School fun!

Today we had our monthly class. The morning time was with the younger, All about Animals group. We first walked down to the local fire department for a tour and a detailing of the trucks. We think they were playing a joke on us, because we could find no one. Nada. Zilch. It was like a fireman rapture had taken place. Well, the trucks were cool.

Next we had share time. Olivia taught us about armadillos. She was so cute and smart in sharing. They read a book, played a game, had snacks, and made two crafts. They were so adorable. Turkeys, they live in the forest and we love them at Thanksgiving. Brilliant.



If you look at this sideways, you can see it is a turkey made from footprints and hands. Blogspot must like it turned this way, I cannot fix it.

This turkey had too much rum. He even looks a bit hinduish with his white spot. We try to keep it multicultural too folks.

Stephanie's history group learned so much today too. They made candles by the drip method like in colonial times. No, they did not have pringles back in the 1600's; but they work really great at making candles. They had hasty pudding (gross and terrible, don't ever eat it) and homemade root beer, not a hit either. They learned about jobs like tanners, house wrights, pewterers, cobblers, coppers and such. Stephanie shared about the books she had read by the author Clyde Robert Bulla. She really enjoyed these books, and her favorite study was about Squanto.



Two bonuses were they had practice walking in a line, and cooling off after recess. Too funny...sometimes these home school kids need practice at the minor things in life.

Change from a kid's view

This morning, I was ready and waiting for the conversation I knew would be at hand.

"So Mom, who won? Who is our new President? Did the one with the lady win or the brown skin man?"

Steve and I had already gotten our thoughts together last night and we knew we would speak truth, love and honesty to our children. So here is how it went.

"Our new president is Barack Obama."

"So my vote (the one at the public library in the kids section) did not count?"

"Yes, it counted. Be proud you had a chance to vote, and stand up for what you want."

"Was McCain mad? Did he cry?"

"No, actually Senator McCain spoke on the TV last night and he thanked everyone for their vote. He said he wanted all of us Americans who had voted for him to support Obama and even if we disagreed, we should show him respect."

"That was nice. Yeah, sometimes me and Olivia disagree, but I still love her. You and Dad disagree and you still love him. You respect him too Mom, you call him the leader of our family. So, what about all those commercials we saw about how they said bad things about each other, did they mean it? Were they trying to hurt each others feelings?"

"Not really hurt each others feelings, but they were trying to get other people to agree with what they believe. But now we have a chance to respect a man that is our leader. He is someone who we will honor as the President. We might not agree with all of his choices, but we will not be disrespectful." "So, how do you think it was in the Obama house this morning when they woke up?"

"He probably woke up and said 'Yeah, this is over. Now I am the President. I have work to do.' His wife probably said,'Oh,my goodness, I am the first Lady.' His girls were probably talking about how they want their new rooms decorated while they ate breakfast." (Stephanie)

"I bet those girls are going to be the most popular girls in school today." (Olivia)

"I bet they don't go to school today. They might celebrate. They might have to pack to fly on a plane to Hawaii, because their great-grandmother died the other day."

"What? Fly on a plane to Hawaii for a funeral? How can you go on vacation and go to a funeral?"

"She lived there, it is not a vacation."

"Well, I am sad for Sarah Palin, I guess I can't wear her shirt anymore, but I am glad I match our new president." (Olivia, referring to her brown skin.)

"Mom, I bet they are making the statue of his face, to put in that hall of presidents, at Disney. We will need to go see it soon."

And that was just for part of the ride in the car today. Don't you wish you were hiding in our trunk?

Sweet friends

Nothing is as fun as a sleepover, if you ask my girls that is. I tend to like my own bed, pillow and the comforts of my own home. I'm more like Dorothy. So, mid week, our sweet friends Emma and Maddie spent the night, and blew through the next day like we were on a sixty second shopping spree. The girls had such fun. Bike riding and watching Charlie Brown's Great Pumpkin story was only better because they got to get into the Halloween candy stash a few days early.

Nothing says love like a fresh washed kid. It used to be the baby smell, but those days are gone. If you snuggle just right into the crease of a five year olds neck, and it is not newly bathed, it will cause you to reconsider your role in life as a loving mother. So, after baths, TV time, candy and teethbrushing, off to bed they all went. These are some mighty precious girls. Within 20 minutes, they were off into dream land.

Nothing says crazy like feeding your kids pancakes with syrup and hot chocolate with marshmallows for breakfast. What came over me I am not sure. They were out playing at eight a.m., and I was praying for the neighbors to still love us. Mid-morning we did sit down and get some school done. We got us some Squanto kind of lovin' going on around here.

My sweet sugarbutt, turned 17 yesterday. She is a lovely soul. A kind heart. One whom I fell in love with before she arrived. She is a piece of me. My memories are not complete without including her. She is a treasure. I love you Kelley.

YUM!

Some might get tired of hearing about Florida's incredible weather that we woke up to yesterday, but it is giving me a chance to be happy about making a pot of chili. Another recipe that is a must for any kitchen is this one. It screams fall. It makes you want to go collect leaves. It makes you want a fire to snuggle up in front of. Does this sound amazing? Okay, so I might be putting a little more importance on this than I should.

But, go vote today. Be an overachiever and get it done early.

Call a few friends and make your kids happy with a playdate in this lovely weather and bring this along to sit around and chat.

Pumpkin Dip
1 can of pumpkin (I like using the pie mix)

2 bars of cream cheese (leave out to get soft)

1 box of ginger snaps

Mix together pumpkin and cream cheese. Chill for an hour. Use cookies to dip. Enjoy.

If you choose to use just the pumpkin puree, you must add sugar and spices. The end result for taste is about the same, but the puree makes it a thicker dip.

The 50's

Without opening the doors this morning, you could not have guessed what the weather was like. Looking out the front window, the sun was shining and it looked as if it were going to be a normal Florida day.

But then, we opened the doors and WHEW!!!!!!!! Can you believe it?

Okay, so this is not our yard or even my kid. We don't have snow, we just have temps in the fifties. So,the girls went running for their coats, boots and long pants.

I instantly knew school would be postponed. So we don't get snow days. We get "let's start an hour later so we can enjoy the brisk weather".

And I pulled out the Chai Tea,(if you haven't had the Tazo brand, pick some up today)added my milk and sugar, and went and sat on the back porch. The weather is such a delightful change, the cluttered porch did not even phase me. So, I guess cooler temperatures cause me to be in denial. But one thing I am sure about, it is...

...the fun group of blog friends I have, I loved catching up with all the stories last night. Real women, real life. My own reality shows. Love em.

Indescribable

Yesterday, Steve and I went to our first parenting class to really get this adoption process moving. I was excited all day, anticipating being with other people who had these common goals. It also meant spending some time with Steve to become better at a task we have been working on with our own two for seven years.

But, the way the day started, I was wondering if I should rethink the whole "add another kid into this mix"...but that story is for another post that includes the joys(or trauma) of teaching phonics. A few deep breaths later and a prayer or two, we got the day back on track.

The girls were so elated to be spending the evening with Kay-Kay aka Kelley, who is the best thing out there next to cherry coke or a shopping spree. But, who would have ever thought the day would end the way it did. I love Kay-Kay, BUT, the remnants of her night of babysitting are still lingering.

It is indescribable.
The stench.
AUGH!
They had a blast. Made cookies. Painted. Played. Watched tv. Read books. We talked. Met new friends. Ate. Shopped. Laughed. Talked via the cell phone for most of the hour ride home from the parenting class...yet,who would have thought I would walk in my home to this...

BURNED MICROWAVE POPCORN.
Poor Kay-Kay.
She feels awful.
She forgot to just push the popcorn button.
"Oh, the smoke billowed," she giggled.
I woke up at 3:00 a.m., because of the stink.

Will the microwave survive? Who has tips on ways to remove the cooked on soot? Any helpful hints are appreciated. Have a wonderful day and pop a bag just for me.

Stinkin' fun

Our 4-H club, Sky Limit, loaded up some trash and junk that needed to be hauled away. Sometimes help means cooking for someone, buying something for someone who needs some extra money or taking someone somewhere. This time it meant cleaning up some one's trash. This was the day I was proud of my little messy girl. She did not care if garbage got on her, I groaned but smiled. So, with some friends, we headed to the dump. Piles of trash and recycled materials. FUN! Stinkin' fun!