Many Things

OK, so a lot has been going on this week, and it is just starting. This past weekend we got to hear from Elder Mast and Elder Jones of the seventy because we got a new stake president. I even got to shake their hands and talk with them briefly. They were amazing!!! And then yesterday Kristy and Tom had their baby girl Alice. She is adorable and so little, at least compared to when our kids are born.

And then this weekend I discovered something...which has taken me several years to figure it out. If I want my kids to clean, all I have to do is take everything away from them. My kids were fighting all afternoon on Friday and destroying the house. So I told them they were grounded on Saturday...no cartoons, no games, no playing with toys, nothing. So Saturday morning I started them on the chore list. So Byron and Emily cleaned their rooms, vacuumed their rooms, cleaned the hallways, wiped down the front & back doors, wiped down the table and chairs, wiped down walls with crayon marks, dusted the living room, swept the kitchen, and even scrubbed the bathrooms (OK just with wipes, but hey it helped me out). And when it was all over they were happy, and everyone was getting along great! Now why couldn't I figure this out a long time ago...it would have saved me some crazy, frustrating days. So thanks Byron and Emily for working so hard and doing what I asked with no complaints...you guys are amazing!!!

And this has also helped me to decide to make a chore list on Saturdays for the older guys to do before cartoons can be watched, and then they can earn more of an allowance. So I am excited to finally have kids old enough to do chores on their own, and know I will not have to follow them around redoing the jobs...thank goodness for wonderful kids!!