Today

Today wasn't perfect. It certainly wasn't anything exceptional. But it was wonderful. It was a wonderful snipit of our life right now. It's busy. It's hecktic. It's messy. It's funny. It's filled with joy. Some days it's downright exhausting. But it IS wonderful!

Today Michael left early to attend Stake meetings. The girls begged to eat leftover waffles for breakfast, then we proceeded to get ready for church. All three of them looked so cute today! Hazel and Eliza wanted their hair to match mine. So all three of us had a bit of the front part of our hair French-braided back with the rest down. Lenora let me put on an adorable headband that matched her dress perfectly and actually kept it on for church! We were in a hurry to get to church and set up chairs for Primary so I didn't have a chance to get a picture, but boy were they cute! On the way out the door Lenora really wanted to wear her fancy sandals (which was fine with me), but she also REALLY wanted to wear the ruffle socks I'd grabbed to match her normal church shoes. Socks with the sandals were obviously not an option. She was mad! I threw both sets of shoes in my bag and figured we could sort it out in the parking lot at church. Then I loaded them all in the car then did my makeup quickly in the car before driving over to the church.

I was so relieved just to be making it to church today. Earlier this week I had 3 days in a row of cramping and lots of contractions that left me thinking I could have this baby any day. But I had so much for Primary that I NEEDED to get done today! I prayed he'd stay put, and yesterday and today I felt great! I got everything I needed to done for Primary. We also had a teacher training after church and it turned out wonderfully. All of our teachers came and the Spirit really attended our meeting. I had a great talk with one teacher after the meeting and also had a wonderful chat with one of my counselors as I drove her home. It was one of those Sundays where you work hard, but you come away feeling rested and refreshed!

During Sacrament meeting the girls and I sat in the front row even though Michael was still off at his meetings. They were really good overall. Lenora kept making cute faces at the family behind us. She is at such a cute age! She also kept trying to twirl during the closing song. It's one of those moments when you wonder if you should let her because she's just so sticking adorable, or teach her it's not okay to twirl during church. Those are tough decisions. Eliza colored yellow carrots in her notebook and "read" over the talk she had prepared to give in Primary. Hazel wanted to learn how to braid using one of our quite books where you braid the lion's tail. I showed her once or twice and she picked it up! This afternoon she insisted on practicing over and over and has already mastered a simple braid! For some reason, it makes me feel like she's growing up way too fast.

I had Michael take the girls outside for a bit while I cooked. We ate a yummy dinner. Lenora decided the sweet and sour chicken and fried rice were"bleh!" and threw a fit when I made her try a bite. So she just ate broccoli for dinner. But the rest of us enjoyed dinner. Then we were able to catch Skype with both Michael's parents and my parents. Eliza "read" the book Bad Kitty to grandma and grandpa Ballard (she's been listening to it on CD over and over all week). During Skype with my parents Hazel was cracking up about my dad sneaking the treats for their Primary class while my mom was teaching the lesson.Of course Gram spent some time reading the big girls books.

Lenora went down for bed but since the older girls had napped a bit we let them stay up and play a game. They picked "Bubble Talk." It's honestly a bit over their heads, especially for Eliza, but they love it and it's a nice change of pace from Candy Land and other kid games. Tonight a few of their picks that had us all rolling in laughter. Sometimes Michael and I were just laughing about how hard Hazel was laughing. That and how my belly shakes when I laugh. I'm smiling just thinking about it.

The big girls went to bed, then Michael and I cleaned up the kitchen and general clutter. Now we're settled for the night watching football and typing this up while checking on the lunar eclipse that's occurring.

I'm so thankful for today and for our lives right now. I look forward to reading this someday and remembering what a normal "today" looked like at this time in our lives.