Just keep on trucking

So our latest date to get out of here may or may not be a go. Again. What's wrong with March 20th? Well, first of all, it's a Sunday. No one thought of that when they were doing the math on leave and TDY. We may not get that leave approved despite the best efforts of Man's chain of command but it's still coming up soon. Two weeks.

How are we doing? The kids have been enjoying this new job chart website: Link.

It's free and you don't have to put personally identifying info in except for an email address. I like it because I'm notoriously inconsistent with my kids and this is a way for them to take the initiative and get their own rewards. One of the rewards I put up for Things 2-4 is to get a toy out of toy jail, where toys go to live when their owners don't clean them up when asked. Some toys skip Go and end up in the trash or the thrift store box but the rate of return on the toys is slow enough that the younger kids don't even miss the ones they never see again.

I've also finally got a working financial system for the kids now. I made checking accounts for most of them (sorry Freida, wait another two years or so) and savings for all four. Transfers to their accounts are easy (my fav four letter word) and there's a much lower minimum transfer than we had with their prepaid allowance cards. Money goes into savings as easily as into checking. The result is that they can watch their checking accounts like hawks now and suddenly Money Chores are all the rage. They have normal chores but there are things for which I'm willing to pay a nominal sum and they're all too happy to make it happen. Suddenly I've got a gaggle of entrepreneurs on my hands. Between Money Chores and the points system of the above website, their rooms are clean and the dishes get done with no questions asked.

Let's just hope it lasts this time.

I loved the House Fairy lady's ideas. She was far to saccharine for me, really, but the system was sound. The only problem is that leaving a small reward at random intervals didn't work so well when the two kids who stayed home from school learned that unguarded prizes were sprouting from pillows. It didn't occur to me at the time to make mail boxes. Oh, well.

At any rate, I like the new system and my new white board upon which I record all of the little things I've never been good at tracking in my whimsical brain. Who has earned a quarter for reading a book to their sister and recording it in her reading log? Who is grounded for how long, from what, and for why? I also write down the following day's events the night before or in the morning which helps keep things on my radar somewhat.

All in all, it's madness. No job yet, no house, and I'm scared. The events of the last year have heaped themselves on top of a decade of more madness and after this past Christmas I found myself imploding and I havn't recovered. Thus, I do not blog, call, write, or see anyone if I can help it. My instinct is to push away all relationships when things get this hairy which hasn't been the best way to keep up with friends at all, but I'm slowly learning to not exclude everyone all the time even if it's messy. I went to a church meeting last night and the most common greeting people met me with was "oh my gosh, are you alright?" It would seem that my troubles are written on my face in plainer language than I had supposed. I've been taking things one day a time for so long that two weeks from now is an eternity away, but unfortunately it's an eternity into which we'll be face planting soon. Private sector and all your woes, here we come with a gaggle of kids and two distinct but cold-comfort advantages: Man is soon to be a disabled vet (preferential treatment when applying for gov't jobs assuming he's qualified for them) and we're debt free (but without a solid assurance of future income).

My heartburn is back. I think I'll name it Portia. Portia is a high maintenance name, a name that demands attention and intimidation. Yes, "Portia came to visit after supper" seems to set the right tone and it's easier to say than Dyspepsia.