Mommy of Many®

And other reasonable questions from a day in my life with nine children.

If you’re not sure what to do with the rest of your hot dog but you don’t want to throw it away, just tuck it, neatly, into your shoe for savoring later.

Why is Gabi’s hair slicked to her head?

Unruly hair? Take generous portions of lotion and rub into hair. Try to get it evenly distributed and pay attention to the scalp. After all, lotioning your scalp may help keep dandruff away.

Why is Luke-Xavier’s cereal on the floor?

Finished with your cereal but not sure what to do with the leftover portion? Simply fling the bowl across the dining room. No need to worry about any mess that may occur, there’s always the dog and of course M.O.M. will clean up whatever’s left behind.

Why is there a giant bee in Gabi’s bowl of cereal?

Why wouldn’t there be(e)?!

Just a glimpse into my daily musings.

Good night~

Simple, beautiful, happy

I hope you each find something with these qualities in it today.

Have a great day~

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I was lucky enough to have my friend, Pilar, in town this week. She graciously offered to take my kiddos out for two afternoons! I thought it would be fun to have her share her Mommy of Many adventures with you. She braved a mall and the beach. She did forget to mention the fun she had when she changed Luke-Xavier’s diaper, only to realize that there weren’t any others in the diaper bag. The drive home was tense while he sat in his car seat wearing an extra pair of Gabi’s undies.

Thank you for visiting the site and for listening to the show.

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 MOM43 [18:47m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (204)

It’s Saturday and I keep thinking that it should mean we’re doing something fabulous and fun. Shouldn’t we be holding tickets to something or putting on bathing suits and planning a day of sun and water? No, it’s Saturday and there’s only one more left before the kids go back to school (for a couple of the older ones, this is the LAST Saturday of their summer) and I have nothing exciting planned. We still woke up before the sun and I poured multiple bowls of cereal for small children and looked around the house wondering where to begin. So, even though it’s Saturday and the summer is starting to become a wispy memory of fun, sun and visitors I think it’ll be filled with watering plants, folding laundry, mowing the lawn, doing dishes and running errands.

Have a great day~

*Gasp*! “Jen that is not very nice!”

You are right! It’s not very nice, but it’s 100% true. The thought came to me (and not for the first time) yesterday when I was holding Luke-Xavier, ankles and wrists, like a prized pig and running for the bathtub. I was forced to realize that too many of the “emergencies” I deal with revolve around poop issues;

Children yelling at the top of their lungs from the bathroom-”Come Wipe Me!”
Children yelling in the living room-”Luke-Xavier stinks!”
Luke-Xavier yelling from his bedroom-”Look at my poop”
Children yelling from outside-”Luke-Xavier took off his diaper and it’s dirty”
Children yelling-”It smells like poop in here”- so you walk the room sniffing the air and trying to find where the offensive trace is hiding.

I started realizing that I’ve dealt with these icky issues 9 times over and that I am WAY TOO adept at cleaning up poop and knowing how to sanitize an area. Part of what’s going on with Luke-Xavier is that he’s overly ready to be potty-trained and now he’s trying to self-change his diapers. The other part is that I didn’t get serious about the whole thing when I should have and missed my window and now have to force the whole potty-training thing. He’s perfectly happy to use the diaper and then simply take it off.

*Big Sigh* as moms we all deal with this baby/toddler issue and our homes don’t get condemned by the Health Department and friends still come to visit and the children grow up healthy, confident bathroom users, but when it’s the middle of the game, it just all feels so dirty!

Add a dog to the mix and it’s not safe to walk inside or outside!

Have a great day~

We found out about a free Scuba class that was offered in our area from some family friends and decided it would be a great way to spend a Saturday. So, I loaded up the van with family and friends and off we went! The big plan was to get the older kiddos set up with the class and then take the younger ones to find some fun activity that they would enjoy.

We discovered that an adult would have to remain on site through the whole process, so we split up and my friend, Pilar, took the kids that wouldn’t be taking the class and headed to a fun, train store while I stayed for the class.

Tristan was allowed to ring the purchases up and earned a poster from the shop keeper for his hard work.

Meanwhile……I sat in class with the older kids and listened to a video that described all the great things you could learn and experience through scuba.

Our instructor, Marc, did a great job of trying to keep the kids engaged during the class.

Finally, it was time to go to the pool!

Some of the kids were really excited and some were nervous, but they all headed to the pool to gear-up. After the wait of the classroom and the time it takes to gear-up and receive instructions in the pool, we were more than ready to see everyone try it out!

It was worth the wait!

Look! Luke-Xavier had to be pried away!

Thanks to our local Sport Chalet for offering this fun, opportunity! And thanks to Marc from the PADI Program for being great with the kids and for sparking our interest in scuba! We would love to check out the entire program.

Have a great day~

I can’t believe how fast the summer has gone and that 5 months of this deployment are under our belts. We’ve made it through with only a few speed bumps. I want to thank all the people in our life who have made our summer so much fun and who have taken the time to think of us and include us in many fun activities. It’s no small task to invite the Lang Clan to share time with you and we have been fortunate enough to have many invites. Thank you!

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 MOM 42 [14:41m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (213)

Last week when my sister left, Kateri was able to take the road trip with her and spend a few days in N. Cal. They were able to spend time visiting family and some of our favorite spots up there. They sent me pics from visiting Lake Tahoe and it made me want to pack the kids up and go!

One of our all-time favorite places to visit when we’re up north is the town of Nevada City. When I lived in N. Cal. I loved it and would visit the quaint shops and a favorite restaraunt. It holds some really good memories for me. It also happens to be the home of The Truffle Shop. I’ve talked about my love of chocolate before and I’d have to credit De Groot Truffles and the The Truffle Shop with really fine tuning my chocolate snobbery. Who can argue with how amazing the “Chocolate god’s” truffles are, when they’ve been enjoyed by the White House and the Vatican?! I hardly ever make a trip up N. so De Groot Chocolate is a sweet memory for me (though, all of the chocolates can be ordered online). But God bless my wonderful daughter and my family that was with her, because they took the time to go to the shop and she brought me home 2 amazing truffles! My younger kids thought I was nuts when I took the box and did the Happy Dance of Chocolate Joy. I savored every bit of both of the truffles and didn’t share a single bite! (I’m usually pretty good about sharing). If you are ever in Nevada City be sure to treat yourself to an amazing chocolate experience and if your clicking finger happens to have a chocolate craving, try ordering online. You will be happy you did!

Have a great day~

Check out Baby Bites! Joann of What’s Cookin’ With Nonna? offers tips for helping your kids become healthy eaters, plus tasty recipes and even a little history. The article above happens to include a picture of some pretty cute kiddos.

Have a great day~

For the last year I’ve done a pretty good job of stepping outside my “box” or comfort zone and have tried new things and stretched my limits. I thought I had stretched out enough that my “box” didn’t really exist anymore. Boy, was I wrong!

This week I found that I am capable of being more flexible than I thought.

Thank you for visiting the site and for listening to the show

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 MOM 41 [16:33m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (170)

This weekend was full of children’s birthday parties. The kids all had a great time. There were pinata’s and games. I couldn’t help but notice the difference in the way the adults view the games compared to the way the kids do; “Hey come play this game. It’s full of competition and you’re each going to lose, one by one. But it’s going to be so much fun!”

All the parents watched with smiling and laughing faces as the kids played musical chairs with great anxiety. Some even grabbed a chair to try to walk with it. I had to chuckle because I think we’ve all forgotten how serious it can feel when you’re frantically looking for a chair to sit in and realize you weren’t fast enough. By the end of the game several children were crying.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying we’re damaging our kiddos in some way by playing these games. I’m simply pointing out that the adults get more pleasure out of the whole thing than the crying, anxious, “am I going to get a chair or lose”, kids do.

Have a great day

Well here’s a story!

Last week, a friend of mine called and offered me the opportunity to stay at the beach for a few nights with the kids. That sounded fun! She said she had rented a cabin but couldn’t use it for the dates she had reserved it, but that we could use it instead. I knew we couldn’t do more than one night, but staying on the beach sounded great! Any of you that know me, know I am not the camper in the Lang family. Clay is the one who loads up the kids every summer and takes them on a week-long trip to N. California to the backwoods of the Gold Country, where they dig a latrine and swim with water snakes. I kid you, not! I have never gone on the Lang Family camping trip because I would ruin the entire experience for them. I often plug my ears and shout, “La La La La” when they are describing different parts of the trip to me. As a mom it can be hard to hear that the caravan (I may not go, but other brave souls from other brave families DO pack up and go on the ultimate camping excursion with my husband and kiddos) almost slid down the side of the mountain because So-n-So’s truck couldn’t make it around the hairpin turn, OR that my 4 yr. old was hurled off a cliff, into the water below by an older sibling. You know, it’s the little things like that where I would probably become overbearing and make rules. But, every year, everyone comes home (mostly) in tact and all they can talk about is going the following year.

So, with Clay gone and the kids itching to camp, I figured I could pull off one night in a cabin on the beach. Well, about 15 hours before we were to leave, my friend let me know that it might not be a cabin, after-all, but just a camping spot. I thought that over for 1/2 a second and said that we could just go up for the day and enjoy the beach and have a fire etc. and then return home and that I could just play it-by-ear the next day.

We met her at her house because she decided to come up for the night and that we’d do a “Mom’s camping trip” with the kids. She let me know that it was, indeed, a space and not a cabin. I let her know that we would LOVE to go up for the day and into the evening and would then come home. “You know, I don’t have a tent because Clay keeps all the camping stuff together somewhere else, but we’ll have fun for the day”. She was prepared! She had 2 tents and rented 2 more! Ummm…….that sounds like camping to me. Ummmmm…….I don’t really do that. My kids were jumping up and down and panting with excitement. Ummm……I really don’t do that! I was panting with fear! But somewhere deep down, I figured we could still just go up for the day, enjoy the beach and the water, build a fire, eat s’mores and then go home. I was SO wrong!

The minute we hit that spot, my girls were setting up tents and putting together camping tables and chairs like it was in their blood. These are the same girls that can’t possibly wash a floor because it’s too difficult. I was so impressed! I pulled out the ice chest (it was the least I could do) and watched them work. Once everything was up we headed for the water. This, I knew I could handle. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the beach and the beach we were staying at is wonderful. I’m slightly biased because we used to live in the area, and it brings back great memories of times gone-by, but you can look out and see military ships on the horizon and helos go overhead with great regularity. It just makes me feel connected to Clay’s career and the lifestyle that my family is living. Plus, there’s no seaweed, the likes of which, plagues the beaches here.

The kids played in the water and created a couple of mermaids

After looking at this next picture, I realized that in the future, I should be more careful of where I set us up!

So, our beach time was great, but I DID realize that I was still facing a night of sleeping in a tent with small children and waking to making breakfast over a fire. Anxiety! Could I REALLY be doing this?! Well, it happened in spite of me and we all lived through it. The kids split up into their tents and I managed to get Luke-Xavier and Gabi to fall asleep in a sleeping bag. Never mind that I was so exhausted from the day that I fell asleep, in my clothes, right next to them!

We woke this morning and enjoyed the quiet of the morning and the feel of the ocean air!

Another fire was built and breakfast was, indeed, cooked over it.

By 9:30 we were back at the beach and I found out that the girls can take the tents and gear down, just about as fast as they can set them up. Clay has taught them well!

So, I did it! I made it through a night of camping (unexpectedly) with the kids. Would I sign up to do it again tomorrow? Well, not like that. I’d probably choose to be a little better prepared, but maybe more camping is in our future. Maybe…….

Hey, is it weird that tanks went through the campsite?

Good night~

A good friend of mine invited me to go to a relaxation and meditation seminar with her. I could certainly use some tools for relaxing and de-stressing my busy days. It was a really good experience that I found full of words that affirmed some things that I’ve been thinking about. As women, it’s important that we find the time to nurture ourselves, mind, body and spirit. Too often we forget that we are not just physical beings, but spiritual beings, as well. We can better nurture those that we love by making sure that we are whole first.

Thank you for listening to the show and for visiting the site!

Click HERE to leave a review for Mommy of Many at iTunes.

 

 MOM 40 [13:31m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (156)

I just read this article about a couple with 5 kiddos who were taking a vacation with them and left their 3 year old in the airport. I am sure that there will be a host of places that scorn them for their absent-mindedness and the lack of parenting skills. Really?! All I can say is that I feel for them! I can’t imagine the sinking feeling they must have felt when they realized what had happened and that the whole world was going to know.

Let’s all take a minute to remember the challenges we face each day and make an effort to be less judgmental toward other’s mistakes that we might not be judged so harshly on ours.

Sometime I’ll take a little time to share some of my “less glorious” parenting moments.

Have a great day~

It’s been a long and tiring day, but it was worth every minute!

We got the house and kids in order and the sitter came in the afternoon. Once the kiddos were on their way to the beach with the sitter (God bless her for taking them out!), Maggie and I hit the road. We only had a drive of about an hour and 1/2, so we had time to stop in San Juan Capistrano for something to eat and to walk around a bit. I made a mental note to go back soon because it’s been too long since I have brought the kids up there for the day.

We got up to Irvine with plenty of time to spare. We got to our seats (there was a bit of a hike involved) and looked around at the vast emptiness of the amphitheater. We brainstormed and daydreamed about how to be in a better spot (not that ours was bad, just up, up, up). We noticed that the stage was set but looked a little plain and very masculine. We kept wondering who the opening act was. We realized that nowhere, had we read who was opening. It was a sweet surprise! Once the place had filled up and the music began, we got a little trip down memory lane with Bryan Adams. Whoo Hoo! He was great! Actually, he was so good that we had to remember that we were there to see Rod Stewart. ~Big Breath~ Oh yeah…….Rod Stewart!

The stage was changed into a white wonder with a HUGE screen across the center. Yes! We knew it was going to be good. He did not disappoint! We had talked about what songs we hoped to hear and which ones would totally make the show. There was truly only one song that we didn’t hear that we were hoping for. It was SO good! We actually left talking about how we couldn’t wait to get home to the computer so we could look up the other stops on the tour. Well, it seems that Irvine was the only stop for California, so we will have to be content with my iPod full of Rod Stewart songs, spanning his career. Today the kids had to put up with all Rod, all day. They were fairly gracious about it.

So ends my little journey to finally see Rod Stewart in concert. I know that people go to concerts all the time, but this was really special to me because all the times in the past that I’ve had the chance to see his show, I was unable to leave a new or nursing baby behind. It was a little mile-stone for me and it was FABULOUS!

Hey Rod, thanks for the great show! I hope to be able to catch another in the future.

Good night~