I'm Back

I'm Back!!! All I can say is - wow, what a long week! It was great but very, very long. We had a good time and most everything went well. The girls were hard workers, the camp was incredibly beautiful, the weather was fun and I learned a lot. We did get caught in a pelting hail storm and they caught a bear in our camp (seriously right IN our camp). And, apparently, the swooshing in the grass I heard all night the last night turned out to be some vicious badgers that attacked the host's ATV tires. Oh, yeah, and a racoon kept me up for a couple hours one night trying to tip over our trash. Serious stuff for a city/suburban girl like myself. That, on top of the hormonal, teenage girl drama that accompanies almost every girls' camp, made for some exhausting times. But, I made some good friends in other wards, I learned how to orienteer (I'm a pro at the compass) and I got to know the amazing girls I worked with. Right now, I've taken two naps and slept a full night last night, and I'm still tired and brain-cloudy. So, if this doesn't make much sense, my brain is still just half-functioning right now. Oh, wait - That's not too far from normal it seems. But, it's fun to be back with the boys that I love. What cuties they are. And, in about 7 - 10 years, I'm going to be so grateful that I have boys rather than girls.:)

Signing off

I'm signing off for the next several days while I brave the heat and hormones at Young Women's camp. It should be fun - even if it's going to be in the 100 degree range and we can't even wear capris (something about bugs). Just wish me luck. Actually, wish the girls luck. They are the ones who are actually going to have to learn to orienteer, build a fire, make a temporary shelter and various other things from ME. Poor things. Anyway, have a great week and I'll be back next weekend.

Why do I?

Why do I. . .?

. . . love my vacuum as much as I do? I only use it once a week or every two weeks. A couple of years ago I bit the bullet and bought a vacuum from an actual vacuum store. It's awesome and they even maintain it for free. I get to take it in whenever I want. They clean it out and do whatever it takes to make sure it's running smoothly.

. . .eat nutter butters even when they are stale? I forgot about those little devils and left them in my cookie jar for over a week. Now, I've had two. Okay, I lied - three. But if I lie to myself, then maybe the calories don't count.

. . .clean the house? Really. It just gets messy again.

. . . like the show Full House? Every time I flash by it, I have to go back. I get mesmerized by the memories and pop culture references from my generation. Yesterday was, "Don't worry, be happy."

. . . expect my husband to be home when he says? His track record stinks, yet I still expect to see him walk throught the door when he says. At least he's good looking.

. . . budget? It's not that much fun to stick to it. Responsibility stinks.

. . . smile in pictures? I always hate the way they turn out. I should just frown and then expect to hate the dang thing.

. . . visit some of your blogs daily knowing that you haven't posted in a month? You know who you are.;) No pressure. As for the rest of you, keep feeding my blogging addiction.

Order!

So, in my little world of four children, chaos reigns supreme. No matter what I do, craziness seems to follow. So whenever I can add order to my life, I do it with a smile on my face. That's why I'm excited about our new toy storage system. I know, I know - "toys" and "system" really don't belong in the same sentence. I also know that the boys can make messes no matter how much I've planned out the afore mentioned system. But, I also know that when you throw all your toys with all their little parts into one big bucket - the toys become useless. So, I've come up with a compartmentalized system of toys - thanks to some help from Ikea. Each little bucket is labeled and each boy knows the rules to the buckets. One bucket at a time - and you put it away when you get another, etc. So far it has been four days and I came downstairs to just a couple of Jake toys on the floor. Not bad. We'll see how it goes.

Adios, San Antonio Crew

You know, I love routine. And last week my routine was very much interrupted. I should be glad to get back to normal. So, why am I so sad that my family is gone? I think that I would sacrifice my orderly life at any point if I knew I could see them regularly. If any of you are thinking of moving 14oo miles away from your families - don't do it.

But really - we had a great time. There was a bit of chaos - but nothing we seasoned mommies couldn't handle. We swam, did Thanksgiving Point Gardens, went to the Drive-In movie (so cool) and a few other things. But best of all was just hangin' with my homies (is that how you spell that?) One night my mom and Susie watched the kids so Tom and I could go out to dinner and a movie. By the way - Transformers is so cool. I had my serious doubts - but I really liked it. Anyway, it's been a fun week.

Happy Birthday, Garrett!!!

Today was Little Garrett's 7th birthday. Wow, does time fly! We celebrated this morning with a family/neighborhood baseball game and a doughnut cake. Then, this afternoon, we took all the cousins, Gammi, and Aunt Susie to the Legacy Center Pool. We had so much fun. But I was thinking about how I could describe Garrett so you could smile the way I do when I think about him. You know those cartoons that have a devil and an angel on each shoulder of whatever character has to make whatever decision? Well, that is Garrett all the time. You can almost picture it. The good thing about this little guy is the angel almost always wins - not because it is right, but because he knows that it will make me happy. He just wants to make people happy. Garrett is always there with a hug and a kiss. He is also an intense kid. When he talks, a vein in his neck pops up and down. He is a huge sports fan and would rather watch ESPN than any other channel. He knows most of the rules of most sports and could ref almost any game fairly accurately. He collects baseball and football cards and loves to read them out loud to us.:) So, that's a little glimpse into Garrett's world. I love him more than life and enjoy every moment (well, almost) I have with him.

Happy Birthday, Ben!

Nine years ago today my first baby was born. How old does that make me feel? It was the roughest delivery and recovery I could have imagined, but he was worth every bit of it and more. I have loved having this little guy around - he truly is a blessing to our family. Ben is noble, thoughtful, mischievous, funny, smart as could be, a born leader, and a million more things. So, while I'm starting to feel ever so old, I'm glad that I can grow old raising a kid like Ben.

9 kids, 1 puppy, 4 adults and 1 house

They're here - Last night my mom, sister (Susie) and all of the cousins from my side arrived. So, we have my four kids, Susie's 3 and Ginger/Mom's 2 all in one house. Believe it or not, it's working out okay. That extra basement space is a lifesaver! We're in for a crazy but fun time. We have some fun activities planned, but if any of you remember anything really fun to do in 100 degree heat - let me know.

My Theories on Laundry

As a child, I imagined my toys coming to life as soon as I left the room or turned the lights off. I thought that they would play and dance to magical music. It seemed logical to me so I truly believed it. Well, now I have another similar theory. I honestly believe that as soon as we shut the laundry room door, those naughty, dirty clothes hook up with each other and procreate. It's the only explanation to how my laundry successfully multipies and replentishes. I know our family consists of 6 people - and 6 people make a lot of laundry. But, the amount of clothing that I folded tonight could not have happened naturally. I am positive that my children only put dirty clothes in the hamper - and that they hang up or fold all the clean clothes. I've taught them to do that - and they obey everything I tell them to do. So, what other reason would there be for all the laundry I've folded - and why I ran out of hangers when I know I had enough to begin with? There must be something "R" rated going on somewhere in that little laundry room. Either that, or the aliens that steal socks from the dryer feel guilty and replace the socks with other articles of clothing. Any other theories?

Just checking in

Sorry I've been neglecting my blog duties. We've had Tom's cousins and aunt and uncles in town for Grandma Shield's 85the birthday celebration. It was a crazy but fun couple of days with meeting cousins-in-law and reconnecting with others. Such nice people - I'm lucky I married into a great family. But other than family activities and organizing basements and so forth, not a lot is going on. On Friday my mom, sister and nieces and nephews are coming to stay with us. I'm really excited about it. But, with the stuff going on there, I may not have much to say for a while. But that doesn't mean I'm not reading your blogs. It's fun keeping up with all of you. Take care.