August is almost over! How does it all go by so quickly? School started and I miss having the children around all day. They are probably glad for the change and the chance to breathe without me listening.

I made more bread. It wasn't worth taking a picture of it. It turned out poorly. I watered down the egg wash too much and sprinkled Germade on top of the loaves. Result: dull, pock-marked, ugly loaves of bread. It tasted pretty good, though. I didn't oversalt the dough this time. I may break down and start using a recipe, but I do enjoy just dumping stuff in to the bowl. It makes me feel liberated and innovative.

I've got about 7 knitting project that I want to start. Each child needs (NEEDS? Ha!) a sweater and Bev and Lydia both want leg warmers for dance. I want to find a lovely pinky self-striping merino for the leg warmers. Bev wants a lime green and yellow tweed wool for her sweater. Lydia wants a pink cotton-silk blend. Ted wants the bulky blue wool that I already have in my stash. Joe just wants anything--he doesn't care what, just so long as I actually finish it before he grows out of it. I think Ted's will get started first, seeing as how we are in between gallery checks just now and a trip to the yarn shop would not be a good idea...

Game today. Joe's team lost. Lydia and Ted had a great time. They played on a nearby playground the entire time and spent at least $10 each at the snack stand. Bev stayed home. I think she read that blood-sucking book about vampires the whole time. After we got home, I took a three-hour nap with Paige. She will actually sleep for longer than 45 minutes if she's latched on...

Alene just sent me a bunch of pictures from our family reunion in July at Bear Lake. Here's one of my favorites: my beautiful, contemplative, big sister Joyce. She's getting ready for the new school year--teaching two classes. She's a marvel. She has about an inch of hair now. Larry hid her wig, so she just has to go with the pixie look. I think she's adorable.

Cancer sucks. I get mad at my kids when they say that things suck. It's such a vulgar thing to say and children shouldn't have it coming out of their little innocent mouths. Hmmm. Cancer sucks.

Joe has his first football game tomorrow. He couldn't find his game jersey all day today. I told him he needed to pray about it. We turned the house upside-down looking for that jersey. Finally when we were all starving and ready to give up looking to go out to eat, Joe came skipping triumphantly up the stairs with the blasted thing...I had been on my knees in my bedroom, praying "Lord, help him find that jersey right now, please. He needs it and he needs to know that he can ask for Thy help and receive it..." Joe told me he had finally stopped searching and prayed for help, then had the idea that it might be in the crawlspace under the stairs (which he sometimes uses as a hideout)! There it was!!! Phew! I don't know that there are any extra jerseys and he might not have been able to play tomorrow.

We celebrated the departure of our houseguests by going out to a favorite Chinese restaurant. The children behaved very well and we had fun together. Ahhh...I like my kids. (I like Wendi's kids, too--but I must admit that 9 children on a full-time basis would be too many for me.) Paige over-ate. Does that baby have an off switch? She threw up in the parking lot as we were leaving. She seemed to feel much better afterward.

I told Eric that I was just going to read an article in a magazine and then come right in to bed. Hmmmm. I just can't seem to let go of this quiet time. I want to stay up and knit. Go to bed, Val! I am strong. I can do it. I can go to bed. But first, a picture of the bread I made yesterday. It's so pretty--I have to hold it up for display. :)

Thinking

This morning I was trying to explain to Eric why I often stay up WAY too late at night. He totally understands my need to have time to think my own thoughts. I figured he would relate. So as I was thinking about this idea of "thinking my own thoughts", I realized that part of why I feel deprived of the opportunity for introspection is that I have no record of it. I have not regularly written in any sort of a journal since I was 20. That's 16 years ago, people! A lot has happened in those years and I can't remember most of it. It's time for a life-change.

So here comes the deluge. Shirlene, if you read this, I'm sorry to present this to the viewing public, yourself included, but it's your fault--you got me started (well, restarted anyway). Maybe I should find another journal-y type avenue for this stuff that's a little more private...Maybe tomorrow.

I used to look down my nose at people who drank cola-type drinks. I used to think it was very low-brow and pedestrian. Well, I need to pluck and I'm on foot, because here I sit with a diet Pepsi and I LIKE IT.

My friend Wendi is in Europe. I have her four children at my house. I love them, but not quite like my own. I would actually like to stuff two of them in the closet until she gets home on Saturday, but I'm trying to disguise that urge by declaring everything they do or say to be FANTASTIC!

I took all of the kids (plus Joe's friend Peter, that's 10 kids all together) to the aquatic center yesterday. I think they all had a good time diving and sliding. I had a great time playing with Paige. I lined up the big kids in pairs and told them to stick with and look out for their buddies. For the most part, they did so, except for one of the closet candidates who didn't stick with his buddy when he didn't feel like it, which was roughly 3/4 of the time.

I made bread today using a recipe that requires a sponge (mixture of flour, water and yeast) that is stirred up the previous night and left to ferment until the next morning. My dear friend Julie called me tonight after dinner and we found that, once again, we are cosmically aligned--as she made bread using a sponge today, too! It was a first time for both of us. Listen to her--this is an example of why I love talking to her--"I've been watching this sponge bubble and heave and it's so comforting. Stephen is out of town and I feel like I have a friend over."

I've run out of steam. I guess it's time to give over to sleep. I just vant to be alone...Just for a little longer.

Here's a picture of my cute kids from a trip to a nearby amusement park three weeks ago. What a fun day. We don't go anywhere very often, so when the Candlelighters (an organization that supports families of children with cancer) sponsored a day at the park, we carpe-ed the diem.

PeeWee had scans on Tuesday, August 1. They were all clear with good results on blood and urine test, too!!!! We asked her oncologist if we could discontinue the pelvic CT scan and HE AGREED!!!!! Plus, we don't have to go back for another scan for 4 months instead of the expected 3 months!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Wahoo!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I know I've used up my quota of exclamation points for the week, but that there is good news!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!