our first guest poster for the week, is Shawni! She is a mom to 5 and blogs at 71 Toes. In her own words, her “blog has become a way to share photography and parenting ideas, to promote the joy of motherhood, and has been a huge comfort as we have dealt with various issues involving our daughter's syndrome diagnosis.”

I grew up with stars in my eyes about motherhood. I daydreamed about my future family on a continual basis. I pictured my children all lined up in a row, perfectly groomed with matching outfits. Their hair would be perfectly in place and of course there would never be any arguing. 

Just a whole lot of nothing and everything going on around here. I always forget how darn busy the end of the school year is!

I thought the lily pads were so cool.