What’s up?

Oh, me?  Same old same old.
Which means, in case you’re wondering, doing laundry, washing dishes, kissing boo boos, wiping noses, cracking the homework whip, slave-driving the chore train, tickling tummies, reading stories, saying prayers, and trying to steal cat-naps on the couch when I think they won’t tear the house down.

And also, lately,
CHRISTMAS!

Oh so fun.  I love it.

But it’s sucking up all my extra time.

So, as is customary, the blog suffers.

Facebook doesn’t, though.  Does anybody see anything wrong with this picture?  Me too.

SO.

I resolve henceforth to blog more, facebook less.

A few weeks ago my mom sent a package, which we opened after the kids went to bed.  John saw something inside it and his whole face lit up like a Christmas tree.  He POUNCED on that pomegranite, saying in a high, nasally voice,

Stories like that are …

Three words:

Wow, they’re loud.

I had forgotten how much noise they make when they’re all together!  Sheesh.  I’ll have to get used to it all over again.

And.

I discovered today that it is indeed possible to feel overwhelmed and overcome – even with a temple view out your front room window.  Yep!   

This is how it happens:

Plan.  Make dinner for all the tired travelers so they can go to bed asap.

Dinner= green smoothies, premade.  All I have to do is stick some frozen strawberries in there to freshen it up.

They can have chicken, too, if they want it, with rolls and other stuff, but they really aren’t hungry.  Travelling does funny things that way.

Should be no problem, right?  Cut open the new bag o’ frozen berries, dump …

I’ve been a lazy blogger lately.

Sorry, I still can’t use the word “lazy” without thinking of Lara Gallagher.  (I miss your blog, my friend, but I admire your decision to stay away from this crazy addiction.)

It’s that 2-year-old mess maker, honestly.  I just had to save the playmobil people from drowning in grape jam.  It was lovely, and all over the counter, too.  Once again, no picture.  Sorry.  I guess I just don’t want to remember these crazy adventures.

But earlier today I found this awesome blurb over on a new blog John found.  Well, new to me anyway, and it feels like I’ve added another weapon to my arsenal of Mothers Who Know.  We crazy, thinking-out-of-the-box, wackos have to stick together you know.

This lovely little tidbit was found on this post.

“The very medium TV uses (not just the actual programs) “desensitizes the centers in …

No, it’s not my “after” picture.  Don’t I wish!   This is my latest, favorite idea.   I found it here, from a comment on that last post.  (Thanks, Deb!)  Our room actually looks a little like this (high ceilings, mouldings, big window…) and I have a color not far from that aqua in mind – we’re likely going to go with a little less blue, a little more green.  Or maybe tan.  Tan would be nice and neutral with a white floor, and would go well with my much beloved red velvet curtains.

Still not sure how to “mask” that lovely patch job, but I’m pretty close to just saying,

“It’s a 1912 home.  It has character.  Ain’t it charming?”

Also, FYI, upon closer inspection, refinishing would not be (much) cheaper than laminate.  At least, not the cheap laminate.  It would, however, take about 10x as long.  Painting… A …

Remember the story of Gideon, found in Judges 6-11?

Thanks to this talk from April’s General Conference, I noticed more clearly this little part here:

“They stood every man in his place.”

Yes!  Exactly!  Because they were where their leader told them to be, doing exactly what he said to do, 300 men conquered thousands upon thousands.

No matter what the odds stacked against us, no matter how simple our station in life, as we are where God wants us to be & doing what He’s asked us to do, things will work out alright.  We need to stand in our Place.

Now here comes the part I’m all but giddy about.

Savor that little morsel and keep it in mind still while we move on to this talk by Elder Ballard.

“Sister, we, your …

Where it takes you fully 30 minutes to just wake up because you spent all night consoling a sick/in-pain colicy baby?

Where you’re still in your PJ’s at 9:30?  (Ugh!!!)

Where your oldest boy FINALLY follows directions to get dressed for the day… when he changes into his Tae Kwon Do uniform for the class at 3:45?

When it seems like you spend the entire day putting out fires, but get nothing done?

For example…

The kids come rushing into the bathroom (where you were hoping to at last find 30 seconds to yourself.  It is a bathroom, you know…) to let you know that the 2yo broke ALL the eggs.  (Except the hard-boiled ones, of course, they are careful to mention.  Thanks.)

And while you’re cleaning up the mess, the baby wakes up hungry.

And the big  kids are picking fights with …

<I s’pose I already mentioned it in Saturday’s post… but… oh well.  I wrote this first, actually.  And I took no pictures of the mountain we dropped off.  Sorry.>

Turns out, we had enough stuff to fill the back of the minivan to the top!   And you know what?  It was so invigorating, I have lots of energy for dejunking the rest of the house.  At least until the next drop-off.  Funny, how that works now.

Boy, have I come a long way since the nervous, “Oh, I just can’t bear to let all this go but I guess I will for the good of humanity and the sake of finding floor in the play room, but but but…”

Ha!

What was I afraid of? Getting arrested? …

a) read my blog faithfully

AND

b) have come over recently.

(Tolleys, Kidds, Weckers, etc…)
Thank you for what?

For not looking coming in, looking around, and singing,

“Liar! Liar! Pants on fire!!!”

I’m thinking particularly of that Toys post.  The one where I was beaming at the tinyness of our toy collection.

I showed you our new and improved Toy Cupboard.  You’ll notice I didn’t show you the old and decrepit Toy Room.  It’s still a little, um, full, as those who’ve been over will testify.  I basically took everything out that I decided to keep, stuck it in that cupboard, and have deemed the rest unworthy.  It was pretty quick and easy, but -alas- the last thrift store run or freecycle post has not been so quick to happen.

It will happen soon, though.  Really it …

Sleep-training the baby?

No.  Not really.  He’s doing alright, all things considered.

The two year old? 

Nope.  He’s made the transition into the toddler bed without too much fuss over the last few weeks.  Good job, little man! 

I’m in the middle of sleep-training myself.

I shall explain, and since it’s my blog and I can ramble if I want to, I’m going to tell you the long story.

There are two kinds of people in the world;

introverts

and

extroverts.

Well, okay.  There might be people that fall in the middle, but I think they’re rare.

Since reading “Raising Your Spirited Child,” this is how I define those two labels:

Introverts: Get their energy from doing things by themselves.  I’m not talking about people who come across as being afraid of others, “wallflowers” or the like.  I just mean …

Amidst all the clutter calling to screaming at me in the library/office, laundry room, and all the bedrooms upstairs, there’s a little voice telling me to

“Maintain ground covered.  Slow down.”

So that’s what I’m doing.  Sometimes I sneak in and tackle a shelf in the library… but then I take a big breath and stop.  It really is wise to learn to take care of the things we’ve cleaned before we go on and clear more space.  Otherwise it might unravel, which is what has happened every other time I’ve tried this.

Aside from that, it’s been a busy, wonderful, crazy week.  I am going to need some *serious* me-time tomorrow.  An hour or two completely to myself?  Mmmm…. yes, please! And a nap?  Well, if you insist.

Pictures, pictures, pictures.  What to …