Valentines Day

Sunday was a grumpy day for me. I was irked that Primary still hadn't released the teacher I was supposed to replace and so things were weird. I was irked by the teacher that ended up teaching my class because she simply told the kids that they would be cut off from Christ if they make bad choices and told them that there was a commandment to not get tattoos. I had to bring up the fact that there is an Atonement for when we make mistakes and that there is no commandment that says anything about tattoos but we are told our bodies are a temple. Then Tyler's sister's family came over and he spent most of the time quoting and talking about a book they all like (which I have not read) with them while I dealt with a crabby baby. Then Tyler washed some dishes he made but didn't wash Ruby's dirty bottles that were there too. It was just one of those grumpy days. But Steven was happy to be celebrated again I suppose...

On Tuesday the grumps were still there. I was feeling especially grumpy with Steven and I yelled at him pretty hard core. He has been procrastinating writing an essay that was part of the pre-enrollment for Community College. Due to his unwillingness to write it, I couldn't figure out if he was being lazy or just not wanting to do this early College program. The outcome of the blowout was that he would either write 3 reasons why he should do the program or 3 reasons why he should not and there would be no screen time until he did that. I did not behave my best and my language was not very clean with him...but I finally got him to move into action. He wrote three reasons why he should do the program. So I took those reasons and helped him turn them into an essay. We are just going to keep moving forward with the enrollment process even I have some concerns about him sticking with it.

Wednesday was Valentine's Day and it was a good day to finally move past my cranky hormones. In the morning I gave the kids their love gifts and a box of chocolates as per tradition. Steven and Ben got Lego sets. Lucy and Penny and  got stuffies. And Ruby got a crinkle book. No pic of Steven because he is up too early for us.

 

Penny made everyone nice (and honest) cards. Steven's said "you are a good brother but you can be mean sometimes but thats ok". Lucy's said "You are a really nice sister. But you can be annoying sometime. But that's ok you are still nice" Mine was all nice and helped soften my cranky heart.

For lunch on I decided to be fun and make some pink heart pancakes. While making them I accidentally dumped pancake batter all over the stove top. That was super fun to clean up. 

We also decorated and ate some delicious heart cookies. 

Tyler was at work and then we were off that night with various kids' activities so we didn't really do anything special for Valentine's Day. I did get him a record and make him a nice card and he got me some new headphones so we didn't totally drop the ball. 

Thursday while the kids were at school, Caroline and Grace came over for lunch. Grace talked a bit more about being done with the church and how neither her, or her daughter believe in God and how that is tough for her husband and son who do. I bet it is tough for them because it was tough for ME to hear and I am just a friend. She made a comment how she understands that some people "just need to believe that there is a God." I have had too many experiences that point to the existence of God but she unfortunately hasn't and/or isn't willing to try or see Him. It makes me sad.

Thursday evening the girls had their volleyball games- both girls won their games. I didn't get to stay for Lucy's because I went with Melissa to a RS Activity. Honestly I haven't been to one in years and didn't really want to go to this one but Melissa had to lead music there and didn't want to go alone. It was mostly empty nesters there. It was about making a Christ centered Easter. At one point they had everyone come up and finish the sentence "Because of Him..." I didn't love being put on the spot and I don't think I was the only one that felt that way but it was still pretty  spiritual activity. One of the ladies next to me left the room in tears. I talked with her later and she was super embarrassed because she said it was over something silly- not being made captain of a team she particpates in because she can't do Sunday games. I don't think it was silly and we had a nice conversation about it. Despite not wanting to go, I am glad I was there so if nothing else I could be a listening ear for her.

Friday my biggest excitement was a trip to Costco to get some things. Friday Steven's biggest excitement was driving him, Ben and AJ to the May's house for a movie night. It was his first "solo" drive. When we told him he would have to drive if he wanted to go, he shut down and said he did not want to go anymore. And it took a lot of coercing (which started off nice and ended very angry) to get him to go. I understand that he was nervous but we have got to find a better way to deal with what scares him. Shutting down is not an option but I also don't want to have to yell at him to get him to do something. Ugh. Anyways, he  did go and he did a good job driving according to Ben.

Saturday Steven had another archery tournament and Ruby and I went to watch him. It was a pretty enjoyable experience and he ended up scoring a 231 which is good. This was the only picture I managed to get of him. He insisted Ruby be in it.

This week Ruby mastered the art of rolling BOTH ways! It's as if she heard the dr say she couldn't roll because she was chubby and she wanted to prove the dr wrong. She started Monday and just got better and better each day. She now can roll herself around a room which is trouble. Her siblings leave so many small things everywhere. Night-time is still unpredictable with her. Mostly she just wakes up once but there are nights still where she wakes up twice. I have been having troubles falling asleep and back asleep so I still just feel permanently exhausted. Ruby is also still flakey with food. She tried prunes this week (to help with the poop) and seems to love them. She also tried carrots this weeks and seems to be *meh* about them. 

Steven is 16

 On Sunday I taught my first parent teacher's council and I feel like it was a success. I had a variety of parents in it- from those with young kids to those with adult kids- and the size was just right- maybe 15 people. We had a really good discussion about what a gospel centered home looks like and what our role is in it. There was only one left field comment so that was a relief (the person suggested all children should only have 20 minutes of screen time a day). The Stake President even attended my class and mailed me a nice card complimenting me and thanking me for a good spirit filled discussion.

Monday my friends came over for lunch and we all had a good vent session. It was a nice break in my day. It was also nice to have it at my house so I didn't have to worry about leaving all the kids with Tyler working in the basement- I feel like I have been using him too much lately. And my kids are pretty well behaved and didn't bother us while we chatted. Also having my kids nearby kept my friends language in check ;)

Tuesday Ruby had her 6 month well check. It was a nice quick visit. The Dr wasn't too worried that Ruby is behind on her milestones. She said that because Ruby is 89th percentile for weight and 99th percentile for height, it's probably a little harder for her to roll over. She basically called my baby chubby, lol. I can't believe Ruby is 18lbs 15oz already, she really is growing fast. The vaccinations were not fun as per usual. She turned tomato red as soon as she got the first jab and was pretty cranky and had a loss of appetite for the next 24 hours. It was sad. 

Tuesday night the girls had volleyball practice and Tyler had neighborhood treasurer stuff so I was the lucky one to go and hang out at their practice with Ruby. Ruby did really well until we got near the end and we needed to walk the halls for a bit. 

Wednesday night I ended up taking all the kids to their activities at the church and Tyler stayed home with Ruby. Seems I am slowly getting back to being the chauffeur again. Grace was there so I was able to chat with her which was nice. The Bishopric was also there and gave me compliments on my Sunday parenting lesson so that felt good. Even if I am awkward about accepting compliments...

Thursday night the girls had their first volleyball game of the season (and Penny's first ever game). The games overlapped so Tyler came so we could split up. I watched all of Penny's game and her team won! Penny's first serves did not make it over the net but the rest of her serves did- yay! And she actually went after the ball a few times and made contact with it once (even if it went wild)! When her game finished we went and caught the end of Lucy's games (her game was in the main gym, Penny's had been in the aux gym). Lucy's serves are really getting good and she is doing better at going for the ball. Her team won as well and we had the fun of listening to another teammate's sibling be an amazing cheerleader from the sidelines. He was funny and would tell Lucy (and everyone else) how good they were doing.

Friday I spent the morning making a cake and some cookies for Steven's party. I made my first ever ice cream cake and it turned out good. Now I feel like I can totally make one again. It was easy to make and way cheaper than buying one at DQ. That afternoon the kids had some friends over and I started to feel a bit like my pre- baby self. I could actually interact and be the "fun" mom, ha. Ruby and I hung out with them at the beach where they played volleyball and played on the playground. The weather was amazing- in the 70's- it was just a bit windy at the beach. Then after we came back home, I put Ruby down for a nap and then took Lucy and her friends to the Dollar Tree. They all picked out a wooden craft to paint so that gave them something fun to do when we got back home. Later they all played some games outside. 

Saturday was Steven's party. I figured teens can eat a lot and made and bought so much food for them. The 4 teens he had invited decided not to eat so much and we had way too much food. Lots of extra pizza, chips and other junk. I guess that's better than not having enough though. They spent most of the time playing games on the Switch. They also had a tournament with the game "Lego Brawl". Steven won first place, Max second and Mia third. A bit of birthday luck for Steven. Halfway through the party me and the girls went for a walk to the library. It was back down in the 40's which wasn't as great but it was still a nice outing. It was especially nice to escape from the noisy party. His friends are seriously sooo loud. Around 4pm all but Max left and then Steven went to Max's house. He has his license and could have driven...except we haven't notified insurance yet so not yet. Soon we will be paying a fortune and he will no longer need rides. Exciting right!?

Snow and Oil

Sunday I taught my first primary class and they were a wee bit wild but it's such a short time that it really doesn't bother me. They had fun but I'm just not sure I did a good job of actually getting the spiritual message I was going for out there. I've got to figure out how to balance the spiritual and the fun. This coming Sunday I will be teaching the parents in the Ward so that will be a whole new adventure. Sunday night we celebrated Mariah's birthday. We had tacos and butterfinger cake. I think she felt loved. It was wild chaos with all the kids per usual. 

Monday I had another visit to the dentist. This time was to get my temporary crown. They did not numb me up quite as much this time but he killed the gums around my tooth. The dentist is not my favorite place to go.

Tuesday morning we had a good snow and ironically this time they did not give us a snow day. The roads were awful and it took an extra 15 mins to get the kids to school. My tires lost traction a couple times, scaring the poo out of me. BUT it was nice to have the kids at school and have some quiet time with Ruby. Caroline was super nice and picked up my kids for me so I didn't have to deal with more driving on bad roads again. 

Wednesday the kids built a snowman and snow babies and they made sure to give them butt cracks per Poppy Hatch's request.  

While they were busy making snowmen, I was busy cleaning out couches and behind things. This was inspired by a lost school book. While looking for it, I realized how gross the nooks and crannies of our house had become. 

That afternoon Steven had his second road test and this time was a success! We celebrated by having his favorite, Subway, for dinner. The Subway by our house had some major slow issues so it took an extra bit but the (toothless) lady was nice and used some coupons for us to make it slightly cheaper. 

Thursday while waiting in the car drop off line for school, Lucy made an epic mistake and stepped on a bottle of engine oil. There was oil all over her shoes and the carpet in the back of the car. I took out the removable rugs, wiped up what I could and then, thinking I was clever, put baking soda on it. The baking soda became an awful paste that I then had to try to wipe/ vacuum off. However, I think it did help with the smell...After all that Fiasco I cleaned out the guest room while Ruby napped and then when she woke up I got some lThovely gravel stuff from the auto store to try another angle with removing the oil spill.

Friday the girls had a reading test at their school. Normally they take like 10 minutes and annoy me because I have to drive all the way out their for a 10 minute test. Well apparently this time they couldn't find the book for Lucy to read (missing books seem to be a theme for me this week) and instead it took 40 mins. I wish I could have had a heads up that it was going to take so long. Afterwards we hit up Old Navy for leggings (because Penny's leggings all had holes) and got some really good deals. I got a couple pairs that were only $1.75. Then that night we watched Mariah's kids so her and Jeff could go out on a date. Redd was funny and drew a pic and said I wasn't in it because I was in heaven. I asked him if that meant I was dead and he just kept saying no, I was in heaven. Still think that sounds like he killed me....

Saturday I went to Target to find some shirts to match the leggings I had bought for the girls, lol. Once again I got some good clearance deals. I spent the rest of the day getting things done around the house. The kids were all over the place. Lucy was gone all day at a friend's house. Ben had two friends over. Steven and Tyler were off at an archery tournament. Steven got a 232 and a 241, he is really improving. And Penny and Ruby got to hang out with me.We did do a trip to the library where we saw a giant, floofy dog that kids were reading to. We heard its owner say that it weighs 92 pounds. That's a big dog. 

Ruby had a pretty good week as far as sleeping goes. Mostly just waking up once at night. I am hoping she sticks with that. I feel like walks outside help so we just have to bundle up and go out in the cold. I have stopped pumping and now only nurse when she wakes in the night. I didn't think I would be sad about stopping nursing but oddly I am. It is so exhausting and time consuming and I don't miss that aspect. But I do miss the one on one quiet time with Ruby. Ruby also turned 6 months this week. I still try solids here and there with Ruby and she has become pretty set on only eating banana consistently. Sometimes I can get her to eat baby oatmeal and I wasn't too successful with sweet potatoes. She still only rolls belly to back. Sometimes she gets close to rolling from her back to belly but then she quits. My kids are never much into hitting developmental milestones early...let alone on time. It is hard not to worry about that. There was a baby at the girls volleyball practice that was smaller than Ruby and crawling about and climbing on things. Maybe my babies are just to chubby, but my babies sure are cute.

Ice Ice Baby

On Sunday I got to sit with my primary class. The boys in the class definitely like to be the "peanut gallery" but the class is small (only 7 kids) and there was only 20 minutes for the lesson so it should be a really easy calling. I will finally be teaching the lesson this coming Sunday so we shall see if it really is as easy as I think it will be ;)

On Monday I took Lucy to Grace's to get her hair cut and it looks so much better. It had been looking pretty rough for a bit- the Great Clips trim we had last month was really not that great. I love Lucy's pixie hair but man the up keep is annoying. 

That afternoon Steven took his road test and he did not pass. Tyler went with him (because they have to have an insured adult in the car for it) and he said that Steven was not doing well changing lanes- he was taking risks and scaring the tester. He is not a good lane changer so that wasn't too surprising but risk taking is usually not his thing. Tyler thinks it was part of Steven's nerves. We have it rescheduled for this coming Wednesday so here's hoping he passes this time because each test is $80. 

Tuesday all the kids were supposed to be in school but thanks to icy roads, school was cancelled for all my kids. I was so looking forward to finally having the youngers in school and getting stuff done but no such luck. Instead the younger 3 were home doing zoom classes and Steven was home bugging everyone. The kids had been wanting to go to a movie for awhile and since Tuesday is cheap day I decided to take them to go see "Migration" after they finished their zoom classes. Steven was not interested in going so he stayed home and watched Ruby. Tyler was working from home too that day so he was there to help watch as well. The movie was nothing spectacular but it was fun and we all enjoyed it. 

Wednesday Steven had another snow day thanks to icy roads. It sort of worked out though because all the kids had a dentist appointment early afternoon. Him being home meant that I didn't have to worry about picking him up early from school. At the dentist we keep getting a hygenist who is extra friendly and "just loves" our big family. She was actually perfect for Penny because she managed to help Penny get a loose tooth out that was just hanging by a thread. She was sad but then the hygenist spoiled her with extra prizes and I think that helped make everything better. 

Thursday everyone was finally in school! It was a joyous miracle. The only bummer is that Ruby's nap times coincide with drop offs and pick ups so that complicated my life. For now she can do a car nap but thos make for short naps. Despite that Ruby and I enjoyed our quiet day at home. I cleaned out the girl's room- it desperately needed cleaning. I took a load of crap to Salvation Army. And just enjoyed getting things done with only 1 baby at home. It really tempts means to put them all back into public school because I really like my quiet, productive days. 

Friday Penny had her first orthodontist appointment. They are getting things ready for an expander. They put rubberbands around her molars and this made her very upset. She burst out in tears the minute we stepped outside of the place. I do not know how we are going to survive getting the actual expander in and later braces. Everything is so extra upsetting for her. 

Saturday the girls had a volleyball clinic. They are both starting this next season of volleyball. While the girls were there, I went with Mariah and Jessie to get my nails done. She was so nice to treat  me as part of her early birthday celebration. We had a good time hanging out and now my nails look extra fancy. Although my accent nail sort of looks like they forgot to paint it...she didn't quite do it like I had wanted but still fun.

This week Ruby has tried a few new foods. She gnawed on a whole apple slice, bananas, some teether biscuits, ate some "oatmeal" and applesauce. She did not like the applesauce, she gagged on it and the kids all thought her facial reactions were funny. She loves bananas A LOT. And she really seems to like the oatmeal. 

Temple Night

On Sunday I was all prepared to start my journey back into Primary but apparently they didn't need me yet. They had a few teachers gone (due to crummy roads) and so the Presidency decided just to combine and teach it. They told me to go to Relief Society so off I went. Ruby napped the whole time so that was nice but it also made my arms tired. I told them I could teach next Sunday but someone else is so....who knows when I will actually do this calling.

Monday was MLK day so everyone was home. It was cold and I had a dentist appt in the afternoon so we really didn't have any plans. Tyler took Steven driving in the morning to get him prepped for his driver's test which is next week. Steven drove to Mariah's and gave Maverick a cute little onesie we had gotten him. Steven apparently did well driving on the snowy roads. And we got some cute pics of them with Maverick.

Monday afternoon I had my dentist appointment for a root canal. It was awful. They numbed me and started to drill and I could still feel it. Ouch. So they numbed me again but this time it was so much numbing I literally couldn't blink my eye on autopilot. I had to manually close my eye and it just kept drying out. It was so uncomfortable. But at least my mouth did not feel a blessed thing. It was so numb and fat. The drive home was tricky. I had to hold an eye closed while driving. I felt pretty crappy and was not a very nice mom for the rest of the night.

Tuesday was Wesley's 2nd birthday so we all went over to celebrate that night. It was fun to see the size comparison between Maverick and Ruby. Ruby is massive. Ruby also seemed to have no idea that Maverick was a real live human being. She probably thought he was just a doll. It was a good, noisy time at their house.

Wednesday we went on an outing the Great Lakes Crossing Mall. Steven had a Snow Day (he had one Tuesday as well because of the extreme cold temps) and we all just needed to get out. We basically just pigged out on mall food. We got pretzels, our banana flavored soda that we like, some candy from the Bass Pro Shop...We walked the entire mall and got a new church dress for Ruby. It was a good escape MINUS the fighting that is ought to happen when I have all my kids together.

Thursday Steven was finally back at school and Tyler was out at work. The rest of us did a Costco trip at lunchtime so we could pick up a few things and also eat free samples and also eat lunch there. It's funny but Costco is a "cheap" way to get out of the house and entertain my kids on a cold day. Thursday night some sort of bug or sinus issue hit me hard- runny nose and massive headache. I tried to turn in early but Ruby had other ideas and was refusing to sleep. I ended up texting Tyler to come get her. She did not go to sleep until midnight. And she still woke up twice in the night. She is exhausting.

Friday night was Youth Temple night and thankfully the roads were perfect and we did not have to repeat the traumatic event of last week. I took the older 3 since Tyler had to pick up some things for an archery tournament the next day (he's a volunteer coach, as though he doesn't have enough stuff to do). There was another group that showed up at the temple for baptisms at the same time as ours(we think maybe they came at the wrong time) and they were super disorganized and somehow had their people go first. It all took forever but I am still glad I got to be there for when Steven got to be the baptizer for the first time and Lucy got to do baptisms for the first time. It was nice to actually see Steven being respectful and reverent to his siblings. After the temple we got ice cream with everyone at Culver's. I sat away from the bulk of the teens and sat instead with Alissa, Sister Hess, Claire and Bro Richardson. It was a nice outing.

Saturday Steven had his archery tournament in the morning and got his best score yet- 236. Way for progress! The kids had various hang outs that day and Tyler and I (and Ruby) went on a little date that night. Nothing too exciting but a nice Saturday still the same. And here are some random cute pics from the week:

Break Continues

 On Sunday I got issued a second calling- Primary Teacher. I will be co-teaching Penny's class. There are a few boys in that class that I heard can be quite difficult so I am not looking forwards to that, but I will be teaching with my friend Ashlee who I don't see much these days so I think that will be nice. I guess I'll have to get subs on the days I am teaching my other class though? Doing both callings might be a bit complicated. I will also miss these last few years of not having to worry about covering a Sunday calling. 

Also on Sunday Ben got set apart as a Teacher and Steven got set apart as a Priest and Lucy moved up to Sunday School/YW's. It was a big Sunday for our kids (and their friends)!

Monday Penny had to get two adult teeth pulled because she has such a tiny mouth. It makes me a little anxious because she seems young to be losing adult teeth and I feel like her mouth has time to grow but the orthodontist convinced us it needed to happen and so hopefully it was the right choice. She did really good up until the pulling part. She had just whimpered and cried some before that but as soon as they started pulling each tooth out there was definite screaming and protesting. She has 2 other adult teeth on her bottom jaw that need to be pulled as well and the dentist suggested that we put her under for those. Ugh. That would be expensive. The laughing gas seemed to increase her emotionalness so she was pretty upset the rest of the day. I tried to bring her joy by letting her watch "Lilo and Stitch 2" and getting her a smoothie but that didn't help too much. She was pretty miserable for the rest of the day.

Monday night I fed Ruby her first "solids". It wasn't awful but I am not sure how much made it in her mouth either. She really seemed more intrigued by her plastic bib than the food. Later that week we tried the rice cereal again but with a more textured spoon and a non-plastic bib. It went better but I still probably won't be feeding her cereal everyday- probably just when I think of it and have time.

Tuesday morning I finally got my windshield repaired. It cost a small fortune but it had to happen. Steven is taking the road test soon and your car has to be road test worthy- cracks that spiral the whole width of the windshield are frowned upon. Nice to have a shiny new window though. That night I had Bunco. Melissa drove me and I was scared for my life- she is a bit of a crazy driver. It was rainy but she was speedy and tailgating. Somehow we made it there alive. There were really excellent prizes that night ($45 gift cards to Target) so of course, I did not win. We also played this "game" that was supposed to be for our Christmas Bunco but the lady who had made it was sick so hadn't brought it. It was literally just giftbags with numbers and you would roll the dice and take the bag with that number. I ended up with a bag with a crumpled 5 dollar bill in it- yay!? 

Wednesday somebody left the cage door partially open and Coral escaped. Steven discovered her sitting by the TV when he was getting ready to head out to seminary. His reaction to Tyler "What is this bird doing here?" I would love to have on video that birds great escape.

Thursday Lucy went to get another treatment for her warts. I am not convinced this is worth our time and money- especially since she is not good with the at home follow up (irritate warts with pumice and then put on compoud w daily). But I also know as a girl, having warts on your fingers is not ideal so we persist. The Doctor said it could take several more treatments so they are really going to get all our money it seems.

Friday I was going down to the basement and my foot slipped and I tumbled down the last few stairs, on my back. I am defintely still feeling that. That afternoon we started getting some really good snow. We had plans to take Lucy to the temple for the first time that night with the Mays. I had asked Grace to watch Ruby and Penny so the rest of us could attend with Lucy. Even though the snow was coming down fairly hard, we decided to still go. Tyler is a good driver and we have AWD. We figured if the roads seemed bad we could just abort and go home. Unfortunately fate had other plans for us. We were about 10 mins away from the temple when we hit a road that was closed. Tyler turned left and we all regret that choice. We got locked in on a road and were on that road for 2 hours with very little movement. We were surrounded by cars so there was literally nothing we could do. I felt like I was having a panic attack being trapped in an unmoving car and worried we would never make it home to Ruby and Penny. Yes, my thoughts spiraled. After 2 hours everyone had filtered into 2 lanes, leaving one empty next to us but still no movement. I felt like I was going to burst so I got out of the car to investigate- I walked past a dozen cars in my church boots and church clothes in thick snow. I am sure I looked crazy. I saw a huge truck with a flatbed trailer blocking several lanes and then a cop out trying to push another car out of the other lane. But there was enough space that we could pass by it all so we did it. We started a trend and got the heck out of there. If only it had been smooth sailing from there but it was not. So many roads were closed down and we had to detour and the roads were slippy slidey. I am so grateful for a husband who knows how to drive on bad roads and got us home safely. We had left to the temple at 5pm and did not get home until 9pm. The Mays however, made it to the temple, did baptisms and were home by 9pm as well. They were soooo lucky.

Saturday was a chill day at home. After being stuck in a car for hours I had no desire to get out of the house. I was an official homebody until that evening when we had a girl's night to celebrate Melissa's 40th. We had yummy food, played my game "Ransom Notes" and took a silly pic of Melissa and it was a good night out. Much needed.

Other than the drama of Friday night it was a pretty chill week. Tyler is back at work and going in 3 times a week. It was tricky with not having him to watch Ruby when I have to be places but it was manageable and I think we just function better when he is a working dad. I am not sure stay at home dad life is ideal for either of us. The girls created an awesome "doll house" made from Amazon boxes- apparently we just should have given them empty boxes for Christmas. Ruby got a fun new toy from Salvation Army and I got a cute pic of her two teethers. Now if only I could get Ruby to sleep through the night because she is still waking up twice a night and it is exhausting :(

Winter Break

Sunday after church one of the Bishopric members pulled me aside and gave me a calling. It's not necessarily a bad one but it was a little unexpected. I know that both Primary and Young Women's Presidency need a shake up and so I was sure I would end up in one of those but nope. I am going to be in charge of Parent's Teacher Council. I don't love the idea of teaching adults, they make me nervous. And I hate the crazy comments that can come about. But I know the nerves usually leave once I get started and I do love writing lessons. I'm sure once I figure out what exactly I am supposed to do it will be a good gig.

Sunday evening was New Year's Eve. I had bought some weird sodas to taste test with the kids and I was going to use them for Christmas but things  were already so busy that day that I decided to save them for New Years Eve. We've decided we're going to make this a New Years Eve tradition. We all had a shot glass full of every soda to try and then we guessed what flavor it was. No one was a fan of the "Christmas" flavored one and "Gamers Goop". But surprisingly "Pirate's Piss" (which actually tasted like banana) and "Unicorn Yak" (a mixed berry taste) were favorites.  After the taste testing we watched the "Amazing Race" (I got all my kids into it, my Grandma Brady would be proud) and then I went to bed while the kids all stayed up until midnight. I thought I was going to get more rest than them but Ruby was up at 12:30 and then two times after that. She has not been sleeping well at night.

Monday was Tyler's last day of leave so I told him I wanted to do something as a family for a last hurrah. He had some quarters he was willing to spend so we went Marvin's Mechanical Museum and played some games. Even though Steven didn't want to come, I think everyone still ended up having a good time. Even Ruby got to ride on a camel. The kids decided to pool all their tickets together and still, with 400 tickets, they could only get candy to share.

After our fun at the arcade we took Steven to his friend's house and I picked up a really fun activity center/jumperoo thing for Ruby (a FB Marketplace find). She might still be a little too young for it because she gets tired pretty fast and flops over a bit but the toys come off so she can still use it now. 

Tuesday Tyler headed back to work, only to find out that he hadn't notified HR properly and he could not get into the building. I didn't mind too much because that meant I still had him at home for help for a bit longer. BUT I do hope that he will still get a paycheck for this past week. He made sure to join meetings and make contact with lots of people so there is evidence that he was working. His manager will be back in town this coming Tuesday and hopefully everything will get worked out then. 

Wednesday I went to Mariah's to drop off a gift and finally meet Maverick. Holy cow he is one small baby, so light- he almost doesn't seem real. He slept in my arms the whole time while Mariah got some things done around the house. She says he is always sleeping and she has to wake him up to feed him because he is on a tight schedule as a preemie. While I held him, I entertained her other kiddos. They love to talk and talk and talk, lol. They are adorable and also exhausting. I don't know how I made it through those days of having a bunch of young kids. Ruby is more than enough for me right now.

Wednesday was our anniversary but we didn't really do anything because we had plans for Saturday. However, Tyler was nice, and came home from taking the kids to their church activities with flowers and candy for me. I wasn't expecting anything since I had exerted no effort so that was really thoughtful of him. Made me feel like a stinker for not doing more.

This week we have been trying to get ahead on school work so the next 2 weeks at home weeks won't be too full of school work. I think we made some pretty good progress. We had nothing Thursday so it was a good productive day. Friday we did some more school work and then the kids had friends over in the afternoon. I never mind Ben having Andrea over. They are not needy and they stay out of my hair. Lucy and Penny had Geli and Luna over and the first few hours were good but I probably shouldn't have planned such a long play date. By the end they were all having drama with each other- fighting over toys and turns and games...I had a big discussion with my girls after their friends left about being a good friend and a good hostess. I feel like I keep having this discussion with Lucy and I am hoping things start sinking in soon so that her having friends over doesn't feel like such a burden. I want to be the home that their friends want to hang out at. But I also have a little baby so I need their friends not to add to the stress.

Saturday we celebrated our anniversary by going to Benihana's for lunch. We left the kids in charge of babysitting Ruby which made me super nervous since usually we stick closer by. But they did good watching her and Tyler and I had a nice time watching our food be made and eating it. Our chef wasn't too entertaining and we were probably the oldest people at our table but the food was good. Later that day there was a ligth snow fall so Penny and I took Ruby out for a short walk in it. I need to get better at taking her out, even when it's cold out, the fresh air is good for us all.

This week Ruby turned 5 months old! She has fully mastered rolling from her tummy to her back and can do it like a pro and often. As I said she has decided sleeping at night is overrated and I am not a fan of this regression. She still gives the best smiles though and some good belly chuckles and she can hold her own bottle like a champ.