treading water

This week I feel like I'm treading water. It's a busy week and I haven't been sleeping well and I'm pretty sure that I have spread myself a little too thin. I am so overwhelmed this week that I really would have to look at my calendar to know what day it is.

It started Sunday afternoon when I looked around my house and realized how filthy it was. I don't just mean that there were toys strewn everywhere (there were) but that the house was actually filthy. Untold amounts of dog hair, fuzz and crumbs had accumulated on the floor. Dust was so thick on the furniture that I could see where someone had touched the table (or whatever) and the bathrooms just needed to be scrubbed from top to bottom. Plus, there are dozens of little things that needed to be done cleaning-wise. Then, there was the laundry. There is always the laundry. So, Sunday night I did a couple loads of laundry, swept the kitchen floor and picked up all of the toys and I felt like I was keeping my head above water once again.

Monday morning I went to the dentist to have my teeth cleaned and found out that I have three cavities that need to be filled to the tune of $500. I felt like I was drowning again.

Tuesday morning the man from the furniture store came out to repair our new kitchen table. After he left, I managed to get the kitchen and hardwood floors mopped and the downstairs vacuumed. I wished for more time but had to pick up the girls from school. But, the things I had accomplished made me feel like I was keeping my head above water. Then, I remembered that I had promised Avery's elementary school music teacher that I would finish a project for her and I was under the water again.

Today, Wednesday, Avery got out of school at noon. Rather than check things off of my list, I chose to spend the afternoon with her. I did get my sheets and towels washed but my bathrooms are all still filthy. I also got the news this afternoon that my dad's cardiologist is sending him to the Mayo Clinic on Minnesota for treatment of his condition and my head promptly went under the water...way under. Tonight, I have chosen to sit at the computer and research my dad's condition rather than glue ribbon for the music teacher. My research has made me feel better with regards to my dad but I still have the gluing project looming over my head.

Tomorrow is a new day and I am keeping my fingers crossed that I can spend more time above the water than under it. Hannah will be at school and Ethan and I only have a couple of errands to run, so I should be able to get some things done. I swear my whole outlook would change if I could just get those bathrooms clean!

starting fresh

Recently I have decided to change the way that I feed my family. It all started when I was watching an episode of the Martha Stewart show. Martha's guest was a woman who had just published a cookbook of recipes that she had fed to her 3 sons as they were growing up. During the course of the interview/cooking demonstration, the cookbook author made the statement, "I don't believe in pre-packaged snacks." Hmmm. That statement really got me to thinking about what it is that I have been feeding my family. Sure the little plastic fruit cocktail cups are convenient to toss into a lunchbox, but maybe fresh fruit would be better? The turkey and cheese sandwiches I made everyday seemed like a good idea but a closer inspection of the packaging left me with an uneasy feeling. What exactly is a "pasturized processed cheese product" anyway? And the fat-free turkey? Since when are turkeys fat free? I'm not sure I want to know what all has to be done to make meat fat free...The more I thought about it, the more disgusted I became.

So, I have decided to start serving my family more fresh foods. Gone are the days of processed foods, microwaveable side dishes and pre-packaged casseroles. The changes I have made do require more work on my end. Instead of shopping for an entire week's worth of groceries at once (hence the need for frozen vegetables and fruit with preservatives), I am now going to the store several times a week to purchase fresh produce, lunch meat and bread. And, it means that my menu is at the mercy of the produce selection at the store. But, its all worth it. Our food tastes better and we are all (even the kids) more open to trying new things. I also like to think that we will all be healthier in the long run.

At this point, I'm not too picky about organic vs. non-organic foods but as I become more educated I have a feeling that will change. I don't think I will ever go back to the way I was shopping/cooking. Maybe someday someone from the Kraft company will explain to me just what that powdery substance in their boxed macaroni and cheese really is...

boo!

Let me preface by saying that Avery has been looking foward to Halloween for months now. She was perusing online costume shops back in August and had all sorts of elaborate plans for decorating our front yard. So, we were all excited when Halloween finally arrived. But, who can blame her? When you are 6, every holiday is a big deal...especially the ones involving candy.

Avery dressed up in her witch costume, Hannah dressed up as Ariel the mermaid and little Ethan went out as a firefighter. Ethan's best buddy Luke (a.k.a. the dinosaur)came over to do some trick-or-treating with us. We kept the kids confined to our cul-de-sac for the trick-or-treating but they still managed to hit a dozen or so houses. Trust me when I say that they came home with plenty of candy!

good times on baranowski bush road

This past weekend, the five of us traveled down to Brenham for the annual Baranowski Family Bonfire. While we were there, I heard someone mention that this was the 30th anniversary of the bonfire and family gathering. Wow! It is so much fun to be part of such a great tradition!

Jeff's family has been in the area for several generations (hence the name on the street sign) and there are more great aunts, great uncles, cousins and second cousins than I can keep track of even after 9 years. Jeff's grandfather, Charles, was actually born somewhere around there along with his many brothers and sisters, 12 to be exact. The land has been passed down through the generations and has been kept up in recent years by Jeff's Uncle Edwin as a country house and place to escape from Houston. Each year, the weekend before Halloween, he is generous enough to play host to extended and not-so-extended family members. Everyone gathers throughout the day and spends time catching up, eating and ultimately, watching the bonfire.

As we were not able to make the trip last year, we were so pleased that Jeff's grandmother was able to meet Ethan for the first time. I was able to snap some great pictures of the 4 generations together. Our kids had a great time playing in the dirt, going for 4 wheeler rides and watching Jeff's cousins shoot off rockets high into the air. The weather was perfect and the weekend was great!

purging closets

On a recent trip to my sister-in-law's house, she confessed the she had recently found her whole house cluttered with excess stuff and had been cleaning it out. While I didn't notice any of her clutter, her comment sent me back to my own house with a fresh pair of eyes. In our house, we are fortunate to have lots of great closet space. But with my new eyes, I could see that even all of that great space was now filling with our own excess.

So, this week I started in on Ethan's closet. I loaded up a storage bin with baby hooded towels, a baby carrier, clothes, a freebie diaper bag from the hospital, and some baby blankets. I also filled a trash bag with old burp cloths, tiny socks, broken wipes cases, even an old smoke alarm that had been replaced long ago.

My next stop was making my way through the girls closets. Their closets are a bit trickier and require more thought and organization. I am saving some of Avery's outgrown things for Hannah and I am saving some of Hannah's outgrown things for a friend. So, I took a deep breath and started making piles, piles of things to keep, piles of things to donate and piles of things to trash. At the end, I had another storage bin filled with clothes to donate, one to send on to our friends, and one bound for the attic.

This morning Jeff and I tackled our own closets, the coat closet and our big storage closet under the stairs. Together, we filled a large trashbag of clothes to donate, threw out stained and torn things, gathered up old shoes and even put aside two shoeboxes of old receipts bound for the shredder.

Now, the question is where did all of this stuff come from? It's mostly a rhetorical question since I pretty much know exactly where each and every little thing in my house came from. But, when you put off purging and organizing for a long time and just keep stuffing the closets, it all adds up. Like 9 Easter baskets worth, adds up. The good news is that now that we've finished our closet purging, I feel so much better...lighter somehow even. I love the fact that I can walk the length of our closet under the stairs now, its a really good feeling!

Next on my list? Filtering through all the toys before Santa comes...

howdy ya'll

Yesterday afternoon we took the kids to the State Fair. It was kind of a rainy morning but by the time we made it down to the fair, the actual rain had pretty much passed us by. Since we were getting there right at lunchtime, we made a quick stop in the horse barn before heading to the Food Court where we feasted on corny dogs, nachos and frito pie. Collectively, we thought that the fried butter sounded pretty gross and though the fried peaches and cream sounded interesting, we didn't try any. We wandered instead through some arts and crafts displays before watching a pirate high dive show. Our next stop was the Midway for some rides for the girls. Hannah enjoyed the spinning teapot ride, Avery did not. Avery enjoyed the airplane ride, Hannah was terrified. After giving Hannah her first taste of cotton candy and Avery a major sugar fix, we were on to the petting zoo. My favorites are always the goats, they are so fun to watch (especially the playful babies). We also saw a 13 week old giraffe who was already 7 feet tall, a pig and her piglets, some calves and even a zebra. The car show was next on our list of things to see. Avery and Hannah enjoyed climbing in and out of various vehicles and testing out the seat belts while Jeff and I compared sticker prices and gas mileage. As we walked, we saw some folk dancers, heard some music and visited Boris the 1100 lb hog. Before we knew it, it was time to head home. Next year I hope that we can stay longer and see a bit more but for this year, 5 hours was about our limit.