Seven Little Candles

 

It is hard to believe. It seemed like it was only yesterday when I was chasing this little girl around the house, wishing she was seven and not getting into everything. She was born with the most adorable giggle and smile.  We took her to the eye doctor recently and he said that her eyes even smile.

 She was always in the middle of everything and wanted to help. When we did school, she was on my lap and begging for her school work or asking to see the pictures in our book. She could recognize the sound of my mixer and she would come running to "see".

She grew and grew. Her hair curled up. Her freckles multiplied. But her smile never dimmed.

She continues to giggle. She still wants to be in the middle of everything. She thinks that the best spot to sit is still on my lap. She now comes to the sound of the mixer and the smell of chocolate.

She turned seven on Thursday, December 16th. Bob took her out to lunch, just the two of them. They both got dressed up and went to Olive Garden. She enjoyed the time with Bob. She usually wants to be with her mom all the time so this was a change for her but she decided it was a good one.

She is our brownie girl. Two pieces were needed for all seven candles. We did learn that you shouldn't put candles into warm brownies. The first set of seven melted in the brownies. We cut around them, it was better this way because she still had a cough from being sick. Her germs stayed on her own plate.  This was also a great year for Meleah because she could read her birthday cards herself. She has been very reluctant to read. I could list a variety of reason but most likely is that she had two fluently reading older brothers that would listen in and "help" her along. I think she was nervous about it and a bit of a perfectionist.  Just this week she asked to read me a second book. It was the first time that I didn't have to make her do it. She wanted to read another one to me. Whatever the reason, I am thankful.  Our little girl is getting older but we are enjoying the journey. I love to see her faith grow and her understanding of the word of God. I am thankful for this little girl for her smiles, giggles and especially for her freckles.

A Peek Into Our School Day

 This year we are recording the amount of time we spend in each subject. The School we are a part of has noticed a trend that the amount of time spent in each subject determines how well each student does when it is testing time. It seems credible because I know we have spent less time on subjects like spelling and creative writing and that is where my boys need the most work. This book is where I record my notes and I later "log hours" on a website every week. It sure has made me more diligent to stick with a schedule.

This is Cody's desk. He always keeps it neat. He is working on his own this year with minimal checking in from me. We work together on a few things but I just review his work and talk through things with him. He is doing a science class outside of the home and so that has freed up more time for me to work with Travis and Meleah.

 We have moved school to the basement. It seems crazy, especially if you have seen our basement. I specifically avoided the insulation and wires hanging in the ceiling. Hopefully, at some point we can  fix that.  We do really well with school down there. There are less distractions, everything is in one place, and if we don't have to clean off the table for dinner. I do miss being able to do stuff while the kids work, like dishes or starting dinner.  I liked the school work being in the middle of our lives. But,this way there is no window for daydreaming. We aren't distracted by Bob whenever he is home doing stuff. 

 Meleah gets a tablecloth because this also happens to be where the painting happens. As well as a majority of the coloring.

 Here is Travis' desk. We had them all together but I had to separate us in order for us to do our work.

Some of our many books. We all spend a good portion of our school day reading and more reading.

After a week off from school, I am ready to get back to our regular routine. I am just a schedule person. Maybe I just need to schedule our time off from school and it won't feel like we are being lazy.
 
There is just a small glimpse of our day. I am grateful to be able to be home and learn along with the kids. I love being able to see their understanding grow and their ability to learn and remember new things. It is a precious gift that sometimes seems very heavy but it has been a good experience for us so far.

Ways to Torture Houseguests

I found this great idea on this blog:

http://alisaburke.blogspot.com/2010/10/paper-leaves-fall-wreath-tutorial.html

Her wreath and leaves are very nice but she did them on a book and I just love books too much to destroy a book just to paint on it.

1. Draw some leaves.

2. Paint them with watercolors.

3. Cut out leaf shapes.

4. Attach them to a wreath.

That didn't sound too difficult. I thought it would be a great activity with the kids. It would require some watercolors and drawing, something my kids have discovered they love to do. Then I realized how great it would be if we did it while we had some out-of-town visitors. While looking at some fall colors, we collected some leaves. It was the last day our guests would be there and I had almost forgotten about the project when Michelle Ely reminded me of it. We got out all the supplies(here is where the torture comes in) and I explained what to do. We sat down and started drawing. Russell and Karen Bell showed up to say good-bye to our visitors and I made them sit and make some leaves.

"I can't draw!" "I am terrible." "This doesn't look right."  These were some of the comments I heard but as you see the finished project, altogether, it looks lovely.  I glued the leaves onto some grape vines that I had crafted into a wreath shape. In addtition to the fall wreath, I have the momento of their visit. Plus, it always makes me laugh and warms my heart to remember how uncomfortable everyone seemed and yet how pleased they seemed with their completed leaf. There is one real leaf hidden among the others but it is very difficult to find. Now I have a creative, fall wreath that will remind me of time spent with friends.

My Little Helper

Meleah loves to help in the kitchen. She had to share kitchen helper duties with Travis, he wanted to make the cookies by himself, it was difficult for her. That is why she has such a pleased look on her face. She helped make the pie crusts and then made a few miniature pies for each of the boys and herself. 

With my kids, I have found, if you let them do something to help(cooking, painting the house/walls, etc.) their interest doesn't last long but you spend more time trying to tell them "no" than just letting help. Their attention span or interest fades and it becomes work and they don't want to help anymore  so it is easier to let them help for a while than talking them out of helping.

There was a time when the kids were younger that they all had to be there and help with everything. I let them help occasionally, like when I had an abundance of guilt for not letting them or I could say I had an amazing amount of patience. Thankfully, they are getting older and willing to share duties. Plus, they all don't want to help at the same time, that is helpful.

Pies, by Meleah

The best part of this cooking experience, Meleah was speaking the whole time in her little British accent.  She plans to have a cooking show someday for PBS's Create and she will speak in her little accent. She used to pretend to work in a coffee shop far away and her old parents would come to visit her but her mother always died. I never did like that one.

This day of baking is a precious memory I will never forget.