ZZZZzzzzzzz.....

For whatever reason it seems like the times you feel more exhausted than ever you find yourself tossing and turning endlessly.  Inevitably, I usually end up FINALLY nodding off right around the time my alarm clock goes off.  I'm not really sure why, but it seems like it is going to be one of those nights.  I've not slept very well or very much the last couple of nights, for whatever reason, and so I was really hoping to get some good rest tonight.  Getting used to Jon working third shift when he first started almost a year and a half ago was rough at first, but it has gotten much easier since then.  I do have to admit though that I still tend to sleep better when he is home at night.  Maybe that has something to do with the last couple nights since he wasn't home.  I'm usually able to make up for those nights on Wednesday and Thursday nights though so it ends up working out ok.  However, Jon got called into work this afternoon for tonight so here I sit.  After the hour-long process of getting all three kids to bed and having Michael finish part of his homework that he had forgotten about I'm beat! 

I am SOOOOOOO looking forward to the start of my vacation next week!  I do dread the drive up there with three small children, one of which is potty-training...that always makes for a nice LONG day.  The last time we traveled to MI with a potty-training child I recall specifically stopping for food, gas, and restrooms and just as we were pulling onto the interstate Lexi said she had to go AGAIN.  We were just in the bathroom not 5 minutes earlier and she couldn't have gone then???  Not to mention that's when I realized I had actually gotten on the interstate going the wrong direction.  Really???  I've never done that in my life driving to MI.  I could make that trip in my sleep (sometimes I think I may have...ha!!).  This time we "plan" to leave somewhere around 5 am to make up for some foreseen setbacks.  I love it when a plan comes together!  lol

You will also all be glad to know that I have finally made it into the "Christmas spirit" I think.  Not that I was intentionally not before I just don't think it really registered with me until recently.  I am so glad that we will be getting away for a little bit and spending the holidays with my side of the family too since we haven't done that in several years.  I love my family here too, of course, but we enjoy having extended time with those we don't get to see very often also. 

Well, I am now going to attempt to get some much needed rest since 6 am comes really early, that is for those of us who actually allow an alarm clock to get us out of bed on cold winter mornings.  I prefer to sleep right through them then play the amazing race game trying to get everywhere on time.  I'm 2 for 3 so far this week on getting to play and miraculously I've won both days and haven't managed to injure anyone yet. 

Happy Sleeping!!!

Christmas Already??

Wow!  It's been a long time since I've sat down just to type out what was on my mind.  I'm convinced that having three small children has something to do with that.  It's funny that it seems like just yesterday we were getting ready for Christmas last year, and here we are a year later and can you believe we haven't even put up our tree yet??  Only two and a half weeks left before the big day and I feel like I've just realized it is even December!  How time flies!!  I think maybe I've been looking forward to spending Christmas with my family in MI this year so much that I've kind of forgotten about what we usually do here.  So, I have officially decided that no matter what we will be putting up the decorations this weekend.  For many reasons I'm hesitant to even go through all of that, one being my crazy cats and another being my crazy almost 2-year-old.  Christmas decorations do not get along well with cats and small children in case anyone was wondering.  Generally we end up with a tree that is only decorated on the top half for those reasons.  It seems to eliminate some of our issues.  So this weekend it is.  It is funny though how Thanksgiving just kind of came out of nowhere and before we knew it we were thinking about finishing Christmas shopping.  I am steadily getting ready though and getting in the "holiday spirit" I guess you could say.  This has always been my favorite time of year so it is odd for me to not already have everything done.  At this point refer to the comment about the three small children :) ....

Today is a cold and rainy day.  I really don't think we've seen the sun in about 3 days so I'm definitely ready for tomorrow's forecast!  I will be headed to the doctor with Leah AGAIN in a little bit.  That little child is going to be my medical disaster I can already tell.  We have had nothing but ear infections and colds since October and are scheduled to see the ENT two weeks from today to discuss having tubes put in her ears.  For most children that would be a completely routine procedure, but with her heart conditions I tend to worry a little more about her and how it would affect her.  At this point we plan to cross that bridge when we come to it and try not to worry.  That's what the doctors are for, right?  I guess that's why we pay them so much anyways!  Haha  On a brighter note, I am thankful for the good medical care that we have had and that the problems that she has been dealing with are really considered minor.  So, off to my weekly visit to the pediatrician!  More later...

More Coffee Please??

Wow, it's been a while since I've blogged I guess!  We just got back from vacation visiting family in MI for Jills' wedding, and it seems like no matter when we get back from trips like these we always have to hit the road running.  We got back in town at 2 a.m. and were very fortunate that the kids decided to let us "sleep in" until 9:30.  I think the events of the last week and a half have finally caught up to me though, because when those kids got up I still felt like I could have slept for another 12 hours easily.  Instead, being the never stopping, overly devoted, neverendingly (yes I made that word up) energized wife and mother that I am (HA!) I jumped out of bed and promptly asked Jon if he would go get us all something for breakfast!  (we ALL have to take the easy way out sometimes ladies...)  Today was a day of weakness for me.  I truly felt like I had been run over by a very large object at some point during the night. 

As I think back at the last week and a half though, I am thankful for all that was accomplished while we were there and for the good time we had.  The first few days we were there I was able to spend some time with the girls while Jon watched the kids.  It was pretty busy at first but definitely fun.  The wedding was beautiful, of course, and when it was all said and done we were able to sit back and breathe some.  We took the kids to the zoo one day and pretty much just relaxed the rest of the week.  I'm not one of those people that always has to have an agenda for my vacations.  Our idea of a real vacation is one that involves a lot of relaxing taking things one day at a time and doing whatever comes to mind if and when we get board with relaxing - I can assure you that doesn't happen very often.  ha ha!  Overall it was a nice trip though I would've loved for it to have been longer :(  As we all know, life doesn't stop just because we are on vacation though.  Responsibilities of life are still waiting for us when we get back, and sometimes I think it's almost refreshing to get back into the swing of things.  Ask me about that again in a week or so and I will probably have a different answer though.  LOL 

We are very happy for Jill and Rob as they start their new life together.  I'm thankful that we were able to be a part of their special day and look forward to spending more time with them soon.  As always I wish I could live closer so we could all hang out more, maybe someday.  For now, we continue to accomplish the tasks set before us and strive to be content in our present circumstances of life. 

Keeping Up

As I sit here on my front porch, my new favorite place to relax, in 85 degree weather with just enough of a breeze to make it perfect, I can't help but wonder how much hotter it may get this summer since it is only May.  Usually in the good old mountains of NC it doesn't get much higher than 90 on any given day of the summer.  I have also managed to keep from turning on the AC so far, despite the rantings of my husband whose theory is that "we have air for a reason." We really do have great air circulation in our new place, and I hate to pay for cool air when it can come in my windows for free...makes sense to me.  We've been here for about a year, but this is the first Spring we have had here.  I like it.  I'm thankful for the great location and nice neighbors that God has given us. 

I was considering sitting here and taking a quick nap in my new half-reclining porch chair, but decided to write instead.  It's been forever since I've blogged.  Don't worry, I'm not going to try to makeup all of that ground at one time.  We've had an enjoyable weekend as a family.  Jon and I both had 3-day weekends, so we decided to make the best of it.  We took the kids to Dairy Queen for dinner and ice cream Friday night, then we did a little shopping together yesterday.  I wouldn't exactly call shopping with three small kids the highlight of the weekend, but we accomplished what needed to be done and managed to do it as a family to avoid breaking up our "family weekend."  We went to IHOP last night, where kids eat free from 4pm to 10pm (hard to pass that up), and we topped it off with a movie night at home.  All in all it was a great weekend together with beautiful weather to compliment it. 

Tomorrow starts another week full of responsibilities, and as I sit here now I find my thoughts wandering to all of the tasks ahead needing to be addressed.  I have spent the entire weekend playing around and now looking at my house I am wondering what in the world I was thinking!  Well, I still have tonight to do that right? 
      

Redeeming the Time

I have often wondered why it is that when we our stressed, worn out, exhausted, however you want to put it, we so easily become self-absorbed, focusing only on our own agendas and not paying nearly enough attention to the needs and wants of others around us.  As a mother of three small children, I can assure you that this scenario happens much more frequently than it should.  Obviously I know that there are going to be the occasional times when I just "need a moment."  That should not be the norm for me as a wife and mother though.  My first priority in those roles should be meeting the needs of my family.

I've been thinking lately about how fast time seems to go by.  It is so hard for me to believe sometimes that Michael will be turning five this year...in five days, to be exact.  On the other hand, as I've mentioned before, some days I feel every bit of those five years!  Now that Lexi and Leah have arrived on the scene, things have gotten a little more hectic around here, not that I would trade that for anything.  But I do wonder sometimes if Jon and I as parents have done the best that we could have in regards to teaching and training these little ones so far.  Having been a parent now for five years, I'm fairly confident that at some point every parent probably asks themselves this same question.  It's not like babies come with user manuals!  :)  Every child is different and comes with different "issues" for lack of a better way of putting it.  For instance, I can tell you that Michael is the most stubborn of my three children to date, Lexi is an instigator, and Leah...well, she's still mommy's little angel of course!  :)  I'm still trying to fully figure out her personality, not to say she doesn't occasionally cause trouble-an art I'm sure she will learn to perfect.

I wonder what things will be like around here when Michael starts school in the Fall.  Sure there will be less noise during the day, less running around probably, and less baseball throwing around the TV while our backs are turned (that I'm sure I'll miss!).  Because of the way our schedules work out, Jon and I are able to work full time and still be home all but one or two days a week with the kids, and on those days our sister-in-law keeps them for us.  So far we have been able to control the environments that they have been in, so you can imagine my hesitancy to turn over the reigns of my child's education to a complete stranger who knows nothing about him.  That is where I have been reminded that what a child is taught in the home is so important at this age, hence leading me to the question:  How have I redeemed the time that I have been given to instruct, correct, and nurture?  What do we need to work on in the next several months specifically?  How can I take the focus off of myself and apply it to the needs of all three of my kids, not just Michael?  I have come to the stunning conclusion that my life is not all about me.  I know that may shock some of you...some people find it funny that, even though I sometimes love some attention, I despise being in the real spotlight.  And yet it it so hard sometimes to be the same way personally.  I don't want to be in front of a group of people to save my life, but I can put myself on my own little pedestal in my heart and that's ok?  It may sound obvious, but in order to focus my efforts and attention on others they can't be on me.  I would love nothing more than to be able to look back at this short time that we have with our kids while they are young, and be able to say that we have done our best redeeming the time that we have been given.                       

What a Week!

This has without a doubt been one of those weeks that anyone would look back at and wonder how we all managed to survive.  We were again able to pay the pediatrician's office TWO visits this week.  The first was for Leah's follow-up appointment for her ears.  I am happy to announce that miraculously her ears looked perfect, so for now we have decided to wait on the ENT consult and hope that she doesn't have another infection anytime soon.  Due to some sickness she had over that weekend involving fever and a terrible cough the doctor put her on albuterol nebulizer treatments for the time being until the wheezing is resolved.  Have any of you every had to give nebulizer treatments to a 14-month-old??  Let's just say, I'm soooo glad that she finally warmed up to the idea!  Thankfully the treatments have been helping quite a bit with the coughing, allowing us all to get some much needed rest over the last few nights :)  The second visit we paid the pediatrician was for Michael who was also struggling with high fever and a cough so bad that he was throwing up.  Of course his was viral and they couldn't really do anything for him.  So after waiting that out he is now doing better for the most part.  So far Lexi has yet to catch anything miraculously! 

With this past week behind us and with Spring officially here, there seems to be so much more responsibility on our plates.  Between kids, work, church, baseball practice, more work, family time, and yard work starting already there is never enough time in the day to get everything done.  I find myself thinking that since it's still daylight out that I've got plenty of time to finish up with supper and get kids to bed...then glancing at the clock I am reminded of the recent time change and wonder where in the world the evening went.  Part of me loves the time change because it means that we have more daylight in the evening when I get home from work to enjoy with the kids.  It also means that pretty soon the temperatures will be getting warmer and warmer. Bring on summer is all I have to say!  :)

Diapers and Dimples

This is my little man Michael Andrew.  Sometimes it's hard to believe that he is almost five years old already, but then I remember that I've had two other kids since then so it's a little more believable.  It's the times when I'm so exhausted that I feel every bit of those five years.  This little man of mine has turned into my little helper more than ever recently.  Those of you with kids know exactly how nice it is to have older ones around to help with different things around the house and with the other little ones.  Michael has definitely turned over a new leaf recently and has become that helper.  He is learning about initiative and finishing jobs properly and how to be a huge help to mommy. :)  We have our rough patches every so often but I love this little guy to death!  He is changing in so many ways everyday, and before we know it he will be going to school...ahhh!  That will be a whole new experience for all of us.  And then there's Lexi...

This child, Alexis Brianne Karis, my "troublesome" child, is another one of my little "angels."  She is three years old now and sometimes I think she is far too smart for her own good.  And then she goes and gets into trouble...again.  She is the child that it takes two seconds flat to find something to mess with, tear it up, then blame someone else.  I hope this is no indication of how her teen years are gonna go...I'm also pretty sure that she will be the one to cause my hair to gray prematurely.  I don't know quite how else to describe this little child of mine sometimes.  She is a complete klutz and probably more of a tomboy than a "girlie girl," (shocking, I know since she is MY daughter).  She enjoys having her nails painted and picking out her own hair clips and ties and stuff , but other than that she's definitely not "miss priss" I guess you could say.  Either way she's my little girl, and of course I love her to death also.  She is so cute sometimes that, even when I feel like I'm going to pull my hair out, I can't help but laugh at her. :)  She is my "Shunshine," my "Leki", my "Precious."  And last, but not least, Leah Hope...

   

This is the latest addition to our family.  At 14 months of age as of tomorrow she weighs in at the smallest percentile for her age group I'm sure.  At the doctor yesterday she was a whopping 21.5lbs fully clothed and wet diaper included. :)  Leah has not gone without her fair share of health problems since she has arrived, but I'm thankful to say that nothing she has been through has been truly life threatening by any means.  She did have one episode of difficulty breathing, but that turned out to be nothing to be concerned about.  This little girl has been walking for quite a while now so she has pretty much mastered getting into stuff also.  Obviously that is to be expected when you have toddlers so we just correct and instruct when necessary.  I'm not one of those parents that rearranges the entire house to keep kids out of stuff (with the exception of chemicals and cleaners, of course).  My theory is that it is a perfect teaching opportunity even for these little babies to learn boundaries.  It is never too early to instruct our children to obey.  Just this morning little Leah was "helping" me pull laundry out of the dryer.  I prefer to fold laundry as I'm taking it out of the dryer because it saves a couple steps.  I have an area in my laundry room to fold and hang so Leah and I were "doing laundry."  Every time I would pull something out of the dryer Leah would close the dryer door.  Finally I corrected her because it was driving me crazy mostly.  At that age all it takes is a stern "NO" but pretty soon she will become more stubborn I'm sure...(just like her daddy)  :)  Anyways, Leah is my little cuteness that I can't imagine life without.  She has definitely changed our lives again in so many ways, and we can't wait to see her grow up and spend her life with us.

This is a little bit about my first full-time job.  This family is my first priority.  I accept payment in the form of hugs and kisses.  :)  I love my babies!!

  

Lightbulbs and Thermostats

When I was originally considering starting a blog I asked Jon for some ideas for a title.  After several suggestions he came up with this one claiming it was "the one" because described me perfectly.  I have to admit that I am constantly going through the house turning off lights, opening blinds to use the "natural" light that is free instead of what we have to pay for, and checking the thermostat to make sure we aren't keeping it too warm or too cool.  I must get it from my mom whose idea of "cranking up the heat" is turning it up to 64!  (sorry mom--haha!)  I would call it being frugal, but Jon thinks I'm a little obsessed sometimes.  I have to wonder though what would happen if I didn't perform this sometimes hourly routine.  I have envisioned a $300 power bill or even worse for the gas bill.  This is the first winter that we have had gas heating, and I must say that I've been pleasantly surprised.  I've always loved gas heating because I think it's better but I have been afraid of what it would cost us honestly.  I was totally convinced that we would have a HUGE gas bill since I knew so many people that constantly talked about how much they had to pay every winter.  Fortunately it has been very reasonable even with it being a pretty cold winter for NC.  Part of that I would attribute to my "obsession" of course. 

Anyways, you can imagine my dismay when, after having the heat turned off for about 2 weeks with the exception of a few nights, I had to turn it back on for the little "cold spell" we have had over the past couple days.  It has been cold and rainy and pretty much plain nasty out.  I am soooo glad that tomorrow is supposed to be sunny and we are supposed to reach almost 60 degrees again!  I will also add that I'm SO glad I don't have to heat a home in MI where I grew up.  Now THAT place is cold, and my jaw would probably hit the floor with the first bill!  It's no wonder my parents keep it so cool. 

I cannot go without saying though that, without a doubt, we are truly blessed to have a nice home that we can afford to heat.  There are so many people that struggle so much during these cold months just to make ends meet and don't always have heat.  We are very grateful for all that we have.  

Also, my husband can call me crazy all he wants, but I will continue checking all the lights and the thermostat. :)

Feeling Lazy...

Today is the start of my three day weekend, only not really.  I usually get a three day weekend every other weekend since I don't work Fridays, but since we have several people out at work this week I will be going in for a few hours tonight.  As luck would have it I am completely unmotivated.  Some days I wake up ready to get stuff done and full of energy, but today is not that day. 

So here I sit at almost 1:30pm and have yet to do much other than start some laundry and watch movies with the kids.  That's ok though--that's part of life too sometimes. :)  We have a fun-filled weekend ahead of us though, so hopefully tomorrow I will wake up a little more motivated.  Now it's time for lunch then off to work, and maybe I will have movie night with the kids tonight since Jon has to work---we will see.  In a family with three small kids plans always have to be flexible.  :)  Hope you all have a wonderful weekend!!

A New Leaf

So this Winter has been somewhat difficult, to say the least, for our family regarding health issues.  We have battled ear infections, shingles, chicken pox (despite the vaccinations), migraines, stomach bugs, eczema flare-ups, you name it we've had it.  It has been quite an eventful season for us you could say.  So many times I've wondered how in the world I've managed to avoid most of it even though I've been surrounded by it (could have something to do with all of the antibiotic powders I inhale while mixing them at work I suppose...).  At the same time I can feel that it is wearing on me.  It seems like at any second I could come down with something.  However, I'm convinced that the definition of motherhood specifically includes that no mother can never be sick or worn out, and if she starts feeling that way she needs to get over it.  There are far too many responsibilities for a mother to deal with for me to get "worn out."   So I keep plugging away with the hope of rejuvenation in my near future. 

While we were sitting at dinner tonight, Jon and I commented on how well Leah was eating.  It was really shocking because we gave her seconds and thirds and she was still eating!  It seems odd I'm sure that it would be a big deal, but she has had a very difficult time the last few months with several ear infections and random colds, and has not eaten well this time around in about a week.  For any typical baby this would be ok because they can always make up for it later, and they usually have plenty "stored up" so it really doesn't matter.  However, Leah is barely on the growth charts as it is so I tend to worry about her getting enough to eat.  I know she is just going to be my petite child, but it still makes me crazy that she doesn't gain weight very easily.  She will be thankful for that problem later in life I'm sure :)  But anyways, as I was thinking about her sudden increase of  appetite, I was also thinking that with Spring right around the corner hopefully we will all be turning over a new leaf also.  We have currently dumped the chicken pox on the cousins (sorry Dawn), Leah will be finishing her antibiotic this week and is showing signs of improvement, and I haven't had a migraine in about a week.  Things are looking up, thank goodness! :)  So to Spring, here we come and we plan to enjoy it! 

Looking Back

As many of you know, a year ago this past week my husband Jon lost his job as a mortgage loan underwriter for a bank that he had worked at for almost seven years.  I remember that day like it was yesterday.  I remember the afternoon when he came home early and gave me the news and that immediately my head was filled with questions.  What was going on?  Why did this happen to us?  How were our bills going to be paid?  Why at this exact time in our lives were we going through this?  What were we going to do?  Leah was only 6 weeks old, and I was only half way through my twelve week maternity leave.  Naturally I wondered how in the world we were going to make ends meet when neither of us were working.  Had anybody asked me at that time what I thought the next year had in store for us I would have had no idea what to say.  All I knew is that we were in a bad situation and that we were going to have to trust that our needs would be met.  I knew that there was no way that we could survive on my income alone, and in this economy there is no telling how long a person can be out of work while looking diligently and even putting personal preferences aside.  I was scared to say the least.  That was one year ago.

I returned to work as planned, and after six months of being unemployed Jon finally got a job working for a boarding school in the area for kids with Asperger's Syndrome and high-functioning autism.  He currently works third shift four nights a week watching over the students and getting them through their morning routine to prepare for classes.  He loves his job and I am so thankful for that.  He went from an unbelievably high-stress situation to a position where he can impact people which is where his heart really is. 

As I look back at the last year I now have answers to some of my questions.  There are so many details that I have left out for sake of time, but I know that God allowed all of this to happen to us for very specific purposes.  I am constantly amazed that we have not yet had one bill go unpaid, in fact we have actually managed to eliminate several smaller debts.  I am thankful that Jon is now working in an area that he is truly gifted in.  Working with people is what he does, and I am so thankful that God has put him in the place that he is now doing just that.  He has already had a huge impact on some of those kids in the six months that he has been there.  I am also amazed at the things that we have learned through this seeming crisis.  God is in control of every situation that comes into our lives, and He has a purpose for everything even if we don't know what it is at the time.  Looking back I am thankful for the many lessons we have learned this year. :) 
 

   

Hello Again, Friday...

So, as many of you know I'm sure, Friday is my favorite day of any given week.  Although I'm not necessarily sure why sometimes since most of my Fridays are spent changing diapers, doing laundry, scooping litter boxes, etc.  Today was no exception, of course.  I try to keep these days somewhat routine, but for some reason with three small kids that is kind of difficult to do sometimes.  I also don't really know why, but I am that person who feels the need to get all of my "chores" done first then relax and enjoy my day.  I despise procrastination when it comes to housework.  And still, at the end of the day as I sit typing, I look around and despite all of the things I've managed to get done today, I could pick out a hundred more things that need to be done.  I start to wonder how I can never manage to keep up with these things, but then I remind myself--what mother can?  If you are that wonder woman then good for you.  I, on the other hand, have decided that my house will always "look lived in" as Jon likes to say.  No, the dreams of my house looking like those in Better Homes and Gardens will never come true.  That's fine with me though because this is how we like it. 

Today I enjoyed doing schoolwork and activities with the kiddos.  It's hard to believe that Michael will be going to school in the fall!  Time flies by wayyy too fast.  Baseball starts up again next week already so we are all very excited about that.  Just more stuff for us to do, but it's great to see him out there playing and he loves it!  Not to sound biased or anything, but I think he's a natural :)  He gets to be on the same team as last season too, and Jon will be helping coach again so we can't wait--will post pics too. 

Now, what to do with the rest of the night...All three kids are spending the night with Nana and Jon will be going to work soon.  I think I will probably go to bed early (I'd be crazy not to).  If I didn't have to be at work at 8 in the morning I would probably stay up late and watch movies though honestly....                

Learning Something New

First of all, I would like to preface this blog by saying that I am by no means a professional writer.  One of my hopes in blogging is to enhance my writing skills.  In other words, if you come across any grammatical errors or typos please overlook them as I am a work in progress.  :) 

Another reason I decided to blog was to write about our daily experiences as a family for fun.  Those of you who know me well would probably say that I just enjoy hearing myself talk...haha.  There is a method to my madness...the idea kind of reminds me of making family videos.  These "stories" will someday be what we and our children can look back on and enjoy just like watching those old home videos.  I will be able to write about the memories that we are creating everyday, and those of you who aren't quite as close to us geographically as we would like can also enjoy our experiences and stay up to date on our family.  :)

I must be perfectly honest and say that there will be plenty of times I'm sure that my posts will have nothing to do with family, but will be more of a random ranting of whatever happens to be on my mind (that's where the part about me hearing myself talk comes into play...).  That is definitely to be expected so I'm giving a fair warning.  So if you're more interested in Jon and the kids you can just bypass those posts...just don't tell me....

I also do not know how often I will be able to post as of right now, but I hope that it will be frequent.  As you can imagine, life with a husband, three small kids, and 2 cats demands much of my attention.  Fortunately for all of my faithful followers though, I am a wonderful multi-tasker!  (no applause necessary)  So, we will give it a shot and see how it goes.  That's all for now...