Have you ever watched some of these crazy extreme sports ?
Have you ever wondered what was wrong with those people ? Willingly putting
them selves through so much pain and agony for what little bit of pleasure, if
any. Climbing a mountain through the snow, dehydrating and eating the bare
minimum. Waking up in the morning with frozen snot, and as stiff as a corpse.
Having blisters on top of blisters, fingers without nails. Exhausted and
drained from energy. And there’s a chance you could loose your life. But still
this does not stop the brave men and woman climbing Mount
Everest. In actual fact ... they do it again and again !!!! I
could never understand that. All of that agony to get to the top ... and then
...
But in my little world I think I got a small taste of that
adrenalin rush. I understand that there’s sweet personal victory and pleasure
in some things no one else can share or understand. You do it all for yourself while
other people shake their heads.
Having three children in two and a half years is as extreme
as it gets. Q : How old’s your children ? A : One two three. Extreme I would
say !!! But I would do it again and
again !!!! I look at pregnant woman and I long to be pregnant again.
JP and I have never experienced or anticipated the level of
chaos that’s the norm in our house presently. It’s the most intense, demanding
and constant job ever !!!! For one person to look after all three kids alone is like climbing the snow caped mountain without a jacket ...
you won’t die right away, but you won’t live long. Being two people is like
climbing a snow caped mountain with a jacket but no beanie ... a bit
uncomfortable. In our house we actually need to be three adults caring for the three of them. This ratio we only have some Saturday’s when Anna works and JP and I
are home. So yes most of the times it’s uncomfortable. And the day’s Anna is
off and I’m alone with them it’s a KILLER !!!
Everything is a mayor drama and takes serious planning.
Going out for the morning with all three requires the same amount of planning
for an adult weekend away. From the minute we go thought the back door to
closing the street gate behind us can take up to 20 minutes !!!! Each child has
to be convinced to get in their seats and stay seated. Then there’s the loading
of the car with prams, bag’s and all the stuff necessary for that trip.
This is the check list before leaving the house, the basic
stuff (some trips needs extra stuff) :
Baby bag
Nappy for Lily (she only wears one on our way home and it’s
nap time)
Nappy for Lexi x 3
Nappy for Ruby x 3
Wipes
Bum cream
Disposable bags for poo nappies
Bottle for Lily
Bottle for Lexi
Bottle for Ruby x 2
Formula powder for Lily (Lily and Lexi loves their bottle
nap time)
Formula powder for Lexi
Formula powder for Ruby
Flask with water to make milk
Dummy for Lily
Dummy for Lexi
Dummy for Rubi
Bib for Ruby
Lexi’s blanky (cannot sleep without it)
Lily’s bunny (cannot sleep without it)
Cloth nappy for Ruby for burping
Set of clothes for Lily (short and tshirt)
If cool weather, jackets for Lily and Lexi)
Snack box for Lily and Lexi (popcorn, nuts, kips, dried fruit
)
Barby Sippy cup with water for Lily
Winni poo Sippy cups with water for Lexi
Small bag with first aid goodies, like plaster and sun screen
Wrap and sling to carry them if they don't want to walk
Blankets for pram
Throw to cover pram
Double stroller / Single stroller / Pram
Lily has
become a bit "baby-ish" since Ruby's her, and wants all the baby
things Ruby get, like bottle, dummy, wearing baby vests, being carried like a
baby ans so on. We know it's been a huge adjustment for her, and we are trying
to make the transition as smooth as possible by giving her the love she needs.
Lily is our little perfectionist and like order and
structure. She insists on washing Ruby’s hair daily and even though Ruby
doesn’t like a dummy Lily puts it in her mouth all the time. Lily brushes her
teeth a few times a day and washes her hands a lot, without me telling her to.
Lily can’t wait to dress in pretty clothes each morning and also takes out
clothes for Lexi. She insists in choosing the clothes. She also loves telling everybody what to do, including Ruby :)
Lexi is real character, she’s the real trouble maker and a
mayor irritation for Miss perfection Lily. She loves to eat butter, paint her
face with a lollypop and smudge the car with melted chocolate. Lexi loves
apple, but not to eat ... she bites out small pieces spitting it out leaving a
Hansel and Gretel trail through the house. And even though the dogs are a great
help eating the mess the make, they don’t like fruit. Lexi used the toothbrush
to brush the basin’s drain and inside the taps – truly gross !
Ruby is our precious little baby that would still prefer to
be curled up inside me where is dark, quite and cozy, but as a second best choice
mommy’s arms will do fine. I love the fact that she needs me close, but it’s a
challenge keeping everybody happy. Ruby is almost 8 weeks old and still as cute
as a button. She is so good and sweet. She seems to be a quiet little soul,
very happy to just be in our company. She doesn’t like her quiet room but
prefers the noisy living room where she’s close to us. She is gaining weight
fast and has cute chubby cheeks. She sleeps beautiful at night, as long as I’m
close enough for her to hear my breathing. I am sooooooo enjoying her !!!
Early morning 6am – 8am and afternoons 4pm – 7pm are the
most intense. This is when all three has needs to be met at the same time. In
the morning Lily and Lexi needs their milk and I have the feed Ruby which takes
25 minutes. Lexi and Ruby needs new nappies. I need to prepare porridge and
feed Lily and Lexi. Most of the time we just decide what's priority and start
from there. For example, if Ruby needs a bottle the same time they need
breakfast – Ruby gets fed first and I’ll give then dry Milo
cereal to snack on. All three need to be dressed.
Afternoons there’s dinner to be prepared, feed them, Ruby
needs milk and Lily and Lexi needs a bath and Ruby after them. This is also the
time when they are the most fragile and meltdowns and fits drain my energy and
seriously tests my patients. I try to have them fed, clean and calm before JP
arrives home from work around 6pm.
During the day we do lots of fun things. Follow this blog to see in posts to follow. Here we went to Bambino's for the morning.
Here we went to the toy library, loads of fun. Anna is helping Lexi to choose a puzzle.
We have very weird sleeping arrangements. Lily wakes up two
or three times at night wanting her daddy, AND HER DADDY ONLY !!!!! So JP
sleeps on a double bed in their room. Lily and Lexi’s little beds are next to
each other, and they do start the night sleeping in their own beds. But during
the night Lily will sometimes get in bed with JP. Lexi is our worst sleeper and
wakes up very often, but JP is there to console if she needs it. She comes to
my bed most nights in the early hours. I have my double bed in Ruby’s room. So
far Ruby is happy to sleep in her cot the whole night. I love it when Lexi
comes to my bed, she is a real little cuddle bear. We have been sleeping
together most nights since birth so know each other. When I feed Ruby during
the night Lexi doesn’t even wake up. Our main bedroom has become our “date room”
and we only meet there for fun now. We love to co-sleep with our kids and are
firm believers on the benefits thereof. Snuggling in the night with them is
just awesome and something there’s not much time for during the hectic day. We
also don’t want them to cry at night, and we want to be very close to be there
the second they call for us. Hopefully in a few years the three girlies will
share a room and have fun midnight adventures, and we can move back into our
main bedroom and get some proper sleep again.
We have LOTS of laughs during the day. I can’t leave Ruby in
the pram, cause Lexi can reach her mouth, nose and ears and WILL put anything
in those holes that will fit. Lily is potty trained, which is great BUT if she
needs to go to the loo I have to leave everything I just packed in the trolley
and we must run with her to the nearest toilet or potty in the car, whichever
is closer !! Lexi loves being pushed
around in the dolls pram by Lily, so cute. Lily is a real little tattle tail and tells us EVERYTHING Lexi does. The other day Lily have her
doll half of Ruby’s medicine bottle for cramps, no more cramps for that dolly.
Lexi threw out half of the dog food on the back lawn for the birds ... only
creating a mayor ant problem. It was hilarious to see Lily try and open Abby’s
(the dog) mouth and retrieve her chip Abby snatched up from the floor. Here Lexi wants to also sit on the potty with Lily ... he-he !!
Climbing Mount Everest
gives exhilaration, excitement en beautiful views that tennis and soccer will
never be able to. So yes there’s more pain but so much more glory. People often
say we were crazy for having 3 kids in 2.5 years ... and yes they are right, but
we wouldn’t change it for the world. It’s crazy BEAUTIFUL !!!!
