7QT: It's 2021 Or Is It 2020 Won?

Happy Friday!  Linking up with Kelly because it may be a new year, but what's that saying about you can't teach an old blogger a new schedule? 

1)

 

And 2022 sounds like 2020 too...so let's just skip to 2023 m'kay?

2)

Because of the numbers of rising cases of 'rona in our area, our highschool is remote this week, so Phil, JP, Andrew, and I are working from home (I worked partly from my office too) but the other five kids are in school, in person, and this is a very doable situation.  However, if and when their school goes remote, which seems like is undoubtedly going to happen because HELLO IT'S WINTER, HENCE COLD AND FLU SEASON here in the Northeast, life gets a lot more complicated.  Working from home means trying to work plus teach plus get kids on devices for scheduled meetings plus keep them quiet while I have meetings plus keep them entertained and fed all day long so as not to disturb everyone else in school.  Ugh, just remembering what that was like last Spring gives me the shudders.

  Please Lord let the schools stay open or let me win the lottery so I can quit my job and just be able to focus on schooling at home.

3)

One nice perk (coffee pun intended) of working at home is making a cappuccino in our new Nespresso machine that I had given "to Phil" for Christmas.  I held off on purchasing one because the coffee pods are so expensive, but we have basically been using it as an afternoon snack (with decaf coffee) and it works out to about $1.20 per serving which is the same as grabbing a yogurt or some other snack.  We still make coffee in a big pot at home for our morning jolt.

3)

Every New Year, I try to make a few changes based on what has been lacking in my life.  I almost always try to eat healthier (less sugar/carbs) and spend less money (Christmas bills) and increase my prayer life.  This year, I am listening to Fr. Mike's podcast where he reads the Bible over the course of the year.  It's about 20 minutes a day, and he reads a few Bible passages and then gives a short commentary.  Phil and I have been listening to it our dog walks, or I'll put it on in the kitchen while I'm prepping dinner or in the car.  It's been great and I hope I can finish out the year completing it...something my resolutions are usually lacking.

4)

I'm also reading The Anti-Mary Exposed and The Imitation of Mary.  I have such a strong devotion to Our Lady, so reading books like these is definitely easy for me.  What I want though, is to feel the same way about Christ.  I want to feel a friendship with Him like I do with her.  Hopefully, she will keep leading me to Him, and my faith will grow over time.  Wow, that was a bit embarrassing to admit!

#pride #humilitylessons 

Moving on!

5)

We tried a new recipe at the Cafe Martin and it was delicious.  This Beef Bulgogi meal is a keeper for sure.  We marinated it for 24 hours, and it's one of the only ways I will eat steak.  I can't handle biting into a big piece of meat that needs chewing.  It has to be thin and tender, and practically dissolve in my mouth.

6)

I used to write about all of our kids' various activities all the time, and we were always bopping around like busy bees from one thing to another.  My my how times have changed.  The only activities my kids have going on are work (JP and Andrew and Eamon soon), basketball (Andrew only as CYO was canceled), volleyball (Maggie), and piano (Alexander).  Eamon really needs a sport to play and I feel bad for him the most.  JP is also starting an EMT course next week, but he drives himself so that's easy.  Andrew has his permit and has been driving more, I have to admit he's pretty good but a little heavy-footed with the gas pedal ;)

Andrew on the JV team #33 in light blue mask

7)

Our family has had A Fish Saga going on for about 5 years.  I'm pretty sure I've written about it before, but to catch you up, we bought a fish tank "for the kids" (because I wanted it too) and they each used their money to buy a fish.  Of course some of them died and got replaced, and those were eventful times in the Martin house as we never knew which kid's fish would survive or die and which kid would take it the hardest.  Turns out their mom took each fish death the hardest.  Anyway, one of the early replacements was a "yellow goldfish" named Pumpkin that was very hearty but we figured out was killing the other fish.  We discovered he was an African Cichlid that was aggressive and doesn't do well with other fish.  We stopped replacing the other fish as they died off, and he lived a long life by his lonesome.  When we decided to do some dining room updates, we had to get rid of the big fish tank because we were getting rid of the furniture it sat on.  Phil was VERY happy about this because he HATED the fish tank, as he was the designated cleaner of it and it was always dirty.  I was heartbroken because I LOVE the fish tank and watching the fish swim around is soothing, but I also don't clean it, though I am great at telling Phil when it's dirty.  Ha!  We put our long-living fish in a big glass bowl, thinking he wouldn't live much longer, but he kept on keeping on.  Phil really wanted to flush him, but I seriously get a stomachache even thinking about flushing a live fish.  After watching him survive in the bowl for a couple weeks, I thought I really owed it to Pumpkin to buy a smaller fish tank that could sit on the counter.  Phil was not a fan, but like the saintly husband he is, agreed to it for my happiness.  We bought the tank, new gravel, and plants, a filter, and put the fish in.  He died two days later.  What!?!  So now I stare at an empty tank and a husband who keeps saying "we were so close to being done with it all".  Stay tuned for next week's episode of The Fish Saga to find out if I can convince him that we need to buy new fish.

Have a wonderful weekend everybody!  Enjoy watching the playoffs even though the Patriots aren't in it, but at least the Redskins Washington Football Team is!  Go Skins!