Keeping My Fingers Crossed

Someone is turning seven in just a few short days. I can't believe it. Time has just flown by! And all I can seem to hope for, for my sweet girl this year, is that she actually gets to celebrate her day the way she intended. 

She's been hit hard with the flu bug and has been running a crazy fever for the last four days. So far, she hasn't been to school this week and her big Knott's Berry Farm day is fast approaching. 

So I'm keeping my fingers crossed that she kicks this stinkin' bug, that the rest of us stay symptom free, and that my sweet sensitive girl's birthday isn't ruined by the flu bug.

Fingers crossed!

The Things They Say {Thursday}

Me: "What does Thatcher want to be when he grows up? A doctor, a lawyer, a baseball player?"

Maddi: "Mom, I think he's going to be a doctor and have lots of girlfriends because he's so handsome!"

Me: "Really Monkey? You think? What do you want to be when you grow up?"

Maddi: "I just want to be a stay at home mom with three babies."

On days when I think I am failing as a mama, I will try to remember this conversation. My daughter just wants to be a stay at home mama with three babies. It's her hearts desire and a choice that isn't driven by education, money, or the desire for things. It is pure and honest. I now know that when I feel like I am failing, on the worst of days, and the most horrible of moments, I am still doing something right because all my little girl wants to be is a mama.

Simply Live {#2}: My Hoarder Tendencies

I wouldn't say I'm a hoarder. Not in the true sense of the word. With that said, I have A LOT of stuff. I think it stems from time...we buy or are gifted things, life gets busy, and somehow I never purge. So I pile, and I pile, and I pile. It's bad!

Over this past summer, when preparing for our little guy, we cleaned and purged all summer long. Then we stopped. It's time again...the stuff is making me crazy!

I had this insane idea that if I documented it here, maybe it will keep me more focused?!?! We shall see! But it's time to eliminate the stuff and I plan to be ruthless!

Life Lately {via Instagram}

I love Instagram!

Love isn't even a strong enough word. I'm obsessed with Instagram!

It allows me to document so much of our life that I normally wouldn't if I had to carry around my big old camera. The only down fall is now I find myself not documenting our life on a real camera. Oooppsss!!!!!!

And, even though I know Instagram is nothing new in "Blogland", I thought it would be fun to recap my favorite snaps every once and a while. Oh, and I may or may not, be sharing a little Instagram project I did around these neck of the woods!

So life lately via my Insta feed:

This guy is getting so big. We finally finished sorting through his preemie clothes. I just had to snap this pic to remember he really was that little!

Laneydoo has taken to Instagram as well! She shoots and picks a "color" for her photos at least two times a week. This snap of her brother is one of my recent faves!

This girl is becoming such a little lady. I look at her and think, wow, we made that...blessed! Then she'll do something that drives me completely insane and I think...what were we thinking? Mama-hood, right?

Over the weekend we stayed the night in Huntington Beach. When we were walking to dinner, I realized the spot we sat and talked on our first date was right up the street. I fondly refer to it as the first date fountain. We drank coffee and talked for hours that night. Fifteen years later, here we are with our babies. If you told me then that in fifteen years I'd be sitting in the same spot with a hubby and three babies, I would have kindly told you what you were full of. I guess sometimes life has different, better plans for us!

The mister ran in the HB half marathon this weekend. That's him waving with the white hat and blue shirt. The tall dude waving is his cousin and Mr. T's Nino. At first I thought it was silly for The Mister to do a half. He's already done the full distance with his tri's but now I get it. It's about training and time. He did good:  01:50:40 something. He finished and said he wants to get faster. Translation: here we go again! Oh, and, I really don't understand why people pay so much money to inflict pain on themselves. I'm working on figuring this out!

The race was on Super Bowl Sunday. Needless to say, we didn't attend any parties. We were all pretty wiped out so this is how we watched the game.

Last, I opened this today, realized it's February and that it's about to get crazy in this hood! No really...crazy, crazy, crazy town. You know, more than usual! We officially slow down in June...say what?

Oh, and P.S., you can find me on Instagram @mjpohl1999.

{3} Months

My sweet, sweet baby boy...I can not believe you're three months old (almost four). I know I'm a little late on this post but thought it important for posterity's sake.

At three months old you:

* Sleep mostly through the night. Usually you fall asleep about 8 and wake up at 4. It is AWESOME!

* Are now cloth diapered full time...finally!

* Roll from your belly to your back intentionally.

* Have finally found your hands and they're always in your mouth.

* Don't really care for a pacifier.

* Smile when you nurse.

* Aren't really a fan of baby wearing but we're working on it. You'd rather be carried in someones arms.

* Sleep in your crib like a big boy.

* Are crazy addicted to white noise.

* Are cooing all the time. Sometimes you coo, laugh, and smile at the same time and in those moments I'm reminded that this is what life is all about.

* Spit up all the time just like Daddy did. Which means you and I always smell like baby barf. Most of the time I can handle it but on your worst days, it's no longer a sweet smell...we just smell funky!

* Have the biggest smiles for people but not so much for cameras.

* Have sisters that make you really really happy, then usually scare you with their crazy!

The Things They Say {Thursday}

This Girl:

"Mom, I never want to go to Africa because there are hyenas there. Did you know they can like snap your bone in half?"

Really Monkey, really? I guess we're never going to Africa. You know, just in case we should run into bone snapping hyenas.

In other news, this guy:

Has decided to start rolling over from his belly to his back. We suspected he was doing it last month but had never seen him actually do it. We have now witnessed it three times. It's all just too fast if you ask me but he seems rather proud of himself.

Two Months Old

I can't believe Mr. T is two months old. Oh time, you are such a thief. Stop, please just stop making my babies get bigger.

I love this picture of my little guy. I think he means some serious business. Maybe he was over mama taking pictures of him. Maybe he was just going number two. Either way, I think his face is priceless!

At two months old you've:

* Doubled your weight. When you came home from the hospital you were 5lbs. 1oz. You now weigh in at a healthy 9lbs. 12oz.

* Are 20 inches long. An inch a month...not bad!

* Have grown out of all your preemie clothes, are working on your newborn, and some of your 0-3 month clothes are actually starting to fit.

* Nurse like a champ!

* Are a mama's boy through and through but are slowly warming up to your daddy.

* Have the most sensitive bum of all our littles. You're making cloth diapering quite difficult!

* Rarely take a formula bottle as a supplement anymore.

* Could take or leave a pacifier.

* Are having longer periods of contentment and no longer require mama's arms snuggling you 24/7. Insert a really big sigh. This is bittersweet.

* Finally have some meat on your bones and rolls on your legs. They're little rolls but they're so cute!

* Sleep from 10pm to 3am almost every night. I love you oh so much for this!

* And smile, you smile so much now. It just melts my heart!

* Oh, and when your really mad, you've been known to roll over from your back to your belly. It's happened once or twice now. You my love, are a strong little mister!

Welcome to Crazy Town

This is crazy town...

via PBKisses

Welcome!

Crazy town was established in October of 2012 when Mr. T joined our lives. When we ventured from two kids to three. When somehow life got flipped completely upside down and The Mister and I became outnumbered.

Most days are insane, literally insane. First born off to school, homework, dance, soccer, catechism, etc, etc. Middle child running through our home like a tornado creating utter destruction as I nurse or rock a little man. It's fun and enlightening. A few tears have been shed. Especially, when my sweet Laneydoo began thinking that a solution to her potty problems, when mama is distracted with brother and can't help her onto the potty, is to pee on the bathroom floor or poop in her hand. YES, I said poop in her hand! She has now carried two poops out to us with a smile on her face. Disgusting!

This is parenting at it's finest. This is what making memories is all about.

And yet...

Some days I think to myself, what did we get ourselves into. We are officially outnumbered. I find myself crying as I mop pee off the floor or ask my two year old to please put her sh*t in the potty. I now drop The Monkey off at school instead of walking her in and let's be honest every single morning I'm in that car still in my pajamas. Most days when The Mister comes home, before I kiss him hello, I do a mental check as to whether or not I've brushed my teeth that morning. Yes, not brushing of the teeth happens too! Disgusting but honest. I no longer dress Laneydoo. It requires too much time and too much effort. A solution to this problem is simply to let her choose which costume she will wear for the day. It's working and yet I know we will end up having issues because at some point, you just can't go to preschool dressed as a ballerina...whatevs! And Mr. T, he's just a mama's boy through and through and is the most finicky of all our children. Hello white noise for naps, say what? I've never had to do this (and quite honestly thought it was a bunch of new age parenting craziness) and I still think it's just one more bad habit but it helps that stinker sleep and I get a few moments of peace. I am now thoroughly and completely relegated to my place of never say never.

But...

This is our crazy and it's good...oh so good! Life is different, it's so much better and sometimes it's not. Sometimes I want to run away just for a day of peace and quiet, but most days, I just want to savor all these little moments of crazy for surely they are fleeting.

So this is it. Our new life. Our new place. It's beautiful. It's messy. It's Crazy Town!

On Giving Thanks

As our holiday weekend slowly comes to an end, I find myself rejoicing in all the things our family has to be thankful for.

We were fortunate enough this year to slip off to the family cabin for an extended five day trip. This year The Monkey got an extra day off from school, so we were rewarded with five glorious days of cabin time. Every other year we spend Thanksgiving up here with The Mister's family...all thirteen of us. And this year was the year!

I love the cabin because the cabin represents family. It embodies many other things too like romantic weekends, girl trips, snowboard trips, or just need a break trips. But the cabin is a place for quiet lazy days and most importantly family. Walks through the woods, movies, fires, games, reading, and eating. This is how we spend our days as a family when we're here.

With a new little man who loves his mama's arms, and a mama with tired nursing arms and an aching back, I have never been more thankful than I was this weekend for a house full of family. So many loving willing arms to pick that sweet boy up and give this mama's tired arms and back a break. Nannies, Ninas, and Aunties, that's what I'm most thankful for this year! They allowed me so many peaceful quiet moments, the kind you forget how much you love when you're snuggled up to a sweet smelling babe or when you're in the midst of your new constant "crazy." But when they're presented to you, those peaceful moments of quiet free arms, you remember how good it is to be just you and not fulfilling one of your many roles. You just get to be. And it is glorious and invigorating and you find yourself recharged.

OH, did I mentioned we moved? We reside in this new place called Crazy Town. More on that later!

So this year I'm thankful for the big stuff, the little stuff, the frivolous stuff, and quite honestly some of the selfish stuff.

Thankful 2012:

1. My life.

2. My hubby.

3. My babies.

4. My family.

5. A family cabin to escape to for some peace and some not so quiet.

6. A house full of crazy, happy, joyous, healthy, loud, and not always getting along cousins. But, none the less, cousins who are having fun and making memories.

7. Nannies, Ninas, and Aunties who hold a baby so a mama can read her book or enjoy her dinner without an attached barnacle. Eating sans attached progeny is something I never new I'd be thankful for...just keeping it real!

8. Movie/coffee date night with my sisters to see Twilight. And a MIL who is willing to watch a babe that likes to nurse constantly and who can be quite fussy when he's not in his mama's arms, making afore mentioned date night possible.

9. Three square yummy home cooked meals for five days straight. This is no joke, we are fed well and I'm not just talking about the Thanksgiving feast!

10. AND, the littlest of moments, because truly there are so, so, so many.

Remember, where you invest your love, you invest your life. As M & S would say, "this is what we believe," and I think never a truer word was ever spoken. This is what I believe!

So, be thankful. Be fulfilled. Be joyous. Just be...

My Boys

For the girl who thought her heart wasn't big enough or strong enough to have a loving and enduring relationship with a boy. You were wrong, oh so wrong! Turns out that your heart is big enough and strong enough for two boys.

And oh, how I love them!

Introducing

Thatcher Greyson

04-05-2012

4:08 p.m.

5lbs. 10 oz.

                                                

Oh how we love you so!

{7} More Days

Time is flying. If life were a stop watch, I would hit the stop button, not for long but for just a few seconds, to stop and take a deep breath. To look around this life of mine and freeze frame everything that surrounds me in that 30 seconds because life is flying by and flying oh so fast.

In seven short days, we will welcome our new little man to this world. I am filled with an abundance of emotions. So many, in fact, it's difficult to formulate the words to even express how I feel. Yet the clock is ticking, and seven days will be here in the shortest whisper of breath.

As we walked through this mornings routine, I wanted to freeze frame my own little moments.

For my Monkey, I realized that while we are in a sticky spot of her exerting her independence, it is also a marvelous thing to watch occur. Especially this morning, as she reminded me of all the things (book orders and privacy folders) to which I have yet to turn into her class. I think my pregnant self is slacking in these last few moments.

And for my Laneydoo, her language is developing so drastically. Yet, today, she still sounds like a baby. I know that sound is fleeting and one day soon I will wake up to a normal toddler voice...sigh!

And in just seven short days, we will enter our new season...

34 Weeks

I'm 34 weeks along as of yesterday. Boy, has the time flown right by. Today, I met with my doctor and we discussed all the basics. As we went through the run down, we began discussing contractions. I explained I was having between three and four good contractions a day but never the magic four within an hour. She thought it best to check my cervix to see if the contractions have been doing their job.

Turns out they are...I am approximately 30% effaced...hmmmmm. This is so weird for me since with both girls I never once showed any early signs of labor. But no dilation.

So now we wait. My c-section is scheduled for 10/05/2012. We will see if I make it that long! I'm guessing I will but one never knows...

Back To School

My Monkey is a big ole 1st grader...say what?

I think I'm still a little dazed by the passing of time. Wasn't it just the first day of preschool?

Last year we started the tradition of our front porch pictures. In keeping with that tradition here is my girl and her BF for life...

The girl doesn't really do serious anymore. Oh well, this makes me laugh!

This is what you get after a summer of surf camp...Shaka Brah...yep, that's my girl!

And for posterity's sake, a sweet toothless grin. Those teeth are no where near growing back. She lost them back in kindergarten and still no signs of her front teeth. I think they may have come out a little to early just like the dentist had suspected.

What's up school? This is a prime example of little sis trying to copy big sis and it not working out as it should. Yet that face on Laneydoo is PRICELESS!

Sister love! These girls will be best friends for life. It's one of my #1 goals for raising these two. The may dislike me, be angry at me, want to move away from home but they will always, always have each other. I read over at Joy's Hope about how they have preached over their girls Carson's are best friends, no matter what. Then the realization strikes...why didn't I think of that. Such a simple reiteration of the value you hope to instill.

So what are Pohls? Pohls are best friends no matter what!

Wishing For An Endless Summer

We are gearing up for back to school in this house. And whilst I am fully prepared to return to the daily grind...school clothes (check), school supplies (check), complete random chores (check)...I still find myself perplexed that in one day I will be walking my big first grader on campus. My insides are truly screaming:

"No, not yet!!!!! Just a little more time..."

For this year is not just the start of a new school year but a jump start to major life changes. In less than six short weeks we will be welcoming our sweet baby boy to this world. Our little family of four will become a family of five and while I am truly thankful, I still fear the unknown. Mix the unknown of having three little ones, and the rush of crazy days that are back to school, and once again I feel like we are propelling through time with little regard for the special moments. Everything feels rushed in our neck of the woods and I'm finding I no longer like the rush nor the daily grind.

I love the slow lazy days of summer. No time constraints, no obligations, just time to do what we please and to do the things we love. The fruit of summer let's us live passionately and I've found that somewhere in our back and forth, homework laden weekdays, that somehow by mid-year we have lost that passion. Time starts to slip by like sands through a hour glass and when we hit that midway point a dull ache has usually taken root in my heart for the loss of time.

I fear that this year will feel even more rushed with the birth of a new baby and school obligations. I just hope that somehow I can embrace a slower pace and the peace of mind to say NO to the things that zap time from what's truly important. For the days spent passionately are truly the most blessed of days.

Tiny Dancer

My girl loves to dance. She's constantly moving and shaking, twirling and whirling. She's been dancing since she was three. If you ask her, she'd tell you that dancing is her life in a overly dramatic tone, with full facial effects, whilst jazz walking across the floor.

Her dance recital was at the beginning of July but I came across this photo while editing some images for a summer journal entry she was writing.

Love her! Love this! It puts a smile on my face every time!

My Style {Family Photos}

Once a year, every year, we have a little photo session with our family photographer to capture a small glimpse of our family and freeze it in time. Usually, I've been brainstorming ideas and planning/researching since the time Angela snaps the last shot of the prior years shoot...pinning photo ideas and contemplating the look and feel that I'd like the photos to portray. But after all the dreaming and the planning, our annual family photos must always fall within a few guidelines:

They may NOT cost us a fortune.

                      AND

We MUST use what we have in regards to clothing.

Sometimes it gets a little tricky but most of the time it ends up working out perfectly. Here are a few of my tips and tricks for styling our family photo sessions.

{1.} Plan, plan, plan. Think about what you want the photos to say about your family in that moment. For us, this year, we were doing a gender reveal for baby #3 and I knew I wanted to represent the new "blue" coming into our house while still representing all things pink and girly! But this could also be something as simple as a special treasure like a blanket or a little ones favorite t-shirt. 

Via PBKisses Photography

{2.} Think about any props you may want to include...if that's your thing. Styled photos are such a big thing right now but make sure that any styling is still a representation of your family and your life. For this shoot, I knew I wanted pink and blue balloons, a boy or girl gender reveal box, and blue and pink converse. These items were my starting points for everything else related to the photos.

Via PBKisses Photography

{3} Make sure to shop your closet before you buy a single item of new clothing. Lay everything you like out on a bed and mix and match it all up. You'll be amazed at what you can come up with. Remember, clothing should always coordinate but never be matchy-matchy. So, think of it like this...the kids can wear the same color/tone but the days of them being twins probably isn't what you want for the photos. Here's how our clothing broke down, with what we shopped our closest for and what was bought at a good old brick and mortar:

Via PBKisses Photography

My starting point was this blue and white striped dress on my Laneydoo with the sweet pink button detail and both the girl's pink converse. Both of which we already had on hand. Next up was finding something the Monkey could wear that coordinated with her sister.

Via PBKisses Photography

Lucky for us,  she had worn a plain white eyelet dress for Easter this year which would coordinate with everything and we always have a jean jacket on hand (it's a must have wardrobe staple). So I threw that in to add a little blue. Last the girls just needed a little more pink, so I opted for some matching pink bows. I ordered these two from SoSoBella.

Via PBKisses Photography

Next up was the Mister and I. I had everything for myself except the pink converse and some jewelry. I find that dressing the Mister always manages to be the most difficult and requires the most out of pocket $$$. He needed navy blue converse and a new shirt. Thankfully, I scored this plaid shirt number for him that incorporated both pink and navy. Double score for us, the pink is very muted and he can wear this shirt to work. Booyah!

Via PBKisses Photography

So there you have it, family photos on a budget. Now, in an effort for full disclosure, I did spend extra $$$ on props (i.e. painted box & balloons).  

Total Clothing Budget:  $123.00

2012 Family Photos

Every year we try to take family photos with our favorite photographer Angela of PBKisses Photography. She is truly AMAZING!!!!! She gets my crazy and she's down for shooting almost anything. She's witty, funny, energetic, and the kids love her. It makes for fun family photo sessions, where you'll usually find her rolling in the dirt and shooting us for longer than our allotted time.

This year, when our spring session time rolled around, we knew we wanted to do something special to announce that Baby #3 was indeed a boy. Here are some of my favorite shots from this years session:

The picture on the far left was how we announced to the grandparents that our little bun in the oven was going to be a boy. I love it because the picture doesn't scream...look this is a gender reveal!

Balloons were fun for the girls too. All in blue, of course! Since these two girly's will be big sisters to a little boy come October. We had a about two dozen to start with, but when it was all said and done, the girls left empty handed. All those balloons were either lost to the blue skies or popped.

And some of my favorite black & whites from the session. And probably the coolest photo of the entire shoot, well, to me at least:

My Monkey doing cartwheels. This is such a representation of my cartwheeling, hand-standing, twirling and whirling girl forever captured in her six year old form.

My Family

Photo Credit: PBKisses Photography

We will travel through this life walking hand in hand. Supporting one another, laughing with one another, crying with one another, and loving one another. In this life and the next. This is my solemn vow to you.