Ok I think the may be my new title! Maybe I can have a t shirt made in case anyone forgets:)
A couple of truths to being a truck drivers wife:
1. Reunions are BEAUTIFUL! Whoever said absence makes the heart grow fonder absolutely knew what they were talking about!
2. The last day off (no matter how wonderful) will inevitably have a shadow cast over it in some point.
3. Small accomplishments feel like HUGE accomplishments!
4. You can be in a room with a thousand people and still feel completely alone :(
That's all for now
Love and hugs,
Mary
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
A New Phase
Well our tough decision is behind us. I am now officially a trucker's wife, Chad took the job three weeks ago. Aside from a couple of rough patches we are all managing pretty well.
I have been meaning to post here to fill everyone in but things have been insane here! I had all these misconceptions of what life would be like if Chad Started OTR driving. ("over the road" for all you non trucker's wives ;)) I thought I would be looking for things to fill my time. Chad worried about me not having any adults to talk to, and the kids thought we wouldn't be able to do all of the fun, "homeschooly" things we did before because I wasn't thrilled about managing all seven of them on my own.
I am happy to say, I have survived shopping, trick or treating, a field trip to the fair, a library day, and loads of other errands all by my lonesome! Yes, when the kids go to bed it feels really still and quiet and I REALLY miss Chad, but I have to say I am pretty proud of myself for how well I am managing!
I have become a firm believer in to do lists. I have several all over the house, I get this wonderful sense of accomplishment every time I am able to check something off. I feel so organized!
As for the adults to talk to, I talk to both my family and Chad's family quite a bit. The homeschool group have all been really supportive, and I am sure, once the sickies are completely finished rolling through (yes the icky bug reared it's ugly head AGAIN!) I will be back at church regularly.
So things are ok here, they may not be entirely ideal, but GOD is still watching out for us. I will try to update often so that you all can join me on this crazy journey!
Love and Hugs,
Mary
I have been meaning to post here to fill everyone in but things have been insane here! I had all these misconceptions of what life would be like if Chad Started OTR driving. ("over the road" for all you non trucker's wives ;)) I thought I would be looking for things to fill my time. Chad worried about me not having any adults to talk to, and the kids thought we wouldn't be able to do all of the fun, "homeschooly" things we did before because I wasn't thrilled about managing all seven of them on my own.
I am happy to say, I have survived shopping, trick or treating, a field trip to the fair, a library day, and loads of other errands all by my lonesome! Yes, when the kids go to bed it feels really still and quiet and I REALLY miss Chad, but I have to say I am pretty proud of myself for how well I am managing!
I have become a firm believer in to do lists. I have several all over the house, I get this wonderful sense of accomplishment every time I am able to check something off. I feel so organized!
As for the adults to talk to, I talk to both my family and Chad's family quite a bit. The homeschool group have all been really supportive, and I am sure, once the sickies are completely finished rolling through (yes the icky bug reared it's ugly head AGAIN!) I will be back at church regularly.
So things are ok here, they may not be entirely ideal, but GOD is still watching out for us. I will try to update often so that you all can join me on this crazy journey!
Love and Hugs,
Mary
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Decisions, Decisions
We are faced with decisions. Chad is still looking for work and the job market is virtually non existent out here. Our choices are to either take a few low paying jobs, or for Chad to take a job that would take him away for weeks at a time. The problem with the lower paying jobs is this, there's no guarantee that we can find the "combination" of jobs that will have flexible enough schedules so that they do not conflict so someone is always here with the kids, and that they will even pay enough for our financial needs to be met.
The weeks at a time job is a last resort for obvious reasons. It would most likely get us caught up on everything but we would not have Chad around here for three weeks at a time and none of us are happy with the idea of that.
So we are left weighing our options and praying hard! I know that God is going to put us where he wants us, but we are uncertain of where that is right now. Continued prayer is appreciated!
To add to the fun I have some sick kids around here, most of the boys have been running fevers and have shown other symptoms. I fear that the flu is not done with us this year:(
Love and Hugs,
Mary
The weeks at a time job is a last resort for obvious reasons. It would most likely get us caught up on everything but we would not have Chad around here for three weeks at a time and none of us are happy with the idea of that.
So we are left weighing our options and praying hard! I know that God is going to put us where he wants us, but we are uncertain of where that is right now. Continued prayer is appreciated!
To add to the fun I have some sick kids around here, most of the boys have been running fevers and have shown other symptoms. I fear that the flu is not done with us this year:(
Love and Hugs,
Mary
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Sleep deprivation
I have another confession. I love to read! If I have a few hours of quiet time I WILL end up with my nose in a book! Sometimes it's inconvenient loving to read as much as I do. I tend to want to finish the story right away. If I begin reading before bed, it is likely I will not put the book down until the story is over, whether it's a 200 page book or an 800 page book!
Chad thinks I am insane for this. He will wake up around 3 am and focus on me long enough to roll his eyes, then he just rolls over and leaves me to my book. He knows it's inevitable. Books are both blessings and curses to me!
Why is this on my mind today? Because I stayed up until after three reading, last night. Then I woke up at seven to frantic screaming that Nathan's stomach hurt. I am sure you can all guess what happened next!
I guess as far as addictions go this one is pretty low down on the radar. I don't have many horrible habits (although if you asked the family they might rate my anal retentiveness and nagging as horrible habits!) and as far as I can tell my lack of will power for books seems to only hurt me in the long run.
;)
Love and hugs,
Mary
Chad thinks I am insane for this. He will wake up around 3 am and focus on me long enough to roll his eyes, then he just rolls over and leaves me to my book. He knows it's inevitable. Books are both blessings and curses to me!
Why is this on my mind today? Because I stayed up until after three reading, last night. Then I woke up at seven to frantic screaming that Nathan's stomach hurt. I am sure you can all guess what happened next!
I guess as far as addictions go this one is pretty low down on the radar. I don't have many horrible habits (although if you asked the family they might rate my anal retentiveness and nagging as horrible habits!) and as far as I can tell my lack of will power for books seems to only hurt me in the long run.
;)
Love and hugs,
Mary
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Hello All!
It's been a long time! A lot has happened around here since my last post and in all honesty I was sort of afraid of posting and it turning into a bit of a rant. I don't want to come off like I am unhappy (because in spite of everything I feel incredibly blessed) so I just refrained until I could explain it all.
First of all, we are all fine. Kids and parents are all alive and kicking and doing well on the health front. We have gone full force into our homeschooling this year and I am seeing progress. I am working continuously on our curriculum this year, adding things that are helpful, yet fun for the kids. The girls are doing our version of Princess Academy. Learning various housekeeping skills on top of crocheting, needlepoint, ettiquette, etc. So far it's been a fun experience :)
The boys are working on some guy things too, this year. proper use of tools, vehicle maintenance, etc. it gives them a chance to break away from the girls for a bit and spend some more bonding time with Chad.
We've also been working more on bible studies and speech with the boys. I am utilizing the things I learned last year from our speech therapist and they boys seem to enjoy it. Our pediatrician told me that he understands their speech more clearly this year than last year so I am just going to keep at it.
Now for the not so great news. If you have read my blog this year then you know that it has been a rough year around here with the car accident in May, and lack of hours at work. Chad was laid off in the middle of August to add to the fun. Sadly, the company he was working for closed it's doors two weeks after they let him go. He's still looking for work and we are praying that he finds something that won't take him away for us for weeks at a time. I'd appreciate any prayers you could send up on our behalf.
Amazingly, we are both pretty peacefull about the situation. As dire as it seems to not have a job in this recession. GOD has done an awesome job of seeing us through so far. I have faith that he will continue to do so. My prayer is that not only will he open a door for Chad, but that he will open THE door that brings him peace and happiness. He has been miserable at work for the last year, and it would be wonderful for him to find something that he really enjoys doing.
On the bright side, we are learning to make the most of our time with the kids. Finding low cost (or free) activities with the kids. The weather's changing so we are both venturing into the kitchen a bit more and enjoying more sit down dinners with the kids. This was hard when he was working crazy hours, the kids were sometimes heading to bed when he walked through the dor or he was heading to bed really early because he had to work a graveyard shift.
So that's the update, times are hard, money's tight, but were remain faithful that this is GOD's plan for us and we are patiently waiting to see what HE is going to do through us!
Love and Hugs,
Mary
First of all, we are all fine. Kids and parents are all alive and kicking and doing well on the health front. We have gone full force into our homeschooling this year and I am seeing progress. I am working continuously on our curriculum this year, adding things that are helpful, yet fun for the kids. The girls are doing our version of Princess Academy. Learning various housekeeping skills on top of crocheting, needlepoint, ettiquette, etc. So far it's been a fun experience :)
The boys are working on some guy things too, this year. proper use of tools, vehicle maintenance, etc. it gives them a chance to break away from the girls for a bit and spend some more bonding time with Chad.
We've also been working more on bible studies and speech with the boys. I am utilizing the things I learned last year from our speech therapist and they boys seem to enjoy it. Our pediatrician told me that he understands their speech more clearly this year than last year so I am just going to keep at it.
Now for the not so great news. If you have read my blog this year then you know that it has been a rough year around here with the car accident in May, and lack of hours at work. Chad was laid off in the middle of August to add to the fun. Sadly, the company he was working for closed it's doors two weeks after they let him go. He's still looking for work and we are praying that he finds something that won't take him away for us for weeks at a time. I'd appreciate any prayers you could send up on our behalf.
Amazingly, we are both pretty peacefull about the situation. As dire as it seems to not have a job in this recession. GOD has done an awesome job of seeing us through so far. I have faith that he will continue to do so. My prayer is that not only will he open a door for Chad, but that he will open THE door that brings him peace and happiness. He has been miserable at work for the last year, and it would be wonderful for him to find something that he really enjoys doing.
On the bright side, we are learning to make the most of our time with the kids. Finding low cost (or free) activities with the kids. The weather's changing so we are both venturing into the kitchen a bit more and enjoying more sit down dinners with the kids. This was hard when he was working crazy hours, the kids were sometimes heading to bed when he walked through the dor or he was heading to bed really early because he had to work a graveyard shift.
So that's the update, times are hard, money's tight, but were remain faithful that this is GOD's plan for us and we are patiently waiting to see what HE is going to do through us!
Love and Hugs,
Mary
Friday, July 31, 2009
Why I LOVE my six year old!
Aidan: "Mom, how old are you?"Me: "I'm old."
Aidan: "really old?"
Me:"Yup, REALLY old!"
Aidan: (in a matter of fact voice) "That means you're gonna die."
Me:"really, you don't say?"
Aidan:"Yup, gotta go, my dinner's ready!"
Kids are so funny!
Find your buddy!
I have been meaning to blog about this for quite a while, mostly because it is one of the many answers to "How do you do it with seven kids?"
Running errands can be a little daunting with seven children in tow. They generally scatter like bugs when you open the car door. So we implemented the "find your buddy" technique a long time ago.
Once we open the "clown car"door and they all file out one by one (much to the amusement of passers by!) we shout "find your buddy!" Then all the littles, must find an older child or parent to pair up with as we walk. This makes it so I am essentially keeping track of half the kids because the older kids are usually pretty good about holding on to their siblings.
If the older kids decide to be difficult and complain about which "little" chose to pair up with them then the older kids may or may not be paired up with a parent. Try to visualize a 13 year old holding his dad's hand and you will understand why this technique works so well!
;)
Love and hugs,
Mary
Running errands can be a little daunting with seven children in tow. They generally scatter like bugs when you open the car door. So we implemented the "find your buddy" technique a long time ago.
Once we open the "clown car"door and they all file out one by one (much to the amusement of passers by!) we shout "find your buddy!" Then all the littles, must find an older child or parent to pair up with as we walk. This makes it so I am essentially keeping track of half the kids because the older kids are usually pretty good about holding on to their siblings.
If the older kids decide to be difficult and complain about which "little" chose to pair up with them then the older kids may or may not be paired up with a parent. Try to visualize a 13 year old holding his dad's hand and you will understand why this technique works so well!
;)
Love and hugs,
Mary
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Happy birthday Heaven!!!!
At six weeks of age.....
Fast forward to this year!
Fast forward to this year!Happy birthday to my beautiful girl! She's 11 today, she's grown so fast!
Love and Hugs!
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Hair cut day!
Today was hair cut day for the kiddos. FYI, when you have four boys, a good set of clippers will pay for themselves a thousandfold. The littles are all cool with buzz cuts but T wanted a bit more on top so he can gel it and be stylin! I think I did a pretty good job don't you?
Also a note to all the kids out there, if your mom is taking a picture and she says to smile, and you think it's cute to stick out your tongue or make a funny face, a word of warning......she may share the pic on her blog!
Love and hugs,
Mary
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Random stuff from my the last few days.
Totally random but here's AJ (and me) trying to hold on to a little frog for the picture. He caught it at the park and insisted a picture with it. it's a shame you can't actually see the frog, but I love the look on his face!!!
Well, the weekend came and went. Is it just me or are they really short??? Did the usual, gym on Saturday morning (the girls have dance class there so we might as well get a workout in!) then church in the evening. They are doing a series on Jonah that's really making me think! Then Sunday was a blissfull lazy day, where we watched the last few Harry Potter movies. I am going to take the kidlets to see the new one but wanted a refresher on the last ones.
Spent the last movie putting together my lesson plans for the week. At least I appear to be organized, even though my house is a scary mess right now.
Today I took Ash for her last follow up on her arm, and I think she may have single handedly convinced her doctor to join the gym. The first question she asked was if she could climb the rock wall now (yes she can, btw!) and the second was if she could swim, and the third was dance class. Once she told him about all the stuff she does at the gym he said he was going to have to check it out for his family. Wonder if Ash will get a commision from the gym?
Then we picked up the fam from the famous gym...and leave it to hubby to talk me into a few games of raquetball before we left. Then on the way home the wind blew in the fiercest looking clouds I have seen in AZ all summer and we made it in just in time to hear the rain pouring down! I know I am wierd but that is the most soothing sound to me and I was IN HEAVEN!!!! My neighbors all think I am nuts because when the clouds show up I am out in front searching for that first raindrop. They have even gone so far as to call me when it starts raining if they haven't seen me out there, lol.
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Why I love my handy hubby!
In spite of me being a wicked witch to him this week (gotta love those uber grouchy days of the month!) hubby blessed me with more cabinet space! About a day after the last three kids came to live with us we realized that there just wasn't enough space in this house to store food and supplies. We got creative for a while shoving snacks in a file cabinet and cases of canned goods under the bed. But we completely overlooked this wierd closet in our hallway that was an odd shape and really couldn't hold much of anything. So hubby installed shelves and even some lighting to give me one of the greatest gifts of all......MORE SPACE! (bonus...it even locks, so the kids won't eat all the oreos in one sitting!!!!)
I try really hard to keep the clutter down but food seems to be my weakness. I love knowing that the cabinets are stocked, so regardless of our financial situation that is one worry we will never have.
Now to tackle the space issues in the kids rooms!
Love and hugs,
mary
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Two posts in one week! WOW!
In the spirit of being brutally honest about my life with seven children....I thought I would start off with 10 confessions.
1. As much as I love to fake it, I am not nor will I ever be Supermom. If you show up and my house is clean, it's only because I saw you pull up in the driveway and I shoved the toys, trash, and eight loads of laundry in the oven!
2. No matter how much I smile at the supermarket with my family, I am probably one step away from going postal on my kiddos.
3. I am naturally lazy. If there is a way to get my house clean, kids fed, pets cleaned up after from the comfort of my desk chair (playing on facebook, of course) I will find it!
4. I procrastinate A LOT! I will look at and plan a project for days (or longer) if I can get away with it. No matter how small the project. Unfortunately this bites me in the butt at holidays and other special occasions. I make a hundred totally wonderful plans and then keep figuring I'll do them tomorrow. Before I know it it's April of the next year and I didn't do any of it!
5. I have an extremely short attention span. If I see an idea that looks interesting I am totally on the bandwagon...for about a week! Then it's back to procrastination and laziness! To combat this, I need to be kept in check and held accountable! This is why I workout with hubby and belong to a homeschooling group!
6. I have a wonderful sense of adventure.....but it is always followed by logic and doubt. For instance if I hear someone talking about how great it is where they live, I am ready to pack up and move at a moment's notice. But if given just a nanosecond longer to think about it I talk myself out of it. It drives my kids crazy!
7. I love my family more than I could ever imagine and always will. But there are days I don't like one or all of them very much.
8. I am still trying to figure out what I want to be when I grow up!
9. Even though technically we are dealing with it now with a couple of the kids....I dread dealing with puberty!
10. As much as I swore I would never do it, I let the dvd player babysit my kids occasionally. That's at least an hour and a half to actually finish a thought.
I'll be back soon with more to share!
Love and hugs!
Mary
1. As much as I love to fake it, I am not nor will I ever be Supermom. If you show up and my house is clean, it's only because I saw you pull up in the driveway and I shoved the toys, trash, and eight loads of laundry in the oven!
2. No matter how much I smile at the supermarket with my family, I am probably one step away from going postal on my kiddos.
3. I am naturally lazy. If there is a way to get my house clean, kids fed, pets cleaned up after from the comfort of my desk chair (playing on facebook, of course) I will find it!
4. I procrastinate A LOT! I will look at and plan a project for days (or longer) if I can get away with it. No matter how small the project. Unfortunately this bites me in the butt at holidays and other special occasions. I make a hundred totally wonderful plans and then keep figuring I'll do them tomorrow. Before I know it it's April of the next year and I didn't do any of it!
5. I have an extremely short attention span. If I see an idea that looks interesting I am totally on the bandwagon...for about a week! Then it's back to procrastination and laziness! To combat this, I need to be kept in check and held accountable! This is why I workout with hubby and belong to a homeschooling group!
6. I have a wonderful sense of adventure.....but it is always followed by logic and doubt. For instance if I hear someone talking about how great it is where they live, I am ready to pack up and move at a moment's notice. But if given just a nanosecond longer to think about it I talk myself out of it. It drives my kids crazy!
7. I love my family more than I could ever imagine and always will. But there are days I don't like one or all of them very much.
8. I am still trying to figure out what I want to be when I grow up!
9. Even though technically we are dealing with it now with a couple of the kids....I dread dealing with puberty!
10. As much as I swore I would never do it, I let the dvd player babysit my kids occasionally. That's at least an hour and a half to actually finish a thought.
I'll be back soon with more to share!
Love and hugs!
Mary
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Been a while but things are looking up ;)
Well, it's been a while since I have posted. I am just gonna go with my regular excuse of "please just hang with me as I have a bunch of kids and life is just nuts as usual!" In all honesty I probably could have blogged but by the time I get it all sorted out in my head something new is going on that makes the last thing obsolete not to mention I suffer from an extremely short attention span (not a good thing if you have seven children that homeschool, btw)...but anyway!
Ashleigh is on the mend, she got the cast off two weeks after it went on and she has about two weeks of recovery left before the doctor gives her the go ahead for pretty much everything. Deep down I think she misses the attention that the cast brought.
We are trying to get back into the swing of school. We finished our pioneer study and are moving onto reptiles next. The kids saw Jurassic Park and that started the topic of dinosaurs, so I am gonna jump on the dinosaur bandwagon and make it educational!
The temps are rising and I am doing my best to make a dollar stretch around here, another side effect of having a bunch of kids is REALLY testing the elasticity of a dollar! Chad's work seems to be picking up a bit so I am doing my best to get back on top of the finances. That icky recession was really starting to kick our rears! But I am working on it.
So I am going to try to be better about blogging. I get questions all the time about how I "do it" with seven kids. I think I am going to address them here. There's really no science to it, you just do what you can with what GOD gives you.
So if anyone has any topics they would like me to address, feel free to leave a comment and I will do my best. Don't be shy either, I will honestly try to address any topic you'd like.
Love and hugs,
Mary
Ashleigh is on the mend, she got the cast off two weeks after it went on and she has about two weeks of recovery left before the doctor gives her the go ahead for pretty much everything. Deep down I think she misses the attention that the cast brought.
We are trying to get back into the swing of school. We finished our pioneer study and are moving onto reptiles next. The kids saw Jurassic Park and that started the topic of dinosaurs, so I am gonna jump on the dinosaur bandwagon and make it educational!
The temps are rising and I am doing my best to make a dollar stretch around here, another side effect of having a bunch of kids is REALLY testing the elasticity of a dollar! Chad's work seems to be picking up a bit so I am doing my best to get back on top of the finances. That icky recession was really starting to kick our rears! But I am working on it.
So I am going to try to be better about blogging. I get questions all the time about how I "do it" with seven kids. I think I am going to address them here. There's really no science to it, you just do what you can with what GOD gives you.
So if anyone has any topics they would like me to address, feel free to leave a comment and I will do my best. Don't be shy either, I will honestly try to address any topic you'd like.
Love and hugs,
Mary
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
More evidence that my life is anything but dull!
In case you were all thinking that my life was getting boring, here's proof that that is not the case. Just when things were quieting down around here, we heard crying from one of the kids' rooms. they were all roughhousing, Ash was done and apparently Raven wasn't. As she was sitting on the bed reaching down to the floor for a toy, Ray decided to help her off the bed by pushing her! She has a small fracture in her elbow and a cool neon pink cast for two weeks.
She loves her cast and all the attention it brings! I'm just hoping it heals fast so she won't spent the whole summer in pain!
Love and hugs,
Mary
Monday, June 1, 2009
More on the Truck situation
After reading the comment from my last post I thought I should elaborate a bit on the "totalled" truck. Since the other person was totally at fault in this accident, we are not dealing with our insurance company at all. We can if we want ( we would have had a rental within an hour of the accident) to but if we did then we would have to pay our $500 deductable and lose our no incident discount on our monthly payments. For the record we have nothing but great hings to say about OUR insurance company and our agent, who has to be growing tired of the daily calls for advice on how we should handle things.
Had the other party not "been in a fog" on the day of the accident, and conveniently forget exactly what the details of the accident were the next day and question who was at fault to her insurance company.(The interesting thing is she called us at home an hour after talking to her agent and apologized to hubby for causing it!)
Her insurance company refused to accept liability until a police report was in hand, and in the state of Arizona where apparently the weather is too hot to rush anything, it takes up to 15 working days to get a report!
We were given the options to either file a claim with our insurance, which they would reimburse us for later for the fees and deductable when the police report revealed their client was at fault. Or just rent a car on our own and they would reimburse us later.....We didn't have the cash for either option.
The good news is that the report finally made it into records, Chad had a rental car within a half hour of faxing it to her insurance company and we should be getting the paperwork revealing how much they are willing to pay for the truck today or tomorrow. So things are finally moving in the right direction.
Had the other party not "been in a fog" on the day of the accident, and conveniently forget exactly what the details of the accident were the next day and question who was at fault to her insurance company.(The interesting thing is she called us at home an hour after talking to her agent and apologized to hubby for causing it!)
Her insurance company refused to accept liability until a police report was in hand, and in the state of Arizona where apparently the weather is too hot to rush anything, it takes up to 15 working days to get a report!
We were given the options to either file a claim with our insurance, which they would reimburse us for later for the fees and deductable when the police report revealed their client was at fault. Or just rent a car on our own and they would reimburse us later.....We didn't have the cash for either option.
The good news is that the report finally made it into records, Chad had a rental car within a half hour of faxing it to her insurance company and we should be getting the paperwork revealing how much they are willing to pay for the truck today or tomorrow. So things are finally moving in the right direction.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
The insurance company's idea of "totalled"
I may be ignorant, but there is no way I think that this truck is totalled. Bent? Yes....Needs work? Yes...Unsuitable to repair and someday drive again? NO!
The explanation that they gave was that since cars aren't selling, parts cost three times as much no as they did when we bought the truck. Darn...the bad economy rears it's ugly head in our lives once again!
Still no word on how much they are going to pay for it, still no police report and still no rental. We are in a holding pattern here just waiting for word. Chad is down about his truck but seems to be coming to terms with the idea that he has absolutely no control of the outcome here. It feels like things are more calm these days.
But waiting is hard!
Love and Hugs,
Mary
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Can we erase last week, please???(very long!)
Last week was nuts, so nuts that I couldn't even blog about it until I had some time to wrap my head around all of the events. It began Monday evening when Chad found out the contest that he has been seriously training for five months for got cancelled do to a recall and legal issues for the sponsors. He has truly busted his rear to get into shape for this and it has kept him (and his supportive wife, yours truly) motivated to drag our tired butts into the gym five nights a week on top of the five mornings a week he did before work. Boy did that take the air out of his sails!
Then Tuesday afternoon, we had a tiny misunderstanding with the water company. We thought we had paid the bill and they so very graciously informed us that we hadn't......by shutting off the water! So we promptly paid the bill over the phone only to be told there were cutbacks at the water company and they didn't have a dispatcher so they couldn't give us an absolute time when they would be there just that it would be by 6 pm. This was at 1 pm! For almost five hours I sat here with seven children, and no water. OH JOY!
Wednesday was uneventful, went to the park with the kids.
Thursday morning Chad wakes me to kiss me goodbye for work....fifteen minutes later the phone rings, "Honey, you're gonna love this one," he says, "First of all I am fine, but I wrecked my truck."
Can I just say if there are words that will pull you right out of dreamland those are the ones!
As it turns out he is fine. The truck is bent up but he managed to drive it home, he's not at fault at all and the other car was REALLY wrecked. So he spent the entire day trying to get everything sorted out and a rental in place before he had to be to work on Monday....unfortunately, the insurance company had different ideas. They told us they weren't even dealing with the situation until they had a police report in hand or their client could speak to them with a clear head (she had an anxiety attack and was a bit looped out when she called the insurance company so they weren't relying on the info she gave).
Friday morning (AKA Chad's birthday) his boss calls promptly at 8 am (so much for letting the birthday boy sleep in after his crappy day before) to find out if Chad would mind going back to being a stocker. Let me remind you that the stocker position was likely responsible for the two surgeries he underwent last year. Chad told him he would go wherever they needed him but he wasn't crazy about beating his body up anymore. Long story short, they were eliminating his office position and the stocker position was his only option if he wanted to remain an employee.
Later on Friday we managed to get an insurance inspector out to look at the truck, the insurance company still wasn't budging on liability because apparently the other party was "in a fog" the day of the accident and doesn't remember exactly what went down that day. The inspector called us about two hours later to tell us that they were probably just going to total it out. If you look at the truck, it is in no way totalled. A new radiator and possibly a fan and them body work. But with the economy the way it is apparently parts cost three times as much so they are going to cut their losses.
We don't know how much they are planning to pay for the truck. But we are seriously praying it covers what we owe on it!
pause........
breathe......
focus.......
It's wierd but I really can't get worked up over all of the uncertainty of these events. I can hear GOD speaking to me in every event. The contest is HIM telling us to focus on taking care of ourselves so that we may be more efficient in what we are put here to do. Not to focus so much on attention or a prize, but to find peace in feeling better and being healthier.
The water situation was a nudge to me to take more of an active interest in our finances. For too long I have left the bookkeeping up to Chad because it was the easier thing to do. When the water was shut off I had no clue where to even find the bill to call. This is truly something I can take off of his hands to make his life a little less stressful.
The accident was a push to simplify. We have been over extended for quite a while and it was a littl silly to have a "bought and paid for" vehicle sitting in the driveway for most of the day doing nothing while we financed one for Chad to get to work. When we actually did the math on how much the truck was costing us every month (payments, gas,upkeep, insurance and registration), this actually will free up close to 800 dollars a month (assuming the insurance company truly pays it off, but I am not gonna worry because I am not in control, GOD is!).
The switch to the stocker position is a blessing in disguise too. It came with a significant raise and possible overtime every week (they weren't even giving Chad a full forty hours a week in the office until just recently). He is in far better shape now than he was when he last worked in this position, so he's not as likely to get seriously hurt just from the job itself. Last, the hours are very early in the morning until early after noon, so he is home to hang with the kids and I more.
A further note on simplifying.....The money for Dish network ended up going to turn the water back on so bright and early on Mother's Day we had no tv.....Chad made a trip to WalMart to purchase an $8 antenna and I now can watch all my local stations in high definition! I get a better picture on my TV now than I did with Dish FOR FREE(and yes it's a digital tv so it's gonna be that way even after all the networks switch)!
So I am content, Chad is not hurt, there is nothing that has been taken from us that we can't live without. We can take this time to enjoy the simple things....kids running in the sprinklers on a hot day, a bedtime story, the smell of bread baking and the love and laughter shared around the dinner table.
It seems we still have all of the essentials!
Love and Hugs,
Mary
Then Tuesday afternoon, we had a tiny misunderstanding with the water company. We thought we had paid the bill and they so very graciously informed us that we hadn't......by shutting off the water! So we promptly paid the bill over the phone only to be told there were cutbacks at the water company and they didn't have a dispatcher so they couldn't give us an absolute time when they would be there just that it would be by 6 pm. This was at 1 pm! For almost five hours I sat here with seven children, and no water. OH JOY!
Wednesday was uneventful, went to the park with the kids.
Thursday morning Chad wakes me to kiss me goodbye for work....fifteen minutes later the phone rings, "Honey, you're gonna love this one," he says, "First of all I am fine, but I wrecked my truck."
Can I just say if there are words that will pull you right out of dreamland those are the ones!
As it turns out he is fine. The truck is bent up but he managed to drive it home, he's not at fault at all and the other car was REALLY wrecked. So he spent the entire day trying to get everything sorted out and a rental in place before he had to be to work on Monday....unfortunately, the insurance company had different ideas. They told us they weren't even dealing with the situation until they had a police report in hand or their client could speak to them with a clear head (she had an anxiety attack and was a bit looped out when she called the insurance company so they weren't relying on the info she gave).
Friday morning (AKA Chad's birthday) his boss calls promptly at 8 am (so much for letting the birthday boy sleep in after his crappy day before) to find out if Chad would mind going back to being a stocker. Let me remind you that the stocker position was likely responsible for the two surgeries he underwent last year. Chad told him he would go wherever they needed him but he wasn't crazy about beating his body up anymore. Long story short, they were eliminating his office position and the stocker position was his only option if he wanted to remain an employee.
Later on Friday we managed to get an insurance inspector out to look at the truck, the insurance company still wasn't budging on liability because apparently the other party was "in a fog" the day of the accident and doesn't remember exactly what went down that day. The inspector called us about two hours later to tell us that they were probably just going to total it out. If you look at the truck, it is in no way totalled. A new radiator and possibly a fan and them body work. But with the economy the way it is apparently parts cost three times as much so they are going to cut their losses.
We don't know how much they are planning to pay for the truck. But we are seriously praying it covers what we owe on it!
pause........
breathe......
focus.......
It's wierd but I really can't get worked up over all of the uncertainty of these events. I can hear GOD speaking to me in every event. The contest is HIM telling us to focus on taking care of ourselves so that we may be more efficient in what we are put here to do. Not to focus so much on attention or a prize, but to find peace in feeling better and being healthier.
The water situation was a nudge to me to take more of an active interest in our finances. For too long I have left the bookkeeping up to Chad because it was the easier thing to do. When the water was shut off I had no clue where to even find the bill to call. This is truly something I can take off of his hands to make his life a little less stressful.
The accident was a push to simplify. We have been over extended for quite a while and it was a littl silly to have a "bought and paid for" vehicle sitting in the driveway for most of the day doing nothing while we financed one for Chad to get to work. When we actually did the math on how much the truck was costing us every month (payments, gas,upkeep, insurance and registration), this actually will free up close to 800 dollars a month (assuming the insurance company truly pays it off, but I am not gonna worry because I am not in control, GOD is!).
The switch to the stocker position is a blessing in disguise too. It came with a significant raise and possible overtime every week (they weren't even giving Chad a full forty hours a week in the office until just recently). He is in far better shape now than he was when he last worked in this position, so he's not as likely to get seriously hurt just from the job itself. Last, the hours are very early in the morning until early after noon, so he is home to hang with the kids and I more.
A further note on simplifying.....The money for Dish network ended up going to turn the water back on so bright and early on Mother's Day we had no tv.....Chad made a trip to WalMart to purchase an $8 antenna and I now can watch all my local stations in high definition! I get a better picture on my TV now than I did with Dish FOR FREE(and yes it's a digital tv so it's gonna be that way even after all the networks switch)!
So I am content, Chad is not hurt, there is nothing that has been taken from us that we can't live without. We can take this time to enjoy the simple things....kids running in the sprinklers on a hot day, a bedtime story, the smell of bread baking and the love and laughter shared around the dinner table.
It seems we still have all of the essentials!
Love and Hugs,
Mary
Monday, May 4, 2009
As if I don't have enough to do!
Yes folks, I know I am nuts but this little cutie stole my heart and I brought her home. The price was right, she was free, up to date on shots, and already had a crate, leash, puppy training manual and dog treats. He name is Delilah and so far most of the family adores her (Izzy still isn't quite sure, but she's warming up!) She's smart as a whip, so far she hasn't had an accident in the house once!
It's hard to see in the pic but she is a rich chocolate color so now we have lab mixes in all three colors...black, yellow and chocolate. I swear this is the last critter.....for now! LOL!
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
How important is TV anyway?
Well life is definitely not dull these days! I spend mornings either reading scripture or organizing the schoolwork for the day, next is breakfast, the kids Bible lessons, and dishes. Then we are onto laundry (which I hang because the hot weather has to benefit me in some way!) while the older kids read books to the younger ones. Then I take over the reading while the four older kids pull out their math books ans settle down to work.
When the older kids finish, I have them either journal or do some free reading while I work with the littles on their math. Then we all settle in for our unit study. Generally it takes about an hour and a half to two hours to read/discuss/work on projects so by two or three we are done with school for the day and at that time they can pretty much do whatever they want. The boys settle in to the living room with huge stacks of books sounding out short words and asking for help on the bigger ones. Tristan finds a quiet corner to read his Harry Potter books (AGAIN!) Heaven goes to her room to build playing card towns, and Mack and Ash generally play together. No stress, just individual interests!
By 4 pm we are eating and waiting for Chad to get home, then it's off to the gym for two hours. We are home by eight where the kids get about and hour and a half to watch one of the hundreds of dvds we own (or a redbox dvd, if it's Monday....their free that day!) and off to bed while Chad and I stick our noses in books.
Wednesday is park day with our homeschool group and Friday is "life skills day" we clean, we bake, we get the house ready for our usually busy weekends and then we try to head to the library in the afternoon.
So here is the thing, I have almost a hundred shows recorded on my DVR to watch. Mind you, I "couldn't live without them" just a few months ago but now I find myself trying to settle for sitting down and watching them, when there is so much other stuff I would rather be doing. A huge part of me wants to go cold turkey and cancel our satellite service, but the small part of me that hangs on to my old behaviors is clinging to it like a security blanket.
I guess I never expected, to enjoy my own life so much! All of the stress I had when the kids were "doing official school" just melted away and I am enjoying just hanging out with my family. Yes, there is still stress (no way around that with seven kids!) but we are thinking, reading, learning, and talking. So I am starting to see that there isn't much room for the distraction of tv!
Love and Hugs,
Mary
When the older kids finish, I have them either journal or do some free reading while I work with the littles on their math. Then we all settle in for our unit study. Generally it takes about an hour and a half to two hours to read/discuss/work on projects so by two or three we are done with school for the day and at that time they can pretty much do whatever they want. The boys settle in to the living room with huge stacks of books sounding out short words and asking for help on the bigger ones. Tristan finds a quiet corner to read his Harry Potter books (AGAIN!) Heaven goes to her room to build playing card towns, and Mack and Ash generally play together. No stress, just individual interests!
By 4 pm we are eating and waiting for Chad to get home, then it's off to the gym for two hours. We are home by eight where the kids get about and hour and a half to watch one of the hundreds of dvds we own (or a redbox dvd, if it's Monday....their free that day!) and off to bed while Chad and I stick our noses in books.
Wednesday is park day with our homeschool group and Friday is "life skills day" we clean, we bake, we get the house ready for our usually busy weekends and then we try to head to the library in the afternoon.
So here is the thing, I have almost a hundred shows recorded on my DVR to watch. Mind you, I "couldn't live without them" just a few months ago but now I find myself trying to settle for sitting down and watching them, when there is so much other stuff I would rather be doing. A huge part of me wants to go cold turkey and cancel our satellite service, but the small part of me that hangs on to my old behaviors is clinging to it like a security blanket.
I guess I never expected, to enjoy my own life so much! All of the stress I had when the kids were "doing official school" just melted away and I am enjoying just hanging out with my family. Yes, there is still stress (no way around that with seven kids!) but we are thinking, reading, learning, and talking. So I am starting to see that there isn't much room for the distraction of tv!
Love and Hugs,
Mary
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Oh Wow! So much to Tell!
Ok, been neglecting, yet again! Not even sure where to start! Went through three crazy bouts of the cold/flu/stomach bug with all the kids since I last posted. It reaked havoc on my workout schedule and got us extremely behind on schoolwork.When the stress got completely insane about getting caught up on schoolwork so the kids wouldn't have to repeat a grade, I decided to pull them out of virtual school and go back to straight homeschooling.
Now this wasn't the only reason I pulled them, it just pushed up the date a bit. This year was a rough year with virtual school, trying to get services for the kids that they needed, being passed around from teacher to teacher without warning or explanation, having to jump through hoops all the time for unnecesssary medical testing, and the school being more focussed on completing curriculum and AIMS performance than how much the kids were actually learning. I finally figured out that the progress they were making had nothing to do with what the school was providing but was do to the adjustments I was making in teaching them. So now we are on our own!
We have done a few field trips, one to Luke Air Force Base for and air show (AJ now wants to be a pilot AND a fireman! (the kid is an adrenaline junkie!) and the County Fair! We are doing a unit study on the pioneers and segwaying that into farming so the fair fit in nicely. I have to say that I am once again realizing how fun it can be to learn with the kids! They are learning to think for themselves, and they are doing schoolwork without argument. They actually come up with assignments on their own!
We are also back at church. We got out of the habit when Chad had a weekend job because our weekends were nuts! But we figured we no longer had and excuse and we all seemed to have an urge to be there. It's funny how if you just sit still long enough you can hear GOD calling you!
Chad is doing well at work. His position got shifted around a bit, due to layoffs but he's managing to learn pretty much every position there. With the shortage of jobs out here we are kind of looking at this as a blessing. As long as he's still getting hours, we aren't going to complain!
The weight loss is still going well. I am currently at 32 pounds lost. It's nice actually seeing the difference in the mirror. With as busy as things have been lately I am only getting to the gym half the time I use to so I am trying to find some balance between all I have taken on so I can get back to being so consistent with the work out.
Well, I had better get my day going if I want to get anything done around here, hope all is well with everyone! I will post some pics when I get the chance!
Love and Hugs,
Mary
Now this wasn't the only reason I pulled them, it just pushed up the date a bit. This year was a rough year with virtual school, trying to get services for the kids that they needed, being passed around from teacher to teacher without warning or explanation, having to jump through hoops all the time for unnecesssary medical testing, and the school being more focussed on completing curriculum and AIMS performance than how much the kids were actually learning. I finally figured out that the progress they were making had nothing to do with what the school was providing but was do to the adjustments I was making in teaching them. So now we are on our own!
We have done a few field trips, one to Luke Air Force Base for and air show (AJ now wants to be a pilot AND a fireman! (the kid is an adrenaline junkie!) and the County Fair! We are doing a unit study on the pioneers and segwaying that into farming so the fair fit in nicely. I have to say that I am once again realizing how fun it can be to learn with the kids! They are learning to think for themselves, and they are doing schoolwork without argument. They actually come up with assignments on their own!
We are also back at church. We got out of the habit when Chad had a weekend job because our weekends were nuts! But we figured we no longer had and excuse and we all seemed to have an urge to be there. It's funny how if you just sit still long enough you can hear GOD calling you!
Chad is doing well at work. His position got shifted around a bit, due to layoffs but he's managing to learn pretty much every position there. With the shortage of jobs out here we are kind of looking at this as a blessing. As long as he's still getting hours, we aren't going to complain!
The weight loss is still going well. I am currently at 32 pounds lost. It's nice actually seeing the difference in the mirror. With as busy as things have been lately I am only getting to the gym half the time I use to so I am trying to find some balance between all I have taken on so I can get back to being so consistent with the work out.
Well, I had better get my day going if I want to get anything done around here, hope all is well with everyone! I will post some pics when I get the chance!
Love and Hugs,
Mary
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
A buck and Change!
Well, big news, I am down under 200 lbs! it's 199 but it still counts! This is the first time since before Mack was born that I have been this low and I have to say I am REALLY HAPPY!!!!
Ok now that I have had my little party, on to current happenings. I know I have neglected the blog yet again, but seriously, the plague hit my house with a vengeance!!! For the last couple of weeks kids have been dropping like flies with fever, chills, coughs, sniffles and even vomitting! I was handling things pretty well until weekend before last when I got it too. In this house everything comes to a halt when Momma's sick!
So now we are playing catch up! Got tons of schoolwork to do now that we are better. I actually kind of freaked out last night when I realized we are three quarters of the way through the school year! How in the world did that happen????? Wasn't it just yesterday I was freaking out about my three babies being school aged?
Anyway, I guess I should get back to school since I have so much to catch up on so I will blog again soon!
Love and hugs,
Mary
Ok now that I have had my little party, on to current happenings. I know I have neglected the blog yet again, but seriously, the plague hit my house with a vengeance!!! For the last couple of weeks kids have been dropping like flies with fever, chills, coughs, sniffles and even vomitting! I was handling things pretty well until weekend before last when I got it too. In this house everything comes to a halt when Momma's sick!
So now we are playing catch up! Got tons of schoolwork to do now that we are better. I actually kind of freaked out last night when I realized we are three quarters of the way through the school year! How in the world did that happen????? Wasn't it just yesterday I was freaking out about my three babies being school aged?
Anyway, I guess I should get back to school since I have so much to catch up on so I will blog again soon!
Love and hugs,
Mary
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
May the TV R.I.P.
Our TV died yesterday! I know we really don't watch it as much as we use to but when we can't watch it we really notice it's absence! At least our taxes are coming so we will have the money for the new one!
Life is pretty normal today, playing catch up with schoolwork and dealing with household drama. Since I have started at the gym it's like I have gotten behind on everything else. How do these Supermoms juggle everything????
Hopefully soon I will figure out the secret!
Life is pretty normal today, playing catch up with schoolwork and dealing with household drama. Since I have started at the gym it's like I have gotten behind on everything else. How do these Supermoms juggle everything????
Hopefully soon I will figure out the secret!
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Weekly weigh in
Well, the love/ hate relationship with my scale continues! One whopping pound last week for a grand total of 9.5 lbs! Wasn't really thrilled after busting my rear all week but Chad did his best to console me and told me that any loss is a good thing.
Did I mention he lost more than me? I know he loves me and was trying to make me feel better but it was a bitter pill to swallow coming from someone who was downright giddy when he got on the scale. He's been avoiding my evil eye for the last couple of days!
So I am stepping up the cardio this week and hoping for the best!
In other news, not much new is going on. LOL! I know my life is pretty uneventful but that's ok. Raven is still dealing with the cold from before although now it seems to be moving down to his chest. Poor little guy has a nasty cough that keeps him up at night, even after having cough syrup. I hope he gets over it soon!
Well I guess I had better get back to school work with the kiddos.
Love and hugs,
Mary
Did I mention he lost more than me? I know he loves me and was trying to make me feel better but it was a bitter pill to swallow coming from someone who was downright giddy when he got on the scale. He's been avoiding my evil eye for the last couple of days!
So I am stepping up the cardio this week and hoping for the best!
In other news, not much new is going on. LOL! I know my life is pretty uneventful but that's ok. Raven is still dealing with the cold from before although now it seems to be moving down to his chest. Poor little guy has a nasty cough that keeps him up at night, even after having cough syrup. I hope he gets over it soon!
Well I guess I had better get back to school work with the kiddos.
Love and hugs,
Mary
Friday, January 30, 2009
It's such a great day!
Well the sun is shining, DIBELS is behind me, so I thought I would blog and spread around my sunshine! Right now I am sitting ON my desk because my seven darlings are scrubbing the floors. I decided to not worry about school today, as the Speech therapist will be here tomorrow and we wil most likely throw in some other schoolwork to round out the day. So today I decided to get the house into shape.
I love the younger kids because they think cleaning is fun (haven't let the older kids convince them otherwise, yet) so they are running around with spray bottles cleaning everything. The older kids can't be upstaged by the littles, so they jumped on the clean the house bandwagon too....AHHHHHHH! LIFE IS GOOD!
No weight updates yet, have to wait for Sunday for that and I can't tell you how hard it is to wait. The scale and I have a serious love hate relationship. I hate it up until it gives me good news then it's my best buddy. I know I shouldn't be so wrapped up in a number, but I wait all week for that proof that all my work hasn't been for nothing!
So for now I guess I will close, Chad should be home soon he gets off early or takes Fridays off, depending on what week it is. It sucks for the paycheck but is nice for his doctor's appointments. only two more and he should be in great shape with his knee....YAY!
So until later,
Love and hugs,
Mary
I love the younger kids because they think cleaning is fun (haven't let the older kids convince them otherwise, yet) so they are running around with spray bottles cleaning everything. The older kids can't be upstaged by the littles, so they jumped on the clean the house bandwagon too....AHHHHHHH! LIFE IS GOOD!
No weight updates yet, have to wait for Sunday for that and I can't tell you how hard it is to wait. The scale and I have a serious love hate relationship. I hate it up until it gives me good news then it's my best buddy. I know I shouldn't be so wrapped up in a number, but I wait all week for that proof that all my work hasn't been for nothing!
So for now I guess I will close, Chad should be home soon he gets off early or takes Fridays off, depending on what week it is. It sucks for the paycheck but is nice for his doctor's appointments. only two more and he should be in great shape with his knee....YAY!
So until later,
Love and hugs,
Mary
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Update on me
Well thought I would give y'all an update since I am trying really hard not to neglect my poor blog. I am four weeks into this new lifestyle and I am 8.5 pounds lighter, WOOHOO! (right now I am imagining 8.5 pounds of fat and getting totally grossed out!) I am a little miffed at Chad who has lost way more than that but what can I do?
I am hitting the gym 5 days a week and hitting the treadmill every single day. I am still running on the mentality that I have to work for my food and so far it seems to be working for me. LOL! I don;t complain much anymore and I am learning that no matter how hard it seems, I will feel better later for it!
Been trying to get into the swing of things with school but the kids have been getting sick left and right so it makes schoolwork pretty hit and miss. I am constantly playing catch up! I will get it all figured out.
Tomorrow is DIBELS testing. I hate DIBELS! The teachers all freak out about it and I think it's kind of useless, but that's just me!
Last weekend we fixed the fence that was the unfortunate casualty of the tree coming down. Chad figured it all out pretty quickly and decided that of all the things he could do with his life masonry is not one that he would choose! LOL! Apparently it's too much of a pain in the rear to really enjoy doing.
OK all have to get dinner on the table, the natvies get restless if you don't feed them! Bye for now!
Love and hugs,
Mary
I am hitting the gym 5 days a week and hitting the treadmill every single day. I am still running on the mentality that I have to work for my food and so far it seems to be working for me. LOL! I don;t complain much anymore and I am learning that no matter how hard it seems, I will feel better later for it!
Been trying to get into the swing of things with school but the kids have been getting sick left and right so it makes schoolwork pretty hit and miss. I am constantly playing catch up! I will get it all figured out.
Tomorrow is DIBELS testing. I hate DIBELS! The teachers all freak out about it and I think it's kind of useless, but that's just me!
Last weekend we fixed the fence that was the unfortunate casualty of the tree coming down. Chad figured it all out pretty quickly and decided that of all the things he could do with his life masonry is not one that he would choose! LOL! Apparently it's too much of a pain in the rear to really enjoy doing.
OK all have to get dinner on the table, the natvies get restless if you don't feed them! Bye for now!
Love and hugs,
Mary
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Wow, two posts in one month!
Hello all,
Things around here are pretty normal. Got a couple of under the weather kiddos, but that's nothing unusual in January. Still working out. I have lost six pounds since I started all of this on December 31st and I really am starting to feel better. I am doing a 5k in October and I am working myself up to running the whole thing. Can't be embarrassing myself, ya know!
The kids are plugging away at school. The boys' teacher changed, AGAIN! This would make teacher number four this year and I am starting to get annoyed! I think I am changing schools next year. I am going to try the other virtual school out here and see if they are any better. I have heard great things about the other school and this year has been nuts at ours. Teachers have been hired and fired at the blink of an eye and unfortunately, when you have a kids with learning issues it's hard to just start over with a new teacher, trying to get services every couple of months. And I won't even go into the fact that they pretty much ignored my daughter's iep for the first half of the year!
Anyway, that's us in a nutshell right now. Nothing exciting I am afraid. In my life lack of excitement equates peace!
Love and Hugs,
Mary
Things around here are pretty normal. Got a couple of under the weather kiddos, but that's nothing unusual in January. Still working out. I have lost six pounds since I started all of this on December 31st and I really am starting to feel better. I am doing a 5k in October and I am working myself up to running the whole thing. Can't be embarrassing myself, ya know!
The kids are plugging away at school. The boys' teacher changed, AGAIN! This would make teacher number four this year and I am starting to get annoyed! I think I am changing schools next year. I am going to try the other virtual school out here and see if they are any better. I have heard great things about the other school and this year has been nuts at ours. Teachers have been hired and fired at the blink of an eye and unfortunately, when you have a kids with learning issues it's hard to just start over with a new teacher, trying to get services every couple of months. And I won't even go into the fact that they pretty much ignored my daughter's iep for the first half of the year!
Anyway, that's us in a nutshell right now. Nothing exciting I am afraid. In my life lack of excitement equates peace!
Love and Hugs,
Mary
Friday, January 16, 2009
Yes I know....It's been a long time!
I know I am a bad blogger! Been neglecting it yet again! I read other moms' blogs religiously and I am seriously jealous that they can complete a thought let alone get it out there in cyberspace! So I am gonna have to give you all the cliffs notes version of what's been going on around here.
Thanksgiving was great, had the fam over and once again made way too much food. Chad's mom brought over her WII and that kept the adults entertained while the kids snuck tastes out of the deserts. Christmas came and went, again with too much food and spoiled kiddos but still wonderful (will be posting pics later as they are all downloaded to Chad's puter and I really don't want to drag it out right now).
We had a quiet New Year, the kids spent the evening watching movies until just before midnight I went looking to see who was still awake. The youngest three had crashed but the oldest four came out to watch the ball drop, get new year hugs and kisses and head off to bed. I know we lead and exciting and glamorous life, don't we?
New Year's day the guys decided to cut down the rest of the tree that fell on the neighbor's roof a few months ago. After trying for months to find someone to loan him a chainsaw that was big enough, he bit the bullet and bought one. Unfortunately, part of the fence did not survive the lumberjack encounter. So my handy dandy hubby will be trying his hand at masonry next. YAY!
My family has joined a gym. I am fed up with how out of shape I am! I would post before and after pics, but frankly, I don't have the guts! lol. So you all will just have to wait for the after pics, because I am sure when those are taken I will be far more eager to share!
I know a few are laughing at my attempt to get into shape (I am one of the most anti workout people I know!) but I am serious about it! Since December 31st there hasn't been one day I haven't been on the treadmill for at least an hour a day, and I have hit the gym 5 out of seven days every week. They have chilcare there and a place for the older kids to hang out so Chad and I can go in together. Long story short I am out of excuses!!!!
Anyway I will try to be better about posting in the future,
until then,
love and hugs,
Mary
Thanksgiving was great, had the fam over and once again made way too much food. Chad's mom brought over her WII and that kept the adults entertained while the kids snuck tastes out of the deserts. Christmas came and went, again with too much food and spoiled kiddos but still wonderful (will be posting pics later as they are all downloaded to Chad's puter and I really don't want to drag it out right now).
We had a quiet New Year, the kids spent the evening watching movies until just before midnight I went looking to see who was still awake. The youngest three had crashed but the oldest four came out to watch the ball drop, get new year hugs and kisses and head off to bed. I know we lead and exciting and glamorous life, don't we?
New Year's day the guys decided to cut down the rest of the tree that fell on the neighbor's roof a few months ago. After trying for months to find someone to loan him a chainsaw that was big enough, he bit the bullet and bought one. Unfortunately, part of the fence did not survive the lumberjack encounter. So my handy dandy hubby will be trying his hand at masonry next. YAY!
My family has joined a gym. I am fed up with how out of shape I am! I would post before and after pics, but frankly, I don't have the guts! lol. So you all will just have to wait for the after pics, because I am sure when those are taken I will be far more eager to share!
I know a few are laughing at my attempt to get into shape (I am one of the most anti workout people I know!) but I am serious about it! Since December 31st there hasn't been one day I haven't been on the treadmill for at least an hour a day, and I have hit the gym 5 out of seven days every week. They have chilcare there and a place for the older kids to hang out so Chad and I can go in together. Long story short I am out of excuses!!!!
Anyway I will try to be better about posting in the future,
until then,
love and hugs,
Mary
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