I got a pressure canner and processed 22 pints of green beans!!! It was really easy to use, but I'm not sure I would have been confident enough to use it if I hadn't done water bath canning and used a pressure cooker before. I look forward to trying other recipes, especially soups. It is really fulfilling to see those neat rows of jars.
James and I went out on Friday night. For some reason, I was feeling extremely anxious beforehand, so we changed our plans to stay close to home. (We had planned on taking pictures in the refuge.) We found some silly things and had fun browsing a few stores after enjoying a simple dinner from Arby's.
It's really hard to be home with a 3-year-old and 2-year-old. They're terrible about getting along, and they make so many messes. It's not that I'm particularly inattentive, but I do shower every day or otherwise leave the room for a few minutes at a time, usually to use the bathroom or fold laundry. So far, I've dealt with flooded toilets (done completely on purpose, of course), trails of butter, smashed crackers on the carpet, and smears of peanut butter and chocolate. Let's not forget when Samantha drew all over herself with markers and smeared glitter glue on the kitchen table after I'd moved those craft supplies twice. Ugh. I'm so glad they both nap. Thank goodness for auto save because she just turned the computer off in the middle of this post!
The older kids are doing fine with school. They don't complain too much except for Katie saying that school is boring. I also can't get her to sit and read with me. She hates it because she's in 1st grade, when reading is tedious and boring for both of us. When she doesn't know a word, she guesses and flops around on the couch, complaining. It would work better to read in the morning, but she doesn't get out of bed easily and takes too long to get ready, so we run out of time. We'll figure it out. Either way, I can't wait till she can read independently.
Samantha turned 2 on Monday! I made her a strawberry cake, which was delicious, and she opened presents. Her favorite was a little cat that meows and walks.
It's been a pretty normal (well, new normal) week otherwise. I'm trying to keep enough things going so I'm not bored. I wish that I could have a normal workday, like James, but I never really get to leave work. Also, I don't like the naptime break in the middle, then huge amounts of stress from 4-7:30. I'm done by then and don't want to deal with people, but I have to.
We will get through this. I'm excited to put in insulation this week for the shed, which we've decided to name Rivendell. My dad arrives on Monday, which means the drywall goes up next week! Hurray! I can't wait till we can finish and decorate it. I also have lots of ideas for how to repurpose and reorganize the storage shed and trailer (the current office). It's going to be awesome. And expensive.
James's car has been expensive to fix, and it's still having problems. I really hope the mechanic can figure it out.
I really struggle reading with my kids some time. My saving grace during this pandemic time is that my mom has been willing to read with one of them. Katie might enjoy reading to grandma instead especially if they can get a hold of the same book. My first grader loves the 'biscuit' books. They are all about the dog named Biscuit.
ReplyDeleteThat's a great idea! Thanks for the recommendation, too. Katie loves animals, so I bet she would like those books. I've read some of them, but it's been a long time.
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