location, location, location

I must admit that while I have always been extremely grateful for our home, I can't say that I LOVED our house.  when we first saw our home, i definitely got that feeling- you know, the this is the one feeling.  and that impression persisted despite some cold feet symptoms.  but i have to admit, almost immediately after moving in, I got this cheated feeling.  I found myself upset about the problems made by a previous negligent owner.  and i'll shamefully admit that i spent the first year and a half in this mindset.  (don't get me wrong, there were a few quirky things to legitimately complain about: the dog-scratched wood flooring under the kitchen table, the permanent, bright pink footprint on the bathroom floor, layers of oil-based paint in various hues of the rainbow on the walls, etc...  on the other hand, if said previous owner had anything to do with the 19 ft windows and the lovely whirpool bath and the spacious backyard and garage, then i say thank you!)  but little by little, we've whittled away at the concerns and my feeling of ownership has increased.  and I've come to love our home.  and I've discovered that much of its charm lies in its location, location, location.  daily, I find myself grateful that the kids walk just 3 very safe blocks home from school often.  I delight that errands to walmart, target, (and chipotle) are a half mile from my home.  i adore that the lake is a quick walk away.  and I am comforted that every one of our medical providers is within a 10 minute drive! 

     

a baby birth order

the birth order psychologists are geniuses.  I catch myself being over-critical of my oldest.  I find myself buying into the unfairness my middle child feels and I see signs all the time that dolly is treated as the baby of the family.  today, when finally implementing quiet time with her after being napless for the better part of a year, I realized it was another time I'm clearly raising the baby of the family.

...and, while we are at it, another sign I'm raising the baby of the family:  sunday church shoes on a Monday.

what ails us

the silly little things that ail us:  (and I do mean silly and little!)

keeping up with our first child's extra-curriculars... dabbling in gymnastics, armchair piano lessons (dad has successively helped her play 4 primary songs), and boys!  

a realization that our kids won't always think we are fun and cool... below, extracting every single second out of Saturdays with our kids while they DO still think we're cool.  (our most recent weekend at the home depot workshop and then the circus!)  jack's face suggests we might be running out of time!?

a case of huge adenoids and increasing earaches...

a somewhat painful student debt repayment...
and a plan to improve our very long sunday mornings... including journal writing about the drama of the 'B.L.A.K.E.S.' performance group scheduled for spring 2015.

 

the demand for Wednesday night performances for young women...

 

 

and vacilating weather extremes...

 

 

every penny

hands down, our most practical toy of all time is the play kitchen.  our most used and loved toy, it speaks to kids of all ages- from 1 to 11.  the little ones offer cookies to all and the older ones head up a full scale operation of restaurant or school cafeteria.  and boys are no exception in this copycat imaginative play (with the particularly alpha boys formulating disgusting food)!  worth every penny of that $30 I tell you.... every penny!

and while I'm at it, our other most beloved toys: marble tower, the batcave and figurines, watercolor paints, ANY card game, and the pretend cosmetic/ hair set.