FOR TODAY, Monday, August 17th 12;45 pm ...
Outside my window...weeds. Weeds and hornets. Overcast. Muggy. Hot. Still, there are no less than seven robins having a banquet in the grass.
I am thinking...that Toa of Boy and I would like a pet guinea pig. Now, there are two major obstacles to this thought becoming a reality. (Well, three, if you count the expense of buying or building a habitat.) The first is, where would we put a guinea pig home? Guinea pigs need a lot of square footage, and we are rather scarce on the "free" square footage department. The second is, would the Jedi and Mama be allergic to the guinea pig? I need to find someone with a guinea pig who needs a pig sitter for the weekend. Then we could find out if a guinea pig would be an allergy issue.
I am thankful for...the wonderful, wonderful weekend we had.
Friday I was congested and miserable. Saturday morning, I woke up at 5am and couldn't go back to sleep, so I read a mystery novel and went back to bed a little after 9. I had a lovely nap, and woke up feeling much better.
We played MarioKart in the afternoon (during which we discovered that if your little boys says "I love you Daisy...I mean Mommy" that maybe everyone should take a break from MarioKart.) Saturday evening we held Monkey Vs Food. This was a huge hit. I made peanutbutter syrup to go over plate sized banana pancakes. Sweetling and the Jedi each ate one pancake. Mama and I each managed a half a pancake. Toa of Boy thought that the entire stack of pancakes should be his, but had to settle for his one, plus the half that Mama couldn't finish, and then immediately declared, "I'm hungry." That evening the Jedi and I laid on the waterbed and read together chapters from our books to prepare for Sunday school.
Sunday held a lovely service, during which God once again put a message about prayer in my path. Sunday afternoon held another delightful nap, followed by a successful battle waged against the laundry monster, a game of Mario party, a family geography challenge to draw and label the seven continents and four oceans from memory, and finally more reading and discussing with the Jedi.
From the learning rooms...we've officially been "back to school" for a week and a half now. Yet still, lessons didn't start till 10:15. (Ok, that isn't quite true, everyone did their morning devotions AND everyone took turns exercising with Wii Active Life: Outdoor Adventure.) Before lunch, Toa of Boy and I had an impromptu fire safety lesson, rehearsing what to do if there was ever a fire in the house.
From the kitchen...Monkey vs Food of course! And, I tried to make chicken fingers on Sunday. They turned out all right, but a little bland. I've decided next time, I'll dip the chicken in ranch dressing, then bread them with Ritz cracker crumbs and bake them.
I am wearing...jean shorts (my favs) and a cute coral tee. Tonight we're taking a family picture to send to the child we sponsor through Compassion International. The Jedi wanted to take one yesterday, but he asked me about it after I had put on sloppy clothes and had just woken up from a nap. Today, my hair is curled, my clothes are casual but cute and attractive. Today I can have my picture taken.
I am creating...I refuse to say "nothing". So help me, I'll come up with something to create rather than leave this prompt empty.
I am going...to Blockbusters after school today. Toa of Boy won the point contest and would like to pick a movie for tonight.
I am reading...Have a New Kid by Friday and How to Make Children Mind without Losing Yours, both by Dr. Kevin Leeman. They are both very good books. I tend to prefer the first over the second, because I think it has a clearer emphasis on molding your child's Attitude, Behavior, and Character through increasing their feelings of Acceptance, Belonging, and Competence. Both, however, are extremely good books. I've put some of the principles into practice and saw immediate and positive results. I read the first book aloud to the Jedi in the car and he also thought it contained great material. We're working together to utilize some of its principles.
I am hoping...hmmmm...that we can get school finished in a timely manner this afternoon? Sweetling still has quite a list ahead of her, so I'm concerned about her finishing in time to go to Blockbuster with us.
I am hearing...the children working together to redecorate Toa of Boy's igloo on Club Penguin, the dishwasher running, the ceiling fan creaking, the keys clacking as I type.
Around the house...the school room transformation is finally complete :) Our new set up is working out really well for us. We still have some furniture that either needs to get stored in the garage or given away.
Last Thursday, I thought I would be oh so clever and clean the living room carpet. I dragged or carried as much extra stuff out as I could and then vacuumed really well. Now, I have a Bissell carpet cleaner, but it's been broken for a while now, because it wouldn't spray out soap from the detergent dispenser. So, it would get the carpet wet, but not clean. However, a couple of weeks ago I found a tip on Works for Me Wednesday about cleaning with vinegar water. I thought, ha! I can do that with my machine. So, I dragged out the furniture, I vacuumed. I pulled the Bissell out of the corner of the laundry room and wiped off the thick layer of dust. I hefted the heavy sucker up the stairs. I filled the water tank with a gallon of warm water and a half a cup of vinegar.
I plugged it in, turned it on, and...although the engine was revving and the carpet brush was spinning, no water was coming out. I went back downstairs and dug the owner's manual out of a drawer. (I knew exactly which drawer it would be in, because the Jedi keeps and organizes all the owner manuals. Otherwise, you know it would have been long lost.) I checked the trouble shooting section. I did all the things it said to do in the trouble shooting section. Still nothing. The last item on the list was to check the drive belt. I got a screwdriver and began trying to pry off the belt access plate. Several frustrated minutes later, I had the thought that if I lacked the mechanical aptitude to even get the access plate off, perhaps I had no business messing around with the drive belt. Nevertheless, I persevered and got the access plate off. The drive belt appeared fine. The clear plastic tubing held water. I tried to figure out where each tube came from and where each tube went. I discovered that the axle that the drive belt was wrapped around was still hot. I closed the access plate. I tipped the machine over and scraped out layers of filth that had caked around the concave housing for the scrub brush. I tried to keep Toa of Boy from putting his face in the filth as he watched Mommy "fixing". Still no water spray. I got a huge tapestry needle from my sewing kit, tipped the machine over, and began jabbing the needle in any small hole-like space on the bottom of the machine, in case there was a clot in some critical spot. I had the fleeting thought that large tapestry needles are not part of any sane person's repair kit. I continued jabbing anyway. When I was convinced that no hidden clots, I plugged it back in (see, I do have some sense) and tried again. Still no cleansing spray. I resorted to kicking and shaking the thing. Toa said, "No no Mommy, you're going to break it!" I replied that it was already broken.
The Jedi came home, and calmly suggested I should just wait until we could take it in to a repair shop.
One of my favorite things...time with family :)
A few plans for the rest of the week:
Monday: movie night
Tuesday: grocery shopping, Tae Kwon Do
Wednesday: Miss Tammy visits in the morning and Mrs Mollie and kids visit in the evening and play wii. Also, Toa of Boy's new glasses should be ready to be picked up.
Thursday: Tae Kwon Do
Friday: family fun night? date night? hmmm...maybe a little of both!
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