Moody

     Not just me...everyone in this house.  Rowan is cranky and downright miserable...Collin is loud and making Mama feel moody, Presley is cranky cuz she has a cold, and soon, yes very soon, we have to go get back on the bus because it's a half day of school today!  Now, this will either go one of two ways.  They will fall asleep like good little angels and sleep the entire bus trip...perhaps even wake up in a happy mood and the rest of the day will be perfect!  Or, the other, they'll be cranky and miserable the ENTIRE trip due to lack of nap, never fall asleep on the bus, then scream and be cranky in the Halloween parade tonight.  I am at the point, yes, at 9:45am, that I would rather skip Halloween altogether.  So far, the day is NOT looking up. 
     = (

Ehh...

     This was not the best of days for me.  I feel a little down, which is awful for a Friday!  First, my husband gets back from driving tractor trailer and gets into bed (found Collin, my 2 year old in bed with me, too) 25 mins before the alarm was to ring.  Why?  Why God?  Why must he come in right before the alarm rings?  Does he not know that I get up with sometimes 4 children off and on throughout the night?  Let me sleep my slumber until the alarm rings...please, oh please grant me this small wish!  Grr.
     Collin was the screamer on the bus today.  Both trips, am and pm.  Rowan is usually the culprit, but, long and behold, it was my little, sweet boy, Collin.  He screamed bloody murder.  Screamed because no one was sitting with him.  Screamed because his shoes were on.  Screamed because he wanted a drink.  To be honest with you, he hasn't pooped in 3 days...which puts him in a terrible sort of mood.  But, his pooping is a WHOLE other story.
     My eldest, Sydney (9), wanted to go to her best friend's Halloween party tonight.  Well, at 5 pm, she was to go to her Father's house.  I called and spoke to her stepmother last evening, and she told me that they had plans.  SO, I decided that if I spoke with her father, perhaps he'd have a different answery.  He told me this "Didn't you talk to my wife last night?  The answer is No.  End of story."  Well, glory be!  What a gent he is!  So, she was heartbroken.  Oh well.  What can I do?
     We went to get groceries this evening, because I'd love to do nothing more than sit on my butt tomorrow, catch up on some Farmville (facebook), make applesauce, perhaps even become a bit daring and make an apple cake or apple crisp, and completely, utterly VEG.  I know the crew may not allow it, but I am going to try my damnedest!  I hope everyone has a relaxing, Autumny weekend!

Gloomy Schmoomy

     Some may call an overcast day gloomy...but to me, it's my all-time favorite type of weather!  My wonderful husband stayed home with the 3 little ones today so that I would not have to take them on my bus route this morning, which makes the day start off so much better.  I made my mug of coffee and headed to my bus.  I've decided the Pumpkin Spice air fresheners I've discreetly in the bus have helped the behavior on the bus.  The kids just seem so much more happy and calm.  Aromatherapy of sorts?  I mean, when we're at home, many of us light a candle or pop in an air freshener into our warmers that pertains to the season that we are in.  It makes us calmer and feel better, so why can't it work on a busy school bus?  I think I may have come on to something here!
     Came home to Collin and Daddy eating hot dogs and chili at the kitchen table.  Rowan was taken to pre-primary and Presley, asleep in her swing.  Collin had chili all over his shirt and I said something along the lines of "Oh, Collin, why did your Dad give you chili?" and he says "grrrrr....my Daddy did it...my give him a big spankin!"  and he went over to his dad and spanked his butt.  TOO FUNNY!  lol...have I been teaching my son well?  I think so.  I believe we are totally on the right track...lol. 

     As for the rest of the day, Rowan needs picked up at 11:30, hopefully we'll all get some sort of a nap, bus run this afternoon, then church this evening for Kids Konnection and dinner (aka Family Reunion Night).  Starting a new Bible study with some great ladies at church.  I may not think the study is super-exciting, but I LOVE grown-up time...and the kids love the kids in their classes.  Also picking my oldest up from her dad's on the way to church.  Busy, busy, busy.  Hope everyone has a blessed day!
     *The picture above is exactly how the skies here in Pennsylvania look today...the tree, too...the rainbow, not so much.  But it's sure pretty!  = )

Atypical Tuesday

       Last week, Rowan's pre-primary teacher told me that she feels she is delayed in speech, and also possibly in some other developmental ways.  I do understand some people have a difficult time understanding Rowan talk.  For some ungodly reason, she fell in love with this HUGE binky by Playtex that has an index finger-sized nipple on it.  She LOVED them.  They had a ring shaped handle on them and she would take 3 or 4 of them and loop them on a few fingers of her right hand and alternate the bink she sucked on.  Anyhow, what ended up happening is that they gave her a terribly malformed palate.  The good thing?  The Easter Bunny took her binkys this past Easter; secondly, her palate is quite maleable, and her speech is improving (as well as the shape of her mouth).  I regret giving her that type of binky.  Her last pre-primary teacher retired after this past school year.  Boy, did she LOVE Rowan...she took her under her wing and saw something special in her.  This teacher, to me, just seems to find her a nuisance.  Rowan does not like to play in the girl group, nor the boy group.  She is completely at peace just working or playing independantly. 

     Anyway, she had her appt today with our Nurse Practitioner and I filled out some Autism questionaires, have to make an appt with the Intermediate Unit of the county for a behavioral evaluation, and also have to make an appt with our local University for a speech evaluation.  Lots of work, but hopefully we'll find out some answers!

We Are Born!

     So, it begins!  I've truly been wanting to start this blog for quite some time now.  I have tossed and tossed the idea around...and it honestly got me nowhere.  But, as of today, this is going to finally get started.  Let me first tell you a bit about myself.  I am a married mom of 4 wonderful, beautiful, insane, terrible children.  I say the term "wonderful" loosely.  Just kidding ; )  They are the only people on this planet that between them, they can bring me up and down through every emotion known to mankind in the course of a single day!  Now, that's some serious power! 
     They consist of S, my beautiful, blonde 9 year old daughter, who is more up and down with the emotional rollercoaster than any grown woman going through PMS I've ever encountered.  R, my quirky, glasses-wearing 4 year old with the temper of a F4 tornado; C, my only son, soon to be the big 0-3 next month...a sweet, mild-mannered, charismatic joy, and lastly, P, my sweet, chubb-a-lub daughter who will soon be 5 months.  My husband, N,  is a truck driver who is gone quite frequently.  So, I've learned to adapt to being alone with my brood a majority of the time, and tackling the life's events as a singleton.  Women, you HAVE the power to do it alone...there are many pitfalls out there, but you shall overcome!  Haha, how ridiculous did that sound...oh well.  I'll write more tomorrow!  = )