The Cunningham Family: Around Here: Week 38 2023

{September 17-23rd}

My friend Ashley's handwriting is dreamy!

Doing... chores on Sunday and feeling grateful for our crew that pitches in every week to get this place in order and also proud of Josh and myself for requiring our kids to contribute to the household. It's hard (and some weeks there is a LOT of complaining) but I am such a kinder mom when I don't feel like I'm carrying the weight of everything being clean and organized on my shoulders.

Completing... a ton of homework for my class this week and just really trying to get ahead to start the week. This class has given me more grief than all my previous classes combined. I am struggling to get the reading completed (there is so much reading) and then when I submit my Discussion Questions, she is only giving partial credit because of tiny little things I may have missed here or there. And she has sent back two of my BIG assignments to be redone which is so incredibly disheartening when you have worked so hard on something.
Anyway, Week 4 started this week (Class is only 6 weeks long) so I can't wait to be on the downhill slope for this class and headed toward my next term.

Decorating... for Halloween with Carly whose enthusiasm encourages me to keep being the fun mom. Honestly at this point (and this current stress level) I probably wouldn't have even bothered, but she was so excited that I'm really glad we did it. Especially for all the fall and Halloween books. We've been reading them each night and she is loving it.

Giving... Carly a "fun bath" which means she got a can of shaving cream to play with. She was in the tub for probably an hour which allowed me to get a ton of work done. Win/Win!

Watching... Elemental for movie night on Sunday since Saturday night (our normal movie night) they were all gone in Wenatchee. I absolutely loved Elemental and went on to watch it twice more this week. Highly recommend!

Walking... Carly to school twice this week and enjoying the bit of a chill in the air and the sound of dried leaves blowing down the street.

Blogging... and trying to catch up from a crazy summer. I am not quite there yet, but hopefully soon!

Cooking... porkchops for dinner (well, Josh did- thanks babe!) since we still had them in the garage freezer from when we butchered Charlotte the pig. We are financially struggling right now so I have been pantry shopping for dinner each night. One night it was Pork chops and rice, another night was pancakes and microwave bacon with scrambled eggs. Another night we had grilled cheese on homemade bread that Wyatt made while he was bored one afternoon (We take the boys phones at 4:00pm everyday so they can do homework. If they don't have homework, it's their job to beat the boredom!) and the bread he made turned out SO good! Honestly better than my last few batches for sure. Way to go Wyatt! Then on Wednesday I made an entire Thanksgiving feast and only bought a pumpkin pie and butter. We had a frozen turkey from when our grocery store gives them away during the month of November, and we had stuffing and mashed potatoes and gravy and even cranberry gel all in the depths of our pantry. It was an awesome meal.

Making... turkey bone broth from the turkey carcass and feeling so proud of myself! I threw in some onions from my mom's garden, some carrots I found in the fridge and some parsley and let it boil and simmer for about two hours. Then I strained everything out and put it into freezer bags in 4 cup sections. Throughout fall and winter I will use it in our chicken and dumplings, which I try to make whenever the kids get sick as bone broth is super good for you! The house smelled good for days.

Keeping... Logan and Carly home sick with headaches and stuffy noses on Tuesday and picking up Jack early as well who had a cough. Thankfully they were all able to go the rest of the week and Josh & I haven't gotten sick. (fingers crossed!)

Drinking... an Emergen-C everyday to try and help boost my immune system. I am also drinking something called Stur that you squeeze into your water to give it a little flavor. I heard about it from a girl I follow on Instragram and when she said it didn't have any artificial sweeteners I was so excited because I can't drink any of the Crystal Light or other water flavors because the fake sugars give me headaches. But this one doesn't!

Feeling... inspired by my friend Ashley @bigwhitefarmhouse who wrote up her entire house (broken into smaller chunks) for reorganizing and decluttering. I think I may be doing the same thing!

Still struggling... with a fibromyalgia flare. It has moved from my feet (which is my most common complaint) to my lower back and right upper rib area, plus insane fatigue. It's hard because I know stress doesn't help (!!!) but I can't help but feel so worried and stressed about this stupid class that I'm in. It has made me doubt myself and my ability so much, not to mention my confidence has just plummeted. Wah wah.

Finding... Carly reading all over the house at all times of day and it makes my mama heart sing. She's usually reading her Baby Sitters Club graphic novels, but sometimes it's Halloween books from our collection.
She really touched my book-loving heart when she told me she woke up early one morning at 5:30 and decided to read her BSC book. She said that Kristy had to put her dog down in the book and she was crying. I wasn't sure how she felt about that and I laughed when she said she thought it took a really good book to make you cry. I agreed with her, and it made me think what books have made me cry. They're definitely few and far between, but the one that always comes to mind is The Light Between Oceans. Brutal. So good. Oh! Also, Me Before You. Gah. So good.

Grateful... that Wyatt is having a much better seventh grade year than sixth grade so far. I am so relieved and also so proud of him. He is working so hard on his grades and making sure that he's showing up. Way to go, super!

Having... fun playing with Carly's hair this week in different styles. This might be the longest it's been and I am loving it. (It helps that she is pretty tough when it comes to combing out tangles.)

Being... spoiled by my friend Kori who sent me a little $ with instructions to spend it on self care. I decided to order myself the cutest headband from USNKCrafts for those days when I haven't washed my hair but still want to be cute. Thanks, Kori! You're the best!

Doing... a foot peel I ordered a while back on Amazon and wondering if it worked. Then, three days later, holy moly! My entire foot peeled and it was so satisfying. Plus my feet are so soft now!! Highly recommend.

Making... after school a holy time where there are no distractions for me or the kids. Phones go "in the box" (an old gun safe that Josh had that he or I have to open) and we do homework for at least an hour. If the boys (or Carly) don't have homework they are welcome to read or go play outside. I know that the boys hate it. But it's only four days a week (Mon-Thurs) and so far their grades are amazing. They are all really invested in their classes and their assignments and I am feeling really optimistic about the school year. It's not easy- there are so many things I could be doing during that time, but I plant my butt at the kitchen table with the kids and walk through their assignments, offer help if needed and just encourage them to keep going.

Letting... Jack drive every morning on the way to school and every afternoon on the way home from school. We put a notebook in the car to keep track of his hours and he's doing great. I get a little nervous occasionally, but for the most part he is a very confident, good driver. I'm proud of him. (Logan will take traffic safety when Jack is done, and honestly I am so glad that they're not both in it at the same time. Doing it one at a time has been really nice.)

Reading... The White Hare and This Is Where It Ends and listening to Our Homesick Songs. The White Hare is a fantastic fall read that takes place in an English village and has (maybe) a ghost/haunted house and is a great read. This Is Where It Ends is a book I'm reading with Logan for his English class. He reads and then I read so I can make sure his summaries for his teacher are strong. The book he chose is so good! Intense (about a school shooting) but very good. I am loving this cooler fall weather and cozy evenings. It just makes me want to curl up with a good book everyday. Our Homesick Songs is very reminiscent of The Snow Child (which is one of my all-time favorite reads). I highly recommend it!

Loving... the story the twins came home and told me about how they got the exact same score on their math test (and they're not even in the same class. Same teacher, but different periods). Their teacher had been paying attention to their grades and was shocked they got the same score. I am also loving Jack's history teacher. He owns a lot of farmland and constantly brings his students food, and I just think that using that to connect to his students is so amazing. He's brought in peaches multiple times and this week he brought in salsa (in like to go bowls) that Jack was so excited to bring home and have for snack.

Holding... Carly's hand at bedtime and agreeing to linger longer when she asks me not to leave her. It's so true what they say, that with your last child you understand just how fast it goes and you are more patient, more attentive, more present. I remember sitting outside the twins room waiting for them as toddlers to fall asleep and now I blinked and they're in high school learning to drive. What even?!?

Driving... dinner over to a friend whose husband lost his job this week. I know it doesn't help a ton, but at least she knows she's on my mind and I love her.

Spending... Friday night driving to Wenatchee to spend the evening with my mom and sister painting pottery together and getting dinner. The drive was lovely (so quiet and peaceful with no children) and choosing and painting our pottery was so fun! Between the art and our dinner together we finished so many conversations! (You mama's of littles will understand what I mean!) It absolutely filled my bucket and I am heading into next week ready for more challenges.

Crafting... with Carly Saturday, making her a necklace with the new bead kit I got for $8 when I saw the deal on Hip2Save on Facebook. She loves crafting and for a while I had a subscription to Annie's Kit Club, but the crafts were all too hard for her to do on her own. So I've decided instead to spend money on more open ended crafting items she can do independently when I'm working.

Watching... Flight of the Navigator, which was one of my childhood favorite movies. It's on Disney and is a fun UFO/alien movie but with no scary parts. It was perfect for Carly. And Wyatt loved it too. I didn't remember that it had Sarah Jessica Parker in it, so that was a fun surprise!

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