Brian and I just got back from a seven mile run. I'm on a quest to become a runner again. He and I stayed up until midnight painting the study and putting it back in order. This morning we were out of coffee, so I went grocery shopping at 6:30. This may be a long day.

While out running, he and I spent a long time talking about school and the impact it could potentially have on our family. Brian is so supportive of me and thinks that nursing is the better or the two options I've considered. I am so thankful to have a husband that believes in me even when I doubt my own abilities. He's a good man.

I've got some sewing projects I've been putting off for some time: lining the drapes in the office, and sewing some pillows for the Adirondack chairs in the front yard. Today will be the day I check those off my list. I miss sewing. When I have a reliable machine, sewing is one of the most pleasurable activities I can do. It's up there with mowing the yard.

We bought Olive a sandbox for her birthday last month, and it has been used so much more than we imagined it would be, not just by Hazel and Olive, but also by William and John. It's both sweet and comical to see these two teenagers out there setting up toy soldiers in the sand while their sisters make sand castles next to them. We've spent more time with the younger four this week than with the older two. It's wonderful when we're all together, but in some ways I think that William an John feel anxious and more competitive when Margaret and Sam are around. They're caught between boyhood and manhood. I think there's a big part of them that still wants to be boys, but when they're with the older two, they're afraid they'll be ridiculed and teased for their boyish ways. I will be sad when my children one by one fly the coop, but I also look forward to the changing family dynamics, and how we'll get to know those left behind in a more intimate way. There's always something to look forward to. There's no denying I'm the eternal optimist! ha!

I'm getting a mole looked at today at Westlake Dermatology. I noticed that it has changed shape a bit and seems more raised. It's on my chest near below my collar bone, and not in a place that's regularly exposed to sunlight. I've always thought of it as my special mole because the first time Brian saw it was when I was in my wedding dress, and it's actually kind of pretty, like a beauty mark, if I can say so without sounding vain. Brian said he'll be disappointed if I have to have it removed. Of course the alternative is worse.

I'm reading this book right now, and it makes me with Brian and I had had nine children. I love reading about large families, at least large families that are fun. I so admire women that can love each of their little ones uniquely as they need.