This weekend was an eventful one for our youngest who is 5. He lost his first tooth. It was the usual first tooth trauma - 'will it come out on its own or not'. Daddy would tease him and he'd try oh so hard to wiggle that thing out. Finally, Saturday night, he let me give it a go & POP! out it came. We have the unspoken joke of the tooth fairy here. Everyone knows it's Daddy, but everyone plays along. The first tooth is always the big one financial wise & he wasn't disappointed. It gave him something to brag about to all our church folks on Sunday morning. We took pictures, but hubby doesn't have them off the camera yet. I'll maybe post one later....if I remember. 
I also have a tooth saga going on. I lost the back of a lower molar last spring & let it go. ( I know...naughty me.) It finally got infected. Initially, I thought I had a sinus infection as my pain was on the upper jaw and ear. I went to my physician who graciously gave me an antibiotic, and though initially that gave me relief, it did not solve the problem. So, to make the long saga a bit shorter, I'm in the process of a root canal. Today was visit 3 of 5. I must say, my dentist, is a gem. His work has been practically painless & he's very conscientious. He's a Christian and quite friendly, so we have great talks whilst I'm his victim, ha, ha, ha. Anyway, the cleaning out is all done and next comes the crown.
Tomorrow, Christmas break is over and we start school again officially. I'm ready & yet not so ready. I've enjoyed our leisurely vacation and don't want to have to hit the 'grindstone', but, the kids are really ready for some structure again so time to move along.
Well! Has it really been that long? A year and 4 months +?
I almost deleted this blog, but thought with the new year, I'd give it another go. Our family has grown & I must say at the moment, I'm a happy and content mom, wife, gal...etc.
We had a good school year last year. Now I have a 9th grader, a 7th grader & two 2nd graders. They all doing pretty well. We've had a lovely Christmas together. A bit different as our area has had the big snow of 2008 & kept us housebound.
The first day of 2009 has been nice 'n' lazy. So, I'll just leave this entry with a picture of my sister's & my tribe of monkeys.
Actually, this might be a more accurate picture of their character....
Oh yeah, mine are the 2 at the very top & the two on either side of the red head at the trunk.
Well, we've made it through our first week. It went quite well. In fact, with the exception of a couple of small hiccups, it probably has been the smoothest first week in the histor of our home schooling. This is good.
My oldest, of his own accord, go up early every day to shower and get a head start on his schoolwork in order to be done at an early hour to 'play'. I'm proud of him. I know he doesn't really like school, so I appreciate that he's learned the value of getting the work done first and quickly to have time on his own.
My little ones are doing great in 1st grade. I was very impressed with the 4 year old today. We had a new page for seatwork which was writing the vowels and numbers 1-5 multiple times on a piece of handwriting paper. The purpose of this really was to give them something to do while I finished doing 'class' time with my 6th grader. My little man just attacked the thing with zest. I guess he hasn't figured out yet that writing is supposed to be boring. lol
Next week, we were supposed to be going camping. But, the forecast is calling for rain, so we're going to stay at home. I'm of the mind to do a couple of school days, but the troops are giving me The Look, so we'll see.
Grandma and Grandpa are coming on Wednesday to visit our local fair and do some canning. I'll be picking up the fruit from the local Farmer's market tomorrow. I think it will be either pears or applesauce. Hmm....maybe a little bit of both.
Also, tomorrow my two oldest boys will be helping out with an Eagle project here at our church. One of the boys in our troop is making a firepit with benches here. This will be really nice for the church. We have a Scout troop and a pack that meet and they'll get good use out of it. I think our youth will too.
Well, it's come around again. The summer is waning and it's time to hit the books and starts school. So, today's our first official day. It's been a fast summer....we've been so busy with camp, VBS, visiting grandparents & cousins, and camp. :) Did I mention we went to camp alot this summer?
I'm starting out a bit more organized this year and yet not everything is ready. My curriculum rep. who I consider my friend did an ut oh and ordered 1/2 our books almost a week late. So, the 1st graders and my 6th grader will only be doing 1/2 their subjects for a couple of days til the books get here.
Our start is also kind of a false one as next week we will be going camping with the grandparents. We like to do that in September when everyone else goes back to school and we can miss crowds. The weather is still mild enough, so we'll be near Mt. Rainier next week in a tent. Then back to school the following week.
My oldest has hit the books early this morning (good for him) to get a good start. My youngest is also up early to watch a Wiggles episode on t.v. before officially starting the day. I just heard #2 come out, so I guess I should get the little gal up and get this school day going.
We had another birthday last month. Mr. A turned 11. My folks were visiting from over the mountains, and my brother & sis-in-law from Minnesota. They spent a week camping at the beach and we joined them to celebrate my birthday boy's special day.
Here are some pics.
He found an old rope to play with.
His brothers and sister, & my brother who was visiting.
You can't tell, but there is a hermit crab in that bucket. We took it home, but forgot to feed it....oops!
He wanted a Spiderman cake & I was more then willing to oblige. I baked the cake at home and put it together in my folks' trailer. But, after crafting a nice intricate web, I realized that I forgot Spiderman! Oops.
His aunt (my sister) did, however come trough with a great Spidey game to play.
Finally.....a true spring day that looks like it may really be here. :)
I live in a wet state & I know a lot of people who don't enjoy rain. I actually don't mind it. I've lived in the midwest where the spring & summer heat is so humid you feel like you're swimming just to walk. I've lived in central CA and have found out that I am definitely NOT a high heat gal. I like the seasons. I wish there was more snow here, but I'll take the rain.
However, this winter has been a doozy for rainfall & odd weather. I have decidedly gotten tired of rain & was thrilled to see the sun today. Our upstairs house acutally got a bit warm in the late afternoon. Yay!
On another note - I've joined a support group called TOPS for weight loss. Since the first of the year, as of tonight, I've shed 9 1/2 lbs. Yay! A couple of people have even noticed a bit of a difference. I can only really tell in that my wrist watch is alot looser. Go figure.
No....I won't give up. But, this may become the birthday thread after all. We'll see.
So, on that topic.....my youngest just had a birthday. He turned 4 and I now understand why mamas baby their babies (ha ha ha) Trying very hard not to do that, but it is hard to let go. Always knew with the others there was 1 more, but no more. (sigh)
Anyway, my little man is a Wiggles fan. The Wiggles are a kids music group from Australia. They are very silly, but a lot of fun. They happened to be in our area a couple weeks before the big day, so his big birthday present was the concert.
His Wiggly 'stuff' mom got at the concert.
The 4 Wiggles
We also did some celebrating at home. My sister's family came over, & my little man was happy to celebrate his b-day with the cousins.
Well, this week has been a fun week ouside. Sunday night we had some snow fall - the usual small amount we normally get in December that melts within a day or two. But....Monday evening - it really came down. And, Tuesday morning our placed looked like this:
And, the temp stayed nice and cool, so the snow stayed:
Daddy bought a cheap sled and Miss B got the 1st run:
Then our little guy got in on the action (notice sister's help in the initial push).
I even got on that sled with them for a couple of runs :) I enjoyed reverting back to childhood.
And last evening the big boys had to have a go at it too though I didn't catch them til they were done.
The snow is still with us today and the boys are even now out going down the hill again. All the local shools have been closed for 2 days now, but unfortunately (at least they think), home school didn't close. LOL Another snow storm is supposed to come through tonight as well. But, it is also supposedly bringing a warm front and turning to rain tomorrow afternoon.
I love the snow. I grew up in Alaska, so this is always a treat for me. If it weren't for the driving hazard (we live on a hill), I'd be most happy if it stayed all winter. I told the boys that growing up, there was only 1 time schools were closed in Anchorage for snow. They're eyes popped out as here 1 small snowfall will shut everything down for a day. I explained that up there the towns have lots of snowplows, dirt and studded tires for cars, so it was never a big deal. The one time was a rapid & deep snowfall where the snow went up to an adult's waist and the plows couldn't move it fast enough. Ah - memories - of snowforts, sledding, ice skating, & snowmobiling. Did I mention I love snow?
Today my family had the privilege of going and seeing a small portion of these special artifacts. It was quite fascinating. My parents are here for Thankgiving and they went with us. My oldest boy had some appreciation for them and the history behind them, but the other three...well someday they can at least say to their kids they once saw the Dead Sea Scrolls. Most of the display is the history of Qumran and the people who lived there who must have hidden the scrolls. Very intersting stuff. At the end though, there are actual sections from the scrolls on display. I was a portion of Genesis, Exodus, Ezekiel, Isaiah, and Psalm 119 (although it isn't the 119th Psalm in the scrolls). I also saw a portion of a commentary by the Jew in Quran on Hosea as well as a scroll about the End War which was quite interesting. Of course, in that room there is background music playing to enhance the feeling of importance and awe, but I'll say I was sobored enough to be looking at these ancient writings. A couple in our church is also hosting my hubby and I to go to this lecture next week. We are really looking forward to it.
In other news, we had a lovely Thanksgiving. Join my parents and our family was my aunt with 3 exchange college students (2 boys & a girl)she is currently hosting. Two of them are from Japan and one from Malaysia. The 2 boys were gracious enough to go play baseball, basketball, and football with my boys and the gal seemed to have a fun time playing with my daughter. Tomorrow my folks drive back to central WA - I'm praying the weather will be mild. There is a high possibility that it will snow here tonight (unusual this early) and they have a 5th wheel they are hauling.
And now Christmas season is here - yahoo. We are holiday lovers in this home, but purists in that we refuse to start Christmasy stuff until Thanksgiving is over. So now it is here and we can listen to Christmas music with abandon (well almost). :)
Hmmm...could this become a blog whenever a child of mine has a birthday? I certainly hope not. (sigh)
But, here is my newly 6 yr. old at her birthday party.
She had her 1st ever birthday party outside of family. It was a ballerina party and if you look closely at the cake there is a ballerina on it. She was in heaven! She is quite a girly girl and being homeschooled with 3 brothers, doesn't give her alot of chances to do girly things with other girls. It was a delight (and quite hilarious) to watch her open her presents and see girlie stuff after girlie stuff. She has this expression she makes with her hands and face that someday I will capture on camera and embarrass her with when she is older. It came out quite often that day.
Here is another picture of her from this summer - she is a flower lover and Daddy caught her picking some to snif them.
In other family news, Mr. Adam had his 1st band concert last week. He is learning the trombone and is doing a pretty good job at it. He goes up to the local Jr. high 2 mornings a week and everytime he comes out of band, he tells me he wishes it could be every day.
We are still on track with school work. I did get about 3 days behind with the Kindergarteners, but we're hanging in there and they are doing so well. The boys also got report cards last week and aren't doing too shabby.
Up til today...I was on track for school. 3 weeks worth of lessons and not a day behind. til today....
Today, my dh got up quite early to go be an election officer at the polls. I woke up when he did and couldn't get right back to sleep. Of course, I finally did, but then slept in. That was killed it.
When this happens, I don't want to do anything. I don't want to get up and deal with breakfast, I don't want to worry about any household chores. And, I certainly dont want to do 'school'. I feel like just calling it a day off and relaxing or rather, go back to sleep. So, it was a struggle. But, I told myself that I'd be mad at myself if I gave in. So, we had an abbreviated day. Did all we needed to except math. But, I'm not mad at myself. We have a planned week of coming up when we'll be taking a day at the fair and then going to Grandma and Granpa's for the weekend. The boys agreed to do one math lesson Thursday morning before we go to the fair. So...esentially...I'm still on track. I think this might be a record. And if you think that's pathetic after only 3 weeks, you're not alone...I do too.
After that little sob story, I have to say that 3 out of 4 children here are really enjoying the school year. I have one who is struggling, but his older brother had these issues a couple years back too and I think we can get this one through it too.
My 2 younger kids are doing Kindergarten together and it is going swimmingly! I was a tad afraid that Danny wouldn't keep up being only 3, but he has shown himself to be a bright little kid and he's doing great.
So, now off to bed for a hopefully, good night's sleep. Adam and I have to get up early tomorrow as it is the 1st day of band. He's nervous, excited, and scared, but I think he'll do just fine.
No, I have not fallen off the face of the earth.
I just didn't get back into the blogging habit after our summer and with school starting, I've been readjusting to early mornings and a schedule.
I know - excuses, excuses.
But, I thought a good beginning to getting back (hopefully) into the blogging habit would be my oldest boy's birthday.
Craig turned 12 last Sunday. On Saturday, he had a few friends over for some cake and ice cream.
Usually, I make a special cake for the kids. In the past for Craig I've made a train, a plane, a castle, and a LEGO Knight's cake. But this year, he just wanted a plain one. Of course I had to dress it up somehow for his name and age, hence the cinnamon candies.
Here's his little gang that came over to wish him a happy birthday. Craig is in the yellow shirt. My 2nd son Adam is on the far right in the blue Old Navy shirt. My daughter must have bounced up and down right at the snap - she's in the pink shirt. And my little guy, Danny is the cutie behind the plates.
The day of Craig's birth is definitely one of the happiest days of my life. My dh and I had been married 7 years and I was so ready for a little one. He, blessedly, came a week early and was about 6 1/2 lbs. He cooed the entire first night and I was one contented and happy mama. I love that boy. Now he's a rather tall 7th grader enjoying Legos, baseball, basketball and life in general.
Well, I'm back. I know it has been a terribly long time and I've probably lost all my readers, but it has been quite a busy summer though a good one. I won't recap everything tonight, but I am back to blogging, hopefully with some consistancy.
This week is evening VBS. We do it in the evening so our working parents can come help. So far, it's gone really well. We split the kids up into 3 groups: preschool, K-2nd, and 3rd - 6th. We have 4 stations that they rotate among: snacks, crafts, games, and Bible lesson. I teach the Bible lesson to the groups. I enjoy it. To date, each night we have had 1 decision for salvation.
We just can't seem to shake baseball around here. ;) There was an urgent call for help from our little league for helpers for a tournament this coming weekend. So, I'm keeping score for an 11 yr. tournament game in the morning. My dh will be umpiring 2 games in the afternoon - evening. I guess we enjoy it. LOL
A big blessing is coming our way. This past Sunday afternoon we got a phone call from our local Christian camp offering to let us come to Family Camp next week for free. This is a WOW! All six of us - we are quite excited! We love our local camp and it will be a great week off for our family. I'm quite looking forward to it.
My parents came to visit today. They live about 3 1/2 - 4 hrs. away. The kids were really excited which is nice for Grandma and Grandpa. My dh got a late e-mail this morning practically begging for umpires at the disctrict tournament. So, yes, you guessed it, he took a position tonight and got my dad to help out too. Thus...off we went again to the ballpark. You can never have too much baseball, right?
(I never mentioned we were done with it...did I?) 
Speaking of which, my dh and I are opposites. You know, opposites attract? We'll in our case that is true all the way down to sports. I won't go through each professiona sport, but suffice it to say, he grew up a Yankee fan and I grew up in a Red Sox home. So, you can imagine some of the conversations in our home. We are actually somewhat polite about it. Interestingly enough, 2 of our kids side with Daddy and 2 with me. Hmmmm...When we moved to Washington the first time, we agreed that our middle ground would be the Mariners. So, we've tried to instill in our children a love for the home team. It is our compromise. :)
My dh grew up playing soccer and when we married, I figured this would be a sport he would enjoy watching on t.v. But, no - bless his heart - though fun to play, he calls it boring to watch. So, we've not followed it much here. This summer though, I have some international friends (Hi PW's) who are following the World Cup and I kind of caught the bug a bit. 
I turned it on during the 1st Australia game during lunch time. I watched for a bit and then went to turn it off so as not to bore the household when my oldest son objected loudly. He liked it - didn't find it boring at all. So, we're following soccer a bit here now.
All right, enough about sports for tonight. Got to think of something fun to do with Grandma and Grandpa in the next few days. :)
Friday evening, Mr. A had his 'friends' birthday party. It was quite low key. Our friend with the big trampolene in the back yard let us come over to play and our son invited about 4 more friends. They just bounced around, ate pizza, consumed cake & ice cream, and watched him open some presents. It was easy, but he was a happy kid.
Saturday was our Cub Scout pack's end of the year bbq. It was also low key - held at a local park - a come and go when you want kind of thing. Awards & achievements were handed out as boys showed up. We had a raingutter regatta race and a piniata. My oldest boy, C got 3rd in the boat race with a borrowed boat. It was fun. We ended up staying the whole time and help take down.
Saturday evening, my sister and her family came by on their way to the airport. Their family is going to Bangladesh for the summer as short-term missionaries. My bil is going to set up a computer network at a mission hospital and my sister will help out as a nurse. They have 4 children as we do, so it will be an interesting couple of months. If you think about it, please pray for them. They are excited, but it is also a bit scary going to a 3rd world country. At the time I am writing this, they are in a plane between Taipei and Bangkok. Hopefully the kids are handling the airtime well.
We had a nice Father's Day today. Again, low key - I asked my dh what he wanted to do for the day and his answer was, "Make everyone happy." He's a sweetie. He did ask that we let him umpire a district tournament baseball game tonight. That was fine. The park it is at has a nice playset, so everyone had a good time, some watching the games and some playing. Daddy did a good job and enjoyed himself immensely.
This week Grandma and Grandpa are coming for a few days. The kids are really looking forward to that. Especially A as he'll get 1 more b-day present. :)
Yesterday, some friends invited us to go to a water park with them. It was their treat - too sweet! For the pacific northwest, it was a perfect day to go to a water park. The sky threatened rain all day, but never let any down. The weather stayed in the mid 60's so it wasn't too cold. It was a week day so the crowds were limited. Just right. :) My kids had a blast! The 2 older boys were able to run around on the rides, checking in every couple or so. The 2 younger kiddos played most of the day in the shallow end of the wave pool. And, I got to hang out and chat with 2 friends. They had a kiddie pool that was kind of fun, but because they have to recycle that water so quickly (think toddler potty control), it is freezing. So, we went down a few slides a couple times, but then it was back to the warm waters of the wave pool.
The only negative event happened just near the end. Painted on the concrete are two words - NO RUNNING. Now, this is hard for any youth to follow, especially when you are excited. My friends and I had been hollering those 2 words most of the day to our offspring with some positive response. But, near the end...my littlest guy took off from the chair to the pool. Thump! Flat on his tummy. I went and picked him up and WOW! that concrete is hard on skin! His elbow was scraped, the left side of his chest was scraped, and his knees would not stop bleeding profusely. I finally had to take him to the first aid room and get them dressed. Poor little tyke. But, he was a good sport about it and all the kids heard from the moms - This is why it says NO RUNNING. LOL
Last night was also my oldest's baseball team party. And now, that is it for baseball for the season. Really. Oh, wait - no - my dh has to umpire 1 more time. Then that's it. REALLY!
Today was a Scout store run for end of the year awards for our Cub Scout Pack. And tonight was prayer meeting/Bible study. We have a little gal in our church now that has written her own summer program for kids, so we're using that. It is pretty neat. She's done a good job. She calls it the Grow Club - meaning growing in Christ, of course. They did a clue hunt tonight paralleling the clues we find in the O.T. to the Messiah's birth in the N.T. It went pretty good.
Tomorrow we get to see Cousin Grant. When we first moved here, he babysat the older boys quite frequently. They absolutely love him! He always had time for them and never tired of them jumping all over him. Then he joined the Marines and spent some time in Iraq. Now he is their (and my) hero. After his tour in Iraq, he was stationed in Japan for a bit and has just been restationed to CA. He gets to be home here for 1 week and is coming by tomorrow to visit us.
The reason he is my hero is because he has not allowed the military to 'spoil' him. When I say 'spoil' I mean as in food that rots because it gets left out too long. We were all concerned when he enlisted because he was this sweet sweet guy who would hardly hurt a fly let alone anyone else. He had an innocent air about him and, well, I've already said how great he was with my boys. He had a real love for the Lord and a pure heart. I was quite afraid he would come back with a hard attitude having seen too much - violently and morally. But, he is unscathed. He still loves the Lord and has a pure heart and he is our same sweet Grant - though a bit wiser and with a few hair raising stories to tell from the mid-east.
So, now to bed - tomorrow is also our last Ladies' Bible study before the summer.
My #2 son turned 10 years old today. He's such a sweet kid! I'm very blessed to have him. He was born in a little town in central CA. On this morning 10 yrs ago, I went to the Dr. bright and early to be induced. I will say here and now, a pit drip is much more painful then letting things come natrually. But, my Dr. was leaving town and I didn't want an abortionist (the only other GYNs in town) to deliver him. It was a pretty smooth birth. I do remember this one nurse keep pushing my head toward my chest telling me I needed to keep it down. I didn't remember that from the birthing classes at all, and got a bit peeved at the gal. :) But, around 1:00 my beautiful 9lb. 6oz baby was born.
He was quite different from his older brother. Our first was only 6' 14", so this guy seemed a month old already. Also, this little one could cry. Loud and hard. And, poor babe, he was colliky too for the first 3 or 4 months. But, he was the cuddliest thing I'd ever held. He loved to snuggle up close to me and when he was nursing he would place his hand right under my neck. He still likes to cuddle when he can and I can always get a nice big hug from my A when I need one. He is a true blessing.
He is also extremely generous. He never went through the 'Mine' thing as a toddler. He was always happy to share. He still is this way. Possessions don't mean a whole lot to him, so I don't worry to much about materialism with him. This being his greatest strength is also his worst weakness. He is always losing things! He just doesn't attatch himself to his stuff. But, I'll take him this way. The other night at the camp out mentioned below, he accidentally bumped into another boy who had a fresh hot cocoa in his hand and it spilled all over. Without hesitation he gave his own cup to the boy even though he didn't think he'd get another one. I gave him one anyway. :) Did I mention this boy is a blessing?
I've been catching up with the last week, but have seperated it into different entries. I didn't want to bore anybody too much with one huge long one. So, see below if you don't mind 1 last baseball post and a long story.
I've been reading Charles Dickens lately - Bleak House. My friend, Lyn, had mentioned reading it and watching a PBS program based on it a few weeks ago and it caught my interest.
Wow is it long! After reading about the first 3 chapters, I mentioned it to a friend in my church who has a lieterary degree from college. Her response was 'Dickens - wordy'. "Oh yes!" I agreed. I can follow his narrative, but he sure adds a lot of extra fluf and somewhat unnecessary descriptions. My friend then explained that Mr. Dickens was paid by the amount of words in his books. That certainly explains it. I'm almost 1/4 of the way through it now. I can read pretty fast, but honestly, when he gets in the descriptive parts, I get sleepy.
This coming week is our last week for almost all our subjects. We'll be doing history and language throughout the summer. My boys are very excited about only 1 more spelling list. :) Next year I will be combining them in history, science, and language to hopefully save some 'class' time during the day and hopefully, we won't fall so behind like we seem to do every year.
I'd like to give a disclaimer here. I'm up a bit late tonight catching up and rather tired (see camping post), so if I've got horrid grammer or spelling in these three entries, please forgive me. I really need to get into a habit of blogging at least every other day and be more consistent. Maybe now that baseball is done....well, I won't be able to use it as an excuse any more at any rate.
Another year of ball has passed.
Our boy's tournament was this past week. They each started out with 2 preliminary games to get ranked for the tournament. Once everyone is ranked, they have a single elimination tournament.
Our city has 2 leagues - a north league and a west league. We are in the west league.
My oldest boy's team which started out at about 0 & 10 (though they did end up with 5 wins) had a rough time in the preliminaries. We had the best team from our league and a really good one from the the other league as well. They lost both games pretty severely, so, I can guarantee they were ranked last for the actual tournament.
But, they did hold their own, bless their hearts, on the game that counted. However, we were out played. The other team was just so much better and we lost by ten points and now only the end of year party is left for this Tuesday evening.
My #2 boy's team did a bit better. They had a better season, so got to play more suitable teams. For the preliminaries, they won the 1st and lost the 2nd. The day before the 2nd game, one of the players broke his arm. I don't know if that had much to do with it, but they didn't play that game well at all.
So, for the actual tournament game, they were determined. Our pitchers did a pretty good job, but they just didn't hit well. And, they made a lot more fielding errors then the other team. So, their season ended too.
They had their party right after that last game and it was fun. One of the dads who works at Microsoft made a DVD for everyone with a slide show from the season set to baseball music. It was a really neat keepsake and very sweet on his part to make.
So, thus endeth baseball for another year. :) I have to say, I was ready for it to end, but we do love the game - so next year - watch out!