Daily Archives: April 14, 2009

Keeping the focus

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“Focus up.”

I say this to the girls at least once a day when I need them to channel their energy into eating, getting dressed, or some other task that they can’t seem to be bothered with at that exact moment.

But this week, I find that I’m the one who needs to do a little focusing up. I can’t figure out what my problem is. Normally, I am a pretty organized person. I have my task lists, I organize my errands to minimize my “running around,” and my house looks – for the most part – inviting and clean.

But for the past few days I have been incredibly scatterbrained. I can’t even put together a task list that makes sense. I move stuff from one room to another and then back again. I’ve found two different birthday cards that should have been sent out last week. And I started to write out a check to pay our taxes, went to answer the phone and by the time I came back I had already forgotten what I was doing.

Grrr. It is frustrating. And Em came home today and was so excited about collecting her jog-a-thon winnings and I remembered that I never even posted to let you all know how she did!

MOM! You didn’t even blog about how amazing your little runner did?

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Uh…nope. Let’s discuss now, shall we? Here she was before the race…

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Flash! During the race…

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And after…

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I roped all of our visitors into “volunteering” for the PTA as well. I was marking the runners as they did their laps. Meesh was taking photos (Thanks, M!), Lexer was on the water station…

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And the three little ones were on cheerleading duty…

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So how did she do, you ask?

Well, when we were fundraising we were told that the track was 1/8th of a mile. So she and I thought that she might try to run 10 laps – so that would be over a mile! And they had 20 minutes to run. I figured that was pretty do-able.

And the girl is good. She got pledges from both Nana AND Papa, Nena AND Bill and then she hit me up, and also got a separate pledge from Daddy. And also sweet talked both Daddy and Uncle Jeff each into $5 a lap.

You see where this is going, right?

Yeah. She ran 20 laps! She made some c-a-s-h for her school. But it is all for a good cause. The fearsome foursome…

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Good work, girls. And I’m so glad one of us is able to focus up and overachieve around here lately.

Crafty Tuesday ~ Easter Edition

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I had such high hopes and expectations for Easter and spring crafts. Easter cards! Spring wreaths! Cute almost-summer sundresses! I have the makings for all of them.

And then? Somehow Easter snuck up, and flew by me, and I’m standing on the other side of it with nothing, nada, zilch.

So perhaps we’ll get some Happy Spring photos and cards made someday. But at the rate I’m going…I wouldn’t hold your breath.

But, my friend Christina gave me permission to count dyeing Easter eggs as a “craft.” So I’m taking it!

And while I’m at it, let me tell you all about how it doesn’t always pay to be organized – and the best laid plans…well, they don’t always work out as planned.

For instance, even though you buy Easter egg kits a month in advance, you’ll still need to actually find some time to use those kits to color some eggs.

Dyeing egg-ys

And also, even though two of the 18 eggs you are boiling crack and explode, doesn’t mean that the other eggs are in fact “hard boiled” enough to eat. (They sure look pretty, but Ewww…runny yolks!)

All the colors of the rainbows

And another hint? That cute kit with the little roller brushes at Target…yeah, pain in the neck and total waste of time!

Precision work

And no matter how many times you tell your 3-year old to not wipe her hands on her shirt, she’ll continue to do it, even though there is a washcloth within three inches of her hand. (I’ve got photographic proof on this one, Addie!)

I did use my napkin

And also? When you find an amazing sale on cute Easter dresses for next year, take into consideration that your little “weedlings” may sprout an extra inch or two. With dresses it is always okay to be a little long, but a little too short is treading on some dangerous ground.

At the very least, you should probably try them on before Easter morning. Before you are running late. For Easter mass. Of course.

Easter girls

And last, but not least, you’ll never get a good photo when you really want one. This last photo was the best photo I could conjure up of my two little sugared-out bunnies. I have about 100 outtakes. And this is the best.

*Sigh*

But we did make it to mass. It was beautiful, and we spent the remaining day with just our little family and did a little gardening. So in the end? It was all perfect.

So come on…show me all of your perfect craftiness this week!