Woah!!! There went October!

October was a whirlwind of craziness in this household.  Between working Fright Fest at Six Flags, filling cake orders, cake class, making handmade costumes for the kids, and the general insanity of life, I didn’t have much time to breathe let alone blog. So, now it is time to catch up with what this Practical Imperfect Mom has been up to!

Up until August of 2011, I worked for Six Flags Magic Mountain doing a variety of jobs for the entertainment department.  Last year life finally got a little too busy for me to handle. I decided it was time to turn in my nametag, hang up my management clothes and spend my days home with the kids.  It has been a huge blessing to spend my time with my girls and I am so glad I did it. There really wasn’t much that I missed about my job except for October.  Fright Fest is such a fun time of year and many ex-employees return to work for a month and join in the fun.  When a friend contacted me and asked if I could help out, I jumped at the chance.  Why not right? Though I was extremely busy and at times it was a tad overwhelming, I had a blast! Seeing old friends and making new ones was really the highlight of my month.

Cursed Cast 2012

Maze of the night!

Princess Sunday

I have continued on with my cake class as well. In the advanced course we are learning a lot of new techniques and I’m still enjoying it just as much as before.  Here are a few of the cake projects I have worked on this month:

This year I made the decision to do handmade costumes for the kids.  I wanted them to have something that was well made and would be a keepsake for them. I am in no way a seamstress (in fact I have no idea what I am doing), but that did not stop me from diving in headfirst and giving it a try.  The kids looked adorable and had a great time. The hubby and I decided to dress up too (hey why not?) so we went with a 1940’s war era look.  I found a dress from modcloth.com and the hubby raided the army surplus. I may be a little biased, but I think we looked adorable. Of course we took our annual trip to the pumpkin patch as well.  The kids had a blast!

November should see me back to blogging again as usual. The Holidays and my Sweet Pea’s upcoming 5^th birthday are certain to keep me busy with lots of great Diy’s, recipes, and general splendor!

Frightfully fun!

Every year sine 2001 (excluding last year) I have been a part of Fright Fest at Six Flags.  I’ve done everything from managing mazes and shows to performing and building.  It really is my favorite time of the year to be there and while I quit working there full time last August, I decided I wanted to come back and play for Fright Fest because well… it’s just that much fun.

This year I will be managing a maze called “Cursed” and tonight is our dress rehearsal.  I’m really looking forward to the month of October.  Here are some photos of previous Fright Fest fun! Enjoy!

It's all part of the Job

The last couple of days have been difficult around this house.  I try so very hard to stay positive on a daily basis and trust that for all the bad days there will be good ones. During rough times it can be a very difficult thing to convince yourself of.  Little Butter Bean is well into the terrible 2’s and while I am ever grateful she is a happy and healthy child the insanity of this age is really wearing me down.  She and Sweet Pea run around like maniacs all day long, screaming, wrestling, and being wild.  We go out to play, someone gets hurt, we come inside, and something gets broken.  It’s utter chaos.  I love them with my whole heart and feel guilty every time I get frustrated. They are children and it is their job. I am a mom and I suppose getting worn down is my job.

Sweet Pea is ready for kindergarten.  She is reading, writing, and extremely interested in learning. A few years back the ridiculous lovely state of California decided that all children who did not turn 5 before September 1^st would no longer be able to attend kindergarten that year and must wait an additional year.  The cut off used to be December 1^st.  Sweet Pea was born in November so you know where that leaves her.  It really should be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.  Some kids are ready and some aren’t. However, if you live in California, you know how the State operates.  Tax the citizens hard and NEVER spend a dime if you don’t have to.  So here we are. She is at home another year and bored out of her mind.  She attends preschool but I am unable to send her 5 days a week.  It is very expensive. I try hard to spend extra time on learning activities and preparing her for the upcoming year but I am not a teacher. 

I love my girls, more then life itself, and I am trying so hard to cherish these days.  I know there are so few of them before they grow up.  People remind me of this all of the time like I am not aware of it and honestly it only frustrates me more. While you are cleaning the spilled milk out of the carpet, doing dishes for the 30^th time in 5 hours, saying “stop screaming please” again and again, breaking up another fight, stepping on Cheerios, cleaning crayon off the walls, issuing time outs every minute and a half, dreading a 10 minute trip to the grocery store, never eating a hot meal, struggling to hear one phone call, and still getting up in the middle of the night with a kid who has trouble sleeping, it can be difficult to say “I’m gonna miss these days!” I know I will… someday.