uh oh

sometimes it's really fun watching kids mess up & then learn from it. V had one of those moments this morning at swim lessons when she pushed a girl into the pool while waiting her turn to jump in. It was a completely impulsive move of pure joy (not malice) and her smile turned upside down in a flash when mom came running to jerk her away from the pool... she knew... then Eric and I shared a wink and a smile.

productive day!

EVEN though I really wanted to go shopping with my 2 free hours today... I resisted and stayed home. I got the kitchen & basement cleaned, swept, did 2 loads of laundry (both of which are still sitting in the machines) had a friend over for coffee, Victoria had a friend over for lunch and playtime, and I even put some kids clothes on Craigs List to sell AND the kids' rooms are FINALLY clean (til they wake up tomorrow). I stabbed myself in the eye with the mascara wand yesterday and feel like I've been fighting an infection all day.. either that or some kid gave me pink eye yesterday. Either way, my pink eye drops from several months ago are working. (self-diagnosis anyone?) I managed to only eat 4 pieces of Halloween candy today... getting better! And I discovered a new way to eat leftover potroast! Shepherd's Pie! (with cheese and peas added) It was tastier than I thought... but since I'm not supposed to be spending any money... I had to suck it up and actually eat leftovers even though Corner Bakery was calling my name.

Whew!

What a day!! It started at 4 when someone had to get up to go to the airport and made SO MUCH NOISE. It amazes me how one can chuckle while waking the dead at 4am, yet when that person sleeps...people get yelled at for being rowdy at 9am. (you know who you are) Then my shower ended abruptly when Mr. Spider leaped off the ceiling and tried to attack me while I was covered in soap. That is the fastest I have run anywhere (while dripping wet and covered in soap at 6am) Then for some strange reason, my children were determined to play this morning instead of arguing/tattling. At least the daily morning lack-of-focus was done in good spirits, right?? We still had a hard time getting out the door, but there was NO TRAFFIC!!! :0)

Anyhooo... BSF was wonderful, a little 3yr old boy kissed me on the cheek and gave me the largest bear hug EVER. I felt so loved... and so covered in wonderful grimy slobber. Then had the most convicting lecture EVER. Refine... refine... refine... I'll keep telling myself that God is just refining me into a better person. The "Sharing the Gospel" seminar rocked. Finally someone to tell me that it is NOT all about the entire New Testament presentation in one sitting (which in itself is good), but bits and pieces of God revealed in our lives and how we reflect Christ to others. It could be a 10 minute conversation that reveals our trust in God, or it could be a 3 hour debate on who gets to go to Heaven... When God gives us an opportunity, we are to take it. Either way, it was worth the extra 2 hours out of my day.... then on to get Luke and Vic (thanks again Holly)... then on to dinner... church... and a super fun & messy Thanksgiving craft. And now the children have officially crashed and I am going to retire with a Rachael Ray mag and some Food Network... AND celebrate my 2 1/2 HOURS to myself tomorrow morning!!!

Family Pics. Minus Eric :0)

First "professional" pictures since the church directory photos when Victoria was 18 months old. I think we were past due.

Puttin' on a show...

So we all (Me, Eric, and Vic) got a written, formal (nicely cut out with
scrapbook scissors) invitation to the "US vs China Battle" from Luke.
He wrote down orders for drinks/snacks, and he gave us all tickets for
the show, and set everything up for us to watch from the couch.  Then
we had to show up at a "certain" time to watch. He put on an amazing
battle for us. China lost of course, but put up a good fight. I only
got this one pic, as Eric said I was distracting from the show. It was
great!!

Then, the next afternoon, Victoria decides to "dance" for us.
Eric puts on some oldies, and we watch her ballet dance for 20 minutes!!
She has since (in the last 3 days) put on about 8 shows for me.
It is very cute to see your kids unafraid of "performing".