50 degree nights, 80 degree days. PERFECT weather! The pool is drained, the corn and bean fields are disappearing, and the wagons are full full of apples fresh off the tree ready for applesauce crisps, pies, cider and whatever else apple we can thing to make of them!
The kids are liking their new school. Noah was having a tougher time adjusting to a different school and new friends but his schoolwork is going great and he’s so fortunate to have his cousin in his class to get to know other kids. Marie loves being with her friends from preschool and is quite the social butterfly enjoying being in the same class as her cousins and preschool friends. Even Calvin is turning out to be quite the little scholar. He had a little trouble with adjusting to the classroom situation (aka no running, hands to yourself, etc) the first 2 weeks but since then he’s doing great and his school work is superb. Molly started preschool two days a week and loves loves loves it! She is the little artist constantly drawing and practicing her letters here at home. Dominic is talking like crazy and so stinkin’ cute. He looks just like his daddy. Patrick is mobile now and loves to eat. He is 6 months old and crawling around like a madman and can even pull up on things now, usually hitting his head on something as he is still unsteady while pulling up. He usually has a smile for anyone he sees. The past few days he has become quite vocal which made for an interesting mass yesterday morning. It is hard to tell a 6 month old to whisper!
What’s has mom been up to? Since Dominic was born two years ago, I’ve been making an effort to make things simple around the house, spend more time at home, and slow down. I got a clue that I was away with too many activities when one evening Marie asked me who was going to be home for bedtime (otherwise meaning if me or Nate was going to be home and which of us was going out to a meeting, etc.) The kids are growing up so fast and I don’t want to miss a thing! And with 6 kids, Nate and I barely get any time alone as it is! We decided to make Sundays family days and with only church and family activities. What a blessing this has been! With all the hectic goings-on of the week, Sundays are our day to slow down and enjoy the kids and spend some time as a family hanging out. Sometimes the boys spend the afternoon playing Legos with Nate and I cook with the girls in the kitchen..or we may go on an outing somewhere together. We end the day with an easy crock-pot supper, rosary and bible story time and early bedtime for the kids so Nate and I can get a breather and enjoy some football together. I’ve really started looking forward to Sundays now!
I’ve been streamlining the way things work around the house. Laundry, food, cleaning…you name it, I’ve been trying to get it all made easier. Figured out that homemade cleaners and laundry soap are awesome too. I’m trying to make a lot more of our snacks and meals from scratch too. Some weeks are easier than others, depends on the flow of things around here!
Our current house project just got finished (isn’t there always one of those going on around here) and we divided the current large toy room into two smaller rooms. One is Noah and Calvin’s room and the other side is still a toy room. The boys love their new room and us parents LOVE not having toy and Legos in their room. Now on to the other projects that need to be finished…. We’ll probably be redoing the younger boys’ room soon. When we moved the older boys out we realized how bad the wallpaper and paint was in that room. Maybe in the spring…we’ll add it to the list.
That’s about it from our house.