Dance?

I had this music from my blog playing while cleaning up dinner tonight. The kids and daddy were having some ice cream at the table and I was doing a little dance as I cleaned up. At least I thought it was a dance until Little Sis looked up and seriously asked "Do you have to go pee?" Okay, maybe some dance lessons are in order!

Thank You

Just a very short post tonight to tell all of you who contributed to Caleb's fundraiser THANK YOU! He was able to meet his personal goal, which pleases him immensely. We are very grateful for the support of our friends and family. (And Caleb was especially surprised to learn that although Unc Brad may be too old to drive, he can still shop by computer!)

Feeling Pretty

I got on the floor today for a little playtime with the boys and Little Sis this afternoon. We were playing this game where they would attempt to get past me and I would grab them and tickle them until they escaped and ran back to the other side of the room. This resulted in so much giggling my cheeks were sore!
Little Sis stopped in the middle of the fun, looked at me and proclaimed "Mommy you look really pretty today!" Here I was with my hair a mess and no make-up on, not exactly my idea of pretty. But my little girl found my happiness beautiful and I actually felt pretty at the time too! Shows what a little childhood play can do for your self-image!

Party Time

We traveled over to the "West Side" (it always cracks me up how people refer to the Seattle area as that!) for a friend's birthday party. What a blast we had, wet weather and all. I wanted to post some photos but have yet to recharge my camera battery, so these photos are courtesy of Melissa. You can see lots more B-Day fun on her blog!



















Fun in the Hay Pit!!



































Tike-Sized Rides


































One Wet Fun-Filled Day!

Battle with the Playground!

You deliver them to school in clean clothes, hair combed, teeth brushed...the works! Then you pick them up and you get this!!! Seems Big Bro took a spill off the fire pole at recess today, HEAD FIRST. He has bruises and cuts on his cheek, elbow and knee. Actually he looks much worse in person than in these photos, more black & blue. But, all in all, he's okay.

Ready for Snow?

I am so not ready for the snow but Little Sis seems to think she is. While clearing out snow wear to give to friends, she found her new coat, pants and boots. She insisted on wearing them for a while even though it was 90 outside. Good thing we have central air now!
Big Bro thought she was crazy and kept asking if she was hot. "No, just perfect," was her reply.

Much Better!

Okay, so the last post was not meant to make anyone feel bad and I was not looking for sympathy (although I did feel a little poor me at the time). But just so everyone knows I am back in mommy mode after a weekend with the family.
We took the kids and dogs for a hike. It was super fun. We didn't get in as much hiking this summer as I would have liked to but fall seems like a much better time to hike anyway. Hopefully we will get in another trip or two before it gets too cold.
The leaves are already changing, which seems crazy because the temperatures have been in the 80's. Perfect weather for me.
The dogs and kids even got in some water play. I also took Deuce for a playdate with my friend's horse of a dog. I know it seems slightly odd to set up playdates for the dog but it's nice to give Bailey a break and we want to socialize him as much as possible. Although he is still timid with this monster dog, he did do better. Hopefully they will become great buds!
I was also able to get in some much needed yard work. Although there is much more to be done, it's nice to drive up to the house and see it looking somewhat presentable. I even got some fall mums and winter pansies to help brighten it up.

The kids got some much needed daddy time in today. They played baseball in the front yard and Bailey acted as the outfielder by fetching all the balls. (Yes, Sis does have her suit on backwards...don't ask!)
I must admit that although weekends aren't complete off time for me, they do give me a small break from the kids because they adore their daddy so. Even though he isn't the best at picking up his dirty laundry (or shoes or other miscellaneous items), I must give credit where credit is due. He is one great dad! (This is Cameron- I normally let Heather do this on her own but I had to add a little here. Heather will VERY GRUDGINGLY admit that I have been doing ALOT better in the picking up of my own stuff as of recent (she consistently strives for perfection so she can't give me too much props). Anyway very fun weekend! CVT )

Just a SAHM thinking aloud

Before reading this please know that I do adore my kids and I love being a mom. I feel incredibly grateful that I have the opportunity to be a stay at home mom (SAHM). I know that many families can not afford for one parent to stay home and I do believe that this is one of the best things I can do for my children.

Okay now that we are past that little disclaimer, here's what is really on my mind... I woke up yesterday just not wanting to be a mom. To add to it, Fridays are also one of the days that I care for a friend's two boys in my home. So I knew that I would be performing mommy duties for 4 kids that day. I don't mean that I didn't want my children, just that I wanted a day off. A day off from motherhood as well as from childcare provider. I guess if I was employed outside the home I would have just given myself the TGIF pep talk and hauled my butt to work. However for a SAHM weekends are not equal to off time so Fridays don't have quite the same meaning. There are no vacation days. And there is definitely no calling in sick.

Don't get me wrong, I know that there are many benefits to being a SAHM. You don't have a set schedule. You get the grocery store pretty much to yourself at 9 am. You can hang out with other SAHMs anytime you please. If timed properly you can even catch the occasional 20 minute snooze while the young ones are napping. And most importantly, you don't miss a moment of your child's life (the good and the bad) because you are around them 24/7.

However with my childcare provider duties, I find myself somewhere in the middle. It's like I still get some of the benefits of a SAHM...time with my kids, some freedom even if it is with 3 or 4 children in tow, and time spent with friends. But as much as I love the boys I care for, some days it is like having job without the benefits of employment outside the home. I don't have the adult time without half my mind tuned into the children's well being. I don't have any accomplishments that feel like mine alone. I don't get the occasional lunch out without any fussy young eaters. I am somewhat stuck to a schedule. I don't feel like I have much to talk about when the day is over. And there is still no such thing as time off.

This has all left me longing for grandparents who live closer so I could get some guiltless alone time. What would I do with that time? Maybe rediscover who I am. I know I must have an alternate identity to Mommy or Miss Heather. Right now I just can't remember what that is.

Just some general thoughts and whining from a somewhat SAHM.

Fundraising Time Again

We had our first official PTA meeting of the year tonight. I won't go into specifics but I am feeling slightly overwhelmed. I did manage to pass a few sign-up sheets on without adding my name though, so kudos for me!!
Most exciting though is that we started our fall fundraiser for the year. We are hoping to earn enough money to put in new playground equipment on the "big kid" side this year. We could certainly use all the help we can get. You would not believe the amount this will cost or the hoops we will have to jump through to get it done.
Anyway if you are interested in helping out and I haven't hit you up with the book yet, you can shop online at http://store.gafundraising.com. Just put in the schools pin of 978890 and make sure you enter Big Bro's name (no space in the last name!). He is shooting for that limo lunch ride to B.K. again this year!
P.S. All orders are due in on September 24th. Start shopping today! And, of course, a huge thank you to all!!

Don't Take Brother Away!

Little Sis once again snubbed everybody who talked to her at Big Bro's school this morning. This has been the routine for two weeks now and she has yet to say a word to either the adults or kids who attempt to chat with her, not even the kids she knows from last year's kinder class. It is driving me CRAZY!!
So as we walked back to the car this morning I asked her why she won't talk to anyone in Bro's class. She simply replied "I don't like them 'cuz they take brother away." Maybe I'll cut her a little more slack.

Big Girls' Night

I had dinner with the kids and some friends tonight. While the kids played so contently with each other, us girls got to chatting. We found all sorts of topics to gossip about...hubbies, trends, current events, etc. It was so much fun to let the kids go and just be gals for a bit.
Then I realized the time and rushed home to get the kids showered and into bed so they would be able to get up and face tomorrow at full speed. I got to thinking as they showered about how nice it would be not to have to worry about the kids' bedtime and just stay up chatting as late as we pleased and then crash on each others' couches. The truth of the matter is that not too long ago I was a college gal doing just that. And though it was fun for the night, the next sleep-deprived day isn't something that I really care to relive.
As my son ran out of his room tonight after getting jammies on with underwear on his head and growling at me, I realized that although I still do long for those girl moments, I really love being a mom and all the responsibilities that come with that title. I really wouldn't change it for the world. Suddenly I am slightly more satisfied with life. For the moment all is right in my world... My hubbie is back reading books to the kids and tucking them in and I just got a night hanging out with the girls. Really what more can I ask for?

Girl Day

There are always boys around the house...Daddy, Big Bro, and the two little guys I care for three days a week. But yesterday Little Sis and I were able to partake in a total girl day. It was so refreshing as it has been some time since the two of us have just hung out. So we worked on a "project" together. I worked on Big Bro's Kinder scrapbook and Sis painted and made a page of her own!

Then we baked some cookies...chocolate chip of course!!

And even got some laundry done!
Here she is helping me remove a grass stain from Big Bro's Jeans.

Little Sis and I rarely had time to ourselves while Bro was in Kindergarten because I watched the boys four days each week and much of that fifth day was spent in Big Bro's classroom. I am so excited to be able to have a weekly girl day this year. I am just hoping our girl day doesn't coincide with Sissy's ornery day!!

How Fast Can They Grow?

I found myself marveling at the growth in my kids tonight. The amount of change I see in them since Big Bro had started back to school (mind you, that was less than a week ago) is enormous. Big Bro came home with homework tonight. His teacher has informed us that starting this week they will be having a weekly spelling test, consisting of 12 words and two sentences. So I started quizzing him on his words and sentences tonight. It just doesn't seem possible that he is old enough for this type of activity yet. Then to add insult to injury, tonight I brought his favorite towel into the bathroom and he said "Alright, my green towel. You Go Girl." "You Go Girl"? Whose child is this?Little Sis is also changing. It seems that we have hit the no-more-nap stage. She missed 4 naps last week and did fine without them. Then she said she wanted a nap today so I let her take a short one and now she is laying in her bed wide awake. UGH! I love nap time and don't know quite how to function without it. How sad!
As hard as it is to see them changing, there are some nice parts to their growth. They decided to help me out tonight while I was cooking dinner by vacuuming and they did it without fighting with each other! Now how much longer do I have to wait before I can have them start doing the dishes?!!

Weekend Play

Just a few photos of our Labor Day weekend. We decided it was time to introduce Deuce to the water this weekend, so we invited my sister and her dog up and went down to the river. The older dogs enjoyed their swim in the freezing water. Deuce, however, was less thrilled with it. He did wade around a bit and dove in once. We are still convinced that he will be a water dog as he loves swimming around the kids' wading pool. Maybe it is just because that water tends to be a little warmer and he's just smart enough not to long for an ice-cold dip.

The kids also had a fantastic time on our little adventure. They loved "swimming" (i.e. wading) in the river and play in the sand on the "beach" (i.e. a small patch of sand down by the river). I love how easily kids can be entertained!