The two are gone. DH went in today to look for the last little one and noticed one trap was missing. He found it under the washer or dryer (I don't know which one.) and in it was the mouse, HALF EATEN. EWWWWW! I guess its pal got too hungry.
The siblings in the garage have yet to find a trap but I'm okay with that for the moment. I just want them OUT of my house.
I guess DH had some fun with this. He went in and found the dead mouse and then purposely set off the other traps and started making a bunch of noise. Then he ran out with two of his fingers down and screamed that the mouse had gotten him. The kids believed it for a minute.
Yeah for no more mice in the house. Now I can do my laundry. I have a weeks worth and that is a bunch.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Smart Mice
Our mice are still alive. Well, I say that just as I heard a trap snap. These are smart mice. They have managed to get all of the peanut butter since Monday. We are now trying Velveeta to see if that works better.
I bought a used couch tonight. I have been dying to have something to sit on in the basement the two times a month that I watch television.
Today I found one for 60 bucks. Is it new? No way! It it without some ink marks? Nope. Is it good enough for us while we have little kids that will still draw on things. YEP! I was giddy going over to pick it up.
Then we tried to get it down the stairs and it didn't go down so easily. DH got stuck on one side with me on the other. I ended up calling a friend to come down to help. As I walked out to get my things in his truck (I had borrowed it to get the couch) I saw a moving shadow outside. Of course, I said there was a MOUSE. My neighbor didn't quite think so at first. But he really likes catching mice and releasing them far from home. So he starts poking around in my bush in the front yard and sees one run one way. Then he sees ANOTHER. Why oh why couldn't that mom have had her babies elsewhere.
My laundry still isn't done. I'm too scared to even get my detergent out. I hope I have some in my food storage room so I can do laundry at a neighbor's tomorrow. Today, when I took S to school I wore capris. My car said 17 degrees. I need my clean jeans.
M stayed home sick from school today. I think she is starting to feel better. She may not feel a whole lot better when she realizes I forgot to get her spelling words.
I bought a used couch tonight. I have been dying to have something to sit on in the basement the two times a month that I watch television.
Today I found one for 60 bucks. Is it new? No way! It it without some ink marks? Nope. Is it good enough for us while we have little kids that will still draw on things. YEP! I was giddy going over to pick it up.
Then we tried to get it down the stairs and it didn't go down so easily. DH got stuck on one side with me on the other. I ended up calling a friend to come down to help. As I walked out to get my things in his truck (I had borrowed it to get the couch) I saw a moving shadow outside. Of course, I said there was a MOUSE. My neighbor didn't quite think so at first. But he really likes catching mice and releasing them far from home. So he starts poking around in my bush in the front yard and sees one run one way. Then he sees ANOTHER. Why oh why couldn't that mom have had her babies elsewhere.
My laundry still isn't done. I'm too scared to even get my detergent out. I hope I have some in my food storage room so I can do laundry at a neighbor's tomorrow. Today, when I took S to school I wore capris. My car said 17 degrees. I need my clean jeans.
M stayed home sick from school today. I think she is starting to feel better. She may not feel a whole lot better when she realizes I forgot to get her spelling words.
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
The Mice Part Deux
Yesterday was M's birthday. I was down at my friend's house working on cutting out tulle for tutus. M and her best friend asked if they could go down to our house and dance in the basement. I told them they could if they used the garage. I came home a little bit later. DH had beat me home and told me that the girls had failed to close the door between the garage and the house. Now, I have to say that this door really needs WD-40 and won't just shut by itself. You have to really push it shut. I got scared immediately because, DUH, I found those mice in the garage. We told M that there was a chance we would have mice in the house now because she hadn't shut the door properly.
Then I forgot all about that.
We had dinner, presents, and then started eating cake. When the kids were done DH and I were still sitting at the table. Then I heard it. Little creatures in the laundry room right behind my back. I started freaking out and ran into the 'violin room' to hide from them. DH called for my help. He was standing there with his bad ankle hitting the TWO little mice with a broom when they would try to get out of the laundry room. He kept telling me to come and swat at them so he could go and get some traps. But I couldn't. I was just so scared of those little things.
So I called the Mouseslayer (with a big M). And then DH went out of the house and I used my smarts to put 3 towels at the base of the door. Then T and I plopped ourselves on the ground and tried to hold the towel against the door with our forearms. I heard the Mouseslayer come into the garage. We continued to man our post with arms all along the towel. (DH thought we were ridiculous.) T kept asking me if the little mouse was going to kill DH.
Then the door opened and I jumped thinking a mouse was going to come and get me. It was the Mouseslayer looking down at me as I lay there on my stomach holding towels to the bottom of the door. I'm sure it was pretty silly looking.
We have traps set and DH taped my towels to the door frame to try to make me quit freaking out. Then I ran the dishwasher so I couldn't hear any noise while I tried to go to sleep.
Then in the night I woke up and thought about it. I actually had the idea of having our former neighbor's white python come visit our laundry room. Do you know how scared I am of giant snakes? Horribly scared! And I actually thought of that as a possibility. And then I realized that was an even dumber idea. (And the snake only eats frozen popsicle mice. EWWW)
The mice are still in there. DH went in (through the garage of course) and saw their little presents in there. They are quiet and smart. They aren't doing the trap thing yet. I hope they get hungry enough.
Then I forgot all about that.
We had dinner, presents, and then started eating cake. When the kids were done DH and I were still sitting at the table. Then I heard it. Little creatures in the laundry room right behind my back. I started freaking out and ran into the 'violin room' to hide from them. DH called for my help. He was standing there with his bad ankle hitting the TWO little mice with a broom when they would try to get out of the laundry room. He kept telling me to come and swat at them so he could go and get some traps. But I couldn't. I was just so scared of those little things.
So I called the Mouseslayer (with a big M). And then DH went out of the house and I used my smarts to put 3 towels at the base of the door. Then T and I plopped ourselves on the ground and tried to hold the towel against the door with our forearms. I heard the Mouseslayer come into the garage. We continued to man our post with arms all along the towel. (DH thought we were ridiculous.) T kept asking me if the little mouse was going to kill DH.
Then the door opened and I jumped thinking a mouse was going to come and get me. It was the Mouseslayer looking down at me as I lay there on my stomach holding towels to the bottom of the door. I'm sure it was pretty silly looking.
We have traps set and DH taped my towels to the door frame to try to make me quit freaking out. Then I ran the dishwasher so I couldn't hear any noise while I tried to go to sleep.
Then in the night I woke up and thought about it. I actually had the idea of having our former neighbor's white python come visit our laundry room. Do you know how scared I am of giant snakes? Horribly scared! And I actually thought of that as a possibility. And then I realized that was an even dumber idea. (And the snake only eats frozen popsicle mice. EWWW)
The mice are still in there. DH went in (through the garage of course) and saw their little presents in there. They are quiet and smart. They aren't doing the trap thing yet. I hope they get hungry enough.
Sunday, January 18, 2009
A few things to fess up on
Lately I have been thinking how I need to fess up a few things here on this blog. So here goes.
1. I really quite like coffee flavored jelly beans. I especially love tiramisu ones. YUM!
2. I have actually had an average of two 2 liter bottles of Diet Coke the last few days. I blame it on the scratchy throat but in reality I could do that on any day if it's in the house.
3. I can drink a 44 oz drink in about 2 minutes.
4. I love birthday cake frosting (not the homemade kind... that funky kind from the grocery store).
5. I probably have this cold because I ate a bite of C's pancake last week. (That's what I get for eating off my kid's plate.)
And some not so fessy up type of things
1. I usually wear no shoes outside unless it is wet and super frigid. Anything above the teens and I usually go barefoot.
2. I adore phone books. I can't go to a hotel without checking them out. When I was in the hospital on bedrest with C a good friend sent me a phone book with some flowers. That was one fabulous gift.
3. I hate to put holes in the walls. There's something about making a permanent mark that I hate. Good friend from down the street comes over and does it for me. Somehow that makes it better.
4. I can't sing worth beans and I no longer care.
5. I don't buy clothes with skinny people. But I love to help them shop.
And that's about it for me. It's pumpkin time here. (That would be 10 pm).
1. I really quite like coffee flavored jelly beans. I especially love tiramisu ones. YUM!
2. I have actually had an average of two 2 liter bottles of Diet Coke the last few days. I blame it on the scratchy throat but in reality I could do that on any day if it's in the house.
3. I can drink a 44 oz drink in about 2 minutes.
4. I love birthday cake frosting (not the homemade kind... that funky kind from the grocery store).
5. I probably have this cold because I ate a bite of C's pancake last week. (That's what I get for eating off my kid's plate.)
And some not so fessy up type of things
1. I usually wear no shoes outside unless it is wet and super frigid. Anything above the teens and I usually go barefoot.
2. I adore phone books. I can't go to a hotel without checking them out. When I was in the hospital on bedrest with C a good friend sent me a phone book with some flowers. That was one fabulous gift.
3. I hate to put holes in the walls. There's something about making a permanent mark that I hate. Good friend from down the street comes over and does it for me. Somehow that makes it better.
4. I can't sing worth beans and I no longer care.
5. I don't buy clothes with skinny people. But I love to help them shop.
And that's about it for me. It's pumpkin time here. (That would be 10 pm).
Blubbering Idiot
Dear friend asked me to speak for a few minutes during her lesson at church today. She tempted me with sugar cookies.
I agreed. (Heck, I'd do just about anything for one of her sugar cookies.)
Then, of course, a big time virus decided to attack me and I ended up with a leaky faucet for a nose. Still, I told her I would show up.
Then I got up there and blubbered about. I hate getting up in front of people when I have to talk about anything dear to my heart.
I didn't say what I had planned. In fact, I don't even know if it made any sense.
But the faucet turned on. This time from my eyes. And for one of the first times in the last few days my nose didn't run.
What a blessing!
I agreed. (Heck, I'd do just about anything for one of her sugar cookies.)
Then, of course, a big time virus decided to attack me and I ended up with a leaky faucet for a nose. Still, I told her I would show up.
Then I got up there and blubbered about. I hate getting up in front of people when I have to talk about anything dear to my heart.
I didn't say what I had planned. In fact, I don't even know if it made any sense.
But the faucet turned on. This time from my eyes. And for one of the first times in the last few days my nose didn't run.
What a blessing!
Saturday, January 17, 2009
Mice
I have this HUGE fear of mice. I know we get them in our garage. I'm sure they like it because a. it's messy and b. there is always a supply of dog food to fill their bellies. But this year it's even messier because we have half of what was in our basement still out there.
And I have known some mouse was staying toasty in our garage.
Then tonight I went out to feed our dog and something moved in the bottom of the dog food bag. I jumped back and came in to tell DH (who was on our bed with his foot unwrapped... the doc said today that it was bad enough that he should come back when eight weeks was up on his injury and they could decide if he needed reconstructive surgery). DH wanted me to fold the top of the dog food bag down and just cart the little sucker off.
I tried. I did.
Okay, I didn't really try. I kept going out and every time I would get a little big close I would hear movement and I would freak out.
I came in the house and got on a coat to protect my arms. I grabbed DH's gloves so the thing couldn't get any hantavirus on me.
And I was still too scared. So I went down to my friend's house. She and her husband were still awake and he came down to take care of my mouse. But it wasn't just a mouse, it was a couple of them and they were smaller.
That's bad news. They are part of a family and most likely one that visits MY house. But for now, the two in the dog food are gone.
Then funniest thing was that after I came in and took off my jacket I realized I was wearing a running shirt from a race. It was the three blind mice race. I had mice on my shirt.
And now I am going to let the Nyquil do it's thing and put me to sleep so I can get rid of this nasty cold.
And I have known some mouse was staying toasty in our garage.
Then tonight I went out to feed our dog and something moved in the bottom of the dog food bag. I jumped back and came in to tell DH (who was on our bed with his foot unwrapped... the doc said today that it was bad enough that he should come back when eight weeks was up on his injury and they could decide if he needed reconstructive surgery). DH wanted me to fold the top of the dog food bag down and just cart the little sucker off.
I tried. I did.
Okay, I didn't really try. I kept going out and every time I would get a little big close I would hear movement and I would freak out.
I came in the house and got on a coat to protect my arms. I grabbed DH's gloves so the thing couldn't get any hantavirus on me.
And I was still too scared. So I went down to my friend's house. She and her husband were still awake and he came down to take care of my mouse. But it wasn't just a mouse, it was a couple of them and they were smaller.
That's bad news. They are part of a family and most likely one that visits MY house. But for now, the two in the dog food are gone.
Then funniest thing was that after I came in and took off my jacket I realized I was wearing a running shirt from a race. It was the three blind mice race. I had mice on my shirt.
And now I am going to let the Nyquil do it's thing and put me to sleep so I can get rid of this nasty cold.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Toys Dang Toys
Of course I have mentioned my FAVORITE day of the year. It's when Target marks their clearance toys down to 75% off. I get such a rush shopping on this day. I have been waiting patiently, checking every board I know that has followers on the east coast. I was prepared to go out tomorrow morning to my favorite Target. Then tonight I read something just awful. Yep, my Target marked their stuff down a day earlier than normal. I was flat out of luck.
I called a friend and headed out. Luckily, other people were also waiting for tomorrow and I found a few things. Okay make that quite a bit. I have birthday gifts for the boys' friends for the year. I have a few other things as well as party favor's for M's party. But I know I missed out on the good stuff and that dang shoppers high. There was no racing some other mad woman down the aisle of Target to find all of the Legos (although I did find one thing lucky me).
But I did get to share my time with a friend and that made it much better.
What else, I fessed up that I am drawn to things that will make me look chunkier, like horizontal stripes (lots of those on clearance) and argyle patterns (which I seem to stretch out a little more on the horizontal side).
And since we are fessing up, I have to say that I love coffee flavored jelly beans. Hmmm....
Oh and I paid full price for a 20 oz. Diet Coke.
I called a friend and headed out. Luckily, other people were also waiting for tomorrow and I found a few things. Okay make that quite a bit. I have birthday gifts for the boys' friends for the year. I have a few other things as well as party favor's for M's party. But I know I missed out on the good stuff and that dang shoppers high. There was no racing some other mad woman down the aisle of Target to find all of the Legos (although I did find one thing lucky me).
But I did get to share my time with a friend and that made it much better.
What else, I fessed up that I am drawn to things that will make me look chunkier, like horizontal stripes (lots of those on clearance) and argyle patterns (which I seem to stretch out a little more on the horizontal side).
And since we are fessing up, I have to say that I love coffee flavored jelly beans. Hmmm....
Oh and I paid full price for a 20 oz. Diet Coke.
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
The big date
Dh and I both had our birthdays in the last week. We decided to go out last Saturday. I found someone to watch the kids and we decided to go to a nice restaurant by a local ski resort. Then DH went to play basketball.
And that was the end of it. He came home with an ankle that appear to have eaten an orange. DH still wanted to go out but I didn't want to spend a huge chunk of change when DH was hurting so much. We ended up at a steakhouse (with a FABULOUS baked potato). We went and had ice cream somewhere else and then we drove around so the babysitter would have time to put the kids to bed.
And we felt old.
Oh and I did really well sparking (you know, that dang resolution). And I gained over a pound even measuring out things on my little scale. That was lovely. I not only measured what I ate but I wrote it down and stayed in my range if you averaged it over the week and I GAINED weight. That's a feel good moment.
Oh well, someone has to be chubby. Maybe I can make some slightly less chubby person feel better. Then at least it's for a good cause. :)
The kids begged me to make myself a cake so I did. I think they love birthdays just for the cake.
I was kind of thinking about how it was a pretty substandard birthday with the husband stuck in bed with his foot elevated, me taking the kiddos to church by myself, taking C home early because she started having a faucet for a nose with rising fever, and just looking around and all I can't manage to get done. (That is most likely not a good sentence and I am not going to reread it to check it over.) Then I talked with my friend today who reminded me that last year on my birthday D screamed for hours straight while he sat on the stairs.
Heck, it was a pretty good birthday.
And now I am feeling pretty grateful.
And that was the end of it. He came home with an ankle that appear to have eaten an orange. DH still wanted to go out but I didn't want to spend a huge chunk of change when DH was hurting so much. We ended up at a steakhouse (with a FABULOUS baked potato). We went and had ice cream somewhere else and then we drove around so the babysitter would have time to put the kids to bed.
And we felt old.
Oh and I did really well sparking (you know, that dang resolution). And I gained over a pound even measuring out things on my little scale. That was lovely. I not only measured what I ate but I wrote it down and stayed in my range if you averaged it over the week and I GAINED weight. That's a feel good moment.
Oh well, someone has to be chubby. Maybe I can make some slightly less chubby person feel better. Then at least it's for a good cause. :)
The kids begged me to make myself a cake so I did. I think they love birthdays just for the cake.
I was kind of thinking about how it was a pretty substandard birthday with the husband stuck in bed with his foot elevated, me taking the kiddos to church by myself, taking C home early because she started having a faucet for a nose with rising fever, and just looking around and all I can't manage to get done. (That is most likely not a good sentence and I am not going to reread it to check it over.) Then I talked with my friend today who reminded me that last year on my birthday D screamed for hours straight while he sat on the stairs.
Heck, it was a pretty good birthday.
And now I am feeling pretty grateful.
The Alarm Man
Today a guy came to our house offering some fabulous deal. He would give us a fancy shmancy alarm system for FREE and we would offer to say nice things about it (because of course we would have nothing but nice things to say about it) all summer when they tried to sell more to our neighbors.
The guy was nice (and new to his job I believe, which of course made me feel bad because I had this idea in my mind that hard economic times and forced him from his previous job and he needed to get these sales to feed his family).
This is how it went. I am trying to get dinner ready when the guy comes. It's crazy Tuesday after all and dinner has to be ready and in the crock pot (am I really so old that I talk about a crock pot like it's a friend?). Anyway, so my house is a wreck (but this is not news) and he arrives talking about my friend a few doors away (while slaughtering her name) and how she was interested in this. (Yep, that's right. You learned from the Kirby salesman to get a referral). Now, I have to say in his defence that his product really was nice and that I'm sure it's great. What wasn't to love, especially from someone like me with a gazillion fears?
Anyway, now onto the funny part because in reality this is all I think I will care to remember in 20 years. T was practicing his violin when the guy arrived. This morning we had to take DH to work because he couldn't drive due to a nice sprain I will write about later. Because of that I softened up and bought doughnuts for breakfast and let the kids eat without practicing. But T knew what had to be done so he came home and got to work. The man arrives and starts giving his shpill. M then starts playing in another room. She too knows she needs to practice. T says good bye and escapes out the door. The baby tries to leave under my extended arm without any shoes to gather some not so new snow for eating. He comments on the violin playing and then also adds that we would need more coverage for our 'dynamic' family. Pretty much he was saying that we have people all over the place. D, who had already practice for the day, saw an audience that might give him a little more attention and started playing his taca variations, and then S, not wanting to be outdone starting sawing away with rhythms on her violin. It was a sight.
This poor man had no idea what he was getting into. I hope he can laugh about it later because I thought it was so dang hilarious.
And what was even more funny was that he originally thought I had an alarm system in my house because I have these 5 dollar 'alarms' that make noise when they aren't attached. I use them to tell me when a kid sneaks out. He wanted 45 dollars a month.
But I really would like an alarm system. Hmm..............
The guy was nice (and new to his job I believe, which of course made me feel bad because I had this idea in my mind that hard economic times and forced him from his previous job and he needed to get these sales to feed his family).
This is how it went. I am trying to get dinner ready when the guy comes. It's crazy Tuesday after all and dinner has to be ready and in the crock pot (am I really so old that I talk about a crock pot like it's a friend?). Anyway, so my house is a wreck (but this is not news) and he arrives talking about my friend a few doors away (while slaughtering her name) and how she was interested in this. (Yep, that's right. You learned from the Kirby salesman to get a referral). Now, I have to say in his defence that his product really was nice and that I'm sure it's great. What wasn't to love, especially from someone like me with a gazillion fears?
Anyway, now onto the funny part because in reality this is all I think I will care to remember in 20 years. T was practicing his violin when the guy arrived. This morning we had to take DH to work because he couldn't drive due to a nice sprain I will write about later. Because of that I softened up and bought doughnuts for breakfast and let the kids eat without practicing. But T knew what had to be done so he came home and got to work. The man arrives and starts giving his shpill. M then starts playing in another room. She too knows she needs to practice. T says good bye and escapes out the door. The baby tries to leave under my extended arm without any shoes to gather some not so new snow for eating. He comments on the violin playing and then also adds that we would need more coverage for our 'dynamic' family. Pretty much he was saying that we have people all over the place. D, who had already practice for the day, saw an audience that might give him a little more attention and started playing his taca variations, and then S, not wanting to be outdone starting sawing away with rhythms on her violin. It was a sight.
This poor man had no idea what he was getting into. I hope he can laugh about it later because I thought it was so dang hilarious.
And what was even more funny was that he originally thought I had an alarm system in my house because I have these 5 dollar 'alarms' that make noise when they aren't attached. I use them to tell me when a kid sneaks out. He wanted 45 dollars a month.
But I really would like an alarm system. Hmm..............
Thursday, January 1, 2009
Resolutions- Keeping it Short
1. Keep my house more orderly so it doesn't seem so difficult to get it under control. We are trying something new with the laundry since it feels like it takes over our home.
2. Do better practicing with D and S. We finally got M and T practicing daily (except Sunday, they only get to play for fun if they want that day) by using the you don't get breakfast unless you practiced the night before or in the morning. They are cruising through pieces now and I know I need to do better with D and S and make it a better routine before C starts the violin next year.
3. Eat when I am hungry. This is a novel idea I know. But I eat when I am stressed or bored. I contemplated joining WW because they have a new plan that is cheaper by the month. The problem is that I know how to keep track of my food and about portion control. I can use Sparkpeople for free. So if I went to WW I would be paying for the social support and accountability. Instead, I am going to try the eat only when you are hungry thing. I guess this isn't a resolution, just something to try.
4. Do a better job reading my scriptures. We do scriptures as a family but I find myself being a slacker because of some dishes in the sink. Maybe we would do better to use paper and have me read my scriptures :) Just kidding. I won't go that far.
That's it. There are other things but I'm not going to worry about them now.
2. Do better practicing with D and S. We finally got M and T practicing daily (except Sunday, they only get to play for fun if they want that day) by using the you don't get breakfast unless you practiced the night before or in the morning. They are cruising through pieces now and I know I need to do better with D and S and make it a better routine before C starts the violin next year.
3. Eat when I am hungry. This is a novel idea I know. But I eat when I am stressed or bored. I contemplated joining WW because they have a new plan that is cheaper by the month. The problem is that I know how to keep track of my food and about portion control. I can use Sparkpeople for free. So if I went to WW I would be paying for the social support and accountability. Instead, I am going to try the eat only when you are hungry thing. I guess this isn't a resolution, just something to try.
4. Do a better job reading my scriptures. We do scriptures as a family but I find myself being a slacker because of some dishes in the sink. Maybe we would do better to use paper and have me read my scriptures :) Just kidding. I won't go that far.
That's it. There are other things but I'm not going to worry about them now.
Haunting
This is a post for my ghost hunting friend. We sometimes have toys that talk. It started happening before C was born. We started moving things around to make a room for her and the toys started talking, only at night and nap time. When C was born there were two toys that would start talking at once.
Then, before we brought home D and S the same toys started talking. That time I would just say out loud something like, "Okay boys, that's enough. I got the message." It happened just for a while.
Recently I got rid of the one music making toy (that would be just a month ago or so). So last weekend we had a new one. It was the Elmo alphabet toy. And for a couple of days it would say, "B, boy. B, boy. B, boy." Dh and I just looked at each other with a smile. Yep, sorry I took the music making toy away.
It may seem a little crazy to actually think they come and hang out just occasionally. But I do. I wonder what will happen when all the toys are gone. Maybe by then we will have broken down and gotten a Wii and we'll hear Guitar Hero in the background.
Then, before we brought home D and S the same toys started talking. That time I would just say out loud something like, "Okay boys, that's enough. I got the message." It happened just for a while.
Recently I got rid of the one music making toy (that would be just a month ago or so). So last weekend we had a new one. It was the Elmo alphabet toy. And for a couple of days it would say, "B, boy. B, boy. B, boy." Dh and I just looked at each other with a smile. Yep, sorry I took the music making toy away.
It may seem a little crazy to actually think they come and hang out just occasionally. But I do. I wonder what will happen when all the toys are gone. Maybe by then we will have broken down and gotten a Wii and we'll hear Guitar Hero in the background.
Thoughts on Dec. 30th
Of course I have procrastinated just a bit and these are a couple of days late. But better late than never.
We took the kids to the temple on Tuesday. What's crazy is that we are only a couple of days past and we can already look back with hindsight and understand life better.
I had a friend who has been in our exact circumstance (okay exact as you can be with a bunch of details and genders mixed up). She told us that things didn't simmer down until they took their kids to the temple. I believed her but well, I didn't totally believe her. It was some of that I can make things different that just keeps surfacing in me. DH and I knew we needed to take our children there. But when you are talking hour long tantrums and lots of discouragement, eternity seems really really long. But once again, we knew. We decided to go with how we were feeling and hope (the real meaning of hope that is... a wish with an expectation that it will happen, not just a plain ol' wish) that the blessings would come.
Of course, we started getting sick. The kids had been eating too much candy. Everyone's schedules were off. Getting everyone ready to eat a meal wasn't too appealing and so the day before I was overwhelmed with just the thought of getting us all out the door. And then there was hosting family members to think about. And what do you do when you are ready to just forget it all? You go on. Okay, first you say you aren't going to worry about impressing your family with a clean house and you leave it. Yes, I didn't do anything. I didn't check the bathroom (which I believe hadn't been cleaned since Christmas day and that was by M, not me so the job wasn't as good). I didn't even wipe off my counters. I just focused on doing what was the most important for getting to the temple that day. I went to bed still feeling unsettled.
And then the morning came. I focused on my tasks. And I finished what had to be done. We made it to the temple on time and everything was lovely. The kids were in the youth center (where they had THE coolest kitchen ever) and Jason and I went and showed our paperwork etc. After we were ready there was a time gap and they let us go wait in the celestial room. It was so quiet in there. In fact, it was so quiet that Jason fell asleep sitting next to me. I got up to get a tissue because of this dang cold and the temple worker gave my hand a squeeze (I really did want to warn her about this virus but didn't. I hope she isn't sick now.) and said that we would always remember today. Then I realized that she thought we were getting married. DUH, that's what happens when neither you nor your husband wear wedding bands. I guess I need to squish his knuckle back to it's former shape and get those two prongs on mine fixed after two years.) As we were sitting there we saw this one man and woman. They were older. They looked so sad. The woman sat in a chair and cried a bit and the man had such sadness in his eyes. It was obvious that something horrible had happened in their lives. It made me think a bit about the differences between how men and women grieve. His face couldn't hide what was troubling them. I hope they found peace that day.
They finally took us to the sealing room and brought the kids in. The kids were all well behaved. I cried seeing all my little ones in white. It was a very quick ceremony. And it changed my life. I haven't felt such discouragement since. And the kids' behavior hasn't changed much, it's me. I am hoping Satan will just stay off my back now because he was working me, that's for sure.
And we left. And family life continued. We took pictures after (and managed to get one with ALL of us looking forward... see other blog). D did rabbit ears on M in another. That's how families are. We came home to our not so perfectly cleaned house and enjoyed family and ate pizza. (I didn't even cook!)
We took the kids to the temple on Tuesday. What's crazy is that we are only a couple of days past and we can already look back with hindsight and understand life better.
I had a friend who has been in our exact circumstance (okay exact as you can be with a bunch of details and genders mixed up). She told us that things didn't simmer down until they took their kids to the temple. I believed her but well, I didn't totally believe her. It was some of that I can make things different that just keeps surfacing in me. DH and I knew we needed to take our children there. But when you are talking hour long tantrums and lots of discouragement, eternity seems really really long. But once again, we knew. We decided to go with how we were feeling and hope (the real meaning of hope that is... a wish with an expectation that it will happen, not just a plain ol' wish) that the blessings would come.
Of course, we started getting sick. The kids had been eating too much candy. Everyone's schedules were off. Getting everyone ready to eat a meal wasn't too appealing and so the day before I was overwhelmed with just the thought of getting us all out the door. And then there was hosting family members to think about. And what do you do when you are ready to just forget it all? You go on. Okay, first you say you aren't going to worry about impressing your family with a clean house and you leave it. Yes, I didn't do anything. I didn't check the bathroom (which I believe hadn't been cleaned since Christmas day and that was by M, not me so the job wasn't as good). I didn't even wipe off my counters. I just focused on doing what was the most important for getting to the temple that day. I went to bed still feeling unsettled.
And then the morning came. I focused on my tasks. And I finished what had to be done. We made it to the temple on time and everything was lovely. The kids were in the youth center (where they had THE coolest kitchen ever) and Jason and I went and showed our paperwork etc. After we were ready there was a time gap and they let us go wait in the celestial room. It was so quiet in there. In fact, it was so quiet that Jason fell asleep sitting next to me. I got up to get a tissue because of this dang cold and the temple worker gave my hand a squeeze (I really did want to warn her about this virus but didn't. I hope she isn't sick now.) and said that we would always remember today. Then I realized that she thought we were getting married. DUH, that's what happens when neither you nor your husband wear wedding bands. I guess I need to squish his knuckle back to it's former shape and get those two prongs on mine fixed after two years.) As we were sitting there we saw this one man and woman. They were older. They looked so sad. The woman sat in a chair and cried a bit and the man had such sadness in his eyes. It was obvious that something horrible had happened in their lives. It made me think a bit about the differences between how men and women grieve. His face couldn't hide what was troubling them. I hope they found peace that day.
They finally took us to the sealing room and brought the kids in. The kids were all well behaved. I cried seeing all my little ones in white. It was a very quick ceremony. And it changed my life. I haven't felt such discouragement since. And the kids' behavior hasn't changed much, it's me. I am hoping Satan will just stay off my back now because he was working me, that's for sure.
And we left. And family life continued. We took pictures after (and managed to get one with ALL of us looking forward... see other blog). D did rabbit ears on M in another. That's how families are. We came home to our not so perfectly cleaned house and enjoyed family and ate pizza. (I didn't even cook!)
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