Back to School

Our past week started out early on Monday. Andrew and Jackson were up before 5 getting ready to head out to the ranch to work his cattle. I was up early to call into the Macon YMCA at 5:15 to sign Ellie up for gymnastics. They said to call early because they fill up and to just keep calling when it was busy. So I kept hitting redial for about 15 minutes before I finally got through. But I got her signed up so we are good to go. She doesn’t start for about another month but she is very excited. Also, the night before we set the alarm clocks again to start getting used to the new routine. We had a busy day ahead of us, so getting up early would help out. I could hear Ellie moving around upstairs but she didn’t show up downstairs for a while. She finally made it and was all dressed and ready for the day. I finished up our blog post from last week and then got on the bike. Then it was time to make sure everyone was ready, do a few quick things around the house and then it was off to meet Lincoln and Ellie’s teachers. Their sneak-peek times were at the same time so we went to the Primary first to meet Mrs. Quigley, Lincoln’s teacher. Of course there is always the mound of paper work you have to fill out first. Thankfully the twins were okay during this point, but once they got into the classroom they were a little bit more unruly. Ellie helped Lincoln get his supplies put away in the right place while I signed up to help with the different parties, Parent-Teacher conference and a few other forms. Lincoln did fine up until Mrs. Quigley asked if she could get a picture of Lincoln and he just dug his head into my stomach and refused to take a picture. Finally she asked if it would be okay if I took it and he agreed. I wanted to get one of them together but that definitely wasn’t going to work. I think he was a little taken aback by her not having any hair and having a bandana on her head. I wasn’t sure if I should talk to him at all about it beforehand and decided not to. So we talked a little afterwards. I just told him she was sick and some days wouldn’t feel very well so he needed to be a very good boy. As we were leaving the school, we got to see some of his friends.

Next up was taking Ellie to Ray Miller to meet her 3^rd grade teacher, Mr. Landon. She was so excited to have him as a teacher. Again, we got her supplies put away and I signed all the forms while the twins opened and closed cabinets and played with various things. They do make things more “entertaining”. Ellie ended up recognizing some names of a couple girls in her class that she was excited to see and then was very hesitant about a couple boys that came in the same time we were there. So it should be an interesting year. And she was excited to see her friend Lauren on our way out.

I decided to run by Sherwin-Williams when we were done and try to get some paint mixed up for Ellie’s room. I was going to have them mix a couple different shades but he said he couldn’t do that. I would have to mix a sample myself and then they would color match that. So we headed home so I could quickly do that and then started making our way back to the store. On the way there I decided I would just try to do it later because it was already 10:50, I had promised the kids we would pick up McDonalds for them for lunch and we had someone coming to spray for spiders at 11:30. So we just headed straight to McDonalds and when we got home, the bug guy was already there. So the kids went in to eat while we talked about what he was going to spray for and he also said he would come back in a couple days and spray and knock down a couple bigger wasp nests that were up in our taller peaks. I am so glad he is coming back to do that. I have gotten all the ones I could reach but they always make me nervous.

Andrew and Jackson got back from working cattle a little after 12 so Jackson showered and got ready to go meet his teacher. Andrew paid him for his help with the cattle and he immediately put it in our Game Changer Jar. Andrew didn’t realize he was going to do that, so he gave him some to put in the jar and some to keep. His started at 1, so we headed back over to Ray Miller around that time. I was grateful he was friendly and polite to his teacher. It was the same story of putting away supplies and signing papers while the twins again messed with the cabinets. There was even a big box of Legos that some kids were playing with that they didn’t even touch. They just wanted to mess with everything else. And this was after I had pleaded with them to behave. As we were waiting to talk to the teacher, Bennett was messing with the old school pencil sharpener calling it a fishing pole. And I didn’t get any pictures of Jackson at school. So aside from the twins misbehaving, I think our sneak-a-peeks went well. The kids have some great teachers and I am anxious to see how their years progress.

Once we got home, I put the twins down for a nap. Then I went back to the paint store and got my paint. The kids spent the rest of the afternoon playing with their friends. So I finished laundry, did some cleaning, got clothes ready for the next day and prepped some stuff so I could make the Kanakuk coffee cake for our first day of school breakfast. Before I knew it, it was time to get the twins up and get them ready to go meet their teachers. I gathered the other kids and we headed to Faith Lutheran. I went ahead and got there a little early since I knew the parking would be crazy. When we walked into the school, the twins tried to head to Lincoln’s room from last year and were upset when I made them go to their room. They quickly recovered though when they found some new toys to play with. Andrew showed up a little after we did and we chatted with the teachers for a bit. Sharla has had all of our kids and I told her that these two may do her in. Grandma Jane only had Lincoln, but he loved her and I think she will be great with the twins. It will definitely be an interesting year seeing how these two adjust.

When we were done, we decided to head to La Fuente for dinner. The weather had cooled off and there was a cloud cover so we decided to eat outside. It worked out pretty well and we were in and out of there in about a ½ hour. Andrew headed back to the office after dinner while the rest of us went home. I let them play outside for a bit but all of their friends had already headed in for the night. Soon we headed in too to do baths, get lunches ready and make sure everything was ready to go the next day. Andrew got home just as I was putting the kids to bed and got to tell them goodnight. Then Leah sent me a picture of Alex and Lincoln together when they were just a year old asking how they could be going to Kindergarten. At that point it just hadn’t really hit me yet. It usually does later, like when I walk out of Faith Lutheran without any kids in tow. And then again when I pick up the twins at 11 and realize that I won’t be picking up Lincoln until 3. But after the kids went to bed, I went ahead and made the batter for the coffee cake, taking the chance that it will be fine to cook in the morning. I tried to research it and saw quite a few overnight coffee cake recipes. But it still didn’t work quite right. My topping always sinks. I think I mix the butter in too much.

Our first day of school didn’t start out quite right but got much better. I saw lights on and then thought I heard Andrew get in the shower. I knew it was still early but when I finally looked at the clock, it was just a little after 1. So I went in to check on him because I thought he may be sick and there was Miles. He had a bloody nose and came downstairs with his face and hands covered. So Andrew got him into the shower. I headed upstairs to check out the mess and it wasn’t as bad as I thought it was going to be. I just had to clean a bit in the bathroom, a few spots on the floor and then I took his comforter and blanket and put them in the wash to soak. I did eventually get back to sleep but that 5:15 alarm was early. I guess Andrew had more trouble getting back to sleep. I got up and got ready, got the coffee cake going. The older ones got up around 6:15 and then Ellie got Lincoln and the twins up and even helped them get dressed. So our morning ended up going pretty smoothly and we weren’t too rushed. I pulled the kids outside over the next half hour or so and got their pictures while the others ate breakfast.

Then it was time to head to school. Andrew dropped his truck off at Faith Lutheran so we picked him up there so he could go with us to drop off the other kids. He is so used to driving us, that he could barely stand that I was driving and it was out of his control J.  We joked with Jackson that Andrew came so he could tackle him if he tried to jump out of the car before we got to school. The line to drop off at Ray Miller was pretty long so I hope that changes as the days move on. Then it was time to head to the Primary. I just parked and walked Lincoln in while Andrew stayed with the twins in the car. I wanted to show him where he was supposed to sit while he waited for his teacher. He didn’t know anyone who was sitting there so he was getting nervous that I was leaving. But then he spotted Alex so he called out to him and they were talking when I left.

 It looked like other parents stuck around until the teachers came, so I felt kind of bad about that. But we had to get the twins to school and Andrew to work. The twins were very excited to go to school. I think it is just about the toys right now, so hopefully they will still like it after today. I showed them where to put their backpacks away and they jumped right in. They gave me hugs when I was ready to leave and were fine staying there as long as I said I would be back soon to get them. And then we left…alone. I never cried but did get a little sick feeling in my stomach when I came home to an empty house. But the time went by so quickly because I have a big list of things I want to accomplish while they are gone.

The twins were out on the playground playing when I picked them up. Miles spotted me first and ran up to me while Bennett was busy flying some girls around in his plane J.

I think they had a good day and said they wanted to come back the next day. But later on, Miles was a little noncommittal and also told me that he wasn’t a good boy at school. I wasn’t sure what to think J. After lunch they went down for naps before we had to pick up the others from school. I made sure to leave early because I knew the lines would be long and I didn’t want to leave Lincoln waiting for me too long at his school. But he still asked what took me so long when I picked him up. But he loved his first day of kindergarten. They all had a great first day of school and were excited to see I had cookies waiting for them when they got home. We ate an early dinner so that Andrew could head out to the ranch to work on some fencing. He even took his new neoprene waders with him so that he could wade out in the pond. He said they worked pretty well. While he was gone, the kids and I finished cleaning up after dinner and then headed outside to play. The twins had fun rolling baseballs down the driveway and then chasing them and trying to catch them with their gloves. Then all of the boys decided to get into Lincoln’s baseball stuff and came out with their hats on, his batting helmet and bat to play a little ball. We made them stay out front so we could watch them and make sure no one got hit with the bat. They had a fun time, even when Ellie hit Grace with a line drive to the leg. Thankfully they had moved on to a tennis ball by that point. But then it was time to head in, do baths/showers and get ready for the next day. Andrew didn’t get home until after nine but was able to get a lot done.

I forced myself to get up early the next morning and get a bike ride in before I had to get ready to take the kids to school. And I actually got the kids to school on time. I let Lincoln get up in the front seat while we were waiting in the drop off line and he was so excited. He never has sat in the front seat, so he had the biggest smile on his face. After I dropped off the kids, I ran by Andrew’s office so we could pick out a paint color to repaint with window panels on the exterior of his office. We also have been talking about getting a new sign and tried to measure off how big we wanted it. Then it was off to Wal-Mart and Aldi to do some grocery shopping. I was able to get all the groceries put away and a few other quick things done before I had to pick up the twins. Their teachers had reassured me that the boys were doing well. Sadly, Bennett fell while they were playing and ended up with what they thought was just a bloody nose. But after seeing the dried blood on his bottom lip (and how he kept crying-he doesn’t do that with just a bloody nose) I decided to look in his mouth and there was quite a bit of bleeding in there. So I just brought him home so I could clean him up and get a better look at things. You could tell it was hurting him quite a bit because he just kept crying. Well he ended up having a lose tooth up front. After a call to my mom who called my dad, we decided to take him over to the office quickly before everyone left for lunch. Then one of our dentist’s employees was in my dad’s office when we got there just talking with someone and I told her we may be heading over that way. She asked if I would mind her looking at it, so she did quickly and said that it should be okay. She said it will probably reattach but just to be on the lookout for a few things until it is actually supposed to fall out. Then my dad checked him out and thought things were okay. They tried to give him a sucker but everything hurt his mouth at this point. Miles just sat on the couch by him and enjoyed his.  I ended up running by Dairy Queen on the way home to get him a shake. He tried it and started crying. Again, Miles really enjoyed his though. I decided to just have the boys lay down on the couch and watch a movie. Bennett chose the Polar Express and after resting a bit he decided he wanted something to eat. So I cut up a PB&J into bite-size pieces and he quickly ate that and wanted another one. Then he tried his shake again after a while and it was better. He eventually fell asleep while Miles watched over him to make sure he was okay. Then Miles fell asleep for a bit before I had to get them up to pick up the others. Bennett’s mouth just kept bleeding so he woke up with more dried blood around his mouth and the side of his face. He would cry off and on throughout the rest of the day but did start feeling better.

I tried to have dinner ready a little before five since Jackson and Andrew had football practice at 5:30. But trying to attend to Bennett put me a little behind so Andrew helped me finish when he came home. Then he and Jackson ate quickly and left while Ellie and Lincoln helped me clean up. Then we spent the rest of the evening playing outside and enjoyed a beautiful sunset.

When Bennett woke up the next day his upper lip was still swollen but I think he was starting to feel better so I felt okay with him going to school. While they were at school I got busy. I finished cleaning out our big trash can that really stunk and then I went to work making freezer meals. I ended up with three bags of chicken taquitos, 3 containers of a baked pasta, freezer to crockpot chicken fajitas and then made some Southwestern Beef Wraps to have for dinner that night and then freeze the rest. We still had leftovers from our last couple of meals so I didn’t need to save them for lunch. I was still finishing up packaging everything and cleaning up so Andrew picked up the twins for me since he was on his way home for lunch anyways. The twins had a great first week at school, aside from the loose tooth accident. Their teachers said it went well and they were happy when they came home so that was great.

After the twins went down for a nap, I worked on a few more things for dinner and then went to work in the office. I had a pile of papers that needed to be filed along with cleaning out the supplies baskets in the closet. I found Ellie and Lincoln’s old notebooks from last year and it was fun to look through them quickly and see what they drew and wrote. I also decided to use one of the baskets in the closet as a spot for old chapter books that Jackson and Ellie have already read that I wanted to keep for the younger kids. So I gathered up the books from Jackson and Ellie’s rooms and packed them away. Then it was time to pick up the older kids. Jackson had practice again that night so we ate early before he and Andrew had to leave. Lincoln was complaining at dinner that his tooth that was loose was hurting him but he was afraid to pull it out. Ellie told him he could twist it and before we knew it, he had pulled it out.  He was excited and a little shocked that he had lost his first tooth. It was a tiny think so we put it in a baggie before we lost it.

 It was a beautiful day so we were anxious to get outside and play after we cleaned up. Then that night Lincoln put his tooth under his pillow and thankfully the tooth fairy remembered to take it. Andrew left early Friday morning to go out to the ranch and do some bulldozing to prepare for new fences and corrals. He was out there until later in the evening.  I cleaned the bathrooms before the kids got up and did some of my other chores around the house before it was time to take the kids to school. The twins don’t have school on Mondays and Fridays so they got to come home with me afterwards. And so far, the older ones have been good about getting up and ready for school. When we got home, I did my workout and then picked up around the house for the carpet cleaners who were coming later that morning. They actually showed up earlier than expected, so we ate lunch quickly and then headed to my parents. Later that day Lissy came into town and then Andy and his family got into town that evening.  Autumn was very nice to me and picked up a couple bookcases from Ikea for me for Ellie’s bedroom before they headed home. The kids did a little swimming and tortured us with the leaf blower then Ellie and Lincoln decided they wanted Briley and Baylor to come over for a sleepover. But the twins wanted to have a sleepover at my parents. So I left them behind and packed up the others to head home. When we got home, I got the pullout couch all set up for the girls and sleeping bags for the boys, made some popcorn, let the girls pick out a couple of crafts to do and got a movie started. Baylor loved exploring all of the toys in the playroom while the girls started on their craft. When I checked on them later that night, it was evident craft time didn’t go over so well, the movie was almost over and Ellie and Lincoln were still up. They eventually went to sleep though.

The kids slept in a bit the next morning. They were all up when Andrew headed out for a bike ride with a couple other serious cyclists from Kirksville. They did 36 miles and although they dropped Andrew a couple of times I feel like he did an awesome job. After he was done, it was time to head out to the ranch again for some more dozer work. He got quite a bit done. I was able to get a ride in on the trainer, do some laundry and pick up a bit around the house. Ellie and Briley were excited that I let them do a bubble bath…there were tons of bubbles. And Baylor spent most of the morning sharpening pencils with our electric pencil sharpener. He loved it.

We headed back over to my parents later that morning. The kids spent the day swimming and riding their bikes among other things. Finley’s birthday party was that day and Autumn had some super cute decorations for the flamingo party that evening. While we were waiting for the party to start, “Crank it Like a Chainsaw” came on so all the kids that went to Kanakuk (Molly included) had to get up and do the dance. I was excited to see Jackson join in too.

The party went well and Finley was a happy girl. My dad set up the projector for the kids to watch Home but the twins were upset because I had Andrew take them home before it was over. They had a long day and were needing to get to bed. Then Ellie and Lincoln decided to stay at my parents for one last sleepover. So Jackson and I headed home and went to bed.

Andrew went to the office Sunday morning and then picked up Ellie and Lincoln and brought them home to get ready for church. After church I did my grocery shopping and had to move quickly to get back in time for Andrew to go to Jackson’s football equipment handout. Then after I got all of the groceries put away, we headed over to my parents for just a bit. Ellie had some crayons she wanted to give Briley and we got there just a little before they left. Then Lissy left a little after they did. We headed back home soon after. I thought Jackson and Andrew would be gone all afternoon but they were back by 2 with all of Jackson’s gear. Ty and Alex were here so all of the boys were in awe when Jackson put on all of his pads and helmet. Then they decided it would be fun to hit him. Jackson did end up with Andrew’s old number, 16, which is fun. I can’t believe he is starting tackle football and I think he is starting to get a little nervous about it. He even prayed at dinner time that night that he wouldn’t get a concussion. Andrew took him out back and had him practice hitting a little and then it was time to take it all off and find some place to store all of it.

Andrew went to the office after all of that and Jackson helped me put together the bookcases for Ellie’s room. Then I also put together the vanity. It all went together pretty easily except the mirror for the vanity was shattered so I am hoping they will send us a new one. And they ended up being quite different colors of white, so I am going to paint the bookcases to hopefully match the vanity a little better. Ellie worked on taking down the pictures in her room and packing up her dolls L. Why do these kids keep growing up? I put a few other items in the doll box and packed it and the doll bed away in the basement to hopefully pull out many years from now. We cleaned up the packaging mess and then it was time to work on dinner. Andrew came home a little later to grill some steaks and it was a beautiful night to eat outside. I also decided last minute that it would be a good night for a fire and some s’mores. So while I was cleaning up, Andrew mowed the yard quickly and Jackson got the wood into the fireplace. I had put away some s’mores stuff from the spring so the marshmallows were a little sticky which I thought was fine but Ellie was flustered by it. The kids just had more fun lighting the marshmallows on fire and eating chocolate than eating an actual s’more. The twins tried but decided they were too big to take bites.

Andrew and Jackson finished up the night throwing the football around while I got the younger boys in the bath. Then it was time to prepare for a new school week-our first full week of school. And I have big plans to get a lot done with Ellie’s room. Hopefully that happens, but we’ll see.