It's a big, fat, annoying, won't go away stomach ache.  I'm pretty sure it will be plaguing me until next Thursday when Maggie's plane lands again in L.A.  Yes, she's with my parents, yes Costa Rica is probably the safest country in the world, but still...she's 10. And Costa Rica is kind of far away, ya know.  It doesn't help that Reas is working out of town this week too.  The house is way too quiet for my liking, and there were 2 too many empty chairs at the table tonight.

Go Maggie, GO!!

Not only did she come away with First Place for the 4th grade science fair, but we got at least 6 loads of laundry done while figuring out exactly how stains behave.

When's the last time you saw multitasking like that??

...and in case someone might find this useful - whatever you do, don't try to wash out any chocolate stains in hot water. We scientists here learned it does not work.

At 8:25 the kids get picked up for school.  At 8:20 I saw Maggie's empty folder sitting on the sidetable. "Maggie, go get your homework, put it in your folder, and put it in your backpack."  If I'm being completely honest I know I said it with just a little exasperation in my voice.  Afterall, she is in 4th grade, and she should be a little more responsible, right?

"Mom! I can't find my homework.  I think I left it all right here, and now it's gone."

Ugh. We all go scrambling around looking for the missing homework.  We have like 3 minutes to find it.  It's not in any of the usual places.  Luckily carpool seems to be running slightly behind, so we start looking in all the unusual spots.   Behind couches, under beds,  between pillows, even in the laundry room, and the kitchen trash.  It is nowhere.   Carpool arrives, they agree to wait a minute while we keep looking.  Now we're looking in really weird places...the pantry, Reas' church folder, my closet.  All the while I keep saying things like, "THIS is why you should put your homework in your backpack as soon as you finish it."  Finally, we have to let the carpool leave and I'll have to drive Maggie to school after we find the homework.  I would've rathered just sent her without it, but the look on her face!  She was so sad, nearing hysterics, but trying to hold it back all at the same time.  She IS responsible.  She wants to do everything right, and going to school without her homework, where she'd have to sit on the wall during recess for coming to school unprepared would be torture for her.  During the frantic search I'm torn between trying not to get mad and showing it by lecturing her the whole time, OR breaking down right along with her because I can remember being in 4th grade.  I remember knowing the world would truly end if I had a missing assignment.  I totally understand it, but STILL.  This all could have been avoided if she would have put her things away.   So I try to keep the lecturing to a minimum, but little comments kept slipping.  By this point she was desperate, and I knew that homework wasn't going to turn up by itself.  So we said a prayer.  A simple, heartfelt "help us find the homework" prayer.  Then we did the only thing that was left to do...we kept looking.

I made my way back to the trash, obviously not my favorite place to go digging.  This time I must've dug a little farther or searched down the other side of the bag because there it was.  All 3 pages of her homework glued together with chocolate pudding and sausage grease.  I was happy, relieved, and instantly humbled.  I was the one who threw those papers in the trash.  I KNOW it was me.  I turned toward Maggie expecting and hoping to see smiles.  Instead, she was mostly worried about what to do with her soggy homework.  I wiped off dinner the best I could, smoothed out the wrinkles, and wrote a note to Maggie's teacher taking full blame for the huge mess.  I apologized to Maggie for accusing her of not taking care of her things.  She knew right where she had left her work.  She put it safely out of reach of little hands, but unfortunately not out of reach of a mom who all too often spins around in a frenzy trying to be rid of clutter.  I hate being wrong, especially when it's at the expense of others.

We jumped in the car and pulled up to the gate one minute before the tardy bell would be ringing.  The van had hardly stopped and she was out the door, racing across the playground trying to get to the door before she'd be locked out and have to go through the office where she'd be given one of those horrible pink tardy slips.  That's the the other thing about Maggie... she hates being late.  I sat there watching her run, backpack and lunch box flying behind her, and feeling completely helpless.  I know now it doesn't sound like a big deal...not turning in homework ONE time, and being a little late to school.  For Maggie though, it IS a big deal.  And I could even get over the fact that the whole ordeal had been my fault because it was just an honest mistake, but the way I had accused her the whole time when it had really been me, and the little comments I kept making, makes me sick.

She made it to class before they locked the door so I guess it was a happy ending.  But all I can think about is how I sent her off to school without giving her a hug and making sure she really knew how sorry I was.  We were in such a hurry to leave I couldn't even talk with her about how we found her homework after we said a prayer.  I felt cheated out of a moment with her.  I know I can say it all tonight when she's home again, but I'm feeling it now.  I'm feeling the weight and responsibilty of motherhood now.  Life is short and my time to be Maggie's, Ty's, Claire's, and Lily's mommy is even shorter.  I know parenting, like everything else we do, is a learning process, but it's scary that while we are learning and unfortunately making mistakes, we're permanently shaping another life.   Or 4 other lives, in my case.  It's kind of like the studying for the test and the actual taking of the test is all going at the same time.  I know I'm going to mess up more than I'd like.  I just hope that if each day I can do a little more to be the right mom for my kids, be more loving and understanding of their needs, and mess up a little less during the process, that that will be good enough.

I have victoriously avoided the whole pet owning part of parenthood for a good long time.  It's not that I don't like animals, it's just that I don't like caring for animals.   See the difference?  There is a difference, but in the eyes of my children it's all the same: I'm just a big ol' meanie out to do my family a terrible injustice by keeping fluffy little furballs out of their hearts and our home.  I know.  It's a terrible thing, right?  Mine and Ty's killer allergies to anything with paws, fur, or fluffy cuteness doesn't help the situation, although it has made my case easier to win.  BUT in the last year, Maggie has come to us at least a dozen times begging, pleading, sometimes crying her eyes out for a pet...any pet (as long as she could cuddle it. That was the only requirement).  A couple of weeks ago she left a note on my pillow:
 

Yes, the cake deserves a post all to itself. Please. Let me have a proud moment here.  First, I will say I am not a cake decorating person.  I am in complete and utter awe of people who are.  Sprinkles are generally where my creativity ends.  No, that's not true.  A couple of years ago I made Ty a chocolate cake, gave him a bowl of frosting, crushed oreos, chocolate chips, and army men with accessories and told him to make a battle scene all over the top of his cake.  I thought that was pretty creative, but deep down I knew it was just a good way to get out of feeling depressed about my lack of cake decorating skills AGAIN.  So, today for Maggie's party I attempted to make a cake my friend had posted on her blog (hi Jori!) ... a real true birthday cake.  Then when I went to pull out a box of cake mix there was a similar cake that Betty Crocker has going on on the back of her box.  Ok, so it's nothing new, but I did it in my own kitchen with my own two hands.  Wahoo!!  And really, how can you go wrong with polka dot M&Ms, great colors, and cupcakes?

Today we have a party going on!  Maggie's turning 9 and the world is about to hear about it.  I'm busy with frosting, watermelon, and markers...not all together in the same project of course.  That would be somethin'.
So next week's menu is not on my list of things to do at the moment.  Tomorrow...I hope.  For now, 10 screaming girls will be running through my front door in only a matter of hours.  Reas can't wait.

I'm pretty sure Vegas schools are the last on the planet to start school.  It seems everyone else has been back for at least a week or two, and my school-loving offspring have been jealous.  I can't figure it out - in so many ways Maggie and Ty are both pretty shy and hesitant about doing new things.  But when it comes to starting a new school year, they're both out the door and running without looking back.  I'm not complaining, just confused.  Although, I'll admit it might be a little nice if one of them clung to my hand for just a second before sprinting away.  Really, was home THAT boring over the Summer??

Either way, I'm so happy for them and glad they're excited about another year.

I'm so excited to finally have more pictures to share from Maggie's new room. We took a lengthy break from finishing it up because of a major inspiration freeze for one wall. I have one last little project to complete and then her room gets a big fat check mark next to it! I'm tired of waiting, so I'm going to show it anyway.









For now, there's room in her closet to designate the lower shelf for her books and other odds and ends. I'm hoping that will cut back on some clutter






This wall was so fun to do. Maggie did the artwork herself (inspired by this project), which she loves! The pink flower is a prized possession from her 15 year-old cousin/idol. I never quite knew what to do with it, but I think it's perfect here. My favorite for sure is the dresser. I can't get over how perfect the color came out! You can see it in its "before" state here.



All along, I was hoping the existing window treatments would be able to work. They were the first ones I ever made and this is the only window in the entire house that is the right size. I'm so happy Maggie gave them the thumbs up! I love how they add a little sophistication, but if you ask me, toile fits anywhere.




And there you have it. Ta da! A big girl, but not too big girl room. It was a labor of love for my sweet Maggie with touches of homemade everywhere. And just because I like to think about how much money I save, soon I'll be posting the budget breakdown.

I'm linking this post up to Just a Girl's Show and Share Day.

I was actually shocked that they agreed to pose for a picture.

...and a few tricky dance moves

Finally, the kids got to celebrate all their hard work with a fancy presidential cake (??? again, that word) and Capri Suns, of course. Really, it wouldn't be a school function without the Capri Suns, you know.

Whatever happened to the days of drawing rainbows and flowers with sidewalk chalk?

Maggie has informed me that geometry is the most fun math she has ever done. I guess she wasn't joking because now she's doodling about it on the back patio.

On October 10 our sweet Maggie, was baptized and confirmed as an official member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It was a wonderful day. One we've been looking forward to for a very long time.

We were so happy to have some of our family come and be with her, but of course we missed those who couldn't make it. Grandma and Papa Dunn, her Aunt Shelly and Uncle Andy with 5 fun cousins, Grandma Allen and Uncle Keith all were here for the weekend. There were also many great friends from church. Our ward is the best. Thank you!

Isn't this picture the sweetest!


Ahh a baptism. A prime family picture moment... here's what we got. For the record, I was sick. As in glad-I-was-able-to-make-it-to-the-baptism-sick. Therefore I didn't care about things like crooked ties, untucked shirts, and bright yellow books that could have been set down for the picture. We were all in it. Good enough for me.

This is Maggie's cute primary class. These kids are all great friends and so supportive of each other. Benjamin (Joe-cool in the blue shirt and tie), and Jacob, (the dapper cutie in the suit), were baptized that day too.

We are so proud of Maggie and grateful that we are her parents. She is a wonderful example to her friends and younger siblings. She tries her best to always choose the right. I find myself having more and more "friend to friend" moments with her these days. It's exciting and a little scary all at the same time. She's growing up and I can't stop her.

Yesterday was Maggie's big day. She partied non-stop sun up to sun down as any newly 8 year-old should. Eggos for breakfast, a lunch date with her super great primary teacher, Sis. Butler, and Cici's Pizza for dinner. Yes, there was lots of food involved.

Squeezed in between all the eating we found time for opening birthday presents. She loved her new set of her very own shiny scriptures. We were a little worried that she wouldn't be all that excited about them, but I think the smile says otherwise.


Ty and Claire had the best time shopping for their gift for her. They picked out all sorts of girly fun things like lip gloss, lotion, and sparkley nail polish to fill up a make-up bag...which was really a glorified pencil pouch. As a side note - pencil pouches make great make-up bags for an 8 year-old and they're about 1/10th the cost.



Next, we headed out to Santa Fe Station for some bowling. The kids loved it! As for Reas and I, we were really glad we had decided on playing only one game. I honestly didn't know it was possible for the ball to move that slowly down the lane. We were so happy when we discovered those little ramp thingies for the kids.








Unfortunately, nobody had a stellar bowling night. Scores aren't all that important anyway, right? It's your FORM that counts.