Hiking Adventures......

We had a great day hiking in Orangeville, Canada!! All 4 kiddos did the hike ALL by themeselves..... it was a little more than 2 miles and there was some pretty high hills!! I am so proud of Bee and Kaleb they were so awesome!!! It was the most beautiful weather and a beautiful day!!

I love the weekend....

Just thought I would add some cute pics from the weekend!! We had a relaxed weekend! Caught up on some laundry and cleaning on Saturday, went shopping (kinda) and had some friends over for dinner. Then on Sunday we went to church, lunch and the park. It was nice just to be together and hang!! :) The other little girl in the picture of James reading to Liberty is the kids' cousin Promise.....cutie patootie!

My little Irish girl.... Happy St. Patrick's Day!

I can't believe out of all the festivities that were going on around here for St. Patricks Day I only took these pictures!! Well it was a BIG day around these parts not only because the girls got to wear green glitter on their eyes (which only happens on VERY special occasions ;) but because we spent all last week studying St. Patrick. He really was an amazing man. Anyways we had such a good time getting ready for our party, the older two girls help me make irish cheddar potato soup, bacon cheesy bread (which is so unhealthy but phenominal), crab cheesy english muffins, reuben stuffed twice baked potatoes, potato fries, honey carrots, KFC coleslaw, chips and guac (because its green), chocolate chip scones and a green tea sparkling punch!! We spent most of the day cooking but it was so much fun! I added pictures of Liberty and one of the picture the girls drew of St. Patrick. If you can't tell there are 3 pirates about to kidnap Patrick and take him back to their ship to sail for Ireland. Patrick has a bible in his hand and a shamrock to teach about the trinity in the other! We all learned so much this past week and the party was the perfect end to our week!

Praying for our children....

I read this on someone else's blog and it really spoke to me so I am going to share it.....

Jesus prayed to His Father. Jesus prayed for His disciples. Jesus prays for you and me. How much more should we pray for our children.I will pray for my children:

1. That they will know Christ early in life. Psalm 63:1; 2 Timothy 3:15

2. That they will hate sin. Psalm 97:10

3. That they will be caught when guilty. Psalm 119:71

4. That they will be protected from the evil one in each area of their lives; spiritual, emotional, physical. John 17:15

5. That they have a responsible attitude in all their personal relationships.Daniel 6:3

6. That they will respect those in authority over them. Romans 13:1

7. That they will desire the right kind of friends and be protected from the wrong friends. Proverbs 1:10-11

8. That they will be kept from the wrong mate and saved for the right one.2 Corinthians 6:14-17

9. That they, as well as those they marry, will be kept pure.1 Corinthians 6:18-20

10. That they will learn to totally submit to God and actively resist Satan in all circumstances. James 4:7

11. That they will be single-hearted, willing to be sold out to Jesus Christ.Romans 12:1-2

12. That they will be hedged in so they cannot find their way to wrong people or wrong places and that the wrong people cannot find their way to them. Hosea 2:6

You will notice that there are 12....one for each month!

for today part 2......

Outside my window... I can see the grass turning green and the geese coming back!

I am thinking... about my order of school things I will need for next year!

From the learning rooms... we will be studying the birth and life of Jesus Christ for the next 2 weeks!

I am thankful for... women who have a deep passion for Christ and share that on their blogs and my awesome Husband!

From the kitchen... Grilled Fish with veggies, brown rice and salad

I am wearing... cozy pants, black shirt, pink socks and glitter on my eyes!

I am reading... a Karen Kingsbury book called Fame

I am hoping... that spring comes quickly and the Lord's will be revealed!

I am creating... a huge mass of food for tomorrow's St. Patricks Day dinner party!

I am hearing... worship music, birds chirping (from Liberty's sound machine), the heater turning on and children fast asleep....which actually sounds like nothing :)

Liberty's Love of Art...

I have never seen a child love to do crafts, color, glue, paint, dot, watercolor or any other kindo or artsy activity and much as Little bee loves it! She is constantly doing something artistic even if it is rearranging her room. For a while she was waking up in the middle of the night with pains in her right arm and for the longest time we couldnt figure out why....then it dawned on us that she was having cramps from all the artwork she was doing!! Poor thing! So we limited her to an hour in the morning and an hour in the afternoon so she wouldn't be in pain!! How crazy is that? Bee is so funny and so creative! I am going to start framing her work and hanging it in her room so she can see her accomplishments everyday!! We were watching some videos online about the Northern lights because we are going to try and see them this spring and I thought I would share her Northern Lights picture!

Our newest addition to the basement family...

This was a total score off of craigslist!!! I paid 10 bucks for this thing!!!! It is Kaleb's new best friend!! Just thought I would share some more basement fun!!! We can't wait to start taking these things outside!!!

For today....

For Today...

Outside my window... the sun is rising and it looks cold out there

I am thinking... about my great party I have planned for St. Patricks Day with our new friends

From the learning rooms... we are having a half day week in school, just math and reading, a sorta spring break!! But we will be doing plenty of St. Patrick/Missionary studies and crafts

From the kitchen... I am going to clean out the cupboards and then make homemade calzones

I am wearing... my hair curly, black shirt, pants and fun striped socks

I am reading... some really nice blogs, Theras and His Town and a Karen Kingsbury book

I am hoping... for warm weather and that I find decent priced horse riding lessons

I am creating... St. Patrick Day crafts, board books for Bee and Kaleb and some more rice milk and butter

I am hearing... the sound machines and peaceful sleeping children (which don't really sound like anything but noise machines...but oh well)

Around the house... laundry, beginning of spring cleaning, school planning for next couple of weeks, cookies to make, bathtub to scrub and spring clothes to shift through

One of my favorite things... is a cup of black coffee in the quiet of morning before everyone else is up reading my bible

A few plans for the rest of the week... grocery shopping, party planning, go to the dollar store (they have the nicest dollar store I have EVER seen here), call the horse riding school I found, go to the library, finish researching free things to do in the Toronto area, have lunch with a new friend, take new photos of my kids and definitely go for a couple of walks....... :)

Aislyn's tooth!!

I have never in my life seen or heard of a child literally praying and hoping and wishing for their tooth to come out for 2 years!!!! Well God finally answered AIslyn's prayers yesterday!! She has not only been over the moon since yesterday but is still showing everyone and smiling everytime someone looks at her!! :) Aislyn is very EASILY amused and amusing!! SO anyways this morning she woke up and looked under her pillow and there it was a shiny new Canadian dollar!! Now a dollar to Aislyn is like finding a $1000 bill to you! Like I said easily amused! :) Things are so great and so innocent to kids... I love when my kids delight in the purest simplest things in life and are beaming for days :) Hope everyone has a blessed weekend!!

New Week....New Meals....

here's the new week of food... :)

Saturday- friends house bringing artichoke dip
Sunday- Taco Soup w/ chips
Monday- Waffles w/ berry syrup and fruit smothies (huge hit last week)
Tuesday- Chicken, sausage and rice skillet w/ homemade bread and layered salad
Wednesday- Grilled Salmon w/ steamed veggies and brown rice
Thursday- Homemade Chicken Pot Pie w/ autumn salad
Friday- Hot Wings w/ ranch salad


Anyone have any yummy breakfast or lunch ideas?? I feel like we have the same things over and over...... I need some new things..... thanks :)

School Days......

So I was thinking of posting our school day type schedule thing .... :) Only because I am so proud of myself for being so diligent the last few months on doing school and have seen some serious progress!!!

8:00-8:30 school with little kids- letter of the week, workbooks, reading
8:30-11:00 shurley grammar, saxon math, state and capitol flashcards, science reading and journaling
12:00-12:30 little kids blanket time, bible study (right now its here comes heaven-awesome book!! ), read a child's garden of verses
12:30-1:00 audiobook
1:00-1:45 history
1:45-2:15 read aloud
2:15-2:30 girls independent studies- depending on the day its geography, explode the code or spelling
3:00-3:30 all kids do sign language or spanish depending on the day
3:30-3:45 study a famous artist, read come look with me, little kids blanket time
3:45-4:15 girls independent reading, mom reads to little kids
4:15-5:00 (not everyday) xtra activities like cooking, art, craft, nature walk, homemaking

Just thought I would share :) The Lord has definitley blessed this house with a wonderful schedule and happy hearts to fullfill it....most days :P

My menu plan.....

Marnie you have such great ideas I feel like such a copycat but oh well :)

Monday- Crockpot chili and homemade cornbread
Tuesday- Grilled reuben sandwiches w/ chips, asian salad and fruit smoothies
Wednesday- Teriyaki Chicken over brown rice and grilled veggies
Thursday- Shredded BBQ pork sandwiches w/ coleslaw and homemade sweet potato wedges
Friday- Sloppy joes w/ BBQ ranch salad
Saturday- Nachos with Homemade salsa
Sunday- Waffles with homemade berry syrup and fruit smoothies


Hope everyone's week is blessed!!