Babies Don't Keep

Size newborn clothes, bibs, cribs, onsies, bottles, pacifiers, baby food, burp cloths, and a million tiny socks. All signs you are in the "baby phase." I have been in the "baby phase" for 6 1/2 years now. A long time to do anything, actually. But in this stage of life it doesn't seem that long.

 

We started to trying to get pregnant earlier than planned. We had discussed starting our family around the age of 25. Well, we discovered I had endometriosis and didn't know how long, if ever, it would take to get pregnant. So we tried early. Well, the surgery I had must've been effective because I became pregnant 1 month after trying!

 

I had Leah in December of 2006. I was 22 years old and thought I had all of this "being a mom" stuff figured out. Of course, as soon as she entered the world, I quickly realized I had been quite mistaken. She was beautiful. I was in awe of her. Eric was in love. We had just begun our family. Leah was a fairly easy going baby. She had her bouts of crying, dare I say, screaming. We were blessed with sleep early on. And she could sleep ANYWHERE. Seriously. She would sleep anywhere we went, if she was tired, she would simply go to sleep. Awesome right?!

 

Leah Michelle

 

In December of 2008 I discovered I was pregnant yet again. I woke up after Eric had left for work and something seemed...off. I sat up and immediately thought "I am pregnant." For some random reason (we weren't trying to get pregnant) I had a pregnancy test on hand. Sure enough, the test was positive! And instead of taking 3 more tests like I did with Leah, I was satisfied with the one test result. This was a complete shock seeing I was on the pill. But of course, its not 100% coverage. We found out we were having a boy and Eric was elated! On to choosing a name we went. In September of 2009 I gave birth to Jackson. My 9lb. 6oz. bouncing baby boy.

 

 

Jackson Richard

 

I was now a mother of 2. I was terrified. The first couple weeks I was home alone with them, I cried. Everyday I cried. I had no idea what I was doing! I knew what to do with one, but two?! So, as we finally got into the swing of a routine, it got easier. We all adjusted. However, Jackson was not so pleasant at night like Leah was. He was a screamer. And once you got him to calm down, he would stay awake for hours. He, apparently, didn't get the memo about "sleeping when its dark outside."

 

So here we are, a family of 4. One girl. One boy. Any number of people's wish for their family. And at this point, that was our wish. We could manage very well with 2. It wasn't too hard to find a baby sitter. We could play man to man defense. I had an arm and hand for each child. We've got this. But of course, I have to say to Eric that I would like to try for one more. Just to see what happens. And of course, he says "sure!"

 

We didn't tell anyone we were trying. And I mean no one. Which is unusual for us. We are very open about this stuff. But, we didn't know what would happen or when, and we wanted it to be a big surprise, even for us. In November of 2010 we found out we were, in fact, pregnant again. We were shocked because it sort of snuck up on us. We hadn't been doing any ovulation tests, watching ovulation, pregnancy tests to see if I was yet, nothing. And one day, I had the feeling again. Took a test and it was positive! Of course we couldn't wait and told our family right away. We were still in shock but so excited. We decided not to find out the gender this time. We already had a boy and a girl and found out with them, so we wanted to find out at delivery. I loved that we didn't know the gender, it was very exciting! Although choosing names became more difficult than it had before. We had to choose 2! In August of 2011 I gave birth to an 8lb. 6oz. baby GIRL!!!! Names were up in there air a bit, but we landed on our original choice. Lucy.

 

Lucy Joyce

 

Now, we have 3 beautiful children. All of them healthy and vibrant. I no longer have a hand for them all, but we seem to manage just fine. Leah is going to be 7 at the end of this year. I cannot believe that! Time just flies too fast when your having babies.

 

And now we are entering uncharted territory. For us anyway. We are all done growing our family. No more babies in our house. And that makes me sad. Not because I want to have 12 kids. But because that phase of newness is over for us. The newborn smell. The quiet coos at night. The napping baby on your chest. All of the major "firsts" of sitting up, crawling, walking, first words, first tooth! It makes me scared too. My baby will be turning 2 next month. 2. We are in toddler hood and beyond now. Anything past 6 years old is terrifying to me. I don't know anything about 7 years old. 12 years old. 16 years old. Nonetheless, it is time to embrace the new stage we are in. Not just having babies. Not just growing our family. But raising them. What an honor. What a blessing. What scary roads ahead.

 

 

My three loves. My three babes.

 

Are you there summer?

Leah's last day of school was June 7. It was only a half day and she was so excited for "Fun Friday" that I don't think she realized it was her last day of Kindergarten. She had an amazing teacher with wonderful classmates. We knew she had grown this year but until I took this photo we didn't realize how much!

 

 

                     First day of Kindergarten.                                      Last day of Kindergarten.

 

What a change! Our beautiful girl is growing far too fast!

 

 

Leah brought home all of her school work and art work on her last day. It was so fun looking through all of her stuff. This is a page from Leah's Kindergarten journal. Almost made me cry! I love this girl! She is such a blessing, such a joy, such a gift.

 



So finally we are into the summer! Some seasons we have been having...April showers seemed to bring May showers also...and maybe snow and frost as well. But it is finally June and we are seeing the 80's on the thermostats! My kiddos have great imaginations, so playing inside can get fun and interesting. But we have been waiting. Impatiently. For continued sunshine and warmth. And it is finally here! So, we have been taking advantage of the outdoors!

We are so lucky to have friends with pools! The kids are much more confident this year. It only took Leah a few minutes to venture away from the ladder! And, of course, Jackson is the fearless boy he usually is. He just jumps right in! Lucy took a bit to warm up to the pool, but after about 15 minutes was splashing and giggling.

 

 

These girls melt my heart! Such a sweet moment between sisters. Leah is such a mommy to her sister, it's adorable!

 

To the beach we go! We stayed and played for over 3 hours and the kids never stopped! They had such a blast! We are very lucky to be only 5 minutes from the beach. Lucy loved to dig in the sand and splash her brother and sister :)

 

So we are off to soak up the summer sunshine with these babes! Since we only have a little bit of time before school begins again. And this time we will be sending Leah to 1st grade and Jackson to preschool...what will I do with only one child at home with me?!

This week I was thinking of my blog and how it has been months since I wrote anything. So today I logged in and let me just say, I composed a draft in January...4 months ago. Wow. Did you catch that though? I wrote a "draft" which means I never published it. So of course I had to read what I wrote and failed to publish, this is what it said;

"I'd like to start out by saying this last year has been quite a ride. Many ups and downs, many obstacles to face, and many hours praying and purely trusting the Lord with all of our needs. I can honestly say that I have never, in all of my 28 years, experienced God the way that I have this year.

We moved our family across the state for a better job opportunity. Eric lost his job unexpectedly. We went through 5 months of unemployment, which was very trying. After countless interviews and what seemed like millions of applications, he finally was offered a job and accepted. We moved into our own place after staying with family for 6 months. Unbelievably gracious of them! Things just seemed to be falling into place. We were lead to a different church, where I began coordinating worship services, which I love because I love all things music. We have been guided every step of the way through the Spirit. Every move/decision we have made has been brought before God and prayed on. It seems to be so much easier to allow Him to make your decision for you in the beginning rather than deciding on your own and having to circle back to God for the right answer.

God has provided for us at every turn. I am not exaggerating when I say this. He has blessed us by meeting every single need we have had. Of course, this shouldn't surprise me, as His word says He will meet our needs. Our bills are paid, we have food in our cupboards, we have heat and water and our family has not been hit too severely with illness. For these seemingly simple things I am extremely grateful."

Four months later, we are in the same house, a different job, and still in God's hands. We are still relying on Him to meet our needs (not necessarily our wants) and He is continuing to be faithful in that. Eric was offered a different job and began working there in February. He loves his job. Loves it. How many people do you know personally that can say that? I don't know many! I have never in our 8 1/2 years of marriage seen him so happy and satisfied by his work. That's a HUGE deal! He has also become a youth leader at church and began a discipleship program with our pastor. This husband of mine is hungry and seeking God daily!

Leah is about to finish her year of Kindergarten, which I cannot believe is happening. Jackson will be starting preschool next fall, which has snuck up on me completely. And my little Lucy Goose, she will be turning 2 years old in 3 short months. It seems to be that while we were in the midst of trial, struggle, and complete surrender, life still moved on. Our family still has grown and seen new steps. We have seen progress in our time of drought. Progress. How amazing.

And as for me. I am still coordinating music, just finished an awesome study on the life of David, and have to die to my flesh daily and remember that my timing and desires are not always right. I can wait impatiently and be miserable, or I can wait in complete surrender and live right now, with God has given me right now. Because right now, what I have, where I am, this is EXACTLY where I am supposed to be. God is still meeting our needs. He is proving Himself faithful time and time again. He has made Himself obviously present. What more could we want?

Look who's 1!!!

Alright...so this is a little late...but ya know, maybe I am in denial about the whole thing. Anyhow, my youngest, Lucy, turned one year old in August. She has just grown so quickly before my eyes. I cannot wrap my head around the fact that she isn't just 3 months old anymore. She is walking everywhere, getting into everything, babbling so much, and so happy! I am so in love with this little person!

Lucy Joyce Hines

The infamous mohawk

Pulling herself up!

Cheesy girl

Easter 2012

 

Happy Birthday with Daddy

Yummy Cake

Loved her grocery cart and baby

My sweet girl is 1 year old



Who Loves Vacations?

This girl does!

This summer, like every summer, we took our family vacation. And when I say family vacation, I mean FAMILY. Every year we go to Gull Lake Family Camp, it is THE best place to vacation! My husbands family have been going on vacation there for over 40 years! So, when we go each summer, it's Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles, Cousins...our whole family. IT IS SO MUCH FUN!!!! Not only do we get to see and spend time with everyone, we get to hear an awesome speaker. This year the speaker was incredible, Lloyd Shadrack, I recommend finding him online and listening to some of his sermons. Challenging.

So, we get to play at the beach, go on paddle boats, play on the docks and look for sea shells, splash and run at the splash pad, go to the playgrounds, do the climbing walls, zip lines and play pickle ball. This place is fantastic!

But the absolute best part is watching the counselors show Jesus to our kids. They pour so much of themselves into the children, it's amazing! I am so thankful for such a fun yet tranquil place to go each year. What a blast and a blessing!!! I wish we could stay longer than a week! We love Gull Lake!!!!!

I have the Kindergarten blues

Tomorrow at 8:00 I am walking my baby girl to her bus stop. Her very first bus stop. For her very first day of real school...Kindergarten. I cannot understand how we are already here. Didn't we just bring her home from the hospital? Weren't we just terrified because we had this newborn at home and didn't have a clue what we were doing? And then all of a sudden I wake up and she is 5 years old and heading to her bus stop....no problem mom...right? No. Very wrong.



We took Leah to her meet and greet at the school last week. She was thrilled! I really like her teacher, which helped to ease the anxiety a little. That was until I received her bus route card in the mail. I immediately called the transportation office. This is my first time...I obviously have questions. OK. Concerns. Alright, I am terrified!!!! The kind woman on the phone told me all about their procedures for different "what if" scenarios. Thank the Lord they have procedures in place. But even though she tried to put my mind at ease, I know Leah. I know her better than she knows herself. I know that sometimes she is flighty. I know that she can get wrapped up in playing or talking and completely lose focus and stop paying attention. I know that she is my kid. So, like any rational mother, I had nightmares. That's right, full scale, freaking out, waking up a sweaty mess, nightmares.

It went like this. Leah made it to school fine on the bus, had a great day. Then when I went to her bus stop to walk her home, she didn't show up. So, I did what the kind transportation lady told me to. I called them and the school. They ordered all buses back to the school. And I went there to get her. The only problem was, that her bus never showed. Imagine my thoughts waking up after that!!!!!!!!! Seriously. And now I have to walk her to her bus tomorrow...I am just not sure I can handle this.

So, the moral of the post is, PRAY FOR ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I may lose my mind all day. I am sad, scared, very sad, jealous of the teacher's time with her, sad some more, and anxious. Did I mention sad? She is a good kid with a good heart and a good head on her shoulders. She is going to be fine. Mom, however, will struggle through the day. Cannot believe my baby is so grown up already!

Sweet Leah, I love you so much! You are such a blessing and so many of the reasons I smile!

Birthdays, Beds, and Back to School

With 3 children life gets crazy. And busy. And stressful. And sad.

Yesterday we took Leah to meet her new teacher for Kindergarten. We saw her classroom, and cafeteria and play ground, and gym, and library, and all the hallways....you know, EVERYTHING. I really like her teacher, very nice woman. Leah found her table with her name where she will sit and the locker/cubby where her backpack will go. I have been through this with preschool, but this is different. Real school. With homework. Yes, I said it, homework. Oh. Boy.

I am not all that concerned about Leah. She is naturally outgoing and has never met a stranger. She just believes that everyone starts out being her friend. Which is good, on some levels. I am more concerned with how I am going to deal with this. First, I am going to miss her!!! She has school from 8:40-3:44 each day. All day I will be missing her! And for the kicker, she will be riding the bus. She is thrilled. I am worried! I know that might be silly. All I can think of is "what if she gets on the wrong bus home?" or "what if she misses the bus completely? " or "what if she doesn't get off at her stop?" I know it'll be OK, but just to be safe I contacted the transportation depot and got as much information as I could on all busing issues.

Now, not only are we doing Kindergarten this year. We just celebrated Lucy's first birthday. I cannot understand how that year went by so fast! She is just so big! And what a sweetheart! My wonderful sister in law helped take pictures of Lucy to mark her first year. Turned out great!



 My baby turns 1 and my oldest starts Kindergarten...that is enough for a mom right now, don't you think? Oh but wait, there is more!

Jackson will be turning 3 years old in a couple of weeks. Yes. Three. And on top of that, he is now officially in his big boy bed. A twin sized bed with big kid Lightening McQueen sheets. Will I regret taking him out of his cage crib? Who knows, but it was time.

This is just a lot of change for someone who does not do change well. Seriously. I cannot handle too much change. But that seems to be the story of my life lately. It'll all be OK though. Woooosaaaaah!

The Hairy Truth

As you may know, my family has moved across the state recently. And as you may also know, I am a hair dresser. That being said, I have many clients in our previous city, and not so many in our current one. I am a stay at home mama so I do not contribute financially, aside from avoiding an insane day care bill each month. So, doing hair is my way of helping. As you may also know, my husband lost his job...so, needless to say, we need any income possible right now with our family of 5.

About once a month I come back to said previous city to do hair. It is worth my while to make the money and see my much missed family. If my husband and kids aren't with me, at least one child tags along. This visit, Leah made the cut.

Yes, we snack BIG TIME in the car on long drives. We had a good 2 hours to go, so who wouldn't pack on the heavy side of snacks?

So I have 12,582 hair appointments this weekend to complete, and family to visit with. You are wondering how? How is this very human person going to accomplish all of that in the matter of 2 days? I dont have a clue! Today I have finished my hair stuff! I love to see these people, they have become family to me, and hey, some of them are family! So its great to see them! It is difficult though...since I am away and cannot always get back in time, people get desperate...this is what they say to me...

Truly, what were you thinking?!?! Now, instead of the hour and a half I typically spend with you...its doubled, and that is IF I can fix what you have done. When you think to yourself "I can color my own hair, how hard could it be?" Remember this...would you tell your self "I can perform this heart transplant, how difficult could it be?" I realize I am not cutting you open and dealing with vital organs, but come on people! Get with the program! I had to be educated and licensed to do this!

That being said, I miss my other little's. They are hanging with daddy this weekend, having daddy time. Which is good for them, especially my Lucy Goose, she is not feeling so hot with all 7 teethe coming in at the same time. Yes. You read that correctly. 7. Teethe. Same. Time.

But who cannot miss these faces?!

And yes, I do have the coolest kids in town! They rock those shades all over the place!

So, in conclusion, I have 14,794 heads of hair to do, sometimes it gets hairy, and I love/miss my way cool kiddos!

The Sleepy Angel

Of my 3 children, my youngest Lucy usually naps the best for me. Although I am noticing some kind of rotation lately. Leah is my oldest, she is 5 1/2. She is my heaviest sleeper. I am talking a freight train is going through her room and she doesn't budge. However, that is the way she sleeps IF she falls asleep. Sometimes it takes her a good 45 minutes to get there. And sometimes she doesnt fall asleep at all, she just gets a nice rest.

Jackson. Oh my Jackson. He may not be the heaviest sleeper, but he is typically my longest napper. He likes to talk and make his stuffed animal have an adventure in his bed before he will give up and and give in to sleep. But once he does, he can nap for a good 3-4 hours straight!

Then there is Lucy. My baby girl. The most unpredictable of all. For a while there she was taking 2, 2 hour naps a day. Then one day she slept for 4 1/2 hours straight, so she didn't go down again. and that became her new normal. Then slowly that one long nap turned into one normal 2 hour nap. And then into 2 again. needless to say she is like a mood ring with her nap schedule. Now, dont get me wrong, I love that all of my kids still nap, and they need them! I just wish we could coordinate them all together so that i could have one as well!

I have recently come to visit my mother with Lucy, while the other kids get to have some serious "Daddy time". So, Lucy and I stayed up a little late when we first got here. So when I put her down for the night, she didnt make a peep until 9AM the next morning. Which is sleeping in for her compared to her usual 7:30AM wake up call. She napped well yesterday, about 2 1/2 hours, and then went to bed at her regular bedtime, 7:00PM. This baby girl must be wearing herself out here, becuse she didn't wake up until 10:15 this morning! I got to sleep in and get around for the day before she ever woke up! Oh my little sleep angel! I so appreciate her sleepiness! So, because she slept in until her normal nap time, we had to push her nap back to 1:00. It has been 3 hours for her nap so far and I have yet to hear her stirring. I got to nap as well! I am so rested! Its fantastic! Now, if only we can keep this up....how do I keep her on this fabulous sleeping routine?!?! I am loving the rest that I am getting and I love to see her sweet, happy face when she wakes up so rested!

Time flies when your having babies

As I have said before, I have 3 great kids. Leah is 5, Jackson is going to be 3 in a fewo this, and my baby girl, Lucy, is 9 months. Today as I watched them all playing outside, I thought to myself, "weren't we just in the hospital having Leah?" I just cannot believe how quickly the time goes by as you watch children grow. And as you add more kids to the mix, the clock seems to be on warp speed! Not only am I watching my children grow up way too fast, I am now seeing my nieces grow up at remarkable speeds!

 I think about how it seems like just the other day we brought Leah home from the hospital. New parents. Young parents. We had no idea what we were doing! And now, this week, I have to register my baby for kindergarten! Unbelievable! I think because Lucy is our last child, I am fighting with time even more! Every month I take her picture to keep record I her growth, I just hate that I have to place a higher numbered sticker on her onesie!

 I am sure I am not the only one who has thought, "what did I do before I had kids?" But I honestly don't remember doing anything a worth while as raising children! What a blessing and honor it is to have them for this short time. After all, they are only on loan, they belong the the Lord. So, however fast this time goes, I MUST cherish it. I MUST make the most of it. And I MUST live and guide them. Oh these preciouse little bitty times are so short. Soon they'll be grown and moved on. I love these little babies. Yes, my babies. Always my babies.