Checking things off my list

Why is it that kids make it so hard to clean?? Today I made a list of 5 things to do to clean the house in preparation for the big fireworks party. You know, small things to do that might stay clean for the party next week. (I can only hope, right?)

Anyway, I began with a workout. Yipee, but not on list. It should be, I need the motivation of checking things off. Yes, I am a gold personality! I need to mention I had only 5 more minutes left until I was done. Unfortunately, Levi woke up and of course needed immediate attention. Those next 5 minutes took 25.

On to breakfast. I make bacon, eggs and fruit. They only eat the bacon and fruit. Oh well, but then there is their mess. Tiny disguarded scrambled egg pieces on the newly mopped floor. Sigh. No, I did not see this happening because I was mentally cussing out my "green skillet" as I tried to scramble egg whites for myself. Every family member of mine loves the skillet... I hate it. I'm just going to pretend it is a regular skillet from not on. While scraping egg pieces off the floor my 2 yr old somehow manages to find a cup (I've put them all out of his reach) and is filling it from the fridge and dumping it into the sink. Ok, not a battle to fight. But then he is dumping it into the front of his trash truck. UGH! I neglected to take the cup from him as I was mopping up the trash truck mess. Now my 4 yr old is yelling that the 2 yr old dumped water all over the coffee table. Off I run with a new dry dish rag... I did grab the cup first before more damage can be done.  This was all in less than 30 mins. Is it only 8:30am???

Onto the next part of my day. I threw laundry in and got that going. Phew.. But, not on my list. Dang it, I need to write everything down to feel like I am doing SOMETHING!! Since our trashcan is now full, I grab it to take it to the dumpster. Horray, a nice outdoor break from seeing all that needs to be done inside. Nope, I notice the yuckiness in the bottom of the kitchen trash can.  My self diagnosed "ADD while cleaning" kicks in. I collect all the trash from the house and all the trash cans. I do eventually take all the trash to the dumpster but get waylaid with a quick golf cart ride. After the ride I get out the hose and begin to scrub out all the trashcans from the house. While I am doing this the boys notice the golf cart needs a bath. Sure.. go at it. My trashcans get done and are drying. Then I commandeer the hose and rinse off the cart. While doing this I did not see the 2yr old emptying my bottle of dish soap onto the rock. Sigh!! There goes trying to be frugal.

Lunch - goes well with no messes. (They watched Peter Pan during lunch so it kept their minds AND HANDS busy). Yes I know, bad mommy with TV time. This mommy needed peace.

After cleaning up lunch I look at my list, still nothing done. I go to get my dust rag from the laundry room and see the laundry needs to be moved. Ok, into dryer it goes. Once again the "ADD while cleaning" kicks in as I notice how gross our laundry room/mud room looks. One thing is that with 3 boys and lots of land = lots of messy shoes and clothes. Dust rag forgotten and vacuum is pulled out, sink cleaned, light jackets are thrown into the washer before storage, cubbies scrubbed, tidy up, etc.

Wahoo I feel like I have made a dent in this house. Head to check list. Dang it!! I REALLY need to write everything down!

Naptime!!!! I attempt to put kids down for nap. I will mark something off my list, by golly! I get out the clorox wipes and wipe down the front of all my cabinets. YES, I finally did it!! I marked something off. Only 3 more to go. But, the kids are not asleep. I struggle to put kids the kids to bed, again. After walking out of the bedrooms I notice the big puddle of water in the bathroom by the sink. Levi must have found another cup. Oh well it will dry, I say to myself as I notice all the chipped paint spots on my walls. How does that happen? Time to commence touch-up paint time - especially while they are sleep. This is NOT on my list, but it gets done.

After painting spots with my finger, I give up on my list and notice it been an hour since I first put the boys down for nap and my 4 yr old is still up and thunking in his room. My list will have to stay where it is. It is time to cuddle with my boy and watch a movie on the couch. Who cares what my list says or what my house looks like. My job is to be a mom. I didn't quit my job to be a maid, but to be a mom. My kids will grow up too fast and I will miss them. There will always be something to clean, I won't always have the ability to cuddle with my boys while they are young.

Some days I need to put it all into perspective. So the list stays with its one checkmark and I get some much needed mommy love time. Just what I need to make it through the rest of the day.

Gainesville zoo

Jason was off on a gorgeous Wednesday so we planned a day trip to the zoo. Thankfully the train was working this time, so we did the train ride.

Ready to ride the train.

The boys on the train!

Levi and his fish face. He was in a stage of sucking in his cheeks.

Flamingos - notice they are standing like flamingos.

Then we walked around the zoo and had a lunch picnic at the park next door. It was a very enjoyable day!!

Baby Henery is Baptized

On Mother's Day all 4 of us siblings were in town for Henry's baptism. The original 6 of us got together Saturday and hung out.

Then Sunday we the big event. It was a beautiful church service. All the little ones did well and sat quietly ( for little kids) and then mom had a lunch for us all. Henry is the spitting image of Matthew's baby pictures. So cute!! Joel and Rachel are Henry's sponsors (but Rachel and the boys were not able to make it).

Levi did not like that I was holding a baby and not him. But he quickly got over it when he rode bikes in the garden with his cousins. They also got to play on the church playground. Fun times for cousins!

Peter Pan and Jake

Somehow Joe and now Levi have gotten on a Peter Pan and Jake and the Neverland Pirates kick. First it was Jake from the Disney Jr dvd we had. Then Peter Pan visited Jake, so it turned Peter Pan. First came the swords, then I made them Peter Pan costumes. Then finally I bought felt and made them Peter Pan hats. Joe loves his so much he slept with it.

It's so nice outside

With the weather in the "nice" category, we have been spending as much time outside from sun-up to sun-down. It has been a really fun spring/early summer.
Here is Joe playing with his bungie cord and his butterfly net. He actually has been able to catch 1 so far.

 We changed our exemption to wildlife and now we have been learning all the different wildflowers. It is so neat to hear Levi point out a "lemon mint flower". They are like little sponges absorbing all the information around them. Soooo cute!! We planted a bunch of bluebonnets seeds down the front hill. I even picked some indian blanket seeds ( from our dying off flowers) and scattered those too.
Joe has even planted a bunch of seeds in his container and had "his shop" of stuff between the shed and the propane tank.

We've also been watching all the baby birds. Here is a baby mocking bird that the boys found at eye level. Poor thing couldn't even fly away.

Easter 2012

Here is another one I missed... Easter

Here are the boys Easter morning with their Easter baskets. 

 

I took the boys with me to Zion for Easter church. Look at their goofy faces. They were excited about the goodies they got from the Easter egg hunt.

See, they are truly boys. Look how thrilled they look to have their picture taken with their mom. After church we went to Nani and Papa's for lunch with the Guzinski cousins.

Thomas the Train

I realized I had missed a few major Shearer events lately.

A few weeks ago we went to see Thomas the Train in Grapevine. We left Thursday after naptime and headed to Grapevine. We booked a hotel in Grapevine with an indoor pool. It was a great time for the boys to swim. Levi kept talking about "hotel pool". The hotel also had a free dinner and breakfast.

Here are our cuties in front of Thomas Friday morning. They had a bounce house, sandbox, tatoos, model trains, a clown, little train ride and of course the big event... riding Thomas. A 30 min train ride. It was a good time. I'm so glad we went on a Friday. Last year we went on a Saturday and it was packed by the time we got off the train. Friday was much more calm and less crowded.

I will say that we may go back to Grapevine to stay at the hotel again and maybe do the new aquarium. Funny how one night at a hotel can be so fun for kids!!!