With Six you get Eggroll

    Can you recall your first memory?  I can.  It's an up close visual of my moms' ear. When I close my eyes, I can see it vividly.  I must be lying on her shoulder.  I still know what it felt like to play with her earring.  I can still smell the hairspray.  When I close my eyes, I can hear her singing.  She had a voluminous alto voice.  I can still hear her playing the piano.  Her style was definable, with the runs and pretty extra notes played between the melody of the song and especially on the ending.  I can hear her silly baby voice talking to something tiny and cute like an animal or baby.  I can hear the tone of her voice when she was frustrated followed by the inevitable mom sigh.  When I close my eyes, I can see her fingers. Very nimble, flowing over the keys of the piano or painting or drawing (she was extraordinary at them all), or sewing.  I can see her shirt covered in flour or grease from slaving in...

     I recently read a quote that says. " In raising my children, I have lost my mind but found my soul."  This could not be more true about me.  When my first two kids were small I still felt a bit sane! I had control.  I was on top of things.  Now, I'm certain I have gone temporarily insane, and it seems this time of year shows that thought to be more true every time it comes around.       Back to school season is arduous and demanding.  It comes up on you so quickly.  We are lazy, relaxed, and remiss of the daily grind, then... WHAM!!  You abruptly realize, "School Starts In Two Weeks!!" I was happily enjoying my simple summer and now I have to cram haircuts, shopping, and open house meetings into the quickly approaching, limited days.  Not to mention the new fall sports season calendar.  Practices, games, shows.....it all starts NOW!       I'm caught between if relaxing all summer is a good t...

     Bubble wrap the dishes, clean out the drawers, it's time to move!!  UGH... moving.  All the boxes and dirt, clutter and organizing.  Making sure nothing is left behind.  Changing addresses and schools and Doctors.  Cleaning every corner, even some you haven't been in since you moved in!  Now add 4 kids to that chaos and you've entered a whole other dimension of craziness you wish never existed.  Many people hear about moving and just the thought causes their blood pressure to rise.  I, on the other hand, have grown accustom to the changes and get a bit of a thrill contemplating the newness of it all.      On average, an American moves roughly 11.7 times in their lifetime. (per a census taken in 2007)  Personally I am up to 12 moves in my 38 years of life.  Some as a kid (my opinion on the matter had no merit what-so-ever), some newly married (we must build the house, buy all the things, no matter the c...