I think I'll quit apologizing for my erratic posting habits. Fact is, we're busy and my blogging has taken a backseat to the rest of my life. Well, it's never been the first thing on my mind, but now that we're schooling daily, I'm busy with my doula work, and I'm trying to be better about spending less time online I really just am too busy. But, it's an important account of our lives, so I'll just promise to update when I can.
Beth and I are still schooling every day, though we've stepped back from the Mother of Divine Grace curriculum I had been using last semester. It's boring, for me and her. She doesn't like a couple of aspects of it and we both just feel so bored doing what seems like the same stuff every day, so I'm taking what I like from it and we're just doing our own thing. She's still learning to read, but we're doing games and flashcards, and I just bought a couple of new workbooks from Barnes and Noble. I was there the other night by myself so I signed up for an educator's discount card! 20% off, wohoo! She was also bored with learning numbers and wanted to move into addition and subtraction, so we're playing games and working through another new workbook and some pages I've printed off the internet. For religion we're going to work more on Catholic activities and crafts in addition to our bible reading.
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| sorting broken crayons and peeling off the paper to make "new" heart-shaped crayons |
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| watching them melt- waiting is so hard for the little ones! |
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| the first of the two batches of crayons we made |
This is funny but also sort of sad, but the other day Beth asked me what a pope was. I had to laugh because to her, there's no "religion." To her, all people are good and all people love Jesus. She knows she was created by God, Jesus is his son who died for us, and Mary was his mother and Joseph was his father. She knows about the 10 commandments and that Jesus lives in everyone's hearts. She knows that we pray to talk with Jesus and the saints, and that her angel is always with her. What she doesn't know about is that there are people who don't believe the same way we do, she doesn't know there are so many different "flavors" of Christianity. She tells me almost daily that she loves Jesus more than anything else, and wants to do his will so that she can be in heaven with him. When Jesus talks about having "faith like a child," I think Beth is the perfect example of this. She has such a sweet innocence and such a beautiful heart. I have no doubt she is going to do amazing things with her life, all for the glory of God! But, in the meantime, I have to teach her a little more about our Holy Father, lol!
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| sorting and matching lids from various containers i've been saving |
Luke is having fun being a 3-year-old boy... Unfortunately most days this means torturing his mother and siblings! Lately he's been giving me a run for my money, and providing me ample opportunities to practice patience. I remember going through a bit of a rough patch when Beth was 3, and I think it's Luke's turn right now. Luckily I have several good friends who have 3-year-old boys and who are more than happy to talk with me about their sons, and I know that what he's going through is pretty standard behavior. I think he's dropping his nap too, which doesn't help the evening crankiness. It has made us get very serious about fencing in our backyard though, because I know that once he (and Beth and Jack) are able to go outside and play for an hour or more each day, it will help release their cooped-up energy!
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| luke did this puzzle mostly by himself! he was so proud! |
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the marsh backyard after some rain we had this week. |
At this point Ryan and I are hoping to have the fence done in March- we've decided that first we need to raise the entire backyard and plant new grass. We had added 6 (?) loads of dirt last year in the very back of the yard, and now the middle part needs to be raised as well because it's still just a boggy marsh when it rains.
Hopefully we'll be able to get to work on all of this soon because this is
very important to me! I know the risks but I'm also considering getting a super-safe trampoline... I'm desperate for them to get outside and burn off that energy!
Jack is now 19 months but holy cow, he's still my "baby." It's hard for me to believe that when Luke was 19 months, I was 36 weeks pregnant and therefore it made Luke seem so much older! I can totally see why the youngest children in the family are spoiled rotten, because Jack
totally is. We let him get away with stuff that we were so stringent about before, and I know it's our faults! He is such a momma's boy, and he's still nursing several times a day. He's starting to try to use real words, and it's getting to that time where I can understand what he's saying but no one else really can. He can say ball, book, hair, spoon, grandpa, car, bath, Beth, night night, and probably a few more. He does understand everything I'm saying though, and eagerly waits for instructions from me when I say his name! So helpful and so cute. His favorite thing to do right now is to imitate Beth and Luke in
everything from silly noises and faces to playing what they're playing. When they're doing something he can't see he runs to the bathroom, grabs the stool, and brings it right next to them so he can be as tall as they are. He gets right in there and participates in everything to the best of his ability!
Poor Finley had surgery almost two weeks ago to remove a couple of lumps that we weren't sure about and to have his teeth cleaned. Since Boxers are prone to tumors, we decided to have these lumps removed just to be safe. Now, for nearly two weeks, he's had to wear an e-collar, which has made him rather depressed! At first he wasn't messing with his stitches but I noticed the skin was getting pink and irritated, so we had to torture him afterall.
I've been working on a few projects lately, related to my new year's resolution of moving toward a more healthy and natural home. I made homemade laundry detergent and dishwasher soap, both economical and containing less scary ingredients than store-bought kind. So far they both seem to work! I also made a yarn wreath for our front door, I meant for it to be for Valentine's day but it just looks nice and spring-y.
I know now why they're sold for $30-$50 on etsy.com though, just wrapping the yarn around the wreath took nearly two hours! Although I've seen some very cute colored once, I chose white so that I could change out the felt decorations throughout the year and to make it more seasonal. The pink and yellow flowers are made from felt and hot glued onto hair clippies so that Beth can wear them when I move on to new decor. :-)
Ryan and I had a date night last week, much thanks to his parents for babysitting for us! We had drinks and a late dinner at Lupe Tortilla then went to Barnes and Noble for "my" date I had planned! We completed
these challenges then had some Starbucks before ending the night. Not our typical date, since we usually head to a pub and have some drinks, but we had fun and in the end spent less moolah!
I had a rough week, emotionally. I don't feel overwhelmed with my tasks, I just wish I had better control of my emotions and reactions to the kids when they push my buttons. I know it'll be a life-long journey for me, but I truly hope they know that everything I've done in my life is for them! I love them so much, and I melt when they tell me at the end of the night that I'm the best mommy in the world because there are some days when I could swear I was the worst person ever in the history of the planet. But, after a thought-provoking homily this morning at mass, I'm ready to tackle this week with a clear head and new motivation! Say some prayers for me!
