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Feb. 18, 2007
Something New to Look at
Posted in Home Life
Tavern and Tickets
On Saturday, we ordered our tickets for our trip to England! We are to leave July 7 from Pittsburgh and return on July 22. Woo! I've always, always, always wanted to go to England, and, Lord willing, I shall be going this summer! We found a nice hotel in Reading (where TGD's math conference is the first week), and I found a nice bed and breakfast in Bath. We don't have reservations at either place yet, as we just want to check a detail or two before committing.
Also on Saturday, TGD took me out to one of my favorite restaurants, The Tavern. It's a local place, very Penn State, with a median dining age of at least 53 years old. They had one of my favorite dishes on the menu, too, Beef tips over noodles in a Burgundy wine sauce. (The menu is printed daily at The Tavern.) We also ended the meal with chocolate chip cheesecake. It was a delightful time to eat and flirt with my husband.
Little Miss is sitting on my lap as I type this, runny-eyed and nosed and coughing. Yes, the diseases just linger on here. Grinner and LibbyK are coughing and tired, still. But, I can't bear the thought of loosing another day of school to this illness! (Unless, of course, I come down with it. Then the whole world will just have to stop.)
I finally got my "Christmas" cards out to church friends this weekend. I made them on the computer (just for something else to go in the envelope with the family picture), and they read: Our Christmas cards were late this year. Now February is already here. So with good wishes we do say... Have a very merry President's Day!
Dec. 14, 2006
Salvation Belongs to Our God!
Posted in Home Life
This past Sunday, the Youth Group visited homes to deliver Christmas gifts purchased by church folk to Angel Tree children and some lower-income children. I was the driver for one group of teenage girls, and my son Nathan was in another group.
My group visited a single mom with three children. The girls shared the gospel using evangecubes, and acted out the Christmas story. After presents were opened, two of the girls played with the younger children, and the third girl and I shared the gospel specifically with the mother. When I asked her if she would like to know for sure if she would go to heaven or hell, she quickly said, "Yes," her eyes bright. I was able to lead her in a prayer of salvation, which was wonderful. What's even more wonderful is that her next-door neighbor is a amazing, Godly woman from our church who had been sharing her life and the love of God with this lady. She'll be there for the discipleship and follow-up which are so vital for new Christians.
Meanwhile, Nathan's group visited another family, and Nathan, for the first time ever, shared his faith and the plan of salvation. He spoke with a 13 year old boy, and when Nathan asked him if he'd like to pray, the boy agreed, and Nathan was able to lead him in a prayer of salvation! Amen!
You'd think that I spent the rest of the night praising God. But, instead, I was so convicted. What about MY neighbors? Why aren't I bold to share Christ with them? What about discipleship of others? Why aren't I investing the time? My selfish heart was convicted, which was a good thing.
Dec. 1, 2006
Sleepless and Prattling
Posted in Home Life
I
am not sleepy, and I have a lot of things I want to go on about.
Therefore, this entry will be rather long. To save you the trouble of
having to slog through the whole thing, I'll put the important stuff in
bold. Then, you can just skim or read what interests you.
1. Linda U. is a wonderful friend!
I
have to give an initial to Linda as Linda S. was my favorite professor
in college, Linda T. is my aunt, Linda U. will be gushed over, Linda W.
is a dear friend here in PA, and Linda Z. is my dear neighbor.
Currently the positions of Lindas V, X, and Y are open, if you fit the
bill.
When
I first met Linda, I thought, "Here is someone I want to be friends
with!" (The excitement made me think using improper grammar.) And, we
have been great friends since that day in August 1992. She has given
me some wonderful presents through the years: a lovely angel for my
collection, the little slice of cake pin I wear every year on my
birthday, and a cake she baked and drove for seven plus hours to my
house.
This
year, she wrote me and said, "I found the perfect present for you!"
She was absolutely right. It arrived today: a Jane Austen action
figure!
Isn't it wonderful to have a friend who know you so well? She's the greatest!
2. My passport also arrived today.
I've
never had a passport before. I've always thought, "Gee, if I have to
flee the country or if someone says to me, 'Hey, let's go to Paris for
the weekend,' I'd be unable to leave." Now, I need not worry on either
count. Actually, I still probably need not worry.
Strangely
enough, my passport expires on my birthday 2016. It's funny that they
wound up issuing my passport the day after my birthday. (TGD's
passport also expires on my birthday, so it's not like a car
registration or anything. Random chance!)
3. Mozilla Firefox version 2--the best browser ever!
I
know that many of you will say, "Huh?" but if you don't have Firefox
v.2, I highly recommend you download it. (Why not? It's free, and it's
so much better than IE or Netscape!) Not only does it have the great
feature of a Google search bar like Internet Explorer has, it also has
the convenient tabbed browsing of Netscape. But, what sets 2 apart is
that there is a built in spell check! Any word I type incorrectly
while on the web is underlined in red. I simply have to click inside
the word for spelling suggestions. No more copy and paste into Word
for blog comments and such!
4. Our pickle broke.
There
is a German tradition of having a pickle ornament for the Christmas
tree. The one who first finds the hidden pickle in the tree gets
something. (At our house, you get to say, "I found the pickle!" and
move it to some other tree branch.) But, two days ago, the shards of
the glass pickle were found underneath the tree.
Libby
went online to find us a new one,and found the identical glass pickle
on eBay. Since I was always assuming the glass pickle would break
anyhow, I suggested that she make one out of clay instead. Being a
talented and resourceful girl, she quickly made us a mini-gherkin.
Didn't
she do a good job? I like the bumpy warty-ness of it. She was even
gracious when I accidentally burned it while baking it. She said, "Oh,
we'll just paint over it," even though she spent quite a bit of time
mixing clay colors to get just the right shading.
5. Superman Returns--slow,but entertaining.
TGD and I watched it tonight. It is slow, but I liked it. TGD said, "Dull. It's a chick flick." He's right. If you are a "chick," you should enjoy this "flick." I do not like the fact that Lois Lane is now an unwed mother living with her fiancι. But, I like the fiancι, and I even liked Lex Luther.
6. French Women Don't Get Fat is worth the read.
I just finished Mireille Guiliano's French Women Don't Get Fat.
It's not a diet book, but a lifestyle book. Why don't French women get
fat? Why don't they spend hours at the gym? How can they drink all that
wine and eat all that fatty food? Mireille explains "The French
Paradox" in an interesting, conversational style. Basically, French
women try to build exercise into their daily life (take the stairs,
take a walk), eat all things but in moderation, eat a lot of fruits and
veggies, and savor pleasures when they are in season. For example, now
they would eat a lot of squash and apples and pumpkin things. In the
summer, it's tomatoes and such.
I liked what she had to say,
and I find that I do many of the things she suggests. However, I did
glean some ideas which I hope to incorporate into my life. (Sit ups
don't take that much time. Eat what's in season. Vary your menu. Avoid
empty calories. Save up for the best things. Eat dark chocolate.)
There are even some recipes in the book that I might try.
She
has another book which I have on request at the library which should be
right up my alley. It's about rewarding yourself. I'm very good at
that!
7. Since God rested on the seventh day, I shall rest on number 7.
Oct. 21, 2006
Things I Did Today
Posted in Home Life
1. Woke up early (5:30 a.m.) and got two girls to their cheerleading competition.
2. Watched said competition and cheered loudly. (We came in second, which was also last. Bummer.)
3. Took a semi-nap. (I'm not a good napper.)
4. Climbed on the roof in my pajamas and nailed down some missing shingles.
5. Made spaghetti and meatballs for supper.
6. Tried chocolate-covered candied orange peels. Very yummy, despite their rather unappetizing shape.
7.
Made Rachel's birthday party invitations--exploring in the woods next
Saturday with 11 five to seven year old girls. Anybody interested in
helping?
7. Watched The Mummy with the older children. Forgot how much swearing was in it. Wished TV Guardian would have worked for that DVD.
And
now, I'm on one computer about to write Saxon stuff while the good
doctor is on the other computer, also writing Saxon stuff.
Posted in Home Life
I'm taking a respite from working on the Saxon 3rd grade teacher's manual to update here. Life has been going pretty well, although at its usual frantic pace. Thankfully, today's pace is pretty slow now that I'm back from Rachel's cheerleading this morning. I have Michael mixing up some oatmeal bread, other kids are cleaning, and I'm planning to make some soup on this chilly, rainy day. I'm hoping to get four lessons done, but I wouldn't mind getting more of them finished. I have seven due on Tuesday, and each one takes me between one and two and a half hours to complete, so to think I could get them all done today would be a bit of a stretch, especially if I keep typing blog entries.
Please keep me in your prayers as God brings me to mind. I'd appreciate prayers for diligence, that God would multiply my time and make me efficient, that I'd use my free time wisely, and that I'd be a blessing to my husband and children while this project goes on. My final deadline is October 12. I thank you in advance for any prayers you send up on my behalf!
Posted in Home Life
I've made the announcement to the children: school starts on Wednesday. I'm beginning to think I'll just have to get started with it and the excitement will come. Well, at least I hope so. I haven't been devoting much prayer to the issue, which I know would change things quite quickly. I'm rather foolish many times when it comes to prayer.
It's raining, it's pouring, and I'm glad! We are in such need of rain for the dead grass and dying gardens. I think my tomato crop has suffered, even though I've been watering the plants. It's okay, though. I only wanted enough for my family to eat, and that's what we've been getting. Three tomato plants are plenty, I've decided.
We went to my mom's Friday night and spent the night. It's always nice to visit with everyone. My grandmother (age 86) wanted a new car, so my mom and PapaJohn took her out Friday. She saw a car she liked (used) and bought it. Then, in a very-typical-for-my-grandma action, she gave Nathan her old car! Yes, N. is only 15, but he'll be driving someday. And one does not look a gift car with 45,000 miles on it in the hood. It's a 1989 something or other. It's a red car. Yes, that's what it is! I'm sure Nathan could tell you all about it. We just have to store it and insure it. My grandma joked that the driveway will be worn out with Nathan driving the car up and down on it.
I've been reading more lately. I had a tired spell a week or two ago, which had me going to bed earlier leaving little time for reading. I'm about to start a bio of Ida Scudder and a book called My Freshman Year about a college sociology professor who enrolls in college as a freshman to better understand them. It should be quite interesting! I just finished Teacher Man by Frank McCourt. He's such an entertaining storyteller, despite the occasional language and other scenes. It really paints a picture of who he is and his life.
Well, there are more things in heaven and earth than blogging and about a dozen other things I really should be doing. May God bless you this week as you begin/continue homeschooling!
Aug. 22, 2006
Painting Repeated
Posted in Home Life
Today is another painting day. I hope this one will only take me one day (eight hours) and not more. I have four main goals before school begins, and if we can get all of them done this week, perhaps we'll start school next week. Wondering what those goals might be? No? Humor me.
1. Paint the stairs/entryway/hall (today's goal)
2. Declutter and organize all main cluttery and unorganized spots (except the basement)--much of which is already done!
3. Set up all school things including daily schedule, daily checklists, hour recording lists, work areas/desks for each child, purge old school books and organize book shelf, and syllabus for English class.
4. Write out FlyLady morning, afternoon, and bedtime routines. Begin to implement these routines
I have a fifth goal, our much-neglected budget, but that doesn't have to be done before school starts.
In other news, we had two monarch butterfly caterpillars which I named Mearle and Nancy (genders unknown). Everyone else in the world seems to be able to just stick milkweed in a vase and have happy caterpillars just sit there chewing, but Mearle and Nancy were more adventuresome. They are now missing. Nancy was too young to live without milkweed, but Mearle was about ready to chrysalise. I keep looking for a bright green chrysalis, but so far, I've been unsuccessful. James is a bit freaked out at large, loose insects in the house, but I figure they fell down the heating vent.
Posted in Home Life
It's rather tedious trying to keep up with two blogs. I'm tempted to paste my Xanga blog here, but that would be "cheating," wouldn't it? I think things might grow easier when I start school.
Speaking of school, I actually had happy school-related thoughts today of schedules and the best order to do things. Am I on my way to back-to-school enthusiasm? I think I am!
Also, I won the very old Pride and Prejudice video on an Ebay auction today. It's the only version of P and P that I didn't own. It's not terribly true to the book and people wear hoop skirts, but I still wanted it to complete my collection.
Aug. 14, 2006
Home again!
Posted in Home Life
It's such a blessing to visit friends, but it does make one exhausted, especially when the one driving doesn't get home until 1:30 AM! But, I had a relaxing and refreshing weekend. I'm just not ready to think about cooking dinner, doing laundry, and tossing clutter again.
I think that today I'll print some Fly Lady things. I had the chance to read Sink Reflections (a very quick read) while at my friend's house, and it inspired me to give Fly Lady a try. I dabbled with the idea a number of years ago, but I never "got my wings." (ha ha) I think that it might be an effective way to help me manage the housework and the children's chores. Plus, I enjoy investigating new systems of organization and household management. I'm eager to start the 27 fling boogie. I'm eager to get my kids to start the 27 fling boogie!
I finished my bedroom painting, and I'm truly pleased with the results. It is nice and darkishly cozy with the shades all drawn, and it's bright and cheery with the shades all open. Plus, it really brings out the colors in the quilt and curtains. If I get motivated, I'll post a picture.
Ah, the kids were just invited to a friend's house for the afternoon, so I'll have the time free to print Fly Lady stuff, clean, and think about supper. Hmmm...how about something involving ground beef?
Aug. 8, 2006
Panting to Paint!
Posted in Home Life
Yes, I'm eager, keen, fervent, and panting to paint my bedroom! It took me forever (it seemed) to get it ready--washing walls, taping everything, drop cloths, moving furniture, filling nail holes, removing curtain things, etc. etc. etc. But, now, the fateful hour has come. It's time to take roller to latex and go at it!
I chose a brown the color of my tea with milk. I don't tend to like browns, but it really should look nice with my quilt set. Here's a cropped picture of the pillow sham I was proudly displaying last Christmas when my mom got me the set.
I think I'm beginning to get a little bored with things, but it's still not enough to have me hankering for school! Penn State and the local school districts aren't starting until the first week in September, so maybe that's what I'll do as well. Maybe not.
I think I'll sign off now at 10:05 PM and start that painting!
Jul. 31, 2006
An Update for the Faithful
Posted in Home Life
Kudos to you, my faithful three readers, for hanging in there to check if I have posted something else. My entries have been sparse and my life full. If you are ever just a-tingle to know what's going on in the life of Mary, you can always visit my Xanga site which receives more frequent updates.
I have decided to record hours next year instead of days, and my dear husband made a draft of a recording sheet. I tweaked it a bit, and I think we are "good to go" with our recording of hours. David has a head start on the others as far as school goes as he has read over 35 books this summer. The Left Behind Kids series has him quite intrigued, as do a number of other series.
I'm not eager to start school yet, but I am getting slightly interested. I've been perusing the Colonial Williamsburg page, and that is getting me a touch happy about school books and history and discussions and grading and writing assignments. There's still so much left to do!
Actually, what I ought to do is make a list of the Things I Want To or Need To Get Done This Summer. Then, I can see how manageable my list is and make a plan of attack. I'll start now.
1. Make syllabus for online writing class.
2. Paint bedroom
3. Paint entry way and stair way
4. Clean out the following: junk drawer, appliance manual box, my bathroom cupboard, my bathroom drawers
5. Make a desk/work area for each child and stock with supplies
Wow! That's really not so much, is it? I'm sure there are other things I can think of, but not right now, so these must be the ones which are truly important. So, I guess I have my goals. Now I just need the plan...
What do you still want to do this summer? What seems to be an insurmountable task?
Jul. 25, 2006
Birthday Tribute
Posted in Home Life
In the interest of saving time, here's a link to the birthday tribute for my son Nathan's 15th birthday.
I have a house full of things to tidy and a deck, lounge chair, and book that are calling my name. Decisions, decisions... I think I'll compromise with an hour or two of cleaning and lots of lounging time.
I'm thinking of recording hours this year instead of days. Any PA people care to weigh in with their experiences?
Jul. 11, 2006
Broken Toes and Internet Connections
Posted in Home Life
I've returned from a wonderful camping trip and hope to reply to many of your posts soon. My internet has been unreliable of late due to "problems in your area." Harumph! I thought cable internet was supposed to be the best! Alas...
I broke several toes right before our camping trip by stumbling into a box of towels. Oh, well. It's been six days, and I'm still limping.
This summer is flying so quickly. We like to get in a week of school each month of summer. So far, we've gotten in one and a half days, I think. I guess we'll just have to homeschool into June like other people do!
I'm putting together a curriculum using The Grammar of Poetry, Understanding Writing, and ABeka's 9th grade literature book. Whenever I actually get the syllabus figured out, I'll post a link. It would be appropriate for 7th to 10th grade. I'm very excited about studying American history next year. My 10th grader will be taking AP US History online through PA Homeschoolers.
I think I shall take my sore toes to bed and read a good book. Do you have any remedies for broken toes?
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