October 31, 2012

Outside Temp: 40 F (nice and clear today!)

What I cooked today:
Burgers and Macs & Cheese: I almost went with chili, but Allen begged and pleaded.  So, I relented and went with macs and cheese... He was in heaven!

Update:
Happy Halloween!

First off, I absolutely hate this day.  I'm not sure if I was tortured as a child, or what is wrong with me, but I hate Halloween.  I think I never had a 'cool' costume. 

Anyway, the kids had a great day.  The school had a Halloween carnival, where they had games and prizes and lots and lots of candy.  The middle school students ran all the games for the K-6th graders.  We brought Ryan back to the school for the carnival, which worked out great because he loved it!

I left Patrick in the multipurpose room to take pictures of the kids, while I went to my web design class.  This was a mistake, as I ended up with exactly one picture of Allen.  Every other picture was either blurry or from the back.  Next time, I'll make sure to take pictures myself!

This evening, after Allen's basketball practice, we went around Geyser and went trick or treating.  Ryan was exhausted from the carnival, so he decided to stay home and sleep.  Katie, Connor, Allen and I drove around town, stopping at places we knew to chat with friends (and, of course, score some candy).  We had such a great time!  Everyone was so generous (especially the Geyser Mercantile, which gave the kids a stuffed animal AND a full can of soda!  You're awesome!)!

And now, I can be grateful that Halloween is over and I don't have to deal with it for another year.  All of our Halloween costumes, makeup, masks, and bags are in a plastic bin and put away.  Woo hoo!

October 30, 2012

Outside Temp: 59 F (warmer today, into the 60's)

What I cooked today:
Spanish Rice: Connor absolutely hates this, but it's a favorite of Katie and Patrick.  So, I told Connor he could make himself a sandwich or something, but I was making it.  He choked down 2 whole bites.  Oh well, he'll learn.

Update:
Parent/Teacher conferences today.

Apparently, the kids are all doing fine.  I had to chastise Allen for getting a B+ in math, but other than that, it was all A's, all around.  I try to be non-chalant about it, but I can't imagine I ever had grades like my kids do.  I'm not sure if they are just smarter than I was, or if they have better teachers, or maybe school is easier.  Either way, I love that they are doing so well.

The teachers had only nice things to say about all of the kids.  Even Ryan, with his 'Ryan-ness', the comments were more about how to make things better rather than negative things about him.  Of course, his classmates would prefer that his nostril fluids would remain in his nose, and not at the end of his finger, but I guess for 1st grade, that's not an unusual issue.

The only problem I saw was that Allen is tired a lot.  I'm hoping that at the end of basketball season (in about 10 days), he will finally rest and focus on his school work.

October 29, 2012

Outside Temp: 44 F (nice today.. a little rain, clouds, nice temp)

What I cooked today:
Leftover Pulled Pork: We were given a bag of leftover pulled pork from the benefit yesterday, which worked out great.  I just had to heat it up and toss it on some buns, and voila, I had dinner ready! About 10 minutes!

Update:
Well, it was bound to happen sometime.  Allen's team lost their game tonight (about 24-44).  They were playing against Tri-Cities, and they struggled.  The other team was very, very good, and they had a few really good players. 

The good news is that we get to play them again on Friday, so we have a few days to practice to get ready.  To be fair, they have also had 3 games back to back, with no practice between (Friday, Saturday and Monday).  There are only 3 games left in the season, so I hope we can find some strategy to help us on Friday.

October 28, 2012

Outside Temp: 52 F (yes, 52... it's almost hot outside!  )

What I cooked today:
Pancakes: I spoiled the kids with pancakes this morning.  I haven't made pancakes in a while, so I thought I'd break out the skillet.  Of course, as usual I didn't make enough, so I didn't get any.  But perhaps that is a good thing, since it keeps me from drowning my food in syrup.

Papa Murphy's Pizza: We debated while in town today, whether or not to get pizza.  By 6pm, we decided that I didn't want to deal with making something for dinner, so we ended up with pizza.  We now have tons of leftover pizza.. I guess it wasn't such a good idea.

Update:
Ahhh, a nice Sunday with no requirements.

I made sure the boys got their homework done early, then we headed into town.  We needed to get Halloween costumes for everyone, so we brought Katie and Ryan with us (Allen gave us his list, and Connor didn't really care).  Ryan had so much fun in the costume store, that we had a hard time getting him out. 

I was glad that we got our weekly shopping done, but it meant that we missed the benefit and auction for a member of our community.  There were plenty of things I was looking forward to 'bidding' on!  I heard that it was a great success, and the food was wonderful!  The Grandparents brought us back some leftovers (which will be awesome for lunch tomorrow), and a yummy cake for dessert! 

Somehow, the weekend is over.  I'm not quite sure where it went, but I think we got a few things accomplished.  I still have a dishwasher sitting in my front room, waiting to get installed.  I also have plywood in my garage, waiting to replace the skirt on my house.  I think this next week will have a little better weather, and perhaps I can get my husband to finish some of the 'house projects' before the next snow hits!

October 27, 2012

Outside Temp: 31 F (it was warmer today, in the high 30's at least. )

What I cooked today:
Burgers and Tater Tots: I didn't have much time when we got home, so I went with burgers.  I told Allen I was being lazy.  He laughed and said, "If this is lazy, please be lazy more often!".

Update:
Busy day!

We started the day with a basketball game in Stanford.  Because the team played so hard in Roy yesterday, the coach decided to let some of the 'non-starters' start, and play more.  We have already played against Denton, and I guess the coach thought that we would do okay.

So, Allen got to start!  In fact, he got to play the entire first quarter!  I think it was a little hard for him to get used to playing constantly.  He is usually just put in for a few minutes, as relief for the starters.  This time, he played a lot! 

By the 4th quarter, he was starting to get into his grove.  Not only did he make a basket, but I caught it on the camera!  Woo hoo!  The team was winning by quite a lot at this point, but everyone in the stands knew that making baskets during a game was a pretty cool thing for Allen.  When he made his shot, the crowds yelled for him!  He was on cloud 9! 

After the game, we came back home for church.  Then, it was a few hours of relaxing before heading in to Geyser for the Haunted House! 

The Geyser Mercantile puts on a haunted house for Halloween.  They had a 'not as scary' time from 6-7, where the 'zombies' and 'ghouls' would not work too hard to scare anyone.   We went through with all the kids first.  Ryan was a little scared, but in a way, I think he really liked it.  He would scream, then hide behind either Patrick or me, and then push us forward.

At one point, we took him aside and asked if he was really scared, if he wanted to leave.  No way!  He wanted to keep going!

By the time we finished, we thought he'd be done.  Nope.  "Let's go again!" was all he could say!  We let him go back through again during the 'not so scary' part, and by then, he was pretty comfortable with it.  Then we all went back through when it got a little more scary.  The 'zombies' and 'ghouls' would moan and scream and make it more intense.  I wasn't sure how he would take it, but Ryan did just fine!  In fact, he went up to one of the 'ghouls' (who we knew by this point) and asked for 'fist bumps'.  It kind of hysterical.  I couldn't stop laughing!

October 26, 2012

Outside Temp: 28 F (high of 41... low of 15... It's supposed to be warmer this weekend...)

What I cooked today:
Chicken Soup with Orzo:  I added some Greek Seasoning, and some lemon juice to my boring chicken soup, and it was so yummy!  I'll have to try this one again.

Update:
I got to substitute teach for the JH Math/Civics and music teacher, which is always fun!

We discussed the powers of the Executive and Judicial branch, but the students had a worksheet, so I didn't have much time to just discuss.  They all got their work done, and I think they learned something.

The rest of the day, the students pretty much just had study hall.  Which means that with their new tablets, they had a large online game of Minecraft.  In our 7th period, we had 6 students playing Minecraft with each other, helping each other out and building new things.  I really think  we should just have a Minecraft class, with a little direction.  The kids loved it and I think they learned something about tactics and building.

Allen had a basketball game in Roy, which is too far for me to go (yes, I've gotten lazy).  He said they had a really rough game, but they pulled it off in the last quarter.  Apparently, it helped that the opposing team fouled out their best player.  We won, barely, but a win is a win.  They are currently 3-0, with another game tomorrow in Stanford. 

Also, Patrick got his new 'toy' today.  He pre-purchased a Microsoft Surface tablet, which arrived via FedEx this afternoon.  So far, he is quite impressed.  I'm just glad it runs Microsoft Word, which the Android tablet didn't do.  We are having a little trouble printing (which is one of the main reasons I wanted it), simply because my printer is too old.  I've been debating purchasing a new printer for the business anyway, so I guess this is just going to push me a little faster to make the purchase.  But the Surface is pretty cool.

Of course, Allen is a little disappointed that it doesn't run Minecraft, but I wouldn't be surprised if it shows up soon!

October 25, 2012

Outside Temp: 22 F (we had a high of 27 and a low of 19... the temp stayed about the same all day long.  Little bit of snow, but not much.)

What I cooked today:
Pot Roast: I found a recipe that had the pot roast in a tin foil 'bag', with the potatoes and carrots mixed with some tomato juice and red wine vinegar.  I'm sure the roast would have been much better, if my thermometer worked correctly.  I checked it about 3 hours in (the recipe called for 3 1/2 hours at 250), and it claimed it was only 120 degrees.  So, I left it in for another 30 minutes, and it still read 120.  Hmmm.  I left it in for another 15 minutes, then pulled it out.  I found a second thermometer, and it read 183.  Lovely.  I totally overcooked it, and it was soooo dry.  The potatoes and carrots helped, but it would have been so much nicer, had it been cooked correctly.  Oh well, next time...

Update:
I was so spoiled today!

Ryan wasn't feeling well this morning, so we had him stay home from school. (he was probably a little dehydrated, so we pushed fluids on him all day, and he was back to normal by noon.  I LOVE false alarms!).  Which also meant that I didn't have to go to the school at 11 to pick him up.

Then, the school had district volleyball tournaments, and the entire school (junior high and high school) went to Denton.  Those who are NOT in high school girls volleyball are in the pep band.  The volleyball girls are also in pep band, but since they had to play the game, they couldn't play their instruments.

Which meant that I didn't have any students for my web design class.  So, I didn't have to go to school in the afternoon.  I had Katie take the bus home, and I just stayed home, working on projects, in my pajamas, until 6pm, when it was time to pick up the boys from the game.

Woo hoo!  Only one trip in the car today!  So spoiled!

October 24, 2012

Outside Temp: 22 F (high of 33, low of 17... it's beginning to look a LOT like winter!)

What I cooked today:
Chinese Chicken with Fried Rice: I wanted to start using up some of the chicken in the freezer, so I pulled out the chicken this afternoon, which made dinner a lot easier, since I didn't have to defrost anything!  When you plan (just a little bit) ahead, dinner isn't that hard... who knew?

Update:
Winter may have begun.  I'm not entirely sure.  It might just be a tease, but it is getting a little chilly, the kids are starting to use their snow pants, gloves are being lost.  Yep, winter is starting. 

I was able to start my car this morning and drive it immediately, which was a nice change from yesterday.  There was a little bit of snow during the day, but nothing stuck so the roads were nice and dry.

Patrick and Grandpa were totally awesome and took our garbage to the dump today.  We had filled up the outside garbage cans, and we were starting to use the garage as a temporary garbage location.  Fortunately, it was cold enough that the garbage didn't start smelling (too bad). 

At the school today, we are in the middle of Red Ribbon Week.  We had a deputy with a drug sniffing dog come into the school to explain about drugs and law enforcement.  He had a student hide a bag of something (drugs?) somewhere in the gym, and then he tasked the dog to find it.  The dog had no problem at all finding the drug.

Afterwards, the elementary kids went back to class, and he addressed the junior high and high school students.  Main points... Don't use drugs..  Don't drink and drive... And somewhere in there was that the punishment for drinking underage was actually worse than the punishment for using drugs, which I totally didn't understand.  I also learned that in Montana, you have implied consent, which means that by simply getting your drivers licence, you have already consented to a breathalyzer test if you are pulled over.  And, if you refuse, you are admitting guilt.  Hmm, I didn't know that.

The bad part about the 'assembly' is that it occurred during my class.  Which means that my students didn't have any opportunity to work on their project (for the second day in a row).  They also have District Volleyball tournaments tomorrow and Friday, which means that they won't have any time then to work on their project.  I've emailed their instructors (it's an online class), and hopefully, they will be understanding.

October 23, 2012

Outside Temp: 21 F (it was chilly and cloudy, but little snow during the day... that doesn't count last night!)

What I cooked today:
Beef Stew: I picked up a 'family pack' of beef roast, so I kept the larger of the two roasts for later this week, and chopped up the small roast into chunks and made beef stew.  Totally yummy on a chilly day!  I did use a large number of potatoes, so I warned the family that it was potato stew, with beef.  No problems... they all seem to enjoy potatoes!

Update:
Snow... and cold... and a little more snow.

The roads were very icy overnight.  We heard reports of at least 5 accidents between here and Stanford.  One occurred just a mile away, next to a neighbor's barn.  Just a reminder to take your time and relax. 

I have to try to remember about cold weather and cars.  I know, it sounds silly.  After all, we survived the winter last year, and I think I learned a few things.  Of course, it's been the entire summer, and things get forgotten.

First off, when it's snowed the prior evening, expect to spend at least 10 minutes getting the car ready in the morning.  You might be lucky, and be able to jump in and start the car and drive away, but in the off chance that you can't, giving yourself extra time will ensure that you are not late (like I was today... by almost 15 minutes, which is really bad for me!).

Second, put your de-icer in the washer fluid BEFORE it gets cold.  Opening up the hood, when it's covered in snow and ice, is really hard to do.  And your hands get cold.  (fortunately, we had purchased the de-icer already, and it was in the trunk.  We just hadn't gotten around to getting it into the car.  It doesn't do much in the trunk.)

Third, while credit cards work okay to get the ice off the windshield, an ice scraper works better.  Spend a few minutes looking for your ice scraper from last year, and make sure it's in the car. 

Fourth, and probably most importantly, do NOT set the parking break.  EVER!  I should have remembered this from last year, as we had exactly the same thing happen.  But, I was silly and thought that 20 degrees wasn't that cold, so it wouldn't be a problem.  Of course, 20 degrees is still below freezing, and ice and snow and rain does freeze into ice.  And, when the parking break is set, and there is snow and ice on the break and the tires, those two things freeze together.  It's not a fun sound when you push the break to release it, and it doesn't release.  Then, you try to go forward or back, and the car doesn't move.

So, as you can tell, I had a fun morning trying to get into the school to pick up Ryan.  Our driveway is in the shadow of the house, so it doesn't help that the sun was up, as our cars were in shadow and still totally covered in ice and snow.  I spent about 10 minutes trying to get the van drivable, only to find that it was frozen solid to the parking break.  So, then I spent another 5 minutes getting the little yellow car ready to be driven.  I pulled out of my house with a little 'window' in front of the drivers side (the passenger side was still frozen solid), and both windows down (I didn't have time to scrape the ice off those). 

By the time I got to the school, most of the ice had melted and I was doing fine.  Up until the moment when I went to get out of my car, and the door wouldn't open.  I pushed hard against it a few times, before I realized it was locked.  Which would have been fine, if there hadn't been a student watching me, trying really hard not to laugh at me.  Okay, I'm kind of a dork.

But I learned a few things.  And I'm sure I'll do better next time (which probably will be tomorrow!).

October 22, 2012

Outside Temp: 25 F (it's beginning to look a lot like winter!  Snow and sleet this afternoon... not sure what to expect for tomorrow!)

What I cooked today:
Chili and Cornbread: I wanted something warm and cozy, and wouldn't take much time.  I figured at least one kid would complain, but they were all excited!  I guess chili will be my new standby when it's cold outside!

Update:
Today was the day that Allen and Connor both had presentations and projects due.

Allen did a power point presentation on Socrates.  He really liked researching this one, although at the end, he wanted to just be done.  Apparently, during the presentation, he wanted to explain the 'Socratic Method' to the class (of 3 students and 1 teacher).  So, he picked on one of his classmates. 

I would have liked to have seen the exchange, but Allen said that the student he picked on wasn't really paying attention, which made it all that much easier to 'lead' him in the right direction.  Apparently, the example was about the most important invention of our time.  The student originally picked a car, Then, Allen started leading him down the road of picking another important invention, the airplane.  Which then lead the student to the conclusion that the airplane was more useful for moving people across long distances than a car. 

I'm not sure exactly if the example worked the way he intended, but it did make his teacher laugh, which is always a good thing. 

After that, Connor had a presentation of his science project.  He has been studying water pressure for the last few weeks, to prepare for this presentation.  I'm not sure how well he did, but he said he did fine. 

Allen presented his science project this afternoon as well.  He did a poster on Mars, which wasn't too bad.  He had pictures and facts and launch dates for the rovers.  But I think my favorite part was the section on the Roman God, complete with a picture! 

After school, I brought Connor into town.  After his allergy tests last week, they set him up for a pulmonary test, to see if he has any problems with asthma.  He got to blow into the machine (which totally sucks, by the way), and his breathing is just fine.  So, now he gets to deal with the fact that his shortness of breath when he's running is simply a result of being out of shape.  Which means, now he needs to run more.  He was not happy.

While we were in town, I managed to get my shopping done.  It had started to snow, and I had lots of stuff to do, so we raced around town and got all my groceries and headed back home.

After a quick trip into Geyser to get Allen from basketball practice, I headed back to the school for the Booster Club meeting tonight.  After chatting with the girls for an hour, I headed back home (in the snow) to make dinner and get the family to bed.

Whew.  Busy day, but we got a lot accomplished! And I can't wait to get a picture of the beautiful new snow in the morning!

October 21, 2012

Outside Temp: 33 F (it was 20 degrees this morning, and got up to 61!  Almost no wind and absolutely beautiful!)

What I cooked today:
Nothing: Grandma cooked dinner for us, so I didn't have to cook!  Woo hoo!

Update:
We spent most of the day at the grandparents house, helping to build the greenhouse.  The concrete is ready, and this was one of the first days with no wind or rain or snow. 

We got the rafters up (all 10 of them) and it looks great.  I can't wait to see it with the panels on!

I also got a chance to do some housekeeping.  I have a closet, that I just kind of tossed stuff into when we moved in (a year ago!).  It's been mostly useless. So, I decided today that my one project for the day was to clean out the closet.  (I had bought a stockpile of toilet paper online this week, and the four boxes were filling up my entryway). 

In the closet, I found: 3 old laptops (that don't turn on), 2 briefcases, a tub full of electronic parts, 5 hard drives (which may just have some old pictures or something important on them), an old ceramic candle holder (which I intended to give as a Christmas present about 3 years ago), a coffee maker (I think it came with the house) and a box of linens (ahhh, that's where all my hand towels are!). 

I now have a cleared out closet, with shelves (the shelves were in the closet, just waiting to be put together), and nice boxes for all my stuff.  I have plenty of space for my stockpile, although I did keep the old laptops.  Not really sure why...

October 20, 2012

Outside Temp: 36 F (it was in the 60's, but started cooling off once the sun went down.  I'm expecting freezing tonight.)

What I cooked today:
Burgers and Macs & Cheese: Katie stayed up with Grandma and Grandpa, so I made a dinner just for the guys.  Burgers seemed like a great option.  Of course, it would have been better if I had any cheese left over for the burgers, but I just suggested that they put the macs & cheese ON the burgers... They declined. 

Update:
So, tonight is kind of a momentous post.

This is my 366th post (which makes sense, because this was a leap year).  I started my blog exactly 1 year ago (10/21/11).

In this year, I have had over 9400 views of my blog, which sounds like a whole lot.  Of course, if you break it down by the number of posts, it comes out to about 25 views per day.  I am actually stunned, and perhaps a little humbled, that I still receive between 10-15 posts per day, on almost every post.  I still can't imagine that my life is interesting enough to justify a few moments out of your day, to read my little post on my life, but I am deeply grateful that you have kept me going.

There have been more than a few nights, where I didn't really want to post anything.  Either I couldn't come up with anything even mildly interesting to write, or I was so dog tired that I had to drag my body out of bed, to type a few lines.  But, I am a little proud of myself in that I can say I haven't missed a day!

This blog has been useful for me as well.  When we got a notice from Ryan's medical insurance, questioning a bill, I could look back at the 'date of service' on my blog, and explain exactly what happened that day (2-3 months ago).  I actually have a place where pictures are stored, so I can find them easily.  I proved I was right in a 'discussion' with my husband when he said that we kept the chicks in our bedroom for 3-4 weeks, and I said it was only a few days.  It was 3 to be exact, which I could find easily when I looked back at the blog posts.

In a small way, it's a problem, since when I try 'small talk' with friends whom I haven't seen in a while, they already know everything going on in my life, so I find I'm repeating things they already know.  But, when you take into account that I'm in Montana, and I have friends who are 1200 miles away, it's more common that I'm not going to be physically seeing a lot of my friends for a while.  The blog has let me keep in touch in a way that I wouldn't do otherwise. 

I also know that some people can just read my blurb on Facebook (which I post every day, with the link to that day's blog entry), and not click on the link, but still keep up to date with our lives. 

So, to all those people who have either come into my life, or stayed in my life, in a small way because of the blog, thank you for being part of my life!!  If nothing else, knowing that you are out there helps me to feed my family each day, if for no other reason than because I hate to write that I didn't cook anything today!!

Now, that being said, we had a basketball game today.  I was able to get about 6 seconds of video with Allen actually playing.  Amazingly, the video is better than the pictures I took, which seems typical. 

They won their game, which makes them 2-0 for the season so far.  Considering that there are only 8 games in the season, before the tournaments, they are doing pretty good!

After the game, we rushed back for church, and made it with at least 4 minutes to spare. 

Patrick went into town with Grandpa and picked up my new dishwasher.  We talked with our landlord and he agreed that having a dishwasher that only works every 3rd day is just not right.  Not to mention the possibility that there was some electrical problem (and the image of the house burning down), we have 6 people and we make dinner (almost) every night.  Doing dishes by hand each night has gotten old.  It was kind of fun in the beginning, like roughing it.  Now, it's just annoying.  So, we ordered the dishwasher last week, and picked it up today.  Now, I have to live through the wait time while it's sitting in my family room, waiting for my husband to hook it up.  I'm praying on tomorrow, but I'm expecting mid next week. 

Allen and I spent a lot of time talking about his upcoming presentation on Socrates.  His history teacher has them doing a power point presentation instead of the standard test.  That means that instead of being grades on grammar and spelling and punctuation (which he kind of sucks at), he gets graded on what he actually knows.  Which seems like something that Socrates would have approved of! 

October 19, 2012

Outside Temp: 52 F (it was beautiful today!  A little windy, but clear and a great temperature.)

What I cooked today:
Frozen Pizza: I just couldn't get up the ambition to make dinner tonight.  Fortunately, the Schwann's guy came by, so I just picked up a few frozen pizza's and voila, dinner...

Update:
I started the morning with the horses.  I got up, got Katie up, and we headed over to our neighbor's barn, to feed the horses.  They all came out to greet us, and we had to spend a few minutes with each, saying hello and giving pets.

Then we headed up to our neighbor's house, to let the dog out and feed her and the cat.  And, we were greeted with... our neighbor!  Her plans had changed, and we no longer needed to keep an eye on the animals.  I admit, I was a little bummed.  I was looking forward to getting to know the horses, but she promised me that she would call on us next time!

So, with the exception of Allen's basketball practice, our day was nice and relaxing.  I spent a few hours working on a project for work, but otherwise, I just vegged out.  I watched a movie (Office Space... totally classic!) and played around on the computer, did some laundry, read a little in my book and just did nothing of any importance.  I absolutely love days like this!

October 18, 2012

Outside Temp: 45 F (It was 20 degrees this morning, and warmed up into the mid 60's... just beautiful!)

What I cooked today:
Pasta with Chicken, Sun dried tomatoes and artichoke hearts: I have always wanted to make this for dinner, but I had no idea what to do.  So, I just decided to try it.  I made the pasta, then sauteed the chicken, added the tomatoes and artichokes in some olive oil and then tossed the pasta in.  It would have been better if I had added some salt and seasoning.  I added some Italian seasoning after the fact and it made it taste much better.  Patrick said I could 'try again'... Isn't he generous!

Update:
The kids didn't have school today, which meant that I got to sleep in, somewhat.  Connor had his Allergy testing today, so Patrick and he went into town this morning.  Apparently, he's not as allergic as Allen is, but he could still benefit from the allergy shots.  He also is going to get tested for asthma, although I'm guessing that he doesn't have that problem.

Allen was feeling better, but decided to pass on basketball practice.  I'm sure he'll be better for tomorrow's practice, which he really needs for Saturday's game!

One of our neighbor's is heading out of town, and they asked us to watch their dog and cat while they are gone.  Then, we got the call asking us to also help out with the horses.  You can bet that I leaped at the chance! 

So, I went over this afternoon, to get better acquainted with the two horses that I'll be keeping an eye one.  One needs meds, which I get to give her... into her mouth.  She did great this afternoon!  Then, this evening, in the dark, she really didn't want to let me near her.  I had to run her around and around the corral, before I got her cornered and got her meds in.  I figure that by Saturday night, she and I will be good friends! 

I'm also realizing that Halloween is coming up, and I haven't thought about what I'm doing with the kids.  I'm sure they will all want some sort of costume, and since we can't just run out on the night of the 30th to pick something up, I'd better get my rear in gear and decide what we are doing.  Maybe on Saturday, I'll head into town and pick up something... I'm sure some fake blood will be involved. 

October 17, 2012

Outside Temp: 37 F (still windy today...)

What I cooked today:
Nothing... I was going to make dinner, but a totally awesome neighbor brought by a meatloaf and potatoes.  She was making some dinners for some people, and had an extra one, so she dropped it by here.  Which, beyond being totally awesome, meant that I didn't have to make dinner tonight!  Woo hoo!

Update:
Today was an 'early out' at school, which means that school was out at 1pm.  I got to sub for the music and Junior High teacher, but because each class was only 30 minutes long, it seemed to just fly by!

I did get to chat with the JH Civics class about the constitution, which is always a good topic. I hope the students got the basics of the different articles and how the government was formed.  I expect that they already kind of knew the information, after all, can you possibly get to 7th and 8th grade without knowing about the Executive, Legislative and Judicial branches.  Of course, when I asked the students if the Executive branch could make laws, some of them said yes, which prompted a great conversation!

Allen stayed home from school sick today.  Patrick said he slept most of the day, except while he was working on homework. His basketball team didn't have practice today (probably because of the early out), so he didn't have to miss practice!  He seems to be feeling better tonight, so we can get caught up on homework tomorrow.

We have no school on Thursday or Friday, due to Montana Educator conferences, which means that I get to sleep in, for 4 days in a row!  Woo hoo!

October 16, 2012

Outside Temp: 44 F (and very, very windy!  It was raining today, woo hoo!)

What I cooked today:
Potato and Leek Soup: I wanted to make this on Sunday, but the time got away from me.  So, I whipped it up today, in between my trips back and forth to the school.  Yummy and warm!

Tuna Noodle Casserole: Katie has been asking for this one for months!  I finally decided that it's not that hard, and it makes her happy.  She gobbled it up!

Update:
We awoke this morning to the lovely sound of rain.  Ahh, how I love the rain. 

Allen and Connor had a little play at school today about Mozart, which is fun!  I headed into school early, to make sure I had a chance to see it.  The play had two students (Allen was one) who were both pretending to be Mozart.  The other students would take turns asking them questions, trying to determine who was the 'Real Motzart'.  Allen was playing up his part beautifully, but he lost the crowd when he claimed that he composed his first symphony at 5 (Mozart composed his first symphony at age 8, which is still really, really young!). 

This evening, I got to watch a little bit of the girls volleyball game, while waiting for Allen to get out of basketball practice.  Maybe next year, I will finally understand the rules.  But it was fun to watch just the same!

Allen came home from practice absolutely exhausted.  I think he is coming down with a bug, and so I sent him right off to bed.  He didn't even wake up for dinner, which is totally unheard of for him.  Hopefully, he'll be feeling better tomorrow!

October 15, 2012

Outside Temp: 51 F (very windy today!!)

What I cooked today:
Nothing... game today, so we had dinner in Denton.

Update:
Allen's first Basketball game was today, against Denton.  They've only been practicing for 4 days, and they won!  Woo hoo!

It was a little scary in the first few minutes, as they allowed the other team to get 6-8 pts.  Then, they got into their rhythm and did great!  We won 45-16.  Not too shabby!

Allen got to play quite a bit, and he has really improved from last year!  As we got into the car, he commented, "I forgot how much I enjoy this game!"  I'm really glad, since he'll be practicing every day for the next 5 1/2 weeks...

October 14, 2012

Outside Temp: 62 F (strange weather today... cloudy, then a little rain, and now it's warmer and windy.  Not sure what to expect tomorrow)

What I cooked today:
French Toast and Bacon: I totally spoiled my family this morning, with the chance to wake up to the awesome smell of bacon.  Is there anything better on a Sunday morning?  The french toast was just an added bonus.

Burgers and French Fries: I was going to make soup, but I just didn't feel like it.  So, I went with the easy old standby.  I think I'll get back into my 'schedule' tomorrow.

Update:
I had a fun day today.  We had a 'Harvest Dinner' in Belt at the church.  I got to go and help sell our cookbooks with another (totally fabulous) neighbor.  The two of us sat and chatted for hours!   We have been here for over a year, but there are still people that I don't know.  She was kind enough to help me with names and faces, which will totally help in that embarrassing, "Hi!  I know you, but I don't have a clue what your name is..." moment.  Not that it ever happens to me!

I also got to enjoy the wonderful food.  We had pasta with chicken and Alfredo sauce (or marinara with meatballs, but I LOVE Alfredo, so I went that direction), along with a wide assortment of salads and desserts.  Yummy!  But I think the best was the 4 hours of chatting with another adult with no kids.  Who knew how fun that can be!

Afterwards, I took Ryan into town and picked up a few things that we missed yesterday.  Somehow, I was able to hit 6 stores, get everything I needed, and get out of town in less than 1 1/2 hours.  I made it home in plenty of time to take a short nap and then get dinner together. 

And, somehow, my weekend is over already.  Next week is a short week for school, since they have Montana Teacher Conferences on Thursday and Friday, so we get two days off school!  Woo hoo!

October 13, 2012

Outside Temp: 52 F (it was in the 60s today, and quite windy... in town, the leaves were changing colors and it felt like fall...)

What I cooked today:
Scrambled Eggs: I made up eggs for breakfast, which I guess counts as cooking something.  We were gone most of the day, so I didn't make dinner...

Update:
I've decided that I love Saturdays. 

I got to sleep in, at least until 9am, which made me happy.  I think the kids woke up a little earlier, and I had to wake up enough to ask them to turn off their music, games noise, etc.  But, I stayed in bed, with my eyes closed, until at least 9am, which was so stinking awesome.

We had church today, with a very interesting homily about politics (in general) and how immature some of our politicians behave.  It begged the question of why we refer to our politicians as 'your honor' and give them respect as expected by their position, and then allow them to behave so inappropriately. 

After church, Patrick, Allen and I headed into town for some shopping.  I have to remember in the future that some places close down early on Saturday.  I missed the meat counter at Albertsons, and I missed the pharmacy at CVS.  But, we did make it to the library, where Allen found a few books on Socrates for his report due sometime next week (or maybe the week after, he's not really sure). 

We also hit a couple other stores, and spent way too much time (and money) in town.  But, I'm sure Katie will enjoy her new winter coat, and Allen really needed new basketball shoes, and that new shower head will make our shower much better...

I also picked up my Bountiful Baskets.  This week, I went for the 25 lbs of Green Apples, which I'm sure will be turned into at least 1 apple pie sometime this week.  I'm not sure exactly how I'm going to go through 25 lbs of apples, but I figure that my oldest will end up eating half of them... he LOVES apples!  We also got a pineapple, which I thought was just awesome. 

October 12, 2012

Outside Temp: 54 F (it was 31 this morning, with frost on the windows, and then 74 this afternoon!  I actually turned on the A/C in the car on the way home!)

What I cooked today:
Chili with Cornbread: I didn't want to make burgers, but I also didn't want to make the soup that was on my schedule.  So, I chose chili.  I haven't made chili in a long time and I think I've forgotten how to make it.  I just kind of tossed things into the pot... onions, garlic, beef, beans, tomatoes, seasonings.   I guess it turned out fine, since Patrick went for 3rds. 

Update:
Thank goodness that it's Friday!!  I have to laugh at myself, since there was a time (not too long ago) when Friday didn't mean much.  I didn't quite understand why people were so excited for Friday.  Especially as a 'stay at home mom', I still had to do everything on the weekend that I did Monday - Friday... I still had to deal with laundry, meals, laundry, cleaning up after meals, laundry, shopping, laundry, cleaning, and then there was a little more laundry.  Weekends didn't mean anything different.

But, now school is in full swing, which means I'm up and moving at 6:45 each morning.  I haven't been going back to bed, since I have plenty to keep me busy.  I substituted twice this week, although one of them was only a 1/2 day, which means I not only had to be up at 6:45, I also had to be dressed and ready to leave the house at the same time as the kids, 7:30. 

My husband doesn't really seem to understand the concept of sleep, especially since he doesn't get up with us in the morning, so he doesn't see a problem with staying up to watch a movie, or play a game.  And he really doesn't see the problem with coming to bed at 4am, and (albeit not intentionally) waking me up to tell me something he read, etc. 

I'm tired.  It's a good tired.  It's not a bored tired (I've been there before).  It's not a depressed tired (I've also been there before).  It's just a honest tired, because I need more sleep. 

And tomorrow is Saturday, which means I don't HAVE to get up at 6:45.   I really hope that I can convince my body of that! 

October 11, 2012

Outside Temp: 34 F (snow this morning, fog most of the day, clear this evening... hmmm, must be autumn!)

What I cooked today:
Pork Chops: I actually had burgers on my list for the day, but I wanted to use up the remaining pork that I had in the fridge.  It turned out great and it made me happy to use the meat without having it go bad! 

Update:

I took about 15 pictures of the mountains above, and none of them even came close to capturing how beautiful they were tonight.  It was just stunning.

We woke up this morning, with snow on the ground.  It wasn't much, and it didn't last, but it was a reminder that winter is just around the corner, and we need to start preparing!

 

 

So, Allen decided that he now wants to play basketball.  I can't say I'm really surprised.  He said his teammates have made it clear that they really, really need him.  And, I think he's getting better.  So, that means that I have 6 more weeks of driving back and forth and back and forth every day, to pick him up from practice.   But that's okay.  He really likes feeling needed... 

October 10, 2012

Outside Temp: 40 F (there is a chance of snow or rain tonight, but it was beautiful during the day... in the mid 60's.  )

What I cooked today:
Mexican Lasagna: Today is the 4th day in a row that I've stuck to my menu plan for the week, which is almost unheard of for me.  Perhaps I'm starting a new trend, which would be nice for me.  No more worries about 'what's for dinner', and only one day a week for burgers (which is scheduled for tomorrow).  Woo hoo!

Update:
Just a few thoughts on chickens.  Before we started this 'journey' with our chickens, we really had no idea what we were getting ourselves into.  And to be perfectly honest, we have totally abdicated our chicken responsibility to the Grandparents, especially Grandpa, who seems to like his new chicken hobby.

Katie, our resident 'chicken wisperer' still loves her chickens, and Sally (pictured below) is her favorite.  She has a few others that she gets along with, but I think Sally is the only one who will willingly let her just pick her up and pet her. 

This is Katie... holding Sally, which is her chicken... it's totally hers.  No question about it.

The Grandparents have some land, and the area that is near the house has about 20 acres on their side of the road (they roam about 5-8 acres around the house, but they are branching out every day).  With only 24 chickens, that means eventually they will have almost an acre per chicken, which is quite a lot of land. 

The chickens just roam around, pecking at the ground, looking for bugs or treats.  They have their chicken coop, which I will try to take pictures of tomorrow, with it's automatic door closer and nice custom made nesting boxes.  The guys are talking about insulating the coop for the winter, and maybe using heat tape to add some extra warmth. 

It's kind of fun to drive by the house, and see a bunch of chickens just roaming around the property.  I don't think I've ever imagined what free-range chickens look like, but here it is! 

October 9, 2012

Outside Temp: 37 F (it was in the 60's today!  I walked around in a short sleeved shirt, and it was beautiful... not too many of these days left...)

What I cooked today:
Walnut Chicken: While I was in town, I actually sat down and made a meal plan for the week.  So far, I've followed it (for the last 3 days at least!).  So, when I went to make my chicken, I actually had the ingredients to make it!  Woo hoo!  Who knew how easy it was to make dinner?

Update:
Allen got the wonderful opportunity to get tested for allergies today!  How fun it must have been, to have them stick about 40 little needles into your back! 

It turned out that he's allergic to practically everything, mostly grasses (including wheat), which wasn't much of a surprise.  We are going to have Connor tested next week, and when it turns out that he's also allergic to practically everything, we will have to bring them into Great Falls twice a week for a month, to get their allergy shots.  I can hopefully schedule it so that it coincides with their study hall period on Tuesdays and Thursdays.  Now, if only I had the time to get my shopping done at the same time...

We also had a blood drive at the school today.  The phlebotomist that took care of me did a great job, and I was done quickly (although my totally awesome neighbor was faster by about 40 seconds!).  I even talked Grandma AND Grandpa into donating as well!  I think the drive was a success and they had a lot of donations, which is always a good thing.

Allen had his first day of Basketball practice today.  Yes, the day after their football last game.  No time off for these boys!  He was a little disappointed in his performance, but his coach said he did fine.  He still hasn't decided if he wants to play, but I'm figuring that he'll say yes.  It's only 5 weeks and I think he'll do a lot better than he did last year! 

October 8, 2012

Outside Temp: 34 F (okay, it's time for me to really pull out my cold weather clothes.  My little hoodie was just not cutting it during the cold rainy game!)

What I cooked today:
Spaghetti Sauce: I knew that I wouldn't have time to cook after the game, so I made up a batch of spaghetti sauce before I went to class.  Easy dinner once we got home from a very cold game!

Update:
We won our last game of the season!  Woo hoo!  Our record is 6-1, so we beat everyone except Big Sandy, which apparently, no one ever beats.  I'm so proud of our team!  Allen had a great time on the football team this season, and he's really looking forward to playing again next year.

So, it's starting to get to the cold stage.  Not freezing, but chilly.  And today, it was rainy, which is that wet cold that gets into your bones and just makes you cold all over. 

The last game we had at home, it was hot and we ran out of water and soda.  We couldn't keep up with the demand for cold drinks.  Today, it was so cold, I think we only sold one or two waters, the whole game!!  But, we did go through 2-3 big canisters of coffee... hmm, there might be something to this!

October 7, 2012

Outside Temp: 37 F (it was 64 today!  I was walking around in a thin short sleeved shirt, with no jacket... I bet that tomorrow, I'll need snow boots!)

What I cooked today:
Pork chops: I picked up a 'pork loin' on sale this week, then I realized I have no idea what to do with it.  So I asked my resident cooking expert (Patrick's mom), and she said that yes, I can just slice it up and make boneless pork chops.  A little bit of Shake & Bake, and my family was so excited!  I only used up half of the loin, so I can do it again in a day or two!  Woo hoo!

Update:
So, about 1 1/2 years ago, while we were still in that other place, I learned about coupons.  I'm not psycho about them, but I do keep track of them and watch a couple blogs that let me know the best price for things. 

When I was first starting out, I realized that I never had to pay full price for toothpaste.  Sometimes, I could get it for free.  Just wait for the sale to match the coupon price, and voila, free toothpaste.  And, when you are first starting something new and exciting, you kind of go overboard. 

Within the first 2 months, I probably had 15 boxes of toothpaste.  At this point, I decided that even if the toothpaste was free, I wouldn't buy it.  The first few months, it was hard.  I mean, who can pass up free?  But, I realized when we were packing to move, that I had a box entirely devoted to free or almost free 'personal care' products.  Shampoo, conditioner, soap, body wash, razors, shave gel, and lots and lots of toothpaste. 

So, you can imagine my surprise when the kids let me know on Friday that we were out of toothpaste.  I said, grab a new box from the pile.  To which I was informed that there was no stash.  No more toothpaste.

I guess with 6 people regularly brushing their teeth, every day and every night, you actually use up toothpaste.  Not to mention that my kids are not exactly precise with their toothpaste usage.  More than once, I have had to clean up globs of toothpaste on the sink or the faucet or the mirror (don't ask).

So, then comes the moment I'd been dreading since we got here.  We are out of toothpaste, and I have to drive into town on a day I'm not scheduled to drive into town, just to get a $3 box of toothpaste.  I was able to get 2 extra days of toothpaste out of the 'almost' empty tube, but it was imperative that we got toothpaste this weekend. 

As always, I can come up with something to get while there.  I picked up Ryan's meds, got more milk and cheese, canned tomatoes were on sale, and, oh, those little 3M hooks so I can hang things without putting holes in the walls (it's still not our house, I don't want to damage the walls), so the trip wasn't a waste of gas money.

The worst part was that I didn't have the coupon to match the sale price on toothpaste.  I did get a $3 back on a $4 tube of Crest Complete, so that helped.  And the Aquafresh was on sale 2/$3, so $1.50 isn't bad.  But, now I have to add toothpaste back on my list of 'If it's on sale, buy it'.  That list is the reason I have 13 boxes of cereal, and a case of kidney beans, and about 14 little bottles of vinegar, and about 11 bottles of shampoo and conditioner.

But, on the bright side, I now know that my family uses up about 12 tubes of toothpaste in a year, or about 2 tube per person per year.  Allen is 14, Connor is 11, Katie is 10, Ryan is 8, which would come out to about 4 years for Allen, 7 for Connor, 8 for Katie and 10 for Ryan, which is 58 tubes plus 40 for Patrick and I, which is 98 tubes. 

If I collect 100 tubes of toothpaste, we will go through them all before Ryan is 18.   So, perhaps I can start buying toothpaste after all! 

October 6, 2012

Outside Temp: 37 F (it was 19 degrees this morning... we're already into the teens... amazing!)

What I cooked today:
Nothing: We had a great lunch at the grandparent's house, and I just didn't feel like making dinner... Does that make me bad?

Update:
HAPPY 40th BIRTHDAY to my wonderful husband, PATRICK!

We started the day with a family lunch at the grandparents, in which we invited our priest.  It's always nice to be able to spend some time outside of the church with our priest, getting to know him in an informal way. 

After that, we had church at 1pm, and then home to just veg out.  We watched TV, played video games, read books and munched on junk food.  I kept thinking that we had something special to do today, but perhaps that was just because it was Patrick's birthday.

Tomorrow, we might head into town for some shopping and maybe a movie. 

October 5, 2012

Outside Temp: 22F (yes, 22, like 13 degrees below 32, which is a little chilly.)

What I cooked today:
Pot Roast: I got a roast yesterday at the store, and actually decided to cook it!  I threw in some potatoes, onions and celery, and let it bake for about 1 1/2 hours.  It turned out great, and who doesn't love potatoes roasted that way?  Yumm...

Update:
I really like Friday's.  I'm not sure if that's because I don't have to drive back and forth to Geyser 3 times on weekends, but I'm sure that doesn't hurt! 

Today was Katie's last volleyball game, and since it was in Grass Range, and neither Patrick nor I could make it anyway, she decided not to go.  I'm sure there is a part of her that is glad she stuck with it for the entire season, but I'm sure there's a bigger part of her that is glad she's done.  She didn't really like it, probably because she's so little that she couldn't get the power behind her hits.  Perhaps she'll like it more in a few years.

It was also Allen's last day of Football practice.  He has his last game on Monday.  And it couldn't have ended at a better time.  It was probably in the low 40's on the field today, which means he was a little cold.  I'm sure if it was during a game, he might have the adrenaline to keep him warm, but today, he was freezing!  I might have to find some thermals or something to wear under his uniform on Monday, since it's still supposed to be cold on Monday.

Basketball practice starts on Tuesday, but Allen thinks he will probably not join this season.  I don't think he really enjoys basketball, which is kind of a sin around here, and I think he really misses having free time.  This season he had either a game or practice until 6 every day.  Which got him home as early as 6:30, and sometimes as late as 8ish.  Which only gave a few hours to do all his homework, eat dinner and get to bed.  He never complained, and sometimes he was up until 10 finishing his homework. 

So, when I asked if he wanted to play, his first response was, "No.  I want to have more time to work on my homework.  But, I will do Track in the spring."  Hmm, interesting.

October 4, 2012

Outside Temp: 35 F (it got as high as 44 today... 20% chance of more of the flurry white stuff tomorrow!)

What I cooked today:
Burgers and Mac & Cheese: We were kind of in a rush, but Allen has been asking for macs and cheese for the last few days.  It's a pretty easy thing to make, so I just paired it with some burgers and we had dinner on the table in less than 30 minutes (including defrost time for the meat!)!

Update:

 

Woo hoo! The first snow is always so beautiful!  I snapped this pic from the highway on my way back from town today.  I tried taking a picture from my car, as I was moving down the highway at 70MPH, but then decided that was a little risky and I really didn't want to crash my car as I tried to take a picture.  So, I pulled over into a 'Cell Phone Turnout', and clicked away.  Amazing how much better pictures look when you are standing still!

 



I finally made it into town today.  I haven't been in a while, and we were out of milk and bread (but not eggs!).  So, I hit all the usual haunts, and made it to Wal-mart, where I picked up 3 new space heaters... a tiny one for Patrick's desk, a small one for one of the kids rooms (or the bathroom, not sure yet), and a medium sized one for the main area where the desks are (or maybe the family room, where the TV is).  I have been warned that last year was an anomaly, and to expect a much colder winter this year.  I also stocked up on gloves and long sleeve thermal shirts for the boys.  I'm sure I'll be headed back there soon, but I hope we are a little better prepared than we were 2 days ago... when I couldn't find any gloves or boots or snow pants or hats. 

As soon as I got home, I got a call from the school, letting me know that Katie was sick.  Apparently, she had a migraine, and (like a silly girl) tried to tough it out rather than ask for medicine (which is at the school for this reason!).  So, I raced over to the school, grabbed her, raced back home... with just enough time to race back to school for my 8th period class. 

After school, Connor and I went home, while Allen went to practice.  But, we had our faith class tonight, so I drove back over to Stanford (a 30 minute drive) at 5 to get Allen out of practice early and then race back to Belt (a 45 minute drive, from Stanford) for our faith class. 

The faith class was great and both Connor and Allen came, along with the grandparents.  Our priest is very interested in what my boys have to say, so he invited them, even though it's an 'adult' faith class.  Connor was a little nervous, but listened.  Allen was a little less intimidated, and had no problem asking his questions in front of the class.  I think we all had a great time!

And, we made it back in time for me to whip up dinner, and send everyone to bed.  I think I drove about 5 hours today, which is irritating.  And that doesn't count the 30 minutes Patrick drove to get Ryan from school.  I'm really looking forward to the weekend, and my lack of driving!

October 3, 2012

Outside Temp: 32 F (SNOW!!  It snowed last night, and most of the day.  It stayed around 32, so it's melting once it hits the ground, but apparently, winter is on it's way!)

What I cooked today:
Potato Cheese Soup: Since it was so cold, I thought I'd try a new soup.  I really should have added the bacon.  It wasn't bad, but it was a little bland.  It tasted like mashed potatoes with cheese, which is awesome, but I tried to make it was a meal, with nothing else.  I should have cooked up some burgers.

Update:
SNOW!!

 

This picture was taken this morning, before the sun was up, which is why it was blue.  I left my camera in my purse, which I left at school, so I tried to use the tablet computer, which doesn't have a flash.  Oh well, you can still see the snow on the ground!



 

I admit, it was a little chilly last night.  Patrick went through and added extra blankets to everyone last night.  It was 32 this morning when we woke up, and it was still snowing. 

 

Through the day, it continued to snow on and off.  Not a lot, but some. The snow didn't stick to the roads, but it covered the grass areas and added that pretty white to everything.  The school turned on the furnace, which made some of the rooms hot enough to need to open a window!

 

We have 3 space heaters (currently), so we had to split them up according to need... Connor's room is the coldest, since it is not insulated correctly (it's actually more of an enclosed porch), so he gets both a space heater AND an electric mattress pad.  Ryan and Allen don't have electric mattress pads, so they both get space heaters.  This caused complaints from Patrick, since he won't have one next to his computer tonight!  (Both our bed and Katie's have electric mattress pads).  I told him that if there was a space heater when I go into town, I might pick up an extra one!

 

We have decided that it's not worth changing the snow tires off the van (which are still there from last winter), since now it's snow season again!  We didn't drive the van much over the summer, so it wasn't really a problem.  I'm not sure how long the snow will last, but I expect that it will go back to autumn weather for the next month or two, with scattered storms.  But, I'm no expert on Montana weather (yet), so it might be here for the next 6 months!  

 

October 2, 2012

Outside Temp: 46 F (and falling... they have claimed that we might get below freezing tonight, and maybe even some of that white stuff I'm not allowed to talk about... we'll see... )

What I cooked today:
BBQ Chicken with rice: I wanted something easy, that wasn't burgers.  I can't believe it, but I'm getting tired of burgers.  So, I seared some chicken and tossed it into a casserole dish with a bottle of BBQ sauce.  Super yummy, and the searing it beforehand helped to keep it from drying out or tasting boiled.  The rice was a great compliment.  I thought I might have made too much, but it all got eaten up!  I'll have to keep this around as my other 'stand by' dish!

Update:
I got to sub for the Business/PE teacher today.  I LOVE teaching business.  Although I usually have my own version of business than the textbook (and this one was no exception), I think we got through the assignment and I found ways to engage the students.  At least they pretended to be engaged, and sometimes, that's enough!

That also meant that I had PE, which I dread.  Not just because I'm out of shape and I'm old and totally un-coordinated.  But, I just hate PE.  I hated it when I was in school.  I was really lucky today, because the teacher had us stay inside, in case the wind was too much.  That meant that I didn't end up sunburned during my classes.

That doesn't mean that I didn't end up sunburned.  After school, we headed over to Stanford for Allen's game (which he won, again!  5 and 1!).  And, it was overcast(ish), so I didn't think much of the weather.  After all, it was 4pm, and how sunburned can you get after 4pm?  Apparently, you can!  My face is quite red... you'd think I'd learn!

October 1, 2012

Outside Temp: 71 F (It seems a little strange to have it so warm at night, but I'm sure it will cool off by the morning!)

What I cooked today:
Burgers and Potato Salad: I thought I'd attempt to re-create the potato salad I made this weekend.  Patrick and I went through my large bowl of potato salad by Sunday afternoon, so (to use up the rest of the hard boiled eggs) I made some more.  We had it with dinner, and still have plenty left for lunch tomorrow! 

Update:

My husband and father in law are so stinking awesome!

If you have been following the blog for a while, you know that we have problems with our electrical and our plumbing.  About a month after we got here, we noticed that one of the bathrooms backed up, bad enough to make it unusable.  Which means for the last 8-9 months, we have had our family of 6 with one bathroom.  Okay, tolerable.

Also, as soon as we moved in, the electrical in about 1/4 of the house went out, and we couldn't figure out how to fix it.  That area included my master bathroom and my dining area.  So, we've had electrical cords running from my bedroom into the bathroom with a lamp on top of the cabinet for the last year.  Since the lamp is up high, we usually would leave it on at night, in case the kids needed to use the restroom (since the switch didn't work).  We also have a lamp on my kitchen table, to use at night for dinner (since there was no light above the table).

So, today, my fabulous men decided to work on our house.  They went under the house, checked the plumbing line, removed the toilet to snake around, added shims to raise the pipe so it was level and voila, the bathroom now seems to be working! 

Then, just for kicks and grins, they looked into the electrical.  They found a wire that was cut in one of the outbuildings, and it was shorting out that breaker.  They did something and (again) voila, we now have lights! 

They have plans to fix some insulation issues with the skirt of the house, so that it might be a little less freezing during the winter.  But, right now I'm just so stinking happy to have my light switches work and my bathroom toilet flush!

Of course, the kids are so used to using our bathroom, they really don't want to use the normal one.  Katie's complaint is that there were bugs in the shower.  Well, since it hasn't been used in a year, I would expect bugs.  But, I've promised that we'll clean the shower before she has to use it.