A Salute to National Poetry Month

Little wand slim and gray
I wait five minutes to see what you say.

Will you pronounce a big change in our lives?
Will we soon be the parents of five?

I’ve been so tired and gained some weight
And if allowed will sleep in late

I asked Jen what this all meant
She replied, “Could you be pregnant?”

Shocked and surprised by her suggestion
I quickly said, “No, it’s out of the question!”

Jen smiled and asked, “How do you know?”
I replied that I’d had my monthly flow.

“I'd had three,” she said with a grin.
“But I’m on the pill,” I said for the win.

Not convinced, Jen replied, “So was I.”
Surprised again, I gave it one more try.

“Did you take it at the same time everyday?”
“Yes, I followed the directions in every way.”

“There is only one way to know for sure
Without a test from the store.”

Quickly thinking “What does she mean?”
Then blushing with defeat and understanding

I quietly responded “Oh, I see.”
She had finally convinced me of the possibility.

Days go by and I still feel strange
Often thinking of our exchange.

It was true I didn’t know for sure.
So I got a test from the store.

I was mostly hoping for a negative
But part of me wanted a positive.

I love little babies soft and sweet.
I love their tiny hands and feet.

But with no income and a body that ails me
I feel we are not ready and may never be.

Of course, I would not argue with Our Father who knows best
If He decided with another we should be blessed.

Little wand slim and gray
I’ve waited five minutes to see what you say.

With no further ado, I will say
I do not have another baby on the way.

I'm Not a Morning Person

I used to be one of those people that was both a morning and a night person. I would wake up refreshed, keep my energy for the whole day, stay up late and then wake up refreshed again. Now I am neither a morning person or a night person. If I'm going to get something done, it has to be between 11:00 AM and 6:00 PM.

So, this morning I sat down on the couch to start my work at about 9:00 AM. I figured I could get it out of the way and then use my afternoon energy to do some chores. Then I discovered that Daisy had apparently stepped in her own poo this morning and was getting it all over the couch cushion next to me! I tied her up in the kitchen while Joshua (armed with Folex) and I (armed with paper towels) cleaned the poop off of our couch.

Next I started cleaning the poop off of Daisy's back paw which she did not appreciate at all. She didn't like me cleaning between her toes but it needed to be done. As I was doing this, Ethan apparently dropped the syrup bottle on the floor and it broke open. Somehow Ethan got a big pile of syrup on the kitchen floor whether by accident or on purpose, I'll never know. Then he decided this was a good time to have a little snack and I found him sticking his little finger in the syrup pile and licking the syrup off his finger. Yum! Syrup mixed with a little dog hair-- don't knock it until you try it. While cleaning Ethan up I noticed a strong stinky smell that needed to be dealt with right away. One diaper and three wipes later he was smelling fresh again.

So, now I once again sit down on the couch to start my work (and blog a little) at 10:15 AM. My couch is about 20% clean, my kitchen floor is about 3% clean, Daisy is 25% clean, and Ethan's bottom is 100% clean. It's a start!

Motherhood and Keeping it Real

We all want to be perfect mothers! Of course, we realize that we can't be perfect so we try to hide our weaknesses from others-- lest they find out we are not the perfect mothers we want to be! Because of this, we all think that the other mothers are better than us! This has even lead to depression in some women that I know. I am trying to make sure that my blogging is real and shows my struggles with motherhood and homemaking. I am trying to "Keep it Real."

Today Joshua and Abby begged to help me put the chocolate chips in the pancakes on the griddle. I told them "no" and explained to them that it was hot and I didn't want them to get burned. They continued to beg and I decided that it would probably be okay since they just had to reach over and drop the chocolate chips onto the half cooked pancakes. On Joshua's second pancake, he dropped a chocolate chip that landed on the stovetop. He immediately went to grab it burning his hand on the griddle. He has a very painful burn that he pretty much kept in cool water for 3 hours. He would go off to play and then run back to the bowl saying "ouch" or "my hand is burning." I called the doctor who wants to see him in the morning and told us to put antibiotic cream on it (not ointment which I have in the house but cream which John had to drive 30 minutes into town to pick up). Joshua seems to be doing better now so I'm hoping he'll sleep okay through the night.

Oh, I almost forgot the cute part of this story! As soon as John came home, I asked him to give Joshua a blessing. John told Joshua he was going to say a prayer. Joshua said "okay" and then proceeded to say a prayer asking Heavenly Father to bless his hand. The faith of little ones always puts tears in my eyes!

A Clean House

Try as I might, I can not keep this house clean!

I'm not talking about a dirty house with stuff growing in the refrigerator, 1/4 of an inch of dust on the furniture and carpet that hasn't seen the vacuum in who knows how long.

I'm also not talking about a house that needs to be on Clean Sweep. Although, since I'm keeping it real, my basement could be on Clean Sweep!

I am talking about a house with toys, shoes, books and art/crafting supplies on the floor, couch, beds, tables, etc. They are frequently put away by me, my children, and my husband. No matter how many times we put them away, they somehow manage to find themselves a new home somewhere that is NOT their "spot."

At family councils, we discuss the importance of picking up after ourselves and not putting things down in places where they don't belong. We have tried many strategies to try to fix this problem but nothing has worked so far. We can have this house clean as a whiste at 10:00 am and find it in a "We hope nobody stops unexpectedly" state by 3:00 pm! Seriously-- I am not even exaggerating! I don't need to exaggerate because the truth is already unbelievable.

I wonder if this problem is common in homes with more than two children. I remember being able to keep the house neat, cook homemade meals, do all of my chores and STILL have time to read when I only had two children. I considered myself to be a great mother and a decent homemaker.

A couple of years ago (probably when I was expecting my fourth child), I called my mother to tell her what an awful mother and homemaker I turned out to be. She asked me if I remember my childhood home being messy. I told her that I didn't and that her house was always neat. She told me that when we were little it wasn't always neat and pointed out that I don't even remember the mess.

So, I just have to remind myself that my children are not suffering and won't even remember all of the times this house has been messy. We play a lot of games, make a lot of treats and have a lot of traditions! These are the things they will remember! (I hope.)