What a good first week.....

Yes, we started back to school this week... and I can't express what a GREAT week it was-- not just in "school" but the ENTIRE WEEK.

I have NOT felt this put together in over a year-- I'm tempted to say 2 years... REALLY. It is right about now or close when I START to feel a "bit" caught up in "life" and then having a new bundle of joy for the last 3 Septembers-- the cycle of new baby-- new life-- gets me feeling a bit "overwhelmed" at times... I do pray and hope the Lord blesses us with more CHILDREN...but I am GRATEFUL to HIM-- for enabling me to nurse Nathan for 10 months and also enabling me to not be pregnant for 1 full year....... I do believe God controls the womb-- and I do believe it is/was okay for me to pray that way--

Anyway-- most of you (how few of you there are) know how many times I've tried schedule after schedule I've tried-- and failed and failed....however this week I really tried to be "relaxed" yet "scheduled" and I think it WORKED!! I know it did-- our home was SMOOTH and PEACEFUL-- and even CLEAN!! ;)

If you do not want to read about my days in detail-- you can stop reading here-- because this is MY record of my days-- and this was a week I'd like to remember.

So what did our days look like??

Well I think the first 3 hours of my day-- set the TONE-- by far-- I do attribute most of the success to the first 3 hours.....

The first three hours began around 5-5:30am.... YEP.. .it HAD TO... really...

So I woke QUIETLY (as my children are SUCH light sleepers), made my coffee-- (I LOVE COFFEE) and had my Quiet Time with the Lord. Right now I am reading "Don't Make Me Count to Three". I normally do NOT read a book (other than the Bible) during my QT- but this book is full of scripture on raising / disciplining my children using SCRIPTURE... so I have been reading that-- and spending time in prayer. (I actually am using my prayer journal again-- but that has been for a few months now-- there are so many things I want and commit to pray for-- I HAVE to write them down...and it is so exciting to cross them off with an answer when it comes).

Well then I put on some sox and sneakers and headed to the living room to do some EXERCISE-- I have been doing The Biggest Loser Boot Camp DVD..... and wow-- the first 2 days-- I could HARDLY walk afterwards!!! I was/am REALLY REALLY OUT OF SHAPE!! But by day 5 -- I wasn't saing "ow, owie, ow" while walking up the stairs.... :)

To cool down I would drink a LARGE glass or 2 of WATER and check my e-mail and fb account--- WITH THE TIMER SET for NO MORE than 20 minutes-- boy did THAT go fast!!! Shows me how easy it is to sit on here for an HOUR!!

Then it was close to 7am-- and I headed out QUIETLY to do my milking chores-- we did dry off our old doe-- she was taking FOREVER to milk-- and I really don't have time-- so we just dried her off-- and will not re-breed her-- she will retire here-- and just eat hay till her day is here.... Anyway-- so I would do that--

Then it was off to shower... and this was such a NICE time.... because to be COMPLETELY HONEST here-- showers were NEVER my priority-- especially when waking up LATE (w/ my kids) I was always having to run around and put out fires, feed babies, etc... never just had a minute with all the littles in a "safe spot" to shower..... so it was here and there and squeezed in on days I got one ... (don't worry I always showered before leaving the house-- but it just wasn't a regular time for me...this last year.... *blush*) So anyway-- I showered, and DRESSED FULLY!! Yes-- that too was a new thing-- not running around in 'comfy' pants or PJ's!! I even bought a few 'beauty supplies' and began wearing THEM again-- after all I was trying to look like and "Be" a PERSON again-- even if only my FAMILY saw me--- MY Husband deserves this-- and I was HAPPY to do it FOR HIM!!

Usually I was out of the shower and putting away the day before's laundry (dh sleeps during the day so it is hard to do this) and then-- doing baby wake ups-- with diaper changes, sippy cups of milk and bottles-- and dh would call and tell me he was on his way home (around 8:15am).

So I would begin Breakfast-- and it was a PEACEFUL time in my kitchen-- not CRAZYness or even worse-- MANY MANY MANY times Jason would arrive home and make breakfast-- because I would be busy with babies and/or behind for spending too much time on the computer... *Blush* (this is the REAL Denise here....)

So that was nice-- we then sat down and had our breakfast-- this is OUR most important meal-- and we always eat as a family-- so we had our breakfast (based on our MENU which I followed VERY carefully) and then Daddy read to us our Proverb of the day-- and we would begin our "day" in prayer.

Then the boys began their "chores"...I should back up and say Sunday I made them a chart Tuesday-Saturday-- of their School assignments in Math, Reading, Handwriting, Science, Bible Memory etc... so Zachary usually would have 1-2 things done already AND his animal chores (while I was doing laundry, babies and breakfast)-- but at THIS time CHORE time officially started.... Joshua has begun doing the breakfast dishes and table clean off-- then he had to do his chicken chores.... THEN he began his school list.

Jason would go to bed at this time.... and I would sometimes jump on the computer for a TIMED 15 minutes-- while the littles watched a bit of Sesasme Street...and I answered any questions the boys had on their school assignments.

Then by 10am-- I would be IN the livingroom with Stephen, Rebekah and Nathan-- we would curl up and read (something I was NOT DOING AT ALL) a few books with them.... then around 11am-- we had "Blanket trainning time" which I have wanted to do for a VERY long time-- where I sat out a blanket (or in this case a beach towel) and they would have to SIT and NOT move off the blanket with 2-3 toys and/or books. We started with 10 minutes and by Saturday we were up to 15 minutes-- they did VERY well. Then we headed outside and checked the mail and goats-- to get the littles to stretch their legs-- they would also just PLAY for about 30 minutes-- until around noon when they would go in for naps..... (yes no lunch-- we have a LATE lunch here).

Well then at noon-- I began 1 on 1 time with the older 2-- Usually Zachary was done first so I spent about 40-60 minutes with him one on one checking over EACH of his assignments-- and having him correct things that were wrong. While he was correcting his days work--I would then sit with Joshua for the same amount of time (also this is when I listened to EACH of them read to me)....and the same would happen... We would finish all this up around 1:45-2:15 each day....

At which point we would be STARVING-- so we had a QUICK LUNCH..... and the babies would be waking up and eating too....

From around 3-5 the kids would have FREE PLAY-- outside or in-- and I *blushed* checked on here for 20 minutes-- and then spent some time in the garden, puttering around-- until Friday-- when I began adding in a "ZONE" each day--- and Friday just happened to be the Living room so I washed the floor and dusted , etc... so that will be a VERY productive time....

Then I would get dinner and we would eat around 6pm.... and Jason would wake and eat with us-- and we would have some family time at the table-- they boys began doing "Bible Drills" at my moms this summer and they LOVE them-- so each evening we did "Bible Drills" where you have contests who can find certain scriptures the fastest...lots of fun, laughter and learning was done..... We then sang our hymn for the week-- as part of their school we are learning 1 hymn per week. We would then close in prayer.....

Then Zachary would start his new chore of dinner dishes (not pots and pans or counters, etc) -- and I would head out to do my milking chores again-- and Joshua would help me and top off animals hay/feed/water.

Then the babies would be put to bed (aprox. 7pm) and I would finish tidying up the kitchen-- and around 8pm we had FAMILY GAME TIME. Zachary asks a ZILLION times to play games and it is always at the WORST possible time- so in this schedule I added in GAME TIME-- and the older 2 have LOVED IT!!

Then at 9pm we would retreat to BED-- and Jason left for work-- and the day was DONE-- COMPLETE-- FULL-- AND PRODUCTIVE!!! ahhhhhh