It's official.

I am the worst mom ever.

Or at the very least a bad one:(

On Thursday afternoons Isaiah takes an hour and fifteen minute art class ("Clay Creations") at the rec center. Typically the girls and I stay in the rec center and play (at the indoor playground). Sometimes we go to the grocery store a mile down the road. 

Today (for the first time) we went to a friend's house and hung out during Isaiah's class. My girls played & snacked while us moms chatted and I got to hold my friend's baby. It was lovely. 

After an hour of socializing I loaded up the girls to go get Isaiah. That is when I saw it. A voicemail from the rec center left on my phone 45 minutes prior. Isaiah was complaining of a stomach ache and wanted to go home. 

I hate to admit it but my initial thought was that he was crying wolf. I already had my lecture planned about the inappropriateness of claiming illness in order to get out of participating in an activity. But in the back of my mind I also felt HORRIBLE for missing that call. I already felt like the worst mother!

I pulled up to the rec center (a minute or two late!) to find NO close parking spots. So I made the hasty decision to park (illegally) in the fire lane near the entrance. I turned off the van and left the girls buckled in their seats and dashed into the building. (His class is right by the front entrance...in my defense.) 

I met his teacher in the hall and apologized profusely. She was gracious and told me, "it happens to every mom". She then pointed me to the men's bathroom as Isaiah had been in there "for a while". Uh oh. No good. 

Cautiously I opened the door and called for Isaiah. He was the only person in there so I charged in, only to find the most sad sick boy I had ever seen. (The coming-out-both-ends kind of sick). He thankfully had made it to the toilet in time to go to the bathroom. Unfortunately he threw up at the same time. Which resulted in his underwear and pants being FILLED with his vomit. And there he stood all alone in a vomit filled bathroom stall trying to clean it up himself. 

Worst mom ever!

My heart was so sad for him. But my brain was frenzied trying to figure out the logistics of this situation. Two girls unattended in the illegally parked van, one boy covered in vomit and just me to deal with it all! No change of clothes, no diaper bag, nothing. Hastily I cleaned up the floor. Removed Isaiah's underwear and threw them away! Then forced him back into the soggy pants and we shuffled out of there with more apologies to his teacher.

We were quite the sight. 

But we all made it home in one piece without any more vomit! Once home I got Isaiah in the tub and fed the girls dinner. And eventually everyone was changed into jammies and reading bedtime stories    in the living room. (I wanted to quarantine Isaiah in his room but he refused.)

It was then that I snuck away to the bathroom. Ya know, to go to the bathroom. Only to be interrupted by Isaiah, knocking on the door and announcing his imminent need to throw up again! I swung open the door to witness him heaving and throwing up ALL over the hallway. The carpeted hallway. Just a second too late. 

See? Worst mom ever. 

I got him cleaned up. And then set to work cleaning up the hallway. While scrubbing away, Hannah toddles over to me...drinking from Isaiah's Gatorade-filled water bottle. The one he was drinking from just minutes before he threw up. Ugh.

Its going to be a long weekend. I just know it.

This illness came right on time. As in one week before Joe's next test. Joe always claims we fall apart right before his tests thus preventing him from getting in good quality study time. Yep, right on time!

Learning & Living

Can I be perfectly honest here for a few minutes?

Ok. Thanks. 

Being married to a medical student isn't all that bad (or hard). Not really. Especially right now. Right now he is on his family practice rotation which is Monday - Friday 9-5 (with a few "late" days thrown in there for fun). Besides study time, we have Daddy home ALL weekend. We go to church together as a family. We eat most dinners together as a family. Heck, we even bang our heads against the walls together as a family - out of sheer boredom and cabin fever! Ok not really on the last one! But you know what I mean:)

And yet, lately I have been complaining a lot lately about "Joe's schedule" and doing everything on my own. Mostly this is an internal self dialogue. My own little "woe is me" pity party. I have been wishing Joe had never left his stable (albeit incredibly boring and unfulfilling)  job as a banker. I have been day dreaming about him being home every night for dinner and bedtime. I dream about having more help with the child rearing and disciplining. And when I get real greedy in my day dreams, he's even home in the morning to help me get the kids up and ready. (Who am I kidding?! I need him here to get ME up. The kids have no problem hopping to bright & early!) 

And then I was asked by an eager, go-getter, chomping at the bit girlfriend of a first year medical student, "which year is the hardest?" I immediately responded, "For my husband it was his first year (as he had to re-learn how to be a student) and for me it is this year (third year)." A much wiser wife of a medical student responded, "The worst year is whichever one you both think of yourself the most and don't communicate well."

BAM. 

Her words hit me like a ton of bricks! Lately I have been thinking of myself. A LOT. Too much in fact. Because you want to know what is hard?

Being a medical student. 

 

It's a rigorous schooling process with extremely high standards. And it's a competitive environment. One in which everyone is bright and an over-achiever. It's the best of the best trying find a way to excell and shine brighter than everyone else while trying to learn and internalize an astounding amount of complex information. 

See? That's hard. 

Being the wife? And being the mom? That's the easy part. Sure I make the meals and wash the dishes. I do the laundry. I tend to the children and their (never-ending & always changing) needs. I vacuum and I scrub the toilet. But I also get to do all the fun parts as well. I get to go to play dates and story time. I take the kids to the park and the beach (weather-permitting:). And I get to play and read stories with them. Heck I have time to sew with my friends and watch a TV program (on the rare occasion I want to). I can even take a bubble bath or a nap when the kids are napping/resting. I get to go visit family and friends (albeit mostly alone with three kids).

I even have time to blog:) 

Joe doesn't have the luxury of free time and hobbies these days. He is either "med student" or "dad". That's it. Not much else. No time with his friends. No watching a game on lazy Sunday afternoons. The poor guy didn't even realize that Super Bowl Sunday is only four days away!

And yet I complain. And day dream of a different life. A life I will never know. And probably don't want to. Because my husband would have been miserable and bored. He's happy as a medical student. He has found his calling in life. And by golly I need to learn to embrace this life. My life. Our life. 

Unmet expectations are the root of discontent. 

I need to adjust my expectations. Because this is our reality. And being the wife isn't all that bad:) I'd rather be the wife than the medical student any day! 

But may I for one teeny tiny little second complain about one thing?  

Ok. Thanks again. Changing rotations every 4-8 weeks and NEVER knowing my husband's schedule in advance? That's annoying! He starts pediatrics in a week and a half. And we have NO IDEA what his schedule will be like. Will he be in the clinic or in the hospital? Days? Nights? Weekends? Will he have call? And if so is it "in house"?!?  I always have such an "impending sense of doom" at the beginning of each new rotation. But if I expect the worst than I can be nothing but pleasantly surprised by the reality, right?

Rant over. 

Back to my regular schedule of poop, pee and sleep schedules ranting tomorrow. Thanks for listening. 

Motherly knowledge

This morning while playing a rousing game off "clean up the Cheerios smeared into the carpet" followed by a round of "find the poop" with (a bare-bottomed) Hannah, I had the thought, "before I was a mom I didn't even know that Cheerios could be smeared into the carpet." They can be and they leave quite the mark. Worse than poop actually. Take my word for it.  Which made me think about ALL the useful things I know now but didn't know before I was a mom. 

Like....

I didn't know that vomit left on fabric for an extended period of time would bleach the fabric. It does. 

Or...

That I could look at a boogery-faced kid and think they are the cutest kid alive. 

Or...

That a girl can be going potty on the toilet and still miss the toilet. In fact the pee might just spray up on an unsuspecting bystander. I wish I didn't know this one but I do...from experience:)

Or...

That my baby's poop is more appealing to me than other babies' poop. Weird. I know. (And by "appealing" I mean I would rather change my child's poopy pants than another child's. NO poop is actually appealing!)

Or...

That such a small being (or rather a collection of small beings) can be so frustrating and down right trying. That I am left wondering if I have any sanity left at all.

Or...

That washing a used (disposable) diaper in a load of laundry is surprisingly not very messy. Again, take my word on this one. 

What can I say?!  It has been one of those days. Enough pee, poop & vomit talk! 

Yesterday I posted this little nugget of a photo to Facebook:

Because I was a) shocked at how much my children liked embroidery and b) reveling in the peace and harmony it brought to my home (on yet another "snow day").  What I wasn't expecting was how many questions this picture garnered from other moms. Moms that wanted to know the how's & what's of embroidery with small children. 

So you know what that means, right?! A post about embroidering with small children coming soon! I know the excitement!!! I hope you can handle it:)

Ok. Ok. Only a couple moms were interested in embroidery. And no one asked for a post (besides my husband). But still I have so many cute pictures of my kids while doing embroidery. So a post is definitely forthcoming regardless of the very minimal demand for such a post! I apologize in advance. 

Lastly, why oh why do I always seem to find myself in poopy situations? Literally speaking of course. This morning's incident I blame on the Cheerios. The kids took a bath this morning. After toweling off Hannah, I left her (in her birthday suit) playing outside of the tub while I ran to grab her a diaper and clothes. It was then I discovered the smear(s) of Cheerios in the hallway. So I stopped my diaper & clothes retrieving mission to clean it up. Which in turn gave Hannah ample time to poop WITHOUT a diaper on. 

Moral of the story: get a new diaper before bath time! 

How have I not learned this yet?!?

my "new" cowl

Yesterday morning while Charlotte danced and Isaiah loomed, I made myself a knit cowl, inspired by THIS super easy & fabulous tutorial. Of course I did not finish it during my allotted time (i.e. 45 minute pre-ballet dance class). That would have been too easy. So I finished it during nap time. Oh wait...I spent nap time trying to convince Charlotte to stay IN THE BED to no avail! So finally after naptime with Charlotte and Hannah at my feet vying for my very divided attention I completed my cowl (and took these ridiculous pictures of myself wearing the completed project. Why I stood on my bed for said pictures? I don't know. I guess I felt the pictures needed a little color. I almost put on make-up for my photo shoot. But that I decided was just a too much!).

This admittedly was a ridiculously easy project and never should have taken me that long to complete! Why so easy? Well for starters I didn't knit it yesterday. Instead, I took a scarf that I knit 10 years ago (as a gift for Joe) and unknit it a bit to make it the right cowl length. Then I simply added 3 (mismatched) buttons to secure it all together and magically it transformed from "scarf" to "cowl". Voila! My new cowl! And yes, I am well aware of the fact that the original cowl is much cuter than mine AND yes, I know that my buttons look ridiculous and haphazardly placed. But what can I say? They were haphazardly placed as I tried to keep Hannah from eating my sewing needle.

Of course, after unkitting the original scarf I had extra yarn that I couldn't throw away. Far too wasteful for my frugal-loving heart! So once my photo shoot was complete and mommy could once again pay attention to someone else besides herself, I sat down and finger knit with Charlotte. Which meant I only had one little needling vying for my attention:) Much more manageable. And in the end Charlotte created an adorable infinity scarf for herself. Almost as cute at Mommy's. Ok...cuter. The little kid version is always cuter even if the little kid isn't cooperating for her photo session!

In my defense, I would have had three matching buttons for my cowl. BUT I didn't make it to the craft store yesterday afternoon because Joe was gone (studying). BUT I won't complain. Not one little bit. BECAUSE Joe was able to get much needed study time in thanks to our friends offering to take Isaiah with them to the pool ALL afternoon. Which I realize as I type this makes no sense what so ever.  But it actually did. You will just have to trust me on that one. I will give up three matching buttons any day when it means Joe gets to study, Isaiah has fun with friends and I get to craft (with my girls)!  Thank you dear friend for that gift! It was a perfect afternoon/evening.

Ordinary day(s)

Since waking in a puddle (of urine...for the inquisitive minds) on Tuesday, my days have been quite normal. Ordinary, if I dare say so myself. And I mean that in the best way possible! The girls and I dropped Isaiah off at school (on time! without a struggle or fight!!!) and then we went grocery shopping with an actual list. Besides the fact that both girls were still in their pjs, I finally felt (and maybe looked?!) like I had it together once again. (Christmas break threw me for a loop and I have just now recovered! I realize Christmas was almost a month ago. I am slow to adjust I guess.)

Once we returned home we worked on a craft. Nothing too exciting or fancy. But it was fun to sit and enjoy my girls' company and create a Valentines decoration together. Then we had lunch. Leftover pasta and frozen peas. Hannah had speech therapy. And then it was nap/rest time. Charlotte and I completed the craft while Hannah slept. And finally it was time to pick up Isaiah from school. 

Ordinary stuff on an ordinary day.
 

While Charlotte and I were working side-by-side cutting and gluing hearts, she turned to me and exclaimed, "this is the BEST mommy!"  And I couldn't agree more.  

Sometimes ordinary days are the best.

The finished product.

And this week has been filled to the brim with ordinary. 

Rainbow looming. 

Polly pockets. 

Laundry. 

Ignoring laundry. 

Scrubbing dishes. 

Cooking meals. 

Wiping faces (and bums:)

Reading stories. 

Sibling squabbles. 

And everything in between.

 

Just this morning the girls and I ran to Target (after dropping Isaiah off at school on time again!) for diapers and milk. What could be more ordinary than that? And then we made mini muffins. Which then lead to us having a tea party. In fancy dresses! Just an ordinary morning. 

I like ordinary. 

 

And before you think I have jumped off the deep end and joined the ranks of "my life is picture perfect", let me clarify a few things...

Hannah was in her pjs again this morning while we ran errands! Because apparently dressing all of my children and myself before 8:30am is just too much work for me:) She also screamed most off the time we were in Target. She wanted me to hold her which is near impossible while pushing the monstrosity that is the Target double kid cart! Many stares and dirty looks for us this morning.  (This third child has humbled me as a mother more than I ever thought possible in her short 17 months of existence!) Oh and the muffins? They came from a boxed mix. Half of them I burnt because I didn't hear the timer due to Charlotte's tantrum over which pretty dress she wanted to wear. And my Hercules-like toddler decided to rip the toilet seat off the toilet during the tantrum. And I do mean the entire toilet seat. Which revealed to me just how badly my toilet needed a thorough scrubbing! And that laundry has grown to the size of a mountain...

So yeah. Just ordinary life happening here. Sometimes it's picture worthy. And sometimes it's not. (Notice how I am not pictured at the tea party? That's because my yoga pants and t-shirt are on their second consecutive day of wear and most definitely not worthy of a picture.)

Rude awakening

I am not sure which is worse, waking up in a puddle of urine or waking up in a puddle of vomit?!? Both puddles created by someone else. Neither is a good way to wake up I assure you. Unfortunately I have experienced both. One this morning and the other one when eight months pregnant (and therefore not very agile/quick on my feet). Either way it is a rude awakening!

I might have to recant my statement about loving sharing a bed with my girl...

 

 

[Lastly, the pictures are completely unrelated to the post. Well except for the fact that they are pictures of the guilty party. However if you look closely at the second picture you can see Charlotte's not-so-white pearly white. (The front tooth on the right, her left.) It died slowly while we were gone in Mexico. I was so sad to come home to her very brown tooth. It was so startling. And well...not very cute:( But over the last few weeks it has gotten lighter and better. It isn't nearly as brown as it was initially. So while it is still discolored, it is much improved! Ok. And that is the last time I will mention Charlotte's teeth for awhile. Or at least I hope so.]

Hungry

I know I have discussed "how not to eat" here as Charlotte is an expert in that department. However it turns out Isaiah is an expert at being HUNGRY and staying hungry. Take today for example....

As we were leaving for the library (for storytime):

I: I'm HUNGRY. 

Me: Ok. We will eat lunch as soon as we get home. (Not concerned as we had just finished breakfast within the hour). 

Leaving the library:

I: Mom, I'm really hungry. 

Me: Ok. I was planning on heating up the leftover taco casserole for lunch. 

I: Yuck. I don't want that. I want a peanut  butter and jelly sandwich. 

Me: Ok. 

Upon our return home, Isaiah makes himself a pb+honey+j sandwich. I foolishly think lunch is going to go smoothly....

After finishing his sandwich (and putting his nose up to the grapes I was serving his sisters):

I: I'm still hungry. Can I have some cheese?

Me: Sure. There is cottage cheese or cheddar cheese...

Isaiah gets out the cottage cheese only to declare it "too watery". So I slice him some cheddar cheese:

I: What are these lines on the cheese?!?!? (Visibly distraught at this point.)

Me: Marks from the package. It's good cheese. Eat it!

Isaiah takes a tentative nibble:

I: What is this? It doesn't taste like cheese!

Me: Cheese. Real cheddar cheese. It does taste like cheese. Good cheese. 

I: No it doesn't. It doesn't taste like cheese!

(At this point Charlotte gladly eats Isaiah's doesn't-taste-like-cheese-cheese-slices). 

I: What else can I eat?

Me: Carrots. 

I: What else?

Me: Carrots.

He reluctantly goes to the fridge and retrieves the bag of carrots:

I: I can't eat these! They have white on them!!! What is that?!? 

Me: Carrots. Dry carrots. 

I: Yuck! I can't eat white carrots! What else can I eat?

Me: 

Isaiah looks in the fridge....desperate for something edible:

I: Can I have the leftover fish?

Me: Sure. (When will I ever learn?!)

After heating up and serving him the requested fish:

Me: Isaiah don't play with it. Take a bite. 

I: I can't. It's too wet!!

...long dramatic pause as Isaiah picks at the fish some more....

I: Mom, can I have some taco casserole? I'm hungry. 

Me: No. No you may not because I am eating the "yucky taco casserole". You can eat your fish. 

I: But it's too wet! 

Me: Ok. Well then you can go to your room for rest time. Lunch is over. 

Isaiah stomping off...

I: This is the worst day EVER!!!!

 

That's where you are wrong hungry-child-of-mine, it is going to be the worst day ever once you discover that for snack I am serving white carrots, sliced cheese and wet fish! Oh and if you don't eat it for snack, guess what we are having for dinner?!?

Family Fusion

Every 6 weeks (or so) our church has a fun event called 'Family Fusion'. It's an evening of eating and playing together as a family. We have been attending faithfully for the last two years. It's good, cheap fun. Last Friday was a 'Family Fusion' night so we brought my parents along for the fun...errr...or at least the promise of fun.

However we had a rocky start. Hannah didn't like the meal and was very vocal about her opinion.  And Charlotte, my dear sweet non-napping Charlotte completely lost it when her taco became unrolled and made contact with her applesauce! She was inconsolable. And making a scene. And to top it all off there  was a lady at the next table over that was determined to befriend Hannah. And Hannah was having NONE of that. The crying and screaming at our table kept everyone away. I was ready to call it quits before we really had a chance to start. That's how bad it was. My dad had the audacity to suggest the event should be called 'Family Feuding' instead of 'Family Fusion'. 

But we stuck it out. I gave myself a little time-out in the empty nursery to regain composure. And in the end we had fun! (See pictures below). However Charlotte's "performance" has me re-thinking this no nap situation. Clearly she needs more sleep. But I can't force her to nap. I feel stuck without a good solution.

 

 

[And now before I become completely consumed with the topic of sleep and naps, a change in subject. You are welcome.]

My parents. They were a delight to have around. Why? Too many reasons to list. But I will try. For starters, my mom did almost all the cooking and cleaning! Plus when the kids wanted to go outside to play Grandpa took them while I stayed warm and cozy inside. And school drop off and pick up was a breeze because I didn't have to drag two tired, crying girls with me. In fact I didn't have to go at all if I didn't want to, my dad was happy to pick up Isaiah. And the best part, I had the option to just take one child with me when out and about! Hannah & I went to Goodwill (to look for a birthday present for Joe) and had a grand time just the two of us! No present was found but we found some good stuff for us girls:) And the best was while Isaiah was in his art class, I went shopping ALONE. Perusing the grocery store aisles for just the right conditioner by myself...heavenly! Oh and I *almost* went out with some girls one evening. Except I lost the car key and couldn't go out. (Joe had the spare at the clinic). But it's probably for the best. I am no good at GNO. 

On Saturday mornings, Charlotte has dance class and Hannah has swimming "lessons". Normally we divide and conquer. Me with Charlotte & Isaiah. And Joe with Hannah. But this week my parents were in charge of the dance crew so I got to tag along with the swimmers. It was fun. Just the three of us in Joe's little car with one child buckled in the back. It felt like we were first time parents all over again!

Except if we were first time parents we both would have both been in the water with Hannah! But we aren't. So I sat in the observation area and happily watched Joe and Hannah swim. And took pictures. Lots and lots of pictures. Mamarazzi style!

 

Thank you parents for coming and just doing life with us. We love your visits! Come again soon. 

Bye bye baby.

Can I blather on a bit more about Charlotte and sleep? Yes. Yes, I can. (There is something about having a house full of young children that makes sleep - or the lack of sleep - a seemingly endless topic of conversation. That and poop. But I won't go there. At least not today.) 

Recently Charlotte has been waking at night - sometimes a couple times a night - from nightmares. When this happens she quietly crawls out of her bed and runs across the hall and wiggles her way into our bed. And then she sweetly whispers in my ear, "I can't sleep. I had a bad dream mama."  I respond by whispering a prayer in her ear for Jesus to take away any bad thoughts and wrap her in my arms and we both doze off snugly and warm. 

Joe very much dislikes when children join us in our bed (major understatement)! But I must admit, I really like these middle of the night snuggles with my big girl. And that's saying a lot as person who really LOVES sleep. But Charlotte is so considerate in middle of the night (unintentionally I am sure but appreciated nonetheless). First off, she never wakes her sister. Plus she hardly interrupts my sleep as she doesn't call out and make me come to her (like a certain child I know. Hmm hmm Isaiah). Instead she quietly joins me in my bed and fills my arms with her warm squishy body. Her body snuggled up to mine at night just seems to fit. Like two puzzle pieces. It reminds me of when my babies were actual babies and fit in my arms as if they were a part of me. 

I miss that. 

Because here's the thing, I don't have a baby anymore. In this house I have three children. I am not sure when or how it happened but truth be told my baby is a toddler now. I really noticed this for the first time when we returned from Mexico. Hannah seemed to have grown 5 inches while we were gone and was all sorts of independent upon our return. 

So yeah, I will gladly accept middle of the night snuggles where my "babies" melt into me. It fills the empty place between my arms as well as my heart. Plus, I really like their sweet sleepy breath. Weird. I know. I'm a mom. What can I say?!

The writing on the wall.

I think it is time for me to be honest with myself. Charlotte is NOT a napper anymore. Its a truth I don't want to face. It means the loss of two uninterrupted hours every afternoon. My alone time is gone. It feels like the end of an era. Ok. Ok. That might be a bit dramatic. But I really REALLY love nap time. And I am going to miss it. A LOT!

 

 

Hannah on the other hand is going to LOVE having the room to herself. She is NOT going to miss her sister keeping her up all afternoon. Singing and talking. And she certainly isn't going to miss having her sister torment her by filling her crib with every toy in their room instead of sleeping.

 

Charlotte was quite proud of herself. Hannah was NOT impressed.

 

Sorry baby girl. I was fast asleep across the hall and completely oblivious to your distress. For being a screamer you can be really quiet at the oddest times.

 

Luckily Grandpa Paul and Grandma Donna are here this week. They will definitely be a big help for me with this new non-nap schedule...and of course the kids love having them around too!

 

 

Update: This is day two of Charlotte not napping. She does have a rest time for one hour in my bed. It's going well.

Especially today because I joined her:)

new camera + cute kids

My camera arrived on Friday! See....

Clearly I kept my promise to not shower until it was in my hands:) Not so sure Joe was impressed with my dedication to the camera! But it has been so very worth it, in my humble opinion.

I have been very SNAP HAPPY all weekend. (Major understatement)  Admittedly I have no idea what I am doing with such a nice camera, but it has been fun. And my kids are even enjoying their time in front of mommy's new camera. Which is shocking! Especially considering Isaiah's recent dislike for pictures.

So I took their enthusiasm and ran with it...

 

Yep. A little Valentine's shoot in January.

 

But how could I resist with three adorable COOPERATIVE models?! Obviously I couldn't. Plus, Joe bought me those cute heart balloons to use as props. So I had to take the pictures.

And because I had too much fun editing/collaging the pictures here they are again...

 



(Isaiah's bow tie. Isn't it fabulous? My sewing friends helped me create it with felt and fabric glue. They are the best! Friends I mean.)

Oh and I have since showered and made myself presentable.

[Valentine's Day 2013 & The Outtakes]


Update: I have since discovered picmonkey (a free online photo editing program). And created this little beauty tonight....

 

This & that.

In no particular order and without any real purpose (except maybe to entertain my parents, maybe) here is what the last two days have brought at our house.

Isaiah had a rough first day back at school. He was tired and weepy. Afebrile.  All according to the school nurse. So while I thought it was a good idea to put the girls down for a late nap yesterday and start packing (and purging!) our basement. It wasn't. It really wasn't. Because what I ended up with was this...

a mess. Plus two tired girls that I had to wake up and drag out in the cold to pick up Isaiah from school. 45 minutes was NOT a long enough nap! Seriously loading up two crying girls in freezing temperatures without an attached garage is my LEAST favorite activity. EVER. And I got to do it again today. Ugh. Though I think I have a good chance at failing as a homeschool mom next year, I am so SO looking forward to NOT having to do school drop off and pick up. I won't miss it one little bit. I also will not miss paying electric and gas bills. That will be nice too.

The girls had a lot of good playing together time today. It was nice. With the exception of the random hair pulling, hitting and pinching (all unprovoked and all perpetrated by bully Hannah) they are becoming good little playmates. It's fun to watch. Until it turns into this...

another mess! And yes, they moved Charlotte's bed across the room by themselves. Why? So they could reach all the headbands and hair clips and swim suits. Which they wore for most of the morning. (No pictures, sorry.) BUT I found my lemonade in these lemons...I was forced to finally organize all their hair accessories. 

Speaking of no pictures. I am currently camera-less (besides my phone of course). And I feel so lost without one. My little old point and shoot camera died the day we returned from Mexico. (I must have over worked it on vacation). But in exciting news, I have been saving up for a nice-er camera for a few months (I work in the MOPS nursery, FYI) and I finally ordered one after much deliberation and a little research. And it arrived today EXCEPT I was in the shower and missed the UPS delivery guy. I am now going to stand vigil by my front door. No more showers until that package arrives!

(We went to the indoor playground during Isaiah's clay creations class tonight. Thrilling tidbit.)

Back to school. This morning Isaiah was first "too tired" to get dressed for school. Then "too hungry" (even though he had just finished breakfast). Then he didn't like any of the snack choices I offered him (to bring to school). Finally he HAD to have the hairs around his ears trimmed before he could go to school! Yeah, he was 30 minutes late to school. Not our finest performance. We hope to improve tomorrow. It's a new day, clean slate and all that jazz. 

Lastly, tonight I was attempting to ignore the children as Joe was getting them ready for bed when Hannah wandered into my room and handed me the (toddler sized) toilet seat! I thought that was bad. Then she showed me this...

That would be Charlotte's keychain. Previously mine from my childhood collection. Gross. Then she reached in and tried to get it. 

And on that fine note we called it a night.