After heating up a cup of hot chocolate and checking my morning blood sugar-I'm currently six months pregnant, and have gestational diabetes- and getting some breakfast warmed up I head to my couch, turn on our electric blanket, and cozy up with my Bible, Journal, and Bible Study. About 10 minutes into it, I hear the coos and gurgles of my dear 14 month old, Anna. I'm hoping she'll go back to sleep since it's a little early still for her to be up, but lo and behold this is not to be. So I quietly tip toe into her room that she shares with my two year old, Jack, hoping that I can get away with not waking him up while I retrieve Anna from her bed. However, Anna's happy squeals of seeing Mommy wake up Jack and now they are both up ready to start the day. So after some hugs and kisses, I head to the kitchen to get them some Cheerios and a Banana.
While they're eating, I alternate from finishing my breakfast to unloading our dishwasher. I am also mentally planning our day. We have been gone for the last 2 days, so there is laundry to be done and the house is in desperate need of a clean up, however it is also a fairly nice fall day so I am hoping to take the kids out to play in the leaves. So I put on a Veggie Tales DVD for my kids and rush around picking up all the clothes to take to the laundry room, after I throw the clothes in the washer, I do a quick clean of our bathroom then it's time to turn off the Veggie Tales and have some lessons in helping mommy clean up.
We start with picking up toys, which turns out to be great fun for my 2 year old, but Anna is already feeling the effects of getting up too early this morning and is clinging to me for dear life, so toy pick up takes a lot longer than it should. By this point Jack is begging to get out the Play Doh and make shapes and Anna is need of a morning nap, so we scrap the original plans of having the house cleaned from top to bottom and sit down and enjoy some quality art time. Anna is quite mesmerized by the play doh and isn't quite ready to go to bed afterall:-).
Soon, the best part of the morning arrives, and my husband is up and getting ready to go to school. He was laid off last spring from the job he had from the first 3 years of our marriage, and thankfully the Lord opened up doors for him to go back to college this year. But that's a different post for a different day! The kids are thrilled to see daddy and are each vying for his undivided attention while we try to discuss what the days plans are. Shortly after that it is time for him to leave. So with a kiss and bear hugs to the children, Erik is out the door for the rest of the day and it's back to being just me with the two crazies..
Since I've given up on cleaning the house as deeply as I had planned, I decide to take the kids outside to play in the leaves until lunch time arrives. On the way out the backyard I remember a bill that's due, so I quickly grab my checkbook and keys and decide we will eat a later lunch and go pay it after we're done playing. Things were going really well... Anna especially loved to play with the leaves, and Jack was having a blast picking up sticks. Just about the time I was reveling in how smoothly this leave adventure was going, Jack starts screaming. I rush over to see what the problem is and I discover that his diaper had not been latched properly and we have an accident on our hands. So I scoop up Anna, try to console Jack and lead them into the bathroom to get them cleaned up. By this point both kids are crying since it's past lunch time. So, bill forgotten, I fix some pb&j sandwiches and some bananas for them, hoping they will have nice full bellies and take a long nap today.
When lunch is over the kids are chasing each other around the house while I fold some clothes, when all of a sudden I hear another sound followed by some crying. I look over at my 2 year old who has thrown up all over himself and his sister! Frantically I strip them both down try to console both of them, and throw them in the bath tub AGAIN- the second time in an HOUR- and grab some clean clothes from my laundry pile. Meanwhile, sickness is forgotten, and Jack and Anna are having a fantastic time splashing in the bathtub for a second time today. I get them out of the bathtub and ready for their naps, and put Anna down with her pink blanky. Then I put Jack down, who is not apparently sick thankfully, and lay him down with his beloved stuffed frog and stuffed Mickey Mouse. After a prayer and a quick kiss, both of them are sound asleep as soon as I leave their room.
Nap times are usually a time in the day that I use to rest. I would love the say I get a lot accomplished while my kids are sleeping, but since we're suppose to be real that is not usually the case. I plop on the couch with some of my lunch, sigh at the events of the last hour, and try to relax for a little bit. Pretty soon Erik is calling to tell me he's coming home early. When he asks how my days has been going I inform him of the events in the last couple of hours, and he starts cracking up. So then I start cracking up. Since Jack is not actually sick and it was just some weird fluke, I have to admit that while disgusting, it is kind of funny.
By the time Erik arrives home it's around 4 o' clock. The kids are just waking up, and are thrilled to see their daddy. Tonight we are just hanging out at home, which is very nice after several days of being busy. For dinner we had some Roasted Chicken, potatoes, gravy, carrots, and some stuffing. We don't usually have such hearty dinners, but on this chilly October evening, this really hits the spot. After dinner, the kids play and read some books with daddy while I clean up the kitchen. Then we are all wrestling around and tickling each other, just enjoying being together. After that it's Jack and Anna's bedtime, so we get them dressed- but don't give them another bath!- brush their teeth, read them a Bible Story, and pray with them, then it is lights out.
Erik and I collapse onto the couch, Erik gets on the computer to check his email, and I curl up with the book Don't Make me Count to Three by Ginger Plowman. Tonight is just a quiet, almost boring kind of night, but we're just enjoying the quiet for a little bit. Soon it's time to head to bed, so after I take a shower I am ready to call it a day.
Today was not an overly exciting kind of day. I was not able to accomplish half of what I had planned for the day, but I was able to enjoy my little family, and that is much more important than anything on a to do list.
The YLCF is hosting a blog carnival this weekend about taking a peek into your day. Check out their website at www. ylcf.org!!
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