2nd shift

ok,, yea so I say I'm gonna start blogging again and then go a week without a update.  LOL  Sorry.   Lots of stuff on my mind, I"m just trying to be mindful of what I put out there, ya know?   I think today I'll talk about a new chapter in our lives that will be starting next week.. Its not one I'm excited about.  Ben(hubby) is getting put on 2nd shift...for him that will mean he leaves the house around 1-1:30pm and returns around 10:30pm.   He's not happy about it at all.  Either are me and the kids,, it wouldn't be so bad if they were all young and not in school but Jess and Gary are at school through the day so he's really not gonna get to see them through the week at all.  He'll be sleeping when they get up for school and then he'll be gone to work when they get home.   Plus he wont be able to go to any after school function, soccer games, he wont be home to eat dinner with us,, to tuck them into bed...the list goes on.   I already have my days where I feel like a single mom,,, now I think I'll really feel like that with him gone every evening.   OH well,, thats life I guess and we must roll with the punches and try to make the best of it.   I know there are people out there right now that would give their right arm to be able to have a job on any shift so I'm trying to think of ourselves as lucky.  Listening to this song and watching this video helps me realize that. 

 So anyways, I've been trying to think of some things to help turn it around into a positive,, here's a couple I've came up with....I think we actually might save some money because I really don't like going out without him so unless its necessary we probably won't be leaving the house in the evenings...staying home equals not spending money.   Also I can fix whatever I want for dinner,, I can do more meatless meals, he gets upset if there isn't a meat with dinner so since he wont be here our meals can be simplified a little bit.  I've even considered dropping our cable since he wont be here in the evening to watch it,, although the kids arnt to thrilled about that idea so I'm not sure about that one.. Those are the couple of things I've come up with so far.  I know I'm gonna really miss him in the evenings though and so are the kids,, Hopefully this will help him spend quality time with them when he can. 

Phil Vassar - Just Another Day In Paradise

We had a fabulous 4th of July holiday. I'm so thankful to live in this great country! Saturday morning Ben and I went golfing, it was so much fun! I just wish it wasn't so darn expensive,, were going to have to cut back our trips because we've got to get our Florida fund built up or were not gonna be able to go! :( After golf we came home and vegged out, then we went to watch fireworks at Winona Lake,, it was fun, Emma really enjoyed it.

Sunday we had a cookout at moms house with all the Bayles family. Ben and I challenged everyone to corn hole,, and did pretty well if I say so myself! Then afterwards we came home and watched some more fireworks from our back porch. Everyone around us was setting them off, it was nice to enjoy them without spending the money on them. :)

Monday morning Ben went fishing with my brother in law and Emma and I went out to moms and layed by them pool and swam. Then we came home, did some more vegging, then played corn hole once it cooled off a little. We defiantly get good use out of the corn hole game my step-dad made for us! I love long weekends!

So today is full of laundry, getting the house back in order,, all that good stuff. There is always some sort of household chore to be doing around here. My work is never done. But it is worth every minute. I'm so lucky to have 3 great kids. Jess is such a help, Gary is my little comedian, and Emma can always make me smile...no matter what,, even if I'm crying she will come up to me and hug me, tell me she loves me over and over and do anything to make me smile. I love that baby! My house is sometimes like a 3 ring circus,, very loud and crazy, but it is a household filled with LOVE! Have you ever heard the country song "just another day in paradise"? That sound describes my life to a T,,, I love it. Here's the video.

Outdoor fun

I wanted to share a picture of my garden. Its doing great! I think tomorrow I'll cut some lettuce up for a salad! The kids have been clearing out the green onions, they love them! We've been taking advantage of the hot weather and swimming, playing in the sprinkler, and today we made a homemade slip and slide, courtesy of Dave's black plastic he gave me to use in case it rained at the garage sale. We didn't use it then, but have found a even better use. Add water and a little soap and bring on the fun.

Excuse Gary's grumpiness,, he was mad and pouting about something,,,don't ask me what. Haha

Mowing

We had a fun night of yard work last night!

I was so proud of Ben because Emma kept getting right in front of him and he was so patient with her. Never once yelled, and he had a smile on his face the entire time he was mowing!

I was able to get a little video of it with my camera. (Sorry April I know you posted a video like this on facebook, I'm not trying to copy you, this was just to cute and I had to show the grandparents! ) :)