Sunday Penny decided to brave church but she didn't last past sacrament because her arm was hurting. We ended up going home and I missed an exciting relief Society. My mom told me some one stormed out during the lesson. A sister had shared how she felt she had been neglected by her ministers and when someone else commented that she shouldn't judge her ministers because she may not know what challenges they are facing, this really offended her and she left church. Honestly knowing who it was, this is par for course for her. On a better note, Lucy came home from church with a care package from the Young Women for Penny. I know Elaine was behind it and I felt very grateful for her kindness because I was honestly feeling a bit neglected by my ward.
After lunch, we my mom, me and and the girls headed to Shipshewana for a little get away. My bad mood was still in tact and I had shared it with Lucy, who sitting next to a whiney Ruby, began to go off on her. The car ride wasn't great listening to the ails of Ruby and Lucy, but at least it was short. We ended up listening to part of Pride and Prejudice during the drive. Not my favorite but their are some funny moments to it- like the mother and her tender nerves and Colin proposing to Elizabeth.
We made it to our airbnb around 3:30 and it was a cute place. It had a oval path through the living room and kitchen that Ruby immediately started running. Her mood seemed to change for the better and so did mine.
Since everything here closes at 5pm, we needed to figure out what to get for dinner quickly, before it all closed. We ended up walking to Yoder's barn. Google maps was being weird but we ended up finding it, it was only like an 8 minute walk. Weather was in the 90s though so that felt pretty hot to us. Once there we found some frozen meals that sounded good and picked up some rolls.
When we got back from the market, we found board games at the bnb what we decided to play while we waited for the food to cook. I played Scrabble with my mom and then Candy Land and a dice game with Penny. The games contiuned to improve my mood. I was feeling much better ar this point.
The games entertained us until dinner was ready. After eating, we drove to a Meijers to pick up breakfast and lunch for tomorrow. We needed a little more variety than what we found at Yoder's- mostly because of Ruby. On our drive back, the driver in front of us was swerving and was holding his arm out his window with his middle finger raised. The kids thought it was funny but it made me very nervous. I left a lot of distance between us and I was very happy when he pulled into a hotel parking lot.
When we arrived back at the bnb, the girls put a movie on and then I started the long process of putting Ruby to bed. It took an hour to get her to bed and I am pretty sure that she only fell asleep because it was finally dark in the room.Once she was asleep, my mom and I chatted outside.
.heic)
After leaving the market, we headed back home to Michigan. We listened some more to "Pride and Prejudice" and had a smooth ride home. When I got home, I discovered that Ben had finished the puzzle we had been working on. It was a tricky puzzle so I was quite impressed.
Monday we got up and at it and then walked down to the Shipshewana Flea Market. It was a short walk but another warm day. At the market we strolled the different wares and ended up spending most of our money in a little shop that had crochet animals and other cute things. I got Lucy a chicken, Ruby a little pink bee, and Penny got a crochet hanging plant. I also got cactus earrings (thanks mom!) and a cute little hair tie. At another store I found a very small tea set for Ruby. It was only $3 so I couldn't resist it. We also got delicious pretzels and then later, snow cones because they girls were roasting and getting grumpy. Ruby ended up soaking her bum and stroller with melted sticky ice so that was fun. Near the end, we discovered a stall with puppies and the girls spent a long time playing with the puppies. When they finished with the puppies, we were all super hot so we decided to walk back to the airbnb.
.heic)
We were taking a bit of a break when Grams got something lodged in her throat so I walked to a nearby candy shop to get her a coke. I ended up getting her a glass bottle Coke and was dumb about getting the cap off. I was trying to do it on the counter but my hand slipped and I bruised my arm really good. After injuring myself, my mom found an actual bottle opener. I probably should have looked for that first.
After that fun, we decided to go to Menno Hoff. It was a nearby cultural center/museum. The tour they offered was not really meant for toddlers so Ruby spent most of her time coloring on my phone, but I found it really interesting. I think the girls found parts of it interesting as well but it may have been a little long for them. We learned how rules can vary greatly between different Amish or Mennonite communities. Each group consists of about 20 families and a Bishop is the leader of the community. The Bishop and people basically get to decide what technology they should accept based on how they feel it will support(or hinder) their traditional family and faith or rather how it might threaten their religious or moral values. Some use generators because at least they don't have wires connecting them to the world. Some are ok with solar power. Some use cars while others don't because they don't want to risk harming others with their vehicle and they don't want to pollute the earth and deplete natural resources. We also learned that the Amish people originated from Anibaptists- they did not believe in baptizing babies and many were killed for this belief. It was neat to see that we shared that belief. I really enjoyed the whole thing, despite my wriggly toddler. At the very end of the tour, there was a play area that was a lot of fun for Ruby but of course not so much for the older girls. I wish I could have left Ruby there during the duration of the tour/presentations so we all could have had a better time.
After the museum we went out for a late lunch at Wana Cup. Ruby spilled her lemonade all over the table and floor pretty much right when she got it, but they were very nice about it. The food was good, very fresh,and we all gobbled it down. When we were done eating,we went back to the bnb. The girls rotted their brains while my mom and I hit a couple shops. She was looking for things for her yard and I was looking for puzzles to do with Ben. Neither of us had success. Then we came back and I decided I was going to take Ruby to the carousel at Davis Mercantile- Penny tagged along. I thought it didn't close until 5pm so we would make it there in plenty of time (it was 4pm). Unfortunately I was wrong because when we got there, it was closed. To make up for Ruby's disappointment, we went to the candy store and I bought her a sucker. To make up for my disappointment, Penny and I shared a pretzel.
When Grams and I had been out earlier I had noticed a thrift store and since it was the one thing that was open past 5pm (it was open until 6pm) I decided I wanted to go there next. Lucy was uninterested but Penny, Ruby and Grams came with me. It was fun to see all the Amish dresses there. I had the best luck and found a puzzle that I had been wanting to get for me and Ben to do- a castle one. It was only $3 instead of the $18 new so that was quite the steal. I also found a fun car parking garage/car wash thing for Ruby for $5. I love thrifting.
We called it day after that. We had TV dinners, watched "The Devil Wears Prada" and Ruby and I even spent a little time hanging out outside. That night I decided to not even try to put Ruby to bed until 9pm. That was a wise decision. It meant I only spent a half an hour with her until she fell asleep since again, once it got dark, she passed right out. Maybe summer is just hard with her in general because her body really is ruled by the sunshine.
Wednesday morning we got up and got ourselves packed and out the door. We decided to hit the Shipshewana Flea Market one last time since there were a few things Grams had seen that she decided she did indeed want. We had a bit of a hard time finding a dish towel (one that hangs on the oven) that we had seen the day before but we did find it and she got me one too. Yay! I also got a bag for plastic bags that unfortunately never made it back with me. I have no idea what happened to it. After that, Ruby played on a playground while Lucy and Penny hung with the puppies again. Meanwhile Grams hunted down a fun potted plant holder she had seen the day before- it was pig on a bicycle with a basket on the back for a pot.
Grams came back with her potted plant holder and we did a little bit more strolling. I ended up finding these cool twisted metal weapons for the kids. And I also got some pretty flowers. It was a cool booth with lots of neat things at fair prices.
Thursday the smoke from the Canadian wildfires blew in. This year it feels worse- you can even smell it- so we have opted to stay inside. Ruby has not loved being stuck inside but I did take her to the libary that night so she could get some wiggles out and not die from cabin fever. I am starting to feel like living in Michigan means never going outside due to various things like freezing cold temps, rain, humidity, wildfires, etc.
Also Thursday I went and got my hair done by Grace. I wanted a chesnut brown for a change but it ended up really really dark. Hopefully it will fade some, but I am also sure I will adjust to it. I also got bangs again because I just really love the way they look on me- even if they really just drive me crazy. Grace and I had a good chat while she did my hair and we caught up on all the gossip.
Friday was another day of wildfire smoke. We ended up going to Target to look at school stuff. It felt much too early to look at school stuff but in the past, when we wait, it all clears out fast. After Target we went to Marshalls to look at a few things. And pretty much that was the most exciting part of Friday.
Saturday was another fairly chill day. Tyler ended up finishing our flooring for the front living room, kitchen and dining room so now everything is back to normal and that feels good. That night Tyler and I went out to dinner and a movie with Grace and Jason. We went to the Filling Station, it is one of our favorite places to eat. Jason was kind of rude to the waiter and complained about the wait. It is a small place and the waiter is always the same person so now I am not sure we can go back. After that we picked up treats at the Dollar Tree and we all went to see "The Odyssey". We missed the first 10 minutes of the movie but other than that, the movie was good. It had enough action and violence to keep me from falling asleep. But I did not like the part where the witch turned the soldiers into pigs- that part was revolting. Poppy also called us during the movie and gave me a panic attack because I thought for sure something terrible must have happened to one of my kids for him to be calling at 10:30 at night while we were out. Thankfully all my kids were safe and sound and he was just worried about a water leak.
Funny Ruby this week- she has been very interested in bones since Penny broke her arm. I showed her some xrays on google and she will ask to see them on my phone. She will also randomly declare "I have bones!" or ask someone to touch the bumpy bones on her spine. I found some books about our different body systems at the libary and she has been reading them with me often. I love her curiosity.
No comments:
Post a Comment