{Update on the REAL happenings}

I actually have time to TYPE....

My title is what it is because all i have been posting are our exciting adventures. We have an exciting adventure like those about once a week. So, during the rest of the week we are up to normal things. Let me give you the run down....

1. Shane's dental associate's 9 year old boy walks to our home every morning for a ride to school. He lives just down the street from us. I think he likes us. He doesn't have to show up until 8:25, but gradually he has been showing up earlier and earlier. This morning he showed up at 7:50 a.m. He likes us. I either walk them to school or drive them to school. Load all four boys up and head out.

2. 3 days out of the work week, Shane leaves the house at 6:45 a.m. The other two days he doesn't have to be there til about 8 a.m.

3. Tanner has private swim lessons on Tuesday at 9:30 a.m. Then i go grocery shopping. Other days, i might mow our lawn, which takes a whole HOUR to do, and other days i will clean during this time.

4. After that, i feed the boys lunch right at 11 a.m. Then Put Jaydon down for a nap.

5. My friend's son is in the same preschool as Tanner. She picks Tanner up at 12:45 p.m. I get some more chores done around the home, and then get about ONE hour to sit and do what i want. yay! And i usually spend that hour on the internet on pinterest. It's too much fun.

6. Around 2:30 p.m. i start heading to the school to pick up the boys. I either walk or drive, depending on if it looks like i might get down poured on. Here, it will be sunny one minute and pouring the next, but the sun is still out and you start wondering WHERE the rain is coming from. :) And if i drive i like to get there early enough to get a parking spot, otherwise i am screwed.

7. I go meet Noah and Gavin in front of the school. Then head to the preschool and pick up Tanner and his friend Kaeden. After i pick them up, you realize My car is full of FIVE boys who LOVE being together in the car for those almost 10 minutes. FIVE boys. WHat have i done to be BLESSED(grinding teeth) with so many boys in my LIFE! :)

8. I drop off Noah and Kaeden at their houses. Arrive home and have to find a snack for the boys immediately before the whining starts otherwise they might die.

9. Then i start getting dinner ready. Shane gets home at 4:00 in the afternoon's now. LOVE. Sooooo, i have to make sure i have dinner cooking when he walks in the door b/c he is ALWAYS ready to eat when he walks through that door....doesn't matter what TIME it is.

10. Gavin has group swim lessons at 6:00p.m. three days a week. It's 45 minutes long.

11.After that we head home, do our bed time routine and usually get the boys in bed by 7:30 p.m.

That's usually my days...of course there are other random things that ALWAYS seem to pop up that i have to squeeze in there. :)

WANT TO READ A GOOD BOOK?

I have managed to read a book though! It's called The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks. It's a GREAT book. If you haven't read it, then i will tell you to go get a copy RIGHT NOW and READ It! It's an amazing TRUE story. Henrietta Lacks is an African American woman who died during times of segregation at the age of 31 from cervical cancer. Doctors did a biopsy of her cervix before she died. Her cells were the FIRST immortal cells on this earth. Because of those cells millions of lives have been saved and helped. The author of this book spent years upon years trying to find the truth behind this woman and the facts of her family. She dives into Henrietta's life and the DRAMA that was in it, along with explaining these cells and helping people understand the situation. There is black history in this story too...things i never knew about. I grew a greater understanding of things that African American's had to go through during those times....There is sadness in this story, but its a book that's HARD to put down once you start it! You also learn a bit about medical history and experimentation. It's CRAZY!!! Let's say MEDICINE has come a long way from what it used to be! The author does a GREAT job telling the story of Henrietta, and her family. Soooo good!

LIFE!!

Life is crazy. One minute you are basking in the sun, the next minute you are getting poured on by the rain. That's life. You have the HARD moments, and then the good moments that quickly make you forget all the hard moments. Thank goodness! Sometimes during those hard moments you wonder how you are going to make it. During those times is when you really learn who you are. You learn what you are made of . You learn how to survive. You grow from it, you become who you are meant to be. As hard as it can be while you are in those HARD moments, i always know deep down that this will make me a different person....for the better if i choose to do good from it....or for the worse if i choose the opposite.

Things have been hard the past year. Well, things were Hard in cleveland too....life has just been hard in lots of ways. Lots of stuff has gone on in my life that has effected me in many many ways . In Wichita Falls, lots of loneliness on my part. Shane was never home. I was stuck in the house a lot with the kids. It wasn't a fun time. My fun times were when family came in or when i was with my best friend. I Didn't really have friends to do stuff with in texas like i did in cleveland. The move here was extremely hard. Just sooooo much going on and its hard on the kids too...so, its just HARD. :) I feel like things are FINALLY starting to settle down. phew. I am ready. AND sometimes as a mom you wonder if you are teaching your kids right...you wonder if they are learning anything you tell them, and you wonder if they are learning from your example(which is most important). I always hope, every hour of everyday, that my kids will know what i believe by how i act. I fail a lot in many areas. BUT i try my hardest to be what i know they need me to be. AND for the past couple of years, for some reason, i have been feeling like maybe i am not a good mom. WELL, i know i am a good mom, but then again i question it a lot. Naturally i would do this b/c being a mom is a HUGE responsibility and i like to succeed at all my responsibilities. And if i feel like i am failing then its HARD. I am a very competitive person...not with others, but with myself. when i see my kids act a certain way it makes me wonder what i am doing wrong. OR when i don't see the results that i hope to get from my hard work as a mother, its very HARD and disheartening. TWO things have happened recently that have given me a glimpse into what i am hoping for them! :) yay!!!!

1. I was stressed. I wasn't being mean to jaydon, but i was acting stressed and he could sense it, i am sure. It's always written all over my face. I changed his diaper. I stayed sitting on the floor after i changed it. He stood up and we were now at eye level. He came toward me , wrapped his arms around me tight and gave me such a good hug. Then he pulled away, held my face in his hands, looked in my eyes, smiling at me, almost like he was saying "its okay mom." and then he gave me a kiss on the cheek. Then he held my face in his hands again and just smiled at me. MAN i needed that. I SO LOVED IT you have no idea how much i loved it. It immediately cheered up my heart and i couldn't be stressed anymore. What a little angel he is.

2. I often wonder if my views and beliefs are having any effect on my kids at all. One thing i always try to make sure they know is that even if people believe different than us, it doesn't mean they are less than us. They are still good people. Everyone is a good person no matter how different they are. So, here is the story....We were getting ready to go bowling last night for Family home evening. I said "i hope they don't allow smoking in there." I said that b/c tanner was wheezing yesterday, and b/c he has a lung deficiency, so i didn't want to go if it was allowed. But we assumed it wasn't allowed. Somehow that led to a conversation with gavin about smoking. I told him that some people do it even though they know it's bad for them. He said "Yeah, that's sad." pause. i said "yeah, it is." and then he said "but they are still good people." Oh my gosh. I so loved hearing my 6 year old say that! I was so proud of him and i said "YES, gavin, you are so right!!! " At that moment i realized that maybe i am having some kind of effect on my kids and that they are picking up on what i know to be true. i love it. It was so rewarding hearing him say that. :)