Today we celebrated Christ the King
Todays feast day gives me hope
and peace
God is in charge
Christ is King
of all
(Even Obama)
A good friend made us a gift basket full of feast day activities
and this was one of them
We've celebrated it in the past, but, to be honest,
I probably would not have done it this year
so, Thank you Lisa, you are the greatest!
Onto randomness...
This is what 3 loads of laundry,
laid flat,
waiting for me to fold
looks like
It sat there a long time
but
I got it done!
This is my 6 year old's mess in her "shared" room.
It may be a shared room, but it's her mess.
There's more under the bed.
and under the dresser.
(click on the picture, you can see it in detail)
(click on the picture, you can see it in detail)
My goal this past week was to somehow try to organize her.
This is the kid who plays with a little of everything
and mixes it all together, like
a puzzle piece, a zebra and a barbie, oh, and maybe a pot
and a plate.
We got bins and bins from the basement and brought them up
and I'm reminding her every night and day
to remember to stay organized.
(am I hurting her creativity? Or saving my sanity?)
No one talks about those Thanksgiving dishes!
How long did it take you to do them?
I tried to wash as I went along, but there were still a ton
It took me (with help loading the dishwasher)
only 25 minutes.
I always feel guilty making my kids do this many, so I help
Plus, I actually like washing dishes.
(not every night though, the kids have jobs)
We are wearing blue and green
til we get that darn Christmas picture done right!
This is how the mama plays on game night.
otherwise the baby cries!
He's a big help, "pick that card"
See? Even the mama is wearing blue
Daddy?
He was wearing green
but,
he is not a fan of Christmas picture taking
or posing.
Any other husbands like that?
Yes, that would be chocolate chips in her mouth,
I bribe during pictures
I shake the bag above the camera to get them to look!
"Say Chocolate Chips" (shake shake)
This baby loves his big sister so much,
she has that magic touch and special bond with him!
Enough of Randomness...I"m done pumping (breastmilk, not iron)
Love your before and after pics- you are a miracle worker. Little Sims looks like he has the game completely in hand- did you two win?
ReplyDeleteCan you believe Thanksgiving is already over and done, even the dishes???
We did not win!!
DeleteNo, where has November gone?
you are motivating me now! all I see are the befores in my house.
ReplyDeletelovely family photos!
Thank you Annmarie--this has taken a long time!
DeleteI love it!! I was doing the dishes as I cooked, so I had little to clean once dinner was finished. (Had to be done in time for A Christmas Story)
ReplyDeleteYou should see my mess of laundry. I have a basket on the floor in the kitchen that is full. Another load on my classroom table and one still in the drier. (On its 3rd tumble.) Oh, and three folded piles yet to be put away on my bed. It never ends.
All of our kids share bedrooms too. You can't even walk in any of their rooms. Maybe you can teach my kids organization skills too...lol.
I wish we had a game night. Sean works crazy hours and then comes home and does his school work. There just isn't enough hours in the week for us. The kids would love it though.
I love your holiday stair shots. Our stairs are too ugly to take pictures of. Sean also wouldn't sit for a photo. He hates his picture taken. I can never get all my kids to sit still to take a photo either. Now that I have the new Lumia 920, maybe I can get a few good shots this year around the tree!!! (You look great in the photo, BTW!)
Arley--that's the way I cook, dishes being washed as I go along, but there's still a ton with this big of a meal!
DeleteMy kiddos lay the laundry flat and if I make them, they fold the socks and underwear and wash cloths. The 3 oldest put away their clothes...I'm working on the 6 year old (she does it, it just takes work to get her to do it)
I have one good folder, the others just don't do a good job!
Gosh to see kids bedrooms in bloggy world, it seems everyone else has perfect magazine type rooms....not us. Glad to hear someone else has messy rooms!
Game night, I just started 2 weeks ago, decided we needed some fun, some regular fun so we eat and do jobs quick and pick a game and play one game, not several games, just one game and have a snack, like root beer floats and then off to bed...keeps it simple, if we did lots of games, I don't think it would last.
First week, we did it without Tom, he was gone for some reason....the kids still had fun.
Pumping for 11 months is fantastic. I hated the 3 weeks I did it. I usually stop nursing around 6 months but the twins don't seam to keep down formula as well. J hates pictures of himself but gets in them to make me happy. Don't even get me started about the laundry. I dream to some day have two dryers. Have a blessed day. I do wish we lived closer.
ReplyDeleteNeen, you don't give yourself enough credit, you have TWINS!!! That time to feed 2 babies instead of one, would just be so hard. Not that this is not hard. It has taken a toll on all of us. I really wonder if he didn't need surgeries If I would have done it....I want him to get that good milk for his immune system for healing etc....
DeleteAwwww, love what you said about your husband doing it to make you happy.
If you had 2 driers, wouldn't you need 2 washers?
And then, of course a bigger laundry room?
Laundry? Ugh. The bane of my existence. I am getting ready to teach the older three kids how to run the washer and dryer. They fold already (I use that term loosely sans the oldest who is almost 12). No one will have anything to wear if I'm left to do it all. My husband has been trying to keep up with it too but he's been busy. The room looks wonderful! I love the pink :) Happy (belated) Feast of Christ the King :)
ReplyDeleteUgh...Jen, I haven't taught them how to run the washer, but they can switch a load, bringing me the dry clothes, lay them flat on the table(see? they did it 3 times before I had a chance to fold them) and then put the wet clothes into the drier and turn it on. (they love cleaning the lint vent) Oh, haha!! I have one folder, one good folder the rest "fold" and I look at it like who taught you to fold like this? Not me.
DeleteThe 3 oldest do put all their clothes away, which helps a ton!!
Takes me forever to empty the folded baskets.
You can see the mess much better if you click on the photos....I touched up the scratched walls with paint Finally, after years hoping to "get to it". Now to keep it that way....She did make her bed this morning--yay!!!!!
Looks like my house with that laundry! I have several baskets in my living room right now. I am hoping to get some help getting it folded today!
ReplyDeleteHappy Feast of Christ the King!
Thanks Amy--you too. Happy folding!
DeleteCaught up on your blog this morning...the teeth, the binkies and all the great photos. You stay on top of it all, Jamie.
ReplyDeleteDoes Simeon like a sling or moby wrap of baby bjorn?
God bless you all!
Hi Allison!! Slings and Moby's....I have huge boobs and they just don't work for me. I do have front carrier, the cheap version of Baby Bjorn, but he's smart and likes to be held a certain way. (up on the left shoulder:) I have been trying to use our backpack holder, then my hands are free, but he pulls my hair constantly and he's not gentle with it! :)
DeleteAnother tooth popped through yesterday. 5 teeth in 3 weeks, through surgery and all! He's one tough little man!!
God bless you all too. Every time I watch Chopped, I think of your husband and daughter!!!
You make me smile!
ReplyDeleteI got through the 5 baskets of dried laundry yesterday. My hubby promptly refolds every piece of his - he likes it a certain way after 17 years in the Army. (Wish I could get him to fold it all...) And I still have laundry to do. Where does it all come from and go?
As for dishes, my 9-year-old is really good at loading the dishwasher (good in a loose-kinda way) but horrible at the hand dishes. If I keep up on them, they get done. Otherwise, they have a tendency to overrun the house.
Pictures - he, last year's had to be done for some project at school, so we threw the snowflake blanket over the ugly couch, had everyone sit, I hit the button and dove for the couch - about 8 times to get one that was passable and didn't make me look like I had as big of a butt as I really do - proper kid placement is very important for Mom egos!
And I agree, everyone always says how wonderful those carriers are, except try one of those things on as a plus-size mama with DD cups, and those thing make us look like sausages and ridiculous.
WooHoo 5 baskets!! Way to go mama!!!
DeleteThat's funny what your army husband does...probably not so funny for you though. Why even fold his?
Yes, dishes are a work in progress...we rotate the 3 oldest kids with dishes....and 2 other jobs...I am quite used to re-washing things...
Yes, you are right, and my weight is heavy in the baby's first year...then the next year, I'm either pregnant or a little thinner....funny to see those pictures...I never show my body, that's for sure!
Those front carriers, like the Mobies, squish my boobs!
My husband is the same way with pictures. In fact, you will never see his pic on my blog - he really hates pictures being taken. He tried to stop me from taking pictures of our son on a couple occasions, then taught him to hold his hands up to block pictures. Yeah, that didn't go over well at all. :p
ReplyDeleteWay to go on getting the laundry done, dishes washed AND the room cleaned!! Whew. My son is the same way with his toys, just random pieces all playing together. I'm all about him being creative but the clean up takes forever.
Love the picture of you & your girls on the stairs. :) I hope the rest turned out well.
Yay, finally another person whose hubby is a stinker!!
DeleteYes, clean up when it's all mixed up--not fun...I need it organized and cleaned once in a while, in the right containers just for my own sanity.
I like the blues and greens you have picked out for the picture..sorta like this bloggy. Love those soothing colors.
ReplyDeleteI do most or almost all the folding in the family. laundry.never.ending.
Sims is a tough little man. All those teeth!
Right now with Ava sort of being the youngest, I have only one messy kid. The rest of the kids are busy doing "big kid" things. I really need less toys.
But the bedroom looks great!
I picked these bloggy colors because of the picture! :) I like those colors too. We haven't gotten into the wearing red for Christmas yet....
DeleteOh, gosh, I have the 2 messy kids, but the bigger kids, they leave stuff all over. Their clothes melt off, sweatshirts first, then shoes then socks....hairbrushes all over, art stuff left out, etc...Barbies and Barbie stuff everywhere....bits and pieces...Now Simeon likes things dumped out to play with.
I've done the less toys, There's still a ton. And even if there are less toys, there's still a mess.
Love all of your family photos Jamie! Looks like you've had a wonderful Thanksgiving Week! I like your new template too.
ReplyDeleteThank you Noreen!
DeleteThank you for showing "real"! I love Pinterest but I see all these images of bedrooms and kitchens...and I'm like...no way am I showing you my home! LOL I'm just excited if the rooms are clean and picked up...forget photographing them...I need to call a carpet cleaner first! Capturing family pics is so hard at this stage of life...my girlfriend is coming over this weekend to do our family pics! I need to be able tot control the toddler-boy...he refuses to sit still without supervision! ;)
ReplyDeleteBlessings,
val
OH, gosh, Pinterest? I see it in all the craft blogs I like to visit and I see perfect bedrooms in the "normal" people blogs too...like, come on, where to you kids play? Don't they bring their toys and mess into other rooms? Mine do. Yes we have a toy room. But for some reason, it's more fun to play in other rooms. Just stretch those toys all over.
DeleteNotice, I didn't show the carpeted rooms. Our carpet is terrible too, but we can't afford to re carpet, and I don't even think a cleaner could get out the stains....
Best wishes with the pics!! We need someone to come and take our pics!
I love it. I should take photos of all my "real" corners... uh... that's ALL of them! Try as I might it never is finished. Shaun's helping with the laundry this week as the ankle is resting. Great job on your daughter's room... and no, us "artsies" need someone to teach us how to organize. She'll thank you later.
ReplyDeleteP.S. You are beautiful!
Oh, Marijanna--you rest up, who cares about those corners? They just get worse with each child...haha! It's funny you say that about "artsies" needing help because she does ask me "Mama, will you help me Oooorganize my room?" So she does want it organized, just has a hard time keeping it that way, with the way she plays.
DeleteMy heart starts palpitating when the kids take out more than one toy/game/activity at once. So I feel your pain. They have learned to clean up what they're playing before they move on to the next thing...but when cousins or friends come over I can't even peek inside the toy room - it gets CRAZY! I love your color scheme for the pictures and you girls are looking so pretty!!
ReplyDelete