Monday, November 21, 2011

Cowgirls Meet Boa


Somebody just passed this picture off to us. It was from the Harvest Carnival. What a great shot! Cade volunteered with the reptile man and got to hold Abby, the boa constrictor, for almost 2 hours...he loved it! His sisters also thought Abby was pretty neat.

A sweet commentary tonight by Anika while she and I were sipping tea together:
"Ahh, this is the good life. I like my life. I have a good life."

In the car this evening...Levi says:
"I have $12. I think I want to have a garage sale and sell some stuff because I want to be a millionaire. (Pause). How much money does it take to be a millionaire?" Papa..."What would you do with a million dollars?" Levi..."I would build a mansion and make lots of rooms so homeless people could come live w/ me."

Friday, November 18, 2011

Pioneer Potluck

Just a quick note about today. We had a fun "Pioneer Potluck" with our Friday School Crew. We've been studying Oregon History, and Luke and Levi have just finished reading Farmer Boy (Laura Ingalls Wilder book) for their literature class. Just for fun we did a potluck of somewhat "pioneer-ish" food and some of us dressed up. (Our fun duds, thanks to Auntie Melissa!) Zoey looked absolutely adorable. Granny got the hat she was wearing from the actual Little House on the Prairie (in Kansas), which is now a museum. Talk about the real deal! I kept thinking she looked like Mary off of that show.

I roasted a turkey yesterday for the potluck. Had a little "help" from Tytus. The turkey had been cooking for about two hours and I was thinking by then I should have been smelling it a little. I glanced at the oven dials, realizing that I had seen Ty touching them right after I put the turkey in. He must have thought it would be best to really slooow roast it. He had turned the oven down to 200. Let's just say, a 24lb. bird doesn't cook too fast at 200 degrees. In fact, I was just so thankful it really wasn't Thanksgiving Day, as that bird came out of the oven 4hours later than I had anticipated!

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Cheerios Thief

Oops...I've been caught...what should I do?!

Try smiling...Aren't I cute?
(I don't know if that's working.)

Here, Mom...I was getting these out just for you!

5 x 1=6 and Trampolines...

My day didn't start off like this, like every homeschool mom dreams...children sitting in front of the fire, quietly reading a sweet book about pilgrims. No, it was a 5 x 1=6 morning.

Levi is a very bright boy. But, at times (ok...at least half the time), he can tend to approach school with a less than stellar attitude. When he does this, as I've talked with him about many times, his mind gets all jumbled up, and he doesn't seem to remember anything. We were working on long division and he could not recall any of my instructions from one second to the next. Pointing out each part of the problem, step-by-step, I say, "OK...and what is 5 X 1?" (Easy stuff for him!) In frustration he answers, "Six". Ughhhh. This goes on for at least twenty minutes, all the while, he is nearing tears because his math just seems too hard, and I'm having to take deep breaths to maintain my composure. I write on the board, "A cheerful (joyful) heart is good medicine." (Prov 17:22). Reminding him that sometimes we have to choose a good attitude, we have to choose joy. Prick, prick. The Lord is speaking these words to me as I am saying them out loud to Levi. Another deep breath. OK, surely with those wise words spoken, our morning will turn around. I was encouraged. We prayed together and got back to math. Levi was still struggling. I look up, see the trampoline and say my famous line...."You need to go bounce!" He somberly made the walk out to the tramp and starts bouncing w/ a frown on his face. The Lord pricks my heart..."You need to go out there with him." I respond to the Lord, "Oh, it's so cold, Lord, that's a lot of energy for me, I'd rather just stay here by the warm fire, have a five minute break and watch him." Pause. "OK, Lord." Off I go to join my son. And wouldn't you know it. As soon as he saw me approaching, his smile was as wide as his face. We bounced for a few minutes together, had a great time, laughed, came in and warmed our cold feet by the fire, and then proceeded to do math with ease.

If there is one thing that I have learned is that sometimes my boys just need a little physical activity for their brains to work. That's where I will continue to contend that our trampoline we invested in a few years ago, is worth its weight in gold. On many days, a little jump is all that's needed to clear the mind, help a bad attitude, or just get out that energy. (Yesterday afternoon I had three of them out bouncing in 50 degree weather, with their swimsuits on, asking for me to set the sprinkler up on it...Oregon rain wasn't enough for them. :))

But even more important, in my dealing of the day, the Lord was reminding me that I need to choose joy in my circumstances. Equally important, that sometimes my children just need me to laugh and play with them. Levi just needed ME. Just laughing and playing together turned his day around. The sweet smile on his face in the picture at the top is proof.

Just for the record, I wasn't the only one having a "morning". Matt fished another car from the toilet (he was just thankful he didn't have to pull the whole toilet this time as it was actually flushed w/ a car), and later a toothbrush. Not to mention a whole container of fish food was poured on the carpet and in the midst of it, Zoey decides she's going to work on her potty training. :)

Thank you, Lord, for the joy in the midst of craziness!



Sunday, November 13, 2011

Toilet Soup!


I'm finally doing it! I've been thinking for a long time that I needed to start a blog to transcribe the comings and goings, funny stories and precious moments that happen in our crazy, fun, and blessed home on a daily basis. It just so happens that this morning I was beckoned to stay home from church with two of the kiddos because of stomach aches. I was a bit bummed as the whole family would be serving as "teachers" in Zoey's two-year old class. But, alas, a stomach ache is nothing we can take to church. Needless to say, not five minutes after Matt left I had two wild hooligans running around the house feeling "all better". For the record, I really do think Levi's tummy was bothering him, he laid in bed awhile and truly wasn't feeling good. He can, at times, have a stomach flare up after eating and this morning I just couldn't say for sure if he had something more serious, as he laid in bed for quite some time. To the point, this surprise time at home gave me a little window to see if I could do what seemed an almost impossible task for a computer-illiterate mom....start a blog.

My mom has always told me I need to be writing down my "stories". Those cute, naughty, make-me-laugh/make-me-cry moments that happen all so often. So, Mom, this one is for you...

Not long after he got home from church with the other four kiddos, Matt announced, "Zoey is doing a better job being a mommy than you." (To my defense I was not blogging at that moment, I was getting a diaper for Zoey. I was on task. :) )

"Ty-Ty touch toilet! Ty-Ty touch toilet!" was Zoey's cry. Checking in on the matter, Matt found five match box cars deposited in the "bowl". This wasn't the first time today Matt fished one of his cars from the toilet; before church Tytus had discovered this fun toilet-bowl-car-game. This is the stage of development I call "toilet soup". It usually starts at about one year of age...can't remember when it actually ends. It's not the first time we've been through it.

Lord, have mercy on our plumbing!