The Sickies...

The Sickies go around.
Sometimes more then once.
Somehow (at least in my house), by the grace of God, mommy manages to stay healthy. One would wonder how that is possible, because it is in fact, MOMMY, who is waiting on every ones needs and cleaning up after them etc.

So mommy does everything in her power to make sure that everyone else is comfortable, and as happy as possible during their stint with the sickies.
Just attempting a calm within the storm.

Everyone in the house gets sick...
They get to sit around, watch TV, wear their jammies, eat Popsicles all day, get waited on, stay home, sleep a lot, get cleaned up after, get lots and lots of hugs and attention, and sometimes they just cry, for no apparent reason at all.

WHY???
Why is it then, when mommy does finally catch whatever bug has invaded her, otherwise, peaceful household, that time doesn't stop and stand still for a while?
Why when mommy is sick do the kids still have to be fed, taken to school, helped, loved, fed some more, bathed and hugged when they sometimes cry for NO apparent reason? Why is it that the house still has to be picked up, and dinner still has to find its way to the table?
When does mommy get her day to lay on the couch under a blanket, with popsicles and not have ANY guilt...or go to bed at 6pm cause she just can't take it anymore.

As I sit here,
my fever is raging, and I just cleaned the kitchen after making dinner. The kiddos are getting ready for bed, and then I will read to them, because my wonderful husband just went to the store to get me some ice cream.
My day went on, just like any other day. Nausea, fever, tired...but all was done in the manner it needed to be done.

No, this isn't a pity party....
I just feel yucky....and wanted to whine a little, because no one in my house really wants to hear it. :)

But really more to point out that
**Mommies are amazing.
Mommies from the beginning of time to now
did what they needed to do to make sure everyone else was OK.

I do it today, I will do it tomorrow...
I will do it as long as my family lets me...

When tomorrow comes, having the privilege of taking care of everyone else, is what makes me forget about the fact that I feel yucky today...

Inspired...

I "stole" this from my friend Lisa's blog.

It hit me in a profound way. In one of those moments of...well...pure naked truth.

We live...as human nature has dictated...to always want.

We desire more money, in order to get more possesions. A larger house, another car, more clothes. It is what we have learned to be...bigger...better...the American Dream.

I seriously find myself falling into that trap far more then I would like. Making a "TO-DO" list, or a "TO-GET" list, that gets longer far before it gets shorter.

Why?

I long for that not to be the case.

I remember a day, not so very long ago...when I was still dreaming of meeting a boy that I would fall in love with. Wondering what my wedding would be like. Imagining the beauty that would be in my life because of my kids. Longing to have my own apartment...and then when I did...longing to own a home.

There is always something. Sometimes, it seems that the "American Dream"...is never ending...that it is never truly reachable, because there is always more to want. I suppose that is different for everyone...but that is how it seems at times.

There was a day, not so very long ago...

when all I did was hope for a life JUST like the one that I have.

So...here we are...in November...

It is a Thankful...Grateful...month...

And I am.

Very Thankful...Very Grateful...

I am OVERFLOWING with gratitude!

I love my life...I love my family...I love our home...

**************

So now...at this minute...I am thankful for what I have...not what I have not.

My Littlest One....

Everything about this little girl warms me.
Everything....
Her tiny little voice, her crooked smile, her soft skin, her cowlick in her bangs, the way she says "me" instead of "I"...and..."boybewie" instead of "blueberry". I adore the sparkle in her eyes, and her chubby lip...leftover from scar tissue due to a big fall long ago. She has a mole on her ankle, and a scar on her tummy...I love them.
I even love her fits, and the way she stands up for herself to her brother.
I melt when she bats her giant lashes at me. I love that I am her number one desire for her every single need, especially when she is hurt. I love her smell, her toenails and her giggle.
I love how she loves her daddy...
I...could seriously go on FOREVER...
I love that she loves me this much too!

I adore the one-on-one time that we now get to spend, for more-or-less, the first time ever.
I am realizing that she is becoming, SO MUCH, a little person.
Sometimes, it is hard to take in...but...for now

I just spend, every minute breathing her in.

Haircut...Finally...for ME

So, more and more I realize how neglectful I have become of myself, as a woman...as my family has grown over the years, I, as most of us do, have made myself very little of a priority. Not so much intentionally, but there is always something more important to do...or more important to spend the money on.

Every once in a while, I take a minute, and I look around and really notice the weight that has magically stayed on (even though I have vowed to lose it every year), or how long it's been since I have painted my toes or my fingernails, shopped for something just for me...or even had real time alone (except in the shower), and suddenly I even noticed...it had been almost a year since my last haircut...

Oh being a mommy....

So finally, THIS IS THE YEAR....The year that I take myself back! My kids are the most important thing in the world to me...but a happy mommy, makes a happy family!!! I will be better for everyone...happier and healthier!

SO..................This year, thus far...I have lost almost thirty pounds...

I did my toes on Thursday...

Then..........
On friday, Tyler's long day at school, Makylie and I headed over to a new salon that was referred to me. This is a woman who was a professional stylist for years, and then had kids and decided to stay home. Then a couple years later when baby number 2 was on the way, they moved into a house that had a mother-in-law attached...and so began the makeover. She made an adorable little studio! It is so great, I can bring the kids if I need to, or can go in the evening after Kevin is home from work. And she did an amazing job!!!! I love my cut, and the products she used!

BEFORE (cheesy!!!)

and......AFTER

I feel so much better with the weight of the hair gone! It feels so springy/summery...and I feel sassy. LOOOOVE IT!

Feels good to put aside my full time, 24/7 career, and do something...even small, for me! Especially when it makes me feel better about myself....BECAUSE LET'S FACE IT....Our job isn't exactly glamorous!!!

I must say...there could be NOTHING...and I mean NOTHING, better then when I picked up Tyler and he looked at me with those giant, heartfelt, eyes...and said "Mommy, you look SOOOOOOOO pretty!"

Right back to reality...but what's not to love!!

A "Flower" For MOMMY

It was just ALL IN A DAY...

Wake up, pull out some clothes...Tyler gets dressed...Makylie still needs a little help. Do hair. Pick, make, eat breakfast. Brush teeth, wash up. Let the dog out. Get together all of the things that should have been together the night before. Shoes on, coats on. Let the dog in. Find the keys. Walk, or drive if we are running late, to school. 2 1/2 hours to run errands. Back to school, right on time. Pick up Tyler.
Make one peanut butter and jelly sandwich, one strawberry cream cheese sandwich, cut up an apple, grab a snack, pour some water. Eat lunch. Play a little. Kiss Boo-boos. Wipe noses. Discipline. Smile and laugh a lot! Snuggle.

NAP TIME/Quiet time! ahhhhhhhhhhh.

Put away dishes, clean up kitchen...make my lunch. Eat lunch. Read email, write email. Dinner in the crock pot (I am all about the crock pot) Let the dog out...and in.

My short amount of quiet time...

Up from nap. Pick up Karman. Any homework, stories, playtime, color time. Clean up playtime. Kiss boo-boos and wipe noses again. Break up sibling arguments. Prepare dinner sides, trying to have everything done at the same time so that dinner can be ready when hubby gets home. Clean up as I go.

Prepare three kids plates, pour milk, get silverware and set at table. Get my plate ready...sit down only to have someone need something, so get back up to get it....more then once of course. Eat dinner. Fight to feed the slowest baby girl on Earth. (Either myself or Kevin) do dishes and pack up leftovers.

Bath. Pajamas. Brush teeth. Help with homework, argue about why it has to be finished tonight, instead of waiting until tomorrow. A little Wii. Read Stories. Snuggle. Hugs, kisses, tuck in.

Bedtime......ahhhhhhhhhhh!

Finish cleaning anything that needs it. Shower. Feed the Dog. Check email, read blogs, write blog, write email. Just in time to watch a couple of our favorite shows..

Then off to bed. Wake up a few times for whichever child is demanding my mid-sleep attention on that particular night.

Broken sleep, tired weary eyes, only to start again tomorrow.

BUT today...AMIDST IT ALL...

my son brings me a "flower", actually a sad little dandelion (as he does all of the time) and says, "this is for my best mommy." Then he comes and hooks it in my hair clip that holds up my tired, messy "mom-hair" and says..."I thought it might be just what you needed."

And IT was!

It was all I needed to remind me why I do all of the big, small and in-between monotonous things that I do. The thankless, routine, everyday things that go, seemingly, unnoticed. The things that, for the most part, make me MOM! I don't need constant thank yous or pats on the back...I don't need approval or compliments...but just knowing, in any small brief way, that I am the "best mommy", that I, above all others, was most worthy of that "flower"...well,

It makes it ALL so entirely worth it. Who knew...a dandelion could say all that.