Thursday, October 28, 2010

back soon...

We're heading out for a long weekend... See you Monday!

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

fall at the lake

I think I might have found a solution to my blogging issues, at least for now! So? Where did we leave off? Ah, the lake!
We met some friends at one of our special spots, all bundled up in the morning, but shedding our layers as the day wore on (and as the boys got dirtier and dirtier).









Now maybe I can get back to posting!

Friday, October 22, 2010

stink. stank. stunk.

Well.  This is a dilema.  After three years of keeping this blog, I have suddenly run out of storage space.

I had some great pictures from our day at the lake.  We went with friends, had a picnic, got good and dirty, and I snapped a bunch of shots.  And then I went to put them on Blogger, and I can't!

I suppose this means we're going to have to do some thinking.  I've noticed other bloggers who switch to TypePad after three or four years. 
Maybe this is why? 

Thursday, October 21, 2010

Levi's Second Photography Lesson

First, here's an awesome picture that Levi took of Mr. Anthony and Micah this week:

All righty!  Today's lesson was about taking pictures of big things.  Now, I know that "big" is a pretty broad term, but we were going at it from the skill of moving your own body so that everything fit's into the camera's frame. 

That being said, Levi armed himself with his checklist and his camera, and we headed outside (which gave him a chance to practice using the view-finder, rather than the digital screen on the back of his camera).  Here are some of his best shots...





I must admit that the last three were my favorite.  I love that gate, and adore the one of the old tree stump filling with leaves.  I had no clue that Levi was taking our picture as we went up the stairs!

Oh, and in case you're wondering, I don't edit any of his photos.  These are just the way he sees them!
Next Lesson: Close-ups

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

behind the homeschool scenes

At my group at church the other day, a new friend practically gaped at me when I mentioned we homeschool.  I only said it because we found out we both have three children at nearly the same ages, and she was laughingly saying she wouldn't have made it out the house if she had to bring all three (we meet on a school day).  I didn't want her to think I was being a snot and dashing off for no reason, when I was really going to get Levi from the homeschool group that meets in another building, so I said we homeschool.

I think a lot of people think it must be really, really hard to homeschool.  And, yes, it is work, but there's a definate trade off work-wise.  So I thought today I'd take you on a little peek behind the scenes around here, at one thing we do.

After reading Swiss Family Robinson, I decided that I really liked the idea of a family starting their day together with prayer.  Plus I wanted to teach my kids how to pray His Word.  So I wrote out some scriptures, and put them in a binder...  First we do the prayer the Lord taught us...

...and then we flip to the verse of the day, which has our calendar things stuffed into it.  Levi reads the verse, and then we pray it back to God, and then the boys do their morning jobs (one does the calendar and one feeds and waters the dog)...


...(you can tell it was Micah's day to do the calendar - he likes to put the day of the week upside down)  The last thing we do is flip to the back of our book and Levi reads a poem.  Last time he did The Lion, by Jack Prelutsky, which is funny, so this time he's learning a piece by William Blake.  If he reads it once a day, it only takes a couple of weeks for him to memorize it.

My two favorite things about this are: first, my little sponges are memorizing verses with practically no effort.  Micah was spouting off "Our Father..." by himself within 8 or 9 days, and quite pleased with himself.  (Course, he insists on pronouncing heaven as "Kevin"). 

The second thing I love is that I can pick out verses that apply to issues we're dealing with.  Laziness?  Toss in a proverb.  Trouble admitting when you've done wrong? Toss in "if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us..."  We do verses that are praise verses, too.
The boys are learning that Scripture actually applies to their everyday lives, and that God cares about the way they live. 

All that in about five minutes.  Pretty cool, huh?

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

happiness


And no, I didn't make the socks. 
Too pink for me!

Monday, October 18, 2010

Maryland Renaissance Faire

This weekend I tip-toed in to sleeping beauty's room to wake her up, but I just couldn't do it.  At least not until I had tip-toed out and back to get the camera.

You see, I love taking pictures.  I really do.  But it's not easy to do when you're carting around the sweetest, tiniest, little girl on the planet.

Anyways.  On with the story.  I was waking her up because we were going to the Maryland Renaissance Faire.  We had such a great time.  Pony rides, medieval shows, street performers, costumes everywhere, glass-blowing, jousting, and a good knight who cheerfully invited Levi to kick his armoured shins when we went up to shake his hand after the tournament. 

The boys took in everything they could gawk at.  I was happy to watch the master weaver of a shop at her work, and as a lover of fiber and fabric and wood and nature, there was a great deal of joy in this for me.  Daddy loved the glassblowing and the woodwork.  And Eve loved her sling and the cuddly nap she took there.

And though my hand was itching for the shutter button, these were the only images I captured.

But do you know what?  I'm quite certain we'll be returning next year.  There will be more photos to take.  More fabric to love.  More sparks for the three growing imaginations in our home. 
Because right now there are some serious sparks flying...

Friday, October 15, 2010

lately

Just a few photos to share what we're up to right now. 
Still enjoying some flowers from our garden (I'm really surprised by how many flowers thrive in the fall around our neighborhood),

I'm enjoying a row or two here and there.  It's tricky finding time for knitting with an infant in the house, but I expect my sweater to get bigger as the babe does.

Enjoying the view. 
This is what she likes to do when she's up.  Since she likes to be held so much, I'm quite grateful that 97% of the kids out there (her age) are bigger than her.

Right now I'm "helping" with a lot of things Micah usually does himself.  He has the sniffles.  This has seriously cut into my dish-washing time, by the way. 

And I'm also still watching Levi dig and sort and build and take apart and build and... well you get the idea.  Levi sometimes makes me forget what year it is.  He is so much like my brother was when we were little.
And right now?  At this very moment, the boys are happily playing a board game together (crazy wonderful, I'm telling you), Eve is sleeping, and I'm making lunch and brooding over when to tell them our secret plans for the weekend...
Happy Friday!

Thursday, October 14, 2010

photography lessons

So Levi has started his Beginner Photography lessons.  His first assignment was just to get him used to using a digital point-and-click, and to looking around and seeing things in a different way.

Something old.

Another something old.

And another something old.

Something that makes him happy...

Take a picture of your own camera (which really threw him for a loop).

Something you love...

More love...

He had such a great time, and is looking forward to his next assignment!

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

football! (and crockery)

Playing football is so much more fun than watching football, don't you think?  Especially when you're six and your dad is taking you out to play.  And you insist on wearing one of his jerseys, even though it hits the floor.

Of course, when you're three, football's fun and all, but the "new" cookie jar and fruit smasher are far more entertaining, at least until you get outside. 



Still smiling.  He improved so much while they were out there, that he was probably throwing that football better than I do by the time they were done.  And definately not afraid to catch it.

Guys are great, aren't they?

Tuesday, October 12, 2010