Sickness, school, chores, and Baby Faith DVDs ...

Nice title, huh?  I couldn't come up with anything better, so I just decided to list the things I wanted to talk about.

First off, the entire family is sick.  At first it was just 9 yo R.  Then it was 9 yo R and 9 mo Baby L.  Then, all the other children joined in.  And finally, Steve and I succumbed.  We are not just sick ... we are miserable-sick.  Humidifiers are running in every room.  Eucalyptus water is boiling on the stove.  And we all sound "wike dis whed we tok."  Pass the tissues, please!

But despite the illnesses, I did manage to get the laundry caught up.  When we returned from the farmhouse, we brought all the bedding back with us and a week's worth of towels for 11 people, plus our dirty clothes.  I had a 54 gallon trash bag, a large plastic tote, as well as my 3 bin laundry hamper over piled, and a pile on the floor.  And of course, even though I washed 3 or 4 loads each day, we also added dirty clothes every day.  I started laundry Tuesday evening and by Sunday evening, I was done.  I do have several baskets to fold today, but the laundry hamper is empty!!

We also managed to keep the house from becoming filthy over the weekend, and I finished my school preparations and grading.  Actually, I still had a few lessons of 11 yo A's math to correct.  I hadn't corrected any math in a month.  But together, A and I decided that she really needed to go back to the beginning of this text book and start over.  She was missing so many each day, that it was obvious she needed to start over and get a better grasp of it all.  I've suggested this to her before, but she balked at the idea of going back.  However, this time it was her idea.  She knew she needed to do this, and I fully supported the idea.  I'd rather have her start over and really understand it than continue to muddle through with bad grades and limited understanding.

And I have decided I must go back to grading lessons each day, not weekly.  Because weekly too easily turns into monthly.  And I need to keep a better eye on how things are going.  I also think the children will learn more by correcting their mistakes right away instead of a week, or more, later.

So, today we begin our second semester of school for this year.  We had a 2.5 week Christmas break, and it's time to begin.  This week will probably be lighter than usual, since we are sick and there will be Dr.  visits this week.  At least one tomorrow, possibly more if 2 yo M's ears keep bothering him.

I also wanted to share about the Baby Faith DVDs.  They are similar to Baby Einstein, except they are Christian movies.  They are very well made videos.  We first bought them when M was 1 yo, and we would use them to keep his attention while we stealthily unloaded and filled the dishwasher without his "help".  Lately, I have been using them (and some Baby Einstein) to keep Baby L calm while I give her breathing treatments.  She will sit and watch the video calmly without fighting me (too much).  When I was trying to give her treatments without the videos, it was a wrestling match and she usually ended up crying.   Steve was marveling at the difference this weekend. 

I've been enjoying the blessing of these DVDs very much.  They can also work to help lull a sleepy toddler to sleep if they're fighting it.  In the past, I've told 2 yo M that he could watch TV as long as he laid down.  Then with the volume VERY LOW and the lights off, he's laid down to watch one, drifting off to sleep mid-movie.

Well, I think that's all of my rambling, for now.  I need to help some children with their math, and comfort my sick babies.  We will have turkey noodle soup for supper tonight.  I took the last of the frozen turkey leftovers out of the freezer last night, so I can make us some yummy turkey noodle soup tonight.  I'm looking forward to it.

New Year's Snow at ElCloud Homestead

We spent a long New Year's weekend at the farmhouse, where we met some of our family for a late Christmas celebration.  The day we arrived was miserable as it rained heavily all day.  We all traveled through rain on Friday to get there.  Then it rained all day Saturday, as well. 

But Sunday morning, New Year's Eve, we woke up to several inches of snow on the ground, and it was still falling.  We hadn't expected it, since we had not seen or heard any weather forecasts since we left home on Friday.

This was our first snow while being at the farmhouse.  It was beautiful!  Between the deepening snow, and some sick children, we decided not to go into church that morning.  We just enjoyed our time with our family at home instead.

Due to the rain, and the snow, we weren't able to do any outside work at ElCloud Homestead.  Steve replaced the bathroom door knob, but mostly he just enjoyed his time with the family.  That was a pleasant change, since he's usually outside working whenever we visit the homestead.

I'm including some pictures of our homestead in the snow.

Happy New Year!

Blessings,
April