End-of-Spring Fun

Hello everyone!!  We've been busy as usual, enjoying the summer.  The girls had a blast going to their cousins' birthday party back in May.  It was at a place called Catch Air, and they had a blast!  There were inflatables, huge slides, soft merry-go-rounds, a dance floor, and all kinds of fun stuff for kids.  I'll let the pictures tell you all about it. 

All dressed up and ready to party!

I'm trying to get Elizabeth used to wearing bows.  Her "bangs" and curly hair are kind of all over the place.  It's adorable, but definitely needs something to make it look like I didn't just pick her up out of bed and throw her in the car (even though that is actually what I do most of the time)!

This was a neat merry-go-round.  The kids could sit on the balls and swing around as it went in circles.

Elizabeth wasn't too sure about the bigger inflatables.

Christa was a pro at riding the merry-go-round-balls!

As part of the party, the cousins got to have a dance party with Buzz Lightyear.  All of the kids loved this part - especially Elizabeth, who bounced and danced to the music quite well on her knees.

Here she is, loving the music and lights!

 

Speaking of Buzz Lightyear, Abby Kate had a blast in our Buzz towel, "flying" around the house after a bath.

Good times!

Summer of Simplicity

Hello all!!  I wanted to take a moment to share some "ah-ha moments" I've had recently.  The ladies in my bible study decided to do a study on "Becoming a Woman of Simplicity," by Cynthia Heald, over the summer, and discuss our thoughts on our Facebook page, since we couldn't meet in person due to lack of childcare.  This is something I've struggled with for years, and felt especially convicted about this past year, so I jumped right in.  I didn't even make it through the first week before my whole attitude about what "has to be done each day" changed completely!
I am technically a "stay-at-home-mom," but I am not exactly a "stay-at-home-type-of-mom."  You see, while I don't have a job that pays money outside the home, my favorite things to do include packing my kids up and going to some sort of group activity where we are around other people.  I am not that mom who sits cooking, cleaning, and making amazing crafts with her kids all day long.  I know a lot of moms who are like that, and we get along great, but that is just not me.  It drives my own mom a little crazy!  She is an introvert, and can't imagine having 3 kids as young as mine at one time, and then packing them up several times a day to go get lunch, or run errands, or volunteer somewhere, or go to someone's house.  But, that's how I've always been.  I like being around other people - lots of other people - and I like to be busy.  When I'm not busy, I manage to fill the spare hours with some activity, despite occasional efforts to slow down, rest more, and play with my kids at home more.
The truth is, with 3 kids under the age of 5, there is really no way to "slow down" during daylight hours.  Even if I stay home all day, and my only goal is to feed the kids and play with them, someone always needs something.  When I try to play a game with an older girl, the baby starts climbing on the kitchen set.  When I try to play with toys with the baby, the middle one wants me to zip up the 3rd dress she's put on that day.  Or she pees all over the floor.  If I try to sit the older two down for a craft, the middle one loses interest after about a minute, and the older one says, "Mommy, look at this," every 6 seconds until I give up putting away toys, playing with the baby, or whatever I am trying to do.  Don't get me wrong - I LOVE it.  But it's busy and chaotic and loud - all day, every day, regardless of how simple I make my objectives.
Towards the end of the school year, I was feeling like I'd taken on more "outside" activities than I could handle long term.   Cline and I put a lot of pressure on ourselves to "make the most" of these short years with our young kids.  We don't ever want to look back and wish we'd snuggled more, read an extra bedtime story more often, or played more with our kids.  I was starting to feel like I was spending a little too much time hopping from one activity to the next and not enough time playing Barbies with the girls.  It's always like that in May, though.  Every activity wraps up in May, adding 5 performances, 15 end of the year celebrations,  awards ceremonies, thank you gestures, and getting the summer schedule figured out.  And we're not even in "real" school yet!  (I made the mistake of doing *nothing* one summer, and it did not go well).  I prayed long and hard about what to give up for next year.  And the more I prayed about it, the more God seemed to bless the 3 activities I was trying to choose between.
A couple of weeks ago, just after I started this new study, something seemed to click.  I haven't figured out how to "simplify" my schedule yet, in the sense of "doing less."  Nothing's been cut out.  But I have turned down new opportunities and released myself of some irrational guilt.  I've tried to "practice" being an "abiding woman" rather than a "supermom."  There's a great little chart out there in Blogworld that compares the two, but the idea is that an "abiding woman" seeks to please God, is controlled by the Holy Spirit, and seeks to bring glory to God in everything she does.  A "supermom" finds satisfaction in what she accomplishes, tries to please others, and runs like crazy checking off her to-do list and doing activities with and for her kids.  What this change has looked like for me is that I'm now spending every day with the general goal of taking good care of my kids, modeling Christ's love to them and anyone we interact with that day, and playing with and educating my kids.  We've played together so much!  I've spent much more time playing and talking with them and much less time on Facebook and checking things off my "to-do" list.  I actually can't remember the last time I even made a "to-do" list, which is completely off my reservation!  I also find myself praying throughout the day - not just at a set time in the morning and night.  I try to ask for God's input on how I should explain something or how I can turn a craft or a game into a teachable moment.  (I'm definitely not perfect at this, but getting better).  Christa and I have spent some time working on her reading skills during the little ones' nap time.  But we've done it in a variety of ways that are fun, and I don't feel stressed out at the end of the day if we never looked at her sight words.  Rather, I have a general goal to work on her reading and invest time in that, and be flexible about what she responds to rather than a checklist and a "we have to do a, b, and c to get to d." (Ironically, as I was writing this, Christa woke up and came into the computer room at 11:45 p.m.  She's spent the last 10 minutes identifying sight words in this post, completely on her own :)! 
Interestingly, my house is the same amount of clean that it was before.  I've spent a lot less time organizing things and doing laundry, and somehow, it's more caught up than ever.  I have much more peace throughout the day.  For example, when Cline came home last week, and said he might have to work even more for a couple of weeks (after 6 months of being overworked as it is), I didn't get angry and stressed out like I have before.  I felt a peace that Cline would glorify God wherever he was, and God would give us the family time we need and me the help I need to run the household.  His extra work ended up being a mere half of a shift! 
Anyway, I'm not saying I have the perfect schedule figured out.  But I am slowly learning to rely on God to guide me in prioritizing and accomplishing the many, many tasks that have to be done as a mother of young kids.  And for the last week or two, I've ended my days feeling very satisfied about how I spent my time and what got accomplished, instead of feeling exhausted and guilty about everything that didn't get done.  I'm starting to shift my goals from raising super kids and looking like I always have it all together (not fooling anyone, I know), to simply loving God and loving the husband, kids, friends, and family He's given me as I go throughout my day.  I highly recommend this study for any woman who feels too busy and overwhelmed.

"I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity ... of devotion to Christ." 2 Corinthians 11:3 

By the way, it's 12:30 a.m., and since my oldest daughter is up, and we have nothing pressing to do at the moment, we're going to watch Good Luck Charlie together.  I simply can't think of anything else I'd rather do right now!

Pacifier Drama

Hello everyone!!  I'm sure I have some new pictures to post, but my camera is downstairs, and I only have about 10 minutes before I need to leave for my walk.  I just wanted to record the fun things we're doing this summer and air my recent parenting failure out to the online world!
Summer is off to a great start!  We are semi-scheduled, meaning I have several things in my head that we are working on each day, but I do not stress about doing *all* of them every single day.  In general, I am trying to get the kids outside more to play, do more crafts, work on Christa's reading skills and other educational activities, and spend more time playing with all 3 of the girls.  So far, we're off to a good start!  We also have a couple of Vacation Bible Schools, some swimming lessons, and a Dance Camp to look forward to, as well, so it should be a fun and productive summer!
Recently, a Facebook friend of mine asked 300 of her closest online friends for suggestions on how to get rid of the pacifier.  I was a little surprised to see that most parents took away their kids' pacifiers between 18 months and 2 and 1/2 (or so I thought).  I actually had Abby Kate off of the pacifier around 8 months.  She never seemed too attached to it, so I just didn't give it to her one day, and she didn't even seem to notice.  When Elizabeth came along, however, Abby Kate decided that she needed pacifiers, too.  Wanting to foster a positive sibling relationship, I pulled out some old pacifiers for Abby Kate (who was 18 months old at the time), and we continued to adjust well as a family of 5.  Over the next few months, Abby Kate became increasingly attached to her pacifiers.  Around Christmas time, I took away the pacifiers except at bedtime, which was a relatively smooth transition.
As I have a tendency to do, I felt a little behind when I read how early other kids were getting rid of their pacifiers (according to the wisdom of Facebook).  I saw a suggestion on there that I really liked, so I decided to try it.  We took the pacifiers to Wal-Mart and traded them for a toy that Abby Kate got to pick out.  There were tears when we left the pacifiers, and tears that night, but I expected a period of difficulty and figured it would pass in a couple of days.  After all, Abby Kate had said she wanted to do this when I asked her about it.  After the first night (which was about a week ago), there really weren't any more meltdowns.  But Abby Kate no longer willingly went down for a nap or at night.  Putting her to bed had previously been a very easy process, and now she was clearly expressing a lack of desire to go to bed.  Again, I expected this, so I snuggled with her and rocked  her and reminded her about her new toy and all of her stuffed animal friends that she could still sleep with.  She woke up wimpering several times a night and took very short naps.   On day 3, she jumped out of her crib during her "nap" for the first time ever.  I mentally debated how to handle this situation, as I consoled her and rocked her.   ("Do I give the pacifier back and make her sleep in her big girl bed?  Do I give the pacifier crib and put her back in her crib, assuming she won't try to get out again, if she has her paci?  Do I stay the course and see what happens over the next few days??")  As I was deciding what to do, Christa came into the room and took care of it for me.  She said, "Abby Kate, do you want to sleep in your big girl bed now?"  Surprisingly, Abby Kate said, "yes."  (I'd previously offered this weeks ago only to have the idea turned down).  So, I put her in her bed, and she went to sleep - sans pacifier.
Last night, about a week after I started these transitions, Abby Kate woke up after sleeping only a couple of hours.  I snuggled with her, and she went back to sleep.  When she woke up again 2 hours later, I asked Cline to check on her.  I'd been up with her 2-3 times every night for the last week, and really wanted a small break.  He groggily got out of bed and went upstairs.  I rolled over and heard Abby Kate's cries get louder and louder until I finally went up there myself.  Cline said he'd tried everything, but she wouldn't be consoled and was asking for her paci.  I took one look at my miserable little girl, and went to the car to retrieve one.  (I'd swiped them from Wal-Mart when she wasn't looking.)  When I got upstairs, she immediately popped it in her mouth and was asleep before she could even get her head on Cline's shoulder.  He laid her down in her big girl bed, and she slept soundly until 8:30 am!
In retrospect, I just don't think she was ready to do without her pacifier at night.  I've since talked to several moms whose kids still take a pacifier at bedtime at ages 4 and 5.  Abby Kate was never manipulative or inappropriate about the whole thing at all.  She simply mourned the loss of her pacifier, and it truly disrupted her sleep so much that I am so glad we gave it back to her last night.   Anyway, live and learn, I guess!  Next time we try this, I think we'll try the old "cut the tip down until there's nothing left to suck on" method!

Spring Recital 2013

Hello again, all!  Christa had her Spring Recital last weekend, and it was an amazing performance, once again!  The theme of the show was "Going on a Field Trip."  She performed two numbers, a tap routine and a ballet.  She was a cowgirl for the tap dance, and it was very patriotic, and very cute!  She got past the itchiness of her costume much more easily than I was expecting.  Her ballet number was "I'm a Little Teapot."  Most of the pictures I took were from dress rehearsal.  I try to get all of my pictures and video there, so that I can enjoy the live performance without worrying about getting a perfect picture.  This works out well, except the background for the live show is always much cuter.  Enjoy the pictures!

Ready for the live show!

Backstage with friends.

Christa is the 4th girl from the left.

All done!  Taylor, Molly, and Anna Kate have been great dance-mates!

Cinderella and the Dwarf

Hello again!  Summer vacation has officially started in our house, and we had a good time wrapping up our school year.  The girls' school put on an adorable end of the year program.  Christa and her class performed a song from "Cinderella," and Abby Kate and her classmates were the dwarfs from "Snow White."  Christa developed a sudden interest in helping me clean the house while she was practicing for her performance.  We mopped the floors together a couple of times, and she cleaned her bedroom and the playroom up all by herself.  I'm totally fine if every one of her teachers wants her to perform "Cinderella" from here on out!  Abby Kate was an adorable little dwarf, saying, "watch how well I can dig!"  Have I mentioned that I love their school??

Christa's pre-K class had a little awards ceremony.  Christa received the "Fruit of the Spirit" award.

My little princess, hard at work with the dishes.

She loves to be on stage!

Scrubbing the floors.

Abby Kate marching to "Heigh-ho."

Hard at work, digging.

Her face was so animated when they yelled, "heigh-hoooooo."  It was so cute!

Goodbye, another great school year!

All smiles after the performance!

Mother's Day 2012

Hello all!!  I had a great Mother's Day this year.  It goes without saying that my favorite gift each year is simply getting to be a mother.  I adore every moment I get to be with my 3 girls!!  (Well, most moments anyway - I could probably get used to fewer poopy moments, but that will come soon enough:).  Anyway, the older girls are so sweet, that every day feels like Mother's Day.  They are really good at giving me spontaneous kisses and hugs, telling me they love me, and even thanking me on occasion. I gave Christa a reusable sticker set (similar to Colorforms) as a dance recital gift.  She told me several times, "I really like this sticker set you got for me, Mom."  She sure knows how to make me want to run right out and buy her more stuff!  Even Elizabeth blows kisses, slobbers on my nose, and has a smile that a million "thank yous" couldn't replace!

This year, Mother's Day weekend was a crazy one.  We spent Friday and Saturday in Macon, celebrating Cline's brother's graduation from law school.  I forgot my camera in the chaos of packing everyone up and preparing for a small road trip with the kids by myself.  (Cline had to work until the wee hours of Saturday morning, so he drove down separately after his shift).  We were home for Mother's Day, though, and Cline was off work, so we spent the morning at church and then met up with his family to eat lunch together.  I forgot my camera for that event, too, but here are some pictures of the girls giving me the most perfect Mother's Day gifts ever.

Abby Kate made a candle for me, using her thumbprints to make flowers and other designs.  They did this at school, and wrapped it up with a cute little poem, so it was a complete surprise!

Christa made this flower pot out of her hand print.  Another awesome school activity!  Have I mentioned that I love their school today??

Abby Kate also painted this flower using her hand prints!  It's hanging up in my kitchen as we speak!

Have I mentioned that I love these girls??

Meeting Baby Katherine

Hello all!!  Cline's twin brother, Chas, and his wife, Bethany had their 4th baby a few weeks ago.   The girls and I got to go to the hospital the day of the delivery, and then Cline got to go with us for the homecoming!  Here are some pictures from those special days.

Proud big sister and brothers, Maggie Beth, William, and Charlie!

Favorite cousins, Maggie Beth, and Christa!

 

 More favorite cousins, Charlie and Abby Kate!  They have really been enjoying each other lately!  We've been seeing them a little more with various family events, and I'm used to explaining to Christa that we're going to see Maggie Beth.  Abby Kate, each time, has excitedly exclaimed, "and Charlie, too??"  It's adorable!

Elizabeth was so good, waiting at the hospital all day with no nap!  One unforeseen challenge of being married to a twin is that your one year old confuses the Uncle with the Daddy sometimes :)  Chas came to the waiting room to give us an update after we'd been there a few hours, and Elizabeth went nuts reaching for him.  He picked her up, of course, but had a lot going on loving on his own children who were also excited to see him.  She pretty much reached for him the entire time we were there, so that was a little challenging (and cute)!

Welcome to the family, baby Ella Katherine!

Christa loves holding babies.  She asked today if we could have a 4th baby.  Hopefully we will one day, but I sure am enjoying getting to play with the 3 I have without being pregnant or having to nurse anyone at the moment :)

 Coming home from the hospital.  Isn't she cute??

Beautiful family of 6.

Proud Uncle Cline meeting his newest niece!