Christmas lights

So everytime we go somewhere at night, Logan gets so excited about seeing the Christmas lights. He gets excited about Santa, and Christmas trees. This is really fun because last year he just wasn't in to it. I can't wait to take the kids to the mall and get their picture with Santa. It ought to be funny...Logan's first picture with Santa was GREAT - He was so happy and smiling. The next year he was screaming bloody murder. Last year, Logan and Landry took the pictures together...Landry just looked irritated and Logan was once again screaming, because he wanted me. LOL It was a pretty funny picture. This year I am thinking Logan will do great but Landry has such horrible separation anxiety that she will be screaming. Part of me thinks I should just do them separately so that at least I can get a good one of Logan, but I dont want to pay that much money, and we dont really frame the photos, there are more just for the memories. I keep all of them and one day I want to put them in one of those "over time" frames...they have them for schools....where you put your child's class photo in each slot starting from kindergarten to senior year...Anyway....
on another note, JR continues to make things hard for me. I am not exactly pleasant right now due to a monthly visitor, but still - I get sick of him not following the rules. Two days ago...(monday) I have been keeping the house clean for almost 2 weeks now. Every night I pick up the toys and the living room, every morning I get dishes in the dishwasher, every other morning or ever other-other morning I will do the laundry and fold it and put it away. We never have more than one load at a time because I have been staying on top of it....this has made my life SO MUCH EASIER. I have more time to play with the kids, less to stress about, and I have been taking them down to the park when weather permits, or we will go to the McDonalds play area...So on Monday - JR comes home and does what he always does...kicks off his shoes that end up almost in the middle of the floor (instead of by the door, where I ask him to put them DAILY) he asks Logan to take off his socks, which immediately go on the floor (which I ask him daily to please put in the laundry room.) EVERY SINGLE DAY we have this conversation. On Monday I got really upset and started crying...I dont mind keeping the house clean...It's technically part of my job, and I realized that I needed to do a better job of it and I have. But as I explained to JR, this isn't the 1950's I am not going to go behind him and pick up his socks and shoes, and bring him a drink because he is too lazy to get off the damn couch. I cook dinner, and he wants me to make him a plate...give me a freaking break. So after days of asking him to pick up his socks and shoes, and after days of me coming downstairs every morning and his dirty socks still lying there and me having to pick them up - I finally blew up on Monday. He apologized and said he would do better....GREAT! Then I cook dinner and low and behold, he asks me to make him a plate and bring it to him....I say no, I told him that if he was hungry he could make himself a plate. HE SERIOUSLY got mad at me...told me it wasn't fair because Monday night foootball was on....ummmm- WTF? So there I went again....I told him that I apparently have spoiled him and that my job was to raise our two children, not to reaise him. He ended up saying that I was right, he was sorry and would do better....hmmmmm!
After dinner, the rule is that you have to bring your plate to the sink and rinse it off. JR has a hard time even getting it to the sink...it's usually left lying next to his chair, in which I have to pick up the next morning...EVEN LOGAN takes his plate to the sink - no, he can't rinse it off...but he still takes it over there! So after 3 days of me reminding JR and him forgetting to take the dish and rinse, I brought it up and told him that I felt really under-appreciated and that once again this wasn't the 1950's. I already do his laundry, fold it, put it away, cook dinner for him every night...I am not about to start wearing my heels as I vacuum the effing house! So by the end of our talk he apologized and said he would do better. Grrrr!
To his credit, last night, he put his socks in the laundry room, his shoes were by the door, he made his own plate of food, and rinsed out his dish when he was done.
I was so tired that I went to bed early...at 9:30 I told JR he was in charge of putting Logan to bed. Logan is not allowed to have anything to drink after 8:30. But of course JR made him a glass of juice water...correction - Logan had 3 glasses of juice water!!!! AHHHHHHHHH! Next, before Logan gets his diaper for night time, I take him to the potty and make him pee before hand...I m trying to get him used to peeing before night time...JR didn't do this, so an hour after the diaper was put on Logan had peed about 5 gallons. This morning at 4:00am Logan comes into the room to let me know that he peed...yep - he peed through his diaper and all over the bed! so I changed Logan, put him in bed with us and got up this morning to wash sheets. I talked to JR a bit ago, and he says he is sorry and that he will do better...I tell him it seems like that is all I ever hear, and he says that its because I am always bitching...okay, maybe I am. But if I ask you to do something, I expect you to do it. I just dont get it, he has this way of making it sound like I am thw wicked witch of the west and he is prince charming. Is it really crazy that maybe I am tired because I have been doing house chores, playing with the kids, feeding the kids, bathing the kids, going over colors, numbers, shapes, and letters with Logan, doing art projects with both of the kids, reading them books, only to turn around and have to start dinner, and I dont feel like picking up dirty socks and shoes that my husband leaves lying around...I have to do that for Logan...he's 3 - JR is 27, and if truth be told, I will tell logan to pick up his shoes and where to take them, then he will pick up his socks and I will walk with him to the laundry room....my nearly 4 year old is more responsive than my 27 year old husband!!! Is it really crazy that I have to make my plate, Landry's plate, and Logan's plate so I dont really feel like making JR's plate...I mean I can see his point, why not make it, I am already making everyone elses. But what happens is I make everyone's plate and by the time I get to sit down to eat, everyone is done and then I have to get up and clean up the mess....it can be almost an hour before I get to eat...so, no, I dont want to make JR's plate! Logan is finally potty trained and now comes the next phase which is teaching him how to sleep through the night without and accident, we still use a night time diaper, but there are rules...no drinks after 8:30, he must use the potty before getting the diaper...but JR did it his own way...the easy way and I get stuck cleaning up the mess - as usual! I am really not trying to have a pity party...but seriously am I crazy, or is my husband being pretty lazy???

ps....there are times that my husband is extremely helpful and he really has improved tremendously since we first met...it just that every once in a while he slips into the little regression that will usually last about 2-3 weeks depending on how long I coddle him...then things will be great for 2-3 months before the regression hits again. I say this, because I dont want anyone thinking that he is always this lazy....just every now and then -but it sure drives me crazy when he does go through this stage!