For instance, my children have a habit of leaving their shoes out on the back deck rather than taking them off, picking them up and bringing them to the closet where they belong. For years I would either repeatedly remind them or pick up the shoes myself and that would just make me angry on the inside. I decided that an angry mom is the last thing my children need so I quit reminding and the shoes remained exposed to the elements. All it took was one good downpour of rain (in the form of a water pitcher) and the children decided that wet shoes were disadvantageous to having dry feet. Problem solved.

Well, that one anyway.

If only it were always that easy. I still get stuck on the name calling/teasing thing that takes place amongst my magnificent seven. I’ve used several different methods to curb the bickering that goes on from sunrise to sunrise. None of them have stuck and so every once in a while I overhear a mean exchange which I cannot ignore.

A few days ago I heard Isaiah say something highly innapropriate to his little sister and, with the speed of lightening, the perfect solution came to mind.

That’s right. Five minutes each side. He’s been the perfect gentleman since.

After being away for nearly two months, I have managed to reemerge from the population of those who are internetless and plain old “too busy” with the non-virtual world to have time to blog.

Translation: we couldn’t afford to keep the internet connection after I was sick with influenza for the entire month of March and had to say goodbye to my daycare family who was the sole reason I could afford the luxury of connecting to the world wide web.

I spent March recovering in bed which meant I spent April trying to reorganize a home which had been without a wife and mother the entire time. You ladies know what I mean. I won’t go into the ugly details. Let’s just say that I had no idea the base of a toilet could grow a mushroom.

I came out of that nasty illness with a new enthusiasm for my role in this home. It feels so good to scrub a floor and hang clothes on the line to dry in the sun. I’m itchy to plant our garden and spend an afternoon pulling weeds. I am so thankful to have energy again! God bless those who are bound to a bed in pain and too weak to sit upright.

For those who wondered what happened to me, I apologize for not sending word ahead of time. I can’t wait to catch up on your blogs!