In serious need of some planning (and more stream of consciousness thoughts)

Brace yourself for some rambling!

I did a pretty good job of planning and prepping before our trip to Florida (If I do say so myself. Ha.), but ever since we got back, I really have not gotten myself into a good groove.

(I promise I will tell you about our Disney trip soon!)

I really need to make a menu plan and do a decent grocery shopping trip instead of being quite so haphazard.   I mean, I’ve been cooking dinner, but because I don’t have a good plan in place, I’m spending way too much time figuring out what I’m going to make.

Must. Fix. This.

Vacations are really great, but (first world problem alert!!!!) I always feel like I’m playing serious catch-up when I come home.   I think next time we go away, I’m going to make more of an effort to have some post-vacation items already planned (like menus and music for church).

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I haven’t started on the My Publisher book I mentioned the other day. I’m thinking maybe I will do a book with our Florida trip pictures because that would be pretty fast and easy.

I have a shockingly small number of photos, though (for me!), because I didn’t carry my camera a lot of the time.

I did have my iPhone with me, though, so this book will be a mixture of iPhone and SLR photos.

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The girls all finished their math before our FL trip, so the only math I have to deal with now is Joshua’s geometry.   And he’s down to the last ten lessons (oh, thank heavens!!), which means the end is in sight.

The girls just have to finish up their science and history, which is fine with me because I like history and science a lot more than math.

(Except when science involves a bunch of math.)

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This picture makes me laugh.

The height difference between Joshua and our friends’ little two year old is pretty significant. 😉

I think it’s cute that she likes to hang out with him, and I also think it’s quite lovely that Joshua is good with her.   A lot of 14 year old guys are too cool for small children and I’m glad Joshua’s not that way.

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I’m working on a 2014 summer bucket list, and I’ll share it with you guys once it’s done.

I’m not really a fan of super hot weather, but I AM SO EXCITED FOR SUMMER because of the free time it gives me.

Even though I can see the academic advantages, I will never be one of those homeschoolers who keeps it up through the summer.

N E V E R.

I would keel over from homeschooling burnout if I didn’t have those glorious three months off.

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Lisey and Zoe and I got our hair cut yesterday ($40 total for all three of us, which is pretty good, I think!).   Joshua and Sonia are due for haircuts too, but I can do those haircuts myself.

(Here’s how I cut Sonia’s hair.)

Lisey and Zoe’s hair is so thick, I’m not up to the challenge.   But Sonia has a less full head of hair, so it’s a quick and easy job to give her a trim.

Cutting my girls’ hair doesn’t save me a ton of money because they need haircuts so infrequently.   Joshua wants a haircut about every four weeks, though, so I’m really glad I can cut his.

Monthly haircuts add up way faster than yearly ones!

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Mr. FG’s car needs new front and rear brake pads.

Boo.

This is not an unexpected expense, though.   Cars always require maintenance and repair…the question is just one of timing.

And that’s why we have a dedicated auto maintenance/repair savings account that we contribute to every month.   That way we’ve got the money available when things like this pop up.

(For those of you that are new to these parts, here’s how we use our targeted savings accounts to manage slightly unpredictable expenses.)

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Ok.   That’s probably more than enough brain dump for one day!