Baby Fever!

I have sat down many times to update the happenings in the Eaton home but would never finish them. Life seemed at a stand still in January the days have been dragging on. And the nights have been even longer. But we made it through. Even with staying busy getting things ready for Baby I thought the month was never going to end. I was lucky to find an awesome crib with mattress for only 50 bucks. It was a steal. My Mom got me the bedding for Christmas and I love it!

The kids all got pillow pets for Christmas and they love them. We saw this little one and the kids just had to get it for the Baby.

We put all 3 girls in the same room..... I'm not sure if I am setting myself up for punishment but the arrangement seem to be the best. I am grateful my kids are all deep sleepers; so hopefully things will go smoothly.

Sydney helped me wash and fold baby clothes. I told her that she could pick the one Baby should wear home, and she kept changing her mind. It was so cute! I would say that besides me wanting Baby out she is most excited!

Seth seems a little nervous about it and says that Babies are so much work. When I said that I do most of the work he said. "Well I always had to help Chloe out of her crib when she was fussing." I had to smile. I know that he will be a big help even if he says babies are hard work. Now, I am not sure about Chloe. It will be interesting to see her reaction. The one thing that I think will help is that she is a Daddy's Girl. She wants Daddy to do everything. It's nice....Except he isn't always around, so we get a lot of "I want you" and "hold me". I am sure it will be an adjustment. I just hope it isn't to hard for her or me.

Four kids seems like a daunting task. Some days I already feel stretched to the limit! I was really feeling this way after Christmas, so Overwhelmed, and I wasn't sure how I was ever going to get on top of things. It seemed like everything was crazy all the time the house seemed always messy. I never knew what to cook for dinner... I was freaking out! After a RS lesson on goals I realized that even though New Years resolutions seem so unrealistic and never really work out; I knew somethings needed to change and I needed to make some goals. So, I kept it simple mostly and realized that each day I was just going to TRY and be BETTER. A better Mom, Wife, Friend etc. and I knew that with four kids I also needed to be more organized. So, that was it on my goals for the year: Be better and try to get organized. The first thing I did on "being better" was not letting easy ways to serve pass me by. So, I signed up to take dinner to a sister in the ward...I know easy, and I realized that I liked being better already! I just have to TRY and I can definitely do that. Along with getting organized I decided to have an FHE on Goals and have the kids be more responsible. They each have 3 things they need to do each Morning and 3 each evening. Again I tried to keep it simple:

AM: Make bed, Put away PJ's, Brush teeth, Say my prayers. PM: Pick up my Floor, Brush Teeth, Put Clothes in Dirty hamper or away in drawers, Say my Prayers. I won't lie to you and say it has gone super smooth. Seth had a couple weeks where he lost most of his privileges but it has been working. It is so nice to walk in their rooms and see that things are put away. They are remembering to not be as careless with things and to just put them where they go. It's been good for me too. I admit that I am not always a great example and even my room has been cleaner these days. It's Awesome! Lastly, the change that has definitely made me feel more confident about making it through the day is a weekly menu. I have tried these in the past and never really committed to them and so they wouldn't work. But I think that I have finally found a system that works for me and it has made things so much easier. I just realized that waiting to decide isn't possible anymore. I was always missing something and by the time I finally figured out what to make I was annoyed and would have to head to the store to get something, and we would end up in the Taco Bell drive thru because I was too exhausted to think about going home and cooking. Now I plan the week out on Sat. Sunday and Saturday have two meals and Monday -Friday have one. Then I go shopping for everything I need. It is so nice not to have to go to the store multiple times a week for one thing, and I have all the ingredients for 9 meals! I guess it is nice to finally feel like I have my head wrapped around life a little before it is all jumbled and messed up again. 10 Days and counting.... I will be induce on the 12th if baby doesn't come sooner! Wish me Luck!