Aug. 3, 2008
Sunday
Jul. 17, 2008
Last Night
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It was a stormy night. The lightening was flashing. The thunder was thundering. The rain was even falling down. It was 10:00 and we decided it was time to put the kids to bed. I went to put out Bella (the dog) and I thought I saw one of the cats out there by the BBQ grill. Unfortunately for me, it wasn't a cat but a SKUNK!! That's right as skunk..... Bella got sprayed by a skunk last night. It is unusual for me not to turn on the light to check for skunks before I let her out at night. But last night was one of those multitasking nights and I simply forgot to turn on the light. Had I done that, we wouldn't be dealing with this horrible stench throughout our home today. I have fans in two of the downstairs windows and I have all the windows open. One of the bad parts is that I think the grill got sprayed too because I can smell it pretty bad right there. UGH!! There's my post for today. Have a wonderful good smelling day. I know I won't. |
Jul. 15, 2008
Quiet Tuesday Morning
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I'm sitting here in the schoolroom/dining room this morning at 8:45. It is quiet and I can hear the birds singing. Bo is getting ready for work and Hunter is sitting on the couch claiming that he was awake at 5 this morning. I checked on him about a 1/2 an hour ago and he was sleeping. So we know what that means. I have lots of laundry to do today because it had to be put off yesterday. I also have to fix the pool and finish the lesson plans. School starts in two weeks. I am so excited for this. I know the kids aren't really because they want to play with their friends longer. But their dad is going out of town on business for a week and I want to start while he's gone. That way we are in full swing when he returns. Today is such a beautiful day that we may go outside for awhile. I need to patch the pool with the patch kit because the bubble has a lot of holes in it. Then we might go outside and play either frisbee or baseball or soccer. Something in the big field. I promise I will take pictures. We may take a bike ride if I can get my bike fixed. I think that would be a lot of fun to do. Like I said, it's a beautiful day and it's suppose to get to be 78 today. There are hardly any clouds in the sky too. I still have a lot of lesson plans to put in though. So I may just let the kids outside and unleash all that energy that they have stored up inside them. I'll be going on an overnight trip with my mom and sister's next weekend. I am kind of looking forward to it and kind of not looking forward to it. I'm looking forward to it because I can finally get my hair cut. I'm not looking forward to it because I don't want to get my pictures taken and I don't want a makeup make over. I'm not one to do those kinds of things. I don't normally wear makeup or actually do my hair any further than putting it up in a ponytail. Sometimes I wear mascara but not often. I'm looking forward to getting some new clothes though that I can pick out too. Sometimes I hate what they pick out for me. The kids will be staying with my dad because Bo will be heading out on Sunday morning for his trip. Anyway enough of the rambling. Have a great day. Brandy |
Jul. 10, 2008
Leave me a message
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I have only gotten a few messages on this site. If you are reading this blog, please leave me a message. If you want, you can tell me ways to improve my site. Thanks, Aunt B. |
Jul. 7, 2008
What is your mother style
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I found this on a blog today. I thought I would share it with you all. Your type is: isfp —The “Giving” Mother “A people pleaser from Day One, it took me 30 years to
Have a good night. I'm off to work on more lesson plans! |
Jul. 7, 2008
Planning the NEw Year
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I am in the process of planning our new year. It is very frustrating right now. My mother, who is a public school teacher believes that I should have written objectives and goals for the entire school year for each kid. That is a lot more work than I bargained for. Little do they know that I have changed things a little this year. Last year we were a little lazy in our school days. Basically it was me saying do this and they did it. This year, there is going to be a little more teaching involved. I usually use homeschool tracker or Donna Young PDF printables. However this year I'm looking for a little more so I know what I am doing. I found the School house planner while I was looking for more typable pdfs to use because I really like those. I was in awe about it. It looks so good. Unfortunately I don't think it's in the cards for school budget. With me sitting and working on the lesson plans for three kids for the entire year, my children are running around like little animals. My house is getting to be quite messy and it is quite frustrating. I feel like a wild woman moving around here sometimes. Today for instance, I haven't showered but I've mopped the cellar and started to fill the pool. Now the pool is almost filled and the kids still aren't fed. But I still have a lot of lesson plans to do!!! UGH!! Have a good Day!! I know I will Aunt B |
Jul. 3, 2008
Our curriculum
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It has taken us a long time to find exactly what fits our needs for a curriculum. Finally we have found it. There are still a few snags here and there but it works! We use Abeka science, History, Health, and Reading. We use Saxon math, We use Harcourt Spelling and Language. I really enjoy this. We also use either the Bible or a poetry book for handwriting. It works and I enjoy it. I am currently typing up the lesson plans for next year. I am using Donna Young's class schedule for lesson plans. I really like it because I can put 9 weeks of lesson plans for one subject on each page. It makes it easier to have all the lesson plans together. I am going to highlight each day as we go through them. It will make it really simple. The house is finally organized. If the kids can keep their rooms picked up and their bathroom clean, then I can keep the rest of the house done. This is so exciting. We set up our pool yesterday so that the kids could swim. Two out of the three sunburned. We forgot to put on the sunscreen. However we plastered the bug spray on and they still were supper for the black flies. Tai got 50 bug bites just on her back and neck. It was awful yesterday for sure. Bo has been home for a little over a week. I had a nice drive down by myself and I enjoyed our time together before the kids came home from my parent's house. I was really excited to see him again. He told me that he almost hit a dog. He didn't know if he hit any part of it or not. I hope he didn't. School starts again on August 4th this year. I am ready to start tomorrow. However since tomorrow is Independence Day , we can't. Plus Bo will be gone this week anyway so it will be easier to start school without him being here. Anyway. I have to get back to the lesson plans. Have a good night. Aunt B. |
Jun. 21, 2008
Today
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My husband is still down in Alabama. It may be another week before he comes home. He is trying his hardest to get home soon. However his brother is being lazy when he's not at work or school. He would rather spend time with his friends doing fun stuff than help clean out his dad's cabin or prepare the other stuff in order for Bryant to come home. What his brother isn't getting in his head that even though his brother is down there, he is down there to get stuff done about his dad, not for a vacation. We have been without my husband for two weeks now. His brother doesn't have any family other than us and his mom. He doesn't have any kids or a wife. He has a girlfriend and is expecting his first child in December. I don't think he understands though. Bo is really missing us. He was supposed to be at his dad's this morning at 8. He went to wake up his brother to tell him to get ready to go. His brother said that he would come up a little later. Later probably means sometime this afternoon. What his brother doesn't understand is that Bo has a family and a job to come home to. He has been gone for two weeks already and it has been stressful not only for him to be there but for us up here to be without him. When I talked to Bo this morning, he told me what his brother said. I told Bo that he needs to make sure how much this is effecting all of us because he's not helping out in his spare time. I felt that I should call the brother in law and chew him out because I was so angry that he's not helping as much as he should be. Anyway. That is my vent for the day. We are doing laundry today because we slacked a little yesterday. We are also going to get groceries and going to church. I can't wait. Have a good afternoon. I hope I will too. Aunt B. |
Jun. 18, 2008
Friendships
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I have been struggling lately with friendships. I have a lot of acquaintances and people who I can talk to, but I don't have a lot of friends. I have a lot of people who I homeschool with but, we don't do anything other than school stuff together. I don't have anyone who I can just call up on the phone and have a conversation with or just chat with. Sometimes that's hard even to do with my sisters who are 27, 15, and 12. I don't really talk to my mom much either. I can talk to my dad but sometimes he's so busy that he doesn't really have time to talk to me. I talk with my husband but mostly it's just me and the kids. My husband has been gone for a week so far. Almost two weeks. He's meeting new friends while he's down in Alabama and doing things with them. I understand that he needs this as his dad just died last week. However I'm still up here with the kids and no one else really to talk with. People who say they are my friends, I don't think really are because they don't call me to do stuff. They don't even call me just to talk. It seems like whenever I want to just talk with someone, I have to make the move. Then we can talk for an hour or so. It seems that I have to take the initiative and sometimes it feels like I'm bothering them. I just wish that I had a few friends who liked to do what I do. I wish I had a few friends who were here for me when I needed them. Who would come over for a visit and see how I'm doing. I wish I had a few friends who liked me for me. I wish I had a few friends who just wanted to hang out with me. We live in a small town. Most people know each other and because of that they know their families as well. So a lot of people "know" me because of my parents and grandparents, as well as my siblings. They don't really know me but they think they do because of who my family comes from. As I sit here in my living room at 11:28 at night, I am thinking about what my husband is doing. There is an hour difference in time between here and there. I wait by the phone every night to hear his voice before I go to sleep. Most nights since his dad has died, I have had to call him because he hasn't called me. I am feeling selfish I guess because he is by himself without the responsibility of the kids. Now I know why his brother didn't want him to take our son down with him. It was so that he could do fun stuff with him and not have to worry about our son. I sit here night after night until after midnight most nights just to hear his voice before I go to sleep and I don't think he cares much. He tells me he loves me each time we hang up the phone but sometimes it's hard to believe. I've had a really rough day today because the kids have been arguing most of the day and hitting each other. This has been going on since Bo has left for Alabama. So for a week I have dealt with the fact that the kids are acting this way. It is very hard on me because I am the only person dealing with it. Until today, I have kept this very quiet so not to worry him or frustrate him because he's not here. But he's not here and it's very hard for all of us. Tonight Grace came down and told me that even though she was tired, she is having a hard time falling asleep. That has been going on since Daddy went away she told me. She also has been sleep walking which scares me. She has done it twice this week. I'm just worried that my six year old is going to walk in her sleep and unlock the door and go outside. It is weird to know that she is sleep walking when she looks completely awake. I know that Bo is my best friend but sometimes I wonder if he feels the same way about me. Isn't your spouse suppose to be your best friend? I know he's mourning the death of his father. I also know that he has people down there supporting him and his brother. I need some support too and I'm not getting it. Gotta go, I'm on the phone now. He called me first tonight. Have a good night. Aunt B. |
Jun. 13, 2008
Final Update on my Father In Law
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Sometimes it is really hard t share bad news with total strangers let alone people who you know. Sometime last night between 11:30 and 4:00 this morning, my father in law Terry passed away. We are all saddened that he has died. At the same time we are relieved because he isn't in any more pain and he is happy where he has gone. He was far from being a Christian man but the children and I still believe that he went to heaven. Thank you for all of your support in our time of need. Bo won't be home for a few more weeks at least because they have to have the service and then clean out his dad's house. From what Bo said, the house is really cluttered and it's going to take a lot of work to get it cleaned out. I sure wish I was there to help out. Unfortunately, Bo doesn't want us to go down because he's afraid that the car won't make it. So we will sit up here in Maine as he is down in Alabama cleaning out his dad's home and going through his stuff. That's all for tonight. I'm off to bed. Have a peasant night. I'm ready for the sleep to over come me. Aunt B. |
Jun. 8, 2008
more updates
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Today Bo left for Montgomery to go see his dad. I am saddened that the entire family couldn't go. Mostly because we haven't been apart in a long time. It is 10 at night and the kids are just now going up to bed. It's been a really long day. It's been full of happiness, sadness, and nervousness. It has also been full of tears and laughter. Bo is currently leaving New Jersey as I am typing this. He should be in Montgomery by tomorrow afternoon. He will probably drive all night which worries me mostly because he hasn't had much sleep with worrying about his dad lately. In other news, we got to hold my new niece today. Bo took the camera with him so my sister took pictures. I can't wait to see them. She has a lovely house. This was the first time I've seen her home since she bought it a few years ago. Bo doesn't get along with my family so it's difficult to do anything with them and him. Holding Olivia brought back so many memories of holding my own babies. She is still so small and delicate. She is such a beautiful baby too. It was such a joy to hold her. On the home front, we are going to be starting to organize our house tomorrow. Our neighbors are heading down to Boston for the week and we are going to clean up our house. It is exciting for me because I don't have to just stop and make two different lunches for Bo and the kids. We can plan when we are going to have lunch and then keep working on organizing. The kids aren't going to like it because it is going to be a lot more work than they thought. I only found out that the neighbor's are going away this afternoon. That was after I told them that we would only work half a day on our projects. We may just work all days. We have a lot of stuff to get rid of so we'll be able to fill up the car a few times. That's it for now. The power keeps on flickering so I'd better get off this thing before it goes out again. Have a good night. Hopefully it will stay on long enough so I can make some popcorn, and watch a movie tonight before I go to bed. Night all! Aunt B. |
Jun. 4, 2008
New Hobby
I have been researching new hobbies online. Since my Father in law became sick and now I have a new niece, I have taken up digital scrapbooking. I have been having a lot of fun with it too. Here are a few samples of what we have done so far. This is part of our portfolio this year. I thought that I could make it look a little better by adding some scrapbook pages.I would add more but the picture adder is being a booger and only let me add one. So here's a little color to the dull of life. Enjoy your evening. I know I will! Aunt B |
Jun. 3, 2008
Updates
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First of all with a sad and heavy heart, our friend Jennifer went to be with the Lord on June 1st. She is no longer in pain and can garden all she wants in God's garden. Please keep her family in your prayers. We need continued prayers for my father in law. He was basically told that there is nothing more they can do for him. He is just being kept comfortable and waiting until the end. We don't know when the end could come. It could be tomorrow or it could be two months from now. We are praying that he hangs on long enough for us to fix the car and to get down there to see him. Other than that I got an awesome American History curriculum in the mail yesterday. It is really cool. The best part is that it's free. Just go to http://www.americanheritage.org for your free copy. Have a blessed evening. I know I will. Aunt B. |
May. 31, 2008
Newest Update on my Father In Law
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I just wanted to thank people for prayers if you have read this. At this point I'm feeling like nobody reads this because I've only had 5 comments from all the same person. Mrs. C. don't be offended by that statement. I enjoy hearing from you. Anyway. My father in law should be coming out of the ICU today. He is doing better. He is breathing on his own but he is still having tube feedings. The exciting part is that he is going to a regular room today. It means hopefully that there will be much more time to spend with him. Have a good day! Today we will hopefully be working on our portfolios and finishing up a few loose ends. Enjoy the day. I know I will. |
May. 30, 2008
New Father In Law Update
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According to my brother in law, my father in law (T) has a feeding tube in and he is having difficulties breathing. They are giving him pain medications to keep him "comfortable". But "he should get better and recover from this". That was coming from my brother in laws mouth. From what I heard and my experience with geriatrics I know that he won't be recovering from this. I am just worried that we will never get to see him again. I'm worried that the next time Bo sees him, he'll only be a body.... I found a new airline site that is called Allegiant air. They have fairly cheap prices. The only problem would be the fact that we would have to drive seven hours from Orlando to Montgomery in order to take those flights.That is a 7 1/2 hour flight. Something we're not even considering. I don't know what else to do about it but sit and wait. Thanks for listening. Have a peaceful day. Aunt B. |
May. 30, 2008
Update on my Father In Law
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From what I'm hearing in a one sided conversation, my father in law is not able to talk at this point. My husband does not want to go to Alabama alone but alas it may have to be that way. I wish there was a way that we could all go but we are having car troubles and we don't have enough money to fly all of us down. It would be almost $5,000 to go down to Alabama for the five of us. As I'm writing this, I'm wondering if other people around the world have the same problems that we are currently having. I'm wondering if they have loved ones who are not going to be around much longer even though they should be, and they can't even afford to go see them one last time or even to bury them. I'm afraid for that. We calculated how much money in gas it would cost us to go to Alabama and back and to drive around while in Montgomery. Our calculations were the amount of $700.00 for the week we were gone. That is a ridiculous amount of money just for gas. We're not even talking about food or shelter for the week. Anyway it's almost 1 in the morning and I'm waiting for my husband to decide whether or not he needs to be going to Alabama tomorrow or if I can go downstate to see my new niece. Who knows it may be both. Have a good sleep. I know it may be hard for me tonight. Aunt B. |
May. 30, 2008
I AM OFFICIALLY AN AUNT!!!
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Sorry I didn't mean to yell that. Anyway at 11:38p.m. Eastern Time, I became an aunt to Olivia Quinn. I have no other details. I am so excited. I know that she has a beautiful set of lungs. She has her daddy wrapped around her finger already. Her and her mom are doing really well. I am so excited that my sister is a mom. It is the most wonderful thing to be ever!! WELCOME TO THE WORLD OLIVIA!!! May you raise as much trouble as your momma did when she was younger. Yours Truly, Aunt B |
May. 29, 2008
A Delivery Surprise
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I am sitting here by the phone waiting for the arrival of my first niece, Olivia Quinn to make it into this world. My sister Mrs. B, is in labor with her first child. This is my first niece or nephew (it's a niece). Being the oldest child in a house of five children, I was able to bless the family with the first three grandchildren. Now it's my sister's turn. I am so excited and nervous. I found out that she had an epidural. This is something I never had. Her and I are going to have a lengthy talk about this because now I'm curious to know how it all went with the epidural. I want to know if it hurt pushing that sweet baby girl out. My mom called about 15 minutes ago and said that my sis was dilated to 8. An hour before that she was dilated to 6. I'm predicting that by 1031 p.m. Eastern time, my little niece will be here. I may be going downstate to see her tomorrow if things turn out okay. I'll be taking Tai with me if I go. It will be our first adventure too. My dad however recommended that we wait until she comes home from the hospital. What would the point of that be other than the fact that I have never visited her house yet. She has lived there for over a year and I still haven't seen the thing. I guess that is what happens when you live three hours away from your sister. On another note, my father in law is not doing good right now. He has cancer and he's on pain meds right now to keep him comfortable. We know the end is near. The problem is he lives in Alabama. That would be a two day drive for us. We are unsure that our car would make it to Alabama let alone out of the state. We were hopping to make the trip in August but now we realize that he may not make it that long. He was in the hospital earlier this week because his pace maker was malfunctioning and they had to fix it. Now he's back and having difficulties breathing. We haven't seen him in 8 years. He hasn't met Grace at all. The older two were just babies when they met him so they don't really remember him at all. I just wish that Bo will have the chance to see his dad one last time before he dies. I hope that will be able to happen. We have a friend named Jennifer who also isn't doing well. She has cancer too and the end is very near for her. They have given her about a week to a month to live. We are all heart broken about this because she is such a wonderful woman. She is a co-worker of Bo's in a company that only has 20 employees. So the employees are quite close. She has a fairly young little girl and three older girls in their teens. We pray that God shows his will to this woman and ease her of her suffering. We also pray that God comforts her family and help them to understand why he needed her in heaven. Well I started out this post with exciting news and ended it with sad news. I hope you have a good night. I will while I'm still anxiously awaiting by the phone. Aunt B. |
May. 23, 2008
Almost done
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We are almost done our books from this school year. Our days have been finished for months but we still had some book work to do. Yesterday all of the kids finished their Language books. Today Tait finished her Science book. They are so excited to be finishing school books. It is rare here since we have changed curriculum's many times to find what works best for us. This year I think we have finally found it. I am still in need of health for 6th grade. Science for 6th grade. I need to pick up new Spelling and Language books at the books store. I love these books and they are cheap. Plus the kids like them too. We also need to find an answer key for Tait's Saxon 76 math book or I can't do it for her. Other than that, we are all set for the new school year in September. This is the first year since we have started homeschooling that we have taken the summer off. I don't know if it is a good idea or not but we will try it. I may only take a few months off and start again. I really enjoy taking December off because it is a really busy month with birthday's and celebrating Jesus' birth as well. They are all crowded together too. It's not like they are spaced out through the month. We have Bo's birthday and his brother's the same day on the 14th. The 21st is Bubba's and my grandfather's then on the 25 is Christmas. So it's right week after week of celebrations. It can be hard but it is so much easier if we aren't doing school book work. We do projects to prepare ourselves for Christmas and these special birthdays though. This year however is going to be extra special because we will have a new addition to our Christmas Eve tradition. My new niece will be here to enjoy it with us. She will only be 6 months old but it will be the perfect time to see her. I hope you all have a good night. I know I will. Good night. |
May. 20, 2008
Yesterday
Yesterday afternoon we had a thunder and lightening storm. First it started raining then we got a lot of hail. Also in the past week we have gone Letter boxing. It is like a big treasure hunt with stamping. It is a lot of fun. Here's a picture from that. Miss Tait is in the purple with some other homeschool kids. They are learning about the different kinds of stamps associated with this particular search.  The kids have also had fun riding the neighbor's four wheeler. This is something new for them. They have been to the park once so far this spring as well. Here are a few pictures from those events.       I also took this awesome picture of the sunset between the trees. It almost makes the trees look like they are on fire. I hope you enjoy the pictures. It was a lot of fun taking them. Have a pleasant day. |