Together Again

This is a good week because all my family is back under one roof! I did enjoy my "easier" week last week (esp. not having to cook!) but oh, I missed them, esp. as the week wore on! Paul, Will, and David got home around 2 and we had to leave 20 min. later to get the boys to their homeschool softball games. It was a really, really nice day even though I typically hate that last softball day of the season. It's always SO hot and we have to sit through 4 games and then risk botulism and fly-borne illnesses by eating picnic food.

Fortunately, this year it wasn't too terribly hot. And for some reason, numbers were really down at the games. I guess families had other things they had to do. Paul couldn't keep his hands off me, which is always fun - kind of a nice reminder of our dating days! That's what a week of separation will do to you!

Camp was good, I hear. Personally, I would like to shoot whoever came up with the idea of making a gigantic mud pit for the campers this year. Both Paul and David came home with ruined clothing. I had even heard about the mud pit before hand so I sent disposable clothes with David. That was fine for the first day he went in but he wore a good shirt for the second time! And Paul assured me that he had no intention of going in any mud pit, so I didn't send him any clothes. Well, apparently he changed his mind and wore a white shirt into the pit. Grrr....

Paul ended up being the head counselor in a cabin of 12 boys with only 2 of them being children he already knew. They put 2 other churches in with him, including one 18 yr old counselor. So that was a new experience for him. He has such a heart for children, though, and it was a good place for him, esp. with some of the more challenging kids he had to deal with during the week. He also had the opportunity (?) to work on some of the camp's equipment while up there.

I bought a treadmill last week off Craig's list. It wasn't until I was halfway home that it dawned on me that neither Paul nor Will was home to unload it out of my van and into the basement! Fortunately, I was able to sweet-talk our mayor into helping me! So, I've been using that every day. I'm up to 7 min. now. I'm taking it slow - no reason to rush good health!

I also bought a weed-eater for Paul for Father's Day. Now, that was a new experience, since I know approximately zero about men's tools. I had no idea there was such a wide variety available with quite a price range. So, I spent quite a bit of time at Menards and Sears, trying to figure out the best option. I finally went with a Craftsman because you can't go wrong with a Craftsman, right? Hopefully not. Paul seemed pleased with it, though, so maybe I chose well!

This weekend David wants to go to the annual Des Moines Arts Festival in the downtown. I hate downtown events because of the parking. But he's been wanting to go for sometime so I told him I would take him this year. And then Sat. I have to take Will back up to camp. I could just about cry because I'm going to have to miss a wedding at church I was looking forward to. But I guess that's part of having kids...

Today Sam etched a set of "train tracks" into my table with the edge of an ink pen. Grrr...I almost think it would be easier if he were this diabolical child who was intent on causing harm. Instead, he's always surprised when I'm not as impressed with his efforts as he is.

But then, on the other end of the spectrum, there's Will. We have been getting a LOT of rain lately. Since the walls are not done in the basement the rain keeps coming in the turning the dirt into mud that runs all over the floor. I've tried to clean what I can, but it's been pointless since it keeps raining. Today, Will moved all the stuff out of the way, commandeered David into involuntary service and cleaned and scrubbed and mopped and cleaned the whole thing up. Bless his heart. I told him how grateful I was and how his behavior was that of a man - a very fine man.

I guess I should be starting supper soon (back to cooking and all, you know). I've gotten quite a bit done today. This week shouldn't be too rough. I want to visit a couple of older friends, I need to stop at the bank and change Ben's bank account since they are wanting to now charge me $9 a month for the privilege of banking with them (grrr...). Ben has Social Skills tomorrow and I have my support group meeting in the evening. And I need to work on figuring tax witholdings with the city clerk, with a conference call to the IRS. She's also supposed to be showing me how to do water bills. So, all in all, a pretty easy week. I'm glad!

I'm cleaning the stove right now (self-cleaning). And I'm getting a headache. Better go pop some pills. I think my back is getting back to normal. My sciatic nerve flared up again so badly last week that I was practically paralyzed for a couple of mornings. I found some exercises on-line that are supposed to help, so I'm hoping that will take care of it, along with the regular treadmill exercise. I need my body in good working order!