Amazing

I am still amazed. My kids constantly amaze me. Take this morning for example, Luke is winy. I check his head for a temperature. I always want to think that my child must be sick if he is misbehaving. Sure enough he felt warm and had a runny nose. So he is a 40 pound 2 year old so I give him a teaspoon of Motrin COLD. As he takes his medicine (all by himself from the little cup -AMAZING!) I check his temp with the ear thermometer (he lets me -AMAZING) Sure enough he has NO temp. Too late... he already swallowed the medicine. About 2 hours pass, Luke has had snack and watched a Blues Clues video for the second or third time while I get some office work done -AMAZING! I notice that the house is quiet, no video, no rustling in the playroom...just quiet-AMAZING. I check the time it's 11:30 am I go upstairs to see what Luke has gotten in to, guessing probably my make-up. Well I find Little Luke curled up in his bed sound asleep, covers on , and house shoes neatly at the bedside. UTTERLY AMAZING! I didn't know Motrin DID THAT!

Mom on Duty 24/7 plus overtime

Fun at Camp
Originally uploaded by nhfamilytimes.

MOM ON DUTY...that is my sign. Glowing 24/7 like a neon diner light on route 66. How come there is not a sign that reads MOM OFF DUTY....? BECAUSE we are NEVER OFF DUTY!!!!It's the hard truth. Even when Dad is home...even when we are at camp and everyone is miles away on the snowmobiles...Moms are still on duty. When our kids are with us we take charge..it's automatic. When are kids are not with us we worry....also automatic. There is no off duty switch. So let me share my weekend being on what I'd call overtime. We all went to camp this weekend. We made the 3 hour trek up north with Britt, Scoot(boyfriend), Will, Luke, Mali, Ben and I all in the same vehicle, packed in so tight it was difficult to make an accurate head count. The snow mobiles in tow we headed up the highway taking in the scenery (mostly brown grass and patches of mud). We got plenty of odd looks...you know.."where are those fools going to snowmobile?" or "It's a long way to Alaska, and your going in the wrong direction!" . Well when we got to camp guess what! There WAS snow! I was skeptical. We could not trail ride but the 50 acres around camp was scattered with snow, enough to ride. An the weather, what a bonus! 50+ degrees. It was sunny and clear, just beautiful for riding! So we enjoyed a weekend of snowmobiling, good old fashioned sledding (we did ride the snowmobiles back up the long hill) lots of napping and eating. The overtimes comes into the picture now.....when we are at camp everyone stays up late and gets up early. I know...doesn't make sense does it? The other thing is that the first night at camp no one gets hardly any sleep. Understand now why there is so much napping(only by the big people nap...little people are too excited to nap) So instead of 10 or so hours of sleep for the kids it gets reduced to about 6. This makes little people cranky. Which in turn makes big people cranky. So Mom gets cranky.....and hence...overtime, working extra hard extra long hours. We are working on this, we got home unpacked, gave the boys PB & J for supper a good bath and it is 7:32pm and they are off to bed! Still I can smile when I reflect on this past weekend...and we all came home in one piece...Despite Will's driving lessons on
the snowmobile. He hasn't quite got the hang of how hard to squeeze, or not to squeeze-the accelerator. Despite... Ben's cooking (just kidding) Despite Luke's constant inclination to leave the porch when no one is outside with him. Despite Brittni's thoughts on how to handle spiders, chamber flies, porcupines and other camp critters.

All On His Own Accord

An unusual occurrence happens at my house a couple times a night. Once in the late evening and once in the middle of the night . At 9:30pm-ish and at 2:00am-ish to be more precise. I hear footsteps in the dark......., then a pop....., dropping water..., flush.., slam....., footsteps and then the crinkle of a crib mattress in a toddler bed. It amazes me every time. Luke (2.5) gets out of his bed, opens his door, walks past my open door, past his brothers open door, goes into the bathroom(does not turn on the light) does his business and returns to bed!! Okay...this seems weird to me. I have 3 other children....none of them did this. Will still won't get up in the middle of the night. He will hold it and sprint to the bathroom at daybreak. Shane and Brittni would cry (scream sometimes) for Mom to come and get them and escort them to and from the bathroom.

I still wonder how kids can be so very different . I know we, as parents, grow and change. I am a very different Mother than I was 17 years ago. Of course I have learned a lot of valuable lessons. Mostly through trial and error. But still........

So twice a night, on most nights, I awake from a perfectly golden slumber and smile, and yes, I lay awake and wonder what the future holds for my independent little guy.

Change Your Life In 3 Easy Steps

A dilemma..hmmm. Some may say no . For me I SAY YES!!!! I can't make it work, no matter what I try I cannot make it work. All I want to do is workout at the gym 2 to 3 days a week. preferably in the mornings, afternoon is acceptable. But evenings are out of the question, I have enough trouble sleeping at night. My current gym offers daycare 3 times a week, only one of the times I am able to use. However that daycare will close at the end of March. So I looked at another gym, same problem. Because of my kids schedules I can only use that gym one day a week also. Another gym offers no day care at all. That leaves one gym left...I am hoping.

I am also considering a workout video. I did that years ago and it worked. It took a long time and extreme dedication, but it did work. And I AM desperate. So I will try the videos at the library, I may go to the gym on Wednesdays and use the daycare. I will still use my regular gym (no day care at the end of the month) when I can get a sitter and possibly on the weekends. Plus I've got to wire my jaw shut! Exercise and wiring my jaw should do it! Really I have little self control. Food is comforting and familiar.


Alright I can't really wire my jaw shut, but I might be able to do something else. Recently I read an interesting article about changing your life patterns in 3 easy steps. 3 steps a month that is. Try it with me. Today, right now list 3 things you will/will not do for an entire month.

1. I will not have seconds at meals.
2. I will exercise in some way everyday.
3. I will not complain about my schedule.

Okay it starts right now...no turning back. We can do this. April 9 th I will add 3 more and so on... What have I got to loose besides 20? pounds!

Hello and Goodnight

Just saying "hello" it's 1:01am and I have been on the computer since 9:30pm. I have been updating my other blog http://NHFamilyTimes.blogspot.com it's coming together. I'm gonna try to sleep now. Wish me luck, Goodnight zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

A Vicious Cycle and ... A Great Book

Okay, it's 12:26am and I'm up! I went to bed...well, lights out at 9:00pm and in the 3.5 hours since then this has been the pattern; I am jolted from a golden sleep when Luke (2) cries for about a minute, I drift off to sleep, I am jolted awake by Ben snoring, I drift off to sleep, I am jolted awake by Mali(the dog) chewing on something I drift off to sleep and the cycle begins all over again,. Luke cries, sleep, Ben snores, sleep, Mali chewing, sleep and again, repeat, again. So I gently wake up Ben and.... HE ISIN'T WEARING A SNORE STRIP! I am so upset, and tired, I could cry! He hastily puts on a snore strip and within minutes he is sound asleep again. I lay next to him wide awake wondering why he couldn't remember something so important. Then I notice him.....SNORING. He had put the snore strip on so quickly that he must have misplaced it on his nose because it is not working! Mali is chewing on what sounds like my antique vanity's leg. So I am up and wide awake. Mali is in her kennel. Ben is snoring a semi-familiar tune and guess what I don't hear a peep from little Luke.

Now onto a real topic: I read a fantastic historical fiction book. I could not put it down. I read it in less than a week and suffered a weird depression when I finished the book. (mildly exaggerating) Usually I gravitate towards non-fiction or fantasy and I was hesitant when my Mother-In-Law suggested this book. But from page 1 I was hooked.

The Other Boylen Girl by Philippa Gregory
Sisterly rivalry is the basis of this fresh, wonderfully vivid retelling of the story of Anne Boleyn. Anne, her sister Mary and their brother George are all brought to the king's court at a young age, as players in their uncle's plans to advance the family's fortunes. Mary, the sweet, blond sister, wins King Henry VIII's favor when she is barely 14 and already married to one of his courtiers. Their affair lasts several years, and she gives Henry a daughter and a son. But her dark, clever, scheming sister, Anne, insinuates herself into Henry's graces, styling herself as his adviser and confidant. Soon she displaces Mary as his lover and begins her machinations to rid him of his wife, Katherine of Aragon. This is only the beginning of the intrigue that Gregory so handily chronicles, capturing beautifully the mingled hate and nearly incestuous love Anne, Mary and George ("kin and enemies all at once") feel for each other and the toll their family's ambition takes on them. Mary, the story's narrator, is the most sympathetic of the siblings, but even she is twisted by the demands of power and status; charming George, an able plotter, finally brings disaster on his own head by falling in love with a male courtier. Anne, most tormented of all, is ruthless in her drive to become queen, and then to give Henry a male heir. Rather than settling for a picturesque rendering of court life, Gregory conveys its claustrophobic, all-consuming nature with consummate skill. In the end, Anne's famous, tragic end is offset by Mary's happier fate, but the self-defeating folly of the quest for power lingers longest in the reader's mind.

I am reading Charles Dickens Great Expectations for the second time right now. Not so much a mind grabber as The Other Boylen Girl.

Sleepless Night

Well, it's another sleepless night. Although I think it is my own fault this time. Yesterday I went to the gym, I had a good workout but I was so tired when I got home . That's when I did it-I napped for an hour. For some reason taking naps messes up my sleep pattern. So here I am at 2:50 am on my computer. Oh, we also decided to let our puppy Mali sleep in our room for the first time. She is kennel trained-however we are hoping to get her used to sleeping on the floor in our room at night. She really wasn't a bother. When Luke (2) got up to go potty an hour or so ago Mali followed us into the bathroom. When I got back into bed Mali was curled right up next to the bed. She really is a great dog (especially for only being 11 months old). Enough complaining for now, I think I might go do some knitting or read the magazine I bought yesterday. Quick and Simple Magazine has great and easy recipes and contests, check it online (look for the coupon) Quickandsimple.com

I Did It!!!

I said I wouldn't do it, ever. But I did it. I separated the boys. I gave Will his own bedroom. Well now listen-it is only a bit self serving. Will(6) goes to sleep much better without Luke (2) talking and playing in his crib. And Luke sleeps longer in the morning without Will waking him up bright and early. For a few weeks now Will had been sleeping in one of the guest rooms. Yesterday I made it official by moving Will's clothes and desk. I made it clear to the boys that the toys stay in Luke's room-the designated toy room. A tip for setting up a child's room-When organizing a 6 year-old's chest of drawers use the bottom drawer for their underclothes. This makes it possible for your little person to be independent. A child can easily open their bottom drawer and see what they need. Versus the top drawer-which I used for articles of clothing that hardly are ever in need. I also use recycled Christmas shirt boxes and gift boxes as dividers in their drawers. The boxes fit in like puzzle pieces and are just the right size to hold children's little socks, undies, t-shirts... in a very organized manner. So we will see how it goes so far neither child seems to mind or miss one another. And everyone seems a bit more cheery in the morning. As for me I am feeling so organized and that feels sooo good!

5 Whole Hours of Sleep

I slept!! The snore strips worked , I didn't hear Ben snore until 4:00am. Either that or I was so exhausted I didn't hear anything. Luke was up at 3:00am-Ben got up with him, he just needed to go potty. Luke had to go again around 4:00am I was awake so I got up. And, of course when I got back into bed Ben was snoring-So I am up and I feel rested! So-- Carpe Deim!!

Brittni did it!!! Yeah!!!

My brilliant daughter got my pictures on my blog. She showed me (3 times) how to do it. But, hmmmmm not sure I remember. She also changed a lot on the site and I like it! I guess it is up to me now to write and update. I can do that.

Shane didn't get up until 12:30pm. Must be nice. He slept through all the chaos this morning. Nothing bothers him. Will went to the doctors today he is still having some trouble with strep throat. I was diagnosed with strep yesterday but poor Will has had it for almost 2 weeks now. Luke was complaining that his ear hurts , it is red and tender, but he does not have a fever. Whew! I think it will be another long night. I did but some snore strips for Ben to try tonight. If the strips work I will have a good nights sleep to look forward to when everyone is feeling better. Yeah!! Wish me luck.

Saved Again By My Morning Mantra

Whew, I was really struggling this morning. Between Will and Luke getting up in the middle of the night , Ben's snoring(something new, HELP) I got about two hours of sleep. I asked Him for strength to get through the day and well, I got it so far. Will is home from school and Luke is still running around in his pajama top and underwear-and that is a-okay.
On days like this I usually start with a morning mantra to help me through.
This morning I repeated the following as I sipped cold coffee
"I believe I am a good Mother, I love my beautiful family, I AM blessed".
usually this is followed by a small pep talk, and small talk with a higher power. I cannot express how much this has helped me. Give it a try. If nothing else it will distract you from the chaos for a few minutes.