Do your kids struggle with bedtime?

Mine do. Sometimes.

Our bedtime routine is pretty typical. The kids take a bath, together, nearly every night. After bath, it’s PJ’s, teeth brushing, and a story or chapter of a book. Then, it’s off to bed.

They go to bed at the same time, requiring me to bounce back and forth from one room to the next like a ping pong ball.

But… they like doing things together, even bedtime.

Often, these are the types of things I hear during the 30 to 45 minutes after bedtime is initiated:

-I need water.
*Ok, but just a sit or you’ll need to go potty.

-I need to go potty.
*Yep, that’s what I thought.

-I need my ball blankie.
*You’re actually holding it in your hand right now.

-I need my bear bears.
*You are, also, holding your bear bears right now.

-I need a towel for my pillow pet.
*Ack, I forgot. Here you go.

-I’m not sleepy.
*Well, I am.

-I will not sleep.
*Ok, as long as you stay in your bed, that is just fine.

-I need another hug and kiss.
*Nothing would make me happier!

-I need you.
*I’m always here. And I need you too.

Then, I sit with one of them (usually Zac) until I start hearing the sweet sweet sounds of light snores. Bedtime can be HARD, but at least they are in their beds where I know they are safe. I won’t always be able to say that (think: teenage years and beyond).
These are the things I try to remember when I am begging them to sleep.

Two years ago, I participated in my first Ragnar. I wrote about it HERE.

This past weekend, team French Toast Mafia was back!

A little bit about Ragnar, for those who have asked:

You have a team of 12 (or 6, or even 3 if you’re insane like a few teams are). It is a 200ish mile relay race. Each participant runs 3 legs of varying distance and difficulty level. The team is split into two vans, so one van will relay for five to six hours, then have a five to six hour rest while the next van runs. Then, it repeats.

What this means, is the following:

- You get to know your van mates very, very well.
- The vans smell very, very bad.
- You sleep, a little, in the vans. Which means backs hurt.
- You eat a lot of salty snacks, trying to stay hydrated.
- You learn to not even blink at the sight of a port-a-potty.
- You run during the day.
- You run in the middle of the night.
- You’ll be both happy and sad to see the finish line.

This event is so much fun. The first leg I ran was HOT. And Hilly. And, honestly, it kicked my butt. By my midnight run, however, I was out for vengeance. This leg was longer, and I was sleepy. But I owned it. I kicked this leg’s butt. My third leg? My third leg was pretty short, but most of it was straight uphill. I had no expectations for this leg of the race, especially after having spent too many hours cooped up in a van and with very little sleep. But, relatively speaking, I killed it.

Ragnar was a great time with my friends, both old and new. I missed my sister (who didn’t run this time, like she did last time), and other teammates who weren’t there, but really enjoyed hanging out with new teammates. It was also nice to know what to expect a little bit. Importantly, it reminded me just how much I love running. The “runner’s high” is a real thing, and I need to find a way to get that back more often. (This is in direct contrast to THIS POST, where I admitted that I’m not really a runner anymore).

Now, some pics!

Team French Toast Mafia ready to rock!

Take THAT Hill!
(I actually had a slogan for those hills that is slightly less blog appropriate.)

We are, truly, the most spirited team out there. High fives for everyone!

Nighttime – safety first!

Finish Line!

Thanks to my French Toast Mafia teammates for an amazing time!

A few weeks ago, my friend Melanie gave me a bracelet that says simply, “Choose Joy.”

It came from HERE. Which is most definitely worth reading.

And, it made me think.

I truly think that for the most part, I look at the happy side of my wonderful life. The easy side. The light side.

Are there negatives that I could focus on? Of course.

Could I write an entire post about the broken garage door, postponed doctors appointments, cluttered house, fighting and whining kids?
How about the trips I’d like to take? The money I’d like to have? The people I’d like to see more?

Yes. Yes I could.

But I don’t. Not because of keeping up appearances. Not because I think anyone would believe that every single moment of this is perfect. Or fun. Or even bearable.

But because I choose joy.

I’ve realized over the past however-many years that life is about choices. More than choosing my actions, but choosing my attitude and how I react to things.  And venting? Venting is good. And healthy. (Just ask my in-real-life friends and family. They hear all about it!) But, especially when I write, I focus on the beautiful in my life.

Because there is plenty. There is laughter, and love, and dance parties. To name a few.

And, because I Choose Joy.

I hope you do too.

(excuse the grainy iphone photos… we’re still loving The Smurfs Dance Party for the Wii!)

So, the title of this post may lead you to believe that we attended a festival about hunting.

You would be wrong.

In this title, the word “hunting” is actually a verb. So, the complete sentence may be, “The day we went hunting for a festival.”

Daily grammar lesson complete. Moving on.

~   ~   ~

A few weeks ago, the kids and I took a day trip to Wilcox, a nearby town with, among other things, a huge apple orchard and vegetable farms. We planned on going to the pumpkin patch, and then just exploring and making a great adventure of the day.

The pumpkin patch was great, but there wasn’t as much to do there as I had remembered. We decided to head “into town” to find some food.

I have visions of a quaint little restaurant where the kids will wow the townsfolk with their great behavior and I will discover the most amazing, secret food in Wilcox.

As we are leaving the apple orchard, a friendly local tells us about a huge festival in town. There are RIDES and GAMES and KETTLE CORN. Based on the fact that she said these words so loudly and my children are now literally jumping up and down, I decide that we must go to said festival. Do we need directions? NO, just follow the signs. Mental note to hit the bank, and off we go.

Ok forget the quaint restaurant. I’m “mom of the year” and we will go to a random festival!

We head into town. Look for signs.
Look for signs.
Look for signs.
No. Signs.

We drive and drive and drive.
No signs. No festival.

I explain to Lilly (since Zac is sleeping) that maybe the festival ended yesterday.
She breaks my heart by agreeing, and saying that it is ok… all while tears are welling up and she sniffles.

Oh my goodness the queen of drama is trying to be a Big Girl and be ok with this HUGE disappointment. Go ahead. Tear my heart right out.

I decide to talk up lunch again, and let Lilly decide where we eat.

Dare I dream of the quaint restaurant again?

Lilly: “McDonalds!!!”
Um, not sure if there is a McDon…. shoot. Yep, those golden arches are glowing.

We go to McD’s, where a happy meal toy makes everything better.

Until… until we strike up a conversation with more friendly locals. Who inform us that yes, there is indeed a festival but no, it is not at all easy to find. We get directions. Lilly and Zac are thrilled.

We go. We find it.

I have no money.

Remember that mental note to hit the bank? Well, that note fell right out of my head when I thought we had no festival.

So, we walk up to and see all of the amazing rides, in time for me to remember that I have NO cash.

Back to the car.

Back to the bank.

Back to the festival.

Back to the rides.

Finally. FINALLY we are riding in jeeps.
(Their daddy has a jeep that they can ride in for free. And it’s not on a track. But whatever.)

We ride rides.

We play on playgrounds.

We get ice cream.

We sprint to the car through the rain.

And, finally, we head home.

Thanking God for a beautiful, random, adventurous day.

Exhausted. Happy. Together.

It’s no secret, I love Shutterfly!

I use Shutterfly a lot. At a minimum, I make “yearbooks” annually (duh, it’s called a YEARbook) and make holiday cards to send to family and friends. I also store my photos on their site (always free). There is something so comforting about knowing that if, God forbid, my photobooks burn up in a fire or something, copies of the books as well as the raw photos are there, safe and sound.

Holiday Cards are one of my favorite parts of the holiday season. I love receiving them, and have my kitchen window covered in them by Christmas! I also love sending them – picking the perfect pictures, adding the perfect captions, ensuring the perfect borders.

Here was our holiday card for Lilly’s first Christmas:

Here is a “just because” I ordered after a Mexico weekend that resulted in beautiful tans and even better photos.

And here is last year’s photo card, one of my favorites!

At Shutterfly, you have TONS of options for cards. You can choose to start with Christmas Cards, Holiday Cards, or even Greeting Cards.

If you haven’t checked them out, you really should. Now is the time, as the holidays will be here soon!

~ ~ The Giveaway ~ ~

I’m excited to be able to give THREE of my readers coupon codes, each good for 25 FREE cards of your choice!
To enter, simply leave me a comment telling me about a cute pose you’ve seen (or imagined) in a photo holiday card. Something either super creative (Babies wrapped up like presents), just plain adorable (toothless grins), or even really embarrassing (80’s hair and matching holiday sweaters).
Enter now! I’ll draw the winners on Monday, October 31 to give plenty of time to order those cards by Christmas!

*Shutterfly provided me coupon codes for myself and three winners of my choice. The opinions expressed are most definitely my own.*

Winners Update:

According to Random.Org, the three winners are #2, 8, and 5. Congrats to Melissa, Kim & Natalie! I’ll be emailing you shortly!