This one turned out rather long.

It's amazing how much productivity I feel and how much energy I have when the house is cleaned as opposed to when it is in complete disarray.  We have had a few weeks of non-stop appointments, obligations and activities, and, as is usually the case, you could tell it in the way the house looked. We've established a pretty good routine that keeps the house picked up and looking good. We wake up and the girls have to be dressed with hair brushed, room picked up and bed made. They do this while I cook breakfast and the rule is that if you are dawdling and breakfast is ready before you are, you don't get breakfast. I keep an eye and ear open and I make sure I time it out where they all eat every morning. But if there ever is a morning where I have an obstinate or particularly dawdling child, I won't hesitate to carry out the "threat." It's usually about 9:30 by then, so I get Nora ready for her morning nap, they brush their teeth and then we start school. It a nice, smooth routine that, for this moment in our lives, works rather well. Since we have been so busy, the routine has barely stayed alive. We've picked up the rooms we could, when we could and I've basically kept the kitchen clean. And, to add to the chaos, I've been in the middle of switching out the clothing from winter to summer. This (and the reverse in the fall) is the most dreaded "mommy chore" I ever face. I would willing potty train over swapping clothes. I don't know why it seems so hard for me but it is.  I think it's because I like organization and about halfway through it all, when there is the pile for The Store, the pile for the trash can, the pile for a yard sale, the four piles for winter and the four piles for summer, I just want to curl up and hide away for a year. Also, I have to have all the laundry finished so that I am sure that all the clothing that is supposed to be boxed up has been found and there isn't a little shirt or pair of legging hiding under the bedspread in the hamper. (Have I mentioned Claire wets the bed? A lot?) Since we have been busy another downside has been the almost complete stop of clean laundry.  So, to add to the normal horribleness of it all, I have piles and piles of sorted (hey! at least I did that!) dirty laundry. On Saturday, I was greatly looking forward to attending our annual church meeting but Eily had an ear infection that was causing her to feel pretty crummy and run a fever so I stayed home with her and Nora and Jason went with the older two girls to church. I was pretty bummed at first but then I realized I had a wonderful gift in the unplanned free time. Not only that, but Nora was really tired and was probably going to take a nice long nap and since Eily was feeling bad, she only wanted to lie in my bed, rest and watch movies.  I had a great opportunity to actually accomplish something. So I rolled up my sleeves, and dove in. For the first time in a week, you can sit on the large couch without having a pile of clothing fall over on you. I still have a lot of laundry to wash and of course the winter clothes in that laundry will need to be sorted but that will be easy to do since the tubs are right here in the living room. I'll just do each load as it is ready.  Also, I have been collecting things all winter for a yard sale and when I decided to just go ahead and set the date and I found out that the Big To Do on 22 is this weekend. Perfect! So far I have 12 very large boxes ready to go and I should have about two more before it is all said and done.

Jason is going to be traveling a lot (stay away bad guys. I have a gun and I know how to use it!! They didn't call me Fanny Oakley for nothing.)(Fanny was Annie's lesser know but equally awesome sister.) (Not really. She was a character they made up for me in a play I was in when I was in the seventh grade.)(But yes really about the part where I said I know how to shoot.) so I have made a list of things I want to accomplish while he's gone.

• Clean out the pile of leaves and brush in the southwest corner of the backyard.
• Clean out the gutters. 
• Power wash the front gutters (Josh, I'll need your help with this one.)
• Plant flowers in the front flower beds
• Weed-eat EVERYTHING!!!
• Maybe till the garden space? I'm not totally sure on this one.
• Schedule an open house.
• Get a new toilet paper holder in the main bathroom.
• Paint the upper tile in the main bathroom
• Paint over the wax that Elaina blew all over the living room wall this evening. 

That's all I can remember right now. I wanted to clean out the barn too but I mentioned that one to him and he said he wanted to be here to help. I'm down with that.

On a different note, Eily and I found a very strange looking caterpillar right by the front door and we put him in our caterpillar home. We've had this home for two years and now we are finally getting to use it. We found it Saturday while the others were at church and already it has started building its cocoon. We are all really excited. Jason and I have never watched this process either and I think we are checking on it more than the girls. I'll try to remember to take a picture of it and post it tomorrow. That's about all right now.  Maybe tomorrow I'll tell you about how I am going to get get all of next year's school curriculum for free.