Project 365

I had heard about this a while back and forgot about it, but I've wanted to do it since I heard of it. A friend of mine just started doing this with her kids. I thought it was a super cute idea, so I'm borrowing it from her. And hopefully I can remember to keep it up!

For those that don't know, Project 365 is where you take and post a new picture everyday. Mine, of course, will be of my family!

To start off this project, my first picture is of my son. He's such a daredevil and always trying to climb up everything. Today was no exception. He figured out how to climb into the baby swing and swing himself. And then ham it up when I brought out the camera. To bad I didn't get a picture after this, because his sisters decided to make him their baby. Now to keep him out of the swing!

Getting A New Camera Is AWESOME!

We finally received our tax check, which seemed like forever to get, thanks to our "wonderful" tax guy. Please note, "wonderful" is meant sarcastically. We won't be going to that tax guy again, but that's a whole different story. Anyway, I've only been wanting a new camera since around Christmas time, maybe sooner. I had it picked out what I wanted, a Canon SD880 IS. We walk into Best Buy, armed with info, ready to get the camera, only to find they got rid of that model. The sales guy said that was last years model. I was disappointed, until he pointed out the Canon SD960 IS. It was similar to my camera I wanted, except better. More upgrades, better technology, and it was on sale for what the other one costs full price. After some shameless begging of my husband, and a slight guilt trip for making me wait so long to get it, I got the better one!

Once I get it home, all charged up and ready to go, I find out that this camera ROCKS!! In every sense of the word. Not only do I get much clearer, better pics, but it has a better flash that reaches more distances, better zoom quality, and awesome features to play with. So this edition is nothing but shameless exploitation of my kids showing off how well my new camera can capture them!

Isn't she cute!!! And look at that pic quality! Very clear!!

Ok, you got me here. This isn't my kid, obviously. But look at how awesome this nature shot is!! Hello Mr. Toad!

Then, of course, you got the typical things like Sepia toning.

We can't forget my favorite new effect, Color Accent. I'm already using and abusing the crap out of it. But I LURVE it!

I know those are small, but the purpose of the 4 in a row is to show you how fast my camera can take the pics. A bouncing 2 year old is the perfect subject to try that out on. I think it's pretty good!!

Last, but not least, for your viewing pleasure, my favorite shooting mode, in collage form. Just because I love it!

P.S. I definitely recommend this camera for purchase!!

The Baby and The E.R.

Yesterday, was one of THOSE days. The kind that you can't wait for the kids to go to bed, just to let the day's events soak in. It's not that they were bad or unruly, but more that the day was long and stressful. And all over the most freak thing in the world!!!

Most parents have seen it, a stray string or hair wrapped around their little one's finger or toe. Without a second thought, the string or hair usually gets easily unwrapped and the parent and child go about their business. In the odd case of yesterday, it's not always that simple! Who would think that a person could possibly lose their appendage to such a simple thing!

The park sounded like a good idea, with how wonderful the weather was. The kids and I were going to meet our friends at the park to play. All was going well, and we were almost done getting ready. I get Catelyn, and start undressing her to put her play clothes on. Normally, I never think to check, but I happened to look at her toes, and noticed they had some fuzz on them. I start removing it and notice that her middle toe was completely wrapped around by a string or hair. I start trying to mess with it and pick it off, but it was on ridiculously tight. She was screaming and kicking and carrying on the more I touched it, so I decided maybe calling in the professionals would be a good idea at this point. Called her pediatrician and they said to come in in an hour. Then about this time a million and one bad thoughts start racing into my head, will my baby lose her toe, will she be ok, will they get it off, I'm a bad mom for not noticing sooner, etc. etc. etc. To help ease my mind a bit, I decide that we'll meet up with everyone at the park still. I just grab the few essentials I thought we'd need.

We get to the park and I tell the ladies what's going on. I'm quickly relieved a little to find that 2 of them have had a similar experience with their children. Though neither had to go as far as take their child to the doctor, they did say they had it bad enough that the string/hair made the baby bleed. I figured this much was going to happen. In that time, I had talked to Nate and he decided to leave work, to help me out with the whole thing (Thank God he did!). After about half hour at the park, Nate shows up. He talks to the kids for a few minutes, then we decide that he can take Catey to the doc, while I stay and let the bigger kids play at the park longer.

Then time starts to c-r-a-w-l. I know I checked my phone every 10-15 mins just to see the time and if Nate had messaged me. Being the jumpy, spazzed out, worried about my baby girl mom I am, I text Nate after 15 mins, then 30, then right about the time I was going to call him at the 45 min mark, I receive a text.

"Just got it off"

Was all it said. At least I knew my baby girl was doing better. Then within 5 mins later, he calls me with the details. Apparently the pediatrician sent him to the Emergency Room. When the pediatrician took one look at her toe, he started freaking out and thought they were going to have to amputate her toe. He gave her a shot to numb it, and tried working on it to no avail (and without the help of a flailing baby), so off to the E.R. they went. Nate said it took 3 nurses, plus him, to hold Catelyn down so the E.R. doctor could get it off her toe. He said she was one of the more severe cases he had seen, but that this happens all the time! Fingers, toes, even on little boys' winkies! He had to cut around her toe to get to the hair, but thankfully, he got it off and saved her little bitty toe! Turns out, it was one of Catelyn's own hairs off her head. The doc said it was too fine to be an adults hair, which I guess is a little easier to remove. Somehow she got the hair worked down in her jammies and kicked enough to get it wrapped around her toe, tight!

Her toe looks a bit gross right now. Looks like a swollen toe with a red ring round it where the hair had cut into her skin. The doctor told Nate that the hair was trying to cut her toe off! Thank God the doctors helped her out and prevented that fate. We have to change her dressing periodically, press her toe to make sure it bounces back with circulation, give her antibiotics and Tylenol for pain and infection. Amazingly, my baby girl is in excellent spirits. Once she was home and settled in last night, she was all smiles, giggling, and just carrying on like the happy baby she is! After all she had been through yesterday, she didn't forget how to smile and be her happy self!

It was quite the experience! I'm sure from this point on, I'll be obsessive about all my kids toes, but especially Catelyn's. I had never heard of such an odd thing happening as this, but it is something that I won't soon forget!

The Benefit of Friends

Many parents end up finding, that though they have their own views in parenting, the saying "It takes a village to raise a child" becomes necessary. Kind of a need in its own right. I've been fortunate enough to live in an area that has a local mom's group. I never thought I'd need a group like this before I had kids, but now I find it's a necessity.

As a stay at home mom, especially of 4 kids, it becomes very difficult to get out and about to socialize. Even babysitters get scarce the number of kids you gain. Family is helpful, but as anyone can agree that friends are amazing!

I stumbled across the local mom's group through my husband's cousin's wife, and one of my good friends. At first I was really shy, not knowing where I fit in in the group. I also wasn't able to go to the meet ups as much because I was busy having babies. Now that our baby making time is very much done, I'm definitely up for getting out of the house and having the kids socialize all I can. Never mind that I get to socialize too! I've been going to a lot more meet ups lately and couldn't find a nicer group of friend's I'd rather hang out with. It makes me excited to go to a play date with a group of people I get along with so well! We have mom's night out, where just the mom's get away, and it feels more like a group of friend's going to hang out, than a group of strangers meeting up for a bit. Even better than that, they all have kids. Luckily the majority of the kids are right in the same age range as my little ones. It's nice knowing that you have friends that have been there, are right there, and get exactly what you are going through. I honestly can't say enough about these people.


Then there are the best friends, the one's you retain over time. I feel like one of the lucky people that has kept my best friend from high school. We are so comfortable with each other from being together since high school and having a sister like relationship evolve from it. I really don't know what I'd do without my best friend and I hate that we can only meet up on occasion because of our distance. The even more ironic and great part is, all her kids are the same age as my kids, well minus one kid. They are in turn getting a great friendship out of it too!

It's tough being a parent. It gets a little harder when your a stay at home parent. The opportunity to go out and make friends gets fewer and fewer. But when you do find an amazing group of friends, you want to let them know what they mean to you and how they brighten your day!

Sick, Sick, Sick.

It's been a while again. I'm not purposely avoiding posting, but I hardly get a moment of quiet to type one of these out. And I had thought of blogs between now and then, but never got a chance to post one. I figure I'll take this opportunity to post a quick one.

The reason I get a moment is my kiddos are sick. Big bummer! But they are a lot more calm and complacent. We were doing really good and haven't been sick since before Catelyn was born. Sunday started our new round and it just keeps getting worse. I had to call poor Abby into school the last 3 days because she has a horrible cough and fever, on top of runny nose. Jake and Emma have the same. So far, Catey just seems a bit stuffy, and that's all. Me, stuffed up, runny nose, sinus pressure, scratchy throat. Fun fun.

I started Spring Cleaning this week and am doing pretty well staying on schedule. Yesterday was the most difficult day because Jacob was super whiny. My goal is to clean this house, top to bottom, then repaint most or all the rooms. With my schedule, I'm doing a room a week. This week is the kitchen's turn. Maybe I'll put up a pic and divulge my secret of how I get it done with 4 kids, when I'm done with the kitchen. This is just trial week.

I promise to try to get more posts up. I feel bad for neglecting this. But when I get a chance to sit, I forget what I planned to type out. Such is life of the mom of 4.

They Really Do Mirror You

"They" say that kids watch your every move, taking it all in, and will later mimic what you have done. Many parents can attest to this fact, especially when they are in an inopportune place and your child will blurt out a foul word that they only could have heard from you. Or in the instant where they share a personal or sensitive matter with everyone in a 10 foot radius.

Unfortunately, I don't have an embarrassingly funny story to share regarding this, though it would be an even better read. I do, however, have some observations to share as kind of a mental reminder to me.

With any good story, I'll start in the beginning, or this morning in this case. I had gotten Abby off to school, Emma and Jacob were sitting down eating breakfast and Catey was blissfully sitting in her bouncer. I decided that right about then would be a great opportunity to get out my Wii Fit and do some exercising. As I'm working out, the kids are finishing eating, then Emma slowly creeps out of the kitchen and ends up right next to me. I thought she was being a pest or just coming to bother me, so I kept trying to shoo her away. Then I realize, she was "exercising" with me. Trying as hard as she could to mirror the movements she saw her mommy doing. She even got out a block and was holding it in her hand like a Wii remote. I was touched and happy to see that a good habit is hopefully rubbing off on my children!

A little bit later, Jacob was toddling around and goes up to Catey in her seat. At first I thought he was trying hurt her or possibly sit on her head again! Then I quit telling him to get away from her for a minute, just to watch what he's going to do. He carefully bends over, so he doesn't lose his balance, and grabs her pacifier. I thought he was going to steal it for himself, like usual, but again, I refrained from yelling at him for a minute, just to see what he was going to do. He starts trying to put it in Catey's mouth! I eventually had to stop him, because she didn't want it and he was starting to make her mad. I still thought it was so cute he was trying to take care of his baby sister! There maybe hope for this boy after all!!!

What I think is the funniest of all. Abby got her mid year report home from preschool, with the teacher's assessment of how she's doing and what she does in class. It was a great report that totally sounds like everything Abby would do. One comment on it stood out to me the most, "She loves to play 'mom.'" If any of you know my Abby, you know that's exactly what she is at home, little mom. Honestly, I think she'll be one of those that can't wait to start a family, since she's ALWAYS playing "house" and "mom." I just hope she's showing my good sides while she's playing at school and not any of the times when I have to punish them. Not that I'm a horrible tyrant or anything, but we all get a tad embarrassed when we have to discipline in public or when the way you discipline gets repeated to people.

That's just a few examples of things my kids have done that show me they are watching me and they are imitating me. I could really go on, and I did even think of something embarrassing I'll spare you. I know for me, sometimes when reading articles or see someone talking on shows, saying "Your kids watch you and will do what you do", I usually kind of let that roll off my shoulders like "Yeah, sure." When I actually stop and think about it, nothing could be truer!

Appreciation!

Today, my husband, kids and I, went to visit my husband's cousin, wife and family. Their family consists of a 2 year old daughter and 6 month old triplets!!! They are all the cutest things. But being there for the short period of time we were, we got to witness a bit of their daily schedule.

First off, I have to say, I'm very impressed with the fact that they have them on such a good schedule. I'm sure that makes things much easier! Actually, come to think of it, to get through the day, they need them on some kind of schedule. Anyway, watching what they have to go through with 3 infants, very similar to what I go through with 1, got me thinking. Of all the times I've been tired, frustrated, upset, or otherwise having a hard time, seeing what they go through makes me very thankful that I only have 1 baby. I'm not saying I couldn't do it, because faced with that situation, it's not a matter of how, but a matter just doing what you have to do. Kind of like my situation, people ask how, but really it's just doing what you have to do. But, to see how efficient they are on top of having to deal with the babies when their fussy and a crabby toddler, it makes me feel like I have it easy. At least I have space between my kids, and I have 2 that pretty well understand what I say. I think next time I get stressed out, I'm going to try to remember, that I only have 1 infant. One time all the work, one time the getting up, one time the fussing, and just be thankful it is one, that I'm not getting pulled 3 ways. Because in all honesty, knowing you have to divide your time between 3 little babies, would be hard to deal with!

BUGS!!!

I do hate making something like this public, but it was really to funny not to share.

We live in a very old farm house. Like close to 100 years old. As you can imagine, we get all sorts of critters and creepy crawlies in here that we have to constantly combat. Fun stuff, let me tell you.

So today, I was in the living room feeding our youngest, the 2 older girls were playing in their room, and the son was in his bed napping. All of a sudden, I hear Emma, my 2 year old, scream at the top of her lungs. I can hear her start to bawl and scream all at once. I thought she had been seriously injured. I was telling her to come out to the living room, so she could tell me what's wrong. Nothing, in fact, the more I'd ask her to come out, the more she'd scream and cry even harder. I was getting really worried, thinking something was really seriously wrong with her. I laid Catey down on the couch (since her brother was safely put away in his bed!), to which she started to cry, getting interrupted while she was eating.

In the girl's room, I find Emma not in some compromised situation, not bleeding, not bruised, not contorted anyway. No, she was standing in the far corner, her back pressed as close to the wall as humanly possible, still bawling and screaming. Her eyes were fixated on a spot right next to her bed, a look of horror on her face. I was so confused, so I asked her to come to me. She started to move, looked at the spot, shrieked and backed right up against the wall again, bawling even harder. I knew I had to investigate. I made my way through the mess of toys, and climbed on top of her bed, looking in the area that she had kept her eyes on. I didn't see anything but toys and more toys, then I saw something move. That startled me for a second, until my eye focused in on a little bug. ICK! As it moved, Emma freaked out even more.

I had to stop myself from completely doubling over in laughter, as I realized my poor little girl was still crying in fear. I told her to stay where she was and calm down, mommy was going to get the bug. I'm sorry to the PETA people, but this next part would be considered graphic to them. I had Abby run out to the living room to get me a Kleenex, while I was trying to calm Emma down. Abby was very quick and I made haste to catch and squish the bug, making sure Emma saw it all so she wouldn't think I was tricking her. Then I let her watch me take the wadded up Kleenex to the bathroom and flush it down the toilet. Catey was happy when I came back to finish feeding her, after all drama was squashed!

Boy Are A Completely Different Species

I can handle girls, no problem. Girls are something I've taken care of for over 4 years now. They are sweet and lovey, but can be whiny and demanding. They are more lippy than anything, and that I can deal with.

Then there came my boy. I was so overjoyed when I found out I was pregnant with a son, I knew my husband would finally have his boy. Things were great with our boy for the first year. He would get into things and occasionally not listen, but I accredited that with him being a little boy. All of a sudden, I realized he knew what "No" meant, but would do what he wanted anyway. It would annoy me to no end, but it was harmless. Things like pulling all the books out or reaching for things on the coffee table, or at worst, getting into my laptop. He refuses to listen when I'd say "No" unless he knew I meant business. Usually I was easy going enough that unless he was hurting himself or someone or destroying something, I was fine with what he was doing.

One day he really hurt one of my girls. I was used to him pulling around his big sisters, occasionally making them squeal from pulling their hair. But then came the day he figured out how to climb up on the couch. That's been our latest thing of telling him no about. Mainly because he'll hurt himself, but also because he gets into anything we try to put up out of his reach. I had not thought anything about him climbing on the couch when I laid his baby sister down on it for a minute to go make her a bottle. (BTW, I do not lay any of my babies on the couch once they are mobile and rolling, but for this little period where their stationary, I like to keep them up off the floor from their bigger siblings!) Next thing I hear is her crying and then a scream, coming from my little baby girl. I rush into the living room to find that her big brother had climbed up on top of her on the couch and was sitting on her head. I have never wanted to beat my child so much in that minute, but didn't. I flung him to the floor so rescue his little sister. I felt so horrible, I was about in tears from knowing she was in pain. Luckily, he didn't do anything serious to her, I checked her over and over many times, and have yet to see a bruise or worse. Thank God!

Now I know, I have to watch that boy more like a hawk than I did before. I think the worst part is knowing that he knows what "No" means, but he does what he wants regardless. I have to figure out a new approach to getting through to my son, because all the old stand by's just aren't working. Boys are most definitely different than girls, even at a very young age!!!

Long Awaited Update

I know this is beyond late. Over 2 weeks to be precise! The problem has been being able to sit down and find the time to write something. Never mind we're still in the stage of trying to get some kind of schedule, some kind of normalness, some kind of sense to the chaos here. I'm so ready for that to happen, but until then, everything has been winged.

First, I'm sure the suspense has been held to know what our 4th little one is. That is, if you don't know me outside this blog, then you don't know. On December 30th, at 11:54 a.m., Catelyn Louise was born. We had a little girl! 8 lbs 12 oz and 19 inches long, the biggest baby I've had yet. She's absolutely beautiful, with a head full of hair and looking almost identical to her big sister Emma! We're so happy to add her to our family.

I guess I also haven't updated too much because I haven't found a way to completely cope with four kids. Its not that I don't know how to handle them, because I went all last week on my own with the kids. My problem is I don't feel like I have anything under control yet. I can handle the bigger three no problem, it's getting used to newborn mode again that's whooping me. I can't stand that I have to sit most the day and cater to her needs, not that I don't totally enjoy it, but you can tell my house is paying a heavy toll for that. The getting up in the middle of the night has been really tough, especially since she was having problems with the formula she was on. She's gotten better here the last few nights after switching her to soy. I barely have time to get the dishes I need done, let alone any major cleaning that needs to be done. For that, I am thankful for my mother in law coming over this week and coming over again next week to do some of the things I don't have time for! It's such a major help! Getting dinner on the table is another story. Anything I can throw in the crock pot or get simmering on the stove during a quick down time has been the norm. Week before last and part of last week was majorly helped out by the efforts of our local mom's group and my mother in law bringing us dinners. That is also appreciated more than they all know! For sure, this last 2 weeks has been full of blessing and thankfulness on my part! I have a feeling the help, gifts, and things of that nature is coming to a close, which is fine by me. I don't want to take more than I deserve. But I wish I had a way to show everyone how much I appreciate them!

As for the upcoming weeks, I'm really hoping to get more of a schedule. I'm hoping within the next 2 months Catelyn starts sleeping through the night! But mainly, I'm hoping to get things in some sort of normalness, order, sanity around here. And hopefully I'll be able to update this blog a lot more often and share some fun, cute, maybe even trying stories with everyone.