Sing Praises

Hey all! I know, its been forever since I posted something. It is hard to knock stuff off my to-do list!

We did manage (although later than I wanted) to get out of the house and into the library. It was really crowded, because one of the events had been moved to the regular play area. But the kids seemed to have fun. On the way to look for an adult book, I saw one of my library friends. We chatted for a second, then we rushed off to find a book for me. I literally judge books by their covers because the kids don't give me a chance to choose carefully.
After taking The Boy to the bathroom, I found a few parenting books for me, and he found a dinosaur book. The Baby got a cat book.
I used to limit the items I checked out, but I realized there is no need to do that. I get so excited about all the stuff the library has to offer, and so do the kids.
While the kids were checking our stuff out, my librarian friend and I chatted. When we got back to the car, I realized I had only talked about me and my kids, and I didn't ask her any questions. Next time.

Yard Sale Year Two

Yes, this is my second consecutive yard sale, and my second in this house. First, the bad news: there is massive construction on my street, so I was relegated to the garage. Also, this woman and her two kids and dog kept shopping after giving me the money, and I woefully miscalculated. So she got two t-shirts for free, basically. On the upside, she did know who Flogging Molly is, so I know the shirt went to a good home. I am trying not to let it bother me, but it makes me sad that I am so bad at math...I just get so nervous, especially when there is an audience.
The good news: most of the stuff I got for free, so I make a profit on almost everything. And most things are a $1, so people are willing to pay. And I made double my goal, (which was really low, but reachable).
Just want to give a shout out to my wonderful Hubs and BIL who put up about 10 signs today. I think they really helped with the flow of traffic. I also posted on YardSaleSearch.com and Gsalr.com because I subscribe to those sites and the posting was free.
I'm looking forward to selling tomorrow.

Overwhelmed and Understaffed

I have so many things to do, and most of what I have to do is on my list. But that does not seem to allieviate my concerns.
I have a yard sale this weekend, and I haven't priced anything. Both kids have different doctor's appointments on Thursday. There are thousands of photos that need labeling, and about that many that need to be put in an album or scrapbook. I have a few fix-it projects that need tending to, and my t-shirt quilt has not seen work in a while.
My priorties are all confused; not to say that I don't know what is important, but that I believe all my work is important. With a mindset like that, it is hard to get work done.
My concern is that I am forgetting something; I am afraid I am not using my time wisely, and I am afraid that my to-do list is insurmountable. I want to finish my projects, clip all my coupons, and file all my paperwork, but I suspect that is too much to ask.

With all this worry and anxiety, I took the opportunity to walk the kids and I over to Walgreens. We saved 47%! I bought:
3 8-packs of Wexford dry-erase markers, $1.50 each with the ad-paper coupon
1 12-pack of Nice! toilet paper, $2.99 after a $1-off in-store coupon (and I had a mailer coupon for 500 points)
1 tube of Colgate toothpaste, 'free' after mnf coupon and Register Rewards
I got a coupon for my next purchase, and I hope to purchase some photos.
So I can add them to my to-do list.

Blueberry Sewing

Whenever I stay up this late, I think about all the stuff that I didn't do. But I really try to remember what I did do: I did yoga, which felt great. And I did a hair treatment. And I took care of the kids. We played outside, and we did a new project!
While I fixed the Red Dog (who got a rip up his back), I set the kids up with their own 'sewing project'. I gave them each an empty blueberry container, and cut a line of yarn. I put a piece of the tape on the end of the yarn. And the kids wove/sewed with the tape. They loved it! It was a new and interesting project for them, and allowed me to do my repairs in relative peace.

Long Time No See

A girl I went to elementary school with, and am now Facebook friends with, asked me for couponing tips. I hope I can help, and do justice to the wonderful world of couponing.

Stay Calm

I'm feeling really good about my mothering abilities today. I stayed calm during three meltdowns staged by The Boy. I made sure that he knew that I still loved him, I still cared about him, and I knew that he was having a hard time. But I also stated that I could not give him what I wanted because of the logistics of the situation, and because I wasn't going to give in to his demands. (I explained all this to him in a more child-friendly way.)

We had a long drive today, to pick up my father-in-law, and I brought snacks, drinks, and books. When we took my father-in-law to his appointment, I brought the same stuff. I notice that the more prepared I am for whatever they may need, the better our day goes.

Remember Lamb Chop? I got a book from the library written by Sherri Lewis. Its' a book of games for children, and we tried one. (We only played for a few minutes.) In an empty egg carton, I wrote numbers, 1-12, in each section. Then we tossed quarters at, and sometimes in, the carton. And I had The Boy tell me what number the quarters landed in. Not the most successful projects of ours, but I'm glad we did it.

The Sound of Gravel

I just finished reading The Sound of Gravel-a memoir by Ruth Wariner. It was powerful and heartbreakingly written. It is a story of bad parenting, dangerous child-predators, and misguided/misused religious dogma. As Ms. Wariner chronicles her life, I cannot help but notice the utter failings of her mother. Written from a child's perspective, it is not always clear how the adults in the situations could have acted or reacted differently, but I desperately wished they did. Ms. Wariner is the fourth child of the second wife of a polygamist. Things are not going well financially, emotionally, academically, or developmentally for this family.
The show on TLC, Sister Wives, is possibly one of the only positive 'reports' I have ever seen on polygamy as part of the Mormon belief system. I remember watching news footage of the unholy goings-on at the Fundamentalist camp in Utah; the colony with the abuse, coercion, child-brides, and lack of education. This book is more like the latter reports.
The step-father of Ruthie is a child-predator, one who loves the idea of plural marriage because of the sex, who keeps his family around with threats, coercion, and a willingness to dispel blame to anyone but himself. He molests little Ruthie, and the church finds out, and the punishment does not at all fit the crime.
Little Ruthie's mom is willing to throw away her kid's education every time they must move; and they move to get welfare checks, because her husband told them to, and because bad things seem to keep haunting them.
As a mother myself, I cannot imagine the stress Ruthie's mom went through. That woman was bound by misogynistic and archaic church doctrine, she was bound by her lack of self-worth. She had ten babies, and many of them suffered great injustices. She was married in the eyes of the church but not by law, her husband couldn't care for any of them properly. She had to deal with her husband's lack of communication and a lack of real schedule that would allow him to see his wives equally. She must have known she wasn't being a great mom, and she tried to use her religious beliefs to support her failings. Her children were suffering and all she could do was almost nothing. But I'm sure she loved them...she just didn't have the resources and support she needed.
A well-written and heartbreaking story. I recommend it, but only if you can handle reading about family dysfunction.