A day at the park

We have had a long week. Monday Grant came down with some bug (stomach and breathing issues--not fun!) that lasted until Tuesday night/Wednesday and included a visit to the doctor (which, I must admit, was a bit easier with such a very sick boy).  Thankfully Ryan was able to take Wednesday off because I needed to go to work that day for Daddy's Breakfast.  By the time Thursday came around, everyone was healthy and happy so we headed to the Y, followed by a visit to a park. 

We have not been to a park yet this year, and this was the first time I've taken all three kids by myself in a long time.  In fact, I cannot remember the last time I was that crazy brave!  The boys named a specific park, and I was happy with that choice because Starbucks was on the way.  Hey, Mama's gotta have her vice!

The great thing about this park is that they have a little exercise course on a path around the park.  The boys had to stop and do all the activities, which meant Caroline had to as well.  I got some pictures on one of the stops before I was holding Little Miss.  She got spooked by some dogs and wanted to be held the rest of the walk.  Needless to say, we only did one loop around the park!

Jack climbing up and Caroline trying

Jack at the top--what a monkey!

Caroline tried to climb, too, but I stopped her before she got too far.  She's also a monkey, often climbing up to Jack's top bunk.  Grant took his turn, but he was too speedy for me to take a picture!  You can see him running in the background!

Going to the park with the kids really wasn't that bad.  They are old enough now that I don't need to supervise all of them every second, which is too hard at a big playground.  I was glad we made it to the park that day because Caroline spiked a fever at midnight that night and has been sick since then.  Hopefully she's almost done with this illness, as it is really so hard to have sick kids and to not know what is wrong with them.

Bike time

For Grant's birthday he received a bike.  Well, he received a paper with a picture of a bike on it.  It's kind of hard to buy a bike in January!  Since the weather has been so great lately, we decided to buy his birthday bike this weekend.  Needless to say, it was not assembled in the "minutes" promised, and he was quite anxious to get on it.  Fortunately, Ryan finished as quickly as he could, and our kiddo finally enjoyed his birthday gift.  (Note: he did get other gifts to open and play with for his birthday--this was just his big one.) 

And enjoy it he has!  He even went out yesterday with a fever and between breathing treatments.  Poor little guy!  He wanted to go out today again, but I forced him to stay inside.  I just could not bring myself to let him go outside after he laid on the couch all day (literally, all day!) and struggled to breathe between coughs and treatments.  (We went to the dr., who diagnosed him with bronchitis--hopefully he is on the mend soon!)

Ready to ride--with a too small helmet.  This little guy apparently has a big head--the better to hold his big brain is what my mom's (big-headed?) family says. :)  After the first ride, Ryan returned it for a bigger one--gotta keep that noggin safe!

Off he goes!  He did really great and only fell once.

Caroline even got in on the action.  She inherited Grant's bike, and we decided to get her a helmet, too.  I'm not sure she loved it, but she definitely looks cute in it!

I just love her fashionista look while riding!  She loves those Dora cowboy boots!

Spring has Sprung!

Who would have guessed that St. Patrick's Day weekend would be in the upper 70s and that (I'm sort of embarrassed to admit) we'd have our air conditioning on already?  The kids have loved being able to play outside, and our house has stayed a little cleaner--win-win.  Plus, who can argue with a little vitamin D in March in Indiana?  Can you tell we're happy with the weather?  Here's what we have done outside:



Jack's umbrella broke, so he decided to be Mary Poppins and try to fly off of our front window well/planter area.  Fortunately, he landed well.  He then decided to use it like a kite and put his  beloved stuffed animals in there and fly them around the yard.  That didn't go quite as he wanted.  I think he still had fun, though.

Grant jumped without an umbrella/parachute.  His landings were a bit more precarious, but we didn't end up in the ER so I guess all was well.

Caroline still doesn't have too many options but is generally happy with sidewalk chalk.  She does like to sneak up into the window planter with her brothers, but we try to avoid that as much as possible--not because of the dirt but because of the animals that use it as a litter box.  Yuck!

Grant likes to color Caroline's little car (which she rarely uses because her brothers monopolize it) with chalk.  We're fine with that because we prefer that to coloring our house.

Loved

As we were driving home from the Y on Friday, my sweet middle child asked me, with his thumb in his mouth and little four-year-old voice, "Why does everyone like Cawowine more than they like me?"  I must admit I was sort of taken aback by that comment.  I wanted to just sort of say, "Oh, they love you, honey" and move onto something else.  However, I decided this concern was something I should address.  Afterall, I know that he sometimes gets the shaft as the middle child, and I don't want to encourage the development of a middle child complex or anything.

"Grant, people like babies for some reason.  Caroline is still sort of a baby, and they think she is cute with her pigtails and tutu.  It's not that they don't like you--they just see her as a baby.  When you were that little, everyone paid a lot of attention to you, too.  Plus, she's in Child Watch all morning so they spend a lot of time with her."  Does that sound like a good response?  I also assured him that we love him very much, but I'm afraid that it did not really suffice--at least, not in my mind and heart.

I must admit that it sort of threw me for a loop.  I did not think young kids paid that much attention to that sort of thing, and I wondered how many times I have unknowingly hurt him or other children by admiring their younger sibling's hair, clothes, talents, etc.  So I must say, Grant, I love you very much and so do so many other people.  I love your sweet smile, your enthusiasm for trains and other machines with wheels, your friendliness, your eye dimple, your thumb-sucking/nose-rubbing habit.  I love cuddling with you and reading stories to you.  I love seeing you play with your friends and hearing you sing and say Bible verses I didn't know that you knew.  We feel so blessed to have you in our family, and I never want you to think that we love you less than your brother or sister.  You are LOVED!

Meeting Evan

On Saturday we went out to Ryan's brother's house to meet our new nephew, Evan.  We had planned to go out last weekend, but thanks to Caroline's nasty cold, that plan was delayed until this weekend.  The kids had a great time playing with their cousins (who are 3 and 2) and, let's be honest, taking a quick glance at their new cousin before moving on to the next toy.  I, however, spent a couple of hours holding and snuggling my newest nephew before giving him back when the pizza came!  He's a sweet, sleepy baby, and we are so excited to have another little one in the family!  Thanks, also, to Karla and Brent, who, in spite of having a 1-week-old, were awesome hosts to our loud and energetic family!



Drew showed Caroline how the chalkboard worked.  She then decided to take over.

After Drew left she got the chalkboard to herself.  (And no, she is probably not left-handed, contrary to what this picture shows.)

Landon dressed up in fire fighter garb and toddled around the room.  He looked so cute!  (Here, however, he just looks scared.)

Caroline, in true youngest child form, entertained the table of ice cream-eaters by being silly with her spoon--no hands!

Jack and Drew made snow angels on the kitchen floor.  Drew loved copying whatever Jack was doing.

Grant and Jack with baby Evan

Caroline was surprisingly uninterested in Evan.  For as much as she loves baby dolls, she seems sort of bored with babies, perhaps because she sees them all of the time at the Y...or maybe because she just sees them as competition!

Great North Run

Yesterday Jack and I "ran" in the Great North Run, which is a 1k/5k/10k race that benefits  Washington Twp. schools.  I'd originally wanted to run the 5k on my own and send Ryan on the 1k with the kiddos, but we decided we didn't want to help the schools that much.   So off Jack and I went on a beautiful Saturday to do our 1k race.  Jack thought this race was going to be like Daddy's mini-marathon he does in May with TV coverage, newspapers, etc. and thought the winner would be on TV.  Then, as we were walking to the race, we overheard someone talking about water stations, and he asked if there would be water stations on our race. 

"Um, sorry Jack.  I don't think our race is long enough to have water stations."  "Oh, okay."

We waited inside the high school (yay for bathrooms and heat!) until our race.  When I saw all of the 5k racers take off, I wondered if there would be anyone left for our race.  As we lined up I saw one of Jack's friends from last year in line as well as another boy from his class this year so it was good to know we were not the only ones doing the shorter race. 

"On your mark, get set, go!"

Off we ran...for about 3 minutes.  The race was fun, and Jack did pretty well.  He walked for a little while but overall did well.  As we saw the finish line he pushed past the pain and kept running. :)   If you ask him, he will tell you he beat me because he got his ribbon before I did...and I'll let him think that.

After the race we headed to the recovery area (because we were so wiped out!) and pilfered from all of the stations set up in the gym: water, pens, pencils, stickers, fruit, necklaces, etc., we collected them all!

The best part, though, was as we were walking back to the car.  Jack said, "Mommy, my favorite part of the day is just being with you, and no matter what else we do today, being with you is my favorite part of the day."  Awww...he melted my heart right then!  That was my favorite part of the day, too!

waiting for our race

And we're off!

Getting a little tired--gotta walk.  A 1k is a long way for little legs and inexperienced lungs!

Yay for finishing strong!

Jack and me with our ribbons

Relief

Last night was rough.  It took me back to our newborn days, and I don't remember it being nearly as bad as last night.  Perhaps God gives us a bit of amnesia so we don't forever hold it against our kiddos!

I finally went to bed around 11:15ish (way too late anyway) and was awakend at 11:45 by Caroline crying.  I went in to see her and make sure she was okay.  I held her and rocked her for a couple of minutes, but she wanted back in her crib.  I put her in, turned on the bedtime CD and her seahorse, and stumbled back to bed.  As soon as I settled back into bed and fell asleep, she began crying again.  Basically this whole cycle continued for 2 hours, during which I also tried the snot sucker (to help with her stuffy nose), the humidifier, Vicks Baby Rub, a diaper change, a snack (she hadn't eaten much for lunch or dinner), water, and more rocking.  I also nudged Ryan so he could take his turn.  We finally decided there was nothing we could do except let her cry it out and hope that she was fine and didn't wake up her brothers!

This morning she seemed better, so imagine my surprise as I took her out of her car seat and saw goop (yes, that's a medical term) coming out of her ear.  In my vast experience with ear infections with the boys I knew this was a sure sign of a ruptured eardrum.  I may sound like a bad mom, but I was sort of relieved to see a reason that Caroline was so out of sorts last night.  I knew that once the eardrum ruptured the pressure was relieved so she was feeling a bit better. 

This afternoon we visited the doctor and confirmed the diagnosis I suspected: ear infection with a side of sinus infection--fun stuff.  I am hoping (fingers crossed, for the love!) for a better night's sleep for all of us! 

Preschool Registration

Well, I suppose I knew this day would come--the day that I had to register my youngest baby for preschool.  I know, I know.  I don't really need to put my two-year-old in preschool, but with each child I have had the internal debate of whether or not to put them in school (afterall, they'll be in it for the next 20 years!) or let them wait another year (and save money!).  However, if it comes down to the unstructured chaos of childwatch while I am working versus the structured chaos of a class, I have always chosen the class. 

So, last Thursday I filled out the paperwork and put down my deposit to enroll Miss Caroline in Miss Tammy's 2/3 class for next year.  I also enrolled my baby boy in pre-k.  We'll be trying a Montessori-style class for him, which makes me a little apprehensive, if I am being completely honest.  Maybe he will thrive (Jack definitely would have), but I'm just not sure about it.

Speaking of Jack, he is doing great in kindergarten.  He's right where he should be academically and seems happy with the teacher and the class.  I still have some concerns, but I just have faith that he is where God wants him--and us.  I suppose we could have considered the homeschool thing for him, but I am not sure that it's the best fit for our family.  We shall see how this year continues to go!

Here is a preview of how my soon-to-be newest preschooler will look on her first day.  She loves to wear her backpack and go out to the bus with Jack in the morning.  It's so cute!

such a goofball!

We're loving the piggies lately--so adorable!

My little monkeys

A couple of weeks ago we were at Costco (love that store), and I decided to look at the pajamas.  I always like to check out the Carter's jammies there. The boys were with me, and once they saw the monkey pajamas, they had to have them.  Generally I don't give in ('cause I'm mean like that), but I figured a) they needed new ones and b) they would look so cute all matchy-matchy.  Imagine how thrilled they were too see girl monkey pajamas--and how excited Caroline was as well!  As soon as we got home they changed into their pajamas (easier bedtime ritual--win!) and performed VBS songs for us on the fireplace.  Caroline even got in on the action.  I love it!

And, just for fun, I have two more to just make everyone think my kids are always sweet and kind and love playing with each other.  I mean, they do all of those things--all of the time...or maybe not...

Birthday picture wrap-up

So Ryan just asked me as I began this what I'm doing with all of these old pictures on my blog.  My answer was that I have all of these pictures of my lovely children from their birthdays that never made it on here.  Therefore, I need to unload them.  Plus, their grandparents haven't seen them in over 2 months so it's time to give them a grandkid fix! :)

For Jack's and Grant's birthdays we went to Chuck E. Cheese's.  (By the way, has it always been "Cheese's"?  How did I miss that?)  They had fun, as did Caroline. 



Jack has always loved this helicopter bike thing.  You pedal, which makes the helicopter levitate. 

Ryan had fun, too.

Caroline had a very hard time understanding that it was not her turn to open gifts!

all dressed up and nowhere to snorkel!  (He wanted the gear because it's in Diego.  I think he's planning to use it at my parents' murky lake this summer.  Get ready, Papa!)

Jack had fun even when it was Grant's birthday.

Grant rode the helicopter this time.  He can't reach the pedals on his own, so we have to turn them for him so he can lift off of the ground.  It's way fun!

Did I post this one before?  He's happy to have all of the attention!

Love this picture!  She thinks she's so sneaky because she's sitting in Jack's carseat. :)

Caroline got a new doll (who kept her clothes on for approximately 24 hours--not sure why Little Miss disrobes all of her dolls) and loved it!

Notice the doll sat with her while she blew out her candles.  She's probably the best two-year-old candle blower we've had, but she did see her two brothers demonstrate their skills just a few weeks before her birthday.  She was probably thinking, Finally!  It's my turn!

The girl loves her shoes!  She got these new rain boots for her birthday and wanted to put them on immediately.  She then wanted to wear them to bed.  Yes, I know she's not looking, and it's a terrible shot--just wanted to point out she loved them so much she wanted to wear them to bed!

Whew!  We are now out of the holiday/birthday season!  It's such a whirlwind that I'm now feeling a bit of a letdown--perhaps it's cake withdrawl more than anything!  (Remember that Seinfeld episode?)