Friday's Fabulous Five

1. It's supposed to be sunny and in the 60's today!! Oh my, that sounds like heaven. It will probably also be windy, but I'll take the warmer weather in whatever form today! - Might even take the kids to the nursery, just for funsies. There's not a whole lot that we can plant in Idaho this time of year still, but . . . a girl can dream, right? :)

2. I've been able to feel this baby move for a couple of weeks now. It's only occasional and easy to miss, but still there. It's nice to know that there's really a little person in there and I'm not just getting chubby. :)

3. It's April Fool's Day. Is that good? I don't know. The "holiday" has never meant much to me, but it does signify the beginning of my birthday month. The beginning of a really busy month. The beginning of hopefully a warmer month. Plus, Hazel has been talking about April Fool's for months . . . she's not much of a natural jokester, :) so maybe I'll have to break out of my boring mom role and find some fun things for her to plan for Daddy this evening. :)

4. Violet has been doing awesome at going to sleep with no binky since those first two times. She is a model baby. The only problem that we've had is her waking up at about 5:45 this morning. - Normally, we would get her a binky and she'd be back out, but this morning didn't work quite like that and neither Nels nor I got much sleep for the rest of the morning. Nels, because I asked him to take care of her (when really I should have just let her cry it out) and me, because I couldn't fall back asleep with her screaming and Nels getting frustrated in the other room. I think both of us were left feeling like we'd been cheated (April Fool's!) by the time seven rolled around and it was time to get Lilie up for school.

Oh man, that doesn't sound fabulous, does it? (Okay, I'm kind of having a hard time coming up with fabulous this morning, having gone to bed with a migraine and then getting 'joked' out of my last hour and a half of sleep.) What I was trying to say before my bad mood got in the way is that Violet is a champ and I really hope that she continues to be good for us as we work out any kinks. :) And she'd better take one really great nap today.

5. Okay, this one really is fabulous. This has been the first week of Hazel's two week Spring Break. Lilie's week off begins today at 11:15. Often times during the week -- especially on those days that Lilie is out of school for 'teacher training' or some-such, she and Elsie fight all day. Beginning with the moment that they see one another and continuing until well after I'm yelling as much as they are. Two incredibly strong-willed girls (with a stupid mother). They are two of a kind and often that is some kind of monster (with a monster mother). (Sounds fabulous already, huh?)

Needless to say, I had been dreading the weeks of Spring Break. Dreading the addition of another sister to the daily mix of fighting nutsies.

However, to my surprise, this week has actually been happy (for the most part). -- In fact, the only real arguing that Hazel has engaged in has generally been with me alone. :) -- I've found that Hazel's sweet and inclusive personality has actually helped tame the tension between the other two, leaving most days with three sisters playing happily together. Hazel is so good at rallying everyone to one game and does her best (most of the time) to make sure everyone is having fun. She is like a buffer between two very strongly reactive chemical sisters. (Do you miss Chemistry? sometimes I do. :) Hazel is happy. Hazel is kind. Hazel never wants to be mean or disobedient. Hazel is just good, through and through. Hazel goes about singing or humming or making happy 'sounds' most of the day. :) Hazel believes life should be fair (which is usually the source of argument with her parents). Hazel is very strong-willed in her own right, but usually that doesn't come in conflict with her sisters. For some reason known only to the Cosmos, both her sisters are usually quite compliant to letting her have her way. Hazel is honest, loving, and very helpful. I'm so thankful for the sweet influence that she adds to our . . . stubborn, explosive, determined home.