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Beginning Our Journey
Oct. 4, 2008
Pumpkin Patch 2008 and First Tooth Lost.
Oh what a day.
First, we went to the Pumpkin Patch. This was sort of sentimental as one year ago we went to this pumpkin patch on a Sunday. That was our last day out before Tristan got sick. A year. I cannot believe it is that time again.
We had a really nice day. It was not very busy at ALL. We had no lines and the weather was very nice.
     Then... the way home... it started. "mommy, can I have a mirror?" Sure honey... why? Well... her tooth was bleeding! URGH... the screaming and crying. The rest of the way home. Oh my oh my. You would have thought someone cut off her arm.
Then at home - no daddy. do not touch it.
 And it went on - for hours
and when daddy wiggled it, it FELL out. Oh how mad she was at him!!!!
But half and hour later -she was very proud! And she has been telling everyone she sees or can call~
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Aug. 29, 2008
Homeschool Updates.
6 weeks under our belt of school this year. Alyssa is doing so well. I keep adding in things. I got a REALLY super awesome book of teaching kids about the USA.
http://www.christianbook.com/Christian/Books/product?item_no=593937#curr
It is really neato. Takes things down simple from the Pledge to learning about the Flag, to holidays. I am really excited about taking a slow process but really teaching my kids about America and the great country we live in. I recommend it! It was only $3.95 from Christianbook.com!
I also got some great Why books from there.
http://www.christianbook.com/Christian/Books/product?item_no=411210
I got three of them. Very simple answers and pictures for preschool - 2nd grade I would say. We read one tonight. The kids really liked them but I am going to space out the other two for a few weeks from now. I probably will read them again with Tristan next year in PreK.
I took Alyssa outside trying to get some school pictures today. I think I would like to take her out to McConnell's Mill again. That is where I Did hers last year and they turned out so pretty! I still want to work with them in Photoshop but here are a few from our backyard today. She dressed herself. And... what is it with the older she gets the HARDER it is to get a picture? They all look goofy or fake! It was so simple to make her laugh and smile naturally before.
There there is Tristan who says Cheese and squints his eyes!
I just love his hair color! It is so soft and pretty and different!
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Aug. 21, 2008
Homeschool Happenings and Random Ramblings.
Praise the Lord my 3 hour test came back fine! Sigh of relief!!! I am so happy about that! Thank you to everyone who was praying for me. I know I have the best of friends!
Tristan is full swing into his steroid eating. Today was kinda funny... He is chubby at the moment. He goes up and down amazingly on his weight. Well he decided to flip my foot stool to my rocker over. It also glides. And make a swing for himself. Great idea and yes it looked really fun! He sat down in the bars and was "swinging". THANK GOD Justin was home still! Justin saw him struggling to get out and realized... he was stuck! So he called me in to look at him. I laughed and we tried to get him out. He was NOT coming out. We tried, we pushed, we pulled, we tried angles. Trying not to hurt him. Tristan got scared. We were trying to figure out what to do as I really do not think Justin has a normal saw. Sure all these high powered things but not just a plain old fashioned saw. Thankfully we managed to get where we held the footstool up at an angle and I pushed, he pulled, Tristan cried, and finally he came out. BUT MAN OH MAN! If I was alone I would have had to call my dad at work to come home! I felt so bad for Tristan because he was scared! It really was completely funny. And looked like a ton of fun! But the fun wore off when Tristan realized it was going to hurt to get out! We tried not to bend his litlte knees backwards and was going real slow. But I really thought were were going to have to bust it apart! Not to mention Justin was running late for work! Oh what a fun situation. :)
That boy keeps me on my toes that is for sure!
School is still going awesome! Alyssa completed 5 weeks already. I am going to sign her up for a writing and speech co-op. I am very excited about that! It starts Sept 5th and meets at my church! It is two fridays a month and the group also does field trips. I am just waiting on the registration email. But I am very excited about this class. I think she will do great and get us out meeting other homeschool families. Too bad it is not in my town though. It is 25-30 mins from us. Not a huge deal unless the weather gets bad.
We also signed up for the free Gateway Clipper Cruise day. We went last year and had a great time. I am looking forward to it as three other friends of mine also signed up. It is going to be a great time! That is at the end of September.
Last year was a good homeschool year but I think this year is going to be even better!! It already has been!
Tristan is cracking me up with learning math facts. I took advantage of his steroid cravings and pulled out a pack of M&Ms. I gave him two and said, if I give you two and then give you three more, how many do you have? and we counted. Then I said 2 plus 3 equals 5. Then I went to Alyssa and did the same thing. Then back to Tristan. They Both were sad when my pack ran out. I think that is something I might do from time to time since it is a fun treat and also getting math in! The other day on the swing on our porch I was holding Tristan and talking in terms of cookies. I said if Alyssa has one cookie and you eat it! how many does she have left?! And then things like if I let you have to two cookies and Alyssa gives you one, how many do you have?
Talking in terms of food. Bringing it to his level. He was really getting it!
The kid amazes me on what he is learning on his own. I have not done much of any working with him. Alyssa I was sitting down teaching. Tristan I periodically ask questions and find out what he does already know.
I am getting my Christmas Advent things in order. I figure I will plan it out now so when the baby comes I am ready and do not have to prepare. I plan to take the month off of our regular school and go all Christmas/Advent themed. I planned for this, and it is a reason I started school early. I have Christmas workbooks, and tons of books, videos etc. If anyone has any good sites, links, ideas, I would love to hear them.
So that is that :)
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Aug. 19, 2008
Just some Happenings.
So I failed my 1 hour glucose test and had to go back for a 3 hour. BLAH. That was icky. I am waiting on my results today. If the shaky feeling I had after the test was any indication of how my body reacted... I would guess bad. But still holding out hope! until the phone rings.
Our awesome friend Danielle
brought us over some monarchs. They are both in their chrysalises and we are excitedly watching them for our new butterflies! This is the neatest hands on learning I have ever done. For me anyways. I am LOVING seeing Gods beauty and work in front of me. We had them last year also.
We have some fuzzy moth caterpillars also. but I am not sure what is going on with them. Since I never had them, it is a new learning experiance. Are they dead or alive in there. right now they are all huddled together on the glass and have not eaten since yesterday morning. Before they were devouring their leaves. So I am not sure what is going to happen. But I am hoping they spin cacoons because then I can do a comparisson with Alyssa and difference between moth and butterfly caterpillars. But I must admit, these fuzzy ones are freaking me out a bit.
Tristan is on steroids. His appetite is here full swing!
Justin and Dad put in a new floor in my kitchen! I have pictures but they are on the other computer. So perhaps tonight I will get them uploaded for you all!
Justin also made me new mulch beds and put up crown molding in the kitchen. Boy that was a treat... let me tell you. Learning experience for sure! It is ADORABLE when Tristan helps daddy. He wants any job he can get. Justin was letting him use the nail gun! Just what I wanted a 3 year old to be taught. :)
I had a great friend over last night. Carrie came over and we had a really nice evening. We went over her homeschool schedule and I assured her that she was indeed right on track. I think she is going to be a NATURAL at homeschooling. She and her her husband used to run a daycare and they have the teaching skills. I have complete faith in her! We went to grab a bite to eat and then to the Thinking Cap.
Dangerous store for a homeschooler I tell you! It was nice spending time with an old friend. My kids entertained her and showed off the entire night!
And that is about all my updates for today. I will try to get new pictures up later when I have more time.
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Aug. 13, 2008
urgh
What a day... so the drs office called. I failed my one hour sugar test. Gotta take that nasty stuff AGAIN and sit for 3 hours getting jabbed 3 times! YUCKO!!! And to top it off, have to be there monday at 6-7 AM!! YAWN!!!
So please pray I pass that. Although I could stand to get back on my PCOS diet, I am not good at it. I am just happy being able to eat things again now that Morning Sickness is over. And now to say I have to be choosy. I need to pass the 3 hour. Please Lord!
Went to my friend Jenns tonight. That was fun. Tristan feel off a swing though, nothing bad since he was only on his tummy to begin with - as told to me by Alyssa since I was not in his site at the time. But he got his teeth into his lip. It is all swollen. Of course mommy had to pick him up and carry him in to get ice. I know... I know...
Then at home walking from the garage to the house he wanted carried. I told him no, I had my hands full and I do not carry him that far! Well he tripped on the last stair... URGH. Skinned his knees.
So my arms are still full and he is in the dark yard crying to be carried. I cannot! So he asks Alyssa too! She tries and of course after 10-15 feet, she falls.
Good night! The poor kid. Good night!
Tristan goes to clinic on Friday. He keeps hearing me making plans and is NOT excited in the least bit. Should be pretty routine. No spinal taps or anything. Just blood draw and vincristine. (reminder to self - I need a refill on his 6mp) but he will start steroids again. fun fun fun. I think if his counts are high they plan to increase his meds.
Please pray for our little friend Philip. His ANC is low (70) and he spiked a fever of 101.9. So he got admitted tonight to the hospital. He is in the middle of intense treatment. I cannot wait for that little one to get to maintenance!
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Aug. 8, 2008
Pregnancy update, Kennywood and 4 weeks down of school.
I am 26 weeks pregnant tomorrow! This pregnancy is flying by! Soon I will be in the 3rd trimester. Not sure if it is week 27 that hits you there or not.
Here is my picture this week.
We went to Kennywood on Sunday. The kids had a BLAST! It was with the VNA company picnic, where my MIL and BIL work.
Here are a few pics.
School is going well. Today we will have 4 weeks completed. Alyssa is doing so well as usual. Tristan is enjoying his Kumon workbooks. Well now that I got him "I can cut paper" it is the only thing he wants to do! lol The kid loves to cut and tape!
Things with Tristan are doing good. Nothing new to report. We have clinic again next Friday.
Oh I wanted to also add in these pictures.
My kids are both such monkeys! Alyssa is a strong climber and Tristan just likes to climb anything he can.
And here is Tristan doing some sensory play for school. :) Yes, that is what I call it. AKA peace for me while we work on Alyssa's!
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Jul. 12, 2008
Homeschooling at the crazy house.
Homeschooling - this is going to be a very busy week for me. I am so excited that my friend Danielle
has invited us to join her to her mothers house on Monday. We will be seeing Purple Martins and visiting a bird store. Also berry picking! I am thrilled!!! I think the kids will really enjoy the experience but not as much as I am looking forward to it! And berries to boot!
Then this week, either Tuesday or Wednesday, Justin's aunt is coming to visit us. She will be "gaining knowledge" of how I homeschool. HA HA HA that is such a funny thought. But hopefully I will not scare her and can give her some of what she needs. I guess the biggest thing is - normal people can do it and it does not always have to be perfect! She homeschooled last year and wants to come join me for a day. She is going to give this year another try.
The other day, my kids and I were doing Sonlight Science. We were on the float or sink experiment. Simple but kids love it.
Tristan was having a blast! He must have tried our objects 5 times each! And each time he would jump up and down screaming - "it floats!" or "it sinks!"
This is what the stinker does when I am doing homeschool with Lyss
He GLUES my counters to paper! I gave him things to keep him busy. Counters, cups, glue, paper, popsicle sticks etc. What did he do? Glued my counters! 
What am I going to do with that boy? Each time I turn my back he is mixing or doing something. Yesterday I had a water bottle on my table. I drank most of it. Left to put clothes in the dryer while the kids were busy eating their bean soup. I come back and cannot find my bottle. Ok... check to see if I took it to the laundry. No. Nowhere. A while later I am getting a can from the can cupboard. Inside is my water bottle halfway filled with bean soup just sitting on the shelf! TRISTAN CHARLES! lol
I could go on and on with stories. He keeps me on my toes and very busy!
Here is my angel
I never have to worry about her mixing or pouring or spilling (unless she is trying hard to get her own stuff instead of having me help) behind my back! She was such a good child!  Oh she is getting her own mischievious side though. She can be bad with the rest of them! But I never worry with her. If I tell her not to do something - she listens!
Friday is our next clinic date for Tristan. Keep him in your prayers as it is spinal tap day. Fun fun fun.
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Jul. 5, 2008
Hey blogging buddies
I was upstairs putting pictures on my computer and thought I would share some with you.
Here is my 20 week preggo picture, I am 21 weeks now. Do not mind my washed out make-up in this picture. Blah. oh well.
And here is my little guy and his cute fuzzy hair, he was doing "school" here.
Mom and Dad got Alyssa new roller skates so here is Tristan in Alyssa's old ones. I had these hidden but they came out now that they can live at Grandmas and Grandpas! lol
And we went to see the fireworks last night. I had my kids in Red, White and Blue but they had their night time bath already so they were in other clothes for fireworks.
This is what Tristan did the WHOLE time and Alyssa did half the time. PLUGGED their ears! lol
They really did enjoy them though. Hope you all had a happy 4th!
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Jun. 24, 2008
Picture of the kids with grandparents.
Although my little ones put a nice big smudge on the camera lens for these pictures, i thought they were good and wanted to share.
Look how pudged out Tristan got from his steroids! He is on an eating frenzy this week. But with past months, we will have a good time of eating, then end of the month I can barely get him to touch his food. So he pudges out, then gets thin again. But you can really see it in his face. He is such a cutie patootie though! Here he is with my dad.
Alyssa took that one. Then Tristan wanted to take one. He said, sit down for a family picture!
So that is my mom, me, my dad and my daughter :)
And since we are posting Grandmas and Grandpas, here is my mother in law with my kids and my niece Esmerelda.
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Jun. 9, 2008
Wow what a busy weekend!
We took the kids to Idlewild Friday. My parents and my family. That was so fun! Tristan got to meet Spiderman! How perfect is that!? We did not know he was going to be there!
It was a very awesome day. Hot but awesome. Too bad we could not go to Soak Zone. That would have made it better. But with Tristan's mediport we are not allowed. So since he cannot, none of us do.
I had a little scare Friday morning with some spotting. It lasted for a good bit. But so far since Friday afternoon I have not had anymore. This pregnancy sure is keeping me on my toes with worrying. Sigh. Thank you all for the prayers.
Saturday we went to the inlaws and the kids made a huge slip-n-slide down the hillside. Wow that was dangerous but they had a blast and thankfully noone got hurt!
Then we hit the Ford City bike trail. Justin picked Tristan up a new bike and helmet. Alyssa had gotten a new bike for Christmas. They did so good! We like to go to a small side of the trail where no one normally uses. it is shaded and I do not have to worry about the kids hogging both sides. Tristan had never rode a big boy bike before so I was happy to have it private. He did learn to brake and was doing fantastic! Justin and I walked.
Sunday we had a little family crisis scare. So Justin and I got woken up to a phone call at 5 am when my sister in law (to be) had not gotten home from walmart and she was no where to be found. Cell phone died to top it off. So after lots of prayer and crying, she called from a gas station lost! Praise the LORD nothing happened to her or my niece who was with her. Wow that was a reality check!
We were exhausted! Emotionally from our scare, and Physically from the weekend. But I am really glad we decided to go to church. I had thought about just going somewhere in Butler (moms church) because it would be quicker and easier. Alyssa had a party in Sunday school and she would have been devastated if she had missed it! It was her teachers last sunday class - the church gives them off for the summer. But then she moves to the 1st grade class so thank goodness she did not miss this week!
Oh and we are not the people who regularly skip just because we are tired either. I am just saying we thought about not driving the whole way from Butler to Kittanning instead.
But today is Monday. Back to the grind of the week. :) It was a nice and full weekend.
Here is one more cute picture of the kids and I from Idlewild. I have TONS more pictures but I talked so long in this post I will just limit it to one.
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May. 30, 2008
Back to the land of the living...
What a week or two this has been.
Last Monday Tristan spiked a high fever and we ended up in the ER again. I am soooooo thankful for all our good friends who covered our family in prayers. Well we found out later in the week what the fever was from. Tristan caught hand foot and mouth. Oye... the day his sores came out was the day Alyssa came down with her fever/headache/sore throat. And sadly... it was also the day we were planning on going to Idlewild.
So that trip was canceled. Alyssa was so bummed. It was going to be such a fun weekend. We were planning the zoo and picnics too. But that was not in the books for us.
We stayed close to home to not spread our germs. Man am I ready to get out and about again! The kids and I took walks to keep us from going stir crazy but go figure we get sick on the first nice weekend of the year!
Here is Tristan and his sores.
Praise the LORD Alyssa never got the sores though! She would have been a peach to deal with. 
Tristans hair is growing and we keep calling him "peachy"
Alyssa being a nectarine fan, not peaches did not understand why we called him that. Guess it has been a long time since we tried to give her a fuzzy peach! lol anyways... his hair is growing in light and fluffy for now.
Hard to get a pic of it. But I think in about 2-3 weeks he is going to have a nice head of hair!
Here are a few other cute pics I took the other day.
Ok, ok. how many pictures can you look at of the same kids huh? Good thing it is MY BLOG! bwahahahaha I can put up as many as I want 
And in other rambling news, I went to walmart today. I saw a million people I know! Hello all my blog fans that I saw today!  Made me realize how long it has been since I updated. So even though I was a cleaning fool tonight, actually putting away the folded laundry (I know mom - scary huh? I mean when I am pregnant, it just makes no sense for me to fold the laundry, trudge it upstairs to put in drawers and head back down only to have to go back up to get it for the kids to wear the next or even same day - I mean what is the point?) I decided to jump on before bed to update. Just for you!
We are on summer vacation for homeschool. I am busy arranging my schedules for next year. I am just about ready. I am very pleased with the things I have put together to use for Alyssa. Tristan I am going to play it by ear I think. I am not going to start into sonlight until at LEAST Feb... and might just wait until the next year to start him in prek. I will just do what I did this year and give him busy work while I work with Alyssa. I have MORE then enough things to keep him happy and learning.
So that is my LONG update. Have a super night!
oooh ETA (editing to add) - I had my drs appointment on Thursday and I got to hear the heartbeat again. Always nice. And I scheduled my big ultrasound. A little bummed because the dr said make it in 2 weeks from now. But I guess they were booked or something because I did not get in until 4 weeks. So June 26th it is. Pray for open legs for us! We want a peek at the sex because all my clothes went to friends to bless since I figured we were so blessed. And now I need baby clothes! So knowing the sex sure would make yard sale-ing nicer for us!
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May. 10, 2008
A few pictures.
How Tristan's hair is growing back in
My mom and dad brought Tristan an outfit for him to play dress up with. Since he ALWAYS wants to play with the girls. He liked it a lot!
We went to a birthday party today. It was a lot of fun! I think Tristan had too many sweets though! :) His teeth are showing signs of it :wink:
To let you know Alyssa was around here too! lol
She has been soo busy playing with her cousins that she does not want to stop for pictures anymore. She is growing up so much!
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Apr. 29, 2008
Sunday Tristan got to go to Sunday School Again
It was such a nice day on Sunday! Tristan got to go back to Sunday School. He really enjoyed himself even with being in a new class that he has never went to before. He went once to this class but we went to the afternoon service and since changed to the morning.
His teachers emailed me pictures of his first day. It was very nice of them and Tristan enjoyed looking through the pictures with me this morning. He was telling me all about it!
Here are a few of the ones they sent me.
As you can see, it looks like he really enjoyed himself. And I think he heard the story too because I asked him what his teachers name was and said "was that Mr Tim?" and he said, no his name was Paul! lol And you can see the story was about Paul and Silas so he must have been listening at one point!
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Apr. 22, 2008
Picture Entry
Thought I would share a few I have not posted in a while.
Here is Alyssa painting the other morning
And What GREAT kids I have! Alyssa was such a big help pushing Tristan the other day,
 Too bad though, I had him thinking the red swing was for my niece Emi and not him, Alyssa got him swinging back in it. Blah.
Fell asleep in it
A Priceless picture of my grandmother and my son
Camera was in the car when Alyssa was hugging her good bye or I would have snapped one of her too.
And Tuckered out from Grandmas sleepover and playing with her second cousin Mary
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Apr. 14, 2008
Family updates. Tristan, Baby and Alyssa :)
Hey, sorry I left so much time go by without an update. I am going to have to upload some pictures tonight when Justin is awake.
Things have gone well with Tristan. We are waiting to go back on the 22nd to see how his counts are. We are pretty much stuck by ourselves until then. Tristan is doing so well. Tonight is his last chemo pill then we get a week or two break. We will see. If his counts recover well, the 22nd will start his next round. If he needs an extra week to recover counts then they will wait.
We are ALMOST to maintenance!
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Things with me are going well and being pregnant. When I had my last appointment I found out that I have a sensitive cervix so that is most likely the cause of my spotting. So that is good news. I still do not like it. But at least half of the worry is gone.
If morning sickness is a clue of how well the pregnancy is going, it is going well. BLAH. I did get some Zofran for nausea. I am trying not to take it all the time though. I want to save it for when I REALLY need it. Sometimes it does not even do the trick though. So I can imagine that the Morning Sickness would have been a ton worse!
I am down 5 pounds!
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Alyssa is almost done with Kindergarten! 2 more weeks of work and we are to summer vacation! YAY! This is going perfectly planned. I want to run her school year from July - April. Because Alyssa is a big whiner on hot weather and I find come August she is flipping out and not wanting to be out in the heat. So she likes to be inside in the air conditioning. So to take advantage of the best weather for us, I want to have spring and early summer off. I was thinking I might run late this year with all our time off with Tristan this year. But we made it up and worked extra hard to get finished on time. She loves school so she never even noticed the little double days I threw in there.
Anyways... like I said, I will upload some pictures tonight.
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Feb. 23, 2008
Just a few pictures I blogged about the other day
I finally got my computer set up in my room so I uploaded some pictures to Snapfish. Here are a few things I blogged about and told you I would put up pictures later...
Tristan during his dental surgery the other day... Here he is with is arm up, he has been putting that arm up every since saying it hurts... I think they were a little rough on him on the 5th floor - unlike his clinic nurses. They were making me cringe the way they were squeezing and handling his port.
And gross I know... here are his teeth! Ick! I was expecting no roots!
Here you can see his hole, he has one on the other side too.
 I took this because HE wanted to see.
Here is Alyssa doing homeschool the other day
Then Sonlight had us fold a paper hat
And we made bubby one too, excuse his shirt - I have no clue really
ok, I think that is all! Thanks for looking!
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Feb. 1, 2008
A Post about Homeschooling :)
Got my The Old Schoolhouse Magazine yesterday! Oh I love that magazine! I am still flipping through it. I normally flip through it quickly. Then I go back and visit all the links I wanted to check out. Then I sit down and READ the magazine. It is like an art form to reading it. I really miss JenIG's column though... I need to stop over at her blog to get my Jen Fix! I have not been there in a while because it seems my online time is come and go these days. Sharing a computer to a Webkinz children is crazy! Even Tristan plays webkinz himself now! 
Which brings me to my ponderings... I am not sure what I am going to do about next year. I used to think - Tristan is just not going to be as advanced as Alyssa. I will just work at his own pace. He is a more hands on kid etc. A typical boy in my eyes. Well this month has brought a HUGE change in Tristan! He is making me so suprised at how grown up he is becoming!
He will turn 3 on the 26th of this month. Tristan always runs up with us to "do homeschool!" and he asks often to play webkinz. He actually plays a few games and does the online coloring. He can play mario party on the Nintendo Wii and actually knows how to click where and when etc! He plays it! He says, "Mom I want to watch this" carrying in a dvd. I pause a moment and he already has the old dvd out, the new one in, it turned on and sitting on my bed! He can eject vcr tapes, put the ones he wants in and play it. He makes his own sandwiches with his sneaky sisters help! He is amazing me at the leap of his understanding of things! They way he plays with Alyssa and how well he just became a big boy over night!
Oh and the things the has been learning from watching daddy! He knows exactly what each of his tools do. He was even putting switches in blue boxes and telling daddy where he wanted them. He is getting soo smart!
So my decision now is... do I start preschool early for him? I know he could handle it and if he was an only child I would. But this year Alyssa starts grade one for sonlight. It looks like a LOT on my plate and a big jump from the Preschool and Kindergarten programs I already used. I know it is going to take a lot of my time and energy to homeschool her. But... on the other hand. Sonlight preschool only takes about an hour of my day if that! More like half and hour or so. ...
I really think I might start him... but he will only be 3 1/2.... that is a tad early for me. I could just work at his own pace and see how things go. I just wonder if I will be ok on Alyssa's! It looks very challenging this year. Should I wait for Tristan to start next year? I am just not sure I will be able to get into the swing of things with her and him... I am nervous! But I have to do it sometime right? I already will have two years of homeschooling under my belt before I add Tristan... I can do it! Someone tell me I can....
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Jan. 25, 2008
Updates and Pictures
Wow, life can get so busy! We have been trying to get Tristan over a bad cough and cold. He is so phlem-y that he gags and throws up if he lays down. Well he did. Now he seems to be on the upswing. Still stuffed and such but less of that. We go Tuesday down to clinic again. We will have a lumbar puncture (spinal tap) so please keep Tristan in your prayers as always. We appreciate it. With how sick he has been all month, I will be curious to see where his counts stand.
Happy Box Day! I got my Sonlight Order for next year. Now I am all set for my good friend Dini and her kids to come over and show me how to use the full version of homeschool tracker! yay!
Alyssa is chugging along with school. We are over the half way mark now. We fell behind a tad with Tristan and Christmas. But we are in week 19 now. She is doing so well!
The beginning of the month, we had my mother in laws boss from the VNA come and take some shots of our family. Here are a few good ones she took.
This picture cracks me up! And you can really see Tristan has lost a LOT of weight just from the beginning of January when these were taken. Too bad you cannot say that about me too!
Poor Justin was looped up on pain meds!
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Jan. 17, 2008
Its that time a year again! The most wonderful time!
Seed Catalogs, Homeschool Catalogs, this is my favorite time in the homeschool year! Preparing for next year! I know, I know, my daughter is only a Kindergartener you say. But amazingly enough, I have been homeschooling for two whole years now!
I started with Walmart and Christian Light Education (Rod and Staff) workbooks. Then we completed a whole year of Sonlight Preschool (now called Core B). Now we are approaching week 18 in Sonlight Kindergarten (now core C). The halfway mark! We should be farther along now but with Tristan's Journey and breaks for Christmas this year, we are a tad behind where I want to be. But for now it looks like my forcasted last day of Kindergarten will be the end of May.
I really want to push a little harder and make it the beginning. Ultimately I would like to run my school year from July - April. the Spring months are more important for me to have free to be outside then the hot days of summer. My daughter HATES the heat and we spend most of the scorching August inside with the air conditioner.
Anyways - back to my original train of thought! it is time to pour over next years curriculum! I LOVE IT! I like to order the next years supplies in March before prices jump up with the new catalogs that come out. Lock in at the last years prices.
This year I am looking at her curriculum to be the following.
- Sonlight Core 1 with First grade readers. (I was going to use the first grade readers this year so I already have them on hand and will need to actually order the core with 2nd grade ones. We ended up going slower and I did not push those yet)
- Home Economics for the Homeschooler (also something I had planned to use this year but decided a few weeks into it to save it for first grade - the beauty of homeschooling! I can do that!)
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And I wanted to share a few pictures.
First are the kids during homeschool. As you can see, in a typical day homeschooling, Alyssa will be in full costume! And she can!
Don't mind the messy face! It was taken a week ago so I forget what he was eating for a snack. Tristan has given up his naps unless he crashes now. So he is a new addition to my homeschooling. Every time I try to sneak upstairs to school Alyssa he yells "YAY! SCHOOL TIME SCHOOL TIME!" He LOVES to homeschool along with us. If only I could get him to SHUSH UP! If I am reading and he wants to sing or talk he will just be louder. If I try to out talk him he raises his voice to be heard over mommys boring readings! It is a challenge to say the least but he is a joy!
And a few more just because!
Here is my dad and Alyssa boxing with the wii
SHE WON! And he did not even let her win!  But for the record - I played my mom and she was KNOCKED OUT!
Then Alyssa had to put on a dance show for us
Here is a picture of Tristan and my uncle Joe. He is one of my dads younger brothers.
Joe really has a special bond with Tristan and has been a HUGE blessing to me. Uncle Joe had cancer when he was 28 and it has helped me deal with Tristan's process in a much better way. Being able to ask him questions has helped me understand more when Tristan cannot tell me how he is feeling.
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And I know this is a HUGE post but I just wanted to update. Tristan is doing good. He had to get meds to kick a cold out of his system but I think he is getting a croup cough. I just had to run up to check on him and he sounded barky. Sigh... Will we make it till his appointment without being in the ER? Please pray. He does not go until the 29th. So far we had snot like noone wants to see that we had to get cleared up. Today is his last day of meds for that and he is getting an awful cough now. Sigh... I wish we were going more often then once this month because it feels like I wish they knew how he was. I will call if I get worried. But I think his immune system must be down low but we are not sure. It was going down before and now he is getting sick like he is. Not fever though. Just catching a lot. I think it is time to say Tristan needs to stay in the house for a while again.
He goes on the 29th for a spinal and I think chemo. He gets it daily at home. This wave of treatment will last us until his birthday when he starts delayed intensification. So no real news. His hair is thinning though. Like Dr. Terri said. it is just hair, it will come and go. Not shedding though, just thinning.
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Jan. 9, 2008
you know...
There are times when I just sit here and think "I LOVE MY BABIES SO MUCH." Tristan makes me so proud anymore. He goes potty ALL by himself unless the light is off then he comes running for our help. He is such a big boy. I handed him his chemo in a jelly sandwich and bam he just ate it down. This morning he actually woke me up saying "GOOD MORNING TO YOU, GOOD MORNING TO YOU" In a sing song voice that I always sing to him. And he said "time for my medicine!" Which is ammoxicillian or however you spell that. He really likes that one. The other day when we went to see Dr. Trotta he was singing for the whole waiting room his sunday school songs. Which he went to sunday school with NO TEARS this week! And then when Dr. Trotta and his nurse Sonya were in to see him, he picked up his shirt and said "want to see my test?" Which is what he calls his port! I was so proud of him!
Every minute he does something that makes me so proud of him. ... Well except right now when he just spit marshmallow on my floor... But what can I say?
Alyssa is doing so well on her schooling. She makes me super proud too. She is growing up so fast! Speaking of... time to do school!
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Jun. 11, 2007
Don't let me see more curriculum! and potty training
So my dh's aunt is starting homeschool this year. I have been helping her via email check out all the good stuff! Problem is... it is making me look more! I just decided to switch handwriting programs from HWT to A Reason for Handwriting. I need to stop looking! lol
I am excited about this year. Summer school is going well. Alyssa is such a fun little kid. We are enjoying outdoors more and I am trying to garden but... it is flopping. Between moles and rabbits ignoring my fencing... And bugs eating my spinach... I think I have a black thumb! I did manage to grow some really good landscaping plants! But I cheated. They were dug out of my neighbors yard already grown! lol but I transplanted them nicely!
Today we worked on potty training Tristan. I am low on diapers till payday so I figured now was a good time to try. I did the naked approach. This morning I put him in undies and he peed them. I am seeing a pattern. he thinks of undies like he does diapers. When he is naked he does so much better. So today we had a pooped diaper(before I decided to try), one peed undies, one pee on the kitchen floor which he said "uh oh!" and we put him on the potty to finish. 9 successful pees in the potty! oh and a full nap (2 1/2 hours) dry diaper! And another underware accident outside. I could not let him go naked with the neighbors out but... he ended up naked anyways! lol oh well. he is not even 2 1/2 yet! So they can see his little bum bum and just deal with it! lol So I only used 2 diapers today! woohoo! Maybe I will get blessed and he will wake up dry (HA HA HA I can dream) and I will have only used 1!
Ok that was a fun post huh? Aren't you glad you came to my blog today to hear about our potty training fun?
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Feb. 5, 2007
Playdough, Dress Up, Ooze and CLEAN UP!
Picture time again!
Alyssa was teaching Tristan to play go fish! That worked well! HA!
We did the Ooze again. I just love this stuff! So I had to do it again with the kids. Messy but sooo sooo fun!
Tristans toes
Alyssas toes
If you got through all of those... thanks! lol
Homeschooling is going GREAT! Alyssa is doing so good. I have a big box of next years stuff waiting for me at moms. I can't wait to get it. Sonlight K stuff!
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Dec. 8, 2006
One more reason I choose to keep my kids home
My dh was listening to Quinn and Rose They had a preschool teacher on their show who said she did not like it but she had to read what they gave her. She had one book that a prince set out looking to find a princess but could not find her. At the end of the book he ended up with a PRINCE!
Just a reason to keep my kids home. Preschoolers.
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Oct. 18, 2006
A Great Post On Why We Choose Not To Acknowledge Halloween.
My family is a fall loving family. We love everything about the beauty God Created and the Wonders of Autumn. We love pumpkin patches, apple picking, leave jumping and the crisp Autumn air.
But this is also one of the most miserable seasons for my family as Sept comes until after October is over. We cannot escape the comments and sometimes rude remarks on why we are robbing our children the joy of Halloween.
If Witches, Goblins, Spiderwebs, Magic Potions, Blood, Vampires, Bats, Coffins, Skeletons, Death, and Devils is not enough to say "DUH! Can't you see why???" then let me direct you to an awesome post by a fellow homeschool blogger, Aligirl.
I shelter my daughter from tv programs saying "Monsters in the closet", "Afraid of the Dark" and more. But I should just go with the flow on Halloween. My sister in law has even gone as far to say she is going to not tell me and take my kids Trick or Treating. They make comments infront of my kids making them feel horrible and left out. I say keep it up. All you are doing is hurting the kids and not going to change my mind. My kids will just remember how their aunt and uncle made them feel bad. If a kid cant have chocolate why would you try to make him feel bad about it? Same deal here.
Anyways. I was delighted to see this post today. If you have not found it yet... Click HERE.
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Oct. 15, 2006
Comparing my 4 year old pictures to my daughers.
Not that these are exact or anything but you can really tell she is my kid!
These are my comparison pictures. Because of crappy quality you can tell which is me  not that it is that hard anyways. I need to scan better ones in my computer because I have some that alyssa does not believe are me and not her!
notice who is playing with a doll and who is dresses as a ninja turtle though! lol
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Oct. 1, 2006
Looking forward to Monday, bowling and leaf jumping.
I have noticed how much I look forward to Mondays now that I homeschool. Weekends are fun but I really look forward to doing school again after the weekend. Maybe this will change when the kids get older, but for now it is new and exciting. I hope to keep it that way. Mondays are fun because we have our pick of the whole weeks worth of work. Sure we follow the schedule but if we are loving something we just keep going with the flow at the beginning of the week. Come the end of the week we have done all the fun stuff a head of time and are cramming in the last bits of things. (I am going to have to work out something where I add in extra special things later in the weeks so this does not become a pattern) Weekends off and we are crazy and NOT on a schedule at all. But then Mondays come... I just am back in my routeen and a fresh new week. It is like a breath of fresh air!
Today we went to church then a bowling birthday party for my nephew. It was Alyssa and Tristan's first time bowling. Alyssa cried and we had to wad paper up in her ears because it was too loud for her. I think just waking up from a nap in the car had something to do with it because by the end of the night she was running and dancing like mad around the place. Tristan had a BLAST! We had to keep him from chasing the balls down the lane. He loved it but could not understand why he only got 2 turns then it seemed like FOREVER till his next turn. Poor kiddo. We will definatly have to do that more often. It is only $2 something a lane! bowl in your socks and that is a cheap night. Spring for the 75 cent shoes and we are styling!
Then we raked leaves and had a fun time outside with that. I really appreciate my dad and all he did when we were kids. My leaf pile was pitiful! But only that little thing and I was wore out! lol
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Sep. 21, 2006
What do you say when someone asks why you homeschool for a quick answer?
I am so pleased with how school is going. Each day she is getting better and better at doing her school work. We are almost done with week 7!
I really need to come up with a quick answer for people when they say WHY did you decide to homeschool. Because I am being put on the spot more and more now that she is of preschool age. Not that I planned on putting her in Preschool anyways if she was public schooled.
The other day the dentist - (whom I love! I have been to him since I was 3 and now Alyssa also goes) asked me what made me decide to homeschool.
All that I could think to say was "Because I WANT to"
Help me out here girls and guys. When someone asks you what do you say? Because I really don't think he wanted to get into a discussion on it. I mean I can think of a TON of stuff to say but none of it is a quick answer.
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Aug. 23, 2006
TV indoctornating my kids and I am TIRED OF IT!
I AM SO TIRED OF TELEVISION SLIPPING IN THEIR PROPOGANDA OF EVOLUTION!!!
Dora, Diego, The Big World, Daniel Cook, Clifford, Higglytown Heros and today - THE DOODLEBOPS!!!
I am TIRED of a great show slipping in their anti-God views. "Millions of years"
Bet we won't hear a Creator remark in there. And why can't Cliffords show say "Thanksgiving" or "Christmas"! But today they sure could put on a Happy Halloween show!
So upsetting.
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Aug. 16, 2006
Tristans bumps and bruises
Today my grandma, uncle, aunt and cousin are coming over for a cookout. So not sure if we will get anything done or not. Yesterday was a waste. Tristan fell the night before and knocked his tooth loose. Dentist looked at him yesterday and is questioning if he fractured the bone also. His mouth is pretty swollen. Poor bubby. I cried for him! It is taking all my energy to keep him from getting hurt now. He is so rough. Just Saturday he fell and got a goose egg on his forhead from chasing Pappy. He tripped on Alyssa's shoe and face planted the wooden leg of a chair. So he looks pretty beat up.
My poor baby.
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Jul. 21, 2006
Poll: Fireflies/Lightening Bug and Great Summer Memories
Tonight we caught Fireflies/Lightening Bugs - whatever you call those little buggers. Lets take a poll - which term do you use? I use both! Comment and tell me which term you use more often!
Anyways - camera did not focus well but here are a few pictures of our catch.
Catching lightening bugs had to be my FAVORITE summer memory as a kid. I LOVED to do it. I am glad God made them slow so little kids can catch them too. Isn't he great for doing that?
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