Elsie's basket

Favs #31/365

My FAVORITE 'lil basket

It cracks me up to see what Elsie stuffs into this thing each day!

The baby doll, peaches, and her sippy cup are daily items.

Lately, since she is sick, she keeps her binky in there too.

Sometimes I will find a diaper that needs to be thrown away.

Usually a fruit snack wrapper or 'popil' (otter pop) wrapper.

She uses it to take stuff to the sink, stuff to the garbage...a place for safe keeping so she will always know where to find it!

I think this might have been one of our best investments so far!

He's Home!!!

Favs #30/365

We're so GLAD when Daddy comes Home!!!

Ya, we kinda like him.

Dad is finally home.

He left Thursday to go be with his Mom who was going in for Neck surgery on last Friday.

I wanted badly to go too...

but what good am I with 4 kids???

He was able to stay with his Mom in the hospital and help care for her, and then when it was time to take her home he was there to help get her situated and comfy.

It was a pretty big deal.

Her spinal column was being pinched.

She has had no feeling in her hands since December.

No one would listen to her that there was actually something wrong!

I am so glad that Brent was able to take the time to go be with his Mom.

It has been a long time since he has gotten that special one-on-one time with his Mom.

-We love you Grandma Ene, we know you will get better soon!

You are one tough lady!!!

We will bring these kiddos to you soon!-

So the girls didn't wait until he got out of the truck before he got mauled!!!

Elsie hasn't left his side all night!

They sure love their Daddy!

Glad you are back home safe!!!

Anyone Else???

Just curious if anyone else's day goes like this...

ever?

So I want the house to be clean for when my hubby returns after being gone five days.

My first task is to unload the basket of laundry which was washed the day he left.

Gotta put it away so he doesn't know it was sitting there the whole time.

So I grab Cassi's clothes...take them to her room...

her disastrous room.

Another thing to do before he gets home.

After I get her clothes in her drawer...

remembering that we still haven't gone through her clothes yet to see what still fits...but I already went through Madi's.

So Cassi has double the clothes...

the hand-me-downs from Madi...and what she had before...

Just another thing to do.

Then I clean up the blocks spilled all in front of her dresser, but also pick up some trash...

Which I take into the bathroom to throw away...

flush the toilet, cause it never seems to be flushed!

Realize I didn't empty Porters bathtub after his bath last night...

(I know safety hazard...but I plead insanity!)

Dump the water...realize maybe it wasn't the toilet that made the bathroom stink, but the overflowing garbage.

Pull the garbage bag out...walk downstairs, remember that the kitchen garbage is PAST overflowing...

drag it all out into the garage where I left the garbage cans after garbage day.

I left them there cause the fence gate is a little broken...(my fault)

Another thing to do.

So then I pull the garbage cans out the back garage door...cause they are making the garage stink...

notice a toy box that needs painting,

a window frame project that needs painting...

see Brent's scroll saw and reminds me of some fun fridge magnet ideas I have...

now I am remembering the basket of laundry I still have upstairs to get folded...

So I go inside.
See that I still haven't put away my studio lights from a session I had yesterday morning.

Take those in the office where I store them for now (another project in the works...convert closet at bottom of stairs into my photography supply closet)

Now I see the computer...why not check my e-mail?

It is already almost 1:00.

Anybody really think I am gonna get that laundry basket unloaded!

I-Oh-No????

Favs #29/365

My FAVORITE new phrase from Elsie This is hilarious in person.

Her newest thing now when you ask her a question,

she shrugs her shoulders (in a very exaggerated way),

put her arms out and says

I-OH-NO???

(I don't know?)

You can't help but laugh, it is so cute!

So if you run into Elsie sometime...ask a question...

(maybe something like, "where's your binky?")

she will most likely say,

I-OH-NO???
Oh I just love this girl!

I MISS HIM!

Favs #28/365

I LOVE my hubby!

Boy do I miss him!

NO, not cause I miss a clean house(...although I do miss that...)

But he just brings a certain order to our family.

Things are much less chaotic with him around.

I love to just have him around.

He brings the best out in me...

and when he is gone...

obviously the best does NOT come out!

Miss you babe...

(yes, I know the picture is ULTRA-blurry...that is on purpose....I won't allow you to see the actual mess, and each individual thing left out...that would be VERY embarrassing!)

Favs #27/365

My FAVORITE new attachment for the sewing machine!

I know...not so exciting!

But I will have something to show you next week...

You will think the attachment is cool too!

So here are some more exciting things!

I didn't take pictures of Porter at exactly 4 months...

he had goopy eyes, and wasn't feeling great.

So here he is at 4 months and about a week.

He still wasn't at 100% yet...so didn't want to smile.

Porter is so much fun.

I love my little man.

He can roll from his tummy to his back,

and has rolled from his back to his tummy a couple times.

He loves to suck his fists.

I keep thinking he will find a finger or thumb or something...but nope...

he likes the fist!

He gives the best smiles....but we have yet to get a full blown laugh from him.

That is how Cassi was.

A little giggle, but no huge laughs.

Soon enough...

I see a little tooth trying to cut through his poor gums...

He weighs 18 lbs. 10 oz.

My BIG little man!

He is not much into toys and stuff yet,

but he loves blankets and stuffed animals.

He mauls them!

Porter wears 6-9 month clothing.

He is an excellent napper!

He growls.

And it is the cutest growl ever!

He is a very well tempered baby...

but definitely LOVES his mommy!

He loves to watch us eat,

and is always grabbing at our food.

He is always looking around and exploring.

I can tell he is gonna have an inquisitive mind.

He is so great!

We love our little boy!

Round 2 on Elsie's glasses...

These are the other frames I ordered with the first frames.

These ones I love!

What do you think???

SLEEP!!!

Favs #26/365

I LOVE sleep!

But not more than I love my kids.

The last two nights have been almost a joke!!!

First night...each kid woke up (including the dog), except Elsie.

All at different times.

Porter has been waking up every two hours in the beginning of the night...then sleeping good the second half.

Cassi has been sleeping good the first half of the night...but having bad dreams the second half.

So I end up sleeping in her bed with her until she goes to sleep...or until I wake up after falling asleep in her bed!

Madi has been coughing...all night!

Poor girl...I feel so bad for her!

It always takes her so long to get rid of a cough!

I should feel lucky that she doesn't get sick very often.

Anyway...so last night I thought would be different.

Nothing happened until 3:00 a.m.!!!

NICE!!!

That is when Porter woke up...I tried to let him cry himself back...

'cause I am TRYING to do that.

So I figured I would take my time going downstairs and making his bottle for him.

Well, he ended up waking up Cassi and Dad!

Dad went and took care of Cassi while I finished with the bottle.

Then the dumb dog wanted out again!!!

(I am gonna break that habit for sure!!!)

Anyway...so I go upstairs...snuggle back in bed for hopefully the rest of the night.

Well, at 4:00, Madi was coughing so hard...it was bad.

It was time to give her another dose of her medicine.

So we go downstairs....and she is coughing so hard now that she makes herself throw-up!

So I made her a bed downstairs and told her she could just watch a movie.

Not two seconds after I got into bed...

I hear a "MOM!"

Cassi is up.

I was so tired...I asked her if she wanted to go watch the movie with Madi!

She was so excited...

On the way downstairs she asks...

"Mom, can we have some popcorn?"

I said, "Cass, it is 4:00 in the morning!!!"

"Then can we have a snack???"

Anyone who knows Cassi knows she is OBSESSED with snacks!!!

So I told her she could have some dry cereal...

I wanted to go to bed!

So into bed again...

warm, soft...

Cry...

Elsie...and she wasn't gonna lay back down...I tried.

So down we go to watch the movie!!!

I am sure Dad wanted BADLY to join us...but he had a long drive ahead of him this morning...

So we let him sleep.

Luckily Porter slept until 6:00.

So...4 out of 6 in our family woke up at 4:00 a.m.

Not a great outlook for the day!

Well, Madi dozed off shortly after 6:30 a.m..

Elsie took a 4 hour nap at 10:00 a.m.

I have NO CLUE how Cassi lasted the day without a nap!

And Porter has napped great today.

And best of all...my sweet hubby told me to take a nap before he had to leave!

And when I woke up...he had cleaned the house for me, spick and span!

Thanks baby for doing that!!!

So they are all in bed now...

I wonder what tonight holds for me!

Oh well, at least I am still in my jammies!

(Don't worry, I will change them!)

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Okay...now it is 8:42 p.m....

both Elsie and Cassi have woken up...

I think it may be another long one tonight!!!

Wish me luck!

Movie Night!

Favs #25/365

We LOVE Movie Night!

Movies at our house...not a quiet thing...but always fun!

Popcorn, blankets, pillows...together as a family!

Nothing better than that!

New Camera!!!!

Favs #24/365

I LOVE my new camera!

She arrived this morning!

I know this picture itself is nothing special...

but this baby can do amazing things....

I am excited to read the huge manual that came with her!!!

So look forward to some great stuff!!!

She's a Nikon D700!

Isn't she pretty?

Nurse Mom...

Favs #23/365

I LOVE to take care of my kids!

Okay...

No, I don't like it when my kids are sick...

Which Madi is...and Porter too.

But, this is why I chose to write this today:

Madi has been having a rough day.

I went and bought a new humidifier for her room and after dinner I went up with her to hook it up...

When is was all hooked up she looked at me with those big brown eyes and said

"Thank you so much Mom..."

It was so sweet.

And I felt very bad for getting mad at her the last couple nights cause she still wouldn't go to sleep after I had done EVERYTHING that I could for her!

So, I am gonna be a nicer Mom...

I have made that resolution before...

But really, these four kiddos of mine deserve a Fantastic Mom...

So here we go...

I start now...

Here is to becoming the BEST MOM IN THE WORLD!!!
........................................................

Also...

on a side note.

My baby is now 4 months old.

He weighs 18 lbs. 10 oz.!

Can you believe it!

He is humongous!

Elsie was 19 lbs at 1 year!!!

I have his appointment in a week or so, so I will tell you more on his stats then!

And I am waiting for my new camera to come...(giddy inside!)

and for his poor goopy eyes to clear up for me to take his 4 months picts.

So get excited for those!

Experiments!

Favs #22/365

We LOVE learning!

Brent loves teaching, learning, and experimenting!

This makes for lots of fun times for the kids.

I am sure many of you have done this egg experiment...

But I doubt anyone elses ended up outside, gasoline involved...and with some singed eye-lashes...

I won't share pictures from that.

Trust me...

Fireman=Pyro!

But we are all safe.

Don't worry.

But the girls learned a lot about oxygen, smoke, smoke explosions...

And to NEVER play with FIRE!!!

Bath Time!

Favs #21/365

I Love Chubba Bubba Bath Time!

I know...

all little ones love their Bath time!

But bath time at our house is quite an event!

If Elsie happens to hear the word BATH...

she goes bizerk!!!

Actually...Bizerk isn't a big enough word!!!

It usually takes a big chunk of time to get all four kids cleaned!

Luckily Madi takes care of her own showers...

I just have to worry about telling her to get out about 15 times...

I am sure that will only get better as we get into the teen years...right???

Elsie and Cassi love to splash around...

the bathroom is usually covered with water by the time they are ready to get out!!!

And my little bubba boy usually gets two baths!!!

One nice warm and comfy bath...

which he ALWAYS pees in!

So we empty that out and get set for the second bath!

He loves his baths!

He loves kicking and splashing around!

Then lotion...jammies...

all the works!

Red chair

Favs #20/365

Favorite red chair!

So I can't say it is my favorite chair...cause I have a couple others.

But I love this chair.

I love it's shape.

I love it's fabric.

I love it's history.

I love things that come from someplace.
Things that have a story to tell.

This is one of the many treasures I got from my Grandma Beardall.

I have so many things from her that I absolutely cherish...

I wish I had more rooms and more places to put everything on display.

I believe this particular chair belonged to my Great Aunt Belle.

Grandma had it at her house...it was in poor shape.

Springs broken out the bottom,

fabric black and dirty.

Dead looking.

The normal person would have just gotten rid of it.

But not me.

When we cleaned the fabric we were very surprised to find the color of it to be red.

I loved it!

It makes me sad for all the things that get thrown away,

that still have so much beauty to give.

I know, I am a little cheesy!

But still...

This chair makes it's home in our office,

and the office wouldn't be complete without this chair.

New Glasses

Favs #19/365

My FAVORITE Four-Eyes!!!!

Oh, stop...

I am not being mean, I'm just playin'!!!

Doesn't she look cute???

We just got her glasses today from Zennioptical.com

We still need to take them in to be sized and check the prescription.

Does anyone think that the frames are too big for her face???

Just wondering.

I also have some pink glasses coming for her...

they should be here tomorrow.

I will update later when they get sized to let you know how she does with them.

(p.s. Thanks Anjeanette for telling me about zennioptical)

Beautiful Weather

Favs #18/365
We LOVE to have good weather!!!

We are definitely the outdoors kind of family.

But it is so much better when the weather is nice!

Brent had to work some overtime this morning...but he got off early and surprised us.

He had brought home some pizza...so we headed to the park for a little picnic and some 'spinning' fun!

We all had so much fun.

Can't wait for the weather to be great and we can start swimming again, BBQ-ing again, and doing all that great outdoor weather kind of stuff!

Me and my sweet hubby...don't we make a great couple!!!

Elsie getting some smiles out of Porter...and me!

Me...feeding my babies...

My sweet little chubba bubba!!!

Elsie LOVES her puppy dog!!!

Spinning themselves DIZZY!!!

Daddy with his girlies

This is my most FAVORITE picture of all!

Can't you just feel her excitement!?!?!?

Top O' the Morning to ya!

Favs # 17/365

My FAVORITE St.Patricks Day memory

I will always remember my Dad turning our milk green for St.Patricks Day.

Isn't that the greatest!!!!

So I love passing the tradition on.

The girls think it is so funny!!!

Elsie wasn't too sure about it in her cereal...but ate it anyway.

And don't you just love Cassi's green milk mustache!!!

And Madi dyed her water green to take to school...

And Cassi insisted on making my water green to take to the gym!

Hope you all have a fun St.Patricks Day!

...and remember...

EAT YOUR GREENS TODAY!!!

Tumble Time

Favs #16/365

We LOVE Tumble Time!!!

As part of the Infant/Toddler Program, Elsie has the opportunity to take a Tumble Time class with other little kids with different abilities, like Elsie.

I can tell you that I think this has been one of the best things for Elsie and her progress.

Not only does she love it...

but she is learning how to stretch her own muscles,

how to play well with others and take turns.

She is getting to do things that otherwise she wouldn't get the chance to.

I just love that she gets this opportunity.

There is always a Physical therapist there to help make sure they are using their bodies in the best ways for the different things they are doing.
It really has been so amazing.

And of course EVERYONE just loves Elsie and her smiles!

My favorite day, Miss Etta, the teacher, did a Baby Yoga theme.

This is definitely something I want to look into more.

Elsie is going to have to deal with stretching her muscles everyday for the rest of her life.

And this Baby Yoga seemed to be made for her!

So I want to look into that.

I know she would definitely benefit from it!!!

Anyway.

The picture above is Elsie doing the 'pencil' pose.

She is leaning her lower body against a cushion....but she loves doing the 'pencil'.

We are working very hard on 'table'.

That is a tough one!!!

Dinn-fast

Favs # 15/356

My FAVORITE dinner to make while Daddy is at work

Those who know me, know I am not known for my cooking.

I wish I could cook.

I am just one of those people who can mess anything up, pretty easily.

Dinner is always a stress for me.

Many times I resort to spaghetti, Mac and Cheese or Pancakes.

Can't beat pancakes.

And these ones aren't too bad for you either.

So when Dad is away at work...

this is usually what we have to eat.

The kids love them and they don't mind eating them a few times a week.

(Okay, that is an exaggeration...but still, they wouldn't mind!)

Dad likes them too...so we do have them a lot when he is home too!

Breakfast for dinner...

you know you all do it!

On a side note...

apparently when you post EVERYDAY no one wants to comment!!!

Oh well...it's fun for me anyway!

But we all love some love sometimes...right!

Relaxing

Favs #14/365

My favorite BAD HABIT!!!

Brent will agree I have a bad habit.
My bad habit...

well, I collect paint.

So much paint that Brent says it is a fire hazard.

I go to stores like Lowes, Home Depot, Walmart...

They always have cans of paint marked WAY down cause they were tinted the color wrong!

So I get them.

But I do use them.

I make my own custom paints.

The newest one is for our bathroom.

Blue gallon of paint just under $4.00,

add some white from stuff I have in the garage,

and a little green from a can I got for about $3.

So my whole master bathroom is now a relaxing and romantic blueish green color.

I love it.

It also matches our bedspread.

I think it is cool when the master bedroom and master bathroom match.

But not too matchy.

So my bedroom is tan and black with a touch of blue (and some red)

My bathroom will be Blue, with a touch of tan and black.

What do you think.
Well, I love it.

And all for under $7!!!

Can't beat that.

I am waiting to find a bunch of cheap tan paint so I can paint my master bedroom.

It is ridiculously TOO big, so it's gonna take a lot of paint!!!

But don't worry...I will do it for cheap...

But Brent did warn me he was gonna throw my paint away.

I better start using it!

I have so many projects to do I am going insane.

Does ANYONE have at least ONE finished room in their house...

Cause I don't!

My Big Boy

Favs #13/365

My FAVORITE big BOY!!!

You didn't think I was gonna leave my man out, right???

This is my man.

This is what I live for.

Tonight I got to go out with my man.

Doesn't he look great in his Class A Uniform?

We went to an awards banquet tonight for the Fire Department.

Not usually Brent's kind of thing.

But I was asked to do pictures for it, so he was forced to go!

But I am glad we went.

It is always nice to go out with each other without the kiddos.

You can actually look at each other!

Anyway...

As I was saying...

This is my man.

He is such a hard worker...

at home...

at work...

in anything he does.

He sees something that needs to be done...and he does it.

This man is the toughest guy I know...

but becomes the biggest softy with these four kiddos he has!

He is good at anything he does.

I am so thankful that I was the girl lucky enough to snag him up.

I am still not sure how that happened!!!

Anyway...so I love my man.

That's all I had to say!

We don't usually get to have pictures together much...so I had a fellow Fire guy shoot a shot of the two of us.

I had so much fun going out with Brent tonight!!!

Love you baby...

Also...a HUGE thanks to Drew and Heather for taking our kids for so long tonight. Thanks so much...it is time for you guys to have a long night out together!!!

Chocolate!

Favs # 12/365

My FAVORITE treat (today)

I have had a little sweet tooth lately.

...and you can't have a sweet tooth when you are trying to fit in pre-baby clothes!!!

So I have found a great alternative.

A small handful of Special Dark chocolate chips does the trick.

And I don't feel guilty eating them.
So don't try to make me feel guilty!

My little boy!

Favs # 11/365

My most FAVORITE little BOY!!!

This little face just makes me smile.

I don't know what it is?

Maybe it is that he looks SOOO much like his daddy...(who I kinda have a thing for...)

Or if it is the most perfect smile he gives his mommy.

Or his perfectly happy disposition.

He is just such a joy to have in our house.

I can't wait to see what he becomes.

What he will be like...

And how much of a mamas boy he's gonna be!!!

Love you Porter B!!!

Laundry days, and days, and days...

Favs #10/365

My FAVORITE thing to HATE!!!

...'nuff said!!!

Art Collector

Favs # 9/365

My FAVORITE artist

Well...it's no secret that we think Madi is an amazing artist.

Madi takes advice from me and does her best work.

She is always wanting to learn the best ways to draw things.

I wish Madi had more time to work on the things that she loves so much.

She has so many ideas ALL the time of things she wants to do. (Where in the world would she get that from???)

I can't wait to see what Madi blossoms into!

I might not have much to do with my art anymore, but I take pride in thinking I passed it down to my amazing daughter!

Love you Madi.

New shoes!

Favs # 8/365

New Running Shoes!

These are what Brent got me for my birthday.

I am so excited to break these puppies in.

I finally got a chance to run to the store, which was so great.

She watched how I walked, how I ran and found shoes that would work best for me.

I have never had that done before, and I am excited to see if it will help with my knee problems when I wear the right fitting shoes!

They are so comfy and cute too!!!

Rock on!

Favs # 7/365

My FAVORITE little rock star!!!

Cassi is such a great little singer.

She has an amazing way of learning the words to every song she listens to!

She has an obsession with Taylor Swift!

She listens to hours and hours of Taylor!!!

She is also a big fan of Johnny Cash, Sugarland, Hannah Montana, and her Primary Songs.

And she really does have a great voice and can carry the right notes...it amazes me!

I have videos of her singing, I really need to post.

...but for now....

just a picture of our favorite little rock star!!

Barbie!

Favs # 6/365

I LOVE that my kids have good friends and good toys!!!

Well, todays FAV might be dumb....but it IS Barbies birthday!!!

Anyway...

My kids are blessed with so many great friends that come from such great families.

I am thankful that my kids will go upstairs with their little friends for hours.

So thanks to all those great families out there who have made great kids for mine to play with!!!

My FAVORITE little sunshine

Favs # 5/365

My FAVORITE little Sunshine!

I think this little one is amazing.

Elsie has brought so much JOY to our lives, I don't even know where to begin.

Elsie joined our family and the first few months were actually the worst we had ever experienced.

She was constantly crying.

We were always bouncing this tightly bundled screaming baby.

Life was very hard.

Then one day, the SUN came through.

Elsie is such a bright spot in the lives of all who know her.

It took us a long time to figure out what was wrong with her.

First, we just thought she was a little behind.

But that mothers (and father's) intuition, just wouldn't let me believe that!!!

I knew there was something she struggled with.

But my little sunshine always had the most beautiful smile on her face.

People in stores would stop just to look at her beautiful smile.

Elsie has made us each a better person.

Every one who is a part of her life, is better for it.

She has such unconditional love...

She has such determination...

She has such focus...

Patience...

...oh, I could just go on and on.

What have I learned from this little angel?

I have learned that things don't have to be hard.

They may be hard...but not HARD!

You know what I mean??

All that she struggles to do and learn, and she never quits!!!

I have learned that hard work is SO worth it.

I have learned that as long as you have a smile on your face, everything is great!

And above all, patience.

This little girl tries so hard every day to do all she wants to do.

I have no doubt in my mind that this little lady will touch many lives.

That Elsie can be and do anything she wants to.

I am so grateful to have her as a part of her family.

I am so thankful to have the opportunity to know her, let alone be her mommy.

She is the Sunshine of our lives.

(p.s. She will be getting glasses soon...how cute will that be???? Seriously!)

Favorite TIME of day

Favs # 4/365

Favorite TIME of day

Cassi and I wait almost every day for 12:34 p.m.

She loves that it counts up 1..2..3..4..

It is just a fun thing we try to do everyday.

It is fun to have special things that only you get to do with a child of yours.

So now you know what Cass and I are doing every day at 12:33...waiting for the time to change!!!

Thanks Cass for having so much fun with me on such a silly thing!

Happy Birthday Daddy!!!

Happy Birthday to my best Daddy in the world.

My Dad is an amazing man....he had to be to raise 8 daughters and 1 little boy!!!

My Dad has an amazing way of making each kid feel like his favorite...

(Even though I am pretty sure that I am the fav!)

Hope you have a great day Dad, and know how much you are loved!!!

Emmy Blankets

Favs # 3/365

Emmy Blankets

Two Christmases ago my sister Emily made all her nieces and nephews 'Emmy blankets' (13 of them at the time, I believe). Porter got his when he was born a few months back, and she continues to make them for each baby born. These things are loved so much. This year she is making one for each of the siblings (there are 9 kids in our family) and spouses (5 of them) and Mom and Dad and gives it to them for their birthday. So mine was the last one to join our family. Brent and Porter have matching blankets and my Emmy blanket matches my girls. They are so soft a cuddly! They are our favorite!!! The kids sleep with theirs every night. They are very well loved. So this is my favorite for today...thanks Em for the great birthday present. And thanks for giving so much time and talents to your family! We appreciate it!

29...

Yep...todays the day.

I'm getting old.

Books, Books, and More Books!

Favs # 2/365

I love it that my kids love to read.

I am not a reader...can't read very fast...it takes a long time for me to get interested in a book, and I think my eyes are bad!

But, I always wished I was a better reader!

Well, I am glad that Brent has such great genes too pass down to his kids...

They have always enjoyed books.

Madi is one of the top readers in her class.

Truthfully, she reads better out loud than I can.

But this is what I want.

I want my kids to be better than me!

There is a small (long) story that goes along with why I chose this for my picture today...read along if you would like.

This is how the day could have went.

Cassi was up all night, I mean ALL night crying cause her ear hurt.

Then 4 o'clock, Elsie and Cassi decide it is time to get up.

So we are up at 4 a.m.

Normally I would have been mean to Madi getting ready for school...cause I am mean when I am tired.

So I would have ruined Madi's day cause of being mean.

Then I would cancel tumble time for Elsie and sit around and do nothing all day except get annoyed with my kids.

Take Cassi to the doctor, and everyone would have been grumpy cause I WOULD BE GRUMPY!!!

And the whole day would play out in this fashion.

INSTEAD, this is how it went.

Cassi WAS up all night with her earache...

Cassi and Elsie DID wake up at 4 a.m.

The difference you ask???

If you ask me, it was all because of Madi.

At her school they are doing a read-a-thon. She BADLY wants to get the most hours.

I kept thinking...man, she gets home from school, then it is homework, dinner, shower, and bedtime with barely her 20 minutes of reading for homework, when would she be able to fit more reading in.?

So Madi and I decided that after she got ready for school...that should give us enough time, 30 minutes, before her bus comes.

And what do you think she wanted to do with those 30 min.?

Family scripture reading.

So, she reminded me this morning.

And that's what we did.

Then off Madi went on the bus.

I called to get Cassi in to the doctor, made an appointment for 11:50.

Then I was about to cancel Elsie's tumble time...I knew she was tired...but Elsie LOVES tumble time so much! And I knew I could just leave if she was too tired.

So we went.

Normally I only take Elsie so I can focus on helping her.

But with Brent on shift today...I had the 3 youngest in tow.

On previous occasions...it hadn't gone so well...screaming baby, Cassi running wild in the place, Elsie crying cause other people are trying to help her and she doesn't quite know them yet...you know the scenario...

ANYWAY...

guess what...

Cassi was great. She helped with Porter and when Porter needed me...Elsie let Mary, the helper, help her in all the things she needed to do.

It was awesome.

So then I had about 40 min between the end of tumble time and Cassi's dr. appt.

I needed to make a run to walmart...

Yikes...lately I have been able to go without kids...or just Elsie. (normally after tumble time)

But with three little ones...

again I say...YIKES!

But I HAD to get formula and I HAD to get diapers.

So there was no choice.

guess what?

They were great.

Porter fell asleep, no problem...I was worried because he is so used to being laid down in his crib to go to sleep...I thought he would get messed up for sure.

Nope...he slept very peacefully.

And the girls were great, and Cassi was very helpful.

Then it was time for the doctor appt.

We got there to a waiting room full of people.

I knew it would be a long wait.

I was worried!

guess what?

They were perfect!!!

Cassi got in and checked...she has an ear infection. Poor girl. (which by the way makes her being good even more amazing since she didn't feel good)

But you know what that meant...

going and picking up a prescription.

I thought my luck was gone for sure!!!

guess what?

It was very smooth...I even had to wait for it to be filled,

which is when we went and rented 'high school musical 3'.

(which provided my workout for the day later on)

Came home...had naps...Madi came home...dinner was served...homework was done...rocked out to High School Musical 3...got kids bathed.

Now to bed we go...in hopes of a better night...and hoping for just as great of day for tomorrow.

(Also...moral of the story...I enjoy morning Scripture reading with my family, thanks to our Madi Bell)

Ol' Reliable

Okay...

There is a thing going on in blogland...it is a 365 idea.

A picture a day for the whole year.
Well, I really want to do this. I know...I am a couple months late.

But I just loved the idea.

And I thought I would put a little spin on it to help me be more positive in life.
I want to post 365 of my favorite things.
This way I can look everyday and see how I am surrounded by such great things

and have such a great life.
So today's might be a little boring...

but after church I took a little nap. After my nap I woke up and was really cold.
So what do I do???
Well, I grab my trusty sweatshirt.
Actually it isn't mine...it's my hubbys...
This was Brent's sweatshirt when he worked for South Salt Lake Fire Dept...many years ago. This sweatshirt is the most comfy thing in the world and it is always what I run to when I get cold!

So my favorite thing today, picture 1/365, is of this old worn out sweatshirt.