Went to bed at midnight, (watched a lame movie with Pops) up at 4:30am to a crying, drooling baby. Sent the two oldest boys to church with a friend where hopefully they'll meet Pops, assuming his meetings will have ended. Pops will stay for the first part then come home and stay with Crate so I can teach my YW lesson. I will REALLY need the Sunday nap today so I hope it'll happen. I do have to say, just having to get the boys ready and not myself or the baby makes for a very smooth Sunday morning. No rushing out the door, no throwing the church bag together at the last minute...this morning was really nice.

Today I'm grateful for friends who have vehicles big enough to take two extra kids and who are willing to do so.

Now it's time to hit the showers and maybe, just maybe (if the hair cooperates today) the house will be ALL picked up prior to leaving. Now that would be a very nice treat to come home to. Not the usual situation on Sundays...go figure.

Can't wait til this little guy has a happy face again.

Awww...why didn't I post earlier so I can go to bed right now?

Poor Crate, I'm pretty sure his one-year molars are coming in and he's just not handling it very well. Hence the reason he took two three-hour naps yesterday. We was a good sport today as we dragged him all around for a bunch of different errands.

Boss and I practiced riding his bike this morning. HE DID AWESOME!! I think he finally gets it. He did so well that he and Buster rode their bikes while I ran and pushed Crate in the stroller and I actually felt like I got a workout. This is awesome because this means during the week I can go running with the two babies while he rides and we both can get some exercise! Hooray!

Speaking of exercise. It's been a year since I met Mr. Tony Horton. A.K.A. the mastermind behind P90X. Pops and I have diligently made a date with Mr. Horton six days a week for the last 365 days. Missing only a handful of workouts over the year. I can now quote almost each thing Mr. Horton will say on all the DVDs before he actually says it. I'll admit sometimes I get annoyed by all his jabbering, but over all I am very thankful for him. He's has helped me shed all my baby weight plus a few extra pounds. I got down to my goal and am excited to have done it with the help of Mr. Horton. And a big thanks to Pops for working out with me. He was a great motivation, shed a few pounds himself and was brave enough to take before and after shots of his bod, one think I was not brave enough to do. Let's just say...the pictures are amazing and he worked his rear off. He's built better now than he was when we were dating and I quite enjoy it. Not to mention I hear he plays a mean game of b-ball, he can tare it up on the court and he'll probably kill me for writing that. OK, maybe kill was a little dramatic but he doesn't read this Blog too often so chances are he'll never even know what I have written about him. If I was brave enough I'd post his before and after shoots but I know he wouldn't appreciate it. Let's just say is back is amazing, right Jane? Remember?

Moving on...

As always I'm looking forward to a Sunday nap tomorrow!

"Drink your water people." ~Tony

Oh yeah, and today I am thankful for winning an awesome bid at the ward scout auction...family portraits on location. How awesome is that? The price we paid for this awesome item makes it even better. I'm thankful for talented members in the ward and grateful they're willing to donate their time and talents for the scouts. Fun activity...we had to bail early because of Crate but enjoyed the time we were there and the yummy dinner, which I didn't have to cook or clean up so that made it even better! Really good wards are hard to come by. I'm grateful I have one.

You just have those days...

You know the ones that nothing seems to go right.
Everyone woke up on the wrong side of the bed.
Your body aches.
You can't find a good parking spot at the grocery store.
Blah, blah, blah...

But then there are those other days.

Where everything is calm.
Kids get along.
You get to chat with someone you admire.
The house doesn't get destroyed.
Your baby falls asleep for three hours.
While the baby is sleeping the other two boys get invited to a friends house.
You get a surprise magazine in the mail all about Thanksgiving cooking. Yum.
Your husband says he's taking you out tonight and said he'll even be home before dark.
You get a day off from babysitting.
A new friend offers to have you over for a play date with the kids.
Your a little bit lighter on the scale than the last time you got on there. (Seriously...most all of us enjoy seeing that)
The flowers your spouse gave you are still alive.
You watch your two oldest boys hold hands together as they walk down the street to their friends house.
And then half way down they both turn around wave and say "I love you, Mom."
(I think that is the best part of the day so far)

I have SO much to be thankful for. Not everyday is like today but when it is it must be cherished.




And this is why I Blog, so I can remember days like this.

We got two toy catalogs in the mail today. It was entertaining for me to watch the boys drool over the toys they would love to have. They talked to each other about the "what ifs" if they had some particular toys and where they would keep all the toys. It reminded me of being a kid and looking through the newspaper adds wishing I could have anything I laid my eyes on. Oh, to be a kid again.

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I took the boys to the school book fair after school today. Buster got his first Diary of a Wimpy Kid book today. I can't say I'm a huge fan of that. It's the do it yourself book, and for a kid that doesn't choose reading as his preferred leisure time activity he has sure taken to that book. I think a good 2 1/2 hours were spent this afternoon reading and writing in it. It was fun to watch him be so excited about reading. Of course Boss chose a Star Wars book and they also picked out a book about army men to share. I'm hoping the excitement stays around.

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My brain is not 100% today, I decided to extend the cleanse one extra day. I'm feeling it tonight.

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Buster is doing great on his piano lessons. He complains about practicing but once he masters a song he gets really excited.

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OK, I gotta drag myself to bed before I fall of this chair.

I've got anger issues...

I'm mad that it's November 3rd and still 93 degrees outside. As much as I love the sun and the summer time, I'm ready for a change. I'm ready to wear winter clothes. I'm ready for my winter hats. I'm ready to see my little boys in cute jeans with belts and brown shoes. I'm ready to go to the park and not sweat. I'm ready to bundle up when I go out exercising in the morning. I'm ready to sip hot cocoa while watching my boys build a snowman in our back acre. OK maybe that part won't happen but I can still dream right?

I guess I need to learn to control my anger issues since I have no control over the weather.

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This week we have not be over scheduled and it's been really nice.

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I thought Crate was done nursing but apparently he's not. He's my longest nurser yet.

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I'm doing a detox cleanse. I haven't eaten since Sunday. I'm hungry for real food.

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Is it to early to put up the Christmas tree?

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I must, must, must teach my boys how to work. I WILL NOT RAISE LAZY MEN. This is a lot easier said then done, right Jane? By the time I get done with them I hope they know how to work, know why to work and that they learn to put in a honest days work.

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I'm glad I participated in YW's tonight it was good.

I voted today. I'm thankful to live in America. I'm also really thankful for early voting ballots.

Lots of good things today. It was a good day, long but good. Now I'm off to bed.

Today is November 1st and we actually had family home evening with all family members present. It's been awhile since this has happened. Anyhow I gave the lesson tonight and we discussed the topic of "gratitude." With Thanksgiving coming up we made a commitment to share one thing we are thankful for each day until Thanksgiving. I'm holding my breath that the children's responses will broaden.

Tonight Buster was thankful for Crate's chubs (AKA his fat little legs)
Boss was thankful for Crate's boogers. (Lovely)

Can you tell our lives revolve around Crate?

Pops was thankful for his family

I said I was thankful to have a bed to sleep in.

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Pops brought home flowers for me tonight. (He's a great man but honestly this rarely happens...like once every 6 years.) The first response out of my mouth was "what bad news do the flowers bare?" He said "I got fired." Funny joke...I'm the one that can fire him. It was a great surprise and he said he brought them just because. I have to admit I like surprises like that! I put them in a vase and they are looking beautiful on the dinning room table. It's amazing how fresh flowers can brighten up the home. It's like it adds a feminine touch to this frat house I call home.