Busy, Busy

The question I have been asked the most since Luke has been born is not "How is Luke sleeping?", "Is he a good baby?", or "Is he a good eater?" The most common question is "What's it like being a mom of 3?" The first thing to come to my mind is....BUSY. I feel like I am moving non stop all day. There is always someone who needs to be fed, dressed, given a drink or snack, changed, or a whole list of other things. Our days seem to go by fast because we are always doing something. By the time everyone is fed breakfast, dressed, and had their teeth brushed, it's almost lunch time. My evenings feel much shorter because it takes longer to get everyone in bed and then I rush to do damage control. Since I'm still getting up with Luke in the night, I try to be in bed before 10, which doesn't leave much time to do "nothing". Although, the busyness doesn't end at bed time. Ella wakes up 1-2 times during the night needing to be "rocked". Basically, I have to go in there, pick her up, sway her for about 30 seconds and she's good to go. But when it is usually during a time of feeding Luke or just getting him back to sleep, it feels like even during the night I'm hopping from one place to the next.

The key has definitely been trying to find a routine. The problem is I think we have one and then something happens and throws it all off. The last week has been a little better, finding more of a groove. Luke has been going to bed about 8:00 and sleeping until about 2 am. That has been really helpful. I feel like I have my evenings back to get a few things done. I've been getting more of a routine to clean up so I don't feel like I'm traveling behind Andrew and Ella picking up and instead spending more time with them. There is no doubt, however, that there is always someone (a child or husband) who always needs something. Not to mention, cooking, shopping, dishes, and laundry (which I can't believe how much has grown with just one small baby!). Yep, 3 kids is busy.

After writing all that, I do still want #4....I think (we'll reevaluate that one in about year). ;) Why? Because as busy as it is, it's wonderful! It's wonderful to see how much Andrew and Ella love Luke. Luke is starting to smile and it just makes my heart smile. It's fun to watch Andrew and Ella's relationship grow and to see how they play and interact together, knowing that one day Luke will be joining them. Luke has brought more love, more hugs, and more kisses to our family. It's a great feeling when your kids run to hug you, kiss you, tell you they love you, and even yes when Andrew tells me I'm "comfy" (still not sure if I should take that one as a compliment) ;). And when the kids are crazy running around the house you know you are making memories that will only last a short time. The chaos is short lived and your kids are soon older. The laughter, silliness, and hilarious things my kids say and do are worth every bit of craziness.

So I guess I could sum it up by saying that while "busy" is the first thing I think when asked how it is being a mom of 3, that "busyness" brings a whole lot of wonderful things with it!