This evening, it was brought to my attention by the CREDIT CARD company, that one of my children had apparently attempted to charge some money on video games and walmart.com. Thankfully, the charges were recognized as fraudulent, so they didn’t go through. But, OMG! I have no idea how in the world they even knew how to access this type of information. I really shouldn’t be surprised though, with a tech savvy dude in the house. But, oh boy! He’s in big trouble when he wakes up in the morning. I had already tried explaining that we don’t have money for this or that, but they think a card has unlimited money? and they can use it without permission? omg,. i’m just at a loss of how to handle this type of situation. It’s crime level stuff.. if they weren’t my kids, I would certainly press charges.. they need to understand the seriousness of this. What will it take?

In other news, there was a dinner theater event that takes place every year at the church we used to attend. The kids all went with me last year, and it was kind of a disaster, because none of them were enjoying themselves, they complained the entire time. ugh.. So, we just left toward the end.. But, this year, I wanted a mother / daughter date with Autumn, and knew that she would enjoy it. We even picked up Mrs. Julie, who used to babysit her years ago. She doesn’t like to drive at night, so we saved her that trouble. It was a lovely evening. But, Autumn did not want to go earlier that day, when I mentioned it to her. It took my dad coming over to talk to her, because she was giving me the business, acting out, being super mouthy, and hiding in her bed, refusing to get dressed. ugh.. thankfully, she did end up enjoying herself, and is wanting to join Pathfinders.. yay!

Tomorrow night, the elementary school is doing a fundraiser at Monte Ne Chicken, so we’re planning a girl’s night for dinner. Autumn will get to have a couple of special outings with me this week. I do hope she’s feeling loved and that her needs are being met by me, as a mom. She tends to act out frequently, and blames it on missing her dad, but I know that’s just an excuse. She needs love.. and I am doing my best to help with that. She and I definitely have arguments, but I truly hope she knows she’s special to me.

Typically on the weekends, the kids just like to stay home, and chill. I don’t mind. We had an extra long weekend this past weekend, and we enjoyed our time at home. I did run a few errands, but for the most part, we were home, and took in the down time. sleeping in, having a pajama day, pancakes, staying up late, had a sleepover with their cousin, took Autumn and Kylee to the movies and dropped them off for the first time. They felt so independent. I am so glad I was part of that special momentous occasion in their lives. They are growing up fast. 11 year olds… oh my goodness.. pre-teens.. 🙂

Allie really didn’t want to do a thing this weekend.. so she just kind of kept to herself, read, played on her computer, and slept in. she goes to bed early always, but can sleep in for hours.. amazing to me. teenagers, i guess..

Back to reality today, and the pressure is on.. so much to do, so little time..

I got this, right?

It’s the day of love.. even if you are single, and don’t have that significant other to bring you flowers, chocolates, whatever it may be, you can still embrace the day of LOVE.. 🙂

I have this annual tradition of buying each kid Valentine gifts.. I present them with their special gift bags in the morning before school. They do enjoy them.. I think…

This year, I didn’t want to give much candy, so I walked the aisles of Dollar General to be more creative. yes.. I went to Dollar General. They have actually come a long way, and have some of the cutest, unique little gifts for Valentine’s Day. So, I loaded up.

Allie received a couple of small notepads, bookmark, slippers, a cute animal shaped chocolate, with a little saying on it, and a mini calendar.

Autumn received the book “Little Women,” a cute animal shaped chocolate, with a little saying on it, and some slippers.

Austin received the book “Tom Sawyer,” a truck shaped chocolate bar, earbuds, and a mini calendar.

Adam received the book “Black Beauty,” a truck shaped chocolate bar, a stapler with some extra staples, and a mini calendar.

They all received a card from me, that each reflect their individual personalities.

I received “thank you’s” this morning from everyone, but Adam said, he really didn’t want the book.. Well, I will read it to him, and I hope he changes his mind, and likes it… it’s a classic, afterall.

Tonight, I plan on making heart shaped pizzas from scratch, I have sparkling pink and purple grape juice, Nothing Bundt Cakes – “bundtlets” and anything else we can come up with at home later.. probably watch a movie together.

It’s all about time together, relaxing, and enjoying the time.

They will grow up fast, and I won’t have them forever.

For all the crazy, chaotic times, we must make time for slow, calm, “no plans” kind of times.

Express the love…

This week, the boys have been suuuuuper naughty at bedtime, after I tuck them in.

I know that I have to check on them after I tuck them in, within about 5 minutes.

Over the weekend, Austin had a lively birthday party at home, and had received some full size candy bars, and that sour gummy strip candy.

I went down to do my nightly check up, and saw them eating the candy in the bottom bunk together, as I sneaked in on them. They quickly put their covers over their heads to hide their guilty actions from me.

I grabbed the candy, threw it in the trash, and of course, they were mad at me, and said I just wasted food. ha.. Well, THEY had just broken a rule, and knew better. So, I made them get out of bed, brush their teeth AGAIN, and climb back into their beds. night night…

Again, I know that I must check on them once more, to ensure that they truly are winding down in their own bunks, to go to sleep.

Sneaking back down again, I noticed that they were in bed together, watching a YouTube video on the iphone.. (I had all other electronics safe upstairs, and they had “Claimed” the iphone was lost in the car… ) I can NEVER trust these boys..

They were busted once again, and grounded, with no sugar in their lunches for the rest of the week. (AS well as no electronics.. duh)

They are mad at me, and say they don’t like me, but who cares???

I don’t… 🙂

One last note on a funny that I died laughing over..

Prior to me discovering their candy in the bed, Austin was complaining of something in his bed. He thought they were bed bugs… turns out, it was the sugar from the sour gummy candies… that’s what you get!!! bed bugs.. pshhhh!!!! hahahahaha

Austin had his first day at the new school yesterday. I was a nervous wreck about this change for him, but he responded amazingly well. I had to prep him last week, because I was notified at the end of the week, that it was going to be effective on Monday THIS WEEK.. Not much of a notice here.. But, he took it well, and was prepared for it. I know he’s a little bummed that he won’t be at his regular class Valentine’s Day Party this coming Friday, but the school he is attending, is having an ice cream party, so that seems to be OK by him. 🙂

I met the new teacher in the office yesterday morning, and she walked Austin to the class. I brought in a few boxes of snacks to share with the class, because in this classroom setting, they get breakfast in the classroom AND a snack box for the whole class to share and choose from. Austin really likes this!

Today, I dropped him off and it was early, so he couldn’t go directly to his classroom yet. The option was to sit in the cafeteria with the rest of the kids, but it was really loud in there, and he doesn’t like that at all. So, the school counselor met us in the lobby area, and said he was welcome to wait in her office, where it was quiet. She was super nice! A few minutes later, his teacher came along, and I got the briefing from his first day. It was so great!

His teacher told me that he is very smart, ahead in the technology world for his age, trying to teach other kids how to “hack” into other students reading accounts, told her what type of security cameras the school had, including the details about them. He talked to her a lot, and was very comfortable with her. She’s watching him closely on any electronic device that he gets to use, as she is fully aware of how fast, and knowledgeable that he is. He told her that he doesn’t like the school because the playground is small. The library doesn’t have his favorite books, and there is no office in there. The cafeteria is small and doesn’t have a stage like Eastside does. He talked to her throughout the day, listing off multiple facts, and she noticed how he is very literal. If the schedule shows something is supposed to be happening at this particular time, and they are not doing it, he calls her out. He wants to stay on task with everything. He is ahead in Wit and Wisdsom reading, by 2 levels. So, he is telling her every book he read and the author’s name of each one. Even though he may not have been paying attention in class, he took it all in, and knew his stuff.

Amazing kid, and he’s just going to show everyone what he is made of..

wait for it…

Life has been such a whirlwind lately, there hasn’t been time to update this blog, as much as I would love to.

I went out of town for a week with work last week, and had my kids in the care of my dad and step-mom. My step-sister also stepped in as a major help, and life saver, really. I know that I am lucky to have such great support. It’s hard to imagine what life would be like without it.

Overall, I would say things went well, with a few issues, but who doesn’t have issues, right? With having to care for 4 kids (mine), plus my niece, it does make for some chaos.

I came back to some of that as well. Laundry piles, kids with attitudes, whining, fighting, disobeying, all in one evening, as I returned. wow! I was so sad. I was really hoping to have a lovely evening, relaxing and enjoying their company. It was such a hard evening, that I made them all go to bed early. boo!!

Things did improve throughout the weekend, as we all settled back into our routine, and had a nice weekend together, after the initial “wow” moments.

Updates on things.

Austin will be going to a different school, to have more one-on-one attention from staff, which I do believe he will thrive in that type of environment. It’s just another thing in the day. Another school to drop a child off to, pick up from, new people, new everything. It’s only supposed to be a temporary arrangement, but let’s hope he does really well, likes the kids, the staff, and complies with the expectations and rules.

We are back on electronics, however, more limited, more chores are expected to be done prior to the privileges. So far, it’s going well.

Allie got accepted into Duke University for the Duke Tip Summer program. She will be studying The study of Epidemiology. hmmm. such a smart girl.. right?

This weekend, the girls, April, and I are going to attend the musical, Newsies at the Rogers Little Theater. It’s going to be Autumn’s first musical, and April’s favorite! So, Christmas gift will be redeemed for all of us together. Should be fun!

Austin has some Cub Scout events to attend this weekend, and we’re gearing up for his 9th Birthday Party Celebration on Sunday. We will have it at our house, and he’s invited some kids from his class. All boys. He designed his own invitation, a remarkable drawing of an airplane. I scanned it, resized it, and put the invite info on one side, and glued the picture to the other side. Turned out really neat! We’re going to make and design his cake together. He wants a Tesla Cyber Truck cake. No bakery around here will do it. We will be doing this on our own.. wish us luck! lol

Life has been hectic, but when is it not, right?

I just haven’t had much time to update lately, so there’s that…

We are still going strong on “no electronics” and it’s been pretty decent.

I still have major stress, but it’s not as bad.. I suppose… The kids are still kids though.

But, I do have to say, their creative juices have been flowing like mad the past few weeks.

I let them build a fort, and keep it up for a few days, even on school nights. They have been allowed to camp in it a few nights in a row. They LOVED that. They built a massive one, and filled it with blankets, toys, a lamp, snacks, flashlights, a fan (because it was stuffy they claimed), and some stuffed animals. They got along, and Adam even made a separate fort in one of the dining rooms. He and Austin would send “telegrams” to each other. It was so cute. Adam started writing me little love notes, asking to cuddle together. Autumn and Austin wrote a cartoon book. Austin was the writer, Autumn was the illustrator. This was by far the best work I’ve seen from both of them. They typically fight constantly, but they bonded with this project. They got into my recycling bins and made all kinds of trinkets and gadgets. They read some comics in the newspaper, and Autumn found a clipping about being able to submit cartoon drawings to the paper. She has great interest in doing this sometime.

There’s just been more engagement, personalities have evolved, and working together, they built some great things. They “say” they miss their electronics, but I have seen them have so much fun together, it inspires me to extend our “cleansing.” 🙂

I did reward them on Sunday, and got them a lego set, so they could expand more on their creative play. They did just that.

I leave town for a week, next week with work. My dad, step-mom, step-sister, and family will be helping during this time with the kids. I sure hope all goes well. I know it’s a full load, and I am greatly appreciative for their support to be “me” for a few days.

We are now over 1 full week being electronic free. The kids are still yearning for their beloved devices, but I am staying strong, not giving them 5 minutes of game time.

We are all doing very well without them. Stress levels are much lower, screaming and fighting has diminished, however, attitudes remain about the same.

Austin – struggling so hard in school. I was called to the school yesterday, to walk him to the office, as he was not doing classwork in the classroom. He absolutely refused. Teachers and counselors tried to get him to the office to do his work there, but he just turned away from them. They did mention that they would need to call me, but he just ignored that. So, I was called, drove over there, and got him situated in the office with his work. He felt overwhelmed with the assignment, and acted like he didn’t know what to do. I tried explaining that he would get to go to the school library just as soon as he finished this particular assignment. He wasn’t excited about that at all. He acted like it was painful to go in there, as it took forever, like they were in there for a long time. Later, in the evening, it boiled down to this. He is upset at his teacher for changing his log-in on the school chromebook. He says he is so mad, and doesn’t trust the school staff, doesn’t like school anymore, just wants his password changed back. I tried explaining that it wasn’t her, it was the school district that changed it. He was abusing the privileges and changing things around on the chromebook, which belongs to the school. He did not have permission to do these things. He was going into sites that he shouldn’t have been going to. (He truly is too smart for his own good.) He had been the classroom IT guy.. Everyone came to him, even teachers for help on their devices. He can fix anything. This truly is a gift.. But, he took advantage of some of this, which is why we are where we are now. So, the challenge is, getting him to engage in class, focus on the tasks, and care. He truly doesn’t care and that’s the problem here. sigh.. oh Austin…

Autumn – she loves to pick and poke at the siblings who will respond to her the most. That hasn’t changed… She’s doing well in school, playing well with Adam, engaging in creative play, and seems to be enjoying it, just fine without any devices..

Adam – He’s enjoying creative play, jumps right in to do an activity on his own, without even a sigh or a complaint, begging for his computer.

Allie – misses playing the Sims on her computer right now, but she’s got a great attitude about it, being part of this initiative.

Overall, we are doing great, I’m working on getting them more involved in the housework, and playing as team in our household. It’s slow and steady steps toward the ultimate goals, but we’re making progress, and that’s a huge WIN there.

I think I want to incorporate some relaxation techniques with them, like some yoga.. we’ll see how that goes over with them.

🙂

We are 4 full days in without electronic devices, and let me tell you.. quite the changes have been noticed.

Adam – he has been a lot more mild in his emotions. He was quick to anger before with his siblings, when something didn’t go his way. He tuned me out, specifically. He would not acknowledge me when I would say that dinner is ready, or let’s play a game together. I even asked which one of the boys wanted to be the “man of the house,” and no response… Since this cleansing, Adam notices when I get home, and tells me he misses me, told me that he DOES want to be the man of the house, and runs quickly to make sure all the doors are locked, and that we are safe. He is more affectionate, and wants cuddle time. He loves to watch the news in the morning, while eating breakfast. We actually have conversations, and it’s quite pleasant. He is entertaining himself with legos, and even started playing Barbies with Autumn. (she just started playing with them now, which I’ll get to shortly). He also immediately comes home and sits at the counter, and starts drawing pictures. No complaints… I don’t think he even misses his electronic device.. 😉

Austin – he is more talkative, still reflecting on his gaming and youtube videos that he’s watched, but starting to show interest in his robotic activity that he got for Christmas, interested in watching the news also, loves to catch up on current events. He is curious about what the dinner plan is, and seems to be more obedient, and responsive. But, I will say that he still gets triggered to anger sooo quickly. I’m calmly trying to work with him on this. It tests my patience though, believe me.

Autumn – she is more interested in face timing with her friends, texting, and playing with her Barbies. She is in a happy mood, still loves to pick on her brothers, it’s as though it’s entertaining for her when they react in a negative manner. She still has a mouth on her, and is sometimes defiant, but we are still so new to this new routine. She’s doing great playing with Adam, and has interest in taking initiative to clean up after herself. I appreciate that.

Allie – she just told me that she will read more.. ok then.. she’s not one of many words anyway, she is doing great. I never have to worry about what she’s really doing, because she’s a good girl. She is responsible, reliable, gets her work done, without me having to stay on her. Not sure what other impact this time will have on her, but I think she’s going to get bored.. and I will have to remedy that with some games of Risk with her. 🙂

Me – I am just enjoying this MUCH reduced stress I’m experiencing. The kids answer me, they aren’t rude, screaming, or arguing, or sneaking upstairs after bedtime to get their devices, or watching bad things, or tuning the world out around them. So, I consider this a major WIN so far. The goal of this, is to make the kids realize there is life outside of the screen, and to allow me to enjoy my kids. It’s been really challenging lately, to really be able to enjoy the kids, when they just want to be on their screens, and if nothing else is going on at home, then I let them. But, we are going to be engage together, embrace time together, do things, and when it is finally time to allow them to be back on devices, I will do things differently.

They will have to earn their time. It’s going to be monitored, and carefully managed. for real!

Life is going to be better, and we are going to thrive.. I just know it!

More updates to come..

We are going to start our return back to school with a major adjustment in our daily life.

The kids are going to be “electronic free” for the remainder of the month. I am doing this as a cleansing for all of us.

We need to reset our life. I feel out of control with my kids, and they definitely know it, and are playing on it.

I am pushed to the limits, exhausting patience almost immediately on a daily basis.

I am so over the video games, as these kids don’t listen, or even pay attention to the world around them.

This is going to be something that not only affects our down time, but I expect the kids to gain responsibility around the house, learn about taking initiatives, and just becoming better citizens in our world.

I also started reading a book on stress. I have loads of it. I bring it in the house, and unload on the children frequently.. it’s not ideal. It’s harmful, and can cause health related illnesses later in life. I don’t want to do that to my children!!!

So, starting today, we are going to experience freedom from electronics, videos, video games, you name it.

Let freedom ring… patience grow, love deepen, voices soften, and initiatives kick in…

On to new habits… 🙂

We can do it, if we put our mind to it..

It sort of feels like this holiday, we have been able to enjoy lots of down time at home. This could mainly be due to the fact that 2 of my 4 kids have the flu.

We broke out the board games, made hot tea, watched a couple movies, cuddled closely, took temperatures multiple times, ate some snacks, made a roast with mashed potatoes, and even enjoyed some brownies with ice cream.

We still have a few days remaining of the freedom from our regular routine, so I sure hope we can get outside this coming weekend, get some fresh air, be out in nature, and do some “mountain” climbing together. These kids do love the outdoors, once you get them out.

Allie is wanting some “alone at home” time, so I’m going to see what I can do to give everyone what their hearts desire, within reason. 🙂

I truly enjoy some down time, with no demands.. I think everyone does.

I welcome 2020 with open arms, and hope we can be successful this year with some new milestones, as a family.

Game nights / family nights together, is one of my main goals. No electronics, just fun with snacks and games together.. let’s see if we can make that one happen.

No huge goals here.. just more of “us” time and engaging in projects together…..