Random Liam

Last week I woke up to Liam standing by the side of my bed saying "Mom, I'm really sorry I did this, but..."  Yeah, not a good way to wake up.  He told me he tried to microwave a muffin so it "could be chewy".  He put it in the microwave for 3 minutes.  Black smoke came billowing out and permeated throughout my whole house.  I took him to school, took Erin to school and rented a carpet cleaner.  I cleaned  the floors, walls, counters, everything.  It was early spring cleaning at my house.  I lit candles, I baked cookies, I made a fragrant dinner, Nothing helped.  I did get some Glade plug-ins, and it helped a little.  I can still smell it.  Especially in the stairway.  It is a lot better than it was though.  So because of Liam, we are the owners of a new microwave.  I told him he owes us two microwaves, since this is the second one he broke...he laughed.  The first one he pulled down off our microwave cart while he was trying to climb up.  Luckily, he didn't get hurt.

Here is a conversation I had with Liam in the car on the way to his eye appointment yesterday.
Liam: Mom, where's Mount Everest?
Me:  Nepal, do you know where that is?
L: No.
M: Do you know where India is?
L: Nope.
M: China?
L:  Oh yeah!
M: Well, it's kind of by China.
L:  Oh...I think I would like to climb it one day.
M:  That would be good.  You know, you'll need Oxygen for that.  You can't breathe very good that high up.
L:  That would be okay...Mom?  Is it above the clouds?
M: Yes.  It's really high
L:  Where are the clouds? Are they in the middle of space and Earth?
M: No, they're in Earth's atmosphere.  They keep moisture in so it can rain remember?
L:  Oh yeah.  Mom?  Are there any clouds in space?
M:  Nope, there's nothing in space.  Just cold, darkness.
L: Why?
M: I'm not sure.
L:  Mom, is Pluto a planet?
M: Not anymore.  The scientists decided it was too little to be a planet remember.
L:  Pluto was my favorite planet mom.
M:  I know.  Sorry bud.  Maybe it will be a planet again one day.
L:  What is the smallest planet now mom?
M:  Um...I don't know, maybe Mercury or Venus would be my guess.
L: Is Mercury really hot mom?
M:  Yup, because it's right by the sun.
L:  How about Venus?
M:  Actually, Venus is hotter than Mercury because it has clouds that trap the heat inside the planet and it can't get out so it just gets hotter and hotter.
L:  Oh...What's the next planet mom?
M: Earth.
L: And we're not too hot or too cold.  Heavenly Father did a good job mom.
M:  He sure did.  Aren't you glad to have the seasons?
L:  Yeah.  Mom?  If our atmosphere is filled with Oxygen and other stuff, is Oxygen blue?
M:  I don't think so, but I don't know.  Why?
L:  Well, our sky is blue.  Why is the sky blue mom?
M: (Explanation of light particles reflecting blue, etc.)
L:  Mom?  I'm going to make a mountain one day and name it Big Grassy Mountain because it will have grass all over it and you can roll all the way down it.
M:  Cool bud.  That sounds fun.
L:  Mom?  I'm going to go back to my imagination now okay? 

Speaking of his eye appointment, he is DONE with the patch!!  Hooray and Yippee and Woo Hoo!!  Good job buddy.  It took three years, but we're done.  Way to stick with it.  I told him we could have a patch burning party.  He's pretty excited.

Sigh

I am in a funk.  I have so, so much to do and zero desire to do any of it.  I need to clean my house, do my laundry, cut squares out for a quilt, clean out the van, exercise, drop kids off, pick kids up, get treats for school, manage Liam's star of the week stuff, do homework, feed family...(three times a day, I mean really?  Why can't they eat just once a day.  So much easier!)  Feed the baby, change the baby, make sure baby is happy, stop fights, teach kids to pick up, be kind, not fight, play nicely, touch gently, make bed, clean bathroom, do dishes, get dressed, do hair, makeup, try and be cute (sort of given up on that lately), make dinner, go shopping, remind husband to pay hospital bills, sign letters, fax letters, dress kids, take Liam to eye appointment, take Reagan to shots appointment, etc.  And then it starts over tomorrow.  So, my question is, how do you do it?  I feel like I am barely treading water (and half drowning at that) and I don't have anything extra.  Just the basic stuff to do.  I don't have any huge trials, just my mundane little ones, (which, I am thankful for). I have always, always had a hard time justifying myself to the Lord.  I even have a hard time even going to Him with my problems because they seem so very insignificant compared to the trials of others.  I know all the pat answers that my problems matter to Him just as much as anyone else's, blah, blah, but I can't make myself believe it.  I know everyone is hurting and everyone is having trials of their own, so I feel like I need to buck up and carry on.  How do I get out of my hole and take care of myself, let alone others as I am commissioned to do?  My sweet mother-in-law takes my children once a week so we can go to a standing appointment we have, but that eats me up with guilt.  They are my kids, I should be taking care of them and not pawning them off on my family.  I should be this and I should be that...when can I accept myself for what I am?  I will keep searching for my answer and tomorrow will be a better day.

He's Three!

Owen turned 3 last month.  Happy Birthday to my little guy!  I asked what kind of cake he wanted and he decided on a "bird one".  I found a cute cut out cake for a duck, showed it to him, he liked it, so we went with that one.  He decided he wanted a "green bird one", thus, we had a gangrenous duck cake for his 3rd birthday.  He was excited all day and whenever someone would tell him Happy Birthday, he would tell the person Happy Birthday back.  He didn't quite get that it was just his day.

 

 See how happy he was.  This is the best normal smile I got.  The rest were just cheese!

  

Our lovely duck cakes.

 

See what I mean about the cheese?

 

Happy Birthday my cute buddy.  He's such a snuggler and loves to be hugged and loved.  He has one volume...loud.  He is going, going, going from the moment he gets up in the morning to the minute he falls asleep at night.  Always busy, always something to do.  He loves his little sister Reagie (though, he's starting to call her Reagan now, kind of sad.), his big sister "N" and his big brother "ee-um".  He and Erin are quite a pair when they are getting along.  They play so fun together.  He told me this morning that he loves me the best.  I said "You'll always love me the best huh, and not any silly girls?"  He said "Yeah, mom."  You heard it here.  A promise is a promise, right??  Love you buddy!

Three down...one to go.

Owen is potty trained!!  Hoo to the Ray!  I think Heavenly Father knew I couldn't handle one more thing and so He whispered to Owen that he needed to train himself, because that's what happened.  One day he just decided to do it.  He's trained through the night and everything.  Yay for my little boy.  He's getting too old.  We just had him the other day right?  Now he's 3.  Pics of the party yet to come.