Flashback Friday

Matt, 1987

Haines, Alaska

(And I always thought I was the greatest catch of his life!)

Thankful Thursday

Tonight I'm very thankful to be sharing a house with a toddler! I tell you, if babies started out at the stage Daniel is in right now, I'd be like the Old Woman Who Lived in the Shoe! He just trots around here, getting into everything, and passing out belly laughs for nothing more than a quick tickle. I also love all his cute little words right now: "beeshot" for basement, "mishak" for music, "bee-ah" for bear, etc. Now, he does have his moments (a couple weeks ago he "discovered" his scream!)...he's a natural-born sinner, after all, but he brings far more joy than grief. How I love my baby boy! And he's the one that we weren't even going to have. We had always thought maybe four kids, but after three in 3-1/2 years, we felt like we were pretty good to go. Then God worked on both of our hearts and here we are today. And what a blessing Daniel is to our family!

Take today, for example. Homeschooling can, of course, lend itself to some pretty intense moments, what with the various personalities and story problems and all. Today one of the tribe was in a not very happy state of mind. Daniel walked into the room where this child was "struggling", then stopped and looked at them for a long time (seriously, 10 seconds or more) without saying a word. We all got quiet, waiting to see what he would do. Then he blurts out, "BLAA-DAA DOD-IT!!", and calmly leaves the room. It was the perfect tension breaker!!! We all laughed, and went on with our day in much lighter spirits. Thank you, Lord, for that boy!!

Truth Tuesday/Wednesday

(I just can't seem to get on top of things this week!)

"...Your Word is truth." John 17:17

"Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are
just a vapor that appears for a little while and vanishes away." James
4:14

"Lord You have been our dwelling place in all generations. Before the mountains were born or You gave birth to the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God." Psalm 90:1-2

Book Monday

This book, In Grandma's Attic, by Arleta Richardson, is one of my favorite new finds as a read-aloud for my girls. Ellie and I read it last year when she was in Kindergarten, and we thoroughly enjoyed every chapter! The premise is a young girl whose grandmother tells her stories based on items she finds around her grandma's house (and in her attic). The author is old enough to be a grandmother herself, and these are stories that her grandmother really told about her girlhood, which makes the stories date back to the 1800's. Besides being really humorous stories, each one has a moral lesson to be learned. For example, in the chapter called "Pride Goes Before the Fall", Grandma and her friend learn what trouble vanity can lead to when they sneak into church wearing some forbidden hoops under their skirts. There are lots of good lessons for girls about honesty, hard work, humility, and the like...and it's still really entertaining. This book was around when I was a girl, but I never read it. I wish I had, but I guess it's better late than never! If you like it, there are eight other books in the Grandma's Attic Collection. We are now reading the second one, More Stories from Grandma's Attic, and it's every bit as good as the first. Like I said, we use these as a read-aloud, but I would guess that they are written at about a 4th or 5th grade reading level.

Weekend Happenings

Saturday was a big day in our house. In the afternoon we hosted Joe's piano recital, and we were so thrilled with the turn-out. Many extended family members were here (including Joe's cousin Nathan, which made his day!). His very special, very encouraging piano teacher has her students give individual recitals at which they play a collection of pieces they've learned during their course of study. I can see some nerves on his face as his teacher welcomes everyone....

He played so well, though! This is Joe's second year in piano, and it's been exciting to see him grow in skill and in perseverance as he's studied this year. Praise the Lord for the talent He's developing in Joe!

And, since we had everyone here anyway, we did a little birthday partying! Matt is offically golden now! You can see he's not taking it too seriously, though!

My mom got Matt several gifts that were things in 50's, like pads of paper, vitamins, etc. The best one, however was a container with 50 lizard'ns and frog'ns in it! That's at least a few weeks of quiet playtime right there! Did I mention they stick to the ceiling?

Flashback Friday/Sunday

OK - so I'm a few days behind...

Erin Lee, December, 2004

Thankful Thursday

Tonight I'm thankful that 50 years ago today, the most wonderful man I know was born.

I used to always joke that Matt was a smart guy and that's why he married me. Now I know the truth... He is an incredibly kind and patient guy, and that's why he's married to me...happily! I'm so thankful for his great love for me and the kids, which is displayed every day in his servant-like attitude around our home. He's my greatest fan and supporter in my role as a homemaker and homeschooling mom, for which I am also most grateful. He keeps life fun for all of us, and we were so glad to celebrate him today!

We had a simple family party tonight, as the bigger get-together will be this weekend. A few gifts and cards, a good dinner, and some family games made for a special night.

We are also so thankful for the many people who have sent Matt cards. He has really enjoyed hearing from so many friends, near and far. What an encouragement! The cards are awesome...very fun! The kids have had a blast with the ones that have sound. The Star Wars theme played in our house for about an hour today (Beau and Megan!!). Thank you so much to everyone! We have such a great group of friends and family!

So, it's a very thankful Thursday. We have more blessings than we could ever count!

Truth Tuesday

"...Your Word is Truth." John 17:17

"For My thoughts are not your thoughts,

Nor are your ways, My ways," declares the Lord.

"For as the heavens are higher than the earth,

So are My ways higher than your ways,

And My thoughts than Your thoughts."

Isaiah 55:8-9

Book Monday

A couple days ago I was reading this book to Erin and having such a fun time with her! The thought passed through my mind, "I wish everyone I knew could read this book!" Thus, the idea for "Book Monday's" was born. On Mondays I will share my collection of books I wish everyone could read. I hope someone out there enjoys it!

The debut book, Big Chickens, is written by Leslie Helakoski and illustrated by Henry Cole, two people who have definitely spent some time around chickens! The storyline is fairly simple...four chickens get stuck outside of their coop and, by panicking their way through many sticky situations, defeat the wolf. The hilarious illustrations only add to the already funny text. I enjoyed the book on more than one level, having spent my growing-up years with a coop-ful of chickens in the backyard. These chickens act just like the ones I knew, only these wear funny clothes, and they can talk. Very important - the chickens lend themselves to speaking in a wobbly voice with a Southern accent (like all chickens do, of course). This is a big part of what makes the book so funny to us! The first time I read this book aloud to my kids (who were then 7, 5, and 3) we had to read it at least five times...big fun! If you like it, there's now a sequel called Big Chickens Fly the Coop, which, again, is big fun. Enjoy!

Just a Couple Erin Stories

I don't have much to say today. We've had a busy weekend and are very glad we get a bonus weekend day tomorrow.

I thought I'd just share a couple cute Erin stories. She's been really fun lately. The picture is from when we were bowling over Christmas break. She was very enthusistic about each turn she took and definitely put all 35 pounds of her weight behind each ball. What was so funny was she could never remember which two fingers went into the holes in the bowling ball. Each time it was her turn, she'd go running/jumping right up to the ball then she'd have to stop, turn around and yell back to us, "Is it these two fingers?", holding up two fingers of her bowling hand. She was right about half the time. It was so funny because she asked every time!

Today Matt Matt read Erin a story before her nap. (Naps are a love/hate thing for Erin. She'd really rather not have to stop and take them, but we really pay the price when she doesn't.) When Matt finished the story, he sort of laid back and closed his eyes...Erin saw he opportunity. She kissed Matt on the cheek, then said, "Good night, dear one," and tried to sneak out of the room! He caught her and the nap was taken...by her...and by him, eventually.

Flashback Friday #5

The blogger and her boyfriend

60's Day at Potomac Elementary

Spring, 1997

Thankful Thursday #4

Tonight I'm thankful for cold weather and warm memories. When we bought these sweatshirts at the Outer Banks last summer the temperature was close to 100... that would be a 100+ departure from our air tonight! In July, it was hard to believe we'd need these extra layers someday, but I knew that when we did, we'd be thankful for the bright colors and the sunny memories they evoked.

It is incredibly frigid out there tonight, but even that is a reminder of God's faithfulness to His promises.

"While the earth remains,

Seedtime and harvest,

And cold and heat,

And summer and winter,

And day and night

Shall not cease."

Genesis 8:22

On a lighter note, I have one more thing that I'm thankful for. Behold...

It's my laundry room floor! I knew it was down there somewhere. I finally found it today. It feels good to be caught up. Now nobody is allowed to change clothes for the next five days!

Father Ducks

You always hear about the Mother Duck... Here's a picture of Matt and the dad across the street leading the neighborhood brood down to the park for some sledding today. There's a total of five kids there! The Mama Ducks were home with the babies this year, but next year, there'll be seven kids in the line-up!



The report was that the sledding was OK. It's VERY cold and the floofy snow was sort of hard to plow through. We're loving it, though. Doesn't it look beautiful?

Matt's school had an early release today as the snow didn't arrive until after the buses ran in the morning. Maybe tomorrow will be the snow day.

There's a WHAT on my front porch?!

Most people don't know that Matt can ride a unicycle, (quite well, if I do say so) which made it all the more puzzling when a brand new one arrived with the UPS man today. The package was definitely addressed to him, but there was no clue whatsoever of who it was from! All the obvious suspects have been investigated, with no answers. It's such a fun mystery! We're gladly accepting clues if anyone can give them. The unicycle is much appreciated as Matt's current ride is at least 35 years old. Now he may have to learn some new tricks...just to prove he's not such an old dog!

Truth Tuesday #4

"...Your Word is truth." John 17:17

Artwork by Ellie

Fun Day!

Matt's school had a 2-hour delay this morning. We started our day on time, but then took a long break this afternoon to do a little of this...

...and this.

Snowy smiles all around!

Fun Bible Thing

We had a guest speaker at church last night who spoke on John Calvin and the Doctrines of Grace. Really good! Anyway, one of his asides that he mentioned was to read Ephesians, chapters 1-2, and circle all the pronouns. Believe me, it's more than just a grammatical exercise. I tried it this morning, and it was awesome.

I hope you don't spend one ounce of your energy today trying to do something to get into heaven. The work has already been done by the only One who could do it. Great news if you're saved by grace...and really great news if you're still trying to save yourself.

Bushel and A Peck

Some of our neighbors have a blog called "Bushel and a Peck" which I'm going to add to my sidebar blogroll. We're thankful for them for many reasons, one of which, is that they seem to be our partners in home repair. The tools and ideas seem to fly regularly between our two "vintage" homes. Just tonight they came to the rescue again with some salt so that we could get our van up our (very slight) incline and into the garage.

Our big snowstorm never materialized over the weekend. We only ended up with a little ice. However, it's been snow showering pretty steadily since about 3:00, so we're getting some fresh white today. Maybe enough for a delay? It certainly made the driveway slick! Better late than never, I guess.

Flashback Friday #4

Four years ago, this week...

View down our street

Our front yard

Can you see how THICK this ice was?

Thankful Thursday #3

Tonight I'm thankful for my weird kids. Actually, I should say, I'm thankful that kids are weird, and I get to live with four of them, whose unique brand of weird-ness I totally enjoy.

One aspect of their weird-ness (probably my favorite) is the way they play. We first started noticing this when Ellie got a little family of toy lions for her fourth birthday. Those lions were the only thing the kids played with for days after that! The lions were everywhere, having all kinds of adventures. Other animal families later joined them, but now all have been replaced by what the kids call "lizard'ns" and "frog'ns". They are these little rubber, stretchy lizards and frogs that we buy at Wal-Mart (88 cents for a pack of 15!). There are different colors and varieties in the packs, and the kids have names and character traits for each one. They even speak in different voices and accents! What's really funny is the kids think I know the names of each one. They'll come up to me and ask if I've seen "Susan Lizard'n"...as if I could tell Susan from any of the other 50 lizards! Lizard'ns and frog'ns are sort of like action figures and Barbie dolls rolled into one cheap, little, gender-neutral package, and they've provided hours of fun in this house. For more than a year now, they're about the only toys we've needed.

See? You just don't get that kind of weird with grown-ups.

I got this picture of what appears to be a lizard'n and frog'n pow-wow. Mode of transportation at the bottom right corner.

At Last!

Aaaahhhh...at last...some sledding snow!

Truth Tuesday #3

"...Your Word is Truth." John 17:17

"As for God, His way is blameless;
The word of the Lord is tried;
He is a shield to all who take refuge in Him.
For who is God, but the Lord?
And who is a rock, except our God,
The God who girds me with strength
And makes my way blameless?
He makes my feet like hinds' feet,
And sets me upon my high places."

Psalm 18:30-33

New Year's Picture

I just came across this picture when I was reviewing my camera card, and I think it's hilarious. It was taken about ten seconds after midnight, Jan. 1, 2009. (You can tell we were at a hoppin' party!) Looks like Joe's looking forward to a good year...

The Difference A Year Can Make

We un-decked the halls yesterday, which was great fun...

we heard a sermon on joy this morning, which was very convicting... and we're back to school tomorrow. I've been thinking about our Christmas vacation last year, which was when we very suddenly (long story) decided to begin homeschooling Ellie. The break was spent obtaining a curriculum, setting up the schoolroom, and, most of all, getting mentally adjusted to the idea of being homeschoolers. This break has been far more relaxing, to say the least. I'm thankful for the lessons learned over the past year, and for the fact that they were taught by the kindest and best Teacher. So, let our winter term begin! There's joy to be found in every moment.

"Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing." James 1:2-4

Flashback Friday #3

Joe and Ellie, January, 2003

Thankful Thursday #2

Today I'm thankful that my son loves my singing voice. I know as well as anyone that I can only carry a tune in a very large bucket, but he thinks I should be making my own CD's. I love it that when he's going to sleep at night, he begs me to sing him songs, and then always tells me how good the song sounded. Someday he may hear how limited my singing abilities are, but I hope he still has warm memories of our favorite bedtime songs. What a blessing to be a mother!