Around Here Week 25: 06/21-27

 A glimpse into what it is like to live in our home just this moment. 

photo cred: Violet

yummy drinks and food from Flood City Cafe after the dentist!

photo cred: Eva McD

selfie cred: Heather R

Intentional Outdoor Hours: 256+ hours (of 1000)
Lots of time outside this week with outdoor chores and swimming. The weather is holding up pretty beautifully for summer; warm and sunny but not too too hot. I'll take it! 

Reading I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith (liking it!) and My Best Friend's Exorcism by Grady Hendrix (meh, not liking it much but going to finish it for book club!)

Watching Voicemails for Isabelle (on Netflix). I cried and laughed so much. 10/10! 

Summer to do list completed: 

• deep cleaning the back porch - everyone worked together to move everything off the porch - including the cupboard where B found the skunk hiding the other day (no skunk this day - thank goodness) and we got the space pressure washed
• we moved the pieces of furniture from Aunt Kitty up into the house to help organize. In her move, she gifted us with a hutch with a built in fireplace which we moved into the living room - which meant we rehomed a bookshelf to Gemma's room and an end table to the back porch. We had to move all the kids' books to the basement 'kid cave' and the family yearbooks fit in the hutch (yay!) She also gifted us a long dresser that fits in the laundry room and immediately made the shoe situation in there at least look better! Thank you so much Aunt Kitty - happy to give them a home, we didn't even know how much we needed them! 
• I finalized the summer chore chart and got it printed and hung in the kitchen! 
• I printed off Grey's MT packing list and fishing license for his July vacation with the Conns - thank you Becky C for walking us through the steps. I did have Grey do it instead of just doing it myself which would have been faster and easier - but I have to keep reminding myself (even / especially ) in teenager raising, that they need lots of opportunities to do stuff by themselves
• Rusty, Violet, and Gemma all had dentist appointments
• Rusty had an eye appointment
• Gemma had her last Physical Therapy and was discharged!
• I power washed the rugs from the living room and the girls' room. What a difference! Immediate gratification!
• I sent out the invitations for our Fourth of July party
• Brandon, Grey, and Pappy replaced the roof on the goat house
• Violet and I brushed Osa until we couldn't get the smell of dog hair/mats out of our her hands and I literally was googling "can you get tendinitis in your elbow from brushing a Great Pyr" (spoiler alert: yes - ugghhhhh) and then Rusty and I took Osa for her annual Lyme's vaccine
• I ordered the back porch furniture and carpet (!)

A day at the pool for Father's Day. Grey was on the grill with the chicken Philly cheesesteaks and I made and brought cake mix chocolate chip cookies. The kids all got in to swim, but it was still a little too chilly for me! It was a great day hanging out and laughing - Red is getting so much more comfortable in the water and Olive was not quite ready to try swimming on Sunday (although by the end of the week at the Que, she was going under with no floaties at the Que!) We got our annual HoponPop picture with Brandon who refuses to give up even though we all tried to get him to agree to be held this time. He did it! If even only a for second for Grey and Gem's feet to be off the ground. Hilarious and wild always to set that up. How incredibly blessed the kids and I are to have these father figures in our lives, especially B, my Dad, and Pappy (but also shout out to all our uncles, godfathers, coaches, and family friends who are role modeling out there what good and decent men look like. I am so grateful for you!) 

Waving to the helicopters that were so low near our house because the farm fields behind are house are used as training grounds for the army helicopters. The boys were loving how close they were (turned into a whole story line in their nerf gun battle)! 

Finally having Olive's birthday party at the Que. It was Teen Beach Movie themed including a sign for Big Momma's House, surfboards, and lei's!  Abba brought the paper products and snackies, while Ms. Heather brought juice bags and watermelon. I made hot dogs & sauerkraut, mac&cheese, and made the beach cupcakes and 'tire' mini donuts. Peyton and Gemma did Olive's hair with braids and curls and all of her favorite people were there to spend the day at the Que. The weather was nice enough and the water was warm enough (for the kids at least!) to swim and splash. Grey took the fishing boat and he was thrilled to get it out on the water - very lucky for him that his baby sister loves his friends like bonus big brothers - Gabey, Cooper, Brycey, and Reedy were all invited to her party too (hah)! Imagine being a five year old and getting to invite so many big kids! At Olive's request; bonus big sisters Abigail and Peyton were there with Gemma and bonus big sister Evaley was there with Violet. And she got to play with some of her own friends too like Bowen and the Mazz boys and her Moore-boy cousins; just a girl surrounded by fellas - good thing she is sassy and can hold her own! 

Out to the theater to see Hadestown. Many of my former NS students are actors in the Potter's Players theater group and this summer they were putting on Hadestown at the Greensburg Garden and Civic Center. What a coincidence, because earlier this spring, our friend and semi-neighbor Michelle told me that her favorite musical was Hadestown when we were yapping for an hour+ about books and musicals and history and all things nerd (MY FAV CHATS!! love you Michelle! xxo) So I reached out to her and her daughters and we all bought tickets and went together! I loved seeing my students; both that were acting in the show and that had come to the show to support their friends (#oncemykidalwaysmykid !!) and THE SHOW. My God, the show. I cried and then cried again on the way home talking the girls through some of the parts, and then sobbed again describing it to Brandon. Brilliant in the ways that some stories live on for generations, brilliant in the way we keep telling sad stories even though we know the endings, brilliant in the power of love, brilliant in talent of my former students' talents. Okay, crying again. If you get a chance to see Hadestown - I cannot overexaggerate this: You Must. 

Grad parties this week: friend Nathan Dail and friend/football player DJ Bambino

Time with family and friends Olive & Reddy got a movie date with Miss Heather - they went to see Toy Story 5 and then got ice cream at Silver Bell and got to visit with cousin Caleb who was working ( thank you Heather - best day!!) Violet enjoyed Bria's birthday sleepover and then had a sleepover with her friend Evaley at Abba's house (thank you for hosting them, Mum!) Gemma went thrift shopping with the Lasure girls. Grey went fishing at our Bedford camp with his buddies and had a sleepover at Gabey's house

Isn't it so bizarre to live in a dystopian story? Like actually living in it. If we were reading a book about this moment in time, we would be screaming at the characters because how do they just go about their normal every day lives while all this insanity happens around them? I know the reflecting pool debacle is the absolute least of the egregious offenses...but it is also a blatant metaphor for the entire administration. And the literal lying directly to our faces about it. It is so far gone now that it feels futile to get worked up - like yeah, we all know he is lying, we all know millions of dollars were wasted and/or funneled to his friends - but like whatever I guess?! (by the way this is one of the goals of a cult of personality leadership style: to wear you down so far that you give up caring...so if you can still find it in your guts to be regularly pissed off- proud of you!) 

Sporting with weightlifting/conditioning five days this week for Grey and Gem. Also, Gem had three basketball games, her last physical therapy on her ankle, volunteered twice at the youth soccer camp, and asst trained at football practice. Grey took a break from basketball games this week because of his ankle sprain at basketball team camp over the weekend but had football practice on top of WL/C. I attended the football booster meeting on Thursday night and signed up for our team dinner (and maybe to help with the volunteer schedule or for the games meal coordination)

Making chicken Philly cheesesteaks on Pap's Blackstone for Father's Day (Grey did most of the dinner from prepping/cutting to grilling!), meatloaf and roasted broccoli, spaghetti, sloppy joes with mac & cheese and baked beans, baked turkey and cheese sammies, copycat Olive Garden chicken over pasta, For breakfasts I made chocolate croissants For desserts we had cake mix chocolate chip cookies (Father's day), I made chocolate chip oatmeal cookies for Weightroom Wednesday, and for Olive's birthday I made beach cupcakes (graham cracker crumbs for sand), broccoli salad, a crockpot of hot dogs and brats with sauerkraut, shells & cheese, and baked beans. The girls and I stopped at 7 Brew for our first time on the way home from Hadestown

Movement This week I skated 4.7 miles in total. New rollerblading skills: I can do 2 miles straight! Very proud and definitely feeling stronger. It feels very similar to running: the first mile you are miserable and then after the first mile you feel totally fine and energized! I bladed at Sandyvale (my favorite spot!), the elementary school parking lot, and the fire hall parking lot near Pappy's house,  

Around Here Week 24: 06/14-20

 A glimpse into what it is like to live in our home just this moment. 

photo cred: Malinda C

photo cred: Abba

 at Ryan's Artisans

our in-house whittler 

Intentional Outdoor Hours: 230+ hours (of 1000)
The investigation was underway to figure out who/what is breaking the chicken eggs and eating the contents. Fox problem seems to have dissipated (thank goodness) but now we have something else, eating the eggs. Some of our chickens lay in the coop and then some of them lay in spots around the house: under a pine in the front flower beds and in the cat house on the back porch. We check both of the spots everyday to get the eggs, but twice this week, the eggs were broken in both spots. On Friday night, B heard something in the outside cupboard and saw a black tail and said, "Come on Nova" and out waddled a skunk! 

Reading I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith (really enjoying it, Cassandra is a sweet and funny narrator. Definitely giving Francie vibes - from A Tree Grows in Brooklyn) Also reading, My Best Friend's Exorcism by Grady Hendrix (our next Lit Ladies book club pick!) which is pretty engaging but campy horror isn't really my favorite. I attended book club with the Somerset teachers and we chatted about It's Not Her by Mary Kubica at Pour on Center in Ebensburg. It was a beautiful afternoon and we had an outside table - perfection! Most of us did not like the book, which was a relief since I absolutely hated it. hah. 

Summer to do list completed: (I want this summer to be a very strong mix of getting things done + relaxing + growing as a person...very eldest daughter/Virgo coded of me, I'm aware). 

• eye appointments for Gemma and Reddy and I picked up my glasses
• the summer feeding program started through the school and we picked up our food items (so helpful and always grateful for it!)
• Gemma had two PT sessions and a check in with the orthopedic doctor who is discharging her from PT after her eighth session next week because she's made great progress (yay!)
• I created and printed off the summer chore charts for the kids! 
• I organized my week into a flow: Monday = Home admin tasks (to do list randoms, website checking in needs, party planning, etc) Tuesdays and Thursdays = creative days (blogging, family yearbook, working on my book, creating videos, etc). Wednesday = school focused (Spanish podcasts, Spanish teacher blogs, working on curriculum map, professional development, etc) Friday = limit screen time, play, read
• Violet and I rearranged the girls' bedroom to make for more space (which included her making some tough choices on getting rid of some stuffies - this girl loves her some cozy comforts like blankies and squishies, but her bed was too full! even she agreed) 
• I cleared out the snack cupboard and re-organized
• I cleared out and purged the expired items from the medicine cabinet
• I emptied my school bags and got rid of papers, organized office supplies, and stashed away old planners (which are my form of journal, lol)
• Grey and I had a chiropractor appointment
• Red & Olive helped me spread wildflower seeds at the turn in the driveway. Maybe they'll grow, maybe nothing will happen. Worth a try! 
• Gemma completed an enormous undertaking of clearing out clothes from the attic steps and her drawers - she filled 8 garbage bags full for donation!! (the handmedowns we receive are always appreciated but can certainly build up to overwhelming status quickly). 

Mini road trip date to Altoona for B and I to return his wedding tux. Thank you to Abba & Chum who gave the kids a fun afternoon so that we could run out there together! (shhh! we got ice cream on the way home) 

Massive change (mind, body, soul, & logistics) from Shutterfly to Mixbooks to make family yearbooks (!!) If you know me, you know this is shocking. Brandon literally said, "Holy shit, how are you feeling?" because he gets what an insane pivot this is. I have been making my family yearbooks and using Shutterfly exclusively for 15+ years!! But within this past year, they updated their book creation editor and I absolutely hate it. It is so clunky and unhelpful and really appears that it does not want the user to make the book- they just want everyone to pick for the tool to make it for them. I go full custom and resize photos and move things around and this new user interface makes it awful. I have been seeking out internet users' reviews and everyone agrees that it is terrible - someone even saying it feels 'anti-user aggressive' and honestly, yes. I waited six months because I was hoping they'd give an option for people to go back to the original editor (they did not) or change it back because everyone is reviewing it poorly (they did not) and this week, I just abandoned ship. I'm now going through the painstaking process of moving all photos from this year August-Present from google photos to Mixbooks (actually not too terrible because it syncs with google photos - which was one of my criteria) and the editor is very similar to the old editor from Shutterfly. I have A LOT of catching up to do since I'm losing any work I did in this year's yearbook already which feels pretty overwhelming but that's how committed I am! 

Afternoon fishing camp visit when B suggested we load up and head out. Reddy is always asking to go fishing and we had a free afternoon, so we hopped in the truck and headed out to Bedford. Grey was at team basketball camp and Violet was at a sleepover with her friend, Bristol - so it was just B and I with four kids! Gemma and I mostly read on the shore (she's currently reading First and Forever by Lynn Painter and liking it), Olive waded into the water and played games about witches making potions, Rusty fished, waded with Liv, and whittled, and Reddy fished from the moment we got there until the moment we were literally dragging him out of the stream to leave. 

Going out for Father's day. My sisters, Dad, and I went out for drinks and dinner to Tall Pines Distillery on Friday night. The place is so cool with tons of outdoor seating and such a relaxed vibe. We had a great evening chatting and laughing. We tried a tiny whiskey tasting flight and shared great appetizers. It was the perfect evening with just Dad and his daughters for father's day! Love you Dad! 

Celebrating Tanner and Zion's wedding! We all (minus Grey who was at team basketball camp) hitched a ride on a tractor over to Tanner's wedding on Saturday afternoon which was perfect and so cute; Tanner and Zion both come from farming families. The ceremony was beautiful, the reception was meaningful and so fun. Tanner has a beautiful voice and she sang and recorded the father/daughter dance song as a surprise for her dad (okay, sobbing!) Tanner was also the football asst trainer all through high school, including for Brandon - so we got a picture of her and the two football coaches to share to the football page! What a perfect day and congratulations to Tanner and Zion! 

Grad Parties this week: football player/friend Cohen "Curly" Stahl and basketball teammate/friend Carson Brotz

Time with family and friends. Rusty got a sleepover and fun with Chum this week, Violet had Evaley over to play and got a sleepover with Bristol at the Maurer's house. Gemma had vacation care duty of Peaches the pup and babysat Norah and let Olive tag along to play (Olive's best day!) Grey went fishing with Gabe, The kids spent the afternoon at Abba&Chum's house while B and I went to Gemma's soccer game and then returned the wedding tuxes in Altoona (thank you!) 

Sporting with one all-star baseball practice for Rusty. Gemma had two soccer kick-arounds, two basketball open gyms, three summer league basketball games, her last Gators soccer game, and two physical therapy sessions on her ankle.  Grey had one football practice, one summer league basketball game, and then left for basketball team camp at Juniata on Friday morning that will go through Sunday. They played seven games in two days and won six of them (six-sevennnnnn). He patiently sent me updates on his feet because you know I be worrying after this past basketball season's fiasco!! Grey and Gemma also went to weightlifting/ conditioning five days this week. 

Making church picnic grill chicken salads, teriyaki chicken, roasted broccoli and noodles, take out sub sammies from Em's, Leftovers with a side of mac&cheese, Korean beef over noodles with green beans, and crack chicken sammies. B, Grey, Violet, and Pappy made the first stop on their unofficial summer local chicken wing tour at The Grove and B, Gemma, and I had brunch at Ryan's Artisan Goods after her PT appointment and after B's iCare appt where he picked up a Zpack for a viral infection (my poor honey).  I made a quad batch of pumpkin chocolate chip cookies for our house and also for Weightroom Wednesday snack. For breakfast, I made banana bread. 

Movement: I skated 4.9 miles in total this week! I rollerbladed four times and took another fall which ripped up the same knee; removing the previous scab. Yikes (!!), it was gross and pretty painful. I took a long walk with the kids (to let my knee injury scab over!) instead of blading two days in a row. I am getting strong enough now to track miles while rollerblading and I'm doing a mile with ease (and usually NOT falling, hah). I tried out a new rollerblading spot - Sandyvale Memorial Park while Gem was at PT (I liked it!)