Fig Pickin'

A fellow homeschooler calls out, "The figs are ripe!"

Eager child reaches for a new experience,

and grabs a handful to share.

"Come explore beneath the fruitful boughs . . .

. . . and remember this forever."

We went to a friend's house today to pick some figs, in between rain storms,

shopping, taking Lady to the Cobb's, grocery store, and getting ready for the homeschool expo tomorrow. I like figs and the kids tried them for maybe the first time. We gathered some in a bucket to bring home to eat later, away from the mosquitos!

Answer from last Sunday

There were 76 people here last Sunday, if my count is correct.
Thank you Erin for your guess.
-
Okey, so will I be able to think of 8 more things I am thankful for?
-
41. my homeschool support group
42. good neighbors
43. spiritual growth
44. healing of my neck
-
I'll save some for tomorrow.

From last night

32. I'm thankful for sleep, rest, and renewal

33. computers (I never thought I'd say that)

34. washers and dryers

35. air conditioners

36. automobiles

37. indoor plumbing

38. libraries

39. grocery stores

40. restaraunts

So without further ado . . .

This is what we did last night

I'm a bit behind in my thanksgiving posts, maybe I will finish tomorrow.

It's my birthday, sew what?

From this

to this

Since I started showing an interest in sewing,
my husband felt I needed something
to make it easier.
He researched and got a new Bernette 66
for my birthday!
It has a pop in bobbin,
and a one-step button hole maker,
in addition to many other stitches.
I went to a sewing class last night to make
sure I knew all about my new machine.
I have been using it and loving it.
---
26. I'm thankful for a new day
27. for the rain
28. for forgiveness
29. creativity
30. laughter
31. hope

Fun Friday Answer

Meggan got it right!

Josiah's was an alligator,

big enough for two to ride on or maybe even three.

-

And not to mention comfy enough to sleep on.

-

Hannah's is a dolphin,
which she loves to pretend is real.



Before I forget, here's more to be thankful for.

21. The Bible, accessable and in our language

22. Pastors who preach the Truth

23. Sabbath rest

24. the peace of God

25. His patience

Another Guessing Game?

Does anyone want to guess how many people were here today? Did anyone count?

A Perfect Day for . . .

Make a Smilebox slideshow

We were blessed to have our chuch family come over today. Hey, I can add that to the things I'm thankful for.
15. my church family
16. my biological family
17. Summer
18. swimming pools
19. The Lord's watchful eye
20. birthdays, or other excuses to get together

Family Celebration for . . .

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Since my birthday is in the summer, it's fun to have the family over and enjoy the pool (let the kids enjoy the pool). My mom made a delicious red velvet cake, which has always been my favorite. She makes the best!
My actual birhday is July 23rd. From now until then, I am going to try to post 48 things I'm thankful for. . . starting now!
1. My wonderful Savior
2. My caring husband
3. My delightful daughter
4, My super son
5. that God is in control
6. that He loves me
7. a home
8. food to eat
9. clean water
10. Jesus, my Shelter from the storms
11. Jesus, the Bread of Life
12. Jesus, the Living Water
13. Music
14. Little voices singing
Just listen to this. . . . my neice's daughters, Mai and Allie, and my two

The candles on the cake were lit and I think it's so cute at the end when Allie says, "Blow it out, blow it out!."

Fun Friday Game

Every year, the kids get a prize for learning a new swimming skill.
Tonight after dinner at Bambinelli's Italian Restaraunt, we stepped into Kroger to pick up a few things. We noticed they had a 50 percent off sale on all their summer stuff, so we let the kids select something as their promised award.




We only ended up spending $5 each on them, which I was very excited about and Hannah was able to get what she had mentioned she wanted.
So here is where the game comes in. Can you guess what they got?

Post a comment. The pictures might help you.

Thursday's Theme Song

My Little Adventurer

Josiah - "Mom, Hannah is running away and I am going with her".

(Before you get the wrong idea; He misunderstood something

Hannah said and just ran with it.)

Mom - "Oh really?"

(Isn't that what we usually say?)

Josiah - "Where is my backpack?"

(Even after finding out that Hannah is not leaving,

he still wants to go, somewhere, anywhere.)

Later, Mom - "Would you like some lunch before you go?"

Josiah - "No thanks."

Mom - "How will you eat?"

Josiah - "I will go to a restaraunt."

Mom - "Do you have any money?"

(Josiah goes to clean out his bank)

Mom - "Can I take a picture of you before you go?"

Josiah - "Sure."

Josiah - "When are you going to pack, Mom?"

Mom - "Oh, I'm not leaving. I need to stay here."

Later . . . Josiah - "Mom, I realized I don't have a driver's license.
Can you drive me?"

Mom - "Not today, Sweetie."

Josiah - "Can you dial 5862 for me?"

Mom - "Who's number is that?"

Josiah - "I don't know. Just call it and find out."

(Is it that boring around here?)

A Frog

We found this frog outside today

and since the kiddie pool was full of rain

from the downpour we had on Sunday,

we made a small habitat for him.

The kids enjoyed it.

They pretended they were running

their own aquarium,

and Hannah sent Josiah out to try to find more

critters to add to it.

Actually he did find another frog just like this one,

only bigger (sorry, no picture of that one, I got busy doing

yard work) in the skimmer basket of the pool.

And yes, we did splash in our pool today.

Water

Water from the clouds

makes the plants come up.

Water in our pool is just plain

refreshing,

or maybe

. . .

relaxing.

I'm thankful for all the rain we've gotten the past week.

It really helped with my late plantings.

We weren't able to swim as much, though.

So we were thankful to go for a swim on Saturday

with a visiting friend.

When Hannah gets out of the water, she lays in the sun to dry.

She could not resist dangling her arm back into

the cool.

A Use for Empty Pill Bottles

What can you use empty pill bottles for?

What about - - -

buttons,

safety pins?

They're see-through.

The lid is "child-proof".

And they're a compact size.

Josiah helped me fill some today,

while I was organizing my sewing stuff.

I did not get a before picture,

but trust me, it was a mess,

which made it hard to find what I needed.

As you can see in the above picture,

I made use of a thread box,

which previously had thread and

assorted other things.

It now just holds thread!

What a great smile Josiah.
I feel the same way
about getting organized!

And this is my completed "notions box",
for lack of a better word.
Everything is neatly in a Ziploc baggie,
or an empty pill bottle,
or it's original container,
so I can find things without dumping
the whole box on the table.

Family Favorites for Friday

Here's Josiah with a family recipe to share.

Let's see. We have all of our ingredients here.

1 pound ground beef

1 cup cooked brown rice

(or 1/2 cup uncooked white rice and 1/2 cup water)

1/3 cup chopped onion

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon celery salt

1/8 teaspoon garlic powder

1/8 teaspoon pepper

1 can (15 oz.) tomato sauce

1 cup water

2 teaspoons Worchestershire sauce

We set the oven to 350 degrees,

while we mix the meat, rice, onion, salts, garlic, and pepper.

Hannah makes the sauce with the remaining 3 ingredients.

Form meatballs out of the meat and rice mixture

and place them in an 8X8 baking dish.

Pour sauce over the top of the meatballs.

Cover the dish with aluminum foil,

place in the oven,

and set the timer for 45 minutes.

When the timer goes off,

Remove the foil

and bake 15 minutes longer.

This is what they look like once they're done.
Yummy!

Thrifty Thursday

I have this body pillow that I have used for years.

The only problem is that the pillowcase is worn out.

It has a rip up the side that cannot be mended any more.

And it is covered with "pills"or little knots.

I knew it would probably cost alot to replace,

so I thought I might try to make one myself.

Then, this thought came to me.
I went to the Thrift Store and found two
twin size fitted sheets that looked like new.
I got two so that I would have a spare.
I paid less than $2 for each one.
I brought the material (sheets) home,
washed them, cut them out to size,
and sewed it.
Here's the first one!


I'm so excited to have a nice crisp, new pillowcase
for only $2.

Potatoes, Corn, Tomatoes, and ABC's

Well, here is our first ever crop of potatoes!

A good enough portion to

make creamed peas and potatoes,

one of Theron's favorites.

Not much corn

to speak of,

but it was fun to watch it grow

and it will make a good snack for

the squirrels.

Mom says you need a whole field of it,

in order for it to really do well.

We have our first two tomatoes!

They usually do well here.

This year we have several different varieties,

so that will be fun.
Sorry, I don't remember which ones

these are.

Instead of the Kay Arthur Study for Kids,

we have switched gears.

The How to Study Your Bible book was a bit

too challenging for a just turned 8 year old.
We decided to go through

My ABC Bible Verses.

Our church had previously done it,

before we arrived and

I hated that we missed it,

so I got the book for us to do on our own.

We have really enjoyed the stories

and learning the verses.

Here is a sample of what they

are learning.

Pre-4th

I picked up some fireworks at Kroger and the kids had a blast!
If you do this, you might want to go over the rules of safety with your kids before you start.
Sometimes we think our kids know something and they don't or they forgot since last time we did fireworks. Be on the safe side.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Have a Happy and Safe Fourth!

Falling with Grace

Hannah has been working on her diving. She's doing well with keeping her legs straight. Now we need to work on the arm position more. Hannah made some delicious teacakes today, too.

She made heart shapes and circles.

And some in the shape of a cross.

They were good. I could have eaten alot of them!

A Clear Perspective for Wednesday

I heard this song today and just wanted to share it.