Simple Woman's Daybook 08/29/11

Monday, August 29, 2011

Outside my window... it is a lovely, cool evening. I was actually cold when we got home tonight.

I am thinking... about all of the things I need to get done this week before we go out of town.

I am thankful for... new challenges that the Lord has set before me.

From the learning rooms... finishing up lesson plans (history & science is all I have left) and making plans for a public speaking club-ish type of thing.

From the kitchen... Tonight we had salmon, white rice, & corn.

I am wearing... knee-length pink nightgown.

I am creating... lesson plans & a public speaking class.

I am going... to work on co-op stuff when I'm done with this.

I am reading... One Thousand Gifts- A dare to live fully right where you are. 

I am hoping... that I don't fall asleep in this chair before I'm ready to.

I am hearing... water trickling in the fish tank.

One of my favorite things... a clean kitchen. ♥

Praying for... a headache-free day tomorrow.

A Lyric or Two.. One of my new favorites- Manifesto by City Harmonic 

We believe in the one true God
We believe in Father Spirit Son
We believe that good has won
And all of the people of God sing along
Amen


We are free He died and lives again
We will be a people freed from sin
We'll be free a kingdom with no end
And all of the people of God sing along
Amen


Our father who art in Heaven, hallowed by thy name
Thy kingdom come, thy will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses
As we forgive those who have trespassed against us
Lord lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil
For thine Is the kingdom, power and the glory forever
We're singing –
Amen.

A verse to share... 
Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. Isaiah 40:28-31


A picture thought...

 Abigail got a blizzard maker for her b-day. She had just made everyone a sample. :)

A few plans for the rest of the week... lesson plans, Bible study, exercise, church, choir practice, packing for vaca., co-op business, other stuff but I can't remember cause I didn't write it in my calendar. Oops. :)

Join me! It's fun. Don't forget to link up.

http://thesimplewomansdaybook.blogspot.com/

Sisters

When I was a little girl I dreamed that one day I would have a husband and together we would have three little girls. When Mike & I got married in 1997 I decided on a few baby names and I placed the list on our kitchen bulletin board. I still have the list in my Bible. :) I went ahead and chose a few boy names also on the slight chance that God's plan didn't go along with mine and I'd be having sons. Ha! Each time we were pregnant I added a few of our new choices and replaced the names we had used.

 

When we were pregnant with our first child I couldn't wait to find out the sex. You can imagine my excitement when we had our first bundle of joy- a girl- Abigail Grace. ♥ She was beautiful. Perfect. And she SMILED all the time!!!! (Same as today.)

When Abigail was about 11 months old we were ready to give her a sister. However, the Lord wanted her to have a brother. After the shock of a boy wore off, we quickly warmed up to the idea of a son around here and we got the house ready. Ethan Michael was born in 2002 and we were so thankful that God chose him for us. 

When Ethan was about 12 months old we were ready for another baby. We didn't have our hearts set on a girl- we knew we'd be happy with whatever God gave us- but secretly I hoped Abigail could have a sister. The Lord chose better for us and in 2004 Blake William was born. What a precious boy he is and ONCE AGAIN we were so glad that the Lord didn't consult with us first. :)

When Blake was 13 months old our family was ready for another blessing. The Monday after Thanksgiving we found out that our baby was a GIRL. Abigail was going to have a sister. And it couldn't have happened soon enough cause Abigail was dressing Ethan up like this:

We nicknamed them Cindy & Ethel. :)

At the end of 2005 Alison Brooke was born. At that moment we thought our family was complete. Two boys, two girls. HA! (As you know, Chase Alan was born in 2009 but that's a different story.)

Abigail was so happy for a sister.

Here is Abigail holding her newborn sister, Alison.

  

Sometimes they would dress alike. :)

 Sometimes Abigail would dress them in costumes. (Ethan was happy.)

My girls are 5 years apart in age but it's not too far to have a close relationship. The other day I walked past them with a camera and they started acting like NUTS! So, I indulged them and snapped away.

I LOVE that they love each other. I hope they always have this closeness. Every now and then they argue but I don't worry too much about it cause I know something. What do I know??? I know that even sisters who bicker as kids can grow up to be as close as ever.

I have sisters. ♥ Two of them. My older sister, Dawn, was born at the end of 1974. I was born at the beginning of 1977. My younger sister, Brooke, was born at the end of 1979. That was it. No brothers. Just us three girls- me in the middle.

Our Little Years

 

 

 Sisters are wonderful. There is no relationship like it. They've seen you in your ugly times and they still want you around. They have been with you every moment of your life. They never go away. Time, distance, and life can't rid you of your sister. You trust them with everything you have and you love their children like your very own.

 Our Middle-ish Years- Jr. High/High School

 We surprised Mom & Dad with this picture. ♥

Just before my prom.

There may have been moments in our growing up that we didn't get along or had "best" friends but as we started going our different directions in life we always wanted to stay together.

Our Adult/College Years

Dropping me off at college.

Before my wedding.

Don't remember the occasion but we were all in Columbus at Mom's. I lived in Mount Vernon at the time.

After we finished college we all ended up back in Columbus and we were all members at the same church. Our kids were all born while we were at the same church so they grew up like they were closer than cousins. My sisters and I loved being together regularly and the kids loved being with their cousins. And Gammy & Poppy were there too. It was wonderful. 

On occasion we would sing together. If we had known that one day we would not be together all the time I wonder if we would have sung together more often. Isn't it like that with everything in life? If only we had known we might have done something different.

Today I had an opportunity to sing with my sisters. The three of us singing together in the Lord's house. My older sister Dawn had special music at her church and the theme went along with a song we had almost sung once before many years ago. So she asked and the church approved for guest singers to come and today was the day.

Sisters, serving the Lord, singing together- it is a glimpse of Heaven. I can't even imagine what real Heaven will be like. If I love my sisters THIS much, how much more love will there be in Heaven when we are all singing praises to the Lord in His holy presence. :)

Here we are... singing today...

PS

Alison is named after my sisters. Alison is Dawn's middle name and Brooke is Brooke's first name. ;)

Simple Woman's Daybook 8/8/11

Tuesday, August 2, 2011

Outside my window... pleasant

I am thinking... about what to make for dinner tonight.

I am thankful for... opportunity to sit and recover

From the learning rooms... same as last week- getting ready for assessment, preparing to purchase writing books, cleaning school shelf.

From the kitchen... Beef & bean burritos

I am wearing... navy blue jogging pants & an OSU tee

I am creating... chore charts, 3 cake ideas, Korean origami stars

I am going... to switch the laundry and then sit down and fold it while watching Judge Judy

I am reading... Where Yesterday Lives- Karen Kingsbury 

I am hoping... that my body will be back to normal tomorrow.

I am hearing... the a/c & kids talking.

One of my favorite things... quiet nights when everyone is asleep and I sit doing whatever I want  knowing I've put in a good days work

Praying for... my body to be back to normal tomorrow, a friends marriage, friends/relatives that are at the end of their pregnancies.

A Lyric or Two.. A Korean song for one of the historical dramas I watch (Dae Jo Young) sung by my FAVORITE Korean singer Park Hyo Shin. (english subs so you can understand the lyrics.)

A verse to share... 
Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. On him God the Father has placed his seal of approval. John 6:27


A picture thought...

 4 of my 5 kids. Loved the sunshine rays behind them. God is awesome.

A few plans for the rest of the week... dentist appointments for me & four of the kids, new members meeting for HOTR, prayer group, Cinderella cake, Ladies night out, Community fun day at church, Hermit Crab & Cat Cake (Abigail's choice), Sunday morning worship, Abigail's b-day party, Church to hear Mike's mission team speak about their trip to Hungary, Abigail's b-day sleepover.

Join me! It's fun. Don't forget to link up.

http://thesimplewomansdaybook.blogspot.com/

Summer Fun Update

Remember this post from May when I framed a list of activites we might do this summer for fun? Well, I thought you might be curious as to what we've done so far. Here is a pic of what the list looks like right now. 

The summer isn't over. We still have 29 more days to get stuff done. :)
 

Busy Brain

I have too many things going on inside my head. Sometimes it becomes so crowded in there that instead of doing each thing one by one, I can't figure out where to start and instead I sit down and watch a Korean drama. :) (If you've never watched a Korean Drama and you are curious then hop on over to crunchyroll.com- click DRAMA- then select Alphabetically- and then scroll down and find My Lovely Samsoon. That's a funny one. English subs.)

You'd think with this many people in the house that I'd have lots of help but sadly I've failed when it comes to having the kids clean up around here. Yes they make their own beds and clean their own rooms- which was TOUGH for me to hand over cause the lines on the comforter aren't straight and the books are all tall short tall short instead of tallest to shortest- but I've never made it part of their daily lives to be in charge of a certain room. Once a few years ago I made chore sticks with rooms written on them and had each kid be in charge of whatever room they picked but that was short-lived.

Anyway, I've decided it's time to get back at it. I've got 5 kids so I decided to choose 5 rooms- living room, kitchen, upstairs bathroom, family room, & hallway/downstairs bathroom. (You may be wondering what would need done in the hallway but we live in a tiny ranch and you'd be surprised how many cars and other small toys (legos) end up outside the bedroom doors and in the hall.) I'm going to make a list of each thing that needs done in each room (and cover it in plastic so they can use a dry erase marker each day) and the kids will be responsible for it. I'm not gonna have any toilet cleaning or dish washing but there's still lots that can be done without those more disgusting jobs. I'll make the chore sticks to go along with it.

Also I am thinking of printing my planner this year instead of buying one. I'm not sure though. I usually buy the green planner like my teachers used when I was a kid and it's less than $5. I might spend more than that on printer ink & paper.

I have a book I want to read. I actually have 5-6 books I want to read. Only one is fiction. The others are parenting & wifing books. Is that a word? Wifing?

After I figure out what I'm doing about my planner I need to do my lesson plans. I'm not ready to think about school.

Which brings me to the next thing... I need to order writing books. I really don't know what to use. I'm not happy about anything I've seen. I'm probably gonna order Spectrum Writing & Reading this year. Only $7.50 per book... but wouldn't need reading for Alison cause I use Phonics Ready Readers. So, $7.50 x 7... or less if I get some of them older edition or on Ebay.

I've decided to fill out my ENTIRE planner this year for the ENTIRE school year. Last year I took the advice of another and planned out 2-3 weeks at a time. I failed... a lot. Too many cakes. I wasn't accountable to anything. It was too easy to get behind. This year I'm doing something dinner. I plan the ENTIRE year like this... 6 weeks of work and then 1 week of vaca. IF I stayed on track during the 6 weeks we are able to chill for a whole week. However, if I got behind in those 6 weeks we'll have to make it up during the free week. 

Trying to figure out how to jumpstart the weight loss again. Been too many weeks since I lost a pound. My clothes continue to get bigger cause my body is shrinking but I need to see the scale change at least a pound here or there to feel good about it.

I'm too tired to think of what else is on my brain right now. I've had a zillion interruptions since I started this HOURS ago. I've got three cakes this week- two for sale and one for my own birthday girl- Abigail- who is turning 11. Yesterday was my due date for her but she decided that she'd like to stay inside a LOT longer. She was born 9 days late... and that's only cause I had a c-section.

School starts in 30 days!!!

Simple Woman's Daybook 8/2/11

Tuesday, August 2, 2011

Outside my window... it's very quiet. I love living on a culdisac. 

I am thinking... about school starting in a month and also my assessment that I haven't had yet for this past school year. 

I am thankful for... safe travels for the group from church who went to Hungary and for all the lives that were saved while they were there. 

From the learning rooms... Ordering reading/writing books and cleaning off my shelf- getting ready for my assessment this week and making room for new school books. 

From the kitchen... don't know what to make for dinner. This is Mike's first week working 12pm-8pm and we don't know what we'll be having. 

I am wearing... flowered pj capris and light purple v-neck tee. Really should get dressed. :) 

I am creating... chore charts & a planner STILL 

I am going... to shower, finish my Bible study for tonight, and chill. 

I am reading... Where Yesterday Lives- Karen Kingsbury (keep falling asleep.) 

I am hoping... that Mike's cousin wins the free photo shoot. Also hoping that Mike is patient at work today. 

I am hearing... the a/c, girls & Chase playing/talking, Wii Lego Indiana Jones music. 

One of my favorite things... sleeping while Mike gets up and gets breakfast for the kids. :) 

Praying for... a friends marriage, my neck, Mike to be Christ-like at work today. 

A Lyric or Two.. Give Us Clean Hands- Charlie Hall

We bow our hearts, we bend our knees
O Spirit come make us humble
We turn our eyes from evil things
O Lord we cast down our idols

Give us clean hands, give us pure hearts
Let us not lift our souls to another
Give us clean hands, give us pure hearts

Let us not lift our souls to another

O God let us be a generation that seeks
that seeks your face O God of Jacob
O God let us be a generation that seeks
that seeks your face O God of Jacob 

A verse to share... Who may ascend the hill of the LORD? Who may stand in his holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to an idol or swear by what is false. He will receive blessing from the LORD and vindication from God his Savior. Psalm 24:3-5 

A picture thought...

The castle that Mike slept in while on his mission trip to Hungary. 

A few plans for the rest of the week... bible study tonight, prayer group tomorrow night, EP Leaders meeting on Thursday morning, SURPRISE outing for my family on Thursday evening, CAKE on Friday day, niece Ryleigh & nephew Sean sleeping over Friday night.

Join me! It's fun. Don't forget to link up.

http://thesimplewomansdaybook.blogspot.com/