Maddie-isms

Papa says to mama: "She is so cute sometimes"

Maddie: "I KNOW I'm Cute! I don't know WHAT you are thinking!"



We come home from All Ways Pottery today and the kids want to call Kyle to say we are on our way home. They talk to Papa and then talk with Maddie. They get off the phone and the kids say "Maddie saw a deer."

me: "Huh?" Now we live in the country but not THAT far out into the country where a dear would pop its head up in broad day light. If we ever have dear out its during the evening/early morning hours. So we arrive home and Maddie comes running up to me and says "Mama! Mama! I saw a deer!!!!"

me: "You did???" -I notice papa rolling his eyes....

me: "Where did you see this deer?"

Maddie: "right over here mama! But you have to be VERY quite" (as she is holding her finger to her lips)

Maddie (whispering): "Ok mama...its still there!"

Me: "Wow Maddie you are right! That is a deer...why do you think it is standing so still??"
Maddie (still whispering): "'Cause he's poopin....."

She forgot to mention that the deer had only 2 legs and was missing an ear............

Another fine day of school

We sat down to do Bible together yesterday am and then started on our day. Sanite was able to finish up with everything but language arts and we will do that today. I did get part of Maddies stuff in yesterday so I can start with that next week...hopefully the rest will be here soon:) With her we are using Thresholds for Threes (teaches the basics...math, pre-reading, language skills with lots of hands on activities!) and Little hands to heaven which also has lots of hands on activities but everything is focused around a Bible story. Here is a pic from our Bible time yesterday:

Note the pose by my oldest? yeah...we are getting more like that everyday! She is getting too big too fast...just wait until I post her school pics!

After school was done we just hung out at the house. the kids played while I cleaned..Yeah! Sounds like fun right? haha. Anyhoo...The 2 oldest and I headed out to meet a friend of mine down at All Ways Pottery...for those of you who aren't familiar, this is a pre made pottery store that you paint yourself. All 3 of us ended up with mugs. Sanite picked out a regular mug style and Noah picked out this HUGE cup that is probably more of a soup bowl lol. I picked out a travel mug. They all turned out pretty cool! Even though I wonder what Noah's intentions were with a huge cup like that...I hate to tell him but a package of hot cocoa mix makes the same amount whether your cup is big or small lol.

Back to school picnic and the aftermath.......

Last Saturday was the back to school picnic and the kids had a blast. We picked up the head Llama and baby llama and headed off..............We were the 1st ones there and the kids got TONS of times to play. Before we knew it, families were starting to show up, kids were interacting with each other and having a grand ol time. It was great to see them "clinging" and having a few favorite friends. Sanite was drawn between playing with the kids and cuddling the babies :) Noah was constantly running (I mean NON STOP running) and Maddie was playing in the bubbles with her friends Audrey. After all the kids played we had a pitch in and got to eat some terrifically YUMMY food..I even had a CUBAN SANDWICH!!!!! Of course it was a northern version...but CLOSE ENOUGH!! LOL While everyone was eating, my husband led the men in Introducing their families and what their purpose in homeschooling is. It was great to hear from "my man" where he saw our family headed and what he wanted in our kids. He had been so busy lately (praise God for the business!) we haven't had much time to talk so it was good to hear this "from the horses mouth."

Sanite and the mamallama

Noah Da MAN

Maddie and her bubbles.....

After the homeschool picnic we head downtown where they have closed off the streets for a car show:) It was pretty cool:) A truck that my *honey* had done the interior on won an award. That was pretty exciting! We headed up to walmart and then home. Noah and I had a special "mommy and noah night" already planned. We picked out a movie and a snack and headed out to the camper, just the two of us. We watched our movie, ate our snack, and cuddled. Woke up in the morning (Sunday) to see that it was 7:30!!! I needed to be up at 7 as everyone in the house needed a bath...and believe me when your water heater only has 1 element (our water heater is the ONLY one I have ever seen that only has 1 element!) you have to plan things and be VERY tricky. For example....when one person takes a shower you have to wait about an hour before another person can take a shower, wash clothes in hot water, wash dishes etc. Now we had 5 people that needed a bath in just an hours time!!! ARG! So I jump up, run in the house.....and there is my husband..moaning in bed...........he says" I have been up sick all night." On the outside I give the "poor baby" look and on the inside I am thinking "ARRRGGGGG! I have 1 hour to get 4 people bathed, lotioned, fed, dressed and out the door with everything we need!" For those of you with brown children...you know what I mean! Its amazing just how much extra time that lotioning and hair oiling can take! We FLY out the door and yes we make it in time......*sigh* The kids and I had a great day but Kyle....well he was involved with the toilet in some shape or form that day...........

What do YOU want to be when you grow up?

We are all sitting around the dinner table tonight and Sanite speaks up and says:

"I am not sure what I want to be when I grow up. I think I want to be a cook maker (aka chef) until I am married."

me: "That sounds like a great idea. I think you would be a great Chef. Noah? Maddie? What do you guys want to be when you grow up?"

Noah: "I want to drive The Cash Cab."

Maddie: "Cinderella."


lol don't you love it? Kiara? What do you think about Noah driving The Cash Cab? lolol

My kids are weird!

No BUTTS about it!

Funny ebay Auction!

I don't know how many of you "ebay" But this auction was forwarded to me. Now, I don't expect that everyone out there would want to buy some pokeman cards....but if you go on to read WHY she is selling these I guarantee you will have a great laugh! LOL

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=130144061675&ru=http%

And her blog is http://mom2my6pack.blogspot.com/

enjoy!

I need to take a moment....

Ok so I have spent my afternoon in tears....just blue I guess. Something happened at the Dr office this am that bothered me more than I thought it would. Before they gave me my shot Dr. Napier came back in the room and said "Are you pregnant?" I said no and didn't think anything of it. These are things they need to know after all before they administer medication. The nurse came back into the room and said "I could of sworn I read on your charts that you were pregnant." I looked up and said "I am not now but I lost a baby back in the spring." She said that's what it was and that she knew she had seen it somewhere as apparently all of my blood work had been forwarded to my regular Dr. This STILL bothers me. Amazing how the "sting" of some things continues to come back again, and again..........

*sticky* *sticky*

So my rash has not healed up like it should of.......A day in the ER, IV meds, then 5 days of meds and guess what..I am STILL itching............So I head off the the Dr today (good ol Dr. Napier...gatta love him!) He takes one look-see and knows just what to do..."3 course treatment" he says....."1st-Zyrtec, 2nd-topical cream, 3rd...............shot" ARGGGGG?!?! HUh?!?! Suddenly my heart sinks and think oh no.....a shot in the rear...........and suddenly My children's faces light up like it is Christmas morning....."Shot?" They say excitedly. "Mama gets a SHOT? OH WOW!" It was like someone had given them a huge lolipop and told them there was more to follow.............In the words of Meredeth Grey..."seriously?????" Yep...nurse comes in...pants go down...the kids are jumping up and down like a bag of microwave popcorn.and in it goes...not so bad but then the medicine....BURNY BURNY BURNY!!!!! Needle out and AHHHHHHHHHh.....much better....Pants up....kids together...magazines put away...the office is looking *somewhat* like it did before the Caswell Tornado(s) hit it. As we are walking out...the kids get their stickers....Hey?!?! Whats wrong with this picture!!!!!

Please pray

We found out some devastating news today. I have asked for prayer for this man and his family before. Dave and his family have had a tremendous influence on us. our Christian walk would not of been the same without god placing this family and their wisdom in our lives. It breaks my heart to hear what this family is going through so if you would please keep them in your prayers. Here is the email:

Update on Dave Fagan - August 19th 2007:Dave's brain scan this past week revealed more tumors on the brain. Dave is physically unable to endure any more chemo or radiation. They've cancelled the full scan scheduled for the 24th. They don't plan to see the oncologist again. Hospice has been suggested, but Teresa has declined that....for now.Dave is not in any pain and IS thinking clearly. Mentally he is good, physically he's wasting away. Last evening, Tim Fagan told our local assembly that Dave misses all of us and we are welcome to visit (if we call first). Teresa was not at either assembly yesterday....she's staying very close to Dave. Their sons and their families are spending lots of time there too.They greatly appreciate all the prayers, cards, emails, etc.

These Shoes were made for walkin..........

WOW what a day! Today was "shoe shopping" for the kids. They already had their shoes "picked out" as they had been looking at my Kohls add for a week now.. I did have some other things i had to get done also. I went to the Christian book store off preston hwy where they sell mostly bible curriculum and such. I went and found something that looked pretty neat that could be used for all 3 kiddos and yet still "meaty." As we are checking out there is an older man (he works there) talking to my kids and showing them pictures of his family. I hear him say "my daughter just had a baby girl, but I don't have a picture of her yet." I just so happened to look up and sneak a peak from writing my check and lo and behold....his daughter is Black! I got a tickle up my spine :) Of course we started our whole conversation about adoption. His daughter is my age so he went through everything that we are going through only 30 years difference:) I thought that was so amazing...not only to find another transracial family but a family that dealt with transracial adoption back in the 70's. Amazing:)

After that we headed to Kohls over in St. matthews...The only one we could find shoes for was Noah:( Sanite walked around and cried! I felt so bad for her. They were out of almost every shoe she looked at. So I told her we could head back through New Albany and go by that Kohls to see if they had her shoes. We arrived and immediately found the shoes that Sanite and Maddie had both wanted. yeah!!! Off to the potty and then to leave....or so I hoped. I checked out and was walking towards the door when I looked for my keys..............gone..............can't find them.........not in my pocket...................not in my purse................not on the floor..................not in the shoe boxes. Ok let's walk the store...........back to the shoes....nope.....back to the restroom.....nope...check with customer service....nope......check back at the register.....nope......panic starts to set in...me....over an hour away from home and NO KEYS TO MY CAR!!!!! ok deep breath...let check shoes again.....I go back and go through the whole puddle of shoes I tried on Maddie (about 5 boxes), I went through all the shoe boxes Sanite tried on.....NOTHING. So I walk over to where my shoes were...there they were..sitting on the shelf! Ok *whew* heart attack avoided...thank you Jesus.....

Kids are now starving so lets head to Cici's! Yum! Home of the famous Mac and Cheese pizza...kids ate lots and well.so did I :) Ahh...shoe shopping is done...School curriculum bought...last thing to do is run by Bass Pro. So I hop on the interstate and start heading that way............suddenly I feel a *bump*........I look in the rearview and *nothing.* Continue on I thought!I turn on to 65 heading towards the Veterans expressway. I get to the light at Veterans expressway and I go to turn.when I turn my wheel does and extra 1/2 rotation on the way back.....ohhhhhhhh man...not good! So I swing into the Chick fil A and as I am turning I am feeling my car start to lower on the driver side......."Oh no God, Oh no....." I pull into the parkinglot and get out..........FLAT TIRE>>>FLAT AS A PANCAKE>>>>DEAD AS A DOORNAIL (right michele?).............It is 1:50, Kyle is not off work until 3:30,and I have kids getting off at my house at 3:30......it takes an hour to get there! What to do! I called Kyle and I felt so bad...he left work to come help me....in the meantime I am trying to get hold of the parents of the kids I take care of feeling HORRIBLE that I am only giving them about an hours notice............

Kyle gets there and I am feeling like and idiot...I can't change a tire...my husband owns an auto shop and *I* can't change a tire....*sigh*....but Not to fear! Kyle goes to change the tire and the spare is busted...so HA! Even if I did know how to change one, it wouldn't of mattered...ok spirits are lifted a little. Kyle finds the hole in my tires, fixes it and drives it home. In the meantime though his boss had given him a HORRIBLE time. He knows that Kyle would like to get out on his own and gives him a hard time anytime Kyle needs off. In fact when we went to Indiana Beach he boss was questioning him as to what he was going to be doing on his day off............almost like if he was going to be working on cars they wouldn't let him take off. What business is it of theirs? When you take a vacation day from work you can either get the day off or not....its not up to them to decide if your reason is "worthy" of one of your paid vacation days. *ug*. I will be so glad when he is out of there. he does so much for that company and does not even come close to being treated the way he deserves. I am not asking them to put Kyle on a pedestal (though it would be nice) but just treat him like a human. There are people there that take off, call in etc whenever they please. I can't remember the last time Kyle has taken off and not used a day that was "owed" such as a vacation or personal day. Ok I am off my soapbox for now lol. I just praise God that he keeps sending us business. The sooner we can get our stuff paid off the sooner he can get out of there and not have to deal with that trash:( Pray it happens soon!

My son is moving out.......

yes you read that right. I guess every mom has to face this day at one point or another, I just didn't think it would happen at the ripe age of 5! It all started when he woke up this am...and out of the blue he says "Mom, I am moving to California tomorrow. Dad is buying me a motorcycle tonight and I am going to go live in my own house." After I picked my jaw up off the floor I asked "Are you going to get a job?"

He says "yep...gonna work at McDonald's. Gonna have my own house and my own motorcycle." lol I left it at that and went to church. He tells EVERYONE at church he is moving away tomorrow...Dad is buying him a motorcycle and he is leaving! "It is going to take me 2 miles to get there and I am going to eat mushrooms and bagels" LOLOL I find this AMAZING as the kids hates mushrooms lol. Before heading to bed tonight he is still bound and determined to head out to California tomorrow...so alas I guess I have one "leaving the nest" at the ripe age of 5 lol

Indiana Beach

Well last Friday was a day to Indiana beach http://www.indianabeach.com/! It was soooo much fun and the kids had a great time! We slept in a little bit...until about 8 and left the house around 9. We had some things to do around town so we didn't end up leaving town until around 9:30. The kids were dragging out of bed that am...They were so excited but so not wanting to get up! LOL..hence this 1st pic of sleeping beauty.........and yes she slept until we arrived at Indiana beach over 3 hours later!

We arrived at Indiana Beach around 12:30 and had already packed a lunch...so we got out, ate lunch and headed in. The kids rode and played all day! We were able to take the kids over to the water park and Noah and Sanite both had a BLAST on the water slides! They whizzed down them like they had been doing it all their lives:) Sanite and Noah had always been a little bit more fearful of water (love to play in it...but are very cautious) so I was nervous as to how the slides would go. They didn't want to leave that area! They would of stayed there all day if we would of let them! Poor Maddie couldn't go into the water slide area but she was able to play with her dad over in the splash area. When we came back she too was all grins! The rest of the day we spent on Boardwalk-like rides....swings, wooden roller coasters, bumper cars etc. The older 2 went on several rides that Maddie couldn't so Kyle and I took turns going with the older 2. Here is a pic of Maddie riding a car while the other two went on the cornball express

After that I was able to take Noah and Sanite on the Hoosier Hurricane....my son.....the little snot lol.............has his hands in the air the whole time yellin "IS THAT ALL YA GOT MAN?" I laughed and laughed and laughed.......he was too cute! The things kids say :)

The kids also got to meet someone famous................do you know who THIS is??? ARGGGGGGGGG
Then one of the last things we went on was the Ferris Wheel...I enjoy the Ferris wheel...Kyle had never been on one and said he wont go back on one again lol. It went too high for him and he got a little nervous LOL Here is a pic he managed to get while throwing the camera up in the air...yes he let go long enough for that!

All in all...a great day had by all!!!! We plan on going back next May and staying for a couple days! We can't wait!

What to do now?

So All Hanover students went back to school today.....what to do?? LOL I usually have 2 kiddos at my house bright and early (around 6:45). This morning I was able to sleep in! Humm....So now is the time for making some plans for the fall trimester. Here is what we have planned so far...we have a back to school picnic planned with our Homeschool group on The 25th of this month...this is always so fun as the kids get together to play and then adults can chat and of course food is always present! We will start school on the 27th and kick off the new trimester with a "breakfast out." Seems like we can go out for dinner and such but going out for breakfast hardly ever happens! On the 13th of September we are headed down to the Apple Orchard to do LOTS of picking for LOTS of canning (jellies, butters, apple pie filling, applesauce etc). Then on the 26th we are headed to the Ohio Renaissance festival http://www.renfestival.com/. We are so excited about this field trip as the kids have never been! I can't believe it! That's only the 1st month of school and that doesn't even include our KONOS activities!!!!!!! Yahoo!!!!!! Here's looking forward to getting back into the groove of things!

My little ballerina!

Ok so as I wipe the tears from my eyes *wipe* *wipe* Maddie had her 1st ever dance class today. The kids go into a room right off the waiting area but there is no window for us to see. I have never seen one of Sanites classes (but you can hear everything) as there are no windows, only a door that remains shut. However, since these were little ones she left the door open tonight that way they could get comfortable with being there. Maddie had a ball!!!!!!!!!!!!! She was bouncing all around that room like there was no tomorrow. No tears and no fears! She is so excited about going back next week:)

Some"buggy"loves me :):):)

Well..............................I didn't got to church this am....like to know why????I spent my morning in the Emergency room...............oh yes....lots of fun. It started off on late Wednesday night/Thursday morning I woke up scratching my arms like you would NOT believe! I had what looked like 30+ mosquito bites on my arms (I am HIGHLY allergic to them). I gave it a day and the itching was driving me nuts.....so on Friday I bought some Calamine lotion as it was beginning to spread.....Poison Ivy? I highly doubted it. I have never ever had a reaction to poison Ivy. In high school I was part of leading a back packing trip in the mountains of North Carolina and us start (duh) high schoolers put our beds in the poison Ivy patches (these weren't exactly camp grounds we stayed at....it was backpack through the mountains until you find a spot to crash). Not to mention I am constantly cleaning out under our pine trees where there is nothing BUT poison ivy (lived here for 10 years so...it has been quite a few times) and I have NEVER had this reaction before. Not to mention the last time I did that was 9 days before I broke out...so hum....what could it be??? Lets give it another day. On Saturday Kyle was getting the last bit of a truck painted up and then afterwards we took the kids to the zoo. After the zoo we went to Kingfish ( a SUPER yummy seafood restaurant..I highly suggest it!) While at dinner I looked down and noticed my arm was red and SUPER swollen...(and keep in mind my arm had been itching all day and driving me nuts!). On top of the red...at each individual sore it was completely WHITE and hard as a rock..ARG! I felt miserable. We ended up at Whole food (my favorite place to shop!) that night and I looked through their book of herbal remedies...STILL thinking this *might* be poison Ivy I was reading on how to help itching......2 words..Liquid Aloe..............FANTASTIC! It was smooth....chemical free...and took care of the job better than the calamine lotion! On the downside..I was still up every 2 hours during the night (as I had been since Wednesday night), then up for about 45 minutes as I would wake myself up itching, then immediately go wash my arms and put aloe/calamine lotion on it. By the time I did this I was NOT ready to g back to bed. Well it was really starting to wear on me last night...The 3rd time I had woke up since Midnight...at 5...I was just crying...I told Kyle I was miserable and that I thought I needed to go to the emergency room. He completely agreed and then I said...well let me try to go back to sleep and see if it will get any better. The itching once again went away and I was back in bed by 5:30. I woke up just after 7 just as miserable. I stood in a bath of hot water just rinsing my arms....I got out and kyle had asked me about the new hours on an emergency health clinic they opened last month in town. I said "I think I can do that too." So now in the meantime Kyles cell phone rings...it was my Terri saying that they would not be in church as she was taking Brian down to the emergency room as it looked like he had poison Ivy on his face! His eye was almost completely SHUT! WHAT?!?!?! So Kyle started telling her about me and how we were going to try the emergent care office 1st. We drove separately to church so I could swing by and see the hours. It was now 9am and they did not open until 1! there was no way I was going to sanely last that long. I called Kyle and he said "no you can't wait that long...head down to the emergency room." So I headed down to the emergency room and as I was checking in my sis came round the corner to look at my arms. She walked with me to my room and sat there while I went through the whole story with the nurse...She left and came back about the time another nurse came in where I got to explain the whole story once again...and uhh...she is walking in with a whole bunch of needles...WHAT?!?!?! (I think I can I think I can I think I can). She says she is going to start the same treatment my Brother in law had......an IV...UG...followed by a couple different meds and lots of saline solution. The Dr also comes in and I get to explain the whole thing again...this time my sister is in the room and he is looking a little perplexed..like hey..didn't I just see you with another person?? lol I was finally able to leave around 12:30/12:45 and headed back home. I am on meds for the next 5 days but hopefully it will take care of this nasty thing! Oh and the verdict??? Who knows............He said it is NOT poison Ivy but it is definitely an allergic reaction to something...I hadn't been working in the yard for a couple weeks....after a series of more questions with really no answers he told me to make sure I bathe my pets in case they brought something in I may be allergic too.........anyone want to come over tomorrow and bathe a cat????

Call me Betty......

Betty Crocker that is! LOL Yesterday I was canning pumpkin, today I roasted the seeds and made some fresh bread...yummmm yumm........totally natural and all organic ingredients....I am proud of myself:) I am hoping to just start making my bread (thanks for the idea sis) instead of buying it. Less preservatives and just better for ya...Only I don't have a bread maker...if anyone has one they would love to get rid of let me know! LOL Oh well at any rate it might improve the muscles in my arms!

On the other hand..the rest of today was also great! We met up with Our good friends the Mamallama and littlellama and we all headed out to the pool. We had so much fun! You will NEVER guess what my older two did! They BOTH went off the diving board and SWAM by THEMSELVES over to the edge of the pool!!! I am SUCH a proud mama.....I figured Noah would do it but...well...Sanite on the other hand has always been afraid of the water. her 1st year of swimming lessons my goal was to have her get in the water without screaming her head off. I didn't even care if she went by herself! She could be held for all I care....just quit screaming! Well she went off the diving board the 1st time and Mamallama was there to catch her. The next time she was by herself and I could just see the tears welling up in her eyes..........so I had Maddie run to Mamallama and I swam down by Sanite so I could catch her. She was standing up there crying but....she jumped...more than that....she TRUSTED me to catch her...though you could see she debated for a few :) For those of you who have never adopted older children...trust is a HUGE issue...and even after her being home for 4 years...trust is still something we work on daily. I wish I could of got some pics but....my big ol booty was in the water with the 2 of them lol.

Noah on the other hand jumped right in and swam...he hesitated a little the 1st time...but after that he was OK. In fact one time he jumped and when he popped up he had a bloody nose. Blood was gushing everywhere. He didn't hit his nose on anything....must of just been on impact with water. I am telling you...all you have to do is look at him and say BOO and his nose will bleed!

Well off to bed for now....as for tomorrow ...well the kids have a little surprise:)

Chocolate! It's what's for Dinner!

http://www.foodnavigator.com/news/ng.asp?n=78789&m=1FNE806&c=eepddtxhprfgmgi

Pumpkin pumpkin everywhere!

Today was pumpkin picking day! Pumpkin you say? Pumpkin in August? Yep you read that right.....we picked pumpkin from the Caswell pumpkin patch....Apparently last year when the kids were finished painting their pumpkins, they were not "disposed of" properly...and well we had 2 separate pumpkin patches! We picked 8 pumpkins today and this is what we ended up with....

Sanite scooping her pumpkin



All the munchkins playin in pumpkin goop

Our finished product......catch the little one who just had to be in the pic LOL

All in all we ended up with 12 cans of pumpkin and several batches of seed! YUM! pie anyone???

Ratatouille!

OK if you haven't seen this movie it is one for the book! The kids loved it and laughed the whole way through....there was one kissing scene and Sanite turned around and gave us that "oh gross" look LOL. Maddie yelled out "EWW their KISSING!!!" followed by *giggle giggle giggle*. Noah and his bud Ryan were just sitting there watching and laughing...the boys were so funny! You are also probably wondering why on earth we saw this movie so late.....well......being as we are really working on paying off bills and well....just trying to pay things period we have told the kids we have to wait until the movie comes out in our old theater down town. It is called The Ohio Theater ( http://www.ohiotheatremadison.com/) and used to be Madison's theater way back in the day (very historic downtown). It has 2 screens, one is up stairs and is very tiny and the other is downstairs and is very large. It was used during the time of segregation. I don't think I have to tell which theater was used for what color of people...if your reading this you are more than likely bright enough to figure that out for yourselves lol.

At any rate...back to the theater....it was bought several years ago by a very nice family. They host free movies all year round. During the summer and winter months they have a "family fun series" where they are kid friendly movies. This year we saw Flicka, Open Season, Over the Hedge, Charlotte's Web, Night at the museum and several others all for free! They also have regular movies that play in the evening. They are generally movies that are just "going out" such as Ratatouille and Transformers (what is playing now). On Tuesdays they have a special night where it only costs $1.50 per person to see a movie! Also their popcorn and drinks are MUCH cheaper....for our whole family to go to the movies, get 2 large popcorn's and 2 large drinks it was only $20! Unbelievable! We are used to spending about $50 for a family night at the movies! Thanks Ohio theater of Madison for making going to the movies so economical!

Bear with me....

Please bear with me as I try to re-vamp this blog a little...I am going to try and re-arrange things a bit and make it a bit more organized....between having dial up and a basic knowledge of computers it may take a while....and it may look different every time you check back lol.

On the other hand.....I have some new family blogs added! My sister (listed as Brian and Terri) have their blog up and running now and it looks GREAT! Good job! For those of you who don't know I am very close to my sis and her family. God put them in my (our) lives for many reasons!

Another family blog that was added was that of Matt and my new niece Jackie. Come and read as they blog from 1/2 way around the world in Japan!

As for us...we had another nice day today. I took the kids to the park about a mile from the house and yeah...I am mean...we WALKED. Everyone had water bottles and it was shaded for 95% of the way. Also the park was shaded and in the country so hardly anyone ever goes there! The kids had so much fun! Not only did they play on all the equipment but it was a GREAT area for hide and go seek. There were literally HUNDREDS of HUGE trees around the park. I will have to post a pic sometime. Not only that but they have a kitchen and an amphitheater. There were some great hiding spots! Everyone counted to 100...even my little Noah :) he is getting to be such a big boy (insert boo-hoos and crying here!)

Homeschooling the heart...

I came across this today on Spritti's blog and I thought it so true....I have so many friends right now who are just starting homeschooling or even thinking about homeschooling and everything that I want to say to them....its...well....right here. Spirttibee has done a great job putting into words that which I could not.

Sprittibee's Favorite Homeschool Advice40 tips that I would share with any homeschool friend (newbie or old-hat alike)
If you are doing it on your own strength, you are going to fail (don’t forget to pray hard).
Ignore what other people are doing. Do your own thing.
SCHEDULE time off and me-time each day/week/semester.
Really work at it (nothing comes without effort).
Talent is overrated. There are very few prodigies. So what if your Johnny can’t make a stick figure. Not many people are just BORN knowing how to do things. You should still TEACH Johnny HOW to draw. If he hates it, at least he tried it. Same goes for you and homeschooling. Just because you didn't get a teaching degree doesn't mean you aren't capable of teaching.
Maintain adult contact. Do not be a hermit. You MUST have support (from people older than your kids). Your kids need friends, too.
Curriculum won’t ensure success. God + You + the Child = Success. Curriculum is just a tool. You can do just as good of a job with free stuff and the library as you can with the most expensive curriculums on the market.
Everyone has one subject they hate. Get your husband or a tutor to help. Sign the kids up for classes. Don’t let “ALGEBRA” stop you from homeschooling.
Creativity can not make up for DRIVE. A kid who WANTS to draw and puts out the effort will far SURPASS a child with “natural born talent” who is lazy. SKILLS are worked for. Talents that are not used DRY UP. Practice really does make perfect.
It doesn’t matter what anyone else thinks. Who cares if your grandmother’s sister hates that you homeschool. Are your kids happy? Are you happy? Then what’s your problem?
Bake cookies for your librarian. Get to know her. When you get charged 40$ in late fees, you may be glad you did!
You are the parent. What you say goes.
Don’t compare your kids or their grades to anyone else’s kids or their grades. Don't compare them to their siblings, either.
Passion is a God-given gift. Feed it. If your child is fascinated by volcanoes, buy them books on volcanoes. One day, they will be interested in something else. You never know just what you are helping God to shape in them.
It doesn’t hurt to color in the lines, but it also doesn’t hurt to draw your own lines. Don’t look down on someone else because they like to school inside the box.
Everyone needs to learn how to type and use a computer. No more living in the dark ages. Sorry, mom.
You CAN do this.
Advice is not a mandate. Read what you can and take it all with a grain of salt. See what works best for you and do THAT.
Find your own groove.
Homeschool from the heart.
Hang up your children’s artwork.
Really listen to your children and get to know them.
Understand that there will be bad days. MANY OF THEM.
Set your own schedule. Then STICK to it.
You do NOT have to finish every worksheet in the book.
Keep records. One day you’ll wish you had them.
Make sure your kids know you are proud of them. Even if they are struggling.
Try to include dad as much as possible.
Have awards ceremonies. Show your kids off to the grandparents. Make them feel appreciated.
Success breeds more success. Keep the challenges at a doable level and watch the kids blossom in confidence.
Knowing what is expected of you helps you stay on track. Give the kids a set schedule and a list of assignments. Use a chore chart. Be consistent.
Call your homeschool buddy who is having a hard year. You may be what keeps her from giving up.
Rewards are what everyone is after. You don’t work for free, so why should your kids? Give them a reward for hard work: Time off, sleepovers, screen time, free time, visits with friends, money or their favorite dinner.
Co-ops and field trips are great… but don’t over-schedule yourself. Have your goals in mind before you say yes to any activity outside of the home.
Plan ahead. Nothing will get done if you don’t.
It is OK to change course in the middle of the year.
You have my permission to take off the month of December instead of the month of June. In fact, you can take off any time of year you want. It is YOUR homeschool. You set the calendar.
READ. TO. YOUR. KIDS. Read in front of your kids. Read, read, read!
If you go to the conventions, spend more time in the lectures than at the vendor tables. You need the pep talks. Even if you think you don’t. You also don’t need to buy a ton of THINGS that will collect dust once you get them home.
Have fun. Take pictures and make memories. One day you’ll be able to look back at a job well done and a beautiful lifetime’s worth of wonder that you got to share with your babies.

What a day!

Wow today was fun!!! It was of to the pool for us today....and we had a great time as usual! Of course anytime my kids can get near water they are just ecstatic!We picked up Mr T from school and then headed to the pool in Versailles. Versailles state park is about 30 minutes outside of Madison and being as we left from Hanover it actually took us 45. It was so worth it! We usually go to Clifty falls state park which is about 10 minutes from our house but we were all "itchin" for a different pool. we arrived around 11:15 and we stayed until 3! Needless to say we were all HOT and TIRED by the time we left.

Maddie and Sanite being silly

Noah playin beach ball

Maddie makin' soup!
Sanite had made a friend!

Noah the little athlete!
Get ready Noah..I've got a gun and I am DANGEROUS

Maddie and Mr. T

Haitian family Camp

Last weekend was Haitian family camp and we had so much fun!!! We were only able to go for one day this year due to it conflicts with a major car show in Louisville, Ky. I am hoping next year we will be able to go the whole weekend. I think though that the only way we are going to be able to go at all next year is if the camp is moved to a different weekend. Kyle is planning on having a car ready to sell at this car show next year so....if you want to sell it you have to be there :)



The kids loved seeing everyone and they spent the majority of their time in the pool or on the huge slip and slide (pic to follow lol).

All Barbara's girls bein' silly

All Barbara's kids

Sanite on the slip n' slide



Maddie and her bud Elli

"Air Noah"

Sanite just chillin' in the pool

We ended up stayin up pretty late (again) on Saturday. I think we got home after midnight for the 3rd night in a row. UG this mama was/is tired! It was fun though....I got to talk alot about one of my favorite topics...homeschooling! I love sharing all the fun stuff we have done over the past couple years and talking about the exciting stuff yet to come! One of these days I would like to have an area in my blog for all of my favorite websites for curriculum information. Oh well, I will get that done in my spare time LOLOLOL

Ready for school??

The other day we went...yep...you guessed it...school shopping :) Now you are probably thinking...ok this woman must be nuts! She homeschools why on earth would she go "school shopping?" 1st of all.....name one other time during the year when you can buy 10 packs of crayola crayons for $2 lol. 2nd of all.....its just fun :) I took the kids to all look around at different back packs and lunch boxes. Noah ended up with a Cars backpack and power rangers lunchbox, Sanite bought a High School Musical messenger bag and a purple camo lunch bag. Maddie bought a Disney princess backpack (she can use it for dance) that had a matching lunchbox. too cute! After we did all that shopping (believe me we were exhausted!) we went to Tumbleweed and the mall and time for a little play...yep I have pics of my babes :)

Maddie the Munchkin

Sanite the Silly Squirrel

Noah the Knight

Car show last Friday!

Last weekend we went to the Street Rod Nationals in Louisville, ky. It was fantastic! The cars were neat...but I was able to go with my mother-in-law into "woman's world." This is a specific area in the exhibit halls where they generally sell crafts and other girly type things. I bought each one of the girls a little quilted purse which will be soon to be used as diaper bags. Both girls have asked for the "Baby Alive" doll for Christmas so we hope to be able to purchase the dolls and then...being as this baby "eats" and "poops" we plan on giving the girls each a diaper bag with diapers and food. Diaper bags were a nice price for $5 a piece! They are too cute! Also I bought a bit for Sanites birthday.....a signed pic of.....HANNAH MONTANA!!!!!!!( I've got the beeeeeeeeeeeeest of both worlds............). She wants a Hannah Montana MP3 player for her birthday so we thought this would go along with it pretty well. I was able to get some pics of my baby boy too.....he spent most of the day with his papa...

The types of cars we were looking at

That night there was a concert and the kids had a ball! They were playing old Elvis songs (and boy was it LOUD!) as well as other songs that were just great older songs (yes ....older as in even from the 80's lol) There were two things we couldn't do during this concert....

#1....Keep Maddie in her seat (notice how the beads are straight behind her head?LOL)

#2- You can't keep Noah awake during a concert

Happy Anniversary!

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Well last Thursday was our 10th Anniversary and we have just been so blessed. We ended up going out to dinner and well...that was it lol. We were so tired that we never even made it to the movies. Of course it didn't help that it took 1 1/2 hours to get our food at the restaurant! By the time we left we made a trip to walmart for the car show the next day and we came home and crashed! Here are some pics of me and my best friend taken 10 years ago.....