A Little Fall of Rain

One of my very favorite songs from Les Miserables is sung by Eponine and Marius - A Little Fall of Rain. I love it. The lyrics are heart-wrenching and the music is haunting and beautiful. Here are the first few lines:

Don't you fret, Monsieur Marius
I don't feel any pain.
A little fall of rain
Can hardly hurt me now.
You're here, that's all I need to know.
And you will keep me safe.
And you will keep me close.
And rain will make the flowers grow.

So what is the message in these words today? I will tell you.

We have had pretty much nonstop rain here for the past 4 days. When it first started, I was so excited! Living most of my life in the desert has made me love rain! After 2 full days of gray skies, I started feeling dreary. I know it wasn't just the weather but the clouds, the rain, and the lack of sunshine were oppressive. I became unmotivated, irritable, depressed, guilty, and felt like a failure as a mother and wife. It didn't matter what I tried (I even took a morning jog around the block in the drizzle yesterday), I could not pull myself up out of the dumps.

We made it to church today. Barely. I really dislike springing forward. I think it messes up my whole schedule for 6 months. Anyways. We made it. We heard 1 1/2 talks in Sacrament Meeting (out in the foyer) and I think they were talks given just for me. The lessons in Sunday School and Relief Society were amazing and so pertinent to the challenges I am facing. Toward the end of Relief Society, I had to excuse myself to change a dirty diaper and met a friend in the hallway. She started talked about my twins and how big they are getting, etc. and then she started telling me nice things like how amazing I am with my 6 kids. I felt badly for her because she was completely unsuspecting and I totally started crying to her! Wow - I never do that. I told her that I have been feeling overwhelmed and the conversation that followed was just what I needed. I left feeling uplifted and hopeful and inspired.

I came home and spent some precious hours with my kids, worked hard alongside my husband, and now in a few quiet moments, these lyrics came to my mind,

A little fall of rain
Can hardly hurt me now.
You're here, that's all I need to know.
And you will keep me close.
And you will keep me safe.
And rain will make the flowers grow.

I know that even in our hard times, The Lord is with us. He keeps us close. He keeps us safe. I know that if I put my trust in Him, I can weather any rain that comes my way. And in the end, rain makes the flowers grow.

I'm a Proud Momma:)

I must admit, I thought I was pretty funny when I was a teenager. OK, so I still think I'm kind of funny. Hehe. It's perfectly fine for a person to laugh at their own jokes, right?

Back in high school, almost every day after school, I would hang out with my mother who was usually in the kitchen cleaning up dishes or getting dinner ready. I would often walk up to her and rub my hands through her hair like I was washing it and bust out singing, "I'm gonna wash that man right out of my hair, I'm gonna wash that man right out of my hair, I'm gonna wash that man right out of my hair...and send him on his way!" I'm telling you right now, it was pretty hilarious. If you don't believe me, just ask my mom:) She is a great mom, by the way.

Fast forward a few years and every time I wash my kids' hair in the bath - I sing the same song. I started with Maddie and I still do it with Callie & Kimber. Most of my kids have not even noticed my singing/washing rituals, unless it is Lane telling me that "I not a girl - I a boy!" (I change the lyrics appropriately for the boys:)) So nobody ever noticed, let alone thought I was clever or funny or anything. Until now. The other day I had the babies in the bath and I grabbed the shampoo. Immediately, Kimber started groovin' and singing in just the correct rhythm and intonations - I knew exactly what she was singing even though I couldn't understand her words! She was dancing, singing, and laughing -such a proud moment for me! Not to be outdone, Callie joined in the fun and now we all share a few minutes singing & dancing during bathtime - I love it!

Kimber is very musical and never fails to bust her groove every time she hears music - even if it is just music from a toy. She does this little wiggle from side to side and it is so cute! It's kind of like a little hula dancing - nothing really moves but her little hips - hilarious! Considering the fact that I can't keep from dancing when the music hits - I'm a proud momma!

What a Week!

We started off the week with a trip to the doctor's office for Callie & Kimber - they both had ear infections - yuck! No wonder they have been so grumpy:( It doesn't help that some big fat teeth are trying to come in - it has been a rough week for them.

Callie learned this trick first and likes to scavenge all of the food off the dinner table after we eat. Unfortunately, she taught her new skills to her sister and now they both move to the top of the table as soon as I let them out of their chairs. Funny girls. Thankfully they are pretty good about not trying to get off by themselves.

Thursday was such a beautiful day and so I got all excited and decided to take the kids for a walk and to the park. When I told Lane what we were doing, he started to cry and didn't want to go. I realized that he wasn't feeling well and since he has a history of ruptured eardrums and has been sniffly for a few weeks, off to the doctor we went. Sure enough...another ear infection. Poor guy.

Report cards came home on Thursday and both Madlyn & Cole continued their A+ streak - awesome! I am so proud of their hard work and diligence. They are both very good students and so smart. Also, Cade's pre-K teacher sent a progress report home a couple of weeks ago and he is doing great! He knows above and beyond everything that he is supposed to know. Also, Madlyn (who has taken upon herself the role of Lane's teacher) sent home his report card on Thursday as well. He has all A's and is a "pleasure to have as a student". I couldn't be a prouder mom.

Madlyn has been taking a recreational gymnastics class for the past 6 months or so and has been invited to step up to the preteam class. It is the next step if she wants to compete although she doesn't have to - she can just go learn the new skills and spend more time at the gym. At this point she is pretty sure she doesn't want to compete but would like to learn new skills and have more class time. We are proud of her accomplishments - she definitely loves gymnastics and is improving lots all the time.

Wow - this post was all over the place! And I'm pretty sure I mentioned some things that I already covered in my last post. Oh well. It happens.