Time with Mom

I have SO enjoyed having my mother here these past 2+ weeks.  Less than one week 'til she goes home.  I'm also glad my recovery has been quick so we've been able to get out and go places.  We had a day out with the boys and a day out with the girls.  We're trying to get a day out with just the two of us.  Not eating as well as I should with all our excursions, but I'll do better next week!  I'm having virtually no pain and my stoma opening is healing VERY well.  The surgeon only stitched it from the inside, so the outside slowly pulls together and won't get infected.  I'll see him tomorrow for a check up.

I can't believe it's August already.  Our summer just hasn't gone quite the way I'd hoped.  We have gotten two camping trips in and we're hoping to get three more in before the end of October.

A New Chapter

Looking forward to a "new normal", though it's going to take some time.

Mom went home on Tuesday.  Please keep her in your prayers.  She had a cold or something before she left; congestion and a low fever.  After she got home she went to the doctor who gave her breathing treatments (she has asthma), antibiotics, Allegra, and prednisone.  I was very thankful she was feeling good on Sunday, because we took her and J's mom out for an early Mother's Day brunch.  I did partake in the food myself.  I considered it my farewell dinner!  It was a wonderful afternoon.  The restaurant was beautiful, and the food was delicious.

Yesterday my mother-in-law kept the children while I went to the dentist, bank, hospital, and two natural food stores.  Then J & I had a few hours for a date :)  That was the longest we've been alone (out of the house) in a l-o-n-g time.  I'm actually thinking we need to go away for a weekend for our anniversary this year.  That would be the first time we've ever left the children more than 24 hours.

I've been reading so much about nutrition and health these past weeks.  I keep seeing the same theme:  juice, raw fruits and vegetables.  Simple; sort of.  I've collected several raw food recipe books and I'm looking forward to trying things.  Our friends have lent us a juicer and we've been juicing more regularly.  We've ordered our own juicer and dehydrator.  A dehydrator works at low temperatures so the enzymes in the foods are not destroyed.  My change in diet may not only prevent cancer later, but prevent any current cancer from growing.  I just read that the 5 year survival rate for stage 2 colon cancer is 60-80%.  That's not good enough!  I want to be cancer-free for a lifetime.  I want that for my whole family!

This next week is going to be a busy one.  I've got to get a lot of work done in the basement; clearing out "stuff" so I can have room to get out the summer clothes and wrap birthday presents.  I also need to get ready for the homeschool convention next Friday.  Two weeks ago I didn't know if I'd be up for the convention, but I am feeling great.  The convention is like a day at an amusement park for me!  I can hardly contain myself, lol!

Tuesday J & I will go see the oncologist.  It's not the one I wanted to see, but in the same practice.  The one I want to see is out until the end of June.  My naturopath works with her.  The oncologist is supposed to schedule a colonoscopy before my next surgery.  My surgeon said it could be done right before the surgery.  That would be nicer, I think.

I am SO hoping I can manage to declutter the house before my next surgery (hopefully July 27th).  It will be even more of a challenge to get that done while I'm spending much for time prepare new foods and continue schooling the children.  At the very least I will be better prepared for a week away from home this time!

Thank you for your prayers for our family!  We have been blessed by cards, phone calls, visits, meals, flowers and other gifts.  What a blessing to be part of God's family!

Follow up appointment.

Saw my naturopathic doctor yesterday and got a lot of good information and nutritional advice, along with some supplements.  He works with Cancer Treatment Centers of America.  I am not supposed to eat any sugar, corn, potatoes, pasta, bread, or grains.  Does that rule out the Chinese buffet for my birthday ;)

J & I saw the surgeon tonight for a follow-up.  He said I can schedule my second surgery 3 months and 1 minute after the first one, lol!  He went over the pathology report.  The tumor had not penetrated the colon wall.  All margins were clear.  They believe, though can't be certain, that the colon ruptured above the tumor.  Since it was too difficult to tell they want to treat it as a ruptured tumor.  I will also have a colonoscopy before the second surgery.  He said I should be in the hospital a minimum of 5 days again.

The children are doing well and I think J is caught up on his sleep.  My mom is working on some new curtains for the girl's room before she goes home.

Next up is an appointment with an oncologist.  We've chosen one, but don't have a date set yet.

"Where Were You?"

That is the question many people ask about 9-11.

September 11, 2001 I was getting ready to make my weekly grocery store trip with my one year-old daughter. I did laundry on Mondays and went to the grocery store on Tuesdays. Just as I was getting ready to walk out the door J called from work. He asked if I had the news on. That was an odd question. Of course I wasn't watching the news... did he think I watched TV and ate bon bons all day? Not to mention it was late morning and the news wasn't even on. He told me to turn it on and said something about the world coming to an end. A bit dramatic I thought. I really didn't want to turn the news on. I was ready to walk out the door. I didn't want to sit down. Besides, I had something else on my mind. I was going to buy a pregnancy test at the store.

But I sat down in front of the TV... and watched... I didn't know what to make of it, but it was a tragedy of a magnitude I had never witnessed in my lifetime. Of course as the days and weeks went on and I saw and heard more, it became even bigger.

I watched for about an hour that morning then went on to the store. It was rather surreal because I was carrying out my normal activity while so many people were living something so horrible. Here I was in a grocery store... Not only that, I was considering the possibility of a new life while all those people were dealing with a death toll we couldn't imagine.

The test was positive. 9-11 was the day I found out I was pregnant with my second daughter. It was a day of healing for me. You see, in February of that year I had gotten pregnant. SK was just 13 months old. I freaked. She was just beginning to walk and talk. It was such a fun time. I felt like I was just getting into the swing of this parenting thing. My little girl was really communicating with me now and we were having so much fun together. She was my little buddy. I held her tight, crying that I was going to lose something with her. Of course it never crossed my mind that this new baby wouldn't come for another 9 months! I literally laid face down on the floor and bawled like a baby because I thought I was going to lose this special closeness we had. Through my weeping I asked God to forgive me for my selfishness. I knew in my head that this child was a blessing, but I was simply selfish of my bond with my first daughter. Over the next few months I came to grips with the thought of another child. Of course I wanted a sibling for SK, I just hadn't wanted one so soon. Then, I actually became very happy that we were having another baby (there's a reason pregnancy lasts 9 months!).

Just when I was happy and excited; looking forward to another child, I miscarried. Oh, the guilt I felt. I had not been thankful for this blessing. I had not trusted in God's sovereignty. No, I'm not saying that God took that baby to punish me, but it brought to light my selfishness and my desire for control. Somehow I thought I knew what was best.

This 9-11 I am thankful to have four more blessings to care for. We've experienced more miscarriages too, which just strengthen my knowledge that God is in control. James 4:13-16 comes to mind: Now listen, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money." Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, "If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that." As it is, you boast and brag. All such boasting is evil. J & I tried to plan and time "our family" just like WE wanted it. We were proud. Through births and losses we have learned to trust God for his plan. No, we're not perfect. This is just one area of life. We still have many areas that we're holding on to; trying to control. We have a lot of growing to do. Actually, it's a lot of shrinking ;)

The last days of Saturn: "A different kind of company; A different kind of car"

Our Saturn retailer will be closing Friday. It's hard to believe J has just two days left. Saturday night as we sitting together it dawned on me that this was his last week. I said "Wow, it just hit me; you only have 5 days left at Saturn." He said "Yeah." and there was a long pause. I said "It's really surreal." to which he replied "That's just the word I was thinking of.".

I know Saturn isn't an American icon that's been around for 75 or 150 years, but it's been a huge part of our lives. August marked 15 years with the company. It is very surreal to imagine such a big change.

I also know that we have had it much better than so many people who have lost their jobs. Not only did J have an offer to stay with the company, but he had 7 other possible opportunities! We were praying fervently for direction and I know we had friends and family praying for us as well. One by one 7 of the 8 possible directions he could go in fell down the list of feasibility then dropped off all together. At the same time, one direction climbed to the top and was left as the only one. We prayed for clear direction and God granted it. We are very thankful for that.

J has offered to help with the closing of Saturn next week if he is needed. He will start his new job Monday, the 16th. It is about 7 miles further and the hours are a little longer. He will also be working on things he hasn't worked on in 15 years and some things he's never really worked on like pick-up trucks and Corvettes. He will bring a large following from Saturn which we believe will help his paycheck. It is a benefit to a GM dealer to be able to advertise they have a trained Saturn tech now. Your continued prayers are appreciated as he begins this new venture. He says he's going to be "stretched" and "out of his comfort zone". At the same time he has been very excited after his talks/interviews with the owner and the service manager.

If he isn't needed all next week at Saturn, J plans on taking a day to ride his dirt bike with his buddy and another to go catfishing with his dad. I'm hoping they don't need him much so he can have some days at home, too. It will be kind of like a vacation. He does have 7 days of vacation left that he will get paid for.

Below is a letter from the owner to Saturn customers (bolding mine): http://www.saturnoflancaster.com/MiscPage_2 What makes it sad, I believe, is that Mr. Sutliff was involved with the development of Saturn, was it's first retailer, and his 5 stores consistently ranked top.

Saturn was "A different kind of company; a different kind of car". I believe they would've remained that way and continued to profit if GM had kept their fingers out of it, but that's another story.

The letter:

GM Dealer of the Year 2007
Sutliff Saturn Inc.
Sutliff Chevrolet Co.

Dear Saturn Owner,

Perhaps you were as disappointed as we were when the news appeared that new Saturn Products were terminated.

Some of us think it was an error of judgement, some might say it was the result of errors in judgement. It is true that over the years, the Saturn product zigged when it might better have zagged.

Sutliff was involved with the development of Saturn. Business practices of Sutliff Chevrolet were, to a certain extent, models for Saturn business practices. When the time came, we were the first signed Saturn Retailer. Our five stores in Central Pennsylvania were arguably the most successful anywhere in terms of market share. Our stores ranked in the top five Saturn retailers in volume. Often when stores were ranked by percentage of objective, Sutliff Saturn stores were 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. Our new sales since opening in 1991 will reach 48,000 by this year end.

In 2008, General Motors recognized the best 1% or so of their 2007 dealers at the most recent Dealer of the Year presentation in New York City. Both Sutliff Saturn Inc. and Sutliff Chevrolet Co. were among the honorees.

Nationally, however, Saturn was not able to maintain competitive volume after the Ion was cancelled.

Sutliff Saturn will remain open in the Harrisburg area no longer than October 2010. Lancaster, York, and State College will cease operations as Saturn stores before the end of this year. Saturn technical service and parts availability will continue well beyond that time in our other GM stores in Harrisburg and State College as well as other GM stores possibly nearer to you.

Sutliff Auto Group expects to be operating GM stores in Harrisburg's East and West Shores and State College this fall, all of which will welcome Saturn owners with experienced Saturn service advisors and technicians. Our new automobile portfolio will include Chevrolet, Buick, GMC, and Cadillac as well as other brands.

Greg Sutliff

A Job Update

As some of you know, GM was going to sell Saturn to Roger Penske, but the deal fell through last week. GM said it would not go back to taking bids and would shut Saturn down. When the news came out, Mr. S (the owner of the local Saturn Retailer) expressed that he would keep his store open as long as he could pay the bills, pulling cars from the other stores to sell. We knew this could mean a few weeks or a few months at most.

J was told yesterday that his Saturn store will be closing no later than the end of the year. It could be much sooner than that, of course.

There is a BMW dealer that has contacted Mr. S about buying the building to move his BMW dealership in. That could hasten the closing.

I believe Mr. S would like to buy another dealer franchise in the area, but there are none available right now. There are rumors that two local owners have been considering selling, though. If that were to happen, he could bring another franchise into the building.

J has been asked if he would be interested in staying with the company if a position were to become available in Harrisburg (Mr. S owns other dealerships). It would be a 45+ minute commute, but he would retain his tenure and benefits. He's been with the company 15 years and they've been good to him. He is valuable with more training, experience, and ASE certifications than other techs.

At this point J plans on riding it out and being "the last one to turn the lights off at Saturn". It brings tears to my eyes thinking about it. He is very sad about the closing. J admired the Saturn car since it came out. He said they were well designed and made logically so they'd be easy to work on, not complicated like other cars. When I saw an ad in the paper that they needed a tech I pushed him to go apply. For some reason, he didn't think he had a chance to get in. I said "This is what you wanted. You have to go." and he finally did. He's been with them 15 of their 19 years. It was sad when GM took over Saturn. The car changed, the company changed. It was built differently and became just like other cars to work on. But the family at the Saturn store remained. We have had good years with them and it will be especially sad for J to see everyone go their separate ways. He has said he's not worried about what comes next, just dissapointed that Saturn will be no more.

J has an idea in his head to open a Saturn service center. There are so many huge things to consider with that, but he says he just can't stop thinking about it. He would be able to buy some of the equipment from the store. We don't know if this is where God is leading, but it's on his mind.

If he stays to the end, J will be "laid off" (if he doesn't/can't go to Harrisburg). He was told that if he comes back to work for the company within a year he will retain his tenure and benefits as they are now.

Thank you for your prayers.

Seventeen Years!

At 7:14 this evening J & I will have been married 17 years. It was a 14 minute service :)

A thousand words are worth a picture.

I can't tell you how many pics were taken on this morning! These are dresses I made for the girls. I'll have to get a full length pic of them... someday, lol! Click on the pic to make it bigger if you want a better look at the gang. Yes, SR needed a haircut. He got one, too.

Very briefly...

Let me start by saying I will try to get some pics posted very soon!

We're going camping today. It will be LG's first camping trip, not counting our camping trip on her due date ;) It's supposed to be rainy and chilly today, but nicer the rest of the weekend. We are camping next to a (very shallow) creek. Hopefully the water isn't too cold by now to wade in. Last year we went this same weekend and it was much warmer.

TJ is doing great with his math. He just gets so excited to do it he doesn't want to stop for the day. He's also doing well with reading, though I haven't kept at it like I wanted to. I wanted to be finished with "the book" before starting kindergarten. He started his new class in church this past Sunday and he's so excited. We gave him his own bible and if you know him, you can picture how he was bouncing around with excitement. Nothing holds that boy down!

This weekend both TJ and AB got the training wheels off their dirt bikes. They were all riding for HOURS on Labor Day! I can't believe they can ride that long. I'm afraid we're going to wear the grass down to dirt in some spots.

LG is growing, smiling, trying her best to talk. I could just eat her up. She is in a wonderful routine now. She's going to bed about 10:30 and usually waking between 6 and 6:30 to nurse, then going right back to sleep 'til 10:30! I always go back to sleep, too. The other dc have been sleeping 'til 8:30 this summer. This morning I was awake at 6 and LG wasn't... and still isn't at 8:00! She's never slept this long! I'm sure she won't sleep quite so well this weekend while we're camping!

I've been sewing some things the last 6 months. First I sewed the girls some matching dresses. I'm attempting to modify some of my dresses so I can nurse in them, and I've played around at sewing a dress for myself. Last week I made TJ some flannel pajama pants. He had picked out the fabric quite a while ago. It's got helicopters on it. He was SO excited. Of course he wanted to wear them all day. I've got enough fabric to make another pair, plus I have some race car flannel to use. Saturday I decided to make a dress for LG to match the other girl's dresses. I went for simplicity... I took a little summer top that buttons over the shoulders and traced it on some big paper. I lengthened it to be as long as one of her gowns. I cut out my own pattern and managed to make a dress that can go over a onsie. I didn't have time to make button holes (I wanted to put it on her for Sunday) so I just put some hook and eyes on the shoulders for now. I'll go back and put buttons on the shoulders and trim to match the other dresses. I was happy with it, though it's no professional job. I'll post some pics of everyone... soon, I hope!

I'm an information junkie.

That can be a bad thing, of course, but I love learning about things. Well, certain things anyway.

I just got a few new books that I'm reading through: Mother Food: A Breastfeeding Diet Guide with Lactogenic Foods and Herbs - Build Milk Supply, Boost Immunity, Lift Depression, Detox, Lose Weight, Optimize a Baby's IQ, and Reduce Colic and Allergies http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0979599504/ref=ox_ya_oh_product, and The Vaccine Book: Making the Right Decision for Your Child http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0316017507/ref=ox_ya_oh_product.

They have been very interesting and informative so far.

I also got The Breastfeeding Mother's Guide to Making More Milk, which I haven't started yet http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/007159857X/ref=ox_ya_oh_product.

I've got plenty of milk for LG and she's gaining very well, better, I think, than my other babies did. But while my babies have always been content, they seem skinny compared to some. I'm not looking for a fat baby, but I have seen that when I pump there's not a lot of fat on top of the milk. The book I'm reading addressess that.

TJ got some money for his birthday and he wanted another Where's Waldo book. They don't print them any more so I ordered him a used copy along with my books. He is really into I Spy books, too. I found several new I Spy books at a closeout store and gave them to him for his birthday. He was thrilled. He wanted to get the next Waldo book, too. He can look at them for an hour it seems. It's a rare time that he isn't moving! I'll have to get a picture.

Here she is!

If you just want pics, skip to the end. It looks like you have to click on the pics that look like there's only half there to see the whole pic. For those that like to read birth stories proceed :)

We went to the church camping weekend June 18th-21st . We had a great time. Everyone there thought I was nuts for camping on my “due date”, but I’ve never had a baby on or before my edd so I wasn’t worried at all. I joked that I just needed two days afterwards to get all the camping laundry done. It had rained and it was muddy so in addition to the usual extra dirty camping laundry there were lots of towels and extra wet and/or muddy clothes.

I got my two days: exactly two days! I actually got the laundry started Sunday evening after we got home and finished on Monday. Tuesday I got some other loose ends tied up.

Wednesday morning I was awakened at 7am by a contraction. I had been having Braxton Hicks, which I had never had before, for a week and a half. This one was real, though. I went back to sleep until 8:30 with two more contractions during that time.

Contractions continued all morning and afternoon, but they were very mild and I was only having about four an hour. I finally called my mw, Pam, around 2:00 and she sent the birth assistant, Debby (another mw,) out to check me. I think Debby got here about 2:30-2:40 and she said I was at 5cm. I was shocked! Pam has a student mw (Heather) working with her right now so Debby called her to come out, too. She got here sometime after 3:00. This is the time I always feel silly; I have these ladies in my house just waiting for me to do my thing. I feel like I’m wasting their time, though I know it’s their job. Debby or Heather would check my blood pressure and the baby’s heart beat every half hour. Other than that they were taking care of paperwork, eating their supper, reading a book, or catching a little nap. The children and I were carrying on our business.

About 4:30 the contractions started coming more frequently, but they were still very erratic; 5, 8, 12, even 20 minutes apart. It stayed like that all the way to delivery- very odd. They never got very strong either.

I’m not sure what time Pam got here. She had been at a hair appointment earlier and would call in to see how I was progressing. I think she got here around 6:00, but I wasn’t really paying attention!

I was kind of playing the waiting game on whether or not to call my mother-in-law to come down and hang out with the children. The way things were going I didn’t want to give her a heads-up call and have her wait for hours in worry for the “come now” call. It turned out we were able to put the children to bed shortly after 9:30. Sometime after 10:30 I was finally at 9.5 cm and I told Heather, the student mw that she could break my water. The contractions didn’t come much quicker, but they were stronger. I had three painful contractions and then one big LONG push. Baby’s shoulder was stuck and I had to pull my legs way up then she was out. Daddy caught her and rubbed her back until she started to cry.

LG was born at 11:10pm, June 24th. She weighed 9 pounds, 9 ounces, just like her oldest sister, whose shoulder also got stuck. She was 21” long. Her head was 14”, her chest 14 ½”, and her shoulders 16 ¼”.

We discovered another thing in common with her oldest sister; she has a deep dimple in one cheek! She has big hands like TJ had and long toes like Daddy’s. Later we were to also discover that she was a "power pooper" like SK was! Oh, the joys.

I get to hold her for a few minutes before everyone else tries to steal her!



































The weigh in



































"The girls"


This is like 6am the next morning. No one knocked on the door or anything, they just bursted in to see Laura! SR hadn't met her yet. Notice TJ in the red shirt. He just has this look about him like he's thinking "Hey, this is really cool!". After 5 min. I sent them out so I could go back to sleep! I didn't pose this shot at all, this is just how they came in and checked her out.





























SR would always ask before touching her. Then he'd stroke her cheek and say "He's nice. He's a nice sister." LOL!

Sunbathing for her jaundice

And one funny one!

Pro-Lifers: The Red Envelope Campaign to President Obama

Below is an email message originally from Christ (rhymes with wrist) John Otto. This campaign is growing. I'd like to help it along.

"Dear Friends and Intercessors:
This afternoon I was praying about a number of things, and my mind began to wander. I was deeply distressed at the symbolic actions that President Obama took as he began his presidency. Namely, that he signed executive orders releasing funds to pay for abortions, permission to fund human stem cell research, and federal funding for contraception. I have been involved in the pro-life movement for nearly 20 years, and it pained my heart to see a man and a political party committed to the shedding of innocent blood. This man, and this party lead our country, but they do not represent me or the 54% of Americans who believe that abortion is wrong and should no longer be legal. As I was praying, I believe that God gave me an interesting idea. Out in the garage I have a box of red envelopes. Like the powerful image of the red LIFE tape, an empty red envelope will send a message to Barack Obama that there is moral outrage in this country over this issue. It will be quiet, but clear. Here is what I would like you to do: Get a red envelope. You can buy them at Kinko's, or at party supply stores. On the front, address it to

President Barack Obama
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Ave. NW
Washington, D.C. 20500

On the back, write the following message:
"This envelope represents one child who died in abortion. It is empty because that life was unable to offer anything to the world. Responsibility begins with conception." I would use the word "fertilization".

OR

"There is no God who condones taking the life of an innocent human being. This much we know." -- Barack Obama at today's National Prayer Breakfast I think I'll write both on my envelope.

Put it in the mail, and send it. Then forward this email to every one of your friends who you think would send one too. I wish we could send 50 million red envelopes, one for every child who died before having a chance to live. Each one counts. Maybe it will be used to change the heart of the president.

Warmly,

Christ John Otto"

A Quick Update...

to prove I'm not completely neglecting my blog.

SK turned 9 last week. WOW! Her last year before the double digits. That is hard to swallow. We had a great bday week. She got a ton of books (I couldn't narrow the list down any further). She got a new wallet, since she's lost two. I won't buy her another one, though. She also got a math game, some puzzle/game books, a small cross stitch kit, sewing pattern book, and a painting book. That was what we gave her, anyway. Her grandparents (3 sets!) gave her a museum membership, Little House dvds, and a shopping trip to her favorite store where she got lots of crafty things. Her stocking was filled with chocolate (to share), gum, pencils, and a marble. The dc like to collect marbles. They're only 10 cents at the store I mentioned.

TJ bought her a pack of mints and AB, with my help, bought her a little doll that matches the doll she's taken to this last year. SK has never been a doll person, but when AB was born she was given a Gund Sweet Dolly with her name embroidered on it. I always wanted SK to have one, too, and I got her one when she turned 8. She named hers Madelyn and now carries it everywhere. She even bought the doll a bday gift since she is now one! Anyway, this little doll AB gave her is almost identical, just much smaller. SK had seen it in the store and really liked it. She was so surprised to get it. I love to see the dc pick out gifts for each other and never balk at spending their own money for them.

SK's desserts of choice this year were blueberry muffins with crumb topping and chocolate chip mint ice cream (the green kind... that's important). Of course, there was no green kind the day Daddy went shopping, but she was quite content with white!

J turned 42 yesterday. We celebrated at Shady Maple Smorgasbord where you get a free dinner on your bday. You MUST visit there if you're ever in Lancaster County. (Dad, they had a special prime rib weekend.) The girls made him some kind of gifts. I'm not sure what they were. One was a colored tissue "hanky". I gave him two Rush cds. We have 4 more days to celebrate. Today I'll have to make his chocolate pecan pies. I didn't have a crust yesterday, my bad. But we were going to Shady Maple anyway!

Hmm... what else?

For those that don't know we're expecting a new baby late June. I'm getting close to half way. The dc are excited.

School is going very well. SK's cursive is beautiful imo. I must learn to write in cursive! So many of the past generations have beautiful penmanship. It's a dying skill. We started more formal spelling with Spelling Power and we're really enjoying that. AB is reading better. It's not her strong suit. She's very good at math, where SK struggled. Her handwriting is also getting better and both the girls are enjoying the new border sheets used in A Reason for Handwriting where they get to copy a bible verse (or a thank you note) on a page with a border picture then color the picture in. It's added incentive to do their best. I started teaching TJ to read. He was showing an interest. So far he is whizzing along. We'll see if it continues that way. I'm using Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons like I did with the girls. It has worked well for us so far.

I think I'll stop there. I could ramble on, but who's still reading by now, anyway???

I've got a new computer (thank you, Dad!) and I need to figure out all the picture stuff and then I'll post some pics from the last year.

The "Freedom" to Homeschool

The last few months I've been reading through the laws, codes, and requirements of homeschooling in PA- one of the most restrictive states to homeschool in. This is the year, now that SK is 8, that I must file my affidavit with the school district saying I'm going to homeschool or, in my case, use my teaching certification to teach as a private tutor (completely different law). I've learned that Pennsylvania is so gracious that back in 1988 they passed a law giving parents the right to teach their own children. Excuse me? I believe GOD gave me that right when he gave me the child. It doesn't take a village, it takes a family. I have been appalled reading through the requirements of the homeschool law. It's ridiculous.

This morning I read this: "The supervisor of the home education program [that's the parent] must certify on the affidavit that the supervisor [parent], all adults living in the home and persons having legal custody of the child have not been convicted of the criminal offenses listed in section 111(e) of the School Code." So, if you send your child to the state's school you, any adults in your home, and anyone that has legal custody of your child (x-spouse) can have a criminal record, no problem. If, however, you want to teach your own child you have to prove that no one in the home or with legal custody has a criminal record. Brilliant!

The other part of the law that gets me the most is that a private tutor must teach "loyalty to the State and National government". This is required in elementary school, but not required in secondary school. It's also not required in the homeschool law at all. Ah, consistency. In this case, it may just be the feelings the word "loyalty" evokes in me that gives me concern. I will teach my children our country's history and to obey the laws of our nation, but loyalty to the government... I don't know. Loyalty to country, or respect of country, is different in my thinking than loyalty to a government.

If you're bored for some reason you can read the PA homeschooling law & codes here http://homeschooling.gomilpitas.com/laws/blPA.htm or here http://home.comcast.net/~askpauline/hs/homeschoollaw.html. Yes, you'd have to be really bored ;)

That's my morning vent!

Note to self:

Don't wait 6 months to upload pics from my digital camera...

I take TONS of pictures. No, you wouldn't know from my blog. I hear you. I have two cards with a total of about 12oo pictures on them. Maybe a digital camera wasn't such a good idea for me. It's going to take hours to upload them so I can get prints!

I promise I'll add some pictures soon of everyone's birthdays and all the happenings over the last 6 months (There have been a lot.). I just haven't taken the time to write about them since I didn't have the pics on my computer yet.

Right now we're getting ready for two camping trips. Next weekend is our church camping weekend. Last year we went up Thursday night and had much of Friday to ourselves. That was relaxing. The campground has a really cool water slide. We'll get back Sunday afternoon then Tuesday morning we head to Creation '08 with our youth group. We offered to organize everything for the group since we've taken other groups, but somehow we ended up going along, too. That was NOT my plan. I know the children will love it, though. Sawyer may be the difficult one, especially after just coming off the weekend camping trip. If you're not familiar with it it's a 5 day Christian festival with about 20 bands and a dozen or more speakers. All day, every day is worship, teaching, and music. It's ALL outdoors on farm fields. 70,000 people in the sun. Porta-potties. No electricity... J is such a handyman, though, that he has made a battery powered sink and shower. We have to carry buckets of water daily from the spigots on the grounds. We also have to buy ice every day.

I hope to post the pics and things before we go, but there's so much to do for such an undertaking (we're planning and packing food and supplies for 24 people) that I don't know if I'll be able to.

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Later that day... There were 3 cards from my camera with a total of 1802 pictures since 10-19-07. We did have a really big trip in there when I took a lot of pics. See, I have no memory, so my pictures will be my memory! Thankfully, prints are just $ .09 each and there was a free shipping offer. It took hours to upload them all :0

Irresistible!

It's hard to get out of bed in the morning when
you have these four snuggled up with you!

The Facts About Mustard

"I don't like mustard. Some people don't like mustard; except for the people that do." T, age 3.9

The Lecture

Yesterday SK, in tears, tells me that A told her she didn't love her. We had this discussion about words; that even if we say we're sorry, we were joking, etc. the pain is still there for the other person. We talked about different scenarios with their friends. I then related a story that circulates on email about driving nails in a fence. They listened intently, understood, and hugged each other. I thought it was a nice time.

Last night at bedtime SK proceeds to tell J the same story (about A). I walked in to hear him talking about the pain our words cause others. I said "we went through this already". SK said she tried to tell him that I'd already talked to her about it, but he started talking and she didn't want to interrupt him. Then she says "He told us basically the same thing you did, but shorter." ... Now my own child accuses me of talking too much ;)

And on that note, I'm off to clean the basement!

Here's the story I mentioned:

NAILS IN THE FENCE

There once was a little boy who had a bad temper. His Father gave him a bag of nails and told him that every time he lost his temper, he must hammer a nail into the back of the fence. The first day the boy had driven 37 nails into the fence. Over the next few weeks, as he learned to control his anger, the number of nails hammered daily gradually dwindled down. He discovered it was easier to hold his temper than to drive those nails into the fence.

Finally the day came when the boy didn't lose his temper at all. He told his father about it and the father suggested that the boy now pull out one nail for each day that he was able to hold his temper. The days passed and the young boy was finally able to tell his father that all the nails were gone. The father took his son by the hand and led him to the fence. He said, "You have done well, my son, but look at the holes in the fence. The fence will never be the same. When you say things in anger, they leave a scar just like this one. You can put a knife in a man and draw it out. It won't matter how many times you say I'm sorry, the wound is still there."

A new year!

Here we are in another new year. SK will be turning eight in just 17 days! Every year I almost (or do) cry before her birthday. Eight, though... it's like the beginning of a journey as a young lady. I can see it in her face. She made breakfast twice in the last week. She helps mother the other children. I have a chance to make it or break it right now. It's my last chance to keep her heart. I feel like I'm teetering on the edge. If I don't give her the training and responsibility she needs I'll miss the opportunity. She wants to learn and grow and be fed. I can't fool around here! We've found the hardest thing is finding a balance in what we expect from her.

Snow!!!

I woke up to a thin, but beautiful coating of snow this morning! How perfect for Thanksgiving week. SK (7.75) is going to be thrilled when she wakes up. In the past, A(5.5) and T(3.5) haven't cared. It seems the cold weather has come on us quick this year. We probably think that every year, though. I feel like we just skipped October all together because of our trip.

We have been working through some of the stuff in the basement this weekend. I have a lot of clothes to put away from the season change.