Today was one of those days that nothing seemed to go as planned.
I like a plan.
I NEED a plan.
My family needs a plan.
My family just doesn't realize they need a plan.
This last month has been all mixed up for us. Daddy was away for work (two weeks). We drove to PA to meet up with Daddy and visit friends in MD. We came home and nothing was normal anymore. While Jon was away, we started to more or less follow a first shift schedule. The kids also became accustomed to no one being asleep when they were up. Now that Jon is back we are trying to get back into a semblance of a schedule. First shift doesn't work, because Jon is trying to sleep and then spend a little time with us before heading off to work. Second shift doesn't work, because all our outside activities are based on a first shift schedule.
Jon's days off are spent as family days and then Jon and I end up staying up late to have one on one time. I am so glad he is home!
I've gotten myself back into burning the candle at both ends. Ugh!
I know God will not give me more than I can handle, but sometimes I just wish He would place a schedule in my hands and tell me to follow it.
I'm out of words for now.
Just a note: Normally, this is the type of post that I would write in my head, be done with, and never put into print. I try not to be negative. It's a constant battle. I told myself tonight that I should just post it. So here it is.
Now I really am going to go. I have to go encourage some children to go to sleep so that I can go to sleep.
Showing posts with label my wonderful husband. Show all posts
Showing posts with label my wonderful husband. Show all posts
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Whew!
This week has gone by quickly. I'm not even sure what all has happened. We were just trying to recuperate from the last few weeks.
March 19th through April 1st, Jon was working in Pennsylvania. On April the 1st the children and I left after their P.E. class to meet up with Jon in PA. Normally, my children do not do the whole "are we there, yet" thing. This time, however, they had really missed their daddy and were looking forward to getting to PA (and later Maryland). We had only been out of Springfield, Ohio for thirty minutes when the first child asked, "are we almost there?". So, we continued our countdown (that started before Jon left) to when we would see Daddy. Our drive to Pennsylvania took approximately ten hours since we stopped a couple times for food, stretching our legs, and other necessities. Kitty Kat helped read off the directions to me for part of the way. Froggie and Kitty Kat both helped look to see if I could change lanes. I could see, but was concerned there might be some blind spots since our van was packed so full. I figured it couldn't hurt for the girls to practice being more observant anyway.
Jon had reserved the hotel room adjoining his for us and we got settled in a bit before he got off work. Some of us slept. Little Bear, however, had slept a good portion of the trip and would not go to sleep at the hotel. Jon and Little Bear ended up doing some laundry instead of sleeping.
After repacking the van and checking out of the hotel, we spent some time as a family before heading to Maryland. Friday evening, we went to a Good Friday service at the church some friends of ours minister at (we were also there Sunday). We met up with our friend after the service and followed them back to their house. We spent the next few days with our friends.
We had a wonderful time of fellowship with our friends and then came back home Monday afternoon. I can't even tell you how long it took us to get home, about eight to nine hours probably. We stopped a couple times and it was probably a good thing. The children slept nearly the entire way home and Jon and I fought sleep nearly the whole way.
The whole thing is a blur in my memory. We did so much as a whole group and split off with friends! I might see if the children want to do some posts of their own to tell what they remember about our trip.
March 19th through April 1st, Jon was working in Pennsylvania. On April the 1st the children and I left after their P.E. class to meet up with Jon in PA. Normally, my children do not do the whole "are we there, yet" thing. This time, however, they had really missed their daddy and were looking forward to getting to PA (and later Maryland). We had only been out of Springfield, Ohio for thirty minutes when the first child asked, "are we almost there?". So, we continued our countdown (that started before Jon left) to when we would see Daddy. Our drive to Pennsylvania took approximately ten hours since we stopped a couple times for food, stretching our legs, and other necessities. Kitty Kat helped read off the directions to me for part of the way. Froggie and Kitty Kat both helped look to see if I could change lanes. I could see, but was concerned there might be some blind spots since our van was packed so full. I figured it couldn't hurt for the girls to practice being more observant anyway.
Jon had reserved the hotel room adjoining his for us and we got settled in a bit before he got off work. Some of us slept. Little Bear, however, had slept a good portion of the trip and would not go to sleep at the hotel. Jon and Little Bear ended up doing some laundry instead of sleeping.
After repacking the van and checking out of the hotel, we spent some time as a family before heading to Maryland. Friday evening, we went to a Good Friday service at the church some friends of ours minister at (we were also there Sunday). We met up with our friend after the service and followed them back to their house. We spent the next few days with our friends.
We had a wonderful time of fellowship with our friends and then came back home Monday afternoon. I can't even tell you how long it took us to get home, about eight to nine hours probably. We stopped a couple times and it was probably a good thing. The children slept nearly the entire way home and Jon and I fought sleep nearly the whole way.
The whole thing is a blur in my memory. We did so much as a whole group and split off with friends! I might see if the children want to do some posts of their own to tell what they remember about our trip.
Friday, September 4, 2009
Grocery Trip #1
This week has been a little crazy. This week has been so crazy, that at any given time, I lose one or more of the days in my memory. (Jon was thinking out loud for me and said, "either the week was crazy, or you're getting old. Since you're not getting old, the week must have been crazy." Isn't he sweet?) Therefore, I'm not going to report on everything we've eaten so far this month.
Jon and I decided that we would only count our grocery expenditures for this challenge. I will not be counting household items, toiletries, or pet supplies unless they are purchased at Kroger with our food purchases.
Most of our food purchases are made at Kroger. We don't get food items at other stores very often. I know what the best prices are for the items we use and I'm careful to shop the sales, but I don't usually go out of my way unless it is really worth it. This week we spent $76.10 at Kroger. We got some treats for our cats ($2) and a bar of Fels-Naptha ($1.29) or we would have been under budget. We do have a rebate to send in to get $10 back and $70 off a Dell computer. We most likely will not use the Dell coupon. We also probably won't get the $10 before the end of the month.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Today and Way to Go Birdie!
Last night I remembered some more things that had to be done before I went to bed. I did get the bread started last night. I was still up when Jon came home from work, and I didn't get to bed until after three in the morning. Since I was up so late, I decided to allow ourselves to head out at eleven instead of ten.
I printed off my blog post last night so I would have my list handy. It was a good thing! I decided to check my list and was reminded to have my devotional time. I chose Philippians chapter four for my Bible reading, because I knew I would need it. I actually had planned on reading from the Old Testament, but Philippians four came to mind while I was praying. My mindset today was much better than last night.
before 10:00 am list
We got everything done on my before 10:00 am list. I did make some minor adjustments. Instead of oatmeal and yogurt, we had oatmeal and milk to save time. I also heated water in the tea kettle and used that to make the oatmeal instead of cooking it on the stove and having to watch over it. I nixed the potatoes and carrots so that I wouldn't have to spend the time fixing them this morning. I had planned on putting together some cross word puzzles for the kids to use to practice their spelling words. The links on the site I had bookmarked to do that with just kept taking me in circles last night. I knew I didn't have time to do four different puzzles on my own. I didn't get the children's things ready. I let them do it! Instead of cleaning the whole kitchen I did some dishes last night and this morning. Our dishwasher is ancient and doesn't work right, so we have to hand wash.
10:00 am - ? list
We headed out just after eleven this morning. The children were pretty good about doing their homework and helping out. I was much more at peace about things today. I did call Jon before I headed home and he turned off the oven for me. I fixed mashed potatoes and peas and carrots to go with our meatloaf and bread-and-butter. We still ate lunch around two.
2:30 - ? list
Jon left for work a little later than usual. He was spending time with the kids and forgot to watch the clock. He was still on time, but just didn't get there as early as he likes to in order to get his equipment for the night claimed. I rested while the kids avoided resting. When I got up, I mandated rest time. We haven't gotten back to school. Jon suggested that we do a half day today and a half day tomorrow in order to paint the living room. I'm taking him up on it. We had a late snack. I still need to fix supper after I am done posting this. I'll probably have the children do their chores while I'm fixing supper. I really don't feel like browning the ground beef tonight. I checked the date on the meat an I still have a few days. I'll do that tomorrow.
Way to go, Birdie!
Birdie has trouble with visual perception and fine motor skills. Due to this, her writing is rarely legible. Last year, she could focus to write legibly for about the time it took her to copy two or three words. The word would often be mirror images of what I had given her as an example. Sometimes the word would be up-side-down and sometimes backward.
Following are Birdie's penmanship papers from last week and this week. For some reason, our scanner did some weird things with the pages. I didn't feel like messing with it, so I left them as they were.
Last week, I printed out part of our memory verse for her to copy. I intended to have her do part of the verse each day, Wednesday through Friday. The verse is Matthew 5:14. Everyone had it memorized Wednesday, so I gave them a break on penmanship for rest of our first week back to school.
This is Birdie's penmanship from last week. I was pleased that I could make out some of the words.
This is Birdie's penmanship from yesterday. The verse was on our white board and I didn't make a copy for her. I wanted to see what she could do. I was also pleased with this. I can make out some of the words and this was a more difficult task for her.
Today, Birdie's penmanship REALLY impressed me! Since we weren't at home and I didn't want Birdie trying to copy from yesterday's penmanship (as the others were doing), I had Kitty Kat print out a sample for Birdie to copy from.
Didn't she do a great job?
I printed off my blog post last night so I would have my list handy. It was a good thing! I decided to check my list and was reminded to have my devotional time. I chose Philippians chapter four for my Bible reading, because I knew I would need it. I actually had planned on reading from the Old Testament, but Philippians four came to mind while I was praying. My mindset today was much better than last night.
before 10:00 am list
We got everything done on my before 10:00 am list. I did make some minor adjustments. Instead of oatmeal and yogurt, we had oatmeal and milk to save time. I also heated water in the tea kettle and used that to make the oatmeal instead of cooking it on the stove and having to watch over it. I nixed the potatoes and carrots so that I wouldn't have to spend the time fixing them this morning. I had planned on putting together some cross word puzzles for the kids to use to practice their spelling words. The links on the site I had bookmarked to do that with just kept taking me in circles last night. I knew I didn't have time to do four different puzzles on my own. I didn't get the children's things ready. I let them do it! Instead of cleaning the whole kitchen I did some dishes last night and this morning. Our dishwasher is ancient and doesn't work right, so we have to hand wash.
10:00 am - ? list
We headed out just after eleven this morning. The children were pretty good about doing their homework and helping out. I was much more at peace about things today. I did call Jon before I headed home and he turned off the oven for me. I fixed mashed potatoes and peas and carrots to go with our meatloaf and bread-and-butter. We still ate lunch around two.
2:30 - ? list
Jon left for work a little later than usual. He was spending time with the kids and forgot to watch the clock. He was still on time, but just didn't get there as early as he likes to in order to get his equipment for the night claimed. I rested while the kids avoided resting. When I got up, I mandated rest time. We haven't gotten back to school. Jon suggested that we do a half day today and a half day tomorrow in order to paint the living room. I'm taking him up on it. We had a late snack. I still need to fix supper after I am done posting this. I'll probably have the children do their chores while I'm fixing supper. I really don't feel like browning the ground beef tonight. I checked the date on the meat an I still have a few days. I'll do that tomorrow.
Way to go, Birdie!
Birdie has trouble with visual perception and fine motor skills. Due to this, her writing is rarely legible. Last year, she could focus to write legibly for about the time it took her to copy two or three words. The word would often be mirror images of what I had given her as an example. Sometimes the word would be up-side-down and sometimes backward.
Following are Birdie's penmanship papers from last week and this week. For some reason, our scanner did some weird things with the pages. I didn't feel like messing with it, so I left them as they were.
Last week, I printed out part of our memory verse for her to copy. I intended to have her do part of the verse each day, Wednesday through Friday. The verse is Matthew 5:14. Everyone had it memorized Wednesday, so I gave them a break on penmanship for rest of our first week back to school.
This is Birdie's penmanship from last week. I was pleased that I could make out some of the words.
This is Birdie's penmanship from yesterday. The verse was on our white board and I didn't make a copy for her. I wanted to see what she could do. I was also pleased with this. I can make out some of the words and this was a more difficult task for her.
Today, Birdie's penmanship REALLY impressed me! Since we weren't at home and I didn't want Birdie trying to copy from yesterday's penmanship (as the others were doing), I had Kitty Kat print out a sample for Birdie to copy from.
Didn't she do a great job?
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Crunch Time
August is always a busy month for us, but this August seems even more busy than usual.
Next month, we are hosting our Life Group (small group from church) and we still haven't finished our living room. So, along with everything else, we still have to finish the living room. The living room furniture is in the boys' room and our dining room, so really we have at least three rooms to finish.
We just got accustomed to our new, later schedule. Then on Saturday morning Jon called work to see if he could start early to make it easier to do traffic duty at church the next day. Instead of having him start early, they had him switch to third shift for the week. For the week! There went our schedule! However, God always provides. Mr. M. went home that afternoon. Jon is on third this week which makes him available for the visitation and funeral. There is also a rumor at Jon's workplace that they will have a new schedule bid soon. I have no idea what our regular schedule will be now.
So here's a glimpse of today and the next thirteen days:
Aug. 11 - We have to get the younger two girls home from my sister's (South of here) and the boys from my parents' (North of here). Jon has a Stage Right (drama ministry) meeting. Jon works.
Aug. 12 - Mr. M.'s visitation is from 2-4 and 6-8. We figured we would go during the earlier time, since we can. However, Puppy Dog has a dentist appointment at 2:30 in Urbana. Jon's mom also has surgery on this day. Jon works.
Aug. 13 - Mr. M.'s funeral at 10:30 AM, my grandmother's birthday, our fifteenth anniversary, and Kitty Kat's thirteenth birthday Jon's mom has a Dr. appt. and may need a ride?
Aug. 14 - Jon has a chiropractor appointment.
Aug. 15 - Jon goes back on second shift. Jon works.
Aug. 16 - We will probably have to go to all three services at church, if Jon is in a skit. Jon works.
Aug. 17 - Jon works.
Aug. 18 - I have a sleep study consultation at 8:45 AM. Jon works.
Aug. 19 - Jon has a dentist appointment at 4(?) We have a combined birthday party with our Life Group for the whole family at Young's Jersey Dairy. Jon's niece's birthday (15).
Aug. 20 - Jon's younger brother's anniversary (10th).
Aug. 21 - party for the above anniv. ? It may be moved to the 22nd.
Aug. 22 - Puppy Dog's seventh birthday. Jon works (?).
Aug. 23 - Birdie's eleventh birthday, church, and I think this is my week for nursery duty (if so, we attend all three services). Jon works (?). **I have a Sonflower Scouts leaders' meeting at 3PM.
Aug. 24 - first day of school, Jon's niece's birthday (3?)
Those are just the events we have written down on our calendar. I'm sure I'm forgetting something.
I'd better get to work!
**edited after receiving an e-mail.
Next month, we are hosting our Life Group (small group from church) and we still haven't finished our living room. So, along with everything else, we still have to finish the living room. The living room furniture is in the boys' room and our dining room, so really we have at least three rooms to finish.
We just got accustomed to our new, later schedule. Then on Saturday morning Jon called work to see if he could start early to make it easier to do traffic duty at church the next day. Instead of having him start early, they had him switch to third shift for the week. For the week! There went our schedule! However, God always provides. Mr. M. went home that afternoon. Jon is on third this week which makes him available for the visitation and funeral. There is also a rumor at Jon's workplace that they will have a new schedule bid soon. I have no idea what our regular schedule will be now.
So here's a glimpse of today and the next thirteen days:
Aug. 11 - We have to get the younger two girls home from my sister's (South of here) and the boys from my parents' (North of here). Jon has a Stage Right (drama ministry) meeting. Jon works.
Aug. 12 - Mr. M.'s visitation is from 2-4 and 6-8. We figured we would go during the earlier time, since we can. However, Puppy Dog has a dentist appointment at 2:30 in Urbana. Jon's mom also has surgery on this day. Jon works.
Aug. 13 - Mr. M.'s funeral at 10:30 AM, my grandmother's birthday, our fifteenth anniversary, and Kitty Kat's thirteenth birthday Jon's mom has a Dr. appt. and may need a ride?
Aug. 14 - Jon has a chiropractor appointment.
Aug. 15 - Jon goes back on second shift. Jon works.
Aug. 16 - We will probably have to go to all three services at church, if Jon is in a skit. Jon works.
Aug. 17 - Jon works.
Aug. 18 - I have a sleep study consultation at 8:45 AM. Jon works.
Aug. 19 - Jon has a dentist appointment at 4(?) We have a combined birthday party with our Life Group for the whole family at Young's Jersey Dairy. Jon's niece's birthday (15).
Aug. 20 - Jon's younger brother's anniversary (10th).
Aug. 21 - party for the above anniv. ? It may be moved to the 22nd.
Aug. 22 - Puppy Dog's seventh birthday. Jon works (?).
Aug. 23 - Birdie's eleventh birthday, church, and I think this is my week for nursery duty (if so, we attend all three services). Jon works (?). **I have a Sonflower Scouts leaders' meeting at 3PM.
Aug. 24 - first day of school, Jon's niece's birthday (3?)
Those are just the events we have written down on our calendar. I'm sure I'm forgetting something.
I'd better get to work!
**edited after receiving an e-mail.
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Moms Aren't Supposed to ...Part II
Jon and I have pondered whether or not I have sleep apnea for a few years. One night last week I really gave Jon a scare. He kept having to wake me up so I would start breathing again. So, he told me to set up an appointment with our family doctor and I did. I REALLY don't like going to the doctor. I usually just deal with whatever is bothering me and/or try home or OTC remedies.
Thursday evening at our Life Group meeting we asked our group to pray for the appointment to go well. It did.
My mom took the children with her to visit relatives who were in from GA on Friday. That way, Jon could go to the appointment with me.
So, here are the results of that appointment:
1. I'm on antibiotics for ten days for my sinus infection.
2. I'm now taking allergy medicine (nose spray).
3. I have an appointment in August for a consultation with a Dr. for a sleep study.
The allergy medicine makes my headaches worse. I couldn't even sleep Friday night, because my headache was so bad. If the headaches don't start improving I'll have to call the Dr. I already have a terrible time with several different types of headache and I don't need another type. The information with the medicine actually says to call my doctor if I get a headache from it, but since it's the weekend I can't. My symptoms have gotten worse since I started taking the medicine, but apparently that's normal for the first few days.
Hopefully, I'll be on the mend soon.
Have a great day everyone!
Thursday evening at our Life Group meeting we asked our group to pray for the appointment to go well. It did.
My mom took the children with her to visit relatives who were in from GA on Friday. That way, Jon could go to the appointment with me.
So, here are the results of that appointment:
1. I'm on antibiotics for ten days for my sinus infection.
2. I'm now taking allergy medicine (nose spray).
3. I have an appointment in August for a consultation with a Dr. for a sleep study.
The allergy medicine makes my headaches worse. I couldn't even sleep Friday night, because my headache was so bad. If the headaches don't start improving I'll have to call the Dr. I already have a terrible time with several different types of headache and I don't need another type. The information with the medicine actually says to call my doctor if I get a headache from it, but since it's the weekend I can't. My symptoms have gotten worse since I started taking the medicine, but apparently that's normal for the first few days.
Hopefully, I'll be on the mend soon.
Have a great day everyone!
Thursday, April 30, 2009
New Post Coming Soon
I haven't forgotten about all you wonderful people. I just haven't had time for Blogging. I'll be around to visit and post sometime soon, perhaps after we put our living room ceiling back up.
Monday, April 6, 2009
An Angel with a Flaming Sword
Aren't four year olds interesting? Little Bear just told me, "Mom, when I grow up I'm going to be an angel, but I'm going to have a flaming sword. Do you want to know where I got that from? I got that from my Adam book." LOL My son is not going to be a doctor, a lawyer, a street sweeper, or any other normal profession. No, my son is aspiring to be an angel with a flaming sword. I wonder what he'll want to be tomorrow?
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I didn't get to the store on Thursday which is our normal day to shop. The kids and I went on Saturday. The kids were not in the best of moods. I started out by telling the kids I was going to take a picture of them to put on the blog anytime I caught them misbehaving. It didn't take me long to realize my mistake. I switched to taking pictures of the kids when I caught them behaving.
Birdie helps by getting beans to put in the cart while we were at Wal-mart.
I caught Monkey with her hands in her pockets while several children behind her were handling the items on the shelves. Her siblings saw this take place and the next thing I knew, several others had their hands in their pockets. (Pay no attention to the green coat sleeves. Ugh! They are the stained sleeves of Froggie's old coat. I told her I would not put a picture of her in the blog if she had the coat on, but she refused to take it off. She was caught being good a couple times, but I can't post her picture since I told her I wouldn't.
Puppy Dog stands by the cart with his hands in his pockets.
Birdie poses with her hands in her pockets. Monkey is in the background looking at a movie display with her hands still in her pockets. Another sister is looking with her hands. Ahem!
Little Bear tries to hide behind his arm as I take this picture. It took me several tries!
What a great older sister! Kitty Kat helps out by taking the boys to the restroom at Kroger.
=====================================================================
I didn't get to the store on Thursday which is our normal day to shop. The kids and I went on Saturday. The kids were not in the best of moods. I started out by telling the kids I was going to take a picture of them to put on the blog anytime I caught them misbehaving. It didn't take me long to realize my mistake. I switched to taking pictures of the kids when I caught them behaving.
Birdie helps by getting beans to put in the cart while we were at Wal-mart.
I caught Monkey with her hands in her pockets while several children behind her were handling the items on the shelves. Her siblings saw this take place and the next thing I knew, several others had their hands in their pockets. (Pay no attention to the green coat sleeves. Ugh! They are the stained sleeves of Froggie's old coat. I told her I would not put a picture of her in the blog if she had the coat on, but she refused to take it off. She was caught being good a couple times, but I can't post her picture since I told her I wouldn't.
Puppy Dog stands by the cart with his hands in his pockets.
Birdie poses with her hands in her pockets. Monkey is in the background looking at a movie display with her hands still in her pockets. Another sister is looking with her hands. Ahem!
Little Bear tries to hide behind his arm as I take this picture. It took me several tries!
What a great older sister! Kitty Kat helps out by taking the boys to the restroom at Kroger.Our total for food at Wal-mart was $21.56 .
Our total for food at Kroger was $77.75 .
Jon spent about $40 while I was at a friend's Friday.
weekly total = $139.31
total for two weeks = $277.00
average weekly spending = $138.50 .
I haven't been stressing out about food prices as much these last two weeks. Most likely, this is due to the fact that we have had more money available for food. It's looking like our average for food may be higher than it was previously. Due to the rising cost of food, we may have to increase our food budget. Then again, I usually will have a week here or there where I don't do the regular food shopping. That would really drop the average.
====================================================================
While I was typing this, Little Bear brought me the book he previously referred to, and showed me the picture of the angel with the flaming sword. The book is CREATION MY FATHER LOVES ME by J.D. Wise.
Our total for food at Kroger was $77.75 .
Jon spent about $40 while I was at a friend's Friday.
weekly total = $139.31
total for two weeks = $277.00
average weekly spending = $138.50 .
I haven't been stressing out about food prices as much these last two weeks. Most likely, this is due to the fact that we have had more money available for food. It's looking like our average for food may be higher than it was previously. Due to the rising cost of food, we may have to increase our food budget. Then again, I usually will have a week here or there where I don't do the regular food shopping. That would really drop the average.
====================================================================
While I was typing this, Little Bear brought me the book he previously referred to, and showed me the picture of the angel with the flaming sword. The book is CREATION MY FATHER LOVES ME by J.D. Wise.
Monday, March 30, 2009
Feeding a Family of Eight Part V
Today we had banana oatmeal for breakfast. I was going to make muffins with the leftovers, but when I went to start that I realized that I had left the burner on low. I let the kids have seconds.
I didn't get our lunch started in time for Jon to eat with us. He took leftover vegetable beef stew, yogurt, Cheez-its, and I don't know what else for lunch. He packed his own lunch today. He picked up a sub on the way to work. He has been buying a few food items with his spending money, so I'll have to add that into our food totals. He didn't eat the bun or rolls that were in yesterday's lunch. I may be making bread pudding soon.
The kids and I had chicken, broccoli, and rice casserole; salad; and milk for lunch. Little Bear decided he was too tired to eat lunch. He went to the couch and took a three to four hour nap!
Supper was tuna and egg salad sandwiches with lettuce, tomatoes, and cheese. Little Bear got up right as we were getting ready to fix supper. He ate most of his lunch and most of his supper, while the rest of us fixed and ate supper.
We have a lot of running to do tomorrow, so I'm going to have to come up with some quick on the go meals and snacks.
I didn't get our lunch started in time for Jon to eat with us. He took leftover vegetable beef stew, yogurt, Cheez-its, and I don't know what else for lunch. He packed his own lunch today. He picked up a sub on the way to work. He has been buying a few food items with his spending money, so I'll have to add that into our food totals. He didn't eat the bun or rolls that were in yesterday's lunch. I may be making bread pudding soon.
The kids and I had chicken, broccoli, and rice casserole; salad; and milk for lunch. Little Bear decided he was too tired to eat lunch. He went to the couch and took a three to four hour nap!
Supper was tuna and egg salad sandwiches with lettuce, tomatoes, and cheese. Little Bear got up right as we were getting ready to fix supper. He ate most of his lunch and most of his supper, while the rest of us fixed and ate supper.
We have a lot of running to do tomorrow, so I'm going to have to come up with some quick on the go meals and snacks.
Sunday, March 29, 2009
I'm Beat
After an abbreviated night of sleep, I got up and made monkey bread. We had the monkey bread and milk for breakfast.
When we got home from church I fixed spaghetti with meat sauce and Parmesan cheese, green beans with onions, and rolls. We had water to drink. Jon took a nap before going to work. He didn't eat with us, so I packed his up for him to take with him. He also took the leftover Sloppy Joe and bun, the rest of the egg salad, two rolls, pineapple rings, yogurt, pop, and Cheez-its.
The kids and I went back to church for an extra 4:00pm children's choir practice. Since we got there a little early, we stayed in the van for a little while and I read to the kids. I carried a sleeping Little Bear into the church. I left him in the charge of his older sisters while the three choir kids and I went in search of their practice. We ended up just reading in the foyer and visiting with those who passed by. The kids and I snacked on the fruit chews I brought with us. There are only supposed to be six packs in a box, but when I was done passing them out to the six children there was one left. While we were in the foyer one of the choir directors came by and we found out that there hadn't been enough interest in the extra practice, so it was never actually scheduled.
Monkey went to her ensemble practice, some of us stayed to watch the practice, and the older girls walked around the church with two of their cousins. After the ensemble practice, I signed all the younger children into their classes and then made sure that the older girls made it to their small group. I then went into the sanctuary and read while listening to the adult choir practice.
After church we came home and I made pepperoni and pineapple pizzas for our supper. We had water to drink.
The children are all in bed, but they're not all asleep yet.
I really want to go to bed, but I have some things I have to take care of before I can.
When we got home from church I fixed spaghetti with meat sauce and Parmesan cheese, green beans with onions, and rolls. We had water to drink. Jon took a nap before going to work. He didn't eat with us, so I packed his up for him to take with him. He also took the leftover Sloppy Joe and bun, the rest of the egg salad, two rolls, pineapple rings, yogurt, pop, and Cheez-its.
The kids and I went back to church for an extra 4:00pm children's choir practice. Since we got there a little early, we stayed in the van for a little while and I read to the kids. I carried a sleeping Little Bear into the church. I left him in the charge of his older sisters while the three choir kids and I went in search of their practice. We ended up just reading in the foyer and visiting with those who passed by. The kids and I snacked on the fruit chews I brought with us. There are only supposed to be six packs in a box, but when I was done passing them out to the six children there was one left. While we were in the foyer one of the choir directors came by and we found out that there hadn't been enough interest in the extra practice, so it was never actually scheduled.
Monkey went to her ensemble practice, some of us stayed to watch the practice, and the older girls walked around the church with two of their cousins. After the ensemble practice, I signed all the younger children into their classes and then made sure that the older girls made it to their small group. I then went into the sanctuary and read while listening to the adult choir practice.
After church we came home and I made pepperoni and pineapple pizzas for our supper. We had water to drink.
The children are all in bed, but they're not all asleep yet.
I really want to go to bed, but I have some things I have to take care of before I can.
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Today Was Better Than Yesterday
I think a big part of today being better than yesterday was that I started my day out with God. The pets woke me and I had to take care of them, but none of the kids bothered me until I was done with my devotions. I take that back. I sent two girls back to bed. Puppy Dog came to our room while I was praying and laid down beside Jon. P.D. was quiet though and let me do my devos. without interruption. I went back to sleep after my devos. LOL
When the kids all started to congregate in the dining room, I told them that we were having cold cereal for breakfast. Some time went by and they started fussing about really being hungry. Apparently, I have catered to them too much this past winter. It only took a small verbal nudge to convince them to fix their own cereal though. I came out while they were fixing theirs, fixed mine, and added some banana slices to everyone's bowls.
Lunch was Sloppy Joes, baby carrots, applesauce, and milk. We used Manwich, because it was a good price this week and Jon wanted it. I used two pounds of ground beef and two cans of sauce. We had enough left over for Jon to have enough for a sandwich at work later this week. The buns were also storebought. They were on sale and I had a coupon.
Jon took the rest of our leftover chili, a yogurt, and some pop for his work lunch. He usually drinks water and eats some of the fruit that his workplace keeps out for employees as well.
The kids and I had yogurt for an afternoon snack while we waited for our bread to cool for supper. I also made rolls for tomorrow.
Tonight's supper was egg salad (homemade) sandwiches (homemade bread), baby carrots, cottage cheese with pineapple rings, and water. We had enough egg salad for Jon to have a sandwich later.
This is Little Bear's plate from supper. As the youngest, he got the priveledge of having the heals of the bread. The younger three children tend to take turns eating the heals. If they fight, then I get them.
When the kids all started to congregate in the dining room, I told them that we were having cold cereal for breakfast. Some time went by and they started fussing about really being hungry. Apparently, I have catered to them too much this past winter. It only took a small verbal nudge to convince them to fix their own cereal though. I came out while they were fixing theirs, fixed mine, and added some banana slices to everyone's bowls.
Lunch was Sloppy Joes, baby carrots, applesauce, and milk. We used Manwich, because it was a good price this week and Jon wanted it. I used two pounds of ground beef and two cans of sauce. We had enough left over for Jon to have enough for a sandwich at work later this week. The buns were also storebought. They were on sale and I had a coupon.
Jon took the rest of our leftover chili, a yogurt, and some pop for his work lunch. He usually drinks water and eats some of the fruit that his workplace keeps out for employees as well.
The kids and I had yogurt for an afternoon snack while we waited for our bread to cool for supper. I also made rolls for tomorrow.
Tonight's supper was egg salad (homemade) sandwiches (homemade bread), baby carrots, cottage cheese with pineapple rings, and water. We had enough egg salad for Jon to have a sandwich later.
This is Little Bear's plate from supper. As the youngest, he got the priveledge of having the heals of the bread. The younger three children tend to take turns eating the heals. If they fight, then I get them.I assigned How-to reports to three of the children this week. Kitty Kat decided on "How to Make Old Fashioned Sugar Cookies", Froggie chose "How to Make Meatloaf", Monkey chose "How to Make Chocolate Tea Bread", Puppy Dog chose "How to Make Chocolate Chip Cookies", Birdie wants help deciding, and I haven't heard from Little Bear yet. Did you catch that five children are planning their reports when I only assigned reports to three?
Kitty Kat decided to use the recipe on the back of a sugar package. I tried to dissuade her, but she wouldn't budge. I let her try the recipe without interference at first. She would ask my opinion from time to time.
One of those times was when the "dough" was supposed to be ready to go in the fridge to chill. It looked like quick bread batter. I went through the ingredients with her and double checked the measurements she used. It turns out that she measured the milk before adding the lemon juice to it (as a replacement for buttermilk). I had told her a day or two ago to first put the lemon juice in and then to finish measuring the milk. Apparently, she forgot. She also confessed to having the milk a little over the mark on the measuring cup. Add that to the fact that the eggs we have right now are extra large and there was definitely too much moisture. I had her add a little extra flour a 1/4 cup at a time to get a better consistency. She added 1/2 cup and we decided to try it.
I let her work on the cookies alone after the "dough" chilled. I came to help her check on them when the first set was ready to come out of the oven. The cookies were a little burnt. I helped her get them off the pans quickly and then the kids and I ate those cookies as a bedtime snack. The oven temp. was at 400 degrees and she baked the cookies for 7 minutes. I checked and she had followed the directions. I then proceded to help her by getting the rest of the cookie "dough" onto the pans and she added the cinnamon sugar. I made the cookies bigger than the recipe called for, left the temp. the same, and had her time them for 5 minutes and then reset the timer as needed. She ended up with enough nice cookies that she can take them to her small group at church tomorrow evening and leave a couple for Jon to have later. She will be trying a different recipe before writing her report though. I tasted the raw batter and it tasted just like the batter minus the bananas of a banana bread recipe that I once made from a recipe on the back of the same brand of sugar. I have never made that recipe again because the banana bread turned out bland.
The kids were in bed before 10pm tonight. I actually sent them to bed before 9:30 but I had to fuss with the boys to get them to stay in bed. Once the boys were in bed, they fell right to sleep. I did have to go upstairs to send the girls back to bed a little while ago, but I think they have settled down. Hopefully, they will get enough sleep, because we are going to be at church a lot tomorrow.
Kitty Kat decided to use the recipe on the back of a sugar package. I tried to dissuade her, but she wouldn't budge. I let her try the recipe without interference at first. She would ask my opinion from time to time.
One of those times was when the "dough" was supposed to be ready to go in the fridge to chill. It looked like quick bread batter. I went through the ingredients with her and double checked the measurements she used. It turns out that she measured the milk before adding the lemon juice to it (as a replacement for buttermilk). I had told her a day or two ago to first put the lemon juice in and then to finish measuring the milk. Apparently, she forgot. She also confessed to having the milk a little over the mark on the measuring cup. Add that to the fact that the eggs we have right now are extra large and there was definitely too much moisture. I had her add a little extra flour a 1/4 cup at a time to get a better consistency. She added 1/2 cup and we decided to try it.
I let her work on the cookies alone after the "dough" chilled. I came to help her check on them when the first set was ready to come out of the oven. The cookies were a little burnt. I helped her get them off the pans quickly and then the kids and I ate those cookies as a bedtime snack. The oven temp. was at 400 degrees and she baked the cookies for 7 minutes. I checked and she had followed the directions. I then proceded to help her by getting the rest of the cookie "dough" onto the pans and she added the cinnamon sugar. I made the cookies bigger than the recipe called for, left the temp. the same, and had her time them for 5 minutes and then reset the timer as needed. She ended up with enough nice cookies that she can take them to her small group at church tomorrow evening and leave a couple for Jon to have later. She will be trying a different recipe before writing her report though. I tasted the raw batter and it tasted just like the batter minus the bananas of a banana bread recipe that I once made from a recipe on the back of the same brand of sugar. I have never made that recipe again because the banana bread turned out bland.
The kids were in bed before 10pm tonight. I actually sent them to bed before 9:30 but I had to fuss with the boys to get them to stay in bed. Once the boys were in bed, they fell right to sleep. I did have to go upstairs to send the girls back to bed a little while ago, but I think they have settled down. Hopefully, they will get enough sleep, because we are going to be at church a lot tomorrow.
Rough Day
bacon, egg, and cheese onion bagel
Jon had a family ticket to go to a Cincinnati Bengals vs. the local Sheriff's Association basketball game at an area school. He was going to take the kids to that while I went to see my niece in the musical, THOROUGHLY MODERN MILLIE. The kids were so rotten yesterday that Jon decided they wouldn't go. If you know Jon, then you know what a big fan he is of the Bengals.
We had our next meal, vegetable beef stew with biscuits, before I left to go to the musical. The stew was planned for earlier in the week, but our plans had changed. I would normally make homemade biscuits, but there was a very good deal on biscuits at Kroger this week. We got four four packs of ten count Pillsbury biscuits for $4.00. I sent Kitty Kat to make some biscuits and she pulled out a can. I had totally forgotten about the canned bisuits. LOL We drank tea with our meal. Kitty Kat makes most of our iced tea and yesterday's was no exception.
I left to go to the musical with a heavy heart knowing that Jon was missing out. I'll have to be sure to take someone with me next time I go to something like that. There were long periods of time when I was by myself and I didn't know what to do with myself. My mom, nephew, and niece were there too, but Mom and my nephew were helping with costumes and my niece was running around with a cousin. There was also the trip from Springfield to Urbana and back alone in the car.
I got back and was swarmed by kids and pets. The pets are still acting like I was gone too long.
While I was gone, Jon and the kids snacked on some battered shrimp and Girl Scout cookies. When I returned, we had hot dogs and jalapeno brats with leftover chili, applesauce, and salad. We only had six hot dog buns, so some of the kids had their hot dogs cut up and had leftover rolls to go with it. Little Bear didn't want to eat his salad. He asked if we could put it in the fridge for the next day, and since he asked nicely, I complied.
Once again we got to bed late.
*I saved the bacon grease to use later in the week.
Saturday, March 14, 2009
Last Weekend
Friday, March 6, 2009
Do you know how difficult it is to find a modest Prom worthy dress for someone my size? We got the most modest one we could find. We had to wait until Friday to get a dress. We didn't have the funds before that. Jon and the girls had gone dress hunting earlier in the week, so Jon knew what our options were. We found a dress and the additions items I needed. It didn't seem like a good idea to wear hiking boots with the dress. LOL (We also found a coat for Froggie. It was a $350.00 genuine lambskin leather coat and we got it for about $45.00 after taxes!)
We were running late getting ready so Mom met me between our house and hers to get the kids. I got back home with just enough time for us to get ready and get to banquet right on time. Jon was nearly ready when I got back. He had shaved! The last time he shaved was for our anniversary back in August '08. He was helping me get ready. He started to hand me the dress and found out the cashier hadn't removed the security tag! We had to go back to the store before going to the banquet. I got dressed as best as I could and wore jeans and a t-shirt to the store . The cashier was the same one and didn't recognize Jon all dressed up and clean shaven. LOL I changed into the dress in the dressing room and then we went straight to the banquet.
I was fine in the dim lighting around people I didn't know well (most of whom were at least a little or a lot drunk). However, much to my embarrassment, a lady in the restroom recognized me from church. Jon had me put the picture of us on Facebook so I might as well post it here as well. I think my cheeks are turning a shade of red similar to the shirt I am wearing as I post this.
Wasn't Jon handsome!Saturday, March 7, 2009
The girls are in Sonflower Scouts at church. Last Saturday was their annual Father/Daughter Banquet. This year's the was Masquerade. I help lead the K and1st grade group, so I had to be there to help. Mom kept the boys and Dad came to the banquet so that Jon wouldn't be as outnumbered. I'll have to see if Jon will post more about the banquet. In the meantime, here are some pictures.
Froggie twirling with Jon
Froggie dancing
Jon dancing with Froggie
Kitty Kat dancing with Papaw
Kitty Kat and Jon
Birdie dancing with a friend
Jon and Monkey
Papaw (Brandi's dad), Birdie, Kitty Kat, Froggie, Monkey, and Jon
They make a beautiful group, don't they!?
Update 3/15/09: Today, when Birdie went to put on her dress for church, we discovered that the top skirt seam had come out for a length of about five inches. She had to wear a different dress.
After church, when Froggie was changing, the straps on one side of her dress pulled out.
Below is a picture our Sonflower Scouts Events coordinator gave me at church today.
Papaw (Brandi's Dad), Kitty Kat, and Froggie in their masks
After church, when Froggie was changing, the straps on one side of her dress pulled out.
Below is a picture our Sonflower Scouts Events coordinator gave me at church today.
Papaw (Brandi's Dad), Kitty Kat, and Froggie in their masksMonday, March 9, 2009
Where have I been?
- Jon and I recently found some of our friends from college on Facebook. Needless to say, some of the time I used to spend on blogging has now gone to Facebook.
- Jon's second shift schedule still has us out of sorts.
- I think we all have Spring fever. The kids are going crazy, making more messes than they help clean up, fighting, testing us, I could go on and on.
- There for a while, I was struggling with being optimistic. Since I'm supposed to be "Optimistically Walking in God's Sight", I really didn't want to bring my pessimism to this blog. I actually considered starting a new blog just for fussing on, but that would have defeated the whole purpose. Wouldn't it?
- Due to some or all of the above, we have found it very difficult to get school done in a reasonable amount of time.
- We are all downstairs for the winter, so we're are most likely experiencing cabin fever.
- This past weekend we were busy. I'll do another post on that later.
- Catch up with friends but try not to neglect other friends in the process.
- Um...I guess the kids and I will have to go back to a first shift schedule. It will be tough, but it looks like it is necessary.
- I've got to get the kids into a rigid schedule where they don't have time for messing around. Of course they don't have time to mess around now. They mess around and their responsibilities and relationships suffer. The weather has been nice the last few days. We need to enjoy it before the snow comes back. More outside activities are in order.
- Things are looking a little brighter. I've recently come to the conclusion that two of my children have Sensory Integration Dysfunction (or Disorder if you will). Everything seems to point in that direction even the early intervention and special needs pre-school experiences before we started homeschooling. So, there is hope of finding some way to help them academically and behaviorally (or at least understand them better). I've also been reading up on allergies. I know we all have at least some allergies. Jon and I have decided to do an elimination diet to check for food allergies. We know that Little Bear is at least lactose intolerant and the kids are affected by red dyes. We suspect that there may be more food sensitivities. I was going to have us start the diet Monday, but changed my mind. Sunday afternoon I realized that we have several dozen eggs and other items that would go bad if we didn't eat them before the diet. So, we are going to try to finish what is in the house. When I shop, I will only purchase things that we will be able to eat on the diet. So, next Monday will be our start date. It's a good thing that we changed the start date, too. My birthday is this week and it would be awful difficult to not eat cake and ice cream. LOL
- I need to get the children back on a fairly rigid schedule. That means I have to be on it, too. Ugh, we all despise change, but this will be for the better.
- I'm hoping that, with the warmer weather, we'll be able to move school back upstairs to our school room. It should be easier for the children and I to focus. I also want to get outside more.
- It is now past midnight here in Ohio and I am starting to type in a dyslexic manner. So yeah, the post about our weekend will have to wait. Please excuse any typos. Tonight my typing is off. Last night it was my handwriting. Even Jon noticed when he got home that my writing was odd on a page I had handwritten. It got so bad that I just gave up and went to sleep. Yeah, I'm going there now before no one can figure out what I'm trying to say.
Hmm...in reviewing my post I noticed that I mentioned the rigid schedule thing twice. It must be important, so I'll just leave it as is. I really am going to bed now. 'Night!
Friday, February 27, 2009
We Would Make Lousy Drunks!
Did I catch your attention with that title?
While we were at the store last weekend, Jon picked up a corkscrew that was marked down at Wal-mart. He discovered as he was taking it out of the bag at home that the screw part was broken.
Thursday, while the older five children and I were at Homeschool P.E., Jon and Little Bear took the corkscrew back to Wal-mart. That afternoon, we went back out to run our errands and Jon bought a sturdier corkscrew and a bottle stopper. Thursday night, as we were fixing supper, Jon opened our bottle of wine. We were being silly, smelled the cork, and both made faces. Gross! We weren't even sure if we could get past the smell. Jon poured some, and we both took a sip. It tasted just as bad as it smelled. Jon dumped the wine he had poured down the sink. Jon informed me that he didn't mind if I wanted to cook with the wine. I guess I'll get to put the wine recipe book (that we won years ago) to the test. LOL
Kids, you have nothing to worry about!
While we were at the store last weekend, Jon picked up a corkscrew that was marked down at Wal-mart. He discovered as he was taking it out of the bag at home that the screw part was broken.
Thursday, while the older five children and I were at Homeschool P.E., Jon and Little Bear took the corkscrew back to Wal-mart. That afternoon, we went back out to run our errands and Jon bought a sturdier corkscrew and a bottle stopper. Thursday night, as we were fixing supper, Jon opened our bottle of wine. We were being silly, smelled the cork, and both made faces. Gross! We weren't even sure if we could get past the smell. Jon poured some, and we both took a sip. It tasted just as bad as it smelled. Jon dumped the wine he had poured down the sink. Jon informed me that he didn't mind if I wanted to cook with the wine. I guess I'll get to put the wine recipe book (that we won years ago) to the test. LOL
Kids, you have nothing to worry about!
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Aren't They Sweet!
Jon had to work Saturday, so Jon and the kids fixed a candle light dinner for two for Jon and me to enjoy Friday night. The kids ate separately, served us, and watched CHITTY CHITTY BANG BANG. I was sent out of the house to spend some alone/errand time while they prepared for the dinner.
Jon went all out this year. He got me flowers*, the movie FIREPROOF, the book THE LOVE DARE, and a Fireproof t-shirt for me and one for himself. He also gave me my birthday present, a comparative study Bible, early. He even got a bottle of wine to try with dinner, but we haven't opened it, yet. You see, we don't normally drink alcohol and Jon forgot we that we don't have a corkscrew.
After dinner, the kids finished watching their movie while we started to watch FIREPROOF. When the kids' movie was finished, we put them to bed and then went back to our movie. Overall, it was a wonderful evening. Thanks Jon and kids!
*One of our cats, Lily, is being quite obstinate about getting up on our table and nibbling on the flower blossoms. I had to put her in her carrier for a while last night. I let her out later and when I got up this morning one of the blossoms she had been chewing on was completely gone. So which flowers does she nibble on? Roses? No. Daisies? No. Mums? No. She nibbles on the lilies! I think we named her well.
Jon went all out this year. He got me flowers*, the movie FIREPROOF, the book THE LOVE DARE, and a Fireproof t-shirt for me and one for himself. He also gave me my birthday present, a comparative study Bible, early. He even got a bottle of wine to try with dinner, but we haven't opened it, yet. You see, we don't normally drink alcohol and Jon forgot we that we don't have a corkscrew.
After dinner, the kids finished watching their movie while we started to watch FIREPROOF. When the kids' movie was finished, we put them to bed and then went back to our movie. Overall, it was a wonderful evening. Thanks Jon and kids!
*One of our cats, Lily, is being quite obstinate about getting up on our table and nibbling on the flower blossoms. I had to put her in her carrier for a while last night. I let her out later and when I got up this morning one of the blossoms she had been chewing on was completely gone. So which flowers does she nibble on? Roses? No. Daisies? No. Mums? No. She nibbles on the lilies! I think we named her well.
Thursday, January 1, 2009
Who Me? Procrastinate?
Last year at our Owings family Christmas/New Year's get together, my mother-in-law assigned the moms with making a scrapbook page for each of their children. She even gave us a scrapbook ideas book for our Christmas present. The problem is that I don't scrapbook. I don't even get pictures developed.
Back in November Jon's mom had some of us get together at her place to work on our pages. It's probably a good thing too. One of my sisters-in-law gave me some sheets of scrapbook page paper (or whatever it is called). I had asked previously what size page. The answer I got was, "The regular size." To me regular size paper is 8.5 X 11. The pages my sil supplied me with are about 11 and 15/16" X 11 and 15/16". Like I said before, I DON'T SCRAPBOOK! This was one case in which procrastinating was a good thing.
I had some of the pages done yesterday. The rest I finished today. Keep in mind the following:
So, without further ado, here are the pages I came up with.
This is the page for Froggie. I didn't have any good pics of just her.
I could probably do an entire scrapbook of Kitty Kat reading.
Birdie
Monkey
Puppy Dog
Little Bear (He was still Baby Bear at the time of the pics.)
Jon took the kids to Young's Jersey Dairy a while back while I was needed elsewhere. The clip-art images on this one are from
http://etc.usf.edu/clipart/index.htm .
Back in November Jon's mom had some of us get together at her place to work on our pages. It's probably a good thing too. One of my sisters-in-law gave me some sheets of scrapbook page paper (or whatever it is called). I had asked previously what size page. The answer I got was, "The regular size." To me regular size paper is 8.5 X 11. The pages my sil supplied me with are about 11 and 15/16" X 11 and 15/16". Like I said before, I DON'T SCRAPBOOK! This was one case in which procrastinating was a good thing.
I had some of the pages done yesterday. The rest I finished today. Keep in mind the following:
- I DON'T SCRAPBOOK!
- Since I don't scrapbook, I don't have very many scrapbook supplies.
- Since I don't have very many scrapbook supplies, I had to make do with what I did have.
- It's a good thing Jon let me keep a few of my BHG magazines "just in case the kids need to cut something out for school".
- No one else in my family seemed too interested in helping me.
- Due to number 3, I only have school glue. You know, the stuff that isn't supposed to be used with pictures and makes paper warp.
- That's alright. I don't have "real" pictures anyway. Remember, I don't get pictures developed. I printed the pictures out on regular printer paper and cut them out.
So, without further ado, here are the pages I came up with.
This is the page for Froggie. I didn't have any good pics of just her.
I could probably do an entire scrapbook of Kitty Kat reading.
Birdie
Monkey
Puppy Dog
Little Bear (He was still Baby Bear at the time of the pics.)
Jon took the kids to Young's Jersey Dairy a while back while I was needed elsewhere. The clip-art images on this one are fromhttp://etc.usf.edu/clipart/index.htm .
These will have to do. I'm out of time. We have to be at the get together at 6pm today.
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Busy Times
I haven't been posting much. I've just had too much on my plate. Here's a little of what we have been up to.
Birdie, Monkey, and Puppy Dog sung in the children's choir with the adult choir the Sunday before Christmas. They did a wonderful job, but we forgot to take our camera.
Christmas day we did our Christmas first thing in the morning; Christmas and a niece's birthday at my parents' house; Christmas with extended family on my mom's side in Lynchburg, Ohio; and then we came home and had to settle the kids down so we could all sleep. Jon and I made the decision not to use credit for Christmas this year, or use credit for other things either. Aside from a few small items that we had picked up here and there through the year, all the gifts we gave this year were homemade. Jon and I did not exchange gifts. We didn't have enough time without the kids around so we didn't get to finish our main gift to the kids. It's just as well though. The gift has become a project for our family to work on together and the kids are excited. Jon is even taking a few days off work at the beginning of the year so we can work on it. I'll try to do a post about it after we finish.
This week, we're working on our projects for Jon's side of the family and the kids are spending time sleeping over at my sister's and parents' houses. Tonight we will all meet up at Mom and Dad's house for a New Year's party. Tomorrow we have our Christmas/New Year's celebration with Jon's side of the family. I guess I better get back to work on those projects.
Merry Christmas! and Happy New Year!
I about forgot to mention that our kitties were spayed/neutered and declawed Monday. Normally they are good about taking medicine, but not this time. They have a combination of an antibiotic and pain killer to take and they fight it tooth and back claws and writhing even though we scruff them or wrap them in a towel and scruff them. It takes both Jon and me working together to get their medicine in them. They foam at the mouth and try to spit out the medicine after I give it to them. The stuff must taste nasty. The poor pathetic things just lay around and want to be cuddled now and then. Does anybody know how to make a collar to keep them from licking their incisions? I was told to make them if they start licking themselves, but not exactly how to make them. So far, they aren't licking the incisions. I have to take them back to the vet to get their mittens off Friday.
Birdie, Monkey, and Puppy Dog sung in the children's choir with the adult choir the Sunday before Christmas. They did a wonderful job, but we forgot to take our camera.
Christmas day we did our Christmas first thing in the morning; Christmas and a niece's birthday at my parents' house; Christmas with extended family on my mom's side in Lynchburg, Ohio; and then we came home and had to settle the kids down so we could all sleep. Jon and I made the decision not to use credit for Christmas this year, or use credit for other things either. Aside from a few small items that we had picked up here and there through the year, all the gifts we gave this year were homemade. Jon and I did not exchange gifts. We didn't have enough time without the kids around so we didn't get to finish our main gift to the kids. It's just as well though. The gift has become a project for our family to work on together and the kids are excited. Jon is even taking a few days off work at the beginning of the year so we can work on it. I'll try to do a post about it after we finish.
This week, we're working on our projects for Jon's side of the family and the kids are spending time sleeping over at my sister's and parents' houses. Tonight we will all meet up at Mom and Dad's house for a New Year's party. Tomorrow we have our Christmas/New Year's celebration with Jon's side of the family. I guess I better get back to work on those projects.
Merry Christmas! and Happy New Year!
I about forgot to mention that our kitties were spayed/neutered and declawed Monday. Normally they are good about taking medicine, but not this time. They have a combination of an antibiotic and pain killer to take and they fight it tooth and back claws and writhing even though we scruff them or wrap them in a towel and scruff them. It takes both Jon and me working together to get their medicine in them. They foam at the mouth and try to spit out the medicine after I give it to them. The stuff must taste nasty. The poor pathetic things just lay around and want to be cuddled now and then. Does anybody know how to make a collar to keep them from licking their incisions? I was told to make them if they start licking themselves, but not exactly how to make them. So far, they aren't licking the incisions. I have to take them back to the vet to get their mittens off Friday.
Saturday, December 20, 2008
The Play Went Well
Last Sunday was the church play, SCROOGE REVISITED, that Jon, Kitty Kat, and Monkey were in. I figured that I better get it posted before tomorrow.
The actors and actresses really got into their characters. Can you see "Jenny" cowering as "dad" got angry with "Amy"? "Mark S." was a modern day "Scrooge".
"Scrooge" observes at the "Crachit" house.
"Spirit 3" tells "Scrooge" the good news about Jesus.
"Scrooge" kneeling at the manger scene
The first two pictures are of Kitty Kat and Monkey in the opening street scene.
Here "Scrooge" is studying his books. "Bob Crachit" was off to Jon's right at his own desk.
"Scrooge" and his "old dead partner Marley"
"Amy" a.k.a. Kitty Kat and "Jenny" a.k.a. Monkey
"Mark Scroggins", "Jenny's" and "Amy's" dad; "Spirit 1"; and "Scrooge" in the background
"Mark Scroggins", "Jenny's" and "Amy's" dad; "Spirit 1"; and "Scrooge" in the background
The actors and actresses really got into their characters. Can you see "Jenny" cowering as "dad" got angry with "Amy"? "Mark S." was a modern day "Scrooge".
"Scrooge" and "Spirit 2"
"Scrooge" observes at the "Crachit" house.
"Spirit 3" tells "Scrooge" the good news about Jesus.
"Scrooge" kneeling at the manger scene
The church choir and praise band performed the music for the production behind the stage. They had a curtainless curtain call, and the choir and band members joined the cast on the stage. The choir and band members came out wearing Santa hats (don't ask why, I don't know). Here is a picture of Jon's mom. She is in the choir.
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Bye-bye Baby Bear, Hello Little Bear!
Baby Bear decided that he didn't want to be called Baby Bear any more. We convinced him to wait until he turned four. Today that day came, and he is now officially Little Bear.
Jon had to work today, so Little Bear got to open his birthday present before Jon left.
Last night, Jon asked Baby Bear what he wanted for breakfast. His answer? Pizza! (By the way, we had pizza for supper last night.) So, I made plans with Baby Bear to make a cinnamon "roll" pizza. This morning I made the pizza for Little Bear's breakfast. I got up later than I intended, because I didn't sleep well last night. Jon had to leave before the pizza was ready, so he ate a bowl of instant oatmeal. We saved a piece of pizza for him.
This afternoon, I asked Little Bear what he would like for lunch. His answer? Oatmeal! So, I made Peanut butter oatmeal with a jelly dollop, carrot and celery sticks, and applesauce. I piled the kids' plates high with the oatmeal. I didn't want them to get hungry too quickly. Little Bear didn't finish all his veggies and applesauce. It was just as well though. He is fighting off some sort of flu bug. I realized that the applesauce would only make matters worse after I served him.
Tonight was a dress rehearsal for the play at church. We all went so that I could help with make-up. After the rehearsal was over, we were all standing in a prayer circle. As one of our elders was praying for everyone to get and stay healthy Birdie threw up on the sanctuary floor. Fun times! (oozing with sarcasm)
We had cake and frozen yogurt/ice cream. Birdie had to sit this one out.
*I had more photos I was trying to post, but for some reason they weren't uploading. I may try again tomorrow. I'm too tired to wait for them.
Jon had to work today, so Little Bear got to open his birthday present before Jon left.
Last night, Jon asked Baby Bear what he wanted for breakfast. His answer? Pizza! (By the way, we had pizza for supper last night.) So, I made plans with Baby Bear to make a cinnamon "roll" pizza. This morning I made the pizza for Little Bear's breakfast. I got up later than I intended, because I didn't sleep well last night. Jon had to leave before the pizza was ready, so he ate a bowl of instant oatmeal. We saved a piece of pizza for him.
This afternoon, I asked Little Bear what he would like for lunch. His answer? Oatmeal! So, I made Peanut butter oatmeal with a jelly dollop, carrot and celery sticks, and applesauce. I piled the kids' plates high with the oatmeal. I didn't want them to get hungry too quickly. Little Bear didn't finish all his veggies and applesauce. It was just as well though. He is fighting off some sort of flu bug. I realized that the applesauce would only make matters worse after I served him.
Tonight was a dress rehearsal for the play at church. We all went so that I could help with make-up. After the rehearsal was over, we were all standing in a prayer circle. As one of our elders was praying for everyone to get and stay healthy Birdie threw up on the sanctuary floor. Fun times! (oozing with sarcasm)
We had cake and frozen yogurt/ice cream. Birdie had to sit this one out.
*I had more photos I was trying to post, but for some reason they weren't uploading. I may try again tomorrow. I'm too tired to wait for them.
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