Bachan's Not Allowed or One Rainy Day

 In honor of the rain, I brought the boys their winter drinks this a.m. They were thrilled. I hear Dad woke up at 0800 as I left the house. Such are Tuesdays - up and at em! 

Benny and I did a bit of school this a.m. He wanted to save math and Bible to do with mama when the little boys are sleeping. That's fair. 

I soon discovered Benny really wanted to build a fort. We couldn't go outside in the rain because *I* didn't want to get all wet. The 2-year-olds were a bit "rowdy" and building a fort seemed a grand idea. Into the "Wreck Room" they went. LOL  They started with the typical fort. The comforter came off the top bunk....

Danny & Charles

They dragged chairs into the room, more blankets came out... the fort grew and grew.  By the time it was done it was truly amazing. I have no photos as I was not allowed to take more pictures. 

I heard words I was not prepared for, words I've never heard before from the boys! "Bachan's not allowed in the fort!" 

WHAT? 

As my friend Rachel said on Facebook, " Forts are not proper forts if a grandma can wander in Willy-Nilly. "

They barricaded the door. I was shut out. 

It only took minutes to realize the benefits of this situation. THEY were shut in, contained, happy and entertaining themselves. I set in the dark hallway, because the boys insisted on darkness, and caught up on MarcoPolos. It was a win win.  They kept busy for about 1 1/2 hours. 

Right up until the moment they yelled for me to break through the barricade and take their picture sleeping in the fort, which I was happy to do! 

Benny, Danny & Charles

The 2's love me to read to them. Charles especially seems to like to snuggle on the couch and read. He brought a book I know well. I noted the name written in the corner. Benny said, "I must have written that." ::snort:: I assured him it wasn't him...Uncle Alex marked this one. 

A Sonlight read aloud we still enjoy 

We moved on to play a rousing game with Charle's big red therapy balloon.  Arielle came home and I was off. 

I ran to the pharmacy again - I didn't envision multiple trips to the pharmacy each week when we dreamed of retirement. I have requested they give us 3 months instead of 1 month supplies of all Dad's meds. I was told Medicare doesn't like to do this, but Dad is on over 20 meds....this is getting silly. LOL I'm a frequent flyer at the pharmacy. The pharmacist agreed and is working on the situation. 

I dropped off books at the library. 

I took a minute, ok ten minutes, to sit in the parking lot and send two Marco Polos...because I literally can't find a moment or space at home to do Marco Polo these days. 

I ran home and got Dad lunch. He went down for a nap and I....

ran and picked up a new friend Rachel, not to be confused with online Rachel, and off we went to Sophia's for tea/coffee. A funny thing that happened....I kept my eye on the clock as I don't like to be THAT customer. At some point I noted they were sweeping floors and straightening up and I ASKED when they closed. They said 3, it wasn't yet 2. We sat and visited, and I marveled at how much we covered in such a short amount of time... eventually there was us and one elderly gentleman reading the paper. We began to smell pine. They were mopping the floor. I asked if they were closed...they WERE. It was 3....but the clock still said 1:45 p.m. I let them know their clock needs new batteries. ::snort:: 

Ah man - I don't take photos of friends when we get together because I never want them to think I am spending time with them to have blog fodder. Certainly not with a NEW friend like Rachel. However, I SHOULD have take a shot of our mugs! No mug shot today, that was my only mug. 

We decided to pull out all the prepared bits and pieces of freezer food for dinner. Michael and GG have developed sore throats, and I assumed they wouldn't want to eat. I assumed wrong. Nonetheless we made progress on clearing out the convenience food we purchased for dip-netting.  

The girls and Michael have been completing weekly writing prompts. One is picked each week and each write on the same prompt. We catch a moment when we're all home, and I read them all...because I am more about journal writing and such than being TOLD what to write....

3 perspectives on Murder and Mayhem

This week's prompt was "murder and mayhem" and it was HILARIOUS to see how all three treated it differently. Michael's was a humorous rant on alliteration, Allie's delved into psychology and Stacia rewrote the ending of Grimm's Rapunzel.

I'm not sure what happened...we moved on from prompts to talking and the girls went to bed. I looked up and it was 0100 and I told Michael I thought I was going to end the conversation and go to bed. LOL  Which I did. 

I Can Because God Can

A few FB thoughts I shared, posted to remember. 

Dad woke up VERY early this a.m. confused, convinced I was calling him, and suffering a few ill-effects from his over-indulgence yesterday. I found myself muttering, "I can't do this forever," and God is so faithful to remind me through Holy Spirit and His word, "Yes, you can." ::snort:: I can because God can and He strengthens me clear down in the center of who I am. (Phil 4:13, Eph 3:14-21) He rules in my heart/life through faith, I KNOW He loves me and cares, He will walk with me and refill me as often as I come to Him. He can do so much more than I need or think to ask of Him.

Today, I will quit muttering that I can't and will do what He clearly says I can.

And I will drink lots of tea to stay awake. #mugshot

Note: wrote this hours ago and now Dad is at peace, satisfied with breakfast and back on course...actually decided he was tired and is taking a nap.

And I AM strengthened remembering I can do every single thing He has called me to do.

#mugshot

We Went Out - Together

The forecasters have predicted rain showers, winds and flood watches for our valley for a few days. We went to bed knowing we may well wake up to a wet world. I LOVE the sound of wind and RAIN - heavy RAIN on our metal roof. I opened the windows and enjoyed the storm. 

Rainy #mugshot - Mug created over 20
years ago, by Arielle I believe. 

Allie worked late Friday night and was not up when Stacia and I had to run into town to pick up some greens for the most spoiled chickens in the valley. We ran through a coffee stand and discovered they make a great breakfast sandwich - which we enjoyed warm in our car, with a view of the mountains. Stacia dropped off a resume at a place she would like to work a shift or two a week. They didn't sound like they were hiring but one never knows. We ran to the church and set up the coffee corner. We ran to Freddies and purchased milks, coffee and cream for said corner. 

We got home with enough time to say hello and goodbye to Allie. 

We were excited for the evening. We'd been invited out to someone's house as a family for DINNER. Y'all...this doesn't happen often. Four or five years ago we were invited for a game night to a friend's. We were invited over to another's and covid lock downs interfered. We have people over. We've wondered about this...like we assumed it was because we were a big family - but we are no longer a big family. We thought maybe it was intimidating because we were chaplains - but we are no longer chaplains. I suspect maybe people have made having others into their home a much bigger, scarier thing than it need be. Maybe, our culture has gotten so busy we neglect "breaking real bread together" - you know house to house and not at an uber-organized event/potluck. ::snort::  In any event...when we had that wildly crowded party for Stacia (who hates crowds), a friend invited us to their home for dinner! Stacia, Allie and I had been out to their place. Michael had never met Sheri's husband, Chris.  We had about 3 weeks to figure out a fun spot for GG to spend the night because we were determined to go - and their house has lots and lots of steps to the entrance. 

Allie would be working, and Stacia wanted to join us. They are our usual fall back when Michael and I want to run out together. Alex was unable to stay with GG. He often helps us out. I sent an email to Arielle and Bre and asked if either of them would like to have GG over for dinner on Friday night. We'd drop him off at 4:30 and promised to be back by 8 to get him. 

Bre and the kids responded first! It turned out wonderful. I LOVE the kids are spending time in a smaller settling with their GG, and he is able to interact with them more personally. Bella said they needed to think of a game they could play so he would think they are fun. My heart!  I warned Dad not to cheat. Yes, he does. Benny doesn't like to play games with him anymore because he is indignant that GG cheats. I knew Bella and Gideon would be too. Dad seemed surprised I would even suggest he cheat. ::snort:: 

Bre sent me photos throughout the evening - it was like going out when we had little ones at home. 

📷by BreAnne

Dominoes were a hit with all generations. Annie insisted they also play Pretty, Pretty Princess. 

📷by BreAnne

Jojo had absconded with GG's jewelry and brought it back. This was a fantastic outing for Dad. I really think we need to think about doing this on a regular basis. He must get awfully bored with the four of us. 

📷by BreAnne

While Dad enjoyed his time out with Bre and the kids, we enjoyed our dinner with Chris, Sheri and Shae. The spaghetti and salad were spot on.  The apple crisp was yummy - not sure why we don't make more of them. I've told Stacia I will remedy the sad situation. Mike and Chris toured Chris' restoration projects. Sheri and I enjoyed a visit and Shae and Stacia did the same. And then? Chris suggested we go see how the creek/river was doing. We had just enough time! The creek was more like a raging river. 

Stacia and Shae came down in their own UTV. I didn't ask about photos and Shae is a minor, so you don't get to see her charming smile. 

We had such a good evening...being out as a family with friends. The only thing which would have made it better was having Allie along. Sheri said we'll have to do it again when she can make it.  BTW I was feeling very cool in Chris' flight jacket! 

We got home right at GG's bedtime. We were trying to keep his routine as much as possible. We are all thrilled with the success of our evening out.  The evening ended differently than planned when our power went out. 

This was actually better than screen time anyway! 

It's Field Trip Friday!

GG was up and ready early this morning. I made a slide, sent a couple slides to Pastor, ordered Bible study material for September's study, and registered one of our gals for conference. 

I left the house at 0900 to meet Arielle and two of her sons at "the farm." Cory had the day off and kept Charles at home with him as he's been a bit under the weather. 

Benny has been learning the letter "F" this week. He's written it, he's sounded it out, he's looked for it in other words...and today...on FFFFriday, we visited a local FFFFFarm to pick some FFFFood for our dinner table. 

We often visit the farm for Harvest Festival. We love it - it's crowded. In fact, so crowded we didn't do a lot of the things last year. Arielle heard you could go to the farm to u-pick and they are gracious enough to let the children play on the things that are out. It was wonderful. I am glad we went even though it was raining last night and this morning. It cleared up for our trip.  Danny loved the mud after the rain! 

📷by Arielle

They gave us little knives, told us which things we could harvest today and how big they had to be before we harvested them. I'm seriously wondering why I grow a garden. Maybe I should just u-pick. 

It was harder than one would think to find FFFFood as the weeds grow up right with the food. 

Searching for food 📷by Arielle

📷by Arielle

📷by Arielle

Success! 

We picked broccoli, sugar snap peas, zucchini, kale and it seemed like there was something else. I began to envision a stir fry....though I'd already prepped for chicken/mozzarella ravioli.  

When we were done picking the boys played on some of the toys which are around. 

📷by Arielle

Arielle, Danny & Benny

I want to build one of these in our yard....I think it could be great fun. Maybe a roller slide off our deck. LOL It would probably make it easier to get GG out in the yard too. LOL 

We went through the maze. Benny was sure he could beat his mom through - and he did. In the midst of mazing...we misplaced Danny. I could hear him and then it went SILENT as only a hiding 2 year old can be. We called, we searched...we didn't see his ginger head anywhere. 

I heard a bit of a laugh...and then "Moving under." Sure enough, I looked low...

One can move REALLY fast through the maze if one crawls UNDER the walls. ::snort:: 

Back at home the girls were working on homework and Allie was prepping for work. We had a nice talk spanning budget, priorities in this season, time management...college in RESIDENCE takes more HOURS than college online...though I think it only SEEMS to take more time...maybe. One can't go about their normal routine and fit college in the early morning or midnight hours. One has set times to be at set classes...and lots of homework to do one someone elses time schedule. This is totally new for Stacia as global lets the student work at their own pace. Liberty did have deadlines so Allie is a bit more familiar with deadlines...but all the time constraints and deadlines set by those outside of your home....well that's new for both girls. Things like Stacia is scheduled to have her wisdom teeth out one Monday morning. That wasn't a problem at all with Global...she would have done extra work and scheduled that week off. It's a bit trickier now. 

We wrapped up our discussion and Mike and I got ready to go sign our taxes. Yes, I did say taxes. Our accountant assures us we are NOT her latest clients. ::blush:: 

As Mike headed to get ready Dad said he wanted to go on a walk. This is a GREAT idea as he is NOT moving around enough...and he IS gaining weight.  Michael asked which way we were going and said if we weren't back he'd pick us up. 

He made it about a block... and then he sat. I was glad Michael drove up. 

When we got home from our adventure Stacia and Millie had gone to a local lake. 

Yellow leaves on ground

It was a fun day...at the end of a busy week. We closed it with a dinner using all our farm fresh produce and a bit from the produce co-op as well. I made a big pan of stir fry veggies and cashews and we topped our butter/garlic braised chicken ravioli with them. 

Comfort food at it's best. I think I'll go make a steamer (got some sugar free English Toffee syrup) and read or watch some comfort show on Prime. 

What DAY is This?

These are the days which cause me to realize I am nearing the end of my middle ages. ::snort:: 

I was out of the house at 0800. Stacia and I enjoyed breakfast and Bible study. We're going to have to figure out the girls' new schedules. It seems someone is always heading off to the college. I THINK no one has a class tomorrow... Anyway - we headed to Sophia's. We ran errands for an hour. We picked up Stacia's car from the church where we'd left it. I knew timing would be close and wasn't sure I would be going home as early as Stacia needed me to. 

After errands we both got our LAST hair cut from Courtney. It is so hard to find someone to cut your hair when you move...took us four years! Which is why I had long, long hair. And now, two years after finding her she's moving out of state! Ugh. 

Oh, and those are my new glasses. I don't LOVE them like I did my last pair, but they fit this year's budget much better than the old pair did, an added bonus is I see better. ::snort:: THIS pair was on the $9 rack at Walmart - but still cost $200 by the time they added bifocals and such. 

I had about 20 minutes between haircuts and needing to be at BreZaak's.  Pastor Scott caught me at the right moment, and we talked about some new technology. Bella had some dental work to get done - I stayed with Gideon, Annie and Jojo. A magical science supply package came from Rainbow Resources. 

I fed them lunch and we spent the rest of the time on a rousing game of princess memory. 

Bre came home and I left to drive across town to deliver 6 dozen eggs to my best egg customer. I took advantage of the time to do a bit of shopping. I headed home...got home in time to say goodbye to Allie, and hello to Stacia before she headed off to Japanese. 

Michael had an appointment to help with pain and mobility, he then ran some errands. 

I fixed dinner, we ate...

I'm tired. 

I'm done. 

Fun with Grands!

Allie and Stacia had a FULL day at college. They were at school from 9 - 5....then we had dinner and went to church for a prayer walk. Michael met with Alex for lunch. I stayed home until this evening.... I had four grands visit. Bre had a well child for Trudy and it's always easier if she can focus on one child at a time at the doctor's. 

The kids were happy when I brought out the snack basket. 

We also made a craft they picked up at the library on their way over. 

Annie and Bella helped me organize this container. It looked like a porcupine when we started...pencils, pens, sharpies, colored pencils, stamps, gum, post it notes all jumbled together. First the girls tried each pen to see which ones were working. 

"Grandma! I made a rainbow!"

A thing of beauty

We discovered GG grabs a pen (or maybe 2 or 3) every week at church. I have a LOT of church pens. We also discovered we DO have Sharpies (check out the bottom right section) and LOTS of breath helps (gum, tic tacs, mints, spray...) I have educated all but GG on the correct organization of this container. I have great hopes. GG doesn't grab pens from here - he has another stash in his bedroom. I don't know why. It just is. He likes pens. 

The kids bounced me until I was sick. 

Gideon discovered a strange disease has afflicted our trees. 

I do love seasonal changes.