Sunday, August 07, 2011
Clara Turns Four
Our little Clara is now four and not so little any more! For her birthday we had lunch with daddy on the canal downtown, playtime at Monkey Joe's bounce house play place, and a family party with friend Eden joining in.
Thursday, August 04, 2011
18 Months and Loving It
Our dear Sophia is full of life and enjoying every day of being 18 months old, with two big sisters. She has become such a daddy's girl lately. She loves baby dolls, being outside, and pulling apart peanut butter sandwiches and cheese crackers to eat the filling first.
Nine Years
I'm reading a book on marriage that was talking about the roller coaster of initial romance and how after a while, the journey seems more like you're driving through midwest terrain. Well, we've got literal midwest terrain around here and sometimes after nine years and three kids, things seem that way figuratively as well. But there is still no one I'd rather take the journey with than Kevin. I am grateful for the time we have had together.
The kids had soccer practice last night so we have delayed our celebration until the weekend. But we did put the kids to bed early and ate Chinese takeout, sushi rolls, and Ben and Jerry's pistachio ice cream on the back patio. There was a cool breeze and even the bugs stayed away!
I'm grateful for you Kevin! You are the best.
The kids had soccer practice last night so we have delayed our celebration until the weekend. But we did put the kids to bed early and ate Chinese takeout, sushi rolls, and Ben and Jerry's pistachio ice cream on the back patio. There was a cool breeze and even the bugs stayed away!
I'm grateful for you Kevin! You are the best.
Monday, August 01, 2011
Summer is Full
Where has this summer gone?!
Sophia loves her wagon rides!
Clara's piggies suit her personality. If only she would let me fix her hair more often ...
We have been doing lots of summer reading. The kids agonize over what prizes they will pick out at our local library.
Aunt Betsy came to visit! My sister is a pilot and talked her boss into letting them refuel the plane in Indianapolis. It was great to see her again.
Here in the Midwest, we have the most awesome storms. Here are the kids, waiting out a storm so they can go swimming. We love to sit and watch storms come in!
Sophia's favorite part about the Indian's game was the popcorn.
You can't have summer without blueberry pie!
She took it off three seconds later--it was cute while it lasted!
Why would you kiss a frog when you can play with one?
Meredith loves to read to her sisters:
A common scene in our house every morning--the girls fight over who gets to go in Sophia's room first.
Sophia's hair is getting curlier and blonder every day!
Meredith cracks me up with her little daily inspirations. This particular day she decided to make a "noos" (news) stand and sell papers. She had some terrific headlines, including a tornado and some gorillas attacking humans.
Clara helped me make Moon Pies after reading about them in our God's World News magazine. She is my sidekick in the kitchen and I love it!
Sophia loves her wagon rides!
Clara's piggies suit her personality. If only she would let me fix her hair more often ...
We have been doing lots of summer reading. The kids agonize over what prizes they will pick out at our local library.
Aunt Betsy came to visit! My sister is a pilot and talked her boss into letting them refuel the plane in Indianapolis. It was great to see her again.
Here in the Midwest, we have the most awesome storms. Here are the kids, waiting out a storm so they can go swimming. We love to sit and watch storms come in!
Sophia's favorite part about the Indian's game was the popcorn.
You can't have summer without blueberry pie!
She took it off three seconds later--it was cute while it lasted!
Why would you kiss a frog when you can play with one?
Meredith loves to read to her sisters:
A common scene in our house every morning--the girls fight over who gets to go in Sophia's room first.
Sophia's hair is getting curlier and blonder every day!
Meredith cracks me up with her little daily inspirations. This particular day she decided to make a "noos" (news) stand and sell papers. She had some terrific headlines, including a tornado and some gorillas attacking humans.
Clara helped me make Moon Pies after reading about them in our God's World News magazine. She is my sidekick in the kitchen and I love it!
Thursday, July 14, 2011
Pilgrim's Progress
Tonight we discuss Pilgrim's Progress during round two of our venture to read through great classics chronologically, starting with the novels genre. We are using Bauer's The Well-Educated Mind.
When I first started reading Pilgrim's Progress I just wasn't sure if I would see it as anything other than applicable allegory. I felt like it was kind of choppy--quickly introducing new characters and having them exit stage before there could be any development. In fact, Pilgrim's Progress reminded me somewhat of another classic I had recently finished: Don Quixote. Here was yet another passionate male, preparing to set off on a journey with unknown and dangerous adventures, and interesting characters to meet along the way. I thought, "Here we go again!" (And having also recently read The Hobbit I just didn't know if I could take any more of this genre!)
Of course Christian in Pilgrim's Progress has slightly different motives than Don Quixote in making his trek. Don Quixote sought after glory and romance. Christian sought after the cross. Quixote had his head full of fanciful fiction. Christian had that ultimate source of truth, the Word of God, as his anchor and guide. Quixote was compelled to become a knight errant by his own delusions. Christian felt the very real and forceful weight of sin on his back which made his journey one of true urgency.
As I journeyed alongside Christian his story became more real and engaging to me. Not only were there both subtle and blunt truths in the allegory at every turn, there were also moments when the beauty of the literature itself engulfed me.
The culmination of the story comes at the end of Christian's life when he prepares to cross the great river (death), over which there is no bridge. Christian becomes despondent as he descends into the flow of that inevitable river. But then Christian recalls the King's promise to be with him. ("When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee.") At that point, Christian takes courage to battle through his fears and comes to Celestial City escorted by shining ones. God will never leave us or forsake us. He is our guide through life and also through death.
I loved Fearful's story. He was weak and flawed and full of fear, but nonetheless a child of the King. We don't have to be perfect to be saved. In fact, that is the whole point--we are unable to be perfect because of our sin. Christ is perfect in our stead.
When it was Fearful's turn to cross the great river, he could not handle the river being so deep. So for him, it was a shallow crossing. God's grace is always sufficient for us. He never gives us more than we can handle, in life or in death.
Pilgrim's Progress is a book about real human struggles along the journey of life and it is a book about victory.
When I first started reading Pilgrim's Progress I just wasn't sure if I would see it as anything other than applicable allegory. I felt like it was kind of choppy--quickly introducing new characters and having them exit stage before there could be any development. In fact, Pilgrim's Progress reminded me somewhat of another classic I had recently finished: Don Quixote. Here was yet another passionate male, preparing to set off on a journey with unknown and dangerous adventures, and interesting characters to meet along the way. I thought, "Here we go again!" (And having also recently read The Hobbit I just didn't know if I could take any more of this genre!)
Of course Christian in Pilgrim's Progress has slightly different motives than Don Quixote in making his trek. Don Quixote sought after glory and romance. Christian sought after the cross. Quixote had his head full of fanciful fiction. Christian had that ultimate source of truth, the Word of God, as his anchor and guide. Quixote was compelled to become a knight errant by his own delusions. Christian felt the very real and forceful weight of sin on his back which made his journey one of true urgency.
As I journeyed alongside Christian his story became more real and engaging to me. Not only were there both subtle and blunt truths in the allegory at every turn, there were also moments when the beauty of the literature itself engulfed me.
The culmination of the story comes at the end of Christian's life when he prepares to cross the great river (death), over which there is no bridge. Christian becomes despondent as he descends into the flow of that inevitable river. But then Christian recalls the King's promise to be with him. ("When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee.") At that point, Christian takes courage to battle through his fears and comes to Celestial City escorted by shining ones. God will never leave us or forsake us. He is our guide through life and also through death.
I loved Fearful's story. He was weak and flawed and full of fear, but nonetheless a child of the King. We don't have to be perfect to be saved. In fact, that is the whole point--we are unable to be perfect because of our sin. Christ is perfect in our stead.
When it was Fearful's turn to cross the great river, he could not handle the river being so deep. So for him, it was a shallow crossing. God's grace is always sufficient for us. He never gives us more than we can handle, in life or in death.
Pilgrim's Progress is a book about real human struggles along the journey of life and it is a book about victory.
Thursday, June 16, 2011
Summer Goals
There's so much I want to cram in this summer and so little time! At the beginning of the summer I sat down and wrote out my goals and put a bunch of stuff on the calendar to try and squeeze the most out of those blissful months known as June and July.
I say "cram in" and that makes it sound like we are running around like hamsters on a wheel all summer. This is the wrong visual. One of the best things about summer is going at a slower pace and enjoying lazy days. One of our favorite things to do in the summer is swim. We usually go to the pool once a day and sometimes twice a day. It is just so relaxing and fun for us to be at the pool as a family. We also participate in three summer reading programs. I love carving out extra time to read aloud to the kids. This afternoon Clara brought me a stack of books and we read for an hour on the couch. I loved watching her smile or be puzzled or concerned at the twists and turns in the stories.
While enjoying a more lazy pace, I also decided to write down specific summer goals because I have found that I am much more likely to accomplish things and make meaningful memories with my children if I write down my goals.
My summer goals are threefold.
1) Have fun! I have listed specific things to do in this category, including VBS, backyard camping, art projects, riding a 4-seater bike on the canal downtown and going to an IMAX show, and taking the kids to an amusement park. We checked off that last one on Friday when we took the older two kids to King's Island. They are the perfect ages to ride on all the "under 48 inches" rides and water slides together. Kevin and I enjoyed riding on mini-roller coasters with them or just watching them smile and laugh and bond together more as sisters and friends. I hope we can take them every year.
2) Work on house projects. The two big ones are painting three rooms and sewing curtains for my dining room (with Kevin's mom to help--I am seriously not the natural seamstress!). The kids have been at VBS this week and I have been scattering animal crackers around the house to occupy Sophia while I paint. She did take a nap one morning too and that is when I got a half bath painted! Isn't it amazing how different a room can look with just a coat of paint?
3) Plan for the coming school year. I already have my curriculum purchased. I also have the school books semi-organized. Now I just need to read through the curriculum and plan reading assignments and simple projects for each of the 24 weeks of our Classical Conversations group. Thankfully Kevin agrees I need some alone time to do this well, and I am going to book a hotel room and get away for 24 hours sometime in July to organize everything into folders. My theory is that 24 hours of advance planning will make the next academic year go much more smoothly.
I also wanted to share my new favorite homeschool resource. It is called "All Through the Ages: History Through Literature Guide." This absolutely wonderful book gives you lists of tons of books--both fiction and non-fiction about many historical time periods and historical figures. It lists books about history both chronologically (e.g. books about World War II) and geographically (e.g.,books about Japan). There are also book lists about famous artists, scientists, mathematicians, etc. Books are also organized based on grade level and there are both fiction and non-fiction books listed for all grades K-12, within each genre. So for instance, if we are studying Monet, I can find a picture storybook about Monet for Meredith at the 1st grade level. I am so excited. This book will be so helpful!!
I say "cram in" and that makes it sound like we are running around like hamsters on a wheel all summer. This is the wrong visual. One of the best things about summer is going at a slower pace and enjoying lazy days. One of our favorite things to do in the summer is swim. We usually go to the pool once a day and sometimes twice a day. It is just so relaxing and fun for us to be at the pool as a family. We also participate in three summer reading programs. I love carving out extra time to read aloud to the kids. This afternoon Clara brought me a stack of books and we read for an hour on the couch. I loved watching her smile or be puzzled or concerned at the twists and turns in the stories.
While enjoying a more lazy pace, I also decided to write down specific summer goals because I have found that I am much more likely to accomplish things and make meaningful memories with my children if I write down my goals.
My summer goals are threefold.
1) Have fun! I have listed specific things to do in this category, including VBS, backyard camping, art projects, riding a 4-seater bike on the canal downtown and going to an IMAX show, and taking the kids to an amusement park. We checked off that last one on Friday when we took the older two kids to King's Island. They are the perfect ages to ride on all the "under 48 inches" rides and water slides together. Kevin and I enjoyed riding on mini-roller coasters with them or just watching them smile and laugh and bond together more as sisters and friends. I hope we can take them every year.
2) Work on house projects. The two big ones are painting three rooms and sewing curtains for my dining room (with Kevin's mom to help--I am seriously not the natural seamstress!). The kids have been at VBS this week and I have been scattering animal crackers around the house to occupy Sophia while I paint. She did take a nap one morning too and that is when I got a half bath painted! Isn't it amazing how different a room can look with just a coat of paint?
3) Plan for the coming school year. I already have my curriculum purchased. I also have the school books semi-organized. Now I just need to read through the curriculum and plan reading assignments and simple projects for each of the 24 weeks of our Classical Conversations group. Thankfully Kevin agrees I need some alone time to do this well, and I am going to book a hotel room and get away for 24 hours sometime in July to organize everything into folders. My theory is that 24 hours of advance planning will make the next academic year go much more smoothly.
I also wanted to share my new favorite homeschool resource. It is called "All Through the Ages: History Through Literature Guide." This absolutely wonderful book gives you lists of tons of books--both fiction and non-fiction about many historical time periods and historical figures. It lists books about history both chronologically (e.g. books about World War II) and geographically (e.g.,books about Japan). There are also book lists about famous artists, scientists, mathematicians, etc. Books are also organized based on grade level and there are both fiction and non-fiction books listed for all grades K-12, within each genre. So for instance, if we are studying Monet, I can find a picture storybook about Monet for Meredith at the 1st grade level. I am so excited. This book will be so helpful!!
Thursday, June 09, 2011
Reading to Dogs
Our library, like many libraries, has a read-aloud-to-dogs program called PAWS to Read. I signed up Meredith to do this for the first time and it was a huge hit! I think it also gave her more of a confidence boost. I have noticed her reading aloud to her sisters more. And she also checked out a few chapter books from the library to read to herself for the first time.
Her dog's name was Lance and he was very attentive:
She held the book sideways most of the time so he could see the pictures too:
Clara cracks me up. She put Sophia on this pink unicorn and dragged her around the whole library:
Here is Meredith reading Amelia Bedelia. :)
Her dog's name was Lance and he was very attentive:
She held the book sideways most of the time so he could see the pictures too:
Clara cracks me up. She put Sophia on this pink unicorn and dragged her around the whole library:
Here is Meredith reading Amelia Bedelia. :)
Favorite Parade
Our favorite parade is the Indy 500 parade--lots of noise, cars, and action, in addition to all the typical stuff that makes a parade so great! Usually we show up at the last minute and stand for the parade. This year we decided to buy seats with our good friends the Thomases! We bought our tickets through our bank, and it included a lunch. The kids thought it might as well have been Christmas because they each got a whole Coke all to themselves!! It was fun to see the kids enjoy the parade with their friends.
And I had to include this picture of Kevin, grilling on Memorial Day weekend in the rain. It's Memorial Day weekend. You just have to grill, regardless of the weather. :)
And I had to include this picture of Kevin, grilling on Memorial Day weekend in the rain. It's Memorial Day weekend. You just have to grill, regardless of the weather. :)
Zoo with Samantha
We enjoyed hanging out with the Schrages and seeing little Samantha over Memorial Day weekend!
Sophia's first time to pet the sharks:
Grandpa treated the kids to a carousel ride:
With cousin Samantha!
Sophia's first time to pet the sharks:
Grandpa treated the kids to a carousel ride:
With cousin Samantha!
Monday, June 06, 2011
Sophia's First Library Class
I finally signed Sophia up for her very own library class! Poor third-born.
Self Education
If I have been semi-silent on Blogger lately, it's because I have been spending every spare moment reading Don Quixote! A friend recently asked me to join her and another friend in reading and discussing the classics, using Bauer's The Well Educated Mind as our guide. I was thrilled to be a part of this because there are so many classics that I still haven't read and it's going to be so much more fun doing it with friends!
I especially appreciate Bauer's approach to the classics, reading chronologically within each genre. She lists five genre's in her book: novels, autobiography and memoir, history, drama, and poetry. She writes about how to approach the great books, and has an introduction to approaching each genre specifically.
We met this last week to discuss Don Quixote, which is considered the first novel (the first work of fiction about the individual). We spent probably an hour and a half talking just about the book, and then some more time just chit-chatting. I am really excited about this endeavor!
Reading Don Quixote (picture by Meredith):
I especially appreciate Bauer's approach to the classics, reading chronologically within each genre. She lists five genre's in her book: novels, autobiography and memoir, history, drama, and poetry. She writes about how to approach the great books, and has an introduction to approaching each genre specifically.
We met this last week to discuss Don Quixote, which is considered the first novel (the first work of fiction about the individual). We spent probably an hour and a half talking just about the book, and then some more time just chit-chatting. I am really excited about this endeavor!
Reading Don Quixote (picture by Meredith):
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