Extreme Makeover: Home Edition

Julie and I again.

Angela on site, waiting for turn to hull hardy board.

All of the head builders

The head builder, ARK - Strickland family

Julie and I at the Pep Rally

Dance with Grace Team at Passage Family Church

The group rehearses one last time.

Emily Stretches

Anne and Rachel (our friends)

Ms. Lara and her daughter

Emily turns 7!

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October 2009 in Review

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November in Review

Our dear and sweet Emily is now 7!! Happy Birthday Princess. (Emily's Birthday Photobook is under the 12/6/09 post.)

More to come.

October in Review

A visit with our Colombian friends.

A trip to Jax Zoo

A month in review - View our Shutterfly Album (posted 12/5/09)

Our amazing Luke:

Halloween as the cast of Peter Pan

Skateboards and Luke's Misunderstanding

Yesterday we learned all about skateboards. Today, Luke pestered me all morning to go to the mailbox, convinced the mailman was bringing him a skateboard. When he went with me to the box, he was disappointed and said he needed to talk to our mailman about the skateboard. I've tried all day to help him understand that what we wish for doesn't just show up in the mailbox whenever we wish for it, and that someone has to order it. He simply believes HE WILL get a skateboard in the mailbox, regardless of what I think. The only hope I have for his expectations is for a God-related miracle. ;-) I love sharing in his innocence.

October in a Flash

Here are our photos!

(coming soon)

Luke - 3.5 Drama

The Pajama Saga...
Luke asked for winter pajamas (footed fleece pjs) all summer long. Last night he decided his pjs would be a pair of jeans! Tonight he has his footed fleece pjs on with a pair of soccer shorts and a UofD football jersey on top! Bedtime is a lot of fun and laughs around here.

Watermelon...
Don't leave a bowl, plate, container of watermelon in front of Luke without specific direction of how much he is allowed to eat. If you're not careful, he'll eat all of it in minutes... with a great big wet and juicy smile... dripping from elbow to elbow! LOL.

Milestones in temperment...
Today I had a remarkable moment with Luke that left me on the verge of tears. He recently started expressing anger with loud screams and actions of frustration when he would receive correction from me. Today he had one of those moments. He marched himself into his room and slammed the door while yelling. I decided it would be best to let him sort through this on his own since I've coached him several times over the past couple of weeks. (Note, after his door was closed, only silence came from his room.) 20 minutes later he came out and said he loved me, he was sorry, he had prayed and asked God to forgive him and ... he had cleaned his room. I was so taken back by the first part that the latter part seemed shocking. I didn't really believe the last part until he walked me into his room and showed me his work. It was remarkable! He actually cleaned it (for the first time on his own) and everything was where it was supposed to be!!! I wanted to cry, but instead gave him praises and kisses and hugs galore. He was smiling from ear to ear. Not only did he know how to handle himself and channel his frustration, he even took it a step further and did something that he knew would bless me. Oh... I love being home with the kids and walking through each day with them.

August in a flash!

So... what do you do when a huge rain storm sweeps in just as you finish mowing the grass on a FL summer day??? Take a shower in the rain, of course! (Thankfully there was no lightning!) Only Keith would think of something like this. And yes, Luke was taking notes. I'm sure this will not be the last we see of this behaviour.

Where's the soap!?!

Fun at our community picnic.

Luke, fast asleep... at the dinner table. This happens to be more frequent then one may think. At least he recognizes when he's tired and doesn't fall into a huge downward spiral through tantrums. He just lays down.

Pony rides???

We had fun at the Reading Roundup thanks to Ms. Lena at the homeschool library. Great fun.

Luke and his swords!

Luke, posing as our First Aid model! We had some fun with gauze. :o)

Starting the day on a happy note... making name pancakes plus a heart! We love our mornings.

At the end of the day... isn't this what it's all about??? Knowing your kids heard 'The Good News' each and every time you've shared it. I love finding these little notes when cleaning up.

Cursive, Typing... Oh My!

Emily has been pushing herself lately, inspite of Mommy's laid back approach to 'not rush anything.' She has insisted on learning cursive writing and now makes sure it is included daily in her schooling and free time. She has also started typing lessons. This past week she talked Mommy into letting her try a lesson. Next thing Mommy realized was that Emily had completed half of all of the lessons. With ease, Mommy was able to convince Emily to save some of the lessons for another day. :-) Sure enough, the next few days were filled with begging to continue the lessons. We've got one eager little girl on our hands.

Luke... oh Luke... he has decided he wants to practice handwriting too. So, Emily began teaching him how to write his letters. With some pure determination he went from pure scribbles to writing A's, B's, and C's in minutes. He is now practicing on scratch paper and a handwriting workbook. Mommy finds this simply incredible and loves how schooling comes naturally with interest AND the older sibling is quick to jump in and instruct the younger one. It's beautiful to watch.

Have a blessed day everyone!

Visit with missionary friend, Dr. Carman

We were blessed to host a friend for a few days during his US visit. He's currently serving in Bogota, Colombia. Needless to say, the kids LOVED his company and are missing him dearly.

Oh Luke!!!

Our little guy just keeps finding trouble, or should I say... he's diving into the world of being a boy!

1st up... on Tuesday, he was crawling/climbing on a tipped over chair and just happened to catapalt himself into another chair and slice his head open. Mommy panicked a bit until she realized the bleeding would stop easily. Emily responded well to Mommy's panic to help Luke. She turned to God and began praying for help, healing and all of the good stuff. She's amazing! She felt so terrible that he got hurt, especially because she had just been told to pick the chair up. Sweet girl. Thank goodness the doctor did not feel he needed stitches and we did not have to visit the ER! (Luke slept through the entire doctor visit and still denies he ever went.) Shortly after the doctor visit Mommy had a terrible time keeping Luke in a settled state. He would try to show off his Hand Stands or leap from one couch to another, run sprints around the house or drive way. The kid is all boy! Later that night Luke asked if I could take his boo boo off because didn't want to take it to bed. He was upset to realize it wasn't that easy to fix. Six days later he realized his boo boo was black! He was very upset and concerned until he realized it would go away when it's completely healed. -Mommy's hoping this will never happen again! (She can hope, right?)

2nd in line... Luke got a bit creative during school time on Thursday. He was caught doing a little art project all over his arms and hands! Mommy quickly addressed the situation, informed him of his wrong actions (which he was very aware of) and without giggling, snapped this photo! He then spent at least 20 minutes trying to get it off. Some day he'll understand why Mommy just had to take the photo and hide her inner laughter. Cute kid!!

3rd... This is a sweet one. During a playdate with a neighbor and friends, Luke had his first violin lesson using a 1/16 size violin. He LOVED it! Mommy was impressed with his gentleness and how well he listened to instructions.

Bonding and Funny Moments

1. First things first... Bonding:

Luke and Keith have this special little world they play in where they both retend they are puppies. It's really, really cute!

The kids are enjoying the virtual world with Daddy by playing Free Realms. They have a character that they created for their adventures and now have a virtual dog too. I guess this is the next best thing to having a real one. ;-)

Luke and Emily are so nurtutring with one another. Its very sweet to watch them comfort each other.

2. Now... for the funny moments:

Just the other day Luke asked Keith, "Daddy, why doesn't mommy toot like us?" Keith had a hard time responding to this question. All he could really say was that mommy is just made different and isn't quite like the two of them. I guess the boys have found more ways to bond!

There's a special part of the day when the kids seem to hear a silent announcement of 'Hey kids... it's fort building time!' Unfortunately, mommy doesn't hear this announcement and has to hold back all frustration and anxiety of the inevitable late night clean up! The kids are so distraught and disappointed about their forts coming down that she waits until they are asleep to put the house back together.

Watch the veggies disappear...

Well, we sure are enjoying the kids as they sample many new veggies... including Luke. When we decided to switch back to a vegetarian diet (and now leaning toward a vegan, whole plant foods diet), we were a little concerned as to what Luke might actually eat. Deep down I assumed the general rule of 'if they're hungry, they'll eventually eat' and it seems to be working exactly as hoped. Just the other day Luke inhaled a full plate of lo mein and rice... with lots of veggies. He willingly wanted to sample the snow peas and broccoli. After trying them he agreed that they were really good. (Mom and Dad are thrilled to pieces!!) For some time now his main veggie was a whole raw carrot. Now he has ventured into cooked veggies too. And, even better, he's been asking to sample my veggie sandwiches (loaded with fresh veggies). And, like very other veggie, he decides he likes them. Yeah!! This has opened a whole new door for Luke at the dinner table. He loves most soups that are presented, delights in most of our whole grain breads and is sure to thank our Heavenly Father for each and every dish! If he's not sure about something, Emily jumps right in and shows him how much she enjoys it. She's the best!!

More to come.

And... now I've started an organic produce co-op. As the coordinator of this co-op, all orders from friends and neighbors are delivered to our house. The kids and I sort the produce and make everyone's box. They then stop by during pickup time and claim their box. Our benefit in this is a free box of produce which is wonderful since we're primarily eating fruits, veggies, whole grains and fresh home-baked breads. :-) Delish!!

We have a new smile in our home

Emily lost her 2nd top front tooth on the 16th! She has a whole new smile now.

This poor tooth was holding on for dear life for far too long. She was twisting it around like an owl can spin it's neck. It was so hard to watch, but she was loving every moment. She even tried to get Luke to help her knock it out with various bribes and bargaining tools. (Very clever and cute.) Of course daddy offered to pull it out with pliers, which always sent everyone into a tizzy.

The loss of this tooth was non-dramatic. It simply fell out when she was in the bathroom brushing her teeth. We'll post a pix very soon.

Time sure flies...