Thursday, September 20, 2007

Today's a Brighter Day

Ok....so the drama and trauma of yesterday have worn off. We have had a much better day so far, probably in part because we've been in church all morning. It was wonderful to be sitting under Jean today. I needed to hear that someone out there knew how tired and overstressed I am. She is always such an encouragement. Her words were fitting as always.

Abby went on a nature walk at church and came home with a paper sack of leaves and flowers. She was so proud as she showed us her treasures of things that God had made. I was excited that her teacher took the time to teach them rather than just babysit them during the childcare time. Abby really enjoyed picking the flowers.

I don't really know what Isabella and Ali Kate did today....they were happy when I picked them up though. So I guess they had a good time. Isabella doesn't know any of the kids in her class, and I don't know whether she likes it or not. It's hard to tell at this age.

We had a great group at MOMS today. It was so sweet to hear first-time moms talk about their new babies and about how they love being moms. I need to hear that as a mom who is in the trenches with three tiny ones. Life is very different with one than with three. I have been in both spots. I wouldn't trade this spot in a million years, but I'd love the pace of having just one baby sometimes. Life is very fast at our house!

Anyway, I folded 3 loads of laundry when I laid them down. Now it's off to put those clothes away and tackle some more! Woo hoo! As your family multiplies, so does the laundry.

Wednesday, September 19, 2007

What a day!

I'm about to scream. Today has been one of those preschool days 100%. It started at 5 am when the girls (all 3) decided to wake up and scream for no reason (at least not one apparent to us). Matt fed Ali Kate a bottle....that's all she needs to get back to sleep. Abby drifted back off on her own, and I was up with Isabella until 6:30 trying to get her back to sleep. Doesn't it seem crazy to be trying to get her to sleep in the morning? Anyway, I am usually up by 6:30....well, I didn't get to bed till after midnight since I was working on our MOMS gifts. So I was not about to approach today with only 5 hours. And, for some reason, I was extremely nauseated at 5. That's why Matt got up with the baby. I had these weird notions that it was nausea from pregnancy. (I couldn't think of any other reason I was nauseous.) Well, I guess we'll see in a week or so.

Anyway, we went on through our day with Isabella in full force. Temper tantrums, screaming, hair pulling, spilling drinks, banging things on the kitchen table, pouring her peas onto the table at dinner and laughing about it, having a total meltdown at a friend's house when she couldn't have the pink dress-up shoes (She was already wearing their purple ones!), etc.

On top of that, Ali Kate was just plain fussy. That is not her temperament at all. She is almost always the most complacent, happy, giggly baby. But not today. Maybe she could sense the stress. She screamed unless I held her.

Abby was whiny all day long. She was low at lunch which can make you moody. Tonight she didn't want to eat her dinner, clean up her toys, take a bath, obey anything. She of course didn't want to share anything at all with her sisters. She also knocked Isabella down in the kitchen and produced some major drama.

Today was supposed to be a major "work on the house" day because it needed it. Instead it was a "serve as a referee" day. That's the hardest part about having three this little. I feel more like their manager than their mother so often. It's very hard and takes lots of work to get good quality time, especially individual time, with them. There is just so much to do....and they create more work by the minute.

Anyway, I usually write only about the good. And I do have a couple of entries in my mind that I'd like to do. But I think I needed to vent for therapeutic reasons tonight. My mind is cluttered, and so is my house. I don't function well in clutter! I am so Type A it's scary. On an even funnier note, we got a newsletter from the Honors College at Ole Miss that featured people from our class since it's the 10th anniversary of the inaugural class. Anyway, I thought, "They'd never be interested in featuring a stay-at-home mom....the only people featured were "making it big in the world"." I know that is from Satan, but sometimes it is so hard when you work all day every day with your kids and they act like they did today. I know that my fulfillment is not to come from them, and that's what I have to keep telling myself. I just felt like I'm doing it all wrong today.

Adios.

Wednesday, September 12, 2007

Stage 3

Ali Kate just ate her first Stage 3 food, and she wasn't too thrilled. I gave her about 1/2 a jar of the Macaroni and Cheese dinner, and she was less than excited about this new taste. Last week I did let her have some real sweet peas that I smashed in my fingers before serving. She lappedd those things up! She's a sweet pea fan for sure. We still haven't ventured into Gerber Puff and Cheerio land....I know I had the other two on those already, but I'm just not ready to make her a "big girl" yet. Same thing goes for the sippy cup. I'm just not ready to admit that she's not a little baby anymore. (You would think the 12 mo. clothes on her 22+ pound frame would have persuaded me a bit already, but they haven't.)

Anyway, she is growing up too fast already. In four months, we'll be singing "Happy Birthday" to her. Is this why I always get pregnant in time for the 1st birthday? Do I really long for little babies that much?!?

Toddlers...Gotta Love Them

Yesterday we had leftovers for lunch....hashbrown casserole which my girls generally love. Well, Abby was clamoring as usual for chicken nuggets, and I told her that we were having leftovers instead. She looked at me oh so seriously and said, "Mom, I'm not a leftover eating kid." I couldn't hold back the laughter. I told her that she'd have to be a leftover eating kid at least for that meal.

Today I was taking a shower, and the girls were all in their rooms for independent playtime. They are to play in their own rooms for a little down time. Well, I got out of the shower and heard, "Moo moo." I peeked around the corner and saw Abby creeping out of her room and "mooing" toward Isabella's room. Isabella is terribly afraid of the "moo" sound. We don't know why or how this started, but we're learning to cope! Anyway, I have no idea how long Abby had been "mooing" at her sister. Needless to say, we had to have a talk about not "mooing" during independent playtime.

A couple of weeks ago we were all playing in the living room when Isabella disappeared. After about two minutes of not hearing her, I went to investigate. She had climbed onto the changing table and was laying there waiting for a new diaper. She told me she needed her diaper changed...and it was a stinky one. I could not believe this child had climbed up there and was beginning to try to change her own diaper. (Let me note that I had just given her a new diaper about 45 minutes earlier.) Potty training is around the corner. I've been avoiding it because she's not ready....but her interest is beginning to really peak!

Tuesday, September 11, 2007

I'm Entering the 21st Century

I'm now entering this century! I am so not a computer user....but I've really wanted an outlet to journal my life's journey as a mom. All of my daughters have their own journals where I record letters to them on what has become a very sporadic basis. I used to journal often....but I have three daughters ages 3 and under. So one can only figure out that I don't have much opportunity to journal to them. I am not going to quit writing them letters, but I do hope that this will serve as a way for me to capture the stuff of daily life. I type so much faster than I handwrite...so that's why I've chosen blogging. We'll see how it goes.