Imagine that.....birthdays, craziness and more! LONG POST READ AT YOUR OWN COST! :)

Who'da thought that having four kids would make life even crazier, or that I wouldn't have much time anymore to post on my blog to keep you all updated on our crazy life. Certainly not me...(note the sarcasm here). I am trying desperately from drowning in a sea of piles of clutter which includes but is not limited to, dishes, clothes (dirty and clean, some folded some still just in the laundry basket straight out of the dryer 4 days ago), toys (duh), crumbs, shoes, jackets, dirty diapers and I guess clean diapers, dust, dust and much more dust, unmade beds, and of course the inevitable HUGE pile of papers (mostly mine) from daycare paper work, taxes, bills galore, and the boys school work which I have no organization system yet on what in the world I am going to do with the ones I am going to keep. Notice how long that statement was? There technically was no punctuation, therefore no breaths. That's how I feel by the end of most days...breathless and extremely exhausted. I have found myself waking up on the couch at midnight to go to bed after being asleep for at least 2 hours more than I ever have....usually with Tess on her boppy passed out on top of my lap. Thankfully she has never rolled off my lap yet, but I'm sure as with other things, that too will happen someday! :)

Our nights are filled constantly. Tonight is the first night that we have had nothing scheduled in over a month I think. Here is just an example of a typical week for me (this was this week...)
Every day load up all kids (daycare and mine) to take both boys to school, and again to pick up Owen in the afternoon. I work a full day with daycare and my kids and do as much house work as I can, which usually amounts to nothing. Then Tony gets home and I quickly whip up a dinner of sorts because Monday night Tony had a parents baseball meeting for little league and I had a daycare kid until 10:30pm. (Also include that every other night is bath night for 4 kids)...Tuesday night we ate a fast dinner and then I went to a kids consignment sale to try and find Owen some cheap new/used clothes and again had a daycare kid until 10:30pm. Then Wednesday is VERY busy - we pick up Owen from school, eat a VERY quick dinner and then when Lent church is at one of the churches our pastor preaches at Tony has to load up the boys to take in the church van so he can drive the older ladies to church and the boys go to Midweek at 6 and then me and the little two meet up with those three at 7 for church. Or if church is at our church then I have to take the older two so I can help make the Lenten meal then the boys go to midweek at 6 and Tony and the little ones meet us for church at 7. Tired yet??? Confused yet??? :)

Then Thursday we ate another early dinner and I had a daycare meeting for area daycare providers from 6:30pm to 9pm after during the day besides the usual daycare work and cleaning and transporting kids to school I had to take Tess to her 2 month check up and shots and Judd to his 2 year checkup. Then tonight we are finally free. I finally got on the computer, by miracle all my daycare kids were picked up by 4:15, we are eating home made chicken and noodles and the boys right now are dancing to Yo Gabba Gabba music on my MP3 player and we rented Astroboy to watch with the boys tonight and finally relax!!! Phew. Anyone wonder now why I am SOOOOO tired that I can't catch up on sleep? You shouldn't be wondering anymore because this was just an example of a typical week for us. It won't get any easier either. Tony has volunteered to coach little league for Owen and Raymond which starts the beginning of April, 2 games a week, until the middle of June and the boys are going to start swimming lessons mid April until the beginning of June 1 time a week. So no slowing down for us. At least after school gets out I feel more free because I won't have to be rushing to get kids ready every morning and loading up kids to take to school. It will feel like I am on vacation of sorts.

Now out of that craziness and let's go back in time by a couple of weeks to revisit Judd's birthday party. We had a great day and he got lots of presents. We ate Little Caesars Pizza, because it's a family favorite, and we had a yummy chocolate cake. Judd got lots of presents, which was kind of the first time that he's gotten his own loot. So now I have to find places for it in the boys' room. He got three 24 piece jigsaw puzzles and he has already mastered all of those, which without bragging is very advanced. Owen and Raymond had mastered them at about 2 1/2 which was also advanced, even just compared to all the other daycare kids I've watched, but Judd just turned 2, which even his dr. agreed was very advanced for jigsaws. He's so smart! :) After his party he passed out on the couch with his new Toy Story blanket and pillow while watching his new Yo Gabba Gabba movie and cuddling with his new stuffed Goofy. Too cute.

Raymond will be starting Preschool at a new school next year. His birthday is literally two weeks before the age cutoff for Kindergarten, which Tony and I feel is too young to start Kindergarten, so we have decided to start him a year later and make him older when he starts. I am totally guilt free of my decision too. He's totally ready for Kindergarten, but there is no need to rush him into it, plus he is very small for his age and always will be, but I'd like him to be closer in size to kids his age rather then being teased for being so small his whole life. So Rainbow Factory is where he'll be going and we need lots of prayers about this. We are financially in a crutch right now and trying to climb our way out of slippery slope, but it is a great Preschool and I really want him to go there. The average cost after researching preschools in the area are anywhere from about $160 -over $200 per month. This school will be $195 per month. That's $140 more than we pay this year per month for him. If I can get two more daycare kids, then it's no problem, but I need LOTS of prayers for me to find two new daycare kids and pretty quickly. He's very excited though. Currently he goes M, W, and F from 9:15-11:30 and next year he will go M-F 9:15 - 11:45, so more like Kindergarten used to be.

Owen is doing awesome in Kindergarten. Whereas he had some emotional trouble at the beginning of the year, he is now getting out of the truck all by himself and walking into the building all by himself. I haven't really even seen his teacher since before Christmas Break because of his new self-confidence. I love that he is one of those personalities that everyone is drawn too also. He's super popular with the other kids cause he's just so dang nice to everyone and he doesn't even realize how much everyone likes him. He is the kid that when we get to school everyone is like "Hey...there's Owen! Hi Owen" and then the same when I pick him up. Everyone from his class, without exaggerating, says "Bye Owen!!!" all the way to the car. He's so smart and at his last teacher conference she said that if she had to be gone for a day Owen would be the kid she'd let run the class if needed because he's that good. I LOVE IT! Plus he has started reading now and loves to read out loud to me and this has inspired Raymond to start trying to read, so maybe Raymond will be reading before Kindergarten next year in preschool. I love that he can read so much it actually makes me teary eyed when he reads Green Eggs and ham!! What a dork, I know! :)

Tess is a beautiful, happy and content little girl. I couldn't have asked for a more perfect 4th baby. She sleeps when she should (including all night), she only gets fussy when she's hungry but is easily satisfied, she loves to talk to her momma and she has the sweetest smile in the world with the cutest little dimple. She just went to her 2 month check up yesterday and she was 12 lb. 13 3/4 oz. and was 22 1/2 inches long. She is very healthy and is growing strong and definitely did not like the doctor. She screamed as soon as he touched her and stayed mad through the whole exam. Then she ended up with bruises from her shots because she has such strong legs she was kicking like a mad woman. Even the nurse commented on how strong her little legs were. Tonight is the first night she is sleeping in her crib upstairs. She has been sleeping in her bouncy chair at the foot of my bed until tonight. The last four nights she has slept through the night, so I thought I'd see how she did.

Anways...other than all the craziness at my house and the messes and chaos, things are well. Tony has had his vasectomy so Tess it the official last Coffey coming from this little family. I'm totally ok with this, but was a little sad of the thought that this chapter in our lives is officially over. I'm excited for what the future holds with our kids and how much fun I hope to have with them, but still can't help but mourn a little the idea of being able to have any more kids.

Alright, now if you've stuck with this whole post I am going to tell you that I am posting pictures in another post because this is too long to have to try and deal with moving pictures around! Thanks for reading, I hope you aren't bored with my outpour of my boring life.