Five month olds, part IV

Rose: 14.25 lbs, 25.25"

Sam: 18.5 lbs, 27.25"

Amelia: 15 lbs, 26"

Marley: 13 lbs, 24.5"

Ages and Stages

I always mean to post an update about each kid on his or her birthday. Then, when that doesn't happen, I think okay, I'll just post whenever. But then that doesn't happen either. I'm pretty sure I'm way overthinking it. In fact, right now I have a half written post about Marley that I really need to finish. There's just so much that I want to say about each of them. Once I get writing, I have a hard time stopping because I don't want to leave anything out. It's like displaying a half finished painting. But, then again, sometimes it's okay to just drop some stats*.

Rose:
         Age: 4.5 months
         Weight: 14 lbs
         Height: 25"
         Working on: rolling and grabbing

Samuel:
         Age: 2 and 2/3 years
         Weight: 35 lbs
         Height: 37.5"
         Working on: naming colors and counting

Amelia:
            Age: 5 and 1/6 years
            Weight: 40 lbs
            Height: 44"
            Working on: early reading and riding a bike

Marley:
         Age: 7.5 years
         Weight: 60 lbs
         Height: 51"
         Working on: whistling and finding ways to make money

*Thanks for the reminder, Kristina;)

Four Month Olds, Part IV

Rose: 13.5 lbs, 24.75 in

Samuel: 17 lbs, 26.5 in

Marley: 12 lbs, 24.25 in

Amelia: 14.5 lbs, 25.5 in

3 months, part IV

I'm a little late in posting this, and sorry for the poor quality pictures and weird formatting.  I'm trying to get more blogging done from my phone. Rose turned three months back on May 28th. Not that I'm biased or anything, but she's just about the cutest thing ever right now.  She weighs 12 lbs 4 oz and wears 6 month size clothes. She's rolling both ways, cooing, giggling, and reaching for toys. I don't even want to mention how she's sleeping, so as not to jinx it. Let's just say 'very well.'  In fact, better than some of the older kids (I'm looking at you, Sam). Now, I need to go knock on wood, throw salt over my shoulder, and reassemble a broken mirror.

Check out my other 3 month olds!

Car Pool

I absolutely LOVE our carpool arrangement this year!  Except, of course, when it's my turn to drive.  In the afternoon, I usually walk to pick Marley up from school.  The school is only 3/4 mile away, and we're not in as big of a rush.  I actually enjoy afternoon pick up. But, in the morning, pulling through the drop off line and letting the boys hop out is the easiest option.  And by "easy" I mean "not at all easy."

Take this day, for example. Here we are, all in the car. Hooray! And we're even going to be on time. As you can see only the two boys going to school are dressed.  And I can only take credit for one of them.  Though I would like to acknowledge Miles' mom for getting him ready and out the door on time - she has twin three year olds!

What you can't see is what it took to get to this point. First, there's getting Marley ready: feeding him breakfast, getting him dressed, teeth brushed, lunch made, backpack packed. I will say that he's gotten a lot better at doing most of it himself. Thankfully! Alas, Marley is not the only child with needs. Rose and Sam are also awake. They want to be fed and diapers changed. This makes the whole thing extra challenging. 

Finally, it's time to go! After buckling Rose, and then buckling Sam, I head back inside to scoop a sleeping Amelia up out of bed. She is not ready to get up. She is NOT happy about being dragged out of bed.

Then Marley remembers that he wants to bring his very delicate Lego Bionicle along for the 4 minute ride to show Miles. He's coming BACK inside to get it as I'm coming out with Amelia. And now Sam wants a toy, too. 

Eventually, we all make it into the car, but Marley can't buckle because he has to hold his toy.  There are several minutes of one handed struggling before he's buckled and ready to go. But, Amelia's still not buckled. She's just sitting there, refusing to get buckled unless she has a blanket*. I toss her a blanket and ever-so-slowly, she finishes buckling. 

By this time, I'm red-faced and sweating. We drive around the corner to Miles' house. Now he has to check out the toy before getting buckled. 

But, we're in! We're all in the car! Once I hear that magical final click I speed off (at 20 mph - it's a school zone) to the drop off line. There's one final moment of stress where I idle in the parking lot, sliding door ajar, and the boys just sit there, NOT unbuckling or hopping out. When they finally begin making their way, Marley will suddenly realize that he needs to hug and kiss all his siblings goodbye. 

Luckily, everyone else's kids are getting out of their cars just as slowly, so no one ever has to honk at us. At long last, I peel away (at 5 mph - it's a school parking lot) and head home to make myself a cup of coffee. And enjoy it like this. 

*That's a really nice way of saying that she had a massive tantrum about it.

Samuel Says

Samuel is so funny right now. I wish I were doing a better job writing down all the hilarious things he says, but he has us in stitches all the time. 

Part of it is the adorable way he mixes up his words and sounds.

Hospital = Pasta bowl
Torpedo = portedo
R2D2 = RT do T
Bowser = Fowser,
Pancake = panpake
Breakfast = breksist
Quesadilla = case of dee-uh

I heard him singing the alphabet the other day and he said, "A, B, C, D, E, F, G, how I wonder what you are."

He also gets confused about things we say sometimes. One day when I told the kids we had to stop by Marley's school office, Sam started to cry, saying he didn't want to go. When I asked him why he said that he didn't want to go to the doctor's office because he didn't want them to give him a shot.

Sometimes he'll be crying because he got hurt or had an argument with one of his siblings. Suddenly, with tears still streaming down his face, he'll declare, "I'm happy!" And that will be that.

Then, there are all the things he says to actually try and be funny. This conversation happened the other day.

Marley: If we call Rose: Rosey Posey Lemon Bosey*, can I be Marley Warley Chocolate Charlie?

Amelia: And I'll be Amelia Delia Strawberry Stealia!

Sam: And I'll be Sammy Whammy Hamburger Darkness.

And here's a Sammy original joke:

Why did the hot dog jump into the hot pan? Because he was Captain America.

Finally, here's an unedited story he dictated to me the other day:

Once there was a robot, and once he turned on the TV. And he watched and watched until Rose saw him and he was gone.  And then he was walking and walking and walking.  Then, he was sitting on a chair and there was a chair walking past.  The end.

*Yes, we do, in fact, call her Rosey Posey Lemon Bosey.
*Sam gave up the binky for good quite suddenly on June 17th.

Doing Nothing

Back before I had kids, I did everything that I wanted.  Okay, so there were some places I wanted to travel to that I never did, and maybe some big projects that I couldn't find time for, but pretty much, I did everything.  I slept as much as I needed to.  I stayed at work as late as I wanted.  I went to the gym whenever I wanted to, and stayed there as long as I felt like.  I made dinner whenever I got to it (or not), and sat enjoying my meal for as long as I cared to.  My house was SO clean!  I showered daily, washing my hair AND shaving each time.  I stayed up late drinking, talking and playing games with friends.  I talked to my husband as much as I wanted, without interruption.  I had hobbies!  I watched television!  I went shopping!  Okay, so maybe life wasn't quite as perfect and carefree as I'm remembering it, but it was pretty darn close.

Of course I knew that once I had children I'd have to make some sacrifices.  Duh.  I knew I wouldn't get to do everything I wanted all the time.  And I was okay with that.  I was prepared to make some sacrifices.  After we had kids, I pushed aside my scrapbooking materials.  I drank extra coffee to make up for the lack of sleep.  I went to the gym less frequently.  Sacrifices.  I got it.  I was totally cool with that.

Then, I had four kids.  Not only can I no longer do everything, but now I don't have time to do anything.  At all.   I'm not kidding.  The entirety of my day is spent meeting the needs of others. Brushing teeth, feeding, wiping, changing, dressing, shuttling, reading, playing, more feeding, more wiping, and on and on and on.  And some days, I'm barely able to do those things.

There is simply no time for even the basics, let alone anything remotely luxurious.  Jeff and I have gone on exactly one date since Rose was born.  And she came with us! Our house is actually frightening in its untidiness.  I get queasy at the thought of even entering certain rooms.  Every day I have to make choices that no one should be forced to make.  Eat or shower?  Get dressed or brush my teeth? Do laundry or dishes? Pick up toys in this room or toys in that room?  Sleep or have an uninterrupted conversation with my husband?

In fact, I do not have time to write this blog post right now.  Sam and Amelia are upstairs playing - hair and teeth unbrushed, jammies still on.  Amelia has to be at school in half an hour and they haven't eaten lunch yet.  Sam's not wearing a diaper.  He's probably pooping on the floor.  But I digress...

What I mean to say, is that even the smallest tasks are just SO HARD.  First, there's the things we have to do to the kids.  I'm talking about things like dressing, bathing, putting on footwear, applying sunscreen, and the most hated of all - brushing teeth.  They like to keep us on our toes by putting up varying levels of resistance from day to day.  We never know who is going to be the cooperative one at any given moment.  It's usually Rose, though, since she can't run away yet.  They even like to put up a fight about things involving their basic needs, like sleeping, eating, and using the bathroom. Seriously?!? Stop dancing and just pee already!

Sometimes I just think to myself, "Fine! Go off and play in your underwear with your messy face and your tangly hair.  I'm going to do something that doesn't involve the care of children.  I'm going to accomplish something!"  This morning, for example, I was determined to tighten Sam's door knob that had been loose for weeks.  I went to the garage and came back with a screw driver.  After exactly one twist Sam was by my side wanting to "help." Then Amelia wanted a turn.  Because I'm a sucker for "helpers," plus I know one day I'll actually want their help, I let them.   Then, they wanted to use the screw driver to "fix" other things around the house. Then, Rose woke up and wanted to be changed and fed.  And now I'm not really sure where the screw driver is.  And the doorknob is still loose.