So now that Christmas is almost here and School has started again for everyone I am back to my regularly scheduled crazyness. It is not super fun and I have to be honest I am all done with this year. I need another one fast. Lucky for me time seems to be traveling at an accelerated speed most of the time. When Triston draws with sharpie marker all over my house and Tucker jumps the wall and scares the crud out of the neighbors or anyone else brave enough to walk down my street then it seems to really drag. But the hardest parts are the holidays. I used to love Halloween but this year was so stinkin' hard to get through. Dunno if it is cause it was Scott's favorite holiday or because I am just flat out of steam? But I am telling the truth, whoever said "time makes it easier" is either a bad liar or they have never lost anyone. Because so far it is only getting harder. However there have been some good things happening:

My Bestest friend in the world is pregnant with her first baby!!! She is even having a boy so I could give her all of my little boy stuff (I may have been keeping just in case for about 3 years now.) and other baby crap!! So she came down the end of September and we had a fun little babyshower for her. My mom and I may have gotten a little carried away with the blanket making, but hey she has no doubt she is loved! She is due in January and I am super excited to go up there and totally spoil this new baby. That is btw how I intend to be the favorite!

School this year is so much easier cause I feel like the schedule is so much easier for me and I am not running around so much. I also have Tuesdays and Thursdays with no class so it has made all the difference. I am even passing my math class without a personal tutor! It's practically a miracle! Next semester I am taking all history classes and I am super excited about it. I only wish Dixie offered all the ones I need. They don't however, so after this term I will have to start at SUU. Hope that goes well? I also have to finally apply to the program. I am super nervous. I really have to keep telling myself that God is on my team and He will help me get through this... along with Jalee and my mom and everyone else I always have to call to help me watch my kids while I am at school. Thanks everyone for that. I luv your guts!

I have also come to the conclusion that my kids are entirely too spoiled. So there are no more big trips planned to parts unknown any time in the near future. I decided they have to earn trips to fun places by helping me around the house and saving our pennies. I just kinda feel like they need to learn to appreciate the things they have got and the fun things they have seen and done already. I guess I just don't want to teach my kids that they get to expect a yearly family trip. They have to earn it instead. I am also a little bit glad that I have so many trees in my yard. They have to help me rake them and they super hate it and I am kinda glad that we have to do it cause I don't like it either but it makes us all earn our keep. I like that feeling.

Gabe has a girlfriend named Daisy now and he asked me the other day how he could get here to like him. I was like I thought she already likes you. He said she told him he was gross sometimes. So I explained that girls don't like to hear boys talk about bodily functions...ever. It will always be funny to boys and it will never be funny to girls. He was like "ohhh" why is that always a revelation for boys? Anyway I can't tell everyone how weird it is to give your 8yr old tips on how to win a girl. I thought for sure he would be older before this happened. OH well at least he is talking to me about it huh.

Noah is in first grade and is super excited about everything. He gets recess out back with the big kids! He gets to go to school lunch every day! His teacher used to be Gabe's teacher! But then when it is time to do homework... BAM! Excitement is gone! I can't really say I blame him though cause that is how I feel about doing my own homework so what do you do? We just plug away and get it done. He is also super excited about reading too. He is so cute and fun to listen to. I just need more super short books, cause it takes him a while.

Triston is awesome as usual and has adopted "the devil voice" as Aunt Mel has dubbed it, whenever he doesn't get what he wants. I am having to hear it a lot more as he is learning to share and other things that make me the mean mom. But I am stickin' to my guns cause he is already a bit out of control so I am crackin' down and not giving him anything he wants. Thus we are having a lot more fits and I find we are staying home a lot more. It will pass though hopefully and then perhaps we can go places without fits? I dunno I'm not holding out for too much.

My kids are super awesome! I have tons of support and I am thankful for what I have. Sometimes I just wish I could see my love sooner rather than later.