what's up weekly.

I left off last Friday by telling you that we were headed to the Amish that day, and that I would be grading papers.  Well, I did neither of those things because first, Rocco ended up barfing that morning, and second, I didn't want to. (Respectively.)

We have been dealing with some kind of lingering virus, I think.  It seems like one or a couple of the kids will fall sick for a few hours, and then everything will be fine for a few days, and then the same thing happens again.  Mild fevers, sore throats, belly issues, headaches and vomiting all rear their heads for a bit and then go dormant again.  It's so hard to tell if/when we're actually healthy, or whether it's just gone back into hibernation for a few days before coming back.  Super weird.

Juni's been eating more and more table food, though I'm not convinced she's growing at all as a result.

All that to say, I was starting to get a bit stir crazy.  Because of sickness and weather, I had been stuck in the house pretty much every single day except to venture out for church once a week.  So by the time Saturday morning rolled around, I was ready to get out of the house for some time out.  I ran to Target and then parked myself at the library for a few hours.

Saturday mornings are bath mornings here, and Penelope has been taking it upon herself to get the littler girls clean.  She washes them (including their hair), dries them off, and even rediapers Lissy.  It's amazing.

On Sunday, Todd had a meeting before church, so I got all the kids ready to go on my own.  We made it but, ooh child, I would not be cut out for doing that every week. (Yet one more line item under "Why We Don't Do Vocational Ministry:" I am not a robust enough Christian to endure Sundays by myself.)

On Monday, we jumped back into our school routine.  We are now on the downhill slide: we are past the halfway point in the year.  Glory, hallelujah!  And also - the big kids have now logged enough school hours that I can stop recording their hours for the rest of the year.  Finneas still needs another month or two of logging, but I am almost out of the woods.  I could not be more excited to not have to keep track of that nonsense for a while.

Can you tell she has brothers?

But even though she can hold her own with the boys, she is also incredibly maternal and always makes sure she has at least one baby tucked in bed somewhere in the house.

Tuesday, Todd took the day off work to drive Atticus to Kansas City for his orthotropics appointment.  Things are looking good, and they actually removed his appliance.  We'll see if his teeth stay in place as his missing adult teeth continue to grow in, but his jaw development is looking good.

While they were in KC, I took the other kids up to the Amish.  Wednesday was projected to snow yet again, and as we'd missed going up there for three consecutive weeks already, we decided to go up a day early so we could guarantee cooperative weather.  It was a fun trip - and a busy one.  Since starting on Whole30, we have been going through eggs like gang busters, so I needed to track down fifteen dozen of those, plus I needed to run a few extra errands: stocking up on our favorite ointment for curing headaches and swollen lymph nodes (Unkers! It's not crunchy, but it works like you wouldn't believe), picking up goat dewormer for my friend Irene, and driving around to find extra gallons of milk.  (The littlest kids are still drinking raw milk, regardless of Whole30.)  Then we had a grocery pickup after we got back to town.

Finneas has really been getting good at drawing lately.  He drew Dudley Doright without even looking at anything for reference!

Wednesday was a really full day.  We squeezed in a whole day of school, and then some friends came over to watch the kids so Todd and I could get a date night in.  We are the best kind of boring, and we ate at the mall food court and then tried on clothes at Express until the mall closed.  WOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!  Seriously though, my favorite dates are ones where we just get to be friends and humans together.

Back to school!

Yesterday, we missed some school because we had a chiropractor appointment in the middle of the day, which always throws things off.  After we got home, the kids sat and made Valentine's Day cards, and I was reminded once again why I never succumb to the pressure to craft.  There is nothing like crafting that convinces me that I am not cut out to be a parent.

After the kids went to bed last night, I wrapped a few little gifts for Valentine's Day and strung a festive garland.  I am excited for them to get up today and party the day away.  Our V Day traditions are so fun.  I'll fill you in next week!

Signing off for now!

what's up weekly.

Hey hey!  Long time, no see.  You can now rest easy, knowing I am, in fact, still alive.  (You're such an alarmist.)  I know it's been a minute since I last filled you in, and I'm planning on writing and backdating a couple of posts about the previous few weeks, but for now, let me just cover this past week.

On Saturday, Todd and the bigger boys joined our friend Josiah on a trip to the WWI Museum in Kansas City - it's the largest WWI museum in the country.  (Who knew Kansas City was home to anything even remotely notable but Worlds of Fun?  I surely didn't.)

The boys are both in awkward smiling stages.  Because all kids everywhere are always in awkward smiling stages.  WHY DO KIDS DO WEIRD THINGS WITH THEIR FACES I ASK YOU.  Luckily, our kids are definitely cute enough to overcome these shortcomings.  I'm not saying yours aren't, but I'm also not saying they are.

I stayed home with the rest of the progeny, and we had the most quiet, restful Saturday in the history of ever.  Once the littlest three were down for nap, and only Laurelai and Penelope were still up and around (and coloring quietly at the table), it struck me that some people only have two kids.  Two big kids.  Two big, quiet, girl-kids who sit and color quietly at the table all afternoon while their mom sobs her way through the last Harry Potter book.  Weird stuff.

This picture, taken in the wild, sums up what it's like being a girl mom right now:

Girly book with a girly cover on a girly bed, left there by a girly girly.   

Also, I bought a dust ruffle for the girls' bed this week (the word "girl" is really starting to weird me out the more I type it  - girl. girl.  Isn't that a weird word?) and it is white eyelet and the granny-est thing I've bought in a while, so you know it did my soul good.  Then I used a staple gun to attach it to the bed frame, which you should also know did my soul good.  (Now "good" is starting to get the side-eye.)

Janky phone photo, but that's the best I could do.

And yet more pictures of the prettiest parts of life: daughters!  Here is Juni, rocking a headband AND a tutu AND cable-knit tights.  (Finneas bought her this dress for Christmas; is that not just the most adorable thing you've ever heard?!)

We have been on break from school this week, which means lots of rest, reading, and hanging out with friends and college gals.  On Monday, it was 70 degrees out, so the kids spent most of the day playing outside.

On Tuesday, I cleaned out one side of the laundry room because no nightclubs were open that early but I was in the mood to party.  (As I was scrubbing down a cabinet in there, I was wondering when the last time was that that particular shelf had gotten wiped down, and at that exact, precise, very moment my sponge knocked loose a receipt from 1974.  I guess that answers that question. Gross.)

My laundry room is nothing special, but I do like being in here when it's clean.  PTL for this Urban Outfitters rug and the Picasso Print That I Will Try To Smuggle With Me Through the Pearly Gates When I Die.

By Wednesday, it was in the twenties and we were totally snowed in, so again, the kids spent much of the day playing outside, but in very different conditions.

We're shooting to make it up to the Amish today, since we haven't been able to get out before now.  I should probably also grade papers, which I should have done on Monday but I've been procrastinating because *shudder*.  Also, I plan on spending the entire day feeding the kids, because Whole30 has ramped up their metabolisms so much that all they do is win win win.  I mean, eat eat eat.  (Plus, Juniper is now eating solids at the table with us, in an attempt to fatten up, so literally all I do all day is make food for myself, then the big kids, then breastfeed, then feed Juniper at the table, and then start the whole process over again.)

One more picture of pretty Juni, just because this is my blog and I get to call the shots.

See her beautiful double chin?  That is a soon-to-be-fat baby right there.

And, just because, here's what's been capturing my attention lately:

Reading:Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling
Angels in the Architecture by Douglas Jones and Douglas Wilson
Liver Rescue by Anthony William (who is a certifiable nut)
Bone of my Bones by Douglas Wilson
The Green Ember
Kidnapped by Robert Louis Stevenson

Watching:
The King's Speech, which is so beautiful it hurts
Frasier (with Todd, because we're fogeys)
Scrubs

And there you have it.

what's up weekly.

This week.  What is there to even say about this week?  It has been pretty low-key, and also I took like zero photos, so you'll just have to rely on my knack for painting vivid word pictures.  Just call me Blog Ross.

It stormed last weekend.  Normally I head out on Saturday mornings for a little Time Out, but I don't drive when it's icy.  So Todd drove me to the library to pick up my holds, and then we came back home and I holed up in our room for a few hours, reading my Bible and planning the upcoming week.  It was nice to be at home, but also away from the fray for a bit.

In Sunday news, Laurelai has been coming into the 'big' service at church since she turned six in August, and she has been asking since then if she can get a headcovering to be like me and Penelope.  So a couple of weeks ago, I ordered the girls matching coverings, and they were so excited to finally get them in the mail.  They looked adorable on Sunday.  Sisters are just the best.

In other Sunday news, this is how I Sunday.

I know, I know.  The celebrity life sure is glamorous, but try hard to not be too jealous.


Two of the kids lost teeth this week: Finneas parted ways with Professor Gary, his holdout top tooth, and Laurelai said heartfelt goodbyes to her very first loss, Queen Rosette Grace.  (The kids name their teeth; I feel like I should have mentioned this before now.)  They were both very excited to move on to the next chapters in their personal dental stories.

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Someone lost her first tooth last night! (And *Someone Else* had to pull it even though *Someone Else* is completely repulsed by teeth.) (It’s me.)

A post shared by Paige Van Voorst (@theminivanvoorsts) on Jan 14, 2020 at 1:26pm PST

Juniper had a well check on Tuesday, where we discovered she's lost some weight.  I think it's probably mostly due to her becoming mobile since her last visit, but to be on the safe side I'm trying to squeeze in more feedings through the day, and to actually start pushing a few foods.  So far, she has been pretty disinterested in solids (which has been pretty typical for my kids - most of them don't eat a ton before eleven or twelve months) but I have discovered she really likes the yolks of fried eggs, homemade chicken broth, and the butter we buy up at the Amish, so I've been offering those to her throughout the day.  We'll see if she bulks up a bit before her weight check in a couple of weeks.

These two stinky turds leveraged their stealth to get on the counter when our backs were turned.  At least they look repentant.

The weather has been weird this week.  After the ice storm last weekend, we had a good number of days in the upper 50's.  Now we're projected to be getting another ice storm this afternoon, so we're hunkering down today.  We probably won't be headed to Shelter for our Friday walk, and I'm praying Todd gets off work early due to weather.  (It still cracks me up that Missouri businesses actually close for weather reasons.)  I'll probably spend another Saturday morning "off" at home rather than at the library, but that's honestly fine - I love being at home, so it's kind of nice to spend my time out, in.

Well, anyway.  That's what's been up around here.  Thanks for bearing with me through the interesting weeks and the not-so-interesting weeks.  Perhaps I'll have more captivating news to share next time!

what's up weekly.

The major news of this week is that we started back to school, and uffda, y'all.  It is taking everything I have in me to actually sit down and write this blog post instead of using my mite of free time zoning out with a Harry Potter book like a real dork.  A real exhausted dork.

Okay, so I will admit the week wasn't nearly as bad as I was anticipating, and I actually feel pretty proud of that.  I think that I'm finally starting to adjust to the full, fast pace of this school year.  But I will also admit that we didn't actually finish an entire day's assignments at any point this week, so take that how you will.

But whatever the case, this week was actually encouraging in many ways.  Even after two weeks off, the kids didn't struggle too much with the transition back to the regular routine and workload.  My attitude was actually not horrible.  (On a scale of "Scrooge - Pollyanna," I would say I fell somewhere right around "Danny DeVito" - knowing that even that data point encompasses its own scale.  He's an actor with a wide range.)  And to be honest, we're all still really loving our subject material.  There is not a single book or subject that the kids or I dread.  Interest is the love that covers a multitude of motivational sins.

We did some other stuff besides school this week, too.  First of all, Juni is on the move!

I mean, she has been for a while, and also, I mean, she is never really on the move.  She likes to just be where the action is, and then park it.  I have never had a baby so content to just sit near where I am.  She doesn't need to be held most of the time, but she also doesn't feel the need to wander or explore the house much.  She just sits by me and chews on stuff and smiles at the world.  (Seriously, she smiles all the time.  Her resting face is a smile - Todd calls it Resting Friend Face.)  She genuinely could not be more pleasant.

On Saturday morning, I took my usual Sabbath retreat to the library and finally found my sweet spot: a table that was not near the kids' area (I obviously love kids, but I don't love Library Kids), not near a drafty window, not near the balcony where The Oglers congregate, and not near anyone smelly.  (There is nothing like the library on a Saturday morning to give you a literal taste for the vast array of human smells.)  I can't tell you more specifics about the location because I can't risk you taking my newfound library campsite.

Monday was a busy day: it was our first day back to school, I had a Walmart pickup scheduled in the afternoon, Rocco got his cast off (!! And I forgot to get a photo!) and I went to Aldi in the evening.

Yes, Rocco finally got his cast off!  His arm seems to have healed well, but he's still limited in his range of motion.  They said that's normal, but that it shouldn't continue much longer.  He got to take a Real Boy Bath instead of a Zippy Dunk, and he can now put his own pants on again without help.  Life is better for everyone.

I took him with me grocery shopping that night, too.  I take the kids out shopping with me one at a time, and this week was his turn.  He was so fun to hang out with!  It's been a while since it has been just me and him, and he's such an easygoing kid.  I let him pick out a treat, and he picked Pop Tarts, but he kept forgetting what they were called.  "What is my treat called again, Mama?  Poctors?  Poppers?"  He also got a Starbucks hot chocolate that he insisted on bringing home and putting in the fridge until the next day.  So really, he got a "chocolate milk tomorrow."

On Wednesday, we made our trip up to the Amish in the morning, and then did another Walmart pickup.  (Now that our town boasts not one, but three Walmart pickup locations, I can reorder the stuff that was out of stock on my first try and pick it up at a different, better-stocked store.)  I also started taking down our Christmas decorations and hauled the trees outside.  The upstairs living room looks way better now that all the clutter is out; the basement family room looks way sadder.  Once I get the rest of the Christmas stuff put away, I will focus my home efforts on recozy-fying down there.

Yesterday, it was sixty degrees outside, so I sent the kids out to play as much as possible.  No one in our house is complaining about it, though it does feel weird that this is January.

Guess what else is weird?

Callista.  Callista is weird.


In First World Problem news, Netflix got rid of Frasier, and now we have to check it out from the library on DVD.  There are so many strange things about that sentence.  We watch Frasier.  On DVDs.  That we check out from the library.  Which has Frasier on DVD.  ("Crazy world.  Lots of smells.")


And that was our week!  Off to tackle Friday!

what's up weekly.

Much of the activity from this last week falls into categories, so today I'm going to do a bulleted list.  Want to fight about it?

Didn't think so.


1. Christmas 2.0.  

Yes, Christmas was last week, but we have decided to observe all twelve days of Christmas, which continue on until January 6, as part of our Advent and Christmas celebrations.  I've always kind of wondered why Christians stop celebrating after Christmas - isn't the whole excitement of the gospel bound up in what comes after Jesus' arrival?  Why do we revel so much in anticipating Christmas, and then refuse to celebrate its actual presence among us?  It's like celebrating labor for the sake of delivering the baby, and then ignoring the actual baby once it's here because we've already experienced what we believed was the point.  Seems a bit anticlimactic to me, and I do wonder if that's why there's such a ubiquitous cultural feeling of letdown after Christmas.

So, we still have up our tree and stockings, I'm still playing the Classic Christmas station on Pandora, and we're still only watching Christmas movies during our family TV time.  We are hanging onto Christmas for dear life.

However, I will also say that one string of lights on the tree has burnt out, we are draining the last dregs of the Christmas movies (like, "watching America's Funniest Home Videos: Christmas Edition clips on YouTube" kind of dregs), and the lights have half-fallen out of my front window and I haven't even bothered to fix them.  This year, continuing to observe Christmas is taking discipline.  I pray that someday I will be sanctified enough to not grow weary of feasting.  It is precisely my mortality, my finitude, my creatureliness that faints under the weight of continued fullness.  I want to grow strong enough to bear it.  So this year is practice to that end.


2.  School break.

I have really loved this time of break, getting to rest, read and run errands when I wanted to/needed to.  I think the transition back to school next week will be welcome, but difficult.  I have spent the week getting prepared: setting school goals for the next four weeks, and gathering books for our new Morning Basket topics and writers.  My school mantra for this term is going to be, "Onward and upward, to Narnia and the North!"

Not everything has been on hiatus over break; we have still been going to Shelter for walks each Friday.  The weather has been mostly beautiful, though last week it was a bit cold.

All bundled up!  I will be putting Juni's Christmas money toward a zippered, insulated carseat cover to make these walks a little more pleasant for her.

Cold dingers.

Callista also turned two and a half last Friday, so we took some photos while on our walk.

Is she not just the SASSIEST?! Good gracious, I could not love her one ounce more than I do or I would positively explode.

3.  Reading and growing.

We have continued reading, reading, reading through the week.  The kids started a Bible read-through plan for the year, and have jumped right in.  Even Finneas is working his way through the first chapter of John.

Penelope got a nightstand and a nice bedside lamp for Christmas, so she pretty much never sleeps anymore.

Laurelai also never sleeps, because Penelope's reading time is often a group affair. 

I found a book on the Civil War at the library sale, so Atticus has spent plenty of his own hours squirreled away in the quiet corners of the house.

I also started a Great Courses course (redundant?) on the History of European Art, and I am honestly surprised at how much I am loving it.  I get out my Book of Centuries and a cup of coffee and have a heyday.  (Just call me "Fast Times.")  The kids even love joining me, especially for the architecture lectures.  I checked out a book called The Annotated Mona Lisa, and I think I may read Schaeffer's Art and the Bible and/or something by Hans Rookmaaker later this year, to keep deepening my (currently deficient) knowledge base in this area.

Learning about Romanesque architecture.  I'm happier about it than this photo would indicate.

4.  Getting our business gears grinding.

Both of the big kids have recently expressed interest in starting little businesses.  Atticus is hoping to start doing some lawn care once he turns twelve, so I have another year before I need to have that figured out.  But Penelope has been angling to start flower farming, so we're preparing to try our hand at marketing zinnias this summer.  We sat down and got our ideas on paper, and then we got out to the garden to (finally) pull out the dead stuff from last summer and get some soil amendments added.  You know you live in Missouri when there's still green, lush, abundant Creeping Charlie doing its thing in January.  (Also, don't let the coats fool you: it was fifty-seven degrees out.  Practically summer already.)

5.  MORE FEASTING!

On New Year's Eve, we pulled out our feast day supplies, and some jaunty hats and Elton John glasses, and had ourselves a little par-tay.  Original poems were read by Todd and Penelope (and they were absolutely amazing, and I'm excited to share them with you next week!), and a Mighty Mighty Cheeseboard made an appearance... as did my brand new table runner!  Fantastico!  It was a cheapo find at Marshalls, so I wasn't too heartbroken when wine already got spilled on it.

No, we didn't let the kids stay up until midnight, because we're not lunatics and yes, we (the grown ups) ushered in the New Year watching Frasier in our pajamas.  Nothing says "I'm an ancient old coot" like watching Frasier in your pajamas on New Year's Eve.  We have arrived at our Best Life.

And just because they're total cuties and I can't resist...

Happy 2020!  If this year is anything like the rest of my life has been, it will be full of ups and downs and plenty of mundanity, and I cannot wait to live it with all the Best People.