Binge blogging....

It's official. I'm a binge blogger! I hate to admit it but sometimes living life takes priority over blogging fun...

Picture courtesy of Alice Messick

The end of the school year and start of a swim team for Hayley and Maya ramped up our schedule these past few months. Plus....did you get the memo that once you have school kids--there's no such thing as the lazy days of summer?!?! The kids might be relaxing but man, the mundane elements of my job just quadrupled--more endlessly hungry tummy's to fill, more spills to clean up, more fights to referee, more games to play, books to read, hugs to give, parks to visit, pools to swim in, more clothes to wash, and definitely a dirtier house to top it all off!

I've been putting in over-time lately at my "Mom" job....power struggles with a certain child are threatening to take me down...but we're hanging in there and hoping for the end of this "phase" to come soon. Oh the joy of phases!!! The word gives me hope though--it implies that there is an ending--just not soon enough, right?

I know most of you moms have been here. Every night I feel so emotionally exhausted after trying to stay one step ahead and keep my own frustration and anger in check through all the long repetitious battles. It's not that every moment is bad. It's just that her struggles seem to be mostly with the routine things of life right now. So it's just when she has to get up, eat, get dressed, go to church, go anywhere for that matter, take a bath, put pajamas on, go potty before bed, brush her teeth, go to bed, etc. etc. etc. that we have a battle. And even though you'd think she hates me--guess who can't stand me to leave her??? I guess she likes fighting with me!

On Saturday, Ryan gave me the best gift ever--4 hours alone in a quiet house (that we had just finished cleaning all morning.) The silence was pure heaven! He and the kids headed to Grandma's house to go swimming with cousins and Aunts and Uncles. I was so happy to work on digital scrapbooking projects that have been buried under too many to do lists for the whole 4 hours!!!. How fun to do something that you get to actually see immediate results from. My day to day job isn't so satisfying right now and I really needed that!

So now that I'm feeling a little revived....I got that old blogging itch that I haven't felt for so long. So I'm not committing to any sort of regularity but we can always hope. Here's a little catch up of some of the happier moments from the last couple of months!