Boys are back!

On Friday I had a few brief spurts of energy, which were greatly appreciated after not having any energy for the previous seven days. Thankfully I had even more energy yesterday. I still have a little bit of a cough, but aside from my left ear, I mostly feel back to normal. My left ear is still painful, and my hearing in that ear is still pitiful. On Friday morning the contractors came back to install our front door. The first time they showed up to do that was in June, but due to some complications they couldn't install it that day. My PCP sent a prescription to CVS for ear drops for me on Friday morning, but I waited until the contractors were done to go to CVS. Since I was home alone most of the week and also lacked energy, it was a boring and lonely week for me. The first few days I kept myself occupied with reading books, watching a movie, doing Duolingo, and working on vacation plans, but as the week progressed, I struggled with loneliness and boredom. The last time I remember feeling either of those feelings was when I was hospitalized for many weeks in 2012. One of the significant things I learned while planning future vacations last week was that I needed to make a specific reservation for what time we wanted to drive on the road that takes you up Cadillac Mountain in Acadia National Park. I hadn't planned on being that specific with our itinerary that day. Hopefully my choice of 2:00pm will work out. Another was that they have a rodeo in Puyallup (near Seattle) in early September. I had tried to include a rodeo in our trip last fall, but in those states, I couldn't find any that took place after Labor Day. I thought the only chance we'd have to take the kids to a rodeo would be in Houston in March 2025. If we go to the rodeo in September 2023 in Washington and the kids don't want to go to another rodeo, then we can be more flexible about when we go to Texas/Louisianna in 2025. 

Saturday morning, I drove to Mountain View Bible Camp to pick up all three kids. In 2019 at Camp Good News (day camp), Ian was chosen to receive a cooperation award and Nadia was chosen to receive a leadership award. Yesterday at Camp Good News overnight camp, Ian was chosen to receive a sportsmanship award. Those are the three awards for character traits that they give out each year. Nadia was a junior counselor for a group of eleven-year-old girls. For the morning activity she and Macey led a group of girls who chose macrame as their activity. In the afternoons she helped with crafts on Monday and then helped with a group of girls who chose chess as their afternoon activity the rest of the week. They didn't have Wi-Fi, so she didn't actually use her phone at all at camp. The kids each received one letter from me in the mail, and Ian sent me a postcard from camp which arrived in our mailbox on Saturday afternoon after I picked them up. Oliver really wanted to pick riflery as his morning activity, but he missed the minimum age by 8 days, so he chose tie-dye because that is what his friend, Xandir, chose. He is proud of the things they made at camp. In the afternoons both boys chose outdoor games. The other afternoon choices were crafts or chess. In the morning Ian chose archery. He received an award for winning third place in his age group. Unfortunately, the boys came down with an illness the last couple of days at camp. We stayed home from church today and aside from an orthodontist appointment tomorrow morning for Oliver, we don't have any plans for the next several days so we can just stay at home sweet home. We haven't decided if we're going to give them COVID tests or not.

Nadia wants to be a junior counselor at Camp Good News again next year. She would be old enough to be a full-fledged counselor in 2024, but she'd rather be on staff at Camp Susque in 2024 because that's a paid position whereas the counselors at Camp Good News are volunteers. Ian wants to be a junior counselor at Camp Good News in 2024. Of the three camps where the kids have gone for overnight camp, Nadia ranks Camp Susque #1 and Camp Good News #2. Oliver ranks PMBC #1 and Camp Good News #2. Ian ranks Camp Good News #1 and PMBC #2. Next year I plan to send the boys to PMBC as campers, and Nadia to Camp Good News as a junior counselor and Camp Susque as a camper. The last year Nadia could be a camper at Camp Susque would be 2024, but she has decided that next year will be her last because she wants to be in their "staff in training" program for four weeks in 2024 which means she can be a counselor there for 5-8 weeks each summer starting in 2025. Nadia fell in love with Camp Susque in 2015. She only attended PMBC in 2020 because Camp Susque didn't have camp that summer. They do take pictures at Camp Good News and show them during the closing program, but they don't provide access to any of them so I don't have any pictures from last week. I'll receive pictures this week from Camp Susque, and I can send Nadia an email every day this week that they will print out and deliver to her. 

After we got home, I started a load of laundry so that Nadia could have clean clothes to pack. We had lunch and then the boys both fell asleep. They can go years without taking a nap. They are sick! Nadia is in the Apache tent this week. A friend whom she made at camp last year is in her tent again this year. I am thankful that my energy had returned because I drove for more than 2.5 hours yesterday. Nadia was home for a whopping 3.5 hours yesterday, but I appreciated getting a little bit caught up on what she had been up to at camp. I'm thankful that when I pick her this Saturday morning, she'll be home a lot longer than 3.5 hours! Hopefully she will have an awesome week this week! If she wasn't at camp this week, I'd have signed Nadia and Ian up for a choral workshop that's taking place next Saturday. I did sign them up for auditions on August 18 to be in the youth chorale. Nadia wants to move up to the Valley Singers (high school group), and Ian wants to move up to Camarata (middle school group that Nadia was in back before COVID). Oliver is old enough to be in the youngest choir, but he chose instead to be in a Ninjastics class on Monday nights.

Not moving to green

Our county was in the first group of 24 that moved from the red to yellow phase on May 8. Last Friday I was hoping and praying that our county would be moved to the green phase, but our county and two contiguous counties were not included in the list of 18 counties that would move to the green phase on May 29. I am one who would rather have low expectations because I don't like getting my hopes up only to have them dashed. For example, a few weeks ago Paul finished installing the subfloor in our bathroom. A section of that subfloor had been missing for four years. Although it seemed to me that he must be getting closer to the end of the project, I told myself NOT to get my hopes up and reminded myself it still could be more than a year until I can use that shower again. I'd much rather be pleasantly surprised that disappointed. I should have told myself that last week about moving to the green phase. One county that is just a couple of miles from our home IS going green on June 5, but not our county or the other county we are very close to. Many of the 16 counties going green on June 5 are ones that moved into the yellow phase on May 15. I'm not sure why we were chosen to be one of the first 24 that moved to yellow on May 8 but not one of the first 34 counties moving to green. Union county (which is where our usual library is located) has only had 57 cases of COVID-19 and 1 death over the past 2 1/2 months. Why on earth haven't they been given permission to go to the green phase? Lycoming County is the one close to us that is going to the green phase on June 5, and they've had about the same number of cases as our county (162 vs. 186), and our county has had far fewer deaths than theirs (16 vs. 3). Our populations are pretty similar (113,664 vs. 91,767). The movie theatre, bowling alley, and roller skating rink we usually go to in the summer are all in the county that is going green on June 5, but I doubt we'll be visiting those venues until July at the earliest. I was hoping to visit Reptiland in the near future, but they are in the county that has only had 57 cases but hasn't been given the green light yet. It's disappointing for us, but I can only imagine how devastating it is for the local businesses such as hair salons that aren't allowed to open in the yellow phase. My heart goes out to all those small businesses!!! After being disappointed two Fridays in a row, I am trying not to expect we will be moved to the green phase on June 12.

During Thursday's press conference, the Governor was asked about the phase after the green phase because green definitely isn't normal. He said there isn't another phase. This is the new normal. What?!? There are so many businesses that would be permanently closed if the regulations in the green phase are maintained for years to come. In the green phase we can be in groups up to 250 provided that is at the most 50% of the capacity of the particular venue. It's 50% capacity or 250 people, whichever is smaller with people staying 6 feet apart, wearing masks, etc. That would seem to mean no amusement parks, no attending professional sporting events, no festivals, no parades, very few concerts, no Sight and Sound productions, etc. It would be one thing if he said not until 2021, but he made it sound permanent. He is allowing kids to use a playground while they are at a child care center, but public playgrounds are not allowed even in the green phase. If there truly isn't another phase after the green phase, then kids would never be on a playground again if they don't go to a child care center. This is insane in my opinion. He actually does have a list of changes he wants to implement after the green phase, but none of them have to do with easing any restrictions. They are all focused on other things such as raising the minimum wage and unemployment compensation. What that has to do with COVID-19 is beyond me. 

The good news is that my kids have been having a lot of fun playing with the kids in our neighborhood. Nadia has a friend over for another sleepover tonight, and she will be returning to an in-person youth group on June 7. That youth pastor is splitting the group in half to follow the 25 person limit guideline we are under in the yellow phase. She's very happy about this. Also, we will begin attending the church where she's attending youth group (not the one where I'm a member) on June 14 even though the county might still be in the yellow phase at that time and there will definitely be more than 25 people at the service. Does that constitute civil disobedience? After three months of church at home, I'm really looking forward to a service that doesn't involve watching a TV screen. Speaking of screens, Ian downloaded a free version of Fortnite onto his Switch yesterday, and this evening he played the game with a neighbor. Camden was in his house, and Ian was in our house, but they were playing the game together and able to talk to each other through a microphone. He thought that was awesome! 

Thankful Tuesday

1. A few weeks ago the kids received Junior Ranger patches through the mail for the first time. The first one they completed online was for the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail. Last week they completed the activities to earn their badges for Clara Barton and Frederick Douglas. Hopefully in the near future we'll receive those badges in the mail. Their collections are growing! Hopefully they'll complete several in person in Virginia next month as we plan to visit a few Civil War battlefields.

2. I have price points for most of the things I buy at a grocery store. If it's something that's harder to get at a certain price, then I try to stock up on it so that hopefully I won't need to buy it again until it's at that price again sometime in the future. Even though I can't stand soda, I have been buying quite a bit of soda for the past 18+ years since Paul drinks a lot of soda every week. My price point for all these years for soda has been $1. Rarely have I been willing to pay more than $1 for a 2 liter of soda. Most of the years it wasn't

challenging to find Pepsi or Coke for that price. CVS usually alternated from week to week which was on sale - Pepsi one week and Coke the next. Lately (maybe the last couple of years?) it's been more challenging to find soda for that price. It certainly isn't a weekly occurrence these days. To be honest I wish Paul would give up the soda habit - however I don't see that happening. He likes both Pepsi and Coke, but given the choice, he prefers Coke. In general it's easier to find Pepsi on sale than Coke. Our local grocery store had Coke on sale for 99 cents last week without any restrictions on how much you buy. Many stores place a limit on the quantity. He has been to the grocery store twice since it went on sale, and I also bought a bunch on Saturday. We bought more than thirty 2 liters

of Coke so that should last him several weeks. I'm grateful to have a break from looking for a soda bargain, and I use the Coke caps to earn other things like popcorn, drinks, and free movie tickets. We don't get anything from Pepsi.

3. The kids enjoyed their field trip to Refreshing Mountain on October 3. Their favorite parts were the elevated obstacle course, ziplining, and the farm animals. As an added bonus, Tab drove (yahoo) and we spent the day with Tab and her boys.

4. Paul took Nadia roller skating on October 3.

5. We enjoyed our tour of a bank on October 10, and Nadia and I enjoyed the Building 429 concert on October 11.

6. Paul's mom is OFF the ventilator. She can eat! She can talk! She can sit in a chair after being in a bed for almost two weeks!

7. We got to spend a couple of hours with all ten Towfighis on Friday, and we're enjoying the company of four of their kids for an entire week. My kids LOVE to spend time with their cousins!

8. I took seven kids to Ard's Farm on Saturday to enjoy the large slide, shooting corn, a corn maze, hayride, etc. They also enjoyed getting a slushie or ice cream at the Purple Cow.

9. I planted some grass seed a couple of weeks ago, and this time I bought a bale of straw so I'd have some to put on top. I didn't succeed completely, but I got a lot more grass this time than earlier this summer. I have been trying to get grass to grow in the place that used to be covered by a deck but isn't any longer because our new deck is smaller than the old deck. I definitely am not ready to be a landscaper, but I'm happy that more grass is growing near the deck. Part of what had me

motivated is the kids were tracking a lot of dirt on the deck when there wasn't any grass at the bottom of the deck. Yesterday I also started a project I've wanted to do for several months of putting some stones in behind the bush on the one side of the deck so I'll have less weed whacking to do.

10. Paul has made a lot of progress with the bathroom repair. Whenever we're allowed to use the shower again I am going to be SO appreciative. I haven't had a shower in more than 2 weeks, and I really miss it!  I'm not a big fan of using the jacuzzi tub to shampoo my hair, but I'm thankful we have had that option or we'd really be up a creek without a paddle! We've also been waiting for him to repair that toilet. The timing hasn't exactly been ideal to go from 3 to 2 toilets when we added more people to the house and to have zero showers when they are 9 people living here for a week, but the end is in sight. Paul never expected it to be such a huge project! He took off work Thursday through Saturday and put in a lot of hours on it Thursday thought Sunday. It

makes me wonder how long it's going to take to finish the master bathroom, but for now I'm just focusing on the fact that soon we should be at least be able to use the bath/shower in the kids' bathroom!

11. I'm thankful the weather has been nice. The kids have played outside a lot including at a playground in Lewisburg last night while Ian, Nadia, and Oliver were in choir/gymnastics. Speaking of which, last night was Oliver's last night of gymnastics for the year, which means I won't be running around quite as much the next four Mondays (last four nights of choir for Nadia and Ian). He's made definite progress on the beam, with his cartwheel, with his backward tuck roll, etc.

Day in the Life

 

This school year is significantly different from the last two years since I am homeschooling the kids five days a week (instead of on average three days a week) and I am unemployed. Naturally our schedules vary from day to day. We don't have any regular commitments on Tuesdays, Fridays, or Saturdays. We have church on Sunday morning, AWANA and choir rehearsal on Wednesday night, and a Bible study on Thursday night. On Thursday afternoons Nadia and Ian have art, and Nadia also has chorus at Meadowbrook. For eight more weeks Nadia and Ian will have chorale rehearsals on Monday nights. Field trips alter our schedule. Yesterday, for example, we went to the homeschool day at the Hershey Gardens and also did the ride at Chocolate World. If I had known about this field trip when I was doing lesson planning this summer, I wouldn't have scheduled any other school work for September 17, but since I had done so much advance planning, I rearranged things so that they each only had two things to accomplish when they came home. All three did some math, Nadia and Ian also wrote a paragraph about caring for

the ill during the colonial time period, and Oliver did a little bit of spelling. Nadia and Ian read some in the van. Nadia finished the third Harry Potter book. A field trip turned a day that is typically a "stay at home all day" kind of day into a "we were gone for eight hours straight" day. Since I was contemplating how full my schedule is even though I am not longer earning an income, I thought I'd write about our day on Monday this week.

1. I usually get up sometime between 6-7am, but I got up a little later than usual because we had been up so late on Saturday night. Sleeping in is something I don't take for granted as last fall I was getting up before 6 AM due to teaching an 8 AM class. I got a shower while Oliver looked at photobooks in our bedroom. After I got dressed, I called Nadia downstairs as the boys were already up. We ate breakfast while listening to The Hobbit. I typically have oatmeal and a banana, Nadia and Ian have cold cereal with milk, and Oliver either eats a bagel with cream cheese or a bowl of dry cereal with a glass of milk.

2. For the next approximately three hours we did schoolwork. We do science, Bible, Life of Fred, and history together. Some subjects the kids can do independently such as grammar (Nadia and Ian), reading (Nadia and Ian), math (Nada) and handwriting (Ian and Oliver). one-on-one with the kids for other subjects such as spelling (all three), reading (Oliver), math (Oliver and Ian), piano (all three), photography (Nadia), and sign language (all three). Oliver plays some when I am busy with working with someone else. All three kids recited the verses they are learning for AWANA to me.

3. Sometime between 11-12 we listened to more of The Hobbit while eating lunch. After lunch we returned to our schoolwork. Nadia usually finishes by 1pm. On this particular day Oliver finished before Ian. By 3pm the kids had all finished their schoolwork and their chores. Because we had been away on Saturday and Sunday, we had more chores than usual to do on Monday. I had the boys clean up the Lego room so I could vacuum that carpet. Oliver and Ian did some dusting. Nadia cleaned the bathroom sinks and

counters and mopped the kitchen floor. Throughout the day I did a variety of chores including: cleaning the microwave, wiping down the kitchen table and the kitchen counter, vacuumed the dining room, swept the kitchen floor, and mopped the foyer and three bathroom floors. I also called Penn Medicine because they have continued to sent me a bill for $130 even though I mailed them a copy of the death certificate. The man I spoke with said it was an error on their part as yes they did have record of having received his death certificate. Nadia helped me make a batch of sugar cookies.

4. Around 3pm the kids started watching part of Mulan 2, a DVD they had checked out from the library. While they were watching that movie, I made beef stroganoff, vacuumed out the van, took out the garbage and recycling, tidied up the garage, and swept the garage floor. Around 3:50 we started eating dinner. We have to eat early on Monday because we need to leave around 4:30 for gymnastics and chorale rehearsals. Oliver and Nadia had no trouble finishing their dinner

in a timely manner, but Ian had to finish his dinner when we got home around 7:45pm. The kids said they would have liked the beef stroganoff if I hadn't included any mushrooms. This day was far from typical in terms of the fact Paul ate all three meals with us. That was a treat! Paul enjoyed the beef stroganoff.

5. We dropped Ian off at the church where chorale rehearsals are held starting at 5:00 pm, and the rest of us then went to the library for a bit before taking Oliver to his 5:30 gymnastics class. After dropping him off, Nadia and I did some shopping at CVS before taking her to the church at 5:55 pm so that she could try on dresses to find the one she would be renting for the concerts. While Ian and Nadia were being fitted, I worked on a grocery shopping list while looking at the meal planner app on my phone. Ian and I picked Oliver up at 6:30 and then went to a grocery store. After we finished our grocery shopping, the boys and I picked Nadia up and then we all drove home. When we got home the kids watched a little more of the Mulan 2 movie while I did the dishes and folded some laundry. Finally at 8:05 pm I was able to sit down and open my laptop computer for the first time that day. I was seated on the couch for about 10 minutes before it was time to have family devotions and tuck Oliver into bed. We began reading Core 52 in our devotion time that day, which is a book our church is working through together over the next year. We also reviewed our memory verses that we are learning for church.

6. After Oliver went to bed I had time to work on a blog post, edit pictures, get caught up on email, etc. Ian went to bed at 9:00, Nadia went to bed at 9:30, and I went to bed around 10:00. I went to bed tired, and I hadn't actually accomplished everything on my to do list for the day (hadn't cleaned the toilets, mirrors, or bathtub as I hoped). I went to bed thankful that I am a stay-at-home mom right now because my "plate" feels full, but I no longer feel like I'm drowning as I did the past two years. After this school year is complete, Oliver will only have ten years left before he graduates from high school. Ten years is NOT a long time. I know it's going to fly by, and I want to savor each moment as much as I possibly can. Thank you, Lord, for the privilege of homeschooling our three precious children.

Tha

Thankful Tuesday

1. Nadia changed her mind several times over the past year regarding whether she was going to attend the middle school youth group at our church on Wednesday nights or attend AWANA at the Alliance Church for one last year. This would be her 9th year in AWANA. This summer she had been leaning toward attending the youth group, and then at the beginning of this month she came up with the idea of alternating, which I thought was an excellent compromise. She said she'd memorize verses every week so that she could still finish the book even though she wouldn't be attending every week. She attended AWANA the past two weeks and has at least for the moment decided to keep going to AWANA and hold off on beginning to attend the middle school group on Wednesday nights. I was content with leaving the decision up to her because they are both good choices, but Paul and I were both hoping she'd pick AWANA. We are thankful she is staying in AWANA while in sixth grade!

2. Oliver was well enough to make-up his gymnastics class on Wednesday, and none of the rest of us caught the GI bug he had last Monday. PTL!

3. Nadia enjoyed attending chorus for the first time at Meadowbrook on Thursday. Although she's loved being in Mrs. Pizzuto's art class the last two years, she wasn't as enthusiastic about art on Thursday because it turns out there are kids from 6-12th grade in the class. She was hoping some of her friends would be in that class, but they are in an art class on Friday. Hopefully she and Ian will have a good year in that art class even if many of the students in the class are in high school.

4. I got my haircut on Friday! Nadia wishes I would let my hair grow longer, but I like it shorter.

5. When I picked up a grocery order at Walmart last Monday, they gave me a coupon for 10% off an online order (not groceries). I decided to order toilet paper and guinea pig food, which are two things I often buy at Walmart. We had a LOT of toilet paper delivered to our

house on Friday. The order was for about $199 and then they took 10% off. I clicked through Rakuten, and they gave me a refund of $3.50 on that order for having done so, and I used my Discover card via Paypal because Discover is giving a 10% rebate, which means in the end I'll pay $158 for my order. I've never kept track of how much toilet paper we go through in a month so I don't know how many months it will be until I need to buy more, but I think it's going to last quite awhile as I bought 144 Mega rolls (which would equal 576 "regular" rolls - although honestly does anyone sell "regular" rolls of toilet paper any more???). Anyhow I am thankful there are ways of stacking discounts.

6. Paul took the day off on Saturday, and we left our house around 11:00am to drive to a Christian music festival in Shippensburg. The weather forecast was NOT good for the early evening (90-100% chance of rain), but thankfully the weather forecast was incorrect! We brought ponchos, umbrellas, and jackets, and we didn't use any of them. PTL! The kids enjoyed the kids' tent. Oliver particularly loved the inflatables and the donut eating contest in which he and others were eating donuts covered in Hershey syrup and marshmallows without using their hands. Nadia loved the petting zoo. She spent quite a bit of time holding goats, rabbits, and chickens. She would love it if we got a rabbit, cat, or dog for our next pet. The kids had balloons that were made to look like a

sword, bunny, etc. Nadia had a panda painted on one of her cheeks. They all ended up with a lot of candy that they picked up during a candy scramble. They enjoyed watching a show that featured juggling, spinning plates, riding a unicycle, etc. There were several stages, but we had our chairs at the main stage. We heard one speaker and listened to a few concerts - Jordan Feliz, Mac Powell, For King and Country, Crowder, and a rapper. Paul, Nadia, and I would have loved to have skipped the rapper, but he was the second to last concert, and we were trying to stay for the last one (For King and Country). The last concert was supposed to start at 9:45, but it didn't actually start until 10:20. Ian, Oliver, and I were really tired so we only stayed for the first three songs of the last concert. We also were trying to get our car out of the parking lot before we were in a line of hundreds of cars trying to do the same thing. Nadia and I helped collect an offering and also helped pass out brochures for Compassion. Because of our service, the two of us got in free. Originally the reason I had said we'd go to Uprise was so Oliver could see Skillet, but Skillet was on Friday night. I don't know that we'll ever come back, but I'm glad we went once. It was actually my first time at a music festival. Nadia was at Creation in June so it was her second one. We stopped for lunch at a Dunkin

Donuts using a gift card Oliver received for his birthday, and we had dinner at the fairgrounds. In hind sight, I should have brought some food and drinks to the festival. Oops! Thankfully though of our two trips the last two weeks, we only paid money for one meal - the one at the festival. We used gift cards for all the others.

7. We checked into the Sleep Inn in Hagerstown MUCH later than usual - 11:30pm! We brushed our teeth and got into bed. The room was much nicer than the one we stayed in last week in New York, and in addition to two queen beds there was a sofa bed, which meant Nadia didn't sleep on the floor. The kids woke up around 7:30. We swam for about an hour (indoor pool and jacuzzi) before enjoying the free hot breakfast buffet. We left the hotel around 9:30. The hotel was about 12 minutes from the battlefield. We spent more than five hours there. The Junior Ranger badge booklets were more challenging than Saratoga, but all three kids earned them. During our time there we attended a 45 minute program about music during the Civil War, went on a one hour hike with a park ranger to the

Sunken Road part of the battlefield, watched the movie, and the kids made little wooden people. Nadia made three women, and the boys each made two soldiers. It was a warm, sunny day. We packed a lunch, and stopped at DD again on the way home. Paul waited until we got home to have dinner as he had eggs for breakfast and didn't want to have it twice in one day. Nadia was a few minutes late for the Middle (the Bible study she attends at the Methodist church on Sunday nights).

8. Oliver was disappointed last Wednesday that he didn't climb the rock wall in gymnastics, but he was very happy that he got to do that last night.

9. Today we're driving to Hershey Gardens for a homeschool day event. Paul took the kids there two years ago. I've never been. Two years ago the program focused on insects, which is what we were studying that semester in science. They offer the program twice a year. We are studying botany in the spring and so I wanted to go there once this school year. Knowing that the program in the spring could have focused on animals, I decided to go this fall

because the focus will be on trees today (and a little bit about owls). Since we just drove awhile on Saturday and Sunday the thought of driving again today isn't at all appealing, but the reason I am following through is because my friend is joining us. I am looking forward to spending several hours with her today! The kids are most excited about the tour of Chocolate World (free ride that includes a free piece of chocolate).

10. Yesterday we finished The Hobbit. The kids aren't as crazy about A Savage Thunder (which is a non-fiction account of the battle of Antietam), but I hope to finish that book today. Even Oliver enjoyed The Hobbit! Nadia hopes to finish the third Harry Potter book today. The fourth one is over 700 pages long; that one will take her a bit longer to finish!

11. Paul and I enjoyed watching a new movie about the apostle Paul that we got on DVD from our library. I would recommend it!

12. Yesterday morning Paul got up, put on his work

clothes, and made his lunch. I was very surprised when I came down about an hour later to find him in the family room. The internet connection at the plant is not good so he had decided to work from home. Now that Wendy has taken Maurice's desktop computer, Paul set up his laptop on the desk in our bedroom. He stayed up in the bedroom and worked yesterday, but this meant he came down and ate all three meals with us. What a treat! Usually the kids and I don't see him until about 7:45pm on Mondays. We didn't see Paul much in July or August, which makes me appreciate that we've seen him a lot more thus far in September.

13. My plate still feels very full, but I no longer feel like I'm drowning. Yesterday the first time in the day I had to sit down and open up my laptop (meaning my first moment of leisure that didn't involve homeschooling or housework), was 8:05pm. I thought how did I possibly juggle a FT job in addition to all of this?!?! Although it wasn't our choice, I'm very grateful to no longer be drowning. I'm cooking a much wider variety of meals. One

thing that particularly puts a smile on my face is the kitchen counter is being kept MUCH less cluttered. This had been a goal of mine for years, and it's finally being achieved for the first time. Yahoo!

Home Alone

A few months ago the kids watched a couple of the Home Alone movies. I had forgotten that Trump was in one of the movies, but they spotted him and asked "isn't that President Trump?" Tonight I am home alone. Paul called me as I was making dinner to say that he was going to come home around 7:30pm and then leave shortly after that to take the kids to his parents' house. Earlier he had said that he would be taking the kids to his parents when he went to work on Tuesday and Thursday this week. Normally Paul stays home from work those two days to homeschool the kids while I'm at work. His brother and sister-in-law are on vacation this week, and this is a busy time of year for the plant. When the weather warms up people are more likely to shop at a lawn and garden store. He didn't think he could stay away from the plant while his brother was away. I readjusted the lesson plans somewhat, and I also had the kids do twice as much work in some subjects today to try and make up for the fact they won't be doing any schoolwork tomorrow. Instead of my kids being outside playing while the neighbors are in school, today it was the opposite. The kids in the neighborhood didn't have school today (due to Easter break), and my kids were inside doing schoolwork. I did make sure they had some time to play outside before we had to leave for their gymnastics classes. This means Paul just has three more days of helping with homeschooling the kids for this school year (April 30, May 2, and May 6). Whether he continues to help some next school year will depend on whether I continue teaching at BU or not. My interview has been scheduled for this Wednesday morning. Math, science, and history are the three subjects he enjoys teaching the most although zoology is not his favorite aspect of science. One of our topics recently has been the Erie Canal. It's so much easier to talk about canals and locks considering they actually experienced them last August when we boarded an Erie canal cruise in Lockport, NY. We've also been talking about the Mexican American War, but a field trip to the Alamo is out of the question at the moment. I'm thankful though that it's possible to drive to many different historical sites given where we live.

Today was the last gymnastics class for this session. It might be the last one ever for our kids. Nadia has been in Bolts (level 2) for many years. Ian only joined that level this past fall. For awhile now she has really wanted to be promoted to Surge (level 3), but she hasn't mastered all the skills that are required for that promotion. It's been hard for her to watch children as young as six years old be promoted when she is told she still has to stay in Bolts at the age of almost eleven years old. I feel badly that she wasn't able to achieve her goal of making it to level 3. One upside is the gymnastic classes are not cheap so we will definitely save money by eliminating that expense from the budget. The other upside is it gives us another day that we can just stay home each week. We haven't done gymnastics year round. We always take a break in the summer (sometimes we've done it until the end of June but that's the longest we've gone), and we haven't done it while they've been doing a team sport (whether that was soccer, basketball, softball, or flag football). If we bring an end to gymnastics and tennis lessons, that means the athletic things the kids will be involved in will be as follows: homeschool gym class (90 minutes on Fridays), Upward basketball (one game a week for eight weeks plus a few more weeks than that of one night a week practices), and ice skating lessons. I wasn't as impressed with the swimming lessons this year at Bucknell so I'm not certain if I'd splurge on that again next year or not.

It's going to be strange to wake up tomorrow without anyone else in the house. Usually Oliver is the first one up, and he usually snuggles with me before we go downstairs. This morning Ian was the first one up (about 6:45), and we snuggled for awhile. Oliver and Nadia didn't actually get up until 8:30 this morning, which meant we started schoolwork later than usual, which wasn't the ideal scenario since we were trying to do more work than usual today, but I hate to wake the kids up so I usually let them sleep whenever possible. Typically we start breakfast by 7:30. I will miss the hugs and snuggles tomorrow morning. I'll be observing a student teacher at 9:00 and then heading to the university. I'll get home around 8:15pm. I will have a little time to shop at Lowe's on my way to the university tomorrow as my office hours don't start until 12:00. I have some coupons that expire the end of this month so I'm planning to buy a few things like new window well covers and Drylok (for the basement walls). Paul suggested getting a new grill. Ours was broken last week when a tornado went through the area. Our grill was flipped upside down. We don't use the grill very often, and frankly the thing terrifies me after the fire I experienced on the deck when using it once a few years ago. He also suggested I could get a storm door as I've wanted one of those for several years, but until he finishes the master bathroom floor (which has been on the to do list for almost exactly 3 years), I don't want to buy something else that will be added to his to do list.

The good news is that I only have FIVE more days of being separated from the kids due to being at work  - two days this week, two days next week, and one the week after that. The end is in sight. Usually if I see a student teacher and have a little gap I come home to help with homeschooling and eat an early lunch before leaving the house at 11:15, but since the kids won't be at home I decided to see if my friend, Cheri, could meet me at Lowe's tomorrow. I haven't seen her in many months. It will be great to see her, plus she worked at Lowe's for several years so that is right up her alley.

Thankful Thursday

I haven't posted a gratitude list since March 2. These past six weeks certainly haven't been easy ones, but there still have been many things to be thankful for. I'm sure this list could be much longer, but here are a few things that come to my mind.

1. It's SPRING! Winter is by far my least favorite season of the year. Recently the grass has turned green (I think I'll be mowing for the first time this year sometime in the next couple of days). Some flowers are in bloom. There are beautiful blossoms on some trees. Although we still have had some colder days, there have been some really gorgeous days when the temps have been in the 70's (like last Saturday).

2. I have four days left of teaching on campus plus another day of visiting student teachers plus two days of giving final exams online. May 8 is just around the corner. I am SOOOO looking forward to the summer break.

3. It's almost Easter! I am eternally grateful that Jesus took the penalty for my sins on the cross and then rose from the dead. He's alive! The passion play we attended almost two weeks ago was excellent as was the "Good Friday" stations program we attended at a local church last Saturday. I'll be singing a beautiful arrangement of Amazing Grace with my church's choir for our three Easter services (once on Saturday night and twice on Sunday morning).

4. We are debt free for the first time in 18 years as the retirement loan used to pay off the mortgage was paid off last month.

5. I've received many sympathy cards in the mail. I also received one flower arrangement (that one was anonymous so I have no idea whom to thank). I know many have been praying for me, which I also greatly appreciate.

6. The kids and I enjoyed a homeschool program put on by Penn State at Bald Eagle State Park, a program about bats for homeschoolers at Ricketts Glen State Park, and another Saturday Science program at Susquehanna University. Tab and her boys joined us at Bald Eagle State Park. Field trips are even more fun with friends!

7. Paul and the kids had a great day at Quiet Valley Living Historical Farm last week. He also took them to their second pottery class at Camp Susque on April 4. They missed the second class due to my brother's funeral. We'll pick up their pottery in June when Oliver is at camp. Nadia enjoyed skate night on April 4.

8. Oliver learned how to ride his bike without training wheels!

9. All three kids finished their AWANA books last night, and Paul helped them complete their cars for the Grand Prix that should take place next Wednesday.

10. The kids and I enjoyed an Easter dinner at Pastor Ken's house last Sunday evening. Oliver in particular was thrilled that someone brought sweet potatoes! They were kind enough to send some leftover sweet potatoes home with us when they saw how much he enjoyed them.

11. I am a few ounces away from having lost 20 pounds in the past 11.5 weeks. Someone noticed the weight loss for the first time last night. She (another alto in choir) assumed it was just from grieving the loss of my brother.

12. The kids made progress during their swimming lessons. This past Monday was their last lesson for 2019. This coming Monday will be their last gymnastics class, at least for four months. I haven't decided yet if they'll do gymnastics in the fall. It will probably partially depend on whether I am employed or not as those classes aren't cheap.

13. My interview has been rescheduled for April 24. I'm thankful it was postponed. At the moment we're desiring that I teach two math classes each semester (50% of FT) next year.

14. Grace came over to sleepover at our house on March 29, and Nadia attended a sleepover at her house on April 5. Ian is scheduled to attend a sleepover in the near future.

Splish Splash

Last Monday the kids had their first gymnastics class of 2019. Nadia and Ian's class is from 4:00-5:30, and Oliver's is from 4:30-5:30. In the fall Paul had been taking them to gymnastics on Tuesday nights, but I switched to Monday nights once basketball was over because their swimming lessons are at Bucknell University, which is less than 5 minutes from where they take gymnastics. Their swimming lessons are from 6:00-6:25. The members of the university's swimming team teach the individual lessons. Last year all three of the kids had male teachers. Nadia was thrilled that she was assigned a female teacher this year. Nadia and Ian have their lessons in the swimming lanes where it is 8 feet deep. Oliver was very proud of the fact he swam "backwards" (his words). He's the one I am hoping makes the most progress. The kids swim at Camp Susque, horseback riding camp, on vacation (Myrtle Beach this year), and at Aunt Janet's (indoor pool, outdoor pool, and beach). Nadia's instructor also worked with her on diving. I'll be taking the kids to gymnastics and swimming lessons every week of the session except for one. Paul will be taking them on April 8 as my math students are putting on a family math night at a public school that night.