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5:00pm while dinner is cooking in the oven:
Tonight is scouts for Ethan and activity days for Grace.  Tonight Hannah also talked me into going to the "midnight premiere" of Beautiful Creatures, which thankfully actually starts at 10pm, still too late but much better. 
So, being a mom is an interesting thing.  I thought I was a pretty good mom when my big girls were little but it's mostly gone down hill since then.  They were easy and sweet.  Oh there were moments that things  didn't go well. I suppose there always, but usually they were delightful and I felt pretty good about it.  As they got older the hardest thing for me was always feeling like I was short changing them.  We grew and blended our family and that was tough.  Then we had more babies, which we wanted and which was totally wonderful but tough with a really hard side of keeping balance and really being there for everyone. 

6:00 am while waiting to see Hannah out the door:
I always wanted to be the "fun mom" the one who went to the movies and shopping and drove to dances and stayed up with warm cookies and cold milk to hear about their dates, or football games.  I wanted to watch "big kid movies" and other undefinable big kid things.  I tried to do that but I was not always able to.  Sometimes I was too tired, other times the little kids were too little, I always had to compromise so I could be there for my husband, take care of the little guys, be there with/for the big girls/sleep/ etc...anyway, hopefully it worked out to be more good than bad and certainly they are wonderful women now so if that is the measure then I was awesome.  We have had a few conversations where I have asked them what I could have done different/ better because I do have three more kids at home and they are tougher than the first set (ironic) and getting better is the goal in life.  2 of the girls said they wished I had spent more time having fun with them, just being with them. 
So I have another chance, and this time there are no babies...but guess what? I am still sometimes too tired:)  Last night I was too tired, but decided to never mind and go anyway.  Hannah and her friend Hannah were so very excited! They talked the whole drive up to Waldorf (a stinking hour away but the theater~ so worth it).  We got there just in time to get popcorn and soda and to sink into our lovely recliner seats.  Those seats were the best part of the movie, so comfy.  So nice.  I didn't fall asleep, despite the fact that the movies itself was pretty average.  It was dark and since I had not read the book it seemed disjointed and silly (unlike Twilight's skillful interpretation)  We got home at 1am, and the girls had a good great time.  So it was worth it!

 Grace, Maggie, Abigail and Arden after activity days.  The girls made chocolate covered caramel popcorn balls with sprinkles.  Lu is excited to go to activity days!!

While the kids were at their activities I ran to Target.  Lu's teacher was just diagnosed with cancer and she will be out of school for most of the rest of the year so we wanted to get her a beat-cancer gift bag for Grace to give her today at their Valentines party.  She's got a good prognosis so I am hopeful for her.  We will be sad to have her gone because she's been a kind teacher. 

Z in her diaper for girl issues.  I am very surprised she went into heat this young.  Also not too excited to buy diapers, we had planned on having her fixed before her first heat but who knew it would be this early?

She still got up and got looking cute for Valentines day!  I bet she'll go to bed early tonight ;)