Garden School, paddle boarding, new books to read, and new adventures made for a fun filled week!
Read all of the Large Family Homeschool Life posts!
MONDAY
I opened up the house this morning and turned on the attic fan! It was so much cooler outside than inside, so I wanted to bring in that lovely (and quite unseasonable) air! After my walk, I did my usual kitchen chores – feed the sourdough, make tea, fill the ice maker, make breakfast and coffee.
After breakfast, I took down the lemon balm that has been drying in my kitchen window, and I bagged it up for tea. It grows wild in our side yard, and when my kids play “Tribes” with the neighbor kids, they use it for currency!
Today for Morning Time we did Tapestry of Grace related school work. We finished Joshua in our PictureSmart Bible and started reading Judges in The Child’s Story Bible. Then, we read 1.5 chapters in The Golden Goblet.
I had my lunch upstairs while I chatted with our 23 year old. This is the last week of her summer job and she’s also dog sitting for a neighbor. She’s exhausted!
During the afternoon hours, I got the church newsletter ready to go out and I made plans for the week. I also published last week’s Large Family Homeschool Life and wrote a recipe post as well! The post was the Dill Pickle Salad recipe I mentioned a few weeks ago.
Honestly, I’m NOT a foodie, so recipe posts tend to feel tedious to me and I always HATE the photographs I manage to get, but I also know how much I like to see what other large families are eating, so I try to post a lot of the recipes we make regularly. You can find them under Large Family Recipes!
Then, I took the 3 boys back to school shopping! They have been hounding me ever since their sisters went last week, so they were super excited when I announced today’s the day!
I made a sourdough apple cake I’ve been wanting to try (I like how it turned out!), and after dinner, I chatted with my mom on the phone while I walked the dog. I hadn’t talked to her in a while, so we had a nice long visit and then she talked to all of the kids as well when I got back home.
That evening, I worked on show notes for Podcast 168 – Homeschool Planning Inspiration:
There’s always so much to do with the blog! That’s why I’m sporadic at best with the posts, and podcasts, and videos. It’s all I can manage at this stage in my life. (Which seems to be even busier than when the kids were all little!)
TUESDAY
I woke up this morning to Winston pawing at my arm and licking my face. Who needs an alarm clock?! I took him for his mile+ walk and then went to Weight Watchers. I’m down another pound – finally, the scale is moving again! I’ve lost 8.5 lbs in the past 8 weeks. Fells good to have my clothes fitting properly again!
When I got back home, I made myself some breakfast while the kids worked on independent school work. We decided to gather on the front porch for Morning Time since we are doing Garden School today. It seemed fitting to sit amongst nature for these lessons!
Today’s book selections are from A Simple Summer:
And while the books are quite elementary in nature, at the back of many of the books were deeper scientific information. We ended up in some very meaty discussions, using these books as a jumping off point.
After Morning Time, I took the 19 year old to the dentist. She’s still navigating adulting and wanted me to be there just in case something came up that she needed help managing, but she ended up doing great on her own!
Once back home, I made myself a late lunch and worked on the Raising Arrows newsletter. I just keep fitting in Raising Arrows stuff amongst my regularly-scheduled life!
Our daughter-in-law got word today that her apartment application was approved and she will be moving at the first of the month! That’s means big changes here! She and our little grandson (as well as our son before he went to Boot Camp) have been living in our living room for many months. It was the only space we had for them as they tried to find a new place to live. So, we are all excited about this apartment!
I took the youngest 5 kids swimming and then came home and made grilled ham and cheese sandwiches using the homemade bread I made on Sunday. That night, a friend from church came over to plan the upcoming church Ice Cream Social and Game Night. We sat on the back deck for several hours, enjoying the evening.
WEDNESDAY
The little girls both crawled into my bed in the early hours of the morning. They had made a deal with each other that if one woke up, they would wake the other so they both could come to my room! Silly girls! Needless to say, it was crowded in bed this morning and I was all too happy to get up!
However, when I got downstairs, I immediately noticed something didn’t smell right. I have a “super-sniffer” nose, so I tracked it down to the kitchen and finally decided it was 1 rotten potato in the bag and also something in the trash can, so I threw out the potatoes that were affected and cleaned out the trash can. Much better!
Then, I watered plants, refilled birdfeeders, washed my hair and made a loose plan for the day.
For Morning Time, we did Tapestry of Grace + some Garden School because TOG is light today. We are mostly spending our time in the Bible discussing the entrance into the Promised Land and the battles that ensued afterward, so there isn’t much in the way of lessons beyond actual Bible study.
I read to the kids from Indescribable – a science-based devotional that has been really good! The devotions are short, but super informational and lead the kids back to the understanding that we appreciate the creation, but we worship the Creator!
Then, I read from a couple of other garden-related books, then onto reading in Judges about Gideon. We also did another Hebrew lesson from Exploring Hebrew.
AND…we finished The Golden Goblet! Those of you who have been following my Golden Goblet Saga know that personally, I have not enjoyed this book. It was difficult to get into and I felt like it was never going to end. We started the book when we first started studying Ancient Egypt, and it just felt like it was dragging on and on. However, today when I finished the book, Mercy (7) exclaimed, “I’m sad it is over! I want to read more like it!” I will admit, at the end it did get a lot better, but I AM glad it is over and we can move on to something else!
After school, my 19 year old daughter asked if I’d take her to “The Crazy Store.” We have a friend who calls our local Scratch & Dent store The Crazy Store because it’s “crazy” what you’ll find there! Ty and I have gone there quite a bit, but she’s never been, so after dropping off library books, we stopped there and also went to our local Kroger to get sour cream donuts for her Special Night tomorrow. On our way home, we stopped at the 23 year old’s coffee shop so the 19 year old could get a free smoothie with our app.
Back home, I ate a late lunch before my daughter-in-law brought over her little sister to play with my girls. Her youngest sister is the same age as my youngest, so they play nicely together.
Then, I got a call from the optical shop here in town telling me Mercy’s new glasses are ready! We were both so excited to finally have her new glasses, and they are perfect!
When I got back home, the boys asked me for paid jobs, so I came up with a few for them. We do not pay allowance, so the kids work “above and beyond” jobs to make money around here. You can read more about how and why we do this in my post: Children and Chores.
That evening, our 19 year old daughter handled supper for me so I could go paddle boarding with friends. I’ve wanted to do this for a very long time and finally had the opportunity. It ended up being so much fun and so incredibly relaxing! I came home exhausted after doing 3.5 miles, but I am so glad I jumped in and tried something new! I think this could be a lovely new hobby!
THURSDAY
My arms were achy this morning from paddle boarding, so I sent the dogs out back and walked by myself because I wasn’t sure I could manage Winston pulling on me. I walked about 1.5 miles and came back feeling nice and loosened up and not so achy.
For Morning Time, we did Garden School. We read in Miss Rumphius and A Seed is Sleepy. These are both delightful books!
Then, we played an agricultural game online from Gentle + Classical’s Agricultural Science curriculum.
After that, I headed out to run some quick errands. I needed to go to the post office to mail a package, but that proved to be more difficult than I realized because they are tearing up the streets downtown, so I had to park and walk.
Next, I stopped at a grocery store I rarely shop at to buy some bacon that I saw was on sale, plus some broccoli for my lunch. Then, I came home, made lunch, and recorded 3 podcasts with video!
After I got those recorded, I helped the little girls drag all the stuffed animals from storage. We keep them in Stuff ‘n Sits to make it easy to contain them all. You can read more about this HERE:
The girls wanted to see what was in the bags and possibly switch some out for animals on their beds. They didn’t end up putting many from their bed into storage to make up for dragging out so many new ones! And they found all the puppets and proceeded to do a puppet show for me!
My daughter brought me home a vanilla chai latte from her coffee shop and I sipped on it while I made Asian Bowls for supper. I made jasmine rice and air fried Bibigo mini chicken won tons. I also had some veggies cooked up to add to the bowls. Then, we topped them off with won ton strips and various Asian sauces from Aldi. Yum!
That evening, was our 19 year old’s Special Night. We played board games and a game called Only Questions where you have to have a conversation with only questions and see how long you can last.
When, the kids all hopped onto their server to play a round of Minecraft together, I excused myself and finished editing the podcasts I recorded earlier and watched some videos I’ve been meaning to watch. I also read in my latest book, The Lost Bookshop. I’m not sure yet if I would recommend it, but the cover sure is pretty!
FRIDAY
I woke up early to a text from our 23 year old saying she’d made it to work. Winston heard it too and started pawing me to get up. Before taking him out, I made a plan for the day. I feel like I wrote a lot down, but we’ll see how much I can pack in.
Once everyone was awake, we reset the house and I got the kids started on Home Blessing. The 19 year old headed out to drive down to our oldest son’s house to visit him and his wife. She did her chores yesterday, so she wasn’t leaving us high and dry. She cleans all of the bathrooms, so pretty important!
I watered all the plants and then worked on cleaning some grease off the sidewalk. Our 13 year old son grills and smokes using his grandpa’s Traeger and it dripped on the sidewalk the last time he used it. I put down kitty litter and will follow up with a special spray if that doesn’t take care of it all.
Then, we watched the opening ceremony for the Olympics – some of which was really cool and some of which was really inappropriate and bizarre. About midway through the ceremony, the house color specialist arrived, so I went outside in the blistering heat with her to talk over colors for the house painting that is supposed to be done sometime this summer.
The colors I ended up choosing I absolutely LOVE! The base color of the house will be Portico and the accent beams and trim will be Porpoise, with the garage and front door in a Sycamore Tan. We will also change out the light fixtures and the storm door.
Then, the 23 year old and I went to Aldi to get groceries. It was $230 for the week. I also bought LED strip lights and when I got home, I installed them on my bed and the little girl’s bunks.
The kids went outside to play with the neighbor kids while I baked up some Pizza Rolls. I told my daughter-in-law that I felt like a bad mom feeding them pizza rolls. But when the kids came in, I told them what we were having and they asked me what pizza rolls were. She and I had a good laugh about that, and she said the fact that they had no idea what they were means I shouldn’t worry about feeding them Pizza Rolls.
After supper, I played with my little grandson while his mama packed up most of their things. They will be moving to a new apartment soon. I’m so excited for them!
After she left to go stay with her mom for the next few days, I swept the corner of the living room where they had been storing their things. I moved the antique commode I let them use as extra storage back to its original space beside the stairs.
Having my son and his family living in our living room has had its ups and downs. On the one hand, they had nowhere to go when they first tried to get out on their own and found themselves in a difficult situation. We also got to spend a lot of time with our little grandson.
On the other hand, we had to figure out the best way to handle having them back in the house and managing 2 households inside of one house. They paid us rent and we encouraged them (and sometimes nagged them) to look for a place to live. I’m proud of them for keeping at it and finally finding a place!
It’s hard to make your way in the world when you’ve had a teen pregnancy and gotten married young and just need someone to take a chance on you to move forward. Ty and I got married quite young, but back then (27 years ago), it wasn’t difficult for an 18 year old to get a job and a place to live. That is simply not the case these days. Add to that the fact that housing has become astronomically expensive, and you have an almost impossible situation on your hands. But, we just kept pushing them to keep trying, and they did it!
And I won’t lie – I’m glad to have my living room back. In fact, tonight, after all the kids were in bed, I sat in the living room with the lights dimmed and breathed in the stillness while I prayed for all of my children and thanked the Lord for teaching me to wait for Him to be gracious. (Isaiah 30:18)
Tomorrow will be a day of rest and worship for me, and I am so looking forward to it. I need it…oh, how I need it.
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