It's Official!

It's official!  We have stepped into the whole new world of traveling as a large family!  And our vacation to the beach last week made that even more real to me!

Yep, gone are the days of just traveling with everything piled in our mini van!  We have now entered the world of traveling with luggage and gear on top of the van now!  We simply don't have the room on the inside of our van anymore for long trips and summer vacations. 

I wish that I took a picture of all the things we took to the beach--the huge piles throughout our house.  It was quite something!  I honestly didn't think that everything was going to fit!  Between baby gear, food, clothes, beach tents and umbrella, beach chairs, pool/beach toys, scooters, etc., we had to finally succumb to the fact that packing the van up by itself was simply not enough!  So Scot went out and bought a cargo carrier for the top of the Odyssey.

I still didn't think that everything was going to fit, but Scot kept insisting that it all would!  And it did!  He was right!

So traveling as a large family, requires stepping out into the world of your vehicle roof top, and the skills of a gifted packer!

Cheers to the new way this large family travels!

 

Make It Simple

Make It Simple!

 

 

No one, not even your kids, are going to care about you winning an award about being the most elaborate mom of year!  So why do we keep trying?  All they care about is attention, love, and some food to feed their hungry bellies!  And if your kids are anything like my kiddos, the times you go all out and take the time to prep something nicer, more elaborate dinner entrées, your kiddos actually prefer the simpler dishes!

 

I had been avoiding the pool during the mid-day hours for a couple of reasons.  First reason was because of the boys' varied nap schedules for which I have now concluded that a couple days out of the week to stray from the schedule a bit is A okay!  Second, the fear of not only being responsible for all four kids and their well-being at a pool all at one time, which I have done on several occasions for about an hour and a half in the late afternoons, but to implement a lunch on top of it simply overwhelmed me.  I was concerned about trying to feed the older three while also trying to feed a baby at the pool.  After last week, and realizing how my crew just sometimes has energy not suitable for such a tiny home as ours, it was time to bite the bullet and try; and try I did!

 

Packing a lunch was a daunting thing for me to think about as well.  Trying to make and pack a lunch for three kids and a baby just seemed too much.  I thought about the little grill restaurant at our pool as an option, but we had been using that as a family dinner option on the weekends and I wanted a little break from that resource; however, I wanted to make it as simple as I could for my first time out so I took inventory of what we currently had in the house and went for the easiest lunch items!

 

For our lunch, I grabbed easy items that required no prep whatsoever.  Perhaps not the most green option, but it was my survival option and it won't always be like this.  I just wanted the kids to have fun while not overwhelming myself and my efforts in the process.  For a bread type option and a fruit type option, I grabbed Nutri Grain bars.  I also grabbed apple sauce in a squeeze pouches.  I grabbed fun food options and something that provided a crunch aspect of the meal by way of assorted bags of chips.  For drinks I grabbed Gatorade for me and juice boxes for the older kiddos.  I grabbed a small sippy cup of water for Big Mac to hold his thirst over until we got back from the pool.  I also grabbed a quick jar of baby food for him to eat and some finger food for him as well.  

 

I did fail to provide a vegie option but that could have been remedy with baby carrots which do come in individual serving sizes, but I had none at the time.  Also, I did not have a protein option either but hey there are other meals in a day too.  However, if I wanted to provide a protein option something like string cheese would have been a simple choice!  Though I had none in the house that day either.

 

I used what I had to make our first lunchtime outing to the pool!  Although it was simple, the kids enjoyed their lunch and told me so!  They said it was yummy and light for such a hot day.  I think they also were thrilled with the fact that I was trying to bless them with a fun pool outing even if I was trying to make it as simple for me as possible.  They just appreciated the fact that we were there and that they didn't go hungry while having a blast at the pool!

 

We already enjoyed a similar lunch outing at the pool yesterday!  Love getting out with all my munchkies!  Remember many aspects of parenting doesn't have to be rocket science!  Make it simple for yourself!

Play Space

Little Man's play space.  Just ignore the air purifier in the corner!

So as I have stated several times previously, our house is rather small.  We have plans to move, but Scot has decided that now is not the time.  So I am left still trying to make things work and to make due with what we have.

Our house is a small three bedroom townhouse.  With Big Mac's arrival, came the first time that we did not have a nursery for our baby.  Unlike his siblings, Big Mac didn't get a nursery of his own.  He slept the first 5 to 6 months of his life in our master bedroom, then we moved him into Little Man's room to create a boys room.  However, this posed a problem that I never had before with my other youngsters. 

As Big Mac became more mobile, I soon realized that all of the little toys for the older three needed to go somewhere away from Big Mac's reach.  In the past, with the other kiddos, I would just move the older kid's toys into their bedroom as we always had a nursery.  This time that idea was simply not going to work as Big Mac didn't have his own nursery, but actually shared his room with his older brother.  Simply placing Little Man's toys in the bedroom was not going to work; because Big Mac sleeps and plays in there too, so I had to put my problem solving skills to the test.

I ended up placing the girls smaller toys and games upstairs in their bedroom, and I moved Little Man's toys into the dining room.  Yep, you read that right!  I decided to make a play space for Little Man in the dining room!  We have a sunken living room, so as of right now it is a great way to trap Big Mac.  Once he starts accomplishing the step, I will just use a baby gate to keep him in that space.  I removed Little Man's toys from the living room and the boys' bedroom, and gathered them into the dining room.  I grabbed the girls' pink, princess table that they hardly use anymore and I decided to put it to good use right now.  I organized toys and placed them into canvas bags and such to create a play space for Little Man in order to create a safe place for Big Mac. 

I used what I currently had to make things safe for the baby.  I do plan on getting collapsible organizers eventually. However, I am frugal in some regards and I am willing to wait to see what host credits I will get when I have a party in August with a bag etc. company.  I am looking forward to that, and I know that it will make my dining space look better.  Sometimes so many people are just so quick to buy big, new and/or expensive to make great spaces; and while that is all fun, and good, and needed sometimes, other times it is good to just learn to use what you have--like a pink princess table for your son! ;-)

I do look forward to having my dining room back to solely being a dining space eventually, but right now this is my life and this is my house.  And before you know it the kids will up and grow so quickly, that this play space will be gone in a flash, and I will probably miss toys in my dining, living and kitchen spaces (Yes, I currently have Big Mac's infant swing in my kitchen space!).  Perhaps when we do finally get our larger, elbow-room kind of house, I may actually miss this tiny house and what came with it.  I keep telling myself "delayed gratification."

How We Stay

Several weeks ago, we went on an overnight trip up north to enjoy a Day Out With Thomas.  After our stay and overnight experience, I decided that I would share how we stay when we are traveling on overnight trips, or even brief stays that last just a few nights.  When we travel to the beach and other more extended type of trips and vacations, our approach is usually a little different than what I am about to explain, like we rent a house or condo.  Being a larger family, I thought that you all may be interested in hearing how we handle hotels and such!

With in the last couple of years, even before we became a family of six and were still a family of five, we started implementing a new way of traveling.  And we have continued it on after Big Mac's arrival.  Our first experience with overnight traveling being a family of six, which included lodging, was when we went to take the kids to see and ride on Thomas the Tank Engine!

You have to plan being a larger family.  You have to leave planning on whim to a minimum if you want to enjoy perks and take advantage of more roomier lodging, so that you are not right on top of each other in a cooped up small room.  When we start planning we get ready to make reservations at a hotel that has what we are looking for our family.  Scot spends time searching the web for good deals and locations of hotels that come equipped with suites! 

Suites are hotel lodging beyond that of a one room and one bath experience.  Suites come with a living type area with a separate space for sleeping.  The living area also comes equipped with a pull out couch, leaving room, space, and a variety of sleeping arrangements.  Sometimes such options at hotels are not always easy to find or may be twenty minutes from a desired location/target area, but believe me when I say that the 10 to 20 minute car ride may be well worth it.  Also, many newer hotels are starting to have such rooms and lodging available.  It is becoming more common place now.

We also love us some Residence Inns!  These hotels come with a larger option which often include a kitchenette and small dining area.  The refrigerator is often larger than the mini fridge so often used in small hotel rooms.  When we plan on staying more than one night then we enjoy it when we can find this option too for a few reasons.  First, sleeping arrangements and space.  Second, to cut down costs or to save us on time and energy, coming back to the hotel to make a quick meal for the family is a great option, because many times such kitchenettes are equipped with a small variety of cookware, utensils and dish clothes.

Now there are times like last year, when we traveled into the mountains and our options were extremely limited and we just had to make due with what we could find.  In those cases, we were prepared for the smaller room and close spaces.  I brought fans for plenty of white noise so that I didn't have to hear Sky Baby grind her teeth, Crazy Paizy talk or squeak in her sleep, and Little Man running into the sides of his pack'n'play.  Yes, we used a pack'n'play to help sleep him when he was two-years-old.  It was that trip that we realized that he had grown out of that option!  Scot and I did go out and enjoy our balcony and our view as the kids fell asleep each night.  Then we just marched in for an early bedtime, but we made it work!  We also knew that only one television was going to be available in that space, so we brought in our portable DVD player so that the kiddos could watch what they wanted when we were in the room and we could enjoy watching something for ourselves.

When traveling as a large family, or really any sized family for that matter, you need to plan ahead, and be inventive.

Pet Beetle

It was kind of sad and pathetic to me several weeks ago (Yes, that is how far behind I am with my blog posts!), that Sky Baby was so excited about her new pet beetle.  Little did I know how important the bug jar she had retrieved from her classroom's treasure box, was going to mean so much to her in a matter of a day or so!  She went on a quest to find insects, but it seemed like it went a little deeper than that, especially when she found this horned beetle and named the little guy; however, for the life of me, I do not remember its name!

Yes, she found this insect and named it as she gave it a home.  She even researched the insect and discovered what kind of beetle she had in her care and what kind of food and such the little beetle would prefer, which was great and was a great project for her to do and to learn from, but I discovered that it went a bit deeper than that for her.  It was her "pet".  Yep, we had a pet beetle in a bug jar that she decorated.  She fed it, and she talked to it, and she was proud of it!

Some of you may be wondering why this beetle being her pet became a big deal to me.  Through this pet beetle, who has since past on to the great beetle heaven in the sky, I realized how much my kids--all of them--would like a pet.  However, now is just not the right time for various reasons.  While I have my legit reasons, knowing they desire a companion as I had as a child growing up, made me a little sad that I am unable to provide that for them at this time.

Scot and I used to have a dog named Toby.  He was a Cocker Spaniel (did I spell that right?) mix, and although I was warned by a tech vet who knew that one day we wanted children that such a dog wasn't good with children and were over bread, we got him anyways.  Well after several years went by and two children had arrived with our third one on the way, Toby couldn't take it anymore and to be frank we couldn't take him anymore as he started to snap and try to bite us--even Scot.  We finally made the difficult decision to return Toby to the rescue society before he ended-up biting one of us or our children, which would have made finding him a new home even more difficult.  This dog also had various health issues, such as doggy IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome) and cleaning up after him and having kids playing on the floor was just beginning to be too much.  Being in a townhouse also didn't provide us many options.  We didn't have a garage or anywhere to keep him, especially if his mess well... you know... um... had gotten on his fur coat, and a bath was required.  One night all we had was our cold, tiny, backyard for the guy until we were able to attend to him, which seemed cruel in a way.  So we returned him to the rescue group detailing to them that he needed a home with no children whatsoever.

Scot and I also had a cat named Pippi.  She was a good cat.  Just a bit stubborn and cranky, but she was good.  However, she ended up also being a cat with medical problems, which included allergies that needed the occasional steroid shot, and IBS as well.  And let's just say that even though she used the liter box, there were still several times that well... well... there was a mess all around.  Anyways, about two years ago, Pippi went into renal failure and was eventually put down.  We haven't gotten another cat for several reasons, but the main one is that this house is just too small for a pet right now.  There is just no place at all for a liter box.  In fact, Pippi's liter box eventually ended up (drum roll please!) in our master bedroom as our family expanded!  Yep, laying in bed listen to your cat take care of business and the smell that would often fill the room just became a bit much and very unromantic if you know what I mean!

Also, being a mom of four kiddos, I simply do not have the time to take care of another being at the moment.  A dog would have to be walked continuously, as our backyard is just way too small for animal waste and the continual clean-up.  I don't have the time to feed another mouth or make sure that someone feeds another tummy.  And sure, you all can say, "Make the kids responsible."  However, an adult--me--would have to ensure that the animal is being cared for appropriately.  The responsibility would most likely fall upon my shoulders, and over the last few weeks I have added more tasks to my already growing list of responsibilities without adding an animal to it. 

Someday when we have waited patiently, planned carefully, and can enjoy the benefits of delayed gratification, we will move to a larger house, and the kids will be older, and perhaps, I will be more adjusted, and another animal will be considered; however, as of now, a pet such as a dog or a cat, will just be too much.  Though Scot and I, okay may be more me, have been considering getting the kiddos a little hamster or the like in about six months or so.  I will let you know if we follow through on that idea!  And whether I am crazy or not!

Now I will close by saying that I may consider the beetle a pet of ours however brief a pet it was and although its name I cannot remember, because I have a memory of that beetle that I may remember always.  One day after observing the beetle had not moved for about 24 hours, I gave Sky Baby the sad news that I believed her pet had died.  She was sad but for a brief time and moved on.  The next day or so while the girls were at school, I heard a peculiar sound in my kitchen.  It was loud scratching.  I looked all around to find the source of the sound, but could not find it.  I kept hearing the noise, and I searched on and off for a bit.  I narrowed down the search area and started to worry that there was a mouse in our wall when I discovered that something was moving in the bug jar.  I looked at it closely.  The bug I had deemed to be dead was in fact a live and well.  It was so healthy in fact that he was moving a stone that Sky Baby had placed in the jar!  I had a good chuckle about our reincarnated pet beetle!  And it only lived a few more days after that!

Small Talk?

So I experienced something just the other day that reminded me of some of the reasons as to why I wanted to start this blog.  Being termed as a "large family" here in the United States can bring about all kinds of opinions, which often can generate a variety of unsolicited comments and looks.  It can make things rather interesting at times I must say.

Earlier this week, I went to a local grocery store to pick up a few, quick items.  I had just picked up the girls from school and I was taking all of my kiddos inside with me.  As I entered the store with all my kiddos in toe and as we were all smiling and chatting while Crazy Paizy was telling me about her day at school, we were interrupted by a woman leaving the store.  She asked me if all the kids were mine, and I replied with a huge smile, "Yes, they are all mine."  She proceeded to give me quite a look and responded with, "I feel sorry for you." I looked blankly at her for a second and proceeded to continue to walk on when I said something to the effect of, "Don't be.  We are good."  For which, her mouth dropped wide open, almost as if she was shocked by my response and thought I was some kind of Bible beater.

I went a little further inside the store, when I stopped as the girls and I started commenting about the lady's rude statement.  I told the girls that I was offended as Sky Baby asked what was a statement like that supposed to mean and why did the lady ask it?  Sky Baby's face explained it all to me.  Her expression confirmed to me that I had every right to be offended by such a rude statement and I will explain to you as to why.

So through another media outlet, other people got wind of my displeasure.  People voiced their opinions and let me know they liked what I said.  But I did have some people come to the defense of the other woman claiming that it was probably just her way of having "small talk."  I responded saying that I wasn't going to be privy to such kinds of "small talk" and here is why.

First of all, I am not one of those people who believes that people are innately good.  On the contrary, I believe that humans are innately sinful.  They are sinners who are in need of Jesus Christ, our Savior.  I had first hand experience with this woman's tone and expression, and for me it was not of a good and nice nature; however, I cannot be sure entirely what her true intentions were when she made that remark.  Perhaps she was just trying to simply strike up small talk, but I have a problem with that kind of small talk regardless of the intentions behind such remarks.

When somebody makes a comment like "I feel sorry for you" after you answered their question about all of the kids being yours, what is that person trying to achieve in such small talk as that?  It seems to me that they would like the mom [me] to agree with their statement, and to start complaining about her kids, and all she does for them, while standing amongst her children she speaks ill about.  It is as if that person wants the mom to start a pity party of sorts right in front of her children, which is undoubtedly wrong to do.

Now don't take me wrong.  There are challenges that do come with parenting as many children as I have; and I do experience some "moments" (as I like to call them and if you can get my drift) while out in public.  In fact, two of my children proceeded to have some brief horse play inside the very store just minutes after the lady made her comment; however, I addressed the situation and moved on.  I left as I had come in--smiling.  Parenting four children isn't always easy, however, I am blessed to be their mom.  They have blessed me and molded me into the person I am today; and therefore, I will not take part in such kinds of small talk.  I will not degrade my children, and I will most certainly not degrade my children in front of them and with a stranger who is supposedly trying to strike-up some kind of small talk!

Okay! Okay!

Okay! Okay! I just might start this one up again soon!

I have some posts stirring in my head ranging anywhere from our backyard, to travel tips, to pet beetles (yes! pet beetles) and more!