Week 23 ~ Way Too Busy

On My Mind ~ This week was one of those crazy ones where way too much happened and I am left stressed and tired. I hope this weekend we can find some time to recharge. I made it through this whole week only taking one picture. I guess that shows my stress level is way up!

Places We Are Going ~ This one should be in two parts ~ medical and fun social events! On the medical front, we went to Duke Hospital where we had Goldilocks tested for inner ear issues and the possibility of Meniere's disease. She has been suffering with dizzy spells bad enough to make her faint since last Easter. For the longest time, her doctors thought it was panic attacks. We will have to wait for all of the test results to come back, but she didn't appear to have Meniere's. We will most likely be sent to neurology next. We appreciate prayers to guide the doctors in figuring out what is going on with our daughter.

 Here is the list of all the other outings ~

• Visited Duke Homestead and learned about tobacco, which was a major crop here in North Carolina until very recently.
• Visited Bennett Place, where the largest surrender of Confederate troops took place.
• We made it to some of the kids' dance classes for the week.
• We attended a birthday party.
• We hosted a game afternoon for our oldest son and his friends. They had so much fun and are hoping to make it a more regular thing.
• Two kids have dentist appointments today.
• Three kids have neurofeedback treatments today.
• We stayed at Ronald McDonald House in Durham for two days.

It sure is a pity how homeschooled kids get no socialization. Ha!

Books We Read or Listened To ~

• Al Capone Does My Shirts
• Little Town on the Prairie (started)
• You Wouldn't Want to be a Ninja Warrior
• Daily Life in a Plains Indian Village 1868
• The Graves Family Goes Camping
• U.S. Presidents (Basher Book)
• The Jukebox Man
• Faces magazine "China"

Our Homeschool Lessons ~ I discovered the new school room at Ronald McDonald House this trip. The classroom was always empty early in the morning, and we found it so much easier to accomplish an hour of school there instead of in their dining room.

• Math work sheets every day
• Journal writing every day
• CNN Student News
• Books listed above
• Field trips
• Reading alone time every day
• Several cooking shows on TV

Lent ~ Instead of giving up things for Lent, we like to have a concentrated prayer time for an individual or group each day. Here is our prayer list for the 40 days of Lent (subject to change if we hear of someone in need). My kids came up with the following list all by themselves.

1. The Earth
2. Dogs in shelters
3. Grandma
4. Miss Susan
5. Grandpa
6. The President
7. Grandma Sue
8. Peace amongst the students of the dance studio
9. Miss Dawn
10. Mom
11. Christel and Ruby
12. Daddy
13. Grandma Jennifer
14. Grandpa Phil
15. Christine Marie
16. Miss Cloe
17. Haley
18. Miss Nicole
19. Wuzzy, the dance studio dog
20. Miss BJ
21. Katie at choir (who is having many medical issues)
22. Aspen
23. Miss Kristi and her family
24. Giles
25. Thankful list to God
26. Miss Angie
27. Our family pets
28. Children who experience crime in school
29. Goldilocks
30. Tom Sawyer
31. Little Red Riding hood (last three are my kids' code names)
32. Tim
33. People with cancer
34. People who are lonely
35. Hungry people
36. Our doctors
37. Our neighbors
38. People who are in the hospital
39. People who are homeless
40. Innocent people who are in jail

The Great Backyard Bird Count ~ I will be recording our findings for this later in the day.

Valentine's Day ~ We had a nice Valentine's Day breakfast of sausage, bacon, and a variety of fruit. Everyone received a clothing item that they needed. DH and I exchanged our annual love letter to each other. I look forward to this ritual each year.

I am joining ~

Blessings, Dawn