A Day in the Life...

Oh my, where do I begin? This has been one of those days that has seemingly lasted forever, and those days usually aren't good ones. However, they are usually memorable!

I woke up this morning to the crying of one of the twins. Wait, actually let me preface that with this: Last night I got out of bed 7 times to tend to the needs of my 3 year old twins. (Who knew someone could actually pee four times throughout one night?) Okay, back to the story. After a rather sleepless night, I awoke to Gracie crying in her bed. I knew right away what the problem was. She has been battling a fever/cough/congestion for 5 days now and pretty much feels miserable. As I was tending to Grace, I was informed by Lyndsey that Hannah and Emmy were both coughing and burning up as well. As I imagined my day tending to 3 children with the flu, I was tempted to crawl back into bed and hope it was all just a bad dream. No such luck!

I have no problem caring for my kids when they're sick. I wouldn't give anyone else that privilege. Really. I take pride in the fact that Mommy is the one who brings them comfort and care. But I hate seeing my girls uncomfortable and just generally feeling yucky! My heart aches for them. So as I continue this story, please keep these things in mind.

Since Gracie's fever has lasted so many days and isn't going away, I decided she should see a doctor today. The visit went fine. My husband worked from home a couple hours so I didn't have to drag the other 2 girls with me. Less is always better in a doctor's office :) (Thanks honey!) After dropping off the prescription at the pharmacy, I returned home and put my little ones down for a nap. Aagghh! All was good...for a little while. When I went upstairs to wake the twins, I found Grace sleeping and Emily drawing a "mural" on her bedroom wall with crayon. I didn't even know she had crayons in her room! This is when I had to remind myself to take deep breaths and stay calm. Fortunately, the crayon came off relatively easy. Just as I was finishing cleaning, Grace was tugging on my arm. I turned around to find that she was wet from her waist down. Yep, she had a little accident during her nap. What I found somewhat exasperating though, was that she started "going" while still in bed, and continued going while she walked across the room to me. The trail she left was rather evident. Guess she really had to go! So after washing her bedding, cleaning the carpet and her clothes (and Grace), I suddenly remembered I needed to check the mail. (We have been expecting something important to arrive.)

I dashed across the street to see if the mail had arrived. What I was hoping to see wasn't there. Oh well. A neighbor was also checking their mail so we chatted a few minutes and then I headed back to the house. Upon opening our front door, I encountered the bare backside of Gracie. Hmm, that was peculiar. Cute, but peculiar :) But occasionally she changes her clothes throughout the day so I told her to find her clothes and please put them on. I didn't think too much more about that.

The rest of the afternoon went by rather uneventfully, thank goodness. I prepared dinner and the girls and I sat down to eat. Adam has very busy Wednesdays at work and doesn't usually come home until 9:30ish at night, so it was just me and the girls. Surprisingly, dinner went quite uneventfully as well. As I was cleaning up the kitchen I heard Emily call for me from the bathroom. The sound I heard next was unmistakable. Let's just say, Emily's eaten dinner was now decorating various parts of the bathroom. Sigh. At least she was in the right room for it to happen. Poor thing. Needless to say, I had more cleaning to do. Oh, and as I went to put a washcloth under the faucet, I found Gracie's missing undies in the bathroom sink. I won't say anything other than they were "dirty." Not wet this time, just "dirty." You know what I mean. Another time to take some deep breaths.....

Well, the girls' bed time is just about here, and I must say.....yippee!!! They have been watching a movie while I've been writing this post. No one has puked, peed, or otherwise during this time.

So I end my post with this thought: Yes, I look forward to a new day tomorrow. But mostly my thought is this: I love my girls so much! God has given me strength to get through this crazy day. And as hectic as it was, I realize that I am still extremely blessed to be their Mom. I fail so many times in my reactions to them. I fail in the amount of time I give them. I fail in showing them patience. And as much as I love to be the one they come to for comfort and reassurance, God is the only One who will never let them down. He is the One who meets their needs perfectly. He is the One who created them and loves them unconditionally every time, all the time. They, as I, can depend on Him for all they need.

Thank you Lord for these 4 amazing gifts you have given to me. Help me to be the Mom they need me to be; the Mom that continually points them to You.

A New Year, A New Look

2008. When I was a kid, I figured we'd have flying cars by the year 2008....or certainly by 2010! I'm finding the older I get, the faster the years go by. I sometimes wish they'd start slowing down a little bit. I'm reminded to take each day, each moment and treasure it. I certainly don't take advantage of every moment like I should, but watching my children certainly helps me remember to savor "normalcy" a little more often. I absolutely delighted in watching my girls open their gifts Christmas morning. I loved watching them unwrap "just what they wanted." Seeing their excitement in giving gifts to me and their Daddy was very heart warming as well.

Seeing snow isn't too common since moving to Oregon, but when the snow does fall, they rush to the window and watch the white flakes with wonder and smiling faces. Usually I start thinking about how cold it is outside when I see snow covering the grass. Sometimes it's good to be child-like!

Well, with the new year has come a new look.....a new look for me, that is. After being a blond for most of my life, I am now a brunette. Shocking, I know! The last few years I have had more and more trouble covering up my dark brown roots coming in. If I didn't keep up on it, I started to get a dark "ring" around the top of my head. Not a good thing! So, the other day I decided to stop fighting it, and just give in to my "au naturale" color. (Sigh) When I came home from the salon, I heard several gasps from my family....not really a good thing either. Of course my husband assured me he liked it (smart move, dear) but it was such a drastic change, I knew they were having a hard time embracing my "new" self. I've had it brown a few days now, and can say that I honestly do like it now. I don't regret my decision to go darker; I was definitely ready for a change.

Oh, and another thing, I'm pretty sure brunettes have just as much fun as blonds! And I have also been told by all 4 of my girls that I am very pretty with my new hair (their words, not mine) so I think I've switched to the dark side for good!!!

Happy New Year family and friends!

P.S. Pictures are coming later