Shopping with 3 kids at Costco

Costco is the only place that I usually don't feel too overwhelmed in taking multiple kids. Hey, being outnumbered 3 to 1 now, I choose my errands based on Logan's school schedule. But Costco has great parenting tools. Buying the hot dog and soda is the best way ever to spend $1.65 including tax. Ok, so when I have Logan and Rowen and Maddoc (the extra and gives away how I really feel about going with all three kids), it costs $3.30, but it's still worth it. The kids each eat their hot dog (and yes, my now 35 pound blondie can put away the entire hot dog most of the time), and I get to sneak sips of their soda. Rowen sits calmly in the front of the cart and Logan walks and is too distrustful of Mommy to let his precious Sprite/Pink Lemonade mix out of sight. Which means I don't have to quietly yell "Logan, get back here" every 1.8 minutes for an hour. Point Mommy.

So the kids and I all go to Costco yesterday. But it was after school, really hot, and we only needed a few items, so instead of the hot dog and soda trick, I used the "let's all split a frozen yogurt" number. It works similar to the hot dog/soda trick, but it allows both kids to walk, since neither of them wants to lose their spot in the bite rotation. Cause with Mommy holding the yogurt, if you aren't there when it's your bite, you forfeit that round to Mommy, no matter who's next in line. Anyway, we're almost to the cash registers, and we're walking down our last aisle, and Logan is behind me and says "Hey, you're fat". And I know this is entirely my fault by talking to Maddoc and telling him that it's his fault I can't fit into my clothes anymore. But I turn around and gasp and give him my "What did you say?" face that is not totally serious because I know he's actually just teasing me and doesn't mean anything by it. And he says "No, I just mean your bum." I don't know what made that seem like a better option in his mind, but it just made me laugh.

And speaking of my kids and how they make me laugh, Rowen ends almost everything she says with the word "right". But with her inability to correctly pronounce r's and with the inflection she uses, she sounds like she's trying to be Rosie Perez. So every time she says it now, I just picture her with huge silver hoop earrings that go all the way to her shoulders. "Mommy, we're going to the park, right?" and "Mommy, after Maddoc falls asleep, I can have a drink, right?" It's cute and annoying at the same time.

Even Maddoc is getting in on it. He stayed in his car seat facing me at Logan's T-ball game today for an hour. And I swear, 3 times I yelled at Logan to pay attention in the outfield, and every time I did, Maddoc started laughing. Which is usually the opposite, because whenever I'm holding him, if I yell, he starts crying. I think Maddoc is going to be a little snitch on his older brother and sister and he's going to enjoy it. He's going to play the pesky baby brother part very well. It's not like he has a lot of options. There's a bigger gap between him and Rowen than Rowen and Logan. It'll be the only method of retaliation or blackmail he'll have.

Wow, time flies when you're not holding a baby. It's definitely time for sleep. Good night.

Being sick is no fun

Well, I seem to have made it through the weekend. Having a sore throat, ear infection and a two day fever all at the same time is not fun. And not only do I feel like I aged 10 years, but my daughter has called me Grandma every time she has spoken to me today. And she doesn't even realize it and correct herself. She just keeps calling me Grandma. Instead of packing the kids off next time I get sick, I think I'll just stick it out. I think I'm getting too close to 40, I'm getting sensitive about my age. But I really do appreciate everything my mom did for me this weekend. I'm sure Steve appreciated it too.

My mom is excited about a new blog she's been doing. She started it a month ago. It's funny. She's a good writer. It's http://www.punnyponderings.com/. for anyone who feels like checking it out.

Anyway, this is the first time Maddoc has let me put him down all day. And he didn't even take his usual afternoon 3 hour nap. At least he doesn't still have his day and night confused. He's a great sleeper at night. He's a good kid, but I'm worn out. I should go to sleep. I just felt like writing a post that wasn't trying to catch up on last year or on anything at all. Just to write a pointless post on nothing. Believe me, it sounds much less productive than it is.

So serious... all grown up at 1 month old....



Maddoc loves hanging out with his big sis Rowen in the morning... that's when he smiles the most.



No shirt can cover up Maddoc's big belly.

Here's Maddoc at 8 days old.




Logan and Rowen love their new baby brother!!

They can't wait until he can play with them!

Baby Maddoc

Ok, so Maddoc is 10 weeks old, and he's finally making his first appearance on the family blog. Mom really needs to get in gear.

I went in to get induced on Friday morning, February 12th. I felt confident that everything would go quickly and smoothly. I was right, if you don't count the first 12 hours of labor. After that, everything went very quickly. My mom almost didn't get to see Maddoc being born because once things kicked in, they went very fast. It took 11 1/2 hours to dilate from a 1 1/2 to a four, and then only 1 1/2 hours to dilate from a 4 to a 7 and then 20 minutes from a 7 to a 10. The epidural wore off, but I handled it much better than I did when it wore off with Logan. No yelling or getting mad at anybody was involved. I had to work a little to get this one out, about 10 minutes of pushing. Not a lot, but more than the 1/2 a push that I had to do with Rowen. He was born at 10:59 pm on Friday, February 12th. He weighed 8lbs. 9oz. and was 20 1/2 inches long. I think he may have been longer, because at his 2 week checkup he measured 22 3/4 inches, and I double checked him at home and he really was that long. It seems like a lot to have grown in 2 weeks.

He cried for the first 45 minutes after he was born, then nursed for nearly an hour, then pretty much did nothing but sleep for the next 36 hours. He didn't lose very much weight, only about 5 oz., so nobody was worried that he wasn't eating. He kept spitting up, his tummy was full of bubbly gunky stuff, so he just wasn't hungry until he got that all out.

We didn't have a first name picked out when he was born, so he was Baby Brown for a day. He definitely seems like a Maddoc to me. The middle name was always going to be Aaron (or Erin if it had been a girl), so by Saturday, he was Maddoc Aaron Brown.

He's a really good sleeper, as long as he's being held. It's good and bad, having a baby that's clingy. He's so snuggly, and I love feeling him close to me. But it is frustrating when there are other things to do and he wakes up 2 minutes after I put him down, when I know he's ready for a good long nap. But he really is good, he hardly is fussy or cries. And he's very alert and loves to watch people walking all around. He loves to smile and is learning to giggle. Rowen and Logan love him very much. I couldn't ask for them to be any better with him than they are. And they are both such good helpers. They'll do anything for me if it has to do with Maddoc. And they don't complain at all. Our family is complete and it feels wonderful. The human heart is amazing. It just keeps growing and growing. I love my family so much.

September 2009

Here's what we did in September.

Legoland

Didn't mean to post this yet, I'll update it later.

August 2009

Here are some pictures from our trip to the Bay area, in August 2009.

Our trip to the Jelly Belly Factory. We went with the Cunninghams. There was a long line to get in, but it was an interesting tour and a fun afternoon. And who could pass up on the hats.



We were finally able to see the Golden Gate bridge. We had taken the kids the year before, and the entire bridge had been covered in fog so that you couldn't see it from the parking lot. Always a favorite San Francisco spot.



A rare photo of Steve and I. I can't remember if Logan or Rowen took the picture. We went down to check out the fort at the base of the bridge, and it was closed. Another time.



We walked out on the bridge for a while (I think we almost made it halfway), but it was a bit far for the kids. And it was very windy. But we took some pictures.


The kids wanted me to take pictures of them pretending to be homeless. They're sleeping on the bridge. Rowen was trying to be serious but kept laughing.


We went to a petrified forest. And found out the wood doesn't actually become petrified. The molecules of wood are slowly replaced by volcanic ash, molecule by molecule, so the tree changes from being a tree to a stone replica of a tree. Cool. The kids just liked making funny faces.



We went to Train Town in Sonoma, and the kids liked the little western town to play in. They had a good time.



We went to a geyser. It was about $10 a person to get in, and it was a small geyser with some weeds growing all around and some goats to feed through a fence. Definitely would recommend passing on this attraction to anyone in the Napa valley.



The Muir Woods were fabulous. So pretty. And the weather was perfect. And we got to go with friends, which made it twice the fun. All in all, it was a great vacation with friends and sightseeing.


Rowen and Maddie playing around on the bear statues at the Muir Woods.