I almost said that with a straight face.
I have about lost my will to plan anything anymore. It is such a rare day that my plans reach fruition, I just plan to change my plans. There is always a plan B, C, and D, if not an E at the ready.
Or not. Many times, the plans change so fast, even the backup plans go out the window.
But for real, this should be the last really, really busy week for a while.
1. Giant and Star competed in the city cross country meet on Wednesday to end the season. It was a great meet, and they both ran their personal bests. I am especially happy for Star, as it is the last cross country meet he will ever run. (He'll be starting high school next year and will be playing soccer instead of running.) It was a fantastic end to his running "career".
2. Also on Wednesday, Phoenix's high school soccer team played in the first game on the road to state. They were the serious underdogs, as the team they played was one of the top 15 in the state. It was an exciting game to say the least. In the end, WE WON! Game two is Saturday night.
3. Did you catch that both gigantic sporting events in my children's lives were on the same night? I was thrilled with the way the timing worked out. The boys were in the last race at 6:30. The meet was only 20 minutes away from the soccer game, and the game didn't start until 7:30. I got to see both events in their entirety!
4. Turken will be playing in his last soccer game of the season this weekend. He has had so much fun, finally getting to play on a real field with a real goalie instead of simply watching his siblings from the sidelines. He played well all season, even though he was playing against kids who were up to a year and a half older than him.
5. You know, that thing that happened this week that I can't remember (because I didn't write it down in any legible way). (That's for you, Denise!)
6. After much putting off and worrying and trying to fit and figure things out, we finally have Cuckoo's special trip scheduled. (To read about these trips, go here.) The day before Halloween, he and I will board a plane for Orlando. He is ridiculously excited to be trick-or-treating on his trip, purely for the fact that we will be going in a neighborhood with more houses than we normally visit. Basically, he'll get more candy than his siblings. I am excited because that trick-or-treating will be with a friend of mine. She's a blog friend I've never met in real life, but I feel like we've been friends forever. (She's the one who had me rolling in the aisles of the grocery store when she sent me one, simple text.) We're all going to have a blast.
7. The pigs are finally where I like them...in my freezer. It took me eight trips from van to basement, carrying massive amounts of pork, but it's all organized and ready to go. There's only one problem. There is no way we can eat 350 pounds of pork in one year. (There's relatively little bacon from a pig.) Fortunately, we know quite a few people who like to eat pork, too, and are willing to buy it off of us.
8. The work of putting food from the garden and orchard is done for the year. I can finally pack up the canning supplies. It is so satisfying to walk into the basement and see jar after jar of food that we grew, picked, and preserved ourselves. And it means all sorts of now free time to do other things. Perhaps I shall kick back and read a book in a day.
I really couldn't say that with a straight face.
9. One major monkey wrench in the plans this week occurred on Friday. As I drove down the driveway, I heard something a little off. I looked in my side mirror and discovered that my tire was flat. Flatty, flat, horribly flat. Unfortunately, I was driving down my driveway to pick the kids up from school and attend parent/student/teacher conferences on an early dismissal day. Fortunately, I am in a community full of people who are happy to help me. A friend of mine grabbed my kids and took charge of them for 2 hours while I waited for the tow truck guy to fix my tire.
10. Fall break started at dismissal today. The high school only gets out Thursday and Friday next week, but the other three have THE ENTIRE WEEK OFF!! I am so excited. It won't be perfect, seeing as how I still have to get the high school kids and Cuckoo still has school and I have a doctor appointment on Wednesday, but it will be easier. Especially now that three sports teams are done for the season.
Okie doke. It's your turn. Any plans get derailed? Find any good in that derailment?
Link up or let me know in the comments!
Have a lovely day!
Your hosts
A Fly on our (Chicken Coop) Wall, Amycake and the Dude, Considerings, Finding Ninee, Getting Literal, I Want Backsies, Mother of Imperfection, Rewritten, Thankful Me, The Wakefield Doctrine
Join the Ten Things of Thankful Facebook Group
Let's just blame it on the moon, shall we? While my schedule is not crazy-busy like yours (though I do remember those days!), this week was a bit off for me, too.
ReplyDeleteHave fun with your trip!
Sorry to hear your week didn't go as planned, either.
DeleteThanks. I'm pretty sure we will. :)
Sounds like you made it fine - too bad for the flat , love, love, love the special trip you plan with one child - awesome - Orlando is very nice choice will you go to Disney too ? - my sister comes to our house for trick or treating (her house is on a busy road) we get so many kids visiting too and Jack loves to give out candy so give take we have fun -
ReplyDeleteCongrats to all those wins and to the mom that makes it happen - great job!
Have a great week during fall break, we go to Thanksgiving here then they get 2 days off in row - Monday is a holiday Columbus Day, then they get Veterans day off too
Working in the corporate world they these little holidays are not holidays if you need the day off i would need to use my own time, but hubby gets the holiday, so at least someone is always home with them.
have a wonderful weekend and week !
We will not go to Disney. We've made a pact that we don't go to Disney on the one-on-one trips. I don't know why. Guess it's just too special.
DeleteThanks!
Very nice that your husband has those holidays off, too. Will they do anything extra fun?
Thank you!
Somehow it is reassuring to know that other peoples lives don't go to plan either! Just keep on at that straight face - sooner or later you'll manage it! :)
ReplyDeleteI just have to tell myself that none of these things are life or death. We do what we can and don't worry about the things that get derailed.
DeleteI think right now I am mostly grateful to be able to change a tire like a pit crew.
ReplyDeleteOn a regular car, I can change a tire, too. It's the 12-passenger van/bum knee combo that prevented me from changing this one. It even took the pro an hour and much huffing and puffing to change this one.
DeleteThat leg... I would hope it would have kept you from changing it even on a minicoup at this point... be smart! I used to have a huge van and would have never even attempted to change that sucker!
DeleteEffing cars. I like to play the damsel in distress...woe is me man come help me! Whoa that was so 1950. Seriously though, I'm 30 something and it was just last year that I mastered how to open the gas cap. Don't laugh.
ReplyDeleteIsn't soccer considered cross country? Cause man, the run and run. I hope that the last run is a good one!
And I bow to thee super sport mom. My six year old is in hockey 3 days a week and I had no idea how time consuming it is (but I love it)
Have a wonderful weekend!
Wow. You made it to 30 without pumping your own gas?! That's impressive. I normally hate to play damsel in distress, but this time I had no choice. Well, normally I hate it. Sometimes, I really, really don't want to do something and may beg the husband to do it. :)
DeleteThey are very complimentary sports, for sure.
We limit our kids and what they do, but when there are so many kids, that's a whole mess of schedules to deal with. So, so much time is taken up by their sports!
Ah, yes, my plans get derailed all the time. Thankfully everything went on schedule when I took the doggies to the vet this week!
ReplyDeleteGlad the dogs got to the vet. Our dogs' vet trip has been put off for a while (thanks to the knee, what else!"), but will be going soon.
DeleteI am SO with you on having plans B, C, D and E. I want to be a good planner, I'm just not. I give you so much credit for keeping up with and being there for all of your kids' sporting events and things. Mine is more of an academic who does chorus, drama club, science club (aka not athletic) and I find it hard at some times of the year to keep up with her!
ReplyDeleteShoot, those performance activities take up as much if not more time than sports!
DeleteAs for me keeping up, I do my best. It doesn't always work out, and not all kids have a parent at a game every week (impossible when 4 have games at the same time), but they are having fun and we enjoy watching them as much as we can.
I get so incredibly annoyed when I have to change my plans more than once. Even sometimes just having to change them once is enough to irritate me.
ReplyDeleteGlad you got to see both events!
Sometimes I get mighty annoyed with a change in the plans, especially when it could have been avoided.
DeleteMe, too!
Sounds like you roll with the punches just fine. That's a good thing. Sorry about the flat tire though. That really throws a monkey wrench into the works when you have places to go.
ReplyDeleteHave fun reading a book all day. Bwahahahahahahahaha. :)
A flat tire is a big, fat monkey wrench, especially when one drives a 12-passenger van.
DeleteHa! Thanks. :)
Thank you for #5 Christine!
ReplyDeleteMan, it's a good thing you're a scott! With that schedule, all the things happening, going on, in progress, you being here, there and in Orlando no less. Yeah, you can handle it. No doubt about it:)
Most excellent news on the school sports front. Especially for Star. That's the way to go out - on top!
You make me laugh with 7 & 8. Although #7 is disturbing to me on one level, I get it:) I long for a day I can be self sufficient even in a small way for the food that goes into my body. I congratulate you on your self sufficiency!
And I wish you all the luck at reading a book in a day. Dreams are good aren't they lol
You are welcome. I almost double-dog dared you to do it for all 10 of yours. :)
DeleteHa! I have thought about that. What do clarks do with a schedule like ours?
Star's been having a good week. Makes me so happy for him.
I know. The pig thing disturbs plenty of people. I'm on the side of "if we're going to eat it, we can't wimp out on the raising of it". I can't justify "the I'll eat a pork chop, but don't give me a pork chop of a pig I saw running in it's pen" mentality.
I can dream. One day, I'll have the time and be sad that I do.
"The pigs are finally where I like them...in my freezer." Quite possibly the best thing I've read all week. Or ever.
ReplyDeleteI am so impressed with your ability to produce your own food. I really want to do that in theory, but I have this problem with bugs that would prevent gardening from ever being a real thing for me. I don't mind supporting the local CSA, though, even if they do occasionally include an assassin bug in the loot.
I love that you seem to be able to just roll with the punches when life goes awry. I tend to get bent out of shape when my plans get derailed - a control issue, I'm sure. I'm working on that.
Good luck getting the book in a day to happen - I don't even have as many kids or animals as you do and it does not happen here.
Ha! I'm only speaking the truth. :)
DeleteHahaha! There aren't that many bugs in a garden! Especially if you do a few plants in planters! Start small, but thank you for supporting your local farmers.
If I got bent out of shape with every derailment of my plans, I'd be a very bitter, angry person. Can't have that!
Yeah, it ain't gonna happen any time soon. :)
I hope it is your last really, really busy week for awhile. I know it must be a relief to have all that stockpiling done. Try to sit back and admire it!
ReplyDeleteI smile every time I walk past my stores of food. I hate to use them, which sounds ridiculous, but I can't help it.
DeleteAs hard as we might try when you have multiple kids going in different directions, things get a little crazy. I'm so glad you've reached the light at the end of the tunnel!
ReplyDeleteSo now you'll have three kids in high school, right? Wow!
I'm happy to hear that soccer went so well for Turken and he enjoyed it.
My husband, Jake, and Nikki all hunt so we I get the happiness of a full freezer. Saves me a ton on the grocery bill, too.
So you and the little guy are coming to Orlando? You know that's only about 40-45 minutes from where I live, right? I hope you have a spectacular time! Don't pack a lot of winter clothes! Actually, don't pack any :).
It will be easier for a little while. And then it will get busy again when basketball and volleyball start. Ah well.
DeleteWe will next school year. And then 4 the year after that.
Me, too. He played with a team that had kids ranging in age from 6-8. He was one of the younger kids, but he did well. Probably had something to do with his 4 older siblings and his birth practically being on a soccer field. :)
Ah, I wish we could simply hunt for a pig. It would certainly be cheaper! That is a big, big help for your grocery bill, I have no doubt.
I didn't realize (or I forgot, because I forget lots of things) you lived that close to Orlando! While I can't turn his trip into a blog friend tour, it would be great if we could meet up somewhere that was on our list of things to do. That would be wonderful!
I can't tell you how happy I am to get my shorts back out.
Enjoy the week with the kids. I can't wait to see pictures. There's nothing like a flat tire to put the rushing around from here to there and everywhere into perspective. Glad you have helpful neighbors.
ReplyDeleteThanks, for both the well wishes and the encouragement to take photos. :)
DeleteFlat tires are a huge, immediate stop to all plans, for sure. Me, too!
"The day before Halloween, he and I will board a plane for Orlando." these road trips are, in my admittedly limited experience with such matters, about as cool a thing that I've ever heard of a parent doing with their children.
ReplyDelete#7… wait a minute! that's (they/that species) source of all bacon! no?
Aw, thanks, Clark.
DeleteHogs are the source of all bacon (except for that nasty turkey bacon, which we shouldn't even call bacon), but there isn't much of it on a pig. With our 2 pigs, we probably only got about 20 pounds of it.
I hope we can make it happen. Somehow I forgot that she lived in the Orlando area.
ReplyDeleteIt will be fun.
The sports have been going well. Not smoothly, but well. :)
Yay pork! For a while there, I was worried we weren't going to have any pigs by the end of the summer. I am very happy to have some in the freezer.
1-4 Yay for excellent seasons and post-seasons and for Turken, who finally gets to play instead of watch.
ReplyDelete6. How fun! Going to Disney while you're there (not like there aren't a million other activities in the area)?
7. You know you love those pigs, love chasing them and getting bitten and giving them shots and such.
9. Cars never break down just as you're pulling INTO the driveway, do they?
YEA for all the season ending wins and good times! Your road trips with your children sound fantastic. I would have loved that as a kid. My daughter has enjoyed the time she & I spent making tomato sauce and at the end of the season I felt some satisfaction my self. That being said, I bet that you feel super accomplished when you look at the stores that you have made for your family to enjoy during the winter. And bacon.
ReplyDeleteLily has her first fall break in two weeks. Can't believe that it's almost time for Lily's first school break! You definitely should find a few minutes to sit down with a good book. Hint: bathrooms and locks :-)
ReplyDeleteIt seems you never have a dull moment. Is that ever possible with all your bundles of joy? Seems really exciting. :) That's wonderful you were able to make both of the events for the kids that were in the same...and how nice that you were able to get some help when you got that flat tire!
ReplyDeleteI hope you really DO read a book in a day! That would be soooo nice. :) Enjoy your fall break!! We are going camping. Maybe I'll even post about it, lol! I'm really going to try to get back on the proverbial horse. We shall see.
ReplyDeleteHe will go home with WAY more candy than the rest of the coop collects!
ReplyDeletecan't wait!