This week we did "Cranberry Thanksgiving". I love this book! It talks about not judging people by how they look (specifically not trusting someone just because they look & smell good) and reminds us that the important things in life are friends & family, not material possessions. FIAR is still going great for us - yeah!!! I think I have half of the books from childrens dept at the London Public Library in my living room but that's ok.
Last night when Jason & I went into our bedroom we found Abbi, still wearing her glasses, under the covers asleep with the new Fancy Nancy book next to her head - we were so pleased :O) (Jason & I both love to read & are so glad to see our children developing a love for books also)
We are in Dayton today for Garland's 70th birthday - so if you know Jason's dad please wish him a happy birthday. Lynda & Matt just arrived, so we will close for now.
Angie, you are so right. When our children discover that lots of adventures come from reading, it is a special day for parents, sharing what they love.
I think you and Jason's definition of construction is very different. I thought you all were engaged in a little remodel over there. Now having read your comment, I see that Jason needs to get a dictionary! :)
Hey! Just got your voicemail. I'm not ignoring you, I promise! :o) We have been in WV since the 22nd and don't have cell service down here in the hills :o) It just crossed my mind to call and check my voicemail. I guess I didn't realize how much I enjoyed that phone ringing all the time :o) I've got your nubmer now, so when we go see the lights I'll for sure let you know.
Katie is home from the hospital & doing great. She hasn't had a breathing treatment since last Saturday. Thank you all for your prayers. Katie started walking this week! She can go quite a long way, but then decides to crawl since it is faster. I can't believe she will be a year old Sunday.
Rachel made a trip to childrens hospital yesterday during communion. She fell off the pew during while reaching for a song book & hit her head on the hymn rack. She reaches for the song book all the time, & can even put them back with no problem but somehow yesterday she didn't manage to stay on the pew. She got a 1/2 inch gash above her left eyebrow that was deep. So deep that she got one stitch inside & four stitches on the outside. After they finished stitching her up they gave her a popsicle & immediately all was well. We were walking thru the parking garage at childrens hospital & she said, "I all done now. I go home." She is such a good little trooper! They said where it is at either her eyebrow or hair will cover it when she is older.
Abbi broke her glasses on Saturday, she was at a friends house walking up the slide & slipped on the dirt that they had poured on the slide. She is fine, but the glasses, well, they need adjusted. We also switched curriculums this week. We are doing five in a row. We are doing Madeline & so far it has been great. Rachel sits with us while we read & enjoys looking thru the extra books. We have several books on France, french culture, and the Eiffel tower. So far FIAR seems to be a really good fit for us. Rachel can be involved which is great since previously that was something that was frustrating for her & me since I kept having to remove her from Abbi's school work. Next us is Ping, Mike Mulligan & His Steam shovel, & How to See the World and make an apple pie.
Hope all is well with everyone out in pleoland!
Glad everyone is doing better and I am so sorry about Rachel! Tommy had told me about that and I felt so bad for her and maybe even more so for you! :) I love FIAR. I used Before FIAR with JT last year and will probably be doing that next year for kindergarden. I did another one this year. Before FIAR would be great for Rachel and then she could feel like she was doing school work too! I will see if I can find it if you want it.
With children come bumps, boo boos and trips to the ER. You have had more than your fair share recently. I officially pronounce you done for a long while...now if it were only that easy.
We are going to the Zoo tomorrow (Monday) with some of the moms from Laurel Canyon. We're meeting at the front gate at 9:30am. Let me know if you can make it so we can wait for you. My cell phone is 740-304-1290.
This was Rachel's first time apple-picking. We went to Legends Hills Orchard in Utica, OH. We all had a great time. Rachel liked to transport the apples on her head before putting them into the basket.
Thank you to my dear sister Lesley for teaching me how to add pictures!
Sounds like you have had a great Texas trip. I can tell from your posts, and Jason's, that everyday holds adventures when you have a house full of girls! Rachel sounds like a special wee person. She has to be with a nickname of Bambam!
Thank you for coming to see me. After reading several of your entries, I agree, you have your hands full! Did you stop reading? I too raised three little stairsteps, boys and they were such fun. But indeed my hands -- and heart -- were full. But I learned that all those people who made the same exclamation were actually wanting to be a part of my joy -- or difficulty. Wanting to feel connected, wanting to tell me somehow that they cared. So you just go right ahead and smile and share that full heart. They need you too.
Thank you so much for all the support you have been in the past couple of weeks! I can't tell you how much I appreciate just you thinking of me and asking me if I need anything! Love you!!!
So I hear the weather in Ohio is extremely windy & family in Chicago area says nothing but rain the past two days.
It is BEAUTIFUL here in San Antonio. There was a nice breeze today & it was very comfortable outside. Yesterday we went to Sea World & had a fantastic time - it was the best value for my money in a long time. Once we paid admission, everything else (shows, rides, animal petting) was free. The weather was great & there were not alot of people there. We saw three shows, got to feed sea lions & dolphins & we got to pet a dolphin - it was SOOOOO cool!! They are really smooth. We even saw a rainbow on our way home.
The kids are doing great, Abbi & Natalie hold hands everywhere they go - very sweet. Abbi, Rachel & Natalie all helped fix dessert & dinner tonight - it got progessively messier however it still tasted good. We are all having a wonderful time here in San Antonio. Ya'll should come & visit John & Lesley. (Just not all at once) :O)
i'm so glad you all got to visit sea world. i got to go just a few weeks ago (in CA) and loved it. i hope the rest of your trip and adventure home all goes well.
Hi! How are you? It's going pretty good in KY. It's hard but I like it there. We have a wal-mart,sonic,DQ,and Mcdonalds...that's it...There are boxes everywhere in the basement...and they are unorganized so it's hard to get stuff. We are constantly opening boxes to get stuff...it's hard for my mom because we have very little space to put things...but it will take time to adjust, but one of the great things is everybody is so nice and very hospitible. Especially our neighbor..We are going to at West Broad tonight! Yay! I'm excited! We'll talk to ya l8er!
I am so glad that you had such an awesome time!!! I love flying and would love to take the kids somewhere. Maybe next year since we just got back from the beach. Lots of love hope to see you on wednesday!
Jason was quite pleased yesterday morning after loading the van, easily & in about 2 trips. He even said we were taking less for 2 weeks than we do to go to his parents for a weekend. Then we arrived at the airport... I put Katie in the umbrella stroller & began loading carry-on bags onto the handles. Put the final back-pack on & the stroller tipped over backwards. Set the stroller back up, took off the back-pack & told Rachel she was going to have to carry her back-pack (filled with toys, blanket, snacks). Put the back-pack on Rachel & as soon as I let go of the handle, she tipped over backwards (she was not hurt) - it was like a cartoon - it was hilarious. So, pick Rachel up, tell Abbi she is going to have to carry the backpack. Get inside the airport and as we are getting into the elevator remember that we have to bring Rachel's car seat. Jason goes back out to the van for the car seat. So we check-in, all is going well until they weigh my suitcase. They have this giant scale that they use to weigh the lugggage. There is a 50 pound limit & then they charge an additional $50. Yes, you guessed it, my suitcase was 17 pounds over! So we go off to the side & start pulling things out - we had to re-weigh 3 times before I finally ended up 3 pounds under the limit. Jason walks us to the security check-point. As we are going thru the scanners, one of our carry-on bags (we had 6) sets off an alarm so they have to pull everything out & check it. We get onto the first plane, the first hour is great! Girls were perfect, then we land in Michigan. We have 29 minutes to get from gate a4 to gate a72. Put Katie in the wrap, Rachel in the stroller & load up our bags (they dont have motorized carts) and we make a mad dash past 68 gates. As we are speed walking & Abbi is walking/running she goes mommy I can't, so I tell her if she wants to see Natalie today, she has to run. We make it to our flight just as they are opening the doors. We are in the very last row, next to the bathroom, which was good since Abbi had to go 3 times. The girls did good, considering we were there for 3 hours. No one was in the aisle and we didn't disturb any other passengers, however I was exhausted! All in all, we arrived safely in Texas yesterday at 3:30pm. The girls stayed awake for the entire 4 hours in the air, except for Rachel who fell asleep (i kid you not) five minutes before the plane landed.
This morning Abbi advised us that "Texas is hot!"
yes, a couple but we truly did have our hands full yesterday. I was so thankful for all the kind people who helped us, the stewardess were really nice, the other passengers was great, everything went really well.
So glad all went well! I thought twice about flying to CA with Riley when he was 9 months old, and I was traveling with other family members. Hats off to you!!!! You're one brave mamma!
By the way, your trip sounded so familiar to all of us who have ever traveled with "an entourage". :) It doesn't get any less hectic when they get to be teenagers, altho you do have a few more hands to help you.
