Grammy's CNA/GNA Graduation and The National Christmas Tree in DC!

Well I guess I need to start re-capping the past two weeks! Bare with me and I'll have everything up to date in no-time.....haha!!!

On Saturday, we went to my mom's CNA/GNA Graduation! She has been taking classes since September 2-3 days a week and has loved it. We are so proud of her! She takes her National Board of Nursing test on January 7th. We will be praying for her, but I think she will have no problem and will be passing with flying colors! 

And then she starts Nursing School in just a few weeks!

After cake, we all ventured down to see the Nation Christmas tree in DC, which we do every year. This year though, as some years, it was freezing. Our SUV is too big to fit in most car garages so finding two parking spots near each other (since my parents, Christine and Nathan we in another car) is almost impossible, but finally about 5 blocks from the tree we found two right next to each other. By this time it was 5:45 pm and the girls were already very unhappy. They are used to eating promptly at 5:00pm, or very soon after, but we bundled them up in everything we had. I happened to have their sleepy-sacks with us since earlier in the day we were at Nana's house and they napped, so after the jackets, shoes, hats and gloves, we then put their sleepy sacks over top which was great!

We tried to take photos in front of the White House, like we don't already have a hundred from previous times there, but this was the girl's first visit...but my camera was acting up...and theses were the best photos we got...!

Right after these photos were taken, we had another lovely experience of someone giving us a very, very rude comment because we are parent's of multiples. SO rude, their may have been some profanity back at them. I know, not the best idea, especially in front of the kids, but when you are so completely overwhelmed by a stranger's view of your family just walking by, profanity was better than attacking this couple and gouging out their eyes as the Mother-Bear in me wanted to do. Seriously, it was bad, and mean, and completely uncalled for! But we shrugged it off  because obviously it was not the truth and laughed at it the rest of the night.

And the National Christmas Tree and all the smaller "state" trees around with four million people!

Daddy and Natalee

My mom and Madelynn and Claire

I LOVE going to DC, but this was a little much for me! The girls were very fussy and so was Mommy! It was so cold, there were 4 million people and my babies were starving...and not to mention I have 3 BABIES screaming and whining and I AM PREGNANT and had to walk uphill 6 blocks to the car!

Let's just say it was NOT a good mixture! I got VERY stressed VERY fast! By the time we got to the car, meltdowns were in FULL-FORCE! I took forever to load everything up and literally my girls were foaming at the mouth. I got in the back seat and tried so hard to get them fed, while Tim drove through traffic, pot holes and people in DC. It was about 7:15pm at this time and I was having so many contractions and a melt-down myself. I had many moments were I was asking myself questions like "what the hell did I just do?" "what the hell did I just put my babies through and myself through?" I was so overwhelmed and had to focus just on breathing and trying to get food in my children's bellies. Food was being flown in every direction, Claire was spitting at me, snot was flying...and I was smashed between two car seats. I can't blame them though, all they know how to do is scream when they want something, and I was not going fast enough! Plus, when I would feed one, the others would scream, and we just go back and forth constantly. And their outfits, bows, and jackets...lets just say, EVERYTHING went through the wash, thanks to all the spitting of purred food and pot holes of DC!

There are just "those moments" where you can just can ONLY IMAGINE what it is like with THREE BABIES! ONE baby has NO comparison to THREE, during moments like these! I'm sorry if that may offend anyone but it is the truth. It's truly only for the strong. I swear by it, when I am literally in tears and cannot breath because of them, and trying everything I can do while that is not nearly enough to them...it is SO overwhelming and you would have to be there to believe just how bad some moments can be! This was completely ONE OF THE WORST 45 minutes in the past year! NO LIE!

By the time we arrived at the restaurant, I was so ready just to hit the drive-through at MCD's and be done with the day, but since it was for my mom, I sucked it up, put a smile on my face and no one would have known the complete hell I just experienced in the back of our SUV. Pure hell.

The girl's were complete angels and played with their toys and straws during the whole time we were at dinner. It was wonderful and no one would have known what happened. It was then that it became a little comical. We had a wonderful dinner and they slept the whole way home and went right to bed. Pure bliss, from such a horrible experience.

All and all we are very proud of Grammy and can't wait until she passes her test in a few weeks!