Past three months

School started, soccer season over, basketball season started, Christmas complete with my side of the family...what else has happened over the past three months?  It seems like when I get too far behind on the blog I just keep letting it go because then the topics I want to talk about just keep piling in my mind.  I always let it go because of other priorities but I want to keep it up for our family.   So this will not be as comprehensive as I want but that is just how it is going to be.

It seems like Lindsay grew up a lot within the past few months.  She broke her crib by jumping in it, kicking her feet and just being Lindsay.  Granted it has lasted for 4 kids so it was a little worn in itself but she was probably the most active in it.


She never climbed out of it which I thought for sure she would be the one to climb out of it but none of our kids were ever that adventurous.  So now she is in a full size bed which she loves and Julianne is jealous.  She complains almost every week that it is unfair that Lindsay gets the bigger bed and she is the oldest child.  I tell her that she has a bed herself and she does not need to have Lindsay's bed.  She moves on but always reminds me of it.  Lindsay also potty trained herself in September.  In August, I tried to make her potty train by telling her the diaper lady took her diapers to another child who needed them.  I figured that she is my last I am going to make her do it, however, that tactic failed.  I tried it for 2 days and it failed miserably.   She thought she had to pee all the time and by the time I had to put a swim diaper on her or her nap diaper she would pee in that.  So I gave up, and I had to go to work, and thought I would try it again in a month.  About a month later she just woke up one day and said I have to pee.  I put her on the potty and she did it.  After that she maybe had a few pee accidents but has done well ever since.  It took her a while to poo on the potty.  It took her about two weeks of her only pooing in her diaper at nap time, us having to give her a suppository because she held it in too long.  She kept trying and finally decided to poo consistently in the potty.  So she really transitioned to some different phases of her life these past three months.

 
Who's that?


Julianne celebrated her 12th birthday in September.  She really is doing well at middle school.  She is getting great grades and is enjoying switching classes and making new friends.  She is also having lots of headaches.  She probably gets a headache every other day and has migranes about once every 2 weeks.  So we are continuing to monitor these and helping her through them.  We also saw an osteopathic doctor for these and she did one Osteopathic Manipulation Treatment.  The treatment was a little awkward and different.  He just felt her head, put pressure on a few spots, adjusted a few things and was done.  He did notice that when she followed his finger to the left her eyes did not flow smoothly like they did to the left.  She did have a whiplash/head injury while doing gymnastics in 3rd grade but we do not know if that affects her headaches or not.  He did ask if she had any concussions or not and I said that I was not aware of any.  So who knows.  We went back a few weeks for another treatment and Julianne refused to let him do a treatment on her.  I was a little frustrated and she was upset so we are going to go back in January to see the female doctor.  So we will see if this helps or not.  I am a little concerned about the amount of headaches she has but I also know that she is extra sensitive to her pain and has a low pain tolerance.  So we will keep monitoring, supporting and challenging her.



Julianne's selfie with Lindsay


Mallory is growing like a weed.  I took Mallory and Julainne to the doctor together for their yearly exam.  There was only a 6 pound difference between Mallory and Julianne.  So she is doing well.  She had a great soccer year with her new soccer team and she is now enjoying basketball with her dad as the coach.  She is playing really well and keeps her cool during the games.  She is working on her quickness and her fast thinking on the court but seems to enjoy it with her father.  She likes her teacher and is doing well in school.  She really loves math and tries really hard at math.  I feel bad because she really wants to be in the enrichment program, the "gifted program", because she knows that kids leave the room for enrichment and she says that she always gets 100 on her math work but she really does not understand the intention of the enrichment program.


Nathan loved playing soccer this fall with his cousin and his dad semi coaching his team.  He is now playing basketball and likes it even tough the refs do not call stealing so players can't steal the ball.  So it frustrates him a little because he is a rule follower but also wants to get the ball if someone is not protection dribbling.  He just had an asthma epidode last night and I sent him to school the second half of the day today.  It was minor but enough where he had a fever and was breathing very heavy.  We did a breathing treatment and I gave him some left over prednisone to help with his breathing constriction.  So hopefully this is not the start of a long asthma winter like last year was.  The last one he had was one this summer.  So his amounts have decreased but he has not completley grown out of them.  He is doing well in first grade.  He is also progressing with reading.  At the beginning of the year he struggled and just jumped ahead and guessed on the words.  Now it seems like he is taking his time and reading much better.  I have seen a lot progress from him the past two months.  He loves math a lot and is such a sweetie in school.  I volunteered in his class this week and it was great to see him and all his friends.



Kids first day of school


Lindsay's first day of preschool

Our beloved neighbor friend/sitter went off to college this year.  We miss her dearly but we are glad that she is persuing her dreams in education.
 

A day at the park
 
A ninja, can can dancer, cowgirl and not pictured 80's girl


Things I am grateful/thankful for:
-listening to books on my phone (I love being able to "read" more books, since I am not a fast reader)
-My kids and family
-early snow
-going to a different gas station to fill up my tires and the hose is easier to use and the box peeps when you reach a certain PSI.  I loved it and I was glad I had to go out of my way to use it, plus it required less money than my regular one.
-being slightly injured and taking a little break from running, enjoying other activities

Summer updates

Is august really here?  I cannot believe it.  We are just now driving back from our beach vacation and at the beginning of summer I said that when we get back from our beach vacation it would be August and school will be right around the corner.  Where does the time go and how do we slow it down?  I was also reminded about this on our beach vacation when we befriended a family that is about 16 years ahead of us.  The parents kept reminiscing about how their kids used to be our kids ages and how fast it flies by.  Their youngest is 18 and they have 6 kids 10 years apart.  So their youngest was about to be a senor in high school and their oldest was just starting a new career.  So it was great to talk to them and for us to imagine us being that someday and them remembering themselves 16 years earlier. 

The beach was nice and relaxing with really only one day of rainy weather.  Lindsay unfortunately, or fortunately, did not like the water this year.  Last year so was crazy and did not mind if the waves knocked her down and she tumbled down the slope.  This year she got knocked down one time and that was it for her water experience.  She wanted nothing to do with the water after that and was just content on the sand.  It worked out for us because it was less demanding on our attention and we knew she would not be in danger.  We rode the family’s paddle board in the beach and I loved it.  We might purchase one next year so that we can do it more often.  The biggest highlight of this trip was the kids, and D, mastered the skim board.  Nathan practiced for about a day and he did really well.  The girls also joined in and got the hang of it.  D also played around with it and eh ended up doing really well.  I chose not to participate only because I did not want to fall on my behind and break anything.  I was content with the boogie board.  Again it was a great trip and we are sorry to leave but glad we had the opportunity to spend a week there. 

On the one day that we had rain the sky was amazing.  The last few pictures detail this sky and sun.  It was like the sky was put in two, one side was the stormy side and the other was clear puffy clouds.  It was amazing and one of the most unique skies I have seen.  

Summer has been great.   The kids had a few camps and enjoyed the lazy summer days.  Nathan and Mallory participated in a week of horse and art camp.  Julianne ended up going to the pool with her friends a lot so that was good for her to experience that independence.  The next few weeks we only have swim lessons for the kids so that will be nice to go back to the pool for the last few weeks.  Julianne is nervous about starting middle school and we are excited for her new experience.  I am a little worried about the increased homework responsibility but I know she will be able to do it just might cause some more headaches for her.  She actually has been getting a few more migraines this summer than usual.  She has to go to her room and recover and most times they end with throwing up.  So that is always hard to see and also difficult to understand since I don’t have issues with that myself.  So we are still working with her to reduce her stress levels, recognize then they occur more often and to figure out what works best during the headache. 

After looking back at what my last blog post I realized that I had not posted since Mallory's birthday.  Mallory had a great 9th birthday.  She had 6 friends over and we had a spa party.  We painted our nails and toenails and put on facial masks.  I felt bad because we did the peel off masks and and I put too much mask on the girls and it did not really peel off.  They were a little freaked out so I had to wash most of it off their poor little faces.  Oh well, I should have tried it before but I did not.  Mallory had a great time and enjoyed her birthday.  She is doing a little better with her worrying about her time and how late she is going to bed.  She has relaxed about that a little this summer but does not want to sleep over at anyone's house.  So we are working on that.  I hope she has an easy time with school coming up.  She is always worried about missing me or being away from me for a long time.  I think it is more about not being at home and less about me but it is a phase and I hope she grows out of it.  

Below are some random summer pictures.

Things I am grateful/thankful for:

-The beach and the entire natural wonder of it-waves, sand, shells, current, etc.

-Seeing the kid’s determination to accomplish a task and acquire a new skill

-Relaxing and no itineraries.

-Finally updating this blog.  It feels good to get these pictures and thoughts recorded.  

March and April recap

March was pretty uneventful for our household. It was nice that for a few weekends we did not have any plans and it was really a month to settle down and to relax after our crazy basketball schedule. The kids also have a few little bugs, Lindsay and Nathan had a fever for a day and Mallory got a full-fledged flu, we think. She threw up different times for two days, had a high fever for a few days and had a hard time recovering from her stomach sickness. I think this was the same flu bug that I had a few weeks ago. I never threw up but I had a fever, aches and chills. It lasted about 2 days and it was not fun. My throat also hurt and I thought that maybe it was strep throat but knew that since I had a little cough that it was probably not strep throat. I have not had “flu” like symptoms for a long time. I really can’t remember the last time I had a fever. So it was not fun but it was also nice to chill out for a while and relax a little. So I think that Mallory had the same thing just a different version. It is funny because Dwight and Julianne had a similar bug in December, which we never got. When we were sick this past month Dwight and Julianne never got sick. So it must have been the same bug just different versions. I do think that Mallory had the worst version of it. She has a hard time getting over a stomach sickness. She was technically sick for 5 days. So that was the longest time anyone was sick.


The weather in March was crazy.  It would be cold and snow then be in the 60's within a few days.  Here are some pictures of the kids enjoying a snow bank in warm weather. 





Easter was also fun and cold/raining.  So the egg hunt was taken inside to avoid wet clothes. 

Kids love bubbles.  You can always bring out the bubbles and amaze a two year old for a few minutes.  She had a blast and it was great to see her enjoy the wonder of bubbles. 
Mallory is also going through a separation anxiety phase. She is having a hard time separating from me and from our house. She is sad every time I have to leave to go to work and always asks when I am going to see her. She also has a hard time going to soccer practice. I have to drop her off because I have to pick up the other kids at different activities and she really just wants me to stay with her. Her soccer practice is kind of far away and she is on a team with other surround school district kids. So it is neither within our community nor with any classmates. She had a few weeks where she would call me from school really crying and sad. She also did this a few times she went to a friend’s house. So we are working and talking through it. She is doing a little better and I just took her to softball practice yesterday, the first of the season, and she did not cry or ask if I would come back and pick her up. I asked her about it later and she thinks because she knows friends on her team and it is “close by”. So I think that may be the difference between taking her there and to soccer. So we will see. I hope she gets over this because she is way too young to be anxious over leaving me and her house. The good thing is that she still participates in different activities she just cries a little before she leaves. So I think it is just a phase and one she will outgrow.

Mallory's class performed a Green musical and she had a great time.  My pictures did not turn out well but this picture shows her enjoying herself. 



We have begun soccer season again. I have already watched two of Julianne’s soccer games and it is great to see her and her team playing so well. She plays the middle field position so she runs around a lot and gets to handle the ball a lot as well. Her team is also getting the concept of staying in their general position and passing the ball longer. Nathan is also starting soccer again and this time we are still coaching his recreation league team but he is also playing with the local national soccer team. This second league is more competitive and he does not dominate with his skills. The recreation league that we coach him in are 5 and 6 year olds and most of them are still learning the game. Our first game last week, we put Nathan in on offensive and within a minute he scored a goal. Then he scored another goal a short while later and we have to move him back to the defensive position. He did the same thing the third quarter. So he is really good for this league but I know that once he gets older the kids will even out. Plus the other league he plays in he does not score as many goals so the other players have more soccer skills.

My Mother’s Day was great, relaxing, duty free except for a 5 hour stretch where I felt like I was going to throw up. Another stomach bug has surfaced within our house starting with Lindsay, Julianne, Nathan and then me. Luckily this time I did not throw up but I still had that yucky feeling. I realized this morning that I was somewhat relieved that I did experience some symptoms because now I know that I will not get it again. I can now kiss my kids on the lips, stop trying to clean every surface and somewhat living in fear, not really, but pessimism that I will get the same bug. For some reason I am prone to stomach bugs, I rarely get the flu (except this year) and I never really get sick. But if someone gets the stomach bug I am 90 percent sure I will get it. So it is the anticipation that sometimes drives me nuts, like I can avoid it if I worry that I might get it I will avoid it. Oh well, I will not miss the day when I will constantly be exposed to these bugs. D was once again a great help on Mother’s Day, it was great to not be responsible for all the bickering, questions and duties of being the first parent to be asked to solve a problem or answer a question. D would love it if they would come to him more often but since they are used to asking me it becomes their first reaction. We have to remind them that D is home today and they can ask him. I know this is a common issue within families and ours is not in the exception.

With spring arising, I am reminded of my continuous dream of living on a sustainable farm. It is generally called homesteading and I would love to become a homesteading family. All the blogs that I regularly view are about families living on farms, large but mostly small and manageable sized, raising chickens, pigs, bees, etc. I am envious of them actually acting out the way the feel about farming and living off the land. It seems like such a simple life, definitely not easy, but simple, the way we are supposed to live and use the Earth’s resources. It is simply about living off the land and providing food for our families. It is also about getting the kids connected with nature, how crops are raised, farm animals are fed and general nature depart of concrete, sewer systems, perfectly maintained grass, etc. But how can I uproot my kids and leave my job to pursue a dream that I may not really love once I get into it? How can I push my dream onto everyone else in my family even though they may not share in the same vision? I don’t know, I am content here but I may always wonder what it would be like. My dream is that maybe when the kids are older and out of our house it will be my time to pursue my dream, or maybe it will not be a dream of mine anymore.

The high school prom was a couple weekends ago and our favoriate babysitter senior attending her first prom.  It was great to see her dressed up and to take part in her moment.    Things I am grateful/thankful for: -not feeling like I am going to throw up. -cool mornings -my seedlings ready to be planted, they did great this winter -A wonderful taken care of Mother's Day