Grumps

I'm grumpy because I have a double chin :)

A few days ago I was quite grumpy. I started the day off alright, but then as the day wore on I just started feeling sooooo grumpy. It didn't help that the thyroid medication I'm taking makes me feel so hot....so by 4pm I was hot AND burning with anger inside. I could not figure out why I was feeling so bad...but finally decided it had to do with the stress's of life... AND I had been reading a blog of a woman who is perfect. So, I think that's what was bugging me. Too much perfection from someone else, and I was jealous...and prideful. And I just let it bug me that I wasn't like that.

So I called my sister in law, Darci. She is this amazing, calm, spiritual steady girl who listened to me complain. I hardly let her talk at all. Ijust complained and expressed my grumpiness and she listened. It was exactly what I needed and it made me feel better. And then the next day she sent me this email. I loved it so much I had to share it.

Hey Shannon,
I'm sorry you had a grumpy day. Yesterday was a doozie for me. I woke up on the wrong side of the bed, at 5:30am. Grrr. I laid on the couch and tossed and turned trying not to wake anyone else. I remembered something from the Ensign I read Sunday. I hope this makes you laugh. On page 56 of the October issue is a statement about being happy. Here goes: "Learn how to act better than you feel. Some might ask, isn't that hypocritical? Certainly not. You might not be able to choose how you feel, but you can choose how you act." So I thought to myself that I'd better at least look happier, even if I wasn't. So I pasted on a fake smile for myself to practice. I imagine that I looked like one of those little troll dolls, unkempt hair, big plastic smile and kind of creepy. But next time, it can only improve. The kids figured out pretty quick that I was having a bad day. Nora even said, "Man, you're cranky today!" It's a good thing she can keep me in line when I forget my plastic smile.

Anyway, that woman you were talking about. Oh, she can have her shinning moment. But some day she will be the one who is crying. We all take our turn. Plus, who's to say her hair, kids and pie always turn out perfect. She can post just the best of days and look like a barbie mom. Wasn' it the great Nacho Libre that said, "Forget about it".

Maybe you have more burdens than you're giving yourself credit for my dear. I think 4 came up in conversation and I can think of 2 more big ones. So here is a quote about that: " It may not come quickly, but there is purpose in the time it takes...You will indeed find that 'his angels have charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up' (Matthew 4:6)... Cherish your spiritual burdens because God will converse with you through them and will use you to do his work if you will carry them well." - Elder Jeffrey R. Holland in "The Inconvenient Messiah" It makes me feel good every time I read that. Well, enough yapping, I gotta go do paperwork. I'd better get a big ole smile ready for that one.
Love ya, Darc

Thank you Darci for being a sweet friend and sister, and mostly for helping me through my grumpy day. I love you!

P.S. I do not hate the lady in the blog anymore.

No longer a cat lover

i hate these DAMN cats



they just tore up some carpet in my bedroom.

Mother.....what Mother?

I have finally figured out how to be
a mother to Olivia.

Stay out of her way and let her
do what she wants!

Blanket Update

Joseph and the lost blanket


Joseph has been doing really well with his new baby blankets. I
on the other hand have been quite emotional!

Childhood passes so quickly...losing a baby blanket is
just the beginning of changes to come.

Brownies for breakfast & The lost blanket

This is what we had for breakfast today.

The kids were thrilled. It made Monday morning a
little more exciting. But then.....

After breaking the terrible news about his baby blanket....

Absolute despair.

A new blanket to make it all better....

Around 3:00 today Joseph asked if I knew where his blue
blanket was....he wanted to be a super hero and
needed to tie the blanket around his neck.

We had gone to This is the Place State Park this weekend.
As usual, we took the kids baby blankets. But, this time we didn't
bring Joseph's blanket home. I realized we didn't have it last night and
was waiting for the moment Joseph realized it too.

I had to break the bad news to my boy that I'd lost his blanket.
He called Neal crying hysterically and telling him it was my
fault his blanket was lost. Guilt. A lot of guilt because I was the one
who brought it for him....and I'm the one who is always telling
him he can't bring it because it will get lost!

I finally convinced Joseph to come to Target with me to
find a new baby blanket. He wasn't going to let me
escape this mistake easily. He found 2 blankets he
liked, AND 1 for Olivia. I was surprised that he found 1 let alone
2 that he liked, so I wasn't about to argue.

Maybe I have indulged my kids a little too much today.......

Nah.

Olivia's Hard Day

Olivia had a really hard day yesterday.

It started out okay. We took Joseph to school. We came home and watched "Between the Lions," which is her favorite TV show on PBS kids. She played well with her little friend Eve. But when it was time to pick Joseph up from school, our day suddenly got interesting.

When we got to the parking lot of Joseph's school Olivia said:

"Mom, I don't want Joseph to be my brother anymore."

Me: "What? Why not?"

Olivia: "Cause. It's okay if Joseph gets lost today."

Me (now completely shocked): But, don't you love Joseph?

Olivia: "NO."

Me: "Well, I love him. Don't you want him to be part of our family"?

Olivia: "Fine."

I realized she must be getting used to having alone time with me at last and doesn't want Joseph coming in messing with her "mommy time."

I sent both kids downstairs to play while I made lunch. All I heard was:

Joseph: "Stop it Olivia, that hurts. Hey, that was my toy. Don't! I am

playing right here." And on and on and on.

Until I heard:

Olivia: "Mommy, I'm poopy."

I ran to Olivia who was standing in the middle of the family room with poop running down her pants onto her feet. The site of poop and getting all messy and stinky made Olivia scream bloody murder. I stood there for a moment trying to decide what to do. I could try and clean her up right there or try and get her to a bathtub upstairs. I decided to take my chances, picked her up and rain upstairs as fast as I could. Lucky for me, I didn't spread the mess....until we got to the bathroom. Taking her clothes off was no easy feat and she ended up covered in poop. (anyone grossed out yet?)

I cleaned her up as well as I could with wipes and then stuck her in the tub and doused her with water. It was rinse and repeat for about 5 minutes. Finally I got her cleaned off and then had to make her wait while I cleaned the tub so she could take a "real" bath. As the tub was filling up, I was thinking how lucky I was to have missed making a bigger mess going up the stairs.

Then Joseph came in the bathroom. "Mom, there is poop on the stairs."

Sigh.

I put Joseph in charge of Olivia while I ran downstairs to inspect the damage. What a mess. Poop everywhere. (I did rent a steam cleaner today:) Just when I thought things were calming down, I heard Olivia wailing her head off upstairs. I ran back upstairs and found out that Olivia had been jumping in the tub, (at Joseph's encouragement) fallen, and hit her head. So, to say the

least, washing her hair was quite a challenge.

To make a very long day seem shorter, I will tell you the rest of the day was just the same. Lots of crying, a lot of hurts, some macaroni up Olivia's nose, but a lot of funny moments. Surprisingly, I had a good sense of humor about it all.

I couldn't help but laugh my head off when Olivia finally calmed down, came and sat on my lap and said, "Mom, I need to put some SUN SCREAM on your face." So cute.

I think most days as a mom are like this. But this one seemed to stick out more than the rest. Maybe it's because all the great moms out there, who are great examples (& whose blogs I stalk) are finally wearing off on me. You are all great examples and wonderful mothers!!!

Now, if I can get Olivia to sleep in her own bed tonight, life would be almost perfect!!!!