Accounting of Week One of 2024

January 1st, 2024- I did not sleep well, as I woke up sick and spent until 5 a.m. throwing up. I woke up around 9, but it took me another 45 minutes before I finally went downstairs. Since the girls were still asleep, I took Oakley over to our neighbor's house, where they were away, and fed their dog, and the two played. Afterward, I drove to Panera to pick up bread for fondue. I quickly stopped at Target to get some bananas and Crisco and then at Home Depot to pick up some denatured alcohol. Upon returning home, I tried to rest, but I believe there is no rest for mothers, even when their children are no longer babies. Every 5 minutes, someone came into the room. Addy invited her friend from church over (Peyton), and the two spent the afternoon doing who knows what in her room. I sat down with Frank and Harris while they enjoyed the fondue. I ate a little, but my stomach wasn't feeling 100 percent. After eating, Avery and I watched Into the Woods on Disney+ while Harris and Ivy worked on building a robot that Ivy had been given for Christmas. We finished the day by reading the first day of scriptures for 2024. While I didn't get everything I wanted to accomplish today. I consider it a good day. January 2nd, 2024: I woke up to a lovely day. After taking a shower, I tackled the laundry. It was overflowing. I could use two washers and dryers, but fewer people will be at home in a few years. The girls were a big help. We followed the laundry with breakfast and scripture reading. Day 2 of 365 down. Harris, Avery, and I went on a three-mile walk. It was perfection. Last night, I joined this group where you pick your own trail and get an actual medal at the end. There are other people along the trail. I started out with an easier one: Paris City. I also downloaded another fitness app, hoping to be more motivated to increase my fitness. We followed our walk-up with lunch from Chick-fil-A. After having everyone here for the last three weeks, I don't want to do any more dishes. I am starting to put away the Christmas decorations. I will have Harris bring all the boxes from the basement. I am ready for the house to feel less cluttered. On January 3rd, 2024, Harris and I went on a walk through the neighborhood, and then I spent the rest of the day cleaning the house and cooking, making a big pot of potato soup, sourdough bread, and chocolate chip cookies. Harris will take one of the loaves back home with him to SFO. Avery was a huge help in putting away the Christmas decorations. Peyton came over again, and so did the neighbor girls. We played Left, Right, Center, and then the girls played Toss the Burrito. The girls shared their vacation to NYC and skiing at Beech Mountain with us. Sounds like they had a lovely time. After doing my third load of dishes for the day, I found time to read and started watching a new program called Redemption on BritBox. It's a crime murder series. On January 4th, 2024, I couldn't get my butt out of bed to get Ivy on the bus, so I ended up driving her to school. I took Addy, Avery, and the neighbor girls home as it was my driving day. It was a lazy day for me. I just enjoyed the peace and quiet of the day. I caught up on some laundry and watched the remaining episode of Redemption. I picked up Roman from school at 2:00 and then took him to boxing at 4:00. We got home around 8 p.m., so our day was kind of shot. Addy had a basketball game. Frank attended the game with the girls. Addy's team won. She was so happy. I forgot I spent the morning making appointments for various things, so I did some of them. I also did two shorter walks on January 5th, 2024: Man, it is freezing. I got up today, took Addy to basketball practice, and drove Ivy to her school. I went back to bed for an hour and then walked with my neighbor. Walked almost 3 miles today. Since the 1st, I have walked over 10 miles and am pleased with myself. January 6th, 2024. I spent most of the day chilling at home. It was cold and grey outside, and I didn't feel motivated to go for a walk. I took Oakley to the Groomer, and when I got there, they said it would be about 4 hours before she would be done, as another dog needed to be finished before they could start working on her. I almost felt like I didn't know what to do with myself, like when I had my son and dropped him off at a babysitter for the first time. I went home, put a chuck roast in the Dutch oven with some pepperoncini, and then threw in some carrots and potatoes for the last hour. Oh man, was it so good! I haven't had pot roast in ages because Frank isn't a big fan. Avery invited her friend Kelly over to play. All in all, it was a good week.