so not ok

this is so not ok.

she is a baby, people, a baby.

speaking of babies, i'll tell you what is ok....

my littlest sister is having another one.

more babies?

why yes,

i am in heaven,

thanks for asking.

and how about this little edible confection of sugary delight?

my nephew, brandon. yummy.

if they sold him in a bakery?

i would buy a dozen.

that is all.
wednesday is supposed to be wordless, afterall.

10 days

here we wait

on a day where cupcakes, pacys and blankees are a necessity.

and diaper changes and clothing are a luxury.

and yes that is my big 41.5 week belly in the pic.

because I am still pregnant

oh sweet baby.

on days like this i don't blame you for staying inside.

i promise your brother and sister don't always act like this.

we have already exhausted our final resource, the pool.

but that privilege was quickly taken away due to repetitive rock throwing.

matt and i are so looking forward to our mini vacation in the hospital.

and no, we're not kidding.

4tyONE weeks

I thought I published this yesterday. Oops.

Yup.
Here we are.
The baby and me.
WE are still a WE.
Because she is still inside of me.
I'm in a bad place today.
I want her to come.
On her own.
I'm not a full on hippy but I like to think of myself as mildly healthy.
I'm kind of a hippy when it comes to the health of my kids.
Like I will eat mac n cheese and they eat spinach and grilled chicken.
But that's because I love them more than I love me.
A lot more.

That said I don't like inductions.
I was induced with the twins at 38 and a half weeks so I have been there.
But I don't like anything about them.
Especially early inductions.
And I don't like how they are pretty much mainstream now.
Unless they are medically necessary, obviously.


I have my reasons but I am not here to preach.
I'm here to vent.

My doctors will allow me to go 14 days past my due date.
I am now 7 days past.
I try to be more healthy when I have babies in my belly.
Except I drank coffee this pregnancy starting at 20 weeks.
I'm sorry sweet pea.
Your brother and sister were too much to deal with while you were sweetly trying to grow so innocently in my body.

But
Unfortunately I'm not in control of when she comes.
And it makes me sad.
I want what is best for her.
So I'm sad that we only have 7 days left to get her out.
And I'm sad that I have to take my twins to get shots in an hour.
I'm emotional.
For no reason really.
Except for that I have control issues.
With the best intentions.
And I have no control.
So come out.
On your own.
So I can stop crying.

On a good note, Colton keeps coming up to me and puts his forehead against mine and smiles every time I cry.
He is the biggest angel bully I have ever met.
And I love it.

Ahhhhhh......slowly exhaling.

I feel so much better.

Thank you all so much for sending love. Whether it was by email, facebook or a comment on my blog you made me feel better and not alone.

And thank you Amy for sending all your million followers who have been there done that and let me know I would indeed make it. Love you, Aim.

I really feel better already.
I have already begun operation spoil my kids faces off.
I know it's not right.
I know it will make it more difficult for those caring for my twins while I'm out of commission.
But,
frankly,
I don't care.

It has already made me feel better and let's be honest, that's what's important.
Ummm hmm.
I'm selfish like that.

So yeah.

We went to Curtis Hixon Park even though it was 942 degrees and I was quite certain my baby was going to fall out of my stomach right then and there.
And we went with the twins best friend Veronica.
She's a really good mom and packs lots of snacks.
She keeps my kids full and they know who butters their bread.
And they love it.
And they love her.
And Chloe's first french kiss was with her son, Jameson.
Which, she initiated, I might add.
Don't worry, we had a talk with her.

V knows Chlo loves wa la la la
so,
of course,
she hooked her up.

P.S. Chloe calls watermelon "wa la la la" with extra drama on the la la la with her tongue.

And girlfriend isn't scared of a little rind.

This is J letting Colton know that he will continue to kiss Chloe if he wants to.

Miss Independent enjoyed a leisurely stroll while her counterpart remained a permanent fixture on my hip.

Until there was more fun to be had.

We had cinnamon rolls for breakfast on Sunday.
And chicken fingers for lunch.
And I think there may have been a half of cookie in there somewhere.
I am kind of a health freak in regards to the twins diet so this speaks volumes on the level I intend to spoil.

But just for the record......only I am allowed to do that.......mmkay, grandparents?

Today I geared up and took them to another splash park.

And it's only Tuesday.
So twinnies.......live it up, we have two more weeks of this nonsense.

Mamma loves you.

stratton, party of four

believe it or not i have 4 blogs in draft that i have started to write this week.
i thought if i plowed through eventually at least one of them would come together.
obviously, they didn't.
so there they will sit until i am feeling them.
i need to blog about fathers day.
i need to blog about my fishees and how they are learning to swim.
i need to blog about the beautiful sprinkle my family and friend threw for this sweet baby girl who does gymnastics in my belly all night long.
but

all of those are happy things and i have been feeling so emo this week so i can't give them the vibe that i feel that they deserve.

the truth is this baby is coming soon.
like for real.
like 15 days soon.

and i am scared.

it is a weird feeling bringing another baby into your family when you have
two babies that are still,
well,
babies.
at least they are to me.
the twins turned 16 months last week.

i find myself being even more mamma bear and protective over the them now.
they have had me all to themselves for 16 months.
and colton is so needy.
such a mamma's boy.

i feel like we're bringing a puppy home.
you know you are going to love the puppy
and that the puppy will be a part of your family.
and you know in a few short days after that puppy is home you will be saying things like
"i just can't remember life before this puppy"
"this puppy is the greatest thing to happen to this family"
and
"with this puppy, our family feels complete"
but still, you can't help but wonder how it will be in the interim.
for the twins.
and to be honest,
for me.

i know it's me.
realistically,
i know the twins will be fine without me for a few days
but
i will miss them.
like a lot.
i get teary just thinking about how their life is going to be uprooted.
all while i'm not even there to hold them and tell them how my love for them won't change
in fact, it will grow watching them begin love my sweet pea as much as i do.
and i know even if i did get deep with them they wouldn't understand
and
that they wouldn't even sit still long enough for me to get the first sentence out.

but right now, i'm anxious about properly adjusting our lives to accommodate a third child.

the twins jump on me like i'm a playground apparatus (sorry baby number three)
and we won't be able to rough house for a while.
and i won't be able to throw them up in the air
or
run around and chase them.
and hello
i'm bringing home a new
baby
to stay.
and i'm going to have to be mean because i won't allow them to beat up on her for at least like 2 weeks.
by then i'll be too tired and she will just have to fend for herself.

and to make matters more difficult, my twinnies have been so good this week.
almost throwing it in my face like...

are you suuuuuure you want to stay in the hospital and leave us for days and bring home a new little girl

 for us to live with

forever?



i feel like there is more we should be doing together.

like qt stuff.

these are our last couple weeks as

stratton, party of four.

so i'm probably going to spoil them for the next two weeks.

like a lot.

maybe we'll have ice cream for breakfast one day.

maybe that will make me feel better.

i just love you sweet babies and trust me, another sibling is one of the greatest gifts you will ever receive.

i know,

i'm lucky to be one of five and they are my best friends.

all of them.

hang in there.

things will get back to normal.....well, our new normal shortly.

mommy loves you more than you know.

and p to the s,

dad, i know i said like a lot in this post but just go with it.

mmkay?

Independent Playtime

I'm writing this from my bed during "Independent Play Time". I thought I was genius by coining this phrase which, to me, is:



putting my twins in their cribs because I am six and a half months pregnant and need to close my eyes for thirty minutes because they are only napping once a day now and straight up exhausting me.

.

How's that for a run-on sentence?

However, I decided before I go on and on about how much of a genius I am

and that you all should to.ta.lly. come to me for all parenting advice that I would google it.

 I then realized I in no way made this term up.

Oops.

I felt really smart.
It is actually a recommended activity from Babywise which I read and followed when the twins were born. Apparently I retained that term and spit it up again a year later claiming it as my own.

  

You should still know I am a genius regardless.

IPT (Independent Playtime) has been a lifesaver. We have had a long and stressful week and I was up way too late Friday and Saturday for one of our good friends wedding (Congratulations Mr. and Mrs. Seaton). Monday was the first day of IPT and it was out of necessity. I turned on the radio, threw a few toys in the twins cribs and peaced out for 30 minutes of glorious silence.

Uh.ma.zing.
Needless to say this was definitely going to become a part of our daily regime.

Repeat Tuesday and Wednesday but today......we had a teeny snafu. IPT decided to smack me in the face.
I put the twins in their cribs at 11:30, I went in there 20 minutes after IPT started and they were both
passed out.

Now nap time is ruined.

Joke is on me. Big time.

Oh well.....

What I really came to talk to you about is the name game.

How insane has this thing gotten? Hold on my friends, I'll tell you.

The poll results have been checked 763 times.

I have had over 2,000 views since the poll went up.

People have viewed (repeatedly) and voted from:

Germany

Finland
Moldova

Canada

Singapore

France

United Kingdom

Russia
Australia

Austria

Taiwan

China

and

Italy

How cool is that?
I love that you guys are loving this. I totally thought my parents and in-laws would vote and we would call it a day. Ironically, only one out of  the five of them has voted (my daddy).

I also thought Finn was an adorable name and that this poll would prove that to Matt.

But........

Shows what I know.



What should we call this little girl?

Sooooooooo Matty and I have had a really tough time finding a name for this little girl I have in my belly.....we can't agree.

So Matty came up with a plan,
he wants you to decide.
The winner is our little girls name.

I on the other hand am not willing to give you all that much control but, I am definitely down to hear what you all have to say.
AND, I know he doesn't read my blog so maybe I can bribe you guys to swing my way, ya heard?

So,
this weekend we are going to narrow down our list to six names and Monday I will be putting a poll up.

Sound bueno?
Stay tuned.

stream of consciousness

n., pl., streams of consciousness.

1. A literary technique that presents the thoughts and feelings of a character as they occur.

i spent all last monday night in after hours pediatrics with a blue lipped boy, struggling to breath that wouldn't respond to breathing treatments.

he has rsv and the flu.
i was having meltdown after meltdown. i couldn't hold him any more and the treatments made him cray cray. I called Matt at 9:30 to meet me there.

as soon as he got there he took the boy and within minutes he was responding to the treatments and his oxygen was better.

um. what? i change your diapers kid. you ruined MY boobs, not his, and this is how you repay me?

the doctor couldn't understand........and neither could i. but, we got to go home.

we have been doing breathing treatments every four hours and taking lots of medicine.

he was thisclose to being admitted to the hospital but apparently he and his dad had a talk, he rallied and we went home.

fortunately we are finally on the mend. finally.

moving on to other streams.

i put the twins down for a nap.
i went in 20 minutes later.
colton had no pants.
chloe had colton's blanket.
colton had chloe's paci.
colton's paci was no where to be found.
chloe's blanket was on the floor in front of colton's crib.
?????

i realize i haven't written about baby number three.

as a matter of fact, i haven't even announced baby three's gender.

i apparently am becoming am that token third child mom.

i will change that and write a post showering baby number three with attention.

and if you are reading this baby number three rumor has it that i will be too tired to raise you so you will probably end up being able to do a lot more than the twins all with a later curfew. so there is that to look forward to.

i haven't had many cravings but pie crust, not pie, just pie crust remains a constant. the coffee, tomato sauce/juice/soup, fresh market chicken salad with sliced olives, macaroni and cheese and martini cravings come and go.

i am 21 weeks and have gained 12 pounds. 10 of which were last month. wth.

sometimes i forget i am pregnant. except for when i want a martini, then i remember.
chloe now answers the following.....what does a sheep/cow/monkey say. so cute.

they both now throw things just so they can say uh oh. It is the most annoying and the cutest thing you have ever seen in your life......especially when they both uh oh for each other.

we don't have a name for baby three.

i am going to try this thing called meal planning.....do you guys do it? my husband says it saves money. we're going to give it a shot.

i am really down to cut coupons but how come they don't makes coupons for healthy fresh food?

is it true you aren't supposed to refrigerate tomatoes? if so, why?

i need to read to read to my kids more. it's so hard because they won't sit still and would really rather throw the books instead of looking at them.

i can't wait for the pool to be warm enough for us to swim. i think the pool will be key in staying sane throughout this pregnancy.

i think i've said this a million times but my kids start bobbing their heads anytime music comes on.
nothin' sweeter.

i don't think i've even done a post about chloe walking???? she started about a month and a half ago. oops.

i sweep or vacuum three times a day. it's still not enough. it makes me angry.

i'm feeling very springy and decided to spice things up around here on the chizeap.
i bought a tablecloth, cut it up and decided to make pillow covers.
i didn't have a pattern and just went with it.
i botched it.

here is the back......too short.

and here is the front.
it's inside out.
i guess i will not be supplementing our income with my mad seamstress skills.



i really want to plant a garden. is it too late?

i think i know what i want to do for the baby's nursery but i'm sure i'll change my mind 642 more times so it's not even worth giving you guys a lil sneaky peaky.

i'm leaving friday for georgia without my husband and kids.
it's my brother-in-laws, sister's wedding.
whoa. ya got that?
we are all close.
it is going to be one of those weddings you know is fun.
i won't be partying like a rockstar, i have a baby in my belly.

do you guys think emily and brad are still together?

i haven't been tending to my blog as of late. i feel like i get too behind and then it's stressful knowing i have to catch up.

i think doing stream of conciousness posts will be the answer to when i feel that way.