A mother's work is never done...

A quick post about all that I didn't get done today... I only work four nights a week for two hours, plus the two hours in the afternoon on Wednesday. That doesn't sound like very much, but it seems that time is harder to find than you might think. One of the problems is that I get "urgent" requests from work, and I hate to disappoint, so I work more than ten hours a week. The other problem is that entertaining and caring for Olivia, in addition to trying to keep the house in order, dinner made, lunch packed, laundry done, bottles washed, dishes done, dogs walked, and myself presentable is exhausting. So, when Olivia goes to sleep, there is usually more to be done around the house. Here are the things I would like to get accomplished in the next couple of weeks:

1. Edge all the flower beds (front and back).
2. Trim all bushes (right now it looks like our house has been abandoned with the overgrowth.)
3. Finish the beds on the back hill.
4. Dig up raspberry bushes and vegetable garden and plant blueberry bushes (which are MUCH easier to maintain).
5. Mulch all beds.
6. Wash baseboards in all rooms of the house. (In addition to the weekly cleaning of everything...which seems to take a week as I do bathrooms one day, floors one day, kitchen one day, etc. since I do it during Olivia's naps.)
7. Put 4-month pictures in the album.
8. Clean out office; bring books home and organize. (They haven't kicked me out of my work office since they haven't hired anyone yet.)
9. Get new bedskirt for guest bedroom. Put it on.
10. Get new side table for Olivia's room. Take mine back.
11. Pack up small pack 'n play.
12. Wash curtains, iron, hang again.
13. Wash our duvet cover.
14. Hang pictures in office.
15. Start going to Children's Hands On Museum on Monday afternoons with Olivia and some other mothers and their babies from the neighborhood.
16. Start going to reading time at the library on Wednesday mornings.
17. Get out Halloween decorations.
18. Figure out how to get to one yoga class a week and start going. Doing it on my own just isn't as challenging...because I don't challenge myself!
19. Help Nicholas finish the bookcase.

We had a great Saturday today, though not too productive. After walking this morning, playing, and napping, Olivia and I went to the grocery. We made home-made stuffing and chicken (thanks for the recipe, Steph! It was a hit!) and carrot cake. After Olivia went to sleep, I finished laundry, washed bottles and finished dishes. I also started pruning the bushes in the front, but only got about half-way before I decided it wasn't such a good idea to be doing that in the dark. While I was cooking, Nicholas played with Olivia outside.



After I gave her a bath, Olivia rolled over and didn't want to roll back. I can't blame her since I was just going to slather her in Eucerin, Aquafor, and prescription cortisone for her eczema. She is as slippery as a greased pig by the time I am done!



I am now convinced that Olivia is teething. She drools all the time; I have to keep a bib on her even when she is not eating. She puts her fingers on her gums all the time, and her schedule is just off. They say that will happen when she is going through a change. We'll see when we find that first pearly white!