A Visit from the Clemons Family

Samantha: 76 Months, Week 2
Aedan: 41 Months, Week 1
Owen: 0 Months, Week 3

As I left off at the end of my last post, this week was marked by a visit from the Clemons family, my sister, Christy, her husband, Matthew, Brielle who is three, and Oliver who is 9 months. They arrived around dinnertime on Saturday night, and we just spent the evening having dinner together, letting the kids play, and getting everyone situated for the night. Since Samantha was going to be in school most of the time they were at our house, we didn't want to put Aedan on a mattress on the floor in her room like we usually do when they visit. We went back and forth on a couple of different ideas because our guest room is not big enough for all four of them to share, plus none of them would have slept well all sharing a room. So we decided the best solution was to give them our room that is connected to Owen's room, that way Oliver could sleep in Owen's crib, and Brielle could sleep on a mattress on the floor next to the bed where Matthew and Christy would be. Ben and I moved ourselves and Owen upstairs to the guest room because all he needed was his bassinet and a diaper changer for the middle of the night, so we could easily make the adjustment. It was a little weird sleeping upstairs, but Owen didn't seem to notice or mind. He continued his normal sleeping routine of waking up twice a night, nursing and then going right back to sleep.

Sunday was going to be a beautiful, warm, sunny day. I don't know how many more days like this we are going to have up here in the U.P., so we decided to take advantage of it and visit a local pumpkin farm. We went to the early service at church so that we could go out to the farm before lunch. Owen got grumpy after church and wanted to eat, so we stopped by home first so I could nurse him and the kids could change clothes and get a snack before heading out.

The farm had a couple of large hay bales decorated as different things, like this giant pumpkin that was sitting near the pumpkin patch where you could pick your own pumpkins to take home.

Here's a pretty rare picture, all the kids plus Christy and I together. Who knew that this is where we'd be, back when we were little girls sharing a room together. Now we have five kids between us. :)

The kids really enjoyed looking at all the farm animals, like these rabbits.

One of the kids that live on the farm picked up a rabbit so the kids could pet her and feel how soft her hair was.

Here is the giant hay bale teddy bear. The kids really wanted to climb on it, but there were signs saying not to so that it wouldn't get torn apart and others could still enjoy it.

Here are the kids posing as farm animals. It's definitely a funny picture. We tried to get Aedan to back up so that just his head was in the hole, but he thought it was better to stick his whole body out. :)

There were chickens and roosters...

...a John Deere tractor made out of hay bales...

...a real, giant-sized pumpkin...

...and pigs that the kids tried to feed straw to. Aedan was really interested in this big pig, and I imagine it was a friendly pig, but he was wanting to get a little closer to it's snout than I was comfortable with.

Owen did great the whole time we were at the farm. I put him in the Ergo and he just slept soundly against me the whole time. After seeing the animals we decided to all take a hay ride. After awhile of sitting on the hay and looking around, Samantha and Aedan sat down on the floor of the wagon with one of Samantha's classmates from school and played with hay for the rest of the ride.

The morning was going really well, and the kids wanted to get a snack before we left, and that's where everything started to fall apart. I'm sure Samantha and Aedan were just getting hungry and tired, but it was one of those times where we overstayed our time, and everyone was melting down. Samantha got a package of little cookies that she wouldn't wait to have help opening, so she opened it quickly and tore the whole bag open, making most of the cookies fall on the dirty ground. Aedan asked for popcorn and was sitting at a little picnic table eating it, but Brielle ate some popcorn out of his bag for some reason (even though she had her own bag) and then after that he refused to eat his popcorn even though he really wanted to eat it. Owen was starting to stir, and we knew it was time to get home, get lunch, and get kids down for naps. However, even though we only had a ten minute drive home, Samantha made an issue out of needing to use the bathroom, going back to her old ways of throwing an all out fit, like a two year old tantrum, as we were trying to leave the farm. I knew she could hold it, that it wasn't really an emergency, and I am tired of her using this crying and screaming to manipulate us into doing exactly what she wants when she wants it, so I decided to stick to my guns and not let her go until we got back home. Well, she was not happy about that, so she proceeded to cry and scream the whole way back to the car and as we were trying to get everyone buckled in. Ben and I were very stern with her, telling her that her crying and screaming was not going to work, and that she needed to calm down so she didn't wake Owen up and make him upset. We told her she needed to calm herself down, take breaths, realize that it was all in her head, and know that she can indeed wait until we get back home to go to the bathroom. After sticking to what we said, and trying our best to not let her behavior escalate our emotions as well, Samantha just stopped crying like nothing had happened. It boggles our mind why she does this. Is it because she didn't want to leave the farm and that was her weird way of forcing us to stay there longer? Is she just trying to manipulate us and get attention? When we got back home she did go to the bathroom, but it was no longer an "emergency," and she didn't have that full of a bladder. I was surprised that this behavior came out again because she had largely done better throughout that week and I thought that the bathroom issue might finally be going away. It happens more when she's tired, too, but boy does it try my patience.

After having a quick lunch, we got the kids down for naps, Samantha in her room for quiet time, and then the adults got to relax some, at least have time without kids around making noises and messes for awhile. Here is my sister holding Owen as he slept that afternoon. I love the newborn phase where they can sleep anywhere, anytime, with anyone. No noise or movement really seems to bother them. They both were perfectly content hanging out together.

Monday was back to work for Ben and back to school for Samantha, leaving the rest of us at home together. It was one of those mornings where I was still in my pajamas as it was getting close to 10:00, which is when the MOPS park play date was going to start. Brielle and Aedan were doing a good job playing together at home, but you could tell a change of location and activity would be good for them. There was no chance I would be ready in enough time, and Owen didn't need to go out to a playground anyways, so I had Christy and Matthew take Aedan along with them to play. It was kind of nice having the house to myself that morning. It was nice and quiet, and Owen took a nap in the blue baby chair while I took a shower, then I got to sit and nurse him on the couch without having to use a cover. My time went by quickly, but it was nice of them to take the kids to playground, and they all had a good time running around and playing, getting some good energy out.

Even though it's more difficult now, Ben and I still try to take turns putting Samantha and Aedan to bed. We like to spend this one-on-one time with them, reading to them, cuddling with them, singing to them, and praying with them. Our days sometimes go by so quickly with Samantha getting home at 4:15, Ben getting home a little after 5:00, then we have dinner, cleaning up, bath time, some play time, and bed time. Whenever Owen is not needing to nurse, we let him just hang out with one of us while we put either Samantha or Aedan to bed. Ben was putting Aedan to bed on Monday night and took this cute picture of the brothers laying in Aedan's bed together. Owen's definitely starting to notice more about what is going on around him, and you can see him staring right at Aedan in these pictures. He will look up to him so much.

Even though Aedan was a little unsure what he thought about Owen at the beginning, I think he's warming up to the idea of having a little brother around. He is very sweet and gentle with him.

Tuesday morning started in a hectic way because Ben had his 7:00 meeting. I made sure I was up and around to get the kids up and get Samantha ready for school. Luckily, Uncle Matthew was upstairs to help me get the kids breakfast and get things taken care of. I was able to get Samantha to school on time, which is all that really matters!

One of the most difficult parts of having a newborn is finding time to take a shower. I never know when Owen will wake up and how ravenous he will be upon waking. It's hard for me to "risk" getting up and showering before he's up for the day because I don't want to be in the shower when he wakes up. However, if I wait, then I have to try and take a shower later in the morning when both boys are awake. I prefer to shower every morning because it helps me feel awake and ready for the day, but Tuesday was one of those mornings where it was difficult to find the time. I was glad Matthew and Christy were there to help me out and watch the boys so I could get clean and dressed for the day.

After spending most of the morning playing at home, we decided to go for a picnic at Locks Park. Uncle Matthew made sandwiches and packed a lunch for us, and we headed to the park to enjoy the beautiful weather. We found a nice spot at the top of a little hill overlooking the locks. The Clemons family was able to see a boat coming through the locks as we ate our lunch, and then we took a little time to walk around and go into the Visitor's Center so Brielle and Aedan could play with the little locks demonstration table. However, we couldn't stay for too long because we needed to get all the kids down for a good afternoon nap.

Aedan has always been a pretty good napper, much better than his older sister. However, lately he has taken longer to fall asleep. He will often need me to go in there and tell him to be quiet and go to sleep, and then he will usually fall asleep. Very rarely does he totally refuse to nap, and even if he does, he just stays in his bed the whole time, rolling around, talking to Happy Bear, and doing who knows what else. Well, on Tuesday afternoon I could hear a different type of noise on the monitor, so I went in to see what he was doing. I caught him out of his bed! He was standing in the middle of his room, and you could tell he tried to turn around and get back to his bed fast enough, but he didn't make it before I opened the door.  I asked him what he was doing, and at first he said, "Nothing..." Then he finally admitted to being out of bed looking at a book. I was pretty stern and told him to get back in bed and that he knew it was not okay to be out of his bed playing or looking at books when he was supposed to be napping.

Tuesday night is our small group, so even though the Clemons family was visiting, we said they could come along too. It's always a little hectic getting everything ready and getting out the door, but it's nice to connect with other families, share a meal together, and let our kids play together while the adults discuss what we learned from the sermon on Sunday. Getting back home after small group and getting all the kids to bed was a little chaotic. I was tired from an early morning and a long day, and it was starting to show in my demeanor. I was looking forward to everyone being in bed so I could relax for a little while before going to bed myself.

To go along with the pictures of Aedan and Owen together before bed, here are some cute pictures of Samantha and Owen together before bed. If he's in a good mood and doesn't need to eat, Samantha loves to hold him while we read books to her. I love how he is so much more alert now, and he uses these alert times to just stare at his family. He already loves Samantha so much.

On Wednesday morning we decided to take a trip to the library with the Clemons family. I figured it would be a good little outing, Aedan likes story time, and the kids would have a chance to play outside of the house for a little while. Story time went well, Owen did a good job hanging out and then nursing when he got hungry. Brielle and Aedan started acting a little ornery as it was getting closer to 11:30, so we headed home for lunch and nap time. As we were at the library, I discovered that Samantha's school was on an internal lock down because of a threat at another school in the area. Things are so crazy now, and I'm glad they have these procedures in place, but it's scary to think about things like that being necessary.

Here's Aedan holding his little brother that afternoon, with Brielle looking on interested as well. It's been cute to see Aedan enjoy having Owen around more and more as time goes on. He will really like it when he can play with him and interact with him more.

Tuesday and Wednesday nights are always kind of busy in our house with small group and then AWANA and my Bible study. We were able to bring Brielle to AWANA so she could go to Cubbies with Aedan, giving Ben time to work in a quiet house, and Matthew, Christy, and Oliver went to walk around the Locks Park for awhile. Wednesday night was their last night with us. It had been a good visit, and they were a big help around the house with laundry, making food, and even cleaning the house for me on Wednesday. The best thing was having a playmate for Aedan. I know it will be a hard adjustment for Aedan in just having me home with him every day and having to wait more for me to feed Owen and things like that, so it was nice for him to have Brielle here for a few days to play. Aunt Christy loved to hold and cuddle her new nephew, Owen, and he was happy to take many naps in her arms. It's special to have this time with new babies, I know I enjoyed being able to do the same things with Oliver after he was born. Here are some pictures of Christy and Matthew with Owen that night once the big kids were tucked away in their beds.

On Thursday morning I apparently was pretty tired, as I slept in later than I would have liked. I always feel bad sleeping in and missing out on a chance to see Samantha before she leaves for school and making Ben handle everything on his own. However, I guess I should cut myself some slack as I do only have a 2 1/2 week old baby. We spent the morning just hanging out and letting the kids get a little more play time in. The Clemons family got all their belongings packed up and then left after lunch. Aedan was really sad to see them leave, not wanting to give them hugs and say good-bye, which is what he does when he doesn't want you to leave. After they drove down the road, he started crying, saying he was going to miss playing with Brielle and that now he would have no one to play with. I took him into my lap and cuddled with him until he was able to calm down. It's cute how much he loves people and how big his emotions are. Here is a picture of Brielle and Aedan before they left that afternoon.

That afternoon we had to go to a doctor's appointment for Owen and Aedan. Going to the doctor when Aedan should have been taking a nap wasn't the most ideal time, but we needed to get the boys seen, and this was the best time we could get. Dr. Newhouse said that Aedan's bumps on his leg and foot looked like the bumps that we knew about (molluscum) and then the red rash part was either a staph infection or some kind of a fungus. They did a swab culture to send out to the lab, and she prescribed two different creams to start putting on his leg and foot two to three times a day. Owen's poor little sore bottom with the raised red bump, she said was a yeast diaper rash, which she prescribed a cream for as well. She also encouraged us to use a butt paste type cream with zinc oxide in it rather than the A&D ointment we had been using. I was hopeful that we finally were getting some solutions to these skin problems and that they would clear up relatively soon.

After a busy week, we took advantage of a Thursday night at home to just relax together as a family. We got our house rearranged back to normal. It was bath night, and we just had a good time being together.

Friday morning the boys and I took our weekly grocery shopping trip to Walmart. Sometimes I feel tired just getting everyone out the door, and I've started to feel a little frustrated with Aedan not being more independent in going to the bathroom, washing his hands, and getting his shoes on. However, even though it takes longer to get out the door, we still had a successful shopping trip. Aedan has done a really good job for me at the store lately. He likes to help me get things off the shelf and put them in the cart, and as always, if he is respectful, he gets a cookie from the bakery to eat while we check out.

After going to the doctor on Thursday and using the creams recommended by her, Owen's red spot on his bottom started bleeding when I wiped him when changing his diaper. The rash also seemed to have gotten worse, spreading all over, rather than just being concentrated on the one raised red spot. I called the doctor to see what I should do, if I should stop using one of the creams, or what I should do about the bleeding and irritation. Unfortunately, I left a message and they never called me back. I just felt so bad for him and his sore bottom. I'm sure it didn't feel good, and I just wanted to be able to help him feel better.

You can tell in these pictures that I am a tired mama. I was holding Owen up against my shoulder, walking around the house, and in just a couple minutes he was fast asleep. I tried to capture some pictures of him sleeping on my shoulder because it's just so cute when they are passed out like this.

I know I've mentioned this before, but I enjoy my time in the afternoon to snuggle with Owen while Aedan naps. Look at this adorable little guy! Don't you just love his sleepy face?

On Friday night we decided to do something adventurous as a family. We went to a Laker hockey game and were even invited to sit in the president's box. I put Owen in the Ergo because I figured he would stay happier for longer being carried in that. We sat in the president's box for the first period before getting a snack and going down to our regular seats. I ended up leaving earlier than Ben and the kids because Owen started stirring in the Ergo and I didn't want to make him too mad when he wanted to nurse again. The game was fun, and it was nice to be able to go out and do something like this as a family again, even with a newborn. We were out very late that night though, with the kids getting in bed after 9:30 that night. We hoped that they would sleep in some the next morning, but we know that sleeping in is not so much in our children's vocabulary.

Saturday was another day where we didn't have much of anything going on. We took advantage of being able to "sleep in" until Samantha and Aedan woke up, and we had our typical pancake breakfast. Ben took this picture of me in my pajamas from that morning. Again, I don't think this is the most flattering picture of me, but I like seeing how Owen fits in my arms because there will be a day when I won't remember him being this little anymore.

While Aedan napped that afternoon, Daddy took Samantha on a quick trip to Meijer to pick up a few things. He was very sweet and bought me coffee and Samantha picked out a lovely bouquet of flowers for me.

While they were shopping, I had a quiet afternoon at home with two sleeping boys. Owen slept contentedly on the Boppy pillow after nursing, and I thought it was cute getting pictures with Izzy in them. She has done really well with having a new baby in the house. Sometimes I feel bad that she doesn't get as much attention or as many walks as she used to, but I'm pretty sure she still likes being a part of our family. Nothing is better than when we are all home together. She loves her people.

That Saturday night we had our last meal brought to us from the meal train page that was set up for us. This mom that brought us food has seven of her own kids, and brought us a delicious meal with plenty of food to last us for several meals after that. It was nice having some meals brought to us, taking away the pressure of making food every once in awhile when we were still getting used to life as a family of five. However, moments like these in the picture and video below, make me realize just how blessed we are. All three kids are sitting on the couch cuddled up together, listening to Samantha read a book. Even Owen seems to be looking at the pictures on the pages. They are so precious together, and I love all three of them so much. :)

(Blog about October 1-7, 2017)