Florida on my mind...

This is how we looked...

the last time we were in Florida...

our family not quite yet complete.

One week and counting...

Ah, life...

So I installed this counter on my blog two days ago to see if, in fact, anyone actually reads this thing. A busy mom has to have some sort of motivation, you know. Wait, the adult conversation with myself on the blog is motivation enough. Heh. My sweet mom's words on the phone to me this week were, "Oh dear, I should read your blog. I really do mean to." So if my mom doesn't read, then who on earth would? :)

Two days later, my hits are in the 70's, so now I officially have lots of adults in my life and I'm going to abuse my relationship with you. :)

I'm usually too private to ask, but tonight I'm asking you to pray.

We're exhausted. Sick kids all week, and four sleepless nights adding up to less than 10 hours of sleep total for me. Or something like that. I sorta lost track. Ten divided by four. Not good for morale.

Trey had a fever last weekend. Chase and Tess came down with fevers and coughs on Monday, and Jack missed school on Wednesday. I woke up with a sore throat and groggy voice today, and everyone knows that the momma just doesn't have time to be sick.

Just as I'm rearranging in my head who was going to take Trey to his ballgame tonight and who was going to stay home with the sick ones, Tyler comes up with a fever and is out on the couch for the night. We're dropping like flies, and it's almost getting comical, folks (almost, I said). So I head to the game with Trey and two sick ones in tow, and besides the rock in the eyeball incident (how does every other player escape this but my kid?) , everyone pulls through.

Cancel an after-bedtime Starbucks date with a girlfriend.

I get all four in bed by 8:30, and by 10pm, three were awake and out of bed, crying and coughing. No one else seems to have other preparations for tomorrow on their mind. Like:

Teacher gifts - oh, and don't forget the bus driver too.

One awesome "Create Your Own Beach Scene" snack for Jack's Beach Day / last day of school celebration. Think Jello aquarium in Berry Blue with a suspended Swedish Fish, sand (AKA crushed graham crackers), Nemo fruit snacks, chocolate shells, and a mini umbrella to top it all off. At one desperate point Tyler said to scrap it all and get donuts, but everyone knows that donuts don't pass as beachy. Sorry dads, you'll never understand this obsessive mom trait. We'll try not to drive you batty over it.

Oh, and then there's the dueling ear tube surgery at 6am in the morning. It was one surgery (Tess, who has had four ear infections in seven weeks) until 11 o'clock this morning, when Chase super failed his hearing test at his ENT appointment. No wonder I thought he was having a hard time listening. Our kind ENT (who knows us quite well 8 surgeries later) put a call in to our anesthesiologist and asked him to come in 15 minutes early so we can squeeze in yet another Daugherty. 15 minutes for a few thousand dollars? No problem.

Arrange babysitter. Lay out clothes and backpacks. Write teacher thank yous and notes to my boys. Pack teacher gifts and treats. Choose special toys and a change of clothes for the hospital. Double check paperwork.

All in a day's work.

The laundry will get done, I know. And though sometimes it feels like the luck's all against me, the kids won't always be sick. God continues to give us little graces along the way, for which I'm thankful. And ear problems? Geesh. That is simple compared to a host of medical issues some have to deal with.

Come to think of it, I need times like these to keep me grounded in my need for a Savior. My do-it-myself attitude only gets me so far in my relationship with God. It robs me of the help (and joy!) only He can give. It takes away His glory for some futile attempt on my behalf. Why do I wait to turn to Him?

I'm off to cross of some items off my list, and to pray while I work. It's been silent for the last 15 minutes, so I'd better not push it.

I'm needy, I'll admit it. But I'm thankful for a Heavenly Father who meets me in my neediness, and gives me my Daily Bread. Not too soon, and not too late. I'm thinking that if I make it through tomorrow, I'm good.

Ah, a little blog self-talk is just what I needed. I knew this adult conversation was good for something. :)

Thanks for listening.

Thanks for praying.

These two...

I just left these two, after way too much giggling and way past their bedtime. It's Friday night, and they were deep in a new handshake bonding moment, and I just couldn't cut it short.

God had a way different plan than I did when it came to these two. I was an emotional wreck when I found out I was pregnant with Trey. Jack had been a big adjustment for me, and I still didn't have him figured out six months into motherhood. He was fussy, didn't sleep, and had way too many doctor appointments in his little life already. Our little family was living in a tiny apartment in Lafayette, waiting for our out-of-town house to sell. Six months had gone by with no luck. And I was feeling cramped, in more ways than one.

And then I took a pregnancy test (holding a fussy baby in one arm and the stick in the other!) that changed my life forever. And I cried hard. For about four months. Looking back, I don't think I doubted God as much as I doubted my own ability. Hmm... but that's still doubting God, isn't it?

Because He's the only One who has the power to work out the details anyway.

Oh, there were details alright.

Sleepless nights for months on end. Nursing a baby in one arm while reading to a toddler in the other. Protecting an infant from a very energetic one year old. Feeling sweaty all of the time with two babies constantly on me. Making it to church on time - or anywhere for that matter - with the boys when Tyler worked. And when he didn't. And making it through a sermon without getting paged to the nursery? Well, that didn't happen for a long time.

But I left their bedroom tonight almost in tears from laughing so hard. They were made for each other. Polar opposites, but the best buddies ever. Tighter than tight. Inseparable. Friends.

And I thanked God for giving me these two so close together. It took some hard work initially, and ultimately a lot of trusting in the One who always knows what's best for us.

But man, is it paying off.

God knew what He was doing.

But then, HE always does, doesn't He?

Simple Joys...

Laundry that just looks like Spring.

I know, I'm easily amused.

You know you're a mom when...

(My niece Emma, my mom, Tess and Aunt Patty... some of my very favorite girls ever)

...it's Mother's Day, and it's midnight, and you just re-tucked your four year old back in bed, hopefully for the last time tonight. Seems his thumb is still hurting from the (what started out) friendly wrestling match between he and Trey this afternoon. He whimpered for a long time, so I finally gave in and brought him downstairs into our bed, where he finished watching Titanic with us, complete with Motrin, an ice pack and a good back scratch.

All of that was after I had just tucked Trey back in, who had to get up for one more potty break.

I'm just waiting for Tess to cry out next. She's in a strip-yourself-completely-naked-in-the-middle-of-the-night stage, and I've had to redress her several nights in the past week. Bring it on, I say. I'm so close to pulling out the duct tape that it's not even funny.

Funny how Mother's Day makes me thankful for the daddy in this house. He had to work today, which made me thankful for how hard he works so I can do what I do at home. He is one amazing partner in parenting, and in life.

Blessings from today:

Church this morning, where I got to witness Trey serve his sweet friend Ian. This just may have been the best Mother's Day present ever.

A visit from Mom and Dave (complete with lots of awesome garage sale finds for Tess!).

Brunch at The Trails with Mom, Dave and the Walshes, where three boys were especially cute and full of manners.

Hanging out with the boys on the driveway, lighting leaves and ants on fire with a magnifying glass and the sun. :)

Opening a sweet card addressed to "Ommee" - Tess's version of Mommy.

Answering the door bell to find that some sneaky boys had placed a beautiful planter on my doorstep.

Tyler getting home from work and freeing me up for the evening (I left by myself for a little shopping at Meijer and Gordman's - woah. Best purchase of the night: a new baseball bat for Trey.).

A movie / Spageddies take-out date with Tyler when I got home.

Honoring my mom today, who first loved God with her whole heart, then loved me enough to point me to Him.

Speaking of views...

.... this is mine from the hammock.

So much for cuddling up just the two of us. :)