Mommy of Many®

The last few days were full of uncertainty and decision making. It was time to hand the gas-guzzling 15-passenger van over to be sold but that meant I would have only my VW Passat. There were 2 problems with that-It wasn’t running properly and it didn’t fit myself and the 6 kiddos that I have at home. I had NO money for a downpayment on anything and NO money to fix the VW even if it was what I was going to have to drive. On the first day of the uncertainty/decision making the decision I made was to curl up on my bed, cry and take a nap. Hey, at least I made a decision! Day 2 is when the work began. 2 of the most beautiful, loving, hardworking friends you could ever ask for started asking me questions. Real questions, like-what do you owe on each vehicle?, what is the VW worth?, can you get any $ for a dowpayment?, what are you looking to drive?. You know, the stuff that makes you actually start tackling a problem and finding out what you can and can not do. Once I started gathering information I realized that I had the title to the VW and (as long as I could drive it to wherever I needed to get it to) I could trade it in. Then out came computers and Iphones and the search began. After looking and talking and visiting dealers, I came away with a 2010 Town & Country that seats 7, with a warranty that will keep my mind free of worry. I had someone by my side who knew all the things I do not and who offered moral support when I needed it.

As I signed a zillion papers the tears started to flow. I just bought a car! Me! In MY name and with all the things I decided were important to have for my kids. I am now completely responsible for this vehicle. It scared me and made me proud at the same time. One more step to knowing I’m ok-to knowing I can do what needs to be done and that I have a loving support system to hold my hand and pat my back and help me heal and be whole. It still chokes me up! How did I get to be 40 yrs old, have 9 children and not know what I was capable of? I am thankful EVERY day for all the beautiful, strong, encouraging people who surround me each day and have helped me lay the stepping stones on this path I’m walking.

With faith, love and trust I will continue to find out that I am strong, whole and entirely capable of all that needs to be done to get my children successfully into adulthood and myself into living the life ahead of me, fully!

Doing the Dance of the Children~

Oh what a weekend!

So here’s my story. Feel free to feel all the appropriate feelings as you read and don’t be afraid to laugh. I’m giving you this one, on me.

Many of you know that my life has changed quite a bit in the last 6 months (well, really in the last few years). I’ve moved from Pacific Beach, Ca. to Rocklin, Ca. and with that move came lots of other life changes. Divorce/single-parenting/money issues…

After finding this great house, getting my kids enrolled in school and embarking on my new routine and budget, I found out that the support I thought I was going to be raising the kids on was in serious jeopardy because their dad was no longer working. I decided to become a Silpada Designs Rep to help keep us afloat. It was the one company I knew I could get behind since I’d been wearing their jewelry and watching the effect it has on people for the last 5 years. So I sent out emails and FB messages to let people know that this was what I was doing and why and I started booking parties. Yea!

This weekend I had my first 2 parties. I studied up, asked questions, attended some training and was ready to bring some fabulous jewelry to some awesome ladies!

Saturday morning I got the kids all packed up and ready to go with their dad, as I would be away and busy for the weekend. When he showed up, we switched vehicles (whichever parent has the kiddos needs the van to accommodate them) and I quickly realized I was left with NO gas. Off to the gas station I went. And here’s where the real story begins…

I slid my card and it was declined. I slid my other card and again, declined. I rummaged through my purse, came up with $10 and a $5 Safeway gift card. On $15 of gas and a prayer, I embarked on the journey from Rocklin to Oakland to try to make some money. I took off and was hopeful. No, I take that back-I was confident I would make it! I turned on the music and started driving. All was good for the 1st hour then I realized I was getting L-O-W. I was driving and older vehicle and began to wonder if it had a gas light or if I would simply run out of gas without warning. I started brainstorming. The best I could come up with was that I have roadside assistance and if/when I truly ran out of gas, I could call them. After a few moments I decided that if this was my BEST plan that I better decide I had NO plan! Who wants to run out of gas, pray your way to the side of the freeway and wait for an hour or so for help?! No good! It was about this time that I got my answer to the light question. Yep! It had a gas light and that light was now on. I stayed as calm as I could and realized I had no option (other than the roadside one) but to call my hostess and tell her what was happening. Ugh! Thank goodness she’s one of my oldest friends and while I’m sure she was annoyed, she would have an idea or a solution.

I dialed, she said “hello?” and I lost it! LOST IT! She asked where I was and told me what exit to try to make it to and that she’d meet me. That FABULOUS friend drove 20 minutes to meet me, put some gas in my car and give me the hug I needed.

She ended up having a GREAT party and earning nearly $300 in FREE jewelry! Thank goodness! I did, in fact make a little money and had no trouble getting home. But wow! What a beginning! I was so shook up that I gave every person the wrong part of their receipt and had to make phone calls letting them know I’d had an “off” day and needed their card info again. Geesh!

So, here’s to humble beginnings, being able to laugh at yourself and to being thankful for the beautiful people in my life.

To Life~

Seattle in January, with all it’s grey gloom, didn’t detour my friend, Pilar, and I from having a FANTASTIC Girls Weekend!

Back in November, Pilar’s husband contacted me and asked if I would be interested in coming for a weekend of relaxation and visiting and to serve as Pilar’s Christmas present. YOU BET!!! I didn’t know exactly when the trip would take place, but I was up for working it out. This last weekend was it. Pilar booked us 2 nights at the Westin, Seattle (I should add, here, that Pilar’s a travel guru and she booked us a room through a discount site at an AMAZING rate!). A super, convenient location! We walked to everything we did. I have to admit that it was a weekend filled with TONS of wonderful foods. Good thing we were walking!

Pike’s Place-full of wonderful shops and restaurants!

We took advantage of the great cheeses, meats and other wonderful things to eat at DeLaurenti. We brought everything back to our room, opened some wine and feasted! Brad, our helpful cheese-monger pointed us to Maximilien for lunch.

We chose the Express Lunch. I had the salad and Pilar started with the onion soup. We both chose the mussels. Mine were in a white wine sauce and Pilar’s were seasoned with plenty of bacon.

I hadn’t had mussels (this way) before and started out a little hesitant, but soon tossed the utensils aside and got in there with my hands. YUM!

Pilar and I, enjoying our Creme Brulee

After lunch we walked around and I noticed the gum wall. Ick! But since I was chewing gum, I decided to add to the attraction.

There it is-my gum, forever immortalized!

Before we went back to the room, we stopped in at Serious Pie, were we had eaten the night before. We NEEDED to add their Kale Salad to our evening’s menu. If you ever get the chance to drop in there, be sure to have this salad! DELICIOUS! We actually tried to replicate it at home, the following night (yup! 3 nights of Kale Salad! I’ll post our version of the recipe soon).

Just check out that beautiful Festival of Foods! We had no knife, so in true M.O.M. improvising fashion, I washed the nail file and we used it for the cheese. We also used the glass table top, on the bed, as our table. Good Stuff!

A great weekend! Being Pilar’s Christmas present is a job I’d take on ANY time!

Now it’s back to real life and Doing the Dance of the Children. You can bet I’ll be adding a Kale Salad to it~

What a day!

I wanted to share my thoughts even though they don’t seem to have a common thread-

What amazing people I have in my life! People who take time and give of themselves simply because it makes life easier for others and “why not” share what you can. Each day I give thanks for the beautiful example of such people, who help me see the ease of giving of one’s self.
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I don’t the know the plan for this hectic, busy and very full life of mine, but I trust that there IS a plan and that I only need to focus on today and leave the rest up to each day and what God has laid out.
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Sitting at Costa Brava with my sister and my oldest son is a really, really great way to spend an hour or two!
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I LOVED meeting Bonnie of The Shape of a Mother and sharing in an afternoon with her and some other great ladies! May all meetings with new people feel so comfortable!
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I’m pretty sure I made some new friends tonight when I handed over the rest of my pitcher of sangria. I felt done and really didn’t want it to go to waste. The table next to me promised it wouldn’t
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The kiddos and I are enjoying this video so much! I hope you do too~

Doing the Dance of the Children…With My Hands~

What a full day!

The kids woke up early and were anxious to get on their costumes and get to school for the carnival. I ended up with 4 Sailor Scouts, Superman, a Mad Scientist and Mark Surge-A Lego Hero Factory Character and I was Minnie Mouse.

Everyone had a great and tiring time at the carnival and I want to say THANK YOU to our good friend, Maria for making the girls’ costumes! Over the years, she’s made so many costumes and dresses for my kids that she deserves a public round of applause!

My high schoolers collaborated with friends and they dressed the part of the Sailor Scouts and Tuxedo Mask, from Sailor Moon.

Everyone was so cute!

When I left the preschool carnival and took Luke-Xavier over to the big carnival at the main school, I started to look around for Gabi. I wondered if she’d be ok, wandering around and checking out all the booths. All the kindergartners were over there, but I was just nervous that she may not find what she wanted to do, or know to go get her drink and snack, etc. After I stood in line with Luke-Xavier for a few games, I finally saw Gabi. She was with Tristan (my 5th grader) and a couple of his friends. Tristan was holding her gloves and goodie bag for her and they were all making sure she had gotten her snack and that she was having fun at all the games. I was so impressed and proud! These 11 yr old boys were kindly helping a 6 yr old girl and when they saw me, they didn’t run over and ask me to please take her, because they’d been taking her and could they please just go around together now and not have her tagging along! It was one of those parenting moments where you know your kids are going to be ok. That somehow all the times you’ve gotten after them for being mean to each other or not helping each other have actually made an impression on how they think. Not once did Gabi come looking for me or did the boys walk away from her! Everyone had a great time.
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After we got back from the carnival and picking up the high schoolers, I asked if I could, please lie down for 1/2 an hour. About 10 minutes into my rest came *knock, knock, knock*. It was Gabi. Very calmly, she said, “Lex is playing with fire”. When I opened the bedroom door, I could smell that something was burning (or had been burnt). Sure enough, there was paper on the floor that was completely blackened and there was a scorch mark on the floor! I told Gabi that this was EXACTLY the right time to tattle!

I had a talk with Lex and this was his 4 year old thinking-”I caught the paper on fire and I tried to blow it out, but it kept coming. So I thought I needed water, but I couldn’t reach it and I knew I needed to yell out for an adult, but I thought I’d get in trouble”. I pointed out that he ended up in trouble anyway and that whenever there’s trouble or something scary that he needs to “yell out” for someone.

Scary!

Doing the Dance of the Children and Feeling Proud of Gabi and Tristan’s Decisions~

I have a few days of catching up to do!

I finally got over the stomach bug that kept me in bed for most of 2 days and so far, none of the kiddos have gotten it (uttering another silent prayer that they don’t). I headed back to work on Wednesday. I don’t know where I got the bug or exactly what it was, but I haven’t been that sick, that I can remember. It’s probably just that it hit me in my decaying, aging state

Yesterday I celebrated my 39th birthday. A week ago I jokingly said to Mariah that the very last birthday that I would ever celebrate was coming up. She ran with it

What a great day! I was treated to lunch by a good friend, who later, showed up at my door with a homemade chocolate cake!

My girls bought dinner for themselves and the lil kiddos so that I didn’t have to cook

And my brother took me to sushi for dinner.

When I got home, we cut into those cakes and there were some thoughtful gifts waiting for me.

Sylvester Stallone AND Rod Stewart! Now THAT’S good stuff!

I can’t forget to mention how nice it was to open the mailbox and find an unexpected bday card from a friend and M.O.M. follower that held my favorite, local chocolate!

Unexpected surprises are the best!

So, today, it’s back to reality. But it sure was nice to be treated so royally!

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Today is the second day of celebrating the Teddy Bear Picnic with the preschoolers. They each bring in their favorite teddy bear or stuffed animal and we have a lil picnic at snack time. They’re so adorable and it passes so quickly! I can easily remember when Tristan (now in 5th grade) was having his Teddy Bear Picnic! Now it’s Lex’s turn

We do most of our preschool celebrations twice, once for the M-W-F kiddos and once for the T-Th kiddos. That means that the lil ones who come everyday get 2 celebrations. This was Lex, yesterday.

Adorable!

Ok, on with the regular routine. Many thanks to everyone who helped make my birthday a lil step out of the normal Dance. Now it’s back to Doing the Dance of the Children and hoping to keep up with the music~

Today was full of writing, but I realized that none of it actually covered the busyness that’s happening within these walls.

All this week we are making sure to have “spread out” dinners, which means that everyone is sitting together and eating together while all the food is “spread out” on the table. The extra effort to get everyone together is because it’s nearing the end of the summer, Kateri is leaving for school in a week and a half and she has a visitor for the next week. This has sparked us to open the door, set the table and have meals for 12-14 people each night. Unfortunately JJ isn’t here to enjoy them with us. He left for France, yesterday morning. He’ll be working for a family for the next 3 weeks and then traveling to Portugal to visit with my sister. There’s a possibility that he’ll be able to visit Italy and/or Germany, as well.

On top of the full dinner table, we are having to prepare for Mariah to get her license, everyone to go back to school and 2 other big changes that I haven’t discussed yet, but that you’ll here about soon.

Gosh I’m tired! There is WAY too much going on and WAY too much to think about!

But for tonight I’m going to sign off, go pick Mariah up from work and get some rest. That alarm rings pretty early each day so that I can try to stay healthy and energetic enough to keep it all happenin’.

Doing the Dance of the Children~

I thought about putting up more pics from the last couple of days, but do you REALLY need to see the kids swimming in another pool?

It’s been beautiful this whole trip. I’m glad I placed my order for some San Diego weather early enough to have it filled! We’ve been outside in the water and sun everyday. The kiddos are getting properly tanned and we’re visiting many a pool or body of water. I know that when I get home I’d like to keep up the momentum of going, going, going, but I’m sure there’s plenty of undone housework and plenty of “real life” to keep me from loading everyone up and forgetting all that needs to be done, to sit at the pool or the beach. But you can bet I’m sure gonna try!

Over the last few days, I’ve come to remember how much driving it takes to be up here. Everything is so far apart. It’s nothing to drive 15 or 20 miles to get to a Costco or a friend’s house. I’ve been spoiled by the ease of proximity that we tend to enjoy in the San Diego area. Yesterday alone I put 123 miles on my car! It was well worth it though. I got to drive through beautiful places and remember some of my youth. I truly forgot how much a part of me these places are. It’s been so good to have this long of a visit to reexplore and revisit.

But I AM feeling ready to head home. I’m missing my older kids. I’ll only be home for a few hours before JJ leaves for the airport for a trip to France, where he will be working for a family to introduce English to their children and then onto Portugal, where he’ll visit with my sister and do a little sightseeing. ~sigh~ I’ll barely see him at all, but I’m thrilled at his opportunity to take this trip! The kids are all missing each other too. There’s something to be said for sibling dynamics-the good, the bad and the familiar.

I’m getting a little time to myself to sit in a book store, enjoy the quiet, do a little writing and know that the lil kiddos are getting some rare time with their grandparents. I’m gonna soak up this quiet time and try to store it away for when I need it on the drive home. I’m a firm believer in grabbing moments and storing them away to draw from when you need a good or peaceful memory.

Here’s to a great vacation. Here’s to family and friends. Here’s to home~

Instead of writing a lengthy post about all we’ve done and the great people who have shared their time, homes and meals with us, I’ll tell the story of the last couple of days in pictures.

Jen and I had a birthday lunch at one of my favorite places in Old Town Auburn

We were invited to spend the afternoon at this beautiful pool with one of my closest friends from high school and her daughter.

At my Aunt and Uncle’s house the kids felt right at home. Gabi found a story doll and told us all the story of Little Red Riding Hood

There were lots of animals for the kids to “love”

Lex chased chickens. It not everyday a Lil Beach-Goer gets to even SEE chickens, let alone catch them! The boys loved it!

Then there were the goats! They spent plenty of time feeding and riding them. These kiddos smelled like livestock by the end of the evening. They couldn’t have been happier!

The boys, heading off to the water slide at the Roseville Aquatic Center

Lex and Alex have been so cute playing together. We’ve found them quietly in the sandbox or making up games. They enjoyed the Aquatic Center together.

Gabi’s been surrounded by boys this whole trip. She’s done a great job of just going along with the boy’s games and getting along with everyone (ok, there have been a few instances of girlyness with her brothers. But mostly she’s done really well).

It’s been a great trip! Today I get to visit with one of my closest friends from school and to meet her children. It’s been so nice to visit with people I shared parts of my life with and to watch our children play together. Today we’ll visit another new pool and soak up some more sun while catching up on the lives of the people who I’ve been away from for so long. Living the life of the Military Family has really kept me away from so many people. Along the way I’ve gotten to meet so many wonderful people who I hope to keep close to, but it’s really good to go “home” for a little bit and to share it with my kids.

Doing the Dance of the Children~

The long weekend is over. Back to the regular routine. I have to admit that I’m SO ready for summer to be here. It seems weird that 2 of my kids have finished up their school years, but that the rest are still at it. Now that Kateri has returned from Gaming, JJ has graduated and is on his European, biking trek, one sister has moved to San Diego and I got to have a weekend of visiting family and friends, I’m ready to forget the daily grind and move into bbq and beach mode. Soon! But before that can happen I have to finish up all the details for my 2, 8th grade graduates. The rest of this week will be a frenzy of memory-board building. I better make sure my printer is full of ink and that my scanner is ready to work overtime.

I hope you each enjoyed the long weekend. I know we did!

Now, back to Doing the Dance of the Children~

There are simply too many topics to write about over the last 24 hours, to pick one and give it a title. So here is what’s in my head on this day in my life.

First off, I’m wishing that writing didn’t take time. Why can’t I just think the thoughts, look at the screen and have them appear…wait…that might be a dangerous invention! But you know what I meant.

As for JJ getting back to school, all is well. He will be going back to school on Saturday and no hoops had to be jumped through or begging done to make it happen. There might, possibly, be a chance that I need to clean out my email and that I could’ve been looking at last year’s itinerary. But that’s neither here nor there and I’m admitting nothing. He’ll be back at school when he’s supposed to be and that’s all that matters…right?

I was also able to get his passport taken care of yesterday. It was completely painless and devoid of any lengthy or time-consuming lines. 20 minutes in and out. Pictures done. Eyes on Spain!

When I got home from the post office, I checked my email and found an email from the casting director of a new game show, asking me if I could come up to LA for an audition this afternoon. Initially I was SUPER excited. Super Excited! I thought, “how fun!” and “whoa!!!! I already took tomorrow off and Kateri is here to do the kids’ routine and dinner etc. Yippee! Perfect!”. Then I shared my excitement for a day trip up to LA with a couple of friends and received an email from one of them, who had Google-searched the show, that put an end to my excitement. One word, that’s all it took. Underwear. Underwear?! Underwear! Apparently the title of the first attempt of this game show is/was Fashion Strip and involved participants stripping down to their underwear, putting together outfits from items on stage and walking a “runway”. Uh….!!!!! I promptly emailed the casting director and asked if THIS was what I was being invited to audition for. And I let her know that the world was certainly NOT going to see me in my underwear, no matter how fashionable…ever! She was prompt in her response and said that the show had changed it’s platform and that no “nakedness” would be involved. Hmmm…the bubble had burst. Yes, I had already taken today off for other reasons and yes, Kateri is here to pick up the pieces and keep everything running at maximum smoothness, but I think there are better ways for me to spend this day than driving to LA to audition for something that I don’t have all the facts for.

So…it’s Kateri’s last day in the US before she heads back to Germany to retrieve her personal items and then head to Austria for a semester of school. We’ve both been so busy during her visit, that we haven’t gotten any down time together. So, kiddos are at school, JJ is working on some reading and helping a neighbor with her yard work, so Kateri and I will be spending a little time together before tomorrow is here and she is gone again.

So, that’s this day in my life…so far.

Have a great day~

Day 1 of the new year ended on a good note. I was a little worried because the day, itself, was a little challenging. I took the 3 youngest kiddos to the grocery store with me to help get a few needed items. When we got back they helped me unload. We have a refrigerator in the garage and I keep extra milk, bread, eggs, etc. out there. While loading gallons of milk into the fridge, one fell out and busted open on the garage floor. Milk flew everywhere! I spent the next 1 1/2 hours removing and cleaning boxes, moving the refrigerator and cleaning under it and hosing down the driveway. ~sigh~ on a good note, the floor of the garage is cleaner than it ever thought it could be!

The rest of the day was spent putting away the Christmas decor and putting the regular decor back up. Then I started prepping for dinner and the men and boys went to a friend’s house for the football game. While I was working in the kitchen I saw someone walk up to my door. What a surprise! Two of Clay’s longtime friends who live in N. Cal. decided to surprise him (and all of us) by just showing up! I sent them over to where the guys were watching football. What a great surprise for everyone and what great friends!

We had a full house for dinner with all the kiddos home, my brother and the 2 surprise guests. It made for a really nice night! Over the years I’ve found that my house feels most joyful and peaceful when it’s filled with extra people. There’s nothing better than looking around and seeing people enjoying each other’s company! It made for a GREAT first day of the year!
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Today-Today is the 2nd annual Mom and Girls Day Out. Last year I took my 4 oldest girls (at 4yrs old, I didn’t think Gabi would mind being left at home) and we headed to San Clemente and Dana Point for the day. It was a great and memorable day. We’ve decided to make it an annual event and this year Gabi’s going with us. We haven’t decided where to go-back to San Clemente or stay here in San Diego and enjoy all it has to offer-but wherever we end up, I know it’s going to be a great day!

Have a great day~

On the last day of 2009 I got up and started the day as usual. I made the coffee, did the dishes, switched the laundry and took my shower. All the while I kept thinking about the year whose last moments I was living in. There were many changes that took place in our home and in our routine. The kids have all gotten bigger and grown in many ways-sports, schooling, attitude, etc.

Then I thought of all the people who have been a part of the year and who have stepped forward in so many ways that have touched and enhanced my life and the life of the kiddos. Wow! What a lucky M.O.M. I am! Anytime a specific need has arisen, someone comes into our lives to fill it.

So I put 2009 to rest with peaceful thoughts of the year.

Here’s 2010! There’s always so much pressure to have your resolution list ready and to wake up in the first moments of the new year ready to tackle them all. It always feels overwhelming. Yes, there are things I want to change and to do better in this new year. But I also want to keep doing a lot of things exactly the same. There are also things I want to get back to. Now that I’ve got a handle on working outside the house again, I want to find the time and energy to start recording the show again. I’m putting this as my #1 goal for the new year. So, more gym time can wait and so can all the other things we “normally” put on those resolution lists. I’m pushing for 2010 to be the start of “getting back to” the things I’ve loved doing.

Here’s to another year of watching our children grow and of learning the strategies that make each day as joyful and peaceful as possible!

Good morning 2010~

Some days there’s so much to talk about that I end up saying nothing because I just don’t know where to start. I was just going to walk away from the computer without saying a word for that very reason. But really, there’s just so much these days!

I’m facing the fact that I’m getting older. This means that all the people I’ve grown up with are also getting older which, in turn, means that all of our parents are getting older. This means that many of them are facing health concerns, ailments, illness and even death. It feels like it’s happening all at once. On the one hand, it’s scary and sad and on the other hand, it’s bringing people closer together. I know that 20 years ago when we were all meeting at friend’s houses for movies, games and visiting that we didn’t think of this time. But here it is and it’s bringing us back into each other’s lives. It’s also giving me a reminder of how important friendship and love are and all the people we bring into our lives who we treasure and cherish. We are all born into families, but we also end up building another family around ourselves that’s made up of all those people who touch our life. I had 3 really nice phone calls tonight that refreshed my memory of all of this.

It’s a shame that our days get so filled with daily life, worry and work that we forget to truly live each one. And that we get so complacent that we forget to tell those around us that we appreciate and love them.

Here’s to another day full of life and loved ones!

Good night~

This day, this day. What a day. Ever had one that is just wrong from the moment you get going until you just, plain call is quits?

We are driving Mariah to her carpool each morning, which means we leave the house at 7 am. This is a huge task! We normally leave at 7:30 and none of us has adjusted well to the loss of 1/2 an hour. Today, there was much dragging of feet, forgetting to brush teeth and losing of shoes. We left 10 minutes late and with no shoes for Tristan. I really didn’t have a plan for how that was all gonna work itself out. We started to drive to meet her carpool and called along the way. Yep, missed them! Through clenched teeth I said that I’d make some phone calls, focus on getting Tristan some shoes and figure it all out. I called work to let them know I would get the majority of the kiddos to the school they go to and that I work at and then would have to drive Mariah up to her school. I then made a call to see if a pair of shoes might be able to meet Tristan at school. No dice! I headed to Target…it was 7:30 am and they don’t open until 8. AHHHHHHH! I made another call in hopes of shoes meeting Tristan at school. BINGO! Ok, off to the school. Mariah was offered a ride, albeit late, to school, from the school we were heading to. Big breath! This just may all work out.

After much discussion, we decided that Mariah would stay with me and help out in the preschool because getting to school late, on a short day of testing, really wouldn’t serve any purpose. So…extra hands at school today. This actually worked out very well. Mariah is truly wonderful with preschoolers. Who knew?!

Oh…the shoes! We were, graciously, met in the school parking lot, with a perfect-fitting pair of shoes for Tristan.

After making it through the preschool day (one potty accident on Lex’s part) I took Mariah to a sushi lunch and then headed to the grocery store. My basket was full when my phone rang…preschool was calling…another potty accident for Lex and even though there were extra clothes available, he had no extra shoes to replace the pee-soaked ones he was now wearing. Off I went to the preschool to pick up Gabi and Lex, bring them home and then head back to get the other kids, after volleyball practice. Weeeeeeee!

On my way, I received another phone call. This time it was a friend letting me know that a dear woman, who I’ve loved and admired for her strength, faith, compassion and love had passed away. Whew….! The story behind this is a blog unto itself and when I find the right words, I will write it. But needless to say, I had an emotional rest of the day.

So, here I am, counting my blessings and reflecting on the people who have touched my life and the precious moments that are within each day…even the challenging ones. I’m taking a big breath, having a glass of wine and being thankful for all that I got to live today.

Live!

Good night~