Kate!

I've been asked to post a picture of Kate, so here you go dear friend of mine!

Kate is an enigma to me. Girls have always been a foreign concept to me, I never thought I would get one. I used to love hearing stories about girls and the differences between girls and boys, and I always said I was a better mom to boys than girls. I don't know if that is true or not anymore, I guess time will tell.

The interesting thing about it is that I never realized how much I wanted a girl until I had one.

Luke!

My little Luke, also known as "Ukey, Ukey, Ukey" in some parts (especially the South), is such a great little guy! He has two wonderful smiles, one with his mouth wide-open and beaming eyes and another as he sucks his bottom with a grin. The latter is new since his first tooth! His laughs are just contagious, big belly laughs nothing short of hilarious due to not much more than a glance from anyone. He's a super-happy guy and so much fun to be around!

But he's got this issue I cannot figure out. He loves to wake up and hang out within the 5 o'clock hour. Granted, I love the boy and love to spend time with him but I also like to sleep! This is a problem.

He usually wakes up singing. He'll make musical noises in his crib until one of us goes to get him. He wakes up with one of those aforementioned grins and a squeal of delight. Baby talk for "Good morning, great to see you!" If we don't go in there quickly enough, he usually will serenade us for about five minutes before frustration sets in, he will start to cry. Alas, we would prefer to go in to a squealing baby rather than a fuss-bucket!

I would like to think he just wants to spend some quality time with me. I sometimes feel like I'm short-changing my kids, especially the babies, because I cannot spend as much quality time with each one as I would like. I'm a busy mom with five kids, unfortunately there's a lot to do! So maybe he just needs some one-on-one time with me. Honestly, I could think of better times. I look very haggardly when I wake up before the sun, my breath is atrocious, and I'm grumpy (coffee can take the edge off, but it's not a perfect solution). I don't want to spend any time with me, why would this little guy?

We've tried letting him cry but he will just get hysterical and usually wakes up Kate. We've tried pelting him with food at night to ward off the morning hungry pains. We've tried getting him to sleep later but then we are just burning the candle at both ends. Nothing seems to help!

Today he woke up at 4:59, a minute before Steve's alarm went off. I got him up, changed his diaper, and made him a bottle and me some coffee. We went downstairs and played and I read the paper. I do enjoy the quiet time in the house, it is quite peaceful, but I would trade it in a heartbeat for another two hours of sleep.

Fast-forward two and a half hours. Kate wakes up with a big grin and a desire to play. Luke is crabby and wants to go back to sleep...me too! I get her up, he goes to sleep. Sweet dreams my little one!

My day is just beginning!

A Big Challenge

I have come to realize through much experiences and observations that I am not the mom I want to be. I know we are not all perfect, but there are certainly many ways for me to improve. I don't want to change the world, just tweak my world a little bit.

My kids are picky. My husband is picky. I am told I am picky too, though I disagree with this a bit. I read an article a couple of months ago in the Washington Post about picky eaters. The article talked about "supertasters", people whose sense of taste and texture is much more heightened than most. Steve whole-heartedly subscribes to this position. He has always been a picky eater, mostly with vegetables, saying the texture just isn't good. I think he sees it as an excuse and another way to be "super." The article also said people who eat one item at a time on their plate (that's me!) are picky. I would say that it has less to do with pickiness and a lot more to do with my OCD (something I may address another time), but call it what you like! My kids basically follow in their dad's footsteps. They see his nose flare at the green beans (texture!) and suddenly I'm the bad guy for even thinking they should put this toxic, green vegetable in their bodies. A mushroom may put them over the edge.

We have made some subtle changes over the years. We switched to Ovaltine rather than Hershey's Syrup for chocolate milk, use 1% rather than 2% milk (skim milk may be in our future), water down all juice for the kids, and I make my own popsicles to cut down on sugar. My kids take their lunches to school so I can see what they're eating. I even belong to a local CSA for organic fruits and vegetables and a local dairy co-op for organic milk and eggs. I have bought a couple of books to lead me in the right direction and a couple more for recipes once I am there. I am armed with all the ammunition, let's roll!

My first step is to encourage five servings of fruits and veggies a day. I will keep you updated! Wish me luck!

These are a few of my favorite things...eating edition

• Popcorn
• Fruity frozen things (popsicles, sorbet)
• Yellow cake batter
• Bananas (perfectly ripe)
• Margaritas (frozen, no salt)
• Baby toes!

These are a few of my favorite things...smelly edition

• Playdough
• Purple (grape) kool-aid
• Bubble gum
• Freshly mowed grass
• BBQs
• Clean babies
• Dirty, smelly kids who've had a great time playing outside all day
• Wood fires
• Banana baby food in a jar

Nanny, Nanny...Boo, Hoo!

We are on the hunt for a nanny. I have been conflicted about this decision to begin with, mainly because it is so difficult for me to ask for help. As the summer nears, and I realize the older boys aren't going to have as many excursions as I would like with the babies, I thought it is now time to get some help. Steve is also starting a new job in mid-June which will make his time less flexible, which is what kind of got this process started.

I began getting the word out. I put a couple of ads on Craigslist, asked some friends and neighbors if they knew anyone, and even asked at the PTO meeting. Surprisingly, the most responses I got were on Craigslist, but, not so surprisingly, most were not good candidates. Though I was specific in where we live, some wanted to know if we were Metro accessible. (um...hello? We live fifty miles from DC!) Others wanted me to come pick them up. (um...) I did get a couple of good candidates so I scheduled some interviews.

I am looking for someone who can just give me an extra set of hands for about 10 hours a week. My hours are completely flexible, I can schedule my life around when I will have help, and it really is just a luxury for me and my family for us to get out and do things. Maybe we could even find someone who could watch the kids at night so Steve and I could have a date! Other than that, I really don't have many expectations...or at least I thought!

The first interview was interesting. The woman spoke some English, but was pretty difficult to understand. I was open to the idea of her speaking Spanish to our kids, I actually thought it would be awesome to expose them to a different language. She seemed to love the babies, her eyes lighting up and joyfully saying "twins?!?" when she saw there were two, but really didn't seem to savor the idea of hanging out with the older boys. I knew she wasn't the one for us when I asked her what she did for fun. "Fun? What do you mean?" (sigh) I couldn't picture myself having conversations with this woman pool-side, which made me realize I may be looking for some thing more than just a nanny. I am looking for someone with whom I can interact with as well.

Our second interview was more promising. She is a nanny for another family three days a week and a mom of an eight month-old boy who she brings along with her. This raises a red-flag for me. I am having trouble juggling two babies, how will she juggle three? Later, after speaking with her a little bit, another red-flag came to my attention. I didn't even think about how her baby would react to seeing her with other babies. (sigh) Of course, our conversations with this woman went smoothly. She has the same ideas about discipline as we do, seemed really energetic and peppy, and didn't seem overwhelmed with our five children. She even has a six year-old step-son who goes to the same school as Trent and Kyle, so she knows how to handle older children as well. While I really like her, I'm not sure she is the best candidate with her baby in tow.

We have another interview on Thursday. I am most hopeful about this one. She is a local high school student looking for a summer nanny position. I got her name through a friend who goes to the same church and this girl works in the nursery there. Since it will only be for the summer, it's not ideal. Hopefully, if it works out, we can get her on a limited basis during the school year or at least for an occasional babysitting. I will let you know how it goes.

Searching for a nanny is difficult! I am not struggling with the idea of leaving my children with a stranger as most parents who go through this interview process do. I will be with this person, getting to know him/her much before I left my children. (Wouldn't it be something if I ended up with a "Manny? I wonder how Steve would react, especially if he has Brad Pitt good looks? The boys would love it!) Steve will also be working from home about half of the time so he might hear if something was going on or if there was an emergency. The hardest part is finding someone who I like enough to have a relationship with, but someone who I could depart with if things didn't work out.

The search continues...

Five Months!

The babies are five months old! I can't believe it! Steve and I were reflecting how it seems like they have been a part of our lives forever, but it's only been five months. I don't know if that's good or bad. Nonetheless, it's been a wild ride! From the shock of finding out we were having two instead of one in June, to bed rest in October and November, and all of those spur of the moment hospital runs after counting contractions. I can't even tell you how many lists of counted contractions I found after they were born! And let's not forget the graceful fall I took off our porch! Our poor friend who turned around to find me laying belly-down on the ground. My apologies Jay!

After many, many sleepless nights we are finally sleeping! That seems to be the number one question we get from people. We separated the babies into separate cribs about a month ago after they kept punching and waking each other. Thankfully they don't seem to wake up to the other one crying because we can't separate them out of the same room! Okay, okay, you caught me! Kate has been sleeping in our room for about a month now. We started putting her in the swing to elevate her when she was congested and she started sleeping through the night. It's working for us and she will probably be in there until the swing won't move anymore from her weight. In other words, it won't budge from the pudge!

I get tons of people stopping me all the time when I'm with the babies. Everyone has a comment to make, and mostly these people are completely enjoyable to talk to. I've gotten a couple of "Double trouble" or "Better you than me" comments, but I know people mean this in a good way. I probably get the most comments when I'm in the grocery store pushing the double stroller and pulling a cart. I've got an awkward system that works for me, but it definitely catches people's eyes. My friend who also has twins (happy first birthday to them, by the way) is tired of the comments and stares and just wants to get her shopping done. For me, it's kind of a treat to have others enjoy looking at my babies. The funniest comment I always get is, "You sure do have your hands full!" while they see me with the babies and usually one other child. My response is, "You don't even know!" They are only seeing me with three of my kids! Funny!

I still struggle with trying not to short-change the babies. I gave up a long time ago worrying about my other boys. If you know them, you know they will not allow themselves to be forgotten! Kyle is so grown-up, thoughtful and helpful, Lance is stubborn but snuggly-sweet and Trent loves to sing and make up songs...more about that some other time. The babies, however, haven't figured out how to stand out from the crowd. I always feel torn who to go to when they are both crying, who should get a bottle and who I should nurse, who should get to sit in front in the stroller...the list goes on and on. I try to be equal in my endeavours and love, but am eternally grateful my older boys and my husband have so much love to give as well.

The fun has begun, however, in living with the babies! They are awake a lot more often then they were even a month ago, but are so much more entertaining. Kate has complete conversations with anyone who will talk to her, especially when talking to the baby in the mirror. Luke has this belly laugh which is absolutely contagious and he does it often! They will look at each other and smile, Kate will talk to Luke and he will giggle back. Very fun! Life is about to get a lot more interesting!

This is a great time to thank all of you again who have supported us through this exciting time of our lives. Phil and Joyce, THANK YOU! Our neighbors and friends who brought dinner and gifts, we are so grateful for you. My dear friends who have listened and supported me through the pregnancy, delivery, and first five months, I would not be sane without you! Steve...banana!