A friend of mine sent me this through email.  I thought I would share.

The Teacher
After being interviewed by the school administration, the prospective
 teacher said:
 'Let me see if I've got this right.
 'You want me to go into that room with all those kids, correct their
 disruptive behavior, observe them for signs of abuse, monitor their
 dress habits, censor their T-shirt messages, and instill in them a
 love for learning.
 'You want me to check their backpacks for weapons, wage war on drugs
 and sexually transmitted diseases, and raise their sense of self
 esteem and personal pride.
 'You want me to teach them patriotism and good citizenship,
 sportsmanship and fair play, and how to register to vote, balance a
 checkbook, and apply for a job.
 'You want me to check their heads for lice, recognize signs of
 antisocial behavior, and make sure that they all pass the final exams.
 'You also want me to provide them with an equal education regardless
 of their handicaps, and communicate regularly with their parents in
 English, Spanish or any other language, by letter, telephone,
 newsletter, and report card.
 'You want me to do all this with a piece of chalk, a blackboard,a
 bulletin board, a few books, a big smile, and a starting salary that
 qualifies me for food stamps.
 'You want me to do all this and then you tell me. . . I CAN'T PRAY?

I'm so glad that we homeschool!

Blessings,

I have added a few new products to my web site.  Visit http://www.threelittleprincesses.com for pricing and more information!

Blessings,

Of course, I have been so, so busy!!  I thought I would add a few more pictures from this past weekend instead of writing a lot today.  I also have a CD coming in with some awesome pictures of my daughter's performances!

Blessings,

I made a pair of cute new bows for my daughter this morning...  I hope to have them listed on my website soon!  I survived yesterday, and now I'm looking ahead to Athens!  I have a lot of dance stuff to pack and I have not decided yet if we are going to stay overnight.  I'm going to submit my application for a craft fair at Babyland General Hospital today.  I'm really looking forward to that!

The above is one of the 2 bows that I made for my daughter.  I added some bling to the center.

Good Luck CAD Dancers!!!

Blessings,

To read why she needed to have surgery, click here.

We took our daughter the the Surgery Center at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta yesterday morning.  We arrived right on time despite terrible traffic.  She wasn't allowed to eat anything after midnight the day prior, so she was very hungry.  We were allowed to give her apple juice and Sprite 4 hours before the surgery so we did.  As we got closer to Atlanta, she began to say she didn't feel so well and threw it all up.    I know that it was because she was nervous, but she wouldn't admit it for all it was worth. 

Once we arrived the staff was incredibly nice.  We were situated in a pre-op room and my daughter was allowed to pick a toy for her to keep.  We had to decide who would accompany her to the operating room to hold her hand as she was put to sleep.  I asked her who she wanted to come with her and she said she did not care, so we decided on my husband.  (I would have went if she wanted me to.  Once my friend's daughter had a surgery and she said that when they put her under it was like she died...I didn't want to see that unless absolutely necessary.)   My husband had to put on a gown as well.  While we were waiting two clowns visited our room and performed a magic trick for my daughter.  She wasn't too fond of them...she warmed up to them a bit when they were about to leave.

After my husband returned from the operating room we were brought to a post-op room where they wheeled her right in once the surgery was completed.  The doctor said that it went really well.  He did say that the right valve (on her good kidney) was opened more than he would have liked so he went ahead and repaired it at the same time.  I believe that God protected that kidney from damage, because if it had become damaged, she would have definitely needed a transplant.

She was very disoriented when she was brought back to us.  We took her to the bathroom, and then the IV was removed and she was able to get dressed.  She chose to be carried by my husband to the van instead of going by wheelchair.  She slept about half of the way home and then she said that she was hungry! (Yay!  I was scared that she would be sick all day from the anethesia.)  She chose Chick-Fil-A, and she ate about half of her meal in the car and the other half when we arrived home.  She's doing great except for a mild stomach ache which was to be expected.  Thank you so much for the prayers everyone!

Blessings,

This morning I gave my son a simple assignment.  I handed him a worksheet of shapes to cut out, as well as a train that was made up of the same shapes.  I asked him to cut out the shapes, and then to PLACE them on top of the corresponding shape on the train.  I went to my bathroom to put on my make up while he completed this assignment.  I walked back into the school/play room to find a very quiet and still toddler.  I asked her if she needed to go potty.  She stared at me silently.  I knew something was up.  Lo and behold I discovered that my son took it upon himself to pour (I mean really pour) glue all over the train and then place the shapes onto it.  He did this ON THE FLOOR and left it there.  My 2-year-old then got into the glue and began gluing fake flowers from a visor onto her Cinderella dress.  She also decorated her Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and the carpet.  I tried my best to salvage the dress, but I'm not yet sure if my efforts have succeeded. 

Oh, well.  I'm off to watch the new episode of Jon and Kate plus 8.  Also, please pray for our 7-year-old daughter tomorrow.  She will be going in for her surgery to correct the valve at her bladder/kidney at 10:15 eastern time tomorrow morning.  We are believing that all will go well!

Blessings,

Starting a quarrel is like breaching a dam; so drop the matter before a dispute breaks out.   Proverbs 17:14

From my devotion this morning...

"Friends are wonderful, especially when you have similar opinions and values.  When friends agree with everything you think, conversation is easy.  But what happens when a friend disagrees with you and firmly expresses her opinion?  Do you find yourself quarreling with friends, causing rifts in your friendships?  Is your opinion so important to you that it is worth these possibly damaging breaks in your friendships?  When you see a quarrel coming, do you stand your ground and ready yourself for the fight?  Here's a different approach...drop it.  Value the friendship more than your opinion.  Show your friend how important she is to you."

Unfortunately, through the years I have lost most of my FIRL.  (Friends in real life.)  I think that this is mostly due to changes in lifestyles.  Most of my old friends have taken on full time jobs, and once that occured communication has dropped off dramatically.  At first this really, really bothered me.  As a young mother with no one to talk to except my children, I have felt very isolated at times and like I was missing out on something that my friends were experiencing.  I have since changed my attitude...I know that I am where God wants me to be, and He has given me my husband to be my best friend of all.  Sometimes I wish for a girls night out, but I know the blessings that I have are so much more precious than any "me" time that I could wish for.

Blessings to your family on this Sunday!

This morning we drove to Conyers, GA to attend the Dogwood Invitational at Rockdale Gymnastics.  The girls had a good time and performed well.  My oldest daughter scored her highest overall score of the season and my 7-year-old scored a 9.475 on floor and a 9.3 on vault.  (Now if we could just carry those 9s over to beam and bar.)  Here are a few pictures:

Floor

Level 4 Vault

Level 5 Vault (The difference is that Level 4s land on their backs and Level 5s land on their feet.)

Bars

First Overall Level 5 8-year-old!

Great job Level 5!!  First Overall Team!!!

Our 7-year-old was named 1st place champion on floor!

We had a good day and are looking forward to *SNOW* tomorrow!!

Blessings,

Tomorrow morning we are heading out to yet another gymnastics meet.  Warm up begins at 11:15 and we should be out of there by around 2:30.  I'm so happy that both girls are on the same rotation.  This is much easier on the little ones.  I had planned on leaving my two youngest children with Nana, but have instead opted to bring them with us.  I'm not entirely thrilled about the way last weekend went at our home.  I can be such a picky mommy!  I know I make mistakes at times and that my house is not the cleanest around, but it just bugs me to no end when someone else is the one making the mistakes!  It does not take a genius to know that children should not be fed dinner at 8:30 pm if they are used to eating at 5-6.  Let's just say that if my husband and I ever leave for the weekend again (which I doubt), I will be leaving DETAILED instructions. 

I'm still a bit worried about several events that transpired on Saturday, so we are not going to go on our weekly Saturday night date tomorrow.  I hope that I have a better working relationship with my daughters once they are grown then my mother and I do LOL.

On a more cheerful note, it might snow on Sunday!!!  My children would love to be able to play in the snow just once this year.  We have lived at this home for almost 5 years now and I have only one picture of it covered in snow.  This is so sad...

Blessings,

Yesterday afternoon we took our children to the zoo.  My husband works 4 10-hour days a week, and Wednesday is his current day off.  We spent the morning just hanging out at our house because an appraiser was supposed to come out and look at the hail damage to our van.  At about 11 am I mentioned going to the zoo, and my husband reminded me that we could just take his truck and leave the van for when the appraiser came.  (He actually never even showed up.   I bet this process is going to take forever.)

We arrived during the early afternoon and decided to head straight towards the children's section, because we usually come to this part at the end of our day and really just want to go home.  The zoo was practically empty.  We were actually the only ones on the train and carosel.

The older girls decided that they wanted to ride the train facing backwards.  My son was bummed because he wanted to face backwards too.

The older girls also climbed the rock wall.  My 8-year-old is quite the monkey and climbed up at record pace.

We took our time at the petting zoo before seeing the new baby panda Xi Lan, the tiger, leopard, and African animals.  It was mainly a leisurely trip to the Children's Zoo.  Since we have yearly passes, the kids enjoy doing this from time to time.

Our 2-year-old was not happy when we had to leave.  She screamed as we left, fussed at dinner, and cried in the truck.  I wonder when she will grow out of this faze...

Blessings,

I am a huge fan of these two shows!  I try to watch every single episode.  I was really excited to watch the homecoming of Jordyn-Grace last night on 18 Kids & Counting!  While on the computer last night I discovered that the first season of 17 Kids & Counting is currently for sale at discovery.com for around $25.00.  This also includes 4 previous Duggar specials!  (A DVD to go on my wishlist for sure .)

I also discovered a link to give to the missions organization that was featured on the episode that took place in El Salvador.  I happily gave a bit of $ to this good cause.

While I was at it, I searched Christian Children's Fund and pledged to sponsor a 5-year-old girl from Cambodia.  This is something that has been on my heart for some time, and I'm happy that I can help a disadvantaged child in some way.

Jon and Kate + 8 is also a must-see on my list.  While at Target on Monday, I discovered Seasons 1 + 2 with a bonus special titled, "Surviving Twins and Sextuplets" for $14.99.  My oldest daughter and I really enjoyed watching a few of the first episodes and the special yesterday.

Blessings,

My son participated in his very first soccer practice yesterday and loved it!  Afterwards I purchased a ball for home use while we were waiting for his sister to finish dance class.  I love to see him excited about an activity since not much catches his interest.

Here he is, ready to go!

Oh, it was so cold outside!  My feet and hands were frozen by the time his hour-long practice was over.  My other 2 daughters kept warm by running up and down a nearby embankment.

He was the smallest one out there and looked so cute! 

 In other news, my 7-year-old daughter got her roundoff-back tuck yesterday at gymnastics!  She was so proud of herself.  (Mama was pretty proud, too.)

Blessings,

My husband and I had a lovely weekend getaway!  We headed out yesterday morning at around 9 o'clock. 

Our first stop was at Chick-fil-a of course!  We then hit the road and drove until we reached North Carolina.  In Flat Rock we stopped for lunch at a Cracker Barrell.  Once inside I smelled smoke, and I was shocked.  I then remembered that we were not in GA any longer. (GA law does not permit restaurants to allow smoking.  If an establishment chooses to allow smoking, no one under 18 is allowed inside, thus most restaurants are smoke free.)  I guess since Cracker Barrell is fairly open with only lattice to separate the smoking section from non-smoking section, the smoke freely circulated throughout the entire restaurant.  It was so bad, we were tempted to leave.  (If the kids had been with us we would have.)

We then visited Chimney Rock Park, thanks to a tip from MichelleL!  I adore hiking and I wanted to find something fun for us to do Saturday, so this was the perfect solution.  The only downside was the admission cost...$28 for both of us, and when visiting nearby Smoky Mountains National Park the views are better (in my opinion) and it is free.

Here we are on Chimney Rock.

At "The Opera Box" slightly above the rock.

My husband was intrigued by this rock formation, but I found it to be freaky.

Here I am inside the tunnel which leads to an elevator to take you to the top.

Here we are beside Hickory Nut Falls.  This hike took about 45 minutes round trip.  I liked the look of the waterfall because it was half ice and half running water.  Parts of the film "Last of the Mohicans" was shot in this location.

We arrived in Asheville at around 5 pm and ate at TGI Fridays.   Upon returning the our room we watched "Water Boy" until we fell asleep.  We stayed at a Fairfield Inn which was nicer than I had anticipated, which is always a good thing!  This morning we discovered that it had snowed!  Not much, but the ground was lightly dusted and flurries were still flying.  This is the view from our hotel room.

We traveled to Biltmore Estate after breakfast.  It was so cold outside!  Unfortunately no picture taking is allowed inside the house, so this is all I got.

The outside of the house is breathtaking.  I was very impressed by the interior, but it wasn't quite what I expected.  There are 250 rooms in the house, but we only viewed about 67.  You are not allowed onto any of the terraces or the roof unless you pay an additional tour fee.  The gardens were not in season and I had no desire to visit the winery, so Biltmore House was all we toured.  It was a very interesting morning, and I spent a good portion of the trip home looking at our guidebook.  We ate at The Varsity on our return trip home and made it back at 5 pm.  I missed my children terribly and was so happy to see them!

Blessings,

I have really enjoyed being the featured blogger this week on HSB!  It has been cool seeing hits from different countries pop up and meeting a few new bloggers through comments.

Tonight I am anticipating our weekend getaway!  Have I packed yet?  Nope, not a thing.  I guess I feel like packing for only myself for one night will take no time at all.  I will probably throw together my belongings tomorrow morning. 

We spent the afternoon waiting for gymnastics to be over.  I unintentionally spent $45 in Target this afternoon!  (How does this always happen?!)  I was just trying to kill a little bit of time and I found $1 plush flowers.  I thought these would be perfect for the girls in my daughter's dance class (tap class with younger girls) so I counted out 9.  My baby wanted stickers, and she had been an angel for most of the day so we picked out some cute bunnies.  I grabbed a pack of tights for her as well.  After browsing through toys we looked at the sporting goods section since my son is starting *soccer* next week.  (He is super excited now, but I wonder how long that will last.  He stated that he didn't like gymnastics and t-ball because the teachers made him run.  I was like, "Uh...what do you think you will do in soccer?")  I found soccer shoes and a soccer bag for him.  After we left Target I headed to Hobby Lobby, and I was VERY good and did not spend a dime.  This is a rare occurance for me in Hobby Lobby...in fact, I'm not sure if it has ever happened before LOL.

Upon arrival at the gym, my daughter's teacher informed me that she had been incredibly sloppy in class today.  I know that it had to be bad if her teacher took the time to talk to me about it, and I'm not sure what her punishment should be.

We arrived home and I watched Wife Swap.  This show can be crazy and far fetched at times but I still like to watch it.  To often it portrays homeschooling families in a negative light which I definitely do not appreciate, but since I find it funny I tune in.  Note:  While searching for a Wife Swap logo to put in the post I typed in wifeswapdotcom.  This was definitely not the type of Wife Swap I was looking for!  What is this world coming to?!  Since the children's bedtime I have been on the computer...and not packing.  My husband is worried, but I have it under control.

I hope to have some good pictures of this weekend come Sunday evening!

Blessings,

I found a site with pictures taken this weekend at my daughter's dance competition!  Here are a few...

Hamming it up for the judges.

Awards ceremony...

The judges with the top soloists.

Raise It Up.

Check out my daughter's leap in the middle.  I had no clue that she could jump that high.

I love their ending pose.

Night of the Dancing Flame.

I was so proud of my daughter this weekend!  I could watch her dance for hours.  We are now heading to dance for solo practice.  She has began taking private tap lessons which she seriously loves.

Blessings,

The most terrible storms are currently hitting our area!  They began at around 5 pm.  We had dropped off our daughter at gymnastics at 4 and had just finished purchasing groceries at Wal-Mart.  We were waiting at a red light to turn out of the parking lot and all of a sudden softball-sized hail began pelting down!  The sky was a bit dark, but nothing gave us the indicator that this was about to occur.  We quickly pulled into a residential area to wait it out when tree limbs began snapping and tornado sirens began to sound.  At this point the ground was covered in white and the children and I were a wreck.  (At least my husband was holding it together. : ))  Through his tears my son said, "I know that we are going to die!!!"  Rain began to mix in with the hail and sight distance turned into zero.  We later found out that a tornado was confirmed in our area!

We finally began to drive again and quickly returned to the gym to check on our daughter.  The team was in the bathroom with mats surrounding them, but their coach said that they hoped to resume practice soon, although another cell was coming our way.  When I returned to my husband outside, he pointed out all of the lovely hail damage to our vehicle. (A bunch of small dimples on the hood and roof.)  We saw the girls resume practice, so we drove to a nearby Zaxby's to purchase dinner.  As soon as we returned to the gym the tornado sirens sounded AGAIN, and the girls were in the bathroom AGAIN.  I grabbed my daughter and we raced to the car, hoping to beat the system which was about 10 minutes away.  We were close to home when we realized that a completely different system was about to hit our house, so we stopped at another Wal-Mart for cover.  Once in the store an associate told us that the Wal-Mart that we had just purchased groceries at had closed because the hail had broken the windows at the top of the store.  (Praise God that we left when we did!!)  We stayed at this store for about 30 minutes until the warning was lifted.  When we were within 5 miles from our home another terrible thunderstorm picked up.  We couldn't see, it began to hail, etc.  While watching the weather it seems as if more and more storms keep coming in from Alabama.  Hopefully they will die out soon.

I wish that I had had my camera with me!  It was the craziest weather that I had ever seen!  It has began thundering again, so I'm going to get off of the computer.

Blessings,

My sweet husband purchased an aquamarine/diamond ring for me on Valentine's Day!   I was so incredibly excited because I have been wanting one for a long time.  I also received a container of miniature daffodils and a balloon, which I love.  (I don't know why I like balloons as an adult, but I do. )

This is a picture of my new ring!

We purchased Madagascar 2 for our children, along with a bag of candy and balloon for each.  They also received cupcakes and candy from other relatives, so they were hyper on Saturday.  I don't mind a little craziness every now and then!

Blessings,

My husband and I rarely have the opportunity to take a trip without our children.  In fact, this has only occurred one time.  Every year we hope to take a little vacation aound our anniversary, but it never happens.  I figured that this year would be the same old story, but low and behold a dance competition was cancelled which freed up a weekend!  Our anniversary is on March 19th, but we will be taking an overnight trip to celebrate this weekend.  After looking at options, we have decided to visit Biltmore Estate in Asheville, North Carolina.

Some information...

Explore a Real-Life Castle

"Be inspired by the relaxed elegance of George and Edith Vanderbilt's 250-room family home and country retreat in Asheville, NC. Discover original art from masters such as Renoir, magnificent 16th-century tapestries, Napoleon's chess set, a library with 10,000 volumes, a Banquet Hall with a 70-foot ceiling, 65 fireplaces, an indoor pool, bowling alley, and priceless antiques. Opened to friends on Christmas Eve 1895, this French Renaissance chateáu remains America's largest privately owned home."

I am so excited about this trip!  I choose a destination that was more "adult" in nature because we don't have the opportunity to do this type of thing often.  Biltmore Estate is about 4 hours away and we plan to leave at about 9 am on Saturday morning.  We will spend Saturday enjoying the Smoky Mountains and touring Asheville.  Sunday morning we will visit Biltmore and then return home that afternoon.  We plan to stay in a cheap hotel to offset the cost of admission.  I know that this is not a "castle" in every sense of the word, but it's the closest thing to one in the area.  One day I hope to visit Europe to see the real thing!

Despite my excitement, I'm worried about leaving our youngest.  I've never been away from her for the night before!  I'm sure that she will be fine, but I will miss them all terribly.

Blessings,

I'm going to try and finish up our week at Disney.  I missed so many things, but I have attempted to hit all of the high points.  Friday morning we left our resort to eat breakfast with Mickey and friends at Chef Mickey's inside the Contemporary Resort.  We were seated immediately and began enjoying the characters!

And oh yes, I had to redo my oldest daughter's hair so she could be a princess again!  My 7-year-old slept very carefully to ensure her hair do remain intact.  They were named Princesses of the Day at the Contemporary Resort and we received VIP seating at the Lights, Motor, Action stunt show that we visited later that day.  (Knowing royalty has it's perks.)

Pluto tried to eat my son's head!  He was running for cover!

Here are a few more pictures...

Oh, the sun was bright!

Excited about Dumbo!

Our family in Tomorrowland.

Oh no, now when I try to load a picture the hsb system tells me that I do not have enough space.  Any suggestions?!  Thank you in advance!

Blessings,

These are the commands, decrees and laws the Lord your God directed me to teach you to observe...so that you, your children and their children after them may fear the Lord your God as long as you live by keeping all his decrees and commands that I give you.      Deuteronomy 6:1-2

An excerpt from my devotion this morning:

"You have the opportunity to start a lineage of faith, if it hasn't already begun in your family.  The opportunity to pass down the truths and joys of the Christian life is a responsibility that should not be taken lightly.  If your children see that you faith 'works', then they weill be much more likely to make faith of God a way of life themselves."

Blessings to your family on this Sunday!

I also wanted to post a few pictures that my daughter's dance instructor took at the competition yesterday.

Great job with "Raise It Up"!  Platinum 1st place!

"Night of the Dancing Flame" took home a 3rd place gold.

Blessings,