Rainy days...

It has been raining here almost everyday for the past week and a half, it seems. Kids will be kids. One day a few weeks ago, Samuel decided to dig a hole under his swing. With all the rain, it is now a moat! Perfectly matched with the swords I just bought for them. ;o) So, Monday afternoon they went out to play and were having so much fun. Next thing I know, this is what I see...

The pictures do not do them justice! And so it happened again yesterday. They both come streaking into the house because it "just happened" that they got covered with mud. We still have the moat and still are expecting more rain and know there will be many more incidences of muddy children before these rainy days are done.

Our neighborhood garage sale is this weekend and you would be amazed at our garage. We have a path you can walk down, but that's it. I'll have to take a picture of it before we set it all out. Now I have to decide if I'm ready to try it alone on Friday with the 3 kids or just do it Saturday when Buddy is here. We're expecting great results, even better than we had last time. I know we've got some awesome things that people have donated, so it's pretty exciting! I'll be happy to post Garage Sale part 2b and have exciting news and a place to park my car!

Tomorrow, we're having a girl party at our house. 5 of Catherine's friends are coming over for a play date. Ideally, they would be coming to see Hannah, but we can do that when she gets here. Catherine is ready to show everyone her new sister. So Samuel is going to play with Bryce and We'll see what kind of fun we can have with a bunch of girls who haven't seen each other for almost a month!

Today the kids and I went to the library so they could get their ladybugs for having completed the summer reading program (actually finished 4 days before they could snatch up their prizes) and then were off to see Buddy. He commutes an hour each way and when he has a lot of work to do, that means he may get home when the kids are ready for bed or later. So, he decided to spen last night and tonight with his friend and save some miles and time on the road. Knowing what a hit he is with his kids and how they miss him, I thought we could go have lunch together. Well, on the way, I saw a little black thing in the road at the last minute that I tried to miss and hit with my back tire- blow out on the highway! I decided there was no need to worry or get upset and just do what I could do. I could have called tele-aid and they would send someone, but that could have been an hour or so. I've changed tires before, so I could do it again if I had to. As I went on with unloading the stroller, the pack and play, the water bottles, blankets and toys (are we prepared or what) I glanced up and saw a truck backing up. Bless the Lord, He sent a sweet man to help me out. While he was changing the tire, a tow truck pulled up to make sure we were ok and offerred help. God was watching out for us! We went on our merry way at 50 mph!!! When's the last time you drove 50 mph in a 75 mph speed zone? Let me just say, that was quite a trip. Catherine was entertaining Caleb and he was laughing so hard, I thought he was crying! So sweet how they play together. Samuel was devouring his library books. We had a great lunch with Buddy and after feeding Caleb, we were on the road again. going home I went 57 mph and got 23.4 mpg as opposed to 20, so I guess there was a benefit to it.

After we got home, I called one of my friends/neighbors/college buddy to come stay with the kids so I could run an errand (thanks Carla!) and also got the kids Alvin and the chipmunks. They laughed so hard! I wish I could bottle up Samuel's laugh, it's the cutest thing to hear. Then Carla came back with donations for the garage sale. My, my, but it's amazing how it's multiplied!

I have to share one thing about the kids that I really appreciate. They are always well behaved when people watch them and I pretty much never hear of them behaving poorly for others. Nice to know.

OK, 2 things. They like to help on projects and like to have "their special jobs." Tonight I have to deliver some things for my business and I had a short time frame to get the packages ready and delivered. At first, they did not want to help and I asked them to do it anyway and they did for a bit. Then I let them play and when they came back, I was still working. I asked for more help and they did it with a good attitude. It's nice to be able to tell them how pleased you are with their attitudes and their willingness to be a part of the family and help out.