Okay, I guess that March didn’t end up coming in very much
like a lion after all, but we did still get to shovel snow a few times today;
and Grandma and Grandpa were delayed by a couple of hours getting home too.
My morning started out dark and early with a pre-breakfast
round of shoveling fun with Dad, Jacob, and Michael. That was the main reason for my invitation to
have breakfast with Michael and his family; and the extra work was worth
it! There was another round of driveway
and sidewalk clearing after we ate, and while the work wasn’t that tough, it
was a lot colder outside; and the second round was a bit uncomfortable while
wearing still-damp coats, gloves, and hats.
All of that action meant that I had to rush a shower and getting ready
for church; so I cheated a bit with that – though not so much that it’d be
noticed by anyone as being an impossible accomplishment.
While we didn’t get the high-end snowfall in the weather
forecast, we did get enough that there wasn’t a full house in the sanctuary
this morning. As usual, it was mostly
farm families that were staying at home to take care of animals and deal with
the problems that bad weather always caused.
Some seniors stayed home too rather than venturing out into the snow; and
the deep cold kept most of the youngest infants at home with one or more family
members too. That probably had something
to do with why Pastor John kept the service short today – plus we were still
getting some snow; and he knew that we were all in for more work until the
weather front moved on.
That was certainly true for Michael and me. We shoveled snow at the Inn after getting
there from the church; and I helped out with some lunch prep work after that
before heading home to help Mom and Dad while Michael stayed at the Inn. Dad had
already had the driveway more than half-done by then, so I helped him finish
that work before going inside to get changed and have lunch. Form there, we were off to Grandma and
Grandpa’s house to shovel some more snow. We did that; turned the heat up to normal so
the house would be comfortable when they got home; topped up the wood and
kindling in case they needed it for the fireplace; and then we headed home
again in time for me to meet up with Michael, Rowen, and Tim for our afternoon
study session during Michael’s break from the Inn.
Dad needed to get to work in the office by then, so Ethan
and Ehlana came up to the lounge with us and watched a movie while we studied –
though they chatted with us more than they actually watched the show. We knew by then that Grandma and Grandpa were
delayed, but the only change to our plans was that I spent that extra couple of
hours playing with Ethan and Ehlana after Michael needed to get back to the Inn
and Rowen and Tim moved on; mostly so that Mom and Dad could both work in the
office then and take the evening off instead.
Grandma and Grandpa got home at a bit after six; and we all met them at
their house to help with unloading the van and hauling luggage up to their
bedroom. ‘All of us’ didn’t include
Uncle Adam, Aunt Leanne, and Zack; but that was only because Aunt Leanne nursed
Zack before meeting us at the Inn for the late
buffet. Since we did get to have that
pre-dinner time with our grandparents, Ethan, Ehlana, and I sat at the table
next to the rest of our family; giving Grandma and Grandpa time to talk with
their kids and take turns cuddling with Zack while he mostly napped – once the
novelty of seeing his grandparents again wore off. Miranda let Michael and Rebecca join us to
eat when they could take a break; timing that for when I was ready to fill a
second plate at the buffet tables.
While I’m thinking about that, I occasionally get teased
about my capacity to inhale food, and there are more than a few girls – and women
– around here who are at least a little jealous that I can do that without the
normal side-effects. I obviously can’t
explain that to most of them, but in addition to my hyper-metabolism, my body
does self-heal; I’m very active; and using my Magi gifts has a measurable
impact too. There are actually some
decent studies on that in the archives if you’re interested; including an
optimal dietary plan that can be followed when extended Magi power use is
necessary. That’s quite a few centuries
out of date considering the food options now; but the basics are sound enough. The message I’m trying to convey, though, is
that you shouldn’t try to compete with my dietary needs at home unless you have
the same physical needs that I do.
I need to move this along because it’s heading toward three
o’clock now and I need to get some down time.
Dinner was fun, but that, combined with a visit with Grandma and Grandpa
at our house after that until it was time for Ethan and Ehlana to go to bed
meant that I didn’t get started on my usual school night lessons and studying
until nearly eleven o’clock. That didn’t
give us nearly enough time to hear very many of Grandpa’s travel stories; but
the cuddle time was good; and Zack came to life long enough to help with the
entertainment before and after Aunt Leanne nursed him again.
Grandma and Grandpa did the bedtime story with Ethan and
Ehlana; tucked them in for the night; and then went home with Uncle Adam and
Aunt Leanne to do the same with Zack before going home to get some sleep. Yes, they were exhausted by then, but stayed
up late on purpose to try and help them get adjusted to home time. Once we’d seen them out with extra hugs and
kisses, Mom did my Magi lesson with me while Dad cleaned up and made sure that
he had everything ready for work in the morning. Since it was already getting late by then,
Mom kept my lesson fairly short; and I was in my room by eleven-thirty.
I was in need of some Jacuzzi time by then, so I
multi-tasked the language studies with a long soak in the tub. Doing my hair required taking a break from
the work; but then I got right back to it again once I was tucked into bed with
Mandy for the night. The archive
homework took an hour; I followed that up with some family business work; and
then wrapped up with my usual nightly computer checks. The main email news from my favorite college
teens is that they’re all getting ready for their upcoming mid-term exams. That’s not as big of a deal as it was during
the two rounds of exams in their first semester because they do have the
experience now; but there is still some stress anyway.
While they’re focused on exams, though, I’m more excited
about getting to see Violet, Dillon, Christina, and Josiah when they’re home
for March Break. I wish that Jake and
Stephanie could come home too; but I’m sure they’ll have fun with their week
off – even if they will be studying while spending that time together somewhere
in New York. Mom’s working on some plans for March Break
that will include some play time for me with Dawn and Jillian; but that hasn’t
been finalized yet – other than that they’ll be coming here for a few days; and
while Violet and Dillon are here too.
I’ll keep you posted on that as I get more information – or, since
you’re reading this in my future; you could always jump ahead a couple of weeks
of journal entries if you can’t wait to find out! ;^)
Anyway, I guess all that’s left for the update tonight is a
quick look at the week ahead.
Groundbreaking is supposed to start on the medical center building
tomorrow, but that might be delayed a bit because of the snow and cold. Tomorrow is also the third anniversary of the
day Rowen and I found out about each other when she fell on the stairs by the
falls. Too bad we won’t have a nice warm
day like that again tomorrow instead of the deep freeze that’ll be with us for
at least another couple of days.
The only big family event this week is Uncle Adam’s
thirtieth birthday on Friday; and that won’t affect me very much because Aunt
Leanne is taking him to Crystal
Springs for a five-star
sleepover. Zack will be with us
overnight, and we’re going to do a birthday breakfast on Friday morning; but
that’s about it for our end of things.
I’m sure that Aunt Leanne would have liked to do a full weekend away;
but had to juggle that with wanting to spend time with Zack too. So other than the Friday night babysitting,
there isn’t anything major planned for the weekend; and this could end up being
a fairly quiet week.
With March Break coming up in just two weeks, that’s
probably a good thing; since I definitely want to be rested up and ready to
have some fun while we’re getting that week away from school! I won’t be getting much rest toward that goal
tonight, but that’s all I have for now; and it’s past-time to get what sleep I
can now, so...
...Live long and prosper, fellow Magi of the Light!
