Mother's Day.

Happy Mother's Day

Behind every successful mother...

is a basket of dirty laundry.

 

Hope it was a wonderful day.

The Date: 10-11-12.

Holy cannoli.  How long has it been since I've blogged?  Never mind.  Don't answer that.  I've been busy.  And I had a virus.  Well, not me.  My laptop.  Although it's not entirely out of the question that I have mono.  Just kidding.  I don't.  So here's what I'll do so I have a record of most of the stuff that's been going on here at our sweet abode.. I'll bullet point.  Isn't that cool?  Bullet points.  It will be awesome. And it has officially taken me 2 days to get all this down.  So you better read it!

* The Virus
I have been watching Cake Boss on Netflix recently.  As a natural result I have begun speaking with a Long Island accent.  But wait, you say.  They aren't in Long Island.  They aren't even in New York.  They are in New Jersey.  But my grandma grew up in/on Long Island.  Is it in or on?  I have no idea.  But I just tell my kiddos that their mama from Long Island is here and then just get all loud and Long Islandy.  It's fun.  Anyhoo, I got on the website for their cake shop.  I was curious about the cost of the cakes he makes.  There is no cost list.  I was bummed.  But there was an error message that kept coming up.  So I kept deleting it because it's just plain annoying.  And there was no error.  I must have hit the right deal on one of the messages because nasty viral shut downs ensued.  I called Daniel to say there is something wrong with it.  When he got home he stated the obvious.  To him.  Not me.  I still kept spreading said viral nastiness every time I tried getting rid of the error messages.  It took some doing to get it fixed.  He realized, after some time, that nothing was actually wiped out.  It was all hidden.  So he backed up all my precious files onto the backup hard drive and then began to rebuild the ugliness.  My laptop didn't want to cooperate so much.  So it took a while.  Then it was all fixed and all my files and stuff got put back on.  I didn't get back on to blog because I just didn't want to.  Until now. 

* The Basement
We purchased our home 13 1/2 years ago.  The basement has since filled with junk memory filled boxes.  Our boys have shared a room most of their young lives.  It's now time to spread out. Daniel and I have worked tirelessly to clean the basement out and have taken load after load to the dump, DI and the storage unit.  Today there are framers in the basement.  The basement's future never looked so bright.  They will finish up tomorrow today and then we will work on plumbing and electric.  Then we'll hire out the dry wall.  Then carpet, paint, finishing touches, furniture, all culminating in moving day.  Isaac and Sam will have their own rooms and we will have a storage room and a large play, game, family room  to boot, doubling our home's square footage.  It's only taken 13 1/2 years to get it done.  yay us!

* The PTA
As you may already know, I am on the PTA board at the elementary school this year.  I began the year waiting for the time that I would spend hours on end at the school doing, well, PTA stuff.  Well folks, it happened.  This is fundraiser week and next week is Book Fair.  I begin my day at the school at 8:30 and leave when money counting and candy bar box passing out is done.  Then I go help with the deposit if it can be done right then.  Next week will be more of the same.  Although it's kicking my butt, I am enjoying being in the school and doing my job.  It's also fun to see the happenings in the office and chatting with neat ladies. 

*The Announcement
Did you watch conference??  As I listened to President Monson on Saturday morning I cried.  I was in the car with Ruthie and I grabbed her arms (I was parked) and said, "YOU CAN GO ON A MISSION WHEN YOU'RE 19!!!!"  She didn't quite know how to react as I yelled and squeezed and cried.  But as it sunk in she counted the years till she can serve a mission. 10.  That's all.  She'll be 9 in a few weeks.  My boys will each turn 18 while they're still in school, so they will most likely be closer to 19 anyway.  But boy, what a monumental announcement.  I can't wait to see how the sister missionary numbers will rise in the coming months.  I think back to when I chose to serve a mission.  I was 21 1/2 when I left.  I know I never would have gone if the age was 19 then.  I'm sure I would have completely missed that opportunity. I am grateful I did and am so grateful that so many more young women will have the opportunity to serve!!

* The SEOP
In junior high there is a special meeting that takes place with parent, student, and counselor.  It's a time to go through the student's goals and make sure they are achieving all they want to.  Granted, they are 12 and in 7th grade, but it's never a bad time to see how they are coming in their goals for the future.  Isaac and I met with one of the teachers who quickly caught on to Isaac's love of building and engineering.  He suggested he take a Tech class in 8th grade with the teacher sitting close to us.  That teacher went through some of the things they do in class.  Isaac was excited.  Then he suggested a class he can take in 9th grade, which I can't remember.  But I'm sure we'll figure it out.  Isaac has less than 6 years left in school.  Then he'll go on a mission, since he can go right after high school.  Then he will get to work on what might just be an engineering degree.  Or maybe he'll bag groceries awesomely at a grocery store.  Who knows. But it's so wonderful to have the opportunities in junior and high school to help him get started on a career.

* The Field Trips
Sammy and Ruthie both had field trips last week.  On Tuesday I went with Ruthie's class to the Ogden Nature Center.  It was hot I tell ya!  One class mate came to sit by me while we ate lunch and said, "It's so cool that I can come on a field trip and have lunch with my scout leader". To which I replied, "I am Ruthie's mom, you know.  That's why I'm here." Oh.  I think he was a bit deflated.  At least he got to eat with his scout leader.  Sam and I went to the zoo on Friday.  It's wasn't so hot.  In fact I wore my sweatshirt most of the day.  Each of the kids was supposed to fill out some papers on animals.  When we got to the polar bear we had to wait until we could see him.  He finally came bounding out and dove into the water.  Sam was standing right next to the glass as he swam right passed him, then put his feet on the glass to push off and swim.  He did that several times, much to the crowd's amazement.  We cheered and laughed as the polar bear entertained us.  Then he got out of the water and walked away for a bit.  After a few minutes he was back.  Diving, swimming, pushing off, showing off for the crowds.  He's a people pleaser. 

* The Random Commercial Part
Have you seen that commercial that has the kid telling his mom, "Mommy, Mommy! I went potty!". The mom is excited and goes into the bathroom and looks in the toilet, which has not been peed into and says, "Where?".  The boy then points to the tub.  It's a Clorox commercial and cracks me up every time!!  It is so funny that the kid pees in the tub.  Because mine have done the very same thing.  Funny I tell ya!

* The Joy Part
I had a chance to talk to my good friend Laurie one day after school.  I had spent much of the day at the school.  I proceeded to go through all the craziness in my life right now.  PTA, weddings, cub scouts, field trips, sick hubby, basement, kids, nail polish all over my tub.  It just goes on and on.  The next day after school, she came over and gave me a gift bag with some Joy in it.  A book, foot cream, nail polish, nail polish remover, hand sanitizer.  All with a special purpose in helping me de-stress.  I loved the nail polish remover for cleaning out my tub.  I'll get to it some time.  I'm sure.  I realized how much I had complained, but also realized how well my friend listened and understood the stress and craziness going on.  Thank you Laurie.

* The I'm Not Pregnant Part
In case you're wondering.. I'm not.  But this is a bit of an emotional time for me.  If we had kept our paperwork in China we would be the parents of 4 children.  We would have traveled last month for another baby from China.  I would be in the Hell On Wheels part of attachment.  I would not be leaving the house at all.  I would be a basket case.  But I would be happy.  But here we are with our 3 awesome kiddos and all the craziness in our lives.  And I'm a basket case.  Crying and emotional and crazy and using my Long Island accent to break the monotony.  We don't second guess, we are right where we should be.  But for a few moments I've been what if-ing.  And I'm done now and moving on. And we are happy.

* The Time Out Part
Tomorrow I am going to Time Out For Women in Logan.  During all the stress and emotion and stuff, I told Daniel that I was going to back out. The Book Fair, Laps For Lyndsay, Stake Conference, money, kids.  He said to go and enjoy it and not worry about anything.  So I am going with several women from my ward.  I am looking forward to just being.  And just being there.  A short time out for mom. 

And with that I end this post.  Enjoy this once in a lifetime day of 10-11-12.

Pregnancy. Hurts.

I'm wondering if you can see the similarities?

Me at 36 weeks, just before Isaac was born. My face says it all.Mama Cass, I don't know how far along, but very close to delivering. If you could only see her face... it says it all.

Baby goat(s) will be here soon.

Mom's Maid Service.

As a mom do you ever feel like a maid? And then feel you don't get paid enough to be a maid? I decided if I am going to be a maid, I needed to charge for my services. This whole motherhood thing isn't a cash cow, you know! So here's what I just laid out for my kiddos. It's called Mom's Maid Service. And for whatever they happen to leave out, not put away or clear or just plain don't do, I now will gladly do it. Only they will pay me for my services. Here is a list of my fees...
I even have a jingle...

I also wear the most ridiculous apron I own. That's how they know I'm out to make some cash. I dared them to keep me out of business. We'll see just how lucrative this business can be.

I Have A Problem.

Oh the problem, Pansy. Oh oh! I must have fruit! Can you name that movie?

Anyhoo. I really do have a problem. Let me begin at the....well, the beginning. Many moons ago, as a young'un, we (my siblings and I) were made to clean under our beds, wash dishes, fold laundry, care for young siblings, brush our teeth, make our beds, wear clean underwear, pull weeds, vacuum, dust. The list could go on and on. But my mom promised that we could go on national television (I believe Oprah was mentioned as a platform a time or two) and tell our heinous story to the world. Oh the sympathy we could get. I mean, c'mon, no other mother in the world makes their kids do all that stuff. So we adamantly stated that we would one day have revenge on the brutality of kiddom.

Are you with me?

Now, as a mature (hah!!) woman, a mom, a wife, an adult, I see things a bit differently. I now offer my children to share their heinous stories with the world. They can choose any platform they want. Heck, they can even go find a new mom who won't make them do all the brutal work of kiddom. So far they won't leave.

Even with all the complaints and weeping and wailing, I find myself in a quandary. And this is my problem.

It's only this thing on my nose and the hair piece. Everything else is fine!

My kids are just growing up way too fast. For instance, Isaac had a ski field trip on Monday. I made Daniel go with him. I prayed constantly that day that he would be okay. I fretted for the week or so leading up to it. I can't stand the fact that my child, well, my children, are growing up. I need them small and helpless again. Daniel is constantly reminding me that I have to let them grow up and do more. Ack! I don't think it's possible. I don't want them to leave!

But then they start the complaining and weeping and wailing about chores and even cleanliness, and I wonder when they will grow up. It's a never ending problem. A never ending circle of stuff. Someday I'll be sad, yet happy, when they leave home.

Forget the problem. Give me the money!

And if you can name the movie quoted, I will personally congratulate you. I'm just too tired from all the complaining to make cookies!

A Powerful Read.

I got a letter from my mom today. Actually she sent a talk given by Julie B Beck in the Women's Conference at BYU in May, 2009. I read it and loved it. As women, we need to be reminded of our powerful influence and of the importance of our families.

http://ce.byu.edu/cw/womensconference/archive/2009/pdf/Julie_B._Beck.pdf

Enjoy!

I Know You Can Do This.

When I was 12, I was in the hospital for 5 days after being diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. I had to learn to give myself shots, test my blood and learn how to stay healthy. It was tough. I cried a lot. I didn't like that I had to keep giving myself shots. It hurt.

One day, my dad came by himself to visit me. I was really struggling and was crying. My dad sat next to my bed and said something that I have thought of as a great life lesson. With tears in his eyes, he said, “Jennie, I wish I could take this from you and do it myself. If I could do it for you, I would. But Heavenly Father knows you can do this. He knows you will be a stronger person because of it. He knows you will grow and be able to help others because of this experience. I love you. You can do this.”

We sat and cried. It really wasn't what I thought I needed then. I really would have liked for him to just take it from me. But as I have grown and matured and had some super duper struggles, I have come to appreciate what he told me that day. Especially right now.

Daniel and I have been struggling with the adoptions. We have been waiting for what seems a lifetime for our family to grow again. I find myself falling apart at the seams at the most inconvenient times. It's like I have no control over my emotions. And it's difficult to explain to other people the sting of having empty arms.

Daniel and I have been praying and fasting and going to the temple a lot lately with adoption on our minds. We know we need to do more for our cause. We have to advocate for ourselves. We have to do what would normally be extremely uncomfortable for us. And we are okay with that. It's been amazing to receive the guidance we need to move forward. We know we can do it!

We will be sharing some of those things with you. We will be asking for your help. We will be anxiously engaged in finding our birthmom and completing our family.

When things seem to be at their worst. When we think we just can't do it anymore, help comes. I can hear my Heavenly Father saying, “Jennie, I wish I could take this from you and do it myself. If I could do it for you, I would. But I know you can do this. I know you will be a stronger person because of it. I know you will grow and be able to help others because of this experience. I love you. I know you can do this.”

I can. We can. We will. I have Daniel behind me, pushing and loving and never stopping his amazing care of me and our kids. I have the Lord behind me, pushing me, loving me and never stopping His amazing care of me and my family. We are in good hands. One scripture I found last week is now on my wall next to my bed. I read it several times every day.

“Verily, verily, I say unto you, ye are little children, and ye have not as yet understood how great blessings the Father hath in his own hands and prepared for you;

And ye cannot bear all things now; nevertheless, be of good cheer, for I will lead you along. The Kingdom is yours and the blessings thereof are yours, and the riches of eternity are yours.
And he who receiveth all things with thankfulness shall be made glorious; and the things of this earth shall be added unto [you], even an hundred fold, yea, more.”

Doctrine & Covenants 78:17-19

Daniel and I have seen blessings come in droves. I know we will continue to see blessings come. We will eventually have our sweet baby (or babies!) in our arms.

We are blessed.

A Crummy Commercial.

"Mom!! You have to see this!"

"Look, it will organize all your stuff from your wallet!"

"It's so amazing. It will make your brownies already cut up!"

"WOW! You can make even better cakes if you get it!"

"Mom, your whites will be even brighter. You have to use that stuff!"

"You can dry everything with it!"

"You don't have to use a knife to cut stuff anymore!"

"Mom, you really need that toothpaste dispenser."

"If you get the toothpaste dispenser, we won't make any more messes in the bathroom!"

"Mom."

"MOM."

"MOMMMM!!!"

"MOM!! YOU HAVE TO GET THAT!"

My kids have been brainwashed by commercials. You know, the shamwow, the slapshot, the thingy that you put in the brownies when you bake them so they come out as brownie pieces, the cake pans that will change your life, the this, the that, etc. Do you feel my pain? One of my sweet dears even asked me why we don't see Billy Mayes on commercials so much anymore. You're kidding. Right?!

I think they should make commercials of children obeying with exactness when it comes to room cleaning, laundry folding, politeness, manners, hair combing, window washing, ironing, dishes doing, fridge cleaning, floor polishing, bed making, mom and dad worshipping...am I really asking so much?

I didn't think so.

Since my kids already did all their chores today without much complaining, I guess I shouldn't ask for too much.

After all, it's all just a crummy commercial.

My Momma Heartstrings...

Have officially had a workout!! Did you see the mylar balloon in Colorado that was said to have a 6 year old boy in it flying around a couple of counties?? Did you? I sat and watched. I cried. I prayed. I held my heart with my hands. Because of a 6 year old boy!

The balloon just came down after 2 hours of flight. With a 6 year old boy in it! Good Heavenly Days! My momma hearstrings were on fire. But wait! The boy isn't in it. My heartstrings are still stretched a mile long because they don't know where the little boy is now.

I am continuing to watch, hoping they will get information that the little boy is hiding somewhere because he's scared that he let the balloon go. My goodness gracious sakes alive. So there is a search on for this little boy. Where is he? Did he fall out of the balloon? Is he hiding? Is he hurt? My momma heart can't take it!

What would you do if your child got into a 20 foot mylar balloon with helium in it and flew away? What would you do if your child was missing after thinking he was in a helium balloon in the air for 2 hours?

According to what I felt over the last little while, I would probably keel over and not ever get up again.

I hope the boy is in a friend's house under a bed or in a closet. Hiding.

I will go get my kids in an hour from school. I will hug each of them. And be grateful they aren't in a mylar balloon 8000 feet in the air. Or missing.


P.S. The boy has been found safe and sound in a box above the garage where he was hiding. Thank goodness!

Human Again.

That's how I'm starting to feel. This week has been yucky...

Monday:
Ruthie started getting pale and sneezing and her eyes were super watery. Never a good sign.

Tuesday:
Ruthie is really pale, sneezy and can't get out of bed. She stays home from school. I start to sneeze. Thinking it's allergies, I take some allergy meds before bed. I don't sleep at all.

Wednesday:
Ruthie is feeling better and she doesn't want to miss centers. Centers are very important to a Kindergartner. Very. Since it's short day, I agree to send her to school. I, on the other hand, feel like crap. No, worse than crap. I can't breath and everything above my neck hurts. Except my earlobes. But the earlobes do start to hurt eventually. I can't even sit up. I am sicker than a dog. That is, if dogs get super duper sick. Daniel comes home from work and finds me in bed and unable to move. He gets tacos for dinner. Through the night, Isaac is coughing and sneezing and doesn't sleep. I don't sleep either.

Thursday:
Both boys are up and coughing and sneezing. I call the school and no one answers. Because I really need to go back to bed, I leave a message and then I drop. I sleep for 2 1/2 hours. Ruthie is feeling great and goes to school. My face doesn't hurt so much, but it doesn't matter. Even though I can feel that I am better than Wednesday, I still feel worse than crap. My boys are in bad shape. Especially Isaac. No one has a fever. No one has body aches. It's a head cold from h-e-l-l. Really. It is.

Friday:
The boys are slightly worse than yesterday. I call the school. Even though it's short day, they just can't go to school. Nothing as exciting in 2nd and 4th grade like there is in Kindergarten. Ruthie is coughing a fake cough and hoping I will ask her how she feels. When I do, she coughs a fake cough again and says she isn't feeling so good. Tough. I, on the other hand, feel great. Well...not great. But so much better than the last 2 days. My nose isn't stuffy and I'm not sneezy. My head only hurts slightly. I realize I haven't had a diet pepper in the last 2 days. I am enjoying one now. I actually feel human again.

Friday afternoon:
Everyone will be cleaning their rooms today. I will be going to the school to get the boys' work for yesterday and today. They will be doing said work this weekend. Sorry boys. Now that mom is on her feet again there is no mercy. When mom feels human, everybody pays!

What Do You Do When The Garage Door Breaks?

And school starts in less than 10 minutes? And your hubby is an hour away and can't come fix it? And your only vehicle is trapped inside? And your kids are teary eyed from fear? Well, here's what I did. After my kids were scared out of their skin because the spring broke, Loudly!, and then started making noise that could rival a rocket launch, I ran my boys out the door to RUN to school. Here's the seemingly harmless contraption...

Doesn't look too bad until you look at the ginormous spring. What ginormous spring you ask?
That ginormous spring! It had Isaac and Ruthie running in the house screaming, and poor Sam, who was already in the van, hunched down with tears in his eyes, asking, "Is it over?"
As I ran down the street in my flip flops, trying to catch my boys to make sure they were okay, I really tried to hide the tears coming down my face as many people passed and waved. Hello!!

As I yelled down the street to my boys to get to school as fast as they can and to just walk home, my gallant neighbor rode up in his big red truck. He got my boys, drove them to school and then came back to my house and lifted the ginormously heavy garage door and held it there so I could get my van out.

And yes, I was crying!
I thought it would be a good time to release toxins from my body!

Then I called the school to have them check on my boys to make sure they were okay. I cried again. The lady said, "What Happened??" I began to explain that the garage door broke and then I felt a little dumb to have to explain something seemingly trivial while sobbing on the phone. At least someone should have gotten hurt or died or something. Just kidding!

Thank you, Amie and Jeff, for saving me!

My boys were fine.
We all went to get a donut and soda after school. We needed some serious therapy.

We need a new garage door opener. And possibly a new garage door. Isn't 10 years the limit for stuff like that? And I also need new blinds on one of my windows. It won't open. And in my state, I need as much sunshine as possible.

And a diet pepper! And a donut.

It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year. Part 2

Today was the day of days and I am a free woman. At least for just a few hours each day.

This chickie went to Kindergarten and, boy, did she love it. She keeps reminding me that she had fun at school. Then she reminds me that she needs to go back tomorrow and that I don't need to walk her up to the door. Sheesh.

The most wonderful time of the year is officially here!

Hallelujah!

It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year. Part 1

Today my boys went back to school! Yesterday was the first day. But we spent the day with family for Rebecca's funeral. So today was the day of days.

Sam woke up and the first thing he asked Isaac was, "Are you nervous?". Isaac said yes. And they talked about the first day of school yesterday and that today is their first day and they are nervous because everyone else knows everything and got all their instructions, etc.

I agreed to walk Sam to his class and mention to his teacher that today is his first day.

Then we got dressed, attempted to eat breakfast, brushed our teeth and took a picture. Sam wanted to have a picture.

I think he will be fine at school.

This is the first year I actually dreaded going back to school. As much as I am looking forward to having some time alone, I am really not looking forward to being alone. I will miss my kids. It will be an adjustment. But I'm sure with chocolate and diet pepper I will be able to accomplish ANYTHING!

And then I'll love being alone.

And...

Then I'll have a baby!

Vacuums And An Experiment.

This is all Sam would eat for dinner the other night. No meat. No veggies. But I really don't care. He was happy.

But there had to be a catch. This is his "vacuum". He started just vacuuming his noodles up off his plate. See the butter on his face. Yeah. Nice.
And Ruthie got in on the action. She vacuumed all her noodles up, too. But she did eat veggies and meat.

But Daniel and I were tired. So we told the kids we had to go to bed at 7. So the kids said they were fine with that and asked what they needed to do. We told them they needed to do the dishes, clean the house, make dad's lunch for the next day, be nice and go to bed at a decent time. Hee hee. This little thang wanted to do the dishes.

So Daniel and I were lovingly tucked in at 7:03 pm. We didn't hear much from the kiddos for a while. Then Ruthie said she needed to do the dishes. We heard the water turn on. We heard dishes being moved around. These are all that was left in the sink later.

We heard cupboard doors opening and shutting. I finally found the blender pitcher up on this shelf in the laundry room later.

We heard Ruthie shout, "Mom is going to be so pleased with me!" We laughed while we slept. It didn't take long to find this bowl up on the same high shelf in the laundry room after I found the pitcher.

We heard the kids discussing bed time. "So what time should we go to bed?" "How about 9:00." "Well, how about 8:00." "Okay." "Okay." "Okay." It did take a lot more time to find this pot. But once found, I was happy.

We got up out of bed around 7:16 pm. We were too enthused to see what Ruthie had done in the kitchen. All the dishes we found in various spots were soaped and then dried and then put on a shelf. This is how much soap was still in the pitcher when I went to rinse it.

Our little experiment was fun. I still needed to do the dishes. The kids went to bed at 8:30. And mom and dad had a nice little nap.

I Have Kids...

And having kids means things get stuck where they shouldn't be stuck.

Isaac got the pliers out yesterday and pulled a quarter out of a door jam. I'll blog about that find tomorrow....

So I grabbed those pliers and went out to the dashboard of my mini wimpy van. We've had plastic fork pieces stuck in the dashboard for a while now.
We've been talking about removing the fork pieces for quite some time now, too.
What's a girl to do?

So there you go. I have kids. Which means I have things stuck in places they shouldn't be stuck.

Now I just have unsightly dents in my dashboard. And Isaac is .25 cents richer.

Confessions Of A Stay At Home Mom.

I am home all day. I have windows all along the side of my house that faces a main road. I have good hearing. I am a worry wart.

And that adds up to me being an ambulance chaser.


Okay. A firetruck chaser.

When I hear sirens I watch out one of the back windows to see if the sirens turn into my neighborhood.

Usually they don't.

We live near a firestation.

Tonight my kids were outside and they know how their mom is. Ruthie came running in and said a firetruck just turned into our city.

You mean our neighborhood?

Yes, our neighborhood.

So I went out the front door to see where it was headed.

It was coming down my street.

Yikes!

I think of our neighbor girl. But saw them leave on a camping trip earlier today.

The firetruck went down, around, and over to the next neighborhood. And then stopped where I could see the truck.

So what does a mom with a mini wimpy van do??

I followed!

A lady had been bucked off her horse and then kicked. She didn't know what day it was. As I was talking to some girls about what had happened the ambulance and paramedic drove in and nearly squished the mini wimpy van. I slunk away to make some phone calls.

Why is it that everyone who should be contacted about this kinda stuff is out of town when I am the one who finds out? Sheesh. I called my friend who is a friend of the lady and her hubby ran over to help.

Daniel just got back from the hospital where he and the Elders Quorum President gave her a blessing. She's okay. Some broken ribs. She remembered what day it is.

Daniel just left to go get us...well...let's just say he's thinking Arby's.

My name is Jennie and I'm a stay at home mom with a lot of windows that face a main road and I have good hearing and I am a worry wart.

That's my confession.

Monday Musings.

I just love it when I put on an old pair of pants that were so tight before and they now fit perfectly. Or even better..they fit loosely!! Well, I think I would love it. I really do.

I love having a clean house. With all the laundry clean and folded and the laundry baskets empty. With all the dishes clean and stacked nicely. With the floors so clean you could eat off them. With walls so spotless you could have sworn it was less than 2 years since you've painted them. Oh yeah.

I love having a quiet summer afternoon all to myself. With my clean, quiet house surrounding me, my old jeans fitting loosely around my belly and a cold caffeinated beverage in my hand. Mmm.

I love a clean car. I sure do. With no dirt, no hand prints, no squished bugs, no mud, no wrappers, no dust. And being able to listen to the kind of music I want to listen to.

REALITY:

Dirty dishes in my sink. Dirty laundry stacking up. Clean laundry that could use a good folding. Sponge Bob playing loudly on the TV. Spots on my floor. Sticky stuff on my floors. And my walls. A little person asking questions about how to cook mashed potatoes in the microwave. A sunburn on my neck. A huge ugly beet sitting on my kitchen counter. Suds on my arms from washing the filthy car. Still have a filthy car. Toys always underfoot. Unmade beds throughout the house. Happy, giggling kiddos. Smiles made bigger with our weekly summer adventures. A hose and lots of water toys always ready for action. Sore bums from riding bikes. Lots of summer memories.

I'll take the clean house, spotless car, and no laundry stacks when my kids move out. Somehow life is just too perfect right now. Except that my pants are way too tight. The cold caffeinated beverage seems to be helping.

I Love Easy.

I do. Seriously. And as I look at the long list of everything we need to pack to take with us this next week, it makes my tummy hurt. Since we'll be camping, we have to take a lot of stuff. A LOT OF STUFF. So I was making my shopping list and then had to go through 4 weeks of Sunday newspapers for the coupons so I could use the coupons to save a little dough. As I got the coupon stuff out, I notice a coupon for this on the front...

It's a sheet (much like a dryer sheet) that you put in the washer and then the dryer to take the place of all of these...

Serious?! Right on. $2.00 off the cost of the dispenser and 20 sheets for $5.something. $3.something. Can't go wrong with that. Right? And all I have to take with me to do laundry at the KOA laundry center is a few of these sheets. Uhuh. So I throw it in each load. The first load doesn't really smell....um....clean. Like the clean smell I'm used to. And my laundry room didn't smell all...um...downyish. You know?

My towels. I don't ever use fabric softener when I wash towels. But since this isn't a real shot of downy in my washer, I threw one in with my towels. They came out the best. Mmmmm...

So clean. So soft. So I will take several sheets to throw into the laundry on the trip. And then keep what's left for the next time we stay at a KOA Kampground and need to do laundry. But when we get back, I'll be throwing all my laundry in with my regular detergent, my fabric softener and a yummy dryer sheet.

I love easy. But I also love the smell of my clean laundry. Now back to all the packing. And organizing. And packing. And packing And packing. And packing.....

Somebody save me.....

Be Prepared.

So we had a little friend of Ruthie's over to play today. Along with lots of other girls. Her friend lives next door and is here a lot! We really like her. While the kids were playing on the tramp and I was talking to Lorena, the other girls' mom, at the kitchen table, Ruthie came in and said that the little friend peed her pants. Oh man! So I tell Ruthie to tell her friend to go home so she can change. After a minute or 2 Ruthie calls to me that she won't go. So I go to the back door and tell her to just go home so her mom can help her. She is lying on the tramp and all the kids are standing around her. She doesn't move. So I figure she is just embarassed and doesn't want to get up. So I walked down to help her get up and out and then Lorena tells me to look at her foot. "Is she having a seizure?" Oh my goodness! I jump on to the tramp and grab her. Sure enough, she is having a seizure. I told Lorena to go get her mom and then told the kids to get off the tramp. I just talked to her and told her she was okay and that her mom was coming, just like her mom told me to do if she ever had a seizure at my house. Her mom came running over and worked her out of it without much trouble and without meds. Just last month they had to call 911 because she didn't stop after a 1/2 hour of seizing. I was a little scared.

Just this morning, I got a visit from my other neighbor who asked if my kids had been to her house not long before. They had heard what sounded like frantic kid knocking. They were asleep, so they didn't get up. Nope, not my kids. But here is our deal. If I don't wake up and Daniel isn't home, the kids are supposed to run to her house and bang on the door, ring the doorbell and knock on the window until she comes to the door. If she isn't home, they are supposed to come right back home and call 911. Me not waking up would be because I am a diabetic and once, a while back, I had a seizure in the middle of the night and almost died. Daniel had to call 911 and they had to pump me with glucose through an IV to get me back. That was while on vacation. When we got home, it happened again, but Daniel got me back before he had to call 911.
These are the faces I saw when I came to in the hotel room. They were talking to Daniel and my mom and dad and tapping my arm saying, "Wake up Jennie. Wake up Jennie."

So obviously, we try to be prepared.

Today was a perfect time to go through the drill in an emergency. I hope we never never never have to bang on Amie's door because mom won't wake up. I hope our little friend always comes out of her seizures quickly. And I hope you all take the necessary precautions with your kids to make sure you are always prepared.

Trusting Mom.

I was lying on the play room floor with Sam. He was playing demolition derby with his cars. I grabbed one that he didn't want for the derby and was driving it around him. Then I noticed...
...the steering wheel is on the wrong side. So I say, "Hey, the steering wheel's on the wrong side". Sam looks at it, goes back to his derby, and says, "It's from New York". I asked why he says it's from New York. He said because the steering wheel is on the wrong side. So I ask why that means it's from New York. He just shrugged and said that's what I told him. Hmmm... Oh, you mean Europe. That's another country. And the steering wheels are on the other side in their cars. He just looked at me with his big brown eyes and said, "Oooohhhh...."

I love that he trusted something I "said" even though he most likely didn't understand it and it really didn't mean much to him. Except that he has believed that New Yorkers drive with the steering wheel on the wrong side for some time now. I wonder what else is in his little brain.....