And there was peace in the kingdom. . .

when the princess, Marley Yells-a-lot, went to sleep in her Cinderella sleeping bag.
And all people of the kingdom said, "Ahhhhhh!"

Notes from the day:

• Swim lessons went well. They started teaching them how to dive off the side of the pool. I can't believe, that today of all days, I didn't take my camera. Most of the kids were belly-flopping their way into the pool but not my kid. Oh no, she was over-rotating that little dive and landing on her back. It was so funny and so cool! Maybe tomorrow they'll do it again and I can get a picture because it is a classic. The instructor also had them doing some serious laps in the diving pool (width, not length of the pool) and I know it tired her out.
• Marley was alternately quietly entertained and not-so-quietly desiring to be entertained. I was brave and left Colin with her for almost two hours while I ran an errand. Let's just say I will use that option as a last resort and Colin is completely on board with that idea. When asked to describe his time with his sister, adjectives like horrible, loud, defiant were used very emphatically. After dinner, she settled down quite nicely and colored in her Hello Kitty coloring book and did some chalking outside on the driveway. She wanted to sleep in my room again, but after last night, I couldn't have her in my bed so she is safely ensconced in her sleeping bag on my floor.
• Colin helped me out a little around the house, did his once-every-three-months room cleaning and graciously refrained from doing permanent damage to his sister. He also spent some time on the computer. Surprise!
• I, no one faint here, loaded the dishwasher, washed the extra dishes that didn't fit, cooked some chicken for dinner and took out a little trash. Whew! I also started reading Lost Hollywood which Monica (Paul's sister) gave me for Christmas. It tells a lot of the old, old Hollywood stories about how the town became a movie town, who shot whom, etc. Very interesting.
• Linny and Squiggy (I mean, Nibbler) enjoyed a rough day of eating, sleeping and pooping. They're here all week, folks. Don't miss the show!
• Tomorrow we had some vague plans to go to the beach but instead, I think, we will go back to the university pool for open swim. It is so great to have something that two kids, eight years apart, both enjoy. My friend and her family will be joining us as they have memberships, also. This will also help Operation Wear Her Out. I'll work on the house a little more, read a little more, make some more dinner. The usual.

I guess that is about it. I was grateful today, after feeling a little rocky yesterday, for the quiet time reading while Marley "wrote" stories and Colin played on the computer. With all the raucousness** around here, it is nice when we find those still moments of companionship and peacefulness. I am also grateful to be healthy with normal, healthy kids, a working window air conditioner, a husband with a great job, terrific friends, a great church, a good family, books galore to read, more than adequate food and shelter. The list goes on and on.

Thank you, Oh Lord.

Teach me, dear Lord, to number my days;
that I may apply my heart unto wisdom.
Oh, satisfy me early with Thy mercy,
that I may rejoice and be glad all of my days.
And let the beauty of the Lord my God be upon me;
and establish Thou the work of my hands.
And let the beauty of the Lord my God be upon me;
and establish Thou the work of my hands.

**This is how I actually first spelled this word: rauckasness. It didn't look right, so I went to dictionary.com and figured out the correct spelling. This is further proof that I am, indeed, losing brain cells at an alarming rate.