Wishing for snow

It's been a year now since we had a really good snow storm. I would love to have another one, and I would like it to hit right now (or after I get back from the grocery). Regardless of whether a snow storm hits in the middle of the week or on a weekend, I always feel that it completely frees me of any responsibility regarding "chores" and I love to spend it scrapbooking. We had a storm several years ago over President's Day weekend and I got my entire wedding album completed that weekend. I'm really feeling the creative juices flowing in my lately, but haven't been able to let them do their magic!

Done for the day

After all of the excitement of the day, it's really nice to sit here with a smoothie and popcorn just typing away on the laptop. No more major drama ensued through the day, with the exception of the coffee stains on a nice sweatshirt. The van is home, with a brand new battery, and since I couldn't go anywhere, the living room is really picked up and looks nice. I probably should have stayed off my foot a bit more, but I'm just not good at sitting when I should be doing. I can't believe that tomorrow is Friday...but I'm really looking forward to sleeping in Saturday!

Abundant blessings

My van is dead and I may have broken my toe. Thinking I mistitled this post?

Today I have no extra little ones here. My oldest had a previously scheduled dental appointment so the moms made other arrangements. I did have two extras here this morning before school though, through breakfast, and then I take everyone except my youngest to school. About 30 minutes before leaving, I slammed my foot (pinky toe, specifically) into the vacuum cleaner. Lots of pain, lots of swelling, and thanks to the way I hit it on the toenail, lots and lots of blood. I realize I am a mother of three, but I still don't react well to blood! Decent chance it's broken, but not much can be done about toes. I attempt to clean up the blood (without gagging) and stuff it into a shoe to get started on my day. I load the five kids into the van, and it won't start. Battery is dead. Dead, dead, and really, really dead. Now I have to walk with the five kids up the hill to school in wind chills in the teens. I manage to get the dental appointment rescheduled for an even more convenient appointment, and AAA is on the way to tow my vehicle to the mechanic so we can not only get a new battery (it's the original with 98K miles...it's time!) but we are overdue for an oil change anyway. Since I live in town I was still able to get my errands accomplished, although to be honest, that amount of walking took a toll on my toe. Tylenol is my friend! So while my perfectly planned day was scrapped, everything is actually working out even better. That is what I call being tremendously blessed!

Day 2

Babysitting yesterday went well. I only had one little guest and we had a great day. Today is a little more challenging. Not only do I have additional little friends today, but because of the school delay the older ones are here for extra time. At this point I'm just hoping nothing gets broken.

My kids are all doing well. We are in something of a lull with activities, and while there are a few things we could sign up for, I'm kind of taking my time and not rushing into it. I'm enjoying not rushing around for a few days.

The beginning

Today is the beginning of a five week long babysitting endeavor. A couple of close friends who share a sitter are in need, so I'm on the job! I've been their back-up before, but I've never done it for this long. I'm excited and nervous all at the same time!

Taxes and other life certainties

I've been working on my taxes this morning. I realize this makes most people groan, but I'm "not right in the head" as my husband would put it and I really enjoy doing my taxes. I guess I kind of see it as my reward for being a type A personality and keeping good records all year. Anyway, it makes me think about the statement regarding taxes and death being the only things guaranteed in life. I was watching a movie this weekend and one of the characters included change on the list of life certainties. He said that change was guaranteed, something you could count on, and in that way he found it comforting. With some of the changes going on in my life lately, I like that thought!

Back at it

I'm hoping that today is the beginning of a fairly normal week, although it's already a little off as there was no school yesterday. Otherwise, I am looking somewhat forward to the dull and mundane that comes along with "normal" and "routine". Those help to me to feel stable!

Changes

I'm finally back online after three weeks away! Lots of changes have taken place in our lives, some good, some not-so-good. My father was hospitalized right after Christmas with heart problems. I don't think I've mentioned on here before, but my father is terminal. The question is not "if", but "when". This latest spell has taken quite a toll on him. While I'm optimistic that it's not "right around the corner", the fact that time is running out is very apparent. It's been really hard for me to accept that, and to be able to put it down in words. I still can't talk about it, and I'm finding my emotions very much near the surface these days.

But there have also been some good changes. We bought a new computer, and we finally got DSL! It's so nice to be able to access the internet, and not have time to unload the dishwasher while things are loading on the computer! I'm hoping that it will encourage me to get back into the swing of things on here.

I hope is having a wonderful new year!