Kids and Activities

Just wanted to jot down some things about school and life and activities before I forget!
-The kids are really getting into our Egyptian history lessons...they will be sad to move on to something else. In the car a few days ago, Jonah said, "Mom, the Egyptians were realllly interesting people." I said, "I know, that's why we are studying them." He said, "They did all that stuff and didn't even have TECHNOLOGY!!" He just cracks me up. They especially were interested in the gross parts of embalming (like when Egyptians removed the brains with a brass hook through the nose before embalming...ewwww). They have also been into hieroglyphics and we made a replica of the Nile river that represented how the flooding each year used to water the crops grown close to the river -- here's some pictures:




-Soccer is going -- well, o.k. Jonah is a good goalie and is now starting to pick up some foot skills and be effective on offense -- in fact, he nearly scored last game and surprised us all! I think Jonah is really liking playing, but the coach quit, leaving me in "charge". Luckily we only have 1 more practice and 2 more games left, and then the end of season party. I'm half hoping that I can coach next spring...


-Mattie finally perfected her scratch spin -- she's been working on this off and on for a couple months, and really needed to "get" it to move on to the next level, and I think she's got it down:

She will be performing again in the Christmas program, both in a group and on her own as well.

And Kaisa is doing well - she's starting to make some friends, understanding her classes better, and doing some afterschool activities. She joined the Disc Golf club and is taking skating lessons as well. She is really an awesome kid, and it's nice to have her here.


That's all for now!

Hello, Blogspot, My Old Friend...

*cue up Simon and Garfunkel*

So, it's been crazy busy, and September is looong gone.
I just wanted to post a few pictures to update our blog.
Jonah has been playing soccer, not winning much, but playing his little heart out. It's good for him to have an activity of his own -- I'm sure he's getting sick of sitting at the rink watching Mattie skate.

We went Up North as planned, and the weather was a final gift before Fall hit...it was warm enough to swim and tube...and cool enough at night to take a sauna. It was a wonderful and relaxing weekend.




Then we came home to Homecoming week at BHS, and Kaisa really enjoyed participating in all the events and special dress-up days.

Soon it will be Kaisa's birthday and Tim's too! And of course, the kids are beginning to discuss their Halloween get-up....
:)
Sarah

Finnish Alphabet

Sorely Needed Update

It's been waaaay too long since I've written here, so I will try to bring everyone up to speed. This summer flew by, of course -- and got even speedier towards the end when we "acquired" a new family member. Three school years ago, we hosted an exchange student from Finland, and her sister was in the States this year. She was really unhappy with her host family in Indiana, and her mom emailed us to see if we would be willing/able to take her. So, after a mountain of paperwork and phone calls and emails, we picked Kaisa up on August 16th!

Then we took a whirlwind tour of every touristy place nearby, showing Kaisa the sights: Greenfield Village, Metroparks, Toledo Zoo, Tigers game, the mall, Crosswinds Marsh, etc...

I had planned on starting school early this year, but once Kaisa was here, we decided to follow her schedule instead, to make it easier on everyone. Not sure what happened to my enthusiasm, but it started really waning as school started getting closer -- I really was having back-to-school envy, worrying about whether I was capable, or whether I was "depriving" the kids of the school experience. I was also concerned about Mattie's developing attitude with me, and had several long talks with her about how she had to be willing to have me teach her things without eye rolling, sighing, and all those other oh-so-wonderful behaviors.
So I worried and I prayed and I talked with Tim...and worried some more.
The first day of school was....
Very nice! Kids were well behaved, really into checking out all the new stuff, receptive to the ideas I had for the year! Whew!
So long story short, things turned out better than I expected (as usual -- I think it's God's way of constantly reminding me that my worrying is completely ineffective and a waste of my time).
This Fall will probably race by too..we are planning a trip to the cottage for our 10 year anniversary at the end of September, and the kid's activities are all starting up again: soccer, skating, science at the nature center, and zoo classes.
I hope to update much sooner than I have this time! :)

Hiatus

I've had a week-long hiatus because we were on vacation. We go every year (at least once) to my BIL Jeremy's cottage. It is called the Westcottage, and was built in 1950 by his parents for about $3000. It has so many good memories and so much interesting history and sits right on one of the cleanest lakes in MI -- it's just a fantastic vacation spot, no matter how you spin it. The weather wasn't much good for swimming, but we did take a couple dips in the lake. Tim has been going to this cottage since he was 12 years old, and I have been going since I was 18. I am so glad this is a part of our children's lives.
Highlights included:
-Visiting Michigan's Adventure on our way up. This is a great little amusement park with a really large waterpark attached. For the fairly low price of $26 per person, you get admission to both parks. The rides were just intense enough for my kids to think they were exciting without being so big that they were terrifying.
-Fishing. We fished and fished and fished some more this trip. We caught at least 100 fish, some bluegill, lots of rock bass, a couple of really nice lake trout, and surprisingly, some catfish. We'd never seen catfish in the lake -- EVER. It was a little strange.
-Beach walks. The kids and I found a big patch of wild mint, some cool stones, and all sorts of nature treasures. I also found some not-yet-eaten wild raspberries. Yummo.
-Reading. We are thinking about keeping bees next year, so I had a bunch of books from the library about bees that I took with us. It was great reading. I also found a biography of Kennedy that I read up there, and inside was what looked like a funeral announcement as a bookmark. It was interesting.
-Tubing. Kids tubed about 4-5 days -- they got braver and braver each day.
-Movies. Mattie got to see Harry Potter 6 (Jonah and I didn't go, thought it might be too scary), and both of the kids got to go with Uncle Jeremy and their cousin to see Ice Age 3.

I didn't get to sail this year because Jeremy was working on the sailboats, but the final day, there were about 6-7 sailboats out on the lake, and they were really beautiful to see.

Overall, a very nice relaxing vacation. We're hoping to go back for a long weekend this Fall.

Mothra

So last fall, grandma gave us these two cool looking cocoons that were stuck to branches. Knowing what a sucker I am for raising wildlife, she figured the kids could watch whatever came out of them. We put them in an old cage, and promptly forgot about them. They overwintered in the garage, and I found the sticks with cocoons still attached this spring while putting away some stuff in the garage. Still didn't dispose of them... Then today, while deep cleaning in the garage, I came across the cage again. And prompty got freaked out by the huge moving things inside. MOTHS! Yikes...these suckers are big and beautiful! Check out the pictures up close for the details.
You can see the hairy red legs, and the cool designs on their bodies...I wonder what kind of moths they are?

Discovery

There's nothing better than watching your kids discover new and interesting things...the way their eyes light up, the wonder in their voice, the excitement of sharing their find with other people:

On Saturday we went into Ann Arbor and checked out the Urban Fairies. This was more for Mattie's benefit than Jonah's, but he enjoyed the search too, and had the best "hawk-eyes" of us all, sighting the most doors.
Here's some pictures:








I think, all told, we found 6 doors. I have plans for one to pop up out in our yard soon. Etsy.com has some really cute ones made out of tree-trunks and I found a little miniature set of gardening tools and a wheelbarrow. I think this fairy is going to be a gardener. :D I'll post pictures when it takes up residence.

Wheeling and Dealing

I got a fantastic deal today at Kohl's. Normally I don't ever go into Kohl's, it just doesn't appeal to me. But every once in a while, I get these $10 off anything in the store coupons, with no minimum purchase. So, armed with one of these babies, I hit the store today. My deals were:

This sweater, normally $40 dollars, on clearance for $4.00.




And these flip flops, retailed at $19.99, on sale for $14.99, and then rang up $6.99 at the register. Tim will be happy because I won't keep stealing his flip flops:



Total cost was $11-ish, minus the $10 coupon, so I paid about $1 for both items. :)

Pizza

I found an easy and tasty pizza dough recipe! I've tried a few of these in the past couple years and the pizza dough just never seemed to like me much -- either it wouldn't rise, or it would taste like cardborad, or is just plain burned in the oven.
So here it is:
3.5 cups flour (I used bread flour and white wheat)
1 cup warm water (85-110 degrees)
2 tblsp. yeast
2 tblsp. honey
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 tsp salt

Using a mixing bowl, pour warm water into the bowl, salt, and honey. Mix well. Add yeast and stir, then let sit for about 5 min. Add one cup flour and olive oil, and mix thoroughly. Add the rest of the flour, until dough forms into a ball. take ball and place on lightly floured surface and knead for about 2 min. Put in a bowl, cover with a towel and let rise in a warm place (I use my microwave or oven -- neither one of them is on at this point). Let rise for 45 min. Punch down dough and place back in bowl, and let rise for about 25-30 min. Dough is now ready to be used to make pizzas. I made two personal sized pizzas and one medium sized pizza from this dough. It's best to roll out the dough with a floured rolling pin, and use a little corn meal on the cookie sheet so that your pizza doesn't stick.
Heat oven to 550, and then top pizzas with your choice of toppings. When you put the pizza in the oven, turn the temperature down to 400. I cooked my pizzas about 8-10 min each.

Happy pizza eating!

Bullfrogs and Butterflies and Bad Behavior...

Does anyone remember that operetta, "Bullfrogs and Butterflies"? I love the song, "Bullfrogs and butterflies, they both been born again..."

So let's start with the good news. We had an awesome class at Nankin Mills last week...it was all about Butterflies. It's pretty amazing how butterflies grow and change from caterpillars into butterflies...another one of God's miracles. No one is quite sure what actually happens in that chrysallis....
We got to take home three monarch eggs, and here is one of them, hatched:

You'll need to click on the picture to see it close up, in the bottom left corner of the leaf.
We have a nice supply of milk weed leaves in the fridge, just waiting to be eaten.

In other animal/science news, we had to let the bullfrog tadpoles-turned-frogs go because they were EATING the tiny spring peeper frogs. It was super interesting to watch the whole metamorphosis.

In the bad behavior department, it seems that a lack of routine and extra late nights has made some behavior issues crop up...like constant bickering. Yikes! I am not sure if I am especially sensitive to it since I never really had to fight with any siblings (I was much younger than them, and didn't really live with them most of my life), but the bickering is making my ears start to bleed. :D

I am reading a great book called "Don't Make Me Count to Three". It's about how to incorporate biblical passages and perspectives into your parenting and disciplining. It talks a lot about how our kids should know that we (the parents) answer to a greater authority...parents don't just discipline because we love to yell, be upset, and watch our kids roll their eyes.

Anyone have some great advice or great reading they've done on siblings and arguing?

Fathers

Sorry that it's been so long since I posted here. Sometimes I feel like I update on Facebook, and I have another private blog, so after a while cross-posting or coming up with something new gets overwhelming and/or I feel like everyone's pretty much heard everything that's going on in Sarah's life! :D

But this weekend has got me thinking about FATHERS.

What a special father I have.


Some good memories of my dad:

-Watching him work on building the house in Flat Rock when I was young.
-Knowing he could fix pretty much anything.
-Him and I on vacation fishing and canoeing Up North and seeing a bald eagle eating a salmon when I was a teenager.
-Having my dad attend pretty much every single athletic event I ever participated in -- and if you know my dad, you know he was the most "enthusiastic" fan there!
-When Mattie was born, and he first saw her, he said, "She's so.......symmetrical."
-My dad getting to see Jonah be born -- he thought that was pretty cool.


By seeing a good example of what a man should be and how a father should act, I think that's helped me make a good choice as to the kind of man I want my husband and my kid's father to be.

I hope Mattie and Jonah love their dad as much as I love mine.

I know God doesn't give us perfect parents, but he gives us parents that are perfect for us.

Thanks, and Happy Father's Day, dad.

June's Calendar

These irises are from my backyard :) Makes me happy!


Already, the calendar is filling up.

We are doing a field trip blitz, it feels like, to end the school year. We've been to see the local Fiddling group (awesome!), gone to the youth theater for a production of Mulan, taken a family out to see our new baby chicks, collect eggs, and feed the big chickens, we're going to a 100 year old operational mill where they grow their own grains and mill them and sell them (all organic - yum), the summer reading program starts at the library, we have three local science center classes: one about birds and nests, one about sketching wildlife, and one about butterflies, strawberry picking and jam making, and we have VBS at the end of the month. Whew!

We are also trying to finish their Math workbooks and a lapbook each -- Mattie's will be about Judy Blume and the Fudge series (she's reading it right now), and Jonah's will be about Tadpoles and Frogs (we have a tank of them we are observing right now!) The bullfrog tadpoles and the smaller spring peepers are starting to grow legs...it's a little creepy actually.


And we have their Iowa tests coming in the middle of the month that I will have to administer and send back for evaluation. I am totally looking forward to getting those results.

In July, we are going to the cottage for about 9 days (BLISS!) and probably spending a lot of time at the pool soaking up rays and swimming.

The garden is chugging along, with the lettuce coming up, snap peas growing like crazy, and the tomatoes flowering. Only one bean plant though...hmmm, I'm wondering if I planted them too deep? I'm going to give thema few more days and then plant something else there if they don't sprout up.

Ahhh, summer. Busy but blissful.

A Near Death Experience...

This is how she looked all day yesterday...


We got our new set of chicks...25 of them. The first day they were all settled into their box, heat lamp blazing, water filled, and feeder ready to feed, we watched to make sure they were all eating and drinking and away we went. The second day, we made sure their feeder was full, lifted up the waterer to change it and to my horror and dismay, we had set the waterer ON TOP of one of the little chickies. I felt extremely guilty and responsible -- I thought I had swept my hand underneath the waterer thoroughly. This poor chick was literally smooshed flat. There was a slight indentation under the waterer, so it hadn't been crushed, just trapped there all night long without food and water. Its legs were splayed out, and it was breathing shallowly. Baby chicks are notoriously fragile anyway, and we had a feeling it would die, but it was still breathing. The other chicks were going nuts, already pecking at it and walking right over it. Tim said he would take it and bury it, saying, "It will probably die, and that's part of being a "farmer"." But it was still alive, so I decided we would take it home. It literally laid silent in my hands on the way home, eyes shut, no chirping. We set it up on the kitchen table with a lightbulb over it, a heating pad under it, and some water and food in the box. The chick lay still most of the day, no chirping, rarely standing up -- and when she did, she was very wobbly. It seemed like something was injured on her legs/feet. I force watered her, sticking her beak in the water until she swallowed -- I tried getting my finger wet and then sticking it in the food so that it would stick to my finger and then putting that against her beak. She took very little nourishment that way. When we went to bed last night I thought she would probably die that night and then we would go ahead and bury her.

This morning to our utter surprise, she was up and about. Little chicky chirps came from the box and she was eating and drinking for herself. She was even standing! Even though she wobbled a bit when she walked, she was still trying to do things on her own. She was responding to us when we put our hands in the box, curiously looking up at us and pecking our fingers.

Whew!

...and then today, she perked up!

She is such a champ! It really is a miracle that she has survived this long! Now I'm trying to convince Tim that this one needs to stay in our yard as our special pet. :) (We keep all of our other chickens at my MIL's).

Mini-Vacation

This was a pretty sriendly swan...providing you had bread!

Playing on the beach...we even found a petoskey stone!

Tim and I enjoying the day in Traverse City.

The sunset from our condo balcony!

We were thankful to get away this past weekend. My Dad has a timeshare in Bellaire, MI, and we got to use up the rest of his days for the year.
It was very low-key and relaxing. I just wanted to share some photos of the trip.
We also went to a place called Raven Hill Discovery Center...it turned out to be pretty awesome. I wish I had my camera there because the kids got to hold a python around their neck (and actually did it, I was completely surprised!) and got to hold other various snakes, a skink, a lizard, etc.
This discovery center also had a one room schoolhouse on the property and a cool path that led out to a treehouse in the woods. So even though it rained on Saturday, we still had a good time tramping around in the dampness.

Hymn

We sang this song out loud at our Explorers board retreat, and it's ended up on my fridge where I look at it daily. You know how songs can just "hit" you a certain way and really make an impact on you? I have probably sung this song hundreds of times in my life time, but this time it just struck a chord. This really made me think about the INTENTIONALNESS (is that a word?) with which I should use myself to be an example of Christ. And it showed me how little I actually DO it...instead I act without thinking, I speak hastily or harshly, and my will -- let's not get started on that. So, I'm sharing the lyrics in lieu of a "real" entry.

Take My Life, and Let It Be

Take my life and let it be
consecrated Lord, to thee.
Take my moments and my days
Let the flow in ceaseless praise,
Let them flow in ceaseless praise.

Take my hands, and let them move
at the impulse of Thy love.
Take my feet and let the be
swift and beautiful for Thee,
swift and beautiful for Thee.

Take my voice and let me sing
always only for my King
Take my intellect and use
every power as Thou shall choose
every power as Thou shall choose.

Take my will and make it Thine
it shall be no longer mine
Take my heart. it is Thine own
it shall be Thy royal throne,
it shall be Thy royal throne.

Take my love, Lord, I pour
at Thy feet its treasure store.
Take my self and I will be
ever only all for Thee
ever only all for Thee.

Candy

Top Ten Favorite: Candy


1. Snickers
2. Twix
3. Heath
4. Almond Joy
5. Take Five
6. Gummi Bears
7. Reese's Pieces
8. Reese's Cups
9. Kit Kat
10. Whoppers

What about you?

Mattie's Skating Competition

The first girl in the video is the girl who got 1st place -- Mattie is the 2nd performer in the blue outfit. This was Mattie's first competition, and she is doing moves at the Basic Eight level.

She placed 2nd!

It was so fun to watch her perform -- even after I've seen this program during practices about a jillion times over the past 3 months.

We had our first ever run-in with some "crazy stage moms" -- yikes. It was a bit intimidating and ratcheted our nerves up a few more notches. We ended up sitting in the stands with Mattie's coach, Tim, and Jonah instead of waiting in the locker room, just to get away from these moms!

By the way, Mattie's coach right now is Brooke Castile -- she is a pairs skater and placed 1st in the US Championships in 2006-2007. There are some really awesome videos of her and her partner on youtube. Her regular coach is on maternity leave.

For those of you who don't know, she skates at the Arctic Edge rink in Canton.

Eternal Significance

I was half-listening to the Bob Dutko show today while running to the grocery store.
It was "Free-For All" Friday -- and a caller was talking about being a mom, and the important roll we serve as moms. We are ultimately, servants. But before we begin to martyr ourselves right here and now and wallow in self-pity, let's think about what that means. She went on to say that by cheerfully and selflessly serving others, we are doing what we've been called by Christ to do. The conversation continued, talking about what significance mothers will have and the results they might someday see in heaven, with literally generations of believers there because of the bedtime prayers, devotions, and bible studies that went on in Christian households everywhere.

...Hmmm, I thought...

There are a lot of days I don't feel called by anyone.

And I certainly have a difficult time being cheerful with my chore list stretching endlessly in front of me.

Did anyone ever mention the pay and benefits package is really terrible at this job?

This morning, in fact, I woke up in a rotten mood, mostly because the very first thing my daughter said to me at 7:30 AM was: "We don't have ANY MILK! Haven't you gone grocery shopping YET?"
I poked open my eye, feeling miffed before even being fully awake and said, "Get out." (She was sitting on the side of the bed.)
Pause.
"I said, Get Out. You didn't even say 'good morning' before whining and complaining. I'm not even awake yet!"
So she left the room, crying.

Now I feel grumpy and guilty...*sigh*. At 7:33 AM, I've already managed to make my daughter cry.

So I haul myself out of bed, preparing the talk. "Mom didn't mean to be grumpy...but I have feelings too! And I'm not a machine who can just go and go without ever resting. And boy, am I sick of the whining! You really need to appreciate what I do more..."

As I open the bedroom door at 7:36 AM, a little girl covered in a blanket stands at the entrance.

Barely a whisper, "Sorry."

And then, grace. Thank you God for grace.

"I forgive you. I love you. I'm sorry too."

Hugs and tears and cuddles all around.

Eternal significance before 7:40 AM.

Now that's the way to start the day.

A Few Things

Outside my window...
Cold and Cloudy, a bit Rainy -- but I am enjoying it.

I am thinking...
of extended family members who need prayers.

I am thankful for...
my life, my home, Tim's job -- it's all pretty simple, but we are very happy.

From the homeschooling perspective...
we did some catch up yesterday, and need to finish our reading lessons today.
I'm going to a "retreat" tomorrow for our co-op Board, and I'm hoping it's productive.

From the kitchen...
I need to make potato salad and a dessert.

I am wearing...
Jeans and t-shirt from yesterday. I need a shower.


I am reading...
a new ice-skating blog (it's hilarious), and waiting on some books I put on hold at the local library.


I am hoping...
for peace in my family. Also, an iPod touch for myself would be nice. :)


I am hearing...
the kids playing hide and seek and the rat scratching around in his cage.


Around the house...
need to feed the kids, do some cooking, fold laundry, clean a bit, and get the kids in the shower.


One of my favorite things...
is travelling to places I've never been.

Plans for the Night...
library, listen to Dave Ramsey, housework.


A few plans for the rest of the week...
retreat, Palm Sunday service, first skating competition for Mattie, and my niece and nephew's birthday party!

Spring has Sprung!

This entry is a bit Jonah-centric, but these pictures are from the last couple weeks -- a few birthday party pictures, Jonah lost in a book, and some documentation about Jonah learning to finally ride his bike!
The final picture is my Dad hard at work on Mattie's room. When we moved into the house, there was a built-in dresser (oringinal to the house, I'd guess) in that area. Last year, we ripped up the old carpet, had new carpet installed, and painted. We also demolished the built in dresser. We've decided to put in a nice desk top, some bookshelves and a storage area up top. In this picture, Dad is doing the wiring for the outlet and for the light that will shine down on the desk area. What a guy!

Homeschooling Conference

Tomorrow is the local homeschooling book fair/conference/vendor fair. I have been making my list (of curriculum) and checking it twice!
I am going to check out the next set of Horizons Math (it's the program we've used since the beginning and we love it!)
Also going to look into purchasing The Story Of the World -- it's a combo history/geography curriculum.
Besides that, I think we're going to go with LLATL again for next year (Learning Language Arts Through Literature) -- 3rd grade for Mattie, and the 2nd grade one for Jonah.
Also going to stick with BJU Press Science (3rd grade for both), and I'm going to look for a handwriting workbook for both of them. Mattie is interested in learning cursive, so I think it would be good to start her on that.
I'd also like to pick up some audio books (usually they have good deals).
I probably won't buy everything I need for next year at the fair, but it's a great chance to look around, comparison shop, and get my hands on the actual books.
In other homeschooling news, I sent my paperwork in to become an official tester for the Iowa test, and I'm ordering those in the next few weeks for the kids.
I really feel like I'm testing them for my own peace of mind -- just to make sure they're "on track".
Well, time to hit the hay -- I have a busy day tomorrow!

My Boy

Every year, on their birthday-eve, we have a ritual of going through each kid's baby book and photo album from the first year of their life. We tell them about how they were born, the interesting events of the day, and how much we looked forward to getting to know them once they were born. It's both sentimental ans sweet to look back on how much they've changed and grown.
I can vividly remember NOT wanting to be pregnant only 5.5 months after having had Mattie! I cried for weeks, as Tim rejoiced. It wasn't that I didn't want another child, it was that I didn't want another child THEN. One of the stranger parts of my pregnancy was the predictions Tim and I made about his birth date, time, and weight. we wrote them down when I was about 6 months pregnant. I *predicted* Jonah would be born on March 15th, at 12:43 PM, and he would weigh 7 Lbs. 14 oz. -- the actual facts were that he was born on March 15th at 1:00 PM and weighed one ounce less. Mother's intuition!!!
Jonah was exactly the child we needed. His easy-going personality and smile, goofy faces, and cuddly temperment just fit right into our family. He adored Mattie, even when she steam-rolled over him as a toddler. I can remember having him in a bassinette in our bedroom, and falling asleep to the sound of him suck-suck-sucking his thumb. This little baby turned into a boy overnight -- rough and tumble yet sweet and empathetic to others.
Happy 7th Birthday Jonah Bean! I love you.