April 4

I think this Do-Nothing Monday was actually busy, and I don't like that. 

We started the morning with a visit from our Parents As Teachers parent educator. We talked about Eli and Lily's development, and it came at a good time. Eli has just started doing things like playing peek-a-boo, clapping his hands, repeating words... you know, the kinds of things we expect 10-12-month-olds to do. He is nowhere near walking, and just got his third tooth. I was feeling discouraged and concerned. On one hand, I'm excited to see a burst in development! On the other, what gives? My 14-month-old feels more like a baby about to turn one! Yes, he was premature, but even with a generous adjustment based on when we expected him to arrive, he should still be doing more than he is.

But as I talked with her, she pointed out that he actually is doing a lot of the things that are expected for his age. He has just started expressing opinions: he will do the stiff-as-a-board trick when I try to buckle him into his car seat, and he throws himself down on the ground when he's upset. He is independent, and solves problems to get what he wants. Eli may not be doing the flashy, exciting stuff yet, but he is still pretty close to being on track developmentally. So, yay, Eli! You are your own person, and you are developing at your own pace. We are blessed to have you!

Day 4 of my 30-day wrapping challenge was short cross carry with a ring. It was fine.

By the time the little ones went down for naps, I was feeling overwhelmed. We still needed to do school, I needed to prep dinner, then we had to get to baseball practice at 4:45, Chris would meet us there, then home for dinner, Caleb and I still needed to do a training run, and Chris had to leave by 7:00 to go teach a class to aspiring minority small business owners. It was stressful.

But we made it. Baseball practice went well, but as we drove home Caleb explained to me that he was feeling discouraged and stupid. He felt like there was so much about baseball that he didn't know yet, like how and when to run the bases. We talked about being a rookie, how even if he knows how to play the game, there are still lots of things he has to learn. I feel like I gave him some solid Mom-advice, but kids are weird, and you never know if they're actually hearing the words you're telling them. Hopefully he heard me.

We went on to have a good run. Caleb was not at his fastest today, but he had a good attitude and that counts for a lot. 

Training run #7: done!

April 3

How on earth is it April 3? I have no idea. 

Today was a lovely, full day. We did church and Costco in the morning, followed by a quick lunch and naps for the little ones. 

 
Day three of my 30 days of wraps challenge: Front Cross Carry in my size 5 Girasol Northern Lights at Costco. Not my best wrap job, and not my favorite carry.

As soon as I got Eli down, Caleb and I headed out for our training run. (#6, if you're keeping track. 4 more training runs and he gets special running shoes.)

It was sunny and nearly 80 degrees, which made it officially Caleb's hottest run ever. Still, he was full of energy and we finished our run 25 seconds faster than last time. Hooray!

We got home to find Chris preparing to assemble some of the items we purchased at Ikea yesterday. I changed clothes to head to the grocery store... and then Eli woke up. It was a much-too-short nap, and he wasn't ready to be awake. I went in and tried to get him back to sleep, but he only wanted to sleep in my arms. Chris obviously couldn't get any furniture assembly done with Eli crawling around, so I took him shopping with me.

 I wrapped him on my back, and he was a happy little helper. The produce section was his favorite, and he pointed at every apple, orange, onion, potato, and tomato and shouted, "Ball! Ball! BALL!" When we finished and I tried to buckle him into his car seat, he was completely uncooperative. Someone apparently taught him the "stiff as a board" trick. 

Luckily, this isn't my first time at this rodeo. I pulled out a newly purchased banana.

Mommy: 1

Eli: 0

After we finished our shopping, Eli finally got to "help" Daddy assemble the furniture.

This might be one of my favorite pictures of these two together. Chris is helping Eli hammer dowels in, and Eli is absolutely in love with the whole thing. The hammering, the helping, Daddy...

I wish you could see Eli's whole face, but you can tell from just the half that he is delighted.

Hammer, hammer, hammer with his wooden hammer! Good job, Eli!

April 2

Sometime last year, Chris and I started keeping track of our schedules with Google calendar. With the kids getting older and having more things to do, it has been so helpful to have our schedule always at our fingertips. This week, I added in Caleb's baseball practices and baseball games, and then added twice weekly swim lessons, and all kinds of other stuff. Suddenly I realized that today was the only Saturday we will have free until sometime in June. Yikes!

Ever since we moved Caleb and Daisy into a shared room, I have been planning to install an Ikea-hack wall of built-ins around their window. I've done copious amounts of research, pinned all kinds of ideas, and even created a scale drawing of the wall with specific model numbers of items we needed. Chris was on board, and we were ready to go... we just needed to go to Ikea. We were planning to go a month or so ago, but then everyone in our family got a stomach bug. So today? Today was our day.

Thankfully, my mom was free and willing to watch the kids. (Side note: when I told Lily this morning that Grandma was coming over, she was so excited she couldn't even get words out. She squawked a few times before she finally yelled, "I LOVE GRANDMA!!!!")

I intended to get up at a normal time and go grocery shopping before our big trip, but that husband of mine let me sleep until nearly 8:30. It messed with my plans, but I can't say I was disappointed. Especially when he had breakfast and coffee from Panera Bread waiting for me. (He took all four kids to Bread Co. by himself. What a man!)

While I ate my breakfast, the big kids did this:

Caleb read a book to Daisy, and Lily grabbed a book of her own (a Lego Star Wars encyclopedia!) and climbed onto the couch to read next to them.

I love that we have a big ol' couch, but they choose to sit all squished up next to each other, just because they like to be close.

I love that they choose to read together.

I love that Caleb is eager to share his reading with Daisy, and that she wants to be read to.

I love that I got to eat my breakfast and drink my (hot!) coffee in peace.

I might not love that they're reading a Captain Underpants book, but whatever.

I got dressed, put Eli down for his morning nap, my mom came over, and we were off!

You know we had to take a "first ever visit to Ikea" selfie!

Also, you can't tell in this picture, but I was wearing my skinny jeans for the first time in nearly two years. Hooray for results from all of the hard work I've been doing!

Ikea was insane, but we knew exactly what we needed, we didn't have children with us, and we were even able to enjoy lunch there! All in all, a great trip. We left with almost everything we needed, aside from a few items that were out of stock. We also left with several items we didn't know we needed, like a whole bunch of picture frames (the gallery wall is going back up above the couch!) and some lamps for Caleb and Daisy's bunk beds.

Back home, I put Eli down for a (much too short!) afternoon nap and Chris and I put the lamps on Caleb and Daisy's beds and unloaded the 14 boxes of materials for the wall of built-ins. When Eli woke up, we tried out Day 2 of our 30 Days of Wraps challenge: Semi FWCC with a size 3 Yaro Yolka. I'm rusty on the slip knot, and Eli gets annoyed being on my front now because he wants to look around at everything. Still, it was a solid carry and I liked it a lot. Just need to practice my slip knots. Also, you can kind of see the skinny jeans in the picture. Yay!

I did bath time, while Chris worked at pulling up baseboard in the kids' room in preparation for the built-ins. 

All four duckies in the tub! I had to take a picture because Caleb and Daisy are getting old enough that I never know when the last time they will all fit in the tub will be. (Also, Chris normally does bath time, and he is smart enough to never put all four kids in the tub at once. I wasn't that smart. It was a splashy mess. But they were so happy!)

And then, bedtime. When I finished putting Eli down, I peeked in Caleb and Daisy's very quiet room to find this: 

The kids love their new lamps! Chris and I both gave them explicit instructions that the lamps needed to be off at 8:00. At 8:04, I peeked in and found a completely dark room. I gave each kid a kiss and praised them for being so responsible, to which Daisy proudly replied, "I told Caleb how many minutes we had left, because I know my numbers."

Sweet girl. Love her.

April 1

I confess: I have been a lazy homeschooler this week. I alternate between feeling very guilty about it, and feeling awesome about it. Next week will be better.

In the meantime, today Caleb read several books, I sewed two ring slings for MOPS friends, we did some school, and I felt relaxed and enjoyed a laid-back day.

Lily tested out one of the ring slings I made, and she approved. In fact, she got really upset when a few minutes later I tried to put her down. The girl may be nearly three, but she still loves to be worn!

This is what Eli looks like when I have nursed him to sleep. Sweet, isn't it? Unfortunately, about 1/4 of the time he wakes up when I lay him in his crib. Then I have to choose whether to start all over, or just give it up. Today, I gave it up. The kid's only morning nap was while he slept in my arms.

Lunch time was interesting, because the Easter holiday meant I somehow forgot to buy a lot of the groceries I normally get. Our fridge is looking pretty bare, but I scrounged up sausage, cheese, and baby carrots for the kids to have for lunch. Daisy refused to eat it, but when I got out the heart-shaped cookie cutter, she changed her mind.

When I showed her how we could put cheese hearts inside sausage circles, and arrange it all into a person, she was pumped about lunch.

Boom. #momwin

Caleb wasn't about to let Daisy have all the fun, so he made his own little person.

It has a belly button.

I have been stalking perusing various Facebook pages lately, itching to buy a new wrap. I haven't found the one perfect wrap yet, and I'm a little trigger shy, so instead I decided to try a thirty-day wrap challenge, in which I try a different carry every day.

Day 1 was pretty basic: Front Wrap Cross Carry. 

I pulled out my size 6 wrap for this one, which surprised me. I used to be able to do it in a size 5, but now Eli is so big that I can barely tie it with a 5. 

Daisy took this picture for me.

Then we finally decided to do a little school. Daisy and Lily worked on coloring sheets while Caleb and I did some work from Story of the World (he learned about Genghis Khan).

Eli was not content to be wrapped; he wanted to color like the big kids!

Such a big boy!

(I forgot to mention in yesterday's blog post that the cause of his sleeplessness the other night was... A NEW TOOTH! That's right: my 14-month-old just got his third tooth. It's nuts.)

Caleb decided he wanted to make a booby trap to surprise Chris when he got home, so around 5:00 I let him go to work. He used string and tape and was really proud of himself! 

I love how Eli wanted to be right up in there.

Look at how curious Eli is!

Unfortunately, it didn't really work and Caleb was disappointed. Maybe next time.

Meanwhile, Lily found Caleb's baseball cap and glove and decided she was a baseball player. 

This girl is hilarious and adorable, but in the past week I have seen more of that "terrible twos"/"threenager" behavior from her. I have a feeling her days as the easy child are coming to an end.

At least she's cute.

We waited outside for Chris to come home, and I noticed one of my favorite parts of spring at our house: 

The fern fronds are unfurling! I love how they unroll in to leafy ferns, and how the bright green life comes out of what looks entirely brown and dead. Welcome back, ferns!

When Chris got home, I left him to get dinner warmed up while Caleb and I did training run #5. The last three have been not-so-great, but this one was fabulous. I think the big difference was that we left the little ones at home, and it was special Mommy/Caleb time. We chatted as we ran, and he had a lot more energy and enthusiasm than he has on previous runs. In fact, he barely complained! But I know this run was a success because our post-run selfie (now a tradition!) looks like this: 

That is one happy boy, and one happy mama.

Then Caleb decided what he really wanted was a picture of us lying down, with designs on the ground. He got out some chalk and got to work. 

Planning his designs.

The end result. I am so thankful for this little boy, and so glad we are embarking on this endeavor together!

March 31

Not a lot of formal "school" happened at our house today.

First, Eli didn't sleep last night. He was up screaming from 12:00 until nearly 3:00 this morning. Neither Chris nor I could console him, and that left me exhausted. Luckily, he slept in until nearly 7:30 this morning, but even that wasn't enough to make up for all of the missed sleep last night.

Then, it was a preschool day, so I had to get everyone dressed, fed, and loaded into the van to take Daisy to preschool. 

Once we got home from dropping Daisy off, Caleb and I put on our running gear, loaded the younger two in the BOB, and took off on Training Run #4. Today's run was much better than our last run, but still not good. We always run out 15 minutes, then turn around and run back home. with the goal of finishing our run in 30 minutes. Today we made it farther during those 15 minutes, and finished our run in 32 minutes, which means we ran faster. But we are still definitely not fast. I think the thing that is mostly holding us back is Caleb's grumpiness and lack of effort. He was fine during our first run, but has consistently been so whiny and wimpy during ever successive run that today I finally asked him point-blank if he still wanted to do the 5k, or if he wanted to stop.

He then informed me that he really wants to run the 5k; he just doesn't want to have to train for it.

Ha! I know the feeling, kiddo. Training stinks. If only we could magically be good at everything without ever having to work for it. 

I am still optimistic that this endeavor will be a powerful lesson for him on the importance of working toward a goal, and that it will be a great chance for him to develop his perseverance.

We finished our run, and I set Caleb and Lily in front of the TV while I put Eli down for his morning nap. He was asleep by 10:45, but I had to wake him up at 11:20 to go to Daisy's preschool for a special science event. They invited all of the families to come see how they learn science, and there was no way we were going to miss it, so Eli only got a 35-minute nap. I'd feel bad for him, but I was still bitter about all the sleep I missed last night, too.

The kids had so much fun in Daisy's classroom!

Just as it was time for us to leave preschool to eat lunch in the van before Speech Club, a giant peal of thunder shook the building. Then the skies opened up, and a torrential downpour swamped everything. We waited as long as we could for it to let up, but finally we just had to run for it.

We got soaked.

Funnily enough, by the time we got to the school 10 minutes later, the sun was shining, the skies were blue, and birds were singing. And we were soaked. Whatever.

We got home in time for me to stuff my face with lunch (I always remember the kids' lunches, but never remember something for myself!) and then put the little ones down for naps. Meanwhile, Caleb read another Magic Treehouse book. He loves them! By the time all three little ones were down for naps, my lack of sleep last night was catching up with me, and I persuaded Caleb to bring his book (he had just started his third Magic Treehouse book of the day) into bed and snuggle with me. I was surprised and delighted when he not only agreed, but he offered to read his book out loud to me! Of course, I fell asleep within minutes, but still. We spent about an hour in bed, and I got a nice snooze while he finished his book.

Then it was time to make dinner and everyone woke up and the evening chaos began. Caleb had Cub Scouts after dinner, so I was on my own with the little ones. We folded laundry, and I decided to document how they like to "help" me with the laundry.

Jumping in the pile of clean laundry is their favorite thing ever.

I don't know why Daisy Queen Elsa is screaming, but I'm keeping the picture so you can see that even Eli likes to get in on the laundry pile action.

Speaking of "action", here are some action shots of Daisy's laundry-leaping skills.

This one is my favorite.

Then I had to actually get to work folding the laundry, and - unbeknownst to me - Daisy grabbed my camera. These are her shots: 

This is a pretty accurate picture of me these days. Dark circles under my eyes, wild hair, and a crazy look in my eye. I suppose even that is worth documenting for posterity.

Lily and Eli "helping".

And Daisy's mirror selfie. I had no idea she took this picture, and I love it! I am clearly training her up right!

And at the end of the day, as I got Eli ready for bed, I discovered the cause of last night's awfulness:

Tooth #3 has broken through.

Finally.

March 29

Our school district's Spring Break is over now, so life as usual resumes today. We dropped Daisy off at preschool, and returned home for a playdate with my friend Jill and her girls. Lily was ecstatic; "No-me" is one of her favorite friends. (Her only friend? Whatever.) She told me she was excited to play chase with No-me.

I took some pictures of Lydia and Naomi, and then we headed outside to play.

Caleb desperately wanted to take the girls back to his "secret hideout" in the trees behind our house, but Jill and I were too lazy to supervise and the girls are too young to go traipsing about with just Caleb. Instead, he pulled them around in the wagon. I know there's a shadow over Naomi's face, but can you tell that she thought it was the coolest thing ever?

I love this picture with all my heart. Caleb was trying mightily to push the girls up a hill, but it just wasn't happening. He is such a good big brother, and so sweet with the little ones!

Lily and Naomi thoroughly appreciated Caleb's hard work.

Meanwhile, the babies were sharing a swing.

It will be a sad day when the children are too big to share the bucket seat!

Lydia is a month and a half older than Eli, but look at how much taller she is than him! Jill and I decided that I breed skinny little things, while she breeds Amazon babies.

Then the girls decided it was Caleb's turn for a ride in the wagon. 

This was so, so funny. Look at Naomi's face. She thinks it is the best game. Meanwhile, Lily is pushing from behind with everything she has, and the wagon was barely moving.

Caleb didn't care. He loved it all!

Then it was time to go. We left to go pick up Daisy, and there was a stressful confrontation with a dad in the parking lot that I don't wish to discuss right now. After lunch and naps, Caleb and I got to work.

I love practicing spelling words with sidewalk chalk! Yay, spring!

Chris had a late work event, so I was on my own for dinner with the kids. We had gluten-free noodles, and Eli and Lily were in heaven! 

He is my only child who will eat tomato sauce. The other three refuse it. Lily demolished her plate of noodles, cheese, and meat in  the time it took Caleb to take four bites. I'm not even kidding. The girl was ravenous, and it was one of her favorite meals. And Eli was just happy. He ate most of his food, and let me know he was finished by throwing the rest on the floor. Thanks, kid.

Then it was time for our 5k training run #3. Chris and I discussed postponing it until tomorrow and making today a rest day, because he wouldn't be home to watch the little ones while Caleb and I ran. But I decided to go for it.

I buckled Eli and Lily into their spots in the BOB, Daisy got comfortable in the footwell, and we were off! I'm not going to lie; the hills were hard. But Caleb was moving at a turtle's pace, which made my job a bit easier. We ended up running two miles in 32 minutes. That's a 16-minute mile. I'm pretty sure I could power walk a mile faster than that, but whatever.

This was our post-run selfie. Caleb is feeling discouraged because he hasn't gotten stronger and faster yet. I totally understand, and that's why I'm glad we've committed to this 5k. I'm hopeful that he will learn firsthand the value of perseverance, and that growth is better than perfection. I'm also hopeful that a rest day tomorrow will boost his spirits, and that our next run can be just the two of us. I think he craves that special alone time, and perhaps that was part of his disappointment? We'll see.

I also ordered him some red athletic shorts today. Those should put a little bit of pep in his step!