It's like looking in the mirror...

First of all, I would like to apologize to my faithful readers for the lack of posts recently.  Life just gets busy when you're a mom of three.  On top of that, my daily routine is so ho-hum that I don't want to bore anyone with all the details of changing diapers, cooking, cleaning, and keeping the kids entertained (which is the biggest job of all).

Before becoming a parent, I heard that kids repeat what they hear.  I have learned that this is very true...especially when you have kids that never stop talking.  I don't know if they run out of their own thoughts to say or what, but inevitably they repeat things I have said.  As I listen to what they say, it's like holding up a mirror.  It's a reflection of me and the things I have said as a parent.  Some good, some not so good.  I definitely have a few areas to work on.  Here are some things I have heard come out of their mouths this week...

1.  I overheard Sadie scolding her dolls a few days ago for getting dirty.  (Yes, I have been known to scold my kids for things.)

2.  Adam and Sadie threatened to spank each other or send each other to time out for bad behavior.  (It has been a super long time since I have spanked anybody, but apparenly they haven't forgotten.  They do get sent to time out occasionally...)

3.  Sadie told me today to be quiet if I go upstairs, because her dolls were sleeping.  I needed to put laundry away, so I went upstairs.  Her bedroom door was closed.  I opened the door to see her dolls were lined up on the floor and covered with blankets.  I put the laundry away and headed back downstairs, only to get scolded by Sadie for waking her dolls up.  (Yes, this was confirmation that kids repeat what they hear!)

4.  Adam tells Sadie at every meal that she needs to slow down and not eat so fast.  He is like a little mother hen sometimes.

So, now that I've had this revelation, I am going to try hard to say positive things all the time.  Maybe after awhile it will wear off and Adam and Sadie won't yell at each other anymore.  It's worth a try, right?

Too busy to post!

I know it has been awhile since I've posted.  There is one main reason why:

This precious little boy is 100% mobile and has suddenly become a huge handful.  I can't get much done, because I have to keep dropping what I'm doing to chase him around the house and make sure he's staying out of trouble.  Between that and helping Adam with homework and piano lessons and comforting Sadie every time she gets her feeling hurt, I've been swamped.  Once life settles down a bit more, I'll get back to blogging.  In the meantime, my posts will probably be short and infrequent.

Despite the craziness around here, I have managed to complete one project on my list.  Tyler's baby book is done!  I guess that means he is no longer a baby and is graduating to toddler status.

Stay tuned for more posts once I get everything under control!

The girl who cried "wolf"

Sometimes I count my many blessings that Sadie is potty trained, and sometimes it's a pain in the rear.  On one hand, I'm not spending money on diapers for her anymore, but on the other hand it is a huge inconvenience to drop whatever I'm doing to take her to the bathroom.  It's all a part of the process, I know.  So, I'm trying to be patient.  However, it's just down right irritating when she cries "wolf."

Example #1:  I took the kids shopping today.  Everyone went potty before we left the house.  Things were going just great until we half way through the first store.  Adam kept poking Sadie and she kept screaming back at him.  I was beginning to regret my shopping trip.  I hurried as fast as I could to get the shopping done I needed and hoped I could get out of the store before someone claimed they needed to go potty.  Success.  I made it out of the store and headed for the second store. 

The second store had a large cart that all three children could fit in.  So, I loaded them up and headed straight for the aisle I needed to go.  I only needed two items.  We reached the aisle and I began looking at the items in question.  It wasn't long before Adam hit Sadie, then Sadie scratched Adam's face, then Adam hit Sadie again, and Sadie screamed.  I had to separate them.  I lifted Sadie out of the cart and made her stand next to me.  This made her scream even more.  She wanted back in the cart.  When I told her "no", she suddenly decided she needed to go to the bathroom.  So, I put the items in my hand back on the shelf, and we hurried to the restroom.  When we got there, I sat Sadie on the potty.  After sitting there for a few seconds, she declared she was done.  She didn't get anything out.  Frustrated, I loaded the kids back in the cart and headed back to the aisle I needed to go.  No sooner did I get back to shopping then Sadie got bored and started screaming that she needed to go potty again.  Not believing that she needed to go, I responded that she would have to wet her pants, because I was not taking her back to the restroom.  I was clearly losing my patience.  It was not a good parenting moment.  To top that off, all the screaming from Sadie upset Tyler, who started to scream.  With multiple kids screaming, I put everything back on the shelf once again and headed for the car.  I couldn't concentrate on finding what I was looking for and didn't want to get the wrong thing because I was rushed.

Example #2:  Later the same afternoon, Sadie and Adam could not stop fighting.  I finally told them that if they couldn't get along, both of them would have to go to time out.  My warnings did not work.  A short time later, I hauled them both to their rooms.  Adam cooperated.  Sadie did not.  After screaming and pounding on her door for a minute or two, she suddenly started screaming that she needed to go potty.  Reluctantly, I unlocked her door and led her to the bathroom.  She sat down on the potty, and immediately stood back up and said she was done.  She didn't get anything out.  I think she knew I would let her out if she cried "wolf" (or "potty" in this case), but what else could I do?  A little while later, her and Adam were both back in time out.  Sadie immediately started screaming and pounding on her door that she needed to go potty.  Trying to outsmart her, I unlocked her door and brought a potty in her room.  I sat her on it and told her I would be back in a minute.  I returned soon after, and found her potty to be dry as I expected.  Either this child is crying "wolf" way too much, or she has serious bladder issues!

Well, tomorrow is another day.  Hopefully after a night of rest, I'll be a little more patient.  I have to keep reminding myself that I would rather have her cry "wolf" a few times than  clean up an accident.  :)

Two down, one to go

When Adam first started school in August, I was a happy girl.  It gave me a bit of a break every day, and it kept him busy.  Adam tends to stay out of trouble when he's kept busy, so it was a win-win for both of us.  I knew, though, that eventually he would go "off track," and I have been dreading it.  There is a silver lining, though.  I'm not going through gas in my car as fast since I'm not driving to the school twice a day, and I'm not waiting in lines like this to pick him up...

Fast forward to today.  We are now two weeks into his three weeks off, and I have to say it hasn't been nearly as bad as I imagined.  He has been fighting with Sadie more than usual, but I haven't been pulling my hair out.  Either I'm getting used to it, or I finally realized I was being far too dramatic.  Here are the highlights of the past two weeks:

• Tyler's 1st birthday
• Our weekly trip to the library for storytime
• The Primary Halloween party
• Playing in the leaves
• Building the first snowman of the season
• Adam conquering the final monster on his Super Mario game (this was a big deal at our house)
• Me finally running faster than an 8-minute-mile (this was another big deal)
• I got a new vacuum! It's awesome!

I'm sure to some people like Kelli, who is traveling the world and feeding Kangaroos, these highlights seem pretty ho hum.  For me, though, it's been a good two weeks.  I'm sure this week will fly by, and then it's back to school for Adam!

Third time's the charm or three strikes and you're out...

One of the things I looked forward to the most about my birthdays growing up was the fancy cake Mom made for me.  Whatever I asked for, she came through.....Strawberry Shortcake, Barbies in fancy dresses, pianos, etc.  It made every birthday extra special, and I vowed I would do the same thing for my kids.  Unfortunately, I have been failing.

Example 1:  Adam
For Adam's first birthday, I made an airplane.  It was okay, but it didn't have the wow factor and definitely wasn't up to par of what I would have gotten as a child.  Every birthday since, we have been on vacation.  So, Adam has settled for a cake or cupcake from Walmart.

Example 2:  Sadie
I was determined to correct my failure with Adam, and I set to work on a cake for Sadie's first birthday...a teddy bear in a ballet outfit.  Everything was going great until it came out of the oven.  It broke into pieces when I tried to remove it from the pan.  :(  I almost broke down into tears, but I pulled myself together and ran to the store to get whatever was already made.  Walmart saved the day.  Sadie ended up with a princess cake complete with a tiara.  On her second birthday, I didn't even attempt a homemade cake.  We went to Walmart and pre-ordered a Dora the Explorer cake.  She was thrilled.

So, now we come to Tyler's first birthday.  I debated about whether to take the easy way out and go to Walmart or try the homemade route again.  I chose to go homemade.  Honestly, Tyler could care less.  I mean, c'mon...he's only 12 months old.  This was all about my chance for redemption.  I set to work making plans for a 2-tier Mickey Mouse cake with a Nutella buttercream filling and hoped I wasn't trying to bite off more than I could chew.

The cake turned out okay.  This was my first time working with fondant.  Not bad for a first try, but I didn't roll it as thin as I should have.  The best part of the cake was definitely the Nutella buttercream filling.  Yum!  Next time, forget the fondant and smother the whole cake with that buttercream filling!!!

So, what's the verdict?  Is it three stikes and I'm out, or is it third time is the charm?  Here's the real test....  Sadie's birthday is only a few short weeks away.  If she asks her mommy to make her a cake, I'll consider it a win.  If she asks for a trip to the Walmart bakery, it's a loss.  It will sting a little bit if she chooses Walmart over me, but it will be less headache for me.  So, I'll be happy with whatever she decides.

Three major events at our house

This past week has been full of big events at our house.

1.  I attended my first Parent Teacher Conference.  These are a little different than they used to be.  Now, you are encouraged to bring your child with you.  Since Cory wanted to attend also, we packed up the whole family and went.  I sat down with Adam and the teacher to talk about his performance over the past 2 months.  It went great.  Every time the teacher mentioned how well Adam was doing, I looked over at him.  He was just beaming.  It was a proud parent moment.  He is doing really well in school and loves it.

2.  I took Adam and Sadie for their annual flu shot, and neither child cried.  This was a big deal.  Of course, it helps when they get the flu mist instead of the actual shot.  It also helps when they get to pick out a Dum-Dum for being brave.  :)  I got my shot too, but I got the actual shot...not the mist.  My arm was a little tender for a day or so, but I'm fine now. I got a Dum-Dum too.

3.  Tyler finished off his last jar of formula and switched over to cow's milk.  The transition went great. He is growing up!  He has been a little stubborn about food lately. He has suddenly decided that he doesn't like baby food and insists on eating something else...yogurt, sandwiches, muffins, or anything else that doesn't look like baby food.

The next week will be another big one for us. Adam goes off track, we celebrate Tyler's first birthday, and we take his bottles away. Stay tuned!

St. George Marathon: the good, the bad, and the aftermath

When I ran the St. George Marathon 2 years ago, I wasn't sure I would ever run another one.  It was my first marathon, and my time was 5:24.  It was hard.  It was hot.  It was painful.  Yes, it was satisfying to finish and receive a medal for my efforts, but I didn't think I wanted to put body through that again.  As time went on, though, I started to change my mind.  Running a marathon is a lot like child-birth.  You forget how painful it was, and you're willing to do it again.  In my case, my attitude changed a few weeks later as I watched the New York City marathon on television.  As I watched people cross the finish line, I told myself I would do it again...only next time I would do it better.

I began running again and signed up for my next marathon.  A short time after signing up, I discovered I was pregnant with child #3.  I was still determined to run another marathon, but I knew it wouldn't happen this time around.  So, I contacted the marathon people and transferred my registration to the following year.  I continued to run about half way through my pregnancy.  After my little bundle arrived, I began training again.

In April 2012, I ran the North Shore Hawaii Marathon (4:42).  In May, I ran the Ogden Marathon (4:24).  Then in June, I ran the Utah Valley Marathon (4:43).  For fun, I also ran the Layton Half Marathon (1:58) where I placed second in my division!  Somewhere inbetween all this running, I signed up for the St. George Marathon again...very determined to smash my first time.

This past weekend I returned to the scene of the crime:  St. George, Utah.  Here I am with Cory before the race...

Several weeks ago, we made an agreement that the winner out of the two of us, would receive $1 for every second they beat the other person.  Believing in my heart that Cory would win by at least 10 minutes, I made the deal to motivate him to do his best and get some money for his airplane fund.  I figured it would also motivate me to do my best so he wouldn't beat me too badly.

When the starting gun went off, we jumped in line and started running.  Cory took off like a little bunny rabbit, and I didn't think I would see him again until the finish line.  The first few miles flew by.  I even made a friend along the way and chatted for a few miles.  Before I knew it, Veyo hill was in sight.  Just before I started up the hill near mile 7, I heard someone calling to me.  Imagine my surprise when I looked over my shoulder and saw Cory coming up behind me.  When did I pass him????  We chatted for a minute, then I slowed down to conserve my energy up the hill and he took off like a bunny rabbit once again.

Three quarters of the way up Veyo hill, I could feel a little nausea coming on.  So, I slowed to a walk, pulled out a chunk of Clif Bar to eat, washed it down with some water, and started jogging again.  The nausea went away, but the next few miles were really hard.  After 4 miles of incline, I was worn out.  By mile 13, I felt like I was back on track, but the 4-hour-pace runner passed me.  At that point, I knew I wouldn't finish under 4 hours, but I was still determined to do my best.  At mile 16, a big crowd of supporters were cheering the runners on.  It gave me quite a boost.  My speed picked up, and I began to enjoy myself again.  At mile 20, I got the surprise of my life.  I looked ahead and saw....Cory.  I knew he had to be hurting if I was about to pass him again.  We chatted briefly, and this time it was me who took off like a bunny rabbit.  A few minutes later, I felt guilty about leaving him, and I stopped to wait for him to see if he wanted to finish the race together.  When he caught up to me, his answer was: Do your best.

With Cory's green light, I took off and finished the race in 4:16, my best yet.  About 10 minutes later, he crossed the finish line.

Now, it's two days post marathon.  My body is sore, but I'll be back to normal in another day or two.  The question is:  Where do I go from here?  Will I run another marathon?  The answer:  most definitely.  You may wonder why I put myself through this.  I have a hard time putting it into words, but here is why...

#1.  Because I can.   Running marathons has taught me that I can do hard things. It brings me a lot of satisfaction to accomplish something I never pictured myself doing.

#2.  To inspire my kids to lead an active life.  Too many kids today are overweight and not active.  By setting a good example, I hope my kids will want to be active too.

 

#3.  I enjoy it.  Crazy as it sounds, it's true.

 

Sprocket's birthday party

Do I get extra brownie points in heaven for helping my little boy celebrate his stuffed puppy's birthday?  Last Thursday was the big event at our house.  Five years ago, my co-workers threw me a going away party as I quit my job to stay home with my new baby.  As part of a baby gift, they gave us a stuffed puppy.  That puppy has become part of our family.  He goes to church with us.  He goes on vacation with us.  He goes grocery shopping with us.  I don't think there's anything we do without that dog present.  So, it was only appropriate that we celebrate his special day.

No birthday celebration is complete without a cake.  So, as silly as it may seem, we made a cake for this stuffed dog.  Cupcakes, actually, with sprinkles and chocolate frosting.  To make matters even sillier, we sang happy birthday to it as Adam blew out the candle.  Then, we all headed to the bowling to finish the celebration.

A very silly day, indeed.  However, one thing I'm learning as a parent is that if it is important to them (the kids), it's important to me.  I'm sure Sprocket's birthday celebration will be an annual event from here on out.

Upcycled jeans: Quiet Art Book

In my last post, I blogged about making a quiet art book for Adam to take to church.  I decided to give the project another try and make one for Sadie using a pair of old jeans.  I loved it so much, I remade the one for Adam using jeans.  (I have 2 big boxes of old jeans in my basement waiting for me to make a quilt or other project.)  Here's how I did it...

1.  Cut all the pockets and belt loops off the jeans.  Then iron the jeans and cut the pieces for the outside of the art book.  I cut:

• 3 pieces measuring 6 1/2 x 9
• 1 piece measuring 3 1/2 x 9

2.  Using a half yard of fabric, I cut the pieces for the inside of the art book.  I cut:

• 3 pieces measuring 6 1/2 x 9 (main pieces)
• 1 piece measuring 3 1/2 x 9 (crayon flap)
• 2 pieces measuring 3 1/4 x 9 (crayon pocket)
• 2 pieces measuring 8 x 6 1/2 (notebook pocket)
• 2 pieces measuring 5 1/2 x 6 1/2 (pencil pocket)

3.  I proceeded to follow the tutorial on http://www.u-createcrafts.com/search/label/toys-quiet%20books with a few exceptions.  I did not use interfacing.  The jeans I used gave enough stability that interfacing wasn't necessary.  Plus, it made the project faster.  I used 1/4 inch seams for everything instead of 1/2 inch seams.  In my previous attempt, I found the 1/2 inch seams to be too tight for everything to fit inside nicely.  Then, instead of the elastic/button closure, I tried two other methods.  With Sadie's I sewed a ribbon in to tie it shut, and with Adam's I sewed some velcro to a piece of the jean.  Last, but not least, I did not use the chalkboard fabric.  My kids always make such a mess when they use chalk, and since I made these primarily for church, I eliminated the chalk portion to keep everything and everyone clean.

4.  I used my hot glue gun to attach pockets, belt loops, and other embellishments.  Then, I filled the book with paper, coloring books, crayons, and pencils.

Ta-da!

Good enough for a 5-year-old

I recently saw a project on Pinterest that I really wanted to try.  The only problem is that it required sewing.  My sewing skills are not the greatest.  In fact, they are close to being non-existant.  I decided I would give it a try, however.  So, I dusted off my sewing machine and set to work making a quiet art book for Adam to take to church.

The instructions can be found at: http://www.u-createcrafts.com/2011/07/quiet-art-packet-tutorial-you-asked.html.  Here is my finished product:

Impressed?  Well, don't look too closely.  It is good enough for a 5-year-old, but I didn't want to embarrass myself by taking a close-up.  :)  I'm thinking about making one for Miss Sadie, though, before I put the sewing machine away.  Maybe I would do a better job the second try.

Looks like it will be a few weeks before Adam will be able to try out his art book.  I have a head cold and don't want to fight the kids at Stake Conference today, and next Sunday we don't have regular meetings due to the Brigham City Temple dedication.

My Life is Full of "P" Words

I know I haven't posted any updates in the past week.  Life has just been busy.  Let's just say I have been consumed with peaches, potty training, pull-ups, panties, and lots of other "P" words.

Let's start with Peaches.  All the peaches from my yard have now been harvested.  I have a few left in my fridge for eating fresh, but all the others have been canned or given to neighbors.  That's right...I gave a few dozen away.  You see, my neighbors have an awesome apple tree, and since Miss Sadie picked all my baby apples earlier in the season, my neighbors agreed to trade my peaches for their apples.  Now that my peaches are taken care of, I will be ready to tackle the apples when they arrive.  My kids love dehydrated apples.

Now on to potty training...  For weeks now, I have tried to get Sadie to sit on the potty every morning if she woke up dry.  She was willing to sit so long as I read to her or shared a snack, but she wasn't consistently having success even if I offered her a reward.  That all changed this week.  (Side note:  Is it bad to give your kids Tootsie Rolls at 7:00 a.m.?) 

When potty training Adam, I tried everything I could think of:  treats, money, the promise of his own Nintendo, etc.  One thing that finally worked was potty marbles.  I took 6 flat marbles from the craft store, modge podged scrapbook paper to the back, and attached a magnet.  The marbles were stuck on the fridge, and he could earn one every time he went potty.  (He also got a penny or a small treat.)  After earning all 6 marbles, he got a trip to the bowling alley.  He seemed to like that, so I decided to try it with Sadie.  One morning after a successful trip to the potty, I gave her a potty marble and explained how it would work.  She was excited, and since then she has been telling me every morning when she is ready to go potty without being prompted.  Now we just need to work on staying dry the rest of the day.  :)  In the meantime, she has earned all 6 potty marbles and is ready for a trip to the bowling alley.  We have to wait until Cory gets home, though.  There is NO WAY I will tackle a bowling alley on my own with three small kids.  That is a disaster waiting to happen.

FHE Makeover

Family Home Evenings at our house typically consists of an opening prayer, a 30-second abbreviated scripture story, and a game of Mickey Mouse UNO.  Since I have three small children, that's all their attention spans will allow.  That's fine, but week after week of the same scripture story with the same pictures gets a little dull for me.  I've been feeling for awhile that I needed to do something different.  Here's what I did...

1.  I made a flannel board by covering an old white board I had kicking around the house with blue flannel (on sale at JoAnn's) and my glue gun.  A little red-neck, maybe, but it turned out just fine.

2.  I printed out a few flannel board stories, complete with pictures, from http://chocolateonmycranium.blogspot.com/2007/11/flannel-board-stories.html.  The stories came with colored pictures, which I printed on cardstock.  After cutting out the pictures, I laminated them and attached sticky back velcro (the hook side) to the back of the pictures.

The kids were watching with great interest this morning as I finished up the project.  They are excited for something new.  Now the trick will be getting little Tyler to leave the pictures on the board while I tell the story.  Between these new flannel board stories and an old set of Book of Mormon illustrated scripture books I just got from Mom and Dad, I should be in business for awhile.  :)

Sadie's Asian Mommy

Girl time is exhausting.  At least, it can be if you have a diva like Sadie in your household.  Today, we had yet another nail painting session while Adam was at school.  Ten flawlessly painted fingers and ten beautiful little toes were painted in bright fire engine red, the color of choice today.  I have been getting a lot of practice lately.  With Sadie on my resume, I may even have enough experience to get a job at a nail salon with the other Asian women in the community if I ever needed to.

Girl time must wear Sadie out too.  She fell asleep on the way to pick up Adam from school.  When we got home, I carefully carried her in the house and laid her on the couch to finish her nap.  She woke up right as I was getting food on the table for dinner.  She jumped off the couch, ran over to Adam, and threw her arms around him.  "I missed you so much Buddy," she said.  So, I guess as much as she enjoys hanging out with Mommy when Adam goes to school, she can't wait for him to come home.

Let the germ fest begin

I guess one of the hazards of sending kids to school is exposing your household to whatever illnesses are going around.  I figured it would be coming...I just didn't realize it would be coming so soon.

Adam began school on Tuesday, August 14.  By Saturday morning, he had a runny nose and fever.  By Tuesday, he passed it on to Sadie, and two days after that, Tyler had it.  So, between running back and forth to school, canning salsa and peaches, and helping Adam with his homework, I have spent my week wiping little noses.

Adam and Sadie are much better now.  Hopefully poor Tyler will recover quickly too.  You better believe we are getting flu shots this fall!

My day (the short version)

Here's what my day looked like today...

Wake up and feed the kids

Morning stroller walk with a friend

Shower and get dressed

Get kids dressed

Do Sadie’s hair

Feed Tyler

Visiting teaching

Fix lunch, feed kids

Chop tomatoes for salsa

Take Adam to school

Chop more tomatoes for salsa while Sadie naps and Tyler crawls around the kitchen

Get salsa on stove and let it simmer

Fix snack for Sadie and give Tyler afternoon bottle

Pick up Adam from school

Help Adam with homework and piano lesson

Bottle salsa that has been simmering on stove all afternoon

Fix dinner, feed kids

Clean kitchen

Brush everybody’s teeth

Skype Cory

Pull weeds in the garden

Play baseball with kids

Fix bedtime milk for kids and bottle for Tyler

Read bedtime story to kids

Tuck kids in bed

Family history indexing

Update blog

Collapse in bed

Just realized I didn't give Sadie any "girl" time today.  Poor girl.  I'll do better tomorrow.

First day of school and my day off!

Two highly anticipated events occurred this week:  Adam's first day of school, and my day off!

Adam has been patiently waiting for months for the first day of Kindergarten.  The day finally arrived on Tuesday.  He has p.m. Kindergarten, but this first day of school was an "early out" day, which means he goes in early and comes home early.  It's a weird time:  11:15 a.m. to 1:15 p.m.  I decided I better feed him an early lunch, but I still had time for a morning run.  Since Cory was home to watch the kids, I headed out before the sun came up and ran 14.5 miles.  After getting home, showering, and taking care of a few odds and ends, it was time to fix Adam's lunch and be on our way.  I didn't feel like eating with him at 10:45, so I figured the rest of us would eat later.  We took a few picture of our big boy at home before taking him to school...

I have heard many stories of mothers crying when they dropped off their kids at school.  Not the case with me.  I love Adam, but I have been looking forward to this day probably more than him.  He can be very demanding, and I was ready for a break from entertaining him all day.  Am I a bad mother?  I was so giddy with excitement when I dropped him off that I had to control myself from skipping and doing cartwheels all the way down the hall at school.  With Adam happily dropped off at school, I headed back home to eat lunch and enjoy the break.

I did not get the break I was hoping for...  With Sadie in tears because she wanted to go to school with Adam, she needed extra attention.  By the time we ate lunch, calmed her down, and changed a few diapers, it was time to go back and pick up Adam.  You've got to be kidding me!  Where did that precious time go?  Adam came home excited about his day and full of energy to burn off.  Luckily, Cory was home to absorb some of the energy.  After 30 minutes with some hyper kids, though, he had to lay down on Adam's bed and take a break.  I think we are both looking forward to the next day of school.

The other event that occurred this week was my day off.  For my birthday last month, Cory asked me what I wanted.  I told him all I wanted was an afternoon off.  So, he told me to put it on the calendar for a day he would be home to take care of the kids.  The day finally came yesterday.  So, after another morning run, showering, and fixing lunch, I dropped Adam off at school and headed out to shop BY MYSELF!  It was wonderful.  I didn't have to separate anyone for fighting, yell at anyone for touching something in a store they shouldn't be touching, change any diapers in the back of the car, or frantically search for the bathroom in an unfamiliar store when a child needs to go "potty."

When I got home from my afternoon off, Miss Sadie was asleep.  Cory reported that he had fun playing with the kids.  Tyler had a nice nap after snack time.  When Sadie fell asleep awhile later, Cory plopped himself down on the couch, put up his feet, and picked up the remote.  Within about 30 seconds, Tyler was awake and crying.  So, Cory didn't get a break, but at least I did.  :)  Many thanks to Cory for my afternoon off.

The joys of shopping with three small children

Let's face it... my life is a three-ring circus.  I've tried to hide it from the world way too long.  It's time for me to embrace it and share with everyone that it's okay when things don't go perfectly.  Because as we all know, it rarely will with three small children.

Case in point...

I took the little ones shopping today.  Enough said.  We made three stops.  The first stop, Adam and Sadie were all smiles as they walked hand-in-hand into the store.  Ten minutes into the shopping trip, they had to be separated for fighting.  Store number two went okay, but by the time we made it to store number three, I was ready to pull my hair out.  Tyler was screaming because he wanted his bottle, Sadie was upset because Adam wouldn't hold her hand anymore, and Adam was having a fit because I wouldn't buy the new shoes he just tried on.  (In my defense, I forgot my coupon, and I was NOT going to buy the shoes without them.  I'm a thrifty mama.)

So.... we headed home.  After feeding everyone and taking a deep breath, we headed back to the store.  This time, with coupon in hand.  Did things go perfectly???  Not even close.  But... at the end of the day, shoes have been purchased for Adam's first day of school, and I have a very precious picture of my kids holding hands on our shopping trip.