Another week gone by....

I've made it to another Friday... in another busy week. I've had to be at the dentist with kids by 7am twice this week... I think I'm too old to get up at 5:30am anymore... but I still have to repeat it twice next week - yahoo! LOL

We've got a few people showing up tomorrow to pay & pick up things that they've bought from us... that's a happy thing. We're trying really hard to set aside enough money to buy a van. With 5 kids, it takes a big vehicle to get us all anywhere... and we currently have to take two vehicles to get us all anywhere. With these gas prices, that's just killer!

In other news, (can I use that here?) it's been nice to be back to normal with schoolwork. I do enjoy having at least a remnant of a schedule to follow... even if it does have interruptions caused by life on occasion.

Here in Houston, (speaking of "in the news") the building where the voting machines were housed went up in flames today... over 40,000 machines are now melted into blobs, with early voting scheduled to start in just over a month. Speculation has begun over how they'll handle voting this year. The current discussion is that they'll encourage the early voters to utilize the option of mailing in their votes, but there's still much talking to be done with the "powers that be." Talk about throwing a wrench in the normal routine of life, huh?

Vicki was able to get an upgraded cell phone this week - waaaay early thanks to Andrew letting her have HIS upgrade. Vicki passed her "old" (less than 6 months old) phone down to Brittani. Of course, Brittani wouldn't have needed a phone if she hadn't left hers on the floor for the dog to get to. The Brittany Spaniel took off with it and hid it, and since Brittani leaves it on silent, calling the phone does NOT find it! At least Victoria seems happy with the current phone - she didn't like the one that she had. She started out with an LG Neon, which kept giving her trouble. After AT&T replaced it a couple of times, they offered a choice between two phones... she chose the lesser of the two evils, but was never really happy... so I'm glad she was able to have an opportunity to get one that she likes :-)

Another note - anyone with netflix... and a wii... the kids are TOTALLY enjoying being able to watch the netflix instant movies & television shows on the wii. You'd think it was better than strawberry banana smoothies (which are HUGELY popular at our house... Brittani makes them so yummy!).

I'm on a hunt for yummy chili recipes... I'm looking forward to winter getting here, and being able to enjoy soups and stews again, but would really like to have some absolutely fabulous chili recipes to add to the menu. If you have a favorite recipe, I'd love it if you'd post it... Of course, it's also time to start planning what baked items that I want to make this year for the holidays. I try to come up with new ones to add to the favorite ones every year... the pumpkin pie is mandatory, as are the pumpkin cupcakes and cookies... chocolate chip cookies, chocolate macaroons, and sopapilla cheesecake (although I did pass that one off to Andrew's cousin last year - I enjoyed being able to cross it off my list, and still be able to enjoy eating it ) That was definitely a happy thing! LOL  Anyhow, new ideas with tried & true recipes would definitely be enjoyed if you have them... 

It's time for me to settle down for the night... my eyelids are getting tired, and I know I never make it to bed without doing about 20 things before I get there... hope everyone is doing well! Good night!

The merry-go-round keeps spinning! LOL

As usual, life is busy... the adorable little Brittany Spaniel has gone to her new home, and her new family seems absolutely thrilled to have her as part of their lives. I'm so glad that she healed up so well, and was able to move on with her life... she was a total sweetie!

I've been working on crafts for Christmas. I've knitted several dishcloths for my mother-in-law for Christmas. She likes to use the hand-knitted ones, so I made it my goal to learn how to knit this year. I'm completely excited to get to give her some that I made myself! I also need to start checking out new candle smells and get cracking on making some more soy candles to sell this winter. They make such great Christmas gifts, and I usually sell about 40 of them through the winter. I'll also knit some scarves, and probably crochet several things. I have a couple of quilts lined up to sew, and need to get off my rear and working on those, too. Brittani's still waiting on me to make her dress, and I need to make Trae's clothes for the Renaissance Festival. He'll be working there on the weekends in October & November this year. He's totally excited. He'll be able to sock some money away, take Driver's Ed, and pay for at least 6 months worth of insurance... and a Driver's License will make it a little easier to get a job, too. That's what we're hoping for, anyhow. I know he's ready to be self-sufficient.

This week we picked up a lot more bread than normal, and it's enabled us to pass along bread to 21 families so far, and have more lined up over the next couple of days. I'm so completely excited to be able to help so many people...

I'm hunting for something called "sleep phones" - a good friend of mine owns them, and they're  positively wonderful! Headphones that are comfortable enough to sleep in! Can you imagine? It sounds completely divine to be able to listen to some nice, soft music while trying to fall asleep... and not have my husband sit & complain, no matter how soft the music is. Grumpy Old Man. LOL

We have a new Donkey, too. He's a noisy thing, but he's sweet... you can walk up and pet him and love on him, and he'll eat right out of your hands. He's louder than the roosters in the morning, though.

We've started back to our school work, and I'm enjoying getting back into our routine. It seems like things get so busy around here, and even without school our life gets insane, so adding at least a little routine to our crazy lives is a happy thing.

Do you ever feel like life is breezing by at an entirely faster pace than it's supposed to? It's as though for every year older that I get, that many days are missing from the year... and the year is vanishing faster than I can keep track of. I started asking the kids in April to start thinking about next Christmas, and they look at me like I've grown another head. Now it's August, and Christmas is sneaking up faster than it should be, and I haven't really started on their Christmas at all... which is HIGHLY unusual. Goodness Gracious!

I think it's time for me to head to bed... I'm tired this evening, and tomorrow starts early. I'll finally get this tooth fixed that I cracked a couple of weeks ago. That's definitely a happy thing! It's bothering me more & more every day, so I'll definitely be glad to have it fixed. Hope everyone is doing well... good night!