Longest Saturday Ever

Last Saturday was Awesome! It was as if there were hours on end to fill with activity upon activity. The day began with breakfast in bed, brought to Mike & I by our thoughtful boys (with a little help from us as we took turns leaving the bed to help get table trays, open Pancake & Sausage on a Stick wrappers, or fetch the syrup, and then obediently returning to the covers to await our meal).

Following a little wrestling on the bed, we all dressed and began our monthly family clean of the whole house (on most Saturdays, regular chores are the kids' only "Saturday Work," but once a month, thanks to the blessed motivationsl efforts of my dear husband, we can squeeze out them a little more help). We wrote four rooms & one free-time on slips of paper in a small container. We all worked in whatever room we drew for 15 minutes, then moved on to discover our next area to clean. Ethan & Alex (well, mostly Ethan) were willing & helpful from the beginning, but Andrew required a little more "encouragement." Mike acted out a phone call to Grandma Slade, explaining that Andrew may not be able to attend the scheduled Grandma Date that day, unless his attitude changed. (It may have been a stretch of the truth to fake the call, but if his attitude hadn't changed, Mike & I were agreed that a call to Grandma would indeed be made.) Luckily, with a little help from Simon & Garfunkel's song, "It's All Happening at the Zoo," Andrew decided to pitch-in witih the rest of us.

It felt so good to have a nicely clean house, that Mike & I were each inspired to complete other projects. I shuffled a few things on the shelves in the playroom so as to be able to fit my craft supplies in that closet - a project I began about 4 months ago & never finished. Mike researched & purchased the necessary materials to then build a compartment to house our various routers & modems for the computer. It's wonderful to have them all organized in one place now!

Andrew did indeed go with Grandma Slade to see the new movie "Alpha & Omega," along with his cousin, Jase. They got ice cream afterward and returned home around 2:30 p.m.

Alex went shopping with Mike & came back asleep. Ethan's friend, Brianna, called & came over to play. While the two of them were playing inside, I folded laundry & sorted through a pile of papers as I watched the movie "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" (It was okay, but nothing special & geared toward an audience older than my boys, yet younger than I. I did not appreciate the usage of the Lord's name in vain, however. I wish we had a TV Guardian.) While the two 4-year-olds were playing outside, I weeded much of my flowerbed in back & my "bushbed" in front.

Around 3 p.m., Mike & I ended our projects, sent Brianna with her sister who had come to retrieve her, and readied everyone for Andrew's soccer game. Andrew had escaped to his friend, Kyler's house, for the 1/2 hour between his movie date & game. I took a shower & then brought him home. And then we left. Oh, Mike also managed to squeeze in a quick mowing of the front yard, too - Alex was not to be disappointed!

Andrew's game went well. He's improving in his skill and interest in the game. He much prefers to be an offensive player, rather than a defender, but he's very good at getting the ball out of bounds to force a corner kick, as his coach has taught him to do. This game he did a better job of staying on his feet a little more. Last game he slid into every kick he made, putting his face about where every other player's feet were. Luckily, no injuries resulted.

After the game we returned home, threw Chicken Pot Pies in the microwave to have for dinner, along with bananas, yogurt, & carrots (so the picky ones could find something on the table they would eat). About the time we were going to sit down, Andrew's friend, Ethan B., called to remind him about the Late Night he had invited him to. I quickly ran him over there. Mike & Alex watched football, Ethan had some much needed alone time, & I called a friend, then spent some relaxing time on the computer, reading people's Facebook posts.

At 8 o'clock, we remembered that it was bath day, so Ethan & Alex were quickly washed before our regular bedtime routine. They were all settled into their jammies, with their teeth brushed & prayers said, when I left to pick up Andrew. He was very cooperative with getting right into bed, despite the amount of s'mores he'd eaten & games he'd played that had him rather hyped up!
Ahhh. With the kids settled into bed, Mike & I relaxed a little on our own & then watched a show together before turning-in ourselves. It had been a wonderfully productive & fun day!

A Good Day!

Yesterday was a good day! Mike and I had dentist appointments in the morning and we forgot to get a sitter for the kids, so they came along. They were pretty good, and the staff at the office was so great with them! I'm always so amazed at how well they remember us - right down to Alex's name! I wish I were better at remembering details about people!

When we came home, Mike got to work finishing up our tiling around the tub surround. (I can say "our" tiling, even when I didn't help with any of the tiling, because I help make it happen by keeping up with the kids and housework while Mike works!) I'm so glad we chose to pay the extra money for the decorative tile along the edge. It really adds a lot to the look!

As with all of our home improvements, Mike invited the boys to help with what they could. I'm so grateful for a man who is not only willing to learn how to do projects like this himself, but who also takes the time to pass what knowledge he can on to our children! And they love the time and attention he gives them!!

The last great thing that happened was the icing on the cake for me! It made whatever stressful moments I had endured throughout the day leave my mind as I celebrated this major acheivement!:

Ethan TRIED Taco Soup AND LIKED IT!!!

Now, I know it's my own fault that my kids are picky, but I'm doing my best to help them overcome it! Ethan typically chooses not to try foods he's skeptical of, mostly out of a sense of loyalty to Andrew who enthusiastically declares that there's no way he's going to try anything new. However, Mike and I have been enforcing our rule of "You must TRY what Mom has made before you are allowed to eat anything else," and I've been making more of a variety of meals lately - not just stuff they already like 'cause I don't want the fight.

It took a lot of encouragement, but Ethan got "just brave enough," like Little Quack in one of Ethan's favorite books. It even inspired Andrew to give it a try, but he couldn't make himself chew the Frito that was dipped in the soup. Maybe next time! I feel a renewal of hope that I CAN get my kids (well, at least Ethan, for now) to expand their dietary repertoire!