I'm Quirky and I know it

Today I realized that I am really a weird person for many different ways...and I am cool with that....

I like ICE cold water BUT I prefer my soft drinks lukewarm and room temperature.

I love playing outside and being in the great outdoors BUT I don't like the smell of children after they play outside.

I hate having cold feel at night BUT I can't sleep in socks...I will kick them off in the middle of the night.

I hate listening to people snore BUT I can't sleep if I can't hear a fan because I worry that the air will be too still and I will suffocate.

I love snuggles and hugs BUT I hate them from little feverish bodies and then I feel bad because that is when they need them most.

I love Spring and Summer and warm weather BUT if I have a sunburn I get really resentful of them.

I know in the grand scheme of things these things don't really matter but I do find them a little interesting as I continue the journey of improving myself.

BUSY

So I am  busy right now.

Super Busy...you know the kind, lots of stuff going on, lots of programs for the kids, lots of places to go, lots to do...BUSY.

I'm rushing here, I'm trying to do this, I'm trying to finish that, I'm going so fast I don't know if I am coming or going.  I'm BUSY.   And it's not the good kind of busy...some of it is, other is not.

I've got stuff for my class at my school:

• Mother's Day Projects
• Finishing Portfolios
• Finishing Lesson Plans
• Finalizing Summer Stuff
• Keeping up the the Schedule
• Parent Teacher Conferences

I've got stuff for the Big kids

• Janea's in drama, so that means play practice, chauffeuring her to rehearsals, late pickups from school, Saturday workdays
• Jaron will have a 504 meeting for some issues he is having and that means taking time off work and finding childcare
• Youth Group
• Last nights at Awana
• Going on a weekend with Grandma and Grandpa
• Projects, Map Testing and Finals

I've got stuff with Jayden

• Muffins with Mom
• Parkwood Sunday
• Well baby checkups and special outings to the park

I need time with the hubby but we are currently juggling all the little stuff.

It's busy...and I feel like I am failing.

But I'm not,

I'm making the time, I'm trying to meet the needs of the family.

I'm a little stressed but I am trying to prioritze and make sure that the important stuff gets done, that I am meeting all the needs of the emotions and not just focusing on the checklist.  It's hard, but I am doing it.

So we are Busy...and we will make it to SUMMER!!!  Only a few weeks left!

"Sticking" Together

"Sticks and Stones May Break My Bones but words will never hurt me"
remember that rhyme?  It isn't true...words do hurt but this post isn't about the words it's about Sticks.

Sticks....lots of sticks!

We have 4 large trees in our front yard.  We have one large tree in our back yard.  We had a very snowy winter...which means lots of sticks have fallen off of our trees and into our yard.

The husband hates sticks!  Especially when he is mowing our yard.  They kick up, poke, clog the mower.  So every time he mows he sends the 10 year old around the yard to look for sticks.

The 10 year old isn't the greatest at finding all the sticks...but he gets a lot of them. I too went around looking for the sticks and Dan helped a lot too!

The big question then becomes what are we going to do with all these STICKS!  It's usually a really high pile!

This weekend we took care of the sticks by burning them.  In the past  we have burned them in the fireplace...a horrible messy job that drive me as the mom crazy!  There will be stick particles and dirt everywhere.  


The husband knows that I hate this so we went out and bought a fire-pit this weekend.  And we burned sticks yesterday...for almost 2 hours!  We had a lot of sticks.  

Dan was busy mowing the lawn, so I got put in charge of manning the fire.  I really don't fire.  I was badly burned as a young child and fire makes me really nervous.  But the job needed to be done and I am a much more logical choice to man the job then the 10 year old.  The firstborn was off doing the drama thing at her school.

So yesterday the lawn got mowed, the sticks got burned, we worked together.  It was good...I smelled terrible last night and was super tired but I felt like we had accomplished something.

On a cute note...the toddler got a lawnmower for his birthday from Grandma and Grandpa and he was going around and around the house yesterday just like daddy mowing the lawn!  I wish I had had my camera out to capture the cuteness of it all!

A Parenting Perk

This month we hit the start of a milestone year...the year where we will have a 2 year old, an 11 year old, and an "official" Teenager...13!

I'll be honest, I'm a little bit intimidated by the the layers of parenting this brood.

We are now juggling tantrums, school projects, school activities, boys looming on the horizon, and the never ending driving to this event and that event.

I will admit though it has it perks.  We have a built in babysitter(if her schedule allows)  case in point  last night.

Yesterday and every Friday my class at school is very CRAZY!  We have 8 very loud boys in the class and they are very crazy and by Friday it's brace yourself, and hold on for dear life!  It was extra crazy yesterday.  And I was kidded out...literally.

So Dan and I talk frequently as we drive home for work and I suggested that I could use a night off this weekend if Janea was game to watch the boys...he had had a very busy week as well and was also in need of some spouse time so he volunteered to get her from Drama practice and then informed her of the plan.

I had enough Papa Johns' reward points for a free pizza!  The kids love pizza so that was their dinner...I just payed for extra cheese sticks on the side.  Dinner for them, under 10 bucks!

Dan and I enjoyed a nice meal out without the kids.  It was nice to talk and chat in the car, to enjoy a meal with no real interruptions and me not having to think about cooking something!

An hour and a half off.  It was nice, it was really nice and it basically cost us very little for babysitting...a pizza dinner and new ear buds for Janea.

I'm very appreciative of a daughter who is willing to babysit and allow us as parents some much needed time off as a thank you for all we do for her!

Happy Birthday's!

This week was Jayden's 2nd Birthday and the anniversary of my sister's birth!  They share a day!

They are honestly some of my favorite people in the world!  So thankful for both of them and their special days!

Happy Birthday to you both!  May you each have many more years of love and fun!

Toddler Fun

Tonight, Jayden and I played in his room and we did the following:

• Built a train set, took it apart, remade it, and then drove a car on it....bububububub...
• Climbed on the bed and spun in circles(I didn't do this but sat and watched)
• Hid 2 legos in a blanket bucket and then hid ourselves in the bucket and then covered mommy up and said peek a boo
• Cooked some imaginary food and shoved it in mommy's mouth...(still working on the concept of gentle)
• Sang Ring around the Rosie about a 100 times and got dizzy and fell down.
• Shared kisses and hugs
• Got into jammies

Now he just needs to go to bed, cuz mommy is TIRED!  Jayden is still going strong but boy, I'm tired!

Love My Little Man!

Sanity

I'm quickly reaching my breaking point,

My sanity is leaving me.

I've forgotten how hard parenting a toddler can be..

Jayden is busy.  He turns 2 in 9 days.  He is curious, he is fun loving he is in a word....EXHAUSTING!

The toddler after he spilled half a bottle of lotion all over himself and my kitchen!

Today, he went to my workday and staff meeting with me.  It was not a relaxing time during the meeting, and I really hope my coworker took good notes because I was not really paying attention.

We got in the car to come home and he fell asleep.  I thought I could transfer him to his bed...WRONG...he woke up and then hasn't napped since 12:40 this afternoon.  It's dinner time now and he is going strong.

I needed nap time today.  I needed quiet and peace and a moment to breathe....and I didn't get them.  I'm a little bit angry about it too.

I love my son, I do, he is a joy to my life and a lot of fun to be around.  He is also into everything.  I was working on dinner and turned around to find him standing on my kitchen table trying to get into the cake container to have a piece of leftover birthday cake!  ON THE TABLE???  WHY???

He is running around without a diaper, just pants, I know this because he keeps taking it off...might mean he is ready to potty train, might mean he likes freedom...probably means a mess for me to clean up soon...

See...  I am quickly losing my sanity...

I'm praying for wisdom, strength and sanity!  Also for ease in potty training!