End of July Happenings

Hudson is 8 weeks and mighty strong (see picture). All of my kiddos have really liked tummy time. He has become a relatively easy baby. At first I wasn't so sure... He is a great nighttime sleeper and has been a happy baby this week with very little fuss and lots of smiles. I heard a first laugh this morning. He is also making some very sweet sounds.

The girls have been reading lots this summer and earned a dinner at Sizzler. We went this past week while Josh hung out with a friend. So...here goes another one of my stories....I thought it would be great to get out of the house before bed. How hard could it be to take them all to dinner by myself? Right? I have taken them to stores, library, etc...(more stories, but nonetheless....) So we get through dinner and Hudson is still sleeping-awesome!! It took us awhile to get to dessert because Madeline likes raw meat and her steak was well done so we had to wait about 30 minutes for a second steak. We managed a first bathroom trip-- car seat, diaper bag and 3 kids. (so for those of you saying big deal, I was raised an only child with very old and proper parents). It was time for the ice cream bar, so again, car seat, diaper bag, 3 kids to the ice cream line. We weren't alone--everyone else had the same idea. I wasn't going to come back either--the girls were ready for dessert. With one mighty hand I assisted the girls in using the soft serve machine and adding toppings. We were getting ready to go back to the table and I noticed Noella was curled up in a ball on the dirty floor. I asked her to get up and she said her tummy hurt and she didn't want her ice cream and M&M's. Well, I KNEW NG was not kidding because she always wants her candy. She rarely has a stomach ache either. So I saw a major icky coming on!! By this time Hudson was awake, but we did make it to the bathroom in time. Madeline with ice cream in her happy hands, me with an awake baby and his diaper bag. Luckily Noella felt better after our trip. She did want to take her ice cream home and I could not say no to my sick child, so I got a to go box and took her melted ice cream home with us. That is not quite the end.....We took the melted ice cream home and I got talked into stopping at the store for band aids. We were out of band aids and we had planned to get them on the way home so we made one more stop before ending our evening.

Also this week, we had a visit from Josh's oldest brother Jim and his girlfriend Sarah. The girls had fun at Nonny and Papa's house singing their VBS songs for everyone. They also got to have a fire which is their favorite thing to do. Josh played his guitar and the girls sang some of their favorite worship songs.

Eight months. It has taken me 8 months to change my blog background. I sooo don't want to admit to this because it certainly makes me question my intelligence. I don't know anyone else who has had this much trouble. I was REALLY tired of looking at that pink winter themed background, but just couldn't make it GO AWAY!!! Today I vowed that I would spend my quiet time removing it--no matter what. So, soon Hudson will wake up and the girls will want to play with their tired frazzled mom and I will have done 1 thing--not the dishes, laundry, shower, pick-up, NAP, etc, that I had planned for. (and certainly not the vacuuming because I have 2 more days till my postpartum apptmt) . I am sure that maybe one person will see that I have changed to hues of green. So I wanted to write down a hodge podge of my life this past month...

1. First and most important, I want to praise GOD for the 5 weeks I have had without depression or anxiety. Yes, I have been a little moody, but in such a better place than I had been after my 2 other deliveries.

Now onto the transitional woes and other adventures....

2. Madeline brought home a cold from VBS. I think she was sick when Noella was born too...We have all gotten it and so we have had to cancel many social activities. She has had 2 separate instances of pink eye and we are on our third prescription. Fortunately she is feeling well and the ickies have not kept her down. Today Hudson woke-up with congestion. I pray it will pass quickly without any further sickness.

3. The girls attended 2 VBS weeks and had a blast at both. It was a nice little break for mom too!

4. Josh has been learning to play worship songs on the guitar and gets better each day.

5. Going out and about with 3 children (although we have done little of this!!!) has been quite challenging! In the last 2 days, Madeline has gotten her hand caught in both the window and the door. Yesterday, all 3 of them were crying at the same time. So much fun.

When I actually step back and think about it, I know that I need to treasure these days, I must get perspective to do this though. I received a forwarded email (which I do not always read) that talked about inconveniences that turn out to be blessings. I need to remember this email each day--hard when with each new thought, I seem to loose what I was thinking of prior:(

6. Today Noella was thinking of a name for her unicorn and said, "How about Horny?" I said, "No, honey I don't think that is quite right, let's think of another name." (She has named her Uni Rose Horns Sparkles)

7. Free lunches at the park have been wonderful!! It is so nice to have a break from meal preparations!!