MaeLyn's Musings

Thursdays are my busy, running around doing errands, shopping, library, etc. days. What made my morning today interesting was the weather. When I dropped the kids off at school shortly after 7:30 this morning there was a low cloud - kind of foggy, but not too bad. (The kids had wanted to walk to school in honor of earth day, but we were running late, and it didn't happen.) A little over an hour later, Peter and I (mostly I) had straightened up the house, collected the library books, made a shopping list and headed out the door to go to the library. By this time, it was definitely foggy. I could see headlights come out of the white gloom as cars approached, and it took a while before floating red or green dots became apparent as I neared intersections. It's a good thing I knew where I was going, because I couldn't see street signs at all until I reached each intersection. We arrived at the library only a minute before it opened at 9, which I think is a great time to be the...

Today is day three of normal life after Spring Break. Kind of. I'm not sure it's really normal when most of it has been catching up on things that I put off last week because the kids were home. Monday was mostly spent cleaning the house and putting it back in order from the weekend. I also cleaned out the boys room again. I filled an entire kitchen sized trash bag with trash and papers that were scattered all over their floor. They are down to pretty much beds and clothes in their room now, but somehow they still find ways to trash it. Go figure. Yesterday I made granola and yogurt (we finished off what the kids made last week, and they've been begging me to make more). I figured out our meal plan for April, made a shopping list and went grocery shopping at Sam's Club. I went Visiting Teaching. I washed, dried and sorted two loads of  laundry. I walked to pick up the kids from school. Somehow during all this I injured my knee so now it hurts to bend if I put any weig...

Last night for FHE we went looking at dishwashers. The one we have is begging to retire. One wheel on the bottom rack has been missing since we moved in. (six years ago.) That I could deal with. More recently something in the door broke so unless we prop a chair or something against the door, it won't run. (And if anything, like a cat, brushes against the chair and moves it slightly, the dishwasher will stop.) Just in the last week one of the supports for the top rack broke so one corner is no longer supported and kind of drags. I feel sorry for the poor thing. So, last night we went for a field trip and looked at dishwashers at Lowe's, Best Buy and Home Depot. There were white ones, yellowish ones, black ones and stainless steel ones. There were buttons on the front and buttons on the top of the door. Some had digital displays. There were silverware trays in the door and on the side and in the middle of the bottom rack. There were tall ones with deep racks, and shorter ones ...

John was feeling well enough to go to school today! That was super because Hannah was in her school's spelling bee this morning and I wanted to be able to see her. Last year she didn't study much, and got out on the first or second round. This time (after quite a bit of studying) she lasted until the fifth (out of a total of ten to determine the winner from a possible contenders.) The word she slipped up on was "lettuce"(mistaking the c for an s), which she told me later she doesn't like anyway. I thought she did pretty well. When I was in elementary school, I never got to participate in a grade spelling bee because my spelling was so bad. I remember one preliminary class spelling bee I got out on the first round because I couldn't spell account. (I still can't remember if it has one or two c's.) I like to do the Sunday crossword, but frequently I have to either ask Steven how to spell something, or be prepared to change my spelling if it proves to be ...

There is something in the air. It is a feeling - very secretive, but filled with mounting excitement. It includes a bit of frustration but mostly anticipation and occasionally even delight. My brain is in a whirl, thinking, pondering, planning and waiting. My activities? Shopping, wrapping, sewing, painting... Getting ready for Christmas! Yes, I know it is a month away. I know Thanksgiving isn't even over yet. But for a few weeks now I've been searching for just the right gifts to please and delight my family come Christmas morning. In a way Steven is easy to buy for because he tells me exactly what he wants, and even sends me links to where they can be bought online, so it would be REALLY hard for me to get the wrong thing. The only problem is that he knows exactly what he is going to get. The kids are a little more difficult. I have to think about what they need (as far as clothes and the like) and about what hobbies they enjoy, what skills they are developing, what kinds o...