The Week in Review

So it's been a whole week that we've survived with Ted away.  One down, 56ish to go, I guess!  Though I purposefully tried not to schedule a whole lot for after his departure, somehow we have managed to stay busy, no surprise.  Here's a quick review:

MONDAY:
I had an OB appointment (21 weeks!), and everything is going well.  I heard the official report from the ultrasound that everything looks very, very good for Baby J, so that was reassuring.  His little profile is so sweet, and now that he's kicking around a little more forcefully, I'm starting to realize that this is really happening!

And the deployment is really happening, too.  After my appointment we went to the airport to drop Ted and his mounds of luggage off.  (He's in training right now for a few more weeks.)  Sunday was a lot harder for me than Monday was--I was very hormonal and emotional on Sunday, probably made worse by all the people giving well wishes and prayers and so on.  But the actual drop-off wasn't too bad.  We went home and had a fairly normal school day, considering.

TUESDAY:
Again, tried to have as normal a day as possible.  We began with our usual school routine, had piano lessons, and did the run out to the farm to pick up our milk.  (My friend Julia and I trade off and go every other week--nice!)  It was POURING most of the day, so we did have some fun lighting candles all over the family room and reading some poetry plus starting book 1 of the Harry Potter series during Lucan's nap time.  Thankfully the rain stopped as we headed out to the farm afterward.

After our evening baths and Skype time with Ted, I put the younger two down and the older 3 piled on my bed and we continued reading more in the Harry Potter book.  I decided that we would continue the series this way--after Kenna is in bed.  It gives the older kids some time with me, and we all truly enjoy it.  Plus, we purposefully waited to start the series with the kids, AND plan to read most if not all of them aloud with the kids so we can discuss things along the way...and Kenna's just not there yet anyway.  We might as well make reading times that include her focused on books she can understand.

WEDNESDAY:
More rain.  And an 8 a.m. dental appointment for Kenna and Lucan.  We were finished by 8:12, LOL.  I had planned a couple of errands, but the stores didn't open until 9, so we went to Walmart and shopped for a few items I needed anyway plus a birthday gift for Tobin and Arden's friend, whose laser tag party was that evening.  Then I ran into the Vitamin Shoppe, and then we browsed Goodwill and found some spring/summer clothes (not that it has really FELT like spring around here, but I have faith that it will warm up for real eventually!) for Lucan, who is officially finished with all the hand-me-downs we had stashed away as well as a few things for the older three.  (Kenna has plenty of clothes, thanks to my awesome sis-in-law, Ski, who sends us her daughter's clothes when she finishes!)

It was spring break for the AWANA program, so we sent the boys off to play laser tag (along with food they were allowed to eat--I sent the remains of Tobin's birthday cake slathered with extra frosting so they could enjoy a treat while the other boys had Maggie Moo's).  I was so proud of the boys for sticking with their own food!  I know it wasn't easy (I did enlist the enforcement help of the birthday boy's mom), but they did it.  Meanwhile, we put Lucan to bed and the girls and I watched a National Geographic DVD, In the Womb.  It was quite good!  Kenna fell asleep on my lap, but Charis and I really enjoyed the whole thing.  It was well done.

THURSDAY:
Finally, a sunny day!  And reasonably warm!  I'm so thankful I decided to make this an errand day, since it rained again all day Friday.  We had a lot of places to go...

• The library on base--just a drop off--only to discover when we got home that the DVD we had watched the night before was still in the player.  Sigh.  (Thanks to a friend who works on base for taking it back the next day!)
• The optical shop so Tobin's glasses could be repaired (we went to the one on base, since we had to go there anyway)
• The BX for a few items...got Charis some summer sandals so she could have them for Easter Sunday
• The commissary for groceries (narrowly avoided having a couple of meltdowns at this point)
• The orthodontist's office to pick up Charis's scans--she is having a consultation with her pediatrician to determine if further review is necessary for some possible sinus issues the doctor saw on her X-rays
• Goodwill to return a pair of sandals Charis had wanted--we got home and discovered they were BOTH right shoes!!!  How weird is THAT?!  (Obviously she has learned to try both shoes on before purchasing, LOL, and obviously I need to pay more attention to what is coming out of my cart!)
• And we attempted to swing by the library, but it was 11:15, and it doesn't open until noon on Thursdays.

Whew.  At home, we had lunch, did a minimal amount of school, finished laundry for the week, and barely managed to get dinner on the table, baths finished, Skype session with Daddy, etc.  Along the way things kind of fell apart...really, the first time it had gotten pretty bad all week.  The beginning of the week sailed along quite smoothly.  I was having a lot of fun with the kids (I KNEW it was a good thing not to schedule any activities this week!), and everyone was making a lot of effort to help me out.  But today was just too much.  We had lots of squabbles, meltdowns, crying, and everyone ended up being sent to bed earlier than they expected.  I did end up having a good talk and prayer time with the older kids, Charis especially, but by the time all that was wrapped up, it was 9:30 and I pretty much fell into bed, exhausted.

FRIDAY:
More rain.  At least we finished our errands on Thursday!  We wrapped up the school week and started thinking about Easter.  The girls tie-dyed eggs using a kit we had found, while the boys opted instead to play with their new Lego purchases, which arrived in the mail that day.  I worked on some kitchen projects, overseeing the egg-coloring process but more than happy to let the girls do what they wanted.  Really, Charis has been SO helpful with the younger kids.  Before Lucan's nap, she had rigged up this "horse" for Kenna to ride.

And she's been great with helping run bath water for the little ones, keeping them happy, or generally doing whatever I need her to do.  Tobin, likewise, has stepped up quite a bit as well and has offered to do general household tasks like empty the dishwasher even when it's not his turn, vacuum, get the mail, etc.  (Of course, I have to be honest, a lot of the time he is hoping to earn extra tickets for computer/Wii time, LOL!)

So anyway, we had a simple dinner of leftovers before going to the Good Friday service at church, which was very lovely.  There was child care for kids under 3, so I had 4 of the kiddos with me.  Kenna sat on my lap for most of the service, and it was actually very nice to just sit and cuddle with her and Tobin, who leaned against me most of the time.  The kids had good comments about the service as well, and it was a great way to lead into the weekend of celebration.  Kenna in particular has been asking all kinds of questions, and it has been so neat to see her grow a little more in her understanding of the gospel.  At age 4, she obviously isn't yet getting the whole picture, but I loved her questions!  "Why did Jesus die on the cross?"  And usually, no matter what I answer whatever her question, she immediately asks, "Why?"  That's my Kenna!

SATURDAY:
Guess what?!  More rain!  But sporadic...I think the kids were in and out of the house a few times, and we did manage to get to the library without getting rained on.  Today we CLEANED and prepared for Easter.  We did not get around to doing our traditional Easter Story Cookies, although I had plans to make them according to our new dietary standards.  But we did make vanilla cupcakes so I could use some more of our leftover chocolate frosting for an Easter Sunday treat.  Also made a squash bake for Easter dinner, which we spent at our friends' house in the neighborhood.  I let the kids watch a DVD while I propped up my feet in bed and worked on clues for a scavenger hunt that I wanted to surprise the kids with for Easter...also had time to catch up on some business work/emails/etc. 

That evening after baths, etc., the older kids and I enjoyed another reading night before tucking in.  And then I enjoyed some quiet time to read myself, beginning with a couple of chapters in Cheaper by the Dozen.  Also finished up Baby Name Book #1, which may be the first and last name book!!  Yes, I found one I like!  Need to talk with Ted about it, though, and I'm not totally sure about the middle name.  But I went to sleep feeling like our little guy is becoming a bit more known to me...we pray hard over the names and characters of our children and ask God to direct us to the right name and give us a vision for what He wants for that child.  So choosing a name is like the first step in knowing a little bit more about this new little person!

And I'll save Easter for a separate post. :-)