School Starts, Big Storm

 Monday the kids all started school. The boys were up early in the morning and I got up too so I could get my traditional pic of them before they headed out the door. It is weird (and nice) having Steven drive them to school. Ben had some issues with not being able to log in to his school computer and get onto Google Classrooms and that was a bit frustrating for him. Other than that though he seemed to have a good day. Steven, of course, said his first day was terrible, but that is literally his answer for everything so I don't take that to heart. Steven also had his first college class that afternoon. He drove himself there and found his class and everything. 

I started homeschool (language arts and math) with the girls on Monday as well. There were tears within the first 10 minutes because that is just how we roll. They love to make me question why I am homeschooling. They both felt they should have their work done in minutes and Penny was frustrated that hers was taking longer than Lucy's. We had to have a conversation (which I have had with them so many times) on how much longer they would be working if they were in public school...or even Renaissance hybrid. I also had to talk about how their work loads are going to always look different because they are learning different stuff. It was not the best start but I am hopeful it will get better as we get into the swing of things. I also do like this curriculum better than what Renaissance gave us- it's much more clean cut and explains things really well. 

Monday night I tried giving pigtails to Ruby. It was so hard to get her to sit still long enough and she did not want to stop messing with them so I am not sure how I often I will do them. BUT she really looked adorable!

Tuesday was another day of school for everyone. Having a toddler adds a whole new layer of fun because she just wants attention while I am working with them. When we finished our school work and Ruby woke up from her morning nap, I was going to do a beach meet up with Julie and her boys. However our babys' nap schedules just weren't quite aligning so she ended up just coming over to my house while Ruby was still napping. Julie's triplets played nicely with our Lego's the whole time. And Asher enjoyed Ruby's toys until she woke up. When she woke up, Ruby definitely had some struggles with sharing  but overall they played pretty well together. It is cute to watch her interact with someone her age. I also enjoyed chatting with Julie because we are on such a similar journey with our babies. I hope once our babies get similar napping schedules that maybe we can hang out more. She is just super social so that can make scheduling things hard. Her triplets also aren't really my girls cup of tea so that doesn't help get togethers. 

Tuesday night Tyler and Ben went early to Ben's soccer game- Tyler was going to be the announcer and Ben has to get there early anyways. I made dinner, the rest of us ate and then the girls and I headed over to the game. As we started to drive there some dark clouds began to gather and the wind picked up. As we got closer to the school it started to sprinkle and then right as we parked it downpoured. With a baby, there was no way I was going out in that crazy weather so I called Tyler. He was safely up in the announcer box (Ben was safe in the locker room). Tyler told me they were just planning on postponing the game a half an hour. I had my doubts that it would not just be cancelled all together so instead of hanging out in the car, I decided to just go home. The drive back home was crazy. The wind and rain were hard and every single traffic light was out on the way home. It made me nervous for Steven because he had left to his college class at the same time we had left for the game. Thankfully his drive did not get any crazy weather and he made it there safely. When we got home our power was out as well. It turns out that the power was out at the school as well so after what ended up being an hour of postponing it, they finally cancelled it.

We had a quiet night in with no power. The girls played the headbandz game and got Ruby to "play" as well. When Tyler got home he hooked up the generator so we could have running water and he hooked up a TV so the kids could watch a movie. We all decided to sleep downstairs because we know how much hotter it gets upstairs and without a/c, it would be worse. I am not sure sleeping downstairs was the best move though. Tyler and I slept in the guest room with Ruby. It was right next to the generator which was especially loud and made it hard for me to fall asleep. Then the power came back on at 3am. I had turned out the light in the guest room but the printer screen flased on- waking me up and scaring me. A couple hours later, Ruby woke up and did not want to go back to sleep. I ended up taking her back into the girls' room since the power was back on but it took awhile to get her to sleep. I don't think she likes having her sleeping place moved around so much. We just moved her into the girls' room so moving her to the downstairs room for the night really seemed to throw her off. It wasn't a great night for any of us.

Wednesday morning the boys high school still had no power so they got the day off. Wednesdays are the day we take off from learning English and Math since the girls will have their electives on Wednesdays (they start next week) so they had a free day too. At lunchtime we went to the Renaissance Back to School Picnic. Ben and Andrea ended up tagging along, just to have something to do. I also brought Claire there since her mom was working. Everyone had friends so they had a good time hanging at the park. The weather was warm but not unbearable. I mostly hung out with Mimi's mom. I learned why she only has 1 kid- she had a really bad pregnancy in which she almost died. Cherish's husband came with their kids and hung with us for a bit. The girls got some face/arm painting done. Penny's arm paint some how ended up on Ruby and me. I bought lunchables for all the kids because I was feeling much too lazy to pack a lunch for everyone.

Wednesday night soccer was cancelled so Ben could actually go to his church activity. Unfortunately for him they were at a beach for the activity. He just does not like getting in the water. But I still think he had a good time hanging with his friends. 

Thursday, the boys were disappointed to learn that the power was back at their high school so they had to wake up and go. We didn't find out until 5:30am and it was not a pleasant surprise for them. I was glad because I still wanted to do homeschool with the girls and I know they would not do well if the boys were home playing video games. I do feel like homeschooling went a little more smoothly Thursday. After Ruby's morning nap we decided to walk to seven eleven. It was a little warmer than I would have liked, and pushing a stroller on a busy road with no sidewalks is not ideal but I think it was good for us all to get out and do something. We stopped at the library to cool on our way back. Ruby immeaditely went to the train table and pulled off a bridge and upset a little boy who had been putting all the tracks together. She really is a bit of a baby Godzilla.

Thursday night Ben had an away game that was pretty far so he took the bus there and Tyler met him there after work. That meant it was a quiet night at home for the rest of us. Ruby enjoyed getting some selfies taken though.Ben's team won that game but Ben still didn't get any play time. It's so frustrating because he is working hard and showing up. His friend who plays on the team (and skips games and practices) said he doesn't like to come because he doesn't get play time but his friend actually has played at every game he has went to, just not for very long. I thought that was rude of his friend to complain to Ben, when Ben has only played in one game so far.

Friday the boys had no school for the labor day weekend so I let the girls have off of homeschool work. I am trying to give them the same holidays that the boys are getting. We ended up meeting the Mays at the beach after lunch. I had a really nice chat with Caroline- we had a lot of catching up to do. There's a house for sale in our neighborhood that I think she should buy. It probably won't happen though because they have a mass amount of debt from his schooling. Ruby was all about the water in the beginning of our beach trip and I regretted not wearing a swimsuit but then she face planted it and was done with the water. After the face plant, she climbed up into her stroller and hung out there for a long while, playing with a pair of goggles. Later she played in the sand with Lizzie (and ate the sand too) and eventually the girls had her in the water with them again. It was a good beach day.

Friday night we watched the new Quiet Place movie at home- me, Lucy, Ben and Andrea. It was fun to watch it again and talk during it about what things made sense and what things did not. They all made for good company.

Saturday was uneventful for me. The girls went to Mimi's to bake pumpkin cookies in the afternoon. They made the cookies with a pumpkin from Mimi's yard. Geli and Luna were there too and it sounds like all together they were a lot (of drama)- I know they are when I host them. Hopefully they didn't drive Mimi's parents too crazy because they are good people. Penny is feeling a little left out because Luna and Mimi are still at the hybrid school without her. I hope I didn't make a bad choice for the girls. I was just so tired of the hybrid curriculum and requirements. 

This week Ruby slept through a few nights and then not through some others...She has become very toddler and will breathe heavily through her nose when she doesn't get her way. She also has discovered slapping and thinks it is funny and we are trying to teach her that it is not ok (which the kids make hard when they laugh at her for doing it). She is really trying to imitate sounds and words. I think she is doing good with saying "Bro" (Ben is teaching her to call him that) and I swear she said "Lou" for Lucy. I had her go "Mmmm" when she was eating something yummy. She is so much trouble but also so much fun. We spend a lot of our time going for walks in her "car" because it makes her happy and keeps me active.

Penny is 10, Family Pic Results

Monday Ben had another soccer game- it was far out in Brownstown. The nice thing about soccer is that if it is far, they have a bus that will take them there. However, parents still have to pick up. Since the game started during dinner time I ended up staying home and getting everyone fed while Tyler went out to watch Ben's game. I was bummed I missed it because Ben got 4 minutes of play time! He was excited to be out, even if it wasn't for very long. His team also won that game.

Tuesday was busy with school orientations the boys. First thing in the morning Steven had his college orientation. He was still a little nervous about finding his way there and to the classroom it was in so we both drove- he followed me- and then when we got there I walked with him to find the room the orientation was in. (Ben stayed behind in the car with Ruby so I didn't have to walk with her) Honestly, Steven has a better sense of direction than me and would have done just fine finding it on his own. He pretty much led the way there. I walked him in and then left but apparently I was supposed to stay and sign some forms. I wish the lady would have told me that but instead she told me pick up was at 3:30 so I assumed I was good to go. I really didn't have time to stay anyways because I had to go straight from there to pick up Andrea so I could take Ben and Andrea to their Freshmen Orientation at the high school. Poor Ruby spends a lot of time in the car chauffeuring her siblings about.

Steven said the orientation wasn't helpful- they just sat in the room all day. I don't know if it actually wasn't helpful because he is not too positive about anything. They did give everyone Jimmy John's for lunch so I think that's pretty lucky. Ben said his orientation was kind of helpful- he was able to find some of his classes before his mentor got lazy and stopped showing his group around the building. Ben is lucky and has at least one friend in 4 of his classes. He also said soccer was good because there were a lot of familar faces there. I am feeling really good about him starting high school. Andrea, on the other hand, was texting all her friends to pick her up because she hated orientation and hates high school already. I am sorry she had a bad experience but I am also hoping her negativity doesn't bring Ben down. 

Tuesday was also Penny's real birthday- she was officially 10. She was able to open presents before we headed out to all the orientations. She got a Stitch shirt, a Disney Mini Brands ball and a mystery Stitch Keychain (she ended up getting Captain Gantu) from the Hatch grandparents. From the Brady grandparents she got a light up tracing board and money. From us she got a Stitch fannypack, another Stitch shirt, a snackable (Corgi doll holding Hershey bar), a Stitch diamond art kit, a booty shaking corgi and a polly pocket. Mike's family sent her stickers and Pokemon cards. She was properly spoiled for her 10th birthday. And Ruby has been trying to steal her Corgi doll ever since she got it. We might need to buy Ruby her own Snackable for Christmas so she stops stealing Penny's.

After the boys were dropped off at their orientations for the day, Lucy got picked up to go to an orchard with her friend so it was just Penny, Ruby and me at home for awhile. While Ruby was napping, I did bubble braids in Penny's hair. I am not very good with hair so I was quite proud of myself for figuring out how to do them but they did take awhile which is probably another reason I have never gotten good at hair- I just don't have the time (or patience) for it. 

When Ruby woke up, we took Penny to get a smoothie for her birthday lunch and then we stopped at a park to play. There were 2 little girls there who were very eager to make friends with us. They instantly shouted "Hey friends!" and ran up to my girls asking to play with them. I am not super social and was just hoping for a quiet play at the park but so much for that. I don't think Penny minded to much- except for the girl was a bit bossy. The younger one, was ok at first but when she started peeling Ruby's hands off things so she could play with them instead, I was done with the social and we left. After the park we went to Kroger's and got some ice cream and picked out a new nail polish color (Penny called it Stitch blue). Once I had painted Penny's nails it was time to take some photos of her cuteness with the Stitch cake her dad had made her.

That afternoon Penny's friend Reggie came over and hung out with her. They always have a good time together. Later, when all her siblings were back home, we went to Wendy's for dinner. She originally requested Culver's but Tyler got home too late from work- there wasn't enough time to drive there, eat and come back for cake, before Ben's soccer practice. Wendy's was closer so Wendy's it was. Us girls took a table and the boys took another one.

After Wendy's Tyler's sister's family came over and we had cake and ice cream. Penny was able to wear her crown from her birthday party- it was wilting some but still looked pretty good considering it had been sitting in the fridge for days. Even Tyler took a turn to wear it. It was a nice night with family.

Wednesday I tried to plan a big park day with friends because the weather had been so good but all my friends flaked out on me and so did most of my kids. Lucy ended up going to Claire's house. Steven and Ben went to a friend's house to watch "Twisters". So in the end it was Ruby, Penny and me and Penny's friend Mimi and Mimi's mom. It was still a nice outing. Mimi and Penny play really well together and Ruby had a good time too. Ruby is getting old enough and mobile enough to really enjoy parks. The hiccup was that I forgot Ruby's shoes and she did not love the feel of the rubber ashphalt on her feet so I had to carry her from play things or she would play on the ramps they have throughout (it's a handicap accessible park). 

Wednesday before soccer practice, Bishop was nice and met Tyler and Ben at a park so he could show Ben some soccer drills to help him with things that the coach told him he needed to work on. That was really nice of our Bishop. After that Ben had practice and he was beat by the end of the day. While he was at practice, Lucy and Steven went to their church activity- bowling (which apparently Lucy hates), and I took Penny to her sewing activity at the church. I sat in my car and found a new show to watch. It sucked me in pretty quick.

Thursday morning Steven got his wisdom teeth holes checked out. It was a quick check and everything was good. He complained afterwards that the doctor made his holes hurt again. Steven has also been complaining about his stomach hurting. He is done with the antibiotics now so I am hoping it will improve soon. Monday we had this drama because I asked Steven to pick something up from Kroger's for me but he was complaining his stomach hurt too bad. His stomach hadn't hurt too bad to hang with his friends so I got crabby with him. I ended up unplugging the wifi while he was gaming with his friends and that brought him out to investigate. He plugged it back in and asked me if maybe the cord accidentally fell out. Ha. Then he sat by Ruby for awhile and then told me he would go get what I needed at Kroger's. I guess the unplugging worked?

Thursday, after Ruby's morning nap, I took the kids to Milford to get a cookie from the bakery and play at the park. I am going to miss having Ben on these little outings, he is such a good helper. It was fun to swing Ruby in the same swing Penny once swung in as a baby. 

Thursday Ben had another game and I was unable to go again because a friend needed my help with something. Thankfully, Tyler was able to make it to the game. Ben did not get any play time this time and his team did not win. Kind of a bummer night so Tyler had them stay for the Varsity game and bought him pizza at the concession stand. 

Friday I had the crazy idea that I should take Ruby for a walk in the forest across the street and Penny and Lucy decided to join us. We used to go all the time during covid and I remember it being a good time. Well we probably did not go in the summer because it was NOT a good time. In the 15 minutes that we were in the forest we were attacked by so many bugs and branches (the pathway had not been maintained and was not stroller or people friendly) and while trying to get quickly back out of the forest, the stroller hit a tree root and flew over and poor Ruby landed on her face (still buckled in the stroller) and I landed on my knee rather rougly. It was traumatizing for all of us but most especially Ruby. It took awhile after she was home for her to finally calm down. We will not be returning anytime soon.

Friday afternoon my friend Stacey and her daughter Jenna came over. Stacey had just dropped her oldest off at college the day before. She said it was really weird feeling to leave your kid somewhere- I bet! We had a nice chat while the girls played but I had a tired toddler that I had to put down for a nap at one point. I was kind of thinking Stacey would leave before I put Ruby down but she did not so I had to be rude and excuse myself to put Ruby down. She did eventually leave and then it was an exciting outing to Costco for pizza and diapers and a quiet night in.

Saturday was a pretty lazy day for me. Penny and I took Ruby out for a walk in the morning. Ben went to soccer picnic with Tyler and Penny. That evening Tyler took me to Culver's for a date and Ruby tagged along. While there Ruby was complimented for the bazillionth time on her beautiful eyes.

Ruby is now drinking cows milk in a bottle. I have not broken the bottle habit yet because it is like her pacifier and I don't have the energy for that difficult task. But she does drink water out of her Baby Shark water bottle. She slept through the night a few nights in a row so we are attempting to transition her into the girl's room but we will see how that goes. She really likes the soft, bouncy bed and all the plushies. 

And the pictures from our family pics in Arizona finally were delivered:

Penny's Party

Monday Lucy got a much needed haircut and I got to chat with Grace while she cut Lucy's hair. Win-win. Grace has been trying to create a gameplan to make sure this school year is a more successful one for her kids. I hope it works out for her. Meanwhile I feel like I have all the supplies but I am really lacking on a game plan for homeschooling. We are going to start when the boys go back to school so that means I have one more week to get myself organized.

Tuesday morning I took Steven to get his wisdom teeth out. He was really nervous- I could tell by how chatty he was. He kept asking me questions about things I did not know the answers too. A frequent question of his was when he would wake up...He was worried about waking up too soon I think. When it was done they had me come in and boy was he out of it but he was his usual shruggy self. Every question was met with an elaborate shrug. It was tricky to get him in to the car. He was very unsteady and I was a little worried he might fall. Much to his friends dismay he did not say or do anything exceptionally funny while under the influence of drugs. Lots of shrugs, some touching his tongue with his finger because it felt weird, and one short convo where I told him not to bite his tongue- he said why not, I said why would you, and he said because it tastes yummy. Then we were back home where he sat for a second and then immediately got up and started texting on his phone. The rest of the week his recovery seemed to go smoothly. He was good at taking his meds on schedule and making his own soft foods (ramen, mac and cheese, oatmeal, soup cups...). This kid never seems to eat much typically but man was he hungry this week. So weird. He was also quick to get back to gaming with friends and there were several times I had to remind him that his jaw was healing and maybe he should give talking to his friends a rest.

Wednesday I met Grace and her family at the Detroit Zoo. She had told me they were going and I sort of invited myself along. I also picked up and brought AJ, Andrea and Claire so my kids could all have friends. I regretted my decision to go. Not because the kids were particularly difficult or anything people related but mostly because I just really really don't love that zoo. It is so much walking for so little reward. It was also hot. Just enough to be uncomfortable. By the time we got to the polar bears, everyone was very done and it was a long walk back to the car. Then it was a long drive home- lots of traffic plus I had to drop off all the kids I had picked up. Just not my favorite way to spend the day.

Wednesday night Ben got the results from try outs. When he came to the car in tears, I knew they weren't great. It made me cry too because I know he had wanted to be on the team so much. He had a good cry that night but seemed in better spirits the next day. I started to think maybe it was good he wasn't on the team because it was lots of money, a big time commitment and he might actually be happier on a rec league. BUT we had some total whiplash the next evening. He had told us that he could be an unofficial member but hadn't said what that meant so Tyler decided to go to the team meeting Thurs night (while I was hosting Penny's birthday party). Turns out the JV coach was confused when Tyler talked to him because he said Ben had made the team- he just wouldn't get much- if any- play time. I really am glad he is on the team because I know it means a lot to him.

Thursday afternoon we had Penny's 10th birthday party with friends. It was probably one of the best parties I threw because it was inexpensive, easy, and did not involve anyone messing up my house. I picked up one of Penny's friends on the way, Lyla (who dissed our taste in music and later Penny's imitation crocs :| ), then I picked up the pizza (and noticed the cupcakes I had made had taken a tumble so they were a little smudged) and then it was off to Ford Field Park in Northville. Penny had 3 more friends come (Mimi, Geli and Luna) and they had fun playing, eating pizza and cupcakes. And of course, Penny had a blast opening gifts. She got spoiled with a bracelet making kit, a fairy door craft kit, a Stitch bracelet and clip on earrings. We had also invited Caroline and Lizzie because Caroline was the one who helped me come up with the great party idea. Caroline made Penny a beautiful Hawaiian flower crown- called a Lei Po'o.  

After the fun at the park we all carpooled over to the Northville Community Center (just a few minutes away) for a (free) Hula class with Kuana Torres Kahele (he was one of the writers of the Lava song in a Disney Pixar short). He wrote a song about squirrels just for the workshop that night because all the squirrels here in Michigan had inspired him. There were four verses for him to teach the hula dance moves to so it was a bit of a long class but I think the girls all still enjoyed it- even if they were tired at the end of it. Lizzie was the only one who ditched out near the end and started bugging me instead. I practiced the first couple verses with everyone but then I got tired of embarrassing myself and found it much more fun to watch everyone hula dancing instead. I was amazed by how some of the woman who were dancing could move so fluidly and shake their bums. My girls were a bit of awkward dancers- much like me- but I am proud of them for trying something new and just enjoying it. At the end of the night they got to take a picture with their famous instructor and then they were each given goody bags- how perfect was that! It was really a perfect birthday party.

Friday I had one last back to school errand to run- I needed to get shoes for Steven. Of course he did not want to go shopping for them so I had to guess his size based on what he already had and get the same brand. Annoying. All the girls came along and through the power of pic messaging, we were able to get Steven shoes. Then the girls insisted upon visiting Claire's. Ruby grabbed a stuffie there and cried when I took it away- she is a tantrum throwing baby already, heaven help me. After that we let Ruby get her wiggles out at the play area. There was a little girl there that decided she was her new bestie and followed her around a lot. Ruby had some issues with her when she tried to "steer" a car with her- seriously this baby of mine is a true toddler now. Then we got a pretzel, because that is a necessary snack at any mall visit, and were ready to go home. 

That night Ben had his first high school soccer game. It was a home game and they played against Dearborn. Tyler got to take care of the clock at Ben's game and then later- for the varsity team- he was the announcer. Lucy got to be a baller- give them a ball if they kicked a ball too far away. You have to volunteer at least twice or they charge you $150. Ruby, Penny and I were spectators. Ruby spent the whole game wandering around and trying to get into trouble- climbing the stairs, trying to take people's keys, dropping a toy onto the field. She did make friends with a little girl who had a doll named Lucy. Ben's team lost 2 to 4. Ben also did not get out on the field at all and he was really bummed, even though he kind of knew that was going to happen. I am hoping this is the kick he needs to work on skills outside of soccer practice. We are hoping that he can prove himself later and get out on the field. 

Saturday morning Penny had a Primary activity. It was a hodge podge of things- relay race, spa, a gift exchange...I think the Primary President who had just been released just wanted a last hurrah with the kids. Lucy and Ruby also came. I managed to get Ruby to take a nap during some of the activity. I enjoyed that part- sitting in the mother's lounge watching a show while she slept. After Ruby's cat nap, I sat and chatted with Caroline and soon after it was time to go. As we were leaving, I did finally meet the new mom in the ward and found out her daughter is just 6 months older than Ruby. I am so glad that Ruby finally has another baby her age and gender :) The rest of my day was pretty uneventful, except for a nice date night with Tyler to our favorite Asian restaurant. The last time we went it was so empty but this time it was positively bustling. I liked it better empty but the food is still delicious.

Sunday Ben gave a talk and cracked some good jokes (like "for those of you who weren't paying attention when they announced my name- I am Ben Hatch"). He spoke on being a peacemaker and how we can look for common ground  ("we may not agree that Super Smash is better than Minecraft but we can both agree that video games are fun"). For singing time I had to play some trickier songs on the piano but I did better than I expected. After church we (me, dad and Ruby) took Steven on a drive to the community college he will be attending. It is a small campus and an easy drive so I am feeling better about him going there. I think this will be good for him. Next up, we need to find him a job.