Rachel's ...

I've got a new blog!

2006-01-25T20:55:00.000-05:00

I have moved my blog! Please come visit me at Rachel's Window
See you there!

Local news

2006-01-23T13:48:00.000-05:00

Have you Georgia bloggers seen this? I believe I am a little behind on this story, I do not watch much local news (I should obviously!). I plan to be listening to what happens with this poor family. Let's lift them up in prayer! Save Jackson Boortz!

Moving

2006-01-23T08:29:00.000-05:00

Just moving the blog. Not time to move the family to a new house yet! However, I have spotted two I really really like! The blog will be back up soon under a new name, working out the buggies! Check back soon for the new address.

My favorite Black Beans & Rice

2006-01-19T14:52:00.000-05:00

One thing I really like about me, is that I really like good food. I mean food that is good for me. I do admit to liking food that is not good for me as well, but I really love a bowl full of brown rice all by itself. Things like that. I love this recipe for Black Beans & Rice. Black beans are excellent and this combo of spices makes them really great! I make this almost every week and eat on it for lunch all week. I feed it to my kids several times for lunch and usually once for dinner. Hubby isn't quite as fond of this type of food as I, but he will eat it without complaints for one dinner. Now I do add a few not so good items to the finished product, but you do not have to. It's just the way I really enjoy this. Anyway, if you like black beans & rice, try this out! I have adapted this recipe to my liking and substituted brown rice for white because it is so healthy. Mix the whole thing together and most people will not even be able to tell that the rice is not white. White rice is devoid of much nutritional value, so sneak in the brown! The original recipe came out of the September 05 Southern Living and called for canned beans. I use dry because the aren't hard and they haven't been processed through canning. If you use canned, you will need 5 cans and save the juice from 2 cans.

Brown rice- I cook ahead of time because it takes so long to cook.
1 pound cooked black beans plus about 2 cups of juice from cooked beans. ( I cook them the day before in the crock pot- soak the night before and then drain and add to crock pot, cover with water and cook on high for about 4 hours. Make sure the beans are done! taste them and they will be very tender, almost falling apart. Save 2 cups of bean juice.)
1 onion chopped
1/2 green pepper, chopped
4-6 garlic cloves, minced (don't leave this out!)
2 tsp. olive oil
1 (14 0z) can chicken broth
1 (6 oz) can tomato paste
1 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
1 tsp. ground cumin
2 shakes red pepper
several grinds of black pepper
salt to taste
Toppings: Must have for me: Sour cream and grated cheese. I have added chopped tomatoes, shredded lettuce and salsa. I also like to crush up tortilla chips if I have them! Basically whatever you like will most likely work.

The original recipe calls for 2 Tbsp. seeded jalapenos- this sounds yummy, but my kids love this stuff and I am scared to add anymore heat.

Saute onion, green pepper and garlic in hot oil in pot (about 3-4 quart size) over medium- high heat for 5 minutes or until tender. Stir in the rest of the ingredients. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Stir occassionally. This will be fairly thick with a little soupy stuff. Add more stock if needed. Serve over rice, add toppings and mix it all together to distribute evenly. I like to taste it all in every bite! Boy, I hope this is as good as I have made it out to be! I love it, My 5, 4, & 2 year old love it too! Very healthy too!

Dates

2006-01-18T09:29:00.000-05:00

I have actually had 2 dates with my husband in the past 6 days. It is very hard for a family like ours with so many littles to get real dates (no baby). Saturday we went out for dinner. My sis-in-law has semi- long term guests at her house (their house burned down) and she looks for opportunities to get out of the house, so she and her family came over and stayed with my kids. Who would blame her, their are 10 kids 17 and under living at her house right now! So, we had a nice baby free dinner together. It is so nice to be able to really relax and know the kids are in great hands. We really enjoyed ourselves. Then Monday evening my parents came over and we quickly rushed out to dinner after they arrived. We got a quick bite and then returned a few items and did a little shopping for work clothes for Jim.
Do you remember after that first baby and reality set in? You can't just get up and go wherever you want to go, you can't stay out late anymore. I remember after our first when I realized this, but it was ok, because I did not want to be away from that little baby anyway.
Now we choose not to go out to eat with our kids. It's just too crazy right now, too expensive too!

What was I Thinking????

2006-01-12T21:19:00.000-05:00

Most of my friends know we will be moving hopefully in the near future. Well, I have been wanting to ride up to where we will be moving and try to get more of a feel for the area and narrow down the specific areas I will be home searching. I convinced Jim to take us yesterday. I think by the time we got home he was really about to loose it. I mean like he was on the brink of insanity! 4 hours total in the car was too much. Boo couldn't sleep because of his loud siblings, and the older two quickly got tired of sitting. Goo did take a short nap, praise God. Anyway, we were able to put a few houses to neighborhoods. I have been looking on realtor.com, but you can't see what a neighborhood or street looks like until you go and see. We decided when it is actually time to get serious about looking, Jim will go check them out and if it is a real possibility then I will go see. No more unnecessary trips with the whole family!

Jim is home again today for the holiday, but he is really ready to go back to work tomorrow. We spend a lot of time together as a family, but that extra day in a long weekend is almost too much for him! Poor guy. He in return is very complimentary to me about the job I have on a daily basis. He knows God did not make him to be a stay at home daddy.

Goo's Two!

2006-01-12T09:56:00.000-05:00

Here is the birthday boy holding up his fingers when you ask him how old he is! We have been dancing to my rendition of McCartney's "Birthday". The kids looked at me really strange when I belted that one out! Anyway, "Today it's your birthday (nu nu nu nu nu nu nu nu), it's my birthday too yea!"

The older kids have been giving me a hard time for not having a real party for Goo. They have asked why no one is coming over. We have plenty of time for that later. He doesn't quite get what is going on anyway! Yea, yea we did have real parties for the first two I know, but mommy doesn't have time to plan a party and they didn't know what was going on either! Those first kids just get that kind of stuff! Poor little Boo, by the time he turns two, he'll be lucky to get a candle to blow! Just joking, I always make a cake for my kiddos! And that is what I have to go do right now!

Work At Home

2006-01-09T15:37:00.000-05:00

I am a big fan of giving my children age appropriate jobs to help around the house. I am always reevaluating their current jobs to adjust if needed for their skill level. I hope my children are learning how to work and that work is part of being in our family. This was part of my motivation for putting them to work, but I honestly needed their assistance when I put our plans into action. I have 4 kids and my oldest is not 6 yet. My oldest two are 18 months apart and then their is a 28 month gap between numbers 2 & 3. Number 3 & 4 are again 18 months apart. So, I need all the help I can get. I thought about things they could do around the house that would really help me. Anybody want to share jobs your young children do? My older two make beds, empty hampers in laundry room, fold some laundry, put up all of their clothing, wipe down bathroom sinks, clean out the van, empty bathroom trash cans and empty dishes from dishwasher onto counter. They are of course responsible for their toys and picking up their rooms. It may sound like my kids are overworked, I don't think so though. It's amazing but they really don't complain much. When I introduce a new job they are actually excited. I think it makes them feel big and special to help mommy. I would love to hear about successful ideas you practice in your homes.

I'm almost back to me!

2006-01-04T15:34:00.000-05:00

I have finally found a little time for indulging in "Rachel things". It takes me at least 5 months to start feeling like me, emotionally & hormonally. I feel me coming back! So, I cleared off my scrapbook table which was covered with things from August to the present. I should say that I actually watched and looked away as Jim cleared off my table and surrounding floor space. He filled 3 trash bags with stuff that I "don't need". I am glad I let him do it. I don't miss any of it, so I did not need it! He is so awesome. How many husbands do this stuff? He wants me to be organized and have a place to enjoy my pictures. And, I completed a few pages, organized my pictures in iphoto and ordered some to work on. Feels good!

I have spent some time working on a plan to do some freezer cooking too. It sure would be nice to have some things ready in the freezer for tough days. Still got some planning before I cook.

We have had almost 2 straight weeks of great school time. It's tough to school with so many little people here. But, we are going to be ok.

Little Boo had a check up today. He is 5 months old and 18 pounds. I guess he really isn't that little. I know my body is feeling every one of those 18 pounds! I have an aching back, and side from toting him around.

Hopefully soon I will be doing some reading! I will let you know when that happens!
Until next time!

All cleaned up here!

2005-12-27T15:05:00.000-05:00

Goo really likes his Mr. Potato Head. He really likes the arms. He tries to put the three sets of arms in every hole. Mr. Potato is quite humerous as you can see!

Christmas was very nice here. Jim was off for four days and the kids and I enjoyed every minute. He even did lots of extra things around the house to make sure I started the week with things clean and put up. Great guy I have! All of the Christmas decorations are gone too. We put it all up the Sunday after Thanksgiving, so we are ready for it to come down pretty quick after Christmas!

Chickens, cookies and mega- churches

2005-12-22T15:32:00.000-05:00

For my friends out there who care, my brain has not been overloaded today. Only once in the wee hours this morning when Boo woke up and we were downstairs on the couch, did I have any runaway brain activity. I asked my brain to shut up and go back to sleep and it did very soon. For some reason I am pondering all this attention that media and some bloggers are giving to the mega-churches. I read some info yesterday on a blog that primarily focuses on mega-churches and their leaders. Most of the opinions are negative. I understand some of their opinions, but I have a problem when everything is negative and sounds judgemental. I know these leaders are in the public eye and open to scrutiny, but as fellow believers we need to be careful. Other people (not Christians) read this stuff. My husband grew up Mormon, and the LDS (Latter Day saints) love the fact that you can attend any Lds church in the whole world and hear the same teachings and ideas in every one. They believe this gives them some further validity to their "True Church" idea. Other churches and denominations differ on various beliefs anyway, I think we ought to be careful of vocally criticizing well known leaders. Most likely more people are being reached for Christ than those being led astray. I have some doubts and issues about a few of these leaders' sincerity and I admit to not being well informed of some of the mega-church leaders and teachings. To me, the term, or at least the context in which I have seen it, mega-church is negative. I am looking at this from a different perspective (with mormon beliefs in mind) than many. I will become more informed about some of the leaders and things they are doing/not doing which are causing concern for some. I just hate to see different styles of worship and teaching cause such a stir. Ok, I will go ahead and land this plane. Enough of that for now.

Aunt Audra out in Austin sent the kids these cookies. They enjoyed coloring and eating them very much.

Loo told me today that she knew that chicken (that you eat) comes from real chickens. She believes us now. For awhile, my kids did not get that meat comes from a once alive real animal. She now gets it. She knows and is ok with eating an animal. I personally was ok to not broach this subject for awhile or until they asked questions, but Jim for some reason brought the subject up at dinner. I think it was for pure shock value or comic entertainment.

Brain Overload

2005-12-20T14:06:00.000-05:00

Boy, my brain is on overload today. I have had to tell it to be quiet several times today. I am not usually distracted by my mind too bad. I can usually focus. The past few months I have had to ignore deep thoughts and ponderings because I have not had the time or mental strength to persue them. Anyway, I keep reminding myself that I am in a season of motherhood that does not provide much time for such things. Any mothers of multiple children under 6 out there? Especially homeschoolers, how do you make it every day? Things were really jiving around here about a year ago, well even up until 5 months ago before Boo joined our family. So, I know everything will be like that again in the near future. I just get frustrated at times. Woo is only kindergarten age and I am not very concerned about strict schooling, I just pray we get all going good by next year. Of course we hope to move in the near future too and that will throw things off a bit. Oh well, we will be ok, I know. I pray for patience and wisdom and just hope my brain doesn't explode!

Traditions

2005-12-18T18:31:00.000-05:00

I read another great book to the kids tonight. It is Marta and the Manger Straw by Virginia Kroll. I think I will try to find some straw this week and incorporate it into Christmas Eve. The kids enjoyed it, and it was a good follow up to our first night of What God Wants for Christmas. The kids really got into this. They are already guessing what is in tomorrows box.

Ramblings...

2005-12-16T13:03:00.000-05:00

Never ever own a home with carpet in the room where you eat! I know I should not own one, but I do. We were so ready to move that I feel we did not exhaust all of the homes available. This was three years ago. We knew we would not stay here long term so changing the flooring really wasn't an option for us. But, I still hate it. One meal and the carpet is filthy. I vacuum everyday and steam clean every so often. It just seems gross even when it's clean. Long story short, when we move soon I will only accept another type of flooring. I can't wait to find that new house, but I am waiting until we have a good bite on this one to start really looking. Anybody house hunting?

Good book alert: Josie's Gift is really good. The kids seemed to enjoy it. The best part of the book are the illustrations. Beautiful. I try to find good Christmas themed books to read during December. I have a few and a few on my wish list. This one is a keeper.

More ramblings later...

Date with Dad

2005-12-14T12:43:00.000-05:00

She loved ever minute of her date last night. It was a late night for Loo. She is normally asleep by 7:30 and last night they did not get home until 9:30. She went right to bed. She picked Dairy Queen for dinner because she wanted an ice cream. She picked out a Transformer for Woo. He will love it. Tonight he gets to go. He says he will go to Steak & Shake for a milkshake. Hey that sounds really good to me. During my last pregnancy I had a major Steak & Shake craving. A steak burger with everything and a strawberry milkshake. I haven't eaten there since I birthed the baby! It still sounds pretty good, I just don't have such a craving!

Loo's Date Night

2005-12-13T15:37:00.000-05:00

She's really excited. She asked me to paint her nails. For who? Her daddy! Tonight Loo will go on her annual Christmas Date with daddy. This is a Christmas tradition from my family growing up that we are participating in. We started 2 years ago and hope to do it until they move out! I did- my dad and I went out every year until I was in college. This is not just a girl thing though. Woo gets his date tomorrow night. Goo will get to go next year. The child gets to pick where she would like to eat dinner and then she gets to go shopping for her sibling. Growing up it was just my brother and I and we picked a gift for each other and for our mom. We have four children now, so we will most likely let the kids draw names or the 2 oldest swap and the two youngest swap names. We have a few years to figure all of that out though. Tomorrow I will post a picture of them ready for the date! Oh- and this special gift they get to exchange and open on Christmas Eve! (We open on Christmas morning)

Our Christmas Card Picture

2005-12-11T14:29:00.000-05:00

This year I am a little behind on the Christmas cards. Usually by now I would have them already sent out. So, today before church we snapped a few in front of the fragile tree. I really don't like artificial trees, but we have had one for several years now and this year after we got it decorated, one leg broke and I had to stand and hold up the tree while Jim rigged it back in place. Next year we will have a real tree! Anyway, the tree did not fall even after the picture taking so I think we just might make it to Christmas with the rigged up leg. Only two of the kids actuallly went to church. I dressed Goo & Boo up for the pictures and then changed them back into other clothes. Boo had the stomach funk last night and Goo has a yucky nose and cough. Jim took the older two to church and I stayed home and tried to catch up on laundry. I just might get the cards out this week!

Saturday At Home

2005-12-10T19:52:00.000-05:00

A good friend gave me this book recently. She said she thought I would be able to use it and enjoy it. Well, I have. It's a meal planning book complete with recipes for each week as well as a detailed grocery list. I have been using it for about 3 weeks now and I have omitted a few meals from each week or picked different meals from other weeks depending on our likes and dislikes. The meals are very yummy and are fairly healthy because the author is a nutritionist. It takes the brain work out for me. Each weekend I sit down and look at the next week's meals and then I gather my list and go grocery shopping. I don't have to decide what we will have each night for dinner. For me, this works really well. Tonight we had Shepherd's Skillet, a stove top cousin to Shepherd's Pie. All but a little was eaten and everyone asked for seconds. Several months ago we decided to really stick to our eating out budget. Eating out is so expensive, plus the fact that eating out with 4 children under 6 is just NOT fun. Anyway, we have done it- we have stayed in our budget!! I really thought we would never be able to do this, just because I like to every once in a while go through the drive thru and get lunch when we are out. But you know, that costs us $20! So, our budget allowance would quickly add up. I am very proud of us. It's so much cheaper and healthier to eat at home. O.K., enough about that!

We were fairly productive today here at home. Jim patched a few spots on the walls where Goo had drawn mommy some beautiful pictures. We do have our house for sale and I am afraid lookers may not appreciate his artistic ability like we do! We all also cleaned up the whole den/play room too. The kids willing threw away old toys and games missing parts or pieces. It was a very successful cleaning out experience. Everyone worked well together.

We ate dinner and then made a quick trip to the grocery store for milk and coffee creamer- I have been out for several days and can't imagine one more day without my French Vanilla creamer! We looked at all the Christmas lights on the way home and then Jim made us a fire to sit by and drink hot chocolate when we got home.

It's been a nice day. It's really nice to have such a helpful husband. The day has been smooth and relaxing.

Sick All Around!

2005-12-09T08:18:00.000-05:00

O.K., it is not our turn anymore. Somebody else gets the stomach flu now. That's right, we all (but baby) had the stomach yuckies this week! It began with Woo on Sunday and ended Thursday with Jim. The kids & I were at Mimi & Papa's house for all of this tummy fun, & have already passed it on to Papa. Mimi, you're next I'm afraid!

The kids still had a great time. We went to the zoo to see the festive lights and ride the train. We saw a few cold weather animals. Most were inside staying warm. Smart.

The kids and Mimi made beautiful cookies. We were all warned not to eat the ones Goo made because he licked everything. They had a great time, here's the picture to prove it.

Government schools at work

2005-12-01T07:58:00.000-05:00

Good link from Boortz. We have got to be informed of what is going on in the schools. Tell your friends and family. It's not an option for everyone to homeschool, but let them know what is being taught (and not taught) to their children!

I think there are some spelling issues at this school!!

A quick catch up!

2005-11-30T15:59:00.000-05:00

I have not had an ounce of time for blogging lately. I almost forgot about it, but my mom keeps telling me to update it. So, here's the latest. Thanksgiving was really fun. I love to cook for the holidays, just feels festive for me. I made dressing, sweet potatoes, a yummy chocolate dessert, a cheese ball and 6 pumpkin pies. With much forethought & planning everything went wonderfully smooth. I was not stressed at all! So, we went to sis-in-laws for lunch and got to see all but one of Jim's sisters. Here we all are. And there are 4 grandchildren not in the picture!! Jim's mom always said she wanted 2o grandchildren- only one short!! However, I do not think the 20th will be coming from us!!

We stayed for two nights at Jim’s parents’ home. We live in the same county, but 30 miles apart, so we decided to stay with them. This way we got to put the kids to bed & participate in the fun game playing and visiting. Every time we all are together we play Rook. We ate candy, ice cream and drank custom made hot chocolate with whipped cream , chocolate syrup and peppermint candy!
We also got to go out to dinner totally kid free! This was a first, since for the past 5 years I have had a nursing baby to take along! I still have one, but we left him for a few hours this time. Jim has a very responsible, mature 17 year old niece. She is awesome! She has 4 younger siblings, one who has lots of physical and mental needs. Needless to say, I would leave any of my children with her anytime.

We decorated for Christmas on Sunday. I love Christmas and I have plans for the kids. I hope they all work out. We plan to take a picture this weekend for cards. And we will be using this with the kids as well as great Christmas books like Christmas Soup and Josie's Gift and The Shoe Box.

As for this week, I have been cooking extra each day to begin investment cooking. I have added lasagna, chili and 2 loaves of garlic bread to my freezer. I have plans for other meals, there is alot of good info on the net about what freezes well & recipes.

Loo went to the dentist today for the first time. She did really well, I guess the T.V.'s with Dora helped. She was very excited about the visit. I let her daddy take her, he has the bad teeth in our family, so I knew he would be sympathetic with her!

This is a picture taken over the weekend. The chunky one is my Boo. Yesterday he was 4 months and he weighs over 17 pounds! I love my chunky babies! The smaller guy is Boo's new cousin who is almost 2 months old. Grandma got them matching outfits for a picture. Cute huh?!

O.k. I have got to finish this because I have been working on it for 3 hours now with numerous interruptions! This is exactly why I haven't blogged in so long! Too much going on here right now. Bye until next time.

Praise Him Always

2005-11-07T11:54:00.000-05:00

Well, I got some great encouragement this weekend. From husband, mom, friend at church who took time to pray with me and from Michelle Duggar- you know the mom we have heard so much about, 16 kids in 18 years. Here, in her advice for moms section of their family website, Michelle shared an experience that so encouraged me. Do we do this? Do we praise the Lord always, however we are feeling? I did this weekend while alone in the shower. Only He can lift me out of my frustration, only Him, not me. And oh how freeing it is to know I don't have to do it. Because, I cannot. I cling to His promises to love me, and take care of me, His child. Hope you are encouraged as well by Michelle's reminder. Thank you Lord for sending others into my life. Others who love me and want the best for me.

Trick or Treat

2005-11-01T07:23:00.000-05:00

Goo really enjoyed his candy. He was a big sticky blob when he finished. He did get frightened by one neighbor who was dressed up like the Scream character. The other two had a good time and were very kind and polite. We got to meet a few new neighbors too. Of course J and I did a little candy sampling for quality control! Everything was just delicious.

Partied out

2005-10-31T14:05:00.000-05:00

It was Daddy's birthday yesterday. We had cake and ice cream. Then we went to a littles birthday at 4:30. The kids had cake and ice cream again, J and I passed. Anyway, J is another year older, which means I am getting older because I am 2 years older than he. Carved the punkin too. Always fun and messy!

Trip to Wisconsin

2005-10-13T09:15:00.000-05:00

We were out of town for four days with the two little guys. Jim's grandmother passed away last week. We had already planned this trip because she had been very ill with lung cancer. The timing worked out just right so we could attend the funeral. This was the first ever plane ride for Goo & Boo. They were wonderful! Both boys behaved great through the first flight and the HIKE through the Chicago airport and then the flight into Madison. Same on the way home as well. I was very excited about this and would not hesitate to take them again.

How beautiful it is up there! This southern gal loved the weather too. It's October and already in the 30's at night! Of course we came home to hot, humid, still shorts weather here in Ga. I miss the weather up there for sure.

We did get to see some interesting sights and visit with a whole lot of family. Hubby's Uncle Jims' family has a dairy farm that is part of the Organic Valley Family of Farms. This was really cool. We learned a bunch about organic cows and what they eat and won't eat and got to see the milking process. These cows ride around on a carousel and are finished milking in 8 minutes.

We were there to honor Jim's Grandma and it was a sad time. She will be greatly missed by everyone, especially her daughters and grandchildren who live nearby and spent so much time with her. What a neat lady too, FULL of life and she loved to have a good time. I hope we will get to visit again under more cheerful circumstances. We stayed in Aunt Vicki and Uncle Jim's old family farm house. The home is beautiful and what a welcoming family. Here are Goo and I in the yard.

Hanging with the littles

2005-10-07T14:18:00.000-05:00

Today I am spending the day with the two little guys at our house. Goo is such a ham, he loves to have his picture taken and enjoys being the funny cute kid at our house. His older siblings laugh at him and his younger brother smiles at him. Anyway, I have enjoyed my time with the two of them. That's good because it's just us and them until Wednesday!!

Aren't Uncles Fun?!

2005-10-05T18:46:00.000-05:00

Growing up my brother was the family comedian....and he still is! He still fools our mom on the phone with his voice disguises as the plumber or car repairman. I recognize him immediately, after all I am his only sibling and we are only 15 months apart. I have heard them all!
We got together for my daughter's birthday recently and Uncle Dan was the hit of the party. Leave it to him to introduce new gross tricks to the kiddos! My son (smiling in the background) thinks Uncle D is the greatest! Everybody needs an uncle like this!

Brewing....

2005-10-04T15:29:00.000-05:00

I have lots of thoughts brewing in my little brain, however, I am very limited on blogging time right now. We are still here and I am reading my favorite blogs over at Choosing Home, I just rarely have two hands available for typing! There's some great stuff being written at Choosing Home right now. Seems all of us moms sometimes get overwhelmed with all of our responsibilities. I have been encouraged and inspired as others such as Molly, Lydia, Amy and Kim share their feelings and solutions of this privileged job we have been given. Thanks ladies!

Last Saturday we celebrated Loo's 4th birthday with my brother and his family and Mimi & Papa. Here she is very seriously working on a gift.

A few minutes...

2005-09-22T15:11:00.000-05:00

I actually have a few free minutes for blogging, and I don't really have much to say yet. Gotta get my brain moving...

Let's see- we have been back to school this week and it has been a pretty successful. Very sporadic and interrupted, but I believe that is going to be the norm for awhile with a toddler and new baby! Goo has his own little desk with toddler friendly toys and puzzles and these entertain him for small amounts of time. But, I think the biggest factor of our schooling time is me. How I handle the distractions and interruptions determines how much gets done and how quickly we get back to work. I have been very relaxed and calm and just going with the flow of the day. It's just not going to fit into any sort of time schedule for some time and I can't be frustrated and annoyed by what we don't get done! Yeah, I know this sounds really easy, and life has been easier this week. But, it took me being ok with this style of schooling, this style of house cleaning and cooking for me to be happy and content. This has been a great week, and you know what? This has really been the best post partum time I have ever had. Maybe I am just getting used to this baby stuff and how it effects my body and brain (it took 4 babies!). Or, maybe it's just me growing up (took 30 years) and learning that I can't control everything and that life is a whole lot easier when I just go with it and enjoy the moment! I have done that, I really love being with my kids day after day and I do enjoy staying home most of the time without venturing out (which is about physically impossible anyway). I am so blessed to be able to have the job I want and to truly enjoy it! Thank you Lord for revealing your special calling to my family.

Busy Day

2005-09-19T21:08:00.000-05:00

We started back to school today finally. About 2 weeks later than I had anticipated. But, that's ok because we are relaxed and just enjoying being together right now.

Goo had lots of fun with his box of "school" things. He colored with markers
(washable) for awhile, and then began to tattoo himself and the wall. He was ready for nap time and I couldn't resist this sweet picture.

Back to school

2005-09-02T13:40:00.000-05:00

Before Boo joined our family, I planned ahead- Woo and I began school here back in May to give us a bit of a head start. Well, baby Boo is 5 weeks old today, so we will have to get back to the books next week. We have read to each other most days, and he writes for me several times a week, so I don't think he will have any problems getting back into school work. We will be schooling around Goo who is 20 months old and 5 week old Boo. We will have to very flexible and relaxed around here or life will get hairy very quickly! I am confident we will make this work. I know many of you out there are doing this too and are successful!

No onions please!

2005-09-01T12:03:00.000-05:00

Well our little new one appears to not enjoy onions! This is the only food I can determine that gives him such awful gas. I do like onios, but I think I can give them up for this cutie- thank goodness he loves chocolate like his mommy! That would be tough for this post partum lady!
Speaking of post-partum- I had my visit with the doc & am released from his care. Pregnancy weight loss is looking good which is always amazing considering I eat like a horsey while nursing! Mom came over Sunday and left yesterday. She helps me so much- she plays with the kids (alot), she does laundry, helps me clean out closets and cooks me wonderful dinners of fresh vegetables and cornbread. Can't ask for a better mom than that! We now have our house for sale, and Mom helped me get the house uncluttered and ready for prospective buyers to open my closets and not have an avalanche greet them! I can honestly say I would enjoy having her (& Dad) live much much closer by! It's 2 hours now, but when we move it will be more like 4 hours!

Oh The Funny Things Kids Do

2005-08-23T14:20:00.000-05:00

Well this is a new one for me. Today Goo combined two of his favorite past times- Play-Doh and food (real food, not Play-Doh food). I guess I should have seem it coming. He had just finished (I thought) lunch and requested Play-Doh. I knew I should have removed the remnants of his peanut butter sandwich from the table, but I was enjoying a few moments of reading blogs. Anyway, Woo came and informed me that Goo had squeezed his sandwich through the Play-Doh spaghetti/shape maker. Indeed he had! Combined with pink Play-Doh was bread scraps and peanut butter! We all had a good laugh as I finished pushing the glob all the way through. I know to Goo it all made perfect sense- he loves food, he loves Play-Doh, he eats both, why not combine them!

Faith & Fear

2005-08-22T09:35:00.000-05:00

I was surfing the tv last night while trying to walk Boo to sleep and came upon Joel Osteen. I do not know much about him and decided to listen in to make a decision about him and what he teaches. He was talking about faith and fear and how they are opposites. He used 2 Corinthians 10:5 and 2 timothy 1:7 to show examples of what God says about fear and how we should not entertain fearful thoughts. This was exactly what I needed to hear because in the last several days I have let fear creep into my mind and I must regain control of my thoughts. A friend shared a very sad story of a family in our church. She and I began to ponder out loud our blessings and then our curiosity as to why some people are dealt such trials and why others such as ourselves had not had to deal with anything close to similar. So, after this conversation, fears of a mother began to creep in. "What if my child gets sick (really sick)?", "Should I check again to see if Boo is still breathing?", et cetera. These thoughts are not from my Heavenly Father, the God of peace and love. 2 Timothy 1:7 tells us, "For God did not give us a spirit of timidity (fear), but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline." A spirit of power... oh how comforting that is. And a spirit of self-discipline- this is what I need to claim now. I must take captive my thoughts as Paul instructs in 2 Corinthians 10:5, "We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ." I cannot live in fear, it goes against what my Lord teaches and makes my life tumultuous. I must live in faith and trust in my Father's plan, His specially designed plan for my family.

Baby days

2005-08-20T08:10:00.000-05:00

Here we are! Baby Boo is 3 weeks old now & this is the first picture I have shared. He is growing quickly (because he eats very well!) My husband's mom says I have "high test baby milk". I have to agree, all of my kids do put on weight very fast and have all been chunky (in a good way) healthy babies!

We are doing fairly well here. Wednesday I had all the kids alone (the older 3 went to visit Mimi & Papa for over the weekend and I was alone with Boo) and the day was very successful. Thursday was not quite as successful, but Friday was great. I feel really good, just hot all the time. I had another wonderful dinner Thursday night from my great friend up the street. What a great help the dinners have been! T brought a pork tenderloin, green beans, potatoes, bread and chocolate chip cookies and I inhaled mine. After Jim got home and ate, I had seconds!

Now how are we going to keep the house clean and presentable to possible buyers?! (by the way, we are moving). I know...we won't!! Yeah really, I will do the best I can, but there is no way to keep the whole house together at any given time. We plan to take extra clutter out of each room and get rid of some stuff, but our house is a house for a family with multiple kids and hopefully that is the kind of family that will come to look and decide their toys and kid stuff will look good in here!

July 29th, 2005

2005-08-05T13:23:00.000-05:00

Friday at 3:26 a.m., we got our sweet little boy! He and I are doing great. He's perfect and healthy and already a blessing to our family. The kids love him and enjoy holding him. We have had delicious meals from church friends all week, and my Mom has been taking care of everything else. What a gift to have a mom like mine! Dad has been sweet to let her stay away so long. Praise God for such supporting and loving parents!

About to be baby time!

2005-07-25T20:14:00.000-05:00

Ok everybody, Boo is scheduled to arrive this week! We are on the books and ready for this baby to come on into this world! Plans are all made for the other three kiddos, bags are almost packed and husband has time off from the new job. The new job has quite a bit to do with Boo's appointment this week. As of July 31st we will have a new insurance policy. So, Dr. is accommodating us and getting us in before the end of the month.

Dancing for Jesus

2005-07-23T18:09:00.000-05:00

My kids really enjoy music, any music and they love to get down and boogie to fast songs. 99% of the time we listen to contemporary christian music in our home and car. My daughter really enjoys Nicole C. Mullen and her upbeat-gotta move your head and body songs. We really have a good time in the car. Sometimes a really good one comes on in the house and we all take the opportunity to get in a little dancing and exercise, though the kids do not realize the latter. My kids have learned several songs from me and church and yesterday one of their favorites, "My Father's House" came on. All three, including 18 month old Goo were ready to jig! I just love seeing them so excited! They are getting great exercise and taking scripture to heart without evening knowing it! I enjoy the exercise as well, but I do look to make sure no one is at my door or in my driveway before I let loose! (I am 9 months pregnant!)

Every so often I have to clarify words and meanings because I want them to understand what they are singing. However, it is quite humorous the lyrics they sometimes insert by accident. My son was singing, "no turning black, no turning black", rather than, "no turning back, no turning back", in "I Have Decided to Follow Jesus". This we quickly corrected and explained the real words of the song.

The other 1 % of the time we listen to The Beatles in the car. My daughter asked me one day while climbing into the van if we could listen to "Chicken to Ride". I knew immediately what she meant, but we all got a great laugh on that one. We all still sing, "She's got a chicken to ride and she don't care", everytime "Ticket to Ride " comes on!

Quiet Time

2005-07-20T18:38:00.000-05:00

Today at Large Family Logistics, Kim pointed us to a wonderful site. Oh what good stuff! I know I struggle with making time alone with God. Do you? Kendra at Preschoolers and Peace has reminded us of the example Jesus set for us on this subject. The only way to have this quality time with God is to fit our day around Him, not to fit Him into our day. She also reminds us how His yoke is easy and His burden is light and that worldly expectations are often times the cause of our business and stress. Oh what a breath of fresh air this article has been to me today. I am reminded daily of my imperfections and my selfishness as I fill my day with other things and make little time for my creator who woos me every moment. Please check this out and I hope you will be touched by this as well.

Reading, Writing and Arithmetic

2005-07-19T20:53:00.000-05:00

Well we are in week 5 of our k-5 curriculum here. Woo is doing great. He is not excited about reading, however, he is progressing everyday and today he told his mimi that one day he will like to read, he just needs more practice. His handwriting is great for a young 5 year old as well. I do not push him at all, for I know he may not be ready for reading or writing. If it were up to me I would delay school for awhile as many families do. Jim wants to get ahead a bit because we will soon have a new born in our home. I totally respect this and am thankful for Woo's success. Math is his favorite subject right now. This is very encouraging since I would choose anything related to numbers last! I hope to scan some of his writing samples soon for family to see!

Loo participates with us too. She loves the math work sheets and loves to hear the read aloud stories. Today both of them were entranced with my dramatic reading of The Apple and the Arrow (the scene where William Tell shoots the apple off of his son's head)! I am sure the fly on the wall would think this hilarious to hear me reading! But, the kids love it and it holds their attention on some dull parts of stories.

Currently we keep Goo busy with trains, legos, wedgits and paper and crayons. This works for all of about 15 minutes and then I have to feed him snacks and try to keep him off of the table! I can only imagine what our school time will be like with baby Boo here!!

I love Menus 4 Moms! This is really working for my family. I admit I am lazy when it comes to meal planning and I tend to wimp out when I have to pull a dinner idea out of the air, so this is perfect for me. All of the thinking and planning is done! Each week I have adjusted one or two meals to our family's taste, but most of the meals are really good. I feel good about what we are eating and the money we are saving by not making dashes out for something. Jim really appreciates the meals too. He thanks me on a regular basis for sticking to our budget and for having him dinner ready when he arrives.

Yummy Wheat Bread

2005-07-11T18:30:00.000-05:00

I was visiting blogs I enjoy reading when I read Samantha's post at The Home Realm about food we make from scratch. I love to make this honey wheat bread and would like to share it with you. This is not made with a bread maker, but uses a mixer and dough hook for the kneading. Myself and the other ladies I know who make it all use a Kitchen Aide mixer with 325 watts. It handles the kneading well without overworking the mixer. You can knead by hand if you do not have a mixer. With the use of the mixer, this bread is very easy to make and delicious (especially warm with butter).

6 cups fresh milled
Hard White Wheat flour
2 tsp salt
4-8 tsp gluten

2 cups warm water
½ tsp sugar
6 tsp instant yeast

1/3 cup oil (warm)
½ cup honey (warm)
1 egg

In mixer bowl:
Combine 3 cups flour, salt and gluten, then stir.
In measuring cup:
Combine yeast, sugar and warm water (105°) and set aside to activate.
In another cup:
Beat egg and add warm oil and warm honey.

First, dump yeast mixture into
flour mixture and beat. Next, add egg, oil and honey mixture and beat. Then
add the rest of the flour (3 cups) and mix for 5-7 minutes in Kitchen Aide
mixer
(This is the kneading process. If you don’t have a mixer, knead by hand).
Let rise in mixing bowl until doubled (about 30 minutes to 1 hour). Punch
down and divide into 2 balls. Shape into loaves and put into greased loaf
pans and let rise again to just above pan (about 30 minutes to 1 hour).
Bake at 350° for 30
minutes. Butter the top and let cool on wire rack. Makes (2) 1½ pound
loaves

Recovering

2005-07-06T12:51:00.000-05:00

Well I have had a back ache for one week now. I am much better today and I am trying to not get too excited and overdo it. It's just hard to lie in bed when I have NO children here at home! All 3 went to my parent's house Monday evening. I was worried about Goo. He has never been to Papa and Mimi's without me. However, he is doing great, I guess he doesn't need me as much as I thought! And you know, I should be happy about that because baby Boo will definitely need me when he arrives in a few weeks! It's good to know Goo can go and visit the grandparents and be happy! I actually ventured out today to Kohls. I wanted to test myself and see how my back is really healing. I bought new sandals for both boys. Woo's sandals are really stinky and Goo's are just worn out. Anyway, I did fine, but was ready to get home and sit down for awhile.

We are headed to my parent's as well this weekend for our family semi-vacation. We try to go away each year with my brother and his family and our parents. This summer it just didn't work out with our new arrival coming in the middle of the summer and my brother is having a house built. So, we are headed to Mimi and Papa's for a weekend at the pool and good food. The cousins get to spend fun time together and hopefully next year we will be able to escape away somewhere! I don't plan on being pregnant next summer! 4 kids in 5 years is enough for my body for now! Wonder why I have an injured back!?

Back Ache

2005-06-30T18:40:00.000-05:00

Yesterday I began having low back pain that seemed to get worse through the day. Today I woke up with the same thing. I already had a 34 week appointment scheduled for today so I sat as much as possible until the pain made it almost impossible for me to function. The kids brought me lunch ingredients at the table and we made our sandwiches there. I can handle the pain sitting and lying down, just not standing. By the time I changed two of Goo's diapers and got him dressed, I had had enough and had an emotional breakdown (which for everyone who knows me, is a very rare occurance) and I called my sweet husband and requested him to come home and assist me. He made the hour (on a good day) drive home to take me himself to the doctor. Long story short, I am not in early labor, I have injured my back most likely from taking care of my 30 pound 17 month old. The doctor suggested I get more rest. Yeah O.K., I'll try that! So, sweet husband took care of dinner, baths and getting everyone into bed. I am already in bed and pray that tomorow I will feel better.

Menu Planning

2005-06-30T18:29:00.000-05:00

I got this link from Large Family Logistics - Someone sent her this site that does all the work in meal planning. I am really excited about this because several times I have attempted to make something similar and due to laziness or lack of planning have not been successful. Anyway this week we began using this system. Monday I went to the grocery store and bought the neccessary ingredients for the week's meals. This lady does all of the work. She makes a complete grocery list with estimates on prices. I just checked my pantry to see if I already had any items and then went shopping. The meals have all been family friendly and very easy to put together and make. Please give this a try if you struggle with planning meals with variety.

Sour Cream!!

2005-06-28T14:08:00.000-05:00

Goo loves sour cream and yesterday he smeared it all over his face and in his hair. it took two hair washings to get it all out!

Amicalola Falls

2005-06-28T13:30:00.000-05:00

This weekend we went to North Georgia to see Amicalola Falls. Jim's mom's 60th birthday was Sunday and all she wanted was to go and see the falls. So, we went up on Saturday and spent the night. What a view! The kids got to stick their feet in to the water at the top of the falls. The water was freezing!

Adventure Week

2005-06-23T19:26:00.000-05:00

Woo has had an amazing week at church. This year was his first year to attend. He learned great songs and great Bible stories. VBS has so many special memories for me. I don't think I ever missed a year at my church growing up. I also decided to make a public expression of my faith and get baptised after Bible School one year. I know Woo learned alot and I am so thankful for all of the people who invested time in him this week. Our church also chose to support the mission organization Operation Mobilization this week. The kids brought in bags filled with school supplies or hygiene items for children around the world. O.M. sails ships to ports of areas in need of physical, medical and spiritual help. The bags collected this week will be distributed to these areas.

Here is Woo in his Adventure Week t-shirt.

"Nesting"

2005-06-23T19:11:00.000-05:00

I have had an urge to clean and reorganize this week. I guess I am in a nesting stage. I have somehow found time to clean out the bathroom cabinets and the medicine cabinet. (which is a really good thing to do-throw away expired meds.) Before now I have not had time for such projects. I have also been going through boxes of baby and childrens clothes. I am sorting things to save, give away or consign. I feel pressure to get my house in order before Boo gets here.

Woo has been attending Adventure Week (VBS) at our church for the first time. He is loving it! Tomorrow I hope to get a cute picture of him in his t-shirt.

2005-06-19T07:55:00.000-05:00

Jobs For Kids

We have three young children at our house. Home maintenance such as laundry, cleaning etc. are vital to daily existence. For two reasons my children work everyday at our home. Work ethic is very important to their future survival and I must have help. Because my children are so young, they need quite a bit of assistance, but I really want to maximize their potential for helping around the home. I started to think of jobs they could do at home that would really assist me, not just a menial chore to give them something to do. So, our job list was born. My two oldest (5 and 3) have four "morning jobs". These are normal simple tasks. When we first began these, I made picture charts that are laminated and posted behind the bathroom door. They no longer look at these, but they are still posted. They each must put on clothes for the day, make their bed, brush their teeth and then they have two additional jobs which they rotate week to week. One week Woo empties the bathroom trash cans and Loo empties the dishwasher onto the counter. The next week, they swap jobs. I'm sure most Mom's require changing out of p.j.'s, brushing teeth, etc., but I did not want to have to tell them everyday to do these things. Now I just say, "do your morning jobs please" and they know what these are and usually get to it. I chose the bathrooms trash cans as a job because I got tired of emptying the tiny cans that were always overflowing. Now daily they are emptied and this makes me so pleased when I walk into a bathroom. The dishwasher is run daily and must be emptied daily. We now begin the day with it empty and ready for the dishes that would otherwise be piled into the sink. I am a firm believer in teaching children very early to participate in household duties. When they begin this young it becomes a part of normal life at home.

We recently added additional chores for them. We are expecting a baby very soon and I anticipate needing my children's help. So, they each have three chores to be done each week which they receive a small allowance on Saturday. Again I spent time thinking of jobs that would really assist me. Woo has to clean out our van once a week. He takes two bags with him, one for trash, the other for toys, papers, etc. that accumulate during the week. It is so nice to get into a freshly cleaned up van every week. He is only five, but he can easily handle this. He also has to wipe off their bathroom counter 1 or 2 times a week. My children make a mess with toothpaste, so he cleans up the blue goo. He uses a chemical free cleaner and a sponge. I showed him exactly how I expect this job to be done. Three squirts to the counter and then begin to scrub. Job number three is folding all large bath towels and distributing them to the bathrooms. At times these towels are not folded neatly and they come unfolded easily, but that's not the point. It's a job he can handle and it does help me!

Loo is 3 1/2, so her jobs are a little easier. She fold all kitchen dish towels and hand towels, and then she puts them up. She also takes the kids dirty clothes downstairs into the garage and into the laundry room. This has really helped me during my pregnancy. I dread lugging baskets of clothes up and down the stairs. She uses a small basket and slides them down the stairs behind her and sometimes she enlist her brothers help. Her third job is moving clothes from the washer to the dryer. She does not turn the dryer on, she just puts the clothes in when I need her to. Sometimes I am busy upstairs and it helps for her to run down, throw them in and when I am down later, I turn them on. Her youthful legs and body do not think twice about running down two flights of stairs!

I am so proud of my kids. Most of they time enjoy helping too. It makes them feel needed and confident. At this age, they think helping is cool. I know this will change as they age, but hopefully expecting this responsibility now will help later on. Don't hesitate to put the little ones to work and don't underestimate what they can do! They are capable of much more than we often give them credit!

2005-06-19T07:50:00.000-05:00

Yummy Blueberries!!
When we visit Mimi & Papa we always have fresh blueberries with our breakfast (and for snacks in the pool).

Memories of little girls

2005-06-14T15:23:00.000-05:00

Baby number 4 will hopefully be here at the end of July. This baby is a boy. This makes boy number 3 for us. I do have one girl. We have almost decided that there will be no more babies for us. Yesterday I started going through boxes of baby clothing. I found all of the boy items I will need, and I also sorted through the girl box. I washed all of the girl items and paired the cute little dresses with their matching bloomers. I decided which items to sell, consign or giveaway. However today as I began folding them up I decided I had to hold on to them for just a little while longer. I cannot get rid of them yet. They even smell like baby. The majority of the clothes are cute dreses and each holds a memory in my head of my little Loo. She now reluctantly wears a dress only on Sundays to church. I'm sorry Jim, I can't do it yet. I will have to wait at least 6 months from now when hopefully I will begin to regain control of the bulk of my emotions. The consignment sales can wait and I will always know someone who knows someone having a baby girl. The dresses will keep here in storage a little while longer! (wiping a tear)

"See see"

2005-06-14T15:05:00.000-05:00

Goo like to check out our plants growing on the deck. We planted cucumber seeds and chives, however neither is doing real well!

Creative adventures in the yard

2005-06-11T13:42:00.000-05:00

Jim & I decided to clean up the garage a little today. I also planted two Lantana plants and a Verbena and some miniature petunias. We are searching in the garage for baby items that need to be cleaned and washed before Boo arrives. While we were feeling industrious and Goo was napping, Woo & Loo went straight to digging in the dirt. They constructed a mound of dirt with mulch, sticks and rocks as decorations. They call this their clubhouse. They asked me take a picture of it to develop for them as souvenirs. Now I get to attempt to remove Georgia red clay from their clothing! It's worth it to see them enjoy the outdoors and use their imaginations!

Yummy Hummus!

2005-06-10T15:06:00.000-05:00

Today I made hummus for the first time. Very easy recipe. I wasn't sure what the kids would think of it. They are excellent eaters and 2 of the 3 will try just about anything. Woo thought it was good but Goo loved it! He ate it on crackers and then scooped it up by the handful. I got the recipe from allrecipes.com It's called Easy Hummus.

Here he is enjoying the hummus!

Bug's Gonna Get You!

2005-06-08T18:17:00.000-05:00

Grant has learned to hold his hands together and make a bug. His Papa does this and now Grant thinks it is quite humorous!

Only one kid!

2005-06-08T13:53:00.000-05:00

I cannot remember the last time I felt this way. I only have one child for two days! My mom met me half way and took the older two home with her. It was strange watching them drive away in the opposite direction and even stranger to eat dinner out with my husband and one child! So today after checking on the status of the other two- Mimi & Papa have a swimming pool and my kids don't swim unassisted- Goo and I went to Walmart. I thought this would be a good opportunity to purchase items I do not usually have room for like plants for the yard. I guess little Goo was not sure what to do with himself without distracting siblings, because he was quite a terror today. He took his shoes off and threw them, he chunked a can of tuna across the aisle- barely missing a very elderly woman- and threw a bottle of Shout at the people in the check out line beside us. The lady who almost received a bruise from the Shout bottle was amused and said, "He shouted it out!" "Why yes he did."I responded trying to seem very cool and calm. He also removed numerous leaves off of the plants in the back of the cart.

I was very pleased with the amount of sleep I received last night though. Loo has had many difficult nights recently and I am very grateful for a peaceful night. Of course she slept just wonderfully at Mimi & Papa's last night too!

So, this is what it feels like to have one child! I am trying to savor the moments because this may never happen again!

Book Time with Daddy

2005-06-05T15:03:00.000-05:00

Jim had all three kids on the couch before bed reading a short book. As I looked at them I realized we are about to have a fourth sitting up there soon! I really wonder what this little boy is going to look like. We already have three different hair colors and three different eye colors!

Oh so pretty

2005-06-05T14:47:00.000-05:00

My only girl doesn't want to look girly! Mimi gives Loo pretty dresses and she does not like to wear them. I only ask her to wear a dress on Sundays to church and she looks beautiful, however she would rather wear shorts or pants! We convinced (bribed) her to let me take a picture today to send to Mimi.

A Good Read

2005-05-31T19:43:00.000-05:00

I urge all Christians to check out Gospel For Asia. Dr. K.P. Yohannan and his ministry are daily involved in a revolution for modern day missions. God is using native missionaries to spread his word in areas where the name of Jesus has never been heard. I have just finished reading Revolution in World Missions and am convinced this is God's plan to reach his children in remote areas. If you are concerned about missions (I pray you are), this is an excellent read. If you want a copy please contact me and I will get one to you! I will be ordering additional copies very soon to share with friends and family.

We are still around!

2005-05-31T19:10:00.000-05:00

We have had a busy couple of weeks and blogging has not found a place in my schedule. We have begun kindergarten here early due to baby delivery hopefully around the end of July. We plan to school for two months and then take about two months off when little one arrives. We are using Sonlight
for our first official year in homeschooling. With very soon to be 4 kids 5 and under, we decided to go with a packaged curriculum. This will meet our needs for now. Woo is enjoying school very much. He is reading very well. Loo is participating too. She is learning letters, phonics and numbers. We attempt to get the bulk of our study done while Goo is napping!
We took a trip to Mimi & Papa's house last week for some pool fun. We hope to go back once more before number 4 arrives. Woo nor Loo has had swimming lessons, but both of them were fearless and eager to learn to kick and float. They also got to play with their cousins for two days.

The kids love feeding Mimi & Papa's gold fish in the fish pond.

Reading for this week

2005-05-16T12:01:00.000-05:00

Pickles to Pittsburgh- Judi Barrett
The Perfect spot- Robert J. Blake
Olivia Saves the Circus- Ian Falconer
Heckedy Peg- Audrey Wood
June 29, 1999- David Wiesner
The Gardener- Sarah Stewart
Fly Away Home- Eve Bunting
The Rescue of Brown Bear and White Bear- Martine Beck
Somebody's New Pajamas- Isaac Jackson
May I Bring a Friend?- Beatrice Schenk De Regiers
Was it a Good Trade?- Beatrice Schenk De Regiers
Mama Went Walking- Christine Berry

Mommy and Woo Read:
Parables for Children- Danae Dobson & Dr. James Dobson

Mommy reads to Loo:
Charlotte's Web- E.B. White

This weeks reading list

2005-05-03T11:13:00.000-05:00

Duck for President- Doreen Cronin
Rise and Shine- Nancy White Carlstrom
Mad About Madeline- The Complete Tales- Ludwig Bemelmans
Frog Medicine- Mark Teague
Johnny Castleseed- Edward Ormomdroyd
Berlioz the Bear- Jan Brett
The Hat- Jan Brett
Oscar, Cat-About Town- James Herriot
Dog Heaven- Cynthia Rylant
My Rows and Piles of Coins- Tololwa M. Mollel
Today I Fell Silly & Other Moods That Make My Day- Jamie Lee Curtis
Perfect Puppy- Stephanie Calmenson
If I Ran the Circus- Dr. Seuss
I'll Always Be Your Friend- Sam McBratney

Still recovering

2005-05-03T11:02:00.000-05:00

Jim arrived home Thursday night without his luggage. It had not gotten on the plane in Chicago. It did arrive sometime late that night. He did have his carry on which was full of gifts and trinkets for the kids. They were thankful he packed their things in this bag. He brought strange candy, minature jeepneys (converted jeeps used for transport in Manilla), and Woo got a cool frog change bag-from a real dead frog! Loo has been telling everyone, "it's a frog that died". Loo and I received beautiful pearl necklaces too. Anyway, Jim is still recovering. He is very tired and emotionally drained. It takes the body a while to recover from a 12 hour time diference. Talk about jet lag!

pictures of jeepneys

The Philippines

2005-04-20T15:20:00.000-05:00

Well Jim is safe and sound along with his team in Manilla. They arrived Sunday around noon EST. Of course it was midnight there. I finally was able to talk to him Monday morning. He sounds really excited and says everyone's feeling fine. Please check out his mission weblog for updates and pictures in the photo gallery.
http://mission.jimmyoliver.net

This weeks reading list

2005-04-20T15:15:00.000-05:00

Wait for Me! Said Maggie McGee- Jean Van Leeuwen
You're the Scaredy-Cat- Mercer Mayer
Boundless Grace- Mary Hoffman
Three Cheers for Tacky- Helen Lester
Billywise- Judith Nicholls
Cat, What is That?- Tony Johnston
Outside My Window- Mercer Mayer
The Polar Express- Chris Van Allsburg
Raising Yoder's Barn- Jane Yolen
A Pocket for Corduroy- Don Freeman
Toot & Puddle- You Are My Sunshine- Holly Hobbie
Everybody Has A Bellybutton- Your Life Before You Were Born- Laurence Pringle
The Magic School Bus-Inside the Human Body- Joanna Cole
I Wonder Why I Blink- Brigid Avison

2005-04-18T19:57:00.000-05:00

Loo prepares to take on Woo and male cousins with her new watergun!

Lessons Learned

2005-04-13T20:28:00.000-05:00

My son and I are reading through Parables For Kids by Danae Dobson & Dr. James Dobson. Last night we read an adaptation of the Parable of the Persistent Widow from Luke 18:1-8. The child's story is of a young girl who had lost her father several years before. She persistently asked God to give her mother a new husband and her a new father. She expected a miracle. Ultimately God did bring her a new dad. He was nothing like her real dad and not at all who she had in mind. However, God brought her the father he had planned for her. This story is based on a widow who persistently petitioned a judge for help. Because of her insistence he ultimately gave in and solved her problem just to rid himself of her.
I have a request before God which I claim to expect a miracle. However, through this reading I realized I do not have complete faith in him. Miracles happen everyday. I must go to him daily with my request fulling expecting a miracle. Petition before God is so important. Danae & James Dobson remind us, "This is the meaning of the parable. If a selfish judge would help someone just to get rid of the person, how much more God will help his own children, whom he loves."

Another Lesson Learned:
I am currently reading For Women Only by Shaunti Feldhahn.

Magnet lesson

2005-04-11T13:25:00.000-05:00

Today we began lessons on magnets. We purchased a small set of magnets, horseshoe, bar, round, etc. and a larger horseshoe magnet. My son is fascinated with Magnetix, so this was like play time for him. We used The Usborne Book of Science Activities for cool experiment ideas. The kids gathered items from around the house that they thought might be attracted to a magnet. Loo brought out plastic farm animals as well as her purple My Little Pony. Previously we had discovered that the pony has a magnet in one of her front hoofs. I am curious to why there is a magnet there, but, Loo knew the pony would attract another magnet. Woo brought out his huge set of Magnetix. I urged them to try gem clips, safety pins, small nails and some pennies. We then tested which items a magnet would attract and which ones it would not. We made a list of these. We then tested which things magnets would work through. They work through paper, books, clothing and the table. Woo & Loo got a huge kick out of moving objects around on the table from underneath. We read Magnets by Julie Fitzpatrick and The Young Scientist Investigates- Electricity and Magnetism by Terry Jennings. Tomorrow we will do more experiments and paint with magnets (an idea from my mom who used to teach K-4).

Sunday Adventures

2005-04-11T11:58:00.000-05:00

Oh what a wonderful husband I have! Sunday morning he let me sleep in until 9:00! The extra sleep was wonderful for my ever growing tummy. Saturday was a very bad day for me physically. I am 22 weeks pregnant and I feel like the baby grew too fast for my skin! All day Saturday it felt like my skin was stretching trying to catch up. Anyway, my body appreciated the sleep.
Our church has a Saturday night service and we fortunately chose that one this weekend. So, Sunday morning we hung out at home for awhile and then went to Lenox Mall to exchange my husbands computer. His new Apple Powerbook had three dead pixels right in the middle of the screen. This was my first visit to the Apple store. I really like my powerbook but I have to laugh at Apple's whole appearance. They have created the sexy computer image. Everything is slick and sleek. They must screen employees before hiring. Many of the employees at this store were young, male, had multiple piercings and spiky hair. Even the bathrooms were antiseptic looking. White, bare and the sink was streamlined with a sleek little faucet. The kids enjoyed the visit, they played kid games on new iMacs. Very cool looking computer! We also had an always interesting lunch at the Varsity in Atlanta. This is some greasy food, but curiously enough I sometimes get a hankering for a chili dog, onion rings and a frosted orange. Plus as a native Georgian I feel my children should get exposed to this crazy atmosphere early in life! It's an experience every time we visit. We hurried home to clean up before Community Group at 5 p.m. We host a group of about 5 couples weekly and I try to get the living room, kitchen, bathroom and playroom presentable before our friends arrive. The remaining rooms in the house I lock so no one will see the mess!

Wednesdays

2005-04-07T08:48:00.000-05:00

On Wednesdays we usually take an off day from school. I attend a Bible Study at my church Crossroads and then we go to visit my husbands mother. She looks forward to these visits as do we. She is not able to drive right now due to health problems.

My BIG 5 year old. He was patient enough for me to take a few pictures in Grandma's yard yesterday.

Grandma & Grandpa got a new puppy. The kids loved her. She is just Goo's size. He tried to tote her around (by the head). Loo & Goo posed with the puppy for a pic.

Lesson Plan - Seeds

2005-04-05T12:16:00.000-05:00

Last night I was able to get away alone and spend time at the library selecting books I wanted to use for upcoming lessons. This week is seeds and next week we will learn about magnets. Woo is very interested in how magnets work. All he wanted for his birthday were Magnetix. So, we got the set with 150 magnetic pieces. He uses them every day. But, today we began lessons on seeds. We planted marigolds, cucumbers and chives. Hopefully they will all sprout and grow. They kids and I were covered in soil and they had to go striaght to the bath tub. I still have not cleaned up the mess. I was hoping the sun would dry the soil and I can just sweep it all up later. Honestly, my belly is getting larger and more awkward each week. Plus my body needs to sit and rest a while. So, later I will deal with the deck's mess. I found several good books at the library on seeds.

The Young Scientist Investigates- Seeds and Seedlings - Terry Jennings
The Reason For A Flower- Ruth Heller
How Seeds Travel- Cynthia Overbeck
How A Seed Grows- Helene J. Jordan

So, today we discussed the different ways seeds are spread, air, animals, and water. We also looked at illustrations of seed growth. Then we went outside and made a huge mess!

Other books we are reading this week:
Just In Case You Ever Wonder- Max Lucado
The Money Tree- Sarah Stewart
The Bat In The Boot- Annie Cannon
Roses Sing On New Snow- Paul Yee
Amazing Grace- Mary Hoffman
Farming- Gail Gibbons

Woo and I are reading:
Parables For Kids- Dr. James Dobson and Danae Dobson

This Weeks Reading List

2005-03-30T23:07:00.000-05:00

Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs- Judi Barrett
The Big Sneeze- Ruth Brown
No Peas For Nellie- Chris L. Demarest
Penguins- Gail Gibbons
Madeline and the Bad Hat- Ludwig Bemelmans
Jamberry- Bruce Degen
Piggins and the Royal Wedding- Jane Yolen
Jamela's Dress- Niki Daly
Gray Squirrel at Pacific Avenue- Geri Harrington
26 Letters and 99 Cents- Tana Hoban
How A House Is Built- Gail Gibbons
Bill and Pete to the Rescue- Tomie DePaola

Woo turns 5! Easter pictures

2005-03-30T22:25:00.000-05:00

My oldest turned five on Monday! We had a spider man party with family and friends.

Woo & Loo had a great time coloring eggs.

Just a few quick pics before church.

Mimi & Goo

March Reading List

2005-03-17T15:08:00.001-05:00

The Three Pigs- David Wiesner
Where the Wild Things Are- Maurice Sendak
Sophie's Masterpiece- Eileen Spinelli
Ruby the Copycat- Peggy Rathmann
Angus and the Ducks- Marjorie Flack
"Fire! Fire!" Said Mrs. McGuire- Bill Martin Jr.
The Racecar Alphabet- Brian Floca
The Z Was Zapped- Chris Van Allsburg
Minerva Louise- Janet Morgan Stoeke
Rain Makes Applesauce- Julian Scheer
Grandfather's Journey- Allen Say
Spinky Sulks- William Steig
The Storyof Mrs. Lovewright and her Purrless Cat- Lore Segal
Greyling- Jane Yolen
Florence and Eric Take the Cake- Jocelyn Wild
Goodnight Me, Goodnight You- Tony Mitton
No laughing No Smiling No Giggling- James Stevenson

Goo gets first haircut & climbs to the top bunk!

2005-03-17T14:31:00.000-05:00

My 14 month old got his first haircut today. He did not cry, just squirmed alot. Here are before and after pictures.

BEFORE

AFTER

Goo is a big monkey too. He climbs on everything and this week began climbing up to the top bunk of his brother's bed. I got pictures today of his great effort to reach the top!

Anniversary Trip To Gatlinburg

2005-03-07T16:37:00.000-05:00

Well Jim & I have been married for 8 years now and we went away for the weekend. My mom came over & kept the kids for two nights. They all did wonderful, so we will have to do this again! We went to Gatlinburg, Tennessee. There was a great deal of snow on the mountain coming from Cherokee to Gatlinburg. I took these pictures out of our van window. There were a few patches of ice on the road too. I am sure to many of you this is not big news, but for us down in Georgia, we don't see much snow. My kids are snow deprived!

March Reading List

2005-03-07T16:10:00.000-05:00

Two Bad Ants- Chris Van Allsburg
Angelina Ballerina- Katherine Holabird
Minerva Louise at the Fair- Janet Morgan Stoeke
Just Plain Fancy- Patricia Polacco
Just A Dream - Chris Van Allsburg
Leah's Pony- Elizabeth Friedrich
Miss Rumphius- Barbara Cooney
Picnic at Mudsock Meadow- Patricia Polacco
The Widow's Broom- Chris Van Allsburg
Thunder Cake- Patricia Polacco
I'll Always Love You- Hans Wilhelm
Aunt Chip and the Great Triple Creek Dam Affair- Patricia Polacco

Goo - 13 months

2005-03-01T21:38:00.000-05:00

Taking a snack break.

Sal is alive and soon to be well!

2005-03-01T20:52:00.000-05:00

Previously I shared our story of our injured kitty. Jim took him to the vet as his leg seemed to be getting worse. The vet wanted to amputate his leg. We do not have funds available for this procedure including an I.V. So, sadly we would have to choose to put him down. When Jim went back to the vet with our decision, she asked if he would sign over ownership so they could perhaps find someone to pay for the surgery and adopt Sal. Of course he said yes- we would much rather someone have him than have him not alive! She said she would let us know the outcome. Jim's sister's boyfriend works for this vet and so he found out what happened to Sal. The vet did amputate his leg as well as his tail. She was looking for a good home for him or would take him home to her farm. So, this was a much easier story to share with our children. They accepted that we could not adequately take care of a three legged cat and that someone would care for him and love him. Our pet days were short lived (about 5 months), and we are going to remain pet free for awhile.

Ladies Retreat

2005-02-28T15:17:00.000-05:00

Thursday myself and three friends left our families behind and escaped to north Georgia for our church's yearly women's retreat. This year we went to Young Harris, Georgia, and stayed at the Brasstown Valley Resort.
It is a beautiful place. We stayed in a large cabin that had 4 bedrooms and a living area to share. Our theme for the retreat was Meet In the Middle- Discovering the Secret of a Balanced Life. This is based on the scripture in Luke 10:41-42, But the Lord said to her, "My dear Martha, you are so upset over all these details! There is really only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it-- and I won't yake it away from her." Our guest speaker was Sybil Towner of Willow Creek Community Church.
We had a wonderful time getting to know each other, praising God and learning how to live a balanced life as God planned. I am already looking forward to next year!

Sal (the cat) is injured

2005-02-18T19:33:00.000-05:00

Today began quite eventful. I thought Jim had already driven off for work when he comes back in the house and asks me to step outside. He said he though our cat was in the engine when he cranked the truck. Sal ran out from under the vehicle and was no where to be found. This cat has only been an outside cat for a short period of time. He was an inside cat, but he is an aggressive cat and quite unpredictable in demeanor. He is very rough with the kids and my oldest will very rarely touch Sal. Anyway, several hours later I found him outside. He has a big gash down most of one leg. He is in quite a bit of pain, but we do not believe the leg is broken. He has not been grouchy or aggressive towards me at all. He just purrs. Hopefully he will recover and possibly have a change in personality.

On another pet note. Tonight on the National Geographic Channel there was a show on titled, Dogs with Jobs. My children were quite fascinated with this show and I was able to have a little learning time before bed. One dog helped investigate fire to determine if arson was the cause. Another was a therapy dog who assisted physical therapist by catching rubber balls and helping patients walk. Great show full of info. The kids hated to see it end (and go to bed)!
Time for movie with hubby. Have a great evening!

Gathering info, heartbeats & time alone!

2005-02-16T10:49:00.000-05:00

We are not officially not having school right now, but I am taking time to evaluate new curriculum and reevaluate our school goals. My oldest is ready for kindergarten. I believe we will begin this in March or April. We are expecting baby number 4 in late July or early August. So, I will be needing a break about the time we would be beginning school. So, we have decided to start him early. I have been browsing many homeschool blogs to see what others are curently using. This has been helpful. I am so thankful for the blogging community and the information available. I am so glad other homeschoolers have taken time to share their trial and error adventures. What a dramatic change in the homeschooling community from when my mom homeschooled my brother for several years in the late 80's!
My mother is on her way over for a couple of days. The husband and I always get a date night when she comes, so we are looking forward to this evening! Tomorrow I have a doctor's appointment, I will get to hear the baby's heartbeat! And I hope to visit the library alone and get many new books for next week. What else can I do? I try to think of all the places I like to go but don't frequent often because of all of the kiddos!

New Blogger!!

2005-02-14T20:06:00.000-05:00

Hello and welcome to my new blog. This is my first attempt at blogging and I am excited but a little nervous.
I wrote the above last night after my husband assited me in starting this blog. Today, however, I don't feel nervous about expressing myself here. I am such a self checker and at times indecisive that I feared I would never publish anything to this blog. But, here goes. I now feel ready to enter the world of online journaling!
My youngest has been sick for several days and thus thrown quite a kink into our lives here. we have managed to continue reading about 10 books a day during his naps. Other attemps at school here have not been successful. Yesterday that was frustrating, but today I understand that sickness will be a part of our lives at times and I have to go with it and make the best of it! Currently my other two children are downstairs playing games on their computer. Dinner is on the stove and here I have found myself with a few moments alone. A few minutes to relax, share and gather my thoughts before my husband arrives! Thank you Lord for moments like this.