Proud Mommy Moment

we ventured into the world of Christmas shoppers today...

In all my wisdom, I decided that we (as in me and my five tinies) could hit a couple of stores before school let out, and it would be fairly mellow. The kids would get a chance to shop for each other, and I could attempt to ......look? (did I really think I could keep anything a secret when they were required to be touching the cart at all times?)

First, we went to Target, and I soon learned the blinding error in my judgment when we pulled into the parking lot. There were no parking spaces! I've never had to park 3 blocks (okay, maybe I'm exaggerating a little) away from Target! We finally found a place that was reasonably close to a cart corral, which would allow me to load up the kids and make the trek to the front door without taking more than one rest stop. We got out of the car and I herded the horde - only to find no carts. Luckily, the second corral had something to offer my already aching arms.

As it turned out, every Mom in the county and all of their friends were at Target this afternoon. School was not yet out, and they were taking advantage of those final hours. I charged in with my shopping cart loaded up with all 5 kids (I literally had to charge, otherwise I couldn't get up enough momentum to make the cart move), and while we negotiated our wide turns and snail speed, the lone parents walked briskly - getting down to business. I cut my list short, hoping to get in and out with no breakdowns. The kids were doing well, they listened, they held on, they didn't persist when I told them no.

As we were waiting in the checkout line, I was feeling pretty proud of my offspring. I didn't want to strangle a single one, and no self-restraint was required on my part. The line was not going fast, but we were holding - we even got a couple of complements on our crew. Our moment of glory came when the lady in front of me took her bags to leave. She turned around and handed me 4 candybars "for the best-behaved kids she'd ever seen at a store." I beamed. My children got what was coming to them, and it was in a much better form than they could have imagined.

I think I might have the courage to venture out of the house again.

It's been awhile

I'd like to say I've once again been inspired to put my jumbled ramblings into written words and document my existence. Alas, that's not the case at all - my hubby is taking a night class, and I don't sleep well when he's not around.

I've just discovered the design feature of blogger and WAHOO! I found my favorite color, now we're rolling.

I read a comment on folding fitted sheets earlier this evening, and it still boggles my mind. Seriously, is there a right way to fold them? Since I married and began to beget those beautiful creatures I so willingly call my own, I've become pretty good at laundry. I can concoct with the best of them , pre-treat, post-treat, soak for months and yes get most every stain known to man out of clothes. But folding....folding is not my forte. In a single load of towels, I'll find myself with several different folding operations. Usually, my work space dictates my direction, but for the most part, I just don't care. My general rule is square-ish. If the item ends in a fairly unwrinkled square-ish shape, it should easily stack on or next to another square-ish shape - This is my recipe to successfully folded laundry. So given my strict folding parameters, just how does one fold a fitted sheet? I've actually asked people this question over the last several years, and everyone seems to have their way; which seems infinitely more complex and better than mine, but none of them have stuck (I guess I don't fold sheets often enough - they usually just go back on the beds).

So here I am with too many sheets to maintain and no suitable method for folding the fitted ones.

This is the moment

Today was the dress rehearsal for our first round of dance recitals for the month. Maren and Julianne are dancing as a star and crocodile as part of Peter Pan. Yes, Julianne is too young to be doing this, but today I got my big payoff.
Julianne has a second number where she gets to dance with a teddy bear. With any group of 3-4 year olds the parents sit back and wonder if their child is going to dance at all. There are often tears, a nose-picker or two, and who knows what else. As the music started she followed her teacher for the first 30 seconds and then her inner-performer came out and she started doing her own thing. She continued to dance for a couple of minutes on her own right in the middle of the group. It was fabulous! She was in her own world and loving every minute of being on stage with an audience at her disposal. What 3-year old has that kind of passion! Needless to say, yes, she will get to continue her dancing "career" through next year.

My other favorite moment of the day capped things off perfectly. As I'm cleaning up the dinner dishes and the girls are getting ready for bed, Cameron is dismantling the tupperware cupboard. After he found the ideal container he went off to play, but after a moment, (I'm thinking by accident) one foot lands in a bowl and he discovers how well plastic slides on linoleum. He skated around a bit until he decided he was really brave and came over to me, placed the bowl just right and then hugged my leg for all he was worth as he positioned both feet inside. He stared at his feet a moment and then looked at me as if to say "it should be doing something now." I took my cue and started pushing him around the kitchen by his shoulders and he extended his legs and skiied. What fun! We have now created a new sport - winter months will never be dull again!

Am I really doing this?

I have a facebook page, and now I guess this will mark off yet another entry from the "things I will never get involved with" list. In my quest for spare time this page may very well fall by the wayside, but only time will tell.

If nothing else I would like to plagiarize a portion from a former neighbor's blog simply titled "Thankful Thursday." Today being Thursday, I will start with the basics. I am truly thankful for my beautiful children and a husband that helps. That being said, I will now end so I can enjoy the quiet in my home that is naptime.