Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Merry Christmas!

"And on the very first Christmas Day, God said to you, 'I love you more than anything in this universe!' " ~ From Ytreeide's Advent Storybook, "Jotham's Journey"

Sunday, December 20, 2009

Winter Storm

K trying to get down from the front porch.

We are estimating we got around 20 inches at our house.

T wanted to see how deep the snow was. He used his arms to measure it.

L climbing up one of the big drifts.

The children finally made their way around to the back yard.

The children love the snow and spent a lot of time out in it today. I guarantee they will be out in it tomorrow too!


Saturday, December 19, 2009

Christmas Packages

Thanks to Mrs. Jimmie Ruth, Lauren LOVES her gummies. Whenever a package in the mail arrives from our sweet friend in Arkansas, she knows there will be gummies inside!


Thanks Mrs. Jimmie Ruth! We love you!

Wednesday, December 9, 2009

Christmas Tree Decorating

Once all the snow melted and the tree was dry, we began to decorate.

The children each get a new ornament every year, and they also make homemade ones too. Each year I love to hear them pull them out and reminisce and ask us questions about when they got certain ones, or how old they were when they made the ornaments. One day when they are grown and have homes of their own, they will get to take all their ornaments with them.


Dad and I picked up a cute Christmas ornament while we were in New York City last week. I like it!


T, K, and L enjoy decorating the tree, and we were done in no time!



Sunday, December 6, 2009

Christmas Tree Cutting

The beautiful snowfall we had yesterday created a beautiful opportunity for us to go to a local tree farm, choose and cut down our own Christmas tree.


The children sat on the hay bales and waited for the tractor and wagon to come pick us up and take us to the field where we could find a beautiful Douglas-Fir.

L's favorite part of the day was not getting the tree, but riding on the wagon.


We hopped off the wagon, and within minutes we found the tree we wanted.

Dad cut and cut and cut while K held back the branches. He almost gave up, but K cheered him on. He wanted to stop mid-way through (not really) but K told him, "You've already started cutting down this tree, you have to finish."


Mom and the kids posing by the tree after we all yelled, "Timber!"

K pulled the wagon the whole way to the van.


But she wasn't any help when it came time to tie the tree down to the top of our van.


Saturday, December 5, 2009

The Boy in the Kitchen

T helped me out in the kitchen during our Saturday homemade pizza night. He told me he thought a bacon pepperoni pizza would be good, so I let him make it.




First Snow of the Season


The children enjoyed getting out and playing in the snow today! We just returned home with them around 1am this morning. It was a special treat for them to be welcomed back to a winter wonderland at their home.

T said the only thing that could make this day MORE perfect is if it was Christmas Day so he could open the presents that Grandma sent home with us! But, the beautifully wrapped packages will stay under the tree until Christmas morning (much to his dismay).






Thursday, December 3, 2009

Thanksgiving 09

We loaded up the minivan and visited our families in Missouri for a few days. The drive from our home to Southwest Missouri is 17 hours. When Dad is behind the wheel you stop for two reasons: to get gas and to go to the bathroom. Seriously, he doesn't want to waste prime driving time for dilly dallying around restaurants and convenient stores! Our first day of driving we spent 11 hours in the car, and ate packed lunches and snacks in the car. Once we got to the hotel, the children enjoyed playing in the pool while Dad picked up a pizza for us. The second day of driving was only around 6 hours, and this day of driving seemed like nothing to the kids!


As I type this the children are actually still in Missouri. We will meet Grandma tomorrow at a certain location along I-70 to get them back. Grandma volunteered to watch them for a few days because Dad surprised me (Mom) with a day trip to New York City for our 10th wedding anniversary. Plus, Grandma had not had the children since July 2008. The children enjoy spending time with her because she has a fun yard to play in with trees and tree stumps to climb on, a dog, some cats (one cat that used to be ours), and some horses. On the return trip back home, since it was just Heath and I, we drove straight through.

Time with Mommy's Family



Time with Daddy's Family
Here's one picture from our NYC Trip


Our Thanksgiving trip is over, our trip to New York city is over, and we go pick up the kids tomorrow. So, it's "back to life, back to reality" come Sunday morning. When the children return home we will do the basics in school (reading, writing, and math) everyday. Along with our school work, we will start our Advent traditions, decorating, and baking!

Friday, November 20, 2009

Thanksgiving Homeschool Club Field Trip!

On Wednesday, November 18th, the children and I enjoyed a fun field trip with our Learning and Fun Club friends. We all met at a local church and had a Thanksgiving feast, made a Thanksgiving craft, and then we went to Nixon Park to learn how animals prepare for the winter. We also brought donations for a local food bank to help families in our area have the food they need for this holiday season.


L and K enjoying their Thanksgiving feast



L, K, and T posing for a picture for Mom before leaving Nixon Park



Wednesday, November 11, 2009

Happy Birthday!



My sweet little middle child is 7-years-old today.
She is loving, thoughtful, creative, and kind.
She loves to sing, draw, and write her own stories and poems.
She is learning to cook and wants to learn how to sew.
When she grows up she wants to be a veterinarian.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SWEET GIRL!!!!

Monday, October 26, 2009

October Homeschool Highlights

The children practiced some of the Christmas songs they're learning for children's choir at church. While they were practicing, they decided it would be fun to put on a Christmas Concert for their Dad one day when he got home from work. They made a sign, and even made him a ticket. T played the drums, L played the maracas, and K sang and played the tambourine.

For Science we've been having a lot of fun studying the solar system! The children put together this cool notebook page that shows you the order of the planets from the sun.

The children loved math this day. The lesson involved candy. Of course when they were done with the lesson, they got to eat their candy.


Saturday, October 24, 2009

Learning to Serve


The weekend of October 9th and 10th, our church participated in a service project called "Feed the Hungry." On Friday night the girls and I went to church and helped pack sack lunches, and K helped sort the socks, hats, and gloves that were also passed out. On Saturday night, Dad and T went and helped pass out the food, to pray with people, and to share Jesus with people if the opportunity was given. As parents, we want our children to learn how to serve. Jesus didn't come to be served, but to serve (Mt. 20:28).

Matthew 25:35-40

35For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'

37"Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you?39When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?'

40"The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'

Friday, October 9, 2009

Homeschool Picture Day

We have now lived in PA for 13 months. I am still amazed by the rich history and beauty of this state! On Tuesday, we visited a gorgeous place. We are in a club called Learning and Fun. It is a group of homeschool families who get together for field trips. On Tuesday, our group got together for a special picture day. The pictures were all taken outdoors at Wallace-Cross Mill. The children had fun playing and exploring around the stream.




Thursday, October 8, 2009

Apple Picking 09

Apple picking is becoming a tradition here in our family. You can see how much the children have grown since we went apple picking last year. We plan to make applesauce, apple butter, and apple dumplings this year!

The top picture was taken last year (2008), and the bottom picture was taken this year (2009)

Wednesday, September 30, 2009

Pumpkin Carving

We chose our pumpkin, and brought it home. Dad began carving while K watched.

The children were disgusted by the pumpkin's "guts."

Well, K wasn't grossed out for long. She dove right in and helped clean the pumpkin out.

We saved the seeds to roast another day.

Dad asked the children to draw a design of a pumpkin. Dad chose to use T's eyes, L's nose, and K's mouth.

Not bad for his first time EVER carving a pumpkin!

Of course we had to go outside and light it up
.
We ended the night by eating a piece of pumpkin pie, of course!