Weekly Journal Volume 5

Monday October 3

The third rainy day in a row. Trying to have a good attitude but afraid I'm not too successful. Got up to bike for 40 minutes, prepped a plate of veggies and dip to take to school, ventured out in the wet and cold to pick up leaves for science project, put in an hour at my desk, and off I went. No food for Cliff's lunch but he was looking for an opportunity to get a Chicken Cordon Bleu from Tony's anyway. Must cook tonight. Today was "Wear purple for Taylor" 💜 day at school. The teachers had purple bows and glitter in their hair and the students wore all manner of purple attire. Miss Wedel drew a neat picture and message on the front door. Purple glitter found its way all over the school! The 6th graders were impressively well behaved for reading class today. We did leaf rubbings for 1st grade science. It was fun (even for me!) and they liked it. Grabbed Walmart grocery pickup before heading home, then worked for GA a mere 10 minutes before I had to get Cliff from work. Went to pick up the pickup which got inspected and repaired today. Started on cheeseburger soup when I got back, and over an hour later we finally sat down to eat. Cliff went to Phillip's to print Business Bulletin and I plodded along cleaning up the kitchen. Sat down at the desk for just a few minutes of work. Didn't get enough done today; that means more on my plate tomorrow. 

Tuesday October 4

Woke up before the alarm and got a good start to the day by biking 15 miles (inside) and listening to a book. Once I had breakfast and got ready for the day, it wasn’t early anymore and I didn't arrive in the New Holland office till 9:00. I managed to stay focused without too many distractions though, and was happy with the amount of work I got done in 9 hours. Another miserable rainy day. Sorry, my tolerance for rainy days is exactly 1 day. No apologies. And it looks like this storm won't clear out for another day yet. By the time I left the office it was getting dark and I had several stops to make yet. Kohl's to return and pickup, Michael's, and Sam's for gas. It was wonderful to finally arrive home after the long, dark, rainy drive. Soon headed to bed.

Wednesday October 5

Not my usual day for school, but the fall hike is planned for Friday so I went today instead. First thing this morning I logged in to GA for 2 hours, had to rush to get to school on time! And the day continued in the same manner. Plenty of work but not enough time. Got a good lunch of soup, salad, bread, and pumpkin desserts from sewing day at church. Comfort food for another dreary day. Took some time to relax on the couch after getting home and dozed off for a bit. Woke up to discover the sun had peaked through, turning the treetops golden. Wonderful, glorious, amazing!! Had a bit of this and that for supper, then tagged along with Cliff to Charles's where he installed a faucet. I took a little walk with the girls and Drew. It turned out to be a lovely, calm evening with a bright half moon. Colored pictures with the girls and had a great time being a kid. 

Thursday October 6

My morning was a repeat of yesterday, so I'll spare the details. The exception was GLORIOUS SUNSHINE!! It was a perfectly clear fall day and even got warm in the afternoon. Amazing how much brighter things look. Hot lunch at school today, so it was an all-around top-notch day. Lasagna, Ceasar salad, garlic bread, and pumpkin yummy made our bellies happy. Got the hallway almost "school meeting ready" this week, so that was an accomplishment! Took a walk after getting home from school. So wonderful to be outside again! Divided and replanted a few hostas before it got dark. 

Friday October 7

No alarm this morning, how wonderful! Didn't feel very energetic about facing the day though. Proceeded to work as usual. Put in several hours before going out on a walk to soak in the bright fall day. Picked up some leaves to do more leaf rubbings. Decided I could take the time to do something I enjoyed in the middle of the day even though there was hours of work to be done. Sat down and filled 3 papers with cool leaf rubbings and hung them in the unfinished addition. So simple but so satisfying! Started on supper of Instant Pot honey sesame chicken with rice and steamed broccoli. Also molasses cookies to replenish the depleted freezer stock. A whole 3 hours later it was over and cleaned up. This is why I don't enjoy cooking. I was tired and ready to go to bed by then but forced myself to go back to my desk because I really needed to get more work done this week. Put in an hour and 45 minutes and ended up being glad I forced myself into it. Next week will be too full already to push more off until then. 

Saturday October 8

A long list awaited me today, but naturally the longer the list, the more I procrastinate. Finally started on cleaning the basement around midday and knocked a few other things off the list - but not all. Listened to The Book Thief to make the jobs more enjoyable. I'll never get tired of the story and it's one of the most exquisitely written books I've ever read. It was a cool but sunny day; sadly, I gave up a walk to get more done around the house. Cliff saved me some time by getting a few groceries. Made tea and mac and cheese for supper at folks. Hamburgers and good Saturday night family time. A gorgeous full moon tonight. I brought my still blooming geranium inside to see if it will thrive in the sunny new addition. It feels like it could frost.

Sunday October 9

Happy birthday Keela! Got up to make gingerbread cake for lunch at James and Katie's. Nice full church this morning. Guests at James's were Clair & Miriam, teachers, and Parker & Jace. Toured their lovely house and outdoors. It was sunny with a chilly breeze, definitely autumn weather. I've been amazed how quickly the trees have turned golden. Yes, I can see why some people love fall. It speaks too much of loss for me, though. Came home and totally conked out for several hours on the couch. Such deep sleep is a rarity and pleasure! Opted to stay home while Cliff went to church. Still have a lot to do before school meeting company arrives on Thursday, and I'll be working every day until then. Sounds like we may even make a trip to Belleville between now and then for great-aunt Sylvia's viewing. Next week looks to be a full one but will be interesting too! Looking forward to having Chad and Keela here and hope to spend time with the 7 kids while Chad's and Charles's are at school meeting. 

Off to another week!