need to know. We learn not only lessons in subjects, but life lessons and lessons in morality and right and wrong as well.

Judge, Jury and executioner - Not to that extent, but when there has been a "crime" committed and someone has broken a rule, I dole out the punishment and make sure that it is completed, whatever that may be.

Customer Relations - When they kids have a problem, they bring it to me to fix it. Georgia is being mean! Elle hit me!  I handle it so that they can go on about their days.


There are so many titles a mom or dad can have when it comes to taking care of their kids.

As with other jobs, I do not accumulate vacation time, paid time off, sick days, etc...
When I am sick, I still get up and take care of my kids. I can't take a day off. ( I can ask my husband to help me if I am sick enough, and he usually helps me ) But that doesn't mean that my mommy brain turns off. I will still check on the kids to make sure they are okay, and make their lunches. The kids still know I am there, and will still come to me when they need help. I am still a mom. I don't punch out at the end of the day. My days are 24/7.

I don't get vacation time. Nor do I necessarily want it. I like time with my kids. Some time away from them may be nice, but right now I'm not ready to cash that in. I'd like to experience any vacation time I have with them. They're here for a reason.

My job is making sure that my children grow up to be outstanding, upright citizens in this world. I want them to be moral and kind and do the right thing when given the opportunity to. I want them to be polite and wise and commit acts of greatness. I want all these things for them, and its my job to make sure that they have the right tools in order to do these things... like being their teacher and entertainer and role model.

If I don't do my job right, I'm not going to the boss to get a reprimand and potentially fired. No. If I don't do my job right, another co-worker isn't on the line and I'm not making another person's job harder. I am making my own job harder. I am making it hard for my kids' to succeed in life. I can't fail at my job. The people depending on me to do it are priceless and can't be replaced.

I chose this profession. I chose my co-workers and I chose how many kids I was going to have. I chose this daily life. So, as people in other professions have chosen their path, this is the one I choose.

My job is always changing. It's a constant stream of curve balls being thrown at me day to day. There's not a manual on how to do the job right, you just have to use your mind and your heart and know that what you're doing from day to day is the right thing. No day is ever the same.
This can be nerve racking!
I think I'm doing a good job so far. My kids are happy and healthy. They are learning new things daily and developing into little people.

The conversations aren't as interesting as they used to be when I held other jobs. Talk of potties and bottles and My Little Ponies are my daily routine nowadays. Sometimes I crave the attention of adults and of topics of things other than what Elmo was doing on Sesame Street today.

Will I ever know if I've done the job right? They'll always be my kids, even when they have their own. Then they'll be asking me for advice, and I'll have even more job titles in my repertoire.
Grandmother, mentor, advice giver, old person. :)

My payment is seeing my kids grow up. My payment is in hugs and kisses and laughs and cuddles. My payment is the satisfaction that these little people love me, and will one day go into the world and make a difference not only to me, but to others as well. This is the best payment. I'm a billionaire by comparison. My heart is full, and its an amazing feeling. There is no reward or payment greater that I have ever gotten than my daughter(s) telling me that they love me.

This is my life. This is my job. This is the BEST job I have ever had, and will EVER have.

Something that I thought I should share

I came across the following, 19 things we should say to our children.
I got teary eyed reading it.
So, I thought I would share because it was very much worth it.

1. I love you! There is nothing that will make me stop loving you. Nothing you could do or say or think will ever change that.

2. You are amazing! I look at you with wonder! Not just at what you can do, but who you are. There is no one like you. No one!

3. It’s all right to cry. People cry for all kinds of reasons: when they are hurt, sad, glad, or worried; when they are angry, afraid, or lonely. Big people cry too. I do.

4. You’ve made a mistake. That was wrong. People make mistakes. I do. Is it something we can fix? What can we do? It’s all over. You can start fresh. I know you are sorry. I forgive you.

5. You did the right thing. That was scary or hard. Even though it wasn’t easy, you did it. I am proud of you; you should be too.

6. I’m sorry. Forgive me. I made a mistake.

7. You can change your mind. It’s good to decide, but it is also fine to change.

8. What a great idea! You were really thinking! How did you come up with that? Tell me more. Your mind is clever!

9. That was kind. You did something helpful and thoughtful for that person. That must make you feel good inside. Thank you!

10. I have a surprise for you. It’s not your birthday. It’s for no reason at all. Just a surprise, a little one, but a surprise.

11. I can wait. We have time. You don’t have to hurry this time.

12. What would you like to do? It’s your turn to pick. You have great ideas. It’s important to follow your special interests.

13. Tell me about it. I’d like to hear more. And then what happened? I’ll listen.

14. I’m right here. I won’t leave without saying good-bye. I am watching you. I am listening to you.

15. Please and Thank You. These are important words. If I forget to use them, will you remind me?

16. I missed you. I think about you when we are not together!

17. Just try. A little bit. One taste, one step. You might like it. Let’s see. I’ll help you if you need it. I think you can do it.

18. I’ll help you. I heard you call me, here I am. How can I help you? If we both work together, we can get this done. I know you can do it by yourself, but I’m glad to help since you asked.

19. What do you wish for? Even if it’s not yet time for birthday candles and we don’t have a wishbone, it’s still fun to hear about what you wish for, hope for, and dream about.

Taken from this source... Click Here.

I Think We're Gonna Need a Bigger Closet.

I just ran out of one of my daughters' rooms because I almost had an anxiety attack.
I have random clothes scattered throughout the room because I am sorting. This is a thing you have to do when your kids are always growing. I'm putting away the 9 month clothes and getting out the 12 and 18 month ones. I am putting away the 24 month and some 2T as well.
Georgia is now in a 2T and 3T. She's almost as tall as Ellie. Ellie is in a 3T, 4T and maybe some 5T.
( if you don't know kids clothes, you're saying what? But, its not important, don't worry )

But you're asking "Why did you almost have an anxiety attack?"
Because I had a flash forward.
A premonition.
A psychic encounter of what is to be.
And all I saw was....
...clothes.
I have three girls and right now we have an endless amount of clothing. Several large gallon plastic bins full of clothing, on top of the already full dressers and closets. In my future I saw mounds of teenage clothes strewn across their rooms, and mounds of laundry piled up in front of the washer/dryer. ( this is already true, mind you ) But right now, they're small clothes. They don't take up too much space. The more they grow, the bigger they get. And if my wardrobe is any indication of how my girls will be  -- I am in serious trouble.
Yes, I have a lot of clothes; a lot less these days because I have whittled it down significantly due to weight gain and loss through pregnancy. I had lots of clothes because my profession was business professional and I wore a suit or dress clothes to work on a daily basis. When I  came home I would change into something casual. So, I had two wardrobes pretty much. I have a million tank tops and until recently, I had more jeans than a person should own.
What happens if my THREE girls are like this?
Crap.
I am in trouble.
We are going to need more room, more space, more closets, more storage. We're going to need more hangers and dressers and everything needed for more attire. Winter/summer storage closets, etc. Yikes.
And the never ending laundry. I have a remedy for that, though. I am going to make my kids do their own laundry once they are old enough to help. It's never bad to make sure they know how to do this for when they're on their own eventually.
Plus its the least they can do for free room and board and carrying them and then childbirth.
Daughter, let me tell you about childbirth and how much pain mommy was in -- the least you can do is sort your laundry and take clothes out of the dryer.
Thanks. Love You!

So you will understand why a future glimpse gave me the shivers and caused my blood pressure to shoot through the roof.
I'm hoping that because they are all so close in age, they will be able to wear each others' clothes and that will help keep the number of clothes down. And Maybe they will be able to wear mine and borrow my clothes from time to time? That would be nice. I hope I'm cool enough and I don't have a "mom wardrobe" not worthy of borrowing.
I could only hope.
"Honey, I think we're going to need a bigger closet."

2013, The Year of Doing Something

So, Christmas came and Christmas went. Just like it does every single year. The build up to Christmas was so great, and then it comes in a flash and is gone.
Ellie thinks that because there is snow on the ground, that Christmas is still here. I think from watching movies about Christmas, she associates snow with Christmas. It's snowing, so it must be Christmas. It's a good thing we live in a state where we get snow. I'd hate trying to explain to them that it never snows where we live. Although, I would completely relish living in a state where it never snows. I envy you, whoever you are. :)
--Now that the climactic ending to the year has happened, and New Year's has rolled around; we enter a new year. 2013. Are you superstitious? You know, the 13 and all. I hope not. I, myself am not and am looking forward to a year of the 13.
I've never been one to make resolutions. If I want to set goals for myself, I don't need a new year to tell me that I need to. I figure that you can make a resolution or a goal for yourself at any time. I also don't like being pushed into doing things, and so forcing me to make a resolution just because its a new year, well, that's not my bag. I do have some wishes or thoughts for the new year, however. I have a couple of ideas for my family.

• I would like to get the kids enrolled in swimming lessons this summer. I think its important for them to know how to swim. 
• I would like to get Ellenore more involved in the kitchen with me. She has expressed an interest in helping me cook and do the dishes, and I would like to help her explore that. Georgia, too. 
• I always say I am going to keep a cleaner house *this year* -- but then we have another baby or my husband's work load gets a little greater and so I am left to doing most things on my own; which leads to burn out faster. 
• I want to remain more active in my blog. I guess that means for me to find more "me" time. Whether that means getting to write in my blog, reading a book, doing a craft... etc.. whatever! I want to make sure that I am able to have some time for myself. I need it, frankly. All people do, even if you have children or you don't. It's something that we all require. "Me Party" time. 
• I really want to do more creating this year. I'm not sure what that entails right now. I don't know if that means more crafty ideas or more exploration in the kitchen, or exploring my art degree and putting it to good use. Maybe photography? I took several classes in college and I think I may want to explore that a little further. Painting? Crocheting? Sewing? SOMETHING! All the things I have pinned that I WANT To do?! Imagine all the possibilities! They're endless. 
• I want to get more involved with teaching my kids more things. I bought some anatomy "how my body works" flash cards for Christmas, and I'm thinking I need some in every subject for them. Yes, they are little, but its never too early to start learning. :) 
• I want to be more social this year as well. I admit that I can be a shut-in and avoid human contact sometimes. ( you mean I have to put clothes on and get out of my sweatpants today?!) Yep. Be social, make play dates. Get your kids into social settings. It's good for me and them. 

I'm sure that there are more things I want to accomplish this year. But I'm not going to beat myself up if I don't do them. I am going to make the list again and post it somewhere so that I can see it daily. A reminder as to what I want to do this year. And I need to remind people around me to encourage me.
"Hey Leslie! Did you learn to crochet or knit or sew yet?"
Well... um... no.
"Well keep on that! You're doing great, but think of how you wanted to learn to do that and what you can do once you learn!"
Good point. I'll get right on that. :)