The daily grind

I was thinking of starting some kind of discussion thread instead of a usual post about what the family is up to. So I hope you'll leave a comment.

Here's my question. Today I have several big chores to get done, on top of the usual stuff I do around here (namely, cleaning out a fridge that has gone on the fritz and cleaning out a car that has to go in for maintenance tomorrow). I was wondering what daily tasks you don't mind, and what daily tasks you wished would accomplish themselves. Here's mine:
1. I really like folding laundry. I guess it's a lame creative outlet that makes me feel like I'm accomplishing something - folding things neatly in stacks and sorting things.
2. I really dislike putting away laundry (thus is stays on my bedroom floor for days and days).
3. I don't mind washing dishes (I can think or mindlessly listen to something while I do it).
4. I despise putting away dishes and emptying the dishwasher! (boring, tedious, and it takes forever!)
5. I like taking out the trash and recycling stuff - I like getting stuff out of here.

What are your likes and dislikes, and if you like doing something, post why you like it. Maybe it will motivate me or others who happen to dislike the job. Or share something funny about jobs you do. Just a thought - I'll be interested to see the results of the post. :)

Still No Teeth!

EB is almost 11 months old, and still not a single tooth! She's been feverish and so fussy for 2 days, so maybe we'll see a pearly white or two one day soon.

She likes her new hat - thanks Kelly!

Absent

My blog has been quiet for days... I've had some spare time to work on developing another blog for photo sessions that I do with families, and that combined with some things I've been reading about security have me doing some work on revamping the family blog. So stay tuned...I may start posting on a new site in the near future. Or I may not and just make a few changes here. Anyway, not much to report other than today's MIA scare. Dad called to say that my brother had been missing since last week and he had missed 2 days of work. There were lots of phone calls and IM-ing and speculating on whether or not he had run off to elope, and then I got smart and located an overseas relative of his girlfriend who got in touch with her for me. My brother was safe and sound in Boulder, CO...not married and on his way home this afternoon. :) What can I say - my brother is a DORK!

Turtle summer

It's going to be a turtle-themed summer around here. Our big order of summer clothes arrived, and since I tend pick out one thing I think is cute and latch onto it, the girls will be wearing clothes with turtles on them all summer! It occurred to me that a lot of what I have packed away from when Addie was 2 is also turtle themed, so poor Ellary will be absolutely sick of turtles when it's all said and done! She'll look back at pictures and think I was obsessed with them Darn that Gymboree for their too-cute-to-pass-up turtle themes! Oh well. :)

We Went to Farm Days, too!

Thanks to a heads up from several friends, we headed out to farm days, too. Very cute! Our time was limited since we had to be home to pick up a friend from the bus stop, but I think we managed to see pretty much everything. I think the baby chicks were the biggest hit. Ellary actually moo-ed at a cow and she liked watching the chicks. She would NOT touch one though. Very skittish. Kellen liked climbing on a tractor, and Addie was excited to rope a metal steer. Neither one was interested in the goats. Kellen kind of had the "been there done that" attitude after having chased Uncle Ben's goats around several weeks ago. Ice cream was a big hit, though Addie did not really like have to eat with the little wooden popsicle stick, and my offer of a baby spoon was not appreciated. Ellary liked sharing my chocolate ice cream, and since she was having a banana for snack lunch, I started combining spoonfuls so she had her first banana split! I'm not sure Kellen was overly excited about anything, but he was VERY impressed that he had done something at NC State. All afternoon he kept saying, "so that building was NC State?" I think that's his new favorite team. :)

Handling the lasso; the effects of green beans, bananas and chocolate ice cream; a fascinating wheel that was as tall as me!

Kellen said the chicks were prickly.

A dairy cow and its produce - yum!

What's that new reality show? Farmer Wants a Wife? ;)

What did YOU do today?

Let me just say that I am not really an introspective person. Geof takes care of all that in our relationship! But I just feel the need to have a bit of an introspective post, if for no other reason than to get some thoughts out of my head so I can see them. When I had Kellen, a little over 5 years ago, I thought that I would stay home with him until he went off to school, and then maybe I'd go back to work. Then Addie came and I said maybe when she goes to school. Then I was blessed with Ellary... and I now know that when she goes off to school, I don't want to go back to being a librarian. Since the beginning of the year I've really felt strongly that I need to use my talents in some productive way, and that if I go back to "work" it will be something I do with my artistic talents. Surprise surprise to my blog ladies, I think that I want to take pictures! So these last few months I've been pretty much driven to distraction with this idea. I had days when I would begrudge my work at home because it kept me from pursuing pictures. I have laid awake at night composing pictures in my head, and suffering for it the next day. I have parked the kids in front of Curious George so I could read a photog book.

All year long I have been studying Genesis, and the effects of the study on my life this year all came into perspective for me last night. Joseph has been the focus of study for the past few months, and God has really used his example to shed light on my situation. God has a plan for me. I know that. But God also has His own timing for me. Joseph knew that and did not begrudge his difficult situations. I need to know this. God has put me in this place (a home in the suburbs filled with little ones) in this time (when my little ones need me and my husband can provide for us), and being a mommy is what I am called to do right now. I am resting in that. I can wait patiently for God to provide me with opportunities to use my talents, and I can let go of doors God closes that I have so desperately tried to pull open. I am not idle, but I am patiently pursuing and listening. Looking back over the last month or so, I can see His provision now that I have let go of the lens and let Him change my life focus. God has given me one quiet hour each week when I can study while the kids are at the gym. God has provided for me to be on the photography corps at church. God has introduced me to another Christian mom who is also a graphic designer. God has given me friends who encourage me. And God has filled my days with work that keeps me focused on my most important duties - being a wife and mom.

So, my blog-o-sphere girlfriends, what did YOU do today? Here's what I did, and like Joseph, I can rejoice in knowing that each little detail was known by God to be part of his plan for me, no matter how mundane or seemingly burdensome, and that one day, a day like today will seem more precious to me than any picture I could ever take.

Today I woke up, showered, greeted a smiling baby in her crib, prepared 3 bowls of cereal, picked out clothes for 3 kids, packed lunches, drove to preschool, saw a bumblebee in a baggie, shopped for sand pails and shovels, bought surprise toys for my kids, puff-painted the names of 10 children on sand pails, played ball with a baby girl, kissed that baby to sleep, talked on the phone with 2 girlfriends, sent numerous meaningful emails, built three K'nex vehicles with Kellen, explored the littlest pet shop with Addie, nursed the baby, fed a fish, made snow cones, emailed with one of my best friends from high school for the first time in years, had dinner at Moe's because I forgot to put dinner in the oven, went to orchestra rehearsal, got home in time to tuck EB into bed, talked on the phone with my precious sister, watched tv with my hubby, blogged, repaired a purple monkey, and got a report that when Addie prayed at bedtime tonight, she thanked God that He is so great and she prayed that she would be able to have Jesus in her heart. And that's why I'm here doing what I do every day right now.

Girly Girl

Addie had gymnastics class #2 last night. She found a little pink leotard that a neighbor had passed along to us, and she decided to wear it. That, combined with her pigtails, made her look so cute and girly! Not the look she often goes for, so of course I had to take pictures. On Sunday she wore a very pretty dress to church and let me pull her hair back and put a big bow on her head! Who is this little girl?! ;)

Ready for gymnastics & ready for church

Geof went to their gym classes last night, so I didn't take any pictures. It's not the greatest place to try to get pictures, but one of these days I'll try to get it done. Kellen had another one-on-one class and did back flips on the rings all by himself. He also worked on cartwheels, which Geof said was less than successful but quite cute and amusing. Addie came home and immediately fell asleep on the sofa and slept for 14 hours! I guess she was worn out. Again, she told me that she wishes she could stay at gymnastics "all the day."

Zoo Post #4

Picture Slide Show
Once again, too many pictures to post, so here's a slide show from our trip to the zoo. We had a lot of fun, despite some morning rain, and the kids were excellent! Even the babies were happy for the whole day. I know Kellen had a great day, because he literally fell asleep laughing in bed last night. Let's do it again next year, and if you missed it yesterday, plan to come!

Our wet and wild day!

Zoo Post #3

Where were the monkeys? So I read Heather's blog and she said her kids liked seeing the monkeys. Addie REALLY wanted to see the monkeys, but we walked through what we thought was the monkey house and didn't see any. Maybe we missed them. We did see some sort of monkeys sitting in an outside enclosure scratching each others' backs, but I think Addie was looking for chimpanzees, baboons, etc. Anyway, while we did not see any monkeys swinging from trees or vines, I did see a number of very special little monkeys throughout the zoo who liked to hang upside down:

Zoo Post #2

When I think zoo I think LIVE animals. I believe Addie thinks animal STATUES. At the last zoo we visited she sought out every animal statue she could find and sat on it. There were lots of animal statues at the NC Zoo, too, and the kids took turns posing for pictures on them. Here are a few:

Kellen and Caden check out a giant egg shell;
Ellary Bea is too afraid to sit on the giant bumblebee statue.

Taking a ride on the rhi-nose

Addie seems to have perfected her stance for baby elephant racing.

Zoo Post #1

I think I'll do the zoo pics in a series of posts. Of course we saw animals, but I took way more pictures of the kids, so let me get some of the animal pics out of the way first! :) We had an interesting morning with pouring rain, so I didn't get very many pictures of the animals. And much of the time my arms were full of Ellary so I didn't have a free hand for the camera! I wondered how interested in the zoo Ellary would be since she's little, and it turns out Ellary loved the animals! Whenever she caught something moving she would squeal, grunt, bounce, jump, reach, strain, or call "Heeeey!" to try to get closer to it or touch it. She particularly liked the sea lions, a little spotted skunk, and the ocelot (none of which I got a picture of since I was holding her).

lions and monkeys

zebra and elephants

rhinos and Sam and a turtle
See the little turtle on the right? This was SO cute! In the Sonora Desert house, baby Sam spotted a small turtle trundling along the glass partition of its exhibit enclosure. He immediately started crawling back and forth along the glass with the turtle, trying to catch it. It was adorable! I think Sonja got it on video. :)

Faces

Addie was interested in smiling for the camera this morning, so I took advantage. :) Kellen and Ellary were pretty much just interested in playing ball together, but I did get their attention a few times.

Today we went for a tour of the elementary school where Kellen will start kindergarden this fall. I tend to think I am pretty stoic about things, but when I saw the lines of children walking to and from the lunch room, it hit me what we're jumping into and how different things will be next year. I seriously thought I was going to cry! How weird!!!! :) Kellen and Addie are such good pals and hardly do anything without each other. I was wishing I could send Addie along to school with Kellen - she's really going to miss him!

Gymnastics Receives 2 Perfect 10s!

The day finally arrived - Kellen got to go back to gymnastics today!  And what was even better, Addie got to go, too!  At the end of the last session, Kellen was promoted to the class for 5-year-old boys, but we decided to break from gymnastics to give soccer a try.  Kellen hasn't really gotten a kick out of soccer (groan - I know!), so we're headed back to the gym.  We discovered that there is a class for Addie that meets at the same time as Kellen's class, so she's in, too.  On Saturday I took Addie to the dance shop and she picked out her gym leotard.  She really wanted purple, and it turned out that the only one in her size was purple!  She's very proud of her little outfit (though there were some initial complaints about wedgies...).  Anyway, tonight, Kellen was the only one in his class, so he had one-on-one instruction for an hour. It was AWESOME!  He was the only boy in a gym filled with girls from age 3 to 13, and at one point they lowered the rings from the ceiling in the center of the gym for him to work on some flips (I have no idea what all the skills are called).  It was so much fun to watch him - after just a few tries with help he was flipping forward and backward all by himself, and it seemed to me he was doing a pretty impressive job of using arm and shoulder muscles to hold himself up.  She had him doing chin-ups on the uneven bars and he was walking himself across the parallel bars using his arms.  Made my shoulders burn just to watch him!  Meanwhile, Addie learned to hop across the balance beam and was a mighty jumper on the trampoline.  That girl can fly all over the place (they were supposed to jump up and down in one spot...).  She really liked jumping down into the pit filled with foam blocks.  She was just so stinkin' cute in her leotard and with pigtails in her hair.  When the class was done she complained that she wanted to stay all night.  I imagine tomorrow Addie will ask me how many more sleeps before she gets to go back to gymnastics.

Smooth Rider

Things have been pretty quiet around here lately. We got home in the middle of the week, and except for a fever Ellary developed yesterday, everyone has been healthy. A nice change from the last 2 weeks! We spent lots of time outside in March, giving Addie and Kellen lots of time with their bikes and scooters. Even Ellary loves to ride in the wagon. Kellen, while not a big team sports guy yet, LOVES biking and scootering. I guess he comes by it honestly since his dad loves biking and his uncle is training to be a professional mountain biker. He learned to ride his 2-wheeler without training wheels when he was 3, and now he's becoming quite accomplished on the scooter he got for Christmas. Here's a little clip of his latest scooter trick (can you imagine he's excited that his gymnastics classes begin again tonight?!).

smooth rider

Tommy's Replacement

Last night we went back to the pet store to pick out a new betta fish. The kids were anxious to have a new inhabitant for their fish bowl. They decided on a blue betta this time, and rather than name him Tommy again, they decided to name him Timmy Thomas. So welcome Timmy Thomas. We have him on a regimen of a little less food and more time under the warm under-cabinet light. Hopefully Timmy Thomas will be with us much longer than poor Tommy was. :)

CW Round Up

Below is a slide show of a series of pictures from our 2 days in Colonial Williamsburg. Over the 2 days, Kellen and Addie got to see the Governor's Palace, the Palace Maze, the Palace pond, the Palace kitchen, chickens that were colored like Zebras, the Powder Magazine, the George Wythe House, the blacksmith, the silversmith, the gunsmith, the bakery, horses and carriages, cannons, the stocks and pillary, the windmill, and lots of animals. There were fences and trees and carriage steps to climb, mazes to explore and hedges to crawl through, spiral staircases, new ways too learn letters, cookies to eat, wildflowers to pick, hats to try on, and stages to dance on. Addie asked questions and learned that cookies at the Governor's Palace were called common biscuits and the 8-stringed instrument we enjoyed hearing while eating cookies and cider was called a mandolin. She even climbed up next to the mandolin player and sang Twinkle Twinkle for everyone who was listening. In the George Wythe house there was a basket of blocks that showed how to make letters using your body - Kellen and Addie went through each block trying to imitate the colonial figure to make each letter. Addie mastered "A" and Kellen mastered "K." We still need to go back to ride the carriage and there are lots more houses to visit. It's fun that the 2 big kids are getting to an age where stuff like this is fun for them!

Go Climb a Tree

While we were in Williamsburg visiting family, we decided to be tourists and actually purchase passes to take the kids into some of the historic buildings. Kellen was most interested in the Powder Magazine, the octagonal building where the colonial militia's powder and ammunitions were stored. He also wanted to see the gunsmith, but he was a little unsure of going inside and was happy to stay on the porch. Addie's main interest was the "bakering ship," her words for the bake shop that sold delicious ginger and chocolate chip cookies. She was not interested in any of the sites until we first stopped in the bakering ship to get her a cookie. :) I will have a series of pictures to post, but rather than litter the blog with tons of pics, I decided to make a few slide shows. The first slide show is of Kellen and Addie climbing a fantastic old tree that I remember climbing as a kid. Kellen and Addie were very brave exploring the old gnarled branches. My family used to have picnics under the tree and then we'd climb and climb. It's located right next to the building where I worked as a child interpreter when I was about 10. I think we could have foregone the passes and just stayed at the tree all day!

Home

We got home around 10:00 last night after a rather smooth ride down from Virginia. Kellen rode with me in the Honda, following Geof and the girls in the van. Kellen was quite happy to occupy himself in the back seat with the ipod, and for the last hour we talked about me learning to ride a bike, why there are special parking lots for school buses, what it would be like to ride in a car with no windows, and then we took turns naming the silliest towns we could think of that would be fun to drive to ("Big Fat Thumb-ville," "Ice-cream-ville," "hot oven-ville," - it was all very kooky, and Kellen was HOWLING with laughter for about 45 minutes).

We did have a bit of sad news over the weekend that we knew we would have to address when we got home. We got a call from our neighbor that our fish Tommy died over the weekend (I think thanks to me forgetting to tell Geof to leave his light on all weekend). Addie noticed that he was gone this morning, and she had a VERY hard lesson to learn. At first she was inconsolable, wanting Tommy back. Then she wanted to know where he was. Then she wanted to get a new red fish and name it Tammy. Then she and I worked together to draw pictures of Tommy and make cards for him. That seemed to make her feel better, and now she is looking forward to going back to the pet store to get a new red fish and she wants to call him Tommy after all. "That way it will be just like having Tommy again," she says.