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If you know anything about me, you know that I always, always clean my house on Mondays.  I do this because I like to have a fresh canvas for us to trash all week long.  This past Monday was not that different, except that I took my house-wifey duties with a big, fat chip on my shoulder.  Sometimes I can't stand the thought of folding one more towel or scrubbing the toilet only to have some little boy pee all over the seat an hour later.  {sigh}  We Moms have it tough sometimes.  Well, you'll be happy to know I got over it.  Mopped the floors, scrubbed the tubs, and vacuumed the floors.  And as I sat relaxing in my bed that night, I had to admit how much I love having a tidy home.  As monotonous as it can be, I love to do that for my family.  I love that they can count on me.  I love that every night they get dinner, and that most nights they complain about whatever I make (except Noah, he is a gracious and complimentary eater).   I love it even as it is exhausting me.  It's one of those crazy/mixed-up things about being a parent.  It's like when you are so excited to have a weekend get away from the kiddos only to find that you miss them the entire trip and can't wait to get home.  I swear this has got to be the hardest job on the planet.  

Well, back to the real business.  We had a great week besides the aforementioned chip on my shoulder. After we left the library, we found this cute memorial park and decided to linger for a few.  Wy and Cy, my day time pals at the water feature wishing with all of their little hearts they were wearing swim trunks.

Climbing a tree while a sour-faced man kept glaring at us.  It's a free country!  We can climb if we want! 

Crossing this little bridge.  They did stop to dance, but I could not load the video.

Calvin decided to open his own library here at home.  He deviated from the standard shelf format and went with the basket route instead.  That's what I like about the Calvin M. Shafer Memorial Library.  You literally have to dig for the good read you're after.  

At the sign-in page, you can register to win a prize after reading 100 books.  You win a three ring binder.  I want that binder SO BAD.  I've been reading like crazy to try and get it.  

I was his first patron.  I borrowed two books of poetry which look very, very similar to a few that I once owned only yesterday.  

Also important to note is that Noah and I decided it was time to get some new pillows.  And we decided that we were going to get our dream pillows.  My pillow is the one on the left, and Noah's is the one on the right.  No, the irony is not lost on me.  That's why it's blog fodder.  I chose a nice foam, latex one, while Noah went for the Jumbo Sobokowa (which he claims to be very comfy.)

This weekend, we took a quick trip up to the Tent Rock monuments.  We had a great time.  We took the boys on a small, but fun hike.  Before we even got started, Wyatt saw a squirrel and threw him a graham cracker.  I wish you could have heard him chewing on it.  It was so funny.  

Cyrus lasted about a half mile (which I think is quite a bit for a little boy).  Then he grabbed a ride with me.  

Noah was a great leader.  You can tell he was an Eagle Scout.  He brought his fancy, Marine knife and binoculars.  Every few yards, he would take his knife and cut off a cactus limb or stab a tree.  The boys thought it was crazy-awesome.  And I'm not going to lie - - I did too.  So we hiked and rested and walked and stabbed and rested and walked and hiked.  

Noah showing off the chopped off cactus limb.  It was cool to look inside.

We have only a few regrets about our hike: wearing long pants (it was too hot) and not getting the full menu from Denny's when we stopped afterwards for lunch.  It turns out the hostess only gave us the promotional menu, and we thought that was all they had, so we ate sorry lunch.