After 6 years with more than one child, I now am back to a full day with only one little one - except for the days that I babysit.
I had little time with S alone. 13.5 months to be exact. I spent nine of those months bent over a toliet puking, but that's another story...
I had little recollection of life with only one child. My days have been spent with at least two little ones for as long as I can remember.
Now, it's just me and O...and I'm shocked at how suprisingly easy and smooth our days are. He's my little easy going buddy. He rolls with it and goes with the flow. We've been able to take naps together, watch cartoons, clean a bit, go to the store, and even had our first lunch date the other day, granted it was Taco Bell, but O enjoyed his "cheese taco, cimanin twists and black pop", which is translated to a cheese roll up, cinamom twist and a pepsi - yes, Pepsi.
O is horribly spoiled. His older brothers hadn't even tasted a soda at his age...he asks for it daily.
Since it has been just me and O, I now know why only children can be so easily spoiled. It's so simple to only buy one treat, one book, one of everything! It's a lot cheaper than buying things in threes. I'll have to keep this in check before my sweet, easy going boy, becomes a big monster.
I love listening to his sweet little voice chattering away while he plays trains and pretends to be a conductor. Today, we had a conversation while eating lunch. I asked him why he wasn't eating his spaghettios...he infromed me that: "his mouf was broke", he told me: "it wasn't broked to talk or eat his butter bread". It was just broke to eat his other food!
He's such a sweet little boy, we miss our brothers horribly during the day...in fact, after a few hours O starts asking for them. It is nice to have the two of us alone all day though!
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
On Saturday, we took a trip to tour the Henry Ford Estate...it's beyond gorgeous! My mind tends to wander and can only imagine what life must have been like in this mansion and on the beautiful sprawling acres. The man was a genius - pure and simple. He had a channel made that led to a boat dock under his house. He powered his house using the water from the Rouge River...not to mention that whole car thing he came up with....
Before we toured the estates and grounds (which by the way is free), we walked the nature trails at the U of M. The boys love doing this, especially since their daddy used to do it when he was a kid. They had fun spotting deer, chipmunks and other wildlife. I had fun, NOT freaking out when a snake slithered in front of me...I am not at all a girly girl and can be seen catching bugs FOR my boys, but something about snakes....EEEKKK! I loved this shot in the clearing.
We had a wonderful picnic lunch and I made another attempt at capturing some pics of the boys. I am still in awe of the fact that, I, Beth, get paid good money to take pictures of other peoples children. People are happy with the pictures I take....children smile, look sweet and are generally cooperative for these shoots. My children on the other hand...are not. I did get a few good shots - considering I took 550 pictures that day, a few were warranted.
It was a wonderful and relaxing time with the kids...except for the time that I actually stompped my foot in frustration - much like a 4 year old - because the kids wouldn't smile or look at me at the same time!
The curiosity that my boys show about the outdoors is so refreshing. S, loved looking at the uprooted trees, fallen limbs and rock bridges. M, loved looking for acorns to collect and had fun spotting chipmunks. O, just ran, tripped, and ran some more. He would not stop, despite our protests, touching each and ever leaf along the trail! Poison Ivy and Oak are no strangers in this "neck of the woods" and O didn't seem to care about it's possibly presence!
I am so blessed to be mommy to these boys and to share their lives with my husband!
Before we toured the estates and grounds (which by the way is free), we walked the nature trails at the U of M. The boys love doing this, especially since their daddy used to do it when he was a kid. They had fun spotting deer, chipmunks and other wildlife. I had fun, NOT freaking out when a snake slithered in front of me...I am not at all a girly girl and can be seen catching bugs FOR my boys, but something about snakes....EEEKKK! I loved this shot in the clearing.
We had a wonderful picnic lunch and I made another attempt at capturing some pics of the boys. I am still in awe of the fact that, I, Beth, get paid good money to take pictures of other peoples children. People are happy with the pictures I take....children smile, look sweet and are generally cooperative for these shoots. My children on the other hand...are not. I did get a few good shots - considering I took 550 pictures that day, a few were warranted.
It was a wonderful and relaxing time with the kids...except for the time that I actually stompped my foot in frustration - much like a 4 year old - because the kids wouldn't smile or look at me at the same time!
The curiosity that my boys show about the outdoors is so refreshing. S, loved looking at the uprooted trees, fallen limbs and rock bridges. M, loved looking for acorns to collect and had fun spotting chipmunks. O, just ran, tripped, and ran some more. He would not stop, despite our protests, touching each and ever leaf along the trail! Poison Ivy and Oak are no strangers in this "neck of the woods" and O didn't seem to care about it's possibly presence!
I am so blessed to be mommy to these boys and to share their lives with my husband!
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Bumps and Bruises
What do you get when you take three hyper boys to dinner and let them all have chocolate milk....then you:
Buckle them in the van and drive to help move furniture for a few minutes - all while making boys sit in car seats...then you:
Allow them out, with several warnings and requests to calm down, for a brief moment while you take care of some things for your inlaws who are out of town....
You get:
Loud thud
Screaming
Blood
Brusies
Hiding child
Tattleing child
Crying child
Thankfully, the crying child was pacified with a spider man ice pack. He called his eye his: "spider eye", all night, while holding his ice pack on.
The tattleing child was calmed when he saw his little brother was ok, but was all too excited to tattle.
The hiding child was found, apologized, scolded and rescolded for: Throwing his youngest brother onto the chair. This act in and of itself is unacceptable, and he knows better, but he's a boy and boys rough house. The problem was O didn't stay on the chair, he bounced off, hit his other brother on the way down and landed face first into the carpet. To add insult to injury, he was wearing his glasses.
His eye was looking much better, until this morning. Less than 13 hours after his injury, the same place on his eye/head was injured again. This time, by his momma! I was babysitting (surprise), and went to help put him on the bench seat. I tripped over the high chair leg and bumped into O. This had a domino effect.
E spilled her food and O fell into what I thought was the bench. Unfortunately, I was wrong. He bumped that poor section of his head on the corner of the window ledge. He looked at me, with a bloody head/eye, and I immediately apologized and scooped him up.
We cleaned the wound and assesed and reassesed the situation. Does it need stitches, yes it needs stitches, it's such a small wound though... We called for reinforcement and had grandma, the stitch expert, come and take a look at it. Her assesment was: "Oh, that little thing. It's just a small puncture wound. It could use a stitch or two, but why put him through the trauma of stitches for such a small cut". I agreed and figured either way he'd scar...besides he's a boy and scars are cool right!?!? He could tell all his friends it's from the time he got in a fight with his big momma or something fun like that.
Buckle them in the van and drive to help move furniture for a few minutes - all while making boys sit in car seats...then you:
Allow them out, with several warnings and requests to calm down, for a brief moment while you take care of some things for your inlaws who are out of town....
You get:
Loud thud
Screaming
Blood
Brusies
Hiding child
Tattleing child
Crying child
Thankfully, the crying child was pacified with a spider man ice pack. He called his eye his: "spider eye", all night, while holding his ice pack on.
The tattleing child was calmed when he saw his little brother was ok, but was all too excited to tattle.
The hiding child was found, apologized, scolded and rescolded for: Throwing his youngest brother onto the chair. This act in and of itself is unacceptable, and he knows better, but he's a boy and boys rough house. The problem was O didn't stay on the chair, he bounced off, hit his other brother on the way down and landed face first into the carpet. To add insult to injury, he was wearing his glasses.
His eye was looking much better, until this morning. Less than 13 hours after his injury, the same place on his eye/head was injured again. This time, by his momma! I was babysitting (surprise), and went to help put him on the bench seat. I tripped over the high chair leg and bumped into O. This had a domino effect.
E spilled her food and O fell into what I thought was the bench. Unfortunately, I was wrong. He bumped that poor section of his head on the corner of the window ledge. He looked at me, with a bloody head/eye, and I immediately apologized and scooped him up.
We cleaned the wound and assesed and reassesed the situation. Does it need stitches, yes it needs stitches, it's such a small wound though... We called for reinforcement and had grandma, the stitch expert, come and take a look at it. Her assesment was: "Oh, that little thing. It's just a small puncture wound. It could use a stitch or two, but why put him through the trauma of stitches for such a small cut". I agreed and figured either way he'd scar...besides he's a boy and scars are cool right!?!? He could tell all his friends it's from the time he got in a fight with his big momma or something fun like that.
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
All about O
"I can't see mine eyes mommy"...this was said to me while we were walking down a dark hallway.
He has also taken to naming his bowel movements and announcing the size of each one. Today, in fact, it was in the full mall bathroom.
O was so sad leaving his big brothers at school the other day! He cried and asked to stay with them. When I told him he couldn't stay, he begged for me to get them and bring them home.
His newest word: Nervous. Yes, nervous. My three year old has decided to start using the word, nervous. He also uses it in the right context!
His new favorite colors are black and blue. He only wants "black" things. Black doughnuts(chocolate), black Kool Aid (grape) or black suckers (root beer).
He has an obsession with: Diet Coke/Dr. Pepper and chocolate. He LOVES chocolate.
He is a fantastic puzzle builder.
He loves to "read" books too.
He has learned his name now. He sounds completely adoreable saying his full name! He also knows his brothers names!
When you ask him: "Whose boy are you?", his answer is ALWAYS, "Thomas" - as in the train. Not mommy or daddy, not even grandma or grandpa's boy. Thomas...sheesh.
He wants "twoof" of everything - which is two. We also drive a "lan" or van. I'll drive a "lan" if it gets better gas mileage!
He has also taken to naming his bowel movements and announcing the size of each one. Today, in fact, it was in the full mall bathroom.
O was so sad leaving his big brothers at school the other day! He cried and asked to stay with them. When I told him he couldn't stay, he begged for me to get them and bring them home.
His newest word: Nervous. Yes, nervous. My three year old has decided to start using the word, nervous. He also uses it in the right context!
His new favorite colors are black and blue. He only wants "black" things. Black doughnuts(chocolate), black Kool Aid (grape) or black suckers (root beer).
He has an obsession with: Diet Coke/Dr. Pepper and chocolate. He LOVES chocolate.
He is a fantastic puzzle builder.
He loves to "read" books too.
He has learned his name now. He sounds completely adoreable saying his full name! He also knows his brothers names!
When you ask him: "Whose boy are you?", his answer is ALWAYS, "Thomas" - as in the train. Not mommy or daddy, not even grandma or grandpa's boy. Thomas...sheesh.
He wants "twoof" of everything - which is two. We also drive a "lan" or van. I'll drive a "lan" if it gets better gas mileage!
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Six
This photo, almost perfectly captures the personality of this sweet, little six year old. It's not the best picture of him...it doesn't show how adoreable he really is, with his deep dimples, long eyelashes and sweet smile, but it does show how animated and silly he can be.
Six short years ago, our lives changed for a second time when Mister M was born. He tried to sneak into the world 4 weeks early, but our doctors put a stop to that...mommy was secretly glad. It would have made him and his brother just one year apart and I needed that extra month!
M's birth was uneventful - just the way I liked it. I woke up early on that cool September morning, showered, did my hair, got dressed and finished packing my bag. I kissed my sweet, newly 1 year old son, and was off with my husband. It's always such a surreal moment, leaving for the hospital with only two in the car, and coming home with three. It didn't change with M either. It's shocking to realize they let you leave the hospital with a HUMAN! Anyhow...
I went in for my scheduled c section. I was so excited for the nausea to end. The puking never stopped with this child. The nausea was relentless. Thankfully, they found some great medications to at least make it bearable. I was convinced, M was going to be born with two heads from all the meds I had taken!
He came out screaming and just as sweet as can be. He had the smallest little face and the sweetest features. His dimples were almost as adoreable as the little cleft in his chin! Despite my poor diet and weight loss, he weighed in at 8lbs with a 14.5 inch head. He was ten days earlier than his big brother, but gave him a run for his money with his size!
He smiled early, sat up late and walked even later! He chattered and babbled away long before his older brother did, but had no interest in doing any physical activity other than eating.
He was a horribly fussy baby. We would often get him to stop crying and then be afraid to move, for fear that we'd wake him! He slept like a champ at night though! He was our last to sleep through the night, but did so before 10 weeks.
He found his voice early and used it often. He was an easy toddler. He played quietly and well on his own. He has survived many attempts on his life by his older brother - including the great Fruit Loop caper - his "big" brother gave him a mouth full of Fruit Loops when mommy wasn't looking. No biggie...unless the baby is 3 months old, with no teeth.
M taught himself to read at 4. He knew all his letters and sounds by 2.5, as well as his colors and shapes. He is a brilliant child. He is reading at a level 17 at the start of this kindergarten year. The requirement for passing is 3 or 4. He's completely self taught too. He blows my mind! He in forever learning something knew and loves to do it.
He's often off in his own world though. Playing well on his own - or with others. He is kind and gentle, but loves to instigate.
He's as clueless as can be about common sense issues though. He has been known to wear his pants, unbuttoned and unzipped - that is if they aren't on backwards, for a full day. He can been seen, daily, with his shoes on the wrong feet, even flip flops, which I'm not sure how those work on the wrong feet.
He's a sweet boy with a kind heart. He had money from his birthday the other day and asked if he could buy his brother S a Happy Meal. The next day he wanted to buy his baby brother a milk shake.
We are blessed to have this child in our lives and continue to pray for Gods healing touch on his boday. He's broken our hearts with his prayers for God's healing and has made us laugh, asking for the date that God's gonna make him better!
He's a silly, Transformer loving child and he adds such immense joy to our lives. We thank God for him!
Six short years ago, our lives changed for a second time when Mister M was born. He tried to sneak into the world 4 weeks early, but our doctors put a stop to that...mommy was secretly glad. It would have made him and his brother just one year apart and I needed that extra month!
M's birth was uneventful - just the way I liked it. I woke up early on that cool September morning, showered, did my hair, got dressed and finished packing my bag. I kissed my sweet, newly 1 year old son, and was off with my husband. It's always such a surreal moment, leaving for the hospital with only two in the car, and coming home with three. It didn't change with M either. It's shocking to realize they let you leave the hospital with a HUMAN! Anyhow...
I went in for my scheduled c section. I was so excited for the nausea to end. The puking never stopped with this child. The nausea was relentless. Thankfully, they found some great medications to at least make it bearable. I was convinced, M was going to be born with two heads from all the meds I had taken!
He came out screaming and just as sweet as can be. He had the smallest little face and the sweetest features. His dimples were almost as adoreable as the little cleft in his chin! Despite my poor diet and weight loss, he weighed in at 8lbs with a 14.5 inch head. He was ten days earlier than his big brother, but gave him a run for his money with his size!
He smiled early, sat up late and walked even later! He chattered and babbled away long before his older brother did, but had no interest in doing any physical activity other than eating.
He was a horribly fussy baby. We would often get him to stop crying and then be afraid to move, for fear that we'd wake him! He slept like a champ at night though! He was our last to sleep through the night, but did so before 10 weeks.
He found his voice early and used it often. He was an easy toddler. He played quietly and well on his own. He has survived many attempts on his life by his older brother - including the great Fruit Loop caper - his "big" brother gave him a mouth full of Fruit Loops when mommy wasn't looking. No biggie...unless the baby is 3 months old, with no teeth.
M taught himself to read at 4. He knew all his letters and sounds by 2.5, as well as his colors and shapes. He is a brilliant child. He is reading at a level 17 at the start of this kindergarten year. The requirement for passing is 3 or 4. He's completely self taught too. He blows my mind! He in forever learning something knew and loves to do it.
He's often off in his own world though. Playing well on his own - or with others. He is kind and gentle, but loves to instigate.
He's as clueless as can be about common sense issues though. He has been known to wear his pants, unbuttoned and unzipped - that is if they aren't on backwards, for a full day. He can been seen, daily, with his shoes on the wrong feet, even flip flops, which I'm not sure how those work on the wrong feet.
He's a sweet boy with a kind heart. He had money from his birthday the other day and asked if he could buy his brother S a Happy Meal. The next day he wanted to buy his baby brother a milk shake.
We are blessed to have this child in our lives and continue to pray for Gods healing touch on his boday. He's broken our hearts with his prayers for God's healing and has made us laugh, asking for the date that God's gonna make him better!
He's a silly, Transformer loving child and he adds such immense joy to our lives. We thank God for him!
Boys
These five rascals are just a smidgen of the men in my life...or so it seems.
I am surrounded by males, thankfully, my sweet niece Sadie, has helped to even out the numbers a bit more, but, by no means, are they even.
In all, I have 11 nieces/nephews. Six of them are boys...add my three and that's NINE little boys at all of our family gatherings. My boys birthday parties MUST be held outdoors! Thankfully, their birthdays, with the exception of O's, who could possibly go either way depending on the weather, since it's early spring.
All those boys can sure wreak havoc. Thankfully, we have a large yard, with lots of dirt to play in.
Don't get me wrong, the girls in this family can hold their own. I have FIVE, sweet nieces. They love dolls, finger nail polish and hair bows, but they can run, jump and throw dirt just as well as the boys!
Our life is full. We are blessed. Not only with our own children, but with wonderful, nieces and nephews to boot!
I am surrounded by males, thankfully, my sweet niece Sadie, has helped to even out the numbers a bit more, but, by no means, are they even.
In all, I have 11 nieces/nephews. Six of them are boys...add my three and that's NINE little boys at all of our family gatherings. My boys birthday parties MUST be held outdoors! Thankfully, their birthdays, with the exception of O's, who could possibly go either way depending on the weather, since it's early spring.
All those boys can sure wreak havoc. Thankfully, we have a large yard, with lots of dirt to play in.
Don't get me wrong, the girls in this family can hold their own. I have FIVE, sweet nieces. They love dolls, finger nail polish and hair bows, but they can run, jump and throw dirt just as well as the boys!
Our life is full. We are blessed. Not only with our own children, but with wonderful, nieces and nephews to boot!
Saturday, September 5, 2009
Introducing
My sweet niece Sadie Rose, arrived today at 8lbs 4oz, 21 inches long. She made me an auntie for the ELEVENTH time so far! My sister Mary was a champ. She did a fantastic job!
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