Day 3

More ramblings from my day.... This morning started off crazy.  Mad dash from bed, get kids up and moving, make lunches, make sure they are dressed appropriately.  Mad dash back to bedroom to shower and dress before older 4 leave.  Dress and feed 3 youngest.  Load them in car, drop at school, head to HNJ to make float, turn around (forgot supplies and king cake for class)  Head out again for HNJ, arrive a little late, but I got a great parking spot!  Make float while nursing baby.  TRy not to get super glue on said baby.  Clean up, admire floats of others, smile.  Load up and get out before fire drill begins.  Baby screaming because she's still hungry (only ate one side).  Head to Mikes office, but have to stop for gas...running on fumes.  Still screaming...arrive at office and screaming stops.  Typical.   Hangs out with Dad for a while.  I return emails.  Then Mike has meeting so I feed her and the head out again.

Back home again.  Feed dog, eat breakfast, baby spits up on me and herself.  Change baby.  Baby poops.  Change baby.  Change Mom's shirt.  Start laundry. Run dishwashers.  School calls...4 is sick with stomach ache.  Teacher assures me its for real.  Call Mike.  no answer.  Text mike to pick up 4 asap.  She throws up on the way to the car.  I picked up 5&6 from school, got pills for Dad, dropped them to Pat, refused a commercial, again, headed home to make lunch and run the sick ward.  As of now, 4, 6 & 7 are sleeping.  We need to leave NOW to go pick up carpools in order to be home again for music lessons, basketball games and soccer practice tonight

I guess I should cook dinner too.  Oh and exercise.

Am I busy...nope;)

Day 2

Here we go again.  6&7 are sleeping, 5 is playing with his Leapster laptop.  I just arranged a play date for 2, signed up for camps for 1-4, paid some bills, arranged for a donation pick up and cleaned my house from yet another case of lice.  Oh, and restrained myself from firing an architect who cannot seem to understand a budget.  and that was all after I fed and cleaned up lunch.

Hello, my name is Super Mom, nice to meet you.  The kids are all getting started in their spring sports, basketball and soccer, at Carrollton Boosters, and the daily schedule of games and practices is enough to make me want to force them all to quit.  We limit them all to one sport at  a time and we do seem to manage the chaos, but it is just that...CHAOS.  I feel the stress of dragging a 2 month old to soccer practice in the rain.  I feel the stress of impending hours of homework after practices. And then there are dreaded mealtimes that can best be described as feeding disgruntled gremlins who are hungry only for junk.

Yeah...fun times.  This stuff doesn't bother the kids though.  I am the only one who feels the stress of it all.  I guess its good that its just me, because if the kids felt this, we would discontinue everything until stress subsided.

Oh, and Super Bowl is this weekend.  Yay.  And Mardi Gras is next weekend, followed by kids home for a week.  Double Yay.

I am rambling.  I have no focus.  Maybe I will get better at blogging the more I do it.  For now you will get these ramblings from the over worked, sleep deprived, stressed out mom of 7 young children who is still trying to figure out how to do it all.

Seven

I'm not going to sugar coat it...Life with 7 is pretty challenging.  Baby doesn't like to sleep, although she is getting better each week.  And the older kids are more and more argumentative each day.  I want one day where they all do what they know they are supposed to do without a knock down, drag out fight to make it happen.  It's exhausting. And I am majorly sleep deprived as it is.  It is hard to remember what needs to happen each day, much less keep track of who sat where int he car last so we can "keep it fair".  AHHH!

One day at a time, right?  

This too shall pass, right?

Will I remember any of this??  Really?  Will I?

Judging from the recollections of older moms I know, the definitive answer is NO.  There is no way moms remember the first few months of life with new baby, because its really hard, and really exhausting.  

I can remember being told that it only gets harder as they get older, so enjoy the little kids, little problems, moments in time.  I'm not sure it gets harder, but it certainly changes.  My 10 year old is difficult, but not any harder than the 2 month old.  Just as challenging, though.  I spend my days trying to translate what they are each telling me in their own way and dealing with their problems, no mater how big or small.  Because I do know that no matter what it is, it seems HUGe to them, and they want help.  

There in lies the problem of a big family.  How does one very sleep deprived mom, and one over worked dad find time, energy and patience to interpret the requests and meet the demands of all these kids?

Rest assured...we do.  But it is definitely at the cost of personal time, or as I call it... sleep.

They are staying after school today for Chess, and the 3 babies are sleeping...nope make that 2 are sleeping and one just came to ask for a snack.  Guess its time to resume my day.  Maybe I'll find time again to post some insights into my days.  Til then....