Double Digits ! ! !

Little Princess has hit this wonderful milestone!  I am wondering where the time has gone.  She no longer is the cute chunky baby that was in a hurry to greet this world.  1 month early and weighed 6 pounds 8 ounces and 18 inches long.  She weighed 10 pounds on her due date!!!  So glad she came early. :) 

We are celebrating a wee bit early.  Her birthday is during the school week.   We, also, let Hockey Player in on the fun a bit.  His birthday is next month, but he made the travel hockey team.  The past 2 years it has been difficult to do anything for his birthday due to tournaments, practices, and life in general.  We already have 2 tournaments before the end of October.  So bring on the practices.  So we let him get some friend action in with his sister's birthday.  He will have cake and ice cream and dinner of his choice later on. 

In honor of Little Princess,
The Top 10 Things I Adore About My Princess
(This hard to narrow down)
1.  Her happy go lucky attitude about life
2.  Her smile
3.  Her sweet and sensitive spirit
4.  Her loving heart
5.  Her desire to be close to me, she likes to snuggle, she likes laps!
6.  Her perseverance
7.  Her brown hair and blue eyes (I prayed when I was pregnant with her that she would have brown hair ! Her blue eyes were a given, the whole family has them.)
8.  Her helpful spirit and attitude
9.  Her love for her siblings, all of them !
10.  Her love for animals
PLUS one to grow on .... is her love for Jesus  !! 

Happy Birthday Little Princess!

Flutter Nutter and Daddy's Buddy!

Driving past the car dealership near home, I hear...  (I am referring to Boys because I can't remember exactly which one said what. )
Boys:  That camo truck has gas in it.
Mom:  I am sure it does. (Afterall, how could one drive without gas in a vehicle?)
Boys:  Gas like Grandpa has. 
Mom:   Trying to not laugh.  Which Grandpa?
Boys:   The Grandpa with gas. 
Mom:  Trying so hard to not laugh.  At this point I am thinking they are refering to the gas tank we take out to the lake to fill the boat and ask if that is the case?
Boys:   Noooo,
Boys:   But that Grandpa. 
Mom:  Ahhh, Grandpa D.  Are you refering to his Oxygen tank? 
Boys:  Yes, and Oxygen is a gas.
Mom:  Right you are!  More chuckling quietly to myself.  So glad we had a bit of clarity there.

More Quoteables, Courtesy of Flutter Nutter

I love the minds of children.  Especially the younger ones, it is amazing to hear their perspectives on life and the world. 
In the car...
Flutter Nutter:  Daddy's Buddy and I are different.  Daddy's Buddy snores and I breathe.

so hard to not snicker a bit. 

Flutter Nutter:  Stop laughing! I am trying to breathe !  I don't want to die !
a few more snickers
trying so hard to be quiet.

Flutter Nutter:  I am serious, don't laugh!  I don't want to die.

few  minutes later;

FN:  I am still breathing.

Whew, that is a relief.  Cause we like our Flutter Nutter and want to keep him around for a long time.

Waiting can be so rewarding

Two weeks ago, we welcomed this beauty to our home!  I am so excited.  When we bought our home 14.5 years ago, I knew this wall would be perfect for a piano.  Our baby was only 6 months old.  I didn't play piano, but the wall would be a perfect frame for a piano.  Fast forward a few years...Fun Mom takes violin lessons.  She really wants to take piano.  We buy a keyboard and get started on lessons for her, Hockey Player and Little Princess.  Then we inherit Grandmama's keyboard.  One upstairs, one downstairs and that helps with the competition for time to practice.  Few years later, Fun Mom really wants a piano.   I am overwhelmed by the idea.  How do we find one?  How do we know if it is any good and not beyond being able to tune?  How would we get it into our home?  So I casually look.  Grandpa D finds out and he starts casually keeping an eye out.  We have looked at a few over the years.  Then two weeks ago, our church has their annual garage sale.  Fun Mom loves the sound it makes.  It looks great.  Has a bench and is a price we can afford.  Amazing part is the guys at church volunteer to deliver it.  Hubby works nights.  We don't know anyone who would be able to help during the day.  They are all amazed I know exactly where I want it.  Hubby wants to know what other secrets I am keeping from him.  I have never told him how much I wanted a piano.  Why put a pressure on him for something the time wasn't right for? 
I am in awe of God's tender loving kindness to me and my family.  He has answered the longing of my heart.  Filled the empty spot in my home.  Answered the desires of my children.  Filled my home with music.  Not a day goes by that someone doesn't just sit down and start playing.  When they stop, someone else will drift in and start playing.  4 piano players in my home and we may be adding a fifth here in a year or so.  I am beyond blessed.

Home Economics Home School Style !

So my motto around here with my kids is "to be above reproach"
One of my goals with home schooling is that our kids are prepared for the world.  That may mean public school at some time in the future.  Who knows where God will lead us?  But I want to present a positive light on home education.  I don't want to do harm to the name of home education.  I, also, don't want to do harm to my children.  Should they end up in public school, I don't want for them to look at me and say, "Why didn't you push me?" 
Today, I told a young teen and mom who will be joining my sophomore daughter in English, "Be prepared, I am going to work you to death.  I triple the amount of work to compensate for my feelings of inadequacy."  To which the mom laughed and I am sure the teen, gulped and groaned. 
But along those same thoughts, Fun Mom is "taking" Home Ec. this year.  Why?  Well cause she wants to take cake decorating classes.  Well I figure that is not enough. I calculated how many hours she would spend in class, and in my kitchen prepping for the class.  Then I considered how many hours she would spend in a high school class room.  Not enough hours.  So what did I do....I compensated and created and amazing list of accomplishments for her to achieve this year in "Home Ec".  The bonus is I am going to get a huge break in the kitchen.  hee hee.  The amazing part is how well she will be prepared for life beyond our home. 
Here is her syllabus for the year.
HOME ECONOMICS 1

Take Basic Cake Decorating Class 1
Take Basic Cake Decorating Class 2
Take Basic Cake Decorating Class 3
Take a Cookie Decorating Class
Take a Cake Ball Decorating Class
Learn to prepare a Roast using a crockpot
Learn to prepare a Roast in the oven
Prepare and Cook a Whole Chicken
Learn to Use and Clean a Grill
Use a Grill
Use a Grill
Prepare and Bake Cinnamon Carmel Rolls from scratch
Prepare and Bake Bread Rolls from scratch
Learn to prepare a Meatloaf
Learn to bake an assortment of pies
Assist in preparing family meals and clean up
Assist in creating grocery lists and shopping for necessary ingredients

Home Economics 2
Sew a pillow
Learn basics of laundry
Plan a raised garden for the next year. Research it and price materials.
Start plants if needed for the above garden.
Balance a checkbook
Home Mechanics: breaker box, hot water heater, furnace, air conditioner, fireplace
Identify and use of basic tools, i.e. Phillips head screwdriver, wrench, etc.
Help stain the yard’s fence
Weather proofing a home
Assist in any other home repair and/or maintenance projects
How to use a lawn mower (1)
Mow the year a second time
How to use a weed-eater (1)
Weed eat a second time
Basic plumbing skills

Now guaranteed she is very skilled in the kitchen.  But I have decided to expand her skills in the kitchen and home.  Her dad is excited about teaching her how to use a lawn mower and weed eater.  Honestly, she is excited about this course work.  Geometry not so much, but the above list of things to do, she is alright with.
Not your typical Home Ec. class. 

Yummy ! !

Don't these look yummy! 

Fun  Mom is taking cake decorating classes. 

I have incorporated these classes into her school year.  Part of her Home Economics class. 

She did these cupcakes the day after we found out she had dry socket from getting her wisdom teeth out.

She was shaky, puny and at the end of the class all she wanted to do was to go to bed.
The class was on making different kind of flowers. 
She can decorate cupcakes for me anytime! 

I am sooo proud of her.

I didn't get to try one. 
Next time though. ;)

Back to school...

Why is it so exhausting??
We haven't even started.  I have just been taxing my brain with lesson planning, grocery shopping, helping puny kids recover and I am ready for bed at 8 pm.  Sometimes by 3 in the afternoon.  Mind you, I didn't even do the grocery shopping.  I just helped with the list.  The puny kiddos wanted their mom!  ME!  Awww,  I felt so loved.  I really didn't mind their wanting me to just sit with them. I was tired.  But why am I so tired.  I do this all the time. 

Then what princess am I ?

So, I can't leave well enough alone.  After realizing, Cinderella I am not, I started to wonder which princess I most like.  I have to admit, I don't feel much like a princess these days.  Not with a household of seven.  Princesses live lives of glamour, beautiful clothes, and travel.  They must, right?  That is what all the fairy tales paint it out to be.  Never mind that the England's new princess opts to do her own household chores right now.  She doesn't have kids.  William doesn't count.  I mean seriously, my life is most like Snow White and the seven dwarfs. 
Yet, when I spend time reflecting on the qualities of Snow White, the animals don't come peacefully into my home to help clean.  No, they come bounding in the door in the shape of a black lab, one that figures obstacles were meant to be mown over.  Doesn't matter if the obstacle is a pile of clean laundry.  The trash can is just a large food dish. 
Though, I do have a lot of little people around.  But they never put me in a glass box in sadness because I am "asleep" and they miss me.  Nooo, they shhhshhh each other out of fear of waking me.  I am beginning to think I resemble the old hag the most.  The scary one.  Seriously, I am not taking the nap cause I feel my most charming self.  They aren't shhhshhh each other out of love for me and my need for rest.  They are shhhshhh each other, so I will stay asleep, cause when I closed my eyes I was just as haggard as the old women in the story and just a mite grumpy.  They fear if I awake a bit too soon, I will still be an old hag.  They are hoping for a miracle, that I will awaken as Snow White. 
Like I said, I think I should have left things well enough alone. 

If we could only be Cinderella..

We have had a relapse around here.  There is something called Princess Syndrome that runs in my family.  Painful to admit.  For those of you who have not heard of this syndrome the symptoms are:
*an inability to see things that need to be picked up
*if said things are seen, there is an inability to pick up and put away these stray objects because it must be someone else's job.
*if these items are mine, well, someone else should do it for me, cause I am ever so busy. 
*a strong desire to laze about and live in a dream world
*beginning to compare one's self to Cinderella
*dreams of being whisked away to a far away castle where there were people who actually enjoyed doing things for you
*complaining or grumbling or just having in general a bad attitude while doing chores

It is painful to admit but I know these symptoms all too well.  I too have dwelled in the fantasy world of wishing my Prince Charming would appear and whisk me away to a castle.  I just loved the story of Cinderella growing up.  The fabulous rescue, the sense of "in your face" mean ol' stepmother and stepsisters.  No more serving you.  But I had an aha moment this summer when I watched one my own sweet princesses struggling to overcome this syndrome in her own life.  Unfortunately, it wasn't a gracious, delicate aha Cinderella moment, it was more like a clutzy stepsister aha moment.  Our Princess Syndrome behavior was nothing like Cinderella.  Cinderella was kind and gentle, she served others with forebearance.  She didn't like how she was treated but she didn't act out or rebel or return evil with evil.  She returned good for evil, she whistled while she worked (i.e. did all things without murmuring or complaining).  And in the end she was blessed by her King of Kings. 
Ouch...
So not Cinderella here, but I want to be with all my heart.