A Moment in the Sun

This afternoon I took a moment....

I went outside and sat in the sun on a blanket on my lawn and sipped a nice cup of tea.

Enjoyed a few kid-free moments before son#1 would get home on the bus and/or son's 2 and 3 would wake up from their naps.

Cool breeze, warm sunshine, birds singing, wind in the trees, and the sounds of the gravel pit (we live right beside Oxford Sand and Gravel and can hear the sounds of the truck moving, sorting and grinding dirt).

Just ambient noise....nice.

No chatty kids, no crying baby, no "please mum" or "why's", just nice noise.

Needed.

Welcomed.

Enjoyed.

Ahhhhh.

Thank you Lord.

I Struggle

I struggle.

I am struggling.

I am struggling with many things, but right at this moment I will talk about just one.

I have been at Weight Watchers for 10 weeks now, and this past week was another gain :(

Certainly not what is supposed to be happening.

Definitely not the programs fault.
It's me.
Why am I letting myself just coast along?

Why am I giving myself excuses for not doing what I know needs to be done?

Why do I think I'm not worth the effort?

Am I just lazy?

Is it just because I don't want to get of my butt?

Is it because not doing is better than doing and failing?

Is that it??

Am I afraid to fail?

Am I afraid that I can't do it, so why bother?

UUGGHH!!!

Why is it easier to listen to the negative voices in my head than the positive ones?

Some days I get so frustrated with myself.

How do you stay positive?

How do you keep moving on the right track?

The Missing Tooth, and the price to pay

Last week Gabe arrived home on the bus one afternoon and was crying as he exited. Concerned, as any Mom would be, I asked what was the matter. It took a few minutes to dicypher through his tears and mumbling, but the jist of it was that someone on the bus bumped into him and knocked out his already wiggly tooth.

Now, he wasn't upset that the tooth came out, but the fact that it was bleeding was a catastrophe for him. So to make things better I gave him a cold cloth that he could bite down on to stop the bleeding (which was already stopped), wiped his tears and made a big fuss about how cool it was that he had lost another tooth.....even took pictures!

Then Mommy made a BIG mistake.

I lost the tooth!!!! OMG! What do I do now??

I thought I had dodged a bullet when I put the boys to bed and there was no mention of the tooth. But within five minutes he was calling out to me that he had forgotten to put his tooth under his pillow for the Tooth Fairy. Oh dear God.....:(

I tried first just saying that we would do it the next night, still not letting him know that I had lost it. Then it happened.....

"Mommy, you have broken my heart twice today."

Talk about feeling like a heel. Earlier in the day I had yelled at him after getting completely frustrated that he had not been listening and I was needing to ask him three and four times before he would do things. I lost my cool and yelled at him. Apparently that had..."broken his heart". And now here I was breaking his little heart for the second time in the same day.

Bad Mommy.

Now I had to come clean. I went into his room and explained that I had lost his tooth. If I had thought he was upset before, I was mistaken. After many tears and mumblings I couldn't understand I made him a deal that I would really look hard for his tooth but if I didn't find it we would write to the Tooth Fairy and explain what had happened. Eventually he was okay with that and finally went to sleep.

I then messaged my husband expaining what had happened. He was so sweet and told me to go back and tell him that Daddy would look when he got home from work, and if he couldn't find it, he would call the Tooth Fairy cause he was pretty sure he had her number in his phone. LOL

I did go back to Gabe, but I guess all of the tears had tired him out and he was fast asleep. I went back to looking for the darn tooth. I have absolutely no idea where the heck it could have gotten too. I checked every place I had been, and places that there was not a chance in the world it would be but checked anyway......no luck :(

When Gord came home he looked for a little bit then we just decided to put the money under his pillow and we could look more the next day. (I still have not found that tooth :( lol)

So what price do you pay for the first of his top front teeth that Mommy lost? Guilt costs...lol. We put a $10 bill under his pillow.

In the morning we asked about the Tooth Fairy and he went running back to his room. Out he came waving his money. He was VERY happy. Tragedy has turned to joy.

Awesome :)

Mother-in-Laws

When one thinks of Mother-in-laws they are not always thought of with kind thoughts. There are many horrible jokes, stories, and even movies about them. The stereotype of monster-in-law is one that I am sure was come by honestly for some, but there are also those that are nothing like that name would suggest.

I am luck enough to have a wonderful Mother-in-law. She is an amazing woman who is such a blessing to me, my husband, our boys and everyone she meets. She has a heart of gold. I thoroughly enjoy the time I get to spend with her. I aspire to be like her. I am humbled by her faith in the God she loves and whom I know loves her.

I am inspired by her creativity, her ability to sew (i have some wonderful clothing she has made me), knit (each of our boys have adorable baby outfits she lovingly made for them), cook and bake (you always know you are in for a great meal when feasting at my In-Laws home..YUMMY), and to get a stain out of anything (she has saved many an item for us:)) These are only a few of her many abilities.

I am blessed to have a Mother-in-law that I can truly talk to. I can share my heart openly with her without fear of judgement, ridicule or embarrassment. She listens with amazing love, honesty and a gentle way of leading you back Christ for everything you need. I have had the joy of having her with my husband and I at the birth of each of our 3 boys. It was awesome to have her nursing knowledge, calming nature, and her love for us and that precious baby being born.

She is one of the most amazing women I know. I cherish her, and am privileged to call her Mom. It is with much love and admiration that I wish her a wonderful birthday today, and may we celebrate many, many more together.

Love you Mom

March Break

So how was your March Break?

Mine was good. Actually better than I had expected it to be. Having Gabe and Zach home together all week was not something I was really looking forward to. Don't get me wrong, I love my kids, and love being with them, but they can get on each other's nerves which in turn REALLY gets on Mommy's nerves. I was not sure how the week would go.

But....

I was pleasantly surprised. The boys did really well together. They played, they ran, they yelled, they laughed, they snacked, they really had a good time. We had a couple of bonuses during the week too. My sister came out to spend a day with us, Gord actually got to take his day off, and Gabe had two afternoons where he got to get out without the rest of us.

His wonderful bus driver Lea plans several events during the week of March Break for her bus kids. Did I mention she is AWESOME!! She took more than 40 kids to Laser Quest on the Wednesday, and to bowling on Thursday. Gabe got to attend both. He was totally excited, and had a fabulous time at both. It also gave Mommy a break too.

We spent some time at a couple libraries, played video games, read stories, and thanks to the beautiful weather, got to spend a good couple of days outside in the fresh air.

All in all, a really good week.

Bring on Spring

I am SOOOOOO ready for Spring. The cold and snow are not my favourite things. I am looking forward to seeing the first signs of spring. The new life emerging and bringing with it a sense of hope and renewal.

The boys and I are ready to get outside and start some planting. We are hoping to make some nice flower beds, as well as hopefully a small vegetable garden. Now, since neither the boys nor I have ever tried to do such things, it could be quite the chore. But, hopefully enjoyable and worth it.

Being that we moved out here late in the year, we haven't had alot of time to get out and explore our new area. We have lots of yard, trees and fields. I'm sure I will be treated to bugs, lots of dirt and every manner of found treasure.

There is a tree house. We will have to see how safe it is, and I'm not sure I want the kids going up there being they are still only 6 and 3, but we will see. A tire swing somewhere would be cool too.


There are lots of adventures to be had, but hopefully, even though I have energetic little boys, some quiet enjoyment of laying on the grass looking up at the clouds in the sky will make it into our days as well.

Gabe and School

This would NOT be my Gabe.

Gabe likes to go to school.

Gabe LOVES to take the bus to school.

Gabe does NOT like to do his work at school.

I asked him one day why it takes him so long to do his work.

His simple reply was that he wants to do what he wants to do, not what the teacher wants him to do.

OOY!!

How do you get your kid to want to do the work, to want to learn and get better at things?

I want him to do well. I want him to enjoy school. I don't want to always be harping at him either.

Any ideas?