kisses, contests, & our crazy day

This morning started out as usual with my 20 minute workout, a shower while the kids watched a movie, and then yummy oatmeal* before dashing out the door for the Library's Storytime program. Sam got himself dressed this morning without complaint - so what if every last article of clothing was on backwards right? I ran with Julia's "bedhead & bow" look and got away with it. We broke our library rule about not checking out any more books until the first set is returned. Oops. In the check out line my phone started vibrating. I assumed it was PapaBear calling to say good morning, but instead MckMama was on the other end of the line asking if I was up for a Target playdate.

Count us in!

And so we were off...twenty minutes later our gaggle of kids were chattering their way through the shoe aisle as we hunted for flip-flops. A few more random items later and our shopping was done. Lunch in the cafe is always a treat. My kids ate so much I had to go back up for seconds.

Suckers in the car helped keep them awake long enough for the 15 minute drive home. I tossed the kids in bed and sat down to catch up on some emails. That's when I remembered that I was suppose to check on the contest I'd entered last week. The voting periods are short and they were already in full swing! I anxiously tried to log into my account to get at least one vote registered before the hour was up. I didn't make it. drat.

It isn't very often that a photo contest moves along this quickly so we'll know tomorrow if we made it to the next round. What's on the line?

Prizes:

· The Grand Prize winner will receive a $1,000 Gander Mountain gift card, a $500 Rapala combo gift pack and a $500 Visa gift card.
· 1^st runner-up receives a $500 Gander Mountain gift card, a $250 Rapala combo gift pack and a $100 Visa gift card.
· Eight 2^nd runners-up will receive a $100 Visa gift card.

Pretty sweet huh? I'm really hoping that this picture of Julia is sweet enough to real in the big one. If you have a moment and want to click over to the contest site all you have to do is register to vote and then when you've verified your account (through your email) you can vote by searching "Julia's Mom" for a picture of Julia kissing a sunfish. (You can vote once an hour until tomorrow morning.)

While I was scrambling to get my account set up the doorbell rang. I ran downstairs (in my polka-dot pajama pants) to quiet the dog and answer the door. A family that I spoke with in the campground last weekend has a daughter who's getting married next October and I mentioned that I am a photographer. Not one to pass up an opportunity, I sent them around to the porch and brought out my business materials so we could talk shop.

Today I considered a trip to Target a playdate and held a business meeting in my purple pajama pants.

Did I mention that I have a photoshoot later?

There's a garden in a neighboring town that contains some rare flowers and a friend called and asked if I could come take some quality photographs for them to send in to a professional for identification.

This is my life....and I love it!


* I've finally figured out the trick to making crockpot oatmeal! MckMama has been coaching me (thanks J!) and FINALLY I figured out what works best for my crockpot.

1 cup Scottish Oatmeal (steel cut, but chopped up)
3 cups water
1 cup vanilla almond milk
Cook on warm setting all night
In the morning turn on low for 30-60 min (this gives me time to exercise, shower, and get the kids dressed before coming downstairs for the day)

Leftovers go in the refrigerator and the next day I add a splash of almond milk and a splash of water and turn it on high during my workout.