It has been a fantastic couple of weeks. We made a very long trip out and back to see the cousins (and Grandma, and aunts and uncles) and had a wonderful time. We got some pictures of all 16 grandchildren (that took some doing), but that number will be changing again come September (Yeah!) so we will probably have to do it again. =)
We arrived home late and went right to bed. I spent most of the next day on the lawnmower. Any hope I had of convincing the neighbors of my skills went out the window once I realized how tall the grass was and how neat it would be to mow a couple of wavy, intersecting paths all through the middle of it. The kids thought it was great fun and if anyone asks I will probably blame it on them. =)
Our cat had kittens while we were gone, so we made a special trip to Nana’s (where the cat is hiding–smart cat) to check out the new babies. And of course, there was a load or two of laundry to do despite the fact that we did some at Grandma’s right before we left. We re-packed for our next trip and again headed for bed.
The next morning, early, I headed off to a homeschool convention and the kids went to a cousin’s house for a sleep over party. The convention was great. I learned some things and got excited all over again with the numerous possibilities. I have enjoyed using the science curriculumn that a local church gave us for a Christmas present last year and I’m thinking that I might like to try some more of that type of thing this coming year. The convention also reminded me of why I was homeschooling and also challenged some of my reasons and attitudes about it. I’ve gotten stuck on the “measurable” part of it all . . . Anyway, I’m looking forward to getting some time to work through some of that for next year.
I got home from the convention just in time to practice a bit with my mom and pick up my girls for a Mother/Daughter banquet at our church. It was also the first time I had seen my sister since I heard that she had miscarried another baby. She is doing o.k. and I marvel at her acceptance.
My cousin had volunteered to keep the kids one more night, so I dropped the girl’s off at her place after the banquet and picked up the babies (Payden-2, and Caleb-1). Caleb had a fever and was up a couple of times during the night. Then we were up early so that I could pick up the kids and everyone could get to church on time. Nana’s for lunch and then EVERYONE laid down for naps and quiet time. Mom conked.
I’m still trying to recover. Monday we spent four hours (since I took all the kids-luckily my Mom volunteered to go along) grocery shopping to restock the fridge. Today I told the kids we weren’t going ANYWHERE.
Tomorrow is my anniversary. I have some plans to go to the place where I went last year, but if it’s still raining I might have to change those plans. Eventually I need to finish unpacking and catch up on some sleep. . . maybe next week.
