Photo Hunt #145 - Hats

I may have used these photos before, but they're just too perfect for today's theme: Hats

Lionel in his Civil War Kepi


My dear sweet loving husband....who will probably strangle me when he sees this on my blog yet again! Sorry honey, it's just so funny I couldn't resist!!!


Daddy and Lionel having fun in the hat section of Yankee Candle Co. in South Deerfield, MA.




This is an older photo of Sweet-Pea, but it's so cute so I thought I'd add this one as well.


Have a happy day!

Presidential morph

Very cool morphing of all the presidents of the United States...not too sure I like how it ended, but I'm only one vote out of millions. = ) Just my .02 cents.

A tangled mess no more!

As I mentioned in my previous post, we were going to get Sweet-Pea's hair cut. This was the first time she'd be going 'under the knife scissors' and she didn't like it very much! She has always wanted to keep her long hair - every last strand of it! Well, as you can see, it has been getting a bit unruly, and it's been very difficult to keep knot-free. Last week I had to use 1/4 bottle of cream rinse just to get the snarls out without her shedding too many tears. That was the last straw for me. Moms simply do NOT like seeing their children in pain, so I made her choose....go to the salon to get it cleaned up and cut, or I'd cut it myself. She wisely chose the salon!!!

Here she is with her rat's nest long hair....


Many of the ends were splitting and it was starting to frizz.


Yup, that's a forced smile!


The stylist thought this would be a great photo...she could hardly reach the top of Sweet-Pea's hair! It took her over 4o min. just to comb out the snarls...and that was after I brushed it through at home!!


A few times Sweet-Pea nearly fell out of the chair because of the tugging and pulling. She got approx. 6" cut off. Notice her not-so-sure look!


"Are you really cutting my hair??"


After the stylist cut her hair, she washed it. Washing it before would have only made it more difficult to comb through. Check out the red marks near Sweet-Pea's forehead...from the combing. Poor girl, I was hurting for her.


OK, things are looking a bit brighter...there's a little smile on her face. No more pain now, only a good brushing, blow drying and some great compliments from the other ladies in the salon who said she was such a great sport!


Lookin' good!




When we got home I didn't get any good photos of her, so before bed time I remember to snap a few photos of her hair before she slept on it. Here she is with hair that's 6" shorter, much more manageable and a whole lot healthier!


It even shines! Ahh...it was well worth all the pain! Of course taking her to Toys R Us after the salon helped ease that pain a bit! = )


Maybe next time she gets it cut, she'll go for the 10" so she can donate it to Locks of Love. She didn't cut enough off this time around - even 6" was more than she could bear. She is much happier now and I'm thrilled that we won't be shedding tears while getting ready in the mornings!

Open...the word for the day

OPEN house: this past Sunday we had our 2nd open house...the first was in November. We left the house immaculate, spotless and cleaner than I've ever seen it before. I was shocked that we were able to get it to that state with 2 kids and a dog, but we managed - during a snow storm to boot! We packed up about 50 boxes of 'stuff', vacuumed every square inch of the house, wiped down cabinets, doors, walls etc. It almost made me want to take it off the market! ha!

Did our hard work pay off? We're not sure yet, but there were 8 families that came to look at the house...all serious buyers and not just nosy neighbors like the last time! (Fortunately the neighbors got it out of their system now that they know our house is cleaner than theirs! hee hee) Anyhow....out of those 8 families, 4 of them seem very interested. A few of them have to still sell their homes first which presents a major stumbling block for buying just yet. So...we will see. God is good and He is in control of the situation, not us. We did our part by cleaning up and preparing the house...and of course praying! We feel good knowing that God WILL do what's best for us as we wait for the next step in this process. Keep praying for us and for a quick sale of our home.

OPEN skate: Sweet-Pea had her skating lesson today. I always love going to the rink with her and I look forward to going each week. Today we got there and only a couple others were out on the ice. Her lesson is during Open Skate (public skate) but since it's early on a weekday, not many people are ever there. Often we have the entire rink to ourselves! Most times I just stand on the side of the rink with digital camera in one hand and camcorder in the other. (Yes, I'm an obsessed photographer!) Today I didn't bring the cameras since I simply wanted to watch her skate. Her coach walked up to me and said that I looked like such a proud mama. I am!! She's such a beautiful girl learning such a beautiful sport!



****WARNING: I'm going to vent in this next section!****

Where am I going with this? First of all, let me step up onto my soap box!

The past 2 weeks when we've gotten to the rink, there have been a couple moms there with their young children....age 5 and under. Three of them have helmets and skates on, the other two run around like maniacs all over the place. The moms will either stay where it's warm in the waiting area, or will stand near the entrance to the ice not paying attention to their kids, but talking constantly! I don't know why they just don't go sit down and chat...they stand in the way of anyone who needs to get on/off the ice.

Today there were 3 other people skating besides Sweet-Pea and her coach when they got there. The 3 girls got on the ice and proceeded to skate in and out of all the people on the ice. At first I didn't think much of it - I just thought they were curious, but it got to be annoying!!! Needless to say, my blood started boiling more and more as they kept at it. The coach told them to stop skating between her and Sweet-Pea and to leave them alone but they seemed to persist. Last week when we were getting ready to leave one of the moms told the other how her daughter was on the ice at another rink while someone was having their lesson, and that she was immitating them, but skating better than the student. She laughed while saying this to her friend and actually seemed proud of her daughter for doing that. Me? I think it's downright rude! I think it's appaling how she thought her daughter, who was disrupting a skating lesson someone else paid for was doing something cute! Today the mother was no different. I can see where the daughter gets it from!

I had to cringe inside and try to contain myself or I'd blow and say something to her I'd regret. Of course if it continues then I'll be sure and say something, but I'll give it another week or two. We are paying good money for these skating lessons and I don't want a few bratty kids (sorry but there's no other appropriate term) disrupting them. Sweet-Pea's coach will speak up, but she's so sweet that the kids will probably just ignore her.

So...is it me, or are there parents out there who simply don't care how their children act in public or how they infringe upon other people and their space?? When kids overstep the boundaries of respect towards others, they've gone too far and should be repremanded. Did any of you see Supernanny last week?? That's just what 2 twin boys were doing. They were running amuck in their neighborhood - going in neighbors yards, garages, front doors and one of them even hit a pregnant woman in the belly!!! These girls remind me of those boys. They think they're "all that" when they really are such babies who need strict discipline...the problem is that the parents need it too!!!!

OK...stepping off my soapbox now...but I'll get back on if I have to next week!! hee hee

OPEN Mind: Tomorrow I am taking Sweet-Pea to get her hair cut. Yup, I said cut! She has NEVER ever had a real hair cut, and she still doesn't want to get one. I told her to keep an open mind and let the hair stylist layer and trim her hair a bit. I promised her that we'd keep as much of the length as possible though. (You should see her in the tub when her hair is wet! It not only goes down to her behind, but past it!) The reason for the cut? Lately we have been running into a lot of snags, tangles and knots which have caused tears and pain, so it's time to weed out the dead ends and clean it up. Her hair is so fine, so it tangles easily. I'll do my best to take photos and post 'em here tomorrow! Plus...I'll brag a bit about Lionel then....gotta give the kids equal time online.

Blessings,

Oh, what to do...

Ever feel like your life is 'on hold'?!? That's exactly how we've all been feeling lately. We've had our home on the market for 60 days now...not long when you consider how the market has been lately, but for us it seems like an eternity! Having to keep the house spotlessly clean is the hardest part. I don't care what you say, no one lives like this normally, no one without a maid at least.

We have been busy packing up boxes to remove most of our precious valuables the clutter from each room. The house is looking great, but not without putting blood, sweat and tears into it. Why do we have so much?!?!? Kinda makes me wonder what we were thinking in the first place. Funny thing is....we have no more than most people have. Our home is not huge, so I can imagine the stuff people would have in a large home, say...like this one! OK, so maybe not that big...but you get the point. (I only hope my mansion in heaven is like this one...maybe even BIGGER! hee hee!)

We were blessed to receive a huge number of extra sturdy packing boxes from someone who recently moved here from across the country...for FREE! These days boxes don't come cheap, so we were very thankful to get them. We've got most of them full already and piled up in the finished room in the basement.

Check out the 'stuff' we have to pack!!!!!!!!


This weekend we are having our 2nd open house. The first one was before the holidays. It brought in several interested people, but none quite ready to make an offer. Most people have to sell the home they have in order to purchase ours. We have been praying fervently that God would show us what He wants for us...mainly, where he wants us to live. It has been a battle and we're not sure 100% what to do. So...we wait.

Please would you pray for us that God would provide a buyer even this weekend during the open house...that He would show us exactly where we should go, and help us to feel at peace with the decision. Thanks! We did put a bid on a home not far from here, but it's only being held until February, so timing is critical. God can do mighty things, I have no doubt about that. I only doubt my own decisions and thoughts, so I am praying that God's direction would be crystal clear to us, and that He would open and shut doors as need be. We just want to move on and get this chapter of our lives over with...as I've said numerous times lately.

Well...I'm off to do more school with the kids. Have a glorious day!

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.

Sweet-Pea 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 Sweet-Pea'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.

Well...gotta run and finish organizing everything for tomorrow. As I was working, I noticed Lionel post 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!!! Have a great day!

2008 - Year in Review

Well, to be honest, I'm quite glad that 2008 is over. It was a difficult year for us.

We spent a good chunk of the year with my Dad in both the nursing home and the hospital...and in September, he passed away. Oh how we miss him!!! We also are experiencing a loss of another kind...our home. We will be moving as soon as our home sells...not because we want to, but because our town literally has taxed us right out of it! It's highway robbery and every one here is suffering. I only hope our home sells before we lose it!!!

This year was also a year of beginnings. Our new addition: Cody, a Goldendoodle dog, joined us in February. Sweet-Pea also started her new venture in figure skating, and Edward's brother got married! We look forward to the new year as we hope and pray that God will bless us and help us move on from all we went through the past several years with Dad. Life is different now for us as we are finally finding time for one another. The light is at the end of the tunnel, we just need to find our new home to get completely settled.

Here are some photos - our year in review....

January:
Museum visits with the homeschool group


Trip to Hershey PA for Lionel's quiz team competition


February
Valentine's Day - visiting PaPa in the nursing home


Our new addition - Cody!!!


March
Ballet lessons for Sweet-Pea (in center with pink bow)


Lionel turns 13!!


April
Another quiz meet in PA, but this time we visited Gettysburg!!


Homeschool convention weekend


May
Lionel playing his violin during his 8th grade graduation ceremony


Fun outside!!! Bubbles, pool time etc.


June
Cleaning up the yard together


Father's Day visit with PaPa


July
Sweet-Pea turns 7 soon after our July 4th celebration
(Notice the '43' - that's how old I turned this year - and yup, I'm officially OLD!)


Trip to Newport, Rhode Island


August
Cody, enjoying the great outdoors!!


Sweet-Pea drops dance and begins figure skating lessons!


September
Lionel & Sweet-Pea at their Uncle's wedding


Dad's funeral - such a sad time for me!!!


October
Taking a break from life at the Yankee Candle Co. in MA.


Visiting the home of my ancestors from the 1600's!!!


November
Thanksgiving - I'm thankful for such an awesome husband!!


Our house after listing it on the market - a sad day for us. We love this home...so many memories!!


December
Picking a tree out for Christmas is always fun at the tree farm!


Celebrating Grandpa's birthday


May 2009 bring you all wonderful blessings and happiness!!! Remember to keep Christ in the center of all you do, and no matter what comes your way - you WILL be able to get through it!!!!