When life gives you lemons...

I'm feeling pretty proud of myself! Even in the midst of Ryan being gone for a week, I am being productive- dare I say even domestic! (Praise goes to the Good Lord who has kept my sanity for me!) On Sunday, I (with the help of friends) made a batch of lemon bars- from scratch! It was a lot of work grating the stinking lemon peels (something like 5 TBS!!) but it was delicious. Then on Wednesday, the kids and I made oatmeal cookies together. Today I actually ventured out and made lemonade from scratch- I may be a bit biased but it is the best tasting lemonade I've ever had. Which makes me wonder, "why haven't I tried it before"? And, "why can't I be this productive when Ryan is home?" Tonight my big plans go to completing some work for the office and scrubbing the bathrooms. We'll see how things go...

I've also been having some great and not so great moments as a mom recently. The great moments? Having a "spa day" with the girls! I went to the store and spent about $8 for little supplies to pamper the girls- body puffs, flowered nail files of their own, toe separators (just like in the real spas), new nail polishes, and of course a little snack of Junior Mints. Oh, yeah, this was full service! It was so much fun; the girls both speak of the day with great joy and can't wait for the next one. For me, it was a blast just being able to spend some time with the girls pampering them with love and listening to them giggle over being "like a mom". These days make me smile!

Then there are days that cause heartache... Today I came around the corner and saw one of my kids playing with an unknown toy. I asked them where they got it and instant shame swept their little face. I pulled them in the bedroom to talk w/them (without the prying ears of their siblings) and chatted with them. We had been over at a friends house the day before and I had seen one of these kinds of toys there so figured that this was one of theirs. Upon talking w/ them, they admitted to taking it from there. I then discussed that this was not ok and the consequences of their actions (their need to apologize to our friends, and the possibility that Dad would not be giving him a "you've been a good boy while I'm gone" gift). Their little heart was broken and sorrowful. They cried in my arms and then wouldn't eat lunch nor even talk with us at the table. It broke my heart to see my child like this but I understand the importance of their learning the lesson. Its also a bit embarrassing that it is my child that did this. I know, looking in on the situation, I'd see it as no big deal, just the naivety of a child desiring something that was not theirs- that they'd made a mistake. But as their mom, I want the lesson to be learned and not repeated. I've heard it once that children are the part of their mother's heart walking outside her body; therefore a mother feels joyful at her children's joy, sad when her children are sad. I can attest to this today.