My days are so full of Miri feedings, Brock snack times, getting Ella ready for school, putting kids down for naps, cooking for the family, 10-15 diaper changes, baths, and a shower for myself, that I hardly have time for much else! Although I love to blog, it has definitely taken a backseat. The priorities are making sure the kids are clean, fed, and each get 5-10 minutes of one on one time with Mommy. If I happen to have any extra time, I try to get a quick workout for myself in and then start attacking the laundry and dishes at warp speed! (And to prove my point, I am sitting here at 2am writing this blog, although I probably won't get to finish it for at least another day or so.) 
It certainly is busy, but I'm learning to manage.Since I haven't blogged since Miri's arrival, I'll share that story. And to save all of your stomachs, I'll just pick up at the part when we went to the hospital. We had a scheduled induction for the morning that she arrived, and I ended up waking up just a few minutes before our alarms were to go off, only to find that my water had broke!
When we got the the hospital though, I still wasn't in labor, so they gave me some Pitocin. Once the contractions did start I called for the epidural. It didn't help much! Around lunchtime, my parents and sister Brenda arrived to check on us for a bit. They hung out for awhile and figured they would go see Ella and Brock and wait for us to call. We joked about them staying if it was time to push, but figured I'd still be a few more hours. Only a few seconds later I felt like it was that time! The nurse came in to check as my Dad and Brenda excused themselves and I was under strict orders to do absolutely no pushing until my doctor arrived. 
This was because she was nearly out. The doctor raced in a few minutes later, I gave 3 pushes right in a row, and Miri just kind of fell out. It was a fabulous way to have a baby; I highly recommend it!Things continue to go well at home. Miri is a great baby who really enjoys sleeping for long stretches at night (again, something I highly recommend!). She eats well and has the cheeks, 2nd chin and thighs to prove it!
She takes good naps and simply requests to be held every once in awhile. She is a FABULOUS baby! I keep saying that if I knew for sure that they would all be like her, I'd be more than willing to have 10 or 20 more! But since we don't think this is very realistic, I think we'll stick with the status quo for a few years!Brock is happy with his baby sister. He loves her so much and gives her giant slobbery kisses all day long!
When she cries, he tries to shush her and will even attempt to rock her. It really is cute. He surprises us every day with how much he understands, and how much he tries to get away with! He gets this adventurous look in his eye and smile on his face, and you know that he's up to something! Of course, with this desire to explore comes some not so fun things....you know, the tantrums that are inevitable when we have to take away Ella's scissors from him, or close the bathroom door so that he doesn't play in the toilet again, or tell him no, he can't have cookies and m&m's for dinner. He can be a troublemaker, but he also has a mellow side. 
At least once a day, Chad or I will go to check on him and find him in his room, sitting quietly, looking at his books. Brock just LOVES his books. Of course I get a little sick of the same ones over and over, and am proud to say that I know "Old Hat, New Hat," "Pajamma Time," and "Snuggle Puppy" all by heart. But Chad and I both love that Brock loves to read so much.Ella is doing very well in school and her reading skills are coming right along. 
She has had her frustrated moments with it but gets excited when we point out to her how much she has improved in just a matter of weeks. We had her parent/teacher conference just last week and she is above average on just about everything. She's also above average in the "talking a little too much at her table" department. There's a shock! She is also a tremendous helper at home. 
She sometimes gets frustrated that Brock and Miri both still need so much from Mom and Dad, but usually she is pretty understanding and ready to jump in and help. One of her favorite ways to help is to read with Brock or play "puppy" with him while I feed Miri. It always makes me laugh to see the two of them crawling around the floor, chasing each other, barking, or panting, tongues out and all! We are still trying to get over the shock of her transition from "little girl" to "tween" though. 
She chooses the Jonas Brothers over Princess now and tells us how Chad Dillon Cooper on the Disney is the handsomest Chad she knows. And then of course, she remembers that her dad's name is Chad and reluctantly adds him to the list.
Chad of course is not thrilled about many of these developments, but what father is? He's just hoping that she will give us a few more years before she brings home her first date! 
And between Ella, Brock and Miri, Chad doesn't have time for much else besides work. When he is home, he helps me as much as he can, so much that I wonder how I handle it all when he's NOT home! He was proud to be able to bless Miri at church last week, with my dad, Ian, Eric, Mark, and Chris. We were so happy to have so many Priesthood holders in our family that could participate. 
While it was a great day, know that those of you who could not be there were missed, Loyal and Javier especially!
For the moment, what are we looking forward to? Full nights of sleep from Miri, Brock turning 18 months old so that he can go to nursery at church, and Ella is always looking forward to the next play date. And we are looking forward to a trip to CA in June. 
My sister Brittany will be getting married to her long-time sweetheart, Mark, whom we love! When they are married, we are going to be able to have my entire family in the temple together for the first time and we know that those moments will be so special. To sit and be reminded of the love that God has for us and of the blessings He wants to share with us, will be beautiful. We miss you all and pray that God will be with each of you!
