A to Z

Been seeing this A thru Z hopping around the blogosphere and thought I would play along to reveal some more things you probably didn't know about me.

A. Age: 32
B. Bed size: Full, and we love it....we are that strange;)
C. Chore that you hate: Cleaning the bathroom
D. Dogs: Toby, an almost 3 year old Chorkie (chihuahua/Yorkie mix)
E. Essential start to your day: coffee with caramel white chocolate cappuccino mix.
F. Favorite color: Bright purple
G. Gold or Silver: I like both.
H. Height: 5’7.5"
I. Instruments you play: none, I tried a year of piano lessons before kids...I can't believe how dumb it made me feel
J. Job title: chiropractor, President of my business, SAHM and wife
K. Kids: 4,  Evelyn, Ella, Henry and Grant
L. Live: in MN
M. Mother’s name: Peggy, my dad is Jeff
N. Nicknames: Rae
O. Overnight hospital stays:Childbirth and with the "babies" until their transfer to M. .
P. Pet peeves: whining!!!!!
Q. Quote from a movie: "The veil is not attacking you!"  from the Runaway Bride
R. Right or left handed: Right handed.
S. Siblings: 2 sisters, I am very lucky.
U. Underwear: Yes.
V. Vegetable you hate: I don't really hate it, but I don't prefer cooked carrots or peas without the pods.
W. What makes you run late: trying to get in one more thing before I leave or not getting up on time
X. X-Rays you’ve had: Dental, full spine, tailbone, chest
Y. Yummy food that you make: pancakes, I'm hoping that my kids and grandkids will always prefer mine and tell others that nothing compares to moms...
Z. Zoo animal: Elephants

Organizing Wanna-Be

The Hearts at Home Third Thursday Blog Hop exists to connect moms to other moms! I love today’s topic of organization! With the start of the new year, many of us are looking for tips & hints for organizing things around the home to make life easier.

Like Jill Savage, I too use a over-the-door shoe rack. With 3 toddlers and a preschooler there are lots of outerwear to keep track of. I use the shoe racks to hold all there pairs of shoes and since I have four kids and there are four columns-each child gets one column. The contents change seasonally. Currently, there are tennis shoes, slippers and dress shoes. Then I also place their hats and mittens in the racks as well. In the spring/summer this will change to sandals, tennis shoes, sunglasses and hats. I also have one on my older child's closet which helps to organize her barbies and other smaller toys...away from her siblings busy hands.

Again, with 4 kids there are lots of sippy's and lids to keep track of. I use the cupboard to hold all of the cups, stacked by type and then a separate bin for all of the lids. The valves for the cups are in a pretty heart shapped basket. They don't always dry well so being in an open basket helps. Their snack cups go in here too. The other bins hold stickers and candy...for rewards. As a chiropractor, I give stickers to all of my young patients and so when the oldest gets adjusted at home she wants one too. Keeping the "prizes" and goodies out of sight, keeps them out of mind...mine and theirs.

Another way I utilize the space in our house is by putting the kid's bibs in large baskets on top of the fridge. We are lucky to have a crafty mom/grandma who makes nice big ones which keeps their laps clean. For the small bibs I have a small basket.

I am an organizing queen wanna-be. Soon I hope to switch my status to full time queen:)

Pinterest

Confession: I am addicted to Pinterest. I could check it a billion times a day and still find more things to "pin." However, spending ones time "pinning" but never doing is...well...a waste of time. So, inspired by many of the crafty gifts I have seen, I made the following for Evie's preschool teacher's.

Contents:

1 31 small utility basket
1 handmade scarf (purchased not sewn by me...if only I had that talent!)
1 packet hot chocolate
2 #2 pencils to hold the sign
a wallet sized picture of Evie

The sign reads:

"Wishing you a warm and joyous Christmas!"

Take that Pinterest:)

I Resolve

1. To show my love to my children in greater ways... everyday
2. To fall more deeply in love with my husband...everyday
3. To find new ways to worship God
4. To make Jesus my best friend
5. To be a better friend, sister, daughter
6. To find joy in even the smallest task...even changing a diaper
7. To make a thankful list everyday...not just during November
8. To follow my purpose
9. To change a life...for the better
10. To become more of the person God created me to be

My word for 2012 is purposeful.

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas!!!! We were thrilled with "Santa's" final arrival and to spend a quiet day doing what I call "just being." The night before we let the kid's open their Christmas "nammies" and a few gifts from family and friends. Since we were in quarantine, this is our family picture via timer. This will be one of a few times you will get to see me without makeup, since we had all just been thoroughly sanitized ourselves.















































This is proof that "Santa" did indeed arrive. "He" fills the our stockings, which were to full to remain safely hung by the chimney with care.

One of the best parts of the morning is Evie angrily charging out of her bedroom, yelling at the babies for waking her and coming face-to-face with this sight. She stopped dead in her tracks and was like a deer caught in the headlights, swiveling from the stockings to me and back again. Her only word was, "huh?" Then when I mentioned Santa she had a light bulb moment.

She loved opening her stocking, the babies were...well not unhappy to pull things out. Her favorite part of "Santa's" gifts were the Squinkies she'd asked for which were at the very bottom. The babies favorite are the play necklaces and microphones (which, of course only cost $4 for 3 microphones and 1 pkg of beads...).



"Santa's" note to the kids, and evidence that he enjoyed the treats Evie picked out for "him." One of the disappointments from the illness was not having the energy to make Christmas cookies with Evie this year. She and I will be making peanut butter blossoms this week, while I am home on "break."


































































































Highlights of the day:

*This really started a day earlier: Mr. Grant started using his mouth to open presents. Once again earning his reputation for silliness. He did this for most of his early presents until he realized that this was not an efficient way to open them.
*Evie played with her new squinkie toys all day and the next and the next. She even prefers them over her mommy-daddy-Evie time. I could be mad about this but it is nice to see her appreciate the gifts. This year was the first year she really told us what she REALLY wanted.
*Ella's new cheesy smile. It's photographed in several of these photos...we loVe it.
*In Henry fashion, it took awhile to get him to let go of his sippy to open presents. Even then he still clutched his snack trap...the hungry monkey!is
*Finishing watching "The Nativity Story" during the kids naptime. I am moving this film to the #1 spot and am overwhelmed at how well the film is done. Despite a few inaccuracies,
it still leaves me feeling breathless and in awe. Thanks be to God!!
*Hooking up the Wii for the first time since getting it from Shawn's parents. It was a nice thing to do and "Santa" had gifted us with 2 new games, including a country dance one that I am excited to get back to. If my arms hadn't tired out, I would've danced for hours. Shawn and I also ended the night with this (not the dance game...could you even imagine??) and it's nice to have something new to do during our couple time besides tv/movie/reading.
*Nobody threw up!! Woot-woot!!!!
*The kids all really seemed to enjoy their new gifts.
*Shawn and I received nightstands from my parents, which my dad made and my mom helped with. Shawn's exact statement as we climbed into bed with them in their new spots was "our room looks so grown up!" Very true, considering they replaced cheap Target storage bins. They are really pretty and we loVe them! Soon we'll have to replace our college dressers, get a nice television and grown up bedding. We will actually have a bedroom for 3o somethings that have 4 kids. A nice sanctuary of our own!
*I (finally) recieved the charm bracelet from Shawn that I had asked (begged, nagged, coerced) Shawn into getting for me. It came with 4 special charms: "super" mom (one of the many comments I get with having triplets), i love my daughters, i love my sons, and a "diamond" cross. I loVe it!!!

Our goal for Christmas as mentioned in this post, is to spend the day worshiping the greatest gift of all, Jesus. We do this by making the day as relaxing as possible. No stressful meals or cleanup. No hurried showers and rushing from relatives to relatives. Just fun, family and Jesus. After presents and a light lunch (not all of our appetites had returned) I set the kids up for some art time. The babies enjoyed eating coloring with their new crayons and Evie drew and finger painted. The word on her sheet is her recent interpretation of her name. She was doing it preciously, but as new letters are added to her repertoire they are also added to her name, for Evelyn (Evie) is now spelt with a P and D.

It’s the Third Thursday Blog Hop where once a month you can “hop” around to different mom blogs to find encouragement on the topic of the month. Today’s topic is “When did you realize that you weren’t on your own in this journey called motherhood?”

I first started to realize I wasn't on my own during my first pregnancy. My sister, Keesha, was also pregnant at the time and we shared a lot about the ups and downs we were experiencing. When my daughter was born, she was the first to offer me practical advice. Having 2 very different children, hers slept all day while mine cried all day, made me long for more mother friends who'd been there and knew my frustration and exhaustion. I joined MOPS and have met quite a few "veteran" moms and now I can empathize with other mothers whose babies aren't seemingly "perfect" from the beginning.

My life took a whole different turn when I learned I was pregnant with triplets. I knew that I would need special friends who had lived through multiples and could offer advice or at least commiserate when I felt overwhelmed. I found that in a local group for mom's of multiples and an online group for just those of us lucky enough to have triplets.

I am so very thankful for both of my groups of friends. Motherhood is a journey I love but it is one without a map or perfectly outlined itinerary for tantrums, sibling arguments and 3 toddler's throwing food on the floor at every meal. My friends, my sisters, my mother, and the blog/forum communities help me keep my sanity, give me practical advice and remind me that even if I'm not a perfect mother my kids will be ok.