the countdown begins

So 2 weeks from Monday, we're back to reality. Dan doesn't actually go back until Tuesday the 10th, but everyone else, including myself, begin work on the 9th. That means no more sleeping in until 8:00am every morning. No more Berry Family Fun Day each Thursday. No more having my husband home with us every day. I'm somewhat ready to get back into more of a routine, but a little frightened at the thought of being home alone with 5-6 kids every day. Collin being the oldest. Yikes! Lord give me strength!

On the bright side, next week is Dan's last week working at the Y. He is more than ready to be done with it. That means he'll have one whole week of nothing to do before school starts. Nothing but paint the shed and lay new flooring in the kitchen anyhow. :)

But I don't like to think about returning to work, or all the work that has to be done around the house. Instead, let's all think about my super cute children.

someday...

Someday, if I ever have my own laptop again, I may have time to post on a regular bases. With pictures. Today is not that day. I'm hoping to get my old laptop back for my birthday. My old laptop, which is actually my brother-in-law's old laptop, quit working and he is supposed to be fixing it. Are you reading this Rob? For my birthday, I want my computer. Please and thank you. Oh, and I love you.

Anyhow, as usual. It has been super busy around my house. Monday, Tuesday and Thursday I have 2 toddlers and 2 infants from 8-1, and 1 toddler and 3 infants from noon to 5. Wednesdays I don't have the extra toddler, and Friday's I only have the extra infant in the afternoon. Did you follow that schedule. Crazy I know. Some days are better than others. This week has been long. Lots of crying. And no, I was not the one crying.

I love having the other toddler here 3 mornings a week though. And Collin loves it too. They play, and fight over toys, but they have fun. Lots of fun. Plus, we get to do art, and make our own pizzas for lunch. Oh, and I get to watch my son walk around in high heals with a purse on his shoulders. Rememsber when he walked around in them in only a diaper? Well this time he had clothes on but it was still cute.

In other news, this weekend I am hosting a baby shower for my best friend. Hopefully I'll get lots of good pictures to post.

back to the land of the living

I feel like I've been out of the real world for the past week or so. Last Monday I had my hernia surgery. The wait was long, the surgery was short, and the pain was bearable. I'm still sore, but at least I can move without wincing. It's still somewhat difficult to feed Ronan simply because he lays right on my stomach as I'm nursing him, but we're working around the pain. I don't go back for my follow up until the 6th, so until then I'm lifting as little as possible. Ronan is about my limit, and occasionally I break the rules and lift my Collin. The poor baby has been missing mommy loves and has gotten a little feisty.

Last week we also got our window well installed in the basement. They weren't supposed to be here till the end of August but had an opening and got it done sooner. Yay! Now tomorrow I have a couple coming over to interview me for daycare. Yikes! I'm a little nervous, but aside from our wall not being complete, the house is ready. Once I get the basement finished I can get the official paperwork, but until then it's hard to pass an inspection. However, it will be done before school starts up again.

(above: before)

(below: after - the wall and ceiling are not done. We still have taping, mudding, sanding, priming, painting)My etsy site is up and running. You may have noticed the pictures at the top. I received and e-mail today from a lady who is in charge of her church's craft fair inviting my to have a booth in October. Maybe. I think I'm gonna shoot for doing the Maize Fall Festival in October though. We attend anyway so maybe I can at least sell enough to pay for the we'll have there!

With me staying home, not teaching, no longer receiving free health insurance, and starting a daycare, money is going to be tight this fall. We're going to have to cut back on some of our luxuries such as cable, but I have every confidence that my daycare will be a success and we won't go bankrupt. After all, the Good Lord is on my side with this one.
My Ronan is now 5 months old and ready to crawl. He gets up and in position and just rocks back and forth. The poor baby gets so mad when he doesn't make it anywhere. Soon enough he'll be chasing Collin around. He also got to eat cereal for the first time on Sunday. Such a big boy!Collin will be 2 in a about 3 weeks. I have made a total of 2 invitations for his party, and I have about 15 to go.... What was I thinking when I decided to hand make ALL of the invitations?