Little House on The Prairie

I've been reading Mckenzee the Little House on the Prairie chapter books. She LOVES them and I love that she loves them. They are my very own worn chapter books that my mother read to me. Some have bent covers, some are in pieces, but that makes them all the more lovable. Every night I intend to read one chapter and am easily coerced into more. When Chris reads to her I have to go and reread for myself what he read so I can be ready for the next day.
When I first started reading the books to her I couldn't help my by envious of their way of life. Not because it was easy, it was definitely not that, but it was simple. Everyone knew what had to be done and they did it. They could fit everything they owned in a covered wagon. The children played outside everyday, all day and didn't go to school until they were 8 and 9. They didn't have money, but they had everything they needed and were happy.
Here lately I am just longing for simplicity. I am drained from keeping up with all these things we have chosen to put on ourselves and put ourselves in. I want to get rid of our stuff that fills up our home where everyone has their very own room with too many things, and I want to roam the woods with my children and a big dog.
On that note, tonight I am tired because I have been online shopping for hours for the right pair of boots for Mckenzee and myself for our family pictures next week. Even as I say that I hear how ridiculous and selfish it sounds. What a complete waste of time and energy and really money that I would agonize over choosing these stupid shoes. I wonder what "Ma" would think? "For shame."

Spaghetti: The Great Torture

Spaghetti is one of the few meals I cook that everyone in my family will eat. So, I'd say we have it every other week or so. 

I like it because:

It's easy to cook

It tastes good

It makes great leftovers

Everyone eats

I hate it because:

It's a huge mess with my boys

I don't mean just a huge mess on them or the table or the floor. This mess travels across the house creating more and more and larger messes. This afternoon for lunch the traveling mess went like this....

I sit all the kids down at the table and get their spaghetti. By the time I get drinks and my own spaghetti and sit down myself they are almost done. They finish and begin to get up with their spaghetti caked faces, and arms and tummies. I send the boys to the bathroom to get started washing while I finish eating. I know I shouldn't, but it's such a rarity for me to get sit down and continue sitting the entire time I consume my food that sometimes I just want to. 

I can hear splashing and lots of laughter in the bathroom. I know it will be bad. By the time I get in there the boys have drawn themselves sink baths. They are each sitting in a sink with their clothes on having the best time. They somehow still have orange faces and everywhere they have touched is orange. 

So, I strip them down, wash them, and dry them off and send them out for me to dry the water on the floor and drain the sinks. I put down three towels to get up all the water on the floor and then I see that each sink has an orange ring around it so I wipe those out, hang up the wet clothes, wipe down all the orange handprints, turn out the light and shut the door.

"Mom! Colby pooped on the floor! Come here I'll show you!" (Remember I just sent them out naked... my mistake to think they could be naked for 5 minutes)

SO....I am brought to the poop and PEE and I clean it up, clean up the riding toy that he chose to sit on after free pooping and then take him to his room to wipe his booty and diaper and clothe him. Clothing him is a chore because he is very particular about what pajama pants and shirt (that's all we wear) he puts on. I go through the chore of letting him choose, and change his mind and run off and come back and get dressed.

I am getting tired.

I just have one last thing to do....clean up the table and the floor and dishes from lunch...that are still covered in spaghetti. Not sure we should keep eating this.