My silly boy

Jonah is our one kid that still wakes up crying a couple of times a week. Usually it's because he can't find something, his blanket or his pillow, or because he slid off of his bed (which is literally 7 inches off of the ground, don't worry!).

Last night, around 1ish (I think, I don't quite remember...), I wake up to Jonah's cries. I stumble out of bed and make my way into his room.

I kneel down to his bed (he sleeps on the bottom bunk) and say, "Jonah, what's wrong?"

And to that he replies," Don't call me "Sir"!"

Trying to hold back my laughter, I say to him, " Okay, Jonah, I won't".

And that was it. That's all he wanted to say!

Then I tuck him back in, and maybe steal a few snuggles and kisses along the way, and he mumbles a few things while drifting off to sleep.

Such a silly little guy :)

Definitely gave me a good laugh!



And please vote for my picture of Jonah! We already made it to the top 50 (and I just received my $50 in the mail today- yahoo!), but vote to keep us in the running for the grand prize!

VOTE HERE

Thank you!

Life these days...

How we are really doing:

We have never been so busy. Jake is working almost non-stop, either at his day job, at the fire department, or on the house.

I am busy with the kids and the house and watching 2 extra kids, 3 days a week.

Things are much better then a year ago. I have worked on myself, as a parent, so much. Working to be more patient. Working to really understand my children and figure out why they do what they do or act the way the do. Working extra hard on how I handle my anger.

I do still need to work on not raising my voice to the kids so much. But it's so hard. They are LOUD. Most of the time I am just trying to get them to hear me!

One thing we, Jake and I, do need to work on more is spending more time with God, reading His word and spending more time in prayer, with each other and on our own.

Sometimes I still feel like I can't quite catch up. With the 3 kids, sometimes I feel like I can't stay on top of things. And because of that, sometimes other things get left out. Trips to the zoo, museums, aquarium, camp, sports. I want to be super organized and ahead of the game, planning all of these awesome day trips, or signing Lily up for camp, or figuring out what sport to get Lily into. Being a mom these days is hard (well, I suppose that it has always been hard!). We are expected to always be ahead, on top, prepared for every possible situation. I feel like I am not there yet. I feel like I am running to try to catch up.

 I did sign Lily up for soccer this fall, which she is super excited about (as am I)! Sometimes I wish we had more money so that I could get the kids involved in whatever interests them. Lily is our little athlete. She is good at everything. I have been trying to figure out what sport would be best to put her in, which one she would enjoy and thrive in the most. I think that gymnastics would be great for her. Too bad it is SO expensive! She has also blossomed into a GREAT swimmer! She is already diving off of the diving board! But she also loves soccer. I guess we will start with soccer this fall and maybe get her into swim lessons this winter?  If anyone wants to know what to get Lily for a birthday or Christmas present, sign her up for a sport, I promise that is what she would love the most!

So, things are going well here, just super busy and trying to catch up to my kids, who are growing oh so fast. I honestly can not keep up!!

Lynch Park

Well, I am blogging again. That means, you guessed it, that Jake is at academy tonight.

Today I finally took the kids over to Lynch Park to explore and get our beach sticker. The kids had a blast and probably could have played there for most of the day, which I was not prepared for. Maybe next time kiddos.

Here are some highlights:



Stationery card

Confetti Party Pink Birthday Invitation

Shutterfly photo cards for Birthdays, graduation, and Mother's Day.

View the entire collection of cards.

Obsessions

I feel like there is always something I am obsessing over.

Whether it's a car seat, or a van, or a house (to name just a few).

It seems that there is always something that I am wanting. And I don't like this. It makes me feel as though I am not grateful. But I am. I am so thankful for all that I have been blessed with. I don't think I want these things because I think they will make me happy. I think I want them because in my mind, I think they will make things easier. They will make life easier.

And you know what, the things that I have obsessed over and actually convinced Jake to go through with purchasing, actually have made my life somewhat easier. I know that life is never going to be easy.  Especially with my three munchkins, who always keep me on my toes. But to me, sometimes it's worth it to invest (as long as we aren't investing too much) in little things that can make our day go a little smoother.

So what are my current obsessions, you ask?

 I would LOVE to have an Ergo. I am thinking of trying to convince Jake to get one of these instead of a new umbrella stroller since ours was recently devoured by mold when our basement flooded. I just think it would be awesome to carry Kate around this, and I think it would be super helpful on the days when I watch other kids, which is 3 days a week, maybe more soon! So, we'll see. Maybe I can find a good deal on one! That was current obsession #1.

Current obsession #2 is this:

I know it is a bit ridiculous of me to want this stroller so much, since I do have a Phil and Ted's. But I really don't like jogging with the Phil and teds. It's a bit shaky and wobbly when I am running, which I don't like.

So, I have had my eye on this sweet stroller for a while. I can't decide if I want the BOB revolution, like the one pictures above, or the BOB sport utility. I think I would be happy with either one. I had the double BOB sport utility a while back and I loved how smooth the ride was. It was an awesome stroller, but I sold it when we were pregnant with Kate since it was the older model and couldn't fit the car seat in it (hence the Phil and Ted's). So, there is obsession #2. If I can find a great deal on one on craigslist, I think I will jump on it. We'll see.



Wordless Wednesday: Dada's shoes

Love this little munchkin :)

My firefighter

Well, Jake starts fire academy tonight. That means that for the next 6 months, he will have academy every Monday, Wednesday and every other Saturday (all day). This is a huge commitment. You aren't supposed to miss a class, or you will probably be kicked out of academy.

I think Jake will do great. Anyone who knows him knows how hard he works. But, he is feeling a little nervous about it. It is going to be physically and emotionally draining, on both of us!

Please pray for Jake as he starts academy and also for his safety as he is already responding to calls at all hours of the day.

Please pray for me also, for extra patience with the kids, now that daddy is going to be gone a lot more and won't be able to help as much.

I am so proud of Jake for all the work he has already put into being a firefighter, something he has wanted to do since before I even met him! He has been so patient, and now that we are finally settled and will be around for a while, he can finally pursue one of his dreams :)

Sorry for the awful picture, it was taken with the ipod.



Time

I can not believe that this little munchkin,

is 20 months old today.

 It feels like just yesterday that we were coming home from the Outer Banks (best. vacation. ever.) as a family of 4, only to find out a few days later that I was already 11 weeks 3 days pregnant and faced a high risk pregnancy (read this post for that story) and many unknowns.

I can't believe that was just over TWO YEARS ago!

So many times I just wish for the days to go by quickly because the kids are driving me nuts, or I will say something like, "I can't wait until (insert kid's name) can do this, or that".

Even though I say those things in the moment, or out of excitement for what the future holds, really I just want time to slow down. I want to enjoy my kids NOW because my time with them goes by way too fast, even though sometimes it seems the opposite. I really love the ages my kids are at right now. I wish I could freeze them. I am excited for them to grow and experience life and for my relationship with them to grow as well, but I am sad they are growing up. I know that I am going to say it over and over as each kids gets older, but it is so true. Kids grow up way too fast :(

Lily and Jonah meeting Kate. I LOVE Lily's face, she was so excited :)

My little 5 pound munchkin, only a few days old!

Beach lovin.

Jake and I have been trying to take the kids swimming and to the beach more this summer. Since Kate  is getting older, it is easier to take them out and have more fun together!

One of our favorite beaches to go to is Singing Beach in Manchester By the Sea. I love living my the ocean :)