ENERGY! ! HOORAY! ! !

Thanks to Sara Jones, my wise older sister, who mentioned that she and a friend swapped kid-sitting with each other once a week so the other could go out alone for 2 hours. Hannah Hostetler and I have done this for three weeks now, and I love it! Since Matt works in town, it's even nicer for me. He and I ate lunch at a little drug-store diner the first time, and this time we had food from home that we supplemented with a big cherry coke, fries, and icecream from Bumpers.
The kids get to play with some of their best friends, one Mommy gets a break, and the other gets to look forward to her turn. (Actually having 6 preschoolers together who have finally learned to play pretty well without major fights can be a break for the "sitter mom".)


Two hours can fly by (when you're having fun!). The first week I got an adjustment at the chiropractor, shopped in a a junk store, then ate with Matt. This week I spent my whole time in the library. They even let me use their microwave to heat the bar-b-que sandwich I'd brought for my lunch. Small towns are great. Oh, and while I was in the library the Librarian asked me where she could get copies of Sara's Tales from the Creekbank stories, so I gave her Mom's number. Anyone reading this who knows Sara's talent for writing needs copies of these short stories. They're hilarious. (Okay, so I grew up with all the main characters, and am featured in a few myself, but even those who didn't get used as story material like them.)


Yesterday Katie, my nearly-15 year old niece came over to clean for me. This is to be a weekly occurance for a while. I get a clean house, she gets a little more cash toward her car fund. Both of us are happy. :) I've felt so good the last few days, knowing my house would be cleaned in ways I can't do as a 7 month pregnant mommy. Things I used to consider basic cleaning jobs have become BIG TASKS:Sweeping, mopping, vacuuming upstairs, scrubbing the tub, folding and putting away laundry. Yes, she did all this. I helped with laundry and did simpler jobs, and took care of kids. And thanks goes to Sara for this "Mother's Helper" suggestion too. I think I've actually been enjoyable for the family to be around for a few days. :)