Behold, and Observe
The Things That God Has Done
I rejoice in His creativity,
whether it is displayed in a flower, the plumage of a bird,
the clouds in the sky, the unreachable marvels of the universe,
fields of blowing grasses, the infinite musical possibilities,
or the expressive creative abilities He has given us.
I also believe He has an awesome sense of humor,
one that doesn't hurt or destroy, but that reveals and uplifts.
This was a cool looking cloud we saw on a several hour car trip spent dodging storms as best we could. Some of the clouds that were all lit up with lightning inside them and that had storms pouring out the bottom of them were so cool to look at, but we thankfully didn't have to drive through any of them. Somehow our timing was such that they sort of wove their way around us as they all went from west to east and we were going south.
This is the same cloud a few minutes later. I don't think we quite captured the awesomeness of it all as it blew up and outwards.
It's like it was being brushed upwards with powerful handstrokes.
Anyhow.....I just wish you could have watched it with us.
My fella was fighting Urguls in the dining room the other day.
He had an old wooden shield made at Christian Service Brigade
and a sword fashioned from a broken barrel from a toy rifle.
His sword slipped out of his hand, and immediately disappeared.
The window shade looked disturbed,
so he went to see if it was stuck behind it.
take a closer look...
This is what he found on the deck.
The do it yourself price is over $60.
A week from now we have to install the glass ourselves,
hoping I measured well.
Please pray for my homeschooler friend Stephanie. She and her daughter Katie were in a car hit by a guy running a stop sign, and now she has blood clots in her lower leg. Her 18 yr old daughter is recovering well, with injury lingering in her right hand.
I don't understand why Stephanie's at home instead of in the hospital. She'll be talking to her practitioner today about it. Too many questions.
I'm concerned that:
Stephanie isn't supposed to move her leg.
She's supposed to move her legs once an hour.
She's supposed to stay off her leg.
She has to move to go to the bathroom.
She's on all these really serious medications to dissolve the clot.
She went from having one clot to having several (smaller?) clots.
She doesn't know what symptoms there might be to tell her they're moving....are there any?
I don't get it....this is life-threatening if one were to travel to her lung or heart.
She lives way out in the county far from any medical facilities.
Please pray for her condition and for her medical treatment.
I just figured out it costs probably $12-$15 of gasoline
each time I mow the lawn.
No wonder!!!! And this is just the back.
I mean, what little Corgi needs this huge running area!! (We're down to one dog.)
I think we're going to let some of it go back to pasture!~
Take a look at the front.....
everything on the other side of the drive is NOT lawn grass
(but made nice parking for the open house!)
If allowed to, it would grow up like this:
We've mowed these paths all through it just for fun.
The grasses really are beautiful...
(these come up to my eye level)
with these treasures throughout.
This shot across the grass to our homemade shed
almost looks like a prairie!
So. I'm re-thinking things here.
I'm going to find a way to mow less and less....!!$*~~$! (we're in the country, so we can get away with all this....no lawn police out here!!! We can even have dandelions...)
TEMECULA, Calif. (UPI) -- Employees of a Temecula, Calif., McDonald's said they have captured a chicken that had terrorized the restaurant's drive-through lane for nearly four months.
The employees said the brave fowl would anger customers by blocking the drive-through lanes and bother employees by shedding feathers around the premises, the Riverside (Calif.) Press-Enterprise reported.
Restaurant manager Chona Cauley said the chicken evaded numerous capture attempts, but was finally ensnared after it fell asleep atop a drive-through window.
"Normally, the chicken sleeps in the bushes," Cauley said.
Esmeralda Ruiz, an employee who helped capture the chicken, said she has adopted the animal as a pet.
"She's one of our family members now," Ruiz said.
I'm not sure why I posted this one. Do you ever just have something that catches your attention and strikes you as funny? I guess this is one of my moments....
Hm... same with this one:
Eating Vegetables
A man walks into a doctor's office. He has a cucumber up his nose, a carrot in his left ear and a banana in his right ear.
I forgot to tell you about the lyrical dance always done to a Christian song at the end of the program. And how the director always presents the gospel message clearly in the storyline. And her solo dances went very well last night. If you ask her, she'd mention some technical detail, like how one of her steps only went into half-point instead of full-point, a detail only she and her instructor would notice. ha. I just know that it hurts my heart and takes my breath away to watch her dance... it's so beautiful. I don't know how she does it.
There were lots of relatives there.
This is big brother, J.T.
It's more of a challenge getting a good pic with little brother.
But hey, it's him!
In all fairness, I should mention that something was being said about posing like he was in love with his sister. He loves her tremendously, and shows it at home all the time, but isn't into public demonstrations!
(By the way, the neckline on that dress isn't as bad as it seems. She's wearing another tan leotard underneath it that makes it so she can "safely" do all the moves required. whew... We don't have any say in the costuming.)
Bob said that these ballet classes paid off the way we had hoped they would... she gained gracefulness, femininity, self-confidence, and physical fitness. She also picked up diligence, responsibility, lots of training in memorization, perseverance in spite of tears, and the ability to do painful hard work for a goal. She can also now teach ballet for some money on the side....not bad.
This week is Christine's ballet recital, and it will probably be her last, as she's a senior this year and her college doesn't have a dance program. It's fun, but bittersweet.....
I've been taking pictures at her rehearsals and at Thursday's performance. She has one more tonight, when it's her turn to perform the lead of Christine Daea(?) of Phantom of the Opera. She's waited a long time for a role like this one. It is so wonderful to be able to dance to beautiful, passionate music like those songs are.
For years I've been attending her classes just to watch, and it's been a pretty good replacement for all those symphony concerts I used to attend. It's so beautiful to watch the girls dance. I hope you'll indulge me as I share these photos. I don't know if I'll be able to get any video......
The black dress-like costume is the one used for that role, and the others are what she wore for her parts in Thursday's performance when the other girl played the lead role.
Ready to go, with stage lipstick!
She's in the lavender with the other lead dancer, looking at the Phantom, played by one of the dads.
This was her first year taking Acro class.
What cute costumes.....
done to "Make 'Em Laugh" from Singing in the Rain.
Hurts me to watch this...
Christine with some girlfriends who came.
Her instructors, a mother and daughter.
(The mom is in her 70's, had a hip replacement two years ago,
the daughter is 50,
and they still dance up a storm....)
My lovely kitty (see my kitty picture looking back at you whenever I post) is what I suspect is called a medium hair.It’s too long for me.She has this long hair and all this strange light colored undercoat stuff that ends up all over the house.You can tell from the residue where she likes to nap, and we’re always using the lint brush or even the vacuum on it.
Tidbits, in her glamour pose.
Yes.....we've even given her haircuts.With a pair of scissors.And a comb.And a leash.Outdoors. She's provided lots of nesting material for the birds. I don't have any pictures, but she'll be a much lighter color and fluffier, as her undercoat shows through.
She’s actually quite docile when being handled.We think she has some Ragdoll in her heritage, as she goes limp when picked up and never struggles to get away.
Even when bathed in the kitchen sink.
Hugged.
And carried around.
Except for all the fur, she’s been such a good kitty for us.
The kids just love her so.
Except for that stalking stage she went through.She would stalk Christine from behind and run up and nip her on the ankles.I would see her backing through the house, crouched down with her hands extended in front of her, saying, “No, no!” in a panicked voice.Sure enough, there would be this cat stalking her.She loved to wait downstairs for her and grab her halfway up the stairs. Couldn't figure out why she never did it to the rest of us. I used to tell her to just not run away. Didn't work, though. So glad when she got over that stage.
We keep reminding her how lucky she is to have us.We were out in the country looking at deer and heard this high pitched little noise in a hedgerow.Suddenly this tiny kitten came out of the brush and ran toward our van.The kids jumped out and she ran right up to them.
We looked around for the farm house she had wandered from and realized there wasn’t a house in sight in any direction.Oh dear.We had three dogs, and no desire for a cat.Needless to say, she came home with us and we discovered she didn’t even know how to drink out of a saucer.
The dogs couldn't bother her, as she just wouldn't react to them. You can't chase something that won't run!
We attached to her and she ended up being a nice pet for a three year old who liked to carry her around the house.All limp with no scratching.I’d never seen anything like it. And fortunately, our humane society payed for spaying of strayed or found kitties.Yes!!!We could do this…
What we think is funny is how anytime she notices anything different around the house, she has to lie down on or in it. Whether we've rearranged some furniture, or just left a paper on the floor. It's a little exasperating when working on a project, as she wants to sit in the middle of it.
Ooooooh, look. Birthday paper on the couch!
rearranged bookshelves
New table in living room of Christine's stuff for her open house.
This gives her a wonderful view of the birds out the front window.
This is about as far as she's allowed to get from the front porch.
What a fun exploration for her, while we watch and make sure she doesn't wander off toward the road.
I was trying to sleep in after a long hard day yesterday, and Josiah (11) came crawling in to bed to try to bring me to my senses, being the only one in the house this morning. This is when he usually gets real tender and philosophical.
He's telling me how much he loves me, and how he doesn't want me to go anywhere. I mumbled "I'm not going anywhere today..." He said, "You know. I don't want want you to go up in the clouds....." to which I replied, "I'm not Jesus, you know." "Yeah, but I didn't want to say it the other way!"
He then went on to say he wished he had a little brother or sister, and was I going to have a baby? I told him I was getting too old for that. "But what about that Abraham guy and his wife Sarah????" By then I was fully awake. (Not sure if that was his intent or what........) I said something about that being special because God was starting the nation of Israel......and of course he says what about the nation of (our last name)? (OK>>>OK>>> I'M AWAKE NOW AND FEELING FULLY GUILTY ABOUT OUR SMALL FAMILY OF ONLY THREE KIDS......and I'm getting up.)
This is to tell what I've been up to lately: Stress-ville. I will feel so much better after June 8th. Like I will have my life back. Hopefully I will be over this cold, too. I caught it from Christine, and she had hers for almost a month, so I'm not too optimistic on that point.
But I will be able to kick back, as not only is she graduated, but her graduation open house will be HISTORY!! And my yard and my house will be in presentable shape and my friends and family will have been well fed and hopefully entertained. IF I can get it all done in time.
I have not been sick like this all winter. I've been moaning and sleeping since Sunday morning. Today I medicated up, bit the bullet and went out and mowed the lawn. At least I could sit for a good part of it. Every part of my body hurts right now. I foolishly weed-wacked. Took way too much out of me. Bob's been away for two of the last three weeks, so I'm stressing over how much we have to do.
Tomorrow Christine goes to work until mid-afternoon, and then she can help me until dinner time when we all have to go to an openhouse together. I'm hoping we can get the carpets shampooed during that time. That will feel good to have that done.
You see, we don't have as much time as it seems to pull this together, as there 11 openhouses, a dinner, a picnic, and a wedding to attend in the next 9 days before our event. We won't even be home for the day and a half before ours begins. Go figure! (I haven't quite got the logistics of this figured out yet.)
I was told that not many places besides Michigan have this high school graduation open house ritual each Spring. Is that true? Parties with food, fun, memories of the grad's life all on display, and gifts. What do you do where you're from?
I love going to these and spending all that time with friends, many who you just don't see all that often. I'm really looking forward to ours. I just wish I hadn't let the place go. And that my back wasn't keeping me from bending over again. And that I knew what I was doing and wasn't so insecure. J.T. didn't want one, so this is my first. Ack!
Thankfully Bob stayed home today and the outside work is largely done, except for a final mowing and setting up. I feel like staying inside for a few days, anyhow. ha. When J.T. arrived home tonight around 10:30, he heard what sounded like a cougar scream from the woods out back, and another answered from the fields across the road. They do have sightings about 8 miles downstream from us on a regular basis. I've been expecting this in the back of my mind. Something else to pray about, eh? This is new for this area in the last couple of years.
Oh well.
How's this for getting chatty after a long period of few and far between....? Am I s-t-r-e-s-s-e-d?
This is one of the local homeschool graduating classes of 2008.
Christine is in the 2nd row from the back, the 2nd from the right.
This is her big brother
and her two best friends, dating back to preschool.
It was a lovely day, a wonderful ceremony with four students and a senator speaking, and an awesome performance by the homeschool band. A nice finale to thirteen years of academic achievement.
She'll be attending a christian university a little over an hour from us, and I'll only have Josiah left to homeschool. Things will sure be different around here starting in the fall.
- If you work too hard, you're not spending enough time with her. If you don't work hard enough, you're a good-for-nothing bum.
- If she has a boring repetitive job with low pay, it's exploitation. If you have a boring repetitive job with low pay, you should get off your butt and find something better.
- If you get a promotion ahead of her, it's favoritism. If she gets a job ahead of you, it's equal opportunity.
- If you mention how nice she looks, it's sexual harassment. If you keep quiet, it's male indifference.
- If you cry, you're a wimp. If you don't, you're insensitive.
- If you make a decision without consulting her, you're a chauvinist. If she makes a decision without consulting you, she's a liberated woman.
- If you ask her to do something she doesn't enjoy, that's domination. If she asks you, it's a favor.
- If you try to keep yourself in shape, you're vain. If you don't, you're a slob.
- If you buy her flowers, you're after something. If you don't, you're not thoughtful.
- If you're proud of your achievements, you're an egotist. If you're not, you're not ambitious.
Kinda makes you think about the quandary guys are in these days with all this liberation stuff. They struggle with whether or not to open a door for a lady anymore. It seems to me that gals are paying, too. When I see the way guys talk in front of gals, I'm dismayed and surprised, until the gals open their mouths.... ew yuck.
I'm an Aide in a once a week homeschool class for kindergarteners and first graders, and one of their classes is Spanish.
The teacher had drawn pictures of animals on the board, and was working his way through the Spanish names for them. When he got to 'fish' he gave them the word for a single fish. Then he added the word used for more than one fish.
At that point this little fellow excitedly raised his hand and seriously asked, "What's the word if there are no fish?"
The teacher looked over at me, I smiled with a shrug, and the teacher said, "Well, I guess we wouldn't be talking about fish, then, would we..."
Micah Magnusson's father is asking for prayer for his son. They are a Christian family in our area. Micah suffered a sudden brain hemorrhage almost a year ago, on the day of his high school Graduation open house. He is miraculously alive, but has been on a long road to recovery. His father has posted the following on his CarePage:
The past couple of days have not been
H.........A........P........P........Y
days for Micah. He has communicated that he is a discouraged and down. Last night I was trying to encourage him that he is getting better slowly and he would only say “no” with his eyes.
I have often viewed those who have surrounded us as an army and tonight I am asking for that army to raise up and pray for Micah’s Spirit. Would you pray that God would encourage him and elevate his hope? I do not claim to understand all how God works through prayer, but that He does. I remember Pastor Emerson used to say something like “I notice when I pray things happen, and when I fail to pray things don’t seem to happen” (my paraphrase).
I Chron 12:22 “For day by day men came to David (Micah) to help him, until there was a great army like the army of God.
Thanks for being in Active Duty,
Dale
The testimony of what the Lord has been doing in this young man's life can be found on his CarePage. This is at CarePages.com, where you have to sign up, and then his account that you want to see is: micahmag.
To "think aloud" about whatever strikes me at the moment. Married to Bob, my philosophical, artsy scientist! We were church planters in France, are in our 14th year of homeschooling, have 11yr and 20yr old sons and an 18yr old daughter. We do homeschool sports, ballet, band and choir. My greatest joys in life have been from seeing God work. We have an awesome God, and I've seen Him do awesome things.
A Favorite Artist
Bouguereau
Some Favorite Scriptures
"A new command I give you:
Love one another.
As I have loved you,
so you must love one another.
By this all men will know
that you are my disciples,
if you love one another."
John 13:34,35 (NIV)
Then he stretched himself out
on the boy three times
and cried to the Lord,
"Oh Lord my God,
let this boy's life return to him!"
The Lord heard Elijah's cry,
and the boy's life returned to him,
and he lived.
I Kings 17 21,22 (NIV)
Be merciful to those who doubt;
snatch others from the fire
and save them;
to others show mercy, mixed with fear-
hating even the clothing
stained by corrupted flesh.
Jude 22,23 (NIV)
The rest of mankind that were not killed by these plagues still did not repent of the work of their hands, they did not stop worshiping demons, and idols of gold, silver, bronze, stone and wood - idols that cannot see or hear or walk. Nor did they repent of their murders, their magic arts, their sexual immorality or their thefts. Revelation 9:20,21 (NIV)
Exploring Creation with Physics
by Dr. Jay L. Wile Telling the Truth;
How to Revitalize Christian Journalism
by Marvin Olasky Step by Step:
How to Write Articles
for Newspapers and Magazines
by Dawn B. Sova MLA Handbook for
Writers of Research Papers
by Joseph Gibaldi Teach Yourself Photography
by Lee Frost The Joy of Digital Photography by Jeff Wignall How to Ruin Your Life by 40
by Steve Farrar Youthwalk
by Bruce H. Wilkinson
A bazillion book from Sonlight's
20th Century World History (see it here) The 20th Century Day by Day by Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr.
Our Century in Pictures LIFE edited by Richard B. Stolley Heart of Darkness
by Joseph Conrad 1984
by George Orwell The Metamorphosis
by Franz Kafka
The Road from Home The story of an Armenian Girl
by David Kherdian All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald Labor's Untold Story by Richard O.Boyer & Herbert M. Morais For Whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemingway
My Life in Advertising &
Scientific Advertising by Claude C. Hopkins China's Long March
6000 Miles of Danger by Jean Fritz The Snow Goose by Paul Gallico Winston Churchill
Soldier, Statesman, Artist by John B. Severance The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway
Parallel Journeys
by Eleanor H. Ayer Cry, The Beloved Country by Alan Paton Also finishing up: Exploring Creation with Physical Science
by Jay L. Wile America's Providential History
by Beliles & McDowell Just for fun: The Scarlett Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne The Other Daughter
by Miralee Ferrell Blue Like Jazz
by Donald Miller
Sonlight History with Josiah:
A Child's History of the World
Hillyer World History
Usborne Time Traveler
Usborne Window on the World
Spraggett The History News Explorers
Johnstone Geography Songs
Audio Memory A Child's Garden of Verses
Stevenson Aesop's Fables
by Aesop Red Sails to Capri by Ann Weil Also Studying: Abeka: God's Gift of Language A
Orton-Gillingham/Diane Craft
(Phonics Program) Math-U-See
Dad's Eclectic Science Program
Choir
Soccer
Basketball
Reading with Josiah:
The Book of Exodus
~~~~~~~~~~ The Chronological Gospels
~~~~~~~~~~ The Book of Daniel ~~~~~~~~~~
Recently Read with Josiah:
BIBLE READING:
The Book of Genesis
~~~~~~~~~~
The Book of Exodus
~~~~~~~~~~
The Book of Job
~~~~~~~~~~
The Book of Micah
~~~~~~~~~~
OTHER GOOD READING:
Dirk's Dog, Bello by Piet Prins ~~~~~~~~~~ The Call of the Wild
by Jack London ~~~~~~~~~~ The Story of Robin Hood
by Robert Leeson ~~~~~~~~~~
Gladys Aylward
by Janet & Geoff Benge ~~~~~~~~~~ The Secret History of
Tom Trueheart by Ian Beck
~~~~~~~~~~ Marven of the Great North Woods
byKathryn Lasky ~~~~~~~~~~ Life in the Ice Age by Michael and Beverly Oard ~~~~~~~~~~ Ginger Pye by Eleanor Estes ~~~~~~~~~~ Shadow Over Mousehaven Manor by Mary DeBall Kwitz ~~~~~~~~~~ The Bronze Bow by Elizabeth George Speare
~~~~~~~~~~ Eragon by Christopher Paolini
~~~~~~~~~~ Eldest by Christopher Paolini
~~~~~~~~~~ Julius Caesar
and
Antony and Cleopatra from
take a closer look...
This is what he found on the deck.
No wonder!!!! And this is just the back.
I mean, what little Corgi needs this huge running area!! 
Take a look at the front.....
We've mowed these paths all through it just for fun.
The grasses really are beautiful...
(these come up to my eye level)
with these treasures throughout. 
This shot across the grass to our homemade shed 
There were lots of relatives there.
It's more of a challenge getting a good pic with little brother.
Ready to go, with stage lipstick! 
She's in the lavender with the other lead dancer, looking at the Phantom, played by one of the dads.
This was her first year taking Acro class. 
Hurts me to watch this...
Christine with some girlfriends who came.
Her instructors, a mother and daughter. 
Ooooooh, look. Birthday paper on the couch!
This is about as far as she's allowed to get from the front porch. 
Christine is in the 2nd row from the back, the 2nd from the right.
This is her big brother
and her two best friends, dating back to preschool.
