Gotta love the change of seasons

Well, here it is the day after the day after Thanksgiving.

I had a nice pleasant Holiday with only one stop to make just one mile from here, instead of at least two, one being 35 miles each way. My parents did us a favor and volunteered to stay in Hawaii for an extra week to save on airfare. How nice of them! I didn't have to drive for 45 minutes each way to spend an hour or two shoving as much as I could into my mouth before packing up the family, driving 45 min and then settle ourselves in another house to shove food in our mouths again!

Instead, we had a leisurely morning sleeping in until nearly 8!! Those of you with small children will know what I feat this is! We held off the children that were near fainting from not eating until nearly 10 and had bacon and french toast. Poor dears had to live off from warmed chocolate milk until then. Then we got each child bathed - how dare us? AFTER BREAKFAST? What kind of free for all are we running here? Then let them wear their Christmas outfits since the boy is growing at a world record pace and will never be able to squeeze into it ever again. Then they got to watch the parade in the Living room, or kitchen or our bed room since we put it on in all three rooms. The poor deprived children do not have a TV in their shared room. I made the last pie - a chocolate one! And then packed everyone up for our trek "Over the mile and around the corner" to Grandmother's house. We had a lovely meal with my dear husband's family before coming home and tucking the exhausted children into their warm beds. Meanies that we were we only let them stay up an hour later than usual. I told you there were depraved children living with horrid parents.

Friday came and no line standing for me. I refuse. We slept until nearly 8 once again and everyone had their favorite cereal for breakfast. My Dear Husband has to go to work for a few hours, and around 10, I bundled up the children to make the 2 stops on my list. I drop the 5 YO off at my ILs since she doesn't have school and they NEVER get to see her anymore (Never mind that we were just there for 7 hours). The younger 2 and I head out. I stop to buy the Wedding gift that we saw advertised, and even got up front parking. The blessing keep coming when there is just one left and we got it. THEN the lovely sales clerk happily tells me there was a misprint in the flyer. The gift we wanted is actually $10 CHEAPER! I buy the gift, and a stocking stuffer for my dear Husband, and Happy Sales Clerk lets me use my coupon for an additional 20% off BOTH items.

Since I had great parking and cooperating children, I head over to the craft store across the parking lot. I get a stack of paper I had been eyeing but thought $10 was too expensive. They let me use their competitors coupon and I get 60% off from it, add some wired ribbon to it to wrap the gift with later and I get out of there spending far less than I saved over at the other store!

Then I pile the kids into their assigned seat and head to the thrift store. Now I know that thrift store shopping is not for everyone, but do you really believe that the "new" things you pay full retail for were not tried on by a few dozen people before you bought it? Anyway, I spend an hour looking around a bit and settle on 10 items. A Laura Ashley Skirt, another one form the Gap, a Third from Casual Corner, a pair of pants for Talbots, another pair from Express, a sweater from the limited, another from Liz Claiborn, a shirt from Kathy Ireland, another from Learner NY, and finally a blouse from Ann Taylor. Total spent: $14.78. I happily pay for my new "in between sizes, but I don't have to look like a slob" wardrobe and head back home.

I make lunch for the 3 YO and myself, wrap the gift, made a card and then settle in for some computer time while I feed the boy. MY wonderful Dear Husband makes it home in time to head out once again, and I goof off the rest of the afternoon. DH makes it home again just as it starts to snow a bit. He helps me neaten the house a bit and then head out the door about an hour and a half later. Well, try to. 5 YO gets home just as baby sitter arrives and Dear Husband is forced to snow blow to get us out. Um, 6 inches?!?! Where did this come from?

Its a slow go, but we make it to the wedding a bit late. SO did everyone else. It is about an hour later than planned by the time the judge arrives, then the small simple ceremony goes off without any further problems. It even stops snowing after just 10 inches fall. We have a lovely time and make it home shortly after midnight. Pay the sitter what I used to make in a week, and she cleans up the empty food containers that used to be ours and allows my DH to drive her home, chatting happily about how all the kids were in bed and sleeping about an hour after we left, so she mostly just watched TV, a few of our DVD's and ate our food.

That brings us to today. Our nice neighbor from 4 doors down snow blowed our driveway from the sidewalk to the door, so that made it a bit easier for my DH to get out to go to work today, but not before helping get all the kids dressed warm enough to hike to Siberia if we needed to. I strap the boy in his car seat, add a few blankets and we all head out for some snow time.

The girls play happily in the snow while I work on clearing the end of our driveway, the drain in the curb in front of our house, and the front stoop. After an hour the girls are bored and I am sore, so we head in for some hot cocoa. I watch TV and I make it and the girls are singing CHRISTMAS songs (At elast I know the words to these ones!). As we do so I am stopped in my tracks when I see that after the record snow fall yesterday, it will be a high of 60 on Monday. Boy and I happy I just spent all the time and energy shoveling!

Alright, my cocoa is no longer hot, the boy is done nursing and the girls are RRREEAAAALLLLLYYYYYY hungry. Poor dears. Its been nearly 3 hours since they had anything to eat, and the hot cocoa with marshmallows aparenly didn't count for anything. I'd better go make lunch before someone calls child services on me.

What has happened to the Holidays?

OK, I feel a rant coming on, but I will try to keep it under control.

My 5 YO has been wandering around the house singing holiday songs. Now, don't get me wrong, I am all for holiday spirit, but this is a bit out of control. We can't celebrate any "religous" holidays, and most people scoff at "Hallmark" holidays. We are regualted in how we can celebrate some holidays, and there seems to be no wrong way to celebrate others.

Some holiday meaning are long lost, forgotten or made "Politically correct". Since when is politics correct about everything to every one?

There are plenty of holidays that deserve special recongition, and I love that there are actual days set aside for remeberence and prayer! As long as you don't dictate what god is prayed to.

My 5 Yo , however has been singing...Veterns Day songs. Now, I am not knocking the symbolism of Veterns Day. I am very greatful for all of those that have fought to keep our country free and put their lives onthe line for us every day! But come on.

I guess it is a good thing that she has learned a bit about what verterns are and a bit about what they do. Her school even will place flags near the headstones of veterns that have passed on, some of them even fighting for our rights.

I am not sure why I find this so ridiculous. She is leanring some great truths and in a very age appropriot way. She knows more about Veterns day than I did at this age. So maybe I should just go with the flow and try not to be a "Back in my day" type of mom.

Besides singing Vetern's Day songs is infectios.....

"Vetern's Day, Vetern's Day
Comes Just Once A Year!
Lets Take Time To Honor Those
That Guard Our Freedom Dear!"

(Sung to Jingle bells!)

Everyone now!!..........

Daydreams of a housewife...

It is easy to dream about what you will do when _____. When What? What are you waiting for, and will you actually DO any of the thing you dream about?

I ask this because I always used to say "When my kids are in school, then I will be able to keep house better". No this isn't my life's ambition, just the thought I keep pondering over today. My 3 YO and 5YO are both in school for the morning and part of the afternoon, too. The Boy is snoozing away.

My house? Not exactly my vision of perfection! So what am I doing? Um, blogging away. I pause now and then to scoop some cereal in my mouth. I think I should start the laundry cycle all over again, but still I sit.

I am meeting a friend in an hour for lunch, but what is stopping me from taking control of my house right now? I know in about 30 minutes I can make the house look sparkly. I say look because I know I will not deep clean everything today, but when my sweet Dear Husband walks in the door, it will be a comfortable place to welcome him home. Why can't I just get off my butt and do it?

In my dream, I will drop the 3YO off at day care and return home with my smiley guy. I can get the dishes started and put him in his swing in one swoop, and chat away to him while I wash the few things we dirtied at breakfast. As things are draining, I run the laundry downstairs, and get it all sorted and started, grabbing the clean things that are hung down there to be put away up here. Next I will nurse the boy and put him down for a nap, and be able to "Swish and swipe" the bathroom from top to bottom. By then the dishes can be put away, then the laundry will need rebooting. I can wipe down the washer and dryer while I am down there this time, and look over supplies I need to add to my grocery list. Back upstairs, I will take 10 minutes to put away everything that is out of place, then quickly dust the knick knacks, door frames, baseboards and pictures before running the vacuum. I know I will have enough time to get a 45 minute work out in and then my Smiley guy will awaken eat his lunch and get a fresh diaper. We will head out to lunch with my friend, then return home once again. Smiley guy will happily sit in his bouncy seat while I neat the girls' room and restock the diapers. Then I can run downstairs to bring up a freshly laundered basket of clothes and fold/ hang/ put it ALL away before returning the basket to the basement, scooping up the boy and then heading off once again to pick up my 3YO. We can return home and have a healthy snack while she tells me about her day, and smiley guy looks on from his jumper. I am relaxed and happy. Then I will read her a book or two while waiting for my 5 YO to get home on the bus.

When she gets home, she will then be snacked and chatted to while the 3 YO watches one TV show. Then I can make Dinner uninterrupted in my sparkly clean kitchen. As dinner cooks/ simmers/ bakes, I will have time to nurse and change the boy once again and put on some make up in anticipation of my Dear Husband's return home. The girls will play quietly with one toy each, happily returning it to its designated place before choosing another.

Then I wake up and see that the boy is snoozing in my lap, and I am still sitting at the computer with yesterday's laundry still in baskets nearby. Breakfast dishes are still waiting for me (they are patient, but still yell out "WASH ME" when I pass by the kitchen) and last night's dishes are clean, but abandoned in the strainer. I am dressed and look decent, but haven't worn makeup in over a week, if you don't count Halloween. I am nearly out of diapers, I don't know how much fabric softener I have, and well, I vacuumed yesterday so why do it again?

Hmm, I guess I wasted enough time here. I need to at least make one attempt at laundry before heading out to lunch. And when I come home, I will try not to be shocked and wonder if someone came and ransacked the house while I was out. I may even try to put on some eye liner before I go, so my DH will think I did it just for him later.

After I finish reading my e-mail, I promise.