Fall Fun and Other Water Related Issues

We hooked up with a friend's home school group this morning (after lessons, of course) for a tour of a raspberry farm.  Each child picked a pint - and probably ate a pint along the way - so we'll have a real treat for dessert tonight.

Things are flowing along swimmingly so far at Living Waters Academy.  I'm holding my breath even typing that, for fear of jinxing it all.  The boys are entertaining themselves for the most part while the girls get their morning work done (Math, Reading, Spelling, and Copywork).  We do Latin, Science, and History at other times throughout the day - usually all together.  

The rest of the house, however, is another matter all together.  It is swimming in its own right, due to a leak in our refrigerator.  It nicely traveled down the wall and into the basement so we've got industrial sized fans and other strange apparatus in the kitchen and basement making an incredible amount of noise and heating the house to a balmy 100 degrees.  Thankfully it's nice outside, so that's where we're hanging. Tomorrow all this should be over!  

Saturday at the Theater

The big three, Hubby, and I got to see the Lion King today.  Wow!  Thanks, Gramma and Gerry, for the tickets!

Came home and had Lion King ice cream pops wearing their new Lion King hats while telling the neighborhood kids about the Lion King.  I think it made an impression...

Cute, And A Little Pathetic

So my children are out selling lemonade again.  But today they've added a garage sale twist, including some of their old toys in the sale.  I'm all for purging - anytime, anywhere.  I asked what they needed money for, and the girls said:  "it's for you and Dad, for gas prices, you know?"

Have I been complaining that much?

Seriously though, we have been discussing the cost of gas because we're in need of a new car - probably of the gas guzzling variety since our family is growing again.  But I try not to do so in a whiny way.  I can't stand that ad that says "we DEMAND clean energy NOW."  We do?  

Who isn't for clean energy? But do we have a right to DEMAND it NOW, just because there's pain at the pump?  We were happy as clams when it was dirty but cheap.  

In other news, we've got a big weekend planned with a visit from Papa, a trip to see The Lion King Broadway show, and an American Girl doll event featuring Kirsten.  

Church People

The people of God are good... really good.  I can't say enough about the body of Christ; it truly is one of God's greatest gifts to his children.  We've been blessed to be in the service of the church for almost a decade - first in North Dakota and now in Ohio.  Church people across the board continue to amaze and inspire us with their generosity and love.  It's almost embarrassing to note how much help we've received from God's good people: babysitting, meals, incredible hospitality in people's homes...  (Let me just say someone drove to our home in the middle of the Hurricane last weekend and delivered home made meals that lasted us longer than the power outage).  

Many people are ready to disparage the hypocrisy and fallenness of the church. No doubt the church has had it's problems over the years.  But what other institution can claim thousands of years of existence (besides the family, of course)?  The church - through the power of the Holy Spirit - has not only existed but spread God's message of love and salvation to the very ends of the earth.  

At our going away party from our church in ND, my daughters were suspiciously absent for almost the entire event.  I found out later that they were behind the altar, signing their names in every single welcome pad "so our friends here will never forgot us."  We'll surely never forget them.  We thank God every day for his many gifts, not least of these, his people.

Fresh Look For Fall

Thanks to Jo-Lynne at DCR Design for getting my spot in cyberspace ready for fall.  She's great to work with and her blog is loads of fun!

The air does feel cooler around here - especially in the mornings and evenings. Sweater weather!  Of course I sweated my way around the zoo this morning pushing our enormous Jeep double stroller through the hordes of people that had come to see Dora.  Lucky for me, my little brood was not interested in waiting in a four block line just to shake her hand. Phew!  I don't think this tired mama could have managed it.  

Proud Preschooler

Toddzilla was proud as a little peacock after he put all his Leapfrog letters in alphabetical order. I figured he deserves a little spot in cyberspace for his efforts too (rather than his more-often reported interruptions escapades).

A Momentous Weekend (including my first 911 call)

Saturday I officially became "of advanced maternal age."  Hubby and the children ushered in my thirty-fifth year with flowers, cake, balloons and the promise of a shopping spree - none of which can be beat for this gal - advanced in age or not.  (He says the Mac purchase was a "necessity" and can't be considered a birthday gift.  Gotta love him!)

Sunday brought hurricane-like winds that knocked out our power for 30 hours and sent trees and branches toppling over throughout the neighborhood.  One such branch in our backyard lay itself precisely on our power line during dinner last night.  The sap began to sizzle loudly, followed by clouds of blue smoke, followed by flames - which of course was all followed by shrieks from four scared little children.  

After a few strange cell phone issues, I got through to 911.  We waited.  Nothing happened. No one came.  Thank God, when the branch finally fell, it smoldered a bit and went out.  We ended up not having a forest fire in the backyard - or worse.  I went to bed thankful that we were all safe and sound, but a bit uneasy that a 911 call could go completely unanswered.

This morning's paper said the emergency system was inundated; which made me feel a bit better.  But not much.  Our thoughts and prayers continue to be with those on the Gulf Coast who are dealing with so much worse.

Official Beginnings

Our home school group met for the first time this morning after a long summer break.

• Toddzilla and the preschoolers are studying the human body; today they learned about bones. "You know, we have bones so your body's not all squishy like."
  
• The girls are in the first/second grade class, which is choir - "we sang in swahili today!" - and a course on animal life cycles.
• I got to make (and eat) apple pie with the sixth grade cooking class.
• Crockett hung out with the stroller set in the nursery.

Tomorrow we're joining a group of families for some science study. My girls have to present on the Abyss and Abyssal Animals. Looks like we need to do some studying tonight! We're excited to try putting together a little presentation on the new computer though. Nothing like a new toy to get you motivated...

i heart my iMac

Now I just have to learn how to use it!

We caved last night and are now the proud owners of a Mac.  

My children are outside "practicing" for Halloween.  Costumes are on, pumpkin bags in hand, they're going around the cul-de-sac (without knocking on doors) as a warm up to the big event.  

Just A Little Political.

You gotta love the ice cream truck for arriving right at dinner time. This has been her pattern all summer, which normally drives me crazy. But who can resist an ice cream truck? So we all pile out of the house - mid-dinner - and put the ice cream in the freezer for safe keeping, which really isn't the fun way to do it at all. But tonight, with my husband at meetings and me not feeling in the mood for cooking or eating, the sound of Mrs. Ice Cream rumbling down the road was a perfect excuse for "Kids, Ice Cream for Dinner!" I even treated half the neighborhood. I'm sure their parents won't be quite as ecstatic...

In other news:

• We saw a neat exhibit of African art and made some authentic masks at our monthly art club.




• My oldest daughter has been polling the neighborhood - so far it seems our little neck of the woods leans toward McCain.



• Sunday School started today and suprise! Toddzilla's still not a big fan.



• My computer is highly on again off again. Hubby's threatening to get me a Mac for my birthday. (He's secretly been coveting a Mac forever). I'm holding out for now, content to simply close the 108 applications it opens on it's own every time I turn it on.



• The girls played their instruments for a chamber of commerce gathering last week. Prizes and games were promised for participants. No prizes and games were delivered. Surprise! That didn't go over well either.

Now This Is Getting Interesting...

Mike Huckabee, speaking at the RNC, commented that the elitist media is succeeding in unifying the Republican party and rallying women around Sarah Palin just by the nature of their nasty, unacceptable coverage of Palin and her family. Whether that's true or not, her emergence in this political season is definitely shaking things up.

What I don't understand is why the far left hates her so much. Isn't this what the feminists wanted when they promised we could "have it all?"

Sadly, it seems to have more to do with who's included in that "all." Maybe her Down Syndrome baby shouldn't be? Or would they rather have her daughter "do away" with this pregnancy once and for all. If these two "issues" were out of the equation, would the far left like her?

Whether you're for her or not, one thing's clear: life is not an "issue." It's a gift; a sacred trust.

"Any country that accepts abortion is not teaching the people to love, but to use any violence to get what they want. That is why the greatest destroyer of love and peace is abortion." Mother Teresa

Home.

Just a few snapshots of a good day at home before getting back to the Republican convention on TV and checking up on my bloggy friends online. My computer's been possessed the last few days so I'm fully out of the loop. (Very amazed at how much time I had on my hands without the frequent cyber stops!)

A quick read while waiting for their lunch...

Enjoying a surprise visit from the ice cream truck at 2:00 in the afternoon.

"Mom! Good thing we're home schoolers! Everyone else missed it!"