Week Two

WEll today is the beginning of week two with the BearMan home. Things are going great. We seem to have weathered out the worst of the storm and he is recovery at an amazing speed each day. I cannot believe this is my same little boy as last week. Anyway, despite the nice recovery, he is still home from school because he is not quite mobile enough for public school days. I MIGHT send him later this week for a few hours because I HATE for him to miss so much (is it that I do not want him to miss anymore school or is he cramping my style??? who knows???) but I need him to be much more confidant on his crutches by himself before I feel safe sending him out into the world again without me. BUT, I am counting down the days until he can go back......

Home again Home again

Well yesterday was Bear's surgery and they already sent him home. In fact, he went from staying overnight to them trying to throw us out before noon. I guess their philosophy is cut him open, sew him up, kick him out! Anyway, the surgery went wonderfully well. The doctor is very pleased with how the foot turned out and with Barrett's response. He is home on the sofa enjoying some one on one time with Mommy (don't let him know I said mommy because he asked for me to stop saying mommy and only say mom but that is an entirely different post) He has a cast and a walker and crutches. we go next week for a one week follow up where he will get to pick a different color cast. He has already chosen camouflage but MIGHT go with black with a colored stripe. Who knows? So we are safe and sound and in our own place, spending good time healing and getting better. Thank you to everyone for their thoughts and prayers. I felt so blessed with each and every note or call. You are all such wonderful friends!

Here and There

Well things are going very smoothly this week but I am feeling a small sense of panic that I will not get everything done before next Tuesday and then even more panic that I will be stuck in the house for multiple week.s I keep trying to console myself by saying it might NOT be three weeks and I might NOT be homebound going stir crazy in my house but I am not doing a very good job of making myself feel better SO I have been running here and there and everywhere trying to cover all my bases. However, no matter all I accomplish, I still find more to do. HUH? Will it end??? Anyway, my wonderful neighbors are bringing us food so I won't have to worry about that. YEAH! No cooking for me for 4 whole days! Chad is trying to cover his bases as well so he has been pretty scarce the past few days but I know I will see him again on tuesday. I am rambling to I am off to dry my hair before the bus stop.

Divide and Conquer

Last night began Chad and I's school year adventure game of Divide and Conquer. When you have several kids and they each participate in activities, invariably these activities will end up on the same day at the same time. We go through it each year and it only promises to get worse as Cooper and Parker get older. Anyway, last night was Back to SChool NIght for Logan and Den meeting for Barrett. My wonderful mom came to save the day and watch the 3 while I scooted of to school and Chad and Barret scooted of to the Fire house. We had decided on this division of duty because I felt I needed to touch base with Logan's teacher and surely Chad could handle getting the necessary information from Cub Scouts. Well I did get what I needed and took notes and asked questions. When Chad arrived home, I quickly asked all the obvious questions. What do you think I got? NOTHING!!! NADA!!! ZILCH!!!!!! He took no notes, asked no questions, found out no information. It was harder than getting my children to brush their teeth to find out what was even discussed. n fact, I am not sure what he DID do besides play with Barrett and sign me up to be a DENNER for the month of October. Yes that is right, next month and I DO NOT KNOW WHAT I AM SUPPOSED TO DO!!!!! AAAAAGGGGHHHHH!!!!! A little part of me wonders if he probably did it on purpose so he won't have to divide and conquer anymore. Sneaky, huh? Maybe next time, I should send my mom.....

Not much to say

Well I met a friend for coffee today BY MYSELF. I t was the first time my good friend and I had every gotten together without children and both of us were a bit weary of conversation. WOuld we have anything to say to each other? What would we talk about to fill our time? Anyway, we had a super duper wonderful time and in fact, I was almost late to preschool because the conversation kept flowing without a hitch. Of course the majority of the conversation was about children or husbands BUT we did at least have much to talk about. I guess that is the same as working folks talking about their days at work. Anyway, those quiet few hours spent with a good friend were absolutely wonderful. I am looking forward to many other Tuesday like today.......

SURPRISE

Well we had a wonderful surprise over the weekend. MY sister and two nieces came home for a surprise visit. YEAH!!!! It had been three months since we had seen each other and I do believe that is the longest it has ever been. We got to play all night Friday, all day and evening Saturday.... with only a few meltdowns, everyone had a great time. It is so wonderful how comfortable and happy we feel around our own family. Here she has been gone for a while but as soon as she arrives, things are right back to normal..... like no time has past. Mom looked so happy to have both her girls under the same roof for awhile and my kids were so psyched to play with their cousins. Even wildman behaved himself, which is saying quite a lot because he normally likes to pick on Lily. Anyway, she headed back home on Sunday and things felt kind of empty again, knowing she is not so close by anymore. BUT, we have a visit scheduled soon so we get to make the trip down there and see their new town, home, school, stomping grounds. I can't wait!

Fall clothes

This week I decided to ......"GO THROUGH THE FALL CLOTHES" Any of you who know me well, KNOW this is a very daunting task. I have tons of boxes of clothes up in the attic in all sizes and I have to pull each down, sort through what might fit and what won't, make sure and repack those things that don't fit the older siblings in order to have them for the younger ones, have each child try each and every piece on, and then pull out what doesn't fit anymore from their drawers. So, I thought I would do one child a day so it would only take me four days. That didn't quite work. So, after four days of clothes, I have completed Parker's and Cooper's fall attires completely, Logan and Bear have big bins in their rooms to try on and then I will have to put the rest away. I guess that is not too shabby for a few days work. THEN, after they finish trying on the rest of their clothes, I get to go shopping for them. That could be fun if I can find some good deals and sales. Otherwise, trying to buy enough clothes to outfit the family could be very depressing. Luckily, the two little ones need nothing. In fact, they have so many clothes, I gave some away to friends with younger kids. I guess after I am done with the kids, it will be time to tackle my closet. That can be fun or not so much as well. Depending on what does and doesn't fit. Let's hope for some good news on the scales and lots of things to fit. I can not afford to buy myself a new wardrobe as well. (I forgot to mention Chad has lost 25 pounds since last fall so he will be needing new clothes as well) What is a mom to do???????

Just realized

I just realized it has been almost a week since my last post. I am so sorry. I am am Sure TONS of you out there were devastated that you had not heard from me in a whole entire week! Anyway, I have been busy doing the things we SAHMs do everyday. With that said, I gotta scout Lo to her fisrt Hip Hop class. As a side note, I had a GREAT night sleep last night. Has anyone really sat at thought about how a good nights sleep can change your entire day and outlook. I woke refreshed and awake and ready for the day. I was able to handle the daily toils of my children's morning routine. They even all made it on the bus without being fussed at. Pretty amazing, huh? Off to dance......

BYE MA!!!!!

It is one thing to raise children in this world today but it is another thing to attempt to raise children who are confident, self assured, and independent. I saw a small glimpse today how how I am doing and I have to say I am pleased with the outcome so far. My littlest one, aka WILD MAN went to preschool today for the first time. I parked and got out of the car with intentions of walking my youngest into his classroom for the very first time. Instead, armed with his Batman backpack ( a hand me down from Bear because I was too cheap to buy him a new one) backpack he grabbed his sister's hand, tossed me a wave, and shouted," BYE MA!" and off he went. No turning around, tears, or looking back. I was left standing all alone watching through the door as he embarked on his new adventure. I have to say, it made me very proud of our little guy. It took a lot of courage and confidence to go into that new place by himself. I guess Chad and I are doing a good job after all..........

Tomorrow

The house will be clean, tomorrow,
All the little monkeys gone to school then, and I'll be alone.
So thinking about tomorrow, makes me a bit sad but also happy
That their gone.......
Just think of the time I'll spend in quiet,
Think of the things I do all by myself....
The house will be clean tomorrow
All the dishes and the laundry will be done in peace
Tomorrow, Tomorrow, I love you tomorrow
Your only a day away...
TOMORROW TOMORROW I LOVE YOU TOMORROW
YOUR ONLY A DAY AWAY!

O Happy Day!

O happy Day! O happy DAAAYYYY! When the school bus comes, when the bus comes, when the school bus comes, when the bus comes, to take the kids away! (to the tune of o happy day in Sister Act 2)
School started today....two down two to go! The other two darlings start on thursday. That is when the real celebration begins! Normally, I am waking my kiddos up and dragging them out of bed in time for the bus but EVERYONE was so excited for school to start that all kids were up, dressed, fed, and outside by 8:10. That is an HOUR before the bus arrives. So, we decided to walk to school because it was such a beautiful day on some many levels! I hope everyone out there who reads this had a wonderful first day of school and I wish a wonderful year to each of your children.
As a side note, Chad called this morning and was feeling a little sad about the new year starting. He was realizing how much the kids have grown and was feeling a little nostalgic. He then said if I loved them as much as him, I would feel the sad also and I told him if he spent as much time with them, he would feel not so sad! I do hear what he is saying and feel the same way deep down. Our kids are getting so big...... first graders and second graders, fours class and twos class. Pretty soon it will be high school and college. If I stopped and thought about it for awhile, I would probably getting pretty choked up but for now I am focusing on the little gifts public school gives me..... going to the grocery store alone, taking an uninterrupted shower, looking at clean floor for 5 minutes! I love my children so much but I really love them more when they go to school! So....sing with me,
O HAPPY DAY!!!! O HAPPY DAY!!!!! WHEN THE SCHOOL BUS CAME, TO TAKE THE KIDS AWAY!

We Made It.....

We ran our race this weekend and we made it! We finished it in 2:31:59. That's pretty good for two nonrunners like Chad and myself. We felt so good afterward. We were tired but not terribly winded or sore the next day. Now we are thinking about what we are going to do next..... we have a busy fall but I think we are going to find a good race in the spring and do it together. We have also already signed up for the Rock and Roll next year! Thanks of all the thoughts and support!