This Week at Our House #44

We had a reasonably quiet week, getting back to school. The kids did their school work without much complaining. Adam had an eye doctor appointment and a lot more of our chickens began laying eggs. We have 7 chickens and have been wondering for a while which ones are hens and which ones are roosters and it's looking more and more like we have 7 hens, as 5 are now laying and the two youngest are both nesting. We aren't even sure how that happened. I really didn't want more than one rooster, but expected more like 3 roosters and 4 hens. The eggs have been great, though and the kids are really enjoying them. I don't think I will have to buy eggs again for a while. Today we got 5!

1. John continues to work a lot of hours. When he is not working, he is either teaching the older kids or playing with the little kids.
2. I had a week of no doctor's appointments and that was wonderful. I will have one each the next two weeks. They were both this coming week, but I changed one to accommodate grocery shopping needs. I am seeing a fetal medicine specialist and a group of CNMs. 
3. Ruth did not write anything this week. Instead she sent a few one line response emails and two 10 minute voice recordings, so I have nothing to post from her. She would like me to send more voice recordings, but it's generally easier for me to sit down and write. But all is well with her. She is teaching the English for the first time. She has been teaching immigrants up until this transfer. I think she misses her immigrants, but I am glad that she will have an opportunity to teach the English in whom we likely have many common ancestors. 
4. Kate's been very busy working on her book and transcribing all the documents she and Johnny downloaded from the Joseph Smith Papers. She has also been doing a lot of math.
5. Johnny has been busy with transcription too as well as his computer programming, and math. He also spent one day on the roof.
6. It was cold this morning, so I told the kids they could wrap themselves in a blanket because I was not going to turn on the heat. Adam, instead rolled all the blankets together in a tight roll and then rolled the kids in the blankets. He tried to roll more than one kid together, but that did not work out too well.
7. Rachel adores Kate. She comes up behind her and hugs her and spends lots and lots of time talking to her.
8. Anya and Joseph spent the all their free time outside. They have some imaginary games they play together. Every now and then, I see one of them and another comes in and asks why the other quit the game.
9. Joseph checks on the chickens several times a day. They are free range and he is not happy if he does not know where they are and what else is flying in the sky. He also loves to chase them, hold them, and collect their eggs.
10. I asked Joshua what I should write about him on this blog this week and he has come up with all kinds of random things, like characters in the game Anya has made up.
11. Arwen got back into reading better than I thought she would after having taken a week off from school. She is progressing and now has all the skills she needs to sound out tough words. I think having her read some from the Book of Mormon has helped her a lot. Plus, she is not even 6 and a half yet, so I think for her age, she is doing quite well.
12. Susan gets tired between 6 and 7pm and tries to sneak in a nap that is nearly impossible to wake her up from, and then she tries to stay up until between 12 and 1am. I thought the time change might get us all to bed earlier and up earlier. But those hopes were wrong. My kids seem to live by the clock and some some inner clock. The hour change did nothing.
13. Sam continues to get into everything. He is talking a lot more too and talks in complete sentences. He will be two tomorrow. Johnny and Adam got chips, cookies, and candy for their birthdays. When I told him that tomorrow is his birthday, he excitedly pointed out his brother's snacks that he very badly wants.

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