I'm a bad blogger

Things are just a whirlwind these days with trying to referree all the fights between the kids and keeping our house somewhat clean! I love having them at home with me, but I must say I can't wait until they are in school and I can have some time to actually clean things all the way...rather then getting so many things half done! But I'm sure once that day comes I'll miss having them here with me all day.

Our family update...Melanie starts preschool in a few weeks! I can't believe how fast she is growing up! Brandon and Brooklyn have birthdays at the end of September and will be three and one year old! Brandon is starting to use the big boy potty...although I think it will be a looooong process. Brian is working in San clemente and things are slowing down with his hours. It has been nice having him home more and sunday we even made it to Disneyland for a family day. It's been a fun summer in the sun. We spent lots of time at the pool, the beach, the lake and Nona's spa! I'll try to keep up with this more :o)

random pics

My kiddos have a new cousin! Welcome Baby Joshua :o)

Some Easter pics

I haven't updated this in FOREVER!! But here are some pics from Easter! I wish I got a picture of all three kids dressed nice and smiling...but I'm sure that will be rare until they're older :o)

Jesus Take the Wheel

I just LOVE this song. The first time I heard it I was just at a breaking point and it seems to be on the radio at just the right time for me these days. It totally reminds me that I just can't be a mom without His help...why do I even try? I'm so thankful for His reminders to come back to Him for help. I definitely need to be spending more time with God so I can function as a parent!!

Jesus Take The Wheel by Carrie Underwood
She was driving last Friday on her way to CincinnatiOn a snow white Christmas EveGoing home to see her Mama and her Daddy with the baby in the backseatFifty miles to go and she was running low on faith and gasolineIt would been a long hard yearShe had a lot on her mind and she didn't pay attentionShe was going way to fastBefore she knew it she was spinning on a thin black sheet of glassShe saw both their lives flash before her eyesShe didn't even have time to cryShe was sooo scaredShe threw her hands up in the air

Jesus take the wheelTake it from my handsCause I can't do this all on my ownI'm letting goSo give me one more chanceTo save me from this road I'm onJesus take the wheel

It was still getting colder when she made it to the shoulderAnd the car came to a stopShe cried when she saw that baby in the backseat sleeping like a rockAnd for the first time in a long timeShe bowed her head to prayShe said I'm sorry for the wayI've been living my lifeI know I've got to changeSo from now on tonight

Jesus take the wheelTake it from my handsCause I can't do this all my ownI'm letting goSo give me one more chanceTo save me from this road I'm onOh, Jesus take the wheelOh, I'm letting goSo give me one more chanceSave me from this road I'm onFrom this road I'm onJesus take the wheelOh, take it, take it from meOh, why, oh

Just complaining

I should warn you (because I know that there are actually some people who read this) this next entry is purely complaining!

I like to think of myself as an organized tidy person! I think just the fact that I can get three children and myself ready for the day in the same amount of time it takes my husband to get ready is quite an accomplishment. But lately I feel like such a failure when it comes to keeping a clean house. I feel pretty proud just when I get all the laundry washed and dishes done daily. But my husband drops little comments here and there about how dusty things are, dirty bathroom floor, etc. He jokes around, but I know that he seriously feels like I should be able to get these things done! I know he works hard long hours, but I wish he could spend a week in my shoes with three young kids. I wonder if he would be a bit more appreciative of the little things that are getting done and less critical about what is not. I feel like he thinks I'm a slacker or something. But at the end of the day I'm exhausted so I must have done something right?? I guess I could clean more when the kids are in bed, but after my shower I just want to crawl into bed.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, "In my next life I'm coming back as the Dad!"

Our little Mickey Mouse

Months and months ago we saw a little black mouse run out from behind our couch. We tried and tried to find him and catch him, but never did see him again. We set out traps at night for about a week all over the place and never caught him. We even used peanut butter because we heard that they like it and the strong smell attracts the mouse to the trap. Well months went by and again I saw our little mouse friend poking his head out from under the dishwasher. I felt like he was actually looking at me and teasing me. He was so darn cute that we borrowed a live trap from the inlaws so that we wouldn't have to kill the little guy. Plus we could leave the live trap out because it wasn't a hazard for the kiddos. Well once again months and months have passed and still no mouse in the trap and no mouse sightings...UNTIL today! This little guy must be so smart to stay out of the traps. I don't know where he is living because I haven't found any mouse droppings. Brian wanted me to stand by the entertainment system because he was behind there. When he ran out and ran right past me, Brian got mad that I didn't "block him with my foot or step on him." HELLO, it's the teeniest little mouse, I don't think I could match his lightning fast speed and agility *LOL* So I'm just at a loss of how to get rid of this darn mouse without calling in a professional. I hate coming downstairs in the middle of the night and wondering if my mouse friend is going to run right out in front of my feet. I'm sure he has plenty to munch on since our floor seems to accumulate crumbs so much. But I keep a tidy house and feel like this mouse is a black mark on my housecleaning abilities! OK...did I really just type out that much about a mouse. I'm almost feeling a bond with the little guy at this point.

Winding down...

Relaxing...can you ever do this once you give birth to a child?? I feel like by the time I get the last child off to sleep I'm pooped. So tonight I decided that I couldn't waste this precious time just going to sleep. I feel like the only time I have to myself is right now. My husband seems to think that I should wake up before the kids so that I can start the day out with some time to myself...but when I'm up multiple times in the middle of the night and all the kids seem to be up before 7am...I just don't think that I could do it.

So I decided that each night this is going to be my time to wind down. It's usually time when I can hang out with my hubby, but he goes to bed so darn early and I'm tired of laying in bed awake. A big huge BUT...

How do you relax and wind down when you're at home. I came downstairs to find 3 out of 5 loads of laundry that have yet to be folded, toys scattered about the family room and dinner dishes in the sink. I can't relax knowing that all of those chores hang over my head and yet I don't have the energy to do them all right now.

I have a ton of stuff that I would love to do. But it seems that my list of things I enjoy and want to do gets longer as my list of endless house duties and child care get done. So I guess I will just write down what I would like to be doing and then go clean up the house *LOL*

1. Stamp ;o)
2. Read (a magazine, my friend's blogs, one of my parenting books...anything that's not a list of things to do or a grocery list)
3. Paint my toe nails
4. Sit down and watch anything other then a kids show on TV

Blog crazy

No blogs forever and then three in one day :o) Can you tell I'm avoiding housework...and I uploaded pics to the computer *LOL* No matter how much I watch them sleep, it brings me so much peace when I look back and see them out in their carseats.

Kendra Street

I don't know why, but I thought this was pretty cool ;o) When we went to visit Daddy at work the other day, his job was off of this street! The kids had a great time playing in the dirt and watching Daddy move dirt with the loader. Brooklyn just snoozed in the car next to me!

Will I ever blog again

Everyday I think of a ton of stuff I want to blog about and then I never seem to get the time to actually get on the computer for more then 2 minutes at a time. But with one napping I can get on and actually update this a bit.

Brooklyn is just growing like a weed! I can't believe that she's 4 months old already. It's bittersweet because I know it's our last baby so each new phase is a bit sad too. She's rolling all over the place, smiling and babbling at anyone who will look at her. Right now she's sitting next to me on her playmat just squealing...I LOVE IT!

I just registered Melanie to start preschool in the fall and I can't believe that she's already old enough to start school. She's such a little girl now, it just amazes me how much she picks up on and learns each day.

Brandon is talking more and more each day. He seems to come up with 2-3 new words each day. I think he's known them all along and is just telling them to us slowly :o) My favorite is when he comes up to me and asks for "jewsh". Pretty soon I think he'll be talking as much as Melanie.

That's a small update...more to come!

Ducks

We were out walking around yesterday and saw three ducks, two males and a female. It seemed so odd because we live in a townhouse complex with no lakes or ponds. We watched them waddle around for a bit and saw a couple people feeding them bread too. Then one of my neighbors (who has been here over 15 years) said that these same ducks come back every year and live at the pool for the winter. I'm actually going to take the kids out again today just to find them and maybe feed them ourselves. Funny the things that excite you when you have kiddos :o)

Mondays

My least favorite day of the week. I woke up knowing I had a TON of work to do around the house. I have about 5-6 loads of laundry that seemed to accumulate over the weekend. My floors are really needing some attention which means I need to sweep, mop and vacuum like a mad woman. All of this wouldn't be so bad, but I have to try to squeeze it all in between refereeing wrestling and boxing matches between Melanie and Brandon. It's about 9:30am and Melanie has already been in time-out twice for hitting Brandon...ARG! But atleast I've sorted and started the laundry and Brooklyn is down for her morning nap. I think that when she wakes up we'll walk over to blockbuster to return some videos and stop for some much needed caffeine at Starbucks on the way home :o)

Slings

After way too much fighting one night I decided that I was going to get the kids their own slings. The last two nights in a row they've both wanted to carry their stuffed animals around in the sling I have for Brooklyn. It's so cute...until they start wrestling and fighting over it. So I started looking around for doll slings. Some were so cute, but they were $20 and that was too much since I was going to buy two. Plus some of the fabric choices were'nt that cute on the cheapy ones. So I decided to try and make one. We went to the fabric store and got flame material for Brando and pink fuzzy flannel for Melanie. They were both so excited to get home and make them. Of course I couldn't find good rings, but ended up with some silver ones that opened. They worked since dolls don't weigh much. The slings are'nt super fancy, but I like them. It ended up costing $7 each to make them, so I was proud of myself :o) Here's Brandon slingin' Melanie's kitty...no pic of Melanie because she does'nt want to wear hers now...ARG...glad I didn't pay a lot for them.

Random blogging

Well I think the sickies finally left our house...dare I even say that. Brandon had a short bout with the flu while he was still sick with a cold, but it only lasted one night...thank God! Brian has been off work all week since we got some rain, so it's been a nice change around here. We went to Disneyland with his mom and got Melanie a pass since she's 3 now. We weren't planning on renewing our passes, but now I think we will. We have reward dollars on our disney credit card that give us disney bucks, so we use those to get our passes. Otherwise I don't think we would go...it's almost $50 just for one to get in...YIKES! It should be fun going this year though. Brian goes back on monday, so I'm trying to enjoy the weekend and prepare myself. Having three young kiddos is so draining!! We went out to dinner last night and had Brian's parents watch the kids for a few hours. It was a nice break because they fell asleep on the way home and we had a nice evening without fighting, screaming, whining and the usual bedtime responsibilities! We have so many gift cards for restaurants, movies, movie rentals, shopping, etc...so it was nice to actually use one of them.

We don't have any plans this weekend, aside from trying to get to church. I think it's been a month since we last went. It's so hard because Brandon won't stay in children's church and he won't sit still in big church. I feel like it's important for our family to make church a priority weekly as the kids are growing up, but I hate sitting in the nursery with him and now the baby too. I like that Brian can sit in church, but I miss being in there. I'm not really going to a Bible study right now either, so I really feel the need for the fellowship and teaching more so then in the past. Maybe Brian and I will start trading and hopefully Brandon will eventually start enjoying church. Melanie LOVES it so atleast we have one easy child on sunday mornings. WOW I didn't intend on blabbing on and on for so long, I guess I had more to blog about then I thought ;o)