Another Week

On Sunday a friend gave me a bunch of baby clothes and I spent Tuesday organizing them into bins so our attic space isn't a disaster. It took more time than expected but I am feeling very grateful. Ruby already has a good stash of super cute clothes. Tyler also finished fixing the drawer on the dressers we had bought- to the best of his ability- so the girl's room is organized and looking much better. 

Wednesday I took Ben to the SOS so he could get state ID, they won't let him get set up to get paid as a caddie without ID. We made an appointment online but of course they were running late and then we hit a ton of traffic on the way back. Took longer then expected but I had promised the kids we would walk to 7-11 when we got back so I did. It wore me out pretty good. At 25 weeks I am low energy and achey- I'm sure it only get worse ;). I got a belly band and it really doesn't help much. That evening Ben had soccer and then I had Steven pick him up and take them both to their activity. I found his driving slightly frustrating- he is overly cautious and slow. He is also easily irritated with other drivers (even though he is probably irritating other drivers). Their activity was calling people in the Ward to see if they wanted to buy flowers for their fundraiser. They tried to call me but I refused to answer and made them come to the foyer to ask me. I hate awkward phone calls, lol. I came home feeling overly annoyed with everyone (a little hormonal) and then Lucy accidentally kicked me in the face climbing up to her bunk bed. It was a bad mood sort of night.

Thursday morning I went to see a town home in Northville for Mariah's family. They had applied to this home and they were accepted. It is overall a really nice home and I think they will be happy there. The only drawback is that it will be a long commute for Jeff. But it is located next to lots of fun things and has a community pool which will be great in the summer. After that I went to Debbie's house to paint. It was one of those days where everything I painted sort of flopped. I didn't take a picture because I was unimpressed with what I made.

Thursday evening the girls had soccer and the weather was really nice. I did a walk to the library and worked on seminary lessons there and then walked back to the soccer field. I love my soccer nights.

Friday morning for seminary we talked about being a part of Jesus's clique- I think it turned out quite well. One of our students always gets a ride with another one but her ride didn't show so I gave her a ride to school. We actually had a really nice conversation. She is the only one in her home that is active and she has a really great testimony. She is a good teen. 

Also on Friday my allergies went completely haywire. Super itchy and runny nose. Bad headache. I felt really awful and spent most of the afternoon and evening hiding out in my room because the kids had friends over. Even Penny commented that I looked terrible, so nice.

Saturday I was hoping to feel better but I still had a bad headache. Tyler was really nice and took over all the responsibilities. He took Steven (who was in tears about it) to his first caddie job. Steven really did not want to go but apparently he calmed down on the ride there. He came home saying he did not enjoy it and had to ask like 30 questions but I am hoping once he gets paid he feels differently. He also took the girls to their soccer game and they won! Yay! I spent the day being super duper lazy and hiding from everyone. It was a good recovery day.

Also this week Penny and Ruby took a nap together :)

Super Mario, Caddie Training, Painting

We roasted last weekend in 80 degree weather and then on Monday there was snow. Not enough to stick but enough to emphasize that Michigan weather is crazy. The girl's soccer practice got cancelled that night but the older kids were expected to *suck it up* so Ben still had soccer practice. He layered up and survived the cold. 

Tuesday morning I met Stefanie at The Breakfast Club. I had been craving their crepes so it was nice to satisfy that craving. I enjoy our talks because I feel like our older two kids have some similar issues so it's nice to have some who can relate. That evening the boys had their first caddie training. I had totally forgot about it and bought tickets for our whole family to see the new Super Mario Brother movie. Fail. I ended up inviting 3 friends of the girls to take their place and then buying tickets for Tyler to take the boys after their caddie training (because Ben was super upset about missing it). Since it's only $5 on Tuesday it wasn't too painful of a mistake. The girl's 3 friends that came all go to their school so I took them home with us from school, fed them and then we went to the movie. That was a lot of girls but they had a blast and all seemed to enjoy the movie. We did some serious jamming to the "Peaches" song all the way home.

Wednesday I felt wiped. I fell asleep doing school work with the kids, then took a nap when they were done with all their school work and then took another nap after runnings some errands. Baby must have been stealing my energy that day. That night I took the boys to their second day of caddie training. They seem like they are excited to make some money. Steven even said he had a goal to make $400 to buy an Oculus VR. I really hope they both stick with it. Picking them up from the training was a disaster though because the parking lot was FULL and I kept going down dead ends and then having to get out of those dead ends in the massive Surburban was not a treat. 

Thursday while the kids were all in school I got to go on a walk with Grace. She jogged to my house before the walk which I found quite impressive. She's training for a marathon. Then I had my 24 week check up and Ruby is still doing good. I have had a horrible back ache and my midwife recommended a belly band. I am not sure that will help but I guess I will try. I also was super awkward and asked her if she knew anyone who provided housing to medical students- I mean she's in the medical field, why not try for Mariah's family's sake. (Everytime they apply to rent a home, they get denied because their loans aren't in yet.) She did not and I immediately felt silly for asking. Oh well.

Thursday night Tyler was in charge of getting the boys to their last day of caddie training and I took the girl's to soccer practice. While they practiced I went for a walk- the weather was perfect- then I went and read trashy magazines at the library. When I went to pick them up my vision went wonky and my head hurt. Not ideal driving the girls home. Pretty sure it was just a migraine. I wonder if the migraine was brought on from cleaning the shower grout earlier- maybe the smell of bleach was too much. 

Friday morning I felt like I was still recovering from the migraine and needed the lights off. Later I had to take Andrea and Ben on a hunt to find water in specific environments to test. We had to do suburbs, country, freeway, city. When we finished, I took them to Costco for lunch. I love how cheap Costco's pizza and hot dogs are. Later I decided to try and see if I could paint flowers using my pour painting. I think they turned out pretty good. I want to do a big painting similar to this for above my fireplace.

Saturday morning the girls game was cancelled because of rain but not Ben's game. The weather started out good for his game but near the end it got really chilly and started to rain. The bag for my chair decided to blow into the field and one of the dad's was really nice and chased after it for me. They still mostly ignore me but I was glad for the help. Ben also had a shoe tying problem but overall he did really good and it is fun to see him improving.

Also Saturday, the girls got to go to Angelica's play "Beauty and the Beast". And Steven had over 3 people from the Ward (2 being girls) and they all meshed really well together. They had a lot of fun playing games on the Nintendo Switch. We'll have to get them all together again. 

Easter Sunday and Ohio

 As per usual the kids woke us up early Easter morning, excited to look for their Easter baskets. Penny is currently the only believer in the Easter Bunny, the rest have learned the truth and were not traumatized by it. There were notes with clues to help the kids find their baskets. Penny's was on the washing machine in the basement (so she could help mom with the laundry when Ruby is born). Lucy's was by the Shopkins toy bin (so she can make sure and keep these tiny toys away from Ruby). Ben's was near the homeschool cart (so he can help teach Ruby). And Steven's was hidden in the bathroom where he shaves his mustache. They were spoiled as per usual.

Ben got a funny shirt, a tie, a Super Mario Lego, a drawing notebook, water balloons, goggles, and a photo book.

Penny got fairy garden stuff, gummy bear necklace, mini brands, water balloons, goggles, and a photo book.

Lucy got "how to draw anime faces" book, a Veggie Tale movie, mini brands ball, gummy bear earrings, water balloons, goggles and a photo book.

Steven got a funny shirt, a Lego chicken, fancy mechanical pencils, a tie and a photo book. 

I got an exercise ball from the bunny (to sit on and help with my achy back) and Tyler got a book he had been wanting (Common Sense). After all the fun gifts were revealed I did some cooking and set out a platter of food for the kids- doughnuts, muffins, pancake sticks, and bacon. Everyone fought over the doughnuts so obviously I should get more next year.

After tidying up, I got myself ready for church and took our usual Easter Sunday pictures. This year Lucy asked for a romper which was nice because then I did not have to yell at her at church for not sitting lady like in a dress. The girls also wanted to wear makeup and I allowed it but Lucy's may have been a tad over the top.

At church we had a pleasant surprise, Lucy and Penny's friends showed up- Angelica, Luna and their mom, Cherish. I knew the girls had invited them but since I hadn't heard anything from their mom, I didn't expect them to come. The girls were excited to have them there, and that excitement made reverence a little tricky. Overall Easter Sunday was good. Each speaker seemed to mention the Mary Magdalene story which felt slightly redundant. One used a lot of Mormon terms which may have confused Cherish. 2 yw sang a really pretty duet. I think our visitors enjoyed it.

After chuch we ate our Jerusalem meal (fish sticks, pita bread, grape juice...) and then we loaded up the car and drove to Ohio. I came up with the idea to go visit Cuyahoga Valley National Park in Ohio a few days earlier and Tyler surprisingly went along with it. We drove 3.5 hours Sunday afternoon to a nice (and cheap) airbnb in Fairpoint, Ohio. We got their fairly late so we just ate some easy macs that I had brought, played on the cool retro arcade machine they had, walked to a lighthouse just a few mins away, and then watched "The Chosen" before going to bed. 

The next day we woke up and went for a little walk to the nearby beach at Lake Erie. The boys had a lot of fun skipping stones. We also found quite a few dead fish which was gross. Ohio is often made fun of by teens for some reason and so the kids loved seeing the dead fish and commenting "Only in Ohio".

After our walk we headed to Cuyahoga Valley National Park. Our first stop was The Great Falls of Tinker Creek. The hike was short and the view was pretty. For a bit the kids thought the falls were called "Tinkle" insetad of "Tinker" so that was funny. The kids also found a tunnel which led you to a closer view of the waterfalls. I made a poor choice and followed them into the tunnel. Walking low while pregnant is no easy feat but I did enjoy the better view. 

After our little hike and exploration we ate our lunch (we had picked some things up from a grocery store) at a nearby picnic table. Then we headed to our next destination- Brandywine Falls. This walk was more peoplely, had a little more stairs than I would have liked and the food I had just ate had not settled well. Thankfully we got to the bathrooms just in time. Also, thankfully, they were nice bathrooms. 

Our next stop was probably one of my favorites, The Ledges. We hiked down to these cool ledges and were able to explore them. Everyone but me squeezed through a narrow opening. I went to a less squishy part and joined them. The kids really loved exploring and we didn't run across many people. Once they finished exploring the ledges they were all basically done and didn't want to finish the trail so we headed back to the car.

Our last stop was the Beaver Marsh. While we did not spot any beavers, we did see an old lock (from the days of the Erie Canal), a muskrat (I didn't get a very good pic of him), lots of turtles, ducks and swans. By this time the kids were getting hot, tired and cranky so this was not my favorite part.

Once back to the car we called it a day and made the drive back home. It was a good little adventure. Thankfully we had a smooth ride home. By the time we got home it was early evening so we skipped the kids' soccer practices and had a quiet night in.

Tuesday the kids went back to school and I spent the day cleaning. By the end of the day my back was so achy. I might need to start letting the kids do more because the constant ache really sucks. That night I had Bunco. This time there were some prizes I REALLY wanted so of course I had a mediocre score. The host had prizes for everyone but I literally got the last prize. It was a notebook and a bunny- wahoo. But Melissa was nice and had gotten a bracelet and cute casserole dish. She only wanted the bracelet so she gave me the cute dish. 

Wednesday was busy. The morning was school work with the kids. Then Penny had a Dr's appt to check her spine (it showed a slight curve at the last visit). The dr said she isn't worried. I also learned that this dr sees babies so I can take Ruby to her. That makes me happy because I really like her. After that I met up with Michelle to look at another house for Mariah's family. The house was great but their application was denied. Lousy. Then I ran some errands and when I got home I went upstairs to take a break but Fancy Nancy and Lauralyn came by to drop off some cute baby clothes for Ruby. It was really kind of them but I was so tired. After that it was soccer practice and church activities. Soccer season really amps up my busy level.

Thursday was decade day at the kids' school. Penny did the 70's and Ben and Lucy did the 90's. Basically they just wore what we could scrounge up.

Thursday was soccer practice for the girls in Milford so I found a nice picnic table at the nearby park and worked on seminary lessons. The weather gets super warm in the afternoons (80's) but by evening it is really nice again. There's rumor it is going to snow Monday though so who knows what this bi-polar weather still has in store for us. 

Friday my car decided to have issues. I swear it is always something with this car. Tyler fixed one problem but it is still having overheating issues when it idles. He plans to take it in (hopefully soon) because he thinks the shop is responsible for it- some problem from when they installed the engine. I really hate my car.

Saturday I had two soccer games. At the girls' game it was overcast and the weather was perfection. However, they did not win. At Ben's game the sun came out and I got a massive sun burn. His team also did not win. It's fun to watch my kids though. Both Lucy and Ben are good at defense. Penny, well she stopped twice mid game to tie her shoe but when she is not tying her shoes she does a good job chasing after the ball. Afterwards I picked up a bassinet, a stroller and an extra car seat base from someone off FB Marketplace. They were a great deal. I had also ordered a car seat off Amazon so I feel like I at least have the essentials now. 

Also, Saturday, Penny got her haircut to shoulder length. She finally got tired of the CONSTANT tangles. I am so glad and it looks adorable.

That night I went to Target with Melissa and Caroline and made a baby registery for the baby shower they are going to throw me in May. It was a lot of fun looking at baby stuff and they were sweet and both bought outfits for Miss Ruby. Afterwards we tried on sunglasses and hats because we are silly and then Caroline and I dropped by Culver's to satisfy cravings. When I got home I continued my baby kick and registered on Amazon too. I registered for more stuff than I will likely get but it was fun to look at baby things and dream a little.

Easter Fun

 On Sunday we did our tradtional April Fool's dinner (only we were a day late). The kids love this tradition. This year I had a list of Superheroes and they had to pick 3 for each round. Each superhero stood for something (fettuccine alfredo, bowl, spoon, fork, ice cream, ice cream toppings, parmesan, veggie/fruit, drink) but they didn't know what. It turned out pretty funny. Their first 3 things- Penny got a drink, strawberries and a fork. Lucy got a bread stick, ice cream, and a spoon. Ben got the Fettuccine Alfredo (no bowl), ice cream and a spoon. Steven got ice cream, ice cream toppings and and Fettuccine Alfredo (no spoon). Tyler got a bowl, a spoon and a drink.

Monday was busy. It was back to seminary which was a tough wake up call. Thankfully I had just planned a Kahoot so it required very little teaching from me. Then we had school work, I went to see a few houses for Mariah's family (one had a sauna!) and I took the kids for a walk to 7-11. We made it back from 7-11 just as the rain started. It was a really beautiful day until the rain came which was a bummer. The girls were supposed to have their first day of soccer practice but they had to cancel because of that darn rain.

Tuesday I had the seminary kids make Peep houses and Resurrection Rolls so we could talk about different traditions. There were still supplies leftover so Ben, Lucy and Penny made Peep Houses before they left to school. 

Wednesday we had a Tornado watch warning for most of the day. No tornadoes came, thankfully. We did get some wild rain and wind but nothing destructive. We even braved the rain and went to 5 and Below to spend the giftcard that Grams and Poppy had given the kids for Easter. These kids are spoiled ;). Afterwards I made them come to Hobby Lobby with me to get a puzzle (in my defense I gave away like 30 of mine so our basement isn't totally infested with them anymore). We found one but then had to wait in line FOREVER to buy it. They had a "now hiring" sign up. Maybe I should work there and save up money for diapers.

Thursday while the kids were at school I went to Debbie's to paint. I was debating going because I have just been sooooo tired but I am glad I decided to go. I hadn't painted since the last time I went to her house and it felt really nice to get back at it. I also really enjoy Debbie's company, she's so nice. She taught me a new texhnique, called floating cup I think and it turned out pretty cool. I am a fan of using a black background. There's a weird, wood reflection in the pic below (bottom left) but that's not in the actual pic.

Thursday evening the weather was good so the girls had their first soccer practice. Lucy thought it was warm enough to wear shorts and no jacket. I warned her she probably needed a jacket. She did not listen and I think had regrets. I only did a quick walk nearby while they were in soccer and I was cold with pants and a jacket. I also went to the library and flipped through some magazines. I quite enjoy my time in Milford while they are practicing.

Friday was Good Friday so Tyler had no work and Steven had no school. Tyler spent his day working on fixing the drawers in the dresser that we had bought off FB marketplace, they don't open well. I had the kids each invite friends over. We did a little Easter Egg hunt- the girls hid eggs inside for the boys to find and the boys hid eggs outside for the girls to find. I am glad they hid the eggs because my back has been hurting so much. The idea of bending over to hide all those eggs sounded awful. Anyways, I thought it would be fun but Lucy and her friend Angelica got a little bit intense about making sure they found ALL the eggs (I told them there was enough for each of them to get 18 each). They would not settle for even one less. When it was done they all traded candy and fought to protect what they did not want to trade.

After they hogged down some candy, I sugared them up some more by giving them cupcakes and a bunny cake. Everyone helped make the bunny cake and at the end they were basically just throwing candy on it. It was a bit of a hot mess BUT our bunny cake is always just a mess...It's kind of a tradition. 

Saturday morning we dyed Easter Eggs. I was lame this year and didn't get any fun dying kits so they simply colored and drew on fake eggs. Maybe next year we will be more fun and use real eggs again. I think I am getting bored of these fake ones.