I think I have discovered a new camping season- fall!!!
This last weekend, Megan had a junior high youth retreat over in Iowa, and Matt and I were not too comfortable with her on the bus. First of all, there were not many adults riding the bus plus the kids were allowed to take their phones. We felt this could lead to some unwanted behaviors or conversations and we just felt better if we took her ourselves.
After coming to this conclusion, we decided that we just didn't want to drive three hours to drop her off and come back home for two days, so we made arrangements to camp over the weekend while she was at her retreat. We found a local state park about twenty miles away and made that our home away from home for three days.
This park was amazing!! It was Ledges State Park and it was soooo beautiful in the fall colors. Our campsite was covered in leaves about six inches deep, so we had a lot of fun making piles of leaves and jumping in them. Micah LOVED the leaves! There were also quite a few hiking trails, so we did a lot of hiking (with Micah on me in the front carrier). These trails were among some canyons in the park. Below these canyons, there were tributaries or streams coming off the Des Moines River. These streams actually went over the road that you drove on through the park! That was super fun! We saw some people drive super slow through the water and others went super fast! Christian always wanted Matt to drive fast, but he never did. If you wanted to walk through the water, they actually had cement blocks that you could walk on to get to the other side. Luckily the water was no more than a foot or so, so if you fell, you weren't going to drown! I walked over them once or twice with Micah on my front. Matt did help me balance though, he didn't want me going down with Micah on me!
We also spent some time Saturday in Boone. Here we road the Boone and Scenic Valley Railroad. This ride was about two hours and it was again very beautiful! It took us through the Des Moines River Valley and actually over a trestle bridge that was 150 feet high! That was kind of freaky, but yet fun at the same time!
Matt and I want to camp some more in the fall! For a few years in a row, we took longer trips in the fall, but the last few years, we haven't due to Micah. I think we need to start that again!
As long as the weather is as beautiful as it has been, let's keep camping!
Unfortunately, Christian did bring home bronchitis from the trip, so now we are trying to get him better!
Monday, October 24, 2016
Thursday, October 20, 2016
This is what I get!!
Isn't it always true that the later a baby (or kid) goes to bed, the earlier they are up in the morning??
That was true last night for Micah!!
Megan had youth group and Matt was busy, so I was in charge of Micah. I dropped Megan off at youth group at 6:15, and then Micah and I went and got groceries for the next two hours.
By 7:30, he was already whining like he was tired. But youth group didn't get out until 8:15, so I kept shopping. :) Once we got back to church, I stood and talked to some other adults for a little bit and he was just dealing with it.
We got home about 9, and he was sound asleep in his car seat. Thanks to Christian, he woke up! This was actually fine because he needed to nurse again before he went to bed.
I sat down about 9:30 to nurse him and turned on the presidential debate. He fell asleep, but I sat there until 10:45 watching TV. ( I like politics!!) I put him in bed when it was all over.
Guess who was awake at 5:45 this morning?? Mr. Micah!!!
It's going to be one long day if he refuses to nap, like he does every other day!!
That was true last night for Micah!!
Megan had youth group and Matt was busy, so I was in charge of Micah. I dropped Megan off at youth group at 6:15, and then Micah and I went and got groceries for the next two hours.
By 7:30, he was already whining like he was tired. But youth group didn't get out until 8:15, so I kept shopping. :) Once we got back to church, I stood and talked to some other adults for a little bit and he was just dealing with it.
We got home about 9, and he was sound asleep in his car seat. Thanks to Christian, he woke up! This was actually fine because he needed to nurse again before he went to bed.
I sat down about 9:30 to nurse him and turned on the presidential debate. He fell asleep, but I sat there until 10:45 watching TV. ( I like politics!!) I put him in bed when it was all over.
Guess who was awake at 5:45 this morning?? Mr. Micah!!!
It's going to be one long day if he refuses to nap, like he does every other day!!
Monday, October 17, 2016
Another Monday!
Wow, I am not very good at blogging lately! There must not be much going on, but in reality, there is probably too much going on!
We are just finishing our schoolwork up at the Ruwe house. Mondays are the only days when I get a "full" day of school. By this I mean that we start about 9 and end about 3-3:30. I guess Fridays are a "full" day too. Last week, we had half days every.single. day. I should have just taken the whole week off!! When we were doing Megan's English today, I looked at the date and the last time we did a lesson, it was October 10th! A week ago!!We aren't going to finish our books by next fall at that rate!! I will be glad when the homeschool learning classes are over and we can have Wednesday afternoon back!
We also don't get a lot done because of Micah (still!!). This boy refuses to take a nap during the day. Actually his schedule has been pretty consistent lately, and today was pretty typical. He was up around 7-7:30 am. I nursed him and he ate breakfast with all of us. I got him dressed and around 9, we were in the living room starting school. He was in a pretty good mood and was willing to play on the floor for awhile while I taught the older kids. About 9:45-10 am, he started fussing, so I nursed him again. He usually goes one of two directions here. He will either fall asleep and won't let me put him down OR he will stay awake and just continue to be fussy. He chose the later option today. The problem with this option is that I cannot teach when he is so fussy, so today I put him upstairs in his bed. I always hope that he will somehow go back to sleep, but that has NEVER happened! I let him fuss up there today while I finished up with Megan.
By about 11, he was still not happy and wide awake, so after I was finished with Megan, I went up and got him. I needed to teach Courtney, so we got him quieted down and he kind of snapped out of it. He spent the next hour either playing on the floor or in his walker. He did pretty well. Courtney gets very distracted with him though, so sometimes she has a hard time concentrating on school.
He ate lunch with us and was happy for awhile. Around mid-afternoon, he was ready to nurse again. This is usually in the middle of school! (I am getting really good at nursing a baby AND checking homework and/or teaching a lesson!) By 3-3:30, we were done with school and he was pretty happy.
We went to the park today after school, which was good for everybody! Christian always needs to run around a little bit, Megan always wants some fresh air, and Courtney usually brings her basketball or her grasshoppers along. I put Micah in his stroller and we walked the six blocks to the park. It was great to get out and stretch a little. I feel like I sit around all day and teach school, which I really do!
When we got back from the park at 5:30, Micah was ready to nurse again and he fell asleep at this time. I sat in the chair and held him for awhile. If I move, he will wake up. And yes, I sometimes try to put him down and most of the time, he will wake up. Tonight the phone rang and woke him up.
After he woke up tonight, I was able to put him down, so I could make dinner. He ate with us again and by about 8 pm, he was fussing again and was ready for bed. Tonight he was sound asleep by 9 pm! Honestly, he goes to bed early when he does not have a nap. For a couple days, I held him for over an hour and let him sleep. We were up until 10 pm! Honestly, I don't know what I would rather have. Would I rather have an hour or two during the day when he sleeps or have him go to bed earlier at night?? Hmmm.
I know this whole schedule will probably change within the next couple of months. He turns a year in a couple of weeks and my other three kids were weaned by 13 months. I wonder how long he will want to nurse. I will let him take the lead like I did the other kids. We have been trying some new foods lately, so he is ready to eat food full time when he is done nursing. He does a great job with it now. The boy loves to eat!! He will actually hunt you down and whine at you until you share! We are still being careful with some foods, so he can't have everything yet.
We are just finishing our schoolwork up at the Ruwe house. Mondays are the only days when I get a "full" day of school. By this I mean that we start about 9 and end about 3-3:30. I guess Fridays are a "full" day too. Last week, we had half days every.single. day. I should have just taken the whole week off!! When we were doing Megan's English today, I looked at the date and the last time we did a lesson, it was October 10th! A week ago!!We aren't going to finish our books by next fall at that rate!! I will be glad when the homeschool learning classes are over and we can have Wednesday afternoon back!
We also don't get a lot done because of Micah (still!!). This boy refuses to take a nap during the day. Actually his schedule has been pretty consistent lately, and today was pretty typical. He was up around 7-7:30 am. I nursed him and he ate breakfast with all of us. I got him dressed and around 9, we were in the living room starting school. He was in a pretty good mood and was willing to play on the floor for awhile while I taught the older kids. About 9:45-10 am, he started fussing, so I nursed him again. He usually goes one of two directions here. He will either fall asleep and won't let me put him down OR he will stay awake and just continue to be fussy. He chose the later option today. The problem with this option is that I cannot teach when he is so fussy, so today I put him upstairs in his bed. I always hope that he will somehow go back to sleep, but that has NEVER happened! I let him fuss up there today while I finished up with Megan.
By about 11, he was still not happy and wide awake, so after I was finished with Megan, I went up and got him. I needed to teach Courtney, so we got him quieted down and he kind of snapped out of it. He spent the next hour either playing on the floor or in his walker. He did pretty well. Courtney gets very distracted with him though, so sometimes she has a hard time concentrating on school.
He ate lunch with us and was happy for awhile. Around mid-afternoon, he was ready to nurse again. This is usually in the middle of school! (I am getting really good at nursing a baby AND checking homework and/or teaching a lesson!) By 3-3:30, we were done with school and he was pretty happy.
We went to the park today after school, which was good for everybody! Christian always needs to run around a little bit, Megan always wants some fresh air, and Courtney usually brings her basketball or her grasshoppers along. I put Micah in his stroller and we walked the six blocks to the park. It was great to get out and stretch a little. I feel like I sit around all day and teach school, which I really do!
When we got back from the park at 5:30, Micah was ready to nurse again and he fell asleep at this time. I sat in the chair and held him for awhile. If I move, he will wake up. And yes, I sometimes try to put him down and most of the time, he will wake up. Tonight the phone rang and woke him up.
After he woke up tonight, I was able to put him down, so I could make dinner. He ate with us again and by about 8 pm, he was fussing again and was ready for bed. Tonight he was sound asleep by 9 pm! Honestly, he goes to bed early when he does not have a nap. For a couple days, I held him for over an hour and let him sleep. We were up until 10 pm! Honestly, I don't know what I would rather have. Would I rather have an hour or two during the day when he sleeps or have him go to bed earlier at night?? Hmmm.
I know this whole schedule will probably change within the next couple of months. He turns a year in a couple of weeks and my other three kids were weaned by 13 months. I wonder how long he will want to nurse. I will let him take the lead like I did the other kids. We have been trying some new foods lately, so he is ready to eat food full time when he is done nursing. He does a great job with it now. The boy loves to eat!! He will actually hunt you down and whine at you until you share! We are still being careful with some foods, so he can't have everything yet.
Monday, October 10, 2016
New Crown for ME!
I have had quite the time with one certain molar. And I am having trouble again.
When I was pregnant with Christian, I cracked a molar and my dentist refused to fix it until my third trimester, which was fine. I got it fixed and we were all well for about six months later. At that point, it was causing me trouble again, and it needed a root canal. I got that done and we were good for awhile.
Fast forward about 2-3 years and I was having trouble again with that same tooth. My regular dentist looked at me and couldn't find anything wrong, so he sent me to a root canal specialist. It ended up that I had an extra canal in that root, so I had to have ANTOHER root canal. (Actually I had it cleaned out twice and those appointments were a week apart, so I count that as TWO root canals). Now I have had three root canals and a crown on that tooth.
Fast forward to about a month ago and I feel a sharp edge on my crown. After going back to the dentist, they found that a chunk had broken off of my crown!!
Today, I visited the dentist yet again and they took off my old crown (good bye $500!!!) and set another temporary crown in its place. I will get another new crown in two weeks. And they also took another $200 of my money. Two crowns and three root canals. Awesome.
This is EXACTLY why I want to get my teeth fixed. This damage is coming from the fact that my teeth do not line up straight and I am putting extra pressure on them. I have a cross bite and an open bite, and my teeth do not fit together like they should. Maybe someday I will get them fixed, but until then, I hope I don't crack anymore teeth!!
When I was pregnant with Christian, I cracked a molar and my dentist refused to fix it until my third trimester, which was fine. I got it fixed and we were all well for about six months later. At that point, it was causing me trouble again, and it needed a root canal. I got that done and we were good for awhile.
Fast forward about 2-3 years and I was having trouble again with that same tooth. My regular dentist looked at me and couldn't find anything wrong, so he sent me to a root canal specialist. It ended up that I had an extra canal in that root, so I had to have ANTOHER root canal. (Actually I had it cleaned out twice and those appointments were a week apart, so I count that as TWO root canals). Now I have had three root canals and a crown on that tooth.
Fast forward to about a month ago and I feel a sharp edge on my crown. After going back to the dentist, they found that a chunk had broken off of my crown!!
Today, I visited the dentist yet again and they took off my old crown (good bye $500!!!) and set another temporary crown in its place. I will get another new crown in two weeks. And they also took another $200 of my money. Two crowns and three root canals. Awesome.
This is EXACTLY why I want to get my teeth fixed. This damage is coming from the fact that my teeth do not line up straight and I am putting extra pressure on them. I have a cross bite and an open bite, and my teeth do not fit together like they should. Maybe someday I will get them fixed, but until then, I hope I don't crack anymore teeth!!
Tuesday, October 4, 2016
No Braces for awhile...
I think Megan is actually looking forward to getting some braces. I think she is tired of her crooked teeth! She keeps telling me they are getting worse too. :(
Unfortunately, braces won't be happening for awhile. Matt had a kidney stone last Monday and we had to take him to the ER. There they gave him some mega-pain killers and did a CT scan. Luckily it was only 1-2 mm and they said it should pass in the next day or two.
After a terrible afternoon, the stone passed Tuesday morning. Last Friday, he visited his family doctor to get rechecked and to evaluate the stone. Thank goodness his kidneys are back to normal!
I had been checking our insurance claims online for about a week. I didn't want to see that ER bill! I finally came through last night. The total bill was $6665!!! But thanks to negotiated rates and insurance, we are going to have to pay about 1/4 of that!!!
That money was supposed to go towards Megan's braces.
At least her braces are not an emergency and we can continue to push them off for a little bit.
Now we have Micah's AND Matt's ER bills to pay!! Who is next??
Unfortunately, braces won't be happening for awhile. Matt had a kidney stone last Monday and we had to take him to the ER. There they gave him some mega-pain killers and did a CT scan. Luckily it was only 1-2 mm and they said it should pass in the next day or two.
After a terrible afternoon, the stone passed Tuesday morning. Last Friday, he visited his family doctor to get rechecked and to evaluate the stone. Thank goodness his kidneys are back to normal!
I had been checking our insurance claims online for about a week. I didn't want to see that ER bill! I finally came through last night. The total bill was $6665!!! But thanks to negotiated rates and insurance, we are going to have to pay about 1/4 of that!!!
That money was supposed to go towards Megan's braces.
At least her braces are not an emergency and we can continue to push them off for a little bit.
Now we have Micah's AND Matt's ER bills to pay!! Who is next??
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