Taylor graduated from her 4 year old class today. They had a beautiful ceremony where the children sang songs and received diplomas.

They had a slide show for the families to see the kids throughout the year, and it was so cute. It was fun to see how much she and her friends have grown. I am honestly in awe of how she is changing every day and maturing into such a fun loving little girl. She is kind, respectful, sweet, and hilarious. She is truly a beautiful person inside and out. I received so many compliments, from both educators and fellow parents, on her disposition, intelligence, constant smilie and her laugh. She is pulling at heart strings everywhere she goes and Todd and I could not be more proud that she is our perfect, tiny human.

At the beginning of the year, I made a sign for her to hold to commemorate the start of the school year. I thought it would be fun to look back and see how things compared, and how much she’s psychically grown. Sure enough, the only thing that changed was the date. She’s still aspiring to be a doctor, and red is still her favorite color!

When the ceremony was over, we went back to Taylor’s classroom to pick her up, take some pictures, and say goodbye to her friends and teacher. We had all bought her flowers and a special graduation balloon, but her brothers each bought (with some help from Daddy) their own single rose to give her. They marched into the room so quickly and presented her with the roses, and hugs and kisses. It happened so quickly that I didn’t even have time to push record on my phone. They were so proud of their sister and couldn’t wait to see her. Taylor’s little face lit up and the classroom was filled with “awwwws.” It was one of my favorite Mom moments of all time. Later on, when I asked her what her favorite part of the day was she said “I loved when my boys gave me special flowers. That was the best.”

Although a family picture wasn’t easy to obtain since we had some unwilling participants, we have some beautiful memories. Every day before school, the kids, the dog and I drive down to the beach to see the birds and look at the water. Today, T wanted to take a quick picture by the water. I happily obliged. I cherish this time with her so much.

After the boys were in bed, she and I took Ranger for a walk. As we walked around the block, she asked me to sing Louis Armstrong’s “What a Wonderful World” with her. It was one of the songs the kids sang at their performance today, and it was the most perfect ending to such a special day.

It is only 10am here, and already, I feel like we have had a full day. We haven’t even started Taylor’s school day, and I’m about ready to be done for the week. What are the chances my kids will let me nap and read books all day? Slim; I know.

Not only did Taylor stay up super late last night, but she was up abnormally early this morning and didn’t return to sleep. Thankfully, she’s her usual, happy self – for now. Coincidentally, the boys were up right after her. It’s possible that they heard T’s ponies “talking” and squealing from the next room. When I went in to greet my sweet sons this morning, they met me right at the door and said “Oh no, Mama! My bed has a boo boo! / My bed has a boo boo too!” Apparently, instead of stripping themselves, they decided to strip the beds. Blankets, comforters, sheets, and mattress pads were all removed and thrown about. They made a pile of the bed linens and were jumping off of their beds and into the pile as I was getting clothes out.

After fighting over who got to feed the dog this morning (they both lost; I won), they had vitamins and round one of breakfast. I sent them downstairs as I waited for my coffee to stop brewing. The slow drip of the coffee machine was tantalizing me as I was standing there half awake. As I was waiting in the kitchen, smelling the glorious aroma, I heard a weird sound on the stairs. One small boy was wearing his sister’s way oversized cowgirl boots and was stumbling down the stairs. Luckily, he has a short fall and wasn’t even phased. I went back up to grab my coffee and round two of kids’ breakfast and immediately heard laughter and squealing. I thought to myself: How nice! The three of them are so excited to be with each other right now and are enjoying each other’s company and playing nicely. As soon as I thought it, I knew it had to be false. As I was running down the stairs, I heard “Bye bye poop! Have fun!” I caught Frick and Frack in the downstairs bathroom, playing in the toilet. Opening the downstairs bathroom door (which sticks and is hard to open) is a new skill set they managed to acquire this weekend. Thankfully, I had the foresight to order the six pack of door handle locks way back when, and the door is now secure. My coffee is now cold, my body is under caffeinated, and I have entirely way too much “extra” laundry to do this morning, but Monday is on its way to being over with. That’s one way to look at it, right?

Tickets: $50 (Thanks G & Brampy!)
Food: $30
Our Kids’ Faces: Priceless

We went to a local fair this weekend and had an amazing time. We actually ended up going twice because when we went on Saturday, it down poured half an hour into our fun. My parents met us there, so they helped wrangle the soaking wet boys to the car while Taylor and I made a completely necessary trip across the fair grounds to get cotton candy. We stomped in puddles and danced in the rain. We were so soaked by the time we made it back to the car, it wasn’t even funny. But we had fun! We actually had a blast, and made sure we stopped for a selfie.

Today’s weather was much more agreeable. There were not very many rides this year (as compared to previous years we’ve gone) but the kids still had a blast. They loved the cars, roller coaster, and Super Slide! I was actually shocked that they all did well on the kid roller coaster. Their smiles and laughter were so contagious to everyone around them and will carry Todd and I through another long week.

We splurged on lunch at the fair (burgers and fries) and of course, the biggest hit was the bottled water. All three kids thought that it was the coolest thing to drink out of the bottle, as opposed to cups. They expelled some energy running up and down a hill and playing tag before we left. Of course, we had to stop for more cotton candy on the way out. They are only little once and the sugar rush will eventually wear off. I hope. I’m actually not sure how much cotton candy Jacks consumed because at one point, Todd and I looked over and he was eating the bark off of the tree. Whatever keeps him happy, I guess.

After the kids took pretty great naps, we went outside to play in our new fire hydrant sprinkler. Taylor loved it and got the most use out of it. She was thrilled to be in the water, until she turned into a shivering mess. Joseph would run through, squealing with delight the entire time, and would quickly run away. Jackson barely went near it, but I may have picked him up and run him through a few times. Ranger enjoyed the sunshine and kissing the kids, but he wasn’t about to get near the water.

As we settle in for the night to watch a movie with three freshly bathed kids, I can’t help but be grateful that this is my life. This little family is mine. As crazy as they make me sometimes, they are mine and I love them. I look forward to a summer full of memories!

This morning, Taylor was lying on the sofa resting. She was all snuggled up under her blanket and she had told me that she just wanted to take a short rest. Sure enough, the boys came running down the hall and began to poke her, uncover her, and pull the pillow out from beneath her head. She knew they were just trying to be playful, but she was still irritated, rightfully so. She sat up and yelled at them: “Don’t you know you aren’t supposed to bother someone when they are sleeping. It really isn’t nice and if they are sleeping, they don’t want to play now. Leave me alone!” I was about to interject and remove the boys from the area she was in and simultaneously tell Taylor that they are little and don’t know any better and she shouldn’t be raising her voice at them, but I took a second to think about it. They don’t know better now. They don’t quite understand the notion of personal space, privacy, or decency. But when should they learn? Should I shrug it off because they are two years old and don’t know better? I let her words resonate with them and helped her reiterate to the boys that Taylor is right. You do not touch someone when they are sleeping. Such basic concepts can start to be ingrained at a young age, and they sure will be in this house. I am so proud of Taylor for knowing all of the proper names for her body parts and knowing that nobody is to touch her privates or any part of her body, for that matter. She is four years old, but she has a voice. She will always have a voice.

Just the other day, she came home from school and told me that a friend was touching her hair repeatedly and she really didn’t like it. She did not want the friend’s hands on her face or in her hair. I asked her what she did about it, and she said that she told this friend “No! Please don’t touch me.” She was proud that she was polite and asked nicely, but she said the friend touched her hair again “because she liked how long and red it was.” We again discussed how she is in charge of her own body, and nobody else has rights to it. We discussed the fact that although it’s nice to be polite and that does make us proud, she can, and should, in certain situations, raise her voice, use her own hands to remove someone else’s hands from her body, remove herself from the situation, and ask for help. The other friend touching my daughter’s hair was seemingly such an innocent thing to do, but as soon as Taylor said NO and made it known that she was uncomfortable with it, it needed to stop. This is what we need to be teaching our children. All of them: boys and girls alike. They all need to stand up for themselves early on, and they also need to take responsibility for themselves and their actions at an early age. It starts now.

My children are easily some of the most kind-hearted individuals I know. They are loving and sweet, almost to a fault. My boys are definitely rambunctious, but that in no way means that they are bad kids. I will however, as their mother, take every single teaching opportunity I can to help sculpt them into even better human beings. They will learn personal space. They will learn “no means no” (a phrase that they actually say already). They will learn that they are to be respectful of all humans, no matter what they look like, where they come from, or what other people think of them. As they get older, they will learn about alcohol and drugs. They will understand cause and effect, right from wrong, and will take into account how their actions or words will make others feel. In our house, we currently say “good choice, or not such a good choice?” when they are not acting appropriately.

The case involving the Stanford rapist has been weighing heavily on my mind since it has gained national attention. He admittedly feels badly for what happened, but is not taking responsibly for his actions because he was under the influence of alcohol and was swayed by the college “party culture” around him. Raping an unconscious woman is never okay. Raping anyone in any way is never okay. Blaming alcohol and not being responsible or accountable for your own actions is not okay. This story has literally made my stomach churn. The victim’s letter was so incredibly powerful and blew me away. She is the type of person we need more of in our society: honest, strong, empowering. This poor woman will live with what happened to her forever because of the actions of one terrible, sub-par human-being. I can only hope that she is able to continue to be empowering and embrace life, and all that it has to offer. She clearly has a good head on her shoulders and deserves the best. The rapist’s father was quoted saying: “twenty minutes of action has deeply altered my son’s career forever.” Action? Really? Rape is not action! Call it what it is. Rape. I will always defend my children and be there for them. I get that it’s ingrained in your soul to want to protect your children, but protecting them and helping them is much more than defending their “actions” after the commit a heinous crime, after they ruin another human being’s life, after they’ve cause irreparable damage. It means teaching them right from wrong. I understand everyone parents differently, and I am not usually one to judge how other people raise their children, but I will say this. The Stanford rapist was not raised to be a man. He was raised to think that he was above everyone else, raised to think that rules didn’t apply to him, and raised to think that rape = action. Men and women alike need to start being accountable for their own actions. Just like kids, they need to understand that there are consequences for everything. You do not always get your way, and you do not get to hurt other people. You just don’t. Be responsible. Be thoughtful. Be decent.

Taylor’s class had an ice cream social today for the students, and parents were invited to watch them / see some of their end of the year projects. Their teacher helped the kids make really awesome shirts for them to wear today. They also decorated ice cream bowls that will serve as a memory of their time together in this class. It has been a wonderful year for Taylor. Since she’s such a great big sister, T noticed that her brothers didn’t have any ice cream, so she initially shared her precious cup with them. Anyone who knows Taylor knows that she doesn’t generally share ice cream. She eats it all and asks for more. For her to be sharing with not one brother, but two was awesome. The teacher realized what she was doing and asked if it was okay if she went and grabbed some for the boys, which was very sweet of her. The boys graciously accepted their own ice cream cups and had a blast…until the cups were empty. Joseph had a massive fit and kicked and screamed all the way out of the building. It was well beyond their nap time, so the combination of that and an empty ice cream cup was too much for him to handle. It didn’t help much that there was a downpour as we were entering / exiting the building. The boys and I were all uncomfortable and looked like drowned rats. And yes, they were wearing slippers.

As the boys were having an in-car tantrum this morning, Taylor said “Hey Mama; how come you always have the biggest bottle of water with you everywhere we go?” Well, kid; this watermelon margarita flavored water is the closest thing I can get to legal day drinking with children in tow. I’ll take what I can get.

As I’ve mentioned before, the boys have become terrible with napping lately. This wouldn’t be such a bad thing if they could make it to bedtime without needing an exorcism, but apparently, they still need an afternoon nap to allow them to be mentally stable members of society. Yesterday, they were not having it…at all. They were wrestling and smacking each other. They were kicking their bedroom door and trying to pull the closet doors off. They were taking turns wrapping each other’s head in a blanket and kicking whoever’s head happened to be in there at the time. After multiple attempts of trying to get them to sleep, I quit and we went to CVS to pick up a few things we needed. They thought they were such hot shots sitting in the cart instead of walking or being in the stroller. They proudly held every item we got, and made sure to tell each person in the store exactly what we were purchasing. On the way out, they were perfect gentlemen and insisted on carrying the bags for me. They might be lunatics, but at least they have kind hearts and like helping their Mama!

Tonight, Taylor and I (and her ‘baby Ranger’) went out to drop something off to my mom, once we put the boys to bed. We stopped to get coffee first and had a special “girl’s time.” We drove with the windows down and listened to loud music and just had a blast. It’s so important that she and I get to do special things like that once in a while. When we left, she had already had dessert and brushed her teeth for bedtime, but she may have been cute enough to get a donut while we were out. Don’t tell Todd.

My kids locked me in the garage today. Let’s just start with that. This afternoon, we were playing inside, and I decided to take everyone out for some fresh air and fun in the sun. They were a bunch of cranky, over-tired beasts, so I figured it could do us all some good. I stepped into the garage to grab a container of bubbles before we headed out. The kids came into the garage twice, and both times, I told them to go back in and put their shoes on. When I went to open the door to get back into the house, it was locked. I obviously didn’t have keys with me. I nicely asked the boys to let me back in, and I heard them giggling on the other side of the door. They refused. I demanded that they let me in or they would end up in time out, and they still refused. I then heard them laughing and playing around with the dehumidifier. I called Todd at work as I was in there and told him what happened, and naturally, he laughed hysterically. Finally, Taylor begrudgingly agreed to unlock the door and let me back in. We eventually made it outside to play for a while and had some fun before all three kids had meltdowns.

I cautiously stepped into the garage for a few moments this evening to empty the garbage, and then just sat on a futon we have stored in there. I needed a moment of peace and quiet before I re-entered the kid chaos. As I was sitting there, two birds came flying inside the garage, squalling at each other and flew right at my head. I screamed so loudly and was epically disgusted. I hate birds. Todd had just pulled in the driveway at that moment, and got to hear my screaming, and saw birds fly back out of the garage. What a welcome home! Todd could tell that I needed a break, so he stayed with the kids and I went to take Ranger for a nice walk. We live toward the end part of a dead end, but the opposite end of our street is connected to a pretty busy road. We got to that road and turned back toward home, and I noticed we were being followed by a small dog. It was one of those half dog, half gerbil type dogs. It nicely greeted Ranger, but I was still hesitant because I didn’t know him. He didn’t have a collar. I scooped him up since I didn’t want him to go near the main road and set about to find his owner. I figured I would bring him home and call animal control so they could get him somewhere safe if I couldn’t figure out where he belonged. I ended up asking around and carried him down the street to his house. It was quite the site, I’m sure; one dog under my arm as I walked Ranger on his leash. I handed the little guy over to his owners who were so appreciative, but didn’t even know he was gone. They immediately put him back down and told him not to wander off again. I sure hope he listens.

Taylor was so tired today because she had field day at school. Her class was the green team, so she proudly wore a Ninja Turtle shirt my parents found for her. Parents were not invited to this, but she told me all about it when I picked her up. She was so exited about all of the events they did, but her favorite part was playing with water balloons and eating “delicious purple popsicles that tasted just like medicine!” The little things in life… I can’t wait to fill up a bunch of water balloons this summer and just let the kids have at it! I will be sure to toss a few their way.

We were lucky enough to be invited to observe Taylor’s gymnastics class earlier this week. The kids are so adorable at this age and it was so much fun to watch them do all of their crazy moves! The boys patiently watched from the sidelines, and then T’s coach invited them in at the end so they could run around and play too. It was very sweet. All of the kids were given medals for the completion of their gymnastics course. Taylor has been wearing hers often and she is so proud of herself! This school year has been so amazing for her. She’s developed new skills, she’s become much more assertive, and she’s just as sweet and kind as ever. I’m so glad we made the decision to have her complete a pre-kindergarten class next year since she is still on the young / small side in her grade level. She’s a little peanut who packs a big punch! I can’t even imagine what she will be like in another year. It will be fun to see!

The boys have kept me entertained and busy all week. After folding a basket of laundry, I ran upstairs to grab lunch for the kids and came back down to an unfolded basket. This is something they hadn’t done in quite some time, so it didn’t even cross my mind as a possibility. After blaming the poor sweet dog, I told them that I knew it wasn’t Ranger who made the mess. Jackson owned up to it and said “See my mess mama! See my mess?” At least he was proud of himself. During what should have been nap time, the boys were taking turns smacking each other on the face, for fun. Both of their little faces were so red and bruised. I kept going in and separating them by putting them in their own beds and telling them to go to sleep, but that didn’t stop them. As I was putting away laundry in the next room I heard “Open your eyes, Joseph! I want to smack you face!” Joseph apparently obliged and then said “I want to be done now!” I guess he even knows his limit.

Last night, we found an adorable little cafe that had the best ice cream. The kids had such a good time. Not going to lie, Todd and I had a wonderful time too. It’s so nice to be able to go out and do family stuff like that once in a while now that the boys are more independent. They thought they were big shots sitting at the table like big sister. Taylor can’t wait to go back again!

 

Since my youngest babes are two and a half, I had nearly forgotten what it was like for them to be teething. The boys have molars coming in, and it has been torture. Their little mouths are swollen, they are drooling and getting marks on their faces, and they are in pain. We have been getting up through the night to console Jacks (who just had a molar pop through). Waking up to a tiny whimpering sound sure does break your heart, even when you are exhausted. Jackson has been not eating much today because his mouth hurts. I have given him lots of soft / cold foods to help, but he still wanted cereal like his siblings. He really couldn’t handle the pain of eating it though. At 10:45, when it was still sitting in front of him, his little twin came up to him and said “Here brother. You need to eat this!” As he spoke, he put one piece of cereal at a time in Jackson’s mouth, until the bowl was empty. He knew his brother was in pain, but also knew he needed to fill his belly. I am so impressed with their bond.

One of my best friends, Kirsten, knew that I was having a particularly stressful week. Being the incredible person she is, she sent me an awesome package to lift my spirits and give me some much needed comedic relief. Not only did she send me a mug (I might be a coffee addict) filled with goodies, but she sent me an adult coloring book and colored pencils! The coloring book is all swear words and gave me the biggest laugh. I seriously can not wait to have some inappropriate Mommy coloring time. Thank you so much, Kiki. I love you!

Speaking of comedic relief, last night, I asked the kids to pick out a book for us to read at bedtime, and this is the book they came out with. Taylor said she chose it so she can practice for when she’s a big sister again. She’s really not letting this one go!

Happy Memorial Day! I think we should all remember how lucky we are to live in this wonderful country. I am so thankful for all of the men, women, (and canine) soldiers that have served and still serve our country. I will for sure keep them and their loved ones close to my heart today.

This has been one long week! I have been very much under the weather this weekend. I am so thankful for this wonderful man I call my husband for stepping in and stepping up when needed, and doing it all when I couldn’t. I know how crazy these kids are, and he’s done an incredible job, and I am so thankful! I am so lucky to have a true partner in life.

This week, the boys have been changing their nap time (against my will) and omitting nap time altogether on some days (also against my will). We have had many afternoon “snack picnics” and spent lots of time outside since it has warmed up significantly. They love being outside, and love having Ranger with us! During one of their nap time regressions, the boys made a mess out of the playroom. I asked Joseph to pick up the toys he threw on the floor and he just stared through me like I wasn’t there. I asked him again (looking him directly in the eyes) and he smirked. He still didn’t pick up the toys, so I firmly told him to do it once more. He looked up at me and said “Sorry. I not Joseph. I’m Jacksie!” The little bugger was trying to pull the twin switch on me already! During another one of their non-napping moments, they climbed the bureau and looked into the monitor. It has two way voice, so I told Jackson to get down, as I distinctly saw his little face up close and personal. He looked into the monitor and said “You go to sleep, Mama!” If only, fresh boy. If only…

Taylor has been taking swimming lessons in school (once per week). Although she’s much more comfortable and happy in the pool, she’s far from an Olympic athlete. We were invited to observe the swim class this week, and it was hilarious. She did everything she was told, but she honestly cared more about the geese and “baby geese” that she could see outside the pool window. At one point, she swam the full length of the pool with her class, and then had everyone stopped at the other end and looking out the window to discuss the geese and what they were doing. Even the instructors were talking about them! Leave it to my kid to notice animals when she’s supposed to be paying attention to something else. On Friday morning, she ran up to me for a hug and put her head between my breasts. She said “Wow! These things sure are huge. And look! I can feel the baby kicking in one! It’s a sister!” She’s still obsessed with having a sister and promised she’d be happy with one baby this time instead of two. Not happening, kid.

On Saturday morning, Todd walked into the boys room to hear them yelling “Hot! Hot!” They had climbed on their bureau and reached around the bookshelf portion (by doing some incredible ninja moves that I wish I had seen) and turned on their heat – all the way. Fortunately, it wasn’t on for long. Unfortunately, we decided to remove the knob that night so they couldn’t do it again, and we didn’t realize that by doing so, the heat was left in a permanent on position and the knob couldn’t be replaced. Oops. We are very lucky that one of our neighbors is an electrician and came over at 8pm on a Saturday to fix it for us. We would have been in a bad situation otherwise! Also, one small boy may have gotten stuck in between the sofa and love seat. He literally couldn’t free himself, and of course, I stopped for pictures.

I hope everyone had a fun, safe Memorial Day weekend. We sure loved our extra family time.

Once the chaos of Friday night quieted down, we had a much better weekend. We had all of the issues repaired on Saturday, had a pizza party at my mom’s house, and spent today relaxing and playing. Taylor chose her own outfit on Saturday, complete with shoes that were at least one size too big. It was the most quintessential four year old outfit. She sure can pull off any look though!

We stopped at Starbucks earlier today when we were out. Todd just ran in while I stayed with the kids (and dog) in the car. He took my phone with him since I had some credit on my mobile app. Taylor was so concerned that he was trading the barista my phone for the coffee. She was not pleased and said “Mommy! If Dad gives the coffee man your phone, how am I going to ever check the weather!” She was very relieved when he returned with the coffee and the phone. When we got home, I went to switch to a smaller purse. I have a closet full of older purses and wallets that don’t get much use, and just went to grab one from there. The kids’ toy box actually blocks this closet so they can not get in. When I opened the door, Taylor’s little eyes lit up and she said “Wow, Mom! Is this like a store for purses in your own closet?” It was adorable. I can’t wait to share my collection with her some day.

Todd, more often than not, calls me “Ri” when he’s speaking to me. A lot of people do, actually. Jackson overheard him saying something to me today, so now he walks around the house saying “Hi Ri! / Here you go, Ri! / Goodnight, Ri!” He thinks he’s hilarious, and he kind of is. Even so, I told him that he needs to call me Mommy. Next time he heard Todd call me, Jack wagged his little finger at him and said “Not Ri, it’s Mommy!” At least he understood what I was telling him…

The boys were maniacal at bedtime tonight. They didn’t nap well today, so I think they were so tired that they were just slap happy. We tucked them in and left the room, and they immediately started climbing up their bureau. They were body slamming their locked closet doors (probably trying to get to the toys inside). They were climbing on the highest parts of their beds and jumping off. They pulled a conduit (piece that covers the wires in their room so they can’t get to them) off the wall and were slapping each other with it and throwing it at the walls. It took them hours to calm down and go to sleep, and it took us many times going into their room and trying to settle them down, or at least trying to get them to stop destructing things. When all was quiet, I looked in the monitor and only saw one small boy sleeping. I could not find the other, so I ran in the room to check it out and found this. He fell asleep on the bureau (the monitor is on one of the higher shelves above) and was waking up as I snapped this picture. I, of course, moved him into the safety of his bed.

Also, just so I can put this on the Internet for the world to see for all of time, Diane thinks I’m brilliant! Her words. It’s only taken her a few decades to admit, but she has come around! Love you, sister!

Writing things out is very cathartic for me. It often times make me feel better to get things out “on paper.” Today was an insane day for us, and I hope to never relive the experience we had tonight.

Thursday night into Friday morning, Taylor wasn’t feeling great again, and had a hard time going to sleep. She ended up falling asleep at 3:45 am. The boys took turns crying on and off after that, so I didn’t get to bed until after 6. I was exhausted today, to say the least. We stayed home again today since everyone was feeling crappy. The kids had a Frozen movie date, and danced together, which was so adorable. Taylor actually told me that she wanted to marry both of her brothers and dance with them when they were married.

Everyone took short naps and seemed to be feeling okay afterward. I gave all three kids a bath late this afternoon. As I was drying the boys off, Joseph peed on the carpet, about half an inch from his brother’s clean head. I wish that was the worst part. I cleaned that up, dressed the boys, and was helping Taylor braid her hair when we realized a really nasty smell coming through her room. It smelled like rotten eggs almost. She immediately turned her nose up and said “Ewww! Who pooped in my room?” I went to check out the rest of the house, and noticed the same thing in the bathroom. This is a smell that we had once a few weeks ago when we had the heating system on, but we didn’t think too much of it, since it went away quickly. I texted Todd and told him that the kids and I smelled it again and that it might be coming through the air conditioning. As soon as he walked in the door, he was hit with the odor. I think the kids and I were unfortunately getting used to it, so we didn’t notice it in the rest of the house. We turned off the air, opened the windows, and went about our day. As Todd and I got to talking, he mentioned being worried that it was a form of gas coming through the vents. The wheels in both of our heads began turning and we thought the massive bloody noses, headaches, and sicknesses the kids have had could be related. He and I have also been feeling under the weather, so the idea of it all being related was daunting. I called the pediatrician and explained everything the kids have been going through and she said definitely get out of the house and call 911. She wanted us to go to the ER for testing depending on their findings. We quickly collected the kids and dog and told them we were going to hang out outside while the fire fighters came to check out our house. This whole situation happened quickly, by the way. It’s not like we were sitting around the house sniffing fumes and playing dominos. I called 911 as we were ushering everyone to the front lawn, and the first responders arrived so quickly. The kids were a little scared, but since we kind of prepared them, they waved to the firefighters and went to play. Long story short, everything is okay. It was not carbon monoxide (that is an odorless gas and we thankfully have detectors for that). They determined by meters and the smell that it was methane gas backing up into our heating and cooling systems. It’s being fixed, hopefully, tomorrow. The system is off for tonight, and we are safe. The paramedics and fire fighters explained to us that this wouldn’t necessary cause bloody noses and all of the symptoms we had, but it’s certainly not good and not something we want to be continuously breathing in. They said that this gas could for sure make us feel somewhat ill (headaches, nausea, etc.) but fresh air was the best course of action for us. We avoided the ER, thankfully.

A year or so ago, I had to call 911 for Joseph when he choked. The response time from our local volunteers and city firefighters was amazing last time and was amazing now. They were so quick, thorough, and kind. They cared about our concerns and worried about our children. Of course it helped that our best buddies / neighbors / fire house members, Tommy and Ann, showed up to help out too. Ann helped wrangle the kids and was a calming force for me, and was just there for me like she always is. Tommy may have given me heart failure from yelling down to me from the roof of my own house, but all is good. They are such good friends to us and we are forever thankful. I am also grateful that my parents were right around the corner when we needed them. I called them about 20 minutes into the action and asked if they could lend an extra few sets of hands with the kids since we didn’t know what we were up against the time.

After a long night, I have three happily sleeping children, an exhausted husband, and a pup who is snuggled up against me as I write this. We are healthy and we are lucky because this could have been much worse. I hope this helps remind others to always trust your instincts. Sometimes my “mom gut” is so strong that I think I’m overreacting. Perhaps I am sometimes. Speaking with the pediatrician validated my concerns as a mom and helped reinforce the notion that I always have to do what is in their best interest.