I don't even know what to say

I thought of several titles for this post- " You can't do it all" " While the cat's away the mice will play" " I can't turn my back for a moment" "just keepin it real" and so forth and so on.
Several of my friends have been talking about the frustration of the never ending cleaning cycle, so I am joining in.
This morning I decided it was time to clean a little bit, or a lot maybe. Having a small house can be nice, in that it doesn't take very long to clean, but it also seems to get messy much faster. It was really the bedrooms that needed sprucing up and organizing- the living room/kitchen was relatively clean, so I took advantage of Seb's morning nap to tackle the rooms. I told my older boys to play outside- got their shoes on, coats on etc. Then I got to work. They played outside for a little bit- then I heard them come in, but I figured since they were quiet I wouldn't check on them. Instead I focused on actually finishing a job for once. This is what I came out too about half an hour later. I wish I had a before picture.








But the bedrooms are spotless! Now on to the living room again!

Smiles and Slime

We have enjoyed having Steve's father in town for the past several weeks. He left to return to France yesterday, but it was a great chance for the boys to get to know their foreign grandpa a little bit better. As a result of his visit, we have had a lot of company and been out a lot more than usual which has made for a few very tiring but interesting weeks. Wednesday night we had some French missionaries who were on furlough here for dinner. Steve's dad has helped them in the past and I actually knew Suzanne at Covenant my Freshman year. We were both voice majors and seemed to have a lot in common. She also married a French musician. I hadn't seen her in eight years but we still seemed to have a lot in common when she walked in the door with three little boys. As we were introducing our children, we discovered that we had both named our sons Etienne! I never thought there would be two little boys with that name in one place. It was pretty funny. Anyways- we had a lovely evening despite six little guys running around in a small area.
Now that our company is gone, it is already time to start looking towards the holidays. Thanksgiving is less than two weeks away! I am hosting my first Thanksgiving this year which I am excited about. It will be on the small side, but that should be nice.
We have also decided to spend Christmas here this year which has been a difficult decision. What with the lovely economy and taking time off of work and three little babies etc. it just seemed like a bad year to go, or a good year to stay here I guess. In some ways I am excited to decorate my own house and try to start our own little family traditions, but being away from all the cousins and aunts and uncles and mom and dad- well, we will bear it as best we can.

Wondering about the title of this post? Well, here are the first shots I have managed to get of Seb smiling. He is seven weeks already. I can't believe it.
The slime has to do with the banana mousse that Etienne invented for his hair this morning during breakfast . It was quite impressive.
I have also included a few more attempts at a threesome shot. Still not great I am afraid. Maybe we will get a good one in time for our Christmas picture.