2015 - Week 41

Week 41 – doesn’t that just sound insane! It’s so hard to believe how fast this year is going. The week started off rough…and ended super, mega busy!

On Monday, I woke up with headache. It wasn’t necessarily unbearable, but bad enough that I could not sit there staring at a computer screen all day. I called into work, packed up Eliza’s stuff, and made my way back to bed. Christian got ready, and left for the day with Eliza, while the big girls and I slept in for a while. Of course, I ended up sleeping longer than I anticipated, so then it was a big rush to get them up, ready and off to daycare in time for breakfast before heading out on the bus to school. After dropping them off, I spent most of the day relaxing, watching some TV, napping quite a bit with an ice pack. My headache got worse as the day went on. I did edit some photos on and off throughout the day, until it would get to be too much for my headache. Late in the afternoon, I finally got some motivation get something done, and not let the entire day go to waste. So, I got to work cleaning up and swapping out clothes in the girls’ closet and dresser. I started packing up a majority of Eliza’s 18 month clothes, and hung up the 24 month stuff. I’ll probably wait to sell the 18 month stuff until spring, since it’s a large majority of warmer weather clothes, but it will be nice to get that load out of the house. I almost packed up some of Amelia’s 4T stuff, and moved some 5T stuff over from Olivia’s side, to Amelia’s. They’re all growing, like for REAL growing, and way too fast! I was hot and sweaty and exhausted the entire time I was working on my little mission, but I got it done. I picked the big girls up from daycare, and we stopped quick at Target for a few groceries. I was drained, still feeling overheated, and just overall crappy. Once home, I did keep some laundry going, but mostly just relaxed on the couch the rest of the day. Christian made dinner when he and Eliza arrived home, the kids played for a while, but overall we had a pretty quiet night.

While not 100%, I was thankfully feeling much better on Tuesday My headache was still there, and did get worse again as the day went on, but it was much better than yesterday. I got the girls up and we all started getting ready to head out – the big girls are still doing much better at getting themselves ready in the morning, which is a HUGE help. Then, it was off for a super busy day catching up at work. I swear, one day gone and you fall so behind! After work, traffic was TERRIBLE, and it took forever to get home. I’m still sure that traffic will one day be the death of me! When I finally arrived at daycare, the girls were telling me how the big kids were teasing them and scaring them still over the creepy incident that happened at daycare last week, the guy in the woods along the fence scaring them. The big kids are still scaring the little ones, telling them the guy is coming back, the guy is going to come to their house and get them, that he had a gun and a sword (a sword, really?!). Olivia doesn’t really seem too bothered by it, but Amelia was pretty upset today. While the rest of us were packing up to head for the door, one of the kids was talking to Amelia, telling her that the guy was going to come break into our house tonight, and she just started bawling when we got into the van. Seriously, kids are such jerks! So, I spent the evening convincing her that that they’re just being mean, teasing her, and that nothing is going to happen. That it was all just some weird guy, being a jerk, and that he’s long gone. Hopefully we can get her over this hump soon. After that fiasco, we met up with Christian at home to get the girls ready for soccer, and we were off. I was with Olivia tonight, and both of our coaches were gone tonight, so another mom stepped in. I like her coaches, but honestly, this mom rocked it! She was way better with the girls and did a really awesome job coaching and getting them to listen. So it was actually a pretty fun practice to watch. FINALLY, soccer ended, and we all met up back at home for the night. We had a yummy taco dinner, did a little picking up around the house…homework and baths. Eliza didn’t seem to be feeling too well tonight, maybe just overtired, but she passed out with Christian on the couch while I got the other two tucked in and watched some shows. What a busy night!

Wednesday was a pretty normal day, until some evening breakdowns. We were all up, got ready, off to work, daycare and school. It was a pretty long day at work today – I did some cleaning in the afternoon when I just couldn’t take it anymore, and got my little cubicle looking sparkly and clean. Sure wish I had time to do that at home!! After work, I picked the girls up, and as soon as we loaded into the van, the drama started up. Amelia was just completely out of control, all night long. Instigating fights, screaming and crying at the top of her lungs, not listening to ANYTHING. Out of control, just simply out of control. I was finally so fed up, that I sent her to her room. She passed out in bed from crying and throwing such a huge fit. Clearly, she’s exhausted and overtired, and I get that Kindergarten and adjusting to everything is a big deal, but I just can’t take the constant fighting and disrespect much longer. Dang kids!! While she slept, Olivia watched some movies, and played with her little BFF, Bella, for a while, Eliza and I hung out and made some dinner, and Christian picked what is probably the last of the garden. We’ll have to see how quickly things cool down. Finally, I did wake Amelia up to eat a little dinner with us and take a bath with the other two. They were all off to bed a little earlier than usual, so I’m hoping a little extra sleep will do all of them some good!


Wednesday also marked Eliza turning 17 months!!! She's 27.4lbs and 31" tall!  It's officially almost time to celebrate another 1/2 birthday for this little lady. I feel like she's aged and grown so much in this last month, it amazes me. She's talking more and more every day, understanding so much. She's the sweetest little girl..so funny and entertaining, but filled to the brim with drama and personality. Her most common words are Mommy, Apple, Yes, No, Up, More. She sometimes let's out a Daddy and a Puppy, and loves to yell for "Bella" across the street, out of the window. She adores her big sisters still, I think more than anything in the world, and loves to be outside. She already has very little fear, and just may end up being our most adventurous one yet. I just swapped out her closet for 24 month clothes - which I don't think will last long, I see the 2T stuff making an appearance very soon. And, next time we buy some, she'll be moving up to size 5 diapers (I don't think Amelia ever ever made it to Size 5, and I swear she was JUST wearing these clothes Eliza is wearing now!). She likes to help clean and put things away, and she's pretty good at taking direction - currently, she's probably the best child in our house at taking direction really! And, she officially puts herself to sleep now. We put her down for naps and bed, wide awake and she goes to sleep. What a big milestone! She's growing up way too fast - it's equally exciting, and upsetting.

It turned out that Olivia wore the exact same PJ's for her 17 month photo. Look at my little twins!!

Thursday was pretty much a repeat of yesterday. Christian has continued to work earlier than usual, and I’m not sure if that will be his new norm, or is still temporary. Another employee ended up taking on the overnight manager shift, so it doesn’t look like he’ll be taking on that role, any time soon anyway, but his work shift may stay a little wacky for a while. We girls were all up a little more “on time” than usual and were much more successful at getting out the door than we usually are. It was picture day at school for Amelia and Olivia, so we had to take a little extra time getting ready this morning. Christian left work early today for his pre-surgery check-up. They wanted to check his blood pressure, go over the procedure and just “check in” before the big day next week. We’re all still pretty nervous, but it will be really nice when it’s all over. As far as today, everything looked good, and we’re still on for surgery. Tonight, after I picked the girls up, it was Olivia’s turn to drive us all insane. She has been picking up a really bad habit of talking back lately – way more than usual, and being very disrespectful to us. I know it’s just a start of that behavior with a lot of hard years ahead of us, but it just seems like that degree of acting up is starting way too young to me. Needless to say, it was an early bedtime kind of night, again. I did enjoy my extra alone time to the fullest though, and caught up on some shows. I was all amped up to start the new season of “American Horror Story” tonight, but I’ve been hearing how super scary and disturbing the premier was….so now I’m a little nervous. Gonna have to work up some courage for that!

My throwback this week - I can't believe it's been 9 years since we took our engagement photos!

It was picture day today - they both looked pretty intact when I picked them up this afternoon - I think we may have a successful picture day!!

Oh man, FINALLY Friday! We were all up and going pretty well, but on my work Friday’s, I have two drop-off’s, so there is just no way I can make it to work by 7:00. It’s just impossible, without having 3 mega-crabby kids if I try to get them up any earlier than I already do. The big girls didn’t have school today, so they were spending the whole day at daycare, which they were pretty excited about. Show and share, friends, and a movie day – heaven! Eliza was off to my mom’s, and I was finally clocked in at work. It was a pretty quiet day – apparently I didn’t get the call in/leave early memo, so I had a lot of the afternoon to myself. At least the quiet usually makes me more productive. I picked up all of the girls after work, and we made our way home. We watched some TV, played some games, and had dinner while we waited for Christian to get home. Then, Olivia and I were off on a late evening trip to the store, while the other two settled into bed. We had to get a couple of birthday gifts for tomorrow, and a few groceries…shopping is not my most favorite activity, but it is always nice to get a little one on one time with the girls. Olivia was off to bed as soon as we arrived home, Christian passed out shortly after that…I did get in a little TV time, but passed out myself not long after him. Gearing up for a busy weekend!

Sister love...a sister, some chips, and Netflix - what more does a girl need?!

Saturday was probably the busiest day we’ve had in a LONG time. It’s one of those days where you look back and wonder, how the heck did we pull that off?! Per usual, Christian was off to work for the day, bright and early. And, the girls woke up pretty much right as he was leaving….WAY too early. But, with so much going on, it probably was for the better. Of course, like any time I have a crazy day ahead of me, I woke up with a pounding headache. I took some medicine and rested on the couch for a bit, while the girls had some breakfast. I slowly started to feel better, and got to work. We got ready, one by one, packed up our bags…I wrapped (well, gift bagged) a couple of birthday gifts, we loaded up into the van, and off we went. First up, we were off to Olivia’s soccer practice. They were playing at a different field this week…and, I got TOTALLY lost. I googled the dang field a million times, but the address I kept getting literally did not exist. I drive around for 30 minutes, lost and frustrated and on the verge of tears. I eventually ran into my mom, who couldn’t find it either. I turned to Dr. Google one last time, finally found a different address, and tried it out. Sure enough, there it was. Practice was about ½ over at that point, so I just ended up having my mom leave with Amelia (to her field) right away, while Eliza and I watched Olivia finish out their practice. Only about ½ her team was there, so I’m guessing at least a couple others had trouble finding it too. What a pain! Next up, we were off to meet up with my mom and Amelia at her game. She scored a goal and played really well this week – can’t beat that! I can’t believe they only have one week of soccer left. This season went by SOOOOO fast, it’s crazy. Sometimes it gets to be too much, all of the running around, coordinating, late nights, early mornings. But there’s nothing like watching these little ones grow and learn and get better at something they work so hard at. After her game, the girls and I went inside the locker room at the community center where she plays, and the big girls got changed for our next event…their friend Charlotte’s, from daycare, birthday party. Now, originally only Amelia was actually invited to the party, and Olivia was bawling she was so upset that she had been left out. When I e-mailed the mom about just dropping Amelia off, since I had the other girls, she invited them to stay at the party too. So, it ended up working out pretty well. We were pretty late for the party, but most of it was just letting the kids run and play and jump in the bounce house at their house, so no big deal. They played and ate and did all the usual birthday party fun stuff, I chatted with the birthday girls’ mom and our old daycare center director for a while. Luckily it was a pretty relaxing party. At party end, we packed it up and made our way home to wait for Christian, before heading off to our next event. He ended up working later than anticipated, so we got to sit and relax and do nothing for almost an hour – which was MUCH needed! Then, we were off to his sister’s house, for his nieces’ birthday party. It’s a little more chaotic and crazy there, but at least Christian was there…and his parents, so I didn’t feel so on my own chasing after the girls. There was running and screaming and playing, and lots of YUMMY food from the Mexican Restaurant that his sister works at, presents and cake, and plenty of catching up with the in-laws. By the time we hit the road, man was I BEAT and exhausted!!! All of the girls fell asleep on the way home and went straight to bed when we arrived. I FINALLY got to sit down and relax for a while – and it felt so, so, SOOOOO good. I watched some shows, played on my phone and just plain zoned out. Somehow, we all survived the day, in one piece, and I’m pretty proud of that.

Before Olivia's Game

Before Amelia's Game

Ready to head to Birthday Party #1

Ready for Birthday Party #2, Girls Day coming to an end!!

Sunday ended up being another pretty busy day. I started off with the pretty standard Sunday chores….laundry, cleaning up around the house, dishes. All of the super fun stuff. I pulled out all of the Halloween decorations, and we got started putting all of that out. Meanwhile, Christian made breakfast and tried to keep the girls somewhat under control during the cleaning chaos. The girls took a bath, and then the big girls started to act up and talk back a lot. I finally got so fed up, that I made all of them go down for a nap. Olivia just “rested” for a while, but Amelia took a little nap while Eliza slept. Sometimes a little quiet time is all they need – today, it was definitely a requirement. My in-laws stopped over….it was supposed to be to grill some dinner, but before I knew it, Christian and his dad were working on the lawnmower…I was hungry, the girls were up and getting hungry. I finally sent them outside to bother their dad, hoping that would prompt him to fire up the grill…instead, they ended up knocking over the “Thanksgiving Turkey Fryer”, which of course was still filled with oil from last Thanksgiving (thanks, Christian). So, then it was a big rush to get all of the oil out of the garage, before it got all over everything lined up along the sides of the garage. Squeegees, water, soap – it took forever to push it all out. So gross, and SUCH a huge pain in the butt!! The clock was ticking, and our evening events were closing in, so they FINALLY fired up the grill, and we scarfed down some food. We ended up having to leave, with in in-laws still there, because it was getting late. They finished cleaning up and closed up the house, while Christian, the girls and I were off to do a little photo shoot. I wanted some good fall photos of the girls, so I decided to try my hand at a “real” photo shoot. Eliza was crabby and screaming the entire way there, I thought for sure it was going to be a complete fail, and she wouldn’t cooperate for anything. Much to my surprise, they were all actually pretty into it though, and we actually had a really great time. It was exhausting, and I was super worn out, but I ended up getting some really great shots. Sure, they’re not REALLY professional, but they’re good enough for me, and I had a lot of fun doing it. After taking lots of pictures, Christian and Eliza were on their way home, while the big girls and I were off to swim class. I was still exhausted and sweaty, so it was nice to just sit down by myself for a while, while they swam their little hearts out. They showered  and got into their pajamas, and we made our way back home. FINALLY, we stopped over to our friends’ house, across the street, to watch the season premiere of “The Walking Dead”. OH MAN….been waiting FOREVER for it to come back, and holy moly, they did not disappoint. This season is going to be seriously insane! While we watched the show upstairs, with the little ones playing and resting, Olivia, Amelia and their little BFF Bella watched a movie downstairs. The babies made their way down there eventually to play, when incident #1 happened…I heard Eliza SCREAMING in pain, crying, and ran down there to see what happened. At first we thought Connor was just kind of pushing her around – but it turned out that he bit her on the shoulder…REALLY bad. My poor baby. She laid on daddy the rest of the night. Shortly after that, incident #2 happened. Bella came running up saying that Olivia was throwing up…she had been perfectly fine, so I started freaking out…we ran down there, and she was gagging and throwing up in the bathroom, Amelia was coughing like crazy, and Bella started gagging and ran upstairs to throw up in the other bathroom. Turned out, they were messing around with some “Spider Be Gone” spray that they keep downstairs – so, basically, they were poisoning themselves. Seriously, it was just a complete mess. Between the oil, the bite and the poison…I was seriously about to lose it. I tell ya, it’s always something! As soon as TWD was over, we gathered everybody up, and made our way back home. The girls were all right off to bed, Christian passed out on the couch, and I was up way too late editing the pictures from our little photo shoot. WAY too late. What a week! What a weekend!!

Until Next Week! XOXO