Spirited!

So far it's three for three. Can't say I mind, I mean, I feel like I've been really blessed to have three spirited babies. What would I do with a child who just sat there doing nothing? How would I know if my baby was happy, sad, hungry, satisfied, excited, tired...? Anyone who has a spirited child can attest that they're pretty fun--extremely happy, loud, excited, busy, and just into everything (figuratively and literally). Also very expressive with their emotions (whether deliriously happy or so very sad)--there is no mystery about how they're feeling. You just don't get that dead-pan look from a spirited child.

My fabulous firstborn came and I discovered that she was spirited... She was such a happy little thing, especially when she was with her favorite person. Then my wonderful number two came, and I worried that he would fade into the background because his sister's personality was so flamboyant. No need to worry; he keeps right up with her. But I really worried about number three, with two older, passionate siblings--would she survive? But my fears are allayed. She is as spirited as the others. She is the happiest baby in the world when she's with her favorite person (which is most of the time, thank goodness!), but if something upsets her, watch out! There's no better word to describe her cry than LOUD.

So a girl came over the other day with a baby--same age as mine. I got all in her face (the baby's face) and started talking, trying to make her laugh... NO REACTION! I couldn't believe it--this never happens to me with my kids! I thought maybe it was me--since I'm not the mom, she didn't want to smile at me. Then the other mom said, "Yeah, I try talking to her and getting her to smile, but mostly she just looks at me." WOW, am I grateful for spirited babies!!!

I'm also grateful for talented friends... like my dear friend who did a photo shoot of our littlest munchkin. I'll post more photos later (it's hard work trying to keep up with these three!!!)

SEIS MISIONEROS

We have six members of our family who are currently serving as missionaries! All of them also happen to be Spanish-speaking missionaries. FUN! Here they are:

D's bro Rob in Guatemala City, Guatemala

(can't get the photo to upload; I'll try again later)

D's parents in Bogota, Colombia

My bro Kev (on the far left) in Concepcion, Chile (currently in Santiago until things are more stable down south)

My parents in Santiago, Chile

It was a good dream, a very good dream...

 Who doesn't love the story of Mary Poppins? She is truly magical, coming at just the right time to save the Banks family from... themselves, really. She is firm yet fun. Cleaning is delightful with her. Suddenly the children are happy and well-behaved, the house is clean, and the parents are happy. Life is fabulous! And then she is needed in another place, so she is on her way. And she has left their little world much better than she found it.

When D arrived after his time away, I was still sane, but I was frazzled. I was able to sort of recuperate during his vacation (he had no work and no interviews for about a week and a half), but I was not looking forward to him resuming his 60+ hours a week at work. During a conversation with my mom, she happened to mention that she had a really hard time after her third (that's me!) was born--her first three were 19 and then 21 months apart (mine are 19 and then 20 months apart)--well, I figured she might have a little bit of perspective, so I asked her what she did. "I hired help," she replied. She spoke of how life suddenly became easier and she was able to feel more like a person again, more like herself. Isn't that what everyone wants?

So I mentioned it to D, and he started looking on Craigslist for a possible solution. Did I mention how much we love Craigslist? And then he found an ad that went like this: Looking for housing in exchange for childcare. I'm looking for an extra bedroom or basement in exchange for about 15 hours per week of childcare... "We have an extra bedroom!" D said excitedly. Yes, but it had turned into our storage room. I was more guarded... I didn't really want a live-in nanny situation because I didn't need a replacement. I really just needed a few extra hours each week to do the things that make me feel like a person. "Just email her," D pressured. So I did, and then we spoke on the phone, and then she came over for an interview. I was really impressed with her confidence and her answers to my questions. She had about a dozen references for families she had worked for, and one of her best friends who I'm acquainted with told me, "Nannying is her passion in life." Well, I was sold (D was sold when he saw her ad), so we prepared for our new roommate. It was actually pretty helpful to clear all of our junk out of that room--it will make moving in a few months much easier.

Ashley moved in during the second week of January. We arranged it so she'd be able to help for two mornings a week so I could go running, and then during Squeak's preschool so I could attend with her, and a few more hours so I could run some errands, one date night per week, and a few hours on Saturdays so I could teach a HypnoBirthing class. The kids love her! She doesn't mind that they are into everything (including her stuff!) and that they are very high energy and really loud. Even Squirt's "angry cry" doesn't phase her. Ashley volunteered to clean the house and stuff, but I told her to just play with the kids and give them love and attention. I was amazed from the beginning... I'd come home and the kids would be playing contentedly, the house would be spotless, and I was starting to feel resurrected. She would do the dishes, mop the floor, wash the clothes, clear the countertops... I suddenly had a personal assistant!! For the past three and a half years, I've been everyone else's personal assistant, and suddenly I had one for me! Such a lovely time for all of us!

And just like that, Ashley is needed in a different place. Her grandma in California is 94 and is no longer able to take care of herself. So Ashley is dropping everything--her college, her friends, her work, her LIFE--and running to her aid. She has left our little world SO MUCH BETTER than she found it. We will miss her so much!!

Those heels belong to Ashley--the kids LOVE them, but not as much as they love Ashley!

No longer unemployed!

We're moving to Detroit in June! D got into a great residency progam at Botsford Hospital in NW Detroit. He's specializing in emergency medicine. We feel so blessed to have a job on the horizon!

Pip just LOVES to wear high heels!!!

I've been saved!

Here's an old post that I forgot to publish...

And, hey, since I'm doing an old post, I might as well post some old photos, back from Halloween. Family theme this year was zoo animals. We were mama and baby macaw, giraffe, and leopard. FUN!

 

I just had a Christmas vacation. I mean, D had a vacation, which means that I had a vacation from single motherhood. It was SO NICE to go on regular runs! SO NICE to change fewer poopies! SO NICE to walk into a clean kitchen that somebody else had cleaned! SO NICE to hang around with my sweetie pie!

When D was gone for my eighth month of pregnancy, I was able to really enjoy my time with Squeak and Pip--we went out on runs every morning, then walks in the afternoon. We often visited the Bean Life Science museum that we all love! We read stories, ate harvest produce, and played together. We did lots of coupon shopping together. They were my faithful buddies. We had a lot of fun!
 
We were well aware that Squirt's arrival wasn't at the most convenient time...D was planning to be gone for two of her first three months. She was very much like my other two were as newborns--she never wanted to sleep and she never wanted to be put down. I was running on two hours of sleep, and I was trying to keep three little people happy.

When I thought of three kids, three and under, including a newborn baby who never slept and needed to be held constantly, and no husband to spell me, it all looked like an easy recipe for postpartum depression. I have to admit, I was scared. I've never wanted to go there. I'm so grateful I didn't have to go there. I was blessed to have many people do little things for the preservation of my sanity--but these friends did really big things to save me.


Sharon--Although I've always admired her so much, I didn't know her very well until recently. But Sharon would call me 3-5 times each week and offer her help with anything I needed. Wow!! She went walking with me and the kids, went to appointments with me (helping me juggle the three kids, because, you know, I'm still trying to get the hang of it!), held Squirt while I napped, watched the kids while I ran an errand, talked to me so I could have some adult interaction... so many favors. What a friend!

Rebecca--she made an appointment with me every week on Thursdays for the whole evening. She came over to hang out, play with my kids, get us all out of the house, and just talk to me. An added bonus is that she interacts spectacularly with my kids. On the one occasion when she couldn't come (because her coworker had H1N1), she did a "phone visit"--what a gal!

Susie--she enlisted the help of the young women at church. She arranged for someone to come over several times each week during Squeak and Pip's naptime. These sweet girls held my baby so I could either nap or go running or just get out of the house.

Kristie--She's truly a singular visiting teacher. The fifth time she brought a meal over, she was apologizing all over herself for not helping enough (huh??). Kristie offered her help with anything I needed. But she didn't sit at her house and wait for me to call and ask for help. She was in my face, asking what she could do (how did she know that I'm one of those people who won't call and ask for a favor unless I'm desperate?). She would show up at my door with a treat for us, start feeding the kids and cleaning the kitchen and talking to me. It is so obvious that she genuinely cares for me as a person.

I really needed these awesome friends in my life at this time. They have all saved me from postpartum depression. I'm so grateful!!

Help the needy at this time of year!

These people really need your help--what an awesome father! Click below to read the heartwarming story and PLEASE help them in any way you can!


http://provo.craigslist.org/wan/1508933147.html

Conversation at our house

Squirt:  "Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!"
D:         "Ven, Squirt, te voy a alimentar."
Squeak: "No, Dada, tu no puedes."
D:          "Por que no?"
Squeak: "Porque no tienes grandes senos."
D:          "Quien tiene senos grandes? Pip, tu tienes senos grandes?"
Pip:        "Si!"
Squeak: "No, Pip no tiene grandes senos!"
D:          "Nena, tu tienes senos grandes?"
Pip:        "Si!"
Squeak: "No! Solo Mami tiene grandes senos."

We're glad we all know where the best food comes from!

Here's the translation (although it's not as funny in English, in my opinion!):

Squirt:  "Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!"

D:         "Come here, Squirt. I'm going to feed you."

Squeak: "No, Dada, you can't."

D:          "Why not?"

Squeak: "Because you don't have bigbreasts."

D:          "Who has big breasts? Pip, do you have big breasts?"

Pip:        "Yeah!"

Squeak: "No, Pip doesn't have bigbreasts!"

D:          "Nena, do you have big breasts?"

Pip:        "Yeah!"

Squeak: "No! Only Mami has bigbreasts."

 Part of the humor of the Spanish version is how Squeak kept saying, "grandes senos" instead of "senos grandes"--it's hard to translate that.

Missing autumn and a little bit o' crack

So glad we had such a lovely autumn. So sad that it's gone! We went for walks every day and enjoyed the beautiful weather. Here are Pip and Squeak enjoying their first autumn in the scrub oak grove across the street. My kids are not good at holding still/posing, and I'm not good at action shots, so they're blurry. Too bad!

 

Other happenings: So my kids speak Spanish as their first language. Well, sometimes there's a word that we don't know in Spanish, so we use the English word and give it a Spanish accent (like Cheerios, for example). D felt like Squeak needed to learn the word "crack" so he taught her that one.

Yesterday I heard some screaming coming from the bathroom. "What's going on," I wondered. "No! No! No, Pip!" I heard, and then this: ""No puedes tocar mi crack!" Then the bathroom door bursts open and Squeak runs out (naked from the waist down) yelling, "Pip, no puedes tocar mi crack!" Pip follows, laughing maniacally and screaming, "Crack! Crack! Crack!" I had to hide my laughter, and I must confess that it totally made my day. Am I a bad mom?

Awesome Christmas Carolers

The other night we heard a knock at the door and were greeted by Christmas Caroling LLAMAS!! It was spectacular and brought back fond memories of when I used to volunteer at the annual Llamafest.

Isn't this funny?!?

We don't really take Squirt to public places yet--trying to avoid the whole RSV and swine flu thing. So we switch off going to church. The other day D was at church and told me about the words of a young man who recently returned from being a missionary. He said something like, "We met this lady.  She had twins. She had horrible bags under her eyes and her hair was all crazy... It was amazing, as time went by and we taught her the gospel, the change we saw in her." D and I snickered at the naivete of this 21-year-old. Someday he might be married with a wife and a newborn, and his wife just might have bags under her eyes and crazy hair--and then he'll understand that "the change as time goes by"*** is about getting a whole night of sleep.  A few weeks ago, I got to sleep for six hours straight for the first time in about a year. I felt like a million bucks! I'm hoping it keeps happening.

One of my friends with twins says she used paper plates for A YEAR. My sister heard that and said, "Hey, I've never had twins and I STILL use paper plates!" I haven't had twins either, but I'm really taking to heart the advice to "relax my standards"--I haven't made my bed for TWO MONTHS. I've hardly cooked at all--still using those frozen dinners I made and the convenience food I stocked up on before Squirt arrived. The kids aren't back into cloth diapers yet. I've hardly gone shopping--and then only if something was absolutely essential (like desitin or bananas or milk for the kids). Halloween decor is still out. Laundry gets done, but then sits clean in baskets for days. Wrinkly clothes--who cares? For me right now, it's all about getting a nap, and then whatever else I can fit in, which isn't much!


***I don't want you to think that I don't believe Jesus Christ can change people. I was a missionary and did witness many times a great change in people as they learned the gospel, but in this young man's story, the lady had small children, and anyone who's been there understands that bad bags and bad hair are part of the deal.