Exhaustion

I think I'm definitely getting to the point of exhaustion!! I was wondering this morning why I feel so tired and decided to think through our 24 hour schedule. Here goes!

4am-ish: Graham wakes up for his first marathon nursing session.

5am-ish: I go back to bed.

7am: The big boys wake up and want their 4 packs of Quaker instant oatmel and "white juice" (not to be confused with milk!)

8am: Attempt to get the boys dressed before Graham wakes up to nurse again.

9am: Try to get out the door to the gym or to take Patrick to school. Not doing so good with this one. We usually don't get out the door until closer to 9:30.

10am: Hit the gym!! Try to get my workout in before one of the boys needs a diaper change or Graham needs to nurse. They don't change diapers in the playroom at the gym, and they obviously won't nurse my newborn!!

11am: Thankful that my run is over and ponder why my runs have been so difficult to get through this past week. Try to hop in the shower and hope I'm not called to the playroom for above mentioned duties!!

12pm: Come home and make lunch for the big boys and nurse Graham if not already done at the gym.

1pm: Pray for naptime to be here!

1:30pm: Naptime for the big boys and total awake time for Graham. Waiting for the day when all three nap at the same time. But, at least I get some quality time with just Graham :)

2pm: Rush around like mad trying to get dishes done, laundry going, house picked up, etc...

3pm: Feed Graham.

3:30-ish: Big boys wake up, have snack and play while Mommy watches the clock tick down until bedtime.

4pm: Am thankful that our babysitter comes in Tues., Thurs., and Fri. to help me out!!

4:30pm: Run errands if sitter here, watch clock tick down 'til bedtime if she's not here and of course, nurse Graham.

5:30pm: Start dinner for big boys and call Robert to see when he's planning on making it home.

6pm: Dinner for big boys and yet another nursing session for Graham.

6:30: Bath time. Sitter does it if she's here while I clean the kitchen and try to start dinner for me and Robert. It usually ends up that Robert makes dinner because 2 or more of the boys are not following Mommy's Master Schedule!!!

7pm-ish: Robert usually comes home and we eat dinner while the big boys wreck havoc around us.

7:45-ish: Get Patrick and Marshall to brush their teeth, read stories and go to bed.

8pm: Clean kitchen, pick up house, check email, get ready for bed.

9pm: Sit on couch and feed Graham constantly until he falls asleep around 10:30pm.

10:30pm: Make the boys oatmeal for in the morning, make sure my gym bag is packed and the boys' clothes are layed out.

11pm: Usually in bed falling asleep in about 5 seconds or less!!

So, I guess I'm pretty tired because our schedule is somewhat busy and hectic, Graham is in a growth spurt so he's waking up to eat every couple of hours at night (not following Mommy's Master Schedule!) and I am beginning my 1/2 marathon training schedule. Between being a 24/7 buffet for Graham and running my rear end off I think my body is giving up. It's telling me to rest. So, tonight I will attempt to go to bed earlier and I'm thinking that Robert and I will "eat on our own," meaing that I eat whatever with the boys and Robert picks up take-out for himself!! As I'm typing this I am reminding myself that these are precious days. I will miss the craziness of having three boys 2 and under, someday, but just not today!!

Headlocks and I Love You's

Tonight we had a first- the first time Patrick said I love you to Marshall!!! After dinner the boys were running around and Patrick ran up to Marshall, wrapped his arms around him and said, 'I la you!!" It was so adorable until I turned around to look at them and realized that Patrick had Marshall in a headlock! This headlock quickly turned into a wrestling match in our living room. Oh well. I like to think that Patrick was just giving Marshy a big bear hug, not putting him in a headlock, because he loves him soooooo much!! Have a great night :)

Big Trucks

What is it with boys and trucks and cars?! Patrick and Marshall are crazy about them, so crazy that I got the crazy idea to buy them 30 matchbox cars. Now my house is covered in tiny little cars and trucks. And, in case you were wondering, it hurts really bad when you step on one barefoot!! But, back to the cars and trucks. When we are in the car (usually with at least two matchbox cars for each child!) Patrick goes nuts when he sees a truck on the road. He yells, "Big truck, Momma. Big truck!" We end up spending the entire car ride talking about these big trucks. I have started using it as an opportunity to help him learn his colors, but I am failing miserably, as every truck is "geen" to Patrick. Well, today was a special day. There were big trucks doing work on our street. Patrick and Marshall sat and looked out the window and watched them for literally an hour! I thought we were never going to get out the door to go to the gym! We finally did, though, and when we returned the big trucks were still working. There was even a dumptruck and backhoe (I think that's what is was. We just called it a "digger truck.") So, Patrick decided he was not going to eat his lunch unless he was looking out the front door. He just HAD to watch all the trucks. What did I do? Well, I totally gave in and we all sat in the front door and ate lunch on the floor while we talked about all the trucks. Totally not something I would normally let them do, and I have a feeling I am going to pay for this later. But, at least they ate and there was minimal damage caused to my floors. Only a few mashed blueberries on the entry rug!! Well, I am off to clean up matchbox cars and blueberries. I am dreading when they wake up and notice that all the big trucks are gone. I truly believe that the love for trucks, cars, dirt and even bugs is not learned- especially bugs. I think that little boys are born loving these things!! And, I'll save our bug mashing experiences for another post. I'll have to get a picture to put with it, as Patrick runs around the backyard with a Cincinnati Reds small baseball bat and kills any bug he finds!


Note: Whan Patrick woke up from his nap this afternoon he was VERY disappointed that the "big trucks" were gone. The trucks being gone resulted in a 30 minute crying fest. It is 7:30pm and he still walks by the window and says, "Where big trucks go, Momma, where go??"

Butter

Patrick has a new favorite food-butter!! Many of you know of his GI issues he had the first 18 months of his life and our attempts to get him back on the growth charts. This had led us to feed him anything he likes (our Feeding Team and Cincinnati Children's Hospital has always been on board with this!) He is very fond of Quaker Instant Oatmeal made with whole milk (we go through about 30 packs a week) and now butter. Butter on bread, butter on crackers and probably anything else I'd put it on! Last night the boys had grilled cheese sandwiches, steamed veggies and fruit for dinner. Half way through the meal Patrick requested crackers and I gave him a few. He then requested butter. He ended up eating about 8-10 saltines lathered in butter. So, I'm guessing if he keeps this up he will surely move up on the growth charts. The problem, you may wonder? Well, it is "okay" to feed my child butter on everything??? Kind of a little strange, but who am I to judge strange food likes. I eat ketchup sandwiches daily!! That's right- just bread and ketchup. Love it! And, Marshall is somewhat "sturdy," we like to call it! He really probably does not need to eat several tablespoons of straight butter a day in addition to his normal intake!! Oh well. At least I offer fruit, starch, protein and veggies at each meal. I'm thinking I may have to start buying butter in bulk at Sam's!!! And, I will have to refrain from eating massive quantities of butter, too. I have no excuse- NOT pregnant again in case you were wondering ;) and my daily 5 mile runs would definitely not burn off all the butter the boys have been consuming. Until next time- at toast to BUTTER! DOWN THE HATCH!! (just for you, Ash and Jess!)

Shan :)

The "Papi" Fairy

All 16 Pacies Marshall Keeps In His Crib- The Rest Are In Various Stashes He Has Around The House And Car

So, we have a little known problem in the Carraway household. It involves the pacifier and Marshall. I had almost removed the pacie from Marshy's life, but in recent months I had way too many moments of weakness and gave it back to him. Yesterday he called the pacie by name and this made me realize I have a BIG problem. When he says "papi" he wants the pacie. And he says "papi" ALL the time!!! My solution?! Well, I heard a nasty little rumor that the Pacie Fairy is coming to visit a close friend of mine's son. I'm thinking she will have to swing by the Carraway's house on her way out of town!!!! I will keep you all posted on how this goes......And, on a totally unrelated topic- I have packed up all the maternity clothes!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Yipppppeeeeee!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Since I can wear my pre-pregnancy clothes now and have a track record of leaving maternity clothes in the closet too long, I figured I must pack them away. We all know that if you leave maternity clothes out too long you end up needing them sooner that planned, right?! :)......Well, laundry is calling my name. Have a great evening.

Shan

The Pumpkin Patch!!

This past weekend the Carraway's went on a family fieldtrip with Patrick's class at school. We went to Iron's Fruit Farm to go on hayrides, pick pumpkins and even pet donkeys and goats!! The boys had a blast and were even kind enough to pick some small pumpkins, squash and gourds for baby Graham!!! It definitley takes both of us to handle all three on outings like this, but it's worth it. It was so fun to see the big boys running through the pumpkin patch looking for the perfect item to pick!! These items have become objects they throw at each other now that we have them at home. Boys will be boys, right?!

Graham and his goodies!! The Hayride

Marshall Picking His Pumpkin

Patrick and Mommy

Patrick Standing on the Pumpkins

The Boys Petting the Donkeys

All Smiles!

Our boys have been full of smiles lately. Even Graham has started to give real smiles, instead of the I'm-about-to-make-a-dirty-diaper gassy smiles!! These smiles make the sleep deprivation so worth it!! And, Patrick and Marshall have figured out that when we say "cheese" we want a nice toothy grin. Maybe some day I'll get a photo with all of them actually smiling. A mother can dream, right?