Chilly Days

It's getting late...the sun is tucked away beneath a dark sequined blanket...voices that were once loud with laughter are now turned down to low whispers and heavy breathing...sweet breathing rhythm of sleepy babies. Stillness....hushed...relaxation....all of those wonderful words that bring a sense of calm when thought of. I was lying in our tent today (Zac set it up in the back yard) and I was remembering all of the times I had gone on camping trips with the dorm...and how in the mornings you would wake to sunshine and a bird's songs...the scent of eggs being scrambled over an open fire and coffee hot and bubbly in the percolator. It felt like I was there for just a moment or two...the present not existing and just being in the past...and then a giggling little girl woke me up from my daydream with a "come get me mommy!"

The beautiful days of fall - roasting marshmallows in our fireplace - Brady is finally old enough to be trusted *alone* with the stick. He's so funny, anytime you tell him that he can't do something or shouldn't do something he says "when I a big man i can." The other day we were discussing how we shouldn't scream at one another and he told me "when I a big man I will scream at my kids." I just looked shocked at him and said "oh no Brady, no one should scream at another person. Not boys or girls, not mommys and daddys....no one." He just looked pensive and I could tell that he wrapping his brain around the concept that just because we are big doesn't mean we can do whatever we want. :)

We've been baking a lot around here. I'm finally getting *with it* since Tristan was born and have started me calenders....chore chart, meal plan, ect. Funny how it has taken me 4 months to get back in the swing of things. I'm sure there have been many wasted dollars and many wasted hours while I was doing without my routine...I STRIVE on structure folks...simply just have to have it. So now proudly pinned to my refrigerator is a calender with chores marked for different days, a separate calender to plan the weeks menu...pretty soon I will be making chore charts for the kids that they can place stickers next to finished tasks - I'm excited! I also have my "list" on the fridge...you know...who I need to buy a Christmas gift for, what I should mail on certain days...what I need to begin stocking in the pantry for holiday baking...I love those kind's of lists. I'm excited about being with the Corleys this Christmas...and seeing my dear Kate(I always refer to her as *my dear*..I simply can't help it)and her hubby, and our Aunt Robin (I think Brady is expecting a bird to show up for Christmas dinner).

Sorry this picture is blurry but it's the only one I got of Brady sipping tea with me the other day. This time change thing has taken it's toll on us, so in order to pass away the hours before dinner we had a cup of tea and some freshly baked spice cookies. Brady loves to drink hot herbal teas. He has tea in his sippy cup every night before bed - probably has for about 2 months. He just loves it and I think it's so fun to have a kids that asks for a cup of tea in the evenings. :)

I love how the sun starts going down but it's still play time. It allows me to catch glimpses like this....sunshine on golden curls. Trin's hair brings me so much enjoyment I can't even start to explain it...I keep ALL pairs of scissors in this house far far away from her squirrel like hands...for fear that she might experiment someday on her pretty locks. I'm sure if that day ever comes I will cry for hours.....

I like how blurry this picture turned out. I like to think that it make a person sense "warmth" not just another picture of a smiling Alyssa. Have I said yet how much I will miss our yard when the day comes that we can sell (I say this with fingers crossed and a prayer in my heart) I love our cute home so much. Maybe tomorrow I can get some pictures of the kids in their tent...

On the list for tomorrow - Oatmeal for breakfast, coffee

Lunch will be tuna sandwiches and apple slices ( simple since I'll get home right around time to make lunch since I have Bible study)

Supper will be spaghetti and fresh bread...tomorrows *extra* chore will be doing the floors. Listen folks, it takes me all day everyday just to keep this place clean. The dishes, the beds, the endless number of strewn toys....the pools of pee...the dirty diapers...the meals needing to be prepared and then the kitchen to scrub....

More importantly, I remind myself daily - the faces to kiss, the songs to sing, the pictures to color, the volcanoes to be made (playdoh), the sippy cups to fill, the cookies to bake - usually just one extra chore is about all I can accomplish. :)