Museum and Park

I took the kids to a history museum and a park with animals. K had a miserable time. She quit walking at the museum and refused to go anywhere until we were leaving. At the park, she (N, and I) were ready to go shortly after taking a quick look at the animals that were relatively close to the car. I got the kids ice cream on the way out. They are eating it under a huge tree.

Spring Break

The kids are home this week for spring break. It is unfortunate that their break isn't the same as mine. I've been working on my anatomy class while they complain they're bored. I've had different friends of theirs over a couple times this week to keep them company, though.

Tomorrow morning we need to go to the office. They'll be drafted into putting folders together. I might end up entering a few invoices if they can behave themselves. In the afternoon, I'd like to take them somewhere to do something. Maybe we'll go to a park. Maybe we'll go fishing. Maybe we'll go to a museum. I don't know. The problem with asking them what they want is they won't want the same thing so only one of them will get to do what he wants. Then I have fights. On Friday, we're having more friends over for the kids to play with.

Good News!

I got my letter in yesterday's mail (which I didn't retrieve until 11 p.m.) that I've been accepted into the community college nursing program that I've been working so hard towards! I start in mid August, but there is a May meeting I need to attend.

Also, I traded in my 2000 Ford Taurus yesterday, and I have a new, bottom-of-the-line, Toyota Sienna. See the picture. With a spacious, dependable car, I'm giving more thought to driving back to Michigan this summer instead of flying. Driving is horrid, and Mr. K won't come with me, but it is so much cheaper and I won't need to borrow a car once I get to Michigan.

Garden

I've still got a few tulips left. These have been growing in my garden for years. Originally there were six of them, but only two have made it for about ten years. The weather is still great for being outside, but I think it will rain tomorrow.

I need to go empty ALL the junk from my car, because if all goes well tomorrow, I'm getting a new car and trading in this one.

My New Outdoor Livingroom

I cleared an area in the garden in my front yard under a Japanese maple. Then I got two outdoor chairs and a little table. Now I can sit outside, listen to the birds and traffic and just relax or study. I love being able to study outside when the weather is so nice, but I'm sure things will get too hot very soon. Since it's in my front yard, I don't have to worry about chicken poop.

Crepe

Here is my take on Andrea's crepe from the French market. Mine is only a Nutella/banana crepe. I looked for strawberries, but they were too expensive. I made crepes, spread one with Nutella, dropped on slices of banana, folded it in quarters, sprinkled it with powdered sugar, drizzled a chocolate sauce made from cream and chocolate chips microwaved and stirred together, and then I put on canned whipped cream and a couple banana slices. While I doubt mine was as good as Andrea's, it was amazingly delicious. Fortunately I already know how to make crepes, or I never would have taken on the project.

Owl

Pictures make a blog more interesting. I'm including a picture of a very brave barred owl who has been hanging around our yard. It's brave because we were able to get so close to it. In the picture the owl is just over my fence in the neighbor's yard. We suspect he's hanging around, looking for a chicken dinner.

N's scout meeting update

N's patrol (made up of the youngest boys) won the fire starting contest. There was no prize other than knowing they beat the rest. I think all the boys had a great time at the meeting. Boys love building fires.

N's scout meeeting

N's Boy Scout meeting tonight sounds like a lot of fun. The boys are breaking down by patrols to have a fire starting contest. Here's the description:

Patrols will compete to see which patrol can build a moderate sized fire first. The objective will be to build a fire that will burn through a piece of string hung across the fire pit. The string will be no more than 24 inches above the ground. Each patrol will be given 10 matches and a striking pad.

Guidelines and restrictions include:

· No commercial fire starter.

· No flammable sprays/liquids or liquid-soaked materials (rubbing alcohol, gasoline, aerosol sprays, etc).

· No paper products (paper plates, paper towels, cardboard, newspaper, toilet paper, etc.)

· No lighters.

· Fire must be relatively organized and not scattered.

· Keep the area around the fire free of flammables (leaves, wood, etc.)

· Be safe. Don’t be careless. If it feels wrong, it is wrong.

Essentially, what is allowed includes:

· Wood

· Matches

Bring in a bag of your independently collected materials to the lake. I suggest organizing the materials into separate Ziploc bags (kindling in one bag; tinder in another bag; firewood in a large paper bag; etc). Matches will be supplied as well as the string and posts for the objective. Water will also be available on-hand for cleanup and all participants will help clean.

Have fun and be safe.

Kate is five

K turned five yesterday. N and J returned from scout campouts that day, and we made K wait until both were home before she could open up all but two of her presents. She had a hard time waiting.

We found the restaurant she wanted to go to for dinner is closed on Sundays so we ended up with McDonald's. Later in the evening, K came down with a fever like J had last week, and she cried a lot. I don't think she had a very good birthday.

Which workout is better?

When I go to the gym, I spend 21 minutes riding the recumbent bike in random mode. That means it randomly gets easier and harder to pedal. When it gets harder, I know that my pedaling slows down. Unless the room is hot, I seldom break a sweat during those 21 minutes.

When I ride my real bike (a gearless, back-pedal braking cruiser), I can only make it about ten minutes. During that ten minute ride, I am going up and down hills. Going down hills I often don't pedal but ride the brake so I don't crash at the bottom when I need to turn. Going up hills or on flat surfaces, I pedal. My ride out ends on a certain hill with a rather gentle slope. Eventually my thighs start to burn like fire so I give up, turn around, and go back. On the big slopes (which is most of them), I get off my bike and walk it up the hills. I know; it's very pathetic but I wouldn't ride at all if I didn't do this, and surely this is better than nothing. I know it's time to walk the bike when it starts to teeter because I am going so slowly.

Anyway, by the time I get home, I am sweating, my throat hurts, I am gasping for air, and I pretty much feel like I have the flu. If it is at all cold, my ears ache. The thing is, I am gone and back in literally 10 minutes. I spend 21 minutes at the gym riding the bike without breaking a sweat. Which is better?

(Also at the gym I use the machines for 15 minutes that build muscle, but I am keeping that out of this comparison.)

J's ill

J is going to be home from school with me. She woke up with a fever over 101 °F this morning. She has her first of four horseback riding lessons tomorrow evening so I hope this is a very quick illness.

Fishing's not so good

The place we fish down the road from us is becoming a party hang-out for boys. K and I went there this morning, as a car dropped off three swim-suit wearing boys (about 15 years old) with poles, a cooler, and lawn chairs. They fished on one side and we fished on the other. Only one boy was actually fishing. The others turned their chairs away from us and the water and were talking and playing on their fancy phones (probably calling their friends). They were discretely passing around Marlboro reds. I thought about lecturing them on not starting smoking if they aren't yeat addicted, but I decided to mind my own business. We caught no fish so after a while, K and I left and went to fish by the road, where if you can catch anything, it will be tiny.

When we were fishing by the road, another boy of a similar age was dropped off. Then three more boys, who seemed slightly younger (but only slightly). They didn't even have poles. Kate and I had caught a few small fish by the road, so were were done and went home. I don't know if any more young men turned up, but we weren't there to see it. I've noticed a lot more trash down there since everyone started fishing there. Sometimes I make a trip down there just to pick up the trash since I don't like looking at it. Anyway, now I see that the area is just a big party spot for teenaged boys. Last year there was a lot more fishing going on, but the boys often came with their dads.