Tuesday Twelve.

1.  Zachary turned 8 going on 3 weeks ago...I posted about it TODAY.  Go see it.  I don't want it to get buried in the posting and not get it's proper Happy Birthday-ness.

2.  We are fast approaching March and hello spring, but hello where was winter?

3.  We are also almost done getting everything updated for our update to the adoption stuff.  This go round has been a bit more stressful, probably because we have an actual date that things need to be done by.

4.  Nolan is wearing me O.U.T with the no napping thing.  It's really not cool, not cool at all.  He is currently sleeping..strapped to my chest in the Moby.  It's sweet really, really it is, but also I am tired.

5.  As a result of #4 there are rings in my toilets and dog hair/cat hair/dust/dirt in places I would rather there not be....but it will wait.  The baby takes precedence.  He will nap eventually and then he will be off to kindergarden and then college so yes the dirt can wait.

6.  The boys started soccer last night all 3 are playing on 3 different teams we shall be busy.  Yes we shall.

7.  I have had the stuff out to take Zachary's picture for several weeks now.  We have done the outside ones and I would like to tinker with some inside "studio type" shots this go round.  But I am skipping the lights therefor I need good inside lighting.

8.  We went to TN this past week while the boys were on break.  It was nice to see everyone but honestly traveling with 4 kids is a lot of work.

9.  We got Nolan's birth certificate in this past week....he's the only one of us that doesn't have a TN one.  Weird.

10.  Zachary told me yesterday he has 59 more days of school left.  Crazy.

11.  I need to clean...but eesh...#4 and #5.

12.  Nolan is getting sweaty.

13...oh gosh darnit---I forgot to do the 4 on the 14th thing.   Grrr.  I remembered all the way until the 14th.  *headsmack*

catching up...

very soon.   I haven't written because I don't want to post a thing until I post about Zman being 8...which I  didn't want to do until I took some pictures of him...which I haven't done.   So yeah.  The issue with that is the best time of day for light is while he is at school.  Will figure it out :)

Eight.

Eight.  Eight.  Eight.  Zachary is 8.  Eight always sounds so big and pivotal but then they turn the next age and it seems big too...but 8 just is.  He's 8 and he's great.  My smart, fun, wild, happy go lucky boy.  

So much to say about this boy.  Zachary is and always has been full of life and energy and happy.  At 8 he fills up a room with his life.  He loves to have fun and loves to play but all at the same time can be so very big and serious when he really needs to be.  He is a whiz at school and why we are so surprised by that is beyond me...I mean we knew he was a smart cookie but maybe because of his silly and goofy we didn't see how much.  He is a busy dude, always moving.  At 8 he loves to play outside with friends and loves to play video games.  Computer games, wii games, DS games...and even board games he just loves games.  He loves to read and will breeze thru chapter books in a night (oh how I know how that is....a good book must be finished instantly!) if we aren't paying attention and forget to tell him to turn out the light.  He's profound and mature.  

He is a lover and knows how to turn on the charm.  His teachers love him, the girls love him, and his fun makes other love him.  At school he is quiet and serious and rarely gets in trouble but at home he is a tornado in a room.   Our Zachario is so many things rolled into one awesome little boy.   Happy, silly, serious, thinker, watcher, observer, funny guy, party man, motivated, hard worker, handsome, awesome.  Watching him grow and twist and turn thru life is amazing and seeing him develop into the boy he is and the man he will be is even better.   I can't believe he's 8 and I can't believe we have such a fun spirited awesome little guy to call ours and I am so forever thankful that we do.  He adds the spice we need and the reminder to be silly and have fun.   Happy 8th Birthday Zachary, Zman, Zachario...we love you more than you know.   

3 Months

One quarter of a year and I am still amazed.  At 3 months I snuggle him and picture his grown up self and wish I could keep him so sweet.   At 3 months he is a pro smiler and I managed to get one little chuckle laugh out of him last week.  No full on belly laughs just yet.  He rolled over last Thursday from stomach to back...I think it was a fluke but I am counting it.  I had laid him down and he just plopped right over.  He seems to be creating a routine of his own eating every 3 hours and napping for 30 min or so every hour and a half.  At night he has been bumping his bedtime earlier and earlier and seems to be consistently down for the night between 7:30 and 8.  Which is right when his brothers go to bed so that works for us!  We know when he is down for the night because he is O.U.T. out, most definitely different from his daytime sleep.  He has had a few nights of sleeping for 7hrs before waking to eat.  Most nights he only wakes one time.  We get up in the mornings about 6:30 to get ready for school and often he will wake up long enough to get a clean diaper and eat and then konks back out for another hour or so.

At 3 months he holds his head up like a champ, is rocking "tummy time" though isn't a fan he can lift his head quite high and look around.  He can sit propped up and can stand on his short little legs for I think as long as we will let him.  He still "drums" his fingers and is moving his little hands all over the place.   He is often found holding his hands together at his chest and it is quite possibly the sweetest thing ever.  He is drooling lots and is often found sporting a bib these days--I know his brothers did the same thing at this age, though Nolan likes to let it all bubble out of his mouth and usually is kicked back chilling with foam coming out his mouth.  He still seems to like to be swaddled to sleep though he wiggles those arms out as soon as he can.  We also busted out the exersaucer and jumperoo....it looks like we have a daycare in the living room.

It seems I could go on and on with all that has changed over the past month.  He has gone from a newborn to an infant who enjoys toys and is smiling and smiling.  He most definitely prefers me over most people.  He does let a few people hold him for just a bit before turning into hysterics until I "rescue" him.  Poor Robert is trying to not get his feelings hurt.  I think he is worse than his brothers were about this, at least at this young of an age.  He is doing much better about getting startled by loud noises and fast movements but still will let out a wail if we talk to loud suddenly or even appear in his line of sight out of the blue.  I think he is very alert and this is part of why he startles so easily.   Other than those times he rarely ever cries and is a content happy guy at 3 months.   We are getting into a routine with him and enjoying every minute with him.  His brothers adore him and we still just can't enough of this sweet chubby cheeked baby boy.  

Twelve on Tuesday

1.  Nolan is going on a little over an hour of sleeping in his crib--during the day--this is a first.  However I should point out I have had to go in and put the paci back in his mouth three times, though all 3 times he nodded back off to sleep in seconds.  Progress?

2.  Tomorrow Nolan will be 3 months and I have brought all my "studio" equipment up in an attempt to capture "studio'ish" pictures of him to mark the occasion.

3.  I am feeling the pressure to get these just right because Jakeb, Zachary, and Gavin all 3 had studio portraits done at 3, 6, 9, and 12 months...they are all hung in a row upstairs.  Nolan can't be left out...oh the pressure...not really but I would like them to be similar--we shall see.

4.  I managed to get the upstairs dusted as well...I would be much more productive with my day if baby boy would nap.  Eventually my friends, eventually.  For now I will enjoy his snuggly naps in my arms.

5.  Last night I woke up with little feet kicking away into my side I groggily sat up to find Nolan in quite the precarious situation.  One that has me thinking it may be time to either being sleeping without pillows or move the little guy to the bed beside our bed rather than in it.

6.  Gavin and Zachary have performances at school tonight--Zachary is not eager and Gavin can't wait.  He was in my room this morning at 6:23 dressed with his bed made and ready to go.  He is the only one so far who actually has participated in his school performances.  He sings loudly and proudly---we love it.

7.  Jakeb plowed thru his math this past "semester" and managed to bring his grade from a B to an A.  Thus having straight A's.  Awesome dude he is.

8.   I think I may bust out the knitting needles and/or crochet and teach myself that again--or rather remind myself.  I started doing both of those a few years ago and never actually made anything but I really want to!

9.  And also...the sewing machine.  Mmmhmm.  Going to get that off the top shelf and at least set it on the desk downstairs.  I also asked for that years ago and thus far all I have managed to do with it is lose a crucial piece (and replaced it) and sew very crooked curtains.

10.  Can you tell I have been on Etsy and Pinterest?

11.  2012 has been the year of facing the debt and getting it gone.  Yes.  We have debt.

12.  We need it gone so that in 2013 we can kick things back into gear on the adoption front.

Sunshine.

This past week has been full of it. I am grateful because I need it...I suppose we all do though, eh? The big boys are off to school and Nolan is still snoozing..in the swing. I THINK he slept from roughly midnight to 5:15...I am not sure because I know he stirred and I popped the paci in his mouth but I am honestly not sure that I didn't feed him. Yes I am THAT tired. The lack of continuous sleep over the past 11 months has completely caught up with me. While I am not a napper I am 100% a person that needs a goodnights sleep...but it is what it is and really I am not complaining just rambling really. I am posting this via my [broken] iPad. Poor Gavin dropped it and broke the screen. My sweet 5 year old boy who can beat himself up for making a mistake one minute and then drop to the floor throwing a fit because he doesn't get something he wants the next. He's a confusing one that boy. But very much my little buddy these days. I just noticed Zachary's wet nasty socks by the back door. The very socks I told him to put in the washing machine. It seems they didn't quite make it there....they are laying next to no less than 4 pair of shoes belonging to the same child. We all like shoes in this house. Though 2 of those pairs were hand me downs just given to him from a neighbhor. This is basically a post of randomness as are much of the posts I make here so I don't know why I need to give that explanation...if you ever have an actual conversation with me you would see why. I pretty much bounce all over the place when I talk too...just gotta keep up folks. Valentines Day and the Zman's birthday are fast approaching which means roughly 60 valentines that need to be given and birthday treats for roughly 30 kiddo's prepared. Thinking about getting that worked out soon...other than that not much else on my plate...other than you know the normal things. Enjoy the sun!

Tuesday Twelve.

1. Tuesday keeps sneaking right past me lately...I managed to catch it today...later than usual.

 2. Nolan is 12 weeks today. He is sleeping beside me, swaddled up, with his little feet propped up on my hip as he lays across the bed. His head is turned to the left as it usually is and I think I should move him but also that I shouldn't. So I won't.

 3. In just 12 short days my Zman will be 8 and he's very proud of that. I am proud of that and of him.

4 . The weather this week has been very un-January...very spring. It's nice.

 5. We are heading back to TN in a few weeks...it will be Nolan's first long car ride and also our first trip back in many months.

 6. Robert really needs a new car and we are dragging our feet not wanting another car payment--we may try the one car thing for a while longer.

 7. I am kinda missing be able to help out at the boys school like I was doing.

 8. Jakeb got his own room a few weeks ago...he is really enjoying it but also branching off from his brothers and I am not crazy about that.

 9. Gavin is really learning to read and it's awesome. He certainly could have much sooner but being the 3rd kiddo in school the time he gets having us work with him is a bit shortened. Plus I learned with Jakeb to not push it and Gavin is like Jakeb in that regard. So we take it slow...my perfectionist boys need to move at their own pace.

 10. My brother and his wife are just a few weeks away from welcoming their little GIRL into their...our lives. We are all very excited.

 11. My sweet baby is becomming quite the "mama's" boy already...he will tolerate other people for a bit and then he's done.

 12. This number is always the hardest...

A week?

It seems I can't manage to stay consistent in my posting here....pretty much story of my life.  Other than being consistent at being not consistent.  So we are wrapping up the end of January and like every other month I am wondering how that is.   January so far has been warm and rainy and very un-January, so that doesn't help.  
Nothing new and exciting on the home front has happened in the past week.  Nolan has recovered from his cold that really was just a cold that we got a little scared about--and then was told was RSV.  He did get pretty wheezy and I am hoping we don't deal with that with the next round.
I am still working on backing up and organizing photos--and then wondering what in the world to do with them all.  I still think a picture room is a grand idea and I am not kidding.  How neato schmeato would it be to have picture wallpaper of your life?  I mean it would be a new memory discovery everyday....pretty genius if you ask me.
It's a dreary day again here and we are just hanging out not planning a thing.  Nolan is crashed out in his swing and despite my best efforts to get him to nap in his crib for more than 30 min it's still not happening and often I give him and put him in the swing.  Where he sometimes snoozes for an hour and sometimes 20 min.  The napping thing is still a "struggle" but I am thinking it's just that he's not there yet for a routine.  Or really he is on a routine of sorts but not one that consists of long naps.   We will get there.
Pretty much it...weekend is rolling around and we have 2 birthday parties and more just chillin'.  I am hoping for some sunshine but we'll see!

Hold it.

Everyone is back at school as of yesterday.  Nolan is still wheezing and congested but I think (I hope!) we are over the worst of it.  Baby colds suck, especially when you know it can be bad and scary (thank you RSV)...the other night Robert and I were chilin' on the couch and Nolan coughed, gagged, and threw up lots o' mucous.  In the midst of it I heard him gasp for air and breathe in all the gunk he was trying to throw up...it occurred to me that if baby boy was really choking I would not know what to do.  That scared me and made for a few moments of panic...enter YouTube.  I looked up several videos on infant CPR and infant choking and feel much better should the event occur.  How on the 4th babe I am just now getting to that is beyond me.  Other than I just worry more now.  Go figure.

We got our letter to Colombi@, requesting that our application to adopt be put on hold for a year, typed up and ready to head on out.  In hindsight we should have had this ready to go before Nolan was even born.  Because as it stands things won't come off of hold until likely February of 2013.  But we didn't...I wish we didn't have to put it on hold but we do and it is what it is.  We financially couldn't finish up things right now anyway so it's for the best but still is stinky.  I found the basket of clothes I had bought for the Colombi@n Cutie this past weekend and it just makes me remember how excited and anxious we were---and I am still but knowing that we have to focus on other things right now forces me to push all of that aside.  Not to mention I think I would go nuts if I was completely consumed with all things adoption--while we can do nothing.  So that's getting done as well as the update to our home study and renewal of our USCIS approval.  And then we wait and enjoy this little guy and have more time to ready ourselves both financially and emotionally.

Sick, Sicker, Sickest

We are dealing with our first round of illness rolling thru the house this winter.  It has struck all 4 boys--yes including the baby.  Gavin brought it in and it seems Nolan is taking it out.  Gavin was diagnosed with Pneumonia this past Friday (a first!) and Nolan with RSV yesterday (also a first!).  Jakeb has an ear infection and Zachary is still holding steady with just a funky cough and some snot.  So far we are getting mild versions so I can handle it...but a 2 month old with a cough and wheezing is just not fun and RSV!. Though when is it ever fun--but 2 months makes it another ball game.  He is completely taking it like a champ though--for real babe is still smiley and chatty.  He's the happiest RSV baby.  He is also kiddo #4 to "sport the mask".   He rocked out his first breathing treatment today and impressed the doctor with both his neck muscles and his ability to happily have smoke blown in his face.  Good times.   So it's a bummer for that but I am feeling much better now knowing that if I get worried I can give him this and it should help...and also yesterday Dr. gave us an Rx of amox but it seemed a bit like a "just in case" so I pretty much decided no thanks on that--becuase uh hello two month old on antibiotics uh no.  And today Dr. said let's just skip that, thank you very much.  So we will deal with albuterol--aka inhaled steroids but will skip the amoxicillin.  And accept that it is what it is and somehow for some reason unbeknownst to me these little boys all 4 of them need a little breathing boost when they are bitty.   'Spose it could be worse.
And I think it might mean I drink too much coffee when it's splattered all over my keyboard...that or I am messy...or both.

The Biggest Brother.

One of the neat things about having a baby in the house again is seeing the nurturing coming from the big brothers.  Jakeb, the biggest of the big ones, is especially sweet.  One day last week or so we were sitting in Nolan's room after he woke up from a (brief) nap and Jakeb asked to hold him.  As he started to take him he remembered he needed to wash his hands and ran off.  He came back and picked him up out of his crib...standing to hold him is something we are letting him do here and there under strict instructions to NOT do unless with us.   So he carefully picked him up and walked over to his rocking chair and sat holding him.   And I sat on the floor watching the 2 of them...my almost 10 year old and my 2 month old. My oldest and youngest....watching him with Nolan is just cool.  He is careful and sweet and amazed by him.  We call him Daddy Jake or Daddy 2.0...he is just good.  Nolan was looking at Jakeb and smiling and Jakeb giggled "He's smiling at me...look at him smile"  He (Jakeb) talks to him in the baby voice we all get and he gets it.  The baby-ness.  Nolan fusses and he has a barrage of people around him to pick him up or pop a paci in his mouth.  Jakeb often responds faster than I do and he responds as if it was second nature...he just does it.
I can't wait to see how their bond grows, how Nolan at 2 looks up to his almost 12 year old brother...or at 4 and 14.  Wow.  My first thought about having a baby and a 9 year old was that it was like starting over and it is but oh my how neat it is.  Watching this big boy with this little baby is just...sweet.

This past Friday I ran Zachary to a neighbors house just down the road...as in in our neighborhood about 8 houses down.  It was cold and I am not ok with him walking down there alone just yet (our 'hood is very hilly and people make me nervous driving).   Nolan was asleep and it was going to take me 2 min so I told Jakeb he was on baby duty--ie pop the paci in his mouth-- but most likely he wouldn't need to do a thing before I got back.  Of course Nolan woke up while I was gone--my 2 min ended up being more like 7.  I came in to find Nolan laying in his crib happily chatting away to his big bro.  Jakeb who was calling a friend when Nolan started crying told his friend he had to go to deal with his baby brother.  {relayed back to me by Jakeb of course} He then proceeded to tell me that he in fact picked Nolan up and got to the top of the stairs to bring him down (EEK!) and realized that was probably not a very good idea so he laid him back down in his bed.  Smart, careful boy.   While I certainly don't think a 9 year old is ok to babysit for any length of time it's amazing how careful and thoughtful he is.  Watching him with the baby is fabulous and I am so glad we are getting the chance to do so.

4 on the 14th.

So I am barely scraping in under the wire on this...first day on it.  But it is what it is and I did it so yeah.  For the record I spent all day working on organizing their 365's from um...2008/2009 but I am almost done!
Here is our first installment of the 4 on the 14th....in crummy lighting and with sick kids--one with pneumonia, one with a sore throat, and one with a cough.   And yes they are holding the healthy baby...with strict instructions to NOT cough for the 30 seconds I need to take a picture.  All 4 freshly bathed and pajama'ed and ready for bed!

Lighter.

Occasionally I have days like yesterday where everything is everything and oh em gee I can't handle it all.    Truth be told I feel a bit overwhelmed everyday but in a completely manageable way where it's just life and no big deal at all...and then it sorta gets the best of me and I have a grr day.  Today the sun is shining and that helps oh so much...because it's winter and the blahs of winter are just that blah.  After I vented I was able to then get up and toss my nap fighting baby in the Moby, run the vacuum and mop and then busted out the bucket 'o clean and de-handprinted a few things.  I even moved the trash can when I mopped the bathroom this time.  How's that for productive?  And all the while Nolan slept in the Moby quite happily.  I did mention to the big boys that there was something wrong with the picture when I was vacuuming away with a baby strapped to my chest and they were sitting on their duffs playing their video games on the couch.  But we will work on that another day.
Gavin is home from school for the 4th day today.  So we finally took him to the dr. and kid has pneumonia.  And of course he does because unlike what we normally do we didn't take him to the dr because he has been borderline ok and not and we also haven't stayed on top of his meds because this time he's not really had the labored breathing he usually has.  So oops and really not because he has walking pneumonia which is apparently sneaky so I don't feel bad really.
I have been really working on actually editing and playing around with our personal photos again...I don't need to do that with all of them but there are a few that I just want to stick out so it's nice to play around with them again.  Plus I am rolling around some ideas for "picture projects" to do again this year.  I still haven't finished up the 365's of the big boys I did years ago but have no doubt I will...leaving things unfinished isn't really my style.  I AM going to do something with all 4 boysies starting tomorrow...another blogger I follow takes a picture of her 4 on the 4th and so as not to completely be a copycat I thought I would do 4 on the 14th...not that it really matters.  That and the 4th totally zipped right past me and I forgot so figured I would improvise.
Have a good weekend folks!

Too much.

There is laundry piled up all over the house.  Clean laundry needing to be folded, clean laundry needing to be put away, and dirty sheets thrown over the balcony to be washed.  There are mud stains on the floors and windows.  Hand prints on the walls and furniture, milks splatter stains on the chair legs (what a pain to get those off!).   Dog hair, cat hair, dust, dirt and just gunk everywhere else.  Papers and clothes and toys and just stuff.  Outside is dreary and muddy and messy and wet and don't even get me started there.
It's a lot and sometimes somedays much like this day it's overwhelming.  It gets a little too much feeling.  And it's everyday.  All these things everyday.  It's never done because as soon as it is it isn't.  And I didn't even mention the kids needs and Robert and me because I am typing this and reading Jakeb his spelling words at the same time and that says it all.  Gavin is playing the iPad again with Zachary and Nolan is fighting sleep in the swing.  I haven't showered today but mostly because it's winter and my skin is dry and I am still trying to train my hair to be not oily.  And we went to return some shirts that I got that are too big (yay!) and one I just don't like so now I have to go back to the store to get it right...again.  I used to like to do that but now it's just a pain.
Today is too much and I am irritable and grumpy.  I am trying to get laundry folded but all I see is dirty floors and a handprinted refrigerator and dirty dishes and all the while trying to talk to a smiley yet fussy baby and also the 5 year old who is bored and coughing and sneezing and "seriously STOP whiping your snot on your shirt."
So instead of doing all the things I need to do I am sitting here venting before I LOSE my mind or cry because I think I might do one or the other.  On a good note dinner is ready for the day and we get to have bread with it.  Of course it's also the third night we are having pasta so we might blow up like a balloon and need to get that large afterall.

Wordless Wednesday-Phone picture version.

Before Christmas we took the boys to the Phineas and Ferb LIVE show in Atlanta...these are from downtown walking to the arena. 

 My stepdad...David with Nolan on Christmas Eve...

I promised the boys we would hit up the local play places....this one is KangaZoom...it was ok not worth the $30--they got to run some energy out though...

 Zachary got an Air Swimmer for Christmas...very cool.

 Just a sweet sleeping face.

 An awesome big brother.

 And an awesome Uncle.