Real Life Saga…

Starting a fund … It’s called “Get me out of debt”

How can you help?

Let me know you want to help & Ill send you a random bill to pay for me. I’ll keep the little ones and pay them but you know those $500 medical bills and $800 utility bill can be yours to help me get out of debt…

You in?

Well, that seems smarter to me than a gofund me as you know where the your money is being used, exactly how much and know I’m being legit with it.

Then I can be debt-free, stay home with my kiddos, and sell my Thirty-one bags & such.

Because in the end, it will me that

I know I have done right…

Last night I got a surprise. My amazing 16 year old paid for my hubs and I to go out to dinner at one of the local higher class establishments.

He told the hubs that I was stressed out and we needed to get out. My 16 year old was cognizant of my feelings. He took care of planning it so I had no clue.

We had an hour out… no kids, no phones, no interruptions. We got to see our boy working and enjoying it. He even picked out dessert and plated it himself for us.

I felt relief as this last week mentally was hell for me. I realize he does listen and care.

Love you Leo!!

Life is crazy and Im still stumbling…

The last few weeks have been crazy!! Between birthday & Fathers Day events to doctor’s appointments that include vaccines & specialist appointments to schedule, to the end of school… Im exhausted!! But another month until I can safely say we should be done with that.

I’m tired with work, but it’s a necessary evil… for now. The hubs and I finally got in & talked with a banker about getting a home equity loan… just looking over the pros and cons & hopefully will help us stop living paycheck to paycheck.

In other news, we have taken in a bunny for a few weeks so I have been blogging with her family too. It’s definitely been fun this week. Boog & She-Ra cut each others hair today… luckily it’s not too bad… unlike when True & Moose shaved each others heads. Goob has been under the weather since Thursday, I stayed home yesterday and well… lack of sleep.

I’m kinda depressed that I have kiddos that are sick and I can’t snap my fingers to be home always with them or make them better… I guess that’s called Mommy Guilt.

Got one kiddo into a painting class for the summer – Moose is learning to paint his D&D figurines. True wants to do soccer this upcoming school year as well as to see if the church she went to quilting class last summer is hosting them again. She-Ra & Boog may start back to their Nonna’s this summer… we shall see.

For me, I have a lot of desires for this summer… like getting this blog going more, my Thirty-One business (www.mythirtyone.com/1940404) to take off and our bills to decrease amazingly.

Yup, me trying

Ladies day…

Well the boys are out playing D & D which means for us ladies: fake nails on the girls, nail polished watermelons, edible cookie dough, and coffee… along with lots of chatting!!

Should totally be doing more like the laundry… but even us ladies need a day to get our fun on… So now I’m binging “The unbreakable Kimmy Schmit” on Netflix… but it’s definitely not getting my puzzle done or laundry folded.

Yesterday I was able to hang out with one of my bestie’s while we were out rock hunting… didn’t score the prized rock that we were looking for but we found plenty more of amazing art. We don’t get to hang out often enough. Makes me sad some times.

My other bestie, Jess, lives in NY which is completely on the opposite side of the country from me… Miss being able to get together and hang out but we are just able to be like nothing has changed.

My new girlfriends and I have time to chat.

what about you? What are things you like to do???

Cast Off…

Crazy busy here… today we had a very productive day….

This morning I was blessed to sleep in and get up to take 2 kids to school, 2 kids to child care, and 1 kid to get his cast off.

Moose and I had an uneventful drive and we both were able to have our first cast removal EVER!!  Nearly 40 and I have never been cast or been around cast removal.  It’s definitely pretty cool to see them pop the cast open. And then cut it off.  However, I was not prepared for the sloughing of the old skin from under it… no wonder why it’s itchy!!!

Anyhow, drove home and washed his arm off then took him to school.  I went to work and well, I feel like I was so not productive there.  I went about trying to get caught up from this crazy week but it was more like staying even more crazy.  I was late to my first client, late to my second (by the way I had less than 5 minutes to drive between the 2) and then on time for my third.  Of course, I had to leave an hour early from there due to the need of child care being closed for the afternoon.

Now, I’m home.  I have my 4 girls home and my Moose. Now to get to the dinner but at least Moose can help with the dishes once again more productively and can shower completely.  It’s time for chicken and rice then a walk.

Yes, that should do it for the day!!

So far… so…

Blessed!  

Yup today I’m going to be thankful of all the things my kids do…

• Not flushing the toilet after a BM – at least they’re out of a diaper… (Am I right??)
• Fighting with one another over going on a walk – at least they want to be active and take the dogs for a walk… oh and they are alive & breathing
• Asking me which shoes I’m wearing for the day – at least she’s kind enough to ask before just wearing any of my shoes
• Helping me find my phone – at least I know they want to help even if it’s just for Disney Now or the Miraculous game it has
• Mount Wash-more and the Land of Needs Folded – at least I know they have too many clothes so if the “ONLY” items they have to wear are dirty I can escort them to see those 2 sites

Yes, today is a blessing… I am awake (thank you alarm clock on phone that went off while on the floor where you fell last night), I am breathing, I had 2 cups of coffee, and my husband asked if we had plans for Mother’s Day so our son can work as they asked him to work Sunday since it’s a special day and they are normally closed.

Yup, I’m blessed with amazing children: a responsible teenager, a fashionista or 3, a few extremely smart children (well, 6) .

Now, if only the dogs would behave… but that’s another story!

Stumbling *back* to Normal…

This month has already started out pretty chaotic.  My mother-in-law in the ICU, my son needing a cast on his arm due to falling off his bicycle and fracturing/injuring his growth plate of his elbow, my older son dislocated his elbow and popped it back into place… Mind you this was by the 3rd of May.

As I was driving for my job this last week between seeing clients and other tasks, I had a realization that despite the fact I love that my job is an important one to many people, it’s not where I need to focus my time and energy right now.  You see, I have been struggling to keep my mind and body in the proper state to be at work since last year.  Not only that but recently was increased on my anti-depressant medication and am at the highest allowable amount.

It was a dawning… a mom of 6 children (16, 11, 10, 4, 2 and 4.5 months), working full-time, attempting to sell products with a direct sale business, keeping up with a happy household and a husband who went from working out of the house & keeping laundry going for our family of 8 to working back in the office because of a pay raise.  My mother-in-law is the child care provider for the youngest 3 girls and well, for having 3 in child care while I work full-time in another location I’d be out a few more hundred than the family discount we get.  It’s put me in a bind because there’s the real need for me to stay home and a desire to work.

So now, I’m trying to stumble back to my normal… you know before kids, without anti-depressants, back when I was invincible??  I know that won’t be my normal, so now I’m stumbling to a new normal.

I hope you will take some time to follow me and get to know me and my struggles, battles, and all the amazing victories… I have overcome a lot in my life and know that there is SOMETHING, SOMEWHERE in my life that others can relate to…

A little bit of stumbling…

Thank you for finding my page and reading about my life and the journey I am on.  There’s been a little bit of stumbling, a lot of standing strong, some times when I felt I was sinking and times that I felt lighter than air.

A little introduction of myself:
My name is Summer.  I am married to Jason and we just celebrated 5 years last month.  We have 6 children – For their safety, I have given them some nicknames:
16 year old – Leo
11 year old – True
10 year old – Moose
4 year old – She-ra
2 year old – Booger
4.5 month old – Goober

I love the Lord and know that He is with me… all the time… through the good, the bad, and even the ugly…  He’s the one that gathered my growing support group of people to me.

I figured I love to write and I have some great stories… stories about myself, my husband, our 6 children, our dogs, and all the amazing extended family members (my 3 sisters & their husbands, combined 11 nieces & nephews and his sister & her family)… not forgetting my closest friends, some new friends, and even some old friends.

Good company in a journey makes the way seem shorter. — Izaak Walton