Sitting there watching this made me think " I am doing something right! YAY!"
Proud Mommy Moment. I love my kids!!
Thursday, December 4, 2014
Proud Mommy Moment
Last night as I was getting the kids ready for bed my baby was crying, one of the twins was constantly getting himself hurt and my daughter and the other twin were wrestling one another. The only way I could settle my baby down was to bear hug him and slightly bounce. Then one of my other boys injured himself with a little rocking chair. My daughter comes over and sees that I am busy with the baby and then proceeds to sit on the ground by me and pats her legs for her brother to come over to her. He then sits on her lap and they hug each other. While hugging my little mama pats her brothers back and sings, " I love you a bushel and a peck" to settle him down.
Saturday, October 11, 2014
New Job
Recently, I announced in a somewhat cryptic/nonchalant way that I have a new job. Yes, I realize that posting a picture of my meal at Wendy’s doesn't exactly answer all of your questions. So, maybe this will.
About a month ago, I got a LinkedIn message from a recruiter who was calling on behalf of one of her clients. I've learned that recruiters don’t like to share who they’re working for until they know you’re interested - not sure why. In any case, I ignored that first LinkedIn message because I get 5-10 recruiters reaching out to me per month. Most of them are cruddy sales jobs being pushed by equally cruddy sales people disguised as recruiters.
This particular recruiter, however, actually called and left a voice-mail which piqued my interest. Cruddy recruiters don’t make phone calls. Cruddy recruiters blast out canned emails to thousands of people who wrote something about “Sales” on their LinkedIn profile.
I told Tamara that a recruiter had left me a voice-mail, and that I was thinking about responding. Why wouldn't I respond? I was happy at SyCara Local. I made a decent living and had a lot of freedom to work from home when needed. I had my own office and had brought in my own 15 year old TV and hooked up my Nintendo 64. It was a pretty sweet gig.
Aside from that, the people at SyCara Local are awesome. Everybody worked hard and for the most part checked their egos at the door. We all got along very well when we were together, and stayed out of each other’s way when we needed to focus and get stuff done.
Most importantly, I had the freedom to solve any problem I wanted. There was very little bureaucracy to deal with so if I wanted to gain some experience in a particular field, all I had to do was volunteer. It was an entrepreneur-in-training’s dream and I loved it.
A week went by, and I had mostly forgotten about the recruiter. Then one day as I was working from home, I got a phone call and answered it even though I didn't recognize the number. It was Beth … the recruiter. She asked me a few questions about my experience, what I was looking for, and what it would take to get me to leave SyCara Local. I told her I’d have to be making quite a bit more because I was pretty happy and she said, “I think we can get something that would be interesting to you.”
I was interested for a couple reasons. You see, even with all the freedom and the wonderful people, life in a start-up is a constant roller-coaster of anxiety and elation. One day, everybody is thinking, “This is going to be huge and we’re all going to be millionaires!” The next day, everybody is updating their resumes because we lost our biggest client and might go bankrupt.
In that kind of environment, it is a good idea to foster business relationships and always consider every option.
So, Beth had my attention and she scheduled a phone interview for Thursday, September 25, with the guy who would be my direct supervisor - Matt. At this point, I finally got out of her who she was working for and my feeling that this wasn't some cruddy recruiter was confirmed.
The company is called Yodle. They started out as what many like to call a “chop shop” digital marketing agency. In other words, they built their business on volume - not necessarily quality. They did this with efficient processes and strict cost controls. Normally, this would not have been of any interest at all to me.
But a while back, Yodle started building a software platform for businesses with multiple locations. For those of you who know what SyCara is, you’ll realize that Yodle and SyCara were going after the exact same type of clients. The job for which I would interview was managing the relationship with national franchises and keeping them happy. Again, this is exactly what I was doing at SyCara.
So, the interview with Matt went well and towards the end he hinted that I would likely move on to the next round of interviews. I still wasn't sure I wanted to make the switch, but Beth was very good about following up with me and keeping me interested in a way that wasn't annoying. Even if I wasn't interested in the position, I was impressed with her skill.
On Friday the 26th, I was working from home and SyCara’s VP of Sales asked me if I would come in on Monday. I happened to know he wouldn't be there that day as he had an industry convention to attend. He didn't say why he wanted me there, so I thought it was a little weird.
I went in on Monday and everything seemed to be operating as normal. I had my meeting with Julie, (our content writer) and was about to begin the meeting with Dano (the other guy I managed) when one of our developers walked into my office. He held out his hand and said, “Its been a pleasure working with you.”
As his words registered in my brain and the headlights slowly stop shining in my eyes, I managed to say, “You out?!”
“Yep,” he said. “Let me know if you know anybody who is hiring PHP developers … just not here because we have no money.”
I can’t remember what either of us said after that, but I began to understand why I was called into the office that day. Even so, I dutifully went to my next meeting and had a brief conversation about the fact that two of our developers got laid off and that I was strangely asked to come into the office today. Dano asked me if we were all going to get laid off and I couldn't honestly say no.
No more than 30 seconds into our conversation, the new CEO of the company came in and asked if I had a minute. I popped up quickly and followed him out of the SyCara Local office and into our sister company’s office. The CEO tried making light conversation about the weather which annoyed me a little. “Look buddy,” I thought, “We both know where this is going so let’s dispense with the pleasantries.”
Sure enough, he was leading me to a conference room in which our company President and VP of Human Resources were sitting and waiting. You can guess what happened next.
Lots of sentences with phrases like, “this was a really tough decision,” “you’re probably aware that we’ve been struggling for a while,” “you are a very talented guy and have brought a lot of value,” and “this doesn’t have anything to do with your value as an employee.”
The company was out of money. Investors were tired of giving and not seeing fast growth. The CEO had never actually taken a salary in the 3 months he was at SyCara. The President hadn’t taken a salary in over a year. The VP of Sales and the CTO both took a 50% pay cut as well. That’s how the world works. That’s how math works. And I was okay with it.
Was I surprised to get laid off? Absolutely. But I was prepared mentally and emotionally. I sat in that meeting in which I was informed that my position was being eliminated and I wasn’t getting any severance, and I smiled. I expressed that I was sorry it worked out this way, but I understood the situation and knew they did everything they could.
I had been watching the state of the venture capital market and knew that things were not looking pretty. This article by TechCrunch is really all you need to read to get a feeling for what I’m talking about.
The President of SyCara was almost brought to tears a couple of times as he thought about everything my family has been through in the past 2 months … and I just sat there and smiled. My calm demeanor was probably a bit hard to understand. In fact, the VP of Human Resources, who seemed somewhat mesmerized by my reaction finally spoke up and said, “I just have to say that you are taking this news like a true professional. I commend you for it and know that you’ll be fine.”
Little did she know, I wasn’t smiling because I am the consummate professional. I was smiling because I had something else in the works. I couldn’t believe how blessed I was to know that my Heavenly Father had already set things in motion. What’s more, he did it in such a way that I cannot deny his role in the process nor his love for my family and me. My family would be provided for and everything would be alright.
Granted, I didn’t have the job at Yodle yet, but I had a good feeling about it. That made me smile as they told me they’d reach out to their networks to help me find something else. I said my goodbyes and thank-yous and went to go pack up my office.
Of the 7 developers, 5 were keeping their jobs along with Dano (the guy I supervised). A melancholy air had settled over the SyCara office. Nobody was getting anything done. So what did we do? “Barro’s dawg!!” Yep, we went to get pizza and try to process everything. I’m sure everybody was confused at how upbeat I was. I even tried to lighten the mood by wearing a sombrero as I packed up my things.
Once I had packed the minivan with my TV, N64, Soda Bottles, Sobrero and some other necessary items, we all went to Barros. It was a good last lunch with the crew, but I hope to work with them some time in the future. They really are a great group of guys.
Well, that week I had two more interviews with people at Yodle and both went very well. That set me up for an interview with the VP of the department I would be joining. That interview took place on Tuesday, October 7th and it also went well. He told me in the interview how much he’d be paying me and as it turns out its more than what I was making at SyCara.
Also cool: the medical and dental plans will cost me less than half of what SyCara’s “benefits” were costing me. So, my salary will be higher and my take-home-pay percentage is also higher.
I start on Monday the 13th. Brothers and sister … the church is true.
How it All Started
About a month ago, I got a LinkedIn message from a recruiter who was calling on behalf of one of her clients. I've learned that recruiters don’t like to share who they’re working for until they know you’re interested - not sure why. In any case, I ignored that first LinkedIn message because I get 5-10 recruiters reaching out to me per month. Most of them are cruddy sales jobs being pushed by equally cruddy sales people disguised as recruiters.
This particular recruiter, however, actually called and left a voice-mail which piqued my interest. Cruddy recruiters don’t make phone calls. Cruddy recruiters blast out canned emails to thousands of people who wrote something about “Sales” on their LinkedIn profile.
I told Tamara that a recruiter had left me a voice-mail, and that I was thinking about responding. Why wouldn't I respond? I was happy at SyCara Local. I made a decent living and had a lot of freedom to work from home when needed. I had my own office and had brought in my own 15 year old TV and hooked up my Nintendo 64. It was a pretty sweet gig.
Aside from that, the people at SyCara Local are awesome. Everybody worked hard and for the most part checked their egos at the door. We all got along very well when we were together, and stayed out of each other’s way when we needed to focus and get stuff done.
Most importantly, I had the freedom to solve any problem I wanted. There was very little bureaucracy to deal with so if I wanted to gain some experience in a particular field, all I had to do was volunteer. It was an entrepreneur-in-training’s dream and I loved it.
The Consideration Phase
A week went by, and I had mostly forgotten about the recruiter. Then one day as I was working from home, I got a phone call and answered it even though I didn't recognize the number. It was Beth … the recruiter. She asked me a few questions about my experience, what I was looking for, and what it would take to get me to leave SyCara Local. I told her I’d have to be making quite a bit more because I was pretty happy and she said, “I think we can get something that would be interesting to you.”
I was interested for a couple reasons. You see, even with all the freedom and the wonderful people, life in a start-up is a constant roller-coaster of anxiety and elation. One day, everybody is thinking, “This is going to be huge and we’re all going to be millionaires!” The next day, everybody is updating their resumes because we lost our biggest client and might go bankrupt.
In that kind of environment, it is a good idea to foster business relationships and always consider every option.
So, Beth had my attention and she scheduled a phone interview for Thursday, September 25, with the guy who would be my direct supervisor - Matt. At this point, I finally got out of her who she was working for and my feeling that this wasn't some cruddy recruiter was confirmed.
The company is called Yodle. They started out as what many like to call a “chop shop” digital marketing agency. In other words, they built their business on volume - not necessarily quality. They did this with efficient processes and strict cost controls. Normally, this would not have been of any interest at all to me.
But a while back, Yodle started building a software platform for businesses with multiple locations. For those of you who know what SyCara is, you’ll realize that Yodle and SyCara were going after the exact same type of clients. The job for which I would interview was managing the relationship with national franchises and keeping them happy. Again, this is exactly what I was doing at SyCara.
So, the interview with Matt went well and towards the end he hinted that I would likely move on to the next round of interviews. I still wasn't sure I wanted to make the switch, but Beth was very good about following up with me and keeping me interested in a way that wasn't annoying. Even if I wasn't interested in the position, I was impressed with her skill.
This Can't Be A Coincidence
On Friday the 26th, I was working from home and SyCara’s VP of Sales asked me if I would come in on Monday. I happened to know he wouldn't be there that day as he had an industry convention to attend. He didn't say why he wanted me there, so I thought it was a little weird.
I went in on Monday and everything seemed to be operating as normal. I had my meeting with Julie, (our content writer) and was about to begin the meeting with Dano (the other guy I managed) when one of our developers walked into my office. He held out his hand and said, “Its been a pleasure working with you.”
As his words registered in my brain and the headlights slowly stop shining in my eyes, I managed to say, “You out?!”
“Yep,” he said. “Let me know if you know anybody who is hiring PHP developers … just not here because we have no money.”
I can’t remember what either of us said after that, but I began to understand why I was called into the office that day. Even so, I dutifully went to my next meeting and had a brief conversation about the fact that two of our developers got laid off and that I was strangely asked to come into the office today. Dano asked me if we were all going to get laid off and I couldn't honestly say no.
Nope, Not a Coincidence
No more than 30 seconds into our conversation, the new CEO of the company came in and asked if I had a minute. I popped up quickly and followed him out of the SyCara Local office and into our sister company’s office. The CEO tried making light conversation about the weather which annoyed me a little. “Look buddy,” I thought, “We both know where this is going so let’s dispense with the pleasantries.”
Sure enough, he was leading me to a conference room in which our company President and VP of Human Resources were sitting and waiting. You can guess what happened next.
Lots of sentences with phrases like, “this was a really tough decision,” “you’re probably aware that we’ve been struggling for a while,” “you are a very talented guy and have brought a lot of value,” and “this doesn’t have anything to do with your value as an employee.”
The company was out of money. Investors were tired of giving and not seeing fast growth. The CEO had never actually taken a salary in the 3 months he was at SyCara. The President hadn’t taken a salary in over a year. The VP of Sales and the CTO both took a 50% pay cut as well. That’s how the world works. That’s how math works. And I was okay with it.
Was I surprised to get laid off? Absolutely. But I was prepared mentally and emotionally. I sat in that meeting in which I was informed that my position was being eliminated and I wasn’t getting any severance, and I smiled. I expressed that I was sorry it worked out this way, but I understood the situation and knew they did everything they could.
I had been watching the state of the venture capital market and knew that things were not looking pretty. This article by TechCrunch is really all you need to read to get a feeling for what I’m talking about.
The President of SyCara was almost brought to tears a couple of times as he thought about everything my family has been through in the past 2 months … and I just sat there and smiled. My calm demeanor was probably a bit hard to understand. In fact, the VP of Human Resources, who seemed somewhat mesmerized by my reaction finally spoke up and said, “I just have to say that you are taking this news like a true professional. I commend you for it and know that you’ll be fine.”
All Part of the Plan
Little did she know, I wasn’t smiling because I am the consummate professional. I was smiling because I had something else in the works. I couldn’t believe how blessed I was to know that my Heavenly Father had already set things in motion. What’s more, he did it in such a way that I cannot deny his role in the process nor his love for my family and me. My family would be provided for and everything would be alright.
Granted, I didn’t have the job at Yodle yet, but I had a good feeling about it. That made me smile as they told me they’d reach out to their networks to help me find something else. I said my goodbyes and thank-yous and went to go pack up my office.
Of the 7 developers, 5 were keeping their jobs along with Dano (the guy I supervised). A melancholy air had settled over the SyCara office. Nobody was getting anything done. So what did we do? “Barro’s dawg!!” Yep, we went to get pizza and try to process everything. I’m sure everybody was confused at how upbeat I was. I even tried to lighten the mood by wearing a sombrero as I packed up my things.
Once I had packed the minivan with my TV, N64, Soda Bottles, Sobrero and some other necessary items, we all went to Barros. It was a good last lunch with the crew, but I hope to work with them some time in the future. They really are a great group of guys.
Well, that week I had two more interviews with people at Yodle and both went very well. That set me up for an interview with the VP of the department I would be joining. That interview took place on Tuesday, October 7th and it also went well. He told me in the interview how much he’d be paying me and as it turns out its more than what I was making at SyCara.
Also cool: the medical and dental plans will cost me less than half of what SyCara’s “benefits” were costing me. So, my salary will be higher and my take-home-pay percentage is also higher.
I start on Monday the 13th. Brothers and sister … the church is true.
Wednesday, September 17, 2014
An Old Man and a Shopping Cart
Jared here. I think this is my first time writing on this blog, but I had a relatively cool story to tell and this is the only place I could think to put it.
I just got back from Fry's. Tamara asked me to get 2 gallons of milk, a head of lettuce, and a few tomatoes. As I walked in the door, I was slowed down a bit by a Fry's employee who was pushing some shopping carts back into place at the front of the store. I noticed that he was an older guy - probably in his 70's. The first thought I had was, "What kind of rotten luck has fallen on this guy to be pushing shopping carts at his age." Then I thought to myself, "When are you going to learn to stop judging a book by its cover. Maybe he's just trying to stay busy. Maybe he just enjoys the work. In any case, you shouldn't jump to conclusions. Who knows, maybe some day you'll be pushing shopping carts at 10:00 PM. Will you want somebody analyzing the reasons?"
I just got back from Fry's. Tamara asked me to get 2 gallons of milk, a head of lettuce, and a few tomatoes. As I walked in the door, I was slowed down a bit by a Fry's employee who was pushing some shopping carts back into place at the front of the store. I noticed that he was an older guy - probably in his 70's. The first thought I had was, "What kind of rotten luck has fallen on this guy to be pushing shopping carts at his age." Then I thought to myself, "When are you going to learn to stop judging a book by its cover. Maybe he's just trying to stay busy. Maybe he just enjoys the work. In any case, you shouldn't jump to conclusions. Who knows, maybe some day you'll be pushing shopping carts at 10:00 PM. Will you want somebody analyzing the reasons?"
After this
brief but intense internal battle, I carried on with my mission. As I went for
the tomatoes, I saw some of the biggest apples I've ever seen. Can't remember
what they're called, but I bought three just to show Tamara. Apparently, this
type of apple always gets this big during the fall. And I just happened to get
them while they are on sale (score)!
In any case,
I went and got the milk, went through the checkout counter and left. When I got
to my car, I noticed that there were 3 shopping carts sitting in the parking
stall next to me. My first instinct was to just leave my cart there. (Yes, I
got a cart for 2 gallons of milk, a head of lettuce and a few tomatoes ...
don't judge).
My next
thought was of something I read on the Matt Walsh Blog a while back. He pretty
viscerally chastised people like me who often leave their shopping carts in the middle of the parking lot.
After
remembering that only dirt bags leave their shopping carts in the middle of the
lot, I looked around for the nearest shopping cart collection area (can't
remember what they're actually called now). It was like 6 parking stalls away. "Well, that was a nice thought, but if I make sure it doesn't roll anywhere, it'll be fine."
Then I
thought about the old man who was pushing the carts when I first walked into the store.
"If I leave my cart here, it will mean more work for that guy." That
thought put me over the edge and I got out of the car and started pushing the
three carts together. I kind of pinched my fingers in the process which caused me too look down at the source of the pain. In doing this, I saw my phone and my wallet which I had placed in the child seat because I didn't have pockets. I had completely
forgotten about them and would have left them had I not decided to put my
shopping cart away. Crisis. Averted.
This kind of
thing happens to me all the time. When I ignore my conscience, things in my life begin to come a bit unhinged. When I listen, my Heavenly Father shows me that he's there to help me keep it together. I’m too absent minded to trust my fate to luck.
I'm not trying to say that I did any grand thing for the old man. For heaven's sake, I put my cart away. This, as Mr. Walsh so harshly conveys, really only demonstrates that I'm capable of performing the minimum needed to be considered a civilized human being.
And I don't actually believe losing my phone and my wallet would have been the end of the world. Is it a brand new phone? Yes. Does it have a replacement value of a couple hundred bucks ... that I don't have? Yes. But there are more important things in life. As far as my wallet goes, the cards could have been replaced and I was only carrying $4 cash.
Even so, this experience impacted me. You see, I firmly believe that our Heavenly Father inspires us with simple little thoughts like the ones I had tonight. Its how he communicates with us. He's a perfect person so his message is pure and clear. Often we fill our own minds with things that distract us from the messages he sends us through our thoughts. I'm very glad that I didn't have my nose in a smart phone or have music playing in my ears. I'm glad that I was able to listen and that I acted upon what I was being fed.
I'm not trying to say that I did any grand thing for the old man. For heaven's sake, I put my cart away. This, as Mr. Walsh so harshly conveys, really only demonstrates that I'm capable of performing the minimum needed to be considered a civilized human being.
And I don't actually believe losing my phone and my wallet would have been the end of the world. Is it a brand new phone? Yes. Does it have a replacement value of a couple hundred bucks ... that I don't have? Yes. But there are more important things in life. As far as my wallet goes, the cards could have been replaced and I was only carrying $4 cash.
Even so, this experience impacted me. You see, I firmly believe that our Heavenly Father inspires us with simple little thoughts like the ones I had tonight. Its how he communicates with us. He's a perfect person so his message is pure and clear. Often we fill our own minds with things that distract us from the messages he sends us through our thoughts. I'm very glad that I didn't have my nose in a smart phone or have music playing in my ears. I'm glad that I was able to listen and that I acted upon what I was being fed.
It would have been pretty lame to lose my wallet and phone in the same trip. It would have been worse if I was too preoccupied with myself to think of an old grocery store employee who already looked pretty tired. It would have been tragic to miss out on an opportunity to see some evidence of my Heavenly Father's mercy.
"Now ye may suppose that this is foolishness in me; but behold I say unto you, that by small and simple things are great things brought to pass; and small means in many instances doth confound the wise."
The Book of Mormon, Alma 37:6
"Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets."
Matthew 7:12
"And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me."
Matthew 25:40
Matthew 25:40
Wednesday, March 26, 2014
Poison Control to the Rescue
Jay is now almost two months old and in that time he has been sick twice now. We took him to the Doctor's yesterday where it was discovered that he a has a virus called bronchiolitis. There is much we can do for it other than let it run its course. Poor little guy is coughing up mucus, has a hoarse voice and a sad cry all the time. We are to keep his elevated, so he has a pillow under his mattress and he is the swing or bouncer more. They also told us to keep him upright for at least a half hour after he eats and pat his back to loosen the mucus in his lungs. We feel so helpless, poor little guy.
In other news, we had another fun mishap. While upstairs for a couple of minutes the kids got really quiet so I rushed downstairs right away. Coming down the stairs I saw Ellie with what looked like flour all over her face standing in the kitchen with the boys. Upon coming closer to her, I found that it wasn't white but clear and goopy. She had an empty container of Vicks Vapor Rub in her hand. She had the vapor rub all over her face, hair and she was eating it. YUM YUM. Likewise Evan had it caked on his face and hair, while Nathan sustained the least damage with a little on his face but most on his hands and clothes.
Knowing that this stuff can cause a burning sensation, and them having it on their eyes made me wipe it off quickly however I didn't know what could happen when vapor rub was ingested. I ran upstairs to look it up on the computer and all I could find was other people saying to go to the ER immediately. Instead we called Poison control, of which told us to wash the mouths out and make sure the kids drank lots of water afterward and if there was any coughing or vomiting to then go to the ER, give them baths,and irrigate their eyes really well every fifteen minutes. Let me tell you, I still can't get the vapor rub all the way out of Ellie's hair, which has been washed five times now.
To top things off, as I was getting each one of the kids out of the tub I would dry them off and set them to the side of me so I could get the next one and no one would be left in the bathroom unattended, Evan decided to pee on the floor. UGG
Needless to say we are keeping anything not for children locked away upstairs, rather than on the highest shelf...our daughter is too tall and mischievous to have it any other way...
Side note: Poison Control people are awesome. Ellie's eyes got really red and puffy because of all this, and they called every half hour to see how she was doing and instruct me on what could help the situation more.
In other news, we had another fun mishap. While upstairs for a couple of minutes the kids got really quiet so I rushed downstairs right away. Coming down the stairs I saw Ellie with what looked like flour all over her face standing in the kitchen with the boys. Upon coming closer to her, I found that it wasn't white but clear and goopy. She had an empty container of Vicks Vapor Rub in her hand. She had the vapor rub all over her face, hair and she was eating it. YUM YUM. Likewise Evan had it caked on his face and hair, while Nathan sustained the least damage with a little on his face but most on his hands and clothes.
Knowing that this stuff can cause a burning sensation, and them having it on their eyes made me wipe it off quickly however I didn't know what could happen when vapor rub was ingested. I ran upstairs to look it up on the computer and all I could find was other people saying to go to the ER immediately. Instead we called Poison control, of which told us to wash the mouths out and make sure the kids drank lots of water afterward and if there was any coughing or vomiting to then go to the ER, give them baths,and irrigate their eyes really well every fifteen minutes. Let me tell you, I still can't get the vapor rub all the way out of Ellie's hair, which has been washed five times now.
To top things off, as I was getting each one of the kids out of the tub I would dry them off and set them to the side of me so I could get the next one and no one would be left in the bathroom unattended, Evan decided to pee on the floor. UGG
Needless to say we are keeping anything not for children locked away upstairs, rather than on the highest shelf...our daughter is too tall and mischievous to have it any other way...
Side note: Poison Control people are awesome. Ellie's eyes got really red and puffy because of all this, and they called every half hour to see how she was doing and instruct me on what could help the situation more.
Friday, March 14, 2014
The HIgh of the Day
After a long day I go downstairs to get things cleaned up and prepare for a night with a newborn. It is almost ten o'clock and I pass Ellie's bedroom door to hear her leapfrog laptop playing music, it the number 1-20 song and Ellie is singing along. " one, two, three, four....." etc " eighteen, nineteen, TWENTY, YEA!" She sings the last part louder and with excitement. Then comes the ABCs which is tries to sing along with. I love listening to her sweet high pitched voice sing so proudly. She is such a smart girl. The next song is " If you're happy and you know it bark with me" bark because of scout the dog on leapfrog. During this song I'd hear here singing and then clapping for the "bark with me" part. I didn't want to leave her door, I was standing there originally going to go in there and put her back to bed. I didn't have it in me to ruin that cute moment, and instead stayed standing there for several more minutes listening to my adorable, smart daughter sing, before I headed back downstairs to clean the kitchen.
Monday, March 3, 2014
4 Kids Under 2 1/2 - A Poopy Post
We welcomed our 4th child a month ago. This time doing a natural birth, which was amazing, hard at the end, but definitely worth it. Since then our lives have been a little more hectic as we try to find a new groove into things. So many people have asked us how we do things, so I thought I would write out what our lives are like, not just for other people to see, but also as a personal journal for us to look back on and laugh at.
My parents left to go back to Arkansas last week, and go figure the exact day they were traveling back I have an incident happen at home that made me wish they were there...
Thursday morning, I come out of my room from finishing feeding and pumping Jay. I thought the other kids were just playing with each other on the stairs, but as I go outside my door I am greeted by them I see brown stuff all over their face and hands. Going down the hallway I see these nuggets and more and more come in sight as I get to the stairs. Then I see Ellie's pull-up lying on the stairs, poop smashed into the carpet down the hallway and up and down the stairs, and pretty pictures made with poop on the walls. Look at my two boys, and not only are they covered in this foul crap but they are sitting eating it as well. Such a proud parent moment...
I was so mad. I didn't know where to start, or who to start cleaning up first. I get the kids cleaned up put a baby gate up on the stairs so the two little boys couldn't get up. Ellie is then standing on the first stair trying to climb over the gate, and I wouldn't let her. She then proceeds to take her pull-up off once again when my back is turned and pee on that first step off the stairs. This had me break out in tears. It was still morning and yet I was done with that day.
Thankfully my visiting teacher and neighbor was home that day, so I called her up in tears to take the three older kids to the park across the street while I cleaned the house. Meanwhile, during all this the baby is crying upstairs wanting to be held. Thankfully as I was cleaning up my cousin knocks at the door. She was able to hold baby Jay while I cleaned, and then allow me to shower after it was all done. Bless her and my visiting teacher that day.
Saturday we woke up to rain. We planned on going to the Mesa Lehi Days Rodeo, a fun event Jared went to growing up and we have gone every year since living here. We get there and get settled, as we are trying to feed the kids, it starts to rain, HARD! Thankfully Jared came prepared, and had a tarp to drape over our bus of a stroller...
The kids didn't really like the tarp because the couldn't see anything. After about ten to fifteen minutes of hard rain, it stopped. Both Jared and I had a side of us that was wet, because we both didn't quite fit under the umbrella. We were mostly using it by the stroller as Evan would stick his head out. The grass was flooded with water. Thankfully we wore our lawn mowing shoes, because they became soaking wet and muddy. It was a fun adventure that had both Jared and I smiling and laughing the whole time. However because it was so wet the kids couldn't really get out and play and it was nap time already. We decided to pick up some more of the famous barbecue served and head back home.
Later that afternoon/evening I wanted to take Ellie to go see the movie Frozen. We had been watching YouTube clips of the music for weeks now and she always cried when I turned it off. We arranged for some of the other other cousins and their moms to come with us. We brought snacks and popcorn to make it a special fun time. Ellie loved the movie, her favorite song is "Let it go" and she has even started singing it by herself, it is cute to hear.
On Sunday I woke up to feed Jay and then proceed into my routine of getting the other kids up and fed.I finish feeding them downstairs and by that time Jay is ready to eat again. So I put a show on the TV and head upstairs. As I am finishing up feeding Jay both Jared and I hear the kids playing downstairs. Jared turns to me in bed and says " I'll go down and play with them in a sec." A couple minutes later, in the upstairs hallway, we hear Ellie say "Eww.." "Nothing good could come from that word," Jared and I said to one another and Jared immediately hopped out of bed, I soon followed. Once again Ellie had taken off her poopy pull-up and the twins proceeded to play with it on the stairs and write with it on the walls. I stood and looked at Jared and said, "Your turn." He says, "I ... no ... I just ... nuh uh ... nope. Can't handle this." This time I wasn't mad, I was laughing, because I found Jared's reaction to all of this humorous because I had already gone through the other emotions for this situation.
After the crappy situation was once again taken care of, Jared was more determined then ever to help get Ellie potty trained. We took her to the potty every fifteen to thirty minutes. Finally at the end of the day we had her sitting on her potty in front of the TV, watching music videos of "Frozen" and the movie "Once Upon a Potty." After about forty-five minutes of this we had a success! She was excited to see our excitement, as well as to get a sticker and a treat. Hopefully this is the beginning of a new era ...
If we've convinced you to never come to this house again, we wouldn't blame you. That said, with this many little ones, you'd better believe I've become very good at cleaning things THOROUGHLY. In any case, we're very glad that Ellie is showing signs that she's ready to be potty trained. We can't wait to go through this with the boys ...
My parents left to go back to Arkansas last week, and go figure the exact day they were traveling back I have an incident happen at home that made me wish they were there...
Thursday morning, I come out of my room from finishing feeding and pumping Jay. I thought the other kids were just playing with each other on the stairs, but as I go outside my door I am greeted by them I see brown stuff all over their face and hands. Going down the hallway I see these nuggets and more and more come in sight as I get to the stairs. Then I see Ellie's pull-up lying on the stairs, poop smashed into the carpet down the hallway and up and down the stairs, and pretty pictures made with poop on the walls. Look at my two boys, and not only are they covered in this foul crap but they are sitting eating it as well. Such a proud parent moment...
I was so mad. I didn't know where to start, or who to start cleaning up first. I get the kids cleaned up put a baby gate up on the stairs so the two little boys couldn't get up. Ellie is then standing on the first stair trying to climb over the gate, and I wouldn't let her. She then proceeds to take her pull-up off once again when my back is turned and pee on that first step off the stairs. This had me break out in tears. It was still morning and yet I was done with that day.
Thankfully my visiting teacher and neighbor was home that day, so I called her up in tears to take the three older kids to the park across the street while I cleaned the house. Meanwhile, during all this the baby is crying upstairs wanting to be held. Thankfully as I was cleaning up my cousin knocks at the door. She was able to hold baby Jay while I cleaned, and then allow me to shower after it was all done. Bless her and my visiting teacher that day.
Saturday we woke up to rain. We planned on going to the Mesa Lehi Days Rodeo, a fun event Jared went to growing up and we have gone every year since living here. We get there and get settled, as we are trying to feed the kids, it starts to rain, HARD! Thankfully Jared came prepared, and had a tarp to drape over our bus of a stroller...
The kids didn't really like the tarp because the couldn't see anything. After about ten to fifteen minutes of hard rain, it stopped. Both Jared and I had a side of us that was wet, because we both didn't quite fit under the umbrella. We were mostly using it by the stroller as Evan would stick his head out. The grass was flooded with water. Thankfully we wore our lawn mowing shoes, because they became soaking wet and muddy. It was a fun adventure that had both Jared and I smiling and laughing the whole time. However because it was so wet the kids couldn't really get out and play and it was nap time already. We decided to pick up some more of the famous barbecue served and head back home.
Later that afternoon/evening I wanted to take Ellie to go see the movie Frozen. We had been watching YouTube clips of the music for weeks now and she always cried when I turned it off. We arranged for some of the other other cousins and their moms to come with us. We brought snacks and popcorn to make it a special fun time. Ellie loved the movie, her favorite song is "Let it go" and she has even started singing it by herself, it is cute to hear.
On Sunday I woke up to feed Jay and then proceed into my routine of getting the other kids up and fed.I finish feeding them downstairs and by that time Jay is ready to eat again. So I put a show on the TV and head upstairs. As I am finishing up feeding Jay both Jared and I hear the kids playing downstairs. Jared turns to me in bed and says " I'll go down and play with them in a sec." A couple minutes later, in the upstairs hallway, we hear Ellie say "Eww.." "Nothing good could come from that word," Jared and I said to one another and Jared immediately hopped out of bed, I soon followed. Once again Ellie had taken off her poopy pull-up and the twins proceeded to play with it on the stairs and write with it on the walls. I stood and looked at Jared and said, "Your turn." He says, "I ... no ... I just ... nuh uh ... nope. Can't handle this." This time I wasn't mad, I was laughing, because I found Jared's reaction to all of this humorous because I had already gone through the other emotions for this situation.
After the crappy situation was once again taken care of, Jared was more determined then ever to help get Ellie potty trained. We took her to the potty every fifteen to thirty minutes. Finally at the end of the day we had her sitting on her potty in front of the TV, watching music videos of "Frozen" and the movie "Once Upon a Potty." After about forty-five minutes of this we had a success! She was excited to see our excitement, as well as to get a sticker and a treat. Hopefully this is the beginning of a new era ...
If we've convinced you to never come to this house again, we wouldn't blame you. That said, with this many little ones, you'd better believe I've become very good at cleaning things THOROUGHLY. In any case, we're very glad that Ellie is showing signs that she's ready to be potty trained. We can't wait to go through this with the boys ...
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