being thankful....

 Today is a dark cozy day, the birds are singing, and the sun is hidden behind thick gray clouds.  We had a storm come through last night that cooled us from muggy nineties to more comfortable 60's today.  I've been awake since dawn, because I had to drive Miss Charlotte Claire to a state test this morning.  My alarm was set for seven, but I woke up at 5:22, and that was it for me.

Lots of leaves in there this fine morning!

Yesterday, Charlotte Claire, Camille, and I went out and about.   There are two birthdays we are celebrating at junior activity club tonight, so I had to get a few gifts for the two birthday girls, and some little prizes for the other kids.  

I let these two get a candle...

and drinks from Starbucks.  Spoiled youngest two, for sure!   They are going to re-do their bedroom.  Cam was all on fire to do it, Char more hesitant, but when they came to an agreement about starting, they were both pretty excited about it.  They want to paint it, which is fine with me.  They're sorting and cleaning things out, and it's keeping them busy.   It's worth the money that a few gallons of paint will cost.  

I baked some cupcakes this morning, for this evening's birthday celebration...

They're just Funfetti from the box, but kids like them.  I'll make some homemade pink buttercream frosting,  add some pink sparkly sprinkles, and they'll be celebratory.

Sunny, just because.

Me, just because.  

I'm getting old.  56 next month, how can that possibly be?  Life goes by too fast.  I told Sonja this morning that we need to enjoy the heck right out of this summer.  Char and Cam are determined not to waste too much time on TikTok, they acknowledge that those things are time eaters.  

It is such a strange time for me, to have so few kids at home.  Four kids.  That's only 25% of the kids.  It's such a far cry from past summers, from summers where like ten kids were out of school for the summer.  We can't even sing the No More Pencils, No More Books, No More Teachers' Dirty Looks song yet, because Char says we can't celebrate until after her final test tomorrow.    We will celebrate and be all happy and giddy...then it'll still be kind of quiet.  Not like those long ago days when there were always at least a  dozen here.    

Abigail is starting a new job, and has a week off between, so we're going to our friends' pool on Thursday, it's supposed to be warm and sunny.

This afternoon, Paul will attempt to fix our refrigerator.  The fan is frozen up, there is still cold air going into it, but it's not being distributed.  We've stacked the important food on the bottom, where some of it has frozen, ugh, but the top of the refrigerator is warm.  So he's watched you-tube videos, and is going to do the surgery this afternoon.  We'll get some ice, and put everything in coolers, and hopefully, it'll work.  He has to remove a panel, and melt that ice.  There is NEVER a dull moment.

I'm hoping it will work, because although it wouldn't kill me to spend a stack of money on a new refrigerator,  I would NOT like it.  

But, you get older and you realize how much life is NOT about the STUFF.  You can't bring any of it with you, not a thing.  I do always seem to want something.  Right now, I'm stuck on the idea of a Crosswave mop/vacuum.  I've always been in search of the perfect tool to make it easy to keep the floors clean, in the easiest way possible.  But, I have the time right now to vacuum, then mop, so I don't necessarily NEED this new contraption.  

Anyway, you can't take it with you.  I remember when Abigail was a little girl, like three or four years old, and she wouldn't put her sparkly purple purse down, because she was afraid Jesus would come back when she wasn't holding it, and she would have to leave it behind.  What could a mom possibly say to that?  um, honey, hate to break it to you, but....

Oh well, I have things to do, and floors to clean...without a fancy mop vacuum, sigh.