Worry creeps in as you look at the clock. The counting begins. “If I get her down in the next half hour, I can get to sleep by midnight and end up with six hours of shut eye.”

Hovering over your newborn’s cradle, you lower her tiny body down to the mattress. She stays asleep. You dare not draw breath. This is the umpteenth time you’ve tried to put her to bed tonight. She’s going to stay asleep this time. You are willing it to happen.

Tiptoe feet bring you to the master bathroom where you begin to brush your teeth, looking adoringly at your pillow simultaneously. You may be a tired new mama, but you haven’t lost your peripheral vision. As your cool cotton sheets, the cucumber colored ones you got on sale at Kmart back when they used to sell the Martha Stuart line, settle down around your tired body, you are almost already asleep.

And then.

The crackles on the baby monitor space out a bit. You hope against hope that you didn’t just hear your baby girl draw breath and then gurgle. Clamping your eyes shut and turning down the volume on the monitor, you pray it was just your imagination. It wasn’t, and before long your sweet pumpkin is wailing. Like it or not, it’s not your bedtime, Mama.

And you wonder to yourself, “Will it ever end?”

After darting from one bathroom to the next, hoping to find the commode with the smallest number of your children nearby to it, you find the hallway bathroom to be empty, not a soul around. Half of your children are watching Barney while the others are drawing with colored pencils, hopefully still only on paper. This is it. Your chance to use the toilet. Alone.

Popping in to the bathroom, hurrying a bit just in case, you switch on the light and start to pull the door shut behind you. But there’s a little resistance. The door seems to be stuck on something. You tug a bit more, but the door won’t come. Then you see them.

Pudgy, round fingers hold onto the door. A small voice from the other side of the door asks, “What are you doing, Mommy?” You made it to the bathroom alone today, but you couldn’t so much as close the door before the bloodhounds found you. You simply want to excrete in peace, but instead you are constantly bombarded by bathroom invaders.

“Will it ever end?”

It is bedtime for your brood, but not if they have anything to say about it. For the last hour and a half, you bathed them, brushed their hair, clipped their nails, lotioned their legs, diapered their bottoms and jammied their little bodies. They are perfectly ready for bed. And you cannot wait.

They, however, can. Once all the bedtime songs are sung and the lights are all out, things seem to be only just beginning. First, it’s “jus’ one more kiss.” You can’t say no to that, now can you? Then, “I’m firsty.” You point out where the cup of water is, reminding your son that it’s in the exact same place within reach on his bedside table as it’s been for years. No sooner can you exit firsty child’s room before his brother is having trouble locating his blanket and needs help. Then it’s, “I can’t fall asleep,” “I’m scared,” “Will you sing me another song?” “My legs don’t work,” and “Can I get up yet?”

“No, darling. Not until morning.” If your children don’t go to sleep soon, you may as well just get them up and feed them breakfast. You can’t help but wonder, “Will it ever end?”

The moon goes ’round the earth, the earth goes ’round the sun. Summer, fall, winter, spring.

Your daughter’s high school graduation open house is over. Her ceremony is on Saturday. Your minivan is packed to the hilt with her college stuff. She’s moving in early because she got a job on campus. That night as she is out for pizza late with her friends, you vacuum her bedroom and pack up a few sundry things for her in the extra boxes still leaning against her wall. A love letter from her boyfriend covers an old cassette player. Pushing play, you discover an old tape she must have made when she was about four is in the player. “Mommy!? Can I play wiff this?” Her tiny voice sings out, followed by made up tunes, poems and silly talk.

“Will it ever end?” Yes. It is starting to.

Your firstborn son lives far away now, with his beautiful wife. You couldn’t be more thrilled to have a grandbaby, though seeing the little guy more often would be wonderful. He has grown into a fine man, your oldest son has. His brother has, too. You are proud of them. So proud. Reaching this new level in your life has brought so much joy. You have long since painted over the fingerprints in your stairwell. And, oddly, you miss them as you remember the joy that was in that season as well. At Christmastime when your children are home, it isn’t until the last day of their visit that you stand in the kitchen and hear running, realizing they still sound like a herd of elephants, pounding down the stairs. Bigger elephants now but elephants just the same.

Years ago, you would have banged your head on the kitchen counter, asking, “Will it ever end?” when you heard them run down the stairs loudly, waking the baby. Again. But now, you don’t ask yourself that question anymore. Your children have chased their children out the door and are buckling them into carseats, freshly opened Christmas gifts smooshed into the cracks around them. The clamor, dirty fingers, sleepless nights, endless bathroom interruptions and banging on the stairs exit the door with your family, gone like a spring breeze between the curtains.

“Will it ever end?” Yes, friends. It will end. And we will miss it when it does. So as much as we can as meager human mothers, let’s savor it until it then.

I love my teeth.

I love my teeth, I love taking care of my teeth and I love my children’s teeth. 

I do not, however, love taking care of my children’s teeth. Of course, I do it. I don’t really mind it all that much. But? With five little kids, that’s a lot of little teeth! And, like with most things I set my mind to, I want to do it well. Taking care of their teeth, that is.

With old fashioned, er, manual toothbrushes, I never felt like I got my MSC’s teeth perfectly clean. Free of all those “sugar bugs” we call the scummy coating on our teeth.

Until shopping at my favorite bulk shopping establishment. You know the one. I came across the Spinbrush. I have long used the other kind of wiggly toothbrush for myself. You know the one. But I was not going to buy something that permanent for my children who, well, are not so careful with permanent things.

Except with permanent markers, that is. Things had gone so well in the Sharpie department for so long until about two weeks ago. A bored Small Fry, a red marker and her bedroom. But I’ll give her this: She did not color on the walls. That she obeyed that rule she made clear to me. But she left her John Hancock on pretty much every other thing in the room. Classy. 

But back to teeth. I gave the Spinbrush a try. And? Getting Many Small Teeth perfectly smooth and clean even while the owner of said teeth is wriggling around the bathroom suddenly became possible. 

Problem? Solved.

The problem of strep throat in our house has finally been solved. And now that it is, guess what I got?

You got it.

New toothbrushes.

The makers of ARM & HAMMER® products challenged me to switch to ARM & HAMMER Spinbrush ProClean. I did! And this summer, if it ever turns summer here in the Frozen Tundra, they are giving away $12,000 in the ARM & HAMMER Switch & Save Challenge Sweepstakes. Um, whoa. That would buy a lot of Spinbrushes. To be entered to win one of twelve $1,000 prizes, simply reply to the question below!

Remember to join other ARM & HAMMER Switch & Save conversations for even more chances to win!

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Arm & Hammer. The opinions and text are all mine. Official Sweepstakes Rules.

So the Fleaves are finally leaving us. And not a minute too soon.

It’s still chilly here. We can’t wait for it to warm up! Speaking of warm, I sort of half found out and half decided today that I’ll be taking a Xyngular trip to Las Vegas. In July. Uffda!!

Here is my patio couch sharing buddy yesterday as we chilled on the front porch.

I love him. And I love front porches. But not as much as I love him. He’s one of my best guys.

Nuggey got a haircut. Can you tell? Stellan got one, too. Flurry could probably use one, but I simply cannot decide what I’m doing with it! I keep trying to ask him what he thinks, but he won’t share. Hmpf. Big Mac is set on his hair, that’s for sure. I brought up the idea the other day of cutting it short, and he would have none of it. He actually told me, “I have my reasons.” Ha! Where does he come up with this stuff!?

Speaking of my firstborn, he lost his third tooth the other day. It had been over a year since he lost his first two! His fourth is, quite literally, dangling by a thread. I told him yesterday I was sure it was going to fall out that day. Whoops. Guess not.

Roobii has an eye infection. I guess having five people on antibiotics wasn’t enough for me! So now I give her pills twice a day, too. Anyone else like to join us in the probiotic aisle? Sheesh. But at least everyone is (finally) feeling better. That’s what counts.

The kitchen sink leaks. But only sometimes. Why? Because it wasn’t caulked in. At all. Only yesterday did I figure that out! Odd.

I’m sad about marriage things. Very sad. Very, very sad. Very, very, very sad. Do you get the idea? But the Lord is my strength and my shield. In Him I take refuge. He is my portion forever!!!

We had a wonderful visit with our friends from California, but alas, they had to go home. Friends are wonderful. So are homes. I’m thankful to have both.

And to have you guys. Really.

Goodnight!

Who is going to win the two Ignite Systems I’m giving away? You get to decide!!!

Here are the five entries I selected from my giveaway post, sharing in their own words:

1. Kymberlie

“I would love to win this because I’m sort of stuck right where I’m at and can’t seem to get any lower since I had my third baby six years ago. I’ve been walking (3 miles) a day and eat a balanced diet without a lot of junk food. I’m just stuck and my legs and belly just get bigger. With 2 kids with sensory disorders and strong wills, I am so glad to have my oldest child balance us out, but my hands are full and there just isn’t time in our homeschool schedule to add any extra workouts beyond my early morning walking routine (mixed in with the ocassional bike ride.)”

2. Melissa

“I am very overweight after having gastric bypass in 2004. Since then our youngest son was diagnosed with Asberger’s syndrome and that honestly takes up a lot of my time. I used to have a ton of energy and unfortunately have fallen into a deep depression. I feel like I need to lose the weight not only for my health but to be a more active mom to my four kids. A day doesn’t go by that I feel so disgusted by my weight. So for me it would be a blessing and a new beginning to win!”

3. Ali

“I have never struggled with weight like so many people I know and love have had to, but I’m leaving a comment to enter your giveaway because I’d love to win this for my sister. About six months after our son Ian’s cancer diagnosis, my youngest sister’s oldest son (recently turned 4) was diagnosed with cancer as well. It’s a completely different kind of cancer and doesn’t appear to be related at all (though they are doing all kinds of extensive genetic testing on our boys), but as you can imagine, two kids diagnosed with cancer within six months has really shaken up our family. My youngest sister has always had to work much harder than me to maintain her weight and has struggled with shedding her baby weight after her second boy. With everything she’s going through right now, I thought of her right away when I saw this, not just for the help with those stubborn pounds, but especially the energy and mood help, those would be so awesome for her as she goes through this very long struggle with her young family!”

4. Becca

“I would love to win this but not for me. For my husband. He has been trying to lose the same 30 pounds for years now. Years! I think this could be the thing to help him break the cycle of fast food addiction, lethargy and weight related depression. I know he just needs a kick start to do it! I love him just the way he is now but I know that he’d love himself more if he felt more like himself. Anyway, I’m sure that whoever wins this will use it for good.”

5. Jo

“I was abused as a youngster and hid my hurt with many addictions and habits. Long story short: I punished/rewarded myself with food/drugs/men. By the grace of God and my LOVING church family, I can say God has truly cleaned out my old junk and brought in the new creation. I am heavy and need a breast reduction to help my back issues. My insurance will pay for the reduction if I lose 80 pounds. I would get close, give up and eat myself fat every 3-5 yrs for the last decade. NOW I AM READY TO GO FOR THE GOLD! I would love to try these product so I can get off of disability get the suregery and be a living testimony that no matter what happens to you God can deliver you from it! I can say with all honesty I am healed by HIS stripes and would appreciate the chance to shine for Jesus to the women I counsel at a drug addiction center here in my town.”

What amazing girls, right!?

I didn’t want the pressure of deciding the big winner. So you get to vote! Just leave a comment on this post letting me know by number (You can also write their name, or say what you want, but if you have a number in your comment that will be easier for me to count, I think!) which person you are voting for. Oh, and do you remember that my dad is buying a second Ignite? So the two people with the most votes by noon tomorrow (Saturday, April 21) will each win an Ignite System! Each of you may only vote for one person. Pray over it, close your eyes and point, pick who you think deserves it or choose someone because they have the same name as you. However you want to vote, go for it! I will announce the winner sometime tomorrow. I promise!

Are you interested in Ignite for yourself? Just check the system out here, order it right here or ask any questions or get help from me by emailing me here: contact.mckmama (at) gmail.com.

Happy Friday!!

My kids are sick. Again.

Our friends from out of town are here. We’re having fun, in spite of it all

I turned off the comments on my Ignite giveaway post. My dad was reading through the comments and wanted to badly for more people to have a chance to be transformed with the Xyngular products that he decided to buy another Ignite System to give away to another of you!

I’ll post a bunch of names and comments later so that you guys can start voting to see which two people will win one!

Here is a photograph I took on our road trip of a sweet brother and sister.

It’s time for lunch. We just barely finished getting ready for the day after breakfast.

I’m rested and happy and not sick and at peace and joyful. Good things!

Have a great day. Talk soon!

Stellan has the Fleaves. When I was telling a friend this afternoon that Stellan had strep, Nuggey interrupted and said, “But I thought he had the Fleaves.” “He does, Son. That’s just what you guys call strep throat.” “Oh.” Small Fry is getting better now, but Stellan is still on the downward swing. This has been our first round of strep ever, with Big Mac getting it a few weeks ago. It’s terrible: high fever, headache and terrible abdominal pain. I asked the doctor to swab him even though his throat wasn’t red and he wasn’t complaining about it hurting. But I just knew it was. Poor, poor little guy.

MckDaddy and I have been trying to text and talk on the phone more. We’re on different pages, and it’s hard. I can’t believe it’s nearly been three months since we separated.

A dear friend of mine, Sandy, is flying out to spend some time with us! She and a couple of her children (she has four) will be here tomorrow. We are all so excited! She and I met on my MckCruise a few years ago and have been good friends ever since. I’ve seen her in California the few times I’ve been out there since, but this is their first time to head to the Frozen North. Cannot wait!

In Dollywood, Big Mac got called up on stage to “help” the magician. He loved it and has been talking magic ever since.

After he walked off the stage and as everyone was clapping, Small Fry stood up from her spot and before I could even think to stop her, just marched right up on stage herself. It was like she was thinking, “Well, it’s my turn now. We take turns with everything else in our family.” The magician rolled with it and quickly came up for something for her to help him with. Later, he squirted water repeatedly at the audience, but “accidentally” just hit Big Mac each time.

He was in hysterics!

I got my nose pierced yesterday. I love it! I had it pierced on the same side (left) as I had it done many years ago as a foreign exchange student. For years I could still get a stud in if I tried, but it’s been long since closed. But now it’s back. And I love it. Did I mention that!?

Goodnight!