goings on

Right at this moment, I am blogging ( or attempting to) and Jude is at the top of the stairs peeking around the corner and waving to Thatcher who is cracking up, Elsie is dressed in a cow costume ( that actually moos) and pretending she is a dinosaur?  Dinner is in the oven and laundry in the dryer, schooling is done for the day and I am ready to see hubby and just chill for the rest of the day :)  We had a fun weekend over here and it went something like this:

Friday Thad took the day off and took the kids and I out for pizza ( yes, I totally had a cheat WEEKEND!) Thad had to run errands and get ready for the youth camping trip that night.  You remember, hubby LOVES camping and backpacking

So, anyways, we got all the things ready for the trip and made sure we had all the permission slips and all that good stuff and we said goodbye to daddy for the night.  The kids and I went to the dollar store and got some goodies for the night- soup and popsicles :) We came home and had our food and went to bed right at 8 o' clock! I wasnt going to miss out on a whole evening to myself!! I hung out with my friend Ericka until about 9 then she headed off to work and I got some hot tea made, and climbed in bed and just vegged out! It was bliss :)

Here is a peak at my bedside table the next morning (ignore the retainers!!)

I never got around to my nook, but I really need to get back to reading- I have like 4 or 5 books on my goodreads.com currently reading list that I have only just started.  Sigh, I'm working on it!

The next morning (Saturday)  Elsie went with my Mother-in-law and sister-in-law to a girl scout outing- they went to see the movie Chimpanzee :) Jude had a day out with Papaw and I laid Thatcher down for a nap and got back in bed too!! It was wonderful!! haha, you see a running theme here of how going back to bed is such a great thing! :)  Anyways, Thad got home from his camping trip around noon and we just hung out with Thatcher and had lunch.  We got ready and headed to Thad's cousin Ashley's little boys birthday party ( Jude and Elsie stayed at Mamaw and Papaw's the whole day until we picked them up for the party.)  We had a great time getting to see everyone from that side of the family :) We stopped at the grocery for baby food and then headed home, put the kids to bed, and Thad and I followed not too far behind!  Sunday morning, up for church , and then relaxed for the day :) It was really a great weekend!  

We have been outside as much as possible- playing out in the backyard, riding bikes on the sidewalk, and heading out to the bike path

I have been really trying to cook more- I am spending so much on groceries trying to eat organic and just healthier in general, that if anything goes to waste i am so mad at myself!! We have been limiting ourselves to our Friday night pizza night for out to eat and thats it- most f the time ;) There are still occasions where we stop and grab something quick but, rarely anymore.  Here are a couple things I have made lately

Guacamole (which I could eat 24 hrs a day) We make this all the time at my mother- in-laws house- she is who I copied ;)

2 whole avocados mashed

cilantro-to taste- which for me is a whole bucket full ;)

lemon and lime juice-I used one whole lemon and about 5 squirts of lime juice

tomatoes- i used about a handful of grape tomatoes- because its what i had and they are sweeter

seasoning packet- one whole packet ( regular or mild flavor)

you can add onions and other veggies too, but I like mine simple

We used Garden of Eatin' organic Blue Corn Chips- YUM!!!

This is a crock-pot dish that my best friend told me about

Frozen chicken breast- I used about 4

1 whole jar of salsa

Pour both into the crock pot, turn on, once it is cooked, shred chicken with a fork

We put ours on the Smart Sense Tortillas- 13g of fiber/tortilla!!

with cheese, spinach and a little ranch

The kids didn't want tortillas, so they did spinach wraps with theirs

I LOVE to eat, but I DO NOT enjoy cooking, so these things i love b/c they are so simple, but super tasty!

Jude is 100% complete with all his courses except for Phonics, so we will probably be finished with Kindergarten by the beginning of May! :)  He had his Spring testing, and they said he is completely ready for 1st grade!! He is so excited and we are so proud of him!

Here is a few more little things we have been up to lately

Last, but most certainly not least, this is what I saw when I was walking out to my van Sunday

This cat has a sandwich bag on it's head!  I tried walking towards it, but it ran away hahahaha- that made my afternoon- crazy cat!!

Hope you are having a great week!!

Easter weekend

What a week! I feel like I run around all day chasing after kids, cleaning up messes, doing laundry, and all that everyday stuff, that, I, like people who work outside the home, look forward to the weekends! Well, I knew this weekend would be a busy one, but fun also, getting to spend time with family and good friends :)

Friday night I participated in the Good Friday Night of Worship our worship leader ( and my brother-in-law) put together.  I think this is the 3rd year our church has put this together and it has been such a blessing each year!  I am so proud of Steven for listening to the Lord and really putting something of quality together that can honor God on this important day.  Then Saturday, some of our ladies did a bake sale ( which I totally forgot about- I'm a horrible president!) so, I went to check in with them at around 8, grabbed some milk at the store and another egg coloring kit.  Got home to eat some breakfast ( maybe this is another reason I look forward to weekends- Thad cooks!!)  The kids wanted to color some more eggs-Thad had done some with the kids earlier in the week- so daddy boiled about 2 dozen more eggs and we colored all of them! 

 Then we decided to take a walk down to the bake sale and get some goodies!  I bought a can of pop ( I am still pop free!! I haven't had pop for about a month now) to make my beer bread and another carton of eggs, because we boiled all of ours :)  We got home, put little man to bed, and I put my beer bread in the oven and the kids rode their bikes for a little while.

We headed over to Steve and Mendy's house for dinner and an egg hunt.  Lots of good friends and all our family- so much fun!

We spent all day eating, playing, and enjoying spending time together.  We headed home about 7, made a pit stop at the dollar store for some pecans and wipes.  We got the kids' baths and put Thatcher to bed.  Jude and Elsie stayed up and made resurrection cookies- the link to where I found this recipe is here. It was so neat to see their reactions and an awesome way to make what Jesus did for us very real for the kids.  

After we sealed up the oven, the kids went to bed and so did we!! The alarm went off at 5:30 a.m. the next morning and we got the kids up and brought them to sunrise service in jammies :) We ended up getting home about 8:45, enough time to get the kids in their Easter outfits ( which I forgot to take pictures of!) and headed back to the church for sunday school and morning worship.  We came home, ate leftovers, and took naps!! At 3:30 my mom called and reminded us to head over to my aunts house for dinner and another egg hunt:)  We stuffed ourselves silly and the kids got MORE candy ( which they are still eating!) It was a beautiful day!

We had a wonderful weekend, and are so thankful for what Christ did on the cross! Praise the Lord! 

I hope everyone had a great Easter weekend!

Spring Break

We are on Spring Break!!! Wooohooo!!  So enjoying the break!! I was tempted to have Jude work on stuff during break, but have decided the rest is needed and we are taking full advantage of no schoolwork!!  Elsie has finally learned to ride her bike- she just couldn't get pedaling down- now she has it and she has been riding her bike everyday! We have also been doing a lot of this sort of stuff:

LOVING Lego's

chalkboard drawing

playing with little Thatcher :)  I am so glad my kids get along pretty well ( most of the time! ) They have spats here and there, but nothing major, and they like the same things so they play well together :)

Also, Jude has joined karate and LOVES it!! Its so cute and funny to watch him try the moves ;)

The Sensei's are hilarious but they keep a tight ship and they kids aren't allowed to horseplay.  They have a routine ( Khata?) that they have to learn and master to move to the next belt.  They also have a Bible verse with each belt that they have to memorize- Jude has Phillipians 4:13 :) We wanted to try it out first- we have been going for about 2 months now- to see if Jude liked it and wanted to stick with it, he loves it so we are going to get our binder with each Khata on it and get his gi and belt.  

Well, we are thoroughly enjoying our break over here and hope everyone is having a great week also!!

catching up

well, now that I feel like we are back on track and rolling right on down the road, I have time to blog again whooooooo!!!  I have lots of pictures and stories to share :)   So, I just have to say, I am ready for spring break!  no, we are not going anywhere, we are having a good 'ol staycation and Im so ready!! We have been pumping out the lessons here like its nobody's business and as of right now, Jude should be completely done with school in the middle of May!!! We have had so much fun this year, but we are all ready for a break!  I took some pictures the other day I was going to scrap of what the desk looks like on a typical school day :)

sight words- every.day.

a snack of course

The computer, a drink, and some notebooks

Dictation notebook for practice with spelling and handwriting

a look inside- doing pretty good :)

and the little student hard at work ( at the playroom table)

Im in love with this picture :) so precious to me!

Also, I have been ( thanks to pinterest for the idea)

taking Thatcher's picture each month.  The kids wanted in on the fun hehe- they're silly!

They thought this was so cool ;)

 Here is little Thatcher man's newest picture

I think Thatcher is my most spoiled baby yet!! He is a true mama's boy!! He has learned to crawl which has made my life a little easier- I can walk out of the room and he knows that he can come and get me now ;)

He is also, eating like he hasn't eaten for weeks- the boy can really put the food away!! And (thankfully) he is not picky!  Some of his favorites are sweet peas and spinach and carrots, and he also loves bananas and mangoes.  I have been doing a lot of the baby led weaning, giving them the food to pick up on their own and eat, so when I do try to give him jar food or fresh homemade food from a bowl- I HAVE to give him finger foods every few bites or he gets mad!!  His favorite finger foods are grapes ( cut up very small)  steamed carrots or squash, bananas, cheerios, and blackberries

We have tried a lot of finger foods and he loves pretty much everything- one that he was kind of iffy about was avocados which Im fine with b/c I could eat them all day long, so more for me ;)  

We have still slowly been plodding our way to organic/all-natural foods and products.  Thatcher's foods, I buy exclusively organic except for the occasional beechnut fruities in the pouch and that is mostly for convenience b/c those are something very quick that he can do himself if we are on the go. I also buy the Materne brand from Wal-mart that is all-natural, but they only make applesauce, so eh, choosing my battles.  I'm still hooked on my organic chai- but we have become obsessed and our collection has grown!

My kids also have a new food obsession

They could literally eat a cutie for every meal!

and so could Thatcher ;)

one of my favorite organic products so far has been my shampoo and conditioner

My hair has honestly never felt better ( its is in desperate need of a trim though) 

Anyways, I have been doing pretty good on my goals so far.  See the list here

1. read 10 books from the classic literature list- this is the one I haven't made that much progress on b/c I haven't had time to do much more reading than my devotions, but I have come to the conclusion that Im really not a Dickens fan.....sorry.

2. Keep track of all the books I read this year-......well, thats been pretty easy b/c I haven't been reading much

3. Read the Bible through- again, have been reading my Bible, but just my normal devotions ( which I have been doing a psalm a day) hoping to reach this goal!

4. Teach my children the importance of reading classic lit. and reading in general- we have been working on Treasure Island still and this summer I think we will move on to the Little House books

5. Watch less t.v.- this has been going fairly well thanks to the beautiful weather we have been having!

6. Eat better- we have been doing much much better with this- eating much healthier (with one cheat day a week) and trying to really be conscience about what we are putting into our bodies as far as hormones, pesticides and everything that come with processed foods

7. Lose weight- I have really been working at this goal for the past week and a half and have already lost 9 lbs!! This is significant for me and I am already feeling so much more comfortable in my clothes and I am loving the my fitness pal app- so helpful!!

8. Get up to date with memory keeping- besides still being sure that I am taking pictures of everything ( especially just our daily lives) I have completely failed at this one!! I really want to get up to date with things!

9.  Give more- this is a very personal goal and I don't wanna share a whole lot about it, but I'll say I feel the Lord really working in me with this goal!

10. Grow in the Lord- again, a very personal goal- growing daily :)

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend as we gear up for Spring Break and the Easter holiday :)

my cute little spring salt and pepper shakers :), okay, Im done for real- have a great weekend!

balance

Sooooo.....its been awhile! I am horrible...HORRIBLE!! at keeping up with blogging!!  But, you know, Im okay with it- I am a mommy of 3 little ones, homeschooling Jude, involved in my church, head of ladies ministry, and a youth pastors wife- shew! I have been working on BALANCE these past few weeks.  It is extremely hard to find balance these days!! I feel overwhelmed alot and like I should be doing a better job in most areas of my life.   Chaotic was the best way to describe how I felt.  I was having a hard time keeping up with everything.  So one day, I just spent all day getting organized. My brother and sister in law took Jude and Elsie to the zoo, so I was running around like a crazy woman doing laundry ( Thatcher sadly, spent most of the day in the exersaucer)  cleaning, organizing, making lists and checking things off- iCal has become one of my best friends!! So, now for about a week, I have felt *big breath* like I can breathe again!! So, thanks to my sweet family and my amazing organizing skilld (ha!! riiiiight....) I feel back on track now- I feel like we have balance again :)  What are some of your best organizing tips and things you do to keep balance?

Goals

Okay, can I tell you that I NEVER make resolutions.  But I read a lot of different blogs and I was inspired to make a few goals for myself this year ( by this blog http://www.jennymeyerson.com/ )  Anyways, she has a HUGE bucket list of things she wants to do, and I thought that would be a great idea, but Im making a goals list for 2012! I love making goals, and especially writing them down and then being able to look back and see what you have accomplished!  Here it goes:

1.Read 10 classic books - from this list http://www.eagleforum.org/educate/1997/june97/list.html

I have already read a few on the list and right now I am working on "A Tale of Two Cities" and "Great Expectations" and also have started "Treasure Island" with the kids :)

2. Keep track of all the books I read this year

3. Read the Bible through ( I have done this twice before)

4.Teach my children the importance of reading classic literature and reading in general

5. Watch less t.v.- I own a television, I don't have channels, but we do have netflix.  This goal is more for my kids, not letting them watch as much t.v.- I limit how much they watch anyways, but I would love to get to the point where they don't watch t.v. at all ( lofty goal, I know!!) 

6. Eat better!! We have been trying to make the transition to more organic/all-natural foods and products in general, but I am our biggest hinderance, b/c I LOVE chocolate!!  I especially love hostess chocolate cupcakes and would devour a whole box a day if I could in good conscience!  

7. Lose weight- see above comment ;)

8. Get up to date with my scrap booking/memory book things.  Ugh, I am soooo far behind- we will see if this happens!

9. Give more- give more of my time, my efforts, money, love- just GIVE more!

10- Grow in the Lord- trying to do this daily- listening to the Holy Spirit, praying and reading more!

These are some of my goals for this year, I will update the progress and tell you about what I am reading and what Im eating ( or wishing I was eating! haha!)  What are some of your resolutions/goals/bucket list items??  Have a great weekend!

Do you pin?

I am on Pinterest.....all.the.time.  I'm addicted! 

Im looking forward to pinning with you!! :)