The Teaching Tree

School and Winter 2010-2011

2011-01-13T12:13:00.001-06:00

This semester college will be on hold for me, personally. This school year has been very busy and has brought about some changes that have required major adjustments for our family. I have been helping out by teaching several days a week, at our church school. The children have been going as well. It has proven a success by way of their socialization and given a distinct responsibility to our scheduling of daily routines. The many blessings that come with the interaction of fellow saints and the fellowship that it brings has given many new insights and personally, I think we have the most awesome students in the world! And teachers too! They're amazing! We appreciate the opportunity to serve in this capacity and look forward to all it has to offer.
More to come!

Schooling and Summer

2010-06-15T14:42:00.000-05:00

Ok, well...we are schooling through part of the summer this year. Garrett will be in the 7th grade and although he is doing just fine, I want to keep him consistent with studying. Austin is also progressing very well, will be in the 4th grade and will be schooling this summer as well. They both are doing Math and English. Since these are 'core' subjects, it is important for them to become very proficient in these areas.They only have 1 month or so left on the subjects, so that won't be all summer.Micaylah is taking a typing course this summer called, 'Computer Keyboarding'. She is learning to use the keyboard. They will all learn the keyboard eventually.

Well, I had better get a move on. Someone needs to get on the pc.
Have a great summer.

What a day!

2010-06-08T12:29:00.000-05:00

[the place] Little River Canyon, National Preserve, Alabama

[what] high bluffs, rapid flowing water, waterfalls, large river and small creeks, 600 ft deep canyon

[who] anyone who wants to take a trip into the rugged country, view mountainous terrain, pic-nic on a high bluff over hanging a cliff, hike into the forrest, and end your day by wading barefoot through a fast-moving river or dangle your feet into the various little ponds, and walk away feeling refreshed and tired all at the same time. It's worth it!!

trail leading into the forrest where the river is located

this pic really doesn't do the waterfall justice; we were standing to the right of this picture on the one above

it's a wide river and there were some who waded across it; waist-deep; it is shallow here, where the boys are, but out in the middle, it is deeper, but you can see the bottom and it's very clean-thankfully we didn't see any snakes

it was so nice to sit and dangle our feet into the cool, clear flowing water--refreshing!!

walking along the side of the river, we found thousands of tadpoles; some were in this little pool

just to the left of where the kids are, is the 600' waterfall; the boys were so interested to 'feel' the rushing water through their hands, so they knelt down and leaned into it; yea, they could have fallen in!

waterfall is just behind the kids; it's wide and fast and rocky and deep down there

we drove over the bridge and around to the other side of the river; there was an overlook, so we stopped to take a pic--gorgeous! the tree is blocking it, but just to the left of the waterfall, is where we just were in the water above

we drove down the scenic way, along the river's edge; every so often we would stop, get out and snap a few pics--"Booooo!" Said the kids! But if I didn't take some pictures, how in the world could I have blogged about it! Ha!!

This is Mushroom Rock-we had a little lesson about how the rock formed into this shape and why. Hey, we are a homeschooling family, and not a day goes by that we don't sieze a {teaching moment}-you homeschoolers absolutely KNOW what I mean! It's a lifestyle!

There were all kinds of rocks in this area that we could climb; "Next time, we are climbing Mushroom Rock, Mom!" "yea," I said,thinking to myself..."I don't think so"...lol

driving down a little farther along the scenic trail, we found this [GoRgEoUs] cliff area, so we stopped and took a hike through the woods and then to this little overhang;

Uhh, "Yes, it was steep."

Since I injured my ankle, I haven't really been able to hike as well as I used to. It was so much fun though, I IGNORED the pain! (and paid for it the next day)

the river flows in this canyon for about 12 miles; we stopped at the designated over looks to {LooK}

some areas have protection barriers, some do not; extra-attentive, [caution] MUST be taken, especially with very young or disobedient children; hate to put it that way, but it's the truth! No room for error here- I love children too much to take any chances with their lives...my children are, of course, COMPLETELY OBEDIENT---[not!!] { jk-jk }

we came across a little waterfall (Graces High Falls) and it was beautiful; plunging over river-carved sandstone onto huge fossil exposed rocks below-and hey, you can go see it if you want to hike your way on across that canyon...not us!

we stood over the river on a boulder over hanging the cliff; 'daughter' was brave and wanted to [Look]down into the canyon; [W H Y ?] yep! there was nothing below her...just canyon and trees...well, they would have at least broken the fall...uh, I don't want to think about the word "broken"

very steep grade; have to drive down it; can't see clearly; may drive off into the river; may slip off the side of mountain; hold on!! but what if I just drive off the side...~~am I the only one who has ever thought that??~~

"sons" wanted to hang over the cliff on this dead tree; again I say, [W H Y ?]

(ok, they're not really hanging [over] the cliff;) if you look in the pic (above), where they are walking up the trail, you will see the old, fallen, dead tree

walking back to the truck we found another good place for a pic-nic, a smooth, flat boulder; next time

crossing a bridge where another small creek flowed by

after driving down a very steep grade we found this {tranquil setting}; it was late in the day and so we only stopped for a minute, then headed on our way

the end of our trip brought us to the [mouth of the canyon] which is an actual swimming hole and how nice for us...there was nobody there;

very, very deep; calm waters though; too wide to swim across with children; the shallow shore is only shallow for about a foot and a half (1 1/2 feet), then it quickly drops off to about three feet (3 feet), then much deeper; NOT CLEAR WATER;

nevertheless, is was peaceful; there are picnic areas set up with tables, grills, and restrooms; hiking trails thread all through the lower canyon platueas and walls

We are planning another trip to Canyon River and this time we are going to bring some friends! Ok, friends...better get ready, 'cause we're gonna have some fun!

National Park Service

U.S. Department of the Interior

National Preserve

Alabama

The National Parks Service cares for special places saved by the American people so that all may experience our heritage. To learn more about parks visit http://www.nps.gov/

(taken from the Little River Canyon brochure)

An animal theme seems to be easy...

2010-05-19T17:46:00.001-05:00

...and we really try to follow the K.I.S.S. METHOD. Keep it simple 'silly'! Especially on this blog :)

This is our latest find: he's a 'Yellow Bellied-Mud Slider Turtle

About the size of a 1/2 dollar-obviously a newborn

Loves to eat earthworms

Swims around alot!

His name is "Skip-Er-Dee Zapper" and he really likes to 'zap' around in his little tank. We are looking for a larger aquarium for him so he can swim around more. We found him under our tiller in the mud one day a couple of weeks ago. He seems to be doing very well and has adapted to his new surroundings.

We did a bit of research on them, but if you know some good tips on what they like or don't like or want to share your knowledge, please do! We would like to hear from you!

2010-01-29T13:00:00.002-06:00

Last week, as we were picking pecans in our yard, we noticed our little friend peeking around the tree. Garrett did a little research to find that he is a 'Fox Squirrel' and will grow up to 15" (not including his tail-it will grow that long as well). Larger males can weigh between 3-4 pounds. We have a large pecan tree on the side of our yard and this is where he is feeding in the pictures below. He also enjoys feeding on acorns, seeds, twigs, flowers and fruits. Unfortunately, he does feast on bird's eggs from time to time.

Our little fellow has a mixture of black, silver and red hairs with a distinct strip of white directly down the center of his face. His little belly is red with a blend of beige fur. He has a reddish plume of a tail and swishes it very quickly when he is disturbed or is trying to get someone's attention.

Fox Squirrels make their habitat in a wide variety of forest types. They like to bed in pine and hardwoods, swamps, pine forests and sometimes in the bayous. Ours has made his home at the end of the property in a large pine forest. We have seen him running down the fence line to his nest in the trees.

They are less agile climbers than gray squirrels and prefer to travel on ground as opposed to traveling through the trees. The are very quick runners and have somewhat larger paws than their smaller gray squirrel counterparts. They prefer to wait till mid-morning to rise and then retire well before the sun sets.

Thanks Garrett for sharing your information. Can't wait to see your report!

For more info you can visit: www.ypte.org.uk or www.outdooralabama.com, chocked full of information and helpful ways to care for the wildlife in your own yard.

Back to school, back to college!

2010-01-11T23:05:00.000-06:00

The days during our Christmas break have gone by so fast. It never ceases to amaze me how soon the start up day approaches us, but here we are, beginning our first day back at the books and gearing up for our latter half of the year.

And what a year it has been already. The children are progressing nicely and are even ahead of my scheduled plan for them. I'm so glad. It really takes a load off my mind to see them working on their academics. During the cold winter months it only makes sense to use this time to get ahead if we can. When spring-time comes, no one around here will want to be closed up indoors. That's why we tend to get as much done while we are indoors.

As for the 'ole Mom here...classes have started back also. Taking 3 right now. That's enough to keep all of us busy.

Our oldest daughter is also finishing up her college as well as working fulltime (45+ hrs/wk) Keeps her busy too, especially with church functions and friends.

My husband is busy working at work and extremely productive with the farm. Right now he's preparing for our move and putting up a new fence. Getting my chicken coop moved will prove interesting, I'm sure. He's also getting our new home prepared for us: to paint, lay tile, paint, carpet, paint and build a utility room and front porch.

Lots of neat things are happening and keeping us busy. That's just the tangible ones. Other wonderful things are unfolding and maybe I can post about that soon: Bible studies, fellowshipping, being together and entertaining to God's glory! It's just great!

Year's End

2009-12-31T01:13:00.003-06:00

What a year it has been. There has been change after change after change that I have personally witnessed in my family, our community, our state and in me personally. At this time of year, we often reflect on what we've done and how it has affected us to where we are now. And well we should.

We teach our children that every single choice made will chart the course for where they go and what they do.  Thinking about their choices is part of what will form our children into the kind of adults that serve, give and care in this world, when others are hurting, lost and lonely. Considering their choices now will enable them to become sensitive to others as they grow into adulthood.

It's the little choices that they make now that will determine how they think, how they behave and what they do, tomorrow. Proverbs 22:11 tells us, "Even a child is known by his doings, whether his work be pure, and whether it be right."  It is up to us as parents to guide our children in their decisions, their choices; in all that they do. We have no time to waste when it comes to our children. They are the next generation of leaders, who will be teachers, store owners, community service persons, preachers and pastors, or many other honorable pursuits and offices. We must step in and step up to where our calling is: the parents that God has called us to be. Helping our children to answer their call, when it comes, to be what God is calling them to be.

I am reflective over this year with a heart that considers: "What I have done as a parent to my children?" Have I brought them to the place God wants them to be? Have I done all I can do to continue in love, provoking them to "good works" daily? Do I consistently honor God as I MOTHER my young children and carefully make choices exhibiting God's calling on my life? Am I the example I would want them to be for my future 'grandchildren'? Would I want my grandchildren taught what I am living or am I just living what I 'choose' and just 'getting by'? Living just enough 'good' to get into the 'GATE'?

"To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven." Ecclesiastes 3:1. While we yet have our children, this is the season in which to PURPOSE to teach, to train, to honor and to obey God's call to be the parent we are called to be.

Oh YES!!!!

2009-12-03T01:38:00.001-06:00

I am almost done with this semester!!

Just finished up my last tests/exams in health--

Gave my final presentation in history 2--
which counted as our FINAL EXAM-whoo hoo!

Have a few more things in science to finish,
including 3 labs---pray for me, please--

I am soooo behind in music though! I hate that!
I thought I'd really love this music class, but I don't.
It's not what I'd thought it would be. I am so
disappointed with that class. And I am really a
music person.

I have ended up really, thoroughly enjoying
---HISTORY---(yea, yea..too many whatevers in there lol)

I've even considered becoming a history major.

Already registered for next semester...not going to
take as many classes. Going to be adjusting to some new
surroundings...again. Looking forward to it though.

Kids have school until the 16th of December.
They're getting out for Christmas break until
January 4th, 2010! They're love'n it! I'm love'n it!
Gonna do some crafts and maybe some bake 'n make
'n take! Oh yea!

Ready for some FUN!!

Thanksgiving has gone, Christmas is coming

2009-11-28T13:05:00.000-06:00

What a blessed time we had for Thanksgiving! Spending time with friends and enjoying this gorgeous weather. It has been in the low 60's during the day and that has been just right for playing out of doors with the children.

Christmas is just around the corner and we have so many plans ahead.

More to come!

The Wisener Family

Curriculum for homeschool & college

2009-10-03T21:13:00.002-05:00

Going back to college was one of the best decisions I've made. Granted, it has been an adjustment for my family, but it has already been worth it for us.

It's a good thing we love books as much as we do, because we sure are in up to our necks with them lately.

These are the books I'm using for our youngest son 2/3 Gr

Reading: Pathway Readers w/workbooks 2nd gr
Math: Math-U-See Gamma-not pictured
English: Rod & Staff 2nd gr & Simply Grammar
Spelling: Purposeful Design 3rd
Science: Apologia-Botany
History: Movements in Amer. Hist
Art: The No-Nonsense Guide to Teaching Art
Bible: Daily Assignments
Pleasure Reading: Individual Living Books
State Study: Simply Stated & Various book

These are the books I'm using for our middle daughter-5th Gr

Reading: Rod & Staff 5
English: Rod & Staff 5
Math: Math-U-See Delta-not pictured
Spelling: Purposeful Design 5
Science: Apologia-Botany
History: Movements In Amer. Hist
Art: No-Nonsense...to Art
Bible: Daily Assignments
Pleasure Reading: Individual Books
State Study: Simply Stated**Excellent Curr!!**

These are the books I'm using for our middle son-6th Gr

Reading: Rod & Staff 5/6
English: Rod & Staff 6
Math: Math-U-See Epsilon-not pictured
Spelling: Purposeful Design 6
Science: Apologia-Botany
History: Movements In Amer. Hist
Art: No-Nonsense...to Art
Bible: Daily Assignments
Pleasure Reading: Individual Books
State Study: Simply Stated**Excellent Curr!!**

These are not the extent of our book collection and we use far more than what is on this short and limited list. I don't know what I'd do without a working library. It's something that I keep adding to and even taking away as we go along year after year.

Of course, our college girl is taking several classes herself..

An Invitation to Health
Speech
American Literature
US History

12 credit hours plus she works a 45 hr / week job! Many people don't have a job and she is thankful she can work at a great place(our local physicians' office) and have weekends off!

Here's what Mom is doing as far as schooling...yes, I am in college too..

An Invitation to Health
US History
Music Appreciation
Physical Science
1 Lab for Science Class

13 credit hours. I am thankful for the opportunity to continue my education at a college that believes in the family unit and is located right here in my community.

Now, if we can just get my 'beloved' to start on the books, we'll all be going. MMmmm...we'll have to see about that!

Lesson plans

2009-09-29T10:19:00.005-05:00

Here is the style of lesson plans I have been using for our school. I found a book that has much to offer for what I was looking for and have used it ever since.

My lesson plan book has:

*curriculum idea guide for k-5(I use it for extra ideas)

*year-at-a-glance calendar

*long-range monthly planner(very handy)

My favorite:

*flexible weekly calendar(I use this for daily lesson plans for each child and for each of their subjects)

*6 lines per day for their subjects(I put Art/History & State Study/Science together, since we don't usually do those every day)

*Bible verse at the top of each 2-page spread for the week

Filling in each child's name along with each of their subjects keeps me completely involved in what they are accomplishing. I read over every lesson, test, and assignment they have for each day. At first, this really took quite a while to do, but after doing it consistently I've been able to make out their lesson plans for the entire week in about 30-45 minutes (depending on what all I am assigning them)

At the top, I've given them a Bible reading assignment along with their pleasure reading titles next to their names. And each day of the week is labeled with the exact DATE of the month.

It really makes for a smoother week! Every day they are able to look at what is on their plan, grab their books, papers etc and go with it. Hope this helps and have a great day!

Just finished our 7th week of school!

2009-09-18T19:47:00.020-05:00

Well, here it is September 18 and we have finished our 7th week of school already. I must say how excited I am about the children and what all they are accomplishing. Every week I make out lesson plans that go from Monday(1st day of our week for school) through Friday(last day). Each child has 9 subjects that need to have lessons or plans written out for each subject. They are all on different levels.
In the past, I have written out lesson plans that never seemed to be followed on a regular basis. This year it has been different. They have all followed their plans and are meeting their goals for each week. This is something that usually doesn't happen...I can't emphasize that enough!! It hasn't ever happened before. At least not with all of them in the same year...HA! So, I am very excited for them and even more thrilled that they are understanding the importance of meeting a goal. If they're going to meet a goal, they must first understand they need to set a goal...this is part of what we are learning in school this year. They like the feeling of having all their work done ON FRIDAY or even sometimes ON THURSDAY!!! Yes, sometimes, they have finished all the weeks' work by Thursday and can have Friday to enjoy as they please. What a reward for their hard work. At such young ages too. 7, 9, 11. No homework to hang over their heads. No reports to finish. No formal reading that has to be done. Now when they read over the weekend, it's because they choose to read. I like that!!! They choose to read because they WANT to. It's not a pressure to do it.

Anyway, I just wanted take a minute to update how our school year is coming along. Hope yours is moving smoothly and most of all, that you are having a blast with your kids. It won't last long and soon they'll be driving. Like mine are already saying, "Mom! I just have ___ years and I'll be in the YOUTH!" Or "Soon I can DRIVE you to the store!" And I say to myself, "Oh boy! Can I just have a moment to relish in THIS season guys?"

Wow! Fourth Week of School!!

2009-08-28T15:46:00.006-05:00

I am amazed at how fast these last four weeks have gone. We are finished with our fourth week of school and it has been going so wonderful. I have to say, this has really been one of the best beginnings we have ever had. I'm so excited!!

They all seem so eager with their subjects this year. Most days we are done before 1:00 in the afternoon. Some days though, we start a bit later and work until the later afternoon. Friday is test day and also any extra thing they may not have been able to do earlier in the week. We're a NO HOMEWORK school! They don't really do anything as 'homework'. The time frames I use for them are sufficient for each subject and each child. It helps with the frustration level on us all. I like it that way!

This year will be different than any other year though...I have started school MYSELF! Yea!! I am back in college and working to finish my degree. I am taking a full load and trying to get my schedule set as well as getting the children into theirs. It's another one of those 'beauties' of HOMESCHOOLING. I am lovin' it! A-N-D it IS a lot right now, but I know it will only be for a few months. It's only for a little while...temporary. If I keep that in mind it's easier for me to keep the right perspective. One day, one week, one month...at a time. My children are so happy for me that I get to go back to college...they say they are 'proud' of their Mommy. I want to do good so they will see it's NEVER-EVER too late to return to school and that you are not ever too old to learn or keep learning along the way.

Yayyee! First Day of School!

2009-08-03T16:37:00.005-05:00

It is true! Today was our first day of school and we are so glad to have started back. Finishing up the organization of everything related to school and then briefly going over some important topics for this year. It only took a few hours and then we were finished, but the best thing is that we started. Whew! I'm so glad.

We ended our day with a sweet treat from our garden. A big, fat, juicy watermelon that tasted so wonderful for a hot day. It was just right. Now, we're going outside to check on the horses, pups, kitties, ducks, chickens and the goat. They're so funny. When we come outside, they come running up (well, not the horses...ha) and seem so happy to see us. I am constantly saying, "DOWN! DOWN!" and holding my hand out, saying, "STAY DOWN!" I think the pups are getting better.

Great 1st day! And looking forward to the new school year!

Learning to T-I-L-L the soil!

2009-07-25T21:21:00.002-05:00

Guess what? Since we have had a garden, our kids have been taking turns pulling weeds, planting seeds and digging up the soil. It has been so neat to see them working like this on the land. They love to get their toes into the dirt and get it absolutely everywhere. And I mean everywhere!

Well, you know that my husband and I have set a wonderful example (lol) of pulling those weeds, planting seeds and getting dirty!!! My husband has been tilling around all the growing vegetables and keeping it neat and tidy. Now that they have seen their Daddy working with the tiller, they wanted to give it a try. Of course, I was very reluctant to let them, by 'Daddy-O' said they would do fine. After holding on and running that thing up and down the rows several times, I am telling you...THEY SURE CAN! They did great and I'm looking forward to seeing what all comes from their hard work.

I'm going to get a pic of them and post it later...

Today we planted peas and potatoes and then last weekend we also put another row of green beans up. The beans have already sprouted up through the soil and are making their way up to the fencing. I've got some pictures coming...

Gearing up for S-C-H-O-O-L!!

2009-07-21T15:44:00.004-05:00

It's been a fantastic summer and although the warm days won't be ending soon, the mellow days of no 'academics' are. Well, kind of! We are gearing up to start back to the days when schedules, time frames, subjects and handwriting are near. Not to mention, math, english, science, history, music, physical education, reading and a few others I'm rounding up for our school year.

Every year about this time, whether we do school during the summer months or not, I look forward to getting their books together, organizing their shelves and cases, reviewing for the first couple of weeks and planning out the school year for my children.

With so many changes the last several months have brought, I'm really needing to be very diligent and consistent with their studies. And with my daily, monthly and yearly planning! Whew!! I must say, sometimes it can feel overwhelming! But all in all it is what I truly love and staying home with my children is what I consider to be one of the best privileges of being a MOTHER. Teaching my children, watching them learn and grow and then allowing them to take the steps into youth and adulthood. It's a wonder that never ceases to amaze me!

Austin's Special Day

2009-06-26T08:49:00.006-05:00

Since we are still finishing up school, working around the farm, going to camp and just generally keeping super busy with summer, I decided to give our youngest son a little break from his work. Like we work him so terribly hard!! LOL!!While his older brother Garrett and older sister Micaylah went to camp this week, Austin and I went to the park. A few of his friends came too and the boys had such a great time getting into the water.
here's a shot of the whole area..water even comes out the top, of the flower..so cool
We have this park nearby and it has an area that is sectioned off and fenced in. The flooring is cushioned with a rubber pad and there are water spouts that shoot water out in a cool sequence.
And there is a shaded area for the "Moms". Yea!! That made it even more special. So all the moms sat under the cool shady trees, talked and then we had a little pic-nic. So fun! Only thing that would have made it better...if all my friends could have been there with their kids!! I am so blessed. check out that smile..priceless!! They had an awesome time and best of all...it was FREE!! So check out your local parks and see what you might find.

RACCOONS IN MY WORKSHOP

2009-06-19T18:46:00.005-05:00

Raccoons in my workshop!!! Yikes! Well, not really my workshop. It was actually my Mom and Dad's. We were getting ready to go to a local adventure park and this little creature was just captured. We had to stop and get back out and go see him. He was very scared and looked like he was ready to leap out at us. My parents just took him to a place up the road and set him free. One gets caught in the cage every other day or so. Sometimes it's even an opossum or an armadillo. They are kind of funny looking, but interesting though. Hope you have a great day!

School's winding down

2009-06-11T00:15:00.004-05:00

We are getting ready to finish our year of school. I just got back from a wonderful homeschool conference down in my home state and thoroughly enjoyed every single minute of it!!! Wow! It made me want to come home and get the kids started on next year's subjects, projects and everything!!

Here's a little bit of what we're planning for next year with our youngest son who is going into 3rd grade:

3rd grade subject & curriculum list:

Bible: Holy Bible-KJV and daily devotional
Math: Math-U-See
English: Intermediate Lang. Lessons & Rod & Staff
Reading: Pathway Readers & Workbooks
History: Early American Pioneers
Science: Apologia-Botany
Handwriting: Italic H/W Series-C
State Study: Simply Stated
Extra Curricular: Children's Choir, Bible Quizzing, Piano, Computer, Cooking, Animal Care, How to Raise Puppies and Kittens, Nursing Homes & The Elderly, Being Neighborly

Of course, this isn't a complete list. We will use many different books to add to our list. Plus, most subjects integrate copywork, recitation, memory work, notebooking, as well as oral reading and poem writing.

More on this coming shortly. Let me know what you do for your young children. I plan to add my 5th and 6th graders to this list soon.

Have a great day! Kimi

Our Three Littlest Ones

2009-06-08T09:34:00.008-05:00

We have been keeping busy with tending the garden, caring for the pony & horses, kittens, puppies, ducks & chickens.
In addition, we have been schooling in a few different subjects as well. Math and reading are always the main subjects that I like to keep fresh in the front of our minds. We choose to develop their habits during the younger years as it speaks of in Proverbs 22:6-"Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it." Yes, we do our very best to train up our children in the Godly way they should go, but it doesn't stop with spiritual training. I believe that it includes emotional training, physical training, academic training, family training, social training, and many other categories that would be too numerous to contain in this paragraph.

Since we moved earlier this year and took off several days, I decided to do some school through the summer...just until the end of June. My kids don't really think much of the fact that their public school counterparts may be off for a couple of months in a row. Schooling to us, is our lifestyle. We learn on saturdays, evenings and holidays!! Ha-Ha!! Right now, one of the best things about it is, they are still young and with God's help and guidance we (my husband and I) can continually put our finger prints on their hearts. I love that. They are forming thoughts and making decisions right now that will form lifelong habits of a strong, Godly lifestyle. Again, I say...I love that! It keeps me on my toes. Right where I should be...right where God wants me.

Learning should be something you do that makes you want to do it again. And again, and again, and again....

Learning about gardens...

2009-05-08T11:47:00.005-05:00

Recently we took some egg cartons and put soil and seeds into them to start some things for our garden.
After a few days, we had little sprouts coming up in the rich soil.
In a few more days the seedlings turned into plants. Now, our garden was not tilled yet, so we were getting so excited to put these into the ground.Shortly after, a friend came and tilled our plot with a big front end loader that had one of those new tillers on the back. It took him about 40 minutes to till the whole thing. WOW! I was amazed at how fine the soil was. It was easy to work with and all the bits of grass were completely chopped too. I mixed some of my compost into it and we started planting the next day.
Here are the kids and their dad beginning the work. Let's get dirty!!

We hoed rows. I think about 16-17 rows. Then we made little valleys in each hill and planted some of our veggies. The kids are learning that we don't have to get everything we eat from the grocery store.

Here are some of my tomatoes growing. We put stakes next to each one and gave them enough space in between to grow. I can't wait to sink my teeth into a big, fat juicy one!!We are planting tomatoes, green beans, english peas, carrots, lettuce, radishes, bell peppers, sweet peppers, onions, and some other things.

Gotta go for now...more coming! Happy Spring!

Learning to cook

2009-05-06T11:47:00.013-05:00

We enjoy cooking a hot breakfast most mornings. Pancakes, waffles and french toast are favorites around here. Along with hash browns, scrambled eggs and fresh oatmeal with cinnamon. AND I'm not the only one who prepares the meals. Here are some photos of the children helping with the task. This is the flour after it's been ground into yummie wheat. We use it immediately and it makes the food taste so fresh.

Since I grind the wheat we use to cook and bake with into flour, I like to store the grain in large clear 1 gallon, air tight canisters. It makes for easy access when baking and cooking. One of the chores for the kids is to fill the canisters. I have 10 different canisters that need filling randomly, so this makes for a busy little job.

Here Garrett is filling the Hard Red Wheat canister.

Along with fresh pancakes, waffles etc, we like to make homemade syrup. Austin has learned the recipe and likes to make this himself. Here he is stirring briskly while the syrup boils for 3 minutes. If you boil it for that amount of time it will thicken up nicely. WE all love thick syrup.
Since we use alot of whole ground wheat in our meals, that means we have an abundance of complex carbohydrates that break down slowly in the body. This is great for energy and vitality, but doesn't allow for any proteins. So we do use organic eggs for our recipes. My chickens haven't started laying yet, so we purchase the eggs from a local farm or in a pinch, from the grocer.
Micaylah is a whiz at cracking and blending the eggs. We add cheese and a pat of butter for some awesome scrambled eggs. I like to add black olives, green peppers and finely minced onions to mine.

Here is the finished french toast. I like to cut thick slices of the bread and pour a bit more of the egg mixture over the top while they're sizzling. Nearly perfect food.

For our pancakes and waffles, we like to use different kinds of toppings as they cook. Apples diced finely, nuts chopped small and even blueberries and strawberries are great on top. We pour the batter on the griddle, then sprinkle the topping and flip when ready. It works better than mixing toppings into the entire bowl of batter and you get more of a variety.
These are apple-pecan pancakes and blueberry pancakes. While I'm cooking, I will place one of my stones into my heated oven (about 225) and as one batch finishes I can place them onto the warmed stone inside the oven and serve it all hot when done. This is what was left over.
My personal favorite is hash browns, apple-pecan waffles and scrambled eggs (no cheese, of course).

Here's the pancake/waffle recipe:
dry ingredients

5 C flour-white or wheat
2 t baking powder
1 1/2 t baking soda
1 t salt
2 t cinnamon

wet ingredients

1/2 C oil
3/4 C butter or margarine
2 eggs
3-4 C milk
several tablespoons of water
any topping you like: apples, nuts, choc-chips, bananas, blue or black berries, etc

**Mix all dry ingredients in large bowl with whisk. Blend first 3 wet ingredients in smaller bowl with hand mixer. Add to dry ingredients and blend slightly. Now add milk slowly as you're mixing with hand mixer until batter is formed and becomes slightly thickened.
**If it is too thick, add a bit of water till you get the consistency you like. It should not be thin or runny. Pancake and waffle batter is best when it's thick and lumpy.
**Pour onto heated griddle. Sprinkle your favorite topping and cook until bubbles form on each pancake or pour into heated waffle iron and sprinkle topping before closing iron.
Enjoy! Kimi

Bird Seed, Kitties, Seedlings & Purple Trees

2009-04-01T15:02:00.010-05:00

We are getting situated in our new home and even though there is much to do inside, we are drawn to the out of doors on such sunshine-filled days. We have been learning about "How to plant a garden correctly" in our studies, animals and their babies, the four stages of a seed and continuing our study of 'Trees'.
I am a firm believer in 'life skills' and yearn to instill these traits in our children on a daily basis. I am also a lover of nature and hope to share this love with our children as well. We are putting out feeders for local birds, getting ready to have kittens, planting little seeds for our garden and watching as the trees in our yard bloom with brilliant colors! Have fun as you view some of the pics we've taken over the last week or so.

Every year I look forward to putting out my little bird feeders and watching as the birds that live in our area are brought into our yard by them. We have kept a journal/log for the past several years and have seen the very same birds return year after year. I think it is one way to show our children how God has put instinct into everything He has made. One year, we noticed a particular bright red Cardinal feeding. He had a few feathers missing on the side of his head. The following year we saw him and again the year after with the same feathers missing.

Micaylah is filling some bird feeders with seed. We get a huge bag and empty it into a big bucket that has a good lid to keep it dry. Then when the feeders run low, we can just carry the bucket to each feeder and refill. How easy and fun is that!

When we moved into our new home, among all the other things that came with the house was a set of kitties. One was the Mama, whom we now call Muffin and her little kitten, which we named Kitty. In about 1 1/2 weeks, Muffin is going to have her second litter of kittens. I'm sure they will all be barn kitties! We'll make sure to keep the food out there. Hope that works. She's so funny. She likes her tummy patted.
A few days ago, we planted a bunch of seeds. Carrots, radishes, banana peppers, bell peppers, green beans, hot peppers, tomatoes, lettuce, squash, & green onions. Today, we were so excited because as we sprinkled them with water, we noticed these tiny, little radish seed leaves. This is the third stage of a seedling and now we will watch as it goes into the fourth, which will be growing true leaves. We were so happy to see what God did for our little seeds. He's the giver of life, health and good things. This was a great teaching point! If you look at the center of the little squares, you will see the tiny Bibb lettuce beginning to sprout up. Wow! Lettuce and radish really grow fast! I'm getting hungry for a good salad.

Austin, Micaylah and Garrett planting seeds into everyday type of containers. We'll use paper milk cartons, yogurt containers, foil pans and styrofoam pans and place good fertilized soil into them and then the seeds. After that we'll label each one so we'll know what is growing. We are even going to use a milk/OJ jug to make a small greenhouse. I think I'm going to start some alfalfa. The horses will enjoy it AND I can use some to make into my favorite teas.
After our move, we wanted to tidy up the front and back yards. We noticed these trees in the front and that they had no leaves or blooms on them. Several different people said we should chop them down. I am one who tries to steer away the chopping down of any trees unless it is absolutely necessary. I'm so glad we didn't. We have 3 trees like this one and they are just gorgeous. The other 2 have redish/burgandy blooms on them. This particular day the children found a nest in the branches and decided to investigate.

Now, I leave you with this thought...moments are made to be shared, but you can't make a moment without sharing time with those you love. That's why I am sharing this with you right now. Have a wonderful day...and thank you for your prayers for our family.
Abundant Blessings to you!~Kimi

Time To Plant

2009-03-28T20:21:00.005-05:00

Every year we look forward to going to our local nursery and picking out flowers to re-pot into my favorite containers. This year is no different except that all the kids have grown so much they are now doing most of the work/potting. This is a prelude to planting our garden and will get our hands into the soil, plus get the front porch looking nice for spring! Oh, how I enjoy the spring and having flowers all around. And what a great way to weave in a bit of life skills into our schooling too.

Some of my personal favorites: Petunias-bright fuchsia and full of lush green leaves.

Since we have just moved, the surrounding shrubs need pruned and/or completely removed. This particular plant had to be removed, so Austin & Camille got right on it. Now we can put something else there. That looks so much better.

When I was younger, my job in the yard was to use the weed eater. I have enjoyed it every year until now. Like I said, the children are growing and are helping so much around the house and yard, so Garrett now likes to use the weed eater. He started using it a little bit some years ago, but now he can do it completely on his own. What a great job, looks so nice!

How deep should we plant it? How many do we place into the container? Wow! Micaylah and Camille did a beautiful job! Just the right amount!

Dirt on the hands, under fingernails, fun!

I'll have to post of pic of the finished look...we were having so much fun, I didn't get one. Everything was so neat and tidy. Just the way we like it. Great job kids. And by the way, my husband and I did do a few things too.

Building a child's faith

2009-03-19T09:47:00.005-05:00

God can do whatever HE wants to do, anytime, any place and with anything. Yesterday afternoon, we were all just taking a moment to read quietly and prepare to go to quiz practice. Reebok was sitting in the window bench watching the birds flying around when all of a sudden we heard a loud 'BANG' on the window. We all rushed up to see what it was and there was this tiny, little woodpecker laying on the porch, wings spread completely out and head flopped over to one side. It really was pitiful. Camille immediately picked it up and we all began to pray for it. Nothing happened. We waited and waited. It's poor little tongue was hanging out of it's mouth and it's eyes were droopy and hazed over, gazed in different directions. We waited about 10 minutes all the while praying that OUR WONDERFUL GOD WHO MAKES ALL THINGS WOULD LET A MIRACLE HAPPEN IN THIS TINY LITTLE CREATURE -FOR HIS GLORY.

We tried to get it to hold it's head up. (I didn't really get a good pic of it looking as poorly as it did). It was panting and having a struggle to breathe. The kids just kept praying. I just asked, God to "PLEASE, please let this little bird live and fly. It means so much to the children, Lord."
I know you have probably had this happen before and honestly so have I. A bird flies into your window, flops on the ground and dies, or suddenly gets up and flies away.
So, we thanked God for this little bird who flew into our window and for what He was about to do before our eyes! The minutes were passing by. It just was not looking too good. Camille said, "I can't hold it while it dies!" So she put it down on the sidewalk and it fell over. Face first. Oh, it was just pitiful!. We all about started to cry, but we kept on praying. I asked the Lord again..."Please, Lord, Please...I believe you will do it..these children belong to YOU-this will build their faith."

As we stood there watching, waiting and hoping for a miracle, we noticed its eyes began to observe our brightly colored clothing. It was trying to look up at us. Its eyes become fixed on us and we waited. It fell over again. Its feet were curled and bent up under him and we tried to pull them out. We sat it back up and prayed. It opened its mouth and took a big breath of air and its tongue and face, wings and body began to take normal shape. He even moved his little wings and took a tiny step. He was getting stronger. His feet were grasping the pebbled sidewalk and his eyes looked dark black again. His breathing was steady and all of a sudden he hopped and slightly flew up, up, up and landed right above our front door. He was strong enough to fly and hold himself on the brick and then he decided to fly up into a tree in the front yard.
Of course, we were thanking God and completely rejoicing over what just happened and began to sing and shout and clap and the boys ran around and around clapping with excitement.
Yes, their faith was strengthened and so was mine.

Every time--EVERY SINGLE TIME...E-V-E-R-Y...E-V-E-R-Y time we go through trying situations, God wants us to know we can count on him. He cares for the tiny creature and he cares for us so much more. And more than that, He wants us to wait on Him so He can renew our strength, so He can give us wings as eagles and strength to run this race and not faint. He is a wonderful God and I'm giving Him praise for His wondrous works!!

I hope you have as good a day as I am having and that you experience all God has for you-

"Evening Worship Recital"

2009-03-11T09:06:00.014-05:00

Evening Worship Recital

Cornerstone Revival Center

February 7, 2009-4:00pm

Just before the recital Micaylah and Makenzie take a moment to practice the duet. This was the very first time they had gone over it and they had about 10 minutes to get it in sync. Instant in season and out! What great attitudes they have to work together like this and make such a joyful noise unto the Lord! We are so proud of you both!

Little fingers never cease to amaze me.
So full of desire to play for the Lord.

Dad trying to get rid of those nervous
jitters...a little laughter goes a long way :)

Eloquence at its best, Sister Von de Leigh brings the opening comments for us all as the recital begins.

Just waiting patiently...

Waiting as the recital begins.
seated left to right:
Makenzie Pintaro, Jessica Roberts,
Micaylah Wisener and Brittani Denney.

Miss Brittani Denney played two selections on
piano-Overtaken and Here I am to Worship.
What a lovely performance!

Miss Makenzie Pintaro chose for piano (no pic available) Nothing But the Blood, and for vocals she chose You are Worthy, Sis Von de Leigh, piano accompaniment. Beautiful performance!

This was the duet for both girls. Each young lady wanted to sing and play two selections each. So this would count as one each for both of them. Sis Von do Leigh asked if they could play and sing together and so that is just what they did. Miss Micaylah Wisener accompanied on the piano, as Miss Makenzie Pintaro sang the solo. Their selection was Falling in Love with Jesus. What a beautiful performance they both accomplished together and what a great way to start out their very first recital.

Miss Micaylah Wisener chose to sing as she played piano.
Her selection-Days of Elijah.
This was her first time to play and sing at the same time in a public form.
What a beautiful performance she gave us!

Miss Micaylah Wisener chose for her second vocal selection-When I Speak Your Name.
Sister Von de Leigh piano accompaniment.

Miss Jessica Roberts played-It is You for her choice of song, on the piano. What a lovely rendition!

For our final performance, Sis Von de Leigh chose-He's That Kind of Friend, as she beautifully sang and played piano, from her heart. What a gorgeous voice and skill she displayed for us. And we know it was all to God's glory that she performed.

Thank you Sis Von de Leigh for your commitment to our children and expanding their God-given desire to worship Him in song and music. You are a blessing to us many times over and we love you greatly! Thank you Reverend Jeremey Wilbanks for giving your wife up at the times she has faithfully taught our children. It has not gone unnoticed. Thank you Pastor and Sister Wilbanks for encouraging music lessons to be taught and for bringing your vision to us as we see you live, day in and day out. We are a privileged people to be here with you.

Staying on Track

2009-03-02T22:33:00.010-06:00

Here is a neat little poster we keep up in our school area.

After organizing, packing, moving, then unpacking and getting completely re-organized (well maybe not completely, just yet), we have made our way back into the daily routine of school. Of course, we didn't skip school everyday, but using our time wisely, we put every hour to good use.

Science, Reading, Geography, History, Language Arts, Spelling, Handwriting, Math, Piano, Guitar & Drums, Creative Writing, Health and Safety...Can one young child be expected to learn and do all of these subjects on a daily basis? Probably not. I don't think I know an adult that would/could complete all this in one day, let alone a child & his Mama. I admit, we do not expect ours to complete hours of work on all these subjects everyday. They are all under 12 years of age. 7, 9 & 11 are the ages of the children we are schooling now. Their 3 older siblings have graduated. One of which continues to live at home, working a full-time job, ministering in our local church and going back to college.

Children will have many opportunities to expound on their academic interests, as they grow into young adults. I know, I may sound like ACADEMICS are secondary. If that is true, then they are secondary to this....The Word of God. God's Word is what stands above all else.

Within the midst of the busy-ness of our life, I can truly say, that what has kept us going and going strong, has been taking the time to read the Word, learn the Word and study the Word. We may not get a college degree by the time we are 15,(ha-ha!) but we do accomplish what is the most important thing. How can we hide God's Word in our hearts, so that we might not sin against Him, if we don't make the effort to get into His Word so that it can get into our hearts?

I'm so thankful we have our Bibles and the Freedom to learn and study. This is what we are teaching our children. When they learn what God says about Science or History or Grammar or Spelling and how He created that to be, they become so interested in that subject that they want to learn more about it.

I basically have the easiest job. I just lay it out for them and 'away they go'. I love that. It's that way with all subjects. Yes, every single subject is just that easy. It's all in the Bible and yes, I do have the best job of all.

"The benefits are out of this world!!"

School's back in: work-work-work

2009-01-09T16:33:00.006-06:00

School is back in full swing! Spelling tests, math to do, reading assignments and English too. What is a kid to do? Just get right in there and 'git-r-done!' We are back on our early to rise schedule.

Hoping your school days are going well and that you are enjoying the many facets of being with your children. Here is a poem we read this week. It's short, but sweet and very relevent.
It's titled "Don't Give Up"

If you've tried and have not won, never stop for crying;
All that's great and good is done, just by patient trying.

Though young birds in flying, fall, still their wings grow stronger;
And the next time they can keep up a little longer.

Though the sturdy oak has known many a blast that bowed her;
She has risen again and grown, loftier and prouder.

If by easy work you beat, who the more will prize you?
Gaining victory from defeat, that's the test that tries you!

----Phoebe Cary

Have great days, restful nights and remember: The Lord's mercies are new every day!

Yea!! School's Officially Out For Us!

2008-12-17T21:58:00.003-06:00

We really did it! We officially finished school T-O-D-A-Y! We don't have to do any until NEXT YEAR...Yippee! Congratulations kids! You did it!

How 'bout that for an easy and quick post? Hee-Hee :)

Here's what I mean...

2008-12-15T12:05:00.005-06:00

Every day between now and Christmas, the children will get to open a little present from their Daddy and I. We have placed a 'little something' in 48 tiny, colorful boxes. They will each have one for the **12 Days of Christmas**. There may be a Bible scripture, a note from Mom or Dad, an IOU (eg: "I will take you to the ice cream shop"), or a fun size piece of candy. I stacked the cute packages (2"x2") on my 3-tiered server. They can choose any one they may want.After that, we open a little window on our scenic advent calendar. Each day builds up to the birth of Jesus with a note or verse printed on the numbered, little window.

In the meantime, they are finishing up their studies and working diligently on quizzing. But this puts a little extra fun into the air and adds to the excitement for them.

Almost done!

2008-12-14T23:27:00.003-06:00

The phrase all the kids want to hear right now! SCHOOL'S OUT!!
We are counting down the days until we are on Christmas break. We have scheduled our last day to be this Friday, but they are working so hard to meet "MY" deadlines for their goals, that if they get done by Wednesday, I said, "You can be done with school until next year!!" They couldn't believe it. "Yep", I said. "Next year!" They are working so hard to meet that goal. It will be more like a reward and then we can get down to the 'real' business at hand. Wrapping some presents. Oh, they won't be the usual kind this year. You'll want to stop by again soon to see what I mean. Their Daddy and I have a special something for them.
Gotta go for now. Much Love~~Kimi

December Photo Project

2008-12-11T16:10:00.003-06:00

Ok, so I know all of you are so busy and getting ready for your special way to celebrate our Savior's birth, but I thought I would share this with you. One of my favorite bloggin' pals is doing a December Photo Project and I was wanting all of you to participate.
All you have to do is use a photo of some sort to share what Christmas means to you. Every day. (If I miss a day I will place two pics on the next day. Hee Hee!) I have already started it today. It is on my family blog.
It might be a good excuse to get those of us who aren't bloggin' so frequently, back at it.
Love you guys!! Kimi

My poor, little pc

2008-12-10T16:08:00.002-06:00

Oh my!! It has been too long that I have posted on my blogs. I do apologize to my blogger pals for not being able to keep up with it. My poor little pc has been on the brink, as some of you may know. If I were to post all that has been going on here, my little pc would probably have a melt-down. So I will leave this little note for you to let you know I am thinking of you and hoping to visit your blogs and see how much you have to share.
Hoping to share some news with you soon. Much love!! Kimi
whew!! I'm glad to get that off my mind--hee hee! lol!!

2008-10-30T00:53:00.004-05:00

We have been so busy with school that I've hardly turned my computer on. I have gone days without checking my email, taking phone calls or returning them or even going anywhere that I didn't absolutely need to. I didn't really even think about it either.

Sometimes we can get so bogged down with this kind of stuff that we forget to take the time we need to do what is important. I didn't 'purpose' to take a break from stuff, but I'm glad that my heavenly father gave me a renewed desire to take the time to see what is most important.

You know some stuff IS important..
but how important IS it?

When measured against ETERNITY, it doesn't even make up a 'VAPOR'. I can truly say that I am learning to place the importance of things (eg: situations, stuff etc) against that of eternity. I ask myself, "How will this (whatever it may be) compare to that of ETERNITY?
The answer is always the same, "It doesn't."

A Great Day With the Best of Friends!

2008-10-03T23:36:00.015-05:00

Now I finally get to post about when Tammy and her sweet family came to visit us here in Alabama!! Yeah!!!

We had got up one morning and decided to take a day trip and go on a pic-nic. We fixed some lunch and snacks and packed a cooler full of goodies and lots of drinks. We weren't sure where we would go so we thought we might try the Cathedral Caverns. When we drove over there, we got all the way down to the gate and there was a sign..."CLOSED FOR MEMORIAL SERVICE". Well, we were disappointed and then we were sad for there loss. So we decided to try somewhere else. If you've ever been to Cathedral Caverns, you know it's not right around the corner...we were out in the slap middle of nowhere!! OK!! So since we had to drive into the park and then to the gate we actually took this pic. How funny! Then we didn't even go. Ha-Ha! I liked the photo so here it is! On the way to somewhere else, we passed this beautiful scenic drive. We stopped and got out and then snapped this shot. It was across from the DAR school. In case you didn't know what DAR stands for, it is the Daughters of the American Revolution. It's very important. I actually just found that out recently and thought you would really like to know also. :) I think I learned about it a long time ago, but forgot about it. (I'm not being sarcastic, really) So--we thought about where to go for our pic-nic. Think-Think-Think-says Pooh. Ok, we decided to go over to Buck's Pocket State Park. It is a drive, but we will have fun on the way and the scenery is great! We get all the way over there and then decide to take another turn. I just love a good adventure! We go left instead of right. "Nope! I've never been this way", I tell Tammy. It says High Falls State Park. Hey that sounds like it might be fun. "How far down do we go?" She asks. "I'm not sure. If it is too far, we'll just turn around and come back." So we try it. It wasn't too far at all. And when we got there guess what happened?

You guessed it! There was the Sherrif. Well, I got out of the truck and went inside to find out what we should do. When I opened the door to go into the little office, he says, "Well, did you bring me LUNCH?" I said, "Absolutely! We have a whole cooler full of lunch! You are welcome to join us." He said, "No, I'm just kiddin'" Then he said, 'Let me see who all you got with you." After he saw all our kids he offered to take us [all] for a ride in his Sherrif's car. The kids all sat in the back and Tammy and I rode in the front with the sherrif. That was sooo cool. He even turned on the sireeeen for us and all the other lights too. Here is a photo of Officer Mitchell. He wanted to take one with the kids.

ON TO THE FALLS!!
Here are the kids sitting in the falls. They really are right on the edge and of course, we made sure they were safe. There was a ledge and some rock below...it was breathtaking and the cool water was flowing over the huge wall of rock and fell into the gorgeous pool below.

This is the creek from the other side. The kids were sitting down toward the bottom left side of this photo.
Let's get our shoes off so they won't get wet. Tippy-toe!
Wonder who is going to go into the water first?? The girls!! Of course! :)

But it didn't take long for the boys to get into the middle of the creek. Looking for anything that moved and poking around with sticks. I was afraid of snakes in the water, but after I looked around, I could see that the rock was solid and there wasn't any way for snakes to hide there. Snakes like to hide near the shore anyway, right!
Here's Holly, Garrett and Austin in the water.
Caleb and MaKenna wading into the deep!

Austin and Garrett are in and out. See the bridge beyond.

Hey there Micaylah. What did you find?
Holly, MaKenna and Micaylah aren't afraid.
Austin, Caleb and Garrett getting into the water. Don't get wet guys. You could walk almost all the way across the creek. It was a flatrock creek and the water level was low at this time of year. "Normally, the water is much deeper", The guard explained. At this point, nobody was wet. I did say wet. Just wait...it does happen.

I just love this pic with the boys standing in the creek and their reflections on the water. Taken quite by accident. They had such a great time together!
We were the only visitors at the park that particular day, except for some boys who were jumping off this huge cliff. Gee-wiz! Right off the very top of the rocks. If you look to the very top-right of this pic, you will see them standing. They were running and absolutely diving, flipping, and summersaulting into the water below. They landed directly into that waterfall and came right up and climbed up and did it again. It was something to see. Really. I don't think I've ever seen anything quite like it, in person.

Ok, let's get dried off and off to our next destination!

Micaylah, Austin, Garrett and Mom down in the hollow. It was kindof neat to crawl down into that place. The kids thought maybe a bear might live in there during the winter. OOooooo--let's get out before he comes.

Tammy and Caleb down in the hollow near the edge of the rocks. I think we saw some paw prints down in there...hurry, let's get out!!

At the High Falls State Park we walked over the gorgeous bridge and into a thicket. Ok, we didn't go into it. There were too many mosquitos--ouch! They attack me!

Here is the view from the bridge we were standing on. It was gorgeous!
We then went over to Buck's Pocket. If you haven't been to High Falls, it is very near Buck's Pocket. It's well worth the drive...bring your lunch and have a pic-nic!
Austin, Micaylah, Caleb and Garrett are looking over the edge of the cliff. It drops down about 275'. Ooooo, don't get too close!

Here we are at the end of our day. We were at the very tip top of the hiking trip. The top of Bucks Pocket actually. Oh, we were so tired and so ready for something to eat. So we went home.
There's more to the trip, but only so much time to post. Enjoy the scenic view and sharing more soon.

Studying the UNITED STATES

2008-09-19T21:40:00.015-05:00

Since June of 2007 we have been studying the
United States of America.

We pick a new state every week or so and learn all we can about it. We draw, write reports and info, paint, read, make models, give speeches and learn all we can about each one. It usually takes about 3-5 days to complete each state. Most of the books shown here are what we have in our own library/resource shelves. We use them very frequently and so it is better to purchase them rather than keep checking them out at the library. Each week as we change the state, we take a trip to our library to return old books and check out new ones that are related to the state we will be studying. Like the Rhode Island book above.

The books below are some more of what we use. One very helpful book I found is called "Simply Stated". It has brief info on every state along with a list of book titles that you can find at most every library around the country.
They even put the listed numbers, so you know where to look for them at the library.
They really made it 'simple'.

Here are the kids working on the state of the week-RHODE ISLAND We have just finished studying the 13 colonies. It came easier to learn about History and the beginning of America as we studied the states that it all began in.
Even if they don't remember EVERY single detail,
it will be familiar ground to them as they learn about it later on. History you know, is mostly learning about facts. Well, if they can build on this at a good pace, they will only be adding info as they get older and begin to learn more facts.
Hopefully, it won't seem overwhelming later on.

This is our bulletin board we use to display the art they have created. It shows the states' flower, tree, info, flag, motto, any famous persons and any other additional items we want to add. We also have our nations' flag over it.This is the sticker map we use to show the states we have already learned about. Every time we finish a state we place a sticker over it. It's just another way for them to 'SEE' what they've accomplished. We think it's cool!This is a page out of the coloring pages book we use.
I copy one for each of them and then they can color it as they choose.
It goes into their notebooks and is what we use to divide each state from the next.

We use a dry erase board for copywork. They copy this information from the board and then place that into their notebooks as well. Most of the time they are the ones looking up the info and if you look closely, you can see where I wrote the 'question' and one of them filled in the answers. Like, admitted to union: then she wrote 1790. Sometimes they will have to give a speech on a famous person from that state or maybe even the industry of that particular state. Garrett is coming along quite well with speeches. I wish I would have been that good when I was his age. Hope you have enjoyed seeing some of what we do in 'school'.

We've Started School

2008-07-31T18:58:00.011-05:00

School in July?? Absolutely!! Our preliminary 1st day was last Mon, July 21.

We've started Bible Study, History, Reading, State Study and a bit of Math. Since we moved one of their tables up to the store, that created a nice little place just for them to sit and play games, read or begin some of their studies. We are only there for a couple of hours at a time. Sometimes they don't even come. Like today, they got to stay at home with their "big sissy" and play out in the yard. They are very adaptable and can work most anywhere. Homeschooling provides such a level of freedom for them. They are not tied to a particular spot or frame of time. And at their young age, freedom of creativity is one of the most important skills they are learning. They are also assisting in the daily routines of the store, which falls into the 'Life Skills' area of learning. By the time our 'Official First Day' rolls around, on August 4th, we will surely have our schedule working for us. Since we have opened the Deli, we will be doing some of our school there. I say some because we will continue to study at home also. We have taken a cabinet up to the store and are stocking it with their art supplies, math manipulatives as well as some games and everyday reading material for the children to work on while I help at the deli. This will make it easier for me and for them. Here is a photo of them helping set up the salad table. They have been doing a super job at this and can almost set it up by themselves. We have all had alot to adapt and adjust to in the last year. Especially, the past several months! I think we are all learning so much through this venture and making the most of it. At this point, do we really have a choice?? We are continuing to pray for God's wisdom in all things.

Thank You for your prayers for us. We couldn't make it without them! Kimi

not the industrial type of learning

2008-07-22T01:03:00.013-05:00

We have been so busy with work on the Deli, that we haven't been posting very much at all. We haven't been doing very much "book work" either. That's not to say that the children haven't been learning though. They are learning a lot at the deli.

Everyday we go and they are helping in so many ways. They greet customers, take out their food, hold the door for them, carry out their orders (to their cars), bus the tables, prepare the to-go bags for call-in orders, vacuum and even help to break down the salad bar too. They carry ice to the table where the salad is kept and refill it as needed. At closing time, they help to empty trash cans, wipe and sanitize every table and chair back thoroughly, check the restrooms (Grant & I clean them good, the restrooms...not the kids. Well, the kids too, when they get a bath I mean...lol), and get the store ready for the next day. There's alot to making a store run smoothly.They are learning to keep a balance on the register and eventually I hope to show them how to ring up the customers. Well, not really ring up the customers, their orders, you know what I mean! We saw some children doing this at a conference we attended last year and they have been eager to do it ever since. Of course we'll help them with it. Ring up the customers, that is. :)They get to bring their books and activities so they are busy with that when they're not busy helping in the store. They like to do their work on the floor. They just spread all their things out and make the biggest, funnest mess. I love it! If any customers ever worried over the mess I would just tell them, "They're learning or reading or something."
I think they are learning so much about 'real life skills' every day. They are learning how to relate to different people and hold a conversation with people of various ages. It's taking some time. We have our moments when they are shy or maybe just tired. Don't we all.

Here is a photo of their little area behind the counters. We brought their table and chairs up to the store for them to use. I think we are going to bring a shelf or two also. Then they can keep their things in a neat, tidy spot. Just for them. I have some more photos to share, but I will post them later. Hopefully, tomorrow. It's late now and I must go! Kimi

What a marvelous thing God has done for me! Just for me!

2008-06-30T16:25:00.003-05:00

It's officially summertime at the Wisener household! Yea!! The children are lovin' it too. No 'real' school for them right now. Or for me either. I like that. But that's not to say that we haven't been extremely busy. We have been so busy here lately with our new venture. The Deli. Every day we have worked together at the store. Our first two weeks have come and gone and have been great.

I haven't had much time to think about school though. We usually have everything planned out by the end of June, for the following year. I must admit, I did alot of work last year in planning for the next three years though. With all the curriculum that I have used for our oldest, I won't have to be purchasing anything at all for the next several years. I am soooo glad about that. It makes it easier when you can work it out that way. For those of you who home school, you know what I mean.

The children have been enjoying fun summer days with some of their friends. Several of my friends from church have offered to keep them during the days for us. That has helped sooo much. Today, Jessica who is Camille's best friend and comes to help out at the deli, decided she would take the kids swimming with her at her house. Now, she is the oldest of 5 and has 3 siblings the same age as mine. How nice was that!!! They of course, loved that idea. Swimming all afternoon?? It gave them a little break from the store and also time to spend with their friends. Thanks Jess!!

I am learning so much myself. In the beginning, I asked my husband NOT to put me out front. Please, please, please....I begged. I really don't want to have to talk to all those people. Now, it's not that I mind talking some, but not every day. You know. Just not every day, all day. Well, I have to tell you...I have found that it's not as hard as I thought it was going to be. I have also found that I really like it...alot. More than I thought that I would. Now every person that comes into the store, I have learned something new from them or about them. And the photos that we have decorated with are such a conversation starter. God just knows what HE'S doing all the time. He knew I could do it and it has really blessed my life in a special way. I have enjoyed sharing conversations with all our customers. I mean sometimes you'll have those who are in a hurry and just need to pick up their orders quickly, but for the most part they are so friendly and kind.

I have to tell you about this one lady...I'll make it brief. There was 4 in her party and they are of the 55+ bunch. I really love older people. They are a plethora of knowledge and advice, you know. Well, they were finished with their lunch and as I went over to ask again (didn't know anything was wrong and what I was stepping into), how everything was, she began to let me 'have it". She told me how it could be better if 'this' or 'that' was different. Little did I know that my husband already helped her through this 'problem'. I offered to comp her meal, but she said, "Oh, no!! I ATE the whole thing! And you won't give me something for free that ATE!" "Ok, that's fine." I said with a smile. I remembered her name and told her I would make sure I remembered it.
Well, several days later, in she walks with her another friend of hers. I said, "WELCOME _________! I'm so glad to see you again." She said, "Uh, you remembered my name." I smiled and said, "Of course, I did-I'm glad you're back." I just know I'm going to win her over and make a friend out of her yet! I thank God for giving me favor with these ladies and for taking away my fear of getting up in front of people.

What a marvelous thing HE has done for me!!

PERSONALITY TESTING: NOW BEING DONE

2008-06-20T23:41:00.007-05:00

Ok, if you're looking to find out what you are or what you think you are, just click on this site below. It only takes about 5 minutes to answer the questions and you might find out you're really a great person or maybe not...ha ha ha!

It's fun anyway and let me know what you find out. I am 55% MELANCHOLY! Dah! Like we all didn't know that already. Now what about this...I am 20% Choleric and 18% Phlegmatic. That is too funny. I can't wait to see how you guys all fare! I guess we could all take this test everyday and the results could possibly be different every time we take it. Inquiring minds want to know.
Kimi

Go HERE to take a personality TEST. How neat to find out what you are.
http://www.oneishy.com/personality/personality_test.php

Definitely Cocoons!

2008-05-29T10:59:00.009-05:00

Since we can see the little spun silkie cocoons in the pavilion, we have deduced that there must be moths inside them. I have done some looking on the i-net and found that moths make smaller silkies than that of the butterflies.

The process is what counts though, right?! Katlyn, Kristy and Micaylah are checking to see where the little creatures are and how they are coming along. Here is a photo of a cocoon where the caterpillar spun it inside the curve of a leaf.

Butterflies or Moths?

2008-05-23T10:59:00.009-05:00

We have been watching our little caterpillars for a few weeks now. They have slowed their crawling down a great deal and many of them have spun little homes. We are thinking they are moths, because it clearly looks like cocoons in their pavilion.

When they were placed into the pavilion, the caterpillars were about 2" long. The cocoons are about 3/4"-1" in length and are made of a very fine, white 'fluffy' substance. It almost looks like cotton. The cocoons are soft and very light.

We have been looking for something to fly around inside and have yet to see anything. It has been raining and maybe that keeps them from flying.

We have been checking on them RAIN or SHINE and remove much of the old leaves and branches, replacing them with fresh ones.

I think we're going to have a 'setting free' day pretty soon. I wonder what we could use this pavilion for next??? The boys are looking for a snake or two. Garrett says a garden snake would be good. They're not poisonous.

A little glimpse into the new store...

2008-05-22T10:31:00.009-05:00

How about this for a start? This is the dining area of our new store. Actually, it's what it looked like BEFORE.
For more info go to our family blog and let us know how we're doing! You can click on the link to the right ~~~~~>>>>>> We'd love to hear from you.

We're Still here

2008-05-21T09:41:00.006-05:00

I haven't been updating my blog here lately...my apologies to you who read it. We have been working on the restaurant and also getting in the last few days of school for the children. We are almost finished with both...YEA!!! The children are excited about summer and having no school to do. Well, I say no school, but we really do some school. It just doesn't seem like it to them. We usually do some sort of unit study. Self directed, of course. It will probably be about 'Birds', 'Trees', the 'Solar System' or maybe 'How to Start Your Own Business'. I'm kind of thinking the latter one will be the new topic for the summer.

Oh, the restaurant is coming along well. We are shooting for our Grand Opening date at the first of June. Isn't that awesome?!?! My husband is busy taking care of lots of details and Savannah is busy helping to get the kitchen ready. She has put in many hours with her Dad and together they have really made a great team. We're so glad she came to help out.

I'm going to try to post some progressive photos of how the 'store' is coming along. You wouldn't believe what it looked like when we started. Eeeeeewwwww!

You know change is good. I like change...I think the winds of change are blowing this way for good.

GO TAKE A HIKE!!!

2008-04-29T16:16:00.014-05:00

Oh, what a great time we all had a few weeks ago!! Our Keepers and Contenders groups got together and took a trip into the gorgeous terrain of Hurricane Creek Park. We met at the entrance and quickly got a few pics and a head count. We ended up having 17 children and 12 BRAVE adults! Whew!! I guess it sounds like alot, but it didn't seem like it. Everyone stuck together and just went right on in.

Everybody brought a 'sack lunch' complete with snacks and drinks. Even the littlest ones carried their own little backpacks.

We began by walking across a little bridge and up and down so many rocks and hills. WELL, mountains. They loved it!! I loved it! Grant led the way with a huge stick that Jordan had brought for him. "You can't go hiking without a stick", Jordan said. The boys had sticks and some of the girls too. We were climbing these huge rocks that were coming out of the mountain, with all kinds of vines, bushes and slimey green vegetation growing all over. We climbed in and out of them and finally we needed a little break. Yes, a little break. We sat under this humongous bolder that had a gigantic cave way back under it. We could all fit inside it. That was really neat. Kinda makes you feel small. It's amazing how God spoke all this into being!!

After a short rest, we decided to head onward. We went on and found lots of beautiful places and all the kids were doing so well. All the moms and dads were doing great too!! This was about 1 1/2 hours into our hike. Everyone was really working up an appetite and so we were looking for a pic-nic spot. Everyone was wanting to go through the "TWILIGHT TUNNEL"Oooooooo...so we made sure we found it. This tunnel was very, very, very narrow. The beginning of it was seemingly fine. As we walked on into it a bit further, it seemed like it was getting narrower and slippery. We were all in a long line. One behind the other and very close to one another. It was growing darker and darker. Pretty soon we couldn't see our hand in front of our face. "Who has a flashlight???" Somebody yelled out. "What am I stepping on?" Another said. "Oh no! It's slimey!" The girls cried out loud. As we were walking, we had to hold on to the rocks on either side of us. They were very slippery too. If you wanted to get out fast you could NOT do it. There was no way to get in front of someone else or even turn around to go back out. You just had to keep going and finish it. It's just better not to think of what you're going through. Just keep moving and you'll see light soon. And pretty soon we could see light ahead. Good ness. We were glad of that. When we got through, we found ourselves on top of this high plain flat rock. "Don't get too close to the edge," Somebody told the kids. Grant had all the kids sitting down and waiting for the ladies and Bro Corey, who was with Adam and Drake. They were staying near the back to make sure no one had fallen or something. We walked a while and then we had to decide which way to go. Soooo.....

We climbed down this unbelievably steep side of the mountain. Did I say STEEP!?!?? What in the world!! How are we going to get all these kids down that thing??? You know what, those kids did great! I am so impressed. Actually, everyone did great. WE all made it down and safe and sound. Now, we were really hungry and there was the pavilion and the waterfall. Finally! You know, nobody had to say "let's eat" twice or even once. We sat by the water and threw rocks into it and ate while we rested.

When we were done feasting, we tidied up and were on our way again. Yea!! Let's go!! We crossed this cute little bridge and I loved it because everyone looked from side to side as they crossed...it was a very narrow bridge, but it wasn't very far from the water. You could have touched the water if you bent down. All the kids looked liked they were loving it as the walked over. I took so many pictures...too many pictures. I just know I'm gonna scrap book--someday soon...right!! You'd think with all this it would be enough. Oh No!! We were only half way. We still had about 1 1/2 miles to go to finish this trek. Everyone was raring to go and so we went on. I just thought that the downhill was something.

We came to a "Y" in the path. Grant was taking the 'low' road. WhatEVER!!! Everyone said, "It's this way, it's this way." We took a vote. Who wants to go this way and who wants to go the L-O-N-G way? It was unanimous...the long way. Yippee!! Woo-Hoo!! Let's do it! So we went on. I don't know if you've ever been hiking, but alot of times as you are walking you may tend to only look down as you are going along. All of a sudden we came upon this overwhelming place. WE all looked straight UP. YIKES! Yep, straight up. Ok, I just wondered, how we were going to get all the kids 'DOWN' before!! Now I'm thinking HOW are we going to get them all up that thing? We didn't have to do it, thankfully, they all climbed up. Everyone of them did it all by themselves. They really did. Even the littlest ones...Tyler, Elijah and Benjamin. You would have been so proud. We all were so proud of them...all of them. I'll admit it though, my heart was really beating by the time we made it to where we were going. And I wasn't quite sure where that was. But I was glad to be there.

We came to a little place and rested for a bit. Everyone was getting tuckered out. It was starting to get hot and we went up this little hill. And there we were. We were back at the entrance deck and boy were we glad about that. We all just sat a while. And breathed. And sat. How nice. There was a breeze blowing and that made it wonderful.

I think we all would like to do it again, but I'm not sure how soon. Maybe next week! Ha!

The Butterfly Pavilion

2008-04-27T22:03:00.014-05:00

After finding about 30 or so caterpillars and keeping them in a fish aquarium for a couple of days, we decided to make something to put them in so we could watch their metamorphosis. I had an idea in my head, so the kids and I set to work finding what ever supplies we could around the garage. We had it all laid out and were just about to start when we thought, "Maybe our neighbors might like to join us." So we went over and asked them.

They were excited to come over."Let's make a butterfly pavilion together," we said. "Yea!", all the children shouted. Christy and I needed a few extra supplies, so her husband, Bob, came over with a few we were looking for. It was a collaborative effort, you know.

Well, Mr. Bob is a builder!! No, really he is! And so, he actually taught the kids how to build this pavilion. He had all the 'tools' necessary to 'make it happen' the easy way. Power drills, power nailer, power saws and this and that. It made the whole process simpler. Especially for the kids, who were watching. Truth be known, it made it simpler for Christy and me. Now I know what you're thinking...I didn't even expect him to do any of the work, much less most of it.

Christy and I did do something...More on that later. You betcha!

Anyway, with all the kids going in every direction and all the hul-la-ba-loo going on in our driveway, we did get the frame of the pavilion up and ready for the screening...this is where the moms come into the picture...hee, hee.

Christy and I began to cut the screen for the covering of the pavilion and staple it to the frame. Oh, you know this was such a major undertaking. (NOT!) We had the easiest part. We just planned earlier to make sure we made the frame the same height as the screen that we purchased. Then we could staple it on.

Bob made a really cool lid too. It fit directly over the top and slips on & off very easily. Then we added some 'FRESH' limbs from the tree. They really like red-tip fotinia (sp?)

Now we are ready for the caterpillars!! WOO-HOO! Here come the kids and here come the caterpillars. Yea! One by one we placed every single caterpillar into its new home. Right away they all began to eat and eat and eat. We watched as they scooted around onto the limbs and leaves and crawled up and down the screen. They must have been checking out their new environment. All of us were just taken with their little ways. It was so interesting to see how they interacted and bumped into each other and then went right around.

We eventually placed them under a tree that was in-between our two yards. It will stay cool there and both families can enjoy the process of their metamorphosis.

I'm thankful to have neighbors that enjoy fun times and that care about their children. It's kind of neat how God places people near to one another and allows a friendship to grow. It's very similar to the metamorphosis that the caterpillars are going through. He's such a cool God! He knows how to meet every need we ever have.

I love that about Him!!

Update on Garrett's Go-Cart

2008-04-23T22:18:00.006-05:00

We are planning to go visit our family in Florida near the end of May. Garrett is so excited! He will get to finish up his go-cart. I actually think my Dad is already finished with it, but we are trying to wait to tell Garrett.

I'm not real sure how we are going to get this thing home. Whewww! Did someone say U-HAUL?!? Not!

I was thinking, when we get it home that means he will get to drive it. YIKES!! What am I doing? Ok, maybe it doesn't seem like much to you, but well, I guess it'll be ok. ONLY if "I" get to drive it FIRST!! YIPPEE!! OK, I had one when I was little and it was soooo much fun and my brother & I used to race. One time when we were racing we started doing donuts around and around and I flipped my go-cart over. I went flying through the air and skidded up my everything and didn't even care. He wasn't going to beat me!! Well, he did that time.

I think kids need to have lots of fun experiences to look back on and have to share with their families one day, don't you.

What kinds of fun things did you do when you were little??? OOOoooo...inquiring minds want to know.

OOOoooo....fuzzy-wuzzy-caterpillars!!!

2008-04-23T13:33:00.006-05:00

Ok! Here we go!! We are going to raise some butterflies! Yea! We have been collecting caterpillars the last few days. We have about 25-30. They are really fuzzy and crawl fast. We are going to watch them form their chrysalis and then come out of them.

We have them in a clear aquarium right now. I found some screen netting this morning for $1 a roll and we have some pieces of scrap wood around here somewhere. The kids are going to go look for it. We are going to make a butterfly pavilion this afternoon. They are all excited and want to help. We will need to place many branches inside the pavilion so the caterpillars can climb up and spin their little homes in.
We already have one little caterpillar beginning to form a chrysalis. How neat is that!!

If all goes well, I will post more on the progress.

It's almost like scrappin'

2008-04-17T17:45:00.007-05:00

We are having so much fun with this bloggin' stuff! Wow!! It's almost like making a scrap page. I love that. Only thing is...it can be addicting. I like lots of color and creative looks on the page and a friend gave me this site that was so cute...cutestblogontheblock.blogspot.com. OOOooooooo.....go there and find something you might like that reflects you. Just scroll over to my blog list and click on Soo Cute Blog Scenes.

How neat is that?!?! I love it. I can't wait to see what you guys come up with.

Don't forget to email everyone so we can take a look too. You guys inspire me!!

~Kimi

Up and runnin'

2008-04-09T15:35:00.002-05:00

Finally!!
We are back up and running. We haven't been able to get into our blog in a while. Some how we put a block on it and it blocked us out too. They gave me a new pswd and now it's good to go. Thanks Bro Anthony for your help.

"The Making of A Go-Cart"

2008-03-28T20:22:00.010-05:00

I don't know anything our Papa can't make! He has got more talent in his little, pinkie finger tip than almost anyone we know. He is an inventor and can think up some of the most unusual and wonderful things. He makes lots of things.

Every time we go back home to Florida, we stay with my parents (Pat & Sam). The children always enjoy being there (so do I) and have such a fun time with their grandparents. Papa takes them into his 'shop' and shows them all sorts of works-in-progress. He has all kinds of machinery that makes very loud sounds. Metal cutters, wood filers and lathes, grippers and saws and splitters and band saws and gee wiz, I wish I could name some more. It's this huge shop that has plenty of room and stuff in it that he uses to make all kinds of things. It's so neat. Once when I was little he taught me how to work with wood and showed me how to use this humongous saw. It was kind of scary, but he showed me where to hold it safely and not hurt my hand. I actually made these really cute brackets with hearts cut out and I have them holding up a shelf at my scrap desk, right now.
On our last visit, he took time with Austin to make a cool tire swing. Austin was so excited and really helped alot. His Papa let him choose where to put the rope and how to hang it. It was so sweet to see them working together. I love that!

Garrett and his Papa started a very long project. They decided to make a real go-cart...from scratch. Garrett has such big ideas and so does his Papa. They worked on it while we were there and I suspect it won't be finished until we return. My Dad asked me if we had a way to bring it home to Alabama. He will make sure it gets here safely, I am sure.

As they were working, he was teaching Garrett all the in's and out's of all the machinery in his shop. Garrett was soaking it all in. That was so neat. Austin would pop in now and then to see how the progress was coming along.

When we go back in May, the boys will be 'helping' Papa to finish it up. If I know their Papa, he will make sure it is in perfect condition and safe for little boys. I wonder how fast it will go. Maybe it can carry an adult...mmmm...sounds like fun. I can't wait myself.

"RAINY DAY FUN!"

2008-03-26T09:27:00.011-05:00

It began raining early that morning and it was a bit discouraging to have to stay indoors another day. We listened as the rain came down with a louder and louder pounding on the roof over head. Sad little faces looked up at me and beckoned to go outdoors. We sat there and watched as the rain just poured more fiercely than before. "How much longer is it going to rain?" they asked. "You know the earth really needs to be replenished so all the plants will grow big and strong. The rain is in the process of doing that." I said. "You know God has a very special way of caring for the earth." We were already finished with school that morning and had planned to go to the park for a fun afternoon, but our plans changed with the weather. "Wow! Look at that rain coming down!" It was beginning to rain even harder and the wind blew so much that the trees were swaying side to side and leaning.

All of a sudden we noticed that it was flooding across the street at the local schoolyard. It is a huge, open field. There is a large creek-type ditch running through it and you couldn't even see it. It was under water. "Well, NO MORE DROUGHT!" We thought.

Shortly after, we noticed it starting to lighten up and the rain began slowing. "aaaaahhhhhhhhhh!! Let's go get our boots, hats and coats on right now!!!" I yelled. Of course there was not a hesitation. Oh yes, it was still pouring down rain, but the storm had passed and the lightening was gone away with the thunder. It was safe enough. It really was. "Let's go get our feet wet and stomp in the puddles!" I laughed as I told them. We all scurried away getting ready as fast as we could.

We went over, I mean through, the little ditch near the road out front. Stomping as we were going along. We tromped through the water that was over our ankles deep and into the grass that was under water and ran all the way to the large flowing creek-like ditch in the middle of the schoolyard. Water splashing up into our faces and onto our clothes. The rushing water was quick and moving so fast. By now the water had run-off into the little 'creek'. That little 'creek' was actually a couple of feet deep. "Wow! That is such a cool river!" they screamed. We walked along the edge of the 'creek' and we talked about how that water was so powerful. Garrett mentioned how terrible it must have been for the people in Sri Lanka to have withstood the Tsunami when those mighty, powerful waves came rushing in onto the land. We walked around our neighborhood and noticed how the rain had washed everything clean and new. The air smelled fresh. By now the rain was diminished into only a mist and that was just fine. We barely even noticed, although we were soaked. It didn't even matter. We were having so much fun enjoying the outdoors, that being wet didn't seem like anything at all.

It was so neat to see how the Lord provided that rain for our community and the land that day. And right before spring. Knowing how he takes care of the earth in such a perfect way makes me want to shout out loud, "You are such an awesome provider, Lord! My Jehovah Jireh!" Well, sometimes I do shout that, out loud, and I don't even care who hears me. Maybe someone needs to know there is a God who does provide and does hear the faintest prayer that they may pray. You know He provided for us that day. Someone may ask, "How did God provide for you? Your trip was cancelled." Well, the children didn't even mention anything about going to the park and all I heard the rest of the afternoon was how, "We went walking in the rain with Mommy! It was the best time we've ever had!!"

What a time in Sunday School

2008-03-25T22:21:00.026-05:00

What a very special time we are having in our Sunday School classes. It has been so wonderful to see the children moved by the Spirit of God. They have been so sensitive to what is being taught and are drawn closer to the Lord! I count it a privilege to teach these young children and really feel like I am the one learning from them.

They come to God's throne with such precious faith believing that what they petition will certainly happen. NOW!! And it usually does!

They have a trust that we all could adopt as our own. And isn't that what the Bible says about faith. Faith as a little child. Children just seem to believe 'easily'.

Children look for the good in others. They take time to see it.
Children love you, for just being you. Love has no limit.
Children hope for the best and know it's coming. They will tell you.
Children give without expecting something back. They are unselfish. (Except when their brother or sister took it!)
Children will never tell on you(on purpose anyway). Look at all the abuse in our world.

Children can withstand and endure many things...except hypocrisy. This is the one thing they can not tolerate. If we remember anything at all, we must remember to be real. Being real speaks volumes to children. (Well, it speaks volumes to adults too.) It's amazing to me to see the way a child will respond if we will just be ourselves and be real. They love it!! They want to grow up and be just that way one day. Real!!

Many Years of Friendship

2008-03-10T15:21:00.024-05:00

Many years ago, almost 17 now, the Lord brought me (personally) into his marvelous light. About a year before, he gave me this wonderful friend! When God does anything, I mean anything, He does it right!! I'm so thankful for my very, bestestest friend, Tammy. aka: Tamiopia!!

Years later, I moved out of state. Although, we were separated by many miles, we were not separated in our hearts. We have both taken many trips to visit one another and more phone conversations than either of us could possibly remember. Every single one of them has only added to the treasure of the friendship we share. We both have children now and are watching them grow up in the fear and admonition of the Lord. He's been good to us, you know. There is such a story here, it might take more space than is available. I may publish it later.

She and I both have homeschooled our children for many years. About 25-26 yrs combined. Whew!!! Last month we (the children and I) took a trip to Florida to visit with them. What an awesome time we had. We decided it would be a perfect time to learn about that state, so we went to a gorgeous lighthouse on the east coast at Ponce Inlet, Fl and took a tour for a couple of hours.

Going up into the lighthouse. Then on top and the view from the very top. Spectacular!! Then over to the ocean we went. The Atlantic Intercoastal Waterway is simply beautiful!! You can see the ocean over to the left. We drove across and went for a walk on the soft sand. I love to feel the sand in between my toes. Can you figure out who's toes are who's??

Later that week we went to a beautiful, crystal clear river named Blue Springs and took a history 'tour'. We went looking for manatee, which are large mammals found in all coastal waters in Florida. They weigh about 1,000-1,200 pounds. We actually saw two while we were there. If you look about the middle of the photo below, you can view it through the water. The other one is behind the moss and we couldn't see it very well. They come to the top every 10-20 minutes to get air, so we waited and waited and waited. Finally, we got this photo.

We also went to an old sugar mill that used to be in working order over 100 years ago. It is now a restaurant. You can make your own pancakes right at your table. It's on the water and there's even a huge water wheel. It's gorgeous.

The children had a great time, but Tammy and I were probably the ones who really enjoyed it the most. We got to be together with our children and watch them play and interact. How fun was that! It always ends much too soon and we have to go. But we'll be back again in May.

Tammy's family includes her very sweet husband Mark, Holly (14), MaKenna (12), Caleb (8) and Maggie(a little spaniel mix puppy), and Callie(15 yr old pretty kitty)

Honor

2008-02-11T23:54:00.002-06:00

I want to take a moment and give honor to my family. My husband and I are so thankful for each one of our children. They each possess qualities that only they can give and share.

One of our daughters lives in Kansas with her husband and one of our sons works out of state. We were all together a week & 1/2 ago and had such a wonderful time. As always, it is too short and seems to go by so quickly. We look forward to being together again soon. May the Lord Bless Thee and Keep Thee and Make his face shine upon Thee and Give Thee Peace. WE trust these children to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! They truly belong to him, don't they? We only have them on loan for a short time, to train them in the fear and admonition of LORD. We know they deserve nothing less than the very best WE can give them. And that is to instruct them in the way of righteousness, DAILY. We truly desire to fulfill this calling and do our very best to lead and guide them. At times, we may fail, but we get back up and start again. Some few times we may succeed. It is a daily walk. A daily flow of relationship. A giving and sharing of ourselves with them. A pouring out of our hearts into theirs. And as we pour out ourselves into them, we find we are never empty. It is this way with all "Giving" we do. God always continues to fill our hearts to overflowing and overflowing. He's just that kind of friend. And in honoring my family, I want to give Honor to God. My very best Friend.

"Simplified, Through A Child's Eyes"

2008-02-11T23:09:00.002-06:00

At our last Keeper and Contender Meeting we had such fun! Everyone of these children have such talent.

The Contenders for the Faith boys learned about airplanes and how they fly. They each built 2 paper airplanes and also got to take a 3rd one home. Gee whiz, the 3rd one was so awesome!! A few days before the meeting Grant and I and some of our children decided to make an example of the planes for the boys to see at the group meeting. The first 2 were so easy. Just a minute or so to fold together.
Then our oldest son, (23), decided he would help his Dad and start on the 3rd plane. He seemed to be moving a little slow, so our oldest daughter (20) started to help. She was moving a bit slow also. What was taking so long. It's just a plane. A paper airplane. Then her friend said, "Oh, let me try."Working, working and working... Then Dad got to working on his plane and I decided to give it a shot myself.
Here we all were, working on our own paper airplanes. None of us getting past step #12 or so. Okay, there are 36 steps in building this thing. 36!! "What is that fold, right there?" "I don't know." "I think it goes like this." "No, no it goes the other way." I said, "Let's go look at the video on that site." "OK." they all agreed.
After watching it (at least 3 times) we think we've got it. Watch it a moment, then PAUSE. WATCH, THEN PAUSE. WATCH, THEN PAUSE. WATCH, THEN PAUSE!! WATCH, THEN PAUSE. We go back and try it again and again. It's been about 2 hours now. The daughter's friend has long left for home and we are all still working away. Fingers slightly bleeding and hands throbbing with major aches. LOL... Ha, ha, hahahaha!! All the while our 3 smaller children 6, 8, & 10 are standing by, watching carefully. "Can we try??" they plead. By all means, go for it. They take paper in hand, each one of them. "Oh, it folds like this," one said. We all stop and look at each other with astonished faces. "Then you take this side and bend it toward the left and then the right," and so on and so on he went. How nice! How nice!! HOW NICE!!! Moments later we had planes flying everywhere.
How funny was that!! I suppose it was kindof late to be attempting this sort of thing, but we are parents/adults and isn't that what usually happens. We can make things so complicated. If we would just look at things with childlike faith, it would simplify much of what we deal with in our lives.
I can't tell you the many times I have learned from children. And not just my own. If we just stand back and observe a while, how much we can learn. Jesus wants us to have that kind of faith. As a little child. He knew what it would take to make it. I'm glad he's still teaching me.

Sister Aday-A Beloved Saint of God

2008-01-23T22:14:00.002-06:00

What a great time we had in December when we went Christmas Caroling. The Keepers & Contenders Group had been learning about something very important...how blessed we are to have relationships with those who were born in a different era than we were. Here we are with a wonderful saint of God: Sis Elsie Aday (top photo, in the center). She has been a pillar to us all and we were priviledged to sing with her in her home just before Christmas.

The Keepers/Contenders are simply a group of parents and children that meet, once per month, and together we learn with our children, the importance of various and diverse artisan hand skills. We enjoy many of the 'olden-day' activities such as soap & candle making, woodworking & wood burning as well as knot tying, tree and bird studies, working with electricity, sewing & embroidery, crafting, computer skills, home-keeping (girls) and home-care (boys) in addition to the importance of serving God and his people to become all we can be. This group fosters a godly, masculine boyhood and a godly, feminine girlhood in an environment where individuality can shine and be awarded openly and each child can whole-heartedly work toward a predetermined goal and attain it! It is open to all families in our area and if you'd like more information regarding this group, send an email to us. (see link above) We'd like to hear from you and look forward to a super time this year!!

Mountain Top View

2008-01-18T09:31:00.003-06:00

Being together and spending time out of doors is always something we enjoy. Taking hikes into the mountains of our beautiful state has been a regular request from our little ones. The more to see and do, the better!!