Sleeping...

This past week the kids have all taken on new sleeping arrangements.  The girl's share a room, and normally they each wake up at least once a night. I can't remember the last time, if ever that they have both slept through the night.  This week I allowed them to sleep in the playroom floor on a school night, and they both slept the entire night.  Not only did they not wake up, they didn't move. They were still in the same position the next morning.  Every night since then they have slept in the playroom, and have been getting great sleep.  I think it's time to think about turning the playroom into their bedroom. Sounds like a summer project to me. Until then they are sleeping great on a pallet on the floor! :)

 My sis loves these next two pictures not only because they are so tenderly sweet, but because she is in every one of them.  The girls have had these pillow cases forever, so Amanda has made it in a lot of our sleeping pictures!!

This week I also decided to start letting Mason sleep on his own.  I had prepared myself for many nights of heart break and crying.  I can not believe what has happened. It is unbelievable, and totally a God thing! He knew I couldn't handle crying it out. 

 Since Mason is now standing I put him in his pack and play for safety reasons.  He still lets go, and just falls. The first day I tried CIO for nap time, and after 30-45 min of whining Mason finally fell asleep.  That night I put him down at 6:00, and he woke up at 10:00.  I fed him, laid him down, and after crying/whining for 5 minutes he fell back to sleep.  He didn't wake up until 7:00 the next morning.  Now...this is the child that before this night woke up every 1-2 hours!! He slept from 10-7?!! Utterly AMAZING!!  The next night he went down at 6:00 cried maybe 2 minutes, and fell asleep.  He didn't wake up until 6:00 the next morning!!! Whaaa? How is this possible? Seriously, have you ever heard of such a thing?  Every night since then has been about the same.  He does normally wake up at 10, but I can handle that!  We are both loving our SLEEP!! Praise God! Thank you for this peaceful transition!

Mason's new sleep behavior...watching from an old TV in our room with the video system.

Now, I don't have a picture of Bub, but he has been sleeping backwards in his bed.  His feet at the head, and his head at the foot of the bed.  He's been having some non restful sleep lately himself, so after some research we learned that he was sleeping with his head in the north.  This is supposed to be the worst sleeping position, so he changed it, and is sleeping much better!

I hope your sleep at home has been nice like ours!!

Buenas Noches!!

By the way...If you look closely at the second picture Trin has VERY chapped hands that I can not get a handle on.  Does anyone have any recommendations on what to use on her hands to get them to heal?

Today

Mason had his 9 month appointment this morning.  He weighed 17lbs 8oz, finally hitting the 10th percentile.  He was 27.5 in long.(25th percentile), and his head circumference is 18 in. (50th percentile)We are so happy that he is growing, and the doctors want us to continue concentrating his formula until 12 months.  He said that since he's about to be very mobile, that he will need those extra calories!

Mason's appointment was early this morning, so instead of going home after dropping the kids off at school, I picked up breakfast for Neen.  She ate it in the front seat of the car like a big girl. She was thrilled that she got to sit up front.

As she was getting her food out of the bag, and opening the straw to put it in the drink, I sat there just staring at her.  It's hard watching your kids grow up. I imagined her actually sitting in the front seat in a few years, and wondering about our life at that point.  It will be a whole new chapter for me.  I will have a son about to graduate from college.  I'll have a daughter that will be a sophomore in high school...(Lord help me with this one!!) Trin will be in the 4 th grade, and Mason will be in first grade. 

More than likely Anna will be driving, so the front seat will be all Trin's.  I wondered what she'd look like, and the conversations we would have. I wondered if she'd still be the quirky, shy, funny girl that she is now. As she sat there looking at each bite before she ate it, and scrunching her nose with each bite, I wondered how I was doing. Am I being the best mom to HER, and the other three?  Am I setting the best examples, and teaching them how to handle life appropriately? For the most part, I think I'm doing ok, but there are nights I go to bed and think FAIL, I could have done better.

I either didn't accomplish something I had set out to, or I realize that I forgot to do something that someone asked me to do.  I feel like some of the time I answer conversations with the kids with a little too much "uh huh", and "oh yeah", and "that's cool", without really engaging what they're talking about. I feel like I need to get my standards back up to where they were a few years ago.  I've become lazy in a way, I guess.

So, with these thoughts, I realized that I want to have real goals this year, and be held accountable. I need to do this for me, and my family!  Today is only today, today.  I will never get it back, and I need to make the most of it, and be the BEST mom to my kids that I can be.

So...my goals for 2012 are:

Play with my children every day. I mean really play....completely engaged. Except for Bub...he might think I'm a little freaky. ;)

Write letters to our sponsored children, Ingride, and Jenipar once a month.  Get back to keeping them on my mind daily, and with prayer.

Take care of myself. It's amazing what I have come to accept these last few years. I've put on about 50 extra pounds, used my hat as an excuse to not fix my hair, and rarely wear make up.  Who is this girl? I want the old me back, and I'm working hard to find her.

Be in the Word daily.  On the first of the year I started doing a nightly Bible reading.  It's just about 30 minutes a night, and it's supposed to take you through the whole Bible in a year. So far...I've done really well, and have only missed one night when I fell asleep early.

I want to have a date night with Casey at least once a month! We NEED this.  When we can come together and REFOCUS we become one again, and in tune with each other.  We think better together, and understand each other, and therefore parent better, and love each other better.

I want Casey and I to alternate taking each of the kids out by themselves, once a month. Nothing elaborate, just a special time with us.

I want to slow down and BE in the moment.

I have several other things brewing in my head. I just need more time to sort through my thoughts.

I hope today, and everyday is just how you wish it to be! Take time to "be" with your children and make today the best day it can be.

A few of the photos of my little Trini B.

Mason is 9 months old...

Until I get caught up... :)

The last week has been a blast.  We finished our Advent, took a road trip, had Christmas with family, crossed most of the places off our to do list while in Tx, and had a great New Year's at home!

I have sooo many pictures to go through and post! It is making me feel a little overwhelmed, but I'm challenging myself to do it!

So until then....enjoy some cell phone pictures of my Mister Boy at his first hotel stay!

Mason is doing really well.  Most of his lab work has come back normal, and we just need to retest his urine.  It seems his organic acids were extremely high. 

 I have not weighed him, but I know that he is gaining weight.  He is heavier, and his face is rounding out.  He even has a little pot belly, well... it's a pot belly for him. Concentrating his formula is really working. It's harder on the pocketbook though.  We are buying the big can of formula every 3 days.  YIKES!  He is also enjoying baby food a bit more.  I told Casey that he must of just needed to know what starvation felt like to appreciate food! He is also eating Puffs like they are going out of style!!

So much achievement in the last couple of weeks!

***Update...I took Mason to the doctor this afternoon, and he gained TWO whole pounds in two weeks!!! I was completely shocked!! That is more than he gains from well check to well check! 

 Way to go Mason!