Today has been very uneventful. Absolutely nothing planned different from a regular Wednesday. But I'm okay about that. It's been a good day. And I just feel incredibly blessed. I got a zillion Facebook greetings, a couple cards in the mail, and a surprise present from a new friend. How can that not feel good?? No cake today but the kids and I did have some mint chocolate chip ice cream after lunch. Yumm...
So Kevin had to work today but last night was his night off, so after naps we headed up to Lincoln and enjoyed ourselves some Olive Garden and playtime at the mall. Just a great time together, although Carter did NOT like the carousel ride. LOL I love my family. I love my friends. I love where I'm at in life right now. And I feel so blessed and thankful...
Sorry if I'm kind of MIA for awhile. I'm just so tired. With Kevin working all the time and only seeing him for a few minutes every day before he heads into work, I've been trying so hard to stay energized with the kids and keep our schedule busy to pass the time and get us out of the quiet house, but now, I'm just tired.The kids and I went to my parents house over the weekend and being away from home is always hard. The kids act up, or I notice it more, or something. I feel like I've been driving all over the place and now, I'm tired. I dyed my hair Friday night. It's barely noticeable really, just a dark brown with a slightly reddish tint. I like it. And it was a fun, really random thing to do right now. This is my birthday week. I'm feeling a little bummed about it actually. I want to feel special for ONE day out of the year, but with this schedule and all, I feel like it's just going to be another day. I'm pouting. LOL Anyway, here goes another week...
Bible Study... Revelations
Memory Verse... Galatians 6:9 "Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up."
Husband Encouragement...
* Keep the kids quiet while he sleeps during the day, or better yet, LEAVE the house for awhile so it's super quiet.
* Tidy home.
* Positive attitude.
* With him working so much this month I need to make sure I keep up on work clothes laundry and have them folded neatly on the top of his dresser. (seriously, right now there's just no need to hang and put them away. He sleeps, wakes up, goes to work, and repeat)
Train Them Up...
* Family devotions at bedtime.
* Start keeping Eli up from naptime sometimes to spend time with him.
* Get outside as much as possible.
* PLAY with them.
Personal Goals...
* Exercise at least 3 days this week. I've been doing sooo terrible at this! I actually want to print a calendar so I can write my workouts on it and keep track of any weight loss (if that ever happens). Maybe having the visual of all those blank days will help motivate me??
* Read 1 chapter every day or two with my new book.
New Habit of the Month...
6am wake up time. This will allow me to have some quiet time in the morning and then greet Kevin when he comes home around 6:45am. (I really haven't been doing this at all, but I'll wait til next week to move on to something different)
MUST Do...
* Mail back Amazon package. Ahh, I STILL need to do this!!
* Take and ORDER pictures. Seriously, seriously, seriously need to do this!
* Call the school about registering Eli for kindergarten. (for real??!)
* It's almost planting time in the fields so we need to retrieve any toy sand trucks/cat food dishes/milk jugs, etc that have blown into the field, so they're out of the way/don't get run over by the tractor. AH, just realized this includes the snow fence since it's right on the field line!
* Move snow boots, hang up winter coats, and pack away the last of Carter's 6-9 month stuff.
* Start going through the big kids' clothes to see what fits them for spring so I can see what they might need more of. This means I'll have to do a fitting session with them just trying on everything. I really have no idea if some of their shorts from last year will still fit.
* Cook a real meal this week. =)
Zone... Laundry.
Menu - TBD
M - hot dogs
T -??
W - meatloaf
Th - crockpot something
F - lasagna, salad
S -
FUN THINGS!
* MOPS pizza party Tuesday morning. Kevin's day off that night.
* Birthday Wednesday.
* Maybe a movie night Friday?
3 things I'm thankful for today...
1. Fun time with family this weekend.
2. A night out with the girls Saturday. Although two were missing due to sick kids etc.
3. SPRING!! It makes me happy!
The kids have recently started practicing spitting while they're brushing their teeth. While we still have the the safe-to-swallow baby toothpaste we're practicing having them spit it out instead of swallowing it as they go. So lately it's been a lot of up and downs from the toilet seat so they could spit. {the toilet is next to the sink so that's how they reach it, even a kids step-stool is barely tall enough for leaning over the sink.} SO I had this great idea to have them both spit in the bathtub instead. It's just their size and it's all the same thing right? I shower at night so it gets washed out right away, although mostly what they're spitting at this point is just that, spit, anyway.
A friend of ours stopped by unexpectedly and swept away my oldest two children! That was the Facebook status update. Isn't that every mom's DREAM??!
Now here's the real story...
I was jamming away on my guitar and singing {loudly} in the dining room {great acoustics in there} when I thought I heard a knock on the door.
In the dining room the floor was COVERED in cupcake crumbs from lunch. I was letting them get all dry and crusty so I could sweep them later. You do that too sometimes right??? RIGHT??
The kids were running around in their underwear pretending they were swimming, infant floatie and all. And they had dragged out the blankets so the living room had EXPLODED within the last 5 minutes.
I thought I heard a knock at the door so I looked out the window but didn't see any car, so I was yelling for the kids to see if THEY were the ones knocking. I decided to check the back door anyway, and right THERE were our guests...
A friend of ours, and his little boy who's Hannah age, stopped by to drop off a couple space heaters they'd borrowed.
While they were here they asked if they could steal Eli for a couple hours because their three girls were at a Girls Scouts overnight and Owen needed a friend to help entertain him. So I said sure and started getting Eli DRESSED and ready to go. And Hannah starts crying because she really wants to go too. Our friend says she can come too and a couple minutes later they're gone! And quiet. And Carter is wandering around lost without them. And I... am ecstatic to get a solid hour or two to get things CLEANED UP before the kids are returned.
Amazing. Thank you God, Lord over all my life!! What a great gift!
And thank goodness I thought to check my teeth after eating a poppy seed bagel for dinner.
{What about you?? What embarrassing circumstances have you been caught in the middle of??}
Sorry I'm late in getting this posted. It's still Monday though so that's something. It's been quite a day. I'm tired. Fortunately the second half of the day was much better than the morning. But still I'm tired, in so many ways. Praying for a better tomorrow...
Bible Study... Finishing thoughts on Mission of Motherhood
Memory Verse... Galatians 6:9 "Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up."
Husband Encouragement...
* Get some things for his lunches.
* Keep the kids quiet while he sleeps during the day.
Train Them Up...
* Family devotions at bedtime.
* Start keeping Eli up from naptime sometimes to spend time with him >> I actually just ordered a teach-him-to-read book, so I want to start working through that with him, just a few minutes every day.
* Want to start doing more school type activities with Hannah while Eli is at preschool.
* We've been reading Pinkalicious a lot lately so I got some cake mix and frosting and am going to let the kids make cupcakes and color them whatever color they want.
Personal Goals...
* Schedule my annual checkup.
* Sit down and make a list of things that are a "break" to me. This is a suggestion of Sally Clarkson. I'll share more about these things later.
New Habit of the Month...
6am wake up time. This will allow me to have some quiet time in the morning and then greet Kevin when he comes home around 6:45am.
MUST Do...
* Mail back Amazon order.
* Get pictures ordered for Grandparents. It's been forever, and I think they're waiting!
Zone... Laundry. Every bit of it put away.
Menu -
M - Bagel bites
T - Paul and Holly's
W - Chicken nuggets
Th - Keilbasa, Potatoes, Oranges
F - TBD
S - Italian breaded chicken
FUN THINGS!
* MOPS meeting tomorrow!
* Tomorrow afternoon I'm headed up to Paul and Holly's to visit with them and then watch Claire in the evening. We'll stay the night and head back first thing Wednesday morning.
3 things I'm thankful for today...
1. Good health. There's been a LOT going around lately and fortunately we still haven't gotten it! (knock on wood)
2. Quiet evenings. Not sure what I'd do without it.
A friend of mine shared this on Facebook so I thought I'd pass it along here... Enjoy!
Lesson 1
1. Go to the grocery store.
2. Arrange to have your salary paid directly to their head office.
3. Go home.
4. Pick up the paper.
5. Read it for the last time.
Lesson 2
Before you finally go ahead and have children, find a couple who already are parents and berate them about their...
1. Methods of discipline.
2. Lack of patience.
3. Appallingly low tolerance levels.
4. Allowing their children to run wild.
5. Suggest ways in which they might improve their child's breastfeeding, sleep habits, toilet training, table manners, and overall behavior.
Enjoy it because it will be the last time in your life you will have all the answers.
Lesson 3
A really good way to discover how the nights might feel...
1. Get home from work and immediately begin walking around the living room from 5PM to 10PM carrying a wet bag weighing approximately 8-12 pounds, with a radio turned to static (or some other obnoxious sound) playing loudly. (Eat cold food with one hand for dinner)
2. At 10PM, put the bag gently down, set the alarm for midnight, and go to sleep.
3. Get up at 12 and walk around the living room again, with the bag, until 1AM.
4. Set the alarm for 3AM.
5. As you can't get back to sleep, get up at 2AM and make a drink and watch an infomercial.
6. Go to bed at 2:45AM.
7. Get up at 3AM when the alarm goes off.
8. Sing songs quietly in the dark until 4AM.
9. Get up. Make breakfast. Get ready for work and go to work (work hard and be productive)
Repeat steps 1-9 each night. Keep this up for 3-5 years. Look cheerful and together.
Lesson 4
Can you stand the mess children make? T o find out...
1. Smear peanut butter onto the sofa and jam onto the curtains.
2. Hide a piece of raw chicken behind the stereo and leave it there all summer.
3. Stick your fingers in the flower bed.
4. Then rub them on the clean walls.
5. Take your favorite book, photo album, etc. Wreck it.
6. Spill milk on your new pillows. Cover the stains with crayons. How does that look?
Lesson 5
Dressing small children is not as easy as it seems.
1. Buy an octopus and a small bag made out of loose mesh.
2. Attempt to put the octopus into the bag so that none of the arms hang out.
Time allowed for this - all morning.
Lesson 6
Forget the BMW and buy a mini-van. And don't think that you can leave it out in the driveway spotless and shining. Family cars don't look like that.
1. Buy a chocolate ice cream cone and put it in the glove compartment.
Leave it there.
2. Get a dime. Stick it in the CD player.
3. Take a family size package of chocolate cookies. Mash them into the back seat. Sprinkle cheerios all over the floor, then smash them with your foot.
4. Run a garden rake along both sides of the car.
Lesson 7
Go to the local grocery store. Take with you the closest thing you can find to a pre-school child. (A full-grown goat is an excellent choice). If you intend to have more than one child, then definitely take more than one goat. Buy your week's groceries without letting the goats out of your sight. Pay for everything the goat eats or destroys. Until you can easily accomplish this, do not even contemplate having children.
Lesson 8
1. Hollow out a melon.
2. Make a small hole in the side.
3. Suspend it from the ceiling and swing it from side to side.
4. Now get a bowl of soggy Cheerios and attempt to spoon them into the swaying melon by pretending to be an airplane.
5. Continue until half the Cheerios are gone.
6. Tip half into your lap. The other half, just throw up in the air.
You are now ready to feed a nine- month-old baby.
Lesson 9
Learn the names of every character from Sesame Street , Barney, Disney, the Teletubbies, and Pokemon. Watch nothing else on TV but PBS, the Disney channel or Noggin for at least five years. (I know, you're thinking What's 'Noggin'?) Exactly the point.
Lesson 10
Make a recording of Fran Drescher saying 'mommy' repeatedly. (Important: no more than a four second delay between each 'mommy'; occasional crescendo to the level of a supersonic jet is required). Play this tape in your car everywhere you go for the next four years. You are now ready to take a long trip with a toddler.
Lesson 11
Start talking to an adult of your choice. Have someone else continually tug on your skirt hem, shirt- sleeve, or elbow while playing the 'mommy' tape made from Lesson 10 above. You are now ready to have a conversation with an adult while there is a child in the room.
This is all very tongue in cheek; anyone who is parent will say 'it's all worth it!' Share it with your friends, both those who do and don't have kids. I guarantee they'll get a chuckle out of it. Remember, a sense of humor is one of the most important things you'll need when you become a parent!
* Reminds me of a this funny section from the movie Back-Up Plan that I recently watched. A father describing to a father-to-be what parenting is like:
