Three Day Weekends

For several years, our weekends were all organized in exactly the same manner. I had the luxury of only having to go to the office four days a week, so I essentially had a three day weekend each week. On the weekends, I spent one day running errands, one day cleaning the house, and one day actually doing something fun with the family. This worked well for us and helped us juggle life with three, and then four, kids.

Only that schedule has been shot to hell for the past 18ish months. Work got hectic. Ree started taking dance on Saturdays. Work got really hectic, and suddenly I was down two day weekends every week like a mere mortal. I still spent a day running errands, partly because it needed to get done and partly because I enjoyed it, and I still spent a day with my family because that's incredibly important to me. But that left no time for cleaning.

This weekend, however, I got a three day weekend, and the old formula was right back in action! Saturday was errand day. The kids "slept in" until 5:15 (which was much more pleasant than Friday morning's 4:40 wake up call. It wasn't even light yet!). I managed to work out, shower, make chocolate chip pancakes with strawberries (soooo good!), and I still had all four kids out the door by 8:05 to run errands. We went to Trader Joe's and Target and only had one major meltdown. At Target Natalia spotted a purple carton of soymilk and decided she needed it. Only no one in our family drinks soy milk. So she then spent three aisles wailing about her purple milk. Despite that little kink, all went well with our plans, and we were home by 10:15. Thankfully, after the hectic start, the day was quite calm and relaxing. I took Ree to dance and killed time reading outside by a Starbucks and shopping while she was in class. It was lovely. Made lunch. The kids refused to nap, so we got to spend a good chunk of the afternoon outside. We were out long enough that Max got to play two rounds of fetch. Made dinner. Watched a movie with Jeff. It was good.

Sunday was the family day. We headed out to the beach bright and early, and we were grateful for our motivation, since the lot where we usually park was almost full when we arrived at 8:30. We met up with the family of a friend from work as well as a family from preschool. We also saw two other families we know. (Hence the very full parking lot!) We had a great time, and, most importantly, wore all the kids out. We grabbed Wendy's on the way home, and by 1:00pm, Ree was the only person left awake in our house. Jeff, the kids, the dogs, and I were all passed out. It was great. But the fun didn't stop there - Sunday night we headed out to the house of another family from preschool. We went swimming and ate dinner and had a good ol' time.

So that meant today was cleaning today. And I was ready! Given that the house is a complete and utter disaster, I went into cleaning time with no agenda. That would only be setting myself up for failure when I accomplished less than 10 percent of whatever insane list of cleaning projects I conjured. Jeff took the kids outside, so I actually got to clean without "helpers." I cranked up Led Zeppelin I to motivate me and hopefully rattle some dirt off the windows, and I headed toward the area currently known as "the sleep room." This is where Leon, Mike, and Natalia currently keep their beds, and the sheets on said beds really, really, really needed to be changed.

It quickly turned into a runaway project that went far beyond stripping the beds. Led Zep I complete, I moved on to Led Zep II, and I still had a long way to go. (And, yes, I was listening to albums. In their entirety. I am pretty sure there are laws against such madness these days, and I don't mind breaking them on occasion.) I should also add the kids don't keep any toys in this room. It's just their beds, their stuffed animals, and some books. Yet is somehow took me an hour and a half to get the place cleaned up. When I was done the sheets were clean, the blankets were straightened, a mountain of dog fur and dirt was removed from the floors, and the room looked essentially exactly the same as when I started. I hate it when that happens.

I had just commented on this to Jeff when Mike saw the sleep room. He came running back to where I was and said, "Mom! You made the room grow!" (Love him! Such great book smarts, so little common sense.) I had managed to rotate an area rug in the process of cleaning. Apparently that made all the difference in the world. Natalia was also awed by her "new" space.

Given the results of today's cleaning binge, I'm almost looking forward to future cleaning projects. First goal is to clean up my schedule and try to find some more three day weekends so they can happen.

Mother's Day

Mother's Day was pretty quiet at our house. If anything, we did even less than usual. I spent the weekend attempting to get caught up on work projects, and was mostly just a grouchy pants until I finished.

Anywho, so we didn't do a ton. I received a Panera gift card as part of an early Mother's Day present from my parents, and it was burning a hole in my pocket, so we picked up bagels for breakfast, and the kids and I gorged ourselves on bagels and fruit. Michael liked the breakfast so much he wanted to have it again for Father's Day. I had to kindly point out the one person not indulging in the carb and sugar fest was his father.

Natalia did not let the day go unnoticed, though. At one point she turned to Jeff and announced, "Happy Mother's Day, Dad!" She tries...

We did manage to go strawberry picking yesterday afternoon. There is a berry farm next to our neighborhood, and yes, we know we are spoiled. It was actually the first time out for the season, and the kids were really excited to go.

Despite the look on my little BFF's face, she really was happy to be there. I think her big sister has just convinced here that photos are not cool.

And, in case there was any doubt, we were picking STRAWBERRIES!

They also sell homemade ice cream, and, of course, we had to stop for some after we got done picking berries. After that, we headed to the green house where I got some plants for our little herb garden. Most years we have a nice collection of herbs growing on our front porch, but last year they never really took off. I think the problems were that I planted too late and I was trying to grow from seeds. (We will completely ignore the fact that I may have forgotten to water them or find the right light for each plant.) However, we do have a chive plant that has no idea it is supposed to be an annual, and it is about four years old. Ree and Natalia like to snack on chives, and Natalia often helps herself to a chive on the way to and from the car. They happened to have chives at the nursery, and as she walked by, Natalia picked one and began eating it. She had no idea that wasn't normal behavior when one saw chives. I actually felt kinda bad telling her that it wasn't actually a buffet.

We did not buy any more chive plants, but we did come home with a purple basil plant, cilantro, parsley, and (I think) spearmint. We never seem to eat mint, but the kids love to grow it, and it smells good. After berry picking, the kids were tired, and the three stooges all took naps. While they slept, I worked. I got done, consequently turned into a (semi) normal human being again, and I even had some time to read a chapter of Harry Potter to Ree before the usual chaos erupted again. We had a good dinner, and then everyone pigged out on strawberries before falling into bed. I guess sometimes regular ol' days make for great Mother's Days.