Taking a Break!

I am going to be taking a blogging break for a while.  I will probably not be blogging until after the holidays.  I hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas season.  I am going to try to have a "Mary" Christmas as opposed to a "Martha" Christmas.  I am going to try to not be busy doing many things and instead enjoy my family and my God.  

From Chicago...

Grace and I flew into Chicago this morning. We left sunny Florida and two hours later landed in cold and dreary Chicago. I love it! I am getting tired of all the sunshine and absolutely love cloudy, dreary days. We had hot soup at Aunt Steph's house and reacquainted ourselves with her two little ones, Kea and Corrie. They are two and nine months. Such cute ages! The baby is doing all sorts of "tricks" like clapping when you say yeah!, bobbing her head in a hilarious way when you say to dance. So cute. It made me ache for those sweet days with little ones. I miss those days. Everyday life seemed so much simpler. I love our life now as I mentioned in my previous blog post, but I also miss the baby days. After lunch Gracie went out with her twelve year old cousin to rake leaves. They raked the whole backyard and almost finished the front yard. They worked for about 3 hours with just a short break. We are going shopping downtown on Wednesday so they were eager to earn a little spending money. They seemed to be having fun too. I took pictures but I don't know how to upload them from here so you'll have to wait until I get home to see pictures. We had a wonderful dinner and then Grace crashed. She was worn out. We have both been up since 5:30 this morning. Tomorrow we go to our other cousin's house for the morning. These sweet little girls are 3 and 1 1/2. Lots of little ones around here. That's about it for now. I'm too tired to put together a normal sentence.

What I am Thankful For...

This morning at church in place of a normal teaching seven people got up and shared what they were thankful for.  It was wonderful and showed that even in the storms of life we can be thankful for so much.  It really made me realize anew how thankful I should be for so much!  
I am healthy.  Aside from my ongoing foot problems I am in good health.  I am so thankful for that.
My children are healthy as well.  Aside from an occasional virus they stay pretty healthy.  Ollie and I were talking yesterday and determined that only Hannah had ever been on antibiotics (we think) and that only once.  
Ollie has a great job that he loves.  For many years he worked a number of jobs all of which he hated.  It is such a blessing that he can enjoy his work and his hours are great.  For anyone who doesn't know what he does--he is a teacher in a special needs school.  He teaches trainably mentally handicapped kids ages 10-14.  Even though the pay is not so great all our needs are always provided for.  God's provision is complete.
We have a great house in a great location that we bought before the housing market went crazy.
We both get along with and enjoy each other's families.  I am actually going to his parent's house for a week without him.  Just Grace and I are going to Chicago and we leave tomorrow.
I am able to stay home and homeschool my kids.
I am so thankful for my kids.  They bring so much joy to my life.  They are growing up and I really enjoy their company.  
I am thankful that we've survived the toddler years and everyone is potty trained, can dress themselves, buckle themselves into the car, walk into a store, etc.  I miss the baby years, I always will but it is fo fun to spend time with my kids and get to know them as they grow up.  
I am thankful for coffee and chocolate.
I am thankful for quiet afternoons and a good book.  
I am thankful for an amazing church with amazing life applicable teaching every week!
I am thankful for a faithful husband.
I am thankful for Jesus and His unconditional love and forgiveness.
Happy Thanksgiving!

Movie Night

We had a movie night last night and watched "Meet the Robinsons."  Hannah had seen it earlier this week and could not wait for me to see it too.  She just loved it.  So, last night we pulled out the hide-a-bed and piled under my Christmas quilt (I'm glad I made it so big) and watched a really fun movie.  I almost never sit with the kids and watch a movie.  If I let them watch a movie it's so I can do something else usually.  

PowWow

Joe had a PowWow at school on Friday.  They've been learning about Native Americans all week and ended the week with this PowWow.  It was so cute!  They all had on vests made from paper bags, little feather head bands, and a beaded necklace.  They also each had a tomtom drum.  Each child had a Native American name on the back of their "vest."  Joe's was "Collector of the Earth."  His teacher chose that name for him because he is always collecting sticks on the playground and putting them in his lunchbox to take home.  It's really sweet how they know each child.  The started the PowWow singing some songs and beating on their tomtoms.  Then they had corn on the cob, and some other snacks made from corn and a few M&M's thrown in for fun.  They do like M&M's at that school!  Joe seemed to really enjoy it and sang and participated in the songs.  I have to say that my baby was just adorable sitting there with his preschool friends in his paper bag vest.  I would never get him to wear that at home!

Joe is the Star Student this week!

At school they have a Star Student every week.  When we got to school on Tuesday, they presented Joe with the sticker to wear and told him that because he had been such a good friend that he was the Star Student.  This is a pretty lofty position at preschool and kids love being the Star Student.  So what did Joe do?  Immediately turn to me and whisper, "I don't want to be the Star Student."  He was mortified.  I knew this day would come, I think every kid gets to be Star Student eventually and I figured he would not be happy.  I felt so bad, his teachers were all excited and Joe wouldn't even wear the sticker.  The only thing that the Star Student really does is stands up in front of the class and answers a few questions.  He asked if he could answer those questions in private and once that was settled he was okay with being the Star Student.  I think he was even a little proud.  So, the questions he was asked and his answers--

What do you want to be when you grow up?  A Jedi
What is your favorite movie?  Attack of the Clones
What is your favorite food?  Popcorn and M&M's
What is your favorite drink?  Lemonade

Today he told me that Miss Mary asked him to go on a date.  He said, "I wanted to say no but I said yes because I didn't want to hurt her feelings."  So sweet!   I'm not sure what this date is, I will ask tomorrow but I think it has something to do with lunch and being the Star Student.  

Some Art

Grace has been asking me to let her paint for weeks now so I finally let her last week.  Here are their pictures.  Grace's picture is Yoda.  His friends have just given him a surprise party.  Joe's picture is of Yoda's swamp.  Hannah's picture was done in art class.  It's a picture about Little Miss Muffett, right after she got frightened away.  When my little brother was little he went to my mom one day and said, "Why did Little Miss Muffett eat turds?"  I think I will think of this everytime I see Hannah's picture.

I'm Doing Nuttin' for Christmas

See this picture above--I'm not going to be doing anything out of that magazine.  I may not even open it so I won't be tempted.  Around this time every year I get tons of ideas of all sorts of projects I want to do, things I want to make, etc.  Sometimes I involve the kids but mostly I just shoo them away so I can craft for hour upon hour.  I don't know what it is about Christmas.  In general I am not much of a crafter and I'm not very good at it but at Christmas I want to make all sorts of things.  Not this year!  I've decided that after today's Christmas bags I am done with crafting.  I am going to TRY to really give of myself to my kids over the next month.  I will play more games with them, watch a movie or two with them (my least favorite thing), read some good books, let them help me in the kitchen, etc.  Even though I am home with them all day I tend to get busy doing my own thing and half our day is taken up with school as it is.  I have a tiny kitchen and even 
though someone 
is always asking to help I often say no.  So--I'm giving the gift of time.  We'll see if I can stick
to it!

Productive Day

I have had a list a mile long to work my way through this week--part of the reason I have not blogged all week.  I finally made a dent in that list today.  It was a big cooking day.  I've already mentioned our pumpkin meal.  I also made meatballs to put in the crock pot in the morning and sugar cookies shaped like fall leaves and my annual batch of pumpkin pie play dough!  I feel like I spent my day in the kitchen and washed and rewashed pots and pans and plates and other utensils all day!  I spent a good portion of yesterday in the kitchen as well.  I am hoping to be mostly out of the kitchen tomorrow.  Just a couple of sides to go with the meatballs.  Tomorrow is a big shopping day with Aunt H.  We are going to try to do all of the Christmas shopping for the kids.  We have lists and it should be fun.  But, back to today.  I also made a bunch of Christmas fabric bags for wrapping.  I got the idea from M.  I am wrapping all the Chicago presents in these.  I don't want to deal with wrapping once I am up there and I don't want the paper wrapping to get damaged in transit.  I had a ton of extra fabric and I was eager to put it to good use.  After all the sewing I've done the past few months, I'm pretty much over it.  I am looking forward to putting the sewing machine away for a while.  It's been fun though.  I also had the girls work on decorating little notebooks for a Christmas gift.  Three things marked off my list!  

Watch out World, Here I Come!

So, I've been asked (and I've accepted after much coercing) to be in the cast of Annie, Jr.--the show that Hannah is in coming up in about FOUR weeks!  I've been telling Amanda and Joel that I want to be in a show someday.  By someday I meant in about twenty years.  You know--"When I am old I shall wear purple...and do whatever I please and not care what anyone thinks or if I am making a fool of myself."  To be honest, I am not quite there yet.  I told A and J that I could not sing, dance, or act but they would not be deterred.  So, I will be a maid.  You know the part--"Cecille will pick out all your clothes..."  Well, I guess I'm Cecille or maybe Mrs. Pugh.  I am only in a few scenes and I have no solos and maybe only one or two lines.  I think I can do this but I'm scared to death!  What if I'm terrible???  Amanda has assured me that they will work with me so that I'm not terrible. :0)  I have a friend joining me in this craziness so that will help.  Hannah is thrilled!  I am happy to be backstage and at rehearsals with her since she is working with adults, many of whom I do not know.  Should be fun.  If you are a praying person, pray that I can be a light for Jesus during this and that I can do a decent job.  

Pumpkin Night

We had a pumpkin themed dinner tonight that turned out really good.  All the recipes were from last month's Family Fun magazine.  We had pumpkin-apple curried soup, pumpkin walnut biscuits, and pumpkin maple custard for dessert.  The kids didn't eat the soup, I gave them leftover carrot soup.  I thought this soup was too spicy but I think they would have liked it.  I needed to get rid of the leftover carrot soup anyway though so it worked out.  And Ollie and I could selfishly eat the pumpkin soup.  We wouldn't want the kids to have all those good, healthy vegetables now would we???

Animal Kingdom

The kids and I went to Animal Kingdom today.  It was a great day for it, the weather was perfect!  We rode the Kali River Rapids twice and got pretty soaked!  The ride was a ball but I think I would enjoy that cold water more in the summer.  Of course you could never ride it twice in the summer because the lines would be way too long!  The other fun thing we did was see Ms. Amanda's storytelling show.  Ms. Amanda is Hannah's theatre director and she works part time at Disney.  She pulled Hannah and Grace right into the story.  It was fun to see her at her other job!  We had a great day and even made it home in time to get to Bible Study.  We were actually leaving Animal Kingdom with the intention of going over to Magic Kingdom for a few hours.  I was starting to feel tired and ready to go home so I asked the kids if they'd rather go to MK or leave now and get home in time to make it to Bible Study.  Their answer--a unanimous go home in time to make it to Bible Study.  You can tell they've been to Disney a lot and know that they will be going a lot more.  My sister says that I have more pictures of my kids with Mickey than with their grandparents.  

Some Joe Funnies

Joe has been cracking us up lately with different things he's talking about and saying.  I'm hoping that by recording them here it will help me to remember them.

He said to me the other day, "I bet it's easy to love Gracie the most because she always does what you tell her to."  He said it with such seriousness.  I assured him that although I am thankful that Gracie is so obedient and helpful it doesn't make me love her more.  I love each of them with all my heart.  

The girls and I got to sit in on Chapel at Joe's school on Wednesday.  It was so sweet!  Anyway, we were discussing it at the table and I tried to sing one of the songs.  Joe corrected me and started singing it but only sang a few words then went through the rest of it by saying, "dumdedum" to the tune of it.  When he had finished he said, "I did the dumdedum thing because I didn't want to embarass myself."  

He was talking to me the other night about getting married and who he might marry.  Right now he has his sights set on his friend, Sara.  She is just soooo cute he says.  He did tell me though that he would marry me if he could but he can't because I'm already married to Daddy.  Is he sweet or what???

He also told me that he's not feeling comfortable about going to high school.  I told him he didn't need to worry about that now.  He would probably not go to high school but be homeschooled.  I said, "This is probably the only year that you will go to school, after this you will be homeschooled."  To that he said with true concern, "But what about 5th grade???"  

I can't remember what he was referring to but he told me he would work on "pulling himself together."

I wish I could remember all his funnies.  He keeps us laughing and listening just waiting to hear what he will say next.  

If I upload my pictures before doing my typing I cannot do my typing for some reason.  I forgot this and uploaded my pictures first so here's the commentary--
We went to Target today and costumes were 90% off!  So, we got a Princess Leia costume and surprised Joe.  I love the way he's looking at Grace in the picture of her and him.  He thought it was pretty funny.  This costume cost $2.99!  
Hannah is taking an art class and they had a student/teacher show.   She is posing in front of her picture of a fairy.  She did this last year and is our all time favorite!  I think we are going to start letting Grace take this class too.  She and Hannah may switch off months for a while.  That way we only pay for one but both benefit.  Grace has been doing some pictures at home and is surprisingly good!  I'll have to take a picture of her pictures.  

Princess Leia and an art show

Hannah's Future

Hannah informed me tonight of her future plans.  They start when she is 16.  
At 16 and 17--she will work in a clothing store
At 18--she will become a Mary Kay lady and be one of those the rest of her life while she is doing these other things--
selling jewelry, being a teacher, being an architect, and then finishing her life as an artist and a Mary Kay lady.

New "Not Impressed" PJs

Pumpkin Rice Pudding

1 cup rice
3 cups milk
3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup pumpkin
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. cinnamon
pinch salt

Combine rice, milk, and brown sugar in a saucepan over med. heat.  Cook until it starts to boil.   Turn the heat to medium low and cook until rice is tender, about 30minutes stirring frequently.  Combine pumpkin with vanilla, cinnamon, and salt.  Remove rice from heat and stir in pumpkin mixture.  Serve warm.  You can add more milk when you stir if you want.

We had this for dessert and then breakfast the next morning.  I doubled the recipe.  

Very Random Thoughts

I've thought of so many different things over the last few days that I've thought, "I should put that in my blog."  I'll see how many I can remember.  Joe has said a lot of funny stuff lately.  I wish I could remember it all, he is at such a cute, sweet age.  I got the kids some new blanket sleeper pjs and I showed him his and he said, "That is not impressed.  New PJs are not impressed."  I think he meant that they were  not impressive.  I love when he tries to use big words.  

He has been asking a lot of questions about heaven.  Is heaven on earth or above it?  Do dogs go to heaven?  Stuff like that.  On Saturday he pulled a chair up to the world map and started looking for it on the map.  We weren't here, someone was babysitting and she said that while he was looking for heaven he accurately identified about 8 places on the map including Africa.  I'm not sure how he knows these places but I guess with a world map on your dining room wall you are bound to pick up a little geography.  

Ollie and I went to Epcot for the Food and Wine Festival Saturday.  It was really fun.  They have tons of interesting food to try and we ate quite a bit.  We had food from Turkey, New Zealand, India, Poland, South Africa, and I don't remember what else.  It was fun to go on a date with Ollie.  We finished our evening by taking a whirl on Test Track--awesome ride!

 Another funny Joe story--he's been giving me these BIG hugs, he stands on the couch and I have to stand in front of him and he jumps into my arms and squeezes really tight.  He did something wonderful and I told him I was going to give him a BIG hug and I stood on the couch and he stood in front of me.  I really think he thought I was going to jump into his arms and he stood there so bravely ready to recieve his hug.  I did jump down to him but not ON him, I could've smashed him flat if I'd done that.  It was pretty funny.  I crack myself up sometimes.  

Grace has joined the big kid theatre class for the Christmas Spectacular show in December.  She's been cast as a reindeer.  Vixen to be exact.  She is thrilled.  As she was getting her script out of the car she said, "Mom, when you see this don't think I've all of a sudden learned to read, Victoria underlined my lines for me."  She also has lots of ideas for things that they could do in the show.  They are singing "All I Want for Christmas is My Two Front Teeth."  Well, she has a loose front tooth so she's going to work really hard to get it to come out before the show and maybe the girl who does the solo part of that song might want to hold her tooth up while she sings and dances.  Yeah, I just bet she will.  

Hannah is also in the Christmas Spectacular show, she is Jane--not sure who that is or what she will be doing.  She's already memorized her line though.  Hannah's exciting news is that she is playing an orphan in a production of "Annie, Jr." that they will be performing in December.  This is an adult and kid show and Hannah is thrilled to get to be in it.  They had their first rehearsal tonight.  I think it was a bit of a last minute thing so there is only 5 weeks until the show.  The girls are also in a Performance Troupe that will be performing at quite a few events in December including the pre-show to Annie.  I'm so glad that Grace is getting to do this too.  It will be fun for both of them.  

I am really into pumpkin dishes right now.  I made Pumpkin Rice Pudding the other night--yum!  I'll post the recipe in my next post.  I went looking for Pumpkin ice cream today and there wasn't any in Publix, we got peppermint instead.  Yum!  It is light, 1/3 fewer calories.   That means you can eat three times as much, right?  

I think that's all for now.  

Encouraged

Have you ever had one of those Sundays where you went to church and God totally met you there, addressing so much of what you have been dealing with the previous week?  Well, that was my Sunday.  I came away from church sooooo encouraged!  Last week Pastor Doug talked about shooting up one word prayers.  My one word prayer was for encouragement.  Before I even put it in as a prayer request it was answered.  The first one was actually pretty funny.  We have the sweetest man in our church, he is mentally challenged (not sure the politically correct way to express this).  He gets there when the doors open, usually with his bowling score from Saturday in hand.  He always has a smile on his face and helps out in whatever way he can.  I came into church late and chose a seat in the back next to a woman named Kathie.  She showed me a bracelet on her arm and said that the man I just mentioned had given it to her.  It was one of those plastic bracelets and it was black and in pink said "Prayers for Tiffany" and then Jeremiah 29:11.  She said, "now I will remember to be praying for you."  I will be honest here, my first thought, warped though it was, was "Oh no, God is going to take one of my kids or my husband or something awful is going to happen and He's preparing me.  I will look back and remember that bracelet and know that He was taking care of me, etc. etc. etc."  I know I must totally stress God out if that is possible because this is always my thought when someone tells me they are praying for me.  As I was calming my ridiculous fears I decided to look up the verse Jeremiah 29:11.  I knew the gist of it but wanted to read it.  It was just what I needed to hear.  "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope."  The "thoughts of peace" got me because I have not been feeling very peaceful.  This was God's special message and reminder for me.  I felt so loved that he would send me personally such encouragement.  Then the message really hit right at home about what I had just blogged about this week, being real and being a broken vessel.  I'm more of a cracked pot I think but you get the idea.  Then to top it off, after church one of the women sought me out to tell me how much one of my daughters has blessed her.  This was something I really needed to hear as well.  I've been pretty hard on my kids this week and myself for their behavior.  They really aren't so bad but they aren't perfect like I want them to be.  This is silly because I am far from perfect 


but my 
expectations are pretty high for them.  Thank you to my God for dealing with me so personally this week!  

Pictures...

from our end of the week fun.  The play was great, everyone really enjoyed it.  I especially enjoyed the crazy costumes.  They were so fun!  The Renaissance Faire was today.  Unfortunately the girls and I were just not into it today.  We've seen it the past two years and I think we need to take a few years off, we were definitely not appreciating it.  We did do the Quest though.  You get a piece of paper when you get in with three lists--who did it, where, and with what.  Then as you walk around the Faire whenever you see someone dressed up and with a white rose you can ask them for a clue.  You usually have to do something in exchange for the clue--tell a joke, do the hokey pokey, sing a happy song, etc.  We finished the Quest and turned our paper in for a prize, a necklace.  At that point we were done and headed to Chick-Fil-A for lunch.  Then home!

Trick or Treat

We went Trick or Treating with some friends last night.  This was the first time we've done this and the kids really had fun.  Joe kept saying that he didn't want the night to end.  He also continually talked about how cute his little friend Sara was.  She was Dorothy and she was mighty cute.  Her brothers were the tin man, the lion, and the scarecrow.  Joe decided to be a Jedi and regretted not wearing it to preschool.  He told me, "I love this, I wish I could wear it to preschool but I think I missed that party."  

Trunk 'n Treat

Here are some pictures from Joe's school party.  He decided to wear a Batman t-shirt as his costume.  The picture of the trunk is not my trunk--but a cute one.

True Confessions cont.

Okay, I'm back.  I had to go tutor for an hour.  I actually remembered she was coming.  For the past two months or so every Wednesday and Thursday at 3ish the doorbell would ring and I would think--who is that????  I would forget every week!  It was crazy!  I have remembered this week so that's good.  Maybe I'm getting my brain back.  Anyway--to continue my true confessions.

First, just now while I was tutoring, after writing the last post I almost had a panic attack--I can't believe I just told the bloggy world that I say shutup to my kids.  The facade of perfection has been torn away--a joke in itself because my faults are pretty glaring!  But, I am going to push on with my confessions even if they are embarassing because I started this, so I might as well finish it!

Ollie and I get in fights and go to bed angry.  Sometimes it actually helps to sleep it off.  By the next day our tempers have cooled and we are more humble and ready to listen and settle the dispute.

I let my kids watch tv more than I'd like.  I think Joe has watched "Attack of the Clones" every day this week.  He plays with his "guys" while he watches and acts out the movie but still.

I don't think my kids have ever sang the ABC song while they wash their hands nor have I ever taught them to wash them that long.

They sometimes go a week without a bath.  

Sometimes they go days without brushing their teeth.

I only floss my teeth about every other week.  I never floss theirs!  

School is often not a bit fun here.  Even though I try there is grumbling and complaining and not just from me. :0)  I can be pretty determined when it comes to school and is about the only really disciplined area of my life.  Sometimes I need to just quit and call it a day but I cling tenaciously to my list and what we need to do even when everybody is upset.  

I choose to sleep in and not get up early for a quiet time about half the time.

There is more but I'm not going to go into everything!  I know that I am a work in progress and God is not finished with me yet.  He's grown me in so many other areas and I know that he will grow me in the areas that are still lacking.   I am so thankful for God's grace for me.  I live out humility and honesty with my kids daily.  They see me struggle, strive, succeed, fail, ask forgiveness, laugh, cry, scream, and love-- sometimes all in five minutes.  My prayer is that in spite of my faults my kids will grow up to be godly women and men who are not obese and addicted to sugar.

True Confessions

I love to read blogs--almost too much.  I check them multiple times a day for updates.  I check them at 11:30 at night and first thing in the morning and many times in between.  I also enjoy writing in my own blog and sharing pictures.  One thing I've been noticing recently though is that for the most part blogwriters share the good things in their life and the accomplishments of the day.  We seldom share our really bad days and our faults.  Nobody claims not to have them but why would we want to write about them for all the world to see.  As a result of seeing everyone's best--it's easy to feel bad about your own worst.  Just today I've been made to feel bad about a few choices I've made as I've read other's blogs.  One blog I read of a woman in who knows where never fails to make me feel like I'm failing as a wife, mother, homeschooler, etc.  So WHY do I continue to read it????  It inspires me when I remind myself to not compare and to remember this is her best.  When she doesn't post for a week that is probably when not so great things are happening.  So, I would like to write some things that will make others feel GOOD about themselves in comparison.  Watch out--these are true confessions.   

I tell my kids to shutup when I've really had it.  Especially when they are whining.  As a kid I thought this was a horrible thing to do.  My parents never told me to shutup but I knew a mom who did and I thought she was just awful.  How do you think that makes me feel when I lose it and yell at my kids who I love and adore to SHUTUP!

My kids eat a TON of sugar.  It starts in the morning with breakfast.  Usually waffles with too much syrup.  Often the syrup whose first ingredient is high fructose corn syrup.  We always seem to have candy in the house and they all eat at least a piece a day, sometimes two, sometimes ten.  I would love for them to never eat sugar or eat it very seldomly but that would require discipline on my part which I seriously lack.  

I let my four year old son play video games on the computer for hours and hours.  We just took away his favorite game because of this obsessive playing but I still allowed it.  

My four year old flat out tells me NO sometimes when I ask him to do something.  He will ultimately obey but first time obedience????  Not with him.  We are working on it but it's hard work!  

He also says "stupid" and "dangit."  Things I would never let the girls say.

I took them all trick or treating last night!  We got loads of candy and they have eaten loads of it.  They saw all sorts of really scary costumes.  

Well, I have to go for now but I have more.  Later!