10 on Wednesday

1- I'll have you know that I WAS in bed by 11 p.m. Sunday evening. There was no sleeping for at least an hour, but I kept the lamp off so there was no reading either. As I lied there I noticed the cramps in my calves and thighs. I wondered about the blogs that I hadn't read yet. I thought about doing more stretches for my tight body. But my stroke of genius was this:

2- I decided to HEART ATTACK Jessica's door. She's always competing with Jayson for Dad's attention. She isn't going to quit the role of Daddy's Little Girl especially since Jayson is starting to favor Dad too. She often feels left out with the older brothers and says, "they don't like me." Apparently she saw me corner Jacob to give him a hug (because you have to steal them from him, he doesn't usually offer hand outs). She went and pouted on the stairs. I dare say there were misty eyes. I asked her what was wrong and she said, "You don't love me." Point is, Jessica needs a boost in her self esteem and reassurance that we adore her. I also put a little heart with a love note in he lunch box. When she got home from school, she immediately saw this and grinned from ear to ear.

3- I confess I did NOT make it in bed by 11 p.m. on Monday. I blame the washing machine, it's not pulling it's weight around here. It is only 9 years old and it's paired with an ancient dryer that keeps on working perfectly. The washing machine had a faulty switch - the one that tells the machine that the lid is shut and it's okay to spin. When the switch doesn't work, the washing machine just stays full of water and stops halfway through the cycle. It's been replaced once. It's broken again and I've been managing the problem with duct tape for several months now. I currently have the button taped down so the machine ALWAYS thinks the lid is closed. So far so good with not having my loads splash and spin all over the room. BUT, every 6-7 loads I have to re-tape it. When I went to switch loads, I had to re-tape and then wait for the spin cycle before I could switch them to the dryer. Laundry delay.

4- I DID get to bed on Tuesday before 11 p.m. which is why this is a 10 on Wednesday list.

5- I've been doing my exercises which have made me all tired and achy. Being tired and achy make me want comfort foods, which has been making the exercise null and void.

6- I DO like showering at the gym. They are pretty clean. Good water pressure. Lots of warm water. No toddler outside the door putting handsoap in his hair - PRICELESS.

7- Anna is home from college. I didn't get 5 minutes into our conversation before I re-hired her to come back and help me with house keeping. It's heavenly!!!!

8- I forgot that we brought Jacob's camera to Wild Rivers Water Park, so you get to see these fabulous images of me with my kids - too bad I'm in a swim suit. Make a Wish has an annual summer event where they invite all the wish families of that year. They provided tickets and a BBQ lunch. Very Cool!

9- A couple of the salsa jars did not seal, so we got to sample some early. Pretty tasty. Jon read that salsa is best after it sits on the shelf for several weeks. All the flavors with mesh together. Guess we'll have to find out.

10- Betcha you've been missing this little guy in action. So here are some snaps of the cutest little red at our house. Here's just snackin' on a pear and sippin' his milk (which he will ONLY drink in a bottle).