Mother's Day is not a holiday I'm fond of...actually there are very few holidays I'm all that fond of...because there's so much pressure (perceived probably, but pressure nonetheless).
Pressure to be all that is on those cards. The perfect mom. The patient mom that always helps her children in times of crisis and is always there, never cranky or tired. Never wants the last piece of cake. Always patient. Always loving and giving.
Yup. That's what the cards say we're supposed to be.
But I don't think I am.
Do I love my kids? Absolutely! Do I think they are blessings-each and every one of them? YES! But I do get tired. And darn it, sometimes I do want the last of something.
So, today was a perfect day! I was loved on, then we got down to business that we had started yesterday---working on the girls' room! I will have pics. I promise. I did the boys' room months ago and still have yet to post pics (it had some little things I was waiting on)...but maybe I'll do both at once. Or maybe they'll each get their own post. Who knows! I love doing stuff like that though.
Then, I got steak and shrimp for dinner (grilled!) and a baked potato cooked in the fire. Yum! And brownies! Oh my!
Monday, May 13, 2013
Sunday, May 12, 2013
Camping!
Last weekend (which seems like forever ago with all that is going on
with my grandma) we had a great time camping! We took off sports and all
excess activities so that we could do more of this thing called family
time. And still it's been almost impossible to find time! For
"unsocialized homeschoolers" my kids sure are busy.... but we found the
time!
Or we made the time. Can you make time?
Or we made the time. Can you make time?
 | |
| Go ahead...say the rhyme with me..."Red on yellow KILLS A FELLOW...." Yikes! | He was dead ;) |
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| Nathan did our whole hike without complaining! But he was so tired...got a ride from sissy... |
Wednesday, May 8, 2013
Scary Times
For as long as I can remember my grandparents have been a mainstay of my life. I spent every weekend with them from before I can even remember. We lived with them off and on.
They took me to church. My grandma held my hair back more times than I can count while I was sick. When that same hair (long at that time) got lice at school...guess who had to comb it out and wash it in the sink and clean the house from top to bottom? Bag up all the stuffed animals.
Listened to all my silly stories and songs and let me make messes all over her house when she had ONE DAY a week to clean! (She worked full time.) She cleaned around my tents in the living room. And if I hated what was for dinner? Guess who fixed me macaroni and cheese? And was always cutting up an apple or an orange for a snack. I remember there always being fruit on the counter-ready to grab and eat when Grandma was home....
And read Little House on the Prairie books to me. Ad nauseum. When I could read them to myself? And listened to my prayers at night....when I decided to pray for everyone in the world. By name.
My grandma.
Last night we got a call that she was taken to the hospital by ambulance. And we're 900+ miles away. And I want to be there. There's something wrong with her heart-has been for a while, it's just gotten worse. She got very weak and pale and my grandpa called for help (a relative) and the relative who is an RN called 911. And my poor grandma-who HATES a spectacle (how she's ever lived with my grandpa for over 60 years...I will never know <3 a="" all="" ambulance="" an="" and="" carted="" come="" doesn="" fire="" hospital="" in="" neighborhood="" neighbors="" of="" out="" p="" s="" t="" the="" there="" to="" truck="" was="" watch="" watching="" when="" who="" with="">
And now, just a few days shy of their move here....she is lying in a hospital bed waiting to hear what needs to be done. Before they can move. All their stuff is boxed up. My grandpa is at home (when he's not at the hospital) not knowing what to do without his "Peach"...his love...his life.
The house is ready here. The one that is all on one level (no stairs at all!-unlike the one they've been in for years-even through her knee replacement surgery!). Everything is set up just for them at that house. Landscaping lovingly done. A new sidewalk to avoid any rough spots to trip on. Just perfect. Except it's empty. We've been over there a bunch of times just waiting til it was full of love. Now it will sit. Until the dr says she can go.
Thankfully...My God is so big, My God is so strong...there's nothing my God cannot do! I will keep praying. For strength. For peace. For clarity. For solutions. For my grandma.
P.S. Lest you think I have no parents, I do! I have parents that love me and I lived with them. My grandparents were just a very important part of my life also!
They took me to church. My grandma held my hair back more times than I can count while I was sick. When that same hair (long at that time) got lice at school...guess who had to comb it out and wash it in the sink and clean the house from top to bottom? Bag up all the stuffed animals.
Listened to all my silly stories and songs and let me make messes all over her house when she had ONE DAY a week to clean! (She worked full time.) She cleaned around my tents in the living room. And if I hated what was for dinner? Guess who fixed me macaroni and cheese? And was always cutting up an apple or an orange for a snack. I remember there always being fruit on the counter-ready to grab and eat when Grandma was home....
And read Little House on the Prairie books to me. Ad nauseum. When I could read them to myself? And listened to my prayers at night....when I decided to pray for everyone in the world. By name.
My grandma.
Last night we got a call that she was taken to the hospital by ambulance. And we're 900+ miles away. And I want to be there. There's something wrong with her heart-has been for a while, it's just gotten worse. She got very weak and pale and my grandpa called for help (a relative) and the relative who is an RN called 911. And my poor grandma-who HATES a spectacle (how she's ever lived with my grandpa for over 60 years...I will never know <3 a="" all="" ambulance="" an="" and="" carted="" come="" doesn="" fire="" hospital="" in="" neighborhood="" neighbors="" of="" out="" p="" s="" t="" the="" there="" to="" truck="" was="" watch="" watching="" when="" who="" with="">
And now, just a few days shy of their move here....she is lying in a hospital bed waiting to hear what needs to be done. Before they can move. All their stuff is boxed up. My grandpa is at home (when he's not at the hospital) not knowing what to do without his "Peach"...his love...his life.
The house is ready here. The one that is all on one level (no stairs at all!-unlike the one they've been in for years-even through her knee replacement surgery!). Everything is set up just for them at that house. Landscaping lovingly done. A new sidewalk to avoid any rough spots to trip on. Just perfect. Except it's empty. We've been over there a bunch of times just waiting til it was full of love. Now it will sit. Until the dr says she can go.
Thankfully...My God is so big, My God is so strong...there's nothing my God cannot do! I will keep praying. For strength. For peace. For clarity. For solutions. For my grandma.
P.S. Lest you think I have no parents, I do! I have parents that love me and I lived with them. My grandparents were just a very important part of my life also!
Tuesday, May 7, 2013
Graph It!
How do you explain something to someone that is like gibberish?
I get it now. I get how hard it must have been when I had questions about homework and my parents or grandparents would not know how to explain it. I thought, "Surely, if you're a grown-up then you must know how to do this-if I have to do it before I get to be a grown-up." Thing is, it might have been 30 years since you did that!
x=y-1
Graph that baby. Ummm, yeah. Sure. Just the other day I was thinking about that and how fun it is! Oh wait, the 3 year old is barking.
x=y-1
Graph. Wait! Haley is trying to sound out a word. She needs help.
x=y-1
How is that a function? And I need to graph it on a plane? And what do you mean you don't understand it?
Oh Good heavens! And I even have the benefit of a teacher's book! With the answers!
P.S. I did finally figure it out by reading it like 15 times (the lesson)! Success! But then I had to figure out how to explain it without just giving the answer away. Yikes! I get it now. So, to my mom and my dad and my grandma and grandpa??? I'm SOOOO sorry for all the times I was so impatient and huffy when you had to take my math book and start back at page 1 before you could help me with the problem on page 132. I get it now. Because I do the SAME thing. And guess what? My kids want me to hurry up too!
I get it now. I get how hard it must have been when I had questions about homework and my parents or grandparents would not know how to explain it. I thought, "Surely, if you're a grown-up then you must know how to do this-if I have to do it before I get to be a grown-up." Thing is, it might have been 30 years since you did that!
x=y-1
Graph that baby. Ummm, yeah. Sure. Just the other day I was thinking about that and how fun it is! Oh wait, the 3 year old is barking.
x=y-1
Graph. Wait! Haley is trying to sound out a word. She needs help.
x=y-1
How is that a function? And I need to graph it on a plane? And what do you mean you don't understand it?
Oh Good heavens! And I even have the benefit of a teacher's book! With the answers!
P.S. I did finally figure it out by reading it like 15 times (the lesson)! Success! But then I had to figure out how to explain it without just giving the answer away. Yikes! I get it now. So, to my mom and my dad and my grandma and grandpa??? I'm SOOOO sorry for all the times I was so impatient and huffy when you had to take my math book and start back at page 1 before you could help me with the problem on page 132. I get it now. Because I do the SAME thing. And guess what? My kids want me to hurry up too!
Friday, May 3, 2013
Starting Again
The only thing harder than keeping going is getting started again.
Why do I always forget this very important thing?
I started working out again this morning after some situationskept me from it gave me excuses for almost a month (travel, not feeling well, etc) and OH.MY.GOSH. Seriously. I thought I was GONNA DIE!
And what about all that self-deprivation in the kitchen? My stomach is going to think my esophagus was pinched closed!
A friend told me that once you stop working out it takes only a month to LOSE EVERYTHING you worked for. Stamina, muscle, etc. I believe it after today's workout.
Even the girl push-ups felt like I had 20 pounds of cement on my back.
And I thought about punching Jillian Michaels in the face...a couple of times. Maybe. But that would be silly since she's on tv. Plus she gets results! For sure!
I've gotten so bogged down in all these ways to lose weight faster, etc...I'm going to try something super-revolutionary. I'm going to count calories and work out 6-7 days per week. And see what happens. No food group is off limits (as long as I can count/measure the calories and they are within my parameters of 1500 daily). I want to see how this works. I know I did it 10 years ago...but apparently those 10 years (from 27 to 37) make a big difference.
Why do I always forget this very important thing?
I started working out again this morning after some situations
And what about all that self-deprivation in the kitchen? My stomach is going to think my esophagus was pinched closed!
A friend told me that once you stop working out it takes only a month to LOSE EVERYTHING you worked for. Stamina, muscle, etc. I believe it after today's workout.
Even the girl push-ups felt like I had 20 pounds of cement on my back.
And I thought about punching Jillian Michaels in the face...a couple of times. Maybe. But that would be silly since she's on tv. Plus she gets results! For sure!
I've gotten so bogged down in all these ways to lose weight faster, etc...I'm going to try something super-revolutionary. I'm going to count calories and work out 6-7 days per week. And see what happens. No food group is off limits (as long as I can count/measure the calories and they are within my parameters of 1500 daily). I want to see how this works. I know I did it 10 years ago...but apparently those 10 years (from 27 to 37) make a big difference.
Thursday, May 2, 2013
Tiny
There is something that intrigues me. Most people, including my husband, think I'm nuts! And I probably am.
But have you ever heard of "tiny houses"?
As in tinier than the one I live in?
I don't know if I've ever said much on here but we have a really small house for the size of our family and according to today's standards. We have just a little over 1,000 square feet. And 6 people and a BIG dog.
But these houses intrigue me! I first found out about this style of living in an article that said most people buy a bigger house for....MORE STORAGE for their stuff!? I don't understand that. If I have stuff that I need and use why do I need to store it? And if I don't need it or use it, why do I have it?
Here are some examples of tiny houses:
http://www.acgalleria.com/2011/12/tiny-house-yes-please/
Anyways, the reason this idea intrigues me is simply this: it's so cheap! No more mortgage, no more trying to decorate or furnish a house just for show. No room to put all the things you buy-because I'm quite sure if you know you're taking home bags from Target or Walmart with useless stuff in it...you'd think twice if you had to trip over it in one of these super tiny houses! And another thing...I've just always loved "little" things. Always. I wanted a smurf when I was a kid. With a tiny little mushroom house for him to live in!
Now I will admit to a few concerns:
1) What if you have to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night and your bed in your tiny house is in a tiny loft with a ladder leading to the first floor? What if you "forget" you are on a tiny loft surface and go crashing down?
2) When weather is bad...you're stuck inside with all of your tiny space and your (in our case) large family!?
3) Most of them seem to be on wheels. Specifically ONE AXLE! Wow! Our pop-up camper (the smallest version available at the time we bought it in 1996) is on one axle! We barely fit in there. Let alone if it rains! And I just don't want a house that is moveable. Call me unadventurous if you will, but I like a firm foundation!
4) Even some of my "must haves" wouldn't fit in some of these houses. I know, the less is more is what intrigued me most...but some things are must haves! Picture albums for sure! Books and school books (remember, we homeschool...and I am saving books until Nathan uses them-those suckers are expensive!)....some kitchen things (blender/mixer/etc)
5) I can't imagine trying to cook for a family of 6 in a tiny kitchen. That is probably the biggest room in my house-the kitchen. And I use all.of.it.
But still, how cool would it be to live such a simple, cheap, eco-friendly, cheap life! (yeah, I meant to say cheap twice ;) )
But have you ever heard of "tiny houses"?
As in tinier than the one I live in?
I don't know if I've ever said much on here but we have a really small house for the size of our family and according to today's standards. We have just a little over 1,000 square feet. And 6 people and a BIG dog.
But these houses intrigue me! I first found out about this style of living in an article that said most people buy a bigger house for....MORE STORAGE for their stuff!? I don't understand that. If I have stuff that I need and use why do I need to store it? And if I don't need it or use it, why do I have it?
Here are some examples of tiny houses:
http://www.acgalleria.com/2011/12/tiny-house-yes-please/ | ||||
| these are all different houses by the way-not different views of the same tiny house |
Now I will admit to a few concerns:
1) What if you have to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night and your bed in your tiny house is in a tiny loft with a ladder leading to the first floor? What if you "forget" you are on a tiny loft surface and go crashing down?
2) When weather is bad...you're stuck inside with all of your tiny space and your (in our case) large family!?
3) Most of them seem to be on wheels. Specifically ONE AXLE! Wow! Our pop-up camper (the smallest version available at the time we bought it in 1996) is on one axle! We barely fit in there. Let alone if it rains! And I just don't want a house that is moveable. Call me unadventurous if you will, but I like a firm foundation!
4) Even some of my "must haves" wouldn't fit in some of these houses. I know, the less is more is what intrigued me most...but some things are must haves! Picture albums for sure! Books and school books (remember, we homeschool...and I am saving books until Nathan uses them-those suckers are expensive!)....some kitchen things (blender/mixer/etc)
5) I can't imagine trying to cook for a family of 6 in a tiny kitchen. That is probably the biggest room in my house-the kitchen. And I use all.of.it.
But still, how cool would it be to live such a simple, cheap, eco-friendly, cheap life! (yeah, I meant to say cheap twice ;) )
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