Sorry!

Lillian is her Big Girls!
Lillian has other ideas for her potty.  And no, 

she has not gone in it yet.  No worries... it's 

clean.
Yep!  potty training is going well!
So, I am here.  

I have not had much luck at blogging lately.  After the last blog, I just really had to think.  And every time I attempted to blog, I would hit a road block.  Not entirely sure what was going on, but I am going to get through it!  I really enjoy blogging.  I find it cathartic.  (I got to use it again!  I have used that word 3 times in conversation this week!)  So, I am going to hit on the mundane, mixed with my sarcastic sense of humor, which is really just no sense of humor, but dry wit, which I call funny sarcasm.  So, here goes:

Potty Training:  I am now working on potty training my youngest child.  There is some urgency in this, merely for the idea that I am close to not having to buy diapers any longer.  Don't get me wrong, I realize that I have five children, and so buying diapers for nearly 11 years is part of the bargain, but I am ready to be done with it!  When I think about the prospect of not investing in diapers, wipes or ointment, I get a little giddy!  I am not going to figure out how much $$ I have "invested" over the years.  This would be too depressing.  Ben has already figured out how may times I can fill the camp pool with all the breast milk I have produced over the years, and talk about depressing!  I have no interest in knowing the cost of diapering my kids.  I prefer to envision all the things I can save for after I am done with diapers.  I do not expect a parade thrown in my honor when I have successfully finished diaper duty, (although it would be nice)  I am hopeful that my adoring husband will celebrate with my by taking me to dinner or some such thing.  (as long as said dinner does not lead to the welcoming of another diaper needing thing.  sorry, Ben always says that dates make babies, which is his excuse for not taking me on one.)

I do still plan on buying wipes though.  I now just keep a container of them in my purse.  Not just for wiping bottoms, but for Ben's greasy hands, for Jonah's mud covered shoe, for Lydia cleaning her window in the suburban, for Fiona using them as magic carpets, for Ruby wiping her babies bottoms, for Lillian using them for her baby's blankie, and for my occasional kleenex replacement.  By the way:  using a wipe for a tissue is NOT advised!  The wipes will stay on the shopping list.

While on the subject of potty training... am I the only one left who does not use pull-ups?  I know that it is a matter of personal opinion, but for me,  I am content to used the old fashioned training pants.  I just keep my washer full of water, and when the eventual accident happens, just toss the pants in the washer. 

4 of my 5 children in school:  OK  I am one of those weird Mom's that hate the first day of school.  It is another year passed, it is growing up, it is big kids with backpacks, it is hard.  For me it is for the fact that they are not home with me.  They are experiencing things away from here, they are learning from someone else.  You might be saying to yourself:  she should homeschool.  Been there done that. Unsuccessful.  I tried.  I failed.  I love having the kids home, but I was not organized enough to make it work.  Plus it stressed  me out!  And I am not necessarily the type of person to get stressed out either!  So as it is... I am that mother who loves their kids enough to send them to school.  I may cry on the first day, I may miss them terribly, I may anxiously await their arrival home, but I know that this is a part of life.  All that I can do is pray for them.  And I do.  A lot through a day!  Jonah is in 5th grade.  Lydia is in 3rd grade, Fiona is in kindergarten, and Ruby May is in MWF all-day preschool.

This cooking thing is a crock!: Really, I have to admit that I am incredibly spoiled.  For 10 incredible weeks of the year I have the joy of not cooking.  Yes people... I eat at camp.  I must admit, I feel no guilt in this, in fact I revel in it!  The idea of not turning on my oven at all while it is hot out thrills me!  Don't get me wrong, the weekends require that I do something, but thank goodness for frozen pizza, picnics, and pot-lucks.  Now, I am a fairly good cook, to say I enjoy it is not an understatement, but the idea of having a break is just sweet!  The hardest part is going back to cooking after a summer of not doing it.  This has been a good week.  I actually have paid attention to the food groups, and the health of what I am putting in the little mouths, but it has not been easy.  It takes strategic planning and effort.  Making a menu and shopping for exactly what is on the menu is a must for me.  If I don't, then we end up with the meat for hamburger, no buns, and something random, like tarter sauce.  Really, I have tried to make due with the odd things with "some" success, but generally, as a rule, making up as I go is unchartered territory.  I do like to bend the rules of cooking.  Add a bit of this or that to make it different.  The results are fair.  Really, I am fortunate that Ben is a human garbage disposal as long as it does not involve olives. (he's allergic)  The kids are also tolerant of me.  For the record my kids love most vegetables.  Beans, peas, carrots, squash, sugar snap peas, asparagus, cauliflower, peppers, onions, broccoli, all on the list of things that they devour.  Beets, brussel sprouts, lima beans, not so much, but I don't go there either.  All in all I am getting back into the swing of things.  I forget how much I like to bake in the summer though, thus I am making a yellow cake with chocolate frosting today.  Yum!  Any great menu plans would be appreciated, and I promise, USED!  I love to get off of my beaten path of routine cooking!

To end:  I have enjoyed blogging today.  I only hope that you will stick with me.