What We've Been Up To

-Tyler is turning 30 in a week and I am excited to throw him an awesome family party with a cereal & Lego theme. Here is the pictured that graced his Evites:

Are you cereal? Tyler's turning 30!

-The other week I went to Ikea with my mom & Rebecca. I wanted to buy everything but remained strong and only got a couple things. The boys also had fun getting to play at Smaland (a supervised play area) and we enjoyed some delicious lunch there. Here's what I bought at Ikea:

Awesome cups, now filled with art supplies, hanging on a bar above their craft table

Super cool dog tail hooks for the kid's bathroom. I then had to make some fun dog's in bathtub pictures for each kid. I need to work on hanging things a bit straighter though...

-A few days ago I was lying down with Ben to help him take a nap. When I came downstairs, Steven presented me with this sweet postcard:

He used to hate it when I asked him to write so I stopped bugging him. Now he's constantly writing! He writes letters to his Aunt Mariah, me, daddy and Ben and he writes in his workbooks (all on his own). He is even writing stories. Sure the only writing that is actual words are names or words he copies but I just love to see those random string of letters too. That's the first step!

He's obviously ready for kindergarten ;) Not only is he "writing" often but every afternoon he wants to do a craft or science. Some of things we have done: made a mailbox, mixed 2 primary colors in shaving cream in a plastic baggie, painted rocks, played with vinegar and baking soda, and painted bread with colored milk:

- I am amazed by how much Lucy grows everyday. She is army crawling around the house like crazy. Today I was taking a shower in my walk-in shower and who should appear fully clothed beneath me...Lucy! Needless to say she got a little wet.

She also flaps her hand at daddy when she sees him or when he leaves (and sometimes at other people too). It seems like she's figuring out how to wave at people. So much fun!

She is also finally interested in food--- much to my dismay. She is probably the messiest eater EVER. Drives my OCD self crazy!

And since she is finally eating, I decided it was time to pull out the Baby Bullet & Steamer my mom got me and get to work. Steven had fun helping make her peas, carrots and apples. It was super easy and I will be doing it again.

- This week we went to the Ceretta Candy Factory in Glendale. Not worth the drive :( We only got the tail end of the tour but that was fine because the kids weren't really  interested in hearing how candy is made. We were hoping to see it get made but the only machines that were working were behind other non-working machines so we didn't. Lame. There were also 3 summer camps there which made it very crowded. We could have made chocolate pizza but it cost $10 per person SO instead we consoled ourselves by buying $10 worth of delicious candy to share. There was also a video after the tour that showed some cool machines. It held the boys attention for a little bit. So good candy but not so good factory action.

And this week we finally made it to the library to collect our summer reading prizes. I love that the boys love to read with me regardless of prizes. But we still go get them anyways because I love the free book vouchers they all get and they love all the other silly cheap prizes they can choose from:

The Motherhood Roller Coaster

Today was one of those days... You know the kind that make you question why you ever decided to have children? Or am I the only one who feels that way? I read other mom's posts and blogs where they say motherhood is always so blissful and wonderful. Ugh. Lately motherhood is a roller coaster. And sure, sometimes motherhood is actually blissful but then it takes a turn downward and I look a lot like this-- 

---only angrier.

Anyways, today didn't start off as one of those days. It actually started off wonderfully. The boys were playing nicely together, Lucy was taking her morning nap, and I was cleaning. Then Lucy woke up so we went to The Dollar Tree and we got through the whole store with no incidents- miraculous! Blissful you might say!

And then I pushed my luck. I decided to go return a shirt at the San Tan Mall. I thought it would be fun because afterwards the boys could play at the Splash Pad. Silly me.

The shirt was an epic fail because apparently they only give store credit. Grrrr! Didn't they know I wanted to spend my money elsewhere? And then came the sinking realization that my bag with the towels, Lucy's swimsuit and a change of clothes for the boys was still hanging out in my garage. But alas, I thought, the boys already had their swim trunks on so let's do it anyways! 

Silly me. Steven didn't want to get wet because then he would be cold because he couldn't dry off (yes, cold in 100 degree weather). But Ben did decide to play in the sprink-a-lers (as he calls them) which was great...until he got a bloody nose 5 minutes later. And of course my stroller & diaper bag were on the other side of the splash pad so I had to walk him across with blood dripping down his face as everyone stared.

Then Ben was done being wet and wanted to play at the playground. I thought that'd be just dandy since Lucy needed to finish off her milk so I slowly pushed her stroller over to the designated stroller parking area (yes they have those) while holding her bottle. Only to hear some man complain loudly to his wife that they should move since this stroller was in there way of seeing their child. Well duh, that's what happens when you sit behind the designated stroller parking area. But I'm nice, so I moved. And moments later I discovered Lucy had a nice, giant poop coming out of her cute onesie. And that's when I was done. D-O-N-E, done.

So we went home. And did things improve? Not so much. I went to vacuum the house and the vacuum literally smelled like poop. So I had Steven Febreeze the carpet but he seemed to think he needed to Febreeze my freshly cleaned tile and wood floors too. And when I took the moment to loose my cool with him...well Lucy fell off my bed. And that's when I decided I win worst mom of the day award and it was time to quit all productive attempts. Period. And it worked well because apparently the student I tutored got the memo and didn't come. But dinner did not get the memo and I still had to make it, and poor Lucy with her achy head screamed the whole time I tried to cook. And....

Yes. Motherhood is not always blissful. Sometimes it's chaotic. And NOT a fun chaotic. It's the kind of chaotic that makes you want to collapse on to your bed and not leave your bed for DAYS. Yes, DAYS! Sometimes motherhood just feels plain awful. And you wonder what the heck your doing and why you can't get it all figured out already. For Pete's Sake I am on my 3rd baby! Shouldn't I have things figured out!? Shouldn't I!?

But now it's super late and the kids are all sleeping and it's easier to think of those blissful moments that make it worth it. They may seem fleeting sometimes but they're there....

Like when I find a bunch of selfies on my camera that Steven took when I was busy being productive...

Or when I'm chilling in the pool with the boys and Steven asks me, "Did the water turn your legs white?" And I get to explain how unlike him, sun does not "turn" my skin brown.

And that moment where I was watching Steven walk home from church wearing my diaper backpack. Thinking how in less then 50 days he'll be wearing his own backpack to Kindergarten and what a little man he is becoming.

Plus there's those morning cuddles with Ben. When he crawls into my bed half awake at 6:30 and scrunches up real close to me and strokes my face. 

And the way he pronounces things in his own Ben way. How a fly is a "cly" and one of his babysitter's  is "Brin-ka-ley" (not Brink-ley).

Or the smiles that Lucy gives that literally just light up the room. Made even cuter now that they include teethers.

And the way she reaches for other people but after "testing them out" she always just wants to come back to me.

Yeah, sometimes motherhood sucks. But, those blissful moments do (sort of, kind of) make up for it all. And I, oddly enough, will continue to willingly strap myself in to this motherhood roller coaster, day after day. And I oddly enough, would not trade this life for any other life. Ever. Period. The end.

Summer Days

Starting with the sad news....Lucy has not been quite the same since I returned from my trip. I thought she was a bad nurser before but surprisingly, she was able to get worse. Feeding times were a mess so now I am currently only pumping. Isn't it ironic that now that I am not working and am perfectly able to nurse I have a baby that doesn't like to nurse? Part of the problem, I think, is that she got used to getting milk faster from a bottle. And the other part, I don't produce enough milk for her in the afternoon. And although I hate pumping and wanna just switch to formula, I may not be able to do that. She has been a hot mess lately and I think it might be because her tummy doesn't agree with the formula I was supplementing my milk with...or it could just be teething. I wish she could just tell me what's wrong :(

And on a sillier note...My boys:

Ben's new favorite way to get my attention? By saying "mom" softly, then a bit louder, and then even louder until he is practically shouting "MOM!" And he will only stop once I look at him and say something to him. Oh my goodness it can be frustrating when I am in the middle of something and he starts his tirade but at the same time, I must confess it's kind of adorable. I just wish he would understand that (unfortunately for him) I can't just drop everything and cater to him the second he needs me. I know, what kind of mom am I!?

Other tid bit about Ben...He is always putting on his clothes backwards! Always. No matter how many times I try to show him the right way. We got the VVL Clubhouse last week and were swimming when I realized his swim trunks were backwards and since I'm such a wonderful mom, I left them that way. And right now, as I write this, he has his "don't bug me" shirt on backwards. But on the bright side his shorts and underwear are on the correct way :) 

Steven informed me this week that when he grows up he wants to be a Walmart guy so he can bag people's stuff. That kid has big goals huh!? Tyler thinks I need to stop going to Walmart so much....

Also, Steven is now drawing bodies and arms on his people. I love that he loves to draw so much! It's fun to see his imagination "come to life." And if you know him at all, you know it's a big one!

And something new to us (as of the last couple weeks) is having a teenage babysitter over while I tutor. It's been so nice not having to make the drive to my mom's house and thankfully the kids have got along well with her. I just have to always remind myself to pay her :) I'm not used to doing that, sorry mom!

Getaway Day 3

Sunday I got to the park a little past opening time and after seeing McQueen roll down the street, I had a yummy breakfast at Flo's Cafe. Btw, we never did get to go on the new Car's ride. Wait time was literally ALWAYS 75 minutes or more. Just not worth it :(

After that, I went on Tower of Terror with Leslie & Michelle. Tyler's sisters did not want to go on it and were making me SUPER nervous about it but it wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. I quite enjoyed being terrorized in that tower. Then we got a wheel chair for Keshia, she's pregnant (with a friend for Lucy) and had been cramping the night before and was starting to feel bad again. I'm so surprised it didn't hit her sooner- she had been keeping up with all of us all that time!

Next we went on the Grizzly River Run which was good times! All the girls squealing when water came their way---it was too funny! 

Then we did a little more shopping and then it was off to get lunch and on to the airport where everything went smoothly--- except that Melissa left a large can of aerosol sunscreen in her carry on and Tara's pump worried a security employee. Fun times :)

And the first thing Steven says when he sees me, "Where's my lollipop?" I feel so loved. Here are the kids with their souvenirs.... 

Getaway Day 2

On our second day we once again had a late night the night before but we still got to the park when it opened. The parks were a little bit more busy but still not bad wait times. Things we did...

--Got my hair braided by Keshia while waiting in line for Space Mountain

--- More posing for roller coaster pictures--this time instead of being terrified,  I'm sleeping through Space Mountain

 

---Watched Michael Jackson's video "Captain Eo" in 3-D 

--- Rode Indian Jones again and then tried a Dole Pineapple Whip-- SO delicious! Made a great breakfast ;)

--- Traveled to Bea, CA and ate lunch and dessert (obviously) at Farrell's- an old fashioned ice cream parlour. I got an ice cream dish called Straw-Ana--it was divine! But not as enormous as Keshia & Jezerea's ice cream! 

--- Went to Huntington Beach. It was FREEZING! The Hatch girls ventured into the ocean water but us in-laws hung back and stayed warm. Afterwards we did some shopping at some nearby shops. 

---Went back to Disneyland to check out the fireworks show. We had to take a bathroom break before it started and got blocked from the spot where Leslie & Michelle were at. We were trying to figure out what to do when a guy asked us if we needed a spot to watch the fireworks at. He said he had a really good one and took us to it. It was really good! It was a special reserved spot and despite one women's protest (this is reserved spot and their names aren't on the list) we were able to bring Leslie & Michelle over to watch them with us! So lucky!

---Did some shopping (spent TOO much money on the kids) and then we saw Minnie Mouse- I love Minnie Mouse!

Getaway Day 1

This past weekend I went with the in-laws (Leslie, Jezerea, Keshia, Melissa, Tara & Leslie's friend Michelle) to Anaheim, CA. It was loads of fun AND completely exhausting. I still feel like I'm recuperating and this is my second day home. I decided to split each day into it's own post so it wasn't one crazy long post. I don't have a ton of pictures because I was lazy but I did steal a few from Melissa on Facebook and I will HOPEFULLY be getting the one's Leslie took. She took lots of good ones!

We left Thursday night and our flight there was delayed, of course, so by the time we got our rental van and drove to the hotel and settled into bed it was almost 3am and I was SO tired. But somehow I got out of bed in time to get to Disneyland when it opened. We basically spent most of our day there and a little bit of the day at Ca Adventures. I have to say that we lucked out major because that day we got on pretty much every ride we wanted to go on and hardly spent anytime waiting. Typically we waited like 15 minutes and the most we waited was like 30 minutes. It was magical!

Tara and I also became pumping buddies that day- yeah for being nursing mothers! We rented a locker for pumps and milk (only to find out that the first aid center would keep the pumps for free) and we became regulars at the baby center (it had a nice curtained off spot for pumping that had an outlet).

I am such a spaz and would freak out before each "roller coaster," only to realize that they were NOT that scary- I have been to 6 Flags after all. I think I probably drove Tyler's family insane. Anyways, here's a list of the rides we went on that day : Space Mountain, Indiana Jones Adventure, Pirates of the Caribbean (twice), Haunted Mansion, Splash Mountain, It's A Small World, Matterhorn Bob Sleds, Mickey's Fun Wheel, California Screamin, and The Little Mermaid

The Hatch family is posers and before each flash everyone had to strike a pose. Sadly, I was not posing in this one...

After pumping, we came out just in time for the parade- so fun!

Waiting in line for the Matterhorn Bob Sleds. Oh my goodness that ride is SO not smooth! My whole body ached afterwards!

Michelle & Leslie were SO excited for It's A Small World

The rest of the gang....not so much...

Mini Trip #2

My second adventure this week was to Tucson to visit Katrin and her daughter Anika (her husband was busy at work while we there). I have literally never driven that far by myself-- I really dislike driving, especially "long" distances. And for some reason I got 3 kids and thought, "hey if I can have 3 kids I can drive 2 hours with no other adults, I mean come on Jenny, it's only 2 hours." 

Only the thing is, now I have 3 kids. And I was the only adult in the car. And though I had this "genius" idea to put buckets of toys and food by Ben and Steven so I wouldn't have to try to get things while driving well... it was less than "genius" since Ben couldn't reach his stuff (thank you 5 point life saving harness). So let's just say there were a few stressful moments on the drive there but overall, it actually went superbly well.

Once there though, Lucy was a disaster. She was starving but didn't want to nurse. I finally decided just let her cry, we were going to the Tucson Zoo regardless. And it was a good decision because she fell asleep, and woke up much happier and ready to nurse (but not under a nursing cover so I became one of those ladies that I never wanted to become due to desperation). Anyways, I quite love the small scale of this zoo because it means less walking and easier viewage of animals. The kids seemed to have fun too and there was even a little splash area for them.        

After the zoo we went to Peter Piper Pizza to get some lunch. The pizza was yummy and the boys had a fabulous time chowing down and playing a few games. It was especially fun to watch them play Skee Ball. When they were done playing, they enjoyed picking out prizes. Steven took FOREVER to pick out his but at last decided on a tiny fish and a fake, gold coin.

After Peter Piper we hung out at her house for the afternoon. The kid's played different games (Giraffe Limbo, 5 Monkeys Jumping on the Bed, etc) and then they played around in the backyard. We were also lucky enough to have Katrin make us some delicious smoothies. 

It was a good trip, sure it included typical kid drama, but that's hard to avoid. It was nice to see my friend and it ended well. The drive home was very peaceful since the kid's all conked out- thank heavens! And now I feel like maybe I can venture out on a little trip alone with my kids again :)

Mini Trip #1

This week I had no tutoring so...I got adventurous! On Monday, we joined Tyler on a trip to Payson to find a good spot for his archery adventure with his scouts. The area we checked out was beautiful! We took a small hike which was fun--minus Ben having a Ben moment. (The only pictures we have are from Tyler's phone and I can't figure out how to properly download them from skydrive so....not the best)

After our little hike we searched for the Tonto Fish Hatchery which Tyler said he knew exactly where it was. Only to find out he was exactly wrong. So we scratched that plan and stopped by Tonto Natural Bridge instead. We decided the hike down to the bridge would be too long for Ben (based on the melt down from the first one) so instead we went on a short jaunt down some steps to see what they called a "waterfall" (more like water trickling down a cliff side). Still pretty though.

Then we walked to 2 viewpoints of the natural bridge and had a semi close encounter with some active bees. I dislike bees greatly!

In the end though: Beautiful weather+ Beautiful scenery= Beautiful time with the family