Where has the time gone!  Mikayla celebrated her 8th birthday yesterday.  It seems like just yesterday I was holding her as an infant.  :-)  She's growing up into such a little lady.  Here she is with her beloved Jess doll.  Mikayla loves American Girl dolls.  She has four of them now.  Don't worry, I didn't purchase all of them....just two.  The other two came from her grandparents.  :-)  I'm not sure which she loves more....Jess or her monkey.  lol.  I told her no more dolls for a while, but I'm sure I'll cave at Christmas and buy her Nicki, the new limited edition American Girl doll.  I'm such a sucker.  :-)  Honestly, I really don't mind spending the money as long as she plays with them.  And, she does. 

Knitting news.....I cannot decide what to make.  I've got a pair of socks on the needles, I'm just not motivated to finish them right now.  Wanna know why?  I have a knot in my yarn.  I know, I know, that's a dumb reason not to finish them.  But, I just can't bring myself to cut it and move on.  Soon.  :-)  I started a pretty little tank top for Mikayla.  Several times.  I think there is an error in the pattern.  There has to be.  I just cannot get it to come out right.  So, I'm scrapping it for now.  I cast on for a dishcloth last night, but decided I didn't like it.  So, I ripped it out.  I hate it when I get like this.  I printed off a pattern a couple of days ago for some socks to fit American Girl dolls.  Maybe I'll work on a pair of them.  They'll be easy to knit, and quick to finish.  Maybe that's what I need. 

School news.....we did a couple of lite days of school last week.  It went well, considering we've been off for quite some time.  Mike leaves for NTC this week, he'll be gone a month.  So, we're going to hit the school books pretty heavy this week.  We're trying to cut down on TV time during the day too.  That opens up so much more time for school.  heehee.  We're going to do the diet coke and mentos experiment too.  I hope caffeine free Diet Coke works, as that is what we accidentally bought.  Ugh.  :-)  Until next time.........

So, we got up this morning and decided we needed to do something fun to end Mike's longggggg vacation.  Well, really, it wasn't that long, but it seems like he hasn't worked in forever.  lol.  It's really only been a little over 3 weeks.  He suggested we go skating.  However, we can do that any Tuesday we want.  So, we went to the Montgomery Zoo.  We really enjoy that zoo.  It's pretty small, but just the right size for a family with 5 kids.  The weather was great!  I'm not even sure it reached 60 degrees, probably mid-50s.  Thankfully, we brought light jackets with us.  We bought the season pass (it's really called a memebershp) this time.  Forty bucks.....for a family of 7!   Can't beat that!  Plus, it enables us to go to many other zoos throughout the country for free or atleast a discounted rate.  I think Zoo Atlanta will be half price.  Of course, Mike is deploying, so I'll be doing all of the said zoos by myself.  Grrrrrrr.  It was so fun watching Liberty today.   Her favorite animal was the lion.  We were watching a Birds of Prey type show when the lion started grunting.  She was going nuts.  "Where is him, where is him."  It was pretty comical.  :-)  We were exhausted when we got home.  Tomorrow we're supposed to start school.  I think it'll be a light day.  Thank you notes and history, that's it.  lol.  I need to get groceries tomorrow.  There are no veggies or fruits in the house.  Can't diet without them.  :-)  Knitting news....I've been working on a tank top for Mikayla.  It's super cute.  It's.driving.me.nuts.  I've ripped it out once.  I'm at the point where I need to decrease some stitches, which screwed the pattern up last time.  So, hopefully it works.  I really intended to knit a few rows on the way to the zoo, but couldn't bring myself to do it.  I"m just not convinced it's going to work.  Oh, I sure could have used a pair of Fetching today.  In case you don't know what Fetching are, search www.knitty.com and you'll find them.  :-)  Until next time.........

I really hate New Years Resolutions, 'cause I rarely follow through with them.   BUT, this year, I'm really going to try.  :-)  Maybe if I post them here for all to see (not that there are that many people who actually read my blog), I"ll stick to them.  haha.

1.  Lose weight.  I know I say this every year, but I'm really going to do it this time.  I'm going to go to the doctors and get a physical, since I've never really had one.  I've had several people in my family die in their 50s from heart issues, so I guess I really need to go.  :-)

2.  Make it through another deployment.  I know I'll make it, but I don't want my kids to hate me by time it's over.  :-)  Mike told me the other day he thinks I need to pick one night per week and spend it doing something crafty with the girls, and another night during the week playing games with the boys.  Ummmmm......does he not know what kind of mother I am?  I'm a mother who reads to her kids often, will snuggle on the couch with them whenever they want, but I am NOT a mother who enjoys playing with her kids often.  Awful, I know, I'm just not.  I mean, I do play games with my kids, and we do crafts together, just not every.week.  So, I think I'll take his advice, I'll just do it either once a month or every other week.  :-) 

3.  Spend less, save more.  Easier said than done, but I'm going to try.  :-)  We want to buy a house within  a year from Mike returning from deployment, and if that's to happen, I need to pay off stupid credit cards and save money.  With five kids, someone always needs something, so it's hard to save money.  lol.  But, I have a goal, and I'm sticking to it.  :-)

4. Spend less time on the computer.  When Mike is gone, I often stay up wayyyyyy past my bedtime, because that's the only quiet time I get everyday.  Often, I spend it doing useless stuff.  This time, I will either work on my scrapbooks, or knit.  I will not waste night after night perusing message boards. 

5.  Make a better effort to make friends at church.  I don't know why, but I've had a really difficult time making friends at this church.  We've been here for three years, although I was gone for 10 months last year, but I can't say as I really have any friends at church.  I have friends from our homeschool group, and honestly, that's good enough for me, but I think I would actually enjoy our church more if I had a friend there.  We'll see.  :-)

6. Be faithful in my church attendance when Mike is gone.  It's really hard for me to attend church regularly when Mike is gone.  Part of it is because I'm lazy, and it's hard to get 5 kids ready on time by myself.  lol.  The bigger reason is because I go to church and see all of these couples sitting together with the arms around each other, and it makes me realize how lonely I really am during deployments.  So, I need to work on that. 

7. Be better organized with our school stuff.  I really need to get my act together.  We complete our school work just fine, but I am not organized at all.  I need to work on that.   I think I could add more fun stuff into our school schedule if I was better organized.

8.  Talk more, yell less.  I admit it, I'm a yeller.  I hate it, I really do.  I have made pretty decent progress, but I still have a long way to go. 

 

I think that's it.  I'm sure I'll think of more as time goes on, but that's a start.  Maybe I should print this out and stick it to my refridgerator so I don't forget my resolutions.  lol  Until next time.............

 

 

 

What a day!  :-)  We enjoyed being together as a family today.  It was fabulous!  Everyone loved their gifts.  We're still waiting on Mike's gift.....a Sony PSP.  All of the accessories came, just not the console.  I.am.not.happy.  It will make for an interesting call to customer service tomorrow.  :-)  Devin was blown away by his Nintendo DS games and books.  Didn't care a flip about his skateboard ramp, but that's OK.  lol.  Mikayla is loving her new Ariel doll (her tail lights up and she sings!) and her Elizabeth American Girl Doll from my parents.  Katie LOVES her I-dog and MP3 player.  Too bad it isn't working.  I can't get it to turn on.  So, I'll have to figure out a way to return it.  Ugh.  She got Nellie from my Mom and Dad.  Benjamin.....I'm not sure which gift he loved most....his Nintendo DS from my parents, his WWE Cage Ring or his Shake'n Go race car set.  He's having a blast with all of them.  Liberty loves every present except for her own.  lol.  I got a Zune!!!!!!  I'm loving it!  It's so easy to use, and hey....gotta love it just because it's NOT an I-pod.  heehee.  We had a fabulous meal this afternoon, and I'm about to grab some finger foods for the kids.  They need munchies.  :-)  I'm getting the lecture, so I had better go.  Until next time.........

The kids are WIRED today!  Whew....good thing Christmas only comes once a year.  :-)  We have had a fabulous day.  We took the kids bike riding on the Riverwalk today.  This was Benjamin's first time with no training wheels.  I wasn't sure he would be able to keep up, but he did just fine!  Katie told me this is the best Christmas Eve ever.  :-)  Of course, the fact that her Dad is here this year might have something to do with it.  We did an easy dinner tonight.  I cooked a turkey and made hot turkey sandwiches for those who wanted them.  Since I didn't stuff the bird, I cooked it upside down.  Oh my, what a moist turkey it was!  :-)  We also had tostitos with queso dip, chips and dip and a pepperoni/salami cheese platter.  Oh, rootbeer floats too.  The kids were in heaven.  After we finished dinner, we opened our Christmas Eve gift.  We never did that in my family, but Mike did.  So, we carry on the tradition.  I opened Alan Jackson's Precious Memories CD.  I have been lusting after this CD since I first saw the special on CMT several months ago.  Alan Jackson is an awesome artist, and he does a fabulous job singing the gospel songs.  :-)  On the menu for tomorrow is a ham, hashbrown casserole, green bean casserole, deviled eggs, cranberry sauce and rolls.  For desert, cheesecake.....if I actually make it tonight.  lol.  It'll be a fairly easy meal to cook, so I'm looking forward to spending time with my family.  It truly has been a great week.  :-)  Until next time............

We're finally getting settled.  We've been home for 5 days now.  It's been a whirlwind.  We put up the tree, made some cookies, decorated the rest of the house, unpacked, etc.  The kids were eager to get home and see their friends.  They're looking forward to park day tomorrow.....it's supposed to rain, so I doubt we'll go.  But, we'll see.  :-)  Here's a picture of our tree.  It's not a great picture, but it'll do for now.  :-)  This new format is screwing me up.  lol

Here's a picture of the cookies we decorated today.  So far, we've done gingerbread cut-outs and sugar cookie cut-outs.  I made peanut butter kiss cookies and white trash this afternoon.  I'm hoping to make some toffee and maybe one other kind of cookie tomorrow.  We're going to Mike's father's family christmas party on Saturday, so I'm planning to bring a cookie platter with us.  The kids LOVED decorating the cookies.  Of course, they promptly ran outside to play as soon as they were done, leaving me to clean up the mess.  We decided to wait one more year before we let Liberty join in on the festivities.  Anyone who has been around her for more than five minutes will understand why.  :-)

And finally, here's a couple of fun things we did while in NY.  We celebrated Benjamin's 5th birthday, and went to an Alpaca Farm!  Very interesting animals!

Until next time...............

 

As you can guess from my title, I made it to NY.  Brrrrrrrrr.  It.is.cold.  Dad assures me this is the first day of sunshine in about 2 weeks.  I can only imagine how cold it would be if it was cloudy!  lol  Our trip was pretty ho-hum.  Nothing too exciting.  We ended up staying the night at Ft. Bragg with dh.  Let me tell you, I've never seen him as nervous as he was that night.  He didn't think he would even be able to keep his breakfast down when I dropped him off yesterday morning.  So, if you're so inclined, please pray for him.  :-)  We left Fayetteville around 10, and arrived here about 11 last night.  Traffic, traffic, traffic.  The kids did great though, as did the dogs.  We had a few moments, but that's to be expecited when you're traveling by yourself with five kids and two dogs, right?  :-)  Oh, I should mention.....I bought a Venti Frappucinno from Starbucks on the Garden State Parkway.....for $5.79!!!!!!!  Holy Cow!  That was the most I've ever spend on a cup of glorified coffee in my entire life!  lol.  We're not doing much today.  Unfortunately, I have to make a 45 minute drive to buy dog food.  That's what happens when you are staying out in the boonies and you need a Petsmart.  Mom is working today, but she has the rest of the week off.  Dad goes in for day surgery on Friday to have some skin cancer removed from his face.  So, hopefully that goes smoothly and he can be done with it.  It'll be a busy week, I'm sure of it.  How long will I be here you might ask?  Your guess is as good as mine.  When Mike had his outbriefing on Thursday, they said his class could be as long as 24 days, as short as 11.  Ummmmm.....that's a pretty broad range, don't you think?  I'm not going to think about it this week though.  lol.  Oh, Becca, I'm sooooooo sad to read about your sweater!!!!!!  I so wanted to make that for myself, 'cause it's so purdy, but it ain't worth it.  lol.  Fear not, not all sweaters are that difficult.  :-)  Until next time.............

It's official!  Benjamin can now ride his bike with no training wheels!  He's about three weeks shy of his 5th birthday.  He's the earliest of our kids to learn to ride a two-wheeler.  He desperately needs a new bike.  We intend to get him one for his birthday, but told him he had to learn to ride with no training wheels first.  His bike is way to small for him.  We bought it when he was 2.  lol.  He pedals so fast his chain slips right off all.the.time.  So, looks like I had better call the bike shop and order him a new one.  :-)  Oh, did I mention that he has already done a wheelie?  He's our dare devil, if you can believe it.  :-)

School news.....we're wrapping up our work tomorrow.  They're finishing chapters that have already been started, but not starting anything new.  We're bringing our Sonlight stuff to NY with us, but that's about it. 

Travel news......Thursday is the day.  I'm nervous as all get out for my husband.  But, he'll be OK, right?  lol.  Atleast I"ll soon know the fate of our future.  I've got quite the pile of stuff on the table right now that I need to pack.  I'm doing laundry today.  Rather than putting everything away, I'm packing it right in the suitcase.  :-)  The kids are super excited to see their grandparents again.  It'll be a fun trip, I'm sure.

Knitting news.....I started the second sock last night at knitting!  By the way, have I mentioned how much I enjoy going to knitting group?  I don't get the opportunity to go very often, but I always feel so relaxed when I do go.  I must go more often.  When I get back, of course.  :-)  I finished knitting the bath mitt from knitpicks, I just need to seem it up.  It'll be a gift for my oldest neice, along with a couple of books and some bath and body works stuff.  It's hard to find something affordable to get a 17 year old.  :-)  I've got a list of knitting stuff I need to bring to NY with me.  I'm planning to hit a couple of yarn shops too!  Yee-haw! 

It may be a while before I get to blog again.  Until next time.............

I should put my disclaimer in now.....I am a big foot.  I wear a size 11.  Well, really a 10.5, but who can find a 10.5?  So, 11 it is.  I've always been a big foot.  It's something I hope I haven't passed down to my girls.  It's so difficult to find cute shoes in big sizes.  :-)  Onto the sock knitting.  I just finished a sock....yup, you read that right.....a sock.  I still have to knit the match.  But, I'm so excited.  I've knitted 4 pair of socks, but all have been cuff down on double-pointed needles.  These socks were done on size 3 circulars from Knitpicks.  I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the Knitpicks circs.  I just bought a set of size 1 circs too.  I'm sure I'll eventually end up with a size 2 set as well.  They're fabulous to knit with.  The cording doesn't curl, and the stitches don't get hung up where the cord meets the needle.  I did something else I hadn't done before too.....knitted them toe-up!  With a short-row heel!  I must say, I think I prefer a heel flap.  I'm not into the short-row thing.  Maybe it's because it was the first time I had ever done it?  Yarn is Memories in Redwood Forest from Knitpicks.  Please excuse the bad picture.  I haven't quite mastered the art of photographing a sock when it's on your foot!  :-)  Oh, lest I forget, pattern is Beaded Rib from Sensational Knitted Socks.  If you don't have this book, get it.  It's GREAT!  Toe is the magic cast-on from www.knitty.com.  It's super easy.  I'm not completely happy with the cast-off though.  I just did a regular bind-off, loosely.  But, it's still a bit of a stretch to get it over my heel.  If you're a sock knitter, which type of bind-off do you prefer? 

     

 

Before I knit the matching sock, I'll have to do a bit of Christmas knitting.  I'm making my brother a hat.  I've cast-on and started a few times, but keep ripping it out.  Hopefully I'll cast-on for the last time tonight.  :-)  I'm not sure how much I'll be blogging the next month or so.  I'm leaving next week, and don't intend to be back until just before Christmas.  I'll try and update my blog from my Mom's, but we'll see what happens.  :-)  Until next time...........

That was Devin's science test score today.  Yee-haw!  I should mention it wasn't open book.  :-)  What I won't mention is the sloppy job he did in writing the answers, AND the complete sentences that he didn't write.  lol.  But, I guess I can't have my cake and eat it too. 

Knitting news.....here are the socks I'm nearly finished with.  They're for my Mom for Christmas.  Notice they're fraternal.  I'm not overly happy about that.  Somehow, I reversed the striping pattern.  By time I realized it, I was nearly finished with the second sock.  Too late to frog the whole thing.  Well, I guess I could have, but who would want to?  By the way, I knitted these with el-cheap-o Magic Stripes from ACMoore.  I currently have in my sock stash some Opal, Knit Picks Essentials and Memories.  Which should I knit with next? 

 

 

 

Now that I look at the picture, the bottom sock looks larger.....let me assure you, it isn't.  :-)  I played around a little last night trying to figure out how to do the magic loop toe-up cast on.  I think I've figured it out!  It really isn't too hard.  I am dying to start a new pair of socks using the toe-up method, but I only have Knit Picks size 3 circs.  I just ordered a set of size 1s, but they won't be here for a little while.  So, I guess I'll have to wait.  I started this months dishcloth knit-a-long instead.  I think it's a turkey, but I've only done about 14 rows.  A bit early to tell for sure.  As soon as Mike gets home from work (which he told me would be over an hour ago), I'm headed to B&N to get Sensational Socks.  He was supposed to take me there last night after church, but thanks to a dumb business meeting, it was too late.  He just called.....he'll be 10-15 more minutes.  Ugh.  Until next time.........

 

 

 

 

What a week.  Mike is in the field, so I've been a single parent this week.  Thankfully, it's been a decent week.  I have finished 2 swaps I need to finish up for my Top-Notch swap group.  I'm so glad to have them finished.  I'm mailing them today.  :-)  School has went well.  I was talking to my Mom last night, and she was telling me that she things Mikayla's school issues are her fault.  Things don't always come easy to Mom.  It drives Dad and I nuts, because we aren't that way.  Anyway, I told Mom she didn't need to apologize, after all, there's nothing she can do about it.  I'm so thankful that I'm able to homeschool my kids though.  I know without a doubt, that Mikayla would have been held back last year had she been in public school.  I'm so proud of the progress she has made this year though.  She's doing GREAT!  She has her moments, but over-all, things that she just could.not.get. last year (like counting money) seem to be clicking this year.  I pray it continues.  :-)  It's very difficult to teach a child who has to hear things over and over and over again.  I know it's hard for her too.  She gets discouraged easily.  :-)  OK....onto other things......knitting.....I've finished the first ankle sock I'm making for my Mom for Christmas.  I just have to kitchener the stitches together.  I'm hoping Becca can show me how to do that tomorrow at knitting.  :-)  I'm going to Destin, FL this weekend with the girls, so I'm thinking I'll be able to get a good portion of the second sock done.  Pray for my husband....I'm leaving him here with the other three kids for 2 nights.  He's fully capable of running things here at home, he's just never really had to do it.  I think the only other times I've left him for more than a night are when I was delivering babies.  :-)  I'll probably make him a couple of meals and stick them in the fridge so he doesn't have to worry about it.  :-)  OK....someone is having a melt-down.  Until next time.........

We celebrated our 12 year wedding anniversary yesterday.  Sometimes it blows my mind that I've been married to the same person for 12 years.....other times, it seems like 30.  :-)  We had planned to watch our wedding video, but I couldn't find it.  Ugh.  I am pretty sure I know where it is, but I can't get to it.  Oh well.....maybe next year?  We did go to see the movie Flicka after the kids went to bed.  Good movie with some beautiful WY scenery.  :-)  We were the only people in the theater too, which was nice.  We could talk and not have to worry about someone hearing us!  :-)  Mike left for the field this morning.  He's only gone until Thursday night, but I felt bad for him.  He didn't get to bed until nearly midnight, and had to get up at 3am to go to work.  Yuck, yuck, yuck.  So, I always miss him when he's gone, but it'll be nice to have three nights to do whatever I want.  :-)  I'll be working on swaps.  I have 2 to finish....a Fall swap, and a color combination swap.  I have the first one nearly done, the other....not a clue what I'm going to even do.  I'll figure out something.  Until next time.............

We've had some chilly fall weather lately.  Mmmmmm.....I love fall.  :-)  Imagine my surprise, when I walked outside this morning for my walk, and it was HUMID!  Oh, so humid.  Nasty humid.  I promptly walked back upstairs to exchange my long sleeved shirt for a short sleeved short.  I could have even worn shorts and been just fine!  But, I figured my white legs would glow in the dark.  :-) 

School is going well this week.  Devin has scored high 90s on his math quizzes this week.  I let him use his chapter review for English as a test, if he scored over a 90.  Guess what he scored.......a 100%!  I couldn't believe my eyes!  :-)  He has a science test tomorrow.  He doesn't know it, but it'll be open book.  I'm hoping to boost his confidence that way.  Hopefully it'll work.  :-)  Until next time.........

 

We took a field trip to a local pumpkin patch yesterday.  It was pretty lame, but hey.....it was Army sponsored.....what did ya expect?  :-)  The kids had fun though.  There was a hay ride, a cheezy maze through the woods, some artsy craftsy stuff, inflatables, Itty Bitty pumpkins for the kids to take home, etc.  I was hoping to get a great photo of the kids to use in our Christmas cards.  I shoudl have taken the pics as soon as we got there.  Instead, I waited until the end, which was dumb of me.  This is the best I came up with....

 

 

So, should I use it?  I told Mike I should use it, since Liberty looks like that 90% off the time anyway.  He told me I was mean.  heehee.  I'll probably wait and see if I can come up with anything better.  If not, I'll go ahead and use it.  I wish I could use one of the pics we took at Disney, but we went there in February, so by time I send Christmas cards, it'll be an old photo.  lol

School is going well this week.  Of course, we're only doing the basics, math and english.  It's nice to have an easy week though.  I told the kids today, next week, we have five serious weeks of school, then we're going to NY.  So, it'll be worth it to work hard for 5 weeks, then we'll have about 7 weeks off.  Yee-haw!  :-)  I am amazed at Mikayla's progress this year.  She's doing her math work so easily, just blows my mind the improvement over last year.  Even her reading.  She's still not quite where I want her to be, but she is getting there.  It's my goal to have her reading Magic Treehouse type books by the end of the school year.  I'm fairly confident it won't take her that long.  I'm so proud of her.  :-) 

Knitting news....I finished a square for Warm-up America today.  The class I'm co-teaching for co-op is making an afghan for Warm-up America.  Becca told me on my way out the door to feel free to make a square or two.  Thanks Becca.....I got the hint.  :-)  So, I made a square.  I also finished up the bib/burp cloth sets I needed to get in the mail yesterday for a baby shower gift.  It needs to get to NY by Saturday am.  We'll see if it happens.  I'm such a procrastinator.  :-)  Anyway, here are the bibs/burp-cloths.  They're too cute!

 

 

I really need to purchase the buttons for Liberty's sweater and sew up the last underarm seam.  Mike will be gone this weekend, so maybe I'll get it done then.  Liberty will need to wear it when we go to NY.  Tomorrow is a busy day.  Computer, speech (rescheduled because of Columbus Day) and Revival.  Revival is a good thing, but man, it whoops your tail.  :-)  Until next time...........

I wanted to take a moment and share how God is working in our family right now.  All of our kids have been saved before the age of 5.  Benjamin will be 5 in December.  He's been bugging us FOREVER and a day to talk to him about being saved.  So, last Thursday evening, the older/younger kids were busy upstairs, so Mike and I sat down and chatted with Benjamin about spiritual things.  Praise the Lord, he repeated the sinners prayer and answered all of the questions we asked him correctly!  Now, let me just say, I often wonder how being saved so young will affect their adult life, as they won't be able to specifically remember the time when they're saved.  But, if they show a desire, what can we do?  We have to follow the Holy Spirit's leading, right?  :-)  Also, I think I stated earlier, this week is revival week at church.  I'll admit it, I'm not a fan of revival WEEK.  Week being the key word.  It's so hard for me to get dinner ready early enough so we're not running around like chickens with our heads cut off to get out the door in time once per week, much less FIVE!  But, last night went amazingly smooth.  We even brought one of the neighborhood kids with us.  We've been blessed to hear the preaching from the Dr. Ron Comfort evangalist team from Ambassador Bible College.  If you ever get a chance to hear him preach, do it.  It'll be worth it.  Anyway, Sunday evening, he asked if there were any young people willing to come forward and dedicate their lives to full-time Christian service.  Quite a few teens went forward.  Yesterday morning, Katie asked Mike and I what that really meant?  We explained it to her, and she said, "Oh.  If I had know that last night, I would have went forward."  So, last night, when Dr. Comfort asked the same question, this time he didn't lmit it to just young people, he opened the invitation up to anyone, she went forward.  I'm very proud of her for this, because I was wondering if she would actually go through with it since she had a friend in the audience.  But, she did it!  Praise the Lord!  So, even though our family is so non-deserving right now, God is blessing us, and I thank Him for it.  :-)  I wonder what He'll have for us at revival tonight?  Until next time...........

I think we're doing a light school week this week.  Tomorrow is really a holiday, so Mike has the day off from work.  He's going biking in the am, so we'll do a bit of school then.  I really need to tackle the bedrooms.  Disasterous, that's what they are.  I'm contemplating going to knitting tomorrow night.  But, it's revival week at church.  That means we'll have service every.night.this.week.  There are already a couple of nights we can't go because of prior commitments, but we'll see.  Mike said I could go to knitting and he would take the rest of the kids to church, but we'll see what happens.  :-) 

I have been wondering this weekend if we jumped into school too fast.  We didn't really build up to anything, just started every subject all at once.  I don't think I'll do that again.  I think that was a big mistake.  We also have a field trip to the pumpkin patch this week.  So, I think we'll just do math and english this week.  The rest can wait to next week.  I'm trying not to be a slave to my lesson plans.  It's difficult.  :-)  I just think we could really use a break right now. 

Have I mentioned we're traveling to my parents for Thanksgiving?  I'm so excited.  I haven't been there since February.  The kids are hoping to see a bit of snow!  :-)  Until next time.........

I feel like we should be doing better than we are.  After all, this is our third year homeschooling.  Why do I still feel like it's our first?  I have nearly all of the curriculum kinks worked out. So, I know that's not the problem.  Why am I still struggling with motivational issues with a couple of the kids?  Ughhhhhh.  For the most part, Katie does just fine on most of her work.  Notice I said, "for the most part."  She flunked an easy-peasy English test this week.  She had to know the parts of a business letter.  That's it.  When I gave her the grade, I asked her if she studied.  Her response......"I don't study for English tests."  Uuuuuuggggghhhhhhhhh!  I asked her the questions she got wrong orally, and she got them nearly all right.  So, I'm not sure what the problem is.  Devin's test scores are improving, which I'm glad about.  BUT....it shouldn't take him until 7:30pm to finish his work.  I am very tired of the fight.  I don't know if the problem is that I'm a slave to our lesson plans or what.  Maybe I need to lighten up a bit, make sure they do Math, English and Bible everyday, but do the rest just a couple of times a week?  I don't know.  I just know I'm tired of the fight.  Everyday is a struggle to get things done around here.  Sick of it, that's what I am.  Lest you all think I'm totally negative, I am very impressed with the progress Mikayla has made in her school work.  School with her is 150% easier this year than it was last year.  She seems to be "getting" things faster, which is a blessing.  Last year was a huge struggle.  So, I traded one struggle for another.  :-)  Anyway, if you have any comments/suggestions, be sure to leave 'em.  I need all the encouragement I can get right now.  Until next time............

I'm still sick.  Feeling much better, but tire very easily and am still blowing my nose.  Yuck.  Oh, I should mention that I have a HUGE cold sore on my lip too.  Looks like someone punched me right in the mouth.  It's bad enough that I sent my husband to an FRG meeting by himself tonight.  No way am I sitting in a meeting with his co-workers looking the way I do.  Not gonna happen.  He took a little with him though, which was a pleasant surprise.  :-) 

School news.....I'm implementing some changes, one of which may be a new math program for Katie.  The girls are both working through Calculadders.  If you're not familiar with Caluladders, you need to check it out.  They both are enjoying it!  Katie had to do a timed drill on telling time.  I will admit, we have mostly digital clocks in our house, and she did just get a digital watch for her birthday, BUT....I thought she knew how to tell time.  She.had.no.idea.  I know she reviewed it last year, but that part of her brain must have fell out her year.  Her 2nd grade sister had to teach her how to do it.  Let's just say Katie wasn't very impressed with that.  heehee.  Once she got the lesson, she was fine.  Completed the sheet with no mistakes.  But, she'll be doing it again tomorrow.  I'm thinking of going with Saxon.  Problem is, I'm not sure I really want to spend $80 on a new math program right now.  We only have 6 more weeks of school, then we're taking off until after the first of the year.  So, I might just stick out our current curriculum and start something different next year.  We'll see.  I guess we'll just play it by ear.  Oh yeah...I almost forgot.  Benjamin keeps asking me when I'm going to teach him to read.  Ugh.  Not again.  :-)  So, this week, we started the Ordinary Parents Guide to Teaching Reading.  I'm not really sure he's ready, but we'll try it out and see.  He is ready for a formal math program though.  I'm waiting until after the first of the year before we start though.  He's already doing simple addition.....he's not even five yet.  :-)  Time to finish dinner.  Until next time...........

I woke up yesterday with a slight sore throat.  By time I went to bed last night, I was very congested.  So, I didn't sleep well at all last night.  I woke up several times with either drool running out of my mouth, or snot running out of my nose.  Nice, eh?  Ugh.  If I could every get this laundry off the couch, I would lay down and rest.  It'll be a short school day, I'm sure.  Forget read-alouds today.  No way, no how.  Unless one of the kids wants to read.  :-)  Speaking of school, Devin scored an 82% on his science test today.  Hallelujah.  It would have been a long two weeks if he scored less than an 80.  He thinks he studied his butt off this week.  Now he knows how hard he has to study every week.  I think I'll let his next test be open book, just to build some confidence.  But shhhhhhh.....don't tell him.  :-)  Tomorrow we have co-op.  I hope I feel better.  Otherwise, it'll be a longggg day.  I think we're going to have to skip park day tomorrow.  Katie's birthday is Sunday, and she's having some friends over on Saturday evening.  So, I have a million and one things to do to get ready.  My first born girl is entering the double digits!  :-)  Until next time...........

Have I mentioned that we have 2 dogs?  One cute, furry not-so-little Lhasa Apso.  I'll be the first to tell you, he's my dog.  I bought him when Mike was in Iraq, and I love him.  :-)  BUT, he loves Mike more.  Not sure why, but it always seems to work that way.  At night, when he's on our bed (which, I must mention, he can't get on by himself.  The bed is too high), he snuggles right up to Mike.  He just got a hair-cute yesterday, which means he'll be freezing at night for a while.  Mike was ever so thankful that Milo slept with the girls last night, 'cause he would have been snuggled right up to Mike all night long.  :-)  Then, there is Kenai.  Kenai is a Brittany Spaniel, and very cute.  BUT, he's only 6 months old.  Still very much a puppy.  And, he's quick.  Lightening quick.  He has started taking off when the kids take him outside.  Heck....he even took off on me one day.  I won't chase him.  I just won't do it.  Of course, he never does anything naughty when Mike is here.  Funny how that works, eh?  The last time he took off, I was steaming mad.  So, Mike suggested we buy a shock collar.  I didn't want to spend the $$, but I had had enough by that point.  Have I mentioned that this dog still pees in his crate at night?  Ugh.  He needs exercise.  He is much better behaved when he's got the tremendous amount of exercise he needs.  The kids walk him a few times a day around the court, but that's not enough.  We got him because Mike wanted a dog he could take biking with him.  Poor Milo's short little legs just didn't cut it.  :-)  Kenai is the perfect dog for biking.  BUT, Mike has been so busy at work lately, that he hasn't had time to take Kenai biking.  I think it's been nearly a month since Mike biked.  I'm sure once he realizes that he'll start convulsing.  :-)  So, on to the schock collar.  It doesn't hurt....I tried it on my finger.  However, it does scare the living daylights out of him.  It's kind of funny, because if he starts taking off on me, I just give him a quick little zap and all four of his feet come off the ground.  BUT, he comes right to the door to go in, just like he's supposed to.  Hallelujah.  I know, I know....traning.....that's all he needs.  BUT, right now, I.just.cannot.do.it.  So, the shock collar was the perfect answer.  He really is a good dog, he's just a puppy.  That's what I keep telling myself anyway.  Until next time................