Baking. Teething. Cleaning. Procrastinating.

So far this week, we’ve had two salt spills and one basil spill. We’re well seasoned around here.

Ellie’s teething. And crabby. She doesn’t know what she wants. We don’t know what she wants either. It’s a less than thrilling situation.

Ruby held her hands over her chest in the cold outdoors and said she was keeping her heart warm. Charlotte didn’t miss a beat to inform her that her heart keeps her warm. Charlotte is going through a phase wherein she corrects everyone she dares. She blundered on her correction over supper. “Don’t talk with your mouth open!” She giggled long and hard when she realized she’s missed the part about food in your mouth.

I have 10, possibly 13 sewing projects to complete between now and Christmas. It makes me cringe just thinking about it. And yet, here I sit. I think next week might be a complete holiday week, during which I sew – and sew, and sew.

Yesterday, we cleaned house. By last night, things were looking pretty spiffy. We got up this morning, ate breakfast, did a bit of school, and left the house by 9:30. When we got home mid afternoon, I set a few of the kids to putting things away. I challenged them to at least 35 things – because they always clean better with a competitive goal. In 20 minutes, the grand total of things put away was 217 between two kids. Poor Charlie was stumbling in her counting, unable to count as high as she needed to. I’m amazed how fast these little people can trash a room – but they can clean it nearly as equally fast when given a bit of incentive.

I tried a new Pilates DVD yesterday, during which the instructor said more than once to “Squeeze the juice” out of the Pilates circle she was working with. Ruby picked up my circle afterwards, examined it, and said in her most disgusted, sassiest voice, “That lady lied. There’s no juice in this thing.”

Pierce finds it to be his duty to lay on me while I work out. Adds a bit of difficulty. Charlie sits, in complete seriousness, working out with me – and correcting my movements when they didn’t match the television. Sterling watches the DVD curled up on the couch with a look of absolute disgust at the lady that wants you to actually work out and yet accomplish nothing in the working.

Today, finally, I got the ingredients for my family’s traditional German Chocolate birthday cake and made it. Might as well see what that DVD can really do.