day 74..... zombie children

This is a picture example of how normally intelligent children can turn to brain mush when turning on a mindless annoying cartoon. Today's culprit? Codename: Kids Next Door   
They were almost to the point of drooling on themselves. It was sad. There are 2 more that are not in this shot, but they are just as sucked in. 

day 73..... teeny tiny corn and a bunch of other junk

That is what our corn looks like this year. Funny thing is, it looks better than it has any other year. Sad... was looking really nice for a while.

day 72..... annual pancake breakfast

This is Maddie. See Maddie pour the juice. Seriously, every year our local county library has a pancake breakfast for a fundraiser. As Brian is on the library board, he cooks at the breakfast every year. And every year, whichever of the girls that are old enough go to help. Pouring juice, coffee, and milk. Clear tables. Fill butter and syrup. You name it, they do it.

day 71..... Island Park Craft Festival

Lovely fall craft festival. Booths. People. Music. People. Food we can't eat. People. Well, we can eat some of the food, but not the substantial lunch-type foods. It was fun just the same. Could have been a little cooler, but oh well. Got some wonderful crafting ideas. The 3 younger girls each got an outfit for American Girl dolls. And the dog didn't bite anyone.

day 70..... gotta love a man in a hat

... even a little man. We were trying to have a serious problem solving family meeting, about schoolwork, chores, and computer curfews. Lexi decided to wear this hat downstairs. Hazen woke from his nap and looked so damn cute in it, I couldn't decide which one to post. Let's just say that he definitely took the edge off of the meeting. All in all, I think it went well. We ironed out some issues with the current way of doing things, and there were even some suggestions made. Good thing about that? It means that they were listening. It actually had to do with what we were talking about. I think we just might make it.

day 69..... schedule

This is half of our daily assignment schedule on my laptop. The other half looks mostly the same, it just has 4 different kids on it. This is designed to keep our day running smoothly. To let everyone know what they are supposed to be doing at any given time. To keep us organized and productive. You know what, it is a crock of you-know-what. I am going to sit down with the kids and lay it on the line. We have 12 days until we start back school full time. They have to get it together. I am going to have to start being a meanie. I know this post should probably be on the homeschool blog, but I don't have it up and going yet and I needed to vent. Tomorrow morning, family meeting. Life as they know it is about to be a thing of the past. Tune in tomorrow...

day 68..... I really don't have time for this

The dryer quit. It won't turn. So sometime this week or weekend, Brian has to pull it apart and check the belt. It appears to be either the belt or the motor. Lets pray to the laundry gods that it is a belt. I don't want to have to buy a new dryer right now.

day 67..... oh what a day

Peaches and pickles. Green beans and cars. Trips to the vet and wanting a nap. That is how my day went. More or less. I need to start reading this book as I WANT to see the movie, but I refuse to until I have read the book. I have had the book for about 5 weeks now and haven't even thought twice about starting it. Between getting ready for school, canning everything that I can fit into a quart jar, and trying to get through a pile of magazines, dwindle down the library on my Nook, and planning menus, there doesn't seem to be any time. Not to mention cooking said menus. Wow, I just got really tired again.

day 66..... after just one day!!!

After just one day of school, my desk has been left in complete chaos.

day 65..... cleaning carrots, a lot of them

day 64..... I found my desk

I spent a good part of the day organizing my desk area this afternoon. Still tons to do, but it is a good start for the first week in September when we start back schooling full-time.

day 63..... cleaning corn

day 62..... she tried

Lexi has tried twice now to give blood. She couldn't wait until she was 17 so she could. Problem is, she doesn't weigh enough. At a whopping 5'2", she is about 12 pounds under their minimum weight requirements.

day 61..... fun outside

day 60..... all I want for christmas

Sophie lost her other tooth today!!!!!

day 59..... like I don't have enough to do

For some reason I thought it would be a good idea to go to the storage building and bring home more things to list on ebay. Mind you, I haven't even listed what was already here and waiting. Maybe the boxes will motivate me???? Irritate me is more like it. Now I need to find my scale in the mud closet. Good times.... good times.

day 58..... horseshoe tournament

YAY!!!!! Caitie placed 3rd in her class and Brian placed 2nd in his. Had a beautiful day for it. She wasn't pleased to get her picture taken when I told her I was blogging it as she was all "sweaty and gross". Oh well.

day 57..... just because

Just because. That is why I got these flowers from Lexi. Thank you for everything that I do. Other than the fact that it has been a really crappy day, these were a bright spot.

day 56..... Hazen stole a mato

Days like today, I am very glad that we don't use any chemicals on our garden. Hazen managed to grab a tomato that had just been picked and started munching. He held it up to me and asked, "Me bite mato?" I am not quite sure if he was offering or confessing.

day 55..... teenagers

Yes, that is Lexi. She was dorking around upstairs this afternoon, and this is how she came back down.

day 54..... the rainbow connection

After a 45 minute deluge last night, this is what we were rewarded with. I got 2 picture texts within half a second from Brian and Caitie, both at the park for horseshoes, sending me rainbows. About that same time, Emily ran into the house hollering about a rainbow. So out we trudged... Emily and Benji were dressed and had on shoes, Sophie and Trevin were half dressed, Hazen had on a diaper, and I was in my nightclothes already.  We could see the entire thing depending on where we were standing in the yard. It stayed bright in the sky for a good 20 minutes. It was amazing.

day 53..... ninja green beans

I guess that you are supposed to make mad ninja noises when you are snapping green beans. So is the wisdom of a 4 year old. He did a darn good job at it too.

day 52..... too freaking hot

Absolutely way too hot for this far north. One week from today they are calling for it to have a high of 74. Crazy. Driving with the top down on the car isn't even much fun when it is this hot.

day 51..... a walking pharmacy

This has been my regular regimen lately. Prenatal vitamins are just for general purposes as they are a wonderful vitamin. The acid reduction because I have apparently eaten the lining of my stomach off with Coke and Pepsi. If I don't take it twice a day, I feel like I am going to die. The Align is to help just for general purposes. And the Vicks and Saline are because I have a cold from hell. I feel like crap. Several of the little ones are starting to get sick now also. I hope for a couple of things. 1) That Hazen JUST gets a cold... nothing more. And 2) That they wait till I am a little better so I am able to care for them and give the extra lovin' that they will need. We'll see.

day 50..... chopping a tree

And down it came. By force before nature took its toll. And with no damage at all to the playset or the lilac shrubs. (Sorry if I was a doubter dear)  It was a busy day for all. Cutting trees, gathering firewood, canning beets, moving transmissions, cleaning broccoli, fixing my car, working on menus, teenagers gone swimming and to the movies, and all of this while more than a couple of us are sick with colds courtesy of the oldest teenagers boyfriend. Thanks Tyson! :D

day 49..... lazy baby

Hazen decided that he did not want to hold his drink bottle today. He drank most of it just like that. It was quite entertaining.

day 48..... she got her ears pierced

                                                                                                                                I made this picture extra big so you don't have to look so hard. Sophia got her ears pierced today. Not a single tear after they did it. And she has been smiling great big all afternoon. She chose adorable little pink butterflies. I am really thinking that little ball studs would have been easier to turn for her, but butterflies it is.

day 47..... we are tomatoes

We did it. It took 46 days, but we did it. We went from a tiny green nub to beautiful reddish-orange tomatoes.

day 46..... watermelon

Today was National Watermelon Day. So after lunch, we cut open a HUGE watermelon. I kicked everybody outside to cut it and eat it. After everyone else had finished theirs, Hazen was lounging on the front steps eating his and watching the sun. All the other kids were bummed because it turned out to be a seedless watermelon, which means no spitting seeds. After yesterday, today was a nice, non-eventful day. Those are few and far between, so we like to enjoy them.

day 45..... never pee on a lysol can

It was a Monday. Plain and simple. Lexi was in the bathroom first thing this morning and Trevin woke up and needed to pee. Let me tell you, when that little boy says he needs to pee, he means it. Well, she told him he could go with her in there as she was curling her hair and getting ready for work. Next thing we hear are bathroom sounds, followed by a strange *thunk thunk* immediately followed by her screeching, "Trevin! Get it out of there! Stop peeing and grab it!" Well, he calmly explained that he couldn't make it stop. We soon found out that the strange noise was her curling iron cord knocking the empty Lysol can into the toilet. She made him grab it to throw it away. After washing up, he came in and explained to me that we have a new rule in this house. I asked him what it was, and he told us, "Never pee on a Lysol can". As I wasn't going to post a picture of the inside of the toilet with a can in it, I settled for the Lysol wipes, which were NOT in the toilet. I used them to wipe where he had set the can on the counter. Never a dull moment around here.

day 44..... almost a tomato