Thursday, February 27, 2014

Day 2...

This morning the day began with Mama spilling cheerios and rice krispies all over the floor while serving breakfast to the kids. I guess it was meant to be for me to sweep my floor this morning!! Aside from sweeping though, in these situations we have a handy tool that works much more efficiently - the handy dandy Dustbuster. It's one of the best investments we have ever made since we have had a toddler-infested house. Makes clean up after messy meal-times or cookie decorating (with sprinkles all over the floor) SO much easier!

Baby is officially 7 weeks old today! She's really fussy this morning, so I currently have her attached to me in the baby carrier...another product I have been recommending to every mom I know. I upgraded my baby carrier with this baby and got the Beco Gemini. It's the best thing ever! For those who are familiar with the Baby Bjorn, this carrier is very similar but can hold heavier babies (up to 35 lbs), and can also be carried on the hip or back in addition to out front. Need your hands but have a crying baby and no help? Strap baby on to yourself and you're good to go! I haven't used a baby carrier so much until this baby because this time I've got 2 other little ones to tend to simultaneously.

An update on my messy kitchen: It's about a quarter cleaned for now. Hoping to get some more done today. Yesterday we ended up having to make an unexpected trip to Indiana for an errand, so I lost most of the afternoon.

Off to unload the dishwasher while the kids are all quiet for a few minutes ;-).

Today's quote: "Only he who leaves everything to the will of God can feel truly joyous, light and peaceful." -Elder Thaddeus of Vitovnica (quote pulled from his book, Our Thoughts Determine Our Lives)

Wednesday, February 26, 2014

The Beginning of a New Adventure

Welcome!

Today, I am embarking on a new journey...a new adventure, I should say. Today is my first day at home with my brood of 3 children under the age of 3 1/2. My youngest baby, a little girl, is just 7 weeks old. For the last 7 weeks, I have been more than blessed to have help from family (first my sister, then, my 82 year old grandmother who is actually the most energetic person in the family). Now that my family has gone, I am excited to get into a new routine and be alone with my little family of 5 for the first time.

As any mama would know, the journey of a mother is a cross of its own kind and no Mama ever has it easy. I've decided to start this blog for several reasons. 1) I have found guidance and encouragement through other mothers' blogs in my toughest times. 2) As any mother can relate, motherhood many times can seem like a big fog as it currently does for me. I'd like to look back to this blog later and use it to remember what my life was like. 3) Most of our family lives far away from us and I'd love for them to be able to see what we're up to each week without having to make an appointment for a phone call which will then likely get cancelled due to unforeseen circumstances in the home. I know that my sister and I frequently have short chats that are ended with "baby's crying, gotta go!"

To begin, I'd love to show you what my kitchen currently looks like. Frankly, it's a mess. My one goal of the day is to tidy it up aside from my other typical duties like feeding the kids, etc.






To conclude my first post, I wanted to share one of my sanity-saving tips.
Each morning, ideally, I wake up before everyone else does (now at this point when I have a newborn, this is impossible because I'm really in need of every extra minute of sleep). I have my coffee and read the daily Bible readings on an App on my phone. I find that this helps me start the day off in the right frame of mind. The days I forget to put God first, I find are usually rather disastrous. Next, if there's time, I love to read through a notebook of uplifting quotes that I have started keeping since my second child was born. It's really helpful to me in staying optimistic throughout the day. A routine like this has really helped me feel more at peace during the day because I'm not as inclined to search for "me time" throughout the day when the kids are awake if I get my time in the morning. It also helps me be a more patient and present mother during the day because I've had the chance to clear my head and prepare for the day (forget trying to clear my head at night...it always ends up with me falling asleep on the couch)! I really used to struggle with finding that inner peace in the morning, and while getting up early is a sacrifice, it's worth it.

Prayers have been said, I have my Chocolate Layer Cake candle lit, my tulips smiling at me from the table, coffee in hand, and Andrea Bocelli Radio playing on Pandora. Here's hoping that today is a successful first day home with my three babies!





I'll end with a quote.
"Being happy doesn't mean you have it all; it means being thankful to the Lord for all you have."