The start of our time apart...

Real Dad and I packed him up and he began his move without the family on St. Patrick's day 2011. We took Real DS with us to the local coffee shop (our favorite place), and when I had to go to work Real Dad said good bye to the two of us and began his trip. I dropped Real DS off at daycare (he really had no clue that he wasn't going to see daddy again in person for awhile), and went to work.

I tried very hard not to cry at work that day, luckily I had a real office with a real door (not a cubicle) and was able to work behind the closed door for most of the day. Real Dad and I had not been apart for more then a week in the entire time we had been together (9 years at that point).

Real Grandma had moved in with us right after Real DS' birthday to help during the last part of my pregnancy and was able to stay to help with the kids while we lived apart. She understood considering she moved home with her son when Real Pop-pop was stationed overseas.

When I picked up Real DS he wanted to know where daddy was when we got home. I had to keep telling him that daddy had to go bye-bye for work and we would only be able to see him on the computer (once Real Dad got set back up, Skype is a wonderful thing). I had to stay in view of his bed that night (and every night after that) because he was afraid I was going to disappear too (Real DS was 2 at the time).

How it all started...

The decision to become a stay at home mom was definitely not an easy one. The Monday after Thanksgiving 2010, just a few weeks before the twins were born, my husband was fired from his job. Luckily we were double ensured through both of our employers and my insurance had already covered the majority of my pregnancy (okay, all of my pregnancy). Real Dad's words were "Hi dear, got fired, guess I need to start looking for a new job". We lived in a rural town without very many options, but he applied for anything remotely in the IT industry. Also, while applying for jobs, he started his own company fixing computers for people. We put an ad in the local advertisement newspaper with his business name and contact phone number. I was completely supportive because self-employed looks a lot better than unemployed on a resume.

Since we both had time on our hands because he was now home and I was on bedrest, we began discussing what we wanted in our future. We decided that now would be a good time to relocate for better opportunities for our family and hopefully our careers. We made a list of different cities and regions that we would be willing to relocate too, and we began applying for jobs in those areas.

I got an interview for one of the jobs I had applied for (I was in the to 10 of 200 applications). Unfortunately I did not get the job. Real Dad began applying in that area during the same time, interviewed, and was picked for the job. Normally you have 24 hours to decide if you are going to accept, he was given til close of business that day. We made the decision for him to take it and hoped that I would be able to get a job as well...

Back Pain, Something I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy...

I have been suffering from back pain since 2001. When it first started it got so bad that it hurt to sneeze, cough, move, breathe. Yea, it hurt to do everything. I tried physical therapy and ended up in the emergency room in September of 2002 because my right foot was going numb. A week later I had a lamenectomy to remove the bulging disk between L4-L5.

This took care of the pain for a little while, but in the summer of 2004 it returned with a vengeance. I fondly refer to this as the summer that percocet forgot. Actually I wasn't on percocet until after my surgery in August, but I was on a combination of Tylenol 4 with codeine and Flexeril, not fun times.

The surgery was a success, I still had occasional pain and cramping in my right let, but I could usually get it to go away by resting, exercising and over the counter meds when needed. When we moved in 2011, the pain again returned and got worse. Of course having two little ones that can't walk to tote around didn't help. As well as all the lifting involved in the move.

I have been on a combination of narcotic meds again to help with the pain, which I do not consider a long term solution. I was referred to a pain clinic and started physical therapy last week and am happy to say it has been helping a lot. I have not needed nearly as many drugs and have been drug free during the day. It's a wonderful feeling!

Let's try this again...

Since I haven't posted for a long time, I figured I could reuse my blog for a completely new purpose. I love my blog's title because it can be applied to so many things in life. I figured this blog could be my outlet for all things related to my life. Currently that would be the change from a professional working mom to a stay at home mom (yes, I do prefer professional mom). Life as the primary caretaker of three kids, three and under. Life with twins and the amazing amount of comments one gets when you take them out in public (most popular comment when people see all 3 kids "My, you must be busy", my outward reply "Why yes, I am", inward reply "duh"). Did I mention the 3 year old? Yes, he's a very active little boy who demands a lot of attention all his own, I think I may use this blog to document some of his more memorable comments. My favorite so far is one of his friends has a little brother, he asked why she only had one baby (you know, because for him two babies is the norm!)

So be prepared for much rambling and both good and bad journeys as I tackle this real life first!