When Kent handed the helmet back to the firefighter he wrinkled up his nose and said, "It smells like smoke." The firefighter replied, "That's because it's been in a fire."
Sunday, March 10, 2013
Pictures With a Firefighter
Yesterday, when we were shopping at Kroger, they were using the local fire department as a promotion by offering free pictures with a firefighter. Lissie didn't want to stand there by herself so I told her I'd hold her for the picture.
When Kent handed the helmet back to the firefighter he wrinkled up his nose and said, "It smells like smoke." The firefighter replied, "That's because it's been in a fire."
When Kent handed the helmet back to the firefighter he wrinkled up his nose and said, "It smells like smoke." The firefighter replied, "That's because it's been in a fire."
Saturday, March 9, 2013
In School This Week...
Monday: We got caught up on the math that we got behind on last week. Now we just have to stay on top of it for the rest of the week. Kent and Katy practiced the piano. We started a new book from the humor genre for storytime - The Great Horn Spoon. Kent spent most of the morning "trying" to figure out the answer to some oral questions for English, but he quickly completed all his other stuff after lunch. He cost us our trip to the library :( Kaomi practiced reading more words with th.
Tuesday: This morning Katy said her tummy hurt so she went back to bed for a nap and to hopefully feel better. She felt better in the afternoon so she did a English lesson. Kent worked through his math and English quickly and played cars with Clark. He also practiced the piano. Kaomi worked more on reading words that end with th and completed her current math book. She's excited to get to start a new math book. She also worked on a coloring page where she had to color the picture with matching colors to shapes. It is like a color by number. We have a book with several of these that she enjoys doing so we use it for school as practice following directions and coloring neatly.
Wednesday: We started with praying for our missionary of the week who is in China. Then we moved on to reading Chapter 3 in Seed Sowers. It was about Miss Dorothy in Peru. We decided to do more research about ocelots, because there was one in our story. We looked at pictures and read facts. Then each of the kids colored a picture of an ocelot and Kent and Katy added 3 facts that they remembered to their picture. We also looked at our world map to see where ocelots live. So I guess we easily had science and geography as well as Bible. Then we had some friends come over to play. After lunch Kent and Katy each practiced reading a chapter of Kaomi's storytime book The Adventures of Grandfather Frog.
Thursday: Kent and Katy worked diligently on their independent work and piano practice. Katy needed to practice division with me, which we didn't get to. Kaomi practiced her handwriting. I had a chiropractic appointment before lunch, so it was time for quiet time just after we finished eating.
Friday: Kent and Katy practiced the piano. Kent completed English and I told him what he needed to do for math. Katy and I worked on practicing division and then she went to make corrections for her math lesson from earlier this week. Kaomi completed reading. Clark, Felicity and I worked on cleaning their room, which we were able to finish after lunch. Felicity helped me make pumpkin muffins for our afternoon snack. We had storytime after Felicity and Clark went down for their nap time.
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Tuesday: This morning Katy said her tummy hurt so she went back to bed for a nap and to hopefully feel better. She felt better in the afternoon so she did a English lesson. Kent worked through his math and English quickly and played cars with Clark. He also practiced the piano. Kaomi worked more on reading words that end with th and completed her current math book. She's excited to get to start a new math book. She also worked on a coloring page where she had to color the picture with matching colors to shapes. It is like a color by number. We have a book with several of these that she enjoys doing so we use it for school as practice following directions and coloring neatly.
Wednesday: We started with praying for our missionary of the week who is in China. Then we moved on to reading Chapter 3 in Seed Sowers. It was about Miss Dorothy in Peru. We decided to do more research about ocelots, because there was one in our story. We looked at pictures and read facts. Then each of the kids colored a picture of an ocelot and Kent and Katy added 3 facts that they remembered to their picture. We also looked at our world map to see where ocelots live. So I guess we easily had science and geography as well as Bible. Then we had some friends come over to play. After lunch Kent and Katy each practiced reading a chapter of Kaomi's storytime book The Adventures of Grandfather Frog.
Thursday: Kent and Katy worked diligently on their independent work and piano practice. Katy needed to practice division with me, which we didn't get to. Kaomi practiced her handwriting. I had a chiropractic appointment before lunch, so it was time for quiet time just after we finished eating.
Friday: Kent and Katy practiced the piano. Kent completed English and I told him what he needed to do for math. Katy and I worked on practicing division and then she went to make corrections for her math lesson from earlier this week. Kaomi completed reading. Clark, Felicity and I worked on cleaning their room, which we were able to finish after lunch. Felicity helped me make pumpkin muffins for our afternoon snack. We had storytime after Felicity and Clark went down for their nap time.
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Wednesday, March 6, 2013
Reading to My Kids
This month and next I am trying to focus more on reading to my kids. In particular I want to read more to Lissie and Clark. I spent a lot of time reading books to Kent, Katy and Kaomi when they were little. I recently realized that I haven't been reading as much to my youngest children and even though they often join us for storytime, the books aren't on their level. I know they would love to have Mommy read more picture books that they can really relate with and enjoy. There are so many times Lissie has asked me to read her a book and I "have" to go do something. I'm going to try making sure I take the time for her and to read that book, even if I have to do it at a different time in the same day. Last night while I was waiting for supper to finish heating I picked up Clark to sit in my lap and grabbed a couple of board books to look at with him. The next thing I know, Lissie was snuggled up against me, Kaomi was sitting on the arm of the loveseat next to me and Kent and Katy were both crowding around the front of me all listening and looking at the board books. When I finished the books I had picked up, somebody handed me a few more and I read those. Before I knew it 20 minutes had passed and supper was ready.
Do you read to your kids? What is one of your favorite children's books?
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Do you read to your kids? What is one of your favorite children's books?
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Saturday, March 2, 2013
In School This Week...
This week we had a more relaxed week and I didn't record much of what we did, but I did take a picture of Kent measuring milliliters for math on Monday. On Thursday Kent, Katy and Kaomi spent most of the day painting vehicles for the Christian Service Brigade Shape 'n Race.
Clark also found that it is fun to wear Lissie's dress up shoes because they click on the floor when he walks.
Clark also found that it is fun to wear Lissie's dress up shoes because they click on the floor when he walks.
Friday, March 1, 2013
Maple Syrup Season
No, here in Texas we are not making maple syrup, but in the Northeast where I grew up the season is beginning. So I thought I would share a memory of making maple syrup with my family when I was a little girl.
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When I was a little girl one of the highlights of the winter was when the sun started to shine and it started to warm up a little bit during the day. This meant that it was time to get out all the taps and buckets for the sugar maple trees. We would get everything out and wash it all up so we would be ready to start. Dad would take his hand drill and hammer and go out and drill the holes in the tree and hammer a tap into the tree. Then we would hang a one gallon bucket over the tap and the tube attached to the tap would fit through a slit in the lid of the bucket and the sap could begin to be collected. I remember waiting as Dad would drill the hole and the joy I would feel when the tap was hammered in if the sap started dripping out right away, because I would let the sweet sap drip into my mouth before the bucket was hung on it.
The buckets would begin to fill up with sap and we would go around everyday in the evening and sometimes twice a day on a weekend if the sap was flowing fast to collect the sap. We would dump the sap from the bucket on the tree into a five gallon pails and bring them back to the garage. I remember being too little to carry a full 5 gallon pail of sap, so I would only carry partially filled pails or I would fill the pails and my older brother or one of my parents would carry them back to the garage. I remember the year that I was able to carry the full five gallon pails all by myself. I probably had some wet pants on occasion from the sap sloshing over the top. Of course the snow could be deep and hindering walking or it could be icy and hard to carry the buckets as well.
At the garage we would dump the 5 gallon pails of sap into our collecting containers which were large plastic trash cans and we would make sure to put the lid on tight so that dirt didn't get into the sap. The trash cans were only used for holding maple sap and during the off season they would hold the supplies for the next year. When we had collected several trash cans full of sap we would have enough to start boiling it down. If the weather was cold enough to freeze the water in the sap buckets we would break the ice and dip out the sugar water from the middle of it. The ice contained little to none of the sugar needed to make the syrup so we would take the ice outside and leave it in a pile by the door of the garage.
To begin boiling the sap down to make maple syrup Dad and Mom would pour the sap into a very large pan that would sit on top of an old upside down cast iron bathtub which had been turned into to a stove of sorts. The maple syrup stove was stored to the side of the garage and moved to the middle by the doors where a metal stove pipe was attached to let the smoke escape up by the roof. When the pan on top of the stove was full of sap Dad would start a fire in the stove and then the fire would burn for a few days before the maple syrup was ready. We had a metal tent that went on top of the pan which helped keep the heat in, therefore helping the sap to boil down a little faster. As the sap boiled down more sap would be poured into the pan. The fire had to be tended every couple of hours to keep the sap boiling, even during the night. I never had to take a night shift to tend the fire, but I do remember tending it a couple of times during the day. It was very hot and I had to be very careful not to touch any part of the stove when I was putting more wood on the fire.
As the sap boiled it would get a foam on it that we would skim off and throw outside on the ground. This foam contained dirt and bugs that may have gotten in the sap or fallen into the pan on top of the stove. The sap would begin to reduce and get thicker and sweeter. After a few days of boiling the sap down it would soon be thick enough to be watched constantly because it was almost ready. I remember Mom bustling around the kitchen getting jars ready and pots on the stove to be ready for the syrup when it was brought into the house. As soon as the syrup was ready, Dad would put a filter in an old metal milk can and he and Mom would pick up the pan and pour the syrup over the corner through the filter. Dad had a spigot added to the pan one year and that made pouring the syrup off a little easier. When the milk can contained all the syrup the pan was set outside in the snow. I remember running to get a spoon once the pan was set in the snow. I would use the spoon to scrape up the syrup from the pan as it started to harden slightly. It was so good that burning my mouth with hot, sticky goodness was worth it. Meanwhile Dad and Mom would have carried the heavy milk can into the house.
When the syrup was brought into the house it was checked to make sure it was thick enough or dark enough. If Mom didn't think it was quite done it would be poured into a large stock pot and boiled a little longer. If it was ready it was poured into the stock pot and brought back to a boil and then poured into quart jars and sealed. One batch would make about 2 1/2 gallons of syrup. The jars would then sit on the counter for a day or two so we could make sure they had sealed before they were taken to the cellar for storage.
Back outside the pan that was sitting in the snow was washed and set back on top of the stove. Then it was refilled and the process was started all over again. Sometimes if it was late in the evening when the syrup finished we would wait until morning to start the next batch so Dad and Mom could get a good night's sleep. After all our syrup was made for the year Dad would pull out all the taps, we would gather up all the buckets and wash everything that we used to make syrup before it was stored away until the next year.
*The pictures were taken sometime between 1988 and 1991.
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My parent's don't make maple syrup anymore, they stopped many years ago when I was younger. Over the last two years I've been ordering my maple syrup from Mount Mansfield Maple Products in Vermont. I used to buy it at the grocery store, but I could only get small bottles that were very expensive and didn't taste like the syrup I had eaten when I was a child. When I looked for a supplier to purchase maple syrup in larger quantities I found this family owned and operated business in Vermont and tried out their products. The first taste I had of the Grade A Dark Maple Syrup I bought from them brought back memories of the syrup that I had growing up.
*This is a product I've used and liked. I have not been asked to write a review for them.
Linked with:
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When I was a little girl one of the highlights of the winter was when the sun started to shine and it started to warm up a little bit during the day. This meant that it was time to get out all the taps and buckets for the sugar maple trees. We would get everything out and wash it all up so we would be ready to start. Dad would take his hand drill and hammer and go out and drill the holes in the tree and hammer a tap into the tree. Then we would hang a one gallon bucket over the tap and the tube attached to the tap would fit through a slit in the lid of the bucket and the sap could begin to be collected. I remember waiting as Dad would drill the hole and the joy I would feel when the tap was hammered in if the sap started dripping out right away, because I would let the sweet sap drip into my mouth before the bucket was hung on it.
The buckets would begin to fill up with sap and we would go around everyday in the evening and sometimes twice a day on a weekend if the sap was flowing fast to collect the sap. We would dump the sap from the bucket on the tree into a five gallon pails and bring them back to the garage. I remember being too little to carry a full 5 gallon pail of sap, so I would only carry partially filled pails or I would fill the pails and my older brother or one of my parents would carry them back to the garage. I remember the year that I was able to carry the full five gallon pails all by myself. I probably had some wet pants on occasion from the sap sloshing over the top. Of course the snow could be deep and hindering walking or it could be icy and hard to carry the buckets as well.
At the garage we would dump the 5 gallon pails of sap into our collecting containers which were large plastic trash cans and we would make sure to put the lid on tight so that dirt didn't get into the sap. The trash cans were only used for holding maple sap and during the off season they would hold the supplies for the next year. When we had collected several trash cans full of sap we would have enough to start boiling it down. If the weather was cold enough to freeze the water in the sap buckets we would break the ice and dip out the sugar water from the middle of it. The ice contained little to none of the sugar needed to make the syrup so we would take the ice outside and leave it in a pile by the door of the garage.
To begin boiling the sap down to make maple syrup Dad and Mom would pour the sap into a very large pan that would sit on top of an old upside down cast iron bathtub which had been turned into to a stove of sorts. The maple syrup stove was stored to the side of the garage and moved to the middle by the doors where a metal stove pipe was attached to let the smoke escape up by the roof. When the pan on top of the stove was full of sap Dad would start a fire in the stove and then the fire would burn for a few days before the maple syrup was ready. We had a metal tent that went on top of the pan which helped keep the heat in, therefore helping the sap to boil down a little faster. As the sap boiled down more sap would be poured into the pan. The fire had to be tended every couple of hours to keep the sap boiling, even during the night. I never had to take a night shift to tend the fire, but I do remember tending it a couple of times during the day. It was very hot and I had to be very careful not to touch any part of the stove when I was putting more wood on the fire.
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| Dad making syrup in the garage. |
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| Dad stirring the sap that was boiling down. |
As the sap boiled it would get a foam on it that we would skim off and throw outside on the ground. This foam contained dirt and bugs that may have gotten in the sap or fallen into the pan on top of the stove. The sap would begin to reduce and get thicker and sweeter. After a few days of boiling the sap down it would soon be thick enough to be watched constantly because it was almost ready. I remember Mom bustling around the kitchen getting jars ready and pots on the stove to be ready for the syrup when it was brought into the house. As soon as the syrup was ready, Dad would put a filter in an old metal milk can and he and Mom would pick up the pan and pour the syrup over the corner through the filter. Dad had a spigot added to the pan one year and that made pouring the syrup off a little easier. When the milk can contained all the syrup the pan was set outside in the snow. I remember running to get a spoon once the pan was set in the snow. I would use the spoon to scrape up the syrup from the pan as it started to harden slightly. It was so good that burning my mouth with hot, sticky goodness was worth it. Meanwhile Dad and Mom would have carried the heavy milk can into the house.
When the syrup was brought into the house it was checked to make sure it was thick enough or dark enough. If Mom didn't think it was quite done it would be poured into a large stock pot and boiled a little longer. If it was ready it was poured into the stock pot and brought back to a boil and then poured into quart jars and sealed. One batch would make about 2 1/2 gallons of syrup. The jars would then sit on the counter for a day or two so we could make sure they had sealed before they were taken to the cellar for storage.
Back outside the pan that was sitting in the snow was washed and set back on top of the stove. Then it was refilled and the process was started all over again. Sometimes if it was late in the evening when the syrup finished we would wait until morning to start the next batch so Dad and Mom could get a good night's sleep. After all our syrup was made for the year Dad would pull out all the taps, we would gather up all the buckets and wash everything that we used to make syrup before it was stored away until the next year.
*The pictures were taken sometime between 1988 and 1991.
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My parent's don't make maple syrup anymore, they stopped many years ago when I was younger. Over the last two years I've been ordering my maple syrup from Mount Mansfield Maple Products in Vermont. I used to buy it at the grocery store, but I could only get small bottles that were very expensive and didn't taste like the syrup I had eaten when I was a child. When I looked for a supplier to purchase maple syrup in larger quantities I found this family owned and operated business in Vermont and tried out their products. The first taste I had of the Grade A Dark Maple Syrup I bought from them brought back memories of the syrup that I had growing up.
*This is a product I've used and liked. I have not been asked to write a review for them.
Linked with:
Tuesday, February 26, 2013
Quinn - 1 Month
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| Quinn 1 month old |
Saturday, February 23, 2013
In School This Week...
Monday: Kent and Katy did English, math and piano practice. We went to the library for storytime and to check out new books. Clark, Lissie and Kaomi watched part of a Thomas the train movie while I was feeding Quinn and Kent and Katy were working on their lessons. We did Bible and storytime all together. Katy asked me to stop reading because I kept falling asleep. It makes for an "interesting" story when I read words that aren't on the page and don't make sense with the story or when I just stop reading in the middle of a sentence or thought. Katy also worked on cursive and Kent finished a book he was reading for History. I was planning on listening to Kaomi read, but it didn't fit into the morning and I was too sleepy in the afternoon.
Tuesday: Birthday Holiday!
Wednesday: Katy started with English while Kent played trucks with Clark. Kaomi worked on a color by number and reading. She's having trouble remembering ang, ing, ong, and ung, but she's being a trooper and doing her best. She is also reading words begin and end with sh. When Katy finished English she went to play with Clark and Kent went to work on English. He's been learning about telling a story from a picture, so I gave him a picture of kids at a pond to look at and write a story, rather than complete a new lesson.
Thursday: Kent did a math review. Katy worked on multiplying by 4's. Kaomi helped play with Clark. Kent and Katy worked on English lessons. Kent had a long over-due piano lesson. Katy worked on cursive. Kaomi worked on color by numbers and reading the colors she needed. We had storytime all together.
Friday: We all learned about John Audubon and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow in History. Clark sat with us stacking Legos. Kent and Katy added to their Timelines. Kent and Katy did math and English. Kaomi practiced reading a story with many words beginning and ending with sh. We completed our Mystery book for storytime and began reading a non-fiction book.
Tuesday: Birthday Holiday!
Wednesday: Katy started with English while Kent played trucks with Clark. Kaomi worked on a color by number and reading. She's having trouble remembering ang, ing, ong, and ung, but she's being a trooper and doing her best. She is also reading words begin and end with sh. When Katy finished English she went to play with Clark and Kent went to work on English. He's been learning about telling a story from a picture, so I gave him a picture of kids at a pond to look at and write a story, rather than complete a new lesson.
Thursday: Kent did a math review. Katy worked on multiplying by 4's. Kaomi helped play with Clark. Kent and Katy worked on English lessons. Kent had a long over-due piano lesson. Katy worked on cursive. Kaomi worked on color by numbers and reading the colors she needed. We had storytime all together.
Friday: We all learned about John Audubon and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow in History. Clark sat with us stacking Legos. Kent and Katy added to their Timelines. Kent and Katy did math and English. Kaomi practiced reading a story with many words beginning and ending with sh. We completed our Mystery book for storytime and began reading a non-fiction book.
Tuesday, February 19, 2013
This Morning...
I woke up to hearing coffee brewing. When I came out to the kitchen for a glass of water there was a special place setting where I sit and donuts on the counter.
Then I went to get Clark up and Kaomi greeted me and brought me a special card made by Katy with a cupcake paper pocket. In the pocket were two origami cats that she made and a piece of cupcake paper with two cupcakes on it. Pretty soon Lissie came in to her room and greeted me too. I got breakfast started for Clark and Felicity, then Quinn started crying his, I'm all alone and I want to eat come and get me now, cry. Kent told me happy birthday while I was feeding Quinn. We all got our donuts and sat at the table to eat them together. Kent took about 30 minutes to dissect and eat his. I figured since it is my birthday I wasn't going to fuss at him for taking so long and I didn't have to watch him, besides he had already finished his chores and it's a holiday from school. Towards the end of the morning I put on some music to enjoy hearing.
Then I went to get Clark up and Kaomi greeted me and brought me a special card made by Katy with a cupcake paper pocket. In the pocket were two origami cats that she made and a piece of cupcake paper with two cupcakes on it. Pretty soon Lissie came in to her room and greeted me too. I got breakfast started for Clark and Felicity, then Quinn started crying his, I'm all alone and I want to eat come and get me now, cry. Kent told me happy birthday while I was feeding Quinn. We all got our donuts and sat at the table to eat them together. Kent took about 30 minutes to dissect and eat his. I figured since it is my birthday I wasn't going to fuss at him for taking so long and I didn't have to watch him, besides he had already finished his chores and it's a holiday from school. Towards the end of the morning I put on some music to enjoy hearing.
Saturday, February 16, 2013
In School This Week...
Monday: Kent and Katy practiced the piano and completed English and math. Katy also worked on cursive and Kent had history reading. Kaomi did printing practice and reading. We did Bible, poetry and storytime together. We were going to do geography, but I wanted to go outside to do it and it was colder than I wanted to spend much time out in. Maybe we will try to do it tomorrow. I was supposed to do reading with Katy, but we ran out of time and I forgot this evening when we could have worked it in before bed.
Tuesday: We made Valentines today. Kent and Katy also did their piano practice.
Wednesday: It's a holiday for Felicity's Birthday.
Thursday: Kent and Katy completed math and copywork. Kaomi had practice following directions. We had a Valentine's Day Party.
Friday: We completed this week's history. Everyone worked on math. Felicity worked on coloring with orange and purple. Kaomi worked on handwriting while Felicity "read" books to Quinn, and I read books to Clark. Katy worked on catching up in her cursive workbook. Kent practiced the piano. We also had storytime all together.
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Finished Fridays
Tuesday: We made Valentines today. Kent and Katy also did their piano practice.
Wednesday: It's a holiday for Felicity's Birthday.
Thursday: Kent and Katy completed math and copywork. Kaomi had practice following directions. We had a Valentine's Day Party.
Friday: We completed this week's history. Everyone worked on math. Felicity worked on coloring with orange and purple. Kaomi worked on handwriting while Felicity "read" books to Quinn, and I read books to Clark. Katy worked on catching up in her cursive workbook. Kent practiced the piano. We also had storytime all together.
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Finished Fridays
Thursday, February 14, 2013
Wednesday, February 13, 2013
Felicity's Birthday Activities
For Felicity's 3rd birthday we made birthday crowns. Felicity choose to make hers blue and she put princess and other stickers on it. Kent, Katy, Kaomi, and Clark made yellow crowns with a variety of stickers on them. After everyone was done decorating their crowns I covered them with packing tape to help keep the stickers in place and to add stability to the paper so they wouldn't rip easily. Quinn and I had a follow-up appointment at the mid-wife and everyone wore their crowns there.
Then we met up with Jeff and went to lunch at Fuddruckers. Felicity thought that was a great idea, because she wanted to know if we could go to a restaurant for lunch. When we returned home it was time for quiet time. Felicity didn't want to have quiet time, but I reminded her that she would want to be happy for when Daddy comes home from work and for her birthday party after supper. After quiet time and snack the girls colored princess pictures and Kent colored a castle picture. Jeff came home earlier than normal from work, so we could have a fun party time after supper. Jeff picked out the cake from the store and I found some princess Legos to decorate it.
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Finished Fridays The Modest Mom
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| Felicity w/ her crown. |
Then we met up with Jeff and went to lunch at Fuddruckers. Felicity thought that was a great idea, because she wanted to know if we could go to a restaurant for lunch. When we returned home it was time for quiet time. Felicity didn't want to have quiet time, but I reminded her that she would want to be happy for when Daddy comes home from work and for her birthday party after supper. After quiet time and snack the girls colored princess pictures and Kent colored a castle picture. Jeff came home earlier than normal from work, so we could have a fun party time after supper. Jeff picked out the cake from the store and I found some princess Legos to decorate it.
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| Happy Birthday, Felicity |
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| Time for presents. |
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| Princess cake. |
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Finished Fridays The Modest Mom
Felicity is 3!
Felicity has been looking forward to her birthday since October. She is so excited about having a birthday and turning three. Yesterday when we told her, "Your birthday is tomorrow." She said, "It's coming soon." This morning when she climbed into bed with me I told her happy birthday and she said, "My birthday is coming soon." Then I told her, "No, today is your birthday." She said, "Really?" "Yes." "Where are my presents?" "We'll have them later, with Daddy."
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Raising Homemakers
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| Special place setting. |
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| Felicity is 3! |
Raising Homemakers
Monday, February 11, 2013
What Do You Think About Quinn?
I gave each of the kids an assignment last week for school, per my Dad's request. I thought I 'd share their assignments and responses with you.
Kent's assignment was to write a paragraph about Quinn for English. Here's what he wrote.
Kent's assignment was to write a paragraph about Quinn for English. Here's what he wrote.
Quinn
I like Quinn. He is cute. He is fun to have for a brother. He also likes music and maybe mommy. He is quiet and likes milk. I love him. He cries when he needs his daiper changed and for milk. He sleeps a whole lot. He cries to help himself wake up too.
Katy's assignment was to write several sentences about Quinn for English. Here's what she wrote.
Sentences about Quinn
- Quinn is cute!
- Quinn was born at 12:17.
- Quinn was born on Saturday.
- Quinn is 12 days old.
- Is Quinn happy?
- Quinn sleeps a lot.
- Qinn is not crying.
- Is Qinn asleep?
- Is Qinn awake?
- Quinn likes to be cuddled.
- Quinn likes to be held.
- Quinn sucks on nuks.
- Quinn has a lot of hair.
- Quinn likes music.
Kaomi's assignment was to draw a picture about Quinn and tell me about him. She drew a small stick figure with hair and colored a blue blanket around him and titled her paper "Quinn." The following was her narration about Quinn.
He's cute. He's fun to have. He has cute jammies and blankets. Mrs. Wood gave him a green blankie. Quinn has a balloon because Grammy gave it to him on his birthday. He sleeps all the time. Sometimes he wakes up. I like Quinn. Quinn is fun to have around because he's just born and he doesn't do the things that Clarky does.
I decided to ask Felicity what she thinks about Quinn, too. This is what she said.
"I like Quinn."
"Can I hold Quinn."
"Quinn is my brother."
"I like him."
"He has a nuk."
"He has foot jammies and shirts."
"I like to hold him."
"He sleeps."
"I like to sing 'Jesus Loves Me' and 'The Lord is My Sheppherd' to him."
"I like him."
"He has a nuk."
"He has foot jammies and shirts."
"I like to hold him."
"He sleeps."
"I like to sing 'Jesus Loves Me' and 'The Lord is My Sheppherd' to him."
Here are a few things that Clark has been saying about Quinn, too.
"Ouch." If you ask him to kiss Quinn or he gets closer than he feels comfortable around him.
"Cry, baby."
"See, baby."
"Kin, cry."
"Bear." We bought a new soft blanket for Quinn on Saturday and Clark likes the blanket and keeps calling it bear. It is fuzzy, dark brown on one side and light brown with brow polka dots on the other side.
"Baby?" When he wants to know where Quinn is if he hasn't seen him in a little while.
Saturday, February 9, 2013
In School This Week...
I'm not sure how much we'll actually accomplish this week, but we decided to try and begin getting back into the swing of things.
Monday: They had craft time with some friends and got a chance to play with some friends that they hadn't seen in a while.
Tuesday: We started with geography. We learned about the different continents and found the continents that are represented by several of the missionaries that we have cards to pray for. Then I worked with Kaomi reviewing her reading while Katy worked on an English lesson and Kent watched Clark. When Katy finished she took over watching Clark and Kent worked on his English lesson. We also had storytime.
Wednesday: We started with Bible, beginning a new missionary story book called Seed Sowers by Gwen Toliver. Kent helped watch Clark while I went over Katy's math lesson and Kaomi's reading. Then Kaomi started on her printing practice and I went over Kent's math lesson. I took over supervising Clark and worked with Kaomi on her math lesson.
Thursday: We started earlier today than we have all week and got a lot accomplished. Kaomi completed reading and math. Kent worked on a paragraph for English and math. Katy completed cursive, worked on sentences for English and completed math. We also read history, completed an art project and had storytime.
Friday: Everyone worked on a page for history about the Pledge of Allegiance. Kaomi completed reading, math, Adventures of Grandfather Frog and a drawing and narration about Quinn. Katy completed her English sentences about Quinn, math, reading, cursive and piano practice. Kent completed a paragraph about Quinn, extra reading for history, math, reading and piano practice. We also had storytime with everyone. Kent and Katy alternated watching Clark when they weren't working on school, so I could work with Kaomi and anyone else who needed my help.
It was nice to accomplish a whole week of school and see that we really can have a new baby, a very active toddler, a more independent toddler and a dependent kindergartener and still complete everything. It's nice to have flexibility and be able to do more than one day lesson in a day as needed.
Linked up with:
Mama Moments Mondays Simple Living Wednesdays
Monday: They had craft time with some friends and got a chance to play with some friends that they hadn't seen in a while.
Tuesday: We started with geography. We learned about the different continents and found the continents that are represented by several of the missionaries that we have cards to pray for. Then I worked with Kaomi reviewing her reading while Katy worked on an English lesson and Kent watched Clark. When Katy finished she took over watching Clark and Kent worked on his English lesson. We also had storytime.
Wednesday: We started with Bible, beginning a new missionary story book called Seed Sowers by Gwen Toliver. Kent helped watch Clark while I went over Katy's math lesson and Kaomi's reading. Then Kaomi started on her printing practice and I went over Kent's math lesson. I took over supervising Clark and worked with Kaomi on her math lesson.
Thursday: We started earlier today than we have all week and got a lot accomplished. Kaomi completed reading and math. Kent worked on a paragraph for English and math. Katy completed cursive, worked on sentences for English and completed math. We also read history, completed an art project and had storytime.
Friday: Everyone worked on a page for history about the Pledge of Allegiance. Kaomi completed reading, math, Adventures of Grandfather Frog and a drawing and narration about Quinn. Katy completed her English sentences about Quinn, math, reading, cursive and piano practice. Kent completed a paragraph about Quinn, extra reading for history, math, reading and piano practice. We also had storytime with everyone. Kent and Katy alternated watching Clark when they weren't working on school, so I could work with Kaomi and anyone else who needed my help.
It was nice to accomplish a whole week of school and see that we really can have a new baby, a very active toddler, a more independent toddler and a dependent kindergartener and still complete everything. It's nice to have flexibility and be able to do more than one day lesson in a day as needed.
Linked up with:
Mama Moments Mondays Simple Living Wednesdays
Wednesday, February 6, 2013
A Misunderstanding
After lunch today Katy was being grumpy and rude about one of her siblings. I called up to her that since she was being rude she should go ahead and start her math that I had assigned for her to complete this afternoon. I know she heard me, but she didn't come down and get her math book. I was trying to think of a fitting consequence and hadn't thought of one yet when it was time for storytime. I called all the kids and she told me she was drying off. I wanted to know what she was drying off from and she told me from her bath. At which point I realized she hadn't disobeyed so much as misheard me. I started laughing to myself and told her that I had said do your math, not take a bath. So she came down to storytime all clean and still had to do her math this afternoon during quiet time.
Linked with:
Raising Homemakers Mama Moments Mondays
Linked with:
Raising Homemakers Mama Moments Mondays
Quinn's Birth Story
On Thursday, January 25th, I kept experiencing stronger contractions off and on through the day, but they didn't seem to be leading to anything very quickly. Thursday evening they spaced out evenly around 3 min. apart, but they weren't as strong as actual labor should be. We called the mid-wife and she said to walk around for a while and call her in an hour if they got worse. They stayed the same, so I sent her a text to let her know that they didn't seem to be going anywhere for the moment. After several hours I went to bed. I wanted to be sure to be rested if they did turn into the real thing.
Friday morning when I woke up the contractions were about 5-6 minutes apart, but still not very strong. My mid-wife called me to see how things were going, as she had some other things she was needing to do that morning, but wanted to make sure she wasn't needed before she started them (it was her scheduled day off from the office). She said to go into the birthing center to get checked and see if maybe we could get something started. When I went in I was dilated to a 2 and it seemed like maybe something was going on, but it was still to early to tell. The mid-wife on call stripped my membranes to see if it would encourage labor and sent me home to walk and pump and see if anything would happen.
My mid-wife called to see if anything was happening around 10:30 am. At that point it was still hard to tell, but the contractions were about 10 minutes apart and seemed to be getting stronger. She said she would come over to our home in about an hour and see how things were going then. When she came I had dilated to a 3 and she thought we would probably be calling her to come back around 3 in the afternoon and have a baby by evening. We've had a history of having some quicker labors, so that is what everyone was expecting.
I continued to pump, walk and rest to help keep things moving along. By 2 pm the contractions were starting to be about 5-10 minutes apart and definitely working, but not super strong. Jeff's mom came over to be here for the birth and help with kids if needed. I didn't feel like it was time to call the mid-wife until around 4:30-5 pm. When she got there I was dilated to a six, but I felt like I should have been dilated more. Things seemed to be progressing more slowly than my past few labors.
Jeff's mom took care of ordering dinner for everyone. It smelled good and I kind of wanted to eat mine, but it seemed to me like the baby was going to come sooner rather than later, so I thought I would wait and eat after the baby was born.
I continued laboring, while listening to the conversations around me and playing a mindless game on the computer. I kept losing the game, so apparently it wasn't as mindless as I thought, but it helped distract my thoughts from the contractions and relax better. By 8:30? pm, I was only dilated to 7. We finally sent the kids to bed. They were a little disappointed that they wouldn't be up when the baby was born. I continued laboring and it seemed like things were getting close and I was ready to get in the tub and have the baby, but around 9:30 pm I was still a 7. We decided to go ahead and break my water to help expedite labor. Then I got in the tub expecting that it wouldn't be much longer. By this time I was tired and just really ready to have the baby. My thinking clarity was also decreasing. After laboring in the tub while the contractions got worse, my midwife thought I should get out and try walking around a little to see if it would help the baby to come. I wasn't real keen on the idea. Even though I had been drinking water and pregnancy tea throughout the evening I was really tired and realized that I probably should've eaten dinner. I was hungry, but wasn't sure that I wanted to eat something at that point. I did think I should have something so I asked Jeff to get me some sprite, thinking maybe the sugar would help. I did eventually get out of the tub. I was dilated to an 8. My midwife decided that due to me being tired and knowing that the baby was big we shouldn't have a water birth, because the risk for potential complications was increasing.
The contractions became almost unbearable at this point. I don't think I've had contractions like that since maybe Kent's birth. I remember squeezing Jeff's hand, I think so tightly that it probably hurt him, but he just kept on encouraging me. We tried a warm rice sock on my back, which felt nice for a short time and then I was yelling to get it off me, because it was too hot. Shortly after that the pressure became intense and it was time to push. I didn't even realize that it was time to push until it was time. They had to get my shorts off for me. Then they wanted me to push harder and I didn't feel like I could, but I think I just needed to breathe and then I could push again. Jeff said he could see an ear, that was encouraging so I pushed harder and soon the baby was born with a giant gush of water behind it which seemed like water spraying from a fire hydrant. It was Saturday, January 26, 2013 at 12:17 am and the midwife placed the baby on my tummy. Someone, I think maybe Jeff said it was a boy. I was so glad that he was out and there were no complications. After a while they weighed him in at 9 lbs. 15 oz., but my mid-wife first misread the scale and said 10 # 15 oz. and both Jeff and I were like "what?!?". Then she read it again, realizing that she had read 10 first because Quinn was so close to 10 pounds. He was 22 inches long and his head circumference was 14 1/2 cm. As soon as I was feeling a little better after the birth I was ready to eat my supper sometime after 1:00 am. The chicken quesadilla was SO good! We were able to finally get a little sleep starting around 3:15 am. Around 7:15 am, Katy and Kaomi showed up to see if we had the baby and when they found out it was a boy which they quickly went and shared with Kent. A little later the older kids went in to see Felicity and Clark and we heard Felicity loudly ask, "Is the baby born?"
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| Quinn several hours old, being held by Kent his oldest sibling. |
Quinn Hezekiah has a lot to live up to; his name means wise one whom God strengthens.
Linked with:
A Mama's Story My Pregnancy Journal Raising Homemakers Day2day Joys
Weekend Whatever
Saturday, February 2, 2013
Enjoying the Slow Pace
This last week has flown by. I have enjoyed snuggling with Quinn. He's 1 week old today.
My husband is wonderful. He was able to take the whole week off of work. We slept in everyday (til 8 or later). The older kids were quiet, even if they didn't sleep in and Felicity and Clark didn't usually start making much noise until around 8:30 am most days. For the first three days after Quinn was born I was on "bed rest" this is normal, but usually I am eager to be up and involved even if I am just sitting on the couch. This time, I was content to spend more time in bed "resting". I had lots of little visitors who just wanted to see Quinn and hold him, too. Jeff took care of making sure everyone was fed three meals a day for most of the week. We had a couple people bring us wonderful meals, which was nice for Jeff to not have to cook. Jeff changed lots of diapers this week and I know that's not his favorite thing to do - he didn't even ask me if I could do it once. He also did several loads of laundry, so nobody had to wear dirty clothes. Jeff would take Quinn in the middle of the night after he was fed, to snuggle and encourage to go back to sleep. It's been a specialty of his to get the baby to sleep at night and he hasn't lost his touch. Quinn has been a pretty sleepy baby and seems pretty easy so far. We are hoping that he stays easy. He hasn't been very interested in eating, because he has wanted to sleep, but that seems to be changing now and he is asking to eat more frequently, which helps because he actually stays awake long enough to eat pretty well. Jeff even gave the kids an impromptu science lesson on oil from oranges and how it scents the air when the peel is all broken up and how the oil is flammable. Because Jeff was home this week, I've been able to take it easy and enjoy being a spectator in my home, that's about to change as Jeff returns to work on Monday. I'm sure we will have an interesting upcoming week as we adjust to having a new baby in the house and Clark won't have Daddy to tag after all day either.
I am so thankful that God has given me a husband who is willing to step up and do the things that I usually do, when needed. Jeff has been a blessing to our whole family this week.
Linked with:
Raising Arrows The Modest Mom blog A Mama's Story Raising Homemakers
My husband is wonderful. He was able to take the whole week off of work. We slept in everyday (til 8 or later). The older kids were quiet, even if they didn't sleep in and Felicity and Clark didn't usually start making much noise until around 8:30 am most days. For the first three days after Quinn was born I was on "bed rest" this is normal, but usually I am eager to be up and involved even if I am just sitting on the couch. This time, I was content to spend more time in bed "resting". I had lots of little visitors who just wanted to see Quinn and hold him, too. Jeff took care of making sure everyone was fed three meals a day for most of the week. We had a couple people bring us wonderful meals, which was nice for Jeff to not have to cook. Jeff changed lots of diapers this week and I know that's not his favorite thing to do - he didn't even ask me if I could do it once. He also did several loads of laundry, so nobody had to wear dirty clothes. Jeff would take Quinn in the middle of the night after he was fed, to snuggle and encourage to go back to sleep. It's been a specialty of his to get the baby to sleep at night and he hasn't lost his touch. Quinn has been a pretty sleepy baby and seems pretty easy so far. We are hoping that he stays easy. He hasn't been very interested in eating, because he has wanted to sleep, but that seems to be changing now and he is asking to eat more frequently, which helps because he actually stays awake long enough to eat pretty well. Jeff even gave the kids an impromptu science lesson on oil from oranges and how it scents the air when the peel is all broken up and how the oil is flammable. Because Jeff was home this week, I've been able to take it easy and enjoy being a spectator in my home, that's about to change as Jeff returns to work on Monday. I'm sure we will have an interesting upcoming week as we adjust to having a new baby in the house and Clark won't have Daddy to tag after all day either.
I am so thankful that God has given me a husband who is willing to step up and do the things that I usually do, when needed. Jeff has been a blessing to our whole family this week.
Linked with:
Raising Arrows The Modest Mom blog A Mama's Story Raising Homemakers
Friday, February 1, 2013
Quinn Pictures
Quinn's Birthday:
More pictures:
2 days old:
More pictures:
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| Quinn (1 day old) |
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| Quinn (6 days old) |
2 days old:
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| Lissie watching Quinn (5 days old) |
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.
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.
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.
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