Happy Thanksgiving 2008

Happy Thanksgiving!

I hope to find lots and lots of things to be thankful for---besides that I don't have to do the cooking for a few days!

Messy Messy

There are a few things that I fall short on. I know shocker--only a few!

Having my children keep their rooms clean is one of them. They just don't care and I haven't mastered staying on top of them daily.

Last Saturday was either a really good day or a really bad day. I decided to clean #1's pigpen!

Here is a picture.

I spent three hours going through all the clothing mess in her room. I finally got her to go through all her clothes and we got rid of three huge garbage sacks.

Will this disease ever go away?

Family Fun Night

Last night was Family Fun Night! It is a fund raiser for the PTSO at our middle school. We have not attended before but #3 was supposed to dance so we went.

I use the term "Family Fun night" loosely. For me it was a school full of a million people running around with lots of complete chaos!

#3 and #4 had a ball. They had punch cards that they got to do cake walks, cotton candy, fish ponds and many others. The highlight of their evening was the hair painting. It was rather disgusting. Little man(#4) came to climb into my bed sometime in the night---I told him--Not with that hair! He slept on his pillow on the floor.

This is what he looked like before we washed his face to go to the gym.

This is a picture of the tub AFTER he got out! Eewh!

Memories

On a regular basis I sit next to two of my children while they practice the piano. It isn't always my idea of fun--or theirs for that matter. However, I found with my oldest daughter that I had to sit with them. I didn't do it enough with her and I lost her to the joys of the piano.



Well, tonight after both #2 and #3 had done their practicing I decided to play a few songs. I played for more than an hour. Let me explain my piano background. I was like my #1 daughter. Very stubborn. I remember many many times my mother telling me that I would thank her someday. I remember thinking in my mind( as bratty teenagers will do) "even if I am glad I will never tell her." Well, I have repented of that. I told my Mom thank you many many times since my brain finally got over the teenager haze. I was not a gifted musician. It was not something that came easily to me. I have never been able to accompany someone while they sing or play really really difficult pieces. However, since that haze lifted I have been so grateful that I do have this ability.



While I was playing tonight I wanted to play something different than the same four songs that I usually play. So I looked at our pile of books. A lavender book caught my eye. It was the Young Women hymnbook from when I was a teenager. I pulled that book out and started leafing through it.



My best friend Laurel was/is a very gifted musician. She was able to play like an angel. We would sit at my Mom's piano and Laurel would play and we would both sing. Truth be told, Laurel was a much better singer also, however, we sang and sang. We sang these beautiful songs that taught us about our worth and about the Savior's love for us. As I picked through this hymn book I remembered these songs like we sang them yesterday. A few I was able to play, others I only could pick out the top hand. However, I was flooded with memories of sitting there together with my dearest friend.



Years after I graduated from high school I sat down to play my Mom's piano. She came into the dining room and sat at the table. She told me "one of the things I miss most is you girls playing the piano."


Thanks again Mom.

Beautiful Morning

"Momma, hurry-look at the clouds, they are beautiful!" says Little Man as he sleepily climbs out of bed.

"Hurry and take a picture."

So I did.

Fogless!

Have you ever had a day that just felt right? A day that feels like a fog has been lifted from across your brain, a fog that you didn't even know existed?

Today was like that for me!

I walked in my house from the gym and physical therapy(sore back from July) and decided that today I was going to make banana bread.

The best part is that I actually followed through and made it. I even doubled the recipe.

I hope that the fog stays away, I like this clear feeling.

Just a few pictures from our Halloween festivities. I realized that I didn't take any pictures actually on Halloween! I have to search for other cameras and find some!

We had a carving party at Mr. Sweetness' ward so our little guy had a ball with Big Tim. He had all sorts of power tools.

I am glad that most of my children are actually able to handle carving the pumpkins by themselves. It isn't really something that I love to do!

Our Big Boy was there also--where are his pictures? I will have to add that to my to-do list-Find more pictures!

My sweet friend and neighbor had some gals over for lunch a while back. Another neighbor made these darling owl cookies. I just had to take a picture. I am not sure that I will ever attempt to make them but they were adorable!

Almost Friday!

Thursdays have now become like Friday---I am done teaching for the week!

I have been teaching these little preschoolers now for almost 3 months and I still am not sure if I love it enough to do it again. I had such wonderful dreams of teaching my own little man. Well, after this long those dreams have ended. He is a little monster boy! He is in trouble daily. I realize that he is just trying to make it known that I am HIS MOM, this is His house, his toys etc. However, it makes me NUTS! He has always been such a sweet, yummy little boy. He is now a little bugger! I can't decide if teaching him preschool is such a great idea! Is it helping him learn or just learn to defend his turf?

Truthfully, I believe that most children don't need preschool. I do believe that it helps them, but these things that I am teaching should be things that they pick up at home. It just reaffirms to me that the best place for small children is at home with their mothers in a loving home environment. Reading, playing, cuddling, cutting, glueing, singing and all the other things that Moms do.

I guess that I better get back to being Mom. Dishes are calling!

Sometimes it seems like too much!

I have needed to download pictures from my camera for a few weeks. I have also needed to burn a cd for my beautiful niece of her wedding photos. I also need to exercise, lose weight, color my hair, clean my scrapbook studio, do laundry, wash windows, mop the kitchen, call the carpet cleaner for a bid, call for a Dr.s appointment, Christmas shopping, cards, put away Halloween decor, put up Thanksgiving decor, plan preschool,do my visiting teaching, plan cub scouts, learn how to knit, call my Mom, have liposuction, tummy tuck, boob job and figure out world peace!



Maybe I will just go take a shower!~

Here we go again!

Here it is Monday again! It is hard to believe that I found nothing to write about for an entire week. The truth is that I really tried to stay off the computer.

I don't think that I have anything terribly profound to write about today. Just little tidbits.

* attended a Jazz basketball with Mr. Sweetness
* went to the Temple with Mr. Sweetness
* attended a dance competition on Saturday for both girls
* ate at California Pizza Kitchen--very good
* went to church-the Primary did their annual presentation---it was very nice, I had to help little man do his part.
* took a Sunday nap! We have switched times of our meetings so this is such a wonderful thing!
* made dinner
* loaded dishwasher
* visited with Mr. Sweetness' parents
* went to bed
* went to the gym at 5:00am
* made breakfast for a few
* unloaded dishwasher
* felt woozy brained -- took a little nap
* made Little man some lunch

Now to really get something done on this rainy dark Monday!

Monday

Monday!

After a sugar laden weekend it is a good thing that Monday has come around! I am in clean up mode. I hope that by the time the kiddies get here and my Mr. Sweetness arrives it will once again look like a home instead of a riot zone!

We had our power out from 12 noon until 7:30 am this morning. It was quite the event. We are blessed because we have a generator so we were able to bring it in and plug in the electric frying pan. We forgot about our big standup lights-the kind you use with construction. When Mr. Sweetness got home he brought those in.

It was actually very, very nice to just sit in our living room and talk. The kids couldn't leave. Mom and Dad had nowhere to go. I was thinking that perhaps we need to have "no power" night once a month or so---just so that we can connect a bit as a family.

Reality

Remember how I was so blessed the other day? Well, today is one of the other days!~ I am looking around my house after our sugar induced coma not able to find any semblance of order. I have in taken more sugar than I have for six weeks. I am definitely not "feeling the joy"!

I seem to be the only one that can actually see the messes in this house.

Off to another pile!