Cyber Boy strikes again!!

Well, my computer whiz just figured out how to enable comments on our blog... so comment away, my friends. I blog mostly to keep a record for our family since my scrapbooking days seem to be a thing of the past (I wonder why?!) but I'd love to know if you're dropping by.

Love,
MamaB

Keeping the Winter Doldrums at bay....

This time of the year can be the most challenging for me as a homeschool mom as the combination of cold weather and time indoors can get us all a little stir crazy. Thankfully, we have had the privilege of skiing several Tuesdays over the past 6 weeks(pictures forthcoming!) and the Lord has provided little diversions for us over the past few weeks.
For months, we have been watching a hornets' nest hang precariously high from one of the trees towering above our yard. Recently we had high winds and guess what blew into our yard?? There we were at 8am poking at this marvel of nature. Don't worry --all live critters have long since abandoned ship. Incidentally, there is another one hanging from our neighbor's tree...my hubby has been dubbed the official 'nest remover' but has not gotten around to it yet. I'm sure they'll be a crowd as everyone curiously inspects the nest we watched all last summer. We all warned our kiddos to dare not throw a basketball anywhere near this buzzing marvel of nature...we could only imagine the disaster that would result!

This hive picked the right yard to drop into!!

It's a little easier to fully appreciate how amazing this really is now that it is no longer humming with little stinging creatures!!

A few days later Odesco was screaming about something bloody out on the lawn...that definitely got my attention!! Sure enough, there was a large hawk perched on our front yard devouring an early evening snack...amidst the comments about how disgusting this was, G reminded me to snap a picture.

Not the best picture since it was through the window glass...

Just look at the lovely present Mr. Hawk left us!

Gross, I know, but I was amazed at how speedy and thorough this hungry hawk was in cleaning all the meat off the bones of his victim!

From the skeletal remains and the feathers dotting the yard, I'm guessing it was a pigeon, but Mr. Hawk sure didn't leave much evidence to be examined!

I almost forgot to mention the morning we woke up to a winter wonderland:

This was the view from our kitchen window (laden with snowflake clings)

The kids were begging for a 'snow day' but since we had been skiing the day before they had to get their work done before heading outside...nothing like a little motivation to prevent dawdling!

SNOW ANGELS! L opted to sit on the heater vent and watch the fun through the window from his cozy perch:)

It's also fun to 'skate' around the backyard on our very own 'rink' with our dear friend, E... (this slippery mess was the result of an ice storm)

Brrr! Nature's popsicles found hanging off our picnic table!

Then there was the day it was warm enough to dig in the dirt and get muddy!

Mercy was very proud as she 'planted' some weeds and a tuft of grass in our blah brown backyard

So, that's what we've been up to lately.Our Homeschooler's Day Out classes begin in 2 weeks and we have our final ski excursion this coming week....that means that spring is coming!!!
I'm grateful for these little sanity savers which serve as reminders of His handiwork all around us~
~MamaB

Summation '09

This is a very belated post....At the end of January, my hubby and I attended our 2nd Summation event with our firstborn. It is put on by the Catalyst youth ministry in our church and is a celebration of God's grace in the lives of our youth over the past 12 months. Each year the members of the 'Creative Team' brainstorm and come up with a fun theme. Last year it was Pirates, this year it was the '50s...moms, dads, and their youth attended together in costume. It was a night to remember, for sure~ Hysterically creative costumes, fun contests, LOTS of laughter, a yummy themed meal, amazing decorations, and even servers in poodle skirts on roller skates!! The evening also had serious moments when our youth pastor recounted the faithfulness of God in the lives of our youth...we watched a video in which some of the youth(including P) shared how God had met them in the past year and how they were applying the truths they have learned in their everyday lives. We also celebrated as 2 senior high students were honored for their godly character and enjoyed hearing their dads commend them. The evening ended with each youth receiving a personal note from their parents encouraging them in the evidences of God's grace recognized over the past year. M read the note we had written to P (after taking off his wig!! It was hard to take him seriously in that thing--scroll down and you'll understand why!). ..and we were able to share with him the many ways we have seen God at work in him over these past 12 months. One of the things I most appreciate about the way our church approaches youth ministry is the parental involvement. Parents attend youth camp and youth meetings and are given application questions to discuss with their child. This promotes biblical fellowship and encourages a deeper level of interaction between youth and their parents. That's not to say our kiddos don't have time during the meetings to socialize and have fun with their peers--believe me, this is certainly happening as well, but our children are being encouraged to build first with their parents. I am amazed once again to have the privilege to raise our children in such fertile, well watered soil. We obviously still have issues to work through but what a blessing it is to be equipped to do this alongside of so many like minded friends!

Grateful for yet another evidence of His mercy to our family,
MamaB

We frequented the local thrift stores to pull together costumes. P decided he wanted to go for a more classic look. It looks like he's the Dad in this picture :) Then we had the predicament: how could M be a 'greaser' without a full head of hair?? Mrs. Di came to the rescue with the above-oh so attractive wig. I like my man better with no hair! There are definitely no plans for hair plugs in his future!

The multi-purpose room in a local Christian School was creatively transformed into a 50's diner.

Yummy center piece...note the record album under the candy...it was actually the first album our friend produced years ago... these hung from the ceiling all over the room and served as the base for the centerpiece. It's a good thing Johnny V held onto his vintage album!!

The order of events...

These 'girls' from the college age ministry gave up their entire evening to be our 'servers'...and they amazed us as they toted trays full of drink and food on rollerskates--there was not even one fall/mishap that I am aware of. Pretty impressive,huh?! The skirts were also hand made by 2 of the girls.

Don't they look great?!

I think the most fun of the night was watching the stream of families come in and especially enjoying our adult friends' creativity. Some of the costumes were just hysterical!!
Here are the K's...Mr. K stayed in nerd character the entire evening and as you will see below, he was joined by a few others!

~The A's~ Doesn't she remind you of June Cleaver?!

The G's...she made this poodle skirt out of a sheet...I was impressed!!

Here I am with my friend, "Laverne"...doesn't she look authentic? Her hair is actually quite long and her SIL curled it and pinned it up so she would look just like the Laverne from the old sit-com. She actually won the adult prize for best dressed Mom :)

Our friends the B family....very creative--they even visited a local 'Pop Shop' for the official hats!

Here my friend K is wearing her mom's vintage hat -complete with veil in the front. Click on the picture to get a good look!

These 2 sure stayed in character:Mrs. Hospitality and her hubby, the Brain!

A group of Dads all came dressed as nerdy 'brainiacs'...too funny. One even sported an 'Alphapha' sprout on the top of his head (remember the character from the Little Rascals?!)

The girls were at the computer looking at these pictures and decided that Daddy is 'scary' with hair!!! Yep...we all love him with his 'sabu' head, as Mercy would say.

I never did get a chance to post a Summation picture from last year's Pirate theme...once again Daddy is sporting some scary hair!!

Comic Relief

This morning, Mercy had her annual check up. She was in her glory entertaining the Doctor with her saucy sense of humor. By the way, she has gained 24 pounds and 8.5 inches since her homecoming!! A few hours later the boys kept us laughing with this goofy dance.They were watching a YouTube video about volcanoes and made these 'smooth' moves up to the music. Enjoy!
MamaB.

PS: Please scroll down to see the post below this~ Thanks!!

A Worthy Cause...

I first learned of Emmanuel in 2007 ( he was then called "Darling Boy"). the kids and I prayed for the Lord to sustain his life until he could receive life saving heart surgery in Ghana, West Africa...the Lord in His wisdom had even more glorious plans for this Liberian boy as he was miraculously adopted and received his surgery in the States. We look forward to having one of Emmanuel's paintings hanging in our living room :) Please follow this link and see if the Lord might have you take part in Joseph's miracle.