Friday, Friday, Friday is fabulous!

Fabulous!

1. I read a book today! In fact in the past week, I've read TWO books! Great, huh?! Did I have time to read said books? Probably not, but it made me happy. I feel like I was saying hello to a long, lost friend or something . . . :) It was a nice reunion. Now, even though I'd like to spend more time with my little lovey friend, I've got to suppress my tendencies and get this basement and this bathroom and this laundry room and bedroom cleaned up. Maybe then I can have some more time to sit and get reacquainted. 

2. I feel like I like writing again! That's nice. For the past few months, I've felt very blah. It's been sad because I haven't really enjoyed blogging and I've felt overwhelmed. I've realized that I do some strange, unconscious things when I'm stressed. At least stresses that I can't willfully change myself --- and YES, there are some kinds of stressors that you really CAN'T do something about, no matter how hard you try. So in general, I carry on as usual, I just find myself doing weird things like not wanting to write or eating more (*gasp* I KNOW! can you believe it?! In all of my life, I've never noticed that I eat more when I'm subtly stressed! I think, I don't really get stressed that often, at least not over things that I can't change. Regardless, I've never noticed this before!). I think the real way to change situations that you can't change, is to change yourself. Not by getting fatter :), but by changing your outlook. ----- I'm feeling like I want to write again. It's nice.

3. I got to have a heart to heart with my big girls tonight. It was sweet, for the most part. I didn't really like the part where I had to keep stopping and saying, "Please look at me." (have you ever had a conversation with someone who CANNOT seem to maintain eye contact, or even appear to be listening???? very frustrating!) It was a good conversation where I asked them what they thought I should do when they disobey. I will give you my favorite examples of how the conversation went down. 

Me: "Lilie, what do you think I should do when you ignore Mom and choose to not obey?"

Lilie: "Not spank."

Me: "I agree. That's why we're having this conversation. What do you think we should do?"

Lilie: "Uummmmm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ."

Hazel: "Well . . . I think maybe just make us go to sleep in our beds." 

Me: "Well, what if I ask you to clean your room before we go to the store and then I come downstairs a while later and you are walking around your room in circles with a toy sticking out of your mouth and Lilie is just laying in the middle of the floor and everything is still a mess? Putting you in your bed isn't going to help the room get cleaned or get us to the store."

Hazel: "Well, Mom. I'm pretty much out of ideas." :) :) Me too.

We finally decided to sleep on it, but in the end, had a really nice little conversation together with lots of hugs and lots of loves and a lot of sorry-s. It was good. I love my girls and I hate being a bad mom.

4. Nels will come home sometime tonight and we will get to watch a movie together. And I will get to do it without feeling guilty IF I stop playing around on the computer and clean up the basement! I can do it!! Also, I have a really wonderful husband who has spent countless hours after his regular work day to do side jobs that bring in extra money. He never complains. Just does it because he loves his family. I love my man.

5. Elsie has learned lots of new words in the past few weeks. She is such a little talker!! I hope that nobody gets annoyed when I list her new words, I just don't want to forget! There are so many things that I didn't record with my first two girls that I would now like to remember.

See?

Shood (food)

Dwee (drink)

Shoes

Autside (outside)

Dow (down)

Didie (Lilie)

Zizy, Zazo, or Sisie (Hazel)

Mom! (always said very loud --- wonder where she gets that from?)

Mom-my

No! 

Har (hair)

Bite

Bye and ba-bye

Hom (home)

Howm (phone - which she called dada for a long time)

Aum (arm)

Hand

Shishy (fishy)

Doddy or Doddoo (doggy)

Nee (nose)

Ars (ears)

Eyes (as she pokes your eye out)

Na-Nigh (Night-Night)

Mine

Botty (potty)

Chee! (cheese!!! meaning "camera")

Bama (Grandma - she recognizes both her grandmas! :)

Uh-Oh

Woah!

Auwant (I want - usually put before something like "Auwant Dwee. Auwant Shood. Auwant Dow)