What is your life like?

[kwickimom]

I am a big homebody. We are also in debt paydown mode and so we don't get out of the house much. We put a LOT of time and energy into our house, animals, and 2 acres. We sometimes only leave once a week to go get groceries. We live in the country and we love our lifestyle.

 

I am curious as to what your days look like when not schooling? I love getting a peek into other peoples lifestyles :)

 

We raise whitetail deer, turkeys, chickens, and labs. We also have cats, fish, turtle, and a parrot. So we spend a lot of time taking care of and playing with our animals. (One day I hope to buy the 3 acres next us and get some horses which is my true passion) We have a huge garden and I do some canning. We have a big plastic baby pool and a sprinkler that the kids just love, so we are out there pretty much everyday in the summer. We have a lake right down our road and a pond right next to us so we take nature walks and fish. We are avid hunters and so there is always some of that going on. We ride the 4 wheeler a lot also.

 

I am constanly cleaning and organizing while the kids play with their toys. And of course right now I am planning like a madwoman for my first year of HS'ing. We all read and play board games and play on the computer. We love going to yard sales and spend pretty much every saturday doing that. About once every 6-8 weeks me and the kids visit my family about 5 hours away. Once a month we try and go do something outside the house, such as Monkey Joes or go see a movie. Right now my DS4 and 2 are in no outside activities and DD7 goes to a few free commuity programs.

 

Basically its the simple life for us. I love it. It really makes the kids appreciate when we do go and do something. As we pay off more debt each kid will be allowed one or two activites, but other than that I have no desire to run around and get busy :D

 

How about you?

[Parrothead]

I don't have a life. Pretty much what you see here is it. When we lived on the other side of the state things were difficult for both dd and me. Neither of us were able to find someone to call BFF. To find adult conversation I searched the net and eventually ended up here.

 

Now being here makes it easy to avoid the need for IRL people to talk to. I mean I have a couple/few relationships in progress, but we haven't been here a year yet. It takes time.

 

So I hang around home, get dd to play dates. She has found a BFF thankfully. (It was so sad to see such a sad little girl for those years.) I try to help out at church. I'm Father's computer geek. We seem to be answering a lot of summer invitations. Hopefully I'll find someone to connect with. But you guys are so great, I've gotten into the habit of not trying to hard to look elsewhere. :D

 

Somethings I do when I'm at home and not on the computer:

Read

Sew

Cook

Garden

Bake

Crochet when the mood strikes

[kittysmom]

We live a very busy life. I keep cutting back, and things keep creeping back in! I have a hard time letting good opportunities go, but really, I like to be busy.

 

My boys (especially ds8) are big into sports, so we spend a lot of time going to kids' baseball and basketball games, going to minor league and college games, and playing catch out in the yard. DD11 is deeply into violin, takes weekly lessons and plays in the orchestra. My boys are going to take piano in the fall. They all want to try and do everything. Right now they're bugging me about martial arts and swim team, but I have to draw the line somewhere!

 

We are just not homebodies. The days we spend entirely at home are few and far between. We do try to do things as cheaply as possible. We go to movies (discount movie theater is near our house -- we go there a lot), out to lunch once a week usually, museums (on discounted days usually), parks, pools, free library programs, playdates, etc, etc. We live in a city with fun family cultural events all the time, so we're always out and about.

[The Girls' Mom]

Seems like we are always on the go anymore.

 

I run the girls around mostly. There are piano lessons, library volunteering, working at the food bank, hs group park days. Then there is the grocery shopping, running errands, etc. Plus we have church.

 

This fall we are potentially adding in choir and handbells. I don't know how or when..lol. And dh will be back in school.

 

I have made some friends within our hs group, so I enjoy the park day as much as the kids.

 

At home, we bike, clean, cook, read, and mess around in whatever crafty thing that has grabbed our attention.

[delaney]

Mine is the typical suburban life you see on TV.

2 boys in boy scouts and travel soccer, 2 girls in scouts and competitive dance(just got back from nationals at Myrtle Beach), 1 son in church preschool, 1 toddler son who tags along. I really wish I had land, a few animals, less neighborhood and neighbor issues...more simplicity?:confused:

[Saille]

We live on three acres. We have chickens, ducks, a huge garden, two barn cats, an indoor cat, and the English Shepherd. I just put in eleven golden raspberry bushes this week, and we have three cherry trees and three apple trees if the doggone deer will just leave them alone.

 

So yeah, there's plenty here to keep me busy, and dh is pretty busy when he's home from work. I also work two part-time jobs, one as a tutor and one as an RE teacher at our church. My dh is the church's board president this year. We are the leaders of a local co-ed scouting group, which all three of our kids attend. Mostly the kids homeschool, read, paint, draw, pick black raspberries, invent complicated games and spend a load of time outdoors. I tried to send the two olders to a week of art camp, and they objected to being placed in different groups. We are also working on debt paydown, so we buy very little. We picked a flat of red raspberries and some currants at a pick your own place yesterday, and that was a major extravagance.

 

This weekend, I'm making loads of jam, freezing berries, and painting the glassed-in porch, which my mom will be glad to know, b/c she gave me the giftcard I'm using back in March, for my birthday. I'll post pics on the blog eventually, but all our cameras have issues right now. :glare: Dh is working. The kids are wandering. This is the first Sunday we've skipped church since September.

[kwickimom]

I don't have a life. Pretty much what you see here is it. When we lived on the other side of the state things were difficult for both dd and me. Neither of us were able to find someone to call BFF. To find adult conversation I searched the net and eventually ended up here.

 

Now being here makes it easy to avoid the need for IRL people to talk to. I mean I have a couple/few relationships in progress, but we haven't been here a year yet. It takes time.

 

So I hang around home, get dd to play dates. She has found a BFF thankfully. (It was so sad to see such a sad little girl for those years.) I try to help out at church. I'm Father's computer geek. We seem to be answering a lot of summer invitations. Hopefully I'll find someone to connect with. But you guys are so great, I've gotten into the habit of not trying to hard to look elsewhere. :D

 

Somethings I do when I'm at home and not on the computer:

Read

Sew

Cook

Garden

Bake

Crochet when the mood strikes

 

I have a bunch of acquaintances where I live, but no true friends. I have 2 BFF's that live 5 and 6 hours away. One from birth and one from college. I am jsut so laid back and such a homebody that it is hard to find a real good friend because I dont need to gossip, or call a person everyday, or go and spend a lot of money. I am happy to chat once in awhile and hang out over coffee or at the park every now and then. I think the main issue is I havent found anyone who loves to be around their kids as much as I do. I dont want to leave them and go to the mall- I like to do this with them. (dont get me wrong I LOVE my Bunko nights once a month, but mostly I take my kids and DH with me everywhere or do things they want to do)

I also hope to find someone close that I can connect with though.

I also love this forum and thats why I am trying to get to know a few of you ;)

Edited July 4, 2010 by kwickimom
typos

[Heather in Neverland]

Well, I live on a tiny island in the Indian Ocean...no acres of farmland for me! This summer...

 

we moved into a new home

 

I am taking two grad school classes

 

I am leaving to visit the states for 2 weeks

 

we hang out with friends

 

go to the night market

 

watch movies

 

piano lessons

 

swim, lay in the sun, rinse, repeat

 

and we have been finishing up our home study and have our final court date to finalize our adoption of Natalie next week

 

So, nothing much. :D

[NicksMama-Zack's Mama Too]

I have a bunch of acquaintances where I live, but no true friends. I have 2 BFF's that live 5 and 6 hours away. One from birth and one from college. I am jsut so laid back and such a homebody that it is hard to find a real good friend because I dont need to gossip, or call a person everyday, or go and spend a lot of money. I am happy to chat once in awhile and hang out over coffee or at the park every now and then. I think the main issue is I havent found anyone who loves to be around their kids as much as I do. I dont want to leave them and go to the mall- I like to do this with them. (dont get me wrong I LOVE my Bunko nights once a month, but mostly I take my kids and DH with me everywhere or do things they want to do)

I also hope to find someone close that I can connect with though.

I also love this forum and thats why I am trying to get to know a few of you ;)

 

I could have written this post. Wish I could join you and Parrothead for coffee a few times a month.

[FaithManor]

We live in a renovated church (110 years old) that DH did 90% of the work on pretty much single handedly even though I tried to hold things while he nailed, drilled, etc. We have 1/2 an acre but live three blocks from my parents who have seven acres so we are all working at a more self-sustaining lifestyle.

 

We have a nice garden but we need to expand it next year. We've been working at amending the soil because it isn't all that great. Finally, the soil is pretty good so we'll double the size next year and start working on that.

I have watermelon, cucumbers, leeks, broccoli, roma tomatoes, grape tomatoes, corn, turnips, and butter lettuce in the garden. The carrots didn't come up and I am not happy with the leeks or broccoli so I won't be buying seeds from that company next year. We have four 4-H show ducks in the yard and they aren't very "showy" looking these days because they are molting....saddest bunch of birds you've ever seen! We'll be adding eight laying hens this fall and just maybe next year, I will raise a few chickens just for the butcher. We'll see because there is a lot to do with this little homestead.

 

We have a fledgling Thompson Green grape vine that we are trying to train to grow up a trellis instead all over the yard. It's a fairly new addition to the "farm" so we have three small, but nice, grape clusters to harvest this year and hopefully that will more than double next year. Some sort of insect got the 12 little apples I had growing on my small apple trees (therefore, I have a murderous plot against these creatures), our raspberry bush is spreading but not really producing yet, we harvested one and half quarts of strawberries from our little patch, we have some wild black-cap (similar to blackberries and delightfully yummy) that has cropped up in the front amongst some bushes that need to be yanked out, so I'm trying to figure that our because I'd like to preserve the black-caps, and we have tiny blueberry bush that is currently throwing all of its energies into rippening twenty little berries. Thankfully, DH likes the gardening so I have help.

 

I work two days per week and several weekends per year doing chores at a fiber farm. I do this in exchange for horse boarding for our American Paint mare. Three of our four children take dressage riding lessons one day per week and they get to practice in between when I can get a break and take them out there. We also, in exchange for DH and I's extra help, get to raise a pig there. Though not entirely free range, the pigs have a large area to run, a nice shelter, and are fed mostly kitchen scraps, grass clippings, unwanted produce from area gardens, etc.

 

Dh and I lead a science oriented 4-H club which meets once per month except August and December. Dh also hosts two large county-wide 4-H science demonstrations each year.

 

When not homeschooling, working at the farm for the horse, gardening, harvesting, canning, dehydrating, and cleaning house (ugh), I quilt and play the piano. In a former life that seems now to be just a hazy memory, I was a professional pianist and music therapist for children with learning and physical disabilities as well as mental illnesses. I also taught at parochial schools before homeschooling and the last one I taught at was my dream job. I hope that when ds10 graduates, I'll be able to walk back into my position there....music teacher, science lab coordinator, regular sub.

 

Oh, we are pretty active in our church although I have to be careful not to take on too much and I have some IRL quilt buddies that I try to have tea and nutmeg muffins with on a somewhat regular basis.

 

The week of our county fair will be absolutely, looney-bin, certifiably nuts and I won't be home because we have so many responsibilities in the small livestock barn, with a 4-H fundraiser, and in the Exhibits area, that we are just camping at the Fairgrounds. So, at the end of this month, I'll be on a hiatus from the boards!

 

DD is a homeschool graduate and paramedic student

DS 13 will be an 8th/9th grader depending on the suject

DS11 almost 12 - 7th grade

DS just 10 - 5th/6th grader depending on the subject

 

Faith

[FaithManor]

Oh, and I'm skipping church this morning, dh took the kids, because I had the absolute worst heartburn of my life last night and I didn't eat anything out of the ordinary. I am not prone to heartburn so I don't know that that was all about but it made my throat sore and kept me up most of the night. I didn't fall into any kind of meaningful sleep until about 5:00 a.m. so dh didn't get me up in time to get ready to go.

 

So, it's very peaceful here right now!

 

Faith

[thescrappyhomeschooler]

Dh and I both have big families, so much of our life is taken up with doing things with family. We also have an inground pool, so much of our summer life is spent swimming and having folks over to swim and grill out. We like to go places and see new things, so we are often not home. We live in a large metropolitan area, so there are a zillion things to do. I met a really great bunch of moms from my kids' preschool, and we try to get together once a month for a girls' night out. We also have massive playdates/swimdates with all those families. We have a great parks system, so we often hang out in the parks. We have a schedule for laundry and chores, so they are done on a regular basis. We go to the library frequently and all love to read. I'm really starting to grow into this life and can't wait to get in full swing in the homeschooling.

[Renee in NC]

I have no life. We go to church. I spend most of my time during the week driving to therapy and appts. (or so it seems!)

 

I want something different, though, so I am working on that. I think we are going to move in the spring to another town near here that might be a better fit for us.

[gingersmom]

I live in suburbia.

 

From mid-August-Mid May I spend my life at the skating rink (sometimes 2-3 times/day). My daughter is on a skating team and does individual competitions. We spend lots of time on the road traveling from competition to competition.

 

My son skates 2-4 times a week also. He also takes art class and swim lessons.

 

Both kids are on bowling leagues.

 

Our days are packed from morning to night. Even though lately I have been trying to find more balance (we dropped music lessons for a start).

 

We homeschool mid-August to end of May. We visit museums (belong to 2), libraries (belong to 3), theatre, special exhbitions, etc. like crazy people (aka school field trips). We spend lots of time in New York City (family lives there).

 

We have one cat at the moment. Hopefully in the next few years we will get a German Shepherd puppy.

 

The little me time I have is reading, knitting, needlepoint and scrapbooking.

[kwickimom]

I could have written this post. Wish I could join you and Parrothead for coffee a few times a month.

 

Oh me too! I dream of doing that with some good people :)

[kwickimom]

I do this in exchange for horse boarding for our American Paint mare.

Jealous! I miss my horses soo bad. I used to be an assistant trainer at an Arabian horse farm and I went to college for equine management. I had a retired thoroughbred for about 2 years until he was unrideable and hes living out his life at a retirement farm (was 27 when I placed him there :))

 

I want me and my kids to ride really bad, but we do not have the room or the money right now. Ahhhh....someday!

[TXMary2]

Well, we pretty much school year round so even if it is only one subject school is a part of our lives 5 days a week in some way. Other than that we do chores, play in the backyard, go to the park with our homeschool group or the pool right now for summer, go on field trips and do holiday parties with our group. We also garden, go to the movies, hangout at the half price book store loading up on finds, go to the skate park, do cub scouts and boys scouts. In the summer my youngest does swimming lessons.

 

DH and I like to watch political shows and true crime type shows We like to be home and do things around the house. We BBQ and dh likes to experiment with new recipes. We don't travel much (our last big vacation was 10 years ago), but we do weekend trips about once a year. We'd like to travel more, but in order for me to be a SAHM dh doesn't take too much time off and works hard so I can raise our children. When we are old we will travel. LOL - if we aren't too tired.

[missmoe]

I live in a small beach town. We are currently living in a small townhouse and well be out of debt by the end of year(except for mortages) and will start saving for another home. We are able to ride our bikes most places.

 

I have garden plots at the community gardens that I walk to. You will find me there several times a week. I love gardening and this summer I have the goal to can some of my produce.

 

Four of my five kids swim and during the summer they walk or ride their bikes a few blocks to the pool for swimming, diving, and water polo every day. My oldest son has been taking classes at the city college and rides his bike to get himself there. This summer he is taking a tennis class there.

 

At church I serve in the Young Women's Presidency which means I am with the girls 12-18 on Sundays and Wednsday evenings as while as occasional activities on Saturday. I've connected with several ladies at church. Two of the ladies are widows, and I garden for them in their yards. Another lady is homeschooling one of her sons who is special needs. We get together in the evenings occasional to support each other. I have one other close friend from church that I try to walk with once a week.

 

I have another group of ladies from the parent organization of my son's independent study program that I get together with a few times a month to socialize and celebrate birthdays.

 

Right now my days are filled with trips to the beach, cleaning, organizing ,reading, gardening, a little school, lunching with friends. I like my life right now.

[Pretty in Pink]

My life is busy! My dh is in the service so we are constantly facing seperation due to various schools, training ops, deployments, etc. He's been in Afghanistan for the last four months. I'm lonely without him.

 

Daily I juggle homeschooling, college classes, childcare, extracurricular activities, and homemaking duties. I go to the gym four evenings a week and don't feel bad about serving sandwiches or cereal for dinner on those nights. I *need* that time to focus on my own health and well-being.

 

I spend far too much time cleaning up the same messes over and over (spilled drinks, food smoosed into the carpet, poop...:001_huh:) and far too little time washing laundry. I'm just keeping it real.

 

My van is messy, my room is messy, my life feels messy sometimes. I have some great girlfriends though we are mostly spread out due to military moves.

 

I'm trying desperately not to lose my identity as an individual rather than feeling as if I'm defined solely by motherhood. It's tough with little ones though.

[Tap]

I work part time in pharmacy but am off work right now due to a back injury. That has slowed me down but I am regaining speed.

 

We live just outside a large city in a neighborhood of houses that are a bit to close together. We would like to buy some land but it is too expensive for us to do that here.

 

We have 3 kids: ds15 starting college in the fall, dd11 starting 6th grade (she is considering private school for next year), and an adopted dd3 who has lots of therapy due to her bio-moms life style during pregnancy.

 

I spend 3-4 hours a day in my car driving kids to/from crew, swimming, church activities, friends,allergy shots, PT, OT and behavior therapy. I have 5+ appointments almost every week day this summer. :willy_nilly:

[tofuscramble]

We homeschool. My three sons are all in music and language lessons/classes. My eldest(11) is big into volunteering and also spends a lot of his free time making movies and writing scripts. My middle son(7) is a robot fanatic and enjoys building them, he also likes to write in his journal and draw. My youngest(4) is a big ball of energy who likes to dance.

 

We live in the suburbs, completely credit free and are buying the house we currently live in without credit. What we would really like to do, is own a big plot of land and build our own home and be self sufficient (we have begun saving for this). We grow veggies and fruit right now but we would love to have more room for that and somewhere to keep animals. I want to work toward being happy with less, simplifying and making life easier. I also really need to tame my ambitious streak.

 

We have one cat and she is pretty fat and happy.

Edited July 4, 2010 by tofuscramble

[TammyinTN]

Unless were traveling or moving to a new location...I love being in our home. We try to invest in our home being warm and comfy with loads of fun things to do. We have family dinners at night and sit after dinner for at least an hour talking about our day or what we have planned or where we might want to visit. We will be moving in 3 weeks so each night we come up with tomorrows game plan and things that need to get done. I could basically just stay at home 6 days a week with one day for grocery shopping and picking up stuff we must have. We will be moving back to the country so I'm looking forward to long daily walks, playing in our yard and getting use to this life of only 3 people in our home. I'm still adjusting to our daughter moving out and getting married. ;)

 

What I do at home all day when not schooling: cross-stitch, quilting, reading, photography, baking and cooking.

[runmiarun]

Oh me too! I dream of doing that with some good people :)

 

Can I join you ladies? I'll bring cinnamon rolls.

 

As for our life, it's fairly boring and I like it that way. I had enough drama going on until a couple of years ago to last me a lifetime. I crave the quiet, simple life we've carved out for ourselves. My children go everywhere with me except my homeschool group meetings once a month. We started a garden that isn't growing and the boys love it anyway. We built a tree fort in the big oak tree in the backyard for them to scare me to death daily. We cut our cable to save money and realized we saved our sanity as well. We purchased a family zoo pass for our sorta local zoo and take the kids there about once a month or so. That has been a delight to watch them be afraid of the animals at first but now they've "named" them all and have favorites we have to visit each time we go. We are very active in our church and with our church families. My children are at an age where they can't truly participate in rec league sports or outside activities like that so we're holding off on all that until they show an interest (and we save more money for it).

[jujsky]

When I'm not trying to clean my house & do school with the kids, my life consists of running the kids to all of their activities. I could get a second job as a taxi driver ;)

[kwickimom]

I grew up in a suburb if Chicago and when I visit my friends there, it amazes me how different my life is than theirs! my bff is constantly on the go and it takes all I have to keep up for a few days. Its nice to get some busy city life every now and then, it fun and exciting for a little while. But I always find myself craving some peace and quiet. She can only handle it at my place for a few days too. She says the utter silence creeps her out LOL.

I totally love differences in people. This is why this town kinda cramps my style sometimes.....everybodys gotta have and do what the next person has and does. But I am sure it is like that most places, just more seen in a small town with less people to choose from :)

[mcconnellboys]

Your lifestyle sounds grand! I'd love to have some acreage to raise a garden and animals. I've never heard of someone raising deer? Are they for meat? for hunting?

 

We live in a small city currently and so have lots of close neighbors and little land. We are lucky that our street is right across from the largest common area in our neighborhood. There is a club complex with two pools and tennis courts. A new playground has just been installed. And there's a large open area (where we view fireworks every year, go sledding, etc.) that slopes down to a large lake, for fishing. I'm still hopeful that someday they are going to build a jogging trail with exercise stations all around the lake, as they've talked about for years.

 

I grew up working in a family business and so we were never really home all that much. I think that's one reason I can't face staying in the house for days on end, particularly in the darker winter months. We go out for lunch most every day of the week and have other activities outside the house most days. We don't have a mortgage or car notes, etc. or we wouldn't be doing those sorts of things, either.

 

I've noticed this past year, now that I'm getting old, LOL, that I do find I enjoy staying in on at least some days to recuperate from our running around.

 

I absolutely think that folks should take advantage of free community activities and we try to utilize our library and 4-H, free parks, etc. whenever possible. I also try to schedule group activities for homeschoolers through those venues.

 

I am currently rearranging and reassigning what used to be my sons' rooms and our school room. I'm trying to cull out a few of our thousands of books but I don't seem to be making much progress! After checking out all the furniture stores in town, we became very disillusioned with all the made in China furniture of mystery wood on the showroom floors. We ended up making a 12 hour trek through southern Indiana to find an Amish craftsman to make real wood furniture for us (for the same price or less than we would have paid for the same stuff in the stores). So that's my current summer project (hope I get things under control before time for school to start!)

 

I've just been asked to put together a small VBS for my church for the first week of August, too! So I think I'm going to be running for the next few weeks......

[DawnM]

I used to work full time and attend grad school, all while having 2 kids.

 

Compared to my previous life I feel like I don't do much, but I guess I do.

 

We homeschool using Sonlight primarily.

 

We are VERY involved in scouts. My oldest is a boyscout and my younger two are cubscouts. I am the awards chair and attend committee meetings, etc....

 

We are involved in our church and teach Sunday School and a Sunday night class.

 

My boys golf, swim, and we take frequent vacations. This past couple of months have been non-stop scout trips to DC, week long camps for scouts and for church and I went on my annual ladies' only beach trip in May.

 

DH is teaching the boys home repair and remodeling and we are re-doing a lot of things in our house so we can sell it.

 

I scrapbook, sew, love photography, and would like to take a quilting class.

 

We actually do have a lot of friends and we say no often to homeschool park days, clubs, etc....because this area has so many offerings.....I prefer it this way to the alternative though for sure.

 

Dawn

[Rosie_0801]

I don't have a life. Pretty much what you see here is it.

 

 

Me too. I weaned ds a few weeks ago, and promptly got sick for a fortnight. Now I'm almost over it, so providing I'm allowed to sleep adequately each night, the baby chapter of my life should be closing and I should be a much happier and more productive woman from now on. It's been a very long four years and I have to try very hard not to bash middle aged women who tell me to enjoy it because they are only young once. As if all this is an attitude problem on my part...

 

When I'm not on here, I read, play SCA, sew and think about all the places I'd like to go and the tasty food I'd eat when I got there. I am a foodie. My motto in life is Boring Food equals a Boring Life.

 

When the next chapter of my life kicks in, I will be on here less and spend more time housekeeping because I'll actually have the energy to! If I can keep that going in an efficient cycle, I'll be able to spend a bit more time on handicrafts. I'm making dh a quilt for Christmas- have been working on it this past weekend. I'm also recovering from this house move so I'm looking for a new playgroup and am thinking of buying a zoo membership and going there once a fortnight, alternating with our recurring fortnightly playdate which will be in the city now I've moved.

 

:)

Rosie

[Nakia]

My life is a big fat crazy mess right now. :(

[ChristusG]

We live a pretty simple life.

 

DH goes to work Mon - Fri, home weekends. The kids and I hang out during the week doing school work (we are schooling year around with breaks at varoius times). Our girls are best friends and are happy playing here at the house together. They spend a lot of time in the playroom imagining, building blocks, making zoos, etc. We read together, sometimes I play imaginative stuff with them but I'd rather play something more concrete with them.

 

We attend church, we have a family game night once a week where we sit around the table and play board games. We try to read the Bible each night with the girls. We have a pop up camper and camp often.

 

When I'm not schooling or cleaning, I like to take photos, edit photos, and digital scrapbook. I also enjoy reading. At night, after the kids are in bed, DH and I usually spend our evening watching a TV show together. Right now we are enjoying Friday Night Lights and Army Wives.

 

During the day, we try to stay home often, but our errands consist of grocery store trips and Target. During the summer time it is so hot here that we don't spend much time outdoors. We have a pool and use that sometimes. It will get more use when we finish our sunroom and patio on the back of our house. Fun stuff includes activities at the library and the occasionaly kids movie at the theater.

 

I'd love to make a small raised garden with the kids next spring. I dream of living on a few acres but that wont be happening any time soon.

[Barb_]

My life is a big fat crazy mess right now. :(

 

:grouphug: I'm really sorry to hear that things are no better.

 

Barb

[jazzyfizzle]

I could have written this post. Wish I could join you and Parrothead for coffee a few times a month.

 

 

Same here. Can I come? :D

[kwickimom]

Your lifestyle sounds grand! I'd love to have some acreage to raise a garden and animals. I've never heard of someone raising deer? Are they for meat? for hunting?

 

 

Quite a few people here in Southern IL raise deer. We started it as a hobby, just to have them as pets. We bottle raise the fawns and keep them in the house along side of our dogs for a few weeks :) they are the sweetest animals. We have sold the fawns to other people around here who also hobby farm. We currently have 2 nice bucks that once are of decent size will be sold to big game ranches. We are able to sell the animals as food, but we cant imagine doing that. We must breed the bucks every year during the rut or they literally go insane, so we will have fawns every year. But we are at our deer limit and must sell off everything we can from now on.

My husband has a taxidermy business along with being aa surveyor and hunts everything he can. He is deer nutso :tongue_smilie:

[Nakia]

:grouphug: I'm really sorry to hear that things are no better.

 

Barb

 

Thank you.

[Barb_]

What fun taking a peek into all of your lives!

 

We live in the desert. Our house backs up to the mountains. There is a certain beauty in the desert mountains, but it's an acquired taste. It looks biblical, actually. I usually wake up groggy because our toddler sleeps in her own bed in our room and I hear her every whimper. My 16yo makes the coffee (I roast it myself and use a French press...it's the best part of my day) and now that my husband is out of work, we usually have our first cup on the front porch because that's the only time of day that the summer is bearable. Our house is alley-loaded so the front of our house doesn't face the street, but a greenbelt and trees that separate the facing neighbor's house from ours. I love this house.

 

When we aren't doing school, our kids spend the day playing together, reading, or doing chores. That has never happened before. My three middle daughters each have a best friend right in our neighborhood. Mia's lives in the house directly across the greenbelt. My oldest daughter at home has a best friend, but not nearby. She spends most of her time building up her lucrative babysitting business. The kids do no organized activities, lessons or sports outside of schoolwork. I'm burned out on running around and the kids seem happier with more free time.

 

I shop at Trader Joe's, Costco, and Sprouts. I like to cook, but not every night. I do ancestry research for fun. I handle a lot of emotional angst. I have six daughters :tongue_smilie:

 

Barb

[dragons in the flower bed]

I am constanly cleaning and organizing while the kids play with their toys.

 

That's what my life looks like, too, plus enough medical appointments to equate to a part time job.

 

I cook. I clean. I read. I write. Meanwhile, the kids play. At least one kid is always with the daddio, and the daddio is often away overnight or for a day trip. When he's home, he cooks, he cleans, he reads, he does his career related stuff on the computer. I have friends, but they come over for dinner, which I'd have been serving in the exact same way even if they weren't there. We go out to a few community programs, mostly things the library or the art museum or the environmental center runs.

 

So, what I'm saying is that I don't have a life, really; I just have a family. And that family life is daddy's work and another day staring at the same Pollock at the same museum and getting math done before Mama's head falls off and who wants Italian and who wants Ranch with just one round of Apples to Apples before storytime. It's good.

 

I don't know that I need to have something beyond my family. I probably should. I'm happy this way, though. Whatever it was I wanted to do with my life had some relation to homeschooling: writing, teaching. I never even took the first step to pursuing those things outside of a family context, and I'm perfectly satisfied doing it inside of one.

Edited July 5, 2010 by dragons in the flower bed

[babysparkler]

We live a very busy life. I keep cutting back, and things keep creeping back in! I have a hard time letting good opportunities go, but really, I like to be busy.

 

My boys (especially ds8) are big into sports...

 

We are just not homebodies....

 

This is us, only, I'm a homebody by nature so it is a stretch for me. Our kids keep me moving in every direction. We are a big soccer family. Dh coaches DS10's soccer team, DD8 is on an all-girls team that neither of us coach (right now, anyway), and I am coaching DS5's soccer team plus I will be the new commissioner for the U4/U5 soccer leagues (and lead coach for the U4 program) in the fall. That keeps us pretty busy in itself, but DH and I also coach our co-op's chess team (that brought home 1st place team this summer at a Dallas Chess Tournament:hurray:) and teach 2 chess classes each semester. Oh, and we do running club on Fridays and tennis lessons periodically. We are also into music... we participate in an academic competition each year and DS10 usually advances to the state competition in Music Memory and DH is about to start giving DD piano lessons. All that on top of being a ministry family... and this homebody mom/wife somehow keeps up with it all. The endless mound of laundry and constantly dirty kitchen floor bother my DH more than me. I think I'd be more into housework if I had energy left to tackle it. When I am overwhelmed, this forum is my escape:lol:.

 

I seem to be entering a "new stage" with no babies in diapers... and will probably be done nursing the little one by the end of the year. I guess that means I will have more time for ME??? Maybe??? I hope...

Edited July 5, 2010 by babysparkler

[shamima]

I handle a lot of emotional angst.

---------------------------------

 

Tell me about it, I got 2 daughters (13 and 5). The poor 7 year old son just gets pretty much sandwiched in. We're also suburbanites, homeschooling in the mornings and out after wards to co-op activities and trips only to be rushing home by 5ish to cook dinner. I'm thinking of joining book discussion groups for myself as I really need some timeout. Other times, I use the internet to watch lectures on various topics.

We also have extended family whom we visit at least once a week. We got a garden going this summer but am experiencing sandy soil problem plus bird problems. We belong to a wonderful library where we love to go at least once a week.

[tricia]

Oh, we are simple like you. Not sure if it's that I have many children that we stay home ALL the time or if that's just how we are. We love being home and we are also in the country. We may have a busy, noisy, crazy house full of kids but we are extremely content and happy with our "quiet" little life.

[Gooblink]

We live in a neighborhood of elbow-to-elbow sized lots and are looking to sell this house and buy one with at least 1/2 acre, ideally 2-3 acres.

 

Most days we pack up our school and head to the office where the boys study in the conference room while I do bookkeeping/office work for our IT services company.

 

Mondays are violin and art lessons, Tuesday and Friday we have sports practices and games on Saturday. Thursday is Scout night. We visit with friends once a week or more and attend a small group study on Sunday night.

 

1 or 2 days a week we might not leave the house, but usually there's somewhere to be or someone to see. :)

 

I've been kicking around the idea of starting a writing group and/or a book study group ala "Well Educated Mind." I just haven't put that in motion as yet.

 

I'm going to work on friendships, too. I just finished (and will be reviewing on my website) a book by Lisa Welchel on nurturing friendships and she's inspired me to invest more time and effort into mine, old and new. I've lost touch with so many people - some that even live close to me. I've never been good at getting close to people or maintaining contact.

[LibraryLover]

I am a homebody. I try to be home as much as possible. I have a big garden and I raise organic heirloom standard & bantam chickens. I am also getting ready to raise some eating birds for our freezer. I take care of my sister's little boy a few hours each week while she works.

 

I like to go to the library, have friends over, go to the beach near my house, take walks, ride my bike, cook , read, futz around on the computer, help/volunteer with various activites etc. We are taking foster parent classes...even though I do not know what we will do with that. I was thinking about respite care, not full time care. I don't know. I just want to be more useful in my community. I am thinking about doing the CASA program. I belong to a knitting group that is combined with a hs playgroup for my youngest, but i don't knit very well. ;)

 

I do have to leave my house to drive my children to activites and work where they cannot bike. Dh has been working home most days lately, and he can often break to pick up a child from ballet or art class etc. I try to do most of it, as he is working, but when he has a lull, it's great to share this.

 

My children take turns being busy. Currently two are away (one as a resident camp counselor, one as a camper at the camp), one is doing a CIT program, and one is volunteering at the library, and takes art classes. It's pretty quiet at the house right now. Things will pick up around 4.

 

My youngest will also do a performace ballet program for 5 weeks this summer for 6 hours a week. Doesn't seem like much, but it's a hike from our house. lol Have I said that I don't really love driving? ;)

 

We have a lot of lulls during the day, with bursts of activity. :) It's pretty managable most days. I feel grateful and blessed.

Edited July 5, 2010 by LibraryLover

[Oney Jones]

Subscribing cuz I'm just plain nosy! :lol:

[MaMa2005]

My life is a big fat crazy mess right now. :(

 

I've been thinking about you :grouphug:

 

==================================================

 

Our summer is very different than the school year. DH is a teacher/college professor so he is off during the day in the summer, but works four nights a week. DS takes swimming lessons, we all go bowling several times a week and to the local water park. Errands, phone calls, doctors appointments, etc. that get put of during the school year all get done over the summer break.

 

During the school year, we homeschool. We have three VERY full academic days at home and two days of enrichment classes plus academics in the late afternoon. DS and I don't see much of DH from August through May as he works at the local high school during the day and at the university four nights a week.

 

It takes some getting used to when summer comes. I am basically a 'single mom with benefits' during the school year due to DH's two jobs. Then summer hits and all schedules fly out the window. :001_smile: Not complaining, just saying sometimes I feel like I am living two lives!

[kwickimom]

I've been thinking about you :grouphug:

 

==================================================

 

Our summer is very different than the school year. DH is a teacher/college professor so he is off during the day in the summer, but works four nights a week. DS takes swimming lessons, we all go bowling several times a week and to the local water park. Errands, phone calls, doctors appointments, etc. that get put of during the school year all get done over the summer break.

 

During the school year, we homeschool. We have three VERY full academic days at home and two days of enrichment classes plus academics in the late afternoon. DS and I don't see much of DH from August through May as he works at the local high school during the day and at the university four nights a week.

 

It takes some getting used to when summer comes. I am basically a 'single mom with benefits' during the school year due to DH's two jobs. Then summer hits and all schedules fly out the window. :001_smile: Not complaining, just saying sometimes I feel like I am living two lives!

 

Wow! That has to be quite nd adjusment with his 2 phases of schedules! My DH is barely here in the summer and of course during hunting season (although me and the kids go with him a lot) he is a surveyor and works some crazy hours in the summer and it lulls in the winter, but thats when he is hunting and doing taxidermy, so I guess he isnt here much then either lol He goes nuts sitting in the house and has to be doing some kind of project. Which is great if he is doing a project I want done, a pain if its some crazy thing he dreamed up :lol:

[AngelaNYC]

We live a typical city life. Dh works 9-5 in the advertising field. I work 5:30pm-9:30pm for the cable company (- after being a SAHM for 12 years. I wanted to work to help pay off our debt faster and pay for trips and extra-curriculars). Dd(16) will be a senior at a college preparatory school for journalism, dd(13) will be a freshman at a performing arts high school, and ds(9) is happily homeschooling.

 

We spend lots of time all over NYC visiting museums, zoos, gardens, shops, and restaurants. We are part of several very active homeschool groups and do field trips, tours, and classes with them. Dd (13) is a competitive dancer and keeps busy with rehearsals throughout the week. She does about 5 or 6 competitions a year and we do a week-long Nationals almost every year. Ds does different activities every year and this fall he's thinking about football, basketball, theater, & chess. We take him to the playground as often as we can, where he meets up with a bunch of friends for a game of manhunt, basketball, soccer, or a water gun fight. Dd (16) is looking to get her drivers permit soon. She is a typical teen, going to the beach, the mall, the movies, and has lots of good friends.

 

As a family, we love going to restaurants, theme parks, and the theater.

 

We live in a cozy 2-bedroom apartment in NYC (that I strategically modified into 4 bedrooms :tongue_smilie: ). We're lucky, as we have a front patio, a backyard, a garage, a basement, and a washer & dryer. Our block is tree-lined and nice and quiet. The subway is a 20-minute walk away or we can take the bus to the subway. Within 1 mile we have 2 libraries, 5 playgrounds, and tons of stores. We can walk everywhere - but I still enjoy driving. Manhattan is a 15-minute subway ride away and we have awesome beaches within an hour away.

 

We have a black-capped conure parrot, a red-eared slider turtle, and 3 goldfish. Over the years our menagerie included green anole lizards, snails, frogs, hamsters, a rat, parakeets, & oscars.

 

In the fall, our schedule will be a little different than usual. I will drive dh and dd(13) to the subway at 6:30am and dd(16) to school by 8am. Ds and I will start on academics around 9:30am and be finished by noon. Afternoons will be spend either at a homeschool group activity, a field trip, at the playground, visiting friends, or running errands.

 

We love having the world at our doorstep. Life is so fun and exciting here.

[ScoutTN]

We are in the middle - not major homebodies, nor constantly on the go. Sometimes we tip off one one side or another, but return to the middle where things feel best for us right now. I am very aware of the busyness of our culture and of how it doesn't help our family to live simply or stay close and how it costs $.

 

I do enjoy being home and living simply. I am a planner and like structure to our days and freedom within that structure. I enjoy cooking, gardening, reading and playing with my kids. We have a 12 yo yellow lab. Housework is a necessary evil. I am right in the middle of the MB I/E spectrum. Love to be with people, but need my down time too.

 

We live in a good sized city and have a small house on 1/4 of an acre. I'd love to have 2 acres or so with room for a tree house and more outdoor adventures. But that is not going to happen, so we are enjoying the strengths of our current scenario. We have nice parks, a fine library system, excellent performing arts, a zoo less than 4 miles from our house, loads of great field trips and most of our extended family here. Farms and rural life are not far away when we want a taste of that. HS co-ops and extras galore, when we are ready for that. I have a pediatrician, vet, library, Walmart, 2 groceries, gas, post office and Starbucks less than 2 miles from my house.

 

Church is a big part of our life. 3x a week during the school year, just Sunday am in the summer. DD takes dance and DS does Kindermusik during the school year. Usually we are home two full days a week, including evenings. More in the winter. Less in the summer because we go to the pool 4 or 5 days a week - but playing with friends at the pool is our schedule for the summer! VBS for a week and one week of sports camp (mornings only) for DD.

 

I have one night a week out for myself. Volunteering at women's clinic, book club and random fun things like reading a book and people watching in a comfy chair at Starbucks or catching up with a friend for kid-free conversation.

 

I know that as our kids get older it will be harder to keep life simple. Enjoying it now with my littles - not babies anymore. It goes fast!

[Gooblink]

We spend lots of time all over NYC visiting museums, zoos, gardens, shops, and restaurants. We are part of several very active homeschool groups and do field trips, tours, and classes with them. Dd (13) is a competitive dancer and keeps busy with rehearsals throughout the week. She does about 5 or 6 competitions a year and we do a week-long Nationals almost every year. Ds does different activities every year and this fall he's thinking about football, basketball, theater, & chess. We take him to the playground as often as we can, where he meets up with a bunch of friends for a game of manhunt, basketball, soccer, or a water gun fight. Dd (16) is looking to get her drivers permit soon. She is a typical teen, going to the beach, the mall, the movies, and has lots of good friends.

 

As a family, we love going to restaurants, theme parks, and the theater.

 

We live in a cozy 2-bedroom apartment in NYC (that I strategically modified into 4 bedrooms :tongue_smilie: ). We're lucky, as we have a front patio, a backyard, a garage, a basement, and a washer & dryer. Our block is tree-lined and nice and quiet. The subway is a 20-minute walk away or we can take the bus to the subway. Within 1 mile we have 2 libraries, 5 playgrounds, and tons of stores. We can walk everywhere - but I still enjoy driving. Manhattan is a 15-minute subway ride away and we have awesome beaches within an hour away.

 

 

We love having the world at our doorstep. Life is so fun and exciting here.

 

Although I love the thought of having a couple of acres, your set-up sounds really nice, too. I enjoy NYC.