February 28, 2022

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  • I try to be positive on Mondays, but man, some Mondays are just hard. I did wake up a bit early so that did help things-well, I didn't get out of bed early so that probably actually didn't really help! 
  • After waking everyone up, we did our morning reading together. The kids do seem interested in one of our books that I am reading, and I love that book. Actually, I have a book similar coming from the library to read myself that is from the same time period, and I can't wait.
  • I started working with everyone individually today but did stop when I finally saw Reagan's act scores come through. I think she did decent for her very first standardized test. She did get what she needed on the english subtest, but not in math or reading. We will start studying for the accuplacer test soon-probably tomorrow. I think that she might have been a bit bummed about her scores especially since she had a friend trying to get a 32 while she is just trying to get a 20.
  • I worked all morning and was surprised to realize that it was already 1:30 when I stopped. I think that is why I dread Mondays so-there is lots of work to be done, and it usually takes a while.
  • Tuesdays are a bit easier since Reagan and Anderson are gone. I am not sure why that makes things easier since they are relatively easy. Tomorrow won't be too much easier since Whitman didn't do much today, we have to leave early in the afternoon, and then when I do come home Reagan and Anderson will still have work to do. But we will worry about tomorrow when tomorrow comes.
  • Campbell did have a wire come off of her bracket last night, so I did call the orthodontist. They had an appointment for us at noon, so thankfully Robby was able to take her there. She said that the appointment lasted 7 only minutes.
  • Anderson needed to drive some today since his test is Friday. He took me to the library which has become our standard route. I probably should have taken him a bit further, but he wanted to go to the library so he could spend a gift card at McDonalds. He bought himself and Graham oreo mcflurries. They were crazy expensive which he was not expecting (nor was I), and they were not even mixed up well, It was a bit of a disappointment.
  • When we did come home, we played a bit more of our Monopoly game. Whitman and I are now out of the game. Graham is just a few turns away from also being out of the game. Campbell has loads of money and will probably be the winner, but Keaton and Anderson are trying to hold on.
  • After we played, the boys all left with Robby for a dinner at church. While they were gone, I walked on the treadmill. Then I made tostados for the girls' supper. I barely made enough, but I think that everyone left full. 
  • Campbell is making us brownies right now while Reagan is practicing the keyboard upstairs. Keaton is on the phone with her friend (well, I guess I should say on MY phone with her friend). I expect that the boys will be home any minute now. 

February 27, 2022

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  • For this Sunday morning we were not too rushed. I did find out about 10 minutes before we left that Anderson was still in his bed. He did quickly get up with me and Graham hollering at him. I am not exactly sure who all I should have been frustrated with-Anderson for not getting up? Graham for not waking his brother up? Or me for not making sure that he was already awake? Either way, he was dressed in plenty of time and woke up in a decent enough mood.
  • We had church and then Sunday school. I taught my sweet little first graders-they are just an easy group that I think that I will miss next year. We are thinking about not teaching next year-it will be quite a change, but a break is good. I heard someone say that if people step back and not volunteer, other people will stand up and fill those spots. I'm not too sure if I believe that to be true, but we plan on missing a few more Sundays next fall and spring.
  • We came home after church and all had leftovers. And more accurately, I could probably say that we all had different leftovers-well, the boys and Campbell all had pizza, Reagan had corn, Keaton had a corn dog, Robby had hot dogs, and I had fried rice and chicken. It was all good, but took what seemed like forever to heat up.
  • And speaking of heating up, we now have our microwave functioning again. Robby had ordered a part that he hoped was broken. That wasn't the broken part, but he was able to find a work around-so hopefully the microwave door will continue to open and close (but we don't have too high of hopes.)
  • After cleaning up lunch and the repair job, we did take our Sunday afternoon nap. It was a wonderful nap-though every time I would wake up a bit, I had a ton of text to answer. I hoped that I wrote things that were coherant.
  • This evening Reagan dropped Graham off at his lifegroup. Then she dropped Anderson off at his lifegroup, and then she drove to her lifegroup. Meanwhile, I took Campbell to Rock Creek for church. Shortly after I returned home, Robby headed out to pick up Graham and Anderson. At the same time, I took Keaton and Whitman with me to pick up Campbell. Reagan headed home shortly afterwards but dropped Noah at his house before coming to the Wilson's house where we had all met up for supper. 
  • Shannon had cheese dip, hot dogs and strawberry shortcake for supper. It was all super yummy or we were super hungry. Either way, the strawberry shortcake was a bit hit with my crew. After eating, we stayed and chatted. The kids stayed for a bit but eventually headed back home.
  • Currently, the boys are playing xbox with people, Campbell and Keaton are probably chatting with friends on their devices, Whitman is playing his ipad and Reagan is probably on her phone. They are going to be a very disappointed crew in a few minutes when I tell them that it is bedtime.

February 26, 2022

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  • After our three movies and my hot chocolate last night, I slept well last night. Bentley was definitely the first one awake today. Whitman was the first kid awake today. 
  • Robby cut his hair and did his treadmill time as I folded my clothes and unloaded the dishwasher. I eventually started cleaning my school room desk. I always try to clean the entire school room and closet when summer comes-maybe I am getting a bit anxious for summer. 
  • Robby and I went to Sams and Walmart today. We enjoyed walking around the store-I even found a deal on hot chocolate. Also we even bought some ramen too for the kids. Ramen is a hot commodity around here. The kids love it-like it usually is a Christmas stocking/present treat. We now have plenty of ramen-probably enough to last all year long.
  • I guess the next event was lunch-hot dogs and tater tots during the Hogs game. Keaton made her peanut butter cookies at half time. And yes, I did sleep a good bit during the game-it is difficult to sleep well with everyone cheering. 
  • During the last few minutes of the game, it was very loud in our house. Poor Graham does quite a bit of pacing-even the last few seconds he continued to pace. It is comical to watch for sure.
  • As soon as the game was over, we picked up and headed to Anderson's last basketball game. His team is just so much shorter than the others teams. They did okay today despite another loss. Anderson did make a three so that was fun for us. 
  • There aren't a lot of people that come and watch the big kids' basketball games. And the crowd doesn't really get too involved either...except when Anderson scores. Then his cheering section gets a bit rowdy-he would say that we get embarrassingly rowdy.
  • On the way home we did stop for a celebratory ChickFilA milkshake for Anderson, a cookie for Keaton who was the only Dennie kids that went with us, and a milkshake for Robby and I to split. We also picked up pizza for tonight's supper. 
  • Once we were home, everyone ate early-Campbell has a friend over tonight, so she is having a blast. Actually, they have been pretty quiet for sure. I haven't seen much of them at all-just to eat. 
  • Robby is currently snoozing in his chair, some folks have had their showers, some have not yet and I'm watching my first movie for the night.

February 25, 2022

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  • I woke up this morning and got straight to work. After a little bit, I decided that my people should start waking up too. I am not too sure that was exactly nice of me since most of them didn't have school today. However, I didn't think that they should sleep all day....
  • and I was quickly marking things off of my list and needed them awake so I could continue working on my list. I had Bible study with Campbell, Keaton and Whitman to do. Plus Anderson had a good bit of school work to do. 
  • After waking all of them up enough to start their days, I was able to mark those things off of the list. I told Anderson that he was driving me to the store, so he opted to do that sooner rather than later. 
  • Of course Campbell and Keaton wanted to go with us. So we ran through the store grabbing things we needed. We were making good time until we made it to the clearance aisle then our speed lowed down dramatically.
  • Anderson even found something to spend some of his Christmas gift card on. Campbell found a stocking stuffer for her and Bentley. Plus we also scored some dog treats for a buck. I love a good sale.
  • We did eventually make it home. I did my normal hour of stalling before finally getting on the treadmill. The only reason that I do walk on the treadmill is so I can not feel guilty about watching a movie. I sure am not walking on that treadmill for weight loss because that sure isn't happening.
  • This afternoon Graham and Anderson were wrestling in my bedroom. I am not sure if Bentley was fussing at them or if she was trying to join in, but she barked and barked at those two boys. Every few months, Anderson and Graham start wrestling quite often-I urge them to take it outside or upstairs, and after a few days they will stop wrestling for a while. 
  • Tonight we celebrated Grannymom's birthday. Dana had a delicious meal for everyone-warm slidders, deviled eggs, potato salad and baked beans. We ate, visited, watched Grannymom open her gifts and had a perfect evening. 
  • When we came home, everyone gravitated to their devices. Robby and I watched a movie. Currently, I am debating getting hot chocolate for myself.

February 24, 2022

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  • Today was still a school day around here even though there was some ice on the ground plus it seemed that all of my kids' friends were online all day long. Campbell spent a good deal of time on facetime or whatever with her people. Graham and Anderson spent a bit of time on their xboxs with lots of people.
  • This made my people want to zoom through their school work-that was fine except Anderson had his zoom classes which he had to go to. Luckily for him, one of his teachers didn't zoom very long.
  • Whitman was certainly somewhere else today-he took a good long time to finish anything today. He can make me a bit crazy for sure. Thankfully, he eventually finished his work-I did let him skip one thing though (I'm a bit of a softee-or maybe I am just tired!)
  • Reagan had 3 zoom classes but she was only able to get on two of them. That was fine her missing one so maybe she had time to accomplish a few other things. Or maybe not. I do know that she does spend a lot of time on the keyboard upstairs or the piano down here.
  • I eventually found time to walk on the treadmill. I did stall as long as I could-after I had done everything that I could think of, I did finally go upstairs to walk. 
  • Afterwards, people were clamoring to play some more of our Monopoly game. Whitman and I are hanging in there and are not broke yet. This game is being played for the Dennie family trophy.
  • Years ago, I made a trophy to pass around after winning a game. However, at one point Whitman won it, and we just stopped passing it around. I don't think anyone wanted to take it away from baby Whitman. None of us think that Whitman is such a baby anymore so we are all trying to grab that trophy.
  • Soon it was supper time. Robby made chili while I made cornbread waffles. I saw that in a magazine and thought that would be something fun and different. I liked it-some folks did as well. 
  • After supper, there was of course a few Hallmark movies along with some ice cream!

February 23, 2022

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  • I didn't sleep well at all last night. This is the second night in a row I have been having crazy dreams. For instance, last night we put Whitman in the trunk of my dad's car since had had fallen asleep during the movies. When they went to start the car to go home, the bottom side of the car fell off. 
  • The morning started out fairly normal. I was half way through getting ready for Bible study when I saw all of the weather coming our way. That was exciting-I love bleak, dreary, frigid weather like this. 
  • I tried my hardest to wake everyone up, but I sure didn't do a great job. The three that were going to Bible study with me did get up in decent moods. We hurried on to Bible study this morning since we were only going to be there for a little bit.
  • Graham and Campbell had dentist appointments so I left my class early to pick up everyone and meet Robby in the parking lot. I am sure that Whitman was glad that I came early since he was the only one in his class. That meant that he had to answer all of the questions. (I hope that we answered them correctly.)
  • By the time we met Robby, it was already starting to sleet. I drove on to the orthodontist hoping that they wouldn't cancel on me. Thankfully, they didn't-though they did shut down pretty soon after we left today.
  • Their appointment was pretty long. Campbell was in there for an hour and Graham longer than that. They both received more brackets on their back teeth. Campbell got more than Graham because her top molars are all the way in and his are not (kind of odd since she is 17 months younger)
  • I had sat in the chilly car while they were in their appointment-sometimes it would rain, sometimes it would sleet, sometimes it wouldn't do anything, and even for a bit the sleet was so heavy it was like hail.
  • I had told them that we wouldn't stop on the way home because we needed to get home safely. Robby said he thought it was fine, so we did stop briefly at Sonic for a snack. The interstate was a bit slow, and I sure that I infuriated the person behind me on Lawson driving slowly home.
  • Once at home, I worked with everyone helping them finish their school. Though Anderson and Reagan both had things that we put off until tomorrow because....well, because we were lazy. It took Whitman a good long while to finish his school work even though he just had a few things to do-he spent most of his time just laying in an inflatable tent.
  • His tent inflates because of a fan blowing in it. He didn't seem to mind it, but I sure didn't to be in the same room as it-it has just been chilly in this house all day long and a fan is not needed. We would assume that Bentley would be terrified of this large contraption, but she loved it. Whitman had to move it all to my bedroom to get away from Bentley.
  • At supper time Graham came down the stairs with his shirt in his mouth. More accurately, I should say this his shirt was stuck in his mouth. That child somehow managed to get his shirt stuck to the new brackets in the back of his mouth-who shoves a shirt down that far in his mouth? Thankfully, I was able to get it out so he could eat and we don't have to go back to the orthodontist today.
  • Thankfully the rest of the evening was much less eventful. 

February 22, 2022

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  • I have spent a good bit of my day checking for Reagan's ACT scores to come out. From what I have read, they should have been released last night at midnight. She worked really hard the last few weeks with me doing practice tests. Hopefully, the scores will be in her favor, but we have plenty of time to work on them.
  • I tried to wake people up a minute earlier this morning since I wanted Reagan and Anderson to leave a bit earlier because of the crazy rain that was happening. I think that they left even later than usual today. Reagan did say the other day that they always get to school early-yes, that is by design since I don't want anyone to rush (drive faster).
  • The rest of us did our school work here. Things were pretty low key today. I think that we had finished everything up by noon. After my lunch, I had time for the treadmill before Reagan and Anderson made it home from school.
  • Speaking of my lunch-I have been eating yogurt with some of Reagan's cereal each day. I have really liked that except now we are out of yogurt-we had bought 2 or possibly 3 big cases from Costco so that has been my lunch for a good while now.
  • When Anderson did come home, he was ready to play some more of our Monopoly game. I don't know who-probably Graham, Anderson or Campbell. Keaton probably won't win, but I know who will definitely not win-Whitman and me. I only have 2 properties left after selling 2 to Whitman. He didn't have any-the boy only passed up one opportunity to buy property.
  • After the game, I even read some of my book before I had to leave for my Bible study supper. We all met at Tazikis-I was able to run some errands on the way plus I even drove halfway to the wrong place, even though I knew exactly where I was going. I did enjoy the drive though!
  • At home, Robby made waffles for supper for everyone. There was some catastrophe with the microwave-duct tape is now involved. 
  • He soon had to take Anderson to his basketball practice. I think this might be Anderson's last basketball practice. That meant that Robby missed the last of the Hogs game. The outcome was good so I'm sure listening on the radio was fine with him.  

February 21, 2022

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  • Despite the groans about having to do school today, school today went pretty smoothly. We worked together this morning and did our morning reading. Unfortunately, the ipad was dead so I wasn't able to read my favorite book to the kids-I was more disappointed about not being able to read this book than the kids were. We are half way finished with it, and I so want to read ahead.
  • Robby was off today, and he suggested a little bit too late that possibly we should have not done school today. I kept him busy though because he had to take Anderson to Raymar to work for a little bit to get ready for soccer. While he was out, he ran to the grocery store for a minute.
  • Anderson was back when I was finishing school with Whitman. He didn't have a ton of work so everyone was finished by 1 which is early for a Monday. I had my yogurt and then had myself a short nap.
  • Afterwards, I did my walking on the treadmill which I am going to have to get a bit more serious about. I guess I can next month. I then helped Reagan with a bit of school work. 
  • Oh, yes, there was a Monopoly game with all of the kids except Reagan. I like playing games with some of my kids, but not all of my kids! The game went decent-we played for about 45 minutes before boxing it all back up and taking notes about where everyone was and how much money we all had.
  • Reagan made herself a chicken pot pie for supper while Campbell made chicken nuggets for everyone else. Robby and I ate the rest of our leftover potato soup. As we ate, we started watching our first Hallmark movie of the evening. 

February 20, 2022

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  • I knew we had quite a bit to do this morning so I did try to get up when my alarm went off. I took the neighbors dogs out. Then I came home to wake up my crew. Keaton and her friends had already woken up so that was 3 less to wake up.
  • The other crew was a little more difficult to wake up. I did have to go up there twice to get Whitman out of his bed. I then took my shower as Robby started on fixing breakfast for all of us. By the time that he had finished, we had orange juice, milk, potato cakes, biscuits, sausage, and strawberries. Not too shabby for a Sunday morning.
  • Though by the time we did leave the house, Robby did have to get us to church quickly. It was kind of a mad dash to get inside the sanctuary before things started. Our section was pretty full today, but thankfully there were still seats for us.
  • After church and Sunday school, we headed to Nonna and Pops' house for Sunday lunch. They had hamburgers and all of the fixings. My favorite is always Nonna's baked beans. She even had some delicious cookies for dessert.
  • We stayed and chatted for a little bit. The kids were all very loud-they were entertaining loud: everyone, and I mean everyone, was talkative and all pretty much talking at the same time. I do treasure times when things are quiet, but having all the kids chatty is just as much fun.
  • When we did come home, Robby and I went to work on supper. We made potato soup for supper. It took a good little bit to fry the bacon, cut the onion and peel and slice the potatoes. We all did think that the soup was good, but I am not too sure if it was the bestest soup ever. And really, dumping a bag of hashbrowns in a crock pot seems a lot easier. I guess I will try a recipe like that this next time in my search for the perfect potato soup.
  • I did have time for about an hour long nap today-I am not the only napper around here. Reagan, Robby and Keaton also had naps today. Robby did remind me that he did not used to take Sunday afternoon naps before he was married to me. And I reminded him that this has been the best 20 years of his life possibly because of the Sunday afternoon naps.
  • Reagan and I had a meeting at church tonight. She has been baptized, but you are not an official church member until you take this one class. This was the first time that we have been able to do it-I went with her so she wouldn't have to go alone. 
  • It was actually a good class-the reviewed salvation. what our church believes, touched on the SBC-there were about 15 pages of information that we went over during the class. Plus there was supper from Firehouse Subs and a little dessert. 
  • When we did leave, we went straight to pick up Anderson, Graham and Campbell from Rock Creek.We had to wait just a few minutes, but not too long for them. Then it was home for supper number 2. (This is why I can't ever lose any weight)
  • Our soup was good, Robby had even made cornbread, and Keaton stirred up some brownies for dessert. The Wilsons came over and ate with us. They stayed for a bit, but when they left the weekend was over. 
  • We picked up for a little bit. And I pulled out school for tomorrow. Campbell was not happy with me when she realized that quite a few of her friends don't have school tomorrow. She even told me that it was so unfair. To which I reminded her that life is sure not fair at all.

February 19, 2022

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  • Another early morning-I had to let the neighbor dogs out while Robby had to sign the girls up for their cooking camps this summer. My dog letting out went easier than his. He wasn't able to get the camp that Campbell wanted. However, she will get to do baking camp with Keaton so it really will work out well.
  • After all of this excitement, we never really went back to sleep. Bentley continued to shake her head this morning even after a bit of ear cleaning out medicine last night. We checked and the vet was open, so they let me come and just but her some medicine.
  • We made the vet stop, then we went to Sonic for a little breakfast for us. (Mine was no good-nor was it very breakfasty). Then we went to buy doughnuts for the kids, and finally I ran into the library to pick up some books. We were not gone for a very long time, but it was beginning to feel like it by the time that we did make it home.
  • I think that all of the kids were awake when we did get back with doughnuts. It probably helped that I had text everyone saying that we did have breakfast with us. Eventually, Robby and I started watching a Hallmark movie, but by that time I was getting sleepy so we had to pause it.
  • I did run to pick up one of Keaton's friends to spend the night and soon afterwards another one came over. So Keaton has her two little besties over here tonight. They have loved getting to go to the neighbors to help feed their dogs. 
  • Anderson had his ballgame tonight. He is getting a bit more confidence-even made the first points for his team. They did pretty good tonight, and despite the loss I still think that he has a good time.
  • After the game, we picked up supper at ChickFilA for all of the kids (well, Whitman wanted a grilled cheese). Robby and I had Arbys-which I really like, but it is almost as expensive as ChickFilA. 
  • Back at home, the kids ate while I cooked Whitman's sandwich and Robby took care of Annie. Keaton and her buddies are watching tv while awaiting a cookie deliver. The boys have all had showers-well, Whitman is in there now. Then I will have to start cycling the girls through the showers as well. Plus I sure hope to be able to finish my movie this evening.

February 18, 2022

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  • I was up and out of bed early this morning so I could let the neighbors' dogs out. We had put them up early last night since it was cold and since one of the puppies doesn't like to stay in its fence. It was pretty cold out there this morning-I had to break up the ice in their water.
  • My plan was to crawl back into bed when I came back in. However, Robby was already leaving the bed so I decided that I should get on up and be productive. I wasn't that productive early in the morning, but I did accomplish a few things.
  • There was the dishes and laundry. I did go upstairs and start making noise so my kiddos wouldn't sleep all day long. That helped some and Whitman, Keaton and Campbell were down first. I was able to get them to do their Bible study at one point.
  • Anderson had a good bit of work to do today. I was able to help him get a few things accomplished pretty quickly. He has something on Monday so his school day will be a bit shorter so he was trying to accomplish quite a few things today.
  • After my treadmilling, I did take Anderson to practice for his driving test. We made the loop twice that he will have to drive that day. He did just fine though some more practice sure won't help at all. 
  • Robby, Keaton, Campbell and I ran a few errands this afternoon-gas, post office, a return, Sams, Walmart, Kroger and Costco. We were gone for a good long while!
  • So when we did get home, it was definitely time for us to start supper. We had orange chicken along with general tsos chicken. I tried to make Chinese noodles again, but they sure weren't as good as we would have liked. We will try to perfect the rice, but I think that we might have to give up on the noodles. 
  • After eating, the boys played some basketball-Graham even wore a knit hat since it was so chilly. Eventually, we settled in to watch a movie for the evening. We did have to stop for a bit since Bentley continued to shake her head-we muzzled that dog and squirted her ears full of medicine. Hopefully that will help prevent an ear infection.
  • After dealing with the dog, we did scoop some ice cream to help us enjoy our movie more! 

February 17, 2022

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  • It was stormy and perfect this morning in bed. It would have been a perfect morning to just stay in bed-even Bentley knew this. Or possibly the thunder made her a bit nervous-she laid right down on our bed on top of my legs and stayed there until I pulled her up closer to us. 
  • She might have just stayed most of the morning in the bed-except that I had to be a grown up and get out of the bed. I did my morning laundry and dishes this morning, and then I tried to wake up the kids. Waking them up took a little bit of work this morning.
  • Eventually everyone was awake, and I did our morning reading. We are reading one book right now that I just love-A Place to Hang the Moon. It is a kids book, but I am just adoring it. 
  • After reading, Whitman and Graham went to town on making waffles. I figure that anytime they are cooking, that is school as well so I need to relax about checking off the list. Campbell made some of Shannon's famous chocolate chip cookies this afternoon, and they were delicious. She hasn't perfected the recipe enough for us to start selling the cookies yet, but maybe soon.
  • I finished my school work around 12:30. And after eating my lunch, I finally talked myself into walking on the treadmill. When I started, my big toe was just killing me-like "ouch" every time I took a step.
  • I finally had to stop. So I sat down and looked at my shoe-there was a hole in the bottom. And really a hole in the bottom of each one. I guess I need new treadmill shoes! Thankfully, I do have other shoes that I was able to walk in without pain!
  • Reagan and Anderson were home at a decent time today. Reagan's last class was cancelled-actually it has been cancelled more than she has met this semester-maybe I should ask for my money back. I guess it is an easy grade for her though.
  • The afternoon was kind of quiet-I two played games with Campbell, Keaton and Whitman. We eventually went to help with the neighbors dogs. And finally it was supper time. Reagan arrived home from her Bible study as Robby was pulling the pizzas out of the oven. 
  • There wasn't enough for Robby and I to eat so I had dumplings and Robby had left over tacos. When we finished eating, we did start a movie-and of course there is ice cream for dessert. Now, yes, we have recently purchased 14 tubs of Blue Bell, but we aren't even eating it because we like chocolate peanut butter ice cream better.

February 16, 2022

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  • This was our first time back to Bible study since the first week in January. Even though it was nice to get back to our routine, it sure was hard. 
  • While we were gone, Reagan, Anderson and Graham were all still at home working on their school work. I had told the boys that they were too send me pictures of everything that they finished. So during most of the morning I was getting text from my busy boys.
  • Once we came back home, I started checking their school work. Then there was a bit of work with Reagan. Campbell, Keaton and Whitman had some school work to do as well.
  • Campbell actually got Whitman started on his school work. I talked to him once, and he told me that he was on a break. I assumed that he was on his lunch break. However, when I came back in around 2, he was almost in tears because he had not eaten lunch. 
  • Yep, he had never asked for lunch. He had never gone to the kitchen to get something. Sweet Campbell made him a lunch, but bless it. You can definitely tell who the baby is around here.
  • Robby had a doctor's appointment today. Then we both met up at the eye doctor for our appointments. One of my prescriptions actually changed for the better-I guess that is all well and good, but seriously that is just a hassle for me. I now have to remember which kind of contact is for which eye.
  • I was able to walk on the treadmill for a little bit this afternoon. While I was walking, Robby took Anderson to church so he could go to his Dgroup. Then it was soon time for me to take everyone else to church for the evening. 
  • After a full day back at Bible study and church this evening, I remember why I was always so tired on Wednesday nights. 

February 15, 2022

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  • Since we didn't do a full day of school yesterday, today seemed a bit like a Monday and not a Tuesday. Everything went smoothly-Reagan and Anderson left for Comm Central. The rest of us did our together work and then school work.
  • The only thing is tomorrow we start back to Bible study, so that leaves all of Monday's leftover school work for tomorrow after Bible study. I tried my hardest to get Whitman to do a ton today. He did do a good bit, but there is still some left for tomorrow. 
  • We still finished at a decent time-I had enough time to eat my yogurt and cereal before helping Keaton and Whitman with their chore. I did have them trimming plants outside. So I made sure that knew what they were doing, and I even did quite a few really quickly before I had to leave.
  • Reagan and Anderson's school had a meeting today about their high school classes. I left with probably more questions than I came with, but I think that I know what classes she will take this year. 
  • When id di make it home, I found out about Reagan and Anderson's day. Then I walked on the treadmill for a few minutes before fixing supper. Campbell did help me with supper-we had taco meat to make soft tacos along with tostados which was the hit with everyone. We basically still have 2 pounds of taco meet leftover-so I guess that will be supper tomorrow night.
  • After supper, I helped Whitman do his coding. Then I tried to finish a Hallmark movie with Robby. However, it was soon time to take Anderson to practice.
  • He did drive me all the way there. He did really well-though we are at the point where I am saying "slow down" a lot. I remember being there with Reagan too-hopefully she has eventually slowed down.
  • I am currently sitting in the parking lot trying to type fast. I have done some school planning for next year. Now I am trying to finish the blog quickly since my computer is about to die. My phone is in the same shape so I am not too sure what I will do for the rest of practice.
  • Though I do know what I will do when I get home-have me some cookie dough and ice cream!

February 14, 2022-Happy Valentine's Day

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  • This morning when everyone woke up they had their pile of Valentine candy from Robby and me. They also had a bag of cookies that Keaton and Campbell made last week with the cookie lady. I would say that was all a pretty good start to Valentine's Day for my crew. 
  • When I walked through the kitchen at one point this morning, I saw that my pile had been added to-Robby had put my cookie dough that I picked out on Saturday night by my cookies. He also added my Valentine's Day calendar. I have been getting a calendar for at least 10 years now every Valentine's Day. 
  • I soon woke up all of the kids. I think that all of the kids slept well because they were all difficult to wake up this morning. Well, Whitman wasn't-he was up and on his ipad before Robby and I even climbed out of bed.
  • The kids and I did our morning work this morning. Then everyone had about an hour to do their school work before we loaded up and left-we had Valentine's for everyone, Valentine bags, orange juice, apple juice, a dry erase board, sausage, chairs, and everyone brought something that the love to show the group.
  • It was quite a party and quite a group of kiddos. I am a bit bummed that I forgot to get a group picture. Also, for some reason I sure didn't get a picture of Graham. I am not sure how he managed to hide from me. 
  • We all brought breakfast food and had ourselves a brunch. Then we moved on to playing some games. The last hurrah was when everyone passed out their Valentine's. My big 3 still enjoy getting Valentines-or maybe they enjoy getting candy! Whitman had worked pretty hard on making perler bead hearts to go with the candy that he passed out.
  • I was surprised when we did get in the car to see that it was already 2. We stayed much longer than I had thought. I think that was because it was a perfect day, and the kids enjoyed playing outside. 
  • Once at home, Anderson did a bit of school work. Then it was time for our weekly outing to the library. Bless the boy-as he was driving to the library, 3 school buses pulled right out in front of him. They didn't stop, they didn't look, nothing. I was a bit surprised by this. I was much more surprised when on the next road, a lady walked from one side of the road to the middle. We slowed down, and she went to the opposite side. As we started to pass her, she then walked straight across the road to the car. I am pretty sure that the lady was not in her right mind at all.
  • That is when Anderson said he was not going to drive home and was going to the library the short way and not the long way. I felt bad for him-he did perfect during all of this, but he was definitely done driving for the day!
  • Back at home, there was school work to do. I just have us doing a 3 day week, but we start back to Bible study on Wednesday so that will be a busy day. I wish that I could have convinced Whitman to do a bit more school today, but I was working until 4:30 so I do call that a decent day of work.
  • Robby and I made chicken spaghetti for supper tonight. We ate-well, Reagan wasn't home. She met Kennedy at Barnes and Noble. They went there and to Trader Joes. Also they stopped at Goodwill, Target and ChickFilA-it was a real shopping spree. They had lots of fun though.
  • Our supper was good, and afterwards Campbell gave Bentley a bath. Afterwards, I tried to brush her really well. Then it was time to start a few movies to watch tonight!

February 13, 2022

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  • This morning Campbell and Graham were not with us. They were finishing out the weekend at church. When we finally were able to talk to them after church, they both had a really good time. 
  • Graham had already said that he stayed up until 3 on Friday night, and Campbell told us about her staying up all night long on Friday. Those Dennie girls like to do thing like that-Reagan did and I did too. 
  • I do believe that each of them did get a lot more sleep Saturday night. And Graham did sleep all afternoon long today-when Robby woke him up tonight he thought that it was morning time. Honestly, he probably could have slept until morning time. 
  • I do know that they both had a good time and both came home with a ton of laundry. I had already done one load this morning. This afternoon we washed two more loads, and I currently have one going now.
  • Reagan and I did worship care at church this morning.  I don't mind doing it, but I do really hate to miss big church. Reagan enjoys it more than I do, but she prefers for me to do it with her and not have to work with a stranger.
  • Then it was to Sunday school we went. Afterwards, we came straight home and heated up leftovers. I did mange to write out a chore list for everyone before they went their separate ways after eating.
  • When we did clean the kitchen from lunch, we started on tonight's food. Keaton made brownies. Campbell made cookies. Robby made rice krispie treats. I made the little smokies in crescent rolls. It was one busy kitchen.
  • We were able to get things cleaned up in time to have a quick nap. Reagan took Anderson to his life group tonight and even picked him up which was super nice for us. I think that she enjoyed doing it- and it sure helped us out a ton.
  • We went to the Ferguson's house tonight for the Super Bowl. There were quite a few folks there, but the Anderson and Whitman did manage to win candy at the end of the quarters. Anderson even won two times making Dennies win 3 out of the 5 different prizes-not too shabby. 
  • We stayed and watched the end of the game. Then it was home for quite a bit of prep for tomorrow. I think that it is going to be a busy day!

February 12, 2022

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  • This morning started pretty early for us-ACT day for Reagan. We didn't want her to stress about finding the place in the morning, and we didn't want to have to come and get her when she was done; so Robby and I both drove there and left her there with a car.
  • While she was taking the test, Robby and I ran to one Walmart and two different Krogers. We were looking for the off brand corn chips. I am not going to pay 4 dollars for a bag of real Fritos, so the hunt was on.
  • I had already started looking last week at any store that I went to. My first stop they had only bbq flavored off brand fritos. The next place had only buffalo flavored off brand fritos. We were surprised when I did find them at our Kroger-I did have to get on my hands and knees and crawl around to grab the last 3 bags.
  • All of this was so stressful that we just climbed back into bed when we came home. Well, that might be an exaggeration. Bentley had rode with us, so she curled up at the foot of the bed, and we all took a nap. Well, Robby's nap was probably shorter than mine, since I really had a good nap. 
  • I woke up to the Hogs playing their basketball game. During the game, we did get a text from Reagan after finishing her test. Her exact text was "well, that was awful." Hopefully her score won't be awful. When she made it home, she had herself a big lunch and then took a big nap.
  • I did wake Anderson up around 12:30 today so he could watch the rest of the Hogs play. He did manage to eat leftovers for lunch along with the rest of us. We (just the 4 of us were home) all ate leftovers and still have plenty left.
  • I did walk on the treadmill for a little bit before going to pick up Graham at church. We knew they were in the fellowship hall. They were doing one of those rice bag packing things. When we walked into the room, there were what seemed like 150 people all wearing hair nets and face masks-I didn't see a soul that I recognized. I had no idea how we were going to find Graham since everyone looked exactly the same. 
  • Thankfully, Graham saw us and we were soon on our way to his championship game. The game didn't turn out exactly how we wanted. However, they just lost by a few points and were in it the whole game. 
  • I didn't get to see Anderson's game, but they stuck pretty close to the team that they played, but they lost as well. I was busy driving Graham home to change and then back to his host house so he could meet up with everyone and eat supper there-he didn't want to miss one more second than he had to.
  • I made it home before Anderson and everyone else. Reagan did skip the ballgames. After the games, Keaton and Whitman did join us at home. They had a big time at Grannymom's house, but I think that Whitman might be a little bit tired-he was pretty quiet all evening long.
  • The Wilsons brought supper over. It was all really good. As we were sitting around talking, we decided that we might need to run to Kroger and buy some more Blue Bell which in onsale on the other side of town.
  • We did just that-I grabbed my grocery list and Shannon had hers. We started with one buggy, but had to move to two different buggies as we kept shopping and kept shopping. We did buy 10 things of Blue Bell the other day, but today we just picked up 4 more. 
  • Once we made it back home, we finished a movie that Tony and Shannon were watching. Then it was time for bed for this crew for sure.

February 11, 2022

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  • I took super advantage of not having to wake up early this morning. Though I did have a very clear dream about winning the wordle on the very first try. Unfortunately, that was just a dream, and my morning wordle was barely just completed-Robby had to help me figure out what the word was.
  • There was quite a bit on my chore list today. Of course there were the never ending dishes and laundry. Plus I had to pull out school for tomorrow for Reagan, Anderson and Graham. Thankfully, I had already pulled out school for the other three. For some reason, I enjoy getting school ready for Whitman and Keaton-there's is still fun for me. Everyone else just has plain ole hard stuff.
  • Anderson did have some school work to do today, so I helped a bit with that. Plus there was Bible study to do with Keaton, Campbell and Whitman. Additionally, there was packing for 4 kiddos to oversee.
  • Anderson drove us to Granymom's house today so Keaton and Whitman could spend the night over there. Whitman took a whole tackle box of things to do. And Keaton was pleased when Grannymom said that she had a new recipe for them to try out.
  • We then met Robby at the gas station to fill up both cars. Of course since we were so close to Costco we did run in. We didn't find a whole lot that we really needed-some drinks and some chocolate chips.
  • Then it was back home for a little bit. Nonna and Pops came over to drop off some more cookies from yesterday. After they left, I did try to rest for a few minutes. Though Graham and Anderson would yell every so often and jerk me back awake. I guess they were playing something on the internet.
  • Reagan headed off to church to keep kids this evening. The rest of us left to drop off Graham and Campbell for their weekend at the church house. First we did stop to get them ChickFilA for a little bit of supper.
  • Then Robby, Anderson and I went to Chilis for supper. Anderson and I definitely should have split our meals. We left with more leftovers than we ate-I felt a little bit silly walking out of there with all of my to-go boxes. They will all be delicious tomorrow heated up in the air fryer.
  • Once we were back home, Robby and I settled in to watch a movie while Anderson played on his xbox. Soon it will be time for bed around here-Reagan has the ACT tomorrow.

    February 10, 2022

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    • This Thursday started off a bit weird. When I woke Whitman up, he came downstairs and said that he was going to start on some of his school work. And he did just that-it was strange. It helped though because by 11:30 he was completely finished with school even working with me.
    • Overall, Thursdays are nice days around here. Reagan and Anderson go to Comm Central which isn't what makes it nice. It is just nice because most of the kids finish fairly quickly which means my day is much shorter. 
    • That is exactly what happened today-except it made the first part of my day a bit crazy since everyone was ready to work with me at once. 
    • Robby took Campbell and Keaton to Nonna's house around 11:30. They went to grab a bite to eat, and then the girls went to the cookie lady's house to do some cooking. They were there pretty much all of the afternoon. 
    • The girls and Ms. Joann made cowboy cookies, almond joy cookies, snickerdoodles, and sugar cookies. They were definitely busy, and the girls really had a good time. I think that they were a bit tired when they finally did get home.
    • I went to the pregnancy center this afternoon for a little bit. I did a lot of folding clothes and some diaper bagging. The people there are so incredibly kind that I just love going there despite it being a bit farther than I would like.
    • I did run to the Kroger on that side of town since we heard that their Blue Bell was only 4 dollars. And yes, I did buy 10 gallons of Blue Bell-I know a good deal. I also bought 2 bags of potatoes to make my cart look more healthy. Kidding, the potatoes were on sale too.
    • I was just home for about 20 minutes before it was time for me to leave again with Graham for his last basketball practice. We also met Nonna and picked up Campbell and Keaton on the way to practice.
    • While Graham was practicing, we ran to Hobby Lobby and bought one thing for the camper. Then to Michaels and Hobby Lobby where we bought 2 things for stockings. Just FYI our Dollar Tree has officially raised their prices to 1.25. 
    • Back at home, Robby had lasagna heated up for our supper. We also ate quite a few of the girls' cookies for our dessert. We all ate and then some folks started on showers. I worked on the blog for a little bit this evening, and my next project is going to be....possibly a nap before bedtime.

    February 9, 2022

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    • Brett left this morning as I was thinking about getting up. I did eventually get out of bed and start on my morning chores a few minutes earlier than usual. I am not sure what happened to those extra few minutes because by the time we started working together, it was later than usual.
    • Well, I guess I do know what happened to those few minutes-I worked on an activity for our Valentine's day party. I was cutting up some boxes so the kids can stack cups up in the shape of a heart. 
    • We did all of our morning reading and then started on individual work. For some reason school is just taking longer right now. Oddly enough it isn't Whitman; he is finishing at a decent time these days. I think it is just everyone's work. Needless to say I just feel pretty exhausted by 2 when I finally finish. 
    • Today when we finished, I did have Anderson drive me to the Dollar General so I could buy some biscuik for a recipe that we made this afternoon. I looked and looked for it, and I was just about to give up when I did bend down and finally saw it. I was pretty thankful.
    • And yes, Anderson drove me-he is doing fine. We need lots more practice where there are more cars-like Geyer Springs road where he will take the test. We have exactly three weeks until his scheduled test-that also makes me feel a bit exhausted!
    • There was some baking this afternoon with Anderson. Campbell, Keaton and Whitman spent a good deal of time outside on the trampoline. It is kind of strange that this was a 60 degree day, and there is still snow to play in. The front of our house has almost all melted away but not quite yet.
    • Anderson had his Bible study this afternoon at church so Robby took him early. I had a short little nap before they left. Then I needed a shower before church to wake myself up.
    • Church was glowstick night the little 3 and all of the kids had lots of fun. Driving home from church on Wednesday nights is always one of my favorites because all of the kids are super chatty. Reagan, Anderson and Graham always have lots to say about what happened upstairs-not bad, just the give lots of details about everything. 
    • Robby had pulled out all of the leftovers for us. I had some beans, some cold cheese dip and eventually settled with making me 3 dumplings. The Wilsons came over and brought us a huge pan of cookies so we also munched on those this evening.

    February 8, 2022

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    • Robby did wake up this morning to make sure that Brett left early this morning. He is staying over here since his folks are living it up in Fayetteville. I did hear Robby get up, but since he did actually get up, I didn't have to worry about my having to get out of bed that early.
    • It wasn't too much longer until it was time for me to get up to start getting my crew awake and ready for the day. Reagan and Anderson had comm central today so they left while the rest of us were reading.
    • When we finished that, everyone started on their school work. Yesterday, I was working late in the afternoon, but for some strange reason today, I was again. That could have been because I spent a good deal of the day waiting for Whitman to come inside to work with me.
    • He spent a lot of time on the trampoline. The trampoline still had about 6-8 inches of solid ice on it. They worked and worked to get those pounds and pounds of ice off so they could jump. It took multiple attempts today to finally get it jumpable.
    • I did squeeze in the treadmill before Reagan and Anderson came home from school. I eventually had to work with Reagan later today on her ACT work. Good times-she takes is this weekend so if you think of it, send up some prayers. She will do just fine, but we need a specific score for some classes next year. 
    • Anderson and Whitman spent a long while on the trampoline too this afternoon. They had Bentley with them and were out for a long while. I know this because this was one of the times that I was again waiting on Whitman to come in and do a little bit of work.
    • Graham spent his day anxiously awaiting 6 to come around so he could see the Hogs play. We watched the first half of the game while eating spaghetti. I think that everyone was nervous as we were eating because I had to make more!
    • Eventually Anderson and I went to his basketball practice. I listened to the game and only hurried into the store to grab some milk. Then it was back to the car to hear the Hogs win. The radio folks were pretty interesting to listen to during the celebration of the game. 
    • Anderson had a gift card that he spent on the way home-10 dollars worth of ice cream from Cold Stone made him pretty happy and me pretty jealous. When we made it home, they were still celebrating the win!

    February 7, 2022

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    • Mondays are long around here. I sat down in my little spot in front of my bedroom window at 8:30 this morning, and I really didn't leave that spot until 2:25. I did get up occasionally to put things awake in the school room, and even once I walked to the mudroom and in the living room. 
    • Needless to say, when the Monday school day is over, I am ready for a nap. There was no rest of the weary because as soon as school was over, it was time for driving lessons.
    • Anderson drove me to the library, and again he did very well. Even having a car full of passengers didn't bother him-Graham, Campbell, Keaton and Bentley.
    • The reason that everyone else was with us was because we were also going to go to ChickFilA. The main reason for this was to spend Graham's gift card so he stops asking us about going. And you would not believe, well, maybe you would-he paid cash. So that means there are more ChickFilA trips in the future.
    • Campbell used some of her gift card to buy fries and a shake. Anderson had Keaton go in and order his shake, and he even paid for her to buy herself french fries. It was a super happy car ride home since all of my people were munching on their goodies.
    • Whitman worked on making perler bead heart valentines for all of our friends for next week. Campbell and Keaton helped him with this project. When I did come home, we got all of his stuff ready before finally getting on the treadmill.
    • I had stalled as long as I possibly could and even thought about not doing it-but since I was upstairs sitting on the treadmill with my tennis shoes on, I thought that it was wise that I just go ahead and walk for a little bit.
    • Graham pretty much made all of supper by himself-Chicken sandwiches along with mac and cheese. Campbell had already made cookies for us to enjoy this evening. We ate while Reagan was at her d-group. 
    • When we finished, we played a game. Then it was finally time to settle in my chair and be quiet for a little bit. Currently, Robby and I are watching a movie-I plan on getting some hot chocolate and have two books beside me to flip through. Sounds like a perfect evening. 

    February 6, 2022

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    • Church morning-I was dreading a text saying that church was cancelled since there is still a bit of ice on the roads. We have some on our street, but nothing major at all. Now, we did get a text saying that there were a few entrances closed due to ice at the church house, but that was fine.
    • Of course I sure don't want to miss church for any reason, but today I had good Sunday school lesson activities: jumping over streamers making the Red Sea and having little toy people walk through a jello red sea. Seriously, I was Sunday school teacher extraordinaire today-it doesn't happen very often.
    • After church, we went to Nonna and Pops' house for lunch. They had tacos which were pretty yummy. Nonna even had Valentine's desserts to begin our Valentine celebrations. I could have stayed all afternoon at Nonna's house cozied up by their fire place, but we eventually headed home for our Sunday afternoon naps. I have decided that I really want a fireplace-I am not too sure how that could happen, but it is on my wishlist.
    • We did have naps-they were brief, but they were good. I have become an excellent texter during naps-constantly asking different kids to take Bentley out. She now barks just to go outside and walk around plus when she does need to do her serious outside business, she stalls long enough that the kids think that she doesn't need to go. Either way, there was lots of barking during my nap-I believe that I wrote Campbell, Graham, Anderson and Keaton to take her out. I wasn't even asleep for that long-maybe an hour.
    • Soon Campbell, Graham and Anderson headed to church. They really enjoy their Sunday nights. While they were there, the Wilson, Robby, and I went to On the Border for some Mexican food. When we came home, we watched some you tube travel channels, and Keaton made brownies for everyone.
    • When they did leave, I started getting everything ready for Monday morning. All too soon it was bedtime and the weekend was officially over!

    February 5, 2022

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    • Robby and I had hoped that Bentley would sleep in this morning, and she politely obeyed. That benedryl probably didn't hurt any either. 
    • I did eventually get out of the bed and walk on the treadmill. Then I emptied the dishwasher and folded my laundry. By this time Graham and Whitman were awake. 
    • After I did all of this, I did what anyone would on a Saturday morning-I climbed back in the bed and finished my book. Of course then when Anderson, Campbell and Keaton saw me that assumed that I was just being lazy-I had already been productive and had just begun the lazy part.
    • I made chocolate chip scones which were really pretty good. When those were done, Robby ate his pizza after his treadmilling. Then we started to watch a Hallmark movie, but by this time I needed my Saturday afternoon nap.
    • I had him stop the movie so I could snooze. Robby eventually took a nap too, and we were awakened by Campbell asking when exactly we were going to leave. We were taking Reagan to a birthday party, and she was supposed to meet someone in about 5 minutes. They were late too, so we were fine.
    • Campbell and Keaton came with us. Reagan would have normally been able to drive herself and even thought that she could have, but alas a 16 year old does not take into account the ice on the road. We dropped her off, and then went to Walmart.
    • Of course we spent a crazy amount of money at the store because we had plenty of time to kill and walked up and down most every aisle. I will admit that Robby is more fun to shop with since he spends a bit more freely than I do. I have to reign him back in occasionally. 
    • After buying all we could at Walmart, we then headed to Sonic for a quick drink. I didn't get anything because Sonic doesn't serve hot chocolate, and I was just chilly. We had a bit of time to spare so the girls and I walked around Hobby Lobby as Reagan finished her meal/birthday party.
    • We then hurried home and unloaded the car of groceries to load the car with people to go to the Wilson's house for supper and to watch the game. Supper was blackstone pizzas which were delicious. The game was decent but most of us just talked through it. It was a pretty perfect end to the weekend.

    February 4, 2022

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    • Since it was Friday morning, there was no hurry to wake up. When I did finally get up, I started immediately on the laundry and dishes. Robby had already taken Bentley out to potty, but she decided that she really needed to do some more business so I took her out.
    • To go out, I put on my hat, Graham's jacket, boots and gloves. I took the dog out and nothing. We came in, and she started barking again. I had kept on my winter gear since I thought this would be the case. We went out again and nothing. And just like the boy crying wolf, she barked again.
    • This time nothing as well. We came in and I told her to just poop on the floor because I was done. She looked at me, and then walked to her chair and sat down and took a nap. I still had on my winter gear though since I really didn't want the dog to poop on the floor. I am, after all, the one who would clean it up.
    • After I had finished working in the kitchen, I did take off my boots. Then after putting away the laundry I took off the jacket. And a bit later, I did take my gloves off. I, however, wore my hat until at least noon. It wasn't that cold in the house; it was just that cozy. I should probably get a cute hat to wear-not one that looks like an owl.
    • I did my Friday work of pulling out school for next year. It is always more fun when people do finish things-Keaton is almost done with all of her paper work except for math. However, today there wasn't anything that I came to the end of as I was getting out next week's work. I figure we have about 12 weeks of school left around here, possibly less. So we do have a few things to get done.
    • Robby and I did watch a movie this afternoon. It was a pretty good one. I even counted my Hallmark movie total, but I sure don't remember what it was. The kids were again in and out today. They went to the big hill in the early afternoon, but then the road was already showing through by the afternoon.
    • Anderson even rode his bike some outside-not advisable. Whitman spent way too long outside again today wearing clothes that were not meant to play in the snow. When he did come in, we told him to take a shower which he did. And when our movie had about 30 minutes left, he came to the living room to ask for a snack-he had been in the shower for probably an hour. At least he was clean.
    • The Wilsons showed up for supper (there were invited). We had a little Chinese feast=orange chicken (which was really good), fried rice, lo mein noodles (which needed some more seasoning), edamame, and pot stickers. 
    • We watched travel videos and ate ice cream to end the evening. It was a pretty great end to a pretty slow day. Tomorrow, basketball games have already been cancelled so other than a birthday party that Reagan has to go to, it will be another slow day.

    February 3, 2022

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    • The kids knew last night that the only way for them to get a day off of school today was a foot of snow or the power being out. Thankfully, neither happened. Waking people up on days that there is snow/ice on the ground is much easier.
    • Right after we worked together, I explained that they needed to get started with their daily work. And before I had even finished my speech, Anderson was in the attic getting sled and people were putting on jackets and hats. Actually, they asked if they could go out, and of course I am a softee and let them-memories.
    • It was kind of a crazy morning-Whitman was probably in and out of the house at least 5 times before noon today. He also seemed to manage to finish all of his school work for the week today. 
    • Even though yesterday was hectic with a surprise hair cut appointment, today was equally hectic with people in and out of the house. However, today we were able to get all of our school work done. 
    • Anderson and Reagan both had 2 classes on zoom today. And both of them were kicked off their class or internet at least once. I can't imagine poor kiddos having to do that each day. And really, I am such a slacker mom that I let Reagan skip her 3rd class. It all worked our perfectly though since her teacher completely missed it.
    • The afternoon seemed to fly by-I still had some Bible study, coding and even time on the treadmill. Right before supper, I made some cinnamon bread that we cooked after our supper.
    • The afternoon for the kids really seemed to fly by as well. People continued to be n and outside. I did walk down when Graham, Campbell, Keaton and Whitman went to the big hill to sled the first time. I took Bentley, and she loved every minute of it. She pulled the sleds a bit, but she was also a bit frightened of them so I am not sure if she was pulling the sleds or running from the sleds. 
    • Later in the afternoon, they all returned to the hill with Anderson for more sledding. Reagan felt sorry for Bentley who was devastated to be left inside, so she took her outside for a good bit as well.
    • Robby and I then made some cheese dip and ham and cheese croissants for everyone. We ate kind of early so afterwards there was even time to play a game before our evening movie.
    • Currently, Bentley is laying beside me-on her leash. She has been running to the door whining all evening long so I just tied her up to me and put an end to that. She just wants to go out and walk around in the snow- I am sure she will get another few chances tomorrow before everything melts. 

    February 2, 2022

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    • My alarm was sure not a pleasant sound to hear this morning. Whitman, however, is the only early bird in the house. He told me that he woke up at 7 this morning. I am not exactly sure about that, but he definitely did get up before I did. 
    • We did our school work today-I had been reading a book to everyone, but it is due at the library with lots of people waiting on it. So I had Robby buy it for me-he bought it on the ipad since it was cheaper. I have never read a book on the ipad, but I think that I like it-it has a percent read counter that you can see when you read. And I love seeing how much is left as we read-I probably read more because of it.
    • After reading we did our school work. I realized in the middle of school, that this week is the week that the hair cut place is having a sale. And I also realized that if this silly weather comes tomorrow like they think, then we won't be able to make it to get our hair cut.
    • I had told all of the girls that we could get their hair cut during this sale. So Robby suggested that we just pick up and go immediately. And that is just what we did. 
    • Campbell, Keaton, Reagan and I all had our hair cut. Keaton thinks hers was too short, but it is cute. Campbell seemed to like hers, and Reagan was indifferent. I haven't had a hair cut in over a year, so Robby could have cut my hair, and I would have liked it so I am certainly pleased.
    • That meant that I didn't finish everything that I wanted today, but that was just fine. When we did get home, there was time for us to have lunch right before the Sugar Club came over.
    • The Sugar Club is some of Keaton and Campbell's little friends that meet and usually make some type of food to give to others. Today, we didn't do that-we etched pie plates that said "the giving dish." It also has a little saying on the side that tells how you are supposed to enjoy the food, refill the dish and pass it on.
    • It was quite an event trying to get all of the girls' pie pans to work. Thankfully, it wasn't too bad, and they all really turned out quite neat. Now, Campbell and Keaton need to figure out who they are going to give their pie pan filled with goodies to.
    • As soon as the girls finished, they devoured a package of Oreos and then headed outside to eat. I cooked some spaghetti and green beans for supper. They had time to play outside and even a few games inside before I called them down to supper.
    • They ate quickly before it was time to go to church tonight. It was super chilly tonight, but there were quite a few people at church. They kids all had fun-I think that Wednesday night church is definitely the highlight of the week for all of my crew.
    • Back at home, Robby had a rotisserie chicken for our second supper. We ate some before Robby and I started on a movie. There is a good possibility that our movie is going to stop in an hour-and I might just cry! Ha!

    February 1, 2022

    (click for today's pictures)

    • Tuesdays are just different than Mondays around here. That is mainly because Reagan and Anderson head to Comm Central in the morning so it is quite a few less of us doing our daily school work together. Now, that is a good thing because it does take less time each day.
    • For example, yesterday I was still doing school work at 2, but today I was sitting in my bedroom with the rest of the chicken pot pie from last night before 1 having my lunch. I usually sit in the sun in my bedroom each day, but unfortunately there was no sun today. I still sit there though because usually people can't find me in there, and I can eat quietly.
    • Campbell, Keaton, Whitman and Graham have spent a bit of time outside today. There was basketball, ripstick riding, and trampolining. When Anderson made it home, he also joined the basketball playing.
    • Keaton, Campbell and Graham did join Robby and me as we went to the grocery store this afternoon. We had to get our snow day preparations-nah, actually, we needed to get milk and important things like blue jello and blue streamers for Sunday school. 
    • While we were out and about, we did see some Little Debbie ice cream at the Walmart. So of course we had to try some. But since we weren't going straight home, we needed spoons. There was quite a bit of questioning over if we possibly have spoons in the car. Of course we bought spoons-and you guessed it-we did have spoons in the car from another emergency ice cream run. Robby the other day talked about putting cash and a credit card in all of the cars. I should probably had a box of spoons in them all too.
    • Reagan had a nap after school, and I squeezed in a quick cat nap before working with her on the ACT. We should have done a lot more work than we did today, but I was trying to get supper ready too. Maybe we will have time tomorrow (I know we won't).
    • We just heated up some bbq for our supper-fast and easy. There was a run on french fries at the grocery store. I guess we possibly should have made them again like last night, but since we were able to find one lone bag that is what we had.
    • It is currently almost 7, and I am waiting to take Anderson to his basketball practice-gracious, 7:45 is late for practice. There isn't anything that I need so I am planning on just sitting there and reading a book. Wonder if I could take a blanket to cover up in as I sit in one of the comfy chairs and read?