52 books Week 10

12. Hinds' Feet on High Places by Hannah Hurnard-Liked it.

Kayaking

My parents love to kayak and wanted to share the experience with us. So off we went to the lake. Here are the big boys and my hubby getting ready to go off together.

My dad grilled hot dogs for lunch.

The little boys hanging together.

Our dog had fun also. Don't know if that stick is big enough!

Up the hill were some hiking trails. We took turns paddling, hiking, and just relaxing in the sun.

It was a nice day!

Advent Wreath and Christmas Decorations

I was raised as a Lutheran. We are nondenominational(can that word be any longer?) but I have missed the traditions from my childhood so I have started adding some of them to our holidays(equally long sentence). Here is our advent wreath. I couldn't find purple and pink candles or a proper candle holder so I used what I had.

It is simply red candles, a white pillar from another room and lots of cuttings from my yard stuffed into a pie plate. I used some play dough to hold the candles in place.

We have a fake tree in our living room. My oldest wanted a real tree so I had him cut one from our yard to place on the table. It was a poor little scraggly tree outside but now it is the point of interest for our dining room.

I placed it in a pot I bought while visiting a nursery on vacation. The pinecones are also from California. Greenery and rocks from my yard add some interest to the top of the planter.

Here is the simple advent calendar I made. I hung paper cones on some trim I had in my sewing cupboard. After we remove the daily surprise we tuck the little tag inside the cone so we can see how many days are left 'till Christmas. My sister-in-law gave us a little advent booklet which we read each night.

These simple additions have really helped to make this season we celebrate special.

The Thanksgiving Takeover

Can you imagine what it would be like to have a family of 10 and their dog visit your home for the holidays? Here is what it looked like when we took over my parents' house. My brother, his wife, his wife's brother, and their little dog stayed there part of the time. This was a typical evening after dinner.


So, let's break this picture down. We have one of my little boys playing with the neat old (from my childhood) toys my mom has. Two of the other children playing cards with their new aunt. My brother and his brother-in-law using their laptops. Two of my boys playing the wii. My hubby, son, and Nono(my dad) watching and laughing. Our dog rolling around on the floor in the way. I was taking the picture with the baby at my feet. My youngest daughter and my mom are missing.

So is that what you imagined?

52 Books Week 9

I haven't finished anything but a geography book I was reading aloud for school. Does that count? Didn't think so. My old habit has crept back and I now have five books in progress. I will try to get it back down to under three.

I know, I know

I know I said I would be back to post a few things, but, well, I'm kinda swamped. My two oldest boys go away to school in January. I am still living in my dream world to avoid the truth of what is going to happen. I want them to go, they want to go, it is good in many ways, but, I will miss them so much! The longest they have been away from home was for almost two weeks last month. I am trying not to think about it.


So, anyway, back to the reason I'm slacking on my blog. Getting my boys ready to go to school, homeschool, cooking, cleaning, reading, etc. I could make the time. I just don't. I guess I need a little space 'till the new normal comes along. I Might be back.

52 Books Week 8

11. The Vision by Debi Pearl

Home!

We have been home since Saturday evening. It took us 3 long days of driving to travel from Weimar, California to Albuquerque, New Mexico. We had a nice visit and hopefully I will be able to share some of our adventures soon.

Possible upcoming posts.

1. Empire Mine

2. Our version of celebrating Advent to include our wreath and calendar.

3. Kayaking

4. Garden Inspiration

5. Who knows?

So I'll see you as soon as I can. I have sick kiddos, a messy house, and a lazy self to contend with.

52 Books Week?

8. The Well Trained Mind by Jessie Wise and Susan Wise Bauer- Inspiring. I'm going to be incorporating some of their ideas into the curriculum we are already using. Lots of great resources lists also.

9. Dracula by Bram Stoker- Gave me some interesting nightmares when I read it too close to bedtime. Good triumphs!

10. Discoveries at Jamestown by John L. Cotter and J. Paul Hudson- very interesting from an archaeological standpoint.

Wow, I thought I had read more than that during my vacation. I am almost done with two other books though and I did get caught up on some magazines.