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Thursday, November 16, 2006 - Encouragement
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Thanks so much for the encouragement. I really appreciate it. I know it is not the worst kind of change to happen. It will take a little time and effort to adjust to, but we are adaptable. I will look for the silver lining as Kendra suggests and yes, I can already think of a few.
This puts everything in perspective:
http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/grisoniranch/238246/
Please pray for this family.
Susan
(my link tool is not working--sorry)
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Wednesday, November 15, 2006 - Changes are coming
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My little world is going to change and I am not sure what to think of it. I am a bit miffed that someone has to mess with my life (and that of my husbands). I like things the way they are. I suppose I will say first of all that I am thankful that we homeschool and I am thankful that my husband has a job. Now, on to the change report. My husband works M-F from 6:30am to about 5:00pm. He has been told that his schedule will change. It will be Wed-Sat from 6:30am to about 8:00pm. He is going to 4 days a week, 10 hours a day. Now do you notice that his schedule actually is 14 hours. Yep, thats right folks. I guess his employer doesn't know how to add. It's not so bad if one were getting paid hourly. So, for 4 days a week his kids will not see him and when he gets home, he has about an hour before he needs to go bed. The other bad news is that if a holiday falls on one of his days, he doesn't get it off, even though he is technically exempt which means, he gets holidays off. Its really pretty rediculous. What that means for us, is that our school schedule is likely going to have to change, and I don't do well with change. I finally got our school schedule consistent. His weekend is Sun., Mon. and Tue. and I want to have our time off with him. But I really don't want to do school on Sat. That just doesn't feel right. Oh well, we will make due and figure it all out. I am just trying to process it all.
Susan
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Monday, November 13, 2006 - HOPE
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Tonight was my HOPE meeting and we had a guest speaker. She has graduated her two girls from homeschool. She spoke with us about teaching our children manners. It was such a good reminder to focus on some issues that keep cropping up in my own children. I think the most important point was that we teach our children manners in order for them to honor others. I loved that. Everything we do that is polite is for the other person. I can't wait to start using that lingo with the kids.
In talking with my husband tonight about how the evening went with the girls, he explained his difficulty with our spoiled youngest. Basically it didn't go too well. She doesn't like to clean up. It's my fault. I have babied her too much and let her get away with not following through. I need to change the way I parent her. So I came up with an idea for this week. She is going to practice cleaning up. Believe me there is always somethings that needs picking up. Here's the catch. While she is picking up, she will need to say the object and it's beginning sound. She is learning her letter sounds and we will just combine two activities into one!! She is also very kinistetic, so this ought to work out well.
Today the girls had a craft party with our friends with two girls. We always look forward to our craft times with this family. Tomorrow I will post pictures!
Have a great Tuesday!
Susan
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Sunday, November 12, 2006 - One on One
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This afternoon I took Pixie to one of those paint it yourself pottery places. She was in much need of mommy time. She chose a statue of two reindeer. It turned out cute. She does a good job and is very detailed. Goodness we were there for about 4 hours. She worked on it that whole time. I chose a plate shaped like a Christmas tree. I think it turned out fine. Painting is one thing I am not good at. My drawing abilities are lacking and if I don't have a picture in front of me to copy, I am done in. I revert to my childhood type drawings. You know, the five or so things you drew as a child and can still draw today. I put a snowman on the plate and wrote Merry Christmas at the bottom. We get to pick it up on Friday.
I guess I will work my way backwards. Saturday, I went to lunch with some friends, by myself, and then to a Christmas craft sale. I didn't find anything I needed so I came home empty handed. The traffic and rain reminded me to shop online and get my Christmas preparations done early. I really want to enjoy the season without being too stressed. I also hope to focus more on cooking, advent celebrations, and service opportunities.
Friday was crazy. I had my three girls with me at the bead show in town. It comes twice a year and I like to go so I can get a better deal on some of my supplies. The girls were less than pleased and less than cooperative. After that was a much needed trip to Costco. By the time I got home I told them that they were not coming with me the rest of the weekend because they bickered too much and drove me crazy.
It was a busy weekend. Now it's time to start the week.
Blessings,
Susan
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Thursday, November 9, 2006 - TIme with Princess
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Tonight instead of doing my thankful series I am going to talk about my
time tonight with my daughter, Princess. Two friends asked if I could
teach them and their daughters how to wire twist and make earings. So,
I took Princess and we had a mom daughter night with wire, beads and
various pliers. We had a wonderful time and I am amazed at how fast
those young girls learn how to do things. Why is it that moms take
longer to wrap their minds around how to do something new. I remember
the first time I learned how to wire twist. I declared that I would
never be able to learn it. My daughter was the youngest of the girls
but seeing her with them made me realize how much she has grown. Her
interests are changing and she just seems so much like a big girl and
not like a little kid. It gave me a glimps of what it will be like in
a few more years. She is very helpful and capable of doing so much
already. She told me that she feels good when she can help out and be
useful. Isn't that how we all are? We all need to be useful and
productive. I was amazed that she has already figured this out. Yep,
my little girl is growing up.
Susan
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Wednesday, November 8, 2006 - Thankful - Day 16
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1. I am thankful for my dishwasher. I did not have one at our previous home and I really don't care much for handwashing dishes. Especially for a family of 5.
2. I am thankful for the friends God has blessed me with. What can I say, I have the greatest girls friends ever!
3. I am thankful that my two oldest girls, who can read, love to read. Today, lunch was so peaceful as Princess and Pixie both had their heads burried in a book. They read for fun, not just for school and I am pleased that they have discovered the joy reading can bring. One more child to go!
Susan
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Tuesday, November 7, 2006 - Thankful - Day 16
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1. I am thankful for the life God has given me. All my life my parents ingrained in me that I had to go to college, which I did, and I needed a good job or career. It wasn't until I had already graduated and was traveling in Europe, with a stint in England as a nanny, that I realized that I really wanted to be a mom and housewife. I did not want a career. I wanted to marry someone who would want me to stay home and take care of the family. Well, that is exactly the life God has given me and I am so very thankful.
2. I am thankful that we are going to CA for Christmas to spend time with my family. It has been a while since we have spent Christmas together. It will be a full house too, because my two aunts and cousin will be there, as will my sister. My sister moved away from home in January and I haven't seen her since last thanksgiving. I was not looking forward to going home again and not having my sister there.
3. I am thankful for my health and my genetics. I know I take it for granted when many people struggle. I don't eat the healthily and I don't struggle with my weight. I am truly thankful for that. I am also thankful for my overall physical health. Again, so many people struggle and I need to take time to really appreciate my health.
Susan
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Monday, November 6, 2006 - Thankful - Day 15
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1. I am thankful that the elections are over tomorrow. I have been getting so many phone calls. Alright already, I will vote. I promise.
2. I am thankful for forts. The kids made forts today and they got along so well. After school, the played and played. They also cleaned up and that is a blessing too.
3. I am thankful for the book. "Making Brother and Sisters Best Friends". I have been reading it every morning, hoping that something will sink in my girls hearts about their behavior towards each other. Slowly but surely I believe it is. This weekend, Princess whispers to me, "mom, I have been getting along with Pixie and we haven't been fighting." I am really proud of her. As much as she tries to be tough, she really has a tender heart. Reaching it sometimes is the tricky part.
You know a child is homeschooled when they say:
"Mom, we really need to go to Bend (the snow) this winter. It will be a great experience for us."
Susan
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Saturday, November 4, 2006 - Thankful - Day 12 and 13
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1. I am thankful for weekends.
2. I am thankful for a warm home. It has been wet and rainy and it is nice to stay inside and not have to go anywhere.
3. I am thankful that I didn't miss out on having snuggle time with my Peanut. She is 5 and is very tactile. When we read on the couch, she needs to be tucked under my arm and we need to have a blanket covering us. I am so glad I didn't miss this opportunity. It is one of my favorite times of day and when we don't do this, I miss it. It's like I haven't connected with her.
4. I am thankful that my husband likes to eat out as much as I do. I have never gotten in the habit of cooking much on the weekends, so we usually eat out once or twice and then at home we throw quick meals together. Like tonight we had over easy eggs on toast. I did cook on Friday night, which is a first in a long time.
5. I am thankful that I have learned the lesson of contentment of being home. This kind of goes with number two. I am not talking about work. I never wanted to work outside the home once I got married. I am talking about the emotional need to get out of the house every day. I would feel like I had cabin fever if I didn't leave the house at least once a day. Little do I know what real cabin fever feels like. I am much more able to stay at home even several days at a time and not be too concerned with leaving the house. I am so glad, because I really want my daughters to see me being content. I believe they will get their cues about being home from me. If I am discontent, I believe they will be too. I really want them to want to be home with their children some day.
6. Tea. I love tea. Most any kind. Except Chamomile. Don't like it. At all.
I drink a cup every day and sometimes more than one. My evenings don't feel complete without a cuppa.
Susan
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Thursday, November 2, 2006 - Thankful - Day 11
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1. I am thankful for great likeminded friends like Rebeca and family who had us over for dinner and served again a delicious meal. Boy, can she cook. My girls have eaten up every meal we have had at her house. That is saying something. Thanks Rebeca for a wonderful evening.
2. I am thankful for the book that finally arrived today. I had ordered it once and it never showed up so I got my money back. I ordered it again elsewhere and it arrived today. It is the History of the world timeline and I have been wanting this out of print book for a while now.
3. I am thankful tomorrow is Friday. We have no plans except to clean the house, so I may just lounge around and read a book, especially if it is raining.
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Wednesday, November 1, 2006 - Thankful - Day 10
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1. I am thankful that Christmas is still two months away. There is already a lot of blogging about Christmas and I can't wrap my brain around it yet. I will get there, just give me a little more time.
2. I am thankful for Margaret. She is 16 and teaches the girls sewing (she teaches me a lot too). She lives down the street and most days that she comes over she walks. She is very sweet and patient, and great with the girls. She is also very talented. Did I mention that she is homeschooled too?
3. I am thankful for our cats. We have one cat and one kitten. We got the kitten for the cat. The cat, Lucy was getting fat and bored. So, we decided a little live play toy to keep her busy would keep her in shape. It's working. The kitten, Bella, is a stinker. She won't let me hold her. She whines. I don't care much for whiney cats. Actually it is really a miracle we have any at all. I used to be a true cat hater. Lucy has changed me though. I love this cat. It has been great for the girls to have pets and they entertain us. I don't consider myself a true cat lover though. If your cat is a pest/annoying/mean chances are I won't like it.
Susan
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Tuesday, October 31, 2006 - Thankful - Day 9
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1. I am thankful of the innocence of my children. Tonight we had one trick or treating family. We live on a dark and busy street so we don't ever get any. So later Pixie asked me where the bowl was from the trick or treaters. I didn't know what she was talking about and she said where is the candy. I showed her the bowl and she said which candy did the trick or treaters give us? I about busted a gut laughing.
2. I am thankful for our visit with a builder. We are in the process of getting bids and this nice man spent many hours here going over every detail in order to give us a thorough bid. It is all exciting to me. We have never built a house before and I am loving every minute of it.
3. I am thankful for my kids ages. I am really enjoying them. Not that I didn't before but for some reason this stage is really nice. The oldest isn't too old and the youngest isn't too young. We all sit at the table for school and they can all participate in a group learning activity. Right now we are working on a Thanksgiving lapbook and having fun. I need to simplify things a little for my 5 yo but she tries hard to keep up with her sisters.
One last thing to talk about. We went to another orthodontic evaluation for Princess. Her dad came so that was nice for me. The office I wasn't so impressed with. The had a big tv in the waiting room and I had to ask them to turn the tv off. There was a scary graphic horror movie on. No kidding, and I am not exagerating and being an over protective crazy homeschool mama. The lady at the desk very quickly turned it off so that was good. Then I noticed that there were big screens in the exam area. Another scary movie was on and I had to mention that too. Thankfully there were very sweet and changed the movie. Where is Dr. Fletcher when you need him??
Susan
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Monday, October 30, 2006 - Thankful - Day 8
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Here is my list for today.
1. I am thankful for time change. We got up earlier (although not early) this morning and finished school at noon. We have yet to do that this year. So this afternoon I ran errands and it pooped me out.
2. I am thankful for my husband who appreciates whatever I cook. He also eats leftovers.
3. I am thankful for the library. We went today to get another big stack of books. Along with that is being able to reserve books and have them sent to my local branch. Our main Library is downtown and I never go there. Not because it isn't nice, it is, and brand new to boot. I don't like to go there because I cannot park for free. So, if I don't watch it I will get a ticket. Since I already have to put up with minor late fees here and there, I didn't want to deal with the possiblity of a parking ticket. We also have two or three branches of our library and one is fairly close to my home. I get an email when my books have arrived. Easy!
Susan
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Sunday, October 29, 2006 - Thankful - Day 6 and 7
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Well, I missed writing yesterday so lets see if I can come up with 6 things today.
1. I am thankful for Homeschoolbuy.com. Don't know what it is? Well, if you have heard about ebay not allowing the sale of teachers manuals then you will be pleased with homeschoolbuy.com. It is just like ebay but for homeschoolers to sell their materials. You can sell many other things as well. There are no listing fees. Check it out.
2. I am thankful that I will be writing Craft Corner on the Company Porch
(Shameless Plug). It comes out on Mondays so if you are looking for a craft to do with your kids, check it out. Stayed Tuned next week as I will have something to give away.
3. I am thankful that it is still almost two months until Christmas, especially since my girls are already starting to make gifts. They have been all secretive in their room crafting away. They also have started making a Christmas chain with red and green construction paper. Goodness, they do take after me.
4. I am thankful that my girls get allowance. They have learned so much about saving and spending and counting money.
5. I am thankful for my husband. He is very stressed at work with a change in management but he continues to go to work every day. If you think of it will you pray for him? Thanks.
6. I am thankful for 5th Street. It is a shopping/restaurant center that we go to most Sundays after church. My inlaws have been going there for years, every Sunday after church. We have decided to try to make it our tradition too to meet them there and fellowship. It meets a need I have to be with people on Sundays. It has been good.
Susan
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Friday, October 27, 2006 - Thankful - Day 5
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Here is my list for today:
1. I am really thankful for my laptop. I love having my computer in my lap while I sit on the couch. It doesn't help my posture though.
2. I am thankful that our house plans are finished and that we can start meeting with builders.
3. I am thankful that Halloween is almost over.
I know, not really very interesting. I really don't like Halloween so I'm always glad when we can focus on Thanksgiving. The other two--I am blessed. My husband bought me my laptop for my birthday. I am thinking he may be regretting it though. As far as our house, well, we have always lived in an old house and if you live in one too you understand that there is always something to be fixed or fixed up and we are not good at these things. We are slow, and so live a long time with something unfinished and when we finally get to fixing it, if we hire someone, it always, and I mean always ends up being more work for us. We have really bad luck finding any good worker/fixer person. So the idea of building a house, which has been an idea for a very long time, is finally starting to move into a real possibility and I am just ecstatic. I am sure I will keep you posted as there is more to tell.
A request has been for the Thanksgiving link and so I will share a few.
http://teacher.scholastic.com/thanksgiving/
(link isn't working but this is the address)
http://www.tolatsga.org/wampa.html
http://members.aol.com/calebj/thanksgiving.html
http://www.mayflowerhistory.com/index.php
http://plimoth.org/
One of these I got from the Company Porch ( I think the mayflowerhistory) and the others from a unit study lapbook that we are doing.
Susan
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Thursday, October 26, 2006 - Thankful - Day 4
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I have to really think about these.
1. I am thankful for the note I found this morning from Princess. She told me that she was sorry for dishonoring me yesterday when she complained about our Thanksgiving unit. She said she knows she was wrong and that she did like our project and she will try harder to be more respectful. (A sign of reaching her heart and it is a huge blessing).
2. I am thankful for the being able to control an angry outburst this morning. I was getting frustrated because it was getting late in the morning and we hadn't started school yet. I felt the heat rising. I said they are getting right to work and we were not going to have our table time together. Then I am not sure what happened. I just calmed down and had them sit and said we are doing our table time. When they asked why, since I just said it was cancelled, I said I really wanted to. We sat down and prayed and I thanked God for self control. I have been praying for a change in this area, not just in behavior but from the inside out. So you can imagine what a blessing it was to have all this steam slowly escape with no damage in my relationship with my kiddos. I found a great website on thanksgiving and my computer taught the lesson this morning. We were blessed.
3. My friend and mentor who visits me on Thursdays brought me a big vanilla latte. That was truly a wonderful afternoon treat. Oh, and I made pumpkin cheesecake bars. They were yummy.
Here is the recipe:
Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars
16 oz package pound cake mix
3 eggs, divided
2T butter melted
4t pumpkin pie spice, divided
8 oz pkg cream cheese
14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
16 oz can pumpkin
1/2 t salt
In a large bowl, combine cake mix, one egg, butter, and 2 t pumpkin pie spice until crumbly. Press into bottom of jelly roll pan. In large bowl, mix cream cheese until fluffy. Beat in sweetened condensed milk, pumpkin, salt, remaining eggs, and pumpkin pie spice. Mix well. Pour over crust. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes. Cool and refrigerate before serving.
Enjoy!
Susan
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Wednesday, October 25, 2006 - Thankful - Day 3
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Todays list is:
1. I am thankful that as I fell down my front porch steps and twisted the other ankle, it wasn't serious and I didn't injur it. (I am not kidding!)
2. I am thankful that the lady who told the story tonight at Awana who was dressed in black with a black long wig, black long fingernails, and false eye lashes, was indeed not a witch, but Jezebel. (Note sarcasm here- I am not sure what value the story of Jezebel can be to a bunch of 5-7 year olds)
3. I am truly thankful for my physical therapy that has been helping my posture tremendously. ( I have slouched my whole life and it was getting worse. I decided to do something about it and I have come a long way.)
Susan
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Wednesday, October 25, 2006 - Thankful- Day 2
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Here is my list for today.
1. I am thankful for Peanuts ability to blow the little pebble out from her nose. I didn't really want to go to the doctor.
2. I am thankful for my TOS magazine that came in the mail today. I thought my subscription had expired and I hadn't had a chance to renew yet. I am so glad I am not going to miss out on the Fall issue.
3. I am thankful for the changing heart I see in Princess. She has been a real blessing this week while I have been limping around the house.
What are you thankful for today?
Susan
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Sunday, October 22, 2006 - Thoughts from the weekend and cute things to share
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It is Sunday afternoon and I am sitting on the couch relaxing with my foot propped up. It is getting better but it does get tired easily and my other foot is getting tired of holding all the weight. Yesterday was basically lay around all day. I cannot remember the last time I did that. It actually made me more tired and I was stiff from lack of movement.
Hubby is playing doll house with Peanut and it is really cute to listen to the conversation. He is so good with the girls that way, playing with them and interacting with them.
Yesterday afternoon Princess asked me if I wanted her to make lunch for the family. I said yes. So she got out pad and paper and took orders and then she and her sisters got everything ready for us. I was delivered lunch in bed. When I finished I hollered "Can I have another sandwich?" to which I heard the reply, "I just sat down!" I couldn't stop laughing at that. How many times have I said that?
Saturday morning Pixie needed to take a bath. I've been gimpy so hubby has been taking care of things around here. He has me go into the bathroom to see what was going on and I saw that Pixie has brought in her cd player and put in praise music. Then she lit two candles and took a nice relaxing bath. What a hoot!
Now a question for you:
At your church, what type of teaching do you have? Does your pastor teach the bible chapter by chapter and verse by verse, not skipping even the difficult parts of the bible or does your pastor teach by topic pulling relevant verses out of the bible to teach that topic. Do you like how your pastor teaches? Why or why not? I am just taking a little survey.
Susan
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