icy monday morning...

I got up and took Rosie outside......she needs training. She does know the command, "Rosie, go potty!", and taking her out on the leash in the morning, knowing she HAS to pee, reinforces that, because I say it when she starts to go. She does pull on the leash, but I have decided I am not going to let her do that anymore. If she pulls, I stop walking. I wouldn't call it a New Year's resolution, but I am going to teach Miss Rosie much more firmly what is acceptable. One problem is that I also have to train everyone else around here how to deal with her.

It is nineteen degrees outside. I can't really go for a walk because of the snowbanks. On our country road, cars don't anticipate pedestrians, and we tend to move right out of the road when cars approach....but the snowbanks ruin that plan. I am thankful for the treadmill in the winter. Not that I have been on it in the last few days....but today I am going to. I am thinking about going out and about today, just to get out.

I moved the furniture around last night. It was fun for the kids. And it was easy because Paul had cleaned and swept under everything yesterday. One thing that takes up a lot of room is Rosie's cage, but there isn't much we can do about that. She goes in it so willingly at night. We can leave her in it when we have to leave, for short amounts of time of course, but she doesn't mind it. Sometimes if the door is open, she will just go in there and take a nap. But it is big. That, and the treadmill are space hoggers, but they are necessary. The treadmill does fold up, so we are getting in the habit of keeping it folded when we aren't using it.

I am so antsy to DO something. I am tired of just cleaning and staying in this house. I want to go someplace different, do something different. I don't necessarily like this feeling of discontentment, but then it is present in mankind for a reason. We have explored and conquered and invented and adapted. I would really like to get the new part for my sewing machine....

Kathryn and Margaret stayed home from school today, they told me last night they just don't feel well. Kathryn ate like two bites of dinner, and asked to be excused. And it was good dinner, chicken and brown rice and a nice salad, and corn and broccoli for the younger ones.

Jonathan barely made it to school this morning. He just plain didn't get enough sleep last night. I go in their room in the morning and sing the "Good Morning, To You..." song, turn off their fan, and they come out to the living room, sometimes wrapped in one of their blankets, and I have to coax them off the couches and into getting dressed. I usually just dress Jon, but today he wanted to do it himself....but he does this crying thing sometimes....this loud monotone protest....no matter what I say or do, he continues....I try to ignore him, he wants my help, I try to help him, he wants to do it himself. Just this brattiness...and all I can do is be patient. My hand gets itchy, and the thought crosses my mind to give him a swat on the bottom, but I know that really won't help. I did pick up my cell phone and tell him I was going to call his teacher so she could hear what him cry...he did not like that one little bit...."MOMMM!", he said. Well, I said, then maybe I should call dad....he quieted down a bit....he got dressed and ate his cereal and went out the door happily. I gave him a keychain with our last family picture on it....his sisters said that kids on the bus will only tease him and ask him if we are going to adopt some kids now (how did they know I want to do that??)......it made me a little sad for Jonny....he can be bratty, but he is a sweetheart, and to have him hear mean things about our family makes me want to just pull him out of kindergarten and hug him in my chair forever. Anyway, about Jon, when he is more reasonable later, I will talk to him about his morning fuss, and I am sure he will apologize. There is no use getting after him so much in the morning, he doesn't really want to act like that anymore than I want him to act like that. And throwing in punishments just make it worse....so when he is calm and happy, I will talk to him and tell him that when he starts feeling miserable like that he just needs to stop....(good thing it is fresh in my memory how nice it feels just to cry...)

Anyway, the kids on the bus: A while ago, some kids were teasing Margaret about our family, so she told them we were going to adopt a whole bunch of kids. But they can get very rude, saying some inappropriate things to our kids. Again, I want to pull them all out of school....but mostly, I want to get on the bus in the morning and yell at all those kids...but I would never do that. One mom down the road did that one time, someone was picking on her son, so she got right on the bus and yelled at the kids. My kids would not exactly KILL me, but they would be pretty embarrassed.

Not all the kids are mean though. Just a few of them, and these guys mostly ignore them. But if I find out they are mean to my Jonny...oooh, Mama Bear is coming out!

About adopting a whole bunch of kids: we were sitting at the table for a while last night, talking about adopting a baby or a toddler. My older kids want us to do it. They were saying things like, "that would be like the BEST thing in the world"....and "I would LOVE it if we did that!"....they were full of ideas how we would get things spiffy for the homestudy, and where we would put the new child. They wanted to know how long it would take....and all the other details. Paul is just plain thinking about it. I am not going to push it, just wait and see. I know Paul asked me a while ago what would happen if we adopted and then I found out I was pregnant, and I just smiled and pretended I was cradling two babies, and he just laughed. We know that wouldn't be the end of the world. But seriously, I do not think anyone would give us a child with so many already here. Which is sad.

And now, I need to get moving again....my coffee is gone, my Charlotte Claire is up, and Rosie wants to go back out....