UPDATE:
8/13/09 Hi, you've reached slacker central. If you've visited this
site in the past.... month or so, you've probably noticed that I haven't been available to post because I've been too busy....
oh that's right! SLACKING! Seriously though, summer is such a busy and fun time that I just haven't gotten the chance
to get around to the blogging. It's really sad too, because they have grown and changed so much and I've missed it! Ok, that's
not really true, i was there for it but you weren't since I didn't get it written down. Sorry, i've been a bad blogger since
we moved to Indy. But to make up for it, I've collected a random sampling of conversation from the past 24 hours to share
with you in order ot prove that these kids are not only hysterical, they are smart too! They keep me in stitched at least
75% of the time (the other 25% is reserved for me restraining myself from strangling them because they are being so obstinent
or ornery). And it cracks me up to think that someday they will read this and think one of two things. Either, " Wow I was
really funny and smart when I was a kids" or " Yeah. mom had a really bizarre sense of humor." But I digress... on with the
stories!
For all of you out there with kids, you know that giving
birth is an immediate withdrawl of any privacy you once may have had. God forbid you have "stage fright" in the bathroom,
because kids somehow have this strange radar for NEEDING to be with you at those exact moments.That being said, I have spent
the better part of my visits to the bathroom the past 4 1/2 years with at least one child as my bathroom buddy. Recently,
I have been trying to regain some of that privacy that we as adults so desperately need. I have been telling the kids,
"Please get out of the bathroom. This is my private time and I need some privacy." While it has been hit or miss regarding
the effectiveness, the wording apparantly struck a chord with Lucas. I was trying to clean the sink in the bathroom yesterday when
he came running in. He started to pull down his pants to climb up on the potty and looked me square in the face, while
in an absolutely annoyed tone said, "Mommy, get out of the bathroom, I need my PRIVATE SEAT!" Sweet....
I'm sure I've mentioned this before, but my kids and I are very
lovey. Some people don't grow up in touchy feely households. My kids can NEVER say that. I tell them daily how much I love
them, and we spend massive amounts of time trying to describe just how much we love eachother, thanks to the "Guess how much
I love you" book. Well, the kids and I have come up with some interesting descriptions of just how much we love eachother.
Last night, we were leaving my parents house and the kids were sort of falling apart. They were really tired so I tried to
distract them with one of our favorite games, the "how much i love you" game. So we typically try to see who can love the
other the farthest, which usually consists of planets, galaxies, etc. So I was putting Lucas in his carseat and told him,
"Lucas, I love you to the moon and back." and he said "Mommy, I love you to Pluto and back!" Bella (in the next seat, and
being two so she can't be left out of anything) responds, "Mommy, I love you to Steak and Shake and back!" WHAT? Random!!!!
and hysterical... so now, that's pretty much what we say to eachother each time now.
And for the random Phia'isms of the day... this child definitely got
my randomness genes. And because of that, she gets two short stories. First, she told me tonight as I was putting her
down to bed, "Mommy, I'm as tired as a pinecone." Really? A pinecone? So i asked her, "Really, what does that mean? Tired
as a pinecone." and she said " You know, mommy, pinecones. They just lay all over the ground." Duh, why didn't I think of that?
She also was "swimming" in my parents hot tub yesterday
while my mom was sitting on the edge watching her. My mom had a toenail with chipped paint and mentioned
it to Phia as she dipped her feet in. About 10 minutes later, Sophia was singing to my mom one of her infamous made up songs
and it went a little something like this, " If you let me help you with your toenail, you can call me lovely swimmer". Ah,
those lyrics are destined to be sung over and over by famous rockstars :)
Ok, that's it for now. Signing off, until next time, which
is hopefully sooner than last time.....
7/9/09 Where does the time go? Wow, it's been a while. In
the meantime, we had a great 4th of July (the kids actually liked the sparklers this year! -sprinklers, bella calls them).
The fireworks here got rained out, but we didn't mind because the kids were sleeping by 8 anyway. They did get to decorate
their bikes and ride in the neighborhod parade, led by 2 firetrucks and a police car, and serenaded by a guy playing bagpipes
though! I have a great video i'll get up soon.
We also have a new cousin! Uncle Jake and Ms. Lyndsey had their baby, Aviendha,
and she's a DOLL! We saw her on Skype and she is too cute for words! Made the kids want another baby in the house... the feeling
was NOT mutual :)
I had a moment of serious pride yesterday. We were in the yard and the 2
neighbor boys were over. Lucas and Tommy were singing the spiderman song and Sophia started to join in. Tommy said, "No
Sophia, only boys can sing spiderman." Well, my little fireball stopped midswing, looked Tommy right in the face
and screamed, "SPIDERMAN! SPIDERMAN!" And a great big F#$ YOU to the boys who tell girls they can't do something (and vice versa).
What a character!
Lucas was playing search and rescue the other day (he's really
into fireman, policemen and bad guys all of the sudden). He had a policeman chasing the Bank Roberts! that's right, ROBERTS!
Bella caught a glimpse of Hannah Montana on TV the other
day and totally recognized her. She screamed out, "Look mommy! It's Hannah Batana!" P.S. she has officially and completely
potty trained herself. She still has occasional accidents at parks, when she gets really busy, etc. but overall, has made
the complete switch to BG underwear!
6/8/09 Oh dear blog, how I've missed you! Seems like years
since I've had the time to sit down and try to catch the world up on all the craziness and drama in our lives. Frankly, I'm
a bit surprised that I was still able to log back into my account :)
Between playdates and trips to the Children's Museum (we're members,
so we go all the time), barbeques and neighbors, catching up with old friends and meeting new ones (my friends' kids), and
hanging out with family and friends, we just haven't had two seconds to slow down. The kids are growing faster than I can
even believe and it stuns me on occasion to look at them and catch them in full blown conversation and play because I swear
they were just babies yesterday. I'll try to briefly give you an accurate portrayal of each to make this update worthwhile.
Sophia has become my artiste. She sits for extended lengths
of time coloring and sculpting with clay. We went to a campground for Memorial Day weekend and she spent the majority of her
time there in the creek collecting rocks and fitting them together into a mosaic puzzle with variation in color, size, texture
and shape. When she was finished, it actually looked like stained glass. My mom packed it up (and the large rock she built
it on) and brought it home as a decoration for her deck :) Phia has this uncanny sense of when to give up battles and when
to hang on to get her way. I swear she can sense when i am gonna blow, and acquiesces to avoid explosion. For example, we
got a wagon that has a one seat trailer behind it. Two can fit in the front, one gets the solo seat. Now if it were me, I'd
be fighting for the back, which doesn't have to share foot room, but for some reason, they all want to sit up front. Sophia
fought for the front until I swear i was going to lose it, then simply stopped arguing and just moved to the back.
She also insists on continuing to dress herself. She now has added
a new ritual to the morning rountine though. She tells me she is going to get dressed, then after she is in her bedroom, screams
out to me, "Mom! Can you check weather dot com and see if it is going to be warm or cold today?" And honestly, she dresses
accordingly. It's impressive.
Lucas has developed an intense love of make believe and changes
characters multiple times daily. At the rate we're going, I'm wondering if multiple personality disorder can be diagnosed
in 4 year olds :) just kidding. He does however insist that he have a "badge" for each character, so the printer had gotten
a real workout (plus google images) as well as my creativity and construction paper. Today, for example, he was a construction
worker, a parking garage attendant, an architect, and a water meter reader (the real one came to our house, so he of course
had to try it out). It cracks me up that each time he gets a new badge, he turns to me and says, "Hello. I'm ______ (fill
in with new character)." As if each time he must try out a "hello" to see what it feels like as a new man. :)
He has always been a lovey kid, but recently has stepped it up,
telling me multiple times a day that he loves me and that he needs snugs. We have a new banter between us. He says, "mommy,
love you" and I say "love you lots" to which he says "love YOU lots" and I say "Love you more" and he says "love you most"
followed by a big hug. Oh to be able to capture that in a bottle and open it up everytime I'm feeling a little blue....
Bella. Enough said. She has continued to develop as my strong willed,
difficult, hysterical, clever and wild kiddo. I have nicknamed her Lola because she seems like a Lola to me. She is so daring
and fearless and frankly, she gets whatever she wants, one way or another. She looked at me the other day and said, "Yoya
wants, Yoya gets." and then just grinned. Oh my yittle Yoya :) (it's fun with no L's). The kid is certainly fearless, and
in the scariest way for a mom. She jumps from the coffee table to the couch and back, and then looks at me like, "What?" when
I get upset. She climbs the big kid playground at the park with no fear. She walks away from me in crowds without looking
back, and often, without responding to me shouting her name. So far, I've been able to keep a good enough eye on her that
we haven't actually lost her yet. And she's gorgeous. She's gonna give us a run for our money when she's a teenager. (Well,
honestly, they ALL are).
Laughs I've had lately
1. Sophia got mad and called me "mother" today
2. Bella sang to me, "Who built the ark, no one, no one" to which I replied to my
mom, "I didn't realize she was athiest"
3. Lucas's new retort when I say something silly, "C'mon mom, you just made that up"
4. To get them to follow me in stores/museums/etc. I call the kids my little ducklings.
They respond by lining up behind me and quacking the remainder of the trip
5. Knock knock jokes!!!!!! I spent the morning last weekend in bed with all three
kids telling me knock knock jokes. Seeing as how they are 4 and 2, the jokes leave a little to be desired on my part, but
I can't help but crack up when they do, and I swear THEY think they should be on last comic standing. For example, Lucas -
knock knock, me- who's there, Lu- Dinosaur, me- dinosaur who?, Lu- dinosaur in the jungle eating bananas!..... Bella adds
on - dinosaur poopy!, Sophia - knock knock, me- who's there, Phi- puddle, me- puddle who, phi- puddle stomping in the rain!......
me - knock knock, kids- who's there, me- buffalo, kids- buffalo who, me- buffalo wings! .... dead silence.... no laughing
at ALL..... Lu - mommy, that's not funny because buffalo's don't HAVE wings.....
5/7/09 So I have found myself laughing more often than not at the
silliness of my kids trying to get a firm grasp on the english language. I know that it's a learning process, but some of
the things they say are truly hysterical... I find them repeating what they THINK they hear, and using phrases in the strangest
ways. Here are a few examples from the past few days.
1. Our new slide is steep. Bella flew off the end (laughing) and I started singing
"another one bites the dust". The next time she fell, I heard Lucas singing, "Another boy bites the bus."
2. Daddy and Papa like to make "muscles" and scream "Strong Like Bull!" with Lucas.
He made muscles at me and yelled, "Strong like BOY!"
3. Bella has found a new love regarding food. She always wants "scobettios!"
4. Sophia has named more baby dolls. In addition to Poppypee and Teetah, she has Potato,
Mallama, and Napkin. Only the best names for her babies!
4/28/09 We're finally getting
some warm weather!!! We had a Fabulous Easter. Will came in the Friday before Easter and took the kids up to his mom's house
(yup, that's right, I was home ALONE! I didn't know what to do with myself!). They came back Saturday night and we
all had an easter egg hunt at our new house. The kids had already had one at Grandma's in Chicago, then had ANOTHER at
Nana and Papa's house after ours. That's a total of 3 egg hunts, 4 Easter baskets (one from their uncle's parents)
and about a ton of easter candy each. Overall, a great holiday.
The kids have REALLY been enjoying the excitement of
Spring. We now remember why we do bath night EVERY night in the "outside" seasons. They get SO dirty that it's hard to
clean the tub afterwards. :o Papa and Daddy are building us a swing/slide/trapeze bar set in our new yard,
we have a tire swing and sand table, playhouse, bikes, hula hoops, balls and 3 spoiled rotten (but entertained) kids. We
have literally been living outside from the time we wake up until it's bath time/bedtime. We even eat all our meals picnic
style!
This past weekend, we did the March of Dimes March for Babies
here in Indy. We had PERFECT weather and the kids did a great job. Check out all the pictures from Feb -Apr in our
Shutterfly album and a HUGE thanks to all who supported our walk! Fun stories to come....
4/7/09 Stop fronting... you KNOW you're impressed that I'm
updating again so soon. :)
So I'm pretty sure that somehow, I've become
"that mom." I never thought I'd be the one, but somehow, somewhere, I'm pretty sure it has happened. You know what I'm talking
about. "That mom" who has the strange kids. "That mom" who apparantly lets her kids dress themselves. "That mom" who runs
around the yard screaming like a scary monster (to the great interest of the new neighbors) because she simply loves to hear
the shrill of her kids' laughter. "That mom" who is tempted to put the playhouse (which is on the porch) on blocks because,
hey, we're in a flood plane! You know who I'm talking about, "THAT mom." Well, I had this epiphany today when I was taking
the kids to pick out Easter crafts. Seeing as I am an extremely visual person, let me set the scene for you.
Lucas, decked out in his newest obsession, Special Agent
Oso, (a bumbling panda who is a special agent - show on playhouse disney) refused to go unless I let him wear the mask, giant
watch (think Flava Fav), and computer badge that I had made out of construction paper and packing tape the previous day. Sophia
continues to insist on dressing herself (she truly believes she is a fashionista, explaining to me daily why certain pieces
of clothing go together), had picked out an outfit consisting of striped pants (pastels), bold polka dot shirt and some bizarre
fur lined vest that Nana got for her and I'm sure never intended for her to wear in this manner - Insert leg brace and giant
leg brace tennis shoes. As for my darling youngest, she refuses to let me touch her hair, which is perpetually a rat's nest,
and refuses to go any single direction at any time. It is getting increasingly curly, so it sticks up all over and she spends
1/2 her life brushing it out of her face. She also is wearing some random "fashion forward" outfit that her older sister insisted
she wear.
Now that you have that image, let me share with
you the moment that led me to believe that I have become "her." I had insisted that all 3 kids ride in the cart because, hey,
I'm not a complete idiot. I've already experienced chasing all 3 in different directions in a store and had no intention of
doing it again today. So my masked child with his construction paper accessories sat nicely in the cart. Sophia, aka mommy,
sat criss cross applesauce and spent most of the trip demanding that the others do so as well, which of course is no way to
get 2 and 4 year olds to listen. Bella, my wild child, refuses to sit in the cart, she she rides surfboard style, leaning
against the handle of the cart. My epiphany happened when I realized, as we were sitting in the Easter aisle, I caught myself
attempting to explain why Jesus didn't get a visit from the Easter Bunny to Bella, while Lucas was screaming "Special Agent
Oso to the rescue! I'll bring Jesus an Easter Basket!" and Sophia(in her crazy getup) retorting with, "We're in a store so
use your inside voice. And STOP YOUR FUSSING!" (which by the way, is the way she ends just about every sentence while being
"mommy.") By the way, Bella responded to my explanation with, "Oh. Mommy, I want Salsa and chips."
And so there you have it. I looked around and sure enough,
there were at least two people staring at us. One had the "oh i'm so sorry you are insane and they let you have children"
look, while the other was more along the lines of "Seriously, you let you kids go out in public like THAT?".
And so I'm "that mom." What did I do? I've decided to embrace
it. I gave in and prompted the kids into a rowdy version of "Old McDonald had a farm", complete with silly animal sounds,
and made my way through the checkout as fast as one, who is pushing 112 lbs of kids+cart weight, can go!
4/5/09 .... and we're reading..... Lucas has been interested
in words for a while now, and was recognizing so many words that we couldn't tell if he was reading or just recognizing. Well,
i finally caught him sounding out a word, so he is officially reading!!! Sophia, of course, always seems too busy with her
babies and Bella to focus on looking at words or letters, but totally caught me off guard the other day when a "Piazza" truck
drove by. She screamed, "Look mommy, a PIZZA truck!" I was so surprised, I asked her, "How did you know it was a pizza truck?
There wasn't a picture!" She said, "It SAID pizza. With a P". And so, reader rabbits, we have two new readers in our house.
:)
Bella thinks she is reading too and hates the fact that
the kids understand words and she doesn't. She keeps reminding us every time we talk about it that she knows the alphabet
(which she insists on singing by herself, she won't let anyone else sing with her) and that she "reads" (definitely recognizes)
signs and symbols too!
3/29/09 Ok, so we finally got the internet hooked up at our new
house.... hence the HUGE delay in updates.
We are all moved into our new house in Indy. Sophia and Bella have a
purple "Fancy Nancy" room and Lucas has an orange and red (accents) Firefighter room. They are pretty excited about them,
and I have a beautiful, relaxing, complete with water feature and Zen garden SPA ROOM!
Speaking of Zen gardens, I have a new name for the next
chapter in my book :) It's called, "That's it! Get your hands outta my Zen Garden!" This lovely phrase was uttered as I caught
Bella in the act of trying to build sand castles in my new Zen garden. She managed to distribute sand (somewhat evenly) throughout
my entire room in the process. Bella has become my tiny terror. She managed in a 24 hour period to color on the flat screen
TV and stand with a red crayon, throw a rubberband ball down the stairway at my parents' house and manage to hit a large
picture of Aunt NeeNee hanging on the wall, causing it to drop and shatter, cut Sophia's face with a pair of scissors,
and destroy my Zen Garden. GRRRRR.... I know it sounds like I am not paying attention or watching her, but I SWEAR, these
things happen in the blink of an eye! I wonder what the teenage years will look like....
Sophia has developed a split personality. 1/2 the time,
she is my BIG helper. She has decided that making the beds in the morning is her full time job, and she does it without prompting.
She also helps set the table, fold laundry and cook. When she is not busy helping and mothering everyone (including attempts
at mothering ME), she is being obstenant, stubborn, defiant and frankly, sometimes just mean. My sister jokes that those must
be her "Taurus days" (she's really a saggitarius).
Lucas has taken the world of make believe into hyper drive lately. He
switches roles and jobs so frequently that we can't keep up. I am forever getting yelled at for calling him the wrong name.
e.g. "Word Girl, it's time for lunch", "I'm not Word Girl anymore, I'm Bob the Builder now. Can't you see my hardhat?"
"Sorry Bob, I must have been thrown off by the cape and froggy stomping boots." " Mom, those are my firefighter boots.
I'm going to be a fireman after lunch."
We're really enjoying being so close to family and
trying some new things. We've visited the park where I used to play when I was little (and actually met some sisters there
named Sophia and Bella!), we did our annual "First day that hits 70 degrees Ice Cream outing", and we've even developed a
love for hula hoops (which by the way, should be an outdoor activity if you live in a smaller home).
I'll update again soon, I swear. Now that the internet is
a click away (and not a 1/2 mile and involving strapping all 3 kids into carseats and then unstrapping them, chasing them
up the yard, corraling them into the house, finding something for them to do quietly, and THEN hooking up to the internet),
updates should come more frequently.
Until then, thanks for tuning in, and don't forget to donate to
our walk with the March of Dimes! See link on the right side of the page for details!
3/3/09 We're finally getting settled in here in Indiana.
The kids are doing GREAT at preschool, we finally were able to move into our new house (the kids are WAY stoked about their
new rooms) and we'd be getting some sleep, if it weren't for the fun stomach flu that Bella has had. She is finally getting
better, but has been up all night (and day) vomiting, typically without warning. YUCK!
On a happier (and just as disgusting) note, Bella
went poopoo in the potty for the first time today! YEAH FOR MY BIG GIRL! She's growing up so fast that it's hard for
me to remember sometimes that she is only 2.
Sophia has agreed (pretty much against her will) to
lower her chai intake to 1 a day. She has become my big helper and sets the table for me each day, dresses herself (the outfits
are really something) and helps me cook and clean. They are growing up so fast.
Lucas takes on a new character about daily. We've gone from
Handy Manny, to Darby from Tigger and Pooh, to Bob the Builder to just a fix it man, to an astronaut, to the guy that goes
up in the bucket in a bucket truck... and on and on and on. He said to us, "I just don't know why I am a new person everyday!"
Here's to reinventing ourselves:)
2/21/09 To my credit, I did try to update the site a few
days ago, only to get a huge update written, and then accidentally deleted it. I was so frustrated that I had to walk away
from the computer...
We've been busy and sick, but seem to be getting over the
sick, finally. The kids adjusted better than I could have ever imagined at preschool. One of the teachers finally came out
the second day as I was lurking in the hallway and asked if "I" was having seperation anxiety problems. She gave me a big
hug and eventually kicked me out with the promise that they would call if the needed ANYTHING. Of course, they did fine, and
I worried for nothing. I have to beg for goodbye kisses when I drop them off now. They LOVE school :)
We went to my friend's father's wake a week ago. We had
planned to leave at aroun 4:30 and I was racing around trying to get me and them ready, when Lucas came crying to me that
"it's up my nose mommy!" I eventually got the tearful story that he had shoved the little rubber nosepiece off his glasses
up his nose, to the point that I could barely see it with a flashlight. Needless to say, we were late to the wake and the
scene, without going into too much detail, included Lucas, lying on his back on the counter crying, and me, wielding a pair
of tweezers. I did manage, however, to get it out without an ER visit and no damage to Lu. Ugh. Our new family mantra? We
don't put things in our noses, we don't put things in our noses....
Sophia has developed a new obsession. She is deeply,
madly, completely in love with Chai. That's right, Chai tea. She begs for it, pleads for it, and I'm pretty sure would be
willing to sit the time in timeout for pushing the other kids out of the way and stomping on them to get to the Chai first.
She probably could out-order me at a Starbucks, with something like a skinny double chai latte with foam... on the rocks...
or something. All I know is, the kid loves it. Speaking of loving it, she got a chance to go with Aunt NeeNee to her "beauty
shop" all by herself. She got to do the shampoo bowl, sit in the chair with the cape, and get her hair cut and blown dried.
She truly felt like a princess and walked and talked with a little flair in her step when she got home. She's turning
into our own little "Fancy Nancy."
Bella has hit the 2's really hard and has become this
tiny little (ok, she's off the growth charts and 90% for weight, so not really tiny) dictator! She bosses everyone she can
around and DEMANDS things. Now, you may think that demands from a 2 year old can't be that bad, but when they happen, literally,
24 hours a day, they get a little oerwhelming. Especially since they are most often accompanied by tantrums
that involve ear-piercing, head-throbbing, screaming. She orders around Lucas and Sophia, and when they don't comply,
she resorts to hitting! I swear, that kids spends more time in timeout that she may as well live there! To her credit
though, she has VERY developed language and has started (STARTED) to use that instead of hitting in some instances. When
she wakes up at night, she demands that I "rock a baby" which means hold her like an infant and rock her. Remember when I
said she was a little quirky? She also wants to put her hands in my neck (under my chin) and demands that I "hold her
feet." She's very strange. Hopefully, this is a phase and it will pass shortly.
Anyway, we move into our new house here in Indy next weekend (hopefully)
and we'll post more pictures soon. Hope y'all aren't feeling as much cabin-fever as we are! We're ready for spring already!
2/6/09 I think we have officially given up naps now (except when
sick, like Sophia is now). They absolutely refuse to nap, and get pretty grouchy about it too! They still fall apart in the
evenings though, so it's early bedtime (hence the time I have now to write this). The kids are adjusting to Indy, although
we've had some defiance and boundary testing. I guess we all have to test out our limits sometime.
Today, Aunt Nee Nee and I took the kids to the McD's drive
thru for happy meals (it's been a long week). I overheard a discussion in the backseat between Sophia and Bella that went
something like this. Bella- "We going to McDonalds for dinner?" Sophia - "No, it's lunch. McDonalds doesnt have dinner, they
only have lunch. We go to RESTAURANTS when we go out to dinner." Mommy - "Sophia, I've got something to tell you that is going
to blow your mind. McDonalds IS a restaurant." Sophia- "WHAT? IT IS????" (with an open mouthed "are you serious?" look on
her face)
The kids visited their new preschool on Thursday and they
adjusted MUCH better than I expected. I think I was more nervous than they were! They jumped right in and started
playing with the other kids and introducing themselves/ doing crafts and activities/ talking to everyone. I sat and watched
in amazement (I was VERY shy as a kid, so I was really impressed). Lucas has probably asked 100 times since then
when they are going back to school. He said he wants to play with his "Indianapolis boys." Should the prospect of preschool
gangs be of concern? :)
The kids have a little "piano" synthesizer thing (think 80's)
that they like to play that has preprogrammed rhythms on it. Bella recently figured out how to make it
work and I came into the room the other day to find her dancing around to a funky beat. I stopped in the doorway to watch
her for a minute (sometimes it hits me how fast she is growing up) and realized, as I watched her dancing around and
singing, that she was singing, "Shakin' my booty! Shakin' my booty! Shakin' my booty!" Maybe she's growing up a little too
fast... However, she was at least being accurate. She would gallop, gallop, stop and shake her booty. Gallop, gallop,
stop and shake her booty. (lather, rinse, repeat)
2/3/09 Wow, talk about upheaval. We packed up all our stuff and
moved to Indianapolis this past weekend and it was some serious weather shock. We got here and there were about 8 inches of
snow left from the 12 1/2 they had gotten a few days earlier. It is snowing again today, so far about 2 inches! The kids are
loving it, about 1/2 hour at a time. After that, the gloves, feet, fingers, noses, etc. get cold and the whining starts. That
is the indicator bell to go inside and get HOT CHOCOLATE!
We are all adjusting to a new city, new house (we are hoping
to close on our new one soon, Feb. 27th at the latest), and soon, new preschool. The kids go for a visit Thursday and will
start next week. They have been crazy, up and down, tired and energetic, and every emotion and mood in between. Hopefully
things will even out for us soon. I'll update with more stories soon!
1/26/09 My Life As a Lovey. By Jess Gockley
Since Will got sick, I have been putting the kids to bed by myself
for the most part. As we were working on bedtime tonight, I realized that each child has developed their own special "falling
asleep" routine with me. (Why do these important realizations always seem to happen at bedtime? Maybe it's because it is one
of the VERY few times I get to spend with the kids that they are actually subdued and mostly quiet, allowing for rational
thought processes). Bella curls up on my side, her hand in a fist with my hand around hers, and her other hand rubbing my
chin/neck (see 1/19/09 post). Sophia snuggles down between my legs, pulling one of my legs up to encircle her, with
my thigh as her pillow and her hands thrown up on my stomach so she can feel me breathe in and out. Lucas holds my hand and
either holds it onto his cheek or over his ear (depending on how loudly the girls are falling asleep).
Tonight, as I found myself twisted in this human pretzel shape that, I am
convinced, even a yoga instructor would be jealous of, I realized that I have somewhere along the line morphed into a
lovey. You know, that tattered little square of blankie that has somehow survived from babyhood to childhood. I have changed
into that persistently "frayed around the edges" comfort zone that has provided the cape for dress up games and provided shelter
when making furniture forts. I have been the safe and soft place to fall during those first few wobbly steps, and the warm
and comforting enclosure through sickness and tears. I have been drug through the mud at playtime and kicked to the end of
the bed on restless nights (in fact, last night was one of them!). I have been trampled and injured, hugged and kissed, peed
and pooped on, vomited on, as well as loved on. I have been the transitional object during stressful times and will inevitably
become a source of taunting if the current attachment survives into elementary school. I have certainly faded some due to
wear and tear, and have survived my scars. And although i have developed laugh lines and worry creases that rival those of
earthquake fault lines, and I spend the majority of my life at the whim of a child (or children), the one thing I am sure
of, deep down to the bottom of my soul, is that
I am loved. I may no longer be the prettiest
"lovey" on the block, but i know that, for at least this moment in time, I have the power to provide comfort, peace and love
to my kids. So while I may appear to others on most days that I am worn/tattered/threadbare/faded enough to be ready to be
trashed (or recycled), I know that my kids, at least for today love and need me in a way that I am grateful and humbled to
be able to provide for them. My batting may be lumpy and matted in certain places now (thanks to childbirth), but i still
have the "touchy" corners that the kids locate and rub to soothe themselves when agitated.
Now, would I prefer to be the coveted porcelain faced baby doll that is kept on the high shelf
and appears to be immune to the begs to play with it from children that appear to fall on deaf ears of adults? Maybe somes
days it would be refreshing to be important like that. For now though, I cannot think of a more difficult, exhausting, wearing,
stressful, "stretchful"(yeah, I'm pretty sure it's not a real word) wonderful and gratifying job than that of this role I
have adopted as the coveted contortionist lovey.
1/20/09 Happy Obama Day! The kids had an eventful day both at home
and at preschool. They woke up to snow (that's right, you heard me correctly, snow... in Memphis). Actually it was HUGE snowflakes
that flurried everywhere and stuck to the grass. The kids HAD to run outside and try to catch snowflakes on their tongues.
It was our first snow sighting this year. We piled on coats, hats, gloves and snowboots over our footed pajamas (ok, they
did) and ran outside, only to be greeted by 18 degree winds. We stayed out long enough to catch a snowflake or two each and
then headed in for hot chocolate:) The kids got to watch the swearing in at preschool, and Bella and Will and I watched it
at home. Bella was jumping on the bed, in her Obama t shirt (Lu and So wore theirs to school too) screaming, "Go Obama!Go
Obama!" It was WAY cute. This afternoon, we made ribs for dinner and brownies for dessert. It was a busy busy day.
Oh, and I clarified the Bella comment about my neck (see post from yesterday) and it turns
out it is not her "warm, SAFE place" but rather her "warm SOFT place". Yeah well, SAFE, SOFT, when I perfect my fluency in
two-enese, I'll be more apt to catch these mistakes:) Oh, and apparantly the moisturizing is paying off:)
**Addendum - The girls have been ganging up on Lucas alot lately. He just yelled
at them for taking his tools and said, "If you don't give them back RIGHT NOW, you don't get a happy meal. You are gonna get
a BAD meal because you are being BAD!"
1/19/09 I have strange children, I have known this for a
while, but the quirky behaviors lately have once again confirmed my beliefs of this. The kids have been above and beyond their
"normal" strange selves since Will has been sick, and the strange happenings around this house have me wondering if maybe
they are aliens dressed like my kids (you know, like in Men in Black where the little alien lives in a control center in the
"person's" head). For example, Bella has become obsessed with my neck. She calls it her "warm safe place" and likes
to touch and rub her hands on it. When she wakes up at night, she is only soothed by reaching up (I'm typically
sleeping on the mattress next to her bed these days) and tucking her hands into my neck, then falling back asleep. She also
is still overly obsessed with her feet and still insists on putting them on the table (barefoot of course)
and rubbing whatever food she can find on them. I found her the other day at lunch with turkey slices
layed out all the way up her leg. What does one even say to that?
Lucas came in this morning to my room and climbed up in bed
with me. This would be a normal experience for a parent with a 4 year old except that in addition to his footed pajamas, he
had on gardening gloves. He calls them his "Handy Manny" gloves and insists on wearing them nonstop. Let me tell you,
they look stellar with his firetruck jammies. He plays Manny all day long and sleeps with his tools under his pillow
(all layed out so they can rest too). He insists that we call him Manny and he has designated each family
member as a character in the Manny cast. Thanks so very much, Disney Channel.
Sophia has started hoarding her toys in such a manner that we
are convinced that she is going to be a bag lady when she grows up. She packs babies, toys, blankets, bottles, etc. into different
baskets and bags and loads them all up onto her double doll stroller and then pushes it around the house. It is so loaded
that sometimes she can't even see over all the stuff piled up. She also has been working on her dancing skills, and has
perfected a dance similar to the one Elaine did on Seinfeld. Sometimes we aren't sure if she's seizing or busting a move
(ok, maybe it's not quite THAT bad, but it's really a sight...).
All in all, I'm still expecting to see little aliens one of these days when
I am washing their ears in the tub, but until then, we'll just keep watching and trying to find the positives in the
randomness we call our lives.
On a happy note, i finished the kids' Obama tshirts for the inauguration
tomorrow, and they tried them on this morning.
They all were marching and shouting, "O BA MA! O BA MA!" Bella
is refusing to take hers off. The other two want to wear them to preschool tomorrow :)
1/8/09 A MOMENT OF PEACE.... these seem to be coming
fewer and farther between these days. I just left 3 sleeping children in Sophia's room (bedtime has been a bit crazy since
Will has been "out of commission"). Let me share with you this special moment of tranquility I found embedded in the craziness
that is living with 3 small children.
It has amazed me for a while now the difference that one hour can make
with children. The difference between 7:30PM and 8:30PM is literally the difference between wild screams, brushing teeth (or
more accurately, throwing toothpaste, tothbrushes, water, towels, etc), bouncing on beds, refusing to lay down, and sobbing
for (typically lost) lovies, to this beautiful moment I just experienced. As I finished the mandatory story and lullaby,
I glanced around the room. Through the light of the mighty nightlight (strong enough to scare away even the most frightening
under-the-bed type monster), I could see the dim outlines of a favorite baby, a special Christmas toy, a VERY loved Elmo
doll, and various clothes tossed carelessly during an intense dress up session. My eyes then landed on the heads of my kiddos,
the banes of my existence :), and I had the rare pleasure of watching sleepiness gently pull at their eyelids, as the final
legs kicked and fingers drummed, gently soothing them into sleep. I could almost taste the serenity and hear the innocence
as I watched their three small chests begin to evenly rise and fall, the sounds of three breaths evening out to mimic 3 seperate
ocean tides softly lapping the shore.
I wish I could melt down the tranquillity of this moment and inject it directly into my veins
and circulate throughout my system. I can imagine it would leave me feeling carefree and rested, both feelings I haven't had
the luxury of feeling in far too long.
It made me realize, though, that the daily struggles and frustrations are simply just
that, daily, and that they are gone, often as quickly as they arise. It is moments like these that leave me awestruck
as the awesomeness that is parenthood and enormously humbled to think about the impact I could have on these ever-growing,
ever-changing, ever-learning children.
That being said, just try to remind me of this post tomorrow while I am
scrubbing crayon off the walls/dresser/floor/dog while trying to keep a kid in timeout, a kid on the potty (until ALL of the
peepee comes out! why is this such a difficult concept???) and a kid from literally ramming his toy car into every flat
(and dentable) surface in the entire house. Try it, I dare you! See how long it takes me to bust out my entire
collection of "bad words" (out of earshot of the little ones, of course!) :) Have a GREAT one, and enjoy the little moments
of peace in your life.
1/3/09 This had probably been the longest I've gone
without updating... it's been for a good reason. Our lives got turned upside down on December 16th when Will went into the
hospital. The short version is that he was very sick and went to the ER. He had emergency gall bladder surgery the following
day for a strep pneumo infection that had also invaded his blood stream. He woke up from surgery with immense pain in his
back, and after a few days (and an MRI) was diagnosed with a ruptured disc. He shortly became temporarily paralyzed (right
leg) and transferred hospitals to one with a neurosurgeon. He sat through Christmas in a hospital bed and then had back surgery.
He came home Tuesday (his birthday) with a walker, almost unable to move (we had to drag him through the house on the kids'
wagon) and on IV antibiotics (4 more weeks). He is still in quite a bit of pain, and is learning to walk again. bviously,
our worlds are a little different right now. He is expected to recover fully, it's just a slow process, and difficult for
all of us. Our move is postponed until we can get him well and the kids are really confused and disoriented.
In this crazy time, the kids continue to amaze me and make me
laugh. Lucas was playing with the pretend food and came running in to tell me, "Mama, I have a pizza predicament!" Where did
he even HEAR that word?
My mom was here to help and she commented on a chair we
have that is missing a pad. She asked out loud " Why does this chair keep rocking?" and Lucas volunteered, "Because you keep
rocking it, Nana!"
He has also developed a love of knock knock jokes. Be on
the lookout for a video of them shortly :)
Bella knows her entire ABC's now, and can sing it on request.
The only part she has improvised is the LMNOP section, which comes out as "henna enna pee". She also astounds me with
her understanding of things and forsight. We were moving a toybox into the living room and I told her to get out of the hallway
where we were going. She ran down the hallway to the spot where we were putting it (it used to be there) and dragged one of
Lucas's huge firetrucks out of the toybox's "spot" (where it used to be) to help us out. Wow! We didn't even ask her to do
that!
Sophia's logic cracks us up too. She was talking to my mom
and asked her if she knows Billy (a character on Caillou). My mom tried to play it out and said that she thought she knew
him. Sophia asked her if she had ever met him and my mom told her no. Sophia replied, "Well then, I guess you probably don't
know him, do you." Well ok then!
I also asked her when we were playing outside yesterday
(we had a 65 degree day) if she needed to use the bathroom (i swear that kid can hold fluids like a camel!). She said, "You
mean peepee or poopoo?" I said, "either" and she said, "NO!" Wait, why does it even matter which one I meant then???
They are silly, but please keep them in your thoughts and
prayers, their worlds are craziness right now. They have stepped up the "bad behavior" since Will got sick, understandably,
but it doesn't make it any easier to deal with.... and if I hear ONE more "poopy in the valley" joke.... why is the word "poopy"
so funny to kids anyway?:)
12/15/08 This blog has typically been dedicated to the madness
and silliness that is our lives since we have had our kids. I truly enjoy describing the daily encounters that make
me laugh and get me thinking in hopes that it might brighten someone else's day. But as we inch closer to tomorrow, (December
16th - 4th anniversary of our baby Emma's death)I realize how easy it is to drift the other way. I spent my entire pregnancy
loving three babies, and talking to three children that I had dreams and desires for, and while not all were accurate
or even achievable, one never expects to have those dreams erased just 8 short days after their child's birth. Tomorrow,
at 1pm, it will have been 4 years since Will and I said goodbye to our 3rd child and handed her over to heaven. As she passed,
we sang "you are my sunshine" to her, and let her go with prayers and tears. We made some calls and told friends and family,
then sort of slipped into numbness, which was fairly short lived since the other two went in and out of dramatic
life or death illnesses and procedures frequently. We started calling Lucas and Sophia "twins" (even though I was devastatingly
against it in the beginning) because it was easier than reliving it each time we had to explain where the third triplet was.
We put up two out of three cribs at home, we used two out of three matching outfits, 2 of three bouncy seats, but we
NEVER let the love we had designated for our little Emma Christine be put by the wayside. It still burns bright and deep,
and times like these, it becomes very difficult for me to locate my smartass humorous side in which I typically reside.
Today, and especially tomorrow, the tears in my eyes may be from laughing so hard at something one of the kiddos
did, but it would be just as likely that they are from the deep ache we feel in that empty place in our hearts where we very
early on reserved for baby Emma. She was "Baby C" , and was always kicking me in the lungs and vital organs, but
she was the one who was closest to my heart (at least logistically).
It is still very painful for me to remember her illness
and passing, and as I watch the others grow, I can't help but wonder if she would have been better friends with Lucas or Sophia,
and if she would have liked the things they liked. I watch them all play together on the floor, wrestling and giggling and
I wonder if another set of arms and legs would complete that intertwined interaction. These things I will never know, and
i realize that I can't spend all my time reminiscing and living on the what if's, but truth be told, I just can't let her
go.
My children are ALL very snuggly. cuddly children who love to
be close and be held. I can't help but wonder what it would be like to hold her and snuggle her while reading a bedtime
story. For a long time after, and even still sometimes now, I can actually feel a deep longing ache to just hold my baby and
tell her I love her and miss her.
So on this day, this anniversary of her departure from our world and, as Lucas
says, "The day God came down and took her to be an angel" (gotta love Christian preschool), my heart sends her messages that
she is missed and loved, and my body aches for one last embrace of my teeny tiny baby girl. I hope she knows that we NEVER
gave up on her, I just couldn't stand to see her in pain, and that she will never be forgotten and her siblings do and will
continue to know her and about her. That being said, this one goes out to my little baby Emma Christine Gockley.....12/8/04-12/16/04
1 lb. 5.8z.
You are my sunshine, my only sunshine,
You make me happy when skies are gray
You'll never know dear, how much I love you
So please don't take my sunshine away.
12/12/08 Since my last lyrical post, Lucas and Sophia have
had a birthday! They are now happy and (mostly) healthy 4 year olds! They were able to have parties at school (on two different
days so they could each be in the spotlight). They had a great "real" birthday too. Each chose their special dinner (Lucas
wanted pizza, and Sophia wanted... what else?? WIBS- ribs)!!! They got some awesome musical presents and we got some great
videos of them.
Bella had a hard time accepting that she wasn't having
a birthday too. She has fallen in love with magic, and does a special magic trick (video of that too). We have also been having
a really rough time with her hair. I know, of all the things to be concerned about... but seriously, her hair is NUTS. She
has curls on the bottom 1/2 and straight, fine hair on the top, which statics out in all directions when it is the least bit
dry outside. She refuses to let me put anything in it, like rubber bands or clips, and even runs now when she sees the brush.
I was talking to her about it this morning and I said, "Don't you just want it out of your face?" And she said, "No pretties"
(rubber bands). "You don't to I don't want to be pretty." "You don't want to be pretty? What do you want to be then?" "I want
be Bella." Well, ok then.
The kids have their "preschool Christmas program"
at school tonight. I'll take a ton a pictures (are you surprised?). Then another week and we'll be moving to Indy! We are
all getting pretty excited.
I'll try to post again before that. If not, I hope y'all have a wonderful holiday
season, and be sure to celebrate, regardless of your beliefs. Even if you just celebrate love and family:)
12/4/08 A peek into my life.....
My eyes peek open, 6am, Time to start
the day again.
3 kids snuggled in my bed,
barely room to lay my head,
Drag them out the best I’m
able, “Hurry up now! To the table!”
Fix them breakfast and make
it hearty, while I make jello for the party,
“Not so loud”,
“we don’t throw food”, a great big hug to change a mood.
My coffeepot, it gently perks,
we’re out of fresh fruit, canned fruit works.
Drain a cup and move along,
“Brush ALL your teeth, don’t take too long!”
Wrestle all three into clothes,
wipe another runny nose,
Bribe them all with PBS,
it makes them whine a little less.
Put on makeup with a kid
on my hip, “Why won’t this stupid coat zipper zip?”
Kiss an ouchie to help it
heal, chop up veggies for our meal.
Then clean the house (it’s
always dirty), is this where I thought I’d be at thirty?
Show and Tell, napmats, and
kids, I guess those cups should have had lids.
A second cup of liquid fuel,
time to drive the kids to school,
They pour out the door in
a Caillou fog, we really need a herding dog.
5 point harnesses, “Where
are my gloves?” Buckle the belts among shrieks and shoves.
“Where are we going?”
“Why? why? why?” Questions on everything up to the sky.
“He’s touching
me!”, “She’s in my seat!”, “Mom, I’m hot! Turn off the heat!”
Into the classrooms with
quick goodbyes, some with smiles and some with cries.
Back to the car with errands
to run, it’s ONLY 9? I've just begun!
Although it’s hectic
most of the day, I wouldn’t want it another way.
Timeouts, tickles and sticker
grids, the honest truth is I LOVE MY KIDS!
12/2/08 OOOOHhh, I knew the day would come when they
would all gang up on me and I would be outnumbered and powerless. I just assumed it would be closer to the teenage years and
not so close to... well, yesterday. We had recieved a box in the mail from Nana and Papa that included presents for Lucas
and Sophia's birthdays, a present for Bella to open too, my birthday present, and a Little People Thanksgiving set. We went
ahead and opened the box so they could play with the set before and during Thanksgiving. Apparantly, giving the kids a glimpse
of what else was in the box was like lighting a flame around a gaggle of moths (gaggle? maybe a swarm? But I digress...) I
had originally put the box of presents in the guest room, but after overhhearing a conversation about it, I covertly moved
it into my room. Now the kids know D#$% good and well that they aren't allowed in my room without an adult (access to bathroom
w/ chemicals, breakables, etc), but apparantly they aren't required to follow that rule when presents are involved. I spent
5 minutes on the phone trying to reschedule a doctor's appt and as I waited on hold, the house grew eerily quiet. I walked
back to the hallway that leads to the bedrooms and heard the squeals of delight and laughter that rarely occurs unless numerous
tickle bugs are around or children are doing something they KNOW they shouldn't be doing. Unfortunately for me, it was the
latter. I went to open the door and realized IT WAS LOCKED! Those little monsters had gone into my room and locked me out!
I screamed at them to unlock it and they just laughed harder, as i heard paper shredding and boxes thumping. I had to run
to the other side of the house to find a key to get in the door. As I popped the lock and sashayed through a sea of destroyed
tissue and wrapping paper, I ran through ALL my options of discipline.... I settled on lengthy timeouts (ooh, but I was mad
enough to think about other things!). So was the "present raid of '08".
I know I've mentioned it in previous posts, but someday
when I have time, I am going to compile all these stories and bizarre phrases I have uttered into a book called, "Don't Eat
the Buttpaste" (a phrase uttered to Lucas when he was little and resulted in a call to Poison Control). I often find things
dropping out of my mouth before my mind can actually process the rediculousness of what I am saying. I caught myself in another
one this week. I won't give you the name of the kid, but I realized after I had said it that I yelled out, "Hey! Don't poop
in the pantry!" Really, did I just say that out loud? And why the crap was there a necessity to say that? :)
I don't know how many of you have
heard of SuperWhy on PBS, but it is a favorite around here. It's about Super reader superheroes that go into nursery
rhymes and fairy tales and change the words in the story for better outcomes. There are a few key phrases that are in every
episode, including Lucas's favorite phrase to exclaim when playing superhero "Super Readers! To the Book Club!" However, they
have also embraced another of these phrases and begun to use it against me. When Lucas and Sophia get in trouble
for things they know they aren't supposed to do, they reply to me, "But mom, I can't help it. I HAVE to do that.
It's in my story!" GRRRR... flippin' PBS...
