Since I have had THREE Children...

People ask me all the time what it's like to have three kids. It's hard to summarize, but I decided that I should try! Since I had my third child (3 years ago now, wow)... I have LOST many things...

1. MY set of car keys. Yeah, the ones with my house key on them, my library card, cute key chain, etc. GONE. I am using my 'spare' key now for my car, no idea what I would do if I lost it...

2. The ability to have a laundry DAY. I do laundry constantly now. He's so tiny, yet somehow- he has pushed the household over the legal limit of laundry!

3. My sanity. My grip on reality. But that's a given, right?!

4. My last Fu*k. Not sure where it went, but I don't have time to judge- so don't judge me! I work- I barely see you, sorry, hi, I gotta go- we have water polo at 5...

5. My ability to know where every.single.thing is in our house. I used to. Really. I used to know where Jacob's other sandal was, and Zachary's glasses, and everyone's papers from school... Now I just can't. You wore the shoes, not me- go find them. I'll wait... for a minute... 

I mean, look at this kid- he steals the show!

I have also broken a few cell phones, but I thank Pokemon Go for that... and I haven't been to the salon in too long (hair could really use a cut/style/SOMETHING). I prefer to take the time I have at home to be there, with the boys. I have started having a couple close friends over to watch TV a couple times a month, because none of us can GET OUT anymore. It works for us! 

I have still managed to keep up on Christmas cards, family portraits, and feeding the boys vegetables fairly often. There are things I have had to let go. My house... is not clean. My car... is not clean. But my kids are happy, and clean (usually) and know they are loved. I'm doing my best to 'live in the moment'- we went to Disneyland spontaneously on Labor Day! And I hope the boys will remember the good times, and forget the dog hair tumbleweeds that roll through the dining room on occasion... 

I have lost many things... but most of all, I have GAINED a wonderful, intelligent, funny, strong-willed, wild child who makes everyone take notice of his presence. We wouldn't be the same family without him, and while he does drive his brothers crazy every once in a while - we couldn't love him any more! 

MMG: Mother's Day Weekend 5.11.14

This weekend seemed extremely busy! Thursday, I was at an affordable housing conference for work and then I went for my 28 week glucose test. If you have experienced this before, you know that it's one of the least enjoyable doctor's visits. It involved drinking an 'orange flavored beverage', waiting an hour- and then having your blood drawn. I got so nauseous and light-headed at the one hour mark, that they were unable to draw my blood- and I had to return to try again on Friday morning. 

Friday morning, I dashed off to the doctor's appointment. I was there until 9:30, and Little J's kindergarten "Spring Performance" was at 10. I was, of course, a few minutes late. And, of course, he noticed. Afterwards, I told him how great it was and his response was, "You missed the first three songs, but it's ok, Mommy." I did my best! The kids gave their moms tiles that they had made. 

Little J's tile depicted me (the yellow chicken?), and a variety of animals. I thought his animal choices were interesting, because we actually have two dogs. But instead, he chose to portray a turtle (green), a cat (red), and a mouse (black). I love it, and it's now hanging proudly in our kitchen. I don't have much of his artwork, since he's not very interested in drawing. He'd rather build Legos. 

Little J's "About Mom" poster was pretty funny to me. He is so straightforward. He also drew me with creepy yellow eyes, and apologized that he didn't know what color my eyes are. He's so serious! His "About Mom" info is below:

Mom loves me most when: I do my chores

Mom looks prettiest when: She goes to work.

Mom is good at: typing

Mom is special because: She is pregnant.

Saturday, we had swim class, ran some errands, and my husband worked on the baby's room closet organizer. That took a lot of time. The nursery is almost done! And then Sunday was Mother's Day!

Sunday we went to Disneyland bright and early, to beat the crowds. We were there from about 8:30 to 12:30, which was perfect. It was great to see Disneyland through the eyes of a 3 year old. We've taken him before, but only when he was too young to remember. Everything was so new and special for him. On the way out, we got to ride in the front of the monorail with the driver- which both boys thought was great! 

How was your Mother's Day?!

The Value of Great Childcare

Well, I was going to post about the nightmares that I've had since becoming a mother. And then one came true... our beloved Kymber is leaving us. Kymber has been coming to our home Tuesday through Thursday, and every other Friday. She takes care of the kids, deals with our dogs, and keeps the place running while I'm gone. She kisses boo boos, she changes wet sheets, she feeds them, she bathes them... I trust her completely. She has made it easier for me to leave my babies, and head off to work.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="354" caption="I totally look like this. image source: www.helloladies.com"][/caption]

While I'm proud of her for pursuing her dreams (she's so young!), she will be sorely missed. My biggest heartache will be informing Little J that his "Kimmie" won't be coming over any more. I'm pretty sure that he thinks Kimmie comes over to hang out, because he is so awesome. Of course.

It feels like I'm back to square one with childcare. My mother-in-law watches the boys on Mondays, so that is taken care of. I have every other Friday off (it's called a 9/80, and it's AMAZING - I know!). So that leaves me with the remainder of the days. Little J will be starting preschool in September, but it's two half days. He also does a gymnastics class during the week, so we need a driver!

My husband and I have discussed at lengths what the best option is for us- and we've settled on a part-time nanny. I know that I am extremely fortunate to be able to have this option, and it just works best for us. We have someone in the house with the dogs all day, the kids can sleep in their own beds, and germs are kept to a minimum. After my ER visit with Mayhem http://wp.me/p1AbH5-68, I truly value the ability to keep the boys in our own house! I know that every mother, child and family is different. But this situation is what keeps me sane!

That said, I would much MUCH MUCH prefer to be able to stay home with them myself. Losing the current setup has made me absolutely ache for that chance. I know that my income is needed right now, but I can't help but dream.

Have you experienced a similar situation? Does this ever get any easier (leaving your children with someone else)?