Saturday, January 28, 2012

Jack

Kessiah got a new guinea pig today.  His name is Jack.  He is an Abyssinian male about 3 months old.  He is really cute (although if you ask me the coloring on his face makes him look scruffy...but cute!)

Friday, January 27, 2012

Nine Months Old!


Nine months is always interesting to me...it marks the point when they have out of me as long as they were inside.

Corbin is enjoying his new found freedom with crawling.  He is starting to cause trouble with his mobility!  The kids were playing a game in the front room this week...he was in the family room.  He heard them and decided to go see what was going on...only they weren't too happy about that so Jenessa took him back to the family room.  Well, in no time at all he was back with the other kids!  He can go anywhere that interests him.

His favorite thing to say is ma-ma-ma-ma-ma.  I'll just say that is first word is ma-ma!

It is heavenly to have him sleeping through the night.  Although he is still in our closet because he is not really sleeping all night long.  He often wakes up..but now he will go back to sleep instead of making me get up and feed him.  So he is not quite ready to be near all the other kiddos!

He loves his graham crackers...and I love him loving his graham crackers!  It is so nice to be able to put him in his high chair and give him a cracker while I fix dinner or wash the dishes or something else!

He is a happy and adorable baby.


Five for Friday

1.  "Mommy Time" did not happen this week.  On Tuesday I had a dentist appointment and on Thursday the stake music coordinator came to meet with me about my new calling (I'm now the ward music coordinator).  But the "Mommy Time" concept is working really well with the girls.

2.  I should buy stock in a graham cracker company!  Now that Corbin is eating them...so is everyone else!  Every time I go to get one for Corbin, I have to open a new one because they have been eaten!

3.  This is Jenessa's last week with her current piano books...she gets to move up next week!  Pretty exciting.  I had to order her a new theory book since Kessiah had written in the one that we had...since I was ordering from Amazon I got a couple of other books for Sienna next year (I'm not going to do K12 with her yet) in order to get free shipping.

4.  Mason has an assessment coming up at the end of February to see if he qualifies for the early childhood intervention preschool.  This week his therapist made a comment that she didn't think he would qualify...that surprised me...but it would make my day to day schedule a little easier if I didn't have to take him to preschool and go pick him up.  We'll see what happens!

5.  Another week of physical therapy.  I have 2 more weeks scheduled...but I will be only going twice a week instead of three times....it worked that way due to scheduling problems....but it makes me happy!

Thursday, January 26, 2012

In the Trenches

Sometimes it's hard to be a stay-at-home mom of 6 kids who also homeschools!  (Did I say sometimes?)  Yes, it is.  I feel the weight of my job on my shoulders.

I know that I have the most important job in the world...raising these children who will grow up to have families of their own.  It's hard!  I try to let my kids know...especially my girls...that I love my job.  But sometimes I'm tired and I get cranky and then Jenessa asks me "Do you really love your job?"  That makes me feel bad that I'm not setting the right example.

I met with someone today who had 9 kids (she came to talk to me about my new church calling)...it was interesting to talk with her.  It was like a vision of my future...someone who had been there and done that and survived!  Someone who was active and vibrant and energetic and a grandmother of 42! 

It gave me hope and energy and confidence.  I can do this!  I can do it well!  My word for the year is SIMPLIFY.  I think when I feel the most overwhelmed is when I'm trying to do too many things that aren't really important or necessary.  It's hard in this world we live in to not get distracted by too many unimportant things.  I want to remember to live now and be present for my kids...not put other distractions ahead of giving my attention to them.


Sunday, January 22, 2012

What is it about 4-year old boys?

Logan sees something that can be destroyed/ripped/cut etc.  and he just can't help himself!  It makes me crazy!

And then he tells me a bajillion times a day how much he loves me!


Monday afternoon...
Just a follow-up and to prove my point.  Among other things this morning I found Logan trying to break one of my CD-ROMs!  And then while we were at gymnastics this morning waiting for the girls to finish their class he went up to another mom and said "I have the most beautifulest mom in the room!"

Friday, January 20, 2012

Five for Friday

1.  Wednesday was a rough day around here.  On Tuesday evening after the kids had gone to bed I discovered that Rascal, one of Kessiah's guinea pigs, had died.  So on Wednesday morning there were a lot of tears.  Kessiah decided she just couldn't do piano lessons...so we all just went to the library together.  While Ryan was home for lunch we had a burial in our backyard.  He will be missed...but Kessiah is hoping to get another one to keep Milky Way company!

2.  Corbin has got this crawling thing down!  He is good enough that he is exploring quite a bit and starting to get into trouble.

3.   I've probably been a little slow with introducing new foods to Corbin...but this week we tried graham crackers and he loves them!

4.   Thursday was such a nice day.  We had no place to go (it is wonderful to have one day a week like that).  The girls played together for a good part of the afternoon after they had finished their school work.  It just felt relaxing!  I guess it was to help me get rested up for Friday and Saturday (busy busy days!!!)

5.  Another week of physical therapy done!  My range of motion is doing much better except when I try to put my arm behind my back...that one still hurts quite a bit.




Friday, January 13, 2012

Five for Friday

1.  Another week of physical therapy for my shoulder.  I can tell that my range of motion is improving, but I still have a fair amount of pain!

2.  There were a couple of changes to our routine this week...I believe that they will be good changes!  Mason's speech therapist  is now coming on Wednesday morning before we go to the library/piano lessons.  I really liked this because now it is on a day when we are going out anyway instead of falling on Tuesday or Thursday...the mornings we don't go anywhere....it just felt like we were able to stay focused better on Thursday without the interruption of the speech therapist!

3.  The other change we made was with "Mommy Time."  The girls have pleaded with me for some one-on-one time with them.  Let's face it...it's hard to carve that time out of our routine!  So, I'm giving up my quiet time after lunch on Tuesdays and Thursdays to have the girls rotate time with me.  I spent time with Kessiah on Tuesday and Jenessa on Thursday.  For now, I'm just going to concentrate on the girls since the boys are napping during that time.

4.  I'm so grateful that Kessiah and Jenessa have their basketball practices on the same night.  Although it's a bit tricky since I have to leave Jenessa at her practice...take Kessiah to her practice...go back and get Jenessa.  It is so much better than them having practices on different nights!  And the fact that Sienna has her practice on Friday...so Ryan can take her is wonderful!!  Tender Mercies from the Lord!

5.  Corbin has had a cold this week...which made me break out the humidifier for him.  In the process I found out that one of our humidifiers is broken...I'm glad I had a spare!  Now, I need to get another one...yes, with six kids having 2 humidifiers is a good thing!  Corbin's cold made his sleeping through the night a little tougher.  One night I did get up and feed him because I could tell he had worked himself up so much that he wasn't going back to sleep.  After I fed him, I got into the shower with him (turned the water toward the wall of course) to see if the steam would help him feel better.  By that time he was awake and wasn't going to sleep...so we were up for another hour in the middle of the night until he decided he was tired again!

Saturday, January 7, 2012

Overwhelmed

Sometimes (often) I am overwhelmed at all that I need to do (should do...feel like I should do...want to do).  I want a clean house...but let's face it the odds are against me!   6 vs. 1 plus I homeschool....so I don't get several hours during the day where I don't have little people making messes or the time to clean them up! 

It can be frustrating never being able to finish what I'm doing before someone else is having a catastrophe that needs my attention.

I have been near tears all day long (doesn't help that it's my birthday...so I expect my children to be nice to me! and I'm disappointed when they are not!)

I am truly grateful for my many blessing, I recognize that I have been incredibly blessed in so many ways...I just need to buck up and remember that I'm imperfect and I'm raising 6 incredibly beautiful and spirited children (who are also imperfect)



 
"What can . . . young mother[s] [do] . . . to reduce the pressure [of raising young children] and enjoy [their families] more? . . .

"Recognize that the joy of motherhood comes in moments. There will be hard times and frustrating times. But amid the challenges, there are shining moments of joy and satisfaction.

"Author Anna Quindlen reminds us not to rush past the fleeting moments. She said: 'The biggest mistake I made [as a parent] is the one that most of us make. . . . I did not live in the moment enough. This is particularly clear now that the moment is gone, captured only in photographs. There is one picture of [my three children] sitting in the grass on a quilt in the shadow of the swing set on a summer day, ages six, four, and one. And I wish I could remember what we ate, and what we talked about, and how they sounded, and how they looked when they slept that night. I wish I had not been in such a hurry to get on to the next thing: dinner, bath, book, bed. I wish I had treasured the doing a little more and the getting it done a little less' (Loud and Clear [1004], 10-11)."


2012 Goals

I need someplace to record my goals, I need a better form of accountability, I need to be able to make my goals in January and still remember what they are at the end of the year!  I actually like when my birthday falls...after the hustle and commotion of the new year...then I have a week to think about what I want to do in the coming year.

So, here I go...I'm going to record my goals and every month I'm going to review them and see how I'm doing!

Physical:  I need to be a healthier weight...let's face it, I've had a few babies in the past several years and I never quite lose all the weight after each one before I get pregnant with the next.
1.  Exercise - 30 minutes 4 days a week
2.  Drink more water - 6 cups a day
3.  Eat less junk
4.  Plan meals

Spiritual
1.  Read the Book of Mormon and Luke - read at least 6 times a week in the morning
2.  Create a scripture journal
3.  Memorize the Living Christ for Easter
4.  Memorize Proclamation to the World for the Family for Christmas

Preparedness
1.  Complete Food Storage Meal Plans (breakfast, lunch and dinner)...print recipes and put in folder
2.  Complete at least 4 items each month from newsletter from Prepared NOT Scared
3.  Get rid of all children's clothing that will not be used anymore

Family/Parenting
1.  Talk to girls at night
2.  One-on-one time with girls
3.  After dinner jobs-make a habit
4.  Ready Eyres book...5 Spiritual Solutions for Everyday Parenting Challenges




Friday, January 6, 2012

Five for Friday

1.  On Monday, we enjoyed our last day of Christmas Break...technically we should have started school but Ryan had the day off so I just had Kessiah and Jenessa do spelling and math and we called it good.  Ryan took the girls ice skating and they brought home dinner.  It has been so nice to have Ryan home for the past 1 1/2 weeks...it was a little hard to go back to reality and get back in the routine...the break was wonderful!

2.  I started physical therapy for my shoulder on Monday.  I was also there on Wednesday and Friday.  I go early in the morning (6:45) in order to make it work...It has made me go to bed a little earlier this week as well! 

3.  We started basketball practices this week.  Kessiah and Jenessa have practices on Tuesday...which is a little tricky since they are at different locations, but it's nice to have them on the same evening.  Sienna practices on Friday and she is on the same team as one of her friends which will be fun for her.

4.  Mason got a new speech therapist this week (he only had the last one for about 3 weeks)...I think the new schedule will work out well for us.  We only can have them keep coming to our house until he is 3 and then he will be able to go the a preschool if he qualifies for it.  We'll see what happens in the next 6 months.  He does say several words,  I hope he starts talking more soon...we experience severe frustration on a daily basis because of his difficulty in communicating.

5.  Corbin has been sleeping through the night this week!  Hallelujah!!!! He has woke up a couple of nights but falls back asleep within a few minutes...it has been glorious!  He didn't sleep through the night during the entire month of December!