Quick Takes

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Sickness. Last week some nasty head cold invaded and conquered several members of the Casa di Tramma. Poor Joey, for having been a ROCKSTAR with normal sickness last year, is having the hardest time. This is the second time in just 2 months that he's been on nebulizers and steroids. The rest of those sicky munchkins are just whiny and sad, so MORE TV for EVERYONE! 

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Speaking of TV, now here is your public service announcement:  MR. ROGERS IS ON AMAZON PRIME INSTANT VIDEO!!!!  Happiness can be bought, at least in the kindergarten and under crowd.
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So often during the week I have a bouncing braincell inspire me to write, thinking what a great Quick Take, or blog post, or just memory for our own sake I have. Just bouncing around waiting to be immortalized. And then it disappears into thin air just as quickly. I spend a lot of my prayer time throughout the day just hoping and praying that my kinds end up remembering some of these fun things we do without the help of baby books for reference.

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I just recently rediscovered our bread machine, and what a lost gem!!! As I type this the delicious smells are filling the house with their promises of the perfect dance partner for tonight's soup. The bread machine is my idea of a perfect kitchen appliance. It increases my feelings of domesticity exponentially, while feeding my overall laziness by equal proportions.

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Apples, Apples everywhere and not a moment to process. We will... WILL! be making applesauce and apple butter. What century, though, I'm not sure.

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Best links I've read lately:

Why You Can't Read Twilight: a Letter to My Daughter
and
Books You Must Read to Your Daughter, (or How To Keep Your Daughter From Ending Up Like That Horrid Girl in Twilight

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Remember  my bragging about having the world's most perfect baby? Friends may remember how I joked that "it took me four tries to get one, though" and maybe have even been jealous of my washed and combed hair all in the same day? I recant. That darling Boy is screaming his face red while I hide upstairs leaving my husband to try to convince said Baby that said Baby DOES like to sleep for Daddy. Andrew has decided that what he really likes is to only fall asleep nursing and that he should try it again and again every hour and a half or so.

And on that note, I should go rescue him. The Daddy, of course!

Thanks for hosting even us late comers, Jen!

Well it seems I got all enthusiastic about the blogging bandwagon a little prematurely. My computer decided it was opposed to reading my SD camera card = no pictures. No pictures = no visual references for the goings-on around here. No visual reference = significant decrease in writing motivation. Because we all know that I'm just not that funny without a pictures of a naked toddler in cowboy boots.

 "Oh I could tell they were yours; they totally look related to you."

Wellll.... damn. I guess I have to stop pretending I don't know them when they're climbing backwards across the top of the playground equipment.  Last week we were at the park  (same routine, but different park!) and a lady was there with 5 LITTLES. Turns out they didn't look anything alike because she was a home-day-care lady, whose own are in school. We had a delightful friendly chat and not once did she glare at me for letting my children run and climb like feral cats. What a great day.

 Right up until we had to leave, except I was the one throwing the temper tantrum this time.  Andrew had a check-up  and shots at the pediatrician, and Daddy volunteered to take him so I could eat lunch. The real reason, though, was because the next appointment of the day was for ME at the DENTIST. It was okay, though. I used the nitrous and then self-medicated with Mudslides at home.


Meanwhile, back to today...

Within ten minutes of sitting down at the computer the older 3 had woken up from naps asking for and receiving a snack, the Baby nursed back to sleep, and fresh milk was poured and cleaned up. I really had intended to actually write a coherent, fluid post today. I wanted to write about the beautiful challenging life with Bella the  Attentive Kindergartener, Anastasia the Spritely Preschooler, Joey the Impish Toddler, and Andrew the Smiley Babe. But not today. Today I'm busy being mom, and haven't figured out a way to BE that and WRITE about it at the same time.

Hello?

Hello? Hello? Anyone home? 

I think I'm coming back. I miss writing in my little corner of the blogosphere. I also miss watching for comments, and connecting with other people across the net. I think of a hundred things about which to write every week, but the actual sitting down time is just not happening around here lately.

See, I have FOUR KIDS now, and while that's not many for some families, the number 4 seems to have caught us quite off guard.  Oh don't get me wrong, he's PERFECT in every way.  I think just the adjustment to 4 has been different then we expected, and so it took a little longer to pick my head up this time.

Before Andrew was born we used to joke that after Joey this baby would be easy!  "We'll take colic if all major organs are intact!" With this perspective, having Andrew has been easy. We are all together, and he's almost 5 months and his heart hasn't stopped once! YAY! :)  It's just the normal transition of having another baby is taking longer.  So we'll be patient  - with ourselves and those around us. We're learning about the new family dynamic right within our own home, which has been wonderful and challenging, and the new dynamic with those around us as well.

And I have SO much to write about!  Homeschooling! Cooking! Finding my living room floor! Becoming a Lay Carmelite! Chasing that toddler BOY! What I do with all my spare time! How delusional I am! 

So if there's anyone still visiting this humble little corner, stop in and say hello. I'm here. Really.

Celebrating to the Max!

Today is my birthday, and to celebrate I'm going to clean my bathroom and change my sheets. 

I could say something insightful about how I was born to fulfill my vocation of serving others in the mundane...

But really, my mom gave me some new luxurious bath stuff and I plan on indulging this evening. 

Snuggles!

Everyone wants a piece of this baby.  He's just that cute.

"Mama, can I hold Andrew Gabriel?" ... "Again?"

"Mama, I'll sing to him and give him his pacer!"

 "MY BABY!"  (have to watch that older brother. We play a lot of defense to Joey's attempts to play ball with his new little brother.)