Notes From the Weekend

Learning to sit up.

Big brother knows all.

Waiting in the car.

Some of us slept.

Leo and his dinosaur.

"Is she always this happy?" asked the woman at Target/mom at gymnastics/neighbor from down the street.


Pretty much, yes. I know. It's ridiculous.

Aaaaand there are too many of us to fit in a frame (and we're not even all here!).

Oh January, You Are Not December

I have no idea why Ellie looks so pathetic here. Harry? He's just hungry.

Don't ask me why I put a cap on Harry for breakfast. Why not?

We are having the winter that wasn't. It's been soooooo mild. Note the photo above that Ellie took (one of the nerdier pictures I've taken in my lifetime but hey, I can count on one hand how many pictures I have of myself in the last seven months so here's proof that I do indeed exist). And Ellie took it with my new and improved phone/camera, so that's a bonus.

The other day a Christmas song started playing from a leftover Christmas CD still in the car player and I felt all wistful. I don't know if it was because of the babies or because I was home but the holidays just flew by this year. Also it was never cold enough to really feel like the holidays. We had a number of 60 degree days. It was just weird. And here we are smack in my least favorite time of year. Bleak (sort of) mid-winter. With the closest holiday being Martin Luther King Day (no offense, he was a great guy but it's just not all that festive). And I'm having a hard time getting behind decorating for Valentine's Day which is more than a month away.

Switching gears: I'm on a roasted vegetable kick. Brussels sprouts, zucchini, brocolli. If it doesn't move I Will Roast It. And I just discovered the most amazing fruit and vegetable market with the best prices. And since Leo eats grapes year-round, even when they are $2.99 a pound. I much prefer .79 cents a pound. The above haul? I got for $38.

Am I really writing about the price of grapes? I'm sorry. I'm boring even myself here.

Moving on.

Lu is now a full-time tummy sleeper. She's pretty funny about the rolling. Put her on her back and she instantly turns to her stomach as if to say "Oh I don't think SO! I'm way above that. Don't even think about putting me on my back."

Duly noted.

Change of Plans: Update

Leo started spending time in his new classroom at school. He's doing language arts (reading and writing) in the "Language and Learning Delays" classroom. Am I the first parent in history to be thrilled that their kid is in this classroom? It's a big step for Leo and we are so proud of him. Friday he came home with some worksheets that included synonyms which made me teary because, synonyms? Seems hard. I don't think I was doing synonyms in second grade. His teacher emailed me and said that Leo was very excited about the fact that he has his own desk in this classroom. Of course he was.

In other news:

Hi, my name is Lucy and I'M TEETHING.

You'll notice the alfresco Exersaucer photos here because? It was 65 degrees here today. In January. Considering last year at this time we had oh, about two feet of snow on the ground, I am not complaining, not at all.

Yup, still teething and yet, happy.

Odds & Ends: Starting the New Year, Still Wrapping Up the Old

Oh, hi.

I used to be so good about taking little notes and remembering things I wanted to write about. And then, well. You know.

In other news, my sister's alma mater won the Rose Bowl. We are all very spirited about the Oregon Ducks. You can take the girl (and the boys) out of Oregon, but you can't take the Oregon out of us.

-Part of of my absence so far in the new year is related to the fact that the babies are having sleep troubles again, earlier in the evening (as opposed to middle of the night, well actually, in addition to middle of the night. Fun!). So my ability to finish a task in the early evening has been sorely affected. Lucy, or as I like to call her, "Flipper" figured out how to flip onto her stomach in her crib (and apparently, in her sleep). She then wakes up furious, confused and, well, screaming. I never much minded one screaming baby, but two? And when one wakes the other up? Not cool.

-As much as we all love the holidays and winter break, I think we were all a little relieved to get back to routine. Although I hesitate to call what we experienced a "break." Leo and Ellie both attended camps which were fabulous but for for the babies and me it meant practically living in the car for a week as we shuttled Prince Leo and Princess Ellie back and forth. It was of course worth it. They were occupied and enriched and best of all exhausted at the end of their busy little days.

-We finally had a cold snap. We experienced some "teens" weather. It honestly barely felt like winter until this week therefore it really didn't feel like Christmas at all. Hard to believe last year we were just beginning our month of being virtually buried under snow. What a difference a year makes, in more ways than snow.

-The following is ridiculously old news yet it's still newsworthy. The week before winter break, Leo appeared in the "mallet group" at his school's winter concert. Don't know what a mallet is in terms of music? Neither did I but it looks much like a xylophone. Anyhoo, Ellie and the babies and I went to see him perform. There was Leo, standing poised and proud, one of seven other (typical) second graders, malleting away, in perfect rhythm and time to old favorites like "Jingle Bells" and "Santa Claus is Coming to Town." I asked how it came to be that Leo was chosen to be in the "Mallet Choir." Apparently the aide that accompanies him to music class with the other second graders simply asked the teacher if Leo could do it and he said yes.

Simple as that.

Wishes, Hopes, Blessings: Bring on 2012

Probably no surprise to learn these two are the biggest thing to happen to me this year.

I just tucked Leo and Ellie in and told them I'd "see them next year." Ellie asked me if it was going to be the Best Year Ever. Leo, meanwhile, was ecstatic. He finally gets to switch the month on the calendar over (well, start the new calendar but you know what I mean). He's been insistent the last week or so that it's January and not December. I can only guess that Mrs. L turned the calendar to January before the class left for winter break. In the meantime, Leo and I have actually been arguing about it. That boy is hard-headed.

But I'm a stickler for details and I absolutely do not put a calendar for the new year up before its time. As I mentioned last year, I'm not big on resolutions. I'm more a fan of sweeping quotes that make you feel good and perhaps help you (try) and live your life in a better way (gee, I don't ask for much, do I?). It's hard to top last year's choice for me. It's still one of my all-time favorites and one I turn to when I'm sad or frustrated or when I just need a little encouragement.

I'm doing things a little differently this year.

It's based on an old Irish blessing. It's wishes and hopes and yes, blessings, which I think we can all use a bit more of in these confusing, fragile, wonderful little lives we lead. Yes, it happened to appear in one of the final scenes of the finale of one of my favorite TV shows of all time (I'm sure it didn't hurt that when I first heard it I was about 100 years pregnant and severely hormonal--sobbing doesn't quite cover it).

May the wind be always at your back
And the sunshine warm upon your face
May the rains fall soft upon your field
Until the day we meet again

And the roof that hangs over your head
Find you shelter from the storm
Before the devil knows you're dead
May you be in heaven my friend

May good luck find you at your worst
And back luck lose you at your best
May your days be rich and full of wealth
And your nights be long when you need rest

And the roof that hangs over your head
Find you shelter from the storm
Before the devil knows you're dead
May you be in heaven my friend

And the road may it rise to meet your feet
And be downhill all the way to your door
May the grass below be green and the sky above be blue
May it be so forever more

And the roof that hangs over your head
Find you shelter from the storm
Before the devil knows you're dead
May you be in heaven my friend

Thanks for hanging in there with us this year. I'm excited to see what 2012 has in store for us.

And as I like to say to the kids: "Let's get this party started!"

Life-y Chaos: Morning Edition

I try really hard to be grumpy in the morning and when sleep comes every night in two and three hour increments (I'm still looking at you Harry) it's not difficult.

But then I emerge, bleary eyed and stumbling, out of the bathroom and into our bedroom, and I see this.

And how can I not smile? It's a ridiculous love fest. It's true.


We're going on seven months with these little people. I keep waiting for Leo and Ellie to show signs of frustration or resentment. It hasn't happened. If anything, their loves just grows more fierce for Harry and Lucy, by the day. Leo has a few new nicknames for Lucy: Depending on his mood it's either "Dr. Lou." or "Mr. Lou." Don't ask.

The other morning, when Harry and I were still asleep, Erin set Lucy down next to a still sleeping Ellie (who had crept into our bed in the middle of the night). You know how people say exactly what they are feeling when they're still half asleep (and therefore filterless)? And since Ellie is completely filterless to begin with when she's conscious, then I think we can all believe her when she rolls over, gazes adoringly into Lucy's tiny blue eyes and says: "Mama, I just love the babies."

But really, if anyone has moments of frustration, it's me. Yesterday, after a morning of loading and unloading the dishwasher, trying to fold at least two of the laundry baskets filled with clean clothes, making a bevy of snacks and pressing "play" on the DVD player a few too many times, I kicked Leo and Ellie out into the backyard for some fresh air. Harry and Lucy were asleep at the same time (a rarity during the day, believe me). I took one look at yet another sink full of dishes and the still unfolded laundry and joined the big kids. The chores could wait.

Outside in the back yard, the light was golden and the air was unseasonably warm, as it has been for the last few months. Armed with the baby monitor resting on the patio table, I pushed Ellie on the swings and then the three of us played Frisbee (more like, continuously picked the Frisbee up off the driveway but I definitely got a workout). The sky started to turn a lovely, early winter bluish, pinkish purple as the sun started its descent. Then Ellie announced she had to go to the bathroom and quickly returned with the report that "two babies are crying." Clearly, the monitor had failed us.

It's funny, for a few brief moments, I sort of forgot about the babies. It felt like the "old days," when I could completely focus my attention on Leo and Ellie and not feel a constant nagging feeling that someone was about to cry or fuss or need something or or or. I won't lie. For a moment, I got grumpy. With the babies, a little. Why did they have to go and ruin a good, blue hour Frisbee game? Well, because they're babies. That's what they do.

And then I had what some might call a "duh" moment. Yeah, it's a little hard right now (though it's so much better than it was and it's just going to keep getting better, I believe this) but you know what? That fun I was having outside with my two "big kids?" There will come a time in that too distant future when there will be four fun kids out there playing Frisbee. Or swinging. Or bickering or whatever, but they won't always be crying and needing to nurse or be held or changed. I'm not trying to wish their babyhood away, believe me. I do my best to appreciate the fleeting baby days as I know they are just that, fleeting. But that doesn't make them any less exhausting.

Wherein the Most Relaxing Part of My Week So Far Was the Pediatrician's Office. The Second Trip In One Day. And No I'm Not Kidding

You would think that I, having been Leo's mom for as long as I have, would no longer be capable of being surprised by my boy. But oh, he still shocks me, so often in good and wonderful ways. And I should be ashamed of myself for forgetting this fact.

It might sound strange and unbelievable, but the most relaxing part of today, of the week so far, was the last-minute, late afternoon trip to the pediatrician's office that Leo and I took together.

It all started last night when I sat nursing Harry at Who Knows What Hour and listened to the gravelly wheezes of Lucy in her crib as she slept. Or tried to. Harry didn't sound much better. Their little coughs and rasps have been going on at least a week now and I knew it was time to get them to the doctor. Leo, at seven and a half seems so much sturdier, so I wasn't too worried about his cough. But when the pediatrician pronounced pneumonitis in the twins this morning, I knew it was time to get Leo into the doctor.

Today was one long stream of camp drop-offs and pick-ups and trying to get the babies to sleep and eat "solid" food in between and taking them to the pediatrician. Once I realized Leo should be seen by the doctor too, I told myself that if I had to take all four kids to the doctor by myself at the end of the day (aka Witching Hour) that I might as well buy myself a one-way ticket to Crazy Town while I was at it. So I texted our babysitter. Thank the Lord she was available.

Leo was NOT happy that he didn't get to stay with our beloved babysitter but Ellie and the babies did. He was even less celebratory when we pulled into the parking lot of our pediatrician. The poor guy knew. But we rallied. He found his seat in the waiting room and read books. To himself. By himself. Who is this big kid I have, suddenly, who is too cool to be read to?

In the exam room (where we had a lot of quality time, a good hour while we waited to be seen by the doctor), we joked and chatted and Leo drew pictures. He told me about his day at camp, which included a visit to a local arcade/amusement park where he rode a "big slide" and bumper cars. I'd would have paid money to see that. As much as I think siblings are great, Leo (like most kids I'm sure) is just a different creature when he's just one on one. When I can pour all my attention on him, he's just a sweet little gentleman.

But I'm burying the lead, which is that not only did Leo allow the doctor to listen to his heart and lungs without protest, but he also stood stonily still as the doctor examined his throat and, drum roll please, HIS EARS. Longtime readers will not the enormity of this news. When our doctor suggested he'd like Leo to use an inhaler I squirmed. That didn't sound like something he'd go for. But shame on me, because when the doctor pulled out the inhaler and explained it was something that "pilots use" (it looks a little like the mask you'd use on an airplane in the event that oxygen becomes an "issue"), Leo was all for it and huffed and puffed into that little inhaler like he was born to do it.

Our next stop was the local Mom & Pop pharmacy to fill all three prescriptions (yes, three out of four of the kids are on antibiotics. Oh, the awesomeness). Leo befriended the pharmacy manager. Within a few minutes of our arrival, he had Leo sweeping and straightening shelves. Also there were some high-fives and fist bumping.

When it was time to go, the pharmacy manager walked us out to the car into the cold night. I thanked him and he told me "he had fun too" and that we made his day.

You can't really ask for more than that, can you?

Up next: Conquering the Great Haircut Terrors.