Right now it’s 7:50 and we’ve already had breakfast, made beds, brushed teeth and are dressed and ready for the day. It was one of those mornings when everything just clicked. The kids are now sitting on the couch looking through photo albums of our past trips to Florida and are, generally, being very sweet to one another. It is moments like this that I will miss.

There are some days, like yesterday, when I just feel like the world has come to a halt and I’m stuck in an awful, never-ending twilight zone. And then there are days like today, when I just so cherish the time I have with these kids when they’re young. I know it will go by too fast and I will long for these times back. Sometimes it’s easy to lose sight of that.

Sloan is so expressive right now. He’s funny and smart and in general a very sweet natured little guy. He loves to sing and be silly. He’s a great athlete, but not overly competitive. He is so friendly and genuinely loves to be with people. He is navigating through the waters of respect right now and there are days when it feels like a battle all day long, but we will prevail and I know in my heart he’s going to be a great young man someday.

Katya is also extremely expressive. She takes her cues from her brother, which is hilarious because she looks just like him when she imitates him. As she starts to talk more she is providing so much entertainment for all of us. She is strong willed and fiercely independent and full of spunk and zest. She is wildly competitive and is proving to be extremely athletic – her dad is thrilled with the possibilities.

Then there is my sweet Landon. I don’t know if it’s because he’s my last baby, but I so cherish this little boy. He’s so sweet natured and fun. He loves to mimic sounds right now. He giggles and laughs all the time, much more so than the other two did at this age. He is a snuggle bug and big into kisses, which are usually open mouthed and involve a lot of tongue. His dad’s so proud. I treasure him very, very much.

So, there it is – a good morning for reflecting on the good things I have. My sweet, sweet children who are definately a handful, but I wouldn’t trade any one of them for all the riches in the world…

Here is video of Sloan’s russian school concert last night. He was in a bit of a mood – you know, the 5-year-old plague where one moment they’re sweet and happy and the next they’re sullen and forlorn. That mood…Anyway, he did well. He has become very self aware lately and had a freak out moment when we got there that people might laugh at him because he was wearing a shark shirt. I was conscious of this about him when I picked out his clothes and chose that specific shirt because he usually really likes it. (sigh) There are somedays when I just can’t win.

So here is Sloan and his class at russian school performing the Three Little Pigs. Sloan was the big bad wolf. He got really into blowing their houses down, but at the end when he was supposed to scream and run away he was a little (or a lot) reserved. It’s about 6 minutes long so you don’t have to watch the whole thing – you’ll get the idea pretty fast. This is mostly for the grandparents…

I just took care of the most disgusting thing I’ve ever had to do as a mom. Let me give you the circumstances: Sloan had to use the bathroom this morning – number 2. He did so, then left the bathroom without flushing or closing the toilet seat. Why did he do this? I have no words other than that he is a boy and for some reason boys are missing something in their brains that remind them to flush the toilet when done using the bathroom!! I did not know that this went on or I would have given the gentle mom reminder to flush (as in, “Don’t you dare walk away from that toilet without flushing!”)

Now, you’re all aware that I have an 11 month old. Well, said 11 month old has really taken to splashing in open toilets lately. Gross? Yes, very much. I try and keep them closed but you know, I can’t be everywhere at once. So, I walked into the bathroom to find my 11 month old covered in feces, and chewing on a piece of it! Go ahead and gag – vomit even. I’ll wait…

Feel better? Does it get any more disgusting than that? This tops the time I found Sloan as a baby sucking on the toilet bowl brush (barely, but it does beat it), and the time Tia chewed on Landon’s umbilical cord. Is it just me? Are my kids the only ones who are this disgusting? If any of you have kids who are gross, please share so I don’t think that maybe there’s something wrong with mine. Okay, I have to go now. I need to go to the store and buy Lee and new toothbrush since I used his to clean out Landon’s mouth…

-Is it bad that my son knows every word to Carrie Underwood’s “Before He Cheats?”

-Is it bad that I attempted to lay down in my bed the other day and take a nap even though Sloan and Tia were awake in the other room?

-Is it bad that I came out and found them polishing off a jar of pickles and a few Capri Sun’s and didn’t even have the energy to admonish them for digging in the fridge without permission?

-Is it bad that my daughter loves to sit and watch football while my son would prefer to play with play-doh?

-Is it bad that I work really hard to eak every penny out of diapers thereby leaving my baby in them until they are heavy and quite full?

-Is it bad that I let my daughter take such a long nap yesterday that she was up at 5:50 this morning?

-Is it bad that I’m so scared of these crickets that when one was in our bathroom the other night I threw a towel at it and started hitting the towel with a shoe, panting the whole time like I was being chased by an axe wielding mass murderer?

-Is it bad that I then left the cricket under the towel because I was too scared to pick it up and see if I actually killed it?

-Is it bad that I dreamed that night that the blugeoned cricket squeaked out a war cry and a thousand of them rushed my bed ready to pounce and chew the flesh off my body?

-Is it bad that the next morning, when I finally had the courage to pick up the towel the cricket leapt at me (I swear to God it had a samarai sword posied and ready) and I jumped back with a scream, threw the towel back on it, grabbed a shoe and began beating the towel mercilessly, yelling the whole time?

-Is it bad that my kids watched me reduce this creature to a goopy pile of mush?

-Is it bad that I felt a good deal of satisfaction for that kill?

-Is it bad that I have two loads of laundry that I’ve never put away and I now have three more loads to wash today? Yes, that is bad.

-Is it bad that I have come to so despise winter that I spent an hour yesterday watching the Travel Channel’s 10 Best Beaches and longed to be sitting on any one of them?

Are any of those things bad?
Happy Monday!

Watch this video. It will freak you out. These people teach children as young as six months how to survive in water if they should fall in a pool or something similar. These people are crazy, but it’s kind of amazing to watch the kids. Lee knows a guy who had this training done with his kids and he said the first day they took his toddler and just threw him in the pool to see what he would do. I think I would have to kill someone if they did that to my kid. Seriously. Anyway, watch the video – it’s wild. You’ll find yourself wanting to scream at the computer,
“C’mon you freaks – somebody get the kid!” Oh and the baby is super cute at the end.

The other day Sloan was coloring and I asked him if he would write me a letter. This is what he wrote: The boy is nothing if not literal…

Here is some sweet video of Landon starting to try and walk. He stands pretty well and when encouraged will attempt a few steps. As you can see, he is in no need of encouragement. In fact, I believe he may be his own biggest fan. Enjoy.

I published a post over at the blogger’s guild this morning. Read it here. I would love for you to leave a comment and join in on the conversation (or get it started).

* It’s decided. Barack Obama is our new President elect. It’s not a surprise, but it is a disappointment. I’m disappointed that more people were not able to see through his slick, polished talk and see the true nature of who he is as a politician and who he will be as a leader. As I stated below, I have no doubt that God is still seated on His throne. He ordained Barack Obama for such a time as this. The next four years will be interesting. I’m certainly concerned, not only for myself but also for the ramifications that my children will now experience. But, I trust…I urge all believers to be on thier knees these next four years. It will take the mighty cry of a multitude pleading for God’s grace, mercy and protection on us. Some of you who read this will not agree with me. That’s okay. I can handle that. But for those of you who do, I implore you to be faithful to pray for our new President and for our country. Change is coming. It will not all be for the better. But God is in control.

Praise God election day has finally arrived. I know I am not alone in my utter fatigue of the campaigning process. It feels like we’ve been watching and dealing with this garbage for two years. Today it will be decided. Tomorrow we will wake up with a new set of issues to worry about and debate, no matter who wins.

I woke up the other night filled with anxiety over this election. I found myself repeating the verse over and over, “Be anxious in nothing, but in all things, through prayer and petition make your requests known to God.” I know God is in control. I know He’s on His throne. I know that He has ordained the man who will be our next President elect. And I do take comfort and peace in that knowledge. But, I pray with all my heart that it is not Barack Obama. I fear the direction our nation will head with him as our leader. I do not question the motives of Obama. I don’t think he’s a terrorist or the anti-Christ, or even a Muslim. But, I do believe he has some very skewed beliefs and morals and they will indeed negatively affect this country – permanently. My biggest fear with Obama in leadership is the potential for us to lose the hand of God’s protection. If Obama has any intelligence, he will make sure he keeps us alligned with Israel and continues to protect that country. If he does not, we will not be in a good position. I hope he understands this.

More than Obama’s socilaist economic policies (which I loathe), I worry about his stance on issues that have been pushed under the rug this election period. His stance on the right to life is so liberal it ought to be criminal. The unborn will lose any protection they have at all if Barack Obama is elected. He’s been very clear on this issue. That is a very scary thought. The insitution of marriage will also be at risk. People don’t seem to understand the ramifications that these policies will have on our country. We will forever be altered. People seem to think we’re evolving – that it’s time we evolve – well, we’re evolving alright, it’s just in the wrong direction.

Anyway, I will be going to the polls today with a prayerful heart. My soul cries out for protection on this day. My specific prayer is that John McCain will somehow pull out a win. But, no matter what happens, I will trust that my God is the same today as He was yesterday, and He’ll be the same tomorrow and through infinity. There is peace in that.

I love Sloan’s russian school. They are so sweet and they work really hard with Sloan – and with me. I gotta say, though, that the homework they give is killing me! This poorly taken picture is the homework that Sloan had to complete just between Monday and Thursday! There were three writing exercises, two pages to read, two lines of a poem to memorize (to be fair, we have a couple more weeks before he has to recite them) and a play to work on. That may not seem like a lot, but when it’s in a foreign language it takes twice the amount of time to complete – although Sloan is getting very fast at his reading. The last two pages at the top of the photo are the play. Sloan only has a few lines to learn, but I need to translate the whole thing for him so the poor kid knows what’s going on when they perform it. Since he’s the only kid at the school without a russian parent he’s at a major disadvantage. All of the other kids are fluent already in the language. Sloan understnads it, but speaking is hard for him. It’s my fault – I try to speak russian with them some at home, but it’s just really hard to do that and still keep order in our house. So, I will be sitting down in a minute and translating a four page play with lots of big words in it! I feel like I’m in college again. This, incidentally, is why I have yet to teach him how to read in English.

Oh yeah, and I’ve got this to deal with, as well as three loads of laundry to put away. There will be no resting today. ‘Kay – gotta go!