February Week 2

Lambs were a little shocked that they had no delays or remote learning the first 4 days of this week. I was happy to have a normal schedule, they felt like they needed more sleep after late nights doing homework. Lamb 1 started reading The Great Gatsby for American Literature, Lamb 2 started reading The Odyssey for English class. Lamb 2 knew what would happen in the Odyssey from homeschool so I had to encourage him to still pay attention.

I stopped into the 20 cent shelf at the library (open again!) and the community center had a book sale. I gathered a few books at each for the school. It wasn't anything exciting, just a few at a time.

We received notification from Purdue that Lamb 1's dual 4 credit computer class is free because we financially qualified. He had some trouble logging into his Purdue account this semester, but I am so glad he got this figured out so he will get college credit for high school work. Bonus is that it's free!

Thursday night was parent teacher conferences and I went alone while Ram went to church with Lamb 1. I managed to stay on schedule for 7 conferences-8 minutes each- and only got behind for the last one. I saw 4 teachers for each Lamb. I wanted to see one more teacher but she was unavailable that night. All the teachers said the Lambs are working really hard and they can tell that it doesn't come easy for them. Both Lambs are looking forward to several classes next year so some of the conferences were to discuss those choices.

After the conferences Ram and I snuck out to go out to dinner and discuss the conferences together. Unfortunately we chose a restaurant that had a live band that was too loud to really talk. It was still a fun evening and nice to get away for a short time. I'm not even sure the Lambs knew we went on a short date!

Friday was a scheduled e-learning day which means they don't zoom into classes, but the teachers give them an assignment. Teachers have different policies so Lamb 2 had 2 assignments due before 3pm on Friday, some assignments due before midnight on Saturday, and the rest are to be turned in their first class next week. Lamb 1 had some assignments due before midnight on Friday, one on Monday before midnight, and the rest at their next class. Once they get these assignments done, they are having a nice break.

Saturday Ram ran some errands for me and I stayed home and tried to get some things done. One errand he did some Christmas shopping for our family. Last year we didn't take any vacations or do much extra shopping, which made December busy to quick get some gifts. I am determined to work ahead on gathering gifts this year. 

Saturday night we played the game of Life together as a family. Lamb 1 won. It is rare that we have time to play games together during the school year.

I'm still working on getting organized to get ready to do taxes. I did very well with family bookkeeping until about June. I regret not keeping better books for the second half of the year. While I am working on last year, I'm also catching up on this far into 2021, hoping to not get behind again.

No school tomorrow (Monday), but the Lambs will need to finish homework due on Tuesday that is not done yet. Snow predicted so they may have a delay or no school on Tuesday, we will see.

We didn't do anything special for Valentine's Day. Both Ram and I had book clubs at different times and the Lambs had a relaxing day after church. 

Beginning of February

Last Saturday we visited a retired professor and chose almost 200 books from his personal library for Redeemer Classical School. It was a fascinating two hours at his house as he has 4 degrees and has traveled extensively. He was thrilled that some of his books were going to children that were learning Latin and took nature walks. We wiped every book off as they were very dusty before we brought them in our house. It took me most of the week to make a complete list of what he donated along with looking up the approximate value of what was donated. We delivered the books to the school yesterday and delivered the tax receipt along with an itemized list of what was donated today. I don't have any Lambs at this school, but I am happy to help out RCS library as it is a wonderful resource for our Fort Wayne community.

We had some snow this week so that meant a few delays and a few days of school at home. That meant organizing the Lambs to do the shoveling and a few more chores and tutoring/helping with schoolwork along with homeschooling Lamb 3.

I do so much chauffeuring right now. Lamb 3 goes to the chiropractor twice a week for an adjustment and therapy and does exercises at home. Lamb 2 has JROTC practice three times a week. Lamb 1 lifts weights after school 4 days a week. We have a few dentist appointments this month. Lamb 2 had his orthodontist appointment this week and found out his braces come off in March! 

I'm attempting to get my materials organized to scrapbook again. Everything has been packed since we moved from ID. There wasn't any place to organize it when we were at the rental and there wasn't time once we got to the new house. I am trying to get caught up on Lamb 1's scrapbook before he graduates from high school.

I just got a new phone. My first smartphone was purchased in November 2016. It was past time to replace it. A couple of weeks ago I went to grocery pick up and my phone was dead so I couldn't call them and tell them I was there for my groceries. Lamb 2 is extra eager to help me set up my new phone the way that I want it. It is going to be so great to not have to plug my phone in all the time!

Ram and I continue to add books to our Library Thing account. We have 1600 entered. It is going to be so helpful to have a list on our phone. As we are adding books, I'm also organizing and getting rid of some. The next project will be to tackle our giveaway pile that has really grown in the last month. I will need to decide where those items are going and deliver everything to the correct place.

Hopefully soon I will update my blog. In the meantime I will try for at least once a week posts.

Family update and I'm coming back!

After not posting on here for a couple of years, I have plans to try to get back to my blog in the next few weeks. I'm not sure I am quitting Facebook completely, but I do want to cut back there and one way to do that is to go back to blogging. I have lots of work to do to get my blog up to date and very little free time to work on it. Plan on checking back in February to see if I made any progress!

The Lambs will turn 17, 15, and 13 in the next few months. I have a junior and freshman at our Lutheran high school and still homeschooling a 7th grader. Lamb 1 tried football for the first time last year. Lamb 2 loves JROTC. 

Ram is fully employed as a mental health counselor and more than half way to his license. We are looking forward to full license both for being done with school and the pay increase. His schedule is completely full at work and he is booked out several weeks. It is nice to know that clients trust him after a year. 

I am kept busy chauffeuring the Lambs; homeschooling Lamb 3; helping Lamb 2 with homework; managing the household and household schedule; volunteering at Redeemer Classical School library; and trying to fit in a little time for myself.

Ewe's parents are doing well. Dad will turn 81 in February. We did not get to celebrate his 80th due to Covid. They now have a home health aide about 3 hours a day to help dad shower and mom with housework. We still have lots of small tasks to help them remain in their home and check up on them frequently. Everyone is still talking about celebrating their 50th anniversary together in August 2019.

Ram's parents are also doing well. It was disappointing that we could not be together for Thanksgiving or any visits in 2020. We were so glad they were able to take a 50th anniversary trip to New Zealand shortly before Covid.

Ewe's sister and brother-in-law live in the St. Louis area and recently purchased a beautiful house. They both enjoy their jobs. Hannah authored a month of Portals of Prayer last year. 

Please leave a comment so I know who found me again after my absence here!

March update

March meant that we finished some activities. The Lambs had been getting ready for piano contest and that was the middle of March. I let them have the next week off of piano lessons after that. Our family had been attending a Bible study at church together on the Voyage of the Dawn Treader by C.S. Lewis, the Small Catechism, and the book of Mark. That also finished in March so we were done with the weekly homework to prepare for class. The Lambs sang in Sunday School choir on Palm Sunday so we are done practicing that hymn at home. They will sing one more hymn this school year.
Lamb 1 picked his freshman classes for next year. Going to high school is getting more real for all of us now. I am very excited about his opportunities in high school.
I attended a seminar on infertility by a local pro-life doctor that was really good. It didn't really apply to me, but I am glad there are resources for women that need it. I especially appreciated the encouragement for couples to try some basic lab tests; take medicine if required; have surgery if necessary; and if still not pregnant consider adopting.
Ram's parents visited for Ram's spring break and I tried to do spring cleaning and decluttering before they arrived. I didn't get done everything I wanted to get done before they came, but every little bit helps. I especially enjoy getting everything to give away delivered to the proper place and finally getting it out of my house.
We did some car maintenance-oil changes for both cars; had the brakes on one car looked at and found out they were fine; and car washes for both cars after winter. Wouldn't you know that as soon as we had the car washes it snowed the next day and we followed a salt truck?
We put an offer on a house that we really liked but was priced above what it was worth and above our budget. They countered with still too expensive so we are taking a break from house buying right now. If nothing else comes up for sale that we are interested in and this is still on the market in a month, then we may try again. Our realtor thought our offer was completely reasonable and their list price was ridiculous. Since we are renting and not in a hurry, the whole deal became humorous. I think the seller was a fool to not take our offer. I also think God has an even better house planned for us since so far this deal has not worked out.
Vision therapy homework for Lamb 2 has taken some planning and thinking in how we can do it in our rental house. Their computer software didn't play nice with Macs so Ram had to figure out how to get it to run in our all Apple household. Lamb 2 is doing great on his therapy so I will be interested in what the Dr. says at his 8 week checkup. We are also going to have Lamb 3 evaluated and we may have two Lambs doing vision therapy.
My parents have taken turns being sick this winter so we haven't seen them real often. We will all be glad for summer and hopefully all be more healthy.
The Lambs keep practicing piano, memorizing the catechism with the goal of May confirmation for Lamb 2 and 3, and plugging away at homeschool subjects. Ram keeps writing papers for me to proofread, studying for his classes, and setting up interviews in the community for his papers. He is getting excited about starting internships this summer. I attempt to be chef, maid, delegator, chauffeur, teacher, and generally just to keep everyone happy and hopefully they gain some knowledge each day too.

February family update

We are plugging away at daily routines: 
*Homeschooling with extra work for Lamb 1 to prepare him for high school and Lamb 2 and 3 concentrating on learning to read and spell.
*Our whole family is attending a weekly Bible study on Voyage of the Dawn Treader, the book of Mark, and the Small Catechism. We do the readings together to prepare for weekly quizzes.
*Lamb 2 and 3 are working on memorizing the meanings for the 6 chief parts of the catechism with the goal of confirmation in May.
*All 3 Lambs are practicing for a piano contest in March.
Update on my dad:
He became so weak at the beginning of February that he fell a few times. The paramedics recommended he go to the hospital and get checked out. The hospital was overcrowded and he waited several hours to get a room. He did have the flu and was much better after a few days in the hospital. We thought maybe he would go to a place for rehab, but not counting the hours he was in the hospital hallway that he wasn't officially a patient, he wasn't in the hospital long enough for insurance to pay for rehab. He went directly home and has been doing great since he has been home. We even took him to a high school basketball game last Friday. It is not easy as your parents get older and prayers are appreciated.
Vision Therapy Again:
Lamb 2 competed a long evaluation with a doctor here. We don't regret doing vision therapy in Idaho because it was helpful for several areas for him, but it wasn't enough. He is beginning vision therapy here at the end of the month. This doctor does things differently than our ID doctor and we are hoping these different ways of doing things are going to be helpful for Lamb 2. This doctor does 1 time a week therapy with 20 minutes of daily homework. Lamb 2 will get bifocals. He has 20/20 vision and can see fine in the distance. He doesn't truly need glasses for close up work, but the hope is that this will ease the stress on his eyes as they try to focus to see near work. We are expecting at least a year of therapy here. One nice thing is you pay one price and it covers everything (therapy, doctor exams, computer software for homework, etc.) no matter how long therapy takes. This is different than Idaho and is much better to know exactly how much it costs. Lamb 2 was very excited to go pick out his glasses and is impatiently waiting for them to come in.
After Lamb 2 begins, then we would like this doctor to also evaluate Lamb 3. For a long time he had no motivation to learn to read. Now he does and reading is very difficult for him. I am curious if he also has a vision difficulty and would also benefit from Vision Therapy.
Library volunteer:
A classical school started at our church this year. Our boys are too old as they began with lower grades and are working their way up, but Lamb 2 and 3 take art class there. I volunteered to help with the school library. It has been so much fun to get the books ready for the school children. Most are donated or library discards. The headmaster and his wife are choosing quality literature for the school. It is so fun to see what she finds on the 20 cent library discard shelves.
Lilla Rose:
I just signed up to be a Lilla Rose consultant. I'll blog more about this as I learn more, but if you don't currently have a consultant, contact me for more info if you are interested. I have been wearing Lilla Rose hair clips for about 10 years and I figured it was about time that I had a business card to hand to people when I get a compliment!
Dentist:
Our whole family went at once for dental cleanings and checkups. We all did well except one Lamb needs a tiny filling. Lamb 2 needs an orthodontist consultation because his teeth are so close together plus there is a problem with his canines. After dental checkups we are all extra good about brushing AND flossing AND using mouthwash for awhile...
Cooking:
While Ram is in school I have had to do more cooking than while he was a pastor. I was getting tired of the same old recipes and often 1 or 2 Lambs don't like what I make. I did a little research in my cookbooks and on the Internet to get some new recipes to try. Last night I made beef stew and it went fast even though only one Lamb had more than one helping. Today I made beef vegetable soup and we'll see how that goes tomorrow. I have some more recipes to try this week. The Lambs were shocked that I cooked something new two days in a row!

End of January Family Update

On Monday I helped our church school library organize their new books some more. When Ram was done with class he came to pick up the boys to take them home. Except they were having so much fun with the other kids of volunteers that only Lamb 1 went home with him. I love "working" in the library and helping this school get started.

On Tuesday the Lambs had piano and art. I did a little grocery shopping before a mammogram. I already got the results and everything looks good. Our whole family attended the first Christian Wisdom class at our church. This weekly Bible study runs through Lent and we will study the book of Mark, The Small Catechism, and The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. Our pastor titled it Luther, Lewis, and Mark. I think it will be good for everyone in our family.

On Wednesday Lamb 2 and 3 had a play date in the afternoon with some friends from church. Lamb 1 did a little shopping with me while they were there. Goodbye Christopher Robin movie was in at the library for me. I watched it and I'll blog about it soon.

On Thursday our family went to a library book sale. Ram and I didn't find much, but the Lambs did. Thursday night the furnace went out. Thankfully it was a little warmer here. We called our landlord first thing on Friday morning and the repair man came right away. I didn't take a shower until later on Friday, but other than that it wasn't too bad because it got fixed so quickly.

On Friday Lamb 2 had his second vision therapy exam. It is looking like this doctor and a second round of vision therapy will be very helpful for him. We set up a parent consultation to find out more details. We are also considering having Lamb 3 do the testing here. After he was done at the doctor we took peanut butter and jelly donated by our church members to the Seminary food bank. I was glad I had a strong Lamb to help me carry that. In the evening my parents babysat while Ram and I went to an adult only dinner at church. It was potluck this year (so much food!) and a very fun evening.

On Saturday we had to get up for confirmation class after being out too late. Our family went to the March for Life in Fort Wayne. It was rainy but not too cold. The speakers before the March were good. The March with friends from church was fun. Then we went to my parents church for cookies and hot cocoa. I think this was the first year they did that and it was a great idea to go fellowship out of the rain. We stopped at the last branch library book sale in January. Ewe and the Lambs found something, but Ram didn't. It probably would have been better to go in the morning, but we couldn't. After all that we came home and both Ram and Ewe took a nap!

Today was church and Sunday School. Then we ran a couple of errands as a family so I could come home and put my comfy clothes on and not go anywhere the rest of the day.

The calendar looks pretty light this week. It will be nice to stay home and continue to focus on homeschool and home keeping.

Third Week of January 2018

Last week was a fun, but busy week. On Sunday we went to church and Sunday School and I streamed the Seminary Epiphany service instead of going to it. That is always a beautiful service.
On Monday our church hosted a one day conference. The Lambs helped acolyte at 2 church services that day. There were sessions for adults during the day and supper and fellowship in the evening. I helped serve soup during lunch and nachos with cheese during our taco supper. We didn't know very many of the visiting attendees this year, but had a good time with our friends from church. Many schools in the area were canceled for MLK Jr. Day so the Lambs had friends to play with during the sessions. It's great to take a day with church friends.
On Tuesday the Lambs had their first piano lessons after Christmas break. Then we planned to go out to the Seminary and see if any friends were attending Symposium this year. But when we went to start the car, it wouldn't start. Ram had a doctor's appointment, his annual physical, so he called AAA and then took the minivan to the doctor. While he was gone they came and jumped the car and I let it run 25 minutes. Ram wasn't home so I turned it off to gather up my stuff and the Lambs to go to the car place. 5 minutes later it wouldn't start again.
On Wednesday a tow truck came and picked up the car. There was no charge thanks to AAA combining it with the call the day before. It was a long day of chauffeuring for me due to one car. When I picked up Ram after his class, we went over to the Seminary for a reception. Last year there were more children at this reception, this year our Lambs were the only ones. They behaved partly because there was food for them. Ram and I visited with one of my college friends and a few other people we knew. It was a nice end to a crazy day.
On Thursday we picked up the car from the shop with a new battery now. We went to a couple of library book sales and had a couple of good finds. On Thursday night our boys acolyted at our church weekly midweek service. I don't often attend that service and it was nice.
On Friday I woke up with a headache, I think sinus trouble from the weather. I was pretty worthless all day. I watched some of the March for Life coverage from D.C. online. I really want to go some year. Ram had an eye doctor appointment. He needs a slight change in prescription.
On Saturday the Lambs had confirmation class and then the church youth group went ice skating. The Lambs were not too excited about ice skating but after about an hour both Lamb 1 and 3 were pretty good at it. Lamb 2 declared that he liked roller skating better than ice skating. It was low 30s and I wonder if he would have liked it better if it was a little warmer. Maybe we'll try to go again as a family before the end of the season. Ram and Lamb 1 went to darts at church. When they got home I went over to my mom's. I am keeping some of our food in her chest freezer. I reorganized her freezer and brought some meat home for us. I had a nice visit with my parents after the freezer project.
Yesterday we went to church and Sunday School. CLHS had an open house so we went for a little bit. Lamb 1 has been accepted so we didn't have too many questions. Lamb 2 and 3 were glad for the chance to practice shooting rifles. We went to an open house for a possible house. It was nice, but not perfect for us, so we are still waiting and looking. We stopped by Barnes and Noble for a treat from the cafe while it was educator discount day. Then the Lambs were anxious to get home to watch football so we came home.
In the middle of all those activities last week, we got some homeschooling done too. This week I hope to be back to full homeschool schedule and Ram is back to full time schooling. I am glad to get back to a routine and hope for no more excitement like car problems this week!

January Family Update

Lamb 1 was sick on Sunday so I took Lamb 2 and 3 to church by myself while Ram stayed home with Lamb 1 and watched our church service online. It is so different that Ram now stays home from church with sick Lambs after many years of me staying home with sick Lambs while he was the pastor.

Sunday afternoon we took our Christmas tree down and put it in storage. Monday the weather wasn't too good and my mom and our family all had chiropractor appointments so we gave her a ride, had our adjustments, and took her home.

Ram, Lamb 1, and Lamb 3 were sick at the beginning of the week. It wasn't too bad, it was mostly a frog in their throat, but not sore throats or fevers. We took lots of vitamins and ran humidifiers in the Lambs rooms. We're not completely over it, but much better. I spent more time with the Lambs going through stuff in their room and getting more stuff ready for give away. We got back to our routine of practicing piano, the Lambs did their piano theory, and we got back to a little homeschool. I did some school planning, especially planning what I want Lamb 1 to do with me this last semester before high school.

On Thursday Ram and I finally had our anniversary date. Fort Wayne has a local restaurant deal so for one price we got appetizer, salad, entree, and dessert. It was really good food. We had been given some money for Christmas for us to go out on a date and with this deal we didn't even spend all that money. The Lambs were glad to go over to my parents while we went out, it had been a while since my mom was healthy enough to watch them. I was so glad everyone was healthy and Ram and I made it out on a date before his school vacation ended.

On Friday there was ice and a couple of inches of snow so most schools in the area canceled. Lamb 2 had a vision therapy evaluation so we braved the roads in the early afternoon and by then it wasn't too bad. This was the first exam so he has an appointment for a longer exam in a few weeks. It is looking like he will need to do more VT. I'm excited for him to have a chance to work with a different doctor/therapists when he is a couple of years older. I don't regret him doing VT in ID in 2014, it just wasn't enough. His eyes are still having a lot of trouble focusing on the page to read. In ID, VT was very close to our house, here VT will be a little drive. But if he can benefit from this then we are willing to drive.

Today I will go to church and Ladies Aid while the Lambs stay home one last Saturday to hopefully get a little more healthy, but also because we will be back to full routine next week.

Next week Ram returns to class, piano lessons begin again, there is a conference at the Seminary so many friends will be in town, and we will try to get back to our full homeschool schedule. For Ram to have a month off of school for Christmas was wonderful, but it went all too quickly.

My plan is to finish the year in review posts and then attempt to blog 2-3 times a week with at least one of those being a weekly family update.

Happy Epiphany!

This morning we made a fast stop at the farmer's market to stock up on honey and to have a donut for a treat. Then we attended church (with incense!) and then helped take the Christmas decorations down at church. We didn't attend every service during the 12 days of Christmas, but I am thankful for the ones that we did get to.

We came home and got to work on some decluttering projects while Ram ran a couple of errands. Lamb 3 found all kinds of hats and ties and pants and shoes that were way too small for him. Last week I delivered a bunch of give away stuff to the correct places. Now my give away pile is big again. I love that some areas of my house are getting more settled and we are getting rid of some stuff that we no longer need.

Each Lamb is dressing their own cornish hen for supper.

Tomorrow after church we will take our Christmas tree down and put the Christmas decorations back in storage. It seems like we just put it up, but I will enjoy a little more space in our house again.

Monday we will be back to a few school subjects, but we will wait until Ram returns to school to add the full homeschool schedule. I'm trying to savor the last few days of relaxing family time. I will try to resume my Year in Review posts on Monday.

Thankful for interruptions today

We didn't start school on time this morning. First, we slept in a little after a late night last night. Then we were notified that my sister and her husband are going to be moving closer to us. We were so excited that of course we had to take time for a phone call for that! My parents can't believe that both of their daughters are going to be back living in the Midwest soon.

Second, I checked our bank balance and I thought there was a mistake because the balance was so high. I was so surprised that we had our tax refund deposited already. I paid a few bills with this refund and put the rest in savings.

Third, we made a phone call because we previously received a discount for a subscription we received and I didn't know if we still qualified for that discount since Ram is no longer pastor at a church. We found out that we could continue to have that discount. It's only a $20 discount, but I am glad we can still have this membership.

Also today Ram took the lawnmower in to be serviced before our yard needs it; we baked a birthday cake for Lamb 3; and Lamb 2 had gymnastics class. We did eventually get to our school work because we plan to take off Monday in honor of Lamb 3's birthday. It was a full but good day and I am thankful for the interruptions that we did have.

Quick Family Update

1. I think we are finally all healthy. We missed a week of homeschool while the Lambs and I were sick with a cold/cough/fever. It was a rough week where nothing got done. This week is very busy making up doctor checkups etc. It was so ridiculous that I was too sick to go to the doctor for a thyroid checkup and appointments like that. We are finally scheduled to make some of that up. I am so thankful that we never had stomach flu at our house, just the colds.
2. Our church had a wedding on Feb. 5 during the regular Sunday morning service. I do plan to blog more about the wedding soon. The wedding reminded me of our wedding with the same version of the Te Deum that we used. Ram was happy to have a copy of the music in front of him because he did not have a copy during our wedding and he did not have it memorized like I did!
3. Our church has a fish fry fundraiser for medical expenses for one of our members coming up on Friday. We are happy to be going to help on the fundraiser day. I am so impressed with all the behind the scenes work people from our congregation are doing to get ready for this fundraiser. We are praying for a very successful fundraiser to help this family.
4. The ladies at my mom's church are having an apron party this spring. I have dug out some of my books and aprons to help my mom with her planning. It has been fun to get all that out and look at it again.
5. I volunteered to present at a teacher's conference this fall. I don't know if I will be asked to speak or if they will have enough speakers, but I am hoping for a chance to do a little back in the teaching world again.
6. Ram is working hard on his schooling. Reading, writing papers, and doing interviews are all going well.
7. The Lambs are continuing with homeschooling and piano lessons and confirmation class at church. We just keep plugging along and when we finish one book we go on to the next.
8. Because I was sick I have not gotten everything together for our tax lady yet. Hopefully I can finish that by early next week.
9. The dishwasher is fixed. There was some food stuck in it and when that was removed it worked fine. It motivates me to scrape/rinse the dishes a little more. If I owned this house I would invest in a better dishwasher, but I don't so it means scraping and rinsing better.
10. We are studying what activities and day camps this area offers for this summer. So far Lamb 1 and 2 want to do several camps and Lamb 3 hasn't found any that he is interested in. I think it will be a very busy couple of months being chauffeur for what each Lamb is interested in. I am going to look into what the Science Museum offers because I think that is more what Lamb 3 would like to do instead of sports like his brothers. I am happy to let them do different activities in the summer for a week or two instead of committing to an entire fall or entire spring of chauffeuring. Plus I like that they can try out a wide variety of activities and see what interests they would like to pursue more.

5 year update of 2011 post

December 29, 2001
1 Ram + 1 Ewe 

+ Ram changing from student to pastor
and back to student
+Ram 2 Calls to 4 different churches
+1 major surgery
+First laptop

+Ewe changing from classroom teacher
to Mama to homeschool teacher
+Ewe thyroid removed
+Ewe's first cell phone
+Ewe's first smartphone
+First iPad

 

+ 3 Boy Lambs (2004, 2006, 2008)
+ Surviving MSPI with Lamb 1 as a baby
+ Completing a year of vision therapy with Lamb 2
+1 Minor surgery for Lamb 2
+ Lamb 2 and 3 graduating from speech therapy
+ 3 Lambs getting involved in many different kinds of activities

+Several vacations to IN, ID, CA, SC, AL, MO, etc.

+ Making many new friends from many different parts 

of the country and a few that live overseas

+1 Brother-in-law
+ 5 year anniversary for Eric and Hannah

- 11 miscarried Lambs,
- 1 brother (Tim), 
- 3 Grandmas, -2 Grandpas, 
-7 Great Aunts and Great Uncles, 
and -several family friends going to join the saints in the Church Triumphant

+ 1 Saturn - 2 Saturns
+ 1 Blazer - 2 Blazers
+ 1 Toyota Camry
+ 2 Minivans -2 Minivans
+ 1 Toyota Sienna

+Living in 5 houses in 3 different parts of the country
+ Bought 1 house
- Sold 2 houses
+renting for our first time
+ plus being crazy enough to rent a second time
+3 major moves to live in 3 different states
+Moving from living in the same city as Ewe's parents to live in the same state as Ram's parents and then coming back to live in the same city as Ewe's parents again
+living in a big city
+living in a town of 113,
+living in a growing city of a suburb of the state capital
+back to living in a big city again

= 15 years of holy matrimony for Ram and Ewe!

We thank Christ for being the center of our marriage and being with us through all these changes. We know He will continue to be with us in future years and future changes.

*Baker family, you continue to be in our thoughts and prayers. This is a bittersweet day on the calendar. May we all continue to look forward to the resurrection of the body and life everlasting.

Busy Days

Ram has not begun classes yet. Neither Ram or I have jobs yet. The Lambs are in just a few activities right now as we got here after fall activities began. Yet, our days are full. Here is a peek in to the past few days for us.

Dec. 1-Take my parents to the airport for a visit to my sister
Pick up car after repaired from September accident (a sheriff hit Ewe's car when she was stopped at a red light)
Ram was supposed to do a webinar for school but technical difficulties canceled this for him
Grocery Shopping at one store
Advent supper and church

Dec. 2-Ram lunch meeting
Ewe attended a funeral
Grocery Shopping at one store
CLHS basketball game
Hyde Brother's Booksellers midnight sale (We all went at 10:30pm and then Ram went back by himself at 1am.)

Dec. 3-Ram took the Lambs to Christmas Pageant Practice at church
Ewe attended book club on Frankenstein (very interesting book to discuss!)
Ewe did a little shopping at Barnes and Noble Educator discount day
CLHS Play The Best Christmas Pageant Ever

Dec. 4- Sunday School, Church
Bach Collegium Messiah sing-along
Lambs built a snowman with our first snow
Ewe attempted to get caught up on laundry before they come to make some house repairs at our rental this week.

We have attended a lot of activities in this area this fall, because we have missed these activities while we lived away from here and are excited to participate in these events again. We probably won't go to all these every year, but it has been fun to take the Lambs to activities that my family enjoyed years ago even if we just go once.

Ram does have a couple of substitute preaching assignments lined up, but I have been so thankful that we have been able to attend these events as an audience or congregational member, instead of being the chairman or volunteer. Ram has been able to sit in the pew and worship with us together as a family. The Lambs don't need to be chauffeured for practices for all these events. It has been a wonderful season for us to just listen and participate instead of being in charge. After the past few crazy years, I think we really needed this break. I know our busy time of being involved instead of just participating is coming soon. We are joining in on more activities at church. Ram will start classes the middle of January and the Lambs are discussing what activities to join in the spring.

October family update

The piano is in our house and the boys begin lessons tomorrow morning. It is going to take some adjusting for all of us to switch to morning piano lessons. We still have not found their piano books from last spring. We found their old piano books, but not their most recent ones. I wanted them to show their new piano teacher where they were at in the spring. Perhaps it is better that we just begin where she thinks they should be since we had no piano in our house for a couple of months.

We were finally successful to get driver's licenses for both Ram and Ewe. We also got license plates for both cars. We registered to vote. We spent so much time on all of that the past few weeks. I am so glad that is all finished.

Ewe went for her annual eye exam and the dr. decided to treat it as a medical visit and prescribe eye drops and have her come back for the eye exam another visit so insurance pays all of it. We have scheduled several doctor visits for Lamb 1, Ram, and Ewe while we have met our deductible this year.

Ram, Lamb 1, and Lamb 3 are doing some therapy at the chiropractor during the month of October. It wasn't necessary for Lamb 2 or Ewe. We had to buy some weights for them to use for exercises at home, but insurance is paying for the rest. It is taking time to go there three times a week, but we are glad we are doing this when it is "free" to us.

We have been to all 5 of the churches we were considering to join. We have it limited to 3 now. This is such a good problem to have, so many good churches and pastors, but such a hard decision. I am hoping to have our final decision and start regularly attending by Reformation Day. I really enjoyed seeing old friends at all the churches we visited. This morning we saw my mom's cousin, the parents of some of my former students, the uncle of my flower girl in my wedding, a blogger friend, and some of my parents friends. Visiting and seeing old friends was fun, but all of us need to settle into the routine of one church and get involved in activities at one church. The great part is there are always church dinners and recitals and other activities at all the area churches, so even if we don't join one of the other churches, we can still see friends at these other activities.

My mom had a procedure on her heart on Monday and she did well. She is taking it easy and anxious to get back to her regular activities including having the Lambs over to play card games. This was the first time I could go to the hospital to be with my dad during surgery and text my sister often of how everything was going. I am so glad we moved here for times like this.

Yesterday we went to an apple orchard and got pumpkins, apples, squash, and apple cider. Supper was pork chops with apples and vegetables. Dessert was apple dumplings with vanilla ice cream. I love eating what is in season in autumn!

July Update/Looking forward to August

July flew by and it is time to update you on several things happening to our family.

1. We are getting our house ready to put on the market. This is an excellent time to sell a house in Idaho, but unfortunately it seems that most of our subdivision got the same idea to sell now. I promise that I will eventually share more of how we decided to sell our house, but for now please keep our house sale in your prayers. We need our house to sell fast and for a profit once it gets on the market.
2. I am scheduled for thyroid surgery on Tuesday. July was spent getting the ok from the endocrinologist and hematologist that I could have surgery. There were several doctor appointments to get a green light. Please pray for the surgery and recovery.
3. During surgery recovery I will not be allowed to lift more than a gallon of milk for two weeks. We went to Ram's parents for a long weekend over the July 4th holiday. When we returned both Ram and I have spent every day since then getting our house ready to sell. There have been deliveries to give stuff away and take trash to our city. There has been coordinating handymen, landscapers, house cleaners, window washers, painters, and friends to help us for our move.  There has been coordinating selling appliances and other items to friends and neighbors. We are getting very close to our goal to have most of the work done before my surgery. Most of our belongings are now in storage. The chest freezer and one refrigerator are empty. We continue to try to use up food from our one refrigerator and pantry.
4. One of the Lambs spent several hours the last couple of months having a lot of medical tests. Then Ram spent way too long on the phone trying to get the results of those tests. It turned out that this Lamb does have a medical condition that 5% of the population has but most of that 5% doesn't even know they have it unless it is discovered during a MRI or other medical test. We praise God that it is a mild condition and the results simply meant that he has the knowledge that he has this condition and there are no follow-up appointments necessary.
5. Due to this Lamb and Ewe having so many doctor appointments we are going to meet our health insurance deductible. This means that the rest of the calendar year will be "free" medical care for our family. We praise God for health insurance especially during years like this.
6. After working so hard in June and July, I am looking forward to relaxing during surgery recovery time. During this time I have some books I want to read and plan to turn over the rest of getting the house ready to Ram and then to our realtor.
7. The Lambs have been troopers during this transition time. They try to play with the neighbor boys when schedules for both families allow before they are no longer our neighbors. They have put up with most of their toys being put in storage and helped move their beds to another bedroom so that we can clean and paint their bedroom. They have helped with a big variety of tasks. This transition time has not been without tears and mild behavior problems, but that has meant that Ram and Ewe take a break during this crazy time to spend time with the Lambs. They did complete the summer reading program at the library, go to the pool with their friends at least once a week, and we went to a baseball game. We have some activities planned for August to do one more time in the area that we live in. They continue to check carpeting and vents at this house for Legos.

June Family Update

1. The boys just finished two weeks of swim lessons. We went to the city pool for the first time this year. The first week was great weather, the second week was cold and rainy. All three boys passed the level of swim lessons they were in. The last day of lessons was a fun day and they all went off the high diving board into 12-13 feet water.

After swim lessons each day then they went to free lunch in the park. The lunches are simple, usually sandwiches, but my boys love them probably because they don't have a school lunch every day. It worked out great to go directly to lunch after lessons and not have to wait in line. I'm tempted to sign them up for another session of swim lessons because they had so much fun at both lessons and lunch. But I signed them up for the first session so that we could have the rest of our summer free.

2. We are in full declutter mode here. We dropped off these items at electronic waste day last week: old TV, 2 VCRs, old computer monitor and various other computer parts (keyboard, speakers, etc.), and several old batteries. I am finally making it to the boxes in the garage that were never unpacked when we moved here 4 years ago. We have several items ready for the pro-life center-stroller, baby gate, maternity clothes, etc. I cleaned out my garage fridge and we are going to sell it and downsize to just one fridge to save electricity and be better organized. We have had so much trash and recycling from all my clean out projects.

3. We are in minor house repair mode here. The boys bathroom floor was replaced. This was necessary after 4 years of little boys going to the bathroom in the middle of the night. We have other little repair jobs planned for this summer.

4. I have a consultation for surgery on my thyroid at the end of June. I am hoping to get surgery scheduled soon so I can get it over with and go on to recovery. One of the Lambs has been having some medical tests for some minor symptoms. We are waiting for results to know if medication or treatment is necessary for our Lamb. Prayers are appreciated for our Lamb and for Ewe during all of this. 

I'm still here!

I decided to pop in here with a short announcement that I'm still alive after two friends wrote to me checking after very few blog posts recently.

We had a wonderful vacation to southern CA the last week of April. Maybe someday I'll get to posting about our trip. I need to get started on a Shutterfly book before my code from Legoland expires.

Since we have been back May has been full of regular activities with a lot of extra activities thrown in at the end of the school year. Lamb 1 has a few more math lessons to complete his book and then we are going to take summer vacation. I still plan to work with all of them this summer, but we just won't have official school time in the morning, it will more be likely work during the hottest time of the day when their friends are unable to play and read a little longer at bedtime. The Lambs are getting ready for their last track meets, singing with the Sunday School at church with Lamb 1 accompanying them on piano, and their end of the year piano recital. I still have to sign them up for swim lessons and that is the only activity I plan to put them in this summer after our last few summers have been crazy.

The boys and I had our annual checkups. She had a few concerns about Lamb 1 so she is running some labs before we see if we need to see a specialist. Her concern was actually his thyroid and with a family history (Ewe's) she is taking his symptoms seriously. I saw the endocrinologist and we decided that it is time to get my thyroid removed. I am waiting for a consult with the surgeon to have a date for that.

Lamb 3 recently said that we should get rid of half of our belongings. I don't know if I will make it to his goal, but I am in full decluttering mode right now. The recycling can fills up quickly and the shredder is getting a big workout. I plan to get more cleaned out before delivering to the places that I will donate the rest.

Due to all the end of the year activities and the projects that I'm trying to complete, I will be blogging much less than normal this summer. I will try to occasionally pop in during this summer with our family updates. While I'm gone, check out Driving on Sunday blog on my blog list. It is written by one of my former students. He was in kindergarten my first year of teaching and it is so fun to see him with two of his own children now.  I would encourage you to send him a video of driving on Sunday in whatever area of the country that you live in. It is so fun to see where other Lutherans live and their videos.  It reminded me to take some time to rest together as a family to see God's beautiful creation.

Blessed Easter!

Now no more can death appall,

Now no more the grave enthrall,

You have opened paradise,

And Your saints in You shall rise.

Alleluia!

 LSB 633:6

January Family Update

• Lamb 1 had his last Cub Scout Den meeting. We are looking forward to his last Cub Scout Pack meeting next week. We are so proud of his achievements.
• This morning Lamb 2's bill for Stonesetters was finally approved. I have e-mailed several times trying to finish. I felt like we cut it very close this year, but it was not our fault. I learned more than the Lambs through this. Next year all 3 Lambs will be old enough to do Stonesetters and I know that it will be easier after doing it this year.
• We have had a checklist to complete for Stonesetters. Dress clothes ready, learn how to tie a tie, homework, copies of homework, wrote to senator and representatives, prayed for ID legislature daily, and memorized 1 Timothy 2:1-2. I think all that remains is packing lunches and getting dressed on Friday. Their organized binders look beautiful to me after all this work!
• We are plugging away at homeschool. Lamb 2 began cursive this week. When he was in vision therapy, I never thought there would be a day that he would be ready to do cursive. I would have been satisfied if he got to the point of legible printing. After Christmas break this year his printing looked beautiful. He is excited to learn cursive, especially his name.
• We finished our book for January family book club at the library. We have started the book for Lamb 2 to attend Mayor's book club in February. We began working on the reward program to earn hockey tickets. We love reading!
• One of the Lambs has a rash on his back. I believe it is from dry skin that we put lotion on and I think the lotion irritated it instead of helping it. So we are leaving it alone, no lotion and no shirt today when he is inside. I am waiting to see if it improves or if we need to take him to the doctor. I hate decisions like this-obviously I would take my child to the doctor if he had an earache or high fever that wouldn't break, etc. But  something like this I don't know if it will improve in a few days or if a doctor could help it. Thankfully he says it isn't painful so the current plan is to keep an eye on it and take him to the doctor if it gets worse.
• Our PE co-op is doing Crossfit this month. I love to see my boys get exercise during the winter. It is just once a week, but they are working all kinds of muscles. They look forward to PE. 
• We purchased sheet music for Lamb 1 and 2 to go to music contest in March. This is their first time. They are looking forward to learning and memorizing their music.
• I put the Christmas decorations away soon after Epiphany. Since then I keep finding items that go with the Christmas decorations. Hopefully I can have everything put away before February!
• UPDATE: We did take the Lamb to urgent care. He has a viral infection and also eczema. We got a prescription, but the pharmacy was out of it until tomorrow. He is not contagious. In this case I was glad we found out what it was so now we can treat it.

Christmas Photos Part 2

The sweaters arrived in time to wear to church on Dec. 27.  Ram's parents attended church with us. Ram's dad was able to be the photographer for our family photo. Unfortunately Ram was talking to members for way longer than the Lambs would have liked. They were very impatient to get the photo over so they could go get treats at Fellowship Time. After all that I'm amazed the photo turned out as well as it did.

When we went out for sushi, Lamb 3 said he didn't want rice, he just wanted fish. So the chef made him a flower. It was on a $2 plate instead of a $1 plate, but he ate all of it and not many other plates. The chef said since he practiced on the flower it didn't cost extra.

Lamb 1 and Lamb 3 wanted this sweater when I let them pick, probably because it was Boise State colors. I'm guessing this is the last time they will wear matching sweaters from the boys section. 

Lamb 2 wanted this sweater when I let them pick.  He has been asking for more sweaters when it is time to get ready for church. So I bought him both sweaters. He wore this sweater the past two Sundays. 

Santa had pity on our Lambs because they weren't allowed to ask for a big Lego set,  so he brought them a medium size Lego set to share as one of their stocking gifts. They got this specific set because it was on sale and because they "needed" more doors for their creative creations. It is a toy and grocery store. They immediately started looking for food from other Lego sets and planning small toys they could build to add to their new stores. There was some discussion of which of the 3 ways they could build this set they would build together. But once they decided on that, the building went very quickly since all 3 were working on the same set. They said a couple of times that Santa chose well even though they hadn't put a request in.