Good Morning!

Good Morning, everyone!  Yes, I actually managed to get up BEFORE the kids!  Don't ask me how, as I was actually up pretty late last night.  I did have some motivation, because I realized that Mike was not up yet when I first woke up, and this is his early day for work.  So, I got up and started his coffee, realizing in the process that I had forgotten to start the dishwasher last night before bed like I intended.  It is a portable one that has to be plugged in to the kitchen sink, so I will now have to wait until after breakfast to run it.  At least I don't have any laundry that needs to be done immediately!

Yesterday was absolutely beautiful!  It was (finally) warm outside, and sunny, and the kids and I got to go out and get some fresh air!  Lily seems to be feeling much better, though she woke up coughing yesterday morning.  Our push lawn mower broke a few weeks ago, so I asked Mike if we could get a reel mower (non-motorized) to replace it, as he mows most of the lawn with a lawn tractor, anyway.  So, when he and Rory went to get the plywood for the chicken coop (he has the frame finished) the other day, they checked at Home Depot, and there was actually a reel mower.  They got it, so I'm trying to teach Rory how to mow the lawn.  It really needs to be "hayed" with the tractor before we get too far, because some of it is just too high for the reel mower to handle, but we got a little of it done, and Rory got some practice.  He feels very proud of himself for being able to do a "man's job."

I went into the garage to get the chickens and take them outside, and they were really all over the place!  I actually had a hard time catching them to bring them out, because they kept flying over things I had to go around to get to them.  One stayed in the garage quite a while before Rory managed to chase it out so we could catch it and get it into the fence!  The good thing is, since Mike at least got the frame done on the coop, I decided that I could put a tarp over it so they would have some shelter, so I don't have to try to transport them back and forth anymore!  It is probably just as warm outside as in our unheated garage at this point, and
probably safer for them, too.  The garage is full of bunches of stuff that chickens really shouldn't get into.

Even with the beautiful weather, I had a hard time keeping on schedule and getting anything accomplished.  Mike's younger brother had a pretty serious surgery, so even though I was at home with the kids, my mind was at the hospital, hoping everything was alright. Praise God the surgery went well, and by supper time he was up and able to eat!

Well, today is supposed to be another beautiful day.  I found a different way to print a schedule with Google Calendar.  I read about using it for family scheduling on an internet site.  I have used it for a general calendar for myself, but didn't realize that you can include calendars for different people and display them all together.  It's even color-coded!  Cool!  So, I was able to schedule myself, Lily, Rory, and Mike, and print them out all on one page.  I put this in the clear front of my house notebook (something I'm trying to develop), so I can see at a glance what everyone is supposed to be doing.  I also printed Rory his own schedule, and then wrote in specifics, such as what his school assignments were for the different blocks of time.  I had previously been making color-coded schedules with Microsoft Word, but then I would have to go back in and change them all the time, or disregard them if a particular day had something else thrown in (like a doctor's appointment, for example).  This way, it can be specific for each day, and I can do them ahead of time and just print them up if I want to.  Or, I can keep it up on the computer to refer to.  So many options!

As I look at my colorful schedule, I realize that I am now supposed to be getting dressed and making breakfast, so I think I'd better get to it.

"But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk and not faint."  Isaiah 40:31