Eventful Night

My little brother Christian had a choir concert tonight. It is his senior year so it was one of the last few concerts I would have the opportunity to attend, he had a big solo, and I didn't want to miss it.

We planned on leaving at 3, to arrive in Wichita around 5:30, get dinner and be to his concert in time for it to start at 7:30.

That of course didn't go to plan. We didnt end up leaving the house until 4. That wasn't a big deal, we still had plenty of time to get there on time. We decided we would just grab fast food quick once we arrived to town instead of sitting down somewhere like we originally planned.

We stop and get gas, and head out of town. Before we actually make it out of the city limits Cambri says "I think I am getting car sick." This was odd, as she has never gotten car sick before. I give her a plastic bag, and tell her if she gets sick to use it. Less than a minute she does. Except she misses the bag. There is a mess all over her and all over the car. We pull over at the next gas station and clean up. We get back on the road. It's  now 4:45 and we still have 2 hrs and 20 minutes left of the drive. Nothing else can go wrong if we want to be there on time.

She quickly falls asleep. Reece wakes up about 30 minutes from our destination. We decide this is a good time to grab our food, change his diaper and let him eat. Johnny goes through the drive thru while I run inside with Reece. When I come back out, we all eat, (Cambri said she was feeling better and hungry) except for Reece. This was a bit disappointing, as I am breast feeding and hadn't prepared to skip a feeding, but thought I could just pump when I get home. So we get back on the road.

We have barely left when Cambri informs us she feels sick again. I give her another plastic bag, and tell her to use it if she needs, and ask Bella to help make sure this time it goes in the bag. A minute or two later she gets sick, and the bag gets missed again. There was no place to pull over so we told her we would get everything cleaned as soon as we get to my brothers school.

We took a different route than normal, and I notice we are finally somewhere I am familiar with, and almost there. I ask Johnny what road we are on. It begins a discussion about the roads we are taking to get there, this discussion turns into an argument, which causes us to miss our last turn. We have to drive a few miles up the road to turn around. However the exit we need is closed from this direction and now have to detour.

We pull into the school parking lot right at 7:30 when the concert begins. We get Cambri and the car cleaned up and run inside. Thankfully my Mom had saved us seats because it was a packed house.

Several times during the concert Cambri tells us she is going to be sick, we take turns running her to the bathroom, but she never does. However she is thirsty and keeps getting a drink at the water fountain. Reece finally starts acting hungry, but won't eat under his cover, so I take him and find a secluded spot to feed him. He eats but not much. Again I am disappointed, because his lack of feeding is beginning to make me quite uncomfortable.

The next time Cambri needs to run to the bathroom, Johnny takes her and Reece. Though Cambri didn't get sick, Reece does, in the lobby of the school. Johnny gets it cleaned up and he comes back in. Cambri sits on my lap just in time to see Christians big solo. They sing one song after that before Cambri needs to go to the bathroom again. I take her, but she doesn't get sick. We leave the bathroom just as everyone is leaving the concert and entering the lobby where we are standing, and that is when she does it. Vomit all over the lobby floor with hundreds of people surrounding us.

I take her back to the bathroom while Johnny and my mom's husband Brett get her mess cleaned up. We give Christian a hug and run out the door. We couldn't get out of there fast enough.

We made it about half way home before Johnny tells me he isn't feeling well. We pull over at a gas station, but other than that make it home with out any further incidents. We got everyone tucked in to bed, and I am keeping my fingers crossed they all feel better in the morning, and that Bella and I don't catch it.

I am disappointed I missed so much of the concert, but am so thankful I got to see atleast some of it, including my brothers big solo, which he ROCKED! Hopefully the next concert is less eventful.

As for now, I am headed to bed after this crazy night!

Reece Six Months

Wow Reece, you are already 6 months old! Where did the time go? You can sit up on your own and you can now roll both ways. You will roll across the house to get from one place to another. You would love to crawl, but when you try, you stretch out just a little to far and end up rolling over. If you had your choice, you would skip crawling altogether and go straight to walking. Nothing brings you more joy than your purple car walker. You go round and round and back and forth. Which is why your Dad and I ripped up our carpets, and will be finishing our hard wood floors. You needed more space to roam.

You are a great eater, and have enjoyed about every food I have given you except for peaches. You have one tooth now, so before you know it you will be able to bite into real foods.

You are growing like a weed, now 26 and 1/4 inches long and 17 lbs 6oz.

You are very active, no matter how hard we play you rarely nap more than 40 minutes at a time during the day, and still wake multiple times at night.

You have started to recognize people, especially Mom, and it melts my heart when I walk into the room and you reach out for me to pick you up. Your sisters absolutely adore you, and you adore them too. Its amazing to see your face light up and your ear to ear grin when they play with you. Speaking of playing, that is your favorite thing to do with Dad. You could chase him around the floor in your car all day.

You are developing your own personality, as Cambri would say "you are becoming a human now." Its truly amazing watching you learn and grow. Sometimes I wish you would slow down a bit so I could cherish the baby moments just a little bit longer. No matter how big and old you get though, you will forever be my Little Man.

Love Mom.

Routine

Before six months ago I had a routine. My house was almost always clean, delicous dinners regularly cooked, kids bathed and in bed on time. I felt like I had this mom thing down. Not that it's the moms job to do those things. Johnny had just spent the last 2 years working/driving 12 to 14 hours a day, so I did them, and made them my routine. He did what he could when he was here, usually mowing and fixing things

Then Reece arrived. Since then my world has flipped upside down. Its hard to get anything done with a baby attached to you. I know this will only last a moment in the grand scheme of things, so I try not to get upset when the house is a mess. That we have eaten McDonalds 3 nights in a row. Or if we accidentally skip bath time one night. I try to just enjoy it.

Johnny works a lot closer to home now, and works a typical 10 hour day, but he is still busy. It seems now that he is closer, something breaks and needs fixed non stop. If its not one thing, its another. Tonight it was our satellite. We haven't been able to watch TV for a couple days. I don't watch a lot of TV, so it wasn't a huge deal. However, I do like to sit down, relax and watch the Royals for a few innings after I get the kids to bed.

Tonight Johnny fixed the satellite, when he was done, he made dinner and cleaned the kitchen, all while I just sat, snuggled my babies, and watched the whole Royals game. It was a late dinner, and we skipped bath time because the game was on so late, but I don't care. It was an amazing night, thanks to my amazing husband.

Worry Wart

Cambri is pretty easy going and care free, but every once in awhile she worries. She worries about anything and everything all at once, usually right at bed time. This is how last night went...

"Mom, why don't I have any sparkly clothes, all my clothes say Super Awesome, but none of them sparkle?"

"Well, we can buy you some clothes that sparkle next time we go to the store."

"I know, but I wanted to wear clothes that sparkle tomorrow, and now I can't"

"I'm sorry Cambri, I didn't know you wanted sparkly clothes or I would have bought some. I'll make sure to get you some though."

"Mom, I dont think Santa is going to bring me any Christmas presents."

"Why do you think that Cambri?"

"Because I'm always getting in trouble, and Santa doesn't bring Christmas presents to girls who get in trouble."

"You aren't always getting in trouble. You get in trouble sometimes because you don't know you are doing something wrong. We have to teach you good and bad, right and wrong."

"Ya but I get in trouble for screaming at Bella, for making a mess and not picking it up, and I don't listen, and Santa knows."

"Well ya Santa knows, but he also knows you play with your brother all the time, that you always help vaccuum and mop, if I ask you to help me with something, you always do. Its normal to get in trouble sometimes, you have to learn, but you aren't a bad kid. You are very good, and I bet Santa brings you a gift."

"Mom, if your next baby is a girl, can I share my dresser with her instead of Reece, and can it be purple, I don't like the green dresser."

"Cambri, I don't think I'm having another baby. Maybe we can get you your very own purple dresser?"

"No Mom, when you have another baby. If it's a girl, I want a purple dresser, and I want to share with her."

"Ok Cambri."

"Mom, can I stay home with you tomorrow?"

"No, I have to work."

"Can't you just tell your boss you don't want to work, and ask if he can give you the day off?"

"No, it doesn't work like that. I have to work, he can't give me the day off."

"I hate your job, I just want to stay home and play with you."

"I'm sorry, I want to stay home and play with you too, but I have to make money to pay the bills, and buy us things."

"Mom, when I grow up, can I move into Rosemary's house (she is our neighbor who recently moved out, and the house is now vacant) and you live in this house, but sometimes you come to my house and have sleep overs?"

"Sure Cambri"

This went on and on last night. I love these little chats. I hope she always feels so comfortable talking to me about her worries, what upsets her, her goals. That talking to me, even if I don't solve the problem, maybe makes her feel a little bit better. I also hope she really does grow up to live next door.

Sleep Deprivation

They warn you when you become pregnant with your first child, that you will be tired. Reece is my third baby, so I fully knew what I was getting into. Or so I thought.

Bella was a sleeper, slept great from the get go, still sleeps great now. Cambri would only cat nap during the day, but slept pretty good at night. Now she runs off of about 8 hours of sleep a night, and maybe a nap during the day.

Reece slept like the "normal" baby. Wakes every 3 hours, eats, goes back to sleep, repeat. Until recently. Over the passed few weeks, his sleep habits have changed. He plays more during the day now, but still usually takes 3 pretty good naps. Night time is a different story. Getting him to sleep isnt a problem, but he started waking every hour.

I hit up Google. I read that by his age, he should be able to sleep atleast 8 hours with out eating. That everybody wakes during the night, but as adults we are able to put ourselves back to sleep without even knowing we woke. That he is probably waking, and needing to learn how to put himself back to sleep. It said to let him "cry it out."

He has been sleeping in a cradle in our room, next to my side of the bed since he was born. There was no way I could let him cry right there next to me. I decided that night I would put him in his crib in his room when he fell asleep. He went to bed great. I went to bed. He slept longer than normal. About two hours, but when he woke, he woke up screaming. He was screaming, not crying, so I went in and got him. He clung to me like he was terrified.

Since then he screams in his swing. He screams in his cradle, he screams in his crib. He falls asleep in my arms and I go to put him in his bed, he wakes up as soon as I set him down and screams.  The past two nights, after multiple attempts to put him to bed in several locations, I have ended up  giving up and slept with him in my arms the entire night.

Its nearly impossible to sleep with a baby in your arms all night. So even though he has slept better, I haven't. Tonight I was able to get him to sleep, and in his cradle without waking. I dont how long he will stay that way, but I will take what I can get. As for now, I am headed to bed. Im exhausted and sleep deprived.