The Golden Years of Parenting

I've said before and I maintain that I am not a baby person.  Toddlers have always been my jam, so funny, so crazy, but so much work!!  However, once they get past that stage and are school age, it's been pretty amazing.  I've really been reveling in these elementary school years with my oldest four kids.  I have no idea what parenting a teenager is going to look like, and I'm no expert at this mothering gig (that's why God keeps giving me more, hoping I can finally get it together) but here's the lowdown on how the golden elementary school years have been going...

The Good:

There's just so much of it!

~ They are independent (enough) kids.  They can get dressed, eat without help, take a shower, control their bodily fluids, take initiative and responsibility for their own to-do lists re: homework, sports, projects.

~ They have lives outside of ours.  As much as a child will always need their parents, it's so refreshing to see them blossom on their own.

~ They are interesting and able to make great conversation.  They can verbalize their needs and dream about the future and let you know what they're thinking.

~ They are helpful.  They still want to please us and can actually do a lot of things we used to have to do ourselves.  The older they get, the more moaning/groaning we get but overall they're pretty great.

~ They thrive on praise and affection.  When I tell them how appreciative I am of them, they just eat it up.  And then they want to help even more.  It's so sweet!

~ They are not as demanding.  They understand their needs don't have to be met right this very second, and can be reasoned with.

~ They still have so much love and innocence in their hearts.  They are naive in the best ways possible yet worldly enough to get by in the real world.  So they are praying the family rosary, but also watching the newest PG movie we have approved.

The Cons:

~ They are not old enough to drive, but their need to be driven around has increased.  Mom and Dad feel like chauffeurs a lot.

~  Likewise, they are not old enough to stay home alone or babysit the younger ones, but are old enough to want to be part of all.the.things.  So it's a lot of packing everyone up in the car to drop off one kid at practice.

~ They become more opinionated and "of the world" so to speak.  They often compare what other families do versus what we do, and will tell me why that is unfair.  

And I think that's it?!?  What am I forgetting?  These years have been relatively easy to navigate and I'm so thankful for that after having a bunch of babies and toddlers at home for the first few years.  I know there is so much parenting ahead of us, and we look forward to see what it brings (mostly!).  This vocation is wonderfully thrilling, humbling, funny, heartbreaking, and fulfilling.  I always hoped and dreamed for a big family, and even on the hardest days, I remind myself that I am living the dream :)

The Trouble with Blogging

Oh gosh, blogging and I have had a rough go of it these past few years.  The thought process behind my blog went something like this...

I love reading blogs.

I feel like I have online friends, which is perfect since I'm a lonely stay at home mom.

But it's a one-sided friendship, and I would like to record all my family's memories, so I will start my own blog.

Oh my gosh, I have so much I NEED to say!!  My views are so important!

Every post will be about my cute kids or about my personal opinions on the world.  It's just so interesting!  

Why do other bloggers have so many followers and comments?  What are they doing that I'm not? Why doesn't anybody like me?

Oh, I get it.  I have to write about controversial issues that will increase my popularity because people will want to debate me.

Oh and I can host reviews and giveaways so that people will follow my blog!

Oh and I can leave tons of comments every day on everybody else's blog, like it's my full-time job, so that they will feel obligated to come back and comment on mine!

Wait a minute, blogging feels like a lot of work.  Should I commit so much time to something I'm not reaping benefits from?

Where did all my (old) blogging buddies go?  Who are all these new (young) bloggers?  

It's getting hard to write about my kids as they grow older for fear of embarrassing them.  They have a right to privacy.  Is this why most mommy bloggers have little kids?

Why do so many bloggers want to give advice on how to parent when they are still in the throes of parenting?  Shouldn't people doling out parenting advice already have lived through all the childhood stages and kept their kids alive to adulthood?  That's the advice I want to hear!

I know nothing about anything.  Nothing at all.

The older I get, the more compassionate and understanding I am to other's struggles and viewpoints.  All of my parenting ideals and world views have changed.  My opinions may not be the best for everybody (gasp!) Who am I?

I don't have time for this blogging world I used to love.  I can barely keep up with friends/work/school/sports in my real life, never mind this virtual life.  Maybe it's time to say goodbye.

But my young kids don't have nearly as many photos or memories captured here like my older ones used to.  That's not fair to them.  I love looking back and seeing what my kids were doing way back when.

I should try to blog more.  Even if it's just about things only I care about recording.  I need to stop overthinking everything.

But what exactly can I write about?

And here we are.

The Apples of My Eye

On Saturday we went apple picking with some friends at a new (to us) farm.  

The littles were not putting on their best photo faces as we had just been in the car for an hour and a half, and they wanted to run to the awesome playground beside them!

After playing for a bit, their smiles were more genuine.  Except for one.  I'm looking at you, Declan.

You have to pay for your bag based on how many people you bring into the farm, but then once you're in, there are tractor rides and animals to pet and rows and rows of glorious apples.

This is just one small section of all the apple trees they had.  And the place is so clean and labelled nicely.  You knew exactly what you were picking and it was so big that you felt like you were there all alone (even though there really were tons of people there!)

Brothers helping brothers.

We met up with some friends, who took this picture for us.  If I had planned better, I would have dressed the kids in some nicer clothes and made it a Christmas Card photo.  Oh well, you live, you learn, you get mismatched photos.

Declan's buddy, Andrew, was there.  They are so cute together!

Declan has been reeeeeeally attached to me lately.  But I kind of love it :)

Xander said "This is the best day ever! Playground, goats, apple picking and donuts!" The apple cider donuts were too good to get a photo of.

If you get the chance to come to New England soon, make apple picking your top priority!  After all the snow we had this winter, the apple harvest is the best it's ever been.  Glad something good came out of that terrible winter :)

7QT Friday (with a Sweet Winner)

{Joining Kelly for Seven Quick Takes}

1) 

Like my new header?  You would not believe how long that took me to design.  Sometimes I'm like a dinosaur when it comes to technology...roar.

2) 

Yesterday, two of my friends had their babies!  One boy and one girl, and  I'm thinking these two could be a match made in Heaven :)  I would post their photos but I haven't asked for permission yet and I think I'd rather let the mamas recover instead of field texts with blogging questions.

3) 

Speaking of pregnancy, I found a wicked comfy dress that hides my mummy-tummy really well and thought I'd share.  If you don't know what a mummy-tummy is or don't have one after giving birth, then we're not friends anymore ;)  Use code "Sale20" for an extra 20% off the sale price!  

Also, these pants are really flattering.  I order mine in the Tall size so they fit like regular pants and not above my ankle.  Use the promo code "Good" for an extra 30% off.

4) 

This heat and humidity have been so bad.  I haven't been running at all lately but I am sweating so much that I constantly look like I just came from the gym.

If..

Then my fat is super sad lately.  Come on Fall weather!!  But I just made myself commit to doing Jillian's 30 day Shred for 30 actual days in a row.  I don't think I can ever do a Whole 30 diet but I can exercise for 30 days straight, God willing!  Plus the workout is super short and just what I need to jump start my mojo that got lost when I let my gym membership go.

5) 

Soccer season is going well.  I must admit that I am totally looking forward to next year when our 5 players will be on 3 teams total instead of 5 teams.  That will feel like a cinch!

6) 

We celebrated the September birthdays on my side of the family last weekend, and I was in charge of the cakes.  I ordered Cupcake Cakes from the bakery at Walmart, and the girl cake was so pretty:

But the boy cake was a little more scandalous:

All the adults noticed, but none of the kids, thank goodness :)

7) 

The winner of the Happy Valley Honey is...

Amelia from One Catholic Mama!

Have a winning-after-everybody-thinks-you-are-cheaters kind of weekend everybody!

Boo. Yah.

Want Some Honey, Sweetie? {Giveaway!!}

We love honey, but since I'm scared of bees and we live in suburbia, we don't have a beehive or know anybody that does.  So we are forced to buy our honey at the store, and man, that stuff is expensive!  

But honey has amazing health benefits such as:

1. Alleviates Allergies

2. All-Natural Energy Drink

3. Boosts Memory

4. Cough Suppressant

5. Sleep Aid

6. Treats Dandruff

7. Treats Wounds And Burns

(That's seven quick takes BUZZING with honey's benefits - go visit Christy for more!)

And now for the review and giveaway...because I know you're all BUSY BEES...

Happy Valley is a New Zealand based company that produces all things honey related.  

We were able to taste test some of their products, and loved them!  You can only buy Happy Valley Honey from amazon.com in the US...but I'm giving away some for bee, uh I mean, free!

We added honey to our smoothies and made Honey Cinnamon Butter (just mix softened butter with some cinnamon and honey - it couldn't BEE any easier!)  for our pancakes, and this honey is BEElicious!  When my kids are BEE-HIVING especially well, I put it on their peanut butter sandwiches too :)

If you get BUZZED from honey as much as we do, then here's your chance to win two honey pots from Happy Valley (a $60 value!!)...just enter the rafflecopter BEElow.  

a Rafflecopter giveaway

From Picky Eaters to Not-As-Picky Eaters

I wish I could say my kids will eat anything and everything but, ahem, we're not there yet.  However we are moving in the right direction!

Can I get an Alleluia?

We were sitting at dinner and I was watching the kids eat their chicken, and salad and cauliflower-mashed potatoes (just throw a chopped up head of cauliflower in the pot with the boiling potatoes ~ instant added nutrition), while hearing them rave about the simple meal, and I thought about how far we've come.  

JP & Andrew, so cute!

Eamon & Gammy

I think they ate mashed potatoes and rolls this Thanksgiving.

Our oldest is a great eater, always tried everything and rarely complains about any food I serve.  But the next three were quite picky, and we grew accustomed to making them typical kid meals - chicken nuggets, hot dogs, burgers, sandwiches, pizza.  I would bribe them to eat their pizza so they could get ice cream, whatever it took!  There were times I was just desperate to get food - of any variety - into their bellies.

Maggie Moo and her incredibly sweet teeth.

I would see other kids eating soups and salads and casseroles and wonder what on Earth had happened to my children.  Where did I go wrong?  I decided to reclaim their taste buds.  

Reclaim our whaaaaat?

We stopped buying a lot of processed foods and started cooking real foods just for health reasons.  I made sure to add at least one vegetable to dinner and fruits throughout the day.  We cut back on sweet treats for dessert, and give them things like fruit smoothies, yogurt, and sliced fruit instead.  We stopped giving milk with dinner, and instead gave them water so that they would eat more food.  Milk is now served as a before bed filler-upper.  Cuz you know they're gonna say they're hungry.

The kids would always eat a couple of veggies like corn and broccoli, so I kept adding those to their plates while adding in sneaky nutrition wherever I could.  Ground turkey instead of hamburger, pureed veggies in the meatballs, sauces and soups, flax seeds in the muffins, spinach in their smoothies, bone broth in the gravy, whatever I could do!  I figured I could make them eat healthier without them even knowing so that they were growing accustomed to the tastes.  I started making soups that I knew they would like the flavor of (like Bacon Cheeseburger Soup) knowing I was able to get in all sorts of veggies.  They loved it and I couldn't believe my kids finally ate soup!  

Eating a fancy meal of Chicken Cordon Bleu.

Slowly, we started adding more vegetables and new foods to their plates instead of trying to hide it.  We would rationalize with them "You love sour cream and onion chips, so you actually do like the taste of onions!" or "Spinach doesn't even have a taste, it's like an invisible superhero!"  Gradually they just adapted and now I can serve them such a wide variety of food (except seafood, I haven't won them over in that department yet, but this Lent it's my goal).  I don't even have to puree all the veggies and hide them anymore, they will (mostly) eat it even if they spy a chunk of tomato or pepper or onion.  I also have them help me in the kitchen, or ask their opinions when I meal plan, and they love feeling involved and seem to eat better.

It's also become so much easier the older they get, but even my younger ones are eating much wider variety than my older ones were at the same age.   And if they choose not to, well...they don't get anything else.  It's their choice, I'm their mom not their short-order cook!  But I will still give them a cup of milk before bed, because I'm also fond of sleeping :)