sparkly clean...

I have a confession to make. While I always manage to get surface cleaning done around the house, I struggle to find time to get down to the nitty gritty. Life is so chaotic and when I finally have a chance to catch my breath, I tend to pick up a good book or work on our family scrapbooks. Yes, I feel guilty, but it's how I "recharge my batteries" sometimes. Lately we've had a lot going on around here and while I was working hard to get ahead, somehow the to-do list just kept getting longer. Enter my parents, whom we affectionately call "the seniors." Yesterday they paid someone to come in and clean my house...for 5 hours! It was an early birthday present, and what a present it was! Tonight my friend from childhood (whom my Amy is named after) is coming to spend almost a week with us while Brian is away, and it's so strange to not have to run around and clean like crazy today. Instead I walked for over an hour, got errands run, gave Annie a bath, chatted with my Amy online, did the ironing & laundry, and made fruit/oatmeal bars. It's only 3:17 and I still have time to relax before she gets in at 7pm. Wow. Thanks, seniors, for this most awesome and appreciated gift! You have no idea how much I loved it!!!