This was a rather hot week as our air conditioner had issues and most days it was 85 to 86 degrees in our house during the heat of the day. It’s amazing how grateful this makes you for working air conditioner. 🙂
We’re still in the process of trying to get it fixed, but we’ve at least figured out where to put fans so that we’re keeping the house at around 81-82 degrees in the heat of the day — which is a big improvement.
Your comments on what temperature you keep your house at were fascinating to me… and sort of made me feel like a wimp that 81 and 82 degrees seems hot! 🙂
Here’s a little run-down of how our week went:
Monday
We started something new this week that seemed to work well. After our morning routine, instead of doing my computer work at our house, Jesse suggested I go to a coffee shop and work for a few hours while he teaches/does things with the kids and then I’d come home and swap with him (i.e. he’d leave and go work at a coffee shop and I’d stay home and teach/do things with the kids).
This seemed to work well and allow both of us to get much more focused work done and also to be much more intentional and focused on the kids during our time with them. We’re going to continue this for this coming week with some tweaks and we’ll see if it becomes a permanent thing for this season or not.
Navigating the waters of having us both working from home is new to us and it’s definitely a learning process. But we’re truly loving how it has simplified our lives and affords us much more together time.
Monday afternoon, I had a radio interview. One of the interviewers also owns Cookie Temptations. Guess what she sent to us later this week? This amazing box of goodies — including personalized cookies for our kids. Not only were the cookies adorable, they are delicious, too!
Monday evening, we had our typical Meaty Monday gathering at friends’ house. There are about 8-10 families who are part of it and whoever can come shows up each week bringing some meat for the grill and a side dish. This week, the guys had fun cheering on the USA Soccer team to victory (Silas has really gotten into the World Cup and it’s been fun to see him tracking all the scores and games. :))
Tuesday
Kaitlynn had another dentist appointment… gratefully she didn’t have to get any teeth pulled this time, but she had to get three fillings. We’ve been blessed to not have to really deal with cavities in our family up to this point, so this is new territory for us.
The dentist said he just thinks Kaitlynn is incredibly prone to cavities so we’re having all three children follow the Zellies Complete Mouth Care System (thanks to a reader for recommending it!) and are hoping that this might help out. We’ve heard great things about it, so we’ll see.
Wednesday
Wednesday morning as I was getting ready, a friend in our neighborhood texted me to tell me she was headed to get coffee and could she bring me some? I told her I was actually headed to the coffee shop to work for a few hours and asked her if she wanted to bring her laptop and hang out with me for a bit. We had such a fun morning getting some work done and getting in some great conversation, too!
I did a little non-oven freezer cooking cooking on Wednesday evening. You can see the results of my freezer cooking here and the recipes I made. My kids have been gobbling up the energy bites and they’ve made a great afternoon snack here — especially straight from the freezer!
Thursday
I walked into our bedroom on Thursday morning and my heart was so warmed to see Silas and Jesse counting out all the money for our cash envelopes together. Jesse was teaching Silas how to count money and explaining how much money we put into each cash envelopes.
Thursday evening, we got together with our neighbors — the guys hung out on our neighbor’s back porch and the gals hung out at our house. We feel so blessed to be developing such deep and authentic relationships with our neighbors here!
Friday
Friday morning, I filmed a Master Class with Michael Hyatt for Platform University on “Finding Time to Build Your Platform”. It was an honor to get this experience and I’m so grateful for how Michael has inspired me as a blogger, speaker, and leader.
Friday evening, we had what is dubbed Porch Time with our neighbors. This is where a few couples from the neighborhood all gather on the back screened-in porch of one of our neighbors to just hang out and chat. Well, that and eat the yummy food we all bring to share! It is such a blessing to have neighbors to “do life” with here and we’re so honored that they have welcomed us with open arms.
By the way, many of you have asked how we’ve developed such close relationships here already and how we have such great friends. This is an area we’ve learned a lot about and grown in a great deal the past few years. I shared some of my thoughts and the lessons I’ve learned in my posts this week on How to Find Great Friends and How to Find Time to Be a Friend.
Saturday
Today was a quiet and lazy sort of day. Jesse went out to breakfast with a friend in the morning and then he took Kaitlynn out to lunch at Cracker Barrel for her birthday. The rest of us stayed home and worked on some projects, did some cleaning, I took a long nap, and then we had a family movie night tonight.
My Morning & Evening Routines Update
I promised you all I’d give you an update on how I did on getting to bed on time last week. My goal was 11 p.m., and unfortunately, I didn’t do all that great in hitting it. But I did do better than the week before, so that’s progress, right??
Sunday night — 11:20 p.m.
Monday morning — up at 6:15 a.m.
Monday night — 11:30 p.m.
Tuesday morning — 7:15 a.m.
Tuesday night — 12:30 a.m.
Wednesday morning — 7 a.m.
Wednesday evening — 10 p.m.
Thursday — 5:30 a.m.
Thursday evening — 12:30 a.m.
Friday morning — 6:30 a.m.
Friday evening — 12 a.m.
Saturday morning — 6:15 a.m. (I woke up without an alarm… but I knew I needed more sleep, so I took a long nap later on in the day. Yay!)
I’m going to track my bedtime and wake up times this coming week, as well, and am going to shoot for getting to bed by 10:30 p.m. every evening to see if I can do even better. Because I really want to break this bad habit of staying up so late!
How was YOUR week last week? How are you doing on your morning routine? I’d love to hear! Tell us about it in the comments!
Allyson Henley says
Crystal, I love these posts! You have a great life and I know you have worked HARD to get to where you are now. Keep up the awesomeness. 🙂
Allyson Henley says
And I know you still work hard! Sometimes I get tired when I read your blog….but still you always inspire me to try to do better.
Kristin says
Does your husband watch the kids for you while you work out & get a nap in? I am trying to figure out how to encorporate those things into my life right now (exercise & rest), but can’t seem to figure out the childcare part of things. I’m lucky if I get a shower before the kids wake up!
Allyson @ All Our Days says
Also, have you ever tried making those energy bites as bars? I’m trying to save some time and thought it might be quicker to press them into a casserole dish than to roll all those balls…
Libby says
I worked more than usual last week and so did my husband….sleep was difficult to maintain as a schedule and spending time with our daughter. This week is the same but then we are both off for two weeks on vacation; it always seems that you work twice as hard before you leave and twice as hard when you get back, but the two weeks off is worth it! Praying I can get in quality time with Miss M. this week with work and get ourselves packed for vacation!
Jillian Kay says
My boss always says you have to work 80 to take 40. Have a great vacation!
Allyson @ All Our Days says
I love the peek into your week. I’m praying that when we are able to purchase a home we will be near enough to at least one other family that we can “do life” with.
Also, I saw this video of a DIY Air Cooler and the kids and I thought it was awesome…it might be a fun project to do together. My 5-year-old son wants to make one even though our AC is working fine 🙂
Lana says
Something you may want to research about dental problems is alkaline/acidity in the body. In general a lot of dental problems can be linked to high acidity in the body. It is a good thing to correct since it leaves the body open to all sorts of infection. The easiest way to correct it is to use green drink powders or alfalfa capsules. You can purchase saliva pH test strips at the health food store or from Vitacost.
We were blessed to have our middle son and his wife here overnight on their way to a wedding this week. Since they are about 1000 miles away in Boston we appreciate any visit from them. We also had our oldest daughter and her two littles here for a day. The youngest is 2 weeks old and like big brother she likes to nap on Nana’s chest. I treasure every moment of those grandchildren.
We purchased a new porch swing as a reward to ourselves for paying off our house last month and spent most evenings outside around dusk to dark swinging and watching the fire flies. It has been a great way to spend the evening.
My husband and I have started packing a picnic supper and a game and going to the park on Tuesday nights. We have a nearby park that has tables right on the edge of a lake and it is always pleasant there no matter how hot it is. This has been such a great chance to connect. I find that we are both too much people watchers to have a decent conversation in a restaurant. And it is free!
Jessica says
I may have missed it, but why did you all move again? I know it was for work, but you are both working from home? Forgive me if I’m overstepping my bounds.
Joye says
So far in my morning routine, I have incorporated putting away the dishes and reloading the dishwasher as well as my 15 minutes of yoga with success. I would also like to add breakfast, followed by another 20 minutes of exercise. I’m usually pretty good about eating something, even if it’s just a pop tart, for breakfast, but I need to start making sure I have something substantial in order to feel energized for another workout. I have always had a habit of getting to work 15 minutes early, so lately I’ve been getting to work a little earlier and walking a lap around the mall to squeeze in a little exercise. That way if I don’t get a workout in later, I at least did something. So this week, my goal will be to add breakfast and exercise to my morning routine.
Libby says
Sounds like you are doing well at your routine!
JoDi says
Our son was prone to cavities in his baby teeth but was fine once his adult teeth grew in so things may get better for her in the years ahead!
I struggle with going to bed early enough too. I am a night owl by nature, but I have to be at work by 7:00 a.m. so getting to bed early is critical for me. If I did not have to be at work so early, I would always go to bed late and get up later in the morning. I am naturally more productive in the afternoon and evening so that schedule would really work well for me! I feel like going to bed late is only a “bad” habit if it prevents you from getting enough sleep because you have to be up early. I don’t know what your scheduling requirements are, but if you’re finding that your natural rhythm is to stay up late, and you can be productive in those later hours, you might try a schedule that works with your natural tendency rather than keep struggling against it. I have no idea if that’s even possible with your daily responsibilities, but I thought I’d throw it out there as food for thought! 🙂
Lee says
I was thinking the same thing! I am naturally a night owl so I go to bed late but I sleep late. I am very productive in the late morning to early afternoon. When i got o bed early and wake up early I just want to sit and enjoy the quiet before my kids get up and get nothing done.
Libby says
LOL night owl! I find I get an energy serge just before bed….but I am not a night owl….lol…it’s the weirdest thing!
[email protected] says
I love getting a peek into your life, Crystal. It’s encouraging to see even the most momma-mundane tasks on your schedule too (Like going to the dentist..my youngest son has the same problem and is cavity prone. My eldest has no cavities at all, even though his oral hygiene habits are actually worse than his little bro’s. It’s frustrating for him and for me!)
Our week was so much better than usual, mostly because I purposed to try and see the good and the lovely in our everyday. It’s amazing what having a better attitude can do to help settle down our lives. And, thanks to your inspiration, I started a new morning routine that is paying off.
Here’s to a blessed week for all!
Shawna
Molly says
Oh, poor Kaitlynn. I was also prone to cavities as a child, and at one visit had 5. 🙁 The only thing that’s worked for me has been the prescription super fluoride toothpaste, which you may or may not be comfortable with. Since I’ve started using it, I haven’t had any new cavities, just replacement fillings for old ones. I wish you luck with that. It is no fun. Please empower her that she is allowed to tell the dentist if it hurts – my sister has some serious dental phobia as an adult because getting fillings hurt as a child.
Also, I go to bed at 10 at the latest every night – my dog wakes me up at 6 every morning without fail, and I am not a happy camper without 8+ hours of sleep, preferably 9. My hubby also usually gets up at 6 for work, so I do get to see him in the morning, though.
Kim says
It sounds like you are definitely blessed with wonderful and inviting neighbors. I’m a little envious to tell you the truth. We’ve lived in our neighborhood for a 1 1/2 years and I still don’t feel connected with our neighbors, other than waving and the occasional “hi.” I have been praying about this issue quite a bit, as our kids are starting a new school down the street this fall. I’m praying that God will bless myself and my kids with good neighborhood friends!
Sarah says
I was going to comment similarly. We moved in five years ago with no welcomes (maybe because their families have young adult / older kids). It’s very weird to not know our neighbors. By now we know a few families in the neighborhood very casually, but nothing beyond that. It may be our street, which is the main st without sidewalks, but still pretty low traffic. Or it may be that folks socialize with family and old friends. No porch parties around here…and we are always under some sort of diy project so haven’t done anything ourselves.
Jessica says
When our kids started school it made a huge difference in the amount of people we met and became friends with. I hope the same for you.
Happy Healthy and Wealthy Girl says
Thanks for sharing your week. We had a longest week ever. My son finished in emergency room Sunday night and then we stayed at the hospital for two days. Not fun. Thanks God he is much better now. But it made me realize that it is time to slow down.
Libby says
Oh no! Praying for you and your family that he recovers quickly and that you are granted health and sleep.
Bev says
I’ve been doing Dr. Ellie’s system for about 4 years now and it literally cured my periodontal disease in 2011!!! My hygienist still raves about my teeth and I’ve had no new cavities since. I also had bad sensitivity issues but it went away within a short time of starting the system. It works!
On the temperature in the house, I get hot when the house gets to 69 LOL! Could have something to do with the fact that we lived for 8 years in Alaska.
Jay Kay says
As a mother of three children that seem prone to cavities ( I had the same problem as a child), I highly recommend sealants as soon as the kids’ permanent molars erupt. This has saved us a lot in the long run. It protects the grinding surfaces from trapped food in the crevices.
Kelly Berg says
The 2nd link to the posts about being a friend did not work for me. I had a “page not found” message.
Janell says
Just curious. Do you do amalgam fillings? What’s your thoughts???
Martina says
You missed the word home in this sentence….Navigating the waters of having us both working from is new to us and it’s definitely a learning process.
I hate when I leave out words:)
Thank you for sharing your week with us! It is one of my favorite posts each week!
Becki @Running with Team Hogan says
I appreciate your honesty about your bedtime. I know this is something we’ll struggle with in our summer schedule, but I also know not getting enough sleep always pushes me toward survival mode – not a place I want to go back to.
Libby says
So true regarding sleep although in the summer with the sun out later I find I naturally have more light to do more work lol! I get this energy boost an hour before bedtime!