It was a Great Day, Mommy

That's what Charlie said to me as I was putting him into his crib for his nap. Aaah. What more could I want? It has been a good day. Not a perfect day: I've gritted my teeth a few times, trying to choke back the annoyed and angry words that were trying to escape; one child has already been bathed, I've had to wash 2 sets of sheets (long story) and one little precious baby is nursing a bad cold but still - a good day. This is one of those days that I want to remember when my kids are grown, when the floor is no longer littered with smashed cheerios and plastic Dollar Tree soldiers (those hurt when you step on them, by the way).

We are getting back into our regular routine, which is so good. Charlie and I both love, appreciate and crave order. And Elliot doesn't mind either, so long as plenty of Charlie is involved. :) We started the day out with breakfast (after the bathing and sheet issues were resolved) and reading time. Elliot then took a nap and I got out the playdough for Charlie, while I worked on something new I'm doing this year: a 2008 Moody Family Yearbook. I'm making it on Shutterfly and hopefully the end product will be an "Our Year in Pictures" album for us to keep. Hopefully we'll rack up an entire shelf of these over the years...

We then piled into the car for a nice long walk with Fef all over Isle of Hope. I loved the exercise, Charlie loved the boats, Elliot loved the fresh air and we all loved the company. After lunch Charlie practiced his ABCs with his fun fridge toy while I did the dishes and then we started something new: reading "big boy" books on the playroom couch. Today we started one of the chapter books in the Frog & Toad series. I think Charlie followed most of it and just doing this made me excited about the thought of having older kids: books I actually like, bike rides, roller-blading, soccer. Maybe the day-to-day jobs of this motherhood thing is not just about wiping noses and bottoms.

A picture from our walk...