Heart Of A Mommy's Old (and first) Blog

HEART OF A MOMMY HAS MOVED!

2008-03-06T16:20:00.004-05:00

Since I cannot for the life of me get my new banner up in whatever template I pick for this blog, (But for whatever reason I can when I start a new blog) I am going to start a new blog.

This blog (the one that you are reading now) will still be in exsistance, I just won't be adding to it. Think of my new blog as part of a series. :) This blog is the first book, the next blog will be the

second book. Hopefully there will be no need for a third book. :-

For those of you who actually have this blog bookmarked, my new address is: http://www.heartofamommytoo.blogspot.com/

You can also click on the banner at the beginning of this post to take you there. Ta Ta for now!

GRRRR!

2008-03-03T21:43:00.002-05:00

Blogger has some issues! I can't upload my header into the template I want without going into the HTML. I don't want to go into the HTML because have to write a "." or else my title will show through my header image.

Then I tried to post this once before, and it wouldn't let me. I feel like pulling my hair out! Maybe I will just have to start a new "blog". This one will still exsist, but I guess, I will make it a new Chapter. ;-)

Celebrating Bean's Birthday

2008-02-28T09:04:00.009-05:00

Tuesday was Bean's Birthday. Bean wanted to go visit her Nana for her birthday. This weekend, I am planning on having *little* party for her with a bigger cake. But on her actual birthday we visited Nana. Before we left, I gave Bean one of her presents, which was this:

Nana has a new Puppy named Bindi. She is such a little Sweetie and really good with the kids. The kids love her too.

Nana treated us to lunch at a little restaurant in her "city". Nana actually lives in a forest, so it would be better to call it a community. :)

Bean and Sweet split a Personal Pizza, then we had cupcakes. We sang Happy Birthday to Bean, and many in the restaurant joined us.

Everyone enjoyed their cupcakes. ;-)Bean's favorite Princess is Belle. I don't really let them play with B*rbies, but I guess I make an exception with the Princesses. I just tell them that they can't undress them. That they must stay modest. ;-) So far this has worked, as Sweetie has Cinderella.

At the restaurant they have this gumball machine which has a chicken that "lays" the gumballs. It is hilarious, and Tiny Boy didn't know what to think of it. Sometimes the chicken would move, as it had a motion detector in it. Tiny Boy would walk up to the chicken, and then it would "jump". Tiny Boy, would run away complaining in his baby language. LOL!
Bean got a green gum ball. Which means that if anyone gets a green gum ball they win an order of "Puffs". Puffs are fried dough with either powdered sugar or Cinnamon and sugar. We choose the Cinnamon, and boy was it good!
The girls didn't understand what the big deal about the colors were. Sweetie was proud of her yellow one as well, so she stuck hers in the picture. :)

We went back to Nana's and it was raining heavily by this time. So, the girls watched some children Cable television shows. (We don't have cable so this was exciting to them)

The next day Bean tried to ride her new bike, but the tires were flat. :( Nana let me use the tire pump, but we couldn't get it to work properly. I was having a hard time pumping the air. While I was trying to get it to work, I started to fear that I was an extreme wimp!

So Nana's strong neighbor man came over to help. (Paw Pa was out of town) Even he couldn't get it to work. He suggested that we use his electric air pump, which worked just fine. Except, once we blew up the tire, it fell flat straight away. Arrrrgh!

All of us loaded up in the van and headed to China World, um, I mean W*l-Ma*t. I had left the receipt at home, and I didn't have it with me. We were hoping that W*l-m*rt would just switch out the bikes.

The lady at the customer service desk said that we couldn't do that without a receipt. But thankfully, she said that she would get someone to put a new tube in the tire.

Now the bike is as good as new, and Bean finally was able to try out her new bike.

Tiny Boy tried to be a dare devil though. ;-)

I guess this is a taste of what I am going to be looking forward to, with having a boy. ;-)

Bean's Birthday

2008-02-26T00:41:00.003-05:00

Today is my second born's birthday. She turns Four. Where has the time gone, I do not know?(sigh)

I really enjoyed making this for Bean. She loved watching it too. Hope you enjoy it also. :)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BEAN!!! We LOVE YOU!

Make an on-line slideshow at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Changing Things Up A Bit

2008-02-26T00:35:00.002-05:00

I have been playing around some more with blog design. This is what I came up with for this month. :)

There are still a few things that I need to do to the template. Every time I change the template I loose some widgets so I have to add those back in.

Next blog change I do, I am going to try and make it so I don't have to change it every month. Maybe every season. ;-) But this gives me good practice as I play around with graphic design.

Sweetie Sewing Sweethearts :)

2008-02-22T00:00:00.000-05:00

This week, I decided to start a Sewing Project with Sweetie. This is the first time that she has sewn something, and she did a fantastic job!

For being only five and half, I think she has a bright future of sewing ahead of her. I documented the process of her project, which was a heart-shaped pillow.

We went to the fabric store a few weeks ago, and Sweetie picked out the fabric herself. I think she has an excellent eye for beautiful fabric. And, as you look at these pictures, notice the color of the fabric she chose. ;-) And notice what color she is wearing for these past three days. And No, that wasn't planned. ;-)

Before I had Sweetie Cut out her pillow, I had her practice with these practice cutting patterns. I figured that it would help her with her moter skills when it came time to really cut out her fabric.

I drew a heart pattern from a heart- shaped cake pan, on her material. I used a sharpie pen. I know. I should of used chalk, but it worked out just fine. :) Here Sweetie is cutting out the heart. She did an excellent job.
Sweetie learning how to work the peddle on the machine. Push it soft to go slow. Push it hard to go fast. I took the thread out of the machine for this lesson; otherwise it wouldn't be very good for the machine.
When I learned to sew, I remember my teacher using patterns like these to teach me how to steer and control the fabric before I really started to sew. I thought that these cutting practice sheets would work very well. They did.

Sweetie did an awesome job with her hand, eye, feet coordination! I was really surprised, and she was giddy with excitement. :)
The next day, she practiced more on some paper, then she learned how to pin her pillow together. She's coming awfully close to her finger there!

On the third day, she begins the actual sewing. This was a bit more tricky than the paper, but she is getting the hang of it!
Notice how carefully she works.
The last stages of her pillow. Stuffing it was lots of fun!
Another tricky part. Hand sewing. I had to help her out alot on this part. This requires extra fine moter skills. She has really tiny hands.
A job well done, and a little girl who is excited and proud of her accomplishments. She went right to bed and slept with her creation.I do believe she will be a better seamstress than her mommy. And I don't mind one bit. :)

To see what other's are showing and telling about today, please click on the Show and Tell picture at the beginning of my post. Have a wonderful Day. :)

Wordless Wednesday~ A Make Shift See Saw

2008-02-20T09:04:00.004-05:00

To see what others are showing at Wordless Wednesday please visit Five Minutes For Mom.

The Business of Being Born

2008-02-18T09:30:00.004-05:00

*Remember to pause the music on my blog before you watch...

Wow, there is alot that I could write about with this movie. When it comes out on DVD, which I think it has already with Netflix, (which we don't subscribe to) I am for sure going to be watching this documentary.

Now let me start off with a disclaimer here. :) I am not against hospital births. I had one, and I *needed* it. How do I know that I needed it? Because I, from the start I *wanted* a home birth. We aquired a mid-wife, and made our plans. Unfortunatly, those plans didn't work out they way we had hoped. The reason I knew I needed the hosital birth, was when I said I couldn't take the pain anymore, my midwife agreeded. But I'll share with you why on another day. :)

But, if I didn't have a mid-wife and went with a doctor right away, I know for a fact that I would of had a C-section. Maybe in the weeks to come, I'll share my birth stories with ya'll. But lets just say that, everything that the movie was showing in the clips is pretty true.

When I was transfered from home to the hospital, after a while I was given pitocin. The nurse told me it was because my contractions were pretty strong when I arrived, but then they started to peeter out. She (the nurse) gave it to me when I was sleeping! I didn't even say they could give it to me!Grrrr... Unfortunantly at that point, I could care less. I was tired, and I wanted that baby to get out!

After my hospital birth I went on to have two more totally natural births at home. With Tiny Boy my contractions "peetered"out for about an hour. I realized later, that my body just perhaps does that to rest itself.

In the long run, I *almost* had to "have" a C-section. If I hadn't had my midwife to begin with, I would of been a classic C-section candiate. Why? Well, most Dr's. break the bag of waters right when you get in the hospital. Once they do that, you are not allowed to be in labor for over 24 hours. Then if you are in labor for that long with your waters broken, they would say that you are "failor" to progress, and you "need" to have a C-section. And many times, because the baby doesn't have any more fluid, the baby becomes distressed, cause an "emergency" C-section.

At the time I arrived at the hospital, I was 4cm, my bags of water had not broken, but I had been in labor for 24 hours already. If I had entered the hospital as a planned birth, they would of broken my waters, I would of been in labor over 24 hours, thus needed the C-section.

Thankfully the doctor my midwife recomended as a back up doctor for transfers had a natural birth mindset, and he wouldn't allow them to break my water. I was in labor 12 more hours after that. The Dr. was worried at one point that I would end up "needing" a C-section. But thankfully, he didn't rush it, and at the last minute, I began to progress.

That Dr. stayed at the hospital all night to make sure he delivered my baby. I believe that rarely happens. Or they come to the hospital when the nurses call him and let them know that they are almost ready to push.
He knew my midwife (as he was the dr. that my midwife trained under) and he learned a few things from her about natural child birth.

One thing that really is a pet peeve of mine is, that women blindly follow their doctor's advice, and just do what the doctors tell them to without thinking one thing about it. I really could care less that woman choose to have hospital births. There are times when I believe it is absolutely needed. There are times when pain relief is needed. (Hey I asked and took that opition when I was in labor with my first. My midwife agreed with me.) And there are "true" emergecy situations that do require C-sections.

But the majority of the time, women just follow the dr's orders and don't research their options or statistics on their own. And if they do, they get frightened by "horror" stories, and "what if they were not at the hosipital, when they were giving birth?" by well meaning friends and relatives. Thus they greatly increase their chances of having an un-needed C-section.

I am really trying not to sound judgmentle here over women that have hosptial births. I am not trying to make it sound like I am better than you. I really don't think that way.

I just wish that women would research more. We all must choose for oursleves and what is best for our own families. What I want to do, is inform you, so you can make that decison based on facts, rather than emotional manipulation that the medical community often does use. I know because I too have been subjected to that. ;-)

Anyway, please don't take this the wrong way. I'll still love you if you had your baby the conventional method. ;-) But at the same time, try to reasearch your options based on facts. :)

A Beautiful Bouquet of Roses

2008-02-17T16:51:00.005-05:00

This was given to me by a sweet blogging friend Mica Garbarino from The Child's Paper. Her blog is so nice to visit. She has beautiful pictures up, and has some wonderful ideas. She passed this on to all homeschooling mamas. Here is what her post said about the award:

From A View from the Pews : I have the utmost admiration for all mothers who decide to educate their own children at home. What an onerous task and at times a thankless one I should think.When one looks at the way schools are being run today you have to weep at the absurdity of the Political Correct movement which has infiltrated many schools.By educating your own children you are arming them to face the world and their future with confidence and a great deal of kowledge that many schools dont teach anymore, such as history.These mothers are selfless in their devotion to educate their children as it should be done. I am also sure that many of these homeschooling mothers have moments of tiredness, they may feel run down and depleted yet they continue. That is courage. That is selflessness. It is love.So please all blogger homeschool Mothers accept this bouquet for a job well done. Bravo to you all. YOU deserve it.Anyone who visits this blog, please pass this Bouquet to All homeschooling Moms. I have chosen the links below because they are wonderful blogs who will spread the word to homeschooling Moms.

Thank you soo much! I am honored to be counted as a homeschooling mama. :)

I was asked to give the award to all homeschooling momas I know.

So here are the ones that I know deserve this award:

Mrs. C at Riverbend Ramblings

Diane at Tomato Soup Cake

Heather at Being Mrs. Momma

Kelli at There's No Place Like Home

The Hernies.

A Valentine Day

2008-02-15T11:06:00.008-05:00

Well, I know I said that I would have a new post. There were two things playing into why one wasn't up sooner. One, I took pictures *all* day yesterday, and somehow they got lost in technology. They weren't on my disk when I went to upload my camera. I was sooo upset, because I had some really nice ones to share! :( Oh well, that can't be helped.

The second reason was, I was too tired to, and then my hubby got home from work.

Our day went very nice. I made the children a heart shapped breakfast. I took a heart cookie cutter, placed it on a plate, and filled it with scrambled eggs. It looked soooo cute, but alas,, my camera wasn't behaving.

After breakfast we did some chores. Then we made cupcakes with pink icing. I also packed a basket filled with tea items. We planned on having a suprise Valentine Tea Party with my Grandmother. After that, and getting dressed, we headed to Chick-*-A. The girls most favorite fast food resturant. ;-)

One message board that I am a part of had a Valentine Day Card Swap with the children. So after our lunch, the girls opened their cards. It was lots of fun. :) They then played on the playset for about 10 more minutes.

After our lunch and opening of cards, we headed out to go visit my Grandmother for afternoon tea. She was very suprised to see us, and I believe her spirits were lifted. She is a sort of a shut in. She can't drive, and she doesn't get to go out much. We live about a half hour away, which means we don't see her very often.

When we left Grandma's the kids were all high on sugar; some were grumpy. Some were crazy. Some were sleepy. ;-)

We arrived home, andI gave the girls their baths, then put hot water on the stove for Spaghetti. I made Garlic Green Beans, and Garlic Toast to go with it.. Sweetie ate all of hers. Bean was picky as usual.

The children to went to bed after supper, and I browsed around some blogs. My husband has been having a more than normal workload for the past month. His manager got a position at another company, and the lady that shares his work load in on maternity leave, so he was late in getting home.

When he did get home, he had this beautiful card for me.

This is really funny. It *is* handmade, and I thought that maybe, perhapes, he actually did make it. (Like he went online and tried to find a tutuorial and made me one.) But then he explained that a lady at his work made a bunch of these cards, and sold them to all the men who forgot to buy their wives a card! LOL! I told him that I thought that he made it, and he said, "No, I bought it, because I am not *that* guy." LOL. If you watched the Dream Guys video on my blog last week, you would understand what I am refering to.

But it really was a nice card, and when I read what he wrote in it, I started to cry. I forgot all of what the card had said, but then after hugs and kisses, I remembered he said, "I hope you like these gifts". So I asked him what that meant. He then went outside, and brought in two big bags from Ma*y's I could hardly believe it! What was inside? Well....

This is a rice cooker. I have heard all sorts of wonderful things about these. To make matters even better, the same lady who made the card above, always raves about her rice cooker. So my husband was very familiar with these. He was joking with my mom about a certain fancy shmancy resturant that my Dad should take her to for Valentines Day. He has been there for work functions and really enjoyed it. I then turned to my mom and jokingly said, "See mom, he gets to have all the fun, while I sit at home and eat Peanut Butter sandwiches." Hubby then said, he would take me there someday. He then starts telling me the prices, and I said, "Forget it! I can think of *alot* better things to spend money on, then to spend that kind of money on food." So my husband asked me what kind of things. So I then begin to list all these wonderful things. Including a rice cooker. Which he rememebered. I never believed that he would of bought me one!

He also gave somthing "un-practical" too, LOL! When we were courting he told me he liked perfume. (He likes all kinds of good smells. He even loves candles!) I hardly wore perfume, so I asked him to pick something that he liked. This is the fragrance he picked. Ironically I just ran out of my orginal bottle. (I was *very* frugal with it LOL) But whenever I smell this fragrance, I always think of my husband, and our courting time. :) Now I love it!

So we had a fun day yesterday. :)

To see more show and tell items please click on the Show and Tell Button at the beginning of my post. Have a wonderful day!

Happy Valentine's Day!

2008-02-14T07:44:00.005-05:00

Romans 5:7-8
For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet preadventure for a good man some would even dare to die. But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

I John 4:9-11&16
In this was manifested the love of God twoard us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another. And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us, God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.
Table all decorated with everyone's Valentine's Day goodies

A girl M&M candy thingamajig on top of a small box of chocloates. Sprinkled with heart confetti, and home-made Valentine cards nestled beside the candy for a the little girls valentine.

A boy M&M figure, same as girls for tiny boy.

Good morning everyone, and Happy Valentines Day! This morning I was pondering how the world really miss-uses the word LOVE. This misuse can be so damaging too. People expect LOVE to be the way that the world protrays it to be. And when "love" isn't dished out the way one expects it to be, disapointment follows. And many times tradedy. Before you think I am being mellow-dramatic, I have seen what this type of worldly "love" can do.

The "only" love that is "true" and real, is the Love of God. No person has ever done for us what God has done. And no person could! Instead of growing discontented over how we are not "loved", (like the world defines love) let us look to the cross. That is where "true" and the only kind of love was demonstrated. You are loved! With the deepest, truest love there ever was, is and will be.

The verse above then says, because God has loved us with this kind of love, we should love one another. It doesn't say we "deserve" this love. We need to focus on God, then on others. And be glad that we are loved so deeply by our creator.

We are designed to *need* love. But only God can truly fill that need. People can try, but we will always end up disspointed or hurt at some time or another with people, and even our loved ones. But God is always love. He is always faithful, and His love never ends.

If you are reading this, and want to know more about the love of God, please email me, and I will be happy to tell you more about it. :)

Come back latter this evening or tomorrow. I will be posting what I did with the children. Have a Happy Valentines Day!

And Happy Birthday to Great Grandma K.! Today is my husband's Grandmother's birthday.

*The Spell checker isn't working right on blogger. *Please* forgive me for my bad spelling. I wasn't the best speller in school. I am slowly getting better as I get older, but I still make mistakes.

I'm Getting Better!

2008-02-11T16:48:00.000-05:00

I have been playing around with making more banners. This time I desgined the banner for my other blogging friend Being Mrs. Momma.

She told me that she liked Black and White and Bright Colors. I wasn't sure what to do with that. But as I was looking for black and white pictures, I saw brightly colored Tulips. I knew exactly what to do after that.

I designed it without more information from her. She said she would look for pictures that she liked. But I had the time today while the kids were taking their rest, so I just played around and came up with this. If this isn't what she had in mind, that's ok, I'll just change the title. ;-)

I got a Blessing and Some Love!

2008-02-11T12:27:00.000-05:00

Recently from the Bloggy Giveaways, I "met" another blogger who's contest I had entered. I did not win anything, but I got something *much* better. A new friend! Rachel from A Romantic Porch visited my blog through my comment when I entered her contest for a really cute tea towel. She liked my blogs "atmosphere" so much that she gave me this outright without even getting to "know" me first. :) How sweet is that?

As we have been emailing each other, we have found out that we have *much* in common. And this was *truly* a blessing. I view it as Love from the Lord also. The Lord reaches us right when we need it, and shows his love through his people.

Thank you so much Rachel; it really means alot to me!

When you get the chance, please visit Rachel's blog. I am sure you will love it. The atmosphere on her blog is as equally great. Rachel is also new to blogging;just one month, so please welcome her aboard the blogging community. A Romantic Porch's link is in my sidebar, and also in this post.

Have A Wonderful Day!

You're Invited To...

2008-02-09T13:34:00.000-05:00

This is going to be sooo much fun! Click on the banner above to see the details of this party.

Playing Around with Blog Design

2008-02-09T11:49:00.000-05:00

Ok, this is totally addicting! But how could it not be, since it is soooo much fun?! I made this banner (just for fun), for a friend's blog. She doesn't have to use it if she doesn't like it, but it's hers if she wants it. ;-)

My husband helped me out with the special effects this morning. I did the layout out, so I am learning a few things. Hopefully, I can play around with the special effects in the days to come.

So here it is!

The Evil Look

2008-02-08T00:07:00.000-05:00

*Remember to Pause Music Before you Watch! :)*

This Is Sooooo Cool and Beautiful!

2008-02-07T23:18:00.001-05:00

*Remember to pause the music on my blog. :)*

Wordless Wednesday~Before & After

2008-02-06T10:21:00.000-05:00

For More Wordless Wednesay pictures visit Five Mintues For Mom.

Dream Guys

2008-02-04T20:41:00.000-05:00

My friend at A Cup of Joy, had these videos on her side bar. She is doing a whole series this month of romantic ideas. Visit her blog to see. :)

I thought that these videos were just too funny to not share with those who visit my blog. :)

*Remember to pause the music on my blog before you watch these.*

Tiny Boy's Birthday

2008-02-04T10:01:00.000-05:00

We celebrated Tiny Boy's birthday Saturday. I spent too many hours decorating his cake, but I enjoyed it. My poor sister in laws must of been bored to death, as I was doing it when they were here. And all the husbands were out having "guy time".

But here is the result of my efforts. I know it doesn't look too professional, but I thought it turned out cute anyway! :) I tried making a radio control tower out of ghram crackers, but it kept sliding and falling, so I said, "forget it!":)

We had a campfire, and roasted hot dogs, (Kosher hot dogs, mind you. :) ) with cake afterwards.

Here is Tiny Boy seeing his cake as we sing happy birthday to him.

After we sang, Daddy sprayed silly string on him. This was his reactionHere he is trying to blow out the candles

He needs a little help!

Evidence he enjoyed the cakeMy sister and brother in law, came the night before and stayed the night with us. They brought their baby, Little guy. My sister in law blog's at Proud To Be A Mommy. Here is Little Guy. He is soooo adorable and sweet! He hardly ever cried the whole time he was here.

And he has red hair just like his cousin Bean. Although I think his hair is going to be a little more red than hers. My sister-law's father has red hair, so we know where Little guy inherited from. Bean on the other hand, probably got it from my Great Grandma.

My children had their turns holding Little Guy. The girls LOVED it. Tiny Boy on the hand, wasn't too sure about it, LOL!

Winner of Motivated Moms!

2008-02-04T09:24:00.000-05:00

The winner of the Motivated Moms chore planner is Wendy. She is also a fellow blogger! She said,

"Great giveaway:) Count me in! This is perfect since my son is getting older and busier! Need help:)"

Congratulations Wendy! Hope this planner helps you as it has for me. :)

If you would like to try Motivated Moms, you can check it out directly from here at Heart Of A Mommy, by clicking on the Click Here For More Details right above the Motivated Moms banner on my sidebar. :)

I Got An Award!

2008-02-01T17:21:00.000-05:00

A wonderful mommy that I met through blogging at Buffaloes and Butterfiles, has given me this Award:

Thank you So Much! I am very encouraged and flattered that other people like my blog! Please go and check out Buffaloes and Butterfiles and see for your self that it is another excellent blog to read. :)

Now here is the fun part:

Here are the rules for passing it on…By accepting this Excellent Blog Award, you have to award it to 10 more people who’s blogs you find Excellent Award worthy. You can give it to as many people as you want but please award at least 10. Thank you out there for having such great blogs and being such great friends! You deserve this! Feel free to award people who have already been awarded…

So now lets see who I have chosen:

There's No Place Like Home

Tomato Soup Cake

Buffaloes and Butterflies

Tiny Boys 2nd Birthday

2008-02-01T09:38:00.000-05:00

Today is Little Tiny Boy's second birthday. They say a picture is worth a thousand words. I wanted everyone to help celebrate it along with me. So here are some pictures I put together. Just push the play button on your screen. Enjoy!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY LITTLE TINY BOY!!!!
*Remember to turn off the play list music on the top of my blog.

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

My New Look

2008-01-31T20:52:00.000-05:00

I am ashamed to say I have spent hours upon hours playing with this template. I wanted to do a Valentine theme. If you visited during the day, you may of noticed the craziness going on here! :)

Well, anyway, it isn't complete yet. I am working on it. But this is the basic idea. :)

I've Been Tagged!

2008-01-29T09:51:00.000-05:00

I have been tagged by Heather at Being Mrs. Mama. This looks like a fun tag. I had a lot of fun reading Heather's. I hope you'll have fun reading mine. ;-)

Rules:Go back through your archives and post the links to your five favorite blog posts that you’ve written.Link 1 must be about family.Link 2 must be about friends.Link 3 must be about yourself.Link 4 must be about something you love.Link 5 can be anything you choose.Post your five links and then tag five other people. At least TWO of the people you tag must be newer acquaintances so that you get to know each other better.(Readers - don’t forget to read the archive posts and leave comments.)

Link One~ About Family Snow Play

Link Two~ About Friends My Last MOPS Meeting of the Year

Link Three~ About Myself In *Everything Give Thanks*

Link Four~ Something I Love My Curious Georges

Link Five~ Anything I choose Firm Foundations Lesson 1~ Introducing the Bible

Now I am supposed to tag five people. If you want to participate please do this. If not, I understand if you don't. There are some tags I haven't done. But it sure is fun when I do!

Now here are my "victims", LOL!

Mary at Mary's Writing Nook

Mrs. C. at Riverbend Ramblings

Heidi at Ruth's Hands

Deborah at A Cup of Joy

Diane at Tomato Soup Cake

Give Away!!!! Movited Moms Chore Planner

2008-01-28T00:00:00.000-05:00

Note~ This post will be displayed at the top of my blog until the contest is over on 2-2-2008. Please scroll down to read other posts. Thank you. :)

1-30-2008 update: I don't understand what I did wrong, but my link was taken off of the giveaway. I was #158. The only thing that I can think of is that they thought that I wasn't buying a new book to give away. I have every intention on buying another book from Motivated Moms to give away. Not the one in my own file.

It is time for another great giveaway and lots of fun! Last giveaway I won two items, and gave away this outfit.

This time I am offering something that has helped me out a lot in my housekeeping. It is the Motivated Moms Chore and Cleaning Schedule. I like it so much that, this is what I am giving away to one winner. I wrote about it once on a Works for Me Wednesday Post. If you would like to read about it. ;-) This is open to international folks too, so please participate! :)

All you have to do is leave a comment and explain why you would like to give Motivated Moms a try. Then at the end of the contest I will randomly draw a name for the winner. I will be closing my contest 11:00 Friday night.

In order to be an eligible entry you must leave a way for me to contact you by email. I will need your email address to send you your planner, as it is an ebook. So start commenting away and have fun!

And then don't forget to stop by Rocks in My Dryer to enter more awesome contests!! Fun to be had for everyone!! Just click on the pink giveaway button at the beginning of my post. HAVE FUN!!!

The Lord's Provision

2008-01-26T15:58:00.000-05:00

Philippians 4:19

But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

Often times with this verse, I get slightly confused. Sometimes I think it says my God shall supply all my wants. ;-)

But God's Word is very accurate because many times, when I think I have *needs*, they are actually my wants. Then I get frustrated and depressed thinking God doesn't care about this *need*. The Devil really wants me to believe that lie too.

Well, last week, the Lord let me test this verse out. ;-)

Our van is kind of old, and when we fix one thing, another thing soon needs fixin'. Three weeks ago Bean woke up with an ear infection, and so I toted her to the Dr. After the visit we made an appointment 10 days later to see if the infection had cleared.

We went to the Dr's and the infection had cleared up nicely. As I got into my van, I sort of had a moment of discontentment, and sort of started to covet for a new car. But then, I decided not to be so ungrateful. Instead I decided to thank the Lord for a vehicle to even drive. As I was doing this and turning the ignition, the van turned on, and just as quickly it turned on, it shut off.

"Great!" I thought. I tried it again and again. The kids were hungry now, and to make matter worse, over Christmas I washed my cell phone. Yup that's right. So I didn't have a cell phone, and my husband works an hour away from our home. So it isn't like he could quickly run by to save me.

So I prayed. I hoped that I would just turn the key and it would start. Nope. Now I was beginning to loose some faith. I dragged the kids out of the van, went back into the Dr's., and asked if they would let me borrow their phone.

They were very kind and allowed me to. Once I got my husband on the phone, he asked me various questions about the car. Then he wanted me to go out there, and try to do something to it, then come back in and call him.

The ladies at the reception desk were very nice and offered to watch the girls while I went out to do the experiment that my husband wanted me to.

I went out there, did what he wanted me to do with no success. As I was walking back in the Dr.'s office I ran into a lady from our church. After she said hello to me, it just sort of hit me that this was the answer to my prayer! So I promptly asked her if she had room for 4 more people, and she did! She had a nice big SUV!

So I got a ride home, and got to have some adult conversation at the same time. ;-)

Then, I decided to take Sweetie out for a mother daughter outing; five days later. We went to the fabric store, and then a thrift store. We were about to head to Target when my van did the same exact thing!

This was really cute so I must share. I said, "Oh, no, Sweetie, or van broke again!" Sweetie replied matter of fact like, "Well, I guess we are going to have to call Jesus again." So guess what? That is what I did, and as soon as I opened my eyes, and turned around to look for someone, I saw the lady who gave me horse back riding lessons when I was a little girl walking in the parking lot!

I ran over to her, gave her a hug. I told her that I was praying for help, and would she please help me? She and her husband tried to jump my car, but it wouldn't work. So guess what? She also gave me a ride home, and I got to visit with someone I hadn't seen for a long time. :)

Another "funny" thing was that she had a very small car. If I had all the children with me, there would of been no way for me to get home. God looks at *every* detail doesn't He?

So, this really got me thinking. Each time this happened God didn't leave me high and dry at all. He truly did supply my needs. Sometimes we have wants, and I believe God delights in giving us those too. But the above verse says *needs*. Sometimes we don't *need* our wants, it wouldn't be good for us. Thank the Lord He doesn't give me everything I want, but He will always take care of me!

On a side note, we figured out that our battery connection was loose. There was nothing wrong with the car. I think God was just testing out my faith. :)

Wordless Wednesday~Girls Like Mud Too! ;-)

2008-01-23T09:44:00.000-05:00

For more Wordless Wednesday photo's please click visit five minutes for mom.

Having a Little Fun...

2008-01-17T10:39:00.000-05:00

My Internet friend Heidi at Ruth's Hands showed this virtual makeover of herself on her blog. I myself have been *really* thinking about getting my hair done a bit differently.

So ALL of you lurkers out there, PLEASE (pretty please) post a comment and let me know what you think! ;-)

If you want to play around with your hair here is the website to go to. :) Make Over Solutions

Also, I don't know if this is *exactly* the color that I want. But my hair is extremely fine, and I have heard that highlights makes it look a bit more fuller. When I was playing around with this site, I found that darker colors looked better on me.

Wordless Wednesday~ Getting Messy Is Fun!

2008-01-16T08:49:00.000-05:00

To See what others are showing for Wordless Wednesday please visit, Five Minutes For Mom, by clicking here.

A Girly Tee Pee

2008-01-11T00:11:00.000-05:00

I did a lot of sewing for Christmas presents this year. This is one of the items that I made for my girls. A tee pee. Princess style. ;-)

It was very easy to make; one of the easiest things I have made this far I believe. Just straight seams and hemming. Oh, there were two button holes also. Cutting it out was more work than sewing it. :)

There were other parts to making this that didn't require sewing. I had to buy PVC pipe and then paint it. Which was quite a task, because I painted it on a windy day. Yikes! But all and all it was a very fun and easy project.

Last night, the girls camped out in their room with it. Sweetie is being little miss actress here. She isn't really asleep. ;-)

Then, it took them about an hour for them to get settled in. Bean wasn't being very nice to Sweetie. She kept pushing her out of the tent with her feet. :(

Well, that is my show and tell today. To see what others are showing and telling visit Kelli's by clicking on the button at the beginning of my entry. Have a wonderful day. :)

My Grandma's 90th Birthday

2008-01-10T14:51:00.001-05:00

On January 1st my Grandma turned 90 years old! We had a small family celebration at a near by hotel's banquet room.

It was a surprise to her, and there is something special that we did for her that I would like to you to see. But before I do that, here are a few pictures I would like to share. Since January's flower is Carnation, and the birthstone is garnet. My parents had a dark red carnation corsage made up for her. Here is her yummy cake.

I wanted to make some special keepsake place cards for the table. I borrowed this idea from MOPS and used the colors of my grandma's party color scheme.
Grandma opening one of her gifts. Sweetie "helping" her out.
And my husband, the one who always brings more life to a party, tries boiling his iced tea in a spoon over a candle! ;-)

But the climax of the party was my Grandma opening her gift from *everyone*. It was a special project that the whole family took part in. We put together a digital scrapbook from Creative Memories of my Grandma's life together.

My Aunt got the photos from my Grandma without my Grandma knowing what it was for. My Aunt told her it was for a class history project. She wanted to show the students old photographs from the past decades. :)

Then my husband spent almost 8, give or take, hours scanning them at work. My mom and our good friend came over to my house and spent the WHOLE day watching the kids while I put the pictures in the template that Creative Memories uses for the album.

Grandma's children, children in-laws, grandchildren, grandchildren in-laws, great grandchildren, and a friend all wrote my grandma a personal note to include within the albums pages.

The album turned out absolutely beautiful, but my Grandma's reaction to it, as they say on the commercial, "Priceless".

Wordless Wednesday~Cousins; Both share the same first name

2008-01-09T09:27:00.000-05:00

For more Wordless Wednesday pictures visit 5 Minutes For Mom. Click Here

Our Rainbow

2008-01-04T00:00:00.000-05:00

For a few years I have been wanting to get this type of play set for our children. I had been looking at sets from Wal-Mart.com and was really thinking about getting the ones that they sell.

My mom and dad offered to chip in for a play set for the kids as part of their Christmas gift to them. Mom mentioned that my sister's play set that she had bought from SAMS was literally falling apart.

The swing beam was unsafe for the kids to swing on, the wood was splintering and coming apart, etc.

After talking with my sister, I decided to start shopping around. I found one from Play Nation and posted about it on a Internet board I am part of.

One lady posted about her play set that was called a Rainbow, and that it lasted through all of her kids rough play. Her kids are now grown, so they took it down and gave it to someone else.

The next day, my mom called me and told me that they had done some shopping around and found a really nice one called a Rainbow.

The dealership near them had a great sale going on for Christmas, plus free delivery and installation included.

Mom gave me the catalog that they picked up from the dealership. Inside was a promotional DVD. The girls and I sat down and watched it. Of course after seeing that, they wanted one too. ;-) On our way to Michigan we stopped by the dealership to drop off papers to complete the transaction. The girls saw all of their models and were excited and thought we were buying one. I told them that Daddy was talking to the man, and we would see how much it would cost.

When Daddy got back in the van, he said it was too much money. Sweetie began to cry. :( While we were in Michigan we had it installed.

We arrived home late at night, and put the kids right to bed. The next morning, I went about my day like I always do. Opening blinds, straightening up the living room etc.

I was on the computer when Sweetie shouted, "THERE'S A PLAYGROUND IN OUR BACK YARD!!!!" Bean hopped up from what she was doing and ran over to look out our glass sliding door. She started jumping up and down, "THERE IS, THERE IS!!!!"

I pretended I didn't notice what they were doing. They came running over to me, shouting and jumping up and down. I turned and listened to them, and said in a skeptical tone, "No there is not, your telling me a story." Bean said, "There is a Rainbow in our back yard!" I said, "I don't believe you!"

"Come and See!!!" They both said. So I get up like I am somewhat annoyed, and go over to the door. I then said, "Now how did *that* get here?!" Sweetie says, "Maybe the Rainbow people brought it?" I then said, "But how would they know we wanted one?" Bean then pipes in, "Maybe Daddy told them?"

I then smiled and explained that Nana and Papa, help Mommy and Daddy buy it for them for Christmas. Also, Grandma and Grandpa gave mommy and daddy some money to help us buy it.

They got dressed real quick, and played on it until lunch and rest time. Then went out and played on it until it was too dark to see. :)

It comes with a rock wall too!
Tiny Boy trying out the slide
Tiny Boy on the Swing

Bean Checking out the binoculars, and Sweetie climbing up the ladder.

Thanks for visiting my show and tell. To see what others are showing and telling about today, click on the Show and Tell button above. :)

Christmas 2007

2008-01-03T18:25:00.000-05:00

This year we traveled to Michigan to spend time and Christmas with my husband's parents. It was a long drive up, but I thought that the children did well for such a long trip. Once I put a diaper on Bean so we didn't have to stop every hour. ;-)

Sunday we went to Church. Usually I don't dress Tiny Boy up much for church. But here he is all dressed up for Church. :)

My In Laws Church has a deaf ministry. Sweetie and Bean saw the people up on the platform signing. After Church they both got up there and did some signs that they know. However, Bean got camera shy, and covered her face. For what reason I don't know, she usually loves her picture taken.
Christmas Eve we went to my husband's mother's side of the family and stuffed our faces on some great food. Then we all just sort of hung out. The kids running around, the grown kids ( um I mean men) playing XBOX. Some of us played Phase 10 and Apples to Apples.

Then we came back to my husband's parents home and I let the kids open one gift. It was their pajamas, which we call cozies, that I made them.

They begin to dig in. Tiny Boy watching in amazement.
"Sooo, that is what you do with this thing! I'll give a whack at it." thought Tiny Boy

"This is a lot tougher than I thought it would be!"

"I GOT PINK!!!" Then Sweetie plasters on her fake smile "Look at mine!"Success!

All ready for bed. Being Silly.

We finally put the kiddos to bed at 11:30! Guess what time I actually got to sleep in to? 9:30am! That is the latest I have slept without interruption since I don't know when.

Once the kids were to bed, I set up the tepee that I made for them. When the girls ran out of the bedroom and saw it, their Aunt told them that it was Grandpa's gift.

When gift opening began I sat the girls in front of the Tepee and we told them that the Tepee was really theirs. Here is a picture of their reaction.

Tiny Boy got some cowboy getupThe girls opening gifts together "Huh?"

All of this was just too overwhelming for Tiny Boy One of the quilts I made for the girls.

Sweetie received face painting Pencils from Grandma. Here is some of the fun I had with them:

A moustache for Tiny Boy. A Tiger for Bean I attempted to do a horse for Sweetie, which didn't quite turn out like I had wanted it to. It was kind of a disappointment to her too.

When I finished up, I told Sweetie to go and look in the mirror and see what she thought about it. She came out with this serious look on her face, which with the horse attempt makeup, made her look very funny. Trying not to laugh, she then says, "I look weird" in a very teenager kind of voice.

At this point I cracked up so much that everyone thought I was crying. I then told Sweetie to tell everyone what she told me. She then proceeded to climb in a chair like she was going to give a speech, and said, "Do I look weird or what!?" Everyone then understood why I was laughing, and at this point Sweetie ran and hid in the Tepee, and this is the shot I got of her horse face. She would look at the camera. :)

Snow Play

2008-01-03T14:41:00.000-05:00

When we arrived in Michigan there had been a lot of snow. But the temperatures were warming up, and much of the snow had melted by the time we got there. However, there was enough snow for the girls and Tiny Boy to experience some of it.This is the morning after we arrived

Tiny Boy isn't sure what this stuff is. :) Enough snow to experience some fun.

Bean trying to make a snowman.
"No Sweetie, snow isn't like the beach sand!"

We were supposed to leave Friday Morning, but Thursday night we learned that several inches of snow was supposed to fall the next day. Because of *that* we decided that we would stay a few extra days to play in the snow. :)

The Snow begins to fall and gets heavier by the minute.

By night time there is enough to make a decent sized snow man. Compliments of Daddy of course. ;-) We even had a few fun snowball fights. After Daddy nailed a hard one on my back, I got him good right in the ear! :)
In the middle of the night it rained some, then froze again, making the snow nice and hard for sledding. Daddy's cousin brought his little boy over to play in the snow with the girls. He also brought his four wheeler and attached the sled to the back of it and took them for rides on it. They thought it was soooooo much fun! Here is a video of what they experienced.

At one point, the girls fell off, each landing face first in the snow. Once they did that Bean wanted to ride the four wheeler, and Sweetie was off to play on the Snow Mobile with Daddy's Uncle.
I got on with Tiny Boy! :)

Tiny Boy thought it was great fun, even though he didn't let his emotions get too involved. Every time we stopped, I would ask him if he wanted to get off, and he would grunt and shake his head no, even though he hardly uttered a sound while we were sledding.

Once or twice I screamed as we went down hills, and he would scream too. But he still wanted to ride it.

Daddy also took me for a ride on the Snow Mobile. I still will take riding horses over that any day, but I must admit it was a lot of fun nonetheless! :)

Update

2007-12-28T10:48:00.000-05:00

Right now we are in Michigan on vacation. I am on my husband's laptop, so I don't really have much that I can share at the moment.
We got some great pictures, but those will have to wait until we get home. We plan on leaving Sunday, and being home Monday night sometime.

Until then Have a Happy New Year!

Christmas Decorations At Our House

2007-12-16T22:46:00.001-05:00

Welcome to a tour of our home at Christmas time. Above is the picture that I used on our Christmas cards. Believe it or not, I only had to take one picture. The kids behaved beautifully! :) Our front door... A wreath I made in our MOPS group last year....
Poinsettias in a snowman flower pot...
A snowman wind sock....
And the front of our home. Simple candles in each window. Not too much fancy stuff going on. Still, I feel like it is warm, inviting and Chrismissy. :)
Walk in the front door and you will see...

Our Piano with a ginger bread ice skating pair. Also....
a Crystal hurricane lamp with a white candle and some cranberries between the candle and glass. In the background, the clock and the tree.

An advent calendar...
Our tree strung with cranberries and popcorn, white lights, and meaningful ornaments.

An Ornament that belongs to Sweetie.
Next to the tree is my shelf that I have up year round. Add a poinsettia and some pine needles and it makes it look like Christmas.
On the coffee table an advent wreath that I made one year. We always forget to do it though. ;-)
And a nativity scene. It always gets rearranged by some aspiring interior decorators that live here. :)
On the end table next to our couch. A real pine bough with pine cones, and Apple Pie candle in the center. Walk into our kitchen and see our table.
A plastic plaid tablecloth, that goes really well with my furniture. And a center piece with two candles.The Center Piece is made from a milk glass bowl on top of a doily. Inside the bowl are sliver Christmas tree ornaments balls. Real Pine bough sprigs are stuck around the bowel. Some Cranberries to fill in the cracks.
There are red candles in crystal Christmas Candle Holders next to the center piece

In the kitchen, colored lights adorn the tops of my cabinets. Thank you for visiting! :)
To see more Homes decorated for Christmas please visit Boo Mamas.

*PS. When I post this as a direct link to my post about this on Boo Mama's , it is hard to see my "post a comment" link. Just move your mouse over where it is supposed to be, and you will see it. People have told me that they have a hard time seeing it, but I have been so busy, I haven't had time to figure out how to fix it. So please forgive me. :)

All Dolled Up

2007-12-16T09:02:00.000-05:00

Last Night was My husband's work Christmas Party. This is the first time that my husband and I have purposely tried to match each other. :) It was alot of fun shopping with DH trying to help him find the right shirt and tie.
The party was held at some fancy hotel; but the food wasn't five star that's for sure. But it was still tasty enough! This party was very fun, because we played games to win raffle tickets to win some great prizes.

My husband did well, because we won three prizes. One of which was this bike! However there is a story behind how he got this bike, because it wasn't the original prize that he won.
There were five groupings of prizes. My husband put all, so he thought but one of the raffle tickets into a group of prizes that had a video camera. That was what he was going to try to win. The other ticket he put in for this bike which was the last grouping of gifts.

Well, we won something from the group of prizes that the video camera was in. Guess what it was!???? A $100 gift certificate to a spa. Guess what I get! A whole *hour* of deep tissue massage. My husband was happy with that prize, because I kill his hands when he gives me a massage. Of course I will be getting a lady to do the massage. ;-)

The next grouping of prizes, DH told me he didn't put any tickets in the box. So we were waiting until the group of prizes with the bike. We were enjoying seeing what everyone was winning. Then the XBOX 350 was next in line. This was a *highly* coveted prize. *EVERY* man, it seemed wanted this. The number was called, and I was looking around seeing who would win. All of the sudden my husband got up, and walked up there! I was like, "Where is he going?" He won the XBOX! He tells me he does *not* remember putting his ticket in that grouping. I guess he did though somehow. And that is what he won!

So as we sat there discussing his prize didn't know what he was going to do with it, because our TV is so small. And he likes computer games mostly. He said he didn't need another time waster either.

When the bike came up, we looked at our tickets, but another man got it. But when he went and got it, he yelled out, This bike has J's name on it! So J went over to him and traded the XBOX for the bike, *and* guess what else?.........

1/2 karat diamond earrings!!!!

We really came up on top with our winnings. I wish I could post a picture of the earrings, but I can't get a good close up of them. Wow, real diamond earrings! I am soo excited. I am not a big jewelry person. But I like simple elegance; and that is exactly what these earrings portray!

It was a very fun evening!

Wordless Wedesday~Sometimes As Mom, you need to be inovative...

2007-12-11T23:41:00.000-05:00

For More Wordless Wednesday Pictures, visit here! :)

Posting Comments

2007-12-08T11:12:00.000-05:00

Several people commented and told me that they were having a hard time finding the comment link on my page when I post a "permalink".

I am very new with playing with HTML codes, and I don't really know how to fix the color on that. Can someone guide me as to how to do that?

Also, I haven't been able to visit around my favorite blogs like I would like to because I am really busy with preparations of Christmas. I was up til 2:00am last night making pajamas for the kids. I still have to finish them today.

I also have to make a tepee and and two quilts with matching pillow cases. These are Christmas gifts for my kids. I am trying to be less commercial in my gift giving with the kids this year. If I get those things done, there are a couple of other sewing projects that I would like to do before Christmas. If they don't get done, it is no big deal, but I would really like to.

So I am afraid that visiting all my blogging friends will be sparse. I will try to stop and visit, but the time that I usually spend reading blogs, will be spent in sewing. It might be quiet around here for awhile. :)

Christmas Tree

2007-12-07T11:41:00.000-05:00

Since being married this is our first *real* tree. I think one year I bought one in a pot but it was much more little than this one.

I asked my husband to get down our Christmas things, and he couldn't find our tree. I had promised the girls that we would decorate for Christmas that day, so I wasn't sure what to do. While running errands I saw some small trees on the road side Christmas tree stands.

We pulled over, I got all the kiddos out and told the girls I would buy one if I could find one for $15 or $20. I looked around and the cheapest I could find was $30. I just couldn't bring myself to spend that much.

When the man came over I asked him if he had any trees for $20. He very nice and he went to look for one in his surplus. When he came back, he said, "I'll find you one." He then grabbed one of the $30 trees and I paid $20 for it.

This tree is about the same size as our fake one; it sits on top of our end table. But it is so nice to have a real tree this year. It smells soooo good!

Funny thing is, when I went to search for my Christmas wreath for the front door, I found our fake tree. Oh well. ;-) I am enjoying our real one this year!

We went to Wal-Mart, and I looked at their real trees, and their small ones were around $25 to $30, so I did beat Wal-Mart's price!

For more money saving Ideas click on the button on the top of my post.

June Hannah

2007-12-07T10:32:00.000-05:00

I am kind of late getting up my show and tell today. Things are kind of busy around here. I also had company from a good family friend come last night and we have been talking and visiting. :)

Today I would like to show you my *original* Cabbage Patch Doll. This was my ninth birthday present. Ever since the first time I had visited The Baby Land General Hospital in Cleveland Georgia, I had so wanted to adopt my very own *original* Cabbage Patch Doll.

This little girl is named June Hannah. She was born on June 9th, 1990. So she is now 17 years old. ;-) The funny thing is that my first born was born on June 9th, so they share the same birthday. :)

Adopting a baby from the Baby Land General Hospital is quite an experience, and I vividly remember adopting June Hannah. First you go into the waiting room of the hospital and tell the nurse that you would like to Adopt a baby. She will take you through all the rooms showing all the babies available for adoption. She then informed us that there were many Cabbages in labor at the moment, and we could wait for one and watch one be be born.

That is what I decided to do, because I thought it would be exciting to watch a baby being *born*.

Pretty soon it was announced that a mother cabbage was in labor and that she was six leaves dilated. ;-) The nurse was working on the cabbage and pretty soon she a a full ten leaves, and out came June Hannah.

After she was born she was taken to the nursery to be cleaned up. I got to watch this process as well. The nurse "cleaned" her up, put a diaper on her, a T-shirt, a baby hat, and then wrapped her in this cabbage leaf blanket that you see her in now.

I was then given my June Hannah, and we headed into an office and signed the adoption papers. I took a pledge that I would always take care of her. Then we went into the gift shop where there was all sorts of things for sale to help take care of her. I bought her some more diapers and an outfit.

I named her June, because she was born in June, and Hannah which was name that mom liked and she convinced me that I should name her Hannah. :) I like the name Hannah to this Day. I have met many Hannah's since then and they have all been wonderful people. :)

There are rumors that Cabbage Patch Dolls are not *safe* toys for children. If you know what kind of rumors I am talking about, I am just not sure if it is true or not. Sometimes I wonder if people make a bigger deal about things than they should or not. If you don't know what I am talking about, comment about it, and leave me away to contact you and I will explain. Otherwise it is best to not invoke arguments over. ;-)

If you would like to know more about Baby Land General Hospital, click here. It is kind of fun to read about.

To see what others are showing and telling about, click on the button above my post. Have a wonderful day!

Treating Fevers

2007-12-05T10:40:00.001-05:00

I am going to probably delve into a controversial topic here. But this is what *I* do and what works for *me*. That is why I am writing about it in Works For Me Wednesday. :)

I am an unconventional mommy when it comes to treating my children's sickness. I believe that the mom and dad have the ultimate responsibility for taking care of their children and their health. Which I believe means, they should inform themselves as much as they are able on how to care for their children during sickness.

I have chosen the topic of fevers because this is where I seem to get a lot of raised eyebrows over, so I thought that maybe if I gave some information about it, some would understand where my husband and I are coming from.

When my child shows sign of sickness, and a fever begins, I do not rush to the medicine cabinet and bring out the Tylenol. I went to an MD who told me that the fever is the bodies natural way of fighting the sickness that the child is dealing with. Bringing the fever down for the sake of bring the fever down can actually prolong the sickness.

Instead, I should try to find out what the sickness *is* and treat the sickness not the fever. Sometimes it is a cold, so I will give vitamin C, an herbal formula made especially for children etc. If the fever is climbing, a tepid bath brings the fever down for awhile and tends to make the child feel a bit more comfortable.

Also, I make sure that my children get *plenty* of fluids during the fever. Mine like Pedalite or Gatorade. ;-)

There have been times where I have used Tylenol. When the fever reaches about 103 I will give some Tylenol; and this is usually at night so they can sleep better. The high temps seem to climb during the night or during resting periods for some reason.

Many people get scared, thinking that a high fever will cause the child's brain to fry. There is a certain point where that *can* happen, but it is usually a serious disease that would cause a fever to go high enough to do that.

Children who have problems with seizures anyway, are more likely to have problems with a high fever. But if the child is acting "normal" such as talking coherently, crying and whining, and showing signs of *life* the fever is probably best left alone.

When Sweetie had the flu one year at 19 months, her fever got high enough for me to use Tylenol, and I could tell she *needed* it. Tepid Baths were not working, and she would just lay there staring off into space. Once she had the Tylenol she started acting like herself.

I would like to quote Shonda Parker on Fevers. Shonda Parker wrote a book called Mommy Diagnostics, which is a great reference tool in treating your children during a sickness naturally. Her are her thoughts about it:

"Fever and Fever Reducers

Since I am NOT a physician and not the child’s mother, I could never make the decision as to what you should do for your child. Choosing family herbal care is choosing to self-diagnose and self-medicate unless medical attention is needed. Now, it’s also hard without information to be able to make those kinds of decisions. What has the Parker family done in regard to this issue? Two of my children, my boys, have had febrile seizures. I believe this is due to some protective mechanism for their body that God has given them, and yes, when you abruptly change a child’s temperature status, a febrile seizure can result. With both boys, I’ve allowed the fever to rise until 103 degrees (when they are under 2 years of age), then I choose to treat with Tylenol if all of my natural fever measures are not helping. For my older children, I let the fever go as long as they are not miserable. I am always treating with herbs, vitamins, physical medicine, etc. If they are in extreme pain, I choose a pharmaceutical that I’m comfortable with.
Tylenol can be toxic to the liver. I choose to use milk thistle any time Tylenol is used in this house. I NEVER use Tylenol (acetaminophen) if I have previously given any alcohol tinctures or extracts to myself or my family. Tylenol mixed with alcohol, in any amount, is a risky measure – people have died from the combination.
The herbs I use are a combined product of peppermint, yarrow and elderberry as well as feverfew (Yummy Yarrow and Elderberry). In known bacterial infections, I also use white willow. I’m a little uncomfortable using white willow bark during viral infections in children.
I do not use homeopathic remedies. The system of homeopathic medicine would require me not to use my herbs if I were going to use it the way it was intended. I like my herbs and am unwilling to give them up."

Anyway, this is what Works For *Me*. Like Shonda said, I am not a doctor, and it is up to the parent to decide what is best for their child. I am not against using Tylenol to treat fevers, but I don't jump to use it whenever my child has a fever either. So that is what Works For Me. :)

My suggestion with this writing this post, is to inform yourself. A lot of people seem to blindly follow the doctor. And while I believe doctors are wonderful. ( I have used them when my child has been sick) I also think parents should inform themselves and be knowledgeable as possible when it comes to their children's health.

My recommendation is to buy Shonda Parker's Mommy Diagnostics. This is a great place to start to learn how to begin treating your children with home remedies. The book also gives you much encouragement and confidence in your abilities as your child's mother to learn how to effectively treat your children when they are sick.

For More Works For Me Wednesday Tips, please click on the button at the beginning of my post. Have a wonderful day! :)

*disclaimer: I am not a doctor, and I am not telling you that this is what you need to do to treat your child. As a parent please be responsible in *your* own parenting decisions. Thank you! :)

Wordless Wednesday~ Friends

2007-12-05T10:08:00.000-05:00

For More Wordless Wednesday Pictures, please visit here.

One other Thing

2007-12-03T15:00:00.000-05:00

I am not living Afghanistan! LOL! I just randomly choose that country for who knows what. And my profession is different than what it says too. :)

I was just being silly. I want to keep some privacy and anonymity in this interent world. :)

Sorry if I misled anyone. ;-)

Uh..We Have a Slight Problem. (Sigh)

2007-12-03T14:44:00.000-05:00

Yesterday, Bean comes running through the house with her tutu and said, "Mommy, look what we found in your closet! TUTU TUTUS!!!!

Both were wearing part of their Christmas presents I was planning on for them.

Later on I told Sweetie that they were going to be a surprise and that I was going to wrap it up in Christmas paper and give it her. She said, "Oh, don't worry, it will still be a surprise. " In a matter of fact way. (yeah right!)

Oh well, at least I know that they really liked them. Right away, after their discovery, they began to play act Angelina the Ballerina.

*On a side note. Thank you *everyone* for the compliments on my new blog's looks. :)

Christmas Blog Look

2007-12-01T02:11:00.000-05:00

Here is the template that I played around with and came up with this Christmas Blog look. How do you like it? I am still working on it a bit. I lost a lot of stuff, when I made the switch. Nothing important. Just stuff that blogger calls widgets. Now I need to remember which websites I had listed. I posted the ones that I most frequent, but there are others that I need to remember.

I need to go to bed. It is past 2:00am! Yikes! Goodnight. :)

Tea Cup and Tutus

2007-11-30T07:00:00.000-05:00

There are two things I would like to show you today. The first item is this tea cup. In antique people or collectors opinions, this tea cup isn't worth much. However, it means a lot to me.

Growing up, my Dad traveled frequently due to business. One day, when he was on an especially long business trip, the door bell rang. Mom opened the door and there was a flower delivery man with a huge bouquet of bright beautiful flowers for my mom. On the card it said something to the effect of my dad missed my mom

I was admiring mom's flowers, when to both of our surprise the flower man said he had another bouquet in the truck and he would be back in a moment.

When he came back, he was carrying this tea cup with daises and pink carnations arranged inside of it. I felt so special after receiving those flowers! I can't remember what the card said, but just the fact that my dad also thought of me besides my mom made me feel so warm inside.

I can't remember how old I was when I got those flowers. Not very old. I am thinking around 12 or 13.

My Dad is such a sweet, caring, and compassionate guy. He sure helped me to know what kind of qualities I should look for in a husband. Thankfully, my husband takes great care of me too. :)

Still, my Dad is there for me. He sometimes even babysits my kids. :) On his own, without any help. He amazes me even. Three times now he has put on Tiny Boy's diaper, backwards. Perfectly. ;-)

The next thing I would like to show you is part of my Tackle It Tuesday Post. Remember when I said I was going to try and make two tutus that night? Well, I got one done instead of both. I just finished the other one tonight.
I made these for my girls for Christmas. Bean is starting to be interested in Ballerinas so I thought it would be fun to make these. Sweetie also will like it. They were very easy to make. All I did was tie tulle around a piece of elastic that fits around their waists.

Sweetie's is on the left, and Bean's is on the right. Thanks for looking! To read and look at what other's are showing and telling about today, click on the Show and Tell Button at the Top of my Post. Have a good day! :)

Let's Get Honest

2007-11-29T08:21:00.000-05:00

I really don't know why I am posting this on my blog. Last night I lost it. (no not my mind; almost, but it is still here) I lost my emotions over something so dumb and stupid. (Could be that AF showed up yesterday) (For those of you who don't know who AF is, comment me, and I will tell you. ;-) )

Anyway, I lost it over the girls toys. I had posted about this on a backwards Works For Me Wednesday day. I still haven't found the solution. People gave wonderful ideas, but I've tried them all. Or they won't work in our situation. The girls really don't have that many toys comparably speaking. But yet, it gets soooo out of control.

Yesterday because AF visited me, I wasn't feeling very good. So I helped them pick up. Like I *always* do. After it was all done, I told them they could play, but to take one thing out at a time. Later on, their doll house was open, there were a minut amount of toys on the floor, and one of their toy buckets (still full of toys) was slightly pulled out of the closet.
When I saw that I lost it. I burst into tears. *Why* can't I figure out a solution? I hear in my mind all these voices and see all these flash backs of years gone by. And I see the future too.
In the past I see a mother; one I was glad I didn't have. She was my neighbor's mother. I sounded just like her.
The voices that I hear, are "You are a terrible mother"
And the future that I see, I am arguing with Sweetie over some boy she isn't allowed to date.
All of this because of TOYS!!
I cried out to the Lord about this. And all this other stuff came pouring out of my heart. This morning as I was visiting some blogs I came across this. What perfect timing!

Drudgery
"I must admit I feel a lot of pressure with two children under two years of age. I am committed to do it until they are in school, however, and feel it is God's will. At times like this--when I wonder if I will even be able to finish this letter with both of them screaming for something--or when I miss going to lunch or getting dressed up, everyday life seems a drudgery. I worked hard to get through college--to be a scrubwoman, ha!"
I understand this mother's cry. So does the Lord. He has given us this word: "No temptation has come your way that is too hard for flesh and blood to bear. But God can be trusted not to allow you to suffer any temptation beyond your powers of endurance. He will see to it that every temptation has a way out, so that it will never be impossible for you to bear it" (1 Corinthians 10:13, PHILLIPS).
"A way out," I can hear her say, "What mother has a way out?"
The New English Bible translation throws light on this: "a way out, by enabling you to sustain it." Think, too, of Jesus' words, "My yoke is easy and my burden is light" (Matthew 11:29 AV). He is willing to bear our burdens with us, if only we will come to Him and share the yoke, His yoke.
I saw this principle in operation when I visited the Dohnavur Fellowship in India. There, day after day, year in and year out, Indian women (most of them single) care for little children, handicapped children, infirm adults, old folks. They don't go anywhere. They have none of our usual forms of amusement and diversion. They work with extremely primitive equipment--there is no running water, for example, no stoves but wood-burning ones, no washing machines. In one of the buildings I saw this text: "There they dwelt with the King for His work." That's the secret. They do it for Him. They ask for and receive His grace to do it. I saw the joy in their lovely faces.

So this is my encouragement from the Lord that I cried out for. Thank you Lord. God will give me the grace. It is sufficient. Just keep plugging on Mommy. :)

Christmas Meme

2007-11-28T10:31:00.001-05:00

I found out about this Meme from Mary, at Mary's Writing Nook. I thought it would be fun to participate in it. I am making plans on decorating my blog for Christmas, but I don't like jumping from one holiday to another. Saturday is the day for decorating! Anyway, here is the meme.

1. Christmas is Family Togetherness. [fill in the blank with ONE WORD] (sorry, couldn't do it in one word! ;-) )

2. In memories, what was the best part of your Christmases past? Well, I think the best Christmas was when we went to visit my Grandma who lived in New Jersey for Christmas. My cousins also came, and my Grandma's family were there. It was a HUGE affair, and so much fun! Everyone dressed up in their nice clothing for the occasion. My cousins and I played games like Hide in Seek in my Grandma's HUGE house. My grandma was the best grandma a grandchild could have. She never lost her patience with me, and bought me red lipstick at the tender age of 7!

3. Was Santa ever good to you? [describe how and what] Santa was always good to me! I thought in my mind, I deserve coal, but why do I keep getting really nice gifts? Looking back, I think Santa created a self righteous spirit in me. After all the wonderful things Santa gave me after being naughty so many times, I assumed, I must not be *that* bad.

4. Do you open gifts on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, or both? Sometimes on Christmas Eve and Sometimes both. It just depends on our schedule for that Christmas. We stay pretty flexible

5. Is there something you make each and every year? I try to make those roll out sugar cookies and decorate with icing. It depends if I am getting too stressed out with other preparations. Then I just buy good ol' pillsbury boy dough! ;-) [craft or recipe]

6. What is your favorite five[5] Christmas songs/hymns? 1. O Holy Night, 2. Away in a Manger in the alternate tune, 3.Let it Snow,4. Sleigh Bells in instrumentals, And of course Jingle Bells!

7. Is there a new tradition for Christmas since your childhood days? I don't quite understand the question. I think it is saying is there any new traditions that I do that I didn't do when I was a child? Yes, I have a little manger for the kids. Each day of Christmas we put a piece of straw in the manger. On Christmas day, before the children wake up, I try to put baby Jesus in the manger. Some years it doesn't happen because we might be in another state.

8. Describe one of your Christmas trips. [whether it's across town or across country] Last year we went to Michigan for Christmas. It is about a 1,000 miles away from where we live. We have an older van, that *sometimes* (cough, cough) has problems. Especially on long trips. It is also very tiny. We have three children. Last year my children were four, two, and one years old.

I bought those huge zip lock baggies (the ones that you can fit balls into) and packed the kids clothing in that. I stuffed them under the seats in the van. We had packed the van very tight; so much so that everyone was pretty much hidden.

The kids did really well on the way up. We stopped twice to sleep. Once at my sisters house, and once at a friend's house. This friend was the person that introduced me to Jesus.

When we left our friends house, all of the sudden our heat stopped working. We didn't know what was going on. Thankfully our friends only lived about four hours away from our destination, and we weren't too cold for too long. When we finally were able to see what was wrong with our van it was the water pump. $600 dollars later it was working just fine! :) This year we will be riding with my brother in law in his nice new Suburban.

9. Do you have a special Christmas outfit to wear for the day? When I was a teenager, I made a Christmas dress, but it doesn't fit me anymore.

10. Have YOU or any of your family members sat on Santa's lap? When I was a kid I did. But we don't do Santa here. Even if we did, there are too many creeps in this world. I don't trust a strange man dressed as Santa and have my kids sitting in his lap. Besides, I look at all those poor babies that scream their heads off. Why put the poor thing through so much trauma? ;-)

11. What is/or will be on your Christmas tree this year? A Hodge Podge of ornaments. I don't do a theme on the tree. I like all the different individual ornaments. My mother in law gives a new one to each of the children each year. I also have white lights on the tree. I think white lights look so romantic. Colored lights look too commercial and junkie to me. Now that is my own personal taste and opinion. If you like colored lights, please don't take offense. :)

12. Do you/or have you decorated your yard for Christmas? Not yet. Planning on doing that on Saturday. :) I keep things pretty simple. A Christmas Wreath on the door, and Candles in the Windows.

To participate in this meme, click on the meme button at the top. Merry Christmas!

Wordless Wednesday~ Seeing Ducks Up Close for the First Time

2007-11-28T09:48:00.001-05:00

For more Wordless Wednesday pictures, please click here.

Am I Crazy?

2007-11-27T11:02:00.000-05:00

I have so much to do today it isn't even funny. The main thing that I MUST tackle today is getting all of this fabric cut out into the desired projects that I am trying to complete before Christmas.

I know I am crazy, but I seem to sew better when I am under pressure for some reason. I got four projects cut out already, but I need to finish cutting out two more. Last night I was cutting out a project and cut two of the pattern pieces on the wrong fold, so now I have to run back to the store and find some fabric at a decent price that will work. It was ALOT of fabric too! I was so upset. But I decided to give this problem to the Lord. I am not going to stress out on my mistake and make everyone miserable around me because what *I* did wrong. I am just going to have to go with the flow.

Tonight when the kiddos are in bed, then I am going to try and get done two tutus that I am making my girls for Christmas. This *should* be an easy project. All I am doing is tying tulle onto a piece of ribbon.

I will post pictures of all the cut out projects and the tutus. Hopefully tonight.

For more Tackle it Tuesday Projects visit Five Minutes For Mom, by clicking on the the button above my post.

I got a blog award!

2007-11-27T10:35:00.001-05:00

Being Mrs. Mama blessed me with this blog award. I found her blog through the Thanksgiving Meme, and discovered that both she and I home school, and like to use learning folders in our homeschooling adventures.

I would like to pass this award out to some of my bloggie friends also. :)

First off, I would like to give this award to my sister in law, Proud to Be A Mommy. She just started blogging, and so far she is doing great at it. She is also a real life friend, and a sweet person to boot. :)

Second I would like to give this award to Mary at Mary's Writing Nook. She was the first person to add me to their blog roll, and was a real encouragement to me in my blogging adventures. She commented on a post that wasn't apart of a meme; it just tickled me to death that a complete stranger would like to read my blog. :)

Third Person I would like to give this award to is my new blog friend at A Cup of Joy. I "met" her also through the Thanksgiving meme at Kelli's House, and later found out that we had a lot in common. We both know some In Real Life people that we are friends with, and she also knows my Mother In Law's cousins that were missionaries with New Tribes Missions. Meeting her brought me much encouragement. We both have an understanding of the importance of giving a clear gospel message.

And the fourth person I would like to give this award to is Mrs. C. at Riverbend Ramblings. I knew Mrs. C. from a church that we both attended before we both moved away. Mrs. C. was one of the first people that knew about my blog. Unbeknowning to me, she also had a blog. I emailed her letting her know I had started a blog. So she has been reading my blog from the first post.

She also has been a big help to me in learning how to do special things to the blogger template. And she has been a great encourager in my writings. She is really good at English. I am not, and for her to compliment my writing meant a lot to me. :) .

So those are the lovely people I would like to pass this award on to. Enjoy!

2007 Campfire Traditon

2007-11-25T18:38:00.000-05:00

This past Saturday we had our Campfire Tradition. Originally, we had made plans for my pen pal to come, but her little boy got sick suddenly the day that they were supposed to come. :( The girls were so disappointed, but we had had a good time anyway.
My Grandma who is almost 90 years old, got to come too, which was a special treat for the girls. They really were happy that she could come, even though their friends couldn't.

Grandma, me, and Little Tiny Boy. The face on Tiny Boy just cracks me up! :)
Daddy Stoking the fire.
For lunch we roasted hot dogs over the fire. For sides we had chips, and macaroni salad. For dessert; it wouldn't be a campfire without samoores. ;-) That is our good family friend that has been at each and every camp fire helping Bean roast her hot dog.
Bean thinks she isn't allowed to have these. She grabbed them, and went and sat in the corner to eat them. These were her favorites. She called them the yellow chips. She also stuffed my Grandma, (who the kids call G.G.) with these chips. Hey, at least she was sharing! :)Tiny Boy trying to see what is going on at the table.Here he was being camera shy, but I caught him just in time!

Everyone gathered around the fire.Tiny Boy, trying to bribe his Nana of some chocolate! :)
Sweetie telling Nana that everyone was a baby except Adam and Eve. Nana's new little doggie also came to the camp fire. Isn't she cute? :)

The neighbor kids showed up, which turned out to be a big blessing. With my pen pals little children not being able to come, this made up for it. They had a good time roasting marshmellows and hot dogs too.
A bit of exploring is being done by Sweetie and Tiny Boy
Nana spotted some grape vine growing in our back yard, so she made tiny grapevine wreaths for us. :)

And just a cute picture for the road. After everyone left, Daddy and I roasted more hot dogs for dinner. Then we gave the kids a bath. After that, we went outside and sat around the fire some more. We had a nice relaxing time talking with the kids for an extra 15 minutes before we put them to bed.

After bed, Daddy and I went back out to the fire, and enjoyed each other's company for an hour longer. At one point, Bean came back out and asked for a cup of water. When Daddy got back, he said that Sweetie was crying because she saw us sitting by the fire from her bedroom window, and it looked like we were having too much fun! ;-)

Our Thanksgiving

2007-11-25T18:05:00.000-05:00

Thursday morning, I didn't have to get up and roast a Turkey; Great Grandma was doing that at her house. ;-)
Instead, I slept in till 9:00 am, wow! What a glorious feeling that was, to wake up late like that. I tried to watch the Macy's Day Parade with the girls, but in my opinion (sorry folks) it was dumb! When I was a kid I remembered them showing a lot more of the parade. This time, it was more of Holly Wood gossip. The girls lost interest real quick, and I didn't blame them. It was nothing like I remembered as a kid. :(
Pretty soon, we started to get ready to head to Great Grandma and Great Grandpa's house. It is about an hour and half drive, so we had lots of stuff to pack to keep the kids entertained.
When we arrived, the house smelled wonderful from the turkey roasting in the oven. My sister in law and brother in law also came with their new little guy.
We had a delicious menu of:
Roast Turkey and gravy
Sweet Potato Casserole
Cranberry jelly and relish
Marshmellow delight salad
Fruit Salad
Fruit Dip
Cheese ball with crackers
Corn bread casserole
Mashed potatoes
Turkey stuffing
Bread
Homemade jam
Green beans fried in bacon grease with bacon pieces
peas
Turkey Cookies (the ones that I showed on my Thanksgiving posts)
Pumpkin Pie
Apple Dump Cake
(And probably more that I am forgetting! :))

We spent the rest of the afternoon talking and sharing good fellowship. The girls, (oh my goodness) started coloring, Great Grandma's concrete porch floor! We gave the girls consequences, (like no pumpkin pie, but we later found out that Great Grandma gave them some anyway ;-) ) and I cleaned the floor.

However, I was really excited about one thing. HOURS later, Sweetie came up to me and apologized, on her own, for coloring on Great Grandma's floor. She then went to Great Grandma and asked for an apology. This is the first time, that I know of that, she came on her own free will and apologized like that.

The girls then watched movies galore. Aunt Mommy brought a few Thanksgiving movies, and I too, had a few movies for them to watch. This kept them busy for a while. :)

And, poor Little Tiny Boy. In the middle of our feast he came down with a fever. He spent most of the day crying, or in my lap, or laying down on Great Grandma's guest bed. :( If you look to the right of Little Tiny Boy, you will see a train engine. That brought him great comfort in his illness. :)

We had a great day, with lots of fun! Great Grandma and Great Grandpa got to see their newest great grandchild for the first time I believe

Isn't he a cutie! :) That is my new little nephew!

My Laundry System

2007-11-21T07:00:00.000-05:00

I am a lazy laundress. With three children, at one point four and under, I may of found a laundry system that is not very stressful, but also not very much according to proper house keeping rules.

First off, I do laundry every other day. I do only one load.
Now I am going to break rules. Once I know that the fabric won't bleed, I throw all my colors together. I wash in cold water most of the time, which doesn't bleed fabrics as easily.

Most fabrics these days are colorfast, however I always question red. So I always wash those separately; until I know that it is color fast.

My wardrobe is very simple I have two jean skirts. One to wash, one to wear. Unless my children's clothing is very dirty or soiled, I make them wear one pair of underware a day.

I put the wash in the morning, and throw it in the dryer later in the day, then fold and put away.

My baby sleeps in the clothes that I dress him in the morning with. Unless he has had a bath, or it will be cold, then I put him in a footed sleeper.

If someone has been sick, then I will wash in hot water. I only wash sheets every few weeks.

I put vinegar in with the laundry soap, and a few drops of tea tree oil.

If I get behind at all, and have a mountain to climb, then I will divide my clothes the proper way. But for now, this is what works for me. Shocking?

For more ideas that work for others, click on the button on top of my post. :)

Wordless Wednesday~ Roses. For No Reason. :)

2007-11-21T06:30:00.000-05:00

For More Wordless Wednesday Pictures Click Here.

Rowing~ The Glorious Flight

2007-11-19T08:00:00.000-05:00

It took me a while to get my blog up about The Glorious Flight. This book was just a lot of fun. We reviewed many things that we learned with Storm in the Night. Onomatopoeia's, Similes, and the like. We also explored:
France
The History of the Airplane
Vocabulary
How Airplanes Fly
Attempted to make a French type Sandwich with Gruyere Cheese, and Ham. (The girls were not very fond of that :) )
To never give up
Parts of an Airplane
Ordinal Numbers
The differences between a jet and a propeller airplane
Air Traffic Controllers
Pilots
Different Ways to Travel
Roman Numerals
And a bit about helicopters

The Glorious Flight is about Louis Bleriot, the first man to fly across the English Channel in the year 1909.

While I was reading this book to the girls, I showed them the English Channel on the map. The next day I asked Sweetie, "What is the English Channel?" Sweetie replied, "That is the channel on TV where they speak English." :) She does now know what the English Channel is. :)

When I tried to make those Cheese sandwiches with ham in them, I also made Brownies to go with our meal. Here are a few pictures of the children, "helping" make Brownies

Then, in perfecting timing, there was an air show a few hours away, featuring The Blue Angels on the Saturday after we finished The Glorious Flight! We all got up early Saturday Morning and headed out, stopping for Breakfast at Chick-Fil-A. I was having a horrible time staying awake on the ride there. I suppose my husband notice how groggy and out of it I was, for when we stopped for gas, he bought me an ice cold Frappuccino, yum!

We choose to park in a special parking lot that had Free charter buses. The parking was $20! But good news! The air show was "free". :)

All in all, that wasn't a bad price for me, my husband and the three kids. And girls LOVED riding the buses. To them it was a lot of fun.

When we got off of the bus, Tiny Boy, saw the air planes in the sky and started to make the sign for planes; along with the appropriate sound effects. :)

We arrived and set ourselves up, then began to watch the planes. Pretty soon, Bean and Sweetie got bored with it all. I was showing the girls how the planes had propellers on them, just like Lewis Bleriot had on his plane.

Things started to perk up a bit, when they saw a lady wing walker. Especially when she waved to the crowd; the girls just loved that. The Red Barron's drew a heart in the sky, and the girls thought that was pretty exciting. :)

Then the jets came, and Tiny Boy promptly began to cry from the noise. Thankfully, we had some sound muffler head sets to put on both Bean and Tiny Boy. After we put them on him, he was fine for the rest of the time.

In between fly bys, Bean would socialize with an older man telling him about her whole life. He made the mistake of speaking to her first. After that, there was no stopping her gabbing. I think she was distracting him from watching the show. I told her when they planes went by, to stop talking!

Sweetie had her mind on other things besides the air show. She was perfectly content with discarded Styrofoam cup, and sand. :)The Blue Angel's finally arrived after about an hour or so of waiting and watching the other planes. Bean was pretty interested in them. Sweetie, on the other hand, we had to *make* her look when they did a stunt. Tiny Boy, by this time, was sound asleep in my baby carrier. :)

Here is a short clip of one of the stunts that they did:

And what is a field trip without a souvenir? There was a Blue Angel cockpit that Daddy, the girls and Tiny Boy got to sit in and take their picture. I do not have a scanner, so please forgive my picture of a picture. But all the kids loved sitting in the cock pit!
Then we got a die cast Blue Angel. It has already suffered some damage, but it still serves it purpose. Tiny Boy is the one that gets to play with it most. He LOVES it. He can play for hours with it. After we bought our souvenirs, we tried to find the bus stop that we got off at, but we got all confused, and walked around in circles until we did find where it was.
We finally got on the bus, and Bean, Miss Social, started jibber jabbing to the strangers behind us, telling them everything that came to her mind. Some of the stuff she was saying was kind of embarrassing. Sweetie told the lady in front of us that the air show was kind of boring, but she liked playing in the sand.
On the way home we stopped by Cracker Barrel to eat, since we hadn't eaten anything since breakfast. All of us were really thirsty too!
Not a single child was awake when we got home. It was a great family day! The weather was beautiful too. Not too hot, and not too cold. And not a cloud to be seen anywhere.

Right now, in preparation for Thanksgiving we are Rowing Cranberry Thanksgiving. But before I write about that, I will do a post on the girl's learning folders from The Glorious Flight. I am not sure what book we will be rowing after that, but I'll let you know. ;-)

Variation on Libby's Pumpkin Pie Recipe & Corn Bread Casserole

2007-11-17T08:01:00.000-05:00

My husband at a previous Thanksgiving making Pumpkin Pie with the Kids and cousins

Today I will share two recipes that both my husband and I enjoy at Thanksgiving. My husband likes pumpkin pie. However he is very picky about his pumpkin pie. :) He likes to use Libby's recipe, but adjust it a bit. He got this variation from his Dad, who loves to bake himself. :)

Make sure to get Libby's 100% PURE PUMPKIN because Libby's also makes a Pumpkin Pie mix.

Now for the variations:
Instead of the amount of sugar called for in the recipe on the can, put in 1/8 more of a Cup of sugar. Make sure you mix the spices with the sugar.
In stead of using condensed milk, use %2 milk. My husband says the 2% milk keeps the pie from tasting thick and pasty. Using the %2 milk makes it taste smooth and creamy.
This is a recipe that I enjoy on Thanksgiving. I actually had it for the first time at a ladies meeting when Mrs. C. and I attended the same Church. It is very good!

Corn Bread Casserole
1 Can cream style corn
1 Can whole kernel corn
1 Stick of butter, melted
1 Egg
8 Ounces of Sour Cream
2 Cups of Shredded Cheddar Cheese

In a large bowel Mix both cans of corn together included the liquid in the Whole Kernel Corn
Add slightly beaten egg and cornbread mix. Put into a glass 11x13 slightly greased pan. Bake at 350 for about 45 minutes to one hour, or until tester comes out clean, but not dry.

Once done, spread Sour Cream on top of Corn bread, then sprinkle cheddar Cheese all over the top while it is still hot. Enjoy!

To read what others are writing about Thanksgiving, be sure to visit Kelli's by clicking on the Giving Thanks Button on the top of my post. :)

My Favorite Thanksgiving Memory

2007-11-16T09:41:00.001-05:00

A few days ago I posted about a favorite Thanksgiving tradition that we have have. Now I would like to write about my favorite memory.

It was the Thanksgiving that I was 16 years old. I will be honest in saying that before, when we had Thanksgiving, it was sort of boring. Just having turkey, and boring adult conversation. That year my sister was newly married, and my parents decided to break the mold, and we didn't do the usual Thanksgiving.

I was allowed to invite my best friend who lived a few hours away for the WHOLE week. I had horses at the time, and we both had fun riding and playing with my horses, and just doing "girl" stuff.

My parents also invited our good family friends, the M's to eat dinner with us. Mr. M is now gone to be with Jesus, and Mrs. M is the same lady you saw sitting with me at the picnic table at our camp fire.

We ate dinner as usual, but then we got really bold and daring. We broke molds that had been built over the years. I wouldn't say "traditions" because they weren't fun for me or anyone else in our family. It was more like the "expected" thing of what you did on Thanksgiving.

After dinner, My friend Amy and I got a video Camera and made my parents, sister and brother in law, and the M's play the "Newly wed, and not so newly wed game." Amy and I came up with some bazaar questions; I held the camera and Amy was the hostess. What fun we had! Everyone was laughing their heads off to the point where we had to take breaks and get fresh air. :)

The next day we got the idea to make a silly video by doing a News Cast. We came up with our stories. My sister and her husband were the anchors, and Amy and I were reporters. My brother in law and sister were also reporters, but they would change costumes and make themselves look different.

My friend Amy tried to make herself look like an Asian reporter by taking black eyeliner to her eyes and wearing bright red lipstick. She reported a traffic jam on our infamous interstate. We lined up all of our cars, and each of us each got into a car; honking and throwing our heads out of the windows and shaking our fists! The funny thing was, it looked pretty real!

We reported about an abandoned dog that needed a new home. We did a sports cast, and a weather report.

It was sooooo much fun. And after we put it all together, we watched it laughing our heads off. It was great!

That was the "best" Thanksgiving I have ever had. And this year as I read about the history of the Pilgrims and their first Thanksgiving, I saw that they too just didn't have a feast, but they also had fun and games. I realized that our out of the mold Thanksgiving wasn't exactly "nontraditional" Just a bit more modernized. :)

See what others are writing about Thanksgiving at Kelli's by clicking on the Give Thanks Button at the beginning of my entry. Have a wonderful day! :)

Turkey Cookies and Relish Turkeys

2007-11-15T08:00:00.000-05:00

I got a little long winded yesterday, so I am going try and make this short and sweet today. ;)

On an online message board that I am part of, someone posted these turkey cookies. Maybe some of you have seen them before because they are Pillsbury's idea. Just take a look for yourself. :)

I am going to try and make these with the girls once I can get out to the store and buy the needed ingredients. And another idea that I thought was sooooo cute, and also a bit more healthy are "Relish Turkey's. One draw back is that it does take a lot of time to make.

Green olives stuffed with pimento

celery

carrots

Jumbo sized black olives

colored tooth picks

I don't have any pictures to show, and I can't find any on the Internet, so please bare with my directions.

1. Shave/slice the carrots into little feather shapes, and beak shapes.

2. Cut the celery in about two inch wide pieces

3. Slit the black olive towards one of the ends horizontally

4. Pull the pimento out of the green olive slightly, this will be the turkey's little wattle! :)

Now that everything is sort of assembled:

Stick the tooth pick into the middle of the celery piece. The celery acts as the "base" of the turkey, so you want this resting on a flat surface. Put the black olive through the tooth pick all the way down to the celery. Sick the beak shaped carrot into one end of the green olive where you half way pulled the pimento out.

Stick the green olive on top of the tooth pick on the end where you didn't make a slit. This is the head. Now take three of the shaved feather shaped carrots and stick into the turkey's back where you sliced it on one end.

Now you have a "relish" turkey! If I made these (I did once at a church meeting for ladies) for my Thanksgiving dinner, I would make a relish tray as usual, then make enough of these to place all around the tray on the edges or circumference.

OK, I sort of found a picture that *might* work to give you a visual:

Just imagine the melon being the black olive, the head the green olive and the carrot shavings shaped like feathers as the the feathers. If you want to make that turkey pictured that's OK too. ;)

However, when you make a bunch of those little turkeys and place them around the relish tray it looks so adorable! It gives something for your children to do also.
Although, I would try to pre-assemble the beaks and feathers for them. The pimento wattle can be a little tricky too, so you'll have to work with that.

Look at me, I am getting to long winded again! For more Thanksgiving related topics be sure to visit Kelli's. Just click on the "Give Thanks" button at the beginning of my post. Have a wonderful day!

In Everything Give Thanks!

2007-11-14T10:55:00.000-05:00

I Thessalonians 5:18

In *everything* give thanks: for this the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

Today I may get a little long winded with this post, but it something that I have to remember to remind myself constantly, and something that God has blessed me because I have given thanks to him.

So, I will tell a little story. :) To make an extra long story short with too many details to bore you with, my husband and I finished up our last college credits after we married about six months into our marriage.

We sold our little home, and moved back into a college dorm with no air conditioning. When we did this I was four months pregnant. This was fine at the time. I wasn't overly huge, and the weather was nice. But as the months progressed closer to the summer, and as my belly grew, the heat became uncomfortable. As graduation neared, and temperatures sored into the low to mid 90's it became *very* uncomfortable. The mornings were not too bad, as I was in class where there was air conditioning. :)

However, the afternoons were pretty bad. So I got this wicked idea in my head to ask the Lord to have someone take pity on me, and have them offer me a cool place to stay (like their home) while they were at work. That way, I could do my homework in comfort and relax. My legs were beginning to swell from the heat in the last stages of pregnancy, and it was just plain hot in my dorm. So I prayed, then I hung around in the afternoon hoping someone would ask me how I felt, and I could tell them all my woes, and hopefully they would take pity and offer me a room.

I was pretty disappointed that no one did so. Discouraged, I went up to my hot room. As I was sitting on my bed with only the bare necessities on me, in front of my fans, after I had taken a cold shower; I *decided* that instead of dwelling on the uncomfortable, I could be thankful for what I did have.

So I began to thank the Lord for the cold running water, for in some countries you have to walk a long distance and carry the water. Then I thanked the Lord for the fans that were blowing on me, because I could have no electricity for fans to work!

I fell asleep, and forgot all about my prayer that the Lord would have someone take pity on me. One day, when the heat was especially bad, I stayed in a school building and sat in a comfortable chair, and tried to take a nap.

A teacher walked by and asked how I was doing, and I said fine. She asked me how my feet were (because they were really swollen) and I said that they were fine. Then she asked me if I would like to have a dorm room that had air conditioning. A few students had left during the semester, and there were rooms available. I said Of course! So I went and choose a room that had really cold air.

As I got in that nice and cold room, I realized that I had given God Thanks despite my circumstances, and He probably took pleasure in that. He probably won't do that every time we are in a tough circumstance. After all, there are more problems people face than not having air conditioning. But it showed me that God does care about our comfort and all the "little" things in our lives. I didn't complain about my circumstances, and He blessed me in a way more above than I could think. Instead of staying in someones house and having to leave, I could sleep overnight in a cold room!

So this Thanksgiving remember to give God Thanks for everything, including your tough circumstances. As I have progressed into our marriage, there have been much more "important" things come up, besides having air conditioning. And I must admit that I haven't responded to each situation as I did above. I wish I could say that I have; because it is so freeing when I do!

With that said, I would like to list some things that I am Thankful for.

#1. That Jesus died on the cross and took my sins and placed them on himself. I should of died, but He did instead because He loved me. The only way that I could pay for my own sins is death. I have sinned against a Holy God, and he cannot let me into Heaven because of this sin of mine. His justice wouldn't allow it, even though God is compassionate and does not want me to go to Hell, his perfect justice demanded it. God would not be God. I broke the law, I must pay for my crime.

But God had a plan. He is a loving God. He doesn't want us to go to Hell. Just as much as God is a God of pure justice, He is a God of pure love. So He sent His Son, Jesus Christ (God himself) and placed our sins upon Jesus. Jesus died instead of me. God's Justice was satisfied in behalf of my sin. I do not have to work for my salvation. I do not have to be good enough. All I must do, is agree with God, that I have sinned against Him, and trust that Jesus has made the complete payment for my sin. Jesus has paid for my crime. I don't have to go to Hell! Jesus will credit his righteousness to me if I just believe and bet my eternal soul that that is true! What a wonderful God!!!!!

#2. I am thankful for my husband. Here he and I before we began our courtship at the Christmas banquet at our college.

I was pretty young when I got married. I was two months from turning 20. Marriage is a big decision is life. I was pretty picky about men. My husband was the first one that I "dated", the first one I gave my heart to, and the first one I kissed on our wedding day.

But as I sit and think about our marriage in hinds sight, I am soooooo grateful for such a wonderful husband. He isn't perfect; neither am I. But of all the guys out there that do what they can to "catch" a girl, and then turn out to be crazy lunatics afterwards, I am very blessed indeed! ;)

This Thanksgiving I am especially thankful for him. I am going through a tough time with various issues, and he has been there right beside me. He has been the "strong" one in the family. He listens to me with an understanding heart, and tries to make me feel better by bringing me my favorite flavor of ice cream. :)

God knew what he was doing when I choose this man and allowed me to marry him. My husband has caused me to grow in more ways than I could of imagined. He is my best friend, and I cannot imagine life not being married to him. Being married is tough work for sure! But it is a good work. I love and respect my husband so much!!! Look at what he did for me on his day off.

He cleaned my van from top to bottom! He took the seats out, and vacuumed the floors, he took upholstery cleaner and cleaned the seats. He got all the sticky juice spills out of the cup holders. He worked on the van for about six hours!! If anyone knows my husband well, they know that cleaning isn't one of his specialties; although he has many other great ones.

Yet he did it, and I didn't even ask! When Sweetie saw it she said, "Our van is clean! I have never seen such a clean van in my life! I just can't believe my eyes!" That shows you how bad our van was. I tried to clean it as much as I could, but with three children, it is quite difficult. So anyway, I am thankful for such a wonderful husband!

#3. This will be my last thing I write about what I am thankful for. There is so much more to list, but this entry has gotten way too long. I am thankful for my children. They bring so much into our lives, that I can't begin to write about it here. That was one of the main reasons I started this blog; so I could write about my adventures with them.

I am going to post their baby pictures, because this is how I received them from the Lord; as babies. :)

This is Sweetie I don't have any new born photos on the computer. She was about six or seven months here. This is Bean
Here is Little Tiny Boy.

I told you that today was going to be a little long winded. If you have read this far, be sure to stop by Kelli's and see what other's are writing about Thanksgiving.(If you have the time after reading mine!) Just click on the "Giving Thanks" button at the beginning of my entry. Have a wonderful Day! :)

Thanksgiving Campfire Tradition

2007-11-13T08:00:00.000-05:00

Today is the second day of Giving Thanks, hosted by Kelli at There is No Place Like Home. Just click on the button above to find out more.

For the second day I would like to share a tradition that began when my oldest, Sweetie, was just a baby; about five months old. My parents and other family were gathered at their home for the "usual" Thanksgiving weekend. My parents at the time lived on about two acres of beautiful wooded property.

By Friday, I was getting stir crazy cooped up in the house with too much turkey, so I persuaded my dad and the men to build a campfire. As they went to build the fire, my mom and sister also got a bit inspired, and we found some hot dogs, marsh mellows, chocolate, and Gram crackers.

We made our way out to the fire that the men had built, all bundled up, and stood around the fire making our food, telling stories, singing, and laughing.
The older children (my children's cousins) thought this was so neat that they wanted to do it the next year. So we did. And the year after that, and the year after that. This will be our fifth year doing the campfire after Thanksgiving.

Sadly the cousins won't be around this year. However, I have invited my pen-pal who moved to the same state as I live, and now only lives a few hours away! (Yippee!) She, and her husband, along with their children, Lord willing, will be coming and doing the campfire with us. We will also have my mom and dad, and our good family friend. Perhapes we can persuade my husband's brother to join us also. (hint hint) It is something that started four years ago, and I would like to continue this tradition as long as we can

This is the campfire from the year 2004 up at my parents place. After they moved away from their property, they moved into a very nice trailer park that allows camp fires in an outdoor fire place. Those are my nephews and niece pictured there.
Me with Bean and our good family friend enjoying good conversation. Bean was about 10 months. Look at how long my hair was! After seeing these pictures, I am debating if I should let my hair grow that long again. What do you think?

Well thanks for reading and have a great day. Please stop by Kelli's and read about what other people are doing for Thanksgiving. :)

Teaching Thanksgiving to Children

2007-11-12T10:36:00.000-05:00

Since I am homeschooling, last week, this week, and next week, for Five in a Row, the girls and I have been rowing Cranberry Thanksgiving.
Last week we focused on just a few things, such as Onomatopoeia's, Similes, Coloring Thanksgiving pictures, etc. As I have been trying to explain the history aspect of Thanksgiving with the girls, it just seems to be going over their heads; just a wee bit.
For example. I tried telling the girls who the pilgrims were, and why they came to America. One night at dinner, Bean told her Daddy, that we were pilgrims too. When I asked her why, she said, "because we are good people."
I remember them asking me if Pilgrims were good or bad people, and I said, they were good people, that wanted to read the Bible and pray the way the Bible taught. But they were not allowed to read the Bible. If they did, they had to go to jail.
So, hence the question, were they good or bad people. Which then explains the misunderstanding, of Bean thinking we too were pilgrims because we were good and read the Bible. At least in her child like eyes we are good. ;) ( Technically she is right. We are pilgrims on this earth. Our true home is in Heaven; if we have have believed on Jesus as our Saviour by faith alone through grace alone. We are on a journey to Heaven, but that would way to over the top for her. :) )

I had a few Thanksgiving books besides Cranberry Thanksgiving, but they were not doing the trick. The girls think it is just a big feast, for good people! :)

So I went online, and looked in our library's system for any child's book or video that had to do with Thanksgiving. I placed what I could find on hold, and had them sent to our library. So this is what I got. There is a really great story type book of the whole Mayflower journey, a video of William Bradford cartoon style. A factual child's book on the history of Thanksgiving. Then there is a child's book, telling what life was like for a pilgrim girl using real photos.

Hopefully this will do the trick in giving them a better idea of what Thanksgiving is all about.

For more Thanksgiving ideas, please click on the button above my post. Have a great day! :)

Happy Slip Comercial

2007-11-10T09:29:00.000-05:00

This is a commerical that Happpy Slip did for an online money transfer company. But it is so halarious! I just had to show. :)

Fall Ya'll Bloggy Give Away Winnings!!!!

2007-11-09T10:13:00.000-05:00

For today's show and tell, I get to show my winnings from the Fall Ya'll bloggy give away! I must admit that I got really carried away with entering all of the contests. :) But my efforts paid off, because I won two nice and beautiful prizes!
The first thing I found out that I won, was this beautiful bag made by Melissa. What a beautiful bag! The pictures do not do it justice! I can tell that it is made from some very quality fabric, and there is not a flaw in it anywhere. Thank you Melissa for giving this bag away. You are very talented! :) I will enjoy using it very much.
I will be using this as my new purse. To tell you the truth, I have had the same purse since I got married six years ago, and this will be a fun and nice change! A million Thanks again! :)

The next prize I found out I won was a subscription to Family Fun Magazine. This prize was given away by Seis. The neat thing about this, it is a magazine that I really enjoy reading. I even have a link to the website on my sidebar. :) I get so many great and fun ideas from this magazine.

Anyway, I just ran out of my subscription, and I won another year for free. It was *perfect* timing. Thank you Seis for giving away such a great prize! Please know that I am going to thoroughly enjoy it!

To see what other's are showing and telling on their blog, please click on the button above at the beginning of my post. Have a nice day! :)

A Day At the Park

2007-11-08T10:56:00.001-05:00

Yesterday was such a nice day here! We went to a local park, that has many amenities that are wonderful.
It has a dog park, side walks, nature trails, bicycling trails, horse trails, a nice playground, a huge grassy field etc. We live on a dirt road and riding bicycles is kind of hard to do, so I loaded up the girl's bicycle and scooter in the van, and off we went for some fun!

Sweetie and Bean on their bicycle and scooter. Sweetie did really well with coordination, but poor Bean! Here little legs just wouldn't work like her brain was telling them to; she kept falling off trying to keep up with her big sister. She was doing really well; as long as she concentrated on what she was doing. But as soon as Sweetie got too far ahead, she would go too fast for her level, and fall off. Finally she just decided to walk and drag the scooter along with her.
Tiny Boy is being Camera Shy.
All of the kiddos swinging. One nice thing about having smaller than the average child is that Bean and Tiny Boy fit in the baby swing. One goes in one way, and the other goes in the other. They both think that this is great fun! Especially Tiny Boy. He would swing all day if he could. :)
Stopping for a snack. All that walking, riding, swinging sliding, makes a kid hungry!

Bean spotted this little squirrel on our walk, so I had to take a picture! :)

Works for me Wednesday~ Controlling Toys

2007-11-07T10:27:00.001-05:00

Today's Works-For-Me- Wednesday is backwards day. Today we are posting a problem that we haven't found a solution to, and hoping to get great tips.

My number one problem I think in the house is controlling the toys in our home. We have a small house, and space is very limited. The girls room is tiny, and if they just get one set of toys out it is a huge overwhelming mess. Getting them to clean up is a huge task in of itself. I really want them to learn the consequences for dumping out all of their toys at once, so I try to make them clean it up.

However, they truly do get overwhelmed and just walk around the room in a confused daze while they try to pick up toys.

We have purged a lot of toys, but still, it is an overwhelming thing for me to deal with; and them too. I have put the most messy toys up out of reach, which has helped. I have told them to take one thing out at a time. I try to make them clean up their room before they go to bed, but some days that just doesn't happen. I have tried to rotate toys, but that is difficult too, because there really is nowhere to store the unused toys. I have tried containers that are hard to open, but they figured out how to open those. Any suggestions, besides locking their bedroom door?! Thanks! :)

To give you an idea of what I deal on a regular basis, here are some pictures in this blog entry.

For more Works For Me Wednesday tips visit here

Wordless Wednesday~ Penpals Finally Meet

2007-11-07T09:20:00.001-05:00

For more Wordless Wednesday pictures visit here.

Bird Cage Needs Lots of Help! *Updated

2007-11-06T09:43:00.000-05:00

*Update below

Oh, Boy! This is really embarrassing. I tell you, taking care of animals is more work than taking care of children! This is my bird's cage. It needs a really bad cleaning. Now mind you, I do change the paper every so often. (Like when company's coming over, ;) ) However, it needs a really good scrubbing down. I don't think I have done this since Tiny Boy was born. So this is my tackle it Tuesday. And it is going to be a tough tackle, let me tell you!
Once it is done, I will post after pictures of my finished product. It is probably going to take most of the day to complete. So here it goes!

*Pictured below is something that I never gave my due thanks to my sweet husband for. He rigged up this hose, so I can turn it on and off as I work. Not only that, but it had a high pressure nozzle on it, that made super duper quick work at cleaning the cage. This was the first time using it, that I understood, and appreciated why he put this on the hose. :)

Here is the bird cage all taken apart, drying in the sun. It was a beautiful day to clean the cage at least. While I had the hose, and was outside all sopping wet, I cleaned up the children's table and chairs. Nasty spiders had made their home in the table, and laid too many egg sacks in it for my comfort. (shudder)

Here is the poor little birdie all cooped up in a teeny tiny cage while her cage was drying.

And Presto! Here is the finished product. I feel right quite proud of such a feat. It is as good as new. Something it hasn't looked like in a loooong time! My mother would be proud! :)

Storm In the Night Learning Folders

2007-11-05T17:39:00.000-05:00

I finally have a bit of time to write about the girl's Storm in the Night learning folders. It has been really busy around here, I still haven't caught up!

Well anyway, this is the cover. I had the girls color clouds again, in which we pasted them to the "doors" of the folder. Then Sweetie, and Bean colored rain drops from the clouds.

This is the first look inside the folder once you open it up. On the left side is a cloud booklet with different types and examples of clouds. I found the different clouds on the Internet and we pasted them under the appropriate names.

Beneath that booklet is another called: What is Electricity?, in which the girls tried, in their own words to describe electricity. Since this is Sweetie's folder, her says, "Energy that creates power". I must admit that I had to give her alot of prompting. Such big words for a five year old!

On the right side of the flap is a booklet that says "Facial Expressions" Inside the girls had to draw a person looking left, right, up, and down. We also played a little game, where I did different expressions and the girls had to guess what my emotion was.

Underneath is their Five Senses Journal. This is the experiment in which we smelt, tasted, looked, touched, and heard different mediums. You can read about that in Rowing The Storm in the Night. :)

To the right of that is another booklet where I asked the girls what they were afraid of. Sweetie put in hers:

1. Snakes and Spiders

2. Getting My Hair Washed

3. Breaking a teapot and stepping on it

4. Fire

Underneath that booklet is a pocket that holds the Verse:

Fear thou not; for I with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God.... Isaiah 41:10a

Then flip one of the flaps to the right and underneath are the girls art work. Here they colored clouds again, used a coffee filter as an umbrella, and a pipe cleaner for the handle. They glued them to the paper, and colored rain drops.

On the right flap is a booklet about storms. Unfold it, and this is inside:

1. How Are Clouds Made? ~ The sun goes on the water and makes it warm. The water comes up. You can't really see that. That makes the water cold. It turns to water. It bunches up together and makes a cloud.

2. Why Does It Rain?~ We need rain. There's water in the cloud. The cloud keeps getting heavier and heavier. It breaks and then it rains

3. Why Does It Lightning? ~ Molecules rub together and makes electricity which makes it lightning.

4. Why Does it Thunder?~ Cause the lightning, is very very hot. When we touch it, it feels like fire. It makes the air around the lightning pop.

Underneath the Storms book, is another book with pictures of all the fun things we did with Storm in the Night. You can see those same exact pictures on the blog here.

Open another portion of the folder and you will see an American flag. This story took place in America, so we colored an American Flag, Underneath the flag is a light bulb where the girls listed all the items that they could think of that produced light. Here is Sweetie's list:

1. Lightning

2. Light Bulbs

3. Lightning Bugs

4. Flashlights

5. Lamps

6. Fire

7. Sun

8. Gas

9. God

Next to the flag is a pocket with a little book in it, that girls had to remember things about the story they read. Sweeties were:

1. They were in the dark because the electricity went out

2. Grandfather was telling a story about Melvin (his dog when Grandfather was a boy)

3. The lightning crashed into the Beech tree, and the branch fell down.

4. Thomas could hear better in the dark

5. The lights came back on and they turned them off and went to Bed.

6 Thomas could smell better in the dark.

Underneath the pocket is an envelope with letters that Sweetie wrote to her grandparents.

On the far right flap is the Onomatopoeia booklet. In the story there were several. Here is Sweetie's definition and examples:

It's something that sounds like something, that it's really not. "tickety, tickety, tickety" "Bong, Bong, Bong, Bong" "Ping, Ping, Ping" "tick tock, tick tock" "Bang, Bang, Bang" "Honk, Honk, Honk"

Underneath the Onomatopoeia are word definitions found in the story. The vocabulary words were: Mandarin, Bough and Errand.

Close over one flap, and there are examples of Similes from the Story:

"Thunder like mountains blowing up."

"Thomas had a chin as smooth as a peach"

"Grandfather had a voice like a tuba"

"That man was seven feet tall and had a face like a crack in the ice."

Bean's folder is basically the same, but I will tell you her differences from Sweeties.

For the What is Electricity? This was her rendition: Energy that creates Power

For the Storms Booklet:

How Are Clouds Made?~ Water gather alot in the air and it gets heavier and heavier and heavier
Why Does It Rain?~ The water clouds are dark, and the clouds pops open and it rains
Why Does It Lightning?~ There is electricity in the air
Why Does it Thunder?~ The lightning pops the air like a balloon

Things I am Afraid of booklet:
1. Bad Guys
2. Thunderstorms and Lightning
3. The Dark
4. Fire

Light Bulb List:
1. Electricity
2 Light bulbs
3. Sun
4. Fire
5. Batteries in flash light
6. God

Things I Remember About Thomas and Grandfather:
1. They were in the dark
2.The Cat's name was Ringo
3. Thomas Smiled in the Shadows
4. Ringo the Cat won't grow up to be a Kangaroo
5. Grandfather was a boy once and had a dog and they were pups together
6. The lights came on

Bean's Onomatopoeia's :
"Bong, Bong, Bong, Bong"
"tickety, tickety, tickety"
"Beep Beep"
"Bang, Bang, Bang"

The rest was pretty much like Sweetie's folder. In looks and in answers. So that is the Storm in the Night Learning Folder. Hope you enjoyed! :)

We Have A Winner!

2007-11-04T23:10:00.000-05:00

CONGRATULATIONS mommyof8blessings!!!!!
What fun this was! Mommyof8blessings won the custom boutique outfit! I am very excited for her too. :) I can't wait to send the outfit off in the mail so she can use it for one of her eight blessings! :)

Fall Ya'll Bloggy Give Away

2007-11-04T17:12:00.000-05:00

It is getting closer! My comments have been closed on the give away. Pretty soon, I will be drawing the winner randomly using Random.org.

Please stay tuned to see who wins! This is so exciting! So far, I myself, have won two prizes; and really nice ones too! (of course. ;) All the prizes offered in this give away were superb!) I will be blogging about my winnings as soon as the contest is officially over which is on Monday.

Till then, my comments have been disabled on the giveaway post, I have unstickied it, and I will be drawing names in about four hours. See you till then! :)

My Grandfather's Clock~ Pun Intended :)

2007-11-02T09:47:00.000-05:00

For today's Show and Tell, I would like to show you my mom's Grandfather clock, that was my Grandfather's! My Grandfather died when I was just a baby, so I don't remember him at all. However, my mom says he was a good Dad, and she always loved this clock. My mom was promised this clock once both of her parents passed away.

Mom always called the clock, "Big Ben" because of the deep tones it made when it chimed. Mom remembers the clock being in their large entry way in their home. I believe my mother really likes this clock :) . My mother also said that she remembers her dad faithfully winding the clock at the same time every week.

When Grandma died, I was 15 years old when the clock came to our home, and moved into our entry way also.

So how did I get to have this beautiful clock in my home? Mom and Dad decided it was time to down size, so they sold their home after I was married, and moved into a very nice trailer park. There was no where to keep the clock in their trailer, so I am "borrowing" for the time being. It is still mom's clock, but I am just blessed to be able to keep it our home for her.
When I decided to write about this, I did a little research on the Internet to see if I could find out when the clock was made. In the clock there is this piece of paper describing the clock. It says it was manufactured by Colonial Manufacturing Company in Zeeland Michigan. I could find very little about this company. But the information that I gathered was that they were a very fine clock cabinet maker, and these clocks are considered collectible antiques.

Some of the information said that the company was started around the 20's, and made a lot of clocks during the world wars. It is possible that this clock was made in the 30's or 40's. My mother doesn't know if my Grandfather bought it new or not. She just remembers it always being there.

In my Internet search I found a clock cabinet that looks alot like the one in my house. Here is a picture and a description of that clock. The only difference is that the chimes look much larger than the ones in my mom's clock.

Item ID: 1489 - Ca. 1920, Colonial Mfg. Co., No. 1386, 5 Tube Grandfather Clock. The 92" tall case is solid mahogany with full reeded columns and redwood burl overlay on the base. The original finish glistens. The 12" round dial has a silvered chapter ring with raised brass numerals. The dial center is pierced and beautifully engraved. There are levers on the dial to silence the chimes and the strike. The fine quality, Winterhalder & Hoffmeier movement plays Westminster chimes on 4 tubular bells and strikes the hour on the 5th bell. The clock is in good running order and ready to set up and enjoy. 1489

So there you have it for my show and tell today. Thanks for reading! :) To read about more great show and tell items just click on the Show and Tell button in the beginning of my entry. Have a good day!

Custom Boutiqe Clothing! Size 4 One of A Kind

2007-10-31T20:00:00.000-05:00

Note: This is a Sticky Post, which will stay here until the contest is over. Please scroll down a little to read any newer posts that I might be posting until the contest is over. Thanks! Also to check out other great give aways please click on the Fall, Y'all button, or click here. Shannon, at Rocks in my Dryer is hosting this great giveaway!

Ok, I had to join in this great give away. I have seen it on other blogs, and was wondering what it was all about. Then I went to the link and found out that people are giving away some really nice stuff!

So I decided to jump in a join everyone giving away all these wonderful goodies.

So what am I giving away? Well, I sew, so I decided to give away an outfit that I made to sell on ebay, but never got around to putting it up there.

This outfit is made in size four. It fits my petite five year old. It is a five piece set, is carefully handcrafted.

Please forgive my Sweetie for the funny poses; she was complaining about the sun shining in her eyes. LOL

In the first picture is Sweetie Pictured with a pheasant dress with contrasting fabrics. There is a coordinating detachable sash that is tied with green satin ribbon in the back.

Sweetie is wearing a pair of jeans with hart pockets on the front. The bottoms are ruffled with both fabrics in the pheasant dress.

Take the Jeans off, and you have a sweet dress. This set also comes with a matching ribbon T-shirt for playing.

To top of all the goodies I made a bow using the ribbons in the ribbon T-shirt. This was one of my first attempts making bows, so it isn't that professional, but I still think it is pretty cute!

This is sewn in a smoke free home. This outfit was only worn once for professional pictures I had done last year for fall. It is one of a kind. That means there is not another like it. It is size 4. The seams are professionally surged too.

To win this item, just post a comment! Then on Sunday night I will draw a name randomly, to see who wins. This contest is open to only those who live in the USA. I really can't afford to ship internationally. Also, please be sure to leave me a way to contact you so if you win I can let you know! Thanks. Have Fun! :)

For more great giveaways, click on the Fall Ya'll Button.

Wordless Wednesday~Daddy's Little Man

2007-10-31T08:34:00.000-05:00

For more Wordless Wednesday Photos please visit here.

Rowing~The Storm in the Night

2007-10-29T14:50:00.000-05:00

Rowing the Storm in the Night, was a bit more difficult than The Story about Ping. The language of the book, was a bit more advanced than the girls were used to. However, after two weeks of reading the book every school day, the girls really began to love the story.

In the beginning it was very hard to keep their attention; on the dialog especially. Towards the end Sweetie almost had the story memorized. I am a bit pleased with this. Now we will be able to read more advanced books without her attention falling short of the story.

This book was jam packed full of Science and English. Here are a few of the areas we explored with Storm in the night.

1. Clouds. How they are made, and different types of clouds
2. Rain. How it rains
3. Electricity
4. Family relationships
5. Fear
6. The Five Senses
7. Facial Expressions
8. A little bit about America
9. Similes
10. Onomatopoeia
11. Sources of light
12. Vocabulary

The Batteries in the camera were low during this book, so I didn't get as many pictures as I did with The Story About Ping. When I make a post of the Learning Folders of The Storm In the Night, I will take some detailed pictures of that, and then you will have a chance to see more of the girls work.

In Case you are wondering what an Onomatopoeia is, it is a sound that an object makes. For instance a Clock says, "Tick tock, tick tock" a car says, "Vroom Vroom!". Those are examples of an Onomatopoeia. Pretty Interesting Huh? :)

One of the girls first projects was exploring family relationships. The Storm In the Night's main characters are a little boy Thomas and his Grandfather. Thomas admires and respects his Grandfather very much. So I had the girls write a letter to their Grandma & Grandpa and their Nana & Papa. Then they made them a magnet for them. We haven't sent them yet, (Sorry grandparents!) because I just haven't gotten a round to it yet. Dumb excuse I know. :-

The finished Product

For Art, the girls cut out Clouds and colored them. They made a thunderstorm scene with the clouds. You will be able to see this in their learning folders.
This is Bean intently watching our own rain maker. We put boiling water in the bottom of a jar, closed the jar, and put ice on top of the lid. This showed how the sun heats up the water, causes it to evaporate, where it comes into the cold air, and then rains.

We also did a little experiment with why it thunders. I tried explaining to the girls why there is sometimes lightning in a rain storm. It was a little above their heads, as I am sure alot of this stuff is. But it is still fun, and they are enjoying this.

Anyway, I lit a candle, and I told the girls to pretend that flame was like lighting. Lightning is very hot, just like that fire. I then place a balloon on top of the flame, and it popped. I was hoping to show the girls that the heat of the lightning caused the air around it to *pop*. Well, it didn't quite work that way. Sweetie started to cry because I popped her *favorite* balloon! :)

We also did an experiment to introduce the five senses to the girls. I got a pile of colorful toys, and placed them on the floor. I told the girls not to touch them. I then asked them to describe the toys to me.

For smell, I blind folded them, and had them smell vinegar, lemon juice, perfume, and eucalyptus oil.

For touch they felt a nail file, A nail smoother, a hard ball, and a soft two headed cow.

For taste they tasted, pretzels, chips, taffy, honey, and lemon juice. The picture above is them tasting some things. They had to tell me if it was salty, sweet, or sour.

Last but not least for hearing, they listened to beans, rice, pellets, and oat meal in containers by shaking it. They had to tell me if it was loud or soft.

Later on Daddy did an experiment with them using pop corn. They had to listen to it, smell it, feel it, see it, and taste it.

This is Sweetie feeling the two headed cow! :)

There were some interesting things that Bean said that I want to share with you. When we were studying electricity, I showed them our power lines, took them to our meter box, showed that it connected to our breaker box. Showed them that there were wires in the breaker box, that connected to the lights and outlets.

For one of our projects I asked the girls to name some things that give light. Bean says, "Electricity!" I said, "Yes it does!" I then asked, "What about a light bulb?" Bean matter of factly shakes her head and says, "Nope, the electricity makes the light bulb work."

So I guess, not *too* much of this stuff is way over their heads. They do get alot of what is going on.

This week we are Rowing The Glorious Flight. Have a good afternoon!

Kim Anderson~ Peekaboo I Love You!

2007-10-26T08:19:00.000-05:00

Today I would like to show you what my husband gave me for my birthday during our courtship. It is a Kim Anderson figure that says on the bottom, "Peekaboo I Love You!" Sorry for the picture being so blurry. I need new batteries in the camera, and so I get what I can before my camera shuts down.

There is a little story to this figure that means more to me, than probably my sweet husband remembers, LOL!

Hubby and I met in college. During my first semester, he made hints that he was "interested" in my "friendship" but took it really slow. Many people teased me about him being my boyfriend, but we were not really. Finally he asked me to go the Christmas banquet.

During Christmas break, my "friend" came and visited my parents and asked my father for permission to court me with the intention of marriage. There was a long talk with my future husband, and my parents gave him their approval of such a relationship.

The second semester was spent getting to know each other on a deeper level. What our goals in life were, what we valued the most etc. The relationship was moving along pretty fast.

By Summer time, my future husband started hinting about marriage. What I thought about that, and so on. The thing was, he never declared his love to me. He just told me that he liked me "a lot".

Well, that wasn't enough commitment in my mind for him to be talking about marriage! I went to visit his family to meet them for the first time. Many of his Aunts were asking what our intentions were, and I had no clue what to tell them. I was very aloof, and I am sure many of them thought I was snobby. But I really didn't know what to tell them!

It became a huge delima to me. Here he was talking about marriage, but I wasn't sure if he even loved me. Someone finally told him, what turmoil I was in (ha!) and he told me that he loved me when I went back to my home state.

Dummy me, I later found out I ruined everything for him. He was going to tell me he loved me when he proposed. Because he really hadn't proposed; he just was talking about the idea of marriage with me. But in a girls mind, when I guy does that, she needs to know that he really is meaning what he is talking about! LOL!

Anyway, a wise older man told him how important for a girl to know these sort of things, when he begins to talk about something as serious as marriage.

So off I went to home 1000 miles home, with my head in the clouds! Two months later I received a package from him. It was for my birthday. Inside the box were a number of items, but this was the main one. And it was the Kim Anderson figure that said, "Peekaboo, I Love You!"

Oh, how my heart did a million flutters when I saw it. To this day it is very special to me.
By the way, he proposed to me five months later. :) He worked hard all summer to save up for my beautiful diamond. (Of course I didn't know that until later on) I also picked out my wedding gown before he proposed! :) I guess I was pretty confident that he loved me. :)

For more Show and Tell stories click on the show and tell button at the beginning of my post. Thanks for reading!

Wordless Wednesday~ Team Work

2007-10-24T07:58:00.001-05:00

For more great pictures of other Wordless Wednesdays please vist here.

Ping Learning Folders

2007-10-20T13:35:00.000-05:00

In order for the girls to retain all the information that they learned about Ping, we made up special folders called Learning folders. Sometimes called lap books. Sweetie and Bean both made one, and I wanted to share with you. This may be a long post, but I know family like grandma's (wink, wink) will like to read about it. The is the front of Sweeties Folder. She colored the duck, and it was her idea to add the grass and the water and sun in the back ground.

Open up the folder and this is what you see next. In the middle is a duckie craft that both girls did. It a bunch of different shapes, and they had to color and cut the shapes out. Then they glued it properly onto a piece of construction paper.

On the left flap is an envelope that says, "How Many Are In Pings Family?" Sweetie had to remember the answer which was 68. Inside the envelope are 68 tiny ducks in a plastic baggie.

On the right flap is the little mini book that they had to color scenes from the The Story About Ping and put them in order.

Underneath the book is a little pocket that says "Things I Remembered about Ping" Then there is a little book in that pocket which Sweetie in her own words wrote what she remembered.

Here is what she remembered:

Ping crossed the bridge on the wise eyed boat

Ping was very careful not to be the last to cross the bridge

If He was last he would get a spank on his back

He hid from the boat

He couldn't find the wise eyed boat anywhere

He got a spank on his back

He found his family

He saw birds with rings around their necks

Ping ate little fish and snails

The Boy had a rice cake in his hand

Ping lived on the Yangtze River in China

There was a barrel on the boys back

The Yangtze river was yellow

Open up the folder even more. Sweetie colored a map and flag of China. Underneath the map is a booklet that says, "Facts About China"

This is Sweeties Remembrance of what we learned about China:

It has a Big City with a Restaurant

They have a flag

Chinese people like to eat rice

In the country, Chinese people don't have pottys

They have big dragon drawings

They ride bicycles to work

Chinese people like to eat ducks

They have a river called the Yangtze River

In the middle is a Sink Float Chart for when we learned about buoyancy. Above the chart is a picture of a little Chinese girl. Next to her, is a picture of the ring necked bird from the story about Ping.

On the right side is a booklet that says, "Facts About Ducks"

Sweeties remembrance of Ducks:

They float on water

Ducks can go Quack Quack Quack

They lay eggs

Ducks can eat little fish

They can drink water.

Fold the right flap over, and there is a folded piece of paper that says Facts About Ships.

Sweeties Remembrance Of Ships:

1. Why do Boats Float? Because they have air in them

2. What is the person in charge of the ship called? The Captain

3. What do Boat's Carry? People, Cruise ships, Cars, Wood, Food, Animals

4. There are many different kinds of boats. What are some of them called? Submarines, Sailboats, Moter Boat, Rowboat, Warships.

Fold the right flap over again, and there is a little yellow book that says, "Fun Things We Did". This hold pictures of some of the extra special things we did which were:

1. Feed live Ducks

2. Our Chinese Meal

3. The Girls Origami boats

4. Floating the Origami boats

Sweetie told me in her own words about the pictures.

For the ducks: We were feeding the ducks bread. Sarah our friend came too. The Ducks knew we had bread and came right up to us. One Duck caught bread. It was rainy that Day. We had a fun time!

For the Chinese meal:

The Chinese meal was very good. We had broccoli, rice, chicken and egg rolls. We ate on the coffee table. We made Chinese Lanterns, and put a candle of fire in them to make them glow. We ate with chop sticks!

For the Origami boats:

We colored the paper. Mine was purple. Mommy made my paper into a boat. Mommy folded the paper, which is called origami.

For Floating the boats:

We did the boats, we even put them in water, and Tiny Boy put a cup in the water and we took it out. The boats floated!

Fold the right flap again, and it showed the cover of the folder

This is the front of Bean's Folder. Hers is very much like Sweeties but a bit different. I will post the pictures that show the differences, but I won't post the ones that are the same as Sweeties.

Bean's Duckie Craft. I had to cut for her, since her moter skills aren't developed enough to cut they way this craft needed to be cut.

Bean's coloring of the map of China.

Now I will write her answers to the little booklets that are in the folder. First we shall start with "Facts About Ducks"

Bean's Remembrance:

They Swim

They waddle

They Fly

They say, "Quack Quack"

They have web feet

They have a beak

What Bean Remembered About Ping:

The Yangtze River

When the master called the ducks he said, "La, La, La, La, Li"

Ping liked to eat fish and snails

Ping eats the rice cake

Ping tried to be first on the boat so he wouldn't get spanked

Ping was snatched up, and the man wanted to eat him

The Boy put ping back in the river

The Boy was wearing a barrel on his back

I did not like the wise eyed boat

Ping hid so he wouldn't get spanked

In the end Ping got spanked!

Bean's facts about China:

Chinese people eat noodles

They eat vegetables

They eat chicken

They go to school

In the country they have no potty

It has the Yangtze River, which has yellow water

They Drink Tea

They use chopsticks

Bean's Facts About Ships:

The man who drives the boat is called what? A Captain of The Master of the Boat (she remembered this from The Story About Ping)

Why does the boat float? Because it is full of air

What Kind of boats are there? Submarines, Rowboat, Sail boat, Chinese Junk, Moter boat

Bean's own words about the pictures we took:

The Ducks: We feed the ducks. We fed them bread and cheerios to them. They came to us, I liked the ducks; They were saying "quack, quack, quack." My friend Sarah fed them bread too.

The Chinese Meal: I like to eat Chinese. But I want to eat a duck. We made Chinese lanterns and put fire under it. We ate rice, chicken and broccoli, and egg rolls. We sat at the coffee table, and we get pillows to sit on. And we sit up. I ate with chop sticks.

The Origami Boats: I colored a square piece of paper. I drew a sun, water, and sky and a boat. Three boats. Mommy folded into a boat. The Chinese call it Origami

Floating the boats: We floated our origami boats. I liked it, because mommy taught us to float the boats.

So there you have it. Their first learning folders. I plan on doing something like this with each Five In A Row Book that we complete.

Fall Decorations

2007-10-19T14:39:00.000-05:00

Since everyone seems to be showing their fall decorations, I decided to show mine as well.
To begin with I would like to show the bulletin board that I decorated for the children for school. It has a poem on it by Robert Lewis Stevenson about Autumn. This is the front of my house which has a tin pumpkin on the front door that says, "Give Thanks". On the floor next to the door are some yellow mums planted in pots that the girls painted. There is a little scarecrow planter stuck in the mums. In front of the mums is a Terra cotta bowel with a little pumpkin and squash in it.

A close up of the door A close up of the mums, pumpkins and scarecrow
On my Piano I have some resin pumpkins that say have a thanksgiving Bible verse on it, and a phrase to the song, "Praise God from whom all blessings flow". There are also real dried leaves spread across the top of the piano.
A close up of my resin pumpkins, and real dried leaves.

My coffee table with a tiny pumpkin, and squash in a crystal bowel. A dark resin sign that says, "Be Thankful." I then spread fake leaves all across the table. I spread the leaves across my end tables as well.

Some leaves on a shelf.
My kitchen table, with a plastic table cloth (Hey I have tiny children in the house!:) with a leaf print on it. A cornucopia filled with pumpkins squash, fake grapes and a fake apple. Pumpkin colored candles in crystal candle holders. Then to finish it off, laminated place mates with turkeys on them.

So there you have it. My fall decorations. Just a few simple things, but hopefully it puts people in the mood for fall weather. :) Thanks for stopping by and looking.

For more show and Tell items please click on the Show and Tell button on top of my post.

Out of the Mouth's of Babes

2007-10-18T22:06:00.001-05:00

The kids have been saying such funny and profound things lately, that I wanted to share it with you.

First off, we will start with Sweetie.

Sweetie: Mommy, I wish I could fly.

Mommy: Well, if you are saved, one day when you die you will fly up to heaven.

Sweetie: You mean I will fly when I am dead?

Mommy: No, your skin will die, but you will still live, and you will fly and go to heaven if you are saved.

Sweetie seems satisfied and starts to walk away, then she suddenly turns around and says,

Sweetie: Oh, you mean my body won't escape, but my mind will?

Mommy: Yea something like that! :)

Then Bean's profoundness came though. We were learning about electricity in The Storm in the Night. I explained a little bit of the process of how it works. Then I took the girls outside, showed them the power lines, how they connected to our house. I pointed out the meter box, and took inside our garage to show them the breaker box. I explained that there were wires in the walls that connected to the outlets. So when we plug things in, electricity makes our things work.

Later on, I was asking Bean and Sweetie what some sources of light were. Bean (who is 3 years old) says electricity. I said, "That is right, but what about a light bulb, does that make light?" Bean replies matter of factly "no" Electricity makes the light bulb light up!

Then, tonight we were riding in the car, when Bean says, "Mommy, I am afraid of the dark." I tried to comfort her by saying she has a night light in her room. Sweetie pipes up, in a sweet, and understanding voice and says, "You know what Bean? I am kind of afraid of the dark also. But do you know what I do? I just sit there and think that the dark really isn't *that* scary and it helps. You should try that next time."

These kids are getting to be such a hoot and a lot of fun to listen to their dialog!

Wordless Wednesday~ Future Ambitions?

2007-10-17T07:23:00.000-05:00

For more Wordless Wednesday pictures click here.

Rowing The Story About Ping

2007-10-15T13:25:00.001-05:00

I had a lot of reservations about beginning homeschooling. But I must say that Five In A Row has made it a sheer pleasure! ;)
We began our homeschooling adventure by reading The Story about Ping.
With Five In A Row, you take a story book, and take elements out of the story that are related to History, Geography , Math, Science, Art, Music, etc, and teach them to your child. Our first lesson was about Buoyancy, in which the girls gathered all sorts of items to see if they would float or sink. In The Story about Ping, there is a little boy that uses a barrel on his back to help him float in the water. I explained why he floated with the barrel, and based on that information, the girls had to guess which of these items would sink or float.
Sweetie was pretty close on most things, but there were a few things that stumped her! ;)

For Math, Ping has a very large family. I took our Math-U-See blocks, and we counted his mother, father, seven brothers, three sisters, so many aunts, so many uncles, and so many cousins. In all Ping had 68 relatives, including him. I then printed out 68 ducks and had the girls color them all. This was a bit tough on Sweetie, as she must learn about perseverance. Bean, had no problem with this at all. She could color for hours on end! :)
For Sweetie we ended up leaving some of the ducks white, as some of ping's grown up relatives were white. :)

We then cut out the ducks and pasted them on a folder to give the girls a visual of how many ducks there were in Ping's family.

The girls showing all of their hard work!

I read them a book about real ducks, and for a field trip, we visited a near by park that has a duck pond to feed them bread. The ducks were so hilarious! We were the only ones at the park that time. They were all laying down on the ground, just enjoying the day. As soon as I parked the car, all of them got up, and started towards us. Apparently they enjoy lots of company.

I gave Tiny Boy a bucket with the bread already torn up, but he ate it himself. :) Ping lives in China, so we learned a few things about China. I read a child's book about the country of China to them. One thing that was fascinating to them, was that Chinese people who live in the country do not have inside bathrooms. :)

Sweetie was pretty impressed that alot of Chinese business people ride bicycles to work instead of drive in cars.

For an added effect, I made a Chinese meal for them. Which was Rice A Roni fried rice ;), Chicken and broccoli sir fry, and frozen egg rolls.
I found cheater chop sticks at Target, which was great. The girls thought that this was the best part of the meal. Bean took forever to finish her supper; it was great fun watching them use the things.

I also set up the coffee table in Japanese style and we sat on pillows. The girls made Chinese lanterns and I put tea lights underneath them, to give it an added effect and set the mood.

We had lots of fun with this one. :)

Through the Five In A Row Website, I found a great resource for extra Five In A Row "stuff". The girls are coloring scenes from The Story about Ping, then they have to cut them out, and put them in order. After they did that, I stapled it into a little book, which went into their learning folders. I am going to make a post about that later on too. The resource is http://www.homeschoolshare.com/
Ping lives on a "Wise Eyed Boat, on the Yangtze River", and so we learned a little bit about boats and ships. I happened to have a kids video on ships that I had them watch.
I also checked a few books about ships out at the library. As a fun project, and to incorporate China into ships, we made Origami boats. The girls colored the paper, but mommy had to do the folding. I found instructions on how to do this on youtube. Here, you can watch how to make one yourself:

We then tested our Origami boats to see if they would float. They did! :)

Here are all three of them watching the boats in the bath tube. Tiny Boy was having a great time as you can see!

The girls also colored maps of China, and made a duckie craft. The Duckie craft involved them coloring different shapes, cutting them out and then pasting them onto another piece of paper. Unfortunately, I forgot to take pictures of those. However, when I post about their lap books, I will show tons of pictures, and you will be able to see their duckie craft, and map of China. They also colored a Duck picture that is used as the cover of their lap book.

All in all The Story about Ping was sooo much fun! This week we are Rowing The Storm In the Night. Of course I will blog about that one too! :)

Sewing Machine

2007-10-12T08:37:00.000-05:00

For today's show and tell, I would like to show my sewing machine. There is such a sweet story behind it. :)

My mother had me take sewing lessons when I was in school, and I loved to sew. After my mom saw that this was something that I would probably do the rest of my life she bought me my first sewing machine, which was a Brother.

At 12 years old this was probably a wise purchase to see how I would treat the machine and all. I went to town with that puppy, and made all sorts of little things with it. Some clothing too.

After about two years, it broke, and at that time Wal-mart took back anything, and would replace it for a new one. So we did. Then a couple of years later the same thing happened, and we got it replaced again.

I didn't sew as much after that, because I was then in college, and didn't have the time. So I brought my latest brother sewing machine into my marriage with me. I still didn't sew much.

Then I had my little girl, and our church at that time, was having Cowboy Sunday, and I wanted to make her something. When I brought out my sewing machine, I noticed that it broke once again. :( Thankfully my Grandma let me borrow hers to finish my daughters outfit.

A couple of months later my husband mentioned that he had stopped by a sewing machine store that said they were going out of business, and that they had marked down their sewing machines really low. In a sort of joking manner, I started to sing, "All I want for Christmas is a sewing machine." We were on a very tight budget at that time, and I knew that it was next to impossible to buy one.

My husband stopped by the store, which happened to be a Husqvarna Viking dealership. They demonstrated the machine to my husband, and he was hooked. But they had sold out the machine that he wanted to buy me, but suggested where to go, to get another one.

He was doing this all behind my back. One day he came home with all these brochures of this machine, and really excited about it. Once he told me the prices of these machines, I knew in my mind that this would be something that I could never get.

One day he asked me to go to a dealership to just test drive one. So I did. I was totally clueless as to what was going on; I don't really know what I was thinking. I tested the Viking's lowest end model which was about $400 and it was such a dream to sew on. I told my husband that if he could afford the lowest end model it was 100x's better than my brother *ever* was.

Then he wanted me to test drive some of the higher models which were all in priced $1,000 and beyond. I knew that we could NEVER get a machine that much money. But sewing on it was so nice. I was shown all the features, which were all like a dream.

The machines NEVER had to be oiled, they were jam proof, they had perfectly balanced button holes, just amazing features.

So we left the store, me hoping secretly that my husband would get the lower end model for me for Christmas.

One night I was feeling especially discouraged with alot of things, and venting to my husband about it. And crying about the problem, which was basically discontentment with some of our circumstances.

The next morning I slept in, and when I walked into the kitchen there was a Husqvarna sewing machine box on the table, with a card, and some thread and material for me to "play around with it." When I opened it, and saw what model it was, I was absolutely shocked! I began to cry. I cried in repentance too, for being such a dummy for being so discontented with some of our circumstances.

Later on I found out that my husband used his overtime money to pay for the machine. He gave it to me for Christmas, but before Christmas because he thought that I could use it to make things for people for Christmas on. And boy did I!

So this show and tell is to brag on my sweet hubby. It never occurred to me that he would buy me this for me. And he likes it just as much as. He doesn't sew on it. But when I sew on it, he comes over and watches me sew, amazed at the beauty of the machinery. :)

For more show and tell, click on the show and tell box above.

Wordless Wednesday~ Sunflower Field in Michigan

2007-10-10T11:23:00.000-05:00

For More Wordless Wednesday's Cilck Here.

Works For Me Wednesday~Motivated Moms

2007-10-10T09:24:00.000-05:00

I have always been challenged with housekeeping. It isn't that I "can't" clean, but it can get just so overwhelming with three preschool children running around the house. I have tried a lot of things; schedules, Flylady, chore systems, etc. While these things have helped me know the basics of running a household, it wasn't until I found Motivated Moms, that things truly began to look up for me, and I felt in control of things.

What is Motivated Moms? Well, it is a housekeeping list *already* planned out *for* you, for the whole year! I don't have to think. :) I just do what the list says. If I do it, then my house stays clean. And the nice thing about it is, the list isn't overwhelming. It gives you your regular chores that must be done everyday, and then gives you little jobs for that day of the week.

For instance, your chores may be just to clean out one shelf in the refrigerator, clean the bathroom mirrors, and sweep the porch. Those are your only chores on top of your have to be done chores, like washing clothes, dishes, etc.

It comes with a little boxes to check, so you actually feel like you are accomplishing something during your day. And at the end of the day, your house looks reasonably great; that is if you stick to the list.

Another nice feature is that it will include things in there that, people like me would *never* think about cleaning. Like cleaning out the air vents, checking light bulbs, cleaning out behind the refrigerator, cleaning inside of the oven. All of this is done in small little steps, so you don't feel totally overwhelmed with housekeeping.

Motivated Moms is instant gratification, because as soon as you buy it, it downloadable with a pdf. file. The cost is reasonable. Around $7 or $8 I believe. Just think, your house work all planned out for you. All you have to do, is check off those boxes, and you have accomplished something. :)

So Motivated moms works for me!

Click on the Works For Me Wednesday labels for more ideas on things that work for others, and then. Click on the Motivated Mom's link to see a sample, and to order one for your self. :)

First Day of Kindergarten :)

2007-10-06T10:35:00.000-05:00

On Monday, October 1st, we began our first day of "kindergarten". We started the day with a nice healthy breakfast of oatmeal. With maple syrup, cinnamon, vanilla, and milk mixed in. Of course. ;)

I surprised the girls by decorating our bulletin board for school. When I told Sweetie that today was her first day of Kindergarten, she thought that she was actually going to be going to a school building. So, I said, "No we will be doing Kindergarten here at home." She then said, "You mean pretend to play school?" I said, "No we will be doing real school only at home." She still sort of had a confused look on her face, but we proceeded with the day. Here is the Bulletin board that I decorated for them. The blurry parts are their real names, so let's just say that they say, Sweetie, Bean, and Tiny Boy. :)

After our morning chores, I got the girls dressed in their new "school" outfits, that Sweetie helped me pick out. Bean, is sort of "tagging" along in school with us, so we call it preschool for her sake; although I am not being very pushy about it. If she wants to participate in our "school" then she is more than welcome to. If she wants to go off and play, then I will let her do that too.
So here is Sweetie in her new School outfit.

Here is Bean in her new School outfit.

The girls together in their new outfits.

Of course Tiny Boy had to get in on the action. :)
For our Bible Curriculum I am going to be using The Lamb, which I wrote about before here.
I plan on reading a chapter a day, and reading this book over and over during the whole school year. There are questions at the end of each chapter, so this will make it easy on me to see if Sweetie is grasping the story of The Lamb.

For Phonics we will be using, Teaching your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons.

For our Math Curriculum, Math-U-See was our choice.

Then for all the "extras" apart from the Three R's, we will be using Five In A Row.

To start off Five In A Row, I choose The Story About Ping, which has been a blast to teach so far! I will blog about that at later time too. :)

Our first Lesson with Ping, was Science, and the girls learned about Buoyancy. I asked them to collect all sort of items to see if they would sink or float in a dish pan. It was hilarious some of the things that they chose, which you can see from the picture below.

To Celebrate their first day of School, we made a special cake out of Brownies in the Shape of a Pencil. I got this idea from Family Fun Magazine.

Our Dinner Menu was special too. It was made of Sweetie's favorite foods. Ritzy Chicken and Broccoli. Yum!

A Happy Ending to a fun first Day of School! :)

School Begins!

2007-10-01T07:35:00.001-05:00

Today we will begin our first "official" day of homeschooling. I know that I am beginning a bit late, but here in our state, the law is that the cut off date for the child to enter Kindergarten is age six. So in reality, we are not homeschooling "yet". This is just a "trial" year to see how it goes. Once Sweetie is six, I will evaluate where she needs to be, and enter her into Kindergarten or 1st grade depending on how this year went.

Sweetie is five years old, and she turned five in June. I am the type that thinks it is better to make school fun, and relaxing. More like play. Especially at this age. I don't want to be too pushy, even though I know she is very smart. So we are starting today. :)

I have a really special day planned out, and I shall be blogging about it when we have completed our first day of homeschooling. So stay tuned!

Moses Basket

2007-09-28T17:56:00.000-05:00

When Daddy and I had Sweetie, we were not too sure what our housing options were going to be at the time being. It is waaay too long of a story to get into.

Instead of choosing the regular bassinet, we choose to use a Moses Basket. It was one the best baby items that we purchased, because when Sweetie was born we took alot of trips, and it was so easy to keep it in the back of the car. When we made visits with people we always had a place for sweetie to sleep. When I moved from room to room, I always had a place to keep sweetie.

So when my sister-in-law was expecting their first baby, I thought that she may also enjoy having a Moses basket to carry her little guy in. But this time I decided it would be fun to make the lining to match her nursery decor.

I bought the basket at Wal-Mart.com, then used the lining that came with that basket to copy and make the lining for this basket. I think it turned out pretty cute, and it was lots of fun to make. :)

Click on the Show and Tell link above to read others neat Show and Tell stories.

Frugal Fridays~ Free Stuff!

2007-09-14T10:55:00.000-05:00

A friend of mine over at Riverbend Ramblings, let me know about a new emagazine called Seasonal Delights. It is absolutely free, all you have to do is sign up for it! Sign up for it here. The pictures in this magazine are absolutely amazing.

Another Freebie is Free Coloring pages from Dover Publications. Every week they will send you samples of their coloring books, and so far they have been superb! You can sign up here.

For more Frugal Friday ideas click on the frugal Friday picture above.

Need A Laugh?

2007-09-13T17:13:00.000-05:00

Wordless Wednesday~ My 2nd Pedicure in my life.

2007-09-05T07:52:00.000-05:00

For More Wordless Wednesday picutres vist here.

A Curb Side Pickup

2007-08-31T09:38:00.001-05:00

This exersaucer was found in someones trash pile while I was out walking with my children. Not only was this baby in the pile, but a perfectly good baby swing, and walker were there too.

I didn't have room for the swing or the walker so I just snatched this up; but now that I think about it, I should of picked them up anyway and tried to sell them. Unfortunately I wasn't thinking about that.

Aside from a little tare in the leg that can be easily fixed, there was NOTHING wrong with it. I took the seat off of it, and washed it in hot water, and washed the the rest of it with bleach water. After drying in the sun for a couple of hours it was as good as new.

Tiny Boy is our youngest, and I kind of wanted one of these things since I had Bean, but could never justify the cost in buying one. I hardly go to yard sales, so this was an extremely pleasant surprise for me to find. The neat thing about it was, I found it just as Tiny Boy was starting to be able to use such a device. It was perfect timing!

I believe the Lord knew that I needed this, because I am a busy mommy now with three children, and it is nice to be able to sit him in there while I get some things done around the house. He loves it, and has a good time in it, and I know exactly where he is. :)

For more Frugal Friday ideas click on the Frugal Friday link above. :)

Wordless Wednesday- Who Needs Toys?

2007-08-29T08:46:00.001-05:00

For more Wordless Wednesday Pictures, please visit here

Comments enabled

2007-08-24T16:06:00.000-05:00

For some reason, my comments were turned off, not allowing anyone to post a comment. I am not sure why this happened, but it is now working again, so please comment away. :)

Happy Slip- Brown Beauty

2007-08-24T15:45:00.000-05:00

This girl is so hilarious, I just had to share. I was browsing Youtube one day, and came across this talented lady.

To give a bit of background to this, about her. This girl is a Filipino, who grew up in America. She imitates her family, and she is the main actress for all of her characters.

I am posting this particular video, because it reminds me so much of the Home party craze that hit my circle of friends one time, and she does a fantastic job of portraying how it is, and then throw in the Filipino culture in there and it makes it even more funnier.

The nice thing about these videos is that they are pretty clean. Even the Soap Operas!

After you watch this video go HERE, and watch the rest of her videos.

Wordless Wednesday~It Finally Happened.

2007-08-22T10:02:00.000-05:00

For More Wordless Wednesday Pictures, visit here.