4 Going on at least 14!

I can't express my love for my little KC man. He recently turned four and he has so much spunk and feistiness in that little body I can't believe it. He is full of energy and he knows what he wants and is relentless. He loves his brothers and I enjoy watching the relationship he shares with each of them. He has a very sweet side to him and he has been nothing but loving to his young brother Eldon. He can be a stinker and will dish out teases and knows how to taunt like noone else. One thing that KC and I share is the fact that we both think we are funny. He will do things and laugh at himself like no other. KC goes to preschool and has a lot of good buddies. He has been going to the gym with me since birth and there is a bunch of boys he has grown up with and they are quite the gang. It is nice to see him build friendships. KC is addicted to video games and if I didn't regulate it he would play them all day long....we are worried! He is so anxious to grow up and I just want to keep him cute and little. He asks everyday if he can play "Black Ops" which is a video game that is rated "M". I tell him that he can't until he is a grown up. He thinks that if he can do things like write his name, tie his shoes, etc. he will prove that he is a grown up. He is a crack up. I am grateful for KC and the role he plays in our family....I am a very lucky Mommy!

Mr. President

One thing I love about my George is that he is very unique. Today at school they had "Dress As A President". George was trying to convince me to get together a George Washington costume last night at 6:00.......luckily I was able to convince him to be a more recent "George" as in George W. Bush. He was happy to do so and laid out his suit and tie. Look how handsome he is....

When I dropped George off at school I did not see any other kids in costume. Turns out George was the ONLY student that dressed up. The only other person that dressed up was the principal. I asked George if he was upset that he was the only one and he said no with a big smile on his face. When you are the only kid at school in a suit and tie you get some special treatment. He got to go to recess 5 minutes earlier than everyone else, his buddies walked around him and acted as secret service, the girls asked if they could touch his suit and everyone called him Mr. President. I love that George embraces his uniqueness.

Love

So, this Valentine's Day wasn't the most romantic, but super enjoyable. Monday is always a busy day. I usually teach and have a couple of clients to train. One of my clients cancelled, so it made it a bit less hectic. I had to train at 4:30....I came home around 5:45, fixed the boys a grand dinner of chicken nuggets and heart shaped wiggle waggles (jigglers for those that didn't grow up in my household), fed and bathed Eldon, and then left at 6:15 for my traditional V Day night with Scott. We had a whole 45 minutes to hit my annual Tommy's run. I say annual, but this last year I was pregnant and I snuck an extra couple of them in because I could! It's not like I eat healthy, I defintely indulge often but I am capable of eating healthy. I can manage to order pretty healthy at most fast food chains and if I happen to get a cheeseburger, I usually get kind of sick, but not Tommy's. Tommy's is what I like to call 'power food'.... there isnot one healthy option on that menu! I get the #3, hamburger and chili cheese fries. Oh, it's so good, I don't know if I can wait another year for it. Anyways, we had to rush back home by 7:00 in order to get George to his basketball game that started at 7:30. Got home about 9:00, showered, put the kids to bed (the younger 4), finally cleaned the kitchen, we finally got to sit down by 10 to start The Bachelor. Not only did I get Scott into this season, but James and Curtis too.....I know, before you judge me I am fully aware it's not the most appropriate for young boys....whatever.....I fast forward through the raunchy parts and then tell them that if they ever bring home a girl like that they are dead! Scott rubbed my feet and I figured if I already ate Tommy's I might as well eat the See's Candy my dad bought me. For me it was an ideal Valentine's Day, but then again, I am a little different. Bonus to the day was getting to hang out with this little one.......

I enjoyed the simplicity of this holiday, but not everybody appreciated it. I bought the boys very simple gifts, but at least I got them something. Curtis and James got Valentine's themed boxers. Curtis came home and told me his friend got a box of See's Candy from his mom.....apparently See's Candy is a bit better than boxers.......oh well, there's always next year.

Saturday

I am basically writing this post so that in 20 years from now 'IF' I have nothing to do on a Saturday I can appreciate it and remember how busy life was. There are a few weeks out of the year when basketball and baseball overlap. That time has come again. Five of the six boys are playing baseball (all on different teams....I had them far enough apart that they will NEVER be in the same divisions) and 3 playing basketball. So, that means 3 basketball practices during the week, usually one night game, minimum of 7 baseball practices during the week, 4 basketball games on Saturday and 5 baseball practices on Saturday. I fell victim to being guilted into being team mom for two of the teams. Nobody volunteered, and I felt bad for two seconds and said I would do it, but I let them know that I would most likely mess things up, and if they set low expectations they would be pleased with my efforts....I also disclosed that I have a bad attitude and won't go to any meetings (I know, I am a total butthead). I didn't think the coaches would accept under those conditions, but they were desperate. Honestly, one of the things I am so afraid of is that I can't remember names....team moms usually know the players names and the names of their parents, it makes me look like a jerk, but I'm not being a snob, I'm just kind of brain dead and I am not very observent.....this can not have a good outcome....wish me luck! Needless to say, I am so very, very tired! I would feel super successful IF my house was clean, but I will be honest and let you know that it looks like a bomb exploded in here! Oh well, maybe in 20 years my house will be clean. At least I got an hour break today to train a client, it is a joy to watch my boys be active, healthy and strong, the weather was beautiful today, I got to just sit and hold Eldon, and I have a valid excuse for not having a clean house!

Updating My Days

So, I have a 6th kid and have turned into a slacker....NO, I've always been a slacker! I want to keep up a current blog. I have no brain cells left and I want to have something to remind me what I experience on a day to day basis. Last time I wrote it was October, so I will do a quick update........

Halloween was fun, but super exhausting. Getting everyone in their costumes takes a lot of time. James was some sort of zombie, accident victim (had to work in the broken arm with the costume), Curtis was an old man (which turned out fantastic.....he is such a good sport to go along with my ideas), George was the scary scarecrow, Charlie was a werewolf, and Eldon was the cutest little skeleton.
Football season finally came to an end. James missed out on a lot of games due to his arm, so that kind of stunk. George did not LOVE it, and you have to LOVE it to do it. So, George's football career may be a short lived one, and that is fine by me. Curtis on the other hand is obsessed with sports. He seems to know everything about every player, every rule, etc. Just for the record, if I could pick Curtis's career I would have him be a sport's announcer. Curtis had a great season and received the honor of all-league PYFL something or other. Whatever it is, Curtis was picked out of the entire league as the number 1 pick for his position....he was so excited!
Sweet little Eldon was blessed December 5th. He is so fun, and I'm loving EVERY second with him.

I can't stop loving on him!

December was a whirlwind of events....getting Christmas ready was a lot of work, but we managed. I absolutely love this picture of George decorating the Christmas tree. It speaks volumes of what any activity in our house involves......luckily, we didn't have to go to urgent care and he made a smooth landing.
For some stupid reason, Santa thought the boys turn everything into guns anyways, so why not get them all air soft guns? George's expression would be the reason why you shouldn't. They are all crazy. The best part of this picture is my mother in law in the background......I know she was thinking how incredibly dumb we are, but she kept a smile on her face....she never judges our parenting, but even I know you shouldn't arm little boys with weapons....at least weapons that really, really hurt and could actually shoot an eye out!
New Year's Eve was bittersweet for me. I have a feeling it might be the last one that we all get to spend together. James is now 14, and as much as I keep wishing, I'm afraid his desire to hang out with his friends will be stronger than to hang out with his family. He could have gone to the church dance, but he chose to stay home, and we had a great time playing games, eating and hanging out. Little KC wanted to stay up til midnight, but his eyes closed for the night at 11:53pm.

At some point my little 7lb 7oz baby grew......I'm not sure when it happened, but he went from this

to this overnight! How fantastic are those legs! All of the little baby clothes are packed and gone (which was a very, very hard thing for me to do....I get a little teared up just thinking about it :(

Needless to say, Eldon is a healthy, thriving little boy. He sleeps good, he eats good, and he has a very calm nature about him (not sure how long that will last, but he is by far the calmest boy I've had). I love, love, love every roll and fold he's got. My favorite part is the roll that goes over his ankle. Bath-time is a whole procedure pulling rolls apart and getting him clean and I think it's my favorite thing to do for him. He is all smiles.

He is just so yummy. I nibble on him all day long!!!

Basketball season started at the beginning of the year. The three older boys are playing. James was playing basketball at school during lunch and had an encounter with a really hard elbow.....the elbow won and Jamers got 5 stitches on his eye. He seems to always get hurt.

Baseball season is starting again......last season I was newly pregnant with 5 crazy boys and 4 playing. This season I have 5 boys playing and a baby in tow. Just like last season, Scott is the stupid president...yes, I said stupid. It takes up way too much time and I am too lazy to take these kids on by myself, but I'll save more of my complaining for later.

So, like I said, I am going to attempt to keep a current blog going....I plan on noting the good and the bad. I can't stand blogs where everything is picture perfect, so I plan on being pretty straight forward, but I'll keep some of the crazy on the down low....nobody needs to know the whole truth about our dysfunction. I will be bragging every now and then, because I do have pretty cool kids, who are special in their own individual ways.....so if you can stomach it, feel free to follow along!

First Time

As you know, I am really good with bleeding heads and stitches, but I've always been worried about broken bones....for a couple of reasons. If one of my boys has to wear a cast in summer and prevent us from going to the beach he will be grounded, and #2 I have always imagined a bone popping out of the skin and having to rush to the ER. Luckily, neither of my 2 concerns happened with the event of our first broken bone. It is hard to imagine that it took us almost 14 years for one of the boys to break something! Poor James broke his hand over 2 weeks ago and I have had zero compassion for him....up until now. James was at practice and when he tackled someone he must have crammed his knuckle real hard against someone or something, because the center of his hand (under his middle finger) just snapped. I thought his hand was swollen from actual swelling, turns out it was part of the bone sticking up. (Have I told you what an amazing Mother I am?) Just so you don't think I'm too horrible, I did have James go to the urgent care. Scott had the choice of staying home with the 5 kids, feeding them and putting them to bed or to take him. Not a surprise that Scott took him. When the doctor pressed on James's hand he didn't complain so she didn't even do an xray (I should have taken him), so we didn't think it was broken. Meanwhile, James went 2 more weeks, did practice, played 2 games, threw the ball and everything. He did complain a bit about the pain, but not too much. The funny part was watching him play.....he dangled that hand like a limp noodle....I made fun of him, my sister and brother made fun of him, and a few unnamed people were laughing with us.....it was pretty hysterical to watch. He didn't exactly have his best games. Normally I don't criticize his playing, because who's kidding, I don't really know what's right or wrong, but I could tell that he wasn't playing great. He tackled like he had no arms and he got super irritated with me for bringing that up. Turns out he had a really good excuse! I took him to the doctor yesterday, he took xrays and James is validated. He got his cast on today. When I asked him if I could sign it he said, "Um, I think I'm going to have my team sign it." That is when I said, "Good, I'll make sure I sign it first then!" I don't know how he went over 2 weeks with a broken hand. He must have gotten his pain tolerance from his father, because I am the biggest whimp. When I was in the hospital with Eldon the nurses always asked what my acceptable level of pain is from 1-10. I told them 1. I didn't think that was weird. Why would you want to feel pain if you don't have to? One nurse came in and asked if I had really said 1 or if it was a typo. I told her it was right and she started laughing. I said, "Why is that funny? She said noone ever says 1, and if it's in the charts it is usually a mistake. What is wrong with everyone? I still don't get why people want to experience pain. Anyways, back to James.....he can't write, play guitar, play football, and to his complete devastation play X-Box!!! He still can hold the baby though :) He is bummed about not playing football, but he might be able to play in the play offs. My poor little baby!

I Have A Six Pack!

The other day George asked me how many kids I wanted when I was a little girl. I told him 6. He did not believe me and thought I was just saying that because I have 6. He actually called my childhood friend and asked her. She of course answered "6". Scott always says I have to get my way, this time he was right. On August 31st I got something that I always wanted.....6 kids. My due date was not until September 17th. When people asked when I was due I would say, "mid September, but I am shooting for late August, early September." Everyone thought I was nuts, but I believe if you set a goal you can accomplish it.......goal achieved! We really weren't ready for the baby to come quite that early. I was planning on going to Babies R Us that Wednesday to pick up all of the last minute stuff that I needed.....I didn't even have an outfit to bring him home in. Monday the 30th was supposed to be a fun, relaxing day. I had a lunch planned with good friends and family and then had a doctor's appointment for myself and for George since George was home with a fever. Here is a picture of me taken at lunch......

Scott went to my appointment with me and kind of made my midwife strip me. She didn't really want to, because she wasn't going to be at the hospital until the end of the week, but it was

going to be a light work load for Scott that week, so he kept bugging her until she did. I left the doctor's office at 5:00. By the time I got home my contractions were starting to get stronger. I decided I should get my bag packed for the hospital. I told Scott I thought we should get going to the hospital, and he was hilarious. He was freaking out....it was like we had never done this before! He was calling people to come over and watch the kids.....he ended up having both Pam and Jani come over. I felt bad both of them came, but they were both so sweet willing to help. We ended up at the hospital around 7:00 and they admitted me. All I want

ed was the epidural. The contractions were hurting, but I got that glorious epidural so I didn't have to experience much discomfort.....and it was a GOOD epidural! We had quite a group at the hospital......

I know most people don't enjoy a crowded delivery room, but I've had one of the boys without anyone but Scott there and I was sad that we weren't surrounded by loved ones. James wanted to come, and I thought he was mature enough to experience it, but I made sure he wasn't exposed to anything that would make him unable to ever look me in the eyes again. He was in the room for the birth, but didn't see it until everything was cleaned up. Scott, my parents, my sister, my brother, my mother in law, my niece and James were there for the delivery. Two of my sister in laws stopped by earlier. The nurse had to ask for everyone to calm down around midnight.....we are a bit obnoxious.

I normally dilate from a 5 to a 10 very quickly, but this time was different. I actually felt bad for everyone that it was taking so long! They even gave me pitocin around 11:00 to try to get me further along. I was only to a 6. Finally a little after 2 am it was time. I think I pushed twice. My bag broke earlier, but there was still what they called a 'bubble'. Once that bubble popped he kind of flew out. It was the easiest delivery ever. It is such a wonderful experience to share with people that mean so much to me and who were so excited to be there for his entrance into this world.

The cord was wrapped around his neck, but luckily there were no complications. His blonde hair was evident right away and it was so fun to try to figure out who he looked like. He weighed 7 lb 7.8 oz......all of my babies have ranged from 7lb 3 oz to 7 lb 11 oz....I'm very lucky!

Scott cut the cord and James was able to cut the rest of it. I think he was a little nervous, but happy to do it

When he was born he let out his newborn cries, but as he layed on my chest he was very calm and sweet. It was definitely love at first sight.

The boys were very excited to come visit at the hospital.......it was insane when they dropped by. I was completely exhausted by them and asked for an extra day's stay at the hospital. It was great. I actually appreciated the hospital food! I didn't have to make it or clean it up....it was amazing.

Before I came home we got George's test results from his Monday appt. Turns out he had strep and mono.....I was freaking out. After having two babies suffer from RSV I am a complete FREAK about germs and exposing my babies to ANYTHING. Poor George had to keep distance from the baby and couldn't even hold him for a couple of weeks. I took this picture of George admiring him from afar.....so sad.....

It took us two days to name this little person. We finally decided on Eldon James. Eldon was one of my grandmother's brothers. My grandmother has the neatest family, and I was so happy to name another one of my boys after an admirable man. His middle name is a tribute to his older brother, plus I love that name! I am so thrilled to have this sweet, little baby, and I am cherishing every moment with him. So grateful to have my 6 boys!

A big thank you to everyone who dropped off goodies, meals and gifts. Everyone is so giving and charitable. Our family truly appreciated all of it!