It's been a while!

Okay, it's been a while! Sorry if you've been wondering... what a difference a year makes! A little more than a year ago I remember writing a post on Mother's Day - I believe I had been painting one of the bedrooms and repeatedly folding and arranging clothes we had been collecting, lamenting the wait for one piece of paperwork or another. This year I spent Mother's Day surrounded by the love (and mess) of my three little guys, picking up from Owen's 3rd birthday party the day before and celebrating the quiet during my chosen activity - shopping (by myself) for a new bra (clearly only necessities these days)! And the day after that - Kindergarten screening for Sam and Charlie!

It doesn't seem possible - I know all parents say this - but seriously it seems like the boys have been with us so much longer than 9 months! Last weekend we measured and weighed them and compared the numbers to our first stats on the door frame - couldn't believe the growth! Since November 7th (first measurement date), which was 2 1/2 months after they arrived (so it doesn't account for initial growth which was dramatic) Sam has grown 2 5/8 inches, Charlie 3 1/8 inches and Owen is up 3 3/8 inches! We estimate at least a half an inch each for those first 2 1/2 months so that is amazing! Current stats on each boy is as follows: Sam 34 lbs./39 5/8 inches, Charlie 30 lbs./38 3/4 inches, Owen 25 lbs./33 7/8 inches (at 2 years, 3 months old Owen weighed only 15 pounds when we picked him up). Aside from eating and sleeping well and tons of love and exercise we give some credit to Pediasure supplements (as seen in photo) everyday!

Owen milestones:
turned 3 in early May, totally understood and loved his birthday party, favorite present Elmo puppet, loves animals (real, animated and on television/video), loves everyone and has a smile that lights up a room, is talking up a storm ("Mommy I don't like it!", "I see brown cow!" "Mommy, play outside, PLEEEEEAASE," and "I pee on potty"), yes - beginning to potty train - very successful at first, now some regression regarding number 2's, knows everyones name (finally) and uses them regularly, favorite books - Five LIttle Monkeys Jumping on the Bed, A Mother for Choco, Baby Duck's Blanket, Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What do you see?, favorite toy - Playmobile helicopter, also loves boats (including ours - first ride last weekend - loved it!), gardening (with Grammy) and baseball (has his own bat/ball and hits super off a t-ball stand); basketball also a favorite, loves to help and is "asserting his personality" more everyday (first time out at daycare), wants to do everything his brothers do (and usually can/does), sleeps with a special blanket (still in a crib but should transition to toddler bed as soon as I'm out for the summer)

Charlie milestones:
turned 5 in April, favorite present - fire truck, loved the balloons at his party more than most of his presents, a master of taking things apart/tying things together/hiding things for another day, favorite color - green, favorite saying: "Why?", favorite books: Walter the Farting Dog, Disgusting, I Want to be a Firefighter, loves playing t-ball,...more next time

Sam milestones:
turned 5 in April, favorite present - police car, also a huge balloon fan, favorite color - red, loves all books - favorites are: Curious George Rides a Bicycle, Green Eggs and Ham, any "long one," favorite saying: "I have something important to tell you," expert bike rider, also loves playing t-ball,...more next time

Charlie and Sam turn 5!

No time for a post; hopefully the photos tell the story!

Fun in Pajamas!

I was putting together a folder of Easter weekend photos and suddenly noticed the boys were wearing their pajamas in every one! Saturday- an early morning and first ever skateboard lesson, complete with helmets! They all loved it! The older boys even tried standing up (no photos on account of my holding hands with skateboarders). And Sunday, a visit from the Easter Bunny, who left tracks and treat filled eggs outside - also family, fun and feasting!

Randon Musings

The older boys, and now Owen has joined in, love to help Daddy! Just today Charlie and Owen went with Daddy to pick-up the wood trailer (Sam was grocery shopping with me); they have also been throwing firewood through the window (for next year), installing an antenna in the attic, mixing up concrete, and demolishing part of the floor between the first floor and the basement (not Owen). The boys have also been to visit some of Daddy's new jobistes (thank goodness, people still are building houses in Maine), one site had a lot of large equipment - excavators, dump trucks, and more. Bob the Builder is favorite movie treat at our house these days. All of the boys are getting quite good at picking up - three boys working full force can make or clear a mess quickly! Mud season is here - need I say more...also, birthdays coming up soon. Sam and Charlie turn 5 in April, Owen 3 in May. New favorite toy, besides the bikes and trikes (outside, finally), a Spiderman punching bag, the kind that sits on the floor and pops back up after you hit it. Not that we necessarily condone violence, but Charlie is a master with a left hook on old Spiderman, Sam makes the best noise, something like a comic book "POW!" We make them use it one at a time and draw different colored legos out of a basket to decide the order of attack. On to medical news: Owen has had a couple of typical two's injuries and his first trip to the ER with me since India. Since he is fond of running lately (yeah!) is was inevitable he would eventually take a tumble and hit his face - this time nose- when he fell on a chair. It bled a lot, he was at day care, and I left work from across the street just to check it out. It had stopped bleeding by the time we registered; they checked him over, not broken, he was fine, and we were on our way. I still had one class to teach, last period, no sub available and everyone extra in the building at a conference/training; but I didn't want to bring Owen back to day care. So he came to school with me, read books and took a nap in my pile of beanbag chairs (we had ruled out concussion), ooing and aahhing as dozed off. The students were whispering their lesson, immediately hushing anyone entering the room (very uncharacteristic of my 6th graders), it was one of my most productive classes in weeks! Owen's other incident - choking while eating lunch - 911 was called - food was dislodged before they arrived (in 4 minutes, by the way). All of the boys are growing fast, Owen weighs about 25 pounds now, Charlie 35 and Sam almost 40! They are outgrowing clothes at an alarming rate, luckily we still have an impressive pile to pull from - friends and relatives handmedowns, thrift shop/on sale items and Grandparents. Instead of going to the mall we go closet shopping - thankfully - because these three guys together at the mall are a bit of a nightmare. Well, that's all for now - hope you are all enjoying spring!

Thank Goodness for Grammy!

It's 6:50am, dark, negative 23 degrees, yes, that's right - 23 DEGREES BELOW ZERO - and there's Grammy, sitting in her warm mini-van, waiting to jump out, transfer Owen into his car seat and sneak a chocolate doughnut into my Yukon. We wait until we're both out of traffic to call for the daily update. (This was back in February, by the way)

It's 3:00pm, Grammy has already driven to our house to pick up all three boys (at 10:30am), taken them to her house (approx. half hour drive), fed them lunch and a snack and they are all napping (or almost). Grammy is expecting a call from me discussing when and where we'll meet for the transfer; instead she is asked if they can stay for supper (we're with Henry at the vet), then later I call to ask if they can spend the night (we're a mess and it's too late to wake them up). The next morning I pick the boys up after they're fed a special breakfast of "Mickey Mouse" pancakes.

These are just two examples of the enormous support our family is receiving from my folks, known to the boys as Grammy and GeeGee. Not that other family members are absent - everyone has been super supportive! It's just that Grammy in particular has become like a third parent to the boys and at this point we could not function without her! Here is a sample of Grammy's weekly schedule:

Monday - meets Owen and I at the Rite Aid parking lot in Bangor (6:50am), he transfers to her van, she drives to Orono, feeds him breakfast, gets him dressed (he travels in pj's), they play, maybe go to library group, have a snack, nap, more playing, then lunch (GeeGee works nearby and often takes long lunches!). After lunch more "Grammy time," possibly a visit to great-grandmother, Nanny, or some other adventure, another snack, reading books, nap, then back in the van to meet Mommy in Bangor around 4:30 or 5:00!

Tuesday - Grammy drives to Winterport and picks up Sam & Charlie at preschool (this involves moving carseats, getting both boys into snowsuits & boots -hopefully not for much longer- checking with teachers, packing backpacks and loading boys into the car). After the pick-up she either goes to our house (less than a mile from school) or drives them back to her place. She feeds them lunch, they play (outside if weather permits), read books and eventually nap. The pick-up scenario varies, either waiting at our place for Daddy to get home from work or another loading in to the van to drive to Bangor to meet me. If the older boys are in Orono GeeGee also takes longer lunches when possible and is also known to sneak away early to accompany Grammy on the ride back to Bangor.

Wednesday - repeat Monday's schedule

Thursday - repeat Tuesday's schedule

Friday - schedule varies - Grammy usually has the older boys for sure, Owen as well some days. Usually the babysitter comes to the house until 10:30 or 11:00am, then they're with Grammy until one of us is home. Lately she has been taking the boys back to her house - imagine - Grammy traveling alone with two 4-year-olds and a 2-year-old! She's amazing! We really can't thank her (and GeeGee) enough!!!

Other reasons we're thankful for Grammy and GeeGee:

*they are willing (and excited) about taking the boys overnight
*they feed the boys -a lot- and believe it or not the little guys eat up a storm!
*they communicate with us constantly - which boy is doing/saying what on any given day
*despite their grandparent status both have agreed to try to help us parent, rather than spoil the boys, which is the usual grandparent role
*Grammy takes an enormous amount of photos, which usually bothers me, but without them some very precious moments would have been undocumented (Note: all the photos in this entry came from Grammy's camera)
*they are incredibly patient and supportive - not just with the boys, whose behaviors are at times difficult to deal with, but with me! As a new, overtired, sometimes frustrated/confused/worried parent - I know I can be a real nightmare to deal with at times!
*did I mention that GeeGee still works full time and Grammy works for the U.S. Census Bureau one week a month?

Thank you Grammy and GeeGee!

Note: These photos are from the past few months. For those of you in warmer parts of the world - yes - we still have snow on the ground in Maine!

R.I.P. Henry

Our family dog, Henry, passed away yesterday suddenly. He was eight years old. He will be sorely missed by all.