1. Church stuff - This has been my biggest focus lately. There has been/is/will be lots to do there for the next few months. Thanks to some help from my sister about how she does her church's children's program, I've started a new large group program for our church with songs and video and slides all put into a keynote (that's powerpoint for the mac) presentation. We even dressed as cowgirls this morning and gave away shiny deputy stars. Week 1 was a success, so we shall see how it continues. I also selected and purchased the first installment of our VBS program and I have about 3 months to get it all ready to go. And there's a lot to do to get it ready. Did I mention that I was elected to the deaconess committee? I'm falling way down on the job there. Then there's smaller stuff like taking dinner to people this week and doing breakfast for the church next month. I just need to breath and take it one thing at a time.
2. School stuff - We just did our standardized testing. Yes, I know it's early, but it was less expensive and we used a test that's given by a proctor, one-on-one, and would test their knowledge as far as they could go. It seemed less intense and less testing-for-the-sake-of-testing to use this particular one. The girls both did well. I wasn't sure about the youngest as she can get antsy and goofy and dramatic and she's not terribly confident in her ability to read. She's smart enough, she just doesn't like to concentrate for long on all that boring school. But she held her own through most of it and came out above average. The oldest I had no worries as she's just really, really smart. She obviously inherited her dad's math genius as she scored 4-6 grade levels above her own in the math sections while only 2-4 grade levels above in the reading sections. Now I've got to figure out how to do the rest of our year. For K, I may dial back on the math and language worksheets and let her do more reading, history, and science. L did excellently in phonics, but she needs to *know* that she really can read.
3. Kid's stuff - K has started softball back up and she has rec league practices 2-3 times a week, plus she plays on a "travel light" team which practices Sunday afternoons. That team won't actually play until summer/fall and they'll only play 4-6 weekends total, but they've already started practicing. For L, competition season is starting this weekend with her very first dance competition in Durham. She's in 2 group dances and they perform Saturday morning. Next weekend will find us in central NC, then there's 2 more in April, and the Nationals in July. It will be a first for both of us and we're both excited. With both girls so involved, it's a big commitment right now. However, they love what they do, it keeps them active, they like the kids they play/dance with, and it's good for them to learn the effort and commitment of working with a team.
4. House stuff - My house is a wreck. No, really. The last couple of weeks have been so incredibly busy that I haven't had time to do much. I *finally* got the Christmas decorations put away in the attic last Monday (only because K's new mattress was being delivered and the hall was stacked with Christmas stuff so the guys wouldn't be able to even *get* to her room). The girls have even been doing dishes and laundry without me asking because they need clothes and cups. Thankfully, my to-do list for this week seems to be a little bit shorter, so I might be able to dig out from under this mess and get things a little cleaner around her. So while I love you, please don't come to my house for the next few days. Unless you come bringing bleach and scrub brushes and willing hands.
4. Family stuff - My parent's are unexpectedly moving. Did I tell you that? They've managed to sell *3* houses in the past 1 1/2 years (her mom's, his mom's, and their own) without ever calling a realtor or putting a sign in the yard. They're busy packing up 3+ buildings worth of stuff (house, cabin, garage/storage building, shed), dispersing or storing it all, and getting their RV fixed up to move into it for awhile. I've spent lots of time over the past couple of weeks on the phone with my mom and it's amazing seeing how God has worked in this situation.
5. Fun stuff - In the midst of the craziness, there has been fun. We've spent time with great friends (at their houses, not mine). I baked pound cakes and brownies. I got to hang out with my girls and I got to spend more time with the kids at church. Mr. at Home and I have been talking and catching up after being apart for a couple of weeks and we've been dreaming about our upcoming cruise. K's room is finished and awesome. I do promise a post on that soon, it's just that the pictures are on the computer upstairs and I'm currently on a laptop downstairs. And I'm too lazy to go clean up my desk area so I can actually get to the computer.
That's my stuff. If you don't "see" me for a few days, you might want to make sure I haven't been buried under a pile of laundry or overcome with fumes from the industrial strength cleaners it's going to take to tackle this house.
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