My Peacefully Chaotic Life

I know. I have been neglecting this blog. Horribly. That's not the only thing that has been thrown by the wayside lately! It is only for a season though. Pregnancy means you must be patient with yourself and accept that sometimes you must let things slide. That also means that you have to plan in order to conserve your energy. I know if I am going somewhere later today then I don't need to rush around and try to get a lot done in the morning. Priorities must be in order. Although the morning sickness is better it isn't totally gone at this point. Whoever named it that anyway? The main thing I have been dealing with is fatigue. My blog shows it. My laundry shows it. My house shows it. Ack, everywhere shows it! I simply do not have the energy to do the bending up and down required to truly clean up, do laundry, and the vacuuming/sweeping etc. It's quite depressing actually! So I do a little here, do a little there. I manage the necessities such as homeschooling, cooking, ...

Are you contented? Or do you constantly find yourself daydreaming of how much better life would be if only..... I would imagine we all do it from time to time. But I don't want to slip into making that a habit. I want to be sure that I live in constant gratitude for the blessings in my life. If I let that other kind of thinking in I'm afraid it will rob me of the satisfaction found in today. I'm sure you've seen people who spend months or years saying if I just had THIS, if I just lived HERE, if only this person would just do THAT.....life would be grand. Then when they get it they are miserable! Ha, the next thing you know, they are dreaming of what they had in the first place! A single person just wants to be married. Then when their spouse is not the picture of perfection they dreamed of, they think only of being single again. Childless couples dream of having their own brood. Then when they get it, they wish the kids would grow up and move out. The city folk wish th...

This week was thrown off a bit, due to the holiday Monday. To make matters worse, I completely forgot that Monday even was a holiday! So my day was really thrown off when I saw that empty bank parking lot and realized it! lol This meant that banking and shopping was pushed to Tuesday. However we also needed to make a trip to Financial Aid at my son's college. This made for a busy day! But it was a good visit and the children really enjoyed it. They adore their brother and his circle of friends always manages to make them the center of attention. Yesterday when brother thought we had left, he was surprised to walk out of his dorm room and see us still there. The children had been playing with his friends and having such fun that we had not managed to leave yet, despite our previous goodbyes to him. Hide and Seek, I Spy, Story Rounds, playing in the dirt, tag....that crew managed to squeeze in a lot of fun! However it wasn't just the children that caused a delay. At one point I ...

Many years ago my husband and I acquired an old beat up dresser. It was an ugly shade of pale lime green that made you wonder what the previous owners had been thinking. We decided we wanted to refinish it. So began a painstaking time consuming project. At times we were even afraid that we might be ruining it. Everyday we would lug this heavy piece of furniture outside and slave away at our hidden treasure. When we had that day's work completed we would yank and tug it back indoors. It required slathering on the paint stripper and scraping off layer after layer of paint. Lime green was only the tip of the iceberg. There were many other layers of colors underneath. Dark green, pink, white, you name it. Paint is meant to beautify and protect but when it is thoughtlessly applied it leaves behind a mess. This made what seemed to be a small job become much more involved. There were also lots of little edges and curves that needed every speck of paint removed. It was hard but necessary b...

Stocking a pantry, filling a freezer or refrigerator...it sounds like such a simple, neat little job, doesn't it? I remember when we were first married, it really was! $40 a week would feed us like royalty. I don't remember preparing menus. The FisherMan and I would go to the local grocery store (no Walmart then) and hit the meat counter first. After deciding on meats we would decide what side items we might like for the week. It was a happy little trip resulting in a full kitchen. But the years go by and bring bills, children, and inflation. The grocery bill climbs like all the other bills. Now when I buy groceries I also have a lot more to take into account. Keeping the total money spent is a constant challenge. It can take $40 just to buy household and personal products! Different tastes must be respected. Our household has those that dislike meat all the way to those that would love it at every meal. I have pasta lovers and pasta haters. This one must have salad that one do...

What a busy week it has been! Homeschooling, grocery shopping, dental appointments, football (Roll Tide!), you name it! We baked cupcakes and I let the children have a blast decorating them any way they pleased. In fact, I just enjoyed eating one! Friday, the GuitarMan happened to mention that my cousin had a college basketball game on Saturday. He thought I already knew about it. Well, we got all the details and thus was put together an impromptu trip to the bigger city to watch him play. Saturday morning I did some laundry and cut The FisherMan's hair. After that I bathed the children and got them dressed. Imagine my delight when I emerged from the bathroom to find that my sweet husband had finished cooking lunch, fixed all the children's plates, and even packed the diaper bag! Oh, that man does know how to sweep me off my feet! We had a great time and the game was a nailbiter with my cousin's team grabbing the win after going into overtime. The children enjoyed it. Flow...

This week's menu...not too fancy as I get tired in the evenings. :) Also I always keep salad fixins ready so we can throw in a salad along with any meal. Sometimes it is planned on the menu and otherwise it's just always available along with whatever I fix. MONDAY + BUSY DAY= McDonald"s TUESDAY grilled ribs macaroni and cheese stringbeans cornbread WEDNESDAY spaghetti garlic bread THURSDAY boneless wings (plain for the little ones, homemade sauce for us) oven fries FRIDAY cheesy potato soup SATURDAY roasted chicken potatoes (whatever we are in the mood for - baked, mashed, roasted, etc) fresh peas (frozen from the garden) cornbread (because my husband can't eat beans or peas without cornbread lol) SUNDAY L) leftovers S) tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches