energized

It's kinda sad when I have a list of accomplishments that I want to share... and there is no one here to absorb my awesomeness.

So, my dear blog readers... check out what I did today!!

-Field tripped to the miniature horse farm.
-Watched an episode of The Office while I ate lunch.
-Cleaned both bathrooms!
-Cleaned out the oldest boy's bedroom. (major accomplishment!!)
-Picked up kids, fed kids and transported to ball field.
-Hung out for-ev-er (well... three hours) during the ballgame and it's thunderstorm delay.
-Washed two loads of clothes.
-Dug some things out of the basement pit. (small step for mankind... big step for me!)
-Paid bills.
-cleaned the vacuum cleaner!
-checked facebook and read blogs:)
-had a bath.
-and sat here blogging :)

Totally rockin' day.
Thought everyone should know... and be really proud of me;)

(and yes, I realize that some of you may do this kind of stuff every day... because in my former life, I think I did too.)
It was just a good day for me as of late :o)

it worked :-)

oh! It's Easter!

Somehow with everyone else talking about Easter, I managed to forget that it was Easter.

It just occured to me that I have not pulled out any of the little Easter decorations that usually sit around the house in April. Luckily I remembered to hang my Easter flag on the mailbox tonight. whew, just in time! hah.

I started shopping earlier in the month for items to fill the Easter baskets.   I purchased gummies, a Nerds Rope and Big League Chew for each boy.  
And today.... I realized that is ALL I have purchased.  oops.

I also have on-hand a really neat Animal book that Lucas has been drooling over.  (Amazon delivered just in time.)

So... what to do for Easter baskets??      My genius pulled through, once again.

I filled Easter eggs with clues that will  lead the kids around the house in search of their Easter surprise.  But here's the genius in it all:

The first clue that they will find says: 
"When you are dressed in your sunday best,
mom has the clue that will help you find the rest."

Sha-zaam!!  A sure-fire way to get Lucas to wear nice clothes to church!!  :o)  
Sometimes I'm just so darn proud of myself....

I'll let you know how it goes!

spring break

Spring Break started off with a blast.  literally.
On the way to a much anticipated field trip to the NC Zoo.... it all began with what I thought was car-sickness.   My rush to the bus bathroom was humbling and gross.
Turns out that the sickness was a stomach bug that lasted the entire day at the zoo and throughout friday night.   I was  b e a t.  
I stayed in bed yesterday until 5pm.   It was a do-nothing day of recovery.  The kids took care of themselves and also took care of me in the process. 
I received lunch in bed-- I asked for peanut butter toast and I received PB toast AND an egg sandwich.  :-) 

They love to cook...

Thankfully, I am much better today!  And we enjoyed a full day on our friends' farm.  Potluck, Easter egg hunt, lots of socializing, lots of play.  good times :)

Upon our return home tonight, I noticed that a house manned by children for a day leaves a bit of chaos.   I was hell bent on getting things in order, tonight, before our official 'break' starts tomorrow.    We cleaned up a bit and emptied out more things from the basement.

(The washing machine flood required me to rip out the carpet... and has turned into a basement remodeling project.   The contractor is coming tomorrow to tear out everything else and get things dried out before starting fresh.   This is a big deal... but I'm excited to finally have some home improvement projects in the mix.)

We've got a fun week planned.  Looking forward to spending time with family and friends!!

when it's cloudy, it floods

Yesterday, I was visiting Jamestown with the fourth grade when I received a call informing me that a friend's son AND daughter-in-law were killed in a fire.   They were 24 and 26 years old. 
I was shocked and horrified by the news.

I was also chaperoning a bunch of 10 year olds so I managed to keep my composure throughout the day.

I haven't been able to stop thinking about my friend, her family, and her daughter-in-law's family.    My heart breaks for my friend, who I have always recognized for her extreme devotion and love for her children.   Why would this happen to THIS particular family!?
 What a tragedy.   And a tragedy that has no easy answers. 
There are no pat answers to explain why God would have allowed such a thing.
 I grieve with this family.

Thinking about this family has also brought back memories of those first days following Thayer's death.  And I grieve, in my own way, over that.  
Today, I listened to the audio from Thayer's memorial service.  (I know... that is totally morbid... but I do listen once in a while) :)

Added to the thoughts of death and dying.... tomorrow would have been our 12th wedding anniversary. 
yeah, that sucks too.

And... to top it off... my washing machine decided to die... and totally flooded my basement.  
By this point of my day, all I could do was laugh as I stepped from the bottom step into a pool of water.
My parents showed up and helped out with the shop vac.     My Dad said that it was "only about 65 gallons" that he sucked up from the cement and I managed to suck atleast 10 more gallons out of the carpet.  (and it's still wet!) 
(yep.  The machine was filling with water... and overflowing for quite a while before I noticed it.)  ;p

bummer.

I'm thankful that tomorrow is a new day!!  And I intend to take a nap!  (right after I shop for a new washing machine! )

I love my kids

the topic of conversation at my house that followed a pass-by kiss on the head:

"Mooooommmmm... why did you do that?!"

"'cause I'm your mom."

"I don't think you were ever meant to be my mom."

"so maybe I should drop you off at the nearest orphange?"

"yes, let's go."

"I don't even know where the nearest orphange would be."

"look it up on the computer.... 'orphange'"

"ha.  I'll need to google 'nearby orphange'... I'll get right on it."

Gotta love us.  I wonder if the gift of sarcasm is acquired through nature or nurture?