More celebration!

Today is Garrett's 7th birthday. My little "after Christmas surprise", supposed to be born in Jan but came a few days early. I remember bringing him home from the hospital like it was yesterday. He was so sweet in his little blue Pooh snowsuit. After 4 girls in a row, it was fun to have some blue again. We came home on New Year's Eve, Dec 31, 2003. We actually drove 2 hours that afternoon to pick up my mom at the airport and then ate at the Cracker Barrel...Garrett tucked snugly into his little infant carseat. He has been a wonderful blessing to our family. Such a happy, sweet personality that God gave him. He has loved trains since he could recognize them and still does. He is enamored with the fact that his Daddy drives trains for a living (for a short time longer, since he is getting promoted to a new job soon)--don't tell Garrett! I can't believe he is 7 already. Since his birth he has lived in 5 different houses...hopefully this will be the last one for awhile! Garrett has a flexible, go with the flow personality that has made all the changes a breeze.

More pictures..

We went over to Grandma's for Christmas lunch and had lots of fun, food, family & presents!!!

Today...

Merry Christmas!!!

We received our lovely Christmas snow today. Of course, we already had quite a bit on the ground, but the beautiful, fluffy flakes falling were perfect. Following our family tradition, the kids opened one gift this morning.
Please read this sermon from Redland Baptist Church in Maryland. I think it is a wonderful message about God's perfect gift to us:

The Gift of Jesus

More December memories..

December photos...

Our Awana Christmas Program was this past Wed. Each family from our church presents something and then the different Awana groups sing or (High School Group) do a skit. Our family read from Luke and the kids acted out the parts (dressed in authentic nativity clothes) and then played "We Wish You a Merry Christmas" on the kazoos. It was a fun time.

Not around much lately..

I have been under the weather and struggling. I will try to update on a more regular basis when I am feeling better. December is such a busy month and I am falling very far behind, but really am not too concerned about it at this point.

I am a WW2 nut and have been reading an excellent book( is this why I am falling so far behind, lol?)...it is heavy reading for me and I have been having trouble finding time, but am fitting in about 25 min of reading per day..it has always been troubling to me that Nazi Germany marched in without a fight from anyone, this is a good read:
The Last Lion:Winston Spencer Churchill: Alone 1932-1940

We celebrated Carlina's 17th birthday on Dec. 4th. She is such a wonderful, Godly young lady, I am so blessed to call her my daughter. She collects owls and received some owl jewelry, a computer game, a calendar and some pjs. We had an ice cream cake from DQ.

Thanksgiving,,,

I am thankful for the many blessings that God has so richly bestowed on our family. We had a wonderful Thanksgiving Day with Jesse's mom, 3 of his 4 siblings and their families.

Life Lately..

has been rather hectic. We are working on Estate Planning for Jesse's Dad. He is in stable condition right now, but susceptible. He has Parkinson's Disease, is unable to walk due to a a broken hip and subsequent unsuccessful hip operations and has a feeding tube (he is not able to eat through his mouth anymore). He is also very thin. If you had known him in the past and would see him now, you would be shocked. The Estate Planning has been stressful, but necessary due to changing tax and inheritance laws in 2011. We are working with 4 other siblings and thankfully they all work very well together. It is very difficult to see Jesse's dad in that condition.

Clothes..

I was reminiscing about clothes. When my 3 oldest girls were little...4,3 & 1. Those cute little clothes got passed from child to child...little dresses, adorable maryjanes, pink fluffy jackets and sweet patterned tights. Fast forward 2010...Carlina, 16, Julia, 15 & Alicia, 13.....no more hand-me-downs. We do most of our shopping 2nd hand, occasionally going to Walmart or Target, so we don't spend alot of money on clothes. Also, the girls buy most of their own stuff with job money or birthday/christmas money.

They each have their own style. Carlina is classic, Julia trendy and Alicia eclectic/artsy. They usually do not wear each others clothes, plus they are all close to the same size now. Katie is 9 and is a different body shape, so cannot wear anything they pass down. I am not going to save anything for Anna, who is only 2. All 4 wear the same shoe size now, give or take a 1/2 size (except Anna, of course!). Those hand-me-down days are long gone, but it so fun to look at old photos of each girl in the same dress.

Convicting post

This is an extremely convicting post from Kate at Room for More. Get ready for tears when you read what she wrote and also go to the links she provided. More than tears are needed to help these sweet babies...roll up your sleeves and see what you can do to help.

Iowa Basic Skills Tests..

We took the first of 2 sessions today. This is the first year to take it in November, instead of February. Hopefully it will give us more time to work on the skills that are lacking, as we will get results earlier. That being said, I am not a huge fan--or a fan at all--of standardized tests. It is a necessary required evil, in my opinion. Some kids are good test takers and some are not. This is Garrett's first year to take the tests. It will be interesting to see what happens with his results. He is a smart little boy with one focus...trains. I have a difficult time turning his brain to anything else..he tends to be in outer space when we work on reading or math. It has been a struggle so far and takes every ounce of my energy and patience to teach him. We will take the second part of the test next Friday. At least we don't have to dread February anymore, lol.

Leaves...

Evangelism

I am loving One Thing You Can't Do in Heaven by Mark Cahill. It is a guide to telling others about Jesus Christ that is easy to read and gives helpful instructions on how to do so. I would highly recommend this book!!! I tend to be timid about sharing my faith and this book gives help and encouragement in all kinds of situations. Please look up this book and read it and then share it with a Christian friend, it will make a difference!

Homeschool Field Trip..

We enjoyed a fun field trip this morning with our group to a private museum called A Place to Remember.

It was an amazing place, very professional. The family had put quite a bit of time and money into it. The kids even remarked that it reminded them of an exhibit at EPCOT (Disney World in Florida). There was a house set up with furniture (from the turn of the century) along with a gas station, 95 year old model-t in pristine condition, replica of a school room, lots of farm implements, a shanty (or shack which early settlers in Iowa would have lived in ), a gun collection, loom & quilt collection and many more things.

Our homeschool group generally takes 3 field trips in the Fall and 3 in the Spring, along with a presentation fair at the end of the year. We usually take our Iowa Basic Skills tests in March, but this year we will be taking them in November. We do this over 2 Friday mornings with all the moms as proctors. We have been blessed both in Florida & in Iowa to be a part of wonderful, Godly groups.

Days go by..

They seem to fly so quickly this time of year. We have had excellent weather for Iowa in October. The local farmers are happy...they are harvesting like mad-men. I sometimes miss the farm this time of year, harvest was always exciting. Breakdowns were no fun, though, neither was rain.

Jesse is on his 8 days off and we are working on the old house. Hoping to put it on the market by the end of the month, so lots of painting, scrubbing, fixing to do.

Anna Rose..

turned 2 last week! We celebrated at Southwood Park today with family....also celebrating my dd, Julia, who will be 15 on Oct.23. 2 & 15, both such milestone years. I am so blessed and honored to be their mom, so thankful that God has given me this privilege.

Fall Fun..

It was definitely not "Fallish" weather for our pumpkin patch visit on Saturday (89 degrees), but we had fun anyway (the bugs were our main nemesis...Asian beetles, no-see-ums & mosquitoes ate us up). We enjoyed a hayride, little kid sized corn maze and even a possum in a cage!!

What are we to teach our children?

This is a great post from Generation Cedar:

Homeschooling:What are we to teach our Children?


She speaks of R.C. Sproul Jr. and his book When you Rise Up:

" He describes the three G’s–what the Christian’s goals of education should be: teaching our children who God is, what God has done, and what He requires of us."

Fall photos @ Fowler's