Mama of Three!

I should have posted sooner, but I am currently cuddling my very cute excuse for not doing so. My third and FINAL (God, are you reading this?) child entered the world on December 28, 2009. He arrived weighing 8 pounds, 7 ounces and 21 1/4 inches long. And I did say HE! With the exception of two people, this was a surprise to all. I, of course, have been saying all along that I felt it was a boy, so I found myself feeling not too surprised and very smug when the midwife announced "It's a boy!" My husband, on the other hand, was apparently caught quite off guard. According to my doula/birth photographer (amazing, by the way, and yes, I'll share her info if anyone is in need of a great person to coach and photograph their child's birth), the look on his face was one of complete shock. Wish we'd caught that on film. But anyhow, Cole Thomas is here, and I am now the very proud mommy of three. I'm currently still lucky enough to have my mom and dad on hand to help out, but I'm sure I will very shortly be on the verge of insanity. Stay tuned for my many misadventures in mothering three!

The VAN

So months ago now, I blogged about the vehicle decision. Crossover, SUV, or minivan: what to do? If I remember correctly, I boldly stated that I feel I am too cool to drive a minivan. Somehow, making the decision to drive the ultimate vehicle of convenience cemented my place as a MOM. You know, as if the birthing of two children, changing of thousands of diapers, and 23 total months of breastfeeding didn't already make me a mom. But you know what I'm saying. You see a Honda Odyssey at the traffic light, and you know immediately that a mom is driving, there is likely a Disney movie playing in the DVD player, and there are at least two kids' meal toys hiding somewhere under all of those seats. All of these are the reasons that I was hesitant. In my heart, I am still young and cool: I listen to popular music, wear fairly low-rise jeans, and am quite up-to-date on my celebrity gossip. (That, by the way, is the formula for cool.) Anyway, all that said, here is my confession: we bought a minivan. A 2007 Nimbus gray Honda Odyssey, to be more specific. And here's the whopper confession: I LOVE it! Not just "I love that it's convenient and all of my kids fit in it." No, I love it and I want to drive it all the time. I look for excuses to drive it, and if we're headed to the same place, watch out because I will very likely insist on driving. But hey, you can also watch a movie while you hang out back there! So my message, in short, is this: when it comes time, don't fight it. Buy the minivan!

Sneezes

Remember how in middle school someone told you that if you sneezed with your eyes open, your eyes would pop out? Well, I can't prove or disprove that myth either way. Truth be told, I'm afraid to try. I'm a little afraid that it's true. I also remember hearing that when you sneeze your heart stops momentarily. I feel pretty confident that that one is not true. However, I have learned something regarding sneezes with 100% certainty in the last few weeks. I have learned that if you are, oh, six or more months pregnant, and you sneeze, you WILL pee in your pants. There's just no way around it. Sure, you can do a Kegel, you can cross your legs, but inevitably a tiny bit of pee will sneak out. And if you are not taking one of these preventative measures, a lot of pee will sneak out. A change-your-undies amount. I don't remember this being true in the past so much. Maybe it's a product of having carried multiple babies; I don't know. But I feel that I've done my part to warn others of this wonderful side effect of sneezing while pregnant. And I think when my kids are in middle school, I'll share THAT little tidbit with them so that they can at least spread truths regarding the facts of sneezes.

It's Been Too Long!

Ok, I apologize. It's been an unreasonably long time since I posted. But I have wonderful excuses that include my two wonderful children, my more-than-full-time job, and a pregnancy. How's that? Anyway, I do have a story that, since its occurrence, I have been meaning to share. As I realize that this blog is read by many (my mom included), I'm going to try to keep it clean. See, I'm just now into the third trimester (30 weeks, thank you very much!), but there are still some residual effects of the second trimester, to include an increased desire for amorous activities. If you've enjoyed this particular effect of the glowing I-have-wonderfully-large-breasts-but-I'm-not-yet-too-fat portion of pregnancy, you understand that this mood can strike at unusual times. One morning at roughly 6 am, my husband and I decided it was a good time to indulge one of these moods. Knowing that Murphy's Law of Sex-After-Children would apply to this situation, we took precautions and locked the door. Needless to say, mere minutes later, we heard the telltale sound of a 4-year-old trying to open a lock door. After a little handle-jiggling and some soft knocking, we heard (and yes, this is a quote), "Guys? Hey guys? I think the door is locked. What are you guys doing in there? Hey guys? I need some Fruit Loops!" And thus, with a significant amount of laughter, the mood was completely ruined, and Owen got his Fruit Loops. Daddy, on the other hand, did not.

Heard in My House

Owen: Daddy, will you come play in my pop-up train with me?

Daddy: Just a minute, buddy. I'm in here talking to Mommy.

Owen: Are you suuuuuure? I've got a nice cold beer in here.


HA! The things they notice.

What a crappy day

There are some things that really secure your status as a "mommy" and yesterday I experienced one of these. I put Ella down for her afternoon nap awake, as I always do, and went to spend some time with Owen. Maybe fifteen minutes later, she began crying pretty loudly, so I figured I'd console her, get her to go to sleep so I could take a nap myself. When I entered the room, I knew something was amiss. It smelled terribly in her room. As I approached my little angel, I saw something dark on her face. Fear began to set in at this point. When I peered into the crib, my nightmare was confirmed. Lying in the crib was Ella's open diaper, with poo strewn around the bedding. It was on her quilt, the bumper, her sheet, Dolly, her blanket, and of course, Ella herself. I'm talking feet, hands, face, and--brace yourself, ladies-- even in her mouth! The poor little girl was crying and putting her poopy hands in her mouth to console herself but was only agitating herself more because she was eating her own crap! Oh, the horror! Where do you begin to clean up a mess like this? Well, I began with the bathtub. My fully clothed little poopy prankster was tossed into the rather warm running bathwater. I scrubbed her in the hottest water I thought safe, and all the while she was still crying. After her bath, I brushed her teeth (thoroughly) and then commenced cleaning the crappy crib. AN HOUR later, she was finally able to take her nap. What a day. But, alas, I now have my poop mishap to share as I like to embarass my little girl. And that's something to look forward to.

The Second Trimester

I know for most women, the first trimester can be hell. Nausea, vomiting, tender breasts, headaches, etc. For some reason, I've been blessed. I've never been more than really tired in any of my pregnancies. During my current pregnancy, I've even been so bold as to comment that I haven't been all that tired. I chalked it up to not having time to pay attention to any fatigue I might feel as I'm too busy with my other two babies. So bring on the second trimester! I'll take the enlarged breasts, the renewed energy, and the womanly glow without ever having to endure the tribulations of the first trimester.

So, Sunday marked 15 weeks, commonly known to be the beginning of this glorious second trimester. On Saturday, I awoke with the most unusual feeling of vertigo. It took hours of lying very still until I could finally walk without pitching as if I were on a cruise ship. Later, I had a brutal headache that followed. Sunday, I awoke to find that my breasts were incredibly tender, something that I haven't experienced so far in this pregnancy. All week long, I've had headaches and occasional bouts of dizziness. So now I have to face my greatest fear: could the first and second trimesters SWITCH? Has this ever happened in the history of pregnancies? My midwife laughed at me, but amidst her laughing, I noticed that she never did reassure me that this was impossible. Now here I am, five weeks from starting back to work as a first grade teacher, mother of a 4 year old and a 1 year old, and possibly just BEGINNING to experience extreme fatigue, nausea, vomiting, and mood swings to boot? Lord help me! Lord help those AROUND me! Just let it not be so...