pros and cons

There are a few good things that have come from my ankle break. For one, being in a cast and unable to walk has really lifted the pressure that I was feeling about getting back in shape after having Izzy. Now when I go to the pool, I really don't feel self-conscious about the extra baby weight at all (granted, I'm not in a bathing suit anyway since I can't swim). We live in an area where there are a lot of very fit 'soccer moms', which can be a little disheartening post-partum. Now I'm not really all that worried about it because there is nothing I can do.
Also, it has forced the boys to really step up and help me. Devin can now get most of his breakfast on his own (he needs help with the milk for his cereal) and Alex will hear me coming down the stairs and call out, "Mommy do you need help?". Then he will come over and carry my crutches down for me. They have always had 'jobs' to do, like take out the recycling, put away clean silverware, clean up their toys, but this has taken things to a new level.
The biggest down side of breaking my ankle isn't really the injury (although I am a little concerned about my skinny little peg leg, and about my lack of ankle flexibility) but the impact that is has on Andy. Isabel has been getting up to feed twice each night for the last couple weeks. That means that Andy has to either feed her or bring her to me and then put her back to bed once I'm done feeding and changing her. Plus, he needs to get up every time she loses her binki and needs help. For that reason alone I hope that I am able to get off the crutches at my appointment next week - so I can carry Isabel and let Andy get a decent night's sleep for a change.

thank goodness for Mom

My mom is such an amazing help. I don't know how we would have made it through Andy being out of town without her. The first day Devin spiked a fever and that night he threw up. It was actually kind of funny. At 3:00 am he came running down the hall crying and throwing up into a bucket. When he got to my bed (because I can't get around very well with the broken ankle) he handed me the bucket and said that his tummy didn't feel good (which I had clearly guessed already). Once we got his face wiped and my mom cleaned out the bucket, he was sitting on the floor waiting for me to get him some Motrin and he started singing, "Everybody dance now...". There was one more vomiting episode in the morning, but by the afternoon he was eating like crazy and playing basketball. However, the second vomiting episode coincided closely with me nursing Isabel and Alex splitting his lip. I needed three sets of hands and two functioning legs to manage it. Thank goodness I had Mom here. Then later Alex whacked himself in the eye with a hard plastic bat, so he looks like a boxer, or like social services should be called on his parents. Andy is back and my Dad is here too, so we have a better ratio going for the next few days. The kids are all loving the extra attention and affection from Grandma and Grandpa, and I think my parents are enjoying the little ones (especially that smiley little Isabel!).

Izzy's weight class

Andy and I are convinced that Isabel is trying to "make weight" like a boxer or a wrestler. She's trying to go from lightweight to heavyweight in a short amount of time, and eating like a machine to achieve this. The last couple days she has been eating every other hour during the day, and every three or four hours at night. This comes after she gave us a little taste of what life could be like by sleeping nine hours one night. What a tease! Needless to say, Andy is thrilled about the increase in nighttime feedings, since he has to either feed Izzy or bring her to me every time (and has to get up to give her the binki countless time each night after his crazy long day of working and taking care of the kids and the house). Her full cheeks and chubby legs sure are cute though. =)

we're getting by

Everyone is asking how we are doing, so I thought I'd post a quick update. All things considered we are doing really well. I am able to get around more now that my pain has significantly subsided and I am getting much better on crutches. Andy is unbelievably busy taking care of breakfast and dinner every day, doing laundry, bathing everyone (much as he is nervous bathing the little slippery baby, he thinks he's a better candidate for the job than I), cleaning up the kitchen, putting the kids to bed and carrying Isabel anywhere that she needs to go. Oh, and he's working full time too. The boys are both being very helpful, but their help is sometimes terrifying. Today Devin got a band-aid from the bathroom cabinet for Alex. When I went to the bathroom a little later I discovered that he reached the band-aid by climbing on a stool that he put on top of the toilet. While I have to give him props for his ingenuity, I clearly have to review with him which items are acceptable for climbing.
The person most enjoying my lack of mobility is Isabel. She loves hanging out on the couch with Mom. She even takes all her naps on the couch, since I can't carry her while I'm on crutches. Any guilt that I was feeling about her getting shuttled around to all the boys things and spending too much time in her car seat is long gone, since she is getting more time with me than I ever thought my third child could get. I think we are both enjoying that though.
I am extremely grateful to my friends who have been absolutely wonderful about helping us. We have friends who are driving my kids to camp and swim lessons, bringing us dinner, inviting the boys over to play, picking up groceries for us, and even coming over to help me get Izzy into the car when I need to go somewhere. While Andy and I both feel bad about being so needy, we recognize that we truly cannot manage on our own right now. Even though we have babysitters coming daily to help with lunch and things around the house, we still rely heavily on our friends, and we feel so lucky to have made some wonderful friends in such a short amount of time.
We are calling in reinforcements this weekend though - Grandma is coming! Andy has to travel next week, so my Mom moved her trip up (she and Dad were planning to come later in the week) and has extended her stay until I am (hopefully!) off crutches. I hope that she is able to give Andy a little breather, since he has been pulled in a lot of directions lately and he definitely needs (and deserves) some down time. I know that I'm not the only one counting the days until I go to the ortho again.

four weeks

Sometimes four weeks seems like it passes so quickly, and other times it feels like an eternity. I wonder how fast the next four weeks will go by, since I need to stay off my ankle the whole time. The doctor put me in a boot (that I can remove only to shower) and told me to use my crutches and don't put any weight on my leg for four weeks. Then I will get to wear the boot for two more weeks when I can start walking on that foot. So I will spend the remainder of the summer in a hot, sweaty boot, hobbling on crutches for most of the time.
As my mom put it, I guess it was time for me to slow down.

unbelievable

Maybe I tempted fate, or jinxed myself. See, I mentioned that we had an easy July ahead of us, with no vacations, no big house projects, no real plans other than my parent's visit later this month... but July will be anything but easy now. Yesterday (in an attempt to return to a normal fitness routine and get in shape again) I went for a run. I was less than half a mile from the house when I fell. My foot came down on an uneven part of the pavement (where the street meets the curb) and my ankle twisted and I went down hard. I limped about a block before I waved down a passing car and asked for a ride home (thank goodness we are in a friendly neighborhood!). Within half an hour the outside of my ankle was the size of a tennis ball. We waited a couple hours (but followed the ice/elevation/motrin protocol) before going to the ER. So a couple Xrays later we found out that I broke it. To be specific, I have a hairline fracture of the fibula. They immobilized my leg, gave me pain meds and crutches, and told me to stay off of it until I can get in to see an Ortho (hopefully Monday!). The ER doc thinks that I will either be in a walking cast or a boot for a few weeks. I just know that taking care of two kids and an infant while on crutches seems impossible. At this point I am not a whole lot of help with anyone other than Isabel, and that is because she is very content to hang out on the couch with me. Andy has been wonderful and our friends and neighbors have been very helpful. However, this will be a challenging week.

amazing photos of my boys

The last morning of our trip I grabbed my boys and my camera and headed down to the beach. The result was a series of the most amazing pictures of Devin and Alex. Some of the pictures are just cute, and some of them really show the close, fun-loving relationship that these little guys share. Here are my favorites.

three months old

Isabel is three months old.
I know that she is still a little baby, but this feels so big to me. When Devin was three months old I went back to work, which was difficult for me. The only thing that kept me sane was knowing that our friend Kristen was taking wonderful care of him.















I am really enjoying Isabel as a little baby. I guess it's because I know that she is my last baby, but I am in no hurry for her to grow up. That being said, I love the stage that she is in right now. When she sees me or Andy or the boys she absolutely lights up. Like Alex, she smiles with her whole face, and she just gurgles and laughs; it's adorable.



I can't decide which of my babies is cutest in this picture. They all seem to have a little something sweet about them.

vacation photos

We had a wonderful time on vacation. The boys went from the beach to the pool to mini-golfing and back to the beach. It was pretty much a kid's paradise. I think the adults enjoyed themselves too. After working much of Father's Day, Andy decided to leave his Blackberry at the condo when we went to the beach (woohoo!). He also played a little golf, but not as much as I would have thought. Aunt Jo read two books and I managed to watch a couple movies and go for a few runs. But we mostly hung out on the beach playing in the water with our two little fish. Izzy was such an easy-going baby. She chilled in the tent on the beach with us every day with few complaints. She's such a sweet girl.

In this picture the kids are all hanging out in Alex's bed in the morning. Devin and Alex shared a room and loved climbing into a bed together to watch TV in the morning.







Some pictures of us playing on the beach.













This picture provides a glimpse of the gear required to take care of three small kids on the beach. We have a tent for Izzy, but both boys are napping in the tent in this shot.
















Beach front dining. There's nothing finer...

Happy Birthday Devin!!

Can you believe that I have a five year old now? Seriously. Five years old.

Devin loved being at the beach for his birthday and asked if we could spend his birthday at the beach every year. Wouldn't that be nice. Happy birthday Devin! And Happy Father's Day to Andy too. The last time Andy shared Father's Day with Devin's birthday was the day that Dev was born... and what a life changing day that was. Happy birthday you big five year old boy! I love you.

I miss my friends!

We had a wonderful visit with Annie and Loretta. It was so great to spend time together and to catch up. I loved introducing Isabel to her 'Aunt Mo' and I really enjoyed spending time with Annie for a few days (it felt too short!). Of course we have stayed in touch via phone and email, but there is nothing like spending time together. The only thing our weekend was missing was John (and Caroline, of course). We are really looking forward to seeing them in August.
The boys talked about Loretta for days after she left, and Devin wanted to call her to make sure that she knew we are coming to in August "so she won't miss us so much." How cute is that? Even Andy commented numerous times that it was a great visit and that he misses the Tarnuzzers a lot. It is hard to be far away from such good friends.

This week was mayhem. Between getting ready for our beach vacation and having contractors working on the kitchen for days, things have been a little crazy. The kitchen looks great though. We still have some cleaning to do (since every cabinet gets nasty when counter tops are being replaced) and the dust is still settling from them cutting the island wall and the granite for the cook top, but I am quite pleased with our updates. We have some detail work to do, like re-grouting the line between the counter tops and the back splash and touch-up painting, but that will happen later. July shouldn't be too busy for us, so we will probably tackle those projects then. Aunt Jo arrives tonight (fingers crossed, since she has already been delayed) and we head to the beach tomorrow. We are all excited. The boys already have their back packs in the car and have been 'helping' Andy and I get ready since this afternoon. They can't wait. I am hopeful that there will be some R&R for us this week, although juggling three kids on the beach may not allow for that. =)

Summer is here!!

The boys finished school two weeks ago and our summer season is fully underway, complete with hot the weather and with me taking on three kids for the next three months. So far we have been doing great, but I have had a lot of help. Last week Andy's family visited and the boys were thrilled to have the extra attention. Andy and I even managed a date night too! This week has been all about the pool (especially since the temperature has been in the high 80's and 90's) and getting ready for Annie and Loretta to visit (on Friday - can't wait!). Next week our kitchen work will commence. We are replacing our counter tops with granite, changing the island configuration, adding a hood and running a gas line for a new gas cook top. The following week we are going to the beach (woohoo!) and the week after that the boys go to day camp at their preschool. After that the Shaffer's (Phil, Karen & Samantha) will visit us right before the 4th of July. This will be a very busy month; it's a good busy though, with all kinds of fun things happening.
Today we are planning to take the boys to a triple-A baseball game (Pawtucket Red Sox vs. Charlotte Knights), weather permitting. The game is at 7:15, so I hope it won't be too crazy hot by then. We'll see. This morning we are headed to the gym for a Mommy yoga class (the boys will go to childcare, but this class is one of three weekly pre/post natal classes offered at our gym where the instructor makes modifications for growing bellies and babies are welcome to stay in the gym near Mom while she works out. How cool is that?). After my workout I will likely take the kids to the outdoor water park at the gym for an hour or so. They love it! It has a shallow area with some little slides and a huge spray area that both boys can use, and then there is a lap pool with two sets of water slides that Devin can use.
Isabel and I mostly hang out in the shade, but I have put her little feet in the water a couple times. Izzy is doing great and sleeping a full six hours at a time most nights. We are nowhere near having a predictable schedule yet, which makes for some difficult planning sometimes (like yesterday morning when I wanted to swim before Andy went to work. Our neighborhood pool opens at six am for adults only lap time and I planned to get my first swim in after nursing Izzy, but she slept until after seven!), but she is great.
I now have Alex in my lap while I type, Devin is standing next to me with a book ready for "story-time" and Izzy is starting to stir in her crib. My time is officially up!

not such a big girl

Isabel had her two month check up (already she's two months old!) and she is doing great! She is 10lbs 5oz and 23.25 inches. She no longer looks like a newborn at all, and everyone comments on how long she is (75th percentile... not bad). Since I am in no hurry for this baby to grow up, I am a little sad that she's already getting so big. But I am absolutely thrilled that she is healthy, of course. When I got home I checked the boys' growth stats, and realized that she is not that big compared to her brothers. When Alex was two months old he was the exact same length as Izzy, but he was two and a half pounds heavier (many of you remember those amazing rolls in his thighs, I'm sure) and at two months Devin was 3/4 of an inch longer (24 inches) but he was three and a half pounds heavier. So she's not such a big girl after all. =)

Speaking of big girls, today is Loretta's third birthday! Happy Birthday Retta!!! Devin and Alex wanted to call her this morning to sing, but I knew Loretta would be at daycare and then I completely forgot to call this evening. The boys will be anxious and excited to call tomorrow, so I hope the Tarnuzzers are ready for an early morning phone call complete with some enthusiastic singing! We love Loretta in this house.

anniversaries

This is a week of anniversaries for us. First was our wedding anniversary (our seventh). Sometimes I can't believe all that Andy and I have done, been through and accomplished in a mere seven years. We're on our third house, third child, third job for me (if you count staying home as a job - which I certainly do!) and third job for Andy (which is an accomplishment in itself, since he was changing jobs far more frequently before our wedding). With the multitude of things that need to happen and people who need something from us in our daily lives I think we sometimes lose our focus on the love that brought us to this place, and I am glad for a chance to regain that focus. Plus we get a date night, and I'm always happy for a reason to spend some additional quality time (i.e. kid-free time!) with Andy. =)
The second anniversary that we recognize this week was the third anniversary of Brianna's death. My sister and my family in Illinois maintained their tradition of sending off notes to Brianna on helium balloons. Annie and John maintained the tradition that we started of participating in the 5k road race to benefit Children's Hospital in Boston. And I think I have found a new tradition. I spent some time alone with my thoughts while walking in a beautiful wooded park near our house. It gave me a chance to really reflect on Brianna's life and all the wonderful things that it brought to my family and to many of the people in our lives who were touched by Brianna in some way.
I also watched our wedding video for the first time in ages. It was so wonderful to see all the images of our families at such a fun and celebratory time, but also it is among the only videos I have of Brianna. There are scenes of her walking Andy's parents down the aisle, dancing and hamming it up for the camera and even trying to touch one of the chickens that escaped their pen during our reception (very brave!). But the image of Brianna that touches me most from the wedding is one of her cuddling Andy as he was holding her. Then she smiled at me and said, "Maybe I'll marry Uncle Andy."

I miss you Punkin, and love you forever.

dream baby

Isabel is still a wonderful baby. The last couple nights she has been sleeping five and a half or six hours a stretch! If only we could keep her brothers in bed then Andy and I wouldn't be so exhausted... but she's doing great. She started smiling a couple weeks ago and has been stealing all of our hearts with her little smiles and gurgles. It is truly adorable.

I loved this series of pictures and couldn't pick just one to post, since they each are cute in their own way.

This one is my favorite.

Tummy Troubles and misc...

We think that the dream baby has tummy troubles. It started a week and a half ago, but really got intense this weekend. Izzy would start nursing and then a couple minutes later she'd drop the latch and start screaming, arching her bad and hitting me. This would happen once or twice an evening. Not exactly a fun way to end the day. It was clearly upsetting for her and rather stressful for Andy and I. I took her to the doctor yesterday and they think she may have a mild case of reflux. They likened it to heartburn, which doesn't sound like fun at all. So Izzy is taking a low dose of Zantac and so far it seems to be helping.
Tomorrow Devin has the follow up appointment for his eye. It looks so much better already. I hope he gets the all clear to go swimming soon, since our neighborhood pool opened early this year and he is already asking to go. Not that we won't have ample opportunity to swim this summer, if I can figure out how to get them to the pool while keeping Izzy out of the sun. I can't believe that we only have three more days of school (actually one more day for Alex). I'm not sure if I'm ready to have these hooligans all to myself all summer long. In some ways I am looking forward to it, since we all enjoy mornings where we don't have to hurry out of the house. However, on these lovely schedule-free days the boys often get tired of entertaining themselves by late afternoon and they start getting "creative". Which means that I am counting the minutes until reinforcements (i.e. Andy) arrive. I guess that is where the margarita machine comes in handy. =)

Happy Mother's Day!

What a wonderful day! My day started with a sleep in morning (other than nursing Isabel at 5:45 am, of course). Then the men in my life woke me at 8:30 with breakfast in bed. Devin, Alex and I devoured Andy's creme brulee french toast, chicken apple sausage and the fresh cut strawberries and bananas. The only thing I didn't share with the boys was my coffee. =) Each of my children presented me with presents (even though Andy and I said we wouldn't do presents for Mother's/Father's day this year. His argument was that the gifts weren't from him...) and I love them all. After breakfast was digested I jogged down to the neighborhood fitness center to lift, came home for a shower and left for church with Devin. Those of you with three small children (or with a baby of any age) know that getting a workout and a shower in the same morning is an unbelievable luxury! After church, Devin and I went to lunch and did a little shopping (since he needed a new bathing suit and none of my shorts fit me yet). When we came home and I puttered around the house, played outside with the boys and held my little girl a lot (Izzy is going through a growth spurt. She nursed seven times today and had two bottles. Wow!)
This day was more relaxing and fun than I had anticipated. I have to thank my kids and my amazing husband who made it all happen! I am one lucky Mama.

Pirate Devin

Devin's surgery went well. The doctor said that it really couldn't have gone better. Other than the vomiting in the car on the way home, he did great. He had to wear an eye patch yesterday, and that really bothered him. We tried to talk up the whole pirate angle, but that only appeased him for a while before he decided that he really wanted the patch off.

There were tears, but he was much better this morning when the doctor said he was doing well and only needed to wear the plastic eye shield at bedtime. His eye is red from the trauma of surgery, but the doc says it should look better within a couple weeks. He doesn't seem bothered at all about it now.

quick update on goals

Hi there,
Aunt Jo and Eileen are here and we are having a great time. Since I would rather spend my "leisure" time with them than online, I'm just doing a quick update on goals.

Here is how I did on my goals for last week:
1) Finish Alex's thank you notes - done!
2) Clean bathrooms & vacuum before my sister and Aunt Jo arrive - done & done!
3) Catch up on email - blew that off again
4) Get some exercise - two walks, one pilates tape and one run! woohoo!!
5) Assemble and print labels for Isabel's announcements - done and sent
6) Get through to Alex about his behavior at school - we had a better week this week, so maybe?

This next week I want to get more exercise and catch up on email. Other than that I'm planning on laying low, what with company here and Devin's surgery and all. Dev is having eye surgery on Wednesday to remove a red bump (that the doctor likened to a mole) from the white part of his eye. Hopefully things will go well and the pathology report will come back with good news. =)

closure

It's official. We no longer own a house in Massachusetts. This was supposed to happen months ago, but we ran into an issue with the title and had to wait for the builder and the Shrewsbury conservation committee to sort things out. Luckily Wachovia was great about it and continued to reimburse our mortgage until the close, and the close finally happened today.
Andy and I are both breathing a sigh of relief. It's a little strange though to know that the house there is no longer ours. We really are Southerners now.