All the colors of the world

Rosie loves to cook and Rosie loves to sing. She recently got a new-to-her play kitchen that came with a new play phone.

So she was walking around chatting on the phone the other day. To her husband. On his birthday. So she was singing him his favorite song.

Jesus loves the little children
All the children of the world
Yellow, green, and black, and white
They are precious in his sight...

And she sang on, adding all sorts of colors, "all the colors of the world."

Did I mention she likes to improvise new lyrics when she sings?

Tax Day Tea Party

Find one near you! http://taxdayteaparty.com/ Tomorrow!

Happy Easter!

Can you see Anna's toothless smile?

She lost her second front tooth on Saturday. :^)

A Rainbow Birthday Party

Anna Kate spied a rainbow cupcake cake at Walmart

a couple of months ago, and decided that she wanted

a rainbow party.

After watching Noah's Ark the kids came up to eat cupcakes

and tie-dye ice cream

" Pin the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow"

The boys high-tailed it to Ethan's bedroom while the

girls headed to the playroom to enjoy Anna Kate's new

I Want to be a Hula Dancer and Wear a Flower Lei! DVD

Painting watercolor rainbows - they then added foam

flower and animal stickers, several painted arks as well

After opening presents, they all got a pack of glow

necklaces in rainbow colors.

Some friends slept over and the Lucky Charms and

simple version virgin Tequila Sunrise (make your own

by adding some grenadine to your glass of orange juice)
completed the rainbow theme.

Dinner tonight

was yummy. Brian's been watching food network shows and clips on hulu lately and Paula Dean hooked him with this recipe. The red onion mayo was so much better (and milder) than I anticipated.

Anna Kate's Birthday Letter

I've been not getting these done, so it's fifteen minutes to midnight on her birthday, and here it goes:

April 1, 2009

Little Anna bird,

I really can't believe that you're already six! (I bet I say that every year, just with a different number). As usual there have been so many new things and great events and accomplishments. Most recently, you've just finished kindergarten and lost your first tooth, and the second one is loose! So now you're a reader. And you've become a pretty good independent learner too, thanks to my being sick the whole school year.

You had your first meal at KFC and probably your first taste of real fried chicken this year (courtesy of growing up in a gluten-free home), and were spastic about the whole thing. Said it was the best food ever and that you could never get too full there, and that you wished there was no such thing as money so that you could eat there every day. Your a real foodie, and your enthusiasm and brightness infuses our lives with so much joy.

You're still a grits girl, from your love for the actual thing, to your cute Southern pronunciations. You think you're a tomboy, but I think you're just a Southern belle - all girly on the outside and steel on the inside.

You and Ethan and Rose love each other so much. Of course, sometimes you try to kill each other, but usually it's just so fun watching you all troop around together. And I get a kick out of you girls taking turns being Ethan's wife or daughter to play a family. And that you always want to sleep in the same room so that none of you has to be alone.

Barbies have been a staple toy again this year, and your dolls and animals are frequent company, but as usual, your interests are the hardest to peg, because you remain the social butterfly flitting from person to person and eager to just join in on whatever is happening.

The exception to that would be dancing - you love it. You may not always want to be a Miss Louise's, but your theme song could definitely be, "Gotta Dance" because any strain of music sets you in motion. You love hula, tap, ballet, waltzing with Ethan, doing contra dancing at a festival, calypsoeing on a boat at Chingoteague, and just plain jammin'.

And both of you girls love Paula Dean. This cracks me up too, but you are just as thrilled to watch an episode of her show as you are to watch a princess movie (probably more). The lady is funny, though, and you're right, she loves butter. You like Jon and Kate Plus 8 too - you watch it with Gran, but I have to say that here we diverge. Kate really irritates me.

You are kind and stubborn, sassy and sweet, beautiful and bold.

You love to do Bible studies with Daddy, and he loves having you snuggled up next to him. You have such a quick mind and retain information so very well. You are a joy to teach.

Board games have been a hit this year too. Trouble and Monopoly Jr. are at the top of the list right now. Daddy and I have so much fun playing games with you guys, and you're never a sore loser.

And all three of you are artists like your dad. You're a creative soul, and I was so impressed with your school drawings this year.

You're on the brink of more great events. You've been itching to be baptized for at least a couple of years now, and finally it's happening in just a few weeks. The tooth fairy is going to be handing out lots of new charms for that bracelet she gave you. The pink princess room is almost a reality. And I believe that I'm going to watch an independent reader emerge. Just don't grow up too fast.

I bet I'll think of lots more to add, and so will Daddy, but if this is truly the end of the letter, know sweet girl that we love you so much, and more and more every year. You are the spark plug of my life, crazy baby.

Love,

Mommy

Happy Birthday, Anna Kate!

She had her requested cherry poptarts for breakfast, spent the morning playing, then picked out her birthday cake. She's having cupcakes at her Friday night party, so she chose a cheesecake assortment. On to KFC to pick up lunch, then her first visit to Monkey Joe's. They had a blast, but those inflatable play places are SO LOUD! Back at home we had a baked ziti supper with Gran and Pa, gift opening, and the cheesecake finale. Not a bad birthday.

making a wish

Maternity clothes

I have been very blessed in my maternity clothes shopping. Most of the pieces I'm wearing this time around are new for this pregnancy. My maternity clothes from Anna and Ethan were mostly too small :^( and I borrowed most of my clothes for Rose's pregnancy from two friends. One has since gotten rid of all of her maternity clothes and the other is due a month after me.

So I needed to by some new stuff. I found some really nice dresses at a consignment sale for a fraction of their original prices. Most of the rest I found at my favorite thrift store and other consignment stores, usually for $1-5 a piece.

I prefer the underbelly waistlines - so much more comfortable and fewer lines showing - plus they fit sooner and can be worn postpartum, provided one can find long enough tops, however right now fashion is working in my favor. I actually found a number of cute spring skirts and dresses, as well as lots of capri/flood pants.

Also I've tried a new thing - the maternity belly band. I should have bought a stack - it's so handy, especially right now, when my belly keeps wanting to show. But at $20 a pop they rattle by budget sensibilities. I have a black one right now, though, and I'm really considering ordering a lighter color fast because I really think they're going to be very handy for nursing too - that and to hide the fact that I'll probably be wearing maternity pants way longer postpartum than is respectable. :^)

See I've entered the problem weeks. You know, the last several weeks where the tops that were previously unwearable tents are suddenly the only tops that cover your waistband. And all of those really cute tops are way too short. Half the pants no longer go over the belly at all (even the little bit they're supposed too). Then compound that by the fact that all of this much needed rain is making the temperatures much too cool to wear the capris and dresses that were bought to be larger.

So lately I've been frequently begging the dryer to hurry and dry the one pair of pants that are clean and fit so that I can get to my appointments on time.

Hurry warm weather - I want to wear all of those cute spring clothes a few times - but then, if that doesn't work out, maybe no one will notice that they're pregnancy clothes when I'm still wearing them in July!

Weekend Getaway

We've been planning this trip for a while (it was our Christmas/my birthday gift). We'd planned to go in January, but then my grandmother died and we went to PA again, and I was still feeling so lousy that we postponed it. This weekend we finally got away while the getting was good. At nearly 34 weeks I was running out of time. The predicted weather in the area was cooler than ideal and we finally decided on Gatlinburg, TN and made reservations the morning of the day we left. So it was a little crazy.

I don't sleep at night anymore. Reflux/heartburn pretty much makes that a fruitless endeavor until about 4 AM. By then, I've either attempted sleep and thrown up enough to sleep, or my dinner has completely digested. So Friday was a typical day, in that I was exhausted and unintentionally fell back to sleep for a couple of hours around lunch, which puts all the homeschooling behind... Brian was so sweet. He got home by 4PM and was just so happy to be going that he didn't mind that I'd finally gotten the kids packed and off to their Gran's and cheerfully helped me pack. So we left after six, much later than I'd planned.

But the whole drive there is lovely. We stopped about an hour away from our destination at a local seafood place and enjoyed our meal (even if mine did have an incredibly short life span), then wound through the last wooded leg in the dark behind a slow SUV, undoubtedly driven by a woman, as she was very hesitant and spent most of the time straddling the yellow line as she rounded mountain curves. It was only on the trip back that we partially forgave her after seeing the 200 foot drops on the sides of some of those curves that had no guardrails. :^)

We finally arrived at our perfect and lovely motel. We checked in, built a fire in the fireplace, and relaxed.

the buildings to the right are our motel,

our building is the one hidden in the trees

wish I'd gotten a real fire shot - we really enjoyed it -

except the night that it got wayyyy too hot, and we had

to turn on the air conditioner and open the balcony door and

wait an hour until I could stand to be in the room again. :^)

Each morning they delivered delicious homemade donuts to

our door. Breakfast in bed - heaven!


View from the aerial tram we rode up, then back down the mountain
Yep, we're suspended on those cables




balcony view

and view from the balcony

We spent the next day wandering the strip, napping (well, I napped, as my nights were unfortunately following their usual pattern), and generally enjoying each other's company. The weather, felt much warmer than it should have and was really quite perfect for this overheated mama. And we were both so happy to return to our nice crackling fire.

The ride home was beautiful! We followed this stream through

national park for the first leg.

When we left the stream behind, the mountain views were gorgeous.

Scripture and Education

I just got back from a lovely weekend away with my Brian. But I've had a serious shake-up in my world this past week. I've tried to be open-minded concerning educational choices that I consider to be less than ideal, but after hearing a family's testimony that really struck me as wholly wrong, I have been contemplating and researching his even more and I'm just not feeling as open minded. I have no desire to be judgmental, but I am becoming very concerned with what seems to be a lack of biblical dialogue on what Scripture truly does have to say about educational choices. And if those choices are really so open to private opinion. I have a lot that I have sorted through, and I'm not sure how much I want to throw out here, but I'm just going to start with some scripture. I'd love to hear your opinions on how they do or do not apply to the type of education Christian parents can consider for their children. At the very least, they are food for serious thought.

Deuteronomy 11:18 “Therefore you shall lay up these words of mine in your heart and in your soul, and bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. 19 You shall teach them to your children, speaking of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up (NKJV)

What is the best way to do this?
I recommend this article for some interesting insights and statistics. There are lots of rather consistent statistics out there on varying educational results, but verifying original sources has proven to be obnoxiously difficult.

Luke 6:39 He also told them a parable: "Can a blind man lead a blind man? Will they not both fall into a pit? 40 A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his teacher.

Can a parent reasonably expect to have more influence than another teacher the child listens to for the majority of his day?


2 Corinthians 6:14 Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? 15 And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? 16 And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God.

I've most often heard this applied to marriage, and then to business partnerships. Only this past week did I see someone apply this to education. Do you think that this is valid? Can you work together with an unbelieving, Christ-denying teacher/institution/system to educate you children? When is this unbiblical?

I have lots of questions, and not as many answers.

Give me some feedback.

St. Patrick's Day Food

Today we're having:

for breakfast: Lucky Charms with the milk the leprechauns turned green

for lunch; something with honeydew

for dinner: corned beef and cabbage - might have to throw it in the slow cooker and lime kool-aid mixed with ginger ale

for dessert: mint chocolate chip ice cream sundaes with St. Patrick's Day sprinkles

I'm keepin' it simple this year.

Here are some good Irish recipes from Betty Crocker:

Peanutty Good Luck Snack

Reuben Casserole

Slow Cooker Old-World Corned Beef and Vegetables

Saint Patrick's Day Activites

1. Draw a face on the leprechaun at Crayola.
2. Try the mazes from beginner to complex at Kid's Domain.
3. Cute printable preschool workbook from Giggly Games.
4. Read about who Patrick really was as well as his actual writings at A Joyful Heart.
5. Make some pot of gold jello and clover cupcakes from Family Fun.
6. Make and hang the shamrock shimmers at Nestle's Very Best Baking.
7. Find a dancing fairy and other lovely paper crafts at the Toymaker.
8. Choose a celtic cross coloring page at Apples4theTeacher.
9. Try pepper painting shamrocks.
10. Print sweet bookmarks at Jen Brett's website.
11. Do your copywork on St. Patty's handwriting paper from BillyBear4Kids.
12. Make a leprechaun friend at Making Friends.
13. Complete the wordsearch from The Family Corner.

Originally published March 11, 2007

John Stossel on the Bailout

ht to Jim Demint

Hello, again

My sister wanted to know where I've been. I've actually been pretty sick. Just a really miserable combo of nausea and heartburn and fatigue. But I had a good weekend and am hoping for a better week. We had snow, now we have beautiful weather - 80 today! We only have a couple weeks of school left - and lots to do to finish that up and get ready for baby. All of which would be much simpler if I felt better more often. This has not been an easy school year and we didn't accomplish a lot of things that I had wanted to, but we have a long spring and summer to do art and read books and catch up some things painlessly.

The girls' room is slowly transforming into a princess room. I still don't know if I'm going to use the real crib or a porta crib or if I'll just put the porta crib in my room. The kids bedrooms are 10x10 - not really made for three kids in one room. My room isn't much bigger at 10x12. So we've got a lot to sort through and rearrange - which is once again difficult to do when this pregnancy will apparently not even leave me one good month to do it in.

I am, however, at 32 weeks now, and am just so glad to see an end in sight. The warmer weather and having out spring and summer maternity clothes makes it seem even closer. We're still working on that name thing too. I'm afraid to even tell people what we're considering anymore, because just about the time I think it's the keeper, it changes again...

And I am so hot! Not in the way I wish either. This girl is like my own personal furnace. I've never been this hot during a pregnancy - even with Rose, who was born in July! I feel like I'm constantly having hot flashes.

The kids are finally over all the colds, I think, and I'm slightly ashamed to admit that we completely skipped out on church yesterday because the flu is going around there like crazy, and that is just not a good idea right now.

Well, enjoy all the pics to catch you up on life around here, and I'll try not to be a stranger.

St. Patrick's Day Festival

We love this annual downtown festival. The kids enjoyed crafts, lots of free bling, and the balloon man, and we all enjoyed the Irish music and dancing. The food smelled wonderful, but we ate before we went.

March Snow

We had a late snowfall last Sunday. A March snowfall after the daffodils and Bradford pears were in bloom. The only other snowfall we had this year was about an inch that lasted about half an hour before melting. The kids were thrilled and Daddy got to stay home from work and play too. The snow wasn't much good for snowballs, snowmen, or snow angels, but they enjoyed sledding at the park right down the street and all of the icicles and ice sheets, and we finally got to make sugar on snow (sorry, I forgot to take pictures of that).

Cub Scouts

Ethan started Cub Scouts a few weeks ago and loves it. He earned his first badge after about two weeks.

Ron Paul on Glenn Beck

February 24, 2009




* ht to http://blog.yaliberty.org/

Lent begins

I've been looking for some good Lenten resources for my family to prepare for Easter. They're not easy to find. Then this morning, Freebie of the Day sent me a link for Lenten Tree ebook : Lent Activities for the Family. It has 49 simple activities and a tree to count down the days of Lent. You can download it for free from the author's blog Sharing the Journey. I also have another book coming through Amazon. I had it shipped expedited, and this is the 7th day of the "1-7 days" that expedited shipping is supposed to take. The post office isn't exactly known for its punctuality any more, but I'm hopeful that it will arrive today.

The Song on the Radio Yesterday...

...that made me cry. :^)