My Plans for the Week (And Into Next)

This week we've got some new stuff going on around here. To start with, Bob got a new job working at the local airport! He started yesterday and he loves it! I'm so glad. :) I was worried that he would have to go away for an internship for the summer but it turns out he's too he's over qualified for internships. They just want people who have no experience in the field - he did the same thing in the Air Force - so he applied for a job at our local airport and got it instead. It'll be so nice to have him home all summer! :)

Bob finishes his classes this week and has independent study all week next week. He will also be taking all the tests for the FAA for the Airframe part of his A&P licensing. Next year he will be doing the Power plant part. He's pretty excited to be done with school for the summer.

I plan on doing our daily lessons with the kids through next week - they have already finished with their Math for the year. They are still working on Spelling and Handwriting though. I am going to try and keep some lessons going a couple of days a week through the summer to finish up their spelling and then work on memorizing their times tables. I'm signing them up for the summer reading program at the library as well.

I am going to go to Sioux Falls this Friday for a different community rummage sale. I think I'm going to go with my neighbor while her kids are in school. I kind of wanted to leave earlier so we are there when they open but I guess if I'm meant to have whatever is there, it will still be there when I get to it! :)

We had an incident here yesterday - while I was typing this very post - involving Jozie, 2 of her friends, some neighbor boys, and a BB Gun. It wasn't fun. Nobody got hurt but when Luke came in to tell me that there was a police officer talking to Jozie (I was inside making supper) my heart was in my throat and I went outside to find 2 very terrified little girls.

It turns out that Aiyanna brought out a BB Gun to show Jozie and Shakiah while they were playing yesterday. It was her uncles and she wanted to play cops and robbers. She didn't want her mom to know she had it so she hid it behind our apartment and told the other girls not to tell. Aiyanna went home because her mom was calling her and Shakiah thought she would take the liberty of showing it to some boys from across the street. When she handed it to one of them he took of running home with it and she chased him to try and get it. When he got home he told his mom that she was pointing it at him and he took it from her. She called the police and they came over and confiscated the gun.

When I talked to the police officer I told him that Jozie would never point a gun at anybody, she has been taught respect for them and even shot them with my dad. He said that she wasn't the one who did it (this morning I got the above story from Jozie so I'm pretty sure that the boys lied when they said that Shakiah pointed or "waved" it at them) and he was glad to hear that we had educated our children about guns. I also told him that we have been having quite a bit of trouble from those boys from using swear words - writing them on our front step and calling Jozie the B word - them stealing Luke's toys - which we got back a day later - and one of them taking apart Luke's bike. All within a couple of weeks. Luke even came in crying one day because the older one threatened to beat him up. Joey - Luke's friend who lives right next door - stuck up for him and said it was the other boys problem and he was just being mean to Luke. I asked the police officer to talk to the mother and tell her to keep her kids off our property. I don't send my kids over there to cause trouble and I would expect she would show me the same courtesy.

My next door neighbor, Jennifer, got home about then and the other mother Jennifer to tell her that she didn't call the cops on her kids, just on "the other ones" and her boys still want to play with Joey. She told Jennifer that Joey would have to go to her house to play though because the police said that if their kids come over here anymore they will get a ticket for trespassing. I was grateful that I wasn't the one who had to do the calling! I sort of considered it after all the negative things that have been happening when those boys are around but I didn't want to be one of those moms. I tried to be calm I was upset! You mess with the cubs and Mama Bear gets a little angry!

My Exciting Week and Feeling Better

We've had a rather uneventful week since our big snow fall. My dad came to visit and was here until Wed. morning. It's nice to see him, I really wish he lived closer so we could see him more often! :) He got me a new microwave while he was here! I was so excited! He has been such a blessing to us - always asking if there is something that I need everytime he comes. The last time it was a toaster and this time my microwave seemed to be in need of replacement. Though it still works, it was taking longer and longer to do things like cook frozen veggies - and that takes almost 10 minutes! I've had it since before we got married - it's about 10 years old so I suppose it's slowing down. Here's the one we got:
You can click on it for the details. I don't know why it said it's not sold in stores, I got mine at the store...anyway, I wanted something a little bit bigger and better than the one that I had and the other ones there were about the same as my old one and my Dad didn't like the brand names of the rest of them so this is the one we chose. You can change it to like 3 different languages and it says "Enjoy Your Meal" when it's done cooking - the kids really got a kick out of that! I still haven't figured out why I need my microwave to speak 3 different languages - maybe it would teach the kids Spanish or French for me!

Exciting, right...yah.

Pretty much all of our 19 inches of snow is gone - we found out that our little town got more snow in 24 hours than has ever been recorded here. I'm so glad we were here for that!

And last - and definitely least exciting - I had the stomach flu on Wed. night. What fun. I went with my neighbor to her daughters school play so Jozie could see her friend. My stomach had been bothering me most of the day but I kind of ignored it, thinking it must have been something I'd eaten. I guess it's been so long since I was sick I forgot what it was like. Once I got to the school I knew I should have just stayed home. I had barely gotten home and into my PJ's and I was in the bathroom...I'm sure you can guess why! I was up most of the night so I slept most of the day yesterday. I was feeling pretty ok but still achy and sore. I didn't figure I'd sleep too good last night since I slept pretty much all day. I slept like a log. Better than normal...maybe if I sleep all day everyday I would sleep so good every night! LOL But that doesn't leave much time for anything else, does it? :) I'm feeling fine today - but still not ready to eat much!

Cowboys and Tumbleweeds!

We've had some problems with our internet connection the last week or so - that's why I haven't done any posting lately. The cable guy came on Monday and fixed it but I have also been walking a couple of miles a day with my neighbor and one of her friends everyday this week so I've been keeping torchered, er, busy (and sore) the past couple of days! Today I get to do laundry and clean because Bob's dad is going to be here to visit this weekend - but have you seen our 70% chance of snow on Friday? I was hoping to meet them in Sioux Falls early Friday morning for a huge community garage sale day but if we are having snow...I'm not sure I want to make the drive. Yuck!

• Luke became a cowboy this weekend. The neighbor boy gave Luke his old cowboy boots - which are huge on him! He wore them to church with his cowboy hat and wrangler jeans! There were several comments that he made in reference to his "cowboyhood" - as he's climbing into his bed one night, "I guess even cowboys need their rest, huh, mom." Me - "Luke, what do you want for lunch? Peanut butter or turkey?" Luke - "What would a cowboy choose?" Me - "Probably a big juicy steak!" Luke - "Then I'll take the turkey!" LOL

• Jozie was glad the snow was gone so she could get back on her favorite swing again! :) They got out their marshmallow guns one day and peppered the birds and yard with mini marshmallows. I had to clean about 6 dried up, stuck on, marshmallows out of Jozie's gun before she could use hers though - they have been there since last fall! Yuck!

• The kids found this big old tumbleweed blowing in the wind one day last week. Luke was trying to keep it - I guess he wanted it for a decoration or something! The wind was actually pretty frigid that day - you couldn't tell it by the smiles on their faces, the bright sun and blue sky and the lack of the zipper on Jozie's jacket! She doesn't think she needs to zip and this morning woke up with a stuffy nose...maybe she will learn someday! :)
  

• Luke finally got his new rollerblades on and was thrilled. I followed him around our apartment complex for about an hour before he was confident enough again to let me go inside. :) He's excited to have them on again and didn't do too bad.