End of the Year Lull

I feel like I'm in such a rut this last week. I can't seem to get anything done. I start off the day great, but by noon, it's shot. The afternoon rushes along, and before I know it, it's dinner time and little has gotten done. I think I need to start a new routine and stick with it. Abigail needs more time focused on her. Isabella is more laid back these days, and Vincent is playing more independently. Abgail, though, is in a stage and needs my attention a bit more than she had been. I'm thinking of taking a couple 15-30 minute blocks two or three times a day and simply focusing on her and what she wants to do. We started off today by playing Connect Four together before Isabella woke up. She's working to grasp the logic of the game rather than simply putting in checkers randomly. She also read me a book when we woke up ("You've got to hear this one. It's so funny" she told me).

The kids got so much for the holidays from our families. I'm struggling to find places for some of it, especially those items which are too small for Vincent. Luis' family went way overboard, as usual. I think MIL thinks of our children as hers still because she buys gift like she's giving from Santa too, not the gift or two from a grandparent like I was raised with. BIL has only our children to buy presents for and always gets too much. The kids got more from BIL and M/FIL seperately than they did from us. My family kept the gift giving to a minimum, but one present for each of three kids from each of an aunt, an uncle, two great-aunts and two grandparents adds up quickly, even when some of those presents are clothes.

I managed to get another little pair of booties done for our friends before dinner last night. Thank you, Kathy/pritty for sending me a pattern booklet! I'll get that back to you when I go to the PO next. Vincent's sweater didn't get finished in time, it still needs two and a half seams. We found out on the morning of the 24th that my dad's wife's parents were going to be at Dad's on the 25th, and we had nothing to give them. Dh had a new box of golf balls for him, but we had nothing for her. So, I grabbed a ball of yarn and knit furiously during our two drives that day to create a bias-knit scarf instead of seaming the sweater like I'd intended to.

I'm having a work panic. The diapers have been really slow this fall for some reason, and my sewers decided to quit. Both of them, yesterday. I'm going to have to advertise again and hopefully find someone quickly. I can sew the regular diapers if I need to, but I am an awful serger (and don't even own a serger anymore), so I can't do the knit terry or overnight diapers. AACCKK!! I can't even think about it right now. Plus I've got to slog through my end of the year accounting, ugh.

DH was called back into work finally yesterday. :happy dance However, he will have to work tomorrow, New Years Day, so there goes our plans for tonight. :( :( He's going to call the union and see about other work. This company is having too many layoff days and is too unorganized. Plus the jobs they are doing are freakishly far away. He's had to drive 1.5 hours each way many days, and now the next job is over by Milwaukee! Uh, I don't think so. There's no way that will work. So, more changes are coming here. This has not been a fun fall.

Well aren't I a downer today? Time to get offline, play with the kid and brighten my mood.