Writer's Block

I haven't felt much like blogging these days...not sure why...but once in a while I simply cannot sit and concentrate to write. I suppose you can say that I have a classic case of writer's block. That being said...I'll just do a quick update on what's been going on.

• I'm still on crutches. It was a week on Saturday since my trip to the Emergency Room, so I figured "why not try to walk without them and see how my foot feels?" Stupid stupid!! My foot started aching again on Sunday morning when I woke up. It was great all day on Saturday, even ventured to the beach for some great sunset photos, but...the pain quickly returned. This afternoon I will be picking up my x-rays from the hospital and venturing over to the Orthopedic Doctor to see if there's truly any improvement. I'm hoping they take more x-rays. We'll see. In the mean time, I will continue to hobble around with my crutches.


• Zachary had a great weekend. He went away to the Mid-Winter District Bible Quiz Meet with our church's quiz team. His team came in 2nd overall - we're very proud of him and the rest of the team. These kids are incredible...they memorize a good portion of Scripture for these quizzes, and study the rest. They don't even have to think of the answer, it just comes to them. This year they are studying I and II Corinthians. The year is half-way over, so they still have lots more to work on. The best part? They are learning Scripture and are hiding it in their hearts....there's nothing better than that!!


• Hannah enjoyed the quiet weekend without her big brother around. We played all sorts of games together while he was gone...even a few rounds of pool! This girl is GOOD! She beats me almost every time now. She was able to spend the afternoon with one of her good friends though which was nice. She came home with a pillow and new clothes for her Barbies....all made with her own hands! Now she wants to go to the fabric store and buy material to make more. Sounds like fun to me!!


• We missed a few days of school due to Zachary being away, but we're catching up this week. He's got 4 things to dissect in Biology this coming week....a worm, a perch, a crayfish and a frog. We got them all in the mail the other day (ordered the Apologia Biology Dissecting Lab & Specimen Kit from CBD) and when I opened them all the memories came flooding back from high school Biology. Hmmm, will I get through this next week? I certainly hope so. Nothing is as bad as when I was in college though....we had to work on a human cadaver. That was awful!!! I'll be posting photos here when we get to the actual dissection process...stay tuned if you're brave enough!!


• We had another homeschool group meeting...the first one since November!! We take the month of December off every year, but it always seems so long in between meetings. We usually go out to dinner in December, so at least we get together (besides field trips!), but I do miss the meetings. I'm the president of our group, so planning them isn't always easy...but worth it. There are times when we put lots of effort into it and hardly anyone shows up (about 14 out of 30+ families), it's easy to get discouraged when that happens. Believe me, some evenings I'd love to skip them all together, but I don't have that freedom. I do believe my time leading is coming to an end though. I started the group 7+ years ago and worked hard to get the group to where it is today. Zachary has 2 years left of high school before he graduates (boo hoo)....I believe that will be my last year leading the group....the perfect time to step down and get a new President. Any volunteers? Actually I will probably choose someone the year before and train them for a year...there is much more involved in leading a homeschool group than one can truly imagine.


• My favorite past time lately has been photography...as if you couldn't tell! After Rob gave me the new Nikon camera a few months ago, I have found a new passion for taking photos. I look forward to days when I can get in the car, drive around and take photos. I'm seeing things through the lens that I never saw with my own eyes. The little details in things amaze me and it makes me realize just how complex our lives are and just how infinite God is!! My favorite things to photograph....flowers, sunsets and people.

That's about it around here. My life isn't exciting enough to write a book about, but at least I can capture it on film and write it down here...for my own enjoyment, if nothing else. =)

Scenic Sunday - #13

(Click on photos to enlarge for a much better view!)

Scenic Sunday - #12

(Click on photos to enlarge for a much better view!)

Ouch!!

Well, I just got back from the ER and now have a new mode of transportation!

Two days ago I was having a great time exercising with my Wii-Fit. I've been using it for quite some time, but that day something 'popped' while I was running. So...after a long day of suffering with pain, I decided I should see a doctor. Since it was Friday, no one was open for me to see, but I was able to make an appointment to see an Orthopedic Doctor early Monday morning.

Long story short...the pain was so intense, that I ended up going to the ER this morning. I simply couldn't wait to see the Orthopedic Dr. on Monday. I'm glad I went though. After a few hours, I was told that I had a very nasty sprain. At first they thought it was a fracture or even broken, but thank goodness it wasn't that bad! I'm relieved, yet am still bummed because I have to stay off my foot for a while. I don't do well just being planted in one place, but hopefully I'll learn to live with it since it's only for a short while.

Pray that I heal quickly so I can get back to doing my Wii-Fit!! I just know my 'coach' will yell at me for not being there for several days. =)

Wish they grew this way!

I LOVE flowers!!! I love looking at them, smelling them, photographing them...everything about them. The prettier, the brighter, the more unique, the better!!

Well, the other day I was feeling a bit 'blue', so my hubby came home from work and gave me a bouquet of beautiful flowers to 'brighten' up my day....check out the colors!!!









If only they grew this way, huh?!? So pretty!!!

God's Grace...

...STILL amazes me!!

I am so unworthy, yet God gives me more than I need or deserve!!

Scenic Sunday - #11

With all the snow we've gotten around here lately, I figured a nice summery photo was in order!! Unfortunately this is an older photos...it wasn't taken with my new Nikon, so it's not very clear.

(Click on the photo to enlarge for a much better view!)

A Yummy American Girl Treat!!

If you have a daughter like mine, they absolutely LOVE the American Girl dolls!! Hannah's collection just keeps on growing. She recently has gotten into the activity books put out by the American Girl Co. besides the dolls, so that's a good thing. Many of them are very educational as well as fun!!

The most recent book she's working her way through is called
"Molly Just for Fun"



Inside this book was a wonderful recipe for 'Frozen Fruit Cups'. They are SO good!!!!

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of orange juice
• 15 ounce can of crushed pineapple in it's own juice
• 7 ounce can of mandarin oranges
• 1 pint of strawberries
• 2 bananas
• 1 1/2 cups of ginger ale (use diet if you need to)

Other things you'll need:

• measuring cup with spout
• large mixing bowl
• can opener
• knife
• cutting board
• mixing spoon
• 5 ounce paper drinking cups (we used large plastic ones!)
• plastic wrap

The process: (written in very simple terms for children)

• Measure the orange juice into the mixing bowl.
• Open the cans of crushed pineapple and mandarin oranges.
• Add the pineapple and its juice to the mixing bowl.
• Drain the juice from the mandarin oranges into the sink. Cut the mandarin oranges into small pieces and add them to the mixing bowl.
• Wash the strawberries. Use the knife to remove the stems and cut the strawberries into small pieces. Add the strawberries to the mixing bowl.
• Peel the bananas and cut them into small pieces. Add the bananas to the mixing bowl.
• Stir the fruits and juices together, and then stir in the ginger ale.
• Dip the measuring cup into the mixing bowl. Fill the measuring cup with the fruit mixture. Pour the fruit mixture into the cups.
• Cover the top of each cup with plastic wrap.
• Put the cups into the freezer for several hours or overnight.
• Enjoy!!!

We used tall plastic cups...they hold up better in the freezer.


Mmmmmm...ready to eat!


The delicious result!! They are very refreshing...especially after a good workout on Wii-Fit...I'd know...that's when I had mine! =)


Hannah, enjoying the 'fruits' of her labor!!! (pun intended!)

Photo Hunt #151 - Bulky

This guy was quite 'bulky'...Zachary had to squeeze his way onto the bench just for a photo!


These bean bag chairs were ridiculous since they were so very 'bulky'! We ended up getting rid of them because of their enormous size...they kept growing!


This guy's got plenty of 'bulk' on him, so I think he's appropriate for today's theme, don't you?!?

My hobby...

If you know me well, you know I absolutely love taking photos, especially with my new Nikon D90 camera!! My kids say I'm the paparazzi, but I know better...I simply enjoy being behind the lens rather than in front of it!

Here are a few of my most recent photos...just for fun:

T minus 12 hours!!

It's been almost a month since we've done school. We took the entire month of December off and it felt so good, but unfortunately it's almost over. Since we started school on August 3rd this year, we are right on schedule, so taking the month break was legit. The only problem now, is trying to motivate myself enough so I can motivate the kids to get back into school-mode. I'm actually looking forward to having a real schedule once again, so I think the transition will be pretty easy for me, but the kids? I'm not so sure.

So...this afternoon I spent most of my time going through their books, writing up new schedules, and basically figuring out what we need to get done for the rest of this school year. Hopefully we'll stick to the schedule, and will be done by the end of May...we'll see.

Hannah did most of her history before our Christmas break, so I'm going to add a couple extra books to her curriculum list which she's actually very excited about. The books were both written by Peter Marshall and David Manuel and are activity books covering some of the subjects we've already read about this year.

"The Light and the Glory"...visits American history from Christopher Columbus through George Washington's presidency in 1789. They can make a canoe adventure down the Mississippi or decide what to take to the New World on the Mayflower. They may even assemble their own colonial house. The many activities display God's grand work in the North American wilderness.

"Sounding Forth the Trumpet"...brings to life one of the most crucial epochs in our nation's history - the events leading up to and precipitating the Civil War. It opens with John Quincy Adams' struggle to preserve the right to petition in Congress and closes with the election of 1860.

There is a third book in this series "From Sea to Shining Sea" which we'll do if we complete the other two books.

One other 'fun' book I've added to Hannah's curriculum is simply entitled "Great Map Games". This book, created for grades 3-6, is full of 20 fun, easy reproducible games that build key map and geography skills. I love geography, so I'm really excited about this book!! I'll update and post about some of the games here as we go through the book.

As I was working, I noticed Zachary posted something on his Facebook page...."School tomorrow!!!! I am excited." I guess I don't need to worry as much as I thought about motivating the kids. Yaay!!!

Well...gotta run and finish organizing everything for tomorrow. Only 12 hours until school!

Scenic Sunday - #10

Gorgeous snow-covered trees in the woods near our home.

(Click on the photo to enlarge for a much better view!)