procrastinators anonymous

I am the chief queen head of P. A.

My new thing is that I want to get rid of stuff. That's not the fancy way to say it, even "decluttering" is passe', we're now "going minimalist", or "Marie Kondo-ing". Or even "Death Cleaning", because you do it yourself instead of others having to deal with your junk after you pass. (Now THAT's a scary thought!) I want to go through every single drawer, every bin, every cubby, and throw things away. I have always been a saver, because when someone needs something, I want to have it for them. And we all KNOW that as soon as you throw something away, you NEED it!

But. Realistically. No one wants or needs the christening bonnet, yellow and crunchy, that all of my siblings and I wore...or the first boy baby outfit we purchased after having two girls...with no sonograms or gender testing way back in the day, when Benjamin was born, yay, baby boy clothes! And the fact that Paul went and bought it...:)

See? I get sidetracked so easily. Every item has a story. Oh, I know! I can just take a pic of each sentimental item before deep-sixing it!

When you have grandkids, you need to have a playpen, a walker, a high chair, a stroller, a booster seat, and some bibs...a few spare sips cups and bottles, and some little spoons and forks, plates with the dividers, ect. So you can't just get rid of ALL of it.

So here's the thing: I am now officially thinking of cleaning things out. Hoeing out. But not today.

Today, we have plans! See, we have been very busy lately. We usually have our little girls here, and now we have three older children staying with us for 12 days. But today, we don't have Anne, and poor Mali is sick, so she has Lydia home with her, and the three children got on the bus and went to school (phew, I did it! Hair brushed, lunches packed, showered and folders in backpacks, phew!).

So today it's only the three homeschoolers and me. And we're going on an adventure! There is a place called Wonderworks, rope-climbing, laser tag, interactive museum, etc, with special homeschooling pricing....:)

When you live south of Lake Ontario in the winter, you have to plan around the weather. Even if it's 5F (-15c) degrees out, which it is, you're happy if it's not snowing, in fact it's a perfect day to go out and about.

It WOULD be a perfect day to start in on a few junk drawers, but ahhhh....we need an adventure.

I have a list of adventures coming up, besides today...

February: Mexico in less than three weeks, all inclusive, no plans to explore ruins or to leave the beach and pools...just relax.

February: Florida a few weeks after that. Last night we reserved a hotel a block from the ocean, just for one night, on the way to visit Grandma. We don't have many plans for our visit, maybe Busch Gardens, but lots of lying by the pool. I hope it's seriously hot and sunny. Get this: Paul and I and only four of the kids are going! One fourth of the kids! The older ones are all working, etc., and Jonathan doesn't want to come with four sisters, well, he does, but would RATHER stay with Margaret and Adrian and hang out with his friends on their week off from school.

March: Norway for long weekend, sisters' conference with Emily, Abigail, and Mirielle.

July: We rented a small cabin near Algonquin Mountain in the Adirondacks for a three day weekend.

July: Norway!!!! WE are going for ten or so days, not sure dates yet.

August: Three days reserved at a water site on our favorite lake in the Adirondacks, tenting! Several of the older ones in the family have also gotten sites, so it'll be really fun.

Of course all this traveling costs money, I save every bit of my babysitting money towards it, plus sell things on eBay and craigslist. (The Mexico trip is a gift from my dear sons:).), I am going with two of my girls.

Wow, in four days is Emily's birthday! I became a mommy 34 years ago...our 35 wedding anniversary is coming up in March. The days are long but the years are short, right?


From Saturday's adventure, Evelyn and me...then friend Amara, my daughter Margaret, me, friend Karen, and daughters Mirielle and Evelyn Joy, we went on a wine tour on Seneca Lake. Did you know that the Finger Lakes region has excellent wine? Evelyn was our driver, and we had too much fun. But not too much wine. Just enough.

brrrrrr!!!! it's January!!!!

I brought Lydia outside for a few minutes yesterday, it was so cold and windy. The snow was deeper than her boots are tall, and her snow pants a little short, so I knew we couldn't stay out too long. Back in the house and dry clothes on, so cozy!

She was back again bright and early this morning.


The snow has stopped, leaving us in frigid temperatures, 11F (-11c), with wind. brrrr.
But it IS pretty...



The kitties know where to sleep.

Lydia wants to put on her "morning clothes", she arrives in her jammies. Anne will be here soon, so the busyness of the day will start...and this afternoon, the twins and William arrive...:)

oh winter, thank you!

The snow is coming down, the world is silent, the school is closed. Anne is not here today because her mama is a teacher. Lydia IS here, good thing she spent the night! Charlotte Claire and Camille are putting cinnamon buns in the oven and making orange juice. We don't buy o.j. on a regular basis anymore, as it's not as healthy as I once thought, but the kids love it for a treat. And today is a special day! A snow day!!!

Once I woke up, I couldn't go back to sleep, but it was really nice to be able to lie in my warm bed for a bit, since I didn't have to get up for Lydia's usual seven a.m. arrival, she was sleeping snugly in Char and Cam's room. I washed all of our bedding yesterday, and it's especially comfy when your bedding is all fresh and springy smelling (laundry beads, summers!) .

Char got up early too, so we snuggled in my chair and looked at houses for sale in the area. Right over on the Seneca river, a nice one. Only four bedrooms though, Char mentioned. Well, we almost fit in that now. We are going in the other direction now, our family who used to have 18 under one roof. They move out, they get married, and leave the big messy nest. Kathryn has gone out to Oregon, she'll come home for a few weeks before she gets married maybe, but for all intents and purposes...her room is EMPTY. Evelyn still lives here, but spends the week day nights up at Margaret and Adrian's because she works in that city. So when she's gone, it's Paul and me, then Suzanne, Sonja, Jonathan, Char, and Cam. And of course Lydia most of the time, and sometimes Anne. And for 12 days starting Friday, Will and Sebastian and Linnea. And on Sunday afternoons, we're bursting at the seams:)

Anyway. Today the high school girls have a snow day, so there's a festive atmosphere.

Yesterday, I made two apple pies. Two incredible apple pies.

I let Char and Cam each "fix" the top of one, the edges and cutting the steam vents, and adding half and half and sprinkling with sugar, I also sprinkled a bit of cinnamon and sugar on top of that. These pies were made because we accidentally left a seven dollar bag of apples in the minivan overnight, and I was afraid they would go to mush after they thawed. So I saved them, gave them a purpose, ha. Empire apples, yummy to eat, not the best for pies, but I added some lemon juice, oops too much, the pie is almost tangy, but shh, I love tangy...with the sweetness of the flaky all butter crust...oh dear. I did have some last night. Yes I did.

We had meatballs for dinner...they turned out yummy too. The kids had pasta, Sonja and I had spaghetti squash. If you haven't tried spaghetti squash, buy one! You just slice it in half, scoop out the guts, put the halves on a plate, cover loosely with plastic wrap, and microwave for five minutes...then I turn them, recover, microwave for four minutes or so...then just scoop out that delicious stringy goodness, and eat with the sauce and meatballs, or just with butter and salt and pepper...

The snow is just falling like we're in a snow globe. The thick lake effect flakes are adding up...Jonathan is snowplowing the driveway, and it's sloooow going! So. Much. Snow.


Anyway...it's a cozy day!!!

one misty moist-y morning, when cloudy was the weather....

Yesterday we had a coating of ice all over the roads, the cars, the deck...school was delayed for two hours. In the city, three snow plows went off the road. But the air warmed, the ice melted, and we had a nice dark cloudy day. I went out in the afternoon with Suzanne, leaving Sonja here to babysit because it was the best option...going to the grocery store with the small children would be fun, but the two year old in Aldi last week...um, no.

So before the snow, we went out to the small city...we picked up Emily's clarinet. She had it re-corked and fixed up, because Camille is learning to play it. Then the grocery store, to stock up on apples and bananas, chicken and burger, milk and bread, a big bag of kitty chow, eggs and pepperoni, and peanut butter and coffee.

Today the snow rolls in, and oh dear is it gloomy out right now. Dark and cozy. I rather love it.

Lydia is here, and Anne will be coming soon. They still have a huge fort set up in the corner, we play with play dough and color, and get out dollhouse stuff. They do keep busy. Yesterday there were a few tantrums, and I wondered at my lot in life, but no one ever said life was supposed to be easy.

Being older and dealing with young children is different. I have the privilege of not just KNOWING how fleeting the days are, I have actually experienced it. My three older children are 34, 32, 30...the years passed like a vapor, and sometimes I still see them when they were toddlers, or remember when one was sick, so sick and so needy, And I wish I could go back I in time and spend more time with that little one. I have memories of them as their newborn selves, and flashes of Emily singing, "Skinamarink-a-dink-a-dink-, skin-a-merink-a-doo...", and of Abigail losing a tooth...

Anyway, as a grandma, and as a babysitter for little ones, I KNOW how precious the moments are, and I'm not so likely to wish the days away. I'm quicker to drop the broom for a cuddle, and I know story time is a better choice than reading my own book.

I can't control much in this world, but in my little corner here, I can give up my own will and wants, and bless and comfort. I don't have a degree, and I am no fashion model, and don't look in my laundry room, but my life has worth when I am faithful in the little things.

my lot in life...

I am not complaining. No sir. I am extremely thankful for my lot in life....which seems to be me, knee deep in children. Some grow up, some move away, yet there are still toys strewn across the living room and sippy cups on the counter.

I watch 3 year old Lydia five days a week, and two year old Anne...well, all of this week, then...not sure. Probably two or three days a week. AND, on Friday, three more children are moving in for 12 days, 10 year old Will, and the twins, Linnea and Sebastian, who are seven now. (Their mama and papa are going to Europe for a wedding).

So I'll be getting elementary kids on the bus in the morning again, and afternoon snack will get...bigger. More fun.

I'll be honest, part of me loves it, but the lazy part of me suffers. The old achy lady lodged within doesn't like hopping up quickly when the two year old grabs the three year old's crayon. She gets cranky when she has to fish a favorite Little People from under the couch, because her, "I'll get it later" doesn't work on the three year old who is ready to melt down. Taking one to the bathroom, changing the other's diapers, making little lunches...trying to keep the play dough colors separate, and the tops on the markers.

But, the lazy part of me can just shut up, shrivel up, and die. I don't want anything to do with it, with all of its complaints. Children are a blessing, and they do fill the house with joy....even though they have their moments.

We all have our moments.

My lot in life. It also includes being fat, it seems. No, I am not making excuses, nor am I giving up. No, I'm staying no sugar, staying low carb...and today: I exercised! I did! The little girls were playing play dough, so I decided just to jump in with some push ups...I did four sets of ten, and some simple leg lifts and lifting ten pound weights...as I did my push ups, little Anne decided to join me, and ooh yup, she pooped. Time to change her diaper!

But weight loss is sooooo slow for me.

My lot in life...to never know what's for dinner. But, tonight I lucked out: Charlotte Claire decided the other day to make broccoli cheddar soup, so she googled a recipe, and put the ingredients in the cart while we were in Aldi. Today, it was soup day! I also had some brown and serve rolls, so simple dinner! I had leftover chicken, green beans, and a little of the soup on top. She did a really nice job with it.

But don't ask me what we're having tomorrow.

It's hard to get the store when you have the small girls...and in winter, it gets dark, and who wants to go out and about in the dark evening? Not me. So we'll be eating more from the cupboards and the freezer.

I'm thinking I'll be using my InstantPot more this week.

As much as I enjoy the chitter, chatter, and cuddles of the little ones, I do enjoy the quiet evenings too...quiet when my girls are busy doing homework or playing or reading, and Jonathan is busy with stuff. He just got back from his Norwegian lessons.

We lit some candles on the coffee table this evening, ate our yummy dinner while we watched JEOPARDY! Then the television was turned off, we don't watch much. It's so quiet now, the dogs snoring, the dryer humming, the washing machine is hopefully fixed...hopefully. (We don't always eat at the table anymore, especially on cold winter nights. It's just cozier in the living room, and there are so many less of us. Sometimes we do sit around the table though, and that's always nice.)

So 26 days until Mexico, yay!!!! I had hoped to lose like fifty pounds by then, but I don't know what happened. It could have been worse though...all the things I said NO THANK YOU to would have wreaked havoc if I had eaten them.

So let's be thankful for our lots in life. We had a celebration feast for our friend Dave, for the victories he won in life, and we heard that suffering is universal. Everyone suffers. But who can trust God in it, and be thankful for all the sin that's stirred up in it all, who can overcome and be happy? That's my REAL lot in life...and it's a good one.

never ever a dull moment....

First of all, our dear friend David passed away the other day, and there have been so many tears around here. We knew Dave since back when we were first married. He was a true friend, so extremely easy to talk to, a confidant, honest, encouraging, and faithful to God in everything. His chief aim in life was to take each trial seriously, and he had plenty of trials. With a wife and eight children, then being diagnosed with cancer of the esophagus 12 years ago when their youngest was just a baby, right after finishing up a master's degree in Hospital Administration, (in addition to his other degrees, he was a very smart man).


Last night we went to calling hours for him. What can I even say? He's in a better place, but we're going to miss him like crazy. He wrote a blog, cnystahl.wordpress.com, The Cancer Chronicles, and he was funny, even when things were dire.

Also, a tree fell on Emily's house. The three girls were all sleeping in their upstairs bedrooms, but the angels were watching where this tree fell, as it hit the back of the house:

So the girls are all right, but they woke to a mighty crash, and their deck is in smithereens.

Paul and I had the pleasure of an outing with our friends, as Karen turned 66! There's a nice place up on Lake Ontario that gives one free chicken wing for each year of your life, so yes, 66 chicken wings!

Karen and her husband...:)

And my daughter Kathryn is leaving on Saturday to go to Oregon, she misses her fiancé' too much. She will be back, then will be leaving again, as she is getting married and moving out there, wah. It's a new beginning for her, but my heart aches. It's just not fair that you have these kids in your lives, then they up and leave, ha.

We are planning our trip to Florida, now Paul says he's not sure if he can go, work-wise, so we'll be left figuring things out last minute, we should have a van rented already, but oh well.

Also we're looking at plane tickets for Norway for this summer! Yay! Hopefully Paul and I, Evelyn, Suzanne, Sonja, Jon, and Charlotte Claire will be going. Ben and Ashley and their two daughterss will be going too. And Abigail. Maybe Margaret and Adrian.

I am also going on a huge trip, one month from today I'll be in Mexico! Yes, I am going on vacation! Then Florida a few weeks after that, then to Norway in March for a sisters' conference, with Emily, Abigail, and Mariel, how sweet is it that they will travel with their mama?

Lydia is here, she spent the night last night, and Anne is coming any minute. I'll be having Anne every day for a bit, as her other babysitter is on school break from college, and is going on a little trip herself, to Florida with Emily.
(I usually have her two or three days a week)

So, today I'm going to be brave and attempt to take both Anne and Lydia out and about! We need a library trip, and a quick trip to Aldi. I used to do it with my own littles all the time, so it should be fine. Car seats and diaper bags and sleeves of crackers, right?

(I always had a sleeve of crackers in my purse, way back when)...which reminds me of a funny story. The day we brought Margaret home from the hospital, which was Christmas Eve, back 22 years ago, I of course went to my brother's house with 8 of our nine children, Paul stayed home with Mariel because she had the throw-up bug. So I brought my newborn baby, and all of the other kids, because it was the best night of the year for them, to be with all of their cousins. When it was time to leave, the roads were snowy and icy and I was feeling a bit woozy and tired, so my brother offered to drive us home, with my other brother following in his car. Anyways, he asked me where my keys were so he could warm up the van, and I directed him to my coat pocket...well. He said he was never putting his hand in my coat pocket again! There was a cookie in there. It HAD been a cookie anyway, before it turned into mushy crumbs. I remember going in to a store a few weeks previously, with lots of kids, and they were handing out Christmas cookies...one of the kids took a few bites and didn't want it, so, into my pocket it went.

Ah well. Our washing machine is still broken. Kathryn washed some clothes and towels at Emily's house yesterday, and brought them home to dry. The part should arrive on Saturday, hopefully Paul will get it fixed. Have you noticed that we aren't the Call The Repairman kind of family?

And, one thing I am going to be working on in the next few months, is hoeing out the house. I am not going totally minimalist, but for ME, minimalist, ha. I am the Have Tons of Each Thing Just In Case kind of person. Hairbrushes, hair clips, coffee scoops...we have like six coffee scoops. Reading glasses, I used to have pairs everywhere. But now I have them all put (shh, lost, ha), and have only one pair to keep track of, and it's a teensy bit easier, but I won't lie. Seventy five times a day, I am asking if anyone knows where they are.

So I want to get rid of more stuff, minimalize more, organize more. I like less clutter, and now that the tree is gone, and all the trimmings and trappings put away, it seems calmer in here. And I like it. Now the toys, they're going to present a challenge, because I love them dearly, and love the joy the kids get when they come here and play...

Here's a pic of Paul and I on New Year's Day...matchy-matchy!

and a happy new year!!!!

Baby Grant is here visiting us with his mama and daddy, so it's been busy, and hard to find a chance to blog...so this is going to be very short...he is toddling around the living room right now...




I did not buy either of these sweatshirts, rocking baby Wulf to sleep, and an early morning with Lydia.



I didn't buy the bear either, Sunny just because she's cute, and the mittens Suzanne crocheted for me for Christmas.

Today Paul and I are going out to lunch to celebrate a birthday with a friend, with lots of our friends. We rarely do this, so I am excited. And I need to go start getting ready...so much is going on around here...the washing machine broke, Paul ordered a part...a tree fell on Emily's house...(all occupants are okay though!), and so on...never a dull moment.

But this is going to be a good year!!!!