The eagle has landed...

The eagle has landed. I saw that on a movie once as they were talking about someone really important finally showing up somewhere or another. (Obviously, I don't watch too many movies, or at least I'm much too tired to remember it exactly) My point is that Daddy made it back. He had to stop in at work for a while, but at least he's a quick drive away. The kids are overjoyed and our smallest little girl can't wait to show him her new little secret. Yesterday, she learned to ride her bike without any training wheels. Yep...she really did it. Way to go my little girl!

Day two flying solo...

Well, I made it through yesterday. That's about all I can say. Don't even ask me how much I got accomplished...unless there is a world record for just about nothing.

So today I awoke with a new day, a fresh start and a new tactic on how to approach the day and NOT lose my sanity. Knowing that there will be no "relief troops" coming home today, I decided that I would forget any notion of getting much done around the house, so we left and spent the morning at a local park. My goal...wear them out.

At lunchtime we chose to grab lunch out and bring it home (why dirty up a kitchen I would not be able to clean later). After lunch the older kids relaxed a little and the baby got in a much needed nap, which left me some precious "ALONE TIME". I headed outside to do some gardening. Now, we are all up, alert and refreshed (o.k., maybe refreshed isn't the word I want considering we are back outside sweating and playing).

Come to think of it, I'm on the homeward stretch now. Just a few hours until bath time and bedtime...I just might make it and this time with all my sanity intact. Tomorrow the relief troops come home and life gets back to normal...whatever that is

The homing device...

My husband leaves today for a business trip, so for the rest of the week I'll be flying solo. And to tell you the truth, I've already called my husband once to tell him that I'm going back to work when he returns (that really only happens on the "VERY" trying days). You see this morning, the baby, I believe, has attached a homing device to me with about a three foot radius on it.

Here's how it goes... for the moment everything is going fine, I'm toting our little one around trying to clean up the house. Oh, I put him down to put away some dishes. Out goes the bottom lip and the tears begin to fall. As of now, no sound is coming out. I step outside of the three foot radius of his device and oh, have mercy...you would have thought he was the most mistreated individual. Step back inside the radius, and the sound goes away but the tears still fall. Pick him up and everything in his world is right again.

Yes...this has been my morning. So today, I don't get to go very far from my little shadow. By now, you are probably wondering how in the world I even was able to post this blog. Well, it's an amazing thing really...it's called nap time...my favorite time today

Bumps, bruises and stitches...

This past Saturday we came across a very fun item at a garage sale...a trampoline. It was in great shape so we decided we'd give it a try for this summer. It just so happen that Daddy was with us and helped us load it into the car. For the kids, we just couldn't drive home fast enough. It took us hours, and I do mean hours, to put the thing together...and we had the instructions (so much for a Master's degree). When it was done the kids couldn't wait to get on it.

Hey...what's summer without dirty feet, messed up hair and a few bumps, bruises and stitches...

Homeschool family camp...

This past week was our homeschool family camp/retreat. It was located at a family campground about an hour and a half from here. The retreat featured "The Amazing Chemistry Show" and many science sessions that the kids could go to and learn more about science, magnets, rockets and all sorts of things. The weather was terrible and didn't really cooperate very well, but leave it to a bunch of homeschoolers with very large families to not let anything get in their way. (I mean really...once you get that many kids in the car and you get all loaded up, I'm not even sure a natural disaster would stop them)

We were initially supposed to camp out in a tent, but with projected thunderstorms coming we switched to a primitive cabin. It was a nice cabin large enough for us all and a covered deck so I could cook out our meals on the camping stove. The rain, however, just didn't seem to let up too much, but we decided that was our life this week...so we made the best of it.

So we "tromped" through our share of mud to go horseback riding and "tromped" through puddles to get to the zip-line and rock-climbing wall (which they opened up when it finally stopped raining). We dodged our share of rain drops to go to several science sessions where I think the kids tried very hard to blow something up. They made rockets, learned about magnets, and played foosball and ping pong (not all at the same time of course). We played so many card games I lost count and at night the kids were so exhausted from all of the fun, we just scraped off the mud and poured ourselves into bed. Yes...it was a great week.

4 reasons...I'm a mother

4 reasons...I'm a mother

Can you pick them out? I'll give you a small hint...I'm the one in the middle. I am crazy about my kids and they are wonderful to me.

This morning I awoke to 3 beautiful hand-made cards (my favorite kinds) and 4 smiling children who couldn't wait for me to open my present. Between you and me, I couldn't wait either. Come to find out it was the complete DVD series of my favorite TV show...Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman. Yeah for me! (Go Daddy on that one...)

I was loved on a ton by everyone and just had a wonderful day. I am so very thankful that God has blessed me four times over to be a Mom. And to my wonderful Mother...Happy Mother's day to you...I love you.

The box...

There are times that I think my husband loves to drive me crazy. Earlier in the week he told me that a box was coming and that I "WAS NOT" allowed to open it. Hmmm...interesting. Yesterday, the box arrived. Now anyone who knows me well enough will tell you that I don't do well with "unopened" presents addressed to me anywhere in the near vicinity of me.

With Mother's day at the end of this week, it wasn't hard to guess what the box was for. Well, if I wasn't "allowed" to open it...maybe my spies could tell me what was in it. "Kids", I yelled. "Come here for a minute, I have a question to ask you". Nope, that didn't work. They had no clue what was in it. Drat! My husband had covered all his bases well this time. Hmmm...maybe if I shake it. Nope, no sound. I could speculate what's in the box but I'm pretty sure that a pop-up camper wouldn't fit inside it, so I'm fresh out of ideas.

For now I'm working on my x-ray vision technique...I'll let you know how it goes

Fun in Omaha...

This past weekend we headed over to Omaha to go to Nebraska furniture mart (a HUGE furniture store) to do a little shopping. We go every year around the beginning of May. The first day we are there is the "shopping day" and the second day is the "zoo day"...or as the kids put it the "fun day".

This year we only bought a kitchen table which seats 6. An upgrade from our present kitchen table which seats only 4 (someone always has to sit in a folding chair). I tried very hard to "steer" my husband into other sections of the furniture store but he was like a bull on a mission to leave with eyes pointed only at the door. Oh well...maybe next year.

The second day we went to visit the Omaha Zoo. It is a fantastic zoo that you could easily spend all day there. All the kids had a great time and by the end of the weekend we came home all worn out. And for this busy family of 6...that's a really good thing.