After brushing my teeth, putting on moisturizer, and earrings and lipstick to make myself feel like a person (Hah), I stayed in my cozy jammies to start the day. I put on the coffee pot and read my daily morning update from Heather Cox Richardson to give me the current political news through historical context. Today she explained the public execution Alex Pretti and how various states and representatives are responding and legal action that has occurred in the past 24 hours. The newest killing has opened up a rift in Republican ranks....they are frustrated with DHS officials' statements that Pretti was intending a 'massacre' of federal agents in the face of videos that disprove such absurd claims. They have told Melugin (of Fox News Channel) such comments are 'catastrophic'. "[W]e are losing this war," sources say, "we are losing the base and the narrative."
I started the morning house chores: starting the laundry rotation for the day, feeding the kitties and Bullet (Brandon and I tag teamed it because Bullet is 17 years old which means there is always some kind of bodily fluid to clean up in the morning), cleaning the litter box, and taking down the garbage.
Then I got my planner out and started to map out the week with practices, games, and meal planning. I also write down the big tasks that need done this week: registering all the kids for their spring sports, finishing and turning in the Kindergarten registration paperwork for Red and Olive, submitting the order request to the screen printer for the 5th grade promotion party (volunteering with the PTA), and ordering the kids' valentines for their upcoming school parties. Even though my planner can feel a little overwhelming because there are A LOT of moving parts in a family of eight with four athletes and two full time working parents - my planner is the only way I can juggle it all, so I actually adore it and it is one of my most beloved possessions.
For breakfast I had black coffee with a monster cookie, half a piece of banana bread, and a string cheese. Random but all the exact tastes that I was hoping for.
8a-9:30a: While the kids are still asleep, I did some computer work. Returning emails, sending our weekly schedule to Brandon, and checking school email. I set up my classes' Schoology folders for this week, and updated the Mapa del Mundo slides that we do each Tuesday in class. This week we are going to learn about The Witch's Market in Bolivia (which goes perfectly with Sp2 reading El Ekeko novel and learning about the Alasitas festival) and next week we are going to learn about the Tepui table top mountains of Venezuela.
When Olive woke up, I gave her a snuggle and got her a string cheese (hah). She helped me put some chicken in the crockpot to prep for dinner. I also switched the laundry and let the cats back in the house. Since the rest of the kids are waking up slowly, I cut the second loaf of banana bread that I made yesterday and put it on the kitchen counter. Or they could have yogurt, or cereal for breakfast which they can get on their own.
Grateful to view a video about Rev Rob Schneck, an Evangelical minister who spent decades helping build America's religious Right who is now marching with anti-ICE protests in Minneapolis seeking redemption for what he believes was his role in delivering, "the entities that are now inflicting all of this suffering on so many people." He says, "So now I have to do the work of repair...these folks are showing more grace in accepting me than I would have ever extended to them."
9:30a- 10:30a As the kids start the day with some Thundermans (one of their current favorite shows), I refilled my coffee cup one last time and went upstairs to give Grey his first antibiotic of the day (three a day for 14 days to combat the cellulitis infection he has in his foot!). I did three loads of laundry and put new sheets on our bed and finally got dressed for the day.
The kids got up and started moving. They got dressed to go outside for awhile and ate banana bread while I tidied up the living room and got Grey some breakfast since he hopped his way downstairs not putting weight on his foot yet, and then got started on some missing assignments from when he was absent last week due to his foot. Multiple conversations with kids about paying attention to themselves and not bossing someone else around (always the argument in our house when we are all stuck at home stepping all over each other on snow days).
10:30a - 11:45a I put away some clean dishes and started filling up the farm water buckets with hot water. I helped the four little kids put their snow clothes and did a quick (horrifying) sweep of the basement where they have been throwing any and all clothes after sled-riding all over the floor. So that's where all those thick wool socks have been hiding?! I found multiple pairs of socks, two sweatshirts, and a pajama shirt. I organized random gloves and gators (neck warmers) that I found and hung up snow pants and coats. Finally, everyone was suited up so I threw in another load of laundry and then, I headed outside myself to re-shovel the sidewalks and porches.
The snow is piled way high up on the sides of the driveway, so the kids mostly played there throwing giant snowballs at each other. Gemma cleared off the trampoline and we let Bullet and the kitties out for a bathroom and hunting midday break. I got all the walkways cleared of snow and then was glad to go back inside because it is cold cold.
11:45a - 1p I heated up leftovers for the kids' for lunch. While the leftovers were warming up, I emailed my PA state senator (website > contact form), urging him to refuse to fund bill FY2026 (which would continue to fund ICE) until appropriate changes and restrictions are made as they have abused power and now murdered at least three US citizens in Minnesota (Keith Porter, Renee Good, and Alex Pretti).
Kids ate lunch with lots of noise and laughter and then Brandon came home from work. We had leftovers of kielbasa, pierogies, wings, baked sandwiches, mac&cheese, and chicken/ broccoli/ alfredo. A little mix of everything, but everyone got full without having to make anything new (and we cleaned out the fridge - yay!)
Then the kids went to the living room to color (because Grey had to color for his homework and he got everyone excited about it too). I cleaned up the kitchen, organized the canned goods that were piling up near the cupboard, and I started the dishwasher for the first run of the day. When I switched the laundry, one load was mostly towels, so I draped warm towels over the kids coloring in the living room and they all sighed in delight and simple joy (honestly - what is better than a warm towel?)
I gave Grey his second antibiotic and unwrapped his foot to see how it looks. Definitely looks like it is healing but still an open wound and just nasty - my poor babe. We had him elevate it and keep it out in the air to try to dry it out a little bit. The little kids were sent to the basement den to watch a show so that they wouldn't be jumping everywhere and bump it while it was out and vulnerable.
1p-3p I sorted another two loads of laundry and hung up Brandon and my clothes in the closet. The sorting of the socks is always something that drains my soul a little bit (LOL) but I'm glad to get it done. Brandon came up to watch me do the laundry (this is normal, he says it is weirdly satisfying to watch how I fold towels so easily, hahha) and then he asked if we wanted to lay down a little while. We snuggled up and I read half of a chapter in my book before I started to feel myself being pulled into sleepiness. So I got up!
Gemma was downstairs making pretzels on facetime with her friends Peyton and Addie while the rest of the crew was in the living room watching Mountain Monsters (a favorite!) and Grey had his foot elevated but was fast asleep.
3p-4p I caught up on my blog (finally) still stuck in 2025! I finished my Around Here Week 52 post to officially close out the blogposts from last year. While working on the blog in the living room, I enjoyed a cup of Oolong tea while eating Gemma's cinnamon pretzels with sugar sauce. GOOD GRIEF. How many is too many? She served all of us pretzels with sugar and made Brandon a caramel macchiato while we watched the crazy, spooky, hilarity of Mountain Monsters.
4p - 5p We took a 'tv break' so it got real loud, real fast. I got a peroxide/water soak ready for Grey before wrapping up his foot again. The kids played monkey in the middle in living room with stuffed animals and insane arguing over every tiny rule. Reddy had to help me empty the dishwasher and I cleaned up Gemma's giant kitchen mess (I offered to clean up since she did make 2 dozen of pretzel bites that our entire family finished off completely). Then two of the kids and I had to have a deep dive conversation about reacting to each other and how we need to come from a place of loving kindness and patience for each other. They had came to an understanding and I felt like maybe we got somewhere with it? (yeesh, siblings).
Brandon went out to the local feed store to pick up some bales of hay because we got a notice that it is supposed to get down to -25 tonight and he wants to pack the goat house and Osa's house with fresh dry hay. While he was at the feed store, I started to make the afternoon mini meal since everyone was starving, but it is way too early for actual dinner. So cheese quesadillas for all. [at this point - We found out there is going to be another snow day tomorrow - but definitely not telling the kids that yet!] I made the quesadillas and Grey did more homework, Gemma yapped over facetime with her friends upstairs, and the youngest four ran all over the house playing some game where Rusty and Violet were the horses that maybe had rabies (? there was a lot of screaming, giggling, and running).
5p - 5:45p I started to set up my Schoology pages to be ready for a Flexible Instruction day tomorrow at school. (Extreme low temps and high winds with drifting snow are in the forecast). It will be our first Flexible (Virtual) learning day of the year - so I wanted to make sure everything was as ready as possible. Our CT children are having a traditional snow day, which makes it a little bit easier for me because I will not have to manage their learning or sharing of the computer. Me and the babies would have a FID day, so they can attend the zoom lessons on my personal laptop and I can conduct my classes on my school laptop which I brought home this week for this exact anticipation with the weather forecast.
5:45-7p The littlest kids and I watched The Last Tepui on Disney+. It was so good! We laughed and were mesmerized by the climbing (?!?!) and all the science. Very cool - big recommend from us. (I found out about this documentary this morning when I was investigated Mapa del Mundo for school!)
7p-7:45p I gave Olive a bath and helped Reddy into the shower (such a blessing when kids become independent at bath time! Olive almost there, but the shower water streaming down is still scary for her- hah) While the kids played in their shower/bath, I also did a quick clean of the upstairs bathrooms. The kids got bathed, lotioned, jammied, and hair and teeth brushed!
While I was with the littlest two. Grey played Fortnite, Gemma watched a show in her bed, the middle kids played mini hoops, and Brandon worked on dinner - Philly chicken cheesesteaks tonight with french fries!
While we waited for dinner to finish, I looked up some resources to use in my high school classes tomorrow to make it meaningful during the virtual day. I don't want to get too far off of track since we've already missed a day of school. Thankfully, youtube to the rescue and I have some archived material in my Schoology from last year at this time.
Grey came WALKING into the kitchen and it was a big deal because he has not put any pressure on his foot for over a week.
7:45p- 9p Dinner with the family and it was pretty well received (Red didn't like it) otherwise, no leftovers! All the kids squeezed around the table and then because too many people were burping and farting, Gemma migrated to the dining table and Brandon and I sat in there too to eat (instead of standing by the counter).
Gemma and I talked about how old all the siblings will be when she is varying ages (the babies will be in third grade when she is a senior in high school and in eighth grade when she is 21!) Violet keeps complaining about her belly feeling like it is grinding each night, so we are going to try to go without any dairy tomorrow and see if that helps (?) This girl - always worrying about all the things.
I was feeling a little stressed about the Virtual day tomorrow, so I stayed at the dining table and tried to update my Schoology folders a little more before bed. I still have time in the morning to get them all done before I have to zoom - but everyone is going to want breakfast and all the things, so I tried to get ahead of the game a little bit. I added all the Zoom links for each class.
Brandon went down to do one last tuck in for the night at the farm. The houses are loaded down with fresh hay, everyone got warm water, and all chickens (but one) are in the coop. One chicken refuses to come down out of the pine tree and it is making me crazy worrying about it freezing to death.
9p-10p We tried to convince the kids to get a proper night sleep even though they knew it was a day off of school in the morning. Hah! So we let them stay up just a little longer while I helped Grey get this foot done again. He took a shower (I sorted one last load of clothes) and then we did a sterile soak (half peroxide half water), then patted it dry, and re-wrapped it with sterile gauze for the night. It does look like it is moving in the right direction of healing - still a nasty wound though. He is still hopeful to play in the basketball game on Friday night (?!)
10p-10:45p I got the little four kids in their room and beds and I layed on the floor and read some of my book but mostly tried not to fall asleep myself. Olive had one hundred requests (a drink of water, to rub her back, to go to the bathroom, to cover her up, actually don't cover her up just fix the blanket near her feet, to look for a stuffed animal, to read my book aloud) and I had to tell Red that he could come sleep in our bed as soon as Olive fell asleep (which was a fib because I knew he would fall asleep first). Rusty read some of his Shel Silverstein poetry book before bed and Violet was the first to fall asleep (like always).
10:45-10:47p Brandon already had the heated blanket on in our bed, so climbed in and fell asleep immediately.
Only to wake up around 4a with worry about all our farm animals in the frigid cold and to worry about the Virtual day for school and to worry about the wild animals in the frigid cold and to worry about Gaza and to worry about Sudan and to worry about Liam Ramos and to worry about the constitution. 4am Tab has a mind that races...so I went to the living room and sent out wishes and prayers to everyone I'm worried about and then tried to read and distract myself until I could fall back asleep. I laid there half sleeping and dreaming weird dreams until about 5:30 when I got up and started making blueberry bundt cake.
**a snow day with kids aged 15-4 years old is MUCH easier than my snowdays of past when the kids were younger. Bless you mommas out there with younger kids who have little ones climbing the literal walls on snow days. I have been there! The best piece of advice I can offer is make peace with the noise and mess. It is the only way through.
