Monday, May 28, 2012

Proud momma keep on rollin

We hit another milestone this week as the triplets turned 9 months old and the last to crawl finally decided to get up and go (Go Benjamin!) I am so proud of all my boys. The babies are good eaters although we have a picky one emerging. I swear all they want to do is eat what we are eating. Whereas it was heart-wrenching to wean Alexander off of the bottle at 1 year, I have a feeling it won't be as bad with these tough guys. They want to hang with big brother and bottles seem to get in the way. 3 more months, I will be glad to toss those forever!

All 3 are crawling at different speeds; think of a tortoise, a hare and some cute little animal in between (that would be Theodore :). All are sleeping well at night and have two solids naps during the day.

I am also proud that all 3 are pacifier free as well. I don't judge people who use them by any means, I just personally hate the darn things and never wanted to get them attached. So although the boys have never used them during the day, we had one last hold out who seemed dependent on it at night time (Benjamin again!) But last week we took it away cold turkey and he has been a champ.

At their 9 month appointment, Winston came in at 22lbs13oz and 29", Theodore was 23lbs6oz and 31.25", and Benjamin topped the percentile charts at 26lbs 30.25". They are all on track developmentally but I can't imagine what our 1 year visit is going to be like with these 3 guys all up on the doctor's table together. It was hard to keep them all up there safely, especially my wild child Winston!

Alexander continues to be such a trooper and I hope I never take that for granted. We move into our new home in 2 weeks and I worry the most for him. The babies will adjust but Alexander has grown so close to his extended family, I know he will miss them dearly. He loves, and I love watching him, making the rounds at night to say 'good night' to his grandparents and great-grandparents before bedtime. When we move we may have to call for the 'good nights' and kisses, but I know it won't be the same. I think Alexander's return to daycare is so important because he will have something that is his own and we can have special time together to/from school. I hope we get lots of visitors at our home this summer (HINT HINT) so he will feel special and attended to during this transition.

I am also proud of my brave grandpa who fought in the Korean War. Happy Memorial Day everyone.

Saturday, May 12, 2012

Splish splash!

I have been working up the courage to put all three babies in the bath at the same time and this week we finally did it. All three had a blast splishing and splashing and getting water everywhere!

Theodore, Benjamin and Winston

Big brother Alexander helped momma wash them too.


Two of the babies are mobile and crawling all over the place (Theodore and Winston.)  Benjamin is content with just sitting and watching them roam around. He is such a big guy, his mobility is pretty much limited to rolling around like a beached whale.

Winston and Theodore exploring
Although we are crazy busy right now, life is good and all four boys are happy. We have a new nanny coming on Monday for the babies - everyone cross your fingers that she is strong and patient enough to handle these boys!

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Tough times

This week has been tougher than usual, physically and mentally. My work has been very intense and will be for the next 24 days. For those that don't know, I am working to get the local school systems' budget passed, which is requesting an additional $35million and require a tax increase. Our board took the very unique action of passing a resolution fully in support of this budget so that means all of my energy and time that is not dedicated to taking care of family, must be dedicated to getting this passed. The business community has a huge stake in getting this passed, and our community does too, but unfortunately it has been an uphill battle in this very conservative county with a mayor who is adamantly opposed. This is really my first time in a political campaign where I am fully invested and pushing on all fronts, all stakeholders, all avenues to get this accomplished. I have to remind myself to not take things personally, but it is hard when it impacts you and the future education of your 4 kids too. (If you're interested in learning more about this, go to http://www.bethebestknox.com/.)

So work has been emotionally and mentally draining, the boys are good but towards the end of the week got sick, in the middle of the week the nanny declared she is quitting to take care of her sick son, so that meant I immediately had to find and interview nannies by myself because, oh yeah, Nate went away for 3 nights/4 days for work. Phew. Just typing all of this makes me tired.

There have been mornings this week where I feel sick to my stomach because of everything going on and the imbalance of pressure on me. I go to bed exhausted but all amped up because I know the immense challenge before me the next day. So I suck it up and press on because there is no time to sulk and feeling sorry for myself doesn't help a thing.

As I was speed-walking across downtown to make a luncheon, I realized everything in my life before now was just preparation for this moment. I look back and think of all the physical and mental struggles with which I've been faced: family divorces, moves, state tournaments in basketball and softball, break-ups, the summer I took the job at the Chamber, took the bar, and then got married, having all those babies in 3 years, etc. Those were all hurdles I faced and now I am stronger because of them. When people ask how I do what I'm doing now, it's hard to explain because I have the strength of all of those experiences behind me. You just do it.

But all those things were "practice" for my life. And now the stakes are so much higher. I only get one shot at making sure these kids are healthy and happy. I may only have one shot to get 1 of the top 100 largest school system's 5-year plan funded and give my and other local kids a chance to compete against their peers in the world. So I will try my hardest and when this experience is over, it will prepare me for the next.

For now, I will remain grateful for those 4 smiling faces I am greeted with when I get home in the evening. They make my world go round and make the toughest days just melt away.