Our Life Schooled Kids

I've moved!

2012-01-23T08:17:00.000-08:00

Hi there everyone!

In an effort to be able to be found...this blog that is...

I've moved to LifeSchooled.net.

Please come over to Life Schooled and subscribe by e-mail so that you can get updates when I post something new!

Oh Happy Day People!

Remember....head over to LifeSchooled and subscribe by e-mail!!!

Easy, Healthy Shrimp Scampi

2012-01-21T10:55:00.001-08:00

I LOVE shrimp!

I love shrimp scampi even more!

But I don’t love how unhealthy shrimp scampi can be with all of the butter and salt used to make it.

This is an easy recipe that you’ll want to repeat.

Recipe (no measurements…sorry)

Mince a couple of cloves of garlic…or more, if you’re like me.
Peel and clean shrimp (you can leave the skins on, but I prefer to make dinner time as easy as possible, so I peel them ahead of time).
Lightly coat shrimp with olive oil (maybe a tablespoon or two) and mix in minced garlic.
Salt to taste.

Place in baking dish and broil for 5 minutes on one side, flip the shrimp and broil for another 5 minutes or until cooked all the way through.
Top with chopped Italian Parsley and squeeze one half of a lemon over the cooked shrimp.
I always serve with sliced lemon so people can add more if needed. I also serve it with crusty bread and a salad to finish this light, but tasty meal.

Enjoy!

For more tasty treats, visit my Recipe Box!

Ellie’s Safari Tea Party!

2012-01-19T15:58:00.001-08:00

We threw a tea party for Ellie’s 5th birthday.

But this was no ordinary tea party…oh no it wasn’t.

This tea party had a twist…

Tea Time on the Serengeti!

Here’s what the invites looked like.

(the vintage tea pot was from Graphics Fairy)

Here is the how the inside read:

You are cordially invited to E’s 5th Birthday Party!

Teas, sandwiches and sweets are on the menu for the day,

Same ole’ tea party, just done a different way!

Wear your favorite animal print to have a spot of tea,

Wear your favorite print found on the wide Serengeti!

Party Info…

Do you take your tea with sugar?

Give me a ring…525-000-1234

Here’s the birthday girl…

Here’s her nails…(Found these at Michaels!)

Here’s the table…

Sal was a great help the night before.

Here’s the place setting for each girl…

Here’s some of the food…the favorite seemed to be the chocolate cup for berries…

Here’s some random pictures…

Here’s the party animal enjoying her cupcake!

Happy Birthday Sweet Girl!

Sal's another year older...

2012-01-12T19:56:00.000-08:00

You might have read my post from yesterday about Ellie's birthday and wonder why I'm posting about another child's birthday today...

Well, it's true. I have kids with back to back birthdays and today is Sal's.

Back in the day...you had some great hair!

You've always been a wonderful, big brother.

You have a serious side, where you contemplate life...even at a young age.

You are the biggest help and the hardest worker.

Sometimes you won't see that you're still a little kid.

You're probably the youngest kid to enjoy curing olives (btw...no, mommy didn't dress you in a crop top).

You ask interesting questions like..."Who ever thought of the word wolf?"

You flabbergast me with your thought process...sometimes, honey, I don't have answers to your questions.

Your soul is so sweet. You're in tune with people. You pick up on truths fast.

You enjoyed way too much losing 6 teeth in one calendar year.

You love this cat. Sophia has you wrapped around her little digit.

I love your smile and your giggles warm my heart.

Every boy needs a cast at some point in their life. This was the ultimate for you.

You lead this little pack.

You surprise me with your unknown talents. For being so black and white...you are so creative too.

Sometimes you scare me...you're a boy...I don't always understand boys.

Your exterior is handsome...your interior is exceptional.

You shine so bright!

Yesterday you were 6, today you are 7.

Sal,
I love your thought process,
I love your old soul,
I love your kindness...
Don't take life too seriously,
Dance to the beat of your own drum, or no drum at all for that matter.
Learn to laugh at yourself because then, life is so much easier.
Life is funny! Life is short!
But my life is so much grander because you're in it.
Love you Bubba! Happy Birthday!

Ellie's another year older

2012-01-11T21:24:00.000-08:00

Time flies.

I remember the excitement in your first pig tails...palm trees...whale spouts.

You were pretty excited too!

You love glitter like your mama!

You enjoy your sleep.

And more sleep...

You love accessorizing...

...adding a little glam to everyday situations..

You smile with all of the sweetness in the world.

You have him wrapped around your finger...

You know how to have a good time and let loose...

You're beautiful inside and out...

And those eyes...

...those eyes...

...those eyes show so much of your soul.

You're so smart!

You're so expressive!

You're such a hoot!

I love your hair...

I love your heart...

...but I don't love your doll (you know, the one you're blocking me with).

Yesterday you were four...


...today you are five.

Happy Birthday My sweet Angel!
I'm amazed at who you were yesterday, who you are today, and can't wait to see who you'll be tomorrow.
But don't get to tomorrow any faster than necessary.
Enjoy today, this 5th birthday of yours.
I love you!

Catching up with Technology!

2012-01-07T07:16:00.001-08:00

Sal recently has posed questions about how sound effects are made and then put into movies and cartoons. I’ve started research on this topic and soon will have some lessons and “labs” to go with it. I’ll post them to the homeschool blog once they are done.

It got me thinking…I wonder if I have anything on this little Acer that can help me with teaching him about movie editing and such? While searching around I noticed something called Windows Live Movie. Hm…could I use this???

Oh YES I can!

Here’s a test video of my hubs and I with the webcam. This is a just the original version. As far as I’m concerned, I didn’t have time for hair and makeup people…art can’t wait!

Just a test, people. Next one will be edited!

just a few changes! Can you imagine how much fun a kid would have learning about editing with this program?

I’m so excited to learn more!

Trader Joe’s Lentil Bruschetta

2012-01-05T07:59:00.001-08:00

In the month of December we were at a party where I met this dip.

First glance, the dip was very questionable...don't judge a book by it's cover, I said to myself.

This dip has opened my eyes to what taste could be. Yowsa! This thing is SO good and pretty healthy for you too!

I don’t know who brought it, but we discussed it. I guess one day at Trader Joes they were passing out samples of this ridiculously tasty and easy recipe.

Here’s how you do it…

You enter the refrigerated section at T.J.’s. Select the cooked lentils, fresh bruschetta sauce, and low fat feta cheese.

Get a BIG bowl because this makes a lot.

Pile the ingredients in…aren’t they pretty?

Then mix…

Then you need a vessel.

Take pita bread and cut it in triangles.

Put a dollop of the lentil mix on a triangle of pita bread and enjoy!

I don’t have a picture of that because I was taking this to a girlfriend’s birthday party and I didn’t think it would be right to eat it before I brought it to the party. I should have been the Royal Food Taster and took one for the team. Oh well, lessons learned.
For more recipes visit my Recipe Index

Linking up with A Little Nosh, Thriving on Thursdays
Making you Crave Mondays ,This Chick Cooks , Remodelaholic &

Playing around

2012-01-04T11:47:00.000-08:00

Just Playin’

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The kids played around after we hauled a cord of wood into the back yard…

Come Fly Away!

2012-01-03T10:19:00.001-08:00

Are feathers going out?

I hope not because I keep moving the feathers that I have around the house to different places.

They end up in my Charlie Brown Christmas tree each year…

Now I’ve moved them here…

I’m still deciding whether to keep them there or not… they’re just so beautiful though.

Makes me wish I had wings to fly.

“Tea”ny habit…

2011-12-30T14:06:00.000-08:00

I love tea!

Have I mentioned how much I just love tea?

But I have a “tea”ny habit that drives my husband nuts!

Usually there’s a tea bag or two in that cute little holder.

For some reason he has this radar built into him that he senses when there’s a tea bag in it. He comes home from work and gets directed immediately to this spot on the countertop and throws them away. Then he greets us all…maybe the order is a little different than stated.

That right there is my new favorite tea. We’re getting legit in our tea drinking habits. Barry’s Tea and Earl Grey…with milk and sugar.

A girl has to have her vices, especially when you homeschool!

I will not be changing this habit for the New Year, I will just dispose of it before the hubs comes home.

I see the same sky…

2011-12-29T14:26:00.000-08:00

It just looks different than your sky.

Here’s mine…

(click to see larger image)

Here’s yours New Mexico…

We saw a lot of skies on our trip.

Christmas Pics!

2011-12-28T20:44:00.000-08:00

Here are some of my favorite things about Christmas.

Pictures from our Griswold trip!

2011-12-27T12:57:00.000-08:00

Here’s some of my favorite pictures from our trip.

Santa Fe, New Mexico

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Carlsbad Caverns, New Mexico

Peppermint Hearts and Peppermint Popcorn Balls

2011-12-26T15:11:00.000-08:00

I thought I’d try something different for a Christmas Treat this year.

This is my own version of popcorn balls. Next time I’d add more extract to them though. The recipe is below, but first...

Want to know how to make that cute peppermint heart?

*Have your cute little ones unwrap the mini candy canes for you.

*Place them on a sprayed cookie sheet just like the picture below.

*Then place them in a 300^ooven for about 5 minutes. Watch them though, you don’t want them to melt, just to get soft so you can push them together a little bit.

Sometimes they end up funky looking, but I think they are cute. you could even do this with a stick for a peppermint sucker. Please make sure you spray them because if you don’t they are nearly impossible to get off of your sheet. I had to reheat mine to pop them off.

Cheers!

Peppermint Popcorn Balls

1 bag of mini marshmallows

6 tbs butter

1 cup white chocolate chips

1/2 tsp peppermint extract

1/2 cup unpopped corn kernels

15 mini candy canes crushed

*First, pop the corn kernels in a pot (with a lid of course) using a couple tablespoons of vegetable oil at the bottom of the pan. Set aside in a large bowl.

*Melt butter, marshmallows and chocolate in pan on stove, stirring constantly, over medium heat.

*Once it all is melted together, remove from heat and add peppermint extract.

*Pour over popcorn and stir it with a spoon that has been sprayed with cooking spray.

*Line work surface with parchment paper. Spray hands with cooking spray and grab handfuls of popcorn to roll. Then roll the ball in crushed peppermint.

For more food ideas...visit my Recipe Page!

I've linked with...

Christmas Seek and Find Bottle

2011-12-23T17:00:00.000-08:00

Check out my other blog to see how to make this.

Herb called…Meatball recipe

2011-12-22T13:11:00.001-08:00

“Mom, Herb called today.”- child

“Oh yeah? What did he say?”- mom

“He said he really wished you included him in dinner.”- child

One of the easiest mistakes to make is to not include enough herbs in our cooking. It’s okay! Really, just do it! Add those herbs, everyone’s doing it!

How’s that for peer pressure?

Can you see all of the herbs in those meatballs?

I’d like to disclose something before I post my meatball recipe. I’ve learned a few things from my husband’s Aunt F (well, she’s mine too), about meatball making. I learned to add moisture in the form of milk and to pan fry first before you finish cooking the meatballs. I do not claim that this is Aunt F’s recipe, there’s no way to measure up to hers. They’re just plain AWESOME! But these seem to do just fine. These measurements made about 30 large meatballs. I was preparing these for Christmas Day, so I made a lot. I always freeze the extra and use for our homeschooling family of 5 (minus one vegetarian ).

Julie’s Meatball Recipe

6 pounds ground beef (don’t skimp on the fat people! The meatball needs it!)
4 slices of potato bread
4 eggs
1 cup of milk
4 cloves finely chopped garlic
fresh basil, chopped
fresh parsley, chopped
salt and pepper

*Beat eggs with salt and pepper in a large bowl. Place stacked bread in the eggs and pour milk onto the bread. Allow time for the bread to soak up the milk. Add more if it looks like the bread is still a little dry.

*Add ground beef, garlic and herbs to the large bowl. (Herb appreciates being included. Trust me.)
*Use your ten digits to get in there and mush and mix and repeat until everything is evenly mixed together.
*How do I measure my meatballs?

That’s right! With this large scoop. It makes them as close to the same size as possible.

Aren’t they pretty?

*Pan fry the meatballs in olive oil to get them nice and brown.

*You can either add them to sauce to finish cooking or bake them like I did in a 350^ooven for 30 minutes covered with foil.

I keep frozen meatballs in the freezer for a quick meal with sauce or to add to sub sandwiches. It’s been a while since I made meatballs. I ended up making 60 total that day. But now it’s done and I can enjoy Christmas Day a little more.

For more food ideas...visit my Recipe Page!

I've linked up with here and here for this recipe.

Here...

Here too...!

There are Days…

2011-12-20T15:21:00.000-08:00

…when I feel like this.

Christmas Crockpot Breakfast

2011-12-19T13:07:00.000-08:00

No one wants to cook a breakfast on Christmas morning.

Everyone wants a hot breakfast on Christmas morning.

I have the perfect recipe for this long standing problem.

The trusty Crock Pot!

Here’s the recipe I used last year for Christmas. It was awesome because I set up the crockpot before we went to bed, and in the morning we had a wonderful hot breakfast ready to be devoured!

Crock Pot Breakfast

Ingredients:

12 eggs

1 pound bacon, cut into small pieces, cooked and drained

3/4 pound shredded cheddar

1 cup milk

salt and pepper

1/4 teaspoon dry mustard

1 (32 ounce) bag frozen hash browns

Process:

Layer the ingredients in this order:

1/2 potatoes on bottom

1/2 bacon

1/2 cheese

remainder of potatoes

reminder of bacon

remainder of cheese

Beat eggs, milk, mustard, salt and pepper together. Pour the mixture over the layered ingredients and cook on low for 12 hours.

Enjoy!

And if you’re looking for something more sweet rather than savory for breakfast, check out the other recipe that I posted a while back for make ahead French Toast Casserole.

For more food ideas...visit my Recipe Page!

For this post, I've linked up with the following...

Abandoned

2011-12-18T16:54:00.001-08:00

There were so many abandoned buildings and homes when we drove the many miles in our road trip. Here’s a few photos from our trip.

It makes you wonder what happened here? Who were they? Where did they all go? What were the memories made at these places that must exist in the fibers of these structures?

What was so dangerous about this place in Roswell, New Mexico, that people had to Keep Out?

Did they celebrate Christmas here? Did they rejoice in the birth of Christ?

Did they ever look at their babies and thank the Lord for those children being a daily constant in their life?

Abandoned buildings = Abandoned memories

There’s so much sadness in that reality.

That Dough Didn’t Have A Chance

2011-12-17T21:56:00.000-08:00

For a few years now my Aunt Donna and I have had a baking day. I love this tradition and so do the kids. In fact when we were baking cookie recipe number seven they were saying “We can’t wait until we do this again next year!” I’m sure I speak for both of us when I say we just wanted to live in the moment and finish the moment.

Here’s some photos from our baking session. I’ve also included an easy no bake (for your baking day) recipe at the bottom of this post.

Christmas Baking

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This recipe is called Unbaked Cookies under my Aunt Mary’s recipes. They are also lovingly called Terds. Does that make me not want to eat them? No says I! These cookies are so good, but really rich. So, probably one would do for me. But to be honest with you, I could use the health argument for why this cookie should be eaten. It uses uncooked oatmeal! That’s a wonderful source of fiber! We all need more fiber right?

Terds

1/4 cup cocoa

dash of salt

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup butter (1 stick)

2 cups of sugar (I wonder if this could be cut down?)

1 teaspoon Vanilla

3 cups Oats

1/2 cups peanut butter

Bring first five ingredients to a boil, and boil for one minute. Take from the stove and add the remaining three ingredients.

Mix well and drop by spoonful onto waxed paper to cool and set.

Enjoy!

For more food ideas...visit my Recipe Page!

Quick and easy dessert!

2011-12-16T21:15:00.000-08:00

It’s so important during this time of the year not to expect too much from ourselves. Take it from me because I know. I’m currently expecting this to be the most intriguing post I’ve ever written.

I love baking, cooking, decorating, and memory making as much as the next person, but sometimes we have to be able to snap our fingers and have something to take with us to an party or for guests.

Here is a recipe for a quick dessert.

Cinnamon Cream Cheese Rolls

Target has this little container of whipped cinnamon cream cheese spread! Yippee! You’ll also need a can of crescent rolls.

Spread that cinnamon cheesy goodness on your unrolled crescents. My crescents tore when I was unrolling them. I just worked with it anyway.

Split the crescent rolls at the seam and roll each one.

Cut one inch pieces and lay, cut side down, on a cookie sheet.
Bake in 350^o oven for 12-15 minutes depending on your oven. Keep an eye on them because once they’re done, they can burn easily if left in too long.

What’s that? Oh, you want to see a picture of the final product??? Didn’t I say that this was a recipe for when you are short on time and need a quick fix? Didn’t I say to not expect too much from yourself? Well, I was rushing out of the house and forgot to take a picture of what was consumed in 2.5 seconds by a whole bunch of kids at our homeschool class day. I also know that you have an amazing imagination. Use it!

These are so good!

For more food ideas...visit my Recipe Page!

Griswold’s got nothing on us…still!

2011-12-14T21:11:00.000-08:00

Here I am in a second post, continuing to describe the best/worst trip I’ve ever been on.

November 16, 2011

Have a relaxing morning, head to the capital and then eat at the Boiling Pot.

We did just that. The trip to the capital started later than we had anticipated. By the time we got to the Boiling Pot I was well into a personality change since it had been so many hours since I had eaten. It took me a few crab legs, a new potato and five crawfish to begin feeling like myself again.

Photo # 1 is my cousin Christie, her husband Brandon, Baby Arabella, Sal and Ellie on the second floor at the capital.

Photo #2 is Pete catching Joey on the second floor at the capital.

Photo #3 is Pete with the kids in front of the capital.

Photo #4 is me holding Sal after I unknowingly almost ripped his leg off, trying to help him down from that cannon behind us. See that black and white striped piece of metal? Well, I guess his leg was wedged in there pretty good to keep him from falling off and I pulled him off sideways. This was about the time that the personality change was very evident. I almost started crying because I felt so bad. He made sure to lay it on thick that day too. Something about only wanting his dad, or something like that. I don’t know…I was feeling too guilty to hear what he was saying.

November 17, 2011

Rosie, Ellie, Christie and I were going to have pedicures done. Then it would be the rehearsal dinner. We were invited to join in since we were out of towners. Barbeque was on the menu.

Rosie, Ellie, Christie and I got our nails did. Then we went to lunch at a place appropriately named Rosie’s Pho. After some amazing food they took us to a wonderland called Charming Charlie’s. Hello? Where have you been Charlie? You need to come to my town! Stat! This place is full of accessories, clothing, shoes, and so much more. It’s even color coordinated. You should see it. It’s so beautiful, it’ll bring a tear to your eye. We then went to rehearsal dinner, had a blast. After rehearsal dinner we went to our new favorite place the Cracker Barrel. I got a salad to go since I don’t eat meat…me and barbeque don’t go hand in hand. If you’ve been to the Cracker Barrel you know that half of the deal is the gift store! While browsing I meet a nice older gentleman who tells me about this product called Petro-Carbo by J.R. Watkins. He said that he had seven kids and if they got scraped, cut or burned he and his wife put that stuff on it and it worked wonders. So, since there will be no Cracker Barrel in my neighborhood, I bought a can of it. I didn’t realize what was to come the next day.
November 18, 2011
This is the exciting day when Rosie and Jesse marry. Spend the day relaxing, be at the wedding facility by 4:30 for pictures, and then enjoy the wedding, read poem eloquently, and dance away the night like Tina Turner.
I spent the day doing laundry at the hotel with the thought that I don’t want to do laundry when we get home. Do my makeup and hair. Apply fake eyelashes because mine will never do. I found this set of eyelashes that were only half of the lid, so it would add a little flair to the lashes that I already had. Apply lashes and realize that there’s a distinct difference between where the fake one’s end and where my measly ones continue. Lucky for me, I’m completely prepared, so I begin adding individual eyelashes to “thicken” up the rest of the lid. Look in the mirror, pleased with my work, I may have even set a finger upon my hip with a sizzling noise. I’ll never tell. We arrive at the facility on time and hear my maiden name being called. They want photos of my side of the family. Joey takes off running and trips. He slams his face on the stone walkway. I’ll never forget the sickening sound of it. He jumps up and cries for literally two minutes. What we end up with, however are family photographs wherein my child has a bloody face. Yes, we are those people at this wedding. You know, those people you never want to be. My cousin’s wedding photos have our stamp all over them. Our poor baby with his face scraped up. Anyhoo, the time came for the ceremony. The setting was beautiful. Take a look…
The ceremony was great, and even though I had intended to sound like Maya Angelou, I didn’t come close to it because I had to yell. Whatever…where’s my injured child anyway? Pete has to walk him around because he’s just done.
Here’s the cute couple.
Here’s a picture of my Uncle Bob and me. This is the time when I realize something’s awry. Something’s off. (And yes, I checked to see how I looked after the photo was taken, people!)
Normally I’d say, “Aren’t we cute?” But I can’t. Two things are off here. At one point in the night I felt and heard a kiss from Joey on my arm. I looked over and said “Thank you buddy!” and in that moment it registered that his face was full of ketchup. I look down at my arm and attempt to remove the red from the nude colored top I was wearing. That photo is proof that I didn’t get it all. Then there’s the concern for the crazy eyes that I’m displaying. I realize that although my lashes looked amazing in person (many compliments from people…this isn’t my own ego speaking), the flash on the camera exposed the lie that were fake lashes. Here’s another photo with crazy eyes in them.
Again, if you look close you can see that there are chunks of lashes. C’est la vie or some junk like that. When I return to Austin in May, it will be without lashes and their adhesive. It wasn’t worth it!
Unfortunately that isn’t the only thing. I noticed Sal was tripping a lot that night. We were on the dance floor and I thought maybe he was too enthusiastic, finally allowing himself to get out there and dance. He was a ninja on that dance floor.
Do ninjas belong on the dance floor? I’ll leave that discussion for another day. The problem is, as I recall, ninjas don’t wear shoes. They especially don’t wear shoes that are two different sizes. I had set that poor child up with one of each size 3 and size 4 shoes. They were identical shoes that my sweet sister-in-law had given me for him and of course I grab one of each. I realized this the next day when I was packing away the wedding clothes and I glanced because he truly did trip a lot that night. All in all we had a wonderful evening. It was a special night!
November 19, 2011
This day we would pack up everything from the hotel and move on over to my Aunt and Uncle’s home to have some one on one time now that the wedding was over. We’d eat dinner, play a mean game of Farkle, and get a good night’s sleep.
We rose in the morning after taking one look at Joey, I remembered the Salve that the nice gentleman suggested. We start lathering that on Joey every chance we got. It smelled like Carmex, but we could care less. We did pack up from the hotel, go to my Aunt’s and Uncle’s home, eat dinner, play a really mean game of Farkle (while watching some of the funniest YouTube videos ever), and went to sleep. My sweet cousin T.K. had offered to sleep with the older two on the pullout couch. They were so excited! Sleep over! Then about midnight Sal woke up and said his stomach was hurting. I did the typical thing when you don’t know what to do…I told him to go to the bathroom. That seemed to fix the problem for about twenty minutes and he was back in our room saying his stomach was still bothering him. I suggested he sleep with us and then the tears came…but, but, but I want to sleep with T.K. I told him to make his choice, but I thought he should be in with us. Well folks, two hours later we got the answer to his stomach pains. He was sick with the flu. So, into the next day with the flu we go…
November 20, 2011
Wake up and have breakfast, maybe hit up the local Hobby Lobby (my dream store), Aunt Denise and Uncle Bob could play with the kids…we could all just be merry! (Did I lay it on thick?)
Sal stayed in bed and continued with the flu until approximately one in the afternoon, the rest of the day was spent recuperating. Ellie had the opportunity to go out with my cousins though. She felt GREAT! She had gotten that out of her system well before we crossed any state lines. She was ready to PAR-TEH! Look at how funny my cousins are. Brandon’s expression is the best!

That evening I got everything ready to go because, according to the schedule, we’re supposed to leave in the morning. Crawl to bed and declare that I cannot take anymore. One more thing will probably bring me to tears.
November 21, 2011
We’ll depart sometime around 8:00 a.m. to make our way to El Paso, New Mexico. Tears will be shed because we know that it will be a long time before we get to see each other again. Not only that, the memories made will be so special that we won’t want them to end.
My cousins Rosie and Jesse came over for coffee that morning. It was sweet of them because they had just had their wedding, but they wanted to see us off. Christie and Brandon got up, even though they were tired from having a precious little lady who gets up in the middle of the night. But, time is important when you don’t have much. Right??? Truth be told, about twenty minutes before we were going to pack up Joey comes down with the flu. The reaction was…really, really, is this some kind of joke? Where’s the hidden camera folks? Where’s my money? Pete called and pushed the hotel stay by one night and we began caring for the littlest one in the family who now has the flu. My uncle came in and I went directly to him and he just hugged me. The tears did come. They came because I was SO exhausted, stretched to the max, broken in a way. They also came because I was in my uncle’s arms which brought so much comfort. That hug said it would all be okay. It was an Uncle Bob hug. You all should be so lucky to have an Uncle Bob hug, just once, in your lifetime. Then my Aunt Denise came over and began rubbing my back…more tears. Even though I tower over her in height, her compassion enveloped all of me. That petite little thing could put out some love, let me tell you.
So, I pulled myself together and got the job done. Joey too finished up with the flu around one in the afternoon. Then he turned on a dime! He was playing with my cousin Christie’s dog Angus (seriously the best dog in the world), eating pretzels, eating bread, and eating crackers. That night we crashed in bed. I may have missed the bed, but I don’t remember.
Here’s Joey and Angus
I got lucky and had a moment with Arabella (finally). Now, I’m warning you…this is the night before we left and it’s taken with a phone (any excuse to for the quality of the photo). I am in my pajamas, I have no make up, I let my hair air dry (crazy curly fro frizz hair), and I have a pimple on my forehead. Don’t mention the pimple if you want to still be my friend or family member. I was stressed out so of course I had a pimple! But Arabella is so cute!
And because I’m becoming adept at using Windows Live Writer and Photo Gallery I even thought I could hide said pimple with Paint. Once I realized it was good, I even added eyelashes, rouge, and lipstick. Someone should hire me. There’s untapped talent here folks.
November 22, 2011
Drive from El Paso, New Mexico, straight into our garage. (I’ve already ceremoniously burned this schedule at this point, but why not keep with the layout of this post?)
We got up in the morning with a positive outlook. The kids are all feeling well. Joey is a champ, eating cereal, drinking his milk. We pack up and actually place our bodies in the car to leave Austin until the next time. Outside of my aunt and uncles house we say our good byes. As we’re driving away Joey is yelling his favorite line from Lion King. “Don’t call me Pig! Call me Mr. Pig!” We all laugh, it’s so sad that we have to leave them. About twenty minutes out, Joey throws up again. Ellie is screaming like I’ve never heard, because she just happens to be sitting right next to him. All four windows go down, we pull over, assess the damage and turn around. We’re headed back to where we came from. I realize on our way back that it was the milk. I should have never given him that at this point in his recovery. But in the midst of everything, I didn’t think that decision through. Just before we turn down my Uncle’s street, I suddenly find this completely hysterical. I start that crazy lady laugh, you know where you’re giggling in a weird way and almost crying at the same time. I look at Pete and say something to the effect of “They don’t put this in the movies because no one would go see the movie. They’d say yeah right! Stuff like this never happens to people in real life! Hee Hee hee hee, sniffle sniffle.” I realize I need to pull myself together because we have a child to wash, a car to clean and a road to get back on. If it kills me, we’ll be back on that road! We do end up back on that road. We make it to El Paso with three exhausted children and two parents who can’t feel. Everything is numb at this point. Everything physical is numb, especially my rear because we’d been in the car so long. Everything emotional is numb because it hurts to remember, to picture those moments in my mind. Numb is good. Numb is progress. Numb is reality.
November 23, 2011
Today I’d completely unpack everything and have my house back to normal. Pete can bring my car in the next week and get that attachment on the top of my car off. I might even have time to get a fill on my nails today. Oh to be back home! Joy! (Keep in mind this schedule’s ashes were spread somewhere between here and Austin, TX)
We get out of dodge (El Paso) with one goal in mind…to get home! Home, I love my home! I love my bed! I love my cat! I love that dang gopher in that yard that keeps Pete looking like Caddyshack. I love you man! We drove and drove. We ate at the Cracker Barrel for one last hoorah before there aren’t anymore. Then we pull in the drive, check to see if our beloved garage door opener works still, and ended the best/worst trip we’d ever been on.
It was the best trip because you can’t put a price on time with family. We had great times with my Aunt Angie, her husband Gary, and my Grandma on the way out to Austin. We enjoyed time with everyone who was there for the wedding too. There are just too many to list.
It was the worst trip because it seemed like one thing after another. But I would do it over again, even if I knew that all of this would happen while we were gone. The last day of driving the kids specifically said, “This was fun. Can we do it again?” And I said,”Let’s just get home kids and we’ll think about it later.”
I’ll post pics later. This was just our story in words. Our story in pictures will be next.

Griswold’s got nothin’ on us!

2011-12-13T21:22:00.000-08:00

Towards the middle of the month of November, we went on a road trip. My cousin was getting married in Austin, TX. We figured if we were already going to be on the road…why not see something else?

I do believe that if Chevy Chase knew us, he’d be so proud!

I also believe that this trip would be hysterical if written into another Griswold Vacation, but with Chevy Chase as the grandfather who’s along for the ride with one of his kids and their family.

Here it goes… Any writing that you see in blue will be the proposed schedule. Any writing you see in red will be what actually happened. Also, there will be times when I will insert what subjects we’ve covered on this trip for homeschooling.

November 9, 2011

Completely pack for five people. We’ll be away for approximately two weeks in varying weather and will need appropriate attire for Rosie’s wedding.

Most packing was completed, however a few things were left to be done the next day…I’ve got time right?

WRONG!!! Thirty minutes before I’d be able to go into the next day’s schedule, Ellie comes down with the stomach flu. We were up most of the night contemplating the timing of said flu.

November 10, 2011

Go to Bible study! Wouldn’t it be great to head out of town with some prayers and encouragement? Finish the unfinished… you’re a stellar organizer who has most of it done, so this list should be short. Then in the evening, take the whole family for fun and games at Peter Piper’s for Salvatore’s soccer party!

Don’t go to Bible study…God will understand…He knew this was going to happen anyway. Right? Sit next to sick child for the day and try to keep other two children at bay. If we go on this trip, we can’t have people sick with the flu. Mommy ends up taking Salvatore to his party while Daddy stays home with the others. Many tears were shed by the two left behind. Return from party and finish packing. Begin throwing any article of clothing into the luggage and hope that it was enough. I also ended up with a ridiculous amount of shoes for myself (I won’t say the exact amount, but it was in the teens). Pete packs the car while I sit next to Ellie.

November 11, 2011

Enter the highway at 8:00 a.m. and be on our way to a memorable trip. Stay in Flagstaff, AZ that evening.

Memorable is right. I’ll remember how I felt that morning when I heard Joey coughing from his room. He had croup… he had it pretty good. Debate what to do, decide to take two kids into walk in clinic at the doctors to get an all clear to go on this trip. Doctor says all is good, but Joey needed a steroid due to the fact that he had croup pretty good and the second day is usually worse. This was an oral dose, taken like a liquid medicine. All is well until about noon when roid rage hits. He’s angry at the world, screaming, throwing things, crying inconsolably. That night at the hotel, we get reported by fellow hotel stayers. Management called and expressed their concern for the child in room 305. Pete just told them, he’s two and having a hard time going to sleep since it’s his first night away. In total, he cried for two hours, no matter how we tried to help him, before passing out. Thankful for the silence.

By the way… wanna see what we looked like?

Oh yes we did!!!

November 12, 2011

Drive to Santa Fe, NM and stay the night.

We drove to Santa Fe, NM and stayed the night. The rage wore off about mid day. Made mental notes to self to call doctor’s office and mark in his chart to NEVER give him this steroid again.

School- map skills, discussed various habitats, counted the countless trains.

November 13, 2011

Go see the Loretto Chapel and see staircase that Grandma wanted to see. Continue on to Carlsbad, NM.

We went to Loretto Chapel and saw the staircase. It was neat, for the story on it, click here. Drove to Carlsbad, NM.

Here’s a picture of the staircase in the chapel.

On a side note…one the way to Carlsbad, NM, we drove through Roswell, NM. So of course we had to stop and take a pic. Look who got left behind there…need more proof?

November 14, 2011

Go to the Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico. This is something you’ve dreamed about. So since you’ll have plenty of driving time prior to arriving, educate the kids.

We had the most amazing time at Carlsbad Caverns. Who knew 75 stories below the earth’s surface could bring so much wonder and awe for our earth. Can’t wait to return to these Caverns.

School- Geology…duh! The kids had many talks with the Rangers in the caverns. Not only that, but they became Jr. Rangers that day and solemnly swore to take care of National Parks so long as they live, Amen.

November 15, 2011

Drive to Austin, TX. Head straight for family. Visit and then check into another hotel.

Oh we drove to Austin. We drove and we drove and we drove some more. I’ve been there quite a few times by now, but I’ve always flown. I never knew how huge Texas was until we’d been driving all day and were no where near our destination. Also, there is literally nothing for miles! If you see a Starbucks, girl you better stop and buy three of them. Who cares they cool down, cause you won’t see one for days and then what will you do? That being said, I do believe Texas is so beautiful. Even though there isn’t anything for miles, there’s a lot of comfort in that. I like that every acre isn’t developed. We found our family and my new baby cousin! Arabella is so sweet. She’s my cousin Christie’s little one. Checked into another hotel.

School- What could we have possibly learned about today? Well, we stayed in hotels that had breakfast included. Salvatore really enjoyed the plethora available to them. My suggestion was a bowl of cereal such as cheerios, a banana and maybe some milk. We found out about two hours into the trip that he ate different then suggested. Parked outside a Pizza Hut, I came to realize he had something more colorful. I soothed him as best as I could while he was tossing his breakfast. When he was done, I gently asked him what it was that he had consumed that morning. “Well,” he said. “I had three bowls of fruit loops.” “Holy cow!” I exclaimed. “That’s way too much sugar, honey. We never eat like that.” He continued, “I also had yogurt and two cups of juice.” “Double holy cow Sal! Your body doesn’t like all of the sugar you put into it. It’s not good for you, that’s why I don’t buy that kind of stuff for you guys,” I said. “Mom, you think tomorrow you can pick out my breakfast for me?” he asked. “Sure honey, I’d be happy to,” says the concerned mom. Then he continued,”Hey mom, I think I’m done now. I’m really hungry. Do you think we can go eat at Pizza Hut?” Sympathy went out the door at that point. “Heck no we can’t go eat there! Number one, it’s horrible for you. Number two, I just witness you losing your breakfast and you think I want to even think about eating anything, let alone greasy pizza? Oh no he didn’t!” His schooling for the day had to do with nutrition. Sugar in extreme quantities is very bad for our bodies. It will in fact reject it as you just experienced, my little student of life.

This story will have to continue on in the next post. There’s too much to write. Make sure you return, because this is just the tip of the iceberg. There’s SO much more to tell in part two.

Happy Birthday Pete!

2011-12-13T07:48:00.001-08:00

Today is my hubby’s birthday and we’ll be celebrating it by going to a Christmas program at Sal’s school. Doesn’t seem like a great way to spend your birthday, but he’s that kind of guy. He’s happy to go along. We did have brunch on Sunday with his parents and my mom.

Pete,

Happy Birthday from all of us who think you’re so special.

We love you!

She is 90!

2011-12-12T08:07:00.000-08:00

She is 90

She is Mom

She is Grandma

She is G.G. (great grandma)

She is so much more.

She's the Grandma that made us feel special when we were kids and staying at her house.

She got up early in the morning to set up breakfast.

She made the BEST scrambled eggs!

She made us feel like adults by allowing us to pour our milk from a small carafe into our cereal.

She knew my dad's favorite things and made sure she had them on hand.

She knew our interests and asked us about it.

She helped foster my love of reading...Grandma always was reading a book.

She keeps a meticulous house.

She's more up to date on current events then I am.

She supported me during college by buying my books.

She'd call at the beginning of each semester and ask me what I needed.

I'd feel guilty about it and she'd assure me that she was happy to do it.

She was proud of me.

I can't believe she's 90.

When I'm her age, I hope people find me to be very immature.

She doesn't look or act her age.

This is the time when you don't want to grow up...just freeze it all at in this moment.

We went to Joe's Crab Shack with my Aunt Helen (my Grandpa's sister).

Aunt Helen, Aunt Donna, Pete, Grandma and me

Grandma and me!

Aunt Helen and Aunt Donna

Yes, I swear I'm related. Even if I do tower over them. I even tried hunching over.

Grandma's cake

Something lemony, I just wanted the frosting.

Happy Birthday to you!!!

Thar she blows!

Then on Friday Aunt Donna brought barbeque over to our house.

Jared is on tour and couldn't be there, but Joey and Laura came.

My mother-in-law and Aunt Donna.

Mom and Pete

Aunt Helen and Joey

Aunt Helen and Grandma

My father-in-law and Pete

...lovin' his ice cream!

Grandma with her great-grand babies!

Thar she blows...again.

Sabrina, Me and Laura

Sal and Ellie waiting for pie

Mom and Sabrina

Jenna giving her great-grandma some love. So sweet!

What can I say?

Grandma, I hope that someday when I'm 90 that I have half the spunk, the brains, and memories that you have. I love that you miss nothing and remember everything.

Thanks for being such a wonderful Grandmother!

We're so lucky to have you.

Here's to 90 more!

Mom's Birthday

2011-11-28T08:20:00.000-08:00

So, it's been a couple of weeks since my last post.

Irresponsible?

No says I!

We've been on a road trip like no other.

I'll post about that very soon.

We got together for Mom's birthday at our house.

Here are some photos...

Mom. AD and kids

Gma and kids

Mom and me

Four Generations

Pete and me

Gma and Mom

AD and Joey

My niece A after ice cream sundaes!

Obviously Joey and A inspired each other

J and L

My sweet nieces S and J

Matching cousins!

They're crazy about each other

It's good to be 4 years old

The ONLY pic I could get of my nephew A

Mom and the grandkids

Me and S having a hootenanny! Swing yer partner do se do!

Sis-in-law L, me and S

All the ladies in the house!

This is a change! Look at the men in the house... so few! Missed you JCP.

J and L's beautiful family

AD and J

Mom and Ellie

Hope you enjoyed your birthday Mom.

Continuation of Halloween Pics

2011-11-09T19:01:00.000-08:00

Here's the rest of our pumpkin carving and cookie and cupcake decorating in preparation for Halloween.

Then there are a few pics of the kids in their costumes. We ended up having some friends, family, and neighbors come over for a potluck evening. The food was great and we ended up having about 20 little kids running around. It was a lot of fun to watch them.

Sal's vision for his pumpkin

Ellie's vision for her pumpkin, she's into mixed mediums. See how she actually has some pumpkin on the page?

Joey's vision...

Daddy's vision...

I feel some Tim the Tool Man Taylor grunts coming on.

Now this here is how you carve a pumpkin, son.

Is that the nose?

This is an error, but I still ended up liking the effect.

The kids with their masterpieces.

Love my camera, but it took me forever to remember how to shut off the flash.

Happy Bunch.

Joey's cookies that he decorated.

Ellie's cookies are probably my favorite. I LOVE the faces. They express so much with just a little line.

Salvatore's cookies.

Then there were cupcakes to decorate... I'm so tired at this point.

Buzz Light Year to the Rescue!

"What's up with all of this?"

To Infinity and Beyond!

"Wait, my nose itches, then I can go to infinity."

Princess Ariel! She enjoyed this costume way too much!

Who you gonna call? GHOST BUSTERS!

This pose scares me.

The boys acting out their costumes.

Joey really getting into the part.

"Hey guys, there's sustenance on this planet."

Pretty little lady!

Flex that muscle, just don't hurt yourself honey!

Buzz Lightyear costume malfunction.

My baby and me!

No rhyme or reason to the makeup, just had fun. I still don't know why I have a Peacock color palette of eyeshadow in my drawer. I never wear those colors!

"What's that I see in beyond those shadows?"

"Don't worry Buzz, I'll handle the lil' buggar..."

"...with my totally awesome and splendiferous blown up-ghost trap-backpack-laser-thing-a-ma-bobber."

My in-laws.

Pete wearing his shirt that I'm usually standing to the right of him. Poor Joey!

Trick-or-treat!

Buzz Light Year's hair has grown in the front.

Hope you enjoyed your Halloween too!

Pre-Halloween Stuff

2011-11-08T17:02:00.000-08:00

Just some pre-Halloween pics.

Joey didn't like the feel of the gooey pumpkin.

He preferred it when I cleaned out his pumpkin.

"When is this part going to be over?"

"Found some!"

"Lemme show dis punkin who's da boss."

I made chocolate chip pumpkin bread that Joey devoured.

Then he was majorly sad when his piece was gone.

"Boohoo!"

More Pics to come!

When kids hide stuff!

2011-11-07T17:00:00.000-08:00

Last week Ellie got to bring home the little mascot for her AWANA class called Cubbie. AWANA is a nationwide Bible study class for kids. I told her that for the sake of Cubbie's life, she should put him away while Joey was awake, and she can hold him all she wants when JoJo was asleep. I went into my room one day to notice something was off. I couldn't at first pin point it.

See if you can find what doesn't belong.

Oh Little Cubbie...where are you?

He has the perfect view out of the window.

The other angle.

Just a lil' bear waiting to be held.

You never know at times how they will carry out your requests. She said it was the perfect hiding place for him. I couldn't agree more.

When Aunt C comes to town!

2011-11-05T21:49:00.000-07:00

Yes folks, the Queen of Tickling came to town last week.

She graced us with her tickling tentacles and here is the result...

Aunt C, thanks for taking the day to hang out with us. The kids really enjoyed having you and Grandma to play with. LOVE YOU!

I live for Olives!

2011-11-04T15:53:00.000-07:00

For quite a few years we have cured olives both green and black.

Here are the pictures of us cracking the olives to brine them.

There will be more pictures of the canning process after it's done.

Joey enjoyed not having to be gentle for once.

My mother-in-law helped out.

My father-in-law and his trusty Coke bottle.

Safety First!

Jason Aldean baby!

2011-11-03T15:16:00.000-07:00

Last Friday we were SO lucky to see Jason Aldean in concert!

Thompson Square (pictured below) and Chris Young opened for Mr. Aldean.

All acts were awesome, but I really enjoyed Mr. Aldean. He's more than just a country singer. It was practically a rock n' roll concert. He played all of his songs plus a song from Kid Rock and Guns n Roses.

Here are the pics.

click on them to see a larger image.

Waitin' for the Man!

The girls before the concert.

Mr. Jason Aldean...see the guitarist on his left? That man was all over the place!

Here he is!

Here he is again!

Not sure which song they were rockin' in this photo.

We ate dinner there before the concert. Thanks M for this opportunity!

The guys.

Most of these photos are thanks to C. My camera didn't want to work.

So talented!

I'm such a poser! Look how ridiculous! I look that way because when you get older, you have to try with all of your might not to fall out of your chair when you lean over for a photo op.

Thompson Square, as the sign suggests.

Cute couple.

I think I was the only Eskimo there.

You know, it's interesting to see what "Country Fans" of the female type wear to these concerts. I was FREEZING in my get up and these girls were there with little shorts and little dresses. I was a little out of my element, but the entire night was a blast and we all had fun.
There was a group of women that were behind us, yelling things such as..."Jason, I'll marry you." and "Jason, I'll have your babies." Well, I don't have any of those requirements. Just sing me a song, Mr. Jason Aldean, and I'll be on my way. It may be painful at the moment, but I'll require nothing else from you. No child support, no alimony, in fact, you don't even have to remember me!

Such a fun night!

Later Alligator!

2011-10-29T07:37:00.000-07:00

You may remember that I'm in the business of helping animals return to what they once were. I guess I could be considered a veterinarian of sorts.

My next client is still unfixed.

Below you will see Mr. Alligator. He was given to Joey by my cousins C.H. and S.H. It's one of his all time favorite toys. With the rope that Mr. Alligator grasps in his mouth, Joey ~~drags~~ guides him around all day long.

He may be smiling on the outside, but inside he's crying.

Looks like he'd just be rolling along, minding his business.

You might be asking yourself...what could possibly be the problem?

Oh, I don't know, maybe because our pets feetwheels are falling off!

Who or what is going to bring up the rear if his feetwheels aren't there?

He "nose" it's not good, but he's stuck in a rut. Not sure what's more important... a nose job or rear alignment.

How is my hot glue gun to fix this?

I believe it might take reconstruction to fix this.

He's waiting patiently for Mr. Alligator to be returned to him.

He's a little torn up about it...can't you see?

I better hurry and fix it. I can't stand seeing these sad, sad eyes.

Don't forget to check out my other blog to see what's going on in our homeschool.

Take care!

Ode to Motherhood!

2011-10-25T22:00:00.000-07:00

There's a side of me that I'd like to share with you now.

Motherhood has changed me in so many ways, this very thing moved me to write one day about a year ago.

I haven't yet shared this with others, maybe I'm a little timid to be so transparent.

But here it is, I hope these words move you, the way they did me.

One Side to Motherhood

written by: JuJu L.

Today I looked at my backside.

What a mistake to make.

What piece of clothing could hide,

the ridiculous size of my backside?

There was a time when it had a cute name.

Bubble Butt, because it was so cut.

Three children, I think, are to blame,

for the loss of bubble butt, that cute name.

It sways and moves on it's own accord.

Bigger pants in the future, may need to afford.

A personal trainer at the gym would be nice,

but for now my spanx will have to suffice.

Swing, sway, bounce and jiggle.

Kids walking behind often giggle.

And at their joy my pride goes blank,

I smile at those three, my big butt does thank.

Hope you enjoyed it!

Don't forget to check out the other blog if you're interested in our life-schooling!

New blog!

2011-10-24T09:21:00.000-07:00

I've been toying around with the idea of separating the family blog with the homeschooling ideas and lessons.

This way, if you don't have an interest in that part of our life, you could just look at the family events on this site. I do have to say that the reason I changed the title from "Vita Mia" (My Life) to "Life Schooled" is because that's what life is! Whether or not you homeschool, you are getting schooled in Life daily and you teach your own children daily!

This is a post about trying to keep #3 busy and occupied.

Remember, you can subscribe to that blog also if you would like to receive updates. Just put your e-mail address in, make sure you verify when Feedburner e-mails you, and then you will receive a reminder in your inbox when a new post has been made. This will help me to see if anyone is even reading these things! Take care!

Catsup, Ketchup...no... Catch Up!

2011-10-21T08:02:00.000-07:00

Catch Up Time!

(as always, you can click on the image to view a larger picture)

We went to a Padre game!

Uncle Jared and Joey watching the game.

Aunt Donna and Ellie hanging out! Thanks again A.D. for taking us!

Pete, Sal, Jared and Joey!

Joey, U.J., A.D. Ellie and me!

Who's number 1?

Here's his serious look!

The kids started with the biggest bag of Kettle Corn I've ever seen...

... and worked their way through the Cotton Candy that U.J. said was a "necessity".

Do you see the look in his eyes? I'm skeered!

One of the vendors was walking around with frozen yogurts, as he passed by us (in a tone that only those vendors have), he said, "FROZEN YOGURTS! VE-RY SHARE-ABLE!" That's what you say when you have little kids by you! Mom, he said it was share-able! Can we get one?

Sugar, Sugar, Sugar, Sugar, Sugar.

After hitting Costco a few days later I asked the kids to take t.p. and put it under the sinks in the bathrooms and refill any rolls that needed it. This is what it looked like when they were done in the guest bathroom.

This angle looked normal though.

Then we got BOOED by an unknown individual!

Thank you M. W. and S.W.! We had no clue!

They left goodie bags for each of the kids!

Joey LOVED the pumpkin cookies!

Fall artwork. We drew leaves with crayons then painted with water colors over the page. Here's Sal working.

Sal's paper.

Ellie's artwork!

She's working so hard!

Joey really enjoyed this. He is so unaware that it's cute. He'd go over to use the other paints and end up sitting on the kids pages that they were working on, tripping over them, etc. They were getting frustrated, but it was pretty funny.

Brown, brown water!

I always have to do the crafts with the kids.

Inspiration hit and a horrible turkey came out! The kids thought it was amazing! Little do they know :)!

Aside from all of the paint on his backside from sitting on his siblings artwork, he also managed to paint his forehead.

Hope everyone is doing well! This is just a quick run down of things lately!

Life's curveballs

2011-10-07T08:39:00.000-07:00

This was supposed to be a post about some amazing lessons that we're doing. You know, Einstein training or something mind blowing.

Isn't he a doll?

No, this was going to be a post about how everyday I channel June Cleaver and keep my house spic and span, my children in line, and my hair coiffed to perfection.

I swear that's me, everyday. I hop out of bed looking like this. Just don't drop by unannounced.

Instead, this is a post about how my baby girl gave me a heart attack the other night.
She was done with her shower, wiping the glass with a squeegee (sp), both feet firmly planted, and she slipped.

I ran in the bathroom after hearing the thump and Pete already had her in his arms, wrapped in a towel.

She had hit the back of her head and split her chin open. Immediately I felt sickened by her pain. I worked on calming her down and asked to see what we were working with. Pete lowered the towel, I muttered a couple of words...OMG. I went straight to the phone and called my in-laws to come and sit with the boys while we took her to the emergency room. We got there and she was calm, maybe the fact that she'd be up later than her brothers had soothed her. We kept her distracted and she didn't cry, she was such a champ. We got to the emergency room and this is what she looked like in waiting. (This is the most graphic pic, just skip it if you don't want to see it.)

Surprisingly enough it didn't bleed that much at all. Since she had the lump in the back of her head and the chin that was throbbing, she just said that her head was hurting.

Here she is waiting to be stitched up. Pete's signature glove balloon. This thing drives me nuts, but he does it every time. They took it away because in a Children's hospital it's considered a choking hazard.

The care that was taken with her was so amazing. They were SO good to her and she in turn was amazing. When they numbed the wound was the only time she cried and that was even minimal. Then she just laid there and let them stitch her up while holding our hands. At one point she moved and asked if they were done. They jumped and said, "Does that hurt honey?" She responded, "No, I'm just bored and want to go home." They got a kick out of that. They said that it was a first for them to have a child allow them to stitch her up without restraints. They went down the hall bragging about her to the other nurses and doctors and brought back a teddy bear with a book.

Here she is with her stitches done.

You'll have to excuse the angle. Obviously cleaning her nose was the last thing on the agenda.

Trust me when I say that I have perspective. In the end a few stitches and no concussion is a pretty good day. We are SO grateful for our kids health. We feel blessed beyond measure that this was the worse that it got. There still is the difficulty of seeing your child in pain. No parent wants their baby to suffer. I feel bad for the kids when they get a splinter, let alone stitches.

We're so proud of her, she was so brave and cooperative. Most of all, we're thankful that it was just a bump and a cut. She's been great, she says it doesn't even hurt her.

Visiting Cousins

2011-09-30T19:54:00.000-07:00

We're so lucky to have so much family that we are close to. Recently my mom's first cousins Cindy and Dale came to visit. They spent the week playing, as adults will do, Mom, Cindy, Dale and Aunt Donna. Then Saturday came and we had them over to our place because with the three kids, it's just easier at home. We had a full day with Ellie's hair cut. One unexpected thing was that they came to Sal's soccer game. He was SO proud to have them watch him. Here's some pics from our meaningful visit. We love you Cindy and Dale!

And remember...you can click on the picture to get a closer look.

1st cousins Mom and Cindy!

Isn't she too cute???!!! Love her!

Mom, Aunt Donna and Cindy... cousins.

Grandma, Mom, Ellie, Aunt Donna and Cindy

Aw heck, maybe I'll join in too!

Joey, Mom and Cindy

Kissing up on Grandma!

Pete, Sal, Joey and Dale!

Handsome group of men!

Too bad this kid doesn't love his daddy!

Dale trying with all of his might to hold up that beast of a child...Joey.

Me, Cindy, Dale and Pete

Just the four of us...

Hey! It's us again.

Cindy, Grandma and Dale.


Do you know that my Grandma will be 90 this year? She looks amazing!

This was a wonderful visit. Thank you Cindy and Dale, for taking the time to spend with us. In the end of our days, NOTHING is worth more than the time you spend with people. We always have a great time with you guys. Love you so!

Ellie gets her hair did!

2011-09-29T08:17:00.000-07:00

I know that phrase has it's grammatical errors, but it says so much!

Ellie will be 5 in January and she just had her first trim by sweet Giustina.

Giustina's husband, Vito, gave Sal his first haircut when he was 3.5 years.
I love the kids curls so much that I don't want to see them go, but it's important to keep their hair healthy, so I gave in.

Before seeing Giustina!

We just love her hair!

Ellie and I messing around.

Why does she enjoy blocking my face with her doll?

Sal and his bright uniform.

Ellie still thinks it's going to hurt at this point.

I love this little girl!

Trimming one little inch from the end.

Vito cutting Sal's hair in tandem with Giustina!

Happy little Lady!

Joey messing with the towel bin. See those little bits of hair? That's how much was trimmed off.

Smile Vito and Sal! Just a little tidbit of information... Vito has been doing my Grandmother S.'s (s.s.s.s.s. not sure if that was correct, it's a lot of s.s.s.s.s.s) hair for years, probably like 30 years. He also is family friends with my in-laws and he cuts my father-in-law and Pete's hair too!

She thought this part was funny!

Caught bobby-pin handed.

I'll be using this picture in 20 years as ammo.

Isn't Giustina awesome! She's so beautiful and has a beautiful spirit too!

Giustina kissing up on Ellie.

Later that day we had a soccer game for Sal plus our cousins were in town.
Pics from the cousins visit will be on the next post.
Have a good day!

Amish Pancakes

2011-09-17T17:59:00.000-07:00

I'm so fascinated by the Amish way of life. I love their individuality and how they don't succumb to societal pressures to be like everyone else. They live their lives completely based on their faith. I can respect that.

Another thing that they do well is cook.

I have a cookbook called Amish Friends Cookbook by Wanda E. Brunstetter.

In it contains many recipes that I've tried, many I'd like to try, and various facts about their lives and traditions.

One of the recipes that I'd like to try is the recipe for rootbeer. I'm in need of rootbeer extract before I can make it, though.

Every Thursday night is Breakfast for Dinner night.

This last Thursday I made a pancake recipe from this book and I tell you what...I don't see myself making any other recipe for pancakes, these were just too darn good.

I considered adding sugar and vanilla to the recipe, but decided to follow the recipe exactly and see how it turned out. I'm so glad I didn't change it. Be forewarned that the batter is ridiculously lumpy and you will wonder where you went wrong. Have faith and follow through. It all works out in the end and you have the biggest, best tasting pancakes ever!

Yoder's Pancakes

5 cups flour

5 heaping teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup vegetable oil

2 eggs

4 cups milk

In 4-quart mixing bowl, measure flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix well. Make well in center and fill with oil, eggs and 2 cups milk; beat well with a spoon. Fold in remaining milk while scraping sides of bowl. Stir just until well blended; batter should be lumpy. Ladle 3 tablespoons batter into hot, greased skillet. When bubbly around edges, flip over. Flip several times until well done. Yields about 18 large pancakes.

***"Yields about 18 large pancakes" is an understatement. "Yields about 18 enormous pancakes" would be accurate. Before, I used to make more batter so that I could have left overs for another morning. I just use the toaster to reheat them. Truth is, I ended up with 10 extra pancakes without doubling the recipe. Excuse me, 10 gigantic pancakes.

Hope you enjoy them!

For more food ideas...visit my Recipe Page!

Dragonfly Education

2011-09-16T16:16:00.000-07:00

So much curiosity came out of this dragonfly.

I began researching to find out more about them and information wasn't as abundant as I thought it would be.

There were only a handful of printables and the same sad amount of books in the library system.

So, here is what we ended up with...

Copywork-

poem by James Whitcomb Riley

Till the dragon fly, in light gauzy armor burnished bright.

Came tilting down the waters in a wild, bewildered flight.

Science- labeled the various parts of the dragonfly.

Ellie worked on her Pond Pack.

This is a "find the different one" page. She struggled a little on the lily pad line. The difference is so small that I circled all of the ones where the difference is, then she identified it herself. If you click on the picture you can see where I'm talking about.

This is to identify what is an insect or not an insect. I guess she just didn't have a good relationship with those lily pads from before, so she just didn't even acknowledge their existence on the page. Aren't worth her time.

Then we did q-tip painting using a generic printable of a dragonfly.

You didn't think I wouldn't get in on the fun did you?

I really just had them watch so that I could model how to do the project. It's a simple project, but it's still good to show them how first.

This is a small example of the globs of paint Ellie used.

Here's Sal working on his.

The q-tip is perfect for their little hands.

Ellie's finished product. This dragonfly flies to the beat of it's own drum just like my sweet girl!

Sal really took his time. He loved this!

While they painted I read them these stories.

The Dazzling Dragonflies was the most informative and had amazing pictures in it.

Stick and In the Small, Small Pond were books that were more about the creatures in those environments as opposed to the dragonfly specifically. But, as I said, books about dragonflies were few and far between.

By the way, the poem that I included in the Original Dragonfly post was from The Fountain of Youth by Lowell.

We also read from the Handbook of Nature Study and read facts from Enchanted Learning. Dragonflies are pretty amazing creatures.

Here are some facts that we learned in the process:

Dragonflies are called nymphs before they reach the adult phase.
They spend most of their life in the nymph phase, only being an adult anywhere from 3 to 6 weeks. (the numbers varied from source to source)
They lay their eggs directly in the water where they sink to the bottom.
As the nymph grows larger it swims around and eats bugs and even small fish.
As an adult, they show no compassion for their own kind. If they are hungry and a smaller version is flying by, they will still eat them.
They are vital in our lives because they eat small flies and mosquitoes (hallelujah).
Each eye has more than 30,000 lenses, making it one of the most accurate flying hunters.
Some estimate that a dragonfly (all stages of it) can live as long as 7 years.

It's amazing what can come out of a little visit from a bug. It does take a little time to collect the papers, but it was well worth it. This can be done at any point when a child notices something that he/she doesn't know about. That's when the quest for knowledge happens, and we as parents help guide them in their journey.

And where is this angel when we were doing all of this?

Working on his handsome self by...

...cutting some zzz's.

And as for my worst behaved, least attentive, and most uncooperative student...

...well, she finished her work too.

This awkward angle is due to the fact that I won't let a child in this house (and sometimes a husband) touch my precious little Canon.

Coming up in the next post is the best pancake recipe, hands down. It's a recipe from an Amish cookbook.

Once you eat this flapjack,

You'll never go back.

Dragonfly, Dragonfly

2011-09-14T12:23:00.000-07:00

This isn't the first time that we've had a dragonfly in our yard, in fact, we've had many.

This is, however the first time I've ever seen one this large and with these colors.

Isn't it gorgeous?

Click on the images to see a closer look. The wings are amazing on it.

So far I've identified it as a red skimmer dragonfly. I'm still not 100% sure about that label though. We'll be turning this into a lesson this week. Right now I'm just gathering some books, coloring pictures, diagrams, etc. We'll also use the Pond Pack found at Homeschool Creations. This is too easy for Sal, but perfect for Ellie.
At the beginning of the year I purchased Handbook of Nature Study by Anna Botsford Comstock as part of our reading list from AO, but what I didn't realize was that this is a reproduction of a very old nature handbook. The pictures are either drawn or old photographs that are so dark it's hard to decipher what's in the picture. The Preface at the beginning of the book is signed by the author, dated July of 1911. One of the things that I do love about this book is that it has poetry and lesson ideas in it. The poetry will be used for copy-work and I doubt I'll use the lesson plan under this section of the book. It suggests creating an aquarium for aquatic bugs... Mama don't play like that people! Here's one of the poems included in the book.

In summer-noon flushes
When all the wood hushes,
Blue dragon-flies knitting
To and fro in the sun.
With sidelong jerk flitting,
Sink down on the rushes.
And, motionless sitting,
Hear it bubble and run,
Hear it's low inward singing
With level wings swinging
On green tasselled rushes,
To dream in the sun.

Whether you homeschool or not, there are always educational moments in our daily lives. This one happened to fly right to our front door (literally) giving me an opportunity I couldn't miss. These are the times that I'm so thankful I homeschool. I can take this moment and turn it into an adventure with the kids.

Next time I'll be better...

2011-09-09T17:18:00.000-07:00

...prepared.

You never know what is going to come about in your day.

It's always good to be prepared.

Better safe than sorry.

etc. etc. yadda, yadda, yadda

I've been thinking about this topic lately. "What if something happens and we have no food or water?"

So we've kept a few cases of water on hand and some jarred food.
Our neighbors keep a drum (for lack of the correct term) of drinking water. I realize that's such a good idea.

But, in light of the power outages here in San Diego, I realize I still was ill prepared.

Around 3:40 yesterday everything went out. I thought I had blown something due to running the AC, using the crockpot, laundry, t.v., fans, etc. Concern set in when I spoke with Pete who works 45 minutes away and his power was out too. I had no internet service to find out what was going on. My smart phone had lost it's intelligence and I couldn't search online on it either.

It's typical because yesterday happened to be the day that I decided to cook the butternut squash that had been sitting on my counter top for weeks. I thought...I'll just cook this all day (starting at 1:00) and then we'll have soup for tomorrow. At 5:00, when the power hadn't come back, the soup changed from a slow cooker recipe to a stove top recipe. Thankfully we have a gas stove. Thursday nights are breakfast night for our family. One person thought that the breakfast burritos that I made were out of necessity. Oh no...this meal was planned, sorry to disappoint.

The funny thing is that Ellie was completely calm about it until she went to the refrigerator and couldn't fill her water cup. Then she panicked. "We have no water to drink! What will we do?" I had to turn of the faucet to answer her..."Ellie, we still have water. It just won't be chilled and filtered as your little taste buds are accustomed to." At that moment I realize, she's never drank water from a garden hose. Her thirst is quenched from a refrigerator door. Would that child have laid right there in front of it, waiting for the power so that she could fill up her "Tangled" cup? My sister-in-law Laura was cracking up because she knows how special the water dispenser is to Ellie. She's constantly next to it. Fill, drink, refill, drink...and so on.

I also had to hang the load I just washed so that it wouldn't get mildewy. Wait! Do we even have a rope to set up a laundry line? (Pathetic, yes, I know) Pete had one in the garage with a ball attached to it. We used that and our patio furniture and created a line for drying.

One more thing! Do I have clothes pins? I remember, there was that one magnet craft where I bedazzled a bunch of them and never got the magnets glued on. I'll use those!

If anyone had happened upon my laundry line they would have surely thought that the snottiest housewife lives here. She even has to bedazzle her clothes pins.

I believe that through this experience I've learned a few things that I'd keep on hand.

BATTERIES--so many things run on batteries...flashlights, radios, etc. We got out our radio/light/t.v. and it required 9 D batteries. Luckily, we had them
More Candles and battery operated candles-- No need to explain the good ole wax and wick candles, but the battery operated ones are equally important. The house was pitch black and that bothered the kids. It would have been good to leave a battery powered candle in their rooms to replace their nightlights.
Dry Milk Solids-- This one may seem a little out there, but in the event there was an emergency, the dry milk solids can be reconstituted in water when needed and the rest wouldn't spoil. I have about two cupfuls in a bag for cooking, but that wouldn't get us very far.
More Cast iron pans-- This is another random item, but they are so versatile that they can be used over fire, in an oven, or on a stove. They are awesome to cook with. I just love the two that I have already.
Coffee Percolator-- Well! I love coffee and I'm pretty sure we have one in our camping stuff. I'm supposed to be buying a new coffee maker and I'm considering a french press instead.

Is the list complete? Heck no, these are just a couple of things that I realized we didn't have enough of.
Am I a professional? Heck no, people start to expect things from you with a title like that.
These are just a couple of things that I didn't think to have on hand.

some pictures of the kids...

Tada!

Double fist pump, West-coast Toddler Style!

I wish the kid would smile when I took his picture. Geez! Is it too much to ask for?

Remodeling the play house.

This was the foyer.

They added a window here.

Little Leprechaun picked his shirt out today.

When I wasn't looking...this is what Ellie did with our math manipulatives.

Idn't che pecial? Cutest yittle bug der ever wuz!

Jo Jo's practicing his GQ look.

Hope this post finds you healthy and happy. Yesterday wasn't a tragedy, but it could have been and I'm just SO thankful for the roof over our heads, food in our bellies, and love in our hearts. Nothing else matters but that. I'm so grateful for our life here in America. Sometimes I take for granted our conveniences, but situations like yesterday make you stop and think, "What would you do if..."