“Focus on the Family” – The Mullen Family April 2010
Your Child Today has chosen the Mullen Family of Toms River to feature in this month’s “Focus on the Family” column. Devin and Matthew Mullen have been best friends since they met in college and have been married for eight years. They feel blessed to have three wonderful sons, Ethan, 5, Aidan, 4, and baby brother Aaron, 2. Matthew hails from Philadelphia, while Devin was raised in Ocean County. The family now calls Toms River home and both Devin and Matthew serve as youth leaders at First Baptist Church in Howell. Matthew’s days are spent working as a Cisco Partner Specialist at CDW in Eatontown and Devin keeps busy teaching voice, guitar and piano lessons in their home. She also runs a home jewelry business, teaches music and dance lessons at Sung Star Academy in Toms River and manages “The Imitations”, a singing group comprised of three local teens. Fueled by a tremendous amount of support for each other, this super-charged family runs on love.
I caught up with this busy mom as she walked, and the boys biked, around their neighborhood during the first week of spring-like weather following the very long winter filled with freezing temperatures and snowstorms. Saying the kids were a little stir-crazy from so much time spent indoors, Devin was thrilled to be able to talk to me by phone while she and her children enjoyed some much-needed outdoor time. Devin is a stereotypical “ball of energy” and talks really fast. I tried my best to keep up with all she had to say as she shared some details about her family life.
YCT: Tell us a little about your family and the personalities of each of your children.
Devin: Our oldest, Ethan, is full of energy – just like me! Aidan is very much like his dad, serious, thoughtful, smart and sweet. Our youngest, Aaron, is adorable and a terror! We’re very lucky because our boys seem to be happy all the time. They’re all very energetic and certainly keep me busy. They really adore each other and all sleep in same room. We’re glad they are so close.
YCT: What is a typical day like in your home?
Devin: Three mornings a week I teach at Sung Star Academy and my boys can come with me. It’s been very beneficial for the boys to have that interaction with other kids since other than that we spend a lot of time at home. When we get back from Sung Star, the mad dash to clean up the house starts. Aaron takes a nap and then my lessons start. You can ask any of them the rule which is “don’t bother Mommy while she’s teaching” – they’re so good and play while I teach. Some of my students bring younger siblings to their lessons, so all the little kids can play together. After lessons, Daddy comes home and we get to eat dinner together which I start just before the last music lesson. This way as soon as Matthew comes home, dinner is ready and we can all sit down and eat dinner together.
The boys absolutely love my husband – he’s better than Superman to them! We ask about each others’ day and it’s a time we can all re-connect. After dinner, we often play 40 minutes of Wii games together as a family and then it’s almost bedtime. My husband is awesome and since I have the boys all day, he does all the bed prep – toothbrushing, pjs, prayer and Bible reading. I married my sweetheart and we’re a great team! He never calls me Devin unless he’s mad – he always calls me Honey. When they were really little the boys called me Honey, too. They sometimes still do, but now that they see that other kids call their mothers Mommy, I think they get a little embarrassed, so when they’re around other people now they say Mommy. We’re so lucky that the boys are fantastic sleepers and have all slept through the night since they were babies. So after they go to sleep, Matthew and I have our alone time which is great.
YCT: What activities do your children participate in after school?
Devin: The boys are not in school yet, but Ethan will start kindergarten in September. They all enjoy going to Sung Star and Ethan and Aidan also take karate lessons in Eatontown. Ethan is very good at music and plays piano, flute and sings on tune. The boys hear so much music instruction that they know note values – “quarter note, rest rest” and can clap along. We all enjoy being outside, and are really looking forward to spring after being cooped up inside all winter, although we did build the biggest snow fort ever! In warmer weather, the kids love to ride bikes and run around and play outside. Of course, during bad weather, there’s always Play Doh!
YCT: What is your favorite thing to do locally with your family?
Devin: We enjoy going to BlueClaw’s baseball games and Great Adventure. My husband’s job provides us with free season passes to Great Adventure, so we can go out for a short visit. We really just love to be together and for the kids, if Mom and Dad are happy all’s fine with the world!
YCT: Do you have any favorite local vacation spots?
Devin: We take two weeks’ vacation each year. The first is for family and we’ve found that doing day trips is the best value for us. We go to the beach, Jenkinson’s Aquarium, and short trips to visit Matthew’s family in Pennsylvania. The second week we take kids from our church on road trips and our kids come along.
YCT: Have you ever gone on vacation without the kids?
Devin: Every year on our anniversary, we spend the night at the Chateau Inn in Spring Lake Anniversary where we spent our wedding night. My family watches the kids so it’s a mini-vacation for them as well.
YCT: Do you have a favorite family-friendly restaurant?
Devin: Nobi in Toms River. The kids enjoy eating the Japanese cuisine with chopsticks and the koi pond is fun to look at. The kids love to sleep late and then go out to breakfast. We go to IHOP and they eat blueberry pancakes. But since we love to cook, we usually eat at home.
YCT: What is your favorite date night location and how often do you get to go out with just your husband?
Devin: We have date night every week, but not always outside the house. When we do go out, we pick a nice place that we don’t usually frequent, then we love to go to Barnes & Noble because we both love to read. Sometimes we go to a show or movie and try to stay out late, but we’re usually so tired that we want to sleep in car! Sometimes we’ll just drive around in our pajamas, go down to the beach or just sit and talk. We just enjoy spending time together.
YCT: What is your favorite non-mommy thing to do and how often do you get to do it?
Devin: Making jewelry and doing music. I have all boys but I’m super girly. Because my husband is so good with taking kids at night, I can have me time every night if I want to. I’ve learned to do chores at warp speed, so when I need to relax, sometimes I’ll just sit down and watch an old movie.
YCT: What is your husband¹s favorite non-daddy thing to do?
Devin: Anything outdoors – hunting, canoeing, the whole “man living in the wilderness in a cabin” thing appeals to him! Water and the ocean speak to his soul, so he enjoys going down to the beach or the river. A good walk can calm any upset he has. He also loves golf and I love to see him happy, so I tell him go and do it. He does so much for me and he doesn’t take a lot of time for himself.
YCT: Do you patronize any advertisers from our magazine?
Devin: We go to Jenkinson’s boardwalk in Point, and of course, Kum Sung. I would love to go to Sparkle Diva if I had girls!
YCT: Do you have any parenting advice that you would like to offer our readers?
Devin: Have fun! That’s my philosophy. I’ve learned that every child is an individual and I try to take time with each of them. They’re not out to get you, they want to understand you and I really try to understand them. I believe that God sees us all as individuals and all relationships are based on individual components. I have a happy disposition by nature so my kids thrive on it – my mood can make or break their day.
YCT: What is your favorite part of Your Child Today magazine?
Devin: We’ve been looking at schools for Ethan and I’ve gotten some good information from a recent article about education. I also found a dentist that I like through the magazine. It’s a good resource – practical things for practical people living normal lives. This magazine seems like it has a heart and tries to inspire readers to live better lives.
