Love In Life

 My Kids Love To...

empty toy containers that have just been filled.

cry over spilled milk.

spend the better part of each day asking me to look up the Spanish translation for every English word they hear.

“help” me with the dishes... and the laundry... and the dusting... and the vacuuming...

sing and dance loudly - especially during naptime.

make something out of nothing (both artistically and figuratively).

smile and laugh and tell jokes – especially during church.

call their dad by his first name even though it drives him bananas.

call Grandma and Grandpa 10 to 15 times every weekend (and occasionally during the week) because Grandma and Grandpa won't admit that it probably drives them bananas.

fight and play together so often and so similarly that sometimes I mistakenly recite to them my well-rehearsed 'stop fighting and behave yourselves' speech for no reason, causing them all to stare at me as though I might be nuts for few seconds before resuming play.

smear mass quantities of food to the four corners of my freshly scrubbed table despite the fork and spoon they were each given for the express purpose of preventing this.

create a bookshelf avalanche every time they pick out a book, then attempt to remedy the situation by carefully replacing only that one book – incorrectly.

track mud and snow and the occasional creepy crawly critter into my as-well-maintained-as-can-be-expected house on a semi-daily basis.

Just a few examples of why a mom like me requires daily reminders that What I Love Most Is... To See Them Having Fun.

Logan made this rose for me out of Cheerios.

It's amazing how one Cheerio Rose can make up for at least twenty Bookshelf Avalanches.

Let The Sun Shine

 So today I'm having some groundhog issues...

Groundhog Issue #1: I just found out they have their own groundhog here - in Wisconsin. His name is Jimmy. This strikes me as an odd name for a groundhog, but I suppose it really isn't any more odd than Phil. At any rate, now I'm wondering if every state has its own groundhog and if so, the weather can't possibly be similar enough in every single state at the same time on the same day for fifty groundhogs to all see the same thing. So which groundhog's prediction is correct? Or will winter last longer in some states than it will in others? And doesn't spring officially start around March 21^st regardless of what some crazy old guys in top hats think a groundhog sees?

Groundhog Issue #2: If the weather is sunny, the groundhog will see his shadow and there will be six more weeks of winter. If the weather is cloudy, he won't see it and then (drum roll please) there will be slightly less than seven more weeks of winter. Why all the fuss over six hypothetical extra days of spring?

Groundhog Issue #3: If we're assuming that sunny weather on February 2nd means six more weeks of winter and cloudy weather means less than six more weeks, then why do we need a groundhog at all?

Groundhog Issue #4: Since groundhog meteorology is pretty high on my list of pseudosciences, I think I'd really prefer a beautiful, sunny day on February 2^nd over a gloomy, cloudy one. I feel comfortable taking my chances with the week of March 21^st if I can have a nice, sunny winter day as a guarantee. Besides, according to the National Climatic Data Center, the overall groundhog weather prediction accuracy rate is only around 39% anyway. That's less than a 50/50 shot. Bring on the sun.

Groundhog Issue #4: Groundhogs don't write poetry.  I'm just saying...