Even Child Syndrome

NOTE: not to be confused w/ "Even-Tempered Child Syndrome" (if there even is an even-tempered child anywhere!!)

This is a rambling post. Feel free to not read if you want!

I'm having trouble adjusting to a fourth child in the house. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love all four munchkins & would never change a thing. It's just an adjustment & it's taking longer than I had hoped. When I say "Even Child Syndrome" in this post's title, I'm talking about birth order. It seems, at least for me, that it's harder w/ the even numbered child.

• Pregnancy & Munchkin #1: I had a great pregnancy w/ The Prophet. I loved every minute of it - wearing those cute maternity clothes, feeling every flutter & kick, & I was never sick w/ him. Labor & delivery were a bit difficult due to pre-eclampsia. I had to be induced two weeks early & was on Magnesium Sulfate to prevent seizures, but that was the worst of it all. Once he was born, all was well & I loved being a mom. Everything was new to me & I soaked it all up.
• Pregnancy & Munchkin #2: Even though I never got sick w/ The Archangel either, pregnancy was a bit tougher for me. I was tired all the time & very grumpy. Poor Casinodad had his head bitten off more times than I care to admit. Birth went well - I was induced two weeks early again due to Pregnancy Induced Hypertension (PIH). Once we brought him home, things were fine for a while, but I still couldn't shake the grumpiness. It was double everything - diapers, less sleep, laundry, etc. He was a bit more high-maintenance than The Prophet, too (& still is at times!) So, the second addition was a bit tougher, but we got through it.
• Pregnancy & Munchkin #3: I was a bit less grumpy w/ The Princess' pregnancy. Casinodad made me promise to try & I felt that I succeeded! Again, I was induced (3 weeks early w/ her) due to PIH. No problems w/ delivery & once home, we adjusted very well. No out-of-the-ordinary problems. As she got a little older, she demonstrated her curiosity in many ways (dumping all my mom's spices on her basement floor & eating whole peppercorns, jumping off her dollhouse & needing stitches because she hit her head on her bedframe, or pouring dish soap on the carpet just to name a few). She keeps us on our toes, but having three wasn't bad at all.
• Now: Again I was induced w/ PIH three weeks early. The Saint has done great sleeping at night. The first couple weeks, he woke up twice to feed & now he pretty much sleeps through the night. He doesn't sleep much during the day, just a few catnaps, but he usually doesn't wake up until about 10 or 11am.

So why do I feel so out of sorts? I'm getting more sleep than I did when pregnant, but I just can't seem to get going in the morning. I would love to be able to get up when Casinodad does at 6:30, before the rest of the crew, say my morning prayers, have my first cup of coffee, but I just can't. I usually roll out of bed around 8am instead to hear the sounds of the older boys arguing over the couch or whatever (& usually argue w/ each other most of the day). My house looks like it's been through several tornados & I just can't seem to motivate myself to do more than the essentials. The Saint is finally getting to the point where I can set him down for longer than a couple minutes during the day.

I know that "this too shall pass" & that God never gives anyone more than they can handle. So, I just do a lot of praying & give lots of hugs & kisses to the munchkins. After all, they're only this age once!