7 Things

1. I hate to fold and put laundry away, unless I have a good book to listen to while I'm doing it.

2. I spent the night in the Berlin airport, because we couldn't find a hotel in which to stay. (the rest of our team slept comfortably in a hostel, while we went looking for somewhere 'better" to stay. ) Lesson learned.

3. I'm actually shy. Really I am. With people I already know, I have few inhibitions. But when it comes to meeting new people and making conversation, it is a shear act of discipline that my father insisted I learn. (I'm glad he did.)

4. I don't have a favorite color.

5. I have a "sun gland". Really, I read about people who get bummed in the winter and in extended days of no sun. They have a gland in their forehead that actually needs sun or they don't produce enough endorphins (happy hormones). OK , so I'm self diagnosing. You can bet when I start feeling blue, I go sit out in the sun for a few minutes and everything seems less blue. Placebo? Who knows, but it works.

6. I'm almost done..... I didn't read the Chronicles of Narnia until I was out of college. Isn't that terribly sad? A whole childhood void of Narnia. You can bet it won't happen to my kids. :)

7. I once had a Brownswager (sp?) fight with a good friend. The clean up was wretched.

Sorry I have to add #8 because I don't want to be outdone by Jenny.

8. I once sang with the Fullers. In church, just me, David and Francis. I think Kim played, but didn't sing...Just me..

For Mom

This post is dedicated to my dear Mother. She has been missing my updating this blog and called today to tell me so. So just to warn you, this blog will be very grandma-info centered and will probably be pretty boring for most of you. Please don't feel obligated to comment. I have started a draft of a review of D.Q. so I'll try to get that finished and posted as time allows. Tonight though, my supper is not settling well and I can't sleep, so instead of tackling D.Q. late at night and with a queezy tummy, I think I'll just write a newsy blog.
The beautiful quilt you see in these pictures is the one Mom made for Micah while she was here visiting. (I still haven't painted his room to match it.) She also made a pillow sham and curtains to match. Not to mention, place mats and kitchen/dinning room curtains for me. She's amazing. So how many of you would like my mom to come visit? It was so nice to have her, I just hope she'll come back after we worked her so hard.

We just recently started rehearsals at church for the upcoming Christmas Play. I am co-directing it this year with the help of my dear friend Becca. A young lady in our church adapted a play from the book, The Best Christmas Pageant Ever. It is a funny book with a good message. I know it seems early to be thinking about Christmas Plays, but the play is pretty extensive for the ages of most of the children involved.

Tomorrow ends our 3 week study of Ancient Egypt. I can't say I'm sorry to see the Pharaohs go. We've really enjoyed studying about the Three Kingdoms and the Nile and Mummification, but I was glad to see the plagues coming and I'm ready to cross the Red Sea. We took a week off of working in our Math-U-See book to make lapbooks about Seasons and the Calendar. We learned the Months of the year with hand motions as memory prompts. Ms. Jo taught us a cool song that helped us learn the days of the week too. For Science we have been reading from a Christian Liberty Nature Reader. While I read, Micah listens and Josiah "takes notes" in his note book. He loves to show Daddy his drawings when he gets home and tells him all about the creatures we have studied. Writing is coming along well too. I decided to just go ahead and start Josiah out with cursive. I toyed around for awhile about which way to go, but finally decided to just give cursive a try and if it seemed too tedious we'd try manuscript. So far so good. Reading is exciting, it's so fun to watch Josiah reading on his own. One night I hung "helper words" all over the house. The next day Josiah was so excited he said, "Daddy, I woke up and I saw helper words scattered all over the house!" Micah wants to be right in on everything too, albeit some facts get a bit misconstrued. The other day I was quizzing the boys about Egypt. I said, What is the name of the river that runs through Egypt? Micah replied, "The Nile Delta!"

Matt started building a fort for the boys made from some of the old logs we still had lying in the wood. I must admit, it looks pretty cool so far. We actually did some school out there today.

Well, I think I'm ready to try to head back to bed. Please forgive my late night ramblings.

I guess I have made up for posting twice in one week by not posting for two weeks. Hello my friends, I've missed you. Life is life and so no time to get to blogging. In fact, you will probably find my blogs of late to be more photo albums. It takes less time to post a picture than to come up with something clever and engaging about which to write. So enjoy these photos of our adobe brick making adventure.

We headed out in our woods and down to the creek to collect sand and clay for our adobe mixer. It was quite a job pushing the wagon back up the hill once it had two 5 gallon buckets half full of heavy clay and sand. We used an old inflatable swimming pool as a place to mix our adobe. We added sand and straw to our wet clay mixture and then stomped/mixed it all with our bare feet. This was great fun for the boys. But wow, what a work out for Mommy's legs! We talked about all the work the Descendants of Noah had to do to make enough adobe to build a Ziggurat. BTW, it is believed that the Ancient Egyptians built their homes and Villas of adobe and then just white washed the walls. As we have studied early civilizations the last few weeks. I have been amazed at how advanced they really were. Who knows though, they were not too far removed from Adam and Eve so perhaps they used more of their brains and had better genetics then we do today.

Last week Matt and I celebrated our 7th anniversary. I will spare you all the personal squishies, but I will say I am one blessed woman to have found such a wonderful man. I never dreamed how great a relationship with another person could be. Now don't get me wrong, our relationship did not just magically happen, but all the effort we have put in to making a good relationship has been well worth it. Of course our primary focus and goal is to have a closer relationship with Jesus, as a family and as individuals, and that only serves to draw us closer to each other. I have so enjoyed seeing your wedding photos on your anniversaries, but I don't have a scanner here at home. Perhaps, I can beg a scan off a friend and post wedding photos later.

Well, I've got two boys waiting to make Egyptian style bread, so I should close. Pray for me. :)

Pictures

Just a note: I did respond to a few comments on the previous post, so please feel free to keep the flow of that conversation going. (Jody, I have a question for you there.)

We went over to the Mill today to see Daddy while he was on break.
The boys with a few big Ash Logs. (I know we're weird, but we think trees are cool)

Here are the boys painting the Ziggurat. You can tell their getting ready to dance.
Here is the finished Ziggurat. (Well, we haven't installed the disco globe yet.)

disclaimer: It is NEVER safe to climb on a log pile. The boys know this and understand that they only climb on logs when we give them permission, and are present. Log piles can be very dangerous due to the logs rolling and people being pinned, crushed or trapped beneath them.

D.Q. and the like

Last night was the second meeting of the D.Q. Book Club. The name is not terribly original and was a contrivance of my own design. The problem with this name is that we will one day finish D.Q. Then we will be working on Pilgrim's Progress. Now it may take you a moment, but with little thought you will realize that my application of the initials of the book we are reading to the name the club soon becomes a problem. Until then, fair readers, we shall remain the D.Q. club.

This Monday Josiah started Violin lessons again. He was happily joined by his birthday buddy, "Little Guy", who is beginning lessons himself this year. I too, am starting violin lessons, however my teacher is a 4 year old. A dear friend of our family, hereafter referred to as Super Keith, at one time played the Violin himself. Alas, I am loathed to say, many years ago Super Keith's thumb suffered a fate worse than death. While Super Keith could have continued mastering the Violin, thumbless though he be, (after all he is Super) he heard the higher calling of tree disassembly, and he lay his instrument down. Sad, but true. Then again, I am benefiting from his sorry fate. (Super Keith is letting me borrow his Violin) Practise for Josiah has been less than exciting, but now we practise together. While I understand that it will be no time before he passes me up completely, he really enjoys playing together and "teaching me" how to play.

School is going well. We are all learning so much. Did you know that the Tower of Babel may have been a Ziggurat? Ziggurat's were used by the Babylonian peoples as temples to their false gods. No wonder God was so hacked at the descendants of Noah for building the crazy thing. Anyway, we plan on "building" a Ziggurat this afternoon. I'll post a picture later.

I must run and get the kiddos down for their naps. Have a happy day!

The Lost has come home.

Hola my friends. I have missed you. We have been home from camp a little over a week, but alas, there have been mounds of laundry to deal with upon our homecoming. We also started "school" this week, and have been busy counting, reading and learning more about our beginnings. In fact, today we went outside and measured the length of Noah's Ark. That my gentle readers, was quite an eye opening experience, even for Mommy. It is not hard to believe Noah got 2 kinds of every animal on that baby! Hardly anything like the "cute" pictures we see of Noah's Ark. No wonder it took so long to build.

We had a wonderful time at Mode Camp. The boys especially were thrilled to be there. There is just nothing like cramming your whole family into a small cabin and living "rough" for a few days. Not to mention, they had constant contact with buddies and Miss. Jo to help them, "Search for Truth." This photo is of the boys after we got home. Notice they still have their "Quest for Truth" hats on. They have worn these almost every day, and their magnifying glasses are never too far out of reach. The adults had a great time too, by the way. Our primary speaker was Rick Hutchison and he did such a great job. We also enjoyed the music and fellowship of Matt and Joy Barnett. But as wonderful as Church Camp is, it is so nice to be back home again. (does anybody hear John Denver singing?)

We had our first meeting of the Well Educated Mind Book Club last night. We discussed the first 5 chapters of Don Quixote. It is a very funny book, in an insane sort of way. I will try to post a review of every 5 -10 chapters upon the request of Tara and Jenny.

We have also had another Parenting Class since we returned home. It is always so refreshing, encouraging, and inspiring to meet together. We also got to meet baby Olivia, she was precious.

Another joy we have had upon coming home, is Papa and Nanny coming for a visit. Papa could only stay one night, but Nanny is here to visit for a couple weeks. We are really enjoying her company. She is working on a quilt for Micah's bed. I'll be sure to post pictures of that when it is done.

I hear the mellifluous sounds of my family laughing and playing, thus signifying Daddy's arrival home, so I must close. (There ladies, I was able to use a D. Q. word in my blog. )

I'm Back...for a minute!

Well, it has been way too long since I've posted anything, or even had a chance to keep up with all your blogs. I am relearning the meaning of busy this month. Here is a brief discombobulated list of what's been going on the last couple of weeks.

Well besides the fact that I am a Mom of a Pre-schooler and a toddler, and they are boys to boot. I also, have 3 jobs outside our home that the boys go with me to do. This month we are very heavily involved in getting our church camp grounds ready for camp. At the same time our church is in the middle of a remodeling project that we have helped out with on occasion. Then we have had the privilege of having Savannah come visit, Brent come visit(photos and bragging on that to come) and have even gotten the chance to be with Dennis and Cathy some. All of which we enjoyed immensely. I also have helped out a friend for a few days as she was out of town and needed some help at her business. Then another friend had an appendectomy and we were able to be with her some through that. I also am attempting to write a script for the annual drama our young people put on at the end of our camp meeting. (By the way, condensing and rewriting Bunyan's, Pilgrim's Progress is a bit of a challenge.) Now mind you I am not complaining, because we loved being with and helping out the people and organizations that are dear to us, but I'm just laying out my case for why I haven't had a chance to blog in a while. Am I excused? Good, because I'm leaving this Friday for our church camp and won't be able to blog again for over a week.

Hello

I hope all of you had a nice Independence Day. We did. The fireworks in town were rained out though, so tonight is the big night for that. Last night on Adventures in Odyssey, they did an Imagination Station Flash Back to The War of 1812, when the British burned down the capitol buildings. Today Josiah asked if we could go to Washington tonight and help rebuild the White House. Patriotism is alive and well in this house. :)

Last weekend, Savannah got to come stay with us again. We really enjoyed having her. Here is a picture of the kids Sunday after church. Are the Thomas genes strong, or what?

My Mom mentioned to me on the phone last night how much she enjoyed my blog. Not because I'm a great writer or anything noble like that, but because she gets to see photos of the boys and read stories about them that help her get to know them, even from far away. So if you will excuse me, at the end of this post I'm going to share a few quotes for my mom. Feel free to just skip this part, since it will be highly grandparent centered.

The other night I was praying with Josiah, normally Matt tucks him in and does this, but for some reason I was doing it this night. I finished the prayer and Josiah said, "that can't be it, it was too short." I said, "You may pray longer if you want." He than proceeds to get all squishy and said, "Dear Jesus, thank you for my Mommy. She's just so sweet and kind and gentle. And even when she's not, I always forgive her cuz she's so sweet and I just love her so much. " Then he puts his head up against mine and says "ahhhh" I had to bury my head in the covers to keep him from seeing me laugh.

The boys were staying for a few hours with a family from our church. When we went to pick the boys up, Anna, the oldest daughter still living at home, told us that as they sat down to supper Josiah said, "oh, I like this, it's good for me cuz it helps me get the yuckies out." then he looked over at her and said, "I said yuckies, cuz it's not polite to say poo-poo at the table."

On Grass, Frog Spawn, and Lapbooks

Here I sit at 10 o'clock in the morning thinking that I really need to go put that exercise video in and get rid of those 10lbs still hanging on from my Micah pregnancy. Instead though, I'm sipping a Mt.Dew and listening to my boys set up the trap for robbers in the kitchen. (you'll never convince me that boys are not born with the natural tendency to preserve and protect their territory) This week has been the usual busy, but not terribly eventful kind. SO here is an update of the mundane that I love.

Grass: It is growing!! Matt even said we might mow this weekend. Lots of weeds have sprung up with the new grass, but my green hubby assures me that this is normal and can be remedied. The back yard is still pretty much dirt/dust/mud, but who cares, we have a front yard!! Speaking of back yards, I will share a very disturbing story from our back yard. Well...maybe two. First. Two nights ago we finally got rain. We took the tarp off our pool, so it wouldn't sink beneath the weight of the rain. Late that night we could hear the frogs. This is not uncommon in the woods (we have a creek running through part of our land). I mentioned to Matt how close the frogs sounded this night. The next morning to my disgust, I found FROG SPAWN in our pool. I have to admit I was slightly tempted to leave some, for there were hundreds, just so the boys could watch them turn to tadpoles. Then again, I think it can take close to a year for a frog to mature into it's happy singing-spawning final state. Anyway, I scooped the mess out of the pool and sent them to their demise. Then wouldn't you know it, last night the little boogers (frogs) were singing their heads off again. I flipped on the light and caught them red...well actually green handed. Matt promptly went out and scooped them from the pool. Imagine having your pool used as a breeding grounds... I feel violated!

Big Man: The next disturbing story comes from the very overactive imagination of our 2 year old. We were sitting at dinner the other night and Micah says, "The man came through the landscape and he got on our trampoline. " I said, " what?" He said this again several times. I said, " what man, did you know him? Was he a big man or a big boy?" I was freaking out. Then Micah said, "He jumped on the trampoline and then he rode Siah's tricycle." Now I'm starting to think maybe we are making things up. Then I asked, "Did you know the man?" Micah said, "no, he was a big man, and he held my hand in the pool on my shark!" Ok, so I'm totally relieved by now. I asked, "did you dream this?" Micah said, " yes."

I let the boys play outside alone, but rarely does more than 5 minutes go by that I do not check up on them. So either this big man who jumps on trampolines, rides tricycles and plays with sharks is really fast, or he is a Micah creation. He exists in that little two year old mind along with the little people who live on Micah's CD player and are often eaten by the big green frog.

Lapbooks: Yesterday we spent the day with our neighbor girls. It was a rainy day, so we decided to do an indoor project. We made Lapbooks.

These are so much fun to make. We used file folders to make Lapbooks we could take to Church Camp in a month or so. The girls are older so they made Lapbooks to use to take notes during services. My boys made lapbooks to keep them busy during services. We had a great time. (Sorry the photo is blurry, after several attempts to take a still photo of two boys I gave up.)

Well, there is more I could share about my week, but I hear you yawning so I will spare you the details.

Below you will find a photo of the inside of the lapbooks.

Tributes

This weekend was a busy one, so I did not have a chance to post anything about Father's Day. So here is my typically late- for- everything Father's Day Post.

When I think of the two most important men in my life(My husband and my Dad) several words come to mind, I'd like to share just a few of them with you.

Matt

Servant-Leader: This is the definition of what Matt is to our family. While he is a capable loving leader, he serves us continually. After working himself silly all day, he comes home ready and willing to serve. He is consistently pointing us to Jesus simply by the way he takes up the "basin and towel".

Thoughtful: The first thing that attracted me to Matt was his thoughtfulness of others. Not just me, but everyone. He is always thinking ahead of how he can be helpful. He sees all people as precious, because Jesus pronounced us all precious by giving his life for all.

Vulnerable: I am always amazed at how willing Matt is to become vulnerable. I was raised to very openly speak on any topic, no topic was sacred, but vulnerable we were not. Matt, is willing to open himself. Many times when my first instinct is to close up and "protect" myself, Matt pushes through that wall. I am so touched by how much he cares for my own lost loved ones. He steps beyond where I would be naturally comfortable and speaks to them from his heart, because he cares for them so much he's willing to "feel silly or uncomfortable" .

AMAZING: I know it seems squishy and romantic to say this, and as most of you know, I am not one that is heavy on the squishy side of things. When I say I think Matt is amazing I really mean it. I still am blown away that I managed to marry a man like Matt. There is no 50/50 in our marriage. We both try to give 100%. If the trash needs to go out and Matt's not home, I get it, but if a diaper needs to be changed and he's the one holding the baby, he does it. He is just a way above average Dad. When he gets home from work, after talking with me a few minutes he is all about his boys. He is continually teaching, training, and discipling them. I hear ladies say that their husbands are "babysitting" the kids and I think WHAT? Matt and I are partners in training our little guys and it's been that way from the day we found out I was pregnant, he's not just a helper that gives me a break occasionally and will start being involved with the boys once their old enough to do "guy stuff", he is a full-time Daddy. (And is practically worshipped for it)

Goofy: Matt makes us laugh. He does the goofiest things just for our entertainment. Life is never dull in our house.

Hard Working: Matt is one of the hardest workers I know. He never stops. After a long day at work, he will come home and meet our needs and work on his "honey do" list and yet, always finds time to help a friend who may need a hand. He lives out his values. He could be making more money elsewhere, but that's not really what we value. He sees the value of working in an environment that encourages his values. He looks ahead to the future and knows that eventually the boys will be able to be more involved at work with Dad. He sees that being loyal to an employer and a business is so important in his own life and a great example to our boys. He gets to be with us at lunch and sometimes the boys and I will even meet him at work while he's on break. We appreciate how hard he works and how well he provides.

Happy Father's Day Babe, we love you and appreciate the spirit of Christ that you live out for us everyday.

Dad

Secure: I never questioned for a minute that my Dad loved me and that he would keep me safe. My Dad is a truck driver so he had to be away from home often, I remember when storms would come and we'd be heading to the basement, the only thought in my head was, "If Daddy were here this would be OK.

Cherished: I always felt like I was very special to my Dad. I can't remember a Valentine's Day that I didn't get flowers from him. (I still do to this day)

Loyalty: My Dad's friends and family could always count on him in their toughest times. In times when other friends would walk away, or people were awkward and weren't sure how to be there, my Dad was there. Giving whatever support was needed.

Smart: My Dad always underestimates himself in this area. I have learned through my study of learning styles that there are different kinds of intelligence. Just because someone doesn't enjoy the "status quo" style of education in America doesn't mean they are not intelligent. (although, Dad wasn't too shabby even in this area) Dad has the ability to see and understand and remember things. He blows my mind sometimes with his intelligence.

Intuitive: I still am amazed that my Dad can read character so well. He is rarely wrong in his judgements of others. My brothers and I have talked often of the times Dad would warn us of someone not being trustworthy or give his approval on someone and almost every time he was right.

Fun: In the summers one of my brother's and I often got to go with Dad in the truck. It was so fun. Now I admit there were long hours of boredom, but if we had the chance Dad would take us somewhere fun on the trip. I still remember dragging him on a water ride at Busch Gardens over and over again.

My Dad spent Father's Day alone on the road, he's done that many times, tis the nature of his job. But I wanted him to know that I love him and appreciate all the sacrifices he has made for me through the years.


This Weekend with Uncle Dennis & Aunt Cathy!



Uncle Dennis and Aunt Cathy with the two most important boys in my life. And Grandma Helen with the boys

This weekend we spent the weekend with Matt's Uncle Dennis and Aunt Cathy. We drove to their place with Matt's Grandma Helen on Friday afternoon and we had such a nice time. Uncle Dennis and Aunt Cathy have been like a second set of parents to Matt as he was growing up. Now they are another set of Grandparents to our boys. The boys think they are great! Thanks Uncle Dennis and Aunt Cathy for your gracious hospitality, we love you!