Hiking at Matthiesen State Park

Since Charissa is leaving in a week to head back to college, we decided to go to one of her favorite places here in Illinois - Matthiesen State Park.  It is about a two hour drive from our house but has always been worth the drive.  We packed a lunch and headed out with a promise of gorgeous weather perfect for hiking.

Tired before the hike ever began

Eric is ready to go ...

  
Eric was excited to bring his own backpack for hiking.  Yeah, that excitement died within the first three minutes of the hike, and Charissa carried it for 99% of the hike.  Eric did want it back at lunch time. Eric loved hiking.  He loves the outdoors period and was quite the trooper.  He did snitch a piggy-back ride up the flights of stairs - don't blame him there as some flights were quite long and steep.

Although we have had severe drought lately, the recent storms helped green up things and made for some beautiful nature shots.  It also created some puddles for getting wet and water fights.  The water was still low enough that the easier trails were accessible which made it easier on the younger kids and out-of-shape moms.

Let's Hike!

 

Jonathan doing some exploring

Clint and Eric enjoying the view

Joanna and Cara

Jonathan and Oren climbing and trying not to fall into the water below

  

Oren was King of the Rock until Charissa the Queen came along and showed him who was boss.

   

    

Kalynne tried to use a staff to part the waters on the bridge.

Enjoying a treat  ... It was National Soft Serve Ice Cream Day afterall.

School is in Session

The winter break is over not from winter but from school. Except for a snow day, the kids are back in school. I am also back in school. I do not get any snow days either. Clint suggested, and I agreed that perhaps the timing is right that I go back to college to finish my Elementary Education degree.

I am using one of the local community colleges in the area. Since Eric is still at home all of my classes this semester are strictly online classes. It saves on childcare costs as well as gas and travel time. That option, online classes, wasn't available when I was first pursuing my degree. Maybe if it had been, I would already have my degree. I think it is better now though while I am busier with life and family, I am more responsible and like to think mature. The kiddos remind me on occasion that I am not which is usually after pulling some prank.

I have finished my first week. So far so good as my homework has been turned in already. Most was due tomorrow (Sunday), but I wanted to keep that day for church and family. One assignment (Intro to Psychology) received full marks plus an extra credit point. The other while not graded received good remarks from the teacher. It was for Intro to Art and was a self-portrait box (pictures below). I am also in a Political Science class.

I enjoy the art class so far and find the political science class interesting. The psychology class is by far the hardest. I make sure I do that class reading in the morning after I have woken up a bit. I was nervous being the oldest student or being too dumb. I don't know if I am the oldest, but I am not the only mother in my classes or education major. Hopefully the success of the first week will keep me going. I am just wondering how I am going to handle Spring Break as the children's break is not the same time as mine. I am pushing for my own laptop but so far have been told to keep wishing.


My first art project --

Zeke

I have enjoyed watching the different relationship dynamics since having Zeke. Since we have had some super cold weather as of late, Zeke has been inside so it makes watching him more fun. His antics are funny as he not the most graceful dog. His ear has a habit of turning inside out giving him a lopsided look. He loves the outdoors, and I think the snow is his favorite. He just runs and bounds through with a doggy grin on his face. The outdoors only comes in second to being with his family. We are glad to have saved him from the shelter as he brings us much laughter.

Zeke has a different relationship with each family member. Take me for instance, Zeke is just like my children, I swear. I am the Alpha, the one in charge and the disciplinarian. When Zeke is doing something wrong, I am usually the one that punishes him. What is funny is when I haven't caught him in a no-no situation, but he will see me and start running away. Zeke will keep out of my reach or hide behind another family member when he knows he is in trouble. The dog acts guilty even if not caught (just like my kids). It is not all fear as Zeke does find me me a suitable companion albeit boring sometimes.

Kalynne is the caretaker, and Zeke adores her. He knows she is a pushover. She is his playmate and whimpers when she leaves his sight. It makes going to the bathroom or even piano practice difficult for Kaly.

Clint is Zeke's buddy and best friend. Both Zeke and Eric wait at the door to greet Clint when they see his car drive up. It is hard to tell who is more excited. Clint is pretty enamored himself and loves having Zeke.

Watching and whimpering while his playmates head back to school

Charissa is the one who rough-houses with Zeke. He loves wrestling with her, and it is quite funny to watch. To knock down his opponent Zeke jumps at and hits them broadside. Also Zeke doesn't fight fair if he is losing and goes for the toes. That hurts!

Eric and Zeke are quite the duo. Eric loves Zeke while Zeke tolerates him. The only incident was when Zeke nipped Eric on the lip. Eric was repeatedly poking Zeke in the eye. A poor dog can take only so much. Zeke knew he was in major trouble when he did it. Zeke has come to the understanding that Eric is not low man on the totem pole here. Now to solve the being contstantly bothered, Zeke has learned a method that is acceptable. He nibbles (lips only) Eric's toes or fingers. That grosses Eric out and stops the annoying action.

I witnessed it when Eric was holding on to the tip of Zeke's tail following Zeke around. Zeke tired of the game quickly and nibbled Eric's fingers to stop the game. Zeke does give Eric kisses and once Eric realizes whiskers are not meant to be pulled, perhaps Zeke will not run from Eric so much. There are times Zeke looks so worn out from entertaining and avoiding Eric. I think he is almost begging to be locked in the crate to be able to sleep. I can so sympathize, Zeke!

Life Happens

Geez, it has been a while since I posted anything. There has been plenty going on though, mundane along with the not so mundane. Where to begin?

The weather can't decide if it wants to be Spring or Winter. I am just glad for our new sump what with the rain and thawing we have been having. It has most likely saved us a few wet floors in the basement. Thank goodness for tax refunds that can pay for it too.

Thank goodness for tax refunds that can cover the loss of income from a temporary lay-off too. All those kids and deductions can come in handy. It seems that Clint gets to take a week off of work and not be paid for it. It most likely will be two, but at least it won't be back-to-back ... sort of. The first one is at the end of March. We had just bought a trip to Branson for a 15th anniversary get-away. We were going to take it when the kids had Spring Break. We are going to go when Clint doesn't have to work now. We found a sitter and made our reservations. Something good besides the enormous amount of yard clean-up has to happen that week.

We also bought a porch swing. We have only been here 6 years. We finally found the right one. We ordered it, and it will be ready in time for Mother's Day. You know where to find me (with my nose in a book) this summer.

Eric is quite the chatterbox now. He has plenty of examples around here. He can say school (when he sees the bus come and the kids get on). There is thank you, welcome, bye-bye, night, and what's that? as well. Oh, I am "mom" now unless Eric is showing his imp-ish sense of humor. Then he goes around the house calling every dad and just laughing about it. I get "What!?" when I call his name. That is also due to the plenty of examples around here. I heard him say stuck the other day as well. He can also say Charissa's and Kaly's names or at least an understandable variation.

I am surprised I don't hear stuck more often as Eric is a climber. I am always have to rescue him. He loves water too. Toilet seats have to stay down and bath tubs emptied. I found out the hard way about the tubs when I found towels, blankets, clothes, toys, and a couple of pillows thrown in the water.

Scholastic Bowl season is wrapping up. Charissa did well as JV captain. Kalynne has her last meet this coming week. both girls love it and earn their team plenty of points.

Oren didn't make it to state for his National Geographic Geography Bee. The poor kid was so heartbroken. He studied really hard too. We are all smarter now, because he shared all his information with us.

Joanna busted her chin open in PE a couple of weeks ago. It is to match the back of her head, I guess. She also was out this past week for three days with a bug that just made you feel yucky and lethargic with a low grade fever.

Jonathan had Pinewood Derby last month but didn't win any races. He was so bummed, and then broke his trophy since he won a specialty category. It was just not his night. He is looking forward to summer camp so I better get him signed-up!

Cara has stayed free of injury, illness and disappointment unless you count having been made to practice piano. She is struggling with that right now. I get to teach her as her dad is about as exasperated as she is.

I am staying busy with PTO (finished one project last week and moving on to the next, a fundraiser next week). Church keeps me going too. What with my responisibilities, the activities and everyone else's responsibilities and activities ... ugh! Okay, it is not bad just busy. I also pamper myself by working out three times a week. I started attending Curves. So far the effort has paid off with 11.5 pounds and 14 total inches lost. The photo from Thanksgiving was motivation and a shocker about how I let the weight creep back on again. I actually enjoy exercise or maybe it is the me time. A friend watches Eric 2 hours twice a week so I can workout and run errands during the week. I also go Saturday mornings. I try to squeeze in walks the other days. hopefully the weather will decide on sunny spring days so it is possible.

Now I better get to bed. I just realized I had typed this entire rambling news bit in my cooking blog. Thank goodness for copy and paste!

They're dropping like flies ...

Merry Christmas to me, Merry Christmas to me ... NOT!

First it was Charissa as her dad sped her home from seminary. She had her head hanging out the window. Hubby's car made it, but my stairs were not so lucky. BLECH! Then it was Joanna last Sunday who missed church and was nursed by her daddy.

Then it was Cara, but she was faking it although I still let her stay home. I made sure life was boring as possible for her. You need plenty of rest when sick, right? Yeah, she won't being repeating that anytime soon.

Now it is the biggest baby of all ... hubby. I know he is sick when he doesn't fight when told to stay home from work. That means he will hog the computer, and I actually gotta look like I work all day. I think I might leave him and Charissa home (she has a free pass on finals due to good grades and attendance so is out of school until January) with Eric so I can finish some shopping. Eric takes a 3 hour nap from 9:30 to about 1 p.m. or so. Yeah, I'm spoiled.

I guess it is better that hubby be sick now since on Sunday I have to teach two lessons (10-12 year old) and my 12-13 year old young women. Clint also got us into a family musical number that we are performing. I don't whether to wish that they all get sick now and not ruin my holiday (but wouldn't mind not singing) or just hope for the best that hubby is the last hit. Our room is under quarantine as I hang on to hope.

Sigh ... I better start acting ... er ... cleaning.

Edited to Add: ARRRGGGHHHH! Not 15 minutes later another bites the dust ... Oren had to make sure my two sets of stairs were a matching set. He just nailed the downstairs ones.

I think I caught sight of myself

coming as I was going. Man, oh man! It has been hectic and then some. I have had to pick up the slack in some things which has added to my load and stress. November will probably be my busiest month this year.

For November, I have:

Kalynne's Birthday

Church Lessons

Church Meetings

Youth Fireside (at my home)

School Meetings

Orthodontist Appointments

Family Game Night at the Elementary (planning and running)

Dentist the & Doctor Appointments

Youth Wednesday Night Activities (planning and running)

Church Activities (just attending)

Hosting Company

Planning a Birthday Party for Jonathan

22-hour Road Trip

Normal Mommy Stuff (cooking, cleaning, chauffering, shopping, etc)

The bright side is I have to teach one less Sunday this month due to our trip. I am off the hook for one school meeting due to travelling as well. I guess the hardest part is that I have over a week cut off my month. I am trying to do all of this in weeks. At least we can relax with family the last week. I will think of it as a reward for making it until then. What I won't think of is the 22-hour road trip back home at the end of the month. Or Jonathan's birthday the day after we get home with party later in the week (at least it will be planned out ahead of time).

Whew! I feel like this frog sometimes with life being the stork ...

He had a dream ...

so now I have a bruised calf muscle. Hubby had a dream last night so he kicked me ... hard ... twice. He was apologetic when he realized it was me he kicked. He kept telling me it wasn't me he was trying to kick. I asked him what it was then. His response? An evil, porcelain doll. Yeah. It had been a coyote but turned into the doll so he was kicking it to kill it. He missed the first time so kicked again. Well, he didn't miss me the first time or the second either.

So what do I do? I faked being asleep when Eric woke up at 4 a.m. I guess hubby was still feeling guilty, because he got up without even trying to wake me. He took care of Eric even though I usually do during the week. I sure didn't feel guilty as my leg was throbbing and tender by then.

That was worse than the falling Christmas tree dream. Early in our marriage hubby dreamed a Christmas tree fell on him. He jumped sky high which scared me awake since I was in that semi-conscious state right before fully asleep. I frantically asked, "What?!" "A tree fell on me ... zzzzzz" UGH!

Another funny thing about dh is that he talks in his sleep if he is stressed at work. He did it all the time when he was in the military. He would bark out orders at me (or who he was dreaming I was), but I just laughed at him which translated to insubordination from his men in his dream. He blew someone up too once (in his dream that is).

Dh usually doesn't act out his dreams. I can count on one hand in almost 15 years that he has. Maybe I shouldn't have given him that chocolate caramel bar to eat before bed. That stuff is dangerous for more than your hips.

Is That a Challenge?

I read an on-line article and watched the video for a local article about raising awareness for the area food banks and raising funds. I have no problem with helping out so that isn't the issue. Things happen and change in the blink of an eye. I realize that there might be a time I need help.

What gets me is the article and attitudes expressed which is why I had to comment on the article. The article/video "$25 Challenge" comments how hard and near impossible it would be to live on $25 per person per week. I find it really realistic as I do that every single week for my family. I even blogged about living for under $100 a week for my family in my Cornbread & Cookies blog.

That isn't what I budget normally for food alone, but I wanted to find out if my family could make do on less if required. We can. It takes time and planning which is one problem I perceive with people not being able to make it for $25 a week per person. We are busy people. Forget the busy as a bee cliche. It needs be busy as a human. Society as a whole seems to have a I-want-it-now-I-can't-wait attitude.

What does that have to do with the article? People buy convienence. It may because we over-schedule ourselves. It may be we just don't know how to cook from scratch or plan a menu. Those all can create havoc with the food budget.

The reporter said she tried the challenge. The first two things I noticed that set her up for failure are (1) she went shopping without a plan (no menu, no list), and (2) she went shopping at one of the higher priced grocery chains in the area. There is an Aldi right across the street from that Kroger she used. I find some great loss leader prices at Kroger. Their brand chocolate milk is the best (when on sale). Their brand of milk also freezes well when I stock up on a good buy. So I do shop Kroger just not only Kroger.

Other things I have issues with (I got a lot of issues actually ;P) is the reporter's comment of having to buy store brand or generic. There is nothing wrong with that. There are some items I do buy name brands because of quality or whatnot. Some generics are gross and poor quality. I got that. Not all of them are though.

Another issue is the Food Bank Director saying how unrealistic $25 is. Yet when I watched the video I saw Chex Mix (love the stuff btw). It never struck me that was a staple and neccesity. No wonder the budget is shot. Junk food will eat the budget up fast. Do I have junk food? Yeah, sure I do. Sunday nights are for sundaes in my house so I have ice cream and toppings. I have pretzels in a jar on the counter for snacking along with animal crackers in another. Off-brand Honeycomb are in a third jar. My kids snack on those, and I don't have to answer the I'm-hungry-what-can-I-eat question seven times an hour. I do buy junk and snack foods. I just don't buy a lot for nutritious reasons as well as cost.

How do I cut costs? One is where I live. I live in the midwest in an area that has a lower cost of living than say the east or west coasts. I grow my own produce and herbs. I buy locally for things like produce and fresh meat. While meat might costs a little less at the store, I find the quality makes it far suberb in taste. We drink "clear kool-aid" for dinner. That is our nickname for water. I tell the kids it has no added sugars, colors or preservatives. It was funny until a wiseguy added flavor to list of don't haves. LOL! Almost a funny as the time we did really serve clear Kool-aid. The kids' reactions were hilarious when they took the first swallow.

I also don't generally cook meat and potatoes meals. A grilled steak or pork chop tastes good, and boy you gotta have it sometimes. I find that taking that same steak and making Fajitas or Broccoli-Beef are also yummy meals. I use up leftovers as a different dish. Oren says it is a leftover for a reason. Haha ... Leftover green beans and mashed potatoes become Shepherd's Pie. Leftover roast is shredded to make BBQ Beef Sandwiches. I use leftover scrambled eggs and bits of veggies to make Fried Rice.

I plan. That means I make a menu though some weeks are better than others. I check out the local ads. I can do that on-line even. I find what is on sale and plan my menu around it. Right now I have a freezer full of meat so I haven't had to buy too much meat lately. Then I check my pantry to see what I have and what I need. The shopping list is made and off I go. Another budget saver is using area programs like AngelFood Ministries. For the units I bought (3 of them this month for $90), I will get 14 dinners out of them for my family. I plan how I can best use what is included. With the leftover money in the food budget I supplement with fruits/vegetables and other perishables I might need. I also use SHARE foods which supplies me with 3-5 meats and fresh fruits/vegetables for $16 a unit.

There are classes offered at local churches, home extension offices, libraries to teach these things. You can find inforomation in books, magazines and the internet which are all offered for free at libraries. There is a wealth of information out there that can help living on $25 a week a bit easier and very realistic.

Fresh Berries

With the price of groceries steadily rising in time to the appetites of this plague of locusts that live here, I try to find ways to coax some pennies from our budget. Gasoline ain't very cheap around here either and is needed to go to the store. I could ride my bike, but it is 7+ miles of hills which really doesn't appeal to me. I am imagining the steep hill right before my house with bike trailer full of groceries to feed my crew for two weeks. Can you even cram that much in a bike trailer?

One way I coax pennies from our budget is to grow my own food or find a place I can pick some for free. Luckily the place loaded with fresh berries is right on our own property. We have some woods on our property that houses a few blackberry vines and a couple of mulberry trees. We have some blackberry vines we transplanted in beds next to our house too. The biggest, juiciest and most flavorful blackberries are in the woods though, right in the middle of a huge patch of poison ivy.

That is why I take my kids with me. They think it is because of bonding experiences. You see, I am highly allergic to poison ivy. I can walk near some on a windy day and catch it. And when I catch it, I catch it. It goes beyond a patch of itchy skin. I am one of the lucky ones that it goes systematic on ... joy! So not to eat up our savings in doctor and prescription costs, I have the kids pick the berries while I yell encouragement like, "You missed one" or "That snake is harmless." We have a three foot black rat snake that lives in our woods.

See? It's harmless. Remind me not to share that bit of info of where it lives with hubby though as he freaks out even more than the kids when it comes to snakes. I was just trying to show him how cool it was and he went inside (rather quickly) and tried to lock the door on me.

Snakes are not the only obstacle though. I like to make granola and have the berries on top on that. Yum! There are so many berries this year that I can even have enough to make a cobbler. I picked just shy of a pound of berries last night alone. By getting the ladder I could even pick the higher up ones. I hate being short some days. I would have enough for cobbler except for this obstacle. He loves berries too.

1930's Housewife

I am a very superior 1930's housewife. I do better in the fall when school is in since I make regular breakfasts then and do better at sticking to the budget. LOL! Having a baby doesn't insure early bedtimes or a pleasant attitude upon waking either. ;)

115 As a 1930s wife, I am Very Superior Take the test!

1930's Marital Quiz (one for you husbands too)

If I only had a brain ...

My brain is small. I guess it is so small that one of my kiddos didn't see it and sat on it. You see, my brain is my pocket pc. I love that thing. It just hasn't been working right since someone sat on it and cracked the screen. I guess I wouldn't work right if something several times larger than me sat on me either.

I keep my grocery lists on my pocket pc as well as contacts' information, appointments, tasks and general information that I need to survive or at least remember. The one time I lost my pocket pc for a couple of days (my kids also like to play the games on it) I forgot more than one appointment. I forgot more of them when my dear hubby wiped it out too.

Right now my brain isn't working right (either one of them), and I can't access the several appointments that I have tomorrow. I would really hate to go to the chiropractor when I should have been at the dentist. I think the dentist is at 11 tomorrow though.

I guess I better dig out the ol' paper and pen planner I have still. Too bad I can't play solitaire on it though.

It Made Me Smile

Yesterday was miserable. I had chills. I had a fever. I had a pounding headache. I was miserable. To add woe to my misery Eric was feeling better and not using me as his comfort so I was a tad uncomfortable too.

Yet in all this misery of mine (I am feeling better now. Thanks for asking!) I was able to smile. I smiled when I saw my 13 yo's detention slip. It wasn't at the slip itself but who signed the parent's signature line. Joanna (4 yo) gave her permission for Oren to stay after school. The teacher got a kick out of it too.

I smiled at Eric's baby laughs (even 3 a.m. ones like this morning). There is a reason why we call Eric "Chuckles". He is even more hilarious when he is tired. Everything strikes him as funny and worthy of a laugh.

I smiled when my oldest came home telling me she was able to arrange class work with her teachers if I needed her to stay home. I was that miserable. Hubby would be travelling and was worried about me. I guess so was my oldest. That was really sweet of her being willing to stay home and care for me. Alas I am feeling better, and she is bummed she has to go to school.

I smiled because I didn't clean house and had a good excuse. Actually I wasn't smiling as I crawled back in bed, but I was relieved I had a card to play on why my chores weren't done. In my experience the being-sick-card works better than the playing-on-the-computer-all-day-card.

I smiled because the kids eventually all went to sleep. The house was peaceful. I crashed before hubby could start snoring too loudly. That was definitely worthy of a smile.