It is soo that time of year again....

...when all the germs are being passed around so lovingly through sneezes, coughs, handshakes and just touching.  I volunteer at my kids school, occasionally, (s/o to Emmy!!) and I'm amazed at how much goes around.  When one kid gets something they all get it.  I was there one day last month and an entire class had Croup and they were all there coughing.  Those poor teachers.

It's almost time for Christmas and all the kids have been sick for weeks and it's so frustrating.  "There's no air in that nose." a little pitiful voice says.  The humidifiers are out, tissue stock is going way up, sleep is interrupted multiple times a night. (Nick is the one who gets up with the kids at night though 99% of the time. It's pretty difficult with my back to get up without pain.  Unfortunately for him, once I'm in bed, I'm not moving til the morning!)  I know I'm not alone though.  We all go through it, don't we?  It starts with one kid and weaves its way through everyone else until we all feel like we've been drowning in snot.

In March, my older 3 were having a conversation all about snot.  M commented on the fact that he had white snot aposed to green. Then B said "Isn't white snot supposed to stay up in your nose?" Then N chimed in "There's a machine up there that makes all the snot."  

Crashed out on the couch with fevers

When M was about a year or two, he sneezed on N and she exclaims laughing hysterically, "Oh man, that was a rainy sneeze!" What a fun way of looking at something so gross.  Kids are truly so innocent and creative.  As I was leaving to a dr. appt., she wanted me to relay a message to the receptionist "Tell Jessica, Mommy still has kids, they're just at home sick."  I think at that moment, she realized that life still goes on with or without them.

M wakes up one day and says pointing to one nostril, "thith nothe ith feelin dood" and then pointed to the other side and says very sad-like "and thith thide not feeling tho dood."  My boy M... I love that little guy.  He has an issue with his speech and so he needs a 'translator' around, as many of you may know.  I know I'm pretty good at understanding him, but sometimes I can't make it out and I turn to N or B and ask them what he says.  They're usually dead on, but sometimes they don't know and they'll make up crap that kinda sounds like it.  One time, M was asking for something and I kept trying to figure it out, I couldn't so I called N over.  "He said srocky, Mommy"  o_o  "No, no, no, you're just making that up, he said something else." I say back, but still unsure of what he wants.  What you can understand is so cute and funny how he says it.  I love to hear his mind work.  I don't think I ever figured out what he was asking for though, I guess he just gave up.  

 Peek-a-boo with the puke bucket

However, when it's your turn to get sick, it's so heartwarming to hear one of your babies, that you care for so diligently, ask in a concerned way, "Mommy, are you okay?"  "Mommy, do you have a cold? Because I can hear it in your voice."  Even if I am sick and feeling miserable, it doesn't matter one bit after hearing such sweet concern.  Unless you count that time I was stuck on the couch with the flu while Nick was at work.  Somebody else's kids were in my house that day, because they took full advantage of me lying there not being able to yell at them or get up and chase after them.  I won't get sick ever again!!  I'll teach them....

My angels

I created this blog a while ago and it's probably about time I started writing in it. Honestly, I created it just to sign into my cousin, Becky's blog (http://babyortyl.blogspot.com/) a couple of months ago and I toyed with the idea of actually putting something on here.  Well, I felt compelled to share my stories with my family and friends especially because we live so far from most of them and I need them all to know that my kids are completely awesome!  I picked the name Speakin' like a Rican (thanks to my brother Devin for the title) solely because of my children (who are half Puerto Rican) and the funny things they say and do, too.  Not that all Puerto Ricans say funny things, but mine definitely do! ;)  I've been keeping logs for a few years and besides, they come up with new things for me to add everyday, so I think I'll have plenty to share.  Maybe it won't be all about the kids all the time, but it should be a good read regardless.

My husband, Nick, is my heart, my soul, my everything.  He loves us all so much and commutes a couple of hours every day to a job he hates just to provide for us and make sure we all have nice things.  He comes home physically and emotionally drained to chip in and be the best Dad. He's my hero.  I <3 him.  We met in 1996 at a youth retreat and I fell madly in love with him as soon as I saw his bald head across the parking lot. (My eyesight was a lot better 15 years ago!)  I pretty much was a stalker and carried around a flyer that had a picture of his head about the size of a pea in my wallet for a year or so.  I used to tell people I was going to marry him.  I usually don't condone stalking of any kind, however, it worked for me!  ;)

My oldest, N, is adopted but I think she fits in better in this family than I do sometimes.  She will be 6 in January and she is a joy.  She is a wonderful help and loves to care for her younger brothers and sister.  She also likes to dole out the punishment if they get out of line.  (I heard her scold A yesterday for doing something wrong and said, "A, get on timeout!  That is a NO NO! 1...2..."  Before she got to '3' I interjected.)  Since the moment she came into our lives, she has been such a great blessing.  God has placed her in our family for a reason and although we struggled for years to conceive, I now know that we had to wait for our little angel.

B, Nick's clone, is our second.  He just turned 5 in October.  (Yes, we have two 5 year olds and that meant when we brought N home from the hospital in January, I found out I was preggers a few weeks later.  They are 9 1/2 mos. apart.  So, when we brought B home from the hospital, N was still a baby.)  B is our little goofy kid.  He laughs at my silly, and sometimes stupid, jokes, he cracks up if someone trips or falls or gets balled up.  He's the one that can't stop laughing when he gets started.  One time we were out to eat at a restaurant and we had the back section all to ourselves so we were laughing and having a good time.  I wanted to document the occasion to make sure we remembered how fun of a time it was and this is what I saw:

M, who just turned 4 in November, is my little linebacker.  He loves to tackle Nick (or hit him in the nuts) when he least expects it.  He likes to overdramatize every little bump or scratch he gets.  Tonight A gently stepped on his hand (I know it was gentle because I watched her do it) and he wailed like she kicked him in the head!  Now that I say that, I should probably mention that A targets him because he does just that.  She is 2 years younger than he is, but she is smart!  Although he is a very tough kid and likes to be physical 90% of the time he's awake, he is a little love bug too.  He loves to snuggle next to me and hug and kiss A many times throughout the day.  

A is the youngest, and she'll be 2 in February, but don't think she's too far behind the other kids.  She wants to do everything exactly like N, B and M and gets pissed off if she doesn't get that respect.  She is a bruiser and proud of it.  She loves to pick on M and hurt him if possible, just to show him who's boss, I'm sure.  However, her weakness is anything furry.  She is so afraid of dogs and cats and squirrels outside and deer if we see them in the backyard and stuffed animals. 

You, as the reader, may relate because of your own crazy family or maybe you'll just enjoy the stories.  Anyway you digest this information is up to you but it's only for pure enjoyment.  Thanks for reading.