Year 6, Weeks 8-10: Fall (or is it summer?) Fun

We are not quite certain exactly what season it is here, but we are trying to enjoy whatever it is! Not a lot going on right now, only big thing is the change in my work schedule. Now that I am working less I get to be home more and I have had the opportunity to help more at church, which has been a huge blessing and I have enjoyed being more involved!

Week #8: September 2nd - 8th

Labor day! We were both off, so that was a great day for us. Jonathan and Dad did a lot of work upstairs and the kids and I hung out here. I worked on peppers, we had garlic lovers chicken with Amish noodles and green beans, I worked on the peppers, we got KDB for a little snack in the evening and then we did some organizing of toys and clothes. Of course, Jonathan spent the whole day in the ceiling and I threw my back out in the 15 minutes I spent in the crawl space...so that was a lot of fun! Prior to my worst day of work ever, I hustled in to get my back put in place so I could actually stand! It was a horrible day on Tuesday, Jonathan went to Copley, I cried the whole way home, but after a good night sleep, it was a lot better!

On Wednesday we had creamy sausage pasta with buttermilk rolls, went to the first story time for the season and had our first day of school. Amelia was PUMPED. It was a fantastic day for her! I got laundry done and enjoyed my day with the kids! I had some planning to do, got that done, then on Thursday I did banana peppers, had an eye appointment, finished laundry and then we went swimming at Mom and Dad's while Jonathan was at a meeting! I got the tomatoes out to work on sauce and got some things cleaned up around the house.

We had to get some sauce made, my freezer was getting WAY too full! So that is what I did on Friday, we had taco lasagna, finished cleaning and I went shopping for clothes for the kids during naptime. It was fall this week and the kids were out of clothes to wear, so it was most certainly time! Of course, it hasn't really been fall since but at least we are ready for it when it comes for good.

The one thing I did not get to search for was shoes, so we went shoe shopping on Saturday! Jonathan weed wacked in the afternoon, so that was good! I got the tomato sauce canned, we went to the KDB in the afternoon and went for a walk in the evening. It was so much fun and nice to be out in the decent weather.

Sunday was a hard day, Jonathan played at church then had a meeting for small group afterward, so I took the kids home, at lunch, then took a nap! Jonathan did some work upstairs, we went for a walk, played outside and enjoyed some time together as a family!

Week #9: September 9th - 15th

I worked a short day - much better than two long days back to back - and Amelia had her first gymnastics evening and Jonathan got to take her! I heard all about it when I got home and we had leftovers together. It was delicious and we were so proud of how well she did! For never doing anything like that before I am so glad she did well!

Tuesday marked five years at DDM, I went in early to get a few things done and Jonathan had a fun evening with the kids and the Guess men came to visit, so that was an especially special time, then we went on a bit of an outing on Wednesday. The kids and I had the library, which was good, and then we went to the Wayne County Fair! It was a lot of fun, quite a large fair to get through with the kids, but we booked it and got to see a lot plus spend time with Grandma, Grandpa and Great-Grandpa!

Thursday involved a lot of cooking so we could get a little caught up, the fridge was getting a little bare. I made some banana bread, protein balls, we had tuna noodle for lunch, worked on peppers, then went swimming and had leftovers a Mom and Dad's, it was great for Jonathan to get to swim with the kids! Amelia had been asking to get to swim with him for awhile to show him her new moves. In the evening Jonathan prepped for windows, it was a rough night for Little Man. He had to spend some time with us, poor man was pretty miserable. 

On Friday we had chicken and ham crescents, baked mac and cheese and green beans, we also got 4 new windows! I got to do some organizing and got a few things accomplished during naptime. On Saturday we had Fall Fest, which was so much fun. We were glad to be there, but the kids missed naptime...that being said, we picked supper up and watched some shows after Jonathan got back from milking. He did the milking while Mom and Dad were gone and that started Thursday and went until the next Thursday morning. I stayed home with the kids most of the time, got supper ready and cleaned a few things up. After the kids went down we watched a documentary that was REALLY good and then got a good night's sleep so we were ready for the next day!

It was my first day serving, so that was an experience! I was in the preschool room with a more experienced teacher...MAN, those kids have a lot of energy. Jonathan worked around the house and spent some time stalking our local groundhog. We had steaks for lunch and spent the evening at the farm, then had shepherd's pie for supper.

Week #10: September 16th - 22nd

I had a hair appointment on Monday and got to take the little girl to gymnastics in the evening - it was so adorable, we have been practicing all week! My tire went completely flat on the way home, so that made our whole week a little crazy...still dealing with that! Tuesday was a not so horrible work day, Pam came and stayed with the kids since Mom and Dad were out of town. Jonathan had someone come take care of a wasp's nest we had hanging out with us, so it was good to get rid of that!

Our window guy came to check-up with us and make sure the windows were all good, we are very excited to say that they are good! We can't wait to move into the space here soon. I made stuffed shells, seafood nachos and peanut oat muffins, then we went over to the Henman's to mee the new baby! He is adorable and we loved getting to meet him. The kids and I went to the library and on a Carrollton run in the morning, then it was just a lot of busy tasks to get everything ready.

Since my car was down and Mom and Dad were gone, we adopted their extra vehicle for the rest of the week, which meant I drove it to therapy while Jonathan was at a career fair! He then had to swing by South Central, so he was gone most of the day. We returned the truck and got my car back, of course, the spare tire was almost flat, so I'm just glad we made it home on that little thing! In the evening we had sausage gravy and biscuits and then folded some laundry. Amelia is such a good helper, helped me with biscuits and muffins and all that sort of stuff! William has finally got all his teeth in, so he is finally sleeping much better!

It was my first weekend working since my schedule change. I worked Friday and the kids went to Mom and Dad's for the day. They were SO excited to see them. It had been so long, so it was a special day for all of them I think! We did as much as we could on Friday working a man down, and I was overwhelmed going into Saturday so I went in early and stayed late but, even being a person down on Saturday, we got the pharmacy pretty cleaned up. It felt so great. The kids and Jonathan spent a lot of time outside and went on a True Value run, then we all had leftovers in the evening, I ate after everyone else since I wasn't home until almost 7. 

Now my weekends do not mean that I work the whole time! I am off on Sundays, so I worked registration at church and then we went to Sara and Dustin's for the Brown's game and the baby announcement! It was a lot of fun, we left at halftime and the kids crashed on the way home, so we took some time to drive around and then went outside to check the garden! It was a lot of fun. We had leftovers again, cleaned upstairs, gave the kids naps and then had a visit from Mom and Dad! It was a lot of fun. We enjoyed catching up with them!

I hope everyone else has been enjoying these last few days of summer! We are ready for fall, but mainly ready for rain! Hopefully a lot here in the next few weeks! Enjoy the last little bit of September, we will talk to you soon! Love you all!

Love,

Jonathan, Allison, Amelia and William

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Year 6, Weeks 5-7: Bikes, Outside Garden and Tomatoes

 Hello, there! We have had both summer and fall in the past two weeks and I must say we have been enjoying one more than the other, but are trying to get some swimming in while we can and make the most of those steaming hot days. Today is more fall-ish and it is looking like it is going that way.

Week 5: August 12th - 18th

We hit the ground running after camp! Had an open-house at a local gym to see if we could get Amelia started in gymnastics. It was a lot of fun and we are excited for her to start, she is as well! At random times she keeps doing random actions and asking if she will be doing this action at gymnastics, it has been a lot fun. Jonathan spent the day at Hillsdale, and the rest of us had good naps and got some things caught up at the house. My garden needed some attention, banana peppers, jalapenos, peppers, tomatoes, I got a lot done! 

Tuesday was a normal work day, all of them have been miserable for me, but making the best of it and thankful for the team I have to work with! We had quesadillas on Wednesday, Jonathan had a scan and then we had two sets of visitors! Got some recommendations for a cabinet we are going to have made for our bathroom, then Mom and Dad came to visit and help move a few things. 

Thursday we had NAET and got William treated for strawberries...he now LOVES them and, as a bonus, no more hives or swollen eyes! Perfect! Jonathan was on a site visit and then we went to meet a new baby we love here locally! Also visited the library for new books, we were getting desperate. The kids love going in the evenings when no one else is there, they just play and have a good old time!

It was a short weekend off for me, so I worked Friday for 8 hours, then came back home, we had take-out upstairs for supper. Jonathan was in Dublin for the day, but got back in time to get the babies! Amelia and I are in a nail painting season, painting them once a week usually, so that's what we did on Friday, then Beechcreek in the morning. It was so much fun. Didn't get rained out this time, so we got to see most of the grounds, it was a lot of fun. We had creamy mushroom pasta for supper and I got some rotel made for the winter. Salsa was on Sunday. We had sandwiches after church, Jonathan ran some errands and we did some facetime with his family later in the day.

Week 6: August 19th - 25th

It was my last double thirteen! Yay! Super tough day. Jonathan and the kids visited, Jonathan had a site visit in the morning, it was good to see them, but man, rough two days. I made a poor shoe decision on Tuesday, so they came to visit again Tuesday with my crocs! It was a complete game changer. 

Wednesday I was pretty beat up, did a lot of relaxing. I got the tomatoes caught up, so that was helpful, lots of tomatoes these past few weeks. Super blessed in that area this year! The extra long weekend was well spent! We had an evening with a pizza night with the friends and enjoyed every minute of it!

Amelia and I went to the dentist on Thursday, I had to go into work for a few minutes and then Jonathan and I went up to look at a vehicle. It was a bit of a bust, but we enjoyed the drive together! I got my new schedule figured out in this next season, we are excited to see what that means for our family!

On Friday we went to get treatment, then I came home and tried to make some tomato paste, it took me a few days, but I got it made! Also made some rotel, made casserole for supper and enjoyed our time together as a family in the evening, other than me running in and out to check the tomatoes that I didn't want to burn!

Saturday we got a lot done and enjoyed the whole day! We went shopping in the morning, kids and I got groceries, JL went and got a few things from the store. We had waffles before we left and leftovers for lunch, then we got a lot done during naps! Jonathan mowed, I finished the paste, processed peppers and diced tomatoes, got a gift ordered and helped keep an eye on the ribs he was making on the grill! I do not like ribs, as a general rule, but my husband makes incredible ribs. (Editors note: she really likes the sauce we purchased at White House Fruit Farm.)

My allergies were pretty bad on Sunday, but we had a fantastic day. We went to church, had a pizza party with my parents and grandparents and Jonathan and I had our yearly planning session for the next year! 

Week 7: August 26th - September 1st

I worked on tomatoes on Monday between all the other things that needed done. We went swimming after a quick shopping run, while I was picking tomatoes I had to make some work calls, which was necessary and got some things moving! Amelia had to go to the doctor because she had a rash that didn't change over four days. I made Po-boys for supper and made Mexican Delight to have for leftovers too! Jonathan and Amelia helped me get tomato juice made so I could finish it later in the week, they are a great team!

We worked on Tuesday, another tough day, then enjoyed a few days off before my long weekend at work. I finished the tomato juice on Wednesday, we had a swim party, leftovers, Jonathan was at a picnic and then we dropped the car off to get it worked on. On Thursday we were a little impulsive and went to the fair! Stopped to pay for the car, then ran up to enjoy it there! The kids had a blast. We got a lot done in the morning, cereal, enchiladas, bank, library, so we really enjoyed our evening with all the animals. The kids aren't big fans of the birds, but they like the other animals, sheep were a hit and William LOVED the tractors!

I worked this past weekend and that is about all we did. Work, work, work, for me. Our barn was worked on, they got it all fixed up, it should be much healthier now! Jonathan had a work day on Saturday and knocked a few things off his list, the kids hung out with Nana. JL had a visit from the boat guys and they helped him with a few things! I got the kids dropped off for church, worked like crazy on Sunday and brought KFC home for supper, it was a great evening. We painted nails in the evening, put the kids down and had a relaxing evening trying to recover from the madness that has been this weekend for me. 

Hopefully everyone has been enjoying the last few weeks, there has been a little something there for everyone! We love you all, can't wait to report how our next few weeks go with the new schedule!

Love,

Jonathan, Allison, Amelia and William

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