Swimsuits!

Anyone need a modest swimsuit this summer? I can help with that! This post will remain at the top of my blog all spring and summer. Scroll down to see other posts.

This is a pic of Me, my mom, and my sibs wearing our swimwuits. I'm the short one on the far right. These are the ones I made last summer.

 And here are some closeups of those suits.

These are three of my sisters.

And those my two brothers and two more sisters. Look at how happy these modest children are! LOL! And guess what? Nobody drowned! Modest swimsuits are perfectly safe!

We've worn these in public pools with no problems. Though a few people were a little curious, most were very polite. We're kinda used to that though, eight girls in dresses (plus three bros, not in dresses) can't go many places without looking a little out-of-the-ordinary.

I made the younger girls' all one piece so that we could avoid any "BUTICAN'TFINDTHEOTHERHALFOFMYSWIMSUIT!" problems. I made the older girls' two seperate pieces to keep the neckline high because you have to step in through it when you put in on for a one-peicer because of the shorts. We haven't had any problems with the shirts coming up underwater.

I will make you one if you want. They have underwear underneath including panties, shorts, and a little extra lining in the front for the ladies sizes.  I will totally customize your suit to your measurements and style, any shape of neckline, any length of skirts (I do not recommend longer than knee-length) or shorts (any length), sleeves or not of any style, as you wish. These are made with swimsuit fabric, no cotton or anything heavy.

Contact me if you're interested. The price would range from $25 to $80 depending on your size and whether or not you can supply the fabric. I can do girl's 2T-ladies 14.

I am willing to make just the skirt and/or shorts to be worn over an ordinary one peice swimsuit, if that would meet your needs better. My family has searched many years for a modest swimsuit at an afordable price so I know how difficult it is to find one, let alone multiplying that price for many children. I hope I can bless you this way.

You may e-mail me, but if you do, please put swimsuit in the subject line so I don't accidentally delete your message. I know you're all too smart to put something like "YOU JUST WON $1,000,000,000,000 IN JAPAN'S LOTTERY!" My e-mai address are lovelylivingbooks@yahoo.com and Heather@valerieslivingbooks.com

These are last year's suits on this year's kids, so you can see that they lasted the summer well.

Thanks for reading!

Expelled!

EDIT: We all (Mom and six of us older girls) went and saw this Friday afternoon. It was great! I really appreciated the way that they brought out the side effects of an evolutionary world view, Nazism, birth control, racism and such. But the enlightening part of the movie (for me), was seeing the atheists present their case. I had never seen that before, though I had heard christian responses.

They are terrified!

I had read these verses but I had never seen it for myself. 

 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed [it] unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, [even] his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: Because that, when they knew God, they glorified [him] not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things. Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen. Romans 1: 18-25

Atheists fight a losing battle and they know it!

Here we are off to the movie theatre! We're rebels, in skirts no less!

Guess which one was me! I'm not in this second picture.

Here I am. You know, I can be friendly sometimes. Gunnar looks a little worried though.

Feelin' Feminine Challenge

Time sure has flown this past week. I'm terribly behind on blogging. This post was for March's Feelin' Feminine Challenge, which took place... umm... quite some time ago.

Well, here are some pictures of the girls in our family wearing dresses and skirts. I was the primary photographer, which is why there aren't many of me. I didn't catolog them very well so these are just random picture from different days. This is Me on Monday with's ponytail.

Mom:

Kristen:

Kelsey:

Katie:

Heidi:

Alicia and Amalie

Rebekah:

And Here am I holding Gunnar. I'm wearing a blue skirt with this.

Wasn't that fun?

Well, did you all have a good April Fool's Day? My 4yo brother played a good one on me! I felt bad that I hadn't fallen for it. He asked me (with a perfectly straight face, mind you) if I had a bug in my hair but I just answered that I didn't remember putting one there when I fixed it. He still laughed his head off though. Fortunately, with super glue to the rescue, he is doing just fine!

Does anybody know how to make your own playlist, or how to put up music you've recorded yourself? Is it simple enough for someone like me? Thanks!

All Glory, Laud, and Honor

Happy Palm Sunday, everyone! This is one of my favorite hymns (all right, I have a lot of favorites). Perfect for today.

Refrain:
All glory, laud, and honor
to thee, Redeemer, King!
to whom the lips of children
made sweet hosannas ring.

Thou art the King of Israel,
thou David's royal Son,
who in the Lord's Name comest,
the King and Blessed One. Refrain

The company of angels
are praising thee on high;
and mortal men and all things
created make reply. Refrain

The people of the Hebrews
with palms before thee went;
our praise and prayer and anthems
before thee we present. Refrain

To thee before thy passion
they sang their hymns of praise;
to thee, now high exalted,
our melody we raise. Refrain

Thou didst accept their praises;
accept the prayers we bring,
who in all good delightest,
thou good and gracious King. Refrain

Luther

I saw an excellent movie last night.

The movie was called Luther, starring Joseph Fiennes. It was a little violent and could be disturbing for very young veiwers, but accurate to the times. None of my lil' bros or sises were bothered, but they aren't easily bothered. It was mostly just a few camera pans of the destruction after the peasant's revolt and a wild hog hunt. 

I truely enjoyed this movie. Christianity and Martin Luther were both treated very respectfully, which was a surprise, as this is a very recent movie. Historically, it was very accurate, which was also a surprise! This was even better than the black-and-white Gateway Films version, we've seen that one a few times.

The only thing I didn't like was Luther (the actor)'s tendancy to whisper. I don't think the real Luther was a whisperer and besides, it makes it hard to watch, when you have to keep turning up the volume! Luther's famous answer at the Diet of Worms should have been SHOUTED out--in my opinion--and maybe a good bang on the table for good measure!

I don't want to give too much away, but the indulgence seller was hillarious! He reminded me a little bit of a television anouncer trying to sell something! LOL!

Have any of you seen it?

I know this was a short post, I just wanted to quickly fill you all in on this. There are so few movies made that are edifying, this one is one of my all-time favorites, maybe even THE all-time favorite.

The Fisherman by Larry Huntsperger

I've discovered a new treasure!

The Fisherman by Larry Huntsperger, can be found at amazon for about $5 plus shipping. It is just recently out-of-print so snatch your copy up quickly before the price rises! This is a real treasure!

This book is about Simon Peter. It portrays Peter very realistically, a poor fisherman with petty hopes and dreams like the rest of us. I could certainly empithize with him.

It also does a woderful job on accuracy. This is the first book about the disciples I have really enjoyed. Often, an author puts words and actions on Jesus that the Bible doesn't mention and although I know that,
And there are also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written. Amen --John 21:25
It usually done badly! At least, it is in my opinion! In this book everything Jesus says or does is implied, leaving the details to imaginations, unless it comes straight from the bible.

This is written in the first person, as if Peter was writing his autobiography to the church. His conversational writing about his spiritual journey is so very realistic! When Peter first meets Jesus he begins by thinking Jesus is an interesting man, then realizing more and more, little by little, until, at the empty tomb, he see the Son of God and Savior of the World. The final epilouge is absolutely beautiful! I dare you to read it with dry eyes!

One scene in particular that had us all laughing was the wedding in Cana. When Jesus turned water into wine Peter's first thought was of the money he and Jesus could make with this skill. LOL! They could be rich overnight!

The part about the woman with the twelve-year blood flow really made me think. Up until then Peter had thought Jesus' healing power was just a gift given by God. But when he found that this woman was healed by simply touching his robe.... Why, Jesus didn't HAVE power! Jesus WAS power!

But Peter never places any importance on himself. Or at least, not after he learns better. Over and over again he tells us that he didn't do anything special and he wasn't anyone special, but, that God loved him and did amazing things through him. God called him friend!

This book will make you laugh and cry! I did. The pain Peter feels after he denyed Jesus three times had Mom and I both a little teary, even though we knew he would be forgiven!

I heard one person critisize this for making Peter talk like a 21st century fellow. Not so! Yes, his grammar (when he speaks) wouldn't win prizes (though perfectly understandable) and he talks a little slang, but isn't that the way a fisherman with a small education would have talked? He never uses hopelessly modern phrases like "Dude" or "rock on".  He simply talks the way I imagine Peter would have talked to his friend.

I hope you all get your hands on a copy right away!

Award!

I have three awards to give out. I should have done this sooner, I just kept putting it off.  I don't remember how many I was supposed to hand these out to so I'll give them to the deserving regardless of number.

The first is the Beautiful Blog award. I was awarded this by Becca14

I'm awarding,

Eyebright

Rjdjohn316

Krisjacob

Jocelyn

Bethany

Rebekah

Brooke

VirtuousMaidens

Belovedpeace

ChristineDaae

Sarah

Bluejane

Superangel

I picked these girls because their blogs are beautiful inside and out. Remember "Favour is deceitful, and beauty is vain: but a woman that feareth the LORD, she shall be praised." Proverbs 31:30  A beautiful blog is not determined by the template only, though these girls all have lovely templates, a beautiful blog is determined by a lovely servants heart that delights in truth behind it. I am glad to have met you.

And now,

Sarah gave this one to me and I'm awarding,

 Everyone Above

Their blogs are beautiful because they're exellent.

From SuperAngel,

And this is another way of saying the same thing.

Thank you all so much for giving these to me!

I'm so glad to give them to some of you!

On a side note, family members are updating and getting blogs.

Gramp and Gram's and Mom's.

Also, our site has changed. Mom split the information and bookselling areas of her site. You can buy books at www.valerieslivingbooks.com and you can find homeschooling information at www.valerieslivingbooks.info Simple, isn't it!

We're really excited because our site is much improved! We have a decent search bar, pictures for lots of items, categories, and a working shopping cart! Yay! Best of all, everything is LIVE. Before, if someone ordered something something we had to rush and update all thirty-something pages before someone else came along and ordered the same book! Let us know what you think if you stop by.

The Latest News

Phew! I'm back at last! I've had some very busy weeks!

Iloveyougod is (was) issuing a skirts and dresses challenge. The ladies of our family already wear skirts or dresses only. I painted my nails a clearish color and let my hair down. I used to always have it braided or in a bun, but I really liked the ponytail. I'm wearing one now.

I thought now would be a good time to post the pictures Kris took when we were taking up the our living room carpet last month. You CAN do anything in a skirt!

We have thousands of keeper books! These are just our fiction books. We had to move them out of the living room before we could start. We have about three times as many non-fiction in the garage! And those are keepers too. Where do you keep your selling books, do you ask? In the basement!

Cute isn't he? I KNOW he isn't wearing a dress! But he isn't helping anyway so he doesn't count!

Here we are taking out the first half of the carpet. I'm the one in the green dress and the norwegian hat I knitted. I had just come home and had forgotten to take it off. See how the camera magnifies the dust in the air? Needless to say, we were all a bit congested a few days following this.

Here is one of the four pizzas Katelyn made for us while we were working. She made it completely from scratch, even grinding the flour! She put olives, onions, spinach and ground turkey on it. Yum!

Here we are folding up the second half of the carpet. We then pushed it out the window instead of trying to drag it out the door. That hadn't worked for the first half.

That image is a little blurry and dark. Ah, well!

And here is everyone taking a well-deserved rest and watching a movie, except for me. I'm re-shelving the books as Mom brings them to me. This picture is from the same evening. I had changed because I was hot and because I was ruining my favorite dress!

I was going to show you some pictures from a murder mystery play I was in yesterday, but I can't find the camera cord.   I was the lady butler (unconventional, I know) with a long, full black skirt. My family says I looked a horror in the stage makeup! LOL! You can see a cast picture at Mom's blog.

Well, I've got lots of comments to answer, so I'd better get to that.

You Can't Put a Good Book Down!

This is a list of my top favorite books of all time.

I love recommending and reviewing books, but being a booksellers' daughter, I often get to read books no one else can get their hands on.   Fortunately for you, some books have recently been printed which made it to the top of my list  so you should be able to find almost everything with relative ease.

The Bible
  This is the only perfect book. Nothing else in this world is like it, and I measure every other book up to this one. I try to be patient with man-made books, but nothing comes close. One of the marks of a good book is that no matter how many times you read it you can always find something new. That is definately true of the Bible. Also, the plot is superb, often copied, but never equaled. My favorite version is the King James Version. Mom always wanted us to learn to read the KJV first because that opens up so many language possibilities, and I have to say that I miss the "thee's" and "thou's" in other versions. We also think the KJV is one of the most accurate translations.

Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan
  This is an excellent book. I think almost everyone has read it or at least heard of it but have you heard of the second half of the book? Christiana is about Christians wife and children who journey after him to the celestial city with Greatheart, the king's soldier, as their guide. Little Pilgrim's Progress by Helen Taylor is a good edition for little children. BTW, if you find the hardcover edition, it has a slightly different title, Little Christian's Pilgrimage, it is worth quite a bit of money.

The Holy War by John Bunyan
  This book is lesser known than than PP but just as good. The great king Shaddai built himself city for his delight and glory and called it Mansoul. Now, Mansoul was a wonderful place! It had five inpregnable gates, Ear Gate, Eye Gate, Mouth Gate, Nose Gate, and Touch Gate. BUT, There was a wicked giant named Diabolous who hated Shaddai with all his being. What better way to revenge himself on Shaddai than to take his town? Diabolous succeeded in deceiving the townspeople into letting him take over their town. But little did he know that King Shaddai and Prince Emmanuel knew of these goings-on and were already putting their own plans in action.... Are you excited yet?
  This is the only book I've ever read in which I've liked an abridged version as well as the original. The War for Mansoul by Ethel Barrett is a good read-aloud and much simpler for children to understand, with a lot of colorful dialoge. But don't use it as an excuse not to read the original!

Scottish Seas by Douglas Jones
  This is a short story, about 100 pages long, about a family growing up in Scotland during the 16th century. A loving family life is very accurately portrayed, the book opens with Mac (4 yo.) coming in after having taken off all his clothing and getting reprimanded by his Mother! I can certainly empathize with that! This author has written two others, Dutch Color, and Hugonaut's Garden, they are both good but SS is my favorite.

Leepike Ridge by N. D. Wilson
  This is the best adventure story I've ever read! Actually, I didn't read it, Mom read it aloud to us.  This author is one of the most colorful writers I've ever read, and I've read a lot! Forget Nancy Drew and The Hardy Boys. This is AMAZING! One Hundred Cupboards just came out this last Christmas. I didn't like it as well because I felt that too many threads weren't tied up. But it is the beginning of a series... I guess I should make allowances. LOL! When you read OHC you will be surprised that Random House published it! It has one scene where a little girl is standing over an unconcious whitch with a knife! (The witch is portrayed as very evil and in the end the "good guys" are sorry they talked the little girl out of doing away with her.)

The Cronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis
These are great, we all know that! LOL There are very few writers who equal his skill. I especially admire him for his ability to write seven books about the same place yet keep them all unique. His world is very believable. I think most writers are challenged by series writing. Many authors do badly in later volumes, but his get better.

I like lots (tons) of books, but I had to narrow it down to my absolute favorites! These are the ones that, to me, stand head and shoulders above the ones that stand head and shoulders above the rest.

Tags, Tags, Tags!

As you can see from the post below, I had about half of this finished Tuesday when this laptop backed out on me and lost everything. I will put Tuesday's answers first if there is a difference.

This tag is from Beloved Peace.

1. Grab the book nearest to you, turn to page 18, and find line 4. Tues. "scope." That was the end of a paragraph from Stowaway to Mushroom Planet by Eleanor Cameron. I like this book but it's the second in the series. You should read Wonderful Flight to the Mushroom Planet first.

2. Stretch your left arm out as far as you can. What can you touch? Tues. Nothing! Thur. Amalie. We are working on a email to Grammie in between questions.

3. What was the last thing you watched on TV? Tues. This was the reason I decided to finally do the tags I've been putting off. We saw the latest Jane Eyre with Georgie Henley as the young Jane Eyre Sunday night. It was awful! The movie makers have NO DISCRECTION! We absolutely hated it. There are ways to show romance in a movie without getting detailed!
Thurs. We saw Amazing Grace last night. It was wonderful! One lady wore a low-cut dress several times, but other than that it was very good. My favorite line is, John Newton to William Wilberforce: My memory fades but two things I remember very clearly. That I am a great sinner and Christ is a  great savior. It's very rare that I see two movies in one week, but I couldn't wait to see this one.

4. Without looking, guess what time it is. 8:00

5. Now look at the clock. What is the actual time? 7:59 am Wow! Alright, I did just hear Kelsey going through the house waking everyone up and telling them it was nearly eight. I couldn't help it!

6. With the exception of the computer, what can you hear? Alicia telling Gunnar not to stand in his high chair.

7. When did you last step outside? What were you doing? Yesterday, I took two envelopes all the way down our loooonng driveway to the mailbox.

8. Before you started this survey, what did you look at? I had breakfast and started right in.

10. Did you dream last night? yep, weird.

11. When did you last laugh? Probably sometime yesterday. I don't think I have yet this morning.

12. What is on the walls of the room you are in? Bible verses, a  picture of our grandparents, bricks around the wood stove, light switches, thermostat, etc.....

13. Seen anything weird lately? Yes! Monday Rebekah had butter on her watermelon and seemed to enjoy it!

14. What do you think of this quiz? I like it.

15. What is the last film or video you saw? Oh, I guess I put the answer under question 3. Sorry.

16. If you became a multi-millionaire overnight, what would you buy? I'd have to think about it.

17. Tell me something about you that I do not know. I do not like runny eggs.

18. If you could change one thing about the world, regardless of guilt or politics, what would you do? I don't think I'd do any thing, It's in God's hands and I'd just mess it up.

19. Do you like to dance?  Yes! I only get the chance about once a year.

20. Comment to George Bush: Hello, would you like to buy any of our books? I'd really like to brag to my friends if you do.

21. Imagine your first child is a girl, what do you call her? I'll decide with my husband when the time comes.

22. Imagine your first child is a boy, what do you call him? Please read above answer.

23. Would you ever consider living abroad? I don't long for it,  but I'd consider it.

24. What do you want God to say to you when you reach the pearly gate? Well done, good and faithful servant. Come and enter into the joy of your master.

25. What one book, besides the Bible, has changed your life? I try to learn something from every book I read. Maybe Pilgrim's Progress or The Holy War.

26. Who are you going to tag?
Any one who wants to. They must tell me they are doing it so that I can read their answers. ;)

This tag is from Super Angel

1.WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE? My middle name is from my Great-Grandmother.

2. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED? About a week and a half ago.

3. DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING? I'm a very neat writer, but I'm always trying to perfect it.

4. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT? Lunch meat! YUM! I'll take anything the Bible call clean.

5. DO YOU SLEEP WITH A STUFFED ANIMAL?  No.

6. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU? Huh? Let me read that again. O.K. I think so.

7. DO YOU USE SARCASM A LOT? Not everyday, I do use it when I'm teasing someone though.

8. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS? Yes

9. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP? No, most of my sisters have,

10. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL? I don’t eat cereal. Eggs for breakfast! Eggs for breakfast! Eggs for breakfast!

11. DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF? Yes.

12. DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG? I might be physically strong to some people, when I pick up a box of books that feel light to me at a book sale the cashier usually frantically grabs a cart for me! LOL! But next to Kristen I couldn't lift a feather!

13. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM? Something very creamy and rich.

14. WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE? Whether or not they smile, if they are dressed modestly.

15. RED OR PINK? It depends, but probably pink.

16. WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVORITE THING YOU LIKE ABOUT YOURSELF? My tendacy to do a job because it's my duty rather than doing it with a servant's heart.

17. WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST? Both pairs of my Grandparents live out of state.

18. DO YOU WANT EVERYONE WHO READS THIS TO DO IT? If they want to.

19. WHAT COLOR PANTS AND SHOES ARE YOU WEARING? I don't wear pants if I can help it. I'm wearing a blue jean jumper with flowers, butterflies, bees, and dragonflies machine embroderied all over the front. My shoes are black.

20. WHAT WAS THE LAST THING YOU ATE? Eggs and toast with butter and cream cheese. Yum!

At this point I ran out of blogging time. The following answers are from today, Saturday morning.
21. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW? Nothing.

22. IF YOU WERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE? Purple or Green.

 23. FAVORITE SMELLS? Natural smells, grass, trees, and flowers. I hate the man-made smells in shampoos, soaps, and lip glosses. I also like the smell of a brand-new book, brand-new, never opened.

 24. WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE? Probably a customer.

25. DO YOU LIKE THE PERSON WHO SENT THIS TO YOU? Yes.

26. FAVORITE SPORTS TO WATCH? I only care for sports if a family member is playing.

27. HAIR COLOR? Light brown in the summer, medium brown in the winter. I love my hair!

28. EYE COLOR? Blue! I love blue eyes!

29. DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS? Nope

30. FAVORITE FOOD? The only thing I can't stand in any form is artichokes. I like a variety.

31. SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDINGS? A story with a great lesson to learn and a happy ending. I have a hard time enjoying movies because I often get wrapped up in what their trying to say.

32. LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED? Well, I already answered this question at the top of the page. Jane Eyre was really bad! Amazing Grace was really good! I saw parts of Home Alone last night, it was O.K.

33. WHAT COLOR SHIRT ARE YOU WEARING? Sheer blue pasley over a black camisole.

34. SUMMER OR WINTER? I like both.

35. HUGS OR KISSES? Hugs.

36. FAVORITE DESSERT? Anything good.

37. WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING Lots! 1 Samuel, Glastonbury by Donna Fletcher Crow.....

40. WHAT IS ON YOUR MOUSE PAD? We have a TOUCH pad!

41. WHAT DID YOU WATCH ON T.V. LAST NIGHT? I didn’t watch TV last night.

42. FAVORITE SOUND? A person's voice?

43. ROLLING STONES OR BEATLES? Well, I'd be afraid the rolling stones might hurt someone, I don't mind beetles if there are only a few of them. We have had our house invaded by swarms of them at times.

Yes, I know what that question REALLY referred to!

44. WHAT IS THE FURTHEST YOU HAVE BEEN FROM HOME? Wouldn't you like to know! LOL!

45. DO YOU HAVE A SPECIAL TALENT? Playing the piano? Crocheting? Sewing? Knitting? I don't know.

46. WHERE WERE YOU BORN? In a hospital.

47. WHOSE ANSWERS ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO GETTING BACK? Everyone who does it. The ones who don't do it will have pretty blank answers.

This tag is from Dixiefiddler.

1. What is your favorite thing about Christmas? It's Jesus' birthday, and Easter is coming! Christmas is a looking forward holiday to me.

2. In what room do you usually set up your Christmas tree? The living room.

3. Do you have more than one Christmas tree in your home? No.

4. Do you have a Christmas village? No.

5. What does your Christmas stocking look like? I had a hat this year.

6. on your Christmas tree? I think part of this question is gone.

7. What was your favorite Christmas gift last year? My mp3 player and some bobby pins my sister beaded.

8. Do you have any family traditions, if so, what are they? Sure, but I have to hurry.

9. Do you dress up your pets for Christmas? No way! LOL! That's a really silly question! LOL!

10. Do you hang up Christmas lights outside normally? Sometimes.

11. Who are you gonna tag?
Anybody who wants to!

If you do any of these tags I want to read your answers!

AAAAARRRRRRRGG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I WAS ANSWERING ALL THE TAGS I'M BEHIND ON WHEN THIS LAPTOP SPONTANEOUSLY BACKED OUT OF THE ENTRY PAGE AND LOST ALL MY WORK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I GUESS YOU'LL HAVE TO WAIT UNTILL TOMORROW OR LATER TO HEAR MY ANWERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrgggggg!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm mostly mad at myself because I really should remember to type my posts in notepad or wordpro first!

Merry Christmas!

Hark the herald angels sing
"Glory to the newborn King!
Peace on earth and mercy mild
God and sinners reconciled"
Joyful, all ye nations rise
Join the triumph of the skies
With the angelic host proclaim:
"Christ is born in Bethlehem"
Hark! The herald angels sing
"Glory to the newborn King!"

Christ by highest heav'n adored
Christ the everlasting Lord!
Late in time behold Him come
Offspring of a Virgin's womb
Veiled in flesh the Godhead see
Hail the incarnate Deity
Pleased as man with man to dwell
Jesus, our Emmanuel
Hark! The herald angels sing
"Glory to the newborn King!"

Hail the heav'n-born Prince of Peace!
Hail the Son of Righteousness!
Light and life to all He brings
Ris'n with healing in His wings
Mild He lays His glory by
Born that man no more may die
Born to raise the sons of earth
Born to give them second birth
Hark! The herald angels sing
"Glory to the newborn King!"

This is one of my favorite christmas carols. Read the words carefully, the theology is laid out so beautifully!

Charles Wesley wrote this hymn. Did you know he wrote over 6,000 hymns? He wrote constantly! In one of his hymnals he inserted a note thanking people for the honor of reprinting his hymns but asking that no one change any words "that we" (his brother wrote too) "may no longer be accountable for the nonsense or dogerel of other men."

LOL!

I'm glad someone did edit this hymn. Here's the first verse the way Charles wrote it,

Hark, how all the welkin rings,
"Glory to the King of kings;
Peace on earth and mercy mild,
God and sinners reconciled!'
Joyful, all ye nations rise,
Join the triumph of the skies;
Universal nature say,
Christ the Lord is born today!

Weldin is an old engilsh word meaning "valt of the sky".

Are you wondering how I found this information? From these books!

Then Sings My Soul, Then Sings My Soul 2, and Come Let Us Adore Him all three by Robert Morgan. I love learning the stories behind hymns. Did you know that when "All Glory, Laud and Honor was written it had seventy-eight verses? The guy who wrote it was in jail, so he had plenty of time! (BTW, the site I linked to is a trustworthy site. Mom has ordered from them more times than I can remember, and they've always treated us fairly.)

Merry Christmas!

Chaps in Chaps

I thought I'd better get this pattern up right away so that any of you with little brothers could have this in time for Christmas if you need it.

Me: Boys! If you put your chaps on I'll take a picture!

Erik: But we're already wearing our jammies!

Me: That's O.K. Put them on over your jammies. I want to take the picture tonight.

Erik: O.K.

David:

The backs of the chaps are exactly the same as the front, so I didn't bother to take extra pictures.

Read through the whole post making sure you understand the concept before you start. If you have any questions, feel free to ask them.

You will need about the same amount of fabric as for a pair of pants the same size. The fabric should not fray, some type of felt or suede-like fabric should do.

After you get the fabric you will need either the cooperation of the cowpoke-to-be or a pair of his pants. (It's easier with the cowpoke.)

Throughout these instructions, I will refer to the right leg chap for clarity.

O.K. First you need to cut out the chaps. Cut out two rectangles. The height should be waist to floor and the width should be around the leg plus 8 inches. Each rectangle will be a chap leg.

Look at the picture. The top (waist) of the chaps are turned down about 1 1/2" to 2" for a belt. Also, the chap legs are not connected. The leg continues up to the belt in the front and back, but not inside. Now, this next part is rather tricky. We are going to cut the shape of the legs. Just remember, you can always cut more, but you can't cut less. Also, there is room for mistakes, chaps are meant to look rugged.   

So,

are you ready?

This is the hardest part!

Read carefully!

This is not for the simple-minded.

Here goes!

Turn down the narrow end of the the chaps about two inches. Baste it down with your sewing machine.

This next part is easier doing one chap at a time. Hold the chaps up to your model (or his pants) and turn down the top. You are going to make a U shaped cut and you need to know how deep to make it. Pin (mark A). (See picture.)

Now fold the chap lengthwise and pin four inches from the outside edges (mark B).  Make a mark on the top edge halfway from mark B to the center fold (mark C). Cut a J shaped cut from C to A. Open out the chap. The J should now be a U!

Wrap the chap around your model (or his pants) and see if it fits. Remember, it should rise high enough on his waist to go through his belt. You can deepen the U if you have to. If it fits, you can cut the second chap leg by just lining it up to the first!

Fold each leg in half, wrong sides (insides together) and sew up the outside of each leg about four inches from the edges. You need a flap running down each leg. This will later be cut into fringe.

 If you've followed me so far you should have a little + sign where the waist seam (well, the basting you did) and side seam crossed. Cut out the top right square including the top and right bars of the + sign. Sew your waist seam and reinforce the end of your side seam.

And now!!!!!

Turn to that sister who's been watching you with eyes as round as saucers and say, "Would you like to help now?"

That's the easiest way to cut the fringe! Don't forget to fringe the bottom as well as the sides!

These are very simple. It only took me about an hour to do both. I hope these instructions weren't overwhelming, I really wanted to explain everything.

If you have any fabric left over you can do this,

 Gunnar's too young for a belt so I took a crayon and colored some elastic until it was light brown and my hands were dark brown. Then I hooked a safety pin on one end and threaded it through the belt loops, sewed the ends together, and, YEE HAW!

NaNoWriMo

Hey everybody!

NaNoWriMo stands for NAtional NOvel WRIting MOth, which is November. I have no idea why, but I have also heard that November is national peanut butter month? Was somebody pulling my leg???

Head on over to Kris' blog and congratulate her. She wrote 50,000 words in 29 DAYS!

I'm sure she will post about it herself unless she's still recuperating from her last post.

Happy Thanksgiving!

I thought I would share some things I thank God for. Of course, we should be thankful all year long, but this holiday is a good reminder. So here are some things I'm thankful for:

My Savior, he has saved me from my sin.

Heaven, even when things down here are bleak I have hope.

Mom and Dad, for loving, protecting and caring for me.

Kristen, Kelsey Katie, Heidi, Alicia, Amalie, Erik, David, Rebekah, and Gunnar, to laugh at if nothing else!

Our church, it's really nice to talk with other girls once a week

My piano teacher, I'm learning so much technique and stuff that I couldn't pick up on my own.

Our house, it took us years to find a house big enough that we could afford. Now we realize that He was saving us the PERFECT one all along.

The first snow, it snowed a couple of inches last night!

Blogger friends, it is such an encouragement to read all your blogs.

My fingers, without them I couldn't do a lot of my favorite hobbies, knitting, crocheting, sewing, playing the piano, cooking, tickling, typing, fixing hair, repairing books....

Bible, it is such a privilege to read God's word.

Seeing Grampa, Gramma, aunts, uncles, and cousins tomorrow, I think this one speaks for itself.

Being homeschooled, the socialization espcially!

This laptop has not once spontaneously backed out of my post and lost all my work!

THANK YOU LORD!

And now, have any of you ever heard Focus on the Family Radio Theatre's The Legend of Squanto? It is an excellent telling of this important historical character. They really bring out the similarities of his story to the story of Joseph (Genesis). All the Radio Theatres are really good excepting Billy Budd (waaaaaaaaaay too sad) and some of the Father Gilbert Mysteries (Some of these have spooky elements and should only be listened to by young adults who know fact from fiction)

 And before you all go have turkey, watch this video. !!DISCLAIMER!! There is one word that is not normally used in polite language! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1CndP1fYC0M

HAPPY THANKGIVING EVERYONE!