Jack Under Water with Angus and Max

Even though Jack’s school finished on Wednesday, it really only feels like summer started today. I think it’s because today is when my summer helper, Kristen, started working for me full time.

I’ve never had full time help before. In fact, besides the occasional Saturday night sitter, I never had another person looking after my kids. I certainly never needed an extra set of hands while still being present. But with four kids we need four hands. And sometimes that’s a bit short!

If you’ve never had it before, it is an odd feeling having someone else around during the week to work with you raising kids. When Adam is here on the weekends we make decisions together. But hiring someone is different. You are in charge. I’ve never been in charge of anything. Even when I got to a management level at work, it was mostly just a title for show. But as everyone I know who has help says, you get used to it real quick.

The Playdate Moms and Kristen

Today was much more than I could hope for. There wasn’t a single awkward moment. Kristen is very easy to be around. She is hard working, with a youthful energy. She let’s the kids know she is in charge, yet she is playful. She is always looking to see what else she can do to help. She can handle the rambunctious older kids, she can snuggle the babies.

This morning I left the older boys with Kristen while I went for my 6 week check up with the twins. My cesarean scar isn’t as pretty as it was the first time. There is a bump of skin that puffs out over the incision, apparently my doctor says it doesn’t go away. There is also a section in the middle that is still red and pusses out stuff. This morning my doctor numbed it up and cleaned it off. I think she took an extra flap of skin off? Then used nitric sticks to try to close up the area. It’s a bit sore now but hopefully it’s fixed.

After the doctors office I came home, breast fed the twins then traded them for the older kids. We went to the grocery store. I bribed them with the promise of donuts. They sat nicely in the cart trying to get me to buy naughty snacks. I tried not to acquiesce but I did end up with some caramel popcorn. I came home to find Kristen had cleaned up the basement – a task I was trying to do for weeks but never could find the time.

More good news is that Kristen is a vegetarian. A bonus which is going to slim me down this summer for sure. I am so excited to cook out of my vegan cook book again and have someone actually appreciate and want the food. And I’m ready for people to stop looking at my abdomen and asking me when I’m due.

On the Seesaw with Ben

We also managed to fit in a play date this afternoon at Weisman Park with a few of my girlfriends. Today was a scorcher and we needed somewhere with a water spray.

At the end of the day I showered with the older boys before dinner while Kristen bathed the babies. I was very happy to find myself showered up and in my jammies by 6:30 and, as Kristen said, “Living the dream.”

Yes, I’m going to get used to having all this extra help around real quick for sure!

I hope everyone reading this is as happy as I am today. Not only am I blessed to have an amazing father, but I married someone who is a wonderful father to four very lucky boys.

This year we packed the car full and headed out to the suburbs. Packing the car has taken on a whole new level of discipline since we’ve had more kids. Strollers, a cooler of drinks, camera, DVDs for the TV in the van, baby carriers, snacks, water bottles, sunscreen, change of clothes for four kids, diapers for three kids, extra formula just in case for two kids, and one old iphone loaded with games. Then you have to put the kids themselves in!

Adam carrying half our kids

This morning (yes it was still morning after we packed up everything and backed out of our garage) we drove out to Lisle to the Morton Arboretum. It’s quite a trek, but every time I go I feel the drive is worth the effort. You can’t experience anything like it in the city. Nature, big and beautiful, along side a very kid friendly garden.

They had a new exhibit called “Tree House Tales”, a bunch of little different houses set up in a patch of land in the Arboretum. It was super cute and nice to see a new section, we always just head to the Children’s Garden and never manage to see the rest of it.

One of the Tree Houses

2 Toots Train Whistle Grill

Afterwards Adam took us to 2 Toot’s Train Whistle Grill for lunch. The boys had gone when I was in the hospital with the twins and loved it. This time I got to experience the train delivering our food, the train whistle pulled every time there was a new order, and the actual food. I was pleased to see they used all Tallgrass Beef. As the 2 Toots website says, “Tallgrass Beef was founded in 2005 by Bill Kurtis, who in addition to being a nationally recognized journalist, is a rancher, conservationist, highly respected businessman and a Chicago Channel 2 news anchor… Kurtis was compelled to find a sustainable method of raising cattle that was not only good for the environment, but also the animals themselves and the American food consumer.”

Ever since reading the Omnivores Dilemma, I’ve tried to stay away from corn fed beef. So it pleased and surprised me to see that the concept was spreading even in the suburbs, even in kid focused restaurants. I hope it continues to grow!

The Photo Booth

The long and exhausting day on Saturday took a turn for the better around 5:30.

I had a pedicure at 5:30. I felt bad walking out of the house, leaving Adam and my mother with four kids. Adam already seemed at his limit with Ben’s new habit of hysterical fits for no reason. But there was only so much vanity I could give up for these kids. So I left. Walking out of the chaos of our house onto the street is a surreal experience. Every moment there is someone crying, a diaper to change, someone to get food for, or breast feed. Someone to bath, someone to dress, someone who needs a toy fixed, the TV turned on, a boo-boo kissed. Open and close a single door and … silence.

Hedy and Mark

After the relaxing pedicure our babysitter from last year, who recently moved back to town, arrived. Adam and I headed out to the Paris Club for our friend Hedy’s 40th birthday. They rented the private room and had a very cool, “ooh la la … oy vey” themed party. There was drinks, great food and a photo booth which we spent a lot of time playing in.

I feel like I’ve seen a lot of 40th birthday parties in the past few years. Few are great. One was more like a party for your 21st birthday. Another more like what you would do at your 60th. But this party was perfect. Hedy had the luck of good friends, a happy marriage, a lovely daughter and a progressive career. Her husband gave a speech praising her as a mother and also said she looks even hotter now than she did when they first met.

Sweet Mandy B's - Yum!

It was so nice to sit down and have food served to you. No one was crying for my attention. No one was fighting and needed refereeing. We had actual, uninterrupted adult conversation!

Friday night was another rough one. Adam was exhausted from waking up at 2am that morning to start work, and by 10:00pm we were still holding a baby each, trying to rock them to sleep so we could put them in the crib.

By 10:30pm I had mine in the crib but Adam, no luck. He suggested he just sleep with the baby on his chest as we used to do with Jack. But that would mean he would be woken shortly for another feed. I took the baby from him and said, “Go to sleep. No need for both of us to be up all night.”

And up all night I was. I fed one baby after the other from 12 to 1am. At 1:15 in the morning Ben ran out of the room looking for me and I took him back to his room and laid in his bed until 2:30am when one of the babies started to cry again. I was up feeding them both until 3:15am. At 5:30 in the morning they fed again and were up for the morning. Jack was up by 6:30am. I heard Ben again at 5:15 but Adam managed to get him to go back to sleep until 7:30.

We had a full day planned for Saturday. Eye appointment at 10am, Costco, kids birthday party from 1-3, pedicure at 5:30 so I would look presentable tonight, then the sitter was coming by at 6:30 to help my mother so Adam and I could go to our friend’s 40th birthday party which started at 7:30.

Adam's New Twin Carrier

I was hoping Ben’s sleep in would mean he would be in a better mood. Having twins has hit him hard. It doesn’t help that it coincides with the ‘terrible two’s”. Our sons must be late bloomers because the ‘terrible twos’ seem to start closer to age three. Lately he’s taking to flopping his body down anywhere and kicking and screaming in a full out tantrum for no reason at all. I mean, there is always a reason, but the response doesn’t match the reason. Like today at the party he was upset his juice spilled. He cried for over an hour on the floor at the birthday party. Kicking and screaming and throwing pizza. It was very embarrassing. Finally Adam took him to the car until the party was over.

I was hoping Ben would sleep but I arrived to the car to find 2 hungry babies and one screaming toddler. Jack and Adam walked across the street to Target to get diapers while I tandem fed the babies in the front seat of the car. A baby resting on each leg, one hand holding a blanket over me, while alternating flipping them over my shoulders and burping them. Ben cried the entire time.

Adam and Jack returned to the van bearing a gift for Ben. A huge icee! He promptly stuck his hand through the top, spilling it all over the car seat. Then he dumped it in his cup holder. Then he dunked his teddy bear in the cup holder.

Ugh. Can’t wait for the sitter to show up tonight. I would love to just go on a complete bender tonight, but I need the breast milk and I have no free time to recover.

Yesterday was not a bad day as far as sleep is concerned. And nowadays, it is my primary concern!

Most mornings I wake up for the morning around 6am, on the couch with two babies on top of me and the sound of Ben’s feet running down the hallway towards me.

Thursday morning I woke up to the sound of my mother’s footsteps around 6:15. She came and sat next to me, but I quickly passed off a baby to her and told her to go downstairs so I could sleep. Amazingly the back rooms of our house were quiet until 8am.

I was so pleased to think the boys finally slept in so Adam could get some rest. He still wakes most nights with Ben, and sometimes Jack, but no one has sympathy for him. He never gets any naps. If there is a nap time available, he always defers to me. Good man. Tired man.

Unfortunately for Adam, the pitter patter of feet I heard coming from the back room around 8am was two fully dressed boys sugared up from their early morning foray to Starbucks. They snuck out to give me some extra rest.

That coupled with my afternoon nap in the gym sleep room (I booked Ben from 2-4pm and Mom watched the twins) put me in a good mood for once.

Adam had a work dinner Thursday night so Mom treated the kids to McDonalds.

No cooking or dirty dishes plus sleep! What a great day!

Beautiful Day at the East Bank Club

It meant had the energy and time to run around with Jack and Ben playing hide and seek after dinner. I often suffer from guilt that, since the twins were born, I yell so much more at the kids than playing with them. But at the end of the day Thursday I fell asleep with a clear conscious. For about 45 minutes, then it was time to feed again. Ha ha ha!

So I tried it again Friday afternoon. I brought both kids to the play room at the gym then Adam joined us at the pool. Mom watched the twins. Again I was able to play uninterrupted  with the older kids while only missing one feed.