Winner Winner Chicken Dinner

The four middle children attended VBS last week. A great time was had by all of them and they got in some much needed social interaction. (Not to mention the spiritual food!)

At the end of the week, the leaders held a drawing for each grade level. The prize was a

souped-up, jungle-themed box that they had used for offering.

Ellie won the box for the 2nd grade group. Those of you who know Ellie know that she is the kid that always feels life is a little unfair, gets the short end of the stick, etc. She is the child that buys something and then wishes she would have bought the other item. You know the type.

Ellie also cherishes trinkets and keepsakes and "junk" more than any other member of the family.

She was thrilled to win.

And now she has a fancy box to store her treasures in!!

Summer Pics

Popsicle stains and getting the pool up and running. This was May. Now if only it would stop raining and warm up a bit!

June's Accomplishments

We have been out of school for over 3 weeks now. Every year I look forward to having lots of extra time during the summer to accomplish things I am not able to do while homeschooling.

So what have I done so far?

Nothing.

The days have been flying by in a haze of rain, sun, swimming, sandbox time, playing with friends, reading books, and just hanging around. At least, that is what the kids have been doing.

I think I will go make a list of things to try to accomplish before June is over with!!

*By saying I have done nothing, I should point out that I am always doing something. Just not anything "extra". The laundry hasn't been piling up and we are still eating. :)

Birthday Wishes

Happy 11th Birthday to Caleb!

My, how time flies.

(Birthday card by Maggie, age 6.)

Humming Alpacas

We recently took a mini-field trip to an alpaca farm. Prior to going, we spent some time researching and learning about the animals. One of the things we learned is that they make a humming sound. I couldn't quite catch it on video (Micah would not stop talking), but they really do hum. As we were listening to the teaching portion of the field trip, they stood behind us and hummed.

Strange. And a little annoying.

I have a twelve-year-old that constantly hums. Drives me nuts. I wonder if she even noticed that the alpacas were humming?

The Finish Line

(Rainy day school train)

It is in sight. The end-of-the-official-homeschool-year-finish-line. As much as I love homeschooling, I love finishing for the summer just as much. I know a lot of moms that "school year 'round". I am not one of those moms. I need my time to just be the mom and not be tied down to a schedule. It is refreshing for me and the kids!

That is not to say that the kids don't learn over the summer. I am certain that most days will include obscene amounts of coloring and reading. They (especially Glory) never tire of cutting, taping, stapling and gluing. We also throw in occasional math drills and keyboarding practice to keep things fresh. (Helps to avoid the lengthy review process when the fall school year begins again.)

Most of the subjects are done for the year already. Just have a little of this-and-that to complete. So, if I can just...hold...on...for...a...few...more...days. Then I can start getting ready for the next school year!

I'm Baaack!

The past couple of months have flown by and been so full that I just simply didn't have time to blog. I thought about blogging and planned things in my head. And then I promptly dropped into bed and fell asleep.

The thing is, I missed blogging. I cannot believe what a wonderful tool this has been to record the daily happenings of our household!

Here is a sampling of what has been shaking around here:

*After hubby fixed my washing machine, it died again. A dramatic and sad death. The same day that our shiny new stainless steel fridge was delivered. On that same day my laptop monitor died and I had to be without it for some time while it was being repaired. So now I have a new, beautiful set. Ahh. I liked doing laundry before, but I never knew how much I would love to have steam!

*Our well pump broke...had that replaced.

*Lots and lots and lots and lots of homeschooling.

*I started doing daycare for my niece, Anika. She was here most weekdays in April and now I will have her part-time. (Love having a baby around...now I know what it would have been like if we would have had 7 kids!)

I might be doing some "catch-up" posts, but until then, here are a few pics! (If anyone is still reading this blog, that is.)

Our microscope



Micah's 3rd birthday

Spring sprang. Let the lunches on the deck commence.

Easter 2010. In each picture of Glory, I realized that she only had one leg showing. So we took this shot for fun.

We had a SURPRISE 55th birthday party for my mom.

Took a trip to Duluth to visit Aaron's grandma and his brother's family.

Mini birthday party in Duluth. Logan and Glory are both 5 now, bdays two days apart.

Anika

Glory's 5th birthday cupcakes. Does anyone else love ganache??

Just in Time

My washing machine broke down. I nearly cried.

My three boys were able to fix it. I nearly cheered.

I was so thankful that they were able to fix it.

Before this happened.

Anybody else recognize the pale look of a puke-face?

(Ellie laying hands on Micah and praying for healing.)

Listening In

Today I was teaching Ellie and Maggie some of the names for the bones in the human body. Glory must have been paying attention. She was sitting next to me on the couch and playing with the abacus. I reached over and put my hand on her knee.

Glory said, "Don't touch my patella."

Really? Did she really say that to me?

I was a little offended. After all, she is only 4. Then I realized what she had said to me. She didn't tell me to stop touching her leg. She didn't even ask me to take my fingers off her knee. She ordered me to not touch her patella.

Glad somebody is listening!


Today, I heart homeschooling.

Wishing

I have an ongoing wish list for homeschooling. Actually, I have wish lists. I have a wish list on amazon.com, my public library, and rainbowresource.com. I keep a running page of what is working for us and what isn't. I am watching items in my Ebay. Half.com is my friend. I have Post-its on my computer with lists of things to look up and research. I have bookmarks and favorites on my internet pages galore. I lovelovelove all of the office and school products available.

I also have a decent level of restraint when it comes down to what I actually purchase. You see, wishing and purchasing are two different things. One requires a lot of money. And one doesn't.

But this baby is getting moved off of my sonlight.com wish list and into my virtual cart. We have been needing a good microscope for some time. And I finally found the one I want.

I have similar wishes about kitchen items. But that is a whole other post.

Blog Title

I have been racking my non-creative brain for a new blog title. One without our last name in it. When I began this blog, my only intent was to connect with family, close friends, and have a record of our busy days. I didn't know that the title of this blog would appear on my blogger profile or anywhere else. If I had known that, I would have spent a little more time and effort in coming up with something cute or witty.

I have changed the title to Peeking In On Our Family. I am hoping that it will not be the final title of this blog, but I haven't come up with anything better yet. So until I do (all suggestions welcome), please recognize that this is still the same blog. Minus the surname.

Wii Did It!

Aaron did not make the trip to work yesterday, due to winter driving conditions. So we decided to bribe the kids to get their homeschooling done before lunch by offering up a surprise. We bought a Wii for Valentine's Day, but the kids didn't know about it. (Well, technically Ellie knew because she overheard us talking about it. Little turd.)

A snowy Monday turned into a productive school day with plenty of time in the afternoon for playing Wii and playing out in the snow. We capped it off with a pancake/eggs/fried potato supper. It is so fun to be able to change up our day once in a while!

The downside is that everybody is sluggish today because of sore arms and legs from hours of playing. The mean mommy/teacher is still going to make them write and do school. A Wii hangover is not a good excuse!

I Heart Homeschooling (Most of the Time)

Today the wind is howling and the snow is blowing. The kids are all tired from staying up to watch the Vikings lose the opportunity to go to the Super Bowl.

I let them sleep in and declared a pajama day. They were still required to gather laundry, brush teeth, and apply deodorant.

I took extra time to teach Ellie and Maggie how to look up Scripture references in their own Bibles. (They loved it.)

Ellie and Maggie read a chapter of Magic Tree House out loud to me. (They learned about Pompeii and Mt. Vesuvius last week and now are wanting to explore further. We have researched on the internet and watched clips of volcanic activity. Caleb suggested a Magic Tree House title about Pompeii.) They then worked on their science journals and took apart the seedlings they were growing to tell me the parts of a plant.

Even with the extras, 85% of our school work was finished before lunch time. Now all we have left to do is make hot cocoa, read books and play games!

I do heart homeschooling. Most of the time.

Maggie, done with school but choosing to read a book over break time. What is she reading?? The Bible storybook we just finished.

Take note of the pajamas with black tights and boots, haha.

Oops. She caught me.

Highlights from Christmas 2009

Christmas came and went so quickly this time around! We always celebrate at Aaron's side on Christmas Eve day, our home on Christmas Eve and Christmas morning, and my side on Christmas day in the afternoon.

I didn't take as many pictures this year, but these are a few of the highlights that seemed to show the joy and glee that was felt around our home the entire Christmas break. Aaron stayed home for two weeks and we spent a lot of time just being together as a family. The snow was beautiful, the cooking and baking were great, and we felt God's hand of blessing, protection and provision the entire time!!

Christmas p.j. picture. Don't they all look so big this year??

Ellie was thrilled with each little trinket she received this year.

Micah is fixated on Thomas the train. Above: snuggling on the Thomas pillow.

Below: taking a "nap".

Ellie with cousins Rachel and Kelsey.

I have found that there is never enough time to get to all of the things that I need to do or want to do. That is the way it is and that is the way it will remain for the near (and maybe distant) future. At some point the kids will be grown and I will be able to keep the house clean for more than 5 minutes, read books, watch an entire movie in one shot, go on dates with my husband, and cook gourmet meals. Until then, this is it.

So bear with my irregular blogging! It is the best I can do. And something has to give, right? I am going to try to catch up with some of our 2009 holiday pics and homeschooling fun over the next week. Until then, here are a couple of shots of what has been keeping me away from blogging!

Maggie fell asleep at the kitchen counter after a night of puking.

Glory got caught playing in the bathroom, again! Can you tell she knows she is doing something she shouldn't be? Micah is her new "best friend". He was just along for the ride, but I think he may be learning some new tricks.

Does anybody else have a kid who cannot resist playing in the bathroom?!

Ready, Set, Bake!

I may have gotten a later start than normal this year, but the Christmas baking has begun!! I am trying some different things this year. Partly because I just like baking and cooking new things, and partly because I want to make things that I am able to resist.

So far we have done pecan bars, sugar cookies, molasses cookies, and spritz. I don't intend to be quite as ambitious as I was last year, but you never know. Sometimes baking has a way of taking over my life and spinning out of control!

***

I hope you are all finding some fun things to do to prepare for Christmas. We have also cut back from our regular homeschool schedule, but have chosen a couple of books to continue to use as read-alouds and readers. The younger kids are as excited as ever to skip ahead in Bible and read the Christmas story again. It never gets old or boring and we are all amazed each time we read it that God would send His precious Son the way that He did.

Just Chatting

Micah's vocabulary continues to explode and he is starting to have some interesting things to say. This is last night's conversation that he had with me.

Micah: You are my mommy.

Me: Yes, I am your mommy.

Micah: You're not a cow.

Me: No, I am not a cow.

Micah: You're not a pig.

Me: Nope.

Micah: You are a good, good mommy.

Me: Yes I am!

So sweet! And I am so happy that he knows I am neither a cow nor a pig. And by the way, did you know that a cow says, "Boooooo"?

And It's Only 7:30 in the Morning

Already this morning I have had to carefully explain, in ten-year-old-boy language, why Tiger Woods is constantly on the news and radio. Even though I change the channel and don't watch news with the kids around, they still seem to hear everything! (One of the advantages to homeschooling our children is that we have been able to keep them from knowing about "adult topics" prematurely.)

This morning Caleb said, "Tiger Woods, Tiger Woods. They are always talking about him!"

I finally told him that Tiger Woods has made some bad choices and that the media keeps talking about it. He couldn't understand that a car crash would be that big of a deal.

Hmmm. How do I explain Tiger's crappy behavior to a child who doesn't know about you-know-what?

I ended up telling him that Tiger is a married man with a family who chose to go on lots of "dates" with other women. I asked him to think about how he would feel if his daddy chose to "date" other women and kiss and hug them.

He wouldn't like that at all. I explained that this is not God's plan for families and that is why it is so sad.

He agreed. But not without adding, "But he's still the best golfer in the world."

***

Meanwhile, I gave Glory a choice of either milk or water with her pancakes and yogurt. Her answer? "Lemonade!"

Is it really only 7:30?

All I Want For Christmas

Maybe Maggie could wait until 2010 to get her two front teeth.

I love a toothless 6 year old!

My Eyes Is Hot

Micah woke up yesterday morning with a little temp, hoarse voice, and cough. His symptoms escalated throughout the day and into the night until he was wheezing and miserable. I feel badly for the little bugger; I don't know if he has ever really been sick before (thank You, Lord). I took him to the doctor this morning and he just has croup. It will pass. But in the meantime, he still is super cute. Here are a few of his comments to me:

*"My mouf (mouth) hurts."

*"My throat has a cough."

*"My juice hurts. Kiss it." Apparently the orange juice burned his throat. He proceeded to open his mouth wide and stick out his tongue. Sometimes he asks us to kiss his butt when his bottom is sore from a messy diaper. I do have my limits.

*"Sorry, Mom. Sorry, Mom. Sorry, Mom." He says this when he coughs hard.

*"I need to get a shop." He means shot. As in the H1N1 shot that keeps being discussed around our house.

And lastly, when in bed with me early this morning with a fever he said...
"My eyes is hot."