~Noticing God's glory

outside is hazy and humid at 6am already. The air conditioners are humming and I am thanking God for them! The sun is just rising and I can see it's going to be another hot one today!

 ~listening to

the air conditioners whirring away. I love the cool but hate the noise they bring!

 ~clothing myself in

still in my jammies.....comfy is the name of the game for today!

~giving thanks for

a wonderful weekend visit with my Mom. And also for all the support coming in for Emily, I am truly humbled and have realized my faith is so small in such things....God is providing abundantly for her and I am in awe.......but He is in control and I should not be so surprised!

~books we are reading

Practical Happiness by Bob Shultz.......it's written to boys but we are reading it as a family at devotions and it is really good!

~pondering prayerfully

everything that needs to be done to get Emily off on her trip next week.......once I get her off then I can think about all the other things that need doing right now......

~creating by hand

I put aside the shawl that i ripped the lace out 3 times on....it is just not a good time for me to be doing a lace pattern. I decided to grab this lovely yarn off my shelf and whip up this sweater for Hannah Grace. It's the Nellie sweater......very vintage and i love it! I'm up to the sleeves so it's almost done. When Emily leaves I will pick up my shawl again......

~learning lessons in

this week is going to be a basics week......Monday was a Holiday and Friday we are going to Hershey Park.....I also have to get Jacob's testing done this week and start thinking about porfolios.......ugh!

 ~carefully cultivating rhythm


We will be coming up with a new rhythm after Emily leaves next week......a summer rhythm with a balance of learning and activities!

~begging prayers

For the last of Emily's funding to come in and for all the last minute details of her trip .......and for this momma's heart as I send my first off on this missions trip.

 ~keeping house

ohhh.....can I skip this one today?

~in the kitchen

looking to use up things we already have as the food budget is tight this week!! Creative is the name of the game!!

~health and fitness

Christopher has been running with me this past week. And even did a 4 mile long run on Sunday! He is a great running partner....but will probably end up running with Elaina because he is already faster then me! I'm down to 158 and I have not seen that # in years!!! It feels good to have all my clothes big on me and not tight!

~loving the moments

just enjoying family....it's all about family!

~Hannah Grace

This one is getting to be a little wild!! Screeching is now fun and so is doing all the things that Momma says no too!! Like standing on chairs and grabbing things she shouldn't.........We all like to laugh at her antics but then she just does it more!!

~living the liturgy

prayer........I need to constantly be communicating with my Father! I am trying to get a new rhythm to my time alone with Him. Lately it's been hit or miss and that is no good!!     

~Noticing God's glory

everything outside is lush and green.....thanking God for a gorgeous weekend of sunny clear and blue skies.......but this morning the rain is pouring down really hard. a good day to get stuff done inside!

~listening to

Christopher in the kitchen getting his breakfast and talking to Hannah Grace as she follows him around

 ~clothing myself in

I just ran 3 miles on the treadmill......very sweaty is what I would describe my clothes right now

~giving thanks for

as I ran this morning I was thinking about grace......God has shown me such grace in my life and I am so thankful for it.....I need to let that grace flow through me to everyone around me......GRACE

~books we are reading

we are spending loads of time outside and the field guides are out and about on the tables and floor. This weekend we were focusing on trees and identifying them by there bark and leaves.....

 ~pondering prayerfully

plans for schooling this year.......decisions need to be made ........yes, still undecided here

  ~creating by hand

with lots of time being spent in the woods not as much creating is going on........my shawl was almost done and then I messed up somehow and needed to rip back all the lace last week. I am now on my last repeat and it should be done by tomorrow? The sewing machine has been quiet as well.

~learning lessons in

trees and we are ordering our caterpillars this week! 


~carefully cultivating rhythm

this is the last week of co-op and the past 2 weeks have been all about recitals and end of year programs....I am looking forward to next week when we can find our warmer weather rhythm! Emily is also in the year end drama.......Your a good man Charlie Brown! The big event is Friday night!

~begging prayers

Emily spoke in church this past Sunday looking for prayer and financial support for her trip to Thailand. It went very well and some kind people have sponsored her already!  Please continue to pray for her trip to be fully funded and that God would go before her and behind her and be very near her at this time!

~keeping house

I managed to reorganize the school shelves this weekend and I must say with everyone spending so much more time outside the house is staying cleaner!

~in the kitchen

green smoothies for breakfast this morning......yummy!

~health and fitness

so I missed posting last week after the 5k.....Elaina ran just over a 25 m/m and came in 3rd in her age group!! I also had a personal best at just over 31 m/m!!! We had such fun!!! We got out early Sat. and did a 5 mile trail run.....we ran into deer, giant bull frogs and even saw a beaver swimming by!

~loving the moments

as we get closer to Emily leaving I am really enjoying the stolen moments when we are all here at home just hanging out and talking......such sweet times and I'm cherishing them!

~Hannah Grace

this little one is just about running now! Crawling is a thing of the past!! She signs.......more, please and thank you now......too cute! And those top teeth are really coming down! I keep saying this but it is all going by too fast!!



~living the liturgy

like I said earlier I am thinking about grace today........Lord help me to show others the same grace you show me.......daily   

Well I had to miss last weeks yarn along......not because I wasn't knitting or reading but my laptop crashed and so I am now on week 2 with no computer.......well, I do have the kids computer but it just is not the same. I am hoping to have a new hard drive and be up and running again sometime next week.

So I come to you this week from my kids computer with no photoshop and only iphone pics to share my projects. Which I guess I really should not be complaining about!



I finished Hannah Grace's summer tee which was a fast and easy knit. I love how it came out and I can see myself knitting up a couple more and I am thinking of maybe doing it longer as a dress with shorter puff sleeves.....too cute! (on a side note I also made those pants to match......my second sewing project ever! The big but baby pants pattern is easy and quick....even for a beginner like me)

I also finished a Birthday request for my son Jacob who is turning 10 in June. He has been asking for slippers and we found this pattern Family of Slippers and decided to try our hand at felting! Here are the before and after photos.......we went from a rather large pair of gigantic looking socks to thick and cozy wool slippers that he is thrilled with! Felting was fun and it turned out great even with my front loading machine.


I have made good progress on my Cinnamon shawl......I am up to the lace part and it is coming along nicely. I keep thinking about my spring cardigan but I have not picked it up again......might be next springs cardigan at this rate!


Reading has been light this week.....nothing new to share, I am thinking of putting another audio book on my iphone and i am hoping to find some good suggestions from this weeks yarn along! Joining over at Ginny's as usual.......happy knitting!!

~Noticing God's glory

in blessings.......He has blessed me so much more then I deserve. I live in a beautiful house in an amazing place....I am surrounded by my wonderful family.....I see His graciousness to me wherever I turn. The drizzle we are having has turned the woods out back into every shade of green...the trees are finally blooming full and the smell of spring rain is in the air. 

~listening to

My 2 oldest getting ready to leave for work.....I love that these 2 are so close.....working together and sharing life together. That will change next month when Emily leaves.......

~clothing myself in

flannel pj pants and a t shirt.......it's a late start this am

~giving thanks for

a husband who got on board with an impromptu hike yesterday and took us all on an adventure. He knows all these woods so well and heading off the beaten trail is what he loves best.....if I had my computer I could show you amazing photos of hilltop views and muddy boys playing in waterfalls....

 ~books we are reading

digging through the shelves for anything about spring and thinking on book lists for the upcoming weeks....

~pondering prayerfully

plans for schooling this year.......decisions need to be made

 ~creating by hand

I did get a few more rows done on my henslowe shawl........I do have plans to pull out the sewing machine and make another pair of pants for the baby.....the fabric is all ready to go....

 ~learning lessons in

piecing together some lessons on weather.....seems like a good time to get into it.....

 ~carefully cultivating rhythm

our learning rhythm seems to be good right now.......I just need to tackle the chore/house upkeep rhythm and we will be good.....I am also thinking about the time I spend on the computer.....since I have not had one all week it has freed up time, I need to find a good balance here.....

~begging prayers

for Emily as she raises support for her upcoming missions trip.....

~keeping house

this is hard right now as I would rather be outside enjoying spring.........

~in the kitchen

lots of good stuff.......homemade granola and bean brownies that were a big hit this weekend!! Baking bread today and homemade pizza on the menu this week....

 ~health and fitness

next Saturday is the 5K! Elaina and I did 4 miles on McDade trail on Saturday......my time was 44 minutes. I plan on dong 2 short runs this week and maybe a few exercise tapes in between. I'm down to 162 and feeling good!

 ~loving the moments

we finished up the season of Dowton Abby this weekend.......we all enjoyed it and it was fun to think about how life was back then...I don't watch a lot of TV but this was fun doing with the older kids......and so funny how much Brian liked it!

~Hannah Grace

those 2 top teeth are peeking through.....her grin is going to change very soon! She prefers to walk now.....it's more like a swagger..... kind of back and forth like! I weighed her last week and she is only 18 lbs. 1 1/2 ozs.........such a little peanut!!

~living the liturgy



      

~Noticing God's glory


~listening to

the sound of Hannah Grace sniffling as she nurses.....2 days of being well and now here we are with a runny nose again, allergies maybe?

~clothing myself in

workout clothes that are a little sweaty.....that's good right?

~giving thanks for

a very full weekend! that ended with a nice date to Apple Valley and then to Lowes, so romantic! Then home for ice cream and a movie with the kids. So thankful for family time when we are all together.

 ~books we are reading

Pulling out our books about birds this week. A new one we loved is The Boy who Drew Birds......about John James Audobon. Lovely illustrations, it's a new favorite.  

~pondering prayerfully

Praying over my children today.....Lord keep them close to you, guide them and lead them. also lifting up our school plans, may our home glorify You always.....

 ~creating by hand

I picked up some new fabrics.......finished Hannah Grace's summer tee and cast on for my Henslowe shawl. I hope to cut out some more pants this week and possibly a dress?

~learning lessons in

following the theme from last week.....we are still trying to love each other well. This is something I think we will be learning all our lives......    

~encouraging learning

birds......it's all about birds this week!

~carefully cultivating rhythm

this is the first week in a while that we will be home most days (except for Thursday which is co-op) so I am looking forward to falling into our daily rhythm and having time to really learn together.

~begging prayers

again for good health......

~keeping house

just as I began getting out summer clothing bins the weather turned cold again.....so now we have both seasons out and that is messy! Hopefully some yard work will get done this week.

~in the kitchen

whipping up some pancakes for breakfast and baked ziti with homemade Italian bread for dinner. Being home means more time to spend in the kitchen!

~health and fitness

well I got to day 19 of the shred and my computer crashed ......since my videos were on my computer I could not do that workout anymore......I pulled some other dvd workouts off the shelf and have continued on with those......I like the variety better I think. I also did a 3.10 run on Sunday in 33 minutes....a best for me!

 ~loving the moments

with my littler ones this week......especially Caleb who can be so animated and funny. He never stops moving! He is growing up way to fast as he tries to keep up with his older brothers, but then I see him nodding off on the couch...thumb in mouth.....after a hard day of playing and I remember he is only 5.
 

 

         

I'm joining Elizabeth again to share what I've been sewing and reading this week and can I just say that I did it! First off I finished the baby blanket I started last week. I even made my own binding for it.....that was a real learning process but I think it was good practice for me. It has a lot of flaws but I really don't think the baby cares!



And then yesterday I actually made pants that Hannah Grace can wear!! Yes I really did it! The main reason I decided to start sewing was so I could make the big but baby pants......having a baby in cloth diapers makes it hard to find pants that fit good.....they are always tight.




You guys that have been sewing a while probably think ......no big deal......but what a great feeling to know I  "can" do this!! I also made the headband with leftover elastic and fabric. She looks so cute it in! I found that cute top at Target and the colors matched perfect! I can't wait to make another pair!

Sorry for the overload of pics but this was just so neat.....that they actually turned out.....that they actually look good on her.....I am just beyond excited!!

And so now I can see myself making some other things.......hmmmm.....another trip to the fabric store is in order I think!! Happy sewing!!

Oh and on the reading side .....like I shared yesterday I'm going back over Educating the Wholehearted child by the Clarkson's to renew my focus for our homeschooling.....by far my favorite homeschooling book!

That spring cardigan I am working on is at a point where I was getting bored with it.....so into my stash I went and pulled out this fun striping yarn and decided to cast on for a "sweet summer tee" for Hannah Grace! Seems I can't just have one project going, I must knit in a gazillion directions in order to be happy! I have not stopped work on my cardy just set it aside for the moment.....I am almost 1/2 way done with it!


I was in need of some encouragement in the homeschooling area this week and so I pulled out an old favorite by the Clarksons to redirect our school days and remind me of just why I am doing this. Educating the Wholehearted Child was just reprinted, I believe it is the 3rd edition. I recommend this book to every homeschooler I know! I have a renewed focus and our days have been so much better!

Well I hope to get over  to Ginny's later to see what everyone else has been knitting and reading this week......happy knitting!!