Mommy Survived March Madness

 

March Madness has taken on a whole new meaning for me this year.  And this meaning has nothing to do with basketball.  Instead, the Madness is directly related to life with 3 kids. 

 

When we tell people that we have 3 children, we always (and I mean almost 100% of the time) hear the joke about the fact that we've transitioned from man-to-man defense to zone.  As a basketball fan, I'm not sure I agree with the analogy.  You see, in man-to-man and zone, the defense is still 5 on 5.  Zone is actually easier when everybody defends their zone.  But juggling 3 kids isn't easier.

 

Adding that 3rd child to one's well-balanced life is more like getting caught in the middle of a 3 on 1 fast break when you're the only defender in front of your basket.  Typically, for this poor defender to be effective AT ALL, he has to make a smart foul in order to prevent the other team from getting a basket.  This defender doesn't get the luxury of help or a strategic defense.  This defender just has to do the best he can with what he's got.

 

Now I know that you might be thinking that technically parenting 3 kids is a 2 on 3 ordeal.  After all, there are 2 parents in this game, right?  Well, yes, of course.  But the reality of the matter is that I spend most of my days caught in the 3 on 1 fast break.  My 6' 4" defender doesn't show up until the middle of the last quarter of our day.  He tends to be very effective and does show up during the most critical part of our day (and any basketball fan knows that those last few minutes of the game are by far the most important part of any game).   But, until Daddy gets home, Mommy is on her own doing her best to defend her basket.

 

I'd like to think that I'm getting better at this 3 on 1 Mommy business, but some days I'm not so sure. About a week ago, due to a doctor's appointment, my posse and I were out and about early.  I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to stop by a local clothing store, since 10 AM on a Wednesday morning is a pretty quiet shopping time.  But when we got into the store, all chaos broke loose.  The boys started fighting about who got to push a cart (did we really need 3 carts?).  A few minutes later, Baby G kicked off her shoe and started screaming.  Right about that time, Boy 2's shoe fell off and Boy 1 took off with their cart.  Boy 2 is now screaming.  So, I picked up the baby and told the boys to get a grip.  Within 5 minutes, I think they were having an actual fistfight in the middle of the men's department.  Exasperated, I decided to take my clothes up to the register so that I could get them out of the store as fast as possible.  As soon as I paid (with my screaming baby back in her seat), I heard wailing coming from my 2nd child.  He was screaming at the top of his lungs that I forgot to buy groceries that were in his cart.  This was rather perplexing, since the store we were at doesn't sell groceries and there was nothing in his cart. He just stood there and sobbed and his brother started acting all smug that little brother was upset.  Meanwhile, I just gritted my teeth and groaned as I came to the realization that this is life with 3 kids.  Such was my month of March.

 

Parenthood is a funny thing.  When 3 kids are involved, it's certainly not an easy ball game.  It can be a constant state of unpredictable madness.  You can have a month like March and not have any recollection of accomplishing anything during the month. At least as of April 1st, my house is in a semi-decent state, my kids are clean and dressed in weather appropriate clothing, and I'm not currently suffering from a migraine. I must have done something right.  I might not have won a championship, but I survived the month of March.

Plan B

My attempt at creating hummus cupcakes was kind of a bust.  Hummus just isn't pretty.  And my icing skills are bad.  I confess, I had to move on to plan B, a.k.a. "The Vertical Vegetable Tray."

I stole the idea from something I saw at a friend's wedding shower.  The hummus and ranch were actually added closer to the start of the baby shower.  (Thought it might be bad for the nurse to serve spoiled dip to the church ladies!)  The only downside to this set-up is that I had to hang out near the table to  keep up with the refills.

To replicate this, you can purchase the vases at Walmart or Hobby lobby.  Then choose your dips and pick the appropriate vegetables.  In the deep South where Ranch dressing is always a hit, I was impressed how much everyone enjoyed artichoke and spinach hummus.  And so glad I bought extra bags of cheese.  People actually like cheese cubes (who knew?).

His Heart Will Go On...

My oldest son's newest obsession is the Titanic.  Yes, the boat that hit an iceberg in the North Atlantic in 1912.  He can tell you all about the ship's smoke stacks, boiler rooms, size, and elevator.  And he has repeatedly told my husband that if our family had been on the ship, that Daddy wouldn't have been allowed on a life boat.  Morbidity aside, it's pretty funny to hear my 4 year old's version of one of the most famous ships in maritime history.  Of course, he always follows up his story with the assurance that new laws have been made since the shipwreck.  Now ships are required to carry enough lifeboats.  (I predict that this child has a future in risk management.)

These days, the boys are no longer bombing ships and reenacting Pearl Harbor.  Instead, they're pretending to be the captain of the Titanic.  It's pretty funny to hear the horror in their voices as they hit the iceberg and start taking on water.  And all of a sudden, they now want to sleep with their door shut so that they can keep the ship airtight and not let on extra water.  Don't you just love little boys?!

You can imagine the excitement that my son felt when our local Children's Museum hosted a Titanic exhibit.  He was so thrilled when Grandma told him that we could go to the museum to see the Titanic. Unfortunately, I forgot to clarify that the Titanic is still at the bottom of the North Atlantic (currently being consumed by metal-eating bacteria) and was not going to be available for us to see in person. He was a little bummed that we didn't get to see the real ship, but visiting the exhibit was still a hit. He really enjoyed the opportunity to touch a piece of the ship's hull.  Plus, the exhibit definitely gave him some more insight on how to "play Titanic" at home.

I can't wait to see what he chooses as his next historical obsession (the Alamo, Civil War, Paul Revere?).  And I can't wait to save the above picture to include in his senior photo album!!!

Hold Mommy's Hand

 

Sometimes the easiest way to get a point across to my boys is to be overly dramatic.  For example, at the museum last week, the people running an exhibit warned us not to touch the glass because an alarm would go off.  Upon hearing this, I feared that my boys might intentionally touch the glass just to hear the alarm.  So, Mommy told them that if they touched the glass, the police would have to come.  This threat seemed a little more serious to them.  And they behaved quite well, considering the exhibit was mostly artifacts and text.

I also tried using scare tactics recently to convince my boys that they must hold my hand when we cross the street.  I explained that a boy who lived near us was recently hit by a car and killed when he ran ahead of his mom's stroller and wasn't holding her hand (true story).  This story seemed to have the desired effect on my son.  He suddenly got serious, and he asked me what happened to the little boy.  So I repeated the story and said that the little boy died and is now in heaven.

Upon hearing this, my son perked up and got all excited. Suddenly I was flooded with questions like, "So he's with Jesus?" and "Do we get to live forever in heaven?" and "Isn't that little boy better off?" All of a sudden, it occurred to me that my plan had backfired.  Not only had my son missed my point that he needs to hold my hand so that he won't get hit by a car.  But my son was also teaching me a theology lesson.  What I had interpreted to be a sad event--Death--is actually something that believers should look to with joy and anticipation.  And my son, who apparently had a better grasp on this concept than I did, kept assuring me that the little boy in my story is actually much better off now that he's with Jesus.

Wow!  What kind of mother am I that I would make death seem like a scary thing?  And what kind of Christian am I if I'm not celebrating the joy in death?  It seems so backwards to celebrate death.  This world doesn't do that.  I've been raised with the understanding that people are supposed to go through a period of mourning and are supposed to get sympathy cards when death happens. I've grown accustomed to focusing on the loss of the person who died.

But my son is right! Death is actually a good thing for believers.  It means that our period on earth has ended.  It means that we get eternity in heaven. It means that we shouldn't sob and cry when other believers go home to be with Jesus.  We ought to be celebrating! On the other hand, death is something that every unbeliever should fear as it is the beginning of eternity in hell.  From this perspective, death is frightening.  

Death is a serious topic that should be had with my children in an honest manner. In future discussions with my children, I'm going to have to rethink my references to death and dying.  I've learned that I shouldn't attempt to use "dying" as a scare tactic to get my children to be safe.  In the future, I'll have to stick to stories of bodily injury, pain, and suffering.  I guess the advantage to having a Mommy who is a personal injury lawyer is that she has lots of stories about that!

The Painting Process

I haven't blogged much in the past few weeks, because I've been a little busy with work and paint.  Yes, paint!  

Dear Husband and I are NOT spontaneous people.  We work in a career field where we have deadlines that are straightforward and created by statute.  Practicing law isn't like Perry Mason where the smoking gun is discovered at the last second.  In reality, the cards are laid out on the table by both parties during the discovery process (defined by statute or judicial order) and then motions and mediation occur so that most clients can avoid trial altogether.  Civil litigation is a great field for type "A" people who don't enjoy spontaneity.

Unfortunately, when those type of people attempt to do something spontaneous and out-of-the-blue, life gets disrupted and it takes awhile to get back into a normal routine.  That's what happened to us this month.

We randomly found what could have been the "perfect house" for our growing family.  Out of curiosity, we walked through an open house one Saturday afternoon.  And we met a realtor who informed us that she had the perfect house to show us.  Of course, she nailed it.  It was a great house with a reasonable price tag in an ideal location.  But it was 12 months ahead of our planned moving schedule. We had planned on dealing with our housing situation in 2014.  We have other plans for 2013.

Anyway, for a brief 24 hour period, we got serious about getting our house sale-ready.  So we painted and painted and painted.  We cleaned and cleaned and cleaned.  And of course, we changed our minds about selling our house and didn't finish our painting and cleaning projects.  Since that crazy weekend, we've had difficulty getting caught up with our normal routine and getting our house put back together.  But, at least we have peace of mind.

Peace--my word of the year actually came into play this February.  We realized that even though we could do something, that definitely didn't mean that we should do it.  And if you don't have peace about the process and haven't prayed about it, then you should wait.  I'm not sure if good things really do come to those who wait, but at least those who wait can have peace.

And it looks like we're going to have a freshly painted house!

Happy Valentine's Day!

May your day be filled with chocolate and flowers.

May your hearts be filled with love and joy.

May we all remember that "We love because [God] first loved us." I John 4:19

Hummus Cupcakes

My boys are on a health food kick.  Not because I necessarily planned to put them on a healthier diet, but because I made the shocking discovery that they love vegetables.  

I made this discovery in December when we had lunch at a friend's house.  She steamed some broccoli for the kids, and my boys acted like it was a delicacy from a 5 star restaurant.  It was pretty funny to watch my friends' kiddos tinker around with their broccoli while mine cleaned their plates.  Who knew that my husband could produce offspring that like vegetables?  (He's doesn't eat green things.)

After the discovery that my children actually like vegetables, I decided to stop buying sweet snacks and to start trying to feed my boys healthier snacks.  About the time I made this decision, we discovered that someone in our family has a sensitivity to dairy products--not just lactose, but all dairy!  So now our diets are being turned completely upside down.  And we're trying new things.

Today the boys had hummus cupcakes.

 

I actually copied this idea from a picture I found on the internet of a hummus relish tray at http://www.madebyleah.com.

What possessed me to try hummus snacks?  Well, I'm supposed to be helping create a hummus tray for an event at church in March.  To this point, my only experience with hummus happened about 5 years ago at a Lebanese restaurant during law school.  We attended a party in the Hukkah lounge when I was pregnant, and it's safe to say that hummus didn't settle well on my sensitive and pregnant stomach.  Since then, I've done a pretty good job avoiding hummus.  Until today.

When a friend and I were asked to prepare a hummus tray for a party, I started doing some research. And then I decided to copy the tray pictured above.  To make these "cupcakes," I peeled and sliced cucumbers to make the bases.  Then I swirled artichoke and spinach hummus on the cucumbers and topped them off with pieces of red bell pepper.  I obviously need to purchase a larger tip for my icing bag so that I can perfect my icing skills before my party, but I apparently perfected the flavor already, because my boys loved my cupcakes. 

Who knew vegetables could be so much fun?  (And yes, in addition to eating the cupcakes, he's eating slices of raw bell peppers!!!)

My Baby G

Baby G is finally 10 weeks old today!  My tiny baby girl has gained 6 lbs and 4 inches since she was born.  During the first few weeks after her birth I had to go buy size "newborn" clothes because she was so tiny.  And 2 months later, I'm putting those clothes in boxes as Baby G is already wearing 6-9 month clothes!  Apparently the rumors that little girls grow at a slower pace than baby boys was just a rumor.  Because my 99th percentile girl is keeping right up with her brothers.  

Although I should be sad that my baby is growing so quickly, I'm actually really excited that her personality is blossoming.  She smiles at her Mommy all the time.  She giggles.  And she coos at her brothers.  She even likes to pet our kitty cats.  When she's tired, I play IZ's Somewhere Over the Rainbow/Wonderful World song and by the time the ukelele stops playing, she's always asleep.  And unlike her brothers, she's perfectly content when we go shopping as long as I push her in the stroller and keep her moving.  

I'm sure that my girl and I will have some interesting mother-daughter encounters as she grows older.  I know that I can't expect that it will always be flowers and cupcakes.  But for now, I'm enjoying every minute.

January's Book of the Month

I heard a discussion on talk radio last year about North Korea.  Pretty much all I knew about North Korea was that the country has an evil leader, the people are treated horribly, there is a demilitarized zone dividing North and South Korea, and North Korea keeps threatening nuclear war.  Other than that, North Korea has spent very little time on my radar.

But then I heard the discussion on the radio.  A very well respected radio host was discussing how difficult it would be to liberate the people of North Korea.  In his opinion, since the people are so brain washed, living in such horrid conditions, and seem to have no sense of right and wrong, he felt that bombing (nuclear) the entire country might be necessary as these people could not assimilate with the rest of the world.  Instead of having a new Korea like our current united Germany (no longer East and West), he said that liberating North Korea could be disastrous for South Korea.  At least that's what I interpreted the guy as saying.

Needless to say, this "plan" for North Korea was troubling to me.  And suddenly, I became curious about the country and its people.

Late last year, Dear Husband and I watched a Fox News special on North Korea.  During the special, they interviewed Mike Kim from Crossing Borders Ministry.  He is one of a very few number of Americans who have been allowed inside North Korea.  And he has written a fascinating book about North Korea, the people of North Korea, and the Christian church in China who is currently risking everything to reach out to Korean refugees.  After hearing Mr. Kim's interview, we immediately ordered his book.

Escaping North Korea is a graphic and honest depiction of North Korea and the people who live there.  It's mind-boggling to read the stories of refugees and martyrs in the book and to realize that these people are having these experiences in my lifetime.  It's also discouraging to see how a few changes in foreign policy from outside countries could topple the evil regime, yet these countries refuse to disrupt the status quo.  Mr. Kim's book is both educational  and inspiring as he shares his own personal testimony (he is a devout Christian) and stories of a rapidly growing Christian church within the borders of North Korea.  His book is a reminder that no one is hopeless.  God can work anywhere and He can change the ugliest lives and make them beautiful.

So to my friend on the radio, nuclear options might be necessary to topple the government.  But don't give up on the people of North Korea.  

If you would like to learn more about Mike Kim's ministry in North Korea, you can follow his weekly blog (see the Crossing Borders blog link in my blog list) or follow Crossing Borders on Facebook.  It's a wonderful ministry that is truly changing lives and sharing Jesus with others.  

My book of the month reviews are also available under my Book Review page above.

I Get Leggings

Baby G's newest Juicy sweater and leggings!

 

Last summer, a friend and I took our boys to a jump house full of inflatable contraptions.  The place was full of excited little boys and girls running around like little crazies.  While I was trying to find my two boys in the midst of toddler faces, I kept noticing that the little girls were all wearing these cute little dresses and shorts with leggings.  Somehow, every little girl seemed to be wearing leggings.  At the time, I couldn't figure out why every girl mom had this affinity for leggings.

A few months later, when I found out that I was having a girl, I started shopping for cute little girly clothes.  That's when I noticed that almost every outfit had leggings.  Every store had piles of leggings.  And it seems that every girl is expected to wear leggings.  At the time, it seemed odd.

But now, I get leggings...

When Baby G was a few weeks old, we attempted to dress her up in her frilly dresses in order to get some cute Christmas photos.  Unfortunately, none of her socks or tights fit.  Her skinny little legs just didn't fill out the tights.  I was at a loss, how am I supposed to dress my baby girl in a dress at wintertime if the smallest tights I can find on the market don't fit her?

The answer--leggings!  I know it seems weird, but leggings are a staple in most baby girls' wardrobes, because they're the only leg covering that fit tiny babies.  Plus in a world where diaper covers seem to only come in size "toddler," leggings cover up the diapers and make dresses modest.  This explains why every toddler girl on the planet wears leggings--so they cover up the undies!  

For a boy mom, this revelation was huge.  Leggings aren't just about fashion for most girl moms.  They're actually a necessity.

So the next time all you boy moms wish that you too could buy fun and frilly outfits.  Just know that there is a whole lot more stress to dressing a little girl.  Those frilly outfits only work if you have the right accessories.  Little girls can't just wear tennis shoes and jeans everyday.  Instead, they need the outfit, the matching hair bow (that topic deserves a blog post in itself!), the matching shoes, and the leggings.  What a new and stressful world I have entered!