On Responsibility

Two lunches sitting on the counter at home this morning.
PLUS
One homework folder on the coffee table in the living room.
EQUALS
Three kids that will remember next time because Mom is teaching them there are consequences to their (lack of) actions.

**As a note: (It is quite odd that it happened to be all 3 of them this morning too...it is so seldom that any one of them in a day leaves anything behind!   It wasn't even a chaotic morning.  And yes, I made the decision a LONG time ago not to fix every issue that came up because a child left something at home.)

Family Pictures 2009

Between October and December of every year, we make the effort to take our new family pictures.  

This year we decided we would go to two spots:  The Mesa Arts Center and the Mesa Arizona Temple.  

As we drove past the MAC, we discovered a local festival going on, with large numbers of people scattered throughout the area.  While we were sad that we wouldn't have some fun backgrounds for our family pictures, we were excited to go the temple and feel the peace that permeates the grounds.  

These are some of the fun pictures that we captured while we were there!  

There were over 1000 shots when we finished...with more than 200 of our little 2 year old Isaac!  (Any tips on how to get a 2 year old to look at the camera? I just kept taking multiple shots of him...a ton at a time, and finally ended up with some really fun ones.)  

By the time we got to our family shots, we were all worn...and it was more difficult to get a great family shot.

                                                         I loved that my sister came to help us and be part of our family pictures!

Daddy teaching juggling to Nathan. 

Wishing

Let's face it.  

Most of the time I want to be at home. 

Not that I utilize my time in amazingly productive ways, but I have routines that overall work and help me to feel like I have accomplished something in the name of housework or in the betterment of my family. 

This week I've been out of my home the past three mornings...and been gone into the sweet hours that constitute naptime at our house.

I consider myself to be extremely strict when it comes to naptime, simply because I am a beast without it my boys need it so badly. 

I don't like it (the being gone so much part...). 

On the other hand, I find today, a day where I have had "extra" time on my hands, I've not known how to direct myself.  

I keep expecting something to crop up, distract me from what I am doing, and be, you know, IMPORTANT. 

Oh, what I would give for the perspective to see the things that are critical in the eternal scheme of things and the DESIRE to do them. 

How do you gain that in your life?