Getting brave..

Levi just turned 4 weeks old! Can you believe it?? Time flies when you're having fun:) this week I have had a few wild hairs in attemp to feel "normal" again. The postpartum fog has began to lift and each day I feel better and better! Bill's car has been out of commission for the past 5-6 weeks, so we have been adjusting to only one car.. Which is fine. We've done the whole 'one car thing' before(for almost 3 years), but being home with all the kids all day, everyday is making me a little stir crazy! But I can have the car if we can all get up and take Bill to work in the mornings, then drive back at night to pick him back up.. which is what we did twice this week! The first day, I was feeling a little ambitious and decided to take the kids to the pool. I know.. I know.. I'm crazy!! Who takes 5 kids who are 5,4,3,15months, and a newborn to the pool by herself?? ME!! (and I am sure there are people who have more kids than me, closer together in age, and can dance circles around us Davis'. But this is new to me, so cut me some slack!) Thankfully, my sister Lauren (who was keeping a 6yr old little girl) came too! And let me tell you... It was a disaster!! The big kids did great!! EK, jos and Miley can all swim like champs and completely entertained themselves. Levi slept pretty much the whole time in the shade, but adalyn was a HOT MESS! We need to get her a better floaty bathing suit like I had with my other kid because she gave me a heart attack every few minutes! She was in the pool, then out of the pool. Then climbing on the stairs, then falling off the side, then taking the kids' drinks, then running away, then back on the stairs, then climbing back out, then falling back in... It was exhausting! My big post baby self was jiggling all over that pool trying to keep her safe and contained:) it was a nightmare! She wasn't being bad by any means, but her age is not fun at the pool... Especially when i can't give her my undivided attention. So, next time she might have to stay home, or I will need to bring extra reinforcements:) thankfully Yaya was able to watch the big kids do all of their tricks and she was an extra set of eyes and hands to help me!((sigh)) I'm exhausted just typing that out! Ha! Today I attempted the grocery store with all of the kids by myself for the first time. The first trip alone with a new baby is always super nerve wracking for me.. So I was anxious to get it over with. We pulled up to publix and I had a talk with my big three. "ok, y'all! Momma has 5 kids now. FIVE! That is a WHOLE hand and a lot to keep up with at a store. So I need y'all to remember our rules and stay with me the entire time, ok? No wandering off and no grabbing things off the shelves. Let's try and play a game and see who can be the calmest and quietest while we shop.. And maybe there will be a prize for the winner!" ha.. Who said prizes didn't work?! And let me tell you.. They were PERFECT! I was so proud! I wore Levi in the moby wrap, adalyn and miley rode in the buggy and EK and jos held onto either side of the buggy and helped me load and unload the groceries. I had to get onto Miley just once for being too loud on the cereal aisle. She wasn't doing anything wrong.. She was just excited to see some cartoon character on a cereal box and I had to remind her to talk softly:) and surprisingly, I only had 3 people stop me to tell me that I had my hands full! Usually we have about 10 people stop and stare:) so the kids each got a gumball from the machine as we walked out and I kept bragging to them about how amazing they were and how proud I was of them. Miley smiled at me and said, "thanks momma! You're amazing, too!" Maybe she was just trying to butter me up and make me feel better from calling me out this morning. You see, as I was getting dressed this morning, Miley walked in my room and shouted, "whoa momma!! I just saw your BIG, BIG hiney!!"