Something to remember each day...

Thank You for our Messy Home

Dear Lord,



Thank you for this sink of dirty dishes; we have plenty of food to eat.



Thank you for this pile of dirty, stinky laundry; we have plenty of nice clothes to wear.



And I would like to thank you, Lord, for those unmade beds; they were so warm and comfortable last night. I know that many have no bed.



My thanks to you, Lord, for this bathroom, complete with all the splattered mess, soggy, grimy towels and the dirty lavatory; they are all so convenient.



Thank you for this finger-smudged refrigerator that needs defrosting so badly; it has served us faithfully for many years. It is full of cold drinks and enough leftovers for two or three meals.



Thank you, Lord, for this oven that absolutely must be cleaned today; it has baked so many things over the years.



The whole family is grateful for that tall grass that needs mowing and lawn that needs raking; we all enjoy the yard.



Thank you, Lord, even for that slamming screen door. My kids are healthy and able to run and play. Many children cannot.



Lord, the presence of all these chores awaiting me says You have richly blessed my family. I shall do them cheerfully and I shall do them gratefully.



Even though I clutch my blanket and growl when the alarm rings... Thank you, Lord, that I can hear. There are many who are deaf.



Even though I keep my eyes closed against the morning light as long as possible...Thank you, Lord, that I can see. Many are blind.



Even though I huddle in my bed and put off rising...Thank you, Lord, that I have the strength to rise. There are many who are bedridden.



Even though the first hour of my day is hectic with socks that are lost, toast that is burned, tempers that are short, and my children that are so loud...Thank you, Lord, for my family. There are many who are lonely.



Even though our breakfast table never looks like the pictures in magazines and the menu is at times not balanced...Thank you, Lord, for the food we have. There are many who are hungry.



Even though the routine of my job is often monotonous...Thank you, Lord, for the opportunity to work. There are many who are jobless.



Even though I grumble and bemoan my fate from day to day and wish my circumstances were not so modest...Thank you, Lord, for life.



Author Unknown

Messes and Blessings

 This week has gone well, seeing that it is our first week of school...sometimes I find myself wondering though just how other Mom's do it all! It seems like I take one step forward and two steps back some days. Between spilled milk, food on the floor, laundry, dishes, pencil shavings, spilled bubbles, and let's not forget dirty diapers and messy hands and faces I feel like all I ever do is clean!!!! How am I supposed to ever get ahead?? I have been trying not to get overwhelmed, but remembering that if God has called me to do this then He will provide ALL I need to accomplish each day. Our days may not look like I want, and that is a hard thing for me to learn! This is just a season of life with two little guys and I have to just remember that and not expect things to be clean all the time!

   I started my day off with a good morning jog! It was very refreshing and HOT! I decided that I was done paying a gymn to be tortured...I could save money and just torture myself! :) I am going to try to run just 20 minutes a day...hopefully I can be consistant.

 I took Mireya and Silas out this morning to run a few errands and do a librairy trip. Wednesdays are going to be our new librairy day...we all love books so much and I want us all to READ, READ, READ!!

 School went well in between all the messes.....I caught Jude walking around the house with a spray bottle and when I asked him what he was doing, he replied "just getting all the flies" I wondered what flies he was talking about as I watched all the water dripping down my cabinets and onto the floor. The kitchen floor is another story..no matter how often I sweep there are always little "things" sticking to my feet and Cade thinks it's great because every day on the kitchen floor is snack time! Gross!!! I am always pulling stuff out of his mouth!

 Summer time in Phoenix can get frustrating when the kids are tired of being in the house. Mireya just told me the other day that she wanted to move to Antarctica! Haha! I know how she feels! With little boys there is always so much energy to burn off...after lots of jumping jacks and running down the hallways I decided to send the children outside for a few minutes to get some fresh air. I sat down at the computer thinking maybe I could figure out my blog header, which I did! Yay! Pretty soon Silas came running in holding a VERY muddy something. "Look Mom!!! I found a fossil!" He was so cute and so excited! I tried to act excited but wasn't too happy about the pieces of mud falling onto my floor. I think it was an old liscence plate he found in our backyard. Boys are so messy, but Oh so much fun! Later on I went in the bathroom and found some more mud from the little" fossil experience" that was all over the toilet, sink and pretty much everywhere! Jude grabs some toilet paper, wets it and starts "cleaning it up for me" :)

 I have to blog these things, because I know that one day I will look back and laugh. Life is full of messes and I am so blessed and thankful that my house is not perfect; because if it was than there would be no children, and YES children are a blessing and SO worth it! Well, I have rambled and I really need to go to bed. I have been so bad about staying up late and then being exhausted before my day even starts. Tomorrow is a new day holding new messes and blessings! ;)

Our First Day of School!!!!

                                           1st day of kindergarten for Silas!!!!

                                             Wonderful water fun for Jude

                                              Cade brushing his new teeth

                                            Number writing practice for Silas

                                              Mireya's beautiful cursive writing!

 We had a wonderful amd successful first day of school! The kids had fun looking at all their new books while chewing their BIG LEAGUE CHEW bubble gum and sucking on pop rocks!! We had to get them special treats on their first day of school especially since these treats went way back in our childhood memories! We started off our day with prayer and "circle time." We sang songs, talked about the seasons, days of the week and month of the year and read a special story. Mireya and Silas are my helpers since they already have all these thing memorized. It is fun to see them helping me teach Jude! The older two did their Math U See and language arts while Jude watched his character dvd and played with water in a tub... pouring, squirting and dumping. Cade wasn't so helpful today as all he did was" help" Daddy empty the dishwasher by climbing onto the open dishwasher door and holding onto the counter while Daddy had his back turned...he seemed to find all kinds of ways to be "helpful" even though he had so many toys to keep him busy...sigh...maybe tomorrow will run a little smoother in the Cade department! We are excited to start KONOS which is a unit study that incorporates all the children in their own special way and emphasizes on character developement and working together as a family unit! We will start that in a few weeks!!! Mireya and Silas had their first piano lessons today! They are so excited and I can't wait to start hearing them practice and learning to make music! I am so excited for another year of homeschooling and the priviledge of having our children at home walking beside us and learning together as a family!

MUD and Water!!!

It was one of those HOT evenings with nothing to do...so we gave the kids a hose and let them spray each other and make a big mess!! We originally just let the older 3 go out, but poor baby Cade was standing at the window begging to join the fun, so we couldn't resist! It was so fun to watch them play and laugh and enjoy all the mud!!

Whole Wheat Bread

Mix together:

6 cups hot water
2/3 cup oil
2/3 cup honey
2 tablespoons instant yeast
Then add:
2 tablespoons dough enhancer
2 cups whole wheat flour
1/3 cup vital wheat gluten ( I have never used this)
2 tablespoons salt

Blend for 2 minutes and slowly mix in about 9 cups( maybe a little more or less) whole wheat flour until sides of bowl are clean. Knead for 10 minutes and shape into greased loaf pans. Let rise until double. Bake at 350 F for 20 to 30 minutes. Serve hot with butter and honey! Enjoy! :) Makes 6 loaves

Bath Time!

First Steps!

My Baby Cade is 10 months old already and took his first steps the other day! Time is going so fast with him ...I can't believe his 1 year old birthday is right around the corner! I love to watch them as they start taking their first steps. The big smile and excitement that comes over his face as we all cheer him on is the best! I can't believe the changes that take place during the first year of a babies life...It's amazing to watch as they roll over for the first time or start to crawl. Then there are the little teeth that start poking through the gums..so cute! Cade has 4 teeth now, his bottom two and top two! I absolutely LOVE his big grin with those new teeth! My sweet baby Cade...don't grow up too fast!

Wee Hands Busy School!!

I decided it was finally time to go through my junk cabinet, and while I was doing so I was wondering what to put in it :) I came up with the idea that I could fill it with different baskets of activities for the little guys. It seems like I always need things to occupy their little hands, so it would be great to be able to pull out different baskets or ziplocks with different projects for them to do while I am cooking or teaching school to the older children! I have come up with some fun ideas on my own and others I have found in magazines or have been ideas from other creative, desperate ;) Mother's!

#1 newspapers, catalogues or old magazines, glue stick and a notepad. If they are old enough to cut then they can make a fun picture book!

#2  measuring cups, measuring spoons, funnels, plastic cups, BIG THICK towel and of course water :) they could play with it in a shallow tub in the kitchen, or I have just let them sit on a towel with a big bowl of water

#3 cheerios or fruit loops...the options are endless with cheerios! They could practice counting, they could put them on a string and make a necklace or glue them on a paper to make a  picture

#4 For older toddlers 3 or 4 under supervision: a thumbtack and large letters from the alphabet printed off the computer. My cousin's son was in a montessori( Sp?) school and they would have the children poke holes in the paper tracing the letter. They said that it was wonderful practice for learning to hold a pencil!

#5 Spray bottles and rags.  Let them "clean" :) your shower or tub for you or if your windows need washed anyways they can do the prep work!

#6 Bean bags and a bucket

#7 cornmeal on a cookie sheet or tray to practice writing with finger

#8 crayons and sandpaper (an interesting change from paper)

#9 A pie tin and small toys with magnets glued to the bottom of them

#10 A can of  shaving cream and a nice smooth surface (counter, small inflatable pool, cookie sheet) This will also make your tile floors sparkly clean! :)

#11 A drop of food coloring in water, an eye dropper, and a paper towel or coffee filter

#12 Clothes pins and just abouth anything that can be clipped together; paper, cloth, paper cups

#13 Pictures with colored glue. If you use this on a smooth surface such as a page protector, then you can peel the pictures off when it's dry! It's also great fun to paint your hand, let it dry and then peel it off like x tra skin! :)

#14 Pudding painting with your fingers!!

#15 Playdough!

#16 Paint with water books or coloring books and crayons

#17 Very big beads and a drinking straw ( easier to handle than string) Mom can make a sample pattern for the child to follow if she glues the two end beads

#18 Empty containers with lids (such as, empy yogurt containers, bacon bits tubs, Baking powder containers) and plastic animals. They can take lids on and off and put small animals or other objects inside and practice putting in and taking out! :)

#19 Alphabet magnets for the fridge. I love our leap frog alphabet magnets!!

#20 Sewing cards or cardboar!d shapes with holes punched all around the edges, and a piece of yarn tipped with masking tape

#21 Flashlights!

#22 Blank notebook and stickers of all kinds!

#23 Egg carton and 12 wooden eggs ( you can buy these at Michaels or Hobby lobby) They can decorate the eggs with paint and then use them to practice counting with