*The continuing saga of my families adventures.*See old posts on "www.joycerowley.blogspot.com"
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Wednesday 12/31/08 Happy New Year!!!...
We had a quiet day. We had rented movies from the library yesterday, so we watched them today. I put plastic on some of the windows. If we don't move by this spring, I may replace another window.
The kids didn't have any New Year's resolutions this year. I usually have a lot...but this year I just want to help the kids and move.
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Tuesday 12/30/08 the last full night of 2008...
I bought calenders for next year today. It is amazing how many appts. we have already.
The weather has gotten relatively warmer, it is thirty degrees. I need to put plastic on more of the windows.
I think that the next big project for next year is to paint the living room ceiling. I have been putting it off because the couch will need to be moved.
Monday, December 29, 2008
Monday 12/29/08 programming, friends and hats...
The girls had the neighbor girls over for a while. The group never sat still. They started a movie and then went to another room. There was a lot of laughter.
The snow has melted, and the rain has stopped.
I have started crocheting hats. I was getting board making blankets.
Monday 12/29/08 finishing one year, and starting another...
Saturday, December 27, 2008
Saturday 12/27/08 resting and warmer weather...
Friday, December 26, 2008
Friday 12/16/08 Christmas and Thank-you cards...
When we came back, the kids and I wrote out our Thank-you cards. It is nice to have them done.
I hope that everyone had a Merry Christmas!!!
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
Wednesday 12/24/08 Merry Christmas!!!
I need to wrap the presents tonight. I don't know how I got so far behind. Next year I will start sooner. My Mom and brother are coming over at seven AM to have Christmas with us. We do have a large family, but we are the only ones who live in this town. We call or e-mail everyone else.
We went to the Christmas program at church tonight. It was fun to see all of the little kids on stage. I will miss it when my kids aren't in it anymore.
Tuesday 12/23/08 ornaments and warm weather...
The kids are really excited for Christmas, and for being off from school for a while. This is such a fun time of the year.
Monday, December 22, 2008
Monday 12/22/08 dresses and snow...
I have heard that it will be a white Christmas. I am hoping that it will not be as cold as it has been.
Monday 12/22/08 candy canes and holiday preparations...
Today we need to find a dress for Beth, and if we can make ornaments for the tree. I hope that your Christmas preparations are going really well.
The first weekend in Jan we are...hopefully...going to volunteer at the Food Bank. I am really excited.
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Saturday 12/20/08 cold weather and preparations...
Everything should be done for Christmas. Today we are going back to church to hang candy canes on peoples doors with notes to invite them to the Christmas Eve service. Then we can come back and relax for a while.
Friday, December 19, 2008
Friday 12/19/08 crunchy snow and plans for the weekend...
Tomorrow we are going to have the kids make their Christmas presents. Then we are going to get dresses for the girls. William already has a suit. I asked him if he wanted a Christmas tie to wear. He said ''no'' very quickly. Then we are going to make cookies. We each also need to make an ornament for the tree. This will be a full weekend. The kids are so excited. The girls are out of school for the holiday also. Maggie is happy to have more time to read and Beth already misses all of her friends.
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Thursday 12/18/08 snow and hats...
I am starting to crochet hats. Tonight was my first try. I started to late, so the hat won't be finished tonight.
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Wednesday 12/17/08 Christmas...
William is enjoying his vacation. I think that he is reading.
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Tuesday 12/16/08 snow and Christmas cards...
The Christmas cards are almost done.Cheer, cheer...I need one address, and they can go out tomorrow. Maybe next year we will have moved and then I can address them sooner. Maybe.
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Monday 12/15/08 broken tooth and rain...
It rained last night, and then got really cold today. The water from the rain on the top of my car beaded-up and then froze. It looks like art on the roof of the car.
Monday 12/15/08 presents and ornaments...
Saturday 12/13/08 winter boots and vacation...
Today was William's first day of vacation, he looked very relaxed. I didn't get the Christmas cards finished today, maybe tomorrow.
Friday 12/12/08 snow and school...
William is finished with his finals. He looks happy. It will seam strange not to take him to school each day. I take a picture of the kids on their first and last days of school each year. Then when they are grown, the pictures can be put into frames and we can see how they grew.
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Thursday 12/11/08 weather and to-do lists...
We have started to receive Christmas cards. I still need to write out eight cards. We do have the stamps now. I will write them out this weekend. The warm weather a few days ago melted all of the snow, now it is just cold. We went outside to play today. It felt good to get out into the fresh air.
The other day I found my list of things that I wanted to accomplish before winter got here. I was able to cross off a lot of items.
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Wednesday 12/10/08 selling goldfish, winter boots...
The kids tried on their boots today. William's fit, the girl's don't. Maybe we can get boots this weekend. If we wait too long, they will be all sold out.
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Tuesday 12/9/08 giving...
I heard today on the World News that there is another site where teachers can go and post their needs, like paper and pencils. I am going to get onto the website tonight and see if it is something that the kids and I should do. It is at www.donorschoose.org.
It is a balance to teach the kids about making sure that they pay their bills...and take care of themselves...and give to others. They can't neglect themselves to help others, but they should be happy givers too.
Saturday, December 6, 2008
Monday 12/8/08 rain and game night...
We had game night tonight. We like to play Blokus. We are getting "Apples to Apples" and a second game for Christmas. I don't know the name of the second game yet.
Monday 12/8/08 Christmas tree...
Saturday 12/6/08 roller skating...
The kids faces looked so young, like they didn't have a care in the world. I want to enjoy life that much.
Friday, December 5, 2008
Friday 12/5/08 snow, roller skating and school...
William is finishing a paper that is due next week. He is almost done.
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Thursday 12/4/08 weekend plans...
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Wednesday 12/3/08 day off and volunteering...
I want our family to volunteer. I called the Food Bank to see if families can help. They said that they are open one Saturday a month and we would be welcome. I think that we will wait until next month, William has finals next week and I don't want to pull him off track. I am very excited about doing this.
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Tuesday 12/2/08 decorating...
It snows a little bit each day. The snow hasn't stuck to the ground yet, it is just pretty floating in the air.
Monday, December 1, 2008
Monday 12/1/08 other houses and windows...
The plastic has fallen off of the window in my room. It needs to be taped back up. It is nice that the kids windows have been replaced. Their rooms are warm and they can look through their windows year-round.
Monday 12/1/08 snow and playgrounds...
I think that I am going to start taking the girls to the park at night after school to play for a while. After dinner it is so dark and the neighbor kids aren't out. This would get us some exercise.
Sunday, November 30, 2008
Sunday 11/30/08 blogging, TV and moving...
I watched Kenneth Copeland on TV this morning. He is always good at recharging me.
I lowered the price of the house yesterday. It would be great to be moved before the end of the year. I would like to get the girls in a new school at the beginning of the new quarter. I hope that this works.
Saturday, November 29, 2008
Saturday 11/29/08 shopping...
Thursday, November 27, 2008
Thursday 11/27/08 Thanksgiving...
We have a white piece of cloth that we write what we are thankful for on each Thanksgiving. We use permanent marker. (If you do this, put some newspaper under the material. The ink can go through to the table underneath). We write our names and the date by what we wrote. Then years from now, we can see what we had thought about in the past.
The kids helped to put the left-overs away. It is always fun to see how they will work together. When they were young, the girls looked up to William. He would ask them to get him a lid for a container or put something away, and they would do it. Now, they all think that they are in charge. One will say to the other, "I need a lid for this container", and the other will say, "yes you do". They were all putting a left-over away and didn't want to leave their spot.
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Wednesday 11/26/08 Thanksgiving break...
The girls have off Thursday and Friday.
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Tuesday 11/25/08 Thanksgiving and game night...
Tonight we had game night, we played Blokus.Then I put plastic on some of the windows. The rooms always feel so much better after the plastic is up.
Monday, November 24, 2008
Monday 11/24/08 windows and houses...
I am going to lower the price of the house after Thanksgiving. I am hoping to move before Christmas. Can a sale be completed that fast? I am tired of having half of our things in storage.
Monday 11/24/08 raking leaves...
We raked the back yard this weekend. The kids and I raked all of the leaves to the front curb. The kids are so much older now and were very helpful. Maggie and Beth like to be in front and rake the first parts of the pile to the curb. William likes the end so that he can do the detail work of getting the last leaves into the pile. The yard is green again.
Friday, November 21, 2008
Friday 11/21/08 library movies and house cleaning...
When we got home, the kids and I started to clean the house. They vacuumed the rooms, and I washed the bathrooms and mopped the floors. The work is easier when a lot of people are helping and there are movies at the end.
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Thursday 11/20/08 neighbors and Thanksgiving...
We need to get ready for Thanksgiving this weekend. I still need to finish the Christmas cards...I would really like to send them out just after Thanksgiving. You know...if I spent as much time addressing them as I do writing about addressing them, they would be done. I should buy the stamps tomorrow.
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Wednesday 11/19/08 screen doors and choir...
The girls had choir tonight. They like to sing. It is very casual, they get a lot done, but it is not tense, the kids have fun. I think that they enjoy seeing their friends as much as they like singing.
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Tuesday 11/18/08 crickets...
Monday, November 17, 2008
Monday 11/17/08 flu shots, homework and plastic on windows...
It has turned colder. I need to put plastic onto the windows. I called the real estate lady and she said that it would be OK. Then people would see that they would need plastic on these windows too. She didn't think that it would hurt the sale of the house. I wonder...as soon as the plastic goes up, will we start top get people coming over to see the house again?
Monday 11/17/08
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Sunday 11/16/08 signing up for classes and "Bratz" dolls...
We literally went into every store in the mall that sells men's clothes to look for a winter jacket with a hood that does not come off (no zippers or buttons) and does not have any fur around the hat. William does not like the fur, he thinks that it looks like a girls jacket. We couldn't find a winter jacket. Last week when we went to look, we went to four stores. We were all tired after looking at the mall, and still didn't have a jacket. Beth had received some money for her birthday, so she wanted to go to another store to spend it. She had seen an MP3 player...is that the one that music can be loaded onto?...so we went to look. It was a store that we had gone to last week for winter jackets, but since we were there, we looked again...you never know, more jackets may have come in. We found a winter jacket for William. Cheer and clap... Beth decided that she didn't want the MP3 player. so she bought some "Bratz" dolls.
Have you seen the "Bratz" dolls? They are the ones that the feet come off and you can put different feet on them. Then the child doesn't have to slip the shoes on and off, they just put on different feet, that already permanently have shoes on them. It is really freaky to go around the house and see these stray feet laying around, or to see these dolls without feet. The new dolls have legs and feet that come off. The doll then had from its stomach up attached. The one that Beth got has three sets of legs. So we have two sets laying around without a body. This is even freakier. Maggie had the two sets of legs dancing, one set had ballerina feet and the other were regular with every day shoes on. Beth likes them. They come with lots of clothes.
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Saturday 11/15/08 birthdays, Christmas cards and busy weekends...
I started the Christmas cards last night. They all have our return address on them. I have written the note that I want to put into all of the cards, but it still needs written into each card. I decided that this could wait for another day. Maybe I will put all of the stamps on next.
Today we need to get William registered for the next term in college, get William a winter jacket, and get haircuts. The weather is turning chillier and it is raining.
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Thursday 11/13/08 this weekend...
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Wednesday 11/12/08 pictures...
Monday, November 10, 2008
Monday 11/10/08 decorations and weather...
Tuesday 11/11/08 board games and Christmas cards...
Tonight I am going to start filling out the Christmas cards. I found a new saying to put on my computer. It is ''You choose what to do with the time that you are given" It is from "Lord of the Rings". Making all of the lists in the world won't help me if I don't choose to get anything done.
Monday 11/10/08 winter jackets...
We went to my mom's house to see my Uncle and Aunt for a short while yesterday. We couldn't stay long, the kids go to school today. They are leaving today (Monday), it was so fun to see them.
Saturday, November 8, 2008
Saturday 11/8/08 busy weekend...
Friday, November 7, 2008
Friday 11/7/08 frogs and flower bulbs...
We also dug up all of our snowdrop flower bulbs. They are the ones that bloom in January or February. When they originally came, they were planted about a foot apart. Now each one has multiplied so that each one is a clump of about ten bulbs. The bulbs need to be dug up and carefully separated. Then they can be replanted. In another five years, all of them will be about ten bulbs. It is better to separate them each year...but we didn't. It will be nice this winter to see so many flowers.
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Thursday 11/6/08 pictures, papers and decorations...
We need to take the Halloween decorations down. It is time to get ready for Thanksgiving.
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Tuesday 11/4/08 tag and decorations...
We need to put the Halloween decorations away, Thanksgiving will be here soon.
Maggie and Beth switched jobs today. Maggie will now put dinner away and Beth will feed the crickets...that feed the frogs. This is a permanent switch. They are both sure that their new job will be easier than their old one.
Monday, November 3, 2008
Monday 11/3/08 Christmas cards...
Beth's Birthday is in November. Her present is now in my room. It needs to be near me so that it can be wrapped without the kids seeing where they are kept.
We have birthday's in September, October and November, also the holidays Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. The end of the year is very full for us.
Monday 11/3/08 crochet and dinner...
We eat dinner together. It is great to see the kids, to hear about their day. We talk about what is coming up that we need to plan for or things that happened that day. We are together at other times of the day, but only at meals are we all seated facing each other. The day's interruptions (friends, phones, homework...) are all gone, and we can talk.
Saturday, November 1, 2008
Saturday 11/01/08 Birthday party...
Friday, October 31, 2008
Friday 10/31/08 Halloween...
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Thursday 10/30/08 carving pumpkins...
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Wednesday 10/29/08 church...
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Tuesday 10/28/08 cat slippers and runny noses...
Maggie is getting over her cold. William, Beth and I are now sniffling.
Monday, October 27, 2008
Monday 10/27/08 Homework and Halloween...
It is getting closer to Halloween, Maggie has the sniffles, Beth is starting to sniffle, William is even sniffling. They need to be healthy before Halloween. Sometimes it rains on Halloween.
Monday 10/27/08 library and college...
This week has a lot going on: William turns nineteen, the girls have school pictures, Halloween, the girls have a Halloween dance at school..there is probably more, but I can't think of anything else.
Friday, October 24, 2008
Friday 10/24/08 snow shovels and Christmas cards...
We got out this years Christmas cards. One night I will put all of the addresses on them.Another night I will put our return address on them. I like to send them out right after we finish the Thanksgiving leftovers. If there is time I will add a short note about our family to each one. I write the same note on all of the cards. It would be difficult to think of new things to say in each of the cards, so they all get the same note. Last year the cards said...William is choosing a college, Maggie loves having a locker at school and Beth loves being the youngest. I am not sure what this years note will say.
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Thursday 10/23/08 trips and winter jackets...
We are going to get winter jackets this weekend. We are all looking forward to it.
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Wednesday 10/22/08 bike tires and ice skating...
When it gets too cold to go bike riding, we will go back to ice skating. There is an ice skating rink by us. We need to have the kids check their skates and see who has outgrown theirs.
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Tuesday 10/21/08 Bringing things home from storage...
I took the blankets to the laundromat to wash them. They are too large for my machine at home.We don't need more blankets yet, but it will be good to have them when it gets colder.
We brought the witch decoration home from storage too. It is one of those witches that looks like it ran into the house. It doesn't seam like Halloween to me without the witch on the porch.We need to get some Halloween candy soon.
Monday, October 20, 2008
Monday 10/20/08 cutting the plants back for winter...
The rose bush clippings that we planted are doing OK. We planted seven cuttings: one sprouted, five are still green, but haven't sent out any shoots, and one died. I hope that they make it through the winter.
Monday 10/20/08 Brakes for my car...
Saturday, October 18, 2008
Saturday 10/18/08 bird seed and waterdishes...
I would love to have the water dish out here, but we live sort of close to a small amount of woods. I am concerned that all of the animals would come over to get a drink. I really don't want the ground hogs in our yard.
Friday, October 17, 2008
Friday 10/17/08 Shovels and perrenial flowers...
My friends and I were talking the other day about which flowers will grow in their yards. They both have a lot of sun, so much that their hastes don't survive. They want to plant perennials next year so that they won't need to replant each year. I told them about our Snow Drops that bloom in January or February right through the snow. We water them all summer...well we water the ground where the bulb is, and then in the winter when we are ready for spring, they sprout. I am going to take them some bulbs for their yard.
Thursday, October 16, 2008
Thursday 10/16/08 New goals, leaves, and car wax...
Maggie and Beth were in the backyard today playing. They have ''adopted'' a leaf and named it ''Leafy''.
I waxed my car the other day and missed wiping off some of the wax. I went around the car today and wiped those spots. I hope that it is all gone now.
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Wednesday 10/15/08 school conferences...
We went to conferences at the girl's school today. They are in junior high, so we don't have a set time to see each teacher. There is a open block of time, and we go to teachers as we see that they aren't talking with any other parents. The teachers at this school are young, and full of energy. The girls are doing well in school.
William didn't have any school today so he stayed home. He really enjoys Wednesdays.
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Tuesday 10/14/08 raking leaves...
Before we decided to move, we had a compost pile in the backyard and we raked all of our leaves back there. We also raked all of our neighbor's leaves onto our compost pile. All of the kids in the neighborhood would come and help. No one had enough rakes for all of the kids, about twelve kids in all...so we used shovels and wagons too. We ended up with leaves everywhere, but we had a great time.
Monday, October 13, 2008
Monday 10/13/08 around campus and slow motion tag...
The girls played tag in slow motion tonight. Sometimes on bikes, sometimes on foot. It was very interesting to watch.
Monday 10/13/08 small pans ans apple festival...
We went to an apple festival this weekend. It was so much fun to go somewhere new. They had old tractors, made apple cider (the tractors didn't make the cider, people did), and had re-enactments with Civil War soldiers. There were a lot of booths showing old skills, like candle making, tatting (it sort of looks like lace), bow and arrow making, etc. We were only there for a few hours, but we were all pretty tired when it was done. We liked the demonstrations the best. There is a general store in town that we did not get to see, and we wanted to rent a canoe, but they were closing when we got there. We need to go back to this town again soon and see these things.
Sunday, October 12, 2008
Saturday 10/11/08 Halloween planning...
We also bought pumpkins. We got one for William too. He probably won't carve it, but we like William to know that we are still thinking about him.
Friday, October 10, 2008
Friday 10/10/08 this weekend...
Thursday, October 9, 2008
Thursday 10/9/08 frogs...
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Wednesday 10/8/08 day off and Halloween...
We need to get the Halloween decorations out. It is getting late, and soon it will be too late. We need to get the girls Halloween costumes too. We should get them this weekend. We can get the candy too and put it into the freezer.
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Tuesday 10/7/08 school and cold weather...
The weather is still cold...to us...not to our neighbors, who are still wearing shorts. It is going to get warmer tomorrow, then we can go back to our spring jackets.
Monday, October 6, 2008
Monday 10/6/08 fixing glasses, new assignments and bike tires
Next we picked up William and went home. He said that he may not need the Forbes magazine article for his class any more. The class may be going onto another project.
This evening we went for a bike ride. Maggie went around a corner too fast and fell off of the bike. She is OK. The back tire on the bike isn't round anymore. The bike wobbles now. We will need to get a new bike tire.
Monday 10/06/08 crickets and rose cuttings...
A few weeks ago, we took cuttings from my grandmothers rose bush and planted them. One has sprouted, and the rest are still alive...still green. I did a few things differently this time. After they were planted, they were given plant food. They were planted in an area that gets some sun and some shade, and they are watered with water that is not straight from the faucet. I heard that that water is too cold, and needs to set in the cup for a while to get to the temperature outside before it is given to the plants. Then the water isn't such a shock. I did water them every day for about the first three days, then I got busy with other things and they are now watered about once a week. It has rained some. I am so happy that one has sprouted.
Sunday, October 5, 2008
Sunday 10/5/08 SAT test and errands...
When we were done with the library, we started looking for winter jackets. Some of the stores didn't have the jackets out yet, but they were having great sales on summer clothes. The rest of the stores had a few jackets out, but they didn't have attached hoods. We didn't get jackets yesterday. Then we bought some crickets for the frogs to eat, and went and picked up William. He said that the test had gone well.
Friday, October 3, 2008
Friday 10/03/08 Spanish, watches and memory...
Maggie has a new watch. She is now our time teller. Sometimes she gives us the time once a day, sometimes every twenty seconds. Maggie gets really excited when the minutes change and she can give us a new time.
William has gotten a book on memory, how to remember more. One of his professors at school has told the class that someone has memorized a lot of the numbers in pi. So William wants to improve his memory too.
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Thursday 10/2/08 cold weather and books...
Maggie has four books to read. She says that only one is interesting, but she is almost finished with it. When it is done, she will read the boring books. Maggie can't wait until Saturday when we can go to the library to get her more books.
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Wednesday 10/1/08 dictionary and Halloween...
We need to put up the Halloween decorations this week. William has decided to not go trick-or-treating this year. Maggie wants to go, but doesn't know what she wants to be. Beth wants to be a witch. She just wants a hat...one big enough to go over a winter hat, so that she can wear it if it gets cold. When the kids were little we used to make their costumes. We used wrapping paper, and tape, and boxes, and aluminum foil. Their favorite was to be a present. We cut a hole in the top of the box for their head, and holes for their arms. Then we would wrap the box in wrapping paper. It was so cute. If you do this , get a box that isn't too big or too small. If a big box is used, and the child trips and falls over, they can't get up. If the box is too small, then it is difficult to get the box on over their winter jacket.
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Tuesday 9/30/08 dry-erase boards and winter jackets...
We tried on our jackets tonight. It is going to get cold tomorrow. We have gone out to find new jackets, but the kids need jackets with hoods that are attached, not snapped on or zippered on. We have not been able to find jackets that they like yet. In the middle of winter, when it is really cold, the kids can put up their hood, over their hat, and have that extra layer of warmth. Plus, if the hood is attached, then it won't get lost. It is a bother to find a jacket with an attached hood, but we are always glad that we did.
Monday, September 29, 2008
Monday 9/29/08 playing board games after ice cream...
Monday 9/29/08 driving...
Saturday, September 27, 2008
Saturday 9/27/08 window shopping...
We dropped the girls off at the church and then went to the library so that William could get a magazine article for his class. Next we went home for lunch. After lunch, we went to the mall to see the graphics on a new type of computer game, I think that it is called Blue Ray. The picture is computer generated, but it almost looks like live people, not cartoons. It is almost scary how close it is to real life. William also wanted to go to the bookstore on the other side of the mall. As we walked over to the other store, we stopped at a few stores along the way that sold electronic things, like robots and glasses that have television screens in them so that people can watch a DVD on them. Next we went to the bookstore. We looked at books for a while and then William bought a book. After we left the mall we went to the computer store to look at computer games. Last we got William a haircut. It was an exciting day.
Friday, September 26, 2008
Saturday 9/26/08 tempered glass and high school friends...
William came home today and said that he has run into another person from his high school. This graduating class was only about fifteen people. He has three of them at the Community College with him. He likes seeing familiar faces.
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Thursday 9/25/08 tempered glass and long tests...
After looking for the glass company, the girls and I went to pick up William. He didn't come out at the normal time. We waited a half hour and went into where he usually sits to see if he was there. He wasn't. We waited another fifteen minutes. No William. Is he hurt, and he didn't have any ID on him to have me called? Is he in the library? I thought about a lot of things. Finally we went to the security building. They said that no one had gotten hurt that day or had been taken to the hospital. I said that we hadn't seen William, were going home to see if there were any messages, and would be right back. At home there were no messages. We were ready to go back to the college when William called and said that he had had a test that had taken him a long time to do. I was so relieved. We went back to get him.
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Wednesday 9/24/08 future field trips...
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Tuesday 9/23/08 Spanish homework and holiday decorations...
Our neighbor brought home another pumpkin to add to their Halloween / Thanksgiving decorations. It is a cute display. We have a witch that we put up for Halloween. It is one of the ones that looks like she ran into a wall. We usually put it up at the beginning of October. The kids all help to bring her out of the basement.
Monday, September 22, 2008
Monday 9/22/08 Kids and winter...
I made a list Saturday morning of the things that need done before winter gets here...like trying on winter jackets...and then I managed not to do anything on the list. I did get some of the weekend jobs done...like making lunches...maybe next week I can look at the list again.
Beth got a lot of hair clips this weekend. She needs to practice using them before she wears them to school. So...Beth is putting them into her dolls hair.
Maggie is almost finished with her two new books. We may need to go back to the library in the next few days. She has decided to get longer books. Maybe it would be better for Maggie to get three longer books.
The leaves have started to turn colors. Since the big tree in our front yard is gone, we won't have many leaves to rake this year.
Monday 9/22/08 decorations...
Beth likes to take our tape measure around and measure all of the furniture. Then she goes around and tells everyone the measurements of all of the furniture.
Maggie is still playing with her Magnetix that she got for her birthday. Maybe she will get more at Christmas so that she can make larger items.
William has been doing a lot of homework lately. He looks very happy.
Saturday, September 20, 2008
Saturday 9/20/08 Mums and candy choices...
Maggie has homework. She must ask twenty-five people what their favorite kind of candy bar is from the five choices. I think that some of the choices are: Hershey's, Reese's, and Crunch. I don't remember the other choices. Maggie must not be able to ask the kids at school, because she is asking the kids in the neighborhood.
Friday, September 19, 2008
Friday 9/19/08 weekend and playing tag...
The girls played tag tonight with each other until one of them made the flowers in the front yard it.
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Thursday 9/18/08 solar ovens and school...
The trip to the amusement park was moved out two weeks. The girls are excited. So far the kids all like school.
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Wednesday 9/17/08 my car, weekend jobs...
I can't seem to do my weekend jobs (like matching outfits) on the weekend...I like to play with the kids...so now I am doing the jobs on Wednesday. It is working out so much better. I have been exercising for five to ten minutes a day. It has made a difference.
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Tuesday 9/16/08 crickets and Scientific Theory...
Maggie is studying Scientific Theory and variables. She has a test tomorrow. Beth has decided that she is a dependent variable, she depends on her parents, and brother and sister, and relatives, etc.
Monday, September 15, 2008
Monday 9/15/08 homework and solar ovens...
I started to call around to find tempered glass for our solar oven. We decided that Plexiglas wouldn't let in enough sunlight, and we didn't want regular glass, so I am calling around to see if tempered glass will be more unbreakable, but let the light in.We measured the inner tube. If we get a glass that is about three feet square, it will be more than big enough.We still need to cut the plywood...we have a large piece of plywood in the garage...and get a black pan.
Monday 9/15/08 neighbors, pastimes..
Maggie is still playing with her birthday presents. She likes the Konnects the best. She likes to make a rope, and see how long it will get before it is too heavy for the magnets. Beth is writing words for new songs. She wants to be a singer right now. She has a notebook that she writes them in.
Saturday, September 13, 2008
Saturday 9/13/08 amusements and libraries..
Friday 9/12/08 amusement park and bike rides...
While they are gone, I was going to have William and I go for a bike ride, but he needs to go back to the library to get a magazine and some books for his classes. If it doesn't take too long, then we can still go for a ride.
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Thursday 9/11/08 birthday...
It is chillier out tonight. There is a slight breeze. The wind chimes on the front porch are playing slow, soft music and the flags are rippling in the wind.
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Wednesday 9/10/08 dolls and houses...
Beth has decided to make a house out of cereal boxes. Tonight she cut the cereal boxes up to make the walls and started to tape them together. She wants the house to be about a foot tall. This house must not be for the favorite doll, because the doll is also about a foot tall.
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Tuesday 9/9/08 rosses, school, birthdays and dollies...
William is getting more talkative about school. Every now and then he tells me about something that he learned in class. He seems very comfortable with the new schedule and classes.He has now started to look for financial aid for next term.
Maggie is very excited about her birthday. I am not sure if she is happier about the presents or about finally being a teen. I think that she is board telling every one that she is a ''tween''.
Beth is making out her Christmas list. She really wants a doll like her favorite doll. But she says that it would be nice if the new one is a little bit bigger than the old one. I guess that the new one will be older than the current one...the old one can stay the baby forever.
Monday, September 8, 2008
Monday 9/8/08 growing up...
Monday 9/8/08 projects...
Saturday, September 6, 2008
Saturday 9/6/08 folding bike and rooting roses...
We took some cuttings from my Great grand-mother's rose bush last weekend and planted them. I would love to have a few more of this rose bush planted around the yard. Also, if/when we move, if we only have one of this plant and it dies, well...we would have none. But if we moved a few bushes, there is a better chance that one will live. My Great grand-fathers rose bush has rooted almost every time that we have planted a cutting.
Friday, September 5, 2008
Friday 9/5/08 weeds and toys...
We went to the store today to get William a new backpack. We ended up in the toy department. There were Legos and robots and dolls and Rubik cubes...We had a great time. William and Maggie like the building toys and Beth likes the dolls and dress-up toys. I am ready to Christmas shop now.
Thursday, September 4, 2008
Thursday 9/4/08 exercising...
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
Wednesday 9/3/08 school lockers and homework...
The girls do have homework this year. Last year the Junior High and High School had study hall during the last class and could get their homework done. If they had a question, there was a teacher there that could help them. This year they don't have any study halls.
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Tuesday 9/2/08 moving the pine tree...
Monday, September 1, 2008
Monday 9/1/08 holiday goal list...
Monday 9/1/08 birthday presents...
Saturday, August 30, 2008
Saturday 8/30/08 frogs, matching clothes, liking college...
Today we matched up uniforms for next week. Both of the girls are missing one uniform. We know that the clothes are in the house. It is very frustrating to misplace the uniforms. Some families loose one sock in the dryer, we loose whole outfits somewhere in the house.
William has said that he likes college and wants to continue on with it...instead of finishing this term and getting a job. So now he will start the financial aid search. He does look so content when he comes out of school.
Friday 8/30/08 showing the house, two scooters and seed pods...
Beth has been trying to ride two scooters at the same time. Her balance is good. When she gets them moving she can stay on and steer. The problem is that when she needs more speed, she doesn't like to take one foot off. Beth is still perfecting this skill.
Maggie found some seed pods on the hasta plants. I didn't know that hasta's had seeds. I thought that they only produced flowers.
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Thursday 8/28/08 evening adventures...
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Wednesday 8/27/08 radio...
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Tuesday 8/26/08 college and junior high...
The girls have started junior high. The school didn't have enough locks for their lockers, so they have brought all of their school supplies back home. They are hoping to have lockers in a few days.
Monday, August 25, 2008
Monday 8/25/08 school starts...
We had everyone's clothes all laid out, and their snacks in their lunch bags, and their sandwiches made and in the freezer...but Beth had left her shoes at someones house from the weekend(she took her tennis shoes and her flip-flops, and only came back with the flip-flops). We didn't realize that the other shoes were missing until it was time to leave in the morning. We checked all of the shoes in the house for a pair that came close to her size. Maggie had a pair of high tops, Beth was able to wrap the laces around her ankles to keep them on. She said that the shoes fit pretty well. Her shoes were brought back after school.
We take a picture(or two) of the kids on the first and last day of school. When they are older I am going to put them all into a picture frame to see in pictures how they grew.
School went well. Maggie is used to changing classes from last year. It was all new to Beth. The day did go well. We got school supplies tonight.
Monday 8/25/08 birthday/Christmas list, gluing Popsicle sticks...
Yesterday the girls decided to glue some of their Popsicle sticks together. Maggie has started building a house out of a cardboard box. The Popsicle sticks are going to be a shed for the yard. She is deciding if there will be one shed or two. Beth has a previous art project of colored stones glued to a piece of cardboard. She is gluing the the stones on that have fallen off. William isn't interested in gluing Popsicle sticks together any more.
Saturday, August 23, 2008
Saturday 8/23/08 getting ready for school...
If I have a chance I will plan the dinners for the week. We are almost ready to go outside and play.
Friday, August 22, 2008
Friday 8/22/08 William starts college...
We had the sprinkler on today. Maggie likes to ride her bike through it and Beth likes to stand in it.
Thursday, August 21, 2008
Thursday 8/21/08 no chicken pox, Maggie's birthday plans, sports...
Maggie's birthday is coming up. She wants Transformers and/or a harmonica (with directions). I need to get them this weekend so that I am ready. We can get the cake and ice cream later, but I like to have the presents ahead.
When school starts I want to put the kids into a sport. They were in basketball last year and they really enjoyed it. I think that it would be a great sport for this year too.
Beth has been drawing on the sidewalk. She has a few pictures. She likes to write all of the names of her friends and then color around them.
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Wednesday 8/20/08 chicken pox???...
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Tuesday 8/19/08 bike riding with the folding bike, alarm clocks...
My alarm clock still reads that it is January, but on the up side, the clock does say Saturday.
Monday, August 18, 2008
Monday 8/18/08 cooler weather, planting garlic, orange moons and atomic clocks...
If we are still in the house when the ground is about to freeze, we are going to plant garlic. It grows over the winter...or maybe it just sits there and grows in the spring. In the spring the green shoots come up out of the planted garlic and when they die and turn yellow, the garlic is done.
I went outside tonight, the moon was out and it was orange. I don't know if I have ever seen an orange moon before. I was outside with my new atomic clock. I have one atomic clock...an atomic clock sends a signal to the national clock somewhere in the west and brings back the correct time. The clock is always set correctly, even during time changes (as long as the batteries are good)...but I needed a second clock in case I didn't hear the first one. I am not sure that it is healthy to have the clocks waves going out by my head every night every two minutes. I hope that it doesn't cause brain damage...but I am guessing that it is OK and have purchased a second clock. The second one hasn't sent out a signal yet. We have had it for about two weeks. I set the time, and thought that it would set the date. It hasn't. The directions said that if the clock didn't send out a signal, take it outside at night, that is when it would get the best reception, and leave the clock outside for two minutes. The clock and I were outside for four minutes. The date still says January. I did feel silly on the front porch with my clock...but the moon was pretty. I don't really need the date on this clock, my other clock has the date...so...I am not going to set it. I may set the clock outside another night.
Monday 8/18/08 reading, essay's, weather and showing the house...
William has been working on his essay. He hopes to have it done soon.
The weather is starting to turn cooler each morning. I like the summer.
Someone came to look at the house last week. We haven't heard yet what they thought about it.
Saturday, August 16, 2008
Saturday 8/16/08 grass seed and sprinklers...
Friday, August 15, 2008
Friday 8/15/08 goals and ponytailes...
Beth had her hair in two ponytails today. Then later she changed to one. When the girls were young they used to have me do their hair...now they like to do their own hair. Kids grow up so fast.