Thank you, Fly Lady Friend!

Well, I got the sweetest surprise in the mail today!  And it was JUST what I needed!!!  I love surprises like that!! :)  I actually had no idea who sent it and was going to put a "call out" on the blog, but then I just got an email from my ol' MI friend, Melissa, and sure enough...she sent it!  I should have known b/c she is the Queen of Fly Lady advice!  I remember her telling me many years ago about this site (http://www.flylady.net/)...and it was awesome.  Just simple helpful hints about cleaning/organizing, etc!  I had no idea "fly lady" made a calendar to stay organized!  YAY for me!  I am lovin' it.  Check this baby out!  The pictures (which I yet again can't figure out why they are sideways), don't do it justice b/c it's a pretty big calendar and it's got tons of room to write all our activities in.  I think I am actually excited to fill out our schedule in Sept...and fingers crossed I'll actually be more organized (and maybe, just maybe Kev will be able to read this calendar!) haha :)  Thanks, Melissa!  You rock!!

Happy Anniversary to two of my most fav. people!

Just wanted to give a shout-out of love to my two fantastic parents...who are celebrating their anniversary today.  I came across this pic and it made me realize once again...1.  How fast time flies!  2.  How very blessed we are to not only have "baby Hailey"...but 6 more grandkids after her!  If it weren't for my parents and their love, commitment and hard work at marriage and parenting...none of us 7 Stegs and the 4 Jeffie Gritz' would be around!  Love those two people and so grateful they fell in love and tied the knot oh-so-many years ago!  May there be many more years of lovin' and memories for you!

Me and my baby boy

Well, we are really trying to get in the new school groove over here at the Steg house.  It ain't easy, but we're putting forth our best effort.  My fav. part of my days are my new-found alone time with my baby.  Forgive the creepy-ish pic above....but due to lack of time/energy I have no pics to post right now.  I am going with one Kev took of me last night asleep with Logan on my lap (he was asleep too til the iphone flash woke him up!).  Snuggling with him is one of the highlights of my days.

Today we attempted to take on the world just me and him...or so it seemed.  I had this fun idea that we'd jump back into the library scene.  I hadn't done their free classes since Ash was younger.  They apparently have a toddler music/read morning on Wed. so Loggy and I hopped in the van and made our way there. We were late as usual, but they welcomed us right in.  About 20 toddlers there....yikes!  I wasn't sure how he'd take to it, but he LOVED it!  He clapped along and sat on my lap the whole time.  Then participated when he was supposed to.  I was slightly shocked.  I would have expected this of Ash baby, but not Log baby.  He beats to his own drum. But he loved it all.  My fav. part is how he'd get up and interact and then he come back to me and turn around about 2 feet from me and back up til his lil' tushy was in my lap.  It's the sweetest thing.  His fav. time was the parachute and balls.  The boy is a sucker for balls. 

And if that wasn't excitement enough we ran to IU to get our new parking permit and then made our way to a playdate at our new indoor playplace Chickfila.  Logan doesn't frequent too many fast food playplaces b/c we don't eat out much....and he went nuts playing here.  I am definitely gonna go to this place more often in the winter months to get his boy energy out!  He loved playing with his buddies, Owen and Isaac.

We attempted a nap, but it only ended up to be 30 mins before we had to run and get Hays from school, take her the bank for a new teen account...and then race home to make dinner and meet our friends to walk on the trail after the bus-goers got home. 

Let's just say the walk was too much to add to the day and Loggy pooped out and cried half the time.  I wanted to cry too so I don't blame him.  We tried to squeeze too much into a toddler's day...and mama's too.  Tomorrow we will not leave the house and we will get a good nap in.  I am still learning this new routine and what works and doesn't work.  Squeezing too much in the day does not work.  I am happy to say that my baby is now fast asleep in my arms and this mama is on her way too.  The bummer of the day is that daddy took it off to get our garage fixed (and clean it out!) and I wasn't even here to help or see him.  What stinky timing. This was our only day we had stuff planned.  Ugh.  My timing is never right...story of my life.

Day 2 Exhaustion

Well, I don't remember feeling this tired on day 2 of school (and I'm not even IN school! :))....but I gave into it.

Logan went down for a nap and so did I.  Not sure it did a lick of good b/c I didn't feel any more rested after, but boy did I sleep deeply (and probably could have all day). 

I think the mental prep/anxiety of the school year upon us just took it's toll.  I needed to be ok with doing nothing today and I was.  Poor Logan hit a brick wall this afternoon....throwing a big, hot tantrum after getting Hays from school.  Still trying to find his new schedule this school year.  He just fell asleep on my shoulder now.  Ash cried a couple times after her long school day today.  Not b/c she doesn't love school as much as she did yesterday, but she is just exhausted from 8am-4pm school days.  It's like working a full time job for a 5 year old!  She told me one girl in her class fell asleep during art yesterday.  At least she's not that tired! haha :)

I fear a little bit how tired we are all going to be Sept 2 once the real Steg schedule starts.  I am glad we are transitioning into it slowly, but my energy doesn't seem to be even near what it was back in May.  I feel old and slow these days. :)  I will say that I love my time at home with Logan.  He is my busy boy.  Once the kids load up on the bus, we come right home and sit on the living room floor and play.  We build, we crash cars, we read books.  He has to do it all while sitting on my lap.  I love that time with him.  I cherish it.  It's the last time I get to do this with a child of mine.  I feel very grateful I can enjoy him every morning. 

So it is to bed early tonight for us all and thankfully late start is tomorrow so we can sleep in an hour more.  I am grateful to my hubby tonight who did all the dishes so I could fill out the piles of school paperwork before dark. It's the little things...  

Back to School!

Well, like it or not, it was back to the grind of school today!  Here are the kids this morning...it was barely light out and they were yawning and barely awake (Logan was Mr. Grumps...I don't blame him!).  This is the best I could do for a pic.  :)  I still can't believe I have 4 in school now (thankfully it's not 5 or I seriously might have cried today!).  My Loggy was my saving grace for no tears! :)  The verdict for the day:  Hailey (on 9th grade (aka high school!))..."seems a lot like middle school just bigger".  Ok!  Ashley...(on first day of Kindergarten)...."my day was AWESOME!".  She seriously has said this a couple dozen times since getting home.  She also made a best friend and they are dressing alike tomorrow! LOL!  I think she might have hugged her teacher all day long (she told me this).  Prayers answered!  Love this big girl!  D and S (3rd and 5th)....uneventful days....great teachers (that we've had before) and friends in their class.  That's all they could ask for.  Me and my Logster....we had a busy day....I thought he'd take a couple naps and rest, but no sireebob...he wanted to play all day long....he was eating up having mommy all to himself!  He was a hoot!  He kept crawling up in my lap to read and bringing me cars to play with.  I love this kid.  It was a good day.  But this mama is tired....very tired.  More pics to share later in the week.....

Robbed of Summer! :(

Well, it's almost 10pm and I hoped to be in bed by 9, so I found this quick pic and thought it best described how we feel today!  Pretty much we are saying "oh, no, where did summer go?" :)  Ok, so the girls weren't saying that at all (they were showing off their nails tonight)....but this mama is feeling like I blinked and end of school became beginning of school.  Never have I felt so robbed of a summer.  This "going to year-round schooling" thing stinks.  I won't begin to tell you what anxiety I am feeling, but let's just say I am going to bed praying for peace tomorrow...and for the whole year.  Summer, where did you go?  Were you even here??  Bah Humbug, School!

Squeezing it all in these last few days!

I had high expectations to post more pics today, but I'm just waaaay too wiped by the above activity of last night/this morning.  Yes, believe it or not, we Stegs camped again! (this time with our complete fam...and outside our backyard...at church!).  It was our church's first family campout.  It was a lot of fun even in the rain. :)  But, I must say that Loggy did very stinkily as far as sleeping so we are plum tuckered out.  He has had a terrible couple days and we realized today that he's getting another molar in. He's cried so much his eyes have been swollen. Not the happy baby we usually have...poor guy.

One more day of summer....sigh :(