Oh, Melt My Heart :)

   Is there anything much more precious than a 15 month old lisping the name of Jesus? It sounds more like Jee-shu, but we know what she means. Bri and Tori have been asking Bethi all day, "Say Jesus...say God...say Jesus...say God..." I'm sure you get the picture. It makes me wonder what God thought the first time He heard a toddler Jesus speak the name of God. I remember when Tori said Santa for the first time and I remember the shock of horror I felt that my child had learned to say Santa before she had ever said God, I seriously wallowed in guilt! In fact, that was the beginning of the end of Santa in our home! It's silly now, she didn't have a clue what she was talking about, but at the time I felt like a horrible mother. Bethani has had one of those "intellectual" growth spurts recently, you know, the kind that leaves you wondering, "When did she learn that?!", several times a day :). Oh, they grow so fast!

Birthdays

 Some of you already know that last Saturday was my birthday. My parents spent their first wedding anniversary walking the halls of the hospital hoping I would be an anniversary present. Stinker that I was, I just had to wait until the next day, nearly 10 hours after midnight. Many of you don't know that it was also hubby's birthday. Three years to the day before my mother was still walking the halls with me, a little boy had been born who would one day be the hero who would sweep me off my feet.

   Most people find that coincidence odd enough, they are really floored when I tell them that from a tiny girl I always said I would only marry someone who shared my birthday. Where would a child get that crazy idea? ...My parents share a birthday together! The funny thing is, when I met Lee I told my mom that day that I had met the man I was going to marry. It was a couple of weeks later before I found out his birthday was the same as mine! I invited him over for supper at my parents house (he cooked!) and the rest is, as they say, history :).

   We met while working at a McDonalds. It was my first job at fifteen, Lee was eighteen. We jokingly refer to our wee ones as our "small fry". Ya, I know, a little corny...

   Anyway, lest you're not yet all that impressed, here is a little more Shaffer birth trivia for you... Lee was born in Shelby, North Carolina; I was born in Lee county in Iowa...Lee has the same middle name as my dad (Lee)...and Lee's mom's roommate in the hospital had a little girl that they named Shelby, how funny is that?! Seriously it's in his baby book!!!

Lee & Shelby 2002

    I wouldn't want to leave you with the impression that I married Lee for his birthday ;). To the contrary, I'm pretty sure I could have been convinced even if he hadn't been born on August 26th. I mean, seriously, at eighteen he came to my home for our first date and made supper (spaghetti from scratch!) for my family! He has made me happier today than I had ever imagined I would be, even in those beginning "falling in love" days. He has servant leadership down to an art, he genuinely desires a close walk with God free of the superficial trappings of the mainstream, he is a wonderful father, unfailingly sensitive to my pregnancy hormones, a selfless provider for his family, and he always knows when I need chocolate or ice cream without my ever having to say anything ;). Ahhh, true love!

Update #3 ~A Herd of Cows and a Llama...

   We're home! We got home late Saturday night. Yes, Saturday night. We ended up staying overnight. The girls did wonderfully! I was the trouble maker, I didn't realize the car ride would be so uncomfortable. Luckily I had somewhat prepared for such a necessity so it wasn't a terribly big deal. I bet you're wondering about my post title. If we got nothing else out of our road trip we got a new family code word of sorts. While driving down a country road we came upon a herd of cattle. Noticing there was something odd about one of them I took a closer look...it was a Llama...one little lone Llama in a herd of cows! When we went *back* by a little while later I double checked for additional Llama kind and there were none. I had a lot of fun at that poor Llamas expense! When Bri pointed out his circumstances weren't of his own making and I was being cruel for picking so mercilessly, I replied I wasn't making fun, I was pitying him...in a somewhat jovial manner. I guarantee that when we are out in public and the girls start picking up on the manners and behavior of "the world" (aka "the cows") they will know exactly what we mean when we say...be the Llama! You know, come out and be ye separate...and all that.

   Other than that interesting experience, I will always remember the car that looked like it had had a head on collision with a bedazzler. You know, those things that were "all the rage" many years ago. And personalized license plates seemed to be "the thing". I about drove myself batty trying to figure them all out! While you were working on one, another was coming up right behind it and I would totally lose my train of thought! I would be a horrible driver in...that state.

   Tori was entranced by the beauty of the countryside :). It was so cute to hear her in the backseat saying, "Oh Bri, look! It's beautiful!". When we asked what she thought of possibly living there she said, "I would get to see the prettiness every time we went somewhere!". Bri said she felt a lot better about a move after seeing the place if that was what we ultimately decided and Bethi said, "Anything you want, just let me out of this car!!!". O.K. she didn't really say that, and she was very good, but she was thrilled to get home!

   I got very little sleep that night, but at least I got to stretch out and I can guarantee you it saved me some serious bouts of motion sickness! We got to bed about one in the morning, I think.. Bethani woke up at about two and knowing Lee would be doing a lot more driving the next day I didn't want to wake him up. She finally went to sleep at about four at which time I tried to get some sleep but it was difficult because Bethi had decided that the only place she could get comfortable was down at the foot of the bed by Lee's feet! I left her there, partly because she kept flinging her arm in Lee's face and partly because she was actually going to sleep down there and I didn't want to mess that up! So, I was hyper-anxious that Lee would accidently kick her and I had to stay awake until I was sure she was asleep and I could scoot her over. Then from five to seven I started having contractions that could be timed at about 11 minutes apart, exactly. Again, I didn't wake Lee up because I convinced myself that no matter what I was too tired to have a baby, I just couldn't do it. I guess I was tired if I convinced myself I had any control over that! I finally got some quality sleep between seven and eight, when Bethi woke up. You really don't know what kind of odd sleeping habits your children have picked up until you lay awake watching them sleep in a hotel. Surprisingly I was even in a fairly good mood that next day!

   Now, for the info you're all waiting for... we stopped by the store while we were there, unbeknownst to anyone who works there. The girls thought it was pretty cool to be playing "the spy". It was a mess. No, it was a MESS! We were under the impression that Lee would be making little more than a side step. That the store needed a little cleaning up but nothing drastic. Ya, it was a little messy. I don't think they have vacuumed since the Easter rush and it's been a lot longer than that since they have changed light bulbs! But the real problem was, well, everything! Even our eight year old said, "Mom, I can't find anything in here!". The home school section was labeled Young Readers and, trust me, whoever ordered for it did not know what they were doing, that stuff is never going to sell. The stuff looked years old already. And this in a state that is really big in homeschooling! Ceiling tiles were haphazardly pushed aside and book sections were split up into three and four areas in the store! If Lee took over he would have to start from scratch. Every shelf would have to be moved, every book reorganized, every section properly labeled, every staff member probably replaced (we got a pretty poor impression of the work ethic of the ones we got to see "in action"...if you can call sitting in a big comfy chair behind the counter "action"), and the "numbers" grown on top of all of that. It would mean 80 hour weeks when we first got there, all with a new baby and the girls and I in a hotel room? So, we've made our decision. They have got to be crazy! I don't know why they have been holding out on us this long, you think they would be so desperate to get Lee in there that they would be throwing benefits his way! In the end, the place wasn't quite what we expected, though we did like it and we have narrowed it down to a couple of areas if we ever do decide to go there. So, there is really no compelling reason to go. Lee and I both feel that, while it wouldn't necessarily be a "bad" move in the long run, there just isn't enough in it for our family to make the move right now. They are expecting Lee to work double what he does right now for next to nothing in return. Nope, sorry, we've got it pretty cushy right here! So, while this isn't *exactly* a no, it is a "not without a lot more compromise" and we have had to wait so long for what they finally gave in to that it is highly unlikely this is going to go through. Lee's staff are thrilled. He told them last night that he has developed a whole new appreciation for them!

   I had a really hard day yesterday, I think I have been under so much stress the last couple of months and then this whole moving thing this week has just set me over the top. It was a chocolate day yesterday! Lee and I will be working in our room making it all clean and cozy for recuperation time and I am enjoying the thought of being able to once again look forward to baby time, instead of packing. it is going to be hard to let my guard down until Lee has actually talked to the DM up there though, they have been in meetings the last couple of days).

   Thank you so much for your prayers and support!

Update #2

    Slight change of plans. Lee just surprised me with the fact that he has gotten off for a whole extended weekend (starting tomorrow) so we will be going up to "the place we could soon be calling home" tomorrow instead. I love having hubby home and one day earlier is one day "safer" baby wise!

Update #1

   Well, Lee called the DM yesterday and told them that we are seriously open to a move. We are so open in fact that, if I don't go into labor before Saturday, we will be taking a quick drive to the area, about 4 1/2 hours away, to get a feel for the place and so Lee can go into the store and get a look at what he would be getting into. It could be a fun way to spend a birthday :). I actually do love car trips but it may be a little stressful being so far away from home right now. We won't even be staying one night because it is so close to term for baby. Obviously if this wasn't such a life changing decision we would be staying put right now. It sounds like they are wanting a final decision fairly soon.

I Love Being There to Share in My Children's Epiphanies!

   You know how Answers in Genesis says that all of the Bible can find it's foundation in the first 11 chapters of Genesis? Well, I'm now thoroughly convinced :). Yesterday as we were working through The Seven C's of History Bri said, "You know, the way God created Eve was exactly like the story of the loaves and the fishes.". "Huh?!", I thought, but more politely asked, "How do you mean?". "Well", she answered, "God took a little to make a lot. In one story He made a whole person out of part of another, in the the other Jesus made a whole feast for tons of people out of part of one person's meal.".

   Yep, God is truly the same yesterday, today, and forever...

"I the Lord do not change."

Malachi 3:6

To My Prayer Pals

 Every once in awhile a blessing shows it's little head, and as silly as it sounds you get the urge to ask God to please let you be blessed later. And no, I'm not talking about the baby ;).

   Over two years ago, when Lee first started at the bookstore, we had sat down and discussed where we would eventually like to end up and a specific place is what we settled on for many reasons. Several months ago that is the very store that was brought up to Lee in a,"Would you be interested?", sort of way. It was hard but we laid down a few if they do this, this and/or this we'll consider it. It's been brought up a couple of more times since then but it never really looked like they would be willing to give much, although the carrot they dangled did get a little bigger each time. Last week, Lee was again asked if he would consider taking over the store, and they are finally willing to accommodate the last thing we were really holding out for. So, if they are willing to work on the timing with us, and they are saying they will, though there isn't an exact plan laid out, it looks like we will be moving about six'ish weeks after the baby is born.

   This is the usual pattern of things when we have a baby, we have a baby and Lee gets a new job or a position requiring a move. With Bri it was at six months, not too bad. Tori was five weeks old, but we didn't have to move until she was almost three months, which was actually horrible because that had Lee driving back and forth from Iowa to Indiana for two months. We got a break with Bethani. Lee started at the bookstore and just a few months later we found out she was on the way, so we were settled into Lee's new position before she arrived. This time it looks like we're back on schedule with a baby then a move :).

   Anyway, the whole purpose of going into all of this is to ask my "prayer pals" to be holding this situation up to the Father. On the one hand this is something we really want and we don't want to make the final decision based on human want. On the other hand, we don't want to say no, if this is God's will for us, simply out of laziness. A move in the middle of the school year with two "in" school, a toddler, and a newborn sounds exhausting! And I have to admit I'm a bit jealous of possibly losing some of that precious "babymoon" time, when mommies have permission to be fully absorbed in their baby. Of course, if we are forced to live in a hotel for a few weeks I'll have nothing to do but hold my baby anyway, that would take care of that! Incidentally, as I write this paragraph, the hymn Have A Little Talk With Jesus started playing in the background :). Good idea...

   I'll keep you updated but it could be a couple of weeks before we know anything definite.

Awww, My First Tag...

Five things in my freezer:

1. Ice- I'm 36 weeks pregnant and it's summer in South Carolina (Heat Index over 110 last week!). I can't get enough shaved ice!!! Preferably eaten while sitting under the air conditioning vent ;).

2. Blueberries- from a sweet older lady who is always dropping off goodies for our girls on her way home from the grocery store.

3. French Fries- It's French Fry Friday in the Shaffer home ;).

4. Pre-cooked and divided hamburger- makes many meals a snap!

5. Ice cream- I'm 36 weeks pregnant and it is summer in South Carolina...

Five things in my closet:

1. Clothing- Dresses, skirts, blouses, sweaters ("In SC?!" you say. Ya, they don't get much wear which is really sad because I love sweaters!)...

2. Gifts- I've bought the girls when I saw something "just perfect" on clearance and put up for later. Most of their birthday *shopping* was done from my closet last year!

3. Memory boxes- Full of tiny baby booties, coming home outfits for all of my girls, first year calendars, pictures, my baby shower corsages, etc...

4. Extra blankets- We don't use many of these, this is SC...

5. A doll my grandmother made me when I was 4- Her name is Kim ;). She is about 2 feet "tall" with long black braids. When I was about five I drew a big splotch of lipstick on her forehead because she had been *wounded*. Took me until my late teen years to get that stupid stain out...

Five things in my mini van:

1. A car freshener- That doesn't smell anymore but it's still hanging because it is also a frame with pictures of the girls in it :).

2. A couple of things we've picked up for Bri's birthday- Coming up in September,  and we haven't been able to sneak them in unnoticed yet.

3. A bag of books- That a regular customer of Lee's lent to him.

4. Probably a few receipts, candy wrappers, notes of things Lee has picked up for me at the grocery store on his way home from work, etc...

5. A small collection of Wal-Mart bags- Most of us are highly susceptible to motion sickness :P

Five things in my purse/diaper bag:

1. A first aid kit- Of course, anytime I actually need it my purse has been left in the car!

2. My keys- People tease me about my keys all of the time. I don't know what the big deal is, isn't it normal to have nine key chains to hold three keys?

3. A small notebook- Great to have when I see something I'd like to have but decide to wait. I see my note again about a year later when I clean out my notebook and wonder what was so important about it to make me write it down ;). If I truly needed it I didn't need my notebook to remember it....

4. A trim-lined Bible- What better way to redeem those "waiting" moments?

5. A tiny sewing kit- Do you see why I must carry both a purse AND a diaper bag ;)?

Five things in my wallet:

1. Bethi's immunization card- She has her final major round of immunizations on Wednesday, I can't wait to get it over with. Then we get to start all over again with Baby...

2. A Wal-Mart shopping card with a snow man on it- Yes, in SC in the summer, I love snowmen :)! Since we don't do Santa I mainly decorate in snowflakes/snowmen for winter.

3. Coupons- Of course, I always find one or two for something I've just bought, that is so frustrating!

4. A note to remind me of Lee's favorite brand of clothes- I've been pregnant and/or nursing for two years straight now! I can't be expected to remember these things off of the top of my head!

5. My check book- Yes, it is a big wallet. Actually more like a large organized compartment in my equally large purse. Carrying it around kills two birds with one stone. I have everything I need with me and I'm strengthening my arms, you know, "she strengthens her arms" Proverbs 31:17 ;).

Five people I tag:

Well, I don't know that anyone I read hasn't done it yet so, rather than double tag anyone, I'm tagging anyone who reads this and hasn't done it yet. If you do it leave me a link in the comments so I can see it, I think it's a fun way to get to know people!

Room #4: The Kitchen!

I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.

-John 15:5

 Ahhh, my favorite room in the house :). When we first started decorating the kitchen in a grape theme it was sooo hard to find grape stuff! A couple of years later it's everywhere!

The baker's rack was given to us. It blends in so beautifully with everything else and gives me                         somewhere to display my "pretties" as well as to store cookbooks.

Can you see this picture a bit over the baker's rack? Bet you would never guess where Lee shot it. In an alley in Iowa. Can you believe it?! I love it!

The crock pot was a wedding gift. Five years later, after we had started decorating the kitchen, we realized it had a grape vine design on it. Funny or sad that it took that long so really notice? You can decide :).

I used more rubbings (Yes, I love those things) to (cheaply!) change a run of the mill canister set from Wal-Mart into a one of a kind creation that looks great in the kitchen. The spice rack, in fact all of the wrought iron stuff, was a clearance find at Kirkland's.

Here you get your first glimpse of my favorite feature :)! Lee hung a grapevine around the top of the wall for me, it gives the kitchen such an elegant feel! My heirloom cream colored china set that we have used for every holiday since our marriage, except for one Thanksgiving that we spent at a buffet during a move, is set along the top of the cupboards. It frees up room in the cupboards and looks "homey".

This was my Christmas present a couple of years ago. It was a perfect gift from Bri and Tori, see the two little grape clusters? One big and one little? I thought it was cute :).

Here is another view of my grapevine. It is draped over the archway and into the dining room on two wrought iron brackets meant to hold plant pots. I love it!

Lastly, I don't have a lot of storage space so I try to get creative. I love baskets. I took this one, ran some grapevine around it and it holds my dish towels and dish rags :).

I've got a couple of more rooms to do but I haven't even taken the pictures yet so it may take me a few days to get them posted.

(You can see my computer in the background!)

Room #3: The Master Bath

Mightier than the thunders of many waters, mightier than the waves of the sea, the Lord on high is mighty!

~Psalm 92:4

Over The Sea

Over the sea, over the sea,
Jesus Savior pilot me.
Over the sea, over the sea,

Over the Jasper Sea.

Over and over,

Like a mighty sea.

Comes the love of Jesus,

Rolling over me.

When I was tiny my mother used to sing with us during bath time. The two favorites were He's Got The Whole World In His Hands and Over the Sea.  

Lee designed this medicine cabinet for me. You can't really see the sides very well but there are sea shell rubbings up and down the sides. The ships on the top were dollar store finds :)!

Here is another dollar store find, it is actually a placemat but it looks great on the wall. Isn't it                                                                             fun to be creative?

You can't really see it well in the above picture but we have a copy of Footprints on the wall. One day I would like to frame a matching set of Footprints and The Sailor's Hymn.

Jesus, Savior, Pilot Me (The Sailor's Hymn)

Jesus, Savior, pilot me
Over life’s tempestuous sea;
Unknown waves before me roll,
Hiding rock and treacherous shoal.
Chart and compass come from Thee;
Jesus, Savior, pilot me.

While th’Apostles’ fragile bark
Struggled with the billows dark,
On the stormy Galilee,
Thou didst walk upon the sea;
And when they beheld Thy form,
Safe they glided through the storm.

Though the sea be smooth and bright,
Sparkling with the stars of night,
And my ship’s path be ablaze
With the light of halcyon days,
Still I know my need of Thee;
Jesus, Savior, pilot me.

When the darkling heavens frown,
And the wrathful winds come down,
And the fierce waves, tossed on high,
Lash themselves against the sky,
Jesus, Savior, pilot me,
Over life’s tempestuous sea.

As a mother stills her child,
Thou canst hush the ocean wild;
Boisterous waves obey Thy will,
When Thou sayest to them, “Be still!”
Wondrous Sovereign of the sea,
Jesus, Savior, pilot me.

When at last I near the shore,
And the fearful breakers roar
’Twixt me and the peaceful rest,
Then, while leaning on Thy breast,
May I hear Thee say to me,
“Fear not, I will pilot thee.”

-Edward Hopper 1871

Room #2: The Girls "Powder Room"

The knowingness of little girls is hidden underneath their curls.

-Phyllis McGinley

"Why a picture of towels?!" you ask. Well, because this room was decorated around the towels! They were a wedding gift from a family I used to babysit and they have become a constant reminder of the desires God has fulfilled in my life. The wee ones who were just a dream when I was rocking other people's babies have become my reality! I never want to take that for granted.

If you look really closely you can see that I glued artificial flowers onto the shower curtain rings, it really adds an elegant touch to the whole room!

I also took some of the artificial flowers and filled a glass bowl with a scalloped top half-way with them for the counter top.

My favorite part of the room is the heart and flowers rubbing on the mirror underneath the swag. It will come off if we ever need it to with a little tape and some "goo-be-gone".

The papers on the mirror are the Ten Commandments. One sheet is straight from the Bible and the other is a short explanation of each. Tooth brushing time is a great time to memorize!

"Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water."

-Hebrews 10:22

Room #1: The Nursery

"Babies Don't Keep"

Mother, oh Mother, come shake out your cloth
empty the dustpan, poison the moth,
hang out the washing and butter the bread,
sew on a button and make up a bed.

Where is the mother whose house is so shocking?
She's up in the nursery, blissfully rocking.

The cleaning and scrubbing will wait till tomorrow,
for children grow up, as I've learned to my sorrow.
So quiet down, cobwebs. Dust go to sleep.
I'm rocking my baby and babies don't keep.

-- Author Unknown

This is probably the last "nursery" we will ever have, from now on it's share and share alike. We went with a butterfly theme for Bethani ("new life"). Do you see the butterflies on the wall? They are tissue paper butterflies! We all made them together one family night before Bethi was born. We had a lot of fun, made a memory, the girls really felt like they helped decorate the baby's room, it added something special to the walls, and it was cheap!

Since Bethani was our third girl nobody knew what to get her because we already had all of the stuff, so they sent her money instead. We pooled it all and got a "real" rocking chair like I've always wanted. We had one of those glider's before, that is now in my room beside the cradle soon to be put back to use again! Lee painted the footstool to match. It makes for a very special place to cuddle :).

Bethani's rocking horse just makes the room! My sister painted it for her for Christmas last year, didn't she do a great job?!!!

There's Bethani in the corner wondering what mommy's doing :).

Epiphany at Mealtime

   Feeding a toddler has got to be one of the most exasperating jobs of motherhood, don't you think? Not only is their little mouth never in the same place for two milliseconds in a row, but at the same time they are wiggling in their chairs and those cute little hands are everywhere at once! While feeding Bethani her yogurt today I had quite the epiphany. She was intent on watching the hummingbirds at the feeder outside the window rather than paying much attention to her lunch and invariably the moment I would think I was home safe with a spoonful, she would turn her head to look out the window, mouth still wide open of course, and instead of a mouthful she would end up with a face full of yogurt!

   After about the third time, just when I had about hit the point of giving up, I was struck with the thought, "How many times has my Savior had something for me, a verse to bring to mind, a nugget of wisdom, a solution to a problem, and at the last moment I allowed the world in one way or another to take my focus off of Him, turned away, and missed out, or even worse, made a big mess!?". Luckily, my Redeemer is patient with me and He is always there with another "spoonful".

   Bethani eventually got done with her lunch, but not without many reminders to "Look at Mother!".

 Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

-Hebrews 12:1&2

School Time!

   What sort of people use their child (by means of their stroller) to steal from a christian bookstore? You would think that Lee wouldn't have much problem with theft as the manager of a Christian bookstore but he loses thousands each year through theft. The most ironic, is when someone steals a Bible! Lee has Bibles in the back that he could give out if someone truly was in need but apparently these sort of people don't "just" want the Word of God, they want it with a leather cover and study notes, etc. ;). Of course, whenever someone takes a Bible you have to figure they needed it, whether they thought so or not :).

   Anyway, all that aside, I am absolutely giddy!!! Most of Bri's and Tori's  books have come in and I am really enjoying going through them! We're still waiting on English (from Rod and Staff) and Bri's copybook (from Queen Home School Supplies). We do most of our subjects together, all except math, spelling/phonics, and English. I remember reading books like Little Women, Heidi and Anne of Green Gables to Bri when she was itty bitty and feeling kind of silly, asking myself, "How much can a three year old get out of these books?". Now I realize how instrumental they were in increasing her vocabulary and reading comprehension so I have Tori sit through most of our reading whether it is for history, science, or just a good book. I don't require the same kind of focus from Tori as I do from Bri yet, Tori is free to tend to her dolls or play quietly with blocks, etc. while I read. We are using Saxon Math again this year. I wasn't thrilled with it last year but it was all because of the format. When I got a chance to look at the fourth grade book this year I saw that the format was entirely changed from the third grade book and was actually exactly what I was looking for! So, I'm willing to give it another chance. For science we are using the new curriculum from Answers in Genesis. While we haven't officially started it yet, I have looked through it quite a bit and I would recommend to anyone to check into it, I can't wait to get started! I also ordered the new Zoo Guide from Answers in Genesis and that looks really fun as well. The girls are enamored simply by the pictures and we haven't even taken it to the zoo yet! It makes me think of Pa's "Big Green Book" mentioned in Little House in the Big Woods. We're continuing in Latin with "Latin's Not So Tough II" and I got Bri a spelling book this year because the whole "check it as you go" isn't working out, I think we need some structure there. I got the book Maidens of Virtue to use as a Bible curriculum this year along with our regular Bible reading, etc. and our history will also include a lot of Bible. For art we will be continuing with I Can Do All Things, published by How Great Thou Art, since we haven't gotten even halfway through it yet, the girls are always coming up with their own projects to do. We use the Mary Francis series for a Home Ec. base, as well as what comes up in the day to day. Music is another of those things that just happens around here. We love music and we have cassettes of classical music with the composers biographies scattered throughout and CDs with pure instrumental as well as CDs with hymns and other songs of worship.

    I also got a few books for me! I am currently reading A Chance to Die: The Life and Legacy of Amy Carmichael by Elisabeth Elliot, what an enthralling book! Some of the things I've come across have really been confirming to me right now. On the other hand, like all of us lowly humans, you can see in this book that Amy had a spirit of flesh to battle just like the rest of us. A couple of the others are The Harsh Truth About Public School and Genesis of a Legacy. Plenty of good books to read, I am in my element!!!

     For now, I need to go get our paperwork sent in for our home school association membership, pay some bills, answer some emails, and write some "snail mail" letters :). All of those good books will just have to wait...

*Edited February 3rd, 2007 to add~ The spelling we used for Bri and the math/spelling we used for Tori were from Spectrum, they are such a good deal!
I'm not saying any of the following to be mean but I would not recommend buying from Queen's Home School supply. They took forever getting the copybook to us, it was also very poor quality for the price. Then we found they had sent us the wrong book (a sports theme instead of a lady theme) and they would not reimburse us the shipping cost to send it back even though it was their mess up. They also held our book "hostage" until they got the one they mistakenly sent, back. In the end they said they never received the book  back but that they would send our order "anyway", reluctantly, as if they didn't believe we had sent it back. The whole thing was odd. I suspect they aren't very organized and I was not impressed by their customer service.

The Downside to Digital Cameras

   It used to be that I could take two or three shots with my automatic camera (is that what it's called?) and one of them was bound to come out. Well now, if I don't get it the first time I'm out of luck because by the time I realize this one's eyes were closed or that one's making a funny face they have all moved and are now clambering at my feet saying, "Let me see!" or "Oh! I want to see" or (if they can't speak yet) "Uh, Uh!" :). And to add insult to injury I know that I didn't get it :)!!! Technology...can't live with it...glad I don't have to live without it...

It's not very comforting when...

...after feeling for Baby's position, etc., the midwife asks, "So, how big has your biggest been?".

Me: "8 pounds even."

(Side note: I love that Bri, our first, was born at eight pounds. The number eight symbolizes "new beginnings" isn't that cute?! Anyway, back to topic...)

Midwife: "Well, we'll have to wait and see, of course, but this one's looking like a big boy!".