Welcome to Scattered, Covered & Smothered

Holly Becker is a freelance writer and blogs about motherhood from her home in North Carolina, where she tries to stay sane raising three children ages 3 and under.

Luck Runs Out

"The Mommy Scream" by Mila Becker

"The Mommy Scream" by Mila Becker

Warning: Reader discretion is advised. This blog post contains information about a lot of puke. So, I know you’ll read it. Everyone loves a good puke story, right?

The luck of the Irish has clearly turned on me, and in March... 

My Little Rooster

img_9444Ask any parent of small children what they miss the most about life before children, and I’ll guarantee you that most will say they miss sleeping in. It’s funny how your definition of sleeping in changes after having children. Sleeping in until 9:30 a.m. or 10 a.m. was what I considered sleeping in before I had children. Now three kids later, I count my blessings if I don’t have to rise and shine before 7:30 a.m.

My early mornings... 

Got Questions?

img_8885I consider myself to be a fairly intelligent person, but I didn’t realize that I needed to be a walking encyclopedia once I became a mother. The inquisitive little minds of my 3-year-old twins keep me busy all day answering questions…at least trying to answer them.

Here are just a few of the questions I’ve been asked recently. Why does snow melt? Why do ants sting? Does the lake sleep? Why do we have bones? Where does... 

Toddleritis

img_8873Thanks to my little guy, Siler, I should have arms more ripped than Michelle Obama by spring. Of course, I also may need back surgery, too. I spend my days repeatedly lifting 27 lbs. of wiggly toddler weight. I officially have toddleritis, which I define as the exhaustion and aches and pains of keeping up with a toddler.

Siler’s constantly climbing on the kitchen table, which he seems to think is a jungle gym, or reorganizing my kitchen pantry and then crawling into the shelves. I’ve had to move... 

Snowed In

img_9224I can never move farther north than North Carolina, and I’m talking about the southern end of North Carolina. After being snowed in for a few days with about six inches of snow, I learned that it’s far too much work to get three kids dressed to play in a winter wonderland. By the time I changed Siler’s diaper and had Mila and Eli go potty (learned this the hard way), I began the task of putting on snowsuits, jackets, socks, shoes, hats and gloves. Once I’d finished, I’d worked up a sweat.

Mark... 

Me vs. H1N1

img_8564I thought I had planned for the flu season better than an obsessive compulsive bride planning for her wedding day. Despite my efforts, I was delivered a bombshell at Urgent Care on Sunday. My son, Eli, tested positive for influenza A, which is more than likely the H1N1 virus. At that point, my jaw dropped open in shock, and I was ready to ask for a refund on those shots.
How could this happen? I went to painstaking measures to have each of my three children vaccinated for the seasonal flu and the H1N1... 

Daddy’s Girl

img_7423I’m 100 percent sure if my husband and I were drowning in a pool and my daughter could only save one of us, I’d be a goner. These days Mila is all about Daddy, and last week was proof of that.

Mila came home from preschool with a note from the teacher saying she was selected for book reader. When a child in the class is book reader, that child is allowed to have a parent come read a book to the class. From my observations, the book reader is always the mother. I assumed I’d be reading the... 

Going Green

grandkids-011My little Siler is going green. If you think I’m talking about cloth diapers, you obviously don’t know me well. I’m talking about a different kind of green. These days my youngest child is green with envy. Yes, a little jealous streak has emerged as this mama’s boy has decided that he just doesn’t like sharing my attention with his siblings. I’m not sure how this has happened. I thought the youngest of three would come into the world... 

Christmas

img_8760This Christmas was loads of fun for the Becker household. Mila and Eli, my 3 ½ year old twins, really bought into the magic of Christmas. They were over-the-moon with excitement as they anticipated Santa’s arrival, and they took great pride in ripping open the wrapping paper to find gifts. Siler thoroughly enjoyed jumping and rolling in the balled up wrapping paper on the floor.

While gifts are fun, they also can be overwhelming. By the time grandparents,... 

The Flour Incident

img_8728All-purpose flour really does have all different kinds of purposes. I discovered an interesting new use for it—a backdrop for a ridiculously fun photo shoot. I was mixing up cookie dough with Mila and Eli, and sneaky little Siler came to the table and pulled down the flour canister that I had just moments before filled to the top. What a colossal mess! And what was I thinking trying to bake with three children on the loose?

At... 

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