Busy, Busy, Busy

Tuesday was Andrew's last day of school (tear). We dropped him off, ran some errands, and then came back for his ice cream farewell party. Drew was able to meet us there which Andrew thought was very cool...well we all did. Then the 5 of us went to lunch at Chick fil A. Andrew had an amazing year at school considering all the changes that have gone on in his life. The first week of school, my grandmother passed away who Andrew was very close too and really took to heart. The second week of school we moved from the only house he ever knew to a new county, which meant a new school. And AMAZINGLY he never blinked an eye about going to school, meeting new friends, having a new routine; I'm so proud of him and very impressed with the Little School. Thanks for a great year Mrs. Frank and Mrs. Erlinger!



Well since Wednesday was officially the first day of summer for Andrew he asked me if I would wake him up at 5am so we could get on the road for our summer vacation:). I love how his little mind works. Instead of heading to the beach, we headed to the O'Fallon Public Works Fair! This was just as good as the beach for the boys. There was every truck imaginable AND a train to ride on. They had a great time (and I was pretty proud of myself for taking all 3 alone, not having a clue what to expect). After naps, we walked up to the library. Andrew has been asking me to do this since we moved in and it never seems to be the right time. So I finally decided to just do it! It is a very nice, tiny library. The boys picked out books and were so excited. I had to get a new card, since we are in a new county and I didn't have the right identification SO we walked home and then drove back to get our books. Of course Matthew fell asleep in stroller because he refused to nap and was NOT happy about being woken up. But hey, we did it and since Drew was working late I just made the kids an easy dinner after my day of being super mom:)

Thursday was a rainy day and Molly's 6 month check up. (You can see the previous post for all of that exciting news.) Of course I didn't think to look at Andrew's school schedule when I made that appointment so I had to take the whole clan but we survived. Thursday was also Josie's first birthday. The boys wanted to call and sing to her and it was priceless. I wish I would have videoed it because I think it is the first time Matthew has actually sang a song.

Friday Drew traveled for the day so I knew it was going to be a longer day than normal. It looked like it was going to rain all day but it never actually did. We started the day off with Starbucks and then spent the rest of the day playing inside and outside. After naps we went on a walk and I decided to let Andrew drive his Gator while I had the younger 2 in the jogger. My hope was that since we unlocked the 2nd gear he could drive fast enough for me to run behind him. It was close but a fast walk was more appropriate. Better than nothing I guess. Drew made up for being so late by bringing me a yummy salad from Annie Gunn's and a bottle of wine. He knows the way to my heart:)



Saturday we did some stuff around the house, played with neighbors and went to a few garage sales. Then I ran to Target ALONE and did some shopping. Then Drew hung fans in the boys rooms since we went from a cool May to a heat wave. And we ended the day by grilling and hanging out outside.

And FINALLY Sunday. We went to church. When we got home we dusted off the high chair so Molly could try cereal for the first time. It was hilarious; she was not a fan. Hopefully she'll get used to it eventually.

Then we tricked Matthew into a super early lunch and nap so we could get to Josie's birthday party on time. Our plan worked out perfectly, well except for the fact that we had to wake him up. The party was a blast. All 5 of us swam with the cousins and grandma and poppa. It was so fun to see the kids have good old fashion summer fun. The party was great and the boys are at the perfect age where they get SO excited about birthday parties and all the festivities. It was a wonderful way to end the weekend. HAPPY FIRST BIRTHDAY JOSIE!!

Happy Half Birthday Molly

Molly turned 6 months on Tuesday. I cannot believe it has already been half of a year! Molly continues to be such a great baby. She is so happy, great sleeper, and go with the flow. Since our new pediatrician said I could wait to start solids until she was 6 months I decided I would do that this time around. Honestly, it was a selfish decision. It's hard enough feeding the boys so I figured I'd put it off until now, especially since she is such a good sleeper. I'll be sure to post lots of pictures of Molly's first solids in the next few days. Time to dust off the high chair.

Molly is acting like she is ready to crawl. I remember being so excited when the boys hit this milestone but now I know life will get even crazier with Molly on the move. She is starting to get up on all fours. She is also great at the roll and scoot when trying to get to the boys toys all over the floor. Diaper changes are a big challenge these days if I don't have a few toys to distract her. She is really into teething toys right now. She loves holding, shaking and eating them. The other day she started shaking her head "no". Obviously she doesn't know what it means but she thinks it's so funny and now will mimic me when I do it first. She also loves jumping in our arms when we are holding her and making her happy screech noise. And finally she is starting to sit up for a few seconds without support...such a big girl!

Today we had her 6 month check up. I forgot that Andrew's last day of school was Tuesday when I scheduled this appointment so I had to take the whole clan...not something I particularly enjoy. But we did it and Molly looks great. The boys were troopers, not perfect but considering the situation they were good. Molly had to get another round of 4 shots and the Roto Virus drink. She was not happy about that situation, poor thing. Here are her 6 month stats:

Weight: 15lbs 7 oz (45%)
Height: 27 in (90%)
Head Circumference: 41.5 (25%)

Friends and Family, What Would I Do WIthout Them?

Monday I had a great girls dinner with my good ole high school friends. Catherine was in town from Wyoming so she had the girls to her parents' house for dinner. It was so nice to catch up and know that no matter what stage of our lives we are in, we can pick up right where we left off and be there for each other. Drew called about 10:30 making sure I was ok since it was late for a "school" night. I told him I was on my way home and he told me to be careful because storms were moving in. And boy was he right, it started raining so hard on the highway that I thought I was going to have to pull over but I just drove really slow and it eventually calmed down. I was thankful to make it home safe and sound with all my little one sound asleep. Thanks for a great night girls and thanks for being Mr.Mom Drew. (Unfortunately I didn't take any pics).

Tuesday I picked Andrew up from school and he wasn't acting like himself. I asked him if he had a bad day but he just kept telling me he was tired. He ended up falling asleep on the way home which is WAY out of character for him so of course I began to worry. As soon as we got home, I went to check on him in the back seat and his arms and legs were covered with goose bumps and he was burning up! Poor guy. I carried him inside and put him in bed. Then I got Matthew lunch and Molly settled. Then Andrew started screaming. I went up there to calm him down and them moved him to my room to watch Phineas and Ferb (his favorite show of the week). I was able to get Molly fed and then put her and Matthew down for naps. My next challenge of was figuring out what do about an appointment I had. The original plan was to meet Drew there and have him take the kids home but I knew it wasn't a good idea to make Andrew do all that driving. So I decided to ask my friend Tracy who lives close by and works from home if she would be able to come sit with Andrew for an hour. Thank you so much Tracy, you are a lifesaver!

Andrew continued to have a high fever even on medicine and he would just lay on the couch and not talk or move or sleep. It takes a lot for Andrew to sit still much less not talk! He woke up in the middle of the night and got sick from his fever being so high. I decided to call the exchange just to make myself feel better. Meanwhile super dad slept on Andrew's floor with him. The nurse never called me back which was very frustrating because I wasn't able to go back to sleep. Drew went to work and I began my day of putting out fires. It was impossible to keep everyone happy but I did the best I could. I finally figured out that Andrew's throat was hurting him so I looked in his mouth and sure enough white spots everywhere. Of course Molly and Matthew were asleep so my next lifesaver of the week was my brother John. He dropped everything at work and rushed over so I could get Andrew to the doctor before they closed. They did a strep test which was negative so he just had a virus. Even though I was exhausted I knew I needed to get out the house even if it was only for a little bit. I took Molly with me to bible study early so Christina and I could have some much needed girl time. Then I left early so I could get Molly, and myself, in bed. Boy was I glad that day was over!

Thankfully Andrew's fever broke in the middle of the night and he was on the road to recovery. We laid low and I cleaned. Then my wonderful mom came over to watch the kids for a few hours while Drew and I went out and had some adult conversation, what a nice treat!

Friday we went on a long family walk and checked out a few garage sales because it was our neighborhood garage sale Friday and Saturday. We had planned on putting a few things out on Saturday but it was pouring down rain, not worth it. Drew decided to put the boys in the car and drive around to more sales just as something to do. We ran a few errands Saturday night and realized it's not worth it to take all 3 kids looking for a piece of furniture for Molly's room. Sunday was great; church, run, grocery store during naps, and Sunday dinner. Oh and Drew took Andrew to a Pitch and Putt to play 9 holes of golf, he was in heaven. We had so much fun at Sunday dinner. My parents basement is finished and it's perfect for the kids. It was also so fun seeing Josie toddling around trying to keep up with the big kids. It was a great way to end the weekend! I left my camera there so I'll upload pictures soon.

Happy Mother's Day to me!

Well the weekend got off to a bit of a rocky start. Matthew woke up Friday crabby but I thought he was just being a two year old. I finally decided to take his temp around lunch time and sure enough had a fever. After hearing about the Tylenol recall I gave him some Motrin and put him down for a nap. He woke up ON FIRE and it was still 2 hours until he could have more Motrin. I was a little freaked out when the ear thermometer said 104. I called his pediatrician and of course they were already closed. I called the exchange and they assured me that it's not the number of his temp, it's how he's acting. They also aren't impressed with accuracy of ear thermometers so I took his under arm temp and it was 103...same thing in my opinion.

We just hung out and ordered pizza on Friday night. Matthew was actually up and playing so I wasn't too concerned. I decided to check on him before I went to bed. Drew and I went in and he immediately woke up. I decided to take his temp since he was already up. Sure enough, the ear thermometer said 104.7...and we had 2 more hours before meds. I called the doctor back and pretty much was told the same thing as when I called earlier. But the nurse did let me know this time that Motrin had been recalled as well so I check ours and sure enough it was on the list. It was now 11pm and I was on my way to Walgreens to get generic Motrin and Tylenol. There was one bottle of generic Motrin left and no Tylenol. I headed home and it was just about time for his medicine. Drew ended up sleeping on the floor next to him that night. (He can pretty much fall asleep anywhere whereas I would be lying there all night with my eyes wide open). About 1:30 I heard this horrible scream and shriek from Matthew. By the time I sat up in bed, Drew was already in our room with Matthew. He told me it was the scariest thing he had heard. It scared Drew so much that he thought for sure they were headed to the ER. Drew brought him into our bed and they both fell asleep right away and slept the rest of the night. When Matthew woke up his temp was down to 99 and he was in good spirits.

We just laid low on Saturday and got the house ready for Mother's Day brunch. Matthew woke up from nap with a low grade temp so I was debating what to do about brunch. I didn't want to expose the other cousins if he had something but I was also really excited about hosting. So I called my brothers and we decided I would host unless Matthew got worse.

Mother's Day started off with my 3 little ones being so excited to wish me a happy day that they ALL woke up a 5:45!!! Much appreciated;) Since we were all up we decided to go to mass at 8 and then come home and make final preparations. It was the perfect day. The kids played outside, the adults enjoyed the wonderful food and chatted. We even had a special guest, Sammy. Pete and Jill got a new puppy and brought him. He was so cute and is a great puppy. After everyone left, the kids napped and I got to go on a Mother's Day run. Then we picked up Chipolte for dinner and hung out. It was a great day!

Lovin' Springtime

We are loving the springtime weather. We have our new patio furniture and grill on our newly stained deck (way to go Drew) and we enjoy all of our meals outside. It is so nice to be outside enjoying the weather, hearing the boys play on the the new play set and driving their Gator around the court. It's the best.

Last weekend was busy. We thought it was our neighborhood garage sale. We didn't have much but really wanted to get rid of our old refrigerator. So Drew and Andrew were set up with donuts and Starbucks by 7am. And they waited....Finally we had a few people stop by. Andrew would see a car coming and yell, "COSTUMERS!" It was really cute. We found out later that our neighborhood garage sale is in 2 weeks, oops. We did end up selling the refrigerator so Drew was very happy and we'll probably put the other stuff out in a few weeks. While Molly napped and the Andrews manned the sale, Matthew and I went on a quick run. Then we came home and I loaded up the kids to meet the other cousins for a Mother's Day surprise. (I hope my mom doesn't read this but she is super busy with the school and her BIG CHAIRity event, so I'm thinking we're ok). We met at a pottery place and I got some amazing pictures. Then we came home, I tried to unload the camera real quick before Drew took Andrew to a birthday party. Well it got all messed up and I ended up losing all the pictures from that activity and the week. I was so bummed.

Drew took Andrew to his friend Timmy's 5th birthday party at a bowling alley. It was Andrew's first time bowling. Drew got some great pictures.

We spent the evening relaxing, grilling and playing. We were supposed to get storms but they completely missed us and it was beautiful. Sunday we went to church, I grocery shopped (my least favorite activity) and then my mom came here for Sunday dinner since my dad was out of town. They boys were so excited and asked every 5 minutes when she was coming. She arrived with steaks and the rest of the meal so didn't have to do a thing. It was so nice. She also brought some chairs for the CHAIRity for us to help with. My perfectionist husband was a great help. Needless to say it was a great night and the kids were very sad to see her go.

Tuesday, Andrew had a special Mother's Day celebration at his school. Drew met me there so he could take Matthew and Molly to the park while I was pampered by Andrew. It was adorable. First each child presented a flower to Mary. Then the class sang two songs to Mary. After the songs, we went inside and sat at circle time. There, Andrew turned to me and sang a song to me. It was so cute. He had been practicing for a long time. Then they gave us a picture in a frame that they made with Popsicle sticks. After circle time we went to the snack table where there was a place mat that Andrew made just for me and a corn plant that he had planted the week prior. He was so excited because it was starting to grow. (I think he's going to be disappointed when he realizes we aren't going to get a big ear of corn out of it.) Then Andrew brought me strawberry shortcake that he had prepared himself that morning. It had fresh strawberries, cake bites and whipped cream. It was delicious! Thanks for my special day Andrew. Of course the rest of the day was off because Matthew and Molly were all off schedule but we made it to bedtime (or should I say cocktail hour:)).




The kids got to be with two very special babysitters yesterday while I had an appointment. My dad and brother took off a few hours of work to help me out. It was so nice and the kids loved it! When I got back to my parents house, Molly was sound asleep and Matthew was falling asleep in my dad's arms. I laid him down and he took a great nap while Andrew and I "rested". Then Drew met me at my parents so he could take the kids home while I stayed for bible study. We all hung out for a while so I could feed Molly before they left. The boys really enjoyed gardening. Then Christina prepared an amazing Cinco de Mayo bible study meal and I had some great girl time with my bible study girls. HAPPY SPRING!