I’m asked a lot lately how I’m doing. I feel like that’s a pretty broad question, and it’s hard to know how to answer! But I’ll try.
How is Theodore? He’s adorable, happy, cuddly, and healthy. He’s sleeping great and he is SO very loved by his siblings. He’s a typical baby, in that he needs to eat a lot and he prefers mama to anyone else. 
How are the older kids? They love their baby brother. They don’t seem jealous at all. Jude is learning how to be gentle!
How am I physically? I bounced back quickly after the birth, and I haven’t had any issues with breastfeeding. I am getting good rest at night. I feel like I have most of my energy back, but by the end of the day, I’m worn out. I dare you to find someone who wouldn’t be after taking care of these busy littles all day!
So overall, we’re doing well. I feel like I can’t complain, especially considering what some of my friends have gone through or are currently going through (colic, nursing troubles, etc.). This is a time of adjustment, to be sure, but we’re getting a handle on our new normal.
In all honesty, parenting four kids five and under is challenging! I’m tending to Theodore’s needs (and he has a lot, I mean, he is a baby!), taking care of Jude (since there’s still quite a lot he can’t do for himself), making sure Cordelia doesn’t get lost in the middle (or smear lotion on the couch while I’m not watching), and carrying on lots of intellectually stimulating conversations with Vera (if anyone would like to temporarily take over this job for me, I’m accepting applications). Even though all four of them are close in age, their needs from me vary widely. And because our house does not have an open floor plan, I feel quite divided physically as well as emotionally while I try and care for all of them.
Right now meal times are challenging, since Tad is working through lunch every day as well as several dinners during the week. It’s tricky to figure out how to nurse Theodore while making peanut butter sandwiches with one hand and keeping Jude from crying and keeping the girls out of Tad’s home office. I sometimes don’t eat lunch until the kids are all down for naps! But there’s another blessing… all four of them take naps at the same time (hallelujah amen). So thankful for that!
Our “witching hour” is between 5PM (when I start making dinner) and 7PM (when Tad gets off work). We eat dinner without Tad, but I still have to keep everyone alive until he gets off at 7PM. Around 6:40PM you may find me locked in the bathroom nursing Theodore while the older three try to knock down the door with the intensity of a battering ram. C’est la vie. 
But to end on a positive note, some of my favorite moments are:
-when the girls want to hold or help take care of Theodore (they think he is the most precious real-life baby doll they’ve ever seen)
-when Jude asks where the baby is every single morning as soon as he wakes up (we call it “roll call” and it never gets old!)
-when Vera helps entertain Jude (building him a train track or reading him a book)
-when Cordelia and Vera help cheerfully with chores around the house (they thinking cleaning toilets is fun…yes!)
-when I get to snuggle Theodore (I would happily do this all day every day)
As I’m writing this post, the tears are welling up, partly because I feel so, so blessed by my wonderful family, and partly because it’s almost the weekend and I need a nap (or a cup of coffee). That’s the reality of my life right now, and I wouldn’t have it any other way! (Well, maybe I would like to have a full-time housekeeper!)
Love hearing how your little family is doing, Aliesha! Sounds like you’re busy and blessed! 🙂
Thanks, Courtney! And it’s nice to see you’re back to blogging!
oh. mama. you know i am only an email away! we should totally exchange numbers so we can text in the trenches. 🙂 lol (no, really… we should) I promise it will get easier. You will still go to bed wrung out, but with a sense of normalcy and more in-control (there will be days, though, that you will not get that feeling). I felt like moving to four was hard. Not so much when we were at home, but when we went out. I could manage the situation at home (easy to discipline and such), but when we went out and there were SO many variables, I felt nervous. Luckily, with more practice that, too, got easier.
Thank you for your encouragement, Liz! Knowing you’ve been through all this too is helpful. You’re a great mom and you inspire me!!
Love to hear that things are going well and everyone is adjusting. It brings me back to those days when I had a newborn #4. My oldest was also 5, though he would turn 6 in a few months. Now I’m expecting #6 and this time our kids range in age from 5-13 so I expect a totally different dynamic. (I’m still nervous, though.)
With your big helpers, I’m sure this time will be easier! Blessings to you!
I think you should have a housekeeper. It would makes things so much easier. It sounds good but would it really work?
I tried one once, but couldn’t get past the idea of having a stranger in my house.
I decided that having a sparkling clean house was over rated.
And why is it that when your house looks really clean and neat, no one comes.
But when it’s a disaster. there’s so much company. It makes me realy horrible.
Haha… so true! I try and take pictures when it’s clean, lol.
It’s hard, but you’ll get into a groove. I love it and find it hard too. I wish all four of mine took naps instead of one although they have a quiet time of sorts. Instead I just try to press through till 8 when I get a bath…
You’re a wonderful mama, Stephanie! You do so many fun things with your kids and it’s an inspiration to me!
I am about to become a mother of four under three (I was blessed with twins) and I often find myself wondering how on earth I am going to do it! It is so nice to hear an honest and real account of motherhood! May God bless and strengthen you as you are in the thick of it- it sounds like you are doing a wonderful job! And thanks for the encouragement of knowing that I am not alone! Children are like arrows in the quiver. Blessed is the man (and the momma!) whose quiver is full! <3
There is so much grace available to you, Eva! Praying that this time of transition would be smooth. Blessings to you!
I loved reading this, and the cute pictures! It sounds so normal, but so BUSY! I have been in that very place. I’m not sure I managed nearly as well as you are, but I did live through that first year of my 4th baby’s life, and have come out on the other side. I so wish I lived just down the road so I could either have a few over to my house at times, or stop in to give you a hand. I have very much been down the mealtime madness road, doing lunches and then dinners solo. It’s enough to bring tears to a mama’s eyes–so many spilled drinks, requests for the bathroom right in the middle of the meal, cutting up food, or picking up the dropped sandwich. All legitimate needs, but they never end! And you are only one person. It does get better, but in the meantime, I hope there is someone you can call on for help, or schedule someone to come over during mealtime a couple times a week just to be an extra pair of hands. Praying for you!
Thanks, Sally! I’ve been blessed with a wonderful group of friends in this season, and I’m so thankful for it. Play dates, Bible studies, encouraging texts, meals… it’s been a blessing I don’t take for granted!