O blog, why do I struggle

I have been trying to post for days, but everything has either been stressful, negative or mundane, and I figure everyone already has enough of that in their lives right?

So, instead I will share with you what we are up to...and what we are dealing with.

House is in chaos as the playroom is packed and getting ready for paint and carpet. I cannot wait until that room is done, organized and the baby has a safe place to play. The master bathroom is ready to be primed and painted. We will also be putting in a new floor in both upstairs bathrooms, but not until June or so. The rest of the house is being scrubbed and cleaned and organized, spring cleaning is the best! The plans for the garden are underway, seeds will be started next week, and Ry has orders to build the raised bed in the front side yard. The kid's playset was falling apart, so we are ordering a new "kit" and Ry will build the new frame. The playset is also moving from the backyard to the cleared area on the side of the house. Gray has big plans for a fort there too, right on the edge of the woods, so I am hoping we can make that happen for his birthday. Lastly, the move of the playset has opened a nice little spot for the pool we got last year and never set up. The kids will be so excited!

Now here is what we are dealing with. First we need to address the drainage issue out back so we don't flood. Second, I am super stressed about comp results, they are not in yet. Third, my parents come this weekend and did I mention we are in major renovations? Fourth, my oldest kid is bringing home crap grades, has a crap attitude and basically is lazy and sloppy. Not sure how much MORE strict we can be, but if she brings home one more bad paper, she is out of activities and she will be in big ole trouble with me. We also began the no TV on school days rule this week, and I am hoping that will allow me more time to get her to sit down and do what she needs to do. She is so smart, but she needs to pay attention to what she is doing! She is failing spelling tests because she refuses to practice the words...so now she will be writing them 5 times and spelling them orally 5 times a day for me as a way to ensure she knows them. Parenting is hard.

Oh...and I had a really bizarre dream last night with Gordon Ramsey in it...really bizarre.