Painting on the Wall, Ice Cream, Shots, Cross Country

Saturday night I got enough of my voice back that I was able to have a good conversation with the Bishopric member about my counselors and advisers. While I still had to make some compromises, I am mostly feeling better about it all. The only person that I am real concerned about is one that I was keeping anyways, one that is actually a friend of mine. She is the secretary and she is highly opinionated. She doesn't feel the girls should have to do anything because they are so busy. But I feel that they should serve because life will always be busy and they have to learn how to fit in service despite the busy. Hopefully we can get on the same page.

They ended up not officially calling me Sunday because they want to wait until they have the counselors and advisers called too. I did teach my first Young Women's lesson though. It was definitely different than teaching my primary kids. I had a harder time getting people to participate and comment but overall I think it went really well. I really do enjoy teaching.

Monday I met with Dolly- the current YW's president. I know she was only president for a few weeks but it was still nice to talk about things with her and vent on some things. She is a good lady and I am really impressed with how much she committed to the calling for only being there for such a short time. 

Also on Monday I did something a little of my OCD character- I let the kids paint on the wall. After some major furniture rearranging- the toys are now in the front living room and Tyler's desk is in the back living room- a wall with some purple paint that had been spilled on it was exposed. The random paint spot that would not come off looked pretty weird so I decided to have the kids turn it into some artwork and frame it. And soon it just turned into a whole thing and now the wall has 3 works of art painted directly on it and then some framed pieces of art by the kids. I'm still not sure if I love it all but I plan to paint this room eventually so it's not permanent. 

Tuesday I volunteered at the kid's school library as usual- I really do enjoy doing this. It's relaxing work to check in books and organize them and I get some good socialization with the other mom that does it. That afternoon I watched Caroline's two youngest while she went to the doctor. Corinne came over with little Lucie and kept me company while I babysat. We worked on a puzzle while little Lucie and Peter played and thankfully Elizabeth slept most of the time. When Caroline picked up her kids she stayed and chatted for awhile. And then that night I had Bunco (in which I majorly won which never happens). In the midst of it all I started my period. It was late and I thought maybe just maybe I was pregnant. I had a panic attack at one point at the thought of being pregnant and then got super depressed when my period started. Pretty much I am an emotional mess and just super confused about my life and confused about the revelation I received to have one more. At Bunco one of the women announced she was pregnant. She had thought she was done and felt like she was supposed to have one more. I felt so ridiculously jealous that everything had worked out for her and so ridiculously confused at my own revelation and at the end of that day just so drained. Too much social and too much emotional for one day.

Wednesday Penny had a half day and the others didn't. We took a stroll through her school's book fair and then went to McDonald's for an ice cream cone. The nice lady at McDonald's gave us the ice cream cone for free. It was a nice little date for us which was needed. Especially because afterwards she had to go the Doctor's where she got her flu shot and her finger pricked. She was super emotional about this and screamed and cried and then refused to walk for awhile. So dramatic.

After the Doctor's we went to Steven's Cross Country Meet which is not the most exciting thing ever. Basically you watch them run into the woods and then watch them come out. He got 29th place out of like 60 or more kids. I didn't time him but I am sure he's way faster than me. He seemed really tired when he was done, like he tried his best, and that makes me feel proud of him.

Wednesday night we had a Marriage Panel for mutual. It turned out really well. The couples gave some good advice for both the girls and me, ha ha! I was really impressed with how nicely Lucy and Penny sat for the whole thing. It makes me feel a little bit better about having them tag along for mutual for the rest of the year.

Thursday morning it was Steven's turn for a Doctor's appointment. He was also dramatic about getting a shot but at least he didn't try to hide like he's done before. He just sat there with tears streaming down his face. He gets himself so worked up about getting shots. He kept complaining that they hurt for 10 hours afterwards *sigh* For lunch I picked up Tyler from work and we got Subway and ate it at Milford park- the weather that day was amazing. It was so nice to have some kid free time and just chat outside on a beautiful day. This is a definite plus to having all the kids in school. That night I went to Dolly's baby shower. I was not really feeling up to the socializing but I am glad I went since there were only a few other people there. 

Friday was my first day in forever with zero plans and somehow the day disappeared quickly. I organized and tidied up the house, ran some errands, agonized over what washing machine to buy and finally chose one, and I hung up some pictures. Then somehow it was time to pick up Penny and I hadn't even gotten a chance to workout or take a nap. It's crazy how different I thought these days without kids would go. I really imagined getting so much more done and having lots of "me time". Life is weird.

Also on Friday Ben and Lucy had the Color Run. I am a terrible mom and hate going to those things because they are so peopley but a nice friend took some pictures of Ben for me.

Anyways it's been a long and yet super fast week. I read some conference talks about patience and gratitude this week- they go with the YW's lessons for October- and honestly they had some things I needed to hear with how tough this week has felt. Things that stuck out- 

-often we pray for patience but we want it right now 

-sometimes Heavenly Father doesn't give us what we need because we aren't ready for it yet 

-gratitude can heal and give us peace and understanding. 

-not gratitude FOR things but rather an attitude of gratitude

-remembering to be thankful IN our circumstances

I'm still not sure what to think about not being pregnant. Not sure sometimes if I am meant to be or maybe if it all was a test of faith. But I am going to try harder to be patient with this life and try to be grateful for all the things I do have.

Big Callings and Painting

Saturday night Tyler told me we had a meeting with the Bishop. He was sworn to secrecy and divulged nothing. I assumed that maybe I was just getting a second calling. Boy was I shocked when they informed me that the Young Women's President that they had just called 3 weeks ago was unexpectedly moving and they wanted me to replace her. Not what I was expecting. I said some very unsure words of acceptance and then ducked out to the bathroom and had a good cry. I think it was real mean to call me to this big huge thing right before church and give me no real private time to process but...men. I go through waves of acceptance and feeling like I can do this to waves of freaking out and insecurity. I've read up the handbook and listened to lots of talks on callings and that's usually when I feel good about it.It's a big thing to be a president and in an area that I really don't know well. I've been in Primary so much that Young Women's feels like an unknown realm.

Along with this calling there has been a lot of drama this week surrounding picking the counselors and advisers. I really prayed on it and thought about it and some of the names that came to me were surprising (especially one that is a person that I don't exactly love) but after rearranging names several times, I kept getting the same people. So I submitted the names, only to find out that they rejected all but 1. Then they put out names that I just don't think will be good fits for working with the Youth. Lots of tears of frustration shed and venting. I haven't felt that unheard in a long while. Tonight I am meeting with the Bishopric member in hopes of talking things out and coming to decisions that we can all be comfortable with. I am also hoping they haven't already called people and made decisions without me. Oh this calling is going to be a rocky road. 

On to the rest of my week. This week my big project was painting the living room and I got it done. Making a color decision was challenging and I am still not 100% sure I love it. It's definitely an improvement to the warm golden color it was previously though and since I dislike painting so much- I won't be changing it anytime soon.

Tuesday the older 3 had a half day from school. Penny was very distraught that she didn't have one too and spent an hour screaming about it Monday night when I accidentally let it slip. It's rough to be her. Even more rough that I took the other kids to the beach with some friends while she was still in school. It was a pretty good time at the beach, even if it was a tad cold.

Thursday and Friday I had my first sub jobs of the year. They were both afternoon sub jobs which worked out perfect for getting the kids to school and back. I had no problem getting them to school obviously and then Penny just took the bus home those days and I got off work in plenty of time to get her from the stop. Thursday was an extra tough day because the class had no breaks- I was in charge the whole time. Friday was a little better because they had part of lunch, a short recess and music while I was there. However both classes were tough and left my voice exhausted. By the end of Friday my voice was hoarse and this morning I can only whisper. I honestly hardly talk during the day lately so I think going from that to talking loudly--- a lot-- killed it. I have been downing lots of water and cough drops in hopes of getting it back. I've got a meeting tonight and a lesson to teach tomorrow- I really need it back!

Funny story regarding my lost voice today though. In trying to rest my voice I was writing notes instead. Well after I wrote one to Ben, he grabbed the pad and wrote me a question. It made me laugh. I can still hear kiddo ;)

Also, guess who lost a front tooth this week!? She was so excited and made sure everyone she saw noticed. She also asked Penny to tell Mrs. Richter for her (Penny's teacher, Lucy's old teacher). It is super important that everyone knows ;)

Painting, Braces, Kensington

Sunday we had Stake Conference and they decided to not televise it at our building this time so we had to drive out to the Stake Center. We ended up getting there an hour early because Tyler had choir practice. My friend Melissa was there early for the same reason and we ended up squishing into her row and sitting with their family. She had a migraine so I was able to help with her kids but really our kids do so well together that they entertained each other and they all did pretty good for having to sit for 3 hours.

This week Steven started Cross Country and mostly all he does is complain how tired it makes him. It only lasts until the end of October though so he will just have to suck it up for a couple months. I have been grateful that my friend Stacey is able to pick him up from practice because they end at 4:15 and I can barely make it back to my house by then with Penny. The Cross Country meets are going to have even worse timing. They start at 3:45 and Penny gets out of school at 4. I need a clone because it seems like everyone needs rides at the same time. 

Monday night we took a family bike ride to Dodge Park- even Tyler came along for once. It was all fun and games until Ben's bike got a flat tire. We ended up ditching it in the woods and he ran with us to the park and then on the way back he had to walk his bike. His bike has issues and I think for Christmas he is going to be needing a new one from Santa. Besides the flat tire drama it was all pretty fun- we played a game of tag with the kids and that always reminds me that I am not as in shape as I think I am.

Tuesday I volunteered at Ben and Lucy's library. It was actually pretty fun. There was another mom there and we checked in books and shelved them. I also got to help the kids check out books when they came. It was nice because it kept my busy and I enjoyed chatting with the other mom.

Wednesday I started my project of painting the living room. I was able to buy all the beginning supplies with birthday gift cards, so that was nice. Hopefully I won't have to spend too much more since we seem to have lots of extra expenses coming up with everything breaking on us these days (water softener, washer, unreliable truck...) I began with the ceiling and trims and ugh, my neck was so sore by the end of it. I hate painting ceilings so much and I didn't do the best job but it'll have to do- my neck can't take anymore craning. I did take a break and met Tyler for lunch. It was nice being able to have a little date while all the kids are in school.

Wednesday night I went to Young Women's where we attempted to get some planning done. We at least got things planned through October and I feel like the planning went a lot better with the young women present than when it was just us leaders. It looks like I will have my first opportunity to teach on the 22nd and I am actually really excited about that. I've been reading all the topics for September and there is a lot of really good stuff. On our way back from Young Womens there was a big lightening storm and it was really cool. Surprisingly Lucy didn't get scared at all- she might be growing out of her lightening fear.

Thursday morning I went for a run in the rain and then picked up Ben from school and took him to the Orthodontist where he got braces. He still has the expander and now he has a brace face too- lucky kid ;) He complained that day and the next morning about his teeth aching but hasn't since so I'm hoping that means it's not hurting as much anymore.

Thursday afternoon I took Tyler to get his endoscopy done since he's still having swallowing problems. That's another money eater- $2400- and basically they just re diagnosed him with eosinophilic esophagitis and prescribed him a new medicine to try- this ones an inhaler of sorts. I hope after spending all that money that this will actually help and it was not all wasted.

Later when I picked up Penny at her bus stop (we only do it occasionally now because I hate how late it is) and I told her that I really missed her. Her response, "Well I didn't miss you." I am just so glad she is adjusting to school so well.

Thursday evening I went to Steven's Curriculum Night where I discovered he hasn't been reading or practicing his instrument like he should. That led to lots of lectures and a feeling that nothing is sinking in. He is so smart but he is lazy and a huge procrastinator and this is going to be problematic if we can't nip it in the butt now. I started a technology fast with the kids today because of this. I figure if maybe he doesn't have the screen distraction maybe he will be more willing to do work. Who knows. Day 1 has already been rough- we'll see if I survive until next weekend.

Lucy also got a hold of my phone Thursday and took all these gems and more. She loves taking pictures and videos of herself way too much.

Friday I finished painting the trim, let it dry and then taped off the living room so I can do the walls next. Later when it was time to pick up Penny the sky started rumbling something fierce and it made Steven anxious so he decided to come with me. On our way we encountered a super scary, storm- strong winds, giant rain drops that sounded like we were being pelted by debris. Cars were pulling over and everything. Thankfully it was fast blowing and ended fairly quickly but not without Steven and me suffering a panic attack first.

That evening Tyler and I were able to go to the temple which was really nice. There were only a few other couples there (maybe because of the weather?) so we got to be the witness couple. I enjoyed the peace of being in the temple. I've felt unsettled with all the kids at school now. I am able to keep busy and the days fly by but I wonder if I am spending my new found time the way I should. Should I be volunteering more, looking for more ways to serve others or looking for a job? I still don't have the answers but it was nice to feel at rest in the temple, if only for a couple hours.

Saturday we started our technology fast so the boys went to a HAM radio thing with Tyler and I took the girls to the Kensington Farm Center. The weather was absolutely beautiful and we really enjoyed our time there. We played, saw animals, threw rocks in the lake...it was dreamy.

Afterwards we hit up the Dollar Store and it was there, as I went to check out, that I discovered I had lost my debit card. I had put it in my pocket and it was no longer there. I tried to stop it on my app but it wasn't letting me log on so I started driving home so I could go make phone calls before someone could use it. As I was driving home I had this thought that it probably fell out of my pocket at the Farm Center when I took out my phone. I had a prompting to call the Farm Center so I did. I am so grateful for promptings- someone had turned my Debit Card in to the lost and found. So we rushed back there and picked it up. Such a relief. Then we went back to the Dollar Store to get the things we had tried to buy before. And another tender mercy in all this was that when searching for my debit card in my car, I found our HSA card which had been missing. If I had never lost the debit card, I might never have found that HSA card.

The girls posing in front of the taped off wall- the trim is done but I figure this will still be a good before picture to compare with when things are all done.

Canada and Penny Starts Jr Kinder

Last weekend I was suffering through some migraines- seeing spots and all that fun stuff. Monday was Labor Day and I woke up with my head still aching but I was determined not to let it stop us from having a fun holiday so I drugged up and pushed through. Going to Northern Michigan always involves hitting lots of traffic on the way back so I thought this time we would try Canada. I picked Point Pelee National Park because it was only an hour and half away and it had beaches, a cool looking marsh walk and it boasted having the southern most point in Canada.

The first thing we did when we got there was the Marsh Walk. It had a fun observation tower to see it all and then we walked the loop. The kids spotted some frogs and I spotted a turtle and that was about it for the excitement factor of it. There was lots of complaining about too much walking from the girls, even though it wasn't even 1km long. Our kids are such whinos.

Next we stopped at the Visitor's Center where the kids all colored pictures that they got to hang up there (now they're world famous!) and they all had a lot of fun with this photo op there:

When we were done being silly we hopped on the nearby shuttle that took us to the trail that goes to the most Southern point in Canada. I wanted to sit in the back of the shuttle because it had a window for the kids to look out but the couple in the row in front of us was probably not happy about us being so close. Our kids were being super obnoxious, pushing and fighting with each other. Although Lucy did make us laugh when the shuttle started driving, giving us a cool breeze and she turns to us and says, "Now I can feel the nature." She later clarified that wind is nature and that's how she felt it. 

Once at the trail we walked down it and it continued onto the sand where there were tons of perfect skipping stones for Tyler. Tyler enjoyed finding them and skipping them. The kids and I attempted to skip stones too. I only had success once and Steven was the only one of our kids that was able to have success. It was a lot of fun finding rocks and throwing them. It's one of those nice memories that I hope sticks with the kids forever. After all that fun we walked to the Southern tip and Tyler took a pictures of us while we got our feet soaking wet from waves. It was a sandy and wet walk back to the shuttle- at the shuttle stop we had lots of sand to dump out of our shoes.

Our last stop was at Black Willow Beach. It was getting late at that point so we couldn't stay too long, much to the disappointment of our children. There were good waves there and they had a lot of fun running into them and letting them bounce them around. Lucy is always the super brave one who makes me so nervous because she starts going out farther than I would like. She also gets really upset when I ask her to come closer. She must have been a mermaid in a previous life. Tyler spent his time at the beach finding more skipping rocks and I enjoyed sitting on the sand and watching them all- that water was much too cold for me!

Unfortunately my plan to miss traffic totally was unsuccessful. Altogether we added an hour to our commute crossing the border back into the US. By the time we got back in the states we were starving so we stopped at a Leo's Coney Island for some food. It was not the yummiest ever but it was good to fill our bellies.

Tuesday was Penny's first day of school but it was a real easy one for her. It was a half day and I went with her. We got there super early so we were able to have parking spot and then chilled for awhile. Once in class she drew a picture of our family and then they sent me to a really long and really boring parent meeting. When I came back we did a scavenger hunt, finding different places in the school, and then it was home again. No big deal. That afternoon she requested lots of TV time since she wouldn't be getting as much once school got in full swing and that's pretty much what I gave her.

Wednesday was Penny's first FULL day of school and first day riding the bus. She was so excited to ride the bus and I was so nervous about it. The bus stop itself was kind of awkward. I am the random person that doesn't actually live in the neighborhood and it seems like a close knit neighborhood- they all know each other. One lady stooped down to talk to Penny but totally ignored me. It was awkward. Besides the people aspect of it, the timing aspect went really well in the morning. We are able to leave Ben and Lucy's bus stop and get to hers without about 5 minutes to spare- it's perfect. After she hopped on the bus I did my best to keep busy so I wouldn't think about how much I missed my buddy. I worked out, did a good scrub down of the house, went and ran a couple errands, baked some apple bread and about an hour before Steven came home I finally sat down and took some me time. I also discovered a love for audio books that day. Previously I have been kind of anti them but it was a really nice to have a book playing in the background and take away the quietness of my empty house.

Picking Penny up from the bus was not my favorite. I had Steven get Ben and Lucy from their bus stop while I went to get Penny. I got there about 10 mins early and then the bus ended up being about 10 mins late so I was waiting- awkwardly- for 20 mins. It was also late on Friday when she went to school again and if it's always going to be this late (4:45!) I think I would rather pick her up from school (at 4) and have her home.

Thursday Penny did not have school (the first half of the alphabet went Wed and the second half Thurs) so we rode our bikes to the library so we could go to story time. The dirt trail is always hard for her to ride and requires lots of pushes from me but I think she enjoys it. On our way back we saw a turtle on the path so we moved it off into the woods. A part of me wanted to take it home with us :) For lunch we got a smoothie to share at our favorite place and then in the afternoon we went to Dodge Park where we met a friend (and she made some new ones). It was a good last day together.

Thursday evening I took the 3 oldest on a bike ride to Dodge Park- the weather has been just so nice lately. When we entered the dirt path in the woods Ben and Steven spotted two deer. It was fun to stare at them while they stared at us. The kids had a fun time checking out the new park that's being built. Funny enough, Steven seemed to be the most excited about it. They still have to do the rubber flooring but it will be so nice when it's FINALLY finished.

Friday was Penny's second FULL day of school. This time I went kayaking after dropping her off. I forgot sometimes what an ab workout it can be when going against the current but it was beautiful out and I enjoyed paddling in the beauty and listening to some Gospel Library out in the water. Afterwards I went through some closets and loaded up our giant Salvation Army pile that had been accumulating and took it down. I had like 6 trash bags full of stuff and it was so liberating to get it all out. Then to celebrate getting rid of stuff, I went and did some shopping and bought a few things ;) After that I had my first Young Women's meeting which was...interesting. So many different personalities and feelings about how things should be run. Not a lot of decisions were made and there's still a lot of planning to go. We shall see how it all turns out.