MOMMY VENTURES

Craziness of Life

noreply@blogger.com (J) — Fri, 28 Jul 2023 00:31:00 +0000

This has been the most unique summer to date.

The summer months started early in May. My oldest son traveled to a Christian Worldview class in another state for a couple of weeks. He was home for only a few days before he was off again to go to Staff NYLT. He had a two-night turnaround and then was off again to a summer camp.

In the midst of his crazy schedule his sister left the morning after he got home from staffing NYLT she left to go staff a different course of NYLT. She got home from her week and was only home a couple days before heading off on a high adventure trek.

While my son was gone to summer camp and my daughter was off-staffing NYLT my husband and my other kids attended and worked at a cub scout camp. That was a wild week!!!

I had all of the kiddos home for about a week once she got home and then she and I left for summer camp. While we were away at summer camp - my oldest son went again for his high adventure- adventure.

So here I sit.....he is still gone on his adventure. All the other kids are home.

I need to go visit my family. I am going to cram in a short trip. I hate short trips but it is going to have to be this way just to make it happen.

****

The beginning

noreply@blogger.com (J) — Mon, 13 Mar 2023 16:49:00 +0000

Over the course of parenting you take so many steps - keeping your kid safe, keeping your kid happy, keeping your kid engaged, keeping your kid socialized, and keeping them in what interests them.

Throughout his life, he has depended on me, dad, and others but soon he will get his driver's license and won't be so dependent anymore. I thought I was ready. I am not ready. I truly am not. I can't. I can't fathom watching him drive out of the driveway and go down the road on his own.

I am not ready! He is. Others are. I am not.

Catch up again

noreply@blogger.com (J) — Mon, 02 Jan 2023 00:29:00 +0000

My last post was just after staff development in July 2022.

I went to Wood Badge staff development two more times and then it was time for the two weekends of course in October.

I started off day 1 of the course by falling off a short step. I limped my way through weekend 1. I was well taken care of and I did not loose my mind when my chair broke on day 1 as well one of the last things before calling it a night.

Hands down. I 100% enjoyed being a part of the staff. I met and connected with people on a whole new level.

I went on to camp with a couple different kids and then I went and staffed another scout training. I have 100% enjoyed leading and learning right along others.

Wood Badge Part 3

noreply@blogger.com (J) — Mon, 25 Jul 2022 20:51:00 +0000

In the last post, I walked on cloud 9 because I had completed my Wood Badge ticket and also got my regalia. It was a significant accomplishment and in the end, I could not be happier with myself for my perseverance in getting it done.

On May 22, 2022, I received a call from an unknown number. Something told me that even though I was busy at that moment I needed to answer that call. I answered the call and it was the course director for 22-2. They were inviting me to come to join the Fall Course as a Troop Guide. He rattled off training dates and every one of them could work with my calendar as my brain processed it. I said YES, I would love to.

On top of getting ready for our District's Twilight Camp and a week-long trip to Summer Camp and all the camping in between for my boys. It worked out for my calendar.

We had Staff Development 1 a few weeks ago, This is where I got to meet most of the staff and get ready for day 1. Soon we will have Staff Development 2 and hopefully, the course makes and we can have Staff Development 3 and move on to the course in October.

Wood Badge part 2

noreply@blogger.com (J) — Fri, 04 Feb 2022 19:44:00 +0000

My last blog entry was simply titled Wood Badge.

I gave a quick status update to my one ticket - five goals.

Here is my update.......

I finished all 5 goals by 2/2/22. I did it. I met my own deadline. I worked my rear end off. I told my mom today that one thing I wished I had did from the beginning was kept up with my hours I worked. I know I put in more than I think I did.

I hit the ground running with my ticket items in less than 48 hours of completing the course work. I was meeting with other scout leaders to find out what I could do and how to best run my ticket.

I spent lots of time in front of my computer.

I spent lots of time using glue sticks.

I spent lots of time researching the best I could do.

I put 100% in. I am proud of myself for doing just 1 thing.

Wood Badge

noreply@blogger.com (J) — Wed, 15 Dec 2021 18:44:00 +0000

One ticket

Five goals

I have until 4/30/2023

Ticket 1- Work with Den Chiefs from the troop and make them useful in the pack/dens COMPLETE but will continue to process for future Den Chiefs for my duration in the pack.

Ticket 2- Used uniform collection and other items. COMPLETE but will continue to collect items for a wide variety of sizes.

Ticket 3- Flag retirement ceremony IN PROCESS I hope to complete this item in January on a Den Meeting night. Will invite all other dens to join.

Ticket 4- Every youth deserves a trained leader IN PROCESS I hope to complete this item in January at the pack meeting.

Ticket 5- Songs/Skit/Resources kind of in process this will be the last one I do and I hope to have it done in February,

My goal is to be beaded and get my regalia by March 2022.

It's been a long time ya'll

noreply@blogger.com (J) — Thu, 18 Nov 2021 16:10:00 +0000

I haven't sat down at my blog in a long time. Part of that is I have been busy. Other parts I just haven't felt like I have much to talk about. Many times in life lately I haven't had much real conversation with people outside of my own household. I get the glazed over look or the distracted look or the excuse me I have to ____. That's okay but doesn't bring much for joy or conversation.

In fact I have had a lot on my mind. Like how for the second year in a row I am not going to go visit my family for the holidays. Not really a stress but when you only met these family members 3 years ago and you only have a 50% rate of seeing them this time of the year its a sore spot. I also don't get to see them much as I have to travel home to do so.

One branch of the newer found family is struggling hard. Something that should have been a happy time ended up being a time where the baby girl was called home. 8 days old. 8 days of fighting for her life. 8 days that the grandparents did not even get to see her breathe in person. 8 days. The grief is hard. I've been there. It sucks. It's been a month since she was born and almost a month since she was called on home. The words are few as I don't know what to say only to pray.

I have also been busy with camping and doing a training. I know I know others did not do this training because it takes time. I know I know others took longer than others to complete. However, I have a goal. A kick ass goal. I may not make it but I am sure going to work myself busy until I try hard enough.

I am also on the road to loosing weight so I can be healthier in the long run. The pounds didn't come on over night and I won't get rid of them that easily either. I met up with Practioner Nasty a few months ago. I could have done without her bad day bedside manner. However, one thing that she did for me that day was prove I won't go back to see her myself and I will prove to myself I can loose this nasty weight. Since that day I am down about 15 pounds- that's about 2 pounds a week as I still have a day in this week before I can confirm another pound down. I don't have problems with my knees but a new friend of mine was telling me for every pound of overweight you loose it takes 7 pounds off the knee joints. I will take it.

Seasons

noreply@blogger.com (J) — Thu, 06 Feb 2020 23:08:00 +0000

For the past 13 years I have classified the local weather as having two seasons..... Summer and February!

Well, this February lived up to it's season.

Other seasons.....life seasons. Hubs is apparently traveling now for work. Well, hopefully it won't be permanent but seasonal every now and again. Upcoming 3 trips. Three states. Three different weeks all within the same month. Oy vey.

Meetings. On my end. I have the shuttle kids season. We do PE, cub scouts, Scouts BSA, and American Heritage Girls. Then there is one kid who only has PE because he isn't old enough for cub scouts yet......but that's coming this fall.

Next week. I thought it was going to be a little murkier but it won't be as murky. But I do get to take another night trip to the local scout ranch to drop a kid off for a day so he can lead a group. I love that kid.

Speaking of the oldest. He's life rank now. That means the coveted Eagle Rank is next. He's got plenty of work to do leading up to that rank......I suspect that the earliest timeline is end of Summer 2021. However, I am betting its more into 2022. He's figured out that scouting goes beyond the merit badge. In fact, he was recently personally invited to apply to staff this summer. They sent a blanket hey you can apply because you finished the course and then a few weeks later we got the (paraphrased) "you were identified as someone we would like to staff." As my husband said it's one thing to earn Life rank. It's another to actually live it. My boy is living the scouting, service, teaching life. He's really good at it for being a barely teenager.

Made of Money

noreply@blogger.com (J) — Wed, 22 Jan 2020 20:08:00 +0000

Well, here we go........ the scouting adventures are going to get greater. I need to make sure the oldest has more of a plan - him asking for a Gucci wallet - may not be the best idea if he wants to go to High Adventure too. We will be working out a plan for him to have time for odd jobs within the neighborhood, mowing our yard, etc because he needs to earn some of it.

Last year he was able to attend campouts (dues), he was able to attend summer camp, he joined Order of the Arrow (paid fees and dues), and he attended National Youth Leadership Training (paid training)

This month his dues are due.
His OA dues are due. The other dues have to be paid first before the OA dues can be processed)
Summer camp 2020 trip deposit
Summer High Adventure trip 2021 deposit due. x 2 because Dad is going too

The road home

noreply@blogger.com (J) — Wed, 18 Dec 2019 17:09:00 +0000

The day before my birthday the nearby village was flooded from the rain overnight. Like it reminded us of Houston flooding places that don't normally flood- flooded. Anyway, that Friday was the last day of Vermont and we promised the kids we would hang around and visit the fun zone. The fun zone was a place for kids to burn some energy indoors. Well, we actually didn't know what the fun zone had but the reality is the kids had fun and we didn't have to drive anywhere. Indoors they had an upstairs and downstairs. The upstairs was "free" and the downstairs was "paid" for by activity. The upstairs was open when we went (downstairs opened later in the day) anyway- the kids had fun. I got tired of sitting there so I told hubs I was going to the General store to buy Maple Syrup. It was windy and cool - and I had planned to walk but decided to drive. And....................................I got to see snow flurries for my birthday.

We left Vermont on my birthday. We spiraled though the states and making sure to cross state lines from Vermont to Connecticut where we stayed the night in New Haven. That was the downward couple of days of our trip. Luckily the bug came and went before we got home. I won't describe into detail.

After leaving Connecticut we decided to head off towards the Nations Capital. We didn't have much time to spend in D.C. but we wanted to experience it with the kids. So I booked a hotel room in D.C. for two nights. We spent one full day in D.C. and while that isn't a lot- we got to see cool things. We were even in line for a US Capital tour at 8:40am after walking over a mile to get there.

We left DC and went to Greenville, South Carolina for the night. After leaving South Carolina and we headed to Mobile Alabama. We didn't do much between the two of these cities except stop at the American Girl doll store in Atlanta. It was a bucket list item for our daughter. She really wanted to visit another AG store.

When we left Mobile it was homeward bound. All in all it was 21 days of travel away from home. It was fun.

Vermont

noreply@blogger.com (J) — Thu, 12 Dec 2019 16:39:00 +0000

We came over the international border between Quebec and Vermont after it had become dark. We drove and drove until we came upon a bigger (yet still not large) town and we ate dinner. We had the Taco Bell or McDonald's type choice at that particular exit. I noticed that they flew both the Canadian and American flags as well as the Vermont flag. This is the point I'd tell you if we were doing this again we would change one minuscule thing. At this point, I would have stopped at Walmart or the grocery store for Sunday meals so I could meal plan after that point (so we could see what dishes and cookware were provided). Alas, that is not what happened, and we filled up with gas after eating dinner at McDonald's.

The roads were extremely dark. Like driving on a paved country road headed to town just like back home. They were also low to no shoulder and semi-curvy. It was rainy - more of the annoying misty oh you need the wipers nope you don't need the wipers type rain. I am pretty sure at some point I was white-knuckling the steering wheel. We finally made it to the condo. This resort was big (units were closer together but the span was quite large) and after Aaron got us checked in we were in the last condo at the top of the hill in the furthest point north you could sleep. It was a quieter week there as the ski season had not started yet. However, there were things to do on-site and they had an extensive list of things to do and a brochure area of the area. We would not be bored if we wanted to find something to do.

Sunday our first full day at the resort the weather changed. The wind was blowing at 50+ miles per hour a good part of the morning into the afternoon. We went to eat at the only open restaurant at the resort because you know all we had were snack foods or junk food. I remember trying to open the door to the restaurant and the wind was so fierce. Inside at times, it sounded like a freight train knocking on the window. Then by mid-afternoon/evening, it was only gusting to 50+ miles an hour. This is when I trekked to the grocery store - solo. Let me also pause here and say I should have left earlier because once again I was faced with driving in the dark back to the condo. Ugh, the other roads were not much different. Forty-Five minutes it took me to drive to the store. Fifty minutes it took me to drive home from the store. I got many items and we were able to cook dinner every night but one, our last night. I had it all meticulously planned right down to the roast I bought for the day we took a day trip we were planning. The kids came up to help me carry the groceries in and we unloaded everything. The next mid-morning one of the kids said something and I said: "but we have pizza in the freezer- I bought it last night so we could have pizza one night." To which said child opened the freezer revealing no, we did not have pizza. I head out to the van only to find we had left the sack of frozen pizzas in the van all night at it was 50 degrees that night and it had been about 16 hours. Ugh. Now I am down two meals what the actual craziness? It's okay we went out to another town that day and we bought pizza at another grocery store and we ate the pizza that night. No big deal. All in all, if something was left in the van I am glad it was just like $15 worth of pizza.

While we were in Vermont we went to the scout council office, we toured Ben & Jerry's (don't worry the Blue Bell tour was much better and way more explaining), took the back roads to the capital city, took a day trip to Maine, drove through "the Notch" every single day, looked at the art gallery, and shopped the village stores.

Vermont is quite rural compared to many other states and reality is I'd go back. I have got to see it in the fall and while we missed the peak of fall color here - I'd like to go back in the summertime. The resort also has a water park to keep the attractions alive during the offseason of ski-season.

Vacation

noreply@blogger.com (J) — Fri, 15 Nov 2019 18:29:00 +0000

26 US States
District of Columbia
2 Canadian Provinces

When our family set out on vacation we had a midpoint in mind. The road to get there and the road to get back was unplanned at best. I was making hotel reservations just a few hours before we would arrive at the hotel. Along the way, I was taking photos of the surrounding areas.

First stop- Little Rock we spent two days in Little Rock - not because we had to but it was the first day and we could have likely just stayed one night. However, it turned out that it was good that we did because hubs ended up not feeling 100% but still able to walk around (it was just a feeling of feeling full).

While in Little Rock we explored the Clinton Museum. We didn't get a whole lot more than that done and in fact, we didn't see as much of it as I thought we would. A) kids bored little kids and B) hubs not 100%.

Second stop- St. Louis we just spent one night in St. Louis as it was pretty expensive to get a hotel room there. We made the most of the whole day though and went to visit the St. Louis Arch. We rode to the top. I am not a liker of heights and it was my 3rd trip up so I came down fairly quickly. But what made me laugh about the ride up (they are 5 pod cars) is we had to split our family up. We did 3 in each car. I thought my oldest (he doesn't have a fear of heights but he dislikes elevators) was actually going to have a bodily fluid accident and I couldn't tell you which end- he was white-knuckled. My youngest was having a wonderful time in the pod going up. He absolutely loved it. We did our looking out of the windows at the top. My hubs and kids rode up one side and down the other (they had both sides open that day) - man I wish I had thought of that- how cool. This was the only time they had both sides open while I was there.

After leaving the Arch (Gateway Arch/ Jefferson Memorial Expansion) we headed to the St. Louis zoo. The zoo itself is free. The parking was I think $15. Since it was a Monday afternoon there were not any issues with parking or with the actual zoo. The kids loved the zoo because well (Anacondas and Polar Bears! Ha! Actually, my middle son was going to be so disappointed because we got to the polar bear area and the bear was nowhere to be found. We walked away and went to see the Grizzly bears and there was a man (another spectator) there with the Grizzly when he got a phone call from his wife THE POLAR BEAR was out - we made the short walk over and we got to see that big ole bear.

We didn't want to spend another night in St. Louis due to the expense so we headed off towards Springfield, Illinois for the night. Springfield is the home to Abraham Lincoln. It was where he lived with his family when he was asked to consider running for President. It was his house where he learned he had won the election. It was his house that he left and never really got to come back to. This was a cool experience not because it was cheap (just pay $2 for parking) but because they have preserved it and they have made it a special place to represent the era of the way it was when he lived in Springfield. Now my avid Abe Lincoln lover was giddy as he remarked: "I am walking on grass that he could have walked on." He was totally geeking out over just seeing things from Lincoln's perspective.

We headed on to Fort Wayne, Indiana for the night. We didn't do anything in Fort Wayne except we did stop at Costco so we could buy a pizza for dinner in the hotel. We also ended up buying other things because - Costco! Ha Ha! Every hotel we had to this point had an indoor swimming pool - so the pizza was in an effort to get to the kids to the swimming pool. I used this as mom's time while dad took the kids to the pool. I would get the pull-out bed ready- by putting the sheets on the bed, and moving pillows around and putting the correct stuffed animal in the correct bed. I would lay out the clothes so when they got back from the pool they could take a shower and get dressed quicker.

When we left Fort Wayne we were headed to Detroit. This is when we kind of took the whole "I don't know what day it is anyway" approach because I had planned to meet up with a friend (or two) in the Detroit area. Well, we thought crap we are almost out of days and still wanted to go visit Niagra Falls. So we scrapped the stay in Detroit plans and went on to Canada. I made a hotel reservation for St. Catharines. We headed for the bridge to Canada.

The next morning we left St. Catharines and went on to Niagra Falls. We spent the whole day at Niagra Falls. It was a bucket list item for me to visit this place and I absolutely thought it was beautiful. There is this barge that has been stuck at the falls for 101 years and we got to see it on Thursday and a few days later the wind caught it and it moved! I took so many photos.

When we left Niagra Falls and headed to Toronto I was making reservations and I started counting days - we actually had two nights left in Canada as we could not check in to our condo until Saturday. This is when we realized we had miscounted and didn't know what day it was - haha! So we spent two nights in Toronto.

While in Toronto we went to The Ripley's Aquarium and walked around downtown Toronto. We walked over to the Toronto Blue Jays store, they had trains in the middle of the area that you could walk around and see the cars. Then we went looking for Canada shirts for the kids- they were so hard to find and then we ended up at a thrift store to find shirts. There were plenty of Canada shirts to choose from there.

The next morning (it's now Saturday) it's day 8 of travel. We get up and head towards the big state of Vermont. Its an all-day (8 hours) drive from where we are to where we are going. Quebec we literally drove through it - they have laws to where stores and such close early (think 5pm early) so it was weird to drive by Walmart at 5:45pm on Saturday and see a completely empty parking lot. It was equally weird and wonderful. We went through border patrol and headed into Vermont. We stopped for dinner and then we headed on towards the condo. The drive was a little difficult. It was dark. It was curvy. The roads were full of unknowns and did I mention it was DARK- like the country dark. I did not realize how country feeling the state of Vermont really is.

Taking a break - for the next post...... Vermont.

All in All

noreply@blogger.com (J) — Fri, 27 Sep 2019 21:53:00 +0000

Last week at this time...I was worried about one of our vehicles. It all turned out fine. I was able to go on with our Friday plans without too many hitches. Saturday the plan was to rest and piddle around on whatever. Then the stupid other car. I can say that stupid car.

Without a family vehicle on Saturday afternoon, all day Sunday, and into Monday afternoon. The diagnosis. Two new batteries for our van keyless start and a bill for tightening our battery cables. Ya'll I can't I just can't.

Life has been 100% crazy lately. Some of it brought on by our own doing but some of it just the hum drum.

Growing up.

noreply@blogger.com (J) — Sat, 21 Sep 2019 17:38:00 +0000

He's growing up.

This month I was out of town when my middle son turned 6 years old. I cried when I called him to wish him a happy birthday. I only had about 10 minutes, and all the kids wanted to say hi at the very same time. I talked to them all. Then I had to go and work volunteering. He celebrated his birthday with his dad and my parents while they were away. We celebrated as a family on Sunday/Monday after we all returned home.

This month my youngest son turned 5 years old. Dad was out of town this time. For his birthday dad Face Timed him, and we were at Chick Fil A eating a before PE lunch. While the kids were at PE I ran to the grocery store and picked up some fresh fruit, some bottled juice, and some crackers. By the time we left to come home, the storm had been named Imelda. She was not supposed to be named, she was not supposed to be much more than a rain producer. But in fact, she was named and did lots of damage. We celebrated before dad left on his business trip. So around here, it was birthday week!

Yesterday I realized how big my oldest son really is and how much he has grown in just 2 1/2 years. I dropped him off for a weekend away- camping. It was hard for me to not flashback to April 2017 when he went on his very first BSA campout. He was so nervous that he drank so much water and then threw up, and the scoutmaster made him sleep in a tent by himself for the night due to the throwing up. My boy was fine the next day and all things ended up okay that weekend. It was hard for me to not flashback to summer camp 2018 where he did his Wilderness Survival merit badge. He told me how he had prepared all week but when it came the night he was supposed to spend in his makeshift area the boy he was assigned to - decided to camp with his buddies - leaving my son alone (there were others nearby). My son talked about how he cried for a little while but then decided if he just went to sleep time would move faster. He made it and earned the badge. It makes me think that last night I dropped him off and he pitched his one-man tent in an area in very close proximity to other scouts - he was a little nervous but he was excited too. Man, has that kid grown.

BSA- OA- NYLT

noreply@blogger.com (J) — Mon, 16 Sep 2019 19:14:00 +0000

My son is currently a Star scout rank within Scouts BSA. He's met most of the requirements for Life rank except for completing an eagle rank merit badge. He honestly thought he had completed all the requirements to this merit badge while at summer camp, so he wasn't worried. This may feel like TWO-STEPS-BACK for him, but we've wanted him to pace himself along the way. We are working with him to let him know that even if he doesn't rank at the same pace as the others from his group- it's okay to pace yourself too. We aren't withholding allowance or making him work on scouts to get the coveted Eagle rank by a certain time. We aren't hinging other things on rank advancement -he's 13. He has a few years to complete this rank -it's not a race.

Currently, other things are taking up his scout free time. He's since joined the Order of the Arrow and has kind of jumped in feet first serving. In fact this next event he will be eligible for "brotherhood" in the Order of the Arrow. He's completed the required six-month waiting period to go from candidate to brotherhood. He's has served as an Elangomat in another ordeal, and enjoyed that event too. It does mean a little more driving on our part but the experience he's getting I can see so much growth in his mind. He has a heart for service and for helping others. This helps him fulfill that love - as well as pitching a tent into the outdoors. At one time I scoffed saying he didn't need a 1-man tent because he had a two-man tent. My son who started scouts afraid of the dark- throwing up on his very first night of his very first camp out with his brand new troop- having to tent on his own- has grown in many ways. He who cried himself to sleep in the woods of New Mexico while earning his Wilderness Survival merit badge at summer camp now pitches his tent without a second thought and camps in groups by himself. The truth of the matter is- he does well.

In the coming months, he will also complete the NYLT training course. The training course is for youth leadership training. He had to go and ask his scoutmaster for permission to attend NYLT in the winter. With the permission granted we have signed him up attend. This will allow him to run for Senior Patrol Leader for elections in early 2020 or any election following his NYLT completion. In my mind, these skills are a foundation for what he will work towards in the future. These skills are worth just as much if not, in a way, more then attaining life rank in the present time.

Over the next few weeks, we will be working with him to set up a saving plan (he will also use some of this for personal management merit badge) to save money towards NYLT. While mom and dad have footed the bill for the class currently, the plan is for him to pay for it, completely or at least a big portion of it.

Be A Scout

noreply@blogger.com (J) — Thu, 01 Aug 2019 23:51:00 +0000

Well it's official......we have a Lion cub in the house!

Scouting may not be for everyone but it's certainly for my boys.

Camp week 2

noreply@blogger.com (J) — Fri, 12 Jul 2019 18:09:00 +0000

I dropped my one and only daughter off for summer camp on Sunday. I had to leave her in the parking lot waiting to load because brother had a bathroom need. She was already having fun when I left - just hanging out with her newish friends.

You know what's funny is I sent my oldest son and husband last week and I saw more photos from the dads (kids were denied any electronic devices) and the one mom than I have from a group of moms. However, the dads were able to take classes and the moms had to teach classes. Big difference.

Anyway, I have been getting a photo here and there of my daughter. Today though I got a photo of her in true fashion. Her hair needed brushed and she wasn't looking at the camera. Likely does not know it was even taken. The mom who sent it to me said that my daughter had stayed late last night with another girl to clean the dining hall for today. She got to get in the front of the breakfast line. I made some off hand comment that it looked like she was having fun. What I got back was worth gold - make your momma heart smile words. It makes me thankful that God lead us to a new place just 11 months ago. I can tell you this......tomorrow will be a happy reunion day for sure.

Dad and brother left on the 29th but said their goodbyes on the 28th. She left the morning of the 7th. They came home the afternoon of the 7th. Their paths cross tomorrow afternoon/early evening.

It will be interesting to find out if she got to take all the badges she signed up for.

She was taking:
Memory Maker (scrapbook)
Canoeing
Shooting sports
Sign Language

Camp week 1

noreply@blogger.com (J) — Fri, 05 Jul 2019 15:35:00 +0000

I had a list a mile long that I was going to accomplish this past week. Then the week before happened and I ended up exhausted.

Saturday we did nothing. It was a rest kind of day. Enjoyed it greatly.

Sunday we made it to church.

Monday we ended up running errands. (Aka.....badge prerequisites) and followed by going and seeing my friend as she looked for a rental house.

Tuesday I had plans to drive to another town and renew my drivers license and then take my daughter to a mid-week birthday party that afternoon. Well, I canceled my Tuesday morning plans but my daughter got to go to the party- and I took my niece too.

Wednesday- I had to go back and pick up my daughter and niece from the birthday party

Thursday- it was the holiday. I figured we would go swim if the weather was good but I wanted to be home by a certain time.

Friday- that's today. I have errands to run. My daughter went to clean house with her memaw for spending money for her upcoming camp experience.

I haven't got any rooms clean like my mind imagined. Ohhhh well such is life.

Chaos

noreply@blogger.com (J) — Sun, 30 Jun 2019 14:13:00 +0000

It was mass chaos around here last week. From God and Family classes for one kid, to many pop up thunderstorms, and followed by computers that no longer do what they were designed to do- WORK! On top of all that - just in general getting people ready for their places.

The lawn didn't get mowed for twice this week- I feel like the HOA is breathing down my neck. Thus the excess mowing of the lawn to twice a week.

The oldest sons hair did not get cut early in the week- it got cut on Friday. I was hoping it wouldn't be that fresh for his camping trip but well I guess that works out for the best! The camp has many ticks and the boy will be in the water swimming and such. So he's gonna need the ease of use washing his hair out.

The crazy hazy daze of summer

noreply@blogger.com (J) — Sat, 08 Jun 2019 01:10:00 +0000

Well, it's upon us. Summertime temperatures. Humidity so thick you have to cut it with a knife. The misery of mosquitoes. However, that won't stop us from having a little fun.

This past week my oldest was able to participate at church for "Aloha Week." The best way for a mom to describe this is simply as VBS for middle and high school students. They did praise and worship, teaching, had lots of fun and even were served lunch. This event normally costs money but a donor came in and paid the way for any youth wanting to participate. He had a great time.

This past week my daughter got to work on her theater badge for her group too. This meant a little family juggling due to Aloha week. I could not take her down there and him participate too. However, she could ride to work with dad and be dropped off at another moms house and go from there. Then dad could bring her home on the way home from work. It worked out and she earned a whole badge.

On Monday the kids and I went to the library and met up with some cousins and we waited on a balloon artist. My nephew got the biggest balloon.

On Tuesday I took my daughter to get her well check up to include the high adventure physical and some immunizations. She was less than thrilled with the immunizations and in fact she freaked out and out came the ice pack and numbing spray. She survived and in the end she will be better for it. The immunizations were the Tetanus and Meningitis. Then we went to another library to actually check out some books. You know my 13-year old has decided to read books as a hobby too.

On Thursday we had a camp meeting and such so we had dinner out. Watching the storms to the south were pretty amazing in color on the drive home. Then I had a all team call with my volunteer gig.

Then came today. I needed a day of rest. I sat down and did my volunteer work and chatted with my friends via text message. They really keep me aligned. Hubs went to work this morning and went to a town about 90 minutes away to watch one of his fellow Buffalo's get his Wood Badge beads. I completely understand that scouting is not for everyone and it can keep you busy. It's a chosen busy for sure. On one end we are investing into our kids lives and their friends lives as well as into our own lives. I may only be a merit badge counselor but sharing my knowledge is great. I get to learn along the way too.

I talked to my parents today too. They have been busy drying out from all the rains. Thankfully no tornado damage nor flooding at the ole home place!

Tomorrow is a birthday party for the little guys. My big kids are a wee bit jealous.

Camping- Teaching- Camping

noreply@blogger.com (J) — Sat, 27 Apr 2019 19:55:00 +0000

Well, after the longest week my husband was gone to another campus of work for 4 days. Then he came home just in time to be away for much of the weekend. He is off teaching Scouts BSA leaders how to do things to take home and back to their troops.

My oldest son is off teaching scouts who are working on rank up to 1st class Scouts BSA skills. For the weekend. He was excited in a way that this time around they wanted him to have his phone on him. That way they could communicate if needed. He got to pitch his brand new one man tent for the weekend as well. On the other hand he was a little nervous. He didn't exactly know what to expect. His friend he thought was going did not go. I am sure me reminding him of 100 things before he left likely did not help. I was nervous too, because this is one of those times I thought it would be best if it had played out another way.

We shall see how things have gone tomorrow.

mish mash hodge podge

noreply@blogger.com (J) — Wed, 24 Apr 2019 16:50:00 +0000

Well, once again it has been a while since I have sat down and updated blog life. Life has been a constant roller coaster of change and not necessarily in a bad way.

My oldest son/oldest child continues to amaze me. There are many times that he just does things and stays so level headed and then there are times he rears his teenager attitude. In recent history he has went camping 8 nights since the last blog post. He has joined and completed his Ordeal into the Order of the Arrow. This coming weekend he will be going camping again.

My daughter has found her happy place in her new troop. She really enjoys meeting and seeing the girls whom she is surrounded by. After a few years and not really enjoying it including the desire to just quit many times this is a refreshing change of pace. And a pace it is! She has camped 4 nights since the last blog post with her group. This year she liked the group so much that she is going to attend summer camp for the first time with her group. She is excited!

The little guys keep me busy.

The five year old of the mix is really catching on in many ways of learning. He can identify letters, numbers, and wants to spell things! He is into coloring and even drawing things. He has a heart for learning. In fact he has taken to looking up things in books to see what they are - correctly finding and identifying birds that he's looked up in our bird books. He has a knack for this type of stuff.

The four year old of the mix is not that far behind his brother. Although he now has to wear eye glasses on a daily basis and I was so worried about it being a struggle with them. However, now that he knows that they are helpful he usually does not mind wearing them at all. Luckily I thought ahead and bought him a couple of spare pairs because he did break his first pair after 94 days, but we took them to the eye doctor and they ordered new frames for him. We picked them up today after they had been on back order and caused an extra week of waiting. He really enjoys helping me in the yard. He will just come outside with me and chatter.

Speaking of working outside. I took the time this week to remove three shrubs I had planted about 8-10 years ago. I kind of thought the shrubs looked nice. My husband thought they looked not so nice. I had go so used to them just being there. I went to do the annual trim of them this week and I noticed how bad they actually looked. Long stalks with leaves only on top. Others looked great. Some were taller then others (because I only trimmed them annually). I decided that my husband was right and the plants needed to go. Yeah, I only thought of hooking them to my minivan hitch a couple times. I did not give up and it took me about 4 hours of determination and swearing to get them out of the ground. The yard looks so different. The plan was to replace them with flowers but that's going to have to wait into the weekend as other factors have come to play.

Today I got to send my aunt a birthday wish text message. Ya'll this such a blessing. I got to send an uncle a birthday wish last month too. Something that I have never really had the opportunity to do in my adult life.

Violation

noreply@blogger.com (J) — Wed, 20 Feb 2019 23:23:00 +0000

Back in November we were cited a HOA violation for "Unsightly" but no photo was attached. Can't fix it if we don't know what it is.

No violation in December
No violation in January

Violation in February. Again "unsightly" and there was a photo attached. That photo was awful and I could not tell you want the violation was for.

Was it my van parked slightly over the side of the driveway?
Was it the basketball goal?
Was it the kids toys in the entryway?

Instead of blasting my HOA all over nextdoor in the next episode of the days of the violations ...... I just reached out to our HOA president. See, I want stuff in writing, so I made sure I have a paper trail.

He asked for my address and he said he would let me know this week. Today he asked if I wanted a phone call or email as to why we got a violation.

The verdict....the basketball goal that has been sitting there for 3 years. They suggested I move it in front of the garage when not in use. I mean if we parked in the garage we would have to move the goal before backing out. We would have to remove the goal before parking. Does not make sense.

To the backyard it goes.

Well, I did it.

noreply@blogger.com (J) — Wed, 13 Feb 2019 15:43:00 +0000

I took a mound of training online.
I filled out a bigger mound of paperwork.
I stacked about 25 sheets of paper together and called it good.
I even added my current up to date first aid, CPR and AED certifications to the stack.

Once everything processes I should be an official Scouts BSA merit badge counselor.

Cooking
Safety
First Aid
Sustainability
Weather
Cycling
Reading
Personal Management

The season of....

noreply@blogger.com (J) — Sat, 09 Feb 2019 20:12:00 +0000

A few weeks ago-- my (oldest) son was gone to a church retreat
Last weekend- my daughter was gone to a church retreat
Last night-today my husband is gone to a church retreat
Today-tomorrow -my (oldest) son is gone to a campout.

In the coming weeks we have (in no particular order and this only involves 4 of our family members mostly). Usually I would say it looks busy but there are people who are doubled up on some of these weekends and we have people in different places.
- Campout
-Family Coming in
-Dinner engagement
-Camporee
-Ordeal
-Spring Break
-Training events
-Camporee
-Campout
-Training events
-Training events
-Possible business trip
-Awards ceremony