Well, we had a happy 4th weekend. It was a much-needed vacation for Craig, who had Friday and Saturday off (and Sunday, of course). We still had school on Friday, even though Daddy was home, but it worked out okay because he found things to keep him busy while we were working. And when Daddy’s busy at home, stuff gets DONE! It’s amazing (and often irritating) how he can get something done in half, sometimes a quarter, of the time it takes me to do it. I’ve learned, more in the last year really, to just leave stuff for him, and not waste my time on it. While he doesn’t have a lot of time at home, when he gets motivated, he can get SO much done in a day! It also means that he’s got the boys helping him, so I get a little quiet time in the house, hee, hee!
So, anyway, we met up with some friends on Saturday and had an awesome game of guys vs. girls Pictionary. Two games, actually. Let’s see, now, WHO won both games? Oh, that’s right. It was the ladies. Both games. Not that we play to win, you know. Well, okay, I play to win, and I could mention a couple of other people that do, too, but we’ll not go there. It was fun, anyway, and I’m excited about next time. The guys have beat us so many times in Battle of the Sexes, it’s only fair that we have a game we can win… easily.
After games and snacks, we headed to Schertz for the fireworks in the park. It’s the first year our kids have ever seen fireworks that close before, as Craig never likes to get into the swarms of people. This year, however, he said we could go (that’s what happens when you like to make wagers when playing cards with your wife), so we got into a SWARM of people, and had a great time. The fireworks were very impressive, and we had great seats. I can’t say I wasn’t a little nervous about the kids disappearing into the crowd, in the dark, but we made it okay. Craig even bought all the kids those glowing necklaces, which we found out later, are filled with fluid that glows on whatever surface it lands! Jake accidentally broke his in the car, spraying beautiful luminescent liquid all over the truck seat, his legs, and his clothes. When I wiped it off, even the napkin glowed! I told him we needed to get it all off of his skin, since it was probably toxic, and most likely made in China. Then he decided it was probably radioactive (can’t blame him for that.) I warned him that it might burn his skin off, which made him quite nervous. He said, “If this stuff burns me, I am SO suing China!!” Ah, had to laugh at that. Hmm… wonder if we could. Maybe earn back some of the money they’re loaning to the U.S. for all these great new programs our government has devised.
Sunday was a good day of worship, as most of them are, though we were quite tired from getting home so late Saturday night. That doesn’t change Monday morning, however. You still have to get up and get moving! We had a full day of school, and Luke and Levi both finished their phonics books for the year, so they were pretty pumped. Maybe they’ll get at least a little respite for the rest of the Summer. It’s time to set new goals and re-evaluate what we’re doing, so I need a little time, too, not to mention all the projects I have lurking around the house. I won’t mind having a lightened workload for a couple months, while we get motivated for next year and finish up this one. We’re currently working on, among other things, designing a new school area, then we’ll have to build the desks to complete it. I’ve been working out of an entertainment center and a small collection of student desks for over a year, and it’s gotten to be pretty frustrating, so we’re looking for new space solutions. Hopefully, we’ll get it worked out, and I won’t have to call it my ‘cave’ anymore!
Jake said something else really funny today that I intended to write, and now I can’t remember it. So frustrating! The whole reason I journal these things is so I will remember them, or, rather, I’ll read them later and won’t HAVE to remember them! I just blog them so others can enjoy them, too, but my real motivation is to have a written record of what I go through every day, so I can pull it out and read it to my grandchildren. And their parents, when they whine about their kids and the shenanigans they pull. Most of my days would make good Calgon commercials, for sure, but they are all worth every ounce of effort we put into them. Just today, as Craig, Jake, and I were looking out the kitchen window at the deer, Jake commented on how they were ‘reluctant’ to come any closer. I love that my ten-year old uses the word ‘reluctant’ like it’s perfectly normal for a child his age. Levi and Luke built a cupholder (that looks a lot like a mitre box) out of the wood and nails Luke got for his birthday, and I love that they get to do that kind of thing together. They didn’t even drive a nail through any part of each other! Luke DID cut his bare foot on a piece of rusty metal, but that just opened up a good conversation on Tetanus. They learn in everything they do. By reflecting on and writing down these daily adventures, I am also able to see how blessed I am, and how valuable those moments are.
Speaking of blessings, here’s a good one on which to end this entry. It’s Meatless Monday at our house, like most weeks, and we had salad and cream of broccoli soup for dinner. I’m kind of lazy about making sure that my flour and water for thickening soups and gravies is perfectly smooth and free of lumps, and some families might complain about that. (Remember the commercial for the gravy in the jar (gag!) that ‘didn’t taste like homemade’ because it had no lumps!) Well, our soup, delicious though it was, had a few, or a lot, of those lumps. Instead of my kids picking them out, or whining about it, they took turns proclaiming, with surprise and excitement, “I got a dumpling!”
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