Sam played indoor summer soccer for the first time this summer.  He had a great time and learned a lot.  Indoor soccer is different than outdoor and it is also a much more fast-paced game.  He greatly enjoyed it and looks forward to playing winter indoor soccer.   His team made it to championship game but lost it.   I didn't get any action shots of indoor soccer though because of the set up of the field.  It is set up similar to hockey and the pictures didn't turn out very well.  Here is the only picture I have of him from summer soccer:

Bekah's fall soccer has begun.  She is playing on the middle school home school team.  Her first game was Monday night.  They tied 2-2. 

Recreation league fall soccer is getting ready to begin as well.  Evaluations are this Saturday.  Bethany Grace has to move up a division so she and Bekah will be on the same team.  This should make managing practices and games a bit easier.  In the Spring we had all four playing in four different divisions and some times games were at the same time. 

I have a friend that has recv'd a letter from her daughter's doctor stating that once she is 12 that the mother and father will not have access to her records (unless the child signs a waiver)  This is nuts!  See the e-mail below from Parental Rights.  If you have recv'd a letter like this, please click on the appropriate link to e-mail them and let them know.  We must get something done about this.  I'm thankful to my friend for getting the ball rolling on this and not just sitting down on it. 

Action 1: PROclaim Video Contest ParentalRights.org will give away more than $1000 in prizes in our PROclaim video contest. First place is $250 in each of 4 categories, with additional 2nd and 3rd place prizes. Categories include (1) Parental Rights Amendment Commercials, and What Is the Parental Rights Amendment in (2) Youth, (3) Adults, and (4) Family divisions. So charge up your camera, get your creative juices flowing, and get started today! Click here for additional information. Action 2: Push Email Network Over 100k Our email activist list is approaching a major milestone, and we need your help to push us over it. You may recall that our petition signers crossed the 100k mark a few months ago – we now have 141,000 who have signed up. Due to unsubscribes, out-dated email addresses, and so forth, our actual Email Activist list is only 98,325 as of last week. When we need to call on you to contact Congress, that notice goes out to 98,325 of you. Today’s email is probably going to a few more than that – maybe 98,500. (Exact number here.) By next week, we would like to send it out to 100,000 or more. So, here is what we need you to do: 1. Find at least one friend who is not already a part of our email activist list, and get them to sign up for our weekly newsletter. We will alert them, as we do you, with updates and calls to action. 2. Talk to friends who already support the Parental Rights Amendment, and ask if they have been getting their emails lately. If they haven’t, urge them to get online and sign back up. Our database will merge duplicate records, so a great way to update their email address with us is just to sign up all over again. 3. The next time you change your email address, remember #2 above. Don’t worry about us counting you twice, just sign up again so we’ll have your new email address. Don’t miss a week! We’re fewer than 2000 email addresses away from this major milestone. Won’t you take a few minutes to help us reach it this week?

Join Our Email List If this email newsletter was forwarded to you, you can join up for yourself by clicking here. Visit 200 Congressmen with Us! As of today, we have 129 Senate and House visits planned throughout the country for the months of August and September, involving 114 current non-sponsors of the Parental Rights Amendment. We need your help to reach our goal of 200! Email us to connect with other volunteers making visits in your district, or to receive training or a Congressional Visit Kit. Constitution Week Is Coming! Constitution Week is September 14-18, and we have some major actions planned for that week. We will keep you informed on this next phone blitz, and a day of visits on Capitol Hill. Been Hit with HIPPA Yet? By now many of you are discovering first-hand that federal HIPPA law violates your parental rights. If you have received notice from your doctor or insurance requiring your child's permission to discuss medical records, we need to hear from you as we prepare to take action. Please email Michael. Senate and House Cosponsors We currently have 114 House cosponsors, and 3 cosponsors in the U.S. Senate. Become a Member Today The amazing progress we have made this summer has not been cheap. Become a member with a donation of $25 or more and we will do the following: Send you 2 exclusive PRO decals. Continue working to preserve parental rights for future generations.

Bethany is always so good at encouraging Mark in all that he does.  She is so patient to sit and listen to him read.  Recently I snapped these pictures of them outside together. 

It is so hard to believe that Mark is now 6 years old.  We had a wonderful day celebrating his birthday.  He cracks me up much of the time.  When opening one of his presents he said "Is this fragile"?  It was a slingshot.  The marbles shaking around in the box made him think it might be fragile.

Here is his cake:

He has the best laugh and smile but his posed smile just isn't that great. 

This is the smile I love:

Here he is sporting his new Jonathan Park hat.

He was very happy with the new game for the Wii (Up)

It's so hard to believe our little guy is already 6 years old.  It seems like just yesterday...

and with his Psalty that he loves so much:

I am so thankful that God blessed us with Mark. 

These are two books that I have recently read and they are very good. 

Upgrade: 10 Secrets to the Best Education for Your Child  -- This book is by Kevin Swanson.  It is a quick and easy read.  The focus isn't totally on homeschoolilng but on education in general.  You can check out Kevin's web site here.  He has a daily radio program as well. 

The next book I recently read is Already Gone:  Why your kids will quit church and what you can do to stop it by Ken Ham. This is an EXCELLENT book that I encourage every parent to read.  This book is available via Amazon or at the Answers in Genesis web site.  Kevin Swanson recently had Ken Ham on his radio program talking about this book.  You can listen to it here.  You can also hear other/older broadcasts via Sermon Audio.  I love this site.  It's great and FREE. 

A friend of a friend is a making a movie for the Vision Forum Independent Film Festival.  They have some courtroom scenes so I am playing the court reporter for those scenes.  Our first weekend for filming courtroom scenes was last weekend.  Today the children and I all went to be extras in a soccer scene.  I disguised myself (glasses and baseball hat with hair in ponytail) so it wouldn't look like the court reporter was at the soccer game.  :-) 

Lots of time is spent waiting around but the children made the best of it by visiting with friends.

Once they were ready to shoot and we took our places we waited some more... just in a different spot.  :-)

We were at the field a lot longer than I had planned and we all came home sunburned.  The children enjoyed the experience and were glad that we had gone.

Here's my friend, Daphne, working on her lines.

Reba and Kayla:

Ryan and Sara

I have two more weekends of courtroom filming.  I'll try and snap some courtroom pictures over those two weekends.  I'm so behind on blogging.  We have been much busier than I prefer to be so all my "free time" we've been spending as a family -- playing lots of games and just investing in one another.  Way better than investing in the blog!  :-)  Once things slow down I hope to blog regularly again. 

We had gone to a family reunion on my mother's side.  Sam and Bethany had much fun playing in this little bit of dirt.  Sam was 4 and Bethany Grace was 3.

My sweet silly boy.  The other day Mark asked if he could get something out of his closet. I was busy doing other stuff and the next time I see Mark this is how he was dressed:

I tell him how very handsome he looks.  He says "this is my spy outfit.  Don't you think I look like a spy"  Yes, definitely.  :-) 

Today he was swimming with Bethany and Sam.  Here is our conversation:

Me:  Mark

Mark:  Yes, mommy.

Me:  Remember that Bethany has to wear those special ear plugs for her ears and so she can't hear very well.  If you need to talk to her, make sure she is looking at you so we don't have any misunderstandings or frustrations.

Mark:  AIRPLANE (pointing to the sky)

Me:  Smiling because I love the brain of a 5yo.

Mark:  I'm sorry.  Yes, mommy.  I will be sure to talk loud so Bethany can hear me.  Did you see that great airplane? 

We then had a great conversation about airplanes and the Wright brothers and he reminded me "you know, Grandma used to be a Wright"  :-)  I'm amazed he remembered that.  And then I followed back up with speaking loud wasn't as necessary as eye contact when talking to Bethany. 

This simple little 5-word phrase can make a huge difference in child-training, IMO.  We learned of "do you have the freedom" from GKGW material.  When a child asks "may I play outside" instead of us, the parents, saying "have you cleaned your room, made your bed, picked up toys.... ALL the toys, brushed your teeth" so on and so forth we can say "do you have the freedom?"  Now, of course, you must train your children in what this phrase means but that part of the process is very quick.  The next step in the process can be quick for some children and not so quick for others.    You know there are times in parenting where you feel like you have instructed the same thing a million times and you aren't seeing progress -- for the record, I'm not talking about obedience issues.  Those should be dealt with and taken care of, IMO.  The taking of ownership is something we typically don't give consequences for but continue to work and train through each opportunity.  This is what can be so very tiring. 

I have some children that picked up "do you have the freedom" very quickly.  They remembered that I would ask that and they typically do have the freedom when they ask me to do something.  Then we have other children that don't pick it up so quickly.  I'm talking it can take years for some.  I'm sure temperamanet plays a part in this but that doesn't excuse us not to work on it, right?!?!  Oh, how I wish it did.  :-)  So there is a particular child in our home that "do you have the freedom" training has been in progress for a couple of years.  Yes, I said YEARS. 

I am thrilled to report that yesterday this child came to me and asked "May I get out the big blocks to play with"  I said, "Do you have the freedom"  With the biggest smile you can imagine, this child gave a resounding "yes, mommy, I do have the freedom"  Oh the "pride" that was in the child's voice and smile.  YES!  Success!!!!!  The child ran off to play and came back before getting started and said "Mommy, I was happy for you to ask me because I knew that I would be able to say yes and really mean it"  See for the past two years that conversation has gone like this:

Child:  May I _____?

Me:  Do you have the freedom?

Child:  ummmm, let me go check.

30 minutes later (or ever how long it took them to take care of everything) the child returns with "yes, I now have the freedom"

OR

Child:  May I ______?

Me:  Do you have the freedom?

Child:  I think so.  (or any neutral answer)

Me:  Well, you may go sit while you think through if you have the freedom. 

There were many times I wondered if this child would ever truly apply "do you have the freedom"  This child does have a good percentage of FTO so that wasn't a problem.  The issue was really taking ownership and thinking through things (which I think is more difficult for the sanguine temperament) 

Have we arrived?  Oh, no, certainly not.  It won't be perfect from here on out but I'm thrilled at the progress that has been made and it gives me the encouragement and determination to keep on keepin' on.

We had a lovely time on vacation.   On the way there we stopped at a treehouse built by Minister Horace Burgess.  He built this treehouse out of scrap wood and it took him around 14 years to make.  I think that's what I remember reading.  It was really neat. 

*I* did not go all the way up.  I had planned on it but as we began our journey, I realized I wouldn't be able to do it.  The house isn't level (which shouldn't have surprised me but it did)  Between it being unlevel and the space between boards and I could see below, it was a no go for me.  I did make it up to the chapel room and it was neat.  The man is a gifted wood carver.  The children did go up with Brooks.  Mark was hugging the wall and wasn't too sure about it all. He was ready to come down when they did.

We had celebrated Sam's birthday the day before we left so we was excited to take some gifts along with him.  He was most excited about this tank he recv'd that goes on land and water.  It is very cool.

Once we got checked in and everything unloaded, we headed off to the pool and Sam took his tank with him.  The pool was nearly empty and so we all really enjoyed our evening there.  The life guard was very intrigued by the tank and said he planned to start his Christmas shopping for his grandchildren soon.  He was a very nice man.

The figures on the tank are Polly Pocket people.  They are waterproof and the children all had a great time playing rescue type stuff with all of it. 

It was wonderful having the pool mostly to ourselves.  I think most people were using the outdoor pools.

Mark found a new love of miniature golf.  He wanted to play every day and so we did.  He even got one special round of mini golf with just Daddy. 

We were rather surprised to notice that Mark switched back and forth between and right and left hand during the games.  We hadn't noticed a mixed handedness prior to this.  He always writes right handed so we'll be checking his dominance soon and keeping an eye on this.

Other gifts that Sam received for his birthday that we had tons of fun playing are Pit and Spy Alley.

If you don't have these games, you MUST get them.... especially Pit.  It is SO.MUCH.FUN!!!!  We spent countless hours playing it.  It is a LOUD game though.  Because we were in a condo we made sure to play during day hours and not too early.  Spy Alley is lots of fun too.  We give both of these games two thumbs up. 

We also spent as much time as possible out on the lake and boat.  The children all enjoyed taking turns driving the boat and swimming in the lake.

We saw this snake in the lake before they went swimming so I wasn't sure if they would want to swim or not but they did.

Brooks had to leave and get back to work so we invited our friend, The Arnold's, to come see us while there and stay with us.  They all couldn't come but my sweet friend, Val, and one of her boys, Conner, came.  We had a wonderful visit with them.  The children enjoyed the arcade as well.

Here are Mrs. Arnold and Bethany playing air hockey:

Bekah, Sam and Conner enjoyed a game of pool.

Our vacation was shorter than normal but we were thankful for every minute we did have.  I am so blessed to have such a wonderful family. 

We are home from vacation and I'm catching up on laundry and things around the home.  We had a wonderful time.  I'm downloading pictures now and hope to share tomorrow.  In the mean time, I have this family picture to share that was taken of us at a wedding we recently attended.

Bethany Grace celebrated her 10th birthday this week.  She requested poppy seed chicken and mashed potates for dinner along with a red velevet cake so that's what she got.  I can't believe Bethany is now 10.  As all parents say, the time goes by so very quickly.

This week was our 6 month mark of starting chiropractic treatment for Bethany's scoliosis.  They did x-rays on Tuesday and we were thrilled to see how much it has improved.  I don't have the exact degree of improvement.  We'll get that at our next appointment but it was obvious in just looking at the x-rays that it has greatly improved.  We are praising God for the improvment.

On Friday Bethany had an ENT appointment and that went well too.  The great news is that her ears are all clear and look great.  The no-so-great news is that her nose still isn't healed 100% and will require surgery in the future.  Scar tissue has built up inside her nose from all of the infection and she will not be able to breathe properly until surgery is performed.  The doctor wants to wait a while before doing the surgery.  He wants her nose to be as good as it can get and wants Bethany to be older.

She is to continue with her allergy medicine.  We also got her ear plugs so she can enjoy swimming this summer. 

We attended a beautiful wedding on Friday but I'll save that for another entry.

Bekah had her piano recital this past weekend.  She did a wonderful job.  She really enjoys playing the piano and it is very rare for me to have to remind her to practice.

Sunday was Mother's Day and I had a wonderful day.  I received a new printer/scanner/copier.  As you know from a previous entry, it was much needed and very much appreciated.  Now I can print and copy in color again. 

We had a wonderful time at church.  The teaching was excellent and the fellowship was wonderful.  The church provided the meal Sunday to give us moms a break from cooking. 

End-of-season soccer tournaments started Monday night.  We all lost -- some bigger losses than others.  Bekah's team lost with a score of 2-1 and Bekah scored the one goal they had.  It was a great game.  Bethany's team lost and I can't remember the score and Sam's team lost terribly.  I think it was 8-0.  Tuesday night was the second round of games.  Bekah's team went into a shoot out.  YIKES Bekah scored in the shoot out and her team ended up winning the game so they go to the Championship game on Saturday morning. 

Bethany's team lost 3-0 so they are out.  I think they do have a game on Thursday night but the outcome of it will make no difference for them for Championship game.  Sam's team lost as well.  I have felt so badly for Sam this soccer season.  He's a great player and is very competitive.  They have lost every single game.  Now losing is no fun but it's really no fun when you love the game, love playing, play your heart out and are super competitive.  (I wonder where he gets that?)   I share all of this to say that I am sooo proud of him.  He has kept the best attitude.  Never once has he stopped playing his hardest.   Never once has he gotten angry, upset or any poor attitude about this season.  He has gone into each game with a positive attitude and played his hardest.  I am sooo sooo soooo proud of him.  As the season began and they lost the first few games I suspected that we were going to have lots of training opportunities to walk through this.  He's never been on a losing team.  God has been so gracious to allow us to see so much fruit in our son.  By no means have we "arrived" but I'm so thankful for the progress that has been made and even more grateful that God would allow a look at this fruit in his life.   It has also been wonderful to see the other children encourage Sam in this season.  Bekah has had her fair shares of losing seasons and she's been able to really relate to what he's going through.  She is competitive but not quite as competitive as Sam.  She's been an amazing sister during this time.  She has come along side him and encouraged him and told him she understands what it's like.  She's encouraged him in every aspect of it and I'm so proud of her.  She's been able to enjoy her winning season but has also been mindful of Sam's losing season.  Again, so grateful for the fruit God is allowing us to see. 

After Sam's game last night, Sam was disappointed.  Mark went over to encourage and comfort him.  It was so sweet.

I had it all planned to start back to school this week.   We school year round and have enjoyed about 4 weeks off. 

Monday went great.   We had a great day and all went as planned.  Well, almost as planned.  My printer isn't working very well.  It will print black & white items just fine but the color is a "no go". 

Tuesday was a busy day, which I knew ahead of time and had made adjustments in my planning for this week.  Bekah had her piano evaluation   and then she had an orthodontist appointment followed by a mom's meeting that I was hosting that night. 

Wednesday Bekah woke with a sore throat which turned into a fever and aches.   Called our pediatrician and they said to bring her in.  So we took her in and they did a strep test.  The rapid test came back negative so we wait for the call to see how the overnight culture does.  He said he thinks it's just a virus that needs to run its course.   I take the time to deal with the printer again because I really need some color items for Mark (we are rowing Miss Rumphius this week) and I still can't get the color to work. ugghhhhh

So here we are on Thursday and things are not going as planned.  I remind myself that it's okay if school doesn't go as planned this week.  God is in control and none of this is taking Him by surprise.  As I type this entry, all children are still asleep so I'm not sure what today will hold but I do know that we'll follow Psalm 34:1.

Psalm 34:1 "I will praise the LORD at all times;
    His praise will always be on my lips"

Bethany Grace had an appointment with the ENT.  This was her first appointment since surgery.  The appointment went well.  The doctor was beyond pleased with how her nose is looking.  He said several times that he was pleasantly surprised about how it is doing.  Her energy levels aren't "normal" but they do seem to be slowly coming back and he said this will continue in time.  She's been sick for a long time.  Her right ear is still infected.  Her left ear is clear and looks great.  Another round of antibiotics for the right ear and different ear drops.  He thinks we should look into allergy testing but he wants to wait a bit on it.  He is happy with how things are progressing and likes the allergy medicine she is currently on.  He said he wanted to wait until after her next appointment (5/22) before we move on to allergy testing. 

Bethany's favorite part of the appointment was being released to "full activity".  That means she can play soccer this weekend. 

Today I had these conversations with Mark.

Mark:  You are a funny Mommy.

Me:  You think *I* am funny?

Mark:  Yes, Mommy.  You are a very funny Mommy.

Me:  No, I'm a mean grumpy Mommy.

Mark:  Well, we are all grumpy sometimes but you are a really funny mommy.

Later in the day:

Mark:  Mommy, were you ever a kid?

Me:  Yes, I used to be a kid.

Mark:  Did you have Wii when you were a kid?

Me:  No, we didn't have Wii when I was a kid.

Mark:  Oh, that's sad. 

Last night Bethany Grace was getting her favorite stuffed animal, KC, ready for to accompany her today.

Notice the tubes she put in KC's ears.

We arrived at the hospital at 8:30 and right away she had to get blood drawn for lab work.  That was no fun but they did a great job and Bethany handled it very well.  Afterwards we spent lots of time waiting.  :-) 

Once they called us back, she got in her hospital gown, which she did not care for at all.

You can see she had been crying from her eyes and also the tears on her sleeve.  My poor girl.  She passed the time watching a DVD.

After the surgery the doctor came to talk to us to let us know how it went.  He said that the surgery went well but he is baffled by this case.  Her ears and sinuses were still full of infection.  He said he doesn't understand why it won't clear up after all we have done (traditional and non-traditional).  He said that typically he sends patients home and says "see you in 6 weeks."  He isn't doing that with Bethany Grace.  He wants to see her in 2 weeks.  He isn't sure that the tubes and removing adenoids is going to fix everything.  He said we are going to have to dig deeper to figure this all out and in the mean time he is hoping that what he did today will help things along.  He suspects that she has allergies so we will be pursuing that route, I guess. 

Bethany Grace was such a trooper.  She did a great job.  The nurses all said "she is so polite"  Here she is after the surgery.

And then here she is ready to go home.

Thank you all so very much for your prayers.  Her hearing is already better, which is what the doctor said would happen.  She is hearing things she had forgotten about (like the sound these pants make when she walks)