Week 24

 This was our last week before school so I felt a lot of pressure to make it amazing. I recognize that I put that pressure on myself but I wanted to finish our summer kind of summered out and tired and ready for school to start. That didn't quite happen but whatever.

Monday was a hanging out kind of a day. I did laundry, cut the grass, we cleaned all the sheets and the kids tidied up their rooms. Josh hasnt been to the pool once this summer and one of our favorite family activities in the summer is to have him pick us up a pizza on his way home from work and meet up at the pool for dinner and evening swimming. We planned to do that Monday but the kids and I were at the pool for half an hour before they closed for a thunderstorm. Such a bummer. We went home, I made dinner and then we had a nice regular family night. 

Tuesday I taught a piano lesson and then we spent the rest of the day at Annemarie Gardens. It was a beautiful day and the kids had fun playing while the moms had fun talking. We left around 4pm to get home, have a quick dinner and then we went to Curtis's first baseball practice. I am so happy that he gets to play a sport this season. His coach is super nice and it is so good for Curtis to run around and work hard. I love sports for that reason and think they are especially good for Curtis because he loves to play but is shy enough that the structure really helps him. 

Wednesday I did my body pump class for the first time in awhile and it felt good. I really miss the gym and wonder how I'm going to even attend my zoom classes with four kids on all our devices. Sigh. We also went to the park for a friend's birthday and played there for a few hours. Then a quick dinner and Lily, Curtis and Josh went on the youth bike ride, which ended up taking way longer than anyone planned. My kids loved it and Curtis was really glad we let him go because he especially had a great time. They biked 11 miles on a trail, got ice cream, then rode the 11 miles back, a few of those in the dark. It was stressful for Josh and he came home with quite a stomach ache that lasted all the next day too, poor guy. He is prone to stomach issues and it can be aggrevated by stress and the last two weeks have been awful for him so he didn't eat anything except toast Thursday, Friday or Saturday. Finally late last night he had some eggs and finally today he said he'll eat dinner. Tomorrow the builder is coming to look at the crack in our basement wall so hopefully that will help to alleviate some of Josh's stress too. We were supposed to get a ton of rain yesterday and he was so worried about the basement. We stayed up until 2:30 am Friday night to watch the flooding and mop it up. I will be so, so glad when that is fixed but I know it is going to be awhile. We also found out our insurance won't cover any of the damage so that's cool. 

Thursday was a super stressful, busy day. We had to go to Curtis's school first thing to pick up his stuff, then I had a meeting with a sister I minister to in order to mentor her in a work program she's doing, then we ran a bunch of errands and then we went over to Sarah's house where Emma and I watched her virtual open house, then I had to go to the MVA to get my new license (I made the appointment back in early July) and that took awhile, then I got pears to can at a Mennonite farm, picked up dinner, picked up my kids from Sarah's (missed Brandon's virtual open house) and went to the park for our dinner right before Curtis had practice. Everything ended up working out and I was very grateful for Sarah's help but still, I was a ball of nerves all day and it was such a relief when the day was over. Everyone played at the park during practice then I went home with tired and dirty kids. 

Friday was supposed to be a grand adventure for our last day of summer. Michelle suggested we go to Gunpowder Falls/Pot Rocks, which is a drive but the kids were super excited about doing something new and so fun. We stopped at the dance supply store on the way up and thankfully got Lily's pointe shoe situation figured out (I hope) and then when we got up there the GPS took us to a nice neighborhood cul de sac. Thus began a many-hour search for the entrance to this river and the elusive pot rock swimming hole. I won't go into all the painful details but just imagine two moms driving all over with a bunch of kids and then when we finally found something, it turned out to not be quite right (the main entrance was closed for construction with no instructions on any other way to access the park). We did walk through the woods (and somebody's back yard) in search of this place and never found it. The map kept saying it was close by but the landscape didn't match up. There were no signs or directions, no clear path and it led to a lot of disappointment. The kids had some fun walking in the stream we found and we all tried to make the best of it. A thunderstorm came along and freaked everyone out when branches started falling around us so that put an end to our day. We went to a cute family creamery for some ice cream (it was our dinner) and then we went home. It was a long drive and I was tired and then there was a crazy thunderstorm with a ton of lightning (I swear we almost got struck it was so crazy close and the headlights in front of me went blue) but we made it. The kids all stayed pretty positive and I think Michelle and I did too so I was pretty proud of us even though it did turn out to be a rough day. The company was good and the ice cream was too so that was helpful. No one slept well that night because of all the thunder and ligthning and the rain coming into our basement. 

Saturday I made french toast Wiest-style (like they made it for my birthday at the beach) and then we did some school stuff. I finally watched the recording of Brandon's virtual open house and we got everyone logged in and I read all the emails from the teachers and even though I am still not quite sure what is happening tomorrow morning, I think it is going to be okay. All my kids seem to have really great teachers (well, I'm not in love with Brandon's but we'll give her a chance) and my kids seem excited and ready for school. Our governor said everyone could start going back to school safely so I'm hoping they move into the hybrid system sooner rather than later. I'd really love for my younger kids to be able to go to school. Anyway, then we went shopping at Kohl's for sneakers and Lily spent her birthday money on some clothes. We also went to Target for some basic school supplies, back packs (every kindergartner needs a back pack whether he is going to school or not) and other stuff. We were all pretty tired so we watched the British Baking Show when we got home and had dinner and then I canned pears. Josh actually helped me and it was the first time I have ever canned anything with adult help (except the one time Michelle and I did applesauce together). It was so nice and we got our half bushel done in an hour and now I have 12 jars for canned pears. They are my least favorite to do so it was a relief to have it done. 

Today was back to our home church schedule. Bethany Prettyman just got home from her mission so she talked about her experiences and it was amazing. I was so impressed with her growth, testimony, faith and love for Jesus Christ. It was incredibly moving and uplifting and spiritual. We were pretty close years ago when I was serving in young women's and I'm so proud of her and all she's done. It made me so happy and the talk she gave to the youth was so wonderful and perfect for them to hear. I loved every second of it and it was a great way to start our day. We then had singing time and talked about what it takes to be a good missionary, then I picked a song that went along with what the kids said. They said you have to know the scriptures, be friendly, share the gospel, then Josh and I added that you have to be worthy and work hard and also love the people you are teaching. It was a fun singing time and I'm grateful for the chance to share my testimony with my children about the importance of participating in the work of the Lord and sharing his gospel with his children. It is such an honor to be called to serve and given that responsibility, even though it is hard. I hope they will all remember this time with fondness and that their testimonies are really growing and that they will desire to serve missions to share the joy they feel with others, just like the sons of Mosiah. We had a nice sacrament meeting about staying humble and not falling into the trap of pride and now Josh is doing bishop stuff, the kids are playing and I am taking a nice deep breath before this week starts. Josh is going to give the kids their back to school blessings tonight and we'll get their work stations set up and hopefully start off the school year well tomorrow.