Pictures from Joseph's Field Day at school.  Jacob's was rained out, which was a good thing because he did not go to school that day because of his tooth.  Jacob's is rescheduled soon.

Joseph had a great time and wonderful weather.

The owners of the field behind our house is allowing someone else to come in and put cows on the land.  So they have put up a fence and no one is allowed back there.  Bree is so bummed she can't go run and play with other dogs.  I am hoping it is just for the summer!  We really miss the field.  I did not realize how much we counted on being able to go back there.

Gonna be a quiet Memorial Day.  There are 2 funerals and a birthday party on Saturday!  Not sure what the rest of the weekend holds, except cooler temps and maybe some rain!

We have had lots of rain lately...the good kind.  The slow steady rain!

Over the weekend the owners of the field behind our house started repairing the barb wire fence.  Seems that cows are on the way.  A bummer for all of us dog owners!  You don't realize how nice you have it until it is taken away!  Our neighbors' dog is so well trained that she would only use the field to go to the bathroom.  Now the dog is in quite a quandry and refusing to go to the bathroom!

On Thursday Jacob landed in the dentist office.  He has an abscess tooth and it is getting pulled this morning.  It had been hurting him but the pain had lessened.  I am just very thankful I took him in, knowing how dangerous mouth infections can be.  One of those God prompting moments!

The boys are getting into their full summer mode.  Staying out later.  When the weather is nice, they just check in every 2-3 hours.  So nice having lots of kids around.

I really struggle with the boys because they are so bad about cleaning up/picking up after themselves.  I can remind them a dozen times and they still walk over things.  So, I have started locking our bedroom.  I love being able to open the door and know it is just the way I left it...no trash, no socks, no books, no messy bed from wrestling or the dog, etc.  The other day we had forgotten to shut the door.  Shortly before bed Joseph came down and told me he had accidentally torn my pillow.  I felt the frustration rising and I took a hold of his arms and got nose to nose with him and told him he was not allowed in our room and he knew that.  Why was he in our room?  I sent him up to bed, as he was trying not to cry, and told him I would be up in a few minutes.  Well, when I went up, this is what I found.

He had made this heart and left it on the pillow.  It says "I love you Mom and I made card and made your bed.  Love Joseph".  I am very particular about my bed when I sleep.  The boys have learned over the years how I like my blankets and he had prepared my bed all by himself.  It was one of those epic parent fails, where you react too quickly and almost miss a huge blessing.  So glad I was not in a real irritable mood and was a little excessive with my scolding.

Jacob seems to be a trend setter at his school.  He has taken to wearing opposite socks.

Often times he can coordinate the colors with what he is wearing.  They actually look pretty cool and styling.

Well, Joseph came down recently before school with these socks.

I just cracked up. I told him he either needed to put on two socks the same height or the same color.  He told me that the gray parts matched!  He saw nothing wrong with his socks.

Happy Monday!

We recently went to some friends' house.  They are raising lambs for 4H.

The kids have to learn how to walk/show them.  Joseph got a lesson on what that entails.

I am not sure who was walking who.....

They also have chickens.  Jacob was getting in a lesson in how to hold them.

This past week Benjamin and I went up to work with JR.  I saw most of his properties and learned about the houses, weekly walk throughs, etc.  At one point Benjamin and I were driving down the road and directly in front of us was a bull moose, just meandering across the road.  Of course I forgot the camera and couldn't get my phone quick enough.  It was so cool, about 20 yards, directly in the middle of our lane, crossing the road.  A moment neither of us will soon forget!

Football has started for Jacob. They have played 2 games and won both of them.  The coaches definitely know what they are doing and really working to help the boys get a good grasp on the game by teaching lots of technique, skills, etc.  Both of the coaches boys have played for years and it is obvious that those two boys will be playing ball in high school.

During the last game he scored a touchdown but running it down the field.  So, when you score a touchdown, then you get to kick off.

 It is a short season, only 5 games but just enough to pacify the football urge this kid has.  He keeps gravitating towards football.  I keep trying to steer him to another sport.  At least it is not tackle yet!

We are down to about 2 weeks left of school.  We are all very ready.  I have rearranged all of our daytime commitments so that they fall on one day.  That means lots of lounging, kids doing free play outside and then getting together with friends.

Working on final plans for our road trip.  Whenever we stay on the road, I prefer to swing the reservations the morning of.  I would hate to have reservations somewhere and then want to keep on driving...however, I sometimes get caught paying ridiculous rates because it is last minute and rooms are full.  So, being proactive this time around.

Today Benjamin and I went to work with JR.  I am tired.  I am not use to all the up and down and all around.  This is a picture of his largest association that he manages.  It is tucked away at the bottom of a hill.  There is also a ski lift just above the trees, so it is also ski in and ski out.  Really pretty place.  (They have several units for sale for $650,000! if anyone has some cash laying around and wants a spot to vacation.)  The far left, lower unit is actually an apartment that is available for guests of the owners to rent.  It is not rented out very often, so JR has the option to stay there and be on property.  Not a bad little spot.

This is the view from the apartment patio.

He showed me some of his properties and where things are.  He had thatched and raked several yards so we had many piles of branches and grass.  Then we walked the association and moved some furniture around, vacuumed and moved some gravel around.

I have cleared my schedule on Mondays to hopefully help every week.

This is a picture I took this afternoon...May 9th.  Yes that is snow!  Fortunately it is going to warm up by the end of the week.

Benjamin and Bree continue with dog obedience.  Last week they had 12 dogs in the room and they all were laying on the floor, calm and quiet.  She has figured out how to open the back gate when it does not close all the way.  Then she runs and runs in the field.  We have taught her the word 'walk', 'bike' and 'car'.  She knows all of these words mean fun and she goes crazy.

We are down to 17.5 more days of school.  I am so ready for the boys to have the opportunity to sleep in...I love my quiet mornings.  I have rearranged my schedule so that all of our daytime commitments are on one day.

A quick check-in.

We are down to something like 30 days left of school.  Hard to believe.

Benjamin is taking the Iowa based testing for the next three days.  It is offered every year for homeschoolers.  Will be a great indication of where he is at, but he also does not often test well, so we will see what the results bring.

Benjamin continues with Tae Kwon Do.  The other two decided they did not want to continue.  (I think part of it was the nice weather and wanting to be outside with their friends.)  Benjamin is continuing weekly dog obedience through 4H.    Jacob starts spring football next week.  Other than that, pretty quiet on the extra curricular calendar.

This past weekend I got a last minute ticket and flew to Ohio for 4 nights.  Kelsey was having a bridal shower.  My mom was the only one who knew about it, so it was fun to pull of a total surprise.  Four days of just hanging with family.  The boys survived back home with JR.

Business continues to grow for JR.  I think we are close to making the jump of bringing on a part time employee.  Work keeps coming finding him, which is wonderful!

Off to get the kids up and moving this morning!

Sorry the posts are so inconsistent right now.  Some days and weeks are so mundane that I feel like I have nothing significant to write about.

This kid has some crazy hair these days.  He likes it long on top and then puts lots of gel in it.  So those nights when he sleeps really hard, he gives us a great laugh in the morning.  He is my 'hair' kid.  He loves doing his hair (unlike the one with long curly hair who fights me...).  Recently Joseph and Benjamin did 4H demonstrations.  Joseph's demo was called 'how I do my hair'.  He did an awesome job and I even got it on video.

We recently attended the annual health fair at the hospital.  This is one of the highlights for the boys ~ understanding what it literally looks like to be under the influence.  The googles distort the vision as if you are just over the legal limit or twice over the legal limit.  They think it is hilarious to watch each other, but more importantly, they see what it is like to think you are operating 'normally' when you are not.

I recently found online a paper city that Joseph has had a lot of fun playing with.  It amazes me how things will entertain him for long periods of time.

We have had some beautiful weather and have gotten out and started walking again.  I took Bree today on a short walk with the leash and for the first time, she did awesome!  We have gotten her a new prong collar and it has made a huge difference.  I actually enjoy going with her now.

Not much happening again this week, or at least nothing that I feel is blog worthy :-).

The boys took off for Tae Kwon Do today on their bikes.  I know I have said it many times...I have enjoyed the boys throughout the different stages, but I really enjoy their independence.  I think I have done a good job thus far of giving them wings and watching them start to soar!  It also helps living in a community/neighborhood that is not too big or busy.  Plus safety in numbers, which is my mantra whenever they head out.

We are 3/4 of the way through the school year.  Hard to believe.  Benjamin and I have already started having conversations about what the fall will look like.  At this point, we are leaning towards him taking one or two classes at the middle school.  He is not interested in going back full time at this point.  What would probably work best would be an English/writing class and then either science/history or elective.  I definitely want them to be first thing in the morning, so he gets out of bed and can walk with his brothers to school.  Still lots of time and the plans might change, but that is the leaning right now.

Bree recently started jumping our fence, so we had to put up some chicken wire.  Her energy is high but never realized how much mental stimulation some breeds need.  A week ago she was riding in the back of JR's truck, for the first time.  Not sure what happened, but she jumped out at 45 mph.  She would not put any weight on one of her back legs.  My neighbor gave me the name of a 'dog chiro' that would come to the house and work with her for an hour.  Two days later she showed up.  She said Bree was very jammed up in several places.  About what I would expect with an injury at 45 mph.  However, the chiro did right by Bree and Bree is now fully functioning.  (I am just amazed at what chiros can do, both with humans and dogs.)  It was also a lot cheaper to go that route than the vet, x-rays, etc.  Bree has gotten better at chewing.  Tomorrow Benjamin is starting dog obedience with her through 4H.  Hopefully we can leash train her!  The other day one of the boys had spilled some vanilla on the floor.  Instead of having them clean in up, I told them it would be hilarious to let Bree clean it up.  (Vanilla smells wonderful but it tastes terrible.)  She was so funny and could not get to her water bowl fast enough.

Benjamin, hopefully, will be participating in a 4H demonstration this Friday.  He is working on a speech about the aerodynamics of airplanes.  He is just fascinated by them.  I am hoping once he turns 12 that he will check out Civil Air Patrol.  Would be fun to have another pilot in the family!

We have had some crazy spring weather.  Blizzard like conditions and two hours later sunny and beautiful.  Our snow pack levels seem to be okay.  If we can get some spring rains, we might just escape a terribly hot, dry summer.

That about wraps things up for now!

I was down the first part of the week, with what I would guess was the flu.  But pretty mild compared to what others had.  So, I am just getting around to posting Easter.  Plus, Bree had chewed my computer charger so I was without my computer about a week.

We dyed Easter eggs last weekend. Boys enjoyed it and so nice that they don't need tons of supervision. For the first time ever, we did not participate in one of the community Easter egg hunts. (Joseph did not get out of bed until 9:30 on that Saturday and it started at 10. I was not upset about this either.)

We had Jacob's birthday party that afternoon. There were 12 third graders. They played football, etc for an hour and half and then we came to the house for cake and ice cream. All in all a great party, perfect weather and the boys burned lots of energy.

Jacob is going to the cabin with his best bud this weekend. The other two boys and I are hitting the annual hospital health fair. For some reason my boys just love this and all the displays, hands on, etc. Then Saturday afternoon JR is taking them to the outdoor show. That about rounds out our upcoming weekend. Pretty low key.

Some Tae Kwon Do pictures (I had to laugh at the choice of shoes for Joseph)

Joseph's motor planning issues are really showing up with Tae Kwon Do. He struggles with the precise, sequential movements.  He needed lots of one on one help.  I am hoping his brothers and JR will step up and help him outside of class.

Joseph made it through about 30 minutes and then was tired.

All three boys have started Tae Kwon Do.  They seem to be enjoying it.  Learning lots of respect and discipline (Yay!)  Once Joseph is back to 100%, I will have to try to take some pictures.

Last time we went to Tae Kwon Do I showed my boys how to use this.....

The Tae Kwon Do place is about a 5 minute bike ride and the boys will soon be riding their bikes on some days.  Since none of them have a cell phone, I found this phone in the Tae Kwon Do waiting room.  I wanted them to know how to use it in case they needed to call me for some reason.  I got such a kick out of using the phone.  Both older boys went over to use the phone and started to rotate the numbers before picking up the handset.  The whole process brought a huge smile to my face.

Over spring break we went on a field trip to a local cultural center/museum.  Probably the first museum the boys have visited.  We saw lots of ledger art which included some great satire ~ most of which the kids did not really get.

This piece was called "Wow, look real full blooded white people"

This was "William Tell Overture".  I don't think any of the kids got The Lone Ranger in this.

Then after the tour, the kids got to make their own ledger art.

One thing they definitely learned, you don't need clean white paper to draw!!!

Joseph is perking up.  As long as he takes food and water, he does good.  Without them, he just lies around.  You know your child doesn't feel good when they refuse popsicles.  He is symptom free, just tired.  He is gonna try going to school for an hour or two today and see how the stamina is.

A busy weekend.  Hoping to go to the Good Friday service tonight.  Then Saturday might try to make a community Easter Egg Hunt, depending on how Joseph feels.  Then Jacob's party Saturday afternoon and Easter Sunday.  No real plans for Easter ~ we were going to go to an Easter Brunch at a local hotel, but cancelled our reservations and instead will go to a big barn dance/dinner to raise money for a local Christian school the following weekend.  (Seems like a much better use of our money and a new experience for the boys)

Another spring break has come and gone.  Although the weather was not the best, it was still a nice week.  Stayed pretty low key.

We did celebrate Jacob's 9th birthday.  (Not sure why I did not get a picture of him on his bday)

He insisted on having his best friend come over while he opened his family gifts.  He also wanted mac-n-cheese, which was easy for me.  The week before spring break, we baked some cupcakes and took to his classroom, so they could celebrate with him.

Because some of his friends were going to be gone over spring break, we decided to do his friend bday party this coming Saturday.  He has invited 11 3rd graders!  Yikes.  We are meeting at the elementary school and we will spend an hour playing football, soccer, etc.  Then walk back to our house for cake and ice cream.  Looks like the weather is gonna be nice.  A lot of the boys that are coming have gotten in trouble at school because they play too rough at recess.  Hoping for no injuries during my watch.

For the first time, the flu has descended upon our home.  Joseph tested positive for Influenza A on Monday.  He went to bed Saturday evening with a fever and it almost reached 105.  He is hit and miss on taking tylenol and he has flat our refused Tamiflu, which the doctor prescribed.  A friend of mine brought some 32 oz Gatorades by the house on Sunday.  He has yet to finish one of them, much to the dismay of his brothers ~ it drives them nuts to see Gatorade just sitting around.  I was concerned about dehydration, but he seems to be keeping it at bay.  Today he did not wake up until 3:30 pm and only got out of bed one time.  Fortunately, his biggest issue is a fever and lethargic!  So, I have cleared the rest of the week's schedule and plan on hanging at home with him.

Benjamin is skiing tomorrow with the homeschool group.  Then after skiing and school for Jacob, both boys have AWANA.  So Joseph and I will just hang out in bed for 12 hours!  Looking forward to doing lots of reading.

It has been a while since I posted.  I can guarantee you that it is not because there has been so much going on.  Still pretty quiet and calm these days!

We were giving out high fives this weekend.

He finally lost his first tooth...at 6 years, 7 months.  I keep hearing the later they lose their teeth the better it is.

This is  a random picture....I bought some sunflower seeds recently.  At the store I put them in a paper bag to purchase them.  I brought them home and almost immediately started noticing the oil on the bag.  Could not believe it...I have heard of sunflower oil and wondered 'where' it came from, so to speak.  After 24 hours, I put most of the seeds in a jar and left a thin later in the bag.  The oil kept appearing.  It was half way up the bag.  I don't know why I find that interesting enough to put on the blog.

The boys recently had their Grand Prix with Awana.  The older two made cars and had fun racing.  Joseph took a friend that night so he got to pick something out of the prize bucket....the glasses crack me up!

The kids are on spring break this week.  A fairly quite week.  We will spend one day in 'town'.  One day the boys are going to an all day camp while I go to work with JR.  Although it is not snowing here, it is snowing where he works.  I sure hope it clears up by the time I go to work, I really don't want to shovel snow!

The 'chores' are becoming easier.  One of the boys fought us every day on 2 of their chores.  The fights are almost non existent now!  Yay!!!!  Only one of the boys was on room restriction and one was on screen restriction and one had no restrictions!  The biggest bonus, I did not have to harp on them every day to pick up the house.  Small victories, I love them.

All the snow in the lower elevations is gone, minus what is in the shadows.  Yesterday we had to be close to 60 degrees.  If we don't have a wet spring, we are in for major fires this summer.

Jacob took a day off from school to go winter camping with his dad and one of dad's friends.

You can see from the pictures there was still snow in the mountains but definitely spotty.  The had a ball.  Unfortunately the other guy was sick and so they packed up at 2am and hiked out.  Jacob really enjoyed the nighttime hiking.  They hiked 3 miles in.  He did really well and this was a test to see how he might do with a longer hike this summer.  The only thing, we need to find a backpack that is fit for a child's body.  JR ended up carrying his pack part of the time because it was just uncomfortable.  So glad that Jacob can learn some of these survival skills from his dad, because his dad knows a lot about improvising, etc in nature.

Another quiet weekend...I am not complaining!

Benjamin did some more baking this week. There was a 4H bake sale and he made some cupcakes and a big cupcake cake.

Joseph's class did a unit on the presidents and they made this Uncle Sam hat.....

Most of the snow is gone. There is still some in the mountains but from what I hear the skiing is not very good.

The first full week of our chore chart did not go very well and all of the boys are on restriction this weekend. We are making baby steps though and they are getting in a groove! One of them is finding out how advantageous it is to pick up the poop in the backyard daily, particularly as things are thawing. They are also amazed at how often dogs go to the bathroom.

We have started thinking about Jacob's 9th bday coming up. Hard to believe it is almost here. Everything has been bought and wrapped now for a few weeks. Figured if I don't get them wrapped, someone might find them.

I really liked the paper route last week. He is looking for someone to do it 3 days a week. As much as I enjoyed it, my body did not. Just does not bounce back like it use to. However, I can now say I know what it entails. If I could figure out a way to consistently get in bed early so I could get up early, I would jump on it.

This week I will be helping out the family while their caregiver is out of town. Should be an interesting week.

Not much else going on....lots of day to day stuff!

Quick check in....

The snow is quickly melting. Later this week we will be in the low 50s and I anticipate most snow on the ground will be gone by then. Some of the trees are starting to bud. Hopefully we don’t have another deep freeze or it will really mess up the trees and flowers. Bree is shedding like crazy!

We have once again reset things with our daily chores and the boys are on a roll. If I can ever get them trained

It always amazes me how things seem to come across my path. I was not really looking for it, but I now have to small jobs. One of them is a paper route. I am helping out a friend of a friend, who has the route and is really burned out. Sounds like a great set up because I will do it 2-3 times a week. A great way to put a little money back for our Ohio road trip this summer. Also, the boys will have the opportunity to go with me from time to time and earn a little extra money. It is a 7 mile route, one neighborhood over and once I learn the ropes, I should be able to do it in an easy hour.

Then another friend of a friend needs some help while she has to go to Iowa for some reconstructive surgery (prob 2-3 weeks). She has her own business and she takes care of clients. Several of her clients are out of town right now, but one family I will check in with daily and run any errands, do shopping, etc. The mother has severe lyme disease and the dad has lymphoma. I think the business owner is interested in growing her clientele but has not really had anyone around consistently who could help. So, could be some open doors down the road! Really excited that it is fairly flexible and it is all about serving/helping.

This kiddo got a hair cut and he really loves it. It appears to be his style. He also has new glasses on order!

We continue to plod along in life up north! This week the temperatures will reach mid 40s! This is the time of year when most are ready for the green grass and shorts. I am no exception to that. We have even pulled the bikes out for the boys to ride. I think one of my favorite times of the year is around spring daylight savings time. The sun is starting to hit our back fence, so the shadows are quickly fleeting. Bree will be very happy when she can lay in the sun in the backyard.

Go Broncos! So fun to say we saw them the season they won the Super Bowl and who knows, number 18's last season!

Bree continues to keep us on our toes. She recently chewed a hole right in the middle of our living room carpet. I was talking with someone else recently and they were telling me how she needs to be mentally stimulated just about as much as physically ~ ugh. So, I have ordered some more 'food puzzles' for her in hopes of engaging that brain. She loves to wrestle with her rope and nowadays when I take her for runs with the car, I have to beg and plead to get her in the car. One day she had gone 3 miles and still wanted more! She has been spending a little more 'free time' in our field and we are finding that she is staying closer and coming back when called. (I would love it if we could just open the gate for her to go on a self-guided romp and then return on her own).

Seems we have had some misc. doctor appts lately. Jacob continues with the orthodontist. Poor kid, several of his teeth are so catywompus (how do you spell that) because he has no room. Benjamin has his yearly eye appt this week. I know he is very ready for new glasses and probably a new prescription. I am finding my vision, particularly distance is waning! When your child looks fuzzy across the gym, guess it is time for another check-up.

This is the last week of basketball for Joseph and then Jacob goes one more week later. Then we get our Tuesday evenings back! Joseph is still doing gymnastics on Mondays and is considering switching to hip hop. His dance moves amaze me. Awana will soon be winding down too, so our Wednesday afternoon/evenings will be free. Benjamin enjoyed his ski PE and if the snow holds, he has 2 days in March. Joseph is still hanging on to speech. He is due for another insurance verification so we will see if they extend services for another 3 months. He is struggling some with reading so we are watching that at the school. He could probably use some occupational therapy in regards to motor planning, but I am told state law prohibits him from receiving OT services at school unless he also qualifies for speech. Now, that sounds ridiculous to me. A kid with obvious delays but he can't get services because they base the need on speech. This kid has worked too hard for 5 years for him now to start falling through the cracks with services at school. I hope it does not turn into a fight for this mom.

Our summer is starting to fill in. We are going to be around most of June, which means the boys will be able to attend a lot of the sports camps offered free through churches, etc. Benjamin has his sights on 2 different week long camps this year ~ both of which are Christian based. It always makes it easier to send him away for a week knowing he will be studying and learning more about God. We are behind on our homeschooling hours (the state requires so many hours) even though course work we are just about on target with the public school schedule. However, I was thinking that each of his camps could count towards those hours, since it will be massive times of Physical Education and bible study.

JR continues to stay busy. I am hoping in March that I can go up one day a week and help him. I need to figure out what to do with Benjamin, but there are options. That seems a much easier solution than trying to navigate worker's comp policies when our payroll is still small.

Off to wake up the boys and get another school day rolling.