Raising Olives

Have a Heart

2012-01-31T07:59:00.003-06:00

As we finished up our Apologia lessons on the heart, the children worked in pairs to create their "heart model" out of graham crackers, marshmallows, and frosting. Then they worked in pairs to eat their project :)

Thirty Something

2012-01-15T19:53:00.007-06:00

Well, Friday was my birthday.

The day was pretty normal except for the fact that we had gotten a big snow storm the day before. Since the kids have all been just longing for snow (especially Teshome), I declared it a snow day and they played outside for HOURS.

Peter and Kate had to take a break and come inside for their piano lessons and then they were back out in the ridiculous cold to build forts. In the afternoon we headed to the YMCA for the homeschool gym and swim and my elliptical time. In the evening we went over to Pete's parents house where his mom had made us a delicious meal and I received a couple of new baking pans and a wonderful African cookbook that I have wanted (and had checked out of the library atleast 4 times).

Saturday morning I had a lovely (and early) time of knitting at Starbucks with my friend Andrea. The next stop was Target by myself- fun! At home Pete and the kids played in the snow and did some chores.

Pete also went to the grocery store with all of the kids (just for a few things) and then came home and baked me a rich and yummy super duper chocolate cake which we ate after lunch.

(and no, we did not eat taco sauce on our cake :) )

Then our babysitters extraordinaire, Joel and Carrie, came over for the rest of the day while Pete and I spent the afternoon at the boat and rv show in Chicago and then when out to eat. All in all, a sweet birthday weekend.

And now I will try not to lament the fact that I am closer to 40 than 30 (big gulp!) and take joy in the following poem from Peter's card-

Time

2012-01-12T20:32:00.003-06:00

The start of a new year has me thinking about time. The time I have with my children, specifically. When you have a baby everyone around you is sure to let you know that you need to enjoy every minute because it goes by so fast. Suddenly I find myself with a ten year old and five more under him. My time is spent in full each day with very little left over.

As it should be.

As parents, it is our duty to be spent. Why then, do we so easily feel that we are being cheated out of the good life when we spend ourselves to shape and lead and guide our children? I think we have taken on the world's idea that family is all good times and cuddles. We slip into that mindset and forget that the most important thing we can do as parents is show them Christ.

Thinking about time and how quickly the children are growing and will soon be out of this home, is also sort of reshaping one of my reasons for homeschooling. In the past I've thought of our homeschooling with the mindset that I'd LIKE as much time with them as possible. Now it's more of a realization that I NEED this time with them all day everyday if I'm going to be able to teach the Lord's precepts to them, train them to be kind to one another, to respect their parents, to know how to pray, to serve one another, and so many other things I couldn't do if I had to have them ready to leave the house at 8 am and didn't see them until 4 pm and then had to get them fed, cleaned up, and homework done to do it all again the next day.

Please believe me when I tell you that I say this with no judgement towards any of you who have chosen to send your children to school each day. If you can do so and still have enough time to faithfully disciple your children, you can have peace with your choice and it doesn't matter what anyone else thinks. We have peace that this is God's best for our family.

I guess these thoughts are just affirmation for me that we will continue this homeschooling journey- and that our reasons for doing so will probably continue to evolve. For many years we were juggling diapers and late nights with math lessons and reading practice. Now it's the math, the reading, and discussing and reasoning and explaining. I feel like the work has changed from mostly physical and sharing simple spiritual truths to a mental labor and many weightier spiritual matters. God is good and kind and so gracious. May each of us, whether homeschooling or not, truly know and believe that. And may we see evidence of that grace in the hearts of these precious souls that He has so sweetly blessed us with.

On Teeth and Reading

2012-01-11T07:27:00.003-06:00

This is a big week for Maddie. She finished her "100 Easy Lessons" and she is FINALLY getting some front teeth (after nearly a year of being toothless on top!). I am so proud of her for pushing on when reading was a challenge and brought many tears. She and I had a special lunch together at Dairy Queen yesterday to celebrate. Then this morning Pete and I gave Maddie her first Bible and case. She was all smiles as she told Kate that now she can do devotions on her own (usually Kate shares that time with Maddie by reading her Bible to her.

Looking Back on 2011 in pictures

2011-12-31T09:02:00.003-06:00

January
I turned 34.

February
Pete and I traveled to Ethiopia to meet Teshome and attend court to officially adopt him

March
This was a slow month for us as we were sort of waiting around for news on when we could go back to get our son.
I had "tea and poetry" with the girls.

April
Pete went back to Ethiopia to bring Teshome home. Ella turned 4.

May
My friend, Brooke, came for a visit from South Carolina with 3 of her 7 children. The girls (my Kate and Maddie and her Emma and Lily) had great fun on our train ride and day in Chicago.

June
We had fun camping in Michigan. Kate turned 8.

July
We enjoyed a couple of days at a friends' cottage. Charlotte was potty trained.

August
Peter participated in a pie eating contest at the Lake County Fair. Maddie turned 6.

September
Our "baby" turned 3 and declared that she doesn't need her beloved "pipeys" anymore and gave them up cold turkey.

October
We went to Michigan for the day for our annual visit to my grandparents where the kids enjoy fishing in Great Grandpa's ponds.

November
My family came from Michigan to celebrate Thanksgiving with us. Here I am with my mom and sister.

December
Peter turned 10, celebrating with cousins, Curtis and Clayton who share December birthdays. Pete turned 33.

2011-12-20T09:42:00.000-06:00

Christmas Gifts 2011

2011-12-20T07:30:00.007-06:00

Yesterday we took the kids into the city for part of the day. The plan was to go to Watertower Place and let them choose their own Christmas gift this year. They dream of being able to go to the American Girl store or the Lego store and pick something out so that's what we did. I went to the AG store with the girls and Pete took the boys to pick out Legos. They had a set amount of money they could work with and I had so much fun watching the girls cruise around and ooh and aah over all the sweet doll things. From the minute she saw it, Ella had her heart set on the "Special Occasion Gown" for her Bitty Baby. Leave it to my sweet Ella to choose something that looked like a wedding dress! I told her that she had enough money left to choose a small thing too and she said that the dress was all that she wanted! Charlotte wanted the pet bath tub for her Sugar, but they were out of stock so she went for the Bitty Better Kit and the girls have been playing doctor with their little dogs and dolls ever since we got home. Kate chose the pet carrier for her pet, Pepper and she had Lanie's hair done. Maddie is enjoying carrying her doll around in her new bag and she also had her doll's hair done. In the past I felt that it was kind of a waste of money to pay to have their dolls' hair done at the store, but I let them choose the least expensive style and it was so worth watching them enjoy seeing their dolls in a salon style chair getting their wildly unruly manes tamed. The boys had a really hard time deciding what to get and both chose some Star Wars sets- of course! Teshome was very proud to put his together with very little help and I am very happy that he is developing the ability to stick with something challenging like that!
After the kids' shopping I was able to check out the Vera Bradley store for a few minutes. Then we headed over to Macy's to eat at the Walnut Room for lunch. The wait was four hours so, after checking out the huge Christmas tree, we decided to just head out of the city and we went to Red Robin instead.
It was a great day as a family! I am so thankful that we live so close to such a cool city as Chicago and that our kids can experience the sights and sounds- and then come home to our peaceful little town.

The Highlight of Yesterday

2011-12-01T07:47:00.003-06:00

She's always wanted to be a race car driver so when my mom arrived for a quick visit last night I knew that Teshome's request for her to play Mario Kart would not go unheeded!

Sanctification...

2011-11-29T16:00:00.000-06:00

...comes unexpectedly. Without these six by me everyday how would the Lord teach me so many lessons? Me, who likes my space and my quiet, the lessons that come from being jostled, bumped, talked at all day?

On a day...

...when a toilet is overfull and refuses to flush I am glad for 2 other toilets and a husband with a strong gag reflex and good plunger wielding abilities coming home at 6.

...when the three year old pees on the couch I'm just so glad she actually took a nap.

...when the little spitfire with the freckles and the many missing teeth wants to stay in her pj's all day and take a nap after lunch, I'm so glad that the reading lesson happened without a fight and the "light" seems to be coming on.

...when I start to think of all we haven't done yet, I am reminded of what IS happening here- 2 read Acts 1 and told it back in a new devotional journal, many board games played, logic worksheets, math, phonics - done, imaginary play going strong, timeline practiced, piano, yes, it's been a good day. And I am being changed thanks to my Father who is faithful and ministers to me by His Holy Spirit in the midst of the busyness and imperfection of these days!

He is faithful. And so I am glad.

Moments to cherish

2011-11-23T06:00:00.000-06:00

We have a lot of loud, fighting moments in this not so big house of many children. Sweet moments like this make me so glad we get to have our children home together each day. I wondered why it was so quiet as I finished my breakfast and coffee. When I went looking for the kids, here's what I found- three groups of two.

hats

2011-11-21T16:08:00.003-06:00

i've been busy knitting hats in my "spare time." i know- there's no such thing as spare time. But I have found that I am a much nicer mom if I take even just a few minutes to knit a row or two each day. it's a convenient hobby if I stick to simple projects because i can take it along anytime i have to wait somewhere, do it during our read aloud times, and do it in the car.

About the Bread

2011-11-21T06:00:00.001-06:00

Yes, I bake bread. No, I am not an expert baker. I do, however, desire to have my kids eat their sandwiches on a healthy, hearty bread that isn't full of extra ingredients that I can barely pronounce. The bread maker I bought at a garage sale last summer is one of the best eight dollars I have ever spent. It looked like brand new, came with the original instruction book, and makes homemade bread super simple. I use it to make a sandwich loaf 5 or 6 times a week as well as our weekend pizza dough, Sunday cinnamon rolls, and other things once in a while like dinner rolls or an italian bread that is great with pasta. The timer on it is a wonderful thing because I can put the ingredients in at night, set the timer, and when I get up in the morning, the dough is ready to come out of the bread maker and go in the oven (I do not like the way the bread turns out if you bake it in the bread maker, but it's great for dough). Here's the recipe I've been using-

Wheat Bread

(put in the bread maker in this order)

9-11 oz of water
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup honey
1 tsp salt
3 1/2 cups of whole wheat flour (or you can sub 1/2 cup for wheat germ or oat flour)
2 1/2 tsp of yeast (mine is "active dry" and I buy it at Sam's Club, but I think that's the same as "instant dry."

I have found through trial and error that the flour you buy does make a difference. Hodgeson's Mill was a crumbly nightmare, King Arthur is fine, but my favorite is Bob's Red Mill in the white bag. Also, this bread tends to get crumbly if you don't use it within 2 days, but around here it doesn't last that long so it's not usually a problem. Let me know how it works out for you!

Keeping it all together...

2011-11-11T17:04:00.002-06:00

...is impossible. If any of you think that just because

I homeschool
I knit
I bake all of our bread
I cook healthy meals nearly every night
I make homemade pizza nearly every week
I wake up early every morning

Then I must have it all together.
You are so wrong.

Here are some things I don't do. That I would like to do, but I can't. Because, really, I am one person. Until I hire a personal assistant (never gonna happen), the following will remain true...

I don't bake cookies
I don't mop my floors very often
I don't make sure my kids socks match
I don't clean bathrooms- the big kids do the boys' and the girls' every week and mine gets gross until Pete or I can no longer stand it
I don't get birthday cards in the mail on time
I don't practice the guitar that I saved up for and was so excited to get last summer
I don't finish everything in my school planner every week. Not even close.
I don't clean up the breakfast mess until it's time to make lunch
I don't scrapbook
Or print pictures very often
I don't make my bed
I don't dust until someone intimidating is coming over
I don't make my kids pick up their rooms every night
I don't sleep enough
I don't do a spelling curriculum with my kids

The list of what I don't do could go on for miles and it often makes me feel so GUILTY. So INADEQUATE. So not what you might think I am.

BUT...I'm going to keep doing what I do and praying for grace that it's enough. More than enough even because God is bigger than what I or anyone else may think I'm failing at.

I'll keep reading the Word to them everyday.
I'll keep giving them lots of hugs and kisses.
I'll keep stopping an "important" grammar lesson when character training needs to happen with bickering littles.
I'll keep working at this even though lately I have felt sleep deprived, over worked, discouraged, and alone.
I'll keep trusting that the God who made my children will shape them into all He wants them to be in spite of all of the failings of their mother.

Our Toned Down Schedule

2011-11-03T06:00:00.000-05:00

Now that I'm trying to relax things a bit, here's what our day looks like-

5:30 I get up, shower, have devotions, start the bread, start the laundry

7 Kids get up, dress, breakfast, chores, play if they have time before...

9 We have circle time- devotions, various books of my choosing (right now it's Stories of Missionary Heroism)- they color while I read

9:30 Review for Classical Conversations- memory work, map tracing, copywork, recitations (varies each day)

10:30 Peter and Kate take turns doing math (on the computer) and piano
Others do Explode the Code books, handwriting practice, phonics flashcards,
and math

11:30 Break- eat lunch, do chores, play outside

1:00 ish- Story hour- we are listening to Little House on the Prairie right now (I knit and drink tea, they draw, we all listen)

2:00 History or Science depending on the day (each 2 days per week)- Charlotte takes a nap, Maddie, Teshome, and Ella listen and do activity and coloring pages that correspond with the material)

3:00 Shurley Grammar everyday

3:30 Latin (Peter and Kate only) -dvd on Wednesdays and review exercises other days

4:30 hopefully by now everyone is done and enjoying some free play or reading time!

I also do reading with Maddie either in the morning or in the evening when Pete is home (depending on the day and her mood).

I am trying to accomplish all of my laundry/meal prep/other things when it's not "school hours" but that is really tricky! By the end of the day, there are many things left undone and the house is not kept up the way I'd like, but I just don't thing it's my season in life for a clean house.

Less is More

2011-11-02T13:03:00.003-05:00

Here we are nearly half way through our school year and I am, once again, tweaking the schedule. We just don't have enough time in our day to accomplish all that I'd like to. Rather than being discouraged and frustrated and stressed out all the time I've decided that somethings gotta give. I need to enjoy what we're doing. I need my children to enjoy our days. So I've scaled back the expectations once again in an effort to be realistic about what we actually NEED to accomplish. Here's a beautiful sight. Kate was able to get her work done in the morning and have time to do something she enjoys. Which is read. And look at what she chose. So it's a win win, really! I think she just might be learning a little something on her lunch break :)

Monday morning lessons...

2011-10-24T09:18:00.002-05:00

It's 9 am.

I've already showered, had my devotions, washed and dried (but not folded or put away) 3 loads of laundry, baked the days' bread, supervised chores and breakfast, cleaned off my desk. Now it's time to start our "real school day." The first thing we do is open the Word and pray.

Today we are postponed by a child who did a dishwasher loading job carelessly and broke a glass. So I spend nearly 30 minutes cleaning shards of glass from the bottom of the dishwasher and re-rinsing the dirty dishes to be sure there's no more glass. Why this work? We are supposed to be reading the Bible by now! Inside I'm seething, words of anger bubbling to the surface, and praying for God to hold my tongue. So many times the anger has spilled over, wounding the spirit of one of my precious children. I have been so frustrated with how they speak to one another, but where do they learn it? I am their best worst example as we live in these 4 walls together everyday.

Yesterday we brought Teshome forward for covenant baptism and we promised again to raise our children to know their place in God's family. As I long to be sitting now in our almost quiet circle, I can't help but reflect on God's purposes even in the little things. It was His purpose for that child to break a glass, His purpose for me to have to clean it up. His purpose! It is so clear that the lesson He had for ME just now was to show compassion, to serve, to be uplifting to a child who already felt badly about making a mess. Then why do I flail and fight, rather than submit to my Father so much of the time?

I don't know about you, but as a mother of many, I see my sin so clearly! It is so overwhelming at times to have these mirrors of my own imperfection all around me. Oh how I need His grace every MOMENT to fill me, equip me, enable me to serve with joy and show them truly who Christ is- not just by reading the Bible to them at 9 am, but by how I react to their shortcomings.

Lord, help me to show grace to my children as you have shown great grace to me!

Stop Right There

2011-10-19T13:02:00.003-05:00

Well, I know that once again it has been awhile since I blogged. I'm sorry, I'm just a very bad blogger, I guess...

In the past month I have had a little bit of cooking schizophrenia as I discovered The Pioneer Woman blog and watched Forks over Knives in a matter of a couple of weeks. So, one day I'm making everything with heavy cream and bacon and the next minute I find myself disgusted by the harmful effects of food additives and animal products. Here I am trying to find some kind of balance. I'm leaning more towards the less meat is more and experimenting with many new ingredients. There are just so many good things out there and I was limiting us tremendously without even realizing it. So no more casseroles with cream soups at the Vander Wall's! We are eating new veggies and loving it! The kids have been doing really well with learning to try and enjoy new things.

Tonight we're having injera, an Ethiopian flat bread with two stews- beef tibs and red lentils. I just made the lentils and sampled it for my lunch and it is INCREDIBLE! So stop whatever you are doing and make it! I don't even really like lentils that much, but the berbere spice in this just makes it so good! If you don't know where to buy berbere (try an international market or maybe call your closest Ethiopian restaurant and see if they'll sell you some), you can make it. Here's the recipe for the lentils (so easy once you have the spice!)

Berbere Ethiopian Lentil Stew
1/2 large onion, chopped
1 1/4 cups red lentils
2 1/4 cups water
1 garlic clove, crushed
1-2 Tbsp berbere spice mixture (dry)
1- 28 oz can crushed tomatoes

Mix lentils with water, garlic, onion, and spices.

Cook, uncovered, over med-low heat for 20 minutes or until lentils have softened.

Watch carefully and add water if it starts to dry out.

Add the tomatoes and heat 15 minutes more.

Serve alone, with injera, or over brown rice.

Here's my simple injera recipe. In Ethiopia they use this instead of utensils to scoop up stews or veggies. It's not a perfectly authentic version, but it's good (Teshome likes it) and it's easy.

ingredients-
2 cups of teff or whole wheat flour (I use teff which you will probably have to order online or buy at an Ethiopian market- I got mine in Chicago)

1 cup of unbleached white flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

3 cups of club soda- more to thin as needed (I definitely use more like 4 cups, but add it slowly so it isn't too runny)

directions-
Combine the flours and baking soda. Add club soda and stir well. Heat a large skillet or griddle with oil or ghee. Using a cup or ladle, pour batter onto the griddle in a circle, starting on the outside and tilting the griddle back and forth quickly to fill in any holes and spread evenly. Cook for about 1-2 minutes, until the surface is spongy and filled with tiny air bubbles. Do not flip it. Slide it onto a plate and continue the process until your batter is gone.

Sometimes I hide in the closet...

2011-09-07T07:18:00.002-05:00

...usually it's to take a deep breath, a bite of chocolate, or a phone call. Perhaps I've been missing the purpose of this withdrawing. Why is it that I say I want to be like Christ and yet I fail over and over to follow His example? Sin makes me selfishly seek to do something that makes ME happy. What if instead of retreating for a "vent session" with a friend or a few moments of dark chocolate sweetness I withdraw to pray? It is difficult to find a "wilderness" or a "desolate place" in this busy life. The noise of life so easily becomes my excuse for having a pathetic prayer life. With the pressure of the crowd hanging on His every word, of the sick seeking healing, what did Jesus do? This morning I read from Luke 5:16, "But He would withdraw to desolate places and pray." I am thankful for His ever convicting Word and have hope that He will help me to find a wilderness in each day.

Pity Party

2011-09-02T07:49:00.004-05:00

Last night I was in a dark place. Not a dark place that requires medication. But a dark place nonetheless. A place that made me wallow in self pity and eat more chocolate ice cream, peanut butter, and chocolate frosting straight from the can than I'd like to admit. It's ridiculous how it sort of all started with the laundry at the beginning of the week. I decided on Monday to wash all the bedding. Due to a not so large and not so fast washer and dryer it took all day. The kids didn't get to bed until after 9. Then this week 2 of them woke up with wet beds which of course means more washing. Basically I think that was just the start of feeling like my work is pointless. I think that is something Satan loves to tell mothers. That we should just give up because it's all going to get dirty again anyway. That self pity somehow led to more. I am having a bit of a hard time wrapping my mind around the fact that I will be 35 in January. That my oldest child is half grown. I had this voice rush through me that said "the best part of your life is over." That idea was like a vise around my neck. I thought of my oldest and wondered if he's just going to remember his first ten years of life being with a mother who was never satisfied and always crabby with her work. Then other thoughts crept in that made me want to curl up and cry. Like the idea of giving away baby clothes to a friend who is having her 6th baby soon. The thought of certain relationships in my life that are less than what I'd like them to be. This morning I woke up with my body bloated from all that sugar and my mind and heart bloated from the pity party and I just new I needed the Lord's help. I know this is not a hurricane. This is not imprisonment for my faith. I know this is not a death. It is not a betrayal of trust in someone I love. But it is an inner battle, my own personal pit and I needed to get out.

God's Word is good. Even when my time with Him is often interrupted and I feel like I am surviving on crumbs, it is good. This morning as I read the words, "The LORD reigns; Let the earth rejoice;" I was overcome with the truth that He reigns- when I am happy, He reigns. When I am sad, He still reigns. My heart is thankful to my God this morning that while I waver and change and falter, He is true and perfect and in remembering this I can rejoice. I must rejoice. Further in Psalm 97 it says, "You who love the LORD, hate evil! He preserves the soul of His saints; He delivers them out of the hand of the wicked. Light is sown for the righteous, And gladness for the upright in heart. Rejoice in the LORD, you righteous, And give thanks at the remembrance of His holy name."

May He give us mothers gladness in our work. And in the mundane, may we rejoice remembering His holy name. May we be an example to our children of praising God in the midst of the never ending laundry, the crumbs, the dust bunnies, the need to be consistent in discipline and training that can often seem so overwhelming. In all, He reigns.

Here we are...

2011-08-22T09:30:00.004-05:00

...ready to start another week. A few more sips of coffee for me and it will be time to start. Thirty minutes "late" but that's okay- it is Monday after all. This is a moment I'd really like to just say go ahead and keep playing. Then I could curl up with the stack of neglected books. Or practice my guitar. But I won't. There's work to be done here. Minds to inspire. I got up earlier today- 5 instead of 5:30. Pete and I are going to start working out- me to the basement on my treadmill and him to the YMCA. There comes a time to stop talking about how nice it would be to have time to exercise and just START even when you don't FEEL like it! And so we'll attempt to get into a routine of working out while it's still bright in the morning. Hopefully by the time the dreary and dark days of winter come we'll be so used to it that it won't feel like drudgery, but will rather enable us to feel invigorated all the way till the sun shines again.

This and That

2011-08-17T07:41:00.002-05:00

It's 7:30 am and half of my children are already playing outside. Some asked if we could start school yet to which I say no. We start at 9. I am busy filling up on coffee. I should really start the week's laundry. The goal would be to start wash Tuesday afternoon and have it all folded and put away by Wednesday afternoon so when CC starts on Thursdays, we atleast have the laundry under control.

This week I started reading Amos Fortune, Free Man by Elizabeth Yates to my two oldest. We have been learning in history about the African slave trade. It's too easy to not acknowledge this horrifying part of our nation's history. To not recognize what really happened. It's hard to even begin to try to understand how there were so many Christians who had a skewed idea of owning a person and treating them as no better than a caged animal! And how so many are still affected TODAY by their great grandparents, grandparents, and parents passed down prejudices.

I'm knitting again- a hat for me.

I baked cookies yesterday. Then as they sat on the counter beckoning to me I remembered one of the reasons I don't do that very often. The kids woke up this morning in a hurry to see if the cookies were still there or if daddy at them all. Then they asked for cookies for breakfast. I said no. Ice cream for dinner, yes, but cookies for breakfast? I think not.

We started our new science curriculum yesterday. LOVE it! I have to say that I have not really truly enjoyed teaching science up until this point, but I think the Apologia "Exploring Creation with Human Anatomy and Physiology" is changing that!

I am not enjoying teaching grammar. Maybe I'll quit.

Yesterday my newly retired father in law came over to mow the lawn. Mom came along and baked banana bread with the non nappers while the 2 oldest and I did science. Yay for a teacher's aid and lawn maintenance crew!

I need to buy a new pillow. Again. I wake up with a sore neck every morning. Last time I bought a new pillow my neck started feeling better. That was about a month ago. I guess maybe I need to spend more than $5 on a pillow.

And that's all for today's boring post. Maybe I'll try to post some pictures soon since I haven't done that for awhile.

On a Monday

2011-08-15T13:51:00.003-05:00

Monday's are full of mayhem and whining. Every new week I think what can I do to simplify Sunday evening so we can enjoy our first work day of the week. I am so thankful for yesterday's sabbath rest, for a day of no work. How does the world do it, go and go for seven days and more? I need that one day off laundry, off busy activity. Just to worship, rest the body, be together as a family. Still, all that resting makes us a wreck on Monday. The house is a wreck from 8 people being home together all weekend. The kids are a wreck from all the sitting- in the van, in the pew, at the table, back in the van, back in the pew. Then we get home and urge them to eat their cereal super fast and get in bed! I don't know what I can do differently or if I'm just going to be dealing with crabbies until they're over the age of....what?
Right now I am taking a moment to enjoy that 2 are down for naps and 4 are outside savoring this coolish late summer day. I am quite enjoying the whipping cream- leftover from Sunday's dessert- in my coffee and quite sure that it's a good thing we don't keep that in the house! I'm enjoying having short hair again. Enjoying a clean spare room- and laughing as I remember the pediatrician's confusion when he asked how many bedrooms we have (he thinks we're crazy) and I said, "four, but we only use 3."

Three Weeks Later...

2011-08-10T08:33:00.002-05:00

Here we are into our third week of the school year and things are rolling relatively smoothly. Or as smoothly as can be possible when you consider the little things that happen everyday to mess up "the schedule." I always enjoy hearing what other homeschool families days look like and I'd like to remember what we were doing at this stage. This year, so far, feels like the most "do-able!" Everyone is really growing up! I can have them, for the most part, help themselves to breakfast and lunch. Some of them can make a simple meal almost completely without help (like spaghetti or pancakes), they are helping tremendously with the work of keeping things running- like laundry, bathroom cleaning, sweeping up, taking out trash. I have a pretty fabulous and healthy team of helpers and for that I am so thankful!

Here are the grades of all the kids:
Peter- 4th (gulp- HOW did that happen so fast??)
Kate-3rd
Maddie-1st
Teshome- Kindergarten
Ella- Preschool
Charlotte- Preschool Apprentice :)

Here is what our day looks like-

5:30 I get up, shower, have devotions, check email, start laundry- just enjoy a little quiet!

7 The kids get up, get dressed, eat breakfast, do chores, older ones have devotions

8 Most head outside to play

9 Circle time (all)- we read several different things every morning including
*The Bible
*Reformation Heroes (next up is Stories of Missionary Heroism)
*Window on the World
*Portions of our church's confessions
*We also sing a few of the Westminster catechism songs each day
*Nifty Fifty US State flashcards (one state per week)- also read a book about the state

9:30-Peter- piano
Kate- math (Teaching Textbooks 4 on the computer)
Maddie, Teshome, Ella- handwriting (Without Tears), explode the code book, and phonics cards.
Charlotte- chooses one activity like puzzles, pegs and board, marker board and markers, dominoes, etc out of a jar of ideas- we call this "stations."

10:00-Peter-math (Teaching Textbooks 5)
Kate- piano
Maddie and Teshome- math (Saxon 1)
Ella and Charlotte- stations

10:30-Peter and Kate- handwriting/copywork (they copy their Latin vocab everyday, Peter copies lists of world rulers and the dates they ruled, when CC starts they'll copy their memory work).
Maddie- Reading (still working through Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons
Teshome, Ella, and Charlotte- stations

11:00-Latin- Peter and Kate are doing Latina Christiana and the others are doing the fun and simple Sing Song Latin.

11:30 ish- Free time, lunch

1:30 ish- The afternoon is less scheduled but here's what we do
Charlotte takes a nap
sometimes the younger ones rest
the 2 oldest do IEW (All Things Fun and Fascnating), Story of the World (finishing volume 4), Shurley Grammar 2, and soon we'll start the Apologia Anatomy study (corresponding the chapters with the parts of the body we're learning at CC). We will also use the afternoon to review our CC memory work and prepare our weekly speeches.

4 We are usually done by now and the kids clean up, sometimes watch one show, and play outside.

Back to school blues

2011-07-25T20:55:00.003-05:00

My kids were singing the blues today. Bigtime. They have gotten way too used to heading outside whenever they please, going to the beach or pool atleast once a week, flopping on the couch with a book whenever they please, and other such things that are very fun and summer like, but lead to the following:

1. One boy forgot how to do long division- in 4 weeks. Forgot.
2. One girl says she can't write. One word was just too hard for her to copy.
3. One boy learned the hard way that I meant it when I said if you complain about your work you don't get to watch Wild Kratts, the beloved 5 pm show.
4. One boy learned that you don't tell mama you don't know what to do with yourself or you will be sent to clean the bathroom.
5. One boy learned that you don't refuse to help with dinner on your helper day because that means mama won't have time to make the dessert you were hoping for.
6. One girl learned (I hope)that it's okay if your "little line" for the letter F is more like a "big line" and you can just keep practicing.

...and other such fun.

What I learned is that
1. I need to be WAY more prepared to give Peter TONS of work each day. That boy is motivated when he has tasks set before him and I didn't have nearly enough to keep him inspired or challenged today! We're talking about a kids who, at age 9, talks about ways that he can finish high school and college early so he can get into law school. I still think he's gonna be a preacher, but law school can be a great stepping stone for that :)
2. Ella needs lots of positive reinforcement. She is such a SWEET and SENSITIVE girl and just crumbles when she doesn't make her letters properly.
3. Teshome needs to be BUSY too! What is it with these boys? They just get right to the task, no doodling or fooling around. Unless of course they get away from their seats because I take too long to get them going on the next thing. Then there will be wrestling and all sorts of mayhem.
4. Kate is really growing up. She did a great job today diving into her new work with such excitement and diligence.
5. Maddie is a super fun girl, but she is just not into school. Lord willing, tomorrow I can get her to write A WORD without more tears.
6. And now, after doing pilates, practicing my guitar, and eating my precious quarter cup of Trader Joe's dark chocolate covered almonds, I am going to have a glass of wine and try to come up with a plan to make tomorrow a better day; a day of singing something other than the blues.

More Shirt Sizes Available!!!! And a price drop!!!!

2011-07-06T14:45:00.004-05:00

Okay, so we've got a ton of the shirts left that we originally ordered. I would really like to get those out of our house and have this truly be a fundraiser :) In the meantime I have some exciting news!!! Our "t-shirt guy" has agreed to give me two weeks to take orders for Adult Talls, Youth, and Toddler shirts. Previously I only ordered a handful of youth mediums and larges because I didn't know how those would sell. Well, so many people have asked about other youth sizes that I decided to try to get more. Below I have listed the colors available. Please simply click the paypal button to pay. You'll need to add up your own total- the shirts are $15 each plus $3 each shirt if you need them shipped (make sure you include your address). BE SURE TO ADD IN THE COMMENTS SECTION WHAT SIZES AND COLORS YOU WANT. I will get back to you ASAP if a color you chose is not available. For the Adult Talls, Youth, and Toddlers I am ONLY ordering what I have received payment for. For the regular adult sizes we still have most sizes in Texas Orange, Bright Purple, Military Green, Chocolate Brown, and Dark Chocolate.

ADULT TALL- available in navy, athletic heather, and orange. The orange is a brighter shade than the other adult shirts we have and the gray is a really nice medium gray. They are available in XXL, XL, and Lg

YOUTH- available in navy, purple, orange, and sangria (bright pink). We can sell these in small (6/8), medium (10/12) and large (14/16).

TODDLER- available in orange sherbet, athletic heather, navy, and light pink. Toddler sizes are 2T, 3T, and 4T.

All shirts will have white ink.

The Loot

2011-06-23T16:20:00.002-05:00

Sorry I have no picture of my wonderful pile of garage sale spoils, but check this out. I spent somewhere around $32 and came home with the following-

-bread maker (which I am using right now to make homemade rolls for dinner- I don't know what else we're having, but there will be rolls!)

-roller blades

-roller skates

-clothing: cargo pants, swim trunks, cord pants, 2 pairs of jeans, 2 capris, jean shorts

-Columbia brand 3 in 1 coat for Kate for this winter in nearly perfect condition

-Lands End wind breaker for Teshome in perfect condition

-puffy vest

-tennis shoes that look barely worn

-bike helmet (in its original packaging)

-2 bandanas (we girls like to wear them on our heads especially when camping)

Wowzers- that was a good garage sale day :)

Two Steps Forward, One Step Back

2011-06-23T06:54:00.002-05:00

And so it goes. I do think the attachment between Teshome and his new mama is moving forward. There are days though when we definitely take a step backwards and it can be disheartening and make me question if life will ever be "normal" again. It is a hard burden to carry, never knowing for sure if I'm doing it right, but pushing forward. The Lord quiets my heart and gives grace for another day. Oh how deep is His grace!

"Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God; For I shall yet praise Him, the help of my countenance and my God."
Ps 42:11

Strawberries...

2011-06-15T12:44:00.004-05:00

...are coming out of our ears.
Yesterday we headed to pick strawberries and I was super excited that it wasn't sweltering hot. I have picked with these kids in some pretty ridiculous heat. Not only have I survived immense heat in the patch, but I also (barely) survived two years ago when Ella pooped out of her diaper and down her leg into her shoe and Charlotte had a nasty poop and gnats swarming her butt as I changed her on the ground. I made a rule that year that there were no more diaper wearers allowed to go strawberry picking. Then I forgot how bad it really was and broke my own rule. Anyway, yesterday my children were actually really helpful and we managed to pick SIX buckets. Charlotte and Ella ate so many while we were picking that today they both told me they don't like strawberries. My original plan was to not make jam, but I kind of had to with all those berries. I made strawberry surprise biscuits for breakfast this morning and tonight for dessert we're having a strawberry trifle. I also froze some for smoothies and plan to make sauce for sundaes and waffles in the next few days. And then I think I'll be okay if I don't see another strawberry for awhile!

Here's the recipe for Strawberry Surprise Biscuits (from Gooseberry Patch Family Favorites)

2 c. all purpose flour
3 t. baking powder
1/2 t. salt
2 T. sugar
1/4 c. butter
3/4 c. plus 1 T. milk, divided
12 strawberries, hulled
2/3 c. powdered sugar
1/4t. vanilla extract

Combine flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar in a large bowl. Cut in butter with a pastry blender until mixture is crumbly. Add 3/4 cup milk, stirring just till moist.

Turn dough onto lightly floured surface, knead 4-5 times. Divide dough into 12 pieces. Pat each piece into a 3 inch circle. Place one berry in center of each, bring edges up, and pinch to seal. Place on lightly greased baking sheet (I used a Pampered Chef stone). Bake at 425 degrees for 18-20 minutes or until golden brown.

Stir together powdered sugar, 1 T. milk, and vanilla for glaze. Cool biscuits and drizzle with glaze. Yum!

My picture doesn't do it justice, but here it is anyway-

My Kate...

2011-06-14T07:53:00.004-05:00

...turned 8 on Sunday. We are thankful to the Lord for this sweet and helpful girl. Kind and tender, she is a beautiful blessing.

For her birthday date, Pete and I took her to Culver's for dinner and then to see the Judy Moody movie.

I Sure Do Like Summer School

2011-06-08T07:24:00.004-05:00

I am really enjoying our days lately. We are so much more relaxed with our schedule during the summer. Although we don't really stop "schooling," there's a way different feel around here- much less stress.

Peter and Kate have a few more math lessons before they are done with their books. When they are finished, I'll have them do fact practice until we start our new books in July.

We'll keep doing Story of the World all summer, but that's our favorite thing and we only do it 2 or 3 days a week.

We are going through this book each morning and loving it. I really want to have children who are globally minded and concerned about the gospel going out to the nations.

We are still reading our reformers book a couple of days a week.

Learning the basic info about each of the 50 states has been fun using A Beka's Nifty Fifty United States cards as well as reading library books about each state.

I started doing Song School Latin with the children mostly as a simple intro for the littles and a good review for Peter and Kate.

I'm still doing reading lessons with Maddie about 4 days a week, praying that it "clicks" and her reading takes off soon!

Most of our work is done in the morning which leaves time for hours of lego building, going to the park, bike rides, and playing in the yard.

What an interesting idea

2011-06-06T18:06:00.002-05:00

Okay, so a good friend just told me about an interesting conversation she had with a neighbor. After she shared with this woman about how much fun she and her children had recently at a field day for homeschoolers and how neat it was to meet some new families since these weren't families in her usual circle, the woman said,

"It seems like you could all get together and start a school."

Hmmm...kind of misses the point of homeschooling, eh? I probably would have laughed out loud thinking the woman was joking and then turned three shades of red after realizing my mistake.

Colorful

2011-06-06T09:37:00.002-05:00

Teshome colors Obama

It's too easy...

2011-06-04T08:46:00.005-05:00

...to get too comfortable in this world. In this life of plenty it is easy to forget who I belong to and where I am headed. Surrounded by the beauty of a comfortable house, the sureness of a bountiful pantry, several faucets the spew forth fresh, clean water that won't make any of us sick, it is easy to take all these things for granted. I don't deserve them. Yet, His grace abounds. I have all I could ever need and more. Our culture tells me that our house isn't big enough, that we should have more space, that it's crazy to have 4 girls in one small bedroom. The truth is, this is MORE than enough! We have CLEAN mattresses, books to read to learn about God's world, dishes to put all our FOOD on. How can I think I need any more!? I read about people like Katie and Christie and I am truly humbled. I am brought low as I imagine what their days are like and all the things I dare to complain about that they would welcome. After reading about them and others doing remarkable things for the Lord in difficult places, I find myself searching for the purpose in what I am doing. I know there is purpose in guiding my children each day, in wiping their noses, filling their plates- it is not for me to go to far off places and dig wells. Not at this stage in life, anyway. Still, after seeing what is out there in places like this children's "prison" in Uganda, how can I just turn away and do nothing? Proverbs 24:11 and 12 says, "Deliver those who are drawn toward death, And hold back those stumbling to the slaughter. If you say, 'Surely we did not know this,' Does not He who weighs the hearts consider it? He who keeps your soul, does He not know it? And will He not render to each man according to His deeds?" Now I know what's out there. And only the beginning of it. There is such pain in this world. Such filth. What am I going to do about it? What are you going to do about it? We have no excuse. We have so much. How can we be in the world, but not of the world- leave behind the trappings of this life, the STUFF, the CLUTTER, the entitlement attitude, and WORK, PRAY, ACT, SERVE on behalf of those with so little...

More About Girls Day in the City

2011-06-03T06:42:00.004-05:00

Sorry, I'm a lazy blogger sometimes. While Brooke was here with 3 of her kids last weekend, we took our oldest girls to Chicago for the day. So that was my Kate and Maddie and her Emma and Lily. Peanut got to come along just because he's the baby and he's cute. They had a great time riding the train and seeing the sights. We had our work cut out for us keeping 4 little girls from podunk from crossing streets without looking, but everyone stayed alive and had fun too.

We visited the American Girl store- to look, not buy- and I found out the secret for doing the doll's hair so we will not be spending $10-$20 to get any doll's hair done anytime soon. Then we had lunch at Food Life in Macy's before heading back to the train.

The purse I'm carrying is one of my favorite things ever. I wish I could say it is something I made, but alas, it is not. It is a Vera Bradley. A couple of years ago I fell in love with the cafe latte pattern and allowed myself to purchase the little id/coin purse thingy. I had the plan to save some money and eventually buy a purse or tote. Then they discontinued my favorite pattern! I ended up buying the hipster (in caffe latte) on ebay- at no savings, really, but I was determined to have that pattern!!

Fear

2011-06-03T06:05:00.002-05:00

I just have to say, God's Word and ways amaze me. I don't have a "read the Bible through in a year" kind of reading plan, but each morning I do read a passage from the OT and a passage from the NT. This morning I started with 1 John 4. The verse that stuck in my brain was 18 which says,

"There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment."

Then I turned to my OT reading and I read Psalm 27. Verse one says,

"The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The LORD is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?"

More about fear! What fear is in my heart, your heart, that must be cast out?

As Matthew Henry's commentary says (regarding the 1 John passage), "we must here distinguish between the fear of God and being afraid of Him. The fear of God is often mentioned and commanded as the substance of religion. Such fear is consistent with love, yea, with perfect love. But then there is a being afraid of God, which arises from a sense of guilt; and so fear here may be rendered dread: there is no dread in love..." Have you known that guilt? THAT fear? That DREAD? I have. It was as a little girl when the fact of my sin became real to me and I knew that without Jesus I would die and go to hell. That was when the "Faith of my Fathers" became my own. He has been working since and I am happy that I have no dread of God, but I can fear Him, love Him, because of His perfect love. I am thankful for my good and kind God whose love is perfect and is being perfected in me. May you "wait on the LORD; be of good courage, and He shall strenthen your heart; wait, I say, on the LORD!" (Ps 27:14)

Never a Dull Moment

2011-06-01T19:47:00.005-05:00

We enjoyed lots of company in May- I think my mom was here twice, then there was my sister and her family, Anna Marie, and Brooke and 3 of her kids. We had great fun and sweet fellowship. Still, we are glad to be just the 8 of us for awhile here. Yesterday was strangely calm. I started the weeks' laundry, did some school, and took the kids outside for awhile. Then today we were having a really great day including a big bike ride to the library, some school work, and playtime in the backyard. This was the first time since Teshome came home that I left the kids unattended out there. Usually he is obsessed with the bike and not interested in the swing set, but today they were all having a great time pretending they were the "wild kratt's" (from the PBS show) I managed to get the refrigerator cleaned out- one of my most unfavorite jobs- and I was thinking to myself "now what shall I do." I actually laid down on the couch with a book. That's when Kate came running to the door saying Peter stepped on something. Well, I took my time getting to him in the backyard, thinking it was a minor thing. Then I saw IT- the montsrous, wicked looking "splinter." I called the pediatrician because I wanted to know if I should try to yank it out or just get to the doctor. They were closing in 30 minutes and we have a 30 + minute drive so I made the quick decision to just get there and I am so glad I did!! I threw everybody in the van, literally grabbing Charlotte out of bed and plopping her in, drove to the backyard to pick Peter up and away we went. I won't go into any more detail, but I am just glad that the doctor was the one to dig that sucker out of Peter's foot and I could hold his hand while he yelled and screamed like his foot was being sawed off. He's recovering now with the foot elevated and on ice. He'll be on an antibiotic for a week and had to get a tetanus shot.

Even in our pain and trouble, there is grace. I was able to get in touch with Pete's mom and she took the girls for me so I didn't have to haul everyone in to the doctor's office. If we'd had to go to the ER, it would have cost us a FORTUNE and we would have probably waited a long time. We are so thankful to the Lord that we are safely home. Lord willing, Peter's foot will heal quickly and we'll all be back to normal- whatever that is. I'll try to post a picture later- when I figure out how to get it off my phone and onto the computer :)

Girls Day in the City

2011-05-27T20:32:00.003-05:00

The Gift of Being Needed

2011-05-25T21:37:00.003-05:00

It's hard to admit, but I have often been less than sympathetic when one of my children has come to me wanting a kiss on an owie. I have seen it as an interruption to whatever I am doing that is "so important" to have to stop, bend over, and kiss just the right spot on a hand. Miss, and you are told that wasn't it! And try again. Okay, all better, and off the babe runs to play again. I am pretty sure I won't be taking this need to be needed for granted anymore. Now I have a boy who doesn't run to me when he hurts. In fact, when he hurts or is sad or angry, he usually wants to get alone and just cry. And that's when I have to work harder. Take hold, keep close and tight and assure him of my love.

When you give birth to a child, or maybe even if you adopt a child at infancy, there is a natural molding to mama that occurs. I'm sure that it's a little different with every child. Still, I find myself wanting to know that I'm not alone. That I'm not the only one who wonders how long it will take before he stops stiffening when I put my hand on his back. Before he stops giving me the quickest hug goodnight that he can get away with. Months? I can deal with that. Years? That's a little more disheartening. A lifetime? Before he needs me- let's himself need me? I want him to know I'm a safe place. I want him to see me as more than the lady who fixes his food, reminds him to change his underwear, teaches him how to speak English. I want him to fight for the spot next to me on the couch. I think he's learning- slowly, but surely. We have rough days when I think we have hardly made any progress. Then there are glimmers of hope.

Today I took the kids for a bike ride. The older kids wanted to walk down a trail into some woods near our subdivision. Teshome wasn't thrilled with the idea and as he stepped forward tentatively, he reached for my hand and said, "scared, mama." A glimmer. For a second, the gift of being needed.

Putting in the Garden 2011

2011-05-21T21:41:00.003-05:00

Roma and cherry tomatoes, basil, thyme, dill, cilantro, bell peppers, jalapenos, zucchini, and yellow squash. Yum. Here's hoping the japanese beetles stay away and we have better yield from our garden than last year! And that some very eager helpers don't get too carried away when it comes time to "weed" the garden!

I Wore My Ugly Shoes

2011-05-18T11:33:00.002-05:00

Yesterday I took off for a three hour shopping marathon. It was not fun. I was on a mission to get pants. Apparently when you lose 20 pounds your pants don't stay up so I was desperate- I literally had not a single pair of shorts or capris that fit me. However, I don't exactly have the funds for a new wardrobe. To me, shopping is work. I don't have that skinny, pre-baby carrying body that could wear any style anymore. She is gone, never to return. And so, it is tricky to find styles that aren't "teeny bopperish" and muffin top baring, but also aren't "matronly." Seriously. Work.

When I got dressed in the morning, I knew I was going to be trying clothes on in a hurry. So I dressed for it. That includes no jewelry. And my ugly shoes. I wore Crocs shopping. And I couldn't help but think about how mortified my mother and my sister would be if they'd had to shop with me. When they go shopping they look super cute- lipstick, jewelry, cute shoes... It's okay- I got the job done and I now have pants that fit.

Skipping Through the Stacks

2011-05-11T17:17:00.002-05:00

We are a family that LOVES books. Well, except for a certain adult, but he will remain nameless and actually, he loves that his family loves books. He just has this problem where a book in his hands puts him to sleep. Thankfully all of our children have loved looking at books since their chubby little baby hands first learned how to turn the pages of a board book. We look forward to our weekly trips to the library where we load up. The kids stand at the counter ready to snatch their pile as soon as the books have been scanned. So you can imagine my dismay the first time I took Teshome to the library after he had been home about 3 weeks and he HATED it. We have had some of our worst pouting moments at the library. So, with my work cut out for me, I happily brought home any Curious George or "Buzzy Woody" book I could find. At first he pretended he wasn't interested even though those are his favorite characters. Yup, it didn't take much time being an American and he's already got his favorite animated heroes. A few times I caught him paging through the books I brought home to lure him into "reading" and I wanted to jump for joy, but I pretended I didn't notice. That was all part of my plan. Keep it cool. Don't try to force him to love books. Limit TV time. Have books all over the place (that one is easy around here). He continues to moan and whine when I read for too long- like more than five minutes- as the other kids all sit and listen and ask questions. I realize part of his lack of love here definitely has to do with the fact that he doesn't speak English fluently or understand everything. And it also has to do with the fact that all of the books at the orphanage where ripped and broken and scribbled in and just plain no fun. It's not like he had story time everyday there. So I'll keep working on it. Today, though, I had a beautiful victory in my endeavor to create a bibliophile. We went to the library and he was HAPPY. He searched the stacks, SKIPPING along looking for things that he found interesting. He brought home a book about Australia, a book about hang gliding, a book about New Jersey, and Peter's Chair by Ezra Jack Keats. I was not even bothered by his choices because HE chose books! Yippee!

Farmhouse Honey-Wheat Bread

2011-05-10T10:27:00.004-05:00

Well, I've been baking bread most mornings lately so we can have a more simple, but delicious lunch. My goal was to have a very hearty, healthy whole grain bread with no bleached flour. Well, I haven't found a recipe I like so for now I'll stick to this one. It's not exactly whole grain, but it is so yummy!! I cut into it and the kids smell the fresh yeasty goodness and call out what they would like on it- jam, peanut butter, just butter. Then they can have some fruit or cheese and we call it lunch. We easily eat one loaf for lunch (yesterday I didn't even get a piece!) and then we have a second to give away, eat with dinner, or save for a day we won't be home to bake in the morning.

This recipe is from one of my favorite cookbooks, Gooseberry Patch Family Favorite Recipes:

1 1/2 cups water
1 c. small curd cottage cheese
1/2 c. honey
1/4 c. butter
5 1/2- 6 cups all purpose flour
1 c. whole wheat flour
2 T. sugar
3 t. salt
2 pkgs active dry yeast (or 4 1/2 tsp)
1 egg

Heat first 4 ingred in a saucepan until very warm (about 120 degrees).
Combine cottage cheese mixture with 2 cups all purpose flour, the whole wheat flour, and the next 4 ingred in a large mixing bowl. Beat at med speed for 2 min.
Add enough remaining flour to make a stiff dough (if it's sticky, add more flour). Knead until smooth and elastic (by hand, or as I do, in my stand mixer). Place in a large well greased bowl (turning to grease top) in a warm place, cover top, and let rise aprox 1 hour- until doubled. Punch down and shape into 2 loaves and place in 2 greased loaf pans. Cover, let rise 45 minutes more, then bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until loaves sound hollow when tapped. (I still don't know what that actually sounds like) Mine takes about 35-40 minutes.

Good doesn't mean easy

2011-05-10T08:43:00.003-05:00

Often people ask me how things are going. I can honestly answer, "good." I am pretty sure that most people translate that to mean "easy peasy." Truth is, this is hard work. Relentless, non stop, and requiring more patience and energy than I have on my own. Sometimes I feel like there is no way that I can do the same thing all over again.
Get up, shower, try to have devotions, get "interrupted," oversee breakfast, clean up the mess, teach, go outside to make sure nobody goes in the street while they play, make lunch, clean up the mess, teach, go outside again, make supper, clean up the mess, get kids ready for bed, crash, sleep, repeat.
Sometimes I CRAVE a few minutes of QUIET, uninterrupted time. I get up at 5:30 am everyday so that I can shower and have some time in the Word before the children get up. Technically they aren't allowed up until 7 am, but there's a new kid in the house and he happens to be an early riser. I let him sit by me and look at a book- it's good one on one time for us, but it gets super tricky when one of the girls gets up to go potty and discovers that Teshome is up. Then the "not fair" talking starts and I suddenly find myself surrounded by messy blonde heads and the whole idea of praying for the world goes out the window.
Sometimes I feel like it's a vacation to walk to the mailbox by myself.
Sometimes I am pretty sure I'll go crazy if I don't get to go somewhere without anyone else.

At those times I have to think big picture. Stop feeling sorry for myself and think about my God and King and all He sacrificed to adopt me. I deserve nothing more than eternal death and punishment, but by His GRACE I am free, I am a child of God, I have life, I have 6 beautiful children who need me everyday. Yes, it's messy and there's lots of poop and laundry and fighting and I can usually think of a million things I'd rather do than push kids on swings for an hour. Yes, the house is crowded and cluttered and I can barely keep up to make sure people have clean underwear, and we always run out of spoons, and there's toothpaste all over the girls' bathroom counter all the time and gas costs too much for me to go anywhere even if I could hire a babysitter. BUT, do I really have any right to complain? Not so much. God is good and continues to supply my needs and enable me to get out of bed each morning.

Still, I don't want people to think that in my answer of "good" I'm painting a rosy picture of the adjustment a family goes through after an adoption. I wouldn't want you to be inspired to adopt because of how easy it is. It isn't easy. It is a blessing and it is wonderful and there are beautiful moments. There is laughter and fun. But there's also the grief of a little boy who has left behind everything normal and comfortable to start a new life in a foreign land with no language skills. There's the challenge of five children who have to give up the level of activity and attention they are used to and sacrifice for a brother they don't really know. There's the fact that we don't feel comfortable with the idea of leaving him with any other care giver until we believe he confidently knows that we are his parents and family forever. So, when I say good, please know that's the short answer to an essay question. I'm just usually not sure if people are ready for the long answer. If you are, I'd be glad to share more. Otherwise, things are good.

Kids in the Kitchen

2011-05-09T09:44:00.004-05:00

My kids love to help me in the kitchen. The problem is, I am usually in a hurry to get dinner on the table and would rather do it quickly and quietly by myself. However, I really do want them to know their way around the kitchen and I envision assigning them a night of being completely in charge of making dinner eventually and how is that going to work if I don't train them? On a recent Sunday I decided to have Teshome help me make lunch in order to have some special time with just him. That began my new plan of having two kitchen helpers each day. I have to have a schedule because everyone wants to help and I do not want 6 "helpers" in the kitchen at a time! So, kitchen duty was born. My challenge is to see it as an opportunity to spend time with my children and prepare them for life, rather than a time to just quickly get dinner made. Family Fun magazine recently had a great article about kids in the kitchen that I am going to add to my plan. It included helpful tips on age appropriate tasks and lots of rules to share with the kids in order to teach them how to be safe in the kitchen.

One thing that I think will be helpful to our cooking endeavors is to continue to have a rotating weekly meal schedule. That will ensure that after several months each of my children will have had many experiences with the same meals and will hopefully be able to take these meals on as a team- without me!
These are the things we typically include in our rotation and then I usually try to do something new and different once or twice a week:

Mexican- tacos, enchiladas, burritos, chalupa...
Pasta- regular old spaghetti, penne with grilled chicken sausage...
Breakfast- pancakes, egg casserole...
Baked potatoes- with diced ham or chili and broccoli
Soup- especially in the winter
Stir Fry- make it interesting by switching up the meat, veggies, or sauces

Saturday

2011-04-30T10:09:00.006-05:00

It's a great day to clean the house, get some errands done, catch up on everything you didn't get done all week, right?

Wrong. My house will have to wait. That seems to be a theme lately. Oh well, I'm busy making purple poop and pink hair and green dolphins and blue spiders. And, yes, I know it's not a "school day" but I couldn't help but get out the animal encyclopedia and explain the difference between a spider and an insect. And there's nothing like hot chocolate outside on a cool and windy spring day and introducing Teshome to his first marshmallow.

And the winner is...

2011-04-30T08:20:00.000-05:00

Dianna Tuininga!

Congratulations Dianna :) Maddie pulled your name out of a hat making you the winner of a free t shirt.

Giveaway Update

2011-04-28T07:15:00.001-05:00

I know some of you who read this blog do not have blogs yourselves and maybe do not have google or yahoo accounts in order to leave a comment....so, if you want to enter the giveaway still, just email me if you put a link to my blog on facebook and I'll give you one entry :)
raisingolives77 at gmail dot com

My First Ever Giveaway!!

2011-04-26T13:38:00.004-05:00

Hey Friends- I am doing a giveaway of one of our

ADOPTION T-SHIRTS

Wear it to display the message that God is glorified in Adoption!

It is super simple to enter- just do one of two things: put a link to my blog on facebook OR your blog for one entry. If you do both, it's 2 entries. Make sure you leave me a comment or email me to let me know what you did and tell me what size and color you would like if you win :) The giveaway ends Friday at midnight. I'll do the drawing and announce the winner on Saturday.

"Orphan Care is Warfare"

2011-04-26T08:47:00.003-05:00

"Have you ever wondered why there are so many fatherless children in the world? This is a spiritual matter. The world is not as it should be because of the fall. And why is it so hard to adopt? Could it be that there are spiritual forces involved? We aren't just dealing with ineffective governmental systems, we are engaging in spiritual war. You will face numerous trials in the adoption and orphan care journey, both in country and out of country. 'Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.'" (Eph 6:11)
(from Orphanology by Merida and Morton)

My heart goes out to families we know who are having difficulties on the adoption road. Some have waited ridiculous amounts of time for the next step in the process. Some have already met their children, but haven't been able to bring them home. Many are dealing with the anger and grief of an adopted child which often includes very little sleep for the new child and the parents (and we can all agree that you can handle most things if you're getting enough sleep, but without sleep...watch out!). The above quote is a great reminder that this is a spiritual battle. When you choose to adopt or take part in any orphan care ministry, you are answering the call of God in James 1:27 and Satan does not like that. He will fight you and you need to be prepared.
Many of you are weary. You are tired of being buried in paperwork, tired of waiting for a government agency to make a decision, tired of having a child you love so desperately be unwilling to receive your love. Do not give up hope for, "He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world." (1 Jn 4:4)

Artwork on the t's we're selling

2011-04-21T06:18:00.003-05:00

We have these available in five great colors-
Indigo Blue
Military Green
Chocolate Brown
Bright Purple
Texas Orange

For those of you who live nearby, email me or call me with your color and size choices and we can set up a time to get together. If you're in Michigan (near Hudsonville), I can arrange my parents taking them and you could pick them up from them. I will try to put a Paypal button on here soon- mainly for people I don't know personally and/or people who need the shirts shipped.
The shirts are $20 for adults (small-xl) and $15 for youth (med and lg- only in the blue and brown).
Thanks for helping to support our adoption by buying these fantastic shirts!

Sharing A Good Read

2011-04-20T06:55:00.003-05:00

"The simple and obvious fact for the Christian is this: adoption and orphan care aren't new ideas; they're biblical ideas. The reason we must stress them is the same reason we stress evangelism, prayer, stewardship, and other practices Scripture teaches us. Caring for all of the fatherless is enforced in God's Word, flows from God's heart, and such care embodies convictions that have marked God's people for centuries."

And that about explains it...

2011-04-19T15:11:00.002-05:00

follow this link to find out
why we homeschool year round

Understanding

2011-04-18T22:01:00.002-05:00

The love has come easy. We DECIDED to love him. Then we met him and FELL in love- with his adorable smile, his bright eyes, his aim to please, the songs he sings. He listens when he knows what to do and usually we can explain what we expect- the flushing, the washing, the sitting straight at the table, the moving over to make room, the stopping at the neighbor's driveway and turning the bike around, the quiet sitting in church. But there are things that don't come so easy. To UNDERSTAND what is going on in his mind and in his heart when he becomes silent and still and won't meet our eyes. When you see us out, it looks easy. And overall it's good- really good. But it's hard. It's hard to parent a hurt child whose hurts you weren't there to see. We don't have any way to know how he FEELS, what he's THINKING. We cope day to day with the distractions of everyday life- the playing, the coloring, the reading, the outside time, the eating. And lots and lots of hugging and kissing and cuddling and saying I LOVE YOU. By God's grace, all of those "normal" things- normal to us anyway- will serve to make him feel SECURE and confident in his family. Then they'll start to feel normal to him. And then he'll have the words to tell us what his little heart needs. Right now we have no way of knowing, really. We just keep guessing and doing our best and hoping that it's right.

It's 1:30 pm

2011-04-18T13:23:00.003-05:00

Well, the lunch mess is cleaned up. The dishwasher is running- for the second time today. I have about 8 minutes before the kids play time is over and it's back to the books so here I am online. And what do I do online these days? Well, here's what I've been checking out-

*uses for coconut oil
*how to make injera
*how to make kinche
*what to make with the dry berbere (ethiopian spice) i bought last week
*classical conversations parent/tutor practicums and how to make it work to attend one this year
*some of your blogs
*email

And now to Narnia, finish making beds with clean sheets, put kids down for naps/rest time, History with the big ones, and maybe, just maybe, the rain will hold off and we can get outside for a little while.

The Most Important Thing

2011-04-13T13:13:00.003-05:00

It would be very easy right now to think of all the things I am NOT doing that I would like to be doing- if the day consisted of about 10 extra hours, I had unlimited energy, and I didn't have to be focused on establishing firm attachment with our new son.

Due to the reality of life right now, I cannot homeschool exactly as I'd like to BUT I CAN concentrate on what is MOST important.

Job 28:28 tells us that the fear of the Lord is wisdom and to depart from evil is understanding.

Our days are very simple right now. For Peter and Kate there is math, handwriting, and lots of reading. Sometimes there is history and latin. Mostly not. There is no formal grammar, spelling, or science. For Maddie, there is handwriting, a little reading practice, and coloring.

For my THREE preschoolers there is a little workbook time (big, little, same, different etc), a little ABC booklet making, and coloring.

For all, there is reading aloud EVERY morning- the Bible, our book of reformers, and some simple poems or stories, and sometimes Narnia.

The lessons I am really working on right now are that we eat together three times a day and there is always enough, we read the Word after we eat, we play together, and love eachother, and go to church together. Consistency is the lesson right now.

Hopefully, in a couple of months we'll get back into a more rigorous school routine. Right now, I need SIMPLE and STEADY ways to guide my children to fear the Lord and to depart from evil.

Brothers

2011-04-07T17:23:00.002-05:00

Gotcha Day ~ March 29, 2011

2011-04-07T17:16:00.002-05:00

The Quiet

2011-04-04T15:17:00.003-05:00

At the moment things are awfully quiet around here considering that 6 children ages 9 and under are present. Let's see...after a busy busy morning with much whining from Charlotte and Ella, they are both sleeping. Maddie and Teshome both had rest time while Peter and Kate did a little school work. I wasn't going to worry too much about school this week, but then I decided that my children who THRIVE on routine and schedule and having a purpose each day, would be a MESS if I just let them have a free for all this whole week. Now Maddie and Teshome are up- she's playing with cars and he is copying words from a book. Peter and Kate are finishing up their math. About the copying- it seems that Teshome LOVES to learn and is very eager to write whatever he sees. He is in the right house! I'm sure the quiet will be over any time now when Peter or Kate do something to annoy Maddie or Teshome decides to play with the noisy remote controlled dump trunk or the noisy lion flashlight or the noisy leap frog fridge magnet toys, and Ella and Charlotte get up. For now, I am just amazed that this house can be so quiet. But I am not going to get used to it.

Home

2011-04-02T22:43:00.004-05:00

I am so thankful that my family is all under one roof again. And everyone (but me) is sleeping. Peter and I went to the airport to pick Pete and Teshome up. It took quite awhile to get through customs and immigration so Peter was going CRAZY with the wait. Finally, they came through the doors and I ran and picked up Teshome and just started crying with relief. I totally thought I would hug Pete first, but when I saw my son looking around for ME, I had to scoop him up. We headed home and on the drive I had to remind Pete that he's not in Ethiopia anymore and he could please stop driving like and Ethiopian taxi driver. When we pulled in the driveway the girls were outside with my dad and they were all literally jumping up and down with excitement. He gave them all hugs and said their names. I wish I had had the camera at that point, but it was buried in one of the suitcases. We did get several pictures later in the evening and I'll try to post some soon. The kids completely smothered Teshome and took up all his personal space. He just giggled and followed them around the house and played for awhile. My parents stuck around to have pizza with us and then they headed back to Michigan. Now everyone is sleeping and I'm taking advantage of having nobody that needs me right now so that I can get going on my travelers dirty laundry and some meal prep for tomorrow. I'll write more later, but now it's back to work so I can maybe go to bed before it's tomorrow.

INTRODUCING....

2011-04-01T17:32:00.003-05:00

.... Teshome Jeremiah Vander Wall!!!!!

It's official! He is ours and he is on the way HOME!!

This is a picture I took of Teshome with Pete on our first trip. Isn't he handsome?

by the way- his name is pronounced like Tuh-show-muh with the emphasis on the sho

It's Like Having a Newborn Only Different

2011-04-01T17:05:00.002-05:00

Okay, I know I didn't just give birth. And the "baby" isn't even home yet, but things are hurtin' over here. After a night of very little sleep due to texting Pete, waiting for responses, emailing him, and making a couple of quick phone calls to him to make sure he was okay, I am exhausted. No, I'm not comparing a night of little sleep to labor, BUT overall the atmosphere around here with the kids, especially the two youngest is similar to the crazy, confused, super needy way they act when I first have a newborn. Actually, Ella and Charlotte are acting about exactly the same way now as Maddie and Ella did the night I went into labor with Charlotte. They claw at my door if I shut them out for a moment to pee in peace. They hang and climb all over me. That's all fine and good. Unless anyone wants to eat. Then I need to be disentangled from these needy little girls who follow me crying and begging to be held so that I can get to the kitchen. Right now they don't even want Grandma, which is a bummer, because she's here and I want them to enjoy her- sit on her for hours. I really want to make supper. And tomorrow I really want to get this house spiffed up so as to welcome my husband home and so as to not let our newest member think we actually like things this messy. And right at this very minute my husband and little boy are taking off on the first leg of their trip home. RIGHT NOW. Oh, my heart!

Peaceful Rest

2011-03-31T23:38:00.002-05:00

Pete's Grandma Fennema entered into peaceful rest with her Saviour today after living on this earth for 91 years. I just had to share this news with Pete over the phone and he is hurting right now and I feel so helpless. It almost feels like a daydream, all hazy and strange and unreal. But it is real. And I am unable to comfort my husband in his pain.

We are so blessed that Peter, Kate, Maddie, Ella, and Charlotte were able to know her- some better than others, of course. But there is great sadness for Pete that the son that he has quickly grown to love over the last several days will never know this great grandma.

Please keep Pete in your prayers as he deals with this grief alone right now. And please also pray for our new son that he will understand what is going on and not be worried or insecure as he sees daddy grieving.

News from afar

2011-03-30T21:25:00.003-05:00

Each of the last three mornings I have been greeted by the chime of my phone telling me Pete has texted me. I get a short update on their day and then I just wonder and long to know the details. We have had two VERY brief phone calls- wer're talking about maybe two minutes of talk time. I have gotten two emails from him which have given me a glimpse into the surreal life that he is living this week as he gets to know and love our son. I feel like I am going to be so behind on knowing this new child of mine! Daddy and son are having some good bonding time and really getting to know eachother. The Embassy appointment went fine and on Friday they will pick up the visa and passport and get on a plane to head home. While they wait, they are taken various places by our agency's staff. So far they have visited a zoo and gone out for burgers and fries. Yes, burgers and fries in Ethiopia. They spend time each afternoon resting and having a lesson on getting to know your brother and sisters' names and learning some English words. I am so excited to teach him! We are all missing eachother desperately, but we are so thankful for the Lord's grace and goodness to us as we are apart.

The Last Meal as a Family of Seven

2011-03-26T13:30:00.003-05:00

Nothing says, "have a nice trip, Daddy," like a breakfast of fat and sugar. Yikes- I think we'll all be having salad for dinner.

Real Life

2011-03-26T07:14:00.003-05:00

A sport at our house- jumping over a mountain of (clean) laundry.

There's Music Here

2011-03-24T17:11:00.002-05:00

Over the past two and a half years that Peter has been taking piano, there have been many tears, moments of frustration, and the desire to give up- from both him and me. I have often wondered if the craziness of getting out of the house on a yucky, snowy afternoon, often having to wake little nappers up, was worth it.
Well, lately when I tell him to practice, there is no argument. He has even been sitting for longer than required and playing some of his old favorites. I have actually been ENJOYING the music he is making and I am hopeful that there may be hymns in our future. I definitely have always regretted giving up on piano so quickly and long to have children who can play hymns as we sing as a family!

Cleared

2011-03-23T09:09:00.001-05:00

We got the call this morning! We have been cleared for travel and Pete is working on his travel arrangements right now. It looks like we are going to have our boy home in just over a week!

Stay Tuned

2011-03-19T18:58:00.002-05:00

Just wanted to let you all know that we are planning a very special adoption fundraiser. This is our first one and I am super excited about it. A t-shirt design is in the works and it is looking good! So if you've been checking out your wardrobe to see what you have to wear for the spring and summer and you're thinking you could really use a great new t-shirt, stay tuned! I'll show you a sample and give you the ordering info soon.

In case you were wondering...

2011-03-17T20:37:00.000-05:00

...we expect that any minute we will get the official travel call. All of the last necessary documents for our US Embassy appointment have been collected. The call will come soon and we may have only a couple of days to a week's notice before Pete has to be in Ethiopia to bring home our son! Then I can finally introduce him to you! I cannot wait to tell you his name and show you pictures of his sweet face!

We won't be doing that again for awhile

2011-03-17T07:53:00.002-05:00

Normally by this date on the calendar I would have consumed several Shamrock shakes from McD's. However, due to my latest (successful) endeavors at eating better and losing some pounds I have not had the craving to consume the "treat" that inevitably gives me a bloated, achy tummy. The cool, minty enjoyment only lasts so long and then I'm left with the, "why did I do that?" feeling. Still, I figured that was no reason to not treat the kids. Not wanting to break the bank, I asked Pete if he'd grill burgers at home and then we'd all go get Shamrock shakes. So last night after supper we loaded the kids into the van and teased them that we were going to the "spinach farm" for dessert and asked them what kind of toppings they would like on their spinach. As we were getting out of the van at McDonald's, Ella asked, "do we have to share?" I just laughed because our kids never get their own pop or shake or blizzard- we always make them share so I told them that everyone was getting their own. Pete gave me a funny look at that point and I should have known better than to give my children who are not used to that much sugar all at once their own shake, but I didn't. Getting to the point- back home we rushed through the shower routine because it was past bedtime. Pete washes little girls and hands them off to me to pajama. As I took care of Charlotte, fresh out of the shower, she puked all over herself and her rug. Back to the shower she went, carried by a mama feeling quite guilty for letting a 2 year old consume so muchfat and sugar. Daddy cleaned the room while the girls all waited, shivering, to get to their drawers for pj's and undies. I took all the non-washable lovies and babies out of beds and moved all toys away from potentially being showered with puke should anyone on an upper bunk decide she couldn't contain her dinner. Thankfully, the puking was a one time event and everyone seems fine this morning. Needless to say, they will probably be sharing shakes for many years to come!

From where I am sitting....

2011-03-14T13:36:00.002-05:00

...I hear the washing machine humming, Kate making funny noises with her mouth while she does her math, the timer ticking to challenge Kate to get done in a reasonable amount of time, Peter plunking away at the piano, thunder- or maybe that's 3 little giggling girls playing upstairs.

...I see my mess of school books, books to read, and my lesson plan book waiting to have things checked off for the day. Oh- And the sun- the GLORIOUS sun coming in the window.

...I feel excited and anxious to hear some news about our son soon! And I feel tired. Time change is always hard. Early to bed for all of us I think!

Well, enough sitting at this computer. The math timer is about to ring and I think I need a little outside time- maybe put a couple girls down for naps, get a couple of big kids settled in with some school work and then sneak out to the mailbox with a little dark chocolate. Sometimes getting the mail is like a mini vacation.

Five years ago today...

2011-03-13T20:35:00.003-05:00

...our son was born in a village in the southern region of Ethiopia. I don't know what I was doing on that day other than taking care of my 7 month old Maddie, 2 year old Kate, and 4 year old Peter. We were probably getting excited that spring was almost here. We had no idea that a son, a brother, was born for our family.
We were hoping to have him home for his birthday. We are not with him, but we are, of course, thinking of him and praying for him and longing for him. We expect to get a call very very soon that it's time for daddy to go and get our boy.

It Looks Like it's for Real

2011-03-10T07:42:00.003-06:00

For a week or so now I have been aware of a rumored slow down in the Ethiopia adoption program. By slow down, we're talking about a 90% reduction in adoptions. Well, the US State Department has issued a statement and it looks like it's really happening. This is a tragic situation as it means that thousands of children will be left institutionalized for much longer periods of time. It means that many families in the process of waiting for an Ethiopian adoption will wait even longer. Please pray for the waiting children, for the waiting parents, and for the health of the Ethiopian adoption program.
You can read the State Departments statement here:
(be sure to scroll down to see it)

Challenged by Radical

2011-03-10T06:43:00.005-06:00

I expected that this book would challenge and inspire and it has not let me down. Read it, but be prepared to be rocked.

"We are, by nature, receivers. Even if we have a desire to learn God's Word, we still listen from a default self-centered mind-set that is always asking, What can I get out of this? But as we have seen, this is unbiblical Christianity. What if we changed the question whenever we gathered to learn God's Word? What if we began to think, How can I listen to his Word so that I am equipped to teach this Word to others?.....When we realize we have the responsibility to teach the Word, it changes everything about how we hear the Word."

Two and a Half

2011-03-09T11:11:00.004-06:00

It's hard to believe that our sweet tiny Charlotte has gone from this

to this big, wild, busy girl.

sometimes even she needs a break from all her wildness!

The Hope of Spring

2011-03-08T14:00:00.003-06:00

Some of you may remember my rant last February about how I detest that month. Although the shortest, it tends to drag on in forever winter. Thankfully, this year, with our trip to Ethiopia, February flew by. Now here we are in March and four of my children are playing outside while one has just gone down for a nap- after coming in quite muddy and smelling like a dirty dog. How is it, by the way, that a sweet child can be so stinky afte an hour outside?
Yes, they come to the door for a million things- I need a drink, I need to go potty, she poured bubbles on my head, she is throwing dirt from the garden in my hair, watch me do this, can we ride our bikes, I need to go potty.... Still- they are outside!! It is a BEAUTIFUL thing. While they play, I run around like a crazy doing all the things that have been staring at me while doing school work this morning- week's laundry sorted and started washing, kitchen counter cleaned off, supper in the crockpot. And now it's time for a little blogging and a little dark chocolate before they all come in for finishing up school work and doing some Narnia reading.

February Read Alouds

2011-03-03T15:05:00.002-06:00

Making our way through the big beautiful volume of all of the Narnia books which my parents gave to Peter for Christmas....

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
The Horse and His Boy
Prince Caspian (finished today)

Everyday Edits

2011-03-03T09:24:00.002-06:00

I just have to share this great website that our Classical Conversations director told me about. I kind of forgot about it until recently and I've been printing an "everyday edit" exercise for Peter to do. Your child can edit a short paragraph that coincides with a holiday, anniversary of an invention, birthday of a historical figure, etc. You just click on the month and decide which one to have them do. Yesterday, for Dr Seuss' birthday, they had one about Seuss. Today it is about Alexander Graham Bell because it's his birthday. There are a lot of other neat things on this website that I've barely begun to explore! Have fun!
Education World

It's almost like pie for breakfast

2011-02-28T09:41:00.002-06:00

I've been meaning to take a picture of my new favorite breakfast, but a funny thing happens everytime I make it. I just can't seem to get away from it to find the camera before I have to devour it. So, imagine the layered yumminess of nonfat plain yogurt, Fiber One cereal (twigs as Pete lovingly calls them), and slightly warmed blueberries that I froze while fresh last summer. Try it. It's good for you and delicious too. After eating this I am much more satisfied than starting my day with a sugary muffin or just cereal.
Another thing I love to eat in the morning was inspired by "Breakfast Bowl" from the South Beach diet. I warm up some canned pinto beans, top them with an egg or two scrambled with a little onion and some red and yellow pepper chunks and I've got a protein and fiber packed breakfast. Sometimes I top it with some shredded romaine just to really gross out the kids. Don't mock it till you try it!

The things which are not seen

2011-02-21T06:45:00.002-06:00

How I focus on the things that are seen! Even in the midst of doing something for the unseen- traveling to Africa to take a son to tell the gospel, I was consumed with the seen. With the physical. With the things of this earth. With missing my children, who are His and were fine. With fear of chest pains and asthma attacks, all in His control. And now, here I sit in my comfortable house with proper plumbing and temperature control and I read about the things unseen and I am reminded again how small I am. How big my God is. How perfect and glorious is His unseen plan. I think of how much time we all spend on the SEEN- on caring about just the right sports, activities, classes for our children, what to eat, what to wear, all these TEMPORARY cares. Lord, give me eyes and heart to see the invisible. To care for souls being made ready for eternity.

"Therefore, we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal." 2 Corinthians 4:16-18

I didn't think I could....

2011-02-18T07:56:00.003-06:00

....love him anymore than I already do. But I do. In Africa God showed me my husband's strength in a whole new way. I was sad, overwhelmed, anxious, and exhausted. He was tender, patient, and kind. As I watched him interact with a son we just met, I was in awe of him. The Lord has blessed me with a man who ever longs to lead His family in the Word, who builds his wife up in spite of all of her imperfections and shortcomings. In His grace, God gave me a man who shows me Christ everyday.

Just a glimpse

2011-02-16T19:15:00.002-06:00

Short and Sweet

2011-02-16T16:22:00.002-06:00

We are home. Praise the Lord, we are safely home- with 5 of our children. However, our hearts are torn because we have a son on the other side of the world. On Monday we passed court, so it's official, he is ours. And now we wait for the US Embassy to do their thing and clear us for travel again to bring our son home. What a relief that will be!
I am physically and emotionally wiped out.
To sum it up, this trip was the hardest thing I'm glad I've ever done- if that makes sense. Which it may not due to the fact that I have slept very little in the past week.

At a loss for words

2011-02-12T13:31:00.001-06:00

I know I said I would update the blog while we're gone, but honestly, I'm having a hard time putting all my thoughts and feelings into words. The trip was a bit rough. The flights were fine, but the schedule was brutal and jetlag is crazy!!

The traffic here is like nothing I've ever experienced. There are pedestrians EVERYWHERE and drivers don't really seem to acknowledge those dotted lines that mark the lanes. There is lots of horn honking to basically say I'm coming through, get out of my way. We met our son today. He knows who we are even though we were told that he would not. It is still just quite unreal- this whole thing- that we're here, that we've met the little boy we've been praying for and thinking about for so long. I can't quite figure out how I feel or what I think with so many things going on in my jet lagged brain.

Five and a half months...

2011-02-09T21:09:00.002-06:00

....is how long we've known about our little man in Africa. We've waited and waited for our court date. The wait is almost over. Tomorrow we get on that plane to fly to meet him. In two days we will meet our new son. In five days we will officially be his parents. And then we will have to say good bye to him until the US Embassy issues his visa and we are cleared to travel there again to bring him home with us.

I am so excited.

And I am so sad. I spend nearly every waking hour with five little people that I can hardly stand a day away from- how am I going to handle seven? I've held my emotions in check (squashed them down deep) for awhile now. Then last night I packed my suitcase and this all became so much more real. And I cried. And I cried. And if I hadn't taken that benadryl to see how it affected me so I can use it on the plane to block out one of my least favorite things to do, I would have cried some more. Child birth is excruciatingly painful. This is more painful to me. As I laid in bed crying last night I thought, "nevermind- i don't want to do this. forget it. i take it all back. i just want to stay here." Yet, I must go. This is what God has called us to do. And so tomorrow I will leap. I am trusting the One who hides me in the shelter of His wings. I am praying for UNFLINCHING faith. I want to not worry or doubt His goodness to me. For He is good and perfect and all my days- and all my children's days- are His.

Construction

2011-02-09T12:23:00.002-06:00

As I'm sure you've noticed, things are changing around here! As part of my birthday present, my sister is blessing me with her computer talents by changing the look of my blog. Bear with us as the changes happen in between her caring for her two sweet little boys and me coming up with ideas to give her.

Could her timing be any worse?

2011-02-07T11:27:00.002-06:00

Just the other day Pete and I were discussing when to potty train Charlotte. It is something I pretty much dread with each child. I usually use the sort of potty training boot camp approach. We start at the beginning of a week when we have little to nothing planned. I stock up on juice and m&m's and stickers and make a sticker chart. We start with pants checks every couple of minutes, gradually waiting longer between each check. A dry pants gets a sticker. A dry pants and potty in the potty chair gets 2 stickers. A dry pants, potty and poopy in the potty chair gets 3 stickers. We do this for a few days to a week, increasing the time in between pants checks until we're only checking a few times a day. Usually after 5ish days they are going on their own. We keep giving stickers for about two-three weeks. By then the sticker chart is usually full and then they get a prize that was in sight but out of reach for the whole training period (a flashlight, a new baby doll dress or something like that) That's just what has worked for us several times now. And after trying with 3 of our kids right at age 2 (and having it seem to work and then not) we've also decided that what is best for our family is to wait until they are about 33 months old. So after discussing how nice it would be to have Charlotte out of diapers before we get our new son home, we decided to just wait until near summer's end right before she turns 3.

I wasn't planning on this happening- Charlotte came upstairs a little while ago and said she needed to go potty on her toilet. Alright then, let's go. She sat, I read the potty book, and she did nothing. Then she freaked when I tried to put a diaper back on her. So she's wearing underwear. Yikes! Since then she has told us 3 times that she needs to go potty, but so far, nothing. Hopefully soon she'll do something! I guess I need to call my mom and see if she's up for potty training while I'm gone!!

200 yards

2011-02-07T07:15:00.002-06:00

That's how close two planes came to eachother in the air over New York last month. Not something I want to hear about right before heading into the sky. Thank you, Good Morning America. Maybe I won't be watching you for awhile. Ignorance is bliss, after all, right?

Who Are You?

2011-02-04T09:02:00.002-06:00

Okay, so I've been blogging for 3 or 4 years now. I've thought about stopping at various times because I was pretty sure only about 5 people read this. Then the other day one of my friends told me how to check my stats. I know, it's crazy that I never knew how to do that before, but anyway...I discovered that I get about 60-70 pageviews a day. And so, I ask, who are you?? Really, who is reading this blog? How about you leave a comment and say hi? It's easy, really- just sign in with your google or yahoo account. You don't have to have your own blog to comment. And if you don't already have a google or yahoo account, you can open one really quickly. It would make me feel so much better if you'd just leave a friendly little hello :)

Day Off

2011-02-04T06:41:00.002-06:00

Yesterday I found out that the church where we meet for Classical Conversations had cancelled all activities at the church for yesterday and today. I am so happy that we get to stay home again! I haven't left the house since Monday and it has been wonderful. I know, to some of you that sounds terribly boring, but I'm okay with that. This is my realm and I'm content here. Being home for several days in a row usually means I'm well rested, the house is in order (sort of), the laundry is managed (notice, I didn't say "caught up"), and we've had quality time together. This week we've watched a blizzard from the warm confines of our living room and not had to worry about missing anything bcause we had no major plans.
The kids are so excited that I declared today "Reading and Crafting Day." They have some boxes they are eager to turn into cars or airplanes or something. We're flying through a good book together that we just might get to finish today. I'm sure I'll see Kate lounging in bed reading for hours. I plan to get some serious knitting done. It will be a great break from our regular routine.
Then tomorrow we need to get some house cleaning done since last Saturday we didn't do our usual chores. And there are some suitcases that need to be packed for a big trip coming up.
The yarn is calling.....

Much to be learned from a clingy child

2011-02-03T06:40:00.002-06:00

I have a little girl who loves to lean on her mama. She does best when her day starts with a sit on the couch next to me thumb sucking session. I don't have to talk to her- it may be that she's come down the stairs a little before the "kids are allowed up" time of 7 am and found me starting my day leaning on the Lord. She sits by me while I read my Bible, all cuddled up close. After a few minutes she's ready to find some breakfast and get to her chores and playtime. The kitchen is a wild and loud place at 7:30, everyone vying for the toaster, juice spills, cereal basket with choices spilling out left on the floor and they're off. Except that one sweet and tender one who is a very slow eater. As she finishes, I make my own breakfast and sit down. And she comes over to lean on me again. Throughout the day she'll stop what she's doing and come and put her head on my lap while I sit teaching an older sibling. She'll come stand by me as I wash dishes and put her little head against my leg. When we sit down to draw and read, she'll wind intricate roads on paper and fill in with color- for awhile- then take a break from her absract designs to come sit by me for some leaning time. If I'm too busy running around she will actually cry, "I just want to lean on you!" And so I find some space to sit and keep her by me and stroke her blonde head until she's ready to go again. I've come to realize this is her love language, her way of feeling secure. And it's special because she doesn't ask to lean on anyone else. She'll take daddy if I'm not around. And I'm pretty sure grandma will be a good leaning spot when mommy is away, but she just really wants her mama. And I'm okay with that. And I'm learning from her. It's not enough to put in a little leaning on the Lord time in the morning. I need it all day. Him all day. I need to just drop what I'm doing- like she drops her colored pencils, books, toys- and go sit beside my Father. His Word is life and sustenance to my soul. I need it all day long.
Lord, help me to stop what I'm doing throughout the day and come back to the source of all comfort. Like my child clings to me, may I cling to You, long for You, need You!

Keeping It Simple

2011-02-01T14:07:00.002-06:00

Now is the time to prepare for our big trip. Now is the time to simplify other things so that we can enjoy the anticipation of traveling to meet our son. And so we can enjoy the time with our precious children before we leave them for nearly a week. We are keeping school really simple for the next couple of weeks. We are concentrating on our memory work, speeches, and paper writing for Classical Conversations. Also, I decided to take a break from Saxon math for a little while here because Peter was getting discouraged and needed more help than I can give him at this point. So for 2-3 weeks Peter and Kate are doing some fun, colorful math workbooks that I got awhile back at Sam's Club. I think this will help to build their confidence as they are pretty much reviewing things they already know. The other thing we're spending extra time on is our reading aloud. We finished The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe a few days ago and are several chapters into The Horse and His Boy. I just love our read aloud times as the children find a spot on the floor to draw while they listen. Usually Ella will take a break from her drawing to come cuddle with me. Then back to drawing she goes. Our scaling back on things will also allow the children to continue "doing school" even while I'm gone. Peter is staying with friends who also attend CC so he will be able to do that with them, as well as the math and other assignments I send along. And my mom will have a list of things to go over with Kate each day. Mainly I think the girls are going to enjoy lots of crafting with grandma, having their hair done in "princess braids," and reading stories. I'm so thankful that we have people in our lives that we can trust to lovingly care for our babies while we are away!

Not So Short Stack

2011-01-27T06:46:00.008-06:00

I have an ever growing pile of books read. Where do I begin? is the question!
I just finished The Heretic's Daughter by Kathleen Kent. It was a fascinating book based on stories from the author's own family about an ancestor who was imprisoned as a witch during the Salem witch trials. Now I am reading The Wolves of Andover by the same author. Fiction sits on my nightstand and takes awhile to get through because I read anywhere from a page to a few chapters right before I go to sleep and usually I don't last very long.

I am saving this book for my flight and can't wait to open it!

Here are the other books that I am eager to dive into-

What are you reading?

Tangled

2011-01-26T18:34:00.002-06:00

Soon

2011-01-24T23:05:00.003-06:00

The day is quickly approaching when I will get on a plane and fly far away. Leaving my five precious babies behind, I will meet a little boy I did not have the joy of knowing as a baby, but who will hopefully join the whole brood soon in calling me mama. Why mama? And where did that even come from? They aren't babies anymore after all. And I never said, "call me mama." They just do. But it works and so I look forward to hearing that from him too. I look forward to being that for him. For this boy with the huge and smiling eyes who has known such great loss in his almost five years.
I lost my adventurous spirit when I started having these babies. So this getting on a plane and flying to the other side of the planet (twice!) is not exactly my first choice of fun. And, while some people find great purpose in exploring the world, I find great purpose- and joy- in staying put right here in my own little world. This house. The man who goes to work each day to pay for this house and the children who fill it with all manner of mess and mayhem- they are my world. So leaving it (except for the man, I'll take him along) is going to be excruciating. My heart hurts at the thought of leaving my Peter, my Kate, my Maddie, my Ella, my Charlotte. My dear babies, I have to go get your brother. It's not for me. It's not to fulfull some wild dream to see the world or do a good deed or become part of a club. It's for him. It's for our family. It's for our God who said that we must care for the orphan. Our God who filled our hearts with such gratitude that He made each of you, me, your daddy, HIS children- we need to draw more in to the family of God. We need to tell the world about Jesus and this is a way to do that. And this is a way to continue to show that children are a blessing, a reward.

Time and Water Rushing

2011-01-18T19:47:00.003-06:00

Time rushes by and I don't think, don't feel, don't breathe in a moment. I have been slow to learn how to think throuh the noise and so I bury that girl who used to have a complete thought without interruption. The girl who was single, carefree, dreaming in candlelit poetry. What was I dreaming about? This life. I imagined and hoped for and prayed for a strong and faithful husband, rooms full of laughter and books and blankets. Here I am. Living that dream and so much more. Except for the hold of selfishness upon me. I didn't plan for that. My mom served her family selflessly, always husband and daughters first. I never knew to ask- did it hurt? Did you ever just want to pull your hair out and run and hide with earplugs lodged securely to drown out the needs and demands? I have to stop longing for a quiet space that doesn't exist around me. Let it exist inside of me. I have to feel and be thankful for the moment.
Water pours with the lifting of a handle and rushes over the pot I wash. I slow down and really feel the smooth sides of the vessel that held food for my children. The children who giggle and chase and sing, "...here I am to worship..." at the top of their lungs over and over. Gazing out the window into the winter darkness I see nothing but the reflection of candlelight from the other room. I hear a big sister say to a little sister, "It's okay, you can twirl without a skirt on." I hear a strong man and a capable son rolling paint onto walls of a bedroom being made for a new son and his very excited big brother. And I am thankful. I am in the moment. Still, not rushing.
Lord, teach me to be thankful through the chaos and embrace the moments and not let the days rush by without noticing Your grace and goodness in each moment.

January Read Alouds

2011-01-17T21:11:00.002-06:00

We STILL haven't finished listening to
Hans Brinker on cd, but we will by the end of the month!
I had to take a break from it though so we just read

The Magician's Nephew by CS Lewis
Willy's Trunk (Lamplighter)

and tomorrow we'll start our second time through
The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe by CS Lewis

November and December Read Alouds

2011-01-17T21:10:00.002-06:00

I have to admit, Hans Brinker has taken us FOREVER. It moves pretty slow so I often can't handle reading it for long. We coninued to plug away at it.

October read alouds

2011-01-17T21:01:00.003-06:00

I really was planning on posting our books each month and here I am way behind! In October we had several weeks of fighting a nasty cold with a lingering cough so we did very little reading. We read a

biography on Martin Luther and started

Hans Brinker or The Silver Skates.

We had learned some things about the Netherlands for History so I thought Hans would be a good read. And it is a neat story and really teaches a lot about the culture and life of Holland, but it is SLOW going! I was thrilled to find that the library has it on cd.

What's Goin' On...

2011-01-17T20:10:00.002-06:00

...South Beach Diet Day 2 and I'm still alive.

...all 4 girls are sharing a room now that Pete got the bed built- I'll try to post pictures of it soon.

...Pete is working on painting the little girls old room for "the boys"

...someone had a math meltdown today and I'm still trying to decide on whether or not to switch from Saxon to Teaching Textbooks for 3rd grade on up

...I haven't knitted in about a week. That feels weird.

...I turned 34 last Thursday. That feels REALLY weird. I DO NOT feel 34!

...I am going to be meeting my 6th child in less than one month.

...Ella is eating again. But now Maddie is afraid of the dark. Hmmm...wonder what our next issue will be.

...I think I confused Charlotte one day by asking, "WHAT did you eat?!" when I changed a poopy. Now everytime I change her poop she shakes her head and says, "I not eat poop."

...Everytime I turn around Charlotte is in the bathroom "yoshing" her hands. Oh, great- maybe that will be our next "issue"

...What I wouldn't do for some sugar right about now. The withdrawal is a serious headache. You just don't realize how much sugar you eat on a regular basis until you cut it out- and I'm not just talking about sweets here, but bread, potatoes, crackers, tortillas. Ugh. Well it's time for my nightly "sugar free fudgesicle"