Hopefully this never comes up again....

While watching a nature documentary, they stated that elephant seals spend all of their time "fighting and fornicating."

"Daddy," Jacob said. "What does fornicating mean?"

No pause. "It means fortifying, you know, like he is guarding his perimeter." Mr. B said this  quickly and matter of factly.

So just for future reference in a play date, Jacob's language is not his fault, you can blame Mr. B.

*Also, this is one of the many reasons I hate nature documentaries.

Vacation- or as I found out- a "trip with the kids"

We just went away to Lake Michigan for a few days for "Vacation". It's in parenthesis because it was anything but relaxing. Traveling with a toddler is hard. Traveling with OUR toddler, this particular toddler is excruciating. I am exhausted. It's going to take a few days to recover. The last day of our trip we went to Michigan's Adventure and it was crowded, COLD, rainy. Never again on a Saturday, y'all. It started rainy right after we got there and I just wanted to turn around and leave. The (older) boys had a blast, though. I may have cried a little at the end, because I felt so stressed and overwhelmed by my youngest.

Still, we got to bond with my Sister's family, and that was FUN. Watching Matthew discover Lake Michigan was FUN. Even the rainy day with all the card playing was fun, even if not so much for the children. (Thank goodness we had a do-over day planned for an upcoming weekend.)

And this:

Makes it all worth it. Until next year, Pentwater.

Wordless Wednesday: He Never Looked Back

Recently posted to my instagram account.

12 Months of Matty

It all went by so fast.....

12, 1 full year!

I'm 12 months old today! I won't sit still for a proper picture, so this is what Mommy got. I am WALKING, I am saying words like stars, car, Dada, Jacob, and dog, just not consistently. I am a goofball, I love to laugh when others laugh. I'm not so sure about strangers, but I sure love my Daddy! I now have 14 teeth, soon to be 16. I am growing up so fast, where did the time go?

RIP Google Reader, The State of my Blogging Now

So, Google Reader is gone, as of today. It's another nail in the blogging coffin. I actually really like Feedly, and I managed to really clean up my reader feeds. So many bloggers are gone from when I started my blog (in 2007-old school). I wonder what many of those people are up to now. Many of them felt like friends, but did I get any contact information? No, too scary. Many blogs that were small when I started following are big now, it's odd what makes it and what doesn't. Most of the really honest ones are gone now. Of course there are exceptions to that, too.

This blog is still here. It's held together by the very odd posts, and random thoughts and photographs, it's not what it once was, the duct tape of words and pictures but it's here. I think I'll always be writing, whether here or to myself. It's still fun and a release, mainly because I stopped taking it seriously.

So 6 years and almost 500 posts later, I'm still trucking isn't that what they say-keep on trucking?. Thanks for following along.

The thing with sickness

Matthew has roseola, you know, that crappy illness that all babies get once, with a high fever, and you're like what the hell, and then they get the rash and you are all like oooohhhh, now I know. Except  I knew after 12 hours. You know, because he is my third baby I am amazingly smart.  He's at the rash stage. It's mainly on his face, and he's a little painful to look at right now.

While I feel bad for him, and I felt terribly at night when his fever would spike to monstrous levels, I will admit that I enjoyed a little bit of it. I mean, all the sleeping and the cuddling and the not-moving were nice. I got a LOT of housework done during the long naps, and a few times I got to hold him while he napped. That was wonderful, and I missed that, he is so busy now, it's hard to get him to stay put for long. Plus, I got to feel like important Mom, the Mom who knows how to lower a fever, who correctly diagnoses her child and who is doing her job, thankyouverymuch. Don't worry, I don't like it that much, I don't have Münchausen syndrome by proxy or anything. It was just nice to have him slow down his pace for a minute.

That being said, I am very glad that he's feeling better before his birthday and our vacation. I'm hoping to not have sick kids for our vacation, especially after last year when Drew and I got a stomach bug on vacation when Matthew was only 3 weeks old. Worst. night. ever.

Poor baby feeling better, before the worst of the rash.

Hey you....

....my baby is not grumpy, he did not wake up on the wrong side of the bed,  and he is not shy. He just doesn't like creepy strangers in his face.  Would you want to smile for every stranger that came up and talked right in your personal space?

No, I do NOT want you to hold him. You are a creepy stranger. See above.

I don't need assistance. If I do, I will ask. Looking at me condescendingly will not make me want help either.

I don't mind having all boys. Either way I would be busy!

Getting annoyed with my baby's babbling and expecting me to be able to quiet him down is like getting annoyed with the clouds and wishing them not to rain- I get it, you don't want to hear it, but at this point, I can't control it. If I keep him inside for all of his life until he is old enough to know better, he will probably turn out to be the unibomber's next coming.

Sometimes I don't want to smile and talk about "enjoying right now". I am in the middle of enjoying and you, annoying person, are making me enjoy motherhood less.

Don't tell me I look tired. It's the same as saying "you look like %$^!".

He. He's a HE. You can tell by the colors I dress him in.

I'm shopping for groceries with 3 children and you want me to stop and converse with you? REALLY?!?

Don't ever buy a building a volcano set for a child's birthday. It's just mean, mmkay?

Eleven

This is a little late, but I am officially 11 months old, and I am starting to resemble a toddler more than a baby. I am starting to take steps, stand, climb and throw tantrums! I am on the move too much to pose on the floor. Fun! I also am starting to really play, and that IS really fun!

Social Media Overload

Lately I feel overwhelmed with the amount of articles everywhere on how to be a better Mom. I especially feel overwhelmed trying to sort through what I should be feeding my children, how I should never yell (I do, it's my fiery Italian side-I'm working on it), how often I should play with my children, whether my house should be clean or dirty, etc. The current trend I have seen is- No yelling (but you should still discipline, but find a way to do that promotes self esteem), do not clean (but be organized), eat organic (but don't, or don't stress over it) play more with your children (but don't get them more toys, be creative), be more flexible (but still have a schedule), don't plan so many activities and extracurriculars for your children (then, again, you probably should).

After reading all this, I am pretty sure I am the world's worst parent. Every time I get on the Internet I feel less sure and more wary of what the heck I should be doing. I've lost the ability to critically think for myself. It's ridiculous.

So this weekend, on this great Holiday weekend, I am shutting it off. No facebook, no email, no twitter, no instagram. I need technology free and I'm going to try to live (and parent) without it.

At least I will for 3 days.

Mom for a Day

Mother's day was great. Mr. B got to be Mr. Mom and be the primary caregiver of our little angel baby, Matthew.

He was exhausted and needing a break by 1pm. Methinks someone forgot what it was like to have a baby.

My favorite part of the day was when Matthew woke up from his afternoon "nap" and I got to wake up Mr. B, who fell asleep.

I know he says he knows how hard and exhausting it is, but it is different when you actually experience it. I think we all forgot what it was like to have a mobile baby in the house and we had no idea that adding a third child to the mix would feel like we added 5 children to the mix.

Matthew loves his Daddy and thinks he's a rock star. Mr. B thinks Matty's awesome too.

Don't worry, I let him take a shower at 2pm. I think that was generous of me.

I wonder how he is going to manage when I go away on a trip with my friends in the fall.


I hope you all had a wonderful Mother's day!

The Secret Joy of a SAHM

After dropping one kiddo at the bus and another kiddo being picked up for carpool, I set off on a walk. It was just baby and me, no frustrating dog to worry about. We walked around the lake pond by our house. Little Matt was so enthralled, and sat up straight in his new stroller where he can see out instead of just staring at me and the sky. I knew I was getting close to his naptime, so I tried to hurry.

When we arrived home, I grabbed his blanket and gave him his pacifier and carried him to his room. I sat down in the glider and instantly the boy was asleep. He was so cuddled up and heavy on me. I just felt this complete trust and love from him. I just wanted to take a mental snapshot of everything about that day: the beautiful morning, the nice brisk walk, the fact that I was flushed and rushing him to his bedroom, his silly mustard colored pajamas and that feeling of his total contentment and my feeling like my heart would burst from it. One day I won't remember these little things or these little pockets of feelings, and I want to hold on to them so tightly.

It feels like things are moving at a snails pace some days; they are not.

Even though not every day is easy, I'm very thankful for this time I have alone with Matthew.

Just so you know...

Jacob picked the pink cup for dinner. Drew looked at him sideways, like- really? a pink cup? and Jacob  looked right at him and said "so? Pink is the new Khaki."

I so love that kid.

Ten

My Mommy says that there are only six words to share in this month's update, but she says that they are some of the most important words in the world: I    AM   SLEEPING   THROUGH    THE   NIGHT.

Complete

I've always scoffed at the idea of a family being complete. Everyone says that as a way to justify their means, right? I never felt that feeling of complete after Jacob, our second child was born, I always had longing and wonder. I assumed it was because I was longing for a girl.

So we decided to try again, even though I was scared about having 3 babies, and I felt so selfish and irresponsible for bringing another being into this world when I wasn't sure I was a good enough parent for two beings already. I also felt guilty about breaking with the status quo. Having two children is "just right" in the eyes of many, while three seems excessive to others. The looks that I received when I was pregnant and people found out I was a having a third boy were not very reassuring, either.

The pregnancy was the toughest of all three and I thanked my lucky stars when I was done with that process (seriously, I smiled through labor, even BEFORE the epidural) and I had a healthy baby boy. Still, I worried about the affect this baby boy would have on my other boys.

I was pleasantly surprised to see that instead of resentment on their part, there was so much love.

 

 

Ten months later, this love is still there, and you know what? Today I am making it official: I feel our family is, in fact, complete. Matthew was always meant to be here, and now our family feels finished. This was right for us, for our family. The picture is complete, and it really is amazing the difference I feel. Now I don't even pay mind to what others think. Dang I'm lucky.

 

Nine

 

I was 9 months old on Tuesday, but I was pretty sick, so Mommy waited to take my 9 Month pick. I am starting to feel better today. I am crawling, pulling myself up to stand, waving and saying "Hi". I love finger foods, my Daddy, big boy toys and being out and about! I hate being changed and sleeping through the night. Mommy and Daddy are tired, but they think I'm adorable.

*Notice the handcuffs? It's the only way I could get him to take the picture without moving!

What We Have

It's Spring Break around here.

A lot of D and J's friends are going places. One of his friends told me nonchalantly "we are going to Disneyworld, I think."

The Bees are staying home. My not working, a new baby, and a desperate need for a new roof kept us there.

Sometimes I worry because we are in an affluent suburb that they will feel the sting of being on the lower end of the "normal" income spectrum. It's hard for me to watch as they see their friends going places and doing things we just can't afford.

Then again...

I told the boys we are going to the local Zoo. They are over the moon thrilled. They are excited to all be home as a family.

Never once did they complain about not going on a trip. Never once do they take a fun outing for granted. I can guarantee that my children will never say they are going to Disneyworld nonchalantly.

 J told me that we "don't have a lot of money". This is my fault naturally, as when they want to do something this is tooridiculous/tooexpensive/toomuchsomething, I flat out tell them it's too expensive (along with other reasons). Sometimes this is true, sometimes it's a little bit of a fib, but it stops the begging. "No," I corrected him. "We have just the right amount."

And it's true. Look at all we have.

That being said, we could still really use a vacation. Just keeping it real.

On three

My wise sister-in-law once told me a joke she heard by a comedian (not sure who) that having a third baby  is like being handed a baby while you are drowning (or something like that). It's totally true. When you have your second baby you think how much harder it is with more than one. Well, when you have the third, all that impossibleness of two seems so easy. It's true that with the day to day stuff I feel like a seasoned veteran, but as far as any quality of life for myself or any time to do anything, I feel like I am just keeping my head above water. I miss a full nights sleep, a shower, time to work out, time to spring clean and organize.... and this blasted never-ending winter isn't helping either.

It's a good thing he's so damn cute.

Let's Pretend This Never Happened Review

Let's Pretend This Never Happened (A Mostly True Memoir) By Jenny Lawson (aka, the Bloggess) is just as silly, fun and goofy as her blog. I enjoyed every moment of reading this memoir. In fact, often while reading this, I was asked "what is so funny?" by my family. I also was offended, but only mildly so which I'm sure she would consider a win. Some of the stories were so unbelieveable but she had picture to make them up.This book was not only funny, but it had a lot of heart. Caution: the story about Hailey's Birth/Barnaby Jones Pickles are quite tearjerkers, even though they are funny. Also caution: lots of information about taxidermy/ animal parts are in these books. Even though it is presented in a funny way, I did feel squeamish at times. I am kind of a wimp, though- I almost passed out yesterday when Mr. B cut his hand and there was blood.

Disclaimer: after you read this book you will find your inner monologue begins to sound like Jenny's, or at least what I imagine it sounds like.

You can join the discussion about this hilarious memoir at Blogher.


This is a paid review for BlogHer Book Club but the opinions expressed are my own

Eight

I'm 8 months old today! I'm a busy boy, and my family loves to call me Matthew "Curious George" B because I am curious about everything. I love big boy food and my brother's skylanders. I am pulling myself up to stand, cruising to where I want to go- can walking be far behind?