We love you Half-Pint!

In only 48 hours I will be travelling with my sweet husband and young teen son on a magical ride to the big city.

Yep, you got it right. We are off to see

LITTLE HOUSE ON THE PRAIRIE - THE MUSICAL!

Don't tell me you are not thrilled for me! I am estatic. Have been for months. Can't really say that for my boys, though. Dave is trying to find somebody, anybody, to have dinner with him in Nashville or Knoxville, or Tennessee for that matter, where he won't have to go into TPAC.

Eli is sad, cause, well, he is going on 14 and his mom signed him up to see

LITTLE HOUSE ON THE PRAIRIE - THE MUSICAL!

The best part is that Melissa Gilbert is starring as Ma Ingalls. Whoa! Isn't that awesome!

I loved the show SO VERY, VERY much when I was small.

My teddy bear's name was ... you guessed right.... Pa INGALLS!

I will keep everyone up to date on what a fab time that we have going on such a special date!

WOOO HOO!

silent night. oh, what a night.

Finally, the little kids are down. Every night, it is such a chore to get bathtime, teeths brushed, jammies on and get them in bed with no drama. It is exhausting, so tiring sometimes, that I wish I could just let them fall over and sleep where they land.

Except that they would be up until 2 a.m.

The earlier they go to bed, the better they act in the morning. Ah, what a difference a 8 p.m. bedtime makes! My mornings run SO smooth when they are in bed early.

This is a busy week. I have five tests this week, two on the same day - in Geology - back to back.

So, I guess I need to be studying.

Tomorrow, Emma has her first field trip. I can't go, I missed a day of work a couple of weeks ago to take my test. I am really bummed about missing her pumpkin patch trip. This is the first time that I am gonna miss something cause I stayed at home with Eli. We did not let her go last year, partly because she was only four, but mostly cause I had surgery the day before. She is excited. I am hoping someone takes some pictures. It is supposed to be a beautiful day.

Only six more weeks in the semester. Woo-Hoo!

When is it O.K. to voice your opinion?

Many times, I find myself having improper thoughts about things.

For example, if I see someone with an abnormally large head, I think, "Man, she has a big head." Or, if I see someone with whacked out fingers, I think, "Man, she has whacked out fingers."

The majority of the time, I never say this out loud. I think it, but I don't say it. And I sure never write it down for others to read.

Imagine my surprise, when recently, someone wrote something to me DIRECTED AT ONE OF MY KIDS.

Talk about kicking ass. Or dreaming of it, at least.

For the past week, I have been rehashing this over and over. Most of the time, this is in my head. A few times, oh several times, I have went over and over this with Dave. Finally, my mother in law told me to get over it.

I guess this story is not so much as to rehash it again. I think I am sick of thinking about it - today, anyways.

What it is about is how hard parents love their children.

I remember feeling this way when Eli was smaller. I remember the anger I would feel when he was wronged. I remember the stuff we went thru, how I wanted to kill people because they were affecting quality of life. I have disliked people immensely just because they hurt his feelings, excluded him or made snide comments.

I think that as time has went on, he has grown up, I have learned to let go a little bit. His problems are different now. I know that when that girl breaks his heart, I will feel like kicking some butt then.

My protective cycle has started with Emma. I can't stand people who direct their insecurities toward small children.