TUESDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2008
I used to wake up at nine feeling guilty and grumpy- how could I have slept this long? I got over THAT about 7 years ago! When we moved overseas we quickly discovered that we just plain ol' need way more sleep! Life is more physically demanding in many ways, not to mention the mental and emotional strain of speaking a foreign language and dealing with a completely different culture. It takes its toll. So, we are up at 9:00 guilty free. The youngest enjoy a bowl of hot cream of wheat or oatmeal, the older ones cook themselves an egg or just have bread with cheese or jam. I, of course, start with a strong cup of coffee and snack until lunch on whatevers around. The Water Guy is always gone by 9:00, but we see him most days at 1:00 for a hot family lunch.
School starts around 9:30 with the older ones working with their DVD's or books, while the youngest take turns with Mom on reading, math, Bible, phonics, etc... Mr. Macaroni has some pretty significant learning issues and takes a massive amount of time. I comfort myselft knowing that what I can give him at home is about 10 times more than what he'd be getting mainstreamed in school.
3 days a week, I have a wonderful young woman come to help me with the housework and cooking. She has become a WONDERFUL cook and we enjoy her soups and other goodies on the days she is here. Other days, the kids help out with making a good meal for us all to enjoy. Afternoons are more of the same, but often we have an unannounced visitor interrupt our day. It could be anyone from the guy collecting money for the water bill or the neighbor needing to borrow baking soda.
Now that it's fall, we spend more time indoors as the muck factor has increased by a hundredfold. There is no such thing as a sidewalk here, no grass, just mud everywhere. Often, The Water Guy will call and need some e-mailing done, or something to be looked up on the home computer. By 4:30 or 5:00 we are done with the lessons and start on dinner. If dinner is an easy one, or if our helper is here, we can play a short game or watch a little TV. Right now we are working our way through Season 8 of Little House on the Prairie. Still love that stuff!
The Water Guy comes in around 6:30 and we have dinner together. Tonight, being a very typical one, we will read aloud (currently that is a Hardy Boys), eat oatmeal cookies made by Roo, and hope that the power does not go off- again. After the kids head off for bed, maybe I'll have a few moments to finish the Dresden Plate block I'm working on for the matching wall hanging that goes with my queen-sized quilt, and put a bit of time into my Precepts Study on Hebrews. After The Water Guy is asleep I still have a little more time to me, and spend time in prayer or on projects that need doing.
Not all days are so simple. There are many days with meetings, errands to run, and days we drink tea with friends. I'll post sometime after a "crazy day", and you'll see how different they can be.
School starts around 9:30 with the older ones working with their DVD's or books, while the youngest take turns with Mom on reading, math, Bible, phonics, etc... Mr. Macaroni has some pretty significant learning issues and takes a massive amount of time. I comfort myselft knowing that what I can give him at home is about 10 times more than what he'd be getting mainstreamed in school.
3 days a week, I have a wonderful young woman come to help me with the housework and cooking. She has become a WONDERFUL cook and we enjoy her soups and other goodies on the days she is here. Other days, the kids help out with making a good meal for us all to enjoy. Afternoons are more of the same, but often we have an unannounced visitor interrupt our day. It could be anyone from the guy collecting money for the water bill or the neighbor needing to borrow baking soda.
Now that it's fall, we spend more time indoors as the muck factor has increased by a hundredfold. There is no such thing as a sidewalk here, no grass, just mud everywhere. Often, The Water Guy will call and need some e-mailing done, or something to be looked up on the home computer. By 4:30 or 5:00 we are done with the lessons and start on dinner. If dinner is an easy one, or if our helper is here, we can play a short game or watch a little TV. Right now we are working our way through Season 8 of Little House on the Prairie. Still love that stuff!
The Water Guy comes in around 6:30 and we have dinner together. Tonight, being a very typical one, we will read aloud (currently that is a Hardy Boys), eat oatmeal cookies made by Roo, and hope that the power does not go off- again. After the kids head off for bed, maybe I'll have a few moments to finish the Dresden Plate block I'm working on for the matching wall hanging that goes with my queen-sized quilt, and put a bit of time into my Precepts Study on Hebrews. After The Water Guy is asleep I still have a little more time to me, and spend time in prayer or on projects that need doing.
Not all days are so simple. There are many days with meetings, errands to run, and days we drink tea with friends. I'll post sometime after a "crazy day", and you'll see how different they can be.
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