What? Friday already?

*It's been a busy week.
*And a good one, except for the 2 nights that I didn't sleep well at all. I'm not sure why, except for the one time when Derek tried to call us on Skype at 1:30 in the morning. (That really did happen. Sorry Derek, I just stumbled to the computer and hit the mute button. :)
*I wrote 64 thank-you notes to our supporters over the last few days, so that I could send them back with Kevin to be mailed in Canada. This made me think a few things: That's a lot of thank-you notes. We have a lot of friends who really care about what we're doing. My hand is cramping.
*Larissa missed school on Wednesday because I wasn't quite sure what was going on in town that day. Other than that, we've had a pretty normal week. YAY!
*Caitlyn and I are studying the Aztecs and the Incans. It's very fascinating, especially the one book we have from a Christian perspective. It scares me how either I don't remember learning some of this stuff, or else I have already forgotten it. Either way, I'm enjoying it with her.
*Aimee and Sierra are doing very well with phonics and reading. They are constantly trying to sound things out, which is fun and occasionally annoying. :) I'm so glad that they are quickly relearning French! That was a concern to me, but we have been praying that they (and Larissa) will pick it up quickly.
*Larissa cried this morning because she didn't want to go to school, but when I picked her up she said she had a great morning. I don't ever want to make my kids feel like I'm sending them to school so that I don't have to be with them, so I am trying to be very careful about not saying things like, "It's so much easier without her here, etc..." On the other hand, I think it is so good for her to learn that she can trust me to always come and get her when I say I will. She needs a little nudge towards independence. :)
*All four of the girls are back into girls' club as of this week. I'm not teaching this year, and it's a nice break. I can see that doing it again someday would be fun, but it's nice to send them off with other people, too. :) (Do you read this, Heather? :)
*So, there is a shortage of all of the things the president's company produces. That includes yogurt, milk, cheese, oil, juice, etc. This morning there was yogurt (only banana, which I wouldn't ever miss) at ShopRite, with a limit of 5 per person. They are 1/2 cup containers, so 5 is a fraction of what I usually buy. :) There were also 1 litre boxes of milk with a limit of 3 per person. We can live without all of those things, but they are things we're used to having. It keeps grocery shopping interesting, that's for sure.
*I brought back Crisco and molasses from Canada, among other things, and I'm wondering if anyone knows the best way to store them so extend their shelf life as long as possible. Fridge? Freezer? Just in the cupboard?
*Did I mention that I hadn't slept well the past few nights? This is making me really sleepy....
*After living here for 4 years now, we are finally getting some repairs and maintenance done on the house! It's very, very exciting and somewhat hard to believe. We had just given up completely on the very idea that anyone cared what happened to this house. Matthew had started hiring a plumber and fixing a few things himself, when lo and behold, they started fixing things! Hooray! We're going to finally have light fixtures in the living room ceiling instead of wires sticking out. They're going to repaint the girls' bedroom and the kitchen, after repairing numerous problems in the walls and ceilings. They already fixed something on the outside of the house and a faucet and drain the bathroom. It's very exciting - did I mention that?
*I am feeling very uninformed about what the predictions are for the weekend, as far as demonstrations, peace talks, etc. I'm kind of to the point now where I just wait and assume that if I need to know, someone will tell me. :) I still read things online and stuff, but not as much as last week.
*This week I was making iced tea and I think I got it figured out. :) It's good.
*I find that I'm not taking very many pictures since we're back, therefore, I don't really have anything exciting to show you. I'll see what I can do for next time.
*We have a plethora of baby geckos in our house. They are so cute and only about 2 inches long, but I am so afraid I'm going to step on one. Ugh. So far it's only been close.
*The rain stopped! It rained almost all week, but today the sun is out and it's hot again.
*I get to start another Beth Moore Bible study on Monday! I'm very excited about that. It's a study on Esther this time.
*Is that enough rambling for this time? :)