A Day in the Life...

On Monday I had a bit of a meltdown.  Well, major meltdown.  It started with exhaustion and lack of sleep. Beyond the 'every-mother-doesn't-sleep-enough' tired.  It was followed by extreme work stress and the hatred of feeling responsible for other people's lives.  It ended with a sobbing desire to just stay home with my children.  Somewhere in the middle, convulsive gasps of air about everything else- a seemingly filthy house, unfinished projects and goals, and no time to do anything that brings me peace.  It wasn't pretty.  Especially since it carried on for several hours. Haha. I like my job.  I hate my job.  I'm grateful for my job.  I love my co-workers.  Most of them.  They are my friends and a few of them my closest friends.  I love my clients.  Most of them too.  I guess I don't love, love,  them; I care for them and recognize them as people who are really suffering.  Most from their own doing, but still suffering. But...I don't like talking to

I hate Valentine's.  It's dumb when you're single, it's dumb when you're married.  There's a big hype to buy presents and cards and flowers and other garbage and I just think it's crazy.  So we celebrate minimally. This Valentine's, I cleaned the whole house and we were outside in the sunny, spring weather of February by 11 a.m.   The kids rode bikes while I cleaned out the garage.  We raked leaves in the backyard and picked up all the crap around the yard.  By we, I mean I.  The girls had a picnic with their neighborhood friend, jumped on the tramp, and played in the sandbox.   I mowed the lawn- MOWED the lawn in February- to pick up all the leaves we never finished in the fall.   Haha.  A ridiculous winter.   I have to say I was quite amazed and pleased. When Tim got home from work, he brought an amazing Valentine's.  This is how it went:  "I was in the store, looking around for something to bring home for VD, and saw candy and balloon

Copper had a class Valentine's party and the little girls and I went to help.  I was asking Copper if she needed help with her project (everyone was going to recess and there she was, little miss perfectionist, still trying to make her's perfect).   Another mom came up and said, "Oh you're Copper's mom!  I hear about Copper everyday!  I'm Boston's mom; he made her a special Valentine he wants to give her after class." After the party, I got a picture of Copper and her friend Boston.  According to their teacher, they are great friends at school.  I'm glad it's a mutual feeling and he likes her too.  The other day she told me, "I'm going to marry Boston.  But don't tell him, it's going to be a surprise." #kindergartencrush And these girls had quite the attitude!  They are so fun!

We celebrated Tim's birthday the whole weekend and had loads of fun and activities.  On Friday, the girls and I worked all day to get ready.  We made a homemade monster pinata.  Copper said, "Remember when I used to call it a pin-yaya?  That's so silly.  Now I know it's a pinana."  We also made peanut butter bars and got everything ready for a treasure hunt.  The twins and I coughed and hacked the whole time.  The sickness lingers and lingers.  When Tim got home, we surprised him with a clean, decorated, and very dark house, jumped out and yelled Happy Birthday! For dinner we had zuchinni-pepper shrimp, baked sweet potatoes, donuts, soda, and peanut butter bars.  We led him on his treasure hunt and the girls were sooo excited. The next morning, Saturday, was his actual birthday.  At 7:00 a.m. the girls had Tim convinced to break open the pinata.  They took a turn swinging and in no time our took-ALL-day-to-make creation was in shambles.  After picking

These two!  I just love them.  If I wasn't 36, and they could be born at age 3, I'd like twins again.  They are each other's best friend (and Copper too... a wonderful set of three).  Here they are playing tiger-stuck-in-a-cage.  It's a great picture of both, even though Kota's face is hard to see.  They giggled all night long over this.  So fun. And cute. Copper's been begging to learn how to wash dishes.  So we let her and she loves it.  Sometimes she does it in her underwear.  Sometimes we have to do it over.  But a floor full of water and a smile on her face is worth it.  And will continue to be worth it, hopefully, as she learns she will be doing it the rest of her life.  Micah is crazy, silly, funny.  She pays closer attention than I sometimes give her credit for.  Her blue eyes kill me with infatuation. "Oh, sorry mom," is her favorite thing to say; in one day she dropped an egg in the utensil drawer, colored on my work papers, and

I shouldn't take pictures in church. But I did.   The twins are adjusting to Primary.  Micah usually zones out (here she is lying down across two chairs) and Dakota usually cries.  Here she is about 5 seconds away from wailing.  One time they pulled her name out of a jar to participate and I thought the screams were going to take the walls down.  Haha.  It doesn't help that Tim and I teach the class that sits right behind the Sunbeams.  I think my presence makes it worse.  In their little classes, they're totally fine.  Fifteen total Sunbeams.  Three sets of twins.  Four patient and loving leaders. It's a madhouse. Tim and I get to teach Copper's class this year.  They're a funny bunch.  Tim is such a great teacher and they love it when it's his turn to teach.  We love teaching Primary; talk about the basics- plus snacks (sometimes), games at the end of the lesson, and class parties.  Plus, kids have an amazing closeness to the Lord.