Megs' search for happiness--take 73

I eat gobs of peanutbutter with a spoon. This explains so much about me. Feel free--read into in.

A fuzzy morning

Today is one of those days when I must do everything or I must do nothing. How do you find the balance of what is worthwhile and needful compared to simply going through the expected motions of your life? Don't panic--the children have been fed. (That falls under the needful category. I've found if you don't feed them everyday they get noticeably upset.) They have also been clothed and brushed and what-have-you. Is it worth it for me to marinate some chicken for dinner when I haven't even showered yet? Is it even a good idea to shower when I haven't done my expected workout? Why should I workout when it takes up a huge chunk of my morning and really I'm just so tired? It makes sense that I would be tired after reading a whole book in one sitting until 2:00am last night. But I needed to read that book, the same way I need chocolate when I'm stressed. (Oh, and I ate a bunch of chocolate chips too, which consequently gave me a headache. Huge Costco bag of chocolate chips? Best idea ever. Or worst.) So what is needful? What is the most important thing? This question always points to the best of all answers--you know, the ones you always repeat in sunday school: Pray, then read the scriptures. Huh, guess I'd better go get my priorities straight. I know there are women out there who are just like me, who have days of doubt and confusion of purpose. Sometimes it helps to know that you're not the only one struggling with everyday life--the only one who misses the seemingly obvious answers. It won't last forever. Just take one step at a time. Okay, now I'm going to go following the prompting. Then perhaps I'll start with getting dressed...

And then I took the Nyquil

Today I blog because I am avoiding doing the important stuff, or the "usual" stuff. The reason for this may be because I have a cold and took Nyquil last night and I'm still not over the effects, or perhaps because it's that special time and I feel like bursting into tears because all of the forces of the universe seem to be against me (totally not true bytheway if I do an evaluation--my body is just telling me lies). I can think of a hundred things to do and a bajillion reasons why not to do them--or maybe because I just don't want to move and that basically trumps everything. In the meantime Lou Lou and Farm Boy run wild through the untidy wilderness of my home. They don't seem deprived but then again Farm Boy thinks cat food is a treat. Okay, maybe I'll put a stop to that one. While I've got ya here I'll post some random musings:

• Why do I have to love peanut butter so much? It is a weakness, and paired with chocolate, it is my downfall.


• Lou Lou has informed me that she is in love with the cute little neighbor boy, and that she fell in love with him a long, long, long, long time ago when she was three. This sounds serious. Recently she asked me if she could play with Boy Next Door, and could she please put on her lipstick first before knocking on his door. Cause for concern?


• I really should recommit to taking off my makeup at night.


• There is a new stray cat in the neighborhood who looks very similar to Phoebe (my new cat) and is giving her a bad name by running into neighbors houses and hiding under their beds. If you are my neighbor, please understand this is not Phoebe, this is an evil voyeur look-alike and I do not feed her.


• Farm Boy now walks. Good? Bad? The jury is still out.


• I have now witnessed a live birth. Of a real human baby(!). IT WAS AWESOME. This event has commenced an inward struggle over my resolution to do anything that is needful to prevent myself from ever becoming pregnant again ever ever ever. But then one of my precious children whines about something and I'm more recommitted than ever before.


• My husband makes yummy treats. This must mean he loves my shapely figure and doesn't want it to change in any way because he's doing his darnedest to keep it round and soft. Um thanks Charming?


• Primary equals fun! Who knew? I completely forgot about the little party that happens in the primary room each Sunday morning. Plus there's a song for just about any topic that needs discussing or celebrating. Huzzah for my new calling!


• I've probably read about seven books this month. And I've still got a couple more days to squeeze another in. Yay! Another reason/excuse not to be productive!


• I am going to make a slipcover for my living room couch. I've been saying this since last October. Impediments: wimpy sewing machine, basic lack of a pattern or awesome sewing now-how, finding the perfect expensive fabric and fear of cutting into it, um--my obvious lack of motivation to even do the vacuuming.


• The aforementioned cat, Phoebe. What the devil was I thinking!?!?!!!! Oh well.


• All single men in their mid-twenties/early thirties are stupid. How could you exist out there and not be fawning over my most excellent sister, Miss Dowse? Do you not see how gorgeous she is? Her hair is indescribably wonderful. She is smart and witty, extremely fun and a hard worker. Unless your list for the perfect woman includes something like ugly, mean, hard-hearted, hates children, and has multiple piercings and tattoos, she is the girl you want. The real question is, are you good enough for her? You are all fools.


• I am going to start a garden. Sigh.


• I had very intense dream that I met Jim Carrey and we became fast, secret friends. We called each other all the time and laughed our heads off. Charming didn't mind. We ran away from paparazzi and ate delicious food. Weird.

Okay, now my conscience is declaring war on my blogging, so off I go to get dressed and make sure the small children haven't swallowed something toxic.

That is all.

Lou Lou gets right to the point

Today all three kiddos have had nasty colds--coughing and the whole bit. Poor Farm Boy couldn't keep any food down because he was coughing so hard. I felt a little bad for him, but really more sorry for me because hey, that kid can put away a ton of food in a short amount of time and getting it all over the floor is not my idea of cute decor (which is one of my general aims as a full-time housewife/mother/person-who-is-at-home-all-the-time-and-so-her-home-needs-to-be-her-awesome-fairyland-castle-blah-blah-blah). But I digress. To sum up, everyone had coughes today.

So tonight Lou Lou begged to say the family prayer, and was granted the privilege because actually praying willingly in the evening has not been going so well in the small child department as of late. I prepared myself for whatever was to come. The prayer was very to the point and focused on one topic--coughes (prounced koff-is). It went something like this:

"Please bless that my coughes will get better. And please bless that Buttercup's coughes will get all better. And please bless that Farm Boy's coughes will get better too."

And then almost as a side note:

"And we're thankful for everyone who has coughes. And thank thee for everyone who doesn't have coughes." (pronounced koff-is) Amen.

Charming and I then added a heartfelt amen to Lou Lou's pleadings. Who could reject such a prayer? She had everyone covered. And thus ended another day in Meg's fairyland-castle-house.

Amen. Um, I mean The End.

Buttercup ventures into reading... and launches her school-teaching career

Buttercup has really been advancing in her school work the last few months and weeks. She's been sounding out words with a frustrated attitude since this summer, but as of late her reading skills have really taken off. She started with some take-home-reading books from school that read simple repetitions and this last week she picked up one of her easy reader books that are much more complicated and read the whole thing--sounding out the more difficult words patiently and surprising me by knowing most of the words by sight. I suppose I ought to send her teacher an apple or something because apparently she's been doing her job well...

Buttercup has taken out her new found gifts on Lou Lou, who does preschool at home with me most mornings when Buttercup is at school. Although Lou Lou can barely recognize only a handful of letters, let alone remember their sounds, Buttercup thought it necessary to school her in the finer arts of punctuation. Setting up school downstairs in their expansive room, Buttercup wrote out a few sentences as an example for Lou Lou's learning, including a period, question mark, and exclamation point--and then proudly taped it on the sliding glass doors by the kitchen. It went as follows (notice the punctuation):

I like you.
Can you read?
I love you!

I hope Lou Lou now knows the difference between a calm "I like you." and a feeling "I love you!". Buttercup sure does. She's been practicing her reading "with expression". At first she was shy and a bit offended when I suggested she ammend her monotone reading voice to one using "expression" like mama does when she reads. She was horrified after a few examples to show her what I meant, but a day or two later she began doing it on her own--proudly displaying her expression like it was a new outfit. (And trust me, those are proudly displayed.)

Anywho, we are incredibly proud of Buttercup's achievements. Even after all these years, Charming and I seem shocked when our children learn something new--"Look! Something we made together can read on it's own! It works!".

It stretches beyond that--lately we realized that Buttercup will be turning six in a week or two, which is incredibly shocking because we were sure five was tops after her last birthday. But now that I think about it, next year Buttercup will turn seven.... and do you realize that after that SHE'LL BE EIGHT?!?!?!!! (Yes, I myself have learned how to use question marks and exclamation points.)

I tell you it is getting quite overwhelming how quickly time passes and children grow and learn and progress. But I suppose life would turn stale if change wasn't constantly occuring, even with our sweet little ones. Isn't that what the plan of salvation is all about anyway? Learning and growing and progression. Sigh.



You probably noticed I'm back. Duh. I felt like telling a story and here is the end result. You're welcome! We'll see if this sticks... this could be fun you know?

That is all.