I think every post during this time of life could be titles: busy or sick. That seems to be the extent of things around here lately. At least the sick has not resulted in a hospital stay - ya to our crazy diet and naturopathic/pharmaceutical remedies. They seem to be working. I myself have noticed a huge change now that I am on this diet too. I do not get sick. I may get a sore throat and a bit tired, but that is the extent of it. It doesn't seem to matter how little sleep I get. I am not getting sick. Wow. I used to catch everything. I am starting to realize that I am the one with all these food intolerances and I have passed them on to my kids. Eeek. Sorry kiddo's.
I have felt rather uninspired to write of late. I am finding my head extremely cluttered. This is a direct result of our very cluttered house at the moment. I really do like a tidy house and a clean floor to keep my head in the right frame of mind. But with our reno, the chaos is starting to slip into the rest of the house. We painted the kitchen and hallway last weekend/this week, so there are pictures and tables crammed everywhere. We are starting to see an end, though. The paint is done. The floor goes in Wednesday. The counters are getting measured Monday and hopefully put in the following week. I managed to find the same counter top we currently have, so we no longer have to replace all the kitchen counters. We just have to replace the main one. This saved us a tonne of $$.
We have been in full swing school/unschool mode around here. Trips to the library. Nature walks. Farm visits. Long discussions around the dinner table. Crafting extravaganzas. Board games. I am truly having a blast spending all this time with my kids and am completely in awe of all they are learning. Twin2 seems to grow his vocabulary by the minute. He truly enjoys playing with words. We were down at the beach park the other day swinging on the the swings when twin1 starts to describe how the lake and rivers are all connected and lead to the ocean. Wow. I love this.
The toddler has learned to ride a bike with training wheels, although he prefers his balance bike. The baby still isn't walking, but she is talking. She said 'Hi, Da.' to my husband on the phone the other day.
10/15/11
10/11/11
Unplugged Sunday
Weekends around here are usually pretty crazy. In fact, I have to plan for a day of rest on Tuesdays (our weekend is Sunday/Monday) because the kids need some unstructured down time to just be kids. Usually weekends are filled with some home fix-up project, especially of late with the reno going on, or a day long shopping trip. Or my husband and I alternately take up some project that we are working on that can only be done when the kids are busy with the other parent - quilting, painting, gardening, yard work.... My husband and I seldom have nothing on our 'honey-do' list - actually, I don't think I remember a time when it was empty. As soon as you purchase a house, the list seems to be endless. Sometimes by the end of the weekend, we are more tired than before it started.
This weekend roller coaster combined with some added pressure from work for my husband to do some schooling has left the kids feeling a bit family quality time deprived. As we value our children and our limited time together at each stage of their lives, we have decided to unplug one day a week. No TV, phones, internet, errands, projects - just us. Time spent as a family, doing family things. We recognize that this may not happen every week, but if we plan for it and make a valiant effort then hopefully it will become second nature. We will prep for our family time the night before, or the week before. Our goal will be to primarily spend this time outdoors, but in the region we live in weather is a factor. So, we will have to research various events going on in the area.
I can't wait. We still don't know when we will start, but the idea is in place. We have a few commitments to clear from the calendar. Unplugged. A new adventure.
This weekend roller coaster combined with some added pressure from work for my husband to do some schooling has left the kids feeling a bit family quality time deprived. As we value our children and our limited time together at each stage of their lives, we have decided to unplug one day a week. No TV, phones, internet, errands, projects - just us. Time spent as a family, doing family things. We recognize that this may not happen every week, but if we plan for it and make a valiant effort then hopefully it will become second nature. We will prep for our family time the night before, or the week before. Our goal will be to primarily spend this time outdoors, but in the region we live in weather is a factor. So, we will have to research various events going on in the area.
I can't wait. We still don't know when we will start, but the idea is in place. We have a few commitments to clear from the calendar. Unplugged. A new adventure.
10/5/11
Harvest Wednesday
We have been bringing in and storing the last of the local produce. We picked apples and made 9 quartz of apple sauce yesterday. Yum. We picked apples from Grandma's tree. They are delicious. Tonight my husband and I have a tomato date. Yup we are preping tomatoes for freezing. Funny, I know, since we rarely consume tomatoes - the twins are very sensitive to tomatoes, but love them and can't keep their paws off. I myself dislike raw tomatoes. But, in the heart of winter, my husband and I consume a fair amount of curry and some date night tomato pasta. So, tomato prep it is. I had read that tomatoes and coconut milk leach the BPA toxins from the cans they are canned in. So, this is one of those ways we are trying to limit our exposure. We have not yet found a way around the coconut milk, though.
Today was a normal Wednesday. We read a lot of books today. Played games. Drank tea. Lunched. Had swimming lessons. Picked out books at the Library. Grocery shopped. Drank smoothies. Made pattern block pictures. Washed 5 loads of laundry and put 3 away. And still the day is not done. As I was sitting on the library carpet chatting with a mom, waiting for the toddler's swim lesson to complete, I realized this was the first semi-break of the day. A typical Wednesday.
Tomorrow - hair cuts. Yick.
Today was a normal Wednesday. We read a lot of books today. Played games. Drank tea. Lunched. Had swimming lessons. Picked out books at the Library. Grocery shopped. Drank smoothies. Made pattern block pictures. Washed 5 loads of laundry and put 3 away. And still the day is not done. As I was sitting on the library carpet chatting with a mom, waiting for the toddler's swim lesson to complete, I realized this was the first semi-break of the day. A typical Wednesday.
Tomorrow - hair cuts. Yick.
10/1/11
Life
Things have been busy around here...when aren't they busy. Construction continues on the house. At this point, I am not sure when it is going to end. Our contractor has grand ideas, but seems to have difficulties bringing them to fruition. I expected the project to take awhile, but the space just sits there calling me to utilize it. Especially in the afternoon when the sun shines in and warms everything. I just want to curl up in there and read a book in the sun. We have finally ordered the floors, so completion, of the inside, will take about another month.
We have been slowly settling into our homeshool routine, very slowly. This week we strayed a bit because everyone took turns with a cold. So we spent a lot of time relaxing, watching movies. It is hard to keep the boys confined, though. Around 10am each day, they end up outside 'building' in their play house - really this means destroying things and hammering wood with nails, but they are having a blast. We headed out for our usual after dinner fresh air bike/walk and the twins had a bit of an asthma relapse, which of course extended into the night and are still recovering from. The cold and the strain on their respiratory system was a bit too much - oops. Alas, I recieved strict instructions from my husband to not let them outside today. Easier said than done. These guys are goers. Usually, they only sit for about 45 min at a time and then only if the TV is on. (This, of course, does not include book reading because for that they will snuggle until my voice disappears.) Thankfully, my husband ran to the movie store before work this morning and picked up a stack of movies. This may keep them inactive for a few hours?!?
As I was saying, we are slowly settling into our school routine. Wednesdays and Fridays find us out and about: library and swim lessons on Wednesday afternoons and co-op on Fridays. That leaves Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturdays for 'homeschooling'. I say this loosely, because I leave the school part for the kids to lead. Usually, I wait until they find something they want to try. One day they pull out the book of science experiments and we flip through and pick something to try: balloon rockets and soap crystals so far. Or they pull out a game to play, focusing on following instructions, taking turns, colours, numbers, letters. Or, the shape tiles are brought out and we make huge pictures on the kitchen table. Or they ask to craft. If no directions is taken by the kids, then we sit and read books, which takes place daily. Once a week we read a few bible stories. One of the three school days also includes some outdoor outing: hike, zoo, museum, tour.... Daily, the kids have chores, cleaning the downstairs, putting away their dirty laundry, putting away their dirty dishes, and/or cleaning up some huge mess that has occurred as a result of their self directed learning. Also, they help cook one of the three meals each day. Oh, and don't forget the constant character development that takes place - constant. "Patience," seems to be uttered from my lips hourly. Learning is constantly taking place, thus, I use the term 'school' rather loosely. There may not be any scheduled sitting around the table, but if you were to write down all the learning that takes place, I am sure it would rival most kindergarten classrooms.
The baby has decided to change things up a bit lately. She spent three days refusing to nurse. When I offered a feed, she would bite me. I have to say I was a bit crushed. I was not prepared for an abrupt end to our one-on-one time. I am so busy with the other kids that nursing offers the baby and I some carved out time together. I cherish that time we have. I had been talking about slowly introducing a bottle of Almond milk to see how she would do and allow me to start heading out of the house on my own, but I was not prepared for the transition to take place so decisively. So, after feeling rejected and missing our calm moments together, I decided to persevere. After 3 days, I am happy to say she has returned to nursing as usual. She did catch the cold that we have been passing around, so perhaps she wasn't feeling hungry. I have to say I appreciated the reality check, though. I was starting to feel too tied down and was ready to start weaning, now I know I am not ready. Those few minutes here and there spent just with my baby girl are too special. I do now know that she is happy to take a bottle and has no problems digesting Almond milk, so I have scheduled my first outing sans-baby. Eeek. The twins and I are heading out to watch a play at a nearby cultural centre tomorrow afternoon. I am looking forward to not juggling an infant around, the twins are excited about some time with just Mom, and Dad is excited about some time alone with the littles.
And not to forget my toddler. He and I have been spending a lot of time together. When the twins head out of the house to play and refuse to let the toddler play, I take him under my wing and we cook, read books, puzzle. He has such an amazing personality. He is constantly seeking out attention in weird and wonderful ways. He is wild, WILD, and will try anything once. He is stubborn and extremely structured. Once a routine is introduced he doesn't forget. He is constantly trying to reason out the order of the world. His current question involves pointing something out and asking, "For me? For brothers? For Dad? For You (Mom)? For peoples?" Adorable. He is extremely affectionate. When I sit on the couch he always sidles in close for a snuggle. And he prominently takes the seat on my lap during book time. He is very quirky and wonderfully original. I have never seen anyone be able to use their eyes so expressively. He could tell an entire story just with those big eyes. And his laugh lately. He has developed an evil laugh lately. I'll have to record it and put it up. Too funny.
It's funny. A month and a half ago, I could not have fathomed how anyone 5 year old could be ready to head to school and spend an entire day without their parent. Over this last month, though, I have noticed the twins slowly transitioning away on their own. They head outside and play in the their playhouse for hours, or dig in the dirt, or ride bikes in front of the house, or build trains in their room, or build Lego, or race cars - all without me and without any guidance from me. Although, I do not agree with all day kindergarten, I can see that 5 year old do start to seek out independence and perhaps are ready to head to school. I absolutely do not regret keeping my kids at home. At this point in our lives public school is not for us, but I now understand why 5 is the age it all begins.
I noticed this one Friday during co-op. We had a Guide volunteer to introduce us to the world of foraging: identifying edible plants, names, uses. The Guide was introduced, we headed off and my kids stuck pretty close, insisting on holding hands as we walked. Once the Guide introduced the first plant, twin1 was gone. He attached himself to the Guide and I did not see him until the end of the walk. Even then, he remained alongside the Guide while plants were cleaned and prepared to eat. Independence. He even found his own wild ginger to bring home and turn into tea, which he did later that afternoon. He boiled the water, cleaned and cut the root, and steeped the tea for all of us to enjoy. Then we sat around the table and enjoyed the fruits of our labour. A wonderful, wonderful moment in my life. To think, we may never have had this opportunity had the twins been sent to school. No regrets.
We have been slowly settling into our homeshool routine, very slowly. This week we strayed a bit because everyone took turns with a cold. So we spent a lot of time relaxing, watching movies. It is hard to keep the boys confined, though. Around 10am each day, they end up outside 'building' in their play house - really this means destroying things and hammering wood with nails, but they are having a blast. We headed out for our usual after dinner fresh air bike/walk and the twins had a bit of an asthma relapse, which of course extended into the night and are still recovering from. The cold and the strain on their respiratory system was a bit too much - oops. Alas, I recieved strict instructions from my husband to not let them outside today. Easier said than done. These guys are goers. Usually, they only sit for about 45 min at a time and then only if the TV is on. (This, of course, does not include book reading because for that they will snuggle until my voice disappears.) Thankfully, my husband ran to the movie store before work this morning and picked up a stack of movies. This may keep them inactive for a few hours?!?
As I was saying, we are slowly settling into our school routine. Wednesdays and Fridays find us out and about: library and swim lessons on Wednesday afternoons and co-op on Fridays. That leaves Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturdays for 'homeschooling'. I say this loosely, because I leave the school part for the kids to lead. Usually, I wait until they find something they want to try. One day they pull out the book of science experiments and we flip through and pick something to try: balloon rockets and soap crystals so far. Or they pull out a game to play, focusing on following instructions, taking turns, colours, numbers, letters. Or, the shape tiles are brought out and we make huge pictures on the kitchen table. Or they ask to craft. If no directions is taken by the kids, then we sit and read books, which takes place daily. Once a week we read a few bible stories. One of the three school days also includes some outdoor outing: hike, zoo, museum, tour.... Daily, the kids have chores, cleaning the downstairs, putting away their dirty laundry, putting away their dirty dishes, and/or cleaning up some huge mess that has occurred as a result of their self directed learning. Also, they help cook one of the three meals each day. Oh, and don't forget the constant character development that takes place - constant. "Patience," seems to be uttered from my lips hourly. Learning is constantly taking place, thus, I use the term 'school' rather loosely. There may not be any scheduled sitting around the table, but if you were to write down all the learning that takes place, I am sure it would rival most kindergarten classrooms.
The baby has decided to change things up a bit lately. She spent three days refusing to nurse. When I offered a feed, she would bite me. I have to say I was a bit crushed. I was not prepared for an abrupt end to our one-on-one time. I am so busy with the other kids that nursing offers the baby and I some carved out time together. I cherish that time we have. I had been talking about slowly introducing a bottle of Almond milk to see how she would do and allow me to start heading out of the house on my own, but I was not prepared for the transition to take place so decisively. So, after feeling rejected and missing our calm moments together, I decided to persevere. After 3 days, I am happy to say she has returned to nursing as usual. She did catch the cold that we have been passing around, so perhaps she wasn't feeling hungry. I have to say I appreciated the reality check, though. I was starting to feel too tied down and was ready to start weaning, now I know I am not ready. Those few minutes here and there spent just with my baby girl are too special. I do now know that she is happy to take a bottle and has no problems digesting Almond milk, so I have scheduled my first outing sans-baby. Eeek. The twins and I are heading out to watch a play at a nearby cultural centre tomorrow afternoon. I am looking forward to not juggling an infant around, the twins are excited about some time with just Mom, and Dad is excited about some time alone with the littles.
And not to forget my toddler. He and I have been spending a lot of time together. When the twins head out of the house to play and refuse to let the toddler play, I take him under my wing and we cook, read books, puzzle. He has such an amazing personality. He is constantly seeking out attention in weird and wonderful ways. He is wild, WILD, and will try anything once. He is stubborn and extremely structured. Once a routine is introduced he doesn't forget. He is constantly trying to reason out the order of the world. His current question involves pointing something out and asking, "For me? For brothers? For Dad? For You (Mom)? For peoples?" Adorable. He is extremely affectionate. When I sit on the couch he always sidles in close for a snuggle. And he prominently takes the seat on my lap during book time. He is very quirky and wonderfully original. I have never seen anyone be able to use their eyes so expressively. He could tell an entire story just with those big eyes. And his laugh lately. He has developed an evil laugh lately. I'll have to record it and put it up. Too funny.
It's funny. A month and a half ago, I could not have fathomed how anyone 5 year old could be ready to head to school and spend an entire day without their parent. Over this last month, though, I have noticed the twins slowly transitioning away on their own. They head outside and play in the their playhouse for hours, or dig in the dirt, or ride bikes in front of the house, or build trains in their room, or build Lego, or race cars - all without me and without any guidance from me. Although, I do not agree with all day kindergarten, I can see that 5 year old do start to seek out independence and perhaps are ready to head to school. I absolutely do not regret keeping my kids at home. At this point in our lives public school is not for us, but I now understand why 5 is the age it all begins.
I noticed this one Friday during co-op. We had a Guide volunteer to introduce us to the world of foraging: identifying edible plants, names, uses. The Guide was introduced, we headed off and my kids stuck pretty close, insisting on holding hands as we walked. Once the Guide introduced the first plant, twin1 was gone. He attached himself to the Guide and I did not see him until the end of the walk. Even then, he remained alongside the Guide while plants were cleaned and prepared to eat. Independence. He even found his own wild ginger to bring home and turn into tea, which he did later that afternoon. He boiled the water, cleaned and cut the root, and steeped the tea for all of us to enjoy. Then we sat around the table and enjoyed the fruits of our labour. A wonderful, wonderful moment in my life. To think, we may never have had this opportunity had the twins been sent to school. No regrets.
9/20/11
Long Lost Pictures From My Husband's Phone
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| I believe this picture was taken the day we brought our baby girl home. I still look pregnant and not very with it. |
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| New Baby Girl |
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| Pumpkin cleaning |
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| Fresh from Mommy's tummy. She was the only baby that I got to hold following birth. |
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| He was very attached to this hat last winter. |
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| Our anniversary picture from this year. |
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| At the top of the lookout. |
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| A view of the ocean. Taken when we went to the wedding this summer. It was a beautiful town. I am holding the babies foot. |
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| Me. Outside our vacation house in Hawaii. Jealous? |
9/15/11
First Day of School
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| Here is our first day of school group picture. I promptly put the baby down for a nap. |
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| Our day was spent cataloging our present stat's in 'All About Me..' books. I hope to repeat this trend each year (if I remember), resulting in a keepsake collection. |
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| This wasn't our first official day of school as we started co-op last week, but I refused to give up the opportunity to be free and roaming outside until the weather turned. So, with our first cloudy, cool day upon us, we began - slowly. |
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| If you think this guy is going to sit on the side lines, you are wrong. He is right in there with us - until he gets bored and wonders off or starts provoking someone. |
We are taking this slowly. Basically we aren't doing things all that different. However, I am enforcing a couch read aloud daily. Although sometimes this doesn't happen until bedtime, but it does happen. At the moment I am relishing in the lazy mornings and freedom of our whims. Perhaps we will get more down to things when the weather really turns. The days are certainly getting shorter already.
9/13/11
Baby Girl
This little girl is growing up - too fast. She weighs 22 lbs. Yup, she is chunky, but so adorable. She loves to cuddle now. The mere mention of the word elicits shoulder snuggles - precious. She is our resident cheer leader, clapping and throwing her hands in the air when we yell 'score'. She has transitioned straight from the avocado puree diet to everything finger food. So far she has only refused a few food items. She is still not walking, but I fear it won't be long and then look out. She naps twice a day and heads to bed with her 'Good Night Song', which when sung also elicits a shoulder snuggle and a firm grasp. She is a crowd pleaser, once warmed up. It is hard to believe this is my last baby. Thank goodness my sister just had one.
9/12/11
Parenthood
Not parenthood in general, but new parenthood. Ahh. 5 1/2 years ago my husband and I became parents to not one, but 2 children - twins. Anticipation was high. Here we were in charge of these humans. We were responsible for molding them into making good or bad decisions. Eeek. The responsibility.
Well those thoughts quickly evaporated and all my thoughts were suddenly not about the big picture, but about pee, poo, sleep, breathing, laundry, feeding.....the baby(ies). Where did the big picture go? Well, when the fog of new parenthood lifts, the big picture will re-emerge and then you can reevaluate all that with a wee bit more reality now that you actually are a parent and have realized that parenthood is about survival - bottom line. If you make it to the end, you have succeeded. Parenthood is the hardest job...no it is not a job. It is not something that you can walk away from, or choose your hours for. Parenthood is a 24-7 life change. No one can tell you how to parent. No book can tell you how to parent. How you do things will emerge out of your past, your now, your goals and choices. No two parents will do things the same. Don't get me wrong, though, books and others can offer advice and suggestions, but how you take them and use, or don't use them is up to you.
I started out with all these expectations and goals. Then reality set in. What is my goal now? I want a strong, close family unit. Period. I want my children to form a close, lasting attachment to my husband and I. Did I see sending my kids to school getting in the way of this - yup. So, we home school. Do I have babysitters and daycare care for my children - No. We are fortunate enough to have enough family close by to help lend a hand or two when needed. And if I can't find someone to watch, then they go with me or I don't go. Unfortunately not everyone has the luxury of a husband with a good job, or family close by. However, none of the decisions we made have been easy. We have cut back big time in order to make our all this happen.
Last year I hit a bit of a low after I became pregnant with my fourth. I had felt we were in a bit of a groove. I was getting out and experiencing some 'Me' time - cooking lessons. Ha. Let me tell you, the search for the elusive 'me' time is ridiculous. I have found the search for time to myself results in negative feelings about my children. Not good. Where is 'my' time? Well, I was trying to figure out how I was ever going to get some when I realized that, like my initial family goals, my idea of 'me' time needed some reevaluating. 'Me' time is time spent with my kids. I only have a short time with them and then I will have so much 'me' time I'll be trying to get back into my children's lives. And if I have managed to achieve my goal of a strong family, my kids will want me to be apart of their lives. Do I need a break sometimes? You bet. Does it need to be an entire day, a weekend? Nope and in fact any day, or weekend I have spent away from my kids, I spend the entire time thinking about them, talking about them, or running errands for them. I have found that an 1 1/2 hours a week to do something of my choosing is all I need. Usually I end up preparing dinner in a stress free environment with not a stitch of noise going on around me, other times I get out and run errands, or I push it all aside and sit and read.
So, what about 'us' time? Same thing goes here. The search for 'us' time is ridiculous. 'Us' time has been transformed. Did you fall in love with going out to fancy dinners, to weekend shopping spree's, to wine tours? Yes, these things were wonderful experiences and I had a great time experiencing them with my amazing husband. But, these are just experiences spent with the man I love. 'Us' time is about communication. Not shopping, but being strapped into a seat beside my husband where we can talk and enjoy each others company. Are the kids still with us? Yup. My husband and I have found that when an evening out to dinner comes around that we spend the entire time talking about kids. In fact, our best chance for 'us' time tends to be in the evening with all media turned off, sitting on the couch, looking at each other and talking. True 'us' time . Are the kids around? Yup. Usually asleep, but still with us.
Parenthood. What a major adjustment and it continues to change. But it is a joy I would never give up.
Well those thoughts quickly evaporated and all my thoughts were suddenly not about the big picture, but about pee, poo, sleep, breathing, laundry, feeding.....the baby(ies). Where did the big picture go? Well, when the fog of new parenthood lifts, the big picture will re-emerge and then you can reevaluate all that with a wee bit more reality now that you actually are a parent and have realized that parenthood is about survival - bottom line. If you make it to the end, you have succeeded. Parenthood is the hardest job...no it is not a job. It is not something that you can walk away from, or choose your hours for. Parenthood is a 24-7 life change. No one can tell you how to parent. No book can tell you how to parent. How you do things will emerge out of your past, your now, your goals and choices. No two parents will do things the same. Don't get me wrong, though, books and others can offer advice and suggestions, but how you take them and use, or don't use them is up to you.
I started out with all these expectations and goals. Then reality set in. What is my goal now? I want a strong, close family unit. Period. I want my children to form a close, lasting attachment to my husband and I. Did I see sending my kids to school getting in the way of this - yup. So, we home school. Do I have babysitters and daycare care for my children - No. We are fortunate enough to have enough family close by to help lend a hand or two when needed. And if I can't find someone to watch, then they go with me or I don't go. Unfortunately not everyone has the luxury of a husband with a good job, or family close by. However, none of the decisions we made have been easy. We have cut back big time in order to make our all this happen.
Last year I hit a bit of a low after I became pregnant with my fourth. I had felt we were in a bit of a groove. I was getting out and experiencing some 'Me' time - cooking lessons. Ha. Let me tell you, the search for the elusive 'me' time is ridiculous. I have found the search for time to myself results in negative feelings about my children. Not good. Where is 'my' time? Well, I was trying to figure out how I was ever going to get some when I realized that, like my initial family goals, my idea of 'me' time needed some reevaluating. 'Me' time is time spent with my kids. I only have a short time with them and then I will have so much 'me' time I'll be trying to get back into my children's lives. And if I have managed to achieve my goal of a strong family, my kids will want me to be apart of their lives. Do I need a break sometimes? You bet. Does it need to be an entire day, a weekend? Nope and in fact any day, or weekend I have spent away from my kids, I spend the entire time thinking about them, talking about them, or running errands for them. I have found that an 1 1/2 hours a week to do something of my choosing is all I need. Usually I end up preparing dinner in a stress free environment with not a stitch of noise going on around me, other times I get out and run errands, or I push it all aside and sit and read.
So, what about 'us' time? Same thing goes here. The search for 'us' time is ridiculous. 'Us' time has been transformed. Did you fall in love with going out to fancy dinners, to weekend shopping spree's, to wine tours? Yes, these things were wonderful experiences and I had a great time experiencing them with my amazing husband. But, these are just experiences spent with the man I love. 'Us' time is about communication. Not shopping, but being strapped into a seat beside my husband where we can talk and enjoy each others company. Are the kids still with us? Yup. My husband and I have found that when an evening out to dinner comes around that we spend the entire time talking about kids. In fact, our best chance for 'us' time tends to be in the evening with all media turned off, sitting on the couch, looking at each other and talking. True 'us' time . Are the kids around? Yup. Usually asleep, but still with us.
Parenthood. What a major adjustment and it continues to change. But it is a joy I would never give up.
9/7/11
Home
We are home from our wonderful Hawaiian vacation. We had an absolute blast and so did the kids. They loved having so many adults around to give them attention, resulting in some R&R for hubby and I. It took me a bit to wind down - about 5 days. After that any meal I had to cook for the family was some 'healthy' hot dogs - I am not sure hot dogs can ever be referred to as healthy, but at least these ones were gluten free, antibiotic free, nitrite free... I think we do need a little hot dog cleanse around here, though.
The twins had a great time. They swam in the ocean and in the pool. They even learned to swim without swimmies. Wahoo. They get tired quickly, but can cross a pool length-ways on their own. We ID'd birds. Checked out sea turtles. And even surfed - yup, real tandem surfing, in real waves. And surfed in the pool. Very cool. Mostly we did a lot of relaxing. I repeat. We had a wonderful time.
The toddler busied himself in the pool most days. Oh, and chasing his brothers around and screaming at the top of his lungs. Ug.
The baby did not start walking like I thought she would. But she is really close. She is recovering from some sleep deprivation I think. She slept 14 hours last night and is finishing up a 31/2 hour nap. She may need a bit of a cleanse too - from sand, though.
Baby's up. We are off to the library. More later.
The twins had a great time. They swam in the ocean and in the pool. They even learned to swim without swimmies. Wahoo. They get tired quickly, but can cross a pool length-ways on their own. We ID'd birds. Checked out sea turtles. And even surfed - yup, real tandem surfing, in real waves. And surfed in the pool. Very cool. Mostly we did a lot of relaxing. I repeat. We had a wonderful time.
The toddler busied himself in the pool most days. Oh, and chasing his brothers around and screaming at the top of his lungs. Ug.
The baby did not start walking like I thought she would. But she is really close. She is recovering from some sleep deprivation I think. She slept 14 hours last night and is finishing up a 31/2 hour nap. She may need a bit of a cleanse too - from sand, though.
Baby's up. We are off to the library. More later.
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