being a nice momma

I try to be nice. I really do. Day in day out, no matter how I feel, I want to bless my kids. There has to be a sacrifice of ME in order to do that most of the time.

Last evening, Paul was at a meeting, and I was putting the kids to bed. I have noticed that I have gotten into this rut with the two little princesses where I tell them it is time to brush their teeth and get ready for bed countless times before it actually happens. This is not their fault. I need to say it once, and make sure it gets done. Anyway, they were finally washed up and brushed and flushed, and cuddled in my bed with me for stories...(Mali so kindly agreed to read Jonathan some of a chapter book, a Junie B. Jones story)...so Suzanne and Sonja and Charlotte Claire and Camille cuddled with me and I read three books. Then we talked a little bit about school. Sonja said she doesn't really have any friends. She said she had to finish some punctuation on a paper and missed most of play time yesterday, so she just stayed in for the rest of it and helped the teacher. wah. I felt such compassion for her.

So..she has a the solar system project due next week(our family's 13th solar system project)..so I am picking the elementary school kids up early and taking them to the store to get the poster board and some glitter. They went out the door this morning happy with their notes to be picked up, and ice cream money, too. This is the first time Charlotte Claire gets to buy ice cream, and she was pretty excited about it.

I know it isn't just about spoiling them rotten, but it is fun. (This morning Margaret was grumping that we didn't help her with HER projects. We didn't? I can't remember. She was the oldest in that string of five-girls-in-a-row in five years, so we probably didn't. My life is like this constant guilt trip....)

Five pizzas were made for dinner last night. I rolled the dough and Evelyn put them together. Charlotte Claire, Camille and Jon sampled the pepperoni and green peppers. There was plenty left-over for lunches. I had a large bowl of fresh spinach with cashews, then a small piece of pizza...then a taste of the garlic one, and a taste of another one...I had to almost slap my own hand. Then the kids had some chocolate bars for dessert...oh how I wanted one. Instead I got the last bite of Sonja's, and the last bite of Jon's. Two little bites instead of a whole one. Then it was over, the candy was gone, and I had endured! I should lose like five pounds for that!

If you are ever bored and lonely, get a kitten and a sheepdog. A big dumb sheepdog. Rosie doesn't realize that she is like sixty pounds, she romps around here trying to catch Kitten...the sweet thing is that when she has Kitten cornered, she is very gentle. I hope she doesn't accidentally hurt him though.

The snapping turtle that lives in the swamp down the road had babies. One was walking in the road, he was so little, he was almost cute. I decided not to bring him home, since his Mama is at least a foot long and terrifying....there were also a few that had gotten run over...

No Story Hour for us this morning. Suzanne is home from school because she says her tummy hurts, and after picking her up yesterday from the nurse's office, I shall spare her...and me.

I felt guilty about how long she had to wait for me at school, felt guilty about how we had to leave the park after such a short time, guilty that I forgot to get razors for Samuel, and that I didn't get Mirielle's text requesting a calculator until I was already home. Not terribly guilty, just a little bit so that it all adds up. The thing I always feel the worst about thought is when I am so impatient. When so many things are going on at once sometimes I get short with someone, and I hate that so much. I immediately want to rewind and get another chance.