Another year over

I have spent some time tonight reviewing my goals for 2009 and seeing where I measured up. While I did make progress, there is lots to carry forward to 2010, and I plan on documenting more of the journey. I will post more details in the coming week, along with some helpful websites that I found tonight while surfing.

Back to WAVE

Today was the first day of our homeschool co-op for the year. We are meeting in a new building this year, a nice brand new church. It is exciting to be in a new place, but a bit stressful too. We have many new families and all of us are learning our way around. I am teaching two classes, a preschool class about letters/ phonics, and a fiber arts class. The fiber arts class looks like it is going to be really fun. I have 11 very motivated students, 10 girls and 1 boy. Preschoolers are always fun.

Jayson is taking a Delaware history class, a running class and Spanish. Dalton is taking a class about habitats, the same running class as Jayson, and nutrition. Landon is taking three classes for the first time, my class, a class called Moving, Learning, and Growing with God, and another called All About Me. Maddox gets to spend three hours in the nursery. Today went well, no one had any problems beyond normal first day confusion. A few of the boys classes are going to require homework, so we have to fit that in with our school schedule.

The downside to WAVE in general, and specifically today, is it wears me out! I was exhausted before we even left to come home. I actually went to bed with Maddox at 9 pm. I am only up long enough to type this and then it is back to bed for me. It is well worth it though. The boys love to be with the other kids, and the teachers have great ideas and things to share.

I took my camera intending to get "first day of school" pictures, but was so busy it never came out of my bag. Instead, here is a picture to commemorate summer now that summer has started and the weather has already started to turn cool. Landon loves the ocean, no fear at all.

Babywearing in my state

I was recently hired by a well known baby sling manufacturer to teach babywearing to the nurses at our department of health. They used grant money to buy slings to distribute to their clients to encourage kangaroo care and breastfeeding. I taught one class last week and a second today, to accomodate the schedules of all of the nurses. It was such a great experience. The department is really pro breastfeeding and has welcomed me right into what they have going on. They are planning on utilizing our babywearing support group as well as La Leche League when I get our chapter going and helping me out where they can as well. I am very excited about how this will impact the natural parenting community where I live.

I also consulted with a pregnant mom tonight who is planning on babywearing for the first time with this baby. I actually tag teamed an appointment with her doula, so she was able to sign her doula contract and get some babywearing information all in one sitting. Convenient for her, and fun for all of us.

Day two of the school year is behind us now. Things are going smoothly so far. We also spent some time organizing clothes and supplies for co-op, which starts tomorrow. Jayson needed new gym shoes, but luckily we had a pair put away for him to grow into which will work perfectly.

A babywearing picture to go with the babywearing theme today, this is a Ball Baby Overall Mei Tai, converted from a Storchenweige wrap in the Anna colorway. How is that for a mouthful?

1 down, 179 days to go

Days of school that is. Today was our first day of school. I can't believe it. Especially when I come here and see that I last blogged at the beginning of the summer. Where did the summer go?!

Our school day started off a bit out of the ordinary. I am now leading our local babywearing group, and today was a meeting. We had planned to meet at a park, but due to poor weather we met at Chick-Fil-A. The meeting had a great turn out with about 10 moms plus kids. The boys got to begin their school year with chicken for breakfast and a couple hours in the play room. Afterwards we came home and got down to business with school. Of course we have details to work out in our schedule, but it went pretty smoothly for the first day.

Brad went back to work today after a four day holiday weekend. We spent the holiday at home, working on the house and cars and celebrating Phoenix's second birthday. Amazing that he is two already. Maddox is right behind him which is even harder to believe.

The birthday boy, all smiles as always.

One down, one to go

Baseball season is over for Dalton. They played the first game of playoffs yesterday, which turned out to be their last as well since it is single elimination. It was a mixed blessing for sure. He had a really great season, has really grown as a baseball player. Swim season has started though and that will keep us busy for the next couple of months, so it's nice to have one thing over with.
Jayson has 2 more regular season games this week and then playoffs begin.
Landon has a bit of sports news. He practiced with the 6 and under crowd at the pool on Thursday. I don't know how long he will stick it out, but it was fun for him to do what the other kids were doing, and a great introduction for next year when he is really old enough.

What did I get myself into?

My intention today was to go to church, and then come home and catch up on some computer work. The co-op website needs some errors fixed before our board meeting on Wednesday. This blog is seriously neglected as usual. I want to work on consolidating all of my files on to one external hard drive so I always have what I need regardless of what computer I sit down at.
You know what they say about best laid plans though. We stayed out way too late last night at our friends Don and Karen's home. I pretty much expected that so I made sure that clothes were laid out for church before we went. That was pure genious on my part because on the way home Brad started complaining of being freezing. In June. You got it, he is running a fever. I am sure it is the same bug that planted me in bed for 3 days last weekend. That meant I was on my own today. It also was my week to teach in relief society.
The boys and I headed to church without too much drama this morning, and then home for lunch. Patrick helped make sandwiches for everyone, so that was nice. I then took Maddox in for a nap and the phone rang. My friends son is in a similar situation as Patrick, raising a young baby on his own with the help of his mom. He needed me to babysit tonight while everyone at his house worked. Of course I agreed, only to find out later that Patrick also had to work. Cameron agreed to help, but disappeared when the baby showed up. To add to the chaos, a friend of Jayson and Daltons showed up at the door around dinner time, so he came in for awhile as well. So let me recap. Brad is in bed with the flu. Patrick is at work. Cameron is MIA. That leaves me and 8 kids, 12 and under. Yeah, it has been a fun day. In all seriousness it hasn't been a disaster, and the other baby is just as sweet as can be. I will certainly be ready for bedtime when it comes though!

Baseball season goes on

We started this season with a much lighter schedule than we are used to. Jayson wasn't drafted into majors, and Brad is coaching Daltons team, so Jayson was placed on the same team as well. Both boys have had a great season. This is Daltons first year in minors and he has made a spot for himself already as catcher. Being one of the oldest of the team, Jayson has gotten alot of play time, playing 2nd base, short stop, and pitching.

A couple of weeks ago we got a phone call from the league. It appears that a major division coach scouted Jayson and requested for him to join that team. We talked to the manager of the team Jayson was on and took him to see a major game. In the end he decided to move up to the new team. Now Dalton (and Brad) are Aeros, and Jayson is an Indian. Jayson was a bit dissapointed when he first moved up. He went from being oldest to youngest, and the rules become harder at the higher division. He is back playing in the outfield with less play time. Batting also has been a learning experience against the faster pitchers. The team was very welcoming though and after tonights game he said it is becoming more fun.

Jayson on base, stealing home, and pitching

Dalton playing 2nd base and batting

Jaysons fishing expedition

A couple of weeks ago Jayson had the opportunity to go fishing with a family at church. They went out on a boat into the Chesapeake Bay and fished for "striper" which thanks to Google I now know is Striped Bass, also known as rock fish. Jayson took the honor of biggest fish caught with a 34 inch specimen. He caught a few others, including one that didn't meet the minimum size requirement and had to be thrown back. The following night for dinner, my wonderful non-fish-eating husband finished cutting the filets so that I could broil them for dinner. He even happily ate some since our boy caught it. It was pretty good!

Summer has begun

We are not through with school yet for this year, but the crazy summer schedule is in full swing already. We run all the time it seems, and when we are home it is a mad rush to catch up on chores. Unfortunately the chores are winning this week. Today was supposed to be art co-op, but our hostess cancelled. That should have given me plenty of time to clean, but instead I have spent the day nursing a bad headache. You have to love all the pollen this time of year. I have new pictures to post, but happen to be sitting at the wrong computer at the moment, so those will come in a later post.
While I am whining, I may as well mention my bad technology luck of the last week or so. For about the last 9 months I have had the env2 for my cell phone. I have been happy with it, small, cute, qwerty keyboard, what more could a girl ask for? Well a couple of months ago, Maddox decided it needed a bath. Or maybe it was thirsty. Whatever it was, he dropped it in a glass of water. Allyson happened to be close enough to grab it and pull the battery off before any real damage could be done. Unfortunately it got wet enough to void my warrantee. So fast forward to last week. The charging port became loose or broken, and the phone will no longer charge. Great. Short term I activated my old razr, which is pink and cute, but no keyboard. This will just not do. I ended up finding an older Palm Treo on craigslist and activated it yesterday. I like the phone and the pda features, but am no longer able to use the internet because it is not compatible with the new plans. Bummer. The bigger issue though, is that it also isn't compatible with Verizons contact back up system, so I now have to input 90 contacts by hand.
In the midst of all of this phone chaos, my computer decided to develop problems as well. This is MY computer, not the family one, my brand new pink Dell laptop. I get Dell tech support on chat (I love the option of tech support chat rather than having to call them on the phone!) and it turns out I have a bad hard drive. How does that happen? They solved the problem by sending me a refurbished hard drive via Fed Ex. I just got done installing the new hard drive and am ready to start installing software and we will see where we are at.
I certainly hope I don't have a 3rd technology calamity on the way.....

Exhausting day

After my bout with insomnia last night, I got a late start today. You know how it goes, once you get behind, you just never catch up. Brad was home early from work, which further throws the schedule off.
He has been hobbling around on a sore knee for a month or so now. The orthopedist referred him for an MRI, which is why he was home early. We should have the results by next week.
Jayson and Dalton both had games tonight, so no scouts for us. Both of our teams were defeated, unfortunately. Jayson was sad that he didn't get to bat, he went in as a substitute late in the game.
While the guys were at the ball field, I was home with Landon, Maddox, Phoenix and Ari. The babies were in rare form with lots of crying and trouble making. This year is proving to be harder with the babies than last. Phoenix is into everything, and takes any opportunity to wander out of my sight. Ari is still young enough to need lots of hands on, which provides Phoenix those opportunities. Maddox goes back and forth between demanding extra attention and showing signs of jealousy, to being Phoenix's partner in crime. Poor Landon can get over looked amidst all of the chaos.

Bunch of sickies

We have had quite a month around here with illness and injuries. It started with Allyson at the end of April. She was having some "girl" issues and saw her primary care doctor. He wasn't able to get to the root of the problem and she ended up hospitalized on April 30 and May 1, and was out of work and school for a few more days after that. Thanksfully she is doing better now, just has some follow up appointments to deal with.
I managed to be a parent for 22 years without having a child hospitalized, and now have had two in about six months. We also have had more than our share of ER visits recently. The most recent one was on May 9. I had gone to PA to attend the CHAP homeschool convention and took Maddox with me since he is still nursing. He was such a trooper, rode well in the car, was content while we shopped and dined. Near the end of the day on Friday, he started getting fussy, very much unlike him. I skipped dinner that night to let him rest at the hotel, but he still was not acting right Saturday morning. After watching him for awhile, I realized he was not using his left arm at all. A trip to the local ER revealed that he has a partially dislocated elbow called "nursemaids elbow". Luckily it is an easy fix and he was back to his normal laid back self pretty quickly.
You would think that would be enough for one family for awhile, but not our family. The next day after church, Jayson complained he felt sick. He began a round of a stomach virus that went through him, Dalton, Maddox, and Ari. And to add insult to injury, Dalton started running a fever on Monday, along with a headache, that has endured off and on for the last week, and now Maddox and Phoenix seem to be coming down with it.
Please let this be the end of it. Maybe if the warm weather decides to come and stay for awhile.........

Day 8

Today was an odd Sunday, all the way around.
We missed church because Brad turned my alarm off for the second time in about 6 weeks. I guess next week I will set the alarm on my cell phone. To make up for it, he made me breakfast in bed and I hung out on the internet and knitted for awhile.
Later in the day he worked on trimming some of the trees in the front yard. I am so excited to see the yard shaping up for summer. Especially since it was warm and sunny today and I can see it coming.
Tonight we had to go get the boys some of the baseball equipment they were missing for practice to start tomorrow. We also had Phoenix and Ari since Patrick was at work, so that means 2 adults and 6 kids in Walmart. I was completely stressed out by the time we got home. Now I have another movie calling my name, 7 pounds, before I go to bed.

Day 7

I made it an entire week! Woo hoo :)

It was grey and rainy here today. I am really ready for some sun. I suppose I will take the rain for now though so things start growing when the sun comes out.

Brad went this morning to pick up our first Angel Food order. I was skeptical when I ordered it because we just don't buy alot of processed foods, but now that it is here, I feel better about it. The spaghetti sauce has hfcs in it, and the breaded meat I wouldn't have bought, but all in all it is not bad. We got the produce box and it was perfect, exactly the kind and quantity of things I would have bought in the store.

After he got home and I took care of the food, I headed to the bank with Patrick and Cameron. Patrick opened a new bank account and Cameron needed to add me as his beneficiary. I had some co-op checks to deposit so it was handy to get it all done at once. We then headed to the eye doctor to pick up my new glasses. Do you want to see? I used my webcam for the first time to take a picture.

This is a new style for me. I have previously bought thin wire frames, but I am so hard on them I decided to try something sturdier. So far I like them. I really only wear them for driving and for distance, like if I go to a movie.

We were double booked today with baseball practice and chess club. We have a rule that team sports always take priority over individual activities, so practice won, but then was cancelled due to rain. We ended up with a pretty low key day at home, which definitely was appreciated by Brad and I. I was able to take a short nap with Maddox and tonight Brad and I watched "Bucket List" while the boys played gamecube. We completely forgot about earth hour though, and plan to make it up tomorrow night since the kids were excited about it.

Day 6-TGIF

We all got a late start this morning, I don't do well on just a few hours of sleep. This afternoon we went to our friend Stephanies house for our art co-op, where we dyed easter eggs. The kids enjoyed it, even though we will be doing it again here at home in a couple of weeks.
We had some excitement before we left for art though. Landon decided that it sounded like a fun idea to "skydive" off of the top bunk. He apparently landed flat on the heel of at least one foot and really had alot of pain. He is still limping tonight but seems to be getting around pretty well, so I am hoping it is just a bruise. We took another detour from the menu and had chinese for dinner, after hearing Stephanie order chinese for her family. Power of suggestion you know. We really need to get the food spending back in check, I have new years resolutions to fulfill after all.
I had big intentions to post some pictures today, but have zero pictures on this computer. So instead I will share some of the older pictures I printed for my project yesterday.

First, family camping in 2006 and again in 2007.




















Our bi-annual vacation to Southern California, Sea World in 2006 and Disneyland in 2008.

Day 5

I am not even going to say it.

Let's just define it. If I haven't been to bed yet, then the day isn't over. Regardless of the time. I think that's fair.

Now that things have been clarified, on to my day. It was very long, but it was actually pretty fun and refreshing. I did alot of things that were of value to me today, instead of all kid and home stuff.
Our day started off our good friends Don and Karens house for our local babywearing meeting. Karen started our local group and also runs a babywearing business from her home. I am a long time babywearer but want to be able to wear Maddox on my back in a wrap and just can't seem to get the hang of it. Karen helped me work on that today and I got some feedback from others, so maybe with some practice I can make it work. Landon was happy to be able to play with Bella and Lina, Don and Karens girls.
After leaving there, we ran into Big Lots on a tip from my mom. I am on a search for the perfect kitchen table, and have very specific criteria. She thought she saw something that would work there, but I don't think it is close enough to what I want. I didn't love it enough to stop the search.
Next we headed home where I had enough time to grab something to eat and get some things ready for enrichment night. Part of that was printing some pictures so I had a fun time going through my computer files and looking at old pictures of the kids. It is so amazing how much they change in a couple of years. I am going to make time to upload a few in the next day or so.
After Brad got home, he and I headed to WM, him for a few things for dinner and me for last minute items for the meeting. We drove seperate cars so I was able to head straight to church when we were done, with Maddox in tow of course.
Enrichment night was nice. We had dinner, a cute skit about the history of relief society, and then mini classes. I made a really neat wooden block with the kids pictures decoupaged on it. I think the display that I helped set up about family traditions turned out very well also.
We left the church and headed to Camden for "coffee talk". I was surprised when I showed up and there were probably a dozen cars still there. When I walked in, they were well into a game called "I never". The goal is to state something you have never done that you think others in the room probably have. Those who have done the thing have to get up and change seats, giving you the opportunity to steal their seat, similar to musical chairs. It was a fun way to get to know about others (including their dark secrets) and a nice ice breaker. As happens when I go to things like that, I ended up staying way too late, but Maddox was as good as could be and I really enjoyed some time with other adults.

Day 4

Again after midnight! This is not a habit I can afford to start. I drag so much during the day as it is. Today was not my most efficient day ever. I had to make a trip to the store for essentials (milk, bread and produce, you know the drill) and then watched Phoenix and Ari while Patrick went to a doctors appointment with Jeanette. I did what I could of my ever growing list before heading to church tonight. Dalton was late for cubs because I was searching for the lost title to the Suburban we have for sale. Jayson's scouts got canceled by his leader. Brad attending with his team. I needed to set up a display for tomorrows enrichment night. Then home to put Maddox to bed and work at ChaCha for a little while.
I had fully intended to do a "tackle it Tuesday" project today even though it was Wednesday, but there just were not enough hours in my day. Maybe I will tackle something tomorrow.

Day 3

Does this still count for Tuesday since it is after midnight? Maybe I deserve bonus points for still posting since it IS after midnight :)
Tuesdays are so exhausting for me. Our homeschool co-op meets for three hours each Tuesday. I am teaching two gym classes this session, plus I am a board member. I started my day today with website maintenance, which I don't really have time for on Tuesdays, but that is the cost of procrastination. In addition to the normal craziness, Patrick worked today so I had Phoenix and Ari in addition to my four boys to get ready and out the door.
We deviated from the menu for dinner. Our local Chick-fil-a hosted a "spirit night" for our co-op. It was a fund raising opportunity where our group will receive a portion of the sales for the dinner hours. Brad and I met there after work and co-op and treated the boys to chicken strips and time in the play room. That was until another mother expressed displeasure with the way some of our groups children were playing. Brad and I took that as our cue to be on our way, because I did not agree with her judgements. I guess maybe that is why I teach gym though?
I brought the kids home while Brad headed off to a little league team meeting. It looks like Jayson and Dalton will be playing on the same minor league team this year. That is a first for us, they have never even played in the same division before. That will certainly make life a little less hectic this season.

Day 2-Menu Plan Monday

That is a new record for this particular blog. How sad is that?
It was a pretty uneventful day around here. Monday has become the big house cleaning day recently since the rest of the week gets so busy. Patrick got called into work early rather than closing, so I was on my own with all six kids. Jayson, Dalton and Landon spent some time in the back yard, we are all ready for some warmer weather. Brad finished raking the leaves in the front yard after work.
We have had "Bolt" here for a couple of days and it has been playing pretty much non stop. It is pretty cute, we may need to add it to our wish list to buy.


Monday~ Spaghetti with meat sauce, spaghetti squash, grilled asparagus
Tuesday~ 15 bean soup in the crockpot
Wednesday~ Chili
Thursday~ Mac n cheese, chicken nuggets (I will be eating at church, so dad friendly meal)
Friday~Vegetable soup to use up any leftover veggies
Saturday~leftovers
Sunday~Turkey breast roast

Day 1

It has already been established that my goal of more frequent blogging has not yet been achieved. I have been inspired by one of my plurk friends, Charlie, now though. She has blogged every day of this year so far, 80 days and counting. If she can do it, I can do it too, right?
This week has been normal craziness around here. Our homeschool co-op on Tuesday, a field trip, shopping, and church on Wednesday, Friday was Daltons 9th birthday so we celebrated at Chuck E. Cheese. Saturday was our district pinewood derby for cub scouts, followed by chess club, and then church today. I think I need a vacation.
The weather is starting to feel like spring may decide to show up after all this year. We have been working on getting the front yard cleaned up and ready to fertilize and plant. I am anxious to be able to get outside again.

Resolution failure

I guess the first one on my list hasn't gone very well, huh? I do have the best intentions, just tend to never make it all the way through my list.
I am doing fairly well on my other goals though. I have lost over 10 lbs since the year began. I am still not working out regularly, but it is a start. Our spending is more under control and we are both onboard to start tackling the debt. I am working diligently to get the house in order. Considering that we are almost 2 months into the year, I think I am doing pretty well. Now to work on the blogging!

New Years Resolutions

I didn't intend to wait until the end of January 2nd to post this, but I guess better late than never.
I do have resolutions this year, quite a list actually. By posting them, I guess I am imposing some degree of accountability on myself. So here goes.......I resolve:
1. to blog more regularly (don't you feel special?)
2. to kick the soda habit. I have already cut way down so I am on my way.
3. to get in shape, including a joint goal with Brad to run a 5k together in the spring.
4. to get my house in order, declutter, redecorate, get repairs done as we are able.
5. to have regular family nights and family meetings.
6. to make a huge improvement in our financial situation, more income, less debt, less frivolous spending.
I plan on expanding on these in future posts, so stay tuned and feel free to hold me accountable.