At least think of something more creative

The kids and I ventured out last week and, based on the comments we got, you'd think we'd arrived in a bus with a trailer and about 10 more people. We made a quick stop at Barnes & Noble to play with Thomas and then headed over to the mall. As we were walking in (Elise and Wesley in the double stroller with Jack running along side) a woman was walking in next to us giving us sideways glances.

Lady: "Do you have a third one in that seat?" (referring to Elise).
Me: "Yes"
Lady: "You're brave"
Me: "Well, you have to go out sometime"
Lady: "Are they all yours?" (uncreative line #1)
Me: "Yes, all of them" (I don't really think it's that many)
Lady: "You must be busy" (uncreative line #2)
Me: "Yes" (all the while thinking, Lady, you have no idea)

When leaving the mall, we hopped on the elevator with another mom and her two children in strollers.

Other Mom: "How old is your little one?"
Me: "Almost two months"
Other Mom: While looking over the rest of the brood, "You must be busy" (does this sound familiar?)
Me: "Hmm...yes"

Why don't people say what they're actually thinking? Something like:

• You're crazy to have all those kids
• Don't you know how this happens?
• That must have been a mistake, accident, etc.
• Your house must be in shambles
• No wonder you're...not wearing make-up, have greasy hair, wearing wrinkled clothes (pick your favorite)

Then I think about our dear friends who have three rambunctious, yet lovable, little boys and are expecting twins in the next few weeks and I eagerly anticipate the myriad of comments that will come their way when they go out. It puts into perspective the very few "you must be busy" comments I have received and reminds me to keep my stereotypical, cliche comments to myself.

Progress

We're making progress on the move:

• Our house is beginning to fill up with boxes.


• We have finalized our housing for the time between closing on our current home and our new home. We'll be renting a house in Burnsville from a couple that goes to our church. Once again, God is demonstrating His perfect timing.


• We booked the movers for our move to the temporary house as well as our new house (we were able to lock in the lower rates by booking now).


• We've started selling our extra stuff on Craig's List (less to move - woohoo!).


• We have walls on our new house and the shingles are on the roof...at least, in the package.

Details

It has come to my attention that I may have been too hasty in my last post because I have had several requests for details on our new house. I'll try to answer all the questions I've received so far and any I think may come up.

Where is it? Shakopee - it's a few blocks south of where Hwy 169 and Hwy 101 meet.

Why did you choose Shakopee? We didn't really choose Shakopee, it just happens to be where this new development is. However, it will reduce our daily commute to work by at least 15 minutes because of the location.

How many bedrooms? It has 4 bedrooms upstairs with the option of adding a fifth in the basement when that is finished. It also has a loft and laundry on the second floor. It's a big open floor plan, which will be great for the necessary multitasking that takes place on a daily basis.

How many bathrooms? It has 2 full bathrooms upstairs and a 1/2 bath on the main floor. We will add a 3/4 bath in the basement when it gets finished. Our current house doesn't have a dedicated master bathroom, but it only shares with one other bedroom on the second floor. The new house has a nice master bathroom with a huge soaking tub. We decided not to upgrade to the one with whirlpool jets - I couldn't think of a single time in the next 5 years when I would have even 10 minutes to sit and relax in a bath. Which reminds me of an amusing exchange I had with the electrician last week when we were doing our "electrical walk-through" - a two-hour session staring at a blueprint of each level of the house deciding where outlets and light switches should go and, of course, finalizing any "options" (read expensive upgrades) we may want. One of those upgrades was a light above the tub, you know, something to set the mood and help me relax, so says the electrician, to which I responded, "did Sean tell you we have three children age three and under? I don't take baths." Although the private master bathroom is a nice feature, I am most excited about the main floor bathroom and the pedestal sink. It's nothing fancy, but I've wanted a pedestal sink in my house for a long time...a dream come true :)

What is the lot like? I'm not sure what the size of the lot is - 1/4 acre maybe? The backyard is mostly flat with a small hill at the back that goes down to a pond. Just beyond the pond is a walking/biking path (one of many that go throughout the development). Just beyond that is a wetland and just beyond that is a farm - this is definitely Jack's favorite feature so far. I'm not sure it will be our favorite feature in the summer when the "farm fragrances" come wafting our way.

I can't think of anything else. If you do have other questions, feel free to post a comment and I'll add it to the list.

Homeless

Life is never simple...

The good news is we found a house:

Front of house

Kitchen

View of dining room and family room from kitchen

View of dining room and kitchen from family room

Loft at the top of the stairs

Master bedroom

Master bathroom

The bad news is that the pictures above are the model and our house actually looks like this:

Mid May is the estimated move-in date. We close on our current house on March 31st. That means at least 6 weeks of homelessness for the Starkeys. On the bright side, the weather usually warms up a little in April so we won't be quite so cold sleeping on the streets.

Going...Going...Gone

It's with sadness, joy and relief that I write these words:
We sold our house

Why sadness? This is the first place we really called home; this is where we brought our babies home; this is the place where we invested all of our "sweat equity"; this is the place that welcomed us each time we came home for the last 6 years. And I love it. I love the new green paint, the paver stone driveway, the wrap-around porch, the fabulous pantry, the chalkboard wall in Jack's room, the ample attic storage, our new low maintenance deck (this one made me consider not selling the house), the white millwork (a small detail taken for granted until you realize how hard it is to find), the dormer windows...sigh.

Why joy? We get to find a new home that fits our family a little better - all bedrooms on one level, a family room big enough for 3 kids, a kitchen where we can all eat together.

Why relief? No more showings! Okay, I'll be the first to admit that I had it really easy - we only showed the house a handful of times - but when you're trying to round up three young children, pick up toys, take out the garbage, work in a feeding, make sure you have plenty of diapers before leaving the house and, oh yeah, figure out where to go for an hour with these three young children, one showing feels like ten.

One final look:

Soy Boy

We have official word from the doctor that Wesley is allergic to milk so, for the next few years at least, it's all soy for Wesley. He's also allergic to eggs and dogs (don't worry, this last one is not a food allergy). The funny thing is that he can eat things that have been baked with eggs and milk in them and he doesn't react. By "react," I mean have itchy eyes, cough because his throat is closing and break out in hives - all things that have been known to happen after consuming various food products containing dairy and/or eggs. The doctor also told me that his chronic congestion could be from the allergies.

Most recently, the congestion lead to a sinus infection that resulted in 10 days of fighting with my strong-willed middle child to take a twice-daily, cherry-flavored antibiotic...mmm. And along with the antibiotic came diaper rash caused by...well, we all know what happens when the good stomach bacteria gets "zapped." Being the concerned mother that I am (I admit that I was just as concerned about saving myself from the nasty diapers as I was about relieving my poor child), I checked the "dairy" section at Super Target for some soy yogurt that might help my little guy's stomach. Success! It comes in a 6-pack (3 strawberry, 3 peach) and, surprisingly, it isn't any more expensive than the regular yogurt we get. Anxious to reap the benefits of the active cultures in the yogurt, I offered a carton to little Wesley at snack time the same day. I found out that the days of feeding Wesley are long gone and even the obstacle of a spoon will not get in the way of his mounting independence.

Yes, that's our Wesley...hot-tempered, strong-willed and fighting daily to be as "big" as his big brother. At the same time he's our sweet, lovable funny man, doing whatever it takes to make us laugh.

Please note that this is Elie's hat that Wesley insisted on wearing. At first it was a game, then simply an accessory to his Gopher sweatsuit as he continued to sport the pink mouse beanie while moving on to bigger and better play opportunities.

We Didn't Name Her Snake

As much as Jack tried to persuade us to go with Snake (at least for a middle name), we opted for Elise Katherine instead. Elise made her entrance Saturday, January 3rd at 1:34 pm. She weighed 8 pounds, 11 ounces and was 22 inches long. She looks very much like her big brothers.

Labor was quick and uneventful, just the way you'd want it. I checked in at 7:30, was hooked up to pitosin by 8:30, five hours later I pushed three times and Elise was here.