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.