As opposed to the rush and activity of last week, this week has been very quiet. We've gotten a (very) few errands run, and I've checked off a (very) few things from my mental to-do list, but mainly I can say that I've been exercising in the mornings and napping in the afternoons. I'd been thinking that it was easier to keep the house clean with just 4 kids, but then I realized that actually it's just easier because we're not doing school. Hmmm. Oh well, I guess I'm jsut not cut out to be some kind of unschooler, just to keep the house cleaner!
The kid dynamics have been different with having Nathan and Luke gone. There's hardly been any bickering whatsoever between Caleb and Jonathan, and Caleb has loved being the biggest boy. He really wants to be thought of as a "big" boy, right there with Nathan and Luke, so over the past few months, he's been doing things to try to get them to notice him. And, I'll admit, he can be annoying. He has a louder personality. Luke, in particular, has resented all this, and in his particular critical way, has gone out of his way to make sure Caleb does NOT feel like a big boy. It's been a big source of tension, and one which I've discussed many times with Luke, because it's really not a good, honoring attitude at all.
I think the break from each other will be good for everyone. The first few days, Caleb and Jonathan didn't even seem to miss the older boys, but yesterday and today, they've said how they wish they could do _____ with them. They'll all have a week back together again, and then my parents are coming out and picking up Caleb and Jonathan to take back to Ohio with them for "Grandma and Grandpa Camp", for those too young for Camp Caleb, LOL. Caleb and Jonathan are very, very excited about this, and they have been ready to pack their clothes for it since the day we got back here from Ohio. They'll be out there about 10 days, and then we will meet up at White Sulphur Springs for the Wright-Patterson OCF retreat there Labor Day weekend. So I guess we'll test the old adage of "absence makes the heart grow fonder". If not, more character development is in order for September. But it's been nice to have a quiet house for a week!
3 comments:
Hey, Claire! I'm trying to catch up on blogs and enjoyed reading about your Olympics party. Charis just finished her Math-U-See Beta book, and the last lesson was on bar graphs and line graphs, so I think I'll have her do medal charts, too!!
Is it strange to think of the house being "quieter" with 2 kids gone, knowing you still have 4 there?! Tee hee! My house is currently much louder with my 2 older at taekwondo class, because Kenna is having a fit behind me. :-) Guess it's time to get off the computer...
When Russell first started going to summer camp we used to send Zeke to Grandma's and Grandpa's house for camp. After 3 years of that I got out of the Air Force, and now we all use it as an excuse to visit Grandma and Grandpa. This year, as a special treat, Zeke got to have Jesse, my brothers oldest, out here for a week. Zeke is still not old enough for camp for another year. It will be really quiet around here with both of them gone for a week.
Have fun with the down time. LOL.
Oh, that's fantastic.
We run into the domain infringement thing here, too. It's hard to guide *gently* to show them how not to be harsh... without being harsh. Erm, at least that's my challenge. I suspect you pull it off more graciously than I do.
Dy
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