My idea of a good day!

Wow, did I need a day like today!  It confirms what I already knew - this family needs days at home where we don't have to go anywhere.  If for no one else, it helps gets Terah's little digestive system get back on track.  This little gal likes to poop at home and sometimes will go all day without going when I'm at work with her or we are all away from home.  She's gotten three good poopies out in the sink today (still no poops in her diaper - I think we are going on 2 plus months...).  Big girl!

While we are on the subject of things that will likely make her roll her eyes at me and ask me why in the world I posted that on a public forum, here's a video of her on her changing table today. And, yes, I did try to get just a few seconds of her rather impressive thighs. They are super squeezable!



So, today: the word I told Jason best describes the day for me is "expansive."  I didn't feel super rushed, and felt like I had time to spend with each of my family members and still got a good number of things done.  I mean, I even scrubbed our toilet and bathroom sink!  And clipped all the girls' finger and toe nails!

The day started with no alarm - well, I guess I always have my "terah-alarm."  We were up pretty early but Jason had beat us to it (and he had been up early enough that he was into my idea of starting the day with a cup of coffee).  But first Jason helped Terah and I get a much needed shower - a very nice way to start our day!  By the time our coffee was steeping, Alida had joined us in the front room and a fire was making the room nice and cozy.  I got our soaked and slightly fermented amaranth porridge going and before long roused Kali so she wouldn't miss out.  We all enjoyed bowls of porridge with some combination of toppings (homegrown dried strawberries, soaked dehydrated pecans, coconut, raisins).

I had my little kitchen morning burst, getting cream skimmed for butter, getting yogurt started, doing all our dishes from our day away the day before and straightening up. By that time Terah was ready for her first nap and she sacked out nursing and transferred to the front pack for my marathon laundry hanging job.  Alida came to help me, chattering the whole time and hanging a few things on her little line.  All the lines were full by the time we were done, and then in to cut up a large Pennsylvania Dutch Squash to go with our homegrown ground cornbread, steamed spinach and leftover pork and venison roast for lunch.

Terah is making us feel rather guilty for not including her at meal times so she has now added squash to the list of foods she has licked, sucked or otherwise sampled.  She loved it.  She started the meal already nearing her next nap time so her interest got more and more desperate until I couldn't keep her happy with the little bites and she dissolved and was asleep nursing in a matter of minutes.

I got food put away but then settled down with Terah's baby book, my journal and the recently arrived Sun magazine.  I did some writing, a little reading, took a short snooze and all the while Terah slept and nursed intermittently.   Kali was reading and Alida was looking at books.  All was peaceful and quiet!  I offered to read Alida some of the many library books we had brought home yesterday.  Thanks to tips (books lists and how to put them on hold) from my friend K, we came home with books I was looking forward to reading. I think Alida was in a slight state of shock when I read book after book without falling asleep and without saying I needed to do something else.  It felt really, really good!

Eventually I was itching to get the lunch dishes done (before supper) and so passed a sleeping baby to Kali. She looked a little bigger than the last time Kali had held her sleeping. She soon woke happy and was our side kick while we got our roasted squash spread on dehydrating trays to try our one ingredient squash leather, I finished cleaning up from lunch, made some egg salad, got the butter washed and in the freezer and likely some other random tasks I'm forgetting.

The older girls had decided to go outside and when I looked out they were with Jason in the garden.  Jason had finished up making tomato and pepper cages and was digging carrots. I got Terah's little sweatshirt and hat on and out we went. She loves being outside and is so interested in everything around her.  We watched the chickens, checked out the carrot digging, and noted the purple crocuses blooming in Nora's garden.  Speaking of flowers that remind us of Nora, Jason found a clump of yellow flowers blooming - 6 of them (one for each member of our family!).

We concluded our afternoon by going for a family walk, and snagging Terah her third and final nap of the day.  Now we are back, Jason is washing up carrots, Kali is keeping the fire stoked and folding laundry, Alida is entertaining Terah in her bouncy seat and I'm thinking about getting supper underway.  But first a few other things I wanted to mention.

It's nothing new but I recently commented again to Jason how Kali is spoiling me.  She continues to ask how she can help many times a day and now knows enough ways to be helpful that she doesn't even always need to ask. If I make a little list for her, she happily goes about the tasks without reminders.  On my last work day at home I told her there were a few things she could do if she wanted to. I was back in our bedroom working while Terah slept and I heard Kali loading the wood boxes and then coming in from emptying the compost and then the sound of her sweeping the floors. She's too much!

Alida's forte is still in other arenas but when she is rested and has had enough cuddle time she's an incredible kid too.  She is pretty cute about not participating in our family Lent commitment to make no food purchases. I'm not in the least bothered by it - I actually get a pretty big kick out of the four bananas she bought for herself with her money at the co-op yesterday when Jason went with the older girls to the post office next door.  Kali, on the other hand, would not even get herself a piece of free fruit at the co-op as she thought that was close enough to cheating.  I love how different each of our girls are and how amazing they are!  Here they are in the matching hats Kali made for them.  Off to spend time with them...