Sorry

It's been a while since I had a chance to sit and post anything. Just been very busy!

I'm trying to get winter clothes situated for all 5 of us. Turns out I have enough for probably 3 boys size 4T while I don't have enough shirts for a full week for Stephen for the winter. Rachel is pretty well covered I think. I haven't even hardly started on Mark's and mine yet. This has entailed a couple of days of working through our attic. It has been a long job but I can definitely see progress being made. I have made one trip to Goodwill with a full van and will make another one soon. I also have bags set aside for a friend of mine that can make use of the hand-me-downs.

Last weekend, Mark's mom came for a visit. We actually asked her to come watch the kids. I spent Saturday at a Certified Beauty Advisor class for AVON. It was in Battle Creek from 8-5. Mark had to work so we needed someone to watch the kids so I could go. It was good to see her and the kids really enjoyed it. She also cleaned my house and did my laundry while I was gone! What a bonus! She then had to go home on Sunday.

The class was great! I am now certified to do makeovers. The real plus was all the product knowledge that I received that day! Now I just need my supplies so that I can line up some "guinea pigs" to practice on.

On Monday, my mom arrived. It had been quite a while since she came for a visit. The reason for the timing of this visit was for Grandfriends/VIP day at the kids' school which was Thursday. The kids had wanted her to come other years but it hasn't worked out so she came this year. (Other years, friends from church stepped up to visit with the kids at school so they did have someone there that day.) Her and I spent a lot of time this week with all sorts of projects especially the attic.

God also answered a big prayer for us this week. I think most of my readers know that last year I had a severe allergic reaction to our real Christmas tree. This has already been on our mind this year because buying a fake one was going to make Christmas expenses even greater than most years. We also wanted to make sure that we had one that was nice and we could really enjoy it. While Mom and I were at Goodwill with a full van to donate, we went inside to look around. They had 4 Christmas trees available. One was a 7 foot Manhattan pine that was originally from Frank's Nursery and Craft for a cost of $139.99. All the other trees were around $60-$70. This one was marked just $24.99! I asked a little about it and when I found out that I could return it (just like at a regular store) if we didn't like it, I bought it! I put it up just as soon as I got home and it met everyone's approval! This is a big relief for us! As I started with, we really feel that this is an answer to our prayers.

Today, Mom left for Mark's house in Wooster, OH. There's still lots going on and I really have to keep going. This ended up being a lot longer post than I planned on but I think that pretty much brings everyone up to speed on things at our place. It's time to get the kids from school!