My Method to the Madness

This week, I will see some of my favorite people, including... Jim & Kim Keena (aka Dad & Mom) Bethany (aka Aunt B) Douglas & Danae Castle (aka Uncle Gug and Aunt Nae Nae) Emily Keena (aka Aunt Emery) Grace Keena (Uncle Grace) David Keena (aka Uncle Davvid) Dana Clark (aka Jason's mom and Grandma) Charles W. Clark (aka Jason's dad or Poppy) Randi Clark (aka Jason's grandma or Nanny) Edel Sehested (aka Jason's grandma) Bob Sehested (aka Jason's grandpa) Justin Reavis (aka Jason's Sister's Husband or Uncle Justin) Jessica Reavis (aka Jason's sister or Aunt Jessica) Darrell Duke (aka Jason's Dad's Sister's Husband or Uncle Darrell) Karin Duke (aka Jason's dad's sister or Aunt Karin) Jake Blevins (aka Jason's cousin's husband or Uncle Jake) Lauren Blevins (Jason's cousin or Aunt Lauren) Yep, I'm pretty excited. Thought you might like an intro to my incredible family. 24 people I am SO READY to see this week!

1. I love the fact that my children don't have any idea that I control the windows in the car. They just yell at the windows to open or close, and giggle when the windows "obey". 2. I love Peppermint Mocha creamer. It makes my morning coffee so festive! 3. I love that whenever you ask Caden something, he says no. But not like, disrespectful, stubborn "no". Like, "I-really-do-want-that-but-don't-know-how-to-verbalize-it" no. He'll smile really big when you ask him if he wants juice, then he'll look up bashfully and say "noooooo." 4. I love my to-do list for graduation. I printed it off in September and it had 10 things on the list including classes, seminars, CPR certification and Clep tests. And quite ceremoniously, 6 times, my husband has made a drum-roll sound while I marked off one of the things that I just finished. I love how excited he is for to graduate. I think he misses his wife. :) 5. I love how when you ask Bailey if ...

My babies make me smile, every single day. They "helped" me make cookies the other day. They sat there and watched those cookies bake. It was so cute! The next day I went in to get Bailey up and she was already up. It took me a bit to find her! She's such a ham!

I cry when I'm sad. I cry when I'm hurting. I cry when I see a sweet commercial or watch Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. I cry when I miss my family. I cry when I'm exhausted but I can't go to bed. Today, I looked at my beautiful life. My cozy, clean house that smells of cider, my Christmas tree all aglow and 4 stockings hanging from our fire place with a small fire in it, warming the house and keeping my babies toasty. I looked at my children, a beautiful girl with sparkling blue eyes and a laugh that is so infectious and a son with gorgeous hair, that one deep dimple and the sweetest heart you'll ever know. I looked at my husband, who adores every inch of me and reminds me of that fact every single day. I looked at my stove that had stew simmering on top and cookies baking inside. I looked at all that God has blessed me with, I became so incredibly overwhelmed by His generosity, His sovereignty, His grace, I cried.

10 days until I get to see my family! 20 days until I finish my last class! 26 days until I graduate from Oklahoma Wesleyan University! 40 days until Christmas! So happy! So excited! So blessed!

So, it's 1:44am. I have had a wonderful day full of garage sales, thrift stores and antique malls. Just my kind of day. The best part? Jason got to go to all of those places with me and he seemed to really enjoy himself. He's a bargain hunter at heart! So, I'm so tired, but for some reason, I just can't fall asleep. So, I'm checking up on the lives of my family and friends on Facebook and Blog and am waiting for sleep to come. Hopefully it comes and knocks me out with a sledgehammer soon because I have nursery duty in the morning!

Two years ago, right as the Fall turned to Winter, we had a mouse problem. There were four mice, that we promptly trapped and got rid of. We thought the problem came from our house being abandoned for a couple years and that there wouldn't be a problem after we lived here for awhile and the mice understood that this house now belonged to humans. Well, they are back. They are gross and they are back. I don't know how they are getting in, but we have caught 6. Some were fine, some were traumatic. Well, now the only mice we have left are the brilliant ones. They snap the traps shut, then eat the peanut butter. Now, I am sitting here listening to a mouse munch on something very hard behind the trash can in the kitchen. I am beyond disgusted. My lovely husband does great at emptying the traps, but he is not able to defend me from these vial rodents while he is at work. I need a body guard. I need to make dinner and I'm terrified about going into the kitchen. There is one brilli...

So, everyone knows that I'm finishing up my college degree. It has been one of the hardest things I've ever done. It's exciting that I am so close. I am less than a month away from being done with my course work. I am currently in Philosophy of Christian Thought, Executive Development, Tennis and Aerobic Conditioning. It is pretty intense because typically you take one class at a time in this program and I am taking four. But it will get me done in December so it will totally be worth it! Oh, have I mentioned that my family is coming in 17 days? Yeah... 17. That's a wee bit over 2 weeks which means that A. I am one happy girl. B. I need to clean my house. C. I need to read "To Kill a Mockingbird for the family book group. D. I need to find fabulous clothes for Thanksgiving dinner. Bailey is growing so fast. She's started saying things that she hears like, "It's so good to see you" and "That's so creepy." She is so entertaining. Caden...

Life has been beautifully hectic lately. I love having lists of things to do and figuring out how to get it all done. Sometimes I do get overwhelmed, but for the most part, I enjoy the chaos. So, I have a 2 year old who is all about learning new words, playing with his truck and has shown a slight interest in potty training. I have a three year old who is so curious, asks "why" about a thousand times a day, wants to help with every thing I do and is really starting to be helpful around the house. Being a mom is enough to keep my to-do list full, but no, I decided to be a full time student and volunteer Sunday mornings in nursery and work Sunday and Wednesday nights for some extra cash. It's been great. I did have too much on my plate while I was working part time at Target and my kids were in preschool plus everything else. That was too crazy. I'm not comfortable with my current state of craziness. So, school has been a challenge. I had a plan. I always have a plan. B...