November 3rd and 4th

I was surprised Tuesday night when Jason reminded me he was headed out-of-town for a few days.  He says he told me, I don’t know if he did or if I don’t remember him telling me. Either way, nothing was going to change the fact that he was leaving in a few hours.  Oh well….it happens. It’s not like this is the first time I have taken care of the kids alone……3 days is a breeze.

November 3rd:   Today I was thankful for healthcare….dental care specifically. We have insurance and I can afford to take my kids, where they need to go and to have them and their precious little bodies taken care of.  They may not like the taste of the fluoride, but at least they know what it tastes like.

November 4th:  Today I’m thankful for the teachers who care for and teach my kids every day.  We have found the most dedicated group of teachers since we moved to VA. They may not be with me, but I know they are with people who are working hard to make their days great.

November 5th and 6th: On these days, I am thankful for healthy children.  While Jackie was swimming in the meet this weekend her sisters were in the kiddie pool having a good time too.  The fact that their little bodies are healthy and they can be active and enjoy life is a precious gift.

Thank Full

Every November I do this thing on FB where I post each day, what I am thankful for.  I figure that this year, I will do it over here.  Will everyone see it? Maybe not.  But then again, that wouldn’t really bother me.

November 1st:  Well, today I was thankful for a husband with a good paying job and Excedrin Migraine. Apparently, even if a person does not feel stressed, she can be so busy that her body betrays her and acts like it is severely stressed.  Which is why I’m cracking dental crowns and waking up with aches in the back of my neck. Before you ask, yes, I already have a night guard. I crack those too. I’m clenching my jaws too hard when I sleep….because I’m stressed. But I don’t feel stressed. I feel busy, but not stressed.  Stressed is when there is illness or not enough money or unemployment…..I’m just busy. But back to my original focus of my gratitude.  After waking up with a serious headache and getting the kids on the bus and off to school, I was able to take two pills and lie down on the couch for a rest while they kicked in.

November 2nd: Today I am grateful I have a king sized bed. Rough day for the 7th grader in the friends department.  I don’t think the other girl was trying to be mean or hurtful but she told Jackie she didn’t want to be her best friend anymore. That they could be friends, but not best friends.  And to twist the knife, she doesn’t want Jackie to ask her about it.  Sigh…so I have a heartbroken 12-year-old.  But fortunately, I also have a bed big enough that when she needs a little more cuddling and closeness than usual, and a husband/dad who is out-of-town, she can crawl in bed with me and the world won’t seem so cold.

I love all of my children.  I really do. But sometimes they make it so very hard to like them.  Take the 12 year old, raging hormone, mood swinging, beautiful child that she is. 90% of the time she is great. Very likeable. As a matter of fact, she and I ran a few, long, errands yesterday and we had a great time. Just the two of us.

But today? Today she is more like this

 

and I’m finding it very hard to like her.  But I will keep my cool, and I will not yell at her AND I will be more stubborn than she ever thought possible.  Why?  ’Cause I love her.

Has it really been that long?

Oh goodness, here we go again.  I am going to try this one more time.  I like using a blog as a place to vent. To get my thoughts out there.  But when I get so busy, I tend to forget about it.  Or I put a really big filter on because, believe it or not, I don’t want to offend someone, and that defeats the purpose of the blog.

 

So now that my life is crazy with nursing school, the girls, Jason the genetically defunct animals…I’m gonna try this again. Hopefully it won’t be another 10 months before I get back here.

She Loves It!

Oh goodness! Izzy gave herself another hair cut this past Saturday. She cut her bangs REALLY short this time and cut a good bit off the left side of her head.  I took her in on Sunday to get it “fixed” and she decided on a really short style.

I know..you guys are probably thinking 1 of several things….

1) You let her get the scissors AGAIN?

I know this is not the first time she has done this with the scissors but she is in that phase of enjoying cutting construction paper up in to a million tiny pieces. So scissors are usually out somewhere. I like to encourage her to do the scissor work….it makes her hand stronger and improves her fine motor skills.

2) Since when does a 4-year-old get to decide on her hair cut.

Well, since I decided there are other, more important battles to fight. Like treating her sisters with kindness or sharing what she has with those less fortunate.  I mean really, she goes to preschool….does it really matter if she has Maria Shriver looking hair?

3) Short hair on a little girl? It just doesn’t look right.

Well, my friends. I think you may need to take a closer look. I was concerned at first but she LOVES it and it fits her personality. She was amazed this morning when I combed her hair and it didn’t hurt. She likes the fact she could drink out of the water faucet and not hold her hair back.

When asked why she cut her hair, she will tell you that it’s because there was “one string….that got in my face and got in my mouth….and it annoyed me”. Well, alright then. She had a perfectly logical reason and now, that hair doesn’t get in her face and mouth anymore.  I think that makes us all feel a little giddy.