Our morning routine.

Wakeup.  Hoping and praying the morning runs smoothly.

Sneak downstairs (if girls aren't in bed with me).

Make Coffee.

Grinder is so loud.  Bound to wake someone up.

Yep, there are the sweet little footsteps on the stairs.

Will they greet me with happy smiles or a hazy look in their eyes (indicating grumpiness)?

Get breakfast on the table.

Cereal again.

Make coffee while girls chat about their dreams.

Make Emma's lunch.

Clean up Norah after breakfast attacked her.

She wears both a bib and towel for her lap.  

Or an apron.

Rush the girls upstairs to get ready.

Lay Emma's clothes on bed.

Encourage Emma to change out of pj's.

Encourage Norah to read books.

I get ready.

Look into room, encourage Emma again to stay on task.

Put on makeup.  It helps me feel more civilized. 

Look into room again, no longer in the encouraging mood.

She's still in her jammies.

Frustration starts to settle (if it hasn't already)

She's been tardy so many times.

Mommy guilt sinks in.  

I didn't want to yell.

Girls brushing teeth.

Pushing each other off stool in bathroom.

One of them is crying.  Emma

One of them is yelling.  Norah 

Give kisses.  Say your sorry.  Don't push.  Be nice.  You're alright.  

All these fly out of my mouth to hurry them along.

Finally we get downstairs.

I run up and down a couple more times in search of socks, shoes, diapers, blankies, toys, etc.

Anything to get out of the house NOW.

Girls line up at the door.

We are ready to leave.

(I have an alarm set on my phone letting us know when we need to be out the door.)
It helps.
Some times.

Throw a few "Girls stop fighting", diaper being changed, hair combed (unfortunately not every morning), and stuff thrown in back pack.  This is usually how we operate in the morning.  I'm happy to say that the last three mornings have gone smoother.  Less chaos.  Getting out the door sooner.  With more ease.  

A FEW of My Favorite Things

FINDING JOY

I came across these humorous photos of Norah from 2 summers ago....ENJOY!

To quote my sister-n-law..."Oh, fatty baby!"

I remember this day perfectly.

I was shocked and amazed how she went to town on these grapes.

No choking.

No branches spit out of her mouth.

She knew what she wanted.

And no one was getting in her way.

She's always been our choking hazard.

Only with food.

Lately, we cheer her on with the phrase "Almost there".

Which means don't you dare take another bite until that food is chewed and swallowed.

She even starts cheering herself on.

It's a pride thing for her.

You can tell when she swallows.

She gives the biggest grin.

Then takes another bite.  

oh, how I love her.  

Finding Joy

What to do when dishes are calling and the remains from the weekend are begging to be picked up?  Blog of course.  Avoid the mess.  It's a wonderful rainy Monday.  Although, I may have dreaded the rain last week.  And it might get that way again this week.  I am fine with it today.  It's not bothering me this morning.  It encourages me to make myself another cup of coffee.  Which sad to say, our coffee pot decided not to work this morning at 5:30am, making the waking up process a little longer.  Oh well.  My husband, who is obsessed with many different kinds of coffee apparatuses, simply said "Use the French Press or the pour over."  Simple for him indeed.  For me, I have mastered the coffee bean to water ratio in the coffee pot, not in any of the other contraptions.  So I'll put my best effort into mastering those as well.  My cheap side says "NO" to buying a new coffee pot right now.  So I will learn.  Hey, it'll make me a better person, right?!

Here are a few simple fun pictures from our weekend

 We made Rockets, played for hours in the backyard, and finished it off with celebrating a precious friends' birthday!

Its been raining for 3 days straight.  I like rain.  I do.  However, it has left me in the funk of sorts.  Its left me feeling damp to the core.  I turn up the heat, but nothing gets the chill from my bones.  Lying in bed under layers of covers help tremendously.  Can't do that with two little ones running around.  Emma's been out of school for the last two days.  I still feel like I haven't seen her.  As a mom, I hate that feeling.  My daughter is changing and I'm missing it because life is busy.  It gets to me.  I just want to wrap her in my arms and hold her all day long.  She would think I'm weird.  Time just keeps going.  I cling desperately for more.  The past few weeks have been hard.  Her and I seem to be at odds.  She gives me attitude and I shrivel up a little inside.  It hurts.  When it hurts, I get an attitude too.  The wall goes up so quickly.  She won't be able to hurt me again, which of course is untrue.  I know this happens with moms and daughters.  Not yet though, right?!  I want the short time I have with her to be a treasure.  It feels like a fight.  We'll get into a rhythm I'm sure.  In the meantime, I feel a little lost.  My pessimistic side rears its ugly head.  Lies are thrown at me.  Another fight to see past the hard.

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

Thankful Thursday

My sweet sister-n-law does Thankful Thursday posts every once and awhile.

I love them.

It's a good check on where the heart and mind are throughout the week.

A good chance to get "back on track".

This morning, I sat in a haze of exhaustion.

Watching the clock tick by.

Wondering if I had energy enough to run out and grab a cup of coffee.

Unfortunately, the pot I had made wasn't cutting it.

And, of course, we ran out of milk.

Instead of putting on another pot, and running to the store for milk, I opted for someone else to make me a cup.

What better place than Caribou.

I love their cups.

 I raided some piggy banks.

Oh yeah, we do that.

My addiction to coffee is evident.

When we got back, Norah said she wanted to play with her bank.

So, as I was sitting and watching her play (happens often), I was thankful for the gift that just keeps giving.

She got this sweet gift from her Oma a couple Christmas' ago.

She doesn't care how much is in it.

Just cares that she can take the coins in and out.

I'm thankful it helps get us through mornings/afternoons where I can't seem to think or function. 

Happy THURSDAY!