summer break starts TODAY!!! (unless you counted last evening)

today we're starting.  we have SO MANY fun things planned...
this morning we discussed and switched out chores.  here's our list:

• match up socks  --#2
• pick up lawn (dog doo, shoes/socks that might've been left out there, toys, etc.)  --mom & #4
• kitchen clean-up after each meal (including: rinse dishes, load dishwasher, wipe off counters)  --#2
• fold and put away laundry  --#1
• fill water bottles  --#4
• sweep and mop (kitchen, laundry room, bathrooms, entry way)  --#1 & #2  SAT. ONLY
• pick up living room  --#1
• water Finnagen (3X/day)  --#3
• clear table before meals  --#5
• vacuum living room  --#3
• clean both bathrooms  --mom & #3  SAT. ONLY
• sort laundry and bring fullest pile to laundry room --#4
• empty trash cans  --#3
• wash off table (before and after meals)  --#2
• organize toys and toy area  --#1 & 2  SAT. ONLY
• vacuum rooms  --#4 SAT. ONLY
• feed Finnagen (2X/day)  --#3
• empty dishwasher  --#5
• put away silverware  --#4
• pick up toys  --#5
• walk the dog  --#1
• mow the lawn  --#1 / mom  FRI. ONLY
• do laundry  --mom
• make lunch  --mom & #2
• clear table after meals  --mom

#1 being the eldest...
these are to go along WITH daily responsibilities:

• clean room
• make bed
• get dressed
• brush teeth
• comb and style hair
• devotions

and a NEW implementation (is that a word???):  we're pairing the kids up.  #1/#4.  #2/#5.  #3/#6.  they are responsible for their partner. 
SERVICE is our word/deed for this summer. 

breakfast is to be fixed and eaten by 9am.
chores are to be accomplished before noon (unless they are a time of day chore like the dinner-time chores).

this is my documentation.  notes taken. 

Try to remember, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."

FIRE

i had another fire accident.  would you like to hear about it?  well, read on my dear friend...

yesterday was a FULL day!  we had one thing after another after another and then packed with several on top of each other to end it off. 

jones' last t-ball game was from 5:30ish to 7:30ish.  wolfie had martial arts at 7 to 8.  middle school mayhem (a big end-of-the-year party) was also yesterday from after school until 5:30.m  i also had to make and serve dinner somewhere in there... before the sports because there's NO WAY these kids of mine could wait 'till after 8 to eat!  plus, 8:00 is bed time.  it was a school night. 

so, here's how i had it planned.  i would make dinner and have it ready by 5.  serve it to the littles at 5, jump in the car at 5:20 with a plate of dinner for wolfie.  we'd fly to drop off wolfie (early) and make it to jones' warm up for his game.  aren't i good?!  see... i'm getting the hang of it!!!

anyway, i turned on the oven to 425 to preheat while i whipped up the meal (mexican lasagna).  i had the skillet on top of the stove top, which isn't normal, but it was a clear work space, so i used it.  as i was whipping, i noticed the smoke coming from the oven, and i cursed at myself for not cleaning up that mess in there... AGAIN!  it's been smoking gross smelling aroma for the past two months it seems!!!  i kept working and it kept getting more extreme.  so i glanced down at the window and saw some flames...
oh crap!  so i opend it to see how bad they were... or something.  i'm not sure why i opened the door.  to see if they were real???  and they got higher.  so i shut it.  and i told the kids there was a fire in the kitchen. 
binkins went around and opened all the windows/doors and rallied the little ones.
i opened up the other doors and windows.
jones continued to fight with his shoe.  he was trying to get his cleats on. 
i tried to decide what i should do.  if i open the door again, the flames will be fed more oxygen.  if i don't take care of it, it might just ruin the oven.  what other options do i have???
so i flipped on the fan for the _____ (loss of word) option and then opened the door.  woops.  lots of smoke.  bigger flames now.  i turned around to see what the kids were doing in binkins "rally the little ones" emergency evacuation.  binkins, boo, and starboy were all gathered together in the middle of the living room with their fingers in their ears.  totally ready for what they knew was next.  (yes, it's embarrassing that they know what's to come -fire alarm- when mom starts a fire!)
i told binkins to take them all outside instead. 
jones continued to fight with his cleats.
the smoke started to get really bad.  it was getting heavy in the kitchen.  that's when i noticed my sweet sleeping babe in her bouncer on the counter.  so, i picked her up and placed the bouncer outside too and told binkins that she was gonna have to watch her for a bit.  no opposition there!!!
then i rushed back inside.  i knew i could figure out what to do.  even though every decision thus far was stupid... i'm not stupid!
so i got the fire extinguisher.  and i blew out the fire with it. 
and then jones came up to me with his shoe and asked me to untie the knot.  it was just too tight for him.
and we all lived happily ever after.  except wolfie didn't go to martial arts.  and nobody attended jones' game except for buttercup and me.  and then the aftermath of the game... well, that'll have to wait for another post!

Try to remember, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."

my birth plan (read on at your own risk)

what's my birth plan look like? 

well, it looks a lot like the below one with more info (such as names and stuff that was left out for our privacy).  i also cut off the top, which states our family name's birth plan, our dr's name, and both otter pop's and my name. 

We have put together a simple birth plan so that you can know our wishes in this birthing experience at [hospital of our choice].  What we’d like, is for this experience to go smooth and leave us with an awesome memory.  We would prefer to have a more natural-centered childbirth and would appreciate having our nurse support us with this goal.  I TOTALLY understand that I will need to be flexible in my wishes if something unexpected happens.

I have an issue with my heart (PSVT), that when it starts pumping, it just keeps going faster and faster until it isn’t doing anything because it’s pumping so fast.  I have been seeing [insert cardiologist's name here] this pregnancy because it has been triggered a lot.  I am currently taking .5mg of Digoxin each evening.  I met with [cardiologist] last on March 6 and she was confident that I shouldn’t have any troubles in labor or delivery.  However, she is available if we need her. 

Before delivery, and during my laboring, I would really like a lot of freedom.  I would like to try and think that I could possibly be comfortable in my labor.  Purposely I am going to stay at home for as much of my labor process as possible because I don’t want to be tied to my bed.  Whether the freedom is me snacking, or walking around, or dancing, or whatever, I would appreciate being given this freedom.  I would like to use oil and warm compresses in the vaginal area before birth, to help soften and ready the tissues.  Hopefully that might decrease my need for an episiotomy.

I would prefer that my labor NOT be forced, nor “improved”, nor speeded up by the use of Pitocin.  Also, I would ask that my membranes be left alone.  Please refrain from artificially rupturing of the membranes at any time during my pregnancy.  I believe they will rupture when they’re ready to and that that process will help assist in a quicker delivery.  Instead, I would rather use natural methods to assist (nipple stimulation, pressure points, massage, etc.).  Along those lines, I would like to avoid using pain medication and an epidural.  IF the decision is changed and I am given an epidural, I would appreciate the consideration of NOT being given a precautionary dose of Ephedra just in case my blood pressure drops.  It triggers my heart to start pumping… and then we’ll have another issue! 

I would like to use whatever position that I find most comfortable to give birth in (on my side, squatting, on my hands and knees, etc.) and would also like my husband the opportunity to assist in the delivery, if the situation is right.  He would like to cut the umbilical cord.

We are so excited to meet this little girl!!!!!!  Directly after the delivery, I would love to have my daughter laid directly on my skin so that we can bond, first off, and so that she can be warmed with my skin to her skin.  I would love to hold her and snuggle her and have some bonding time before she is taken to have her stats charted.  Please inform us of any procedure that is needed for our baby. 

Lastly, we have a photographer [insert photographer's name here] that is scheduled to come document this sweet baby girl’s entrance into this world.  She plans on being unnoticed and as out-of-the-way as possible, but I really want her to be able to document as much as she can.  Please let her know if she is in the way and where she can be so that she’s not in your way but still able to take part in this amazing miracle. 

Thank you for taking the time to read this and consider my wishes.

Physician Reviewed______________________________________________  Date__________

my dr is great enough to allow me the birth that i wish.  she has been practicing long enough that she WANTS her patients to have a happy memory and is willing (unlike a slew of other ob's) to release the amount of control she could have... to help her patients be happy. 

Try to remember, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."

prep prep prep

so i guess i need to start making preparations for this little one's arrival.  you know, now that she's due to come any minute...
last week i packed my hospital bag and her new little diaper bag i got. 
i have her car seat ready.
i'm making a phone list... if you want to be on it, email me your name and number and i'll call you sometime after she's born.

also, i need to write down a good agenda or "what we do" planner, so that my kids can stay in their routine as much as possible and hopefully nothing gets overlooked (like picking up jones from school each day!)

i never got around to getting to the grocery store peeled my butt off the couch and went grocery shopping this week.  but i was thinking, "man, if i have this baby and someone comes over to take care of the kiddos... they're not going to have any idea what to feed the poor starving children." 
so... on to my next "prep" step.  tonight i'm going to take my menu for the week, go shopping to double most items, hope that i'm able to make them all, and get some food in the freezer.  in case i don't (make it 'till next week), i'm going to post my menu WITH the recipes printed out right next to them for my kid-watch-helper-person.  how's that sound???
now... if that sounds a little too controlling, i need another plan for the next week's menu / grocery run.  what do you suggest?!  i'd love to be able to just completely stock my refrigerator and freezer and pantry... but we live on a budget.  our pantry is stock-able (and usually is stocked fairly well), but what about perishable food?!  whenever i buy just "stuff"... things go to waste and i HATE to waste food!  i need ideas people...

and then, what else?  what else am i forgetting to plan???

Try to remember, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."

organization on these fronts

my favorite findings on pinterest have been food related (see the past two menus) and organization related.  we live in tight quarters, but we like it that way.  so the more ideas we can get on organization, the nicer it looks around here. 
i decided to start 2012 with a organization of time.  we started off by having a family calendar that i'm in charge of, posted in a convenient, we-go-there-everyday spot.  (the door in the kitchen that leads to the laundry room) 

i put all of our family's plans on this calendar.  i started really using a calendar like this after jones was born.  when binkins was born, i was still "with it" enough to write down a monthly progress chart for her.  i might have even done it weekly.  but after jones was born, i couldn't keep up with EVERYTHING...  so i'd write down his big milestones and accomplishments on the calendar and then i'd file it, at the end of the year, into his forever-file.  the calendar has just gotten busier and busier with each kid and with the years.  i believe i still put last year's calendar in starboy's forever-file... but it was filled more with are agenda than with his growth... since he turned 2 last year.  usually we have another baby by then to file it under.  ;)
i've found out it sucks to pin up a calendar that you use.  unless you just want to pound a nail in your wall... but that doesn't work in a door.  so, i came up with this lovely system:

 i use a binder clip to securely hold up the calendar...  the holes on all the calendars i've ever used on nails always get pulled through!  so with the binder clip, i don't have to worry about torn holes.

 and i use an "eye" from a hook and eye couple, screwed into the door.  when i want to change the month, i just have to unscrew the eye half a turn and take off the binder clip.  if the eye is screwed horizontally, the binder clip can't come off (even if it's pulled), so the calendar is secured nicely. 

and the binder clip doubles as a coupon/business card holder.  i keep my ob and cardiologist's cards up there, as well as a few coupons that the kids get as prizes from school (like for a free ice cream cone for 100% attendance or whatever).  nice.



also, otter pop carries around a day planner so that he won't forget his commitments, meetings, classes, etc.  so i don't always have his stuff on our family calendar.  that's changed though now. -more on that later-
anyway, it works well to have a system like this.  but i wanted more organization with our time mostly concerning the kids and the way they use THEIR time. 
our mornings were filled with lots of yelling, rushing, whining, and complaining.  i was spending all morning nagging the kids to stay on task and get done what they needed to get done before they went off to school.  it was chaos. 
so, we (the parental units) brainstormed and my lovely brains (aka husband) decided we needed a big white dry erase board.  so, even though i didn't really love the idea... it's not like i cover our walls with beautiful home decor... so i couldn't backup my argument of dislike with anything other than, well, i just didn't think it'd help.  and so i went ahead and submitted and let him be the leader of our family.   and i bought one.  and a pack of dry erase markers (6 in a pack.  all different colors.)  and i put all the kids names at the top (each with a different color), and then listed off their to-do agenda for the day... in order that it needed to be done.  and it has worked.  a-mazingly!  instead of me harping on the kids to get done what needs to get done... if they're walking around aimlessly, i remind them to go to the white board and start doing what needs to be done.  the three school-bound kids can read what they need to do.  and at the end of their morning schedule is "serve" meaning "help others".  so, they're never really done... it's been really great.  really.  simple.  and great. 

and that was good enough.  for me.  but then i ran across a CUTE idea on pinterest, that i decided we must have.  it was a weekly agenda post.  i thought it was a good idea, but once i made it i realized why it was a great idea. 

(top one says "our week", then each are stamped with a day of the week)

each sunday evening, i use a dry erase marker and start jotting down our next week's journey.  for each day, i'll mark whoever has something going on that day.  this is a great idea because it gives us an overlook of our day in one fall swoop.  it also gives us a head's up on tomorrow.  AND it helps us know what's going on in each other's lives.  this is more detailed (in some ways) than my wall calendar.  for instance, it lists off homework assignments for wolfie.  so it doesn't sneak up on her at the last moment...  and it lets the kids know what's up with dad's schedule, knowing if we need to set the table for him or not.  ---and just things like that---  plus it's eye-appealing.  and we don't have much of that around our house.  ;)

Try to remember, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."