Friends

Friends. Socialization. Blah Blah Blah.
This is the socialization that I love. Good friends. Positivity. Encouragement. Compassion.
This is a family of many who visit us often. I have honestly never heard a word of negativity come from one of these children. I am not saying it never happens but I have not witnessed it. When one of my children fall they rush to help them up. When a child is sad they are there and concerned. They have never called my children names or done anything with malicious intent.
They are a strong Christian, homeschooling family with strong morals. When my children play with them I know they look up to them and learn from them. I don't have to worry about what they will be exposed to and I like that.
I have decided recently that our kids will not be watching TV any longer. Yes, they will watch DVD's that we approve of or a kids channel early in the morning. Any other television will no longer be. No more commercials, no more previews and no more sexualization of everything.
I was watching Family Feud the other day and the question was...What would women like to know about their husbands ex-girlfriend? One answer was...Was she good in bed? First I thought, well that was inappropriate. My children should not be thinking about people being good in bed. I did not even consider the fact that they are getting the impression that it is normal for someone to have multiple partners. Isn't that terrible? And we wonder why there are so many pregnant teens with no morals! Why are we shocked? It is spit at them from every angle! TV, school, internet...etc.
Are we sheltering our children? Hell yes! Yes we are! Is that a bad thing? No, I don't believe it is.

Lets see how much I can write before Hadley fusses. That is what life is like with a newborn. Lets see how much I can eat before she needs to be held. Rush Rush Rush. It is to be expected.
I have to remember that. When I look at my house and I am just too tired to use the vacuum, dust or tidy up, it is ok. It is ok that the laundry is not all done. It is ok that my children have watched TV all morning. It is ok that dinner for Cohen last night was dry cheerios and peanut butter.
Hadley has been a fussy little baby the past couple of days. She doesn't want to be put down. This makes for a messy house and undone chores. OH WELL! Sure I say that on here but in my mind I am screaming for a break. I am screaming for a clean house and healthy meals. I am screaming for my boobs back. Ya I said it!
Now don't get me wrong. I love the cuddles, the soft skin and fluffy hair. I love the grunts, whimpers and new smiles. But that isn't what this post is about. It is about the expectations a mom puts on herself with a newborn. No matter how many times I tell myself that the THINGS are not important right now...I still feel like they are important.
BAH - crying baby. One day I will look back and think...why did I care about the stinkin house? Not today. lol

Miss Hadley arrives!

Meet Hadley Jude! She was born on May 24th at a whopping 10lbs. This "little" person is the reason why I haven't been posting as regularly. First the morning sickness, then the pain from carrying a 6th baby and now she is here. Need I explain why I wouldn't have time to post now? lol. Hadley is the last to grace our family. I feel so incredibly blessed to have our 6 children and our wonderful marriage.
Birth Story:
At 4am I called the midwife because I was having contractions 4-5 min apart but only 15 min in length. I know myself so called. She told me to hold off (snicker) and see what happens. It is early labour. A half hour later I called again and they were 1 min in length. She said to meet her at the hospital. We called my mom and she left with my dad to meet us there. My brother Kaille came to watch the kids. Half way there I yelled for Ron to call an ambulance because I felt pressure. We pulled over and I hopped in the ambulance. (I don't need to go into details about peeing on the side of the intersection or hugging the paramedic and biting Ron during a particularly strong contraction. (Snicker again) Horrible ride with bumps and me yelling at the male attendant to rub my back and hold my hand. I get there and I am 8-9cm dilated. At this point I am crying for an epidural. I know that I could have had her easily but I had such fear from Cohen's birth going natural that I wasn't allowing it to happen. I was laying on the bed and vocalizing through the contractions. They were right on top of each other for a while. Part of me thinks I should have just stood up and given birth but I didn't. I ended up with the epi (heaven) and I relaxed. The neat part about the birth is she birthed herself. I didn't have to push. She literally came out on her own. She would come out a bit...go back in a bit. Apparently it was pretty amazing to watch.
She is another easy baby. (Thank goodness) Of course she wakes through the night and doesn't always go back to sleep for a while but she is calm and content.
She fits so nicely into our family. You can tell we were made for each other!