"Not Me!" Monday

• While making Deviled Eggs this week, I did not manage to smudge the filling onto the bottom of an egg....and proceed to lick it off...if you ate at my house this week, don't worry...I did NOT do that!


• I did not reem my poor husband out for hanging the mistletoe into our trim with a nail! Good Grief...what kind of control freak would do that?!?


• And I most certainly could not have been found further "reeming" when I realized it wasn't even lined up in the middle of the door frame!


• I do NOT have an addiction to QVC.


• Since we had company, I did not wear my robe all day the day after Thanksgiving to hide the fact that I was too lazy to put my bra on....seriously...do people really do such things?
• I did not let my precious children help in the hanging of the ornaments only to go behind them and "fix" them all after they were in bed.


• I did not tell a white lie to my husband about our checking to keep a Christmas surprise...


• I have not boo-hoo'd this week over old Christmas pics of my kids and old Letters to Santa...and I stayed especially composed while reading Aidans dictated letter to "Panta Cause" when he was 2...


• I did not commit pure unadulterated GLUTTON this week!!!


• I did not ask my husband to "do" the lemur (King Julian) on Madagascar 2....and sneak a video...that would be horrifically deceiving!


• And I am most certainly not posting it here for all to see! Pfff...no way!

"And whatever I do, may it always bring glory to you"

"A Turkey For Me...And A Turkey For You..."

"...Let's eat Turkey in a big brown shoe...." - Adam Sandler

I am happy to report that we did in fact survive Thanksgiving....I have no idea why we were so nervous but I think we both were....when you put complete strangers (opinionated ones at that!) from two sides of the family together, you can't help but pray there will be no slinging of the cranberry sauce! We were of course worried for nothing because everything was wonderful and I dare say everyone had a fabulous day...well, except for the turkey obviously.

Can my man cook a mean bird or what?!

This is totally out of focus I know (trying to learn how to manually set camera) but I wanted you to see the cute turkeys that adorned our fireplace....each had feathers that listed what they are thankful for...couldn't help but crack up at Tylers very obvious 12 year old answers...Jesus, Family, Me

And the chains of gratitude we made on top of the mantle...oh my gosh, there were some of the cutest answers ever! Aidan said he was thankful for Peter in the Bible....Maggie said she was thankful for the planets....and Tyler said he was thankful for his arms and for air....I'm thinking he may have left off the "h" meaning to say "hair"... :-)

BFF :-)

Is it a bad sign when I get the camera out and the kiddos scatter like mice? I did manage to talk (threaten) them into taking just this one....

Sisters....yes, we know...same mom, different dads.

Maggie with Ally...Aunt Ashley's doggie

Tyler twiddling the willow tree branches

Maggie playing with the neighbors dog Rufus...

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I completely forgot to introduce you to the newest member of our family....the "Charger"

Compliments of Olive Garden....I must admit, it is sweet to drive...does this mean we are having a mid-life crisis???

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It is so stinkin cold here in TN tonight...Adam and I have frozen our bums off hanging wreaths on windows...how on Earth did I ever live in NY, MA, and PA all those years???? ...and I think they are calling for a little snow for us...which means there is no bread or milk to be found within a 30 mile radius I'm sure.

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We chucked the fake tree this year! If you want it, it's at Goodwill. Good bye Mr. Pre-Lit Tree....with your faulty lighting and non-pine smelling branches!!! Hello Mr. Post-Lit... Fresh Cut... makin my house smell fabulous, Frasier Fir!

"And whatever I do, may it always bring glory to you"

Giving Thanks

Ok, so this obviously is not my family....and the fact that it is not will never not hurt I'm starting to realize...but by the grace God, with the love and mercy that He has shown us now being given to each other, by perserverance, by mercies that are made new everyday, by faithfulness and forgiveness, by promises that are kept.....maybe... just maybe... one day... my kids can look at this and say that it is in fact theirs.

"Jesus, I am so humbled by all you have entrusted me with....a marriage of almost 10 years...3 beautiful healthy children...a wonderful home to raise them in...more than enough food...the privilege to stay home and not only raise my children but to teach them as well...the grace to accomplish all these things...family and friends...a voice to sing your praises...I could go on and on...but at the end of this list, everything on it would pale in comparison to your life...you gave it so freely...and you didn't have to. You could have looked down on humanity, seen what a mess of a person I would be...all the horrific choices I would make...all the times I would reject you...run from you...hide from your truths...drag your name through the mess I would make of my life... and simply say that I was not worth it. But you didn't. You suffered...bled...cried...died...all for me. Your love came to me unconditionally. And because of it, I'll never be the same...it is because of you that I am anything of worth....thank you!"

"And whatever I do, may it always bring glory to you"

Sometimes....

Sometimes....

We eat leftover carrot cake for breakfast

Sometimes....

We sleep till 9am

Sometimes....

We let our dogs lay on the furniture

Sometimes....

Our little Homeschool becomes Hotelschool when we hit the road with dad

Sometimes....

We let our children scale walls

Sometimes....

We eat Mexican

Sometimes....

We play in corn
Sometimes....

Our poodles forget that they are "Standard" not "Miniature"

Sometimes....

We accidentally swallow teeth

Sometimes....

We are best buddies

What do you do....sometimes???

"And whatever I do, may it always bring glory to you"

Not Me Monday..late edition

• I did not wear the same clothes to the Orthodontist office this morning as I wore yesterday to church (on stage mind you!), thinking I was so savvy to be saving laundry and all, only to realize that I had forgotten the fact that the lady that would be scheduling my next appointment would be my dear friend Paula....who of course...you guessed it...goes to my church.

• I did not, when asked the order of songs for the service, in all seriousness....without even hesistating or realizing what was coming out of my mouth, say "Jesus Moofasah"....ahem, I mean any person with the normal amount of brain cells would have of course said "Jesus Messiah"...where on Earth did that come from????!!!!

• Then, I did NOT stand on stage and think "Moofasah" every time the word Messiah was said!

• I did not walk through Aldi and Wal-Mart tonight shopping for Thanksgiving food, (mutilated ankle throbbing and all!) throwing myself my own mental pity party that went something like this..."Why can't I have a normal family?...You know, the kind that I would just throw together a dish and show up at their house and feel loved and taken care...where everyone wears turkey sweatshirts...and somebody knows how to make chicken and dumplings....and has made a special dish "just for me"...just because it's my favorite of course...where there is no drama...only smiles of course...instead of any sort of holiday meal at all depending on me and my poor husband to make it happen?"...no, I did not do that....

• And I am not totally still whining to my husband about it as I put this crapload of food away! Nope I'm not the least bit bitter about it!

• I did not take a dinner roll and dip it into the tub of butter while I was preparing dinner...nope, you did NOT see me doing that!

• I have not obsessed about the 8 pounds I have gained back since hurting my ankle....or the fact that before that I was .4 oz away from my goal weight...or about the fact that I am seriously depressed that I can't excercise....or about the 10 more I'll probably gain over the holidays...Weight Watchers stock is so about to go up after the holidays!

• I did not have this conversation with Aidan this week....

Me: "Aidan, why do we celebrate Thanksgiving?"

Aidan: "Because the Pilgrims came to America"

Aidan: "I know why we celebrate Christmas!"

Me: :"Why?"

Aidan: "Because it's when Jesus was born"

Me: "That's right! And why do we celebrate EASTer?"

This time Tyler chimes in to elaborate on something and obviously Aidan's wheels have had a moment to turn....

Aidan: "Well, what about WESTer?"

I'll leave you to figure this one out.... :-)

"And whatever I do, may it always bring glory to you"

Fryday contest....shameless attempt to win!

Hey everyone! No blogging today...just desperate to win win win!!! Yes, you are right...I'm shameless! Nah...if you know me at all, you know I'm just bluffing...I don't have a competitive bone in my body....but what I am is a lover of MckMama and her beautiful family....so much so that I am game for any contest she throws my way...even a Fryday Contest...so go check out the Royal McK's and their ridiculously adorable offspring (including a certain miracle...hint: starts with "St" and ends with "ellan") and maybe just maybe you will be able to "read just one"..betcha can't! :-)


"And whatever I do, may it always bring glory to you"

Wordless Wednesday....

"And whatever I do, may it always bring glory to you"

Not Me Monday

Check out McKMama and her wonderful family....including 2 week old miracle, Stellan!

• While driving in the Smoky Mountains this week (enjoying the museums and indoor pools while poor husband worked) I did NOT hear my daughter from the backseat say, "Hey, I just saw a restaurant back there called "Sexy Stuff"."

• And of course any decent mother would NOT have snickered at her comment! :-)

• I did not just "mmm Hmmm" my 12 year old when he asked me a question, thinking he asked if it was ok to have gum in the pool....only to discover that he asked if he could put his gum in the filter...."you know", he said, "since this is where the bugs and all go."

• I do not still shuffle around the email that McKMama sent to me, weeks ago, afraid to delete it as though it has celebrity status.

• I did not realize on the way to the Mountains that I forgot my laptop and literally begin to have a panic attack at the thought of not being "connected" for 3 days...that would make me a computer wacko I'm thinking..... (thank goodness my husband is)

• I did not just see my Maggie jump in the deep end and swim all the way across underwater on her own!!! Oh wait, I DID just see that! Holey Moley!!!

"And whatever I do, may it always bring glory to you"

Fibs, mohawks, and 7X7

Today I was reading "Mr. Popper's Penguins" to the kids....I know this will be shocking news for all of you, but Aidan has a hard time....ummm....staying "with us" when we are doing read alouds. Believe me, he does try really hard....but nope, it's just not gonna happen! So usually as I read, I stop here and there and ask him questions just to make it easier for him to hang on......



Today's Chapter was titled "Mr. Greenbaum".....who was he? We had no idea....he was new to our story and I was about to tell them.


Me: "Mr. Greenbaum had come to town and he was the owner of the Palace theatre and many other theatres in the country"

Me again: "Aidan, who was Mr. Greenbaum?"

Aidan: "Ummmm...He's green!?"

Me: <laughing hysterically internally....his face that of a kid that thinks he certainly is clever>

Aidan: <embelishing in his web of fibbery>..."He's green, and he has a mohawk!?"

"Lord thank you so much for the laughter that fills my house....thank you for the smiles that I too often take for granted....thank you for the precious individual hearts you have given each of my children...."

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There is a wonderful precious lady named Angie....a lady that has ministered to me so many times through the unbearable loss of her daughter Audrey.... and through her faithfulness to her Father...who gives and takes away. She is simply a precious precious heart....and her blog is just plain old wonderful to read....and she has once again blessed me with her post that is a reminder of how powerful prayer is, and the importance of praying over our children.....check her out...



"And whatever I do, may it always bring glory to you"

Psalm 63:4

Psalm 63:4

I will praise you

As long as I live

And in Your name

I will lift up my hands!

"And whatever I do, may it always bring glory to you"

Home IS Cool!

"You are crazy"

"I don't see how you do what you do"

"I really admire you for taking on such a task"

"You have more patience than I do"

"How do you manage everything?"

These are just a few of the comments I get when people find out we homeschool. I find that people are really quite curious as to how it all works....it's funny to me I guess because it just flows naturally in our house....and I don't realize that to others looking in, it must look "hard"....well, I'd be lying if I said it was a breeze all the time...but I'd also be lying if I didn't tell you that it is one of my greatest joys in life.... In fact it brings me and my kids so much joy that it becomes very easy to look over my "moments"....I am human so yes, I have my selfish thoughts...I wish I could go hang out at the gym and drop 20 pounds...yes, I wish I had "me" time more often....yes, I have moments of just thinking "I can't do this anymore"...but I lay all of that at the feet of Jesus daily and I know in the depths of my heart that this is where I belong right now. This is what works and feels very "right" for our family. Next year??? Who knows....it is my desire to homeschool all the way through high school but every year we stop and evaluate it all through prayer....never wanting to miss out on what the Lord is telling us to do.

I try to make our day as relaxed as possible....never sweating the small stuff so much that we get attitudes or in bad moods because we are "behind" in something. (My whole philosophy for homeschooling was that my kids have a lifetime to learn but only one chance to have life skills and character developed...so we don't sweat the "gaps"...they can be found in the most expensive of educations. We use a literature based curriculum so we do a LOT of reading....that alone could almost be enough for me...to see my kids reading piles of books...and then to see them on their own free time want to read still??? Priceless I say! I firmly believe that if I feed my kids love of learning, they will want to learn for life...it will not be something to "check off" but a never-ending process!

Free time....I happened to stumble upon this the other day...

With Tyler being 12, I am barely involved in his work...he knows what to get accomplished, and I am there to make sure it gets done...and to check his comprehension. I have seen this create self discipline and initiative in him. And when he is not working on something, he is the first to help Aidan with something. I don't have to tell you how precious those moments are to a mom...not to mention what it means for my boys.. if you are wondering why I didn't say that he helps Maggie...well, let's just say she doesn't embrace his help...what? you didn't really believe those lies about homeschoolers being perfect did you??? :-)

Most of my time is spent before lunch helping Maggie and Aidan with their individual subjects such as Math, Spelling, Writing, Reading, Phonics (Aidan) and Language (Maggie)....then we break for about an hour or so and I make lunch while they go upstairs and do chores...get dressed, make beds, empty dirty clothes, etc. While we eat, I always try to bring up a thought provoking subject.....yesterday it was why do some leaves die and others not....today it was Veterans Day.After lunch I sit and read History and Science to Maggie and Aidan...they are able to share curriculum since they are close in age. Then we are usually always done by 2. And typical day consists of 4 hours of schoolwork. Some days are more, some are less. Every Friday we do Science projects. I look at everything we do as a learning opportunity. Just today I taught Tyler to make a grilled cheese as I cooked lunch! I am quite certain he will survive as a bachelor one day...he knows how to cook Ramen noodles, frozen pizza, chocolate chip cookies, and now grilled cheese! :-) And in the past month I have taught him to do his own laundry....whoo hoo!!! That is one or two even less loads for me! As I am typing, he is baking chocolate chip cookies for Maggie and Aidan....hmmmm...part of me couldn't love him more....the other is thinking he may just be the devil himself! :-)

Probably my favorite part of school is our "Read Aloud" time....everyday I read some to Maggie and Aidan together (and Tyler even sits in sometimes) and then usually at bedtime I read Tylers to him....or vice-versa...all depending on the day. We have gotten so caught up in some of these stories that I have found myself sneaking to read ahead to find out what happens next! And this is also a time that Adam can read with them after not being home during the day.

We do tons of field trips...we are visiting the local newspaper tomorrow. Each kid is able to pursue their passion....Tyler was drumming in his youth band at age 11! I firmly believe it has a lot to do with the amount of time he has had at home to practice. And now they are all three loving and thriving in karate...with no homework to worry with at night, it is not too overwhelming for us...

I know some of my friends that have much tighter schedules they keep....I know some that barely have one at all....I think I fall somewhere in between....I do keep a schedule, I am just not bound to it. With three kids I have to have some sort of template as to how our day will look....but if curiosity lends itself to get outside looking at "dry flies"...or looking up a certain missionary we just read about further....then I say schedule schmedule!

Maggie and Aidan doing what they love best....using their imaginations...they love to pretend that she is his momma...this was a picnic I believe...with a carrot, an alligator, and I believe that is a Slim Jim I see....hmmm.

"I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth"

3 John 1:4

"And whatever I do, may it always bring glory to you"

Wordless Wednesday...

Wordless Wednesday...

"And whatever I do, may it always bring glory to you"

Belated Pumpkin pics....and a 50's Flashback

In honor of MckMama and her precious miracle Stellan....I too will take a hiatus from "Not Me Monday" this week. Be sure to continue to pray for her and pay her a visit and read all about God's handiwork yourself....

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Loaded up in the back of the "Zamboni" headed to the Patch!

I am super late with this but the pictures were too good to not post about....better late than never is a great motto in my book!

We visited a different Pumpkin Patch this year....Honeysuckle Hills....let's just say, I wasn't impressed. Not with the $40 we paid to get a family of five in. Not with the extra $$$ we would have had to pay for our kids to enjoy certain aspects once we were in. Not with the fact that we couldn't go in a real "patch" to get our pumpkins.

Or maybe it was the fact that we went the day after my "ankle" incident (which was pure stupidity on my part but when I make a promise...) and I was in severe pain and on crutches...and a little groggy from those little white pills. I wasn't exactly happy to be anywhere.

BUT regardless of our complaints, the kids seemed to have a great time and that was all that really mattered to us. The smiles on their faces were priceless and worth all 5 acres I trekked on those blasted crutches.

They sat in on a cute "Pig Race"....pet a few farm animals...went down ginormous "spider" slides, and Adam took them on a little hay ride....and of course, picked pumpkins!

A fabulous Fall day....

Priceless...

Children of the corn.... a little creepy I know but I couldn't resist.

My little guy.... I happen to adore this picture

The pumpkin Princess...


Handsome firstborn...

Adam amidst his favorite company....well, minus the crutches.

Tyler taking a hand at Steer Roping....ummm, he may want to stick to the drums


Tree Huggers...

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Sunday, Monday, Happy Days....

We don't really do the "Halloween" thing....not because we are trying to be oddballs...we just don't really like the whole scary side of it all...we figure there is enough real evil in the world that we don't need to conjure up any of the pretend kind....instead we opt for the "make a fool of yourself" side of it.... :-)

And we have a blast! :-)
Adam and sweet Maggie

Tyler (black belt)..Maggie (50's girl) and Aidan (Peter from Narnia)


I feel safer already with this guy around...


Maggie and her Pixie Stix...
Mom and Mag...."the girls"

And last, but certainly not least.....Arthur Fonzarelli

"And whatever I do, may it always bring glory to you"