It's Monday....

and I don't think I have a clean towel in the house. I probably have 10 or so loads of laundry to do. My dishwasher is useless. I have a whole load of dishes that needs to be washed again...by hand. Oh, and the sink is full too.  The whole entire house is a disaster. Why can't I stay on top of it??? It embarrassing and really it's not from lack of trying. Most days I just give up. I checked into having someone come in and help me. I had heard she didn't charge much so I asked. Yep, that's not gonna happen. I know my older kids can help, and they do, when I scream and yell and threaten. I need to figure out a better system. So, I'm curious. How do YOU get it all done? How do YOU stay on top of it all? I feel like I'm drowning in a sea of dirt and chaos. I need someone to throw me some rope....

Family Reunion Campout aka The fish-a-thon or The mooch fest

It's funny...I kind of laughed the first time we called this camp out a "reunion". After all, it was just my aunts and uncles and cousins; people I've known all my life. This year I really realized it was a reunion as I hadn't seen many of them since the last camp out. When I was younger the family would often camp in this canyon although I didn't usually go. This is the third year we've done it and I really hope it will continue. I have a lot of fun reconnecting with my family and giving my kids a chance to get to know relatives we don't see very often. I was a little worried about this year as Ian's behavior has taken a turn but he did pretty good. The last day was a little rough and I was glad we were leaving. Adam does a fish-a-thon during the camp out. Every chance he gets he fishes. I am happy to let him do so but this year he kept driving off with our food and other essential items in the Tahoe. I felt like I was constantly mooching off of family members for things that I brought but were in the Tahoe. Also, in my stress to make sure I had enough food and activities for the kids I forgot to buy some diet coke. GASP! Luckily my Aunt is a diet coke drinker and she shared. She also sent my Uncle to get me some and my dad also brought some up for me. Talk about rallying behind a girl! They were all a great help. I also got addicted to a new game called Blockus. It was a lot of fun and even Owen could play (although he really didn't get it). I opted out of the horseshoe contest again this year but maybe I'll practice all year and really surprise everyone next year! Here are some of the highlights...(don't mind the fingerprint on the lens that makes some of the pictures a bit blurry...)

Riley, Kayden, Abby and Aunt Lori (my diet coke saving Aunt) playing Blockus

Owen, Matthais, Emilia and Kayden on the big rock

The glue that holds us all together, Grams and Gramps

Me and my hottie

Owen and Adam coming back from fishing with Owen's grasshopper

Matthais in the horseshoe tournament

Ian, Dad and Matthais on the big rock

Me, Owen and Emilia at the Mammoth discovery site

Horseshoe champion Lindsay

Adam and Ian on the boat

Owen me and Millie on the boat

Riley and baby Sawyer

Millie and aunt Missy

Home away from home

Kayden, Matthais and Tyson...These 3 boys caused a lot of trouble my staying up the whole night and keeping everyone awake. Don't think my parenting skills are lacking, Matthais was suppose to be sleeping in my dad's tent and I had long gone to bed on the other side of the camp. Don't worry, he was in trouble

Funny story here. Adam and Owen were walking along the river fishing when they found this little box which Adam told Owen was a fly box. Before Adam knew it Owen was trying to catch the flies buzzing around (which he did very successfully) and puting them in the box.

Highland Splash pad

On Wednesday I suggested we head up to the highland splash pad for some free water fun. If you haven't been there all I can say is that you should. In fact, I think it will probably become on of our most visited parks this summer. The kids had so much fun running and splashing in the water. Did I mention it was free? I roasted in the sun and came home with a nice pink tint. It's funny, as I was sitting there watching my kids play I felt like such a fun and capable mom. Of course, Ian was at school. Sometimes I feel badly for my other kids who are often put on the back burner because of Ian. Once again, I left my camera at home. These are once again from Michelle.

After we headed over to my house to ride the 4 wheeler and have some dinner.

I love it when my kids get a chance to be with their cousins. Hopefully they are building friendships that will last forever.

Jump-on-it

We decided to get together on Tuesday at Jump-on-it. I have to admit that I was a little nervous about my kids bouncing around on lots and lots of trampolines tied together. One of the reasons I do not have a trampoline is because of the various injuries they can cause.  I'm usually not a paranoid person but all I could think about the whole time I was there was "which child will I be driving to the emergency room?" Luckily my answer was none. I escaped injury free with the 6 children I brought.  The kids had a blast and absolutely wore themselves out! I forgot my camera but here are a few pictures courtesy of Michelle.

New Doctors

We met with the first of two new Dr's for Ian. Really, nothing new to report. She suggested picture schedules and rewards. We've tried this before, although, it was a long time ago, And, I wasn't very consistent. I told her I would try again and I will. I'm just not sure how much he understands. I know they do these at school and honestly I have no idea how he responds to it. So, we will try. Next week we meet with a psychiatrist for a med evaluation. I am anxious yet hopeful about the coming months. Maybe the new school,  Maybe it's Doctor's that I feel good about or maybe just me being better adjusted (and on new meds) that has me feeling good about things. Recently the Relief Society (an organization in my church) asked if they could bring a meal in once a week. It was extremely hard to say yes without feeling pathetic. I feel, for the most part, that I am holding it together. I know it was done out of love and they just want to help but I want to be the one helping! I want to be bringing meals in or helping with others kids. I guess maybe it's just not my season. Shannon and Jayne forgot about taking Ian on Monday and it was ok...I made it through the day without a meltdown. Maybe I'm just getting stronger... Maybe I'm just getting numb...whatever works right?

Phew! What a week!

But I survived! I had 9 kids almost every day last week! Ian was home from school and I had a couple extra daycare kids and man was I exhausted! This week is shaping up to be better...busy...but better. Sharilee is in town which always means lots of fun activities. I'm also going to squeeze in a girls night out with my girls before heading camping for a family reunion. We still have swim lessons this week and Ian meets with a new doctor. I also had a doctor appointment to remove a few moles. Don't forget about the birthday parties, merit badge classes, dance lessons and....anything else? If there is, it's not happening. And people like summer cause it's less busy...

Agency

"I know that God loves us. He allows us to exercise our moral agency even when we misuse it. He permits us to make our own decisions. Christ cannot help us if we do not trust Him; He cannot teach us if we do not serve Him. He will not force us to do what’s right, but He will show us the way only when we decide to serve Him. Certainly, for us to serve in His kingdom, Christ requires that we experience a change of thought and attitude."


--Thomas S. Monson, "Looking Back and Moving Forward", Ensign, May 2008, 87–90