big sister

Zoe is very nurturing, I love to see her interact with both her brothers. She really is a big help in bringing things to Rhys, and she frequently entertains both Rhys and Beckett. She is even great (for the most part) at following simple instructions. It only gets better from here... right? :)

the past few months, in cell phone pics

several captured moments over the last few months

in no particular order

waiting for our first teeth cleaning

shoulder ride on Grandpa!

pool time last summer

who doesn't love the ball pit?

waiting for his MRI

lounging in the bouncy seat

at the Market with mom and Nonna

waiting patiently for her turn at pics

newborn cutie

too early for smiles, Rhys before his adenoid removal

Zoe helping her Nonna sell some goodies

Rhys watching Shamu on our October trip to Sea World

Zoe's first day of MDO

Rhys's first day of school

baby Beckett on the way home from the hospital

Rhys playing with his Mack truck

baby girl making a run to grab lunch back in August

sweet baby B

Rhys after his adenoid removal, poor kid

kiddo update

Lots going on around here. Nothing new, or necessarily exciting, just life. Three kids keep us busy, and with ours being so close in and it's a little nuts. Combine that with Rhys's extracurricular therapy and I'm one tired momma most days.

I've been struggling recently with the desire to go back to work and the need to make sure everything is properly taken care of at home. Well, that isn't a recent thing, but I've felt it a lot more the last few weeks. I don't want to leave my kids, but I am desperate to feel like I'm doing something that doesn't consist of planning meals or nap time, or scheduling doctor's appointments that don't interfere with our weekly routine. I never planned on being a stay-at-home mom, so this is really confining for me. Don't get me wrong. I am well aware that we are most fortunate that I can stay at home, and that I get this opportunity. I am blessed to be able to see my kids grow. But I also miss my career. And while I'm not crazy about the idea of having to juggle life with two working parents I feel I really need to think about this. The longer I am out of my career the harder it will be to get back in, to find a job, to leave my kids. The farther I will be behind the others in my field that are my age. I have little desire to be 35 and starting into an almost-entry level position. And I loved my job and miss the challenges my line of work posed to my now-mostly-fried brain. So I am struggling with what to do. As of now I've been off work for three years. That seems like an eternity, even though I realize in the whole scheme of things it isn't that long.

In the meantime, Cody has started a new job. It is a great opportunity for him and I'm proud of him for doing this. It's hard to move away from something you like and feel comfortable with, to move into the unknown. I'm very excited for him, but it means a little jolt to my routine. He now works 9-80s so that means I have to get up a little earlier and be home with the kids longer in the afternoons by myself. The next few weeks will be trial and error to get a new schedule down, but I'm sure we'll figure something out.

What are the kids up to?

Rhys:

• Is doing great in therapy! He has been riding the modified bicycle at PT. Similar to the one we have here at the house for him, but much more beefed up. He was peddling by himself!
• Is taking lots of steps in his gait trainer. He understands that he can move from point A to point B now, which is great. He still scissors his legs a bit, which impedes his progress. Man if we could get rid of that problem he'd be flying! Oh, and we are trying to work to get him to stand upright instead of leaning forward on his handle bars. But making progress nonetheless.
• Has lots of new words. The ST is very impressed with his ability to make sounds. He has difficulty making noises/sounds on command, but the ST admitted that he surprises her quite frequently with what comes out of his mouth. He points a lot now, which is very helpful when your child has little to no vocabulary.
• Is still doing great is school. It was rough for a day or two getting back into the swing of things after the Christmas break, but he is back into his groove. He has learned where is nose, mouth, ear and eyes are and will point to them when asked. He also knows a couple of colors, but isn't consistent with identifying them.
• Will point to pictures in a book and look at you as if asking "What's this?". He will go picture by picture until he points to each picture and receives a response from you.
• Is totally in love with the Jorge minion from Despicable Me. A plain ole' plastic blow up promotional doll was included with the movie and that poor thing has been tossed and beat up and loved on quite a bit the last few weeks. Rhys talks to it like it's a real person. I dread the day it gets a hole that can't be patched.

Zoe:

• Is oh so sassy. If I had to give a one word description of her, that would be it! She is full of spunk and has serious attitude.
• Loves school. Her little personality is starting to shine. According to her daily reports she is a leader in the class and loves art. One of my most favorite things is getting her art when I pick her up. She recognizes her friends when we walk into school and seems to play very well with them when I spy on her from the window peep hole.
• She loves her brothers and is very helpful to them. She brings Rhys and Beckett toys and tries to "help". She knows the routine when Rhys gets off the bus, and Monday she helped me push him into the house and get him unbuckled. I am forever amazed at how much kids pick up just by observing. She knows we unbuckle him and then remove him from the chair, and she made the motions to assist. Very funny!
• Favorite phrases are "What's this?" and "Where is it?". Some kids ask "Why?", but Zoe will ask "What's this?". And she asks it of everything. Everything! She points, taps her little finger and looks at you as she asks. As soon as you tell her what she's pointing at she will move on to the next item.
• Recently started swim. She now goes the half hour before Rhys's lesson. I am in the pool with her for a parent/child class and she has really surprised me at how quickly she's picked things up. Aside from water safety I am sort of kind of hoping she may want to do swimming as a life-long activity. Or a sport, that would be great. I can swim, but have no technique and always wished I would have had an opportunity to learn.
• Knows a few colors (pink and green), as well as the signs for them. She also says "two" and "five" in the appropriate sequence when I start counting one, two, three... I started doing that months ago to distract her from things and I guess she's picked up on it. She loves her baby dolls and is very into shape sorters.
• Has a short fuse. She gets very frustrated when things don't go her way. Especially if a toy doesn't cooperate with her attempts to play with it.

Beckett

• Is my PLD, what can I say? I'm totally in love with the boy. He is such a sweetie and loves his momma!
• Can sit unassisted, and does very well for the most part. He still can't sit up to play with toys without having a few balance issues, but he is well ahead where Z was at this point. She really didn't sit unassisted until seven-and-a-half months.
• Grabs at everything. He loves to touch and feel and put things in his mouth. I don't remember Zoe being that into chewing on things like he is.
• Still wakes up to eat at night. Sigh. I'm still working on it, and we're moving in the right direction, but the boy only sleeps for about 6 hours at a time at night. He is eating solids really well and is still on breast milk. He rarely gets formula, but will take a bottle as needed. I'm starting to give him water, but he isn't crazy about it.
• Rolls and scoots all over the place. He isn't up on all fours yet, but I think he's close to figuring it out.
• Loves to be held. He is such a happy baby, but especially when he's held. But he is stubborn. Yes, I can already tell.