We Are...

fixing the broken bathroom sink drain. Fletch accidentally dropped a ring down it and when Jim took off the trap, the pipe just crumbled apart in his hand. Whoops!

making muffins, pancakes, breakfast burritos, syrup and cleaning out the fridge in preparation for our first week of my massage class.

out for beer, well, Jim is. Hi Jen.

watching more t.v. so mom can clean some more (and blog).

glad it was a three day weekend and so is next weekend. Not technically, but I took Friday off for our anniversary, it will feel like a three day weekend till I have to go to school on Saturday and Sunday.

so glad Grandma Paffy moved back to the area. We spent the weekend with her: Pinerado fun and enchiladas in Cambria on Saturday. Art in the Park on Sunday. Lots of fun.





potting training, seriously, buying those cloth diapers were a really good idea. And timed perfectly.

a little nervous about massage school.

really nervous about being away from home so much more.

enjoying the semi-arrival of fall. Feels amazing.

trying not to let Maggy nap so we can get her in bed earlier. Such a departure from our experience with Fletch, but worth it. I actually get an evening, and Fletch gets some much needed time with his mom and dad and maybe a bit of skipbo!

learning all over again what it means to be a parent. It's not about the t.v., the sugar, the lack of eating, the lack of sleep (though I know the importance all these play on my children's - and my own - moods) it's CONNECTION. Most widely know as attention. I am consistently reminded when my children are out of control. Fighting and fighting and being rude and sad and completely unmanageable. I need to: stop. drop whatever I am doing and just sit down, look them in the eye and say what are you needing? The answer is almost always, "Attention.". This is what most often works for us:

-reading together
-tickle fights, followed by a love sandwich
-sword battles
-painting
-journaling together
-family time: all four of us sitting in the living room talking, usually Jim or I pose a question for everyone to take a turn answering. Last night's question:
"If you could go anywhere in the world where would you go?":
Fletcher, "To Pokemon world."
Maggy, "To the beach!"
Mom, "To Disneyland!"
Dad, "To San Francisco."
-riding the grumpy horse
-playing a card game
-helping mom bake
-taking a walk
-sitting down to dinner together, which we only do about 4 days out of the week. It's another place we always pose a question for everyone to answer: "What was your favorite part of the day?"

It's amazing what happens after Jim and or I take a break from the constant chores and activities we are doing to spend time with the kids. They slow down, they laugh and touch each other more with love rather than frustration. We strive to remember this more. We fail often, but we try to go easy on ourselves when we do. It's hard you know? It's worth it though.