Well, I guess I now know why ds3 was so grumpy.  He has broken one of his top middle teeth and the one next to it is pretty close to breaking too.  On top of that he is also starting to get around (finally at 9.5mo, lol).  Hmm, may have to look into doing some baby proofing.

Ds2 & ds1 have been in tears a lot today.  I have been working on getting them to bed earlier but it is a slow process as I also figure out how to get dinner done in time to then get the rest of our ER happening in a good timeframe too.  Ahh, baby steps!

Better go do rest time with these guys.

Best wishes,

Jen

I hate interupting baby's natural sleep routines but at 9 months I think my littlie is spending too much time awake not wanting to miss things.  Then at the end of the day he is grumpy and out of sorts. 

I am going to change his ways by settling him when I feel he is tired but not quite wanting to sleep.  My only problem has been that I really think he does better with an hour or so sleep in the morning but he stirs after 1/2 hour and doesn't resettle unless I am right beside him (which really doesn't help me get school done with the others!).  I am thinking that I will put him down on his own but check the clock and go back to him just as he is probably stirring, wait until he stirs, resettle him then get back on with school.   

In  the afternoon he will naturally sleep about 2 hours if I am beside him, again, not really practical (although my 3.5yo ds does sleep about that too in the afternoon).  So my plan there is to lie down with the little boys for an hour while ds1 rests in his room for the hour then I will get up and quietly do some folding of washing in the room so I am there to resettle if needed and then play some quiet games in the hallway or other quiet work with ds1 where we are close to the littlies but still doing something.  This has worked well when I have done it.  Uno and Snakes and Ladders have been favourite quiet games.  And maybe we can finish any morning work that needs doing.

My Evening Routine (from FlyLady principles) is starting to come together.  I am realising that I can not be everything to everyone and that I do need to delegate and share the work load around.  My mum didn't homeschool or even have 3 children so why do I expect myself to live up to her housekeeping standards?  Apart from which she was never a really fun mum so why would I want to copy her.

Jen

The photo I have used is one of my boys taken last month.  My 7yo ds was playing around with our digital camera one day taking pictures of all sorts of things, including the TV and his Buzz Lightyear blanket.   lol  

Dh showed him how to use the delayed timer and then he started doing posed shots with his brothers.  This is the result of one of those shots, taken in my bedroom on my bed with the camera put on the drawers opposite the end of the bed.  I don't know how he lined it up so well.  I haven't even cropped it.  With Steve Parrish in Australia doing so well with his photography of nature and him starting when he was very young we are not discouraging this interest in ds1.  As homeschoolers with the freedom to try all sorts of things you never know what can lead to a career.

We put our Christmas tree up this morning.  This year we are skipping the glass balls just in case ds3 learns to crawl soon.  Dh put on the lights and the kids and I will decorate the rest of the tree over the coming weeks.

Jen