At the end of May, we welcomed our third child - Croix Tyler - to our family, which means my husband and I are officially outnumbered.
Switching from man-on-man to zone defense has been both interesting and challenging just a week into the game, and if we were keeping score, I'm guessing the scoreboard would read Parents: 10
Kids: 99
Between the sleepless nights with a newborn, busy toddlers adjusting to our new life with a baby in the house, moving cow-calf pairs to pasture over the Memorial Day weekend, keeping up with the housework, attempting to squeeze in nutritious meals and trying to establish a new routine, I'll admit it's been crazy, exhausting, overwhelming, and despite the challenges, very exciting and blissfully wonderful all at the same time.
As a rancher, work-from-home writer, agricultural speaker, wife and mother (and whatever other hat I may be wearing on a given day), there can be a lot of pressure to keep all of the balls in the air and juggle whatever life throws your way.
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Yet, I think after this week, I've been humbled in realizing you can't do everything, nor should you try!
Before Croix arrived, I did everything I possibly could to work ahead on writing assignments, tackle home improvement projects, organize and streamline our daily routines and teach the kids how to help out with picking up their toys and other odds and ends chores that are age appropriate for a two- and four-year old.
However, despite my best efforts, the laundry has piled up, the dishes sit in the sink unwashed and the kids are acting more cranky and ornery than usual. It's hard not to feel like a failure at times. I know it will get easier with each passing day as we settle into our new normal, but what I've really come to understand is that it truly takes a village to raise kids and cows.
I'm so grateful for my sister and brother-in-law for hosting a sleepover for our big kids while we were in the hospital and for picking up my medicine at the pharmacy when I needed antibiotics; my in-laws for making freezer meals for quick and easy suppers in the first couple of weeks; my other sister for taking the kids swimming and keeping them busy over the long holiday weekend; my parents for daycare and preschool drop-offs, meals delivered to the hospital and at home, taking the kids to church and helping us move cattle to summer pasture.
Of course, I can't forget our daycare provider for giving the big kids a place to play, have naps and stay on their regular routine, and our friends who have texted to check up on us and see how we're doing. And last but certainly not least, my husband who has been a rock holding everything together, in the house and on the ranch while giving me the much-needed time to rest and take care of Croix.
As I look back on this wonderful but crazy time in our lives, I'm feeling so much gratitude to our amazing village who are constantly there to support us, love our kids and provide help, even when we are hesitant to ask for it. Most of all, I'm so thankful to have three healthy children; we are abundantly blessed, and we'll never take the gift of our beautiful kids for granted!
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