This Week at Our House # 28

1. John had a phone interview for a job in Orem, UT that he said went well. He was also contacted by Microsoft for some more information, but we aren't so sure that would be a good place for our family as it is very liberal with a high cost of living.
2. I spoke too soon about Susan sleeping. She has been letting me get around 3 to 5 hours of sleep a night. The main trouble seems to be that she will not go asleep before 2 or 3 and then she keeps waking up to eat every hour or two. I have been hazy from lack of sleep and feel a bit like things are out of control because of it. On a nice side, my mom bought me a laptop and now for the first time, I have my own laptop to do my writing on. I love it!!
3. Ruth is such a big help. While I was trying to make up for 3 hours of sleep during the day on Friday, she secretly cleaned 2 bathrooms. Ruth is currently spending a lot of time writing and drawing for a contest. I haven't peeked too much yet, but when she did this 2 years ago, she did an amazing job. She is an even better artist now.
4. Kate really hates her online gym class. It makes her cry pretty much every time she sits down to work on it. Poor girl. 14 to about 15.5 seems to be an emotional age for my girls.
5. We finally got back to the library and Johnny has been reading Agatha Christie books with Ruth, Kate, and I. Johnny has really expanded his reading in the last several months. In the past, he would only read fantasy and comics. Now he reads classics and mysteries as well. 
6. Two weeks ago I told Adam that if he stopped sucking his finger for 30 days straight, we would find a way to purchase either the lego set or the Go game he wants. Adam has gone 14 days without sucking his finger. Given that, I am pretty sure that Adam is stressed about John's job loss. 
7. I am having Rachel do a lot of reading, summer reading worksheets for Legacy Prep, and now she is learning cursive. I feel a little bad about it because she just finished school. I am so glad that we will not have to deal with year round school anymore. She is being a good sport about it all and not complaining or anything.
8. I gave Anya the Book of Mormon stories for her to read for scriptures. I told her she only needed to read one or two squares a day. She has been sitting down and reading it for about an hour a day. 
9. Joseph has been easier and a lot more helpful recently. There are still those times of day where he is moving all over the place and being pretty wild, but it is nice to see that he is starting to mature. He turns 5 next Sunday and starts school exactly one month later. I am a bit nervous about sending my wild boy to school. Hopefully he will do well. I was worried about Adam too and he is just the greatest in school. Time will tell...
10. Josh says "I love you" whenever he does something he knows he shouldn't have, like poop his pants. At this point I am hoping that he will potty train by kindergarten.
11. The reality of having a new baby and a high maintenance baby at that has finally set in with Arwen and she is having a tough time and needing a lot of reassurance. Arwen's new phrase is "stop it," and she is saying it to everyone all of the time. She picked it up from me because I have been saying it to her nonstop as she picks the baby's face or tries to grab her up or lick her or all the other things she is trying to do to Susan right now. We are having a bit of a difficult cycle with that because as soon as I get Susan settled down and asleep so that I can get some things done and spend some time reading to Arwen, Arwen comes and attacks her and wakes her up. Arwen calls Susan Sues and that is just cute.
12. Susan is a high maintenance baby for sure. She is sweet and we all love her, but I doubt we will look back longingly on her newborn time like we have with some of our other babies. She is smiling and holding her head up and straightening into a standing position when I put her on her feet. She also rolls to her side when I lie her on her back. She is definitely a strong little one with a strong personality. 

This Week's Pictures