Leonardo da Vinci and a Ward Talent Show

Today was a busy day...

Perhaps too busy to come up with a clever or witty blog (not that my blog is ever clever or witty).

We went to a Leonardo da Vinci exhibit at Union Station.

AMAZING.

I also made a tres leche cake for the ward talent show/auction tonight.

Eden and Molly definitely did their part in the talent show.  Performing the Nations of the World (by Animaniacs) and Molly performing her multiples of threes.

They were a hit.

And they worked hard for it.  That's what makes me proud.

The Opera

Tyson is done with night float.

It was touch and go for a little while there.

But he made it.

And he also scored some tickets to the opera from a resident friend of his who has season passes but couldn't go this time around.

It even had valet parking.

Neither of us had been to an opera before.

And we had never been to the Kauffman Center before.

Tyson often passes the Kauffman Center saying, "Someday we'll go see something there."

That someday was today.

Carmen was a really fun show.  It was performed in French with subtitles appearing in a little box on the back of the chair in front of you.  Tyson and I had no idea what Carmen was about.  We found that it was about a girl named Carmen who was rather the "evil temptress" type.  She won the heart of a soldier and then broke his heart, leaving him in jealousy and anguish while she ran off with a famous bull fighter.

And the girls were thrilled to have a babysitter.

They wrote Elif a note earlier today inviting her to the pajama-themed party so she would know to dress appropriately (last time they had a tea party and the girls were rather appalled when she showed up in jeans and a t-shirt....but Elif didn't know.  This time she made sure to wear her PJs).  They wore pajamas, did some crafts, made s'mores (over the stove...which apparently only set off the smoke detector a FEW times), and then went off to bed (with a promise that Elif would tell mom and dad to wake them up when we returned to say goodnight to them).  

Herding Cats

I've been told that watching me with my children is a little like herding cats....

Probably true.

They can sometimes be crazy, climb on things they shouldn't, take an incredibly long time to get out to the door to go somewhere, go from one "project" or "activity" to the next in a matter of minutes, and make large messes in incredibly short amounts of time.

But you know, its a good life.

I forget that once in a while.

I read a story last night (way too late at night) that really changed my perspective on life.  It was sent out to many wives and mothers out there with a lot on their plate and seem so busy all the time.

The story is found here if you'd like to read it.
http://www.livingonadime.com/when-queens-ride-by/

My late night realizations are rather a tangent off of this story, but I also completely agree with the moral of the story that is told.

The story helped me to better understand things.  It made a lot of other things make sense.

I better understood Lehi's dream about the tree of life.  There were those who partook of the fruit but still found themselves paranoid and mocked by people in the buildings and they didn't find joy in their fruit because of others.  Sometimes I don't think it is PEOPLE that mock us.  Sometimes it is THINGS, "to do lists" that taunt us and tell us "We NEED to be done.  We are the IMPORTANT things to get done." when perhaps it is only worldly needs, which may be important, but perhaps there is something more important.  Something that maybe we didn't even THINK was important and perhaps the only one who knew it was important was God because he knows all.  And if we follow the words of God then we can find the real joy and things will work out, perhaps even when following seems to make no sense at all.

I better understood the story of Mary and Martha.  Martha was simply caught up in "to do" lists as well.  There were things to be done.  Things that were important.  But perhaps there was something more important at that moment.  Sometimes slowing down, taking time for ourselves, and listening are the important things of life.  Sometimes we need to care for ourselves so we can become happier, then we can better spread that happiness to others.  Slowing down offers clarity, a time to think, a time for God to tell us what is important.  We need to listen to what Christ wants us to know and to do and if we are too busy doing things that we THINK are the important things, than perhaps we miss the TRULY important things.

These are simply thoughts I had late last night.  No judgments if you find my studies "wrong" or perhaps don't even make any sense.  You are free to think and feel and study and be however you wish.  But this helped me and I believe that all stories, especially scripture stories, have multiple meanings that perhaps become apparently when you need them to.

Today I woke up with a smile, made myself look nice, put a smile on my face, and tried to listen and be attentive to the needs of those around me.  Don't overly PUSH the kids in school.  Don't FORCE them to do things but let them do things on their own.  Do small acts of SERVICE for Tyson to show that his hard work these last few weeks has not gone unnoticed and that the least I can do is make one part of his life filled with some joy.  I did quite a bit of CLEANING so the house would be manageable.  I even decided to let the older kids stay up extra late to paint simply because they wanted to, it was their last night float night, and they were asking to do a project I had created for school so I took it as a time for late-night learning.

Chances are high that this feeling of clarity and happiness through the chaos will only last so long, but I'll enjoy it while it's here.

Lucky Dog Party

Lucky Dog Party

Definition:
1. A final girls' night party to celebrate the ending of Tyson's long absence due to working the night shift.  2. A celebration which includes staying up late to watch a movie, eat a special dessert, and sleepover in the family room.  3. A long awaited and anticipated event.  4. Another hard work night for husband while we party at the house.


Part 1:  Movie

 Part 2:  Dessert (Salted-Caramel Brownie Trifle)

Part 3:  Sleepover

Technically, part one started earlier with craft making in the kitchen while I started making the desserts.  The girls used straws, popcicle sticks, papers, and goggly eyeballs (and don't forget LOTS of tape and glue) to create boats, people, and whatever else came to mind.

Lucky dog parties are awesome.  

Even for me.

I don't have the pressure of "get the girls to bed on time" and hardly anyone complains or is upset because there is nothing to complain or be upset about (with the exception of who stole whose pillow and other easy-fix problems).  And I get to just spend fun time with the girls.  Paige slept in her bed, but one day she will join in the festivities.

We don't do it every night because it would become exhausting.

But it is a nice, happy change to end a hard two weeks of night float.*

(*Tyson technically has one more night of night float after tonight, we needed to celebrate our Lucky Dog Party a day early due to untimely circumstances.)

"Apple" Addiction

Paige has an addiction to "Apple" (what she calls baby food in a squeeze tube).

I have an addiction to buying them for their convenience.

This is a financial problem.

To quote Molly's song she sang today...

"There's a hole in my pocket, dear Liza, dear Liza."

It sure is nice to have them on co-op days when she starts getting fussy during the family art class and I'm supposed to help my girls with their crafts.

And nice to have them during the class I teach as well.

Not to mention how nice it is for lunches when we go out to reduce clean up.

Then I have to have them when we go shopping so she'll nicely sit in the cart.

It's a staple for sacrament meeting.

Then there's a few always in my purse for "emergencies".

And other "emergencies" like waking up too early to want to make her food but she's hungry.

Of course its a go-to when there's nothing quick in the fridge that is easily edible with only two teeth.

And then there's those times when she just goes straight to the pantry, points and says "apple" so cute that I just can't resist handing one to her.

Paige had way too many of these today.  I admit it.

It was one of those days when I was on survival mode.  I was an unhappy camper.

But Paige was a happy camper because she got lots of "apple".

....I may need to find a job to pay for this new habit.

Daddy's Girl

Generally, all my kids are mama's girls.

They have their daddy moments.

But Paige definitely has a special place in her heart for daddy.

When daddy comes home from work she DANCES, JUMPS, WAVES, and HUGS.

She loves her daddy.

She also loves technology like her daddy.

Today was a much nicer day for Tyson.  He was able to sleep for a few hours during the night, didn't have so many studies to complete, and didn't have to go in to work until 8 PM.  Miracle.

My day in a nutshell:

Breakfast

Chores

School

Lunch

More school (special project with a friend)

Dentist (cleaning for me)

Kids played at a friends (and quiet time for me....ahhh)

Costco trip

Dinner (and dessert) at Costco

Go back home

Clean up

PJs, scriptures, and prayers

Bedtime (Molly's in my bed for lucky dog)

Rhett and Doug

It was a good Sunday.

We got some visitors late last night that slept over and left in the morning.  My nephew Rhett and cousin Doug were on their way to Atlanta for a summer job and stopped for the night at our place. We stayed up late talking (a lot about their adventures with Rhett spinning out and crashing in the back end of his car) and the girls were thrilled in the morning to see guests at the house.  

Rhett and Doug headed out this morning, and we went off to stake conference.

After stake conference, we went back home to relax, eat dinner, and send dad back to work for another week of night float.

This week shouldn't be nearly as bad.

Less Zombie, more husband.

But only time will tell.

Sunday fort building with Rhett and Doug's mattresses and sheets.

Just playing with Paige and Eden's (fake) glasses.

 As for the girls and I....

We decided to try something different this week with Lucky Dog Nights.

Every night someone will have a regular lucky dog with me, just snuggle and sleep with me on dad's side of the bed.

Then on Wednesday (I planned on Thursday as the "last day of night float" but it worked better to do it on Wednesday) we are going to have a big Lucky Dog Party with everyone.  We will all stay up late, watch a movie, eat a good dessert, and sleep in the family room.

The start of a new week.

Wish me luck.

Haircut

I was in need of a haircut.

Although, I sort of miss the long hair.

It was a love/hate relationship.

Some days I would think "Oh, I love my hair!" (mostly when it was curly)

Some days I would think "That's a LOT of hair...looking blah."

Today I decided to chop it.

Not super short.

6 inches.

...and more layers.

Before

After

Looking at these pictures...I'm not sure how I feel.
I kind of miss the long hair.

But...
It now feels lighter.
It now feels cooler in the sun.
It now feels more under control.

I suppose if I get too sad, I can always grow it out again.

Other than my hair news, today was a good day.  To quote Eden, it was actually "the BEST DAY EVER".  The girls woke up and got to watch a new movie (we rented Alice and Wonderland from the library), eat chocolate and ricotta crepes for breakfast, played with friends, make a lemonade stand to earn a little money, set up the pool in our backyard to swim, and took a bubble bath.

On the parents end of the spectrum....

Dad was busy talking with the internet company all day long trying to figure out how to get our WIFI up and running, drilling holes and running new cables around our house.  Then having to put back all the furniture he rearranged, tools he pulled out, and vacuum up all the little drill shavings that were left out in the process.  Good news....our internet and WIFI finally work.

Mom cleaned, got a haircut, and went grocery shopping.

Oh How I Love My Leila Lou

Lelia's lucky dog was short and sweet.

Simply because she ate ice cream and then fell asleep halfway through the movie.

But I love that Leila fell asleep cuddling with me because she's a cuddler. Then i took her up to bed to find that she previously went up to my room to "set up" her side of the bed. It was complete with dream catcher, panda, and llama. Not to mention her pillow and two blankets.

I love that Leila is really sensitive and loyal to those she loves. I love her laugh when she thinks something is hilarious. I love that she loves playing games. And I love that she enjoys (and is good at) organizing, making things look pretty and making sure it's a job well done.

Molly's Late Night and Jimmy John's

After writing my blog last night, Molly decided that she was done watching a movie for her late night.  Instead she wanted to play Memory, Guess Who, paint our nails and read books.  We had a lot of fun.

I have a special love for Molly.  She truly is lovable.  I love that she wants to spend hours reading books with me.  I love that she has a super silly sense of humor.  I love that she also has a side to her that will always run back to mom when she gets nervous and afraid.

Today was a good day.  We did chores and school, then went to Jimmy John's for lunch.  They celebrated Customer Appreciation Day and gave us subs for $1.  We went with our good friends, Michelle and Bella.  I ran back later to grab one for Tyson to eat for dinner before he left to work.

It was a pretty normal day other than that.  Playing outside, getting muddy, taking a tub, and heading off to bed.  Now tonight is Leila's late night.

What I Love about My Eden

We stayed up WAY too late last night.

Eden is my oldest (almost EIGHT, what?!?).  Eden is cautious, talkative, smart, and kind.  I love that the jokes she finds most humorous are puns.  I love that she is helpful to me and her sisters.  I love that she is so excited about life that she can hardly contain herself.

That's what makes Eden...well...Eden.

That's what I love about her.

Staying up late made for a long day today.  I think I'm just old.  I remember long ago staying up until two or three in the morning and waking up early for school the next day.  "Late" nowadays is like eleven.

But then I had to wake up with the kids this morning, do chores and school, went to library story time, came home for lunch, did more school and more chores, had dinner, said goodbye to hubby (who's spirits are headed downhill with this shift he's working....he's definitely ready for it to come to an end), went for a walk, played at the park, read scriptures, put the kids to bed....except Molly who is watching a movie for her late night with a bowl of ice cream at her side.

It was a good day...but it just seemed like it lasted forever.  It seems a lot longer with Tyson gone all the time.  It also seems longer when we eat dinner at 4:00 (before Tyson goes to work) and all night I think "Isn't it bedtime yet?")

Alright, time to spend some time with my Miss Molly.

I do love the one-on-one time with each of my children.

F-Pals

Every month, the firefighters here in Riverside give the kids a night to do something fun in the community...for free.

They call it F-Pals.

Tonight the firefighters invited everyone to River Roll.  They  paid for everyone to get in for free, the kids got free skate rentals (although, my kids wanted to bring their roller blades).  And they also gave them free hot dogs, chips, and drinks.  Oh...and don't forget free t-shirts.

We love our firefighters.

Here are some of Eden and Molly's tricks...

Posing in the position we figured you'd most likely find us doing in real life while on skates.  Falling...

Other than our fun night, we went to our co-op homeschool group and then took a walk around the block (which is where I learned tonight was an f-pals night). After skating, it was Eden's lucky dog PARTY night. We stayed up after the other kids went to bed to eat ice cream and watch Water Horse.

Today was crazy fun.

Night Float: Day 1

First day went well for me at the house.  Tyson wasn't a complete zombie upon his return, so I figure it was successful.  He simply said, "Four more to go." upon his return.

Everyone's still on board with chores at the house.  Eden even called it "awesome" to a friend of ours.  She finds it amazing that she can do her chores AND school in a reasonable time (if she just gets it out of the way) and then she gains the freedom to play with friends, eat snack and treats, and use her Baxter Bucks (which is basically her allowance using Monopoly money...I suppose I should write a post on those someday.)

The girls finished chores and school before devotional (which we moved to another person's house so we wouldn't wake up Tyson) so they were able to play at a friend's house....and watch a movie on their new "couch".

Paige came home with me while making dinner and was super excited to have the full attention of me AND dad (right before having dinner and leaving to work).  She was living the dream.

Night Float

Sometimes a job seems much bigger than you....

Paige trying to pull neighbor friend, Drew, in our wagon.

Tyson's gone doing two week night float.  That means, works all night and sleeps all day.  Its tough on both our ends.  If he doesn't get a break from work...that also means, I don't get a break from work either.

This first week is going to be the hard one.  St. Luke's.  That name just makes me shiver.  It makes Tyson want to curl up in a ball and cry (but he'll hold it in).  He works from 6 PM to 8 AM (and its BUSY work...like sleeping, eating, and bathroom breaks are non-existent).  He comes home, eats breakfast, goes to bed, wakes up in time for dinner, then goes back to work.

Week two will improve.  Truman Medical.  He often will get to sleep maybe 2-4 hours a night (on and off during the night, not in one block of time) and works 8 AM to 8 PM.  So, he'll often just need a good nap in the middle of the day.  But sometimes it is hard days at Truman too and hardly get any sleep there either, then he'll once again be spending most of his day sleeping in the room while I keep the kids contained downstairs (or leaving the house) so he can sleep.

Tyson, I will miss you.
He's just hoping to survive.

The kids on the other hand...

They'll miss him a LITTLE but kind of think its a big party when he works nights.  Its his fault for introducing them to "Lucky Dog Nights" where a child gets to sleep in dad's side of the bed while dad's gone.  But its also my fault for letting it evolve into lucky dog PARTY nights.

It started that the girls just slept in the bed.
But it got hard for me to lay with them AND put the other girls to bed.
So, the lucky person got to stay up in my bed until I got the other kids to bed.
Then the kids would ask for a book or game.
Then they got hungry and wanted a dessert.
Then they planned late night activities.

It got a little out of control.  Boundaries needed to be set.

The new rules.

Lucky Dog Nights when Tyson was gone for ONE night, you just get to sleep in mom and dad's bed.  When Tyson has his two-week night float rotation, we made a deal that keeps them happy and gives me a bit of sanity as well.

They each get one day a week where they get a Lucky Dog Party Night.  That means one person gets to stay up late and have an activity and dessert with mom after the other kids have gone to bed.  The other nights they just sleep in their own beds and I get to have a Lucky Mom Night.  Although, it's more like a Recover From Dealing with Children All Day So I Get a Small Bit of Peace and Quiet Night.  So, the schedule for the two weeks.

Tonight: Mom's Night
Monday: Mom's Night
Tuesday: Eden's Night
Wednesday: Molly's Night
Thursday: Leila's Night

Then Friday night and Saturday night Tyson doesn't work.

I planned it this way because I have other things going on Monday and Tuesday, so I could make sure to get a little sleep and/or get things done I need to do to prepare for the next day instead of partying with children.

Hopefully, this will be fun and relaxing for me.

I've had bad night floats, OK night floats, and HORRIFIC night floats.  Same with Tyson.

Wish us luck.

A Clean House Makes for a Good Day

Today was a good day.

I always feel happier when the house is clean.

Messiness brings sadness to my heart.

Goodbye messiness.

Hello cleanliness.

Now to keep it this way....

(I should have taken a "before" picture so you could have seen the sadness.)

We woke up this morning...and cleaned.

Girls room.  Basement. Kitchen.

Check.  Check.  Check.

I even needed to take a panoramic picture to show how wonderful it is.

We cleaned, organized, got rid of, and smiled.

I desperately needed to have a clean house as I prepare for Tyson's two weeks of night shift where he works all night and sleeps all day and I don't get to see him and my daily strategy is simply "survive".

We ended today with friends for dinner and game playing.  They actually brought us dinner because the hubby loves to cook BUT their house has furry pets...so Tyson can't go to their house with his asthma.  So, they cooked some delicious fish tacos, we made chocolate brownie waffles, the kids played and played with their kids (ages 8, 2, and 6 months), and the adults played games as well (Seven Wonders).

Another get together is already being planned.

It is a good day.

Going to Battle!

Once again, Molly is able to demonstrate a little of how I feel.

I will triumph!  

I will conquer!  

I will ride my chariot and fight the battle!

I, the conquering hero, have created.....

THE CHORE CHART

*deafening roar of applause*

So, my children have never OFFICIALLY had a chore chart.  They kind of have one on and off.  I have a chart of my own from LONG ago, back when the kids were too young to do chores.  I still refer to that (and by that I mean, look at it on my fridge and think "One day I'll follow this glorious chart.").  But I created one for the kids.  Its in a test trial.  It worked today...although, I think it took all day when combined with school.  They didn't have much play time.  I figured that it was partially because the house was in such bad shape and they didn't know what they were doing that it took a lot longer.  But Eden had a sense of purpose and was THRILLED to be able to mark everything off on her chart.  (I don't anticipate that type of enthusiasm every day.)

If it takes too long, I have a secondary chart I may create...moving a lot of chores to Saturdays.

I also did some re-organization.  I created this different bins and boxes for everyone laundry (down in the laundry room).  They each have their spot and will be in charge of taking their clothes up daily (which means I also need to be good about doing a load or two daily).

Eden and Leila enjoyed taking their boxes and drawing where they want each article of clothing to be placed.  Shirts, pants/skirts, PJs, undies, socks, and other.

 A successful day.

I did other rearranging as well.  The house is still under construction, but tomorrow Tyson and I are going to kick this house into shape.  (We have extra motivation as well since we have some friends coming over for dinner and game night.)

Wish me luck!

A Long Day

It has been a LONG day.

Re-arranging my kitchen (a big job).

School.

Short visit with a friend.

Took Eden to a friend's to go with them to the Money Museum.

Last minute grocery run.

Cleaning....

Early dinner.

Making dessert for the cub scouts.

Hubby is working the night shift today.

I had cub scouts.  Police and fire station visit.

I fully planned on taking them all with me...but was saved by a friend who took them in. *phew*

(Well, I did take Paige...she was QUITE an adventure to take trying to get into the forensic equipment and get on all the tables and chairs and I also had a scare when she hit her head quite hard on a really hard, cement floor and I was worried she got a concussion or something.  But I think its just fine...so no worries.)

Anyhow....first, we went to the police station to learn about forensics.

Then to the fire station to explore the life of a fireman.

While my kids had a late night playing Just Dance.

Finally, get the girls home.

Get them ready and off to bed.

Finally my turn to go to bed.  Goodnight.

Order to the Chaos

I can't seem to keep my house clean.

Or organized.

Makes me feel a little like this picture....

But I take a picture of Molly throwing the tantrum because nobody wants to see what I look like when I'm throwing a tantrum.  She can make tantrums slightly cute when she says things like, "You're breaking my heart mom!" when I tell her we need to leave the park to go home and cook dinner.

Today I did school, went visiting teaching, learned how to make my own yogurt at home, went to the park, make dinner, and went to Relief Society....where we learned about how to do car maintenance and how to organize my life.....I could use some knowledge on BOTH those subjects.

Now to implement these into my life.

I'll let you know when it happens.

....Don't wait around....it may be a while.

Co-op and a Ladies Night Tea Party

Homeschool co-op is wonderful as always.

Success.

The only disappointment was when I taught my Story Time Art class, the lady who teaches with me got sick and apparently something happened to everyone else taking the class because my kids were the only ones to show up.  Luckily, Leila and Molly liked my lesson enough to actually still have the class and have a good time.  They were actually sad when it was over.

I also was invited to a late night, mom's tea party.  It was spectacular!  A night out with the ladies (and no children) to simply eat and chat.  Just what us ladies needed.

Mom's only tea party.  Wonderful ladies night.

Snack and Play "class"

Learning about F for forest.

Leila's forest that she said was Gethsemane and Christ's tomb which was open because he had resurrected.  She has always had a special relationship and love for Jesus.

STEM class: creating marble mazes