Last Day of School!

Today is officially our last day of school. Tomorrow afternoon we will have our annual evaluation and the boys will take the Woodcock Johnson test. Our previous evaluations were done by homeschool moms that we already knew. This will be our first one done by someone who doesn't already know us. It's possible our paths crossed in the past at some point as she was an adjunct professor in the special education department at Bloomsburg University, which is the same university where I taught for 10 years. Here are some of the highlights of our school year:

1. Oliver learned how to write his uppercase and lowercase letters in cursive.

2. Nadia completed a science textbook independently for the first time. She and Ian had done science with me the last several years. She also took tests in science for the first time. Her study skills improved over the course of the year, and she ended on a high note by achieving a 100% on her last test!

3. The kids completed 47 different art projects through Creating a Masterpiece that included a wide variety of media - ink, charcoal, pencil, colored pencil, pastels, watercolor, etc. 

4. Nadia completed a Personal Finance course by Dave Ramsey as well as a photography course by Kyle Schultz.

5. We memorized Matthew chapters 5-7, read half of the Old Testament, learned about various religions and cults, and completed seven inductive Bible study workbooks together. 

6. Ian and Nadia learned to identify all of the countries of the world on a map with 100% accuracy, all of the provinces of Canada, and almost all of the capitals of the world (all except for some islands in the Caribbean and in Oceania) using Seterra.com. 

7. Ian finished level 5 and and made progress in the level 6 recital and lesson books of Alfred's Basic Piano Course. Nadia had weekly private voice lessons via Zoom through Susquehanna University, and she participated in two theatre productions via Zoom - Nancy Blue and Bad Auditions by Bad Actors.

8. All three kids learned more Spanish vocabulary through curriculum from Talkbox.mom, and Nadia participated in a bi-weekly ASL class through the Public Library for Union County on Zoom during the second semester.

9. We watched one episode of World Watch News each day (M-F), celebrated 16 holidays from around the world, read at least 542 picture or nonfiction books from the library (most related to social studies and a few related to science), and tried 149 new foods from around the world.

10. We listened to 129 chapter books together (I read a few of those aloud but mostly they were audiobooks). Nadia read more than 65 chapter books (six of which were each over 500 pages long). Ian read at least 51 chapter books. Oliver transitioned from reading easy readers out loud to reading chapter books silently this year. He read 16 chapter books.

11. The kids earned 27 junior ranger badges through National Parks during the school year.

12. Oliver is making good progress with learning his multiplication facts. My goal is that he knows them all by the end of May.

13. We went on far fewer field trips this year. Most of them took place during our vacation in October and some were virtual field trips. Many were outdoors. Still we have been on 22 field trips this school year and have plans for nine more in May and June. In Pennsylvania the school year for homeschoolers can start as early as July 1 and must end no later than the end of June. 

14. Nadia and Ian wrote several different types of poems for the first time (haiku, diamante, cinquain, acrostic, limerick, and shape). They also wrote several fairy tales in which they changed the setting to a different continent. For example, Nadia wrote a Chinese version of Cinderella. Finally, Nadia and Ian each researched twelve countries and wrote 5-7 paragraphs about each country.

15. Usually I have a lot to document for physical education - homeschool gym class, ice skating lessons, Upward basketball, etc. This year the kids only had about three homeschool gym classes (outdoors), went skiing once, and went swimming quite a bit in July and August. They (especially Oliver) ride bikes, scooters, and rollerblades on a regular basis and sometimes take a walk with me. All three kids are registered for 8 hours of tennis lessons next week. I am open to registering them for another week or two of lessons in May if they are interested in doing that. 

Although I thoroughly enjoy homeschooling my children, I also enjoy the summer break. With my "extra" time I'm planning on going for more walks, listening to more audiobooks, making progress in the videography course, making progress with learning to speak Spanish, finishing planning our fall vacation, and finishing planning out the next school year. I also want to give using the Instant Pot another whirl as it's just been sitting in the basement. Although I've had weeks where I only had the boys at home and Nadia was at camp, it's been much rarer for me to only have Nadia at home, but that will be the case the end of June when the boys are at overnight camp together. Nadia and I are already making plans to make that "Mom, Nadia, and Milo week" special. Nadia will be spending a few days in Maryland with her cousins in May, going to Indiana and Oklahoma for Bible quizzing events in May and June, and will spend a week at overnight girl's camp the first week of August, so I'm thankful that I'll have a week with extra mom and daughter time since she'll be away from home for three weeks total this summer.

Ladybugs and praying mantises

Several years ago I got in the habit of creating a bucket list each summer. I usually had at least 100 things on the list. We never accomplished all of them. Some would be deleted, and sometimes others would be added over the course of the summer. Last year I only wrote a list of around 50 things due to COVID. This list is longer than the one I wrote last year, but still shorter than the length of my usual summer bucket list. Some things are possible this summer that weren't last summer such as attending VBS. Some things on the list we've never done before, and others we haven't done since 2019 or even earlier than that such as play miniature golf, spending a day at Knoebels and DelGrosso's amusement parks, bowling (Ian, Nadia, and I haven't gone bowling since 2019), or attending a baseball game. I added going to Dairy Queen to the list when I found out earlier this week that Oliver didn't know what Dairy Queen was. 

Some of the "first time" experiences would include: picking raspberries, Nadia participating in Bible quizzing events in IN and OK, visiting at least four national parks we haven't been to before (Fire Island, Theodore Roosevelt Inaugural, Morristown, and Paterson Great Falls), attending the Roasting Ears of Corn Festival at the Museum of Indian Culture, white water rafting, touring the Old Jail Museum in Jim Thorpe, visiting Eckley Miner's Village, attending the WWII weekend at the Mid Atlantic Air Museum, spend a day at Darien Lake, hike at World's End State Park, make fruit pizza, visiting the National Canal Museum, and participating in a 6 hour fishing/kayaking program. We got a head start on one of the first time experiences. Last year I purchased two cups of caterpillars as it had been several years since we had done it. However my timing was off, and they emerged from their chrysalises when the kids were at camp.  I already ordered one tube of ladybugs and a praying mantis egg case. We did the ladybugs several years ago, but this will be our first time to watch the praying mantises go through their life cycle.

A friend posted that her family had done an Acts of Kindness chain during Lent this year. I found one online and chose a few things from the chain to add to our summer bucket list such as pay for someone else's meal in a drive-thru, leave a treat in our mailbox for our mailman, do something kind for one of our neighbors, and write a thank you note to a pastor, police officer, or fire fighter. 

I have question marks by thirteen things on the list because of COVID. Some of the National Parks I'd like to visit this summer haven't reopened yet, the state of Massachusetts hasn't lifted their ban on amusement park rides yet, I don't know if the Little League World Series games will be open to the public, I don't know if WVIA will have a day at Montage Mountain, and I don't know if parades will be held in July this year.

May - August 2021

1. Listen to audiobooks together - DONE and will continue
2. Nadia, Oliver, and I plant flowers in our flower beds (first time in 5 years) - DONE
3. Shop at yard sales - DONE
4. Eat funnel cake - DONE
5. Eat an ice cream cone - DONE at Purple Cow
6. Visit Reptiland - DONE
7. Kids eat frozen yogurt from Sweet Frog - DONE
8. Feed the ducks - DONE
9. Spend a day at Knoebels Amusement Park - DONE
10. Go to Kaos (trampolines, laser tag, and arcades) - DONE
11. Roller skating at Trout Pond Park - DONE
12. Earn a junior ranger badge at Theodore Roosevelt's Inaugural site in Buffalo (first time) - DONE
13. Throw water balloons - DONE
14. Visit the Buffalo Naval Park - DONE
15. Eat a meal from Chick-fil-A - DONE
16. Watch ladybugs go through complete metamorphosis  - DONE
17. Watch praying mantises go through incomplete metamorphosis (first time)  - DONE
18. Nadia spends a few days in Maryland with some of her cousins while four cousins spend a few days at our house with Ian and Oliver (first time) - DONE
19. Pay for someone else's meal in a drive-thru (first time) - DONE
20. Visit Six Flags Darien Lake (first time) - DONE
21. Visit Six Flags America with Towfighis - DONE
22. Do something kind for one of our neighbors - DONE
23. Tennis lessons - DONE
24. Mom and Ian play piano duets together - DONE
25. Mom eats a strawberry poppyseed salad at Panera and a dish of custard from Rita's - DONE
26. WWII weekend at the Mid Atlantic Air Museum in Reading (first time) - DONE
27. Write a thank you note to a pastor, police officer, or fire fighter (first time)- DONE
28. Nadia and I see Emma at CWC with Tab - DONE (first time)
29. Eat freeze pops - DONE and will continue
30. Go swimming many times - DONE and will continue
31. Mom makes significant progress in learning to speak Spanish - DONE and will continue
32. Pick strawberries - DONE
33. Attend a carnival - DONE
34. Bible quizzing in Indiana in May and in Oklahoma in June (only Nadia)- first time - DONE
35. Take the boys to see a production of Alice in Wonderland at Central Oak Heights - first time - DONE
36. Watch the movies Raya, Cruella, and the Dragon and Luca on Disney+ (first time) - DONE
37. Attend programs (insects and in the water) at Dale Engle Walker property  - DONE
38. Attend a parade - DONE
39. Watch episodes of the Mysterious Benedict Society on Disney+ (first time)  - DONE
40. Pick raspberries (first time) - DONE
41. One day (7 hour) kayaking and fishing program (first time) - DONE
42. White water rafting (first time) - DONE
43. Nadia has friends over for a sleepover - DONE
44. Nadia attends a two week Snow White and the 7 Dwarfs theatre camp (first time) - DONE
45. Watch fireworks  - DONE
46. Pick blueberries  - DONE
47. Make fruit pizza (first time)  - DONE
48. Attend WVIA Day at Montage Mountain  - DONE
49. Overnight camp (PMBC for the boys and Camp Susque for Nadia) - DONE
50. Attend VBS - DONE
51. Go to Dairy Queen (first time for kids) - DONE
52. Eat honeydew, watermelon, corn on the cob, nectarines, peaches, cantaloupe, plums, and cherries
53. Buy a new minivan - DONE
54. Nadia and Ian attend an art camp at Warrior Run Middle School (first time) - DONE
55. Attend Camp Good News at Mountain View Bible Camp - DONE
56. Visit Six Flags New England (first time) - DONE
57. Visit Old Sturbridge Village (first time) - DONE
58. Visit the Springfield Museums (first time) - DONE
59. Visit the Springfield Armory (first time) - DONE
60. Catch lightning bugs - DONE
61. Go bowling - DONE
62. Mom makes significant progress in learning videography (first time)
63. All three kids attend a theatre camp  - DONE
64. Paint pottery at Centered Earth  - DONE
65. Watch Sight & Sound's production of Ruth online - DONE
66. Oliver finishes learning his multiplication and division facts
67. Spend a  with few days with Janet on Long Island
68. Spend time with Grace, Wendy, and Rachel - DONE
69. Eat several lunches at Kid's Café 
70. Earn a Junior Ranger badge at Fire Island (NY) - first time
71. Earn a Junior Ranger badge at the Thomas Edison National Historic Park (NJ) - first time
72. Earn a Junior Ranger badge at Paterson Great Falls NHP (NJ) - first time
73. Earn a Junior Ranger badge at Morristown NHP (NJ) - first time
74. See the new Paw Patrol movie - first time

Thankful Tuesday

 

1. My new cellphone arrived on Friday, and I got it activated at a Verizon store on Saturday. The battery and the camera are MUCH better on my new phone, and I like the face scan feature better than the fingerprint one that my old phone had. The pictures in this post were taken with my cell phone. I definitely won't totally abandon my DSLR, but I expect the ratio of cell phone pics to DSLR pics to definitely shift now that I have a better phone. I'm also thankful for the cell phone stabilizer that my Dad and Margie got me for my birthday. I haven't used it yet, but I know I will!

2. We didn't do anything special to celebrate my birthday on the actual day (aside from me opening the Amazon package from my Dad), but my friend, Cheri, met me at 3:30 at Panera on Saturday. If you combined late breakfast/ early lunch, you call it brunch. What do you call a meal that's either a very late lunch or an early dinner/supper? I needed to work around Paul's work schedule, and Cheri had to work around her uncle's schedule. She's his caregiver at the moment, and he has Alzheimer's. Paul met us there on his way home from work and took the kids home. At first I was going to cook a meal for them to eat while I was eating out, but then I decided to ask Paul to make omelets. He can make those, and it had been a very long time since the kids had eaten one. I really enjoyed my strawberry poppyseed salad that Cheri paid for, and I also really enjoyed talking with her for about 90 minutes. We hadn't talked much recently so we actually needed more time than that, but I was thankful for the time we did get together. I hadn't seen her in person since I took her out for her birthday about 3 months ago.

Do you see the vehicles after the fields? That's where we parked. We got a workout going uphill!

3. Although the weather was cold and windy, the kids enjoyed the day at Camp Susque on Thursday. I think the highlights for them were lunch (playing on the playground and chatting with friends) and the climbing wall.  They came home with three tornado tubes that were each connecting two 2 liter bottles from the weather lesson they had that morning. 

4. I placed an order for Lego sets last August through an advertisement on Facebook. Big mistake. I will never, ever click on any ads on Facebook again. The company sent me one scarf instead of four Lego sets. I tried to dispute the charge through the credit company to no avail. In September they said they would resend the Legos after they acknowledged their error, but then in December they told me they would give me zero Legos and a 50% refund since I had received a scarf (that I didn't want and never plan to use). They supposedly put the partial refund through in January, but I still haven't received any money back. I asked Paul to try calling the credit card company, and he did so yesterday. Would you believe they offered him a credit for the full amount we were charged by that company last August? I'm not sure if it's because a man contacted them or if it's because we hadn't used the credit card at all for a few months whereas it had been our primary card, but I'm very thankful. I had mailed them all sorts of documentation and that never got me anywhere, but Paul's one call was a success, if the guy he talked to at Citi today was telling the truth. As a side note, my friend, Cheri, had a similar experience when she clicked on an ad on Facebook. She purchased boots, and they sent her the wrong size and only gave her about $10 back (and she had paid a lot more than that). So that makes me think my experience might not be a fluke.

5. We had pretty weather on Friday, which meant I took a walk with Oliver and Milo and also mowed the lawn. On Saturday the kids and I attended a program by a Biology professor about farming. 

6. Although we barely saw her on Sunday, Nadia enjoyed going to her coach's house for more Bible Bowl practice after church on Sunday. She was home for a couple of hours before we took her to youth group. We had thought of going to Knoebels that day after church, but Nadia didn't want to go. She loves rollercoasters, but she likes the youth worship service, Bible Bowl, and the evening youth group even more. It's a bit tricky because Sunday is Paul's only day off from work and yet Nadia doesn't really like to do day trips on Sundays. We are planning to go to Knoebels next Sunday after church as we can go for free that day. We didn't go to Knoebels at all in 2020, and we were only there for a couple of hours in 2019. It's the amusement park closest to our house.

7. I've been talking to Paul's mom on a pretty regular basis again. Woohoo! She's on oxygen because of her wheezing from COVID, but it's great to hear her voice, and they are trying to get her walking again. 

8. We had choir practice last Wednesday! We are meeting every other week at least three times total to prepare for a retirement celebration for our senior pastor. It was the first time I attended a choir rehearsal in fourteen months. The worship arts pastor left it up to us whether we wanted to wear masks or not and whether we wanted to spread out farther than usual or not. 

9. Our library had the first three books of the Frog Princess series on CD. We really enjoyed them. I requested the fourth book on CD through ILL, and I picked it up at the library yesterday. We love libraries!

10. Ian did an amazing job reciting all of Matthew chapter 7 on Friday! I was so pleased that I gave him $5.00. 

11. Someone at the orthodontist office turned Ian's expander yesterday. Hopefully I can successfully turn it six more times before next Monday. The end is in sight!

12. Milo's restrictions are over! He's allowed to run and jump again. 

New phone

Paul and I were slow to make the switch from flip phones to smart phones. I got my first smart phone in 2015, and Paul followed suit a couple of years later. The phone I bought in 2015 was refurbished; so my phone will actually be eight years old in a few months. The first several years of our marriage we exchanged gifts four times a year - Valentine's Day, our birthdays, Christmas, and our anniversary. The last several years I haven't asked for anything except for my master bathroom shower to be repaired. Paul replaced the battery on my phone two years ago which was no easy task but it helped extend the life of the phone. The battery has again begun to give me issues, and I had been wanting a phone that had a better camera for both pictures and videos. I am not abandoning my DSLR by any means, but I don't carry that thing around ALL the time whereas I almost always have my phone. So this year I actually asked Paul for something for my birthday - a new phone. Paul brought it home this evening! This model came out in 2019; I've moved forward six years as my old phone came out in 2013. I was able to choose the color of the phone, and I picked red because that was the color I was assigned as a child when we played games because my name starts with the letter "R." Wendy was white, Yvonne was yellow, and my Dad (George) was green. There isn't a common color that starts with "E" so my mom was usually blue. Dad and Margie gave me a gimbal (stabilizer) for a cell phone for my birthday, which will also help me to take better videos with my new phone.

Oliver rode his bike while Milo and I walked for three miles this afternoon. The weather was twenty degrees warmer today than it was yesterday. Milo needed to be carried off and on, but he walked or ran most of the time. I also mowed the lawn this evening so I got more exercise today than I had recently. 

Paul's mom told me today that she tested positive for COVID. So far she seems to have a mild case - she thought she had a cold until she got the results. We're praying that will continue to be the case. She contracted it either in the hospital or nursing home as she hasn't been anywhere besides those places for a month. 

We only have one week left of school! I have been either a student or educator (teacher, principal, professor, or homeschool mom) for the past 44 years straight and that will most likely continue to be the case for at least nine more years. I was excited about summer break when I was a child, and I'm still looking forward to it at the age of 49.

Earth Day

 

Camp Susque offers a program for homeschoolers every year on Earth Day. Today the activities included a 90 minute lesson on weather, lunch, and then climbing a rock wall for up to two hours. In general the weather has been nice lately, but that wasn't the case yesterday or today. Thankfully, it didn't rain today, but it was cold (30's and low 40's) and windy. BRRR! I didn't think Milo could handle being in his crate for 6.5 hours straight either emotionally or as far as having an accident. Hopefully eventually he'll get to that point, but I don't think he's there yet. So we brought Milo with us. Because it was cold and windy, they moved the weather lesson indoors. I alternated between sitting in the van with Milo and taking him for walks. If it had been warmer out, I would have stayed outside the whole time. I did stay out during the rock climbing portion of the day. The kids prefer climbing the rock walls at Refreshing Mountain, but they had a good time. Four of their friends were there (Ean, Ivan, Micah, and Isaiah). Nadia is looking forward to spending a week at Camp Susque this summer. We hadn't been there in almost 2 years due to COVID. 

Milo was very active on the drive this morning and the 5 hours we were at Camp Susque. He was tuckered out and slept on Nadia's lap on the drive home.

When the kids were playing on the playground during the lunch break, Nadia dropped Milo's leash at one point. All the kids tried to catch him for awhile. Another mom came and told me that Milo was on the loose. I went outside, and Milo immediately ran over to me to the amazement of the kids who had been trying to catch him. I'm not a dog expert by any means, but I can see that Milo thinks it's a game when kids are chasing him, and he can run VERY fast!

Oliver has been getting up earlier and earlier. I had planned to move his bedtime to 9:00pm in August, but I decided to move it up now in the hopes that he'll sleep until at least 7:00am. Because his bedtime is moving prior to his next birthday, I told Nadia that her bedtime can move to 10:00pm on April 30 rather than on her birthday in June. 

Paul woke me up the last two mornings to tell me something was wrong with the toilet in our master bathroom. Let me tell you that I am not very communicative at 4:00am on the subject of toilets. We had been planning to replace the toilet in the kids' bathroom this year, but this evening Paul stopped at Lowe's to buy a toilet for our master bathroom. We had previously redeemed credit card points for Lowe's gift cards so the toilet didn't actually cost us any money. Now to see when the plumber can come and install it. 

I had choir rehearsal last night for the first time in 14 months! We are singing at the pastor's retirement celebration on a Sunday afternoon in May. Ian and Oliver came with me and played on their Nintendo Switch during the rehearsal since Paul didn't get home until after 8:30pm. Nadia usually plays glow in the dark 9 Square in the Air for awhile after youth group is over on Wednesday nights, but since the boys and I were waiting for her, I had her leave right after her small group was done. The kids' dentist met us at church at 7:50 and tried to turn Ian's expander to no avail.

Thankful Tuesday

1. I've spoken with Paul's mom twice so far this week after not talking with her at all since March 24! She was in one nursing home for two days, back in the hospital, and then transferred to a different nursing home. She has also taken a few steps this week!! 

2. I had a nice long conversation with my friend, Joyce, on Sunday.

3. Milo's castration recovery seems to be going smoothly. He is very happy that we aren't requiring him to wear the "cone" or the pool noodle collar. Today was the first time since April 7 that he took a decent walk (2 miles round trip) with me. 

4. Spring has sprung! The trees are blossoming. I mowed the lawn and used the weed whacker for the first time this year. Many flowers are blooming! 

5. The kids and I enjoyed the Charlotte's Web performance at MCS. on April 16. 

6. Although in general we weren't impressed with the Maker Faire this year, the four of us enjoyed watching an outdoor performance of competitive Irish dancing on Saturday.

7. Ian really enjoyed Micah's birthday party on Saturday! 

8. Although I know things won't be completely normal this summer, it seems that it will be closer to normal compared to last summer. For example, this week I signed Nadia up for four days of diving lessons during the week the boys will be at overnight camp.

9. I made strawberries Romanoff yesterday for the first time (minus the brandy), and Oliver absolutely loved it. He has already asked me to make it for his birthday in August. The funny thing is, he doesn't like whipped cream and that's one of the ingredients!

10. We often go weeks without watching anything together as a family, but last week we watched three Left Behind movies together plus two new episodes of The Chosen. Paul really liked the second episode of season two, which was about Nathanael being called to be a disciple. We also played Rummikub together on Sunday. Nadia liked the movies so much that she's reading the books. She read the first book so quickly (despite it having almost 500 pages) that I checked books #2-4 of the series out for her from the library on Monday. I remember devouring those books in the 1990's.

Birthdays

I knew growing up that my Grandma Lillian's birthday was near mine, but I didn't really keep track of the date. As a child, I memorized the birthdates of my siblings and parents and that was about it aside from my Aunt Janet. It was very easy to remember hers because her birthday is one day (plus one year) before my dad's. I didn't memorize the birthdates of my cousins, grandparents, aunts, uncles, etc. As an adult I naturally have a longer list of birthdays to keep track of each year - nieces, nephews, brother-in-laws, mother-in-law, father-in-law, a few friends, etc. I still remember my mom and brother's birthdays each year even though I can't buy them a gift or give them a call on their birthday. Grandma Lillian passed away more than twenty years ago. I think of her from time to time as we have some of her artwork hanging on our walls, and I have a picture of her on a dresser in my bedroom. When I make couscous I always think of her because she was the one to introduce me to that food. I wasn't in the habit of remembering her birthday after she passed away, but the last few years I have made it a point to remember because it means a lot to my Aunt Tina. Her birthday was April 17. I decided to remember her by playing two games in her honor this weekend. Of all my extended family members, she was the one I developed the closest relationship with when I was a teenager and in my twenties. I traveled out to visit her on Long Island by myself, with my friend Joyce, and with Paul. When I was out there, she taught me how to play Rummikub. I also played Scrabble with her frequently. One of her talents was doing crossword puzzles so she had an excellent vocabulary. Last night Paul and I played a game of Scrabble together. I cannot recall the last time the two of us played a game without the kids. I think it has been years. Paul resigned when I had a 100+ point lead over him. Today all five of us played Rummikub. Ian and Oliver were on a team together because it's a game for only four people. Paul won!

Tomorrow is my friend Joyce's birthday. We've been friends for 25 years, but we haven't been able to see each other very often over the past 21 years. In honor of her birthday, I called her on the phone this evening, and we talked for two hours. I treasure meaningful conversations with close friends. Even though she and I don't usually communicate on a very frequent basis, we pick up right where we've left off whenever we reconnect. Earlier today I had a much shorter call that meant a lot to me as I heard Paul's mom's voice for the first time since March 24. That was music to my ears!!!

On Saturday we attended the Maker Faire in Bloomsburg. We had really enjoyed it in the past. I didn't feel up to going on the day it was held in 2019, and of course it was cancelled last year. This year the event seemed larger than the last time we attended, but it was very different. We preferred it the way it was in the past. The one thing we appreciated that they added was an outdoor area for performances. Because Ian attended a birthday party, we missed the Japanese taiko drumming performance, but the kids really enjoyed a 30 minute performance of competitive Irish dancing. I doubt we'll return in the future. 

Ian listening to a ham radio

Yesterday we tried another new recipe - Indian Tandoori chicken. I had to buy some new spices in order to make it. We all ate it, but only one person enjoyed it - Ian! Who would guess that the child who didn't like to eat absolutely anything when he was a toddler would enjoy really spicy food at the age of 11? I don't ever plan to make it again. I also don't plan to make Derbyshire oatcakes again - they are a British kind of pancake that has yeast and oatmeal in it. However, the kids dislike rice so much that they opted to eat leftover oatcakes with their chicken instead of the basmati rice I had prepared, ha ha! 

The robotic dog was cool, but the kids prefer Milo!

In the grand scheme of thing this is a trivial concern, but we haven't been able to turn Ian's expander over the last week. I turned it Monday morning, and we were at the orthodontist on Monday afternoon. I wish I had asked him to turn it once then! He said to turn it seven more times. We haven't turned it once since then albeit Ian, Paul, and I have tried many times. We have two more weeks to accomplish seven turns. The orthodontist only comes to the Williamsport office on Mondays, and he won't be in tomorrow. If we can't succeed soon, I'm going to ask the kids' dentist (who sings in the choir with me at our church) if he might be able to help us. I've turned it 37 times so far. I'm praying we can succeed with the last 7 times without an extra trip to Williamsport if at all possible. We already had one extra trip another time we couldn't turn it. I don't aspire to be an orthodontist that is for certain!

Charlotte's Web

The very first chapter book that I read to the kids was Charlotte's Web. We've only reread a few chapter books over the years, but I decided to read Charlotte's Web again because it's such a good book, Oliver was very young when I read it the first time, and we were going to see the play. Meadowbrook usually puts on a musical in March every year. Last year we saw their production of Annie right before the lockdown began. Over the past 13 months we only saw one other theatrical performance - Queen Esther at Sight and Sound in Lancaster. Meadowbrook wasn't sure if they would have a show this spring due to COVID, but several weeks ago they decided to do a smaller (non-musical) production - Charlotte's Web. We saw it last night. We were especially impressed with the performances of the boys who played Templeton and Wilbur. Nadia sat with friends, and the boys sat with me. Milo was only alone in the house in his crate for an hour as Paul got home from work at 7:30. Milo was very, very happy when the kids and I came home!

Photo credit - Nadia

Most weeks we only leave Milo alone in his crate on Sunday morning when we're at church. Because Milo had just had surgery, Paul stayed home with him last Sunday morning and watched the livestream of the service. Milo was alone at home for about one hour yesterday, and I believe he'll spend some time alone at home today and tomorrow. It's so hard to listen to him crying when we're getting in the van to leave. Hopefully as he matures separation won't be as traumatic for him. Ian is attending a birthday party today! I think it's the second time he's been invited to a birthday party in his life, and the other time our family was invited. I believe it's the first time he's attending a birthday party without any other family members present. Micah turned ten yesterday and invited ten friends to go bowling with him today. Nadia can stay home with Milo when I drop Ian off at the bowling alley, but I'll bring Nadia and Oliver with me when I pick Ian up because then we're headed to the Children's Museum for their annual Maker Faire. It's been years since we attended that particular Children's Museum (in Bloomsburg). We had a membership there in the past. Since we attended a play last night, we are actually having two field trips two days in a row. That's a big change. I put FAR fewer miles on the van over the past year than normal. In the last six months I drove fewer than 3,000 miles total. In contrast Paul drives 3,000 miles to and from work every 5 weeks. How much time Milo will spend alone in his crate today will depend on when Paul gets home from work today. 
 

Tomorrow Milo will be alone in his crate while we're at church. The following Sunday we will be voting on the candidate for our next senior pastor. Our current senior pastor is 70 years old. He started at the church as an assistant pastor in 1981, was the first administrator of Meadowbrook Christian School for several years, and has been the senior pastor of the church since 1989. Since the church reopened after the lockdown the attendance has been much lower than it was prior to the lockdown, but more and more people have been transitioning back to attending in person rather than attending online. The average attendance over the last several years has usually been around 1,500-1,600 and typically 2,000-2,500 attend on Christmas Eve and Easter. This Easter we definitely had the highest in person attendance from the past 13 months as about 1,200 people total attended the three Easter services. 

Photo credit - Nadia

Thankful Tuesday

1. Grandma is being transferred back to the nursing home today from the hospital. Hopefully this time she can stay there longer than two days! She will be in quarantine for fourteen days at the nursing home.

2. Milo's surgery was uneventful. The vet said to keep him in the crate with an Elizabethan collar for two weeks aside from when we took him for walks on a leash. We by no means have followed those instructions. I'm sure Milo is very grateful we haven't. We use a pool noodle collar when he's in the crate overnight but otherwise we just watch him like a hawk. He finished his pain medication today, and the swelling is going down at his surgical site. So far he hasn't marked the territory inside the house, and he hasn't been wearing a belly band. 

These two boys have so much fun with empty boxes!

3. The kids really enjoyed watching two of the Left Behind movies together this weekend. Nadia has started reading the first book (the adult not the kids' version), which the first movie was based off of. 

4. I only have to turn the key in Ian's expander for one more week. The expander could have been removed next Monday, but the orthodontist won't be in that day, and he didn't have any available appointments for the following Monday either. So the plan is for the expander to be removed and braces to be put on Ian's teeth on May 3.

Nadia's painting

5. The boys really liked the phyllo meat pie that I made on Sunday. Ian said to me, "you definitely have to make this again." It's a recipe that is commonly served in Egypt, Turkey, Greece, Italy, Armenia, Tunisia, Bulgaria, etc. Tonight I made cheese enchiladas for the first time. I made the sauce for the first time, and let me tell you I'll be using this sauce recipe again the next time I make any type of enchilada. Usually I make chicken enchiladas, but these enchiladas that I made tonight were the tastiest I've ever made. YUM! Thankfully all three kids also liked them! Paul hasn't had dinner yet so the verdict is still out on whether he'll like them or not. 

6. My dentist appointment on Friday was uneventful. Nadia was grateful to earn a little babysitting money. 

Nadia and I have been remodeling the Death Star.

7. The kids and I enjoyed having dinner at Red Robin on Saturday. Nadia was grateful for the shoes and clothes that I bought her at a thrift store that day. She almost wears the same size shoes as me! 

8. Nadia and Ian have been having a grand time building with Legos in Ian's room lately.

Nadia and Ian have been working on this 6 story Lego structure.

9. Some of the trees have blossoms! 

10. Ian has really been enjoying reading the book Scary Stories for Young Foxes. 

Noodle collar

Milo had a much easier time getting to sleep last night, for which we were all grateful as that also meant that Ian and Nadia got more sleep. I went into Ian's bedroom at 6:45am this morning because I heard Milo crying. I was relieved to see his Elizabethan collar was still on as that hadn't been the case the previous morning. Usually Ian takes Milo out first thing in the morning, but I took Milo out so that Ian could sleep in a bit longer. Milo usually takes a morning nap, but he didn't sleep at all this morning. He threw up a tiny bit once, but it had been about 4.5 hours after his medication so I didn't think that was the culprit. The kids and I left the house a little after 1pm for a creative writing program. Although the woman in charge is a professor of poetry at Bucknell, in reality it was actually a nature hike. Paul came home from work early as he planned to meet us for dinner, but when he came home he discovered that Milo had gotten his "cone" off and had vomited in his crate quite a bit (he wasn't 100% sure if it was poop or vomit). He also said that Milo was absolutely hysterical. So he decided to stay home with Milo rather than meet us at Red Robin. I had made Pennsylvania Dutch style chicken pot pie yesterday (no pie crust involved) which Paul likes so he's going to have that for dinner tonight instead. 

They didn't have any pool noodles at Walmart, but I found a larger one at Target and purchased it for Milo. I cut some pieces off of it, and threaded a ribbon through them. Milo is now sporting a pool noodle "collar" around this neck which looks far more comfortable than the "cone." I am pretty certain he won't be able to lick his surgical area with this noodle collar on. The pool noodle cost $4 whereas the "cone of shame" cost $26. Now we're trying to figure out if one of us needs to stay home with him when the rest of us go to church tomorrow morning. Milo has been on two pain medications. The vet said that if he had an upset stomach we were to discontinue one of the two medications so I didn't get him that one this evening.

My meal was free at Red Robin tonight because it's my birthday month, and we used a gift card the kids received at Christmas toward the kids' meals. The kids love the place because the drinks are bottomless (free refills) as are all the side dishes and also the macaroni and cheese, if you pick that as your entrée. Oliver had two bowls of mac and cheese, and Nadia had three bowls. We ended the night by watching part of the movie Left Behind. We'll finish it tomorrow. I thought it was a good time to do so since we've been studying the book of Revelation in our family devotions. Paul's mom was transferred from the hospital to a nursing home on Thursday, and then today she was transferred back to the hospital. We pray for her many times a day! 

Milo's surgery

Yesterday morning we dropped Milo off around 7:45am at the vet. He was there for a little over 5 hours for his castration. He came home wearing an Elizabethan collar or "cone of shame." He hates that thing! We tried making him one using a pool noodle, but it turned out the pool noodles we have at home aren't quite large enough to work for that purpose. We are going to try and buy a larger pool noodle tomorrow. He's not allowed to run or jump for two weeks, and the collar is to prevent him from licking the surgical site. Yesterday the poor guy was just miserable. If we are holding him or he's sitting next to me on the couch, we can take off the collar if I make sure he doesn't lick himself, but yesterday he just didn't want to stay on the couch. I don't think he consumed very much of the pain pill I tried to give him last night so this morning I covered his pills in peanut butter, which did the trick. The poor guy cried and kept Ian awake until 12:30am. For his sake and also Ian and Nadia's sakes, I hope he doesn't cry as much tonight. I was so tired that I slept right through it except for the one time Ian came into my bedroom around 11:30pm holding Milo and asking what he should do with him. I didn't see Paul at all yesterday, but I figured he was at home at that point so I asked Ian to ask Daddy about it since Daddy wasn't asleep. 

When I went it to check him at 7:30am, he was in the crate, but he wasn't wearing his collar. Sometime during the night he managed to get it off, and Milo was licking himself when I opened Ian's bedroom door. Today he spent a lot more time in my arms or beside me on the couch, but he did have to spend some time in the crate with the "cone" on when he wouldn't stay on the couch. Of course there is no way to communicate to him that he can't be active for two weeks. I cannot wait until these two weeks are over. We also got him microchipped yesterday plus paid for lifetime dog registration with the state of PA. Altogether we spent about $500 on him over the past week at the vet. Back in January I thought I had selected one heartworm medication and one for flea/tick prevention. Well it turned out I picked two different heartworm medications although the one does have some flea prevention in it. The vet had approved the prescriptions back in January. I wish they had noticed my error then. They recommended two different oral medications for flea/tick prevention that cost about $200 a year or one specific flea/tick collar. I chose the collar since it was $60 for 8 months. Hopefully it will do the trick. I had to remove a few ticks from him last month. Thankfully I had a PetSmart gift card so the flea/tick collar didn't actually cost us any money. Here's to hoping and praying that after he recovers from his surgery his desire to mark his territory will be far less.

Nadia started a little photoshoot of our three guinea pigs yesterday, and after she took quite a few pictures, she asked me to take some more. I will say this is one advantage of guinea pigs - no need for neutering or spaying them since we have three females. We don't have to worry about them having babies, and they have no issues with marking their territory. They occasionally poop when they are out of the cage, but their pellets are dry. They only pee in their cage, thankfully! Buttercup and Peppa are about 14 months old, and Jenna is 4.5 years old. Peppa is the largest of the three. Owning four guinea pigs over the past 4+ years has been FAR, FAR, FAR cheaper than owning a dog for four months. We do love Milo very much. The kids and I really missed him during the hours he was at the vet yesterday.

We're down to three weeks left of school! The boys finished their science curriculum this week. Nadia will miss the final ASL class in two weeks due to our field trip at Camp Susque, so yesterday was her last class of ASL for the semester. 

Photo credit - Nadia

North Dakota

On Sunday Yvonne and I were discussing our photo map that we have hanging above our television in the family room, and I pointed out which states we planned to visit this fall. I also shared which seven states weren't currently in any vacation plans - North Dakota, Louisiana, Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, Alaska, and Hawaii. At one point I had included Missouri and Kansas in the plan for the trip this fall, but I ended up including TN, AL, MS, AR, OK, and Texas instead. She suggested that maybe we should include Missouri and Kansas and include AL, TN, and MS with our trip to GA and FL next year. It got me thinking, and I decided to formulate a possible plan to visit all 50 states by the time Oliver graduates from high school (and possibly Nadia graduates from college if she goes to a four year school right after HS). I have to say I've never had a burning desire to visit North Dakota, but there is something to be said about accomplishing a goal of doing at least one thing in all fifty states. Since we already plan to be in Montana and South Dakota this fall, I thought I'd see if we could do something in the southwest part of North Dakota that wouldn't add too many hours of driving to our trip. The Theodore Roosevelt National Park seems to be the best choice. If we eliminate Devil's Tower, WY from our trip, then a trip into North Dakota will only add 2.5 hours of driving time.

That left six states that hadn't been put into a possible vacation. Nadia had asked that we visit England during her senior year of high school. I asked the boys today where they would like to visit during their senior year. Ian said Hawaii. Oliver asked for Africa at first (because of the animals he'd like to see there), but then he said Alaska. I have wanted to go to Hawaii for decades. I've never had a burning desire to go to Alaska primarily because I'm not a fan of cold weather, but I know it's a beautiful place, and again if we've visited all 49 other states and are able to visit Alaska, I'm all in! So I realize these are totally just hypothetical plans but here's one possible way we could hit all 50 states before Oliver graduates from high school. Paul prefers our vacations to be taken in the fall, which is fine when all three kids are homeschooled, but after Nadia graduates from high school that probably won't be possible if we want to include her on the trip. If these plans actually happen, the kids will have been in all 50 states, DC, England, France, two provinces of Canada, Guatemala, and at least one country in South America. Iguazu Falls and Machu Picchu have been on my bucket list for decades, but since the Towfighis will be living in Ecuador we might visit Galapagos Island and Quito. Who knows? We never visited them during all the years they lived in Turkey. We had talked about meeting in Greece at some point, but we never made it to Greece or Turkey. So hopefully we will make it to South America while they are living down there. Time will tell if we actually make it to all fifty states or not, but there's no harm in making possible plans toward that goal. 

• Fall 2021 visit TN, AL, MS, AR, OK, TX, NM, AZ, UT, CO, WY, ID, MT, ND, SD, MN, IO, WI, and MI for the first time plus spend time in WV, KY, IL, IN, and OH again
• Fall 2022 visit Georgia for the first time and spend time in Florida again 
• Summer 2023 visit Delaware for the first time
• Fall 2023 visit Quebec, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine for the first time and spend time in CT, RI, NY, and MA again
• Summer 2024 short term mission trip to Guatemala  (use that Spanish we've been learning!)
• Fall 2024 visit Nevada, Oregon, and Washington for the first time and spend time in California again
• Fall 2025 England and France
• February or March 2026 - New Orleans, Houston, and San Antonio which will be a first time visit for Louisiana and a second time in Texas
• May 2027 visit Missouri, Nebraska, and Kansas for the first time and also spend time in Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Iowa again
• May 2028 Hawaii!
• January 2029 meet the Towfighis somewhere in South America (use that Spanish we've been learning!)
• May 2030 visit Alaska, which would be our 50th state!