Small successes of today:

I made dinner!!! Like a real dinner, with lots of veggies and real meat. Yum. I was going to take a picture of my amazing veggie tray, but I couldn't find the camera. I'll tell you about it though. It was as plain and simple and colorful as any other veggie tray in the world. But I actually cut all the veggies, and we ate it with dinner! The kids loved it. I loved it.

And, I did my dirty dishes. Yeah, what an accomplishment! Crazy? I know. I am. But there's something about my happiness tank that is beyond full when my dishes are clean (better yet, put away) and the trash is taken out. I know tomorrow will be a good day if for no other reason. Oh, it's so sad I get such joy out of that, and such agony over dirty dishes.

I swept my kitchen floor and decided to go ahead and mop it. It hasn't been very long since I last mopped it, but it had that grimy feeling when you walk on it barefoot. I can't stand that. So I mopped it after the kids went to bed.

I did school with Rose and Dominic today, simultaneously. That took a lot out of me. I was trying to hard to stay upbeat and not succumb to the nasty cynicism that can overcome me...especially when my dear children (or child) starts to whine incessantly. Dominic was just slap happy. Urgh! Where's the middle ground! They're either giggling like hyenas, or mad and moody. But we got through it with...um, no tears- for me either! But many pauses, listening to three little ones argue their point to me, all at the same time, while I sat there thinking "how am I ever going to do this!!!!!" Then another deep sigh before I was back in the trenches, calming Rose's demands of DD, DD concretely insisting on one thing, and one thing only in his one track brain and trying to stop that, while lifting Sam on my lap and saying sweetly, "That is a neat toy!"

Okay, part of the wrinkles we'll have to work out this year is having two kids working in the same area. They each have a seat at the desk, but I can't sit with Dominic and write A's with him without Rose looking over his shoulder and commenting on what we're doing. She is just so distracted! And it's so annoying!!! I finally moved to another room with Dominic, and Rose did fine with her assignment.

I guess I was excited to work with Dominic and do some alphabet stuff. I felt like I should've done it last year, and didn't. I realize that I'm right where I need to be with him this year, and am just happy that we can work on it together.

Oh, and I am reading a lot more to the kids. I like that. It seems like I could never find time for it before. Now we just do it. I tell them to get a book and they all run for the bookcase.

So it's kinda funny how much I fit into one day, and looking back, it was a good day. We did a little of everything: school, work, and play. And somehow, I think, if I try to plan all that we got done, it would never get done. I like when things just work out for the better.