Weekly Preview and Review

I decided it would be better for Emily to wait and take the ACT in December, with a lot more preparation. So, she is NOT doing that today.

Saw David a couple times this week - once at karate and once at his work. He is doing very well at work and loves working with customers. Can you believe it?

Emily loved the college night. Talking to the college representatives about their programs really helped her visualize what she might do. She is interested in photography and writing.

10/27 Sunday - Church
Monday - Work 4, Karate
Tuesday - Work 4
Wednesday - Work 4, Church
Thursday - Work 4, Writing Class, Karate, Trick or Treat, Bob off
Friday - Work 4, NaNoWriMo begins, Fall Sports Awards night
Saturday - Bob works

Weekly Preview and Review

Soccer is over, except that James' team has a parent vs. player scrimmage Tuesday night. We aren't sure if we will go to that or not.

Suzy and I have volunteered in the church nursery twice, but we have had no children come in either time. Hope we do soon!

10/20 Sunday - Church
Monday - Work 4, Karate
Tuesday - Work 4, Scrimmage?
Wednesday - Work 4, Church
Thursday - Work 4, Writing Class, Karate, College Fair (E)
Friday - Work 4, Co-op
Saturday - ACT (E)

Emily has a week focused on the future, with a college fair on Thursday and the ACT on Saturday. I expect that the ACT will be difficult for her and this will be a "practice" event for her rather than scores that will get her into college. She will take it again, maybe in December, maybe early next year. And again, if needed.

Weekly Preview and Review

James went away for the weekend for a Royal Rangers campout. Emily had TFC all day on Saturday. Suzy spent the night at a friend's house Saturday and had her last soccer game earlier in the day. Bob had lunch with David on Saturday. I went to dinner with friends and then watched Shakespeare on DVD. Got the kids all back (except David whom we miss!) by early afternoon on Sunday, then Bob and I went to the massage school for therapeutic massage. Nothing like it!

10/13 Sunday - Church, Massage (LB)
Monday - Work 4, Karate
Tuesday - Work 4, Soccer-Away (J)
Wednesday - Work 4, Church
Thursday - Work 4, Writing Class, Karate
Friday - Work 4
Saturday - TFC (E)

This is a fairly empty week for us- just the regular commitments and James' last soccer game.

Weekly Review and Preview

The highlight of last week was our field trip to GVSU Shakespeare Festival and ArtPrize. Wow! The play was really well-acted by most of the characters, which included a couple seasoned actors as well as as large number of college students. Much Ado About Nothing is humorous and entertaining and even our Shakespeare newbies enjoyed it. Afterwards the audience gathered for a box lunch. The actors always come in to mingle with the student attendees. What fun to discuss sword fight choreography and Shakespearean villains with these young people! Then we headed to ArtPrize with only a vague idea of where to go. We started at DeVos Hall and then walked to the B.O.B. We probably saw a couple hundred works of art, probably only 15% of the art on display throughout the city. But we were amazed!

Because of this field trip, I did not have writing class this week and we also missed karate that day.

10/6 Sunday - Church
Monday - Work 4, Karate
Tuesday - Work 4, Soccer (EJS)
Wednesday - Work 4, Church
Thursday - Work 4, Writing Class, Karate
Friday - Work 4, Co-op, Campout (J)
Saturday - Soccer - LAST DAY (ES), Campout (J), TFC (E)

Suzy and I volunteered in the church nursery today for the first time. No kids showed up. I think that's sort of normal, but hopefully more kids will be there next time. We will go in again in two weeks. Suzy really wants to work with kids. Since no one was there but us, we sorted all the toys and tossed out some broken things.

This week is the last week of soccer for the girls and James will be done next week. OH, I am SOO happy about that. Thirteen straight years of fall and spring soccer is wearing me down. Suzy is a soccer whiz, however, so I won't be taking a break anytime soon.

James is going to the fall Royal Rangers campout this weekend, and he invited a friend to go along. He LOVES the campouts. Emily has a TFC concert on Saturday which will take her away for most of the day.

Other than that, it's a week with nothing out of the ordinary - just the regular soccer, karate, writing class, co-op, etc.... No field trips, park days, extra meetings, or anything of that sort. At least not that I know of yet. I do hope to get together with friends one evening.

Weekly Preview and Review

So, somehow I skipped a week! I didn't even notice that until this morning. So, last week was BUSY and the week before not quite as much.

Lots of soccer for all three kids.
Writing classes began and we now have two sessions completed.
David is moved into his dorm and he now has a car and a job. He's almost like a real adult. LOL
I am working steadily 20-25 hours per week.
The house is a wreck most of the time and I just end up walking past anything that isn't on the regular chore rotation.
We got to spend Sunday with Mom and Dad. We helped empty out the den and then convert it to their new bedroom by moving some furniture. James and Suzy did some painting and then we relaxed for a while. What a lovely day it was too!

9/29 Sunday - Drive to GR to help Mom and Dad
Monday - Work 5, Karate, Soccer Game (J)
Tuesday - Work 5, Soccer (EJS)
Wednesday - Work 5, Church
Thursday - Field trip at GVSU, karate?
Friday - Work 5, Soccer Game (J), Soccer Bonfire (J)
Saturday - Soccer (EJS), 5K (L), Book Club (L), Teen Bonfire (JE)

I am heading up a field trip to Grand Valley State University to see Much Ado about Nothing. Can't wait! We hope to also see some ArtPrize exhibits afterward.

Otherwise we are settling in to life without David here, doing our normal lessons, soccer, karate, etc...

This upcoming weekend promises to be another very full and enjoyable one - but that has the disadvantage of NO DOWN TIME to speak of. Oh well. Maybe we will have teacher inservice day next Monday the 7th.

Weekly Preview and Review

The Color Run was a blast! I highly recommend it, even if you don't "run". Register early for a good deal. Our tickets were $20 and the final price was $50. We got splattered with color, ran and walked and even danced. What fun!

Emily's first Teens for Christ concert was great. A spaghetti fundraiser dinner preceded it. Bob, James, Suzy, and I all went.

David is test-driving a used Saturn today. We shall see if it works out for him.

Soccer is well underway. Life gets way too busy when it's on, but the benefits outweigh the disadvantages.

9/8 Sunday - Church, Outing with Friends
Monday - Work 5, Karate, Soccer Game (J-away)
Tuesday - Work 5, Soccer (ES)
Wednesday - Work 5, Church
Thursday - Work 1, Karate, Writing Classes Begin, Graduation Meeting
Friday - Work 4, Soccer Game (J-away), Park Day
Saturday - Soccer (EJS)

Writing classes begin this week.

Weekly Preview and Review

Somehow posting last week just completely slipped my mind! So, what have the Wagner been doing for 2 weeks?

That last week of summer slid by way too fast. We had hoped to get to Lake Huron one last time, but the weather didn't cooperate. We enjoyed a week with few places to go.

James has been having soccer practice all through August and this past week were his first two games. He, as an 8th grader on a varsity team, did not get much playing time. I hope that increases, but his team is very large. Most of his games are on Monday and Friday evenings with optional practices on Saturday afternoons.

Suzy and Emily both started soccer practices last week. They are playing this year for a "micro" recreational league which means small teams and an "everyone plays" philosophy. I had actually wanted Suzy to play for a more competitive all-girls team this year, but that didn't work out. Since Emily wasn't planning to play soccer in the fall (varsity girls play in the spring), this was an opportunity for her to gain more skill. Their games are all on Tuesday evenings and Saturday mornings. No AYSO for us this year - the first time in 12 years or so!

We were promoted to a new belt level at karate last week - Red 1Gold. We are on track to test for black belt in February 2015, if we keep on training.

The kids are going back to the same church on Wednesday nights, though we strongly considered the possibility of doing Wednesdays at the same church where we attend on Sundays. James wanted to finish out one more year at Royal Rangers so that's our plan - one more year at Faith Tabernacle.

9/8 Sunday - Church
Monday - Work 4, Karate, Soccer Game (J)
Tuesday - Work 4, Soccer (ES)
Wednesday - Work 4, Church
Thursday - Work 4, Karate
Friday - Work 4, Soccer Game & Pix (J), Co-op
Saturday - Color Run (LS), Concert (E), Benefit Dinner

This week Suzy and I (and possibly Emily) are running in a 5K Color Run with some friends. We wear white and everyone shoots colored powder at us while we run (or walk).

David got a new job at Office Depot and he will be training this week. He is a "customer service specialist" in name and will be known there as "the tech guy" according to my friend who also works there. He is overlapping his last two weeks at Kroger. Of course, THIS week is the first time he has gotten anywhere near his promised 28 hours on the schedule at Kroger. He gave his notice there on Friday. He will move in at college on the 25th. David and I are still sharing a car, but it is now a priority for him to purchase one in the next couple weeks.

Co-op starts this week and my writing classes will start next week. EXCITING!

Weekly Preview and Review

Cousin Camp was a blast! This was also our Mellon "family picnic" but it looked much different than in previous years. Oh well. The family is changing too. David was sadly unable to join Cousin Camp this year as he had to work Sat and Sun. He also worked Wednesday and that was all.

VBS was nice. I was in charge of crafts. Since I only had each group for about 10 minutes, we did easy crafts. Emily and Suzy helped me. By the end of the week, it was a struggle to go out again at night.

We went to karate on Monday, but not Thursday. I wanted to take a couple weeks off karate so my body can rest and my mind too. No class on Monday and we will skip again on Thursday. Then Monday is Labor Day, so we won't go again until September 5th, or maybe even Monday the 9th.

8/25 Sunday - Cousin Camp, Errands at Mall
Monday - Work 4, Soccer Practice (J)
Tuesday - Work 4, Co-op orientation
Wednesday - Work 4
Thursday - Work 4
Friday - Work 4, Soccer Practice (J),
Saturday - Soccer Practice (J)?, Homeschool Picnic?

This is a nice empty week for our last week of summer. Hopefully we can make time to get together with friends, go swimming once or twice and do a few other things that are summery. I also plan to get my first month of lessons planned out as well as work my regular hours.

Suzy and Emily will start soccer next week.

Weekly Preview and Review

Karate Test was the focus of this week - we went to three classes during the week to be sure we were well-prepared. Saturday morning at 11 AM found us at the PKSA school in Davison for the test. We had never been to this school before, but it is where our karate instructors trained. Four or five schools combined for this test so we tested with a large group of students in our level and one other level. We should be Red 1 Gold very soon!

James had a wonderful time on his Royal Rangers campout. He just loves going on those trips.

Our week was low-key otherwise, and we were able to fit in some extra projects. The weather was GORGEOUS most of the week. Bob is working on redoing our stairs to the second level; they started to disintegrate and that was dangerous. I sorted a bunch of books and put some things online for sale. We did some cleanup in the yard. Probably some other things I can't think of.

8/18 Sunday - Church, Sunday Drive
Monday - Work 4, Karate, Soccer Practice (J), VBS
Tuesday - Work 4, VBS, Ortho (D)
Wednesday - Work 4, VBS
Thursday - Work 4, Karate, VBS
Friday - Work 4, Soccer Practice (J), VBS
Saturday - Cousin Camp/"Family Picnic"

David has an orthodontist appointment this week and a placement test at college. He works today (Sunday), Friday night and Saturday night. Glad he is getting some hours, but honestly! It's nowhere near 28 hours and it is all weekends.

I will be doing crafts at our church's VBS this week.

Today, Suzy and James and I went for a ride. Such lovely amazing weather - I didn't want to just sit in the house. David had to work and Emily and Bob declined to join us. We drove east with no real destination in mind. Drove til we got to Lake St. Clair. Suzy had her bathing suit, so she swam for a bit at a nice beach we found and James and I walked up the pier. Then we drove up the coast a ways and just looked at things. We found a delish pizza place and had huge slices of pizza and then drove home. A nice day. We saw many odd things!

Weekly Review and Preview

James left Wednesday night for his Royal Rangers Pow-Wow campout in Gaylord. I will pick him up later today. The weather seemed perfect, so I hope they had a lovely time!

Suzy spent two nights at a friend's house this week and had another friend overnight here. She and her friend slept in the tent in the backyard. Busy week for her!

David worked only 12 hours on Friday and Saturday. When he went in to see his schedule for next week, he had NO HOURS AT ALL. This is not good. His supervisor said they are waiting for all the college kids to go back and then everyone will get more hours. Well.... hmmm... he's a college kid too! He needs some hours so he can buy a car!

Emily had a plain ole' week. As she mentioned on facebook, she was bored. LOL

The girls and I did go to the beach a couple hours on Friday. We picked up Suzy's friend (who spent the night) and took her along. 

I was able to pick up 5 extra hours this week and hope I can do the same this week, so my paycheck will be a little bigger. Bob gets 3 paydays this month! YAY!

I cleaned out the school cabinets this past week and culled a box of stuff to get rid of and organized what we will use this year. I don't need to purchase anything except some notebooks, pencils, markers, and such. At least not right now. 

I also cleaned out two bookcases and have a large box of books to get rid of!

I am taking advantage of these last few weeks of summer to have some fun times with friends, since once the school year starts, it is a blur of activity. On Thursday some friends and I went to dinner and then saw The Wolverine which I enjoyed until David poked holes in the plot for me. Saturday night we rented Breaking Dawn Part 2 which I had not bothered to see til now and watched it with a cynical eye. (Breaking Dawn was my least favorite Twilight book.) We also watched Mud with Matthew McConaughey.

8/11 Sunday - Church, Pick up James
Monday - Work 5, Karate, Soccer Practice (J)
Tuesday - Work 5, Bob dentist
Wednesday - Work 5
Thursday - Work 5, Karate
Friday - Work 5, Soccer Practice (J)
Saturday - Karate Testing, Soccer Practice (J)

A nice calm week coming up! One more chance to get lesson planning and house cleaning done!

Our karate test is this Saturday so we will be doing some extra practice this week.

Today I signed up to be the craft leader at Vacation Bible School which is the week of August 18. Suzy and Emily will be my helpers.

James is on the varsity soccer team that David played on all through high school. They practice all through August 3 times a week and their games begin right after Labor Day.

Weekly Preview and Review

Last week, we were at homeschool camp from Sunday to Wednesday night. The weather was really only good on Tuesday, but Wednesday was really rainy. We had planned to pack up Wednesday night (instead of Thursday morning) and head home early anyway because we needed to borrow a van to get the camper home, but the rain made us glad we were leaving. We relaxed around the fire all week and the kids played with their friends. Bob and David went home every night, though, because of work. David did get to spend one night at camp since he had the following day off work.

The week itself was fun. I put some pictures up on facebook. We have a lot of scheduled (optional) activities but also lots of downtime for sitting around the fire or just hanging out.

He has only been getting 12 hours scheduled at work instead of the 28 he was hired to work. I hope they change that, because he will have a hard time saving up enough money this way.

We are all sharing one car right now, though, so at least his schedule has been easy to manage in that sense. The van seems beyond the scope of Bob's knowledge, but he has one more thing to try and we are praying that it works.

Thursday we had karate, although all 5 of us were over-tired from camp week.
Friday - hmmm... I dropped Bob off at work. Later, some of us went to some garage sales and then picked up Bob from work. James had soccer practice.
Saturday, James and David went to see a movie with a friend and I went to Shakespeare in the Park. The girls stayed home with their dad and had s'mores around the fire.

I worked only 15 hours this week, so it was sure nice to not have to worry about my work hours while at camp. The previous week, however, I worked 25 in preparation for taking some time off this past week.

8/4 Sunday - Church
Monday - Work 5, Karate, Soccer Practice (J)
Tuesday - Work 5
Wednesday - Work 5, Beach?
Thursday - Work 5, Karate, Campout (J)
Friday - Work 5, Campout (J), Beach?
Saturday - Campout (J)

This week is the beginning of my planning for fall and getting the house back in order. It's a WRECK! Some lesson planning and getting things scheduled will be the main order of business.

We have two beach day opportunities this week - one at Lake Huron and one at our regular lake. If the weather isn't HOT though, we probably will not go to Lake Huron. And whether or not we go on Friday we depend on how the rest of our week has gone.

James is going to Pow Wow with the Royal Rangers. He loves that! He will miss a couple soccer practices while he is gone.

Weekly Review and Preview

Too busy to even post evidently! Sorry about that. I don't think anyone except my mom reads this anyway. LOL

7/14 Sunday - Church, Emily Drive
Monday - Work 5, Karate, Soccer Camp (EJ)
Tuesday - Work 5, Soccer Camp (EJ)
Wednesday - Work 5,
Thursday - Work 2 Karate, Soccer Camp (EJ), Book Club Anniversary Getaway Weekend in PA (L)
 Friday - Soccer Camp (EJ), Getaway (L)
Saturday - Getaway (L)

David has been hired at Kroger to work 28 hours per week. He starts his schedule this week.

7/21 Sunday - Church, Drive back from PA (L)
Monday - Work 4, Karate, Teens for Christ Camp (E), Kroger (D)
Tuesday - Work 5, Teen Swim Party, Ortho (D), TFC Camp (E)
Wednesday - Work 5, TFC Camp (E), Kroger (D)
Thursday - Work 5, Karate, TFC Camp (E), Kroger (D)
 Friday - Work 5, Beach Day, TFC Camp (E)
Saturday - Work 1, Maker Faire (DJ) TFC Camp (E), Kroger (D)

Next week is Homeschool Camp Week - the highlight of our summer for 9 years now.

Weekly Preview and Review

Oops forgot to publish.....

6/30 Sunday - Church, Mission Trip (EJ)
Monday - Work 5, Karate, Swim Lessons (S), Mission Trip (EJ)
Tuesday - Work 4, Swim (S), Mission Trip (EJ)
Wednesday - Work 5, Swim (S), Mission Trip (EJ)
Thursday - Work 3, Independence Day, Pick up E&J
 Friday - Work 4,
Saturday - Work 4

7/7 Sunday - Church, Emily Drive
Monday - Work 5, Karate, Emily Drive
Tuesday - Work 5, Teen Swim Party, Ortho (D)
Wednesday - Work 5,
Thursday - Work 5, Karate
 Friday - Work 4, Beach Day, Bob dentist
Saturday - Work 4

Weekly Review and Preview

Suzy came down with strep throat, so her party has to be rescheduled. We are hoping to have it Friday night THIS week.

Emily is doing well with drivers ed and is about halfway through.

David still needs a job. But he has a girlfriend!

James is just hanging out!

I am trying to write and exercise, which is keeping me busier. Plus I have watched 46 episodes of White Collar in the last three weeks or so. LOL Obsessed much????

6/23 Sunday - Church
Monday - Work 4, Karate, Drivers Ed (E), Swim Lessons (S)
Tuesday - Work 4, Dr Ed (E), Swim (S)
Wednesday - Work 4, Dr Ed (E), Swim (S)
Thursday - Work 4, Karate, Dr Ed (E), Swim (S)
 Friday - Work 4, Swim (S), Beach Day, Suzy Party?
Saturday - Suzy Party?

Suzy decided she wanted to do swim lessons this summer, so that starts Monday and will run til July 3.

We have a beach day coming up this week and Emily will finish drivers ed. Otherwise, there isn't much else going on except karate.

Weekly Preview and Review

Emily had a lovely time at her team party. James and Suzy got their church awards. In fact, James earned the bronze medal in Royal Rangers. We all earned our 1st stripe on our red belts, which moves us to 2nd gup. (I know that probably means nothing to most of you.) Suzy wasn't at belt promotion because she was at Missionettes Camp Thursday to Saturday. David had no cavities. Suzy had two (or three?) cavities filled.

On Saturday, we went to Bob's sister's son's open house. After that I went out with friends to see Man of Steel and then we went for frozen yogurt to have an in-depth chat about an issue one friend is having.

6/16 Sunday - Church, College Reunion Potluck
Monday - Work 4, Karate, Emily Drivers Ed
Tuesday - Work 4, Emily Drivers Ed
Wednesday - Work 4, Emily Drivers Ed, Book Sale
Thursday - Work 4, Karate, Emily Drivers Ed,
Friday - Work 4, Emily Drivers Ed, Suzy Party
Saturday - Suzy Party

Today we met up with some friends from college to have an informal "reunion" at our pastor's house. They went to Spring Arbor also. What a nice relaxing afternoon just chatting and hanging out together.

Afterwards we went for frozen yogurt (yes, again) to treat Bob for Father's Day. He had never been to the froyo place in Lapeer. (It's owned by a family from our church.)

Emily has drivers ed every morning from 8-10 am and she will drive at least twice this week with the instructor.

Suzy finally has her birthday party this weekend. There was ABSOLUTELY no way we could squish that into May. (See my last post for why not.) So, we have been waiting for a free Friday night with good weather and we hope that comes this Friday since she wants to have a sleepover.

I am hoping to sell some curriculum and books at a tailgate sale my homeschool group is having this week.

Weekly Preview and Review

Somehow I missed blogging last week here. Sorry!

This past couple of weeks few days (since June 2, I guess, lol) have been rather relaxed. A bit of decompressing from our crazy-busy May which included the following:

• Two birthdays - Bob and Suzy
• The end of the 2012-13 school year (a big deal for a homeschooling family)
• Mother's Day 
• A spring banquet for Emily
• A day at the opera with David
• Our quarterly karate test (lots of stress and practice)
•  Our first visit to Motor City Comic Con - hotel stay #1 
• Soccer, soccer, and more soccer (3 kids playing - 2 on travel teams) 
• A soccer tournament out of town - hotel stay #2 
• An all-day planning meeting for our homeschool group 
• Emily exhibited a photograph in an art show and we went to the reception
• The three oldest kids worked several days at a local vineyard 
• Taught an all-day essay writing seminar 
• Worked my regular 20 hours per week every week 
• David's high school graduation (practice, commencement and tons of preparation)

Whew! I am exhausted all over again! (Yeah, I know I posted that at Mirkwood too. -smile-)

Emily's team had a family scrimmage on Monday night; James and David joined in. There will be drop-in soccer throughout June and July and I hope the kids will want to play. I know they all like just playing soccer all out. Her awards night was Thursday night and she got her 2nd year varsity pin.

Co-op registration was Tuesday all day. This, for me, is the culmination of months of work - choosing classes and matching up teachers, getting the schedule all set and finally getting to see what people choose and how it all works out. Seeing the families we haven't seen in a few weeks is fun as well. 

James went to Cedar Point with friends on Friday; it was his first time there and he had a BLAST. He can't wait to go back!

David is not having an open house which is a huge relief for me. I believe we were invited to six open houses in June alone. Three were this weekend and I bailed on all of them.

6/9 Sunday - Church
Monday - Work 4, Karate
Tuesday - Work 4, Emily Team Party
Wednesday - Work 4, Church Awards Night, Emily Drivers Ed, Dentist (S,D), Gymnastics???
Thursday - Work 4, Karate Belt Promotion, Emily Drivers Ed, Suzy Missionettes Camp
Friday - Work 4, Emily Drivers Ed, David College Orientation, Park Day, Suzy Missionettes Camp
Saturday - Suzy Missionettes Camp

Now I feel like we can dig into summer. I plan to have the kids do some "homework" over the summer. They will each work on just one subject plus they will have some silent reading time and I may give them some other structure if they seem to need it. Suzy and James will practice Sitting Still Training.

Emily will have drivers ed in the next couple weeks. We will have park days and beach days with our homeschool group. I will try to get back into an exercise schedule.

This Wednesday will mark the end of the kids' involvement with their Wednesday night church. At least that's my plan. We need to fully engage with our new church and since their youth group meets on Wednesday nights, we will go there. David may continue to attend the other church once he heads off to college, or even through the summer, but I'll leave that up to him. While he lives home though, he will attend with us on Sundays.

David will have orientation for the college dorm on Friday so I imagine after that date, we will have a lot more information on what will happen with him. He needs to find a job right away! Please pray the right one comes along.

Suzy is attending Missionettes Camp this weekend. She is glad because her best friend is also going.

Emily begins Drivers Ed on Wednesday which meets every weekday morning from 8-10AM for two weeks. I know there will be driving along with that too.

Now that I am not teaching, I plan to get some writing done and hopefully get a couple of Kindle books online very soon.

So, here comes summer!

Weekly Review and Preview

So, we passed our karate tests - YAY! Go us! And the rest of the week was a blur of catching up and being way too relaxed about a lot of things - bedtimes, getting up, work, lessons. David spent a couple days at a friend's house, the kids had dentist appointments, James and Emily had soccer games.

Bob's birthday was Saturday. He spent some of it relaxing at home and some of it at his mom's house before we had our family celebration at night. His coworkers gave him a card they all signed and some food items, including a pie homemade by one lady. Delish!

5/26 Sunday - Church
Monday - Memorial Day
Tuesday - Work 5, Lessons, David Ortho, Leadership Meeting (L)
Wednesday - Work 5, Lessons, Teach Essay Seminar (L), Church
Thursday - Work 5, Karate, Lessons, Practice (J)
Friday - Work 5, Tournament (E)
Saturday - Tournament (E), Bob Dentist, Game (J)

This week I have a leadership meeting for the homeschool group and a five hour essay seminar to teach. Emily, Suzy, and I are going to Emily's tournament Friday and Saturday in Lansing.

James has his last game on Saturday, except for the tournament in June. Emily's last game was Friday other than the tournament this weekend.

Bob has to work on Memorial Day. David is going to a friend's BBQ. Not sure what the rest of us are doing.

Weekly Review and Preview

The trip to Comic Con was just about everything I hoped (and worried) it would be. David was a huge hit in his costume and he was just THRILLED at the entire experience. Will post more on Cornerstone soon.

David's commencement was wonderful, though I was sad that no family could be there to celebrate with us. The ceremony was meaningful and very special. I enjoyed seeing friends that we've known for years and the kids that David has grown up with.

Suzy turned 11 on Sunday and our day was spent at Comic Con - NOT her choice, but she made the best of it and looked so ADORABLE as Hermione from Harry Potter. We went to Cici's Pizza on the way home - that WAS her choice.

I worked 5 hours Sun-Wed so I could have Thursday and Friday off. Good thing I did since Thursday was a crazy full day and then on Friday I could just relax and enjoy the trip.

5/19 Sunday - Suzy's Birthday, Comic Con
Monday - Work 4, Short Lessons, Karate TEST, Soccer (E,J - AWAY games)
Tuesday - Work 4, Lessons - STAY HOME
Wednesday - Work 4, Lessons, Dentist, Church
Thursday - Work 4,  Karate, Lessons
Friday - Work 4, Emily Home Game
Saturday - Bob's Birthday, Attend an Open House

Once I get through Monday, the rest of the week should be a no-brainer! LOL

Weekly Preview

5/12 Sunday - Church, Mother's Day, Work 5, Kids work 5
Monday - Work 5, Lessons, Karate, Soccer (E,J,S - HOME games)
Tuesday - Work 5, Lessons, Commencement Rehearsal
Wednesday - Work 5, Lessons, Church
Thursday - Karate, David's Graduation Ceremony!!!
Friday - Motor City Comic Con
Saturday - Motor City Comic Con

Weekly Review and Preview

5/5 Sunday - Church
Monday - Work 4, Lessons, Karate, Soccer (E,J - AWAY games)
Tuesday - Work 4, Lessons, Suzy Dr,  Soccer (S-game, J-practice)
Wednesday - Work 4, Lessons, Church
Thursday - Work 4, Karate, Soccer (S-game)
Friday - Work 3, Opera, Park Day, Soccer (E-"HOME" game)
Saturday - Soccer (S-doubleheader, J-AWAY game, E-practice), David work (and maybe E & J half a day),  Book Club

Weekly Preview and Review

Bob and David had a great time traveling to Saint Louis, MO for the FIRST Robotics World Championships. David is not on a robotics team this year, but he still feels a strong affinity for the Oxford team he competed with last year. When he heard they were going to Worlds, he really wanted to go. I was able to get them a room in the same hotel as that team so he spent a lot of time with the group. Better than I could have imagined, I guess. They took turns driving.

I have managed a 3 mile distance a couple times running, so I should be good at the 5K on Saturday. I will be really pleased if I finish under 40 minutes, but that may be too ambitious.

All three kids have a soccer game on Tuesday night. Thankfully James has a home game at the same field as Suzy, so I can go to those. Emily will need a ride to her away game.

Emily is exhibiting a photograph in an art show this weekend. Her art teacher chose the photograph and invited her to participate.

4/28 Sunday - Kids Work
Monday - Work 4, Lessons, Karate, Soccer (E,J - practice)
Tuesday - Work 4, Lessons, Soccer (S,J - home game, E-AWAY game)
Wednesday - Work 4, Lessons, Gym?, Church
Thursday - Work 4, Karate, Soccer (S-practice)
Friday - Work 3, Lessons, Homeschool Banquet (E)
Saturday - 5K (L), Soccer (S -home game, E-pictures), Art Reception (E)

Weekly Review and Preview

So, once again, most of the soccer was canceled due to poor weather - rain, rain, rain, soggy fields. Emily did have one game which she played in for about 6 minutes. Suzy had one practice which was moved indoors and one outside. James had one practice. Suzy has a game tomorrow morning, but I imagine it will be canceled. James has a game scheduled Saturday afternoon too, but he will be working at the vineyard instead.

David had commencement pictures taken on Thursday night. Cap and gown over a dark suit. :-)

Emily went to the oral surgeon for a final consultation and to schedule her surgery. It will be after soccer season at the beginning of June and she will have 6 teeth removed.

Taught my LAST writing classes of the spring on Thursday. Now just to grade the last stacks of papers and I can relax. Yeah, I know. lol

4/21 Sunday - Kids Work, Church
Monday - Work 4, Lessons, Karate, Soccer (J-AWAY game)
Tuesday - Work 4, Lessons, Soccer (S,J-practice, E-AWAY game)
 Wednesday - Work 5, Lessons, Church
Thursday - Work 4, Karate, Soccer (S-practice), Road Trip (D,B)
Friday - Work 3, Lessons, Park Day, Soccer (E-Home game), Road Trip (D,B)
Saturday - Speak at Convention (L) Soccer (S,J-home games, E-practice), Road Trip (D,B)

As I sit here Friday afternoon and write, the wind is howling outside and my yard is flooded. Let us hope that the weather improves next week. Showers are in the forecast Tuesday and Wednesday, however, so my expectations are low. With 5 soccer games (2 away) and 4 practices scheduled for the upcoming week, it sure would be nice to have dry fields and sunshine!

On Thursday morning, David and Bob plan to head out to Saint Louis, Missouri, to see part of the FIRST Robotics National Championships. David is not on the robotics team this year, though he really does wish it would have worked out for him to participate. He still feels an affinity for his team and they made it to Nationals this year! So, he is going to go cheer them on and be part of the whole experience. Taking the trip together will, I hope, be a memorable father-son bonding experience for them.

Next Saturday, I will be giving two seminars on writing at a local homeschool conference - one is on ACT essays and the other is how to evaluate your child's writing. I made those plans before Bob and David made THEIR plans to go out of town, so I will be relying on the kindness of friends to get my kids to their soccer events on Saturday.

Going to be reading Bleak House coming up here soon for book club. That is nearly 1000 pages of Dickens. I like Dickens, but it is a bit overwhelming at this point in my life since there is so much going on before the end of May.

Weekly Review and Preview

Emily had a GREAT birthday party at the local bowling alley. That's the kind of party I love to have - not at my house, I do nothing except bring the cake (and pay), the kids are active doing something fun, kids of all ages can enjoy it. She invited girls from age 12 to age 18 and they all had a blast. Even her brothers and little sister came and it was delightful.

Most of the soccer events last week were canceled due to rain and wet fields. Hopefully this coming week will be drier. Emily's game Tuesday was called just into the second half due to thunder and lightning. So it was a 0-0 tie, but we will rematch that team in May.

Now that David has his license, he has been taking the kids places, such as Wednesday night church. That is a nice break for me. He drove everyone around for me while I was gone to Cincinnati and I heard him tell someone he has a new appreciation for all the driving *I* do. LOL

David went to the orthodontist this week and the doctor gave him his first band. David says he can feel his teeth moving.

On Saturday, David and James worked at a local vineyard trimming vines. They will work today as well, along with Emily, and next weekend too. This means James will miss a soccer game and Emily a soccer practice, but I think it's worth it.

Emily went to Spring Arbor University on Saturday with some youth from church but I haven't had a chance to find out from her what that was like. Seemed like she had fun and she said she made some friends.

Found out our next karate test is the same night as David's graduation. That's bad timing! We will retest on Monday instead, after a full weekend at Motor City Comic Con. Yikes!

David and I had a nice day out at the Detroit Opera House on Friday, where we saw a dress rehearsal performance of Beethoven's Fidelio. Yes, he likes opera. We grabbed some Taco Bell afterward and went to a thrift store and a comic book store. We have tickets to one more opera in May - Aida.

4/14 Sunday - Kids Work, Lisa read papers
Monday - Work 4, Lessons, Karate, Soccer (J-practice, E-AWAY game)
Tuesday - Work 5, Lessons, Soccer (S-practice), Oral Surgeon (E)
 Wednesday - Work 4, Lessons, Church, Gym, Work on Yearbook
Thursday - Work 3, Writing Class, Karate, Soccer (J-practice, S-GAME), Commencement Pix (D)
Friday - Lessons, Soccer (E-Home game), Work 4
Saturday -Work Day (D,E,J), Soccer (S-game)

My LAST WRITING CLASSES are this week. I love teaching them, but it maxes out my schedule, so I am glad to see them come to an end. I planned them purposely to be done when soccer began (but I didn't realize Emily's soccer would begin so early.) I would like to do a basic essay class sometime during the late spring or summer, but someone will have to approach me about it. I don't think I have the momentum right now to get it going. I have a stack of papers to read and assess within the next two weeks.

David's commencement photos will be taken on Thursday, rescheduled from a couple weeks ago when they were canceled due to a family emergency with the coordinator/photographer.

Weekly Preview and Review

I spent 3 days in Cincinnati at a homeschool conference - 3 days absolutely chock-full of seminars, shopping, and fellowship!  David held down the fort here at home, earning a new appreciation for Mom's Taxi Service, which he took over. Suzy spent three days at a friend's house. The kids were all on Spring Break. There was soccer. I don't remember anything else. LOL

4/7 Sunday - Church, Emily's Party
Monday - Work 4, Lessons, Karate, Bob Dr., Orthodontist (D), Soccer (J)
Tuesday - Work 5, Lessons, Soccer GAME (E)
 Wednesday - Work 5, Lessons, Church
Thursday - Work 3, Writing Class, Karate, Soccer (J,S)
Friday - Opera (D), Soccer (E), Work 3, Lessons, James Sleepover
Saturday - Youth Outing (E), Work Day (D,J), Book Club

Weekly Review and Preview

3/31 Sunday - Church, Easter, Work 5
Monday - Work 5, Karate, Bob Dr., Commencement Pictures (D), Soccer (J)
Tuesday - Work 5
 Wednesday - Work 5, Eye Dr (D), Gymnastics, Church
Thursday - Convention (L), Karate, Soccer (E,J)
Friday - Convention (L), Soccer (E)
Saturday - Convention (L), Soccer (E)

Emily's soccer practices continue and James begins practice this week. Suzy will start practicing next week and Emily's first game is set for next Tuesday. The forecast is rain and 53 for that day - lovely.

David has commencement pictures Monday night - must press the wrinkles out of that gown. He got his contacts last week and will be going Wednesday for his recheck and to order his supplies.

Thursday I will be heading off to Cincinnati to attend the Midwest Homeschool Convention. Three days of learning, shopping, and fun! I am working 5 hours Sunday - Wednesday in order to have Thursday and Friday off work.

Weekly Preview and Review 3/24

Scrapbooking all day Saturday was a nice break from a long crazy couple of weeks. I was exhausted though. Since I have moved to digital scrapbooking, it's a lot easier to pack up for a scrapping outing! LOL I just need my computer. I did NOT complete all of 2011, but I was able to get the project well underway.

Our end-of-the-year program was pleasant. David was one of the seniors honored and his computer careers class created a video that he filmed and edited. It should be on youtube soon. Suzy went on stage for her Upcycling class; they created some music with found objects. Neither James nor Emily performed but they both had projects on display in the gym. James's duct tape creations and Emily and Suzy had their digital photography displays.

Emily's orthodontist decided he didn't need to see her in order to refer to her to the oral surgeon, so her appointment Tuesday was canceled. Now we just need to find a time to schedule the surgery - just in time for soccer season. Such bad timing!

3/24 Sunday - Church,
Monday - Work 5, Lessons, Soccer (E), Bob Dr.
Tuesday - Work 5, Lessons,
Wednesday - Work 5, Lessons, Gymnastics?, Church
Thursday - Work 5, Karate, Soccer (E)
Friday - Work, Good Friday Service, Bob Off
Saturday -

This week should be calmer. Co-op is over now. The schedule for next year is done. Since it is Easter, some regular things are canceled. We don't have karate on Monday. The following week should be calmer too since we are having Spring Break that week.

Bob has Friday off. He will go Monday for his first set of steroid shots for his back pain.

Emily has two soccer practices this week. James will begin soccer practice next week.

Weekly Review and Preview 3/15

Book club was a pleasant end to a hectic week. I felt extremely distracted all week and kept losing details. Frustrating! I can't even remember now all what we did, but we made it through! LOL

3/17 Sunday - Church, Work Meeting (B)
Monday - Work 5, Lessons, Karate, Soccer (E)
Tuesday - Work 5, Lessons, Ortho (E)
Wednesday - Work 5, Lessons, Gymnastics, Church
Thursday - Work 5, Writing Class, Karate
Friday - Work, Co-op, End of the Year Program
Saturday - Soccer Practice (E), All Day Scrap (L)

Bob had to go into work today (Sunday) for an hour meeting. Stoopid.

This week won't really be any less hectic - Emily has orthodontist and soccer, gymnastics, our last co-op and the end-of-the-year program. Saturday I am going to an all-day scrapbooking event - the first time I will be gone all day doing digital scrapping. Looking forward to that; hopefully I can scrap all of 2011.

Weekly Preview and Review

My laptop is still not working. :-( The graphics card has apparently died and since it is integrated with the motherboard, that means a new motherboard. We ordered one, but due to a miscommunication between David and I, it was the incorrect model. The correct one costs about $120 (more than twice the cost of the one we ordered wrong) so now I am thinking about just buying a new laptop since I can get one on sale for between $300-400. I have been working for two weeks on the kids' desktop computer which has some issues itself. ACK.

Emily is now 16 - we had a pleasant family celebration. She will celebrate with friends later in the month.

David went to the eye doctor to order contacts!

Emily has one more dissection class; so far she has dissected a worm, a crayfish, and a perch. Next up - frog.

David visited a local TV station with his computer careers class - a worthwhile visit.

Suzy spent the night with a friend on Friday and the next night, the same friend stayed overnight here.

3/10 Sunday - Church
Monday - Work 5, Lessons, Karate, Soccer (E)
Tuesday - Work 5, Lessons, College Visit (D)
Wednesday - Work 5, Lessons, Dissection (E), Church
Thursday - Work 5, Writing Class, Karate, Soccer (E)
Friday - Work, Co-op, Missionettes Sleepover (ES)
Saturday - Soccer Practice (E), Book Club, College Open House (D)

Going to go with David to visit another local college this week, and then he is going to go to an Engineering "Open House" at Baker, which I think is actually a robotics competition. I think Bob will go with him to this event.

Emily has started soccer practice - indoors for now. Their first game will be April 9th.

Weekly Review and Preview 3/2

The orthodontist took impressions of Emily's teeth and now we have to wait 3 weeks for them to come back before he can make a referral to the oral surgeon. I expressed my dissatisfaction a couple of times to the orthodontist's office regarding the way this whole process has been handled. I don't have a choice in which orthodontist to use if I want our insurance to pay for it. There is only one nearby.

I got the permanent crown installed on my tooth last week - finally! That was what started hurting me way back the week before Christmas!

Emily dissected a crayfish in her Biology lab last week; next week it is a small fish. I am so thankful for this mom who traded writing instruction for Biology labs! I only wish she had 2 more children.

I sat out at karate last week because my shoulder and my neck have been bothering me. I finally went to the chiropractor. I hope it's better next week so I can do karate again. Since we missed both classes the week before last, I haven't done a karate class since the test!

We did not end up going to the swim day. Bob worked at the homeless shelter during the night 3 times this week (including tonight). Three of the kids went with him early Friday morning so they slept most of Friday. David had a college visit Friday afternoon and I took him shopping for a suit. Found one he likes (that has long enough arms) but it is twice what I'd hoped to spend, so we are thinking about it.

• I ordered David's cap, gown, and diploma this week! 
• David had signed up for a martial arts clinic this weekend, but it ended up being cancelled. 
• David FINALLY took his driver's test and PASSED. We went the next day and got his license so he is a licensed driver now!

3/3 Sunday - Refuge (B), Church
Monday - Work 5, Lessons, Karate, Dr. (B), Emily's Birthday
Tuesday - Work 5, Lessons, Eye Dr (D)
Wednesday - Work 5, Lessons, Dissection (E), Field Trip (D), Church
Thursday - Work 5, Writing Class, Karate, Dr. (B)
Friday - Work, Co-op
Saturday - Soccer Practice (E)

I got an email today that Emily's soccer practices begin on March 4th! What in the world?! LOL I was blindsided by that! That is her birthday anyway, so we already have plans. She will start on Saturday.

Oh wow, I keep saying "when soccer starts" but I really was not thinking of it being so imminent! ACK!

So, yes, Emily turns SIXTEEN on Monday. Goodness gracious. My babies are growing up.

David will have an eye exam for contact lenses this week.
Bob has a bone scan and a follow-up appointment with the doctor who ordered the MRI.
I, for once, do NOT have a doctor appointment, but I may go to the chiropractor again this week.

We have co-op this week and the following 2 Fridays to finish out the year.

And I plan to start a running challenge on Monday. Oh my.

Weekly Preview and Review - Feb 23

COLLEGE: So, I took David to one college visit this past week (not two, as I'd originally planned). The admissions counselor answered all our questions and helped us with scholarship applications. We took a tour of the (small) campus and the engineering building. David is looking at programs in engineering.

CANCELED: We ended up missing both our karate classes last week. We will make them up sometime. Emily's dissection class was canceled as was our homeschool co-op on Friday.

COLONOSCOPY:  - Yep, Bob's. Normal.

COSTUMES: I dressed up to attend a performance of Pride and Prejudice. I wasn't prepared for the fact that the actors were performing a radio play so, although it was well-acted and right from the book in many cases, I was somewhat disappointed that it wasn't a fully staged play.

CONDITIONING: Physical conditioning. Took the kids to the gymnastics open gym again on Wednesday. Fun times! David is trying hard to learn the back flip. The other kids mostly just run around and try the different equipment, but the "running around" is the goal!

2/24 Sunday -
Monday - Work 5, Lessons, Karate, Dr. (B), Ortho (DE)
Tuesday - Work 5, Lessons, Dr. (B), Dentist (L)
Wednesday - Work 5, Lessons, Dissection (E), Church
Thursday - Work 5, Writing Class, Karate, Refuge (B)
Friday - Work, Swim Day, College Visit (D)
Saturday - Karate Clinic (D), Refuge (B)

Emily FINALLY has an orthodontics appointment this week. Hopefully the orthodontist can make a recommendation to the oral surgeon so we can get her treatment underway.

Bob has a couple of doctor appointments this week - sleep clinic and MRI. He also will be volunteering at the homeless shelter a couple of days (in the middle of the night).

David has another college visit this Friday and an extreme martial arts clinic on Saturday.

Weekly Preview and Review - Feb 17

Saturday was a karate test for Red Gold level. We all felt quite successful!

Gymnastics was on the docket for Wednesday - our second time attending open gym. The boys really work out HARD! We plan to attend again this week.

I had a routine mammogram on Tuesday - fun. Not.

James went to a Royal Rangers winter campout over the weekend and had a good time. He even slept outdoors one night in a shelter he made with a couple of the other boys. BRAVE, don't you think?

I got the taxes done today, as well as David's Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). He also has now applied to five schools and we are working on scholarship apps. He will be visiting two colleges this week and another one next week.

We had a make-up date for co-op last Friday (2/15) since the one before it had been canceled.

Saturday night, I went out to eat with a couple of friends - had a Monte Cristo sandwich and some very tasty onion petals. Mmm..... Then we rented a couple of DVD's and settled in for an evening of movie-watching. Tried Moonrise Kingdom - just TOO odd to watch and we all agreed to turn it off. Next was Loopers - interesting, but unsatisfying in my opinion. Oh well, at least we only spent $2.50 on the movies.

I went without any candy from January 1st to Valentine's Day. Since then, I've rather made up for the time off! LOL But soon I will regroup and be a good girl again. I did manage my weight loss goal of 10 lbs lost before the karate test. Setting myself another 10 lb loss goal before the test in May.

I have managed a couple weeks with extra work hours.

2/17 Sunday - Campout ends (J)
Monday - Work 5, Lessons, Karate, Dr. (Bob)
Tuesday - Work 5, Lessons, College Visits (D)
Wednesday - Work 5, Lessons, Gym (DJS), Dissection (E), Church
Thursday - Work 5, Bob Dr Appt, P&P play (LE)
Friday - Co-op
Saturday - EMPTY CALENDAR SQUARE!

This week David will be visiting two colleges, Emily will have her second dissection class, we will go to Open Gym, and Emily and I will see a performance of Pride and Prejudice with our book club. Co-op will finish out the week and I have NO WEEKEND PLANS! That may sound sad, but with so many weekends chock-full of STUFF, this will be nice.

We have no writing classes this week because of the P&P play and that makes it convenient for me to take Bob to his medical tests on Thursday morning. We also will skip karate that day; since we just had our test, it is an appropriate time to miss class.

And that will bring us to NEXT Sunday.

Weekly Preview and Review - Feb 5

So, last week was one of our more "normal" weeks. I had to reschedule my doctors appointment since my car wouldn't start that day. Bob fixed it; the part was under warranty.

David is busily occupied with creating his Halo armor for the comic con we plan to attend in May.
Emily is working on re-reading Pride and Prejudice for book club on Saturday.

2/3 Sunday - Sister Weekend
Monday - Work 5, Lessons, Karate, Dr. (Bob)
Tuesday - Work 5, Lessons, Dentist Appt (L)
Wednesday - Work 5, Lessons, Gym?, Dissection (E), Church
Thursday - Work 5, Writing Classes, Karate
Friday - Co-op
Saturday - Book Club

Bob had a couple doctor appointments on Monday. I went with him to the gastroenterologist - the first time he's seen this doctor. His other appointment was with his regular doctor and he came back with a handful of prescriptions and referrals - sleep clinic, back doctor, and more.

We went to evening karate on Monday since the doctor appointment time conflicted with our regular afternoon class. Our regular class is green and red belts and we are almost the highest belt rank, but this evening class is all red belts and we are the LOWEST belt rank. Quite a different feeling. LOL I do plan to go to evening red belt class now and then to widen our experience.

Today I will get a crown on that tooth that bothered me over Christmas, the same one that got the root canal.

Suzy's Wednesday night church class is going swimming this week, so she is looking forward to that.

Weekly Preview and Review

Some special outings happened last week.

Tuesday we went ice skating for the first time. David woke up not feeling well, so he did not go along. About fourteen families from our homeschool group joined us at the nearby indoor rink for a couple hours of skating fun. (I did not skate.)

Gymnastics was the focus on Wednesday afternoon. A local gym (home to gymnastics and cheer teams) is now offering homeschool open gym twice a week. We will try to go on most Wednesday afternoons at least until the weather warms up, or until soccer starts, whichever is first. David really wants to master the back flip and it's good for the others to run and jump for an hour and a half. (This is not the same gymnastics place we went to a couple years ago before we began karate.)

Going to this gym on Wednesdays will be taking us out of the house four afternoons a week, which is why we won't commit to being there every week. And they say homeschool kids need socialization?? LOL I need to protect our Tuesdays.

Suzy had a kids retreat through our Wednesday night church. The group headed to Lansing where they met up with several other church groups. The activities included a rec center where they could climb a rock wall, swim, roller blade, and more. Two services evidently taught them something but Suzy "can't remember". @@

On Saturday some friends and I gathered to spend the day watching the 1995 Pride and Prejudice (yes, that's the Colin Firth version). Fun times!

1/27 Sunday - Church
Monday - Work 5, Lessons, Karate
Tuesday - Work 5, Lessons, Dr Appt (L)
Wednesday - Work 5, Lessons, Gym?, Church
Thursday - Work 5, Writing Classes, Karate
Friday - Sister Weekend
Saturday - Sister Weekend

A calmer week approaches, except that it ends with a bang! Our annual Sister Weekend is scheduled to begin Friday evening.

Weekly preview and review

David's orthodontist visit went well - back again in 6 weeks.

 Took Suzy and a friend and James to the Shrine Circus on Friday morning. I had a great time! I think the kids are rather blase' 21st century kids who are not easily impressed. James liked the motorcycles in the sphere of death the most. I love the horseback riding act.

 I was sick on Sunday evening - I think it was my gall bladder. Bleh. Probably should get that checked out. The rest of the week was normal and uneventful.

 1/20 Sunday - Church
Monday - Work 5, Lessons, Karate
Tuesday - Work 5, Lessons, Ice Skating
Wednesday - Work 5, Lessons, Gymnastics, Church
Thursday - Work 2, Writing Classes, Karate
Friday - Work 3, Co-op, Winter Blast Retreat (S)
Saturday - Work?, Winter Blast Retreat (S)

 The upcoming week is fairly normal with the addition of two active outings - one ice skating day and one gymnastics open gym day. The kids will have a full week with their lessons as well.

Suzy is going to a retreat with the church Friday night and Saturday. They will have fun doing things like swimming and rock-wall climbing, as well as learning more about God.

 I will plan to spend a good deal of time on the phone this week setting up, yes, MORE doctor appointments. I also hope to squeeze in a couple workouts at some point.

Weekly Preview and Review

Well, that was a lot of doctor appointments! On Monday, I went with Bob to his regular doctor appointment in which we discussed all manner of physical ailments and follow-up treatments. Three of the kids had doctor appointments (though they see a physician's assistant - PA) on Tuesday afternoon. Each of them had a well-child visit, complete physical, and several immunizations. David did his appointment completely on his own - something we'd never done before. That same day, Bob visited the cardiologist, where he got a clean bill of health. Wednesday it was my turn for a complete physical and my annual PAP smear.

Six calls on Friday morning still did not yield an oral surgery appointment for Emily. Have to keep trying to get the orthodontist and the oral surgeon to figure out a treatment plan.

I was able to complete 25 hours of work this week, which is 5 hours more than usual. A bit of extra $$ always comes in handy!

We started the process of refinancing our mortgage.

Writing classes started up again this week. I have a couple new students in each class and a few who did not return for the current session. The middle schoolers will be learning to write 3 kinds of basic essays and the high schoolers are honing their advanced essay writing skills.

Co-op ended up being canceled this week due to the local schools being closed. We follow their closing schedule, although we may end up revisiting that policy since we felt today's closure was unnecessary.

1/13 Sunday - Church, Work 2
Monday - Work 5, Lessons, Karate
Tuesday - Work 5, Lessons
Wednesday - Work 5, Lessons, Orthodontist (D), Church
Thursday - Work 2, Writing Classes, Karate
Friday - Work 4, Lessons, Circus (S,J)
Saturday - Work 2

This week looks so much emptier without all those doctor appointments! David does have an orthodontist appointment. Other than that, it's a normal week except I will try to work 5 extra hours again.

Oh, and I am taking James, Suzy, and Suzy's friend Leah to the circus on Friday. I don't think the younger 2 kids have ever been to the circus, or at least not when they were old enough to remember. Excitement abounds!

We picked up a better treadmill from a local freecycler - yay! This will make it easier for all of us to stay in shape. We also have made an area in the back room to work out. A nice big free space and our punching bag (on a stand) will allow karate practice and workout DVDs.

We have about a month before our next karate test - lots to master before then!

Weekly Review and Preview

Well, I guess I did not post since Christmas! Silly me.

I did end up having a root canal. The procedure itself was fine - had local anesthesic only and the injections were the most pain I felt the entire time. My tooth has been pain free. I have a temporary filling that will be replaced by a filling and a crown within the next few weeks.

My oldest child is now an adult. Sort of, anyway. LOL David turned 18 last week. I took the boys to see The Hobbit on IMAX on David's birthday. One of David's birthday gifts (an Xbox Live gift card) had been misplaced - by me! I couldn't find it anywhere, despite tearing things apart and even enlisting David (who wanted that card) to go through bags of trash. It finally turned up yesterday in my writing class bag, where I now recall stashing it.

Having these three weeks off lessons has been wonderfully pleasant. But we are ready to get back to a routine. Or maybe I'm just saying that to psych myself up. LOL

1/6 Sunday - Church, movie with friends (L), Work 2
Monday - Work 5, Lessons, Karate, Dr appt (B)
Tuesday - Work 5, Lessons, Dr appt (D,J,S)
Wednesday - Work 5, Lessons, Dr appt (L), Church
Thursday - Work 3?, Writing Classes, Karate
Friday - Work 3?, Co-op
Saturday - Work 2?, BOOK CLUB - Les Miserables!

Lots of doctor appointments again this week! And I need to make more, too! Oh my!

There is going to be a 24 hour work outage that I will have to try to work around on Thursday and Friday. I really want to get 25 hours in this week. I would have managed that last week, but I was unable to log in (not my fault) on Saturday at all. so I ended up with 21.5 hours.

We are back to our lessons this week and all our regular commitments - karate, writing class, church, co-op.

I saw The Silver Linings Playbook with friends tonight and it was WONDERFUL. I loved it! It is rated R for language and some sexual content/nudity, but I didn't find it gratuitous in any way. Very realistic and poignant story.