>It has been a good day…we joined the Y, went swimming with friends, saw more friends, came home, I layed out in the pool alone at home, while children napped, (deep breath) Martha sorted EVERYONE”S laundry from all the rooms and is helping catch us up from illness, the kids are happy….it has been a good day. I don’t think most people care what we do everyday, I think they care how. I have talked about this before and received tons of private mail, but today I watched so much hard work pay off. Over the years I have trained the kids, just like a job, to help the whole family, even when you don’t feel like it. Today, at the pool, everyone was getting hungry, my girls, all four of them, got everything neat, got themselves dressed and we headed out to the van with no chaos, baby in tow. Once at home, they made sandwiches and Martha set forth on the laundry, while I went to the back yard alone. I don’t have exceptional kids(meaning anyones kids are able of course they are exceptional), I haven’t been a great sweet, feel good parent, I have gotten a lot wrong, but along the way, we have helped each other even when we didn’t feel like it. In the early, young, young years I wondered if it would ever be worth it as I felt like the queeny meany as I had my little ones doing things that no one else asked their children to do, as I often not so patiently had them RE-do a job…again. Today, I smiled, and realized that in spite of my on bad attitude and lazy spirit often, my kids are good, no great kids. Not because they are helpful, though they are, but because they put up with me, they smile at me when I am fussing and help ME, do my jobs better, they make me a better momma, a better person. I have 3 or so more kids that are on the little kid side, who some days may be the death of me, but then Donnie reminds me of the early years. The 5 under 7 then 6 under 10, when I thought it would never end…I saw no light, and didn’t want to, I was tired. I miss those days, I know it is cliche, I thought I never would, some things were simpler. But all and all, these days, great days and I hope that I will cherish them even more, because now I know how fast seasons change in our home. The Pike Home, dirty laundry, stinky garbage, naked 4 year olds, more visits to the neurologist than I can count, I love all of it….all of it…. all of it….except maybe the smells.

I have come a long ways with these babies.
Take a look back and see how far you have come.

>I hate being sick, if I know someone has a stomach virus, strep throat, or goodness help us lice, I run….quickly. I didn’t run quickly enough and we have 2 and counting (3 including me) fighting a stomach bug. What am I supposed to learn? hummmm….glad I am not pregnant with a stomach bug. Today what I learned is that the world of the Pike’s will turn for at least two days with momma and 3 kids in bed. The children will eat (something), people will pull together and in a few short days it will be as if I never laid in bed begging to die a quick death with the fellow ill ones. We had a sleep over Friday (after a trip to the zoo), and I think that the combination of lack of sleep and a bug that seems to have hit families across the city we were bound to illness. Did I say how much I hate stomach bugs? Someday, my children will remember the sick days, they already have memories of the flu season, and strep, they aren’t eewweeyy fun memories, but they do say that they remember cuddling and being loved on through the days. It is important to me that the kids feel loved, especially when they are sick, it is such a vulnerable time and everybody hates it. I know we will survive this and move on but today I hate it. I am glad however that we have each other. I am grateful for my Sweet Donnie, who gets up with icky kids when momma is already down for the count. I am grateful the well ones help out and I am bracing myself for the next round1/3 down 2/3rds to go….