Mother's Day and then some.....

I had a GREAT Mother's Day on Sunday. Like maybe one of my favorites. Paul went above and beyond to try and make it nice for me. He let me sleep in until 9:30am (thanks to late church and NO meetings for him), and then brought me yummy breakfast in bed. The kids gave me beautiful handmade cards they made at school. I don't think I rolled out of bed until after 10. Showered in peace and then had a very nice day at church. Great talks about womanhood and Mothers and just how important our "calling" is. Even got homemade cinnamon rolls in Relief Society that were SO good (thanks Laurie). Made me even more grateful that I have four beautiful children to love and snuggle with, even if I'm not perfect (and I most definitely am not). Got LOTS of wonderful texts and emails. It's my new favorite day to tell all my friends and family how amazing they are and how lucky I am to have them in my life. Really and truly, I'm greatly blessed. Paul even made me dinner, which (and I know he won't want me to say this) might be a FIRST in the 12 years we have been married. Ashlyn might have been a little shocked. Haha... So what if it was spaghetti and meatballs. It was fantastic because I didn't have to cook it. And I could tell he was trying hard, even after his very busy church day and taking the lions share of watching the kids all day. Ate some See's chocolates and went to bed happy and relaxed.

Then Monday came and reality hit me in the face. Carter threw up in the car for no particular reason. Then I let the kids play in the backyard with the kiddie pool and water table. Carter took his diaper off and pooped on the back patio all while I was rushing to get dinner made for a friend who just had back surgery. Went to put dinner in the oven and realized I had NO foil, so I had to throw the wet kids in the car and run to my friend Brooke's house, who bailed me out and kept me from having to haul the kids into Target. Got dinner to my friend a little late, which I hate being late for things, but couldn't help it this time. Went to bed grouchy and exhausted. 

SO....life isn't always peaches and cream. But you know what...that's okay. I slept it off and hit the refresh button. Today is a new day and it's been going well. Got to go to a pilates class this morning and then took the boys to the pool with some friends. Carter got a good nap before having to get the girls from early release day and my afternoon is pretty chill for a Tuesday. Leah has jazz this afternoon and I'm hoping to finally get a look at her recital costume. 

Life is still good! 

And incase you are wondering, our moths are STILL alive!

Silk Worms???

Brandon brought TWO moths home from preschool last week. One on Wednesday and one on Friday. WELL, lucky us he happened to pick one boy and one girl, because those little moths got busy and the next day we had EGGS all over our little box. I'm hoping and praying they don't really hatch and I'm wondering when the heck these little moths are going to die (I was told they didn't live very long). I do not want a bunch of silk worms. Nor do I want to explain why the moths were stuck together for so long. Oh boy!

Look at that face though, which is why I can't bring myself to throw the box away. 

That little guy of mine is SO handsome. I sure love him!

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Granola Bars

4 Cups Rolled Oats

1/2 cup sucanat (you can use brown sugar)

1 cup wheat germ

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

2 cups whole wheat flour

1 1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup flax seed meal

1 cup chocolate chips

Mix dry ingredients together and set aside.

3/4 cup peanut butter

2 eggs, beaten

1 cup olive oil

1/2 cup honey

1 TBSP vanilla

(Tip: Use the same measuring cup for the oil and honey. Measure the oil first and then the honey will slide right out of the cup.)

Mix wet ingredients. Then add dry ingredients and mix together.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a large jelly roll pan (cookie sheet with sides). Press the mixture evenly into the pan. Bake for 20-30 minutes (check often. Mine took 20 min) until the bars begin to turn golden at the edges. Cool for 5 minutes and then cut the bars while still warm. Then cool completely. 

They freeze well too!

Homemade granola bars

I wouldn't consider myself someone to cook unhealthy but I'm not a huge health nut either. So I was quite proud of myself for making these very delicious and nutritious granola bars. Full of wheat germ, flax seed meal, whole wheat flour and honey.

Does that mean I get to eat twice as many?

Swimming

Pool season is coming back and I just love a good impromptu swim play date after school. The kids had a blast and didn't want it to end. There were three college guys at the pool when we got there. They were real nice and let the boys squirt them with water guns, but they didn't last too long after my friends showed up. Lol. Good thing I can only invite 10 guests at a time. Or I'd have that pool run over with kids every time.

Hair

Leah's babysitter often French braids Leah's hair so it'll be curly the next day. I have such a hard time doing it because Leah's hair is so fine. But Leah begged me to try again a few days after Callie had done it. So I did. Leah went to look at it in the mirror and comes back to say "ehhh".

Paul got upset with her for being rude, so she back stepped and said, "It's ok Mom. You tried your best". Oh well. I guess I need to practice more. Here's a picture of it all curly and hair sprayed the next day. I told her she would fit in perfect in Texas. She likes poofy hair!

Jazz class

Leah is still loving jazz. Her and Ashlynn are having a blast taking together. They are in full swing getting ready for their recital next month and have been taught more than half of their song. Still haven't seen the outfits. Hoping they are modest! They are dancing to Taylor Swifts song "We are never getting back together". Or whatever it's called.

The girls have even been teaching their moves to friends at school during recess, which I think is cute. But I had to have a talk with Leah to put a stop to the "dance contests" they were having. Only one person wins when Leah's BFF is the judge (eye roll).

They were just being silly together before class started. This move is not part of their routine. LOL