Today is Thursday July 8th. We just spent the 4th in Beaver with family. The children's play was cute. Jacob and Rachel did a great job! Our yard is coming together. I'm digging up a storm in the front. Morning glory is taking over and I'm sick about it. I love digging in the dirt. There's nothing like it. Jared is behind in cub scouts, so we're doing what we can to get him caught up. Gavin is getting a hair cut and Ethan is getting stronger on his legs. He loves to be held and it makes it hard to get things done. I'm trying to make sure he gets the attention he needs.

Who really cares?

I titled this Who really cares? What I mean is who cares what I'm up to? Then I think about all my friends and their lives and I want to know what they're up to, so maybe someone does care. It's May 19th. I just celebrated my 33rd birthday of Friday. Matt and I went to Tucanos (mostly salad and meat). It was great. We got full fast and didn't feel like eating much for dinner later that night. We also went to the Chronicles of Narnia movie "Prince Caspian." Saturday we had some friends over for a BBQ talked and played games we were up until 2:00 AM. It was great! Sunday I lead music to the children. They were doing what they always do, being noisy, distracted, bored, tired and I told them if they didn't have time for me and what I had to teach them, I was done. They were so shocked and quiet and surprised. I know that that moment was what they needed. One of the sisters said it's important to be reverent and asked me if I would give them another chance. They learned and that was what I wanted from the start. I slept for about 2 hours and we went for a walk on the beautiful Provo River path that evening. I didn't go to aerobics on Monday because I was still catching up on my beauty sleep (hehe). I have been on and off the computer checking emails for the last 2 hours and am starting to feel guilty for the time spent, but it has been well spent updating the myface pictures and adding to my blog. I am doing so many things over the next few months it seems so exciting I can't contain myself. I will be on KJZZ on a morning show called "Home Team". I'm excited for that! I am singing in a competition in orem at the SCERA Outdoor theater. Matt and I are performing several Firesides and one larger performance will be at Cherry Hill. I know we're not ready now, but will be soon! There is a book coming out called the incredible gifts of women. Barbara B. Jones compiled several stories and Matt my husband's and mine are is there. I need to get going the house needs some TLC.
Love ya!
Ellen

Summer is over and we're just getting started

Well, summer is over and my son is now in kindergarten. He loves it! The only thing that is hard for him is that I work in the evenings about an hour after I pick him up from school. So I miss seeing him and he is sad that I'm gone. He likes school and his teacher. I like her too! She is cute and fun. Thinks the children are good kids. I am trying to remodel my house and work and be a wife and mother. Sometimes it can be so crazy. I have to take a step back and breathe long deep breaths. Sometimes if I feel too crazy I find a quiet place and pray to know what is most important. Then I can move on knowing it is in God's hands.
I made an incredible realization today. I have had hints throughout the years, but It really hit me hard today. I was looking at my bank account and noticing that we had overdrawn not once, but 6 times not one time this year, but this is the 2nd time. My husband already talked to the bank about the fees, but we can't do it again. It's like 10 hours of work gone within a day or two. I realized that I need to be more responsible with the family finances and my spending habits. So I am grounding myself from credit cards and limiting my food budget and withdrawing cash for shopping so I can only spend what I have. I really want to buckle down to see if I can. My husband is kind about it and is grateful that I have come to this humbling realization. He has been incredibly impatient with me. I'll just keep swimming hopefully with my head above water!

Off to School...

My third child is off to school. The crazy thing is that he is my first to go. I am happy for him but I am also sad that he will be gone too! My youngest is sad too. They are such good friends and their time apart will be missed. They are both very smart and get on each other's nerves at times, but they play very well together. It will be interesting to see how they both do this year doing very different things. The best thing is to let go and watch him fly...

Some Freedom and Clarity

It's amazing how much clarity and freedom the whole family feels when we make an area that seemed like a minor disaster turn into an incredible amount of space. My family and I moved into a new house 3 months ago. My husband and I are remodeling and have started some of the renovations. I decided a month ago for my sanity and his that we would work on one room at a time. In the meanwhile. One of the main rooms was a catch-all and lots of paperwork was being deposited (everywhere) but not filed.
During all the chaos family wanted to come and see the house. I finally got sick of the embarrassment after friends were here to see our glorious mess. Monday I started finding homes for items that were homeless and rearranging furniture all of the sudden this huge room emerged and the kids started running from one end to the other. We all felt like a playground opened up inside our house. It was great! Today I have been tackling the paper piles. I feel like it is a drastic improvement but I want to create a system that works for our family. While I filed, they cut paper and made crafts. They are so incredibly creative. I love it!
I played with the boys they rode on my back and got wild horse back rides around the house. They would rest their tummy against my feet and swoosh they were lifted into the air. That's how I did my leg exercises and tummy crunches today. All in all I feel like a job worth doing is worth doing well-enough I guess. Bye!