Seven kids for seven days

My sister and her husband are flying to Texas this weekend where they will be for a week. They are taking their youngest two boys with them (ages 2 and 5). Their two teenagers will be staying in Maryland, and the four in the middle will be staying with us. Nathan will be turning 11 next month, but at the moment the four who are staying are 6, 8, 10, and 12 years old and my three are currently 7, 9, and 11 years old, which means that I'll have one child who is 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, and 12 years old - two girls and five boys. I rearranged the lesson plans in such a way that my kids will have fewer subjects than usual M-Th and won't do any schoolwork next Friday as we'll be driving at least 6 hours round trip that day to take the cousins back to MD. Yesterday we had a 75 minute tour of a bank (see photo above of our tour group). I purposefully didn't sign up for any field trips next week as I figured the cousins would just want to play together. On Wednesday we cleared the dining room table of all the Legos. Ian took his to the basement. Nadia put hers on the bookshelves, which means I need to avert my eyes from the bookshelves for the next week as the clutter literally makes me want to scream. The upside is that I was able to change the tablecloth to a pretty one with fall leaves on it. I don't often get access to the tablecloth. All ten of them will be here for dinner tonight. Our kitchen table has six chairs. I'm planning on putting the piano bench at the dining room table for two kids to sit on, and that will mean eight people total can sit at the dining room table, which means I'll have enough seating for fourteen people, which will be enough as Paul doesn't plan to be here for dinner. We blew up an air mattress in Nadia's room for Julianna and one in Oliver's room for Joel. Yvonne and Joe are bringing up two air mattresses we can use in Ian's room for Nathan and Joshua for the next week.

The kids' shower/tub isn't usable yet, but Paul has been working hard on it the past two days. I'm sure he didn't envision this project taking two weeks when he started it.

They took Paul's mom off the ventilator on Tuesday morning, but they had to put her back on it that night. I went to visit her on Wednesday afternoon. The kids spent about two hours playing with Micah and Isaiah at their house while I was at the hospital. She had a heart catheterization right after I left on Wednesday, which confirmed that her heart problems are due to weakness (damage) not a blockage. There isn't anything they can do surgically to improve the function of her heart. They did put her on water pills to lower the pressure inside her heart which was twice as high as it should be. We're hoping she'll go off the ventilator tomorrow and stay off of it this time. Once she is discharged (hopefully in a few days), she's going to need to be very careful and take it easy for the rest of her life. The doctors have to figure out whether or not she can continue to have the monthly IVIG infusions (for her immune system) and/or her quarterly chemo infusions (for her cancer). They don't want to do something that might put any strain on her heart, but the chemo has been helping to keep the cancer in check. Which is the greater "risk" at this point - cancer or her heart? Realizing that she might not be able to travel any more, I am very grateful for all the vacations that we had together. In 2015 I had no idea the vacation in Williamsburg would be the last one with my mom, and I didn't realize the one this year in Myrtle Beach would (likely) be the last one my mother-in-law could take with us. Situations like this definitely make it easy to live out the verse "pray without ceasing." I'm sure it's harder (emotionally) on people like Paul, his brother, Debbie (his mom's sister), his dad, etc., but I've loved her for 22 years and so I've also shed some tears over the last 10 days. I remember in the fall of 2014 she had a very close call, and she's had another five years here on earth since that point. Losing my mom in 2016 and my brother this year has made the fragility of human life very real to me. My mother-in-law has battled cancer for about 12 years so she's definitely a fighter! We'll keep praying for her and will be thankful for each day the Lord gives her.

First quarter almost complete

Friday was our 43rd day of "school" this academic year; since we are required to log at least 180 days of school, that means this coming Tuesday when we hit day 45 we'll be 25% done. Eleven of those days were logged in July and August through field trips and camps (ex. history camp) before we actually got out the textbooks and such. Additionally, seven of the days logged between August 22 to October 4 were wholly devoted to field trips - Antietam, Refreshing Mountain, Saratoga, Fort Ticonderoga, NYC, etc. So that means as of Tuesday we will only had 27 "regular" school days thus far. We did have some short field trips on some of those "regular" days such as to the Post Office and waste water treatment plant. Here are some thoughts on what would be the first marking period in a traditional school. I don't actually give the kids any grades. Nadia uses Teaching Textbooks (online) for her math curriculum, and so she does receive a grade each day when she completes either a lesson or a quiz. Other than that, the kids don't receive any grades, which is fine with me. So as of this

coming Tuesday....

1. In math, Nadia will have completed three quizzes and twenty lessons. Her current average is 90%. Oliver is definitely making some progress with addition, subtraction, and measurement, but he still  can't recall how to write most of the numbers; he looks on his paper or a calendar so he has a reference to look at when writing a number. He is very prone to writing most of them backward if he doesn't look elsewhere first. I am very, very impressed with Beast Academy. I wish I had used it in earlier years with Ian; he's currently in the third chapter (exponents) of 4A. If Oliver makes enough progress this year, I might purchase the third grade books for him to use next year. I haven't been letting Ian write in the workbook so that hopefully Oliver will be able to use these when he's in fourth grade. I am also contemplating switching Nadia to an Art of Problem Solving text next school year, but I may stick with Teaching Textbooks for her. We shall see. As for the next marking period, two additions I would like to

make to math would be #1 to spend a little time reviewing math facts with Ian as it seems he's a bit rusty and #2 begin working with Oliver on learning his addition and subtraction facts. We're working through Life of Fred together. So far this school year we completed the  Edgewood book, and we're about half way through Farming. 

2. In Language Arts Nadia and Ian are working on punctuation, capitalization, and the parts of speech by copying one sentence per day about Robin Hood. We started using this resource at the beginning of 2019 (Nose Tree was the first one they completed), and I have to say I really like this way of teaching grammar! We work on reviewing and introducing new vocabulary words through the Robin Hood text as well as through the writing curriculum. They wrote their very first poems recently (about America). I thought they turned out nicely! This is definitely not their favorite subject, but they are definitely making progress in their writing skills. I haven't done anything thus far this year

with Oliver in terms of writing. Once he finishes his handwriting textbook (end of January), I am planning on having him write in a journal every day. Ian and Oliver are both about 1/3 of the way through their handwriting textbooks. Ian is completing his last cursive textbook (5th grade), and Oliver is completing his last manuscript textbook (2nd grade). I love seeing Ian's cursive writing; he does a beautiful job!

3. Spelling is going smoothly for all three kids. In one month Oliver should begin Level 3. Nadia is in Level 7, and Ian is in Level 5. I like the writing station activity that Nadia is using this year. She draws four slips of paper to create her writing prompt.

4. Oliver is making good progress through Level 4 of reading. Right now he's working on words with silent letters like "jostle." Nadia has read the first four Harry Potter books, and she plans to start the fifth after we get it from the library tomorrow. From July 1 through October 6 Nadia read 31 chapter books which contained a total of 7,349

pages. From July 1 through October 6 Ian read 20 chapter books which contained a total of 2,133 pages. Today Ian finished a Paddington Bear book, and he is also in the middle of a book about Clara Barton. We have been inconsistent in regards to reading picture books (that don't relate to history or science) or poems. We got off to a good start with this, but haven't done very well with that lately. Hopefully we can get back on track with that, but I'm not worked up about it. Ian has been reading a lot more picture books on his own. From July 1 to today we've enjoyed 29 chapter books together.

5. In Bible we've been working through the Young Peacemaker by Corlette Sande, memorizing verses for AWANA, and completing the weekly Core 52 assignments for church (reading an essay in the book, Scripture reading, and memorizing verses each week). Oliver memorized the books of the OT and NT last year, but he forgot some of them. He's relearning that now. Nadia has completed almost half of her AWANA book already as she's trying to finish it before

Christmas. We have been using puppets fairly regularly in conjunction with the Peacemaker curriculum.

6. Nadia and Ian are singing in the Susquehanna Valley Youth Chorale on Monday nights, Ian and Oliver are singing in the Soul Patrol choir at church on Sunday mornings, Nadia is singing in the middle school chorus at Meadowbrook Christian School on Thursday afternoons, Nadia is running the sound board for the youth during the second service on Sunday mornings, and all three kids are taking piano lessons. Ian and Nadia are working on the same songs in piano for the first time. I have been inconsistent in working with Oliver. He does a better job of remembering than I do! Ian has been given a speaking part in the Christmas musical at church.

7. Oliver has gymnastics in Lewisburg on Monday nights, and Ian and Nadia have art on Thursday afternoons at Meadowbrook. I have them do some drawing in conjunction with social studies through

the Draw Write Now books.

8. In history we've been primarily focusing on the Civil War. We've read biographies about Ulysses S Grant, Booker T. Washington, Abraham Lincoln, and Robert E. Lee. Rifles for Watie was a novel that took place during the Civil War and The Journey of Little Charlie was a novel set in 1858. I would recommend both of those books if you are studying this time period. Oliver listens to some of what I read to them for history - primarily the picture books. I definitely did more with his siblings in science and social studies when they were his age, but I'm definitely more relaxed with Oliver - in part because of his current maturity level. Next year (when he's in third grade) I definitely want to have him kick into full gear with social studies and science.

9. This week we will be almost done with our study of chemistry, which means we'll be switching to physics in the near future. While studying physics we will still be briefly discussing one element each

day from the periodic table through a coloring book we've been working through together. Although we've done a few hands-on experiences, this is still definitely an area where there is ample room for improvement. Last week we were talking about how oil is nonpolar. I poured a little vegetable oil on each of their hands to show them that water alone couldn't clean their hands.

10. As for the other miscellaneous activities, we've played board games sporadically. The same can be said for Nadia's photography lessons, typing, and sign language. Nadia has done more typing than Ian. We have been rather consistent with having Nadia cook at least once a week. For example, last week she made a pasta casserole and a New York style cheesecake. She's not able to cook independently yet, but I'm hoping by the end of the year there will be meals she can cook without any assistance.




Here are the three prayer request updates:
1. Mimi passed away yesterday (three days after she turned 78). She's in a much better place, but prayers for her family (especially her husband of 50 years) are appreciated as their grieve this very significant loss in their lives.

2. My mother-in-law is still in the ICU. We are praying that she will be able to be taken off the ventilator and that all other requirements will be met so that she can have the heart catheterization tomorrow to determine what is causing her heart not to function properly. Paul spent time with his mom in the hospital on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.

3. After taking a three day break, Paul resumed working on the kids' bathroom yesterday, and he worked on it more today. Until we have one functioning shower, we'll continue to use the jacuzzi tub in the master bathroom.

Way to go, Ian!!!

Last May we attended a homeschool day at Refreshing Mountain. Nadia and Oliver loved the zip lining and climbing the rock wall. Nadia said it was her favorite field trip of the year. As field trips go it was certainly not one of the cheapest trips, but considering how much it usually costs to do activities like zip lining, it was very reasonably priced. I figured we'd return at some point, but I wasn't planning to return five months later. In May the kids had four hours of activities - zip lining, rock wall, reptiles/amphibians, and a nature oriented scavenger hunt. Those in grades 7-12 had a survival skills activity instead of the scavenger hunt. While we were there the kids saw the elevated obstacle course, and Nadia and Oliver really wanted to give that a whirl as well. When I saw that the fall homeschool program included the elevated obstacle course and that one of the three dates was on Nadia's spiritual birthday, I decided to sign them up for it. Nadia doesn't miss a day of school for her birthday because she has a summer birthday. We don't usually take a day off of

school for spiritual birthdays, so I thought it would be special if Nadia had a field trip she loved (rather than usual schoolwork) on her 7th spiritual birthday. The attendance in May was much larger than yesterday. The upsides of this were #1 that Nadia's group (5th/6th) was very small so she was able to have five turns on the zip line compared to I believe only two turns in May and #2 they combined grades 1-4, which meant that Ian, Oliver, Micah, and Isaiah were all in the same group. The four activities this time were zip lining, elevated obstacle course, farm animals, and wildlife in Pennsylvania. Their favorite activity was the elevated obstacle course, zip lining was a close second, and farm animals was definitely their favorite of the four "nature" classes they had in May and October. They were wishing they had done the rock wall instead of the wildlife in PA class. During the farm animals class they were able to feed and/or pet a variety of animals including rabbits, goats, alpacas, donkey, horses, and pigs.

In May, Ian got suited up for the zip lining, stood on the platform, and cried. He attempted it several

times but never left the platform. We talked a lot about verses related to fear and "I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength." When he was crying on Wednesday night I thought it was because his Grandma is in the ICU, but in reality it was because he was worried about the zip lining. I wasn't sure what to expect, but I am very happy to say that he overcame his fear and did the zip line three times. He even took a hand off the last time he did it and had a huge smile. He discovered that it was FUN! Oliver went with no hands. Nadia went with no hands and actually flipped herself so she was hanging down the last time she went. Oliver was too young to do the middle level of the ropes course, but he did the bottom level multiple times. Nadia did the bottom level three times and the middle level once. Like Nadia, Ian also did the middle level once. There was one part he looked like he was going to quit, but he persevered and overcame his fears. I was SOOOO proud of him! He's come a long way! I remember how scared he was of climbing stairs  in our house when he was

two years old and how terrified he was after going up just a small portion of a lighthouse a few years ago. This year he climbed to the top of the Statue of Liberty, zip lined, and successfully navigated an elevated obstacle course! Woohooo!!!

The retreat center is two hours from our house, which meant we left our house at 7:45 and didn't return home until 5:15. I drove in May, but this time we rode with Tab and her two boys which meant #1 I only drove for 30 minutes (RT) yesterday and #2 I was able to chat with Tab during our drive which made it much more enjoyable for me. The weather drastically changed from Wednesday to Thursday. The temperature dropped twenty degrees, and it was cloudy/rainy. The weather wasn't ideal, but thankfully it never poured although there was a sporadic light rain throughout the time we were there. It didn't bring an end to any of the activities. We were wearing rain jackets, and I had an umbrella to keep my camera dry. I'm not expecting to return there in the spring, but I do imagine we'll go back at some point in the future.

I signed up for the field trip before I knew the kids would be in art and chorus on Thursday afternoons. I could have chosen to go on the field trip next Friday, for example. The middle school chorus has rehearsal on Tuesdays and Thursdays, but I only take Nadia on Thursdays. So I thought I'd take her on Tuesday this week in light of missing Thursday. When we got there we discovered they had changed the time that chorus was held on Tuesdays. They were having chapel when Nadia arrived. Oops. Nadia didn't want to wait almost an hour until the correct time. So that was a wasted trip. Thankfully we only live 15 minutes from church. I had planned to take Nadia and Ian to art today since they didn't go yesterday, but Nadia is feeling a little under the weather today, and she asked if we could just stay home. That's fine with me! Our local school district had power outages and so the kids in our neighborhood didn't have school today. This meant Oliver was able to play with Karyss much earlier than normal.

We enjoyed her birthday donuts two days early on Tuesday morning. We started eating some of her cheesecake on Wednesday. She chose what we had for dinner on Tuesday as she helped me cook dinner that night. She definitely didn't choose to eat pasta fagioli yesterday as she pretty much doesn't like any soup, stew, or chili. She was able to have a hot pocket for lunch on Wednesday and again today. I bought the Hot Pockets and also some apple juice in honor of her birthday. We don't typically have any juice in our refrigerator. Oliver drinks some milk but the other two usually just drink water.

As for the prayer requests I shared on Tuesday, Mimi (who is in the very last stages of pancreatic cancer) was able to celebrate her 78th birthday yesterday. My mother-in-law was moved to the ICU on Wednesday. Paul spent a few hours with her at the hospital yesterday. They are trying to get her off the ventilator and do a heart catheterization to determine why her heart is only functioning at 50%. So continued prayers for Mimi (and her family) and Ellie (my MIL) are greatly appreciated. We still have zero functioning showers in our house. I hope we're not doing further damage to the master bathroom floor by using the jacuzzi. Praying that at least one of our showers will be usable again in the very near future.

I didn't take any pictures with my good camera from September 22- October 2, but I made up for that by taking oodles yesterday, and Tab also shared some with me that she took with her phone. I have plenty to use in the coming days. We have NOTHING on the calendar for tomorrow, which means we'll end up having two "stay-at-home all day" days in a row. Considering we were in a van for 4 hours yesterday, that sounds heavenly.

Thankful Tuesday

1. Our new furnace and heat pump (AC) were installed on Friday. WOOHOO! It's supposed to get up into the 80's today and tomorrow, which is unseasonably warm for Pennsylvania in October. I know air conditioning is a want not a need, but it's something all five of us really appreciate.

2. Oliver had SO much fun playing with kids in the neighborhood this past week. Yahoo! Lately the three kids he plays with the most are Karyss (who will turn 8 in December), Camden (who is already 8), and Dawson (who is 3).

3. I think our tour of the Sunbury Post Office last Tuesday was a good learning experience, and I think I did a good job of adjusting the lesson plans  accordingly.

4. The weather was rainy last Thursday, but the weather was gorgeous Friday through Sunday which meant it was nice out for our town's yard sales on Friday and Saturday and for the Family Fun Fest the Methodist church had on Sunday afternoon. I

bought some clothes, a bike for Oliver when he outgrows his current bike, and roller blades for Nadia (adjustable for sizes 3-6) for $5. The boys can use them in the future. The roller blades will start saving us money this week because normally she pays to rent them at the Christian radio station's monthly skate night. I almost bought Nadia a scooter for $5, but the bottom part was pink (handles were purple), and she has a strong aversion to the color pink. Oliver spent $8 of his money on toys at the yard sales, Ian spent $2 on a stuffed animal, and Nadia spent $3.50 on thinking putty, a stuffed animal, and two Harry Potter books. There are many food stands set up during the yard sale selling a wide variety of foods. I let each child pick out one whoopie pie from an Amish food stand.

5. The kids had a lot of fun at the Family Fun Fest on Sunday afternoon; everything was free! It included inflatables, a balloon artist, face painting, games, and yummy food including pulled pork, hot dogs, pop corn, chili, baked goods, etc. They had a little "train" which was pulled by a tractor that the boys enjoyed riding over the church's property quite a few times over the two hours we were there. I wish I had brought my camera or had taken more pictures with my phone. I did take two pictures with my cell phone showing Nadia, Ian, and one of Nadia's friends from AWANA with their balloon creations. Nadia wants us to invite this 5th grade girl (whom she's known for a couple of years from AWANA at the Alliance Church) over to our house.

6. Paul and his brother placed a 3'x3' concrete slab in our yard on Thursday night, and the plumber put the new heat pump (for the A/C) on it on Friday. The kids enjoyed spending some time with Uncle Al.

7. Today we had a yummy free lunch as the businesses in our town had  their annual customer appreciation "Pink" lunch time event. The kids each had a hotdog. I had a cup of chicken corn soup. Oliver had some ice cream, Nadia had pink lemonade, all three kids had popcorn, we each came home with some small bags of chips, cookies, apples, etc. During the time we were there, my kids were the only kids present older than the age of three. Grapes have been on sale at our grocery store the past six days. I had stopped in once on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, and each time the grapes looked rather squishy so I didn't buy any. We like firm grapes. Persistence paid off, and today I was able to buy nice, firm red grapes! Yum!

8. The kids' choir at church is doing a Christmas musical this year! If I am remembering correctly, the last time they were in a Christmas program at church was in 2015. Ian has been given a speaking part, which is not surprising since #1 he had a part in the May 2018 and May 2019 musicals and #2 there is only one child in the choir this year who is older than him.

9. Yesterday in conjunction with choir, gymnastics, library, etc. we picked up donuts that we had for breakfast today. Nadia's spiritual birthday is this Thursday, but we had her donuts two days early. Oliver's spiritual birthday was on the day we drove with cousins to NYC the end of August so his pretty much flew under the radar. I gave him a new Bible and a biblical drawing book after the cousins left. He did have a donut on the morning of his spiritual birthday because Aunt Wendy had brought some extra donuts with her when she came to our house. Nadia asked for a cheesecake as her "birthday" cake. She helped me make it this evening. She can eat some of it tomorrow, and I'm sure there will still be some left over on Thursday. I'm very, very thankful that all three kids have accepted Christ as their personal Savior.

10. On Monday night the boys and I bought a few things at Walmart while Nadia was in chorale rehearsal. She had requested I buy Hot Pockets for her spiritual birthday. While there I splurged and bought a new trashcan for the kitchen. I say "splurged" because it was a want not a need. I wanted one that could be opened by a foot pedal as I found it increasingly hard to keep the other white plastic one clean, and you had to press a button on the lid of that one to open it. I didn't buy the most expensive one there (which had a motion sensor), but I didn't buy the cheapest one either. I think the new one looks much nicer, will be easier to clean, and will keep our hands cleaner now that we'll be using a foot to open the trash can. Oliver is really enjoying the new trash can. Sometimes it's the little things in life (although it cost more than I was hoping to spend on a trash can).

11. The Giants have now won two games. Paul didn't watch much of his game on Sunday due to the bathroom project. We've had cable (local channels only) for over a month, and we've barely used it at all. The Steelers finally won their first game this season last night. It was on a station we don't get right now, which was fine as I don't think I'd have watched it even if I could have, but I was glad to hear they finally won even though Ben (QB) is out for the season.

12. We've never worked together as a family to memorize the same verses. I'm enjoying it! We'll be doing it for a full year. Paul wins the gold star for last week in our family. He memorized all three verses. Woohoo! I'm not even attempting to have Oliver learn this week's verse (Genesis 3:6), as it's enough for him to memorize what he's working on for AWANA.

I know this is my weekly gratitude list, but I'd also like to share three prayer requests in case anyone is inclined to lift any of these needs up in prayer.

1. Mimi (my dad's wife's sister) is in her very last stages of pancreatic cancer. She was diagnosed in October 2016 so in my mind it's a miracle that she was given almost three full years following her diagnosis. She's turning 78 years old tomorrow and last month celebrated her 50th wedding anniversary. Remembering how ill my mom was from her diagnosis until her passing a little more than 6 months later, I have been giving thanks to the Lord for the amazing quality of life that He has given Mimi. This is obviously a hard time for Mimi's family as they know in the very near future they will be grieving her loss. So I'm praying for her husband (Gus), her three kids (would you believe that two of her kids' names are Ruth and Paul?), her grandkids, sister, niece, nephews, etc. Thankfully they know she will soon be restored to perfect health in Glory. That is a HUGE comfort in a time of loss.

2. Paul's mom was hospitalized for pneumonia today. She was hospitalized quite a few times for this in I think I was 2013-2014, but her monthly IVIG infusions have been very helpful the last few years in keeping her out of the hospital. Praying for a speedy recover for my mother-in-law!

3. It's far, far less important than the above two requests, but Paul began doing some work in the kids' bathroom this past weekend. Our master bathroom floor has been a work in progress for almost 3.5 years. On Sunday night I used the jacuzzi in the master bathroom. I can't recall the last time I took a bath as I prefer a shower, and ideally we shouldn't be using that jacuzzi since part of the bathroom floor in the master bathroom has been removed, but we are running out of options aside from asking to use a shower at a neighbor's house or using the garden hose outside. It's so unimportant in the grand scheme of life, but I'd really like to have at least ONE bathroom that is fully functional. The day when both showers are usable will be a dream come true, but for now I'll just breathe a sigh of relief when I can again take a shower in my house. Paul is hoping the kids' bathroom shower will be usable later this week. It's a bit nerve wracking for me given how long the other one has been out of commission.....

Tighten our belt

Since I have returned to being a stay-at-home mom, I've been trying to cut back on our expenses.  It feels funny to say that after just writing two checks this week to the plumber for over $5K total as we had a new furnace and air conditioner installed yesterday. The temps are in the 80's outside today, which is warmer than usual for this time of year in Pennsylvania, and I have to say I am very grateful to finally have air conditioning after having gone without since we returned from Aunt Janet's  house in early July. We could have paid less than we did, but we went with a heat pump, which is not something we had before. This means that now our furnace will only be used when the outside temperature is below 35 degrees. We are hoping this means we'll pay less for natural gas for the furnace in the coming years. Thankfully it's very rare for us to be spending that much money in one fell swoop. Some categories (like clothing) I don't feel I can be much more frugal than I already am because almost everything the kids wear comes from a yard sale, and Paul and I hardly ever buy any new clothes or shoes. Some financial changes have already been put into action. Others won't go into effect until 2020. Here's what I've come up with so far:

1. Next year I'm hoping to cut back the "kids" line item of the budget by at least $2K. This category includes camps, classes (art, chorus, ice skating, etc.), Upward basketball, textbooks and supplies for homeschooling, and food/bedding for the guinea pigs. For example, the kids won't be attending horseback riding camp next summer. Nadia really wants a cat, dog, or rabbit, and Ian would like a gerbil, cat, or dog. At this point I haven't figured out a way to include another pet in our budget, but I am trying to work on that as it would be a great gift for her at some point. Considering I am preferring a slower paced lifestyle these days, the desire to spend less money works well with staying home more because many activities outside our house cost money. 

2. Next year we should be able to cut the vacation line item by at least $1K, but in 2020 I think we'll spend quite a bit more than we did this year since we're hoping to go out west.

3. The mortgage was paid off this past spring, which means 2020 will be the first full year we won't have any mortgage or rent payments.

4. The last several years we've only had cable television for 4-6 months a year. This year to try to cut back further on that expense, we only signed up for the local channels which means we're paying less during those months we have cable. 

5. I've decided to only get my hair cut three times a years instead of four times a year. I cut Paul, Ian, and Oliver's hair. Nadia gets one haircut a year.

6. We had to make changes in our charitable giving. I did not enjoy making these reductions, but it was necessary.

7. We already have begun to make significant cutbacks in the "entertainment" line item. This is for restaurants, tickets, admission fees, etc. When we got take-out pizza, we used to get two large pizzas. I recently have switched to only getting one pizza. Some events are pricey (like our tickets to Sight and Sound) so I'm trying to spend less than $13 a week at restaurants. Last Friday the comedian Ken Davis was at our church. We skipped that, and we also skipped going to the Bloomsburg Fair to hear Amy Grant and We are Messengers sing on Sunday night due to the cost involved. Thankfully if Nadia and I volunteer to help with Compassion, we can get into some concerts for free.

8. In terms of the house, we have paid for some things over the past three years that were appreciated but not absolutely necessary like a new kitchen faucet, replacing the deck, and replacing some flooring. For the foreseeable future I think we need to just stick with needs rather than "wants" in terms of home improvement in part because some of the "needs" are rather pricey such as a roof that will need to be replaced in the not so distant future.

9. We have already overspent in the gas line item for 2019, and the year isn't over yet. EEK! We have no control over the price of gas. I am going to try to be more careful about how much I drive the van. Paul's car doesn't get as good gas mileage has his previous car (Prius), and he drives at least 600 miles a week, but there's nothing we can do about that aside from moving closer (which we're not planning to do). 

10. Although I try to shop frugally when it comes to grocery shopping, I have a goal to try to do better in this category in 2020. The past three years we spent $4,600 a year for food, paper products, cleaning supplies, toiletries, etc. This year we are going to exceed that amount. I'm hoping in 2020 to get us back to $4600 if at all possible although since we're not buying as much pizza it means I'm cooking one more dinner most weeks than I used to when we got 2 large pizzas. I have stopped buying Hot Pockets on a regular basis. I'm just buying them as a special treat a few times a year. A hot pocket usually costs $1 each (sometimes a little less) whereas it costs a lot less than $1 to make a PBJ sandwich, bologna sandwich, egg and toast, or a hotdog. Nadia is not at all crazy about this change. I wish that there was an Aldi closer to us. That would be a great help, but I'll try to do the best I can with the stores that I usually frequent.

11. I'm not planning to send out Christmas cards this year. The postage stamps I would have used for those cards are now being used by Nadia for letters to her pen pal. We also are cutting back in the "gifts" category of our budget. Paul and I hadn't really spent much of anything on gifts for each other the last few years, but this past Christmas he got me a ring. I really like the ring, but for now I think we need to go back to not buying each other gifts. There are other ways I am planning to save money in the gifts category; that's just one example.

12. I'm trying to return to couponing at CVS once or twice a month. I'm also trying to remember to use Rakuten or a similar website when I'm doing online shopping. I have always paid attention to which credit card is earning a 5-10% rebate in which category each quarter, but this year (for the first time) I've actually been buying gift cards to the gas station or grocery store to max out the benefit during the quarter and then use those gift cards in another quarter when we would only earn 2% through the credit card. Since we spend very little money at restaurants (the Discover category that is earning 10% rebate for this quarter), I'm grateful that they also included PayPal this quarter. I usually don't use PayPal, but I've been using it for online purchases whenever possible this quarter to maximize the 10% rebate. For example, since Priceline takes PayPal, I booked our room for one night in Richmond today using PayPal since the quarter ends in two days.

Hopefully by making these changes (and others that might come to mind in the future), we will be able to save enough money for things like Ian's braces, replacing the roof, replacing our vehicles, replacing the oven, replacing the garage door, etc.

You've Got Mail

Romantic comedy is definitely not Paul's favorite genre of movies, but I remember many moons ago that we both enjoyed watching the movie "You've Got Mail" together. Nadia has been very interested in what arrives in our mailbox each day now that she has been corresponding with a girl in Illinois. Both girls are pretty prompt at writing and mailing a response to each letter they receive.

The homeschooling group we belong to has been scheduling quite a few field trips lately. We've skipped some of them due to scheduling conflicts or because of the driving time involved. For example, last week we missed the tour of the state police barracks, and next month we're not planning to join the tour of a courthouse/ sheriff's office or of a 911 emergency center. Last week we went on a tour of a wastewater treatment plant, yesterday we toured a Post Office, and next month we're scheduled to tour a bank, landfill, and Keystone Potato Products (industrial tour). At the Post Office yesterday our tour guide gave the kids several opportunities for hands-on experiences. They were able to put on a bag containing mail to see what it feels like for those who deliver mail by walking door to door.  At another point they were each allowed to cancel the postage on one piece of mail. At the package station they used a handheld scanner to scan a package, and then when the letter and number showed up on the computer screen, they carried the package to the correct bin. She also had all the kids get on the scale together to see how much their weighed. They weighed a little less than 1,000 pounds. The kids got to listen to some of the live mail. For example, one package contained a live bird.

The only time we left the house yesterday was for our 1 hour tour of the Post Office, and today we are staying home until we go to AWANA/ choir this evening. We enjoy field trips, but we also enjoy time at home!

Thankful Tuesday

1. Last Monday I went to a different grocery store than I usually go to while Nadia was in choir rehearsal. It was a pleasant surprise to find that I could buy up to 5 pounds of grapes at 99 cents a pound, and they were exceptionally tasty grapes! Also, I bought a couple of boxes of their store brand's instant oatmeal that are flavors I've never tried before. I absolutely love the cranberry pecan oatmeal! I want to buy more of it. Yummy!

2. There were a couple of days last week that the temperatures dropped SO much at night that the house was 67 degrees in the morning. I actually opened the blinds for the first time in months to let light in, which was heavenly. The temps have gone back up since then (it was in the low 90's outside on Sunday) so the blinds are closed again, but soon I know letting more light into our house will become the norm again. One perk of not being able to use an air conditioner is our electric bill has been much lower than it typically is for this time of year. The plumber contacted me yesterday, and he plans to pick up the check to pay for the equipment tomorrow and plans to install it this Friday (and the labor portion of the project will be due that day). The days of our house getting up into the 80's are coming to an end. It's also time to schedule an appointment with the piano tuner!

3. Last Tuesday we enjoyed the time we spent at Hershey Gardens. The kids were most looking forward to the (free) ride at Chocolate World, especially as they give each person a little piece of candy at the end (Hershey bar this time). As far as Hershey Gardens, we attended three programs, walked around the gardens, the kids participated in a scavenger hunt in the arboretum, made a few crafts, and walked through the butterfly atrium. We spent at least three hours at Hershey Gardens. IT was my first time there. The kids favorite parts were #1 the program where they learned how to calculate the age of a tree (when you can't count rings), #2 the program that featured three owls, and #3 the butterfly atrium. One butterfly landed on Oliver's head, but it was on there for such a brief moment I didn't get a picture. I did get a picture of one on Nadia's foot. I think it was attracted to her shiny flip flops. One of my favorite parts was the fact that we picked my friend, Cheri, up at her house on the way down to Hershey which meant we were together for several hours. I was also thankful that the weather was so lovely that day.

4. My choir rehearsals resumed last Wednesday. I am grateful for this opportunity to sing. Nadia said when she's in 9th grade she's going to join me and sing in the adult choir. That sounds lovely to me! She currently sings soprano in the two choirs she is in at the moment (Susquehanna Valley Youth Chorale and the middle school chorus at Meadowbrook Christian School). I'm an alto.

5. Ian is doing a fabulous job playing the piano lately. He has caught up to Nadia in one book and is very close to catching up with her in the other book. He practices more often than she does, and thus he has progressed more quickly. Oliver really enjoys his piano lessons thus far. If I forget to do it with him, he is quick to remind me!

6. We had three field trips last week. The kids were not very excited about the wastewater treatment plant tour, but that is something they didn't really know anything about. We all learned more about it that day! Most of the people in our homeschool group live 45-60 minutes south of where we live, which means many of the field trips that they organize are down that way. The distance is what stops me from signing up for some of them. I recently passed on tours of a bank, police barracks, 911 center, etc. Then other times I go ahead and decide to make the trek. Today we are touring a post office in a town 30 minutes from our house. There have been other post office tours posted in the past, and I decided it was time to do it as that was another place we've never had a tour of before. Last week we didn't have ANY stay-at-home all day days because we had field trips on Tuesday and Saturday and Oliver had a make-up gymnastics class (from Labor Day) on Friday. Thankfully this week we should be home on Friday and Saturday except for going to some yard sales in our own town.

7. I enjoyed teaching the 1st/2nd grade girls' class this past Sunday. I won't be teaching a kids' class for awhile because I am signed up for a small group that will meet during the second half of the second service on Sundays (after the choir goes down off the platform). We had signed up to attend a small group on Thursdays from 6:30-8:00, but it's challenging for Paul to get home that early from work so we bowed out of that one, and I signed up for the one that will meet around 11:15 on Sundays. The small group started this past Sunday, but I missed the first week because I had already committed to teaching during the second service. It would have been nice to do it with Paul, but I like that we're not adding another regular evening commitment to the schedule.

8. On Saturday we enjoyed our first visit to T and D's Cats, and as an added bonus, my friend Cheri met us in Lewisburg and joined us for the rest of our drive and our time seeing the animals.

9. My mom used to make a dump cake from time to time. I haven't made it in years. I'm generally not a fan of cake, but this cake I like. It doesn't have any icing but it has pie filling in it. The kids picked peach. They liked it too even though they were hesitant to try it at first. My mom typically made it with cherry or blueberry pie filling. Yum!

10. I'm thankful that we are only paying about $15 a month to have the local channels of tv. We added it to see football games. I thought the kids and/or Paul would also watch some of those channels at our times, but they prefer to watch Amazon Prime or Hulu. Paul watched the Giants' first game. He missed the second game because we were at Antietam, and his game wasn't aired yesterday because it was the 4:30 game and CBS had the double header (and his game

was on Fox). So we've had cable (local channels only) for a month and barely used it. I was explaining to the kids that some people don't have to pay for the local channels, but we do because we live in a rural area. Then I was telling them how years ago I used to send 1-2 football games per week via a webcam to Uncle Joe (Eagles) and Grandpa (Steelers). To which they asked, "What's a webcam?". Technology has changed so rapidly lately that it's easy to feel *really* old around kids! I decided I wasn't going to watch football this year. I just wasn't in the mood following the passing of my brother. Well I picked a very good year to give it up as I heard that our QB is out for the season and we've started the season 0-3. I haven't missed anything good. Paul's team started out 0-2, but they did win two days ago. We don't have plans to travel on Sunday for the next few months so hopefully he'll be able to see most of the rest of the games this season, and hopefully he'll see a fair amount of wins!

11. The kids REALLY got into "mismatch" day at AWANA last Wednesday. Nadia helped them pick out their outfits right after breakfast. They ended up shedding part of it during the day and then putting it back on right before AWANA. Nadia said 1/4 of the verses in her AWANA book last Wednesday! She has been working on it very diligently. I'm thankful all three kids are involved in another year of AWANA. The kids memorize verses each week for AWANA, we're all memorizing verses each week for church on Sunday morning (Core 52 plan), and Nadia also memorizes verses for her Bible study on Sunday nights at the Methodist Church.

12. Oliver got into big trouble last month for a very inappropriate interaction with a neighbor. Of my three kids he has always been the most challenging in terms of coming up with a negative consequence because he's so easy going and doesn't have a favorite toy. He rolls with the punches so easily that if you say something like no dessert or no electronics, which would be very effective with the other two, he just shrugs it off as no big deal to go without. So we decided this time to tell him he couldn't play with any kids in the neighborhood for an extended time. The downside of choosing that was we were also sort of punishing some of his friends. Karyss keeps asking when she can play with him again. Hopefully this consequence was effective for Oliver and he'll never do what he did again. He certainly has been counting down the days until he can resume playing with his friends, and that day is TODAY!!! I am very relieved that his "confinement" is over. He loves to play with kids in the neighborhood, and I'm glad he can resume doing so today.

13. My kids have been sleeping in lately - often getting up around 8am. That Nadia sleeps that late is not surprising, but it is surprising for the boys. We shall see what happens after the clocks "fall back" an hour. It means we don't finish schoolwork as early as we used to, but I love that homeschooling is flexible and we can let them wake up on their own most of the time. I watch the neighbors walking to the bus stop while my kids are still sleeping and am thankful for this particular perk of homeschooling. There will be enough years of their life that they will have to get up at a certain time. I'm glad while they are kids that doesn't have to happen too often.

14. Oliver learned how to tie his shoes a few days ago! Yahoo! There are so many milestones during infancy and the toddler years - learning to sit up, stand, walk, talk, potty trained, etc. Now that Oliver has learned to read, ride a bike without training wheels, and tie his shoes, it's hard to think of many other such milestones the kids will pass in the coming years. All I can think of at the moment are Oliver learning to write in cursive (next year) and all three kids learning to drive a car (that's a scary thought!!!). Those types of milestones are fewer and farther between as the kids get older.

15. Aunt Millie gave us some yummy sticky buns last week. Nadia is not a fan, but Ian, Oliver, and I enjoy them. Oliver ate the majority of them because we discovered Ian couldn't eat them because it turns out in addition to pecans he's also allergic to walnuts. I would think of labeling his allergy as "tree nuts" as he is definitely fine with peanuts, peanut butter, and cashews, but he also has done fine with almonds, which is a tree nut. I have to say I am very hesitant to let him try any other nuts though because we don't own an epi-pen. I think for now we'll just avoid all tree nuts except for almonds. Paul and I love nuts. Ian loves the ones he's not allergic to. Nadia and Oliver don't care for nuts. I'm thankful none of them have a severe peanut allergy that seems to be so common these days.