Tales with Four: After the pool

For the record...

I have every intention of coming back to the blog!  I think what is spurring me on the most is that I know I am forgetting all those "tales with two" stories I had with Samuel and Benjamin at the current ages of Jonathan and Rosalind.

Let me tell you what, most anything can turn a bit crazy these days.  It is just something about the close spacing and the ages of young 1's and 3's.  I'm helping one with one thing while the other needs a diaper and then the first decides he is going to start wiping himself without telling me and then the second runs into our dining room table and then the first pushes her because she was trying to play with one of his bazillion trains and then the first is getting disciplined while the second climbs down the steps that the big boys left the gate open and sits down to have a nice snack of cat food and fill the cat's water bowl up with food.  I could go on and on and on.  It is a time of my life I have to be on my toes and that is just hard!  On top of all this are of course the fact that there are two other boys who need guidance and discipline also so I have moments where my head is spinning in a ton of different directions.

I have been taking the kids to the pool for swim lessons for the two big boys and the little ones and I are getting in the pool too while we wait for them to finish.  Then I do my best to practice with the big boys while holding a baby.  The 3yo stays in the super shallow section but I love that there is a life guard on duty and that the pool is small and not filled with a ton of people.  Anyways, afterwards I insist on a rinse off and then we change in the van.  It is just too hard to change everyone in the family changing area because the boys are just a bit crazy in close spaces.  Today, while I was rinsing Ms Rosalind off I realized Jonathan had decided to go over by the toilet in the corner and put his hands all over it so we had to rinse him again and that's when I realized Samuel had sneaked back in the shower which made Benjamin jealous so he thought it would be a grand prank to climb on the handicap rails so he could reach the shower head and spray Samuel in the face.  After trying to figure out what he was thinking, I sternly got him down and realized that Jonathan had stripped all the way down and was utterly refusing to put his wet trunks back on.  I'm holding baby girl so trying to force them on wasn't working.  I finally stepped out and grabbed the Ergo, put her in her towel on my back, put Jon's towel on him and carried him out with that towel tightly wrapped around his hiney.  He loved being carried out and repeatedly thanked me for carrying him (35lb) and wearing her (20lb) to the van.  They all had to whoop as we passed out the door as there is a lovely echo at that point they are intensely aware of.  So, of course everyone saw the bedraggled mom carrying/dragging her wet crew of 'too many kids' out to the car.  Sigh.  They are finally improving on the swimming though!!  Yay!  I told them if they wanted to go to a pool at all this summer both big boys had to be proficient swimmers because I can't keep up with four at a pool like that.  Jonathan has his puddle jumper to help him and I think Benjamin is finally past his fear of the water.  I'm struggling finding something for baby girl to wear because she is SOOOO tiny.  I haven't found a life vest at the pool or puddle jumper that fits her.  That's why I just hold and swim her around the whole time. 

This blog thing is going to be sporadic this summer.  Firstly cause I have four kids to keep up with all day...and only one naps consistently now.  Secondly because I'm trying to get the rooms all rearranged so that R&J have their own smaller rooms and the big boys share a bigger room.  Thirdly because I have a lot of fun plans for this summer as well as activities that hopefully they will learn.  Fourthly I'm trying to get the big boys especially going on chores.  I had a system and it kind of just slowly ebbed away.  It's getting too much for me to just clean the house every night as well as cook and everything else.  Shew!  Fifthly, sleep is not dependable around here from Miss Rosalind.  It seems like one bad night totally derails me and we have maybe 5/7 good sleep nights and the other two are iffy.  BUT I miss blogging and plan to get back to it in bits and pieces.  Here is a more current picture of the kids from a local park near us.

Columbus Zoo

THE ZOO!  After the crazy week with my mom in her 'methadone' state, the kids and I needed a day out.  It was our fall break and I wanted them to have a fun day.  So, I drove over to the Columbus zoo.  We tend to get there once a year.  I have to admit that I was a little nervous doing the zoo by myself with all the littles.  I knew Rosalind would need naps and lots of nursing.  I also knew my boys would be so active outdoors.  When we first got there, there were a few times I just told Samuel and Benjamin that we couldn't do this/that because I just needed to be able to keep up with Jonathan and that we couldn't wait like 20 min for them to get through the line to pet the giraffes.  I just had a hard time finding my footing with everyone at first but after about 30 min we got our footing and we combed that zoo!!!!  Saw a few things we missed before.  I especially enjoyed the baby gorilla.  We stood for awhile watching this baby monkey jump off a glass window over and over.

Papa gave the boys money and they enjoyed spending it.  Benjamin and Jonathan both got stuffed animals.  Samuel got a fancy key chain.  It was a great day.  

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas to All!

It was a tough Christmas for us for several reasons.  I think this is probably one of the first times I really can understand Christmas being a tough season for some.  I'm glad though there is next year and I hope it is a ton of fun!!

Linda's 63 Birthday

We wanted my mom to have a big birthday party this year around her birthday, Oct 3.  We planned to have it at the park near their house and made a reservation but in the end, moved to a shelter closer to the playground for all those kiddies!  You'll notice my aunt also is blessed with four grandsons and then finally a granddaughter making the total of kids/babies there to be 10!  It was really fun to see everyone on that windy day!  A few of mom's friends showed up too.  I had left a message on facebook asking for cards and so many many people kindly sent her cards.  It was fantastic.

Unfortunately, they had very recently changed my mom's meds and she was having a really bad time with side effects.  She imagined sounds, people, actions.  I stayed the following week and it was just really awful seeing her like that.  Thankfully, when I left, they put her in the facility for a few days and took her off that medicine.  So glad for that.  I'm not sure she has ever completely come back as herself but she was much better without methadone!  She barely remembered the week I was there though and the birthday party was really really fuzzy.  Crummy isn't it?!  I wish she could have gone another chemo treatment just to make it through her birthday and the holidays more clearly.

Soccer Season 2014

Yep!  Another fall with upward soccer.  This year Samuel talked Nathan into coaching.  Nathan had always wanted to of course but Samuel's encouragement in front of the staff looking for volunteers definitely did the trick!  He did a very good job especially since both boys were in the same age group this year.  Having the two on the same team was challenging but then having them go against each other would be challenging too.  Well, Nathan managed them well enough.  I think everyone improved their soccer skills and had a good time.  The boys were so proud that Nathan was the coach.  :)  

What about momma?  Well, momma was kinda struggling with a baby and a two year old in that open space.  The baby was trying to take her third nap and the 2 yr old was trying to play on the field too.  There was an open area for him to play in but of course he tried to sneak onto any playing field.  This trend continued through further practices and games.  Sigh.  It will be nice next year for him to be a bit older eh?

 

Fall Leaves

Our only tree small enough to climb is a little too small!  Poor dogwood has 2 enthusiastic boys into climbing.  Lots of wind and cold weather had the leaves falling fast this year.  We had a decent amount but we did borrow some from the neighbor's maple tree for our leaf pile.  This was Jonathan's first year to jump and he loved it.  Rosie just tried to eat the leaves.

A Series of Redneck Sledding Incidents.  I put 6 videos one after each other.

"Everything is Awesome when you're part of a team. 

Everything is Cool when you're living your dream."

School Days are here Again

The big boys both started school this past fall in early August.  They enjoy 1 week off for fall and spring breaks and then 3 weeks at Christmas so that means an early start.  :)  It was a little hectic meeting all the teachers with the little ones in tow!  Samuel has received awards for great behavior this year!  His writing has improved tremendously.  Benjamin is doing well above his age in all his math testing and he is learning writing pretty fast.

Rosalind is Crawling and Pulling Up!! And She got her 9 mo Professional Photos Made!

Check out my little girl below! She is NINE months old!!  She is doing A LOT of stuff!  Crawling, Pulling Up, Exploring all of the house, Sticking Everything in her Mouth, Enjoying bath time and splashing, Preferring tablefood to babyfood, Fantastic Pincer Grasp, Nursing Like a Champ, Blabbing with 'm' sounds and 'b' sounds,  Getting 4 teeth, but Still waking all night long.  Her weight remains very low (but as it is consistently on the lowest curve, no one is worried about it) so I really need to just keep getting as much food in her as possible and it sometimes feels like things go backwards with quantity once they start so much table food.

I'm still struggling to not only match up her 2nd nap with Jonathan's main nap BUT also do all that before I have to pick up the big boys from school at 3pm.  It is much trickier than you might think.  It is just hard to keep her morning nap consistent lengths with errands and activities in the morning anyways.  We would never get out of the house if we kept things perfect for naps.  Oh the ease of having just one!  :)

 

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List of Crazy Things that went Wrong at that Photosession
-I forgot the stroller to strap in the 2yr old the first half
-I forgot snacks for the 2yr old
-Rosalind and Jonathan both randomly woke up 1.5 hr early
-R's morning nap got thrown off and extremely shorted with us needing to leave
-Samuel left school early puking and still had a lightly upset tummy only after eating
-Since he stayed home, I had to take him to the appt too
-I did not clarify that 'play with your little bro for a min' meant 'quietly'
-Another person had made an online appt at the same time and was basically waiting on us
-Rosalind decided she was terrified of the photographer
-Samuel wanted in all the pictures while Jon wanted in none of them after his first
-In spite of our long walk, the studio did not upload photos for about 20 min
-They could not get my group on to work (the "I" looked like a '1')
-The checkout computers were really slow
-Jon was getting really done and aggressive toward the little girl waiting on her photos
-R was ready for her nap by the time it was done and was screaming

AT LEAST THE PICS ARE CUTE EH??!

First Crawl @ 8mo (Nov 14)


Faster at 3 weeks later @ 9 mo


Pulling Up @ 8.5 mo
 


Bath Fun

Rosalind Catchup: Photos 3-9mo, 6 & 9 mo stats

Oh Rosalind!  We have some catchup to do!  I kind of took 5 months off of blogging due to a baby who was just pretty unhappy...reflux...milk sensitivity...teeth..and just a sensitive personality.  I had to walk her for hours in the evenings, get up with her all night long  and nap when I got a chance.  Things are better...not really optimal but much better than the end of the summer for sure.  It sure does take awhile to catch up on 5 months of life!  I thought I had put her stats out there but turns out I hadn't.  This is good for me to do though cause now I have everything together.

How about some stats??  **NOTE:  I'm just trying to accept she is a very lean baby.  The pediatrician is not worried.  She is doing what she needs to do.  She is just pretty lean.  Samuel was much like this except his heights were in the 80% and his weights in the 30% but it was the same effect.  He also probably had the most issues with diary and fussiness as a baby next to her.  Note her head size jump!  ALL my kids have done that in their first year.  It is usually between 3 & 6 months and hers was a little later but their heads get big before their first birthday.

Rosalind Stats for 9 mo visit are:

Weight:   15 lb  (3%...increased from  13 lb ...which was 3% @ 6 mo)
Length:   28 in (57% increased from 26.5 in...which was 67% @ 6 mo)
Head:      17 3/4 in (76% increased from 16 1/2 in...which was 26% @ 6 mo)

Rosalind Stats for 4 mo visit are:

Weight:  11 lb 7 oz (5%...increased from  10 lb ...which was 14% @ 2 mo)

Length:   25 in (65% increased from 23 in...which was 55% @ 2 mo)
Head:  16 in (30% increased from 15 in...which was 16% @ 2 mo)

Rosalind Stats for 1 mo visit are:

Weight:   8 lb 8oz (13%...increased from  7 lb 6 oz ...which was 65% @ 2 wks)

Length:   21 3/4 in (50% increased from 20.5 in...which was 35% @ 2 wks)
 head:  14   (3% increased from 13 1/4 in...which was 8% @ 2 wks)

Rosalind Birth
Weight:  6 lb 14 oz (26%)
Length:  20 in (72%)
Head: 13 in (8%)

And what about meeting any relatives? We have some pics of that too of course.

And How about a few Monthly Solo Photos?
(After all, we don't want you to think you get less pics than your brothers did as babies.)

Swim Lessons

I really wanted to give the boys some formal swim lessons this past summer because it is very difficult to go to a pool with so many kids now.  We need at least two swimmers both for their own entertainment and for me to have eyes enough to see everyone!

These lessons were a great price for groups of four kids at the 7th day Adventist College nearby for two weeks from 8:15-9am!!  Pretty early start in the summer!  Ha!  Luckily Papa came in to help me with getting them there 3/5 days.  I still wanted to watch their progress so I was there with the two little ones too.  This is how we managed it: with the double stroller.  Jonathan had a stack of books and his reading pen AND a big baggie of snacks.  Rosalind lasted oh 15 min in the front and then I wore her and pushed the stroller.  She was entertained with all the excitement.  The boys had lessons at the same time but in different pools in different rooms.  The rooms were side by side with a glass wall you could kind of see through if you peer around plants and if Samuel's group of four wasn't on the far side of the room.  It was challenging migrating between rooms, wearing baby, and keeping Jonathan IN the stroller and not running about.

Stroller Time

The lessons worked pretty well for Samuel.  He was level 2.  He became comfortable in the water and he LOVED the thrill of jumping off the blocks/diving board.  He was not completely comfortable swimming on his back so we may redo level 2 before attempting level 3 or we may do a private class session for the two of them to get them really ready for the next level.  We want lots of confidence. 

Samuel on the left in red shirt with the goggles

Benjamin was not so much so on the lessons.  He was enthusiastic to start, willing to play games and even put his head under the water.  He just very much afraid of the open water even with his life vest on.  He was not willing to let go and even try to swim with a vest in level 1.  Or maybe just a set of private lessons to help them out.  Soooo...I think he needs to redo level 1 once we've played at the pool more with him.  One more thing to do right?  I have a huge list this winter to keep us busy...but the active 2 year old and the baby in tow keeps things complicated.

Benjamin Head Under and Holding onto instructor

I compiled a few videos showing Samuel swimming and jumping in.  He is always in the red shirt.

Swimming

Jumping off Blocks

Diving Board

 

Chatty Zoo

I think I just like zoos.  I like walking around in the open and seeing all the animals.  It's great for little kids.  We have a membership to the Chattanooga Zoo again.  Caught a groupon deal on the thing and we are good through the summer of 2015.  So, we've been there plenty.  Posts here, here, and here are all from the Chatty zoo.  It's a nice size zoo for when you have an hour or two.

We invited our friend Olivia to go right after school was out and she did.  We have recently learned that she is moving back to Texas.  We will miss them greatly.  We have known Olivia since about 6 months after we moved here.  She and Samuel were great preschool buddies.  I thought I'd feature them on the first series of pictures.  She is a vivacious redhead.  :)

Her mom also promised her that they would ride camels on the next trip so I splurged and let each boy take a turn too.  They weren't afraid or anything.  Pretty neat experience though at $5 pp for one time around...that was a bit much to me.

Samuel got a hold of my cell phone and began practicing photography.  He had a great time with that.  Now, we just have to work on stabilizing the phone when you push the button!

ddd  

 Camel Ride: Ben then Sam

 

July 4th

This was the summer of 'daddy goes one place with the two big boys' while 'mommy keeps up with the two little ones who need to go to bed'.  Nathan took the big boys to the fireworks at Coolidge Park.  I'm not sure how we get the time wrong but we just need to remember that although sunset is 8:45pm, the fireworks don't start until 9:45pm.  He said it was so freeing going over there with them.  They parked far away and walked - without strollers/diaper bags - to the park with just a backpack of bottled water and snacks.  They got directly under the fireworks and really enjoyed them.

Earlier in the day, Nathan and the big boys went to the fireworks store and brought home bottle rockets and kiddie fireworks.  Jonathan enjoyed watching them this year.  Samuel learned how to shoot off the bottle rockets this year.  Benjamin enjoyed the smoke bombs which he figured out how to throw on a downwards surface for maximum colored smoke.  We had hot dogs, brats, and hamburgers for lunch (of course).  I tried a different drink trick of making colored ice with Gatorade but I will definitely go back to just layering different colors.  The ice was pretty but you couldn't taste the flavor.  I made a dairy-free coconut cake and iced it with marshmallow creme and topped it with fresh fruit.  Fun times.  The kids played in the wading pool and outside.  It was a fun day.  Nathan's side really has fun celebrating the 4th.

 

Lookout for the Lookouts Baseball

We try to make it to at least one ballgame a summer.  The Chattanooga Lookouts are our team.  They have different themese and that night was superhero night.  They had characters dressed up as superheros for entertainment on the field.  Part of the fun of going is ice cream and hot dogs.  Mutti and Papa came into town the same weekend we planned to go.  They decided to go too.  It was pretty hot until the sun put our seats in the shade and then it was much better.  Shew.  Rosalind spent part of the time asleep but seemed entertained seeing all the people around.  We were glad to get this game in but Samuel wants us to go to the Star Wars game next year.

 

Lego Convention in Atlanta and Our Lego Creations

My mom gave Samuel a unique birthday present this year.  I had heard about this thing called the "Lego Convention".  It is the Lego Funfest.  They hold about 7 per year around the united states.  There happenned to be one in Atlanta, GA so the boys went!  I stayed home with the two little ones which made things much more fun for the older kids and daddy. I have realized there is one this coming year, 2015, in Nashville on April 18 so we may go again!

They had fun.  They saw tons and tons of cool stuff made of legos from a wall 'picture' of the TNMT made from legos to three dimensional statues of star wars characters to small cities.  One section had tons and tons of legos to build with.  The boys spent a lot of time there building according to daddy.  They could build characters that they attached to spinning disks and have them 'fight' each other.  He got suckered into getting them each a set.  Hee hee.

I thought I'd start by showcasing some of the boys' favorite creations and then you can enjoy all the obligatory pictures I insisted Nathan take while I was at home.  He did not disappoint! I liked how he included boys beside the different lego creations so you can get an idea of scale.

 

Atlanta Lego Kid'sFest

 

Christmas Ideas

Hey Y'all...

If you are looking for Christmas ideas, we have some amazon wish lists on the side -->

Samuel's List and Benjamin's List
To sum it up, Samuel and Benjamin are into:  star wars legos, duplos, k'nex, magnetix, zoob, anything in that category...100pc puzzles, boardgames, science kits, building kits...  Generally get them the same kind of item to minimize arguments.  Nathan is starting to have a hard time managing wrestling with three sets of arms/legs/knees/elbows so he's hoping to defer some of the attention with handheld or body targets he put on their lists.  We also had an idea for hanging horizontal swinging bars from our deck for the boys to play on.  There's a few odds and ends too on the lists like keychains, beachtowels, hoverballs.

Jonathan's List:
 I have to remember that Jonathan is still a little guy.  He has a ton of toys he has inherited as well as clothes.  So, I was thinking about all those old toy that have been used up.  I thought that bath accessories/toys/bubbles/markers would be used frequently.  He loves bath play.  I also put a few duplo on his list so that he could have some ownership in the duplo collection which is rather tightly held by Benjamin.  He likes playdoh too (we have lots of accessories but the doh is all dried up!).  He loves books too of all sorts (of course we have tons of books but he still loves them).

Rosie:  Don't worry about Rosie.  I think we have clothes enough for this winter as well as tons and tons of baby toys she can play with.   I love some of the online lollywolly.com clothes if you really want to get her something to wear.  Maybe YOU know something a baby girl specifically would enjoy that she wouldn't inherit from her brothers.  This is new territory for us! I have some old dolls I can get out when she starts loving those.  If anyone wants to get her a wooden birth block, I can get you the details here.  We've got four kids so I know that is a lot to buy for without buying for a baby who has an awful lot already!!

Megan's List 
Well, after 4 pregnancies in 7 years, I'm finding myself out of fashion and out of clothes that fit quite right.  Anytips or gifts in that direction would be appreciated!  LOL!  I also have a photobook I haven't printed out from blurb of the blog.  I finally have a deep desire to keep this carpet clean with a baby crawling all about!

Nathan's List. 
He has a list together this year.  Just take books, camping gear, survival gear, and well, weaponry and that is his list in a nutshell.  Not to be read by the faint of heart I say.