I feel like that is what I do with most of my time right now. It is quite crazy to be honest. But first, I have to catch you all up to where we are now:
Cephas, age 12, seventh grade, center on his football team. ADHD fairly well controlled now, ODD getting controlled, aggression well under control. Trying to parent the younger kids: still a major issue. Has a best friend he likes to hang out with. I love it because it gives him a chance to be with another kid without his own siblings around. Best friend, Andy, has an older sister but she is much older than him and lives elsewhere for her college.
Koren, age 9 but almost 10, fourth grade, first year playing football. Still very studious and loves to learn, read, build with legos and hang out with his friends. His friends mostly live near us, so he can play with them outside near our home. Starting to come into his own stronger personality, but still loves to snuggle (even with Mom!)
Oralee, age 7, second grade. Princess-turned-Diva-turned-well, a handful. Has MAJOR attitude going on most of the time, but we're working on it. I have a pretty good idea what could be causing some of it though. Loves reading, writing stories, playing with her dollhouse and art projects. Also loves having Mom do her nails and hair. Nearly impossible to get this child to wear regular shoes, as she strongly prefers calf- or knee-high boots.
Jeriah, age 5 almost 6, first grade. Still has Asperger's, still reads way above grade level. Comprehension is still closer to grade level though. Very advanced in math. Can do sister's second-grade homework with ease. Brought home his first spelling pre-test of first grade this week with a perfect score on all of the regular words, plus the bonus words were spelled correctly as well. The challenge words are not given on the pre-test, but he was able to orally spell those for me when I asked him to. Kid is a whiz with words! Socially still at a deficit, but that is to be expected. Has started to pick on his sister. (Part of her issue with being a handful anymore.) Demanded some dignity about his bedroom situation and moved from the "girly room" he shared with his sister to the room his brothers occupy. Now, we have a boys' room and a girls' room.
Yes, a girls' (as in plural) room. No, I didn't have a baby, but yes, we kind of, sort of, have another kid. You might remember Angel, a kid whose mother works with Hubby. Well, just before the school year started, Angel's mom's life turned a little bit upside down and things were pretty shaky there for a little bit. I offered to have Angel stay with us so that her Mom could get herself situated and some things worked out. Angel is now with us temporarily but indefinitely. We have no legal rights or claim to her, her mom has full custody of her, but she just happens to be with us most of the time. So:
Angel, age 5, kindergarten. Adjusting well to being here and starting school. Loves being in school and is so proud of her work. Can now write her name. We had about four months where I didn't really have her, so she may have learned how to do it in that time, but I just now know about it. Does an amazingly perfect cartwheel (I'm thinking gymnastics may be in her future here soon!) and has gotten over her quiet shyness for the most part.
So, if you are following along, that's five kids, two in football, two who are on the Autism Spectrum. Busy yet? Nope! Cephas and Koren are both still in Boy and Cub Scouts, respectively. We were considering putting Jeriah in our school's Scouting program, but in doing so, he would advance from Bear to Wolf and then transfer to his brothers' Pack/Troop and have to go back to being a Bear, because of the difference in the way they do their Scouts. And instead of having Oralee do formal Girl Scouts this year, I have strongly considered doing Juliettes with her. It's basically like Girl Scouts for homeschoolers. She would do her activities and earn her badges and all that, but we would do it independent of a group. It is basically what ended up happening in her first year as a Daisy as well. And since we have Angel, she would also do Juliettes as well.
If that isn't all enough, you might remember we have three dogs: Tink, Tiny and Freddy. Tink and Tiny are Chihuahuas and Freddy is a Cocker Spaniel. To mix things up a bit, we added a cat, Phineas or Phinny for short. When we got him, we were pretty sure that Freddy wanted to eat him, but within a few days, they got along well enough. Now, Phinny does his own thing, the dogs do their own thing and all is well.
Hubby just passed his two-year anniversary at his work. There's a lot of stress there right now because he works in a restaurant and the restaurant chain was bought out by another company late last year and they have made some changes since the purchase. Well, on top of that, his store is also going through a Revitalization Phase. They are getting a full-store remodel and they are staying open throughout the whole thing, minus only ONE day! Can you imagine?! I'm so thankful that I don't work there. On top of being fired for being insubordinate to the General Manager (he's a friend of mine), I'd want to pull my hair out at all of the changes going on.
Speaking of changes, I have a couple of new things going on in my own life. I have started back to school. I started back in classes in Spring. I took 16.5 credit hours (4 classes) during the regular 10-week quarter, 4.5 credit hours (1 class) for the accelerated 5-week quarter and another 4.5 credit hours (1 class) for the accelerated 3-week quarter. I was able to knock 25.5 credit hours out in one quarter alone. For the summer quarter, I have slowed it down to only 18 credit hours (4 classes) and for fall, I am slowing it down just a bit more to the smallest amount that I am even willing to take and will only be taking 12.5 credit hours (3 classes), although I am struggling with that decision, feeling that I should still take 4 classes. Oh - and for my crazy Spring quarter? Term GPA of 3.588.
And to finish off the changes that will catch you up the rest of the way, I have started caring for another one of Hubby's co-worker's children. Her name is Paytin. I have her only part-time as I have a traditional class during the day, three days a week which is when her parents would be needing me to watch her. Instead, I watch her on my non-class weekdays. The very first day I watched her, she was only 15 days old. I actually had to check and make sure it was legal to watch her as I do daycare part-time, but am license-exempt. It is actually because I am license-exempt that I was able to take her. Her mom went back to work before Paytin was even two weeks old. I am in awe of her, to be honest. No way was I ready to go back to work that soon after having my kids. But she is determined. Both of Paytin's parents are going to be taking college courses this fall in addition to working and raising a newborn. They are going to be taking online classes. I haven't the slightest idea how they are going to do it all, but they are young, they are in love, they are determined and they are working hard to make the best life they can for tiny little Paytin and themselves.
And I'm pretty sure that you are now all caught up with our lives here. Stay tuned though. I plan to update more than every six months.
Showing posts with label Scouting. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Scouting. Show all posts
Sunday, September 1, 2013
Sunday, January 20, 2013
Finding and Acheiving Balance
I am struggling to find a balance for all of my responsibilities. Any one else have this issue? This week is going to be busy, but not so much that I don't have time to get it all done.
Tomorrow, we don't have school, but I will only be home part of the day as I am going over to Bree's house to help her declutter her clothes' closet (and maybe even get to take home some of the items if I really like them). Tuesday, we have an appointment with our therapist and one of her partners about finally starting a medication regime for Cephas (it's something that we have tried to avoid, but entering the teen years, we feel it is now time) that will take up most of the morning. The rest of the day is fairly empty though. Wednesday, I have to work and then in the evening I also have an appointment at church. Thursday, I will be visit teaching with my teaching companion and then I will be going to a movie with the mother-in-law. We also have the Pinewood Derby in Scouts on this night, so one of our free evenings this week will be spent on creating a car for the Derby. Then Friday, I have blissfully nothing planned for the day yet.
Okay, here is my problem. The week itself, broken up like this, isn't so bad. But I seem to be having issues trying to acheive a balance. Thursday, there is just absolutely no wiggle room in my schedule. None at all. I'll be gone all day from 8:30 am when I take the kids to school until 8:30 pm when we get home from Scouts and Mutual.
These are the "scheduled" items on my list for the week. The "unscheduled" items are things like my personal Scripture study, Scripture study with Bree, tackling one area of the house at a time to declutter and really really clean it, doing all of my regular maintenance-type housework, getting to the gym and working out, and then other regular stuff like school drop off, school pick up, meal planning and execution, grocery shopping and other routine errands as such. I just need to sit down and figure out when and where everything is going to go.
Since I have tomorrow morning free (kid-free with Hubby at home, to be exact), we are planning on working on laundry and our bedroom, which is buried in laundry and clutter that gets shoved in there whenever we have company. Then I'll be going to Bree's house to help her, then I'll be heading back home to get dinner ready so that we can eat before beginning our evening plans. We'll probably work on the Derby car and I also really want to take the kids to the gym that night to go swimming. They really enjoy going and they have such a great time.
Tuesday, I know that my morning is already pretty much gone. We'll probably feed Cephas before sending him back to school (or just let him stay out for the rest of the day - depending on how much time is left in his school day before they are let out) and then that afternoon, we will be working on the Pinewood Derby car, as well as things around the house, maybe even get around to tackling one complete area too. That evening, I want to take the kids to gym again after supper, but I want to do a water aerobics class that I enjoy that evening. It's a TOUGH workout and I feel it so much afterwards, but it is incredible! The older boys can either swim in the other pool or they can shoot baskets in the gym. The little kids will go to the Child Watch center while I am in my class, then maybe we will swim again as a family afterwards.
Wednesday, I'll have work and then I'll do school pickups, home dropoffs (we carpool that day), then get home and make dinner before I have to leave for my meeting at church. When I get home that evening, we'll do finishing touches on the Derby car, and then I'll work on some regular everyday housework and call it a night.
Thursday is my busy day. I'll take the kids to school, go visit teach, then do lunch and a movie with my mother-in-law (it's not something that we've ever done before, so I'm kind of excited for it!) and then it will be time to get the kids from school and a friend's house and hurry home to eat a quick dinner before leaving for the Pinewood Derby. After the Derby is over, we'll call it a night.
Friday, oh how I am looking forward to Friday! I plan to spend my day on Friday (at home, without Hubby or kids or anyone else!), working on things around the house, to get it ready for the weekend. I also want to spend a good chunk of time in my Scriptures this day. I'll need to do this before Hubby gets home, as he has this desire to try to talk to me while I'm reading something (anything!), just as I have the same desire to try to talk to him during a football game or a video game or some other inopportune time for him. Friday night, we will plan on the gym again, but we'll have to see for sure.
Saturday, Hubby has to work and the kids and I will be working on our deep-cleaning chores here at home. My goal for Saturday's chores: have all three bedrooms completely clean! It's a big, giant goal but it's definitely worth trying for.
The one thing that I have, for the most part, missed in this plan is my Scripture time. And maybe that's my problem, that I am not starting with that and that's why I feel like I'm not achieving any balance. So, going back through the days...on Monday, I will do my study time in the morning before Hubby gets up, Tuesday, I'll do my study time in the morning before everyone gets up, Wednesday, I'll do it after dropping kids off at school but before going to work, Thursday, I'll do it after visit teaching, but before the movie, Friday, I'll do it in the morning while Hubby is at work (as I had already planned), then on Saturday, I'll do it in the evening.
Also, on Saturday evening, I'll need to make sure that I have my lesson plan for Nursery completed. I broke up the lesson we are on into two parts, with part one being today and part two being next week. I had also planned to meet with my Nursery co-leader at some point this week, which may end up being on Tuesday afternoon, after Cephas' appointment. I just remembered that we had talked about tentatively setting something up this week to discuss Nursery.
So, that's my week. It will be busy, but the important thing for me to realize is that there is more than enough time to get it all done and to find that balance that I so desire. I love my life and I love all the different aspects and yes, even all of the different responsibilities that go along with it. Sometimes, I just get overwhelmed and talk myself into a situation where I (incorrectly) think that I'm over-scheduled or whatever, even though this is absolutely not the case! So thanks for being here and reading and letting me get it all clear in my head. Most of the things that I was trying to make sure that I had time to dedicate to in my schedule were those things that I had on my goals for this year. It is very important to me to be able to complete those goals and to make that solid lifestyle change. Every little thing that I can do to help me accomplish those goals, I'm willing to do.
Tomorrow, we don't have school, but I will only be home part of the day as I am going over to Bree's house to help her declutter her clothes' closet (and maybe even get to take home some of the items if I really like them). Tuesday, we have an appointment with our therapist and one of her partners about finally starting a medication regime for Cephas (it's something that we have tried to avoid, but entering the teen years, we feel it is now time) that will take up most of the morning. The rest of the day is fairly empty though. Wednesday, I have to work and then in the evening I also have an appointment at church. Thursday, I will be visit teaching with my teaching companion and then I will be going to a movie with the mother-in-law. We also have the Pinewood Derby in Scouts on this night, so one of our free evenings this week will be spent on creating a car for the Derby. Then Friday, I have blissfully nothing planned for the day yet.
Okay, here is my problem. The week itself, broken up like this, isn't so bad. But I seem to be having issues trying to acheive a balance. Thursday, there is just absolutely no wiggle room in my schedule. None at all. I'll be gone all day from 8:30 am when I take the kids to school until 8:30 pm when we get home from Scouts and Mutual.
These are the "scheduled" items on my list for the week. The "unscheduled" items are things like my personal Scripture study, Scripture study with Bree, tackling one area of the house at a time to declutter and really really clean it, doing all of my regular maintenance-type housework, getting to the gym and working out, and then other regular stuff like school drop off, school pick up, meal planning and execution, grocery shopping and other routine errands as such. I just need to sit down and figure out when and where everything is going to go.
Since I have tomorrow morning free (kid-free with Hubby at home, to be exact), we are planning on working on laundry and our bedroom, which is buried in laundry and clutter that gets shoved in there whenever we have company. Then I'll be going to Bree's house to help her, then I'll be heading back home to get dinner ready so that we can eat before beginning our evening plans. We'll probably work on the Derby car and I also really want to take the kids to the gym that night to go swimming. They really enjoy going and they have such a great time.
Tuesday, I know that my morning is already pretty much gone. We'll probably feed Cephas before sending him back to school (or just let him stay out for the rest of the day - depending on how much time is left in his school day before they are let out) and then that afternoon, we will be working on the Pinewood Derby car, as well as things around the house, maybe even get around to tackling one complete area too. That evening, I want to take the kids to gym again after supper, but I want to do a water aerobics class that I enjoy that evening. It's a TOUGH workout and I feel it so much afterwards, but it is incredible! The older boys can either swim in the other pool or they can shoot baskets in the gym. The little kids will go to the Child Watch center while I am in my class, then maybe we will swim again as a family afterwards.
Wednesday, I'll have work and then I'll do school pickups, home dropoffs (we carpool that day), then get home and make dinner before I have to leave for my meeting at church. When I get home that evening, we'll do finishing touches on the Derby car, and then I'll work on some regular everyday housework and call it a night.
Thursday is my busy day. I'll take the kids to school, go visit teach, then do lunch and a movie with my mother-in-law (it's not something that we've ever done before, so I'm kind of excited for it!) and then it will be time to get the kids from school and a friend's house and hurry home to eat a quick dinner before leaving for the Pinewood Derby. After the Derby is over, we'll call it a night.
Friday, oh how I am looking forward to Friday! I plan to spend my day on Friday (at home, without Hubby or kids or anyone else!), working on things around the house, to get it ready for the weekend. I also want to spend a good chunk of time in my Scriptures this day. I'll need to do this before Hubby gets home, as he has this desire to try to talk to me while I'm reading something (anything!), just as I have the same desire to try to talk to him during a football game or a video game or some other inopportune time for him. Friday night, we will plan on the gym again, but we'll have to see for sure.
Saturday, Hubby has to work and the kids and I will be working on our deep-cleaning chores here at home. My goal for Saturday's chores: have all three bedrooms completely clean! It's a big, giant goal but it's definitely worth trying for.
The one thing that I have, for the most part, missed in this plan is my Scripture time. And maybe that's my problem, that I am not starting with that and that's why I feel like I'm not achieving any balance. So, going back through the days...on Monday, I will do my study time in the morning before Hubby gets up, Tuesday, I'll do my study time in the morning before everyone gets up, Wednesday, I'll do it after dropping kids off at school but before going to work, Thursday, I'll do it after visit teaching, but before the movie, Friday, I'll do it in the morning while Hubby is at work (as I had already planned), then on Saturday, I'll do it in the evening.
Also, on Saturday evening, I'll need to make sure that I have my lesson plan for Nursery completed. I broke up the lesson we are on into two parts, with part one being today and part two being next week. I had also planned to meet with my Nursery co-leader at some point this week, which may end up being on Tuesday afternoon, after Cephas' appointment. I just remembered that we had talked about tentatively setting something up this week to discuss Nursery.
So, that's my week. It will be busy, but the important thing for me to realize is that there is more than enough time to get it all done and to find that balance that I so desire. I love my life and I love all the different aspects and yes, even all of the different responsibilities that go along with it. Sometimes, I just get overwhelmed and talk myself into a situation where I (incorrectly) think that I'm over-scheduled or whatever, even though this is absolutely not the case! So thanks for being here and reading and letting me get it all clear in my head. Most of the things that I was trying to make sure that I had time to dedicate to in my schedule were those things that I had on my goals for this year. It is very important to me to be able to complete those goals and to make that solid lifestyle change. Every little thing that I can do to help me accomplish those goals, I'm willing to do.
Monday, December 31, 2012
Happy New Year
Yet again, another unintended hiatus from blogging. You know, I plan to blog regularly and I do really well with it for awhile and then something comes up and I miss a day. Or two. Or a week. And the longer that I break from it, the harder it is for me to come back from it. I wait for the perfect project or the right theme to come back to or whatever. And that frustrates me. I don't need a theme or a project to blog. I just need to take a few minutes whenever I want to and just sit down and write something. Funny, I shouldn't have to give myself permission to skip a day without feeling guilty. Yet, that's the way that I feel. I'll work on it though. :)
Well, I have lots to tell you all about to catch you up with life as we know it. Cephas is now a full-ranked Boy Scout. He has had his Court of Honor and received his ranks and is ready to begin working on his Merit Badges. Way to go Cephas! He has also developed a major passion for photography, film-making, production and videos.
Koren's birthday was October 6th (the day AFTER my last post here) and my brother-in-law married his fiancee that day. They had an absolutely beautiful wedding and a great reception - during which all the guests sang Happy Birthday to Koren. He also received his own personal birthday cake (made by the caterer). It was wonderful! He was embarrassed but he loved the attention too. And sweet boy that he is, he maintained that the best birthday gift this year was his newly acquired Aunt.
Oralee. Wow, she was all sassy and spice the last time I blogged about her and she has now settled down quite a bit into a very sweet and mostly compliant, helpful and caring person. She has also gone very girly girl in a not-so-little girl way. Not that she's six going on sixteen or anything like that. But she's honing in on her own personality more and her own sense of style. She prefers her hair long and curly (and she has very straight hair!) and she prefers leggings and wearing long layers that can mix and match to the little girl cutesie matching outfits. I hope that makes sense. She's just so much older in some ways than she was just a few months ago.
And then there is Jeriah. He is excelling wonderfully at school. It is just amazing how much he has changed and how far he has gone academically. No matter how much we questioned whether we were doing the right thing with him in regards to enrolling him in Kindergarten a year early, I am absolutely certain that we made the best choice for him. He loves it! He's reading on a mid-first grade level or maybe slightly higher. His math skills are around the same level. He has even done his sister's homework for her. (I thought it was an extra, skipped over on purpose lesson from school but apparently, it was Oralee's current homework assignment and she was VERY offended that Jeriah had done her homework!) His social skills are coming along quite nicely as well. We have all noticed some instances of him "scripting" some behaviors of other children. But as long as we can nip that one in the bud, we should be fine. Thankfully, he has an amazingly wonderful teacher and he'd had an amazing practicum student from the university working with him as well (she is gone now, though, and he misses her.)
Hubby's job is going well and all that. I'm still babysitting for his co-workers, although not nearly as frequently as I had been. Angel's mom and dad have gotten back together and now her dad is working at the same place as Angel's mom. Their schedules are mostly opposite, so they haven't needed me to babysit and the best part is that Angel spends her time with at least one of her parents.
I have an interview set up to meet with someone about taking care of her son part-time in her home while she is working. It's a great set-up. She lives close to me, the hours she needs me are while my children are in school and she has another provider as well for the opposite days who is able to be flexible and switch with me for days that my kids don't have school. I'm excited to meet both the mom and her son later this week. Hopefully, it's as good of a fit as it seems to have been so far via messages and such.
But for the most part, I'm really digging this stay-at-home mom thing. I'm getting better about keeping up with all of the daily tasks. The biggest thing has been consistency with the kids' chores and bedrooms and for me doing my daily and weekly tasks. I still struggle (constantly!) with laundry, but I'm pretty sure that I can overcome that issue soon.
I also had a huge lightbulb moment the other day while looking at some newly-acquired cookbooks to have the family sit down together once a month - most likely the last Monday of the month - to have each person look through and pick out at least two main dishes and two side dishes and one dessert to try out that month. I figure that would provide us with at least twelve full meals, so that would also alleviate the pain of trying to menu plan. Plus, if it is something that they pick out and choose for the family to eat, the kids are going to be more willing to try new foods and new recipes. Then, at the end of the new meal, we'll determine if we liked the recipe. If it was a hit, it will get written into my recipe book that contains all of our favorite recipes. If it wasn't so hot, I'll put a sticky note in the book that we tried it, when we tried it and note who didn't like it. Or something like that. Because our kids' tastes change so quickly, six months down the road, whatever ingredient they didn't like in the dish may be something that they now just LOVE. For instance, in the past few months, Jeriah has decided that he doesn't like ketchup, but that he loves mustard. A lot. His cheeseburgers? Mustard only. 100% of the time. No ketchup, no pickles, no onion. Just mustard only.
Okay, well that was a really random hodgepodge post about nothing and everything all at once. But hopefully, I'll get back to a more rhythmic timing on my posts. Until next time!
Well, I have lots to tell you all about to catch you up with life as we know it. Cephas is now a full-ranked Boy Scout. He has had his Court of Honor and received his ranks and is ready to begin working on his Merit Badges. Way to go Cephas! He has also developed a major passion for photography, film-making, production and videos.
Koren's birthday was October 6th (the day AFTER my last post here) and my brother-in-law married his fiancee that day. They had an absolutely beautiful wedding and a great reception - during which all the guests sang Happy Birthday to Koren. He also received his own personal birthday cake (made by the caterer). It was wonderful! He was embarrassed but he loved the attention too. And sweet boy that he is, he maintained that the best birthday gift this year was his newly acquired Aunt.
Oralee. Wow, she was all sassy and spice the last time I blogged about her and she has now settled down quite a bit into a very sweet and mostly compliant, helpful and caring person. She has also gone very girly girl in a not-so-little girl way. Not that she's six going on sixteen or anything like that. But she's honing in on her own personality more and her own sense of style. She prefers her hair long and curly (and she has very straight hair!) and she prefers leggings and wearing long layers that can mix and match to the little girl cutesie matching outfits. I hope that makes sense. She's just so much older in some ways than she was just a few months ago.
And then there is Jeriah. He is excelling wonderfully at school. It is just amazing how much he has changed and how far he has gone academically. No matter how much we questioned whether we were doing the right thing with him in regards to enrolling him in Kindergarten a year early, I am absolutely certain that we made the best choice for him. He loves it! He's reading on a mid-first grade level or maybe slightly higher. His math skills are around the same level. He has even done his sister's homework for her. (I thought it was an extra, skipped over on purpose lesson from school but apparently, it was Oralee's current homework assignment and she was VERY offended that Jeriah had done her homework!) His social skills are coming along quite nicely as well. We have all noticed some instances of him "scripting" some behaviors of other children. But as long as we can nip that one in the bud, we should be fine. Thankfully, he has an amazingly wonderful teacher and he'd had an amazing practicum student from the university working with him as well (she is gone now, though, and he misses her.)
Hubby's job is going well and all that. I'm still babysitting for his co-workers, although not nearly as frequently as I had been. Angel's mom and dad have gotten back together and now her dad is working at the same place as Angel's mom. Their schedules are mostly opposite, so they haven't needed me to babysit and the best part is that Angel spends her time with at least one of her parents.
I have an interview set up to meet with someone about taking care of her son part-time in her home while she is working. It's a great set-up. She lives close to me, the hours she needs me are while my children are in school and she has another provider as well for the opposite days who is able to be flexible and switch with me for days that my kids don't have school. I'm excited to meet both the mom and her son later this week. Hopefully, it's as good of a fit as it seems to have been so far via messages and such.
But for the most part, I'm really digging this stay-at-home mom thing. I'm getting better about keeping up with all of the daily tasks. The biggest thing has been consistency with the kids' chores and bedrooms and for me doing my daily and weekly tasks. I still struggle (constantly!) with laundry, but I'm pretty sure that I can overcome that issue soon.
I also had a huge lightbulb moment the other day while looking at some newly-acquired cookbooks to have the family sit down together once a month - most likely the last Monday of the month - to have each person look through and pick out at least two main dishes and two side dishes and one dessert to try out that month. I figure that would provide us with at least twelve full meals, so that would also alleviate the pain of trying to menu plan. Plus, if it is something that they pick out and choose for the family to eat, the kids are going to be more willing to try new foods and new recipes. Then, at the end of the new meal, we'll determine if we liked the recipe. If it was a hit, it will get written into my recipe book that contains all of our favorite recipes. If it wasn't so hot, I'll put a sticky note in the book that we tried it, when we tried it and note who didn't like it. Or something like that. Because our kids' tastes change so quickly, six months down the road, whatever ingredient they didn't like in the dish may be something that they now just LOVE. For instance, in the past few months, Jeriah has decided that he doesn't like ketchup, but that he loves mustard. A lot. His cheeseburgers? Mustard only. 100% of the time. No ketchup, no pickles, no onion. Just mustard only.
Okay, well that was a really random hodgepodge post about nothing and everything all at once. But hopefully, I'll get back to a more rhythmic timing on my posts. Until next time!
Thursday, July 5, 2012
Fireworks and Meltdowns
There are so many different things that the title of this post could possibly refer to, such as: the heat around here, the wildfires in surrounding states, the fireworks, whatever. But this isn't about any of that, although they may all make it further into this post before I'm done.
I'm talking about emotional meltdowns. When my kids really get going, I fully and completely expect to see a big ol' puddle of Cephas or Koren, Oralee or Jeriah just laying there on the ground. Thankfully, it is a figurative term and not a literal one because with the heat around here, they probably would have evaporated in an hour's time. (Heat - further mention - 1 for 3)
Our city allows fireworks to be sold and lit only on July 3rd and July 4th. There are nearby towns that allow fireworks sales prior to that (something like up to ten days in advance of the 4th?) but here in the city, you are out of luck til the 3rd. (Fireworks - further mention - 2 for 3)
Our city's big holiday hoopla actually happens on the 3rd as well. Multimillion dollar display, free activities for the day for families, it's a great event and a great idea. However, with the heat indexes being over 100 and the humidity making it dangerous to even be outside (your body cannot efficiently cool itself), we had made the decision not to attend this year.
We went last year. Hubby, myself, our four kids, Shea, her hubby and their four kids. It was an absolute BLAST! (pardon the pun) We had discussed doing it again this year, but due to the fact that Hubby was scheduled the 3rd and the 4th and that we would be having BabyCakes overnight on the 3rd and into the 4th (weekday daycare took a holiday), we weren't planning on going to it. Add to that the fact that with two children on the Spectrum, one of whom needs a VERY consistent schedule - at minimum a regular sleep schedule - and the other who has developed some sensory processing issues, and how that would affect them, we made our choice.
Cephas and Koren wanted to spend some time outdoors yesterday (3rd) watching neighbors do their fireworks. I was completely fine with that. I gave them some very specific instructions. Stay away from the fireworks and ABSOLUTELY no holding or lighting fireworks. They both disobeyed and got caught. They both were given one more chance and did well with it.
Our neighbors decided to go to the lake nearby to just watch the fireworks display. It happens maybe only a mile or a mile and a half from us (as the eagle flies) but there are a lot of trees and hills between here and there and we wouldn't be able to see the display from here. They asked if Cephas could join them. I reluctantly agreed. Our bedtime around here is 8:30 year round. It seems really early in the summer, but the kids NEED it. Granted, there are times when it gets pushed back to 9:00 or sometimes even 10:00, but not much later than that at all.
The fireworks display doesn't happen til 10:00pm. It's a 22 minute show. Then there is traffic. So on and so forth. Cephas got home just before 11:00. He wanted to stay outside and watch the neighbors do some more of their fireworks. The fireworks are actually supposed to end at 11pm, but I didn't know that. I found that out afterward. But I let him and Koren both go over and watch the neighbors. The little kids were asleep inside and Hubby was too.
I sat on the porch and watched the kids and waited for BabyCakes to get dropped off as well (they had also gone to the show and had to walk back home after to drive over here). BabyCakes got dropped off, I brought him inside and put him to bed. He was out instantly. He normally goes to bed around 8:30 as well. I called for the boys to come in just before midnight. They were asleep within ten minutes as I figured they would be.
Today, everyone was up at their normal times. My kids have never figured out the whole sleeping in thing. Well, except for Koren. He'd gladly sleep in til 9am, usually. But the rest of them are usually up pretty early. They did their chores (most willingly, might I add) and earned their game time. I lost track of time and they ended up with double the amount that they were supposed to have.
Then, this afternoon, the friends starting showing up at the door, all asking for the boys to come out and play, which we allowed them to do. After awhile, we had them come in to cool off, even though they said that they were "just fine". Sorry kiddos, it is my job as your mom to be the parent and as such, I need to make sure that you ARE just fine. With this heat, you may not be able to tell the difference.
Then, they started asking if they could watch this person or that person do fireworks tonight. I told them that we would see. I knew that they were already short on sleep and after playing outside, it REALLY showed. I suggested that they go lay down and rest for a bit. They vetoed that suggestion.
They started talking about how they wanted to just be able to light this type of firework or that type of firework and I told them again, "NO fireworks. You may watch them and that is IT"
Shortly after that, they went outside to play again and both of them broke the rule and were caught lighting fireworks. They were told that if they were going to be allowed to watch fireworks in the evening, it would be from our porch. They had broken the rules again and they were done. They were not allowed to play outside, they were not allowed to watch the fireworks unless it was from our porch, they were just DONE with outdoor activities for the day.
That is when Cephas melted. Koren is eight, almost nine and he sat there, listening and quickly and quietly took his consequence for it and moved on. Cephas melted. He cried, he complained, he whined, he nagged, he kept at it. We explained, we reasoned with him, we remained firm on the issue. No matter how much he tried and tried to get his own way about it, we didn't budge. I told him that if he kept it up, he'd end up with an 8pm bedtime and miss out on everything altogether.
So then the evening came and the boys were outside on the porch to watch other people light their fireworks. I had the little kids inside, watching different displays on T.V. I asked the boys if they wanted to come in and watch the displays as well. They didn't at first. But then Cephas decided to come indoors and melt all over the living room again. So that was the end of the outdoors for him. I gave him the option of going to his room and watching out his window or laying on the couch and watching on TV. He chose his room. Koren came in as well and went to lay down because he was tired.
Cephas then came out and melted again, saying that he couldn't see anything. All the good stuff was every direction but the one that his window faced. I told him he still had the option of watching the display on TV. Koren came out and asked if he, too, could watch the TV display. We agreed to it and they fell asleep watching the display on TV (around 9:15 or so).
I know that this is an issue that will be coming up soon with Cephas' therapist. We see a behavioral therapist every other week to work on various issues with Cephas. Well, technically, we see her for Jeriah as well, but this whole post is about Cephas. So anyhow, we will see her soon and I know this will come up. I know that she will back me on these issues. And that is reassuring to know.
I am feeling a bit stressed myself right now though, because although I know that the B.T. will back me on this and Hubby obviously does as well, my mother-in-law probably won't. She is constantly pressuring me to "give him some additional freedom" and to "make his bedtime just a little bit later than the others, maybe an hour or so" and various other things like that. And it angers me. I am the one that has to make these decisions, I am the one who has to live with the consequences of my decisions on how I raise my children. Yes, I agree that my 11 year old should have a later bedtime than my 4 year old. But you know what? He can't handle it. He melts the next day if loses more than half an hour of sleep. He doesn't sleep in. We have finally gotten to the point where he is willingly staying in his room quietly (and usually without waking his brother) until 8am. He has room darkening curtains. There really isn't much more that I can do, so his bedtime will remain 8:30. He will not be allowed to play with fireworks. He will need to stay in his room quietly until 8:00am for the remainder of summer. These are all things that I am not going to budge on.
Also, with regard to the firework issue, basically, my thought on it (in addition to these ones that I had mentioned the other day) is that allowing my children to light fireworks is giving them permission to play with fire, which I don't think is okay at ANY point in time. Also, if I were to ever allow them to do it, they would have to show me that they could be personally responsible. They need to be able to be responsible and accountable for their actions - and by that definition, Koren would probably be okay to light fireworks but he's only eight. No way is he going to be allowed to do that.
Cephas mentioned camping and the fact that he is allowed to start fires in that instance. I explained that fires during camping are a tool, not a toy. It is used for warmth, for food in addition to enjoyment. But the first two are the primary reasons for a fire during camping. He is also a Scout and they have the "Leave No Trace" policy that they practice. And the last point about it, campfires (done correctly) are CONTAINED.
Speaking of fires being contained, the fire that was raging in our state's national forest (which I didn't even know existed until recently) is now 100% contained. I'm so thankful! (Oh - and wildfires - mention - 3 for 3 - got 'em all in here!)
Apart from the meltdowns, I'd say it was a pleasant 4th of July. It was a quiet day, mostly spent with just our immediate family here at home. I got some personal and family planning done, finalized some details for the remainder of the month (or mostly finalized) and just relaxed as much as possible.
How was your fourth? Did you go to a professional display or stay home and do your own? What is your take on kids and fireworks?
I'm talking about emotional meltdowns. When my kids really get going, I fully and completely expect to see a big ol' puddle of Cephas or Koren, Oralee or Jeriah just laying there on the ground. Thankfully, it is a figurative term and not a literal one because with the heat around here, they probably would have evaporated in an hour's time. (Heat - further mention - 1 for 3)
Our city allows fireworks to be sold and lit only on July 3rd and July 4th. There are nearby towns that allow fireworks sales prior to that (something like up to ten days in advance of the 4th?) but here in the city, you are out of luck til the 3rd. (Fireworks - further mention - 2 for 3)
Our city's big holiday hoopla actually happens on the 3rd as well. Multimillion dollar display, free activities for the day for families, it's a great event and a great idea. However, with the heat indexes being over 100 and the humidity making it dangerous to even be outside (your body cannot efficiently cool itself), we had made the decision not to attend this year.
We went last year. Hubby, myself, our four kids, Shea, her hubby and their four kids. It was an absolute BLAST! (pardon the pun) We had discussed doing it again this year, but due to the fact that Hubby was scheduled the 3rd and the 4th and that we would be having BabyCakes overnight on the 3rd and into the 4th (weekday daycare took a holiday), we weren't planning on going to it. Add to that the fact that with two children on the Spectrum, one of whom needs a VERY consistent schedule - at minimum a regular sleep schedule - and the other who has developed some sensory processing issues, and how that would affect them, we made our choice.
Cephas and Koren wanted to spend some time outdoors yesterday (3rd) watching neighbors do their fireworks. I was completely fine with that. I gave them some very specific instructions. Stay away from the fireworks and ABSOLUTELY no holding or lighting fireworks. They both disobeyed and got caught. They both were given one more chance and did well with it.
Our neighbors decided to go to the lake nearby to just watch the fireworks display. It happens maybe only a mile or a mile and a half from us (as the eagle flies) but there are a lot of trees and hills between here and there and we wouldn't be able to see the display from here. They asked if Cephas could join them. I reluctantly agreed. Our bedtime around here is 8:30 year round. It seems really early in the summer, but the kids NEED it. Granted, there are times when it gets pushed back to 9:00 or sometimes even 10:00, but not much later than that at all.
The fireworks display doesn't happen til 10:00pm. It's a 22 minute show. Then there is traffic. So on and so forth. Cephas got home just before 11:00. He wanted to stay outside and watch the neighbors do some more of their fireworks. The fireworks are actually supposed to end at 11pm, but I didn't know that. I found that out afterward. But I let him and Koren both go over and watch the neighbors. The little kids were asleep inside and Hubby was too.
I sat on the porch and watched the kids and waited for BabyCakes to get dropped off as well (they had also gone to the show and had to walk back home after to drive over here). BabyCakes got dropped off, I brought him inside and put him to bed. He was out instantly. He normally goes to bed around 8:30 as well. I called for the boys to come in just before midnight. They were asleep within ten minutes as I figured they would be.
Today, everyone was up at their normal times. My kids have never figured out the whole sleeping in thing. Well, except for Koren. He'd gladly sleep in til 9am, usually. But the rest of them are usually up pretty early. They did their chores (most willingly, might I add) and earned their game time. I lost track of time and they ended up with double the amount that they were supposed to have.
Then, this afternoon, the friends starting showing up at the door, all asking for the boys to come out and play, which we allowed them to do. After awhile, we had them come in to cool off, even though they said that they were "just fine". Sorry kiddos, it is my job as your mom to be the parent and as such, I need to make sure that you ARE just fine. With this heat, you may not be able to tell the difference.
Then, they started asking if they could watch this person or that person do fireworks tonight. I told them that we would see. I knew that they were already short on sleep and after playing outside, it REALLY showed. I suggested that they go lay down and rest for a bit. They vetoed that suggestion.
They started talking about how they wanted to just be able to light this type of firework or that type of firework and I told them again, "NO fireworks. You may watch them and that is IT"
Shortly after that, they went outside to play again and both of them broke the rule and were caught lighting fireworks. They were told that if they were going to be allowed to watch fireworks in the evening, it would be from our porch. They had broken the rules again and they were done. They were not allowed to play outside, they were not allowed to watch the fireworks unless it was from our porch, they were just DONE with outdoor activities for the day.
That is when Cephas melted. Koren is eight, almost nine and he sat there, listening and quickly and quietly took his consequence for it and moved on. Cephas melted. He cried, he complained, he whined, he nagged, he kept at it. We explained, we reasoned with him, we remained firm on the issue. No matter how much he tried and tried to get his own way about it, we didn't budge. I told him that if he kept it up, he'd end up with an 8pm bedtime and miss out on everything altogether.
So then the evening came and the boys were outside on the porch to watch other people light their fireworks. I had the little kids inside, watching different displays on T.V. I asked the boys if they wanted to come in and watch the displays as well. They didn't at first. But then Cephas decided to come indoors and melt all over the living room again. So that was the end of the outdoors for him. I gave him the option of going to his room and watching out his window or laying on the couch and watching on TV. He chose his room. Koren came in as well and went to lay down because he was tired.
Cephas then came out and melted again, saying that he couldn't see anything. All the good stuff was every direction but the one that his window faced. I told him he still had the option of watching the display on TV. Koren came out and asked if he, too, could watch the TV display. We agreed to it and they fell asleep watching the display on TV (around 9:15 or so).
I know that this is an issue that will be coming up soon with Cephas' therapist. We see a behavioral therapist every other week to work on various issues with Cephas. Well, technically, we see her for Jeriah as well, but this whole post is about Cephas. So anyhow, we will see her soon and I know this will come up. I know that she will back me on these issues. And that is reassuring to know.
I am feeling a bit stressed myself right now though, because although I know that the B.T. will back me on this and Hubby obviously does as well, my mother-in-law probably won't. She is constantly pressuring me to "give him some additional freedom" and to "make his bedtime just a little bit later than the others, maybe an hour or so" and various other things like that. And it angers me. I am the one that has to make these decisions, I am the one who has to live with the consequences of my decisions on how I raise my children. Yes, I agree that my 11 year old should have a later bedtime than my 4 year old. But you know what? He can't handle it. He melts the next day if loses more than half an hour of sleep. He doesn't sleep in. We have finally gotten to the point where he is willingly staying in his room quietly (and usually without waking his brother) until 8am. He has room darkening curtains. There really isn't much more that I can do, so his bedtime will remain 8:30. He will not be allowed to play with fireworks. He will need to stay in his room quietly until 8:00am for the remainder of summer. These are all things that I am not going to budge on.
Also, with regard to the firework issue, basically, my thought on it (in addition to these ones that I had mentioned the other day) is that allowing my children to light fireworks is giving them permission to play with fire, which I don't think is okay at ANY point in time. Also, if I were to ever allow them to do it, they would have to show me that they could be personally responsible. They need to be able to be responsible and accountable for their actions - and by that definition, Koren would probably be okay to light fireworks but he's only eight. No way is he going to be allowed to do that.
Cephas mentioned camping and the fact that he is allowed to start fires in that instance. I explained that fires during camping are a tool, not a toy. It is used for warmth, for food in addition to enjoyment. But the first two are the primary reasons for a fire during camping. He is also a Scout and they have the "Leave No Trace" policy that they practice. And the last point about it, campfires (done correctly) are CONTAINED.
Speaking of fires being contained, the fire that was raging in our state's national forest (which I didn't even know existed until recently) is now 100% contained. I'm so thankful! (Oh - and wildfires - mention - 3 for 3 - got 'em all in here!)
Apart from the meltdowns, I'd say it was a pleasant 4th of July. It was a quiet day, mostly spent with just our immediate family here at home. I got some personal and family planning done, finalized some details for the remainder of the month (or mostly finalized) and just relaxed as much as possible.
How was your fourth? Did you go to a professional display or stay home and do your own? What is your take on kids and fireworks?
Thursday, March 29, 2012
Scouts
Since I had mentioned this first, I am going to write about it. The boys were in our Scouts at our school. Cephas was a Webelos II and he didn't get a chance to finish out his program in Webelos because he had come in for the last few months of the 18 month program. He was still able to go on to Boy Scouts because of his age, regardless of whether or not he finished Webelos. So we started looking into Boy Scout Troops.
My friend made mention that our church had Scouts as well and that Boy Scouts and Cub Scouts all meet together at the same time, in the same location on the same night every week. I was really excited about that! The fact that we are able to have a regular set schedule makes such a huge difference! Before, Cephas had Scouts one day every other week always at the same location. Meanwhile, Koren had Scouts on a different day but it was every week but at different locations that changed constantly. It was so frustrating trying to keep track of it all. I love streamlining the schedule!
The boys have adapted to it really well too. The boys that they are in Scouts with are boys whose family have a different (from the school) moral compass but are all more similar to each other and to our family's values. I hope that makes sense.
And the bonus is that I get to see my friend every week too! She brings her son to Scouts and then she and her daughter sit there at the church in the foyer and wait for Scouts to get over. Or sometimes they will go to the mall, which is nearby and walk around while Scouts is going on. Since my boys started attending Scouts there too, I bring Oralee along and she and my friend's daughter play and color and read together while my friend and I sit and visit. It has been so wonderful! Oh - and Jeriah stays home with Dad. It's his father/son time. It just works so well!
Can you tell that I love it?! Last week, Cephas had a field trip for Scouts so we were going to meet in an alternate location (arranged far in advance so that I could plan for it) which would have been difficult because Koren had to be at the regular location at the same time. But what made it so easy was that I just called my friend up, mentioned the change in Cephas' meeting location and she offered to take Koren and Oralee. I just dropped them off at her house and then went on to the meeting with Cephas. She brought the kids home afterwards and it worked out so beautifully! I love the friendship that I have with her and I love the friendship that our children are developing as well!
Tonight, I think we might be picking the three of them up on our way to Scouts because she has some intermittent vehicle troubles going on with certain weather conditions that are forecast for tonight.
Okay, that is one item checked off of my list of things to blog about. :)
My friend made mention that our church had Scouts as well and that Boy Scouts and Cub Scouts all meet together at the same time, in the same location on the same night every week. I was really excited about that! The fact that we are able to have a regular set schedule makes such a huge difference! Before, Cephas had Scouts one day every other week always at the same location. Meanwhile, Koren had Scouts on a different day but it was every week but at different locations that changed constantly. It was so frustrating trying to keep track of it all. I love streamlining the schedule!
The boys have adapted to it really well too. The boys that they are in Scouts with are boys whose family have a different (from the school) moral compass but are all more similar to each other and to our family's values. I hope that makes sense.
And the bonus is that I get to see my friend every week too! She brings her son to Scouts and then she and her daughter sit there at the church in the foyer and wait for Scouts to get over. Or sometimes they will go to the mall, which is nearby and walk around while Scouts is going on. Since my boys started attending Scouts there too, I bring Oralee along and she and my friend's daughter play and color and read together while my friend and I sit and visit. It has been so wonderful! Oh - and Jeriah stays home with Dad. It's his father/son time. It just works so well!
Can you tell that I love it?! Last week, Cephas had a field trip for Scouts so we were going to meet in an alternate location (arranged far in advance so that I could plan for it) which would have been difficult because Koren had to be at the regular location at the same time. But what made it so easy was that I just called my friend up, mentioned the change in Cephas' meeting location and she offered to take Koren and Oralee. I just dropped them off at her house and then went on to the meeting with Cephas. She brought the kids home afterwards and it worked out so beautifully! I love the friendship that I have with her and I love the friendship that our children are developing as well!
Tonight, I think we might be picking the three of them up on our way to Scouts because she has some intermittent vehicle troubles going on with certain weather conditions that are forecast for tonight.
Okay, that is one item checked off of my list of things to blog about. :)
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Back At It!
Things got pretty hectic there for a bit in our life and I took an unintentional bloggy break. It happens.
Since I have left off (last real blog post was Friday, January 13th, right?) a lot has happened. I am going to rely partially on my Facebook statuses and partially on my calendar and partially on my memory to update you all on what has been going on in my life - at home, at work and at play, so without further ado...
On Friday and Saturday (13th and 14th), I wasn't feeling well. I had a major headache/migraine that left me feeling absolutely horrible and pretty much confined to the couch. Thankfully, I have bigger kids that are huge helps when I need them to be. They knew that I had wanted to make some changes in their rooms and they did the heavy lifting work for me.
Cephas and Koren took apart Koren's bed and moved the pieces of it into the living room next to the bar, then slid Cephas' mattress under Koren's bed. You see, we have plans to get the three boys a new bunkbed with trundle drawer for another mattress. That way, all three boys can have a bed with the "footprint" of all the beds taking up the same floor area of their room as just one twin bed. However, we needed more space right away.
I had also wanted to have the boys and Oralee change dressers. The boys had an eight drawer dresser that was constantly driving me nuts because I would fold their shirts and put them away and within a few days, every single shirt would be crumpled up in their drawer, no matter how I folded them and arranged them. It drove me NUTS! So I decided (after talking with them to see what would work best for them) to start hanging all of their shirts and pants. So they only needed a dresser for underclothes, pjs and shorts. Yes, shorts. Even though it is January and we do live in a climate that is generally colder this time of year, it has been a really warm winter and we have had days in 70s, so yes, shorts.
Anyhow, to get back to the subject matter at hand, the boys traded out their 8 drawer dresser for their sister's 5 drawer chest of drawers. It's the perfect amount of drawer space for the two boys but I was going to have to figure something else out for Jeriah's clothing.
Next item up on the busy agenda: Girl Scout cookies started selling on January 13th. We have been BUSY with that! Oralee has made it to the 150-200 box mark without really even trying for sales and we have only done door-to-door sales for the distance of one block, going up one side of the street and down the other, skipping the houses that were unlikely to purchase. It's a block that we visit EVERY fundraiser, EVERY Halloween, EVERY...well, everything. They are good supporters of my children. They are also my inlaw's neighbors. That helps, I'm sure.
Then all that week, I was feeling incredibly run-down. Not sick exactly, but just feeling absolutely tired and exhausted. I was ready to go back to bed for the day before I even got out of it. Man, that was a difficult week. Still, I did all my mommy-duty stuff. That was also the week that Hubby went full-time and started working six days a week, so it was definitely all on mom to get stuff done. I did too. Housework (although the standard for that week may have been lowered) and volunteering at school and bringing treats to school for Cephas' birthday and making special dinners for Cephas' birthday week and running kids to activities and going out for visiting teaching and helping kids with homework, and all that other mommy-duty stuff that I love doing. It was just hard to keep up with it all that week.
My inlaw's have also been getting a house ready to be put onto the market. They bought a house for my youngest brother-in-law to live in while he went to college. He is still in college but after living in the house for three years has decided that he wants to live in an apartment closer to campus, so he and his roommates moved out and now his parents are busy fixing the place up so that they can sell it.
They had offered it to Hubby and I last year, but we didn't want to renew our lease at the house where we were living and brother-in-law wouldn't have been moving out in a timeframe that would work with our timeframe, so instead we got the house where we live now.
After being in the other house, I figure that it could have worked well for us, but it isn't a huge loss to us. Besides, the payments for the house that we are buying and all the utilities are still less than just the house payment for the other place. It's a cute house though. If our finances were different and if it didn't require the kids to change schools again, it could be a top contender. Such a cute cute house!
Oh - the reason I mentioned the house was because the inlaw's have been cleaning it out and we were given some things from there that we had to go pick up and bring home. At this point, we have been given a large rug (berber style to go under our table in our dining room), a dresser (for the boys' room) and a clothing rack (for me to use when I'm ironing clothes). We have also been offered a nice blue leather couch that we are still deciding on.
I started feeling better the following week and did a thorough scrubbing down in my bathroom. And I mean THOROUGH! I cleaned the shower, the tub, the tub surround, the vanity and sink, the mirror, the toilet and the floor. Then I moved onto the chair rail, the bead board and the baseboards. I decluttered and organized and made it all nice and neat. Yeah, I kicked it into high gear in that room. It needed it big time and I was so happy when it was all done! Oh - and I also did like 8 loads of laundry that day too.
Little Oralee came down with a cold about a week ago that kept her up most of one night coughing and just feeling miserable. Jeriah had croup earlier in the month but the spacing wasn't right for that to be Oralee's issue. So anyhow, she had this cold that turned her high-pitch girly five year old voice into a husky, funny sounding voice for the first four or five days. It was ADORABLE! I loved hearing her talk when she was sick because it was just so different from her regular voice (her regular voice is adorable as well - this sick voice just had a different quality of adorable). She is much better now.
My status update from Thursday, January 26th pretty much sums up my life right now though. I'll post it here:
"Busy day so far! Hubby up and out of the door by 8 am, four kids up and out of the door by 8:20 am, dropped kids at school, went to Hubby's work to drop off Girl Scout cookies (and made a few more sales) and then off to our "home visit" with Jeriah's teacher. Came home, fed the boy, now time for some cleaning and then will get him ready for school, put him on the bus, head over to the school myself, do Thursday folder and then pick up kids, get them to do chores/homework, music practice, fix dinner and out the door for an activity this evening. Busy busy day it will be! This is my favorite job (being a mom)!
Of course, that night, Cephas had a homework assignment that I didn't understand AT ALL, even though we tried and tried and tried working at it, so I ended up meeting with his teacher the next morning before school. Then, when we ran into the same issue on Friday evening, I emailed her, per her suggestion. She emailed me back. On a Friday night. With an explanation and words of encouragement. Awesome teacher!
The neighbor girl that I had been taking care of quite a bit has been spending less time at our house lately. I did watch her this past Saturday while her mom ran an errand across town (about an hour and a half). We ran an errand as well but it was one that was close by our homes and of course, with her mom's permission. She and Koren were starting to bicker and I didn't feel like dealing with it so I just separated them and decided that was the PERFECT time to run the errand. She ended up mad at me though because I sent her home when her mom got home. She wanted to stay and eat dinner with us and watch a movie and stay the night. I told her that maybe she could do it this next weekend. We'll see what happens though.
Today I have to get some work done around the house. I have a LONG list of chores for Jeriah and I to do. The last Tuesday of the month, Jeriah doesn't have school and the other kids get out of school early so that teachers can meet and plan together. I wish that had happened yesterday though! It was 70* out. And today, the day that they get out early, the high is only supposed to be like 55*. That's just the way things happen sometimes though.
And tomorrow, one of my best friends is going to come over and spend the day with me. I have no idea what we are going to do but we are going to spend the day together at any rate. It should be lots of fun! Before that though, I really want to get the house to looking nice. It will be the first time she has come over here, so I'm a little bit nervous. I am always nervous the first time that someone comes over. I'm not sure why, I just always am.
I can't wait though! Big day of cleaning and projects today. Hubby has some plans to rearrange the furniture in the living room and front room (yes, again - even though we JUST did it and loved the way it was arranged!) in a few weeks. Before that, I need to continue to declutter. I have been keeping tally marks on my dry-erase board of how many items I have gotten rid of so far this month and I am now up to:
For the year 2012, I am up to a grand total of: 56 items.
Which means I have 1956 items left to go and 48 weeks to do it in.
I have also been doing really well with my goals for this year that I wanted to do each week. I don't really feel motivated to keep tracking those though. I think I just bogged myself down with those. I will continue with the 2012 in 2012 though. I really really enjoy that particular challenge!
I plan to return with regular posting now. Yay! Hope to see you around here! Oh and a quick mention I want to make. You should check out Heather's blog. She has been doing the 2012 in 2012 as well! Way to go Heather!
Since I have left off (last real blog post was Friday, January 13th, right?) a lot has happened. I am going to rely partially on my Facebook statuses and partially on my calendar and partially on my memory to update you all on what has been going on in my life - at home, at work and at play, so without further ado...
On Friday and Saturday (13th and 14th), I wasn't feeling well. I had a major headache/migraine that left me feeling absolutely horrible and pretty much confined to the couch. Thankfully, I have bigger kids that are huge helps when I need them to be. They knew that I had wanted to make some changes in their rooms and they did the heavy lifting work for me.
Cephas and Koren took apart Koren's bed and moved the pieces of it into the living room next to the bar, then slid Cephas' mattress under Koren's bed. You see, we have plans to get the three boys a new bunkbed with trundle drawer for another mattress. That way, all three boys can have a bed with the "footprint" of all the beds taking up the same floor area of their room as just one twin bed. However, we needed more space right away.
I had also wanted to have the boys and Oralee change dressers. The boys had an eight drawer dresser that was constantly driving me nuts because I would fold their shirts and put them away and within a few days, every single shirt would be crumpled up in their drawer, no matter how I folded them and arranged them. It drove me NUTS! So I decided (after talking with them to see what would work best for them) to start hanging all of their shirts and pants. So they only needed a dresser for underclothes, pjs and shorts. Yes, shorts. Even though it is January and we do live in a climate that is generally colder this time of year, it has been a really warm winter and we have had days in 70s, so yes, shorts.
Anyhow, to get back to the subject matter at hand, the boys traded out their 8 drawer dresser for their sister's 5 drawer chest of drawers. It's the perfect amount of drawer space for the two boys but I was going to have to figure something else out for Jeriah's clothing.
Next item up on the busy agenda: Girl Scout cookies started selling on January 13th. We have been BUSY with that! Oralee has made it to the 150-200 box mark without really even trying for sales and we have only done door-to-door sales for the distance of one block, going up one side of the street and down the other, skipping the houses that were unlikely to purchase. It's a block that we visit EVERY fundraiser, EVERY Halloween, EVERY...well, everything. They are good supporters of my children. They are also my inlaw's neighbors. That helps, I'm sure.
Then all that week, I was feeling incredibly run-down. Not sick exactly, but just feeling absolutely tired and exhausted. I was ready to go back to bed for the day before I even got out of it. Man, that was a difficult week. Still, I did all my mommy-duty stuff. That was also the week that Hubby went full-time and started working six days a week, so it was definitely all on mom to get stuff done. I did too. Housework (although the standard for that week may have been lowered) and volunteering at school and bringing treats to school for Cephas' birthday and making special dinners for Cephas' birthday week and running kids to activities and going out for visiting teaching and helping kids with homework, and all that other mommy-duty stuff that I love doing. It was just hard to keep up with it all that week.
My inlaw's have also been getting a house ready to be put onto the market. They bought a house for my youngest brother-in-law to live in while he went to college. He is still in college but after living in the house for three years has decided that he wants to live in an apartment closer to campus, so he and his roommates moved out and now his parents are busy fixing the place up so that they can sell it.
They had offered it to Hubby and I last year, but we didn't want to renew our lease at the house where we were living and brother-in-law wouldn't have been moving out in a timeframe that would work with our timeframe, so instead we got the house where we live now.
After being in the other house, I figure that it could have worked well for us, but it isn't a huge loss to us. Besides, the payments for the house that we are buying and all the utilities are still less than just the house payment for the other place. It's a cute house though. If our finances were different and if it didn't require the kids to change schools again, it could be a top contender. Such a cute cute house!
Oh - the reason I mentioned the house was because the inlaw's have been cleaning it out and we were given some things from there that we had to go pick up and bring home. At this point, we have been given a large rug (berber style to go under our table in our dining room), a dresser (for the boys' room) and a clothing rack (for me to use when I'm ironing clothes). We have also been offered a nice blue leather couch that we are still deciding on.
I started feeling better the following week and did a thorough scrubbing down in my bathroom. And I mean THOROUGH! I cleaned the shower, the tub, the tub surround, the vanity and sink, the mirror, the toilet and the floor. Then I moved onto the chair rail, the bead board and the baseboards. I decluttered and organized and made it all nice and neat. Yeah, I kicked it into high gear in that room. It needed it big time and I was so happy when it was all done! Oh - and I also did like 8 loads of laundry that day too.
Little Oralee came down with a cold about a week ago that kept her up most of one night coughing and just feeling miserable. Jeriah had croup earlier in the month but the spacing wasn't right for that to be Oralee's issue. So anyhow, she had this cold that turned her high-pitch girly five year old voice into a husky, funny sounding voice for the first four or five days. It was ADORABLE! I loved hearing her talk when she was sick because it was just so different from her regular voice (her regular voice is adorable as well - this sick voice just had a different quality of adorable). She is much better now.
My status update from Thursday, January 26th pretty much sums up my life right now though. I'll post it here:
"Busy day so far! Hubby up and out of the door by 8 am, four kids up and out of the door by 8:20 am, dropped kids at school, went to Hubby's work to drop off Girl Scout cookies (and made a few more sales) and then off to our "home visit" with Jeriah's teacher. Came home, fed the boy, now time for some cleaning and then will get him ready for school, put him on the bus, head over to the school myself, do Thursday folder and then pick up kids, get them to do chores/homework, music practice, fix dinner and out the door for an activity this evening. Busy busy day it will be! This is my favorite job (being a mom)!
Of course, that night, Cephas had a homework assignment that I didn't understand AT ALL, even though we tried and tried and tried working at it, so I ended up meeting with his teacher the next morning before school. Then, when we ran into the same issue on Friday evening, I emailed her, per her suggestion. She emailed me back. On a Friday night. With an explanation and words of encouragement. Awesome teacher!
The neighbor girl that I had been taking care of quite a bit has been spending less time at our house lately. I did watch her this past Saturday while her mom ran an errand across town (about an hour and a half). We ran an errand as well but it was one that was close by our homes and of course, with her mom's permission. She and Koren were starting to bicker and I didn't feel like dealing with it so I just separated them and decided that was the PERFECT time to run the errand. She ended up mad at me though because I sent her home when her mom got home. She wanted to stay and eat dinner with us and watch a movie and stay the night. I told her that maybe she could do it this next weekend. We'll see what happens though.
Today I have to get some work done around the house. I have a LONG list of chores for Jeriah and I to do. The last Tuesday of the month, Jeriah doesn't have school and the other kids get out of school early so that teachers can meet and plan together. I wish that had happened yesterday though! It was 70* out. And today, the day that they get out early, the high is only supposed to be like 55*. That's just the way things happen sometimes though.
And tomorrow, one of my best friends is going to come over and spend the day with me. I have no idea what we are going to do but we are going to spend the day together at any rate. It should be lots of fun! Before that though, I really want to get the house to looking nice. It will be the first time she has come over here, so I'm a little bit nervous. I am always nervous the first time that someone comes over. I'm not sure why, I just always am.
I can't wait though! Big day of cleaning and projects today. Hubby has some plans to rearrange the furniture in the living room and front room (yes, again - even though we JUST did it and loved the way it was arranged!) in a few weeks. Before that, I need to continue to declutter. I have been keeping tally marks on my dry-erase board of how many items I have gotten rid of so far this month and I am now up to:
For the year 2012, I am up to a grand total of: 56 items.
Which means I have 1956 items left to go and 48 weeks to do it in.
I have also been doing really well with my goals for this year that I wanted to do each week. I don't really feel motivated to keep tracking those though. I think I just bogged myself down with those. I will continue with the 2012 in 2012 though. I really really enjoy that particular challenge!
I plan to return with regular posting now. Yay! Hope to see you around here! Oh and a quick mention I want to make. You should check out Heather's blog. She has been doing the 2012 in 2012 as well! Way to go Heather!
Friday, December 30, 2011
Last Company Coffee of 2011
Today is the day for the last Company Coffee for the year and I am so excited about Rachel's Small Things coming up this year. And also for the big things that we will be doing as well! Yay! I haven't really tried to create as much Sanctuary here at our new place as I did the at old one. And we moved in July. Yeah. I think that pretty much sums it all up.
As it is right now, my house is in major need of a thorough deep clean, I have window treatments that need to go up. I finally did find some that are in our budget and much like the ones that were already here when we moved in, so that is exciting for me. Now I just have to wait til Hubby gets home after work today to show him.
Although the Sanctuary aspect of our home is missing lately, the kids have definitely enjoyed our little projects and work times together this semester break. We have made and decorated Rice Krispie treats (as opposed to cookies) and we have plans to make and decorate sugar cookies and gingerbread houses. These are projects that we work on while Hubby is at work because they stress him out and the kids and I would prefer to not stress him out.
We had a wonderful Christmas and I hope you all did as well. We have had three Christmas celebrations so far. One for Hubby's mom's side of the family, one for Hubby's dad's side of the family, and then our own little family. Tomorrow, we have one more with my mom and brother. I don't know yet if we are going to my mom's house or if they are coming over here but either way, it should be a great time as well.
We have a very full month. Four family Christmas celebrations, two violin performances, one piano performance, Wolf Scouts, Webelo Scouts, Daisy Scouts, working in the classrooms, field trips, illnesses, company in from out of town, you name it. And I love it!
So without further ado, I will turn you over to the other ladies at Company Coffee! Go check them all out and maybe link up yourself! It's a great chance to get to know some great ladies! Have a very Happy New Year!
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
Daisy Party
This past Monday was our Daisy meeting. For those of you that may not know, Daisies are the youngest group of Girl Scouts, made up of Kindergartners and First Graders. My Oralee is a Kindergartner. And this past Monday, we met with her other Daisy Scouts and celebrated Juliette Gordon-Low's birthday. Juliette is the founder of Girl Scouts and her birthday is October 31st. She founded Girl Scouts 100 years ago. So this is an important year in Girl Scouts.
We made a card for Juliette and we celebrated all of the girls' birthdays. It was quite a nice time! We also discussed (and earned!) the petals for "being a sister to other Girl Scouts". And the girls also decorated some shirts. It was a lot of fun and Oralee did a fantastic job!
Here is the (VERY!) decorated card that the girls made for Juliette:
I just love the creativity of the girls! They were so into decorating that card! It is quite the change from working with Cub Scouts the last 3-4 years, let me tell you!
Also we got preliminary information on Cookie Sales! We are doing direct sales this year - for the first time! The girls will have cookies that they can sell (and deliver) right away! No more card orders and waiting til March to get your cookies (unless of course, we run out! And even then, we would try to fill the order by getting it from the office or another troop or something. I am really excited about this! Oralee already has probably close to $100 in sales lined up for January 13th. This will be an awesome thing for her! She is so quiet and shy and I think it will really do her quite a bit of good to do the sales and build up her people skills and confidence. She did quite well tagging along with the boys while they were selling popcorn for Cub Scouts.
Very fun and exciting times!
We made a card for Juliette and we celebrated all of the girls' birthdays. It was quite a nice time! We also discussed (and earned!) the petals for "being a sister to other Girl Scouts". And the girls also decorated some shirts. It was a lot of fun and Oralee did a fantastic job!
Here is the (VERY!) decorated card that the girls made for Juliette:
I just love the creativity of the girls! They were so into decorating that card! It is quite the change from working with Cub Scouts the last 3-4 years, let me tell you!
Also we got preliminary information on Cookie Sales! We are doing direct sales this year - for the first time! The girls will have cookies that they can sell (and deliver) right away! No more card orders and waiting til March to get your cookies (unless of course, we run out! And even then, we would try to fill the order by getting it from the office or another troop or something. I am really excited about this! Oralee already has probably close to $100 in sales lined up for January 13th. This will be an awesome thing for her! She is so quiet and shy and I think it will really do her quite a bit of good to do the sales and build up her people skills and confidence. She did quite well tagging along with the boys while they were selling popcorn for Cub Scouts.
Very fun and exciting times!
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
Thirty Thankful Days - Days 11-15
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| Click to go to Day 11 |
Day 11: Today I am thankful for good friends. My best friend of 18 years came into town tonight and we had time to spend together. We were going to just go out the two of us, but at the last minute, we decided to bring our hubbies along as well. And I am so glad that we did! Shea and I had a great time hanging out, chatting and catching up and the guys had a good time as well. It ended up being a pretty late night by the time Hubby and I got home (around 3 am) because we ended up going shopping for a couple of things afterwards and then visiting with another friend at her work (she works 3rd shift) and then coming home. Hubby had to take my mom home along with my two oldest boys (who she allowed to stay up til 3am!) and I promptly fell asleep on the couch. That is why this post is so late in coming.
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| Click to go to Day 12 |
Day 12: On this day, we went over to my in-law's house to watch the college football game and even though my mother-in-law and I had a bit of a falling out earlier in the week, we had a nice visit and talked about house remodeling stuff and various things. In the afternoon, she and father-in-law went to watch a movie and allowed us to have a couple of friends come over to visit and play cards, so we did. When they got back from their movie, we all sat around and played a card came called Pitch. It was so much fun and I was thankful once again for friends and also for the kindness from my in-laws.
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| Click to go to Day 13 |
Day 13: I was tired. But tired doesn't even begin to cover it. I was exhausted. On Day 11, I had been up way too late (3am) and then ended up waking up around 4 and not being able to fall back to sleep until almost 6, then got up with kids around 7. So about two hours of sleep that night. Then I was awake ALL day on Day 12 - I even laid down with Jeriah to get him to nap and didn't fall asleep! So by the time we got home on Day 12, I was exhausted! The kids went to bed without too much fuss and I crashed hard. I woke up off and on about every two hours but was actually able to fall back to sleep. I woke up for the day around 7 on this day, but thanks to my Hubby was able to take a 2 hour nap. (I let him sleep in til noon.) That nap was so refreshing and necessary! It was fabulous!
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| Click to go to Day 14 |
Day 14: That was yesterday. I was thankful for my mother-in-law and her willingness to help me out with time crunches and kids' activities. You see, we live on the north end of town. The older boys, Cephas and Koren, have music lessons on the south side of town at 6:00pm. That's around 10 miles from where we live - or a 30 minute drive. But Oralee also had a Daisy meeting to go to at 6:30pm - the same time the boys get out of music lessons - close to our home. It is not even remotely possible to do both things unless Hubby is home and he wasn't. Because he had to work a closing shift. So my mother-in-law came to my house and picked up all three boys so that I could be with Oralee at her meeting without having to try to chase Jeriah down. She picked them up at 5:00 and then dropped them back off at 8:00. It was really nice that I had her to be able to do that for me. Otherwise, at least one child would have had to miss something and I didn't want for that to happen.
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| Click to go to Day 15 |
Day 15: That is today but I already know what I'm thankful for today. This morning when Hubby got home, he told me that his boss wants him to pick up more hours at work. Ideally, the boss would like Hubby to close 5 nights a week, which is good money for us because Hubby makes an additional 50 cents per hour on closing shifts. So today I am thankful for that - and the fact that if this happens, I can stay home full-time with the kids or at the very least, work part-time or even just PRN shifts. It is something that I am totally hopeful for but we will have to wait and see if that is something that will come to fruition.
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Gotta Get Stuff Done!
Hubby is having some severe dental issues so I am off of work for the remainder of the week. Since I know this (in advance) I can plan the remainder of my week accordingly. I have a number of things that I would like to get done over the next few days. I am going to make a list here and cross them out (along with the date) that I get them completed. Here goes:
Wipe down dining room table and re-set decorations on top (10/27) (10/28) (10/29) (10/30)
Sweep and mop dining room floor (10/27) (10/28) (10/29) (10/30)
Dust dining room
Clear off kitchen counters (10/27) (10/28) (10/29) (10/30) (10/30)
Unload dishwasher and put dishes away (10/27) (10/27) (10/28) (10/29) (10/30)
Load and run dishwasher (10/27) (10/27) (10/27) (10/28) (10/29) (10/30)
Clean stove top (10/27) (10/28) (10/29) (10/30)
Clean counters (10/27) (10/28) (10/29) (10/30) (10/30)
Clean out fridge and wipe down interior
Clear off top of fridge
Sweep and mop kitchen floor (10/27) (10/29) (10/30)
Dust kitchen
Finish folding and putting away clean laundry (planning to do this 10/29)
Put folding table away (planning to do this 10/29)
Tidy up kitchen bar (10/27) (10/28) (10/29) (10/30)
Tidy up low bookshelf (10/29) (10/30)
Clear off end table (10/29) (10/30)
Clear off entertainment center (10/29)
Dust living room
Vacuum living room
Clear off computer desk (10/29) (10/30)
Straighten front closet (10/29)
Hang jackets and coats (10/28) (10/29) (10/30)
Clear off cedar chest (10/28) (10/29) (10/30)
Clear off train table (10/28) (10/29) (10/30)
Dust front room
Vacuum front room
Do laundry (times like a million!) (10/30) (10/30)
Clean vanity (10/30)
Clean mirror (10/30)
Clean toilet (10/30)
Clean bathtub (10/30)
Straighten cabinets (10/30)
Move storage drawers (10/30)
Sweep and mop bathroom floor
Dust bathroom
Straighten top of dresser (planning to do this 10/30)
Move storage drawers (maybe?) (planning to do this 10/30)
Straighten top of chest of drawers (planning to do this 10/30)
Make bed with fresh linens (planning to do this 10/30)
Fold and put away clean laundry from this room (planning to do this 10/30)
Take dirty laundry to bathroom (planning to do this 10/30)
Straighten closet (planning to do this 10/30)
Clear off nightstands (planning to do this 10/30)
Straighten drawers of nightstands (planning to do this 10/30)
Dust our bedroom
Vacuum our bedroom
Pick up toys outside (10/27)
Straighten front porch (planning to do this 10/30)
Straighten back deck (planning to do this 10/30)
Put propane tank away (planning to do this 10/30)
Store bikes for season (planning to do this 10/30)
Mow grass and leaves (10/27)
Pick up brush and branches (10/27)
Clean out flower bed and ready it for winter
Clean out vehicles (planning to do this today 10/28)
Clean out storage shed and organize (planning to do this 10/31)
Start going through and emptying out storage unit
Some other things I want to do:
Wolf Scout activities with Koren (10/28)
Webelo Scout activities with Cephas (10/28)
Daisy Scout activities with Oralee (10/28)
Make file folder games for Oralee and Jeriah (10/28)
Oh - and did I mention:
Figure out four Halloween costumes and create them (10/29)
Find activities for 20 fifth graders to do during their "party" (planning to do this 10/31)
Prepare to volunteer in the classroom (planning to do this 10/31)
Grocery shopping (10/30)
That should just about cover most of it. I'd just like to get most of those things done by next Monday evening because Tuesday morning, I am back to work again.
Wish me luck!
Wipe down dining room table and re-set decorations on top (10/27) (10/28) (10/29) (10/30)
Sweep and mop dining room floor (10/27) (10/28) (10/29) (10/30)
Dust dining room
Clear off kitchen counters (10/27) (10/28) (10/29) (10/30) (10/30)
Unload dishwasher and put dishes away (10/27) (10/27) (10/28) (10/29) (10/30)
Load and run dishwasher (10/27) (10/27) (10/27) (10/28) (10/29) (10/30)
Clean stove top (10/27) (10/28) (10/29) (10/30)
Clean counters (10/27) (10/28) (10/29) (10/30) (10/30)
Clean out fridge and wipe down interior
Clear off top of fridge
Sweep and mop kitchen floor (10/27) (10/29) (10/30)
Dust kitchen
Finish folding and putting away clean laundry (planning to do this 10/29)
Put folding table away (planning to do this 10/29)
Tidy up kitchen bar (10/27) (10/28) (10/29) (10/30)
Tidy up low bookshelf (10/29) (10/30)
Clear off end table (10/29) (10/30)
Clear off entertainment center (10/29)
Dust living room
Vacuum living room
Clear off computer desk (10/29) (10/30)
Straighten front closet (10/29)
Hang jackets and coats (10/28) (10/29) (10/30)
Clear off cedar chest (10/28) (10/29) (10/30)
Clear off train table (10/28) (10/29) (10/30)
Dust front room
Vacuum front room
Do laundry (times like a million!) (10/30) (10/30)
Clean vanity (10/30)
Clean mirror (10/30)
Clean toilet (10/30)
Clean bathtub (10/30)
Straighten cabinets (10/30)
Move storage drawers (10/30)
Sweep and mop bathroom floor
Dust bathroom
Straighten top of dresser (planning to do this 10/30)
Move storage drawers (maybe?) (planning to do this 10/30)
Straighten top of chest of drawers (planning to do this 10/30)
Make bed with fresh linens (planning to do this 10/30)
Fold and put away clean laundry from this room (planning to do this 10/30)
Take dirty laundry to bathroom (planning to do this 10/30)
Straighten closet (planning to do this 10/30)
Clear off nightstands (planning to do this 10/30)
Straighten drawers of nightstands (planning to do this 10/30)
Dust our bedroom
Vacuum our bedroom
Pick up toys outside (10/27)
Straighten front porch (planning to do this 10/30)
Straighten back deck (planning to do this 10/30)
Put propane tank away (planning to do this 10/30)
Store bikes for season (planning to do this 10/30)
Mow grass and leaves (10/27)
Pick up brush and branches (10/27)
Clean out flower bed and ready it for winter
Clean out vehicles (planning to do this today 10/28)
Clean out storage shed and organize (planning to do this 10/31)
Start going through and emptying out storage unit
Some other things I want to do:
Wolf Scout activities with Koren (10/28)
Webelo Scout activities with Cephas (10/28)
Daisy Scout activities with Oralee (10/28)
Make file folder games for Oralee and Jeriah (10/28)
Oh - and did I mention:
Figure out four Halloween costumes and create them (10/29)
Find activities for 20 fifth graders to do during their "party" (planning to do this 10/31)
Prepare to volunteer in the classroom (planning to do this 10/31)
Grocery shopping (10/30)
That should just about cover most of it. I'd just like to get most of those things done by next Monday evening because Tuesday morning, I am back to work again.
Wish me luck!
Monday, October 24, 2011
Webelo Camp Out
As planned, we met up with the Webelo group at the kids' school on Saturday morning while Hubby went on to work. We left for the lake shortly after. Once we arrived at the lake, we unloaded our gear and the boys set the tent up.
I didn't realize it, but in Scouts, there is a kind of unspoken rule: "Don't do anything for a boy that he can do for himself." This includes setting up tents and campsites. My two boys worked together and had our tent set up in no time flat! They worked together and got the job done.
And here you can see the fruits of their labor. At this point, Oralee and Jeriah were playing inside the tent while Cephas and Koren were off getting instructions from the leaders.
The boys made lunch for the group (meatball subs on a camp stove, applesauce and hot chocolate) and after lunch, they went for a 3 mile hike. After lunch, I left Cephas and Koren in the care of another Scout mom, who also happens to be one of our neighbors and the mother of some of the boys' friends. I needed to get the little kids back into town so that I could focus more on the boys and their activities.
By the time I got back out to the camp site, the boys had already gotten back from their hike and it was almost time for them to start making our dinner. Gosh, but there is something that just rings about that statement. Time for THEM to start making OUR dinner. Yes, I do think I like the sound of that. But first, we needed more wood. Because this woodpile (below) apparently wasn't big enough. So off they went to bring back wood.
And then they needed to saw it down. Here is a picture of the Littlest Woodcutter (aka Koren). Isn't he adorable just plugging away? He cut that log down into 1' lengths. It was a 12' log. That's a LOT of cutting for the little guy. And he wasn't even a Webelo. He's just a Wolf (three grades lower!). By the time he was done with that log, he came over to me and I looked at his hands. He already had calluses from raking and mowing and riding his bike (yes, he grips his bike handles THAT hard!) and after sawing down a 12' log, he had new calluses in the middle of this hand. He couldn't be coaxed away from doing it though. He was bound and determined to finish that log.
The older boys MAY have alienated him a little bit while they were cutting down some of the logs to usable sizes saying that he was just a little Wolf and couldn't do it. So he MAY have been extremely determined to show them that he most certainly could do it. And outdo their efforts in the process. That little boy is going to have workin' man hands by the time he's 10. And nope, he's not a farm boy. He's a city kid. You'd never guess it looking at his hands though!
The next order of business was for the boys to receive instructions on how to start a fire with a flint and magnesium and then they each got a turn to try it out.
Then the boys went off to gather a few resources for kindling. Paper, dried leaves, small twigs and then tiny little branches. After they had the base of their fire started, they were allowed to feed the fire to get it hot enough for it to burn the actual wood.
Then, the Den Leader told them that they were done feeding the fire and he added the logs to the fire pit and built it up nice and hot. That was really nice because the day was cloudy and cool and threatening to rain nearly the whole time.
Mmmmm, nice and hot! Then we had to let it die down and cool some so that we could make dinner. We had an assembly line where we each made our own pizzas - tortilla shell for the crust, tomato sauce, cheeses and cheeses, hamburger/pepperoni/sausage, green bell pepper, red bell pepper, white onion, it was DELISH! We wrapped them in foil and then the boys cooked them on the coals of the fire. So melty yummy!
The boys cleaned up the meal and then went off to play games while the adults sat around the fire pit and built it back up. About an hour after nightfall, we called the boys back to camp and let the fire die down again and we roasted marshmallows and then built the fire back up again for ghost stories.
And then it was time for bed. It was GREAT day and the boys had SO MUCH FUN! And so did I! I cannot wait for the next campout!
I didn't realize it, but in Scouts, there is a kind of unspoken rule: "Don't do anything for a boy that he can do for himself." This includes setting up tents and campsites. My two boys worked together and had our tent set up in no time flat! They worked together and got the job done.
And here you can see the fruits of their labor. At this point, Oralee and Jeriah were playing inside the tent while Cephas and Koren were off getting instructions from the leaders.
The boys made lunch for the group (meatball subs on a camp stove, applesauce and hot chocolate) and after lunch, they went for a 3 mile hike. After lunch, I left Cephas and Koren in the care of another Scout mom, who also happens to be one of our neighbors and the mother of some of the boys' friends. I needed to get the little kids back into town so that I could focus more on the boys and their activities.
By the time I got back out to the camp site, the boys had already gotten back from their hike and it was almost time for them to start making our dinner. Gosh, but there is something that just rings about that statement. Time for THEM to start making OUR dinner. Yes, I do think I like the sound of that. But first, we needed more wood. Because this woodpile (below) apparently wasn't big enough. So off they went to bring back wood.
And then they needed to saw it down. Here is a picture of the Littlest Woodcutter (aka Koren). Isn't he adorable just plugging away? He cut that log down into 1' lengths. It was a 12' log. That's a LOT of cutting for the little guy. And he wasn't even a Webelo. He's just a Wolf (three grades lower!). By the time he was done with that log, he came over to me and I looked at his hands. He already had calluses from raking and mowing and riding his bike (yes, he grips his bike handles THAT hard!) and after sawing down a 12' log, he had new calluses in the middle of this hand. He couldn't be coaxed away from doing it though. He was bound and determined to finish that log.
The older boys MAY have alienated him a little bit while they were cutting down some of the logs to usable sizes saying that he was just a little Wolf and couldn't do it. So he MAY have been extremely determined to show them that he most certainly could do it. And outdo their efforts in the process. That little boy is going to have workin' man hands by the time he's 10. And nope, he's not a farm boy. He's a city kid. You'd never guess it looking at his hands though!
The next order of business was for the boys to receive instructions on how to start a fire with a flint and magnesium and then they each got a turn to try it out.
Then the boys went off to gather a few resources for kindling. Paper, dried leaves, small twigs and then tiny little branches. After they had the base of their fire started, they were allowed to feed the fire to get it hot enough for it to burn the actual wood.
Then, the Den Leader told them that they were done feeding the fire and he added the logs to the fire pit and built it up nice and hot. That was really nice because the day was cloudy and cool and threatening to rain nearly the whole time.
Mmmmm, nice and hot! Then we had to let it die down and cool some so that we could make dinner. We had an assembly line where we each made our own pizzas - tortilla shell for the crust, tomato sauce, cheeses and cheeses, hamburger/pepperoni/sausage, green bell pepper, red bell pepper, white onion, it was DELISH! We wrapped them in foil and then the boys cooked them on the coals of the fire. So melty yummy!
The boys cleaned up the meal and then went off to play games while the adults sat around the fire pit and built it back up. About an hour after nightfall, we called the boys back to camp and let the fire die down again and we roasted marshmallows and then built the fire back up again for ghost stories.
And then it was time for bed. It was GREAT day and the boys had SO MUCH FUN! And so did I! I cannot wait for the next campout!
Saturday, October 22, 2011
Weekend Plans!!!
We have a very busy weekend planned. I cannot wait for it all! On Saturday morning, Hubby has to work and the kids and I will be going to the kids' school to meet up with Cephas' Webelo den.
Then, we will be heading out to the lake for a camping trip. I wish Hubby would be able to come along and be a part of it as well, but due to his work schedule, it's not possible. We will get out to the lake, set up our campsite and the Webelos will make some lunch. We will eat and then in the afternoon, we will be going on a three mile hike. It's during this hiking time that Hubby will be coming out to join us (and to pick up the younger kiddos who would be better suited to being in town with their dad) and the other boys will be able to work on some of their own skills and badges and such. We will eat a dinner prepared by the boys and then have a campfire time with skits and s'mores and fun stuff like that. Afterwards, the boys will be playing some games in the dark and then we will head to bed. In the morning, we will get up and the boys will fix breakfast. We will eat then break down camp and then head back home.
When we get back home, it will be just in time for Hubby to leave for work, so we will unload the vehicle and get everything put away. Then, Cephas and Koren have been hired for another lawn job for the afternoon, so we will head over there to do that. It's for the family I work for so there's a bit of added pressure for them to do a fantastic job. And of course, I'll be around to make sure that they actually do a fantastic job and will be able to help them out with it and oversee it and also to jump in and correct anything that needs it. I'm a little bit nervous for them (and for me) because I know that the family can be a little bit particular about things. I would really prefer that we be able to go over and do the work once Hubby gets off of work so that he can go along with as well or so that he could be home with the little kids. We will just have to try it out and see how it goes though. One way or another, we will make it all work. I'm actually pretty excited about the whole thing. I am just nervous too.
Sunday evening we will spend time together as family. I'd like to have some time playing board games or card games with the kids that evening, but I'm really up open to the family's suggestions for that evening as well.
Also, one other thing I haven't mentioned. We have cut out the kids' computer time during the school week. It seems a little bit odd maybe, but it really works for us. Before, we were limiting the amount of time they had on the computer, which wasn't working quite as well. They would lose track of time and it was difficult to enforce the exact amount of computer time and all of that stuff, so we decided to just cut it out. Computer time is now limited to the weekends. Eventually, we may go back to some limited computer time during the week, but for now, this is really working well for all of us.
Then, we will be heading out to the lake for a camping trip. I wish Hubby would be able to come along and be a part of it as well, but due to his work schedule, it's not possible. We will get out to the lake, set up our campsite and the Webelos will make some lunch. We will eat and then in the afternoon, we will be going on a three mile hike. It's during this hiking time that Hubby will be coming out to join us (and to pick up the younger kiddos who would be better suited to being in town with their dad) and the other boys will be able to work on some of their own skills and badges and such. We will eat a dinner prepared by the boys and then have a campfire time with skits and s'mores and fun stuff like that. Afterwards, the boys will be playing some games in the dark and then we will head to bed. In the morning, we will get up and the boys will fix breakfast. We will eat then break down camp and then head back home.
When we get back home, it will be just in time for Hubby to leave for work, so we will unload the vehicle and get everything put away. Then, Cephas and Koren have been hired for another lawn job for the afternoon, so we will head over there to do that. It's for the family I work for so there's a bit of added pressure for them to do a fantastic job. And of course, I'll be around to make sure that they actually do a fantastic job and will be able to help them out with it and oversee it and also to jump in and correct anything that needs it. I'm a little bit nervous for them (and for me) because I know that the family can be a little bit particular about things. I would really prefer that we be able to go over and do the work once Hubby gets off of work so that he can go along with as well or so that he could be home with the little kids. We will just have to try it out and see how it goes though. One way or another, we will make it all work. I'm actually pretty excited about the whole thing. I am just nervous too.
Sunday evening we will spend time together as family. I'd like to have some time playing board games or card games with the kids that evening, but I'm really up open to the family's suggestions for that evening as well.
Also, one other thing I haven't mentioned. We have cut out the kids' computer time during the school week. It seems a little bit odd maybe, but it really works for us. Before, we were limiting the amount of time they had on the computer, which wasn't working quite as well. They would lose track of time and it was difficult to enforce the exact amount of computer time and all of that stuff, so we decided to just cut it out. Computer time is now limited to the weekends. Eventually, we may go back to some limited computer time during the week, but for now, this is really working well for all of us.
Monday, October 3, 2011
I just saw a link for this over at Absentminded Mother and had to click on over to I Can Teach My Child to check it out and see what it was all about.
I must say, I like the idea! I am also going to present it to my kiddos and suggest it as a family activity. It will also give us something to share about each night at dinner. It's also not a bad idea since the boys are in Scouts and one of the things that they are supposed to put into practice is to "Do A Good Turn" each day.
Some things I would like to do include:
volunteer at our homeless shelter
donate food to local charities
serve meals at one of the senior centers here
take a meal to a family
host a Thanksgiving meal for those who might otherwise not have a Thanksgiving
offer to babysit for a family for free
create a craft project of some sort to be given away
Plus, I really like all of the ideas that Absentminded Mother had as well! I look forward to seeing some of the ideas from the other participants so that it can spur on additional ideas for our family! I love to serve others. I do so with a (generally) grateful and happy heart. I long for my children to acquire that as well. I think they are on their way there. Koren most definitely. He wanted do a yard job for free just to be nice. I suggested that if he wanted to, he could do it for the money and then donate the money to a charity of his choice. That job ended up being cancelled, but I do believe that Koren's heart is in the right place.
So anyhow, I just wanted to let you all know about this great idea going on for this month. What do you think? Are you going to join up as well?
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