Update on life. Part 1. Of like 10 million.

Okay, so I just definitely drove to Starbucks just so my Polina girl would fall asleep and I could transfer her to the bed, drink my Carmel Macchiato, and write a very QUICK update on our family. Because I'm like 2 weeks too late, even though I promised I would do this "more." ***Can I also add in here how shitty of a parent I am third time around? My kid definitely doesn't have a "Sleep" schedule. Aside from the one where she goes to sleep and she wakes up. Does that count?

And since I'm in a confessing type of mood...I also just gave my 4 year old the i-pod and set the "Alexa" timer for 15 minutes.

Who has an Alexa?

She's *almost* better than Siri.

I'm slightly obsessed.

And now that I sound like an over-privileged white girl... let's get on with the update.

1. Our family. Our family is great. There are still *5* family members, although we get asked on the daily when we plan on expanding. I get that baby fever. I do. I kiss Polina SO stinking much {all three of them actually}, and I just look at how fast she is growing and ask myself... is this it? Is this the last child I will birth? I know it won't be the last child in our lives. I know that for certain. As my dreams to adopt are there, and growing year after year. But I still can't help but wonder if I will ever have a baby belly. Will I ever go through labor again. Will I ever breastfeed? We just ended our breastfeeding journey 1 month ago, and she still asks me daily "milk, puuueesss?"

Talk about mommy guilt.

That's a post for another day thought.

• Our oldest. Our oldest will be a first grader next year and I can hardly believe it. I'm not sure if I ever wrote on this blog about how we are no longer homeschooling {I'm too lazy to go back and check}, but needless to say, Elliana begged to go to school, to ride the bus {although it stays in our neighborhood since our school is in the neighborhood}, and to just be out with friends. And guys, she is THRIVING so much. Her teacher praised her so much I think I couldn't have been more proud as a parent. She has a total of "51" golden tickets from school. And she comes home teaching me something new almost every day. I could gush about her all day long but I will spare you the boredom.

But seriously, she's still my sass ball of fire. She always has been since the minute she learned how to talk. And I have a feeling she always will be.

She's special that one. My first child, and oh so darn special to me.

• Graham. My boy. My middle boy has the biggest heart. He's so much like his dad, and so much like me. He's a wonderful mix, but has his own personality that far exceeds any qualities I have or his father has. Sometimes I look at him and I want to cry. Oh no, here it comes... tears. I love him so much it pains me. He's my only boy, so there's something special about him. Elliana has my heart because of who she is and being first in the family. Graham has my heart because of how different he is from the girls, and being the only one. He's so smart. His best friend is an 8 year old {aside from his sister}. He learned to ride a 2 wheeler when he was 3 years old. He is so mature for his age. And GOD is he loving. He smothers all the women in his life with kisses and hugs, and LOVES to cuddle.

That kid. He's going to make a wonderful husband one day.

• Polina. What's there to say about her besides she's the baby and the ruler of the house. She stomps her feet. She points her finger and says "no no no" at everyone, and she gets what she wants when she wants it. The kids bow down to her feet. Carry her around the house. And spoil her rotten. I'm pretty certain that she couldn't be more loved. It's fun to see her personality unwind, and to have conversations with her, and to grow our relationship. That does happen. I know people don't admit it. But you love your children more and more as you get to know "them." Who they are. What they like. What they don't like. How they act. Their interests. Their hobbies. It's all about discovering something new every day, and I think that's what I love most about being a mom. There's never a dull moment, and our children give us so many blessings to look forward to.

OH MAN.

I didn't realize I was going to go off on tangents here with each of my children. But so be it.

The Alexa timer just went off so I have about 5 more minutes before Graham comes barging in here to play Pokemon with him...

That's the thing that is "in" right now in our house. POKEMON. The obsession is real guys.

2. Charleston. Andrew and I went on our first every TRIP ALONE without the kiddos by ourselves. ALONE. By ourselves. Can we talk about this for a second. A-L-O-N-E. I know the thought is like so shocking it's hard for me to even type it out. Yet alone say that we actually did it. And we survived. Even though we managed to harass the babysitter {my mother-in-law} about 10 times a day with FaceTime calls. And the kids survived. And we had an absolute blast. We ate A LOT of food. Delicious food guys. If you want to go somewhere to just eat and drink, GO TO CHARLESTON. We stayed at the cutest Air-bnb {First time ever}, and we will definitely do it again.

Our goal is to do 3 vacations a year. Our yearly summer vacation to hilton head island as a family {that we have done already every year}, a little mini vacation around January {we went to Disney this year with the kiddos for 4 days!}, and a little getaway for just Andrew and I {charleston this year}. That's our goal. This year we are good to go, next year the planning has begun.

Any suggestions for fun cities to visit, shoot them my way! 

3. We almost moved. Last summer we went to go visit a house that we fell in love with. We put an offer on that house before we had even listed our house {or even talked about listing it}. We then immediately listed our house. Went through 20 showings. Got an offer on day 3. Accepted the offer. Went through inspections on both houses. And then discovered how CRAZY {I mean CRAAAZZZZYY} our buyers were. That deal went through. As a result, we closed the deal on the house we were going to buy. And then we stayed where we have been for 7 years, and instead did even MORE remodeling.

Guys. BEST.DECISION.EVER. I need to write an entire post on this. For now, I'll show you my dream bathroom that we finally accomplished!!

Okay okay 15 minute blog post of updates done.

Part two is coming.

Probably part three and four if I'm being completely honest......

Hi. It's Me. Long lost Becky at From Mrs to Mama {ha!}

I am embarrassed to say that it took me a minute to even figure out how to start a new post. I feel like I am new at this and that I have no idea what I am doing. Do I? Not really. But I am pretty good at faking it until I'm making it.

Did I get that saying right? Andrew always makes fun of me for getting those American sayings wrong. For years, I would say "put the medal to the pedal." Or the other way around. Whichever is the WRONG way, that's how I said it. See? I still don't know.

So. HI.

Should I like introduce myself all over again?

Do people even READ blogs anymore. Pretty sure that's like a thing of the past.

Hello, my name is Becky. I'm 30 years old and I have 3 children, ages 6, 4, and almost 2. I mean if I'm giving her 2, I might as well say almost 7 {wah!}, and almost 5 {WHAT!}. I graduated from Purdue {where I met the love of my life, husband Andrew}. I am an ICU nurse at night {update coming!}.

I love bud-light lime or cab. I don't use a dishwasher. I pick my nose more often than I should. I'm a total introvert and homebody. I used to home-school. I take an insane amount of pictures. I used to stay up all night to play Euchre on yahoo with other people. And I cheated. Like used two computers to beat people. Ha. I'm laughing out loud right now while everyone sleeps.

Speaking of sleep... all of a sudden I no longer pass out at 9:30 pm.

Okay, like that just started this week. So who knows how long that will last.

But seriously, I'm digging it. I actually have time to myself to do things like.. blog. You know, because people read those things still. Not.

In all seriousness, how about some family photos to catch up a little of what's going on in our lives.

I mean seriously, these are already "old." Last fall, and those babies have already grown so much more. Especially that middle one. You see her? Oh yes, my sweet sack as sugar as we like to call her. Sweet P.

That child. She's everything.

I know she hasn't made it very much  on this blog because I basically quit "real" blogging years ago, but it's important for me to mention that she is ever so incredibly loved. By all of us. Isn't it amazing how your heart can love multiple children so deeply? I think it's pretty amazing. I love all three of my kiddos with everything I have inside of me. I kiss them so much it hurts sometimes. I want to always remember everything about them, because I know this time is going to pass us by so quickly. It already has.

I'll dedicate an entire post to her one day. She definitely deserves it. And then I'll print it and place it in her baby book.

That isn't made yet.

Oh gosh darn that mother of three business that they always told you about. You don't do the things that you did with the first. Or even the second. In ways I'm a much better mom to these kids. And in other ways, I'm not. I know they are loved. I know that they feel incredibly loved. Hopefully that will be enough to make them good human beings.

So about that update. Have I talked too much already? I feel like I have. Okay, update coming next.

But no, I'm not pregnant. Because that's usually the first thing people ask.

Good night friends. I'm baaaaack. ;)

***Photos by the incredible Katie Hanson Photography

Celebrating Mother's Day with my moms across the sea.

I was 7 years old at the time. Small children's suitcase in one hand. A soft animal in the other. Lots of people around me crying, hugging, and saying their well wishes. People that I know and love dearly. People that I would later discover I wouldn't ever see again.

We first boarded a plane. Then it was a train. Then it was a plane again. By the time we landed at the final destination, there were people that I did not recognize around me, and voices that I could not understand. Voices that would later intertwine with mine, and a language that I would one day speak as well.

I spent many summers running after hogs, milking cows, and picking strawberries in grandma's garden. Life was lived in the city, riding buses to desired destinations, and a very independent way of living. What was once my country, became my past. What was once just a country on a map, became my life.

Belarus to the United States of America. Where dreams come true.

I can attest to that statement. Every one bit of it.

We moved to Indiana in 1993. One thousand dollars in hand. A suitcase of clothes for each person. And not one family member knowing an ounce of English. Hello. Bye. Thank you.

My parents got set up with a couple of jobs. They went to school at night to learn English. And they would give us flash cards to learn the summer before we started school. 50 words a night. I was to start first grade in the fall, my brother 3rd. We would be okay mom said. It would be easy for us.

And we did. A few years went by, and my parents were able to buy a second car. They bought their very first home {with a pool!}, and although it stayed unfurnished for many years, in no time they slowly started to fill room by room. Their English got better, everyone began adjusting to this new life, and before you knew it, we were standing in front of the judge that announced our official citizenship of the United States of America.

It seems as though it would be easy for us to forget where we came from, how far my parents have come, and all that has happened in the past 20+ years. But then I am reminded of the many {all} of the family members that are still left behind. Thankful for technology of today, we are able to skype with them. We can hear their voices, and see their faces any time we please. We watch as cousins get married, aunts and uncles become grandparents, and slowly the number of our family begins to grow. Or should I say, quickly.

We know how hard life can be over there. We understand how fortunate we are. My mom tries to send packages frequently to our family members. From shoes, clothes, to every day gifts. And when necessary, we can send money by using a service such as Xoom through PayPal.

Looking for the perfect gift for the special mom in your life? PayPal is offering Mother’s Day shopping deals from merchants like Macy's and Kohls at PayPal.com/MothersDay, or you can shop the PayPal Digital Gifts store so Mom can pick out something she’s sure to love.

Xoom, a PayPal service, powers international payments to friends and family in more than 40 countries around the world and the number one recipient of payments on Xoom is Mom. 
I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

Dear Becky before kids. Love, Becky after kids.

This post is part of a social shopper marketing insight campaign with Pollinate Media Group® and Huggies, but all my opinions are my own. #pmedia #HuggiesatKroger  http://my-disclosur.es/OBsstV


Dear 23 year old Becky, 

 

Hello! This is 29 year old Becky writing you a quick letter to help you with the next few years to come. A lot is going to happen, and a lot of growth will be done. Not just internally, but externally {think numbers}. I want to give you just a little piece of advice:

Just go with it.

When you are pregnant with your first, you will dream about your upcoming life. You will soak up every moment of pregnancy, and you will plan every detail out there. You will spend a lot of time preparing the nursery, the car, and most importantly your hearts for what will surely be the best day to come. Every emotion out there will hit you. You'll be scared.  Excited. Curious. Nervous. Fearful. Thankful.

But let me tell you, when the baby comes it will far exceed any preparation out there. You cannot possibly prepare yourself for the love that you will feel in your heart for this baby, and you certainly cannot prepare yourself for what motherhood will do to you. You'll quickly realize there are no right or wrong answers in this parenting gig, and slowly, but surely, as the baby grows, you find yourself more and more confident.

So confident, that you decide to have a second one 2 years later.

Just go with it.

There is a little less preparing, but the nursery will be done in time. There is a little bit less nerves of how to be a mother, but you certainly will doubt you will love another child as much as your first. Go ahead and laugh at that statement, as you will prove yourself wrong over and over again. There is a new thing to prepare for, and that is your first child to being an older sibling now. But they too, surprise you. She'll be wonderful. She'll be your helper. She'll be more independent. She will grow instantly. But remember, she's still a baby. You'll get irritated. You'll get confused. And there will be tears shed. But, you will have better days than bad. You'll accomplish shopping at the supermarket with two like a pro. You'll have park dates. You will plan fun activities out.  And one day you will even find yourself sitting on the couch with your husband thinking... maybe, we can do this again.

Just go with it.

Your third arrives even quicker than the last. There is absolutely no preparing here. You buy a couple of outfits, you install a car seat, and you have absolutely no fear this time around. In fact, this is the most relaxed you have ever felt while pregnant. You know you will love this child tremendously. Equally as the other two. You know the process well now, and you feel confident about it. And for some reason, you have no quilt.

No guilt that you didn't personalize ten million things. No guilt that you didn't document ever food aversion, every bathroom trip, and every measurement out there. You have no guilt for not preparing a nursery, and you are confident that this baby will feel just as loved if not more loved than the other two.

Your baby will live with you in your room. The crib will be right next to your bed, just where it belongs. You'll combat all those comments of "baby needs their own room" and even your own family who thinks that all of a sudden you need to upgrade from your 4 bedroom home. You learn how to organize and juggle, and you now know, more than ever, what is most important for the baby to have. Love {lots of it}, warmth, food {which is attached to you}, and most importantly, Huggies Snug & Dry diapers. New and improved, they provide 12 hour protection {because your baby will sleep through the night quicker than you expected}, and you won't have to worry about leaks because of the triple layer protection.

You will now feel like you have it all.

Because you do.

Because you just went with it.

----
We shopped at Kroger. And if you shop at Kroger during the "Baby Me" Event going on between 3/20/16 - 4/2/16 and spend $40 on participating baby items so you can receive a $10 off coupon good towards anything at Kroger. (while supplies last)