Husband, Dad, Mechanical Engineer, Bass
Player ...
Obsessed with all things Engineering.
AMY
Wife, Homeschool Mom, Webmaster ...
Obsessed with all things Political.
RACHAEL
Daughter, Sister, Sophomore ...
Obsessed with all things Geological.
NICHOLAS
Son, Brother, 8 year old ...
Obsessed with all things Historical.
(especially Egyptian!)
Favorite Books/Curriculum
The Well-Trained Mind Singapore Math Greenleaf Guides Apologia Science AIG Science curriculum Story of the World
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Day 334 - Poor Little Guy!
Saturday, November 29, 2008
Well, I'm feeling a little bit better, but Nick is horribly ill. He woke up with a fever around 2:00am. I gave him some Tylenol, but it wouldn't bring his temperature down. When Jeff got up around 6:00am, he went to Wal-Mart and bought some Ibuprofen. That finally broke the fever, but he was listless and glassy-eyed all day. He didn't eat anything, but around 2:00pm, he threw up. He started feeling a little better by about 9:00pm and was able to eat a few saltine crackers. Needless to say, another day down - nothing accomplished...
I got up at an unGodly hour this morning to hit the Black Friday sales. I finished buying most of the kids' presents despite having a fever. I was supposed to take my grandma home, but my mom volunteered since I was sick. Jeff had to work, so the kids and I sat around and watched movies all day (including Akeelah and the Bee, which was excellent!) We ordered pizza for dinner, and absolutely no cleaning or packing was done. :-(
This photo is of some candy that Rachael bought the other day at the new Dollar store. I tried to discourage her from buying it, but it's actually REALLY good!
We went to my in-laws house for Thanksgiving. Jeff's Uncle Dennis joined us. He's also going to take our cat, Jasper, home with him. Jasper has been a basement cat for over a year now. Since we were going to list the house and didn't want cat hair everywhere, he was relegated to living in the basement. Rachael & Nick took him into the bathroom, closed the door, and proceeded to bathe him. The giggles and squeals coming from the room were hilarious! Jeff and I sat in the living room in tears just listening to them. Jasper is such a good (and patient) cat!
I left home this morning, dropped Nick off at my mom's house, Rachael off at Jeff's mom's house, and drove to the St. Louis area to pick up my grandma for Thanksgiving. I made pretty good time, despite driving (relatively) slow. There were a lot of police officers patrolling the highway, so I tried to stay (relatively) close to the speed limit (for me anyway!) We all met up at an Amish buffet for a pre-Thanksgiving meal.
On a separate note, it's starting to feel like Christmas! The lights are up and the weather is brisk...
We ventured to Bloomington today to sign our lease. After which, we went out to breakfast with Darla, Gracie, & Josh. Once we got home, I took our (possessed) van up to the dealership to be serviced. For some reason, the lights (both interior & exterior) flash for no apparent reason - even when the key is not in the switch!
For dinner, we met my sister at a local Mexican restaurant. We then went to see the movie "Bolt" where we met up with Heather & Mary. The movie was actually better than I had expected.
These photos are from the Christmas display downtown. I took the pictures hoping for a Christmas card photo, but wasn't thrilled with the outcome...
We headed to Heather's house for an afternoon of Christmas crafts. The kids glued, glittered, and painted while Heather & I got in some talking time. After they finished their crafts, they played in the basement - making music and dressing up.
I went to Overstock.com and let Nick pick out whatever bedding he wanted. Thinking he would have chosen a super hero or dinosaur theme, I was pleasantly surprised that he picked a geography theme. We received the set and he is THRILLED! They are very cute and he enjoys asking about all of the famous landmarks and places. An impromptu geography lesson at every turn - a homeschooling mom's dream!
Nick told me that he was having trouble finding something on the computer. Thinking he couldn't find a link on Starfall.com or PBSkids.org, I went over to the computer only to find this.....
He said he wanted to, "Study ancient Egypt." With the exception of a heavy hand on the "A" key, I thought he did an exceptional job of trying to phonetically spell it!
Of course, I'm still a little puzzled as to Google's suggestion of "Did you mean...?"
Rachael was the only one in her co-op that got an "A" on her Geography test. I was really proud of her!
On a separate topic, I opened Rachael's purse today to look for a pen. No pens, no lip gloss, no address book - none of the standard items you would expect to find in the purse of an average girl her age. The contents of her purse?
My mom bought this Scene it game for Jeff's birthday. Rachael is a little young to have seen most of the TV shows that are referenced, so we had to play in teams - girls against the boys. Unfortunately, Jeff got the "short end of the stick" since Nick was actually more of a hindrance than a help when playing the game! Jeff ended up winning in the end, though...
I didn't take any pictures today, but thought these cave photos were appropriate now that we're officially homeless. I took them when we went to Bluespring Caverns a few months ago, but had never gotten around to posting them.
We closed on our house this evening, therefore, we have 30 days to vacate. I'm actually more excited than anything. I was teetering on the edge of nostalgia during the past few weeks, but I think I've finally moved past that. The kids are downright giddy to get back to their lives up north, and the snow flurries today reminded me that Jeff will be able to avoid the horribly long commute this winter...
Jeff is 38 years old today! My parents took us out to eat at a local BBQ restaurant for Jeff's birthday. After lunch, Jeff & I headed to a movie and dinner, then back to my parents' house for cake & ice cream....
Jeff had to work all day, so I took the kids to my mom's house. We played cards and hung out until it was time for dinner at Jeff's parents' house. Tomorrow is his birthday, but his mom made vegetable soup and wanted to celebrate today. Rachael made him this card.
After schoolwork was finished and Jeff got home, we had our typical Friday night pizza. Nothing much exciting, but Nick did enjoy 'taking pictures' of himself in his fine Tonka hat...
In co-op today, we studied about the Pilgrim colony having first been set up as a socialistic society, and its conversion to capitalism. I find it interesting that there are so many examples of failed societies in which there was no incentive to learn more or work harder, yet even our own nation seems to be creeping closer and closer to that end. Everyone wants something for free. Free health care, free education, free retirement, free welfare... You know, there's something to be said for hard work & sacrifice. NOTHING is free! 'Someone' has to pay - either directly or indirectly. Maybe one of these days people will realize that. Then again, the more the government convinces people that they 'deserve' everything for nothing and that only the government can provide it, the more mindless people become. Remember - paying higher taxes is 'patriotic'. After all, the government is so efficient and honest that they will always spend my money with 'me' in mind...
Okay, off my soapbox....
After co-op, I visited the condo that we'll be living in when we move. The owner will be moving to Alaska and is selling nearly all of her possessions. I bought a bed and a tv stand for Nick, two lamps, a couch & loveseat, and a white Christmas tree for Jeff. Ever since Jeff & I have been married, we have had an ongoing discussion regarding Christmas trees. Every year I want a real tree, and he wants a white artificial tree. With the exception of a few years when got a real tree (we had hardwood floors, so it was easy cleanup!), we've always ended up with a fake green tree. I figured it was time he got his wish. This year, our tree will be white...as sacrilegious as that may be...
This is our 'not-so-friendly' neighborhood squirrel that hangs out in our tree. Every time we walk out the front door, it chirps or yells (or whatever it is that squirrels do) to inform us that we're invading his/her territory.... Bad squirrel....
Jeff was off today, and we didn't do much. Jeff made chicken & rice for lunch and I made Sloppy Joes for supper (Nick ate 2 sloppy joes!) I didn't take any pictures, so I figured I post a few older ones.
The first two are from when Nick was first born and in the NICU. The last photo was when he was over a month old. Rachael had never seen him - even through a window. No one under 16 was allowed - no exceptions, even for siblings. Fortunately, on this particular day, it was after 10:00pm and we were the only visitors in the NICU. A kind nurse snuck Rachael in "the back way." She wasn't allowed to touch him or stay for more than a minute, but it gave us an opportunity for our first family photo. Of course, the IV stuck in the top of his head isn't all that photogenic, but I love this picture nonetheless!
Sometimes I forget how sick he really was until I look back at these photos. I tried to find the picture of him with Jeff's wedding ring, but I couldn't find it. His entire hand fit inside the ring!
It's amazing how much can change in four years. From feeding tubes down his nose to devouring 2 sloppy joe sandwiches in a matter of a few minutes. My boy's growing up!
Today has been an AWESOME day. For some reason, I woke up about 2 hours earlier than usual, and I wasn't even tired! I had two hours of uninterrupted computer time to read my e-mails, catch up on some blogs that I follow, and check my normal homeschooling & freebie pages. The kids woke up and ate breakfast while I did a load of dishes and scrubbed the kitchen. Mondays are always cleaning days because I refuse to clean on our family days! After breakfast, Rachael did her Algebra with no questions asked. She even told me how much she liked her Algebra program! While she studied for and completed her Science test, Nick played educational games on the computer. Rachael got a 'B' on her test - excellent, considering she's really using some challenging curriculum this year and she flunked her last test! She really studied hard this time. I was proud of her. The good grade must have really motivated her because she completed all the rest of her homework by 3:00pm - including researching for her Geography test and practicing her piano - all with no complaints! Since she & Nick finished everything they were supposed to do, we took the rest of the afternoon off. We made some no-bake cookies, the kids built a 'tent' out of Nick's table and our comforter, we popped some popcorn, and watched the movie "Madagascar" that Heather loaned us. After the movie, the kids even made up some sort of ball-toss game with a little rubber ball and our popcorn bowls.
Jeff is working really late tonight. It's now after 10:00pm, and he's just now on his way home. Tomorrow is Veteran's Day, so he wanted to get everything finished so he could relax and take the day off tomorrow. The kids and I had Navy Bean Soup for supper. It turned out really yummy! Even Nick (who says he hates beans) ate 2 bowls, and Rachael ate 3! I just used a bag of dried navy beans, about 2-3 cups of water, a can of cream of chicken soup, a packet of onion soup mix, some parsley, some celery salt, and a package of cubed ham. I dumped it all into the crockpot and cooked it until the beans were soft. It's still warming, waiting for Jeff to get home. It was really odd eating without him. We ALWAYS eat together as a family. Even when he gets home at 8 or 9pm, we'll usually eat a light snack to hold us over until he gets home. Since we knew he'd be extra late tonight, we went ahead without him. It was eerily quiet. (which is probably funny for most people who know Jeff!) He's freakishly quiet when he's not at home, but he's truly the "life of the party" at home! We're used to all his goofiness at the dinner table. It was a stark reminder of how I'm just not the "fun" parent of this household!
Other than watch movies all afternoon, we really didn't do much. I did, however, get some more of my recipes organized. I am soooo disorganized! Whenever I wanted to cook a recipe that I hadn't made in awhile I would have to: A. Call my mom or B. Try to find it online. Of course, whenever you look online, it's nearly impossible to find the same recipe twice. A few years ago, I started copying them and e-mailing them to myself so that I could find them again. The subject line was always: Recipe. Unfortunately, I would then have to hunt through dozens of e-mails trying to find the correct one. Since I got my nifty all-in-one laser printer a few months ago, I decided to put it to good use. We always have tons of 3x5 index cards around because Rachael uses them for Piano theory, Etymology, Latin, & History (among other things!) I set up a Word file using a 3x5 paper template (2 'pages' wide). I write the name of the recipe and the ingredients on the first page, and the directions on the second page. When I print, I simply flip the card over and Voila! I have a standard format for all my recipes. Now when I'm looking for something, all I have to do is hit Ctrl-F and search for a word that matches what I'm looking for. If I lose or mess up a particular card, all I have to do is reprint. I'm considering adding a numbering system so that I will be able to find the cards easier, but that might just be overkill! ;-D
Nick walked into the bathroom this morning while Jeff was shaving. Wanting to be a "big, strong, man" like his daddy, he wanted to shave, too. Jeff struck a compromise and Nick was quite proud of his shaving cream "beard!"
Name: Amy Home: Indiana, United States About Me: I am a Homeschool Mom of 2 awesome children. This is my attempt at Project 365 - to chronicle our world through daily photos... See my complete profile
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