Twas the night before School

and all through the house, not a girl was a stirring, not even a dog (not true). The girls are nervous and excited, yet asleep in their beds.

All my kids will be in school tomorrow, wild feeling. I will relax once everyone has made it home safe and sound and they tell me they liked their first day at school.


Ve & Tuks sitting at Ve' desk (Mim was at CC practice). She seemed reserved once we found out Mrs. P was her teacher. Mrs. P informed me that she was a very structured teacher, I gleefully said Thank you since that is what Ve needs. So here's hoping for a successful year at all my daughter's schools.

Did It!!

I woke early and ran with the DR's (DaVinci & Rembrandt). It felt great, that is after my back stiffness eased out with warmer muscles. Once I returned, I feed all the domestic animals occupying our premises and now I am sitting here blogging, drinking coffee and then off to get ready for school. The girls you ask?!, well they are still sleeping....

Busy Days

Yesterday we took Mim to her 7th grade orientation and walked her through her schedule and practiced opening her locker combo MANY times.

Today Mim ran her first cross country race. An intrasquad to find the top (fastest girls) that will run the varsity at the first race. She placed 26 out of 63 runners with a time of 17:08 (2.25 miles), her mile time was around 7:08. Not too bad for a beginner and she still is getting faster with her mile times.


After the race we quickly drove Tuki to her 4k intro/orientation. She was most excited. We have been practicing walking Ve home from school since our district doesn't bus 1st graders and older if they are within walking distance from the school that they attend. We live 3 blocks, but with one VERY busy intersection, thank goodness there are two crossing guards present.

Pixs are from Mim's race tonight and Tuki's 4k room





jogging the course
same place, but now actually racing, came in the mile at 7:08

Tuks at her school

the whole crew

playing and meeting classmates

As for me, summer vacation is over, tomorrow is my first day back and next Wednesday is the students, (also my girls) first day back in class.

Thyroid Update

Thyroid level down to 1.8, still too high for me, so my NEW, young, good looking, listens to me, doc will let me try to bring it down lower (up the dosage) with the hopes of changing my weight. I will be closely monitored every month for awhile to see how I am doing on it. I can tell, even without the numbers that my mood is better the lower my thyroid level goes, so I feel we are finally moving in the right direction. I am still scheduled to see the endocrinologist on the 3rd of Sept.

Chicken Updates

No she is not abused by me or the other chickens, Horrible Helen is in moult (losing her feathers to grow in new ones)

isn't she a beauty right now!?

Two chicks that I let one of my broody hens hatch (got the fertile eggs from a friend of mine)York & Sacajawea

Some of the chicks from this year, Lewis, yeah a rooster, but unless he causes trouble we are keeping him, Molly & Emily the Cuckoo Marans, Milly, the Barnvelder and Yulia, the Russian Orloff

Recap of summer and run down of the upcoming school year

Summer run down

Tuki took swim lessons for 4 weeks
Mim & Ve each took swim lesson for 2 weeks
Mim & Ve attended summer school
We took 3 vacations as a family, one each month
my first cousins came to visit
I re-financed my house with a 4% interest rate
I bike 10 miles each day
I am running 2 miles each day with my great furry buddies DaVinci & Rembrandt (another Aussie, same age as DaVinci, we got from the Humane Society on July 12)
I walk two miles each day with all the dogs
My thyroid level and my feet, thus my emotional & physical health are starting to improve.
Ve is starting to read with more fluency
Mim has her Math facts down, great improvement over the summer
Tuki is spelling her name and recognizes quite a few sight (maybe 10) words
Our garden is flourishing
The chickens are doing well, moulting now, but still doing well
We are well bonded as a family

Fall preview
Mim is running cross country this fall, she is sore, but doing well and making friends. She wants to play basketball again this winter
Ve will be starting gymnastics
Tuki wants to do dance again
Tuki will be attending 4K
Ve will be in 1st grade
Mim will be in 7th grade
I hope to put both the Aussies into agility classes this fall, we'll see if it works schedule wise
Tuki & Ve will be attending Awana at church
Mim will be part of the junior high youth group at church.

We will be busy, I hope to run with the Aussies as soon as I wake up to get me some exercise and run some energy out of them, then hopefully I can sneak a bike ride in as often as possible after school.

Lord help us with the schedule, thank goodness we love to be busy!!

Family weekend

We had a wonderful visit from my first cousins from SD, so we did group photos of all the families.


first a photo of our flowering hibiscus

waiting in line to eat

my nephew L, his son T & daughter H, and his dad, by brother K

the three musketeers, Ve, Tuki & cousin N

now more kids added, front: Mim & second cousin H, back row, Ve, Tuki & cousin N

our family, Ve, me, Tuki & Mim

my sister M, her daughter N, BIL J, and their dog Porter

cousin M, brother W, and his girlfriend J.

my first cousins (from my Mom's side) from SD, M & H

Pizza

Tuki sings stories constantly. When ever we drive anywhere you can always hear Tuki making up real life stories and sharing them thru song. A few days ago she was singing " The order is for us" repeatedly. I could tell she was singing with conviction, and it had deep meaning for her. BUT, I thought she had a word mixed up (sometimes she does that too) So I said Tuki the word is "The Lord, not order is for us". Tuki said "No it is not, it is the order". So I repeat, and say I think you mean "Lord". She says no again, and she is quite adamant that it is order. So I then said "Ok, Order!, what Order?". Tuki quickly and convincingly states "the order of pizza".

Well of course it is, how could I have not known this!!! LOL

Snip-it

A quick snip heard recently in our home, and no I do NOT feel it is adoption/bonded related. Rather it is TEENAGE related...at that time of the month

Me: Mim go down stairs and get your book off the dryer.

20 minutes later

Me: "Where is Mim", while going thru papers

Ve: "Upstairs reading"

Me: "Did she go get her book?"

Ve: "I don't know"

Me: "go run upstairs and tell her to get her book"

Ve runs upstairs

Me: "what did she say?"

Ve: "I don't know she was talking so quiet I couldn't hear her" (Mim does this quiet talking when she is mad)

No movement from upstairs

Me to Ve: "go tell her Mom says now"

Ve runs upstairs

Mim starts yelling at Ve

Me: "don't yell at Ve for what I told her to do"

Me: "now go downstairs and get your book, like I said a while ago"

Mim: "I don't know what the dryer is" (she does, she plays the I don't know game when she doesn't want to do something)

Me: (knowing her game) "Yes you do, now go get it"

Mim: stomping down the steps and slamming her bedroom door hard. "Why do you hate me so much?"

Me, just smiling and musing as to how extreme teenagers emotions are

SNIP - IT UPDATE
Ok, Mim and I talked about this incident later, and she claims she said she "didn't want to read right now", not "why do you hate me so much", oh well maybe I miss understood, but it was still funny!!

Summer ending

I post often about the beginning of spring and all the arrivals but I realized I have never posted about the end of summer changes. As of now, middle of August, nearly all the swallows have left for the south. The once observed huge black and rust colored colonies of swallows under the bridges have dwindled down to about 5 - 10. Our nights are filled with cricket sounds and the dark sparked by the fire flies. The reoccurring rubber band sounds high in the sky by the nighthawks that are circling while catching insects are seen and heard with more frequency. The heat and humidity is oppressive by day, but cool (somewhat) by night. Summer is coming to an end, maybe not right on top of us, but soon, and the wild things know it too, just watch and listen.

My garden is flourishing, and the raccoon family came to visit it last night. The corn we were awaiting with great anticipation was torn down and gnawed on. I had wondered if I could successfully produce corn with raccoon and deer families near by. I guess the answer is almost no, yet also almost yes. We quickly picked the cobs with brown silk that weren't touched, BUT I know they will be back.

Picking the produce from the garden has become a battle. Mim and I adorn our selves heavily with mosquito spray and empty bowls. We rush to the garden pick and fill our bowls with whatever is ripe or nearly ripe as fast as we possibly can. Tonight, along with the corn, we picked our umpteenth cucumber, yet another bowl full of summer squash, ripe tomatoes, more broccoli and beans and our onions. For some reason the greens on the onions died back so we figured we might as pull the bulbs since they won't be growing without the green end (if we are wrong, please someone tell me for next year).

The last two years have been awful as far as our garden produce went, but this year we are producing more than I could have anticipated. I feel the great need to preserve all I can to save us money thru the fall and winter. Plus we will be eating more organically, thus more healthy as well. Each day we are preserving something. It takes time to do this. Another time factor I am learning to figure into my summer plans. I have given little away this year. I want to, BUT I am afraid since I really don't know how much we need to last our family of 4 thru the winter. I think next year I will be able to more freely give extras away. This year I really don't know if we even have extras. I am always learning something new. It is fun, we all get excited as to what is growing, but it is also alot of work. I know that this winter we will be glad we have it.

Yearly Exams - done

Today the girls had their annual physicals. Tuki had to have 4 vaccinations, and Ve & Mim three each. It was a crying, emotional exam room. All are in good health. Tuki needs to return next year and Ve & Mim won't need to return until 2 years barring any complications.

Here are their following stats:

Tuki
H: 3' 8"
W: 46.2 lb
again 90% for both

Ve
H: 4' 1/2"
W: 52.4 lb
50% for both-finally

Mim
H: 5' 2"
W: 100.2 lb
predicted to be about 5'4" at final growth (usually one year after the start of their menstrual cycle)

So for lunch we went to Pizza Hut's kids eat for free buffet. They forgot all about the bad doctor visit.

Thyroid Update

Thyroid level, 2.11, my current doc insists since it is in the normal range I am fine. I tell her no, I want it lower since this is NOT working for me. She won't listen to me. So I am seeing an endocrinologist on September 3rd, a thyroid re-check on Aug 20th and getting a 2nd opinion on Aug 23rd.

In my research I have found out there are two camps of philosophy about managing thyroid disease among doctors.
Camp 1 - as long it is in normal range, you the patient are fine, period!
Camp 2 - it doesn't matter what the total thyroid number is, if it isn't working for you, we will get it to the level that is BEST for you, the patient.

My first doc, the first camp..she's outta here as far as I am concerned. My new doc, because I specifically requested one with this philosophy, is in the the 2nd camp. I feel better just knowing someone will listen to me. I also went to see my foot therapist AGAIN, and he definitely stated that my heel problem/pain (not enough padding) is linked to my weight gain...which BTW was close to 20 lbs in 1 year...now you see why I and my heels are freaked!!!!

I also found out that thyroid disease runs in my family. My sister and my nephew (runner) are both dealing with hypothyroid as well......

Final vaca of the summer-Mauthe Lake

A group 4 day camping trip 2 hours south of our home.

Highlights were:
a. B, W and I along with most of our kids getting together to celebrate our 47th birthday. The 3 of us met each other in 7th grade, 35 years ago.
b. All of our kids getting along well and having fun too
c. the raccoon visit to our campsite on Tuesday night-good laughs
d. my other friend B coming to visit on Tuesday
e. the walks
f. the campfires talks
g. all the great meals we each made
h. the swimming

The downers:
a. the raccoon visit eating all of B's potato salad from her cooler
b. the mosquito's
c. the heat on Tuesday
d. Tuki's tantrums every night

now for all the pix from the trip

It is the last camp trip this summer, literally and figuratively (2 trips within 3 weeks is more than enough for me)


resting after hiking and watching two sandhill cranes off in the distance

major card playing every day

biking and scootering

the bday women

the kids taking turns doing dishes at each meal

our campsites

B coming to visit and swimming with the kids

R(W's husband) swimming with my girls and his son Z.

B & Mim

Mim & new best buddy L (same age)

Ve and B's son Be playing together
a great shot

Ve being goofy

the group shot of all the kids at sunset

eating ice cream

stopping to see the windmill farm on the way home

sisterhood shot

more windmill photos

The BIG 47

It"s official, I am 47 years old today. The girls made me cards, and Mim has been helping me out alot without being asked. We have BIG celebration plans for later in the day, so pictures and a post to follow after that.