Our weekly snapshot

 This past week was the rest of our spring break activities.  We still did school as last week was the "official" week but we had some fun things planned too.  

Our weekend started off on a little bit of a slow start.  Josh woke up on Saturday with a very sore throat so I took him to the clinic and he tested positive for strep.  Thankfully we actually had a pretty quiet weekend planned.  

Monday was our quietest day of the week.  We did a normal school day and then Nate went to TKD where they did a special "spring break" night - breaking boards and doing simple competitions. 

The black belts take turns doing the short devotional each week and it was Nate's turn!  He does a great job writing and presenting what he wants to share. 

Tuesday we had a meet up with our Co-Op group at a place called Frederick Meijer Gardens.  This time of year the have butterflies.  

Josh and Nate and a couple of friends that showed up as well. 

Despite being chilly they also wanted to explore outside.  They spent a lot of time in the Children's Garden area where there are trails and a log cabin before heading out to see the famous HUGE horse and a few other art pieces. 

We ended our day by getting lunch at McDonalds/Chick-Fil-A.  

This week we did not have piano or youth group on Wednesday due to the local schools having spring break so we took advantage of the afternoon "off" and saw a movie the teens wanted to see. Thankfully it was showing in our local theater. 

Yes, we saw the Minecraft movie.  I laughed at the stupidity of it and all of the 80's references.  My teens laughed and groaned at the Minecraft references.  I would say we all enjoyed it and all agreed it was dumb HA! (Which we already knew it would be!) 

Thursday brought about State Testing for Nate (a requirement of his on-line school).  While he was testing I treated myself to a coffee. 

Thursday also brought TKD again.  There are now two classes each week.  Nate generally attends both.  The main reason is that he has to have a certain number of classes before he can test for his next black belt.  He would like to test sooner rather than later so he is trying to get in more classes. 

Finally on Friday we had a field trip to the Bowling Alley with our Co-Op.  This is an annual - and much anticipated - activity.  The teens especially all love hanging out together.  Friends, Food, and Fun - what a great way to end a week!

Weekly Menu

 Welcome to another week of April.  We have a couple more activities planned today and tomorrow and then next week is more about just school and regular activities.  

Friday - Turkey breast, mashed potatoes, stuffing and cranberries. 

Saturday - Normally we have dinner at my mom's but today we are all going to see an Easter Movie mid-afternoon in town at our old theatre. I thought it would be fun to do something a little different. 

Sunday - Frozen pizza 

Monday - Meatball Soup and Crescent Rolls

Tuesday - Amish Breakfast Casserole and Banana Bread

Wednesday - Youth Group is back on this week! 

Thursday - pork roast, rice, and green beans 

April Goals

 This year seems to be zooming by!  March flew by - I think the crazy weather helped as some days it was pushing 80 and some days it was pushing 20 HA!  I mentioned in my March update that March still brought some challenges but also shared the good things.  April brings one less thing - our Friday Co-Op is done until fall.  We do miss it a lot when we aren't meeting every week but now we also look forward to the meet-ups and field trips that come up each month.  For me it also signals the beginning of the "wind down to summer" where things slowly start to come to an end and we get to enjoy the "lazy days of summer".  But, I'm getting ahead of myself because, well, it is only April !  

Here's my plan for April:  

1. Start fresh with the Declutter 365 for April.  Complete all of the April tasks then go back to Jan-March and finish up items from those months (Not every item on every day pertains to my home so it gives me time to "maybe" catch up.). Then also work towards the Flylady Declutter plan with doing daily missions and spending 15 minutes a day in the weekly zone decluttering and/or deep cleaning. (If decluttering is done, then deep clean) 

2. Deep clean the Laundry Room.  

3. Deep clean the garage (hoping for more consistent decent weather to empty it, clean it, and organize it for summer) 

4. Finish the odds and ends in Josh's room.  (We had busy weekends in March - April looks a little more open!) 

5. Clean up the yard - get rid of junk that accumulates thanks to the winds of winter, clean up flower bed, spray weed killer where needed, and set up the yard ornaments. 

6. Replace lightbulbs 

7. Go on a Date with Darryl (this is an every month goal!) 

8. Plan a family activity (the goal is once a quarter so I will put it in my goals each quarter until it is done) 

9. Read at least 6 books this month

10. DO my daily Bible Study.

11. Scrapbook :-)  

12. Clean out my file cabinet

13. Clean out our firebox

14. Clean out all of my music and organize it

15. Wrap up all things related to my co-op this semester - this includes putting everything away in the right place, organize all of my supplies that are in various places, and gather anything I won't use and donate it.  Figure out the Google work space access so I can upload documents for anyone on the Leadership Team to use/print/see. 

16. Learn one piano solo.

17. Learn a song to sing in church. 

18. Update my home for spring/Easter (I'd like to have spring things that will stay up through May and a few Easter decor items. )

19. Buy and hang new curtains in my living room. 

20. Visit Boulder Ridge Zoo with Josh, Nate, and my mom. 

21.  Attend various field trips/meet-ups such as our Bowling Field Trip, the teen brunch, the Butterfly Exhibit, and see the latest Paddington Movie :-)  Also, plan a teen game night for our Co-op in May.  

22. Schedule my guys wellness check-ups. 

23. Go through my guys clothes for summer;  make a plan to purchase all that they need in the coming weeks.  (shorts, shirts, dress clothes, shoes - thinking about camps this summer and what they need) 

24. Deep clean the dining room - move "everything out" (as much as we can) and clean; wipe down baseboards, wipe down walls, touch up paint, rearrange, wash curtains, wash the rug (or maybe get a new one!).  Possibly get a new clock (I love clocks). 

25. Accomplish at least half of this months goals HA! 

Weekly Song - Forrest Frank & Connor Price - UP! (Lyrics)

So, I asked Nate what his favorite Forrest Frank song was because that is who he saw in concert this past week and he picked this one.  Forrest Frank is a rapper (not all of his songs are rap).  So, if you don't like rap, maybe don't listen to this weeks song HA!  It is a very fun song - and just remember, when you are down, God is there to hold you UP!  This song probably appeals to Nate's crowd more than mine (I'm old LOL ) 

Our Weekly Snapshot

This past week was our official spring break.  It's nice to take a break from lessons for a week before we tackle the end of the year.  The past few years I didn't better at planning our week but this year, my guys weren't even sure if they were going to take one plus the schools in our area are taking breaks different weeks so it was hard to pick a week HA!  So even though this is the "official" week - some of our activities will hit next week.  (So more photos next week!!)  

Here's a look back at our week of break.  I didn't take tons of photos so I'll use words to explain it too! 

Saturday - Nate spent the afternoon hanging out with friends taking walks, playing soccer, and enjoying dinner.  Josh, Darryl, and I enjoyed a great dinner at my mom's followed by a rousing game of Five Crowns where Josh beat us all. 

Sunday - Church!  Then came all the excitement! Darryl and I headed to his dad's about an hour north to welcome him home from down South and help him get set up.  Meanwhile, my mom picked up Josh and Nate and took them to youth group.   Then . . .the weather went down hill.  Tornado alarms were sounding on our phones, I was trying to get in touch with my kids and my mom to make sure everyone was somewhere safe meanwhile Darryl was watching the weather because there was a possible tornado on the group just a few miles from where we were at as well.  It all ended well - our kids sheltered in place at youth group in a hallway, my mom made it home but ended up with out power and we were able to leave my father-in-laws in time, albeit later than planned, to make it to pick up our kids on time.  Granted the whole drive was extra dark due to no power for miles!  In all of that I didn't take a single photo HA! 

Monday - The official first day of spring break.  We all enjoyed a lazy morning.  I spend the afternoon working on some paper projects and planning.  I had choir practice (the first one of the season!) and Nate headed to a concert with friends.  Darryl and Josh hung out at home :-)  

Tuesday - Nate had his annual asthma appointment and breathing test.  Considering all of the issues he has had with his asthma/wheezing the past few months I was glad this appointment finally arrived! 

Wednesday - I had to take a friend to the airport so my mom picked up the boys and took them to lunch and their piano lesson.  Then they had youth group in the evening. 

Thursday - This was our "big" activity this week.  We picked up pizza and went and played games with friends. 

Friday - some teens from our homeschool co op participated in a service project at a nursing home and then we took off to see a movie . 

Weekly Menu

 After our "soup fest" last week it was time to pull out my recipes and do a little more planning for the coming week.  This past week was our spring break but our activities are spread over two weeks.  (The joys/benefits of homeschooling!).  It's just the way it worked this year with planned activities with our co-op and friends.  That's ok though!  

Here's the plan for the coming week: 

Friday - BBQ Cups and Fries

Saturday - Dinner at my mom's house!

Sunday - Pork Chops (in the crock pot) , Mac and Cheese, and Salad

Monday - Sausage and Potato Soup 

Tuesday - Sausage Gravy and Biscuits, eggs, and Mandarin oranges

Wednesday - There's no youth group this week due to spring break for the local schools.  We will probably use a gift card to Little Caesars and get pizza. 

Thursday - Pasta Carbonara and French Bread

March Goals - Update

My original goal in March was to knock a lot of things out.  March had other plans HA!  Instead of focusing on what went wrong I'll tell you the outcomes.  Ready?  Our furnace motor is now fully fixed (it only took 3 visits, one brand new motor, and then brand new parts for the new motor because some parts failed), my trailblazer is running beautifully again after some normal repairs and new tires, our piano is beautifully tuned and repaired (it plays better than it ever has), my washer is fixed and running once again, and the staph infection that invaded my face is fully cleared up. HA!  What a month! BUT, now that all of that is done and over with AND everyone seems to finally be healthy I feel like we can start marking things off the list!  Quarter one of this year is done so it is time to start quarter number 2 strong!  

Here's an update on my March goals - if there is nothing written next to it, it means I didn't do anything with that goal this month. 

 Here are my March goals:

1. Follow the declutter 365 plan for March and do every task that applies to me. I plan to review the March calendar and mark off any tasks that don't fit my home/life.  Then I will take the items from January and February that I did not accomplish and fill those in with the goal to be caught up with the Declutter 365 plan by the end of March. 
1. Make sure and go through all of my 17 areas to touch in this first 3 months 
2. Follow Flylady weekly plan for decluttering then cleaning each room - 15 minutes at a time.  My goal once again is to complete the daily tasks in each area each day.  If there is additional time I'd love to work on decluttering but I also declutter both through the 365 calendar and room cleaning. 
3. Pick a room cleaning - 15 minutes decluttering
1. My focus this month is the dining room.  I'm hoping to "empty" it as much as possible so that I can deep clean it right down to the corners.  I might even do some rearranging.  The last week of March I was finally able to start in the dining room.  I will continue working in April to finish up the deep clean and move on from there. 
2. If I finish that I plan to try and get more done in the bathroom. 
3. AND if I am EXTRA this month - I will start on the Living Room - same idea as the dining room - "empty" it so I can deep clean it.  
4. Spend 15-20 minutes a day cleaning the basement - this months goal is still the laundry room side. Again, the last week of the month I was able to finally start this with clearing out the laundry room.  
5. Finish all of the odds and end in Josh's room (hang things, paint closet) . 
6. Replace a board in Nate's bed that is broken. 
7. Replace burned out lightbulbs inside and outside 
8. Go on a date with Darryl  Done! 
9. Read!  As many books as possible but at least the 2 for my book clubs and to read 6 books total! Done! 
10. Do my daily Bible study, prayer journal and word study  
11. Scrapbook 
1. Finish 2017 and 2018 This goal is changing.  Why?  I thought I only had November-December for each year; thinking I had finished the rest and just couldn't find my finished pages.  In cleaning the dining room I found . . .not the pages!  Instead I found the photos for January-October for both years.  Oops!  Instead I am packing away the rest of the photos/finished pages and working on 2011 first since that is the oldest year unfinished.  
2. Scrapbook January 2025
3. Upload March photos and order them. Done
4. Do virtual scrapbooking weekend I missed this - I think we ended up with a busy weekend. 
12. Co-Op
1. Make Presentation Night signs Done
2. Work on my Joyful video.  Done
3. Figure out Google Docs so that I can begin uploading docs to that for anyone to see/print. 
4. Write out my "job description" as Secretary.  Really looking for a rough draft that I can add to over the next few months so that it is accurate.  
5. Take Homeschool Curriculum to our Co-Op Blessings table that we aren't using or are done with at this point. Oops!  I missed this date and forgot I was going to do this so now I'm going to try and sell some of what I have. 
13. Practice my piano song until I can play it for offertory and then pick a new one; Practice a song with the family to do as special music. I picked a song and have practiced it but still have a few weeks before I'll need to play giving me more time to practice. 
14. Update some seasonal items - Find some cute things for spring/Easter Done! 
15. Write my blogs each week  Done! 
16. In March our quarterly family activity is going to be going to see a Movie (we received gift cards for Christmas) and dinner out. We didn’t see a movie but we did go out to lunch all together and not fast food! 
17. Plan Easter (yes it is in April but I like to plan ahead) 
18. Finances - continue to work on tracking everything and limit spending
19. Computer clean -up - Go through every file on my computer and clean things out. 
20. Depending on the weather - I'd like to tackle the spring cleaning of the garage.  This includes emptying it, cleaning it, and putting things back in their rightful homes. (If we end up with a cold March this will get pushed to April!) 
21. Cut the cord on cable and figure out the least expensive way to watch what we love. 
22. Clean out my filing cabinet - it is time to organize it once again! About 1/2 way through this task
23. Clean out our firebox - it has been a long time. 
24. Buy and hang curtains in my Living Room. They are purchased! 
25. Register my teens for all of their weeks of summer camp. Done! 
26. Pick out and (hopefully) order Josh's 11th (WHAT!) grade curriculum. 
1. Not sure how to measure this but I also need to wrap my head around things like maybe doing duel enrollment (Both Josh and Nate) if that is a possibility; researching schooling options with Josh as he looks at his career ideas, as well as other post high school things.  Hard to believe we are at this point! 
27. Update my calendar with all of the dates that I currently have for the rest of the year (I feel a little behind on this as someone gave me a calendar but after using it (or not using it because I don't love it) I decided to order the one I've used the last few years that I love.) Done!