Week Rundown! (10/20/13 - 10/26/13)

On Sunday morning, Malachi and I got up and left to run the church vans. Mysia's friend had spent the night, so they had breakfast with Lydia, and then headed to church for Sunday School. Mysia was so happy to have her friend with her, and was introducing her to everyone. During the afternoon, we all took naps... both kids were tired. We attended evening services and then came home and watched a movie before bed. Mysia had a hard time getting to sleep. I had some stomach problems.

After having a difficult time sleeping, I woke up on Monday around 4am with Malachi hollering my name. He had thrown up in his bed. I took him to the bathroom and we got cleaned up and bed remade. He said he felt better, but shortly afterwards, it happened again. I then had him sleep in our bedroom, where it helped when it struck once more. I ended up staying home with both kids while Lydia went into work. We rested for the first half of the day, but afterwards, both were feeling great and practically bouncing off the walls. After supper, I tried to get outside and mow the lawn. It was very cool, and getting dark quick. I was able to finish, but hopefully next time, I'll do it before the sun goes down!

Tuesday evening we decided to take a family outing to see "Monsters University". The kids had completed their homework, so it was a surprise for them. Thanks to Malachi, we missed a few sections of the movie by having to visit the restrooms.

On Wednesday, Mysia got to go on a field-trip with her BRIDGES class. They took the city bus to the Discovery Center, where they got to dissect a sheep's brain. She thought it was awesome! Mysia is really enjoying learning about the brain and it's functions. She was very excited about it, and talked about it when she came home. We attended evening services at church, and then headed over to Grandma Taylor's house to visit my great-grandma Irene, who has moved here to stay.

Thursday was "Pastor's Appreciation Day" for my work and the other Christian radio stations in town. We held a Luncheon for the pastors in the area, and the guest speaker was Michael Card. It was neat getting to hear him sing as well. We then got to go to hear him in concert that evening. Michael is very knowledgeable in the Bible, and Lydia and I both enjoyed the presentation.

We were tired on Friday, and the work day seemed to drag on. I got off a little early, picked up the kids, and played some ball outside until Lydia arrived at home. We met up with the folks from our Sunday School class at church and traveled to the corn maze. We cooked hot dogs and ate desert before venturing into the cornfield. It was Mysia and Malachi's first time to visit a corn maze, and they enjoyed it! Our group got "lost" at the end, going around in circles, which added to the fun!

We woke up Saturday and headed out for Lydia's chiropractor appointment, and then dropped her off at the doctor for a 4 hour glucose test. The kids and I headed out to Tae-Kwon-Do class to watch our friends test for their next belt. We've been so busy over the past month that we haven't been able to attend classes. Afterwards, the kids and I spent time at one of the parks in town. It was a good time to let them burn off some energy. We picked up Lydia and headed home. The evening was spent at home getting things done and enjoying the time together!

~Matt

Week Rundown! (10/13/13 - 10/19/13)

Sunday. Since the van had the spare tire on it, I had Lydia and the kids join me for the van route Sunday morning. After the morning services at church, we met my family at Hong Kong Garden for the celebration of Sam's birthday. We then went over to my parents' house and took naps before heading back to church.

I took the van in on Monday to get the tire repaired, thankfully it was because of a nail and easily patched. Lydia attended Zumba class after work. Mysia had piano lessons, and I dropped the kids off with Granny while my dad and I got rid of the brush from Saturday. The kids got to eat grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup. Both agreed that Granny's was the best! Back at home, Lydia and I ate supper while the kids got their homework done and took their showers before bed. Lydia spent most of the evening doing her homework.

Lydia had a job information supper she attended on Tuesday after classes. I picked up the kids after work and we headed home. They worked on their homework while I prepared bean dip and chips for supper. We watched some Netflix while eating and then left for Granny's house once Lydia arrived home. The cousins played and we got to hold our new niece, Kezia. We visited with Ana and the family for the rest of the evening.

Wednesday evening services was part of our church's missions conference.

Thursday was good, but busy. Everyone had homework to finish, so I attended church and sang in the men's group. Malachi is working with number charts, and can write to 200.

On Friday, we had Ben and his family over for supper and a visit. The cousins played and watched a video.

Saturday morning came quickly. Lydia had a chiropractor appointment and then did the big grocery shopping for the next several weeks. Around noon, we headed back to my folks for one last visit with my brother and family. We came back home before surprising Mysia by picking up one of her best friends. She spent the evening with us and a sleep over. We attended the missions banquet at church as well. The girls acted as long-lost sisters. What an evening!

~Matt

Week Rundown! (10/06/13 - 10/12/13)

Sunday was pretty normal. I drove the church van and sang in the morning services. We didn't take naps during the afternoon, so the kids were a bit tired during the evening services. Before going to bed we had some hot chocolate since we've had some great cool weather.

On Monday, I took Mysia to piano lessons after work. Lydia had zumba class, and the kids worked on homework. We watched a few episodes of "Mythbusters" and let the kids play before bed. Lydia worked on homework for most of the evening.

Tuesday was a beautiful day. The kids worked on homework and played for most of the evening. Malachi and I read a book on snakes, and he was able to make out most of the words on his own.

After work and school Wednesday evening, we met at home, ate a quick supper, and headed to church. Children's' services went well, and afterwards I practiced with the men's group. Before heading home, we stopped by the hospital to congratulate our friends Travis and Megan on the birth of their firstborn son!

Lydia didn't have classes on Thursday, but was able to meet up with her class group for a meeting on the project their working on. She had lunch with me at the BBC cafeteria. Lydia picked up the kids, and headed to my parents' house for a visit. Malachi and I (along with my dad) attended the Men's Beast Feast at High Street Baptist.

On Friday afternoon, I got to spend a lunch/date with Lydia at the mall. It was nice for us both to have a break away from work for an hour without the kids. After work and picking the kids up, we attended a PTA meeting at the school. There are several things coming up that we're helping with.

It rained early Saturday morning. We visited Lydia's chiropractor to see what suggested for her pains and numbness in her arms. We attended balloon release for Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Day/Month held by Mommies Enduring Neonatal Death (MEND) (www.mend.org). We have a local chapter in Springfield, and we recognized the three miscarriages we had between Mysia and Malachi. Back at home, I found that we had a flat on the van. So I changed it with the spare, and Lydia started on some yard work. Lydia attacked the bush/tree in our front yard, and we had a decent brush pile by evening. We then headed over to Lycia and Jordan's home to celebrate Lycia and Moses' birthdays. We visited with Lydia's family and ate pizza and cupcakes.

~Matt

Week Rundown! (09/29/13 - 10/05/13)

Sunday morning was men's prayer breakfast. In the morning service, our men's group sang "Alpha & Omega". Malachi spent the afternoon with Granddad and Granny. After evening services, we stopped by Sonic for some milk shakes as a treat for the end of summer!

On Monday, Lydia went to the career fair at MSU and, got her résumé out to several companies. I took Mysia to piano lessons after work. Thankfully the weather was nice since Malachi and I waited in the car. We had tacos for supper, and Malachi and Mysia had showers afterwards. Mysia had homework to do, and Malachi i working with learning words by sight.

Lydia picked up the kids after school on Tuesday, and then stopped by work to get me. We ate supper at Wilson's Chuck-wagon BBQ for supper. The restaurant was celebrating 2 years of being in business, and offering their delicious meals at half price for the day! Once home, the kids got their showers and we worked on homework.

Wednesday was an interesting day. A man who had made threats to a local college caused Homeland Security to put several of the colleges and public schools under lock-down. This included BBC and also the kids' elementary school. The police were able to arrest the man, and the lock-downs were lifted by the time school was dismissed! That evening, we had "fun night" at church, which included a lesson, fun games, and a snack.

After supper on Thursday, we headed out to Sam's Club to purchase some snacks for PTA and then did a little shopping at Wal-Mart. By the time we got home, it was past the kids bedtime!

Friday went by pretty fast. We attended a birthday party for Malachi's friend Josiah. We ate pizza and ice-cream. The kids played in the huge sandbox while us adults visited. The weather was cool and comfortable, so it was nice to spend the time outside.

We woke up to rain on Saturday. However, we still attended the Walk 4 Life for the Pregnancy Care Center. It was a great turnout! We had fun, but also got wet. Once home, we changed into dry clothes and Lydia did some shopping while the kids and I worked on cleaning their rooms. We had a restful evening. We watched some movies and played some games!

~Matt

Week Rundown! (09/22/13 - 09/28/13)

Sunday afternoon was fun. We had Lydia's siblings over for lunch between services. We ate, visited, and the cousins' played. Our house was crowded, but it was worth it. That evening, Roy Tremble sang at church. It was neat being able to hear him again!

Mysia didn't have piano lessons on Monday. Lydia attended Zumba class and we had a good evening at home.

I worked later on Tuesday, so Lydia picked up the kids after her classes and we all met at the kids' school for "Open House". As part of the PTA, we encouraged other parents to get involved. We visited Malachi's classroom, got to talk to his teacher and see the progress he is making. He showed us some of his artwork and explained how he's doing on a behavior chart set up to track the students' acts of kindness in the classroom. We then made our way to Mysia's classroom. She showed us how organized her books were and we also talked with her teacher.  

Wednesday went by fast. Abigail came over and spent some time with us before church services.  

Thursday, after work, Lydia met at the Boys & Girls Club to attend the "open house" while picking up the kids. That evening, we worked on the painting of the kids' pinewood cars. Mysia and Malachi did a very good job.

Friday evening was spent getting the pinewood Derby cars ready for the races Saturday. We then played Chinese checkers.

Saturday was the "Day At The Races" at our church. We got to view some classic cars that were parked on the parking lot. The kids and I entered in the pinewood derby races. Unfortunately, neither of us placed. But we did have a good time. Back at home for the afternoon, we watched some home videos. Before going to bed, we played some Mario Kart. I also found out that one of my external hard drives went out... possibly losing some precious data I had backed up on it. We'll see.

~Matt