Hi everyone. This week began with a long day of car time and soccer games on Sunday. The high-point became this pit-stop at a ice cream shop. It’s not even full-on summer and I had begun putting ice cubes on my forehead to cool down after so many hours outside, so the ice cream was welcome. Getting my boys to their soccer games has required me to get in our family’s car and drive, drive, drive more than I am accustomed to. With each drive, I become less overwhelmed and more comfortable, so seeing some progress there.

A close friend Alex recently turned 40 and on Tuesday I celebrated her birthday over a yummy breakfast with some pre-school moms. How amazing it is when these mom groups evolve and stay together! Figuring out how to keep in touch with friends gets tougher as kids get older and families get busier! Grateful to join up with these lovely ladies and talk about books, kids, life, and survival in the city, I savored these calm, fun moment together. My friend Natalia recounted a hilarious story about how someone had stolen her laundry from her building’s laundry room. Since the same thing has happened to me — I know what you’re thinking, WWWHHHAAAATTT?? — I could relate.

One of Alex’s presents was this super book with inspiring quotes from Leo Tolstoy. The giver recommended reading a few quotes each day for wisdom. I am going to buy a copy. And enter our weekly giveaway below to win one for yourself!

Here’s one of my favorite Leo Tolstoy quotes that hits home for me:

Can you believe this baby of mine turned 11! Hedley approaches life the way you seem him blowing out his favorite chocolate cake — with a lot of enthusiasm and a dash of drama. I love the picture below since you see Annaliese just taking in her big brother…getting to see that is one of the joys of motherhood! Hedley loves his sisters and helped me out today by entertaining the girls during several sessions of Chutes and Ladders. Love you, big boy!

Last up for this week, my little Princess of Pink, clad in her favorite Children’s Place hoodie. Marielle loves taking pictures and she made me take a whole series: with the hood, without the hood, saying at the end “Magic, Mommy.” When you’re four, a lot of life does seem to be magic and when you’re looking at your own four year old little girl, the magic is even more pronounced

So that’s it for this week’s Weekly Wrap Up. Make sure to enter below to win a copy of “A Calendar of Wisdom” by Leo Tolstoy and a $50 Amazon gift card.

Oh, and here are my goals for the week:

Practice my handstand. I’ve been getting better at my headstand, but yogi friends have told me the handstand is a lot harder to come by. Wish me luck! Going to practice against the wall in my bedroom.

Fix my computer — all my data and programs were stripped off last week, and only some came back when we transferred everything back, so I’ll be boogying back to the Apple Store.

Buy a new toaster. Our wedding gift chugged along for 12 years before crashing under the pressure of frozen waffles.

Figure out my parent’s 50th anniversary gift and coordinate with my siblings on that.

Finish the spring cleaning in my closet and decide what to do with old clothes. I’m planning to give away things I haven’t worn in 2 years to the church — can I be that disciplined about it? We’ll see.

Call back my friend Annie in Tampa. Miss and love her. Facebook doesn’t cut it for staying in touch with your besties. Her best time to talk is 8am on the way to work, so putting that into my calendar!

Oh, and for those who were wondering, I’m pleased also to report that a lovely gentleman fixed our dishwasher this past week by replacing the electrical panel — small victories!

I find that setting personal goals is a great way to stay accountable – and to remember everything you want to get done in the first place!

Thanks so much for following CloudMom. I’m sending love and gratitude to you all, and enjoy the long weekend.

xo Melissa

Weekly Giveaway

Prizes: One (1) $50 Amazon gift card and one (1) A Calendar of Wisdom Quotes by Leo Tolstoy book.

Rules

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Open to U.S readers.

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different ways you can enter to increase your chances of winning. The giveaway ends on Friday, May 29, 2015 at 11:59 PM (Eastern Time).

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