Our museum

Yesterday Ketchup was drawing on the white board and asked me how she could put her artwork in a museum. She was disappointed when I explained that you have to be asked by the museum, but then I suggested she could make her own museum somewhere in the house. This idea was the hit of the year! Both kids plotted and planned how to organize their museum and what they would put in it.
They never want to sleep together, but last night they wanted to so that they could wake each other up early to open their museum bright and early in the morning. After one hour of talking, I had them go to their own beds to get some rest. Ketchup explained that they were only talking about the museum, so I should have let them stay in the same bed. I told her that if she didn't go to sleep, she wouldn't be able to wake up in the morning to open the museum. Minutes later, both kids were asleep.
I should have gone straight to sleep, too because they were both up bright and early this morning moving their "art" into the room. (By the way, Ketchup kept telling Bounce as he was doing his art that "It's OK to scribble-scrabble because it's just art.")
The big moment finally arrived, and I was invited to be the first guest at the museum. They each had a picture (Bounce-first pic & Ketchup-second), and they had Sandman there to be a sculpture to show what "bones really feel like." This was by far my most memorable trip to a museum. Hope you enjoy the pics.

Our newest soccer player

The kids are busy playing, so I thought I'd steal a few moments to update our blog. Bounce is now a soccer player too. He is on the Pirates soccer team and he thinks that is pretty cool. He had his first practice on Monday and was tired and eager to stop, but he got a second wind when he got to play "Star Wars" (a soccer drill in disguise). After practice I asked him what his favorite part was and he said it was getting the goodie bag filled w/ candy at the end of practice. That's my boy-the reward at the end is the best part!
He was so tired that whenever he wasn't doing anything, he was the first one to sit on his ball. He's got that skill down really well! The Pirates actually have 2 games this Sat., so we'll see if our little Bounce has enough energy to keep up or not.

Transportation

Last week we studied transportation, so I thought this would be a good opportunity to take a field trip using public transportation. We took the lite rail to the train to the bus which ultimately took us to the Fort Worth Stock Show. The kids had a lot of fun riding the trains and bus and Mommy and Daddy actually enjoyed relaxing for a while instead of fighting traffic. The relaxing was quickly replaced by a lesson in patience. A trip that normally would have taken a little over an hour took 3 hours. That's right - 3 hours of public transportation and that is just one way. Needless to say we only spent a few hours at the stock show. We still were able to see a baby chick hatching from its egg among numerous other animals.
The kids did have fun and I was sure glad when we finally made it back to our van, put the kids in their reclined seats and drive off on my own schedule as the kids quickly fell asleep. Ahhh-that is relaxation!
Speaking of the van, we were in a car accident yesterday and thank God are all fine. My airbag deployed, so we need to have the van put in the shop. We picked up our rental van last night and as soon as I pulled out of the parking lot, Bounce started saying "Don't bump, don't bump." He was worried I was going to "bump" into another car with our "new van."
All in all we have had several lessons in transportation over the past week and I am glad to be sitting at home not having to use ANY transportation at this moment!

Rainbow Brite

I can't believe it's been that long since I posted last. Anyways, I think we might have to change Ketchup's name to Rainbow Brite. She thinks that she has to have every color in one outfit. I mainly let her get away with this at home or for bed, but if you ever see us out and wonder what was I thinking letting her dress so ridiculously, well I just couldn't break her little stylin' heart. The other night she was so proud of her purple pants, yellow long sleeve shirt with a pink nightgown on top. She was excited she had so many colors in one outfit.
Tonight she started soccer practice again. I bundled her up and then Bounce and I sat in the van and watched. It was so cold outside, but she said she didn't feel it because she kept all of her clothes on. This time I was the one who dressed her up in countless layers of various rainbow colors, not for style but for warmth. No wonder the poor girl is so confused why mommy lets her wear these rainbow brite outfits one day and not the next.

Thank God!

Way back in the '80's Amy Grant had this song that I would listen to . I can't even remember what the name is or even the exact wording of the verse, but in the song she sings that she is not aware of how she has been protected while driving. She alludes to God keeping from her a dangerous accident that she had no idea she even avoided.
Today we almost had one of those near accidents. We have been learning about the letter "P" for pillow and reading different bedtime stories, poems, and legends, etc. Our project for the week was to make pillows (the no-sew fleece type). I was sitting on the floor today working on cutting the fleece and just as I brought up my scissors to start cutting another strip, Bounce jumps falls head first on me so that I can hold him. The scissors hit him right in head. He cried out of pain, I wanted to cry out of horror and then when I saw he was OK (I really thought he was stabbed in the eye) , I wanted to cry out of thanksgiving because he barely has a scratch on his forehead.
Less than 2 inches and what a different story it would be. I am so thankful that God already knew what would happen and protected his little eye.
So now whenever I look at his pillow, I will be thankful for God's protection.
btw...I think the song is "Angels watching over me"

The Fat Glove

We've been studying winter and snow this week although the kids are probably wondering if snow really exists since we hardly ever see any around here. Today we did this cool experiment to illustrate how the layer of fat in arctic animals protects them from the cold. We put shortening in between two zip-lock bags to make a "glove of fat." We then put our hands in the glove and submerged it in ice water. It was incredible how insulated our hands were. Too bad that my "body glove" is not that useful.
Then tonight as I was driving home (and thinking way too much due to forgetting to say decaf on my starbucks order at 8pm) I realized that the verse I wrote down this week to memorize reminded me of the glove. Romans 13:14 says "but put on the Lord Jesus Christ and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires." I know I am supposed to put on Christ, but I hadn't really thought about that protecting me, but much like that glove, when I am clothed in Him and making no provision for my flesh to take over, then I am protected from getting into some really treacherous sinful situations.
So I now understand polar bears and this verse a lot better. Just thought I'd share.

Reality Check

Sat. night I had the great opportunity to go to a Christian rock concert with two friends. We had fantastic 2nd row seats and a great time. The band was Leeland if you're interested; they're great. We were probably the only ones in there (besides the band's parents) over the age of 25. We felt pretty cool; we're hip for our age right?
The reality check came Sunday night as I was pulling coupons out of the newspapers. I was so excited that there were 6 coupon inserts in this weeks paper and then I had 4 papers. That is a lot of coupons. Then I started to think that I must be so NOT COOL to be this excited about coupons. Oh well.
If you are interested in starting to use coupons, this week's paper is a great starting point. I also recommend the Grocery Game because it makes it so easy to do.
At least this uncool mom will be saving us some serious money (free peanut butter and soap)!

New Year's End Shout Out

We received a thank-you call from a ministry that we support today. It was a blessing to hear of how God is working through this ministry. It reminded me of all that God has done for me and my family this year, so I thought I would just give a shout-out to God for His goodness and mercy in 2007.

What I'm thankful for:

• both Ketchup and Bounce learned how to snap their fingers (he did just today!)
• my "new" ipod that helps me clean, dance and sing praise all at the same time
• our new floors in the house that look fantastic
• the freedom to homeschool and so many fantastic resources available to do so
• family and friends who make life fun and help make burdens lighter
  
• a wonderful husband who can "fix anything" and fixed our floors along with being a fantastic daddy.
• two precious children who bring so much joy to our family
• our country and the soldiers and leaders who protect our freedom
• a wonderful God who is always acting to accomplish His good, pleasing and perfect will even if I do not understand why or how (Is. 55:8-9)

Happy New Year!!

Newest Christmas Carol

We've been singing Christmas Carols at bedtime and last night we sang "O Come all ye Faithful." As we were walking off to bed, Bounce continued to sing. His song, however, was a little different...."O come muddy faithful...."
The kids are becoming very excited for Christmas. I think we've answered about 1,000 different questions about Santa. They are concerned because we now have our dog Bella and they don't want Santa to be scared of her and leave. They also don't want Santa to leave because Nana & Tata will be staying with us on Christmas Eve. Bounce has decided that he is now 3 years old and is brave enough to see Santa, although he begins to panic everytime he hears sirens (he thinks Santa is coming around again on top of the firetruck).
Hope your Christmas is as fun-filled as ours!

World Record

Bounce set a world record tonight for a 3 year old in the 25 yard dash.

Every year our town has Santa ride through the neighborhoods on top of a fire truck. He passes out candy to the kids who come out of their homes to greet him. These would be normal kids. Our children are not normal. Bounce found out Santa was coming and ran at world record speed. At first I thought he was running to the front door with excitement, but then Bounce turned the corner. He was running to the back of the house out of fear. We found him hiding under the covers in our bed. Both kids were crying that they didn't want to see Santa. They said they still wanted presents, but they do NOT want to see him. At least this saves us from waiting for an hour in line for a picture with Mr. C.

A good reminder

I often have to remind Ketchup not to whine or complain, but I often fail to remind myself. My grandmother sent me this e-mail and I thought it was a good reminder at this time of year. I could have used while I was waiting in line for 20 min. the other day at the store.

Letter from Jesus about Christmas --

Dear Children,

It has come to my attention that many of you are upset that folks are
taking My name out of the season. Maybe you've forgotten that I wasn't
actually born during this time of the year and that it was some of your
predecessors who decided to celebrate My birthday on what was actually a
time of pagan festival. Although I do appreciate being remembered anytime.

How I personally feel about this celebration can probably be most easily
understood by those of you who have been blessed with children of your
own. I don't care what you call the day. If you want to celebrate My
birth, just GET ALONG AND LOVE ONE ANOTHER.

Now, having said that let Me go on. If it bothers you that the town in
which you live doesn't allow a scene depicting My birth, then just get
rid of a couple of Santas and snowmen and put in a small Nativity scene
on your own front lawn. If all My followers did that there wouldn't be
any need for such a scene on the town square because there would be many
of them all around town.

Stop worrying about the fact that people are calling the tree a holiday
tree, instead of a Christmas tree. It was I who made all trees. You can
remember Me anytime you see any tree. Decorate a grape vine if you wish:
I actually spoke of that one in a teaching, explaining who I am in
relation to you and what each of our tasks were. If you have forgotten
that one, look up John 15: 1 - 8.

If you want to give Me a present in remembrance of My birth here is my
wish list. Choose something from it:

1. Instead of writing protest letters objecting to the way My birthday
is being celebrated, write letters of love and hope to soldiers away
from home. They are terribly afraid and lonely this time of year. I
know, they tell Me all the time.

2. Visit someone in a nursing home. You don't have to know them
personally. They just need to know that someone cares about them.

3. Instead of writing George complaining about the wording on the cards
his staff sent out this year, why don't you write and tell him that
you'll be praying for him and his family this year. Then follow up. It
will be nice hearing from you again.

4. Instead of giving your children a lot of gifts you can't afford and
they don't need, spend time with them. Tell them the story of My birth,
and why I came to live with you down here. Hold them in your arms and
remind them that I love them.

5. Pick someone that has hurt you in the past and forgive him or her.

6. Did you know that someone in your town will attempt to take their own
life this season because they feel so alone and hopeless? Since you
don't know who that person is, try giving everyone you meet a warm
smile; it could make the difference.

7. Instead of nit picking about what the retailer in your town calls the
holiday, be patient with the people who work there. Give them a warm
smile and a kind word. Even if they aren't allowed to wish you a "Merry
Christmas" that doesn't keep you from wishing them one. Then stop
shopping there on Sunday. If the store didn't make so much money on that
day they'd close and let their employees spend the day at home with
their families

8. If you really want to make a difference, support a missionary--
especially one who takes My love and Good News to those who have never
heard My name.

9. Here's a good one. There are individuals and whole families in your
town who not only will have no "Christmas" tree, but neither will they
have any presents to give or receive. If you don't know them, buy some
food and a few gifts and give them to the Salvation Army or some other
charity which believes in Me and they will make the delivery for you.

10. Finally, if you want to make a statement about your belief in and
loyalty to Me, then behave like a Christian. Don't do things in secret
that you wouldn't do in My presence. Let people know by your actions
that you are one of mine.

Don't forget; I am God and can take care of Myself. Just love Me and do
what I have told you to do. I'll take care of all the rest. Check out
the list above and get to work; time is short. I'll help you, but the
ball is now in your court.

And do have a most blessed Christmas with all those whom you love and
remember: I LOVE YOU,

JESUS

Christmas Happenings

We are finally decorated for Christmas with a clean house and new floors!! It is a beautiful day today, more like September than December.
One of my favorite things about Christmas at our house is listening to the kids as they play with the nativity set. To recount all the silly little things they say would fill pages, but it is cute to hear them discuss whether or not it is OK for Joseph to be the bad guy. Yesterday, Ketchup was playing by herself and it sounded more like a sermon than play as she kept telling all the characters that they were supposed to "worship the Lord." I'll probably share more quotes in the days to come.
Today, Bounce came running into my room yelling "Mommy, look at all the stickers I have on me." Well, my back was turned to him and I excitedly agreed until I turned around and saw that his "stickers" were our Christmas card stamps. I tried to salvage them as best I could, but if you get a card from us that has the stamp taped on, you will understand why :-)

Halfway There and New Feet

I apologize for the delay in posting. It has been a little crazy here since before Thanksgiving and I'm trying to catch up on things this week and I'm only halfway done. I've done the laundry but only halfway as it still sits in baskets waiting to be put away. Only half the house is clean as I am having to REALLY clean up from all the dust our flooring project has created. Finally, only half of the Christmas tree is decorated (this is priority number one on the kids to do list). I think I've lost half of my brain in the middle of all this mess. Soon (hopefully by Sunday) our house will return to normal mode as Daddy only has to finish the floor in the last half of the family room and then we're done!!
One quick funny story. While we were visiting Daddy's side of the family at Thanksgiving, Ketchup had a birthday and is now five. I asked her the day before her birthday if she thought she would look different the next day (like a five year old rather than a four year old) because of the remark she made about her brother still looking like a two year old. She said she would look different. So the next morning she woke up and came right over to me instead of the mirror. She asked me to measure her feet to see if they were big five year old feet now. Well, what do you know they had grown overnight, and she had new five year old feet to go with the big five year old girl!

Naptime Psychology

The good days of daily naptime have left our family. We now have an hour of rest time every day in which the kids have to stay in their rooms and read (20 min), play by themselves (20 min) and then play with each other (20 min). This seems to work well enough most days, but then there are those times when a nap is necessary. In order to get them to both sleep we have to all lay down together in mommy and daddy's bed so I can keep them both contained and increasingly quiet so that they will actually fall asleep.
Yesterday was one of those days. As I struggled with them to get them to go to sleep, I noticed that there are several stages they go through before the precious quietness of sleep reigns in our house. I thought I'd share:
Stage 1 - Bargaining - I have already given the countdown to taking a nap and yet they still try to negotiate for more time. "Just one more minute (translation-maybe if we keep playing she'll forget about the nap)." Didn't work, so we move on to the next phase.
Stage 2 - Denial - I'm sure if you were outside our house yesterday, this stage would have been very evident by the screams and cries of "NOOOOO" coming from both kids. I don't know why they think this will change my mind; it just convinces me even more how tired they are.
Stage 3 - Bargaining part 2 - They try to convince me that they are dying of thirst or hunger and if they could just get a drink or a snack then they will go to sleep. I also thought about calling this the guilt trip phase because they act like I'm torturing them by not letting them get that life-sustaining drink that they didn't need just 10 minutes ago. Then again maybe they are thirsty from all that screaming, but they still had to wait.
Stage 4 - Blameshifting - This is Ketchup's area of expertise. She will lay really still for a while as her brother sings and moves around and then she will sit up and blame him for waking her up. She thinks that I'll fall for it and let her get up since she supposedly already took a nap.
Stage 5 - Physical Resistance - Both kids will do anything to keep themselves awake. They might kick their legs up and down or wiggle their fingers in some type of repetitive way. This is the stage I look forward to because I know that soon after those crazy leg kicks or finger games that we will finally reach the all important Stage 6....

Sleep! Finally it is still and quiet.
I guess I forgot that there is usually a stage 7 where mommy tries as quietly and slowly as possible to get out of the bed without waking them up so that I can enjoy these few precious moments.

Big Fun!!!!

Ketchup and Bounce had their birthday party today at bounce house place here in town. They had a wonderful time. When I asked Bounce tonight if he had fun, he said "Big fun, mommy." That is a good answer. He then went on to clarify that I only had "little fun" because I didn't go down the slide. I may not have gone on the slide, but I did have fun because I didn't have to cook or clean. That is my kind of party!

Another reason why we homeschool....

Some days school does not go so well and they may not learn as much as I like, but the time that Ketchup and Bounce spend together is a blessing. I have been told on multiple occasions how well they play together. Right now they are sitting together on the same chair watching Veggietales. This is a good moment. They do have their moments of fighting and selfishness (like their mommy sad to say), but overall, they love each other and get along great. In fact, the other day Bounce gave his big sister a big hug and told her "You're my best friend."
I know this will probably not last forever, but for now I will enjoy these sweet moments. We are studying family and Thanksgiving this week and next and I am blessed to have such a wonderful family and sweet children who love each other so much.

"But he still looks two"

Bounce turned 3 yesterday. Hard to believe that he is already three, but I'm trying to use that to my advantage by telling him that he is three now, he can't whine like a two year old.
Ketchup was a little confused that "he still looked two". How could he be three when he still looked the same to her.

Daddy and I listened as they were playing with some of his new toys last night and thought this was so cute, so I'll recount it for you.

K: You have to go save the world (her toy to his spiderman toy)
B: I don't want to.
K: Well then who is going to save the world then?
B: God will save the world.

Music Week and Pumpkin Carving

Last week we studied music and the guitar for the letter G. The kids learned about Beethoven and went around all week singing his fifth symphony. We ended the week by dancing to "We will rock you" by Queen. Is that a well-rounded education or what? Actually, it was a lighter week and I told myself that whenever we were listening to music in the car or at home we were kind of doing school - right?

Today was pumpkin carving day. The kids picked their stencils - Snow White and Bruce the shark from Nemo. Somebody remind me next year to just say "No" to any stencils that have more than 3 shapes. I probably spent about 4-5 hours today carving these pumpkins that will only last a few days. So I'm determined to share my "masterpieces" with you all so my efforts don't feel so wasted.

Pumpkin Farm Field Trip

One of the kids' favorite books is "From Seed to Pumpkin." Today we were able to experience the book firsthand at the Big Orange Pumpkin Farm. Ketchup and Bounce had so much fun looking at the pumpkin vines and witnessing every stage of the pumpkin from the bees pollinating the big orange pumpkin flowers to the pumpkins that had not yet turned orange.
We followed up our field trip with a picnic at the park. God blessed us with a beautiful day to enjoy today, so we did just that.

It's a Snap

Last week we studied Eggs for the letter E. The kids learned a little about eggs I think. Ketchup now knows that they come from hens rather than a rooster. Mommy learned how to poach an egg. Our science experiment was cooking eggs different ways and then comparing them. Well, believe it or not I had never poached an egg. I had to watch an online video to even figure out what I was supposed to do. I probably won't poach an egg again, but at least I know what a poached egg is now.
However, the highlight of the week (possibly the month) is that Ketchup learned how to snap her fingers. She has been trying off and on for a while, but one day last week she put her mind to it and kept trying and once she heard just the slightest bit of noise, the celebration began. With each snap of her little fingers, the snap sound is louder. Now she likes to snap at Bella, the dog, to get her to do things (wonder where she learned that from :-)