So, Nico is going to be 3, 3!!! Can anyone believe it? I can’t. I can’t believe that my youngest is getting so big. Anyway, today I did a birthday boy photo shoot and these were some of my faves. Those blue eyes, I tell ya, watch out, ladies. Enjoy!
I am currently watching Oprah. If you watch than you know who Nate is, if not, he is Oprah’s go-to guy for any type of decorating project. On this show, however, Nate took over the life of a stay at home mom of three kids so mom could get a much needed break from her hectic life. Nate is not married, has no children, and had no idea what he was in for. It was actually really sweet. It reminded me a lot of my days as she had three kids, two of which were in school, and one toddler who was home with her during the day. Nate faced his day head on and as soon as mom left he was on his own to take kids to school, change diapers, pick up dry cleaning, make lunches and dinner, get haircuts, pick kids up, etc etc. I watched and laughed. For one thing, the two year old was absolutely adorable! At one point Nate was asking him for directions back to the house and wouldn’t you know it, the little guy was right!!! Just proves toddlers know more than you think. But I also watched and wondered how Nate would feel at the end of the day and what, if anything, he might forget to do. Well, he forgot a few things, like feeding the toddler lunch before he fell asleep, or “making” dinner rather than ordering out.
Anyway, watching the show got me thinking how lucky I am. At the end of the day Nate was tired, but he said he felt full, like this is what life is about. I know I have my days and I complain more than I should, but at the end of the day, I feel so full. I have my kids who make me laugh all day long. Like yesterday when I asked Nicolas what he wanted for breakfast and he responded with “it is crunchy, you pour milk on it, and you eat it with a spoon!” Or when the boys are up in their room reading and playing together and giggling the entire time. I need to remember more often just how precious these moments are rather than worrying about the mess that might ensue or the next meal I have to make. I am blessed to have a family to cook and clean for at all! I am once again reminded of a little book I read a few years ago called “The Quotidian Mysteries” which was all about the mundane things we do in life, things like laundry and dishes and cooking, and how, if we look at them differently, they can become amazing moments of blessing. For instance, I can pray for each child as I fold and put away their clothes, or pray for my family as I make dinner. Since they are things I do daily, that is a lot of chances to pray for and bless my family! What I would be missing if I didn’t have as much laundry to fold or as many meals to cook!
So, I feel very lucky today. I hope that while any of you fold laundry, make dinner, go to work, or run yet another errand you remember that in doing those small, seemingly insignificant things you are actually blessing one or many people! When you look at it that way it makes it all a little easier, doesn’t it?
I missed a week. Well, I am trying. I feel like it has been years since I last wrote but it hasn’t. It isn’t that a lot has happened but I guess when you have three kids and are training for a half marathon time gets away from you. Oh, didn’t I tell you all? Yep, I am training for a half marathon. I am actually training to walk most of it, since I hate running, but it is kind of growing on me. Not enough to ever want to run an full marathon, but since it is becoming easier each day to run a little further I feel really great about my efforts.
Joe and I are still on our low carb diet, although I am not as strict as we were in the beginning. Joe is still gung ho and doing so great! I have mostly decided to eat as little refined sugar and processed food as I can but I am not going to kick myself if I cave and have a piece of homemade bread. (It is so hard to resist it right out of the oven.) I find we are eating less and eating better, which is a win win in my book. Weight loss aside, we both feel better and I definitely have more energy.
We are still struggling with potty training Nico. It is going to come to the point where we just get rid of any kind of diaper or training pants. He needs to be in a big boy bed and learn to go when he feels like it rather than us constantly reminding him. As for poop, well, it might just take a few really crappy, pun intended, days to convince him the potty is a perfectly fine place to poop. We shall see.
The big boys are growing so fast. I know all parents say that, but the amount of shoes and pants we go through is proof, they are actually growing so fast! and forget about handing anything down to Nicolas. Once Dom gets a hold of it it will either have holes in the knees or a big stain on the collar where he has chewed on it. Although, right now Nicolas and Dom can wear the same shirts and almost the same pants. For a while they were sharing shoes too, but Dom finally moved on to the next size. I fear Nicolas will surpass them both in size and girth. The kid is sturdy, that is for sure.
Dom wanted me to tell you all that has finally learned how to whistle. He is very excited.
That about covers our lives right now. Hope this post finds you all well.
