The house, where Great Grandma lived with Uncle Leo and Timothy the cat, still stands on Main Street. Priscilla was rather dismayed at its appearance. My curiosity got the better of me this afternoon and I looked up real estate in Angelica. I was surprised to find Grandma's house for sale as there was no sign out yesterday. It is a multi-family dwelling which may account for the fact that it is not so grand as others in the area. What fun it would be to take a tour or even buy the house and fix it up... Hey Priscilla, didn't you say you wanted to open a gift shop?
Sunday, September 30, 2007
Angelica
The house, where Great Grandma lived with Uncle Leo and Timothy the cat, still stands on Main Street. Priscilla was rather dismayed at its appearance. My curiosity got the better of me this afternoon and I looked up real estate in Angelica. I was surprised to find Grandma's house for sale as there was no sign out yesterday. It is a multi-family dwelling which may account for the fact that it is not so grand as others in the area. What fun it would be to take a tour or even buy the house and fix it up... Hey Priscilla, didn't you say you wanted to open a gift shop?
Friday, September 28, 2007
The Babysitter Test
I took Nate out to Newark for a doctor appointment this afternoon and left Troy in the charge of Ben and Hannah. James was here too so there was an adult on the premises. Hannah was making cookies and Ben was upstairs giving Ellie a bath when Troy went into the bathroom. I guess he had been in there quite a while when somebody decided to check on him. There he was, trying to clean up the mess he had made on the toilet seat, not being very successful, and crying softly "I want my mommy..."
Ahh, the "Babysitter Test"! Hannah excused herself from clean-up duty by claiming it would "contaminate" the cookies. Somebody decided since Ben was already upstairs in the other bathroom, that's where Troy should be too. Lucky Ben! Ben stood Troy in the shower and said, "You know what happens now, don't you? You wait for Martha to get home." Well, by the time I got home Troy was asleep, shirtless, on the couch. I knew something was up because the laundry was going, the bathroom window was opened, and there was a line of "doo doo" on the underside of the toilet seat. I made a quick deduction and came to the conclusion that the "Babysitter Test" had been administered. All things considered, they didn't do too bad.
Thursday, September 27, 2007
Sukkot
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Falling Asleep
I've dried my eyes and put the tissues away (for now) and hope to get back into a normal routine tomorrow. I have been slightly distracted the past few days... What I need now is a good hot cup of coffee and what I'll need later is a solid night's sleep. After that everything will be all better, right?
The Whole Enchilada
Well, here they are, gathered for a group photo on Monday night.
I have decided that saying good bye is an exhausting experience.
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Saying Good Bye
Food and fun, laughter and tears, prayers and long hugs.

I held it together until my kids started crying. So many things have been going through my mind...

Yesterday was Jim's 26th birthday. We were celebrating his life and dreading his departure. In some ways he was dreading it too. It isn't easy for him to leave but growing up isn't always easy... and letting go isn't easy either. Now we look forward to the day when he returns and pray that he will be led by the Lord in his journey through life.
Monday, September 24, 2007
It Was On a Monday
Sunday, September 23, 2007
A Farewell Party
Friday, September 21, 2007
Just Thinking
Wednesday night we taught the kids class at church. There were three boys; one 10 year old and two first graders. Part of the lesson was about the Day of Atonement and part revolved around giving to people who are in need. We made small boxes in which each child could place money for the poor. James and I won't be there to see what goes into the boxes and neither will the boxes come back for us to distribute the money. This was just to encourage the children to give on their own or at least think about it. I was a little bit taken back by how reluctant these particular kids were to possibly go without a snack at the church cafe or sacrifice some of their own money in order to give a small gift to someone less fortunate than themselves... but am I willing?
I have often prayed that the Lord would use me, my money, my home, my kids... but when it comes down to making the sacrifice, well, that's the hard part. It's easy to talk about giving... it's even possible to give reluctantly... but giving from a pure heart? Not so easy. Yes, there's dirt on my face too. If I would just take the time to look in the mirror maybe I could get it cleaned off.
Thursday, September 20, 2007
Scary Man
Today I am tired. I did my shopping this morning while Troy was at preschool. I have gulped down a cup of coffee and am hoping it soon kicks in and wakes me up. I will need lots of energy in order to bake up a slew of pies for Saturday's party. Good thing Bethany is here to give me a poke in the ribs when I start to doze off. (Hey, Beth! Wake up!!!)
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
A Slower Pace
The corn fields here are slowly disappearing and the pumpkins are showing up on front porches. I didn't plant any corn myself this year, no pumpkins either, so I may have to go in search of some fall decorations sometime soon. My usual thing is to wait until there isn't much left to chooose from. I just plain don't like spending the money but I do love how pretty they look. With a party here this weekend, I might have enough incentive to actually do it.
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Getting Something Accomplished
Monday, September 17, 2007
The Lighter Side of Homeschooling

Monday, Monday
Saturday, September 15, 2007
Chile Weather
Friday, September 14, 2007
Letting Go


(In case you're curious... top photo- Bethany, Jim, David
bottom photo- Josiah, Nathan, Ben and Hannah)
Thursday, September 13, 2007
Time for a Walk
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
Looking for a Handout
Feels Like Fall
It is a cool, crisp morning. We have packed a lunch and charged the camera batteries. Soon we will be on the road...
PS. Hannah is learning how to write in "webdings". See here.
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
A Quiet Noisy Day
Monday, September 10, 2007
A Little Practice
Baby Stuff!


When I had my babies we had a crib and a bassinet, a baby swing, and an umbrella stroller. Oh yeah, and a car seat, although Jimmy didn't need one until he was about a year old. Things sure have gotten complicated.
Sunday, September 09, 2007
Saturday, September 08, 2007
A Clean House
Tomorrow is Bethany's baby shower. Today I spent all day cleaning the house and throwing things out. I'm not done yet but I am done until Monday. I have a beautiful new computer room, thanks to my hard working husband and my dear son, Nathan. Too bad I had to hide so much junk in here to clear out the dining room. This will be my project next week, sorting through all the garbage we have collected up. James thinks we need to host more baby showers...
The rain Kim said was coming has not yet made it from Minnesota here, or maybe it has passed on by? We had a shower last night and it looked like rain a few times today, but so far we haven't seen any thunderstorms. Maybe tomorrow. We sure could use a few good hard rains, the grass is beyond crunchy now. Teal Lake seems but a distant memory.
Friday, September 07, 2007
September Summer
Thursday, September 06, 2007
School

Troy had his first day of preschool this morning. We picked him up at noon. He was wearing his backpack and smiling. He informed me that he did not cry. I guess he's matured since VBS! That's a good thing.
Sara and Alysa didn't get off the bus until nearly 4:30 yesterday. They were a good half hour plus later than normal due to a changed bus route and new kindergarteners. They were smiling too and sporting new backpacks.
I remember the excitement of returning to school too. There were always new bookbags filled with fresh crayons, pencils, erasers, glue, and a package of wide ruled notebook paper. The folders were flat and bright. We had a few new outfits and likely a new pair of sneakers too. The air really did "smell like school" and I always looked forward to seeing my friends again.
Wednesday, September 05, 2007
My Beautiful Bethany

Bethany surprised us when she was born by being a girl. We already had two little boys and I so didn't want to be disappointed that I prepared myself for a third boy. For a very brief moment I was almost disappointed that she was a girl. That didn't last long. I looked forward to dressing her up and putting her hair into barrets and pony tails. The only problem was she forgot to grow hair. It wasn't until she turned three that she had enough hair to do something with. When she was one year old we had her ears pierced and thought maybe people would stop asking if the little child dressed in flowers was a boy or a girl. They just kept asking.
Tuesday, September 04, 2007
Fruit Farm
Monday, September 03, 2007
Sunday in the Park

It was a beautiful day, too nice to sit home and do nothing, so yesterday afternoon James and I decided to take the kids out to Mendon Ponds for a walk. Since the park is rather large and we don't know our way around, we stopped at a little office to get a map. I hopped out, took a map and turned back toward the van just as a mother deer and her fawn happened by. (This is the only picture I got the entire day as I am still struggling with Jim's camera.) They didn't seem to be afraid, in fact the little one stood right in front of me waiting for me to take another picture, but the screen had turned black and I missed the opportunity. Oh, how frustrating! We hiked down by Devil's Bathtub (a glacial kettle) and then went over to the nature center and walked the Bird Song trail. We should have taken some birdseed as the little birds will eat right out of your hand. We also saw a little garter snake, squirrels and chipmunks. I'm looking forward to going back again. Maybe I'll take Troy so he can feed the birds.
Saturday, September 01, 2007
In My Purse

Phew!
I've now cleaned out the receipts, the old Kleenex and gum wrappers, the coupon, the boondoggle, the Walmart sticker, and the water bottle. I need to add a pair of reading glasses so I can see my Bible at church tomorrow and maybe a fresh tissue. What does all this mean? I have no clue, but my purse is clean now and I still have plenty of gum to go around.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)