Field Trip Time

One of the advantages of home schooling is being able to take lots of field trips.  Getting to see history or science in person is much better than studying it in a book!  So now that the weather is warmer we decided to head out and see what we could see. 

 

Our first stop was this old mill.  They are currently restoring it, so we didn't go inside, but it was fun to imagine how life might have been 140 years ago when this mill was built.

 

 

Here is an early photo of the mill, I'm sure it's good fishing there below the dam!

 

After our windy picnic lunch we stopped at the oldest courthouse still in use in our state.  The boys liked the cannon out front, as well as seeing the old jail in the back of the courthouse.

 

 

The jail was full of signatures of inmates scratched on the walls and bars, along with marks keeping track of their time.  I do not enjoy touring old jails, but the kids thought it was interesting.

 

 

Then we toured this old ranch.  The original owners spared no expense in the building of their stone house, barn, and outbuildings.  We enjoyed seeing the old house and figured if we lived there we would lose people, there were so many different rooms and nooks and crannies!

 

Now we're ready for another adventure!

Easter Garden

You know how those little fairy gardens are all the rage these days?  They have the sweetest little fences and bridges and paths all in miniature.  Well, I'm always on the lookout for new Easter ideas, because my Easter décor isn't really very amazing, so this year I had the idea of making an Easter garden.  I already had the Resurrection figurines from several years ago, and I thought it would be a fun project for the kids and me to do together.  We bought a few houseplants from the home improvement store, and gathered some interesting rocks to make a little creek and tomb.  It was a lot of fun and we are enjoying it!

 

 

At the place where Jesus was crucified, there was a garden,

and in the garden a new tomb,

in which no on had ever been laid.

Because it was the Jewish day of Preparation

and since the tomb was nearby,

they laid Jesus there.

 

On the first day of the week, very early in the morning,

the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb.

They found the stone rolled away from the tomb,

but when they entered, they did not find

the body of the Lord Jesus.

 

While they were wondering about this,

suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them.

...the men said to them,

"Why do you look for the living among the dead?

He is not here; he has risen!"

 

John 19:41-42, Luke 24:1-6

 

I am joining No Place Like Home

Gifts

~our gifts~

 

"I want to see little children adorning every home as flowers adorn every meadow and every wayside.  I want to see them welcomed to the homes they enter, to see their parents grow less and less selfish and more and more loving because they have come.  I want to see God's precious gifts accepted, not frowned upon and refused." ~Elizabeth Prentiss, in Stepping Heavenward

This is an appropriate quote for this day, the 43rd anniversary of the supreme court decision that made it legal for parents to kill their children.  Abortion is so awful in every way, and if you have been affected by it, I pray that you will find forgiveness.  Thankfully God will freely forgive us if we ask him, and he asks us to do the same for others.  Children are not a burden, a problem, or an inconvenience, they are God's gifts to us.  Having children has taught us so much and continues to teach us daily.  It is not easy to raise a child, but it is so very worth it. 

Family Cookbook

A while back I was thinking about how I might pass our family recipes on to our children, and I decided to make a scrapbook style recipe book with photos to copy and present to each child as they leave home.  (Our oldest will be graduating from high school this May, so the kids leaving home is going to be happening sooner than I'd like to think!)  I am making each page 8.5 x 11 size so they are easy to make color copies of and place in plastic sleeves in a binder.

 

Here are a few of my finished pages that I scanned to show you.

 

 

It's been fun to go back through our family photos and find food pictures to use- some of these recipes I've been making for over 20 years!

 

 

It's been a fun project and one I will be working on for awhile yet.  Our kids are thinking it's a good idea too-hopefully their wives will also...

 

I know that there I nothing better for men than to be happy and do good while they live.  That everyone may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all his toil-- this is the gift of God.

Ecclesiastes 3:12-13

 

I am joining Home and Garden Thursday

Fall Crafts for the Kids

 

Yesterday my mom came over and did some fun fall crafts with our youngest 3 kids, and since they were simple and fun to do I thought I'd share the ideas with you all.  The first one was preserving fresh maple leaves.  My mom had freshly picked leaves off the tree, and the kids painted them front and back with Mod Podge, and then we hung them up to dry.  They have since curled up a little, but they have kept their color really well.

 

The second craft she had for the kids was making leaf animals.  The original idea she found here, where there are lots of great examples.  But our kids had fun using the different shaped leaves to create animals and people (and aliens, of course).  For this craft you just need to press a variety of shaped leaves in a book a week or two ahead, then glue them on a paper and add legs or eyes or whatever you need with a marker.  The kids had lots of fun, so thanks Mom!

 

I'm joining Home and Garden Thursday

Smartness

Remember back when you were in school and grades were so important?  Well, maybe they weren't important to you, but they definitely were to the teachers!  With five kids in school we hear about grades quite a bit these days.  Those kids that do get good grades are praised for being so smart but those that don't are badgered and put down for not trying.  

Personally, I think our school system doesn't do a very good job of judging how smart someone is.  I think everyone is smart in some area.  One of our kids can read people very well. He is very intuitive about how people think and why they do what they do.  Another one is very good at finding lost items because he has an eye for detail.  Unfortunately no one ever grades you on those things.  Have you seen this cartoon before?

Isn't that the way it is?  It makes our job as parents a lot tougher because while we know our child is smart, the school tests ask all the wrong questions, so the child who isn't school-smart always feels like they're dumb.  It's kind of sad.

I wish that in about the eighth grade the school would sit down with the parents and child and figure out where the child's talents lie, and then have different career tracks in high school to prepare the child for life.  But since they don't we have to be more proactive in helping our kids realize what area they are smart in and what talents God has given them, so they can figure out what type of work they would enjoy in life.

Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms. 

1 Peter 4:10

Simply Sunday

--Our oldest son unloading hay--

Wow, summer is not long enough!  Just one more week and then our three oldest will be back in school and our three youngest will be doing home school. I included Miss E in the home school group because she will definitely want to be included in whatever we are doing.  This is my ninth year to home school, and I seriously spent about 2 hours planning the year and getting ready, that's all it took!  The older I get, the more I like simple.

Especially when it comes to technology.  We got a new computer and I cannot get the internet to work on it.  So here I am blogging on my phone.  One of those frustrations I'd really rather not have to deal with.  Oh well.

I love Sundays, the music, gathering with other believers, the relaxing afternoons with the family, its good.  I was amazed again today by God's grace and forgiveness that he so freely gives to all who come to him.  He's awesome!

--to the praise of his glorious grace,

which he has freely given us

in the One he loves.

Ephesians 1:6

This week.

 

May is wonderful.

I am really enjoying each new week of flowers,

right now it's the week of irises, can you smell them?

At PD's track meet this week the air was thick

with their scent, it was amazing.

 

Speaking of PD's track meet, Miss E and I spent 6 1/2 hours

there on Monday.  He did awesome, but then, I'm his mom.

I've always hated running.  Obviously...

 

 

Tea in a red transferware tea cup is also wonderful.

So calming, which I seem to need lately...

I am almost done with this Bible study,

What Happens When Women Say Yes to God,

by Lysa TerKeurst.  I would definitely recommend it.

The DVD sessions are also good, you can borrow the DVD

from me if you live local!

 

I will leave you with this quote from St. Patrick,

that I read this week.  It's all about Jesus!

 

Saturday morning play dough recipe

Do you need something fun to do with the kids today? How about making some play dough? This is a recipe from our old church cookbook, by my friend Liz. (: Enjoy!

Play Dough--

1/2 c. salt

1 c. flour

2 tsp. cream of tartar

1 c. water

1 T. vegetable oil

food coloring

Mix dry ingredients in large saucepan and add remaining ingredients.  Cook over low heat, stirring constantly until mixture gets rubbery.  Turn out and knead.  Store in airtight container.

Seasons of Life

 

I am in a stretching season of life right now.

I know, I know, life with six kids, homeschooling 3 of them,

2 of them teenagers (and all that entails),

1 of them a 2 year old (and all that entails!),

shouldn't be that hard, right?  Hmmm.

 

I know, from past experience, that this season of life

will soon pass and they will be grown and gone.

But that doesn't help me in the nitty gritty, day to day.

 

So when I read this quote this morning,

it was a big encouragement to me.

God is always there for me!

 

"The seasons change, and you change,

but your Lord abides evermore the same,

and the streams of His love are as deep,

as broad, and as full as ever."

~Charles Spurgeon~

Ouch

Our day...

4:00am- alarm clock goes off, reminding me that today is Miss E's surgery day. She is having her tonsils and adenoids removed and tubes in her ears, and then a different surgeon will repair her old g-tube site, since it still leaks.

4:30- we are off on the hour drive to the hospital.

5:45- we arrive in pre-op, where the kind nurses blow bubbles for Miss E and play her princess movies while we go over paperwork.

6:40- I dress Miss E in her hospital gown and carry her down the hall where we leave her to be wheeled away on her hospital bed to anesthesia.  She looked so small and scared in her bed.  It was hard to watch her go...

6:45- we settle in the surgery waiting room and watch her id number on the screen to see how she's progressing, praying all the while that God will guide the surgeon's hands.

9:00- finally they call me back to the recovery room.  Miss E is crying and fighting the nurses who are trying to give her a breathing treatment.  They let me climb on the bed and hold her and she quickly calms down, but they begin her on oxygen since her levels are a bit low.  The nurse is sure we'll need to spend the night.

9:45- the nurses wheel me and Miss E upstairs to our regular room, where we meet up with Andy again.  Miss E is not herself, she acts a little loopy and just rests on my lap.  But they don't restart the oxygen and she does fine.

10:30- Miss E dozes on and off while watching cartoons.  Andy and I read our new Joel Rosenberg books while taking turns holding Miss E.  

12:00- I take a walk across the street and bring back some Chipotle for our dinner.  Miss E tried some applesauce and ate it all.

1:00- the nurse tells us if we can get Miss E to sleep and her oxygen levels stay up we might get to go home today.  We were not expecting that but it sounds good!

1:30- we finally get Miss E to sleep and her oxygen levels are still great!  Now if she can eat some mashed potatoes and not get sick we can go home!

4:00- Miss E wakes up from her nap, her tummy is a little sore and it's hard to wake up.  

4:30- Miss E wolfs down most of her mashed potatoes and more applesauce, things are looking good!

6:00- we receive permission from the doctors to be discharged, and are headed home.

7:00-while waiting on a prescription we head over to get some supper from Braums.  Miss E must be feeling better because she tries to steal Andy's fries!

8:30- we are home, and so glad we didn't have to spend the night in the hospital.  Miss E is subdued and quiet but doing pretty well for all she's been through today!

Lots of Doctor Visits

Little Miss E's health has not been the greatest since she was born.  She has chronic nasal congestion and has trouble breathing, especially while sleeping, among other things.  We have been going to lots of doctor appointments in the last month, trying to figure out what's going on with her.  Well, we have some answers now, thankfully!  She is going to have surgery in a week to get her tonsils and adenoids out and get tubes in her ears.  This won't solve why she's congested in the first place, but it will help a lot with her symptoms.  Last week we found out the results from a food allergy test we had done for her, and it's big.  She's allergic to 41 foods!  Everything from beef to milk to gluten to grapes.  So we are trying to wrap our minds around that and figure out what to feed the poor child.  She's been a good sport about it, although it's pretty hard when you see everyone else getting ice cream and you have to have apples.  Hopefully she will be better in a few years.  I am thankful God has given us good doctors to help us out!

Life is never dull around here...

Why I like home school

There are several things I like about home school-

one of which is the relaxed atmosphere.

Mr. AJ here, loves his morning coffee-

(don't worry, it's not stunting his growth,

and I only let him have one cup)

and home school provides him with

plenty of time to sip his coffee while he

works on his math or handwriting. (:

 

 

I also enjoy taking the kids on field trips.

One day last week we took off and visited

one of our old local courthouses and saw

the monuments and statues around it.

This week we learned about Frederic

Remington, who lived in our area for awhile

when he was young.  I have lots of plans

for visits to other local museums and

historical sights this spring.

 

 

I also love the fact that the kids have lots of time

to just be kids.  They don't come home at 4:00 in

the afternoon, tired out and grumpy from being at

school all day.  DJ, below, saved up his money and

bought a four wheeler a couple weeks ago.  He is

loving it, and now he has plenty of time to ride it!

Encouragement in Parenting

The following verses have encouraged me in parenting

lately, so I thought I'd share them with you in case you

need to hear them too!  (We've had such warm days we

enjoyed a supper down at the fire pit a couple nights ago).

 

 

"See that you do not look down on one of these little ones.

For I tell you that their angels in heaven

always see the face of my Father in heaven."

 

 

"What do you think?  If a man owns a hundred sheep,

and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine

on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off?"

 

"And if he finds it, I tell you the truth,

he is happier about that one sheep than about

the ninety-nine that did not wander off."

 

"In the same way your Father in heaven

is not willing that any of these little ones

should be lost."

~Jesus, in Matthew 18:10-14~

How about that hair?

Many people ask me about how I do Miss E's hair and

if it's hard, etc.  So I thought I'd do a post about it to fill

you all in on the process!  I am by no means an expert,

so if you know any tips or tricks I'd love to hear them.

Her hair never has the "slicked down" look, it always

has the "my curls are starting to get loose" look, so if

anyone can help me out there, let me know!

First of all, I wash Miss E's hair about every 3-4 days, but

I don't use shampoo!  I use a moisturizing conditioner only,

and my favorite is the Herbal Essences Hydralicious brand.

Every few weeks I will use a little Pert Plus moisturizing

shampoo if it seems like her hair is getting some build up or

is a little dirty from playing.  After I get her hair wet in the tub,

I work in the conditioner with my hands and do some finger

detangling.  This just takes a couple minutes.  Then I let it set

on her hair for about 5-10 minutes while she plays in the tub,

then we rinse it out.  Below is a photo of the products we use.

After she's out I work in some leave in conditioning cream,

followed by a little curling custard.  Both are Cantu products

which I like.  Everybody has a different opinion on what products

are best but these seem to be working ok for us.  Miss E has very

tight and small curls and her hair dries out pretty quickly.

Once the creams have been worked in, her hair looks a little

bit white from the shea butter, but it kind of melts away after

awhile.  Now it's ready to style.  I don't ever try and comb it

all at once, that would be pretty much impossible.  But as I'm

styling I will comb small sections at a time to detangle as I go.

This time I tried something new, box twists.  It took me about

an hour or so to complete, but hopefully it will last several days.

Miss E does a great job of sitting still while I work,

especially if there is something to entertain her, like

a cartoon or this time she was eating her "ice cream",

which is really Italian ice because of her milk allergy.

Sorry these are a little blurry, our house is quite dark

at night and Miss E doesn't hold still very long!

The twists turned out pretty cute.  They are basically

little ropes, and they don't even need a tie on the end,

you just twist the hair around itself and it holds together!

I really enjoy doing Miss E's hair, it's lots of fun

to come up with new ideas.  I'm glad she enjoys it too!

Mothering isn't for the weak, or maybe it is...

This morning I am home from church with a sick little girl,

so I have a few minutes to write while she plays with her

kitchen and watches Winnie the Pooh.  I know mothering

lots of children has been the theme of my posts lately,

but that's because it's been the theme of my life lately!

(Oh, now she's on to something new, mopping the

windows with my Swiffer.)  So anyways, where was I,

oh yes, mothering...

I have been feeling so weak regarding raising children lately.

I don't have all the answers for how to help my child who

is struggling, or how to help my child who has health issues,

or my child who is sad about his birthfamily.  I get so tired.

(Now she's sitting by the woodstove, warming her feet...)

But maybe when I am weak, that's when I'm strongest-

if I remember to rely on the Lord and His strength throughout

the day.  I know that on the mornings when I ask the Lord

to help me that day, even while I'm still lying in bed,

the day goes so much better!  (Now she's back to Winnie

the Pooh, good.)  This morning I was reminded of this song,

I think I need to add it to my music playlist-

His strength is perfect when our strength is gone;

He'll carry us when we can't carry on.

Raised in His power, the weak become strong;

His strength is perfect, His strength is perfect.

~Steven Curtis Chapman and Jerry Salley~

Things go so much better when I am relying on Him,

so maybe it is true, Mothering is for the weak?

(Pictures are of DJ, who is playing basketball this winter)

Cold winter, Warm winter

Although we have had our share of cold winter days

and frosty pink mornings, like the one above,

we are enjoying some very warm winter days

this week!  The robins have returned already

and the geese are busy flying overhead from one

pond to another.  We are ready for spring,

even though it's still 2 months till garden planting time.

Life is full these days.  I am now homeschooling

three of our kids, two 2nd graders and a 5th grader.

They do well in school so it makes for a nice morning

usually!  Miss E likes to sit in her high chair and color

or write while the boys do their work.  I do enjoy

the homeschooling lifestyle, it takes so much less time

than regular school, so the kids have much more

time to play and be creative and have adventures.

But homeschooling also takes a lot of my time,

so it's a trade off.  It's working well for now,

but we haven't decided yet about next year.

We would appreciate your prayers for Miss E.

She has had chronic nasal congestion her whole

life.  We found out before Christmas that she was

allergic to milk, eggs, and soy, and so we took her

off those foods and she improved quite a bit.

But now it's worse again, and her breathing sounds

awful, especially when she's sleeping.  The doctor

thinks she probably needs her tonsils removed,

and so we have an appointment with an ENT

doctor, but it's not till March.  I called to see

if we could get in sooner but we can't.  So we

would appreciate your prayers, that Miss E would

get better so that she doesn't need the surgery,

and that the doctors will have wisdom to be

able to figure out what is causing her runny nose

in the first place, thanks!

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened,

and I will give you rest.

Take my yoke upon you and learn from me,

for I am gentle and humble in heart,

and you will find rest for your souls.

For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.

Matthew 11:28-30

Half a Dozen

~Here are some pics of four of our six children~

For some reason, going from five to six children has been

a harder switch than going from three to four or four to five.

Maybe it's because I'm older, ahem, and the brain doesn't

work as quickly?  I'm not sure, but my brain is definitely

full all the time!  Having toddlers to teenagers with

everything in between keeps me hopping these days.

I am thankful that God is gracious and understanding,

he has given us precious verses to encourage us busy moms.

He tends his flock like a shepherd.

He gathers the lambs in his arms

and carries them close to his heart;

he gently leads those that have young.

Isaiah 40:11

One of our kids mentioned the other day that our family

has the most kids living at home of anyone in our church.

I was kind of shocked to realize that, I never really

set out to break any records or anything!  But I guess if

you think about the fact that God enabled us to adopt

five times, that really is amazing.  He has blessed us!

But with all these blessings my weaknesses are really

starting to show up, it seems.  So I like this verse too-

I just have to remember to let God's strength fill me

instead of trying to survive on my own.

"My grace is sufficient for you,

for my power is made perfect in weakness."

2 Corinthians 12:9