One Spoiled Pooch

I believe our baby

is spoiled.

Celebrating National Museum Day

On Saturday, we celebrated National

Museum Day. I bet you never knew there

was

a National Museum Day. Neither did I.

The Smithsonian Institute offers admission

to all sorts of museums to encourage people

to visit.

Jon and I packed up the kids and took a

drive up North to visit

the Adirondack Museum.

I can't even begin to describe what

a great museum this is. Jon

and I have taken the kids

to loads of museums,

some in New York, some in Boston.
The Adirondack Museum is, by far, one

of the best we've been to.
The guides were so helpful, taking time
to draw the kids in with Adirondack
history. There was an even mix
of adult and children's displays.
The museum focused on the history and
the future of the Adirondack Mountains.

The kids enjoyed everything. We hadn't planned

on spending the entire day there,

but we did.

The kids climbed on trains,

saw stage coaches,

learned about hermits (people that live

alone in the woods, not the crabs),

visited a one room school house,

and made lots of crafts.

One of their favorite activities

was climbing on the rocks, and

"fishing".

This museum was positively amazing.
We've passed it so many times on our way to go

hiking on Blue Mountain.

Every time we passed, we'd say, "We should stop

there." I'm so glad we did.

If you're ever near Blue Mountain Lake,

take a day to go to the Adirondack Museum;

I promise it's worth the trip.

Happy National Museum Day!

Home Schooling FUN!!!

Five years ago, if you had asked me about home schooling

or my opinion of it, I might have laughed.
I never would have considered the fact that I
might become a home schooling parent.
That I might enjoy home schooling.
Three years ago, we met our children.
It became not what I thought
about home schooling (people with
LOTS of kids, women wearing jumpers and
driving mini vans), it became
what was best for my kids.
For them, home schooling was the right fit. This
month we have started our
third year educating at home.
It's been such a great experience
for all of us.
For them, the security of being at home
and loved. They get lots of one to one attention,
and we can go as slow or as fast as they need.
For me, being able to spend
the time with my kids. The time that I didn't
get to spend with them when they were younger.
Today, the kids learned about Patrick Henry
and his speech to the colonists "Give me
liberty or give me death".
It was so fun to spend the time with them
making these silhouettes, and to listen
as K. told me, "They look like real people."
At which point, I looked at him and told him,
"You are real people."

One Phone Call From Our Knees

One of my favorite things about

living in the North East is the beautiful

change of seasons.

Fall has always been my favorite.

I love the change of leaves,

the cool nip to the morning air,

the promise of baking and holidays to come.

We've tried to take our kids to pick

apples every year.

This weekend we took our annual trek

to our local orchard.

We rode the hay wagon out to the

back of the farm. We enjoyed the

cool breeze and the bright sunlight

as we picked apples off of the tree.

We even enjoyed eating an apple or two.
It was so much fun to see how much

the kids have grown, and to get to see

them participating in our

"family tradition".

Last fall we went to the orchard

before I found out about Mom's cancer.
It's hard not to divide time into before cancer
and after cancer. This fall is harder for me. The slant of
the sun, the chill in the air, the baking. It all reminds
me of how carefree life was last year before the news
of cancer. Before the phone call.
There's a song on K-love that talks
about everyone being "..just one phone
call from our knees". It's so true.
I love that song line, because it's so true. Last
fall that phone call brought me to my knees in prayer.
There have been other phone calls that have brought
me to my knees in praise.
The phone call that brought me my
children, knowing their adoption was going
to be finalized. As I spent
the afternoon with my family, it was hard not to think
of the time before cancer, but then I thought
of all of the blessings that the Lord has given me.
I spent my afternoon truly thankful for all that I have.
We are all just one phone call from our knees.
That phone call can bring pain or pleasure,
but it's how we handle it that matters.
If we try to carry it on our own, it's too heavy
a burden. If we try to celebrate it
on our own, it's too shallow a feeling.
Having a Heavenly Father that knows before
we do, carries us through, and is there to listen
as we fall to our knees is something I'm so
thankful for.

Pears

When we moved into our house, it was December.

Imagine our surprise the following summer when we

learned that our yard had to pear trees.
Every fall we end up with a ton of pears.

Inspired by the amount, I made a pear tart.

Yum!

I may need to take up canning.

Zoo Classes

One of the things that I love about being

a home schooling parent is the

amount of time I get to be with my kids.

I feel like I missed out on their first

four and five years, so now I want to

spend as much time with them as I can.

Soon enough I may not be cool enough

to hang out with.

This week, we had our first zoo class of

the school year.
The kids learned about coral reefs, and

their importance in the ocean.

They made their own reefs with egg cartons.
After learning about coral, the teacher brought out some of

the educational animals.

They saw a python,

and a parrot. The parrot is 84 years old! He was

shy at first, but once he

warmed up he was lots of fun.

After class, we enjoyed a picnic

with friends (thank you Ree for the food!)
We saw some of the animals, and then
we spent lots of time on the playground.
It was a fun and full day. Just
another reason I love home schooling.

Best Friends

They're usually so busy chasing each other
I can never get a picture of this.

They are truly best friends.

Ice Cream in Pictures

Is anything as great as

an icecream cone on a summer day?

Making The World A Better Place, One Hair Cut At A Time

Cancer has changed our family,

but there are some things that it can never take.
It can't take our memories or the extra time we have
to make them. I realize that I may never
be the person that discovers the cure for cancer,
but I can make my corner of the world a
better place. Last night, I decided to donate my
hair to Pantene's Beautiful Lengths program.
They make wigs for women diagnosed with
cancer.
I had 16" of hair to donate. Boy does my
head feel lighter. As I mailed
off my hair, I prayed for the woman
who may be fighting cancer now, or may not
know she has cancer, and for her
future. I pray for her family, and I pray that
my hair will help her to feel stronger.