Kitchen Questionaire

Stephanie tagged me with this Kitchen Questionaire. Just FYI...I am so not queen of the kitchen!

1. How many meals does most of your family eat at home each week? How many are in your family?
There are 6 in my family. We eat out a lot. Too much. During the week we eat all meals at home except dinner. Olaf buys take out of some sort at least twice during the week. On the weekends, it varies. We usually eat out at least twice on the weekend.

2. How many cookbooks do you own? How often do you refer to a cookbook each week?
Too many to count! I refer to a cookbook a couple times a month.

4. Do you collect recipes from other sources?
Sometimes I will find a recipe in a newspaper or magazine.

5. How do you store those recipes?
I clip them and put them in my Longaberger Recipe Basket.

7. Is there a particular ethnic style or flavor that predominates in your cooking? If so, what is it? FRIED!

8. What’s your favorite kitchen task related to meal planning and preparation?
Planning the meals, making my grocery list and organizing that kind of stuff.

9. What’s your least favorite part?
Washing greasy pots and pans. Olaf does it for me.

10. Do you plan menus before you shop?
Yes! It has helped immensely in saving money and easing my frustration about what to make for dinner.

11. What are your three favorite kitchen tools or appliances?
My food chopper from Pampered Chef, wine glasses, and wine.

12. If you could buy one new thing for your kitchen, money was no object, and space not an issue, what would you most like to have?
A nice new top of the line stove/range.

13. Since money and space probably are objects, what are you most likely to buy next?
More wine:)

14. Do you have a separate freezer for storage?
Nope, but I want one.

15. Grocery shop alone or with others?
I coupon shop so I go ALONE!

16. How many meatless main dish meals do you fix in a week?
Ummm...none.

17. If you have a decorating theme in your kitchen, what is it?
My appliances are all black and I have a lot of Longaberger Baskets all over. Other than that...nothing.

18. What’s the first thing you ever learned to cook, and how old were you?
Grilled Cheese Sandwich. I was about 9 or so.

19. How did you learn to cook?
I'm still learning.

20. Tag two other people to play.
I tag Misty and Bedky.

OK, I'm going to be completely honest. Today was one of those days where I didn't find my joy in being a homeschooling mom. I know you are surprised at my candor! Yeah, right! I still am battling the same problem I have battled for four years now. I am a perfectionist and my daughter is...well...not. I cannot stand it if my letters are not perfectly spaced and my math page must look like it just came out of teachers answer book. Camille, on the other hand, erases and re-erases and leaves half the original markings there and...OH! It just kills me! When I was her age if I didn't get 100% on my work, I was devastated. Camille is thrilled when she "only misses four!" WHAT? You've got to be kidding me! YOU MISSED FOUR!!! That is NOT perfect my little friend! Granted, ABeka math is advanced. It is much more advanced than Saxon Math. I looked at the book Camille would be in if I were to switch next year and she has already done almost all of it this year. Needless to say, we will stick with ABeka. Yes, I know most of you homeschool moms don't like ABeka and all the "busy" work but I think Camille is way ahead of the game when it comes to math thanks to ABeka. I think I am going to test her again in a few months from Hewitt Homeschooling Resources. I tested her last year through them and really liked the way the test was untimed and less stressful than a typical standardized test. Here I am rambling. My point in all of this is I had a stressful day. Caleb is home all week too which makes things more stressful than normal. To top that off my monthly friend showed up uninvited! I so want to be pregnant. [insert loud scream right here!] Maybe tomorrow will be a better day. Hopefully tomorrow will be a better day. No, tomorrow WILL be a better day.

Curious George

Olaf took the girls to go see Curious George today. Caleb and Josiah didn't want to go, so I stayed home with them. It turned out to be very productive for me. I cleaned both bathrooms and did every stitch of laundry in the house. I even took the little knobs off the bath water spouts and cleaned them out. I washed the bath toys and cups, scrubbed the tubs and toilets, washed the vanities and mirrors, swept the floors (but didn't mop)...it was good.

Olaf has tomorrow off for President's Day. You know you have a cushy job if you get President's Day off. Caleb is out on "Winter Break" for the entire week. They just had a Winter Break at Christmas time, but I guess this is part deux. I read in our local paper today that is costs $6,700 per year for each student to go to public school. Is that insane or what?? I could send my children to a private school for less than that! To top it off, Georgia is at the very bottom of the 50 states as far as SAT scores goes. Hmmm...sounds like we're doing something wrong.

We rented the newer version of Freaky Friday. Against my better judgment I let Camille watch it with us without previewing it first. That was dumb. Anyway, I thought the movie was cute, but it has behavior in it that I certainly wouldn't want my almost 10 year old daughter to see. I think most of it went over her head (except the bad attitude on the girls' part) but it ended sweet. Any movie that has teenagers kissing is off limits in this house. Olaf and I watched The Legend of Zorro the other night. I thought it was dumb. Pride and Prejudice is playing at the dollar theater, but I doubt we'll be able to go. I'll have to wait for it to come out on DVD and buy it. If you have any movie suggestions leave a comment!

I talked to my mother today on the phone. That is always an adventure. I think I'll start posting a little about my family. One family member at a time. I cannot do more than that because 1. I don't have that kind of time and 2. I'd scare you off! I'll start with my brother, Rick. Rick is 44 years old and is a drug addict. When he doesn't live with my mother he is homeless. He used to be married and has three children. The oldest of his children is 22 and she just had a baby out of wedlock (surprise, surprise). His youngest is only 5 years old. My brother and his ex-wife lived a life of partying and drugs. They never held a job longer than a few months and have been evicted from almost every home they have been in. I specifically remember when my sil was pregnant with her first baby (the now 22 year old) she would smoke pot all the time. That continued in the home the entire time the children were growing up. A typical "white trash" family. Trash begets trash and both of their older children are following nicely in their parents footsteps. I just feel incredibly sorry for the 5 year old. In 10 more years that child will be just like her mother and father. Guaranteed. Sadder still is my brother "claims" to be saved. Anyway, Rick and his ex are now divorced. His ex is always in some state of drug induced semiconscienceness and the 5 year old makes her own breakfast and wakes her mother up only in case of an emergency. When her sister is sober she will get her ready for school and put her on the bus. If not, she stays home and watches TV all by herself. They are in the process of being evicted yet again. They have no idea where they will go this time. The middle child, a 19 year old son, has his druggie friends in and out at all hours of the night. He cannot hold a job either. I mean, why would you want a job when you can be on welfare...right? Medicaid will pay for all your prescriptions, food stamps can buy all the cold cereal your 5 year old can eat, and some dealers will even take food stamps for payment. Sweet. My brother is addicted to meth right now. Weed used to be the drug of choice 20 years ago, but it no longer does what it is supposed to do. He is also an alcoholic. All of his money (when he gets it) is spent on beer and drugs. Lots of beer and drugs. Oh, and poker machines are legal in Oregon so he loses money in those too. Rick is my only full sibling. My mother has been married three times and has children from two of those marriages. She wasn't a great role model either, but somehow, in God's sovereignty, here I am! Praise the Lord for great things He hath done!

Taylor Hicks

That's the grey-haired guy's name on American Idol. You can listen to some of his original songs here. He released a CD prior to AI independently which is linked from that website as well if you want to purchase it. The three songs available for download are really good. I am impressed.

A Double Shift

Olaf worked a full day today and just went back in to work the midnight shift. Ah the joys of being a manager of three shifts!:) I hope he is OK on the drive home. That part scares me a bit. I love my hard working man!

I missed Bible Study tonight because Olaf attended an informational meeting about starting a Challenger League baseball program in our county. Right now we drive to another county for Caleb to play baseball and we would really like to stay local. We'll see what happens.

Camille has been doing at least two math pages everyday. We only have 25 more days of math for the school year. I'll have to keep her busy through April though. I really don't want to start 5th grade math until next school year. She is learning so much. She can add, subtract, and multiply fractions. She can find the least common denominator, reduce fractions to lowest terms, change improper fractions to proper and vice versa. We will be starting decimals within the next few days. I am so blessed that I really don't have to teach her. I can introduce the concept and she pretty much gets it. She just thinks she doesn't get it. Her brain goes on overload and she immediately starts to get nervous and cry. Our new motto is, "Try, Don't Cry!" Once she calms down though...no problem. She whizzes through it like it's the easiest thing she has ever done. She is not nearly as gifted in her vocabulary though. She loves to read and devours books, but her vocabulary is limited. She retains what she reads but if there is a word in there she doesn't know she skips it and doesn't think twice about it. She read seven library books in 14 days. Six Nancy Drew/Hardy Boys and one Little House on the Prairie book. It is time to go back to the library. Maybe we can do that tomorrow. She will love that. Last time we were there I got the book by Dr. Dobson called "Bringing up Boys" or something like that. I actually got to page 20 before I disagreed with him and his pop psychology. I couldn't finish it. Oh well...maybe I'll find something tomorrow like a DVD on how to crochet or knit.

I exercised today but I also ate like a fool. I guess they cancel each other out.

Off to start my Bible Study and then read a bit. I always buy whatever books are in the Dollar Tree and I got one called Paige by Paige. You know, the Trading Spaces gal? Anyway, it's a fun read. I also bought the book that Pope John Paul wrote. I am anxious to read that one as well. Have a great weekend everyone. Mine starts after Olaf gets up tomorrow! Woo Hoo!

I just got through watching American Idol. I am so happy that gray haired guy with the harmonica made it through. I really like him. I don't think he'll make it to the final two or anything, but he's fun to watch. I also like that little blonde from the South. She is so sweet. It should be a good season.

I bought a cute notebook to put by my computer. Over at wah there are several prayer requests posted on a daily basis and I really want to remember to pray for all of them. So I bought this cute little notebook/journal thing for a buck at Michaels. I write down the prayer requests so I don't forget to lift my sisters up to the Lord.

I need to exercise. I fell off the wagon when we went to NY. I need to get started again. I feel so much better when I do it on a daily basis.

I stopped by Charity's tonight to pick up my milk and Amish butter! She drives 2.5 HOURS to Alabama to get milk from this dairy. AND, she does it with three small children in the car. Can you say CRAZY? Her children are in the car almost the same amount of time that it takes to drive to Orlando from here only they don't get to get out and go to Disney World! Sucketh. However, I am so glad she went because now I have really good milk and butter. Oh, and cheese too. Dawn has a great idea for butter. We like our butter at room temperature for easy spreadability. Dawn puts her butter in a mug and then sticks a small wooden spreader like this one in the butter. Needless to say, we have incorporated her idea into our home. It's much easier than a butter dish and a whole lot less messy. Thanks Dawn!

I also stopped by Misty's new house. It is gorgeous. Too big for just two people though. I am praying the Lord blesses them with a baby soon. ::writing that in my notebook by computer right now::

Happy Valentines Day

The day of LOVE! Valentine's Day isn't a huge day in my house. My husband is very sweet and usually buys me something, but since our anniversary is January 23rd I'd rather have something romantic then. Of course, I love chocolate.

Sees Bordeaux's would be good right now. Leonida's Belgian Chocolates would be better. Fran's chocolates would be fabulous. Call me a chocoloate snob but I do not like Godiva. Simply overrated.

Have a wonderful day! Go give your husband (or wife) a kiss and tell them how much you appreciate them!

On a Whim!

If you listened to the post below, you know my family spent the weekend in Syracuse, NY. The story goes something like this... Thursday Dawn calls me to chat a minute. I only know Dawn through Women at Home and, up until this weekend, had never met her in real life. While we were talking on the phone her husband suggested that we fly up to play in the snow as they had just gotten about 6 inches. So, I talked to Olaf and we decided to try it. I am so glad we went. The trip was fabulous from start to finish! When we arrived at the Syracuse airport Dawn was there WITH BELLS ON (really!) to welcome us. She has a Suburban so she was able to transport us to her home without us renting a car. Her precious girls gave up their room so the Jorek's could take it over. The children got along superbly as did Olaf and Scott. Of course Dawn and I hit it off from the get go. This picture is in the airport. There are bells hanging from that woman's neck!


Thank you, Dawn, for a terrific weekend! I don't think it could've been any better!

Heart Maker

To make your own candy heart go here!

I did it!

I actually worked out this morning. I am NOT a morning person at all and this is so not fun for me. Yesterday, Charity and I decide that we would hold each other accountable to exercise every morning. Since we are both busy mama's we made a committment to work out before the children got up. So, I put Caleb on the bus at 6:30 and popped in the DVD. I had to do a modified version of the FIRM because I am so out of shape that I cannot keep up. Honestly, I will never be able to do all the ab work those women do. I switched back to Weight Watchers Points yesterday. A week on Atkins and I lost nothing. However, it was good for me. My sugar cravings have dropped drastically. But then I received this from my husband yesterday. My Valentine's Day present arrived early.

The girls just got up and I need to go check on Josiah. Have a great day!

Not fair, not fair, not fair!!

My husband has lost FIVE pounds since Monday. FIVE! Me? I have lost 0. Yes, that is a big fat ZERO. It's just not fair I tell you!

I got such a treat today. I was IM'ing Cheri through MSN Messenger when all of a sudden we were speaking to each other! How fun is that? We were talking instead of typing! I was tickled pink. If anyone else has MSN Messenger let me know. I'll add you to my contact list. Maybe we can talk online sometime!

I have done nothing today. Absolutely nothing. Nothing productive that is. I need to get supper started soon. Well, I take that back. I did do school with Camille. That is productive. I talked with Cheri. I consider that productive. I looked up flights for Dana. That was semi productive. She decided she didn't want my buddy pass afterall!:) My friend Jeannie stopped by with her newborn baby! I held him. That was productive. Hey, I did a lot today.

I am so glad it is Friday. My husband is home with me. I miss him during the week. He still gives me butterflies in my tummy when I see him when he comes home from work. He really does.

Have a great weekend!

Quick Update

The Bible Study ladies went out to eat this evening. I stayed on Atkins even though they ate cheesecake in front of me. I am telling myself it will be so worth it in about 8 weeks! And I can do ANYTHING for 8 weeks. I got through Basic Training in the United States Air Force, I can certainly stay on Atkins for 8 weeks. Christy told me about a diet very similar to Atkins called Protein Power. I just bought the book off Ebay but it sounds very similar to Atkins. One of the differences is you can have 7-10g of carbs per meal. Basically that is 10 more grams of carbs per day than Atkins. And I'm ALL about more carbs.

It's late. Olaf is making egg salad for lunch tomorrow. We watched Survivor tonight. It's going to be a good one. I am rooting for the older men to win.

And one prayer request...a friend of mine in New Zealand is looking into the claims of Christ. She is seeking and wondering if Christianity is the real deal or not. Would you please pray the the Lord would make Himself so real to her that she cannot back away from it? Her name is Wilm.

Blessings...Peace Out!

Thankfulness

I am so utterly thankful to the Lord for the blessings that He has poured out on me. The absolute biggest blessing has to be my husband. Do you know what that man did? He washed the pan he made eggs in before he even left for work so I wouldn't have to. Is that not the most thoughtful thing in the world? He usually never eats eggs in the morning, but since we are on Atkins I figured I'd have more dishes to clean. I woke up Monday morning fully expecting to find a frying pan with egg debris, but there was nothing. I figured that he changed his mind and ate something else for breakfast. But NO! That man cooked his eggs and then washed the pan and put it back in the cupboard! I almost cried when I found that out. That means so much to me. He loves me. Of course next on the list are my children. Children that I never thought I would have. The Lord has blessed me with three pregnancies and births that, quite honestly, I never expected. Going through years and years of infertility kind of dampens any expectation of actually conceiving. Then to be able to give birth at home and nurse my children for extended periods of time was just icing on the cake. There really isn't anything more empowering than giving birth. I cannot describe it, but if you are mother you know what I'm talking about. The Lord has also blessed us all with health. Yes, Caleb has epilepsy and his mental challenges, but we are not dealing with any major medical problems. I cannot imagine what it is like to be in Karen's position or the thousands upon thousands of people that are dying of one disease or another. Or worse yet, watching your children suffer. When I ponder things like that I have to place my trust in the sovereignty of God. I cannot go where the Lord has not called me. He never gives us grace to speculate about the future, He only gives us the grace in our time of need. And one more blessing I just have to mention, and that is the blessing of friends. My online buddies and my real life friends. I have made some awesome friends over at Women at Home. I don't know how it is possible to make friends via this keyboard, but I have done it! I can sit here all night and name blessing upon blessing but I won't bore y'all. I'm going to go to bed and snuggle with my men. Yes, plural. My hubby and my three year old that still sleeps with us. Thank you Father God!

Word Cloud

I found this link at Angie's site. It's a website that looks at your blog and grabs words from them to make this little word cloud. I thought it was pretty cool. If you want to try it go here. Once it makes it for you right click to save it. If you continue you end up buying a T-Shirt! I found that out the hard way! LOL!

The Atkins Diet

I started Atkins yesterday. Mostly because I need to get off all sugar. I have only done Atkins one other time and it was only for a week or two. But, I did feel wonderful once I was off sugar and carbs. Olaf is doing it with me and, of course, he will lose a lot more weight than I will. He was on Atkins for 6 weeks and lost 30 pounds the last time. It lowered his blood pressure as well as his cholesterol. For all the bad press that Atkins gets, it sure does do a lot of good things for the body.

My house is a wreck. I really need to dust, clean the bathrooms, declutter, etc. I need the children to pitch in and help. They always clean the hall bathroom for me.

So much more to write about but I really need to make Josiah lunch. Maybe I'll get a chance later on.

Weekend Update

The weather was gorgeous yesterday so we took the children to the local park. After that we took a "drive" out into the country where there are mansions and horse farms. It was lovely. The children were bored stiff though. Somehow we ended up at the library and Camille checked out seven (that's all I would allow for a two week period) Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys books. I checked out the autobiography of Bill Bright and James Dobson's book about raising boys. Disclaimer...I don't agree with James Dobson on A LOT of stuff. I just heard the book was good. I despise the psychobabble crapola that Mr. Dobson is predisposed to. Just FYI. Anyway, after the library we went out to eat at Golden's and then went to DQ for a treat. It was a very good day. I am not sure what we will do today. I know Olaf wants to go back to Costco to use a coupon for some recordable DVD's. Survivor starts Thursday and he needs to record them for me since that is Bible Study night. Sometimes I wish we could afford digital cable through our provider because then we could do the digital recording thing. You know, like Tivo.

Camille's riding lesson went really well. Lauren, the young lady giving lessons, was incredibly mature and worked well with Camille. They still are not sure what they will charge, but I did tell her mother what we could afford to pay. Hopefully I didn't insult her. They are raising four cows for beef. No hormones, pasture roaming, grain fed. I told her I want some of that meat when they butcher them. I actually told her I could sell all four cows for her with no problems, but I think she already has them sold. The are not due to be slaughtered until fall. Until then I get to look at them and get attached every week. They are really cute right now. The horse Camille rode is an Spotted Saddle Horse. It has one extra gait. He definitely had a much smoother walk and trot then the last horse she was riding. She looked very comfortable on him. It amazes me that she can go from one horse to another and the horse obeys her. Camille is very timid in every aspect of her life EXCEPT when it comes to horses.

Hey Tammy Redding! Thank you for leaving a comment. I had NO idea you still read my blog. I miss your bubbly personality. I do not miss walking in San Francisco though.

Off to get dressed to start this day.

I am so happy it is Friday

Don't you just love Friday's? I do because I know my husband will be home for two days.

I am taking Camille to meet a 16 year old homeschooled young lady today to see about taking riding lessons from her. I am not sure if I posted on here, but Cami's riding instructor decided to quit. I called her after Christmas to see when she was going to start lessons again and she said, "I'm not doing lessons anymore." Uh...OK...Whatever. So I sent out a plea to our homeschool e-mail loop and had a few people respond. The ideal was to have a young girl teach Camille because we cannot afford a stable. Stables cost about $65 per hour for a private lesson. I want to pay $15 for an hour! I'm not too sure what this young woman wants to charge. I guess I'll find that out today. Our monthly limit is $60 so if she charges $20 per hour Camille will be able to go three times a month.

Please pray for Karen. I don't think they have updated the website yet, but she is being put into a drug induced menopause to try to "starve" her cancer of estrogen. The doctor said that chemotherapy is not an option right now since Karen has such adverse reactions to it. The doctor wants Karen to have some quality of life. Karen is upset about having to throw her body in menopause. Please pray for them. This is a tough time. I hate cancer.

I need to get dressed. Molly is coming over today and here I sit all morning-y.

Nothing special

Our anniversary was great. It was rainy and yucky outside, but we had a good time anyway. We went out to lunch and did some shopping. We went to Best Buy to buy our tax software and stuff like that. I didn't make him go to the Dollar Store though. He hates the Dollar Store.

Delta announced it is going to reduce its fleet by 100 aircraft and lay off about 1,000 maintenance people. Thankfully Olaf still has a job. At this point he still has his foreman position in Avionics. The Lord is gracious and we are thankful for His ultimate provision.

I tried to make supper in the crockpot tonight and I burned it. The chicken I put in was too thinly sliced I think. It was way overcooked and tasted horrible. Needless to say Olaf brought home pizza. It was a new recipe and I was looking forward to trying it. Bummer.

We are on our last chapter for Bible Study. We are starting this Bible Study next.

Nothing too exciting to blog about. Oh, Tammy Settlemier, the thank you card I sent you was returned today. I really would love to have your new address. PLEASE!

Olaf is feeling better

Praise the Lord! Keep praying for him as he has a lot of health issues that never seem to get any better. He will be following up with his doctor this week.

Tomorrow is our anniversary. Olaf has taken the day off so we can spend a few hours together without children. Caleb will go to school and the other three are going over to my friend Terri's house. That's Molly's mom for those of you familiar with Camille's best friend. We are not sure what we will do but I am sure it will involve eating lunch somewhere. We just may come home and sleep then entire time. That actually sounds like a pretty good date to me.

I took Camille to Narnia again this evening. She has now seen the movie thrice and I have seen it twice. It was actually better the second time. I could just watch it without expecting so much. I fell in love with Mr. Tumnus tonight. He seems like such a nice faun. There was a preview at the beginning for Pirates of the Caribbean part 2. We recently watched the first one on DVD and I hated the fact that I really liked it. You see, I used to refuse to watch Johnny Depp movies because he is such a liberal fool. But I really wanted to see Charlie and the Chocolate Factory so I rented it through Blockbuster Online. Loved it. Better than the first one in my opinion. The little boy who plays Charlie is such a cutie. And Johnny Depp was FABULOUS in it. So, we rented Pirates of the Caribbean. Another great movie. I really enjoyed Johnny Depp's character yet again. ARRRGHH! I don't want to like him! So then I rented Finding Neverland and now I'm hooked. (HA HA! Hooked! Total pun and not intentional. Get it? Captain Hook?) Anyway, I want to see the new Pirates in the theater. And please do not tell me about Johnny because I really don't want to know.

Off to watch the Seahawks. I'm not a huge NFL fan but the Seahawks always sucked when I was a kid. Losers of all losers. It's kind of fun to watch them win.

That man is going to kill me

Olaf calls me from his cell phone this afternoon and says he's coming home. He doesn't feel well. I ask him what his symptoms are and he starts listing them:

His face, lips, and chin are numb.
His forearms and hands are numb.
His legs are numb.
He is having trouble speaking.
He is dizzy and disoriented.
He feels drunk.

Uh...HELLO??? Drive to the ER buddy and I'll meet you there. I have to say the ER experience today was wonderful. They took him back immediately upon leaving triage and by the time I did the insurance paperwork the doctor was already in with him. They did blood work, a CT Scan of his head, an EKG, and a chest X-Ray. All the tests came back normal, but his symptoms are still persisting. The ER doctor wants him to see a neurologist. He went to bed at 7:30 tonight and I hoping some sleep will help him feel better tomorrow.

So, back up with me for a minute. As I was walking into the ER I remember I had Dana's number programmed in my cell phone. So I call her and ask her to put Olaf on Women at Home's prayer board. I KNEW the women there would be praying for him. Not only did she immediately post to the board for me, she called me to see how everything was going. I have never met this woman in real life but she took the time to call me. Then, just a few hours later, another friend that I met on the board called. Yes, I got to talk to my twin separated at birth, Dawn! What a blessing it was for yet another woman, who I have never met in real life, to call and make sure everyting was OK. I am humbled. Truly humbled. Thank you ladies for caring about my family. It means so much to me. So...

Dawn and I talked for a long while on the phone. You see, we have a lot in common. My name is Misty Dawn Marie and her name is Dawn Marie. We are both tall. We love the same TV shows, strawberry rhubarb pie, and we both crave alcohol when we are pregnant. How is that for too weird? The similarities are uncanny which we just laughed about tonight on the phone. To make things even better, she has family that lives less than 20 minutes from my house. She has a reason to come visit. I may get to meet her someday! Woo Hoo!

I really need to get the chores done and get to bed. I just wanted to let everyone know what was happening here. I'll keep you posted on Olaf's progress. Please pray for him.

There's a new radio station in town

It's a secular station billing itself as "classic hits." They are playing 10,000 songs in a row with no commercials. Songs like Silly Little Love Songs by Paul McNartey, Time for me to Fly by REO Speedwagon, Don't Do Me Like That by Tom Petty. You can listen online too. So, if you like secular music from the mid 70's to early 80's commercial free (at least for awhile) go listen. Needless to say, I think it's the cat's meow.

One of "those" days

You know...the day that your 4th grade daughter decides that one of her long division problems has actually come from the pit of hell and is oppressing her spiritually. Camille worked on ONE long division problem for well over two hours today. She was able to complete her fractions with no problem. She is subtracting mixed numbers with borrowing for Pete's sake...no problem. She completed 5 long division problems easily. And then came the problem from the pit. 11,112 ÷ 24. She didn't have an ounce of trouble with 18,532 ÷ 79 though. Go figure. I was aggravated, she was aggravated. I contemplated running away to St. Thomas for a month, she contemplated calling Children's Services to go into foster care by choice. It was just one of those days. On top of that the day only got worse. Spilled Coke in the van, spilled Sprite on the hardwood floor, Caleb is sick, and I am premenstrual. Olaf came home from work and I went away. Away to the place I love to be when I'm mad. Away to Target, the Dollar Store, and Big Lots. I now have 3 sets of flashcards, shampoo and conditioner, some stickers, and computer paper. Do I feel better? Why, yes I do thankyouverymuch. Spending money is my therapy. Even if it was only a few bucks.

My anniversary is coming

Next Monday is my anniversary. I have no idea what I should buy Olaf. No idea whatsoever. Do you have any ideas? E-mail them to me instead of commenting because he reads my blog. Eighteen years I have been married to this man. Eighteen. I cannot believe I am old enough to have been married that long. If we would have conceived soon after we got married then we could have a 17 year old child right now! How is that for weird? I need to take a digital picture (since I don't have a scanner) of our wedding day. We eloped so there was no formal wedding. I wore this (ahem) not-so-modest dress that I used to wear to the night clubs in technical school. Olaf wore a silver/gray sport jacket and pink dress shirt with a skinny tie. Very Miami Vice. Yes, we were children - of the 80's.

I am so blessed

to have a husband who loves me and our children so much.

Love, love, love Sundays

We always spend Sundays doing something as a family. Today we went to return something to Toys R Us which meant spending half an hour playing with the Thomas trains. Then we went to this great family owned pizza buffet. They have pizza like baked potato, BLT (yes it is yummy), chicken, etc. They also have these terrific desserts. After we ate way too much we went to Kohls so the children could get some new shoes. My children only have one pair of shoes. Sneakers (or tennis shoes depending on where you live). We do not have dress shoes of any sort unless someone gives them to us as hand me downs. Not that I am against dress shoes, but we never dress up!:0) Anyway, three of the children had outgrown their sneakers and Kohls was having a sale. My poor children were in shoes at least a half size too small. I bought Camille some boot type shoes for riding since she had outgrown her paddock boots about 6 months ago. On the way home we stopped at Blockbuster because we had a gift card. Now we are home and Caleb is complaining that he is hungry. That is impossible because the child ate 73 pieces of pizza and a bowl of ice cream!

Last night I had this wonderful dream that I was pregnant and gave birth to a BIG baby girl. I didn't want to wake up. At Kohls they had a bunch of infant clothes on clearance. I couldn't resist. My SIL is pregnant and I bought several things for her baby. They are gender neutral though since they are not finding out the sex before the birth. I LOVE buying baby clothes. Especially on clearance!

Camille and I finished yet another Nancy Drew computer game. I am so addicted now. I am probably the only adult that likes these games, but they are right up my alley.

Josiah is doing really good on the potty. He needs his privacy so he always tells us "Go away!" when we sit him down.

Well, Grace just knocked over the garbage can in the kitchen and Olaf is a rocket. I need to go referee.

Four Things

I've been tagged. I have NEVER been tagged before. I am SO excited. Thank you Dawn.

Four jobs you’ve had in your life

Produce Clerk at a grocery store
Avionics Technician on F4-G aircraft
Receptionist for a magazine publishing firm
Secretary for a medical supply company

Four movies you would watch over and over

Napoleon Dynamite
The Princess Bride
The Sound of Music
Life is Beautiful

Four places you have lived

Victorville, CA
Long Island, NY
Springfield, OR
Rantoul, IL

Four TV shows you love to watch

Survivor
The Amazing Race
American Idol
The Biggest Loser

Four places you have been on vacation:

Orlando, FL
Pigeon Forge, TN
The Oregon Coast
We don't do vacations, because that is all.

Four websites you visit daily

W@h
My blog
Bloglines
Google

Four of your favorite foods

Bagels from New York
Pizza from New York
Strawberry Rhubarb Pie
Fried Vegtables

Four places you would rather be right now

There is no place I'd rather be than home.
Honestly.
But I do like Target and the Dollar Tree.

Four bloggers you are tagging

Rebekah
Penny
Amie
Charity

80's assault

My friend, Becky, e-mailed me and through the course of our conversation she reminded me of a few 80's hits. Do you remember Icicle Works? You know their song "Whisper to a Scream?" The real title is "Birds Fly" but most people don't know that. Anyway you can listen to a clip here. She also reminded me of Slade's "Run Runaway". I think Becky and I should hang out more often. We could get into a lot of trouble together. What do you think Dana? Now I want some sort of compilation album of obscure 80's hits.

I went to the Dollar Tree last night and bought some computer games for the children. I also bought Camille some classic books like Ivanhoe, Robinson Crusoe, Kidnapped, Gulliver's Travels, and The Three Musketeers. She is in book heaven. I love the Dollar Tree. It has to be one of my very favorite stores. You just never know what you are going to find there. It's like a treasure hunt. I bought Grace a Disney Princess Math Workbook. It has simple addition in it. She did about 5 of the problems today before she decided she didn't want to do it anymore. I think adding at age four is pretty good. One of the great things about educating your children at home is buying wookbooks at the Dollar Store!:)

I need to go read my book for my Bible Study tomorrow. It's a long chapter and I haven't even started it. Since it is national delurking week, y'all need to leave a comment. It's real easy to do. I promise it won't kill ya. So, if you always leave a comment, or never do...you must leave a comment this time! Yes, even you Tammy Settlemier!

Hey Nineteen

EDITED TO ADD: My hair in a pony of some sort, but I do have bangs here. I haven't had bangs in ages.



This is me in technical school at Chanute AFB, IL. A friend from there recently tracked me down through Classmates.com and sent me a bunch of pictures of myself. Thanks Jeff!

Back to school

We started school today after two or three weeks off. Camille did fine. We even learned a new math concept today. Grace reviewed her phonics readers and is just thrilled to be doing "school" again. Gotta love that. She was playing with Josiah in the bedroom and I overheard her tell him "when the little hand is on the clock, I need to go do my school." Obviously she doesn't know how to tell time yet. Nor does she know the little hand never leaves the clock:0)

Jeannie came over with her newborn today. My children were in heaven. All three of them wanted to hold him. Josiah asked if he could have a real baby for Christmas. Isn't that precious? Here is a picture of Mickey. He is 11 days old today.

Camille said if I had another baby she would be holding it all the time. I told them all to PRAY!

Need to run. The dryer is beeping and my husband is coming home! Woo Hoo!

Perfect Day

We went to Callaway Gardens today and it couldn't have been more perfect. Honestly. The weather was beyond beautiful. Callaway is so peaceful as it is then to top it off with beautiful weather was a little taste of heaven. Callaway is about 45 minutes south of us and everytime we drive down there we always comment on how we wish we could live down there. Of course that is not feasible with Olaf working in Atlanta. His commute would be about 80 minutes each way. Maybe more depending on where we lived. So, today I bought a newspaper for Columbus, GA. It is about 40 miles south of Callaway. Olaf loves Columbus and we could live somewhere near Callaway and he could commute to Columbus if he could find a job there. I know it will never happen, but hey, this is my blog and if I want to dream I will!:)

Friday WOOTY!

Olaf took today off. I let him sleep in until 10 am at which time I instructed the girls to go wake him up. After he rolled out of bed we went out for breakfast/lunch at Cracker Barrel. We can only go out to a restaurant when Caleb is at school. Caleb has too many sensory issues for us to eat in a restaurant. Anyway, the van wouldn't start so we all squished into Olaf's Toyota Echo. Turns out our battery was dead and the throttle body needed to be greased or lubed or whatever it is that you do to a throttle body. It runs great now. We still have a check engine light on but we know it's an oxygen sensor and it really doesn't affect anything except gas mileage. We just had an oxygen sensor go bad a few months ago and it cost $300 to replace.

I have been playing Camille's Nancy Drew computer games. They are so fun. We have completed four (yes four) since Christmas. They are addictive though, so I will not buy anymore until her birthday! I just finished Last Train to Blue Moon Canyon today. The hardest thus far has been Shadow Ranch though.

Olaf is watching the movie Gladiator right now. It's a great movie but I cannot watch all the blood and guts. So I sit here at the computer and listen to it and then turn around for any interesting parts that I actually want to see.

I still haven't started exercising or watching what I eat for that matter. Right now I am too content I guess. It would help if Olaf would say, "Woman! Lose some weight!" But he doesn't. He tells me I am as attractive right now as I was 60 pounds ago! He lurves me.

Caleb broke the laundry room door today. He was spinning and got dizzy and ran smack into it sending it off the rails and crashing into the wall. Olaf was a rocket to say the least. I was so happy he didn't hurt my new washer and dryer. Oh that would have really sucked.

I am not sure what this weekend will bring for us, but I hope y'all have a good one.

Atypical Experiment

Atypical Experiment

(I think this is really rather interesting--i hope you will take the time to read it and the five minutes it takes to actually do it)

Atypical Experiment
There is a game known as ‘6 Degrees of Separation’ (from Kevin Bacon - no relation to the best of my knowledge). The way the game works is to try to connect 2 famous people via 6 associations. We have been watching the blogsphere for the last year or so and believe that nearly all blogging homeschoolers will hear about important news items, etc. within 3 days of the first mention in a HS blog.

This experiment will work as follows:

1- If this is the first blog in which you have seen this post and you would like to contribute to the experiment, copy the entire post and post it in your blog.

2- Modify the post to add a link to your blog which displays the appropriate degree you are from the original in the following list:

{original, first degree, second degree, third degree, fourth degree, fifth degree, sixth degree}

That way, visitors can directly see the chain of communication that ended with this post in your blog.

3- Leave a comment in the blog where you first viewed this post indicating that your blog is among the next degree.

4- If you are a homeschooler or are interested in/considering homeschooling and either do not have a blog, would prefer not to blog this or the sixth degree is already taken, you can still contribute to this experiment by leaving a comment in the blog where you first read it.

5- After 3 days report back how many people read, commented and blogged based on your post to the blog where you first read this. (The only report this blog would receive is from the degree below and this blog will report the total from below and comments here to the degree above.) To illustrate how this would work let’s suppose that in this imaginary example every blog has approximately the same number of readers and that each blog entry for each degree ends up with exactly the same number of comments.

Let’s say that each blog would receive 2 comments where the experiment was posted and 2 comments from non-bloggers. This would produce the following:

original: 2 + 2 = 4
first: ( 2 * 2 ) + 2 = 6
second: ( 2 * 4 ) + 2 = 10
third: ( 2 * 8 ) + 2 = 18
fourth: ( 2 * 16 ) + 2 = 34
fifth: ( 2 * 32 ) + 2 = 66
sixth: ( 2 * 64 ) + 2 = 130

That totals 268. If you change the number of experiment posts to 3, the result is ( 5 + 11 + 29 + 83 + 245 + 731 + 2189 = ) 3293. Consider what the number would be when we average about 60 readers a day. (Welcome to math 101) Let’s allow a week for the reporting to roll back through the earlier degrees.

I'm still in pain

My gallbladder is still "burning". Hmmm...maybe I should go to the doctor. It's not contracting anymore though. Just a constant burning type pain. It doesn't get worse when I eat which makes me wonder if it's my gallbladder at all. HELP!?!?! Olaf is convinced it is just because I'm fat. And he means that in the most loving way. hee hee. He blames all of his own ailments on his fatness too, so I can't be mad at him. It's true. We are both fat. Not phat, but F-A-T.

I go back to Bible Study tomorrow night. We are still going through Home-Making by J.R. Miller. Excellent book. Definitely a "must read" Cheri. You will be blessed.

We listed a few more Narnia things on Ebay. We have a few more things to list as well. We have two more T-Shirts and a couple of tote bags. Like the one I gave you Cheri. (I just blog for Cheri! LOL!) You can see our items here.

I need to go think about supper. I'm not sure if I'll get past that stage. I'll let you know tomorrow.

Wanna see?

Yes, this is my new Duet. If Olaf would have spent the same amount of money on a diamond ring for me, I'd be wearing a lot of bling. He said when the jeweler offers 12 months no interest he would consider it! LOL! Anyhoo, I did ALL of our laundry including sheets today in three loads! Laundry for six people that hasn't been done for 6 days! The dryer took 35 minutes for each load with the exception of the load with all the sheets. I had to add about 10 more minutes to that one. My children sat in front of the washer and watched it for a good 10 minutes. I love doing laundry, so this is fun for me.

My gallbladder is still wonky. It isn't as bad as yesterday, but it comes and goes now.

My husband is awaiting word if he will still be a foreman when this new round of layoffs hits Delta. He was one of the last foreman hired in avionics and it is possible that he could be bumped down to lead mechanic again. Hang on folks. It's gonna be a bumpy ride.

I have a new lurve. Vanilla Coke. I mean, I have had it in the past and then forgot about it. I tried Diet Vanilla but it just isn't the same. Coke also has out a new Black Cherry Vanilla. I haven't tried that one yet. I just don't like to drink calories. I think it is such a waste. So, I usually go for the Diet Coke and EAT my calories. I will drink calories if it Coffeemate Toasted Almond Creamer or an adult beverage!:)

I have to post a picture of the shirt I am wearing. Hang on while I take it...

Olaf got it for me for Christmas. If you have't seen Napoleon Dynamite, you really must!

So, that's it from the nut house! The children are going crazy behind me and I need (like absolutely have to) go clean the bathrooms.

Gallbladder Attack

I think I am having one. Mine is almost like a contraction though in the gallbladder area. It intensifies and then wanes on a 20 second schedule. It is right where my gallbladder is though, so I am hoping it doesn't turn out to be a full blown, need surgery, thing.

My Duet is here and almost installed. I will take pictures once they are in. Olaf had to go back to Lowe's to buy a longer dryer cord since we stacked it. Hopefully tonight I will be doing laundry!

Major thunderstorms moving through here. It is SO hot out there. Mid 60's at least. YUCK!

Olaf is home with the cord. Need to run!

Happy 2006!

The Duet that wasn't...

almost. After we went to Lowe's last night to make our Duet purchase (on sale for 2 more days if you want one), we came home and measured the laundry closet. Yes, we should have done that first! We called Lowe's back and told them to cancel delivery for today because that way cool Duet was not going to fit in our laundry closet. Major bummer. I asked Olaf if you can stack the Duet? We did an online search and YES you can stack a Duet if you purchase a Duet stacking kit. We remeasured and still...not enough room. We needed a few more inches. Olaf went to Lowe's and bought this. Now we can stack the Duet and it will fit in my laundry closet. Woo Hoo! It is scheduled for delivery on Monday.

2005 in review

January - Celebrated my 17th wedding anniversary. Went out on a date with my husband. Our women's Bible Study was doing "Calm My Anxious Heart". Saw Dennis Swanberg in concert. Went to a Homeschool Winter Tea. Had a rare ice storm in Georgia. Olaf took a 10% pay cut.

February - Everyone except Caleb was sick with the flu. He got the shot!:)

March - Started doing the FIRM. Camille turned nine. Caleb's spring baseball season started. Caleb's spring horse riding therapy started. Olaf's back completely locked up for a few days. I got my hair layered a bit.

April - Caleb competed in the Special Olympics. He also had spring break that month.

May - I had a root canal. Went to the GA Homeschool Conference. Olaf went to the cardiologist for testing. Everything was fine, praise God! Camille had her homeschool choir performance. Grace turned four. My friend, Karen, was diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer. Last day of school for Caleb.

June - I went on antibiotics for some ailment. Registered for the 3 Day Breast Cancer Walk in honor of Karen. Had my yearly GYN appointment. Went to the dentist for my crown that didn't fit. Took Josiah to the doctor for tachycardia.

July - Camille started 4th grade! Shasta, our cat, went to the Emergency Vet for what turned out to be an abscess. Olaf interviewed for a foreman position. Stopped doing the FIRM! LOL!

August - Olaf found out he made foreman. Caleb started school. Fall baseball started for Caleb and Camille. I am training for my 3 Day Walk. Got a crown that fit.

September - Olaf went to Germany for five days. Caleb turned 10. Another pay cut announced. We went to the county fair. Olaf turned 37.

October - The 3 Day Breast Cancer Walk! I met Cheri and Holly from Women at Home! That was SO awesome.

November - I turned 38. Chantell got married. Took another 9% pay cut. (That's 19% total in less than a year!)

December - Josiah turned three. My friend, Jeannie, had a baby boy! My girls got their ears pierced. My friend Tammy from high school sent my children Christmas presents. I got a new digital camera and a new washer and dryer is being delivered today thanks to 12 months no interest, 10% off, and free delivery! My washer can only wash on the heavy duty cycle and it is tearing up our clothes.

It's almost the New Year

2006 is just a few days away. Amazing. It really is true that once you have children, the days seem to fly by. I guess that's the way it's supposed to be.

Olaf and I were really excited when my period was three days late. We thought maybe, just maybe, the Lord had blessed us again with a baby. But alas, she reared her ugly head and we were disappointed. The infertility roller coaster is never fun. Even if you already have children, the longing and yearning for another baby is still real. Time is no longer on my side. So, would you put us on your personal prayer list and pray that the Lord opens my womb again?

My friend had her baby last night. (Ironic that I start my period yesterday and she has her baby.) He was much bigger than her other two weighing in at 9 lbs 2 oz. He came 12 days early according to her due date. She tried to have him at home but got too tired and went to the hospital for the epidural so she could push more effectively. I guess she had a cervical lip and couldn't push through it at home. She had her other children at home with no problem. Maybe it was because they were smaller??? I dunno.

Olaf has asked me to go to Paris with him for an Avionics conference in April. Unfortunately, we have no one that would come stay with our children for a week. My mom will not fly (she hasn't even seen Grace or Josiah) and I don't know who else to ask. It's not an easy task. Caleb requires more attention than normal since he could have a seizure etc. He is also up at 5 am, so I need someone kind and compassionate. Someone like Ms. Martha. She is the pastor's wife of the church we used to attend. We love her. Anyway, Olaf will probably go alone although he says he doesn't want to go without me. Yeah, right! I'd be out the door before you could say escargot! With or without him!:0) Just background in case you don't know me in real life, we have never left our children. EVER! I mean at the same time. If I go somewhere he stays home and vice versa. So, in the ten years that we have had children we have never had a night apart from them ... alone ... together. We have had just a few "dates" away from them. We may go out once a year. Usually on or near our anniversary which is January 23rd. (Eighteen years I might add!) The last time we went out on a date was in June. We saw the new Star Wars for Father's Day. So you can imagine that a whole week away from the children is hard for me to think of. And since it's not going to happen....I'll stop rambling.

I just did a spell check and it suggested I change escargot to Eucharist. Snails to the Lord's Supper. And besides "Olaf" and "dunno" which I spelled wrong on purpose, I am OK. Oh, and it doesn't recognize the word "blog" which is hilarious since this is a blog afterall.

Here I go to start this beautiful Friday!

Josiah turned THREE yesterday

Happy happy birthday Big Boy!

Just what he wanted! A diesel 10 cake! (If you are not familiar with Thomas the Tank Engine you will not know who Diesel 10 is.)

Then we went to Build A Bear.

And off to Chuck E. Cheese.

It was a fun, fun, fun day! He loves his trains and they have taken over my living room.

Tammy Settlemier

Hey you! I need your address. I have the old one and cannot find your newest one. Can you e-mail me and let me know so I can send you a thank you card?

Merry Christmas

My Gracie Girl


Caleb


Camille Rose


Josiah


You can see more at Flickr but you have to sign up and then be added by me as "Friends and Family." The photos are not public like some of my other photos you will see at Flickr.

Christmas Eve

Edited to add: Turn on the volume for a Christmas song from the Jorek's!

We open presents tonight! Oh yes we do! Everyone is giddy with excitement and it's only 9:00 am. I will post pictures this evening, so check back! We will also have our traditional Christmas Eve dinner. Cold cuts and crusty rolls. Olaf will eat steak tar tar as well but I'm not one for salmonella so I will refrain. We always get liverwurst, ham, salami, (Oh Jamie I hope you are not reading this) and a lot of different types of cheeses. Then we put a slab of REAL butter on the rolls and pile high the cold cuts. YUM! After dinner we will try to dress up a little (Olaf's tradition) and then listen to the Christmas story read from the Bible by Papa. Then...CHAOS! Let the present opening begin! See you tonight.

I am having way too much fun...

Olaf and I are addicted to ebay! We have sold a few sets of Disney Store Narnia action figures in the last two days and thus far have made a profit of $150 with more sales pending. Gotta love that! Disney Stores are just now starting to get these action figures in and they are hard to find. We went to a mall about 40 minutes away and bought six sets. Two to keep and four to sell. We sold two complete sets (6 figures each) and listed the other two sets as individual pieces. One set of six sold with Buy It Now for $155! We paid $60. The other full set currently has a bid of about $112 and the auction doesn't end for three more days. We sold a few individual pieces for a Buy It Now price of $30. This gravy train won't last long though. As more people see the easy money to be made (maybe someone reading this right now) the market will be flooded and we'll be screwed. So, now I kindly ask if you are going to sell these items will you please wait until ours end? :0)

Camille said the cutest thing yesterday. We were in the van going to the mall (for action figures) and she said, "Mom. I caught Papa right handed!" She meant red handed. I laughed at her cuteness. She is nine years old and she still says things like that.

To expound on the ear piercing stories... We went to Callaway Gardens Sunday night for Fantasy in Lights. Well, the only time slot available was 8 pm and we got there at 4 pm to purchase tickets. We decided to drive into LaGrange to eat and kill some time. We went to this little mall in LaGrange and there was a Claire's. I asked Grace if she wanted to get her ears pierced because she had told me in the past that she wanted to. Get this. She wanted to get her ears pierced just to see how bad it hurt. She already wants to take her cute little earrings out of her ears because she felt the pain and that's all she wanted. PLEASE PRAY FOR HER! Anyway, I asked Camille while we were there if she wanted to get her ears pierced. She, being just the opposite of Grace, said no way. She was afraid of the pain. Monday I had to go to WalMart for some Christmas stuff and Camille said she wanted to get her ears pierced there. She hesitated a bit, almost cried, then decided that she would. She finally did and she is in heaven with her pretty earrings.

I cannot believe that Christmas is just a few days away. Josiah will be three years old in four more days. He is my only child that hasn't been fully potty trained by this age. He likes his Pull-Ups to pee in. He is real good about going poo in the potty though. In a few more weeks I'll take away the Pull-Ups and have a few days of peeing in his big boy undies. It shouldn't take long. (I just realized I am blogging about poo and pee. I hope you are a mom if you are reading this!)

I need to get my children some breakfast. Have a great day.

Too busy to blog

because I am too busy ebaying! LOL!

More pictures

Look how cute! This is my sister in law pregnant with her first baby. She is due March 7th. Aren't pregnant women just precious? Frances is a lawyer (real estate) in New York City. Fancy Schmancy, eh? She is married to Olaf's brother, Scott. They live in Queens. Better them than me. I really had a hard time adjusting to New York when I lived there. It is a whole different lifestyle. Anyway, I cannot wait to be an Auntie! How fun! And I have no idea who gave them this shower. They didn't tell me! LOL! It looks like they got spoiled though. I hope they let me kiss the baby on the lips. That is my favorite thing to do. Kiss those little baby lips and smell that newborn breath. It's almost heaven I tell ya.

And not to be outdone....

by her little sister! Tah Dah!

Grace gets her ears pierced!

Grace before. She was very brave!



Getting marked!




One, Two, Three...





Look at my pretty earrings!

Narnia AGAIN

Olaf and Camille went to Narnia again today. Olaf said he enjoyed it today more than the first time. McDonalds has Narnia Happy Meal Toys so I'm sure we'll eat there a bazillion times the next few weeks. He bought the entire set on Friday from one of the local McDonalds and I bought a set off ebay. One is for the children to play with and one is to keep in original packages. He wants the Narnia action figures that you can only purchase through Disney Stores, but not a lot of stores carry them. I tried to order them through the Walt Disney World Resorts personal shopper, but they wouldn't let me. Of course they are on ebay and a set of six sold for $80! They only cost $8 each retail. These figures are not made by Hasbro like the figures you can buy at Toys R Us. They are produced exclusively for Disney. So, if you are reading this and see Narnia figures in the Disney Store, I'll buy 2 sets from you!

I went Christmas shopping for Olaf last night and came home empty handed. I don't think he is going to have any presents to open this year besides a Napoleon Dynamite DVD! And he knows about that one already. So much for the element of surprise!

We are going to Callaway Gardens tomorrow night for the Fantasy in Lights show. My children (minus Caleb) enjoy it. Caleb just tolerates it. Who am I kidding! Caleb just tolerates anything we do as a family. As soon as we get to a destination (any destination) he says, "Mama home!"

I MUST go grocery shopping tomorrow before Callaway. Our cupboards are bare! No bread, no milk, no nada! Off to print my grocery list and cut coupons.

Morning Blogging

I like blogging in the morning. Before the rest of the children get up. Well, Caleb is up and waiting for the bus right now, but once he's on the bus I have at least a half hour before another child is out of bed. A cup of coffee and the click, click, click of the keypad.

In case you haven't noticed I changed my comments to haloscan. Why? I'm not sure. I just went to the website and it looked cool. There ya go. So when you see "yada yada yada" that is where you leave your comment.

I have not wrapped a single gift, nor have I sent any out-of-towners their presents. Olaf will go to DHL on Monday and send them all second day air. He gets a discount there. We are going to be burning the midnight oil the next week trying to wrap, pack, and sort. I still haven't bought Olaf a Christmas present. How is that for last minute?

Our ladies Bible study group went out for dinner last night. I ordered prime rib. I felt SO guilty about spending that much money on food. I brought half of it home for Olaf though. It was very good. I was impressed. We exchanged gifts and Charity made the cutest wall calendars on her computer for all of us. It had photos of all of us and special dates like birthdays and anniversaries printed on there. It was very thoughtful. Suzanne gave us honey made with her own bee hive along with tea and chocolate. Krista gave us a Longaberger Christmas crock with potato soup mix inside. Mrs. Mike gave us some pretty boxes with candy inside. It was a fun night. Speaking of Longaberger, I did something really dumb. I resigned effective 11-30-05 and forgot to print off all of my order history etc for tax purposes. ARRRGGHHHH! I know if I call them they will be NO help whatsoever! That was such a dumb thing to do I could bite myself.

Today is riding lessons. And it's pretty dern cold out there too. Maybe the littles will want to stay in the van. Yeah, right. I am certainly not complaining about the cold. I like it. I like it so much better than summer in GA. If it would snow I'd be in hog heaven.

Deep ponderings from my heart

Lately (well, the past month or so) I have been studying 1 Cor 11. The Lord has really been humbling me through a series of circumstances. Mostly it has been through my husband. It's really a long story, so go get a cup of coffee or something. You see, I have always thought of myself as rather smart. I have a very high IQ and desperately want to take the test to be a member of MENSA. I have always wanted to be a medical doctor and even joined the Air Force so I could get the GI Bill to go to college when I got out. I just knew that I destined for greatness in some sort of influential career that made a lot of money. When I became a Christian my focus totally changed. I no longer desired a career. What I desired was a family. A house full of children and me a full time mother.

My husband started with Delta Airlines as a peon junior mechanic. He became a mechanic and then applied to be a lead mechanic. He had to interview for the position and he got it. He was becoming very well liked by the "powers that be" and excelled in his job. Then the position of foreman came open. He prayed about it and felt like he should put in for the job. Guess what? He got it. He is currently the foreman of two shops, in charge of 40 men, and handles a huge budget. It really is a good job for someone who never went to college. He is super smart, excels in all he does, is very well liked, shares his faith to whomever he feels lead, just is an overall really nice guy. (Here it comes...) And you know what? I find myself jealous. Jealous that he has this great job (I wanted a great job), jealous he gets to go out to eat lunch at nice restaurants at vendors expenses (I have to make lunch before I can eat my pb&j), jealous that he has an office of his own (I don't even have a bedroom all my own). You get the idea. It was all about me, me, me. Of course, I know this thinking is completely wrong. I am not trying at all to excuse my behavior. That is where 1 Cor 11 comes in. (I really was going to get to the point eventually)

But I would have you know that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is the man, and the head of Christ is God. Every man praying or prophesying, having his head covered, dishonoureth his head. But every woman that prays or prophesieth with her head uncovered dishonors her head: for that is even all one as if she were shaven. For if the woman be not covered, let her also be shorn or shaven, let her be covered. For a man indeed ought not to cover his head, forasmuch as he is the image and glory of God: but the woman is the glory of man. For the man is not of the woman, but the woman of the man. Neither was the man created for the woman, but the woman for the man. For this cause a woman ought to have power on her head because of the angels.


Now, I have been taught (and thought for all this time) that this was a cultural thing limited to the Corinthian church. Something about prostitutes and shaving their heads and yada yada yada. However, when I just read the text...just read it with no preconceived ideas...it plainly states that a woman ought to cover her head when she prays. As I pondered this I realized how incredibly prideful and nonsubmissive I am toward my husband. The thought of covering my head to show submissiveness to Olaf (and the angels) is almost unbearable to me. That, my friends, is a HEART issue. As I pray and seek the Lord about it (my heart and pride) the more I feel Him say to me to cover my head. Not because it is "required" but because my heart needs to be humbled before my God and my husband. A physical covering is certainly humbling and a wonderful reminder of my place in the home and in the chain of command mentioned above in Scripture. You have to understand if you do not know me in real life...I am a T-Shirt and jeans woman. I do not wear dresses and denim jumpers. I am not "plain" and I do not think one has to look Amish to be spiritual. So, this head covering thing is really, really, really out of the ordinary for me. That is why I know it is from the Lord. I haven't done it yet. I'm still fighting Him. Maybe I'm not fighting, just negotiating. Do I have to wear it all the time Lord? The thought of wearing it really makes my stomach turn. That is how incredibly prideful I am. I am SO prideful that the thought of wearing it in public doesn't bother me a bit! Why? Because people would look at me and think I'm just one of those "conservative" or maybe "weird" Christians and that would suit me just fine. I'd look "holy" on the outside and be a tomb of rottenness on the inside. A Pharisee. The problem I have is being home with it on. Home. With the man I desperately love and the children who will wonder why Mama has gone completely nuts.

Just as a side note...I have done a lot of study on 1 Cor 11. I know the theories, I have read the commentaries. But I went Solo Scriptura and came to my own conclusions. Did you know the second half of 1 Cor 11 is quoted at almost every evangelical church on communion Sundays?

For I received of the Lord that which I also delivered unto you, that the Lord Jesus that same night in which He was betrayed took bread and when He had given thanks, he brake it and said, "Take, eat: this is my body which is broken for you. Do this in remembrance of me." After the same manner he also took the cup when he had supped saying, "This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye as oft as ye drink it in remembrance of me." For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup you show the Lord's death till He comes.

Is that just a cultural thing as well? Hmmm....

Haloscan commenting and trackback have been added to this blog.

And what to my wondering eyes should appear?

But a box full of presents for my children! Tammy, my friend from high school whom I haven't seen in real life since 1985, sent Christmas presents to my children! Was that incredibly nice or what?? Thank you a thousand times Tammy. It's times like these that my flesh wants to say, "You shouldn't have done that" or "Why did you do that?" but I will not do that this time. I will receive the blessing that has been undeservedly given to us and just say Thank You! I am humbled by your generosity. Big hugs to you!

Mom's Corner

From Teri Maxwell

December Mom's Corner
What About Me?
Part 3
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When others find out that I am a homeschooling mom, one of their first questions will be, "When do you get time for yourself?" As I have reflected on my answer, I realize how prone I am to accepting their judgments that my life is not fulfilled unless I have personal time to do what I want to do. It is easy to buy into the "what about me?" mentality because it is most certainly the bent of my flesh. Because of this, it has been necessary for me to go to Jesus with questions about my time, my focus, my energy, my expectations, and my needs. In this series of Mom's Corners on hard work, I am sharing with you what the Lord has put on my heart concerning these issues.

"Let not a widow be taken into the number under threescore years old, having been the wife of one man, Well reported of for good works; if she have brought up children, if she have lodged strangers, if she have washed the saints' feet, if she have relieved the afflicted, if she have diligently followed every good work" (1 Timothy 5:9-10). This sounds to me like a busy woman--one who has worked hard all of her life as she obediently followed Christ. There is no mention of anything she did for herself but only what she did in service to others that qualifies her for care from the church in widowhood. We see a picture of a woman, with her heart fully focused on the Lord, who spends her time in serving others.

Use of our time such as 1 Timothy 5:9-10 describes is of eternal value. This investment of our energy is where we are to find joy and fulfillment rather than in a quest for personal time, fun, or entertainment.

"But the younger widows refuse: for when they have begun to wax wanton against Christ, they will marry; Having damnation, because they have cast off their first faith. And withal they learn to be idle, wandering about from house to house; and not only idle, but tattlers also and busybodies, speaking things which they ought not. I will therefore that the younger women marry, bear children, guide the house, give none occasion to the adversary to speak reproachfully. For some are already turned aside after Satan" (1 Timothy 5:11-15).

In these verses, I believe we see the possible results of a self-focus in our lives as women: idleness, tattlers, and busybodies. Perhaps today we have a tendency to wander more from house to house via computers, but the idea still applies. These qualities are not held in esteem in these verses, but rather they are presenting a condemnation of this kind of selfishness and its outcome.

The direction, then, to keep from this kind of sin is to marry, bear children, and guide the house. In other words, the young widow is to be productive with her time in her own home. It sounds much like being a busy homeschool mom to me. Raising children and keeping house are encouraged as fruitful activities that cause Satan not to be able to speak reproachfully of us. My first priority is to be my family and my home. It is not to be getting time for my entertainment, hobbies, or fun.

My heart cry in these Mom's Corners is to encourage each of us that the busyness of our lives, if it is spent in service to our family, is a good thing. It is what Jesus is calling us to do. If we are feeling overwhelmed, it may mean we need to go to the Lord and to our husbands to reevaluate priorities. Titus 2:4-5 makes it clear that our service begins in our homes, "That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, To be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed" (Titus 2:4-5). Too often, moms struggle not because of their daily work and homeschooling, but because of other responsibilities they have taken upon themselves.

Rather than the feelings and disappointment that go with not having quantities of leisure time, I would like to suggest that we embrace the workload we have with diligence, determination, and joy. We are told that everything we do we are to do as unto the Lord. "And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men" (Colossians 3:23). It is hard for me to justify time spent in personal pursuits as being done unto the Lord if there is still serving of my family to be done.

Again, I want to emphasize that I am not saying we will never be able to spend time doing what we would choose to do, that we will never be able to relax, or that we should ruin our health by continual overworking. Instead, I am encouraging an acceptance of the workload we have been given with a focus on Jesus and on serving. In the midst of this, the Lord will give opportunities for what we like to do, and He will bring physical rest. He gives rest to our souls when our hearts are turned to Him rather than to ourselves. When my focus is on me, there is never enough ease or entertainment. I think if we want contentment in the calling God has given to us, we must receive the work before us and look away from "what about me?"

The question looms before me as it is regularly repeated from well-meaning friends: "When do you get time for yourself?" My response depends on the focus of my heart. I can begrudge what Jesus has called me to do. I can resent the gobbling of time that homeschooling my children takes. I can resist the workload of my homemaking tasks. I can be disappointed if I don't get time for my own fun or pleasures. On the other hand, I can be filled with delight that I am able to homeschool. I can view each minute I have with my children as an opportunity to turn their hearts to Jesus. I can rejoice over every act of service I am able to offer my husband and my children. I can say, "Lord, my time is Your time. Use it as You will," trusting Him fully with my life.

Teri Maxwell
www.Titus2.com

Word Searches

Camille has been doing spelling for 6 hours now. Yes, SIX hours. Why? Because there is a word search involved and she despises word searches. Her little brain cannot see the words even if they are horizontal reading from left to right. Usually I wouldn't "make" her do it, but sometimes in this life we have to do things we just don't like. It's good for her. Needless to say, we will be doing school right up until her bedtime tonight. Usually we can finish school in less than 2 hours. (Math, Spelling, and Language Arts) Not today!

Narnia Review...SPOILERS

Do not read this review if you want to see Narnia!! Close the window now.


I saw The Chronicles of Narnia yesterday.

The bad:

The score

The fake snow (why oh why cannot Hollywood make snow that looks real???)

Aslan. Both the way he looked and his voice. Liam Neeson does not do him justice.

The overall special effects were just not that great. Even the battle scenes looked rehearsed. Especially the climax of the fighting between the White Witch and Peter.

The good:

Adaptation

The children were cute.


Should you go see it? Yes. Especially if you have read the book. It is family friendly with the scariest part being when Aslan is sacrificed. I actually think it was filmed with children in mind. That is how I felt watching the film. Like I do when I am watching a film geared toward a younger audience. However, I personally would NOT take any child under the age of 8 or 9. And I would only take a child who has read the book so they will know the story line prior to seeing the movie. My nine year old daughter LOVED the movie. It is now her favorite movie of all time beating out "Two Brothers". She and her father plan on going next week to see it again. If you go over to Cami's blog, will you please leave a comment for her. You know how little girls are:0)

Off to yet another fun thing for Camille and Molly today. They are going to the fairgrounds to make 5 crafts to give away for Christmas. Junior Master Gardeners is hosting the FREE event and even buying them lunch. I couldn't pass that one up. I love the woman that leads it. She is incredibly sweet. So, off to the shower I go. Have a great weekend.

Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle all the way!

Just wanted to get a song stuck in your head.

Brr baby, it's cold outside. It's doing that raining/misting thing and it is about 42 degrees. Just that stinging cold I-really-don't-want-to-be-outside feeling. I take our dogs out to go potty about every three or four hours and the 5 minutes I spend out there is pure torture. Torture I tell you.

Tomorrow is the big day! The Narnia day. Wooty woot woot. Olaf and I are supposed to go out to dinner tomorrow night with all the other foreman and do whatever foreman and their wives do. I don't think we will go though. I just don't like to leave the children. Especially at bedtime. They want to meet for dinner at 7:00 pm!! My goodness! We eat supper at 4:30! Dinner at 7:00 would have to be a second dinner for me because there ain't no way this girl can wait until 7:00 to eat. They are going to Carraba's which I really don't like. I actually don't like Italian food at all.

I check the mail with expectancy everyday now hoping I'll find a Christmas card or two. I have gotten three so far. I love Christmas cards. I keep them every year. I just went through the cards I got last Christmas to make sure I didn't leave anyone out who sent me a card. It's fun to reread the Christmas letters and look at the photos that were sent. I just sent my cards out yesterday to all the out of town family. I will mail the local cards later. Olaf has to send cards out to all the guys in his shops. I think there are about 40 total. I addressed the envelopes, he just needs to sign them.

Camille is SO into Yahtzee right now. She is so competitive though. It's a good opportunity to teach her how to be a good sport and not to wish evil onto others. We let Grace play with us today and she kicked our keesters. Grace got a score of 309! A perfect score in Yahtzee is 375, so she rolled the dice like a Las Vegas pro. Humbling for Camille to say the least.

Humble Pie

EDITED: I was wrong. Thumper said blossoms and not clover. Humble pie AGAIN! Pointed out to me by me dear daughter.

That is what I am eating. It doesn't taste good but it sure is good for me. Kind of like spinach. Or when Thumper says to Bambi, "Don't eat the green stuff, just eat the blossoms." And his Mama says, "Thumper, what did your father tell you?"
"'Bout what?"
"About eating the blossoms and leaving the greens?"
"Oh, that one. (clears throat) Eating greens is a special treat. It makes long ears and great big feet. (whispers) But it sure is awful stuff to eat. I made that last part up myself."

That's me. Eating the awful green stuff but knowing it's good for me. It's making me grow and that is a good thing. Excuse me while I throw up!

Noon on Friday

That is the first showing of The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe and I will be there with my daughter, her friend, and her friend's mom. I am so excited. I haven't been this excited about a film since...well...never!

I went to WalMart today to pick up the prints of the children for the Christmas card. Here is the one we are using:


Sorry to ruin it for you if you get a Christmas card from us. I try to send out pictures and letters to family and friends who do not read my blog. Especially old people. Like my Aunt Dorothy. She is in her mid-nineties and lives with her only daughter who is in her mid-seventies. Her daughter, my Aunt Bubbie, has never been married and has always lived at home with her mother. She was a librarian and is smart as a whip. Aunt Dorothy is my Grandmother's sister. My Grandmother passed away almost 2 years ago. I think she was 78 years old when she died. She had dementia real bad the last few years of her life.

That was a rabbit....

We also went to Blockbuster today and I rented Madagascar, Thomas the Tank Engine, and Spy Kids. Camille has never watched a Spy Kids movie. I am hoping she is old enough for it. I think she will enjoy it. She loves to play spy with her friend, Molly. I bought her some Nancy Drew books for Christmas, but I am not sure if I want her to read them. Nancy Drew has a BOYFRIEND for Pete's sake! It's nothing major, but I don't think I need to expose Camille to that this early in her life. I will have to finish the book before I decide. Anyone know of any good spy books with a Christian theme?

Pizza for supper tonight. We have a buy one get one free card from Papa John's. When Mama doesn't cook, it's pizza night!

Being Pure--Be Sure to Shelter

Do people ever accuse you of sheltering your children? Instead of being defensive, be thankful for the wonderful opportunity to shelter. Do you sometimes make the mistake of allowing your children to see, hear, or read something impure? Don't you feel terrible after it happens? Did you learn the Sunday School song "Be Careful Little Eyes What You See?" It's true. Our Father up above is looking down in love, so we must be careful what we allow our children to experience. It isn't true that it doesn't matter what a child reads as long as he is reading something. Purity matters. Today make sure that your children experience only what is pure. It's worth it, even if your child does miss out on something popular. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Matthew 5:8

Taken from Daily Encouragement for Homeschooling Mothers by Charlene Notgrass

We never went to the Christmas parade. Do you know why? It was too flippin' HOT! 76 degrees!! We decorated the tree instead.

I am still playing with my new camera. I love it. It is our Christmas present to each other. I must. must, must take the children's picture tonight for the Christmas cards.

I made the no flour peanut butter cookies today. I just had a craving. They are so easy. One cup of peanut butter, one cup of sugar, and one egg. Mix it up, roll them into balls, and then flatten them out with a fork. Bake for about 8-10 minutes at 375 degrees. They are great with a cold cup of milk. That is why I am gaining weight instead of losing it.

My new camera

Olaf just bought this! WOOT!

Don't rain on my parade

It's Sunday morning and Olaf is frying bacon. We will have pancakes and bacon this morning and then go see the Christmas Parade this afternoon if it doesn't rain. The Budweiser Clydsdale Horses are supposed to be there. Camille is psyched about that. I want to go to the Dollar Tree by myself today too. Don't know if I'll get the chance, but I want to go. Tomorrow is St. Nicholas Day Eve. It's a German tradition where the children set their shoe outside their door before going to bed that night. When they wake up they have some sort of treat in it. That is why I want to go to The Dollar Tree!

Josiah didn't cough at all last night. Woo Hoo! I didn't give the children cough medicine either. I think they are on the mend. Praise the Lord!

Look at my cute new sig tag! I got it here.

Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree

We went to the local tree farm to buy our tree. We go there every year because they have bunnies for the children to hold, a fire to roast marshmallows on, a lake to feed the ducks, hot cocoa...all for FREE! On our way down to the lake the skies opened up and it started to POUR. So, we ran back up to the van (no easy task) and all of us started coughing up a lung! If you want to see a few pictures you can go to my Flickr account and look. Reminder...my digital camera sucks. I have NO zoomability and it is only a 1.3 mega pixel. I cannot wait to get a new camera in the very near future. Until then, you have to deal with my not so great pictures. I suppose we will decorate the tree tomorrow sometime.

Olaf saw The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe today. He loved it. He cried like a girl. It's a must see. While he was watching the film, I took the children to Camille's riding lesson. She fell off the horse today and landed on her back. Knocked the wind right out of her. She couldn't breathe and it scared her to death! Not too scared that she won't ride again though. I think she'd have to be killed in order for her not to get back on the horse. They were doing a trail ride at the end of her lesson and the horse started to trot up a steep hill. Somehow Camille lost her stirrups and got scared. She leaned forward to grab the horses neck (don't ever do that) and fell off the horse sideways. This is only the second time that she has fallen off the horse. I told her it was bound to happen a few times in her life!:) That's the kind of mom I am. Suck it up girlfriend! I'm not big on empathy which sucks for my children. There is no cuddling or kissing or coddling when my children get hurt. DROP DOWN AND GIVE ME 50 MISTER!!!!!

My feet are like ice cubes. They always are. Socks are on. Shoes are on. Feet are freezing. It's not fair.

Calling all experienced moms

My little guy has a problem. Whenever Josiah has a bm his tummy hurts. He cries and doubles over in pain. His stool is soft, he is not constipated. This has been going on about a month now. No new foods have been introduced and after the bm he is fine. He doesn't complain about a tummy ache at any other time except during a bm. And it is horrible to watch him in so much pain. He literally takes his hand and jabs it into his tummy trying to get the pain to go away. HELP!

On the mend

which is a good thing. We are all still coughing and probably will be for a few weeks. That part sucks.

Olaf gets to see The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe this Saturday. It is a sneak peek an entire week early. A local radio station is giving away tickets to the same showing, so obviously it's not just for VIP's afterall. Olaf has to distribute 29 tickets to VIP's from local ministries and businesses. Then he can go in and watch the film as well. He was going to take Camille with him, but her riding lesson got moved to Saturday and she really wants to go to that. She hasn't been riding in four weeks! He is appalled that she would choose a horse over the movie, but she says she'll just wait for the movie to open here next week. He is going to make a few calls this evening to try to find someone to go with him. He has a few people in mind.

My lips hurt bad! GOSH! (I've just broken out into Napoleon Dynamite!) They really do hurt though. Chapped. I bought some of this because Cheri told me to. Love it. They had a 2-pack at Walmart for the price of one. I think it was about $6. I also bought this because of Cheri. Love it too!

Must run. Survivor is starting...Guatamala calls!