June 2021

It has been a while since I’ve gotten on here. I feel like I have so much to update. 2 is HARD. I will say it a thousand times but man oh man.. three two year olds is the hardest stage yet. I am really trying to enjoy all the moments (and truly there are SO many moments to enjoy) and not wish away time, but holy cow this is a tough age with three. Or even with one haha but three it’s almost impossible.. almost ;) 

All three have started speech therapy at Fraser. Elliott has been going since November but about a month or so the other two started. We’ve seen a huge improvement so far! 

Elliott - 

Elliott is doing so well!!! He is talking a lot more, and has even started to label some objects. He isn’t putting together sentences yet but is able to tell me “all done” and can point out several toys/objects. It is fun to hear his little voice! He repeats a lot of the same words, so one day he will say “ball” all day and then the next day it will be something else, but I think that’s just the way he is learning. He is also doing occupational therapy and that has been good too! We are working on finding ways to get his sensory bucket filled - he needs to do big movement activities often to keep his emotions regulated. It’s interesting what these therapists suggest and how they help. We try to do big motor activities twice a day so he can keep himself regulated. He looooves to swing, be thrown in the air, and ride his roller coaster. He really likes to be moving or jumping. We are looking into getting a trampoline, he jumps all the time around the house. He also has a weighted vest he typically wears twice a day for 15-20 minutes. He loves to wear his shoes and will bring them to me constantly if they are not on. It’s one of those things I don’t want to fight him on so he usually just has his shoes on. He’s been having some stomach issues so we switched him to lactose free milk a few weeks ago. He just screams and screams sometimes and we aren’t sure if it’s due to the pain from the dairy?? Or something else. It is SO frustrating though and it’s hard to get him to stop. So far we haven’t noticed a difference from the new milk but I plan on talking to the dr about his dairy intolerance next time I see her. He was almost weaned off the pacifier except for at night, but we just got back from vacation and he had it a lot there so we are in the process of trying to get rid of it. 

Samuel - 

Sammer D! Samuel is talking SO much! His language has exploded in the last few months and speech has been great for him! He is putting together two, three even four word sentences and really seems to understand what he is saying and what we are asking him. He loves to be silly and listening is NOT his strong suit ;) he is trouble maker but oh so adorable! He has this little grin that can melt my heart. He also is in a screaming phase which can send Molly into a major meltdown very quickly. We can be all playing so nice and then a scream from Sam can send everyone into tears. Sigh. He loves suckers and will ask for one often. When I give him one he says “no biting!” Because that is what I always say with suckers. He LOVES cars and playing outside. He will sit by the back door and cry till it’s time to go out. He is super adventurous and has already tried to climb our new fence! We had to get locks for the fence doors because he has escaped several times. He keeps us on our toes for sure. My dad is his FAVORITE person and he asks for him several times a day. He loves playing with older kids and tries to do what they are doing! 

Molly - 

Molly is still our little peanut! She is tall though and does a great job keeping up with her brothers! She isn’t afraid to be vocal when she doesn’t like what they are doing. There is so much noise in this house ;) she can play so well independently which is great! She loves to color and paint and watch Toy Story. She asks for Buzz and Woody almost every morning as soon as she wakes up. She has the sweetest little smile and is still a big thumb sucker! Speech is going well for her, she has been doing virtual but starting next week she will be going in person! We are excited about that - it’s hard for her to focus on the computer and I think she will do really well in person. She talks a lot. She definitely talks more than the boys but she doesn’t always use language functionally. She does a lot of repeating and it can be difficult to get her to answer questions. That is what speech is really focusing on with her, and we’ve seen some improvement so far. 

It’s interesting to see how their little personalities are developing. We have three very different kids! Molly and Samuel are the most alike but also fight the most. They can reallllly get each other mad and a lot of the screaming is from the two of them. Elliott typically stays out of the mess of those two, smart guy ;) 

We’ve been back to the gym now that they are open and it has been so great for all of us!! I started running at the end of February and have done several 2 mile runs. I am working my way up to a 5K! I also do a body pump class twice a week, and I love it! The kids go to the daycare and it has been so good for them. They love going, have made friends and the staff is great. It is so fun to see them run in and wave to everyone. No one ever cries any more  at drop off which is so nice!

We went on a family vacation to the outer banks a few weeks ago, back to where we got married! It was really cool to be able to take our kids there. Whoa though, traveling with two year olds is not really a vacation! Ha! The pool was lots of fun and the beach was fun for Samuel. Elliott wasn’t a fan at all and Molly just liked playing the in the sand. We drove…Which halfway there we realized was not a good idea! It was a really long car ride (20 hours!) they did pretty well but the way back was really tough. We made it though! We got some nice pictures and spent time with family. Memories were made! 

Another thing that has helped keep me sane has been having a cleaning crew come in every two weeks! It is the best thing ever!! I am so thankful my parents are helping us out by gifting us one cleaning a month. It has been a game changer. I pick up all day every day it feels like ;) but I rarely have the energy or desire to do the big things - so knowing that twice a month someone else is taking care of it has taken a lot off my plate! Plus it just feels amazing coming home to a clean house - it lasts about a day but at least it’s something :) 

It is almost mid June and it is SO HOT. We are looking at 90’s for the next 10 days at least. Yikes. Lots of pool time and water table time! It’s hard to even be outside without being near some sort of water, but they love their water table so that’s fun. They also love the pool with a little slide that goes into it. 

We have a pretty good schedule right now, they still nap in the afternoon thank goodness. I am usually very ready for nap time, ha! It is just so hard to keep three entertained and happy every day all day. Tom is working a ton, which is typical for this time of year. Every year around this time (even before we had kids!!) I wonder how I can make it and then every year I somehow do :) it’s just a lot to be the sole parent 6 days a week from before they wake up to much past bedtime. It can be lonely and exhausting.. I’ve had moments though where I just can’t. Handle. Another. Meltdown. And those moments are really hard. I’ve started doing timeouts for screaming or other naughty things (like all three jumping ON the kitchen table at once) but how do you discipline three at the same time?! What works for Elliott won’t work for Molly and what works for Molly won’t work for Samuel.. so it just can be super difficult. I try my best though and every day is a new day! I try to remind myself though this is temporary and I truly am grateful I’m able to stay home with them.