Week Two...

This school year ROCKS! (I just had to get that out. I feel better now.lol)

Allison is ON FIRE. O.k., not really on fire but she's found her happy place and is working fervently to get to her desired goals. She has decided to tackle Chemistry AND Advanced Biology this year, along with Geometry AND Algebra 2. I think it's great that she knows what she'd like to be doing and is working towards it without me needing to do anything except get the books into her hands. Her AB book will be here next week and Apologia has the first module online so she's already begun. She also helped pay for the book, since it wasn't a planned purchase for this year. Luckily, her brother is taking the other three subjects this year and we already have them. Fun, fun, fun!

Jon is AMAZING! He's been getting up at 6:00am without complaint this year, even though he is not a morning person, just so he can get his work done early. He's been mowing lawns all summer and since this is Florida, his job hasn't finished for the year yet. He has three customers and likes to get the jobs done in the mornings, so he needs to get his work done extra early. His school work is going great this year too. We're working on essay writing, literature, Japanese, culinary arts, geometry, algebra 2, chemistry, and world history this year.

The older kids went to Universal Studios, Islands of Adventure, Disney World, MGM, and Epcot on Sunday and Monday of this week with their Grandma G. They had such a great time! What a once in a lifetime adventure for them. While at Epcot, Jon bought a little Japanese cat and spoke to the cashier in Japanese. My MIL and Allison were very impressed! He's really coming along in learning his favorite language.

Right before they left on their trip, Jon attempted to make Baklava from scratch. It was good but his philo dough was a little too thick. We ate it anyway.LOL


Genevieve seems to be growing each and every day. It's scary to see her getting so old. I can remember when I could only hope I'd make it this far.LOL She's really turned into a GREAT big sister. She goes to the YMCA for homeschool P.E. every Tuesday and Thursday and this past Thursday, the teacher took me aside to tell me that Evie was a super great kid! There was a new girl in her class that day, and Evie took it upon herself to take care of her and help her fit in with the group. Now, keep in mind that Evie is one of the youngest in the class!LOL Now that's my girl. I'm so proud of her!

She's also lost another tooth!


What a sweet smile Evie has...


Now, Isaac has really grown this year also. Last year, he was our "wild card" in our school day. This year, he's been willing to sit in on some school work a couple of days each week. What a big difference! He's also been very creative lately...


We find these kind of towers all over the house.LOL

Yesterday, he got in trouble. He cut up a piece of Jon's boyscout uniform. I don't think he realized that it was something he couldn't cut up but even so he had to work off the cost of that piece. Luckily it only cost a $1.00 so I charged him with washing the table before dinner last night...


He did a super job! I think that I've been underestimating him again.


Well, that's been our week. Our schedule is working great for us and I'm even getting a little time each week to sew. I made Isaac a pair of boxer shorts today and they turned out nice. I'll post a photo if I get a chance later today. He's wearing them right now and I hate uploading photos. ::snort::

Blessings,

Our First Week Back...

And what a week it's been!

Sunday, we had a BBQ. It was so much fun! We had Eric's sister, dh, and son, William over and we spent time with some friends we hadn't seen in a long time and their little guy Greyson. All those little ones were so cute together!

Here's Sophia and William on Allison's lap. Sophia was sharing...lol


Here's Sophia in her cute "new to us" outfit...


Here's Sophia and Greyson sharing our little red car...


They were so cute together!


I think they made instant friends!


After this party, what could possibly go wrong with our first week back to school you might ask? Well, Monday, Allison needed her knee looked at again. It's been bothering her and is swelling and bruised looking. The Dr readjusted it and says if it's not better by next week, he'll need another MRI. We may be looking at possibly draining the fluid. Not good! For now, she's on Ibuprofen and has an ace bandage on it.

Tuesday began our outside activities and it was sooo much fun! I really missed the YMCA group and it was so nice to see everyone again. The only damper was the tropical storm approaching us. ::snort::

Wednesday was a good day. We spent it indoors doing our school work and pretending that a tropical storm wasn't on it's way to our house. La-la-la-la-la. Of course, when my dh showed up at 2pm, it was a little hard to pretend, but I'm pretty good at it. LOL

Jon decided to treat everyone to Gourmet Chocolate Truffles that he made from SCRATCH at 10pm this night! They were very good. At least that's what everyone told me. Those meanies!LOL

Jon and his fabulous truffles...


A close-up of those little balls of happiness..


Alas, there was not one ingredient in those delectable little morsels, that I am allowed on my diet, so I just watched everyone moan in delight.LOL

Today, Isaac had another surgery. He did good. He amazes me and makes me proud. I pray that this one makes a difference and that it will bring him closer to being finished with these.

Right now, everyone is asleep and I am listening to the pounding rain from our Tropical Storm, Fay. There. I said it. lol We didn't do too much to prepare for this, so I'm praying that nothing important blows away and that God will keep us safe during this storm.

As for our school work, everything has gone quite well. I'm so thankful. Both older kids have been getting up at 6am each morning so that they can complete most of their work before the littles are too awake to prevent them from getting it done. It's working quite well, although the plan was for me to be up too and I only made it one day out of four so far. If Sophia would allow me to sleep during the night, I'm sure that I'd be up without trouble but she's only been letting me nap in the evenings, thus, I'm zonking out whenever my dear, dear husband tries to wake me up.lol Tomorrow is another day, though and I'm ever the optimist!

I've been working with Evie each morning and she's really excelling this year! She's gone from not being able to read, to reading little beginner books this week. You know, when they're ready, they're ready. It always amazes me.LOL

Isaac and Sophia have been getting their own activity time too. Since the older kids are done with their work early, we've been dividing the littles up and working with them separately. That has been a good idea too. We would like to stick with the same kids for the next 9 weeks but so far, we've been shuffling them around to see who does best with whom. I'm thinking by next week, we'll know who belongs where.LOL We are getting so much done this way! We've done science, art, cooking and Jon even built another cardboard city with Isaac this week. I love seeing us all work together and build relationships with each other. What a blessing!

Well, this is getting loooonng and I'm tired.lol This year has given me such hope. I feel like we're doing what God really wants us to do and I'm happy. What a blessing.

Blessings,

Cousins...

My SIL Gretchen came up from South Florida last night for a birthday party and this morning we were able to go over and spend some time with her, her Dh Damion, and their little boy William. It was so cute to watch Sophia and William play together! Here's a few photos...

Here they are meeting each other...


I love the look on their faces...


Isn't he sooo cute?


Here they are, posing for the camera...


It was a lot of fun seeing them! We're supposed to get together tomorrow for a little while before they head back home. We can't wait to see them again!

Blessings,

Monkey Chow

This is something that I saw on Jon and Kate Plus Eight.




Take your favorite cereal collection and dump in a bowl. (I used Cheerios, Reese's Crunch, and Corn Chex.) Dump in a generous helping of pretzels and M&M's. Melt one 12 oz package of chocolate chips and a big dollop of peanut butter in the microwave. Mix with dry ingredients. Take a ziplock baggie and pour in some powdered sugar. Add in cereal. Shake. I then package them in little snack sized baggies for individual servings and to make sure that they don't eat the whole bowl in one fell swoop.LOL

Enjoy!

Blessings,

My Menu Plan

These photos have nothing to do with my post.LOL

She's just plain cute... and determined...


I have a confession.


For the whole summer, I've had NO menus, plans, or anyway to determine WHAT in the world we'd eat each day.

Whew. I feel sooooo much better now. ::snort::

Now why in the world would someone like me, who thrives on lists, menus, and having a plan, just up and quit making one? Well, it's complicated.lol

I've been dealing with a bad stomach for 16 years. Not one dr. could figure out what was wrong. It usually came down to them telling me that it was all in my head and that nothing was wrong. Don't you just love the medical professional field? Hey, I can't figure out what's wrong with you so there must not be anything wrong.lol Long story short, I have a wonderful Dr. who has helped me tremendously! It has meant giving up a lot of my favorite foods though and I think I needed the summer to figure out HOW to eat again and feed my family too. I'm feeling sooo much better. Not all better, but so much better that I feel like a different person. What a blessing from God!

So what does this have to do with Menus you might ask? Well, I was visiting my friend, Mylinda's blog (http://www.thebuggycrew.blogspot.com/) the other day and she was putting up a 10 week menu plan and it spurred me on to make my own plan for our first 5 weeks of school. I made mine for breakfast, lunch, snack, dinner, and after dinner dessert/snack. I also made a grocery list for each week so I can just go through it and cross off anything that we still have from the week before, then look at (www.thecouponmom.com) for any corresponding coupons and get to the store without having to spend all week figuring out the menu, then the grocery list, THEN looking for coupons and sale ads. I finished the last grocery list today and also did my first shopping trip with my week one list. It was such a blessing! The lady at the grocery store I went to today said that she is amazed at how fast I can shop with five kids. lol Good stuff!

Here's my list. If you'd like a recipe, I'll try to post it later. No promises since school starts for us on Monday. lol

Week One

(It goes, breakfast, lunch, snack, dinner, dessert)

Sunday: smoothies, pulled pork sandwiches and chips, muffins, roast chicken, rice, broccoli, ice cream sundaes.

Monday: chocolate chip pancakes, potato soup, rolls, cheese and crackers, taco stuff, popsicles/fudgesicles

Tuesday: bagels and cream cheese, quesadillas and carrot sticks, apples and peanut butter, pizza and salad, chex mix

Wednesday: granola bars, black beans and rice, pudding, beef stroganoff and greenbeans, popsicles/fudgesicles

Thursday: cereal, garlic-butter pasta and salad, trail mix, fried porkchops, noodles, and peas, chips and dip

Friday: muffins, chicken nuggets and french fries, fruit salad, spring rolls and chicken lo mein, brownies

Saturday: eggs and biscuits, leftovers, chex mix, chicken soup, popcorn


Week Two

Sun: Smoothies, ham and turkey sandwiches and chips, apples and p-nut butter, baked ham, potatoes, and steamed veggies, ice cream

Mon: pancakes, broccoli-cheese soup and rolls, cream cheese and crackers, taco pie, popsicles/fudgesicles

Tues: english muffins/eggs, beans and cheese and chips, celery and p-nut butter and raisins, chicken spagetti and salad, chex mix

Wed: granola and yogurt, mac and cheese and fruit, jello and cool whip, potato bar, popsicles/fudgesicles

Thurs: cereal, pizza and salad, popcorn, beef stew and biscuits, chips and dip

Fri: muffins, fish sticks and french fries, monkey chow, egg drop soup and fried rice, brownies

Sat: eggs and cheese, leftovers, chocolate-chip cookies, 15 bean soup and french bread, corn chips and cheese or salsa


Week three

Sun: smoothies, leftovers, donuts, beef noodle soup and rolls, ice cream

Mon: pancakes, chicken sandwiches and chips, graham crackers and p-nut butter, roast, potatoes, carrots, and onions, popsicles

Tues: breakfast pizza, minestra soup and french bread, popcorn, chicken enchiladas, chex mix

Wed: oatmeal, chili/chips, potato chips and dip, skillet lasanga and salad, popsicles

Thurs: cereal, ramen and fruit, p-nut butter cookies, steak and greenbean soup and bread, chips and dip

Fri: muffins, spaghetti and salad, granola, hash and greenbeans, brownies

Sat: eggs and toast, tuna salad sandwiches, tic-tac-toe mix, beef and broccoli and egg rolls, chex mix


Week four

Sun: smoothies, mealball subs and chips, apples and p-nut butter, fried chicken and noodles and green beans, ice cream

Mon: pancakes, chicken soup and rolls, graham crackers and cream cheese icing, nachos, popsicles

Tues: breakfast tortillas, nachos, chips and salsa, spaghetti pie and salad, chex mix

Wed: oatmeal cookies, fried rice, chocolate chip granola, sloppy joes and veggie tray, popsicles

Thurs: cereal, pasta salad and break sticks, rice crispie treats, pepper steak and rice, chips and dip

Fri: muffins, fried shrimp and french fried, popcorn, sesame chicken, rice, and salad, brownies

Sat: eggs and bacon, leftovers, oatmeal cookies, split pea soup and french bread, monkey chow


Week Five

Sun: smoothies, roast beef sandwiches and chips, potato chips and dip, meatloaf, mashed potatoes and peas, ice cream

Mon: pancakes, grilled cheese and carrots, popcorn, burritos, popsicles

Tues: bagels and cream cheese, lentils and rice and tortiila chips, rice crispie treats, baked ziti and greenbeans, chex mix

Wed: granola bars, black beans and rice and salad, monkey chow, tuna noodle casserole and cressants, popsicles

Thurs: cereal, chicken packets and french fries, sugar cookies, stuffed cabbage, chips and dip

Fri: muffins, egg salad sandwiches and veggie tray, chex mix, stir fry and rice, brownies

Sat: biscuits and gravy, leftovers, donuts, bacon-lentil soup and rolls, potato chips and dip



Whew! So there. I'm done and I feel great knowing that I won't have to mess with menus, lists, or plans for five weeks. If everything works out, I'll be repeating this list for another five weeks.lol

Blessings,

Sisters...

I made these dresses this weekend for my girls. Sophia's dress, I copied from a dress that she wears all the time. Sophia hasn't been letting me photograph her lately. Every time she hears my camera click, she comes running over to see the baby in the camera.lol


Genevieve's dress, I used a pattern. Of course, I just had to make things more complicated by adding the pockets and embellishments, but Genevieve was so pleased that she insisted on wearing it all day today.


She also wanted Sophia to wear hers...


Very sweet...


Blessings,

Happenings...

This is what happens when Daddy gets home from work. Poor guy.lol


The three littles were sick all week so Genevieve set them all up in the great room. It was sooo cute!

Can you see the baby?

Here's a close-up...lol

Even though they didn't feel good, they were very well-behaved. I was thankful.lol

Blessings,

Happenings...

We had a pretty good weekend. All the littles were sick with colds so we didn't do much, just hung out together. On Saturday, Eric and I went around looking at garage sales and scored some really nice toys and an ironing board for me. The kids were quite happy with the things that we found for them. I found an old wooden Noah's Ark with matching animals to go in it, a wooden balance toy with wooden animals for it, some stacking cups, some big plastic animals, a popcorn popper push toy, Rescue Heros, and some other odds and ends. The ironing board is a vintage one and it's really nice. All steel and very sturdy. I can't wait to try it out tomorrow!LOL

We took the kids to the park yesterday but it was pretty hot and we didn't stay long. We drove around looking for one with no kids so we wouldn't share our germs. The new one we found was nice and not far from home. I can't wait to try it out on a cooler day.

Today, we made it to the Library and now I'm working on this blog while Sophia sleeps and then I'll get some housework done before the day is over. I'm waiting for the wash to finish so I can hang it out on the line but really I have no excuse for not working on other things, other than I REALLY wanted to post on my blog today.lol I'm glad that I took some time for me.

Here are some photos from this weekend...

Here's Sophia with our garage sale find...19 Rescue Heros for $8.00


Here's Eric, resting on the couch after we got back from looking at garage sales...


This is what Sophia was doing while I took the photo...


And here is what I saw once I wrestled the camera back from Sophia...


Here is Isaac's creation from this morning during our school time. I was impressed that he actually colored, glued, and cut today. Usually I just get a piece of paper glued to my table.LOL


Blessings,

Weird bug...

I found this guy outside a few days ago...

A Rhinoceros Beetle...

Pretty neat although Evie was freaked out.LOL

Blessings,

The Days of Our Genevieve...

My Genevieve lost ANOTHER tooth this weekend. She looks all grown up now. We were all sitting at the dining room table eating dinner when it starts dangling.LOL She wouldn't let anyone pull it but she couldn't eat either. It was so in the way. Well, I asked Allison for a wet papertowel and told Genevieve that I would just wrap it up for her. When she opened her mouth, I grabbed the tooth and gave it a pull.LOL She said, "Mom! Don't pull it!" and I said, "Too late." I showed her the tooth and she burst out crying and said, "Thank you mom!" She was so relieved. It's hard growing up sometimes.

My big girl...


She noticed that she can now whistle with the hole...


Here's my girl striking a pose for the camera...how dramatic...lol


And here's my girl working diligently on her math. Just look at that concentration...


She asks me daily if it's a school day and on the weekends, she drives me batty since we don't work on those days.LOL I pray that I can keep her wanting to learn more her whole life. I love seeing her joy at learning something new.

Blessings,