Around Here Week 36: 09/06-12

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

topnotch rizz?! LOL

photo cred: Mr. Bihun

photo cred: Mr. Bihun

bravo, these are amazing, Sherry D! 

photo cred: Mr. O'Ship

photo cred: Michael O'Ship

photo cred: Michael O'Ship

photo cred: Michael O'Ship

photo cred: Michael O'Ship

photo cred: Michael O'Ship

wrestling matches in the bleachers all game long!

photo cred: Gemma

selfie cred: Ev!

selfie cred: Abba

Intentional Outdoor Hours: 483+ hours (of 1000)
The teenage chickens are laying and now we have an egg surplus over here! Our rooster has finally earned a proper crow and he seems like a nice guy so far - so we don't have any issues with him as of now. We are getting HUGE brown eggs from the old girls (like it's honestly ridiculous how big these eggs are) and smaller brown and green ones from the teens. I don't know yet if we are getting guinea eggs because they are not laying in the coop like the other girls. They might be all over the yard for all I know!

Reading and finishing Junie by Erin Crosby Eckstine. It was interesting and I liked the historical context and perspective. I didn't love the ramp up of action in last few chapters after such a slow moving story. I thought I had made it to the end and then like eight things happened in a row - that was wild there at the end. Also read I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith. I picked up my book order from The Laurel & Leaf - they were The Teller of Small Fortunes by Julie Leong (our Lit Ladies book choice for September) and Train Dreams by Denis Johnson which was suggested to me by a teacher friend (thank you Joyce!) 

Listening to Good People by Patmeena Sabit. Very glad to listen to it - voiced by a whole cast and it was giving Serial podcast vibes. I am loving it! 

Running to do list items completed: 

• Grey went driving with Mr. Saylor for TDS driving academy and worked on his online coursework for the program- hopeful to get his driver's license on October 8th!
• I called and scheduled a cardiologist appt at Children's hospital for Gemma which will be mid- October and we can re-do her bloodwork to ensure the strep is gone in the very beginning of October.
• Took the two biggest girls to get their eyebrows waxed
• Finally bought a new laptop for the house since ours died this summer and B and I have been juggling bringing home our work laptops so the kids can do homework. I got one for only $200 at Best Buy! 
• Grey and I worked on updating his X account for football season and connected his huddle and updated his photos. We are learning more from instagram tutorials on what he should have because I am clueless

A long weekend thanks to Labor day and boy, did we ever need it this year! After 45+ hours without power the laundry was stacked to the ceiling! Also, Labor Day every year is a mini milestone for back to school to me. We've had a couple days of bedtimes and early mornings. We've had some meal planning around activities. We've had some Friday Night Lights and week day practices and games with homework mixed in there. We are doing okay if we're all still standing by Labor Day (hah). 

The germs have descended. It's not a surprise, every year from September to May someone in the house is sick because we have germs from everywhere (my two schools, the elementary school, the high school, the football team, the varsity soccer team, the jr high soccer team, the minors team, the k-2 basketball team, the school buses)...so we endure. Grey, Violet, B, and I all felt the effects of cold, sinus, and sore throat this week. Uchie brought us some elderberry juice to try though! 

Elementary school open house for probably about my 11th time - but for each of my kids, it's their first time in each grade...so I go; even though I'm busy and it's the start of the school year and I've seen it all before. I go to check out all the hallway artwork and sign that I was there for our kids and to pop in on my friends who are also incredible educators in the school district. We are very grateful that we have so many caring and supportive adults in our community who help raise up our babies. We love you CT! 

Camo season prep. Violet attended the PA Hunters safety course on Saturday with her friend Evaley and passed her test!

Time with family and friends. We had a cousin sleepover on Sunday night with the Moore boys at our house, Violet and Rusty got to go to the Altoona Curve baseball game with Abba and Chum and then sleepover their house. Violet went to Idlewild with Evaley and her family on Labor day (thank you!), Gemma had a playday (a "couch rot" day - hahha!) with Peyton on Labor Day.

Teaching another four day week (honestly, thank goodness to start school off on an ease-into-it schedule). Elementary school continued with the first day of Spanish special learning about Me Llamo. Spanish Expo finished out week 1 and then started into week 2 with musical chairs translations. Spanish 1 learned basic conversation phrases and practiced numbers with the Smack It game. Spanish 2 started their food unit/ Somos 8 and they learned Cielito Lindo lyrics which they will need to memorize for next week. In all levels, we made Thank You cards for our schools' resource officers in honor of Sept 11. 

Sporting Reddy had one basketball practice and Rusty had two minors football practices and a football game. Violet practiced with the Jr high soccer team two times and was the manager for the team in two games. Gemma had Varsity soccer practice three times and one soccer game (undefeated so far!) Grey and Coach Daddy had team dinner & film, three football practices and a football game Friday Night Lights at our home stadium vs River Valley. It was a pretty tough game and Grey was very sore on Saturday - but we are getting him back to good with ice and rest! I volunteered to make buffalo chicken dip and sent cookies in to the soccer concession stand, I helped host the football family tailgate before the first true home game (thank you to all the families who came and donated food!) 

Making homemade stromboli, chicken/ veggie/ stuffing casserole, Pioneer Woman lasagna, Swedish meatballs over mashed potatoes with green beans, chicken alfredo pasta with roasted broccoli. For desserts I made rainbow sprinkle sugar cookies. For breakfast, I made two loaves of banana bread. For the football family tailgate I made rice krispies, firecracker lil' smokies, and cut up a watermelon. I prepped for my lunches my favorite food combo: kale, chickpeas, sunflower seeds, and sweet potatoes. We had some leftover kielbasa too, so I threw that in there. I cannot adequately explain how much I love this mixture, especially salted up with some pink Himalayan salt. Like, I will eat the entire thing - goodbye and thank you. I ordered some pumpkin spice creamer because I am a basic Biah...judge me all day but it's literally bringing a jolt of joy to my day so I don't care - hah!

Intentional Movement I did multiple days of Lymphatic Drainage movements that really slowed the germs to my body (I'm convinced it really did!) It helped me feel awake each morning too! Now that we are two weeks into school, I think I am ready to get back into some real actual movement - I have been craving it so much.