My normal self arrived just in time for Christmas and the New year

Well, I have finished my “fourth trimester” as some women refer to it, and officially feel like my old self again.  The three months following the birth of a baby are filled with sleep deprivation, hormonal surges, emotional outbreaks, and bodily recuperation.  It is really a trying time in itself, and I am pretty happy 2014 has passed, and 2015 is here!

I knew I must be back to my full and former Chrissy when I suggested to Dave on boxing day we pack up the family, drive through the night, and surprise our families back East with a 3 day visit.  You see, it was in our plans LAST YEAR to head home for this Christmas, as it had been 3 since we’d been home.   But, a lot of stuff happened!   We had many unexpected expenses arise, a new baby, and the thought of travelling in storms or with sick kids (as is inevitable in December) was just too much potential stress to deal with. 

So, we had a lovely Christmas here!  The kids were so happy but relaxed, and I had done most of all the baking and cooking the days before, so all I had to do was cook the turkey, ham, and do a gravy the day of.   We didn’t have a ton of presents under the tree.   Between the grandparents, Santa, and us, there were maybe 6 or 7 for each person, and it was nice that way.  We took our time doing one at a time, and it took maybe an hour from start to finish.  The kids spent the afternoon poring over some new books, playing with some new toys, and proudly wearing new shoes and hoodies.  We were able to get in touch with most of our families, and that was nice.   The kids ate dinner happily and we all just really enjoyed each other.

So, boxing day arrived, and there was nothing to do really! The house was clean, the fridge stocked for leftovers for a week, and no real plans on the calendar.  I checked the weather and saw that it was supposed to be mild, dry and sunny for the next week ahead.  Everyone was healthy.  Asher had been sleeping 10 hour nights, which meant we would not have to stop for feeding,   and the gas prices were SO freakin’ LOW!  While I showered I considered the idea and I just felt like we should make the trip since everything that had been deterring us before, was non- existent.  Oh! And we were given cash from a few people for Christmas, which would cover the gas expense.    Dave and I conferenced while I was putting on my make-up,  and by 10 decided we would do it.  He would take the day to do some marking while there wouldn’t be as much time when we were away.  I would pack up the van, and we would leave at supper.  It was a BUSY REST of the day, let me tell you!  It didn’t help that I had 5 loads of laundry backed up.  I managed to pack everything for everyone in just one suitcase.  But then you need the portacribs, booster seats, diapering bags, and I packed up ALL the leftovers from the fridge to take with us.  Somehow, we hit the road at 6:15, grabbed a coffee and were off!

The kids were truly amazing.  We drove 5 hours straight, and then stopped for gas, a pee break, more coffee.  It was just a 15 minute stop, and I woke up Asher from a deep sleep, made him feed a bit in the back seat while we were stopped, and then we hit the road again straight to Fredericton, which is another 5 hours.  We arrived at 6:15am, and snuck up to the back-door of Dave’s parents.  We could see Rob, (Dave’s dad) awake inside just sitting on a big cosy chair while the rest of the house slept.  We knocked on the door, and he eerily looked up, and crept towards it with the most puzzled look on his face.  He slowly opened the door and sort of jumped back and said, “ HI?!”  It was like he was wondering if he was supposed to know we were coming.  Wondering if he had missed a memo.  We sent the kids upstairs who woke Nana up from her sleep.  She was truly surprised!  Dave’s Nannie was upstairs, too, and we had let her in on the secret because we wanted to make sure we got some time to visit with her and Papa before they left later that day.   It was such a fun thing to do!  

The next 3 days were pretty relaxing.  We spent supper, evenings, night, and breakfast time at my mom’s place, and then would head over to the Vances for the later morning, lunch, and afternoon.   The kids really enjoyed the change of pace, as did Dave and I.  It was a pretty long trip home, especially with Jesse who had just come down with strep throat, and Janna who overindulged in dairy over the trip and had explosive bowel movements.  But, it was SO worth the trip.

As I said, something my pregnant self just wouldn’t do.  But, I’m feeling really good these days.  Asher has hit a normal sleep schedule since a week or so before Christmas where he goes to bed with the other kids around 7. And he doesn’t need soothed to sleep any more.  Just changed, fed, and he puts himself to sleep from wide awake without any fuss.   It makes a world of difference in having the evenings to catch up on housework, hang out with Dave a bit, and get an hour to read a book or have a bath or something before bed!  ONE solid hour of downtime a day is really, truly, a beautiful and wonderful gift when you have a pile of kids!

It’s my Christmas gift from Asher, I think to myself.  What is crazy is that last Christmas another child so soon was not even ON the radar.  But, it’s funny how quickly God can change your mind about things.  Last year, my new year held nausea, sick kids, and exhaustion.  This one feels so hopeful! I have of course made a pile of new years goals.  Actually, just 5.  Plus I am doing this fun de cluttering challenge, where you spend 15 minutes a day tackling an area to organize/de clutter of your house for the whole year.  I love the idea of de cluttering, but any tools I have found have just been too overwhelming.    But, I can absolutely commit 15 minutes a day to this for the year.  My area today was kitchen utensil drawers.  I tossed about 15 extra teaspoon measures, and 3 extra potato peelers, and broken tongs, and spatulas, and so much stuff I never use.  It was rejuvenating! And now I have neat and tidy utensil and cutlery drawers.  I am super excited for “spice” day.  Really, there is one day to de-clutter your spices.  I don’t know about you, but my spices really need some de-cluttering.  Ha ha ha...

So, back to talking about my down time.  With this one hour of down time, I do plan on blogging Asher’s birth story soon!  It is on my to-do list for January.  I feel ready and far enough removed from the situation to do it, just need to find the right time.  So, stay tuned for that one.   Thanks for reading! I’m out.