So T and I read last night much too late. It was after 1 before lights were out.. and at 5:30 K SCREAMED this morning. I stumbled into her room to find she had stuck her leg between the bars on her crib and she was NOT happy about it. It took a while for her to settle down and by that time, there was no going back to bed.

I tried napping on the couch, but it wasn’t long before other children were up for the day… and then I had to make sure T was up for work.

Once I had K settled in with a toy I got started on getting everyone ready for the programs of the day. Clothes to wash (remember, we just got home, and we are headed to FL in 10 days), juice to get ready, breakfast to serve… general daily life.

Then there’s another scream from K… maybe more of a holler. I guess she thought she needed some tummy time, and that toy was in her way… up comes the first bloody lip… more of a blood blister, as it never actually bleeds, but it swells.

It does get better… I had a great laugh with S today. One of the things I have taught my kids to do while making long trips is to stretch while making potty breaks. We reach up and “tickle the clouds” and then reach down and “tickle our toes.” This gets blood moving and usually ends in laughter… or at least big smiles. So, today I was sitting in the van and started stretching… and noticed S was doing the same thing I was. I smiled… reached up and said, “S, tickle the clouds!”

I got no smile in return, but rather a very serious face… “Momma… that’s NOT clouds… that’s the van!”

By the time we got home the boys were ready to play hard… which means lots of rough-housing… and fights and even tears. When T got home, we were all ready for bed… but it was dinner time first.

When we got everyone into bed, T wanted some new tool for some new car part that is on its way. He headed out the door and I headed to the computer. I got a call from him about ten minutes later… please google a car he might want to buy. As we are looking at this thing, he says “Oh… I’ve got a problem… I’ve got to call you back.” I’m thinking the cops have flashing lights behind him.

I go on with getting S back into bed. He calls again… he’s sitting on the side of the road interstate with a flat tire. I called my neighbors, who are in their 80’s, to see if they would come hang at our house since the kids are in bed. They come right over and I head out to rescue my husband. (I’m pretty sure it should be the other way around.)

Turns out, the valve stem on his 2 week old tires just came off. He thinks it got too hot… That’s not good in TN… we aren’t even in August yet.

So, NOW I am going to bed late again… and praying tomorrow is not as exciting. OR long.

We are at my parents for this beautiful 4th of July in MO. Yesterday we spent some time outside at the baby pool with K and S, while the boys were running around with water guns getting Papa wet… and anyone else who got in there way. It was sunny and warm… a good afternoon.

When K got tired of the water, we got everyone back into the house, dried off and some down for naps. As we worked on all of this, the sky got darker… and suddenly it opened up and poured on us… well, the house we were all safely dry in.

The wind whipped all around us… even knocked the porch swing over. The rain was heavy and there was hail involved, too. My dad, sitting at the computer and watching out the window said rhetorically, “Wow, look at that… hail and everything… Where did that hail come from?”

J, sitting behind Papa playing, said, “From hell?”

 photo by Grandma 😉