Perpetuum mobile

(~perpetual motion)

First off, I just want to say that I love the Gosselin family and the new Discovery Health Channel special about them, "Jon and Kate plus 8". This is the family that had a set of twins and then in an attempt to get "just one more" ended up with sextuplets. So, now they have eight children under the age of 6. Two six-year-olds, and six two-year-olds. I've read some online message boards and I am saddened to see so many people hacking up Kate. She is definitely a (self-described) control freak. I don't agree with everything she does or how she does it, but I love watching this family! I TiVo it every Tuesday night (because it's opposite American Idol). I cannot imagine handling the load that she wakes up to every single day, and I think people are way too critical of her, but I don't want to discuss that here. I like watching moms at work, especially moms of large families, because it makes me want to be a better mom. I like that Discovery and Discovery Health pay tribute to "professional" moms, and moms of large families. I am also a huge fan of the Duggar family (with the 17 children). I watch these moms and it makes me want to be better. I look around my house and at my children and I see them differently. I see my job as The Mom differently and with a little more enthusiasm and reverence, and it makes me laugh a bit more at life. I also like that Kate and Jon are so opposite of each other, but that they have found a style of working together to get it done. It may not be my way, but I like that they can be so different, and still in love. But that's a post for another day.

There are six children growing up in the walls I call home. They keep me hopping. They are each vastly different and I like them in varying degrees each day. I woke up so happy this morning and went to get the baby up for scripture study. He is a constant distraction, but he's part of the family, so he's always invited. Two of the kids fought over the "Papa Chair", and that sour-ness ruined my mood. Why are we fighting over a CHAIR, people? We are too good to sit on the couch with the peasant folk and must sit on the throne, for heaven's sake? But we carried on, and I faked a good mood as we began our study of the Old Testament today. We finished the Book of Mormon yesterday (first time for three of our kids).

We are completely out of breakfast staples. No milk, eggs, butter. So breakfast was tricky and I pretty much piecemealed it before running out the door with fussy baby and two boys headed for public school #1. Adam took the other two kids to public school #2. Lyndsay stayed here to begin her homeschooling. I walked Aiden to his class, Dylan to his, and then headed to the auditorium with fussy baby to preview the much-anticipated "Puberty Movie" which will be shown to the 5th grade today. I had to compile my list of embarrassing questions to ask Dylan when I pick him up this afternoon. He knows me well, so he knows what's coming. Tee hee. Fortunately, fussy baby fell asleep, and didn't hear me snickering when one of the fathers of a 5th grade son proudly proclaimed this his son "doesn't have a clue" about reproduction or sex whatsoever. I took him aside later and told him what the 5th grade boys are discussing these days and that he better jump in the game.

Now I'm home, baby is napping still, and laundry calls. From every single room. Kind of like when the kids are home and my name is being called. At least the laundry can be folded and put into drawers and stay quiet and clean for a while. I'll go do that and feel a sigh of relief that hopefully lasts just long enough before all the kids come home, homework begins, and piano lessons start. Then dinner, then showers, then clean-up, and then maybe, just maybe Sanjaya will get kicked off of American Idol tonight! Well, I can hope for perfection!