{Theme Thursday} Letter W

Letter W...hmmm, I was thinking of making my children form a letter W on the floor and taking a picture from above, but then Mother Nature sent me something.

In the Midwest, we have two seasons, Hot and Cold.  The seasons are generally separated by a few weeks of a thing too fleeting to qualify as a season called Pleasant.  We had an unusually warm September....like 20 degrees above average warmer.  October is making up for it.  When I got home from the gym Tuesday, I looked out the window from the breakfast bowl and saw something that made me say,

WWWWWWHAAAT!

Green grass, leaves changing and....SNOW?!?!

 ....and in things that will probably horrify my hairstylist friends, I did something you're not supposed to do and experimented with my own hair color.....I know, I'm terrible, sometimes I cut it too!  I've colored my hair a few times before and the result has always worked out, so I wasn't that worried about experimenting....

......ooohhh, THAT's why you leave it to the professionals! :)  oh well, it was only a few bucks and a few minutes of my time and it's not permanent, so it'll fade out.  For now, I'm torn between actually really liking it because it's kinda punk rocker and not liking it because it's WAY darker than I was planning on going - ah well, if you're going to experiment in anything, you have to be ready for unexpected outcomes :)

For now, I'm going to enjoy being Punk Rocker Red until it fades back into my natural Irish Girl Red.

Stop on over at Clan Donaldson for more Theme Thursday!

{Theme Thursday} Orange - Pumpkin Patch Pics

I look forward to Thursdays.  Hubby works Tuesday - Saturday, so Thursday is our half-way point.  It's also Theme Thursday over at Clan Donaldson!

As I trust you can read, this week's theme is Orange.

Last week we headed to the pumpkin patch.  I posted a photo-edited shot from that trip for last week's submission, but I saved some shots just to share today.

So, here's a photo recap of our day at the pumpkin patch, and a little orange thrown in as well!  Complete with WAY more pictures than most of you probably want to see of my girls :)

Checking out the grounds

Breakfast time for the goats

Unsure whether she wants to touch them

Grabbing some grain

Pro-goat feeder - thanks to our local zoo :)

First time feeding goats - she's a natural!

Checking out the geese

Trying to speak their language

Thoughtful little baby

Running away

...and again

Hopping a ride on sis

Corn maze!

Look at those flowing locks!

Pat the bunny comes to life

She's captured it!

I remember them looking older in the painting...

 and if that wasn't enough orange for you...

Pumpkins and an orange tint :)

{WWRW} - Dad is Fat

It's Wednesday, and that means it's time to check and see if I'm still literate:

Back in June, I saw Jim Gaffigan on one of the morning news shows talking about his new book, Dad is Fat.  Since he's a comedian I find pretty funny, I mean c'mon, Hot Pocket, I went on our good old library website and placed a hold on his book.  There were 15-20 copies in the system, so I thought it wouldn't take too long to get a copy....a few weeks TOPS. 

It was finally my turn Saturday (yes, it's October), so I was excited to FINALLY check out a book that's gotten pretty good reviews. 

First, let me say, I've watched Jim Gaffigan's specials on Netflix...including Mr. Universe.  It seems like a lot of the material in the book matches up with that content, so in some places, I was a little disappointed, like, "oh I already heard that joke!"  That being said, some of the jokes made me laugh harder the second time, and there were plenty of new, funny observations thrown in.

If you haven't seen Mr. Universe, this book is going to be one of the most hysterical things you've ever read.  If you have seen Mr. Universe, you're still going to get good laughs.

More than the good laughs, this was such a great insight into his life.  In a way that comes across as open and welcoming, he shares a lot of truth.  It IS inappropriate when people make comments on your family size and dogs AREN'T equivalent to children or "practice children", as he said, I've never been allowed to kennel my children for vacation or leave them home in a cage all day. 

I also loved how kindly he spoke of his wife and his admiration and dedication to her is so evident, even among his quips about her "super fertility".  All in all, a great read, and a voice I'm glad to hear speaking for bigger families.  I especially loved when he said the reason to NOT have another one wasn't there, so that's WHY another one would be in the realm of possibility. 

Overall, this book was an interesting insight into the guy behind the laughs.  The pictures of his family were very sweet, even the one with the blurred out babysitter who quit right after a trip :)

If you want a laugh, read it.  If you're curious about a successful Catholic comedian in this day and age, read it.  If you want to laugh about the unique situations of a large family in a small space, read it.  Pretty much, you should just read it.

Check out more book reviews at Housewife Spice!

{7QTs} {Real Motherhood}

Joining Messy Wife for a look at real motherhood in our house in 7 Quick Takes.  Working from home, homeschooling, and having littles really puts cleaning on the bottom of my list.  Generally, things kind of build up and then I spend a couple days scrubbing.  Thursday, our house had once again reached critical mass, so before I spent the morning clearing out the debris, here's a peek into what our house REALLY looks(ed) like:

{1}

Hmm....maybe I should at least put those in the sink....

{2}

...oh wait, that's full....can't wait until I get a dishwasher!

{3}

 

Nope, I didn't make my bed....

{4}

 

...but at least there's a pile of clean laundry and presents to be wrapped for Christmas to use as decoration!

{5}

 

Unbrushed, jammies, still cute as can be

{6}

A field trip Wednesday....we probably really should have been cleaning...

{7}

...but this was OBVIOUSLY more important than clean dishes....paper plates tonight!

So, while part of the reason I don't clean like I "should" is that I don't like it and I'd rather watch Netflix during naptime, it's also an aspect of my parenting beliefs:

(1) Doing things with my kids is more important than cleaning.  

(2)  If I never take a break all day, I'm not going to be pleasant to be around. 

(3)  A little dirt never killed anyone.  

(4)  Do the laundry first during naps, because NOTHING is more annoying than two toddlers "helping" you sort and fold clean clothes.

Obviously, I could spend more time cleaning, and maybe I should.  However, a lot of the time I'm working during naptime, and lately, even without a lot of work to do, I just haven't had much motivation.  It's starting to help that Little Bean does dishes a few times a week, in addition to her other chores (anyone with tips on how to get your 8 y/o to do a load of dishes in LESS than 2 hours would be much appreciated).  I think maybe we should start taking that homeschooling advice that you start your day with chores and don't do the books until the house is clean, but I'm kind of terrified that would cause Little Bean to have to repeat the third grade! 

So, that's a look at the truth.  Full disclosure, about an hour after I took these pictures, 3 out of the 5 main living areas were cleaned.  My new fancy vacuum and I had a good morning.  Today, I'm mostly through cleaning the 4th area and hopefully by tomorrow, the girls' room will be clean(ish).  I'm not a great housekeeper, and I'm really okay with that....although I apologize to every OCD person that happened to look at those pictures.  Don't worry Mom, I did the dishes and scrubbed down the stove this morning :)

Stop by Messy Wife, Blessed Life for more Real Motherhood (with a name like that, I feel like we must be kindred spirits).

Check out Conversion Diary for some more Quick Takes!

{Theme Thursday} Double

Has it already been a week since I told you all how terrible I am?

It's Theme Thursday over at Clan Donaldson!

I had a lot of thoughts about this week's topic.  My first thought was my giant, beautiful double jogging stroller.

Hubby bought it for me when Sweet Pea was born so that I could get around town with Sweet Baby and Sweet Pea.  With only 10 months between them, it was a little unwieldy, especially those first few months.

It still gets use every now and then, but definitely a lot less than it used to....and it's close to retirement.

Luckily, I had some great shots from a field trip we took this week.  So drawing from a trip to the pumpkin patch, here's my Sweet Pea....and Sweet Pea again!

I think she was really ready for a nap on the left side....and contemplating the location of said nap on the right :)

Such an expressive little peanut :)

{WWRW} Finding Colin Firth

Linking up with Housewife Spice for What We're Reading Wednesday and I actually read a book not because it was on a list, I had to, or because it would make me a better person....just because I wanted to!

After last Wednesday passed without a book read, I made a trip to the library, determined to find SOMETHING to read for fun.

In the new releases, I found something that sounded fun:   Finding Colin Firth. 

The caption under the book really captures the essence:  One summer.  Three women.  And Mr. Darcy.

A small town in Maine becomes overwhelmed with excitement when leading man Colin Firth is rumored to be coming to town for the filming of a movie.  The book plays on this at a couple parts and there's a lovely scene at the end when he's actually spotted, but the real story is told in the lives of three women whose paths overlap.

A reporter, a birth mother, and an adopted daughter.  The reporter, Gemma, becomes unglued when she's unexpectedly pregnant.  Her story really explores the woman who's not ready to be a mother, even when everything on paper says she should be excited.  Her husband is thrilled and she's not ready to give herself over to motherhood. 

I thought a lot of her struggle was something that would resonate with a lot of women, but I felt like the ending to her journey was such a cop-out.  Really?  *SPOILER ALERT* Her successful lawyer husband is going to take a few years off so she can work in a small town newspaper?  It just seemed like such a PC answer.  I know it's actually an answer that works for a lot of people, but it felt like she was selling herself short on her journey.  In the end, her husband had to make every sacrifice, and she made none.....doesn't say a lot about the growth from her journey.  Her husband was willing to lay down his dreams for the future, but hers couldn't be modified in the least.....way to be a team player.

I really loved the second two stories though.  Veronica is a birth mother who gave her daughter up twenty-two years ago.  She's waited anxiously for the day her daughter might come looking for her.  Bea is a 22 y/o who found out in a deathbed confession that the mother who raised her wasn't her birth mother.  So, she goes in search of the woman who is.  Perhaps their story of reuniting is also a little far-fetched, but it was so poignant.  I especially loved the realism of them not knowing what to say and Bea not feeling any particular way about the stranger who gave birth to her.  I think it would be hard to pinpoint those feelings and what that person should be to you after such a shock.

Overall, it was such a nice read.  I felt like I was experiencing the cathartic process of these women as they went on their journeys.  Aside from taking a different path than the reporter, it was a good journey.

Go get spicy over at Housewife Spice for some more grown-up book reports :)

I Don't Like People - But You Guys Are Great!

I recently took one of those online Myers-Briggs tests.  It seems like every few years, they make a comeback in popularity.

When I was a freshman in college, I worked in an advising center where I took one of these tests.  My type came up as ENFP:

ENFP
Warmly enthusiastic and imaginative. See life as full of possibilities. Make connections between events and information very quickly, and confidently proceed based on the patterns they see. Want a lot of affirmation from others, and readily give appreciation and support. Spontaneous and flexible, often rely on their ability to improvise and their verbal fluency. (myersbriggs.org)

So, this is the label I've operated under for the last 15 years.  However, I've noticed certain things that haven't really mapped to this type.  For example, a couple months back, I was discussing going somewhere with my sister.  I told her I didn't really want to, "because I don't like people".  I laughed and kinda back-stepped, because I think people individually are usually pretty great, but I generally just don't like being in crowds of people.  It makes me anxious, I have to pysch myself up to go places where I might be stuck in crowd, have a hard time finding parking, or just will be otherwise overwhelmed by humanity.  Worst. Extrovert. Ever.

I saw a few posts about personality types and people finding their type, so I decided to take the test again.  Well, it said INFJ:

INFJ
Seek meaning and connection in ideas, relationships, and material possessions. Want to understand what motivates people and are insightful about others. Conscientious and committed to their firm values. Develop a clear vision about how best to serve the common good. Organized and decisive in implementing their vision. (myersbriggs.org)

Hmmm....maybe that would explain my lack of people skills and general dislike for crowds.  Especially after reading an article on INFJ, I thought maybe this was a closer description.

But here's what I've been wondering since I re-did my test....why are the results different?  It's been 15 years - have I changed as a person?  Or did I answer the questions differently because I know myself better?  I think there's a positive connotation to being extroverted - was I afraid to admit I really crave alone time?

Or maybe this all just illustrates the larger picture:  we're not just one thing.  People change and adapt to circumstances.  While we might have a preferred way of dealing with the world, maybe we can all agree we're more than a four-letter label.  Although it would've been nice to have some of these personality insights 15 years ago and I've been doing just fine thinking I was the world's worst extrovert, I am going to feel slightly less guilty about shutting myself in my room for a couple hours.

From what I understand, learning about the personality types should help us interact with each other, so it's a little ironic that a new label makes me feel a little better about taking a break from interaction.

Jenna at Call Her Happy posted a week or so ago about anthems for the INFJ - I submit this one for us: (start at 1:20 to skip guitar solo)