The search for Christmas tree 2011

Sweet traditions
"So, um . . . what exactly will we be doing?"

"Cutting down a tree?! Count me in, Okay!"

Another page in our book of perfect days.

Sand Box

Oliver in the sand.

I just want to squish him.

Bound for greatness

This girl was born for something great.

Like maybe the stage and she will follow in Aunt Jayme's footsteps.

I cannot begin to tell you how she blesses my heart. And melts me.

Here she tells of how her tooth came out last night, with a little help from her big brother.

She would hardly let me touch the tooth, but he, oh HE is allowed to help with tooth pulling. It's quite an honor.

And so she has lost another tooth. The much anticipated Other Front Tooth. The one that was momentarily upstaged by a silly little bottom tooth that popped out earlier this week. The one that now leaves her mouth exquisitely gaping and not a little like her infancy when those top two came in after her incisors.

Sweet little face.

Fourth

    My littlest love.

    I love how the light plays across his face.

   And his smile.
 
   Swoon!

Fall cometh

It's creeping up on me but I'm not quite done with summer. However it's beauty is wearing me down.

First day

I've been wanting to join a homeschool co-op for about four years now. The one I really wanted to participate in is about forty five minutes away and for reasons financial I could not commit the fuel to the weekly excursion.

All last year I reviewed other co-ops in our area and found that one meets across the road from our neighborhood. When I had nearly decided on which one to try, I was happily contacted by friends of the first group and discovered that they were opening a chapter in my area and meeting just ten minutes down the road.

I excitedly signed up and helped plan the fall schedule with the other moms and before we knew it, the group numbered close to forty families. Thanks to the incredibly talented and organized leadership of the two moms who broke off from the main group to start this one, we have a wonderful homeschool co-op schedule. Every mom helps somewhere for three of the four hours and then she gets an hour to meet and pray with other moms. All the children get a gym class and then three other extra curricular choices.

We're offering art, music, cooking, ballet, book study (the Hobbit and Little Women), nature, creative writing, Spanish and American Sign Language. I feel like I may have forgotten a class or two. Hmmm.

Anyway, I'm helping with the pre-school class for the first hour and teaching a nature class for kindergarten and first graders second hour. The third hour is my sweetly appointed time to pray with some of the moms and then back to teaching second to fifth graders' creative writing.

Today was the first day of 12 weeks. We'll meet every Wednesday morning from nine to twelve thirty. I'm very excited and not a little nervous! My littles are very excited. Many of their old friends will be there and many new ones yet to be made.

I'm looking forward to making new friendships and strengthening old ones.

Here's to a new adventure!

A New Scholastic Year

New things coming! 

Corduroy Bear has a birthday

This little girl just turned 1. Happy birthday puppy.

That's what puppy dogs are made of

Annabelle's a firm believer that every girl needs a little flare. So here's our girl Corduroy with a lovely bow. I do believe she's smiling.

Today is her birthday. She's one . . . or seven.

A little late with the change of seasons

Wow. It's a little chilly with the snow on my background picture. I've already missed spring, I guess I should change that and maybe the warmth of JULY will help me to get back to writing.

Father's day in Chicago

We enjoyed a sweet little Father's Day excursion in Chicago this weekend, visiting the zoo and my sister.

These little people are so adorable.

Funny faces

 But not too funny.  add a dash of serious.
We don't want to go over the top.

A Darling Starling

Probably one of the most  confusing manmade things to nature is the window. How many little winged darlings have thudded into the patio glass and ended life in a little crumpled heap upon the ground? Today while we were reading in the family room, this confused Starling discovered a glass window pane. Fortunately for him, he was only dazed. Minutes after this picture he flew off only a little rattled and a lot wiser.

Allium Blossoms

I cannot even tell you how long I've waited for one of these beauties to bloom in my garden.
I finally got some bulbs and nestled them into the moist earth in just the right place and anxiously waited for the perfectly spherical explosion of color.
They remind me of fireworks in July, but I get to experience them in May. I'll be adding to this collection for sure.

Just watching Oliver play

If it has wheels, he's going to line it up.

He's very much like his big brother in this.

Sorry it's a little dark.

Backyard make over in slow motion

Still trying to do something with this.

Morning lilacs

Morning sunshine on my lilacs. How wonderful that our new place has beautiful blooming lilac trees. One of my favorite as you may remember.

88 reasons to love you

My sister wrote this and mailed it to Grandma for her birthday this week. I'm posting the video so she can watch Grandma read it.