A Little of This and a Little of That

Just a few of the things running through my brain this morning...perhaps some of you can relate to a few of them and then again some of you may think I'm a kook!

1. I am so glad Giant decided to start selling their store brand fat-free half and half in a bigger size. No more quarts, we get a half gallon now. But, speaking of coffee.....I am turning into the little old ladies that I used to wait on in restaurants that could never have their coffee and soup hot enough. I would burn myself holding their cups and they would insist it was cold. Yeah, that's me now. I have come to realize that when consumed at room temperature, even my good high end coffee tastes like the disgusting Folgers crystals my parents used to make when I was a kid. YUCK.

2. #2 got a concussion this weekend. She slipped in her soccer cleats running on the blacktop and fell sideways onto her head. Scared the spit right out of me (which made me realize if there is a true emergency I need to be better prepared because I went into some kind of zombie-like state of shock where I drove a block then would pull over and just stare at her). Thankfully, #1 had the good sense to call The Husband who said, why don't you call the doctor. Oh right! The doctor! What a great idea! We ran her over to the doctor (thankful that they were even open) and he confirmed she had a concussion so she got to watch soccer this weekend and watch play practice this weekend and watch her sisters and friends stuff themselves into those little toddler cars and push themselves down a hill....she was bouncing off the walls by yesterday so I let her get in a hamster ball at our local Park Day. Don't judge me. She had a helmet on!



3. I'd like to drop about 22 pounds in the next 12 days since we will be shooting another project with our PSU friend/movie maker extraordinaire. This time #2 will have a main part in it and it will be entered into an international film festival. I already warned her no diva-like behavior or we'll pull her out of the project. I wonder if Hannah Montana's parents said the same thing? The Husband and I have to play fighting parents so if The Dog keeps eating muffins off the counter and pooping in my bathroom while I'm at work, then we'll have something to really fight about. One day he is going to come home and she'll be in the crockpot with some carrots and potatoes.

4. It's Monday.

5. I need to go throw my coffee back in the microwave.

Once Upon a Time.....

.....I used to have a blog that I wrote in just about every day. But, about a year ago I went back to work, became PTO President and allowed my kids to sign up for 107 different activities (sometimes all on the same day). Throw in a few evil time sucking websites like facebook and ebay and voila! No time to blog (or exercise for that matter, but that is a whole other post).

Yes, I ponder where my life is at right now on my hour long round trip commute each weekday. Some days I have so much on my mind and so much pressure to get everyone where they need to go I crawl into bed at the end of an exhausting day with the famous "Mommy Guilt Complex". In my attempts to give them all their opportunities to excel, is it worth it when they have a cranky mom helping them with homework in the car driving to soccer practice yelling "Sound the word out!" and "C'mon, you learned that last year!" and the ever famous "What do you mean you don't know where your shin guards/sneakers/ball/library book is?".

However, most days on that hour long commute I look forward to what the day has in store and the rare nights home all together are so few that it is like a special event. Last night was one of those night and while I was able to sit down at the dining room table and help with homework, #1 iced a cake that she and #2 had baked when I ran out to the store after school. It was a wonderful evening and I know the kids were happy because there was much singing and dancing and laughing and jumping upon the couch. #3 even got out carrots and was making The Dog do tricks to get one, which cracked us up even more.

Even on the days when I have to coordinate multiple kids having multiple activities in different places I realize that these days will pass. While I believe in balancing what they do and not wearing them (and me) out, I will not always be cheering them on at soccer or taking pictures while they are cheering or applauding them while they are on stage.....it is a season and I have chosen to embrace it. Every once in a while I'll throw a little something in the mix for me to enjoy like acting or taking a class, but generally I'm content to sit on the sidelines (or shall I say, drive in my minivan) and encourage these three precious treasures to be all that God has created them to be!

People ask me how I do it...how I have the energy to do all the things we do collectively as a family. Honestly, it is because I enjoy it. And, it is important that I know my limits. Sometimes I just have to say "NO" when even the best sounding opportunities come up because the scale will tip and all my sanity will come spilling out.

So, if you're wondering what's going on in oH mY wORD land, now you have an idea. I'm probably in my minivan somewhere!

Influential People

I was going through some books (okay, "some" does not adequately describe the books we own, more like bazillions) for our yard sale and I came across one I hadn't looked at in awhile. It is a book of "Lists to Live By" and I am going to share one of my favorite lists with you today. I think we all need to be reminded of this...which sounds good in theory, but walking in it is a whole different story!

Influential People

We are impacted most by ......

1. People of courage.

2. People of character.

3. People of discipline.

4. People of excellence. (I try t0 tell my girls this when they clean their rooms!)

5. People of compassion.

6. People of encouragement.

7. People of vision. (I really need to work on this one)

8. People of generosity.

9. People of wisdom.

10. People of faith.

Dr. Steve Stephens - psychologist and seminar speaker