Great Week?

Again, not too happy


I have GOT to quit saying that on my blog, things never seem to go as planned :)
It's been a topsy turvy week, so say the least.
Plus side? I'm not going back to work full time, but instead, part time. Wahooo!! More time with the kiddos. More time for photography. Speaking of which, I found the most awesome template for a website, and once I get it bought and set up, you'll have to check it out. I can't wait to get it done!
Another plus, Kevin has an awesome idea for renovating our master bathroom / closet area. I'm so excited about it I can hardly stand it. Right now the area hasn't been worked on (remember, foreclosed house), and it NEEDS work. Now we just have to actually think about getting it done.
Minus side? We have no luck with pets it seems. Xena, the sweet bulldog we lost last fall, tore her ACL in both knees that required surgery a couple years after we got her. We had a dog, Zeus (lab/mastiff mix) that we loved to pieces, and when he was 2 we had to put him down because of a large tumor in his stomach. Roc is diabetic, and gets insulin 2x day. Now? Apollo just tore his ACL and is in Anderson getting it worked on (sigh). Just when I thought things were going so well. Currently Artemis is our only healthy dog. I hope she stays that way.
Well, I need to get something done before I crash for the night. Miss Callie promises it's going to be a long night.

Me

So here I am, a photo Hunter took of me with his new camera. I have too much baby weight left, and I got a haircut, but it's still me. First decent (somewhat) pic of me since Callie was born. Speaking of which, she doesn't look too happy in this photo.

And I wanted to show off my flowers, I'm proud of them - when most of them were planted they were so tiny (a bargain from a great mail order company), Kevin thought they were weeds. My parents helped finish the planting when I was 40+ weeks preggo with Callie, and I'm glad we got it all done.
Look at them now!! Kevin had just weed wacked and the landscaping blocks aren't set in the ground yet, but I still think it looks great.






And while I was taking pics of the flowers, Lex wanted his picture taken too. He is the funniest 2.5 year old I know. He crawled behind the couch today with Hunter's camera, and took about 10 pictures of the couch, his feet, and the light coming under the couch. He makes me laugh several times a day.



This is my last full week at home with the kids, before I start back to work. Next week I have two half days, something I am not looking forward to at all. But it's entirely possible I'll be out of a job in a month anyway.
We'll have to see what happens, and what God has in store for us. All I know is that it's going to be a great week!!

IMA

The other day we discovered the Indianapolis Mueseum of Art. With some photo shoots coming up (2 seniors and two little girls), I have found THE PLACE for photos. It is gorgeous, and it is free. Unfortunately we went in the middle of the day, it was hot and humid, and the lighting was not what you want for portraits. Still, we had fun and spent the whole afternoon wandering the gardens. There are lots of them, and we barely scratched the surface.







Of course it wasn't an easy excursion, we took a few wrong turns getting there. Indy is a big city. Once Callie woke up and got fussy (that girl is NOT one to sit quietly in a stroller), it was difficult to push a double stroller on a flagstone walk. Or across the grass. And then she was hungry, in the middle of the gardens, so I found a secluded bench to nurse her where a pond was surrounded by hedges so the kids wouldn't be tempted to wander off.
Having four kids seven and under is not easy, by any means. Taking them places is even more difficult.
But it was fun, and this picture sums them up perfectly. Notice Gwen's pout? She has perfected it :)



Hunter brought his camera, which he got for his birthday. When we got home I found that he was taking photos of a guy riding a bicycle. Too funny.



I also got a new photo prop from an antique store in town. $10, which is totally worth it, IMO.




They have some other stuff I would love to have, but not until the money REALLY starts rolling in from photos. Which I'm sure will not happen any time this century :D I so need my new white balance tool that Hunter lost, so I dont have color casts that I see in most of these photos!!

Well, Miss Callie is awake from her short nap. Gotta go put some biz cards in the local ped's office. And pray that someone puts them to good use!!

Photo of the Day

As Gwen said today,

Callie is 'The littlest princess.'

And I get to be the Queen, while Daddy is the King.

I like being Queen :)

Better

Callie is better again. She did endure the upper GI to verify that it was only reflux, but even before that the increased dose of Zantac seemed to do the trick. She's smiling and cooing, sleeping well, and my house is a whole lot cleaner :) Of course I used her goodwill to snap some more photos, or at least I tried. She tried to devour her fist.



If I'm taking photos of Callie, Lex wants me to take his too. Though usually under less than ideal circumstances.



I still can't believe I have four kids, but I do. And the noise in the house during the day is testament to the fact that I do.
God is good, He has blessed us, and even when things are rough, I will remember that.

Finding Me

This has been a difficult few days for me. Callie's reflux (thank you Monica for helping us figure out what was wrong with her!) has steadily gotten worse. Last night she literally SCREAMED for three hours straight before finally going to sleep. We are back to square one, before Zantac, and it makes my heart heavy. I have less time, and less goodwill, than I did before she became so unhappy again. Tomorrow she has an upper GI to rule out something worse than reflux, and then we try another medication.
I'm praying she feels better again.
In the midst of my day being dictated by the mood of my 7 week old baby girl, I am also realizing that I have no time to be 'me' anymore. I nurse the baby, feed the kids, the horses, the dogs. Roc, the diabetic dog, had an episode on July 4th where I had to take him to the emergency vet clinic. Thankfully he's settled down now, but I worry about him along with everyone else.
I do dishes and laundry, sweep floors, referee fights (too many of those) and attempt to maintain sanity.
At the end of the day I have almost nothing left. I've started jogging, to try and get my energy back, my body back, and my mind back. My mind is mush right now. What's left of it, anyway. And, if I'm being honest, jogging gives me a few moments to myself. Out there, with the sound of the birds and the slap of my feet on the pavement, I can be 'me' for a few minutes. At the top of the hill, my breathing is heavy and my legs feel like lead, but it's worth it to get a few moments away from the hustle and bustle of household reality.
Still, I know that being home is where I want to be. Even after a day (and night) of answering a thousand questions, changing diapers, fixing meals, bandaging boo boo's, I can't imagine not being here.
The thought of leaving my little ones, especially Callie, just breaks my heart in two. I'd rather my heart be heavy than broken.
But God knows what He is doing, and His plan will unfold at some point. In the meantime, I'll keep at this hectic life, searching for 'Me' in the midst of the noisy dogs and kids, and hope that I some point, I find what I am searching for. I'm sure it is there in front of me, covered in spit-up and staring back at me from the mirror with tired eyes.
And I'm sure it is what my kids see every day, and what my kids call 'Mom'.

Flying By

My maternity leave is just flying by. I DO NOT want it to end. Four more weeks to go. Since Callie has been on Zantac, she has been much happier, and therefore WE have been much happier. She has been sleeping 6-7 hours a night for about a week now. Too bad I don't go to sleep when she does :) Maybe one of these days I will!
Last week we headed to Holiday World, the best amusement park for families with small children. It is truly awesome. Free parking, free soft drinks (they have Pepsi Oasis with pepsi products, gatorade, and water), free sunscreen in case you forget to bring some, lots of trees and great rides for everyone. Even the games are awesome, very cheap and 'win no matter what' games. So the kids all left with stuffed animals. Plus, they have an awesome waterpark, that the kids just swoom over. I got very familiar with their nursing room, which was very comfortable and a great place to nurse Callie, but I did wish that she would go longer than two hours during the day to eat :)
Holidary World was where I truly realized that Hunter is no longer a little boy. He is very much a big boy - the first ride he rode was THIS



And the baby pool at the waterpark was too little for him this year. He was very much ready for the big rides. He also rode Pilgrim's Plunge, and said he wasn't even scared. Hard to believe.

I also realized that bringing four kids to an amusement park, one being a newborn, is much tougher than bringing three. Still, we survived and had a good time. This week Hunter turns seven, I can hardly believe it, and he has already requested a special breakfast and a trip to chuck-e-cheese.
He's also getting a camera so he can quit bugging me to take pictures with mine :)
Well, the kids are hollering, so I had better get going. Until next time!