November 3

Oops - sorry for the late post. I wasn't able to do the grocery shopping during the day yesterday, so I went after the kids went to bed. When I got home, Chris and I had much to talk about (mostly the fact that we accepted the bank's offer and now have a contract to purchase a house!!) and the blog just slipped my mind until I was in bed, and there's no way I'm leaving bed once I'm in unless someone is screaming.

But.

I just came across this, and it touched my mommy-heart:

"Song for a Fifth Child"

Mother, oh Mother, come shake out your cloth
empty the dustpan, poison the moth,
hang out the washing and butter the bread,
sew on a button and make up a bed.
Where is the mother whose house is so shocking?
She's up in the nursery, blissfully rocking.

Oh, I've grown shiftless as Little Boy Blue
(lullaby, rockaby, lullaby loo).
Dishes are waiting and bills are past due
(pat-a-cake, darling, and peek, peek-a-boo).
The shopping's not done and there's nothing for stew
and out in the yard there's a hullabaloo,
but I'm playing Kanga and this is my Roo.
Look! Aren't her eyes the most wonderful hue?
(lullaby, rockaby, lullaby loo).

The cleaning and scrubbing will wait till tomorrow,
for children grow up, as I've learned to my sorrow.
So quiet down, cobwebs. Dust go to sleep.
I'm rocking my baby and babies don't keep.

- Ruth Hulbert Hamilton

Yep. That sums it up. Here are some photos that sum up our gray, gloomy yesterday:

We got home from MOPS and, as usual, Caleb had removed one shoe and one sock during the drive home. I took off the other shoe and sock and brought him inside, then went back to get Daisy. When I got inside with the girl, I saw that Caleb had put his sock on his hand and was trying to get the other sock on his other hand. The best part was that he knew he was being funny. One of the best things about this age is watching his little personality and sense of humor develop!

Later (yucky light due to the dark, gloomy afternoon), Caleb was amazingly cooperative while I cut his hair. It may have been due in part to the fact that I let him hold a spray bottle full of water while I snipped. When we were finished, I was wiping up water all over the floor (because I let him hold the spray bottle, remember?) and I said to myself, "I need to get my broom to sweep up all this hair!"

When I looked up from my wiping, Caleb had grabbed his broom and was attempting to sweep up the mess. Good boy!

Then the broom became a guitar. Of course.

Daisy watched happily from her bouncer, but was happiest when Caleb came near her. You can't see the smile on her face in this photo, but she was grinning and reaching up to touch Caleb.

He loves entertaining her!

My sweet little girl went to childcare in MOPS for the first time today, and did GREAT!

Reaching out to tickle Caleb. Really - I think that's what she was doing. Caleb thought it was hilarious!