The Big Green Pocketbook

Here are a few pics of K's lapbook he did. The Big Green Pocketbook by Candice Ransom is a good book about a little girl running errands with her mom.

We talked about the color green, the letter L, being a good samaritan, and patience. K also got to type his name in lowercase and capital letters.

Here's a pic of his completed lapbook:

Blueberries for Sal

Last week, we started our week with Blueberries for Sal by Robert McCloskey. We only did it a few days when K decided he wanted to do The Big Green Pocketbook again.

Baby L got to taste blueberries for the first time. She seemed to like them. No, I didn't give her the entire blueberry, but just the juicy center.

K also got to practice his math skills by putting in and taking out blueberries of his "pail".

We didn't use his actual tin pail like Sal's, b/c I couldn't find it. We finally found it this weekend.

We also studied the seasons by making a booklet with all four seasons in it. We cut the tree out of brown construction paper and then K added other "snow", "colored leaves" falling , or flower stickers to the pic. It turned out cute. I know he learned something b/c he mentioned the leaves falling off the trees outside today.

toddlers, markers, & glue

I was somewhere the other day and it was brought to my attention that K was walking around with a pair of scissors. I didn't think anything of it because he knows the scissor rules (not to run while holding them & they're for cutting paper) and he had been using them while he was helping me. I did have him put them up though. He didn't understand why at first. Then I explained to him there were kids there that aren't allowed and don't know how to use scissors. To me, this is another Deuteronomy lesson. We should always be teaching our kids.

I was amazed how many 4yos in my Sunday School class last night are not allowed to or have never used glue sticks at home. I know I tend to be a pretty laid back mom, but I didn't realize I was that laid back. Why is it more parents don't let their children use them, even if it's supervised? I guess I find it surprising since I bought K his own paint, glue sticks, markers, and scissors for his 2nd Christmas. I even have them stored somewhere he can reach them whenever he wants. He really enjoys art and crafts and it not only allows his imagination to soar, but it keeps him productively busy.

When did you let you kid(s) start using their own scissors and glue?

whew...

It's truly been a ferris wheel of a week and I think there's more ups and downs to come this week. Last week was a little hectic and very busy. I'm not really sure how we managed to get any "school" done, but we did and K actually learned a lot, including practicing patience.

I finally completed the bulk of work for our local homeschool association's directory and membership cards. Now, I just need to mail the ones that have not been picked them up.

M and I went to the movies with some other couples last night to watch Fireproof. I thought it was a very good christian movie. God and praying was very dominate in the movie. I was excited to see how packed it was and it got an ovation at the end. It's a movie that I think all couples should watch together. It will challenge you as a person, a christian, a spouse, and a parent. At least it challenged me. It was a good way to end the week.

This week will be full of fun! K is going to start taking swim classes twice a week (Tue and Thur), and we have two friends that are going to have babies. One is going in Mon. night and the other has scheduled a C-section for Thur. I'm going to document the c-section on Thur. It should be a very interesting yet busy week, but full of lots of blessings.

Enjoy your week and may blessings abundantly flow your way!

Thank you!

I have a wonderful God!

Thank you Lord for giving me another beautiful day to share and create memories with my loved ones. I've been blessed with two incredible children and I couldn't be more grateful. I have a wonderful husband that works hard to enable me to stay home with the kids. Thank you for each and every blessing you have given me.

Amen

homeschool gymnastics

Today was a fun day! Although we did read some books and learn a few things (I think), most of our day was spent doing gymnastics.

We still have our air mattresses in the living room blown up from when cousin A stayed with us last week. While I was printing some things on the computer, K says to me, "Look mom!" As I turn to look, I see him running across our tile floor and doing a flip onto the mattress. He did pretty good. At least I was impressed.

As he improved, he decided to up his skill level. Next thing I knew, he was flipping off the coffee table onto the mattress. At first, he used his hands to catch him as he flipped. I couldn't help but smile as I became his cheerleader, giving him confidence with each flip.

As he gained confidence, he decided to try it with no hands. I have to say... he did rather well. This alternative definitely beats paying $50 a month to let my 3 yo run around playing with other kids. Just put a air mattress on the floor and let them have fun.

A lesson learned

The other day, K, baby L, and I were outside playing in the yard while we were waiting for their daddy to come home. It was a beautiful day and I was hanging out with baby L while K ran his dump truck up the trees. As a homeschooler, I saw a perfect opportunity to talk about gravity and it's effects. So, we did. It was a short lesson, but an imprint and a beginning.

We talked about why his dump truck falls down to the ground when he drives up a tree and lets go. Not really knowing if he understood or really cared, he went off to run his dump trucks over hills. A little while later he asked me, "Mom, why does my dump truck go on it's side when I drive?" I replied, "because you're driving silly." To which K replied, "No..., it's because I'm not driving correctly."

Of course! What was I thinking? Silly me!

Don't blink!

It happened... The very first MOPS (Mother of PreSchoolers) meeting was today. It went really well. We had a wonderful speaker, Karen Theriot from New Orleans. She has two grown children that now have families of their own. She spoke about the Adventures of Motherhood. She compared motherhood to a theme park and it was great. Here are some of the rides she compared motherhood to:

Roller Coaster
A new mom's first year, full of twists and turns. Holding on tightly but always making it to the end. She pointed out that roller coasters seat more than one person because they're not made to ride alone. It's ok to need and actually ask for help when you need it.

Ferris Wheel
On average, they're 90 feet high. The view from the top is breath taking. It's the moments you never want to forget.

Tunnel of Love
We know what that is reference too. As busy as we moms are, we should never forget the most important relationship, next to God, in our lives - our husband. We should make time to nurture it and develop it.

Bumper Cars
She mentioned the law of cause and effect. You have to wear you seat belt and even if you car stalls, you can't get off until the attendant tells you. Everything we do has a cause and effect and some things slam you around more than others, but eventually the bumping comes to an end.

Then there is the ride home.... this is the best ride because it allows you to savor the memories that were made with your loved ones. The rides only last for a moment, but the memories last forever.

At the end, she mentioned that you shouldn't blink. Your preschooler that is holding his/her Fisher Price keys in the backseat of your car will one day be holding his/her keys to their own vehicle and driving themselves around. Don't blink!!!

I remember when I brought K home from the hospital. Now, he's 3 and baby L is almost 6 months. It happens so quick.

Don't blink!!!

Nana's stay

Baby L, Cousin A, Nana, & K

Cousin A & K sleeping in a "tent" in the living room. (It had already fallen at this point.)

Tears of Joy

Have you ever had a day that was so good you could cry tears of joy? I've had good days, but never one that was as busy as today that went as well and calmly.

It all started with Baby L and I waking up at 7 a.m. We were the only ones awake, so I was able to get us both ready before starting breakfast. As I made breakfast for everyone, she played in her bouncer and just had a good time watching me. Shortly thereafter, Nana came in the kitchen and turned on the radio to listen to her local news to find out what was going on. As soon as I put breakfast on the table, the older two kids woke up in great moods and ate breakfast and got dressed.

With everyone up, fed, and dressed, I still had a few extra minutes before I needed to leave to go to BSF. I actually arrived a few minutes early. On my way there, my best friend called me to let me know she found a great sale on summer clothes for K and she bought me 8 pairs of shorts and a shirt for under $10. Who doesn't love a good sale?

After BSF, I had a small errand to run and then I returned home to relieve my mother-in-law of her babysitting duties. They left, and K and I ate a little food and then got ready for swimming class with other homeschoolers.

Today was his first day and to be honest, I didn't even think he would get in the pool without me. I was WRONG! Not only did he get in the pool without me or a life jacket, but he told Ms. Trudy he could swim to her. Looking on in disbelief, I was even more shocked when he came back up, after sinking, that he didn't cry. He's just now getting to where he doesn't get upset when water gets in his eyes when he takes a shower. He ended up going under water 3 times. I'm still in disbelief...

After swim class, we came home. He told me he was hungry, so he ate. After he finished eating, we turned on a movie and in less than 10 mins, he was out cold. 1.5 hours later, I buckled him into his car seat while he was still sleeping and he woke up just as we got to the church to help set up for our first MOPS (Mother of PreSchoolers) meeting tomorrow. We were there for 2 hours and he was wonderfully good. We came home, he ate, took a bath, we read a book, and he went to bed. There was no yelling, no screaming, not fits.

It truly was a wonderful day!

MOMS

Moms are people that should never be left feeling unappreciated. At least mine are. I am blessed to not only have a wonderful mom that showed me ultimate love by her generous spirit and loving spirit, but I also have a great mother-in-law that is gentle in her ways and has unfailing love.

Ike has been a very unfortunate experience for thousands, maybe millions, of people, but our family has felt a slight bit of benefit from it. Albeit, it might have been inconvenient at times, but you don't have to look far to see the silver lining.

My mother-in-law and sis-in-law both lost electricity b/c of Ike. Since we were fortunate to have never lost power, my mother-in-law and 7 yo niece stayed with us. K was surprised to see his Nana and his cousin at our house when we got home from his Granny Nee's b/c of the evacuation. What a blessing it was to have them both stay with us. K loved playing w/ his cousin, she loved playing with baby L, and I enjoyed having the extra help around the house and an adult to interact with.

During their stay, Nana even watched all 3 kids so I could go to a baby shower. When I called her afterwards to let her know I was on my way, she told me to take my time. That's something that should never be said to a mom that rarely is without both kiddos. I ended up being gone for 4 well needed hours.

When I got home she informed me they had electricity again. Before she knew they had power, she had offered to watch the kids (again) the next day so I could attend BSF (Bible Study Fellowship). When I found out she had power and my father-in-law was back in town, I told her not to feel obligated to stay, but she did. She said she needed a break too. She was going to be going home to a house with newly restored power and a husband that has been on a month long hunting trip in New Mexico. I could understand and I appreciated it too.

So, whether you are blessed to have wonderful moms (and dads) like I do, or the only thing you can honestly be thankful for is the fact she gave you birth, be thankful. She could have chosen the alternative.

Here's a pic of Granny Nee with her two youngest grandkids during Hurricane Ike evacuation. K is being silly, as usual. As much as he loves the camera, he loves showing off a little bit more. As much as we all pray that damage isn't done during Hurricane "season", my mom loves the company and "spoiling" the kids.

Ike has come and gone

Ike has come and gone and the damage done was hit and miss. I've seen quite a few pics of the Lake Charles area. Although it doesn't look as though a bomb hit it, like when Rita passed, there was a lot more flooding with Ike than there was with Rita.

Apparently our house did well and there was no damage. We were fortunate that we didn't lose power. Lake Charles area residents that lost power were sporadic. There were a few people that work with my husband that got water in their homes. One guy got 5 feet of water inside his house.


I'm still at my mom's right outside of Paris, TX. Ike is supposed to be coming this way in the next couple of hours. The weather up to this point hasn't been bad. It's been mild enough for K to play in and we're all hanging outside on the porch right now.

Ike has come and gone and it never got so bad that we weren't able to play in the rain, something I used to love to do as a kid. We took a few pics, but unfortunately they didn't come out good.

Memories & Good habits

I got a call this morning a 7 am and it wasn't from our lawn guy letting me know he was at my house. It was my husband calling me from work letting me know that I needed to start packing b/c Ike was heading our way. Up until this point, I was planning on going to BSF, had it not been cancelled, taking K to his 1st swimming lesson, and then attending a homeschooler's Mom's night out. *Sigh*

So, as baby L was waking up, I started packing. Fortunately, I hadn't done laundry yet, so I didn't pack as much. I had a full hour to pack, feed the baby, check my e-mails, and start loading the car while K slept. About one hour later, he woke up and I started packing his stuff. As I was trying to pack his stuff, load the car, and feed him breakfast, he quickly reminded me of the important things in life.

"Mommy, you have to read me my book while I'm eating breakfast or I'm going to eat w/out you reading to me."

Something so simple, made me stop and realize what's really important, memories and good habits. We've made a habit of reading books any time we are at the table. If someone comes over to eat with us, they can expect that they'll get a story too. Each and every time we read together, we're creating a wonderful memory that can't be bought. He doesn't understand that I'm trying to beat the traffic so we won't have to be in it for 10 hours, but he feels more loved b/c I stopped what I was doing to read him a story about Jonah and the whale.

You know, our trip took longer in time b/c I took my time, but I was blessed. Both kids were absolutely wonderful. I believe I was blessed on our trip, b/c I took the time to show K how important he was to me. Not only did I enjoy the new memory we made, but it truly made me stop and relax. God is in control!

If God doesn't turn His back on me when I seek Him, who am I to think I can turn my children away when they seek me.

"...Let the children come to me. Don't stop them! For the Kingdom of God belongs to those who are like these children." Mark 10:14

Well Rested

YEAH!!! I think I may have figured it out... how to get more sleep that is. Baby L was getting to where she waking up every hour or two. I couldn't figure out why she was waking up so much, especially since she had been sleeping through the night. I decided to put her in her car seat for the night and what do you know... she didn't wake up until 4 a.m. YEAH!! I get to sleep again. Although I cherish every waking moment with her, even at 2, 3, 4, & 5 a.m., it's nice to finally get to sleep more than an hour at a time again.

Be thankful for what you have... God gave it to you!

Here it goes...

I've been contemplating starting a blog for about 2 months now. Finally, it's here and I'm doing it.... I decided to start blogging b/c I have SO much on my mind and don't always get to share it with someone. I spend my days with my two beautifully energetic kids, a 3yo boy, K & a 5 mo girl, L. You can only imagine the adventures we have and the fun things we do each and EVERY day. Here it is only Tues. and we've been fishing, owl hunting, and snail creeping. I'll add pics when I figure out how...

I'm hoping to share some of the many adventures on here from time to time.

Keep checking back as I continue to learn what I am doing.


*God Bless*