Busy Day

I've had a busy day today. I woke up this morning, got all the kids ready and left at 8:30 headed to Bastrop (45 minutes away) to take Mercie to our doctor. She has a rash on her back that is spreading and looking really weird. I thought it was eczema, and I was right. The doc said it was infected (never heard of eczema being infected) and prescribed her some steroid cream. Eli had eczema really bad when he was little, and he still has it, but not as bad. Mikaela developed dermatitis when Eli was a baby. I guess it just runs in the family. Then we went shoe shopping to 3 different stores, and I finally wound up going back to Payless and getting the shoes I saw first. I got Mercie 2 pair (really cute white shoes and some pink and white tennis shoes) and Eli and Mikaela each a pair of sandels. They had BOGO going on, so I got 4 pair of shoes for about $45. Not bad. Average of $11 a pair. We then went back home and had to go to WalMart to fill her prescription, but they won't have the cream until tomorrow. So one more trip to WalMart. The doctor did recommend I use Eucerin body cream after their baths while their still wet. Well...the Eucerin cream was $13.97 a jar, and the equate WalMart brand of the exact same ingredients was $4.97. Guess which one I got? And I got the equate brand of oatmeal bath for $3.88, and the Aveeno brand (which I usually get) was $6.97. So...I saved around $12. And I was happy with the products, which I used on all 3 kiddos tonight. I might even use the oatmeal bath! Anyway...by the time we got home, the kids were ready to run around the yard, so we stayed outside a good while. Mikaela rode her scooter until she fell and skinned her elbow for the third time. Then she wanted to go inside. Mercie was soooo tired, so I was trying to keep her awake until bedtime. She fell asleep at 5:30, so I laid her down. She was conked out. Mikaela and Eli played babies (yes, Eli loves to play "daddy". I think it's sweet.) They took baths went to bed before 8, and I got 2 loads of laundry washed, dried, and put away. I'm waiting on my 3rd load to get out the dryer, but it's just towels so that's quick. I washed bottles and cups, mopped, organized all my homeschool resources, and all our art supplies. Now I'm just relaxing! My house is staying decently clean since I've started a cleaning schedule. I love it! I just wrote out Mon. - Sat. on some paper, delegated each day to 1 or 2 rooms, and that way it only takes me an hour or so to hit each room hard once a week. It's so much easier than not having a plan and just trying to get each room clean each day. I'm much more relaxed and have much more time. I feel like I have a plan. And I do! I do as much laundry as I can in a day, if I miss a day it's okay. I keep counters wiped, floors swept and mopped, bathroom clean, no dirty clothes anywhere but the laundry room in organized baskets ready to go in the washer. I definetely recommend a weekly cleaning schedule. I feel more in control of things. I'm going to bed pretty soon. My good friend is coming over in the morning to visit and talk about homeschooling. That will be fun. We are going to the library around lunch and I've got to pick up Mercie's cream.

BTW..I got out my old Switchfoot CD and have been listening to it tonight. The very first song really got me thinking.
"We were meant to live for so much more...have we lost ourselves?"
I think that I had lost myself a while back. I was so stressed out, trying to make decisions on my own without God, trying to be superwoman, supermom, superwife, running away from my convictions because they weren't what I wanted for my life. I have come to realize that it's not always about what I want. It's about trading in my dreams and desires for His dreams and desires for me. And when I finally surrended my family and myself to Him, His desires became my desires. I want what He knows is best for my family. I know that life isn't always going to be easy. Babies crying, kids fighting, mom crying! But it's not supposed to be easy. God wants us to live for SO MUCH MORE than we do. He has divine plans and desires for us. Who are we to pick and choose what we want? We have lost ourselves in selfishness...discontentment...materialism...worldliness. It's time we found ourselves and offered ourselves to God and not just part of ourself. All of ourself. I have such a peace now...a peace that I can't describe because I've never felt it before. But I know it's because I've surrendered myself and my family and made myself and my desires of no importance. The only importance is that I'm in His will and in His word. Thank You Jesus!