1-14-10 Thursday

Today was not routine. It was not even a routine ortho day, because Levi had his annual check, and Jacob and Kaitlyn both had pre-evaluation appointments. Jewel came with us, and Jesse stayed home with Joshua, Sarah, and Benjamin. Before we even left the driveway I'd had enough excitement for the day, when I backed the van into a snowdrift. To be sure, I was provoked, but still I was steaming. One of our kids (you know who you are) thinks (s)he knows everything and has a bad habit (which we are working on curing) of nagging at our other kids, especially one, who isn't perceived as being as smart as said offender. When this ragging started the minute (s)he jumped into the van, my temper spiked high fast and I was in the midst of a severe scolding (teaching opportunity) when Levi said, "Mom, don't turn yet, there's a ...." Too late, but thanks anyway (learning opportunity)(for me). It took the 3 boys about 20 minutes to get me out, and we were a few minutes late, and my apology was hard to make but make it I did, and the guilty party accepted it and still loves me anyway, and I know this experience will help me curb my temper the next time I'm provoked. "For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do" (Romans 7: 19).

Ben and Sarah didn't even want to go to Pekin with us...they've figured out already that it's much more fun to stay home and do their work and have free time than to sit in the ortho office and do errands. Smart kids. So after our 4 appointments, we did a quick Menard's stop and then a quick but HUGE Aldi stop. Okay, nothing huge like the Duggars do, but it was a big bill nonetheless. We are so blessed here in America to have full grocery shelves and sufficient dollars to buy what we need, and even that which we don't need. I hope we never take it for granted; all we have to do is pull out a CAM or VOM newsletter to realize that literally most of the world does not have this privilege.

We got home and unloaded. And unloaded. And unloaded. The kids did most of it while I worked on laundry and directed traffic. After lunch, I had school meetings with the 3 middles and everybody else did k.p. and various other jobs. Tori took Joshua outside for awhile then, and before he was in all the rest were outside too. I put him down for a nap and laid down for a half hour myself...had a headache coming and knew I'd had too many late nights. I was ready for a walk when Jewel came in; she was warm as toast but I suspect some villain had inadvertently offended her. She said Sarah did something but I never found out what. Got her wet, maybe? Anyway, she helped me with various things awhile, then at some point I poked my head out the door and felt it so warm again that I couldn't resist a walk. Jewel had a ball outside again, and I had a good walk...fresh air and exercise are so good on cold gray days. And it was so gray...the photos I took of our farm while I walked were pretty dull; so it goes. Meanwhile, the kids had a lot of fun building their snow fort, which soon deteriorated into an all-out snowball fight. Sarah soon retreated to the fort, but the rest kept at it until I finally had to stop it so they could get at chores. At supper they all had stories of super hits and so on; even Jewel was excited because she got a snowball down Jesse's boot (he wasn't so impressed). At some point Levi went and took Uncle Jerry's mail to their house; they're in Florida, and Grandpa and Grandma, their regular mail-getters, are in Florida too.

After supper Dad & I had meetings with Tori and Jacob, then Dad read another chapter, same scenario in the family room, and then after Bibletime (Exodus 6), beds for all except Dad who stayed up to work on tax stuff. I went to bed early and was instantly asleep. Burning the candle at both ends eventually catches up with me.