A Week, Briefly (#6)

Our adoption homestudy was approved, and the final copy was accepted by the licensing agency.  We're now waiting for the invitation to join the adoption placement email list.

H5 spun in circles in the kitchen, fell, hit her head on the kitchen floor and has been listless and pale for 3 hours.  She threw up and is now sleeping it off.  She had a concussion last fall, so I remember what the instructions were for keeping her home versus seeking medical care.  She's still okay to keep home, but I'm tense and watchful.

I2 is becoming quite the little brother; he has discovered significant joy in hearing his sisters scream.  He actually says with a big grin after they squawk at him, "I wuv dat!"

I saw my midwife on Monday and had a nice, normal, boring appointment.  Baby's heart rate is good, and I'm measuring textbook perfectly.

We found out that we have to update the electrical hookup to our old house (the one we're renting under a lease-purchase contract) to keep our insurance.  We have one month to get the work done.  Dad spent a couple of days up at the old house getting bids from electricians.

We have a rhythm to our days.  We just get up and get to work each day.  Kids are growing and learning.  Some are fighting and fussing, but not much more than I might expect at their ages and stages.

We finished our study of the ocean and put our lapbooks together.  We're happy to be done and getting to do other things, but we're also looking forward to doing another unit in a few weeks.

This was "B" week for preschool.  B is for bugs was a fun way to start.

A7 created this little workstation one morning.

H5 found an old dry erase board that had been hiding for quite some time.  It was lots of fun for several days this week.

While I was at my appointment with the midwife, and Dad was meeting with electricians, E14 had some fun with the camera.

Pictures she took of herself.

Pictures of fancy hair she did for M12.

Pictures of little sisters who'd been playing in the wading pool.

And pictures of natural scenes near our house.

I2's hair was too long, so I helped return him to the dapper fellow I love him to be.

Tuesday was B is for Baseball day, and between sessions of taking apart and putting back together a clogged bathroom drain, Dad gave some pitching lessons.

And Sisters were happy to get in on the catching action.  As it turns out, A7 seems to be a baseball natural.  She's continued to play catch all week long.

After snapping a few pictures I put the camera away and put on a glove, so I could play, too.

We had peanut butter playdough for lunch.  I2 was proud of his creation.

"Dis is how I wear my hat when I draw, Mom."

J10 spent some time at the piano, playing and singing.

One of our post ocean study activities was to start Artistic Pursuits.  A7 really enjoyed the first lesson and looks forward to more.

One evening I couldn't find the littles.  Eventually I did--making mud and mud pies.  They were dirty, happy kids. :)

Caught M12 practicing the violin.

We did B is for Bubbles, too.  Our bubble solution didn't work so well with the wands, but we had a blast making giant bubbles with our hands.  We all cheered when one of them--at least 12 inches across--successfully broke free and rose into the blue sky.

We sewed our "B" quilt squares.  I don't have a picture of I2 because I'm helping him every step of the way when he works, but I was so impressed with how much more coordinated and focused he was this week as compared to last.  The two girls worked almost independently, both of them successfully tying their own knots, even.

Keeping little brother busy while big sisters get some attention from Mom.

Someone (not me) snapped this shot of M12 working on math.

A7 pulled out a little loom and some loops on Friday afternoon.  The kids were completely absorbed for hours.

E14 and her history work--this year is a hard one for her.

But she did finish, and she was such a sweet big sister, helping little brother with the marble run.

Almost finished . . .

And done!!   H5 got to make one next.

Saturday morning it was our turn to help clean the church.  The older kids asked me for a treat afterward, and I said yes.  I2 thought his first doughnut was great!

J10 helped I2 start his own potholder.  She's a good teacher--so patient and willing to help.

Two other highlights of the week are that we had our first real meeting of our science club.  The theme was bird migration.  The club is suddenly a young one, so the older girls are switching from being regular participants to assistant teachers.  They did a really good job helping the little ones play the migration game that day's leader had prepared.  I'm proud of them for being flexible and willing to help.

J10 also started her creative writing work.  She's writing a chapter a day of a story about a villain who is trying to destroy Gladom--a happy, peaceful kingdom.  I so look forward to reading each new installment.  She seems to be enjoying the work, and I'm happy to see her writing regularly.

That's the week . . . I'm off to check on H5, who has now been sleeping for nearly 3 hours after her head injury.  I'm getting rather worried.