It always takes me about 6 months to really feel like myself again after a baby is born. And sure enough, now that Lucy just hit that mile stone, I am starting to feel like a human again.

However....

Four kids has been a huge adjustment for all of us, especially me. I don't think that I will ever be the same kind of normal as I was before. I thought I would write down some of the biggest things I have learned so far from being a mother of four. I am sure that this list will grow everyday. There cute little guys teach me more than I could ever teach them.

10.Four times the kids DOES NOT equal four times the laundry.
Four times the kids equals about 400 times the laundry. I have to do at least one load of laundry a day or it starts to swallow the house.

9. It is okay to let your kids dress themselves and have them totally not match. This was a big one for me. I like my kids to look nice, clean and match. But when your 8 year old comes downstairs in floody blue pants and a red and black plaid shirt, you have to look the other way. There are other fish that need to be fried and at least he is dressed.

8. Which brings me to...... go with the flow.
I am WAY outnumbered now and if I am the only one that wants to do one thing while everyone else wants to do something else, it's better let them win. I am not saying that I let these kids run my life, but their ideas and goals are important too. If the library is not in the cards, it just isn't in the cards.

7. Seven little boys running around my house is way easier than just my three.
It's true. When it comes to long, summer afternoons, the more the merrier.

6.A steam cleaner is the best Christmas present we ever got.
A very savvy mother-in-law gave us a steam cleaner a few years back and it is by far the best thing we own. That thing has known a lot of miles in it's few short years.

5.You can fold laundry, talk on the phone, feed a baby and watch Dr. Phil all at the same time.
Multi-tasking folks, it's the only way to travel when you are a mom. (Although apologies must be made to the poor souls on the phone with me when I am in multi-task mode. I know am not the funnest or easiest thing to talk to.)

4. Date nights are a must.
Sometimes my poor husband is shoved to last place on the list and a date night in just the thing to move him back to the front. We love to go to dinner and just visit. Things are always better when you have someone on your side, but it is too easy to forget that you have a built in best friend when you don't get to spend any time together. Thank goodness for cheap Mexican food and wonderful parents who are always willing to take the kids.

3.Grocery shopping is a major event!
This is how grocery day goes down. First I have to plan a menu. I like to shop for two weeks at a time so this means coming up with 12 (we get free dinners on Sundays, thank you moms!) meals that are not too expensive, somewhat healthy, and that at least 2 of the three boys will actually eat. Not an easy task right there. Plus I have to hunt the house to see what toiletries we are out of and how many rolls of paper towels are left.
Then, after Kent comes home from work and after the kids are either in bed or on their way, I head on out to the Super Walmart. I HATE Walmart, but they are smart. Where else can I buy all the things I need at the same price? No where. So Walmart it is.
Now you get to wander up and down each aisle putting everything into your cart, only to take it all out of your cart at the check stand. Then you have to put all the bags back into your cart and walk out to your car to promptly take them out and put them into your car. Drive home and unload all the bags, (this is usually Kent's job. By now I am done with those darn bags,) and then get all the food sorted and eveything put away. Phewww......


2. 5:30 is the best time of the whole day.
That is when dad comes home.

1. And finally, and the one I think is the most important, I really wouldn't trade this for the world.
Yes, there are days that I think I can't do this one minute more. But the truth is I love it. I am so blessed that this is the life I have been given. My kids bring more into my life than I could ever give to them. They teach me things, make me smile, give me headaches, make me poor, keep me sharp and bring more joy into this house than one little family should have. I am forever grateful for them and hope that I can do my best to give them a mom that they can be proud of.

I love you guys!