Monday DECLUTTERING

[Heather W]

This Week's Challenge: Kitchens! Clean out food storage in the frig, freezer, and pantry, organize cupboards, clean flat surfaces including the floor. Give your kitchen some all around love.

School Challenge: Monday book challenge- rearrange books, organize books, pull some new ones off the shelf, reading challenges, read aloud, and plan for library business.

Inspiring Thought: Steam seems to have killed all gratitude in the hearts of sailors. - Jules Verne, 20,000 Leagues under the Sea

For me today:

• cancel an appt- as soon as I touch base with E again to be sure
• make waffles for breakfast and oven braise ribs for dinner
• bake cookies- E brought home the container I mailed to him hoping for a refill
• play games
• mini golf at the science center- as long as we are up for it
• pumpkins- if we go to mini golf I might suggest a trip to the farm store for our pumpkin haul
• laundry
• studio time- maybe enjoy art time with R
• blog work
• errands- see if E needs to shop (if he can get things home otherwise I can mail them out to him)

Today is our last full day of enjoying both college kids. E is glad he's come home because it's a nice clean break from being on campus. I'm glad he is feeling rested! R just has a million creative ideas flowing through her head while she is not on the hook to do her design work at school. She's working on an embroidery pattern for a new bag she's making. She's having trouble getting her drawing rendered in the embroidery software. If she can work it through, the design is exquisite!

I'm not sure how everyone's sleep is doing this morning. A town truck came by to do some paving at the end of our street. On a holiday. So rude!

I hope you all have a terrific start to your week!

[Lindsey Carter]

School plans
-math with Hudson done
-phonics with Hudson done
-math with Addie done
-phonics with Addie done
-math with Wesley done
-read aloud
-play a board game

Other plans:
-try out the organic produce store I recently discovered done
-grocery shop done
-International store done
-clean up the disastrous kitchen mostly done
-hunt down all our glasses. We’re down to using mugs! I have a sneaking suspicion they are all in the kids’ rooms.
-practice piano
-make something for dinner done by dh
-make a pie done
-mall trip with dd done

I'm off to eat some pie and then head to bed. Thanks for the idea to make an apple pie Heather,

Have a great day ladies!

[Paige P]

Good morning, all

Heather -- sounds like the family time is going well

Lindsey -- good schooling


We had a full weekend of church and fellowship and food We're left feeling "full" -- physically and spiritually. It was a great weekend!

Now it's back to reality …. 2 of the dc are still asleep this morning, and after the busy weekend, I'm letting them snooze a bit longer. Plus, we're home all day (and most of the week ), so they have time to get done what they need to get done!

Today:
* school
* laundry -- didn't do any this weekend, so I have plenty to do
* clean out the fridge for supper (this make take 2 days) -- may add a salad or some extra veggies
* call another coop mom and see if her son can get together to do Science Olympiad stuff this week -- he and Ben are working together on 2 projects, and they need to practice (the Olympiad is next Tuesday)
* work on consignment stuff -- next week is drop off, and I need to get things labeled.

And ????? not sure. I'm hoping for a slower, recuperative day today.
May ask some friends to come swim this afternoon -- early this week might be the END of swimming for the season. We have rain coming in from the hurricane in the gulf on Wed/Thursday, and after that, temps drop into the 70s and then into the 60s next week! WHOOOOOOOO -- I'm ready for fall -- but the kids better enjoy today and tomorrow for swimming We'll see...….

Ya'll have a super Monday!

[Jekka Renee]

Home Construction:
Dh went right to bed when he got home, so no working this morning.

Plan shower/ tub surround details
drywall?
actually buy appliances


To DO
Return very overdue library books
Get Milk
Laundry - started
pay home insurance and tax bills
med insurance paperwork
Paper piles
Verse copywork

heather: Sounds like a great family weekend! And E is very smart to bring home the cookie container. I hope you find time to bake him lots of good cookies.

lindsey: Sounds like a good full day for you! Get some rest. How is the produce store?

paige: Hooray for a great weekend! Have a great relaxing day.

[MichelleTN]

Heather -- roadwork on a holiday? Crazy! Hope it didn't wake anyone and hope y'all enjoy the family day. Cookie container

Lindsey -- come on over, I will give you some glasses. I need to get rid of quiet a few

Paige -- glad you had a good weekend and hope you can get some recoup time today

Jekka -- did you decide on the appliances?

We are slow moving this morning. Ds1 boss text last night and said "not working tomorrow". I think he had to take care of some personal stuff. So we all slept in a little longer Now to get ds2 moving on his schoolwork. If brother is off he thinks he should be off. It don't work that way

Hoping I can get moving today. I have a long list I need to do starting with freezers. Dh did a favor for a guy. This guy told dh he would get dh some chicken (through his work). Freezers are a mess and I need to straighten and make a spot.

Today:

• freezers
• laundry
• chicken from cookie sheets to bags - from yesterday
• make cookies -- been promising ds1

Will start there.

Have a GREAT Monday!

[ShayChristie]

Good morning. Popping in quick. I've been on the road since Thursday for dance and have another road trip today to Bangor. Bekah had a dance competition this weekend in Portland and placed 10th. Very proud! It was a tough competition with "professional" competitors coming from the Boston area, NY area and even California! Yes, some people actually follow the dance competition circuit trying to score/place better.

Today is one month for my mom's passing.

Can I ask for prayer this week? Can't say too much about it, but for me, it's HUGE.

OKay, have to try to get some stuff done before we leave after lunch. sigh...

[Jen in OK]

Good morning!

Heather, when will E have to go back?

Lindsey, pie sounds good!!

Paige, enjoy your time at home!

Jekka, good luck on all the appliances!

Michelle, could you come over and work on my freezers, too? Pretty please?

Praying for you, Shay!


We've already gotten going on our busy Monday!
*guest bathroom cleaned
*chili in the crock pot
*took ds to his financial literacy class
*did school with dd
*tried to call back the hospital financial people (I'm guessing for my MRI Wednesday)

Still to go:
*morning basket and lunch here at home
*hall bathroom
*BizTown--drop ds at his friend's house nearby to work on Spanish beforehand
*Target--ds needs tennis shoes and dd needs jeans
*Spanish
*home for dinner
*4H

We're warm and muggy today but by the end of the week it should be highs in the 50s! Maybe we're almost to fall for real!

Have a great day today, friends!

[Robin in Colorado]

Good morning!

Heather, I'm glad you're enjoying your collegiates! And I'm sorry about the truck.

Lindsey, cute hair!

Paige, swimming season is definitely gone around here. While we don't have snow this morning, friends in surrounding areas do, and it's predicted for us tonight.

Jekka, I have some very overdue library books too; I didn't know about them because they're my mom's.

Michelle, exciting about getting chickens for the freezer!

Shay, I'm so, so sorry.

So, here we are at today. This time last week we had a mess in the house from May's plumbing stuff. Today it's more than doubled. The plumber has been here every day since Wednesday, including until after 8 last night. The plumbing destruction involves pipes in two bathrooms and one powder room (rendering them useless), the guest room, the master bedroom, the mud room and the pantry. The displaced stuff from those rooms extends into the living room, the dining room, the hallway, and the kitchen. All horizontal surfaces are covered, including good portions of floor. The bathrooms have black sludge on the floors and walls but I can't clean them because I can't run water. I just don't feel like I can do anything but walk around shaking my head. DH had a dh-ish meltdown last night and was unable to sleep.

On other fronts, all the kids except K are still sleeping. She had to get up to give Elvis breakfast. He's doing much better since getting put on antibiotics on Saturday. Belle came home from work around 2 this morning, so she'll be sleeping for a while.

Today, I have to run errands and pretty much none of them can be put off - Harbor Freight, Costco, Home Depot, the grocery, and the feed store. I have a meeting at 1:00 that I have been looking forward to for several months; now I'm just thinking "I don't have time for this." I have to winterize the chickens - I knew this was coming but just couldn't get to the coop, and now it's got to happen today. There's just not enough body heat in there since we lost a hen last week.

Tonight we have a club soccer game where we need to represent, and my two youngers have practices scheduled (idk if weather will permit soccer today). I'm also supposed to go by our dance venue - one of the students left something and I am supposed to come by to pick it up.

The piano tuner was supposed to come at 9 but he's not here yet and I can't reach him. And I want him to be even later because Belle's trying to sleep - I didn't know she would be on this shift when I made this appointment.

Oh, and the plumber's shift at my house starts at 11, and DH wants me to be here while he's here. Um...

I look back at what I've written and it sounds whiney, and it *is* whiney. I'm sorry. Maybe I should delete it all and just say, "Squad goals: tread water."

Anyway, I know that it will get better and margin will return to my life one day. Just not today.

My friends, perhaps however your day goes, you'll be able to say, "Hey, but I've got plumbing."

Have a good one and enjoy your weather, whatever it is.

[Jen in OK]

Robin! That's just so much. I wish you could come over and relax!

[CINDY LB OH]

Good Afternoon!
It's hot and sunny today. I thought Fall had arrived, but we reverted back to heat and humidity yesterday. Currently 81*F, which sounds pleasant, but the real feel is 90*F. Blech. Thankfully, the nights are cool enough to keep everything open.

Since today is a school holiday, the tutoring center is closed. Ds11 and I are working on his science club presentation for tomorrow. We've done some read alouds, and we'll do some math and more reading after lunch. Last week was uneventful, for the most part. Just the regulars. School, tutoring, homeschool band, and a science/nature field trip on Thursday. This Friday and next, we have opportunities for field trips as well.

For TODAY:

• afternoon school with ds11
• update school planner/journal
• what's for supper?.... ds11 has choral practice, so they'll leave around 5:45pm for that. We've eaten up all the leftovers. Rats.
• tutor lessons
• wash dishes
• table piles are out of control

I feel like October is already getting away from me! I think because it doesn't feel, or look, like October. Then I look at the calendar and

I caught up on last week's reading, but don't remember much.

HeatherW-- Glad you've enjoyed your time with the college kids. I hope it's been a good time of refreshment for them.

Robin-- on the plumbing. I'd be having a meltdown too. That sounds awful.

Have a great day!