End of April

It's been relatively warm here in the Bible Belt. The kids have been able to ride bikes and scooters out in the front lawn and the street.

Dom is doing so well in school. I'm so proud of him. His social skills have grown ten fold. He is so polite in public. Recently, we have been to several bday parties, and time and time again, he is just so polite. If he was just that polite at home. He loves having Jacob around. Up until now, Jacob will only turn his head for Dom (probably because he is the loudest) and kind of smile for him. Dominic is so excited. He is getting so good at remembering homework and getting ready for school. I dont have to push nearly as much as I did at the beginning of the year. He got to do the morning announcements with his class this month. He was so excited, he even memorized his part.

He's at the far left with black jacket on

Do i have enough moving boxes back there?

At the end of the month, teachers decided to walk out due partly to unjust salaries and funding for the schools. We were out of school for a week. This puts us to the last day of school being right before memorial day weekend. So, we are still ok to move at the end of the month. Dom liked being out of school, but it was weird having all three kids at home for two weeks! Luckily, Spencer was here for a week (spring break) to help me.

wrestling

so tired

leaving us once again...

Ethan had a Mother's Day celebration at the end of the month and a parent teacher conference.
He has a good pal Cal...who, I just recently found out is also LDS, he just goes to a different ward in our same building. And he has glasses as well....they both think that's pretty funny. He's started to stutter a bit recently, probably for attention (or because Spencer is gone). But if he slows down (which I tell him to do all the time), he can get the words out. I do feel like his words are not as clear as his classmates, but neither teacher nor doctor seem concerned. So I guess we'll keep playing it by ear. I know he's still technically learning how to speak....so I dont want to jump to any conclusions quite yet. He loves school though. He's already enrolled in a preschool next school year. I know he will be super bored at home.And he loves to read! It's a dream come true....a kid that likes to read. He has memorized some of our best books and i will find him in his bed just "reading" them. He knows some sight words already and he will guess the phrase...and most of the time, he's right. So I think he'll be an early reader.

Mom Day celebration

He's into lifting his shirt up right now

the best part of the celebration

 Ethan also celebrated an Easter egg hunt (inside due to weather) . He had a blast. He loves doing things with his class.

 Spencer now works every other week, instead of two weeks at a time. It's a lot easier on me. For those of you whose husbands actually sleep at night with you....you are SO lucky. Treasure it. There are mommies out there (like me....for the past 10 years) who have  not had that. It's rare for my husband to put his kids to bed or bathe them. With this new job (and when we're all together once we move) he'll be able to do that. I'll have to remind him I'm sure. He likes his job but hates the 8 hr drive every week. I hate the fact that I get practically no sleep for 8 whole days...before I can catch a break. And on top of that, I'm suppose to remember appointments, homework, homeroom mom things, and teacher gifts and parties...and what not. I'll be so glad when this is over.
We met with our realtor and prepped the house for selling here in the next week or so. We were hoping for a quick sell, so we don't leave anything behind. And we close on our MO house on May 29. I"m excited about the new house...and I haven't even seen it yet! Within 20 days, we got a buyer and are hoping to close early June. We will sign the closing docs before we move. All we need to do is pass inspection and hopefully everything will be okay.

helping me clean

Jacob is massive and eats a lot. I think I nurse him every 45 minutes. It's a bit insane. I finally gave that up ( I couldn't keep up with all three children by stopping EVERYTHING every 45 min) and have been feeding him formula 1/3 of the time. When Spencer is here, he seems to make him more. But he still poops bright yellow, so I know most of it is my milk. I have been so tired, that I have spilt several ounces of milk while pumping in the last couple of months....so sad. There is actually nothing sadder than this. I don't even make that much to begin with. Even though I pump, I have NOTHING to store in the fridge. I roll it over to the next feeding and it ALL goes into his belly. He has been known to drink up to 6oz of milk in one sitting. I finally was able to produce a bit more (with the mothers tea, and the oats/flax/yeast mixture, and fenugreek pills) but not 6oz! That's insane! He's a chunky monkey. He poops and pees all day long, and only sleeps about 2-3 hrs at a time. Newborn clothing only fit the first month. Right now, he is wearing 3mo and 3-6mo clothing, it fits him best.
He had his 2mo appointment, and got three shots (but 6 vaccines) and 1 oral vaccine, which he devoured. He cried quite a bit during the shots...the nurse took too long. But I always remember to bing milk for my kiddos...and he was fine after drinking some milk. I thought he would sleep more and be lethargic for the next 24hrs....well, I was wrong. He was just fine. He also measured at a whopping 14 lbs (he was born 8.5 lbs). He's just a beast- big head, super long (23in) and heavy. If he keeps it up...he's destined to be a football player for sure. AND to be moved up  from his baby car seat here in the next few months. BOTH my kids (Ethan being my heaviest at birth at 9 lbs 4oz) were about 20-22lbs at the one year mark. Jacob is on the fast track...again, most of his intake is mom milk, so I'm not sure what I'm eating, but holy heck! If he drink so much, why can't I lose the baby weight so much faster?

waiting for dom to get out of school. my kids hate
their car seats...ALL OF THEM

I am in a zombie state....gotta hang on. I don't sleep, and I am tired all the time. I wish I could tell you that when the older ones are in school, I take a nap, but that is SO untrue. I don't even sit down. That's usually the day I run all kinds of errands, and I play catch up around the house. I do miss the gym. I miss going to class and actually not being home and doing something productive. But I"m still so sore, and I'm still so big. I'm trying to not let the baby blues get to me....but it's so sad when your clothes don't fit even after baby is born. Once we move, I'll have to find a gym or something to join. I gotta get out of the house. For now, the only thing stopping me is the fact that we're moving and there is no point in wasting money right now. ...might as well use it to move.

playground time

We got to celebrate Easter and my birthday early in the month. Since Spencer was not here, I didn't stress and decided to go low key this year. The kids actually didn't seem to notice...which is probably better in the long run. Nobody needs this much stuff every holiday. It really should be about Christ. So I bought these eggs at Hobby Lobby that explain the Easter story. Both kids were really into it. So, I think we may make it a tradition. I only placed about 5 eggs per kid in the backyard. I'm so done with candy and junk. So, this was perfect. Just enough for them to be happy and eat in one sitting. They got tiny fidget spinners and lego figures too.

bunny showed up in our yard. we have about 3 that show up
on a weekly basis