Blather. Rinse. Repeat.

Sinks are fixed!! Michael bought a plumber's snake/auger/thing and it did the trick. Phew!!
Having a handy husband is, like, the BEST THING EVER.

I realize that I forgot to talk about Bruise and Bucket's last dance class. She wore her Snow White ballerina outfit (from an eBay shipment my mom got ^_^) and had a BLAST learning the arm positions of ballet. She and Bruise wouldn't let me take lots of pictures.

Me: (stands maybe two feet away to get a full-body length shot of my daughter)

Bucket: No, Mom!! I need you here WITH ME!!
Me: WHAT? I'm a FOOT away from you! Where do you think I AM?? TIMBUKTU????

Bruise, for the second week in a row, named the teddy bear (each of the children gets to hold a teddy bear to help them do stretches) "Poopybuns."
Yup, that's my boy.

Bucket, on the other hand, has gone through Disney Princesses names -- Ariel, Belle, Snow White ...

At the end of class, Bucket wanted to help Bruise put on his shoe. And he didn't want HER help. So I had a wonderful tantrum from the BOTH of them. *sigh* And, of course, they wouldn't take a nap. FUN!!

But then my mom came up the next day and it was good. And we bought books and I got signed up to volunteer and Michael fixed the sink.

Thursday, we had a slumber party with the kids. We ate dinner, had a Scripture story, and settled on the couch with some popcorn (and some summer sausage and cheese) to watch The Princess Bride (since they asked to watch a Mommy and Daddy show). They really enjoyed it (this time. We tried sharing it with them a few months ago, but they couldn't sit still through much of it) -- the fact that there's a PIRATE and SWORDS and a PRINCESS were highly appreciated.

Then we made up the big beds (my old daybed which is in their room has a trundle. Michael took the daybed and I took the trundle, which I covered with piles of blankets) and bedded down for the night. And the kids actually let us sleep for most of the night!

Yesterday, we went into town to take the kids to a free trial for soccer lessons. We can't afford lessons just yet (unless there's a SIGNIFICANT twins discount), but Bruise and Bucket did really well and thoroughly enjoyed themselves. (Makes me REALLY long for when I have the money to let them be involved in myriad activities. *wry smile*)

Then we returned some library books (and I turned in my volunteer application) and went grocery shopping. We were going to take the kids to the pumpkin patch, but we were HOURS early and it was POURING, so we had to take our (now grouchy kids) (and their grouchy, hormonal mommy) home.
Not so much fun then. But Michael and I got to watch episodes of Chuck, so it wasn't a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day overall.

I got to do some dishes. And laundry! So that was good, since I didn't really get to do those much at all the other day.

Today, Michael sacrificed being able to go out on a boat to go crabbing with the EQ (Elders Quorum -- i.e, men 18+ at church) in order to hang with us and take the kids to the pumpkin patch. Bruise didn't get to "help" drive the tractor on the hay ride this year, since it was REALLY busy. The past couple years, when we've gone, we've gone earlier in the month. And, when it's less busy, usually the drivers make sure that every child on the ride who would like to drive the tractor gets a chance. When it's this busy, though, they can't make so many stops to switch the drivers. :( Oh well. Bruise took it REALLY well (which rather makes up for the fit he's currently throwing because he does NOT want to take a nap at all). He was all smiles and picked out a 9 lb pumpkin. Bucket chose one that was 7 lbs. The one I chose was 11 ... and they're all very pretty and golden orange.
(One man that we saw got a 53-lb pumpkin. FIFTY-THREE POUNDS!!)

Then we bought fresh sugar-cinnamon coated doughnuts and a gallon of apple cider. YUM!

Now, the kids are in bed to nap, I've changed out of my mud-smeared jeans and soaked shoes, my belly is full of lovely doughnuts and fresh apple cider ... my husband is here ... it's nice.

Oh, yeah, and I've been summoned for jury duty. I've never been called for jury duty before. All I really know about jury duty is that it's my civic duty ... and bits from Hollywood (Runaway Jury and Pauly Shore's Jury Duty are the first movies that come to mind) ... well, I remember learning a little about jury duty from my high school government class a DECADE AGO.

So, yeah ... I'll have something to blog about in a couple months. Yay?

That's really about it ... I think.