Mama-razzi

     

     Okay.  It is starting to happen.  I'm becoming one of those parents who follow their kids around and snap pictures at the most minuscule event. What has become of me?  I've fully entered the realm of a parent paparazzi!  Poor Owen and Drew.  I follow them around and point the camera in their faces and they know better than to resist.  You would think we've got Brangelina living at my house.

     Have I lost objectivity?  Are my kids really not as cute and photograph-able as I like to think? I'll never know because no one will have the heart to tell me!  (And I thank you all for that.) 

     All kidding aside, I've found a new love for photography.  Not only do I get to chronicle my children's lives but I feel creative in the process.  I'm still a novice.  I barely venture off the fully automatic mode on my camera. But I'll keep getting more adventurous and artistic and then my kids will really be sorry!

     Probably the most important lesson I've learned since I started looking through the lens is to appreciate the small and seemingly mundane things in life.  It is easy to get caught up in the drudgery of staying at home with three little boys. I am too quick to see the Popsicle stain on their shirt instead of their vibrantly colored tongue.  Taking pictures is helping me take life less seriously.  It is helping me enjoy the small things that happen in the lives of three small boys.  

Hold That Thought...Again

Oh, to be young and carefree again!  This picture of Owen reminds me of what a good summer day should be like.  Chillin' out, kickin' back on your cycle, scraped up knees, just taking it all in.  I snapped this shot in a rare moment of stillness for Owen.  I had to capture the moment before it was gone!

Some people speculate that your memory goes out the window when you have children.  I have been testing that theory for about four and a half years now and I have a different hypothesis.  I believe your memory gets better... only you have more things swimming around in your brain that it takes a while to fish the thought out.    I mean, you have to have a great memory or else you would never finish a conversation!

For example, it took me and Jay approximately 1 hour to discuss something that would normally take 5 minutes without the hooligans.  In that span of time we stopped and started that simple conversation about 5 times because Drew needed a drink, his lost sock, and had to ask a few questions.  Owen needed to change his pants that were covered in sidewalk chalk and had to be scolded for trying to escape the front yard.  And Kai just needed a diaper change.   Jay and I did our tasks and came back to our talk right where we left off.  This all ran like clockwork and it wasn't until we finally finished that conversation that we realized just how amazing we are...the ultimate multi-taskers!

Mother's Day Musings

We've had a great spring weekend. Our yard is infested with caterpillars and the boys are fascinated and even a bit obsessed with them. Drew has brought a few into the house as presents and Owen has stepped on a few with his bare feet (to which he replies, "I smash him!") Jay insists that these types of gross behaviors are typical of little boys. I just think it is typical of all boys...big and small. You never grow out of a fascination with the creepy crawly if you are male! I'll have to get used to it.

Mother's Day began with a breakfast that I didn't have to cook...yippee! And roses that always make my table look elegant, even if it is crusted up with dried oatmeal and yesterday's ketchup! I've given up thinking that my house can be really clean for one full day. I now settle for no dishes in the sink and no dirty diapers left on the floor. That is a victory if I can accomplish that. I'm getting better at it! I vow to never apologize to anyone for the messiness of my house. If they think it should be cleaner they can clean it themselves! :)

Every day is Mother's Day at my house. I get to be a mom every day and I have the privilege of talking to my mom just about every day. Too bad I don't get breakfast in bed and roses every day!

The One-Armed Woman

Currently I am typing this with my one free arm. No, it isn't in a cast or up in flames...it is holding a nursing baby. And I couldn't be more content about it. It is a skill, really, that I'm quite proud of. (Besides, I still type faster than Jay with two hands!) I can do many things with one arm. I can talk on the phone, put on my clothes, pour a glass of juice, make a sandwich, and even change a 2 year old's diaper while holding a newborn. It should be an Olympic sport!

It has taken me having my third baby to realize that you can't get these moments back. Now I wish I had cherished those times more completely. Before I know it these boys will be bigger than me and when they have a heartbreak I won't be able to pick them up and hold them.

This time is for them. This is the time in my life when I get to kiss scraped knees and make a million peanut butter sandwiches and step on a Matchbox car with my bare foot. This is the season of my life where I don't get a paycheck but I get a grubby handful of Dandelions as payment. I no longer get applause and standing ovations but sloppy kisses and snaggle-toothed smiles.

I am blessed to have this job. My 3 bosses are a hoot! They let me come to work in my pajamas and don't complain when my job performance is sub-standard for a day (or a week). They teach me a lot of things....like patience and how to laugh at a mess and how to readily forgive. Lessons I never really learned until I came to work for these three guys.

So I sit here with a sleepy and well-fed baby and I realize I would rather type with one hand on the keyboard and one arm around a warm little guy than be doing anything else at this moment.