Our Family
Friday, November 25, 2011
Sunday, November 6, 2011
Total Meltdown
Despite outward appearances and what some might think, things are not always perfect in the Runion Household. An example is a recent Saturday morning which had been planned for quite some time. It was Lilah Grace's 6 month photo session and I couldn't have been more excited. I have been planning for this since before she was born. I wanted to include all of the kids this time and had purchased all the appropriate big/little shirts for everyone to wear. I went to several stores finding the perfect ribbon to make the girls matching bows and spent countless hours online looking at photos and thinking of the perfect poses I wanted.
The morning finally rolled around and as usual we had our discussion with the kids of what was expected of them - how they would and would NOT act. This discussion took place at home as we were getting ready, in the car on the way to the location, and once again while we were on location. Everyone agreed to the terms and if all went well we would be off to Payton's school carnival for some fun after pictures.
It was a cold morning and the ground was really wet from a couple of rainy days and the morning dew. We told them not to run around or they would get wet but they did not listen so of course pants were soaked as were socks, shoes, and feet which did not sit well with Payton at all. We did Lilah's photos first because she was actually happy and smiling so we took full advantage of that. When time came for the kids to join her Payton had a total meltdown. I do not recall the exact events leading up to or during the meltdown (likely because I have blacked it out of my memory) but I do know that not a single decent shot was obtained of all 4 of our children together nor did we get any shots of us together as a family as hoped. It was so bad that Jay carried her off kicking and screaming. I manged to control my pending meltdown in front of our photographer but all bets were off once we were in the van headed out.
I will admit that I may have overreacted a bit and that I could have handled things better. At this time I will re-direct your attention to the beginning of this post where I explain how excited I was about this and how many HOURS I spent preparing. We had told Payton that if she was not good (we do have experience with this as it occurred the last photo session she was part of and really most big family events we have) she would not be able to attend her fall carnival. Well unlike the countless times we have threatened to do something but not followed through (mostly because we don't like to upset them but also because it causes inconvenience to us - aka lazy parents) this time I stood my ground. She went home with Daddy and cleaned her bedroom and the playroom by herself and was not allowed to do anything fun. This was not at all ideal since I was committed to working the festival and had the boys with me but I made it work and the boys had fun (they shouldn't be punished for something she did).
Okay so not to end on a sour note, my wonderful husband knowing how important this was to me, gathered the kids together and set them up in our front yard so I could attempt to take the pictures myself. I in no way did as well as Cindy would have done but at least it is something.
This time around it was Graham's turn to throw a fit (he was very tired).
So lessons learned from this experience:
The morning finally rolled around and as usual we had our discussion with the kids of what was expected of them - how they would and would NOT act. This discussion took place at home as we were getting ready, in the car on the way to the location, and once again while we were on location. Everyone agreed to the terms and if all went well we would be off to Payton's school carnival for some fun after pictures.
It was a cold morning and the ground was really wet from a couple of rainy days and the morning dew. We told them not to run around or they would get wet but they did not listen so of course pants were soaked as were socks, shoes, and feet which did not sit well with Payton at all. We did Lilah's photos first because she was actually happy and smiling so we took full advantage of that. When time came for the kids to join her Payton had a total meltdown. I do not recall the exact events leading up to or during the meltdown (likely because I have blacked it out of my memory) but I do know that not a single decent shot was obtained of all 4 of our children together nor did we get any shots of us together as a family as hoped. It was so bad that Jay carried her off kicking and screaming. I manged to control my pending meltdown in front of our photographer but all bets were off once we were in the van headed out.
I will admit that I may have overreacted a bit and that I could have handled things better. At this time I will re-direct your attention to the beginning of this post where I explain how excited I was about this and how many HOURS I spent preparing. We had told Payton that if she was not good (we do have experience with this as it occurred the last photo session she was part of and really most big family events we have) she would not be able to attend her fall carnival. Well unlike the countless times we have threatened to do something but not followed through (mostly because we don't like to upset them but also because it causes inconvenience to us - aka lazy parents) this time I stood my ground. She went home with Daddy and cleaned her bedroom and the playroom by herself and was not allowed to do anything fun. This was not at all ideal since I was committed to working the festival and had the boys with me but I made it work and the boys had fun (they shouldn't be punished for something she did).
Okay so not to end on a sour note, my wonderful husband knowing how important this was to me, gathered the kids together and set them up in our front yard so I could attempt to take the pictures myself. I in no way did as well as Cindy would have done but at least it is something.
This time around it was Graham's turn to throw a fit (he was very tired).
So lessons learned from this experience:
- Do not set my expectations too high
- Expect the worst when it comes to kids and important events
- RELAX and not take things so personal or get too worked up over things
- Always have a change of clothes and shoes in the van just in case
- I am no where near ready to take pictures for anything other than hobby :(
- Trying to get 4 kids to look at the camera and smile is dern near impossible
- Following through with my actions as promised is important
Baby Food Success
With my first two kids I didn't really consider making my own baby food for them. Maybe because I was lazy busy or maybe it just wasn't that trendy at the time. I did attempt it once or twice when Graham was a baby but he refused to eat it. In hindsight I believe I did it incorrectly; but anyway they all had store bought food. Now that Lilah Grace is starting to eat solids I have gone back and forth with whether to make it myself or purchase it from the stores. I have done a great amount of research and talked to many moms who have made their own and decided I am up for the challenge (besides it really is the cool thing to do these days). I have used some jar food from the store so I will likely end up doing both.
Per the direction of her GI doctor, I started her out with fruits and she loves them (and they are helping with her BMs). I decided my first batch of baby food would be avocado because it is super easy and packed full of nutrients. And yes it is a fruit (just in case any of you were not aware like I wasn't).
I started out with two large avocados and peeled the skin and removed the core thingy (I do not recall the correct term). The insides are very mushy to begin with so it really did not take much effort to get it soft with a fork and then I used my hand blender to really blend it up.
I set aside enough portions for three days (as long as it is safe to keep refrigerated) and put the rest into ice cubes trays to freeze. The kids thought this looked fun so they joined in to help.
And voila! My first batch a huge success. Lilah Grace loves them and I love the feeling it gives me knowing I did this myself :)
Up next....Bananas :)
Per the direction of her GI doctor, I started her out with fruits and she loves them (and they are helping with her BMs). I decided my first batch of baby food would be avocado because it is super easy and packed full of nutrients. And yes it is a fruit (just in case any of you were not aware like I wasn't).
I started out with two large avocados and peeled the skin and removed the core thingy (I do not recall the correct term). The insides are very mushy to begin with so it really did not take much effort to get it soft with a fork and then I used my hand blender to really blend it up.
I set aside enough portions for three days (as long as it is safe to keep refrigerated) and put the rest into ice cubes trays to freeze. The kids thought this looked fun so they joined in to help.
And voila! My first batch a huge success. Lilah Grace loves them and I love the feeling it gives me knowing I did this myself :)
Up next....Bananas :)
Operation De-clutter Flat Surfaces
So in my attempt to gain control of our lives and become more organized, especially in the area of papers, I completed another mini project. The first part of this was our family memo center which has been utilized (not as much as I would like) as shown below.
A good first step but I still found that the piles of papers, magazines, mail and other miscellaneous items ended up on thekitchen island, counter and table any flat surface. This becomes very overwhelming and out of control especially when there is no room for the kids to eat.
Okay a very honest moment here - I did clean the piles up a bit before photographing them but you get the idea.
Let's be realistic - even the most organized anal person would have trouble filing things as soon as walking in the door with bags from shopping, backpacks, a baby in an infant carrier and three other kids running through the door. The easy thing is just toss them down and attend to the immediate needs like the puppy needing to go potty, the baby screaming from hunger, the diaper that needs to be changed, the 3 year old screaming he is hungry yet again and must have a snack RIGHT NOW, and other countless items. Problem is once all those immediate needs are met I often do not go back to the pile/stack of items tossed on the said flat surface (repeat above paragraph for about a week and you have the actual picture of my kitchen).
SO.....I was in need of a new flat surface that wasn't needed for cooking, eating or other daily activities and could handle a few stacks until I could sit down to sort and organize them. Luckily our dining area has a large enough recess to hold a table or other storage item. My very short term fix was of course a table tray and looked something like this.
That worked for oh about a week and then the stacks outgrew the tray and once again spilled into other areas. My ultimate desire is to find a nice looking console table (possibly with a drawer) that will fit the space and allow me the flat surface I desire but also a place to pull up a chair and do the things I find I am using the kitchen table for - Scholastic orders, school forms, quick mail and other items that I do not want to go downstairs to the office for. So I set out on an adventure with my girlfriend and 6 kids (we are crazy like that) to find the perfect table. Well all that we found were either too big for the space or for my budget. Needing immediate gratification and a place to put things NOW I improvised with a cheap bookshelf and some baskets and media boxes (thanks to my friend for the idea). Now I have FOUR flat surfaces to stack stuff on and hopefully some places to hide those annoying yet necessary items (pencils, crayons, sight word flashcards, not yet filed coupons, etc).
What do you think? Looks much better than the tv tray and will hopefully do the job until I can locate the perfect table.
A good first step but I still found that the piles of papers, magazines, mail and other miscellaneous items ended up on the
Okay a very honest moment here - I did clean the piles up a bit before photographing them but you get the idea.
Let's be realistic - even the most organized anal person would have trouble filing things as soon as walking in the door with bags from shopping, backpacks, a baby in an infant carrier and three other kids running through the door. The easy thing is just toss them down and attend to the immediate needs like the puppy needing to go potty, the baby screaming from hunger, the diaper that needs to be changed, the 3 year old screaming he is hungry yet again and must have a snack RIGHT NOW, and other countless items. Problem is once all those immediate needs are met I often do not go back to the pile/stack of items tossed on the said flat surface (repeat above paragraph for about a week and you have the actual picture of my kitchen).
SO.....I was in need of a new flat surface that wasn't needed for cooking, eating or other daily activities and could handle a few stacks until I could sit down to sort and organize them. Luckily our dining area has a large enough recess to hold a table or other storage item. My very short term fix was of course a table tray and looked something like this.
That worked for oh about a week and then the stacks outgrew the tray and once again spilled into other areas. My ultimate desire is to find a nice looking console table (possibly with a drawer) that will fit the space and allow me the flat surface I desire but also a place to pull up a chair and do the things I find I am using the kitchen table for - Scholastic orders, school forms, quick mail and other items that I do not want to go downstairs to the office for. So I set out on an adventure with my girlfriend and 6 kids (we are crazy like that) to find the perfect table. Well all that we found were either too big for the space or for my budget. Needing immediate gratification and a place to put things NOW I improvised with a cheap bookshelf and some baskets and media boxes (thanks to my friend for the idea). Now I have FOUR flat surfaces to stack stuff on and hopefully some places to hide those annoying yet necessary items (pencils, crayons, sight word flashcards, not yet filed coupons, etc).
What do you think? Looks much better than the tv tray and will hopefully do the job until I can locate the perfect table.
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
No Tricks! Lots of Treats!
Wow - what a busy Halloween week we had. It seemed like there was something fun to do every day. This year we decided to get 6 pumpkins (one for each of us) but Jay was not thrilled about the thought of carving all of them so we decided to let the bigger kids paint three of them and then design what they wanted carved on the remaining three. Jay decided to free hand as the kids dictated what they wanted and they came out great.
Then the carnivals began. A friend invited us to join her and her children at their church fall carnival. This place was HUGE and awesome! An entire baseball field filled with inflatables, games, candy, costumes, prizes, and more candy! The kids had a blast.
Our church also had a fun carnival and of course the kids played all the games, jumped in the bouncy, and got lots more candy.
This was Lilah Grace's 1st Halloween so in our tradition she had to have an appropriate outfit. Well she didn't just get ONE but rather TWO!
She also had two costumes (one was a hand-me-down that I couldn't resist using). They had a common theme in that they were both bugs and pretty appropriate since at times I call her my little Lilah Bug :)
Payton's school had their annual Math Night and the kids got to dress up and enjoy a hayride and many different math themed activities throughout the classrooms. We ran into many people we knew and the costumes were all so cute.
Halloween day was very busy but extremely fun. Payton's class (and all other First Grade classes) had a field trip to Sims Family Farm (nope no relation) complete with a corn maze, corn angels, bouncy slides, games, camp fires and a cool hayride.
I rushed right over from the field trip to meet Cole in his class for their Halloween Party. So many goodies and yep we went home with yet another goody bag of candy (get the theme here).
And of course the event the kids have been counting down for, Trick-or-Treating. A good friend brought her three boys over and they all had a blast running around the neighborhood filling their bags. We only made it a couple of streets before everyone was tired and our bags were too heavy to carry. Graham was so funny because he was running full speed up to every house and then he would run back holding his bag open yelling "Look what I got". Cole came to tell us he said "Thank You" at every house and Payton was very sweet and helpful. Lilah Grace rode in her stroller and took it all in - she fell asleep half way through.
Our kids had a theme - the Spider Family. We had Black Spider Boy, Red Spider Boy, Spider Girl and Spider Baby.
Graham and Payton wanted their faces painted so I did the best I could (Google helped me out).
The kids had so much fun and us parents enjoyed watching them. Our kids were totally wiped out at the end. They couldn't even take off their costumes before they passed out.
Then the carnivals began. A friend invited us to join her and her children at their church fall carnival. This place was HUGE and awesome! An entire baseball field filled with inflatables, games, candy, costumes, prizes, and more candy! The kids had a blast.
Our church also had a fun carnival and of course the kids played all the games, jumped in the bouncy, and got lots more candy.
This was Lilah Grace's 1st Halloween so in our tradition she had to have an appropriate outfit. Well she didn't just get ONE but rather TWO!
She also had two costumes (one was a hand-me-down that I couldn't resist using). They had a common theme in that they were both bugs and pretty appropriate since at times I call her my little Lilah Bug :)
Payton's school had their annual Math Night and the kids got to dress up and enjoy a hayride and many different math themed activities throughout the classrooms. We ran into many people we knew and the costumes were all so cute.
Halloween day was very busy but extremely fun. Payton's class (and all other First Grade classes) had a field trip to Sims Family Farm (nope no relation) complete with a corn maze, corn angels, bouncy slides, games, camp fires and a cool hayride.
I rushed right over from the field trip to meet Cole in his class for their Halloween Party. So many goodies and yep we went home with yet another goody bag of candy (get the theme here).
And of course the event the kids have been counting down for, Trick-or-Treating. A good friend brought her three boys over and they all had a blast running around the neighborhood filling their bags. We only made it a couple of streets before everyone was tired and our bags were too heavy to carry. Graham was so funny because he was running full speed up to every house and then he would run back holding his bag open yelling "Look what I got". Cole came to tell us he said "Thank You" at every house and Payton was very sweet and helpful. Lilah Grace rode in her stroller and took it all in - she fell asleep half way through.
Our kids had a theme - the Spider Family. We had Black Spider Boy, Red Spider Boy, Spider Girl and Spider Baby.
Graham and Payton wanted their faces painted so I did the best I could (Google helped me out).
The kids had so much fun and us parents enjoyed watching them. Our kids were totally wiped out at the end. They couldn't even take off their costumes before they passed out.
As you can see there is no lack of candy in our house. What a fantastic Halloween Week :)
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