my birthday

i don't know how many of these i'll get to but i started with gone with the wind.

Book review

I really want to write on the blog about the books I read. I like keeping track of them. I'm just not really good at doing it when I finish and then I have a hard time remembering what I read. (As I was writing this post I remembered one I'd forgotten.) So that being said, my little book summaries or thoughts aren't very good, because I forget.

My Sister's Keeper by jodi picoult was a good kfast read. I thought the subject was good and it made me think. A 13 something girl is seeking medical emancipation from her parents so she won't have to donate a kidney to save her sister from dying of cancer. I didn't really like how it ended. It had several mini story lines that all ended too abruptly for my taste. Also, I tend to not really notice cussing until a certain word so I don't know if there was cussing throughout but once my sensitive word came up it was rather late in the book so I continued and it got worse after that. More than necessary for me.

Then I read The Peacegiver by james ferrell. I totally loved this book. I borrowed it from a friend but now I wish I had a copy of my own. It's an lds book about the atonement and finding peace. It changed a lot about how I think about the savior, my own decisions, my thoughts, and hopefully they'll change for a long time. While it is an lds book, he never mentions mormon doctrine or the book of mormon without explaining it as if the read wasn't familiar with it. I do think it's a good book even for members of other faiths. It's not a sermon like book, it's fiction so I liked reading it for that reason too. I totally totally recommend this book to the point that I want to re-read it and buy it. (I hate re-reading books and don't even particularly want to own the books I've read. I get almost all from the library so that is saying something.)

Then I read The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton. I liked it. I didn't like it the whole way through but in the end I did like it. The beginning I found rather boring but I'm glad I kept reading. It's about a guy who is engaged and the society expectations that surround him in that situation. It's about marriage and what can potentially come from that. (it's so hard to not write what happens but i don't ever know if somebody would actually read the book.)

well there you go. check them out if you want.

vacation

We went on another vacation. This time to Destin, FL. While the weather didn't fully cooperate with us we still had fun. On the way down we stayed with my sister in Montgomery and decided to take Jackson to see the capital.

I love this shot of Sam.

So honestly, I think my favorite part of this beach trip was Jackson playing with his cousins. We don't get to see them a ton but I think he absolutely loved having them around all the time. They did it everything together: swim, fight, take a "nice warm tubbie"(hehe nico), fall asleep watching little einsteins, had a sleepover with grandma and papa, stayed up late, and more. This is all 5 grandsons.

nursing sam

scene: I'm nursing sam on my bed, in walks jackson and sits at my feet. since sam was born we've had the rule jackson can't touch either of us while i'm feeding him.

me: hey buddy

jack: [funny face he makes while playing with sam (biting his bottom lip) reaches out to play with sams arm]

me: no touching sam while he's eating

sam: [stops eating to laugh at jackson]

jackson: [bouncing on the bed]

me: jackson no bouncing

jackson: can i bounce my shoulders?

me: no bouncing

jackson: can i bounce my feet?

me: no

jackson: can i bounce my head

me: no

jackson: can i bounce my fingers?

me: no

jackson: [begins to ever ever so slightly bounce while sitting down]

me: [trying to ignore the very very slight bouncing so we'll just be happy]

jackson: i'm bouncing mom

me: get off the bed

It may be of interest

I added two new links to my favorite links list.

Small Notebook is a blog/website i'm not sure about simplifying, organizing, and housekeeping. I found it last week and was surprised to find somebody writing so much like how I think. While this post converted me (how to make things harder and do nothing), I also liked ah-ha cleaning moments, and the no spend month. Very interesting.

Nesting Place is how I would/hopefully will decorate my house. I just like her style a lot. I've always assumed that people who had a nice house spent a lot of money doing it. She picks up a lot of stuff cheap at thrift stores and such. While I don't have time in my life now to do that. (kids are so hard to take to places like that i think.) I still really like what she offers. Check out cool, calm, and collected.

Sometimes my memory is my enemy

I remembered being miserable the first trimester with Jackson but not the 3rd. I was miserable the 3rd with sam and felt blind-sided. Why didn't I see this coming?

As is true now with feeding Sam real-ish food. I actually remembered not enjoying breastfeeding because I felt tied down and pouty that it was a job I couldn't hand off to Brent. (with Sam I've actually loved it.) I remember feeding Jackson and not thinking much of it. Maybe I was just so excited that Brent or I could do it. I'm so not enjoying feeding Sam. I guess I thought that since he opens his mouth to put EVERYTHING else in he'd just open his mouth for food. blah. so not true.

On like some where around the 10th time I fed him I gave him his own spoon. Every time he'd try to put his own spoon in his mouth I'd pop my spoonful of green beans in. It worked for a little but then he became less interested in eating his own spoon.

This is Sam after me trying to feed him for a solid 30 minutes. Notice how much we had left. I think he's grinning because he's recognized that he's won.

A survey

So to all of you moms...when do you do most of your housework? is it when the kids are in bed? is it during the day when they're watching movies/tv? normally i get as much done as i can during the day with the kids but my evenings are reserved for lounging but i'm finding i just can't get it all done. so i just wanted to ask y'all what y'all do.