I remember when I only had two little ones at home....you would've found me at the park, the pool, at home putting together puzzles, watching Disney movies. Dinner would have been served by no later than 5 sharp! If you'd have come to my home at 6:30, my kids would have been bathed and in bed, maybe not asleep.... but definitely in bed because, man, those were long days. I thought I was busy, and I was!! But it was a very different type of busy. And of course I remember more experienced mothers offering up words of wisdom, "it's only going to get more and more busy!"
Didn't get it then, but I do now. When you have four children (only three of which are actually involved in anything) you have many groups/schools/activities that require your attention. And you don't have to commit to volunteering everywhere, but you really must step up in some areas. This year I decided to be Grant's preschool room mom, and a parent volunteer for Dane and Evelyn's classroom. I felt that would be manageable. Then soccer rolled around and I committed to be Dane's team mom... and that created a little of a load to carry. Then Dane's room mom moved, and so I was asked if I could please coordinate the rest of the year for his classroom. And that about did me in! Especially as it was teacher appreciation week last week. Ha!
But now I'm feeling so much more at ease as one soccer season has ended and another is just a tournament and party away from the end. A few more end of year parties to coordinate and the summer will be here! All of the activities and parties and events will slowly start to diminish and swimming lessons/swim team will take their place. My kids are involved in so many wonderful activities... all of which make them so happy and therefore make me so happy to support them whenever I'm able to. But after a year of running at full speed, I'm plain worn out! I think deep breathing and getting enough rest are my top go-tos for dealing with the craziness of life.
These days I don't often make it to a park, I'm so busy running errands, typing letters, volunteering at the school, cooking/prepping for so many different purposes that park dates are not a top priority! At home, puzzles and disney movies have been replaced with piano practice, reading aloud, math homework and science projects! If you come to my home at 6:30, you won't find any children in bed! In fact, at least four nights a week-- we aren't even home until 7! And then dinner is served a bit later than it used to be. So different and busy than it used to be... but also so fun and stimulating. I love it and feel very blessed to be a part of so many wonderful things.
Here's a quick update on the kids in May:
Evelyn--- our eldest has taken up knitting in a serious way, as previously mentioned. If she has a moment of free time, you will find her in her room, either knitting or reading Nancy Drew! She has really learned a lot and it's so fun to watch her come up with all sorts of projects.
Volleyball season is just winding down and it's been a joy! Evelyn has learned how to serve, dig, set. She loves it! And has loved having her best friend Lily on the team as well. The kids had a great little end of season party last weekend with pizza and goodies. Coach Josh put together a fun little award for each girl-- Evelyn's nickname was "wheels" as she quickly gets to the ball. She was thrilled.
Ev is in the midst of preparing for her Kids Sing concerts happening this week and next and also the school talent show in which she and a friend (MacKenzie) will sing and dance "You can't stop the beat" from Hairspray. It's the cutest act of the bunch, if I do say so myself:)
Dane has had a wonderful soccer season and is very eager to play in his tournament this weekend! He's hoping for a second tournament champion title! Such a good boy, the only trouble this guy has caused me lately is his incessant demands to raise tadpoles! I blame Papa entirely for this as he got him started on the whole idea. Can I tell you that we have been on about three hikes this month alone searching ponds and lakes for tadpoles to bring home and raise. Oh man, there is not a single day that passes in which Dane does not ask me if he can please have a tadpole. Tears and whining have been involved. Again, deep breathing has come in handy as I've dealt with the dilemma.
Grant enjoyed celebrating his success at a fun little end of season soccer party last weekend. He is truly the life of any party, such a little ball of energy, always happy, always eager to tell a joke. I adore him! He is gearing up for swim lessons, although he is my youngest to already be such a pro! He was swimming at age two! I enjoyed his little preschool party in which he sang "I'm a little teapot" with more enthusiasm than one could possibly imagine. Such a funny kid.
Anna has officially entered her terrible twos, gosh darn it. I guess I believed she might stay a little angel forever. Hadn't caused an ounce of trouble for her entire two years of life and then all of a sudden, out of nowhere.... she started to throw tantrums, demand fruit snacks, and demonstrate all manner of undesirable mood swings. Nothing that a little love and logic can't fix! We've been working on this.... working hard!
Anna continues to love babies. In fact, it was sweet to see her dive into a bin full of Evelyn's old dolls that I'd saved. She was in heaven. She loves to carry the babies around, sleep with them, kiss them ,clothe and feed them. Arial from Little Mermaid has also become quite the obsession. Every day she asks to watch "arial, arial". She only actually watches for a total of 10 minutes, but it's pretty cute nonetheless. And cannot forget to mention that I can now style Anna's hair in pigtails! She looks super duper cute and I'm thrilled!
And a little update on Blake and I....
Marston Orthodontics had a booth at the big Fiesta fair in Rancho Penasquitos last weekend. The kids and I were thrilled to don our Marston Orthodontic gear and go out and support Daddy. His office has been open for three years now! It's amazing how quickly time has flown by. We loved celebrating Blake's birthday this year. Fun to have a little crew help me to plan these things. Strawberry shortcake for dessert, chicken and rice for dinner (an old favorite which the kids highly disliked) and ties and sunglasses for birthday gifts. We made a cute little sign that said "Daddy- you're the tops!" He loved it, naturally.
As mentioned above, Teacher Appreciation, primary business, and other household affairs have kept me plenty busy. I've narrowed my dinner schedule down to a very limited rotating fair. We have chicken patty sandwiches on Monday, Spaghetti dinner on Tuesday, Tacos on Wednesday, and Trader Jo's Orange Chicken on Wednesday. We BBQ on the weekends. I tell you, this is all, ALL my children will eat. I have no choice but to stick with the same old stuff every day of the week.
Our sweet friend Lizzy is headed off to college soon! One last time to do her make up before Mormon Prom... what will we do without her!
