Sick Day

Goldilocks woke up this morning with a sore, froggy throat and a mild fever...she definitely wasn't herself last night, so I decided she needed a day to recuperate. So we're trying to think of quiet things to do here at home to keep her busy mind occupied. I'm glad I picked up a bunch of books on CD at the library on Saturday, so that will take up part of the day. And to make sure this sick day isn't so fun it turns into more "sick days", we'll definitely have to break out the homework and math flashcards. Thankfully, Hardware Hank is his usual mild-mannered, good-spirited little self, and Addiecakes is off to my "Mom's Group" with a friend so she doesn't miss out on playtime with her buds. Time to switch the laundry to the dryer and get working on coupons while Hardware Hank naps.

Anyone have any good "sick day" ideas that don't involve becoming a TV/XBox zombie for the day?

Things I Love Today....and Every Day

After storytime today, I checked out the library's ongoing used book sale and found they had put out a bunch of "new" books. My haul:

"A Perfect Mess: Why You Don't Have to Worry About Being Good Enough for God" by Lisa Harper

"The Enclave" by Karen Hancock

"Gideon's Dawn" by Michael D. Warden

"The Heart Mender" by Andy Andrews (how do you end up with that name?)

"The Amber Photograph" by Penelope J. Stokes

"Heaven's Road" by Judith Pella

"Brides of the Empire: Three Romances Thrive among Christians of the First Century" by Darlene Mindrup

"Almost Heaven" by Chris Fabry

"Being a Great Mom, Raising Great Kids" by Sharon Jaynes

"Laugh Out Loud (Women of Faith)" by Sheila Walsh, Patsy Clairmont, Luci Swindoll, etc...

"Sweetwater Gap" by Denise Hunter

"Revitalize Your Spiritual Life: A Woman's Guide to Vibrant Christian Living" by Sheila Walsh, Stormia Omartian, etc..

"Mayhem in Maryland" by Candice Speare

"Oregon Brides" by Tracey Bateman

"About What Was Lost: 20 Writers on Miscarriage, Healing, and Hope" by Jessica Berger Gross

All for $15. Pretty cool, huh?

Other things I love today? My daily Diet Coke from McDonald's...you know how some people just have to have Starbucks coffee? I feel that way about McD's Diet Coke.

And pink cowboy boots on my handsome little cowboy...

He Is Risen

I've been working really hard lately at celebrating holidays in a spiritually meaningful way. I've always been pretty good at making a big deal out of special days and giving the kids a great springboard for their imaginations, but I want to spend more time teaching the reason behind the holidays and less time on the secular trappings. With that said, here's what we've been doing this week to celebrate Christ's sacrifice and resurrection...

On Good Friday, the girls and I made crosses to write our sins on and decorate. Goldilocks came up with a sin to write down pretty quickly. Addiecakes had to think about it and finally came up with "Hardware Hank hits me sometimes." Isn't that human nature to be able to come up with someone else's sins before we can figure out our own? We also made tombs and stones. The stone stayed in front of the tomb all weekend, and when they woke up on Sunday morning, the stones had been rolled away and angels placed next to them.

We talked why we decorate eggs at Easter, and that an egg represents new life, as Jesus represents new life for us and victory over death.

Our eggs...we used food coloring and the Candy Apple dye kit from Walmart.

Eggs and nest I made with my mom's group.

We do the Easter Bunny here as well...they woke up to find baskets of goodies on Easter morning.

A while back I promised to give info on my "detailed" summer schedule....the summer started out with great intentions but as usual, daily life got in the way. At the beginning of the summer, we spent a lot of time at the library for Summer Reading, at our friends' house to play before they headed out to Russia to bring home their new sons/brothers, and a lot of time in our kiddie pool. I put together a basic daily routine to hang on the fridge, and made some magnets of extra activities that I could change around as needed. Though I haven't stuck really well to the routine, it has helped me when I get part way through the day and feel like I'm floundering...the last month has been wonky as I prepared to spend 8 days in Puerto Rico chaperoning a missions trip, was gone for 8 days, and then struggled to transition back to "real life". I'm really hoping to be back on track next week and help Goldilocks reach some back-to-school goals before school starts again...these goals include
1) shoe-tying
2) reviewing counting backwards from 20
3) reviewing writing out the alphabet
4) counting by 5's and 10's
5) writing #s to 100
I know she can do it, if only I can find a way to motivate her!

Here's an overview of our basic daily routine. I created a weekly table in Microsoft Word and illustrated with clip art.

Breakfast/Movie
Walk Dog (this hardly ever happens)
Help Mom w/Chores
Snack
Play Outside
Lunch
Quiet Time
School (this hasn't been happening much, either)
Snack
Play Outside/Swim
TV Time
Dinner
Bath
Bedtime

So Long...

Sold my first "grown-up" car today...11 years ago my great-aunt bought me a '99 Ford Taurus for my commute to school...that car has taken me far in life...back and forth to community college, the commute to 3 different jobs of mine, 4 different jobs of Firebug's, Pennsylvania for our honeymoon, Yellowstone, the Redwoods, Arizona, up north, through blizzards and heat and fog...it carried our first two babies home from the hospital (at about 15 mph). It came to me with about 30,000 miles on it, and limped away with 214,000. It was surprisingly hard to watch it back out of the driveaway for the last time. Here's to hoping a new owner and a new engine will give it a new lease on life...Thanks for all the miles burgundy Ford Taurus!

Aimless Rambling...

"Mama, I wish humans could fly...or I wish we were fairies...............are there real fairies?"

Just a snippet from today...as I sit here procrastinating on the mound of laundry to iron, fold, and put away, I feel I should share a little about what's going on in life.

Right now I'm supposed to be getting ready for a missions trip to Puerto Rico. But I'm having one of those moments where it all feels like too much...packing for 3 kids and the dog to stay at Grandma and Grandpa's, picking up all the last minute things Firebug and I need for the trip, packing our bags, getting ready for Hardware Hank's birthday party....right now all I want to do is sit on the couch enjoying the a/c...the humidity is definitely getting to me today. Don't hate me, but I am sooooo ready for summer to give way to fall. But I'm super excited to GET to Puerto Rico, to watch these 26 "kids" grow and amaze us...Firebug and I have poured our hearts into some of these students for 6 years and I can't wait to watch them put their faith into action.

Goldilocks and Addiecakes finished out the summer reading program and got their final prizes today...they each got coupons for free fries at McD's, free CinnaStix at Dominoes, and a free Blizzard and Sundae at DQ...plus a free book of their choice. Pretty sweet prizes! We celebrated by using some of those DQ coupons up:)

A minute ago Goldilocks and Addiecake were playing and having a blast....now they can't stand to be near each other...

Our dear friends are heading halfway across the world tomorrow to pick up their two sons...I can't imagine flying out of the country a family of 3 and returning a family of 5. It was surprisingly emotional to say goodbye, knowing that they'll be so far away for a month, then out of commission for a while as their boys adjust to a whole new language, culture, family, time zone, etc. Throughout the last 9 months, I've felt such a part of the process that it seems strange for them to take off without me! But the biggest emotion was the feeling of awe and thankfulness that God has seen fit to provide them with these two beautiful sons. That He has crushed seemingly insurmountable obstacles to get them to this point is such a picture of His love for us. For a couple who wouldn't give up on their dream of growing their family, for a 5 year old girl who will thrive on the companionship of younger siblings, for two brothers in Russia waiting for their forever family...I just can't wait to meet the little guys!

The Things I Got Today...

...some much needed extra sleep while the girls played nicely together this morning
...haircuts for the girls
...sliders at Applebees *yummo*
...a chuckle over the misunderstood facebook status "heading to Super 8 with hubby this afternoon"
...terrible seats at the movie Super 8
...tears in my eyes during the movie
...Bambi, Backdraft, Lethal Weapon 3, Zombieland, and another movie I can't remember for $2.99 each!
...mosquito bites on my ankles from letting the dog in from outside


By the way, I really enjoyed the movie...if you have a chance to go I would recommend it. The perfect blend of comical, heartwarming, intense, and sci-fi...reminded me a bit of E.T....