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Saturday, January 26, 2013

We Have a New Baby

Quinn Hezekiah was born this morning at 12:17 am.  He was 22 inches long and 9# 15 oz.

Watch for a picture and more details in the coming days.

In School this Week...

Monday:  We went to the library, learned about how boats float and how butter is made in science, and learned about Martin Luther King Jr. standing up for the rights of the citizens of our country.  We also talked about being good citizens and some of the rights we have in the United States of America.

Tuesday:  We worked on science some more.  We were talking about sheep shearing and wool.  Kent and Katy also worked on English Lessons.  Then we had storytime where we began reading a new mystery.

Thursday:  We completed science talking more about how the wool from the pioneers sheep was used.  Kent and Katy completed English.

Monday, January 21, 2013

Missions Conference -2013

This past weekend we enjoyed attending Missions Conference at our church.  It was good to hear from many of our missionaries and the teams they serve on locally as well as in other countries.  It was good to catch up with friends who God has called to serve in other countries and encourage them as they make plans to return.  It was good to meet new missionaries and hear how God is using them to build relationships and teach others about him.

I like that many of the missionaries who go through our church are discipling those who God has allowed them to meet and share the gospel with.  I also like that that they have programs which they use to help teach and train pastors in the countries they work in, so they can lead and teach their own flocks better.

Have you ever been to a missions conference?  Do you personally know one or more missionaries that you pray for?  Are you a "missionary"?

One of the ways that our missionaries said we could encourage them them most is to respond to their e-mail newsletters.  Just them knowing that someone else read their letter and is praying for them or enjoyed hearing about something in particular they wrote about encourages them that they are not alone.

2 Corinthians 5:18-19
"All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their tresspasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation."

Saturday, January 19, 2013

In School This Week...Back to School

We finally started back to school, though I don't know how long it will last.  I still have things to do to get ready for the baby, so we are just doing a little bit of school to help keep the kids minds active and to give them something to do.  We started English and Reading right after New Year's but last week I wasn't feeling well, so we didn't start back as planned.

Monday:  Got a late start, not that I was planning on starting early, but several of the kids decided it was a day to disobey.  Kent and Katy did English corrections from last Friday.  Then for English we worked on writing 1 last Christmas thank you letter.  We had a health lesson about how to try to spread less germs by coughing or sneezing into a tissue or your arm and we talked about the best way to stop sickness from spreading is by washing hands.  I felt that this was a good lesson to have, since there seems to be plenty of flu going around, which we would prefer not to get.  Then we worked on science.  We read about schools in pioneer times and then we talked about different methods of measuring such as using hands to measure horses, "a cloth yard",  the rule of three, and several other methods that may have been used in pioneer times (mid 1800's).  Lastly I worked on Reading with Kaomi.

Tuesday:  We worked on more science and practiced building fences that were "horse high", "hog tight", and "skunk proof".  We tried different building materials for our fences like a variety of different blocks, popsicle sticks, and Lincoln logs.  Kent and Katy each completed their next English lesson.

Thursday and Friday:  We learned about bees in science and the part they played in pioneer times.  We also learned a little bit about how honey bees see the nectar on the flowers, verses how we see a flower.  Kent and Katy completed one more English Lesson.

Over all we completed 2 1/2 weeks worth of science this week.

Wednesday, January 16, 2013

Random Hug

Today I stopped at Walmart to pick up a few things that were on my list.  While I was there a lady about 10-15 years my senior came around the corner.  When she saw us she smiled and our conversation went like this.

Lady:  I love kids.  Are they all yours?
Me: Yes (with a smile)
Lady:  1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6.  You are so blessed.  You must be a great mom.
Me:  Thank you, it is definitely an effort in patience.
Lady:  You must be a very patient person.
Me: Actually, I'm not, that's why it's an effort, but I do love them all.
Lady:  (said something I didn't get) then walked away.  As she took a few steps, she suddenly turned and said I just have to give you a hug.  Is that okay?
 Me:  Yes...Thank you.

Monday, January 14, 2013

Bible Trivia Baseball

Tonight was our weekly Christian Service Brigade meeting at church and Kent is in the Stockade-Builders group, which is the group for 3rd and 4th graders.  Each week our Builders group meeting is led by a different one of the dads, and tonight the dad that was leading our group led the boys in a game of Bible Trivia Baseball.  The way the game works is by setting up a playing "field" and dividing the boys all up into into two teams.  In this case, the "bases" in the "field" were the four support columns in the building where we meet.  The boys were assigned teams and then lined up either in the field or "at bat."  The first "batter" is then given a choice of question difficulty in the form of a "single," "double," "triple," or "home-run."  If he gets the question right he get to go the number of bases that corresponds with the chosen difficulty.  If he gets it wrong, the other team gets an opportunity to "catch" the question, thereby causing an out.  If the fielding team is unable to answer the question, then it counts as a strike against the batter and he gets a second "swing" at a new question.  The game progresses in that fashion until the desired number of innings is complete (or until you run out of time--as was the case for us).

The whole point of me describing all of this is just to afford me an opportunity to brag on my boy, Kent.  In the Bible Trivia baseball game, most of the boys were selecting single or double questions, so I fully expected Kent to follow their lead.  When it was Kent's turn to bat, I was surprised (and perhaps a little proud..ok a lot proud) when he confidently stated that he wanted to go for a "home-run."  He was presented the following question (more or less):  What kind of fruit was on the tree from which Adam and Eve were not supposed to eat?  The given answer was that the Bible doesn't say what it was, but Kent's answer was instant and clear: "The fruit of the knowledge of good and evil."  The leader accepted that answer to be as good as the given answer, so Kent scored his first home run...with two runners on base!  I was instantly stricken with about the worst case of PDS (Proud Daddy Syndrome) that I think I have ever had.  As you can see, it was a bad enough case to get me to my keyboard.


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38 Weeks




Well this baby is safe to deliver anytime.  I'm mentally ready, but would still prefer to finish getting a few things around the house done.  Do you know how challenging that is when you have 5 children to care for and by the time they have quiet time, you need to sit down and take a break, too?  It'll get done eventually.  Katy took the picture of me.  I didn't realize it was blurry until I downloaded it.  She needs a few more lessons on photography still.


We started back to school this week, at least to get a little more done before baby day.  We usually start back up pretty quickly after the baby is born, but I like to have the option to not start back if needed.


Our Sunday School Class gave us a diaper shower on Sunday.  We have a good stock of diapers now.  Thank you to everyone who has been praying for us and who brought diapers and wipes for the new baby.






Linked with:

Raising Arrows            



Sunday, January 13, 2013

Is That Clark?

This morning Jeff was getting Felicity and Clark ready fro church and I was getting breakfast ready for the kids as they came into the kitchen.

Felicity was dressed for Church and came in to get her breakfast.  She was sitting in her chair eating raisins and cheerios when Clark came into the Kitchen.

She looked at Clark, who was dressed in a button up shirt and khaki pants, and loudly asked, "Is THAT Clark?"

I looked over at Clark and said, "yes."

Then Felicity loudly said, "He looks like a man."


Here he is from December wearing the same shirt.  I didn't take any pictures of him today.


Linked with:

Raising Arrows       

Thursday, January 10, 2013

2013 Verse to Reflect on for the Year

For the last several years I've been choosing a verse from my Bible reading to remember throughout the year.  I'm not sure why this verse stands out to me this year, but it's the one that God keeps drawing my mind back to.


Exodus 6:7       
 
"I will take you to be my people, and I will be your God, and you shall know that I am the LORD your God, who has brought you out from under the Egyptians."
  Exodus 6:7          

Tuesday, January 8, 2013

How to Clean Your Microwave

I usually try to keep my microwave clean.  We don't use it a whole lot, so I try to make sure that if I notice it is dirty I clean it.  I also always keep a paper towel on the turn table, which help keep that part clean and easy to wipe up if something spills.

On Saturday, I was fixing a quick lunch for the kids and I handed Jeff a hard boiled egg for him to use as part of his lunch.  He wanted it warmed up, so he put it in the microwave and fooled around with it setting the time to 10 minutes (he knew it wouldn't take that long).  After several seconds the egg exploded with a loud pop all over the microwave.  I hadn't thought to tell him that eggs are real sensitive in the microwave or that he probably should have cut it first.  Needless to say, we had a good laugh and he had to clean the microwave.

The moral of the story is give someone something that will explode in the microwave and then they get to clean up the mess along with anything else that was needing to be cleaned up in there.



    

Monday, January 7, 2013

Doodle-oo

Clark likes to say "Doodle-oo" lately.  Every time he sees a "tunnel",  wrapping paper tube, toiilet paper tube, paper towel tube, or even round pasta.  He calls it a "Doodle-oo" or he puts it up to his mouth and says "Doodle-oo".

Friday, January 4, 2013

2012's Top Visited Posts

I thought I'd share which posts had the most visitors last year.

1.  Being a Mom is Tiring   -Yes, being a mom is still tiring, but it is also very rewarding.

2.  Staying on Top of Food Costs -New Series

3.  Low Cost Recipe Ideas

4.  Intentionally Enjoying My Family - Projects

5.  The Hidden Art of Homemaking - Gardens and Gardening

6.  Sewing Just a Little

7.  Menu Planning

8.  If You Were to Visit on a School Day... -Written in 2011

9.  July Decluttering -Written in 2011

10.  Preparing Food After My Shopping Trip


Thank you to everyone who reads my blog and has commented and encouraged me over the last year.

Tuesday, January 1, 2013

Meals that I've Been Putting in my Freezer

I've been working on putting up some gluten free meals to be used later this month as well as after the baby arrives.

Today, I made the following meals for our freezer.

2 Meatloaves.
Beef Enchilada Casserole.
Taco Meat and a package of Tortillas for 1 meal.
Plain Chicken Breasts to be used as desired for baking or grilling.
Chicken Cassoulet for Crockpot, usually is good for 2-3 meals.
Chicken Nuggets for 1 meal.

I also have 2 cups of homemade red enchilada sauce in the freezer.

I've never spent a whole day making meals for our freezer before.  Thanks to my wonderful husband helping watch the kids.  Even though the day was long it was rewarding to get everything I had planned on accomplished.

I have plans to make tomorrow:

2 batches of taco soup for the crockpot (1 to be used this for dinner this week.) -done
Pasta meal (I've never frozen a gluten free pasta meal, so this will be a test to see if we like the way it works.) -done
Beef and Black Bean Taco meat -done

I also plan to make:

Sausage with veggies to be served with rice -done
2 Pizzas with Cheese and Pepperoni

All Our Days