Background: About a year ago now, I began to get into couponing seriously.  Using various websites, I try to match the sale ads of local grocery stores with available coupons in order to save the maximum amount of money on groceries that I regularly buy.  It’s sort of like a fun math game to me that has ended up saving our family hundreds of dollars.  Along with saving coupons from Sunday’s newspapers, I also frequently print out coupons.  My printer has probably seen more action in the last year than the three years before that combined.

Last night before putting C and L to bed, I decided to quickly change the black ink printer cartridge because I had run out of black ink.  I carefully removed the old cartridge and then inserted the new one.  For some reason, the new one did not seem to fit right.  My immediate assumption was that I was doing something wrong.  So I shook and jimmied it until it finally popped in.  I shut the little printer door happily and waited for the aligning “stuff” to start.  And then the error message: “please check the right cartridge.”  The right cartridge was not the one I had replaced, so I re-opened the door and popped the right cartridge out.  I stared at the words “black ink” uncomprehendingly for a moment, and then it hit me that I had inadvertently replaced the color ink cartridge with the new black one.  No problem.  I just had to put the color ink cartridge back and move the  new cartridge over to the right side.  Not so much.  After trying unsuccessfully for several minutes to remove the misplaced new cartridge, I called my husband over.  When he could not wrest the cartridge from its unfortunate niche, he suggested that I google how to get it out.  My search led me to the following advice from someone who had done something similar: buy a new printer.  Oops!  So the money I have saved from using coupons has now been used to purchase a new printer…uggh!  Moral of the story:  It all evens out at the end of the day AND don’t try to tinker with technological equipment at night when you’re brain-dead from mothering three children under the age of five.

Tim and I celebrated our ten-year wedding anniversary this past Tuesday, August 10.  In honor of that, we went out for a swanky dinner date at Mark’s Prime on Saturday evening (after we finally cooled down from the truck event).  We had blue crab claws, a tomato and fresh mozzarella salad, steak (Tim), and tuna (Mel).  It was delicious, and we really enjoyed being out alone in such a romantic setting.  Enter dramatic music.

About an hour after we returned home, my darling husband began to violently rid himself of everything he had eaten for the last 24 hours.  What turned out to be a horrific stomach bug continued its attack through the early morning, at which point, he passed out.  Then it was my turn.  What a dismal ending to our night out!  I had to call my dear neighbor Robin to help me with the kids on Sunday morning, because both Tim and I were so weak from the virus.  We have since recovered (apart from some lingering dehydration), and we’re so glad to be better.  Our date didn’t end exactly the way we had pictured it, but there’s always next year.  And for the record, we are hoping to go away without the kids in honor of this 10-yr. milestone…whenever we (that is, I) can wean Tyler…sooo…sometime in the new year?

Now that I have begun updating this blog again, it seems I have so much to share.  It’s only been a few days, but I already feel behind…so much has happened.  I’ll start with the craziness of this past weekend.  On Saturday morning, we took the entire family to the free “Touch-a-Truck” event held at the Alachua county fairgrounds.  Gathered in the open field were all kinds of moving vehicles that kids could see, touch, and climb inside: hummers, various construction vehicles, emergency vehicles, motorcycles, etc.  It was pretty cool, notwithstanding the oppressively warm temperature and unbearable humidity.  They also had a bunch of bounce houses, including waterslides, for the kids at the exorbitant price of $10 per wristband.  We generously purchased one for C and L.  It turned out to be a waste of our money though, because neither was able to climb the ladder for the giant waterslide (see video slideedit) and then were too hot to really play in the other bounce houses.  Live and learn.  They did enjoy the trucks and the ice cream cones and the tractor-masquerading-as-Thomas-the-Tank train ride.

Connor loves chocolate!

So after spending a good portion of my night tending to and cleaning up after my vomiting child (Connor) last night, I was quite depressed about starting a new day of mothering and housekeeping.  But it has turned out to be a blessing in disguise.  The only way to get Connor to sit still and rest is to let him watch a cartoon–thank you, Lord, for PBS Kids.  While he and Lucy were little couch potatoes watching Super Y (and Tyler was taking his morning nap) I was able to vacuum the carpet and the tile and MOP the tile.  Hurray!  Some may not realize what a feat this actually is, but for those who have more than one child under the age of five and stay at home full-time with those children, I know that you are impressed and happy for me.  And if you are one of those moms who manages to keep an immaculate house in spite of having small children, I welcome any and all suggestions for how I can keep up better.

Connor and Tyler

Lucy in her pigtails

Most mornings I read a Bible story to the children at breakfast from a children’s Bible story book.  Today’s story was about Joseph being sold by his brothers as a slave.  I asked Connor and Lucy if they knew what a slave was and they didn’t.  So I began to explain that a slave is someone who works really hard for someone else all the time.  As I was explaining, I could see the wheels turning in Lucy’s mind, and before I could finish my on-the-spot definition, she chimed in “like Daddy.”  I had a good laugh before I told her that Daddy gets paid for his work and a slave does not.

So, for anyone still checking this blog, please forgive me for being so pitiful about keeping up.  What’s that quote about “the best laid schemes o’ mice an’ men”?  I’m making no promises.  This could be another solitary blog post.  I guess we’ll see how inspired and motivated I am.  I am also hopeful to post more pictures of  my rapidly growing up children.  Cross your fingers.

Postscript:  As I was jotting this down, my already 8-month old Tyler was crawling around the house.  I discovered him knocking glass bottles about in my open pantry.  After picking him up, I also found (much to my shame and chagrin) that his hands were covered in dirt, dust, and hairballs from crawling around on my not clean tile.  Uggh!  It may come down to a contest between updating the blog and cleaning the tile…hmmm…I wonder if one will triumph over the other or if both will continue to be neglected.

Connor, Lucy, and Tyler in pjs