Mish mash

This post is likely total random, but here goes. I'll give you bullet points for ease of moving to one disconnected thought from another.

• Summer has been good. Busy. Very hot. I am very grateful for our YMCA membership, since taking the kids swimming makes the heat bearable for all of us. I didn't miss the humidity when I lived in Idaho, but I did miss swimming. You could swim there, it just wasn't quite the "my body is going to spontaneously combust if I don't get in the water and cool off" kind of refreshment.
• I have been struggling because hiking and cross country skiing were enjoyable and it was good exercise, but I hadn't found anything like that here. But I found water aerobics. They have it outside in the summer, so a little bit of sun, water and exercise have been really good for me. Hooray! Now I just need to find a winter substitute (I could do water aerobics inside, and I might, though it isn't quite the same).
• I have making plans for our upcoming school year. Trying to organize (which is not my strong point :P) decide what I would like for them to learn, and most of all- a workable plan on how to execute it! I am pretty excited about Issy's First Holy Communion preparation and working on the Alphabet Path this year. Fun times!
• I am almost ready to send in my request for Phase 3 of AAMI, a month ahead of schedule. I was actually ready last week, but I was waiting to get some more ink for my printer so I could copy the paper before I sent it off. I am excited to dig into Phase 3! If only I had unlimited amounts of money to spend on books...
• I have been trying to cultivate a spirit of gratefulness. I'll be honest, it has been really difficult. I tend to focus on the things that I don't have- a house with some land, an unlimited budget to spend on interesting things for our homeschool. A mountain view. So I have been really trying to focus on the good things: an awesome husband that I Love, four fantastic, unique, sweet kids, a comfortable house, family and friends nearby. I am blessed.
• I have also been evaluating my time spent online. I had been thinking about it, but this post last week really hit home the point for me. I think about the times where I have been in a discussion or read something online that really bothered me. And I carried it around in real life and stewed about it. Or maybe my reply to a topic was harsher than it would have been if I had been saying it to the person's face. And honestly, for the most part, it isn't worth the time or the effort. I always attend to my children's needs, but there are times when the computer has distracted me from giving them my full attention. And they are what life is all about. They are happening now, growing up so quickly. There is likely not ever going to be a time where I look back and wish I had spent more time online and less time with my kids. I have enough on my plate with their school and my school to fill our days, so something has got to give and that something is frivolous time wasted online. I don't feel the need to give it up altogether, just scale back to the essentials. Friendships, correspondence, enrichment without wasting time.

So there you have it.

Dress up!

You may recall that Issy has a thing about dressing up her brothers. If you don't, see these posts:
Exhibit 1
Exhibit 2

Exhibit 3
So it was inevitable that this would happen:

Luckily, Adelle was a good sport about it.

The Fab Four (baby slightly bewildered)

They did a play of depicting the story of Adam and Eve. I think that my favorite part is that Liam was cast as the Serpent and his costume was a pirate dress. Awesomeness.

Sleepy Liams Say the Cutest Things.

Liam and I were snuggling in bed at about 6 this morning and we were falling back to sleep. He reached out and intertwined his fingers with mine and settled back down. I was just about to fall back asleep and I heard him whisper, "Mama."

I was quiet. "Mama," he said again.

I pretended not to hear, hoping he would not persist and I could go back to sleep.

Slightly louder this time, "Mama, I need to tell you something."

*sigh* "Yes, Liam?"

Groggily, "Exercise is good for you because it makes you healthy."

I was inwardly amused, since he was half asleep while he was saying it. I said, "You know what else makes you healthy, Liam?"

"What?" he replied.

"Sleep. Go back to sleep. Good-night, buddy."