Proud of My Pie Maker

Three weeks ago our boys began attending a local church youth group.  Two weeks ago, our middle son came home from group enthusiastically sharing about an upcoming Pie-off (bake-off).  The event was a parents' open house and pie contest, a meet and greet and have some good eats type of gathering.

Our little brown-eyed boy was so excited!  He began brainstorming the best pies to make.  I promised to set aside a day to help him bake.  AND, perhaps being a chip off the old block, he wanted to make not one, but two pies.  I also think he calculated his odds of winning a category in the pie contest would be increased with more entries.  Smart little dude!

Like Wildflowers, We Bloom and Die

Psalm 103:15 Our days on earth are like grass; like wildflowers, we bloom and die.

This week we finished reading Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls.  For a dog lover this book is a heart warming yet heart wrenching read!  Through the pages we fell in love with Old Dan and Little Ann. Their antics, battles, victories and most importantly their relationship with Billy left us desiring the company of man's best friend in our home.  We lost our beloved family member, Sam, about five years ago and there's still a void in our hearts.

I read aloud to the kids nearly everyday and the kids know my emotional sensitivities get the best of me on a regular basis.  While reading, if something touches my heart, the next thing they know I'm fanning myself trying to hold back the tears.  The day before we finished the book I had to call it quits.  I was so choked up I couldn't speak or read. The tears were flowing freely.

Covered By Prayer

In the last 24 hours a lot has happened.  Thankfully there are the faithful prayer warriors out there doing what they do and I'm witnessing the results of their intercession.

Yesterday, I met with the director of the homeschool program our kids were planning on attending.  After our brief meeting, I sensed some misgivings about attending.  First off, driving to the location required a commute on toll road that often has traffic delays.  Second, I sensed an air of conflict with the director. Third, it was a new program lacking years of experience.

The first day of this school was supposed to be today, but I was really hesitating being part of this group.  Stress began to set in.  What to do with little or no time to make changes?

Crazy for Hot Milk Cake & Caramel Frosting

Our family has discovered Hot Milk Cake and boy oh boy, has it become a cake of choice around here!  Apparently, it has a LONG history of being an old-fashioned favorite.  So glad we've discovered this classic!

Book Study: The Courage of Sarah Noble

Grades 1-4 Class

This year I've been blessed to teach a couple book study classes at a local homeschool organization.  One class is geared toward grades 1-4, the other grades 4-8.

In the younger class we've read:

Ox Cart Man
The Drinking Gourd
A New Coat for Anna
The Rag Coat
Miss Rumphius
The Bears on Hemlock Mountain
The Courage of Sarah Noble

Field Tripping with Grandma: The Mission at San Juan Capistrano

"When the swallows come back to Capistrano," Grandma began singing when I told her we'd be heading to San Juan Capistrano to field trip at the mission. Interestingly enough, this song was written and released in 1939 when my Grandma was 13 years old.  This is the same age as our oldest son.  It's fun to think of my little grandma as a 13 year old girl singing this song.

Easter Birds Nests

We tried another bird's nest idea this Easter.  This one is with Chow Mein noodles and Whoppers Robin Eggs.  It's a very simple combination of ingredients, yet they are OH SO tasty!

My Girlie made them along with her BFF.  I love their friendship!  Lots of giggles, and lots of fun!

How cute are they?!?!

Easter Rice Krispies Nests

Despite the many cookie recipes I try, a favorite among the kids, and Hub especially, are Rice Krispies  treats.  I remember the early days in college when I first met my sweetheart and wanted to impress him with some good home cooking. Sadly, in my tiny dorm room I only had a microwave and a pot for boiling water. Sometimes you have to make due and in this mini-dorm room microwave I would whip up Rice Krispies treats for him and they stole his heart!

Get Away From It All And Enjoy America's Favorite Past-time

Last year, my hub packed up the car and took us on an adventure to Arizona so we could experience Spring Training.  Despite my protests, reminding him of ALL the things we NEEDED to do, he insisted we get away from it all and relax.

The Most Interesting Thing I Learned This Week...Jan. 23-27, 2012

Science and science experiments prove to be the most interesting aspects of learning for the kids.

Ari

Water is denser than oil.

Lights, Camera, Action! Sportsmanship Award Night Out!

"Hello, Rock Star!  Welcome to Disney 365!"

Last night was a big night in our little girlie's life!  Along with the 8 girls from her soccer team, she was treated to hair, make-up and dinner on the town (Disney Downtown) compliments of AYSO and Disney.

Recap:

In November she entered a Cars 2 Sportmanship essay contest sponsored by AYSO and Disney. In one hundred words or less she had to write what sportsmanship meant to her.

Here's her essay:

Sportsmanship

By Ari

In soccer there’s always going to be a winner and a loser but good sportsmanship helps every player have a great time. This year our team used dance to bring other teams together. We did a dance called the “Cupid Shuffle.” After games, we’d ask the other team over and dance together. It was a great time to celebrate and have fun! While dancing we forgot who won or lost and just enjoyed the moment laughing. While walking off the field the girls always left smiling. That’s what having good sportsmanship is all about. 

Irish Soda Bread

Irish Soda Bread

Last week, our history study touched on the Potato Famine in Ireland during the mid 1800's.  During this time period nearly one million Irish died and another million left the country.  Approximately 800,000 of those who left, emigrated to the United States.

Today, my girlie made traditional Irish Soda Bread as a cooking activity wrapping up our Irish Potato Famine study.  This bread is SO TASTY!  It would be a great addition to a St. Patrick's Day meal also!  We'll remember this recipe next month as we plan our special Irish meal.

The Most Interesting Thing I Learned This Week...Jan. 16-20, 2012

Last week was an exciting week.

Historically speaking, last week honored the birthdays of Martin Luther King, Jr., Benjamin Franklin, Daniel Webster, and Robert E. Lee!

On Tuesday, January 17th we were blessed to attend a presentation given by none other than Benjamin Franklin.  Coincidentally this happened to be the birth day of the famous American.

The kids also started 3-week courses on the Constitution and Earth Science focusing on geology.

The Best Thing I Learned This Week...Jan. 9-13, 2012

We're trying something new.  We might need good wishes to succeed in this endeavor, but the goal is to video the best tidbit learned by each child each week. They've been experimenting with videoing each other and I'm hoping to improve public speaking skills.

So here goes week one:

Braeden

Jaron

Ari

Somewhere down the line they may get a little more fancier, but for now this is as good as it gets.


Happy Learning!

Raising "Different" Kids

I love our kids.  More than life itself.

Before I was a mom, I knew I would dedicate my life to raising up godly, respectful, blessed children.  If being a MOM was a recipe I knew the main ingredient would be LOVE.

With each child, I gave them a song during my pregnancy.  Our oldest son's song is "Blessed" by Elton John.  Drawing from the lyrics of the song, I knew he'd be blessed; I'd give him my best; I promised him that.

When you commit to raise children, promising to give them your best, you make choices and sacrifices along the way.  I can't say I know how they will turn out as adults, but it is my desire to raise kids who are different.  By different I mean they don't fit in the "teenager" box or the "terrible two's" box or whatever other box the world wants to put them in.  Too often the world wants to place our kids a box.  It is our hope that they are who God says they are.  They are gifts packaged by God, different from any other kid who has hit this earth!  I'm honored to be given the gift of being their mom.

Parenting = Leaning heavily on God and His Word. My plan in parenting was simple: pour vast amounts of love on our kids, correct self-centered behavior and teach them compassion for others.  Along the way, in addition to love and compassion we hoped to teach them honor, respect, courtesy, kindness, generosity and more.   We acknowledge their gifts and celebrate the way God made them.

There are times I look at them completely honored.  Now I'm the one who is blessed.

Last night, our kids displayed their kindness, compassion and caring hearts.

I'm not sharing this to blow my own horn, but to celebrate what I see as the "different" behavior I had hoped and prayed for.

The kids accompanied me to the CrossFit gym for my workout.  They are so patient! They've endured countless hours at the gym waiting.

Last night's workout consisted of:

3 Rounds
800 meter run carrying 35 pound weight
3 rope climbs up a 15 foot rope
12 thrusters (I did 55 pounds)

So they wouldn't be bored, I suggested they run with me.  They love to workout, and jumped at the opportunity.

I found carrying 35 pounds while running is really tough.  Actually, it was more of a shuffle.  Our kids are incredible encouragers.  Throughout the run, they consistently repeated, "Go, Mom!  You're doing great!"

I forgot to mention we were running in the dark.  I make it a practice to never run alone in the dark.  I've mentioned numerous times about safety while running; running alone in the dark is not a good idea.

I have a friend, Suzie, who attends the gym at the same time.  Suzie is incredible. She's made amazing progress!  She was running alone last night when I was with the three kids.  I noticed during round two of the workout, our younger two kids were close to my side, but my oldest was holding back.  I sensed he was keeping tabs on Suzie making sure she was okay.

By round three, he was jogging alongside her offering encouragement.  He finished round three with her.

When she walked in, she breathlessly said, "You're kids are awesome."

This melted my heart.

He is different.

How many teenage boys would hold back not looking to run for their own glory, but to ensure the 40-something made it in safely?

His heart is HUGELY kind and compassionate!

I love that!

I didn't tell him to run with Suzie.  He just did it.

Developing your child's character isn't something you set out on a weekend to build. It's something that takes place everyday as you invest in your kids. It takes time, patience, and diligence.  It's not easy, but so worth it!  Be encouraged!

I read this quote the other day and it seems applicable:

And the Moral of the Story is....

As a worrying parent I can't even tell you how many times I've offered gentle reminders to our kids:

Where's your helmet?

Slow down.

Is your seatbelt on?

Don't throw balls in the house.

Ride on the sidewalk.

Don't dart out in front of cars.

Don't dive in the shallow pool.

Don't stand on basketballs, or soccerballs.

My oldest just reminded me of the one I told him yesterday, "Whatever you're thinking...DON'T DO IT!"

I hate to sound like a broken record, but it pains me terribly when they get hurt.

Today, after our homeschool classes,  our middle boy went out to play basketball with some buddies.  I was tidying up my classroom and chatting with a fellow homeschool mom who happens to also be a doctor.  Unexpectedly, one of our son's friends came up to the classroom and said our son was hurt and needed me.

We rushed downstairs and there I found my sweetheart in tears with a gash in his knee and blood running down his leg.  I had my friend take a look at it; she gave me the "stitches" nod.

We then rushed to the local urgent care which was packed.  Jumping back in the car, we headed to the next urgent care.

After a short wait we were seen.

"How did this happen?" asked the nurse.

The Gash

"I was standing on a basketball and fell off," said our son.

Soon, thereafter, the doctor came in.  She took one look at it and made the necessary preparations to stitch it up.

Sitting beside my sweetheart, wiping the tears rolling down his face as the doctor gave him numbing injections made me wish I could protect him from all pain. There's nothing I could do but pray with him and wait for her to sew him back up.

All stitched up

As a mom I try my best to prepare, instruct and equip our kids for whatever they may encounter.  Sometimes there are some lessons they have to learn at the school of hard knocks.

In the car on the way to the clinic, our son said to me, "This is a life lesson learned."

So true.

Hopefully he won't stand on a ball anytime soon.

And the moral of the story is... Don't stand on basketballs.  And, sometimes it pays to listen to your momma.

Gingerbread Cookies, The Ambulance, & The Unexpected Field Trip

Every year we make the same gingerbread recipe.  Thank you Martha!

And every year when we make these yummy Christmas treats, I think of one of the scariest experiences I've had as a momma.

December 2004, I was home alone with the kids.  My hub was working nights.  The kids and I were gathered in the kitchen mixing up a batch of Melissa's Gingerbread Cookies from The Martha Stewart Cookbook.  The kids were sitting on the counter helping add ingredients to the mixer.  I was standing right next to them.

Unexpectedly, our 1 1/2 year old girlie spun around and then fell backwards off the counter and hit her head on the hardwood floor.  It all happened so quickly AND I was right there.  How it happened still boggles my mind.  Immediately after she fell, I scooped her up. She was unconscious, back arched.  Quickly, I called 911 and within 7 minutes two sets of responders descended upon our home.  The boys and I were so frightened.  My girlie was conscious again, but lethargic.

After examination, the paramedics decided to transport us to the hospital for further evaluation.

In the ambulance the boys told the paramedic we were homeschoolers.  She proceeded to give them a field trip of the inside of the ambulance.  Meanwhile I held my precious girlie.  While at home, I was strong and clear thinking, but during the transport, the enormity of the whole event began to hit me.  Suddenly, I sensed a panic attack coming on.  The paramedic then placed an oxygen mask over my face for the remainder of the ride.  Breathe...

The kids still laugh over their momma's reaction.  They tell the story of the time nothing was wrong with their momma, but the paramedic had to give her oxygen.

Weak!

Our girlie ended up having a concussion.  Thankfully, nothing else was wrong.  She has a good story to go along with one of our family favorite cookies.

This year she drafted up a Christmas Advent list.  Making Gingerbread Cookies was our activity for December 1st.

She has a long list of fun activities for us in the month of December.  I'm making an easy advent calendar to showcase her ideas.

Here's a sneak peek at the Advent Calendar:

It's going to be a GREAT month!

A Winner in the Family!

A few weeks ago, my girlie's soccer team mom mentioned AYSO Soccer was teaming up with Disney for a team spirit contest.  She asked if anyone on the team would be interested in writing a 100 word or less essay showcasing how our team demonstrated team spirit and sportsmanship.  Our girlie jumped at the opportunity and was so excited to write the essay.

The deadline for submission was November 18th.  The winner would be announced December 2nd.

This morning my girl came bouncing downstairs with her hands covering her face with excitement.  She said, "Mom, today's the BIG day!"

What big day?  December 2nd?  I had forgotten about the contest.

She hadn't.

She remembers everything!

I didn't want to tell her the odds of her winning was probably pretty slim.  I sure hope I'm not a pessimist, but really, what are the odds?

Tonight as I was waiting for her to finish gymnastics, I received this email.

Hello Kimberly! My name is __ from the AYSO National Office. Thanks so much for entering the AYSO/Disney-Pixar Cars 2 Team Sportsmanship Contest. We’re so excited to inform you that your wonderful submission has won you and team _____ (U-10) the Cars 2 Team Party! Congratulations! Please contact me on Monday so we can follow up with you on the details of your prize. Great job and again, congratulations!

I CAN'T BELIEVE IT!!   I'm so proud of our girlie!

She's optimistic!  She's full of HOPE!  She's a WINNER!

According to the submission form the winning team will receive:

a Cars 2 themed dinner, plus each player will be presented with a "great sportsmanship" trophy and their own copy of the Cars 2 Blu-ray™ combo pack.

Very exciting news at our house tonight!  Look like a celebration is in order.

Homeschool Resource Periodic Table

Our oldest son is studying Physical Science this year.  We've recently begun learning about atoms, molecules and chemical formulas.  As mentioned earlier, teaching science is not one of my strengths.  We just did an experiment the other day on water as a solvent.  If you need a visual, science and I are more like water and oil. We don't mix, but sometimes we can go well together and make a GREAT dressing! I blend up what I learn, pour it on our kids and they seem to thrive and understand. Moreover, I'm so grateful for a well-written, easily understood science curriculum- Apologia.  I'm also grateful when I stumble across a science resource that is informative and interesting.  I hope the kids like this one!

Before I share a Periodic Table find, I have to share a funny story.  A couple weeks ago my hub happened to be home from work for the morning.  The kids and I were reading about chemical formulas and elements on the Periodic Table.  We were discussing protons, neutrons and electrons.  After about 15 minutes, my oh-so-awesome, stylish, spiky hair, absolutely adorable hub (who happens to have a degree in Chemistry) enthusiastically walks in the room and shares some brain-a-licious Periodic Table information with us.  To be honest, we weren't completely grasping what he was sharing.  He then quietly left and went back to his work.

Our brown-eyed middle son, with the cutest look on his face then affectionately whispers, "He's such a little nerd."

We all laughed, not to be mean, but we all recognize underneath the stylish, athletic exterior lies a GREAT mind of a brainiac.  I used to tell my sweetheart, while we were in college, he's the cutest nerd to ever walk the chemistry halls.  Love that!

Anyway, back to the Periodic Table find.  Thanks to The Homeschool Resource of the Day from Homeschool Freebie of the Day we found three GREAT Periodic Table Resources.

Dynamic Periodic Table:  It's a Wikipedia resource.  Click on the element and learn all about it.
The link: http://ptable.com/

The Periodic Table of Videos:  I like this one because there are short, 4-5-minute videos displaying the element and showing the properties of it.  Very interesting!
The link: http://www.periodicvideos.com/index.htm

The Comic Book Periodic Table: This might be a popular find among the comic book fans.  It doesn't necessarily tell you much about the element, but does give an example where and when the comic mentioned the element.  This makes for fun trivia to add to a chemist's knowledge.
The link: http://www.uky.edu/Projects/Chemcomics/

The Photographic Periodic Table:  This resource has photos of the element and informative tidbits of information about the element.
The link: http://www.periodictable.com/

If you haven't yet checked out Homeschool Freebie of the Day, it is worth your while.  There are great downloads and resources.

Book Study: Number The Stars Week 4

Teaching the history and overwhelming magnitude of World War II and The Holocaust to 5th-9th grade students can be a daunting task.  I REALLY want them to experience what we're reading and not just take the information and answer questions.  Reality is, we cannot even begin to grasp the enormity of it, but we can do our best to learn about the era, those involved, the events and the heroes who risked lives for others.

Sadly, too often students hear dates, statistics and facts and it's in one ear out the other.  I know first hand this type of learning.  Along with elementary education, I majored in history in college.  I learned a lot, regurgitated it for a test, and then went onto the next course.  I really can't say I had a professor who made an impact on my learning or that I fell in love with learning in college.  This is sad.  I imagine it's the same for many students.

Working with our kids has taught me to LOVE learning.  I LOVE thinking about being a pioneer girl on the open plain.  I love wondering if I'd have what it would take to help with the Underground Railroad.  Would I have the courage of Harriet Tubman or Corrie Ten Boom?  I've walked trails in our home state imagining I was Christy heading up through the Appalachian Mountains to teach.  Even tonight as I was completing a grueling workout running 400 meters, in the dark, carrying a 35 pound weight, I was imagining I was running from the Nazis carrying one of my children. Perhaps, I've been reading a little too much about World War II.

I'm currently teaching a book study on Number the Stars by Lois Lowry.  When planning to teach on the Holocaust, I found the National Holocaust Museum a GREAT resource.  They have informative guidelines for educators.  The guidelines point out that it's important to discuss the four types of groups involved: victims, perpetrators, rescuers, and bystanders.  We've discussed "The Final Solution" and that 6 million Jews were killed, but I had a sense the enormity of six million wasn't being translated into people.  One activity we did this week was to try to provide a visual representation for six million.

Forgive me if rice seems trivial, but I thought it would represent the magnitude and enormity of the number.

I brought a two pound bag of rice to class.

I divided our small class into three groups.  I asked each group to count the grains of rice I measured out to them.  I gave one group one cup of rice.  The two other groups received one teaspoon of rice.  The one cup of rice proved to be too much to count manually so we did our own calculations.  The two groups who had one teaspoon of rice counted out about 250 grains for their one teaspoon of rice.

There are 48 teaspoons in one cup, so we multiplied 48 X 250 equaling 12,000.

There were 5 cups of rice in the two pound bag.  This calculates to about 60,000 grains of rice in the 2 pound bag!

In order to count to six million, the students would need how many two-pound bags of rice?  ONE HUNDRED!!

With each grain of rice counted I tried to visualize each one as a person.  This is beyond comprehension!  Unfathomable!

I hope the lesson made an impact for the students.  It hit my heart...HARD!