Sweetness

When I looked at these random photos that I wanted to blog about, I couldn't think of a way to tie them together. I didn't have a lot of detail or cleverness to share to create individual posts, but I thought of one word that described each photo.

This word makes me think of something we often exclaimed in high school to describe anything great.

SWEET

Here are Christina with her SWEET friends Melissa (from her church class) and neighbor friend, Tucker. They were too SWEET with their butterfly and angel wings having a little snack. This picture makes me think of how magical it is (or can be) to be a child. I like to keep my kids young and not encourage them to grow up too fast. There's time for all that later!

I know it's only January, but guess what I saw popping through in my front flower bed - a SWEET little daffodil flower. It can't be possible! It has been such a mild winter that I wonder if everything will come up this spring. Maybe those 200+ bulbs I planted will bloom early. I can't wait to be surprised!

My new recipe called Egg in a Mug (I found the recipe in my dentists office, while having some cavities filled) is pretty SWEET. The idea is that you can make scrambled eggs and eat them on the go. That's a nice marketing angle, but I always eat breakfast at home. I think it's mostly fun to eat eggs from a SWEET snowmen mug, don't you? Here's the super simple recipe.

Eggs in a Mug

Coat inside of mug with Pam spray. Add 2 eggs and 2 T. milk. Beat well. Microwave for 45 seconds. Stir. Cook 30 seconds longer. Top with grated cheese. 

I like adding a little hot sauce to the top and serve with toast. Fun variation on scrambled eggs!

Katie is still continuing her involvement with this SWEET bunch of Girl Scouts. We've had several people mention to us that few LDS young women are able to continue with Young Women and Girl Scouts. We'll see what Katie decides. She attends what she can and that's fine for now. Thankfully, the troop is flexible about how much the girls can attend. 

This last weekend was a SWEET activity - called Library Lock In. Katie and the Girl Scouts created stations, centered around well-known book characters (Nancy Drew, Magic Tree House, Twilight, Junie B. Jones, Fancy Nancy, etc.) Then they came up with costumes and activities that they lead for the younger Girl Scouts. It was such a clever idea and all the girls were able to sleep in the library. How SWEET, right? Katie was Nancy Drew and she loved this chance to show some leadership and creativity. She was amazing, too, in that the girls didn't go to sleep until 1-1:30 am and had to way the younger girls at 6 am, so they could be cleared out before the library officially opened. Just a few hours later, she was doing a violin solo at Daniel's baptism. Let's just say that Katie functions pretty well on little sleep.

Life can be challenging, but I sure treasure all the little SWEET moments. You have to focus on the good and be thankful. I'm enjoying the ride!

Super Saturday

Last Saturday was a special day.
When I looked out in the backyard, my heart was full of joy. I loved seeing Daniel and Christina and their friends, playing happily and creatively. We had a full yard that day! Everyone was getting along and the weather was beautiful. That's what Saturdays are all about in my book. I'd much rather use the other days of the week to wash the clothes, clean the house, and get ready for Sunday!
These three little munchkins (Christina, Tucker, and Sam) play most days and love to create a house in the back corner of the yard.  They make rooms, using rope, and even have a tacky flamingo (squirting water toy for summertime) stuck in the flower bed. I reminded Christina last night how lucky she is to have neighbor friends. It's a blessing and a new one for her! We remembered these sweet neighbor friends in our prayers last night.
Daniel had his church buddy, Jackson, over to play that day, and they had a ball. Literally. Baseball. Football. And this pogo-bouncing ball! In the afternoon, Nolan (Sam's older brother) joined in the fun with them. They loved showing off their jumps and goofiness for me! Look at cute Jackson fly! The kids love digging through our outdoor toy bin (a great big Rubbermaid) and seeing what they can find. It does take some regular organizing, but gives them lots to do. Bubbles, sidewalk chalk, frisbees, jump ropes, bats and balls, bug catchers, kid wheelbarrows, buckets, swords, etc. Now that Christina loves to be outside with her friends, I keep her necessities in it too - some play blankets and bags. I've just decided that these blankets will be outside ones and then I don't have to regularly wash them. She goes back and forth to the two friends' homes and always likes to have her favorite supplies. Some days they are in costume. I leave this Super "D" cape in the bin for Sam. It's his favorite accessory. Christina sometimes is balky about costumes, but was a darling Strawberry Shortcake on this day.
Tucker informed me (and she does lots of informing, if you know what I mean) that Christina sometimes hugs too tight. I'm starting to think of Tucker as my 4th child. She is at our house often and quite a character. Tucker and Christina's favorite snack is Ramen noodles. Not that there is anything nutritious whatsoever about them, but they enjoy them. Tucker's Dad and I joke about who is hosting the Ramen Noodles party today? Occasionally, she'll work the pity angle at our house, whining to me that her parents didn't make breakfast or lunch, and that she's hungry. Sometimes I feed her. Other days that I've already fed my kids, I encourage her to get something at home. She was becoming a bit grumpy this day, so I put out apples and chips for an outdoor picnic. Later on, when I wasn't feeling so manipulated, I made up a big pot of Ramen for the girls.
Playdates usually require a sweet goodie too. I discovered the long-lost Big Cupcake Pan last week and was dying to make one. Daniel wanted to make it with me and the three munchkins wanted to lick the bowl after it had baked. It takes forever to cook! I had to pull out three spatulas, so they all could get messy faces!It's a pretty clever pan! I definitely like the look better with colored frosting and sprinkles, but Daniel would never choose pink frosting or sprinkles. He likes his frosting plain. And chocolate.I made a homemade chocolate cake from an online recipe and we enjoyed an early birthday celebration that evening. Jackson was able to sample a little cake with us before we took him home. Because the pans are different dimensions, the bottom and top cook differently. I need to do some research next time to figure out how to improve baking the cake, without making such a crunchy exterior. 
Ben, by the way, loved the crunchy outside and moist inside. He thought it was like a brownie cake! Good ol' Ben. He tries to find the good in all my cooking, even if it's a stretch.
Don't you just love that glow on Daniel's face. It looks a bit like a UFO, if you ask me.

Grandparents come to town

My parents came to visit last Thursday to celebrate Daniel's birthday and baptism with us. It always means a lot to have family support, especially when you live far from all your extended family.

You know I always like to make a welcome sign for visitors. There's something just a little reassuring about pulling up in someone's driveway and knowing immediately that they remember you are coming and are excited too!

Grandma and Grandpa Hadlock are very easy to host. They are easygoing, helpful with the children, and patient. They took us all to Texas Roadhouse one night for dinner. Daniel was excited when they had him sit in the saddle and sang him the birthday song. Well, maybe he was mostly thrilled about a big birthday ice cream sundae!

The kids loved eating the peanuts and throwing them on the ground at the restaurant. Ben keeps teasing the kids in recent weeks that we are doing "cruise dining training." The older two do very well, but Christina needs some practice in patience. It was a delicious dinner out!

I enjoyed planning out the meals at home, around the crazier nights. We had Daniel's requested favorite dinner - chili cheese enchiladas. Hands down - the easiest meal for me to make. Thank you, Daniel. I'll consider this a tender mercy. Katie made her ham 'n peas creamy penne last night. And I made a frozen lasagna another night. We kept it simple, but enjoyed some fun dinners together.

It was a particularly busy 5 days with Daniel's birthday and baptism, Katie's Girl Scout Library lock-in, Stake Standards night (for me, Ben, and KT), Ben's stake training meetings, and a bowling party for one of Daniel's classmates. And that was just the stuff that felt "necessary."

Another fun surprise from the visit was their gift of the dvd - Cars 2. Mom said she goofed and mailed our Christmas gift to their house. When she realized the mistake, she decided to bring it in person instead. I don't think I've seen Katie and Daniel laugh this hard over a movie in a long time. These are their real smiles. Looking at this photo makes me grin too!
Aside from the baptism, the most touching part of the visit for me was participating as a family in doing some family history yesterday afternoon. Christina was playing outside with her friends for hours. This made it possible to talk together, explore the new Family Search, and actually get some names ready to take to the temple. Katie has pestered us for weeks about her goal to get baptized for one of our ancestors who had not been baptized.
I saw such great collaboration too in this experience. My parents knew about people specifically and remembered who had passed away in recent years. Katie was the prompting and reminder about our goal. Ben knows his resources and was able to quickly access Social Security Indexes and be helpful with Family Search. Once I got going, I provided the motivation and "stick-to-it." I tried to tap into each person's strengths and keep looking. Initially, Katie, along with Grandpa and Ben were able to get three females names "temple ready." That was exciting and felt so good.
After Ben and Katie petered out, I continued on and was able to find two more female names for Katie, along with some other work I can personally do. The Spirit was definitely with us and I was thankful that both my parents were so helpful and interested. I could feel the scriptural promise in action - “To turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the children to the fathers." I felt it in tangible ways with those who were present and those who had passed on. I also emailed my aunt who lives in Oklahoma, hoping to do some of this work with her, at the request of my Dad.
It was one of the loveliest Sunday afternoons I've experienced in a long time.
In case you are interested, here is that index that Ben accessed. It's pretty amazing. If you haven't checked out the new Family Search, I was surprised by its simplicity and speed. Within an hour, we had prepared a name for the temple. That's sure changed from what it was like to do family history 15-20 years ago!I loved watching my Dad play with the kids. He was so engaged with them and interested in their toys. Both of them went with me to take kids to school and pick them up. They are such caring, tolerant, and loving grandparents. I am trying to emulate them and be more like them.It's probably not fair to post this one of them, since my Mom's eyes were filled up with tears. This is my sweet parents just before they headed out to the OKC airport. (Mom, who is 5'3, got a kick out of looking taller, since they were standing on our sloped driveway. Dad reminded me that they used to kiss on steps with their big height difference). I love these two!
We will miss them, but June will come quickly. I have to focus on the future at goodbyes and remember that time flies. It meant so much that they would come. Love you, Mom & Dad!

LEGO Lovers

Daniel used to be what people might call "LEGOs-challenged".
In the last month, things have turned around, and for whatever reason, he is finally understanding how to create on his own with LEGOs. It feels monumental to me because he has always loved LEGOs and he has often wanted friends or Ben to make things for him. 
I think turning this corner came about because we pulled out the craft table for Daniel's room during the holiday season. I've had to overlook the crowded state of his bedroom for his (and Ben's) love of LEGOs. Another factor was the generous gift of Uncle Steve and Aunt Tiercy. They gave Daniel all of the LEGOs that their boys (Tyler and Ethan) used to play with. They were organized in still having the instructions for the sets. Ben and Daniel have been going through the Rubbermaid, putting them all together with these instructions. (Thanks again Tyler and Ethan!) LEGOs are a great thing to love, I believe. I love that they are something not media-oriented. Playing with LEGOs is smart play and increases creativity and brain cells.Most importantly, it's something Daniel and Ben love doing together.
In fact, there have been days where Daniel is playing outside and I can't find Ben in the house. I'll peek in Daniel's room and there is Ben playing with LEGOs or sorting Daniel's LEGO pieces into their little drawers. I love it! Ben and his siblings grew up, playing often with LEGOs. Even his young adult sister, Anne, still had LEGOs on her Amazon wish list. I think it's a calming hobby for both Daniel and Ben. Plus, it's another interest that draws them closer. During the holidays, Ben went to Walmart to buy these little organizers. Each container has 5 drawers, so it has given them 20 separate drawers to sort all the pieces by size. Having this system, along with an adult-sized chair and table, has added to Ben and Daniel's involvement with LEGO play.
I know Ben will not love inserting this photo since the table is a mess and he is trying to encourage Daniel to clean up and keep the LEGOs tidy. It's a challenge for me as a Mom, though. I have kidded Daniel about this Pinterest funny.

When you have kids that love LEGOs, you end up stepping on and vacuuming up a few of them!

I saw this organizing idea online, but Ben and Daniel have found their own way of organizing. I'm a firm believer in letting the "users" discover the most effective way for them to organize their things. I would do them by color, but 'to each his own.'

With all the pride in the things they have built together, we had to clear a shelf in Daniel's bookcase to showcase their creations. Some were made by Ben. Many were created together. And just a few were made by Daniel alone. Now that is something I'm proud of!
On the shelf above are some of our Chevron car collection. Ben and I started collecting these before we had children. Aren't they cute? I would love to add to the collection. For some reason, they are something that Christina and I both enjoy. She will sneak them into her room for Polly Pocket play.
I'm so glad that Daniel has added another interest to his life. I think it will be something he and Ben enjoy for many years!
P.S. A few months ago I found a LEGO party pack on Amazon (under $20) that comes with LEGO party favors, along with free kids passes to LEGO Land or LEGO Discovery Center. There is a new LEGO Discovery Center in Dallas, just minutes from our old house. On our next trip to Texas, I'm planning to take the kids here. Hopefully, we can still tap into the party favor deal!

Pretty up the doors and windows

 I've looked forward to putting together this Valentines rosette wreath, ever since New Years. Last week on a quiet morning, I dragged out the rosettes I made a few months ago, and assembled this cheery wreath for my front door. I decided to glue the red and white ones onto the grapevine wreath and adhered the pink ones with Velcro, so I can swap them out and coordinate with seasonal decor. It seems like a creative idea and space-saving too. I love putting out new door decor, but hate to store such bulky wreaths in our attic.I think I'll generally have the red, white, and these black rosettes on the wreath. (For some reason, the black looks bluish in this photo). Adding the pink gives it that Valentines touch.

I thought this navy gingham would be cute for 4th of July and swap out with the pink in the summer. I think I have some green ones, too, for Christmas time.

Another fun part of these rosettes was the fabric. The pink fabric has mini polka-dots in it and was actually from one of my Grandma Higgin's housecoats (mumus as my Mom calls them). It still had that Grandma smell to me. The blue gingham was in my Mom's old fabric. I love adding sentiment to things I create.

While my parents were here, I showed them how to cut the snowflakes that I've become a bit addicted to creating. Daniel even joined with me yesterday afternoon and we had fun making a bunch more. I added a few to the front door and some to the windows above our shutters in the dining room. I like being able to see them, even if our blinds are closed. I may regret taping these on the glass in a few months, when I'm scraping off tape, but for now they make me happy.

I even thought this VintageJunky.com look might be pretty somewhere in the house. Great use for clear thread or fishing line. Hmmm. Where to add this?

Here is the basic folding technique from Pinterest. You fold them in thirds and create something like this. The correct folding is vital. Light paper helps too. And sharp scissors make all the difference.I love my new wreath and can't wait to pull out my other Valentines decor this week. Since I've been blogging about doors and windows, it made me think about our french doors in our kitchen.
The bane of my existence.
When we moved in, they were the most damaged of anything in our home. The previous owner had an outside dog that did lots of scratching to these beautiful doors. I have no patience for that. I've called around to get estimates to replace the glass or the doors. I'm not sure I'm ready to splurge on this. For two years, I kept the sand-colored blinds down almost all day long, but lately I'm pulling them up anyway. I guess I'm coming to peace with the scratches, since the sunlight seems more important than hiding the damage. I love puttering around in my house in the morning, with the sunshine streaming in. Especially in the winter months! Maybe I'm learning to overlook this flaw of the house. I know we'll replace the glass someday, but for now I'd rather spend the money elsewhere.

Sisters

Katie was so sweet to Christina last weekend. They had a spa night on Friday, painting nails and doing facials. Then I peeked in on them having a pillow fight in Christina's room. They were giggling and having such fun!Katie has a queen sized bed in her room and let Christina cuddle in her bed for bedtime stories and a sleepover that night. This one-on-one time meant so much to Christina and made her so happy.
On Saturday Ben and Katie had plans to paint her bedroom. For part of the day, Katie helped Ben by watching Christina, while I was away at camp meetings. The girls went for a walk to Conoco and picked up slushies and snacks.
It was heartwarming to see the love my girls have for each other.

Santa Baby

Christina has always loved water play and can take hour long baths and showers.

She called for me one day and told me she looked like Santa with a bubble beard.

This must be Grouchy Santa. 

We see this expression quite often around our house! I had to laugh at Daniel's baptism, when she made this face at me when I shushed her to be more reverent. Our bishop noticed it too and grinned at me. Like I've said before, we have spirited, strong-willed children. Whom we love with our all our hearts. Just not the stinker moments.

Christina loves to play in the tub with goggles, pretending she is swimming. I wonder if Pinky will become a good swimmer. She is not afraid of the water and wants to be on swim team, like her friend Tucker. I called the YMCA and she is not quite a strong enough swimmer for that, but it's something to work towards. It's only $8 to swim as a family. I think I'll start taking the kids as a way to break up boring afternoons and Saturdays. Swimming is great for wearing kids out too!

Other days she gathers all her water toys and plays in the shower. Yesterday I heard her singing an animal variation of "Drummer Boy" with her enthusiastic "Moos" and bell sounds, as she played with her animal bath stickers. She makes me laugh! All the kids prefer bathing/showering in our master bath and I have to persuade all of the kids to use their own bathroom - the camping bathroom. It kind of drives Ben a little crazy!

Look at those luscious, red lips. She's such a cutie.

I just wish her love for baths/showers would rub off on her brother Daniel!

Tire Swing

Ben had an extra tire in the garage and built a tire swing for the kids in the backyard. Christina and her friend Tucker have especially enjoyed it! Little Miss Purplicious loves playing outside and enjoys outdoor hours with her friends most days.

Wheeeee!

Christina Loses Her First Tooth

Christina, who is just barely 5-years old, lost her first tooth this week. She is our youngest to lose a tooth at this age. Katie was especially in shock, since she recalls losing her first tooth in 1st or 2nd grade. We thought it would take another few days before the tooth was ready to come out, but this feisty gal was proud to yank it out all by herself. That's a first in the family too.  When Ben interviewed her the other day, she explained, "Daddy tried to pull it out too softly. I yanked it out super hard." Yep. Super is one of Christina's favorite words! Typically, Ben is our tooth-pulling Dad who helps the kids ease out those first teeth. He has the magic touch and often pulls them out without the kids even realizing it.
Christina doesn't seem old enough to have this cute little gap.

We pulled out her never-used-before tooth fairy pillow and hung it on her door.

These were a fun project to make a few years back. I sewed them for the children and most of my nieces, nephews, and other friends.

 She struggled to fall asleep, knowing the tooth fairy would come that night.
When she woke up, she was elated to find a rolled up dollar bill in the mini pocket. She was bummed to see that the tooth fairy had taken her tooth. Guess we didn't explain that part very well.
She has another wiggly tooth next to this tooth and worries about eating apples, thinking it will cause the tooth to come out too soon. Let's just hope our home's tooth fairy will do better in the future. She has had a history of forgetting and being an air head tooth fairy. Just another one of those side effects of being super tired at bedtime!
Christina has been worried about when the next tooth is coming in its place. She seems to lack trust that another permanent tooth really will come in. I kind of like this little jack o' lantern grin and hope it stays around for a while! Christina has found it makes a handy spot to place your straw when you're drinking hot cocoa.

My week - at a glance. TMI?

I used to think I was a night person, but I'm starting to doubt that's true in my 40s. 

I still don't love waking in the morning, but once I get going, I find that the morning hours are when my energy is the highest.  I enjoy bustling around all morning, getting things done, and then feel justified in taking a break to relax after lunch. One of my new favorite things is to eat lunch on the couch, while I'm watching a favorite tv show. That is definitely something new in this stage of my life.

Now that I've had a few months to adjust to Christina being in Pre-K all day, I think I am starting to feel a little more settled in this new season. Life doesn't feel any slower. Just different. I do find that I miss the children when they are gone all day, but I enjoy quiet. That hasn't been hard to adapt to. The quieter days make it that much easier to ponder, think, study the scriptures, or listen to uplifting music. Sometimes I don't want it quiet and blast high-energy dance tunes while I clean. Other days, I love the peacefulness of a quiet, empty home.

I had looked forward to winter and quieter days, but January is turning into a busy month. I'm actually kind of disappointed by that.  I haven't posted much on the blog in January and I was trying to figure out why. I guess it's mostly because the things that have been keeping me busy haven't been photograph-friendly or fun. I tend to blog more about fun and light stuff. Sometimes that's not a very accurate portrayal of real life in our family.

Here's what I've been focusing on this week:

*  One of my favorite to-do items has been planning our family cruise - what to pack, shore excursions, destination background, info about ship activities, and shopping for the trip. I have to be careful about travel research, though. If I do too much travel reading online before bed, I struggle to fall asleep.

*  Yesterday on a whim I popped into a local shop called "Formal Fantasy" and browsed the clearance dresses. My Mia Maids had told me they sometimes have some good deals. I found a satin, black, floor-length, modest formal dress with a chiffon-type skirt overlay. I wasn't planning to dress up too fancy for Formal Nights on our cruise, but when I saw the $10 price tag, I went for it! I can't wait to get fancied up again. It made Ben happy too. He likes to dress up.

*  My least favorite part of the week was packing up Christmas and hauling 30+ boxes into the attic. I was proud of myself though. I did most of it myself and had no mishaps!

* With all this time in the garage and attic, it felt good to organize and sweep the garage. It looks 100% better! Every time I pull into the garage, I feel quietly happy and good about my hard work.

*  It has been easier to get to deep cleaning and organizing the house with the kids in school all day. I couldn't believe how many cobwebs I found in all my windows, behind the plantation shutters. I'm going room by room and trying to clean deeply. That feels nice too.

* A side effect of all the deep cleaning and organizing cabinets is making regular donations to our local Goodwill. I am not sure why I get such a high out of this kind of purging.

*  Yesterday I had yet another dentist appointment. If I hear my dentist say the words, "Wow. This is a lot worse (deeper, bigger, etc.) than I thought it would be," I think I'm going to cry. This was the first dentist appointment I've ever had when they struggled to get me numb enough. By the time he gave me three shots, most of my face felt paralyzed. It took until after dinner to feel normal again. I have one more appointment to go and then I hope for a nice long dental break!

*  I've felt so happy reading the Book of Mormon in Spanish with a new member family in our ward. I was asked to do this with the mother and daughter. It brings back great missionary experiences and makes me feel so good as we read together. I've printed off reading schedules for them and I'm helping them (and myself) stay on track with regular reading. This is a blessing for them and me both. Reading from the scriptures regularly is a personal weakness of mine.

*  Young Women continues to keep me very busy. This week I've enjoyed preparing a lesson about the Savior. I've felt the Spirit so strongly as I've thought of things to say, music to use, and have truly pondered on Jesus. I've been reminded of his love and my deep testimony of the atonement. Each Wednesday night, I attend activities, which makes for a full week in our family.

* Evenings are busy in our life right now. Mondays are always FHE. Tuesdays are Ben's stake meetings. He is often gone from 5-11 pm. He is strengthened and enriched by his interactions with our stake presidency. I'm thankful for their love and influence. He needs this in his life right now. Wednesdays are youth night. And this week (Thursday) we had R.S. It was a beautiful "Angels in Aprons" dinner program.

* I was asked to be the assistant YCL leader for Girls Camp this year. It has frustrated me a little because I want to do a good job, but I'm not sure about expectations. I am not taking the lead and work under a shoot-from-the-hip type leader. I hope I can "wing it" well enough, since I am not sure what to expect in our all-day meeting tomorrow. All I can do is my best, right? I am hard working and pretty flexible.

* I've been planning the details for Daniel's baptism. This has been tricky too, because there are various scripts and opinions for how this needs to be planned. I was referred to the handbook, which was helpful. Mostly I am on the right track, although I would like to do some special things for him that are taking a lot of time. Too much time. I've started working on a musical slideshow of Daniel's life to a beautiful variation of the Primary song "I'm Trying to Be Like Jesus." I have a vision for this project, but may not be able to complete it in a week. I envision having it playing outside the R.S. room as people are coming. It might be a long-term project that I can do for each of the children.

* With it being birthday-time, I've been shopping for Daniel's birthday and giving my Mom ideas for him too. Daniel is being difficult about a party with friends this year. He wants to do it at Chuck E. Cheese (in OKC) and we just don't have a Saturday or big enough block of time to do it there. I am dragging my feet on this plan and he won't flex. I'm not sure how to resolve it. I am also planning snacks for his class next week, along with his requested cookie cake for his classmates. It all feels like a lot of work this year.

* As if things aren't crazy enough in the travel department, I found a steal of a deal with American Airlines miles, so I recently booked a trip for me and the kids to Washington, DC over Spring Break. It's only 17,500 miles each and this destination is one both Katie and Daniel have hoped to visit. Ben is going to try and get appointments with potential donors in the area, so he can attend with us and sightsee over the weekend. I haven't even thought about details of this trip, since you can only focus on so many things at once.

* And then there's the fluffy part of how I've been using my time. I'm not sure what it is about January. I know there are lots of good deals to be found all year long, but I do more shopping for myself this month than any other. Maybe it's having Christmas money that I enjoy splurging a bit. And I do love a clearance sale! I've bought myself some clothes, makeup, earrings, ballet flats, and my favorite - new plum toggle coat.

* This is the silliest bullet item on this list. I have to work at figuring out my Christmas gifts. Typically, I don't get to my stuff until we get all the kids' toys and things figured out. New things that require "figuring out" overwhelm me. I need quiet to do that. As soon as the kids were back in school, I figured out how to use my new steam mop. I love it and it works amazingly well. Then there's my iPhone. I like some aspects of it - the music and calendar components, but still don't love the cell phone/texting part of it all. It's probably because I'm mostly home or I'm very focused on other things outside of the home. My Mom got me a Sonicare toothbrush and I'm loving that too. It gets my teeth cleaner than anything I've ever used.

And here's what I have NOT been good at focusing on this week:

* making good dinners (I just feel so scattered, spread thin, headachy, and super tired by dinner time. We've had way too many wimpy dinners and leftovers. I haven't stuck to my weekly menu at all this week!)

* packing kids' lunches - the younger two bought their lunch every day this week!

* dusting blinds - this is my least favorite cleaning task. I hate it and will do everything else, but that. Maybe I'll hire a Y.W. to come over and help me. They are super dusty and horrible!

* being fun - if I get too much in task mode, I'm not as light and fun as I should and want to be.

* naps - I can't wait to get caught up and make time for just an hour-long nap. Doesn't that sound heavenly?

Okay, wasn't that the most boring blog post you've ever read?


I have to admit that it makes me feel better, though, having written it. It helps me understand why I've felt so busy and scattered. We honestly have a lot going on.