on not having it together

I still have not recovered from last Thursday, when Adelaide’s preschool teacher said “oh Adelaide, you’re all ready for your closing chapel today!” and I was in my pajamas and realized I was supposed to be at the program in T minus thirty minutes.  I FLEW home, threw clothes on me, Ari, Ethan, nursed him and FLEW back to the school.  When I got there her class was singing, still at the front.

The main part is after, where we go to their classrooms and see all their work for the year, and celebrate with cookies and lemonade. I’m glad I [somehow] managed to be there.

But it threw off my week. Friday was crazy (10th anniversary), Saturday was crazy (Andy’s birthday), and Sunday was crazy (Mother’s Day) and I needed Thursday morning to get stuff done at home. Still hasn’t happened, oh well.

Yesterday I tried to take the kids somewhere inside (rain) and fun but they couldn’t stop fighting, so we came home instead. Half of them fell asleep. Clearly we are exhausted and summer cannot come fast enough.

I sold my camera and purchased an upgrade. It came yesterday (body) but the lens still hasn’t come yet. So I’m down on photos currently, but I do have a few saved to spread out until I can take some more. I made Adelaide go over to my neighbor’s to get her picture taken this morning, on her last day of preschool. And I made Gretchen take one on our anniversary, when we were at dinner with them Friday.

Also, I’ve been meeting a friend at the Y three mornings a week to exercise. I LOVE that they have childcare – worth every penny. My little kids love it, too, and they have friends there. Arianna asks me “go to gym?” all the time now, so cute. I feel a little tired-er but overall, much better than I’ve felt in a very long time.

mother’s day 2012

10 months!

ice cream snatcher and paint in my hair

Gretchen picked up Arianna at Chick-fil-a on Tuesday to walk out to our respective vans (in her case bus) and Arianna snatched her ice cream cone and stuffed it in her mouth. I think Gretch was so caught off guard she probably froze for a sec, did that just happen?! And then she reached to grab it back and Arianna switched it into her other hand and held it as far away as she could. Such a 2-year-old-4th-born thing to do. So funny. I wish I had witnessed that but I only heard the story from G later. hahaha

So my folks are here. Happy dance. (Although I haven’t been feeling that great; tired and my back is still bothering me.) Anyway, as is their custom, they’ve been trying to whip my house into shape. Cleaning and fixing things, and yesterday we scraped old paint off the outer trim around the windows and door. Put on the primer. (Andy wasn’t so excited about the white splatters on the porch but I think we can get it off.)

Anyway, it looks way better. Re-hanging shutters today and hopefully put the topcoat on. We have some church friends that run a nursery so the plan is to get enough hydrangeas from him to fill up the entire length of the house under the bedroom windows, which will make a big cheery difference. Finally going to fill up the heavy stone pots on my porch that the kids usually sit in. Any suggestions for pretty flowers that can withstand lots of sun and don’t mind the sweltering summer heat?

Andy and I went on a FUN double date last night with his partner in crime and his wife. Tonight we’re going out with my family (siblings and parents) for my birthday and we have a babysitter. I always say you might as well celebrate a birthday for at least a week!

(PS Madeline lost her first top tooth. And the tooth fairy finally remembered!)

sweet girl

I’m going to brag on Madeline for just a sec. We always eat dinner at church on Wednesdays. Last night, one of her teachers came up to me and told me how Madeline had drawn a picture of roses on her paper last week and when she asked if Madeline liked roses, of course she gushed “I love roses!”

Sweetest thing ever, her teacher brought her this bouquet from her yard. They smell sooo good. She wanted me to KNOW that Madeline was such sweet girl in class, such a sweetheart. We know that! We’ll keep her! :)

kids on Easter

I put these on Facebook, but forgot to put them here, too. Better late then never, yes?

(Our family shot was one of the ones that got cleared off my laptop Sunday night. ha. I may or may not retrieve it – it was a bit blurry anyway.)

Our too-small house (you cheer us on?)

I know I’ve mentioned it a few times before, that our house is teeny tiny. Like, we outgrew it 2 kids ago. I do love our yard, and our location. And I like that we can get it clean in about 45 minutes. And our payments are cheap. But it’s still too small. And, being honest, sorta shabby. I prolly won’t invite you over because both of us are a little embarrassed of it – which is pride, I admit, but we still don’t host much anymore. But that’s neither here nor there because, it is what it is and not changing this week.

The point of this post is this. We are committed to Christian school for our kids, and there are FIVE of them. Our goal is to pay this house off very quickly, save for a larger one, and rent this one out – that rental income funding their education. At the rate Andy is going, we can probably do that in 3ish years, maybe 4.

We KNOW it will be hard. We’re cramped as it is; I’m guessing it will be worse in four years. (Although, I do love having my kids close while they are little.) The thing is, though, if we stick it out and do it this way, we know it will also pay off in the end. It will be more than worth the pain now.

And that’s where our friends and family come in – to stick by us when we want to give up, when we’re tired and frustrated and feeling claustrophobic. To cheer us on because you know our goals and can remind us that yes, it will be worth it.

update

My birthday is right around the corner so my parents bought me an external hard drive for my photos. I cleared them out last night and the available storage on my laptop jumped from 2 to 73G. Ha! So that’s a little better. ;)

Otherwise, our Matilda Jane show came this week…

so I’ve been busy sorting, packing, shipping,

and hand-delivering!

And, of course, we had one MEGA fashion show :)

Andy’s mom ordered for the girls, so these photos are for her :) THANK YOU, GRANDMOM!!!

And there has been loads of twirling, as usual.

(That pink dress is not MJ (Tea, from a store credit)… but Arianna couldn’t stop climbing up on the table and “saying cheese” for the camera even when we were done.  Hilarious.)

By the way, two of the items we wanted didn’t make it through customs on time for the Apr. 1 release, so Amy and I are going to open up another show on the 19th.  If you missed it this time around, feel free to order with us in 5 days! :)

a poll, if you will

Hello, people. I’ve been busy doing I’m not sure what. A coupla questions. 1. Do you read personal blogs through a reader or subscription service and if so, which one? I’m really frustrated with GReader and so I just don’t keep up with many blogs anymore because of the hassle. It does not fit well on a laptop screen.

2. Does anyone still read THIS blog and would you be very sad if I quit? Mom and mother-in-law don’t have to answer, I already know what they’d say. ;)

3. Part of the recent trouble is my hard drive is OVERLOADED with all my huuuuuge photo files and is running very, very slow. I’m afraid to upload any more until I figure out what to do with the old ones. I need a good recommendation for an external source or drive to save my photos on, so I can get them off my laptop. ??? Photos are my bread n butter for blogging so, I’m prolly not gonna be posting much until I figure out the photo conundrum.

4. That is all.

our matilda jane show is open!

I’m home from church because I still can hardly walk… hoping to get straightened out at the chiropractor’s tomorrow morning. ANYWAY – the photos are up on the site so now is a good time to fill up your wishlist and send it in.

A couple of things – NO, you do not have to attend the in-home show tomorrow to place an order. All you need to do is go to the MJC website and click on the items you want, add them in whatever size(s) you want to your wishlist, and then when you’re done there are fields on the left to enter in your info and send it to bethanih@matildajaneclothing.com and me (moriah@pleasepassthesalt.net).

In the notes box, put your address and payment information (or “call for payment information”) and then down in the Jane/show box make sure you put Moriah & Amy so it gets where it needs to. You can comment on this post or email me if you have any questions or need sizing help.

HELLO SUMMER!!!!!!!!!!

Helloooo out there!

I had big plans to blog this week and then poof! it’s Friday.

I threw my back out yesterday and so I’m in serious survival mode. Thankful Andy has the whole day off and is picking up all the slack. I go back to the chiropractor on Monday and in the meantime have been using ice and advil. And *trying* not to walk too much. (Yeah, right.)

So that’s where we are today. Needing prayer as usual. ;)

one very pink party

A couple of highlights from her party Sunday afternoon…

On Monday (the real day) we picked the kids up from school, grabbed Sonic for lunch, went back to the bouncy place (since Adelaide didn’t get to go when we went Thursday), slushies on the way home – and then mad homework till bath/bedtime. Whew! 5th birthday properly celebrated.

no rest for the weary

HA. Danielle had commented she hoped I got some rest last week. We met friends at the bounce house place Thursday. Definitely not restful. And then Friday I finished the HUGE job of hauling 5 kids’ worth of winter clothes to the attic. Adelaide’s 5th birthday is today, we had a little party for her yesterday afternoon. I’ll get pics up as soon as I have a minute since we’re still in birthday mode here today.

making the rounds

Tuesday was NUTS. But fun!

Went to a different park, played with friends. I haven’t been wearing makeup this week, which is certainly faster for getting out the door. Freeing and scary, all at the same time. (The bottom line is I don’t have the energy to care.)

The babies were sooo cute, sitting all chatty on the blanket.

I’m not sure how I feel about my TWO YEAR OLD being able to do this?

Ate a picnic lunch and climbed trees.

Borrowed toys…

And loved on this doll-baby.

Loving spring.

We flew home for quick naps, met our Tuesday peeps for Chik-Fil-A, ran over to another friend’s house to pick up some stuff and the kids ALL piled out of my van. (That’s when I felt like the old woman that lived in the shoe.) Yeah, we totally descended on her. But she still invited me to sit on her porch and chat while the kids ran in the street played in her yard.

Then we went to Becky’s to drop off her stuff and she had made cookies so of course we had to play there, too. We got home past 9, filthy and needing baths but happy to see SO many friends, all in one day!

SPRINGBREAK

Kinda snuck up on me. Our big trip is planned for when school’s out so the goal of this week is to play outside and NOT DO ANY HOMEWORK.

Monday:

Ethan, not overly excited about the sunshine.

Madeline, completely over-mothering Emily. Funny though.

Big sisters are so convenient for swing-pushing.

Day 1 success.

you’re invited

I’ve loved clothes as long as I can remember.  If you know my mom and grandma, you know I come by it honestly. :)  And if you’ve read this blog any length of time you know I also love particular brands for my kids, and one of them happens to be Matilda Jane.  I often spend my Christmas and birthday money on MJC – for me and for the girls.  They are my favorite, hands down. Unique, fun, wash amazingly well and worth every penny.

Believe it or not, I’ve never hosted a trunk show before but, for this final release of Spring 2012 I am co-hosting a show.  If you are local, you are welcome to come see everything in person AND it will also be virtual – anyone can order through our show.  It will be flat $4 trunk shipping to us and Amy and I will ship priority to you for free. You need to email me for tax information. ;)  (It’s good!)

Basically the new pieces will be released on Matilda Jane’s website on April 1st; you will fill up your wishlist on their site and email it to me (moriah@pleasepassthesalt.net) AND my trunk keeper (bethanih@matildajaneclothing.com). Put in the notes section that it’s for Moriah and Amy’s show and how you would like to pay (credit/debit card or paypal).  You can put your phone number if you’d rather Bethani call you for your payment information.

Two Serendipity collections have already been released; you can shop from them as well as the older lines still available on their website. The new stuff just won’t be available for purchase until those photos are up.

Hope to have you shop with us! I will be available for questions or anything you need while the show is open, feel free to shoot me an email.  You will get a confirmation email/receipt once the show closes (most likely on April 3rd).  If you are going to order please do it quickly; the cutest pieces typically sell out within the first few hours.

And even if you don’t have little girls to dress, make sure you check out their women’s line!

adelaide girl

Adelaide went to a birthday party last Friday and has another one this weekend. She and I were chatting in the kitchen the other day about all things pink and party related. She’s fully aware her own birthday is coming up soon. I had my camera nearby and snapped away. Her chats are always hilarious.

She still is the funniest little pixie girl, as black-and-white as they come. She doesn’t even know HOW to beat around the bush and will declare stark reality without so much as batting an eyelash. (My neighbor finally had to tell her she wasn’t allowed to comment on how messy her car is on the way up to preschool. ha) If you want an honest answer, she’s the perfect girl to ask.

reading (and watching!)

Rebecca asked what I’m reading these days, the answer is Peace Like a River by Lief Enger. I’m loving it. It was recommended to me by Danielle and Vangie – I picked up Vangie’s copy when I was at her house a coupla weeks ago.

She also gave me Sisters, which I’m going to read next. And while I’m advertising great stories, if you haven’t been exposed to Downton Abbey YOU ARE MISSING OUT. Drama at it’s FINEST. Andy and I have stayed up laaaaaaaate, watching it over and over again. Both Seasons 1 and 2 are fully available (don’t miss the Christmas special at the end of Season 2).