Pottys, fender benders and insomnia. Oh my.

November 1st.  What a busy month. Most importantly, my parents wedding anniversary. 52 years the 21st. This is rarely ever heard of anymore. I am very thankful we were able to have such a huge shebang for them on their 50th! Message to Granny: you will be 90 next year. Expect a party similar in size.

Halloween is over. I took all four of my babies. Yes Peyton. You are still a baby. Even tho you turn 13 in two months (I just puked in my mouth a little) you will always be a baby to me. My first baby. We have literally grown up together. I would not trade last night for no amount of money in the world. Watching my oldest baby take my youngest baby by the hand and lead him to a front door while packing his bucket of candy for him so he would not trip over his devil tail was the greatest!

I am reminded of Halloween when I was a kid. One in particular. My cousins and I grew up together. We were neighbors. One year well after dark I got a phone call from Christy. I can't remember my age but I'm guessing I was 14. Maybe 15. She had concocted a plan for us to toilet paper a friends house. I ran the idea by my parents and they agreed to let us reek havoc on the neighbors for the night. This should have been a clue, but I was so excited to be out after dark on Halloween with the rest of the mischievous people that I didn't think this could ever back fire. Our parents helped us revise our plan and sent us on our way a couple miles down the road to the first poor souls house. We parked exactly where our parents suggested. The car was hidden. We started our mile walk back to our victims house. Half way there we watch a car slip up beside our car. Someone gets in it, starts it up and drives away. It's 11pm. We are 2 miles from home. The jokes on us since only a few people knew were were had decided to park the car. Nice. They got us! After we cried, screamed and ran back to try and stop the hijacker from stealing Christys car it dawned on us. We'd been had by our parents! They were laughing so hard they were crying when we made it home.

I thought of that night today while I was taking Mom to get her weekly wash and set. And the time  I wanted to be a princess but she made me go as a California Raisin. Dad would say "Halloween isn't about being pretty." Those words have stuck with me, and my children never go "pretty" either. Unless you count the one time Peyton dressed up in my old cheerleader skirt and wore a blond wig with pink Chucks.

I have not blogged in some time. I am sorry about that. I had no idea that anyone really read them on a regular basis. (Thank you Christy. It means a lot that you have missed them)

I get sick of being the barer of bad news all the time but my brother and my sister in law have been on my mind for a few weeks now. They have been married 17years. My brother means more to me than I could ever express. All of my best child hood memories include him. And his wife is one of the most loving, kind, compassionate women I have ever met. They lost a baby a few weeks ago. If they were to come to your mind please send them happy, healthy, heart healing thoughts. My heart hurts for them in a way I didn't realize it could hurt for someone else.

I went ahead and took the placement test. I felt good about it at the time but that soon faded away to thoughts of disappointment. I should have never taken it. I always knew I was not the most intellectual pea in pod, but to have it on paper stinks.

Ohhh......I was fortunate enough to have gotten hit at the little store in Hiseville yesterday. Some older man backed right up and nailed me in my passenger side door. We were sitting still,  fixing to pull out onto the highway and he creamed my SUV. I made the last payment on it yesterday. Ironic.

Zac stayed home from school today. He's been sick for several days. I have been up with one child or another for several nights. Exhausted is a understatement.

I have one last funny thing to share and then it's bedtime in the Smith Household. I sat out Evyn's potty in hopes when he decides to take his diaper off and pee he might decide to go to the potty as opposed to  peeing in the floor. I check it on a regular basis to see if he has left me any surprises. This morning I discovered he had hidden his Halloween candy in his potty. I'm sure he was thinking "none of them will ever think to look in here for my candy."