Things to Remember

After just over a year, our dishwasher died.  It took over two weeks for the technician to come out and tell us this, then we had to wait for the reimbursement, then another three weeks for our new unit to be installed.  The day finally arrived, and we were all excited!  Mostly my poor, dry, hands.

The new unit quite possibly has the highest capacity of any machine we've ever owned.  My biggest complaint is the lack of time estimate.  At least on the old units it was a turn dial, so you could see if a cycle was almost done, but not on this one.  Between the repair man recommending dishwashing liquid, and then seeing a video of someone who had to spend a chunk of change for a plumber when their pods failed to fully dissolve, I decided to use a bottle of liquid detergent in between each box of dishwasher pods.  

The liquid* is actually the perfect viscosity!  It flows easily, but isn't messy or drippy.  I've been happy, so far.

Cynthia, Chelsea's mom, sent me a very cool German book that I've been enjoying, whenever I have an occasion to wait.  The first pages reminded me of Christin! <3

Billy is replacing each computer, as each birthday arrives.  So far he's built himself a new one (with William inheriting his old one) and Emily.  The twins should be getting theirs this month, depending on how quickly the motherboard comes in.  Our old computers were built in 2017, so it was time for a new round.

A new shiny machine!

Billy was a big fan of the cooling fan.  Really.  He was very excited to get it and test it out. lol.

Sadly, while Billy was fighting one of the components in the computer, on the table, he did not use delicate pressure on our ailing dining table, and managed to break off not one, but two of the legs.  = (  He ordered some parts and got it repaired before our Murder Mystery party, but it was an awkward week of eating dinners in the kitchen.  The repaired table is much sturdier though, and I don't have to push in the legs after every meal now. lol.

Grace loved the hats from Kristy!  She and Juliet each got two coordinating hats from her get rid of stack!

Alice's parent teacher conferences took place early in the day, so the twins ended up tagging along, and sat on the stairs (so that I could see them from each station) entertaining themselves while Alice accompanied me to each meeting.

Grace and Juliet got matching frames, they are different colors, but the same shape.  They decided to dress the same for picture day, and omg, do they look alike!  In this picture it's Juliet left and Grace right.

I volunteered to help at the second hand bookfair.  It was so well done!  A few weeks before, the librarian sent out a request for gently used book donations.   The books were spread out on tables and displayed on shelves.  Paperbacks were 50c, most hardcovers $1, and a few select books were a couple of bucks more, but nothing was over $5!  The librarian also put out bookmarks, pencils, stuffed animals, and a few other novelty items.  The kids loved it, and some of them left with a pile of  'new to them' books!

The bookfair always does best when parents are able to come in with their adult money, so on the next reading night, I've volunteered to help again, since there were so many books left over!  

If I have to be awake in the cold and dark, at least I get to hear some good music.

Another set of pictures of the progression of the new school building! 

The twins picked out a tiny crockpot at the thrift store.  I offered to buy it for them as a Christmas gift, but they wanted it immediately, so they spent their own money on it. lol.  They have gotten quite a bit of use from it so far though!  They intend to bring it to their birthday party, at the bounce house, so we'll see how that goes.

In addition to chocolate, it also does cheese! So, one night after we had enchiladas, I fried up the remaining corn tortillas and we had nachos for dinner.  It was a big hit!

Grace found some Hello Kitty Boba tea at five below.  She bought it, and liked the tea part, but was not a fan of the slimy boba balls.

The twins 'raced' to see who could put together the puzzle the fastest. I don't know who won.

Billy found a Cajun-Japanese seafood place that he wanted to try out.  I am not a big fan of Cajun cuisine, because they season everything, and it's just too spicy for me.  I ended up ordering miso soup and sushi.  The sushi was really good, and the roll size was just right!

One of Grace's friends gave her a hello kitty clip, and of course she wanted to wear it!  I don't think it lasted her the day though, because she had gym that morning.

Alice is driving to pick up Emily (and starting tomorrow, William) from track each day, so it feels really good that she's getting in her hours!  She might not be finished before her birthday, but at least we're making progress!

The warmer temperatures, and return of the sun, have me in a much happier, more hopeful mood. We just came off of spring break, but I am ready for summer break already!

later days

*my first bottle was from Aldi. I don't love the smell, so I'm trying a new brand in the next rotation.  I'll try to remember to report back.

Crafts, Repairs, and Cooking

I knocked out some small repair jobs on holey pants, but finally broke down and bought a set of 5 new black pants for the twins.  I think 4/5 of their pairs had holes, and they were all pretty small.  But we gave away the repaired ones for the 'free box' at the love clothing center.  Hopefully they will be good laundry day, or outside pants for some little girls!

William's pants needed a second round of repairs.  So, over the break I went through his closet in search of pants that had hung there for a while.

Alice wanted to help coat the fried chicken one night.  It took a lot of time, but everyone really liked dinner that night!

At Grace and Juliet's school, students could bring in a cardboard 'setting' from a book that they enjoyed.  Grace decided to make the log cabin from Little House on the Prairie using the dishwasher box.

It was tall enough for her to stand in, almost.

My favorite jeans were wearing where my purse rubs against them, so I needed some jean material for a large patch job.  Just after my mom found some pre-cut jeans in a free box, I had time at my mom's meeting to make a good start on it!   That was the boost I needed, so I was able to finish it a few days later.  Sadly, they are currently back out of commission, as they ripped on the knee, in between two previous repair jobs!

I was able to make some sweet and sour meatballs (turkey) to bring to a friend and her family, while she recovered from eye surgery!  I included some fresh rice and delivered it hot.  I also froze a beef stew for a later dinner.

Today Alice called me from school, because her sandals (that she got for Christmas) broke!  = (  I brought her some shoes, and repaired the broken one as best I could.  We're going to let it sit overnight to cure.

In addition to delivering shoes to Alice, I brought a water bottle to Grace, and a Saxophone, straight from the repair shop, to Emily!  So, I visited all the schools today! = 0

Hoping for a less exciting day tomorrow!

later days

Book Potato

This year, to get students excited about the book fair, the librarian held a drawing for students who decorated a potato (on from home or one from her.)

Grace chose Shiloh since we are almost at the end of the third book in the series.  (At this point in the year though, we are moving slowly through it, so when we do read it we read a chapter or two at a time!)

She did a phenomenal job, using mixed mediums: paint, buttons & wire, and felt ears held on with straight pins!  The collar was reused from Billy's chocolate Easter bunny (we just turned it around.)

Juliet made her potato into the pigeon, and her diorama bus station!

 She also used paint and felt, but paper and tape and string for the bus and speech bubble!

Grace ended up being picked as the fourth-grade winner, and there were quite a few entrants!!! That morning, I had told the girls to temper their expectations because there were so many students in the drawing, but I didn't realize that they were giving a gift certificate in each class level.  

Since having twins, I try to mentally prepare myself for various scenarios, and told myself that if either of them won, I would give the other $10 to spend.  Juliet was quite excited to hear this, because while she was happy for her sister, it's hard to see your twin get something you don't get.

We went early two mornings in a row so that they could sleep on their decisions.  The evening book fair night didn't happen because of a weather event, so I'm not sure this book fair did very well. = /  Next year, she said that she was thinking of having a 'used' book sale set up in a similar way, with prices low enough for everyone to participate!  I've started collecting books already! = )

later days

edit 5-25-24: backdated for continuity.