Muddy Pumpkin Patches

Well, it finally happened. 

The boys are not napping. In fact, they are escaping.

 I remember when Evie stopped napping. It was one of the most depressing realizations that there was no longer a separation from the morning and afternoon.

It’s been happening for awhile now. The boys keep each other entertained, and sleep isn't in the plan.

 Once they are in their cribs, in the dark, the party starts. 

Songs are sung. 

Cheers are chanted. 

Conversations about the day fill up the dark room. 

Toys are flung. 

There is no sleep happening. 

They stay there, in the dark happily for about an hour until they start chanting, “Mommy, Mommy, Mommy….” 

However, the other day, Caleb casually comes walking out of the room. He looks at me and says, “Hi Mommy. I’m not tired. I don’t want to nap. I want to play, Mommy.”

“Caleb!” I say (as no one has ever actually escaped their cribs and walked out the door) “How did you get out here?!”

Before he could answer, I hear from inside the dark bedroom Levi’s voice shout to me, “He climbed out, Mommy!”

Oh man. Here we go. 

Then suddenly, I hear a Boom! and a Crash!….and James has decided to follow his brother and escape. And so a new chapter begins…

I'll take escaping over what has been happening with Caleb lately. Several times within the past week I enter his room after an hour of "napping" and he's standing in his crib, completely naked. His dirty, poopy diaper is ripped off and tossed across the bedroom.  He calmly informs me it was dirty and that he would like a new one. 

Ok, I think it's time to get them into real beds...and really attempt potty training. 

Our fall, with  all the pumpkin patch visits and hayrides, was actually quite wet and muddy. There was one Saturday that was just perfect and beautiful, and we managed to get out to the farm to get our pumpkins. 

A highlight of the pumpkin patch is definitely riding the cow train. This particular farm is known for its crazy drivers, and after a wet fall, the ground was just right for an all out mud bath.

I squeezed myself into the little cow train car with Caleb on my lap. I haven't laughed so hard in a while as the driver truly gave us a thrill ride, speeding around the fields, not pausing at the mud holes. Accelerating at the various bumps and ditches, I hung on to little Caleb so he wouldn't fly out!

It was the best (and muddiest) cow train ride I've ever been on!

 

 

I also accompanied all the kids on their class field trips to the farm. Evie's was a total wash out, as the rain came down in torrents. However, the program went on as planned. The farmer methodically toured us around the soggy farm as we parents shared in the misery together. 

Despite the utter saturation, Evie and I got to create a cute little scarecrow as well as share a cup of hot cocoa at Starbucks together. 

The boys' farm day was a little nicer, but cold. They marched around together, feeding the various livestock popcorn and picking out their perfect pumpkin. 

Despite the wet fall, Halloween actually turned out to be a nice day. After two years of coordinating the kids costumes, (Goldilocks and the 3 bears the first year….the Wizard of Oz last year…) they all picked their own costumes this year. 

So, we had Levi as “Paw Patrol”

Caleb as Mickey Mouse

James as “James the Train” (from Thomas the Train)

And Evie as Sleeping Beauty.

They all picked up the cadence of trick or treating quite well; however, we had to rotate who got to ring the door bell at each house to avoid the bickering. 

We also had to coach them to say, “trick or treat” at the door rather than simply “Candy!”

We also insisted on “Thank you” and “Happy Halloween!"

Our neighborhood was illuminated with bright lights, excited kids and Halloween festivity. The kids had a blast, and collected way too much candy. Like any Mom, I tried to hide it after they went to bed.

But the first thing they asked the next morning: “Mom, where’s the candy?!” 

They of course inquire about it because they want to eat it. 

However, I noticed that it also became more of a trophy rather than something solely for consumption.

 Levi begged me to allow him to take a small candy bar with him to his bed.

 “I wont eat it mama. I wont eat it. I just want to hold it." 

I know my Levi, and he has a heart of gold. He genuinely wants to do what is right, and when he promised me he wouldn’t eat it, I believed him. 

So,  the next morning I walked into his room and observed him sleeping soundly. He was all curled up with his stuffed animals and, sure enough, there clutched securely in his unopened fist was his melted candy bar, unopened. 

One exciting result from the abundance of rain this fall are all the rainbows! We've witnessed so many rainbows in the sky, some of the most brilliant I've seen. 

It always makes me smile because it reminds me that in this damp, soggy mess sometimes in life, God is behind it. The kids know that too. They point to the rainbows, and shout with delight, "God made it!" 

Pumpkins, candy, costumes, rainbows!!...do we really have to go into the holiday season?! 

Not sure I'm ready for all that yet!

Family Time

I have three naked 2 year olds who’s nightly ritual is lining up to take a turn to pee pee in the potty. 

Followed by a mad rush to grab at the toilet paper roll and throw pieces of it into the toilet. 

Finally, the incessant flushing flushing flushing of the water,

 until I just can’t take it anymore 

                                                    and I declare: “Enough! No more playing on the potty!” 

 This is my world right now.

 A lot of craziness surrounds the toilet bowl.

 A lot of nakedness. 

A lot of laughter. 

It’s hard for me to take potty training three boys seriously right now. My grandma keeps asking me how "its going"; my answer is always the same,”I’m not training.”

 I think if I just had one child at a time any of the boys could be trained to use the toilet right now with consistent instruction and encouragement. Sometimes when I feel myself getting overwhelmed and frustrated by the incessant flushing of the toilet or the constant bickering on who gets to sit on it next, I just have to step back and see the humor in all of this. 

It is hilarious.

  Although my kids are genuinely sweet children, they are all testing and trying out their boundaries and trying to get a grip on their emotions. 

James has been having some severe emotional outbursts lately... Like really screaming in our face and rageful displays of anger. His angry displays of emotion is intimidating sometimes, and John and I are not sure how to handle it. Even four year old Evie reverts back to tantrum like tirades at times. I feel like John and I are playing referee much of the time, and we are always putting someone in the time out chair. In fact, James knows the drill so well now that he will put himself in time out. 

Times with our family have been really sweet lately. Evie has been asking about the ocean and the beach for months. We told her we’d take her this summer…but the summer passed and just recently she asked when we were going to the beach. So we decided that this weekend was now or never. 

The Oregon Coast is not known for its gorgeous, hot beachy days, (even in the summer)…so in October, you are pretty much guaranteed rain rain and more rain. And sure enough, on Sunday it rained; but we decided to still go Seaside. I’m not sure where Evie’s interest and idea of the beach came from, but she was really fixated on seeing sand crabs. When we arrived at the  cloudy, misty ocean, she looked disappointed. Pointing at the misty rain and people walking around in hooded sweatshirts she declared,  “This is not the beach!” 

The rain let up for about 20 minutes, which allowed us a semi-dry trek on the sand. It was really magical. However, Evie stopped and stared in absolute horror at the remains of sea crabs laying around the beach. The dismembered crab parts really made her nervous, and she suddenly became terrified. She began to scream in absolute terror. I’m not sure if she thought the crabs were suddenly going to come out of hiding and attack her, or if she really just didn’t like seeing miscellaneous crab parts strewn around. Whatever it was, this  really evoked some strong emotions in her and she was terrified of the beach for the remainder of the day.

The boys started out super enthusiastic, running toward the waves; but when the water suddenly started chasing them, they turned around and screamed as they ran back up the beach. Caleb really was the only one who remained excited the entire time. He really enjoyed and found delight in everything, even the rain. 

We ended up taking the kids to the small aquarium on the beach where we could feed charming sea lions small fish and observe many types of fish behind glass. Evie, still reeling from her crab apprehension, did not take interest in anything that lived in the water. 

Our coastal journey finally brought us to an ice cream stop and a carousal ride before finally raiding the local "ma and pa" toy store;  after one final emotional meltdown, we packed up the van and headed back to Tualatin. 

Although simple and quick, these sweet family moments are becoming more frequent and more enjoyable. I keep getting glimpses of what our family could be, of what it will be. 

Only the week before we had our family pictures. These were by far the best session yet and for the first time, John and I actually left feeling like we might have some great pictures!

 Our photographer really captured some beautiful fall photos of the kids playing in the leaves.

I still look at my children and gasp sometimes. Like when they are all sitting on the couch, watching cartoons or running down the beach, I think, “Are those really my children?!” 

It’s still hard for me to believe. 

I feel like more and more lately I’ve been falling in love with each of their little personalities and holding on to what makes them unique. 

For the first time lately, I really more excited about “Us.”

Apple Picking

With the start of the fall schedule, time is going even faster! 

Good-bye September! 

Bring on fall! 

Evie started awanas this fall at the local church

We’ve experienced some pretty near perfect fall days here already;  what better way to spend a gorgeous fall morning than picking apples!?!

I discovered Bells Orchard, a cute little place that has smaller trees, just perfect for little bodies and hands to take part in the picking process.

Like any fresh fruit we happen to be picking, fresh- off -the- tree apples have now become my new favorite treat. 

So juicy. 

So crunchy. 

I mean these things are GOOD!

There is something satisfying about sinking your teeth into this fruit. 

About half way through the morning, the kids were starting to become rather crabby. Amanda had the brilliant idea of giving each one an apple to naw on..and like magic, I had four happy, munching kids parading through the trees taking in the late September sunshine. (The adults had one too..and I have to say, I felt much happier while eating one of those apples!)

Besides driving and picking the kids up from preschool, I’ve also had the joy of getting the house somewhat in order. I’ve had massive Good Will dumps lately and organizational bin purchases. There is just something about the fall time that makes me want to set up camp properly for the winter months ahead. 

Speaking of fall cleaning, we decided it was time to get our carpets cleaned. We’ve lived here 2.5 years and not had this done. When the friendly carpet man shined his creepy ultraviolet light on the carpet, I was appalled by the remnants of bottle formula, urine and cat stains I saw in our carpet.

 Ignorance is bliss.

 The carpet cleaning took about 2 hours, and the difference was so apparent. However, the day after the cleaning, I walked into the boys room to get the boys up from their nap. Upon entering, I saw James standing up in his crib, totally naked. 

“James, why did you take your diaper off?!” 

He looked at me and plainly stated, “It was dirty.” 

Then, looking down next to the discarded soiled diaper I saw sprays of urine all over the crib and carpet. 

This pretty much sums up trying to keep a house nice and tidy with four children.... 

AND trying to keep a nice and tidy life with four children. 

All of a sudden I'm craving one of my apples. 

Mother of Preschoolers

I am absolutely giddy right now. 

Fall is here and the routines have started, and I am officially in a new season of life.

Don't misunderstand me, the summer went as well as it could possibly go...and it was the best one yet with the kiddos. 

But...we did everything we could possibly do. 

A highlight of the summer: A cowboy birthday party complete with ponies!

Caleb LOVED the pony

I was so desperate towards the end of the summer that  I let my kids play at Fred Meyer

There were no more parks to visit or PB and J picnics to be had. Like the changing seasons, we needed something fresh and new. 

                                                                                          Preschool. 

 Yes, ALL my children are enrolled in preschool. (well, Evie will proudly tell you “pre-k PLUS!)

Evie goes to a fantastic preschool near by and when I dropped her off last year, I always took one of the boys with me. For the boys, going to preschool was a privilege and something that was highly anticipated. When it was "their day" they excitedly raced into the car to see Evie off. They cried when they had to leave the colorful, interesting classroom. 

So when I found out there was a 2 1/2 preschool program, I took three spots. 

 Preschool has been talked about and anticipated all summer. Now that it’s their turn to actually stay in the classroom and hang their back packs and coats on their own hooks and have their own name tags, they are beyond excited. 

I started prepping them for the start of school several weeks ago. I took each boy out to the store individually to pick out their new back pack. This ceremony ordained them as official preschoolers. They strutted around the house for days wearing their treasured back packs, ready to start. 

Evie goes to Pre-K Mon-Thurs morning; the boys go Tues and Thurs mornings. 

I have two mornings a weeks when I load up all the kids, herd them into school, and drop them off by myself. A year ago, this task seemed unimaginable and completely impossible. 

Yesterday I did it for the first time. 

Once we arrived, James was off playing with trucks and talking to another boy even before I had a chance to pin his name tag on and say good bye. Caleb looked around enthusiastically, gave me a hug and off he went exploring the room. 

Levi, however, screamed in terror at the realization of being left. He clung to my leg as the teachers lovingly talked and convinced him to say good-bye. Apparently he was fine as soon as I exited. 

Evie was a great help to me, buckling boys into their seats and making sure they followed me through the busy parking lot. She walked into her new classroom like she was casually coming home. She gave me a quick obligatory hug and immediately started chatting to her friends and partaking in the activities spread out around the classroom. 

 I saw so many moms and parents I knew from last year, as well as people from our neighborhood and gym. It's truly a community place. It was so nice to visit and catch up.

 As I walked out of that school to an empty van, I marveled at the realization that I had just dropped all four kids off. 

I decided that since it was such a beautiful day I would go on a run through some parks and nature paths. I didn’t even listen to music but simply enjoyed the silence  of fall. The once busy playgrounds were now eerily empty. The sun wasn’t beating down, but instead a crisp stillness enveloped me.

 As I ran, the beautiful silence was suddenly interrupted by  crying children and babies. I came upon a “stroller strides” exercise class. There was a pack of tired  moms in yoga pants, with their double strollers, pacifying cranky kids with toddler snacks as they desperately tried to get a workout in. I sensed their exhaustion and their support for each other, and the burden of doing life with babies attached. 

A quick but astounding thought passed through my mind: "I’m past that" 

"This isn't a season I can relate to anymore."

 This thought was shocking to me. Absolutely shocking. I suddenly realized that I no longer identified with this newly post pregnancy stage of tending to small babies.

 I no longer identified with the strollers, and bottles and the feeling of keeping someone alive who was so small and unpredictable. 

 I was in the next stage. 

A mother of preschoolers.

 As I ran past them, all these feelings and thoughts came flooding over me as I remembered that not-to distant time as a mom of a newborn (or three newborns!) How quickly now I’m in the next stage.

Summer 2014: Th3 babies and a toddler

 And it feels so incredibly good. 

Needless to say, the time between drop off and pick up went wayyyyy too fast.  I was actually really worn out from gathering them and their belongings from their classrooms, convincing them to follow me through the parking lot (and leaving the playground), getting them situated into their car seats in the van and then unloading them and feeding them lunch before hauling them upstairs for rest time. Whew. Even though I'm in the next stage, exhaustion still exists. 

My kids still really need to be taken care of, but I do see things changing in a big way. 

  I do think preschool will be good for them, and I'm sure the whole process will get easier. 

 I'm excited about this new season of life and anticipate a lot of growth and change in the next nine months!