Daytime highs in the 40's get you in the mood to cozy up by the warm fire with a hot cup of tea.  We just celebrated having our first fire of the season.  I say celebrate because the kids always see it as that, they get so excited!  I suppose it's the simple things really.

Gabriella was wondering where her Binkie was today...

The summer seems to be a very busy time for everyone, and I'm now jumping on that boat of busyness!  I've got several things pressing upon my schedule, and I've come to the conclusion that while I don't want to, I simply must take a small break from blogging.

At this point I'm working on:

• writing a chapter for a Nature E-Book for The Old Schoolhouse Magazine
• preparing to speak at the CHEK conference in July ("Listening to the Voice of Truth")
• myself and two other moms are pioneering a new large homeschool co-op at our church
• my son's baseball team won their league championship and now on to city tournaments!
• I'm planning on starting more structured school back up by mid-July
• preparing for company this weekend
• potty training a toddler and a puppy
• I simply must get my kids and home back in a better running order!

These are the big things!  Wow, I really didn''t really realize how much I had going on until I wrote this down!  At this point I'm planning upon only taking around a week or so, but it could be a little more or less.  Since blog world seems to be rather quiet now anyways I figured it was a good time to do it.  Blessings to you all!

Alex is in the very front on the right!  Go Bulls!

Meet Ginger, the newest member of our family!  She's a Jack Russell Terrier/Miniature Schnauzer mix.  And she's absolutely adorable!  She's only 8 weeks old.  We've only had her two days and she is already almost house trained....yippee!  Above you see her with her favorite stuffed monkey.

Hannah, not surprisingly, has readily welcomed the "mother hen...ur....I mean dog" roll.  She's doing a great job of taking care of her and training her!

Yes, vacation time is here!  We are packing up and heading out to sunny Florida!  We are staying with friends who live very near the beach.  And we'll be spending one whole day at Sea World in Orlando!  I WILL be posting as often as I can to give updates.  I'm so very excited not only because we are going, but also because hubby surprised me with a brand new camera, and I'll be able to take underwater photos and videos!!!  How cool is that?!

The last time we we're on a beach, my kids looked like this (my two are the ones on the ends):

Look how little they were!!!  The little cutie in the middle is my friend's daughter, she's not so little anymore either.  They grow up so fast.  I think Gabby is going to love the beach, this will be her first time there.

So, you won't see a new post for a couple of days, but I'll start updating as soon as possible.

I'm working on the following entries which I will finish up and get posted when I return:

Teaching With Nature ~ Language Arts

Nature Identification How-Tos (there have been a few questions commented about this)

Simple Nature Ideas for Your Backyard

So I was supposed to go with my school group to the butterfly show at the Conservatory and the Art Museum the other day, when at last minute I got the most horrible attack of muscle spasms in my upper back!  About a week and a half ago, our family decided to join the local YMCA.  Well last week I went and worked out in their fitness room, you know trying to be more healthy, BUT evidently an hour workout each time to start with was just too much!

So here I was trying my best to pack a lunch, organize my children getting ready, get myself ready, and friend was due to pick us up in 10 minutes and by the time she got there was was bent over in tears and in severe pain like I haven't felt since maybe child-birth!!  Oh my, but thank the Lord my mother was there at the time to help with my toddler, and my sweet friend Kari was willing to take my two other children on with her so they could still go for the trip.

Ok, so after a trip to the doctors, two days of muscle relaxers and pain meds, I am doing SO much better!  It still lets me know it's there, but I think it's finally starting to relax.  Wow, I'll never go so hard at working out again!  Baby steps!

My kids had never witnessed Mom in so much pain, so I think it's made them a little sweeter to me the past couple of days!  My precious daughter has been giving out lots of back massages and my sweet son came in with these beautiful wildflowers for me today! 

We have been recently studying and identifying wildflowers, and he knew the Blue Phlox were my favorite so far that we had found.  They have a sweet rose-like smell.

Things have obviously been slower moving for me, but I have so many things I need to catch up on blogging about, hopefully I'll be able to do that over the weekend:

• Hannah took some beautiful pictures from the butterfly show I'd like to share
• I have a Green Hour Challenge half way completed and needing to be finished
• On Sunday we planted our raised bed gardens and Hannah started her indoors perrenial seeds
• We've been taking the most beautiful wildflower photos and identifying them
• We've been finishing up our study on clouds
• AND I'll have another tadpole update soon!

...well, most of the time.  Those of you who have or have had children in the tweens stage, have you noticed that all of a sudden around the age of 11 they get quite witty with their remarks, and are at times right down funny?!  Yes, along with the increased attitude, thank goodness the Lord gives us gifts of moments of rolling laughter.

Conversation between Grandma and Hannah:

(After seeing my 9 yr old son have one of his hyperactive moments, which happens quite often)

Grandma:  Alex, you really are a firecracker you know!

Hannah:  No Grandma, he's a M-80!

Conversation between Mom and Hannah during schooltime:

(Hannah had been sitting on her foot for awhile and it had fallen asleep, so she got up to walk around)

Mom:  Hannah, what are you doing?

Hannah:  My foot fell asleep, I'm trying to wake it up.

(several minutes pass and Hannah is still walking around in circles)

Mom:  Hannah why are you still walking around?

Hannah:  I guess this foots a deep sleeper.

This same witty girl has also grown deeply lately in her abilities with her artwork and poetry writing.  She was recently given a language lesson in which she had to write a descriptive paragraph about a season of her choice.  With her permission, I would love to share what made me cry when I read it:

Winter Beauty

by Hannah

A morning chill woke me up.  Just to tell me Beauty has come. The window was covered in crystals of many.  The sky was filled with diamonds, falling as if a ballerina was dancing with grace.  The birds so high can't hide themselves.  White and brown, that's all there is to everyone.  But the Beauty comes from the tiniest things just coming from here and there.  The Beauty of Winter is always there.

 

(conversation with 2-year old who rarely gets chocolate for dessert)

Mom:  Gabby, would you like dessert?

Gabby:  Mama, I chockit peas (translation=Mom, I want chocolate please.)

Mom:  You want chocolate?

Gabby:  I like chockit Mama, have chockit?  (translation:  I like chocolate Mom, can I have some?)

(Mom, opening chocolate piece)

Gabby:  Whatz dat Mama?  Dat chockit? (translation = What's that Mom?  Is that Chocolate?

Mom:  Yes Gabby.

Gabby (in high squealy voice):  I love chockit Mama!  Tank you Mama!  Dats Chockit!  (translation=I love chocolate Mama!  Thank you Mama!  That's Chocolate!