A Mothers Diary....

I am just going to document last night and this morning, so that I will never forget what it was like when the kids were ALL mine and ALL home- I know one day I will forget:

5:00pm Monday February 8 "THE WITCHING HOUR"-

~IT is time to get the boys inside so they can start their long drawn out process of getting ready for basketball practice.

~ I realize they have put Binka's big basket I cleaned and left to dry outside (to hold all his blankets) into the basketball hoop and are using it as a basket. I tell them to put it away where they found it.

~I am trying to get dinner done for them before-so that they are not eating at 7:30pm and then we are trying to have Family Home Evening after.
~My shift for answering phones has just ended and I need to re-write my sloppy notes and fax them into the office ASAP so they can make tickets for the next day.

~We are out of most foods..Dan is going shopping after FHE.

~I plop in some spaghetti noodles and start to peel and cut carrots to steam. Remembering to fax the stuff-I stop half way through and get that done.

~All the while Dacie comes in telling me she has wiped her own bum (after pooping). I am grateful for her definite passion for independence (she could pass some of that along to some of her brothers), but with that independence comes a whole other slew of clean up awaiting me, I am not ready to go see the bathroom, or her clothes yet. I have to get the carrots on or they won;t be done...and please just give me one minute to FAX!

~I send her to the bathroom to await my "help".

~ALL the while Sterling comes in crying covered in mud. OF COURSE. Colton had thrown the basketball into the mud puddle in our front road (which reminds me I really need to take up the fight to get the rest of road paved with the county since we are not in the city limits). OF COURSE Sterling tripped trying to get it and he is covered. I send him to the laundry room to strip and clean off his new tennis shoes and OBVIOUSLY his basketball shoes he needs to have on in a few minutes.

~Dacie is crying for me on the toilet.

~I run in after stirring the noodles and am relieved to find Dacie's damage at bay.

~Wash my hands, dump the noodles into a strainer-the boys have 5-10 minutes until their carpool ride arrives.

~They will miss the carrots-they are not done.

~Ryland is FHE treats tonight-we don't have much variety BUT have a ton of pears we will not all eat--we start cutting them to make a pear cobbler.

~I pull out the spaghetti sauce from the fridge only to find it covered in sticky purple stuff-what? what has been purple and sticky in my fridge? I look in and realize I am going to have to clean the fridge before the new groceries arrive this evening.

~The b-ball boys scarf down a bowl or two as all my good eating kids do of spaghetti...only to run off faces covered in pasta.

~I get them yelled into washing their faces just as their ride arrives.

~Ryland Dacie and I finish cutting pears and prepping the crust on top-we have FHE dessert in the oven.

~Dan comes home a few minutes later. He grabs Ryland and heads off to one of the 2 stores he is going to that evening (coupon shoppers understand the 2 store thing). I think I have seen and talked with Dan for 5 minutes today since my kiss at 6am as he is leaving for seminary (He is too busy with paperwork or late dawdling patients, at lunch to talk most days). He will grab the boys from practice after he is done

~ The boys did NOT put binka's basket back where it was drying and Dan ran right over it in the car... I could kill-aaargh!

~I feed Dacie and I-we enjoy the steamed carrots with added honey and butter..yummy!

~Then we do all the dishes, clean up from the witching hour chaos, and save dinner for Ryland and Daddy in the fridge.

~Then Dacie and I clean the fridge, draw the FHE lesson diagram, and lay out all the decorating goods for our activity of Valentines bags

~All the boys in the household return at 7:30..they quickly finish off the spaghetti and carrots and we are sitting down to FHE at 7:45

~We have a review of our testimony lesson from a few weeks ago and teach them a way to help them remember what they should be gaining a testimony about with our hands

~We make our v-day bags (the most fun I have had all day)

~We have FHE finished and desserts in their tummies by 8:40-bedtime is 9:00

Only Dacie got up a few times tonight, the other boys had basketball and no naps

~Whew! I crash in the rocking chair because my SI joint is killing (it has been giving me problems since I did a big activity for Young Women's over a month ago)

~ Dan leaves for grocery store #2

~He comes home around 10:45 and I help him unpack the groceries

~Our pantry is full, the kids are asleep...and I am exhausted

~I hope tonight will be a more restful night of sleep with my cough

~Its not.

~I feel it in the morning as I am dozing off to sleep after my long night- I hear the boys punching each others backs

~7:00am Tell the kids to give themselves check marks

~Only 2 more fights ensue

~Ryland starts crying because he is too tired for preschool and does not want to get dressed

~I am trying to make 3 boys lunches and drop the yogurt out of the fridge on the floor...now I have to mop as strawberry yogurt goes flying everywhere.

~I make the boys do their own lunches while I clean only to find out they have dumped MOST of the newly purchased goldfish into bags for their lunch-they are planning on living on goldfish alone!

~I start doing the boys hair when i hear a loud, sickening thud...and I can hear some moaning before the screams start.

~I find Ryland on the floor, not breathing (he got the wind knocked out of him) and writhing in pain.

~Dacie had just kicked him off the tall bar stool chair they were using to get to the goldfish in the pantry.He landed flat on the tiles.

~Dacie to her room, Ryland to my bed to assess.

~Ryland got a good knock, bruises on his hips.

~I am going to be late taking the other boys to school.

~I leave Dacie in time out & Ryland recovering on my bed while I take the other kids to school (sorry CPS, school is less then 5 minutes away I promise)

~I come home to find Ryland and Dacie playing in her room and pulling out the toys we had just cleaned up last night.

~I hurry and get Ryland ready and drop him off at preschool.

~Now I am ready to go back to bed...BUT NO!

~Dishes in the sink, counter covered in milk

~Laundry floor covered in that same mysterious purple sticky crud to be mopped

~Playgroup plans to finalize, since I am in charge tommorow

~My bed to be made.

~The NEW washer is making a weird noise as I load in the last batch of baby clothes (batch #4)

~Dark batch to fold and put in drawers, find the nicely folded drawers full of NOT NICE folded laundry.

~Dacie wants me to cut her toenails, get her dressed, take her to a friends house and talk all day

~It is time for lunch.

~Then to drop Dacie off with Cara so I can go get Ryland and Colton out of school early to take Colton to an orthodontist appointment.

~Better go get dressed

~Did I mention I feel tired today? I have been blessed with energy the last week or so with this sickness but right now I am ready to cut out my itchy throat and sleep!

...and we are having one more!