The Bunch Enjoy the Nice Weather...and then the Snow...and then Nice Weather..then Snow

Crazy Texas Weather

This is Texas so crazy weather is expected. The past month has had a wide range of weather. We have had 3 inches of snow followed by a record warm January day of 81, followed by 5 inches of rain, a light dusting of snow, back to awesome spring weather with highs in the 60's and low 70's, and now back to super cold rainy weather. The only thing consistent through out all these changes of weather is the crazy amount of mud we have EVERYWHERE, especially in the horses' pen. The poor guys have pretty much been standing in mud for a solid month and I only expect it to get worse since we aren't even to the rainy season yet. Even the dog is tired of having to get her feet washed every time she goes outside and wants to come back in(which we are all really sick of too). The chickens are the only ones who seem to be doing well. There is standing water around their coop, but the inside is still fairly dry and cozy. The good news is that the hens are all finally back on line and we are getting 3-5 eggs everyday. It felt really wrong having to buy eggs at the grocery store.

The end of January hit our family pretty hard. Everyone took turns being really ill. We didn't get confirmation, but I am pretty sure we all had the flu. It was horrible and I am glad everyone is feeling better.
T has enjoyed playing basketball again. His team has yet to win a game, but T made the most points for his team for the past two games and since he is gigantic for his age he has done really well on getting rebounds. It is easier when you are by far the tallest kid out there. All joking a side, he was literally twice as tall as the shortest player was last week, who went up against him for the tip off. T said he did't even need to jump to get the ball.

T is the tall boy in the far left.

T is throwing the ball in.

The girls play games with their friends while T plays ball.

L is getting ready to start volleyball season next month. I am helping coach their team. I think the new girls have made a lot of progress, but they still need a lot of work. L gets frustrated with them sometimes and I have to remind her that they are new and haven't played for as long as she has. Also, most people don't have room to practice at their house. When it is not muddy, we can set up our net and actually practice. It doesn't help that both her parents are crazy competitive and we have taught our children that literally everything is a competition. I understand that some girls do this for "fun", but losing isn't fun to me so I don't really understand what they mean.

A got her driver's license! You want to be scared witless then get in the car with someone who has NEVER driven before and then have them say "Wow, this isn't like Mario Cart!" or even better "How can you tell where the road goes?" as you are driving 55 mph on a curvy country road with no shoulder and steep ditches. I have left family numbers for the other kids to contact just in case we don't return. Overall, she is actually doing really well, but she cries after EVERY outing. She has always been a high strung child, but she has let her anxiety level about driving go to a whole new level. The biggest issue is her wanting to do 35 mph on road where everyone else does about 60 mph. I am glad the state requires you to wait 6 months before you get the restrictions lifted. She is going to need lots of practice with me, maybe more than 6 months, before she is ready to drive by herself. She is also taking a Home EC class that is having her do things that she might not ever do. So far she has made a lemon meringue pie, a pillow case, and is currently making a baby dress.

It took almost 6 hours to get through the line to get that license! Come on TX you can do better than this!

Her pie was wonderful, even the crust was homemade.

Working on her baby dress.

It is almost done now. She just has to add a zipper and front pocket.

I have been dealing with my hip bursitis and Fibromyalgia. Cutting out gluten, dairy, coffee (mostly) and nightshades have really seemed to help with some of my symptoms. In addition to that, I also do hip strengthening and stretching exercises 4x a week. I have made progress, but I am still trying to figure out Fibromyalgia as a disease. Basically, it sounds like a suck it up and deal with it kind of disease. There is no cure and outwardly you look fine so if I complain a lot everyone will just think of me as whiny. I have made a conscious effort to slow down and not push myself, which is hard, but seems to keep everything at level I can deal with, most of the time. The only thing that I have no control over are the crazy temperature differences that send me into a horrible flare where I can barely get my pants on sitting down. Also, I am so cold ALL the time. It was recommended that I use a cane in my opposite hand from the hip with bursitis, but I really don't want to start using a cane yet!(though the kids did enjoy pushing me around in a wheelchair)

Me trying to stay warm when everyone else won't let me turn the heat up anymore!

D has been doing well. He managed to avoid the illness the rest of us caught and only felt run down and a little congested for a couple of days. We are ready for nicer weather and hopefully a weekend camping trip soon. We need a fun weekend with some hiking and relaxing, and possibly some smores!