Birthdays!

Well, I have made a new goal to make blogging more of a priority this week. Every week seems chaotic so I can’t use that as an excuse anymore :)

A recap on this past week: took Elise to the Urgent care center last Sunday for an injury that she caused herself at nursery; then took Joseph to the ER for a head injury on Friday; participated in the YW activity; mowed the lawn and weeded my newly planted shrubs; cleaned the house from top to bottom; called the city to come out and turn on the irrigation water; began a recycle pile so that I can be better to the environment; and babysat the neighbor kids. I know that I am not ready for four kids! My two sisters birthdays were also this past week and I got the dates mixed up in my frenzied busyness- I swore that Thursday was the 26^th not the 27^th. I had to actually look at the calendar to prove it to myself! At least I remembered to mail their birthday presents! I am thinking about dying my hair blonde so that it matches my personality.

This week is my birthday and my mom sent me a beautiful potted plant full of sweet smelling blossoms. I love that it won’t be dead by next week and each time I walk by it I think if her. I love my mom-Thanks mom for giving me a birthday!

I am not sure what to do for my birthday. I have some ideas like a romantic getaway with my husband but I have no sitter and no money so then I thought dinner and a movie or something would be nice. Perhaps a day hike with the kids and Matt would be enjoyable as well. What things have you done that made your birthdays enjoyable and memorable? Do you have a favorite birthday? The birthday that seems to stand out in my mind is when I was about 10 or so and my grandma gave me my first pet- a cute white rabbit, cage and all. My parents were upset because she hadn’t talked to them about it first. But, my parents couldn’t tell me no- so I was able to keep it. That started my adoration for all animals. So, you could say it is because of her that I have a career in the animal world and that I own so many pets now!

Tagged delayed!

Tagged by Hannah!

5 Things in my fridge:

Lots of milk

Yogurt

Roast beef lunch meat

Mac & cheese with green beans

Jack Daniels Horseradish mustard

5 Things in my closet:

Shoes-mostly sandals

Wedding dress

OPI nail polish

Surprises for the kids-future b-day presents

Box of purses

5 Things in my purse:

cell phone

Franklin covey mini planner-love it!

Wipes

Hand sanitizer

Lip gloss

5 Things in my car:

CDs
stroller
garbage bag thing

Elmo’s Activity book

Portable DVD player

5 Things on my Tivo/DVR:
(Don't have it- but if I did...)

24

Smallville

Phantom of the opera

-can’t think of anything else!

Tagging:
Aud
Morgan

Confused

Well, I tried all day yesterday to post and it kept giving me an error message that my connection was disconected but I have cable internet. And this was the only site that wouldn't work for me! It works today:)

The Lesson of the Five Balls

I am sorry to all my fans that it has been a while since my last post. The last few days has been a whirlwind! I can’t really remember what I did except try to recover from this blasted cold!

So I have been thinking about a part in a book I just recently read for book club. It is Suzanne’s Diary for Nicholas by James Patterson. It is a bit cheesy but there is a part about the lesson of the five balls that I really liked. It goes like this: “Imagine life is a game in which you are juggling five balls. The balls are called work, family, health, friends, and integrity. And you’re keeping all of them in the air. But one day you finally come to understand that work is a rubber ball. If you drop it, it will bounce back. The other four balls- family, health, friends, integrity- are made of glass. If you drop one of these, it will be irrevocably scuffed, nicked, perhaps shattered. And once you truly understand the lesson of the five balls, you will have the beginnings of balance in your life.”

I am so blessed to be surrounded by good friends and family. But I did something today that I have never done-not show up for a shift at work. It really was a mistake on the doctor who scheduled me. I told him that I had no one to watch my kids for so long of a period and Joseph is sick with this bad cold. I couldn’t send him away in that condition to somebody else’s house. I feel good that I made my family first on this problem but what I can’t figure out is why I feel so guilty for not going to work to fill a shift I wasn’t even supposed to have. Why do I have to keep telling myself that my family come fist when I already know that? I am thankful that Matt has a great job so that I can stay at home and be with my children because this is where I am needed most. Any ideas on how to clear my guilty conscience that shouldn’t be guilty? I have found myself struggling with this type of guilt in different areas of my life, not just with work. I never want to make anyone feel uncomfortable even if it means causing me to be in a difficult spot. My sister in law once told me that I need to go down to the back store and pick me up a backbone! Can someone tell me where that store is!?

Creativity

Yesterday Elise had a fun time painting. It started out with a paint brush and paper but by the time I finished the dishes she had turned it into finger painting! She was so cute in her mess that I took a few pictures of her. Elise is my very busy 2 1/2 year old. Her favorite thing to tell people when they ask her age is that she is 5. She is very enteraining all day long. I have to watch her like a hawk most of the time because if I am not keeping her busy with an activity she will discover her own! For example, she was very quiet for a long time downstairs. When I went to investigate she had decided that the fish tank needed to be cleaned. She had pulled up a chair and proceeded to take all the decorations out of the tank. By the time I arrived on the scene she was working on removing the gravel out of the tank. Luckily the fish are slippery and hard to catch! When I found her it was very hard to look upset when she innocently explained to me that "the fishes' house is dirty"! So , my question to all of you is this: What sort of fun activities do you do with your kids to keep them out of trouble?!

TAXES

Well, I finally did all my taxes. I have been dragging my feet because we had to pay in alot this time around! I was shocked actually since we have two children and own a house. But, I suppose we have not owned the house long enough! We got a refund back from the feds but had to pay into the state. Crazy...I really do hate income tax; especially since it is technically illegal. Just ask Matt or his dad! We pay enough in taxes every else! Imagine how much more money we could have in our bank accounts if we didn't have to pay an income tax. I think I would pay someone to remodel our kitchen instead of doing it ourselves! How about you? What would you do with the extra money the feds didn't take? Or if you are a lucky person who gets money back how will you spend it?

I'm In!

Well, I've finally started my own blog. I am now part of the 'club'. My creative juices have been sapped by the blog setup process. I can't even spell anymore. So, I will write more tomorrow when I am refreshed.
Chow!