If you've never read Lindsey, you're in for a treat. She's down to earth. I'm really excited to see this new Advent Blog!
2 years ago
Tuesday, October 31, 2006
Friday, October 27, 2006
Halloween - YMMV
You know how it is when you're "new" somewhere and you don't want to say anything controversial? I've been here for a few months now and I've not posted a lot of substance because I realize that written words can easily be taken the wrong way. Particularly when it's matters that are dear to us.
I have many blogs that I read daily. And by "daily" I mean the days that I get to sit down and read blogs. ; ) A least a couple of times a week usually.
Some of the blogs are from women close to my own age (40) but many are women that are much younger. I'm not really sure why this is, except that younger people tend to be online more I suppose. I've searched for blogs of older Christian women, but the majority of blogs that I've found are younger women.
I suppose that at my age, I've learned that there is wisdom to be found everywhere you're willing to look. So I really enjoy many of these young women's blogs. There are sometimes in very different seasons of their lives and it brings back some sweet memories.
And many of these young women have some strong ideas on things. Strong ideas are wonderful. And I suppose I was very similar when I was their age. But we all have things to learn. None of us know the right answers to every question. And some questions may not even have "right" and "wrong" answers.
This brings me to Halloween.
I do allow my children to participate in Halloween activities. I always have. Most of the activities are either at our church or the church that we have Girl Scouts. But we also have a little get-together at our house every year where all their friends come and they go around the neighborhood together. It's a great Halloween neighborhood.
We do not dress in anything scary. We are not celebrating anything other than this kid holiday of dress-up, fun and candy.
We walk up to houses that have lights on, doors open, and pumpkins glowing. The elderly neighbors really seem to get joy seeing all the little kids all dressed with faces shining. The adults walk with steaming mugs of cider or cocoa and fellowship. The girls get an evening with their friends.
And let me say here, that I totally respect your right and opinion to NOT celebrate Halloween. Certainly if I (or my husband) felt convicted to not celebrate, we wouldn't.
And I wouldn't need any other reason. Not a single one.
But please understand that we don't go "begging for candy". We don't force people in the neighborhood to participate if they don't want to do so. We don't celebrate anything evil, ever.
So please, let your words (even the written ones) be gentle. You may feel in your heart that something is wrong for you and your family, but that doesn't mean that my family has the same convictions.
And it doesn't mean that either of us is wrong.
Monday, October 23, 2006
A New Week
I only have a minute, as usual, this morning. Jillian has to be at co-op in a little while and she has her second science test. She's studying right now. It's so sweet to watch.
Last week was our first week teaching at the YMCA. My girlfriend Brooke and I signed up to teach one of the classes for the LITs (Leaders in Training, which is the 11-16 year olds). We're teaching a class in Environmental studies and we have 5 more weeks (one hour a week) to define an environmental problem and solve it.
Heh.
I told them last week that we probably wouldn't be doing anything about space litter or anything on that level. It's amazing what kids that age want to accomplish when given the reigns. It's heartening.
Brooke, who is a certified teacher, was out of town on the first day. I had a bit of anxiety about teaching the class all by myself (there are 18 kids!) but it turned out *so* *incredibly* *well*.
The homeschool coordinator "sat in" (read: watched my every move) to make sure things went well. Talk about feeling graded! But the kids made it so much fun. The boys were great, and they're sometimes NOT great. The conversation flowed and we all learned so much! I had TONS more material than I could possibly get through, so that was good. Not much worse in a classroom setting than running out of things to say. They can turn on you pretty quickly! ; )
After class was over (and time flew so quickly) , the instructor came over to me and just beamed. Said that it was far better than she had anticipated and she was so pleased. And this woman is a bit stingy with the compliments if you know what I mean.
I was happy for the rest of the day.
Words...they mean so much.
Saturday, October 21, 2006
Sunday, October 15, 2006
Unbelievable!
I know I've said it before, but it's worth repeating, I LOVE my church. How we got there is a story in itself, and I'll try to remember to tell it soon.
Today our preacher was out. He's an amazing man with a talent for speaking directly to the hearts of all who listen. His daughter got married yesterday out of town, so we didn't really expect him to speak today. We went to church anyway, though honestly, we'd have preferred to stay at home.
Once we sat down and opened the program, we were a bit surprised. Our speaker today was going to be Chris McDaniel. Formerly of the country/rock band Confederate Railroad.
So he got up there and started singing, and playing the keyboard and it was *amazing*. He was so good.
And then he started to speak.
He spoke of his life, his upbringing, his relationship with Jesus, his whole life. He told stories of life on the road and life as a child in a small southern town. He talked of his children with awe and love. He didn't hide the ugly parts of his life. He laid it all out. And told how God had welcomed him back home.
In between stories, he'd sing and play the keyboard. Songs that told us stories every bit as much as the words he spoke.
How glad we were to have gotten the opportunity to hear this mans great story. How humbling and inspirational. I only wish our preacher could have been there.
Tuesday, October 10, 2006
Tuesday
Thankfully, the girls are out of the YMCA program this week. Starting next week, I teach (I co-teach actually, my friend is teaching, but she's out of town the first week, so technically, I *do* teach next week) until the end of the year. We're doing an environmental studies class, which should be fun!
Last Friday we had a GS activity at a farm about 45 minutes from here. Mike decided to go with us. It was a really nice family time.
Here is Julia, Jillian and Mike with this creepy thing that was walking around and moving it's weird arms!
This is Jillian and her dad with a dancing something.
There was a campfire and they let you make smores. There were adults dressed up passing out little boxes of candy. And it was chilly! Jillian took my vest because I at least had on long sleeves. The place was set up pretty kid friendly. Not too scary. We don't like scary much here.
On another note, the weather is *fabulous*. Warm days and cooler nights. If it weren't for the allergies this time of year, I'd love it to stay this way for at least 9 months of the year.
Monday, October 02, 2006
My Julia (12) is such an amazing daughter. I can't even express what it's like watching her grow into the woman God wants her to be. She's at the age that mommy can't always "make it better", and that makes me sad at times.
She told me a story last night that was on her mind. I have no idea where she heard/read it, so if anyone knows please let me know so that I can give proper credit.
'Cause I'm gonna share it here.
A young girl was walking home one evening and it had gotten later (and darker) than she had thought. She had to go through an alley. She got a little way into the alley and saw the figure of a man on down the way.
She felt creeped out and scared. She had to go this way to get home, but she didn't want to walk past the man.
She started to pray. She asked God to keep her safe. She continued her walk and when she got close to the man he looked at her. She nodded and continued on her way.
After she was out of the alley she felt a little silly. She had obviously let her imagination run away with her.
The next morning her mother came to her and told her that a girl had been attacked and assaulted in that very alley that she had walked down the night before. Had she seen anything? She said that she had and so her mother took her to the police station. They had a man in custody and asked if she could pick him out of a line-up. She thought she could. And she did.
The police thanked her for her help in a dismissive way. She asked if she could speak to the man before she left. They said that was an odd request, but yes, she could.
She had questions that were bothering her. Why someone else and not her? She was alone, afterall.
She was placed in a small room with the man and a guard over by the door. She asked the man why he didn't attack her the night before when she was walking down the alley.
He said that there was no way he would have touched her with those two large men walking on either side of her.
Saturday, September 30, 2006
Beautiful Fall Saturday
I finally got the house clean yesterday! Top to bottom. Well, yesterday and what I had done the day before.
I really don't want to spend that kind of time on Thursdays and Fridays to get the house together, but I think I may have to do just that. I simply have no consistent time on Sunday, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. Sometimes I do, and sometimes I don't. It depends on what's going on with the day. The girls are at various school related activities (or church activities) and I'm sometimes needed. Or needed to hang around and play schedule catch-up. Or simply have a coffee with friends and be there for them. So it may be easier to just not schedule ANY cleaning for those days. I'm still pondering this.
We're home (usually) on Thursdays and Fridays. It's our big homeschool days. So why not get the work done then?
Our new church had their first youth lock-in last night. The girls went, but didn't stay the night (my idea). They had a great time and can't wait for the next one. I'm so happy about that.
It's an incredible fall day here in Tennessee. The air is crisp and the humidity is low. The doors and windows are open and it's so nice to hear the outside weekend noises. After very minimal cleaning, we're going to get out and enjoy!
Friday, September 29, 2006
Changes in Attitudes
For someone who is always talking to my girls about attitude and what it means/how it glorifies (or not) God, etc., you'd think *mine* would be different.
I spend a good amount of time thinking of what I didn't get done this day or that. This week or that. And I'm going to try to change my way of thinking.
So instead of focusing on the fact that I didn't get the bathrooms done yesterday, I'm going to focus on what I *did* get done.
- I had a full homeschool day with both my girls
- I made bread
- I made a double batch of laundry soap
- We went and got Jillian's Halloween costume
- I cooked a nice big dinner
- I put away all the bulk purchases that I've been meaning to do for a few days
- I sat in the hot tub with Mike for about an hour
- I did 4 loads of laundry, folded and put away
- I did a bit of housework
- I started a lovely paint kit with Jillian (9) and we sat with that for over an hour
And probably much more.
I'm really going to work on my attitude and self image. I *am* busy. I'm doing my best. I'm going to attempt to be happy with that.
If only there were about 8 more hours in each day. ;)
Wednesday, September 27, 2006
Wednesday
Jillian felt good about her test Monday. We won't find out her grade until next Monday, but I'm glad it was a positive experience for her.
Yesterday the girls had their YMCA day. They take Spanish, Karate, music, etc. It's a pretty good program, especially for Julia (12) as she gets a high school credit for the Spanish. The only downside is that it pretty much takes up our whole Tuesday. I've struggled with trying to "fit it all in" with homeschool and balancing all the other things we do. So far it's ok, but it's a chore at times.
My friends (who also drop their kids off at the Y) all went out to lunch yesterday and then on a little trip to a cheese making farm. I was jealous, but simply HAD to get home and get some work done.
It makes me wonder if I'm not doing something right/well. Where do they find the time to spend a whole afternoon out? I *could* have went, of course. But I really had things that *needed* to be done at my home. Bills to pay. Laundry to do. Meals to cook. A house to clean.
It was definitely easier over the summer.
Our Monday's, Tuesday's, and Wednesday's are packed. We are out of the house every one of those days pretty much for the full day. Note: Anything past 3 is a full day to me. : )
That leaves Thursday and Friday to get our homeschool done (the stuff that *I* do with them, they are schooling each of the other days as well). And get the house together. And plan the meals. And all of the other things that go into running a home.
I'm not complaining. Really. I'm so blessed to be able to stay at home and do this with my family. I'm so incredibly grateful.
I just wish I were more organized. I wish that I had the time to go to lunch and to a farm. Not that I would go. But just that I had the free time.
Julia (12) has a math test today. So time to get going.
Monday, September 25, 2006
No Time Right Now
Jillian (9) has her first co-op test today and we're reading over the content. She knows it, but I'm not at all sure what kind of "school" tester she is, so this should be interesting.
And hopefully validating.
But I just wanted to say that I simply LOVE my church.
I love it.
More later.
Sunday, September 24, 2006
Rainy Sunday
The dog woke me up this morning because storms scare him. So I got up a bit early and that's fine because I got to sleep pretty early last night.
We had to be up early yesterday to go to Angel Food at the neighboring church. The girls volunteered.
Does anyone NOT know about Angel Food now? It's the most amazing thing. I plan to blog about it when I find more than just a few minutes.
I'm not at all happy with the way I've been keeping up the blog. I wanted to post daily and it's just not happening. I'm (still) trying to get in the groove of fall and homeschool and keeping up with all of my cleaning. Time really gets away from me.
It seems like I'm brushing my teeth to get ready for bed, I blink, and I'm brushing my teeth to get ready for bed again.
Yuck.
And Jillian has a stye in her eye. And looks pitiful.
: (
Hmmm...I should go have a little cheese with that whine.
Saturday, September 16, 2006
I Cannot Believe it's Been a Week
(Or more appropriately titled "The Camping Trip of Nightmares".
Where has the time gone?
Last weeks camping trip was a *disaster* on many fronts.
Let me just say, I'm not a tent camper. I'm just not. I don't like bugs. I don't like sleeping on the ground. I like warm water. I just do.
My girls feel the same way.
So why on *earth* we thought it was a good idea for all of us to do this trip is beyond me.
The girls had went up Friday night and Mike and I had a really nice evening (as previously posted). So Saturday morning he had stuff he wanted to get done, so I just packed up and headed out.
The directions could have been worse. But I don't really see how. It took me over an hour of driving on curvy mountain roads that I've never been on before. My anxiety level going up with each curve and 200ft. drop off 4 feet from the van.
I finally got there, got out, smelled the fresh air, and thought, "This ain't so bad!". That lasted almost 5 seconds. Until I was greeted by one of the other moms who goes on to tell me that Jillian had cried all night long.
(Side note: I'm one of those moms that *WANTS* to be called if her child cries. That's what I feel I'm here for. They know this but wanted her to have a feeling of accomplishment, which I appreciate on one level, but she's only 9. Let's accomplish other things first.)
So Jillian is weird tired. Her eyes are all glowy. She is clingy. And Julia (12) is super hyped up (as were the other girls in all fairness). Two of the other moms were sleeping because it had been such a rough night (mainly because of my daughter though there were others that were scared as well).
It's "free time" when I get there and so I don't have to do anything other than just sit around and get the feel of the place.
Twelve very tired girls with nothing constructive to do makes for one LONG afternoon. They ended up fussing. Hurting one anothers feelings. Tears. You know, regular camp fun. (I'm very happy to report that MY daughters did not participate in any of that drama. I suppose the night time drama was enough for them.) So we got to play referee all afternoon.
And finally it's supper time. The group of girls that I had were so tired that they were laying their heads on the dinner table. Pretty rough.
They had some activity scheduled afterward, but there was just no way these girls could make it. So we opted out. Which was a big deal to the older scout leader for some reason, but that's another story.
We went back and started a fire. It starts to get dark. Jillian's anxiety starts to go up. She begins to cry. I walk around with her, talking to her, comforting her. She's not really having any of it. She's exhausted and scared and convinced there are "killers" in the woods waiting for her to close her eyes (she'd read it on a tent post the first night, that there were killers there that had killed before. What a lovely note to leave in a little girls tent.)
She was *just* beginning to calm down and we were walking back to the camp when a truck pulls up and yells at us to come closer. That they are finding copperheads (yes, the poisonous snakes) all over the place and that we needed to get off the ground somewhere.
Oh yeah, THAT was relaxing news for my 9yo. And me too.
I couldn't leave because there wasn't enough people to drive the girls home the next day. And anyway I'd have never found my way down this mountain in the dark. So my girls and I slept in the van.
Correction: The girls slept in the van, and I sat up in the front seat all night long looking for "killers", "snakes" and trying to read a book with a flashlight. I finally dozed off around 5:30 and slept until about 7.
Then it was breakfast time. Then clean up the dirt time. Then sit around time because we were done so early and couldn't get back to the dropoff point this early.
Oh, and if I thought the trip up ALONE was stressful, picture going back DOWN the mountain with 6 little girls added to the mix.
Finally, we're home and bathed and relaxing.
You'd think this should be the end of the camping story (other than 2 days worth of laundry).
Yes, you would.
And you would be wrong.
Wednesday I'm headed to the co-op with Jillian to pick up Julia and 2 of her friends (who were also on the camping trip) when my cell rings. One of the moms hates to tell me this, but the little girls that Jillian slept head to head with on the first night has lice.
Now you have to understand how *freaky* I am about lice for this to be remotely as ironically funny as it actually is. My children are not allowed to wear hats/coats/bandanas/use combs/brushes/sleep on others pillows/use others blankets/etc. I'm *neurotic* about it. Because I don't want lice.
Jillian has hair down to her bottom. And it's THICK. Very, very thick. And now she's potentially been exposed to lice.
I pick up the girls and take them to the church and check Jill's head. There is nothing there at all, but luckily Mike agrees with me that we should treat anyway. So he runs to the store and gets the million dollars worth of lice treatment and we spent ALL afternoon (about 7 hours) treating *everyone* in the house, spraying down the upholstery, (re)washing all the clothing/bedding, vacuuming, etc.
Overkill? Yeah, I'm pretty certain it was.
And then I find out the next day that NO ONE else has treated at all. They're just gonna wait and see. I'm silly, but that makes me nervous.
I can say with certainty that we shall not be GS tent camping for a LONG time. If ever.
Ugh.
Saturday, September 09, 2006
A Quick Post
This week has really gotten away from me. I'm trying to figure out why.
Monday was the holiday, but we had Girl Scouts too. And this week we were getting ready for camp (which started yesterday) so it was a busy meeting. We have an over enthusiastic leader for the Juniors this year. She is *marvelous*. Period. And she keeps us *very* busy with all the badges she's working on. I complained a little on Monday morning trying to get all the stuff together. Picture whiny voice. "It's a holiday." "Where am I going to find that size metal can in this day and age?" "Do I have a bag big enough to carry all of this and the Cadette stuff too??" "Am I ever going to get all the GS stuff organized??"
And then we got there and saw how much work the leader had put into it. For every one thing I did, she did 10. No more complaining for me.
Tuesday was YMCA co-op and it's all new for middle dd this year. She moved up to a new group (the group is new, not just her in the group) and it's a LOT of work and they don't have the kinks worked out yet. So it's frustrating for all of us. That was pretty much all day Tuesday.
Wednesday middle DD(12) had another co-op. Youngest DD(9) sat in the car listening to the radio while I worked on my schedule with a couple of other moms right outside the car. Until the battery went dead. She'd turned the whole car "almost on" and the battery died. LOL Luckily, one of the moms had cables.
Then after co-op I picked up DD(12) and 2 of her friends and my little one and took them all to get some food and then to youth at the neighboring church. Got stuck in **crazy** traffic on the way home to pick up DH. We were gonna go out to eat. I made it home with 10 minutes before I had to head back out to get the girls. I had bologna. : )
Thursday we worked fervently on homeschool and DH and I had a couple of errands to run. Attempted to get a little housework done too, but it didn't go so well.
Friday we did homeschool and then had to pack up for GS camp. They've never both went together before so it was a challenge to find 2 of everything. But I think we got it worked out. We dropped the girls off yesterday around 6pm and then DH and I got to go out to eat! It was a fantastic evening. Not too hot. We got to sit outside. Very nice.
Every Friday our city has a "gathering" downtown with music and such. We walked around there for a while afterward and met up with some friends. Very nice and relaxing. I'm so glad DH suggested it.
Then we went to pick up a few things that I need to take to camp tonight. Yes, I get to go spend the night tonight, as one of the moms needs to come back today.
We came home and snuggled down. A very nice evening. And I didn't worry about the kids at all. Right. You believe that don't you?
So today I'm about to get ready to go to camp for the *first* time.
Wish me luck.
And I suppose this post wasn't too *quick* after all.
: )
Sunday, September 03, 2006
My Weekend So Far
What an unusual weekend this has been so far.
Yesterday, instead of my going to get Jill, DH did it. I had a headache that was pretty bad. I don't like taking medications unless they are really necessary, but after about 3 hours of lying around I decided it might be necessary. I ended up taking some (generic) Excedrin and felt better by the time we had to run the girls around last night.
They were both invited to a birthday party that was also a sleep-over a the drive-in in a neighboring town. Well, that seemed a bit much after the night before, so we agreed that they could *go*, but that we'd pick them up around midnight.
So we left the house around 5pm because we'd not had a chance to get a gift yet. We knew exactly what we wanted to get, so stopping didn't take all that long except for the traffic. When we got to the meeting place, we were 2 minutes early and the only ones there! The mom of the birthday girl had arranged several people to drive everyone down to the drive-in so we wanted to be on time so that we didn't have to drive all the way down there ourselves. It only took a minute for another mom to pull up. But it took quite a while for the caravan that the girls were riding with to get there. So we were outside about 45 minutes in the heat. Not great for my headache which was starting to creep back at this point.
The girls were finally off and I called DH to let him know that I was on my way back home. He was in the mood to go out for dinner and a movie (which we had done the night before as well, so that was really odd), and was just done with all the chores he was working on around the house, so I headed home.
I jumped out of my car and into his as he'd picked a movie that was starting in just a little while. So we put dinner off for a while. We sat through the movie and laughed. It was so nice. And when we left, this little restaurant that we'd not been to in probably 15 or more years was still right there and we went in for a light snack. It was so cozy and nice.
Then we rode around downtown killing a little time before it was time to head to the drive-in. When we got down there it was probably around 11:30 and DH knew everyone there! He'd grown up in that area and it was pretty funny. So he sat and talked for a few minutes and I got to look around the place. It's nice and looks like some place we'll have to go check out sometime.
We got the girls (and an extra one to boot, to take home to her family) and headed back, dropped off the friend and headed home. The girls were pretty dirty and had to have showers before bed so it was late before we all settled in (around 1am) and now we're up for church. We'll probably be a bit tired today, but we have tomorrow off!
We're normally "home bodies" so all this running around is different. And fun. We used to be out more and hopefully this will become more the norm. But...my house has suffered for it! So I've got some making up to do today after church.
But it's all worth it. : )
Saturday, September 02, 2006
Saturday
Hi-Boo is doing well. It was really hard on him for a few days. But he's up running around now and seems more active than he has in years. And that's such a blessing. He has, over the course of his life, been a thorn at times, but he's truly like a member of the family. And we're thrilled to see the quality of life he seems to have found.
Both of my little girls were away last night. Julia (12) had a youth lock-in at a neighboring church. Seems she's now called a "common visitor" there because she is on the mailing list. That made her pretty happy. And Jill (9) had a sleep-over with one of the little girls in their "group" of friends who isn't old enough to go to the youth function either.
And then TONIGHT, they are both invited to a camp-out sleep-over at a local (almost) drive-in theatre. I'm thinking I'll let them go, but go pick them up around midnight. We've got Church in the morning and I'm just not sure I want them to miss that. Plus, this second overnight coming on the heels of the last night is really just too much for many of the girls in this little group.
Julia is now home and in bed. The mom where Jill spent the night asked me not to pick her up so early because they like to sleep in. So she'll either bring her home, or I'll run get her when she gets up.
These kids *never* sleep when they're out at these functions. I just don't remember doing that as a child. We'd sit up late, but it was pretty rare for us to want to be up all night long. It makes them a little weird for a day or two.
Luckily Jill doesn't have the co-op this Monday. Julia, however, has it on Wednesday. Hopefully their sleeping will be back to normal by then.
Tuesday, August 29, 2006
Hi-Boo
It took a lot of convincing to get DH to let us have a dog. I was raised with dogs. But he was raised very differently than I. Anyway, after letting it be known for a long, long time that we'd welcome a dog, he finally surprised us by driving up with one out of the blue one day.
It was a big black furball. All chewy and whiney. And so cute. Our oldest (19) named him Frisky. She was 7 at the time. Our middle daughter (12) was about 7 months old. She renamed him Hi-Boo.
So he's been here a while. We watched him grow into a big bear of a dog. He terrifies people with his size. But he's always been the most gentle of dogs.
He was a thorn in our side many, many times. He was terribly hard to confine. He found ways to escape. During one of his escapes he got a poodle pregnant through a chain-link fence. THAT kind of mischief ALL the time it seemed. He even ended up on a local TV show with a bandage on his head one morning while I was getting ready to go out of town, not even realizing he was OUT yet.
Back then, I knew very little of dog training. And he has never "minded" (obeyed for you northern readers ; ) *me* well (he minds DH). But we love him dearly. Even though he's terrified of rain and has to be held like a baby when it even drizzles. Yes, the 90lb dog has to be held.
Now, he's old. He's taken to limping when we do our evening walks. So we made him a vet appointment for yesterday morning. The limping is arthritis. We've got pills for it that should make him better. But his teeth are bad, and he needed surgery. So we agreed and he was gone all day yesterday having that done. There is also some bloodwork that doesn't look great, and we'll have to follow that.
DH and I went to pick him up around 5 yesterday and he was really out of it. It was a bit of a shock to see this big, happy, playful dog unable to stand. DH carried him to the car and we got him home. It took him much longer than normal to "come around" which doesn't bode well, combined with the bloodwork, but he's doing a bit better today. And he took him meds like a good boy.
But seeing him like this is sobering. And I can't help thinking that it's a lesson in life. That we all have our times of disobedience, perhaps even running wild, and then, in the end, if we're lucky enough to make it that long, we're slowed down.
And hopefully we've nurtured our children in a way that will make them lovingly carry us back home, sit beside us, and feed us from their hands if necessary. And maybe even hold us when we're scared.
Monday, August 28, 2006
And a New Week Begins
The rolls only turned out so-so. I mean, they were *good*, but I got mixed reviews on the frosting. I was also a little disappointed because with the last rising the night before they were literally bursting out of the pan. And then after a night in the fridge, they were not nearly as fluffy as I would have liked.
I say all of this, but they were eaten. And enjoyed. : )
Today starts the second week of "school" for my baby daughter, and I've still not really written much on how it went. It was a busy week last week with everything starting up. And even more is starting up this week. Plus, we may be having an out-of town guest this weekend. After last week, I'm going to have to be more diligent in keeping up with the household chores. I've got my schedule all written out, and it looks doable on paper. But somehow it doesn't always work as I have planned.
Can you imagine that?
I do sometimes wish there were more hours in a day.
We've been walking the neighborhood as a family many nights of the week lately. Taking the dogs for walks. It's nice. We've talked to more neighbors lately than we have in years. That can only be a good thing. I love that time with my family.
Sunday, August 27, 2006
I'm Attempting Homemade Cinnamon Rolls
This could be a disaster.
The recipe said that it was ok to make them the day before and put them in the refrigerator overnight. Just to take them out the next morning for 30 minutes before baking.
So that's what I did. They were easy...but labor intensive. I can't really imagine getting up early enough in the morning to make these for breakfast. It would take 3-4 hours!
Anyway, they're in the oven now. And they smell pretty good. Hopefully the family will get to enjoy homemade cinnamon rolls for their Sunday breakfast.
Oh, and enjoy them.
; )
Saturday, August 26, 2006
About Yesterday
Because my girls are so active and do so many varied activities with the church and girlscouts, etc, they each have a cell phone on my plan.
I know some people think it's excessive. They're young. But it's for *my* convenience. They are only allowed a scant few minutes a month on it. And they've both showed incredible responsibility with both keeping up with it and with the usage.
Julia had mentioned earlier that she would really like to upgrade her cell phone to a picture phone for her birthday. Her friend got one for her birthday and thought it was cool beans. For about a day. Then the new wore off. Well, Julia changed her mind about wanting one. About a week before her birthday. Luckily, we had not gotten her a new one at that point.
She's at that hard age, where she's too old for "toys" but too young to have much interest in "grown-up" stuff.
So I was as stumped as she was at what to get her.
I talked to her younger sister and she suggested a video game. But we really couldn't think of anything else. And since both girls had elected to NOT have parties this year in order to get a bigger gift (it's the first time they've done this and I'm not sure they'll do it again) I wanted to make it something special.
When our oldest daughter turned 13, her daddy bought her a ring. A birthstone ring. With little diamonds. It was a *huge* hit. And we'd thought to do this with each girl when she turned into a teenager.
Well, DH and I decided that it might be the time to do it now, instead of 13, for a couple of reasons. Julia is much more mature at 12 than Jessica was even at 13. I suppose each subsequent child grows up a little faster due to the older influences in their lives. That's been our observation anyway. And Julia has super sensitive skin (notice the red hair) and can't wear much "fake" jewelry.
So DH and I went shopping and found *exactly* what we wanted. But the price was more than we could justify paying. We were discussing it when the sales lady said, "You know we're having a huge sale and these are both 40% off, right?" And she pointed to a huge sign that said just that.
We got them both. A birthstone ring AND earrings. I suppose we'll have to get "little bit" a ring, earrings and necklace when her time comes to get the special daddy gift?
Julia wanted a "Doody Plop" cake. Doody Plops are our name for no-bake chocolate oatmeal cookies. So we made up a batch and just poured it into our cake pan. Then used colored frosting to decorate.
Birthday girl, blowing out her candle. She then got her video game. And we told her we would go out to eat as well for her birthday. She thought the gifts were over.
We rarely go out to eat. But we decided to go out to http://www.macaronigrill.com/ It's one of the girls favorite places to eat. Notice the video game at the table.
Love the face when she finds out there is another gift.
She really liked the earrings.
At the second gift, she was a little overwhelmed I think. Her face started to turn red.
She loved the ring. As a matter of fact, I don't think she's talked about *anything* else since she got it. Should I sleep in it? How did you know the size? I Love It! Etc.
And then there was cake. And it was so special. This girl came out to sing Happy Birthday to her but sang it in Italian! And her voice was absolutely beautiful. It was definitely something we'll all remember.
We came home and told a walk with the dogs through the neighborhood. Which was a great way to end the day. Julia immediately got on the phone when we got back to dish to all of her friends.
What a blessed day in so many ways.
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