Weasel Of Doom

1. This week sucked, but it is almost over
2. Got to see Shannon’s parents again
3. Finished “Archangel’s Kiss” – was good; will buy the next book when it comes out
4. Sugar cane mastery
5. Found a bunch of books I wanted at the Half-Price bookstore:
6. – “Silent in the Sanctuary,” the second Lady Julia book by Deanna Raybourn. Now to hope that somebody takes the first and third books to Half-Price Books, as well :)
7. – three books by Sherry Thomas (an author my library does not carry) – I am in a mood for a nice Victorian romance….
8. Judicious fiddling with a paperclip has straightened the pins in my cellphone charger unit, so now I don’t have to get a new one
9. My husband is so good with the little pests
10. Free coffee at work. Blessed stimulant.

1. May 9th, Victory Day. It’s been 65 years since the war ended. Thinking of grandpa, who was a navy pilot during World War II.
2. OldestOne is feeling better.
3. Mel, who comes over and plays with the kids and teaches them things.
4. YoungestOne’s affection for stuffed animals.
5. Funny stuff MiddleOne says. (“Mommy, are you driving now?” “Well, since I am standing right here in front of you with a garbage bag in my hand, no, I am not.”)
6. Unexpected chocolate muffin from Matt’s wife.
7. Feeling slightly better today, though still really out of it.
8. Missing lunch, and then finding out that there is a reception with hors d’oeuvres and desserts at work that day.
9. Sleeping kids.
10. Going to bed early with a book.

1. I finally recovered enough from the Week From Hell at work to catch up on the good small things.
2. Happy Birthday, Mom! Sorry I am such a disappointment to you.
3. Getting my book order from Amazon.com. Mmmm, new books!
4. Project “send out a crapload of surveys on Wednesday at the latest” was done on Wednesday.
5. Project “launch this website redesign on Friday or die” was done on Friday (and trust me, I was praying for death on Wednesday and Thursday and Friday morning)
6. There are people at my work who appreciate what I do.
7. Girls’ Night Out on Thursday!
8. Yummy Hawaiian strawberry pie at Bakers Square (free pie with meal on Wednesdays, for those interested)
9. Finding three books I was looking for at Half Price Books (two of which I have just got from Amazon. Guess I will get to figure out how their book return process works ;-)
10. Falling asleep in the study early on Friday night, and sleeping in until 7 am (despite both younger kids deciding to share the small bed with me)
11. Laundry is done and put away
12. Dishes are clean
13. Kitchen floor is washed (and I am by definition insane, since every time I wash it I expect it to stay clean for longer than five hours)
14. Mother-in-law agreed to watch the kids on Saturday night so that we could go and see “Iron Man 2.”
15. We really enjoyed “Iron Man 2.” Our once-a-year-trip-to-the-movie-theatre money well spent :-)
16. Reserved seating is awesome.
17. OldestOne gave me a pretty marigold for Mother’s Day.
18. Amusing Facebook interactions with a fellow Mafia Wars player, who upon seeing an old picture of me all gussied up for Jen’s wedding, started adding kisses to his thank yous. Dude, if you only knew what five years of motherhood have done to me :) There is a reason my new profile pic is Auron from Final Fantasy :P
19. Husband is growing his goatee back for a little while, as a Mother’s Day present for me.
20. Kids behaved well enough on Sunday morning that I could spend time on Facebook and engage in shenanigans described above.
21. Mel came over and played with the kids while Husband did yard work.
22. I escaped upstairs around 11 am and finished “The Spiral Hunt” by Margaret Ronald.
23. Went to grandma-in-law’s for dinner. It was good to see her more “there” mentally, even though physically she is failing more.
24. Cut the boys’ hair. MiddleOne wanted it. YoungestOne screamed like a banshee, but had no choice. Husband suffered manfully. OldestOne is sick, so he gets to keep his hair for a little while :-)
25. Now that I am done with this post, it’s off to FarmVille to rearrange my farm (need to make more room for non-crops junk I am accumulating. I realize nobody needs 15 hanging plants, 10 decorative shrubs, 7 chinese cats, and 7 Olympic torches, but I keep thinking I might use them

1. Started Xavier’s speech evaluation process – it should happen sometime within the next month and a half
2. Nice lunch with Shannon (even if we ate more pizza than is good for us ;)
3. Making some progress on my many and varied conflicting priority projects at work
4. Bill had a very positive job interview, even though it is not likely to result in a job
5. Beautiful warm weather, and a walk at night while the kids all fell asleep in the strollers.

1. Lots of people gave me a virtual hug on Facebook when I had “needs a hug” as my status. It really helped during a sucky work day.
2. Did not quit my job. Was very tempted, though.
3. Reports of a break-in at the village turned out to be false.
4. Was able to give Karen some information she needed.
5. Did “Step Away the Inches” again.

1. Laundry is done and put away.
2. Friends who helped us take apart an old swing set and move it to our house. Now we just need to put it back together (cue ominous music).
3. MiL took D&S to see “Green Eggs and Ham,” and much fun was had by all.
4. Two loads of dishes done, everything is put away, and kitchen floor is washed (house was REALLY trashed).
5. Downstairs bathroom is clean.
6. Bonus: I actually did the T-tapp “Step Away the Inches” workout tonight

(Day two of de-lurking. Stealth mode appears to be working. I will be messing around with numbering as I fill in the missing posts.)

1. Getting to work at a reasonable time.
2. Making some progress on the important (and over a week late) survey.
3. Being able to work late to catch up on stuff.
4. Everybody fell asleep in their own beds on Friday night, while I sang Russian songs to them.
5. Kids behaved well for Peggy’s wedding.
6. There was a playground by the church, so Sergey and Xavier had something to do when they got bored sitting inside.
7. Beautiful spring day.
8. All three boys playing together at Humboldt Park.
9. Xavier’s happy dirt-covered face.
10. Going for a nice walk at night, while the kids clonked out in the strollers.

Damien…

1. … is getting really good at figuring things out in video games
2. … have been having only “green” days at school for weeks
3. … said “I like you, Mommy” the other day
4. … comes up and asks if he can snuggle and cuddle
5. … can be trusted to play outside with no supervision
6. … is getting better at expressing what he thinks, feels, and needs
7. … likes reading books and magazines
8. … does not lose his temper with little brothers as often as they deserve it
9. … has beautiful eyelashes and nice thick hair (why yes, I am jealous)
10. … dresses himself (sometimes even in clothes that match :-)

Sergey…

1. … is a smart little guy
2. … talks really well
3. … likes to play with little Xavier
4. … is very affectionate
5. … always asks for hugs and kisses at night and when people leave
6. … asks Damien to play with him
7. … can count to 100 and more (with some help)
8. … wants to open all the presents I get in FarmVille
9. … likes picking out earrings for me to wear
10. … figured out what talking on the phone is all about

Xavier…

1. … is starting to babble more
2. … loves stuffed animals
3. … can communicate really well with a few well chosen shrieks
4. … signs “more” when he wants more
5. … loves his Papa
6. … is really good at climbing things
7. … likes the swing
8. … always wants to play with (or tackle) his brothers
9. … does cute things for Grandma and Grandpa when we talk on Skype
10. … has the sweetest smile

1. Girls Nights with Shannon.
2. Bill’s Guys Nights with Eric.
3. No suspicious moles found during the visit to the dermatologist.
4. D&S enjoyed movies at the Library, and I got to see “The Princess and the Frog.”
5. Damien is the most enthusiastic and cooperative student they had in a long time at Level 1 swimming.
6. D&S have their swimming classes at the same time – much easier for Bill.
7. Damien advanced a level at gymnastics. Sergey continues to slack off ;)
8. Xavier is babbling more. He can say “Uncle Mel” but not “Papa” or “Mama” – not sure that’s a compliment to our parenting :P
9. Xavier’s diligent swimming attempts on Saturday mornings. He got the arm movements down, but is refusing to kick.
10. An occasional quiet alone time.