Sunday, January 31, 2016
Life Hands you Grammar Lessons
We asked the kids today what their Sunday School lesson was and one promptly responded that it was about when Jesus was injected by his hometown. "No, no," contradicted a sibling, "He was ejected from his hometown." Thankfully, we have take home papers...
Saturday, January 23, 2016
Break Goals 2016
Last year, we had a lot of success at meeting our break goals by choosing small goals to mix into every day. This year we have two big goals and a few smaller one. The two big ones are
1. Build a Front Patio
2. Create a Park Review Website
The patio is done, mostly. That was our January big goal. Over the last few months, this idea has been taking shape. We gradually removed all the overgrown plants from a small area of our front yard and I made some paver stones out of concrete. After making about 15 or so pavers, I decided I'd had enough hunching over a bucket of concrete and bought 35 12"x12" red pavers. We put in layers of crushed rock and sand and I fitted in the pavers as best as I could. I think I like it better with the homemade pavers mixed in rather than all red pavers. We swept sand into all the edges and then it rained and rained, so there is wet sand all over and I don't have a finished picture yet.
It is not completely level. The pavers are not concreted down, so if I want, I can relevel them at a later date, but for now, it is usable and I'm ready to use it! The search is on for the perfect table.
The kids and I had the idea to survey lesser known parks in our area and create a blog that reviewed them. This is our February goal. I am not sure how this will work out - Irene needs lunch promptly at 11:00 because by 11:30 she is falling asleep in her high chair. But we are going to give it a try.
Our smaller, but still important goals are:
*Finish Math - kind of like home-summer-school, this doesn't apply to everyone and we expect to be finished by February 1st.
*Potty Train Irene - as in ongoing training, not completely trained, unless she decides that will happen...it could happen, right?
*Do more Art - something we neglected in the busy-ness of the fall, Mr. Otter's Art studio has posted lots of new projects since last year!
*Assign New Chores - this has also already been done, most of the chores were just shuffled to different kids - Natalie surprised me by being very competent in all her new chores - requiring very little training. I also completely reorganized who folds what in laundry and it was funny how happy one kid was to get rid of socks, while another was delighted to sort them, if it meant no more towels! I passed Irene's clothes off to C & A, which made me happy!
1. Build a Front Patio
2. Create a Park Review Website
The patio is done, mostly. That was our January big goal. Over the last few months, this idea has been taking shape. We gradually removed all the overgrown plants from a small area of our front yard and I made some paver stones out of concrete. After making about 15 or so pavers, I decided I'd had enough hunching over a bucket of concrete and bought 35 12"x12" red pavers. We put in layers of crushed rock and sand and I fitted in the pavers as best as I could. I think I like it better with the homemade pavers mixed in rather than all red pavers. We swept sand into all the edges and then it rained and rained, so there is wet sand all over and I don't have a finished picture yet.
The kids and I had the idea to survey lesser known parks in our area and create a blog that reviewed them. This is our February goal. I am not sure how this will work out - Irene needs lunch promptly at 11:00 because by 11:30 she is falling asleep in her high chair. But we are going to give it a try.
Our smaller, but still important goals are:
*Finish Math - kind of like home-summer-school, this doesn't apply to everyone and we expect to be finished by February 1st.
*Potty Train Irene - as in ongoing training, not completely trained, unless she decides that will happen...it could happen, right?
*Do more Art - something we neglected in the busy-ness of the fall, Mr. Otter's Art studio has posted lots of new projects since last year!
*Assign New Chores - this has also already been done, most of the chores were just shuffled to different kids - Natalie surprised me by being very competent in all her new chores - requiring very little training. I also completely reorganized who folds what in laundry and it was funny how happy one kid was to get rid of socks, while another was delighted to sort them, if it meant no more towels! I passed Irene's clothes off to C & A, which made me happy!
Thursday, January 21, 2016
18 Months
Happy half birthday to Irene! Here are a few pictures of her sharing her brightest camera smiles!
I have tried teaching her to say "cheese" so she might at least look a little more like she is smiling, but this is a happy look for her, no doubt about it.
So what's new for Irene?
*It doesn't seem new now, but she wasn't walking at 12 months and she is toddle running now. She is fast...and fearless. She takes off in whatever direction fancies her and I scurry behind. Actually, what I try to do is outrun her and meet up in the direction she is going. I'm not sure if she knows where I've come from, but she likes it.
*She has more words, but still only a few that are really understandable. She signs some and points and nods a lot. It is usually crystal clear what she is asking for.
*Her first set of molars is in - hallelujah! That was character building.
Another thing she is doing is potty training. Actually I am doing the training and she is complying with it from time to time. I never potty trained a child this young, so I don't know what to expect and I'm keeping my expectation low. Why and how is a whole other conversation, so I will skip it. What we have found in the process is that Irene LOVES zebras! She can sit for an amazingly long time and look at pictures of zebras. The kids and I joke that when she is older she is going to need to pee every time she sees a zebra and wonder why!
She likes spaghetti...or pick-up-sticks...or dumping things, probably dumping things.
She likes bubbles...
And she likes dirt.
And I like a nice hot bath and a cup of peppermint tea at the end of the day!
I have tried teaching her to say "cheese" so she might at least look a little more like she is smiling, but this is a happy look for her, no doubt about it.
So what's new for Irene?
*It doesn't seem new now, but she wasn't walking at 12 months and she is toddle running now. She is fast...and fearless. She takes off in whatever direction fancies her and I scurry behind. Actually, what I try to do is outrun her and meet up in the direction she is going. I'm not sure if she knows where I've come from, but she likes it.
*She has more words, but still only a few that are really understandable. She signs some and points and nods a lot. It is usually crystal clear what she is asking for.
*Her first set of molars is in - hallelujah! That was character building.
Another thing she is doing is potty training. Actually I am doing the training and she is complying with it from time to time. I never potty trained a child this young, so I don't know what to expect and I'm keeping my expectation low. Why and how is a whole other conversation, so I will skip it. What we have found in the process is that Irene LOVES zebras! She can sit for an amazingly long time and look at pictures of zebras. The kids and I joke that when she is older she is going to need to pee every time she sees a zebra and wonder why!
Monday, January 18, 2016
Invasive Species on the Menu
Last weekend, we went to a kick off event for the FWC Python Challenge. While the python hunt was the main event, there were many booths and activities highlighting other invasive species. One of the booths was giving out taste tests!
That taco -it's an IGUANA taco! It tasted kind of like a pork taco, but I could not mentally get past it being iguana meat. The fish are lion fish and snakehead - both very good.
This guy was showing how to cut up a lionfish without getting poked by one of the poisonous fins.
I guess if these become a fad, the pythons will be wiped out in no time!
This guy was showing how to cut up a lionfish without getting poked by one of the poisonous fins.
I guess if these become a fad, the pythons will be wiped out in no time!
Sunday, January 17, 2016
Another Reason I love Aldi:
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| "Like our exclusive brands, this receipt contains no trans fats, artificial colors or added MSG." |
Saturday, January 16, 2016
Sunday, January 10, 2016
A Visit with One of the Locals
"Never smile at a crocodile..."
The Burger King world headquarters is located in Miami. Their building is near the airport, but their old building is about five minutes from our house. It's also adjacent to our library, where we go often. The old Burger King headquarters (now an office building) has a lake (man made, but saltwater) and the path around it is open to the public from sunrise to sunset. We had heard that there was a crocodile in the lake. I have seen hundreds and hundreds of alligators, but I can't remember seeing a wild crocodile. Well now I have!
The Burger King world headquarters is located in Miami. Their building is near the airport, but their old building is about five minutes from our house. It's also adjacent to our library, where we go often. The old Burger King headquarters (now an office building) has a lake (man made, but saltwater) and the path around it is open to the public from sunrise to sunset. We had heard that there was a crocodile in the lake. I have seen hundreds and hundreds of alligators, but I can't remember seeing a wild crocodile. Well now I have!
Friday, January 08, 2016
Second First Day of PEP
I totally forgot to take a first day of PEP picture this year. Fortunately we take a long break between Thanksgiving and New Years and today felt like the first day all over again - and since I have a new camera, I got a first day of PEP picture after all.
This is not the pose I asked for or expected, but in hindsight, I like it better than any other they might have chosen :)
By the way, Irene has a very nice, friendly smile, but she usually does not smile for cameras. She either looks as she does above... or (and I think she thinks this is a smile) does this:
I think she will eventually figure it out - one of her siblings used to smile with their top teeth over their bottom lip and that sibling does not do that any more!
This is not the pose I asked for or expected, but in hindsight, I like it better than any other they might have chosen :)
Tuesday, January 05, 2016
Sunday, January 03, 2016
The Fruit of 2015
Before writing 2016 becomes something I can do without thinking, I want to record some things I learned in 2015 - in the hopes that by recording and remembering them, I won't have to learn them again.
1. I have to get up before the kids. In hindsight this is one of those "duh" things that I should have done from day one, but somehow I thought I was benefiting more from sleeping an extra hour than from having an hour of quiet solitude. In fact, I like it so much, I'm currently getting up 90 minutes before I expect a kid up.
2. How to make homemade granola bars. I tried a few baked recipes and was not happy with them, but I found two "no bake" recipes - which is not to say "no heat" recipes - that I like very much. Sometimes I toast the oatmeal before making bars, sometimes I don't. They about as easy as making rice crispy treats. These are the two recipes I use most often:
*My standard recipe - Homemade Granola Bars
*For when I'm feeling nutty - 3 Ingredient No Bake Bars
3. How to trap an opossum.
4. How to give a dog insulin (and I learned lot about canine diabetes in general).
5. How to mix concrete in small amounts.
6. One thing I learned from the Bible that kept showing up again and again in different places - Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord. (Romans 12:9 - a passage which goes on to say "overcome evil with good"). It was important to me personally to reflect on the fact God's job is to judge, my job is to not judge. It is also an issue I seem to deal with very frequently with the kids - because they are constantly feeling wronged by a friend or sibling.
7. Another lesson I learned from the Bible that stuck with me is this: “Don’t you see? Everything that enters the mouth goes into the stomach. Then it goes out of the body. But the things that come out of a person’s mouth come from the heart. Those are the things that make someone ‘unclean.’(Jesus speaking, Matthew 15) - There is this tension with kids - how much to protect them, how much to expose them to, and I think that it is very important to protect children from evil, but what Jesus says here is that what you're exposed to doesn't make you sinful - sinfulness is in your heart. You can be completely naive and you will still be a sinner.
Everyone else was learning too!
Rob - learned how to do roof repair
Caleb - learned how to do long division
Annalise - learned how to cook eggs without breaking the yolk
Natalie - learned how to count to 100
Irene - learned a lot! It is hard to pick a favorite, but the moment you realized your baby understands what you are saying to her, that is a pretty amazing thing. She basically went from this:
To this:
1. I have to get up before the kids. In hindsight this is one of those "duh" things that I should have done from day one, but somehow I thought I was benefiting more from sleeping an extra hour than from having an hour of quiet solitude. In fact, I like it so much, I'm currently getting up 90 minutes before I expect a kid up.
2. How to make homemade granola bars. I tried a few baked recipes and was not happy with them, but I found two "no bake" recipes - which is not to say "no heat" recipes - that I like very much. Sometimes I toast the oatmeal before making bars, sometimes I don't. They about as easy as making rice crispy treats. These are the two recipes I use most often:
*My standard recipe - Homemade Granola Bars
*For when I'm feeling nutty - 3 Ingredient No Bake Bars
3. How to trap an opossum.
4. How to give a dog insulin (and I learned lot about canine diabetes in general).
5. How to mix concrete in small amounts.
6. One thing I learned from the Bible that kept showing up again and again in different places - Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord. (Romans 12:9 - a passage which goes on to say "overcome evil with good"). It was important to me personally to reflect on the fact God's job is to judge, my job is to not judge. It is also an issue I seem to deal with very frequently with the kids - because they are constantly feeling wronged by a friend or sibling.
7. Another lesson I learned from the Bible that stuck with me is this: “Don’t you see? Everything that enters the mouth goes into the stomach. Then it goes out of the body. But the things that come out of a person’s mouth come from the heart. Those are the things that make someone ‘unclean.’(Jesus speaking, Matthew 15) - There is this tension with kids - how much to protect them, how much to expose them to, and I think that it is very important to protect children from evil, but what Jesus says here is that what you're exposed to doesn't make you sinful - sinfulness is in your heart. You can be completely naive and you will still be a sinner.
Everyone else was learning too!
Rob - learned how to do roof repair
Caleb - learned how to do long division
 |
| Dangerous Monkeys Smash Bananas - Repeat |
Natalie - learned how to count to 100
 |
| (And how to make a heart with her hands!) |
 |
| Chubby, bald, toothless, and stationary! |
 |
| Much less chubby, much more hair (under hat!), lots of teeth, and way too busy to pose for a picture! |
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