It's Warmer?!?!?!

Our winter has been up and down so far and it's only the second month.  We had a week of really cold weather, -30F to be exact, yikes!  I had the wood stove going so we stayed toasty warm inside.  By the end of this week we were all going stir crazy and things were getting desperate.  To mix things up a bit I threw together a scavenger hunt, the boys drug pillows and blankets out to jump on, and we even went bowling in the house.   I also complied a list of things we could do in a pinch, because well, cabin fever is going to strike often.

And as luck would have it, yesterday it warmed up to 24F and the kids got sick.  Gah!  Today it was a modest 7F so I got us all (excluding Colin who was napping) outside for an hour.  It really cleared my head and even helped calm their coughs.  Here's to hoping they are feeling even better in the morning.  On Tuesday I fly with the three boys by myself down to ER to visit my parents.  Husband has been working a lot lately and I'm looking forward to the extra set of helping hands and maybe even a nap!

Sorry Ya'll

Sorry ya'll (or really Cousin Sharon),

I'm have to add those stupid character questions when adding comments.  I've suddenly been hit with spam for xanax and other weird things since lifting it.  Hopefully this won't affect anyone.  I like reading your comments and knowing that someone other then me looks at the blog!

Winter is Here

The boys on the first walk of the year (disclosure, this was a few weeks ago)

 

Winter has begun in the cold, cold, so very cold, north, and it did so brutally.  Last week we woke up to -17F.  WHAT?  Being in the interior is crazy.  Luckily it's warmed back up to a toasty 10F.  I try to get the boys out once a day if the temperature is above -20F, however the sharp drop in temperatures didn't allow me to slowly acclimate so I've slacked off so far this winter.  Today I did get the kiddos outside for a 20 minute walk and it was so nice.  I hate being couped up in the house.  That being said, getting a almost 4 year old, 2.5 year old, 6 month old, and myself dressed and out the door takes a lot of work; I hope it doesn't stop me in the months to come!

 

#3 continues to be a really good sport.  He has really enjoyed going on walks, even though the means being bundled up.  I've added a neck warmer that I crocheted to his winter wardrobe to (hopefully) keep his little cheeks from getting frost bit.  #2 likes pulling his sled around, but he wants to hold my hand ALL THE TIME.  I hoping he's just getting used to being in a snowsuit and walking in the snow.  #1 is having a BLAST!  Today on our walk he rolled in the snow for quite a while.  He's even stopped being freaked out when snow gets on his face.

 

We have been keeping warm with the wood stove.  I've decided to try another fuel saving measure this year, not warming up the house using fuel before we get up.  Brrrrrrrr is all I have to say about that!  I think we'll save a bunch of fuel, but waking up to the house being 60 is pretty chilly!  Our rooms are still heated through the night though, I'm not that crazy.  We'll see in the next couple of months if it's worth it or not, but I can't imagine in not. 

 

Happy Winter to everyone!

Just Around the Cornor

My first born is almost four.  I can hardly believe it.  I know it's two months away, but still, four years is A LOT closer then 3, or 3 1/2.  Yikes.  It's somewhat unbelievable that sleepless nights were that long ago, or that he was just learning to crawl, and then we were excited he started to walk.  Let's not forget the teeth and the solid food!  And then I fast forward to the present, and well no wonder it doesn't seem like four years because I did it all over 2 1/2 years ago, and am doing it again right now!  I guess that's the thing with having three kids in 3 1/2 years, once you get one out of a stage, there is another one following closely.

There are perks though to having an almost four year old. His temper has really "mellowed," well as much as boys can :) He keeps his hands to himself a lot more now. He also is making good choices more then bad. He loves saying I love you, giving hugs and kisses. He still likes to snuggle. He helps his brothers.  His speech is getting better everyday.  But I have a running joke with the speech therapist that I'm really pulling for an "r"!

 

And here is my 2 1/2 year following in the footsteps of his older brother.  Unfortunately for my ears, his terrible twos are manifesting in whining, not in temper tantrums.  I think I prefer the yelling!  His speech is also delayed, however it's due more to his stubbornness and not due to hearing issues like his older brother.  Just the last couple of weeks he has begun to repeat most of what I, and his older brother, say.  He now says two colors: bue (blue) and wewwow (yellow), and currently trying to remember eeen (green)!  He is super busy and a daredevil.  The newest adventure is jumping down the stairs.  He's going to kill me!  He thinks he can keep up with #1.

 



 

My baby!!!  He will be six months old next week. NOOOOOOOO.  I swear with #1 every new milestone was exciting because he was the first.  With #2 is was a little less novel, but he did everything so fast.  With this one I don't want him to grow up!!!!  I can't believe he could be eating solid food already.  That he can roll over and do pushups.  That he is getting his first tooth.  That he will be crawling at some point.  It just can't be!  I want to bottle him up and never let him out.  He LOVES his brothers and is such a good sport with them.  He doesn't even mind if they stand on him, it's great.  He is just precious.  And soon enough he'll be moving at the speed of light like the others and then I'll be nostalgic for those sleepless nights all over again.

A Hunting He Will Go!



This first pic isn't the best of Husband, but, if you can zoom in you'll see #1 sporting his favorite look, a wink topped off with a thumbs up!  Husband went hunting a couple of times in September but could never find that elusive moose.  Total bummer because we really needed one this year.  The boys helped Daddy get packed up and were rewarded by receiving a ride on the 4-wheeler.  #1 has been eyeing the trailer and I thought, what the he**, let's put his helmet on and let him ride.  He had a great time and we all earned a little brownie points!

 



Here is #1 giving Daddy a nice send off.  All packed and ready to go!

Below is my food cache for the winter.  I froze five bags of raspberries, seven of lowbush cranberries, and 10 or so of blueberries.  The raspberries were picked just up the road where we live (must pick more next year) and about half the cranberries are from our "front yard."  I convinced Husband to pick blueberries out at moose camp and he came through!  I'm so excited to have freshly frozen local berries for muffins and pancakes for those cold dark winter days that are coming. 

Two Boys in a Room

Way back in April we finally bit the bullet and put both boys in the same room (#1 and #2, #3 wasn't here yet!).  This decision was not made lightly.  We had thought about it for awhile, but then as luck would have it we were sort of thrust into it by two separate events.  The first was our domestic water pipes going out the day after Thanksgiving.  To accommodate all the exposed holes in our walls we moved #1 up into our bedroom (oh yeah, I must write about this) and #2 into #1's room.  #2's room became what I affectionately called our hoarders room because all things in our house went their to collect dust, disappear, then die a lonely death.  The sleeping arrangements stayed as such all the way until April.  I had politely, gently, subtly, and then not so subtly pointed out that I was 37 weeks pregnant and that soon we would have a third child (second event), who would be sleeping in our room and that it was time to get things moving to get #1 out of our room.  I didn't want #1 to feel as if the baby was replacing him and the cause for him being moved out, and we were quickly loosing time!  Husband quickly patched up the one room.  I made a cute calendar to countdown to this momentous occasion.  As it turned out, it was more for me then them.  Husband and I both dreaded them sharing a room.  We imagined endless nights of them laughing, playing, hitting, kicking, yelling, etc, etc, and that they would never get enough sleep and be grumpy and miserable, therefore making us miserable.  Thankfully, this couldn't have been farther from the truth and was in fact an easy transition.  The first night they laughed and played for an hour; the second, 30 minutes.  After that smooth sailing. 

Now fast forward five months to the present.  It's still going well.  However #2 decided it was a good idea to start screaming, crying, and jumping in his crib when it was time for lights out.  This prompted #1 to scream, cry, and pitch a fit at #2 to stop, "#2 be quiet, go to sleep."  They would do this for five minutes then silence.  It SUCKED.  It was loud and it bothered me to no end.  I felt bad that #1 was bothered by #2's racket.  I also felt bad for #2 because getting yelled at when you're sad sucks.  Finally I started to tell #1 that instead of yelling to calmly tell #2 that it'll be okay and to go to sleep.  Now I just simply remind him of this every night, and voila, no more yelling, and no more crying on #2's part, I'm SOOOO smart!  Now when I close the door I hear kindness, "#2 it's alright, mom will be back in the morning, go to sleep.  It's okay, go to sleep." Thank goodness!

I Love...

...being a mother of three wonderful, energetic, sweet loving boys!  These kiddos can bring a smile to my face even when I'm in the grips of overwhelming frustration.  My boys are full of energy.  I get them outside as much as possible.  This usually means 1-2 hours in the morning, and another bout after naps/quiet time in afternoon, usually a walk if the baby is awake.  These kids run in the house, rough house, jump off furniture, and use me as a jungle gym.  I wake up frequently with bruises without a clue as to where they came from.  These boys play rough and loud!  If only I earned a penny every time I said "Keep your hands to yourself" "You play gotcha with your dad, not your brother" "Stop squishing him."  And in a year I'll have one more to "reprimand!"

These boys are so sweet and loving.  Every time I'm at my wits end and I feel as though I am raising the next degenerates of society, #1 will come up to me out of the blue and say "I lub you Mom."  How can your heart not melt and make you realize you must be doing something right?!  #1 comes up to me frequently throughout the day unprompted to tell me loves me, gives a kiss, or a hug.  He does this with both his little brothers as well.  #2 loves giving #3 kisses and hugs.  It's pretty amazing.  And just today #1 on our play date went up to a little girl, shook her hand and said "Nice to meet you!!!"  Incredible!

All this being said, they are a handful, and I am fearing winter already.  I say already like it's somewhere in the far future, but in reality it's freezing at night and snow will be flying within the next two weeks.  We are going to have definite cabin fever.

Which brings me to this:  Any of you moms of multiple, wild, aggressive boys have any suggestions?!  How do you teach boys to be calm?  Or does this just come with age?  And does this mean I'll sound like a broken record for years to come?!

Happy (Belated Internet) Birthday #2!



Happy 2nd Birthday to #2!  I realize this is a little late.  We did celebrate his birthday, on his actual birthday, I'm just a little late letting all my Internet peeps know he turned two.  We had a nice bbq at our house with some of our adult friends and Husbands family over.  Lots of cousins to play with!  I decided we would forgo the traditional cake and made homemade cupcakes, from scratch, including the frosting.  Below is my (lame) attempt at hand drawing airplanes, one of #2's favorite things at the moment.  They turned out pretty good and were tasty.  Cupcakes for a crowd of little people is definitely the way to go.  An added bonus is the limited cleanup, no plates or forks, yea!!!

 

Here is #2 enjoying his cupcake.  #1 helped him blowout the candles.  Luckily #2 is very accommodating to his older brother (so far).  I fear the day (coming soon) this finally ends.



 A very cute picture of #1 when he was still a little baby.  Unfortunately, I failed my second born by not getting a super cute picture of him when he was first born.  I'd make some sort of excuse, but truly there isn't one.



#2 has in the past year really developed into the quintessential toddler.  He has blossomed under his big brothers guidance; a lot of times he faithfully does whatever he tells him to do.  Unfortunately for #1 this too is coming to an end.  Not sure how to convince #1 that no matter how loudly or forcefully he tells #2 to do something that, no, he actually doesn't.  #2 is starting to assert himself more.  In fact, he just started saying the word no to us.  It's pretty cute, I'll ask him something, and instead of grunting "uh-uh", he'll say "no mama." 

Other (not so cute) things he's picked up are:
- screaming at me (thanks to #1)
- hitting me when he's mad (why do children do this to their mamas?)
- being obstinate
- oh, there's the forever repeating myself telling him no:
         - don't touch the baby swing
         - don't touch the baby chair
         - don't push your brother
         - don't stand on the over: I could go on forever, so lame children aren't created to listen

Cute things he does:
- crashing his body into the ground (for fun)
- lots of hugs and kisses
- playing with his older brother
- lots of kisses for little brother
- riding his trike
- just being himself!  He's got such kissable cheeks :)

There are a thousand things I'm missing, but you get the gist.  I'm so lucky that he's apart of our family.  Can't wait to see what the next year will hold for him (or us). 

I Passed the Test!



Not sure if I mentioned this or not but #2 wears glasses.  Husband and I noticed his left eye (around nine months old) was turning in when he looked at objects but then would adjust back to normal.  I asked several people whether to take him to the optometrist and got both answers: 1) No, don't take him, they'll correct it when he's older and in school 2) You should take him and get it looked at.  I waited until he was 18 months old because I sort of felt like I was teetering on the edge of being a neurotic mom.  So I finally took both #1 and #2 to the optometrist to get their eyes checked out.  #1 passed (even though it's really only a visual exam with parental input on how they were doing) and #2, not so much.  Turns out lazy eyes are EXTREMELY important that need to be checked out and corrected ASAP.

The doc said many people wait until their child is in school for correction but by then it is too late to correct that eye, it will be bad FOREVER.  You child will be stuck with 1200 vision in that eye FOREVER.  There is a limited amount of time that the brain has to relearn how to see at 20/20 vision and once that time frame is passed, you can't get it back.  SO SO SO glad we took him in.  They ordered him some "cute" Winnie the poo frames which were very cute, but unfortunately too small and we had to upgrade to a larger, read, more expensive pair.  (Sorry folks, no pics of his first frames, although I do have a video where they make an appearance.)  Here's the thing about children's glasses, even though they are tiny they still cost as much as adult frames and they are no less prone to breaking or getting scratched.  Ugh.  The doc said for him to wear the glasses as much as possible.  Do you know how hard it is to get an 18 month old to wear glasses and not break them?  I do.  It's tough.  And remember I was six months pregnant at this point chasing him around, trying to get him to both wear them and not break them.

#2's second pair of glasses.  He LOVED picking

dandelions this summer and he'd store them in

his firetruck.

In April I took him back for a recheck and the doc very kindly said he only saw "mild improvement."  The goal for the next four months was to get him to wear his glasses AT LEAST six hours a day AND WEAR A PATCH for an hour (or more) a day.  I totally looked at him and asked if he was crazy.  Did he not see that I was three days from my due date?  Not only did he have to wear his glasses more but I also had to convince him to keep a patch on as well?!?!  Crap.  To give the doc credit he really is a nice guy who told me he understood he was expecting the impossible out of me.  I do like the guy.  He has two sons and is great with our kids.  I asked if he would be able to measure how good of a mother I am based on how well his follow up appointment in August would be, and with a smile and go natured laugh said yes.  And off I went with #2 out the door with glass patches in my pocket.

It took #2 all of one day to realize that if he bent his head down he could look over his glasses, thus defeating the purpose of the patch.  The next step, getting a "sticker" patch for his eye, featured here:

The thing about the patch is, well, to put it blatantly, is it makes him sort of blind.  The patch goes on his good eye thereby forcing his bad to do all of the work.  He has a pretty strong prescription for the bad eye that guesstimates the amount of correction.  He hates the patch.  He hates it so much that he would rather sit in timeout for forever.  Luckily though once on he'll leave it on.  I'd say we've had pretty good luck (read me).  Over the past four months he has consistently worn the patch 70% of the days, usually for two hours (the longer the better).  He also keeps his glasses on for the majority of the day; exceptions, car rides, when he in angry, or they fall off one ear and we're not around to fix it. 

Don't let the picture above fool you.  These glasses have taken a beating.  The original pair were bent to hell and he had gnawed off the latex bridge piece more times then I care to remember.  Additionally he broke off each ear piece and the end result was new frames.  Thankfully they have a warranty.  They have also gotten lost outside.  One time my mom's dog found them and used them as a chew toy so there are nice little indentations on one lens.

This brings us to our latest recheck.  Turns out I am a fabulous mom who cares greatly about #2's future eyesight (and possible his future) because I passed, err, he passed with flying colors.  There was more improvement then was expected so I did my part, and #2 kind of did his.  The doc is changing his prescription so he'll get new scratch and bite mark free lenses in two weeks.  He still needs to wear the patch everyday but thankfully we are heading in the right direction.  I must admit I was pretty nervous.  "We" even did so well that we won't be back for six months when usually he'd want to see us in three! 

The end goal is that by seven or eight years old he will have restored his vision to 20/20 and won't need glasses anymore.  Let's up everything keeps going smoothly for the next five or six years!!!

The Dresser

There is a serious short fall of five drawer dressers in this town.  I've been wanting a dresser for the boys room for six months or so.  When summer showed up, and shorts and t-shirts came out of storage, I found I no longer had room in their child sized wardrobe closet to fit all of their clothes. So my search began for the elusive dresser.  None of our retail stores (walmart, fred meyer) sell one that is reasonably priced.  The less expensive stuff on Amazon, according to the reviews, comes damaged and usually is missing parts.  There is no way I'm going to a furniture store and purchasing my two little terrors an expensive dresser.  I went to Craigslist.

 Let me say this again, there is a serious short fall of five drawer dressers in this town, including used ones. 

A dresser would come up every two weeks or so, and when I would call they were already sold, and usually already picked up.  Often times this would be within the hour of the post.  But alas, finally, after months of diligent searching I finally found one!!!  I bought it without even looking at it, I had to go with my gut that this fella wasn't going to screw me, he even delivered it us! (Granted he did just live down the road, and was coming over to pick up the cash anyways)

So now to the point of this post.  Husband and I looked at the dresser in the garage today and an entire discussion ensued, all around this central question, that you would think we already had the answer to, "Where are we going to put the dresser?"  The thing is, #3 will eventually be moving out of our room, when is he about six months old.  So the discussion then led to, which room?  Do we put him in the larger bedroom with the spare bed (like we did with #2 before he moved into the same room with #1), or do we move the big boys into the larger room and #3 into their room?  It's nice to have a spare room with a queen bed in it for company, but the thing is that with three kids, we don't have the luxury of having a spare room any more.  So to sum up a long (and possibly pointless) post, we decided that on Wednesday we'll be moving everything around and the boys will be in the big room.  It has it's own drawbacks, mostly the little door that goes to our well pump and storage area, still thinking about how to make that little boy proof.  It will be nice to give them a little more space.  And we think we'll eventually put them all in the same room so we'll have a head start on that.

And we'll end with a picture, an all words post just doesn't seem fair.  Especially when you have such cuteness to share with the world.