Tuesday Tidings

In spite of a broken arm, our week is going so well, for which I am very thankful. The Lord has given me added strength and I have felt so much better lately. My pastor told me about something called Rhodiola and it is AMAZING stuff! You should look it up online sometime. The Russian Cosmonauts used it. It supports the body under stress. When I ask my husband if it is helping me, well, let's just say that he thinks the answer is VERY obvious. My "handler" is handling things much better and more sanely.

Another original idea is that we have actually been going to be during the times that normal people go to bed...IMAGINE THAT! We are actually getting some sleep which I am sure has something to do with Mama's outlook being much better.

All that to say, the days are full and busy, but this little train continues to plug along. School is so enjoyable. I am learning to view school as a privilege to enjoy, rather than pages to check off. It has only taken me 8 years to learn this (actually still learning). Instead being so consumed with how many pages we can check off, we are learning how to learn, and enjoying all that the Lord will teach us. Instead of snapping at my child when they ask a question (Son, we are doing grammar, stop asking me how an oyster has babies). I am learning that the impromptu opportunities may be the best education there is. "Children, stop LEARNING so we can do school, ok?) This new outlook for me is allowing us to actually enjoy our times, and maybe even allowing us more productivity.

For dinner tonight we had crockpot lasagna and I thought I would share the recipe with you. It was so easy that I think it's a keeper! Lasagna is a family favorite, but in this busy homeschooling house the normal way "ain't gonna happen". So here is the crockpot rendition and as my son put it "It's better than Stouffers, Mom". Now, I am not saying it is better than my mother-in-laws, but....

Spoon a liberal amount of spaghetti sauce into the bottom of your crockpot

layer the following into your crockpot:

uncooked lasagna noodles (it does not have to be the quick cook kind)

spaghetti sauce (I used Classico)

ricotta or cottage cheese (I used Ricotta)

ground beef

Mozzerella Cheese

Keep layering all the way to the top of the crockpot. The recipe did not give quantities, but it did say be very liberal with the sauce. I used a whole pack of lasagna noodles, 2 jars of sauce, a tall thing of Ricotta, 3 lbs of ground beef, and one of those big long packs of cheese (very precise aren't I?) It made a full crockpot and I have alot of leftovers. It was really yummy. Next time, I think I am going to add another jar of sauce to make it even juicier. I have even though that putting spinach in there would be good.

Oh, yes, the recipe said to put it on high for a couple of hours and then cook on low for another 4-6 hours. Mine burned at the bottom, though, so I plan nextime on just cooking it on low all day.

I hope you enjoy it as much as we did. It was a winner for this house!

We are leaving on Friday to go up to our dear friends the Myers family for an extended weekend. We have not seen them in YEARS. Even though we have known them since before either of us couples were married, our children have never met each other. We are SO excited! They live in Virginia. We are going to drive to D.C for a day all together and have a wonderful homeschool field trip. I think we are also going to make a trek as a group to Maryland for a psalm sing one of the nights. So a busy weekend is planned. Grandma, I will not be able to call you on Saturday, but I love you! We hope to leave Friday morning, arrive there for dinner on Friday night. Spend Saturday-Tuesday with our friends. Leaving Tuesday morning we plan on heading home, but stopping over at another friends home for dinner on the way into town. You can be sure that I plan on having a slideshow of pics from our trip that eventually I will try to post. I still have several slideshows I am behind in (Father's Day, S's birthday last June, not to mention the first few days of school). But, that is for another time. For now, I will say Goodnight!

B is for Broken Arm

For E's journal she was writing a page of B's for "Broken arm" There is her picture of her broken arm. Notice the two bones that she drew with the little breaks in them. The bracelet is just like the one they gave her in the hospital, complete with little smiley faces on the beads. She decided to add the b-b-bread on her page too. I just had to post it.

Many are the plans of man, but the Lord directs his steps...

Well, our weekend was very different than we expected. We had some friends over playing on Saturday and our dear little E was playing on the trampoline, fell over and went to catch herself...and broke two bones in her left forearm. So off mommy, daddy and little E went to the emergency room. After getting xrays to confirm (mommy could tell even before anyone else interpreted the pictures), we were sent on to another hospital, because she needed to get her arm "set" (can you say OUCH?) So on to the big downtown hospital we went. After two tries with the IV stick, she was ready (and poor mommy was traumatised). They heavily sedated her and it only took under a minute to actually do the job. Dear E was so upset as she was coming out from the medication "Mommy, I see two of you and I am not even crossing my eyes!!" But, we comforted her that she would only see one of me soon. (anyway, is it so bad to have TWO of Mommy?) She was such a dear trooper through it all. And after she could keep juice down and sit up herself, we were allowed to bring her home. We did not get home till around 12:40am. She has pain medication, and a temporary splint. On Thursday she goes in to get her actual cast which will be her new friend for about a month.

Yesterday she was very tired (as were mommy and daddy) but we did make it to the lunch fellowship and afternoon service at our church. She was the star attraction when we got there, and friends had made get well cards and presents for her. After all the attention and treats she had gotten last night her assessment was, "It's kinda cool to break your arm". Her biggest sorrow now is that she cannot suck her thumb. Thats hard for her cause she is so used to going to sleep that way, and the other one will not do.

It's hard for parents to see their little ones suffer. But, the Lord is lovingly dealing with our little children. I told E in the hospital as she was having such a hard time, whispering in her ear, "Jesus is here with you, and caring for you as a gentle Shepherd". May these things be used in our children's lives to drawn them to their Saviour.

Slideshow from July

It has been awhile since I have posted a slideshow, and I have gotten behind on some of them. So I quickly put together this one of J's bday last month. We spent part of the day enjoying our beautiful downtown, then came home and had a nice grilled dinner and celebrated. Enjoy the slideshow!

Homeschooling Highlights

Highlights of our first week of homeschooling:
-A FABULOUS tour of the printing press and HomeSat facilities of Bob Jones University
(A three and a half hour tour that I will put up pics of at some point)
At this same tour getting to meet one of the teachers that they had when we used HomeSat
(for those unfamiliar, BJU has satellite classes that we used with the children a few years ago)
-My 11 yob in his spelling placement test placing in 11th grade!!
-My 9yob in history, being amazed as the light bulb went off in his head that the people in the Bible were living during the ice age!
-My soon to be 8yog taking off on her own with her reading and writing (her penmanship is sooo neat!)
-My 6yog feeling the vibrations on her throat as she hums during science lesson
-She also told me at lunch that she loved Ki-weed (when I served her Kiwi!)
-This same 6yog saying that her favorite part in Robin Hood was when Robin pushed Stuart Little (Little John) into the water!
-My 4 1/2 boy telling me that "It's nice for you to have me, Mama".
-My 2yog using a glue stick under her arms as deodorant!!!!!
-This same 2yog almost completely potty trained and deciding that she would go "Peeuu" in the potty chair as well.
-This same 2yog clearing her own plate at lunchtime. (it must be time for another baby).
-All the children building a pyramid like a football team would. "W is digging his knees into me!"
-Hearing them say to me "I love school"
-Being able to buy enough crayons to stuff a 5 quart ice cream pail for under $4.00
-My two older boys getting right to their math first thing, at their own initiative.
-Making a timeline together that we will add to through the whole year.

-The joy of getting to explain to the children that the animals were created in Gen 1:24 and 25 and it wasn't until vs. 26 that man was created (AFTER the animals) and that the Lord did not make the animals after His own image...thus the incredulous folly of thinking that we came from monkeys. I love how even a little child can comprehend this.
-Realizing that Adam and Eve lived in Iraq--can you say MESOPOTAMIA?
And did you know some of the very earliest societies had TOILETS?

-Getting to research about a Shaduf (the first irrigation system) on the internet and printing out pictures for each of them to put in their history folders.
-Sitting all in a row learning how to play our recorders in unison
-Getting to field all kinds of questions that GOOGLE can answer..."Just how do oysters have babies???" This spawned (excuse the pun,) a science lesson on pearls using Google (What did we ever do without the internet?) Did you know that oysters have intestines? And that an oyster can produce as many as 100 pearls at one time?

-Getting to stay in my robe while I taught school till mid afternoon (I won't tell you which day it was/is)
-Having my 9yob call his imperative sentence in grammar, an "imprecatory sentence" (we just heard a sermon a few weeks ago on the imprecatory psalms!)
-My 11yob saying the his baby sister was being a "pain in the thorax" (they get that from Miss Spider)
-My baby asking me to read her a story
-Singing together with my children
"Behold how good a thing it is
and how becoming well,
together such as brethren are
in unity to dwell..." Ps 133 metered version
-The "we made it through the first week of school" celebration (going out for CiCi's pizza and getting to have pinwheels too!)
-The fulfillment in realising that we are learning everyday together as a family.


It's been a busy first week, but we are loving it!

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Ok, so NO one answered my question in my post a few days ago "In Our Home Right Now..." Come on now, I know I have lurkers out there reading this blog...is there no one who will tell me what their home would be like if I were there right now? Stay tune for a "First Week of Homeschooling Highlights" post in a couple days as well. :)