A Simple Woman's Daybook

A Simple Woman's Daybook for today...March 9, 2009

Outside my window...the sun is shining and it is warm. It's supposed to be another beautiful day in FL.

I am thinking...about chore charts and a plan for housecleaning.

From the learning rooms...hopefully a very productive school week for everyone. We head into Germany with ECC. Our read aloud is a biography of George Muller that we are all enjoying. What amazing faith he had. Grace and Joe are continuing their unit on space. They have a sponge painting project that I've been totally avoiding and I may tackle it today to get it over with. I also would really like to do some sort of art this week. I love this site but have yet to try one thing! Could this be the week? We are also dedicating our short day of the week (Tuesday) to home ec. Cooking, cleaning, gardening, etc. All the things that are very important but never make it to the top of the priority list on a typical school day.

I am thankful for...a relaxing Sunday!

From the kitchen...we are still cleaning out fridge and freezer so it should be another interesting week of meals. I am not at all in the cooking mood right now. Many other things have my attention....

I am wearing...flannel pants and my all time favorite t-shirt--the Pumpkin Pi shirt. It's such a mess and has been retired to the pj drawer. I will wear it until it literally falls apart.

I am reading...I read a whole book yesterday--Sundays at Tiffany's by James Patterson. It was such a fun, easy, sweet read. I totally enjoyed it! Not sure what book I'm starting. Probably "Savannah Blues" by Mary Kay Andrews.

I am hoping...for a better rest of the day than this morning has been. I slept late and I am grumpy!

I am creating...order in my home and yard.

I am hearing... the kids playing with and arguing about who will hold the bunnies (strongly contributing to my grumps).

Around the house...well, let's see. Since I read a whole book yesterday...the laundry that I washed on Thursday and folded over the course of the weekend is still on the table in the living room and there is clutter building up but it's not that bad. It could certainly be a lot worse.

A few plans for the rest of the week...staying home and schooling and cleaning, tutoring, and a park day.

Here is a picture thought I am sharing with you...

Remember the praying mantises from last Spring??? Bunnies are a lot easier! And cuddlier!

If you want to participate in the daybook, go here.

Daylight Savings Time

I consider myself an intelligent person.  I can do high level math, I read a lot, I have a fair amount of knowledge about history, science, etc.  But--two things really get me.  Grammar and Daylight Savings Time.  I know I will spend all of today obsessing over what time it "really is" vs. what time the clock says it is.  I will do this for about three or four days.  The thing is, I always end up confused.  Before I even got out of bed this morning I was trying to figure out how much sleep I had gotten.  I felt more tired than I thought I should feel so I was thinking, "what time does my body think it is"?  And, after some figuring I just knew that it was 8:30 instead of 7:30.  And I was thinking, I should not feel so sleepy.   I thought this until I just looked at my DVD clock that hasn't been changed at it says 6:30.  No wonder I'm tired.  Then I started trying to figure out if people who forgot to set their clocks will be early to church or late.  Still not sure on that one.  WHY is this so confusing?  Does anyone else get this confused?  Does anyone else obsess about what time it would be if we hadn't changed?  I think my mom used to do this, am I right, mom?  Maybe it's genetic.

Now, about grammar...just kidding.  I don't even want to talk about that!

More Bunny Pictures

NoopDog is in the House!!

Wasn't AI exciting tonight???  I'm embarrassed to say that I came close to crying when Simon announced the "13th" in the top 12.  Noop almost cried too, he was truly speechless.  I am very happy with tonight's results especially since my fave, Megan, made it into the top 12.  Matt too.  I really like him as well.  What was up with Simon tonight?  He was so nice to everyone.  I think he only criticized one or two of them.  And, he was joking around with Paula.  He seemed happy.  Maybe they are relieved that this stage is over as well.  I'm excited for the more normal Idol next week.  It's a great top 12!  

For once I think I have nothing else to say.  Weird.

American Idol and Stuff

Last night was another rather disappointing Idol.  I'm so ready to be done with these preliminary rounds and get into the good stuff.  I only have one prediction tonight and that is Lil Rounds.  I really have no idea who the other two will be.  We'll find out soon though.  Alex's dancing was quite comical.  Poor guy, trying to be somebody he's not.  He kind of made a fool of himself but the judges weren't as ugly as I thought they'd be.  

Hannah is back to her normal self and so far no one else is showing any symptoms.  So, maybe it will start and stop with her.  I am hearing of so many families all getting sick.  The creeping crud is rampant in these parts right now.  Shelly's son, Micah, was in the hospital the last two days because he was looking septic and was just plain sick and they gave him IV antibioitics.  To go visit him I was required to wear a mask, gown, and gloves to protect myself from the flu.  They are really trying to stop the spread because they are seeing so many people in the hospital with complications of the flu.  I hung out for a few hours and wore my mask and smelled my own stinky breath all evening while watching American Idol.  It was fun.  Well, not smelling my own stinky breath.  

We went to the pet store today and purchased a few things for the bunnies.  One of those things was a leash.  So, the bunnies have been outside today on the leash.  Of course this has just added to the fun of having bunnies.  I wonder when and if these kids will tire of these girls.  I doubt that Grace will.  Animals are definitely her thing.  The kids went to a "Creepy Crawly" presentation at the library today and apparently the speaker asked Grace if she was on Animal Planet after she answered a whole bunch of really hard questions correctly.  She may not be so great at reading but she does have quite the mind for all things animal related, and science in general.  I love that with homeschooling she doesn't have to be ashamed about what she can't do and is allowed to work at her own pace.  At the rate she's going I imagine a year from now she will be caught up with her peers.  So far I don't think she even knows she's behind.  And, we can spend extra time on the subject she loves--science!  Don't quote me on this but I don't think the public schools in our area are able to spend as much time on science because so much of the school year is spent preparing for the standardized test that they take in early March.  

That's all from my frazzled brain for now...

A Simple Woman's Daybook

A Simple Woman's Daybook for today...March 2, 2009

Outside my window...it's a sunny but chilly day. Just perfect Florida weather!

I am thinking...I can't believe I forgot to do my Daybook this morning. I look forward to the Daybook every weekend and I totally forgot about it this morning. Weird.

From the learning rooms...since I'm writing in the afternoon I can report that we have had a great, productive school day. Hannah has learned more about France today than she ever wanted to know. I have to pack in two weeks of My Father's World this week since we only got to the basics last week. Thankfully it is not hard to double up with MFW when you need to. We will be making french food this week. I'm thinking crepes, maybe french onion soup, croissants, and who knows what else. Any suggestions? I plan to have productive days every day this week and every week day this month. I don't foresee any major interruptions until April so we are taking advantage of that! Grace and Joe are continuing their study of space this week. They are really learning a lot and really enjoying working together.

I am thankful for...our bunnies, the kids are loving having pets and I love that I could let them have one!

I am hoping...that I can get some reading done this afternoon without falling asleep! I have a lot to read before tomorrow night! I don't want to go to my first book club with my book not finished!

From the kitchen...this is clean out the fridge, freezer, and cabinet week. Creative cooking at its best. I think we'll be having the french food this weekend after we've made room for more groceries.

I am wearing...my new favorite tan corduroys that used to be Marissa and Shelly's and Shelly gave them to me! I've always loved them and was thrilled that I could fit my big butt into them! and with my cords I have on a theatre t-shirt and a long sleeved shirt underneath and my tie dye sweatshirt. Easily my favorite ever outfit. Stylin? Not so much but comfy!

I am reading...John, the Last Eyewitness and YWAM's George Mueller to the kids.

I am creating...a safe, fairly clean, bunny area. I have had a couple of mishaps already--like when I put their new bag of food and Timothy Hay on top of their cage and they chewed a hole in it and let some pour into their litter pan. I now have those things in a plastic dishpan that I don't think they can chew through.

I am hearing...Grace and Joe playing outside on the trampoline with Littlest Pet Shop.

Around the house...it's obvious that I didn't spend much time at home this weekend. I have three full baskets of laundry to fold, groceries to put away, and general mess!

One of my favorite things...American Idol!

A few plans for the rest of the week...school, school, school, tutoring, book club, watching American Idol, catching up on life!

Here is a picture thought I'm sharing...

This is Joe's birthday cake for his park party. Pathetic isn't it? I took "writing icing" to write on it after I got there and the stuff must have been too old. It wouldn't come out and wouldn't wipe off so there was a big red blob that I tried to make into a balloon with no success. Julie managed to write "Joe," with the yellow. Thankfully it tasted much better than it looked! Cakes are really not my thing, my mom can make amazing cakes though!

To participate in the daybook, see Peggy here.

Random Thoughts

I am so glad that tomorrow is Monday. It has been a very fun but very hectic last 4 days and I'm ready for some normalcy. I'm ready to get up and pack in a full school day and maybe a nap to boot. We'll see...Hannah was sick last night, she had a fever of 102 but today is fine. I didn't give her anything for the fever because she was going to sleep anyway and we try to not give our kids medicine unless they are miserable. I guess the fever fought off whatever but she was trying to get because she woke up with no temp and has been fine all day. She started with a bit of a cough tonight but still no fever. I really hope that was it. We've managed to avoid both the flu and stomach bug that are running rampant around these parts. But, she did spend all weekend packed backstage with lots of kids carrying lots of germs. The show was great, show weekends are always fun and exhausting. I'm always glad to see them end. The kids and I went shopping to Wal-mart tonight for bunny stuff. We got them Timothy Hay, some interesting food, some bunny treats, and some little plastic balls with bells that some website said bunnies liked. We needed litter stuff but WM was out so I will have to check again on Tuesday. We are good for a day or so. The bunnies are doing well. The kids are having such a blast with them. They definitely have two distinct personalities. Rosie is sweet and calm and Chloe is sweet and adventurous. They were making up some funny songs about them today. Joe isn't into holding them but loves being around them and petting them. The main reason he doesn't want to hold them is that he doesn't want to touch their butt or have their butt touch him. Here is a picture with Grace and Chloe. Chloe was totally relaxed, all stretched out on the couch. These bunnies spend considerable more time out of their cage than in, at least this weekend they did. Tomorrow they will get more cage time though.

This is my latest stack of books in no particular order. I have a very eclectic taste in reading as you can tell. I have my book club book on top, "John's Story, the Last Eyewitness." Book club is Tuesday and I'm only about halfway through the book. The story is okay but not terribly gripping. Next on the stack is "A Song From L'Abri." I love stories from L'Abri. L'Abri is a place in Switzerland or Sweden or some European mountain country. It's kind of a place for people to go to find themselves, find God, etc. I am looking forward to reading this book that I found at a thrift store. Then we have, "Mimosa," by Amy Carmichael. I'm not sure what it is about but I love Amy Carmichael and just had to borrow this from Ollie's mom. Next is "Tales of Beedle the Bard," a Harry Potter book. I am a Harry Potter fan and can't wait to read this. Next is "The Messies Manual," I got this from Ollie's aunt. I need all the help I can get!!! Then we have, "A Clearing in the Wild." I got this from the library, apparently I had requested it but have no memory of requesting it and can't remember why I requested it. I'm curious to start reading this one to find out why I wanted it. The next three I may never get to, they are "self-help" books and I have just read a few self-help books and I don't really even like self-help books so I don't know if I can get into them or not. Two are parenting--Love and Logic and Boundaries. The other one is yet another one about what might be causing my inflammation and joint pain. And lastly we have two that I picked up at the library this week. One is by Joan Aiken and the cover looked interesting. It was actually in the Young Adult books but I usually enjoy young adult books so I may get to reading it. The other is a James Patterson book, "Sundays at Tiffany's." I have only read one other James Patterson book but this one has my name in it so I should read it. I hope to get some serious reading time in this week so I can start wading through this stack. There are 7 other books I'm dying to read but I'd like to get through these first.

Isn't this a cute picture? It's all the grandkids on Ollie's side of the family except for one--Dani. He's in the military and was not there when we were in Chicago. We went to Portrait Innovations and they took about 200 and some odd pictures and in the end there were only 2 that we really liked. It's hard to get 8 kids to cooperate!!

That's it, I'm off to bed to read until I fall asleep. I probably won't make it five minutes!