What did I accomplish today?

Well....I thought today would end up being a very "profitable" day - in that I accomplished alot. However tonight it sort of went down the tubes - got nothing of my evening plans done as Son2 is not feeling well. He's now asleep in my bed....I'm not going to get the kitchen cleaned tonight though the dishwasher has run. I will get the cookies put away and hopefully the rest of the dishes in or beside the sink. But I didn't get my second batch of jelly done nor did I get the birdfeeders refilled.

So what did I accomplish today?? I made one batch of jelly, wrote checks to pay bills and actually got them in the mail. I made a couple of phone calls that needed to be made. I got my bed changed and two loads of laundry washed and dried. They still need to be folded. I clipped coupons and tossed the remnants in the recycle bin. I installed Word on the computer (that was definitely NOT planned). I also spent 1 1/2 hours mowing the lawn - have a good section of it done - down by the road. Some of the grass was tall enough that it could almost be used as hay. There's still a smallish area - at the point of the triangle by the road that needs mowed and all of the area up around the house. I spent time on the trampoline with the boys - did 35+ "butt bounces" in addition to just goofing off and playing with them. I picked a good sized bowl of tomatoes. I snuggled Son2, helped Son1 with the stuff on the computer (now I just have to get the printer working!) ....I guess that's all - except for work. By the state of the house it doesn't look like I've accomplished anything.

The kittens are doing well overall. Oddball's two - born last week have their eyes open now. The ginger one is bigger definitely but she's still being a good mama to both babies. Tiger's four are starting to move around alot more - climbing, exploring, etc. They are still very tiny but growing. We have "named" the ginger one from that litter Tubby as it's so fat. The three grey calico ones don't have names yet. My thought is to give away (or trade) all but maybe two. That would still leave us with 4 adult cats outside, Survivor, Stormie (who's both inside and out) the two kittens we'd keep and at least one stray that eats here. That should be enough to keep the mice & other critters down. I know Tiger hunts - she ate a rabbit last week.

Monday

Today was another busy day - I feel like I ran pretty much all day - dropped off my bus for a service, then to the chiropractor, then to get some groceries, then another appointment, then home to start dinner....After that and a quick lunch back for the afternoon bus route then back to the grocery as I'd forgotten one critical item and a couple not so critical ones. This evening was relatively quiet - I got some stuff picked up and put away - kitchen is mostly cleaned and the family room is beginning to look better. I didn't get as much done there as I'd expected to as I had a friend bring over a couple of Amish ladies to pick pears - I had one baby girl and 4 little Amish boys needing entertained inside. Duplo blocks are wonderful!! It was pouring rain outside so those who were out - including both Son1 & Son2 - were absolutely soaked. I have a box of pears on the bus to deliver to another driver tomorrow morning and there are still some on the tree. The apples are almost ready also - and if I can sell a few of them as well....I try not to ask alot but it's nice to get a bit to cover the spraying I do.

Ok....I'm exhausted - still have a few things to finish up in the kitchen then off for another busy day tomorrow.

Busy Week

Boy it feels like it's been a really busy long week and I feel like overall I accomplished very little around the house. I did get one batch of peach jam made and have stuff to make probably two batches of jelly in the fridge. However I still have 3 large bowls of peaches sitting on the kitchen counter. I had hoped to get bread started tonight but don't think that's going to happen. I'm trying to figure out how best to use my time tomororw - and hoping that I don't hurt as badly as I do tonight. I'm supposed to go back to the chiropractor on Monday again - he's recommending 6 weeks of twice weekly treatments. However I also have to take my bus in as one of my celenoids are likely going out - my gauges keep quitting. So next week is shaping up to be another extremely busy week - Tuesday I was supposed to go back into the city to take care of some business - that's not happening.

On an exciting note....I've been invited to join some of the other bus drivers for breakfast on Tuesday morning after our bus route. I'm really excited as that's one huge thing I've missed from OK - the occasional breakfast outing - usually on a payday - to visit and hang out. Some of these drivers are distinctly "salty" but also welcoming and friendly. They get a kick out of the fact that I blush easily. They are doing their best to help me get settled in and get things smoothed out on my route. I am referring to my directional notes much much less now though.

All six of the kittens seem to be doing ok. I never really checked on Oddball's babies today - I've been trying to leave her alone with them as much as possible. Tiger's babies all have their eyes open and are crawling around quite abit. They still pretty much stay in the box Tiger moved them to though. Survivor is fairly skittish again though - not a good thing.

Puss & Peaches

Tired tonight but overall I feel like I accomplished at least a bit today. I have 5 good sized bowls of peaches sitting on my kitchen table waiting to be processed tomorrow. I suspect that they will only be good for jam and jelly but we will see how they look and taste peeled. The kitchen and stove top is cleaned and ready to process the peaches - no matter if they end up jelly/jam or canned. Soon there will be apples to do. And thankfully I found some people that like pears so those won't go totally to waste!! I'm happy there.

Oddball had her babies today - she delivered 3 but one appeared to be a stillbirth - and of course that one looked like it would have been a calico. The one that was cleaned up and looked great is ginger colored. She had those 2 early this morning. I went out late morning to take care of the dead one and found that she had moved the ginger one and there was another live kitten where she had delivered it. However Oddball herself was not there. So - of course - I ignored the reason I was out there in the first place and tried to figure out how to get mama to accept her baby. I cleaned baby up a bit - as much as possible - as it was very feisty and appeared healthy. Then I took it to mama (who was with the ginger kitten) and got her to lay down with both babies. Then I took off for town for kitten milk just in case I needed to bottle feed the one. By the time I came back mama had cleaned up the second kitten & both appeared to be doing well. So...hopefully I will have two healthy kittens from this litter. The second one is another possible calico - those are definitely my favorites. Tiger's 4 remaining babies are doing well I think. Their eyes are open and they are moving around quite abit. Both mama cats need to be fixed - that will have to happen sometime this fall/winter. In the meantime I hope all the babies will survive the much colder nights we are having.

In addition to picking peaches and "cat care" I got two of my perennials planted this evening. The honeysuckle is back by the woodpile - hopefully it will take off and cover the wood. The black-eyed Susan is also back there slightly down from the honeysuckle. My goal for that area is to have a large perennial bed that will attract hummingbirds and butterflies, in addition to being one area less that has to be mowed. There are still a couple of other plants I need to get in and it's almost time to think bulbs. However not tonight.

Nothing special

Ok....I really can't think of anything to write about tonight - except that I actually did finish my bus route by 4:30 today - That's a huge improvement over last week. Juggling work, the kids, the house and everything is a huge challenge right now.

I think I'm getting it!

School has started - yesterday was the first day. My morning route is going relatively well so far - still learning kids' names and houses but at least I'm not getting lost! My afternoon route is a different story altogether. Yesterday it was an hour past the time I should have been done before I dropped my last child. Son1 spent the time riding a shuttle bus until I could get him - Son 2 was home. So this morning I did fine until the school radioed and asked when I went by one child's home. I guessed at 7:30 or so but didnt' have him on my list so really wasn't sure. After the route I headed to the office - now I have a new copy of my afternoon route - hand-drawn - in pencil so that I can hopefully read it. It even has left and right turns on it - labelled. So....now I get to sit down and write that all out in longhand - and hopefully by this afternoon have it good enough that I can actually get done when I should be done. Then....I get to start working on my shuttle kids - figuring out who's destroying my seats already and getting them all assigned seats. I've never had a bus this crowded - where I have 3 to a seat regularly for a consistent part of the route. Ok....better go and get started on that longhand...then there's cleaning to be done...and an Amish run tonight after work.

Sun Poisoning????

Wow...where do I start? It's been a hectic crazy couple of days and not likely to slow down much from now on out. Son2 woke up yesterday morning with a swollen face and eyes nearly swollen shut - he was back in bed asleep within 15 minutes. He slept all morning (no church for me) and didnt' look any better after he got up. He also by that point had a rash on his neck that was itchy. I'd been advised to give him Benadryl by my sister (thanks) and was advised by the dr. on call to continue that for 24 hours. I called the dr. back when he started throwing up and she called back a couple of hours later to check on him. (Dr's that do that are a rare thing!) Anyway he spent the night in my room - neither of us slept overly well. This morning I called the doctor's office to have him seen. He was diagnosed with sun poisoning. I wasn't overly surprised due to the research I'd done yesterday - both online and talking to people. However I was surprised that the doctor put him on an antibiotic for the next 10 days. So far he's only had one dose and is already feeling much better - and the swelling is starting to go down. Yeah! Having said that.....he will also have to be very careful in the sun for - likely - the rest of his life - it will be very important that he use sunscreen and maybe even wear a hat. It's amazing to think that the sun could actually be "poisonous" for someone.

In between all that school starts this week - and there is all the last minute stuff to get done. This morning I drove my bus route with the boss - actually he drove and I rode and took notes. Tonight I went to the elementary school that my bus goes to help out with "Back to School" night - it was "meet the teachers" and registration all rolled into one night - Complete and total chaos. I felt completely out of my element. However I was pleasantly surprised to find out I get paid for my time there - and I did meet some parents and kids. Now in the next couple of days I've got to get my bus picked up and learn the route - and get times set. I do have a couple of kids that have never been to public school before - they've been homeschooled.

I'm feeling overwhelmed - seems like that's a common feeling lately. I feel like I need to step back and get some order in my life but don't know how. AT least the house is staying somewhat picked up.

There's a gorgeous sunset tonight - pink clouds and a pink glow over everything.

Quiet Day

Quiet day at home (mostly) today. It's a Sunday morning but Son2 is not feeling well at all - his eyes are swollen, he's itching, he's likely a bit feverish from his sunburn...so we are staying home. So now I get to figure out how to enjoy this unexpected "stay-home" day. Son2 is back in bed - hopefully going back to sleep for at least a couple of hours. He's had children's pain reliever and Benadryl so he should be good for a bit. I've got corn that has to be dealt with today - it was gifted to me yesterday from one of the Amish families - they were going to throw it out. I'm going to try to freeze it. But this morning I'm not going to start that - guess I will enjoy some quiet time and journalling (other than this) and then do some of the other stuff that needs done. Sunday I do try to keep a mostly quiet, chore-free day - gardening does not count as a chore in my book. I really enjoy spending time outside but the mosquitos have been so bad lately. Ok...guess I've rambled on enough. I'll write more another time.

Fog & Amish runs

Well...it's a very foggy morning. Actually the fog seems to be getting thicker the later it gets. We did have a chance of thunderstorms today but now that's gone. I've got Amish runs today - all local and driving a lady I really like. She's about my age I'm guessing - maybe abit younger and has two young boys. They are very blonde and the younger one is just a talker. The 8 year old is much more quiet. I love how - when they see me - they get these great big grins. That just makes my day. Anyway I'm taking her to spend some time with her sister this morning and then tonight to town. In between those runs I'm planning on getting the kitchen clean enough to do some canning either later today or tomorrow. Oh yes....I've also got to have dinner planned as I will be gone over the dinner hour.

Other than that I've gone blank on thoughts. I got the lawn mostly mowed yesterday - there's still a section at the hill and another at the front of the house that need done. There are some perennials that I want to get planted before school starts. Ok....I've got to scoot for now.

New Day

Today has been a better day overall though I don't feel like I accomplished much. I did get some mowing done tonight - since I had to start the grill again. (I cooked extra burgers for Son1's friend). I hadn't started any sooner because the mosquitos are so incredibly bad right now and I didn't want to put on bug spray. However going back out to grill meant putting on bug spray so I went ahead and mowed the dog area and started on the front of the house. I really do normally enjoy doing yard work and generally being outside but I HATE mosquitos.

Other than that I haven't done much today - read through my handbook for work and have started scanning the forms in the other book. Tomorrow I go in - either to help with bus inspection or simply to go over these forms. Friday is registration for Son2, Monday I go and drive my route and Monday night is meet the teacher at the school my route goes to. Then Wednesday afternoon is sports physicals & Wednesday night is meet the teacher for Son2. Thursday classes start. Between now and then...I have some stuff I need to return to stores in the city. There's also cleaning I want to get done and canning I need to get done. Also the refinance on the house will close soon (i hope!). So...there's lots on my plate.

Tiger had her second set of babies today - 6 this time. Four are various shades of grey - one of those has some orange & white in it as well; and the other 2 are yellow/orange striped. Tiger almost feels like she's got a couple more yet to deliver but it's hard to say - I'm not a vet. Oddball is getting big - she's due sometime in the next month but I can't say when. Hopefully - though I know it's a fact of life - we won't lose most of them this time. However having said that...I would then need to find homes for them. Yikes.

Overwhelmed

Ok...at the moment I'm feeling abit overwhelmed. School starts in 10 days or so and Monday is bus driver orientation. In the meantime I have two Amish runs tomorrow (was not expecting to have any) - that's not totally a bad thing except I'm tired now and was looking forward to resting tomorrow. I need to learn to say "no". Thankfully they were willing to work with me abit on the time they came home - hopefully they will be ready when I pick them up. Tuesday I have an appointment that I can't change & sometime this week I will close on the refinance on the house. That's a whole 'nother issue - my biggest fear there is that no matter what I do to the house I will be unable to get the appraisal to raise at all. Therefore any money I put into the house I will lose. (So far with two appraisals a year apart and the work I've put into it already - still hasn't brought the value up appreciably). I'm trying to figure out how I will get the stuff done this week that needs done around the house - and in general. I did get some mowing done today - my bedroom is much better as is the family room. One of these days I'm going to get the CHCH challenge going. Alright - must head to shower and bed - hopefully by the time I'm showered the washer will have finished so I can get Son1's shirt out to hang dry it.

Scripture that is running through my head right now is "My God will supply all your need". I see that supply with my Amish runs - keeps the car in gas and milk, etc in the house.

Catch-Up Time

Wow....alot has happened in the last few days. We've been to Chicago, I've got a bus route, school starts very very soon.....Thanksfully the weather has cooled off so it's abit easier to get motivated to get stuff done. The lawn has gotten very long and needs mowed. However I think it's still too wet and I know we need gas for the mower.

Today the goal is to get stuff done inside the house - getting stuff from our trip unpacked and put away as well as getting the stuff we left a mess cleaned up. I truly hate having to leave stuff a mess but it was such a spur of the moment trip that it just worked that way. I will need to go out and buy gas for the mower. I really want the house looking decent before Monday - not because anyone is coming over but because that's when all the school busy-ness starts. I have bus driver orientation at 7:00 am Monday morning (nothing like starting early!!)

Tomorrow I will leave to spend doing stuff I truly enjoy - outside puttering in the flower-beds or inside stitching or reading. My rest day involves trying not to cook or do chores of any sort except for dishes. (That is after church).

Better get - got to get the kids moving on their chores. I'm going to have to be right in there helping and supervising today.