Category Archives: Kendall

Happenings-5/20/2018

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Things around here are always busy and usually pretty interesting. May has been a really busy and expensive month. Lily’s strange “episodes” have added both and of course cause lots of worrying and frustration. I thought I would try to update on the happenings and upcoming plans for the last week and half left in May.

I am going to start a new part time job soon. It is a very unique experience, providing Occupational Therapy via skype.  I am still wading through the process of learning the ropes and applying for licensure. I am so excited.

We should receive our cow that we purchased some time in the next week. I have spent some of my time trying to clean out the freezers and get a good idea of what food we need to eat in order to store the meat.  I anticipate that we will make a 10 or 15 pound batch of Salisbury steak next weekend. I am also planning on making around 5 lbs of taco meat and turning most of that into heat and eat burritos.

In addition to our 900 pounds of beef, we are also scheduled to receive 40 pounds of chicken breast. Hopefully everything works out so that we have approximately 2 weeks between the beef and chicken. I am planning to make packets for grilled chicken in addition to cooking and shredding some to use in dishes over the summer.

I have been able to finish my hours of continuing education that are required every year and have successfully renewed by Occupational Therapy license. I was also required to purchase malpractice insurance which was more than I anticipated.

All three kids have decided to go to church camp this year. I am excited for them but this is by far the biggest expense of the summer. Matt and I are both anticipating being able to work extra during the week they are gone.  That should help offset the expenses.

We currently have approximately three weeks of school left. Our local store “Food Lion” ran a special this week on lunchables.  Most ended up costing $1 each while others were $0.50.  I decided that this was a justifiable expense and purchased enough for the kids to use for lunch every day for the rest of the school year. Matt and I are also focusing on bring food for lunches so that we do not add to our already, over stretch food budget.

The kids are practicing for swim team in addition to Zach’s baseball games and regular church activities for the next two weeks which again means less time to do anything.

Finally a positive note, I get to look forward to a 3 day weekend starting next Friday!  My goal is to get everything caught up so that I can enjoy at least 4 hours sitting by the pool.

5 Things Friday 5/18/2018

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  1. The Square Foot Garden is looking AWESOME!  We are already enjoying lettuce that we sprout from some we had purchased. I am truly amazed at how much we are harvesting.  Everything is growing so well. I am so hopeful that this garden will help us reduce significantly our food bill this summer.
  2. I have really enjoyed baseball season this year and always look forward to swim team starting. However, these two overlapping for 2 weeks has added to the craziness of our schedule.
  3. Lily has been at a series of doctors over the last two week. The official count is 6 and that does not include our trip to the emergency room. I am very grateful for my decent insurance and our medical flex spending card that has help cover most of these expenses.
  4. I should start my part time job in July!! I am super excited at this opportunity not only for the extra pay but a definite change overall for me.
  5. The pool is officially open but with the weather stating rain all weekend, who knows when I will enjoy a relaxing day by the pool?

5 Things Friday-4/27/2018

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  1. We stopped at Lowes after the baseball game tonight and purchased $95 worth of plants. The full moon is scheduled for Sunday so according to farmer’s you are suppose to plant during the upswing of the moon. I am just so excited to get my garden started this year.  I do know that we will need to purchase several additional items but I wanted to at least get the majority started at the “best” time this year.
  2. Matt’s debit card numbers were stolen this week and I have spent almost 5 hours dealing with the aftermath.  We are expected to get back the entire amount that was taken but it is a HUGE  pain in the mean time.
  3. I can file this under the “joys of motherhood.” Tomorrow it would appear that all three of the little kids have somewhere/ something to do.  Which means that I will be playing “taxi” for the part of the day that I am not planting outside.
  4. We are in the middle of baseball season. I actually really enjoy the games but it adds a different level of complexity to our schedule.
  5. Next week, both Kendall and Zach have field days at school which last half a day. Zach has a field trip on Thursday. I am basically take off 2 days of work. But I do realize how quickly they grow up.

Budget Friendly Easter

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We celebrate Easter but it is usually in a low key kind of way. Today was no exception. This morning we started with Easter Baskets at around 6:30am.

84C83166-A3B3-44F3-892A-97512DEC11AA 6FD73009-2379-4E4A-BD8C-95089A5C0940 DAFE24D7-0D81-4246-A94F-14EBB505078FBasket and emoji toys are great things to pick up at the after Easter sales. I would wait until everything is 75% off. Candy is always a good deal at CVS with the ECB, another option is also Target. The Dollar spot at Target can be great for some small socks and stickers. Finally shop at Five Below to grab even more candy and Hot Wheels Cars if you need.

Easter outfits are always fun! Especially when you plan ahead.  Lily and Kendall’s dress were purchased at Costco in February for $16. each. I order Matt and Zach’s matching purple shirts from JCPenny on sale for $9.99 each. Amanda found her dress at Goodwill and David’s shirt was another sale purchase. My outfit was the cheapest from my closet.

5FFF4F5F-2A22-47B9-AFE3-B1F82BBBADF8We all enjoy lunch at my brother’s house and the kids spent the afternoon playing outside and hunting Easter eggs.

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I planned ahead and purchased the ham at Aldi using a $5 off $30 coupon several weeks ago. We came home and enjoyed left-overs for dinner in addition to ham salad I made that will last for several weeks.

 

Monday Mania 3/26/2018

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We SURVIVED!  Our busiest week of the Spring if not the year was last week. We managed to get everyone to their events and only ate out one  time as a family. I did eat out on Tuesday night but that was planned. My plan is to post some picture this week but we know how things go around here.

Kendall enjoyed her first “Battle of the Books” competition and even got a autographed book from her favorite author.

Zach was the catcher at his first baseball game of the season. Unfortunately, his team lost 10-9 so they only played one game in the tournament. Zach will be playing catcher all year!

Lily participated in the Lexington Youth Theaters “Happy Days” musical. We attended all three shows!

Matt and I both worked and managed to keep the house from falling down.

We had thought that tonight (Monday 26rh) would be the first night at home for everyone in several months but Matt was called in to work. So even with this week being much slower than last week. Everyone will not be home together until Friday night. No wonder I am tired.