Co Op

Our home school Co-op classes start in a couple of weeks.  It should be a lot of fun for the kids.  Their classes include:  Manners, Knitting, PE, Heroes of the Faith, Arts & Crafts, Story Writing, History of Medicine, Forensics, and Cultural Studies.  The girls are extremely excited....Jack could take it or leave it.  But, I know he will enjoy Forensics and Cultural Studies very much.

A lot of times I am at a loss as what I can offer to teach the group.  The ages are from pre-school through high school.  One year I taught "Fallacy Detectives" and another time I taught a class on "Ellis Island".  I don't teach a class every semester; just whenever I can think of something worth offering.  This semester I came up with an idea for high schoolers.  Can you guess?

Yep.  "Introduction into Military Careers".  I have some speakers lined up, and I am sure that I will learn a whole lot from this class myself. 

A Moment of Youthfulness

Today, I headed to the store alone.  The snow was falling, and I didn't want the mess of three extra people in the car, so the girls stayed home with Jack.  The roads were covered with snow, and I enjoyed hearing the crunch under the tires.  I arrived in the grocery store parking lot, gathered my stuff and headed in.  I was completely taken by surprise at the giddy feeling of youth as I tromped through the snow, sliding in my boots.  It reminded me of being in school with the anticipation of getting out early due to a snowstorm. 

I miss being carefree.  I miss just trusting in my mom and dad to take care of my every need.  I remember as a child observing my parents, wondering why they worried about things.  I vowed to never be that way.  What happened?  I want to trust in my Heavenly Father the same way I trusted my earthly father when I was a child.  Sometimes, I just want to be that child again.  I need to play in the snow more often.

Once I got back home, I grabbed my camera and walked down the driveway, viewing the downed trees and damage from last week's heavy snow.  I was surprised at how much work needs to be done.  As I was walking down the driveway with the dogs, I slipped and fell.  I laughed the whole time, while my dogs were wondering if I was down on the ground to play with them.

Crazy Canines!

This is the view from the end of our driveway, looking towards our house, which is hidden by the trees.  We have a whole lot of trees whose branches snapped off in the snow and wind this last week.

The girls have been enjoying eating snow.  They have this crazy idea that it is delicious!

Then, they decided dinner would be better if they ate it "picnic style" near the back door.   Making memories.

New Glasses

I knew my bi-focals needed adjusting.  It had been about 2 years since the last visit.  Did you know that people who only need glasses for reading can be fitted with contacts?  I sure didn't!  So, I gave it a try.  Apparently, there is mono-vision where you only wear one contact.  I tried it for about ten days, but did not like the distortion of my distance-night vision.  Then, my doctor tried me with multi-focal biofinity.  That worked much better, but it takes a while to get used to it.  It is not perfectly clear vision, but, I like not carrying around my reading glasses with me.  So, I did get new glasses, too.  I'm sure I won't wear contacts every single day.  The glasses are nice to have.  I was just going to settle on a simple pair of black or brown glasses.  Then I came across these hidden in a drawer.

They are green.  My eyes aren't quite this green; a little duller, sad to say.  But, they have this cute little design on the side.   I'm liking them a lot.

This picture shows how green they are.  Kind of an olive color.

Winter

Our first significant snow of the season.  It was beautiful.  We had just left piano lessons when the snow started on Thursday afternoon.  It snowed big, beautiful flakes until bedtime.  Right as I served dinner, the power went off.  We had been watching the usual sparks in the trees from the power lines for about an hour.  Then Jack saw large sparks as our lights and heat went off. 

So, we bundled up, and sat in the dark, playing games for as long as our batteries held out, or read books by candle light.  The girls added sleeping bags to their beds for extra warmth.  I wore a sweater, a sweatshirt, 2 pairs of socks and sweat pants.  I was so warm that I ended up discarding the socks and sweatshirt.  It only got down to 52 or so in the house.  It wasn't too bad.  I grew up with one wood/coal burning stove in the center of our house.  We had many cold winter mornings.  It makes for fond memories.

I didn't realize how heavy the snow was until I saw all the branches that had snapped off .

Not a pretty sight, having a sink full of dirty dinner and breakfast dishes.

Mike stocked up on water for drinking and flushing just in case it took a while.  It is tough having a house full of girls that have to potty a lot.  Times like these make the guys glad they are guys.

Thankfully, a crew from Kentucky came by in the afternoon and fixed us right up!  I am so thankful for our electricity.  I'm thankful it was only a day.  I cannot imagine all those people who suffered through the hurricane a couple of months ago.  Our inconveniences are so trivial in comparison.

My Life Lately

Life.  As wonderful as the gift of life is, it has been rough lately.  I'm thankful for the mountains before and after deep valleys.  I know from experience that when things get difficult, they will get better, or could possibly be much worse.  Thank goodness we have a Savior who carries us through.

Mike and Jack headed to Illinois the weekend before New Year.  My father-in-law was very ill and in the hospital.  Jack rode along with his dad and visited his buddy David.  Mike stayed with his family and did what he could to help his dad through his illness.  We prayed many prayers that week for Grampa.  He is doing much better and is now home.

Jack's trip to Illinois set him back even more in school, but I couldn't deny his that visit!  They always have a great time.  So, the girls and I plugged away at school.  We only took New Year's Day off.  I felt very productive that week without the guys in the house.

Ivy finally went in for her post-op appointment with the surgeon.  She still has quite a bit of swelling.  A stitch never made its way out, so that got pulled this past week.  I'm very happy with the way her left nostril got "rounded out".  Now that she is healed, she is ready to massage her lip to help with scar tissue and swelling.

Before

After (Excuse the spaghetti spots around the corners of her mouth.)

Ivy also started piano lessons after the holidays.  For being home only (almost) three years, she sure plays well.

Joy did not want to lose her first tooth last week.  She didn't want dad to pull it, but he couldn't resist.

Since today was only 70 degrees, Eva had to wear the cool camouflage pants that zipped off to shorts that were given to her by Jacob.  They will probably be worn on a weekly basis...when her other camo is in the wash.

And I had to share these cute dog tags the girls got for Christmas from big sis, Jordan.  The girls wear them faithfully.  Eva wears hers attached to Seth's old ones from when he was her age.

So, that is My Life Lately...just being a family.

Hiking, O'ahu Style

Jordan has enjoyed hiking while living at home in Virginia.  Once she finally got her car and a friend, she felt comfortable enough to hike in Hawaii.  She sent me these pictures yesterday, and I'm just amazed at the beauty of the island.

Jordan likes to pick the "road less traveled", and it sure looks like it from these pictures. 

I'm not a fan of heights.  You could never get me near a cliff like this. 

I can have my bags packed in minutes if anyone wants to take me...Just letting you know...It's not the South Pacific I've been dreaming of, but it's close enough!

Home-Made Gifts

Home-made gifts are usually the best gifts to receive.  I know that the giver spent some time thinking about what I would like.  I knew there was a home-made gift in the making when I would hear giggles and was barred from my girls' bedroom.  Actually, the gift started about a decade ago when Jordan was learning to quilt.  She had sewn these squares together at some point and never finished another quilt.

Ivy found them.  With Eva's help, they sewed them together.  They, then embroidered each family member's name on a square.

And for the backing, they managed to sew a bandana to the squares.  Quite an imagination for my girls.