Clothed

I love buying clothes for my kids.  It's pretty obvious by the amount of clothing they have. 

Then again, I also love buying clothes for myself and my closet is far from empty.

I rather dislike doing laundry and only really have to once every two weeks or so.  Sawyer rarely makes it to the end of the day with his shirt still clean, sometimes two shirts a day is necessary.  Sierra is successful in keeping her clothes clean all day about half the time - then again, there are days when she goes through three outfits a day!  (she is such a girl)  My point is that they have enough clothes to allow me that two week allowance on doing laundry.

It helps that both of my  kids are small and can wear their clothes for quite awhile so although they may have many items I don't shop for them often.  I also never buy anything that is not on sale, and it has to be a super good sale.  It is not common for me to pay more than $5 or $6 for an item.  I also try and carry over clothes from summer to winter by layering T-shirts over long-sleeved shirts in order to prolong their wearing lifespans or adding leggings to skirts.

I could do laundry more frequently.... 

I figure this way when I get to the point where laundry is a must I have enough dirty clothes to make it worth my effort.  I have front load machines and can cram an awefully large load in at once.   Laundry less often uses less soap and less water and therefore balances out the cost of the clothes.

Right?

Works for me!

Embracing the Craziness

My day started at 6 A.M. today. 

Sierra awoke at that hour and decided it was time to get up - despite the fact that she knows full well she is to stay in her room until 7 A.M. 

"But my clock is taking too long!!" Was the response to our objections to the hour of her consciousness. I did manage to convince her to go back to bed and by 6:30 I snuggled into my warm bed for what I hoped was another 45 minutes of sleep.

"Ah!"

Came from the other room now.

Seriously?

I tried rocking Sawyer back to sleep but failed.  So I took him back to our bed where he quietly lay and squirmed for another half-an-hour before Sierra once again awoke.  The next hour was complete mayem as breakfast took place and I was actually glad to escape to my job.  

I had a busy day at work, a rehearsal at church immediately after and when I arrived home it was as if I never left.   Chaos and noisy, demanding children dominated every aspect of my senses - and I only have two kids!

The scene was one with food and toys and bowls tossed every which way, sibblings squabbling,  tantrums thrown, time-outs given, and much yelling and screaming - all by the children.  (Trevor and I managed to contain our responses mostly to eye rolling and sighs - yes, really!)

Then bedtime and.....

silence.

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh!

But I wouldn't have it any other way with my kids because they are healthy and normal.

 My heart is heavy this evening. 

Some good friends of ours' six month old baby is currently being closely monitored in the Alberta Children's Hospital in Calgary with low blood pressure and a low heart rate.  The baby was recently diagnosed with a medical condition and we think this is a reaction to the medication, but that is pure speculation.  We know that that this baby is not well and we are praying fervently.   If you pray, please pray along with us.

I hugged my kids a little harder this evening despite their wiggling and yelling.

80/20 - Really?

Did you know that a person's weight loss/gain is 80% to due with what a person eats? 

(I was told this today by a fitness expert)

80%!!!!!

I've been working my butt off with P90X and while I am attaining results it's nothing dramatic.

I don't eat poorly at at all but I do have my vices and "bad" foods I enjoy.

So that explains it.  Assuming you believe that, which I actually do.

Darn.

Halloween

As Halloween is fast approaching and it is, naturally, on my mind.

I've never been much into Halloween.  

As a kid I didn't mind dressing up but I did it mostly because my friends got into it and I didn't want to be a loser.  Of course I loved the copious amounts of free candy but I was quite shy and going up to strange people's houses was very hard for me.  My mom and dad never made a big deal about the day but we still handed out candy and did the token decorating ( with items made by  my sister and me) and pumpkin carving.  Our church held an annual "Pumpkin Patch Party" that we also went to for a non-scarey, fun atmosphere.

After I "grew up" and left home Trevor and I spent many Halloweens hiding in our basement suite/house with the lights off.  We disagree with the spooky, scarey, gory aspects that the day can represent and being Christians, any reference to demons or Satan is not cool.

  Now that we have kids, one in particular who knows what this day is about, we have been forced to participate somewhat and scrutinize what the day means to us and how to approach it.  We have some friends who don't involve their kids (ages 6,5, & 2) at all in trick-or-treating but still hand out candy, and some friends who are taking their kids swimming instead. (6months and 2 so not quite at the age of knowing what goes on)  Then their are others we know who go all out with Halloween.  I respect each for their decisions.

We first took Sierra trick-or-treating when she was 2 yrs 4 months and once she figured out what was going on, she absolutely loved it. 

"I knock on a door, say trick-or-treat and I get free candy!!!!" went her little mind.  

Last year she, at age 3, she got into the dressing up part and the receiving of free candy took on even more importance.  To her credit she also enjoyed giving out candy.

This year, at age 4, she has talked about it for over a month, thought out her costume, anticipates pumpkin carving and is getting into having fun with it.

   We have chosen to get involved in the positive aspects of Halloween and make the scarey parts insignificant.  We love doing activities with out kids, we love seeing the glee and excitement on Sierra's face when she's doing something she enjoys - trick-or-treating being one of them.  Sierra certainly recognizes that spooky is associated with Halloween and although we don't deny it we don't really talk about it.  When she's ready we'll explain why we don't like that side of the day or ever "go all out" with it but for now, as far as she is concerned, it will be a day to dress up and get a sugar supply large enough to keep her bouncing for weeks!

(we'll be regulating that part too)

Catch Up!

Is it really Tuesday?  Have I really missed many days of blogging in a row?

Such is my life.

Busy.

But it is a really good life these days.

We celebrated a belated Thanksgiving with my family this weekend.  My sister and brother-in-law live out of town and couldn't make it until now.  It was a really  nice day that began with family photos at a lovely park.  BBQ'd hamburgers for lunch.  A long nap for me and Sawyer during the afternoon.  A huge turkey dinner and a board game finished off the day.

We've also been enjoying some really quality social time with friends lately and it's been enriching.  With the disjointedness of summer and being busy as we entered fall activities we stepped back a bit for awhile and it's good to connect again.

I've been thinking about money lately.  Well, okay, I think about it a lot because it is so dang vital!  I don't obsess or worry all that much but I make sure I'm aware of where we are at so we don't end up in deep waters. 

I finally feel like our finances are not spiraling out of control.  Not that we were in trouble at any point but with our choice of me working as minimally as I do it means that our spending needs to be fairly strict.  For the last number of months  I'd calculate everything out in advance and double check it and it all would add up satisfactorily.  Then this expense would come up, and that would come up and all of sudden it was a jumble of numbers that totaled past my initial sums.  An ideas of saving money flew out the window month after month.

 As I looked over our finance spreadsheet the other day I saw that last month was good, and this month is shaping up to be good.  I'm scared a huge error is going to rear its ugly head and my savings will fly away again but for now I'll enjoy the mostly-secure feeling.  Of course this doesn't mean we can relax and spend willy-nilly but the line is straight right now.

With Christmas coming up I am already planning and thinking about how we are affording it.  That's how we have to be with major things like that - prepare in advance.   I have some ideas brewing and hopefully can follow through with them.  I love Christmas and I love giving and receiving gifts.  I know it's not about the gifts but it sure is a major part for me.

Next week I could be singing a different tune and feeling the need to get three more jobs but for now...we are good.

3 A.M.

I'm deep in slumber land, possibly dreaming, snuggled under my thick warm quilt.   Then out of the dark, comfortable depths my conscience is aware of a small touch or push.  I roll over and reach my hand out and, sure enough, I feel a small trembling body standing beside me.

"What's up Buddy?"  I groggily whisper.

"I had a bad dream."

I drag myself out from under my blanket into the cold, silent, house, throw on my housecoat and quietly walk with my little girl to her room.

I cover her with her two blankets and lay down beside her.  

I speak softly about nice things and caress her face and try to bring her mind around to happier thoughts and images.  Soon she is relaxed and calm.

I give her a kiss and hug and go back to my warmth.

Milestone

On Sunday of Thanksgiving weekend my husband put on his wedding ring.....

....and left it on......

....and can still wear it.

For those of you who are new here, he was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis last March.  He's now had it for just over a year (although we didn't know for the first six months).  Go here for the story.  He has not been able to wear his wedding ring on his finger since February.

I/We are incredibly thankful for doctors and modern medicine.

We are also thankful to our God who has provided healing in this way.
All Glory to Him!

It's been a long journey, and although it is not over, we are able to rest a bit for now.

Puddles!

What kid doesn't love a good puddle?  So I let Sierra play in some.

A Butter Story

So I get home from work today and see a popcorn container sitting on the stove and Trevor informs me that Sawyer already put out his request for bed-time snack.  

Sierra chimes in "I want some too!"

I say that's going to be a bit hard since we're totally out of butter or anything that resembles it.(we always pop our own in the microwave and add butter and salt)

Sierra turns on the water works and the flood comes a gushing.  There's also wailing and more wailing and when I suggest Bits n Bites as an alternative the wailing and the water intensifies.  Because I'm tired after working all day and I have a headache I say we'll find some butter so there can be popcorn later.  We live a small town, the store is not far.

 

Later comes so Sierra and I go to our local grocery store.

Yay, the large tub of margarine is on a super sale.

I get to the till to pay and....no wallet in my purse.

Mutter, mutter, grumble, grumble.

I go to my parents house, they are on the way home and by now the kids' bedtime is near and to go home for my wallet and go back to the store would take too much time.

My dad offers me a package of microwave popcorn.

Great!  Sierra likes this version too and it's easier.

I get in the van and explain our good fortune.

There is much whining.

I go back in and get butter.

 

I drive home.

On the way Sierra says to me, "Mommy, if you can't find your wallet that's okay, I can just eat Bits n Bites."

There was popcorn for a night snack 

With lots of butter.

The End.

One Man Wrecking Crew

Starting in the ensuite off of our master bedroom.  I see a pair of my glasses lying upside down on the floor.  Upon opening the bottom drawer I observe that every single spectacle case has been opened and the glasses they supposedly were protecting are now in a heap in the drawer.

Into the bedroom I see that one dresser cupboard door has been opened and whatever articles of clothing that were once neatly folded and stacked are now scattered on the floor.  A little stool stands next to the dresser and my jewellery box drawer is open and necklaces now prettily adorn the top of the dresser.  Trevor's alarm clock radio had been turned on and both night table drawers are open and who-knows-what is missing from them.  There was a time when there would also inevitably be used Kleenex littering the floor around an empty garbage can, but that fascination seems to have waned.  But if a Kleenex box is left within reach.....

Now I go into our walk-in closet and shoes are no longer on the shoe rack and my shirts have been yanked off their hangers. Back into the bedroom the return-air vent has been ripped from the wall.

Sierra long ago learned to keep the door to her private domain and the main bathroom constantly closed so those rooms are relatively in tact.  

The second bedroom often has books and clean diapers scattered haphazardly on the floor.  The diaper pail lids are also off and a lovely smell permeates the room.  (I use cloth at home)  Occasionally there is a sopping wet spot on the carpet near the change table and the water container used for wiping is now empty.

Continuing down the hall one might trip over a large plastic truck or step on a Mrs. Potato Head piece and as I enter the main living area toys can be seen tossed here and there. In the kitchen there are plastic containers EVERYWHERE and two empty drawers.  All of Sierra's colouring and sticker books are under the kitchen table and not in their comfy basket.

Going downstairs now.  Watch that you don't trip on the hazards laying on the steps and observe the pile of 'things' at the bottom.  Every so often our poor cat has no food or water in his bowl, but the floor is not thirsty or hungry.  One day fresh cat litter had been flung as though it were confetti.  The $400 surround sound system with DVD player, IPOD dock and radio is now useless because numerous DVD's were fed into it and the system jammed and broken and the IPOD dock was snapped off.  The cat also gets to watch TV a lot.

The novels in the office do NOT belong on the shelves and if the laundry/cold room door is open Mason jars make a fantastic crash when thrown onto the concrete floor.

Pool balls roll great on the laminate floor and DVD's are so pretty and shiny and fun to take of their cases. (hence the broken media system)

If it can be ripped, emptied, opened, or thrown it's been done.

It's a real good thing he's so cute!!!

A Day In The Life Of Me

This time I really was going to post this yesterday, it was typed and everything, why I didn't at the time I don't know.  Anyway, here it is!

It is mid-afternoon and I am very satisfied with my day thus far and what is anticipated to come.

My house is actually clean!  The product of a successful morning and help from my slaves kids.  I know this won't last past breakfast tomorrow but at least I should get until then!

I also had a delightful hour or amid the cleaning playing with my awesome kids.  I entered the fun world of dolls with Sierra while occasionally amusing Sawyer with this toy or that to prevent him from destroying doll-land.

Lunch was a bit of disaster with some melt downs for unknown reasons so I'll push that out of my mind because writing about it will make me shudder.

I had full intentions of getting my workout in this afternoon but since Sawyer officially has my cold he couldn't nap because of congestion and coughing.  Trying to exercise with Sawyer around is simply not possible. 

I snuggled with my kids for a bit of quiet time on the couch instead before showering and getting ready to go out.


Later we are off to the chiropractor and then McDonald's for supper.  It has been ages since we've been to McD's and thought it would be a nice treat.  Sierra loves the Play Place and a "regular" restaurant would be a disaster since Sawyer refuses to sit.  After we've stuffed ourselves with grease and a horrendous amount of calories maybe we'll attempt to work some of it off and take in a little shopping - you know exotic high-end stores like Canadian Tire and Wal-Mart. 

 Then kids to bed and a few precious hours of peace and quiet before we must give in to the necessity of slumber.

Not too exciting, I know, but it was a day and a good one at that.

Annoyances

Things that irk me:
(I'm in a bad mood or anything, this is just something to blog about)

1.  When I ask a question at work about a certain procedure and the person answering me begins by stating that he/she is frustrated with having to explain it yet again.  For the record it was a follow up question from last week and if I had done said procedure incorrectly than the books would be screwed.

2. Having only two weeks of holidays per year.

3.  Not getting sick pay, or paid personal days, or medical days or basically any days paid that aren't vacation.  If we're not there we don't get paid.  Period.

4. Crumbs in my kitchen drawers.

5.  Dirty socks laying around (although this situation has improved lately)

6. Sawyer cramming who-knows-how-many DVD's into the DVD player and now all it does it make a horrid clicking noise and the DVD's don't eject.

7.  Wind.  We get insane amounts of wind in the winters that blow insanely strong.

8.Waking up before I have to.

9.  Feeling like I don't know what I'm doing at my job despite 13 years experience because we switched computer systems and our lens supplier.

10.  Loosing both sets of van keys.

Cinnamony Goodness

As fall quickly descended  with cooler, windy days and the leaves began to turn into brilliant oranges and yellows my enjoyment of baking returned.

Yesterday morning, despite feeling ill, I managed to get the scent of cinnamon, brown sugar and butter floating through my house via this:

Cinnamon Swirl Bread

It is quite possible that Sierra and I ate half a loaf that afternoon!  It is a good thing the recipe makes two loaves.  The second one will be gone by tomorrow I'm sure.

I'd double the recipe but I just don't like the taste of baked goods as much after they have been frozen and thawed.  I'm a purist I guess.

 

Oh, and I wouldn't tease you with something so good without sharing the recipe which was passed on to me by my mom.

Cinnamon Swirl Bread

 

1 Cup warm milk

1/4 cup warm water

2 eggs

1/4 cup butter or marg

1 tsp salt

1/4 cup sugar

5 cups flour (I used 1 cup whole wheat and then 4 1/4cups of white)

21/4 tsp yeast

 

 

Filling:  I don't measure these ingredients, I just dump.  Be GENEROUS with the sugar.

2 TBSP butter

1/3 cup sugar (I used brown)

1TBSP cinnamon

 

Mix yeast with water and 1 tsp sugar and let rise, about 10 minutes.

Add other ingredients as with any yeast baking and mix well.

Let rise until double

Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface and divide in half.

Roll each portion into a 10 x 8 rectangle (mine was even longer) . Brush with butter and sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon.  *Do not skimp on this part.  Cinnamon bread/buns are meant to have lots of brown sugar and cinnamon otherwise what's the point?  They just taste like plain bread/buns.  

Roll up tightly jelly roll style . Pinch ends and seams and place seams down in two 9x5 in loaf pans. cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled , about an hour.

Bake at 350 for 25 min. (I took mine out at this point since and they were done) Cover with foil and bake for another 10 min.until golden brown. Remove from pans , cool completely and glaze with icing if desired.

Enjoy!

Short and Sweet

Sick.

Exhausted.

Longing for my bed.

Not in the blog mode.

Had a great couple of days visiting with out-of-town friends and that is keeping me smiling.

Thankful

Since it is Canadian Thanksgiving and I'm a Canadian living in Canada being thankful seems appropriate for today.  It's too bad I'm once again doing this later than my cognitive likes.

I'm thankful for modern medicine and our medical system.  Trevor wore his wedding ring for the first time in eight months today and kept it on!  (for those of you who are new, he was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis this past March)

I am thankful for two healthy active kids.

Family.

Friends.

My house.

Good food to eat.

Pretty normal stuff I know, but it's the normal stuff that so many people don't have and I don't want to take any of it for granted.

Harvesting

If the three days of torrential rains hadn't rendered the remainder of my garden a mud bog there would be carrots and tomatoes to add to this picture.

50lbs of potatoes and 20 pounds of onions.

 

The 25 apples did not make the picture.  I'd like to say they are already in pie form or something delectable like that but no, they are just chillin' in the fridge.

Lucky Seven - WILMA!!!!!!!!

I may be dating myself but remember the Flintstones? And Fred constantly bellowing

"WILMA!!!!!!!!" for one reason or another?  I do.  I don't remember much else about the show but that yell is imprinted in my mind.

 

I admit to raising my voice with my kids, especially Sierra. 

She has been known to be afflicted with sudden onsets of can't-hear-itis.  Flare ups typically occur when she takes something that her brother has and and she "needs" right that moment.  Or with any other sibling 'moments'!  Like she has this bizarre need to push him over for no reason.  (Ah, the love)  

After numerous attempts at asking/telling Sierra to stop/give it back with no avail my voice eventually must escalate to a much higher volume.  Sierra's ears eventually turn back on and she wails because I yelled at her and I attempt to explain that I tried speaking normally but since she didn't obey I assumed she couldn't hear me so I had to be loud.  My logic is lost on her most of the time.

 My vocal chords also work a bit harder when Sawyer is into something (99.0% of the time he's awake!). 

Strong "No's" and "Sawyers!" can often be heard throughout the day.

Two things have made me step back and analyze this tactic:

1.  Sierra has taken to hollering at Sawyer if he does something he shouldn't or that she doesn't want him to.  I tell her not to yell at him and I can tell by the look she gives me that she's thinking "You do."

2.  I heard a mom repeatedly disciplining her child recently and it was always in a very loud, firm voice that had an angry quality to it.  It was enough that Sierra was actually a little scared.  My thoughts were, "Do I sound like that?"  

(Now I don't know this mom or the situation(s) behind what was going on, I know only know how it came across to me.)

So I've been making a conscious effort to attempt a different approach.  It involves stopping what I am doing and going up to my child and getting down to their level and speaking to them.  If they continue to ignore me than a time-out is in order. 

It's surprisingly effective.  I still overcome the can't-hear-itis, and I don't feel like a rotten egg when the situation is dealt with!   

I don't want my kids to have imprinted memories of me hollering at them.

VI: Presenting.....

Pictures of my Wieners all dressed up!  

This is quite a change from the usual food and snot smeared Sawyer and the messy-haired Sierra who would wear PJ's 24/7 if I let her.

My little princess as: The Flower Girl.

The ivory dress is vintage from the later 1980's worn by my cousin (sister to the groom) when she was four.  Sierra's silky blond tresses were painstakingly curled by me while she was mesmerized by the TV.  She is also wearing a touch of Sweet Nectar lipstick.  (The tank top underneath, the leggings, socks and shoes aren't anything special but represent a part of Sierra's idiosyncrasies and they kept her warmer in the cool outdoor air.)

Here's a full view of the dress. 

Handsome little dude but that mischievous twinkle of trouble can't be masked no matter what he's dressed in!  Ironically, his little suit matched the groomsmen outfits to a T and Sawyer was not a member of the wedding party!  It was a complete fluke.

Ain't that a good-looking fam?

Mommy and her girl.

Day 5 - The Little Things.

I was going to quickly type a post for yesterday and totally lie and say that "somehow" it didn't post even though I swear I hit the "publish" button, but I then I thought, "why?"

The truth of the matter is, I completely forgot.

You may get a double whammy today - you may not!

 

Last night our church "care group" (a group of five couples who meet weekly to study the Bible) met and we challenged each other to 'find God' in the mundane, in the little things.   I confessed last night that despite what I've always believed to be a strong faith I haven't been giving God much though lately.  

 

(No, I'm not going to preach to you or anything but my faith is very real to me and I write about it from time to time.)

Since my mind is refocusing on God/the positive here are a couple of things I've already come up with:

Yesterday I horsed around with both my kids on our bed.  They love being tossed into the pillows and we had about fifteen minutes of pure fun.  At one point Sierra says to be "You are the most specialist Mommy ever!" My heart melted.  I am blessed to have two fantastic, healthy kids who I can play with.

I have gorgeous pink flowers blooming on a plant of mine - despite the fact that it is often forgotten and only gets water when the leaves are droopy!

I love the sunrise, and although the fact that I get to see it every morning means the days are getting shorter and winter is on its way I'm still enjoying its splendor.   The colours I get to peer at through bleary, sleep encrusted eyes while my two kids are hollering for TV, milk, breakfast etc really are quite lovely.  I'm sure God made sunrises beautiful because He knew mornings would be hard for many of us and that we needed something to cheer us first thing!  Not that I take the time to notice every day but....you get the point.

I'm curious to see how looking for the small blessings will impact my general attitude.  Simply thinking about it last night had my attitude doing a 180.

3 - Our Wieners.

It's late, I worked all day, went for a walk with my kids and husband, then walked again with my mom and now I'm tired and my creative juices are a little like molasses right now.

So I told you a bit of completely random and useless facts about me, how about my kids? Or as Trevor and I affectionately call them, our wieners.

OK.

Sierra is four, can't seem to do anything  by herself (nor allow me to do do anything alone) beyond sleeping because she's likely to keel over with sudden and intense loneliness  She has a ratty old bunny that goes EVERYWHERE with her and a blanket that shows just as much love but doesn't quite go everywhere.  She's Mommy's girl by far.  Her name was chosen in a round about way after GMC Sierra trucks.

Sawyer, nineteen months, will wander off and play alone all the time.  If it's too quiet I definitely have reason to be concerned.  He loves to chuck toys, sippy cups, toy strollers, shoes - ANYTHING - down the stairs and then look at me with a super concerned look on his face and say "Uh Oh!" His blanket is his "thing", no stuffed toy yet.  He is mommy's boy but leaning a little more to his dad lately.  His name was chosen out of a baby name book but when we used to watch the show Lost we did comment on the name (one of the characters was named Sawyer) and that we liked it.

Stay tuned for pictures - one of these days, I promise!

2/31 - Odds and Sods About Moi!

1. When I was in high school I wanted to marry a cowboy/farmer.  I ended up marrying a city boy, who grew up on an acreage near Vancouver, but a city boy none-the-less.  He thinks cowboys are ridiculous and that country music is a scourge to the industry!  I love him anyway and can't imagine being married to a cowboy/farmer now.

2. I believe that my birthday needs to be celebrated for at least a week every year.  I usually succeed and it's great!  This year happened to be a rare failure in that area.

3.  I think it's normal to have 17 pairs of glasses. (I know, I know, a benefit/hazard of my occupation)

4. Pickles and popcorn rock!   But not together or even at the same time.

5. I can still do a flip on the trampoline.

6.My heritage is as Mennonite and German as one can get yet I don't speak German or attend a Mennonite church anymore (not because I no longer believe the faith but because I thrive more under a different style of worship than the local Mennonite churches offer).  

I do still have regular affairs with their food though!

7. I enjoy "train wreck" TV shows, as Trevor has termed them, such as "Sister Wives" and "19 Kids and Counting."

8. My husband is a hockey fanatic.  I enjoy it once a week, not the three or four times per week his team plays.  I usually join in his excitement of the season starting, not this year.

9. I can't stand football.

10. I only have complete vision in one eye, and even that eye only sees well with correction.

1 of 31

I think I'm a sucker for punishment and stress.  

I've signed up for the NaBloWriMo - write a blog post a day for the month of October.  I have so much time these days I thought I'd give myself something to do.  You know, because I've been soooo bored.  

(insert sarcasm)  I have no idea what you're going to read from me or even how successful I'll be but here I go!

While putting away my 4 baskets of clean laundry this morning - a job I really dislike by the way.  I don't mind sorting or rotating or even folding the laundry but putting it away....sometimes the clean laundry sits folded in the baskets for over a week and then I have to start over.  Anyway, while I was completing this particular task (after only 3 days of sitting in the baskets by the way) I had an idea:

I would like to have a Halloween party.  

I want to invite tons of people, dress up, eat lots of food, and enjoy each other's company.  

I normally really dislike Halloween. I don't know why exactly, but it is generally my least favourite time of year.  Now that I have one kid who is totally into it and another likely to join her - I mean what kid wouldn't like it with all that free candy! - I suppose I should try and enjoy it for a change! 

I do love a good party....

Who would come?