To Boston and Back

On Friday, my mom and I took a quick trip to Boston.  I've only been to Boston thrice (if that's not a word, it should be) in my life.  I went with my brother and aunt at about age ten on an educational trip, with my class in 7th grade, and then about 9 years ago with JD and his family.  The reason for this trip was to scope things out for the class trip that I will be taking with my students in May.  This will be the first time I've headed up a trip like this and I want to know what I'm doing and where I'm going when I have ten kids belonging to other people depending on me.

We had bought tickets for the megabus six weeks ago ($36.50 round trip for both of us) and rented a hotel room about half a mile from South Station.  Our trip from Burlington to Boston went smoothly.  We left on time and arrived in Boston before our ETA.  The bus was a no-frills double-decker with reclining seats, a bathroom, and wi-fi.  We sat in the upper deck, and between a sandwich from Subway, wi-fi and my iPod touch, and my nook, I was all set.  Upon arrival, we walked (through Chinatown) to our hotel which was located in the Theater District.  Next, we found the nearest T (subway station) and made our way to the Museum of Science where my class and I will be spending the night.  By then, it was raining.  We took the T to Union Oyster House for a quick dinner at America's oldest restaurant.  I was chilled to the bone, it was dark and wet, and we didn't know (yet) where any nice warm shopping places were, so we headed back to the hotel.  I read an entire book before going to sleep.

On Saturday, we walked to the beginning of the Freedom Trail and made our way to most of the sites on it.  It was chilly and windy, but not horrible considering it's February.  We visited old cemeteries, churches, meeting houses, and Paul Revere's home.  We didn't make it over the river to Bunker Hill Monument and the USS Constitution, but I feel comfortable enough now leading the kids through the city.  We did take a detour when we saw a TJMaxx, Marshall's, and H&M just off of the brick line that signified the Freedom Trail.  The only things I bought were two shirts for JD at H&M (He has one from there that is the same style and he wears it all of the time.  I might be a little sick of it.).  After checking out of the hotel at noon, we took the T to the Prudential Center and had lunch and cheesecake (Key lime) at The Cheesecake Factory.  Then it was back to the bus station.  We had a late start and were caught in a snow storm for awhile, but made it home safe and sound.

 Massachusetts State House

 Granary Burying Ground

 "Mother Goose"

Marker by Paul Revere's Tomb 

 Pennies on Revere's marker???

 Old State House, Site of Boston "Massacre"

 Peace Garden with dog tags representing those lost in battle since 9/11

Old North Church

The kids were at JD's mom's on Friday and spent the day with JD on Saturday.  We got some snow at home while I was gone, not enough to plow, but enough for the kids to play in.  I received this text video on the way home:

On Sunday, JD convinced me to head outside with the kids:

No Snow for the Plow Guy

JD has a snow plowing business that has helped us out in a big way in the past few years.  We've been able to rely on "plow money" to pay property taxes, pay for preschool for the big kids, and finish off our upstairs without a loan.  Last year, we had a ton of snow, and I referred to it as the year of the Big Snow.  If last winter was the year of the Big Snow, then this year is the year of No Snow.

The only snow (more than an inch) that we've received this year was just before Thanksgiving when we were in Florida.  It snowed about 8 inches here, and the snow was gone before we got back.  As each week goes by with no snow, it becomes more real that there will be very little "plow money" this year.

We're going to turn this tough spot into something good.  I'd like to look back at this year as a time that we smartened up and were more serious about our finances because we had to be.  Our no-spending spree continues, and we're both doing great with not spending anything extra (I even turned down the thermostat---big deal for me).  We're getting on board with Dave Ramsey and going to watch all of the DVDs for his Financial Peace University.  JD read Financial Peace Revisited this week, and I'm about half way through it.  We've had several unexpected "gifts" including a tax refund that was greater than expected, finding out we could turn our credit card points into cash, and the surprise at how quickly a few jars of change can add up (the crew and I rolled all of our change on Saturday-$285!).

March will be our first-ever month with a real budget.  I'm hoping we can stick to it and still praying for some real winter!

Head Lice and Thinking Positive

I got an email today from the school office saying that there was a confirmed case of head lice.  I wasn't concerned.  There have been cases before and my kids don't get head lice.  It turns out that they do.  I realized this as I was putting Ryley's hair up before we left for her orthodontist appointment.  After the appointment (she had braces put on her top teeth), I picked up Nix at the pharmacy and headed home to de-lice the house.  Half way home, she announced that one of her braces had fallen off.  Back to the ortho we went.  This time, I stayed in the car with the boys, as Quin just wanted to climb in Ryley's lap during the first trip.  The brace was glued back on and home we went.  Laundry has been going since then.  All bedding has been washed, carpet has been shampooed, stuffed animals have been bagged for four weeks (that was the hardest part for Ry), both Ryley and Zeke were treated for lice, and I am exhausted.  I now really get it that anyone can get head lice.  That it's nothing to be embarrassed about.  My kids bathe regularly, wash their hair regularly, and aren't "dirty" (unless you count the food on their face after meals), but they still have head lice.  Gross.

^^^^ I wrote that last night at 10:30 and planned to finish it up and post before going to bed.^^^^

But I was interrupted.  By the sound of the washing machine shaking violently.
The load of blankets and a pillow was obviously uneven, so I jumped up to even it out.
There was water everywhere.  Okay, not everywhere, but throughout the laundry room and out into the kitchen, that's everywhere enough for 10:30 at night on a day that has already been full of unexpected surprises like bugs crawling on my kid's scalp.

JD was ready for bed.  I was about ready for bed.  Instead, we spent two hours cleaning up that mess, which somehow lead to cleaning out and reorganizing cupboards and the refrigerator.  I finally collapsed onto an unmade bed around 12:30.

So, thinking positively... here goes:

My kids have head lice.
It's just lice, it's not cancer.
Finn doesn't have it.
JD and I don't have it.
It's vacation and I have time to deal with it.
The carpets are finally clean.

The laundry room flooded.
It was just one little room.
The washer isn't broken, just overfilled.
The laundry room is clean now.
JD was home to help.

I woke up to a mess on the counters, a product of our late-night clean sweep.  I dealt with it, moved shelving out to the garage, reorganized a couple more cupboards, threw stuff away, and feel quite productive.  All a result of head lice.  Thank you, lice, but please stay away from now on.

Vacation!

February Break is here.  My plans involve appointments, play dates (for the kids AND me), and catching up on just about everything.  I got behind last week.  After being home with Quin on Monday, I woke up to Ryley vomiting on Tuesday, and as each kid went down, so did the amount of things I accomplished.  The pile of need-to-be-folded-and-put-away laundry is ginormous, the house is dusty and getting cluttered,  and I haven't run in a week.  Here's hoping I'll be productive in the days to come!

Finn-18 Months

Quin celebrated his half birthday this week.  It's hard to believe that my little guy is on his way to his second birthday.  A few little tidbits about the little monster darling:

He is very independent.  He doesn't care to ride in strollers, hold hands, or sit on laps for long.  He prefers being on the loose and running around on his own.  

He likes helping Daddy bring in wood.

He isn't talking much yet, but understands what we say to him.  He shakes his head up and down when he likes something and to the left and right quite vigorously if he doesn't like it or doesn't want to do something.

He is a great sleeper and loves heading to bed with his blankie when he's tired.  He still sleeps in his crib and hasn't attempted to climb out of it yet.  He still takes 1-2 naps a day.

He loves animals.  He tries to get in the bunny's cage and likes playing in the dog kennel.

And a picture that doesn't involve him in a cage...

He's a bit more mischievous then his siblings were and is often getting into things.  Nothing in our desk drawers are safe from him.  He has recently discovered how to shut the lights off and thinks it is great fun to turn all of the lights off.  

We love this kid!

Where to begin...

This weekend didn't quite turn out like planned.  It's a good thing that I'm fairly flexible.

Friday night went pretty much according to plans.  Ryley and Zeke were planning on going to Grampy and Grammy's for a sleepover after school.  Zeke went, but Ryley received a last minute invite to go on a trail ride with Aunt Lisi (my aunt) and Macey (her huge horse).  Aunt Lisi and Macey rode over from their house and picked Reagen up.  She was in an almost-eight-year-old-girl's idea of heaven.  She still got to sleep over at G & G's as well.  With the two big kids gone, JD, Quin, and I headed over to Travey and Christa's for dinner.  We took the pack-n-play, and Quin fell asleep there.  We were all exhausted and made an early night of it.

Saturday was supposed to be "catch up on cleaning and laundry day."  It ended up being "wake up sick and lay on the couch day."  The stomach bug hit me hard around 4 a.m. and I was pretty worthless all day.  By around 2 when JD got home from work, we decided to attempt a quick trip to Burlington.  We picked up my prize necklace and then went to the mall where the kids picked out what they wanted to eat at the food court.  Ryley wanted 2 plain cheeseburgers from McDonalds.  Quin decided they looked good, and proceeded to open one and begin eating his first ever cheeseburger.  When we asked him if he liked it, he nodded his head vigorously.  We let the kids browse the toy store for awhile, and Zeke was disappointed that he "couldn't find anything good" for $2, the amount in his wallet.  I found some ice skates on clearance at the sports store and bought Quin some new white onesies.  Yes, we're still on our no-spending spree; I had money left over from a Christmas gift card to the mall, so our little "evening out" only cost $3.

By Sunday, I was feeling normal and took the bigger kids to church.  JD stayed home with Quin as he has some type of bug causing Disgusting Diaper Disasters.  In the afternoon, Ry and I went skating with friends on our neighbors' pond.  We had also gone on Wednesday, which was the first time I had gone skating in about 20 years.  I loved it and decided I needed my own skates.  The kids loved it as well; now we just need skates for JD.

Unfortunately, the DDDs lasted throughout the day, and we decided we shouldn't send Quin to daycare, so I had to go make sub plans in order to stay home with him today.  One of the cool things about working at a small school is that I always know my subs well.  In this case, my friend Julia, who I skated with yesterday, and is also the mom of one of my students, was my sub.  It makes it so easy when the substitute teacher knows all of the kids already.

So, we were home today.  I had a list of things to do as I didn't get my Saturday things done.  JD kept up with getting laundry washed and dried and piled up on the bed, so I just needed to fold it and put it away.  I didn't accomplish everything I hoped to, but had lots of cuddle time with the little guy (and suffered through several more DDDs), managed to go skating for a little while after school, and made Valentines with the kids.  Now, it's way too late, and I'm supposed to be up early to run in the morning...

50th post: I'm a WINNER!

I rarely win anything.  I remember winning a t-shirt from a department store drawing when I was a kid.  It was size XL, black, and in neon letters said "Levi's Legendary."  I wore it as a pj shirt for years.  Other than a few little prizes at Pampered Chef and Partylite parties and the like, I don't usually win.  Scratch that, I did win a Bondiband from Christa's blog, but only ten people entered.  I have friends that have won big, a trip to California, and while there, they won a truck.  JD's mom has won a car, a sofa, and other biggish prizes.  Anyway...

When I got to school this morning, there was a message to call my sister who was home with Finn.  In the 12 minutes or so that it takes me to get to school, she had received a call on my cell phone (which I rarely forget at home) from our local country radio station (98.9 WOKO).  I was the daily winner of a heart pendant necklace from Perrywinkle's, my favorite jewelry store.  Dolly thinks she was live on the radio, but I haven't heard from anyone that actually heard it, so maybe not.  (I, apparently, was listening to the other country station.)  I entered a contest (which I rarely do) about a week ago after hearing about it on the radio.  I was hoping for the $1000 grand prize to Perrywinkle's but had since forgotten about it.  I still have a chance to win the big prize but am happy with being one of the five necklace winners.

Some Randomness:

Speaking of winning, we've been tearing open tickets from our local grocery store since November in hopes of winning something.  JD came home from the store with 120 tickets (x3 pieces in each) on Saturday, but there wasn't a single one that we needed.  There are only two days left of the "game" which is similar to the McDonald's Monopoly game.  I have a few more coupons for free tickets, but that will be the end of it.  It was fun while it lasted.

I got up early to run this morning.  I didn't want to, but my phone alarm said RUN!!! and I had worn my running clothes to bed, and JD said, "Aren't you going to get up?" so I did.  It was good.  I listened to a book that I downloaded onto my iPod last night, as I get bored with music and don't want to wake up the rest of the crew with the volume from the t.v.  It's an Amish book by Wanda Brunstetter.  I'm not crazy about the story yet, and the reader sounds like she's reading to kindergarten students, but I'm optimistic that the story will get better, and that I will be less annoyed by the reader.  On Thursday I will finish week 6 of Couch to 5K.  Any audio book suggestions?

I made a lemon meringue pie for the first time ever this weekend.  Apparently, it's JD's favorite.  You would think I would have known that by now.  Little did I know that most people buy a lemon pie filling mix; mine was from scratch.  While good, it wasn't quite what it usually tastes likes, so I'm going with the filling mix next time.

I also made a trifle, this one was for my mom's party.  It was made with devil's food cake, a doctored up vanilla pudding mixture, and raspberries and strawberries.  Delicious.  I'm still working on finishing it off.

Quin was tested for whooping cough last week after he developed a cold following a possible exposure to the disease.  He was put on antibiotics for 5 days just in case, and we had to keep him away from other kids.  The cold went away, so I'm assuming he doesn't have it, but we still don't have the results back.

If you play Words With Friends, start a game with me!

Maintaining

Today is about maintaining.  Last weekend my house was in pretty good shape.  We kept up with it most of the week, but by yesterday, I was exhausted and things were starting to slip, and I put them off until today.  So I'm going to make a list (I like crossing things off) and get to work.

I also have to do some major grocery shopping.  Due to my no-spending spree, I didn't even go to the grocery store, and the cupboards are getting a little bare.  I did quite well with the no spending- I don't think I've used my credit card at all.  Dolly and I surprised Mom at work on her birthday and took her out to dinner, but I had a gift card from Christmas.  We did get necessities like milk, diapers, and ginger ale (at the request of Zeke, who couldn't keep anything down).  Quin had to get some immunizations and an antibiotic, but that was a need, not a want.

JD is out ice-fishing this morning with his dad.  He hasn't gone since he was a kid and was pretty excited about it.  He's been working on getting our taxes done, and we should be ready to file by Monday or Tuesday.  It's looking like we won't have to pay this year which is a major improvement over the Great Tax-filing of 2011.

Time to make my list and start crossing things off.  Happy Saturday!

Happy Birthday, Meme!

Happy Birthday to my mom today!  In honor of her 55th birthday, she's working a 12 hour shift at the hospital where she is a nurse in the Post Anesthesia Care Unit (aka "recovery room").  Her work day is book-ended by two days of watching my under-the-weather baby.

 "Meme" and Quin on his birth-day in August of 2010

A few years ago, when JD and I were looking to buy land, one of the only options in our price range was the lot next door to my mom's.  We ended up buying it and putting up a house and have never regretted the close proximity.  Living by Mom means living by my 18 year old sister, Dolly, which is deserving of it's own post.

My mom is much cleaner/neater than I am, so I thought the following picture was appropriate (Please add an s to the caption of the third picture) to share on her birthday:

 

We'll be celebrating with the family on Sunday.  I'm supposed to make dessert, and it needs to be something everyone will like.  Any suggestions?

Keeping up

Laundry has been caught up (washed, dried, folded, put away) for several days now.  My all time record for that is probably about two weeks and I probably had about one kid.

My room/bathroom has been in an "I'm not so embarrassed that I have to close the door" state for the same length.

Most of my grading is done for school.

And running... I missed one morning due to being up most of the night with a sick six year old, but I made up for it that night.  I'm currently on Day 3 of Week 5 for C25K.  I actually overdid the Day 2 run as I didn't realize someone had changed the incline on the dreadmill from 0 to 4 until I was almost done.

Kudos to JD and Ryley who matched and folded all of the socks in the "sock basket" during my above mentioned run.  They found some that were worn by Quin as a newborn, and it turns out that there isn't a single one of us lacking in the sock department.