This morning we went to the school performance of Shakespeare's As You Like It performed by the Aquila theater group and I have to say that we were well entertained and quite impressed with this show even though this is one of my less favorite plays by William. The boys thoroughly enjoyed it and even wanted to stay after the performance for the Q/A of the actors. Can you believe that out of the 250 or so kids sitting in the audience listening to the Q/A session only us and maybe 6 others had read the book before coming to the show? Who knows how many were in the theater that morning who had already left but didn't stay for the Q/A and they hadn't read the book either!No wonder these (mostly high school) kids act the way they do at these performances -- very juvenile, disrespectful and ignorant of what they are seeing.Either way my boys loved the show and even asked pertaining questions of the actors during the Q/A. If you ask any one of my boys what their favorite school subject is, they will usually say Shakespeare. Quite frankly, I think public school is doing a complete injustice by waiting until high school to present this literature, partially because of the behavior that I see from these students at these performances; they just do not appreciate the literary genius that is Shakespeare. I truly have to thank Ambleside Online for putting it into their curriculum otherwise I might also have fallen into the same trap and not started Shakespeare early. This is now the 6th or 7th play we have done of Shakespeare and I am seeing where my boys are picking up bits of Shakespeare's style in his speech, in his vocabulary, in his wording and this time even purposely memorizing favorite parts of the play. My youngest even specifically looked for a copy at the library to read along with when we got to the audio. I hope their love of this never dies and that they continue to appreciate Shakespeare's work.
If you can make it to this performance it was very cleverly done and stayed true to Shakespeare's language yet throwing some artistic twists into scenes and characters that it made this quite a wonderful performance.
Mom: Fine. How was last night? (last night being Halloween)
Me: Fine ~ cautious but still cheerful
Mom: Well, what did you do?
Me: Not a lot. I flubbed up the popcorn balls because I read the recipe wrong but the kids still liked it and we watched a movie.
Mom: You didn't go out? (out meaning trick or treating) ~ now she's cautious but cheerful
Me: No, we stayed in. The kids carved their pumpkins, ate flat popcorn balls and watched a sweet Hallmark movie called Loves Abiding Joy - it is a Christian movie.
Mom: And you didn't take the boys out? (out meaning trick or treating) ~ now in a more questioning tone ignoring the Christian movie bit
Me: Well, no mom. We really don't celebrate Halloween.
~ brief silence
Mom: Well, you carved pumpkins didn't you - that is celebrating Halloween isn't it? (carved meaning into Jack o' Lanterns) ~ now sarcastic
Me: well, yes mom, we carved our pumpkins but we basically only took all the seeds out to cook them because I stuff them with a filling and then we ate them... for dinner... stuffed... that is our tradition. ~ polite
Mom: well, then if all your doing is eating pumpkins and then that is no different than celebrating Thanksgiving! ~ judgmental
Me: well then I guess we celebrated Thanksgiving ~ polite trying to be cheery but failing miserably
Mom: and you didn't let the boys put on costumes? (costumes meaning costumes and out trick or treating)
Me: mom these boys put on costumes every day. Just yesterday I had a jester and a knight doing pre-algebra. I'm not sure a day goes by when they don't wear a costume. Mom, they really didn't want to go out ~ trying to be lighthearted and cheerful
After my week long procrastination about going to get groceries I FINALLY went last night. I actually do enjoy shopping -- it is the shopping with kids that about does me in and dh took all the boys to the hardware store so I got to go shop alone -- don't really like doing it by myself either but I don't know who I would want to go with me LOL. ANYHOW my stress-free, without kids, list in hand, ready to enjoy and take my time shopping excursion turned into the most infuriating trip I have ever experienced because......
THEY HAD CHRISTMAS MUSIC PLAYING!!!!!!!
I was so mad -- like I need to be reminded that it is coming BEFORE Halloween! Like I need to hear Deck the Halls knowing that my halls are still stuffed with work that has to be finished before Christmas; like I need to reminded that the Sugar Plums this year are costing me more and the Making A List & Checking it Twice hasn't even started. ARGH! I came home so piping mad that dh was willing to call the store manager but I calmed down. It still makes me mad though. So the stress begins
I have mixed emotions today and it is fitting that in this Jewish month of Elul where prayers for forgiveness are to be said that I personally will need to dig deep for the sadness I feel. You see today,Abdel Baset al-Megrahi, the only man convicted of the Lockerbie bombing of Pan Am Flight 103, the flight I worked the day after this horrific event, the flight in which 270 people died, of which were 16 of my fellow coworkers -- this man was allowed by Scottish officials to return to Libya on compassionate grounds because he is dying of prostate cancer. Obama warned Libya not to give this man a hero's welcome yet he returned to cheering crowds. I just don't know. Some say that the man is innocent claiming it was Iran behind the bombing yet Libyan terrorist groups were hard at work in 1988 and it was a difficult time to be a flight attendant. One broadcast stated that Abdel only served 11 DAYS for each person who died yet he claims even now that he is innocent. My soul hurts. I must find it in my heart to forgive. Scottish residences will also need to forgive the 30,000 pound price tag (that is $49,524 in US dollars!!!) because the RAF had no suitable helicopters to transport him. And he too will need to ask for repentance & forgiveness, soon I take it because his doctors have given him only 3 months to live. I don't wish him dead. I wish for the truth to be known and I wish for the evil in the world to go away. The crew that I remember and loved deserved more than this and I'm sure their families wish they could have had 3 months more with them. How saddened G-d must feel about the atrocities of this world. I pray I can find it in my heart to let this go and forgive.
Pan Am Flight 103 Crew
Avonye, Nichole Elizabeth, flight attendant, 44 years, born 05.05.44, Croissy-Sur-Seine, France, French
Avritt, Jerry Don, flight engineer, 46 years, born 30.07.42, Westminster, California, American
Berti, Noelle Lydie, flight attendant, 40 years, born 24.12.47, Paris, France, American
Engstrom, Siv Ulla, flight attendant, 51 years, born 21.09.37, Berkshire, England, Swedish
Franklin, Stacie Denise, flight attendant, 20 years, born 16.02.68, San Diego, California, American
Garrett, Paul Isaac, flight attendant, 41 years, born 16.11.47, Napa, California, American
Kuehne, Elke Etha, flight attendant, 43 years, born 17.03.45, Hanover, Germany, German
Larracoechea, Maria Nieves, flight attendant, 39 years, born 03.03.49, Madrid, Spain, Spanish
MacQuarrie, James Bruce, captain, 55 years, born 30.09.33, Kensington, New Hampshire, American
McAlolooy, Lilibeth Tobila, flight attendant, 27 years, born 02.11.61, Kelsterback, Germany, American
Murphy, Mary Geraldine, purser, 51 years, born 14.05.37, Middlesex, England, British
Reina, Jocelyn, flight attendant, 26 years, born 26.05.62, Isleworth, England, American
Royal, Myra Josephine, flight attendant, 30 years, born 20.12.58, London, England, American
Skabo, Irja Syhnove, flight attendant, 38 years, born 03.07.50, Oslo, Norway, American
Velimirovich, Milutin, chief purser, 35 years, born 14.10.53, Middlesex, England, American
Wagner, Raymond Ronald, first officer, 52 years, born 18.01.36, Pennington, New Jersey, American
an American jazz and country guitarist, songwriter and inventor. He was a pioneer in the development of the solid-body electric guitar which "made the sound of rock and roll possible". He is credited along with his wife Mary Ford, with many recording innovations, including overdubbing (also known as sound on sound), delay effects such as tape delay, phasing effects, and multitrack recording. His music will be missed.
Yesterday we moved another truck of sand and weed-eated the area that has overgrown around the boulders. We have one last truck load of sand and then that half of the yard is done with the sand moving. Dh finally agreed with me that we need to pull the apple tree that is sick so I am hoping the boys will do that this afternoon but I think we are all just dragging. It is already noon and I really haven't started my day and neither have the kids (one still in pj's and it isn't me LOL). Nobody wants to cook or clean or study or dig and we are even too tired to nap. My coffee isn't kicking in and my house is a wreck. I reaaalllly don't want to go grocery shop with the boys but it is nearing desperate in the food department.
Somebody please send me some motivation or maybe it is energy I need because even though I'm tired, it isn't tired like that -- I'm just tired of being the pusher, motivator, cheerleader, drill Sergeant, only one DOING because the boys aren't right there along side me, encouraging me or one another and I just don't wanna DO anything. And unfortunately, doing nothing isn't an option today. The wreck I have made of the house has to get done. The yard has to get done. The groceries have to be bought or else vacation time in a couple of weeks will come and go without us doing anything fun. Anybody have a motivation pill I can take?
I tried to get the boys to help me get going again on the continued Passover cleaning but all we succeeded in doing is picking up the house and clearing the hallway of the piles that came out of my bedroom which will help since we are getting ready to empty their rooms next. I gave up trying to have them help me bless the house and had them sit down and do a bit of school instead. That is good too but it also means I personally can't get anything done.
Luckily we still have casseroles in the freezer from the OMC session so I get that going and dh walks in the door from work. He wants to fill another load of sand in the truck and go pick up the cleaned pistons for the soccer trophies (he uses broken pistons because that is the name of our team -- they turn out really nice but bil had them cleaned at his work so he had to pick them up).
While he is loading sand he finds not one, or two but FOUR Jerusalem crickets which is always exciting for our family because for the last 3 years we have been mailing the live bugs to an entomologist in Calif. that mates and studies these humongous creatures. We are getting to be experts on the silly bugs ourselves.
Bugs are in containers ready to ship and then we find a queen in an ant colony so another whirl of activity to get the ant farm going. Kinda cool - they even had underground aphid farm that they were caring for. We will see how they do. Tonight they are settled into the ant farm and it is just fascinating to watch them work.
Okay so dh leaves with truck load of sand to go dump and an hour later I get a call to come pull him and his truck out of the sand because he is STUCK lol!!! I un-stick him -- boy that is nerve racking driving in sand, with chains, in the dark. Boys go to bed waaay late -- after 11p so I hope all this excitement doesn't mess up tomorrow too.
What a crazy day! but at least we did a little school and can tell you a bit ants, J. crickets and Vermont but no idea what the boys know LOL
Friday was the spontaneous garage sale in the morning. We cleaned up, had lunch and then the boys asked if papa would leave his truck here so they could surprise him by starting the backyard renovation by filling the truck with the sand we are removing (NOTE:This has been an on going remodel that has been going on for the last few summers that we hope to have done THIS YEAR.The boys are motivated by the fact that once this sand is moved that we can then start building their playhouse/fort/pirate ship). While I bake cookies the boys fill 20 wheel barrels of sand into the little truck and they made a HUGE dent in the area that we are moving. After work, Dh goes and dumps the sand.
Saturday we drop off 2ds at Flamenco with our cookies for their open house. I come back home with the other boys to meet Aunt Flo in the driveway. She is quite upset that we weren't home when she arrived. I tell her I am quite sorry that I had no idea she was coming and give her a tall glass of something cold to drink, a pill and tell her to go lie down. The boys work on picking up the house. We fix lunch and then go pick up 2ds but on the way we were listening to a Diane Waring tape about history of the world. She said something about recently reading that there was a possibility that King Tut would have been the Pharaoh after the Exodus and the parting of the Red Sea. Well curious minds want to know if that could possibly be and we spend the next 2.5 hours "researching" and come to the conclusion that nobody will ever really know for certain which Pharaoh it was unless we find more proof somewhere (and we have our own theories of which Pharaoh it is after our deep-sea unit study on Egypt a few years ago but it certainly wasn't Tut). HOWEVER, the very intriguing thing we did read was that the Israelites possibly crossed the Red Sea 3 days after Passover which would make the crossing of the Red Sea on the Feast of First Fruits (which btw is what most Christians refer to as Resurrection Sunday) and that just blew me away with the significance and the parallels to Christ's death - how the temple curtain torn/the red sea parted, how they escaped the Pharaoh/how Jesus escaped death, how the Red Sea covered the Pharaoh’s army/how Jesus' blood covers our sins --- and so then I spent the next bit trying to find out if it was true or not. It makes sense to me but I had never related the two events in that way. While I was on my own little bunny trail, dh called & said they were going to let him work some overtime so he would come home for dinner and then go back to work. The boys asked if they could fill up his truck with sand again while he was at work and I entertained Aunt Flo.
Sunday DH was off. We had planned on going to church but I guess the battery went out on our clock in the kitchen and nobody noticed the time anywhere else in our house because when we got in the car, we were already 35 minutes late for services so we turned the car around and came home. The boys wanted to work some more on sand and dh thinking they would give up in the heat and with all the work said sure. Those boys filled the truck FOUR times today -- that is more than 60 wheel barrels. I cleaned up some flower beds while we listened to Dave Ramsey online (I wish I wouldn't have missed his town hall for hope broadcast last Thur. & that was what I was looking for). We go to AWANA that evening, showers and a movie because my boys deserved it for all their hard work.
Aunt Flo wants some leftover birthday cake so I will go entertain her and go to bed.
OMW!Dh says last night that he should get up early (today) and have a Friday morning sale before going to work at 3pm. I think yeah right -- it was nearly midnight when he says this. Well, as I suspected we slept in until nearly 10 am this morning because of our fun filled birthday party yesterday. Dh goes out to get the mail and runs back inside and says, "I'm having that sale -- the house 3 doors down is having a sale!” He madman style throws things out and in the process actually cleans up the garage a bit (it will take a hurricane to really clean it). The kids help somewhat and by noon (an hour later) we have sold some of the big stuff which was worth it for that factor alone. Made $20 bucks with very little effort and not even during the peak of sales in which we were sleeping LOL. We will be much more prepared for it all next time but for a spontaneous sale I think not too bad.
We are still waiting to find out which store dh will be coming to on this side of town (transfer) but he has been approved to come to this (hopefully closer) district. He will close out the store he is at -- last day April 30 -- then spend a few days tying up loose ends, a week at a different store to fill in for vacations, and then we will take a vacation before he goes to his new store. We are probably just going to work on getting the garden in but might spend a few of those days camping (BIG prayers needed there because it isn't just plant the garden -- TONS of sand need to be moved (probably should rent a little tractor but can't afford it so my boys will be building muscles and I will hopefully be loosing weight), beds need to be built, new sprinkler lines laid and THEN we can plant -- really a whole summer's worth of work). And in the middle of all this we have 2 end-of-season soccer parties (one of which I plan), Flamenco (open house tomorrow and they want homemade cookies but only told us on Wend!!!), 3ds Reading Rainbow award luncheon, Mother's Day and homeschool planning!!! I don't see how it will all happen but we shall "rely on the L-rd"
And the CAR! That is a tough one for us. We don't know if we should keep the silly thing since it has stranded me twice in the last week (obviously replace the battery) or let insurance have it and look for something else. Since we are an active family (with too much stuff) it is nice to have the big vehicle for camping and such plus I like that I feel very safe it but on the other hand you can just tell it is at that stage in a car's life where everything starts to fall apart. Dh doesn't think we will actually find something similar to replace it without more money and we aren't making enough money to save or do without the 2nd vehicle for awhile. It is a really tough decision. At the moment dh is testing the "sell-it" waters, finding out how bad the frame is bent, how hard it would be to pull it or have someone pull it to straighten it out, and we are kinda shopping to see if we can find something we would all fit in. When we have too many options it is really difficult for us to make decisions.
And onward with the Passover cleaning; it might just be done by NEXT Passover
Mama bird has two fuzzy babies hatched and still sitting on one (maybe two eggs) but those probably will not hatch. They are about a week old and they are just starting to chirp and call their mama and papa. Papa comes and takes over for mama on occasion but his care is so much different. Mama gets into the bag and sits with the chicks. Papa sits very close to the bag and just sings his little heart out.
The whole thing made me rethink my previous post and repent and of course in G-d grace, He made me realize that my dh will do things different than I do so just before he went to work, I ran and thanked him for all the good things he did today and made up with him. I had to dig deep not to be so grumpy at him but I think it helped and I feel a little better (and I know dh feels better) so thank you for letting me vent in my previous post.
I woke up with an anxiety attack in the middle of the night for what reason I have no idea.Man those are scary. Took me a long time to calm down and then to go back to sleep but definitely didn't get enough sleep and I woke up grouchier than I went to bed and I went to bed pretty grumpy. Long story but my grandparents came over on Sunday and as is typical with my family they push their thoughts and ideas and think they have the right to boss me around. I try to take it all with a grain of salt, be pleasant, respectful and nice but after they left I was so worn out. I was getting it from dh too; he said 'yes' to something I had already told the boys 'no' too and then he proceeded to fight me tooth and nail before knowing the entire story (he is also super tired) so I just grumped. To make matters worse I feel like I am the only one interested in this cleaning spree and all I ask is that everyone appreciates what I am doing (not asking for help though it would be nice) and try to not mess up the already clean areas. Well, that isn't happening and I feel like the maid - not the mother, wife or even treasured love one,
just the cleaning maid!
That's okay because this cleaning thing was my idea but it just hurts that they don't appreciate it nor do they want to support or encourage me or at the least keep the areas that are clean -- CLEAN!
Goals: I washed the bathroom walls (so gross). Dh hung hooks and re-hung the picture in the bathroom (that I have been waiting for him to do for the last 5 years - so no awards for him but I still love his tired self). I'm now scrubbing the soap scum off the tiles and decided to drink a glass of water and take a break because my arms are sore. Once that is done I will need to polish the tiles, mop the floor and decide if I need to wash the plastic shower curtain. I've never had good luck doing that; it always rips so I might just spray it with bleach water and be done. Started 2 loads of laundry (bathroom rug in one), and the boys are folding and trying to pick up the house but it is really hard to clean around everything. Next area to tackle will be the boy’s shelves and toys so that might be tough for all of us. More so for me - it feels like their childhood is just slipping away (and of late, I'm not enjoying their childhood). We shall have to see how it goes.
We got word today that the soccer fees will increase by 40% and that makes soccer out of our price range for middle son (the team my dh probably won't be coaching now). But it isn't the amount that is bugging me. I think it is the fact that my kids are being ??? selfish, lazy, not willing to try hard, not seeing the talent they have and applying themselves, not being grateful for what they do and what we give up so they can do and not seeming to care that some of these things just come once in a lifetime and then poof they are gone. And I don't think that it is they are spoiled (which is what my grandmother said on Sunday and that made me grumpy too ) and I know they have done without at times. We aren’t exactly in the Fortune 500 bracket.I don't know I guess I need sleep because EVERYTHING is bugging me.
This week we go back to piano lessons and the boys don't seem to be at all excited about it (again, see previous paragraph). The other *biggie* for us is to finish making the soccer trophies for the team and get the end of the year party planned and done with.Dh wants to have it on 7 May. I feel like digging my heels in and not helping so pray I get sleep or my attitude changes. I will go back to my shower walls and maybe if I take out my frustration on them, they will be shiny clean by the end of the day. LOL
I keep telling myself that I'm not letting the events in my life effect me -- "I'm relying on G-d to see us through". But today I show up at soccer games and another homeschool mom asked if had gone to homeschool convention.
Well, duh? I thought it was next week and I'm not sure where I got my dates crossed but I'm guessing that G-d was watching out for our pocketbook as well because the whole reason I hadn't registered early was because of $ and if you don't go then you aren't tempted with all the new/used curriculum (that I unequivocally do not need).So I didn't spend any $ either but I soooo don't know how I got so mixed up and as much as I would have liked to attend, I guess "all things work together for good" but silly me. LOL We might go to the one in PHX but that is yet to be determined.
I'm a little sad because today my oldest son played his last soccer game probably ever. His team is advancing to the next bracket that we basically can not afford but even if we were in the "more money than brains club" I'm not sure that this kid has the drive or passion for this. I know he loves playing soccer but I'm guessing it is the social aspect of it because even though he could be really _______ (fill in the blank) on the field, he just doesn't seem to be doing it and it has been humbling and frustrating for way too long.I think he will be a late bloomer just like his mom when it comes to sports but that is okay because I kept telling myself that brains like Bill Gates make way more than Michael Jordan so sports isn’t everything LOL. I guess I am grateful that he has ended the season/year/his soccer career (lol) on a good note with a great bunch of kids and we are ready to see what is around the next corner. Still sad though.
My middle son's team is another story. With dh's job so up in the air it is difficult to know even what to tell the team. Dh wants to coach but I'm not even sure if my (very talented) ds wants to play. Several of our players just didn't want to even be there and it is so difficult to coach kids who are playing for their parents or parents who don't participate by getting their kids to games or practice. I think dh is burnt out but he is afraid of what will happen to the few kids who want to stay playing. So it was a bittersweet day.I will be glad when the end-of-season parties are out of the way so we can move on with our lives. Everything gets put on hold during soccer season and I have had more than enough of soccer for this year. The biggest thing I learned from this season is that you really need to encourage and support those who are in "leadership roles" because it truly is tough on the other end not knowing what parents or kids are thinking until the end of the season when they are disappointed that you might not be coming back KWIM?
Passover cleaning update: Main bathroom almost done but doing nothing on it today. I should be done but I ended up rearranging our bedroom furniture to put a couple of bookshelves in it so that was time consuming but even dh says it feels like we have so much more room. The kids make me laugh because they think that the "clean" rooms now echo???? But man it feels so nice. I can't wait for the whole house to be done but the boys and the Rumple room are next and while the boys rooms aren't too bad because they have been working on it, their rooms are getting a major re-haul (hopefully with paint and maybe flooring but that depends on when the income tax comes back and how much my new to us car will be). The Rumple room will be the scariest because it started out scary.
On waking yesterday the kiddos asked if they had to dress to their shoes, clean their room and make their beds before getting breakfast like dad imposed on them the day before ( wah "even if it is 1ds’s birthday??" -- the answer was yes btw ) so I guess that it worked at least for now. Dh of course told them that he was really sorry that they were hungry but this really isn't a new rule or something different -- it has always been this way and they took advantage of me so it will feel new and different until it becomes a habit again.
Pancakes in bed for oldest was a hit as well as his only present (so far). All this kid would tell us that he wanted was the Message Bible. We found it at a library book sale for .33c on Saturday and he is beyond thrilled and has already read it and stuffed it with his other Bible in his carrying case.That is going to be a monster to lug around LOL
Well, the pancake making at 4 too early in the morning put me plum back to sleep and when I awoke dh and boys were gone to get present #2 -- bicycle tube for his tire and "will be back to go do something else soon" as the note said. So it was good I napped: Never under-rate sleep to turn bad to good LOL.
AND 3ds who entered the Reading Rainbow competition got a call that he received an Honorable Mention -- so he didn't place, and his book doesn't go on to nationals BUT he does get some fun prizes and he will get to go to the luncheon so I'm thrilled and thinking that I should nap more often to turn my days to REALLLY REALLLLLY GOOD!
After wallowing around yesterday feeling sorry for myself, I am up today realizing that my oldest birthday is today and of course no planning, no plans, no cake, no presents so it is good I am up and very, very bad that I let yesterday do this to me. Dh is off and he is up too - making pancakes (4:45 am!!!) and I am going to pull out the German chocolate cake mix and get that going.
The insurance adjuster came by yesterday and totaled the car. The frame is twisted and more than likely un-repairable. I don't know what happens next. This could be good or very, very bad.
Dh has been approved to come to the district on this side of town but still doesn't know what store. This could be good or very, very bad.
I’ve had it with the boys and their lack of enthusiasm for helping me with the Passover cleaning or doing school. Dh said that they couldn't come out of their bedrooms until the bedrooms were cleaned up (maybe 15 minutes worth of mess so not bad) and they were dressed to their shoes and that they were willing to get busy for the day, nor could they have breakfast. Well they didn't eat breakfast until 2pm and this is after being refused by dh dinner the night before because they didn't do their chores or school. Dh kept quoting the verse about lazy people don't get to eat. Well, about noonish my youngest starts throwing up and I realize it is because of a lack of food that he is doing this and I start feeling like a terrible mother and thinking that dh was just wrong in his wisdom of this situation and bugged that he enforces from afar and leaves me to carry through. We got through the day but middle son misses Flamenco because no school was done again and this is going on day 10 of a kid imposed vacation that wasn't approved by their teachers. Dh kept telling me "close their door and ignore them; I've told them what to do" which should have been an easy task but I guess my lenience is what is allowing them to get away with all this so this little lesson from dad could be good or very, very bad - we shall see.
I finally got the nerve to hook up the old computer again and it came back on but I'm not sure what or why it is doing what it is doing. I have one file on it that is giving me an error message and I think that it is related somehow but because the file is ?corrupt then I sorta don't want to back that up. I would prefer to fix the file so I have a clean backup. I was also in the middle of organizing photos so I could send them to print or have a disk made and I know when I go to back up all those pictures will be in my backup and I don't want that so it is good that my computer came back to life but it is still bad that I have these problems LOL
So wondering if today is going to be very, very bad or awfully, awfully good
I missed today’s tax day tea party and I love tea parties but mind you I really didn’t have a clue that this wasn’t that sort of tea party.I honestly didn’t know anything about it until a friend asked me if I wanted to go.I had to turn her down but I thought it would involve a hot cuppa and yummy dessert LOL.Had I looked into the event a bit more I would have agreed with the Taxed Enough Already rally and what this group seems to stand for.
As a matter of fact I read today that Obama's income for 2007 was 4.2 million (& yes, I know that is with a book sale --- man I need to write a book)!!! And that he only reported giving $1,400 to 5 (count'um FIVE) churches for 2008 (I’m guessing his money went toward getting himself elected)!!! I'm thinking the man needs to go back to math class because that isn't 10% AND I doubt very seriously that he or any other politician could possibly understand where my family and I are at financially or the rest of the US for that matter (doubt that he has had to eat beans 3 times weekly just to fill the tummy). And this is the man who is telling me that I need to volunteer more to help the community?I really would like to go dump some tea somewhere but I will continue to pray for this man, our politicians and our country!
I guess I can't call it Passover cleaning anymore since that has come and gone LOL
But work is still going on because it BADLY needs it. Yes, I am still in my bedroom (had about a 3 day break with accident and dealing with insurance, soccer and then Ressurection Day) but it is almost done and oh man oh man does it FEEL like a thousand bucks. It might be my imagination but I think it even smells better although I seriously don't know HOW we were breathing in this room. The dust was soooooo thick under, behind, ontop of and basically all over.
This room should be completely done tonight when I can get dh to help me move the bed so I can vacuum, wipe down, wash, dust, polish and vacuum again, under and behind the bed (yes, that does seem to be what I am doing to everything in my bedroom -- it is that filthy). I will do the inside of my drawers when I do the clothes closet and dh has one huge pile that he has to go through as well as his drawers but even if this is where it ends oh man oh man does it ever feel wonderful. It feels like a bedroom again and I even had morning devotional back on my prayer couch with the kids this morning (can't remember the last time that happened there). I have suceeded in clogging the vacuum AGAIN so the poor thing is getting a work out.
I took before pictures (will post when I figure that out with the new camera software) but they really don't show the underneaths and the insides. I can't wait to show you the afters. Onward to the boys bathroom that I don't think is as bad but I thought my bathroom and bedroom weren't that bad too so who knows. It may be another 3 day affair but that is okay I'm enjoying listening to sermon tapes and even found some tapes of Pilgrims Progress (wonderful rendition that I taped off the internet produced by the BBC -- forgot I even had them) that are keeping me company. Just wish my boys were the ones keeping me company however they come and help in tiny spurts so I guess that is better than nothing although little to no school is being done either which is making me insane.
Calgone please fix my tub so I can be taken away LOL
For the record, I definitely will not be done with the cleaning even before Sunday but that is okay.The insurance company took up most of my time today so not much in the way of cleaning.PS the estimate came back on my car and it is way over $3000 because I have frame damage. Not sure what will happen next but dh thinks the insurance company will total the car. It isn't making right hand turns very well either and the insurance company has informed me that this will count against my record so our rates will probably go up. I'm just so heartbroken.
So trying to celebrate our Passover meal (which was supposed to happen yesterday btw) just isn’t in the plan at the moment.I don't think we have ever celebrated Passover anywhere near when it was supposed to be celebrated (because of dh’s work schedule) so I'm not really concerned. I feel like G-d understands and He certainly knows my heart.He truly has always honored our attempts whenever they have been. If we celebrate this year I don't know when it will be but that is a big IF. To tell you the truth, the "leavening" in our house matches the layers of dust I am cleaning out and frankly He is doing a work on my heart in particular so I wouldn't feel comfortable just stopping the process to celebrate when the removing is such an important part of the preparation. Maybe once the rooms are clean we will celebrate but truthfully that might be a long time from now especially since the cleanest room in the house took 3 days. I'm on day 3 of my bedroom and I've hardly made a dent and seeing how badly it needs it I can't hardly stop because G-d is showing me things, so as much as I don't want to do the cleaning and I really don’t enjoy G-d pointing out my leavening, I am also treasuring my time with Him and I feel like this is a spiritual cleaning as well as a physical cleaning.
Now I know I could make do and make the house presentable (however, I also haven't planned, shopped, cooked or have the money for Passover), but I will KNOW what is hidden (and so will G-d) and I can't possibly celebrate with a clear conscious so maybe this year this is what G-d wanted me to learn about Passover and if we don't celebrate then deyenu.
And that's not to say we aren't celebrating -- Good Friday services were awesome today (you can watch it here); He laid so many things on my heart. We will go to sunrise service on Sunday and avoid eating the ham at my MIL’s so it is still all good.
Well, today the wind in my sails kinda popped due to the accident and with me licking my wounds so to speak but I did do a little more on the cleaning of leavening in my house.
I have started a witness protection relocation program for 5 of the spiders living in my house. They are now in an undisclosed place that is not behind my dresser, behind my desk or in my lamp shade LOL
I have discovered that my dear, dear husband who has been providing and paying the bills each month has not and I repeat has not been filing any of the paper work for the last ?? 3+ years -- just neatly shoving them in the filing cabinet. Guess what I am doing tonight???
I have discovered that spiders can make webs across a flat surface and the web never be seen.
But I guess the blessing for today is that while I was cleaning I decided to listen to some cassettes that I had, to see what needed to stay or go and I was blessed with a wonderful message of G-d’s Sovereignty.I also listened to a taping of my oldest telling me a story when he was about 5 years old so it was a super sweet memory.
In all, it was a good day even if not as productive as I hoped. I think we can safely say that I will not be ready for Passover anytime soon but that is okay -- I think G-d wants my head and my heart cleaned before He wants me celebrating His Resurrection.
Conversations with myself about the triumphs and tribulations of being a Mama Bear to 3 baby bears, a helpmeet, a CM AO Hs teacher, a Flybaby, a daughter of Eve and a princess to the King.
This morning we went to the school performance of Shakespeare's As You Like It performed by the Aquila theater group and I have to say that we were well entertained and quite impressed with this show even though this is one of my less favorite plays by William. The boys thoroughly enjoyed it and even wanted to stay after the performance for the Q/A of the actors. Can you believe that out of the 250 or so kids sitting in the audience listening to the Q/A session only us and maybe 6 others had read the book before coming to the show? Who knows how many were in the theater that morning who had already left but didn't stay for the Q/A and they hadn't read the book either! No wonder these (mostly high school) kids act the way they do at these performances -- very juvenile, disrespectful and ignorant of what they are seeing. Either way my boys loved the show and even asked pertaining questions of the actors during the Q/A. 
so it is still all good.
