Does This Make Me a Bad Mom?

A little confession... But first, some background information...

Today is Ethan's very first Halloween! Abby was 3 weeks old on her first Halloween & Avery was 5 weeks old on his first Halloween. Of course they didn't get any candy... And Ethan is only 9 months old - I refuse to let my kids have candy that young... Right?

Now the confession:

I gave Ethan two little, bitty bites of Reese Cup today! He literally started bouncing after tasting it, and has been in such a happy mood since! Now I know why people say they have to have chocolate after a bad day. Although, if we go by that rhetoric, he should be trying alcohol soon.

Here's my little chocolate fiend!

"Pick me up, Mommy!"

**** 2 seconds later... ****

"Is that a camera?"

The Full Hands

I realize I have a 9 month-old, a 2 year-old, and a 4 year-old, but why does EVERYONE smile at me and my kids and say "you've got your hands full!" Is that code for "what the heck is wrong with you - get some birth control, lady!"...?

Since I had Ethan, I've realized how different it is for mothers of 3 (or more) kids about a year or two apart compared to moms who wait longer between kids. I didn't exactly plan to have my little sweeties this close together, but it is really, really hard. Seriously - going to the grocery store with all three kids makes me feel like I'm going to have a heart attack right there in the bean aisle.

I wonder what people with multiples do? I would never, ever leave my house.

On a blog I like to read, Peanut Butter and Jelly Boats, I found a great reminder that all the pandemonium I go through daily with my kids is actually a gift from God:

"He gives childless couples a family,
gives them joy as the parents of children.
Hallelujah!"
Psalm 113:9 (The Message)

Isn't that a great way to look at a pile of kids that all happen to be yours?

Chi-Chi's Birthday!

Happy birthday, Abigail Horizon! I can't believe you're already 4! You keep proving to me again and again that you're not a little baby anymore - you're a little girl. Even though I miss the days when I rocked you to sleep and changed your diapers, I'm so proud of you and I love the little person you're becoming.

Behavior

It's the funniest thing - as soon as I begin to actually stop and try to do something while shopping, my kids become hyperactive tantrum experts. What is it about my eyes looking at clothing, my hands swiping a credit card, or just any part of me not paying full attention to my kids that makes their sugar levels suddenly soar?

The other day we were all at The Children's Place, where Avery and Ethan were content to be in the double stroller, and Abby happy to walk alongside me and look at clothing. I stop, try to find a size 18 months in boy's jeans (which I never could find in girl's jeans when Abby was that size, either - do all people have that size kid?), and they all start screaming and trying to climb the shelves of jeans! I finally settle them down enough to ask a sales associate if they have any 18 month jeans in the back, and they're at it again! Do shelves full of jeans really look like mountains begging to be climbed? Finally, we headed to the counter to pay for our stuff. The kids are acting great by now - but wait, I stop to pay for it all! Out they climb, running around and around (not Ethan, mind you) the stroller.

As all this is going on, I'm noticing another woman with 2 kids the same ages as my oldest 2. They quietly, perfectly sit in their stroller and watch my kids with huge eyes. I look at my kids performing a Chinese Fire Drill around their stroller. I look at those 2 boys and their mom, who quietly says to the smallest one, "what do you see? Do you see a doggy?"

I understand the concept of "The grass is always greener" - but come on. Did that woman ever have her kids in that stroller fighting over a sucker, pulling tags off the clothes, and knocking shoes off the shelves while she looked at my kids and thought how well-behaved they were? Probably, but that's not my point. Why do my kids seem harder to have than other kids?

While Avery, Ethan, and I wait for Abby to get out of her preschool class, Avery is pulling bulletin board borders down, and Ethan is pulling all of the mailbox trays out of their cubbies. The other mom's kids? They're standing politely next to their moms, quiet as can be, staring at my kids.

Is this normal, or am I doing something wrong?