Okay, I may have been a little dramatic last week. I see that now. I am still not putting social media on my phone because I'm just so much happier when I don't scroll through it all day. But also, not having it readily available at my fingertips keeps me from being on my phone when I could be doing more productive things. I see no need to keep the blog off of Facebook, however. So here it is.
Some new things we're doing are:
Winter and I have been taking guitar lessons together. I have an old guitar I've had for about 15 years and never really played. It came with a book that teaches you tablature. So now we both know how to play Jingle Bells. Super appropriate in June. Mya is still definitely the most musically inclined person in our house. She can play the violin, the cello, and the piano. She's also a great singer. Go Mya. But Winter and I are loving the guitar. I'm trying to bond with each of my kids separately which has proven to be a bit of a challenge because there are so many of them.
I've also very recently implemented quiet time. I've heard that it is REALLY beneficial for kids to play by themselves quietly with no screens for an hour a day. I was skeptical at first because I didn't think they would do it without a giant fight. But I think they are liking the time to themselves. I've had to get creative since we don't have four bedrooms to put each of them in but we worked it out and I'm loving it. I recommend it. That hour flies by, for me at least haha.
I also started the big girls on a typing practice schedule along with reading and multiplication flash cards. Addie is reading and practicing math too. I know. I don't even recognize myself right now. I'm super proud of how I'm actually following through with a plan. That hasn't ever happened in the history of summer at the Wags I think.
Another new thing is that I'm working. Like actual work that I get paid for. I am basically a remote assistant I think. We haven't really defined my position. But it's fun and exciting and challenging and stressful at times because I haven't really worked since Mya was in my tummy. It's also a challenge because the office in our house is an open loft that overlooks the playroom where all the noise lives. So it's pretty impossible to do anything that requires thinking. Quiet time also helps with that.
That's it for new stuff I think. And now for random pics and anecdotes.
Angus and Addie are old enough to play some games with Winter which is nice. I always secretly hope that Angus wins. When he loses, it takes him a while to recover. He ALWAYS cries. He looks up at the ceiling and opens his mouth and wails. But I have to say that the volume and duration of his crying has gone down, so he's making progress. I'll take it.
We signed up for online VBS. Mya agreed to be in charge of it at our house. They had a drive-through pick up your t-shirt and craft supplies etc and a photo opp. I didn't read the email so we came unprepared. I only had two kids with me and Addie was in PJs and Angus's shirt was on backward. But such a cute pic.
I love the cool weather days that are sprinkled in with our June heat waves. Winter loves to go on exploring walks. Sometimes we take Otter.
And sometimes we take Angus.
We explored the golf course by our house since it's closed these days. For such a rule breaker, Winter wasn't very excited to go somewhere with yellow tape blocking the entrance. I convinced her that it wasn't that big of a deal. But then she heard sirens near-by and started panicking, thinking the cops were coming to arrest her. Thankfully we did not get arrested.
And if you rat me out, I'll deny everything.
Of all my kids, Addie is the biggest homebody. We force her to leave the house and step outside every day. She probably would never leave the playroom (our living room) if she had the choice. So that makes it even crazier that she's the one that had a tick feasting on her scalp. Yep, she had a tick. I don't even know how, really. Winter and Angus were the ones rolling around in the grass. Maybe they brought it home and it jumped on Addie...
It was a pretty traumatic experience for Mya. She was doing Addie's hair in bed after they showered and came across what she thought was a watermelon seed stuck to Addie's scalp. Makes perfect sense since we had watermelon the day before. It was seedless but whatever. That was one stubborn watermelon seed because it was really hard to pull off. Once she was able to get it off, it started moving. And that's when Mya freaked the freak out. She's afraid of all bugs and would never in a million years touch one on purpose.
In tears, she explained to me that Addie had bugs in her hair. I looked at the tick and wasn't really sure what it was but I thought it might be one. I told Mya to go get Dan out of the jacuzzi because he's the expert on bugs and animals and things of that nature. Meanwhile, I was trying to check Addie's head for more bugs. She was fighting me, not wanting me to find anything else. So I explained that the bug could be a tick and if it had friends and we didn't get them out of her hair she could get Lyme disease. That's when she burst into tears and asked, "Am I going to die?!" I assured her that she would live a long healthy life and she let me check her head. Dan confirmed that it was a tick but it was not missing its head and it was small which is good. Dan also informed me that Lyme disease exists mostly in Colorado so that's good news too. (Well not for people in Colorado) My husband is seriously so knowledgeable about so many things.
When Mya dropped the tick the second she realized it wasn't a watermelon seed, it landed in her bed so she refused to get back in there until everything was disinfected. "Why couldn't Winter find the tick?" Mya asked through giant tears. "She loves bugs!" I'm not sure I've ever seen Mya that upset so I let her watch a movie in my bed to calm down. Of course, that started a giant protest form the other kids who didn't get to watch TV in my bed. "It's just a bug!" commented Winter. Winter didn't really understand what the big deal was. Mya looked up her fear the next day. "I have entomophobia!" She told me excitedly. Now we know.
And that's our tick story.
The kids are going to have to wear masks to church and probably to school in the fall. So I bought some from Etsy. Addie loves hers.
Angus does not.
I'm still having trouble with the size thing while making online purchases. I bought some red "platters" on Amazon and it turned out they were mini platters. They even look big in the pic below but they have the same surface area as a plate. What's the point of buying a platter no bigger than a plate? Ugh, I have to return them and try again. That Rachel Ray is a trickster.
Here are my recommendations! Am I too excited? Maybe.
I love the smell of this soap. It's so good I want to eat it.
This is something fun you can do with your daughter. Or son? I know for sure Angus would hate a peel-off mask. Winter is super into putting cucumbers on her eyes so she's really excited to do this with me. And it was less than $5. I'm not really a skincare gal. Normally I use a make-up remover wipe as my "nighttime skin care regime." So this mask will probably be the best thing my face has seen all year.
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My TV show recommendation for the week is Married at First Sight, season 9, available on Netflix. Basically, the premise of this show, if you've never heard of it, is a bunch of single people who are fed up with the dating scene and ready to settle down just put their fate in the hands of experts to try to make a love match for them. Hundreds of people are tested and interviewed and they hand pick four couples to get married without even meeting. They meet on their wedding day. So the show follows them from the pre-wedding plans, to the wedding, honeymoon, and to normal life after that. It's super fascinating and I'm totally hooked. Shows like this always make me feel super thankful for Dan. I found him the conventional way. Thanks to Annie, my dear friend, who had a dinner party where we met and Dan fell madly in love with me immediately of course. He may have a different story but I know the truth.
Normally, I'm not a reality show person. I cannot stand those annoying people they always throw in for entertainment and shock value. It's too uncomfortably painful to watch. This show is lovely because everyone is good and sweet and I can see myself hanging out with them. If you like romantic comedies or even reality shows, you'd probably like it.
Well that wraps it up! Happy Tuesday friends! Stay cool if you're in SoCal. Goodness gracious, the heat is going to eat us up. Thank the Lord for AC.