Christina's place - Homeschool Blogger

Esther and I visiting the dolphins at the Gulfarium

Thu, 30 Nov 2006 15:39:00 -0600

The dolphins were so much fun!

Isabel

Thu, 30 Nov 2006 13:41:00 -0600

This is a much better picture of Izzy!

Pictures of our trip to Alabama

Thu, 30 Nov 2006 13:14:00 -0600

Long overdue picture post. Our trip to my sister's house. Here are the girls and I playing in the water, Locksley trying to feed the birds, Esther hanging out on my back, Esther's beautiful smile, Ruby looking gorgeous, and Isabel playing by herself in the sand.

The World of Blogging

Mon, 9 Oct 2006 14:12:00 -0500

Isn't blogging so strange. I have people tell me "Oh yeah, I read that on your blog." or "I feel like I know you so much because I read your blog.". But for some reason it never occured to me that my Dad would be reading it. LOL So,(just like Samantha) here is my long overdue posting for Dad. I bet it gets awfully boring reading all the stuff I've already told you over the phone, huh?
Today the girl's started a Homeschool P.E. class. It is being taught for free by Covenant College students as part of their training to be teachers. Ruby and Locksley had a lot of fun. Locksley didn't want to go and still said that she didn't like the class part but she made a friend and that was worth it to her. Ruby just had a blast. Her new best friend, Zachary (from a few doors down), was in her class so she was thrilled.
Yesterday, Christian took the day off to spend with us. It has been way too long since we have gotten that luxury! We had planned on going to see The Nina replica (the ship that Columbus sailed on) but the wait was 45 minutes, we saw it from the dock (which satisfied all of us), and the idea of being crammed on that tiny boat with a ton of people did not seem very fun. So, we decided to go to the aquarium instead. It was actually cheaper for us to buy a year long membership than to buy tickets for the day, so that's what we did. We had so much fun going through it and seeing the new butterfly house and shark exhibits! The girls are excited about the membership and have asked me if we could go back another day this week. They just could not understand why I wouldn't want to go back today!
We are finally able to get into our new house, but the other guy's stuff is still not completely out. He had a stroke a few weeks ago and has been in ICU since. His brother is in town and suppose to be gathering all of his stuff this week. The poor guy is probably going to a nursing facility because it was a really bad stroke. I feel horrible for him. But, after all of his stuff is out, we are going to get in and start tearing floors out.I can't wait to start making some progress!
Now, my sister and I are trying to plan a time to get together soon.It has been way too long and I miss her and the whole Cashen crew! Maybe I will be able to hang out at the beach with them in a few weeks. So, I hope the weather there stays warm until then, but I am loving the fall like weather we are having here. I love cool crisp mornings and evenings and the golden glow that seems to come with fall. The leaves changing and the mountain covered in all those awesome colors. The pumpkins and apples and all the warm spices. Ijust love it!

September 6, 2006

Wed, 6 Sep 2006 07:06:00 -0500

We are officially buying the house, now. We were able to get together with the Badenoch's and finalize everything about getting the house. The renter has been given notice and will be out by the end of September. Then we can get started on making it livable. We are all very excited! Sally told us the the attic has 17ft of clearance and we could easily add a few rooms there. This was great news as I was hoping to be able to use that space for a big great room or something.
We also had a duck for a few hours on Sunday evening. Someone had dropped a duck off at the convenience store down the street, so Christian brought it home for the girls to see. They instantly fell in love. She was named Jemima Puddleduck and Isabel was overwhelmed with the urge to catch her several times and therefore chased her from the little fishpond into the road. Then we spent the next half hour or so herding her back into the yard. When we woke up on Monday, Jemima ws gone. The girls and I went for a walk to look for her with no luck. We assumed she had either flown off or something got her. There was no indication of fowl play, though (pun intended!). No feathers or blood or anything, so we were just wishing she took flight and found a bigger pond. Then later we found out from Sally Badenoch that she and some friends had seen the duck that morning across St.Elmo Ave and had hereded her into the alley. So, last night when driving through the alley we came across another house with a bunch of ducks in a pen and there was Jemima! She was in the pen with the other ducks and looking quite happy! So, it was a happy ending after all.
But, the girls and I enjoyed our walk looking for her. We saw some friends that we haven't seen in a while and stopped and visited with them for a bit. Ruby had stayed home with daddy so that she could play with her newest friend, Zachary. Zachary lives two doors down and is over to play with Ruby almost everyday. Ruby is loving that she has a friend so close. It is usually Locksley being asked to play and having friends over, so Ruby feels like big stuff.
Then last night, the whole family went for a walk around the neighborhood. It was so nice out. We ran into about 3 other families out walking there dogs. Everybody stopped and said "hi" and introduced themselves to us. Christian even commented on how friendly everyone is. It is such a great community and I am glad we are going to be a part of it. When talking to one of the families we discovered that one of the daughters teaches violin, so we made arrangements right then to get Locksley in for lessons. She lives basically three house over from us, so it will be an easy commute. I have been wanting to get her back in lessons and had a name of someone else that I was going to call who lives about three doors over in the other direction, so this works out just as well. Her sister also teaches piano and we are thinking about getting Ruby started in that. I have a friend who is giving me a piano and my mother in law has one here that she could probably practice on until we move and get ours here. I am also planning to get them in art lessons and a p.e. class that starts in October. So, we will be busy busy!
Speaking of school, I am so frustrated with our Switched on schoolhouse right now. I don't think it is actually the program, but the computer has stopped running it. We have been without it for about 2 weeks and I can't get it to work. So, I am still having to be creative! Ugh.... not something that I am spectacular with. I hope we can get it fixed soon and back on track. We are going to be so far behind now! I can't seem to win when it comes to curriculum.

Oh yeah!

Mon, 28 Aug 2006 21:37:00 -0500

And I forgot to mention that I was suppose to be going to my sister's house this weekend and now we aren't going to be able to I am more than a little bummed about it! I was looking forward to the beach but even more so, I was looking forward to seeing my sister, nieces and nephews. I am missing them too much! I wish we lived closer. Something needs to be done about that!

Disappointment and a little relief:)

Mon, 28 Aug 2006 19:52:00 -0500

Well, I no longer have a doula client. I was all psyched and ready to meet with this couple on Monday. I had worked out what I would give them (handout on doulas and dads, handout about what doulas do and don't do, etc,etc...) and then I had started planning what I would go over during prenatals. I had even talked myself out of being very nervous...well, except for the part about leaving Esther. That was still the only thing bothering me. I mean, I have always felt that it was wrong to leave a nursing baby that is under 1 to pursue my own selfish interests. But, I have been in denial. "Well, this isn't the same. I'm only going to be gone for a couple of hours for prenatals and then just one day for the birth. She will be fine with Daddy! She needs to get use to him! Blah blah blah..." Well, after a few trial runs (like me taking a shower and my mom watching her while I ran to Target for an hour) and her screaming her head off the entire time, I have decided I will just have to wait until she is bigger. I am very disappointed but also a bit relieved. I don't think I realized how worried I was about leaving her. I told the lady this morning that I wouldn't be able to do it and she was very nice and understanding about it. I feel that when the time is right and if this is what God wants me to be doing, I will have the opportunity again. I have a wonderful and sweet friend who was the first to let me attend her birth (Boy, Jen, I wish I knew the things then that I know now so that I could have been more of a help during your labor, but I will forever feel priveledged and grateful that you included me in such a glorious day) and I have been hooked since. I believe that God has given this passion to me for a reason, but I must be patient (something I am not real good at) and wait for His timing. But, I will continue to read, study and think about birth...cause that's what I do! LOL

Updates

Fri, 25 Aug 2006 06:40:00 -0500

I know it has been a long time since I updated my blog, but we have already established that I am the worst blogger ever. We have had a lot of changes, so here it goes.
We have moved in with my in-laws in St.Elmo. So far things are going great. We have a few things to pan out (such as a working bathroom downstairs and a working fridge) but otherwise all is well. Christian's mom is being very generous and patient with the girls. They have never been the doting grandparent type that wants the kids around all the time so I was a little nervous about how it was going to go. I think the girls were getting on their nerves for the first week or so because the girls wanted to be with grandmommy and granddaddy all the time. But, the novelty has worn off (a little anyway) and they are at least staying downstairs unless invited upstairs by grandmommy or granddaddy.Christian's mom even set up a chore chart for the girls and is rewarding them with stickers that can be turned in at the end of the week for money. The girls are very excited about that. This week she also asked for permission to read them a book at night, so they have been going upsatirs after chores are done and pjs are on and having a George MacDonald story read to them. They are enjoying that!
I am loving being in St.Elmo! I never thought I would say that, but I really am. We have always tried to stay in the country and said that we would never want to raise our girls in St.Elmo, but I think I am changing my mind. We go walking everyday. I have several friends within walking distance. Some of our good friends from church just moved into St.Elmo the same week we moved here. The girls and I walked down there the other day and visited with them. That is something we have never had before, a sense of community. Someone also told me that they are getting ready to build a really nice playground down the street (also easy to walk to). I think this is going to be a nice change for us!
We will hopefully be finalizing everything with the house we are buying on Labor Day weekend. There is a lot of work to be done, but we are looking forward to getting started. I have two (possibly three) requirements before I will move into the house. I want new floors and a new bathroom put in. If there is enough time and we have the money, I would like to have central heat and air put in also. We feel that this house is going to be a great investment. The house two doors down from the one we are buying has been remodeled inside, is smaller than ours and needs a new paint job on the outside and is on the market right now for $180,000. This excites us beyond words since we are buying our house for $30,000. There is even an empty lot down the street going for $25,000, so we feel we can't really go wrong on this one.
In other news, I meet with my first potential doula client on Monday evening! I am so excited and VERY nervous. The plan was going to be that I did this birth with my friend who has more experience, but my friend is moving so I am going solo. I feel like I have the knowledge to do it as long asI can overcome my lack of confidence. That is always my biggest weakness. It keeps me from succeeding more than I probably even know. I am also very nervous about leaving Esther for the birth. She is such an extreme mama's girl! She cries when I go to the bathroom or anyone else holds her. I know that she will be o.k., but I hate the thought of my baby crying while I am gone.I am diligently pumping milk everyday and trying to give Christian time with her everyday. My mom watched her for about two hours last week and she did fine, but a birth is so unpredictable. This will be the couples first baby, so she could be in labor for 12 hours or so. It is a bit daunting to think of being away from her for that long. But, I am so excited for this opportunity!
Now, my girls are all waking and I must get started on my day. I will try to be better about staying updated some. By the way, has anyone else read the C.S.Lewis space trilogy? I am on the last one now and am enjoying them, though I didn't like them as much as Narnia. The second one was better than the first, so maybe the last one will be even better.

Early Morning Hours

Thu, 3 Aug 2006 06:27:00 -0500

It is 7:30 in the morning and I have already been up for an hour and a half. This is unheard of for me! I got up at 6:00 because I was suppose to be babysitting for some little girls whose grandparents go to our church. She was going to bring them over around 6:30, but she called at that time and said she wasn't feeling well and didn't know if she was going to be bringing them at all. I have to admit, I am really relieved. I did not want to babysit, but felt that I should help them out. I was not excited about the prospect of having 7 little girls crammed into my tiny two bedroom house. I am suppose to be watching them today, Friday, Monday, and Tuesday. I'm sure I won't get out of all those days (and maybe not even today) but three days will be easier to do then 4, I guess.
So that is why I am up so early. I am loving the quietness of the house. Everytime I get up early, I enjoy it and wonder why I don't do it more often. I have spent time reading my bible and drinking a cup of coffee without anybody climbing on me, crying or interrupting me. It has been very nice. Esther got up with me. I changed her diaper, nursed her, played with her and then put her back down for a nap. I know my girls could sleep for at least another hour, so I am thinking I will get some boxes packed for our move.
Oh yeah, we are moving again! Suprise, suprise, right? We are buying a house in St.Elmo. This house is in extreme rough shape and unlivable as is, so we are moving in with my in-laws while we work on getting the house in shape. We are getting the house for a price that we just couldn't refuse. We are praying this will be a good investment. By moving in with Christian's parents Christian will be free on the weekends to work on the house instead of working to pay our rent and they live just down the street from the house we are buying. They live in one of the oldest houses in St.Elmo, with huge rooms and high ceilings. They are giving us two gigantic rooms and a bathroom for our living space. The two rooms will be more space than we have now. The girls are very excited about moving in with Grandmommy and Granddaddy. I am praying all goes well and we are able to stay amicable with everybody while in the house. It's never easy sharing living space with another family.
Well, I better go get stuff accomplished while the quietness remains!

Doula training and more

Fri, 21 Jul 2006 09:53:00 -0500

The doula training was a lot of fun. It was a pretty small and diverse group, which made for some great discussions. I learned a lot and had a great time. Esther was so good! I was a little worried about how she would do, but she was pretty happy most of the time. I only had to skip participating in a few things because I was walking her to sleep and I was still able to watch all that was going on. The friend that I went with has been a doula at a lot more births and has agreed to let me tackle my next few births with her. I think that will help me to build the confidence I need to do it alone. The teen program that will be starting with the birthing center is more than I think I can commit to right now. It is more than just being a doula for the mom, it is more like mentoring them as a parent. I think it is a great idea and I would love to participate, but I think with my children being so young, it is probably more than I can commit to right now. Anyway, I look forward to getting some births and finishing up certification. And as far as the birthing center is concerned, I am now a doula. They want to put me on a list to call when the mamas want a doula. I would love to do this eventually, but I would like to shadow for my first few births before I go solo. Plus, it is a bit of a drive to the birthing center and Esther is still nursing and so on and so on.
I am missing the homeschool curriculum fair today! This is the first time in probably 6 years that I have missed it. But, I have no babysitter and I really didn't need anything and money is tight, so I decided to skip it. I will miss seeing all my friends there and going out to lunch with my homeschool group, but it can't be helped.
School is going great so far with Locksley. The two things that I might have gotten had I gone to the fair were SOS Spanish and Health. She is done with school so quickly lately that I think she has plenty of time to do some extra curricular stuff.
I would love to write so much more, but Esther is fussing. I will try again later.