Someone told me that the 3rd child can often be 'the one' - as in the one that pushes all your buttons and really drives you to the edge. For a while now Mac has been falling into this category. Very much so. You see the second child was very easy going and placid and the third, well he obviously thought I'd been having it far too easy so has really made up for it.
He was our 'made in England' baby - wonder if that has anything at all to do with it? His was the easiest birth, it must be said. But that could well have been as my second birth was quite dreadful and as soon as I knew i was pregnant with Mac I went to my OBGYN and introduced myself by sayng 'Hello there, my name is Mum of 2, soon to be 3 and I KNOW I want an epidural so make sure you write it in BIG LETTERS on the front of my file" . I should say - to back me up a bit, that Child number 2 was my 'let's see if I can do this without drugs maybe..' and by the time I decided it was the most stupid thing ever to try out, it was too late. He was 9lbs 2oz and I am 5 ft 2 and a UK size 10/12 just for background. And by the time Mac was due so many people were telling my about additional babies being bigger....I was willing the baby out, raspberry tea leaf capsules were my best friend in the end and I was thrilled when he came out at 39 weeks, epidural in place (but it took 3 stabs at me to get it placed right) and he was 7lbs 15oz.
See the relief on my face?
So I am not too sure of when he started to become the wild one. He was a really good baby - an excellent sleeper - gearing up for toddlerdom no doubt. Lets just say he was biding his time. When baby number 4 came along he was 2 yrs 4 months. He was fine with the baby - quite good in fact, but really became unruly with us - yes, lack of attention - it was quite obvious really. And then after about 6 months he calmed down - what's that phrase - the calm before the storm? Quite.
Here are some of his achievements that I have documented over the last year.
He was very proud to get his own breakfast. But the mess? That wasn't him you know - it was the Rice Krispie monster. His excuses are really good for his age actually. Last week at a Drs appointment for one of the other children he told the Dr that he too needed a check up (and therefore a sticker) as he had a broken heart. Mmmm.
Then there was this expensive one
What happened here was...he had seen me put in the blue cleansing tablet into the cistern...and he wanted to check out how it worked - so he lifted the cistern lid up (very heavy) and promptly dropped it - seat was fine, but it shattered the toilet bowl - I know - at least he wasn't hurt. But can you see the look of remorse on his face? Yep, that's right, not a trace of it. $500 USD for a new toilet.
There are other instances I didn't actually capture on camera. 2 weeks ago he took an orange felt tip to his white bedroom carpet - as he needed a colourful carpet - not white!
Then straight after that he was 'washing' his dentist instruments in the sink in his bathroom, got distracted, but kept plug in and faucet running- the first I knew of all this was when the water came through the ceiling - through a light fitting actually - I was too busy mopping up to take a photo - sorry.
And this is him on the 'third wheel' with hubby. He doesn't peddle (Mac) not at all - but he does tell you off if you dare to slow down.
Do you feel you know yet what I mean about his being 'the one'?
But he is very angelic looking - especially in his new glasses. Quite handsome in fact, the little devil. What do you think?
Christmas trees (live ones, well the already cut down one but the real rather than plastic ones) are now being sold down the road.
And congratulations to Suburban Mum on her weight loss and beating the Dragon.
So after 3 days here at home we really had to go to the shops to get milk etc. But over here today is known as 'Black Friday'. Due to the shopping frenzy that started at about 4am given what people were saying. In fact some nutters must have been up waaaay before then to have grabbed their place in line/in the queue.
I went to the one place that you can do it all - the food shopping, the CDs and DVDs (that you really don't need), some clothing. Target. I thought it would be quite packed - we got there just before 9am but it was very cold (below freezing) and had just started snowing....
The shop wasn't actually too bad at all. I returned a few items without having to wait long at all. The busiest places were the electronics area - lots of young men looking at digital cameras, recorders etc - there must have been some big discounts going on is all I could assume.
As a bribe to Mac I walked through the toy section to see what fabulous offers they had. This area was also very busy. There were a couple of things on offer that I would maybe have picked up had the kids not been with me but nothing really that bargain-worthy. There were lots of people on phones who were obviously tag-shopping, and you could hear snippets and make out the gist of it;
"How much is it there?.......Is it the electronic edition?......Did you ask?..........Hang on a minute........" One woman was saying her daughter had been in line at Toys R Us for over an hour waiting for this thing. I was trying to figure out what they were talking about. A Wii maybe? Even though she was in the wrong section for them in Target......They were very rare last year - as I understand they still are in UK this year - still quite hard to find but I have got one for my lot this Christmas - I'll keep you posted how it goes .
Anyhow, the food section was really calm, so we picked up bits and pieces to keep us gonig for the next few days. The others return on Sunday, mid morning and I think I will do a belated Thanksgiving roast for Sunday dinner time so I will need to shop a little more before then. It is just too cold to go out and Rory's stomach is still not 100% so we shall be staying in for the rest of 'Black Friday'.
100 things you never knew about Mumof4
1. I am Sagitarrius
2. I am a British citizen
3. I have only ever voted in 1 General Election
4. I have never had an unwanted pregnancy.
5. I speak fluent (ish) German
6. I am a proud Oxford reject
7. I am crabby as anything if I don't get 7 hours sleep.
8. I cannot read in a car without feeling sick.
9. I cannot resist a bargain.
10. I cannot cook very well.
11. I got free school lunches as a kid as we were so poor.
12. I have no idea who my father is.
13. I have never broken any bones but have had several x-rays.
14. I comfort eat way too much
15. I would rather lose TV than Internet
16. I am not very good at being by myself
17. I had a serious cancer scare when I was a teenager.
18. I only ever had one surprise party in my life
19. I once translated for a member of a famous Italian Mafia family
20. I own 2 houses, no mortgages, just in my name.
21. I was a swot at school
22. I have only been truly jealous once in my life.
23. I was a promiscuous teen.
24. I am a shopaholic
25. I prefer to go to the movies alone.
26. I hate popcorn
27. I never have and never will have a PBJ
28. I don't drink alcohol at all and haven't since I was 20
29. I once had my drinks spiked and blacked out. I have no idea what happened to me that night.
30. I can speak Italian
31. I have a Masters degree.
32. I was an au-pair.
33. I have had an American lover
34. My favourite show is ER
35. I have only ever had 1 speeding ticket
36. I am obsessive about doing the laundry.
37. I only got my first car at 24.
38. I have over 400 books just waiting to be read
39. I hate the new matress on our bed even though I insisted on buying it.
40. I was actually relieved when my Great Gran died.
41. I have never tried drugs.
42. I was head girl at school
43. I regularly correspond with a famous Author
44. I do not trust my father in law
45. I am scared by the responsibility of having a dog - but 4 kids, no problem at all.
46. I do not have strong poliical convictions
47. I have had a German lover
48. I very nearly dropped out of University in my 1st year
49. I do not drink tea or coffee
50. I love receiving letters
51. I am left handed
52. I wanted to be a flight attendant but was too short :(
53. I love having baths over showers
54. I Google lots of people from my past.
54. I went on a plane for the first time when I was 16.
55. I had a paying job (not just babysitting) from the age of 13
56. I once spent Christmas totally alone as a child
57. I am not a big fruit eater
58. I love to have music on all the time
59. I am fine with confrontations - I was brought up on it.
60. I am a bit of a snob but nothing compared to my husband.
61. My kids go to Catholic school but I am not Catholic.
62. I rarely look at the prices of food in a store - except strawberries.
63. I have had a French lover.
64. I have been on a plane that made an Emergency landing
65. I cannot speak any Spanish despite having lived in USA for 12 years
66. I read tabloids on-line
67. I have not seen my natural hair colour for 18 years
68. I take care of my skin but not my hands
69. I find ironing theraputic
70. I never dance with my husband
71. I bought a wedding dress on sale
72. I started my periods age 10 - it seemed so young
73. I spend far too much time checking my e-mail every day
74. I have no idea how much money is in my bank account
75. I made my will 2 years ago but I remember very little about it
76. I have never had an affair whilst married
77. I do not like talking on the phone
78. I met my husband by chance
79. I am 5ft 2
80. I have a red bedroom
81. I have given my husband nude photos of myself
82. I have had a Scottish lover
83. I have been a bridesmaid twice
84. I have lots of friends I have never met in real life
85. I find it very easy to lie
86. I have cards for every occasion in the house
87. I hate Brussel Sprouts
88. I love the run up to Christmas but it always disappoints me
89. I love going back to shop in UK supermarkets
90. The first record I ever bought was by Paul McCartney
91. I turned down the chance to see Genesis for free last month
92. I have 5 nephews and nieces I have never met and probably never will\
93. I have some Swedish blood
94. I an a control freak at home
95. I am very untidy in the car
96. I pay all the bills in our house
97. I never miss an episode of ER
98. I have a secret stash of chocolate in the house
99. I am very good at saying the wrong thing at the wrong time
100. I never wanted kids growing up....
My hubby and older two children are leaving on a trip to New York. They will be away 5 nights doing fun things and seeing the sights. We could have gone as well but from previous experience I know that New York with a 4 year old and almost 2 year old is not much fun at all. So we stay here and they head East. I will miss them so much. But we'll talk on the phone I dare say and they sound so much more grown up that way....We only announced the trip to them today even though it has been organised for quite a while. They found out about 5 minutes before school started and Paddy (7) nagged his teacher about New York all day. She said quite tongue in cheek at pick up time ' Next time tell him at 3.05pm!" = after pick up time.
Mac (4) was heart broken (for all of 5 minutes) when he found out we would not be going; 'But I LOVE New York City' he wailed - but actually he has never been. I can see a consolation trip to MacDonalds in the next few days. Oh joy.
Well I have been posting over on 20six for over a year
but it hs never let me post photos and I never got to the bottom of it ...so it is quite novelty to be able to do photos here (watch me jinx it). The house pictured is where we live but not a great photo actually. And me - well this is a recent me :)
I'm the one on the right.
This is what I am looking for. Not the actual book, just the real thought. Get up and go, call it whatever you will, I am in need of it. Any suggestions please send them on a SAE to....or just leave me a comment. Vielen dank.
