a good day to be a mom...

yesterday was a good day to be a mom. 

the boys slept in past their usual wake-up time by about 30 minutes.  wonderful!
we had a leisurely morning, staying in pj's and "hanging" out.  while the boys did whatever, i read Pslams 125-140.

breakfast came and went.  the boys got dressed and decided to go outside. 
it was very chilly!  the yard was in the shade, so it seemed even colder than it was!
i decided to sit out front in the sunshine.  the boys followed with their trucks and dragons and football.
the neighbor's daughter came over to play.

i stretched out on the front porch steps in the sun...feeling the warmth on my face...i love that feeling.  especially on this chilly day.
we were out for quite a while and lost track of time.  i love those moments when you realize that time didn't exist for a about an hour and a half!  haha!

i thought i might get lunch ready while stephen and nick continued to play.  i employed jake's help, which was actually my lame attempt to get him in the house because i didn't want him playing out front without my peepers on him  :)

i made some Kraft mac & cheese and cut up some cantelope.  jake ate a slice right away! 
when all was made, i called the other two in to wash up for lunch and their friend went home--for now.
while i was preparing our keifer shakes, my friend Katie stopped by with a few thousand rose petals that needed separating.  a simple, but tedious task. 

after lunch, the boys went back outside, and i took a bag of rose petals out with me.  however, the sun had moved by then and the front porch was now in the shade.  brrrrrr....try peeling petals with numb fingers! 
so i sent the boys and their two friends (yes, by now our neighbor's daughter and son had come over to play) into the yard, where they played "red rover," "red light green light," and other running games to keep warm.
i went inside to continue my tedious task of petal peeling.  (say THAT ten times fast!)

as i peeled petals, i watched as Sarah Palin gave her speech in front of many thousands in Nevada at a "tea party."  Sarah can really talk a good game.  i just hope that if she's elected in the future, that she holds up to it.  my father-in-law happened to be there, reading his newspaper and watching Sarah.  he actually asked if he could help...afterall, he was just sitting there!  it was quite a shock to me, and at first i had second thoughts.  i'm a perfectionist!  but i caved and let him in on the action.  he called it "KP" duty!  and we had a little laugh!  i think i witnessed a small miracle right then.  :)

as we peeled petals, we took turns checking on the boys and their friends.  i kept asking them if they would like to come in out of the cold.  "NO!"  they said.  they were building roads and a dirt building with their tractors and trucks.

finally around 3:30pm, my fingers were tingling, so i called the kiddos in for some hot chocolate and a snack.
2 out of 5 kiddos ran in...the other 3 wanted to finish their "road."
finally they were all in and sitting at the table drinking and eating and laughing while pulling the finger of "Count Fartula."  yes, my dear husband has a toy Count who "farts" when you pull his finger!  haha!
the kiddos stayed in this time to play, as i continued peeling petals.  my father-in-law had been busy right along, God bless him.  pretty soon it was time to start preparing dinner.
as i prepared dinner, stephen, nick & the neighbor's daughter decided to help grandpa peel petals.  it was awesome!  they were done in no time at all!  4,000 petals.  beautiful!

as 6pm approached, it was getting to that time where the neighbor's kiddos would have to go, and my boys would have to wash up for dinner.  they didn't give me any hassles, cleaned up the toys, and said good-bye to their buddies. 

the rest of the evening went on like clockwork, and as i sat in the living room with my hubby, i contemplated the day and what a good day it was to be a mom.  :)