Getting my first real taste of 2 school-aged children...

And I don't love it.
Brigg and Lani are both in fall soccer through the Y.
Brigg has practice on Monday and Wednesday.
Lani has it on Tuesday and Friday.
They both have games on Saturday.
And sometimes Thursday.

Really?

I don't do well with a super packed schedule.
I don't know how to juggle.
Plain and simple.

And Brigg has a lot more stuff to do at home for school this year.
Mini "book reports" once a week and lots of reading.

My head hurts.

I need to remember to drink my coffee tomorrow morning.

Tonight I placed all events on the calendar.
Color coded and everything.
I hope this helps. Because I'm really really not good at this.
I couldn't even remember my college schedule for the first 3 months of a semester.
(maybe that was just my excuse for skipping so many classes...i can't really remember. come to think of it...i can't really remember MUCH from college. hmmm...)
SEE!
I can't even get through a simple blog post without getting distracted.

I don't think I'm cut out for this parenting stuff...let alone this extra-curricular stuff.

oh so much to learn...

Solved!

The case of the missing red skirt is solved.
Found in the kitchen on top of the shoe rack.
Under a stack of books.
Where else would it be?

Some more weekend shots...

oh my

2 of my favorites of Hadley this weekend.
Lisa took the bottom one.
She really is that cute in real life.
The photos don't lie...

Would you still follow my blog if I told you...

I was still wearing the same clothes I was wearing Friday when we left to go camping?
Because I am.
It just took me about 20 minutes to scrub all the dirt off of ONE of my little people.
The other one is currently soaking for a bit before I start scrubbing.
We are dirty and tired.
And fully aware that we love camping, but it will be much easier next year...when Ayla is a little older. Two nights was a lot for her...which means a lot for me.
Lots of fun had.
Lots of sleep to make up for...

And I'm complaining about a little dirt on my floor...

it's almost too hard to watch.
and even harder to believe that we can watch it and then do nothing.
(this is a little graphic, so be ready)
this is not ok.

One of those mornings

After scrubbing a couple areas of the house yesterday, Bigg put on his shoes that had dried mud all over them and proceeded to walk throughout the entire house this morning.
Everywhere.
I want to cry.
Didn't realize it until I got home from dropping them off at school.
BEFORE we left for school there was much arguing going on.
Between Brigg and I.
And then between Lani and I.
I hate to start our days off like this.
So frustrating.

We are going camping this weekend and it takes a lot to get ready for that.
So I need to pack things up before Paul comes home for lunch.
And Ayla wants me to pay attention to her.
Not pack.
Or clean up dried mud all over the house.

It's just been one of those mornings.
Ick.

Happy Birthday, Dad!

Yesterday was my dad's birthday.
I think it was like his 32nd...or something like that. :)
They had us over for supper and dessert.

And we enjoyed it!

Happy birthday, Dad!
We love you!

We have hit the wall...

I had forgotten about the "first week of school wall".
We hit it last night.
Lani was acting like a crazed child.
I truly have never seen her act like that. Weird.
But then Paul reminded me that we went through the same thing will Brigg.
Oh yeah.....I forgot.
The first week or 2 are rough. Tired tired kids.
Had a hard time getting her up today, too. And she was crabby.
But never once said she didn't want to go to school.
Only one more day after I pick them up today.
And next week will be better.
The good news?
Brigg is not having this problem. And he did last year.
So second grade must be the turning point.

Power cleaning today. Good times...good times.

We're trying...

To carry on as usual.
But it's not easy.
We are missing the big kids.
Ayla is missing the big kids

It has been fairly quiet without their fighting. :)
So we decided to have a dance party yesterday.

The girl loves to dance, no doubt.
She is very passionate about her dancing and singing.
And fist pumping...

But even dance parties are not the same as they used to be.

So we're trying.
Trying to get into our new normal.
Trying to figure out how to STOP thinking about our house that's been for sale for seven months.
Trying to stop looking at other houses on the market just to see what's out there.
Trying to be patient.
Not sure how we're doing with that, but we are trying.

Homemade Tortillas

Oftentimes I pull recipes off other blogs if they sound yummy.
I usually copy and paste them into an email and send them to myself.
And then I forget where they came from....which happens to be the case with this recipe.
But I made these tortillas for the first time tonight and they were DELICIOUS.
Loved them.
Pretty simple, very few ingredients and we'll have no problem finishing them off tomorrow.
So here is the recipe...copied directly from some random person's blog. If it's yours, speak up!

HOMEMADE TORTILLAS

(1 batch makes around 8 tortillas - I always do a double batch because, why not?)

Two cups flour (I use 1 cup whole wheat and 1 cup of white)
1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder
1 teaspoon of salt
2 teaspoons of vegetable oil
3/4 cups of warm milk

Combine:
Flour, baking powder, and the salt in a medium size bowl.
While you are mixing the dry ingredients together, warm up the milk and oil over a medium heat.
Slowly add the warm milk mixture to the flour mixture.

Stir until a loose, sticky ball is formed.
Knead on a lightly floured surface until dough is firm and soft.
Place dough in a clean bowl and cover with a clean towel. Let rest in a warm place for 20 minutes.

After the dough has rested, break off sections, roll them into balls in your hands, place on a clean surface (make sure they aren’t touching) and then completely cover balls with plastic wrap for 10 minutes. (It’s very important to let the dough rest, otherwise it will be like elastic and won’t roll out properly.)
After dough has rested, one at a time place a dough ball on a well oiled surface.

Use the heel of your palm to gently press it into a circle, and then roll with a rolling pin from the center until it’s a thickness you like.

Mine are about 10+ inches in diameter.

I re-oil the counter about every third tortilla - otherwise they tear when lifting them off the counter.
In a non-greased cast iron pan or a stainless steel pan, heated to a medium temperature (mine is perfect at around “4″)(make sure your pan is fully heated before you place your first tortilla in), cook the tortilla for about 15 seconds on each side.
It should start to make puffy bubbles when it’s ready to be flipped.

Using a metal spatula start at an edge and gently flip the tortilla. Go slowly to avoid ripping the tortilla.

Make a stack on a cookie sheet and cover with a clean towel until all tortillas are cooked.

You can store the tortillas in a ziploc bag, refrigerate for up to 3-4 days.
If they last that long.

They sure don’t around here!
Enjoy!

a few more

one of my mom's dearest friends was here for the weekend.
they came out to visit us as the campsite.

And we tried to get some pics of the kids in this tree.
Not so successfuly, but still pretty cute.

Somehow this little boy finds a "bat" everywhere he goes.
He can find a way to create a baseball game anywhere.

Images from the weekend.

Day with Ayla

Day One:

My sister-in-law called from Florida.
She had just finished her first day of her new job.
I was excited to talk to her...
it slipped my mind that Lani was not here to keep an eye on Ayla.
After a few minutes, I realized Ayla was being very quiet.
Never good.
She had gotten a marker and scribbled all over Lani's room
The above photo shows about half the damage.
We are learning here.

Ayla's favorite books.
They are in a basket in our living room...

She especially enjoys Happy Baby ABC.
No plot.
No excitement.
I am about fed up with it.
She'll say Hoppy Babee ABC!
And I tear up, thinking "NOOOOO!!! NOT happy baby ABC!!"

We do have more books upstairs and I think that's what we're doing today.
Rotating out old books with new ones.
Ayla's always been a little hyper and not able to sit long enough to finish a book.
But lately she's been wanting to read a lot.
So we need to mix things up a bit.
And she didn't really love me reading "The Hole in our Gospel" to her.
Darn it!

Isn't it funny how our tastes change as we get old?

I suddenly love peaches.
I have never liked peaches...nor their fuzzy skin.
But randomly bought some on sale last week and I can't get enough of them. They are great!
I'm getting old...and my tastebuds are changing.

Home

24 hours later, we are home.
Perfect camping weather.
Camping would be SO easy without children! :)
Trust me, this wasn't Maine.
But we are figuring things out and next time will be even better.
Today will be catch up day.
Lots to do around here.

This and that

It is beautiful out there!!! Oh my gosh! Not a single cloud in the blue sky and 66 degrees. High of 76 today. This is my perfect weather. We knew it was going to be nice, so we decided to go camping tonight. I've done nothing to prepare, but we're not going far. Just need to hit the store and throw a change of clothes in our bag. Haven't used the pop-up for a long long time.
_________________________________

Lani loved school.
She was glowing when I picked her up.
But she did say to me, "Mom! You should have checked the weather. I was FREEZING today!" Really, how is it possible that we are getting this chilly weather mid AUGUST?
_________________________________

5 months. That is how long I have been "running". Which really isn't running, it's an extremely slow jog that some may consider a fast walk. But trust me, the way my body feels tells me it's a run. Anyway, 5 month ago I started the couch to 5K program. Because...well....all I had been doing for nearly 6 months was sittting on the couch. So the program was perfect for me. About 9 weeks later I ran my first 5K. Still hated running. Still hadn't lost a pound. Then I came across a 17 week 1/2 marathon training schedule. It's started June 22. I remember vividly. You needed to be able to run 30 minutes straight, which I miraculously could, so I decided to do it. So here we are 9 weeks down in the stupid training schedule. This morning I ran 9 miles. In a row. Without stopping. (funny little sidenote....as I was running on the bike path by the river, I had just hit 3 miles and I heard a shot gun go off. today was the HNI 5K. And I was in it without even signing up! it was hilarious!) Paul informed me that if I accomplished this, it would indeed be a miracle. And I did it. I also ran 8 miles while ON VACATION in Maine. And ya know what?!? I still hate running. And I am heavier today than when I started moving my body in a forward motion FIVE MONTHS ago.
Can you say frustrating?
I CAN!
I have 8 weeks left of the training schedule. Running lots and lots of miles. I want to quit. But I won't.
Some people have speed.
Some people have endurance.
I have neither.
BUT
I am determined. And I will not be defeated by the half marathon. I will conquer her.
And I'll feel good. Because I always feel good after the runs. Especially once my 800mg of IBProphen kick in.
Tomorrow is a 'rest' day in the training schedule. Oh how I love those days.
And camping.
I love camping.
So it looks to be a great 48 hours ahead of me.
Have a great weekend!!

And the thunder rolled...

ONE time.
And the nap ended.
Dang it.
She seriously fears thunder.
And fireworks.

The past 2 days.

Yesterday Lani was a bear. And she is rarely a bear. But she had a rough day. I think it was a gift from God. Because I found myself saying "Ok. I really think she's ready for school" for the first time.
So I had planned to do housework all day yesterday, but it didn't happen. We played Monopoly Junior. For a long time. I love Monopoly. :)
So the much anticipated first day of school arrived. Last night Lani went to bed with a smile on her face. "Tomorrow's a big day!" she said before dozing off. Cute.
My mom had gotten Lani and outfit to wear on her first day. I spent last night trying to find her white shirt to wear under it. After searching for quite some time, I found it.
Well this morning we got up and went to get her dressed. We could NOT find the red skirt that goes with it. I spent most of the morning searching high and low. It was no longer about the "first day of school outfit", but about the fact that I could not find the skirt. How frustrating!!!
So I was distracted most of the morning, which was kind of helpful actually. Right before leaving we pulled out an old wrinkled t-shirt and capris and off she went. Happy as a clam.
One thing I was not expecting was Ayla's reaction. As I sent Brigg and Lani in to school, I snapped a photo and cried behind my sunglasses. It was horrible. But then I got in the car and Ayla yelled NAYNEE! NAYNEE!
I said, "Lani and Brigg are going to school." She said, "Oh."
But randomly throughout the morning she has yelled, "NAYNEEEEEE, ARE YOU?"
She's never been home alone with me. She doesn't know what to do with herself! And every time she says lani's name, I tear up.
3:30 can't come soon enough...

And there goes 2/3 of my heart...

Not fun.

It's coming...

As we get closer to Christmas, my water posts are becoming closer together.
But I'm not kidding you.
When I watch this, my heart starts beating so fast I feel like I can hardly catch my breath.
If this doesn't get you pumped and ready, well then I got nothin'.
Watch.
(oh...and i didn't see this the first time. but when he says "School raised money", it switches to a collage of photos. the big photos in the top row is an H2O. this photo is from West Middle School right her in Muscatine. Tom Randleman and a bunch of middle schoolers in H2Africa T-shirts. so cool.)

The Story of charity: water - The 2009 September Campaign Trailer from charity: water on Vimeo.

Day 1 for Brigg

Although I'm not ready to send them back to school, I AM ready for some sort of structure around here. School forces me to be on a schedule...which is good for me.
Since we returned from Maine, I have let everything go. Cleaning, laundry, dishes. It's bad. Today we start to get back into a groove. Lani is still here today, but I warned her we would be doing housework all day long. She's ready to help. (although she IS in the bath right now...).
Deep breath in, deep breath out. Today we start a new routine.
It's going to be a good good year.

Have you ever cried the whole way through a movie trailer??

Me either.
Until tonight.
Watch it.
Apparently he was the #1 draft pick this year....

Cousins

I had all the Burback cousins today at the mall.
It was hilarious.
Ayla is in love with Hadley.
But as you can see, I'm pretty sure Hadley's not so in love with Ayla.

But she humors, Ayla. So that's nice. :)
And all the cousins in one spot for 2 seconds.
It took some bribery.
They had tons of fun together for a couple hours.

And I didn't lose any of them.
Or my mind.
So that's a good thing.
I handled 5 for a brief time.
Fairly proud of myself!
Plus, I got in a lunch with Lisa.
A good last day before school starts.

And just so you don't think I have a favorite...

...I'll post some pics of my other children.
We love them just as much.
It's just that Ayla is at the perfect photographing stage in life.
But these two are pretty cute, too...

This is Ayla's very first princess nightgown.
Thanks, mom...ha!
It's a battle everytime I try to pry it off of her.
She loves it.

And oh how this makes my heart HURT.
An actual physical pain in my chest.
Love them so much.
And I think Brigg and Lani could pass as twins!

And we call this series of photos "Soccer Queen"...

Not much different than "Dancing Queen"...

Yes, she really is that talented.

Or, maybe I just snapped at the perfect time.

Either way...hilarious!