I Miss You

I really do miss my blog.  I got a new computer, but now need the internet back.  I miss not writing every week.  This have been busy here.  We are in full swing with school with the two big boys.  JJ is loving kindergarten.  I think I have mentioned it on here, but he is going to a year-round school.  I wasn't so sure about it in the beginning, but I really like the schedule.  He has Spanish every day and is having a blast with that.  He says his Spanish words so well.  His writing has gotten so much better since the first day of school.  I love seeing all the changes and how he keeps learning.  He does his homework packet on Monday night, instead of spacing it out throughout the week.  He is definitely tired and ready for bed at night which I love.  It is just me at night and putting three, sometimes four little boys to bed is not an easy task.  We are on a new medication for his ADHD and this one seems to be working very well.  I still struggle at times with putting him on meds, but it has made such a huge difference.  He even notices that he can focus more and do more things.  I know that it was the right decision, but still a hard one.  Jamie also just had his 5th birthday!  I cannot believe how fast everything is going.  Oliver is having a blast in preschool!  I wasn't sad one bit on his first day.  When I pick him, he is excited to tell me everything he did.  He is so much more talkative and full of energy after school.  I am glad we decided to send him for an extra year of preschool, it has been really good for him.  He was looking at an alphabet book the day and told me some of the animals and what letter the word started with.  Oliver recently turned 3.  We are also making some headway on the water issue.  I got him to take a bath, but he needed his swimsuit on.  I really don't care, as long as he gets in that tub!  I have also been able to lay him on legs and wash his hair.  He isn't always a fan, but doesn't freak out like he used to.  He loves when it is bath time for Jamie because he goes in there and throws all the toys in and will play.  Flynn will be 6 months old next week.....where did that time go?!  He is all about eating food.  We just tried sweet potatoes today and he ate the entire thing, no funny faces, no messing around!  I made him a bunch of food last night, so I'm excited to start some new foods.  He is rolling from his back to belly, but can't always figure out how to roll back :)  He is such a good little man, and I'm not just saying that because he is my kid!  He barely cries during the day, has been sleeping through the night since he was about 2 months old, he is a very content little man, he likes to eat and then go to sleep! 

 

Jamie on his first day of school.

 

 

Oliver was a tad bit excited for school!  He was all decked out in his Mickey shoes, shirt and backpack.

 

 

And Flynn, he is just happy :)

Here I am :)

I have got to say, I sometimes don't miss my computer.  But, I am hoping to get it fixed soon, life has just been crazy!  Jamie started kindergarten a couple of weeks ago.  He is going to a year round school and they start the beginning of August.  I was nervous about how he would do.  We had no tears and no sad faces!  He just loves school.  He is learning so much and has a lot of fun.  Oliver will be starting three year old preschool in a few weeks.  I am not big on sending kids to years of preschool, but I'm not sure if he will have any issues due to his sensory processing disorder.  I would rather deal with possible problems now then maybe have issues next year when he has to go.  Oliver is very excited to go, I just hope that excitement stays when he actually starts.  He even got a Mickey Mouse backpack :)  It will be weird having both boys gone at school.  At least Oliver only goes for 2 1/2 hours, twice a week.  Flynn is growing like a weed!  He is such a good baby.  I have really been blessed with easy going babies.  He is trying so hard to roll from his back to belly and we have started on eating rice cereal.  We have to work a little more on the eating :)  He is almost 4 months old and takes 6 ounce bottles and usually an 8 ounce bottle before bed.  His 6 month sleepers are getting snug and won't last for much longer, he is pretty long.  Things have been going pretty good with three kids.  I think it has been much easier adding a third, then adding a second.  Well, I would love to chat more, but we need to get the kiddos home and get to bed, we have school in the morning!

Oh My

Ok, I am finally getting my computer fixed :)  Hopefully I will be back on here very soon.

Say hi to Flynn Alister

He was born on April 29, after about 4 hours of labor (and only 7 minutes after the doctor gave the ok to push!).  He was 2 weeks early, but still came in at 8lb, 7oz and 20 inches long.  He is such a good little man.  He doesn't cry a lot, eats a ton, sleeps through the night sometimes, and is a handsome man :)  He is now up to a little over 10 pounds!  The 6oz bottles every 3 hours might have something to do with that.  I am so glad he decided to come early....otherwise he would have been a 10 pound baby!  I am also very glad that he is here and hopefully I don't have to worry about any more medical issues.  We are doing well with 3 kids.  The boys love having Flynn around.  The like to help with everything, including changing his diaper!  They ask to hold him all the time and are really careful with him.  I love that they are so kind and loving.  They want to make sure that he is taken care of and has what he needs.  They are such good big brothers.  Flynn is on meds for reflux.  Sorry for cutting this short, but we are at my sister's house and it is time to head home.  More to come soon!

Where have you been?!

So, I have been gone for a while!  My computer screen finally died and a new one isn't in the cards right now :(  So then we cancelled the internet because we wanted to switch anyway and can't use it right now.  Now, I have been having pregnancy issues.  I have been really tired this whole pregnancy and have problems sleeping.  I know that I have been over-doing it because Flynn's movements will slow down and I have needed a NST.  Then, Saturday night, things went downhill.  I had to work that morning and told them that I wasn't feeling good and that it was hard to catch my breath.  I was told I was couldn't go home and I even ended up working an hour later.  After the boys went to bed, I started to pack their Easter baskets and get things ready for the morning.  The next thing I remember, I am in the ER, gown on, IVs in both arms, feeling like crap, not knowing what in the world happened.  Eric told me he found me on Jamie's little chair (he was outside putting toys away).  I guess I wasn't breathing and was drooling.  He got me to come around and said that I was really out of it.  He called 911 and I wasn't answering questions correctly.  Luckily, a neighbor saw the lights by our house and knew that we had little boys and headed over.  She was able to stay until my sister got there.  The doctor figured I had a seizure, but didn't fit any of the other criteria for eclampsia (which is good), but they transferred me to the big hospital in Grand Rapids in case Flynn needed to be born, since I was only 34 weeks.  Flynn did awesome during everything!  His movements never slowed down and his heart rate did what it was suppose to.  They ran all kinds of tests and everything came back clear.  This is good but also frustrating because it makes it harder to pinpoint the reason for the seizure.  They think it is because I am so tired and try to do too much.  They are also thinking that my blood may be pooling in my legs and not moving like it is suppose to, causing a drop in blood pressure.  I had to get some of those lovely thigh high compression socks to wear :)  I got to come home Monday night, but have to take it easy.  Oh, they also did an ultra sound to make sure things were good inside and everything is!  I even got a cool 4D picture of him and he is a chunker and looks like Oliver!  He is already weighing in at almost 7 pounds!  Oh my :)  The big thing, I am not allowed to driver for 6 months!  I really hate asking for help and that is something we need to do a lot now.  I am not dealing with all of this very well.  I am so nervous that it will happen again.  I have to work tomorrow morning and I'm not looking forward to that.  I am just ready to have this baby and not have to worry about anything happening.  Eric's mom has been a huge help.  She is coming over tomorrow to help Eric put things away.  Our house has gotten cluttered because I was putting too much on my plate.  It really bothers me because things just need to be put away.  Hopefully after a couple of days, things will look better :)  I did manage to wash the baby clothes, although I think we will need bigger clothes!  So, right now I am trying to relax.  I am at my sister's now because I needed out of my house.  My arms are covered in bruises from the IVs and blood draws.  I have a huge bruise on my thigh from when I fell, my knee is a little tender and I have tender spots on my belly.  I also bit both sides of my tongue when I fell.  Both the boys had fevers yesterday.  They are much better today.  I am thinking it was because they were gone for a couple of days, not knowing what was going on.  Jamie told me today that he is happy that I am feeling better!  So, that is my little update for now.  I am hoping that I can relax and that Flynn will be born soon :)

One of Those Weeks

Have you ever had one of those days that just turned into one of those weeks?!  I am having one of those.  The boys have been off the whole week.  Maybe it is the crazy weather changes that are messing with them.  They have been getting up super early, not listening, I went to get them from Jamie's room yesterday and I found the mattress off the twin bed and the frame pushed to the other side of the room.  I have been yelling so much this week and I hate that.  I don't want to be a yeller.  I get so frustrated with everything.  I know I need to work on that.  But, when Jamie smarts off or they do the complete opposite of what I tell them....on purpose...it makes it even harder.  I need a break!  I go to work a couple nights a week, but come on, it is work...haha!  When I get home, I have to deal with two crying boys who are in no mood to listen.  Just now, they came downstairs from playing, Jamie didn't have shirt on, Oliver's clothes were off, socks missing, Jamie didn't have underwear on!  We are missing so many socks because he just takes them off and throws them!  And taking the clothes off...come on!!  What possesses little boys to do this?!  I wish I could get in their little minds and get all my answers!  It's not like my boys are bad kids.  Usually they are pretty good at listening and making the right decisions.  This has just been an off week and I'm just waiting for things to go back to normal.  Right now they are sitting nicely at their table eating lunch and watching Full House.  Jamie is even helping Oliver with his Go-Gurt.  They really are sweet boys :)  Soon, it will be nap time.  I am hoping to get some crafty things done.  This helps me to relax and to forget about how messy the house is!  I have decided to try and do another craft show in March.  I didn't sell a darn thing at the first one, but I am hoping for different results this time.  I will be working on relaxing today.  The stress and frustration makes my belly hurt.  Ok, things will get better!  Think happy thoughts :)

School

Why is picking a school for kindergarten so hard?!  We have plenty of public elementary schools we could send Jamie to, but I want something different.  I want something that will push him and not let him fall in the cracks.  When I say we have plenty of schools, I mean it.  There are at least 5 elementary schools in our little town!  That is a lot, and the class sizes aren't very small.  We were looking at the local charter school and sent in an application.  We don't find out til March if he gets in or not.  If he is put on the waiting list, there is still a pretty good chance that he would get in.  The five schools I mentioned, do not include the charter school or the two year round based schools!  Anyway, I was reading up on one of the year round based schools that is part of the public school and not a charter school.  I really like the charter school, but we are starting to think that the year round school might be a better fit.  Since they are part of the public school system, this school has buses, if he wants to play sports later he can just go across the street to the school there and play on their teams.  I'm not a huge fan of the year round school thing.  I guess they have the same public school schedule during the year with a few extra weeks off and then limited school during the summer.  The hubby thinks that a year round thing might be what Jamie needs and would keep his attention and focus.  This school also does mixed grades.  So with kindergarten, he would also have classes with 1st and 2nd graders.  I am so confused on what to do.  Jamie's birthday is at the end of September and according to MI law, the cut-off to turn 5 is November 1.  His preschool teachers are recommending preschool again or young-5's.  On his assessment, he was ready in every area except his birthday.  This really bothers me.  I don't want him to get bored and I don't want him to struggle.  He will either be the youngest or oldest in his class and will hate either one.  We are thinking that maybe being with other grades, might be beneficial.  I am waiting to hear back from the school.  I want to set up a tour and ask all of my questions! 

Computer Issues

Computers are greats, aren't they?!  I have gone through a few chargers in the 5 years or so that I have had my computer.  I had that same issue last week, but some how got it working again.  I am hoping that it stays working, I have a ton of pictures I need to get on the computer! 

I am very tired today.  Jamie decided that 7:30 was a perfect time to get up this morning!  This kid usually sleeps til at least 9, if not later!  Oliver was up shortly after that.  Needless to say, today is a nap day.  I also have to work for a few hours today and would very much love a nap before work.  Things have been kind of crazy around here.  Last week, we got a ton of snow.  We actually got Oliver to play in the snow!  He has been having some issues with even walking in the snow.  It took him a little bit, but he eventually started throwing snow at me and sliding down a "mountain."  Then, yesterday it started pouring!  It rained so hard last night, it was insane.  It is almost 60 degrees here today and most of the snow is gone.  It will be getting nice and cold again and more snow.  I also had to go to the hospital last week to make sure I wasn't having real contractions.  Turns out I have another bladder infection and that is causing braxton hicks.  His heart rate was excellent during the whole test and who was moving non-stop.  The nurses were surprised at how good of a reading they got on him for only being 25 weeks.  I'm glad nothing was wrong, but not a fan of these darn bladder infections.  I didn't even have any of the normal symptoms like I usually do.  Oh well, at least things are good with Flynn :)

I have more to chat about, but it is almost time to pick Jamie up from school.  Oh, as I have mentioned before, I have started selling 31.  I am trying to make some extra money in hopes of not having to work so much!  I am doing an online show right now.  I will put the link here if anyone is interested.  I know that some readers may be out of staters, but you can have the stuff shipped to your house.  I will be closing the show on Thursday night, the 31st.  The special this month is for every $31 you spend, you can get any home organization item for half off!
http://www.mythirtyone.com/shop/eventhome.aspx?eventId=E2762458&from=DIRECTLINK

Pregnancy Woes

I really wish that I could be one of those women who love being pregnant and enjoy every minute, I really do!  Truth is, I'm not a fan of being pregnant.  Obviously I love my little guys and I still want more :)  I really could have done without the throwing up this time around.  Now, for the past few days, I have had constant belly pain.  I thought it was round ligament pain, but this doesn't go away.  I saw my doctor and she said it could be a mixture of ligament pain, scare tissue breaking, and the fact that the new little man likes to sit nice and low.  Because he likes to sit low, he is kicking all the sore parts!  I ordered a belly support thing which should be here any time, and hopefully that helps.  I'm not suppose to be lifting a whole lot, including the boys, just to give those muscles and what not to heal up.  Eric is trying his hardest to help more around the house.  I can do some things, but then the pain gets worse, so I have to space things out.  I just can't wait for baby Flynn to arrive :)  It is funny though, because as soon as he is born, I will forget about everything and want another baby!  We really want a girl, so we will have to work on that.  We only have like 16 weeks....man, that sounds too long!  Unless, he is big, it could be sooner.  I'm almost to my third trimester and I've been getting some energy back.  Luckily, here in Michigan, we don't have any snow yet so I haven't had to worry about falling!  Jamie really wants snow to play in, but I really do worry about falling.  I am trying to stay positive about things.  I have this precious little man growing inside of me, moving like crazy, growing like crazy.  I may have my issues when I'm pregnant, but the outcome is totally worth it! 

Oh Boy, Oh Boy

We had our big ultrasound today.  I was suppose to have it yesterday, but my doctor was out of the office.  This meant that I got to have it done at the hospital which meant a full bladder.  This was very uncomfortable!  The baby hates being pushed on, so that meant I was being kicked in my bladder.  The lovely technician informed us that we will be having another boy :)  I'm not going to lie, I really wanted a girl, but we know boys :)  Jamie wasn't very happy about the news.  He keeps telling us we have enough boys for right now, he is a very thoughtful little man.  I told him that mommy and daddy will have more babies and he still has a chance of getting his sister.  He has now moved onto to the next baby!  It is starting to sink in that we will have three boys!  Our house is already crazy.  It will be interesting, that is for sure.  But, like I said, we know boys.  Everything looks good with the new little man.  His feet look massive!  I am prepared for a big boy.  It will be fun to see all the boys together and see how they interact.  Oh, I haven't forgotten about the pictures.  I can't find my camera cord!  It is really bugging me because I always put it back in the case.  I'm hoping to find it soon :)

Christmas Re-Cap....in words

I have a ton of cute pictures, but need to get them on the computer still.  So, here is our Christmas in words :)

My dad and youngest brother came here for Christmas this year.  This was the first Christmas since my grandpa passed away, so I think it was good for my dad to get away.  Plus, the boys love having him around.  The boys had a blast with grandpa and their uncle! When we were putting the presents under the tree, I got to thinking that there were a lot of presents :)  The hubby and I agree that we would rather the boys have a lot of presents under the tree that were pretty cheap compared to one or two expensive things.  The majority of what I found was under $10, heck, most were cheaper than that!  I love watching their faces as they are opening their gifts.  They don't care or know that the pack of farm animals they got was $3.  My kids do not need the newest, best, most expensive things out there.  Anyway....that is a whole other post right there!  We had a good Christmas.  We didn't have snow, which is a bit strange for Michigan, but it was cold.  My dad left on Thursday and then we had a busy weekend.  Thursday night, Oliver came down with a fever and cough, but was find in the morning.  That same night, Eric got a fever.  His fever was gone on Friday and seemed to be doing better.  We had a Christmas party that night also.  Then, in the middle of night, his fever came back.  He had a 103 temp all that night and most of Saturday.  I had to work in the morning and then hurry home and get ready for another Christmas party, this time without Eric.  His fever finally broke that afternoon.  That meant he was able to go to our last Christmas party on Sunday.  Thankfully, the rest of us have been feeling good, minus the sinus infection that I am getting over.  We have been sanitizing the house now...haha!  Now, we are trying to get the house back in order.  I am one of those people that does not believe in taking down all the Christmas stuff the day after.  People decorate earlier every year and then complain about it.  I love having all the lights and things in the house.  We are taking down the real tree this weekend.  Some of the strands of lights are going out anyway.  We will move the fake tree into the living room and leave everything up for a bit yet.  One of my other brothers and his girlfriend are coming next week and they will have presents for the boys so we want it to feel like Christmas in here yet.  I tried getting some things cleaned up today, but those silly boys were right behind me messing things up!  Oh well, maybe I should work on those pictures :)

Stuck

I promise I will do a Christmas recap soon :)

I have been feeling stuck lately.  I took Oliver to the doctor last week because he had a nice croup cough and a 102 fever....out of nowhere!  His fever was gone in the morning and he really wasn't coughing, but I took him in anyway.  I don't like to mess with his cough.  Everything sounded and looked fine.  Which is good news, but doesn't explain the darn cough.  He is up to 30 pounds though!  He has gained almost 2 pounds in the past month.  He has never gained that much weight in a single month, ever!  His fever never came back, but his cough has.  The past couple of nights have been horrible.  He coughs a little during the day, but nighttime is the worst.  He had his Pulmicort before bed and then needed the rescue medicine a couple of hours later and he still woke up coughing super hard 2 more times after that!  He has two pillow pets and we stack them up and so his head is propped up.  I just wish we had an answer as to why this keeps happening.  He can get this cough and no one else will.  Even now, he is the only one coughing.  I have a feeling that maybe his asthma isn't completely under control.  I know he doesn't have allergies because he doesn't always have a runny nose with the cough.  And, I think if it was something in the house, then he would be having a lot more problems.  I'm going to give him a breathing treatment in the morning and see how things go during the day.  I want to see how things go for a few days with having the breathing treatments throughout the day.  I want him to feel better.  Then, people don't want him around their kids because they think he is going to get them sick.  It does irritate me because I know that he isn't sick.  We already have to see a GI specialist, I don't want to add another one if I can help it.  Anyone have any suggestions?  We will see how the rest of the week goes.  If having the medicine throughout the day helps, then I will have to call the doc and get some answers.  We have an excellent doctor and I think he is getting a little frustrated with it also.  He doesn't act sick, his lungs sound fine...grrr!  Anyway, just wanted to get that out there.  Now, it is time to think about my Christmas post :)