Spring Break Summary

Spring Break is traditionally a difficult time to keep up with blogs and writing and things like that, because there's so much going on and there is hardly any time to sit and think (or sit and write), so I'm going to just summarize all the things that happened this week.

Sunday
It was a glorious Palm Sunday. In Sunday School, we made palm leaves and practiced laying them down for Jesus to walk over. In the afternoon, Adam and I attended the Writer's Group and celebrated the fact that one of our members, Susie Finkbeiner, has landed a book contract.

The boys went downtown to WinterJam while Cheryl and I went shopping for groceries and "incidentals". Incidentally, we purchased a gazebo for the back deck.

The boys came home early because WinterJam was sold out, and nearly 1,000 people had to be turned away. (Which is what often happens with first-come, first-served, general admission events.) But as a consolation, some of the bands came out and did an acoustic set for the kids who couldn't get in. That was cool.

We spent the remainder of the evening putting up the gazebo. The girls are having some friends sleep over tonight. I hope they get some sleep!

Monday
I had to get up early to run over to the lab and get the blood work done for my physical. Then came back home to cook breakfast for the family and our guests. Bacon & eggs & pancakes, yum!

Everyone but me gets to stay home and enjoy the day off.

"White Bird" is stuck in my head. I don't know why. I worked out the chords to it and played it a few times, but it doesn't sound quite right. Did some research and found out the song was written by the group "It's a Beautiful Day" while they were staying in an attic room in Seattle. On a winter's day. In the rain.

Tuesday
Mary did the babysitting gig at Kindermusic tonight. I wasn't planning on doing Scouts because it's Spring Break, but a couple of the Scouts showed up anyway to work on Life Scout activities, so we had a bit of a review (while Mary waited impatiently) and then we went on home to do our family reading time. Finished Prince Caspian.

Wednesday
We have a guy coming in to the office today to interview for a position as Test Lead. I'm hoping he's qualified, because I'm ready for someone to take my job so I can move on. But the interviews do not go as well as I'd hoped.

We (in the Youth Group ministry) weren't sure how many kids were going to show up for church tonight, so we didn't plan anything significant. Which is just as well, since only a few kids came. We played some games out on the playground. Afterward, I chatted with some folks about coming over for Easter dinner on Sunday. Traditionally, we do a Christian Seder meal, and it's lots of fun to invite people who've never experienced it before. Later, at home, we started The Silver Chair, which I've never read before.

Thursday
I had to run into the office for a post-interview discussion. Then spent the rest of the day working from home.

Friday
The antique dinner table on which we're going to have our Easter dinner needs some attention: the ends are weak and need to be better supported, so I need to devise some kind of bracing for it. Cheryl needs to go shopping, and she's taking the boys with her so they can fill out job applications (for the summer). I used up all my little hinges on one of the two braces, so had to go out and get some more. While at the hardware store, I checked at the front desk about their hiring procedures. They need the boys to make a personal appearance (as opposed to simply filling out an on-line applicatin form), so, when Cheryl and the boys get home, she volunteers to take them back out to the hardware store to sign up. I have the braces done by dinner time. We're having pizza. Then watching part 1 of "The Great Race" again. We've only seen it about a million times. But it's always worth watching again.

Saturday
A beautiful day in the neighborhood. The morning is spent getting our house chores done so we can be ready for our guests on Sunday. Lots of vacuuming, dusting, mopping. James does the weed-eating while Adam and I work for a little while in the front garden, weeding by hand. Cheryl does some menu planning in the kitchen. Deb and I spend an hour or so out in the gazebo, reading books in the warm, gentle afternoon breeze. Later on, after reading time, the family finishes watching "The Great Race".

And now it's time for bed!