May 22, 2010

Sunday afternoon swim	Ina Sue woke up around 2:30 Sunday morning sweated wet and aching all over.  She didn't get very much sleep at all during the night but the fever seemed to have gone down by morning.  I advised her to stay home from church though.  I took the 3 oldest along with me.  Carl preached on "The Joy of Work".  I was not eating today so when we got home I helped make up a quick lunch of leftovers.  I took the children for a walk/bike ride around the town.  After we got back they were so hot that I got out the pool and let them cool off in the water.  They had a big time once Landon finally got over the great stress of getting his panties wet. :)  We all took naps then.  I took Carolina Sue and Landon with me to church for our schools graduation.  There were six students graduating.  (Kevin D., Melissa B., Emily D., Spencer C. B., Andrea S., and Kendra P.   They all gave really good talks.  We skipped out on the party and went home to have milkshakes with the rest of our family.
Josh & Marcia with Jake & Savannah.	We had a nice rain overnight.  I headed off to work Monday morning and Ina Sue worked on laundry.  It drizzled through the morning but she was able to get the clothes almost dry on the line.  I was still fasting until I got home from work and saw the delicious supper that Sharon Brubaker had brought for us.  I broke the fast and ate her beef gravy over fresh potatoes, and a wonderful caramel meringue pie.  It was worth jumping off the wagon for. :)
Wendell roasts his marshmallow	I spent Tuesday at work.  Ina Sue took care of children and did the ironing.  She and the children also worked in the garden, pulling weeds and tying up the tomatoes.  I came home at 5:00 and took care of the children for the evening while Ina Sue had the evening to go out shopping.  She went to Bamberg and shopped at Dollar General and Freds. (We're on a budget... )  The children and I took a walk then I took the training wheels off of Carolina Sue's bike and helped her ride for a little.  Then inside for baths.
The children participate in morning devotions.	Ina Sue worked some more on Carolina Sue's dress on Wednesday while I went to work.  I dropped Carolina Sue and Landon off at Myrons so that they could ride in the planter for a little.  Myron is so very good at inviting them to "experience" farming.  Jane brought them home at noon.  Ina Sue helped Carolina Sue with her bike.  By the time I got home Carolina Sue could ride by herself in a straight line.  It was a bit of a pain because you could get her started and she would ride to the end of the road then stop because she couldn't turn.  Ina Sue or I would have to walk the whole way to the end of the road to help get her started again then repeat.  She is doing good though.  We went to church for prayer meeting in the evening.  The youth were gone on a camping trip so the rest of us just had a time of sharing and prayer.
Duane & Milton pretend they are retired in Florida.	Ina Sue made us baked oatmeal for breakfast on Thursday.  She also made up a batch of bars and sewed on Carolina Sue's dress, all before breakfast.  I had to go in to work for a while but was able to come home around 3:30.  I mowed the yard and made potato salad for this weekend.  In the evening we were invited over to Wendell's pecan grove for a wiener roast.  Josh & Marcia were there along with Patricks.  We also invited our sometime neighbor Margie Stanbrook to eat with us.  It was a beautiful evening and a nice time visiting around the fire with hotdogs and marshmallows.
Grandpa takes the children for a golf cart ride.	Friday was busy!  Ina Sue tried to get in a little cleaning along with all her packing and child care.  I rushed at work to get everything done so that I could leave a little early.  Didn't make it home till about 6:00 though.  Ina Sue had most of the stuff packed up so I started carrying stuff out to the van.  We got left for Hartwell at 7:00 and pulled in to Hartwell Mennonite Center just a little after 10:00 for the Strite Family get-together.  Mom had fixed peach cobbler for a snack so we enjoyed that before getting our family all settled in for the night.  This is a wonderful place for our family to get together.  We had a nice suite with two bedrooms which worked out really nice with our children.
Rebecca takes Savannah for a stroller ride.	Saturday was a wonderful day with family.  Everyone was there except for Sheldon, Laura and little Ashton.  Missed you!!!   It was overcast in the morning and rained a little so we didn't go to the lake like we had planned.  Instead we stayed around the center and the children enjoyed the gym while the adults played games inside and shuffleboard outside.  The ladies went in to Hartwell to do some thrift store shopping for a while.
Washing up the supper dishes.	We guys did spend a little time in the morning helping Dad move furniture in their dining room then pulling up the vinyl and doing some repair work on the staples in the subfloor.  We had sub sandwiches for lunch then Dad grilled chicken for us for supper along with potato salad and broccoli.  Carolina Sue is really enjoying riding bike in the gym.  She has no problem starting and controller herself now.  We put the children down around 10:00 then played some more games.