Baby in the Bed

So today before I started teaching Little Boy, I set Baby up in the living room with a bucket of foam beads and a plastic needle and "thread." She seemed pretty happy. I got out the books and Little Boy and I started our lesson. Part of the way through, I looked over at Baby and she had the whole container spilled out on the floor and asked me when she could start to do her schoolwork. I told her as soon as she picked up the stuff on the floor, I would give her something to do. She stood up in the middle, kicked the beads, and spit at me. So I swatted her little butt and told her to pick up the stuff. She used her hand and swiped them farther across the room with a growl. So I picked her up and put her in her bed.

Apparently, she was making quite a racket - DH was attempting to sleep in the adjoining room. She threw everything out of her bed, and he said there was a lot of banging going on in there. Thankfully, the bed held together. When I finished with Little Boy, I went to get her. She was very contrite and behaved fairly well after that. Tomorrow is another day.

Cactus Fight

Well, today I got in a fight with a cactus, and I guess I lost. LOL. See the picture in the slideshow below. I went for allergy testing today, and I found out that I am allergic to dust, two types of dust mites, two types of mold, sycamore and oak trees, and pigweed and goldenrod. So basically, I'm fighting allergens just about all year round. I am going to forego shots. I feel like I can basically control symptoms with over the counter meds for now.

My arm hurts, but it could be worse. Much worse. I could be allergic to the other twenty seven things they injected me with.

Recent pics

Teen Cookout

What I like about Sarah Palin

Ok. I know my previous post said I'm sick of politics. And I am. I am tired of all the junk that comes with a voting year.

That said, I have been thinking about politics in the last couple days, because THAT'S ALL THAT'S ON TV ANYMORE. LOL. Actually, because I've been following Gov. Palin, like most conservative Republicans, and I get more excited each day.

Like I said in the last post, I am sure Gov. Palin is not perfect. And I am sure there are many things she and I would not agree upon. However, there are some very important issues that she and I completely agree upon - important issues - moral, critical issues.

I recently received a bulletin on myspace warning people about how "dangerous" Sarah Palin is. I guess that makes me, my husband, my sister, my brother, his wife, my adopted parents, my best friends, etc. ... it makes us all DANGEROUS! LOL.

Here are some of the reasons she is dangerous. (I've changed the negative terminology; I'm sure you can tell!)

1. Palin is pro-life. She rejects rape and incest as reasons to end a life that God created.
2. Palin supported Pat Buchanan for president in 2000. Gasp! Dangerous!
3. Palin believes in Creation, and thinks the theory of Intelligent Design should be given the same value weight as the theory of Evolution in classrooms.
4. Palin hasn't been suckered into believing in Global Warming by Al Gore who rakes in the dough from people purchasing carbon credits from companies in which he has heavily invested.
5. Palin is in favor of drilling for oil in Alaska to use our own oil, instead of being owned by Arabic nations by way of their oil supplies. She even believes - hold on to your hat - that we shouldn't avoid drilling because we might upset the . . . polar bears! OH MY! This chart shows the cyclical nature of the Arctic temperature - does not support the global warming theory - even though it was used in a report by the Arctic Climate Impact Assessment to support their theory.
6. Palin could not possibly have been investigated (vetted) fully, because John McCain only met her in person twice before announcing she was his pick. Unlike Obama and Biden, who met numerous times and WERE OPPONENTS IN THEIR RUN FOR THEIR NOMINATION, and didn't have very nice things to say about each other!
7. Palin doesn't fare well in the opinion of members of Alaska's Move On Organization. Don't need to say any more here.

So I guess I'm a threat to the public. Be afraid - be very afraid! Wha-ha-ha!

Getting Sick of Politics

Ok. I'm a Republican. I really like Sarah Palin so far. And I like McCain way more than I will ever like Obama. I think Palin is a breath of fresh air, but I am sure there will be things brought to light about her that I don't like. No one is perfect. But there are aspects of the political arena that make me really tired.

Like scrutinizing every part of a candidate's personal life. I don't need to know their daily schedule, I don't need to know what their driving record is, or their medical record. I don't need to know what designer they wear, because I will never run out and buy something just because I saw one of them wear it. I don't need to know what kind of perfume they wear. I really don't care.

I think Michelle Obama and Cindy McCain are both beautiful women. I think one of them is more loud-mouthed and brassy than the other. I think both of them dress impeccably, in a always-on-stage, need-to-impress sort of way. I think the report that Cindy McCain's outfit cost over $300,000 was a surprise, to say the least. Until I started reading the fine print.

There are people who are all in a tizzy over this. And there is no way on earth I would ever even have that kind of money, much less spend it on an outfit. But the accusation that she spent that much money on her "outfit" is quite misleading. "Vanity Fair editors estimated that McCain’s fierce saffron shirt dress with the popped collar, diamond earrings, four-strand pearl necklace, white Chanel watch and strappy shoes totaled up to $313,100."

So, take out the cost for the diamond earrings, pearl necklace, Chanel watch. These are items that she may have already owned; they could have been gifts. Or they could have been on loan to her. In any case, I don't think it's completely honest to include them in her "outfit." When I think outfit, I think of the clothes. So how much was the dress and shoes? About $3600. That is still way too extravagant on my budget, but she is a millionaire. I don't think anyone would even blink an eye if Oprah, or any other Hollywood big-wig, said she spent that on an outfit. She wore a $5000+ gown to an awards show, and everyone praised her taste.

I think Sarah Palin has the opportunity to bring some sanity back to the White House. Let's hope she gets the opportunity.

2 whole months left of this junk. Joy, joy.

Hopping Mad

Baby was quite confused and frustrated the other day. She received a costume for her birthday. I think it's a fairy costume. It has wings attached to the back.

Baby wanted to wear it; she said she wanted to fly. So I put it on her and she bent over and was looking back over her shoulder at the wings. Then she started hopping up and down. I started to laugh, but she was angry. I asked her what she was doing.

"I CAN'T FLY! THESE WINGS AREN'T WORKING!"

I wanted to fall on the floor laughing; she was still hopping and looking at the wings. I explained to her that the wings were pretend, and that she could pretend to fly.

She gave me a look that said, "Get this thing off me if I can't fly!"

If only I had captured it on video. I would be sending it to AFV.

Sprinkler Day

Princess Birthday Party

So Baby turned 3 last Friday. How is that even possible? She is the funniest, cutest, sweetest, sassiest little thing.

She opened a present Friday morning and blew out a candle in a muffin at breakfast. She was a bit confused why we weren't having a party yet. I was up until 3:30 am that night - decorating her birthday cake. I used frosting from a can - I thought I had two cans. But when I pulled out the frosting, one can was vanilla and one was cream

cheese. Great. So I frosted the whole cake from one can. Pretty good, if you ask me.

So Saturday we had her party. Grandma and Granddad, Cathy and Jim and his daughter came. She had a huge pile of gifts. She also got a two-wheel bike and helmet from G& G. All I could think was, "Where am I going to put all this stuff?" Thankfully, packaging accounted for half the pile. She likes everything she was given and now bounces from gift to gift, not sure what to play with. Little Boy got a present from G & G - glad they thought of it, because I didn't. I usually try to do that as well. They are too little to understand why they aren't getting a gift. I don't remember what Baby got at his party, though. I'll have to look at the pics.

We had baked chicken, parmesan pasta, salad, green beans, and cantaloupe. Baby did pretty well in the midst of all the chaos. We had cake and it was the quietest it had been all morning! LOL. Remember, I had very few hours of sleep and I was biting my tongue and keeping check on my temper. There were a few times when I had to leave the room just to be nice.

So she finished her cake and we took her out to sit on her bike. She can reach the pedals, but she has no clue how to pedal. So she sits with her feet on the pedals, and expects someone to push her around. She has fun, but my back is about to fall off.

Happy Birthday, Chickie Boo!

Kippy-i-aye!

My kids had their stick horses out today and were tearing through the house. Little Boy was shooting his six-shooter many more times than six. Baby was following after, swinging a long string of plastic beads as her lasso, shouting, "Kippy-i-aye! Here we come!"

At one point DH noticed she had a runny nose and told her she needed to blow her nose. She stopped, looked at him, flipped her hair back with one hand, and ... sniffed. It was quite sassy, but DH couldn't help but laugh. He wrangled her and made her blow her nose.

She has become quite sassy, and I am constantly dealing with her. Hopefully this is a short phase, right?

Do you speak to God in KJV?

I am sorry - I don't want to post all his videos, but this one is pretty funny, too.

I had to laugh about speaking to God in King James, so He'll understand me. LOL.

Mom's antibacterial wipes

This is just too funny! My new favorite comedian is Brad Stine.

Have I ruined him?

Last night, Little Boy and I slept out in the playhouse. It was a cool evening, and the bugs never bothered us, even though the house isn't air-tight. Baby didn't get to sleep out with us because she refused to eat the 6 miniscule pieces of pork chop on her plate for dinner. Sigh.

So we were lying there listening to the frogs and crickets and occasional vehicles, and he sighed. "I should have brought my sound spa." I laughed and told him God gave us the frogs and crickets for our sound spa. He laughed at me and told me I was "so silly". The sad thing was, after lying there awake for a very long time, I started to think maybe I SHOULD have brought one out.

I never do sleep very soundly when we sleep in the back yard. I don't tell Little Boy, but now I don't worry about animals attacking us through the walls of the tent. I lay there and worry about someone peeking through the windows of the playhouse. Pretty silly.

Kindergarten Countdown

So my Little Boy starts kindergarten in 17 days. Since he's being homeschooled, I was able to pick our own date. Daddy will start back to school on the same day. I'm not quite as thrilled with that, but I know he is working for a better education and job opportunity. And his dedication is quite admirable.

I've decided to use My Father's World (MFW) for our curriculum. There are a couple different reasons. First, my son has been able to "say" his alphabet since he was 18 months old, but can only recognize a handful of letters by sight. He also has not grasped the concept that the letters make specific sounds. And I think he is a very tactile learner.

I also want the curriculum to completely revolve around the Bible. It seems there are not as many curriculum choices that do that. Even ABeka, which I taught from in a combined classroom for 4 years, doesn't tie in Biblical concepts as much as I would like. I also wanted a more gentle curriculum for Little Boy. I don't think most boys do as well if they feel pressure in the lower grades. I want school for my children to be about the adventure of learning and the excitement of mastering a new concept. I'm sure there will be many days when he'd rather watch Tom and Jerry or run trains, but I'm hoping he'll be interested enough to keep his attention for the 60-90 minutes we'll need.

I also picked MFW because it will allow opportunities to include Baby. And that will be even more applicable as she gets a little older and I can combine classes.

I'm sure part of my desire to homeschool is my reluctance to let my child go off into the world already. I remember seeing the kindergarten children in the schools where I have taught and feeling a pang. They still looked like babies, who needed to be home in the loving company of their mommies, taking afternoon naps.

Public school really isn't an option for us. The schools in our area keep consolidating and there are more kids, fewer teachers and longer drives. The Christian school is a 40 minute drive away (and that was if I drove fast!) I don't want my son's school day to be that long! That is just ridiculous. We will accomplish as much or more and he'll actually have a life, still!

Then there's the issue of behavior. My son comes home with enough exposure to naughtiness from Sunday School and his little group of about 5 kids. He has repeated, said and done things he learned there that make my blood pressure top off. So just imagine what he would come home with after a whole day with 25 kids! YIKES!

And lastly, and probably the most convincing, legitimate reason is that no one else knows my kids, loves my kids or desires more for and from my kids than I do. I believe I suffered through 4 years of Bible college for a teaching degree, and and then did 7 years of classroom "time" for a reason. I don't believe anyone is more qualified to meet the spiritual, emotional, educational needs of my children than I am.

I know I'm not the world's best teacher. I know there are many smarter, more creative, enthusiastic people out there. But I also know that they are my kids and I want to be there to see their little eyes light up when they finally understand a new concept. And I want to be sure they know that everything in this beautiful, crazy, delightful, precise world was given to them as a gift from our Father.

Happy Anniversary!

Today is our anniversary. It's been 8 years already! It really doesn't seem that long, until you start thinking of all the things that have happened in the last 8 years.

I received 6 red roses from my husband - they are very pretty. And we had a nice dinner tonight - country style ribs, grilled potatoes and salad. And itty, bitty ice cream cones for dessert. Last time I was shopping, I looked at ice cream cones and thought they looked good. So I picked up a box. Well, I didn't really read the label, b/c they are tiny! I opened the box and pulled them out and I laughed! They are kids' cones. I laughed the whole time I was fixing cones for the kids. They just cracked me up. I think you have to use a melon baller to scoop the ice cream! On the positive side, our container of ice cream is going to last FOREVER! LOL

Baby fell down some of the concrete steps in front of our house this evening. I was outside about to start the grill and I looked at her and Little Boy to check on them. As soon as I turned my back, she tumbled. She was ok, but I was pretty upset.

At dinner tonight, Baby started crying that she wasn't at our wedding. I told her maybe one of these years we would renew our vows and she could be there. I got a strange look from my DH. Apparently, that's not really on his list of important events in our life. Sigh. Oh well. I got him the first time, didn't I?

Funny faces

Italian Ice!

That funny face, again!

Little Boy's invention - too bad the umbrella broke.

TV Gluttons

I don't know why, but my kids LOVE Maggie and the Ferocious Beast. It's really the only show that mesmerizes them like this:

Baby's Hand

Just thought I'd share how well her hand has healed!

Indiana Trip 2008

Little Mermaid Undies

So, we've started potty training with Baby finally. She turns 3 in a couple weeks and I thought we'd give it a shot. So yesterday, I picked out 3 packages of cute cartoon character undies. She's had them on for about an hour and a half and we're already on pair #2. And I had to clean up the drippy trail through the hallway. And the puddle half on the rug - half on the hardwood floor. And the little girl.

Unfortunately, she didn't seem too upset by the whole thing. I told her if she gets a second pair wet, we're back to didies - at least for today.