5 years and another snow day

I can’t believe it has been so long since I wrote in this blog. I randomly thought “I wonder if the blog is even still out there?” So I checked. And here it is. I find it humorous that the last time I wrote was on a snow day. Why is that funny? Because we are having a snow day!  A winter storm came through on Saturday and today was a Sunday of snow, pjs, movies, snuggles, puppy snuggling, and more snow!

A lot has happened in the last 5 years. I will do a catch up post (or posts) in the next little bit.... but for now, here’s what’s happening. Snow. I do love a good snow day(s). Especially when you are expecting it. We have plenty of soups and stews ready. Milk, bread, and eggs were all purchased. My southern upbringing would be ashamed if at the mention of snow these items were not immediately bought from the nearest store! Movies are recorded and dvds checked out from the library. And, we are out for lunch before the snow came because we knew we would be in for a few days. It helps to prevent us from getting too stir crazy while we are in!

In the last post I talked about how Button and Punkin helped with random projects around the house, all while having their individual styles. Well, today was similar. No tables were assembled, but a “snofa” was made. “What’s a snofa?” you ask. It’s a sofa made of snow, of course. Our back deck currently has a new furniture piece made entirely of snow. It’s a lovely two seater sofa, equipped with arms rests on both ends and in between the two seats. I do love their creativity!! I joked that it’s the seating you use when you don’t want guests to stay too long. (It gets a little cold sitting on it.)

Punkin got a shelf from Santa for her room. She wanted a shelf as her bedside table instead of her traditional nightstand. So, she took the initiative to clean out her current nightstand, and her closet floor to make room for the shelf. She moved the nightstand into her closet (which was the decided new home for it), and started organizing and getting ready to move the shelf upstairs. I was very proud that she just decided to “do”. That’s been a theme saying or tag line or mantra around here lately...  just “do”, take action, vs talking about or complaining or whatever...  just do. Yes, we have become a Nike commercial! And Punkin did!  There is still work to be done, but I was proud of her for taking the initiative!

Button is a huge help during the snow also. She is a master shoveler!  She helped clear paths to be able to take out the dogs or to just be able to walk outside. She cleared the sidewalk, and helped get the cars. Button and hunny like tackling the shoveling together. Punkin helps also. It was actually Punkin and Button that started the process when snow first started coming down. That’s actually where the snofa came from. They began clearing a path from our back door on the deck to be able to get outside. As they piled up the snow into one place...  the snofa began.

They also make a few trails for sledding in the backyard.

We watched movies. We watched the end of the show “Once Upon a Time”. We had several episodes recorded and watched how it came to and end. We all enjoyed that show...  so it was fun to watch, but sad knowing that was it. We did the same a few weeks ago with a different snow day wit the show “Timeless”. Also another good show tha came to an end. We snuggled with our puppies...  we have 3. That will be another post to update our doggy and puppies. We at chili... a great snow day food. Overall it has been a fun day...  together...  which is the best wa to be!

Of course there were funnies all along the day...  nothing monumental... but little funnies.  Maybe it was chocolate ice cream around buttons mouth, or the achievement of our youngest puppies following command or having rice on her nose after eating. Or someone putting ice cold hands after coming inside on the warm person that has been inside. Any of those. Nothing stand up comedy worthy...  but funny in its own unique moment.

I hope whereever you are, that you find that funny something in your world!  Enjoy!  We have another snow day coming!!

Snow Days

First, I realize it has been forever since I have written. I have many stories to write to catch up on all that has been happening. But I had to take a quick moment to write today.

So on Thursday, January 2, it snowed. It was big fluffy flakes that were beautiful coming down. Hunny and Button had hair appointments, so we were at the salon when it started snowing. After dinner and picking up Hunny's truck, we headed home. It snowed about 2+ inches. It was/is beautiful. Because of the snow, we have had 2 days of inside pj days. Very nice relaxing days. Hunny worked from home yesterday, we cooked, watch some shows on the iPad and just enjoyed the lights on our Christmas tree and the fireplace. Today has been a bit more productive as we have cleaned up some areas of the house, unboxed some more items, filled some more boxes to donate and put together some tables and chairs. Just random stuff that has needed to be done. That brings me to why I am writing.

Don't think my next statement to be as random as it may sound initially, I will bring it back around. I love that we homeschool!!!!  What made me grab the iPad and start to write was looking over at our breakfast table as I finished watching the latest episode of Project Runway Allstars, I see Punkin who is wearing one of my shirts that she has claimed as a gown, Button in a Fourth of July type shirt with a pony costume on top, both helping Hunny put together a small table we have to put electronics on for the living area. He's explaining about nuts and bolts, screwdrivers and Allen wrenches and they are all working together to put the table together. This is such a normal thing for them/us, that it didn't seem unusual. But it was definitely special.

In our single snow day today, we have learned about wolves and frogs from the Kratt Brothers (Wild Kratts on pbs), played dress up, organize boxes, dressed up baby dolls, built a table, danced, done some laundry, Button asked if she could vacuum... Punkin just came over with two screw drivers explaining that one was like Filipe and the other like Turner (Phillips head screwdriver and flathead screwdriver from Handy Manny). She is now explaining them to Button. All this has just been today. Yesterday was just as productive with sorting and organizing shoes from the shoe closet, laundry, taking care of baby dolls, finding their old baby shoes and discovering they fit their dolls, caring for our dog who had a boo boo on her foot, dancing to 80s dance music, etc.

So, how does this list of seemingly regular list of  items relate to homeschooling? It's simple really. Our philosophy, if we have one, in homeschooling is to create continuous learners. Individuals who are loving, respectful, responsible people who want to learn. Looking over and seeing two young individuals, dressed as their creative selves, wanting to help put a table together, interested in the parts and tools, how they work, what they do, all while smiling and giggling, but listening and learning. It was just a beautiful sight and confirmation that, for us, for this moment, our journey is on the right path.

As for the snow, it's been very pretty and very cold (why we've been inside).  The high was supposed to be in the 30s, and it got down to 9 this morning. Cold. :-).

I hope you have had a great 2014 so far. Keep looking forward on your journey. And enjoy a funny something!!  God Bless!!

Firebird Film

On Friday and Saturday of a weekend in May, I was able to help with a film that was shooting nearby. One of the dads from the home school group is the director and I asked if there was anything I could help with. It was really a neat experience. The film is called The Legend of the Firebird. I was a production assistant. What does that mean? Well, basically I did whatever was needed - from purchasing a wedding dress to use as one of the costumes, to picking up food for the cast and crew, to  operating a puppet that will be the visual for a special effect in the film, to hauling equipment and/or actors, to... Well, you get the point. It was a lot of fun though.

The actors consisted ofworking actors from the DC area, college students, recent grads, and friends with combat experience for some specialty scenes. The make up artist was great. She created some really cool makeup to completely transform the evil sorcerer. The actress that was cast as the Firebird already had gorgeous red hair that was enhanced with beautiful bird makeup with golds, reds, burgundies, and oranges. If I can figure out the picture thing on here, I will post some pictures. 

The film crew was fun. The main guy, I guess he would be the cinematographer (I'm new to the film world :-)), was a guy named Chris Newhard. He has directed videos for Train (pretty cool) and just got back from Africa filming a documentary for a month. Pretty cool stuff. Feel free to check out his website www.chrisnewhard.com. 

So, the filming is complete and the computer stuff and editing starts. The idea for now is to create a 15-20 minute film to gain interest and funding for a full length. We will just see what happens from here. But or now, it really was a great experience. Long days, but a great experience.


Prince in lily pad pond - I have to add here that he was such a trooper for doing this. It was a smelly pond, at the end of the day, and he was barefoot. Trooper!


Filming Prince in a lily pad pond


Fight Scene filming in action


Prince (Jared Calhoun, actor) & Firebird (Elyse, actor)


Firebird actress, director and film crew

Evil Sorcerer


Chris Newhard

Critter pics and the tree

Tree frog on the gas tank


Momma and baby having dinner


Tree frog hitch hiking


Tree that didn't scratch the house



Turtle

Tree frogs and Terrapins, continued and The Tree

If you've read any of my posts, you may realize that we have critters around here. I previously posted specifically about the frogs and the turtles that we see and their eggs that hatch in our yard. Well, we have now seen the remnants of about 20 hatchlings. Unfortunately (well for us and our curiosity) we have not seen the actual baby turtles. Just their opens egg remains. If I'm remembering correctly though, they tend to hatch at night. We are night owls around here, but we have not been turtle hatch searching in the middle of the night yet. I guess part of the problem is we don't know where the eggs are in the ground to keep an eye on them. Egg remnants just appear and a whole in the ground at random times. I guess I need to have terrapin study and letcha know :-).  Hunny and I have both seen turtles in the yard, and thought they may be laying eggs or prepping to lay eggs, but seeing us may have deterred their endeavor.

Now for the frogs.... They are still here, not in the large quantity they once were, but we still have hitchhikers every once in a while. At the end of June/beginning of July we had a few storms that took out a few trees. One of which God gracefully laid down as close to our house and on our back deck without a single scratch, chip, bending of pipes (we just had an irrigation installed and the pipes from the crawl space come out where the tree was laying), gutters were in tact....graceful....you wouldn't know a tree fell on our house. We figured God wanted us to have an even better view of his creation, so he took that tree down for us. And it did open up the view, which we appreciated. Apparently, the frogs loved this tree though. Hunny was cutting the tree into smaller more manageable pieces to be able to pull it away from the house and off the deck. As he did, the frogs rallied. There were the usual abundance of frogs across the back of the house - probably 10. The sun was starting to go down and we were trying to finish up, then we saw something fly from the top corner of the house off of the gutter. Then a minute or so later, again, something flew off the house. The first time I thought I might have seen wrong and that it was a piece of wood flying from the tree as he was cutting. But after the second, I started watching closer. The frogs were jumping from the house to the tree. I watched one make his way down the corner of the house to the rail of deck. I stepped away from the railing. He hopped down the top rail to the corner where he perched in a Titanic "king of the world" moment at the very corner of the deck rail, the leaped. Some jumped from the bottom of the deck, others of windows, then the brave leaders that started the tree jumping movement that jumped from the second floor of the house. It was really quite fascinating to watch. Over the next few days, we had someone come in to haul away the few trees that had fallen - about six in all. I don't know if the frogs clung to their tree or not. After all, they are tree frogs. I can say that there have not been as many on our house. We had one on the gas tank on the grill, and a few hitch hikers on the car, but that's about it. We still hear them occasionally. They are part of the beautiful soundtrack for our house.

We've realized that the animals are very seasonal here also, well most of them. The deer, bald eagles and Frasier the crane (or possibly a blue heron that lives here) are constants. But most are cyclicals. So I will keep you updated on our critters. Hatching terrapins and jumping tree frogs.

Enjoy afunnysomething today!!

Asome!

For our 11 year anniversary, we celebrated as a family...at a bar :-). Ok, seriously we did, but let me explain. Not too far from us (relatively speaking) is a dueling piano bar called Bobby McKeys. Usually it is only open in the evenings and is 21 and over. On a previous visit when we were in the moving process, we stayed at the Gaylord just down from Bobby McKeys. As we were walking back from dinner, the doors were propped open, so we stopped to watch and listen. Scooter Button started dancing in the doorway. Mind you, it is normally 21 and older........ She might have been 3. The place wasn't  crowded at the time and they said something about here being cute, then we went on our way.

But back to our anniversary, and taking the kids to the bar, and the title of this post........

Once a month, on Saturday afternoon, Bobby's has a family day. See, you don't need to call the authorities on us. We found out about the family day on that initial trip when Button danced in the doorway, and had been wanting to go, but had just not made it yet. Then we saw that the family day was the same as our anniversary and decided it would be a great way to celebrate. It really was a lot of fun. For the admission price, their are the dueling piano players and a food buffet that included hot dogs, m & c, wings, salad, fruit, pizza... being gluten free we did not partake in most, but there was plenty to choose from, and we were going to dinner soon after also.

If you've never been to a dueling piano bar before, the idea is that you can request songs by writing them on napkins and then setting them on the piano. If you actually want your song played, you include cash with the napkin. The larger the number on that cash determines how quickly your song gets played. Comprende? Hunny and I wrote a few songs down, but had asked the girls what songs they might want to hear. The only song Button wanted was "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star". Each time we asked, that was the only one she said. So, it went on the list. After all, it was family day. Punkin didn't really have one she wanted, but we put some of her dance songs on the list because we knew she'd enjoy that. Each took a napkin with cash and took the request on stage. It was so cute watching that throughout the day. Little kids going up, some would wait politely until they had finished playing and hand it to the pianist, followed by a polite thank you. While others looked like seasoned pros and would slap it on the piano. All very cute. We had a couple of our songs played....and wouldn't you know....Twinkle Twinkle Little Star was one of them!! Woo Hoo!  They did a conga line, had a frog and a bunny come out (not real ones but life size characters) that held a limbo stick for the kiddos. Plus had great music. It really was a lot of fun.

The other thing you could request was fore them to write one thing on the mirrors that were behind each of the pianos. On the napkin you wrote "write", then whatever you want and they would write it up there. No keep in mind that it was family day, and that some of the requests were (probably..hopefully) written by kids. There were only two written requests while we were there...one of which we have enjoyed ever since. Here goes "This place is Asome!!"  And that's what got written on the mirror. I'm sure it was suppose to say awesome, but it didn't. We have delighted in our new declaration of greatness pronounced long-a some. Button will randomly say "what's that thing we say instead if awesome?" Or we will say awesome, and Punkin will say "you mean Asome". I love their sense of humor and whit.

Our anniversary was followed by play in the Gaylord with a Peep doll that was purchased at the Peep store - yes there is a store filled with peeps, peep stuff, shirts, socks, onesies, dolls, plus Hot Tamales, and the fruit version of Hot Tamales that I can't think of their names. It's actually a fun store...but who knew? A Peep store. Then we went to dinner at Rosa Mexicana. We thought this was appropriate since we went to Mexico for our honeymoon. And they have the BEST table side guacamole, that makes people who didn't like guacamole convert to guacamole lovers. Yumm! Then all was followed by a car ride home inclusive with naps.

It was a great day! Or dare I say it was Asome!

One foot, a bed and some coconut oil

Sounds like the beginning of a weird joke ... So a foot, a bed and some coconut oil are sitting at a ... You get the idea. But it's not the beginning of a weird joke. It's actually part of my morning today.

It started out like most mornings. I was sleeping, I heard the girls come in my room, I look to see which one is awake, Button roars at me like a bear, I jump. Typical morning. Ok, so she doesn't roar at me every morning. I would grow to expect it and wouldn't jump.  But she did this morning and i did jump.  I get up and get dressed. The girls were playing. That is the typical morning stuff. I tell them I am going to go downstairs to start breakfast. Ask is boiled eggs are good. All say yes. I asked this morning to stay upstairs for a few minutes because after I got the eggs going, I was going to sweep. The fewer people trekking through the dirt the easier it is to sweep. All were good with my request. So I get the eggs going. I start sweeping. I hear Punkin telling Button to stop that she's not helping. Button responds with " I'm trying to help". More dislikes and tone are spoken. So I tell them they need to try again and speak nice to each other. This has been something we have been working on. They go through small spats of time where they get bossy with one another, so I figured this was the same. Then they say, " Mom, we need you". I tell them to work it out. I had started sweeping and thought my help in solving who got to play with which pony or doll was needed. Then they say "Punkin's foot is stuck in Buttons bed". What? So there are two components to the title - a foot and a bed. So I go up and sure enough, Punkin was sitting on Buttons bed, which is a toddler bed, and her foot is sticking through the rails. It was through the front rails, the ones that go only half way across the front of the bed to keep you from falling out. I evaluate the situation.  I ask the necessary questions "What were you doing?" "Why did you stick you foot in there?", etc. I try to pull her foot through, but no luck. I turned it and pointed her foot and bent her knee. No luck. Her ankle bone was getting mushed between the rails. I didn't want it to start swelling and I needed to try to keep Punkin calm too. That's where the coconut oil came into play. I have coconut oil that I use as a lotion and moisturizer in my room. My brain went to shows and cartoons from growing up of someone getting stuck and them getting sticks of butter to free them. Coconut oil. I got the oil. Both girls looked at me like I was crazy. I told them I really did not want to break the bed or saw a rail to get her foot out. I got some oil and slathered her ankle and foot. And my hands and arms ( I had extra, so I figured I put it to use). Then Button says "because its slippery". "Yep" I say. "We are gonna see if this works, otherwise I have to cut out a rail." I told her it may hurt a little to get it out, but it would quick then we could ice it for it to feel better. The thought of me cutting a rail with her foot right there was really not thrilling me. So, with a gentle pull, her foot slipped right out. WooHoo!  No saw needed.

Her ankle was ok. Button went and got her a princess ice pack and she laid down for a bit after with the ice pack. All ankles and bed rails are okay!!!

One foot, a bed and some coconut oil..... A funny something.

Reservations for 20

For the Fourth of July we spent several days visiting family and friends. The girls had spent a few weeks with Nana and Grandaddy, and were gonna be coming home with us. My parents always do a big cookout for the fourth, so it was a great opportunity for us to see friends and family all in one place. The fireworks for the city are shot off directly behind the church we used to go to before we moved. We were excited about being there as well. There is just an incredible feeling in and around His Hands Church. It's definitely a God/Jesus/Holy Spirit thing. Anyway, there were several people there we were excited to see also. Punkin was giddy with excitement at the thought of seeing Jeremiah (see previous post from June Archive Story). Needless to say, we were excited -  friends, family, food, fireworks. What's not to be excited about? Rain!!!  Well, specifically rain on the fourth when we are excited about seeing friends, family, fireworks and food. It poured for days, it poured. It rained on our drive. It rained on the fourth. It rained on Friday after the fourth. It rained on Saturday which is when the cookout my parents have to celebrate the fourth. It rained. The fireworks for several cities were cancelled. The ones we were going to see we're postponed until Labor Day. Big bummer!  We still enjoyed our trip though. We were able to see Hunny's mom (Granna) and dad and Angie (Pop and Grandmama) on Friday. Both visits were very nice. The cookout on Saturday was great too. All in all it was a relaxing few days though. It just rained.

So on Sunday, we headed for home. The girls were going to vbs the next week, so we needed to make it back for Monday. Hunny also had to go to work. The drive was good. We started early and from spending a few weeks of action packed fun at Nana and Grandaddy's, the girls were tired. They slept off and on, watched some shows using the iPad and played some games. Scooter Button was playing games on my phone at one point while Punkin was napping. I could hear which games she was playing and she would show me occasionally what she had created or colored. She checked the weather and looked at the news and made a reservation for 20 at a steak house. What?!?  She made a reservation for 20..... Yes, that was not a typo. She made a reservation for 20 at a steak house. Here is some backstory. On my phone I have an app to make reservations for restaurants. When we lived in an apartment before moving into our house, there was a steakhouse Hunny and I went to that was a block away from the apartment. As she was playing on the phone, she apparently went to that app and went to recent reservations. Pressed a few buttons, made some numbers change and viola, reservation for 20. Oh, and it was in 30 minutes. Fortunately I saw the reservation and was able to cancel it in time. Could you imagine the hostess when she got that? Um, we have a large party on their way. We need to get some tables set up. Oh, never mind. If we had been close, maybe we could have changed it to party of 4, but we were still about 5 hours and a state away. She keeps us on our toes.

The rest of the ride home was uneventful. Just a drive. We were making great time, until we got 45 minutes from home. Then there was traffic and those 45 minutes became about 2 and a half hours. Who has traffic on Sunday night at 10 pm? We do. I'd like to tell you it was due to the fourth being only a few days prior. But that's a typical Sunday. Traffic headed into DC. Even from hours away -traffic. Or as I like to think of it - extra time together :-).

I hope each if you had a great 4th!  Rain or shine.

Book - Kisses from Katie - updated

From the introduction: 

"I have absolutely no desire to write a book about myself. This is a book about a Christ who is alive today and not only knows but cares about every hair on my head. Yours too. I'm writing this book on the chance that a glimpse into the life of my family and me, full of my stupidity and God's grace, will remind you of this living, loving Christ and what it means to serve Him. I'm writing with the hope that as you cry and laugh with my family you will be encouraged that God still uses flawed human beings to change the world. And if He can use me, He can use you."

Katie Davis

I have just finished reading this book. It was amazing. If you are wanting to be inspired... Here is your book. She also has a blog, posted below, but you need to read the book to get the story. Then follow the blog.

www.amazima.org
www.kissesfromkatie.blogspot.com

Amazima Founder, Katie Davis 

In December of 2006, 18-year-old Katie Davis from Brentwood, Tennessee, traveled to Uganda for the first time. She was immediately captivated with the people and the culture.

In the summer of 2007, Katie returned to Uganda to teach Kindergarten at an orphanage. As she walked the children home, she was shocked to see the sheer number of school-aged children sitting idly on the side of the road or working in the fields. She learned there were very few government-run public schools in Uganda, and none in the area where she was working. Most schools in Uganda are privately operated and therefore require school fees for attendance, making impoverished families unable to afford an education for their children. God laid it on Katie's heart to start a child sponsorship program, matching orphaned and vulnerable children who are unable to afford schooling with sponsors anywhere in the world. A annual gift of $300 enables one child to go to school and provides the necessary school supplies, 3 hot meals each day, spiritual discipleship, and medical care. Originally intending to have only 40 children in the sponsorship program, Katie had 150 signed up by January 2008. Today the program sponsors over 600 children.

Later that year, in 2008, Katie established a 5019(c)3 non-profit organization called Amazima Ministries International. The word “Amazima” means “truth” in the native Luganda language. The organization seeks to meet the physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of the people of Uganda who need it most.

Katie also became a mother of three orphaned girls in January of 2008. She would adopt ten (10) more daughters in the coming few years.

Shortly thereafter, Katie was introduced to the Karamojong people of Masese. The poorest of the poor, and losing their children to malnutrition and starvation at an astounding rate, she noticed their desperate need for nutritious food. She started a feeding program to the community, providing meals to over 1,200 children Monday through Friday. This program allows the children to attend school and therefore not go to the street to beg. Amazima also provides medical care, Bible study, and general health training to the Masese community.

As her friendships developed in Masese, Katie wanted to help the women in the village provide for their families. She initiated aself-sustaining vocational program to empower these women to generate needed income by making unique Ugandan magazine bead necklaces. The necklaces made by the women are purchased weekly by Amazima and then sold in the United States. The money the women receive for their beads allows them to support their family and offset the cost of sending their children to school.

Now the mother of 13 daughters, Katie offers, “People tell me I am brave. People tell me I am strong. People tell me good job. Well here is the truth of it. I am really not that brave, I am not really that strong, and I am not doing anything spectacular. I am just doing what God called me to do as a follower of Him. Feed His sheep, do unto the least of His people.”

 

I kept thinking through the entire book, "she is so young. God is using her and she is so willing to give everything and she is so young". But then I think of my own girls and how willing they are to love and listen to god. To love Jesus and thank him for the blessings we have. So young. He uses the little ones to teach us, doesn't he?

I picked up this book on my way to the airport. I was making an emergency trip to Atl for the funeral of a dear dear friend who had passed away a few days earlier (there will soon be a post about that... I just have to write it still). But there was a delay in the flight, so I stopped by a Barnes and Noble to see what might find. I ended up with three books. This was the third book I saw and it just stood out to me. On my way to the airport I asked god which I should take with me, and again this one stood out. So, I took it with me. Only a few short days later and I have finished the book. It was really difficult to put it down. I constantly wanted to know how god was going to use her next and how her family would grow. God knows what we need, doesn't he? I needed to read this book. To trust. To embrace the journey. To let go sometimes and know that he has a plan. To trust. To ask. To trust.

He has a plan.

I am thankful for that.

If you are looking for an inspirational book, if you are a parent, if you think there may be a god, if you know there is a god and want to be amazed ever more by him... Read this book. Kisses from Katie, by Katie Davis with Beth Clark.

Dance Recitals

Saturday was our first dance recital since the move and with the new dance studio. It's was really a lot of fun!  Saturday morning was the mini-mover dancers (ages 2-5), which is what our Scooter Button is. She did both ballet, to Skittermarink (Skittermarink-e-dink a dink, Skittermarink-e-do. I love you), and tap, to a honky tonk You are my Sunshine. Both were super cute and she did great!!!  The mini movers recitals was called My Heart does a Little Dance. After each performance the dancers got a little necklace with a heart on it. Very sweet.

Punkin had four dances - ballet, tap and 2 jazz routines. Her recital was called Viral Video. All of the songs were ones that has had something about them go viral on line. Call me Maybe, Gangman Style, Lady Gaga's Paparazzi, etc. Punkin's dances were to Super Bass (instrumental version of a Nicki Manaj song) for ballet; Friday for tap, and for jazz she did a combo song of Bicycle by Queen into Peanut Butter Jelly Time. You wouldn't think those two went together... But somehow they did. Her second jazz was a routine that a few girls from her class did at a competition at Kings Dominion, a local amuzement park, and it was to Surfin' USA.

I was a backstage helper and got each if the dance groups lined up backstage ready to perform. It was a lot of fun. We were all tired after, but it was fun. The recital was so entertaining. I was able to watch Punkin's dances from the wings and most of the dances at the dress rehearsal.

There were two dancers that were graduating this year. The last dance was their senior tribute dance. They thought it was just the two of them with a video playing behind them of their dance careers thus far. But as a surprise, each of the dance instructors from the studio danced on stage with them. It was such a beautiful dance. It combined each style of dance, well except tap because that would have required a shoe change. But these girls did lyrical, ballet, jazz, Scottish highlands, and hip hop. The hip hop instructor wasn't there because he is touring this summer, but he performed on the video at the same time they were performing the same moves on stage. It was just a cool dance, and really showed the heart of the studio and how they care about their students. As the curtain call, all of the dancers filed onstage behind the two seniors waving - a signal to the audience that the show was over as well as a goodbye to the two the seniors. It really was beautiful. That's also the theatre nerd in me :-). And that's ok.

If you get a chance or are interested, feel free to check out the studios website, Facebook page or Pinterest. It's called Artistry Dance Center. www.artistrydancecenter.com There should be pictures there also.

We are all signed up for summer and next year also. Punkin wants to try Scottish Highlands, so we are adding that one to our list, and adding hip hop back on. So she will actually have 6 numbers next year. Button is keeping tap and ballet, but adding hip hop to hers. I can wait to see her do some hip hop. She wiggles and jumps so much already, I think she's gonna love it.

We have found a great studio.

CAT Test

Part of homeschooling, we have to show "evidence of progress" at the end of each school year. This can be done by either have an evaluation done (basically an interview with someone, usually a former homeschooling mom, who has a masters degree or higher, who writes a report stating whether or not the student shows evidence of progress for their age) or you can do an accepted standardized test (Calif Achievement Test, Iowa State test, etc). Most of these standardized test are the same ones kids in public school take also, they just typically take them beginning in the third grade, then very so often after that. We choose to try the CAT test. Punkin is the only one who has to take the test, because she is the only one "officially" in school. So at the beginning of the week we did a practice test so she would be familiar with the format of the test. We were also able to talk about the test and questions after she finished and work through any she may have had difficulties with. She did great. 

So yesterday, I asked her if she wanted to do part of her test. She grinned and said yes. Great!! We sat at the table and Button watched a show on the iPad. We want through 3 of the 5 tests - the language, reading, comprehension and vocabulary sections - like a breeze. She was awesome. We took a break after that and she played with Button for a while. Then Button went to take a nap. I asked her if she wanted to move on to the Math sections or wait until the next morning. She was game. So we started the math tests which included addition, subtraction and various math applications (shapes, money, calendars, word problems).  I'm telling you she did great. I'm biased, I get that. But she really did great. There were a few that she didn't get to in the time allowed, and that was fine. But to watch her think through the problems and figure them out as I sat quietly reading the instructions as the administrator. And for her to be confident in what she was doing. It was rewarding as her homeschooling mom to see her excited about taking the test and confident in displaying her knowledge. 

She understands that she had to take the test to show the school system that she is learning while she is at home so we can continue homeschooling. She gets it. She also gets that she is a smart girl. I am proud of her. We are taking her to a celebration dinner tonight for her awesomeness. She originally said she wanted sushi, but has now said Mexican. We shall see. 

It's been a great first "official" year of homeschooling. Both girls have progressed more than I could have expected. Blessings. They are blessings. It has been a blessing to homeschool them also. 

Tree Frogs and Terrapins

We have lots of critters at our house. Deer that eat in the field across the street from us, deer that eat in our yard, frogs, cranes, turtles, swans, ducks, bald eagles, ravens, fish, bunnies, sacadas, dragon flies.... A lot of critters. We have recently seen the deer in our flower beds whose tracks we have seen for several weeks. We watch frogs on our windows. We watch them eat in abundance when we turn on the outside lights and the bugs fly towards the light. We even saw a turtle a few weeks ago in our back yard.

On Tuesday, we decided to go to the $1 summer movies. When we got in our car at home, Button got in on Punkin's side of the car. But at the theatre, she got out through her door. When she did, she exclaimed "A froggy, mom there's a froggy!"  I asked where, thinking on the ground, maybe on the tree we were parked next too. She says "on my door". She was right!  On the inside of the door where there door curves over the wheels, was tucked a little green tree frog. I took a napkin and encouraged him off of the door - after taking a picture of course - and he jumped to the parking lot. He was not there when we returned, so we were positive he had found a new home in the trees at the movie theater. We now look at the doors before getting in, just to be sure we don't have any hitch hikers tagging along.

Hunny also had one on his truck the day before on the inside of his door too. Apparently it's easier for them to get in than we thought.

Then, last night, as Hunny was taking the dogs out, he was looking at the hoove prints by some flowers and noticed what looked like petals on the ground. The problem was that we didn't have any petals of that shape near that area. Further inspecting the white "petals" he realized that they were eggs. Eggs!!!  Something had hatched in three separate places in our flower beds. We looked up eggs for a few creatures that we thought it could be ....  Terrapins. We had baby terrapins hatch in our yard. I just wish when I saw the wholes in the ground previously I would have been brave enough to peak in to see the eggs. I would have liked to watch the process and to be able to share that experience with the girls. But knowing we were a good incubator for little turtle eggs is pretty cool.

Tree frogs and Terrapins - baby terrapins at that. That's our critter funny something for today.

Flubber

Flubber - a putty type substance made from a combination of glue, water, borax and if you'd like, food coloring.

[Note:There is also a movie from the 90s with Robin Williams named Flubber. It didn't appear to get good reviews in my google search. I have never seen the movie. I only know bout the putty type substance.]

At THINK we made flubber. It really is a lot of fun to play with. It is super simple to make. And it's a cool science experiment for the kiddos. Having said that, it is important to note that flubber should not come into contact with fabric of any sort. It sticks to it and does not come off. We play with our flubber at a table that has a plastic table cover on it and we try really hard :-) not to let any drop on the floor.

So after making flubber, it has been a fun activity throughout the week molding it into different shapes, popping air bubbles that come up or squeezing it into a cup and hearing the "toot" noises it makes. After, dance the other day, we came home and the girls were playing with flubber at the table while I was making lunch. I was almost finished when I heard a very calm "I have some goo in my hair". Ok, I thought.  Then Punkin says "oh you do have some in there". Nothing alarming, I thought.

Then I turned around.

There was a glob of flubber in the front of Buttons hair that stretched about 6-7 inches down and about 2 inches thick - a huge glob of pink flubber hung from the front of her head. Not the "I have some" amount that I was expecting. I took a deep breath, put my hands on my knees and took a moment. My first thoughts honestly, were this is made of glue and we are going to have to cut her hair - and she has a recital in a week. I know, very dance mom of me. Sorry. After my moment of silence and breathing, I evaluated the flubber to hair issue. I let her know that I was going to try my best to get it all out, that it may hurt, and that if I couldn't get it out we would try to wash it out. But that there was a chance mommy would have to cut it out. It really was a lot in there. To my surprise, it came out pretty easily. Much easier than I first thought. I really thought she was gonna have to have bangs to try to get it out.  But, piece my piece, strand by strand, the flubber came out, without too much pulling and no scissors needed.

I'm still not sure why the flubber got put on her hair. I asked, but nothing was really offered. I was thinking when I was getting the flubber out that I remember getting gum in my hair as a child - falling asleep with it in my mouth - and having to freeze it to get it out or cut it out. And I'm sure that happened more than once. But I don't recall ever deliberately putting something like that in my hair.

Lesson(s) learned - 1) flubber is fun. 2)flubber does not come out of fabric 3) flubber does come out of hair.

I have included the recipe for flubber below. May you have a funny something kind of time with your own flubber. :-).  If you add a small amount of cornstarch you can roll it into a ball that as it hardens becomes a bouncy ball. Feel free to search for he specific recipe for that one. We preferred the flubber of the two.

1 1/2 cups warm water
2 cups elmer white glue
food coloring
1 1/3 cups warm water
3 teaspoons borax
Directions:

1) In one container mix 1 1/2 cups warm water, white glue and a few drops of food coloring.
2)In a second container mix 1 1/3 cups of warm water and Borax.
3)Mix the Borax mixture into the glue mixture until combined. (may be some liquid in bottom of container).
4)Place Flubber on a tray and let stand for a few minutes before playing with it!
5)Store in air tight container.

From a Minnow to a Fish 3!!

Scooter Button was busy scooting along in the pool tonight. She is now a Fish 3!!

She was a Minnow 5 (the last level of Minnows at her swim school). After certain skills have been mastered according to their coach, a deck manager tests each child to double check and either pass them to the next level or give them further instructions on what to do. So, to move from a Minnow to a Fish, you have to swim forward, face in the water, holding a streamline (hand together stretched out in front of you), and kicking for 10 feet. Plus doing the same basic thing on your back (obviously your face isn't in the water or this one), again for 10 feet. She did both like a pro!!  They also had her tread water, and while she was doing her front swim, she demonstrated that she could take a breath and keep going, holding her streamline and kicking. So - she bypassed Fish 1 & 2 and is a Fish 3!!  Little rockstar swimmer. So proud!!

After she rocked out her test....  Her coach said "let's just see how far you can go" in preparation for the next testing. For that one, you do both the front and back kicks holding your streamline and breathing, but instead of 10 feet, it's about 30ish. In just "seeing what she could do", she swam the whole way. The deck managers were all watching her. She's 4.... And rocked it out!!

She got a bit tired after that. Her coach had her do it several times.... But by the 4th or 5th, she was done. I don't blame her though. I would be after the first - if I made it the first time.

Punkin is rocking it out also. She's a Shark and is learning all the various strokes - breast, butterfly, freestyle and backstroke - for 25yards. Endurance is a big thing at her level.

It's so cool watching them do all of this. We just wanted them to be comfortable and safe in the water. And to see them rock it and enjoy it is amazing!!

Awesomeness!!!

It's good to have good girls

I've had a little cough/congestion, and was just tired. We still had activities to attend - birthday cupcakes with friends, dance, swim - normal weekly activities. I felt fine to do, I just had to take some rests.  I didn't have anything contagious, either.  But by Thursday, I just wanted to sleep. So, I did. This is where I get to brag on the awesomeness of my girls. They were great!!!  They played together, brought me water and just let me sleep and rest. It was nice to know ... and allowed me to rest easier ... knowing that they were ok playing together, watching a few shows or playing their games on the iPad. They even got Spanish flash card and practiced espanol.

Nothing funny, I just wanted to express that it's good to have good girls. :-).

Archive Story - Punkin's Future

I thought since we just celebrated Buttons bday, this would be a good time to post this so we have it on the blog. As you read this, keep in mind that the girls are only 2 years 8 months apart. So, at this time, Punkin was three.

I thought you would enjoy this...

So Button had a dr appointment today, but we got there a few minutes early and she had fallen asleep. In letting her take a quick nap before going in to get shots, Punkin and I were talking. She was sitting on the consile between the front seats and said, "Mom, when I get to be a grown up", you could tell she was thinking, "I am going to live in North Carolina." 

"You are?" I said, thinking when have you heard about North Carolina? We've been to South Carolina, but not North. But trying not to interrupt her thoughts I said nothing and she continued. 

"Yeah, that's where I am going to be a farmer." Being a farmer is on Punkin's list of occupations, along with being a rock star and a veterinarian. 

"Oh, okay" I said, "But that's a long way from here."

"Yeah," says Punkin very matter of fact. "But do you know who I'm gonna marry?" she asks. I look at her as if to say who? And she states, "Jeremiah."

"Me and Ms. Monique sure will miss you, being so far away."

"You know what you can do?" she asks. 

"What?"

"You and Jeremiah's mommy can come visit us. And if you want, you can go to Taco Bell". 

"Thank you" I said. 

"I called Jesus this morning. I asked him if our kids could be twins," she pauses for a second as if remembering the conversation, then continues. "But he said no.  We'll just have 2 kids, not twins."

We finished our conversation and it was time for us to go in for Button's appointment. 

Too cute!  I just had to share!  

From Monique (Jeremiah's mom)

Oh my goodness! That makes me laugh! I will be very interested to see what God has 20 years down the road ;) 

The great news is that you know you are doing something right when they are already asking Jesus about what to do!!!! Even better that she stops to listen! 

More good news... If our kids grow up, get married and become farmers in NC we will all like each other enough to carpool to go see them. Oooo and the fun we would have with grandbabies!!! 

Jeremiah has been very concerned with who he will marry in the future lately. It has been a serious issue in our house. Isn't it funny that it is something their minds already focus on these things?

Birthdays and Ponies

I can't believe she is four. Our little Scooter Button is four.

Because I was working on the Firebird shoot Friday and Saturday, the girls got a lot of daddy daughter time. They had picnics, and dance parties, explored Gander Mountain, went on walks and discovered the joy of honeysuckles. They had a great time!

So for Scooter Buttons birthday, we asked her what she wanted to do. When asked earlier in the week she had mentioned the zoo. We thought maybe that's what we would do for the day. She consistently said she wanted to celebrate with her THINK (a homeschool group) friends. But since that is during the week, that celebration would have to wait. We gave several options and because if the memorial weekend, there were some really cool things going on. Rolling Thunder parade (motorcycles), a concert that night at the Capital, a strawberry festival....with pony rides....yep, that one was the winner. She wanted to ride ponies!!  So that's what we did. At one of the state parks, a church holds a strawberry festival each year as a fund raiser. It's your basic summer time fair with vendors, food , some games, a hayride, music - including square dancing - and then pony rides. Button road Batman the first time and Rainbow the next. Punkin got Honey and Nibbles. Yes, they rode two times. We had smoothies and fruit and snacks between rides. But, she asked to ride again. So for her birthday, she rode ponies.

The next day we had cake. Punkin made (really she did about 90% of the work) the requested lemon cake with strawberry icing. Then the next day she got to celebrate with her THINK friends. We took cupcakes and princess plates.

I can't believe she is four already!  Where as that time gone? It's gone to her growing into a beautiful, smart, funny child. She has a great example in Punkin. They are both unique and they care for each other. So, I'm not complaining. I just can't believe she's four.

There will soon be more daddy daughter outings too. For her birthday, both girls got fishing pokes complete with backpacks, sunglasses and mini tackle boxes. One is Barbie and the other is Princesses. Very cute.

Enjoy afunnysomething today!  One of ours just turned four!!

Mothers Day and Muffins

I had an awesome Mother's Day!!  It started with breakfast and beautiful pictures and cards made by my beautiful girls. They were both big helpers in the kitchen (Hunny told me). I got to relax upstairs until all was ready. Then they surprised me with a pendent. It is a Celtic cross with a diamond in the center and  Hunny had the girls birthstones set into the cross. We had a relaxing morning enjoying time together and nature outside our windows.

Then, we made muffins....  Well, we tried. On Monday, our homeschool group was doing a marketplace at one of the local parks. The idea was that kids could make items to sell to each other and teach about commerce... Buying and selling ... cost of goods sold ... etc ... For kids and fun. So we decided on mixed berry muffins. I had purchased a set of various gluten free mixes (Jules Gluten Free bakery) and this was our chance to try the muffin mix. I should have known not to try, after all it was Mothers Day. I should be relaxing, not baking. But I wanted to bake with my girls. I took the softened butter and try to cream it, but it flung all over the kitchen. Literally, butter flew. It was on the granite, the stone backsplash (fun times cleaning), the floor, me... It flung. After which, my little helper laughed and said, "Now that's a funny something!". So I adjusted how I was holding the immersion blender with the whisk attachment (probably my problem) and it was better. So we got things cleaned, and we began adding eggs one by one. I held the bowl wrong and we had a small fling of butter again, but this time much smaller. Then an egg got cracked on the counter  and dripped down the cabinets to to floor. Should we just stop here? Yes, but we did not. We made muffins. Mini muffins. You would think that if it takes 30 minutes for regular size muffins to cook, it should take less time to cook mini's.  Half the batter got put into the pans, the other half waited patiently. And waited. And waited. And waited. Finally we decided they were not going to cook. The centers were still raw while the outside was looking scrumptious. Did we get defeated? Did we give up? No. We reinvented the muffin. We mixed the half cooked muffin into the patiently waiting batter and spread it out on a sheet pan. It turned out kind of a sponge cake muffiny squares. We also didn't sell our muffin squares creation at the marketplace either.

We figured our mistake with the muffins was instead of using just blueberries (as called for in the recipe) we used mixed berries. Which, after thawed and mushed to blend nicely into the batter, added too much moisture to the batter. We shall try again.

After our muffin mishap, we hurriedly showered and got ready for church hat evening. Even the dogs got showers that day. And we drove to church. We go to a 5:30 service about 1 hour 15 minutes away. The drive is a great nap time for the girls. We all enjoy the church.

We finished our evening with a nice dinner at our favorite Mexican uncles place (a restaurant called Uncle Julio's or as the girls call it ... the dough place .... They get to play with tortilla dough while we wait for our food). It was a great Mothers Day!!!

Oh - and in case you're wondering, we only shopped at the marketplace. Both girls took money from their own piggie banks. One got a pair of earrings, a necklace and a chocolate chip cookie, while the other bought a shower cap. It was fun.

I hope your Mother's Day had afunnysomething also!

Lizard (picture now included)

As soon as I figure out how to get a picture on here, I will. But we had a HUGE lizard on our back porch screen this morning. HUGE!!!!  No joking it was at least 9 inches from head to tail. The girls were fascinated. They even moved their breakfast closer to it so they could watch it. Punkin has documented it in her nature journal also. HUGE. But it was outside, so that's good. Did I mention it was HUGE??

Picture will come soon. I can't figure it out.... Refer to post one... I don't know what I'm doing here :-)

That's afunnysomething for us this morning. HUGE Lizard!!!

Kimono dragon...

Mini dinosaur...

Huge...

Shark!!!

Punkin passed her Fish 5 swim test tonight and is now a Shark!!  Woo Hoo!  She did great. The skills to pass were the backstroke, the kicks necessary for the breast stroke, and the sea saw body movement of the butterfly. She did awesome.

Button also did great and is close to moving up to the fish level. She is currently a minnow. She has progressed tremendously though. Tonight she held her streamline. Next she will just need to swim in her streamline forward and back float for 10 feet. She is currently at 5 feet. But with improvements in her kicks, she will be there.

Both started swimming only a year ago. So to see how much they have progressed and what they are learning is tremendous!!!  Proud of my girls!!