I am slowly going crazy, crazy going slowly am I

Hi. Life is busy. I am busy. There isn't much more to say than that. I have a to do list that will never, ever, ever be finished. Every day is a choice in sanity. Sanity is a bad word for it. Prioritizing. Let's say that. What HAS to be done, what needs to be done and what do I want to do? The has to's  usually get done, and then it is a decision of wants and needs with any extra time. Sometimes the needs being done are more of a relief to just have them done than doing a want. Sometimes that isn't the case at all. I know that there just isn't enough time in the day for everything and that is ok. Until I get a maid my house will not be clean. Even if it was a need and want, I still don't have enough time in the day to do it all.

I am loving being home with Isla. A friend is going back to work next week after being home for two years. It has made me really reflect on my time and life lately.  I know part of the reason I have no time is because I work 30 hours a week, but I love it that work nights and naps and weekends so I can cuddle in the morning and pick kids up in the afternoon. I know my schedule often makes things waaaaay more stressful for me. I never quite know which hat I am supposed to be wearing, but it gives me time with my kids that I will never have again so I love it. 

We are off to isla's weight check and then dinner and homework and I am off to work. I need to put on some real pants I guess. 

This week in pictures

Boo at the zoo

Can you smell the incense?

Update on Ava and her focus. I went to conferences this week and her teacher doesn't think it is an issue at all. She thinks she was having adjustment issues with the new baby and sharing the attention. She is working more so on changing her attitude about school. That doesn't mean that we haven't changed some things at home. Bed time has been moved up and I have been getting up earlier. That has helped a lot! We have also been packing different things for lunch and snack and having better breakfasts. 

So overall the special diet thing has gone slowly. The kids do fairly well during the week but are handed candy right and left or fed velveeta shells and cheese on the weekends. Based on the conferences I don't think it is a must do, but we are trying to eat for health overall.  For the kids I want them to be getting the most out of their food. I want to teach them good habits. I want them to continue to like vegetables.  For Justin and I, we want to lose weight and also get the most out of our food. We had been eating better foods a couple years ago but fell off the wagon due to costs and laziness. It really does take an effort to eat well or to at least re-learn how to eat and shop.

A friend of ours recommended the maximized living nutrition plan. I read the book and we are starting it this week. I have been trying to shop and meal plan.  I have been making and buying whatever is easy for months and I figure it is a good time to start a new plan when trying to start cooking again.  So the moral of the story: we are cutting out most processed things. Kids get grains, just whole grains. Organic when possible fruits and veggies, and grass fed animal  products. Whole fat and organic dairy products. No calorie counting. We will see what happens. I will report back. I generally make dinners without processed foods so it isn't that huge of a lifestyle change. Breakfast and snacks are the big ones.

Add all this to my cloth diapering, I am one big crunchy, granola.

I had a post

I had a post almost written and then I got distracted by puking and it got deleted. Sadness and woe.

Ava has been sick with the pukes since late last night. The carpet won't be the same, I have done an extra load of laundry and lots of surfaces have been wiped down. I have to say that her constant whimpering and keening because she wants to eat might be what does me in.  Isla has had a cold for the last week or so and the last two days have been bad with her cough. She seems to have made the turn last night and is improving. Today has been nothing but sleep though. 

Ava has tech week and the play performances next weekend. I honestly can't wait for it to be over. I like our less involved life. Hopefully she is well enough to get to rehersal tomorrow night. 

Isla is doing a lot of growing with all of her sleeping. I am starting to sell off some of her newborn cloth diapers. I have also found a favorite that will last us for a while. I generally avoided the Velcro style but it turns out Justin wanted them. We are starting quite the collection of bottom bumpers. I am also not planning on sticking with any type of microfiber as she gets older. They just stink. 

Look at those chunks in her new diaper.

Last post continued

My random thoughts while Ava does her homework. 

I have completely given up on the blanket I have started twice and started a new project. It is fall colored and will be awesome. I am just knitting at the pace of a snail. 

Isla is already 3 weeks old. I am loving this baby stage. Maybe it is because I know how short it is. Maybe she is so easy. She does cry but not often. She is just sweet and cuddly. She pukes a lot and likes me to hold her. I go back to work in a month. I will probably ease back in the week before with doing work at home so it isn't a huge shock to my routine. I am lucky enough to be able to not go back full time during the day. I will only be in the office one day a week but even that seems like a lot right now. 

Rhys started dance class this past weekend. He is supposed to be in hip hop but it turned out to be hip hop and beyond, which is all dance forms. First class was not anything remotely hip hop like. He is the only boy and clearly the oldest. I don't think he expected to be dancing to the little mermaid. He participated except for when he was supposed to dance alone. He looked embarrassed a lot. He said it was fun but he has also said he doesn't want to go back. There is an all boys hip hop class but he is too young by a couple months and they wouldn't let him in. I'm hoping he wants to continue next session when it can be more of what he wants To do. 

Random picture of Rhys at the back to school bash last weekend.

The time has come

Yes Isla is three weeks old today, but I have other kids and other things on my mind. Lots of other things. I wonder how random this will get? I guess we will see how long my thumb holds out. I am posting from my phone while nursing. It is a talent. 

Anyway, the last few years ava has had some issues with focusing in school. I did too, so did Justin so this isn't a real shock. So far it hasn't really been a problem and she can work around it. Her teacher has already mentioned it this year and we have noticed it getting in the way of homework. It is hard to know what the cause is. Is it her not wanting to do the work? Is it too much noise in the house? Is it an actual problem?  So the first step we are going to take, I think, is a specific diet. I have heard it helps. I have also hurt it is a load of crap. More or less it is cutting out fake stuff. I don't think it can hurt anything to try.  Anybody have any experience with this? 

Thumb is done. More later. It is season premier week and I haven't watched anything because I am totally hooked onScandal on Netflix. What does that say?

Life is like a box of chocolates

Or in our case, nights are like a box of chocolates, you never know what you are going to get. We have now had 7 nights at home with Isla. We have not had more than 2 that are the same. First two nights were pretty much no sleep nights. She wanted to be held all night. She wanted to eat every hour. (As I am writing this, I am completely blanking on what order the nights went in and if I am even thinking of different nights. Isla has eaten my brain.) We didn't get to bed until 3 or 4am and we still had to get up to get kids to school. Then we had the two miracle nights of non-stop sleep. I had to wake her up around 4am to eat and the other night she for up at 5am. She also was fine sleeping in her bed. The only downside of the timing of this was it was when my milk came in, so she slept, I didn't.  Then we had two nights of normal baby sleep. Up every 3 hours to eat and going right back to sleep. Even when she woke up, she didn't really cry, just clearly was up and wanting to eat. Then there was last night. Keep in mind she slept all day, only getting up to eat and was awake and alert for about 45 minutes total. We were trying to go to bed around 9:30. She was wide awake, but it shouldn't be long lived, right? Wrong! She would doze for about five minutes and demand to be fed again. This went on for 3 hours. She has also decided she won't take a pacifier. Why should she when she has me???? She will cry for 10 minutes with nothing working to get her to stop. I let her latch on and 15!seconds later she is fine. She won't eat anything. She will just want to sit there. After the three hour eating marathon, I was pretty positive there was absolutely nothing left. She ended up getting about an ounce out of a bottle but only because Justin gave it to her. She won't take a bottle from me. Justin says she is too little to know the difference. Ha! That is why she acts like I am trying to poison her with the bottle. She did sleep for almost 5 hours once she finally fell asleep, so it wasn't awful, just a very long first part of the night. 

Now some pictures from yesterday.

Rhys made her a bracelet. 

I walk into the livingroom and find Ava holding her like this, swaying in front of the tv, like it was no big deal.

* I update from my phone so formatting at be weird.

Newborn cloth #1.

We have decided to go with cloth diapers and so far so good. We used th free disposables from the hospital the first couple days and then switched over. The only tricky parts have been figuring out which ones have small enough leg holes and would stay away from the umbilical cord. Her cord fell off yesterday so that has freed up some options. I got a few varieties of diapers for a variety of fit and to see which styles I like in the bigger sizes.  We have had one minor poop leak due to a loose leg hole, but honestly it would have been way worse in a disposable. We have also had a couple pee leaks, but they seem to be because the diaper was overly wet. We haven't quite figured out just how long we can go between changes. Anyway, here are some very high quality pictures to show fit.

Bumgenius all in one newborn. Super easy to put on, couldn't wear with the cord, doesn't hold a lot of pee. She is 8lbs 1 oz here.

Imagine newborn all in one. So far one of the best fits. 

Nicky's bamboo all in one. Good fit. Very trim feeling. She was 7lbs 12 oz. here.

Fuzzibunz xs. Still too big in the legs. They will fit for a while though once she bulks up. 7lbs 12 oz here. 

Smile

She smiled at me briefly this morning. Just had to document it. 6 days old and a smile while awake.

Hair, etc.

We have been asked a lot if the other kids had as much hair as Isla. None of them were bald, that is for sure. Ava had a lot of hair and didn't lose any. Rhys lost what little he had on top, but kept it all in back. He had quite the mullet for a while. Isla has the thickest for sure. 

Isla had her pictures done today by my friend Rachel (www.rachelcatherine.com) and I can't wait to see them. Ava missed out on one of these photo sessions. She was even before Bella Baby in the hospitals. Rhys had his done by my friend Terra (www.2sisphotos.com) after church on his first Sunday too. I am looking forward to get to compare them all around the same age. 

Rhys has always been one to try to get the attention if Ava was getting it. Now with Isla here, the attention seeking behaviors have definitely increased. I understand why they are happening. It has been an adjustment for him for sure. He is starting school full time and has to adjust to not being the baby and someone else getting all the attention. Part of it makes me sad. I don't know what he is really feeling, if he even realizes that he is acting out. Part of me is annoyed at the constant noise and disobeying.  Ava is definitely taking part in seeing what happens if she ignores me. They both are pushing boundaries. But the rest of the time they are being amazing. They try to be helpful. They want to love on Isla. They love to pick out clothes and help change her. Feeding a can be a family event. They talk to her, hold her hand, tickle her feet. It makes for one crowded me, but I am not knocking it. 

Introducing Isla

They is like a new baby to re-inspire blogging! 

This Wednesday is my due date. This past Thursday was my scheduled induction date. Tuesday morning at 5 am I woke up because my water broke. I had been having contractions for days that amounted to nothing, were too far apart and not getting any stronger. Part of me spent Monday really thinking that I was having the baby within the next 24 hours. The other part didn't want to get my hopes up so I ignored it.  I was feeling very done with being pregnant. Anyway, I had gone as far as getting a bag out and putting a couple things in it, like blankets and clothes to bring the baby home in. That was it. So at 5 am, Justin and I finished packing up the bag for the hospital, school bags for Rhys and Ava and their overnight bags. We fed the cats and hamsters a few times, grabbed the dog and left. I started feeling the contractions by about 5:15. I got to experience the joy of being in labor in the car. It was an experience for sure. Justin said it was the longest drive ever, but it seemed to go fast. We dropped the kids and the dog off and went to the hospital. We got there around 6:30, got checked in and set up. I got checked and was at 3cm and got an epidural around 7:30. At 9:15 the nurse said I was 8-9 and the doctor would be in to check me next unless I feel the need to push. At 9:35, Justin went and told them that I could really feel the pressure and was ready when they were. The doctor was in the middle of a c-section, so we waited. He didn't finish in time because one of the other doctor's from the practice came in for the delivery. I started pushing at 10:02 and at 10:06, Isla was born.  They put her on my chest for a minute or two. It was all so calm and easy.

We had the day to ourselves because we were waiting for Ava and Rhys to get out of school and be the first to hold her besides us. 

They were so excited to meet her and hold her. The next day was my birthday and I asked to go home.  It has been a love fest ever since. The biggest argument is who's turn it is to hold her. Justin has had the rest of the week off and will go back to work on Tuesday. He is trying to get his time in with her. I have just been a breast feeding machine. It is going well. I haven't before had such a demanding baby from hour 1 to nurse, so that has definitely been a change. I have blocked out the exact pain feeling of the first couple weeks of nursing.  She is content and loved. It just a happy time in our house with brief moments of insane hormones, but let's ignore those. I generally feel fine until I try to do normal things and then I remember that I just had a baby. 

So the stats on Isla. Born at 10:06am, 8lbs, 6oz., 20 inches long. Tons of hair! Dark brown with reddish blonde highlights. Normal baby blue colored eyes. 

And now pictures.

First bath

Coming home

First night home.

Cuddly cheeks

First trip out of the house.

First bath at home with photographer Rhys. 

There are many more firsts to come and we just can't get enough of her. I look at Rhys and Ava and know all too well that it goes too fast so I am trying to live it up.

Boy, girl, twins, triplets

Ok so we knew it wasn't twins or triplets, but do you remember that song from jumping rope? 

So it is a girl! We are having a girl. Justin was sure it was a girl. I felt very strongly that it was a girl, I just didn't have that much confidence in my feelings. 

I think it has now gotten more real for everyone that we are really having a baby. I know it has for me. Ava walks around talking about her sister all the time and before she was pretty neutral. I have a little under 19 weeks left if I go to my due date to get everythig ready. I know it seems like a lot of time, and it is, but if you knew how easily a week can go by without anything getting done, even the dishes because of how busy we are and how rarely we are home, you will understand that I more or less feel like I have a month left. I have 5 more weeks of juggling the kids school and homework and three jobs and then I will just have to worry about three jobs. Easy stuff!

I have gotten as far as planning colors for the room, planned to sell some of the bigger toys I the way and donate the rest, bought a few diapers, and made a little registry (partially to have a list of what I need to get!), and that is about it. Hopefully we will have a name by September!

Surprise! (to you)

Surprise all, we are having another baby!  Apparently this news was surprising to many people.  Maybe it will be the 5 year age gap between Rhys and the new baby. Maybe it is because people assumed that because we had a boy and a girl we were done.  Either way, we are excited about it.  The kids are super excited about it. We find out next week if it is a boy or a girl.  I have done it both ways, waiting to find out and finding out and I honestly think it is more exciting to find out halfway through.  I don't get the "only a few good surprises in life" thing.  It is still a surprise when you find out early.  It isn't like I am peeking now and just not telling anyone.

We got rid of most of our baby stuff over the last year or two because it was old and took up a lot of space which we don't have.  I was not about to rent a storage unit to hold on to baby stuff.  The nice thing about it being baby #3, I know what baby gadgets I will actually use and what will just take up space.  Plus I know how short a time I will use things so I am more than happy to accept hand me downs for most things!

I used cloth diapers for a while with Ava. I looked into them when I was pregnant with her and I thought I had to find a diaper service or something and there really weren't any in the area. I had no idea there were different options out there.  Around 9 months to a year, I switched to cloth.  It didn't work as well as I had hoped, primarily because my day care provider was unwilling to use cloth, so I was still having to buy diapers.  Other than that, I really liked them.  We didn't have rashes or leaks or anything.  At some point I switched back to disposables all the way, and I really don't remember why now.  Maybe it was because it was summer?  I have no idea.  I planned to use them from day 1 with Rhys and I chickened out.  I think I was slightly intimidated at the work load of two kids.  The only thing I don't love about cloth diapers is the bulkiness of the butt sometimes. I think I wanted his little newborn butt to look as tiny as it could be in his diapers.  So I chickened out.  At one point I did use cloth on him at night because he was leaking all the time in disposables, but that was it.

Well I am going all in! I am preparing to cloth diaper from the beginning.  Big butts oh well.  We will see how it goes, but many of the so called obstacles I saw before will be gone.  I have recently discovered this whole world out there of co-ops that sell cloth diapers.  They are cheap but I probably won't get them.  There is a whole slew of reasons out there, but primarily because the designs are copied from small business owners own designs, made in China and sold for half as much.  I kind of feel like that is stealing from the small businesses. Anyway, it is time to go get Rhys from preschool.  Only 6 weeks left! Stay tuned for more cloth diapering adventures. I know you will care (not really at all) but I like to talk to myself about things so there you go.