Peek at our Week–tired of being so tired…

I guess lately the most I seem to be able to keep caught up on the goings on around here, is about once every few weeks.  There is always lots going on, just never enough time to document it all.



I really love looking back though, so onward I press, snapping pictures and logging funny stories in our family journal.  There is never a lack of either of those things in our family…



So, here are a few random bits of the how’s and what’s and other things that occupy my brain these days.








We celebrated Valentines Day with our fairly new tradition of writing “I love you because” notes to each of the kids, yummy sweets, and a fun family style dinner at our Life Group.  It was perfectly fun!











We’ve had a lot of snow lately, including a pretty big blizzard we are just now shoveling out of.  It does make us feel a little extra home-bound than normal, but I love it!







The boys have both been doing a LOT of shoveling.  Which means I have been forking over a lot of dollars.  Shoveling heavy spring snow is so much more appealing if it’s attached to money.














Elaina spent much of the past few weeks feeling poorly.  She got a nasty chest cold with a fever, and then in true Elaina fashion, shared it with her sister.  She’s so sweet that way .  I finally bought her a new math book, which she promptly told me, “Thanks, but no thanks” after having a few temper tantrums about the difficulty level.  I had, after all, promised her that the next book would be really fun, because both boys really liked it.  She has now confirmed, lest I harbor any foolish ideas, that “just because the boys liked it doesn’t mean girls will” and “who needs stupid math games anyway.”  But then what DO I know anyway….I have to keep figuring out this parenting thing over and over again, because each kid has their own way, and keeps changing their mind about that way whenever they feel like it, or whenever I appear a smidge too confident.  Sometimes I really want to be the one having a temper tantrum and screaming “It’s not fair!” all while stomping my feet and slamming my bedroom door…







This is my newest thrift store find – a Molecular Structure Model Kit.  It’d never even been opened before and I scored it for $2!  Isaac has been itching to get his hands on it, but I am saving it for a rainy day activity when there isn’t much else going on.










Nate has been doing really well in school.  The best part is that he loves school.  We got to watch his class in a dance performance that was pretty fun, and then help out for his Valentine’s Day party.  His teacher is an amazing lady! 







We got Isaac enrolled into middle school, and found out that he was accepted (we open enrolled him) just last week.  Eeeeeekkk!  I can’t even tell you how nervous I am for him.  Please don’t tell him, because it’s all I can do to keep cool calm and collected whenever he talks about it.  I’m not really sure if it’s because middle school is just so rough, or if it’s all that he went through last fall, or just the startling realization that he is growing up so fast, but I have a feeling this is going to be a really big transition for us both!







We are getting ready to visit my family in Arizona, kind of an early Spring Break.  To help Olivia understand, and hopefully curb a few of the nagging “How many days until we go?” questions that she floods my brain with every day, we made a count down chain to count down the days. 












Olivia has had two speech appointments with her new therapist, and it is going really well.  This time around is better for many reasons: the speech pathologist has a different way that just works for Olivia, and Olivia is a bit older, (aka more cooperative).  We are working on a few exercises to help improve her jaw stability, as well as fine tuning some sounds.  Olivia continues to do really well whenever she “practices”, but often her speech gets difficult to understand if she gets tired or really excited.

(Broccoli and Cheese Soup)

Recovering from my wisdom teeth extraction has been really rough.  I’ve been soooooo tired, had much more pain than I expected, and had a really hard time figuring out what to eat.  I know….boohooo….What do you eat when your on a “soft” diet?



A lot of soup.  And eggs.  And smoothies.  Bleh…

(Quiche Lorraine and Kale Salad with Blue Cheese)

(Parmesan Roasted Vegetables: Cauliflower and Asparagus)

By the end of two weeks I was able to chew a lot more real food, though it’ll still be a bit before I can manage a steak or chunky peanut butter.  It probably wasn’t wise to make a chocolate cake with Almond flour…

(Grain Free Chocolate Cake)

(Homemade Soft Pretzels)

We have a fairly normal week ahead of us, and a weekend full of packing for our trip.  Packing for six people is a big job.  I'm half tempted to let the little people pack for themselves, however the convenience of allowing them would never out-weigh the high probability that one (or all) would forget to pack underwear, some would pack inappropriate clothing (such as costumes and tutus), while others would pack only a stuffed animal and a pillow.


When would you let your kids pack for themselves?