3 Down

Jenna did AMAZING today at the Dentists!!! She got three fillings done, two in one tooth, and one in another. Al went with her, and said that the only time she cried was when the grinder was on her tooth, and that was just because of the vibration. No pain for my brave girl :)

So, she has more appointments on the 9th and 16th to get some more done, but she will NOT need to be put under! I'm so relieved about that.

I can finally breathe a very big sigh of relief. No mother ever wants to think that she has failed her child, or caused them pain(well, not the good ones anyway :)) So now, knowing that she can get the repairs done without pain, such a good feeling :)

~Lisa~

APPROVED!!

Wow, 2 blogs in one day!

I called the Dentists office, Jenna was approved by the Health Unit to have all the dental work that she needs done!!

i can't even begin to tell you how relieved I am. We go for a trial filling tomorrow. The dentist said that because she was a little nervous, he wants to see how she does with one filling, and go from there.

If she does okay, then they'll do the work with her awake. If she's too nervous, they are going to put in a secondary application to have her put under in the office. Lets hope that whatever way they go, she'll do okay.

I'm so nervous. I won't show it.

~Lisa~
p.s. Funny Jenna story. I got my flu shot yesterday. Jenna promised me that she would be brave, and stay by my side the WHOLE TIME!! And told me not to worry. She's be right there. HA!! As soon as the needle came within 6 inches of my arm she took off and hid behind the door! LMAO...thanks for being so brave for me babe!!

how much!?

Excuse me? pardon? Was that Really 13 POUNDS you said?! Not my Baby! Not my tiny boy. Can't be. Let me see that scale. hmm...yep...right there in Black and Grey. My tiny baby. Smallest of my three children, has gained 3 ounces short of 6 pounds in two months!! 13 pounds 6 ounces. Wow.

I was having a hard enough time with the realization that my last baby is already 2 months old. And now I have to deal with the knowledge that he's 13 pounds! I don't know where he's hiding it. He's certainly not a roly poly baby. Just solid I suppose. Doc measured him at 23 inches, but I have a feeling he was off with that. Not that I blame him, a wiggly baby is hard to measure!

So, that's the 75th percentile for weight, and between 50 and 75th percentile for height.

Jenna's stats were 9.3 at birth, 13.9 at 2 months. (gained 4.6)

Aidan's stats were 8.11 at birth, 14.12 at 2 months. (gained 6.1)

Mason's are 7.9 at birth, 13.6 at 2 months. (gained 5.13)

He dropped to 6lbs 13 oz. in the hospital, with multiple signs of dehydration. He went 7 1/2 weeks with ONLY breast milk. He smiles at me all the time now. He's just starting to get hair on the top of his head. His baby acne is cleared up. He's got my blue eyes. And he never misses a thing.

I am so enthralled with this last baby of mine :)

~Lisa~

P.s. He slept through the night last night :) 10-5:16!! Ofcourse, now I could feed a small countries babies with my rather engorged right breast, but I'll take it!!!

Blogables.

Kattie's party went really well. It was so wonderful to see all these little girls practically knocking each other over to come and greet my little girl when we arrived!! And to see her laughing and playing. I was always worried(for no apparant reason) that she wouldn't make friends at school. But that is SO not the case.
I was the one out of place at the party. We're so used to family parties I guess. I was the only mom that stayed with Jenna. And of course, I didn't realize it until I had taken off my coat. And of course, it was the first time I left Mason with Al during the day...so I didn't even have him there to make myself look busy with!! Oh well. I survived, and now I know for next time.

Aidan is sick :( He was up off and on for about 4 hours last night throwing up :( he's such a trooper though, and just went with the flow everytime he threw up. He even told Al and I to go sit on the couch when we put him back in his bed once! I guess he'd had enough of us fussing over him LOL. Can i just say, I am SO grateful for a plastic firetruck bed!! It's SO much easier to clean!!! And can I also say how grateful I am to my husband!? He laid with Aidan on the couch until about 2AM. And then got up at 6 to go to work like always. Just so I could sleep. I am SO in love with him. Aidan seems to be okay now. Just a little fever.

I'm not sure what I did, but Aidan keeps coming up to me and saying "Oh mommy, I'm so proud of you!!" I'm happy I can meet his expectations...but I'd like to know what wonderful thing I have accomplished!

Today is my friend Karen's big 3-0!!! I filled her car with 28 balloons last night(I did get 30, but Jenna and Aidan claimed two :)) You should have seen me, 10:00 at night, in my jammies, in the rain, reaching through the hatch at the back of her Honda Civic trying to get the balloons into the front seat! hilarious!! She was SO surprised :) And, since her other friends didn't do anything to celebrate her birthday, and she was feeling pretty bummed about it, I think, and hope, it cheered her up :) I had to get her back for my surprise party last year!!

Well, I know when I started out writing this that I had more to blog about, but I seem to have forgotten them, and now my BOOligans (HAHA! That's for you Julie!!) are screeching at me for attention.

have a great evening!!

~Lisa~

One party down, One to go

Well, Ethan and Emma's party wasn't so bad after all. A few moments where I wanted to rip out mine, or someone else's hair, but that's all :) It looked like a daycare with all those kids in there! lol

You should have seen the pile of presents!! Even taking into consieration that they are twins, so everything is doubled, WHOA! There were more gifts there than would fit on a queen sized bed! I'm so happy that Carry has babies that are loved so much!!

Her Mother-in-law drove me CRAZY!!! Nothing completely new. She's the kind of person that pretends to care, pretends to be nice, but really couldn't give two craps about you. I think the thing that bothered me the most was during the gift opening...Aidan didn't get a nap yesterday, and was pretty tired and hyper my the time the twins started opening their gifts...at 5pm! I tried my very best to keep him on my lap and out of the way of the cameras...but geez, he's almost 2, and he's a very active boy. I finally let him go, and told him to go play. On his way back to me Jane(MIL) grabbed him from behind and tried to sit him on her lap, and Hold him there!! Seriously, I was sitting right beside her on the floor. I reached over and took him from her, and she GLARED AT ME!! Anyone that had been watching us could see that I was doing my best to keep him contained. You'd think she'd never had two boys before!! UGH! that woman. Sooo glad that she's not my MIL!!

My meatballs were a huge hit!! Thank you to my SIL noreen for her secret recipe!!

So i guess, over all, the party was a success!

~Lisa~

Party party party!

Well, just party party really. My best friends' twins turned One yesterday! So hard to believe. I can't wait to see them today. Although, I am a little anxious about the party today. Carry said there are going to be about 40 people there (Carry's a total over-achiever, and can never NOT invite someone). That many people in one small house makes me nervous for some reason. I guess having two small hooligans and an infant can do that to a mother. If if wasn't a dinner thing too, I would probably just stay for a few minutes. But, she is my best friend, I can't do that to her.

And tomorrow is another Party! Jenna got invited to a classmates McDonald's party. While I am Thrilled that she's making friends, I am a total McDonalds party virgin, and have no idea if we pay for her meal or not. I tried to ask in a roundabout way when I RSVP'd, but the mom wasn't really clear. Not that it matters all that much, I just like having all the information before hand.

We still haven't gotten gifts for anyone!! You'd think after having two kids go through their first birthdays that I would know what is a great gift for a one year old. Nope. No ideas. Except a book each. I love giving books. You'd also probably think that having a girl the same age as the birthday girl that I would know exactly what to get her too. HA! Polly Pocket is so freakin' expensive, and I refuse to spend $25 on a person I have never even met before. Oh well, i am sure we'll find Kattie something just lovely. I'm more worried about buying for the twins. There are certain unspoken of expectations there. Not from my friend so much, as from the grandparents. And darnit, did she have to go and have TWO babies at once!? LOL Just kidding.

Well, I ought to go make my meatball sauce before we have to go shopping. I totally cheated and bought pre-made meatballs hehehe...that certainly goes against the unspoken of expectations! but I figure WHO CARES MWAHAHAHAHAHA!!

Oh yeah, I'm in FINE party spirits today for SURE!!

~Lisa~

Never been in love with a Bag before!

Until I saw this one at Wal-Mart!! How perfect is this for me!? I saw it, and had the overwhelming sense of frivolous NEED! And my husband, whom I love and adore, handed me the money and made my day!!

It's just so fun, and ME!!

I feel weird about being in love with a bag, but really, I am. And I'm proud of that! If people think me strange for being 25, almost 26 with a Tinkerbell Bag, well that's just fine. I like it, I will carry it forever, and I will not care!!

:P

~Lisa~

Quite the adventure.

On the way home from taking Jenna to school this morning I was chatting with one of the other moms (Yay Me!) and this strange dog came running up to us. Totally friendly, but almost knocked her little girl down to get the dog biscuits in her pocket! We caught hold of her, and read her tags. Of course, there was no address, just a phone number. Dina(the other mom) luckily had some rope in her van (As if there are people really that prepared for everything! lol) So, we put the dog on the rope, and attempted to walk her, so I could bring her home and call the number on her tags. HA!! The dog was clearly NOT used to being walked. All she wanted to do was play tug...which was a little scary...the way she was jumping and growling at the rope, and me.

Luckily Dina knew a lady that lived on the street we were on, and we called from there. Sheila, the dog, hadn't gotten far, and lived only about half a block away.

It certainly was quite the adventure!!

~Lisa~

Make him slow down!

My Aidan is growing up Way too fast!!! Every day he astounds me with the words and sentences that come out of his mouth.

Last night in a span of 15 minutes, he brought me a pencil, and clear as day said "Mommy, this is broken." WHAT!? He's not even 2 yet, and he's saying sentences like That?? Right after that he decided he didn't want to watch Tarzan anymore and sang(think Bear in the Big Blue House) "Where oh where oh where is Mote?"(Meaning remote) then he turns to me and holds up his hands and says "Hmm, din't hear me" And then repeats that about a hundred times.

Last week he and Jenna were fighting, and he turns to her and says "I'm telling Mommy!!!" and he stomps over to me, elbows out and swinging with such purpose and determination it took ALL of my willpower not to laugh.

While trying to find a winter hat for his big ole noggin yesterday, he was getting very annoyed, and kept insisting everything was "too small me".

When he was looking at pictures on the weekend, he say one of himself and said "OH! ME!!" Up until then he had been saying "Mine" when he saw himself.

He roars like a dinosaur, he pretends to be a robot. He insists he's not going to be Franklin the Turtle for Halloween. He hates to wear socks, he has perfect milky skin, eats me out of house and home, and trys he tell knock knock jokes.

And he's all MINE.


Here's how I found him when I got him up the other morning.


Playing the organ and singing his alphabet at my dad's.

They Fit!!

After a grueling search far and wide across the land...okay, so, after going to two different Wal-Marts in Barrie, we managed to scrounge up the essential light-up-when-you-dance Cinderella slippers for Jenna's Halloween costume.

And even beter news, THEY FIT! I was so worried they would be too small! I don't imagine she'll be able to wear them for very long, but at lest they will work for Halloween. Now all that's left is to decide between the classic Cinderella Headband, or the tiara. I'm thinking she'll want the Tiara. Whatever :) I'm also going to attempt to make her a white cape. Canadian winters do not support frilly princess costumes that do not fit over warm clothes!

Here's a sneak preview :) The dress was her flower girl dress from my brother's wedding this summer.



~Lisa~

Ohhh the Pain!!!

I had a Migraine yesterday. I thought I'd had Migraines in the past, but they were NOTHING compared to this! I couldn't walk with my eyes open, or sit with them open Or closed, the children's voices sounded like fingernails on a chalkboard, the baby seemed to weigh a million pounds, I wanted to vomit and pretty much just die in general.

I am so grateful to Al for getting home as quickly as he did. I suffered for about 5 hours before he got home, but once he got here, I took one of the Tylenol #2's I had left over from my section and went to bed for a couple hours. I woke up feeling pretty fuzzy, but mostly pain free!

And while I was sleeping, he cleaned the whole house!! Did ALL of the dishes, cleaned up from the kids crafts from the day(A chore and a half in itself!) and tidied the livingroom too! I am SO grateful. He even gave Mason his nightly bottle despite being sooo tired from working crazy hours on the weekend.

Yeah, they made a schedule at his work. He's now on call every other weekend, and some nights during the week :( I HATE that company :( I mean, the commission he'll get is going to really help us out, but I miss him when he's gone. He worked on Friday night, and did an over-night call to Niagra Falls on Saturday. That sucked Huge!!

I got the kids some watercolour paints yesterday. That was fun, until Aidan painted himself, his sister, and dropped the cup of water on the floor! Yeah, file that under "Seemed like a good idea at the time!"

I feel like I'm running on empty today. After the migraine yesterday, and getting a whopping 4 hours sleep last night, I'm so drained. I don't know how you do it Helen! I need a solid 8-9 hours to wake up feeling good. Pray for me that the boys nap at the same time today!!! At least it's a school day.

~Lisa~

How do you ever really know...

How do you know when you're done having children? Does the ache in your arms go away? Does the longing in your womb fade? Does you mind stop wondering is what we have, enough? Have all the cards been dealt? Are the chips as they lay?

Al booked his Vasectomy. November 11th. Seems oddly ironic that his procedure is on Remembrance day. A day to look back, reflect on the past, think of what others gave up for us. When I know that all I will be thinking of that day is the future. The what ifs. The what could have been.

We never imagined 3 kids. We never imagined boys.

3 kids isn't that bad. Having boys is wonderful.

I couldn't go through with a tubal. And I can't justify anywhere in my mind why not. The scalpel

was there, I was opened up. A mere 30 seconds more, and the procedure would have been complete. But I just couldn't do it. In my head, every time I thought I was ready to take that step, I just kept hearing over and over, "It's just so permanent." Permanent.

Now the decision is out of my hands. Logically, my head knows that we are going to have our hands full, and our wallets empty with 3 kids. My head knows that I would probably need medication to control my stress if there was any more. I know that I the luxury of only working a few days a week is only a luxury I can afford with what we have now. I know that no matter how I try to do it, I have a hell of a time delivering the babies I so adore.

My heart knows it will always have room for more. My arms still ache. My womb feels empty. And I can't stop wondering....

I'm sure that once the procedure is over that I will be fine. But until that day...I will weep for the children I will not have. I will wonder if my children will be happy as they are. I will worry that this is the right decision for us.

I never honestly thought Al would go through with it. Despite my own words. Despite telling everyone that I was still trying to convince my husband that it was his turn at bat. That "I carried three babies, now he can go under the knife." Despite all that, I never really believed he would do it.

I felt my knees go weak, and my vision blurred when he quietly handed me a piece of paper with his procedure date and information scrawled on it.

November 11th. It's hurtling at me at an ungodly speed. And the decision is out of my hands.

~Lisa~

Added some MOM points today!

You know the ones...where you get bonus points for going above and beyond the usual feed, clothe and read a story requirements???

Oh yeah, that's me. I MADE play dough today!! Not only that, but I made TWO batches!! One in Orange and one in Green!

Yep. definitely in the cool mom good book today :)

~Lisa~

She said, I heard...

She said "I got the scissors to cut that paper."

I heard "Your favourite picture is in tatters on the kitchen floor."

I said "What paper would that be honey?"

She said "My snack at school today".

I heard "No one was supervising me at school". lol

She said "Because you weren't there to do it".

I heard...my little girl grow up.

I heard...my first born gain some independance.

I heard my heart break.

~Lisa~

The bruise today :(

I hate how bruises always get worse before they get better!!!

(He looks so stunned because his most favourite movie IN THE WORLD was on. Meet Strawberry Shortcake. LMAO! Between Jenna and Aidan, the tape is getting worn out!! Hopefully Santa hears that!)

~Lisa~

My tough guy

Poor Aidan. He's always been my clumsiest of kids. not surprising, since he's always climbing on things, and over things. Somehow the concept of Around escapes him.

Last night I walked into the living room just in time to see him climb onto a chair(one of those small Little Tykes ones) had time to shout NO! before it toppled over, sending my little boy straight into the edge of the beautiful Bench my Dad made.


(Here they are together, on said bench)

Poor kid. He rarely cries. And when he does, it's usually for a quick second, and he moves on to the next task. Not this time. He's Still touching his cheek saying "Ouch, Hurts". Check out this instant black eye!


It actually looks a lot worse in person :(

Well, I guess it's probably the first of many...but I don't have to like it :(

~Lisa~

It's been one of those days.

You know the kind, where you wake up, and shouldn't even open your eyes? Yeah, that's my day so far. I'm still laughing about it all though, so I guess it hasn't been all that bad :)

1, All 3 kids woke up at about the same time, making my morning realllly hectic! And I didn't get my tea.

2, Jenna goes to brush her teeth before school, and gets water AND toothpaste all over her shirt and pants. HOW?! I really have no idea. And of course, I have SO been slacking on laundry this week, and she has NO clothes left!

3, As Jenna is undressing, and trying to convince me to let her wear capris and a stained t-shirt on a cold and rainy day, Aidan snarfs his milk. For those not familiar with the term Snarf, it's when a beverage comes out of your nose, unintentionally. This morning it was milk. All over his face and shirt.

4, Race up to Jenna's room, and curse repeatedly(in my head) for not having enough clothes for my daughter, and for choosing THIS morning to put in an early load of laundry(how smart of me! HA!). Find her clothes. The socks don't match. that will NEVER do for my girly girl! Find Blue socks. Little does she know, she's still wearing purple hair elastics with a blue outfit!

5, We are SO out of time. 5 minutes before the bell rings. Strap the baby into his car seat...much to his protest. Pray he does not spit up. Realize i have not changed Aidan's shirt. No time, he'll have to wear it.

6, No keys. Where are the keys? I was SURE I saw the keys on the counter. CRAP Yell like a maniac because of lost keys. Not in my coat, purse or diaper bag(we're down the three minutes before the bell.) Ahhh!! Found them in Al's coat pocket. Of course!!

7, Buckle all three kids in the van. Damn those seatbelt laws! lol We made it to school. And had time to say Hello to another mom just as the bell rang.

8, Breathe a sigh of relief that Jenna made it to school. Return very late video to store.

9, Mason wakes, eats, and has some playtime on the floor. Starts to fuss. I like letting him fuss for a few minutes...it makes him sleep more deeply. Mean mommy I am. Then I realize, hmm..what's that smell? oh great, it;s Mason. ACK!!!!!! Total poo-through!!!! up his back, down his legs! Thank GOD he was wearing dark colours, and laying on the yellow part of his winnie the pooh blanket!

10, Change baby. Decide 15 wipes is too many for one diaper change. Wrap him in a blanket, and off to the bath he goes. As he's laying contentedly in my lap, waiting for his bath...he PEED ON ME!!!!!!! Of course, now all of MY clothes are in the washing machine.

11, Bath demon baby. He likes it!!

12, Aidan in constipated again, and chooses,of course, today, to get it all out. Which causes him to cry and scream and need to sit on Mommy's lap. All while I am trying to dry, moisturize and dress his brother :(

Fun morning eh?

It's now almost 11:30(oh yes ladies, all of that befor lunch!! Yay ME!) and Mason is sleeping(*knock on wood) Aidan is trying to open the unlocked closet door with my house key, and I am waiting for my tea to steep.

Yep. It's been one of those days.

~Lisa~

Pictures from the orchard :)

Here we are!!



Here's my stud and Jenna :) hehehe...


Aidan asking to eat yet another apple!

Jenna and Aidan snacking on the Apples.

Aidan having a Blast on the Pony!!

Going on an Apple Hunt!

**Going on an Apple Hunt,
Going on an Apple Hunt.

Gonna pick some Juicy ones,
Gonna pick some Juicy ones.

We're not scared,
We're not scared.

What a BEAUTIFUL day!

hehehe...**adapted without permission from the writers of Dora's Berry Hunt episode :)

We went apple picking today!! It was actually more fun than I expected. The kids had a BLAST!(No scary haunted barn) Aidan even got to go on a Pony ride!(Jenna was too scared).

I'll post some pics in a little while :)

On a sad note...My Angel fish is dying :'( She's lasted a long time...1 year and 8 months! Which is pretty good for a fish. Especially an Angel, since they are supposedly only successful in pairs, and her mate died a couple months after we got them! Al promised me 10 new fish when he saw how sad I was...LOL...we'll see :)

Happy Saturday!

~Lisa~

Feeling kinda left out :(

Here it is, Thanksgiving weekend, and we have no plans. My mom and my George are going away for the weekend. They SO deserve it after everything they've put their heart and souls into this past year. But it's going to be weird to not be with them for Thanksgiving dinner. My Dad mentioned something awhile ago, but only once, and I haven't heard anything more on it since...so I guess that option is out. We had Turkey dinner with my grandma last weekend, she's going away too. And since Al's family is 8 hours away, there's no going there either.

I suppose I should look on the bright side. Say that this is our chance to have our own dinner, and start our own traditions...but it's just not the same really.

Oh well...at least I get an extra day with my husband this weekend! I am really looking forward to that!

Sorry. Just needed a minute to whine a bit.

~Lisa~

Well, I'll tell you what I'm not...

I'm not a size 12 anymore!!

Went to Value Village today...totally scored!! I got Jenna the CUTEST outfit...for CHEAP! And I got a used Turtle costume for Aidan, for $3!! He's going to be Franklin for Halloween! I'm so excited! Aidan also got a wisked cool Spiderman shirt...for $3.99!! And I was scared it would be too hard to find anything good with all three kids with me! HA!

I also managed to look in the womens aisle for a nano-second. Long enough to grab a great looking pair of jean. In size 12. for $7.99. Oh glory be!!! THEY ARE TOO BIG!!! doin' a happy dance here!

I also got Mason a cute hat...$.49!

I am so going back for a smaller pair of jeans :)

~Lisa~

Here's Jenna's outfit! Don't mind the ramrod straightness of her...she was in between poses LOL

A coo and a smile :D

I LOVE this stage of babyhood!!! Mason looked up at me this morning gave a big coo, and an even bigger smile!!

It was almost as if he was saying "ahh, that's my mom"

Definitely one of those moments that makes your heart sing, and causes you to forget that he was up wanting to chat and play at 5AM.




Hard to believe he's already 6 weeks old!

I lub dat boy!
~Lisa~

Snow White!

Ah Man! I wanted Belle too LOL. Oh well, I guess, despite the annoying voice, Snow white isn't tht bad :)

You Are Snow White!

Pure and trusting. You are a gentle soul who can get along with just about anyone. Everyone you meet instantly falls in love with you. How can they resist? You have a pure, lovable nature that's irresistable. Just don't trust everyone who comes across your path.

Which Disney Princess Are You?

~Lisa~

The worst part about a growth spurt...

is EVERYTHING!

Argh!! I feel like I have spent the past 2 days on the couch being a human milking machine.

He eats. He sleeps. I put him down, he wakes up 2 minutes later!! To eat of course.

Well, I guess I will just hope that he is like his brother, and the end is very near for this growth spurt.

These jugs are tiiiiiiiirrrred!!!!

Don't get me wrong. I am Thrilled to have made the 6 week growth spurt milestone. Especially since he has not had a DROP of formula!!!!! That really is a huge accomplishment for me. Jenna was breastfed for 2 weeks...barely. Lots of formula supplemented in between. Aidan got a little formula here and there at first, and then a bottle of formula a night once he was a month old. Not a sip for Mason. Even in the hospital. I really feel such a sense of pride over this. It's weird though...I don't often feel pride for myself...I almost feel embarrased to write about it.

Well...off to get some cleaning done before my 10 minute break is over, and the milk bar needs to open again :)

~Lisa~

Outraged!!!

ugh. I'm so mad I can't even start this damn post!!

Alvin and I were watching TV tonight, and a little news blurb, update thingy came on. Apparently, there are a lot of suicide bombers, somewhere in the world...I missed where. While of course, this news is upsetting...wht really PISSES ME OFF is the fact that they showed a VIDEO of one of the bombings.

Yeah, in a restaurant...all these innocent people, having a nice meal together. I could see their faces. I had time to wonder what the video was...and then, boom. Quite literally. What person in their right MIND thinks it's okay to show that on TV!?? All those innocent people have FAMILIES! Do the TV station manager people really think those families want to see that last glimps of their loved one?!

I can take a lot of things. I know that gory gets ratings. But this is where I have to draw the line. I am sickened, and outraged that a video like this is playing over and over on the airwaves. there is NO NEED for it.

My heart, my thoughts, and my prayers go out to the families of the people in that video.

~Lisa~

Conversation with a friend.

Let me start with a little background. I have trouble with conversation. I love to talk to people, but the conversations are often one sided. For some reason, I can start a topic, but it always seems to be taken over by the other person. Like this:

Me-"Aidan has been a monster lately"

Them-"Really? yeah, mine has been too. You should have seen them at my mom's the other day. We went there so her and I could work on some scrapbooking together, you should come see the pages I've been doing lately."

Me-"Yeah, that sounds fun"

Them -"anyway, I better get going."

And i never get to finish what I started talking about!! It's kinda frustrating, but I guess I have gotten used to it over time. Maybe that's why I like working with Kids so much...they have to listen to me! LOL

So, back to my story.

I called my good friend Jes the other day. She wanted some advice on my way of toilet training her beautiful son Billy.

She didn't just jump right into what she needed. She asked about my family, she soothed my nerves over the dentist issues, and most of all She Listened!!

The conversation flowed back and forth like nothing. We laughed so hard at times, got annoyed over the same things, and discovered we really have a lot in common.

Jes, it was the best phone conversation I have had in a very very long time. I really hope I was able to give some good advice about Billy.

Thank you so much, for a conversation with a Friend.

~Lisa~

Ahhhh...baby.

There's really nothing like a new baby.

Their teeny perfect hands. They're so small, it seems impossible that they really could be perfectly formed little hands.

Their tiny noses. Kinda turned up, and so cuuute!!!

The way their breath feels on your skin, so soft and gentle. It's almost soul cleansing.

Their squeeks and moans. Making you wonder what they're dreaming about.

Their eyes. That look up at you with such trust, and acceptance.

Their itty bitty bums. That fit in your hand so well.

Their perfect little kissy lips.

ahhhh....I love babies.

~Lisa~

Bless you Dr. Mocrae!

For a wonderful staff, for a comfortable atmosphere, for fitting us in, and for your trusted second opinion!!!

While we haven't heard a final number yet, I am confident that it is going to be MUCH lower that Dr. Morley gave us on Monday.

Jenna does NOT need to have surgery. She will NOT be getting crowns(we were told today that crown on children are often a waste of time, since they won't fit properly!). She will NOT be going back to that pediatric dentist EVER again!!!

She did so wonderfully today. I'm so proud of her. Not only was she brave, and only cry a very little bit, but she also sat calmly and bravely through not one, not two, but SIX, yes SIX x-rays!!
We paid $140 on Monday for Dr. Morley LOOK at her teeth for a couple seconds. We paid $145 today for the appointment, AND the x-rays!! Was I ever FOOLISH to take her there in the first place! lol...who knew though right.

Jenna does have some infection in her molars, which is what is causing the toothache. Dentist #1 told me that he thought infection would probably set in "shortly" and when that happened, she would need work done immediately. Well, Dentist #2 gave us a prescription for Amoxicillan to get rid of the infection that's ALREADY THERE!!! Which is going to take away her Pain! Which is what I wanted for her IN THE FIRST PLACE!!!

And Dentist #2 had a much nicer staff!! they were SO healpful, and friendly. They told us that the Health Unit may even reimburse us for the appointment we had today. And they already had us fill out the form for the Health Unit so we can get the ball rolling already...instead of me having to call the HU, then them call the dentist to get the paper, to get the x-rays requested, to get the ball rolling! Good grief.

So, all in all, today was a good day. It's been a very expensive week, but today was a good day.

~Lisa~

Three Thousand Eight Hundred and Eighteen Dollars.

Yep. $3818.00 is the price of a 4 year olds teeth these days. Seems incredibly ridiculous to me. And utterly impossible. He wants to do work on almost every one of her teeth.

Fillings, crowns, cleanings, goodness knows what else.

The only good thing is that our local Health Unit may cover the majority of the work.

We are getting a second opinion tomorrow though. This guy didn't even take an x-ray!! For $140.00, I would have thought that would include a little more than him looking in her mouth for two minutes, rhyming off a bunch of dentist speak to his assistant(who looked strangely like Barbie) and then a bunch of papers for her procedure on December 14th.

My poor girl. I just can not help but feel like I failed her. Aidan has Perfect teeth. Shiny and White. We didn't have a good tooth brushing routine for her until after she was two, and the damage was already starting. We let her have all the juice she wanted. But, thinking that they were 'just' her baby teeth, I didn't know the scale of the damage until yesterday.

damn damn damn. All I can hope for now is the new dentist to give us a lower number, and a clearer answer of what REALLY needs to be done to get her through.

Wish us luck. I am going to try to really talk Al into coming with us tomorrow. I might be good at the hand holding, and soothing, and story reading and cuddles...but when it comes to dentists and doctors, Al is far superior to me. he knows the questions to ask, and the buttons to push. Man, I really hope he'll come with me.

~Lisa~

Feeling like a terrible mom.

Well, anyone that has even met Jenna, or looked close enough at a picture of her probably has noticed that her teeth are in rough shape. They haven't been getting any worse in the past year, but also aren't getting better, of course.

Al talked to our Dentist, who I can't stand, and refuse to take her to. And he said that she needs to be looked at, but they probably wouldn't do much about her baby teeth anyway...so we just left it, and maintained a healthy teeth brushing routine, like always.

Until today. This morning Jenna woke up with her first toothache. I knew this day would come. I tried to pretend is wouldn't. But I cant hide from it any longer.

I gave her some tylenol for the pain, and managed to put some Anbesol on her bottom molars, and she's stopped grabbing her face and crying, so hopefully something worked.

I am so afraid to take her to the dentist(Which I have to do on my own today, at 11:45.). I am sooo bad at hearing my failings. I am sure I will be reprimanded up one side and down the other for not having her in there as soon as we noticed the problem. And I only have two reasons for not taking her. 1. We've never had a dental plan to cover the insane prices...nor the extra money to do it out of pocket. and 2. I can't handle being told I'm a bad mom.

How pathetic is that? How incredibly pathetic? And now, today of all days, when I am sick as a DOG, I have to go on my own...and try to keep the tears at bay.

I'm so afraid. And I feel SO terrible that I have failed my daughter like this.

~Lisa~

Lucky

I feel so lucky to have such wonderful online friends. Whose hearts are as big as this web we surf. And who help me know that I can be a successful mother, just as each and every one of them is.

Thank you my friends. For your hearts, for your willingness to share, for your friendship.

~Lisa~

What we've been up to...

Nothing particularly blog-worthy really.

Monday, the kids and I hung out at home. Ran out to the grocery store for a couple things...that's about it. Mason was a bit of a terror, awake ALL afternoon! I mean, 3-8!! How crazy is that!?

Tuesday, Jenna had school. And! It was Henry's 5th Birthday. So, me and the boys headed off to Wal-Mart and picked up a t-ball set for him. And then went out of a quick visit. It was so nice to see Jenny, Scott and Henry again!! I really miss working there. Aidan and Henry played T-ball for about an Hour! lol It was great. BIG NEWS, Aidan peed on the toilet!!! he told me he needed to go, and then went pee!! He's never done that at home before!! Only ever had one success, at Julie's in the summer, when he was wearing a little swimmer, and I am guessing, could feel the difference when he started to pee. He has been getting better at telling me when he needs to do a BM. However, since he only ever goes a small amount on the toilet, I find it's backing him up a bit...so we're not pushing the issue until he's two. I'm really hoping he's easy to train!! I HATE potty training!!!!

Wednesday, Nothing much yesterday. Trip to Wal-Mart for cat food and diapers. Read Jenna her Library book...The Dragon and the Unicorn It was a good story, but way over her head LOL...Illustrations were fantastic though! I GOT A NAP!! Woohoo! I realllllly needed it!!

Today, Nothing at all planned for today, except some much needed cleaning. I have a sore throat :( So we're just laying low. Praying for another nap today :)

Baby's awake. Gotta run.

~Lisa~

More useless information about me :)

Not that anyone asked, but I thought it might be fun :) And without the pressure of making it to 100, might be easier.

so...

I can stare at the moon all friggin' night, and still not see a face on there.

I do however see a shadowy spot that looks like Africa.

I never get out of bed without putting on my glasses.

I can't pee unless I turn on the light in the bathroom...even in the middle of the day.

I bite my fingernails. Not so much from nervousness, it's more about evening them out.

I pick at my skin if there's a pimple, or a sign of loose skin at all.

I really like green grapes with peanut butter on them.

I almost fell asleep driving home on Saturday night.

I sang along to kids' songs really loudly to keep myself awake.

I used to collect rocks.

But my collection never seemed to get any bigger.

I suspect my mother was the culprit.

I miss being single.

I miss having only one child.

I miss having only two children.

It really is easier to have three though...and I am Very happy about that.

I really dislike my breasts...but not the actual breast so much as the areola.

I often wonder if there's a surgery to reduce the size of the areola.

I probably would never have it done even if there was.

I long to find the perfect perfume for me. So that my kids can smell it when they're older, and think of their childhoods.

I'm starting to get tired of Kraft Dinner.

But I still Really like McDonald's.

I'm not annoyed by Barney.

But I wouldn't trust myself to meet Loonette the Clown in a back alley.

I miss doing homework.

I wonder what new things I will learn from helping Jenna with her Homework.

I'm really good at lending people things.

I'm terrible at asking for them back.

I'm done :) For now :)

~Lisa~

Sigh of Relief

I met my nephew this weekend. He's Perfect! I cried so hard. I guess I really needed to see him with my own eyes to know that all my fears were for naught. Everyone kept telling me that he was fine, healthy, perfect in every way...only small...really, really small. At 5lbs 4oz...yeah, I guess so! lol...but it never really occured to me just how small that is...until I saw this...



Damion is on the left, Mason on the right. Damion weighs about 5 1/2 pounds, and Mason is probably pushing 9! lol Too bad Mason's legs are pulled up, it really takes away from the full effect.



Just look at the size difference of thier HEADS!! LOL

I KNOW that my son is completely average, and perfect (And totally the cuter of the two LOL :)) but next to Damion, he looks like Andre the Giant! It's so strange :)

I'm so grateful to whoever was watching over my nephew to make him so perfect, despite all the odds he had against him.

~Lisa~

Dr.Jekyl and Mr.Hyde...

That's my son. The first picture is of him at about 12:30, drawing contentedly while I fed the baby. The second is about 10 minutes ago, with him shouting "No mommy No!!" Because I moved his chair from in front of the tv.

I don't understand it at all!!! The entire time Jenna was at school today, he was SUCH a good boy. Listened well, went for his nap without Too much fussing, was even excited about picking Jenna up from school.

And then we walked through the door at 3:45...and he totally changed! Mason hasn't been able to nap all afternoon, because of the screaming and shouting going on between these two heathens!! I am going out of my mind!!!

What happened to the boy who was so content to draw pictures, and read stories?? Who brought home this torturer!?

ARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!

~Lisa~

My little girl is growing up.

It's official. Jenna is in school. Having her first lunch at school as we speak.

I did really well. I made sure she saw how excited I was about her going to school. She went in no problem. Only a little nervousness when she couldn't get to her cubby when we first went in...but once she got her "inside shoes" on, she was off without a backwards glance.

I managed to make it back outside before bawling my eyes out! LOL...I knew it would happen. I just can't believe my little girl is in SCHOOL!!! I wonder what she's doing, who she's becoming friends with, what she's learning about, if she's using her manners.

Only 3 hours and 15 minutes before she's back in my arms, and chattering my ears off about her day.

I can't wait.

~Lisa~

Jenny called

To update on Henry :) He's doing SO well in school!! And at home as well. She says his behaviour compliance is phenominal! I think she would have me come back now if I was ready!! She said that the week after I finished working with Henry, he actually Asked his mom if I was coming to work with him that day! And when she said no, he went to his desk and did some work on his own!! How cute is that boy :) When they were out driving the other day, he pointed out a letter G. And at dinner last night, he told his parents that the table is a circle.

I am just in awe that it was ME that helped get him to this point!

I really miss going to work with him every day. As much as I Love being here with my kids, I miss making a difference in Henry's life.

Jenny made it very clear that they miss having me there, and made sure I was still planning on coming back :) Yet again, i am floored by how lucky I am to have been given this family to work with.

~Lisa~

Big Week around here!

Well, today is the day. My brother is going to become a father. Seems SO weird. Philicia's water levels are low, so they are inducing her this morning. I am so scared for them.

This baby hasn't had the best of care so far. IMO. Philicia is a smoker, and has Really lousy eating habits. I'm so worried that the baby is going to be seriously under weight(Dr. predicts a very small 6lbs) and I'm worried that he/she will be sent to the NICU because of a Nicotine dependancy. I can't imagine being 18, and 22 and having to see your baby come off an addiction. And it kills me to know that these things could have been prevented.

I am hoping and praying for the best for them. For an easy labour and delivery, and for a perfect healthy baby. But I can't help being sick with worry until my phone rings with the news.

On a happier(?) note. Jenna's first day of school is tomorrow!!! She's pretty much all set to go. We just have to take a quick walk up to the dollar store to get a permanent marker so I can write her name on her things :)

Her meet and greet with the teacher went well last week. We were walking across the parking lot, and she said to me "When I get inside you can leave mom. My teacher will watch me." ACK!! Are you kidding me!? Where are her nerves? Her tears? Her fears?? LOL Actually, I would MUCH rather her be super excited about staying at school. Hopefully it will make it a lot easier on ME when she walks through those doors, and I don't see her for another 6 1/2 hours.

I still can't believe I am old enough to be the mommy of a kindergartener!! I can't believe that my sweet sweet girl is already old enough to be going to school.

What happened to my little girl that used to eat cheerios with her hands? What happened to the girl that used to coo in her sleep? Where's the kid that used to scribble on paper, and call it Mommy?

She's a school-ager now. Not a baby, not a toddler, not a pre-schooler. A real, full fledged Kindergartener.

The years are going to go sooo much faster now. September to June. 9 months. That's how long our years are going to be for the next 14 years. No more of this 12 month stuff. Nope. Not for our school-ager :(

I just can't believe it's here already. But I AM really excited for her too! I know how good this is going to be for her. I'm excited about the school work I'll get to help with. I'm excited about the crafts she'll bring home. I look forward to school pictures, and meet the teacher nights. To plays and book fairs. To listening to my daughter chatter away about her day.

I just wish it hadn't gotten here so fast.

~Lisa~

It's Friday night, and that means...

I MADE IT!! I survived my first week with three kids.

I survived a doctors office visit.

I survived a wasted trip to Value Village.

I survived a trip to Wal-Mart.

I survived the breakfasts, lunches and dinners.

I made healthy snacks.

I kept the rules.

I didn't throttle anyone.

I read stories.

I played cars.

I played Barbies.

I cuddled.

I didn't miss a minute of enjoying my children growing up.

Don't get me wrong. There were hard times too. This afternoon was pretty rough. Mason was awake for an unprecedented 3 hours, and wanted to eat for about 2 1/2 of those. Of course, this was right around the time I should have been making dinner. Ever breastfed a baby while trying to brown meat?! It was quite the feat for me! The living room looked like a tornado hit it, and the table was a mess of papers and crafts. But, we managed. Mason went for a nap at 7 finally (and is still, knock on wood, sleeping) so i managed to tidy some of the mess, and do two days worth of dishes ~:P before Al got home from work.

I finally got to put Aidan to bed for the night for the first time in two weeks tonight. How lovely it was to cuddle with my almost 2 year old and read a few stories. He smelled like such a little boy, and was so solid, and steady in my arms. I hope i always remember how my children felt when they sat on my lap. But I fear it's one of the many things that will be forgotten, replaced by memories of the now. Oh well, I'll enjoy these times while I can.

Jenna is doing a lot better. Staying in her bed. We resorted to locking the bathroom door that leads into our room, and putting the baby gate across our bedroom door. It didn't take long for her to stop getting out of bed. It hurt to do it though :( She's still being a little jealous of Mason. And a little too rough at times, but we;re working on it. I imagine once she starts school next week (SOB!!) things will change. It will be more about her than Mason...hopefully that will help.

I wore my pre-preg jeans yesterday. just around the house, since the extra belly fat I accumulated still spills over the top a little more than I am comfortable leaving the house with. But it was glorious to be able to wear them. Glorious!!

Okay, so that's the update around here. off to veg on the couch for 30 minutes before Mason wakes up again.

~Lisa~

My 5 Favourite Childhood memories!

Thanks for tagging me Julie!! I feel so honoured :)

1. Spending part of every summer at my Aunt Marge and Uncle Donald's farm. We would spend HOURS in the barn. Making hay forts, watching calves born, feeding calves their bottles. Swimming in the Credit River (Although, we called it The Creek) with my cousin Susan.

2. Going camping at MacGregor Point Provincial Park with my family. Even in the rain my parents made it fun.

3. Getting to answer the phone for the first time when I was 4. It was my George calling my Mom for the first time :) I thought it was a George that my Dad bowled with...and I couldn't stand that guy!! I'm so glad it was My George :)

4. Taking a Ferry ride with my Dad. I can't remember where we were, or where we went, but I do remember thinking that we were going to a whole other country, and I felt so important and special to be going on a boat ride like that.

5. Having my Dad wake me up on the plane ride to England when I was 2 1/2(This is my first memory) He didn't want me to miss seeing all the beautiful lights down below.

That was hard, keeping it to 5 :) Thanks though Julie. It was great reminiscing lke that!

I tag Helen (What Lies beneath)

~Lisa~

I had no idea

Holed up in my cozy home for the past couple weeks. Warm in my bed, warm in my family's arms, I had no idea. Of the utter Devastation that has taken hold of our neighbours to the south. I mean, I knew of the Hurricane. I knew thousands upon thousands of people had become homeless. I knew that thousands are dead, and missing. I knew that children, and elderly and even the average Joe and Jane struggled in the waters to save their lives, and the lives of their loved ones. I knew some made it, and some didn't.

I didn't know of the Hell that had taken hold of the city. I didn't know of the horrors children are facing at the hands of some bastards that think...well, God only know what they are thinking when they are ruining lives the way they are. I hadn't heard of the shootings inside the dome where so many sought shelter, and strength. I hadn't heard of people, LIVING people were put into morgues, to die peacefully.

Until watching Oprah today.

How can Humans be so cold. So heartless, so uncaring towards people in the same situation as themselves. Why do they have to take such a horrific situation, and make it so much worse??

Where is the HELP for these people? Where is the compassion, the government, the army? Where is the food, the damn WATER? Where is the hope?

My heart is breaking for these people. I feel so helpless.

Even if the day is a total bust...

At least I will always know....

I BUTTONED AND ZIPPERED MY PRE-PREGNANCY JEANS TODAY!!!!!!!!

Sigh...I can't sit in them yet, but at least I am one step closer from tossing these icky boring maternity clothes for good!!! WOOHOO!!!

Actually, today is going not too bad so far...although, it's not even 9:30 yet LOL

All kids have been fed. I managed a shower, AND quickly shaved my legs...with only a half dozen interruptions from Jenna and Aidan. I've had breakfast. And there's a load of laundry on! PHEW! I am going to be exhausted tonight! LOL

~Lisa~

Pictures :)

I thought I would add some pics here. Been awhile since anyone has seen my beauties :)

~Lisa~


Aidan, 21 months, in his Favourite shirt :)

Jenna, being her pretty self :) Most of my beautiful family
Me, lovin' my skinny-ish self...and this baby!!

My beautiful, beautiful little man. LOVE this pic :)

Tomorrow...

I'll have all three kids on my own tomorrow. For about 13 hours. And just for fun, lets throw in a doctors appointment for all three, which is going to cut nap time short.

I thought I would be more terrified when the day came. I think having Alvin here to back me up has given me a false sense of security.

But not tomorrow.

Tomorrow I have to get up early. I have to get breakfast, lunch and dinner, oh, and of course, snacks along the way. I have to try to fit in cuddles, and stories. I have to try to get at least one meals dishes done(for my own piece of mind I think). There will be juice cups to fill, and bums to change.

There will be three seatbelts to fasten, and unfasten. There will be a trek across a parking lot. And a ride in an elevator. And then of course, getting all three safely BACK into the van and home again.

I think I can....I think I can...I hope I can.

Pray for me, and my sanity.

~Lisa~

Another budding Picasso :) And a funny one at that!

Aidan has taken on Jenna's love of colouring...well, actually, it's drawing, since both prefer a plain piece of paper and a pen to a colouring book with lines and crayons...despite the 3 million of them that we have!

So today, as Aidan is scribbling on his 50th piece of computer paper(I take donations LOL) he draws a very faint, but pretty good circle. Holds it up, and declares "Look Mommy...MOON!"

He's so funny. And it's all his parents' fault :) Whenever we're going anywhere, we always tell the kids we're going to the moon...no matter where it is. So lately, Aidan has been running up to us saying "Where are we Mommy/Daddy?" and we respond with the appropriate room in the house, store or vehicle we're in. He replies back with "Noooooo!! MOON!!!!!!"

I love that kid :)

~Lisa~

So proud of my man.

Since we met 7 years ago, it's been no secret that Al struggles with his weight. Unfortunately, in those 7 years, he's gained more than he's lost. And it's largely my fault. I have a metabolism that can afford the occasional chocolate bar, or bag of chips. Al has to work his ass off to have such luxuries...and I have often failed to appreciate that.

I know that he has often asked for my help in losing weight. It works for the first couple of days...but then when he asks to cheat(with food!!), I feel sooo guilty about denying him, that I cave. Not very supportive am I?

But now, he's taken a wonderful step. He's contacted LA weight loss to see if they can help. I can't begin to say how proud I am of him for taking this first, and very big, step. I only hope that A) We can figure out a way to afford it, and B) I can change my cooking habits well enough to adapt to his new routine, and diet.

I really hope this will help turn him around. I worry so much when he gets so depressed about his weight. While I understand how he feels, there's nothing I can do or say to help him out of those funks...and it breaks my heart.

To me he is now, and always will be beautiful. But I know that when he feels/sees it too...he'll glow.

~Lisa~

We're Home!! With a BOY!!

Hehehe...I won the bet...$50 coming my way :)

And the bonus is, he's the cutest thing :)

My birth experience was a fairly good one. It's so different to be so wide awake and alert during a c-section than to wait through 16 hours of labour, only to practically sleep through the birth during a section :) Downside to this one was that the spinal made me very very sick :( Non-stop vomiting for about 10 hours :P Poor Mason didn't even get a name for about 12 hours, because I couldn't hold him, or focus on him well enough to figure out what/who he looked like. Although, as soon as I saw him, I was calling him Mason in my head...so I was pretty sure that's what it was going to be. I was just trying to feel out Al to see if we would finally agree this time! And it's funny you know, after all the fighting I did to name him Devon, he realllllllly doesn't even Look like a Devon to me LOL...or a Carter, or a Cole(the other name we took with us to the hospital as an alternate to Mason) As my best friend Carry put it so well, "He's much to 'International Man of Mystery' to be anything but a Mason." And it's true. His name suits him perfectly.

And on a funny side note...the only hold-back I've had since discussing the name Mason MONTHS ago, was that I really thought people would be like "Mason??As in like, Mason Jar??" I don't handle that kind of thing well...and take it very personally. I didn't want to give my son a teasable name. ANYWAY! I mentioned it to my mom the night before Mason was born, and as it turns out, she loved it!! And while she did think of the jars, didn't care!! woohoo. SO! Onto the funny part. "Mason" is a jar company. Jars for canning, and making jams and preserves and such right? Well, my children, Jenna, Aidan and Mason, when you take the first letters of their names, spell JAM!! How hilarious is that!? I couldn't resist :)

Anyway. So my hospital stay was good. Mason was a great nurser. It's amazing to me that I never needed the nurses to supplement him with any formula :) I'm so stinkin' proud of that!!! He did lose 10% of his body weight, which was saddening to me. But, the last night night we were there he gained back 1.5 ounces!! My milk came in. And i had the best night nurse the whole time I was there, who made sure she woke us up to feed, and brought ice water with her often so that I wouldn't have trouble with my milk. her name was Lorraine. I'll never forget her :)

Jenn and Julie came to visit us in the hospital. They brought the best gifts :) Snacks :) All my favourites too, Popcorn, Pringles, Chocolate, and Crystal Light, so I didn't have to suffer with plain water all the time :) Oh! And a Cosmo...but I already had that one...figures. I TOLD Al I should get the People! LOL Mason also got a very cute mouse teether, and a great little outfit :) I am so blessed to have such wonderful friends...who do too much, and mean so much more to me and my family. Thank you both.

We got to come home on Friday. And of course, that was when the nursing troubles started. My nipples are so sore :'( I'm even thinking of going to the breastfeeding clinic tomorrow to have them help me with my latch. he's got such a tiny little dainty mouth...and a man sized suck to go with it. But I am so determined this time...we'll work through this :) I had the same problems with Jenna and Aidan, and I gave up with Jenna, and nursed Aidan for about 13 months. i know I can be successful this time too. Bring on the Lansinoh!!!

He's a great sleeper. I have to wake him to feed him!! never had to do that before!! Last night was rough. I woke up at 1, and should have fed him, but decided to give us both 1 more hour. and then woke up 3 hours later with a couple of boulders in my bra! OUCH! I won't be trying to get any extra sleep from now on LOL.

It's my own darn fault I'm tired you know. At 4 am I nursed him, and then even though he fell asleep after a few minutes, I couldn't put him down. he looked so perfect in the soft light. And of course, since he could smell me, he kept waking up more to eat LOL...so I kept putting him to sleep and staring some more :) I finally made myself put him back in his bed at 5am :)

The kids are doing AWESOME with him!!! A little bit of jealousy, but no more than I expected. As long as Aidan gets some extra cuddles with mommy, and Jenna gets to hold Mason a few times a day, we're doing pretty good.

Al has been SO amazing. Letting me have my little crying fits (exhaustion + baby blues :)). Letting me rest. Banning me from the stairs when he could see that I was doing way too much going up and down. All the cooking and cleaning (Bless that man!) . he wouldn't even let me do the dishes last night! He makes me realize over and over why I married him. He's so good to me.

So, all in all, becoming a family of Five, and a Mother of Three hasn't been as emotionally, and physically draining as I had imagined it would. Of course, Al is still here with me 24/7 to help when I need it...so I imagine I'll change my tune in a couple weeks when he goes back to work :)

Thanks to all for your love and support these past 9 months. It's meant SO much more to me than I could ever express.

~Lisa~

You'd think it was the end of the world!!

All morning, all the thoughts going through my head have revolved around "lasts" as in, "this is the last time I will share a bagel with Jenna for awhile." "this is the last time I'll have trouble shaving my legs." "This is the last time I'll be able to wear this bra for awhile." Ugh! It's so crazy what goes through your head at times like this.

It's too quiet in here. The kids are at their baby sitters. I just stopped home for lunch, and then I'll go get them. My last few moments of solitude. Seems silly, but all I really want to do is cry. For all the moments I am going to miss with my kids over the next few days. For all the laughs I'll miss with my husband. For not knowing how Aidan is going to react to Mommy being gone for so many days. For not knowing how hard it really is going to be for Jenna to know that I'm in the hospital...without her. For having to hear the funny stories through a telephone line. For wondering how my friggin' CAT is going to be while I am away.

Okay..gonna go dust to take my mind off of things for awhile.

~Lisa~

WOOHOO!!

JENNA STAYED IN HER BED!!!!! All night long!! Didn't even get up to pee!!! Of course, it probably helped that she stayed up until about 9:30 :( But man, it was so nice to have the room to ourselves last night.

I paid lots of attention to her before bed last night. We made a craft for her baby sitter since it's their last day there for a little while, and then I read her a story in her bed. So, hopefully if we continue the bedtime story routine, she'll be more comfortable in her room, and stay there. Pray for us LOL.

It was kinda funny, she got up this morning at 6:30(Another woohoo in itself!) and went to the bathroom. As soon as she saw that I was awake, she said to me "I stayed in my bed ALL NIGHT! Can I have a Pony and a sleepover?" LOL...it's all about the prize when you're four :)

~Lisa~

All my bags are packed...

But I'm not sure I'm ready to go...

I mean, I am TOTALLY ready to not be pregnant anymore, but I'm not too sure I'm ready to be a mommy to a newborn again :)

We are however, more ready around here, finally. The kids are both moved into their new rooms. Jenna still won't sleep in there, much to my dismay. I need to find some huge reinforcer for her...even the promise of My Little Ponies wouldn't keep her in there last night. I awoke to find her on my floor yet again. On the other hand, Aidan is doing great! He went down no problem last night, and only needed one extra cuddle visit from Daddy to get him sleeping this afternoon...what a relief!

I need to tidy up my room before my mom arrives, and give the downstairs a good once over, but other than that...I think we're ready.

I am going to miss my family so much this week. I keep telling my mom to call me with any questions she has about the kids while she's here, and she keeps replying with "They'll be fine, don't you worry" I finally told her that it would make ME feel better if she would call...but I still don't know if she will. She's not as much of a stickler for routine as I am with my kids...so coming back home is probably going to be hell, despite the list of their daily routine I am leaving for her. As much as I love my mom, I wish there was another option for this week.

Al and I had a good night last night. Since we didn't get to go out for our Anniversary we decided to buy a new movie (guess who) and cuddled up on the couches together and snacked :) It was probably better than going out. We need to do that more often.

I still can't believe this baby is going to be here in 2 days from now. But I really am looking forward to it...in my own terrified way :) Hmm...I think I'll go bug Al about boy names.

~Lisa~

So tired.

So very very tired.

Between being a rather uncomfortable 38 weeks pregnant, and having a four year old that will NOT stay in her bed, I am soooo exhausted.

I don't know what to do about Jenna. We made her this fabulous new room, and she's afraid of it! She got out of bed about a dozen times before finally staying in there, and briefly falling asleep. Then, at 12:30, I roll over, and she's sleeping on my floor. I didn't have the energy to move her back(stupid me, way to stick your guns mom). Next thing I know she's up and walking around. So, between 3:30 and 5:30 I sent her back to bed 4 times!!!

I'm so tired I want to cry!!! I can't have her coming in and out of my room at all hours of the night when the baby is there. I'll never get ANY sleep...and this momma does NOT do well on no sleep.

I'm starting to hope that the baby is a girl. Because then I'll put Jenna BACK into her old room. Aidan can stay where he is, and the baby can have the nice new beautiful girly room. But ya know what, I bet a million bucks that wouldn't work either.

WAHHHH!!!!!

~Lisa~

Ahh, Dear Sweet Henry.

He almost made me cry today. First, a little background.

Every morning I arrive at Henry's house. And every morning Henry gives me his list of reasons for why he "Doesn't want to work today". The most common are that he's too sick, or he's too tired, and he wants to sleep with me, and not do work today. My favourite was when he told me, "I'm too expensive Lisa, you can't afford me today" Oh what a laugh Jenny(mom) and I got from that one!! So, that's our usual morning greeting. Today was no different. Other than I think he might actually have not been feeling well this time :). And he ALWAYS tells me he doesn't want to see the animals (Which are on the back of my Alphabet flash cards...and have nothing to do with his programs.)

At lunch time today, Jenny told him that this was my last week. That next week, the baby was going to come out, and they would visit me and the baby in the hospital. Oh how he cried. He said he was too sad that he couldn't work with me anymore. He said he didn't know brown yet. He said he wanted to see the animals every day.

I'm going to miss him. He's the funniest kid I know(Next to my own of course!).

D'you know, he pretends to be me?? He'll sit his mom and dad down, and show them pictures of trains. And he'll say to them "Okay mom, what colour is Thomas?" "Blue" "Very good mom!" And he does it all the time!! Recently he told me that HE wanted to be the teacher. And he did, he laid out the colour cards, and asked me which was which.

He's so special.

~Lisa~

snuggles snuggles snuggles

I was one lucky momma last night :) First was Aidan. I took him upstairs to put him to bed, and he patted the rocking chair. So, i picked him up, sat down, and he just laid his little head on my chest and dozed off. It was such a nice, warm feeling. Nothing like it.

Next was Jenna. I came down from putting Aidan to bed, and sat next to her on the couch. Where she promptly snuggled up next to me. And stayed there until her movie was over. I could still smell the berry shampoo in her hair. It was so great. I love these moments I am getting with my kids before the baby arrives.

Al was called in to do a truck rollover last night. He didn't get home until around midnight. I was long sleeping by then. But, when he climbed into bed, he put his arm around me and snuggled up close too. And stayed that way for the longest time.

I am so lucky to have a family that snuggles me. It's my most favourite feeling in the world.

~Lisa~

We survived!!

The kids and I made it through our week together. With minimal bruising, some laughs, some tears, and some memories :) PHEW!!

We spent lots of time outside on Monday. Tuesday was a wonderful visit with Auntie Carry(oops, forgot to post pics!) Wednesday was a trip to WalMart, and lots more playing and reading stories. Thursday was great fun for the kids. They went with me to my OB appointment...and were ANGELS!! I was shocked :) And so proud of them, considering we had to wait 45 minutes for the doctor to come back from doing a c-section. And Friday was Value Village, and the bank. So, we managed to find lots of things to occupy our time. I'm so glad I got to have this last week with my TWO kids, before it turns into THREE kids.

I'm not gonna want to go back to work on Monday LOL...at least it's only for a week. Then I get my vacation HA...4 days of hospital food, a bed that's not mine, and sore nipples (sorry) woohoo...what a vacation.

Well, at least the kids will have fun(Oh GOD how I hope) with Grandma.

~Lisa~

I hope she learns from him.

From the nicest older man. Who had never met my daughter. But who offered her a dollar to buy a silly hat.

I wish there were more people like that left in the world. I wish we could trust others more. I wish i could let my kids out to play and not have to be within 5 feet of them at all times. I wish I didn't have to teach about stranger danger. I wish more people could have seen the kindness given to my daughter. I wish kindness like that wasn't so foreign to her.

I wish she knew how freakin' cute she looks in that silly hat :)

~Lisa~

There's something to be said about communication.

So, after a comment Al made last weekend, I have been completely stressed out. crying at the drop of the hat, not the best of mothers, and definitely not the best of wives.

Basically, he said that he wasn't going to be taking off the two weeks after the baby was born that I had spent the past 9 months expecting him to. I freaked out. I cried so hard I couldn't speak. And when I managed to stop, I couldn't find the strength to explain to Al what was upsetting me.

So, I spent the week trying to figure out ways of living life with three kids, and managing to not damage myself in the process. A c-section incision is not really something to mess around with
:(

But all this time, I couldn't bring myself to tell him how I felt. Not that he's hard to talk to, because he usually isn't. It was just that I have a hard time opening up like that...admitting that I might have a problem. So, I sent him an email. And I poured out my heart. I told him every single concern and thought and feeling I was having.

And then I waited...the guy didn't check his email for 2 frickin' days while I worried away! LOL

I finally got up the nerve to tell him about it, and then sat beside him as he read it. And ya know what...I shouldn't have worried at all. He was SO understanding, and supportive. He outlined his plans, and really put my mind at ease.

I'm going to have the help I need...from the person I need it from the most. I couldn't be happier.

I'll have to try this email thing more often :) Although...in the process of the evening, I also discovered he reads my blog...LOL...even had it secretly bookmarked! So maybe venting here in cyberspace will really be a blessing in our marriage :)

~Lisa~

A word from the wise...

Never decide to take on redecorating your 4 year old daughter's new room while 8-9 months pregnant, in the hottest summer EVER.

Especially when your husband often works late, and doesn't enjoy painting so much :)

Good grief I'll be so happy when this room is DONE!!!

Okay, just came down for a bottle of water...back at it I go.

~Lisa~

Why can't he be a neat freak??

Even if just in the garage? I can't get in there AT ALL! And it's driving me crazy. There are so many baby clothes that I need to be sorting and washing, and I can't get to them without endangering my life. Ugh!

It drives me crazy that he just opens the door, and sets whatever he's adding to the pile RIGHT THERE!! Take TWO minutes, find a home for whatever it is. And then there won't be a PROBLEM!

It dawned on me when going through the small amount of baby clothes in my closet that if I have a boy...my boys will have been born in totally different seasons! And I have NO idea what I have that might do for a summer boy.

WAH!!!

~Lisa-Who is very happy to have started blogging. But worries that anyone who reads it is going to think of me as one huge complainer. :(~

2 Weeks!!

In about 2 weeks and one hour, I will be holding The Bean!! Well, probably looking at the bean anyway :) Darn c-section recovery period.

The countdown is really on now :)

I got quite a bit done yesterday. Jenna's closet is tidied(A chore and a half in itself...she's such a GIRL!) and I sorted through her summer clothes, and bagged up what she hasn't worn all summer, and probably won't.

I got the grass cut...well, no, that's a bold faced lie. I got the weeds and dirt in the back yard cut. Damn lousy yard :( I even managed the energy to yank out some weeds from my so-called garden! My mom will be so shocked lol.

I also managed to fit in some painting in Jenna's new room. It's starting to seem like it's NEVER going to get done :( I really wanted to move her in there before The Bean arrived...not so sure now. Al spilled paint on the carpet, and we have to replace it. Thank goodness for Ikea, and their 1.09/sq ft laminate!! She's definitely going to have the nicest room in the house now.

I also made a yummy dinner, and got the dishes done(Although admittedly with Al's help :))

OH! And laundry! I got a bunch of that done too! Phew. No wonder I was asleep on the couch by 9:30!!

No more contractions came from it though. Oh well...the baby must know that I have A LOT more to do still lol.

~Lisa~

And the week begins...

Well, I get to enjoy(?) one whole week with my children this week. Henry is in camp, and the babysitter is away at her cottage for the week.

Today, we have no plan. No direction. No nothing. ACK!

Tomorrow we are heading over to Auntie Carry's to visit with her and her twins. I am SO excited about that. Carry has been my best friend since high school. She's the friend that you can go months without talking to, and then pick right up where you left off from :) She's fabulous. I'm keeping this secret until tomorrow, in order to avoid the million and one times Jenna would ask "Are we going to Auntie Carry's yet?"

Wednesday, no plan.

Thursday morning I have an OB appointment. Get to drag the kids with me to that. Oh joy.

Friday, no plan.

I do have a lot to do around here, so I know that I won't be bored. It's the kids I worry about.

Pray for my sanity and strength!

~Lisa~

Whew...almost...

I was Almost convinced that I was in labour tonight! Lots of painful contractions at dinner, and throughout the grocery store. Ranging from 5-15 minutes apart.

I'm wondering if the baby is posterior like Jenna was. I felt A LOT of pain in my back with each contraction. Not fun.

But alas, we came home, put away the groceries, and I went and laid down for a bit. And everything went away.

I've never had contractions like this so early. Of course, all I could think of were the things that I have left to do before the baby arrives. LOL...not, "oh crap, I'm in labour." No, it was "Oh crap, I still haven't cleaned out the closets" LMAO! What a woman eh?

So, nothing for now. My belly is sore, like I was doing too many crunches. My back is sore like I did too much gardening. And I am SO tired. It's weird.

I really hope this baby waits a little longer!! Crazy as that may sound :)

~Lisa~

My pet peeve about Disney.

Why do they keep making sequels, and prequels, and inbetweenquels, when they can't get the same people to do the voices?!

It's so annoying to have to watch Ariel, and not hear her real voice. Or to have the animals on Tarzan and Jane sound completely off...even Jane for crap's sack...totally different woman.

I really wish Jenna would stop asking to rent the sequels etc. But how is a mother supposed to resisit a gushing four year old "Look Mom!! There's Ariel, and now she's got a DAUGHTER! just like I'm YOUR Daughter!! THAT'S the one I want Mom. PLEASEEEEEE!?"

So come on Disney...up the budget and get those voices back!!!

~Lisa~

Such an odd dream

I dreamt last night that my cat had a kitten. It was a beautiful kitten, calico, my favourite. Her birth was so weird though...and very gross and graphic...I'll spare you.

The weird part is, at some point in my dream, it seemed to turn into Jenna having had the kitten. And there was yucky fluid stuff all over her favourite Princess Aurora nightgown. I don't really remember the connection between to two. But I am going to hold out hope that the cat had the kitten while laying on the nightgown. But something about that seems wrong too?

All throughout the dream, all I could think of was "Hmm...since the kitten was a girl, I wonder if I am having a girl?"

So weird.

~Lisa~

Adventures in shopping

First to the bank. No problems there, the kids were good as GOLD! phew.

Then to Home Hardware, to get the pencil case and lunch bag for Jenna that we'd seen in the flyer. Walk around the whole store, and finally talk to an employee before realizing, oh crap...they were in the Canadian Tire Flyer. UGH! Silently blame Alvin for showing a pregnant woman too many flyers in one morning.

So, on to Canadian Tire. Jenna has to pee...NOW. Of course she does. Why wouldn't she have told me BEFORE we left home. Race to CTC, with her singing songs and telling me fairy tales to keep her mind off things. Ahhh...we made it. After waiting 5 minutes with a dancing little girl for some lady to stink up the ONE bathroom in the place. Ugh.

We found the pencil case right away. Score!! Jenna is thrilled with her new Princess pencil case. Onto the lunch bag. around and around we go. OF COURSE the lunch bags are in the same aisle with the cleaning supplies. How foolish of me to have looked in housewares, and the cooler sections first! So, we get that paid for and I start thinking I should have pee'd when Jenna went.

Off to Tim's for a cookie treat since the kids are being so awesome for me!! 10 minute line up for the drive through, and $1.28 for 3 cookies.

Next stop WALMART! WooHoo, our favourite place. Only a few things left on the list and we'll be heading home for lunch. Not so bad, this day is going great (Did I mention it was just me and the kids? DH is off getting his fender fixed.)

My main objective is a baby monitor. Oh, and pads. The two things I really need before baby arrives.

So, we're walking, and I still have to pee. I get to the monitors and there's 4 to choose from. I made my selection. It seems to great, the sender can be attached onto the pack n play, or the car seat, or wherever. Too Cool!

Now Aidan is covered in chocolate chip goo. Open the wipes container, of course, it was empty. Blame Babysitter. Off to get some wipes. Thankfully, we needed new ones anyway.

Off to get the batteries forthe monitor.

And ouch. That nagging in my bladder has turned into ligament stretching pain. Fabulous. So, we head to the bathroom. Peeing does not help this time. I managed to grind my teeth through finding batteries, and selecting Pads (Why the hell are there so many options?!)

Get to he check out. OH YEAH! I wanted a phone card to take to the hospital, since it's too late to get Bell to send me a calling card, and according to Alvin, cheaper too. Add that to the cart. Grind teeth a little harder against this pain.

So, let's take stock here. I have a monitor, wipes, batteries, pads and a calling card.

Why the Hell is my bill $95.00??? I look, and my beloved monitor was $50 bucks!! whatever, I am WAY too cheap for that thank you very much.

Off to customer service. Sure enough, it's the right price. I can barely breathe through this damn stretching pain. but return the monitor, say to hell with choosing another one right now and we're on our way to the van.

I hate ligament pain. hate hate hate it. By the time we got home, I had to lay on the couch for 1/2 an hour trying not to let my kids see me crying :(

It's so annoying when such a great shopping trip had to be ruined by so much pain. blah.

~Lisa~

It's been a good day.

Nothing particularily special about it. Just a good day.

No humidity to tire me out completely.

Henry was in top form today. His scores were amazing(nothing under 70%). And absolutely NO behaviours. I love days like this. He was pre-testing out of sooo much :) Even his mom was astounded at his progress today :) I really love the work I do on days like this. Autism be damned, that boy is LEARNING!

My kids napped beautifully. And, while I didn't fall asleep today, being lazy on the couch watching Oprah and Ellen was enough of a break :)

Dinner turned out pretty good too!

As soon as the kids are finished their dinner we'll be heading to Wal-Mart to exchange Jenna's school shoes (SOB!) for a bigger size. And hopefully by the time that is all done, Al will be home for some fun and stories.

Ahh...nothing like a good day. Hmm...maybe I'll even finish it off with some nookie! LOL...sorry, couldn't resist :)

~Lisa~

For Julie!

Here's Jenna on her first birthday, and all dressed up as Little Bo Peep for her first Halloween (at 16 months)

It's Ikea Catalogue Day!!!

Hip Hip Hooray!!! Time to redecorate my home in my head!! I've done my bedroom already...for the bargain basement price of $777! That's a new bed, two night tables, bedding, lamps, and a dresser. Not too bad huh? Can't wait for Al to see what I've chosen this year. And to compare what he likes :)

We love shopping in the Ikea Catalogue.

~Lisa~

Just rambling.

So, I can't do the dishes without getting my belly wet anymore LOL. I also can't do them standing straight up, or else I find myself pushing against the counter too hard, and wondering why my belly hurts LOL...oh the mindlessness of a pregnant woman.

I'm into "the teens" now :) Only 19 days until the baby arrives. At first, I was so excited to have the date set. But now, with the countdown edging closer to the actual event, and not just the approximate time nature might decide to push that baby out...I'm getting more and more nervous :) Probably because of all the things I have left to do, or to get. :P I don't think I've ever been more unprepared for having a baby. No bag packed, although I know what I want to put in it. No room all perfectly organized. No coming home outfit chosen with care. No clothes washed in baby detergent awaiting a little person to fill them. I have to get Pads. I have to get a new baby monitor. I have to get nursing pads, and a decent nursing bra might be nice. Oh man. I have so much to do LOL...I guess all i can do is laugh now.

I'm wondering if I should get Henry's parents a Thank you card like I did for Logan's parents. It's a little different this time, as I know I will be returning to them in a couple months. Hmm...just not sure about this one.

I'm really hoping that my husband will get home earlier tonight. I miss him so much when he works late. Tuesday night he got home at 11, and last night it was 12. Good for the paycheques, but the kids and their mommy miss daddy something fierce.

Jenna needs a haircut :P her bangs grow so fast. Not sure if I should do it now, and again before school, or wait...I'll probably get them done soon...she won't be able to see soon LOL

Jenny had a great suggestion for easing Jenna's mind about me going into the hospital. I am going to try and see if the nurses will let me take her around, show here what the place is all about. I'm sure she doesn't remember when I was there with Aidan. Hopefully it will help her!

We're finally getting some rain. And I forgot to put the lid on the sandbox last time we used it. Must be God's way of telling me I'm lazy LOL.

Okay, so this is insanely long and boring, and going nowhere really. Off to make dinner, and pray that my husband gets to eat some of it tonight.

~Lisa~

I refuse to be too hopeful...(totally tmi)

But I am pretty sure I am starting to lose my mucous plug!! Just a little here and there...but it's there!

With Jenna I lost it in stages, over about a week or so...and felt my first real contractions on the way to the hospital to be induced. And was given the pitocin anyway :(

With Aidan I never saw a single sign of it, and had to be induced as well.

COuld it be? Could I maybe go into labour on my OWN this time!? Despite knowing that a c-section is in my future anyway, it would be kinda nice (OMG, who says this? LOL...) to experience going into labour once! Having my water break. Feeling that rush of uncertainty.

I remain impartial. Well...I'll try to anyway :)

~Lisa~

My heart is breaking :(

Poor Jenna. As much of a Daddy's girl as she is...deep down she's still a Mama's girl at heart. And her poor little four year old heart is breaking at the thought of her Mommy spending a few days in the hospital WITHOUT HER.

She's been crying and craying on and off since about 7 tonight. And I just can't make her understand that it's only a few days, and that everything is going to be okay. My mom is coming to watch the kids while I am in the hospital...I thought that would help Jenna...nope...she wants her Mommy. I told her she can call me on the phone...didn't help much. I told her that she could come visit me...that made her want to STAY with me in the hospital. Ugh, back to square one.

I wish I had the magic words to make her understand it all. I wish I could have a natural labour and birth, and be home to my sweet girl in 24 hours like so many other mommies. I wish she wouldn't look at me with those bright blue, red timmed, tear filled eyes with such anguish.

I don't know how to fix this. And it's breaking my heart.

~Lisa~

We had a date!!!

How lovely it is to leave the house, and only need to buckle myself. To only worry about me myself and I, well, and Al of course.

We figured this is probably the last chance we'll have before The Bean arrives, so we took advantage of it a little :)

Went to see The Island. What a great movie!! I like sci-fi though.

It was nice to walk at our own pace. And to hold a hand that fits so perfectly in mine. To not admonish, or worry. To not hear, "Can I have this or that" a million times.

Makes me sad that it's going to be such a long time before it happens again. But it was so nice while it lasted.

~Lisa~

My kitchen smells so good!!

I don't know what got into me, but I was a baking fool yesterday!!

I made brownies first...they need frosting I think, but I looove thier texture. So soft, and chewy. YUM!

Then came the banana bread. Julie has the most wonderful recipe! I made a double batch, so we could have a loaf and some muffins. Just deliscious!!

I love the way my kitchen smells :)

And even better than that, DH kept washing the dishes after I was done!! So there's no grand mess to face this morning. I love that man :)

~Lisa~