What a week!

 Last Friday, while Nadia and Ian were at work, we learned two things. First, Paul needed to show up for jury duty on Monday morning, and Oliver discovered that our basement had flooded. This meant that the boys and I had to leave at 8:00am on Monday morning to take Paul to the courthouse in Sunbury before I took the boys to their Stronghold foam sword-fighting camp in Danville. Although Paul had to stay at the courthouse until 4:00, we were very grateful that he wasn't one of the fourteen people selected to serve on the jury for a murder trial. 

The boys enjoyed their camp. It was the fourth consecutive year that they participated in this half-day camp. The first two days, I walked while the kids were in the camp at a playground. The director decided that they should spend part of the time indoors on Wednesday because the temperatures got above 90. So we were told to take the kids to a church that morning. Cheri planned to spend time with me on Wednesday and Friday while the boys were at the camp. Typically we've walked in the past, but this year we had a late breakfast at one of her favorite restaurants on Wednesday due to the heat. On Thursday, the campers stayed inside the entire time because the air quality was awful due to the fires in Minnesota and Ontario. The air quality was much better on Friday, but it still wasn't normal, so the campers were inside for at least 2/3 of the time on Friday. Cheri asked me to come to her house on Friday due to the air quality. She lives about 15 minutes from where the camp was held. On Thursday, I read The Stolen Life of Colette Marceau in the public library while waiting for the boys. It wasn't as good as Theo of Golden (best book I've read so far this year) or The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife, but I did like the book. 

Every year while he's in this camp, Ian talks about joining a Stronghold club. This year is no exception. We discussed purchasing more equipment so it could be one of the electives in the co-op that meets at our home, but Ian really wants to join a club so he can learn more from Sir Estivan. Paul and I are not sure this is a good idea because Ian wasn't successful in keeping up with all his schoolwork in tenth grade, and he's already added three new things to his schedule for the upcoming year: voice lessons, chess club, and a job. Ian has no lack of ideas about what he'd like to do. For example, in the last couple of weeks, he asked me to get him some books so he could learn more about other religions (I got him three books on Mormonism, Islam, and Jehovah's Witnesses). He also mentioned he wanted to get back to learning a second language (which is a wonderful idea, but again I think he might be biting off more than he can chew). I don't plan on signing him up for a Stronghold club until I see he can successfully keep up with everything else. He's gotten off to a good start with John as he's memorized all of the first chapter (51 verses) and has started memorizing chapter two. He's also finished one book from his list for 11th grade English (Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde) and has begun reading Screwtape Letters, which is also on his list for next school year.  He's also been practicing for his piano and voice lessons as well as playing a lot of chess and Fall Guys, which is currently his favorite video game. He has improved a LOT in chess over the last several months, but he still hasn't beat Paul. 

Last Saturday I enjoyed a lunch date with Ian prior to taking him to the library to play D&D with some friends from church. On Monday night, the boys joined me in singing Christmas carols at a nursing home. I was the pianist for the group. Another mom brought four of her kids along, but mostly it was adults from the choir at our church who were singing Christmas carols (Christmas in July). On the way home, I treated the boys to some ice cream. Yum! Oliver enjoyed attending youth group on Wednesday night while Ian was at work. On Thursday, our new garage door openers were installed. We also enjoyed a movie together through Prime that I would recommend - Sheep Detectives. Wendy had suggested that one. I assisted a doctoral student with the survey instrument she's going to use in her pilot study, and I was asked to join the board of a local homeschool organization. 

All this to say it was a busy week. It was definitely busier than normal and involved more driving than normal. But for two members of my extended family, it was a VERY special week. My sister gave birth to her eighth son (Trevor James) this week. All ten of her kids have either a first or middle name that starts with "J." And my dad married Karen today. Wendy played a violin duet with Karen's daughter. Yvonne and I weren't able to attend the wedding. Paul and I are looking forward to meeting Karen next month when we help Nadia move into her dorm.  Not counting Karen or Margie's grandchildren, my dad now has 17 grandchildren from his three daughters. My mom never met three of her grandchildren (Wesley, Brendan, or Trevor). We'll probably also meet Trevor that same week because we are planning on dropping the boys off at Yvonne's house before heading down to Liberty.

Thankful Thursday

It's been exactly one month since my last gratitude post so here are some things I've been thankful for over the last month.

1. Ian enjoyed the cybersecurity camp at Messiah University as well as the time spent with Nathan, Jenna, and Toby.

2. Oliver enjoyed having time with Micah, Julianna, and Wesley at our house for several days. Micah, Julianna, and Oliver enjoyed bowling with our youth group on June 10. 

3. I was very relieved that the it was a simple fix to eliminate the strange noise the van was making that week.

4. Ian has been enjoying his job at the kennel and earning money. He spent most of what he made the first few weeks when he bought himself a Nintendo Switch 2. 

5. The boys and I enjoyed helping with VBS at our church from June 16-19. 

6. I am grateful to be able to serve on the board of Meadowbrook Christian School. My first meeting was on June 16. 

7. In June I managed to escape the bug that the rest of the family had. Nadia had the mildest case. Oliver and Paul were each sick for about two weeks. Thankfully we're all healthy again.

8. Paul was able to attend his Aunt and Uncle's 50th anniversary vow renewal ceremony and lunch. 

9. I'm very, very thankful that Nadia was born eighteen years ago on June 24! Four of Nadia's friends joined her at an art studio to celebrate Nadia's birthday on June 23. The staff member was so impressed with Faith's artistic skills that night that they hired her and she started working there on July 6!

10. I'm very thankful that Milo is fully recovered from his anal gland problems. It was such a relief when he finally ate some dog food (after 4 days of not doing so) and started walking again. The vet bills were over $600 which we weren't anticipating, but we've saved a lot of money over the years by me being his groomer and trading dog sitting duties with the Seiberts. Hopefully it will be a long time until we enounter another large vet bill.

11. Bible quizzing went well in New York last month. Ian's team finished in second place. They won seven of eight matches. Nadia's team finished in third place. They won four of eight matches. Nadia finished in 10th place in the individual competition, and Ian finished in seventh place. Ian has been listening to the whole book of John two times every day he works at the kennel. He's also memorized the first 40 verses of John chapter one so far. Hopefully he will continue to stay motivated!

12. Amazon offered us a deal of paying $3.50 per month for three months of Amazon Prime and then it is $6.99/ month after that. We usually only have Amazon for a month every now and then throughout the year, but at $3.50/ month I plan to keep it for at least three months. 

13. I found out rececntly that the place where I've had my mammogram done lately isn't doing them any more. I picked them because they only charged $200, which is much less than most places. Thankfully, I found a place in Williamsport that does them for $55 for two days in October. I'm hoping to get an appointment on one of those days.

14. Our kitchen sink faucet has been leaking for a few months. Paul replaced it last week. This new faucet has a lifetime warranty. I was happy to see that because our last one only lasted nine years.

15. On Sunday morning we weren't sure we were going to make it to church because we couldn't get the garage door to open. Thankfully, Paul was able to get it open eventually. We parked the van in the driveway when we came home. We got new garage doors in September 2020, but the garage door openers are about 27 years old. Lowe's delivered new ones today, and they are supposed to be installed next week. Since our other car is at Camp Susque right now, I've been parking the van where we usually park the Subaru since that garage door opener is still working. 

16. Oliver and Xandir had a great week of camp at PMBC. 

17. Ian has enjoyed his first two voice lessons. He's been working on Olaf's song "In Summer" from Frozen. Thankfully, his voice teacher lives only five minutes away from our home.

18. Ian really enjoyed playing cornhole with the Creegers at Ben's graduation party.

19. In light of Amazon offering us a deal on Prime, Paul and I watched the movie Sarah's Oil last night. Movies based on a true story are typically my favorite genre, and this one did not disappoint!

20. I *think* we've done all the paperwork and such for Nadia to start at Liberty this fall. Recently her PCP signed the immunization form for LU, and I requested that LU send LU her transcript (for the third time in 13 months) as ridiculous as that might sound. I also had to remind them that MCS doesn't issue transcripts for homeschoolers (as they requested that again, even though MCS sent them a letter last year saying that ). She got her ID, requested a loft kit for her bed, and completed a new student orientation course online. The only thing I'm not positive that she has completed is the technology assessment. It's all very, very bittersweet. We want our kids to become independent, but at the same time it's hard to let them go! I'm very thankful I'll still have two boys at home with us. 

Nationals times three

Nadia joined our church's Bible quizzing team in January 2020. Nationals were cancelled that year. I don't regret that I didn't join the team when they went to Oklahoma in 2021 as that is a very long drive, but if I had to do it over again, I'd have traveled to South Carolina in 2022 and Indiana in 2023. Both of those times the drive plus what to do with Milo and Oliver factored into my decision. All five of us attended Nationals in New York in 2024 and in Indiana in 2025. I thought the same would be true last week, but due to Milo and Paul being under the weather, only four of us were at Houghton last week. It was the third time Oliver and I were at Nationals, and the first (and only) time that that all three of my kids were participating. This was the sixth time Nadia competed at Nationals, first time for Oliver, and fifth time for Ian. Nadia was the captain of the B team. Her teammates were Lucy, Daniel, and Alex. Ben was the captain of the A team. His teammates were Ian, Leila, and Joey. This was Ian's third year in a row of being on the A team with Ben and Leila. The fourth member of the team was different each year (Faith, Isaiah, and Joey). Jillian was the captain of the C team. Her teammates were Isaac, Abby, and Oliver. 

A team

In the six preliminary rounds of team quizzing on Thursday and Friday, Ian's team was undefeated, North Rome A only lost one match, and Nadia's team only lost two matches. There were supposed to be eight teams competing, but at the last minute one team from Indiana changed their mind and did not attend. Our C team was technically the fourth seed, but they were beaten by large margins when going against the top three teams, and the matches were neck and neck when they went against the bottom three teams. So, the decision was made to have only three teams in the A division for the final found on Saturday. Nadia's team lost both of their matches, so they finished in third place. Oliver's team won all of their matches on Saturday (by 5-10 points each time); they finished in fourth place. Ian's team beat Nadia's team but lost to North Rome A. Looking at the three days of quizzing, North Rome A and Milton A each had only one loss, but because they lost in the preliminary round and we lost in the final round, it meant that they were the champions and we finished in second place. 

Boys

In 2024 North Rome entered the finals as the second seed, but they ended in third place behind our team and Sweetser. Last year North Rome entered the finals as the second seed, but a loss to our B team during the finals meant that they didn't compete in the championship round. Our A team won the championship from 2021-2025. Last year there was a three-way tie for second place, and the tiebreaker was the score on the writtens, which meant North Rome was in second place and our B and C teams were in third and fourth places. Three members of North Rome's A team this year had memorized all of I and II Corinthians. I am guessing our coach wouldn't share my sentiment, but I honestly felt like North Rome deserved to win as I feel their team was more prepared as a whole than our team was. Ruth scored a perfect on the writtens (answered 110 questions correctly). Her sister, Julia, answered 109 of the questions correctly, and one of their teammates answered 104 of them correctly. There were two reasons why some didn't feel the match was totally fair. First, of all they had six kids on their team, whereas we only had four on ours. If one or two of their quizzers quizzed out, they would still have four kids on their team, whereas if one of our kids quizzed out, we'd only have three kids left. Secondly, part way through the second half of the championship round, their team began eating up the clock. If they buzzed in first, instead of quickly giving the answer to the question, they would keep quoting from the appropriate passage until time expired. I don't think the outcome would have been different even if they hadn't worked to use up as much time off the clock. Daniel was one of our top quizzers, but our coach put him on the B team so that team would also be competitive. The coach of North Rome put all his best quizzers on his A team. 

C team

Ian listened to the whole book of John twice while he was at work this morning. If he continues to do that, I think he will be a much stronger quizzer next year. He, Joey, and Daniel have made plans to work on memorizing all of the book of John together over the next year. I hope they all achieve that goal! If they do, I think we will be better prepared to quiz against North Rome A next year. I think the fact they did not win first place the sixth year in a row will help at least some members of the team to be more motivated to study over the next twelve months. In 2024 Ian finished in 8th place in both the writtens and individuals. In 2025 and 2026 he finished in 7th place in the individuals. Last year he was in 9th place for the writtens. He wasn't in the top ten this year for writtens. Nadia finished in the top ten once in the writtens (tied for 10th in 2025) and twice in the individuals (tied for 9th place in 2025 and tied for 10th place in 2026). The plan is that Nationals will be held in South Carolina in 2027 and Indiana in 2028. I hope it is held in South Carolina one of the next two years as I have some places I'd like to visit in connection with Nationals such as the Biltmore Estate and Billy Graham Library. For five months Oliver kept asking Paul and I if he could stop participating in Bible quizzing. At the beginning of June I fnally agreed to his request, and then last week he told me he wants to stay on the team. Go figure. He told me he will memorize at least forty of the memory verses, which would be a lot more than he learned this year. 

A team vs. B team

June 21 was Father's Day. Paul's dad came up to spend several hours with us. Nadia made oatmeal raisin cookies the previous night as they are one of Pop Pop's favorites. Ian (using our handy dandy Walmart+ membership) bought Paul a jar of peanuts and Pop Pop a jar of cashews. Oliver made them each a card. I had some of Pop Pop's favorite ice cream in our freezer and bought shrimp for Oliver and Pop Pop to share. I also defrosted two ribeye steaks that Paul grilled for Ian, Pop Pop, and himself to share. I also served watermelon, corn on the cob, and mashed potatoes. The six of us played SkyJo together. Ian and Pop Pop played chess while Paul and Oliver played each other. Those four also played some Mario game on the Switch. I called my dad, and I also grieved a little for the baby we lost in 2005. I used a Father's Day card to tell Paul that I was pregnant, so I always remember our first baby at Father's Day each year. 

Unfortunately, Paul and Ian were a bit under the weather on Father's Day. Ian had started not feeling well the previous night. Oliver, Nadia, and I were the only ones who went to church that morning. That evening Nadia also started to not feel well. Thankfully hers was just a 24-hour bug. She called off sick on Monday, but I think she could have worked that day. Ian went to work on Monday even though he was sicker than Nadia. Thankfully, all of the kids were feeling fine by Wednesday. Nadia had a physical on Tuesday. The doctor's office is less than a mile from our home so we drove it two cars so I could sign Nadia in and pay the bill. Mostly she just needed the doctor to sign her immunization record for Liberty. I was gone for less than ten minutes, but during that time Milo was biting at his butt and caused it to bleed. I called the vet to ask if I should just clean him up or bring him in. They thought I should bring him in. They sedated him because they thought one of his anal glands was abscessed. There was inflammation but that was about it. Unfortunately, Milo takes after me (ha ha) and doesn't do well with sedation. Even though they gave him an anti-nausea medication, he threw up for the next almost 24 hours. He wouldn't eat or drink. I spent a couple more hours with him at the vet the next day. They gave him a shot of antibiotics since he wouldn't take any oral medications, and they gave him fluids under his skin. His behavior continued to get worse. He wouldn't even walk one tiny step. Paul had to carry him in the house. Thankfully, he finally peed on Thursday, and he pooped for the first time in five days on Saturday morning. He also started walking (at least some of the time) that morning, and when I came home on Saturday night from Houghton, he ate dog food for the first time in five days. I managed to escape the respiratory bug, and the kids are all healthy again. Milo is definitely on the mend. Paul didn't go to church again yesterday, but he is feeling a bit better today. Hopefully by next Sunday he'll be back to normal.

B team

We had booked an Airbnb (same one that Oliver, Paul, and I stayed at two years ago), but this time we thought we'd have it to ourselves as Oliver would be in the dorm with the team. It was very strange staying in an Airbnb by myself. My lodging in the dorm would have been free since I was an official, so had we known Paul wouldn't be able to come, I wouldn't have paid for that expense. My meals were free. I was supposed to get two t-shirts, but I wasn't present on Wednesday night when Houghton gave out free shirts (which would have been special to me because my mom attended Houghton in 1963), and some of the kids took a different size quizzing shirt than the one their parents had ordered for them so all that were left were two size small, and I had asked for size large. Sometimes I can wear a medium, but I know from experience that these particular ones run small. Either way, I knew I couldn't wear a size small. I'm hoping it works out for Nadia to be a coach or an official the next two years so that all five of us can be at Nationals again. Time will tell if she'll be able to do that or not. 

Since I drove a little less than three hours on Saturday night, I would have loved to stay home on Sunday afternoon, but Paul didn't feel up to driving Oliver and Xandir to camp in the Poconos. Thankfully, I stayed awake. That was not an easy task as I was very tired as I was driving out there. I ate a little something at PMBC, so I had an easy time staying awake on the drive home. Faith (and Melinda) will be driving out there on Saturday to pick the boys up. Nadia is at Camp Susque until July 18 so Ian had to ride his bike to and from work yesterday due to me driving to PMBC. The kennel is a little less than 3 miles from our home. 

Ian only had one piano lesson in May and one piano lesson in June, but I think he'll have five piano lessons in July. He's having his first voice lesson tomorrow. 

My dad also had a tough week last week physically. He fell on Thursday night and broke his back. Thankfully, it was "only" a compression fracture - no brace or surgery necessary. He still plans to get married on July 18. Praying for a swift recovery! 

Milo has been in our family since December 12, 2020. Prior to last week, the only times we took him to the vet were for his annual physical, immunizations, and to be neutered. Last week we spent a little shy of $600 at the vet which was definitely unexpected. However, when I consider that we have only had to pay for him to be at the kennel once in the last two years (due to swapping dog sitting with the Seiberts) and we only paid for him to be groomed once (I've done it myself since then), we have spent a lot less money on Milo than most dog owners probably spend over a 5.5 year period. Hoping we can go a long time before we encounter another vet bill that large. 

Oliver and Xandir eating dinner on Saturday night at camp

Bye bye bunk bed

 

Nadia and her cousin, Rachel, had a photoshoot last week

For four days we had four kids in the house, but only one was our own child (Oliver). Yesterday I drove to Messiah to pick up Ian and give Nathan three of his siblings. It doesn't feel normal yet to be a family of four, but for most of the year that will be the new normal. At least I keep in touch with Nadia via texting almost every day. Ian had a good time at the cybersecurity camp, and he also enjoyed spending time with Jenna, Toby, and Nathan. He and Jenna played multiple games of chess. I think she's the most skilled chess player when it comes to my nieces, nephews, and kids. Ian never beat her, but he said they got to an endgame several times, and Jenna said some of the games were close, which was an encouragement to Ian. He played video games and board games like Exploding Kittens with Toby and Nathan. Now that Ian is back, he needs to focus on finishing precalculus, finishing memorizing I Corinthians chapters 7-8, and working. He worked for over 5 hours today at the kennel, and including today he's working 9 of the next 12 days. Nathan isn't a morning person, and Ian usually relies on me to get him up in the morning. I was impressed that Ian used an alarm and got Nathan up each morning in time for them to arrive at Messiah by 8:30 each morning. Similarly, I was surprised that Ian was already up when I went to get him up this morning for work. 

Blackhead Coastal Path, Northern Ireland

Many of the Towfighis were sick last week, and some were still under the weather when they arrived last weekend for Nadia's graduation party. Oliver has come down sick, but so far, the rest of us are healthy. Hoping he feels better soon! 

Our van has been making a strange clanking sound since last Friday night when Paul drove us home from ballroom dancing lessons (which as a side note were cancelled for the rest of the summer, so sad). I was very nervous about driving it for over three hours round trip yesterday, but everything went smoothly. I usually do all the car appointments, but I was nervous they'd try to take advantage of me. The van had a safety recall, and it was due for an inspection by the end of July. I never take it to a dealership for the inspections, but since that's where you need to go for a recall and we thought if a part was needed to fix whatever was causing the sound, they were most likely to have it. So, Paul took the van for all three reasons today. They wanted him to replace the tires, but since they technically passed, we got our inspection sticker without buying them. I'll get new tires elsewhere this summer. Paul had hit a curb on Friday night, and when he did it had dislodged a cap or cover or some sort. They just fastened the cap back on, and Paul didn't hear any clanking on the way home. PTL! That was a big relief.

Milo used to alternate between sleeping with Nadia (on her loft bed) and Ian (on his top bunk). Last summer that came to a grinding halt. He slept with Paul and I for a couple of months, and then we gradually and painfully transitioned him to sleeping in his crate in Oliver's room, which is what he's been doing ever since. For whatever reason, when we got back from Europe, Ian started having Milo sleep with him again. Milo was back in the crate the last several nights while Ian was in Dillsburg, but yesterday he and Paul took the top bunk to the basement as Ian said he would just sleep on a bed at a normal height for Milo's sake. So, it seems that whenever is at home over the next two years, Milo will be sleeping with him. I had suggested this idea to Ian last summer, but for whatever reason he didn't want to do that last summer, but he did want to do it now. I'm sure Milo likes it better than being locked in his crate.

I'm continuing to make progress with the license plate game even though I had decided not to play it this year, ha ha! I saw New Mexico yesterday, which like Hawaii and Wyoming is usually one of the hardest ones to find. I have eight states left to find, and I think the hardest one on my list is South Dakota. 

I tried to call the IRS ten times over the past two days regarding a tax issue with the trust, and when I called at 4:48 yesterday afternoon, I was put on hold for the first time. The other nine times the call was disconnected due to high call volume. I even tried at 7:00 am on the dot as I had read online that was the best time to call, but there was already too high of a call volume at that time. When I finally got through, I was on hold for over two hours, but I finally actually spoke to a human shortly before 7:00 pm, and at 7:10 pm she told me the matter had been taken care of. Mission accomplished! I hope that I don't need to call the IRS again any time soon.

Eilean Donan Castle (Scotland)

7th trip to Elk Mountain

The first time my kids went skiing was in February 2017 when my dad and I took Nadia and Ian to Ski Sawmill. We could have also gone skiing for free at Elk Mountain that year, but we didn't begin taking our kids to Elk Mountain until January 2020. Ironically, February 2020 ended up being the last time that WVIA offered a free ski day at Ski Sawmill. Our kids have been skiing 4 times at Ski Sawmill, 7 times at Elk Mountain, and 1 time at Montage. I'm planning to take my three plus Nathaniel skiing at Montage again next month. The last time I went skiing was on January 19, 2021. I broke my ankle later that year and decided to retire from skiing and ice skating due to the plate that is now in my leg. We get four free passes through WVIA which we had been using for 3 kids plus 1 parent, but the last four years we've been inviting a friend to use the fourth pass. Jill, Nathaniel, and Julianna all went skiing with us in the past. Of those three kids, Nathaniel definitely seemed to enjoy it the most. We had invited him to join us again this year, but he is on a mission trip in Honduras with his church this week. He plans to join us at Montage next month. When we found out Nathaniel couldn't come to Elk Mountain, we invited Nadia's friend, Abby, instead. She took to skiing like a fish to water! Maybe she will also join us at Montage next month? 

Here are some things I am thankful for today:

1. Paul's dad was able to spend several hours with us on December 19 to celebrate his 84th birthday and Christmas. 

2. The five of us were able to help with packing meals for a food distribution our church did on December 20.

3. Although it was hard to drop Milo off at the kennel, I was very grateful to learn on our return that we would get a 50% discount due to the fact Nadia works there. 

4. The kids had a blast spending time with their cousins while we were in Chicago from December 22-27. We were also grateful that the Benners were willing to host the large group and that we didn't encounter and snow or ice while driving there and back. They played a lot of games, went bowling, (outdoor) ice skating, and (indoor) rock climbing.

5. Nadia and Ian enjoyed their time at winter camp at Camp Susque. Nadia was able to go sledding and also do some ice skating while she was up there. 

6. We celebrated Paul's 56th birthday on January 3 by having dinner at Texas Roadhouse. 

7. I found out on January 2 that Liberty expects the fall 2026 semester bill to paid in January. That totally caught me by surprise. My maternal grandpa paid for all twelve of his grandkids to go to college, and his money is now being used to pay for all of his great grandchildren to go to college, which is utterly amazing to me. I've been the one helping with the paperwork of getting the bills paid for my nieces and nephews, so I know from experience that most universities expect to be paid in August or September. Nadia's roommate paid her bill on January 2 so she was able to request a room in the dorm they had selected, and she indicated that she wanted Nadia to be her roommate even though Nadia can't accept that request until the bill is paid. The girls found each other through the Bunky app. Thankfully, the trust issued a check to Liberty this week which means in the near future Nadia will be able to request her dorm and roommate. It also means she can take her technology and math assessments over the next couple of months as those need to be completed before she registers for classes in early April. Thank you, grandpa!!! Nadia and her roommate (Carolina) have been making various plans including picking out a rug for their room, comforters for their beds, etc. There will be a total of seven girls in their suite, and they have picked two of their five suitemates so far. I hope the girls have a wonderful year together! 

8. Nadia is starting a weekly Bible study with a friend (in our town) who is also going to Liberty next fall. She also has a friend from church who is going to Liberty next fall so we have carpooling possibilities. 

9. Oliver enjoyed roller skating at Faith's birthday party on December 30. Nadia and Ian weren't able to attend due to being at Camp Susque. 

10. Paul had bloodwork done at the end of December, and his cholesterol had dropped some from last year. PTL!

11. Everything went smoothly with our skiing trip yesterday. Milo was very glad that Paul stayed at home. We stopped a Red Robin on the way home for dinner. I had received a $75 gift card to Red Robin from the co-op parents in November. Because it was the first Wednesday of the month, Ian and Oliver's meals were free, and they also each received a free ice cream sundae! This meant that even including the tip, we didn't use the full value of the gift card yet, which was great considering five people ate at a sit-down restaurant. 

12. We test drove a 2022 Subaru Impreza on Tuesday and paid a down payment on it. We hope to complete the purchase today. Paul's car was totaled a little over two months ago, so we are very grateful for the prospect of having two cars and are praying that we won't need to buy another car for the foreseeable future. At least this car is NOT gray (for a while both our minivan and Paul's Mazda were the same ugly gray). This car is red. It already has a lot of miles on it, but we only plan to use this car for short drives so we're hoping it will last for several years despite how many miles the first owner put on it in a short time span. I'm looking forward to a little break in the amount of chauffeuring due to Nadia being able to drive herself to work, take herself and her brothers to art and Little Mermaid rehearsals, etc.  

13. When the kids were little, I remember how Paul would laugh and laugh when I'd read a Ramona the Pest book aloud. We have discovered another author (Gordon Korman) who makes us all laugh, and his books are more geared for teenagers than the Ramona books. He's written over 100 books, so I doubt we'll read/listen to all of them, but we've enjoyed the seven we've finished so far. I think my top three so far (in no particular order) would be The Unteachables, Old School, and Slugfest. I used to read aloud to my middle schoolers in the early 90's. I'm confident my students would have adored his books if they existed back then. I'm glad we found another author we really enjoy! 

Thankful Thursday

1. On Friday afternoon Paul rented scaffolding for finishing painting in our foyer. This was nerve wracking for both of us to put it mildly, but thankfully he wasn't injured while he painted on Saturday and Sunday. There was a very tiny section near the top of the steps that he couldn't reach even when we had the scaffolding on the stairs, but he should be able to reach that part with just a ladder. He was also able to clean the chandelier and one side of the window while he was up there. If we ever move to another home, I don't want to live in another house that has this high of a ceiling. I love the new paint color. The part Paul painted hadn't been painted in 26 years. We had originally planned to hire a painter due to the difficulty, but we saved a lot of money by doing it ourselves. Paul returned the scaffolding on Monday morning. 

2. Last Friday I decided not to walk for 3 hours during the boys' Stronghold camp as I had the previous four days. Instead, I bought some clothing for myself and Nadia at Salvation Army (2 skirts and 2 pairs of shorts for less than $11 total) and had my first pedicure in more than a year. The boys enjoyed the camp last week. The last day (Friday) they stayed an extra hour. Afterwards, I treated them to a trip to Rita's. Yum! 

3. The boys enjoyed swimming at a pool party hosted by our church on Saturday night.

4. Last Friday evening the tickets to tour Ford Island (at Pearl Harbor) on August 8 became available at 9:00 pm. I logged in a little before 9:00 pm and tried to buy five reservations (only $1 each) right when they became available. I wasn't the first person to click "purchase" as some were already gone, but thankfully I was able to get 5 of the 40 reservations available for that day. They were gone in minutes. Paul would have been devastated if I hadn't been able to get them. Thank you, Lord! I am going to attempt a similar feat on Monday at 1:00pm when I will attempt to get reservations for Hanauma Bay. If I'm unsuccessful it won't be as devastating as there are many places to snorkel but only one USS Oklahoma and USS Utah. 

5. Shopping for bathing suits isn't exactly my favorite activity. Although I was never one to spend a lot of time in shopping malls, I definitely prefer trying shoes/clothes on before buying them. I know in some places shopping malls still exist, but they have become a thing of the past in our area. I had planned to try to buy a bathing suit at Kohl's prior to our merengue lesson last Friday night, but Paul was so exhausted from setting up the scaffolding, he just wanted to stay home last Friday night. On Sunday I decided to order a bathing suit on Amazon. I was thrilled to discover I had chosen the right size and liked it, especially since it only cost a little over $20. I'll be wearing a bathing suit more than usual while we're in Hawaii, so I'm thankful I have one I like and isn't one I inherited from my mom after she passed in 2016. 

All the counselors for girls' camp

6. I *think* our first vacation in 2026 will be to Europe in May. I can't plan that trip yet because I'm waiting to find a good airfare deal. We think our other trip in 2026 will be to the northeast part of Canada in August 2026. I can start planning that trip because we will be driving our own vehicle to get there. I am not going to be making any reservations for lodging or activities anytime soon, but I have begun to flesh out an itinerary. I like to do it well in advance and then revise and tweak it. I sometimes feel like it's a massive jigsaw puzzle as certain places are only open certain days of the week. I have us visiting some National Park sites in New York on the way up to Canada and some others in Massachusetts on the way back home that I hadn't been able to include in previous trips to that area due to the dates they were closed (or in the case of JFK the whole site was closed for renovations the last time we were in MA). I have a tentative initial itinerary (places to eat and places to spend the night are generally TBD) that is for 11 nights/ 12 days. Two days are in the US, one day each in New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island, and 4 days each in Nova Scotia and Newfoundland. When I was growing up, we went on several vacations in Canada. I had expected to like Prince Edward Island the best due to my strong affection for Anne of Green Gables, but my favorite province was actually Nova Scotia. I've never been to Newfoundland. It was tempting to exclude Newfoundland again due to the time and expense involved in taking a ferry to get there from Nova Scotia, but it looks like there are some amazing sights to see in Newfoundland, and we doubt we'll be in that area again in the future, so Paul and I decided to include Newfoundland. So far, the kids have only been in Ontario, but I'm hoping over the next few years that we can visit all the other provinces. I doubt Nadia will visit all of them, but I do think she can join us to visit these four provinces. I enjoy learning more about different places through all the research I do prior to planning a vacation. Did you know that the only place on earth where you can walk on the earth's mantle is in Gros Morne Park in Newfoundland? The Bay of Fundy has the highest tidal range in the world. We're planning to visit Hopewell Rocks, and Oliver is hoping it will work out for us to go on a tidal bore rafting trip in Nova Scotia at high tide. If this trip does happen, I'm planning to buy a photo map of the provinces of Canada that I can hang on the wall and fill like I have done for the states of the US over the last several years. Since there are only ten provinces in Canada, the kids will have been in half of them after this trip since they've already been to Ontario. 

7. It's been very hot over the last week. I'm thankful for air conditioning, and I'm thankful it's not as hot today as Paul and I have only been walking Milo once a day lately due to the heat.

8. Even though the warehouse isn't air conditioned (it was 90 degrees inside while we were there), we didn't let that stop the three of us from volunteering at Experience Missions yesterday morning. We were packing kits for Voice of the Martyrs. Thankful for an opportunity to serve. 

9. Our separation from Nadia is *almost* done! I will be picking her up on Saturday evening. I'm looking forward to talking to her later today. I haven't talked to her in eight days. I'm thankful she's been able to work at a Christian camp this summer. 

10. The mirror cover is going to be replaced on our van at 1:00 today. Thankful!

11. On Monday night Oliver asked to go on a date with Paul to Bonanza. We hadn't eaten there since December 2022. Monday is family night, which means the adult and children's prices are reduced a little, and Oliver will only qualify for the kids' rate for a few more days as he turns 13 next week. They enjoyed their meal. Oliver is the most proactive of our three kids when it comes to requesting to have a date with one of us. 

Thankful Thursday

1. Our new refrigerator was delivered on Tuesday morning! 

2. I got to talk on the phone with Nadia for a little over 30 minutes yesterday afternoon!

3. I had an appointment more than a month ago for an oil change, inspection, and tire rotation. The shop went out of business, and the other shops in that chain weren't able to do inspections for more than a month. I went elsewhere for the oil change prior to our trip to Indiana, but I was finally able to get the inspection done on July 22, and they didn't charge me anything for the tire rotation, which was the reason I didn't get that done in conjunction with the oil change last month. The insurance has been dragging their feet as far as approving the replacement of the cover for the driver's side mirror that was cracked by the deer in March, but they finally approved that this week. 

4. The boys have been involved in a Stronghold (foam sword fighting) class from 9-12 this week. It's their third year to participate. The camp only costs $10 per kid! Since it's been held at a location that is a little over 30 minutes from our home, I've been walking during the camp. I've been walking over 10 miles a day this week! I also have talked on the phone with some friends and family while I've been walking. Tomorrow I'm hoping to treat myself to my first pedicure in more than a year. 

5. Oliver and I had a date on Saturday afternoon. I took him to see a performance of the musical Annie. The director was the same pastor who directed the performances of Sound of Music that I was in.

6. I had my annual mammogram on July 9, and they called me yesterday to tell me the results were normal.

Thankful Thursday

 1. Paul and I had our first merengue lesson on July 11. So far, we prefer salsa, but maybe the next three lessons will change our opinion. 

2. Ian and Oliver came home on Saturday!!! They had a good week at camp, and I am very grateful to have them back at home. We saw Nadia for a few minutes before we left, and we talked to her on the phone a little on Monday. I loved hearing all the boys sing (very boisterously) "Victory in Jesus" at the closing ceremony of camp on Saturday morning. 

3. The Seiberts picked Cooper up on Saturday evening. I'm so glad we can swap dog sitting services. I would estimate the dogs spend about 3 months a year together (some of that at our house and some at theirs). 

4. I received a lot of positive feedback after I taught a lesson on Titus on Sunday morning. 

5. Ian enjoyed participating in the youth group's talent show on Wednesday night. 

6. The boys and I were able to help at Experience Missions this morning. One of the projects we were working on was packing aid for moms/newborn babies in Zambia.

7. We've lived in this house for seventeen years, and we've never had the house pressure washed. One side in particular was needing to be washed. The house was pressure washed today. Given how much it costs I don't want to do it frequently, but I have a feeling it's the first time it's been done on this house, and the house is 26 years old. The exterior of our house looks much better now!

8. Last Friday we discovered that the ice cream in our freezer was melting, which led to the discovery that both sides of the refrigerator were not at the correct temperatures despite the fact they were set to the correct temperatures. On Saturday Paul began to try several different things to see if he could fix it. Once he figured out at least one of the problems, we decided it was better to just get a new refrigerator because there was no guarantee replacing one part would be sufficient. The refrigerator is nine years old, and it seems the average lifespan for one is 10-15 years. In light of that, it seemed it wasn't worth it to put significant money into one that was 9 years old. Thankfully, we have a freezer in the basement, so we were able to move everything that had been in the freezer side of our refrigerator downstairs. The trickier part was keeping what had been in the refrigerator side chilled. We moved some things to the freezer side. I did research on Saturday and chose a freezer from Lowe's. I paid for two-day delivery. On Sunday night we were told they would deliver it between 1-5pm on Monday. At 2:11 on Monday I got a text saying we were their next stop. We unplugged the refrigerator, emptied it, and put Milo in the crate as instructed. Two hours later I called to ask where they were and was told that I had requested the delivery be rescheduled. What?!?!? After several phone calls with the delivery service and also with Lowe's, I found out that the soonest they could deliver it now was Wednesday. Given I had paid extra for two-day delivery and that I had narrowed my search to those available for delivery on Monday, I cancelled my order. I also wasn't wanting to give my business to Lowe's if the delivery service they use was going to outright lie to me. On Tuesday I called a local (small business) appliance store. I selected another refrigerator. It was supposed to be delivered tomorrow, but he called me this evening to say that the delivery truck was missing three items, and my refrigerator was one of them. Now it's scheduled to be delivered on Tuesday. Wow this has been an ordeal. Thankfully, a family member has generously offered to pay for our new refrigerator, which was unexpected and greatly appreciated as aside from a tax refund from the IRS, we haven't had any income for 9 months. I'm also thankful that our refrigerator is partially working. We have our milk in the section that's supposed to be the freezer. I'm hoping that it will continue to at least partially work until our new one comes, and hopefully there won't be any more delays. Patience is a virtue, right? 

9. The last several days we've been playing games together. The four of us played monopoly three times (I won twice, and Oliver won once). The boys and I have also played Quiddler, Connect Four, Milles Borne, and Backgammon multiple times. Ian and Paul played chess. 

10. Today is my sister's 49th birthday. We typically go many months without touching base, so it was nice to chat with her today for about 30 minutes. 

Thankful Thursday

1. As our country celebrated its 249th birthday last week, I'm thankful that I'm an American. We were together as a family of five on July 4th with one extra dog (Cooper). We had corn on the cob, hot dogs, baked beans, hamburgers, etc., played Skyjo, and watched a movie together. Oliver used some of the fireworks he had recently purchased. We were not celebrating the "big bill" that Trump signed that day (and we certainly don't want to use the adjective "beautiful" to describe it), but we are very grateful for the freedoms we have as citizens of the USA. 

2. I have received some text messages from Nadia while she's at Camp Susque. I am looking forward to picking up the three boys on Saturday morning. I sent Ian and Oliver each one email a day for the last five days. The staff print out the emails and deliver them to the campers at lunch. I'm thankful the camp posts pictures that they've taken of the kids so I have gotten some small glimpses into what they've been doing this week.

3. I enjoyed teaching a lesson on Titus 1 on Sunday. I am looking forward to teaching on Titus 2-3 in three days.

4. While the kids have been away Paul and I have enjoyed having time for just the two of us. We played Scrabble, watched 6 episodes of The Testament, etc. I also have had the time for some lengthy phone conversations with Tab, my dad, and Joyce. 

5. Yesterday I was able to help at Experience Missions for a few hours. We were working on preparing supplies for babies in Zambia. 

6. Last year my mammogram cost me $300. I was pleasantly surprised that my mammogram yesterday "only" cost $200 because I had it in a mobile unit. Given most things have gone UP in price a lot over the last few years, I'm always thrilled when something comes down in price. 

7. I was able to make our reservations for the Diamond Head trail today. I have to wait until July 25 to make our reservations for Ford Island and until August 4 for Hanauma Bay. Hopefully I will also have success with those. 

8. It wasn't beastly hot or humid when I mowed the lawn early this morning. PTL! 

9. I get a haircut about three times a year on average, and it was nice to take care of that today while Paul was away helping his dad and the kids were all at camp. 

10. I found another legal thriller author whose books I enjoy - Rick Acker.

11. I sanded, primed, and painted two more doorframes in the upstairs hallway this week. Progress.

12. We haven't received any bills related to the plastic shield that was damaged under the van we rented. Since it's been more than six weeks since we returned the vehicle, I'm hoping that means we're not going to receive any bills. That would be wonderful. 

New school year

 In Pennsylvania, the school year for homeschooling is from July 1- June 30. Looking back at the last school year, we listened to 87 audiobooks together (some of those I read aloud).  During the first few days of July, we finished our first two audiobooks for the 2025-26 school year - Lines of Courage by Jennifer Nielsen and Urchin of the Riding Stars by M.I. McAllister. During sixth grade Oliver read 25 books and listened to 4 audiobooks independently. During eleventh grade Nadia read 12 books and listened to 3 audiobooks independently. Ian read 9 books during ninth grade. We went on 38 field trips. The vast majority of those were during our vacations. The number of Junior Ranger badges earned varied by child, but the maximum anyone earned this past school year was 13. During this current school year I think almost all of our field trips will be during our vacations in Hawaii and Europe and also in conjunction with our trip to South Carolina for Bible quizzing next summer. I think the kids could each earn 11 more Junior Ranger badges during this school year. 

Nadia is beginning her 13th year of homeschooling. She'll only be earning three high school credits with me this year. She's registered to take two theology classes, Developmental Psychology, Astronomy, and Earth Science through Liberty University (13 credits total). I'm planning to register her to take College Algebra through Arizona State University. She plans to learn to parallel park and get her driver's license in September. Nadia is employed by Warrior Run Petcare as well as Camp Susque. She works at the kennel year-round but primarily works at the camp in the summer although she does plan to work there some weekends in October and December. 

I submitted the form to register Ian to take his first college classes this fall. If all goes as planned, he'll be taking Speech and a Bible class this fall, and I plan to have him take Old Testament and a Humanities class in the spring through Cedarville (12 credits total). He takes a 45-minute piano lesson each week and is working on playing Rachmaninoff's Prelude in C# by memory at the next recital. Ian will take the PSAT for the first time this fall.

Math - Math 7 (Teaching Textbooks) for Oliver, Advanced Mathematics (Saxon) for Ian, and College Algebra (ASU) for Nadia, Life of Fred: Trigonometry for Nadia and Ian, and Pre-Algebra 0 with Physics for Oliver (Life of Fred)

Science - Physics for Ian and Nadia (experiments will be done during our co-op on Tuesdays) and Physical Science for Oliver

Art - all three are taking an art class that meets twice a week at Meadowbrook

Drama - Nadia and Ian plan to audition to be in The Little Mermaid. Oliver wants to work backstage. We will also be doing drama in our co-op this fall.

Social Studies - We've gone through a four-year history program that went from Creation to the present twice. Instead of studying history this year, we are doing one semester of government and another of economics. The kids will also finish the second half of Dave Ramsey's Personal Finance class on Tuesdays during co-op.

English - This is the first year that I won't have any kids using a spelling or handwriting curriculum. Most of the writing assignments this school year will be related to our study of government. Ian and Nadia will be reading Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, Perelandra and That Hideous Strength by C.S. Lewis, Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, Crime and Punishment by Dostoevsky, and The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne. They will also complete a literature guide for one of our audiobooks (Born Again by Charles Colson). Nadia will also read Jane Eyre while Ian reads A Tale of Two Cities. Oliver is going to read six books from The Chronicles of Narnia, The Wizard of Oz by Frank Baum, and Listening for Lions by Gloria Whelan. Oliver will be working through level 4 of Fix It Grammar.

Bible - All three will be memorizing verses from 1 and 2 Corinthians this year. Bible is the one subject I haven't finished as far as lesson plans.

Thankful Thursday

 1. I'm thankful for Nadia's two employers - Camp Susque and Warrior Run Petcare. Nadia has an opportunity to make some money, learn new skills, and be a blessing to others. Her boss gave her a very generous Christmas gift.

2. I'm thankful for the Bible quizzing program at our church. In addition to studying God's Word, this group has been where they have developed friendships at church. We're not planning on allowing Oliver to compete in Oklahoma this summer, but he did compete at a competition at our church last month and will do so again this weekend. I served as a score keeper at the quiz in December.

3. We appreciated being able to spend time with extended family in December. When I asked the kids what was the most memorable thing that happened in 2024, Ian's response was spending time with cousins in Maryland as we celebrated Christmas. We were able to celebrate Christmas with my dad, my sisters, their husbands, and their children for the first time in ten years, and no one got sick! 

4. The kids enjoyed having three friends join us as we celebrated Ian's 15th birthday with an overnight trip to Camelback Resort's indoor waterpark. 

5. The kids were able to participate in the Christmas program at Meadowbrook Christian School. 

6. Paul was able to take each of the boys on a date to see a movie. Oliver chose the newest Lord of the Rings movie, and Ian chose the newest Sonic movie. 

7. Nadia, Cheri, and I enjoyed a Christmas concert by Tasha Layton. 

8. Cheri recently purchased a home and some furniture through an auction. She gave Nadia one of the dressers that she didn't have use for. It's gorgeous! I think Nadia now owns the nicest dresser in our house. She needed a second dresser to store her clothes. 

9. Oliver and Xandir enjoyed spending a couple of hours at Kaos at an event for homeschoolers.

10. The Van Horns had us over for dinner on December 22 at their home. 

11. The small group Paul and I have been in on Wednesday nights since September 2023 came to an end recently. Paul and I discussed various options and finally decided that I'd see if I could lead a small group Bible study. Most of the midweek groups resumed yesterday, but our group's start date is January 22 due to skiing yesterday and Ian's surgery next week. I'm enjoying studying Zechariah!

12. The kids enjoyed ice skating with their cousins in Maryland, and Paul took Oliver to a free ice-skating party on December 29.

13. Ian and Nadia enjoyed Freeze winter camp. It was Ian's first time. Nadia really enjoyed working during Blast camp. Next year she plans to work during Freeze and attend Blast. 

14.  Since 2017 we've been taking the kids skiing at least once a year for free through our membership with WVIA. The first three years we skied at Ski Sawmill. In 2020 we took the kids skiing twice as we also went to Elk Mountain for the first time. 2020 ended up being the last time WVIA had a ski day at Ski Sawmill. We receive four free rentals/lift tickets. Sometimes we've invited one of Nadia's friends to use the fourth one. Jill and Julianna both went skiing with us once. This year we invited quite a few different people to use the fourth one, and in the end, it was Nathaniel who said yes. He learned how to ski very quickly! Paul and I played games in the lodge. Nadia and Ian joined us part of the time because it was VERY cold out yesterday. We had dinner at TGI Fridays. It seemed to me that they lowered their prices compared to the last time we were at one of those restaurants which was a pleasant surprise! We hadn't been to one since September 2022. We are hoping to ski one more time this winter with the Towfighis.