What a Smell can do....

This post was inspired by a facebook update I saw today. It was about a first bath. Isn't it amazing what a smell can do! The memories it can trigger. A simple scent. For me it is the smell of a fresh clean baby. My favorite scent. It always has been, always will be. I can't help but just sniff my kids when they get out of the tub. Sound crazy? Not if you are a mom! ;)

It's the scent of Baby Magic hair and body wash to be exact. That is what was used on my girls when they were in the NICU. Their first baths, were really just sponge baths for a while, since they had wires and feeding tubes. We would squirt a little baby magic onto a washcloth and clean away.... Mmmm they smelled so good! Then they graduated to being able to take the tubes and wires off, just long enough to take a bath. Everything was very hands on for mommy & daddy in the NICU, so it was really great, that even though they were there, we were able to give them their baths. They were so tiny... it was actually quite scary at first... taking the tubes and wires off, and putting these little 4lb babies into the water. They loved it, they relaxed and enjoyed every minute. Again, they smelled SOOOO good after! I would just rock them and smell them ;)

We finally got to go home, and then we got to do it all by ourselves! SCARY!!! Tiny little babies, and our baby tub was much bigger than the tiny little tubs in the NICU. Of course it went just fine. Filled that baby tub up with warm water and some baby magic.... Mmmmm YUM!!

*E*

*I*

(Mind you these are not actually their first baths at home in these photos... you can tell because they are a little bigger) I think they were about 7weeks old in these pics. We were much to nervous to think about pictures of their first baths at home, little tiny girls!! ;)

They soon moved onto showers. They were much easier to do for one, and they absolutely loved them. All of our babies have loved the shower, so 9 times out of 10, they came in with one of us. It was always really good bonding time too, them all cuddled up against us with the warm water. perfect... and again smelling so good!

K man, not being a c-section, got his first bath not long after birth right in front of mommy and daddy by one of the nurses. Despite the look on his face, he really did love it. This picture was taken right before he settled in and enjoyed it. It's the "WHAT the HECK are you putting me in!?!?" look in this picture.... only to realize, "wow.... this is amazing!" :)

He too moved onto mostly showers at home, and loved them just as much as his big sisters. I had to make sure we had baby magic on hand, because it brought back the scented memories from when the girls were so little.  Of course I still used it on the girls from time to time, just for the sake of that scent, but they were more into filling the tub with as many bubbles as possible by the time K man came around!

Missa also got her first bath in front of mommy & daddy soon after being born, by one of the nurses. She "jumped" a little at first dip, but quickly (probably the quickest of them all) settled right in and had a look of total relaxation on her face. She was in love with the tub! She still gets SO excited when she hears the word "tubby" and bolts for the stairs, points to the gate as if she is saying "take it down now, and let me up there"... we move the gate, and she is off!! Up the stairs, and literally climbed right in fully clothed one day as it was filling up. Yes she did need a little help, but she was going for it, and no one was stopping her, so I just put my hands there to make sure she didn't fall.... and in she went! Sat right down and got nice and wet, then looked up at me and laughed hysterically. That was a moment I wish I had my camera in the bathroom with me!

We had actually gotten rid of our baby tub before Missa was born. (not really sure why, I think it was leaking?) anyways.... I realized this after she was home, and I thought, I should give her a bath. OOOPS! Oh well, she was short enough and little, we scrubbed the kitchen sink and in she went. Typically she would put her arms right up behind her head, as if she was lounging on a float. 

Yes.... Baby Magic was on hand again, and she came out smelling simply amazing, and reminding me of my three other babies when they were tiny too.

Now she is a little bigger, but Baby Magic will remain in my shower as long as I can get away with using it on them! Actually, after thinking about all these memories and finding these pictures... I couldn't help but go smell my sleeping babies head (since she was fresh out of the tub right before bed tonight). 

And I can't lie, I had to smell it a few times during my shower too ;)

The sense of smell is really amazing. There are many smells that trigger different memories for me, as I'm sure they do for you too. Freshly bathed babies will always take the cake for me! So thankful for some really great memories we can cherish forever!

trying to save money for this and for that... not so fun! Starting retirement funds.... making sure we have money set aside for emergencies, and trying to save for a family vacation that we would really love to take after this deployment is over. All while waiting to see what our future holds. Somedays I feel like the Earth is spinning, and im just sitting here in the middle watching it all go by so fast and furious!

we will take a vacation if it kills me!! ;) I'm determined to be able to put money away into all these different accounts to make it all work out, while paying the bills and buying groceries. We can do it, and we will! We deserve it right!?!?! I think I'm doing pretty good so far.... let's hope I can keep it up!

I think some people don't focus on whats really important in life... and it is not having the biggest and the best. It is having a healthy happy family. See I think people take things for granted..... and then there are people who don't try at all and get mad at those who do. Am I making sense?

well... see, I've had people say things to me in the past like, "it must be nice to be able to stay home and drive a big car and own a house". Ok seriously!? We all make sacrifices, and we do what we need to do to make this work. We never won the lottery, we are doing what we're doing and we are happy. So you know when we do go on our family vacation.... we do a lot to get there, and we enjoy it to the MAX!

ok sorry I feel like im rambling, but im just thinking and throwing it all out there. Life would be so much more fun if we didn't have to pay bills! ;)

Im not saying that Everyone else takes things for granted. And I'm not saying that I am perfect by any means... I am FAR from perfect. There are just some people who have said things, and it makes me think, "What are they thinking??".

Anyway.... we are saving. It's a bit easier these days to do that, which is nice.... but still we have to work at doing it, and making it happen. I can only pray that whatever the future does hold for us, we will be able to continue to save... and hopefully enjoy that vacation we dream of. Only God knows what is in store for us, and he sure is keeping us in suspense!! ;) Come on Lord.... give it to us, we are ready! ...... I think!?!? ;)

I love this place we have gotten to. Our family amazes me everyday. I amaze me everyday, simply because I look at my family and wonder, "What did I do to deserve to be THIS Blessed?" 
I always knew I would be a wife and a mom. like most people I had quite a few ideas of what I would like "to be when I grow up". At one point I was actually going to "go away" to college. Not very far, still in NH, but then I decided.... "I just don't want to do this".  It didn't feel right, so I didn't do it. I ended up working at a job that I HATED!!!!  Then, the office was "down sizing" (Yeah.... WHAT-EVER!!) is pretty much what I thought when they threw out that line. It was a blessing in disguise. I took the opportunity to go to cosmetology school. LOVED IT! Then worked in a salon for 5 yrs. full time until I had my girls, and then a yr. part time after they were born. It was great!
Which brings me to now... being a stay at home wife and mom, is really truly what I wanted, and I am so blessed to be able to do this. We do what we can to make this work. We sacrifice to make it work... I mean, HELLO..... Daddt is 1/2 way around the world! That is the biggest sacrifice we have had to make, and a very hard decision it was! Although we did A LOT of thinking and praying about it, and it is really what we needed to do for our family. We had a few years off from the "Army life", secretly... ok maybe not as secretly for him as it was for me, BUT we both wanted it back. We talked about it a lot, and finally we both felt good about it. So here we are!


We all reflect back on memories... memories that help to make us who we are. Good or bad, fun or not so fun, they get us to where we are today. For some, thats maybe not so great.... for me however, it is Awesome!


A memory I thought about the other day was a fun one, a spontaneous one. He and I had gone out to eat at Applebee's. When we were leaving we were asking each other, "So, what do you want to do now?" You know, because you can't just go home... thats BORING! I said, "I want to see the statue of liberty", He said "OK". So we got in the car, and I really did not think for one second, that we would drive to NY. I was so wrong! He started driving and I was like "We aren't really going to NY"..... he pulled into a gas station and said "Go get a map"   ..... a MAP??!! Who uses a map? OK, well I guess this was before the GPS was "big".... although we probably could have used one, maybe we wouldn't have driven over the same bridge with a $6 toll, about 4 times! ;)
Anyway, it was fun. We did drive to NY, we saw a little bit of the statue of liberty, but not very close or very well. We couldn't figure out how to get to it. I did take some pictures.

....This would be where I insert a picture....

However, none of the pictures came out. So I have no proof of this event ever taking place. I swear it did though! Yes... we left Leominster MA around 8 pm, got to "the general area of the statue" around 1am (give or take). Like I said, we went over a bridge a few times, we drove in a few circles, and we somehow ended up in a line of NY City taxi cabs in a big parking lot (which must have been their "home base").... we kinda stuck out like a sore thumb there.

We ended up in the neighborhood of the NY Times while they were loading all the delivery trucks up with the paper. Then we parked and tried to walk a bit, there was a little grassy area along the water. I had to pee. HEY, we had been in the car for a couple hrs!! Well there happened to be a port-a-potty in this area. It was quite dark though, and we had to jump a small fence to get to it. (remember it is about 1, maybe 1:30am). We walked along the water (for a few minutes ;) ), then we got in the car and decided to head home. We stopped in a rest area for about an hr for a power nap, and then continued home... getting back to my parents house around 8am(ish). I don't think either of us had to work that day... if we did, we didn't go, we slept! 

I love silly memories like that... I love when they just pop into my head and make me smile! I love making more memories now as Husband and Wife, and with our children. Even this year... however hard it may be, it is a memory we are making, that will forever make us stronger and hold us all together. We can do this, we are doing this, and we will finish this a very stable and a very blessed family!!!! 

We have been enjoying our nightly milk and cookies a lot lately. The kids love it, they always have a bedtime snack after they are all "jammied up" (as they call it). They like to all come in and get a couple cookies and one cup of milk to share, then we all sit on the kitchen floor and dip our cookies :) YES we sit on the floor. They love it. cookies and milk picnic style!

I've been trying to do as many special things with the kids as possible. It can get hectic, especially when everything is crazy... the kids are out of control, there are errands to be run, and things around the house to accomplish, and I am only one person. the later half of the day is the hardest. (thats typical even if daddy is home) 

It's hard when I'm trying to keep everyone under control and accomplish these things. How do we have fun time, when I'm finding myself saying things like "Stop yelling", "Don't hit each other", "Don't jump off the furniture", "Don't look at or breath on each other", and most of all (especially when Missa is napping), "BE QUIET!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"  

Sometimes I feel like all I ever do is argue with children. It gets old fast.... people sometimes think I'm nuts when they ask what time my kids go to bed, and my reply is "typically by 7:15". You bet your A**!!! I need time to breath people! Hey they sleep pretty good and most times until about 7am... so WHY on Earth would I fix what is not broke??!! 

I'm not overly crazy about it, we do go out and do things, and I'm not running out of places early to make it home for the 7:15 bedtime. If we are out, we are out... and we do have our movie nights, and movies don't start until Bryn is down for the night. On a regular night, like a school night, when we are home and in a regular routine, 7:15 it is!

SO, we love our cookie and milk moments, and our movies nights! It is our extra special quality time. We have been doing more extra things lately.... I think it also has to do with the fact that we have been stuck in this house for a long time now. Play dates out of the house, and having friends over here... meeting people at indoor play areas, and the kids "special days". It's hectic, but we are making it as fun as possible!

I can only hope that they will love to sit on the floor and dip cookies in milk for years to come!

I hope you own some galoshes and a boat! Man with all the snow we had, and then a ton of ice, and now all this rain... I think we could very well float away. 
Our basement is wet to begin with, so you can just imagine what it is like now. Thankfully we have a sump pump down there, so it hasn't been too bad. Well as long as I keep at it. Unfortunately it is not automatic, so I have to go down and plug it in, and then make sure I keep an eye on it, and go un-plug it when the water level is back down so that the pump doesn't burn out. A little bit of a pain though, when I have to go somewhere and it's really wet, by the time I get home it's pretty full of water, and I have to remember to get right down there asap and turn it on, and not forget it is on. Or on nights like tonight when it's raining... A LOT... I have to make a note to myself to go down as soon as I wake up and turn it on. 


So enough complaining, at least the rain is melting the snow right! I can see backing out of my drive way again! I really do not mind winter, but HOLY COW, enough is enough! 


SO E and I do have galoshes, and they LOVE them. So they have been wearing them to school. They were left at the front door, and someone else got ahold of them.....

Drastic times call for drastic measures! 

She wanted to go outside in the rain! What, she was ready! OK, maybe not, she is on the shorter side, and it's pretty wet out there, and cold.... so maybe she needs a few more layers.

Here's to hoping when I wake up in the morning, the pump in the basement will be enough and we won't need to call in the bucket brigade! 

Stay Dry!