Recap of my week

My kids....

Put 500 stickers on the wall
Flushed a matchbox car down the toilet
Pulled all the beads and various ornaments off the tree
Took off their hats and mittens and put them in the gutter -which was filled with melting snow
"Fed" their stuffed animals playdough...which got nice and caked in.

And when I confront them they just stare at me like deers caught in the headlights. When I demand an explanation all I get is "Matt did it!" and "Beth told me too!"

What can I say? Having three kids in under three years isn't for the faint-hearted. I've resorted to constant threats of "Remember - Santa is watching!" Carrie at least remains sweet and relatively trouble free. She is getting so close to crawling though, so soon we will be baby-proofing all over again.

Matt Warren

What can I say...he's gifted.

This is what he said to me this morning - he got a note card and a pencil out and said "Mommy, I'm going to write your name. What letter does it start with?" I said "C.' And he says "Ohhh...like Carrie. Okay. And how do you spell C?"

To Beth, Matt, and Carrie

I love this song by Rascal Flatts.... :)


I hope the days come easy and the moments pass slow,
and each road leads you where you want to go,
and if you're faced with a choice, and you have to choose,
I hope you choose the one that means the most to you.
and if one door opens to another door closed,
I hope you keep on walkin' 'til you find the window,
if it's cold outside,
show the world the warmth of your smile,
more than anything, more than anything,

My wish, for you, is that this life becomes all that you want it to,
your dreams stay big, your worries stay small,
You never need to carry more than you can hold,
and while you're out there getting where you're getting to,
I hope you know somebody loves you, and wants the same things too,
Yeah, this, is my wish.

I hope you never look back, but ya never forget,
all the ones who love you, in the place you left,
I hope you always forgive, and you never regret,
and you help somebody every chance you get,
Oh, you find God's grace, in every mistake,
and you always give more then you take.

But more than anything, Yeah, and more than anything,

My wish, for you, is that this life becomes all that you want it,
to your dreams stay big, and your worries stay small,
You never need to carry more than you can hold,
and while you're out there getting where you're getting to,
I hope you know somebody loves you, and wants the same things too,
Yeah, this, is my wish.

My wish, for you, is that this life becomes all that you want it,
to your dreams stay big, and your worries stay small,
You never need to carry more than you can hold,
and while you're out there getting where you're getting to,
I hope you know somebody loves you, and wants the same things too,
Yeah, this, is my wish.
yeah this is my wish o0o0o0o0o0o0
i hope you know somebody loves you
may all your dreams stay big

You know...

There was a time in my life when I would have felt ridiculous pushing a giant stuffed penguin around the neighborhood in a stroller. Now its just par for the course.

Happy Mother's Day!

I've had such a nice day! We all went to Sunday School this morning and then I took just Beth to a Mother's Day Brunch on the base. My awesome hubby kept five children in the nursery all by himself since it was my turn. and I skipped out. The brunch was great...little tea sandwiches and pastries. Then we had our picture made and went bowling. It was Beth's first time bowling and she was too cute. She couldn't lift the ball so I just had her push it and bounce it off the bumpers, lol.

I got lots of gifts too. Hand-made cards from Beth and Matt, a card dh got from all three kids, a big bouquet of flowers from Beth, a music box from Matt, and a little flower in a pot that Beth made at Sunday School. Beth has the sweetest teacher...she is really enjoying being in the "big girl" Sunday school.

The kids are all napping now and then we are planning a trip to the pool this afternoon. Its the indoor one on base - the neighborhood pool should be open in a few more weeks!

Three Months Old!

Carrie is 1/4 the way to her first birthday! Wow, it has gone so fast! She is still just like a newborn though -six pounds of sweet baby girl. She is sleeping better at night now. Not great - but a LOT better than she was doing. I think I was just spoiled by what a good baby Beth was - she was sleeping 12 hours a night by months old. Matt showed no such inclination and I don't think Carrie will either.

another busy week

Matt Warren turned two on the 19th! He is such a big boy...and so sweet. And sooo busy! We had a little party for him at the park with his sisters and two little friends. The weather was great and the kids had lots of fun riding in his new red wagon. Matt even pulled his friends around, he is so strong.

We also took a trip to the zoo this week - I felt pretty brave venturing so far away alone with the three kids. But they did great and we had a great time. I went ahead and bought a membership too so we can go back whenever we want now. The only bummer was that I thought it wouldn't be crowded on a weekday morning. Well its spring break there...and it was PACKED. Also it cost me $15 in gas to drive there and back. These prices are about to kill me...over $3.70 a gallon now. I've started going on the Navy base which is a bit cheaper.

In other news Carrie finally reached her due date yesterday! She is 6 pounds 2 ounces and almost three months old. She and Matt Warren both had check-ups on Wednesday and they are both totally healthy. Matt is 34 1/2 inches and 29 1/2 pounds. He's meeting all of his milestones too. Carrie doesn't do much though..she did lift up her head to look at the doc, he said she has strong neck muscles.


Matt's birthday party


Zoo Trip!


Caroline Louise

Oh Carrie

I was never seen a newborn survive on such little sleep. She literally stays up ALL night long, its nuts. I hope she outgrows this soon, I don't know how many more of these nights I can take. She is still nursing so I'm playing around with my diet some to see if something I'm eating might be upsetting her stomach. She sees the doctor next week so I'll talk to him then too. Though right now that seems so far away.

Yesterday was another beautiful spring day. I took the kids to the park twice, on a long walk, to the library, and out for ice cream. It was so nice I just didn't want to stay home. We had ice cream at Coldstone. I had never been before and it was delicious. Matt and I got some kind of cookie-dough sunday, yummy. The kids both got chocolate ice-cream with gummy bear and rainbow sprinkles. Beth did a great job eating her cone, no mess at all. Matt was another story, lol. I had to chase him around the place with a pile of napkins and a clean shirt while he screamed "more candy!!" I guess the last thing that boy needed was an extra jolt of sugar.

Tomorrow is Matt's second birthday. He is growing up so fast! We are having a little party for him at the park, the weather is supposed to be nice. I've done absolutely nothing to get ready for this party of course so I'm going to be running all over town today. Its nothing big -but I still need food, a cake, a present, balloons, and goody bags. So yeah - everything.

I might be returning to full-time stay-at-home-mom status. The big kids have been in daycare part-time since January, before that they went full-time for a year. We left them in for a number of reasons once I left school in December - so I'd have time for my OB appts and then NICU visits, because they enjoy it and are used to it, and to hold their slots so I can go back to school in the fall. Well apparently I haven't been holding their slots at all since they might be kicking Matt out in favor of a full-time child. I'm so ticked, I can't believe they'd treat him like that. We can't afford to pay for him to go full-time though when he's not. And if they keep him out I'm pulling Beth out too. Matt would be so sad watching her get dropped off and not getting to stay. Not to mention that is a lot of $ and time and trouble to get her there and back to not even get a break. Having the three of them home won't be any harder than just Matt and Carrie. In fact I miss Beth when she's at school, she's my big helper now. So we're waiting to hear if Matt can stay or not. If it doesn't work out I'll probably keep them all home this summer and then look for a new preschool for Beth in the fall.

tired

Carrie stayed up from 12am-5am last night. It was one of those nights that you just want to end since you've lost all hope of sleep anyway. Sure enough she finally passed out just as Matt Warren was waking up. And so it began...

We actually had a really nice day though. I tool my first "big trip" out alone with all three kids. We went to the Children's Museum. Its a small place - I figured it'd be easy to keep up track of the older two and I could make a quick exit if I needed to. Everyone stopped to ask about Carrie - I guess they think she is like two days old she is so small. Beth and Matt behaved really well fort the most part, I was happy. Of course it was a pita to squeeze my big stroller through that place. And Matt and Carrie both had dirty diapers - fun times. At least Beth is potty trained. But I still have to round everyone up to take her. Between diaper changes and potty trips we had to make our way into that little bathroom four times in an hour long trip, lol. The weather was nice and so they had the outside part open as well. The kids had a blast playing with bubbles and just running around.

In other news I finally decided what I am going to do this fall. I have one year left to get my bachelor's degree. I was on the fence about going back to the college I have been attending, or commuting to a school that is cheaper and a little further away. I really wasn't happy with either choice and didn't see how we could afford the daycare either. So what I have decided is to just finish my last year online. Beth and Matt will continue to attend preschool/daycare three days a week. That will give me plenty of time to get my work done and take care of the baby. And is still a hell of a lot cheaper than sending three kids full-time! Plus Carrie will get to stay home with me for at least a year and a half now. She was so premature - she really doesn't need to be in daycare during her first RSV season. We started Matt in daycare at 8 months, and while he adjusted well, he was out sick so often those winter months it was hardly worth it. I'm sure she'll get sick some anyway, but at least I can just concentrate on her getting better and not have to stress about missing classes. After I finish my degree I hope to go into a Master's program to get my teaching certification. One thing at a time though.... I can't believe I am still in school honestly. But I guess that's what happens when you have three kids along the way. I wouldn't change a thing though..it has been quite the journey.

busy week

We've had little Carrie home for three weeks now and she is just doing great. She actually slept last night so I'm feeling great this morning. She's still a little peanut - around five pounds I think. Next week she goes in for an appointment and we'll get her weight checked then. I'm taking Matthew in for his two year check-up at the same time. They both need shots, so that should be interesting. Luckily Beth will be at preschool so I won't have to bring her too. Last time I took her when Matt was getting vaccinations she sat beside him in the car going "You're going to get shots. Its going to hurt. Boo-boos for you." His little eyes just got wider and wider, poor guy.

I can't believe Matt is going to be two years old on Saturday! It has gone by soooo fast. He is a sweet boy, very happy, and VERY active. I think he is going to be a challenge this coming year. Beth was a great two year old - my biggest issue with her has been whining. She always does what I ask, she just has to whine about it the whole time, lol. Matt on the other hand is a little terror. He's here, he's there, he's everywhere. The best thing to do with Matt is just to take him outside and let him loose. And when he is bad discipline is just about impossible. A certain look is enough to get Beth in line - a time-out breaks her little heart. Matt stands in the time-out corner dancing and saying "Happy, Happy, Happy, Happy!" At least he's resilient!

I had the idea to get him and Beth tricycles for his birthday - I thought it'd be more fun if they both got one. So we went to the toy store Saturday to pick them one out. And Beth wanted no part of a trike - she wanted a big girl bike. Which she just turned three and I think she's too small for a bike. She was a stinker and so we left with nothing. We talked it over later though and asked around to other parents and decided to go ahead and get her the bike. So Matt went out that afternoon and bought Beth her Princess bike and Matt a "Thomas the Train" tricycle. Of course I wasn't patient enough to wait for his birthday, so yesterday we put the bike together and got the kids all excited to come outside for their "surprises." When we got outside Beth ran .over and climbed right onto her bike. Things didn't go so great for poor Matt First his toddler helmet from last year didn't even come close to going on his head. So he was already in tears going "my hat, my hat." Then he got on his tricycle and it was way too big. He couldn't touch the pedals or the ground. So he just sat there and cried. Then he says "I want nother one" and tries to go for Beth's bike. And she of course yells "This is MY Princess bike!" in her nastiest voice ever. There was no way he was going to grow into this thing anytime soon either - maybe next year. And yes we tried these out in the store but in all the chaos we must have gotten confused over which one had actually fit him. So right then and there Matt loads him and the trike back in the car to go trade it in for one that fits. An hour later they're back - no tricycle. Matt says that two fit him but he fell off and hurt himself on both of them. He's just no big or old enough I guess. After the second time he started crying and asked to come back home to Mommy.

So for Matt's birthday he got to watch his sister get a new bike. ((Sigh)) Back to the drawing board! Now I really want to find something he'll love. We're having his party at a local park on Saturday so I have a few more days to figure something out.