Who am I?

Try your luck!

*

*

*

*

1. Maddox

2. Holynd

3. Sloane

You have no idea how hard it was to find a picture of Holynd not dressed in pink.

I love you so much...

I love you so much that I just want to....

eat your face


and strangle you.

One of my greatest trials, burdens, stresses, joys is watching the girls help take care of their brother. They love him so much that, well, it hurts. The sad thing is... he doesn't even flinch anymore. They whack him, he just takes it.

He's going to be one tough kid one day.

Stolen.

Where is her mother!? Why doesn't she do something with this poor little girls hair!?


I have nothing to say about this picture except for that maybe I need to keep my bathroom door locked.

*****

I try to go grocery shopping once a week. That seems like a lot to some people, but in this house, it's not. Someone is always running low on diapers, wipes, binkies, back-up formula, pull-ups or something else. It just always seems like we need something at the store, so it makes it easier to just keep a list and go once a week. I try to do a menu because I really can't just load everyone up and go to the store when I want to cook something special. It just can't be done. I'm sure that I'll be more spontaneous when my kids get a little older, but for now, everything is planned ahead. Sometimes I'm really ambitious and I'll get out all my cookbooks/laptop and spend an afternoon searching for new recipes. Sometimes I just list the five easiest meals I can think of and call it good.

Saturday was grocery day. I headed out early and got my Walmart shopping done quickly. I was actually done before Costco opened, so I decided to go home and pick up my kids so that I could take them there with me. Costco has carts big enough for all three kids to have somewhere to sit and still have room for groceries. I can't take the kids to Walmart because, well, where would all the groceries go?!

Costco was pretty sneaky and had a Puss in Boots display right through the entrance. Holynd asked sweetly, I complied. She held the movie while we shopped and everything went well.

We got up to checkout and the cashier had a great time talking to Holynd who, of course, is always willing to chat. I paid and when we turn to walk away, I noticed that the movie was still in Holynd's hands. "Ah! Stolen movie!"

I turned around and told the cashier I still needed to pay for it. I was so embarrassed! Luckily, the person behind me was also a mom and completely understood. She didn't even mind when they had to stop scanning her groceries in order to scan the movie and let me pay for it. I like people like that.

The girls watched the movie five times this weekend. It's a keeper.

Thursday. Approx 1am.

What did your house look like at 1am yesterday??? Mine looked like this.

Yep. The Stomach Bug came to visit again. It was anything, but enjoyable. With three little kids in the house, I'm immune to most gross things. Snotty noses don't phase me; Poop - Puh-lease! If you've read this blog before you know, without a doubt, that I've had to get over this phobia; Sticky messes are a daily occurrence in this household; Bloody noses don't bother me; Chewed up and spit out food doesn't even make me bat an eye! But, there's one thing that still freaks me out.... Puke.

It's probably because I haven't had to deal with it very often. (I don't want to start either).

This puke was especially awful because of what I had let the girls eat Wednesday afternoon. Tuesday is a day where we run around all day long. It's dance/music class day, so I figure if we have to get everyone out of the house by 9:30am, then we're making it worth it! I had decided that we needed a trip to Tai Pan to get a couple of things for spring. I'm not a big holiday/season decorator, but I figured having a few things around couldn't hurt. While we were there, Holynd spotted some cheesy popcorn. "Cheeto Popcorn" she called it. They had been good through out the whole trip, so I figured why not? (Pudee did NOT get a treat because, as it turns out, he HATES shopping. I'm sure this really pleases his dad). However, by the time we got home everyone was way overdue for naps, so most of the popcorn got stuck in the pantry for later on. Naptime came and went. We ventured back out into the world to run a few more errands (OK! We went shopping for makeup! I consider that an errand!). The Cincinnati Chili I had made during naptime was waiting for us when we got home. I fed the girls, did bedtime routine, (Shower for the girls, tub-tub for Pudee, jammies, teeth brushing, hair brushing, bedtime stories, nummy milk, prayers) got all three kids in bed and tried to keep myself entertained until Matt got home. The Cheeto popcorn remained untouched.

The next day, we got dressed and went over to a friends house for a little playdate. We came home and everyone went down for a nap. Now, usually this is where I at least try to start making dinner, but today I wasn't having it. I got a few other things done, but by the time the kids woke up I still had a whole meal to make and now I had to make it with two kids running around at my feet and another one sitting on the counter top in his bouncy chair. In order to make dinner, I decided that we'd break out the popcorn and the girls could watch a movie. Bowls were filled with this bright orange, strong smelling, powdery popcorn. Had I known what was waiting for us that night, I would've never done this.

Right as Matt and I were ready to fall asleep, Sloane started making cough/gagging sounds over the monitor. I had a hunch of what was going on, but I didn't want to admit it. Sure enough, Matt brought her up covered in half-digested cheeto popcorn......

Not lovely.

I kept my fingers crossed that it was just Sloane, but about two hours later, Holynd started throwing up. I made little beds all over our bedroom floor and that's where we spent the entire night. The girls threw up about every 15 minutes until 4am that morning.

I ended up sick during breakfast. (Which means now I get to eat, feed Pudee and pump all day long! My milk always takes a huge hit when the stomach flu hits. Pudee was NOT happy when he had to have formula last night).

It was awful, but we somehow survived. Sloane was actually the better of the two. She'd just sit up when she'd feel her stomach start to churn, we'd put a bowl in front of her, she'd throw-up then lie right back down. Holynd on the other hand kept screaming at us, "Stop making me throw-up! I don't want to throw up! Put me in my big girl bed". At one point she looked at Matt and said, "Daddy... I'm having a hard day".

It was a very hard day.

In the end, I've thrown out several pairs of pajamas, a couple towels and a high chair. I was worried I was going to have to throw Sloane's crib bedding away, but after a pep-talk from my mom, I took on the task of getting it clean. It came out good as new. :)

I don't know what it is about having sick kids, but anytime someone gets sick I feel an incredible need to clean the entire house top-to-bottom with bleach. That's what I'm doing today. I also have the urge to open all the windows and let lots of fresh air in.... It's a little chilly in this house today and we may end up with colds by the time this day of cleaning is over. ;)

HOWEVER! On a positive note, I looked at my weekly menu today and guess what it said!? Friday: Take-Out!

YES! I love it when Matt cooks. ;)

Spilling

I don't what it is lately, but I find myself being extremely grateful for the little frustrations in my life right now. It's as if my heart is so full of love for my babies that it's starting to spill over.

So, that's what this post is being dedicated to; those frustrations that are basically the Lord's way of telling me that I'm the luckiest person in the world.

*Tonight I am grateful for the hour I spent waiting for the hot water to refill because it means that my girls had a blast in our shower tonight playing "Rio Birds".

*I am grateful for the dinner mess my girls made because I have food to feed their hungry bellies.

*I am grateful for the toothpaste that was mashed into the carpet after bath time because my girls have a love for teeth brushing.

*I am grateful for the fighting because my girls are growing closer to one another everyday.

*I am grateful for the toys that always need to be put away because it means I have children in my home.

*I'm grateful for bedhead the girls have in the morning because it means that they slept well.

*I'm grateful for the smell of breastmilk that seems to follow me everywhere because it means I've been able to nurse.

*I'm grateful for all the stinky diapers because it means my babies are healthy.

*I'm so grateful for little girls that secretly stay awake past bedtime and then call for their dad as soon as he gets home because it means I have a wonderful husband who's a wonderful dad.

*I'm grateful for the loud knocking that takes place while I try to nurse Pudee in my room because it means I'm always needed.

*I'm grateful for sticky fingers that always seem to find their way into my hair because it means that I'm able to hold and carry my kids around, even when they're sticky.

*I'm grateful for the 45 minutes I spent trying to get a sobbing Sloane to put a band-aid on her bloody finger because I'm the one who gets to stay home and take care of her when she's hurt.

*I'm grateful my pre-pregnancy pants don't fit because it means my body changed to be able to carry three babies. This is something that past-Tanshyle never thought she'd say, but I'm glad for the wider hips, the extra weight, the stretchmarks and the curves. It's something you always worry about before you have kids, but after the kids are here it's SO UNIMPORTANT. I'm happy the Lord gave me my pregnancies and if carrying a little bit of weight is part of having babies, then I'm all for it.

These little frustrations aren't going to be around forever. The time I have with my kids while they're little is so limited. I hate to think that there are moments when I'm wishing this time away because this is one of the most important times of my life. Believe it or not, I'm sure that there will come a day where I will wish for sticky messes, spilled milk, fighting over baby dolls, diaper blowouts, couch cushions scattered all over the playroom and, yes, even potty training accidents.

There's never a dull moment around here and I'm so grateful for that.

Always, Forever and No Matter What!

About a week ago I sent a text message to my friend Nicole asking her what her Valentines plans were. "No clue", she said. I texted back, "Valentines Party for the girls?". She texted back, "Sure thing!". And that was that. Slowly over the next few days we made a few plans. Cookies, treats and Valentines for the dads.

It started with lunch, then we quickly put the little girls down for naps. (Cause, let's face it, the little girls weren't going to do anything but eat frosting and throw sprinkles on the floor.) After the little girls were asleep and Maddox was entertained, we broke out the sugar cookie dough and let the girls have at it. (Nicole was nice enough to do the dough and baking because we all know how well I bake...) Kaydence wanted a heart cookie, Holynd wanted a bat cookie. (Go figure).




The Valentine making was hilarious. I had picked up some horrifyingly-red lipstick and we let the girls put it on and kiss their Valentines.





To our surprise, the girls had a blast and the mess was minimal. We cleaned up, fed everyone snacks and sat up at the counter to count away the hours until our husbands finally decided to come home from work.

Nicole got an early surprise when she called her husband and he broke the news that he was ALREADY on his way home! We immediately jumped to our feet, threw her kids in her car and sent them on their way.

Slowly I started to get my girls' dinner ready and cleaned up the playroom, a little sad that my Valentine was still working.

During dinner, Holynd fell and hit her chin. She screamed so loud that it scared Sloane and she started crying too. I was a little frustrated while I was trying to comfort everyone and clean up spilled soup, when I thought I saw Matt's truck pull up out of the corner of my eye. "I'm losing it", I thought to myself. But there was no denying it when the garage door opened and my husband came into the kitchen carrying Valentines for everyone in one hand and Thai food in the other.

Holynd gave him her Valentine covered in lipstick kisses and made him eat an overly frosted cookie on an empty stomach.

It was a very good day.

Love

I completely understand if you forgo reading this post and just stare at my smiley baby. He's quite the cutie.

For Christmas, I gave Matt Jazz tickets. It just so happened that the game was the weekend right before Valentines Day, so we decided to call it our Valentines date.


This picture makes me laugh because it was actually the best of three different pictures I tried to take. I kept putting my finger in front of the camera! It got frustrating, so I decided that this was the best that I could do.

When we go out, we always try to go somewhere that we can't take our kids to. That means that they can't have chicken nuggets, chicken tenders, chicken fingers, chicken bites, or anything related anywhere on the menu! This means we usually end up eating Thai food or Sushi. We ate Thai the last time we went out, so sushi it was!

We went to a place we had never been before. I HATE HATE HATE to do that. I have a certain item I get at every restaurant we go to. Mexican: Cheese Enchilada. Italian: Plain Ole' Spaghetti. Thai: Pad Thai & Panang Curry.... The list goes on! The point is, I don't like change. I don't like trying new things. Which is hard on my husband because he LOVES to do that.


Technically, it was Matt's night out because it was his Christmas present, so I consented to trying some place new. After a quick internet search, we decided to try Takashi. It was amazing! It was the best sushi we've ever had. When we walked in my first thought was, "Great. This looks like a place that won't give you a fork...." It was. Great sushi. No forks. I toughed it out and used the chopsticks. It was way worth it.

The game was fun. It's the first game we've attended where they've lost. It was sad, but I got to have ice cream, so I left happy. ;)

Matt and I have a pretty easy going marriage. Not because of anything I do, but because of everything Matt does. He's probably the most patient person I know. He has to be. Putting up with me and the kids would drive any moderately patient person CrAzY. But, not Matt.

I don't feel like I blog about Matt and I very much. Our kids are our life right now and we like it that way. However, we have our quirks.

For example, some of our favorite channels on TV are: The Food Network, National Geographic, Planet Green, The Discovery Channel, The History Channel... The list goes on. We both have a "inner nerd". In fact, we got so obsessed with a show about Egypt and mummies that if we ever see a show that's even remotely related to that subject on, we have to watch it. Pawn Stars and American Pickers are also two of our favorites.

We love games. Very rarely is there a time when we're not playing an on-going game of WordFeud on our phones. We start a game on our phones and sometimes it can take over a week for us to finish it, but we love it. We also love to play cards, but we hardly ever play just the two of us. It would get way too competitive and we'd probably end up in a huge argument. Playing with other people tends to keep us in check.

We both love to read. We couldn't live without our Kindles. More often then not, we read the same kind of books. However, I refuse to read the Wheel of Time series until Matt reads the Twilight series and vice versa. One day maybe one of us will cave, but I doubt it. Our inner nerd comes out in the books we read too. There's not many people in the world who will listen to you talk about a book written about the Watergate Scandal over the course of two weeks.

Matt has an uncanny talent of getting me to laugh about stressful days with the kids. For example, last week in church, Sloane fell off of a chair during Sacrament meeting and cut her lip open. She bled all over the sleeve of her dress. Normally I would've taken her home to clean her up, but it was the first Sunday that we were supposed to teach Sunbeams. There was no time, so I just rolled up her sleeves to cover the blood and took her into nursery. Her lip swelled up huge during the two hours she was in nursery. When we got home, we discussed what happened. Instead of blaming me, because I was the one who let her stand on the chair, Matt laughed. Which got me to laugh about it and made the situation a lot more bearable. Sloane lived and we moved on. With three little kids ruling our lives, these sort of experiences come up often and it's always nice to know that Matt's there to make me feel better. Our kids aren't going to be little for very long and I don't want to look back at this time in our lives and think, "That was so hard and overwhelming". I want to look back and think, "It was a crazy time, but we definitely learned to enjoy the chaos". Matt helps me do that.

We don't adhere to very many parenting philosophies. We don't really read books about parenting or anything like that. Not that there's anything wrong with that. We've just always felt like we've been giving so many good examples of parenting around us that we can usually just ask for help or advice. One thing always rings true for us though. Matt is my teammate. We don't work against each other and we don't work separately. Both of us are always on the clock when it comes to our family. When Matt is at work, he's there supporting our family, while I'm at home holding down the fort. When he gets home, he immediately pitches in and lightens my load, but I try not to throw the entire task him alone. It works for us.

I love my husband. Sorry ladies, but I got the best one.

I'm wishing everyone a Happy Valentines Day. Matt couldn't think of anything he wanted, so I bought us new bedding. Hehe.

Rob from the Rich...

While I take care of Pudee, the girls always seem to find the most interesting ways to entertain themselves. It can get very chaotic during the times I've locked myself in my room to nurse Pudee and give him at least a tiny bit of attention during our busy days.

Today, the girls were especially sneaky.

I walked out of the bedroom to find this. An empty plastic container. It looked vaguely familiar.



When I found the girls, they were giggling uncontrollably and looking very satisfied with their latest accomplishment.

Me: Holynd. What have you been doing??

Holynd: I stole all your Cakebites and shared them with Sloanie!

Me: Unfair! (Trying to hide a smile)

Holynd: Be happy Mommy. I shared!

Me: (Trying to sound mad). Sloane did you eat my Cakebites??

Sloane: (Forced cry). Sissy did!

They don't even have any loyalty to each other. Sloane sold Holynd out immediately. ;)

Dearest Husband,

I need more Cakebites. The roommates stole mine. :(

(Inside Joke).

Lots of Love,

Wife

Now, I must sign off. Sloane is crying at my feet, pulling at my pant leg right at this moment.

Happy Friday! Wahoo!

Maybe... Maybe Not.

Holynd was my binky lover. Sloane has always been my thumb-sucker. Holynd recently took up the thumb sucking habit too, but that's a whole different story.

When Pudee was born, he immediately took to the binky. I thought to myself, "Oh he's just like Holynd". However, there was one point during our hospital stay where he dropped the binky and found his hand. The sucking noise he made was so loud that it woke Matt and I out of a dead sleep! "Find his binky! Find his binky!" It was sweet, but at 2am after giving birth, it was only semi-sweet.

Every so often, Pudee finds his hand again. He still leaves me wondering if he'll always like the binky or if he'll end up liking his thumb instead.... Thumbs are so much nicer. They never lose them. But, you also can't take them away.

I love the face he makes at the very beginning when he first sticks his hand in his mouth. Classic.

Are Ya Ready For Some Football?!

When we moved into this house, Matt was really excited about the theater room. I remember thinking... why!? We are never going to use it! For the first five months we were here, I was right. We hardly ever used it. Matt would go in there to watch football every once in awhile, but other then that we spent our time out in the yard.

After I had Maddox, Matt and I started working out in there at night. It worked out nice because it was always way cooler then the rest of the house and there's plenty of room for both of us to workout. (Well, not really for cardio, but we don't do cardio workouts together anyway).

As the weather turned way cold, the theater room became our favorite room in the house. We still wanted to have friends over, but being unable to hang out outside posed a problem. Now, we set up tables in that room, make food, invite lots of friends over and have a blast! It works out nice because the playroom is downstairs too, so the little girls can play right next to us.


A super bowl party was a must.



My friend Nicole's awesome idea. 7 layer dip in individual cups. So yummy!

Don't mind the blurry picture. I was struggling.

Matt has always kept in touch with his friends from high school. Lucky enough for me, they married awesome people. ;) People who even have kids right around the same age as my kids, who could ask for more?!

The next day, I had no idea who had even won the game. Apparently, the four wives talk way too much.

Afterward, we enjoyed some Tom Papa comedy, The Voice and then, of course, even more chatting.

Changes...

Yesterday we...

*Got dressed



*Went to dance class

*Went to music class

*Took care of some visiting teaching

*Got a haircut

*Got a few manicures

*Enjoyed some cupcakes and sugar cookies

*Went to Costco

*Made dinner (I keep thinking cooking will start to get easier with the three kids, it's not... Sometimes I really want to give it up)

*Made Banana Bread (With Cinderella and Snow White. They helped smash the bananas)

*Bathed three awfully tired children

*Put them to bed early so that we could go out into the world again today...

When I was pregnant with Maddox, life seemed to be easier. That seems dumb to say because of course it was easier, I only had two kids! But, I think what I'm trying to say is that it was simpler. There were just quite a few changes that have came, or are coming quickly, that I kept myself from thinking about because of my pregnant-state. The first of the year brought a whole bunch of realizations that I wasn't really ready for.

I completely FAILED to realize that Holynd would start Primary this year. I really just didn't think that this change was even on the horizon. In fact, I had no idea she was leaving nursery until I received a note on my door from the Primary Presidency welcoming Holynd to Primary as a Sunbeam. I cried. I cried a lot. However, I told myself over and over that it was just Primary. That's it. One change: Primary. I could live with that.

A few days after the New Year, I found myself facing another change. Holynd wanted to start taking dance class. She had been to dance class with a friend and LOVED it. I promised her during her Potty-Training-Regression Phase that if she stopped having accidents she could take dance classes. She stopped having accidents and, boy, she did NOT let me forget that she wanted to take dance class. So, we started dance class. I cried again. Is she not my baby anymore? But, again, I told myself that she was still a baby. It was just dance class. One hour, one day a week. I could handle that.

During our first day of dance class, the other dance moms were talking about a music class for the younger siblings. When asked if I wanted my younger child to participate, I brushed it off. Ok, if Holynd is still a baby, then there's no way Sloane could take a class!? She's so young! But, after a little research it was determined that Sloane was very much old enough to take a music class. It seemed so unreal. I decided to go ahead with it because it's really hard to say 'yes' to one child and 'no' to the other, especially when they're so close in age.

How could two of my kids have lives outside of the house? Ever since Holynd was born I've been so comforted by the fact that we had our little life inside the walls of our home. There was nothing for us on the outside but an occasional outing. We had this comfortable routine where we could keep our own little schedule and not have to bother with anyone elses. I've loved that little bubble. Now all the sudden there's dance classes, music classes, hair appointments, playdates, birthday parties, activities, etc etc etc! And it's not going to get any better!

About two weeks ago, we decided to register Holynd for Preschool. This was a real heartbreaker, but I knew there was NO WAY she was going to walk passed the backpacks at the store without demanding that she go to school this year. I knew of a lady in the ward that taught Preschool and had heard really good things about her, so when she announced she was registering students for next school year, I jumped at the chance. I told myself I could do this. It wasn't a big deal. One, just one of my kids would be going to school. That was it. One kid, two babies at home. I would have so much time to spend with those two babies before they would have to go to school. Years, I told myself. I won't have to worry about those two babies going to school for years. YEARS! After all, we had decided to let Sloane hang back awhile so that she and Holynd wouldn't be back-to-back in grades. Phew... Glad I won't have to worry about that anytime soon.

But, alas, reality would rear it's ugly head again.

I realized that once Sloane goes, Maddox will immediately follow.

Panic. Anxiety. Stress. More panic. Nausea.

Everyone keeps talking about how hard having three young kids at home is, but I realized that the hard part will be sending them out into the world one right after another.

Holynd graduates.

One year goes by.

Sloane graduates.

Maddox graduates.

...and then what?! They didn't tell me to prepare for this. Everyone told me to prepare for the chaos. The chaos that I've grown to love so much. The chaos that makes Matt and I laugh so so hard at the end of the day. Now I feel like I've lost so much time and my little guy is only 3 months old!

Less and less of our days are going to be spent at home. Pretty soon, instead of fighting cabin fever and loneliness, I'm going to pray for a day just to be home with my little ones. It's going to be a very hard transition having Holynd go to school, but I didn't realize that I would be going through that transition over and over and over again.

I know a lot of people who say that they LOVED sending their kids off to school. They loved the freedom and the go-go lifestyle. But, I can honestly say that I've really enjoyed having little kids at home. I really have. I'm going to miss our bubble.

I think my hair is turning grey... is it grey? Be honest.