Babies!

We've been wanting to get to the Farm recently, and today happened to be the day that it happened.  It was supposed to be a mid-60s, sunny-ish kind of day.  Instead, it was chilly and a bit rainy.  But we managed to enjoy the time there nonetheless.

This is our favorite time of year to visit the Farm because of all of the spring babies.  We saw a calf, kids (the goat kind), piglets, and - my favorite - lambs.  I saw a sign somewhere that mentioned baby chicks, but we didn't go hunting for them since it had started to rain.

This is my usual view when we go to the farm - kids racing ahead to see what's next!

When we saw this little guy, I had the opportunity to talk to the kids a little bit about what we celebrate at Easter and the spotless Lamb of God who made the once-for-all sacrifice at the cross.  We imagined the Israelites choosing their lamb without blemish for the atonement sacrifice...looking it over for any kind of defect.  Praise God that Jesus Christ lived sinlessly and no fault or defect could be found in Him!  

 Here's one for Aunt Kelli...they just added  green tractor to their line-up. We're assuming it is, of course, John Deere green!

Elsa was scared of the rooster that was roaming outside of the cage, so Luke picked her up.  Sweet big brother!

This little guy was so cute.  He just kept staring at me and held very still.  In fact, he did a better job of holding still for his picture than my kids do!

Wise Words

I've been following Joy in the Journey due to the posts about TOG - the new homeschool curriculum we are going to use next year.  But this post isn't about homeschooling really, and it's oh-so-encouraging to me right now.  Check it out. 


And from Nancy Wilson at FeminaGirls, more wise words on domestic kindness.  It was my prayer this morning that I will show more kindness to my family today.

My Sweet Date

Learning to read has been a challenge for this guy.  His brother had an easier start and didn't require much external motivation.  But we decided to dangle a carrot for Cade, and it's working.

For every 10 books that he reads, he gets a sweet treat from the local ice cream place.  He's been working for the last week and a half or so toward his goal, and he made it today.  So off to Kline's we went this evening, just me and my date.  He got a butterscotch sundae.  And he couldn't believe that I wasn't ordering anything (yes, really!).

Typical Cade - tongue sticking out
when he's concentrating on something!

Not only did he meet his goal, but his fluency is slowly progressing.  And that's really what I'm looking for - just progression, even slow progression.  His brother was reading much more fluently at this age, and I have to keep reminding myself that this is only Kindergarten.  And they are two very different individuals.  So glad I have the opportunity to teach them at home and work with them individually.

Links worth sharing...

Here are some thought-provoking musings on "motherhood" at Resolved2Worship.  Our success isn't measured by how well or poorly our children "turn out."  Our fulfillment and satisfaction and value is found in Christ alone.


And here is a timely post (for me) from True Woman.  Just the other night I was saying to Stephen - again - that I wouldn't have chosen this...another child in our family...really, another pregnancy.  The tears came, and I struggled to express my feelings to him.  I explained that I know she is worth it...all of the pregnancy unpleasantness and what I see as the wrecking crane that's been taken to my physical body.


After the first baby, yes, my body had changed.  But after the fourth?  There's just NO going back.


But I know deep down that although my body will be changed, my heart will be changed too when I see her little face and her fingers and toes and fall in love again.


So yes, it's true that she's worth it.  But it's also true that I wouldn't have chosen this path.  Yet God chose it for me - for us - and I trust that He is going to use it for my good and His glory.  The True Woman post reminded me of how God uses our circumstances and trials to mold us into the likeness of His Son, bringing His own name glory and praise...not just praise from our lips, but praise from the mouths of the countless beings who surround His throne continually.   

An Uncommonly Productive Day

I'm actually hoping that it will be an uncommonly productive weekend, but I'd better wait until tomorrow night before making that call.

Stephen has work stuff going on all day today (he was up and out the door before I rolled over to look at the clock this morning) and most of the day tomorrow.  So I am rather footloose and fancy-free, if you don't count the three children and a cat who are depending on me for food and fight-management.  Ok, four children.  Ha.

I was sorely lamenting Stephen's being busy all day tomorrow, but then I decided it would be a good time to keep busy myself and work on some projects.

Project #1 - Get school done before lunch...which we did.  And I even threw in an ART PROJECT...which, if you know me, means I must have been feeling really motivated.  See pictures to follow.   CHECK. Oh, and now the bathroom needs to be cleaned due to the number of little people washing their messy, chalk-covered hands.  Maybe I should add that to the list.

Project #2 - Plant the pansies that I bought yesterday before it begins to rain today.  CHECK.

Project #3 - Get the boys' room cleaned up and in order after having finished building their new bunk beds last night.  CHECK.

Project #4 - Laundry. I'm happy to report that although it's technically still winter, I can see summer laundry on the horizon.  Everyone is wearing fewer layers, and my laundry load is diminishing.  CHECK.

Project #5 - Get the mess of mattresses, boxed springs, and bed frames out of the spare bedroom so that I can begin turning it into Elsa's new room.  Take down curtains and launder them.  CHECK.

Project #6 - More laundry.  Winter blankets are coming off the beds and need to be washed and stored for the summer.  IN PROGRESS.

Project #7 - Paint the walls of Elsa's new room...purple!  NOT STARTED YET.  But I did remove the light switch and outlet plates from the walls and move all of the furniture to the middle of the room.  I think that's tomorrow's project. 

Project #8 - Bake Banana Muffins with the Great Harvest Banana Bread recipe (doubling it for lots to freeze).  I haven't tried it yet, but I've had the Great Harvest Banana bread, and it is to-die-for.  After a search, I discovered this recipe that at least one of their stores uses, and we're about to find out if it's as good as the local store.  NOT STARTED YET.  I think that's next on the list.

Ok, so right now I'm not being so productive, but if I didn't take a 30 minute break to sit down and munch on some OTB chips and Wholly Guacamole, I'd probably collapse.  Call it what you like; I call it a necessity.

Oh, and here are the art project pictures... We've been studying China in the Middle Ages, so we made Chinese Lanterns.  Hoping to make a Chinese Peanut-Butter (substituting Almond-Butter) Stir-Fry for dinner as well.

Elsa's lantern

Cade's lantern

Luke worked hard on his picture of the Great Wall of China and some peasant villages, so he didn't want to cut it and make it into a Chinese Lantern.  We hung it on his bedroom door instead.

Swimming again

The boys are finishing up their swimming lessons tomorrow, but today I decided to take Elsa in the water as well during their lesson. Since we're not members at the pool, we had to pay the daily fee, but I'm certain that it was worth it.

You see, I am now nearly 7 months pregnant...though I look like I'm 8.5 months...and I don't remember ever going swimming before when I was this largely pregnant.  It was wonderful to feel so weightless in the water...relatively speaking, of course.  I was holding Elsa nearly the whole time, but it still felt so good.  In fact, it felt so good that I didn't even notice - until it was time to lift myself out of the water.  

Ugh.  Then I realized just why I was enjoying myself so much and remembered what it felt like to hoist around this ballooning body. 

Yep, we're definitely shelling out the $7 again tomorrow.  And as I did today, I'll be leaving the camera at home.

Swimming Lessons

The very words put fear into my heart.  Honestly.  I HATED swimming lessons.  My best friend was a lifeguard and as comfortable in the water as a fish.  But I never became a very good swimmer.  I always trusted her to fish me out if need be, so I sometimes braved deeper water than I probably should have.  So my swimming - yes, I can swim a little - is not the result of swimming lessons but of my husband and friends trying to coach me a little here and there.

But I have tried hard not to let my kids know my lack of love for the water because I don't want them to be fearful.  Cautious, yes.  Fearful, no.

So they - finally - are enrolled in swimming lessons at our local community center.  Thankfully, they are in the same class, and there is only one other boy in the class with them.  They have gotten a lot of individual attention from their instructor who is a former competitive swimmer, he seems to think that by the end of this week, they could actually be swimming. 

That would be GREAT!  I just want them to be comfortable in the water and to be safe.


Here Luke is practicing kicking and blowing bubbles.

Here he is working on learning to float.  They're both struggling to relax in the water which would make floating much easier.  

I had to share this picture of Cade...it cracks me up because he looks like he's constantly gasping for air.

And one of the biggest struggles they've had it staying warm.  The pool area is warm and humid, but the water isn't overly warm.  They sit with chattering teeth while waiting their turns.  

Here the instructor was dipping Cade in and out to try to warm him up. 

  

The Best Place for School

When it's such an absolutely gorgeous day outside and it seems a crime to be inside doing school all day, it would be easy just  to ditch school.

But then we'd be stuck making up a day later on, and Momma doesn't like having to do that.

So, we just move school outside on the nice, sunny deck after lunch.  The littler ones run around in the yard and get their Vitamin D while Luke and I work through grammar and writing and spelling.  Then they all pile around the table to color some pictures of the ferocious Mongols while I read from Story of the World.

Looks like it's expected to be a lovely week ahead of us, so I imagine if you come by and we don't answer the bell, you'll have to check the back deck.

Happy spring!

Loaded Chocolate Chip Cookies...

...with BUTTER!

Yes, that's right.  Today I made a batch of our favorite Chocolate Chip Cookies (loaded with cranberries, oats, walnuts, and coconut) and used half butter and half coconut oil.  Luke ate one.  And he has had NO reaction!!

I could literally jump for joy - if it weren't so incredibly awkward and uncomfortable to jump at 6.5 months pregnant.

But I am thrilled to have the option of baking with butter again. It has been eight years since we discovered Luke's milk allergy, and any baking that I've done using butter has been for other families, not ours.  Perhaps that is behind us now?  I'm very hopeful.  Very thankful...and very excited!!

I'm excited not only about the convenience and taste of baking with butter but also about the fact that I can avoid using the soy-based margarine that we've had to use as a substitute for so long.  I recently ditched the soy-based shortening in favor of palm shortening, and I've been using coconut oil in cookies for a while.

But, OH, butter!!  So much BETTER!

The Leap Year Tradition

I've never met anyone else who celebrates Leap Year the way Stephen's family does.  For 32 years, they have been gathering for dinner at a restaurant in the town where he grew up every time February 29th rolls around.  They've usually gone to the same restaurant where the tradition began, but there have been a few times that, for some reason or another, they've had to dine elsewhere.

This was one of those years.  The original restaurant has closed its doors.  So we gathered in another local restaurant (which, quite frankly, had much better food!).

Family comes from near and far, east coast and west.  We open the envelopes with family predictions that we made and sealed last Leap Year.  And then we make new ones which will be opened in 2016.  We make guesses about how much we might weigh, how tall we'll be (for the kids), where we'll be living and how many of us there will be.  What began as a family of 5 has grown to a family of 15.  The gathering gets a little larger and a little more chaotic every time, but some of the kids are now getting old enough to appreciate this fun tradition.

Afterwards, we descend on the home of some dear friends-of-the-family who live nearby.  They are used to large groups as their family is larger than ours, and they graciously host us overnight and feed us well.  It's always a treat to visit with them and their children and grandchildren the next day.

So here are some pictures from our gathering:

Grandma with the bigger grandkids

Predictions

Fruit for dessert

Grandma with one of the little guys

Hanging with Uncle Red

The little girls with our very gracious hostess

The boys loved playing silly games with Uncle Red's iPhone

Fishing for toys in the coffee table

The granddaughters with Grandma

Everybody loved the iPad

Two little squirts figuring out foosball

Typical Cade with his tongue sticking out as he concentrates

Another little guy - I adore his brown eyes!

Grandma reading a book

Somebody is tired

But Daddy doesn't mind snuggling her

The whole crew!