Week ending 3-27-22

Last Sunday: All of the older kids came in to see Tilly give her first talk and also got to see Anderson give the scripture and take a picture of him.

Talea's first talk. She did a great job. She had to speak about how she can be kind to her family so she had a bag of stuff and each thing she pulled out was a way she could be kind to a specific family member. Like "I can give Thomas a back rub." "I can draw a picture for my mom." "I can make popcorn for Maddie." It was darling and she had been excited about it all week.

Monday: Cleaning leaves out of the spring-fed creek and rerouting some parts so it wouldn't flood onto my trail when we get lots of rain. It was my favorite part of the week. We played in the creek and goofed off and worked hard. The weather was a perfect 75 too.

This part always flooded so I moved all the downed trees and we dug it deeper.

It rained all day Wednesday and Thursday I went down to check on it. This is the same area we cleared out and it worked! It didn't flood over the banks and the water stayed in the new creek we dug out.

The new part we dug.

Parts that still need the leaves cleaned out. I could hang out cleaning the creek all day--it's more fun than cleaning my house--and maybe I will during spring break.

Tuesday: While working in the garden I turned around and saw these 4 sitting quietly and writing in notebooks. Not sure what they were playing, but they were getting along. Anderson wore his Easter basket around his neck all day and would pull the face part up to cover his and say he was the Easter Bunny. I don't think he was playing that here, but that's why he has an Easter basket around his neck.

The redbud tree starting to bloom.

Working and playing in the woods again.

Andy and I worked the longest and were last to carry tools and toys out of the woods before dinner. He played with his bucket of cars in the sand while I dug some more stream. He was fun to work with.

The flowering plum tree. I hope we get plums this year!! We didn't last year because they said there was a late frost.

Wednesday: It rained all day but we kept busy with creative pursuits. Kaitlyn and Madalyn ("the Lyners") crocheted granny circles.

Andy and Tilly coloring.

Madalyn reading to Talea.

I sewed valances for my bedroom finally. I've been meaning to do it since last October when I bought sheets that I thought would make great fabric for window treatments.

Thursday: The oldest 4 kids went to help at a missionary zone conference all day so I stayed home with the younger 4 and went for a morning walk to see how the yard fared after 33 hours of rain and tornado warnings. The cherry tree is blooming but it's hard to see.

Other views around the yard.

Blueberries on blueberry hill. They're so overgrown with briars and trees but I may try to save them.

The purple flowering tree on the left was pretty but didn't really show up.

View from the side of the driveway.

A tinsey red spider looking creature.

A friend came over and gave us 2 rugs and a dog bed. No, we don't have a dog and I was going to ask around if anyone else wanted it but the kids thought it was a great place to play "stack up."

Friday: We learned about conifers in science. Here are two pine cones we brought in the house before we did an experiment on them. Then we put the one on the left on top of the wood stove and the one on the right in a bowl of ice water. What do you think will happen?

This is after one hour. The left one on the stove opened up in the heat. The right one in the ice water closed up in the cold.

When Talea walked by I asked what she was doing and she said, "Playing in the sprinkler in the winter." It was a cold day--in the 50's--but we got a new hose and the 3 little kids wanted to go play with it.

Saturday: Dropping the kids off for their first Seussical Jr performance at the Andy Griffith Playhouse.

While we waited for the performance to start we walked around the Andy Griffith garden.

Talea was spoiled with attention from her 2 big sisters and mom but it was fun for us all to go together.

After the play they came out in costume. This is a little who family. They did a great job!

Anderson, Makenna, Samuel holding their certificates.

Thomas was a Wickersham Brother-- a monkey. He was on stage almost the entire play and loved it. He got a mic because he's a good singer and got praised the entire 3 months of rehearsals for learning the dances and songs so well. He practiced every day at home and earned that praise. I'm proud of him for putting his all into it and going above and beyond what he was asked to do.

Makenna, a little Who citizen.

More people from Whoville.

They all did a great job and I love that my kids can participate in plays together. I'm also grateful for Alexis (who didn't want to be in this one but have Maddie alone time :)) and Madalyn for taking them to a lot of practices.

Week ending 3-20-22 Stairs and pantry projects

Two big projects this week: new stair balusters Monday-Wednesday and renovating the pantry Thursday and Friday. I'll post those pictures first and then put the other random pictures I took while taking a break from projects and not go perfectly chronological this week. I spent all my free time after school working on these projects and when I needed a break I went out to cut wood or plant the garden. I love getting projects done so it was a great week for me. I noticed while I was getting my creative energy out updating our house the kids were busy creating card games, doing art, sewing capes, and making their own paper computer.

Time to demo the stair balusters and put in new ones.

I chain sawed the old ones in half in order to get them out.

All gone!

Thomas was my main helper in this project. He drilled all the holes. The other kids helped hold up the balusters so we could see the pattern going up the stairs and to see where the spirals would be centered. I taped off the places I wanted cut and went outside and cut them. They were 44" but needed to be about 30" so I had to cut some off both ends. Each stair was a different size though because our stairs and railing are whacky. It was a lot harder of a project than we thought with many setbacks.

After 2 days we finally got 7 in! We were so proud of ourselves.

Thomas and I checking to see if they're in tight enough.

Wednesday: Finally all done!!

Before we painted the wall or redid the balusters.

Close up of the balusters.

We also finally found some nice mirrors we like, ordered them, and got them hung up the day they came.

I don't have great "before" pictures because I wiped off a roller here when I was done painting the dining room a few weeks ago, knowing I'd paint in here soon. But here's a view of the doorway. The pantry is a lean-to addition where the sellers left their deep freezer and mini fridge for us. Wasps come in all summer through the cracks so I needed to caulk and put up some trim as well as paint.

I also wanted to add some trim and a curtain to this window.

And get a new light fixture.

Standing where the shelves are. To the right is the doorway into the hall where the laundry and bathroom are. Wasps came in above the door where the wood paneling didn't touch each other.

Sam and Andy helped pull out or hammer in nails before the painting began.

Thomas measuring the angle so I'd know how to cut the wood for the trim.

This is after the primer and first coat were put on.

Makenna helped me hammer in all the trim.

She is a great, supportive helper. She encourages me when I'm discouraged and helps me figure things out when I'm stuck.

Just about done! I love it! I really like the color and I'm glad I trimmed the window. The valance is a burlap bag that looks great in person. We've never had a curtain up in here, just an empty rod.

Before

After

Before

After

The view standing where the shelves are. To the right is the laundry/bath hallway.

Hopefully no more wasps!

Before. Standing in the hallway.

After. 

I really love it. It's my new favorite room in the house except now it stinks and I can't figure out why. Don't know if it's the paint or onions I put in the freezer or the air freshner or a combination of all three. If it's not one problem, it's another. Now we still don't like to go in there, haha.

Now for the rest of the week's pictures: Tilly and Lexi reading scriptures together.

Tilly and Makenna planting carrot tops.

Andy bringing wood in.

The daffodils at their peak.

Kait and Kenna playing in one of their many nests around the yard.

Kaitlyn sewed her and Makenna capes out of curtains that were left here.

Madalyn loved it and said she always wanted one, so she tried it on. :)

Thomas made his own card game. He designed it on paper and then designed it on the computer and printed out cards on cardstock. He cut them out and taught the rules to the little kids. Now every time I come into the living room they're playing it even when they're supposed to be getting dressed and starting school.

Madalyn combed Tilly's hair and took these pictures.

I took this one on my bad camera. Her hair is so long and pretty!

I love seeing the south pasture beyond the trees turning green and the mountain range beyond it.

The view from the sunroom. I also see it from where I sit at the table and I love that little round south pasture. It's curved perfectly and makes me want to run down and spin around in it.. It's hard to see in this picture, but it's right in the middle. It catches my eye every time I look out the window so it must be getting prettier all the time for me to stop and look.

Talea has taken off in her reading! Here she sat in the hallway and read Biscuit books to me while I painted the pantry.

She also threw her doll a birthday party.

Samuel made a March madness bracket on a paper computer. He has 4 fridges he made in the woods (deep holes he dug with covers to keep food cool) and the bracket is for how deep each is dug. (Or something like that.:))

Saturday we went to a baptism and the family's grandparents house afterward. We were the only friends there in an extended family setting and it made me miss my family so much. I'm envious of those who can have family gatherings all the time.

We had fun doing their hoverboards and hanging out.

Madalyn pushing Makenna and Kaitlyn on the dolley.