Little Sweeper

Sarah is at the stage of trying to be like everyone around her. She tries to join in the dinner jobs with all of her older siblings. (She's been helping me unload the dishwasher for months.)

The other day, I was trying to sweep the floor and Sarah was right there to participate. As you can see, she wasn't helping much. The darn broom came apart!

No matter, she knows what the most important part is.

I guess she's trying to use the handle like a litter stick. Or maybe she's breaking down the bigger crumbs.

I eventually had to put her broom back together and move her to part I already did, just so I could finish up with the dust pan! Such a cute little helper.

My "To Do" list

We all have one. Some of us don't admit it, but it's there just the same.

Most of us have one very large list that's actually made up of several smaller categories. I have one of those. My list has categories like these:

Must do: Things I can't put off any longer. These things aren't technically on the list because I have to do them, but it feels better to cross off something (even if it is only mentally) and so I include those. In reality, these are the things that I have to do in order to start on the things I really have on my "to do" list.

Need to do: Things I otherwise call "chores." This is stuff that I'm supposed to do in the course of a day to make me feel like a good housewife and mother. These are things that can be put off (and usually are) until the job becomes so big it gets moved up to the Must Do category.

Should do: Things that are going to make life more pleasant, but if I don't get to them, everything will still be OK...until the job gets moved up a category!

Want to do: Things that I should really call Free Time. Sadly, this is the list that often gets put before Need To Do, which might be why we often find our clothes out of the laundry basket instead of the drawers!

And then, despite our large lists we deal with unexpected disruptions and the sad reality that we often get caught up in the To Do lists of people around us. That just muddles the whole process.

So what's my "To Do" list for today? Though not complete, nor listed by priority, I am hoping to do these things today:
1. Get the Ward Directory ready to print! (I am meeting the librarian at the church tomorrow night, so this is on my MUST DO list!)
2. Fold laundry. This is etched permanently onto my list. :(
3. Sew pants for Leah. They've been cut out for a couple of months now, but Christmas over-rode the importance.
4. Wash fabric for Christmas PJ's. (Check. It's in the washer -13.5 yards- already.) Yep! I am already planning for Christmas next year! Don't be too impressed; I did this last year, too. The fabric sat on my sewing table for 11 months.

And if I can get that done, I'll find some fun stuff to do later today. (Like blogging. Didn't I tell you this category often got in the way of the more important stuff?)

Sarah's First Year

I almost dropped a real tear as I was completing this LO. Sarah's first year is over. She has grown so much and brings us so much joy. And now that she sleeps through the night, I can enjoy the joy even more!

I pulled up Rebekah's first year LO to compare the two girls and realized how much I am going to miss capturing these beautiful baby faces. And I'm also looking at how much I can see 5-year-old Rebekah in the face of 12-month-old Rebekah. So then I started staring at Sarah's 12-month-old picture here, trying to imagine what she will look like when she's a few years older. That's a really tough task at 10:30 at night!

BTW: I only have one more LO to go before I finish 2004. It's that 4th of July one that I'm trying to decide if I want to buy a new kit for. (I probably will end up buying it, but if I wait, maybe it will appear that I was being careful with my money!)

Even so, I did get through Leah and Rebekah's drawers and pulled out the clothes that were too small. And then I cleaned their room, hauled out a whole bag of garbage (like I end up doing every time I go in there) and vacuumed the room and hall. It only took me two hours since I had to CONSTANTLY pick up Sarah and put her back where I could keep her out of trouble. That was a less effective way to work! I also cleaned 1/2 the bathroom. Why half? It was the most obvious part of the mess. :)

So I didn't just sit and scrapbook yesterday. I was a good girl!

1x+7n= ZERO

I'm doing a little math here. It's likely you'll need me to show my work. I'll use this post as my "scratch paper."

x = an organized person. This is a person who puts things away, knows where they go and repairs them when they get broken. This person buys weed killer AND uses it. This is a person that throws things away when they are empty or otherwise at their limit. This is a person who is willing to spend money on something new and then care for it to keep from having to replace it again. This person is a little uptight and less likely to relax.

n = an UNorganized person. This is a person who leaves things out indefinitely. This person doesn't usually know where things go and often has to ask an organized person where to look for what they want. This is a person who decorates the yard only with things that aren't usually yard items; and leaves them there so long that eventually, they decay or get lost in the grass (that can't be mowed because this thing is in the way). This is a person who is expert at garbage stacking (it's best to start with the garbage can in a corner for the extra support), can't smell the garbage to know when to take it out, and often doesn't realize that the things around them ARE garbage! This person often doesn't know what color their carpet is. This is a person who uses the garage to hide their junk pile...only leaving a big enough space for the car (so that the organized drivers won't throw a tantrum). This is a person who is generally content with the way things are (except for the uptight organized people they have to live with).

In my experience, 1x+7n = ZERO. One person who WANTS to be organized has no chance. The organized person, to survive, adopts some (many) of the unorganized characteristics. In the spirit of "if you can't beat 'em, join 'em," the organized person starts pulling laundry out of the basket instead of getting it folded and put away. They mow the lawn/weeds in very erratic lines because they don't have time to clean the yard AND mow. They step over the messes left around the house because in the list of things that MUST be done, a pile of magazines shredded and strewn around the house ranks very low.

And so our house is a mess. I'm the only one who cares - it seems. I guess 1 out of 8 unhappy people is actually a success. Right? Ugh.

How do I get more time?

Argh! It seems like as soon as I get one thing crossed off my list, two more get added. Who keeps writing on my to "To Do" list?

I REALLY need to spend some time in the heap of clothes that's been growing in Sarah and Joseph's room. (Pamela, did you get my email?) And the kitchen isn't getting any better. That needs a good 90 minutes of my time (which I don't want to do because it makes my heel hurt.)

I have several church things that I need to do.

The kids have had a run of doctors appts. We were out of town for 5 hours yesterday taking care of that. And tomorrow is the dentist.

The bathroom still looks like it blew up. I need to climb in there around all the construction materials and power tools and try to vacuum up/sweep up sawdust and drywall chunks.

I have more weeds in my flower beds than flowers.

It's my dad's b-day in a week and a half. I still haven't made his Father's Day gift for him (on my list for today) and now I need to get ready to mail everything at once.

And on top of all that, my family still expects to EAT!!!

Sarah's second tooth has come in. That should explain her behavior lately. (I must be feeling English...I tried to spell behavior ...behaviour.)

And now, Nathan has scouts in 30 minutes. I guess I should wake him up.

One at a time

You know that little safety feature on minivans that doesn't let you open the sliding door once the gas door is open?

I wish I could improve upon that idea and put it to use in my home. With my idea, the toys would only function one at a time. If you didn't put the last one you used back, you would be unable to access the next one.

How do I make this automation work? I'm really getting frustrated with the growing messes and the apathy that everyone has toward them.

So much time...

...so little desire.

I have an entire house full of "jobs for mom." Most of these jobs have been created by the mom's kids, but expecting them to be very helpful is rather optimistic.

It's not that I mind doing housework. Actually, I used to dream of staying home with the children, keeping the house tidy, baking cookies, hosting picnics in the backyard and having educational moments with the darlings during the normal course of the day. HA! That's why those are called dreams.

As it is, all that I've accomplished from that list is staying home with the kids. I can hardly keep anything tidy (even my personal spaces), I have NO desire to bake cookies, though I wouldn't mind eating 2 or 10, picnics in the backyard don't include me and usually end up with paper plates littering the lawn (despite repeated reminders) and educational moments are hard fought around here.

Part of my trouble lately is a heel pain that won't go away (we're talking months now) and the more I stay on my feet, the worse the next day is. So I am lazy at home, hoping to at least avoid the pain for a few moments. Too bad all the clutter doesn't gravitate towards me while I'm sitting around...I could really get something done then!

Even so, I'm not sitting around, because toilets get flooded, diapers get full, tummies get hungry, chores DO have to be done and errands need to be run. And some how, life got busier when summer started. Whatever happened to the "lazy days of summer?"

Forced Exercise

Sarah has completed her crawling training now and is getting nearly everywhere she desires. Luckily, Joseph watches her like a hawk and often sounds the alarm. It sounds like this: Mommy...Mommy! Baby.

And this means that I am being summoned from one end of the house to the other...constantly. Sarah is on the move and so is her mother! Before, we just had to make sure all the tiny pieces of [whatever] were off the carpet in the room she was in. Now it's everywhere. Ugh. That's a big job because there are a lot of people who drop stuff around here.

And then this morning I realized that it wasn't just on the floor that I needed to be concerned about. Last night, Sarah proved that she can pull herself up to a stand at the coffee table. Shoot. That's where we used to put the stuff we took away from her!

Organized and confused

I reorganized my kitchen cupboards today. I have 5 individual above-counter cupboards. (OK, there are 7, but I don't really count the ones above the fridge and microwave/stove.)

We have lived here 2 1/2 years. When we moved in, I was over 8 months pregnant. I didn't put a lot of effort into planning out the kitchen...I just wanted to put stuff away.

I have been complaining about not being able to reach the cupboard with the dishes when the dishwasher is open. I've even said that when (if) we build, the dishwasher would NOT go under the cupboard where the dishes are. Huh...I never thought to move the dishes.

And then I started thinking about the rest of the cupboards. Why is the cupboard with the cereal the very farthest away? And the closest cupboard is the one I open the least.

So I rearranged everything. I threw a few things out and wiped down all the shelves. And even though the cupboards are shut, hiding all contents, I still feel better walking into the kitchen.

Now I get to be confused for the next several months while I try to remember that the plates are where the baby food used to be, the cereal is where the spice carousel used to spin and the jello is tucked into the corner that used to hold the baking cocoa. Good thing I didn't have to change the bottom cupboards and drawers!

WORK

This was the Daily Gem for today. I usually like the messages from Daily Gems. Today...not so much. I feel too tired to think of working. And just getting ready to work is work! I have to have the "perfect storm" of content kids to get anything done.

*sigh* One more thing to give me guilt (along with the dirty bathroom, unmopped floor, baskets of yet-to-be-folded laundry, lonely vacuum, smudged windows - no, that's not frost, etc.).

Work Is an Opportunity

"Work is an antidote for anxiety, an ointment for sorrow, and a doorway to possibility. Whatever our circumstances in life, my dear brethren, let us do the best we can and cultivate a reputation for excellence in all that we do. Let us set our minds and bodies to the glorious opportunity for work that each new day presents."

Dieter F. Uchtdorf, "Two Principles for Any Economy," Ensign, Nov. 2009, 56

On a more positive note: Sarah is doing much better...a comment you may not fully understand since I never blogged about the night of endless crying/screaming followed by a second visit to the doctor's office (one Sat. morn, one Mon. morn), only to be seen by the PA who checked her ears but had to be reminded to check her throat and sent me home with a "good luck" and "hang in there", but took my money.

Anyway, she's back to sleeping in her crib and not coughing like her last breath is being forced from her throat. I'm very grateful for the nebulizer our insurance company paid for when the boys were little. It keeps coming in handy!

Embarrassed

There are several things about me and my life that cause me distress. One of them is my messy house. I'd consider blowing it up, but I'm not sure anyone would be able to see the difference. I could have a clean house, but it would be the only thing I had and I think that's a poor trade.

Yesterday, a friend followed me home from choir practice so I could give her some eggs. As we were walking towards the door and stepping inside, I was dying inside. I knew that entrance was a mess and it gave a back view of the kitchen...that we can usually hide from the main entrance. Additionally, it was Sunday afternoon...the end of a weekend. Maybe some houses end up clean after a whole weekend to get it that way. Ours is the opposite. We had a whole weekend to mess it up.

I kicked aside snow boots and baby toys (I was disgusted to see Sarah's baby toy sitting in a dirty entryway...thanks Joseph), maneuvered around the garbage bags sitting next to the overflowing garbage can, and pretended I didn't see the lack of open counters in the kitchen. I hoped she didn't see the jumble of food stuffs crammed into the fridge when I opened it. The worry entered my mind at that point that I hoped she didn't think the eggs were bad since everything else was presenting such a hygienic image.

When I muttered something about the mess, she was very kind and said it looked like "home." Oh yeah? It didn't look like her home. I know; I've been in it several times. She also has a big family, but her youngest is older than my oldest and only 3 are still at home. So I have something to look forward to...I hope.

And what did I get out of the experience? A big frustrated feeling of EMBARRASSMENT! I'm not feeling philosophical...just embarrassed.

HELP

I was raised by a very exacting mother and absent father. I don't know if I have a normal set of expectations for my children. Often, I feel like I expect too much of them and am harsher than I should be because I'm not getting my expectations met.

Sometimes I get so frustrated that all I can think to do is pick up a stick and put a welt across their behind or a knot on top of their head. So I just yell at them, clench my fists and leave the room (or make them leave).

This summer has been particularly hard for me, being pregnant, in the heat, with 5 kids home all day and suddenly losing the freedom to call on Chad for help whenever I needed it.

Yesterday, Daniel joyfully tormented the people around him because he was bored. He was very glib about it...he was bothering people because he was bored. But he didn't want to do anything about being bored...he just wanted to bother people. I wanted to rip his nasty personality out through his nose.

This morning, Daniel made Leah sit down in a plate of play dough. Only one person thought that was funny. I was so stinkin' mad! I had given them the job to clean up their rooms and bathroom so they could vacuum and then bring the vacuum down to me to use. Nine o'clock and Daniel is in his pajamas, standing in the computer chair...doing some kind of nonsense. I lost all sense.

This is what I found in the bathroom upstairs. Cleaning products by a wet stuffed animal. I'm not sure if there is a connection. It surely won't surprise me to learn there is. A big tupperware bowl on the counter. Having a late night left-over binge? And this is the picture that doesn't bother me too much.

This is where I lost my mind. How many tissues do they really need? And when are they going to decide that the garbage can can't hold any more? See that big plastic bag? It's a garbage bag...from the last time they filled the trash can. Do I really need to show them the connection? And of course, no one knows how it got to be that way. THEY surely didn't do it. Maybe I should make them go outside to use the toilet or blow their nose. We won't notice a lot of extra leaves all over the ground.



I've grounded everyone and it is a work day...all day. My lazy, complaining kids are going to drive me nuts. I can't work all day! Joseph is already hanging on me and whining. It's only 9:15. I can barely get up the stairs without passing out.

But I am so done with these spoiled kids. Then again, are they spoiled? I don't know if this is just normal kid behavior and I'm off the deep end trying to make them into something they can't be. My mom told me once that she handled motherhood better...that's why her kids were better behaved. She wasn't raising my kids. And I'm not willing to travel some of the roads she did.

So I'm wondering, are my kids normal? Do you have the same problems with yours? Do you think everything is going smoothly and then hear an ear-piercing scream and listen as the universe crumbles while one evil villain smiles in satisfaction?

Truly, I'm not looking for advice. I just want to know that I'm going crazy with the rest of the world. Otherwise, I'll probably end up in the county lock-up. You can google my name later and find out all the horrible details.

I need an old farmer grandpa that I can send them to live with for 3 weeks. Don't those always have positive endings? Work them to death and see if they don't appreciate what they've really got.

Kirby

Have you ever had one of those Kirby vacuum sales people come to your door? We did a little over 3 years ago and ended up with a big, silver monster vacuum. It actually works pretty well. It had better last 20 years, for what we paid for it!

I don't actually like to vacuum, so I expect the vacuum to have a fairly long life. But lately, I've had to use it more often.

Enter Kirby Jr. I mean Kirby Joseph. I mean Joseph. Yes, it's that bad. Chad and I were talking about it last night (we fished garbage out his mouth repeatedly yesterday) and we're not sure if he's been the worst at putting things in his mouth or if he just has the most people to drop things on the floor for him.

He's thrown up two different times because he's eaten something bad. I think we got a piece of petrified chicken out of his mouth yesterday. It was over an inch long. I've found him sucking on Rebekah's discarded cherry tomato, dried pound cake, marbles, game tokens, paper, a twig, etc, etc, etc. He got mad earlier today when the bead he was trying to enjoy didn't yield up any flavor and didn't mash up in his gums. Last week I recognized the slice of crayon that had been on the floor earlier...in his diaper.

Ironically, the kid does not like baby food. He won't eat more than a few bites before he's slumped to the side of his high chair, looking for a corner to hide in. One of his favorite foods is bread. That's fine with me because it's portable and not very messy.

So I'm going to have to vacuum a bit more and put the broom into action occasionally. Darn it. These kids are making me work!

Here's a little scrapbook page I whipped up for a challenge at one of the websites I frequent. I thought it would look nice on this new orange background. :) That's the same reason I'm saving the pink layout I did yesterday. Pink and orange are only good in sunsets.

Treading Water

That's what I feel like I'm doing in my life right now. There are so many things that need to be done amongst the things that are demanding I get done, despite the things I want to do and instead of the things that I should have done. Make any sense? Exactly my point.

I feel like I am being pulled in 50 different directions when all I really want to do it hide in my room and read a book or take a nap. Even the computer sees less of me. (I admit, that's probably a good thing.)

My house is a never ending chore that refuses to cooperate. One thing can be blocking the hallway for a day or a week. It doesn't move until I move it, or someone kicks it to a new spot or I explode in a fireball of emotions and everyone quickly/quietly restores order.

I grounded the toy room and it's entire contents for two weeks (we still have one week to go). Who is suffering the most? ME. Now Leah doesn't know what to do and doesn't like any of my suggestions. The kids find other places to amuse themselves. I wouldn't mind at all if they had even a sliver of responsibility. Everyone just drops things where they are standing at the moment. Sometimes it's within minutes of me just picking it up!!!!

Daniel is struggling with his math and therefore causing much contention all evening about it. He needs me to sit down with him and focus. Too bad there are 49 other things I'm supposed to be doing.

Nathan is shrinking before our very eyes because he refuses to eat or even TASTE anything new. And when he laughs while we yell at him (for jumping on the furniture during scriptures, etc.), I just want to scream.

Leah has become quite bossy to Rebekah and whines or screams most things at the rest of us. For just one day, I wish she would keep her promise of, "I'm never talking to you AGAIN!"

Rebekah isn't too bad. I'm just overloaded and can't even stand it when she comes up to me and leans on my leg. (How bad off am I if the touch from my own child raises my blood pressure?)

Joseph has a deep attachment to me that involves crying when I walk out of the room...while Daddy is holding him. He HATES getting his diaper changed and pretty much cries the second I sit down anywhere with him. I have to stuff him into his car seat every time we go somewhere. How do little babies wiggle so much? He has been suffering with two little teeth for over a week now. They started coming in with the two middle ones, but never got past the first corner poking through. We're all feeling the pain.

I dreamt last night that I was being put in as Sunday School Pres. I am SO GLAD that is never going to happen! But I still feel the odd stress of having to pick counselors. Why do my dreams do that to me? Does anyone else get intense and unsettling dreams?

Thanks for letting me vent. Now I have to go get Joseph. He's been wanting out of that crib for the past 20 minutes.

My life stinks!

Now before you refer me to your favorite therapist or sneak a sample from your cousin, Cynthia - the Pharmaceutical Rep., keep reading.

I smell dead things.

I also smell living things. I mostly smell stinky things. If there is a nasty odor, I usually know about it and am probably looking for the source if it's in my own house. (If it's in someone else's house, I suffer and feel slightly grossed out.) I've joked that it gets worse when I'm pregnant. I'm not sure about that. I think that I have been pregnant so much in the last 9 years that my nose no longer knows the difference.

The worst recurring smells in my house are the kitchen disposal (I try to peel all my oranges into the sink just to chop them up in the disposal. Did you know about the power of orange peels?), the garbage can -EWW!, and the diaper pail. Occasionally, I am assaulted by something yucky in the washer (a towel used to clean up milk spills or Rebekah's pants after she almost made it to the potty in time, etc).

I smell bad breath on others almost instantly. I've caught a hint of my own at times, but not too often. I don't know if that means that I don't have bad breath or if I just do recognize my own stink. I learned in High School to hold my breath when a person passed by my seat. That trick still comes in handy on airplanes.

So I've been enjoying a "new car" smell in our van since we got it about 6-7 weeks ago. And then about Monday I started smelling something bad. I thought it was a dirty diaper. I searched and searched, but couldn't find it. Every time I opened the doors, I'd smell it again and I was getting frustrated! Yesterday was do or die...I was going to find the source of the odor, even if I had to remove everything in the process. Luckily, I didn't have to go that far.

I had given all the kids an apple juice box after the fair on Saturday. We usually drink a third of Rebekah's drinks before we pass them to her. I should have given her even less. Rebekah had spilled?/poured? some apple juice into one of the cup holders by her seat. She may have poured some into the other one as well but I'm not sure. It had pretzel goldfish crackers in it and they were all puffed up and moist when I found them. They didn't smell like fermented apple juice, though. I think they were soaked in water. I also found both of Nathan's cup holders with about an inch water in them. So did a bit of cleaning and my new car smell is back. And so is my sanity!

Strange. I know.

Up to no good

I've been trying to keep out of trouble lately. Here's a little of the past week or so.

A small quilt top


We made strawberry syrup and strawberry jam from a flat of strawberries. Chad is using the Squeezo. I love that thing! It gets out the juice and separates it from the pulp and seeds. Not so fun to wash it though.
A whole flat of strawberries and this is all we get??




I made a batch of bread yesterday. This time, it did not cave in and make itself into a bread bowl loaf. However, I am having a problem with the tops of my loaves sinking a bit and leaving me with a wrinkled crust. Anyone have any suggestions? Share them in the comments!

I mopped the floor tonight. I realize that some of you will not think this is anything worth mentioning. If that is the case for you, let me introduce myself. Hi. I'm Arlyn. I don't often mop my floor. When you come for a visit, please don't take your shoes off.

I also cleaned up the laundry room which had been terrorized by muddy boots all winter. It was an all day effort, but it looks so much nicer!

I bought 12 yards of fabric this afternoon to make dining room curtains. It cost me just under $50. That is my motivation to actually make the curtains! When you come for a visit, please mention how cute they are! (But give me a couple of weeks to make them.)

Nathan and Joseph got shots yesterday. Nathan got his last chicken pox shot and Joseph just about got everything. Poor kid. He woke up with a little fever this morning, but slept for a good chunk of the night! Rebekah and Joseph are on the down side of ear infections.

Daniel signed up for pee wee baseball tonight. It's more like a clinic, I think. It's only about a month long. Perfect!!! He still gets a T-shirt out of it, so he'll have something to brag about until he outgrows it (in two years at the rate he's growing). Anyway, he's quite excited about it. I said I'd only sign him up if he would quit complaining about going to TaVaci for the rest of the season. He starts to get TaVaci burn out near the end of each semester. I'm not a pushy mom, though! I don't make him sign up...I just make him finish. He gets a trophy when they graduate the kids in 6th grade. Part of him wants the trophy...part of him doesn't (the vocal part).

And for those who would like to and are able to, the Spring TaVaci concert is May 10th. That's a Saturday. It would be over about 7 pm, I'm guessing. It's free and you can watch Daniel and Leah on stage. You can also watch Nathan in the seats. He gets restless about 3/4 the way through and starts asking when it's over.

I have been doing a lot of laundry lately as Rebekah is timing her bathroom trips poorly. The boys just chose to wet their pants. Leah never did. But it seems like Rebekah is creating more laundry than any of the others ever did. It's been interesting. The little spot of linoleum by the toilet gets cleaned almost daily. And you should know that goes against my cleaning nature!

Other than that, I haven't been doing much. And my house shows it. On a happier note, I have been more patient and slower to anger with the kids. We're having nicer days all around. (I still want them to leave me alone while I eat my breakfast!)

It's time

I think it's time for a girls' weekend or get-a-way or escape. If I don't take a voluntary break, I may be forcibly removed, then either incarcerated or committed.

I feel like I've been on the edge of a "Mommy Explosion" the entire day. It's a wonder I don't have "lock-jaw" from all the teeth clenching!

I am at a critical point where I need to make some serious decisions about my parenting. Something has got to be done with Leah's demanding yelling and screaming. She's learning bad coping skills from me...although it's been a little while since I actually screamed. That must be her special gift. I am extra sensitive to Rebekah's constant ramblings (and it's no wonder since she's always by my side). Daniel seems determined to test me at every turn. Nathan forgets that he doesn't make the decisions. Joseph won't sleep more than 2 hours at a time...around the clock. And to top off the insults, my house refuses to keep itself clean!!

Every time I try to steal a moment for myself, the moment gets stolen from me. I actually lasted 10 minutes in my sewing room while Joseph napped this morning. After the initial 10 minutes, the girls wandered in and started whispering about me as if I couldn't see or hear them. They were hiding in the closet and when I stepped over to the ironing board, Leah whispered, "She's gone." Then she stepped out of the closet, saw me and slipped back into the closet.

And then I sit back and take an objective look at my kids. I try to see them from a stranger's eyes. Suddenly I am awash in various emotions. First, I'm jealous that someone gets such cute kids (SO many people tell me how cute my kids are), then I feel a strange mixture of pride and love as I realize they are my kids, followed by shame that I don't appreciate them more and finally, frustration at the whole situation.

It's about then that I resolve to spend better time with them. Only that always gets foiled by an honest distraction which eventually leads to a less important reason to postpone the quality time I know they need. Adding to the stress is the frustration of sitting in a messy room. Did I mention that my house won't stay clean?

Plus I have to feel the pressure of inventing a decent meal from the groceries on hand which are limited because I either can't get out to shop or just can't talk myself into taking 3-5 kids to the store.

In the back of my mind, I'm wishing I could be sitting at the computer, reading a book or working in the sewing room. I wouldn't even mind doing a little spring cleaning if I thought I could use it as ME time.

And that is why I'm feeling like a bad mother, who doesn't do anything to cure the problem, but finds the time to whine about it publicly.

I should send out invitations to my pity-party.

Smelly

I hate yucky smells. Luckily, I have a very senstitive sniffer so I can discover bad smells right away...before they fester and make a bigger smelly mess (which is when Chad starts to wrinkle his nose).

This morning I was in the laundry room changing the laundry. I can smell a yucky smell in there! But I'm a little confused since there aren't any dirty clothes waiting to be washed. The washer had just finished, so it shouldn't be that. We do keep the snow gear in there, but it didn't seem like a musty-yucky smell. Nothing looks like it has spilled. But even if it did, I would expect it to be a cleaning liquid and smell clean! So now I have a mystery on my hands. And I really don't feel like deep cleaning the laundry room right now.

What I'm afraid of is that something died nearby during the winter and now that things are warming up, so is the dead thing. Ew! Gross!

Meanwhile, there are yucky smells in both bathrooms, the boys' room and the kitchen. I'm pretty sure some honest housework would take care of those issues. Unfortunately, I don't feel like deep cleaning any of those rooms either. This family sure is lucky to have me! I can ferret out the odors, but don't do anything about them!

4 AM

That's about what time I was putting the carpet cleaner vacuum away. Shortly before that, Leah emptied the contents of her stomach on our bedroom floor. I knew she was up to something!

Since the spot on the floor wasn't big enough to spend the whole tank of water on it, I moved to the living room where I went over a spot where some "washable" glue had been dumped a week or so ago and then cleaned the spots in front of the couches and the front door.

Anyone passing by might have thought I was a bit obsessed. I am, but it doesn't cover cleaning the carpets that early in the morning!

I finally downloaded some brushes and new fonts for scrapbooking yesterday. I've only been scrapbooking digitally for 6 months now...you'd think I would have done it already. Anyway, I used some of my new downloads to create this page this afternoon. The pictures are 4 years old...so there is no Rebekah or Joseph.

A Valentine for You!

Happy Valentine's Day to all my family and friends!


I appreciate all of you who read my blog and leave such great comments. I often find myself composing a post based on what I think you all will enjoy reading. I sure come up with some interesting ideas when I do that. Lucky for you, I don't share all of them!

So I hope all of you have or had a great Valentine's Day. Let's get together for lunch some time!

I had such a great response from my before and after pictures yesterday that I thought I'd go for overkill. You may be rolling your eyes, but it got me to clean the downstairs...just to be able to take pictures!

The downstairs is really only 2 rooms (and food storage which I didn't clean or take pictures of...you're welcome): the TV room and toy room.

TV room BEFORE














TV room AFTER

I started on this room first, and had it mostly put away, when I moved into the toy room. When I turned around, this room was halfway to messy again! And it was only Rebekah and Leah "helping" me. Joseph was there...in full voice!


Toy Room BEFORE














Toy Room AFTER

I vacuumed this room first. I'd had the door shut and noticed a yucky smell when I went in. (It likely has something to do with the previous owner's dog.) So I went upstairs for some carpet powder. Nathan came down as I started vacuuming and asked why it smelled so good in there. I told him that I sprinkled something and he went to get Leah. When they came back, they both dropped to the floor and started inhaling! So if you find out later that they have respiratory problems, it's probably from concentrated carpet deodorizer!

And, of course, since I started in this room it was ready for play and these two monkeys got in there before I could take my after picture. With so much room to play, how could they not spread out? I'm still not sure why Leah has to be IN the bin.

I also chased down cobwebs with the attachment and vacuumed the stairs. I guess since we're in the country, we'll be raising spiders. There are cobwebs everywhere! Maybe I should just leave everything until October. By then we can claim to be a haunted house and charge admission. We do need a new furnace for next winter.

While I was cleaning, Nathan came home from school...with his Valentine's Day bounty. By the time I got upstairs, he and the girls were sitting in a pile of candy wrappers and Valentines. Nathan ate a whole (full-sized) Hershey's Chocolate bar...you know, the one you break into sections! He was disappointed when I told him to hold off on the rest of the candy. The girls have been disappointed, too. It was repeated when Daniel came home, except for it was only Daniel getting a sugar high. Nathan shared his Valentines with the girls and they have been carrying around their pretty treasures all afternoon.

In between free moments to clean (don't even think that I got that done in the first try), I took care of immediate needs...mostly Joseph's...and made Valentine cookies. That first picture up there is a shot of the cookies. I found a very yummy sugar cookie recipe. It has been a bad day for counting calories! At first, I thought I'd just have 2. Then it was 4 and 6. Before I knew it, I had given up counting. I decided to go ahead and have a Valentine treat for myself. I figured if I just ate as many as I wanted, I'd eventually make myself sick and be able to avoid them for a few days. It nearly worked. I need a couple more. I was just performing a quality control check and disposing of the imperfect ones. And I was REALLY picky!

Here's a shot of Nathan in his new hat last night. He made it all by himself. He really loves his K'Nex. I really hate cleaning them up!

Happy Valentines' Day again! I'll post some of the Valentines I gave to Chad over the past two weeks in a day or so.