Organization

Being a Mom of many, many children organization has been a challenge of mine. I have continually struggled to find balance between work, housework, children's needs, my own needs, being a wife and sleep/relaxation. Concentrate on one thing too much and I end up shanking another. Patty-baby used to be content enough to sit in the "patty chair" while watching me cook and clean. These days, as mobility takes over, she is more content to try and sommersault herself out of the chair while whining for Mom to pick her up.

So, I find myself turning to "Fly Lady" (www.flylady.net) in order to resume some order in the chaos that has resulted. Fly Lady's first tip-- start with a clean sink every night before you go to bed. While I have always tried to make sure dishes were done and loaded before bed, it was never my ultimate goal to make sure the sink itself was absolutely empty and clean. I started with this last night, got up this morning to make my daily macchiato (have I mentioned that balance includes a great deal of coffee??) and was greeted by a sparkling clean sink. What a happy way to start the day! LOL I plan on continuing down the righteous path of Fly Lady-ness...resuming our "Saturday morning clean up", aka everyone-get-your-butt-up-and-clean-this-house, we have "clean sheet Sunday" (crap, I think patty-baby was a result of clean sheet Sunday.. you never know the effect that fresh sheets have...) and also designating Sunday as being bread baking day and official laundry day, ensuring the kids have everything they need for the week clean.

Deep breath... one step at a time and I will figure out the balance of it all and not feel a bit guilty.

Family vacations

Ahhh... the chaotic serenity of a family vacation. We had the recent opportunity to embark on a family trip, long car ride and all, to visit my husband's family. They fortunately happen to live in one of the most beautiful areas in the US, the Monterey Peninsula. The trip, while short, will live on as one of our most cherished family memories. Spending time together re-grounded ourselves in our family and strengthened our bond. I had the pleasure of taking my children to the beach and aquarium, basking in the joy I felt in watching their wonder, fascination and discoveries. Seeing the kids bond with their cousins, aunts, uncles and grandparents was absolutely priceless. Patty-baby was dedicated at the church my husband's family has attended for over 30 years. It was strengthening as a mother to see his family stand with us as we introduced and dedicated our new baby, knowing that they love her every bit as much as we do. It was an amazing journey....one I will cherish forever and look forward to taking again.