I don't know where time goes! If I miss one day on the blog then it turns into 2, then a whole week has gone by. Well, I will just jump back in.
1. I am grateful that dd and her boyfriend made it down for the night on Friday ( the normal <2 hour trip took 5 + due to weather and traffic)
2. I am grateful that my back is feeling better and I have a Chiro appointment today.
3. I am grateful that my dd first basketball game went well even thought they lost.
4. I am grateful that my fil called and told dh that he is taking him and his brother on a fishing trip this summer in AK. ( I love halibut and it is wonderful when it is fresh)
5. I am grateful that I get to go scrapbooking this weekend. (ds is not allowed in the hammock so I WILL get to go)

grateful day : : 8

I know I was going to try not to repeat myself but truly I could type one thing 5 times and be no less grateful than the first time I wrote it. DD slept from 8pm to 5 am last night!!!!!! That is it, I am 5 times grateful for the first nights sleep I have had in about 6 years. Now, she did wake up and cry out a couple of times but never more than a few little cries then went back to sleep, didn't even wake her sister right next to her. I don't even dream that it will happen again tonight, I have thought maybe it was the blueberries she ate as a bed time snack? We will try that again although I am sure they had nothing to do with it. I could easily become superstitious and try to replicate all that is done on a night that she sleeps peacefully.

grateful day : : 7

I was thinking last night as I was putting the kids to bed (I do my best thinking then, not in the shower like most people since the kids are usually staring at me through the glass) anyway, my thought was that I am grateful that the only lasting effects of ds little accident seems to be that he will come up and hug me for no reason, then run off just as quick. I love it! Well, that was one, here's the rest.
2. I am grateful that I don't have to work outside in this wind!
3. I am grateful that my sister got a new job after being laid off, one even better than before! (good luck on your first day Beck)
4. I am grateful that my feet are warm.
5. I am grateful that I am reasonably caught up on laundry **as long as there isn't more than 3-4 loads to be done at any given time I consider that caught up ;)**

Have a great Hump Day!

grateful day : : 6

Yes, I know there was no grateful day 5, believe me it was better not to post yesterday, it would have been the opposite of grateful and since it is all about being positive, I just skipped it.
Anyway, there is lots going on most of which I will not post on the internet, and last night in the middle of the night (thanks to youngest dd I was up to ponder) I came to the conclusion that I really just needed to give it over to God and not worry so much. So todays list ...
1. I am grateful that we have a full pantry and fridge to eat out of for the next week.
2. I am grateful that my dd made the basketball team, Varsity no less.
3. I am grateful that I didn't get too cranky with the kids even though I was very tired today.
4. I am grateful that my dh heard my needs last night and took over the littlest dd around 3 am so I got to sleep for a while.
5. I am grateful that I took the time to enjoy the amazing Colorado sky on a moonless night.
6. I am grateful that we got propane delivered so I can take a nice hot bath without worrying that I might be using up the last of the gas.

That last one was a bonus!

grateful day : : 4

So yesterday my pictures were not delivered and I did not get to go crop (2/5 of my gratefuls for yesterday). I was planning on going anyway, I really am so far behind that I have plenty to do but was very disappointed since I envisioned finishing last years album. Before I left our ds was playing in the hammock in the basement and the rope broke, he hit his head on the concrete floor. He got a hug and didn't want me to check his head, seemed ok. I left a little bit latter. While I was in the check out at the store dh called and said ds couldn't see . I raced back and met them on the road and we went to the er. On the way I sat in the back with ds, he kept asking "when will I see again?" and he would stare right at me and ask where I was. He started having speech problems on the way too. He kept saying he wished this was a dreak (I am sure he was trying to say dream and couldn't make the word) And then he asked me when he was going to die. That was enough to throw me over the edge.
We got to the hospital and they got him back for a ct right away which showed nothing out of the ordinary. The hooked him up to a monitor and let him sleep for a few minutes then asked him about our dogs, he said we didn't have any (we have always had at least 2 dogs). I asked him his sisters names and he couldn't tell me. He slept a little more and when he woke up his vision returned and he could name his sisters and dogs. The original dr wanted him to stay overnight, the on call dr for our dr didn't see any reason to expose him to all the sickness in the peds ward and figured if anything went wrong we could have him back with in 30 minutes, we agreed. So we took him home. He slept for a while and then we all watched Superman. He slept with us last night, I checked his breathing every few minutes. It is hard to believe but I think he is just fine.
So what am I grateful for on the beautiful Sunday?
1. That my handsome son can see.
2. That he remembers his family.
3. That he is excited about his friends birthday party (it is next door so I THINK I can let him go).
4. That this has made me more aware of the delicate balance in life.
5. I am even grateful that he was being a pain in the butt already this morning.

grateful day : : 3

1. I am grateful that I get to go scrapbook with my friends for 7 hours. ( WOO HOO!)
2. I am grateful that I can look out the window and see the beautiful mountains.
3. I am grateful that our youngest dd slept better last night (by better of course I mean she only woke up a few times instead of 10)
4. I am grateful that the post office WILL deliver my pictures today so I can finish last years album (that is the true power of positive thinking, if they don't come I might have a few neg things to say)
5. I am grateful that breakfast is ready (seems like I always include a food one huh? dh made spinach, mushroom and pepperjack cheese omelets, yummy!)

grateful day : : 2

1. That my oldest dd now lives only 2 hours.
2. That is was sunny today.
3. That my dh made chili for dinner (warm bowl on a cold day what could be better?).
4. That there are so many good books to read.
5. Now for a totally honest one....I am grateful that bedtime is not far away ;)

Power of Positive Thinking

This morning on the Today show there was someone (Dr or such I would imagine) who wrote a book called Happy for no Reason. One of the things she suggested is to keep a journal and write 5 things you are grateful for everyday. I am going to try this for the next month. Here goes...
1. A warm house to live in.
2. Healthy kids (that could count as all 5 right there)
3. A wonderful husband.
4. Food to eat.
5. The hat my secret sister knitted me (I love it!)

Okay, I will try not to repeat anything over the next month also. Here's to only happy thoughts!

Not quite 3 months...

So apparently I suck at this blogging thing. I would love to say my New Years Resolution is to post everyday and update everyone on the lives of my children and the progress in the basement etc... However I didn't even make a list of resolutions. I think I just, in general, want to try and be more like the person I want to be. A more attentive mother, a better house keeper (yikes!), better with the budget, ummm, create a budget. Just the basics. I am not even going to mention losing weight because frankly that is a given. So, what have we been up to since October, not much. Older dd did go back to her old school and her grades are wonderful. She has also had 2 promotions at CAP since then. Her squadron participated in the Wreaths Across America in December and even made it into the local paper.
Of course it was cold and windy during the ceremony but it was still beautiful. It is amazing to see all of the men and women who have protected our freedom but have lost their lives. It would be great if next year they were able to get more than just 7 wreaths, I would love to see the whole cemetery covered in green.

Well, our oldest dd has moved back from Hawaii, YEAH! So her and her boyfriend were here for Christmas. It was really nice to have all the kids home for Christmas morning. From here on every year that it happens I realize it could be the last. I am sure that someday they will have their own families and not be here to wake us up early to open their presents. And we might get to sleep in...wait, that wasn't where I was going with that was it? I can not remember the last time my sister and I were both with our mom for Christmas.

We also have put our ds in Kindergarten. He seems to be enjoying it. It is quiet around here in the mornings while he is gone but the kids sure make up for it in the afternoon. We will just have to take it one year at a time. I am not going to go back and read all my posts with homeschooling affirmations in them as I will then just feel bad, I think that for now this is the right decision.

The two littlest girls just enjoy playing with their babies. I love to hear them play, the youngest calls her older sister "Maymi", it is the sweetest thing to hear. Not sure her sister agrees. When it is just the two of them they play really well but as soon as brother comes home she ditches the "baby" to play with the big boys.

Okay, a little basement progress note: not much going on. The electrical is almost complete. We ran into some snags on plumbing and dh has had to remove some concrete from the basement (the dust is horrible). It would seem that before there was any framing two of the pipes were broke off (ds ran into one with his bike, not sure about the other one) And since we decided to put the other washer and dryer down there we needed to make some adjustments to the mudroom. So it was all framed and now it is not, had to remove some to get to the concrete. Dh informed me yesterday that he is going to have to cut even more concrete.... one step forward two steps back, will it ever be done?

Usually I am a big fan of winter, however this year I am already over it and we have barely gotten started. I have just been so cold. I was at Hobby Lobby the other day and they have so much garden stuff out already, little fairies and stone statues. I am excited about having a garden this year (I am always excited but it never seems to get done). We got our Burpee catalog too, so we have been creating our wish list. We will just have to see if 2008 is the year it gets done.

Last, here are a few pictures from the last couple of months. Hope everyone has a great start to their new year!