Clean Up, Clean Up Everywhere Even If You Wear Underwear

Seemed like the theme of this week started out as cleaning and organizing. I finally got my behind in gear and worked on my overwhelming project to pare down and organize. I started with my closet, drawers, and such. I worked on that off and on Monday morning, afternoon, and evening. I filled up two laundry baskets with clothes, shoes, and stuff shoved in my closet. That felt great. It must have wore me out because that was all I accomplished. Well, I did clean up the basement on Tuesday and made a pile of toys to get rid of. The kids decided to play with the toys and made a mess in spite of all my work. I need to get the toys removed while the kids sleep.

For FHE this week we talked about murmuring and whining again. I read an article about whining that we discussed. We discovered that whining often is a signal for attention and physical contact. As a family we talked about what each child actually wants when s/he whines. Answers varied from snuggles, to play a game, read a book, food, or laughter. This week the parental figures worked on ignoring the whining and addressing the underlying issues. Seems like our week was a bit more positive until Saturday. We all woke up on the wrong side of the bed. Justin surprised me with a bouquet of flowers just because this week. I love flowers!

We are enjoying a box of peaches this week. Each year we all look forward to eating peaches, cream, and a sprinkle of brown sugar. It is sweet/tart delightfulness. I also made peach smoothies a couple times for breakfast this week. I might even make a peach pie for dinner this evening.

I had 3 sessions this week, two sessions were newborn babies scheduled quite some time ago. A frequent customer managed to squeeze herself in for her daughter's 1st birthday photos. That was pretty tricky! She "only wanted 4-5 photos" that turned into 4-5 outfits and a full session. Justin was not so happy about the 20 minutes that stretched to a full hour. I was not happy either! I finally got to try my newborn photography skills on a set of twin boys! Their dad is in the military so we incorporated his uniform into the photos. That was a fun treat for me. The kids got to swim for 3.5 hours with Alia while I worked. Josie hung out in the baby carrier on my back for the session. Thursday we had the Markum family with their new baby sister come play. We hardly saw Phillip and Conner. Those two are peas of a pod. Baby Kaci got to get photos with my stingy array of hydrangea flowers from my garden. I wish my plants were healthier. I snapped a couple of happy Josie after nap and our friends left.

Phillip and Everett played with the magnatiles this week. Phillip made a very intricate stegosaurus out of magnatiles. We had to preserve the design with a photo of course. The dino also transforms and turns into a t-rex. Friday we made it out of the house before 11 to run some errands to the bank, deliver some photo files, and donate stuff to Salvation Army. I was so excited we made it out of the house we met Justin for lunch at Subway. It was quite chilly and blustery that day. The kids had no desire to play on the stationary train due to weather. Instead I got some modeling clay and we spent the afternoon making cute clay shapes. Amelia made the cutest little burger, shake, sno-cone, spoon, and plate for Everett. I fashioned a tiny taco and a cute monkey. Amelia got a clay charms kit we used for ideas and techniques. I got more clay so the boys and I could play as well.

Saturday we manned up again to clean and start work on switching rooms. Justin and I moved the furniture we have around to the proper rooms. The kids helped drag clothes, shoes, toys, bedding, and such around to the proper rooms. Now I have a huge, exploded mess to go through and sort. The kids slept in their new spots last night. Amelia and Everett are in the basement, Amelia on the bottom full mattress. It fits her huge body pillow much better. Everett scored a new set of Paw Patrol sheets. Phillip and Evelyn are now sharing the larger bedroom upstairs. Josie slept in the crib last night. All the kids slept well except for Evelyn. Josie woke up at her normal times of midnight and 3:30 am. Evelyn woke up at 1 am screaming bloody murder. I laid down with her until 3 am. She was still awake and chattering. She "snuggled" Justin while I fed Josie. Meaning she wandered the house looking for me until she gave up and went to find Justin. Evelyn finally fell back asleep around 4:30 am. I was exhausted! So was she! Little stinker refused to take a nap this afternoon as well. I hope tonight goes better. Jen is painting a dresser/desk combo for the basement bedroom. The furniture will hold Amelia's drawer clothes, school stuff, and treasures.