day off from school!!

I stayed up the latest last night, except for perhaps Joe, who meandered out to the kitchen and popped some popcorn around midnight, and took it to his room..which isn't allowed. Then I slept 'til nine 0'clock this morning, wow! Pretty sweet.

After taking Miss Rosie outside, we had breakfast together, Kathryn and Evelyn and Suzanne and Sonja and Jonathan and Charlotte Claire and Camille and I. Now Aaron is up. Mali went home with Emily last night to spend the night at her apartment. Kathryn mopped the kitchen floor, not because I told her to, but because she thought it needed it. It is SO nice to have these guys home. Jonathan was with Abigail yesterday when Emily took them to get pumpkins, so I told him I would get him one.....now he wants to know WHEN. Other than the possiblilty of going down the road to pick out a pumpkin, I think we are staying home today. After such a busy weekend, it will be welcome...

We had to be out the door by a bit after ten on both Saturday and Sunday mornings for our Fall conference at church. There were over seven hundred people there....and once again, I thoroughly enjoyed selling candy to the kids. We also had a birthday feast honoring one of the older brothers in the church, hearing from many about the good example he has been. It was very encouraging....in this time of grace, we can be free from judging and blaming others!

So the pies we made were totally excellent....for the crust, : six cups of flour, a few teaspoons of baking powder, a few tablespoons of sugar, some salt (at least a teaspoon)....then cut in three sticks of butter (1 and a half cups), and a half cup of shortening.....add small amounts of very cold water, tossing it to make the dough not too soggy but not too dry....this amount made four bottom crusts.....it would probably make three bottoms and some lattice top, or two tops and two bottoms. We used Mirielle's crumb topping, which was butter and pecans and flour and sugar and cinnamon, put through the food processor. The sad part is that four pies around here...they don't stick around too long.

Camille still has her fuzzy warm one-piece blankie sleeper on. She is still a cuddle-bucket. I saw so many beautiful babies this weekend....and so many of the older kids wanting to hold them and take care of them. My kids always WANT Camille. We want to snuggle and hold her, but she is growing up! We need just one more!

Anyway, since we were gone so much this weekend, the house got pretty messy....it is mostly picked up again, but there is always so much to do. The couch clothes monster is medium-large, there is a load of towels in the red chair, clean and ready to be folded. Jonathan has a blanket spread on the wood floor, with books all around....there are two empty pie pans to wash, wah, and lots of plates that didn't fit in the dishwasher last night. Aaron mopped the living room yesterday, but there are random things to pick up.....and the deck: lots of pumpkin guts out there....I think I should just get the hose ......

I have to make some phone calls too. We need wood to burn in the furnace, the lady we bought from for all those years doesn't sell it anymore. And the garbage man never came last Thursday. He cannot do that to us! I have to call to schedule a mammogram. I need to call the dentist for a few of the kids. I hate making phone calls, unless it is to call my sister or my sister-in-law......So I procrastinate....I think I procratinate because when I finally get around to do whatever I was procrastinating about, it feels so nice to finally get around to it!!!