I Really Want This!

My black purse is having issues - snap is tearing out of the leather, an inside pocket is coming undone, plus it's just too dark for summer fun! Lo & behold, there is a contest over at Pinks & Blues Blog for an adorable D&B totally cool, fun, summer purse! I have a better chance of winning this than the lottery - especially since I don't buy lottery tickets. LOL! There is also a half ounce bottle of Dream Angels Heavenly Eau de Parfum purse spray from Victoria’s Secret. Since I don't even own perfume that hasn't changed scent due to age, that would be quite the bonus!

Tales From the Scales - Week #3

I've dropped the 1/2 pound gain from last week - yeah! My biggest challenge is backing off the Dr. Pepper that I'm so incredibly addicted to. But with sleep issues the past week, the less caffeine, the better. No, that doesn't mean I'll give up my morning chai, but that's a LONG ways from bedtime, so I'm not too worried about that. The good thing about limiting the DP is that I'll drink more water (usually) which is always a big help.

So the total now is down 2 1/2 pounds. :D

Miniatures in Clay

When I first began homeschooling my oldest son (fall 2005, he was just 12), we did a KONOS unit on Pottery and Sculpture which is a part of the HONOR character trait. One of the activities was for him to create his own sculpture. I purchased some Sculpey III for him and he was off and running. Little did I know that this would likely turn into a lifelong hobby and possibly more.

Yes, that's a ruler behind the dragon, he's just under 1" tall.

This is one of his recent creations. The variety of what he designs is pretty incredible. He's made adorable little bunnies, gnomes, elves, and bears. He's made wizards and dragons. After watching Flushed Away, he created slugs and Le Frog. After watching Wallace & Gromit in Curse of the Wererabbit, he made numerous bunnies. There is also furniture, baskets of eggs, a bowl of pasta, a carrot (minus a bite - you can see the teeth marks), a snowman, mice, even a tic-tac-toe game.













This is a statue he created of George Washington for a Drive Thru History America project. The color may seem odd, but it's actually just his scrap clay. He didn't even bake this one, so after it was shown at class, he just destroyed it and played with the clay.

Last spring, we created a stop-motion film short using a mammoth, a seal, and a penguin that he had created. They weren't yet baked so there was some flexibility for the video. We had such a blast doing that. He wants to do more and it should be a little easier now that I have a digital camera.








One of his earliest creations was a sweet little girl bear in a lavender outfit with a little sign hanging around her neck which reads, "To the greatest mom and teacher." He set it on top of my computer monitor for me to find. Definitely one of those precious moments forever imprinted upon my heart.











One of the things that amazes me about his sculptures is how little they are. This sheep is about 1/2". This son has always had a penchant for teeny, tiny things. He's getting quite tall at 13, but he's lean and flexible and can fold himself into the space of a toddler. So I suppose it's only natural that he creates in miniature.

I Made Them

Back in March, Barb at A Chelsea Morning shared the most adorable burp cloths that she made. Being that she is so fabulous about sharing detailed instructions, complete with excllent pictures, for her cooking and crafting creations, I was able to replicate these for my friend & her husband who adopted a beautiful baby girl.

These fairies were just adorable!



I wouldn't ever have thought to package them this way, but Barb, you are brilliant!



And here's the final product with a tag I created. The paper on the tag was perfect, because the words said "sweet" and "delight."

Everyone oohed and aahed over them at the shower. Thank you SO much, Barb! You're a sweetheart.

A Little Meme

Deena tagged me for a tiny little meme. It goes like this:

1. Grab the book closest to you
2. Open it to page 161
3. Find the fifth full sentence
4. Post the text of the sentence to your blog
5. Don't search around for the coolest book you have, use the one that is really next to you.
6. Tag five people to do this meme.

So the 5th full sentence on page 161 of my book is:

"I mean, it seems glamorous, all the buying trips and window decorating, but it's hard work."

Bet you'd like to know what book it's from, eh? Or maybe not. Anyway, it's Club Sandwich by Lisa Samson, since I just walked out to the computer with it in my hand. Otherwise, you'd have been presented with:

"Throughout the day I have had a nagging sense of being out of step, isolated; the ordinary business around the farm only serves to heighten this."

O Come Ye Back to Ireland by Niall Williams & Christine Breen.

They're both pretty interesting statements. It would be kind of fun to build a small story around one of those sentences. Hmmm . . . might have to save that for future refence for writing for the boys. Or maybe a meme.

So, now I'm to tag someone else. Well, how about Rachelle, Barb, Gina, Sprittibee, and Robin.

Friday Miscellany

Blogging on the laptop is a little on the slow side, so I've been waiting for the return of the computer, thus I've posted just about nothing lately. Our tech friend said that it will come home today. I sure hope so. I seem to be lacking in blogging thoughts anyway - maybe it's related to not having my computer. It probably doesn't help that sleep has been avoiding me like the plague the past couple of nights - my brain is a bit less than sharp (I guess that makes it obtuse!).

I can't even comment on things God is doing in my life . . . not that He isn't at work, but lack of sleep has a domino effect - don't get up on time, don't have quiet time, don't talk with God so much, etc. Not a place I like to be, but I have to remember that this will pass. Fortunately He is still active in my life, even when I don't see it or feel it. I am ever so grateful that He doesn't depend upon me and all my weird little quirks in life! He is always consistent, faithful, and gracious. Hallelujah!

I finished Meredith Efken's second SAHM book - @ Home for the Holidays. I know I still owe a review for the first book - SAHM I Am (among others). Here's my dilemma - I neve know how much to say in a review. I need to read some reviews by the other Spring Reading Thing participants so I have a better idea. Right now, I'm reading Club Sandwich by Lisa Samson. I'm only through 3-4 chapters, but am enjoying this - my first book by her. I've also finished 2 of the 3 Ireland books, O Come Ye Back to Ireland and When Summer's in the Meadow. Both are by Niall Williams and Christine Breen. Maybe this weekend, I can get reviews written on all the books I've read for the SRT. That would be an accomplishment! Hubby's working tomorrow, so it would be a good opportunity.

My mom and sister are coming over this afternoon for some Scrabble time (SSD - S*per Scr*bble D*luxe). We've turned "scrabble" into a verb these days. Mom will call and ask, "Do you want to scrabble this afternoon?" Ha!

Guess I'd better go take care of bill-paying since hubby got paid. Then I told the boys I'd take them to get a new pack of Pirates today (not because of the movie - just happens that it came out on pay day).

Oh, I got my free book a couple of days ago! It's Mocha on the Mount by Sandra Glahn. I'm really excited to begin using it for my morning quiet time! Katrina over at Callapidder Days had great things to say about Sandra's Coffee Cup series.

Well, I'd better get going - at least I linked stuff in my post today rather than refer everyone to the sidebar or doing their own internet search. Hopefully the links all work okay.

Wishing you all a blessed Friday and Memorial weekend!

Bad Computer, etc.

Well, my computer is being very bad! In fact, it went over to the principal's house today (our techie friend).

So, this will be a quick update from my Mom's house.

Tales from the Scales - I think I'm up a half pound. No worries, this is about lifelong changes, not just one week.

I just read the most recent updates at Especially Heather (see link on lower right, I'm taking the lazy way out). What a tremendous blessing to see how God's working in her life.

I'm anxious to read Sprittibee's homeschool planning post (yes, link on the lower right side again) as I want to do a better job of planning for next year. We will be doing school on a miminal basis over the summer. I'll post more on that later.

It seems like there was something else, but I've lost it. Hubby is going to bring home the laptop, so I'll have some computer/internet access still. My big bad computer is supposed to come home with a much better attitude tomorrow.

Oh, S*per Scr*bble Deluxe is loads of fun, but it takes much longer to play a game! Mom & I played last week and it felt like it took 3 hours for one game (we usually do a game in 20-40 minutes). I think it was around 1 hour and 20 minutes in reality. It's pretty wild to play for nearly an hour and still have loads of empty space on the board, plus lots of tiles in the bag. But we still had a good time.

Guess I'd better head home - the natives just called and I think things are getting out of hand. I don't really want to get home and find blood.

It's HERE!

Yes, it's true, for all of you Scr*bble junkies out there, "they" have finally done it! There now exists (insert drumroll here):

SUPER SCR*BBLE DELUXE

Woo Hoo!!! Aren't you just jumping off the edge of your seats, dying to know where to get your own game?!?

Well, I am proud to say that I received it for my birthday yesterday! Actually, my sister and her family got the Super Scr*bble part and my parents got the Deluxe part. Ha! Ha! It made for a great joke last night when I was opening the loot, er, gifts.

First I had to open the package from my sister and her family. It was a really cute write on - wipe off mini Scr*bble board with scrambled words on it (see lower part of picture on the left). I got the "super" easily, but "Scr*bble" temporarily eluded me, as some of those letters can be found in "St*rbucks," and that's the direction my brain was headed. Probably because my sister works for St*rbucks. Once I moved on from thoughts of free iced chai, I was able to put Super Scr*bble together! Awesome!

Next, I unrolled a scroll of paper (see picture above left) with the following:

For You - Deluxe

Birthday

Blessings

love,

Dad & Mom

The word "DELUXE" was underlined. Well, I couldn't for the life of me figure this one out. The boys are hollering out Super Scr*bble Deluxe. Only I don't really get it, because I'd only seen Super Scr*bble, but not a deluxe version at the store. It's hard to guess something that you don't know exists. But it's true - there really is a

SUPER SCR*BBLE DELUXE!!

Okay, now you get to see a picture of the board (I know, you're probably bored to tears by now - unless you're Barb over at A Chelsea Morning, my Mom, or my friends, Nan & Steve, because I know they're all Scr*bble junkies!)

The light gray part of the board (center) is the size and layout of an original Scr*bble board. The dark gray around the outside encompasses the additional squares - including more bonus score spaces and all new & exciting QUADRUPLE LETTER & WORD SCORE spaces!


And for the last picture, the very first word ever played on this lovely, new board. Although it's not terribly exciting, it still was a first. It was played by my sister - my letters were very pathetic and "ogre" would've been my best play. Sigh.

No, I wasn't standing on my head to take the picture, although that would've been quite a feat (or a head?). Actually, we attached the board to the ceiling . . yeah, that's it! I thought turning the camera upside down made sense so the word would be right side up. But it's kind of funny because now the word is logical, but the board isn't. But the word is linear and linear. Sorry, I'm getting loopy now. I'd better stop before I tread into strange and unusual territory (for you, probably not for me).

Dress Me Up & Call Me Stupid

Okay, last night I did one of those things that makes me stop and say, "What is WRONG with me?!?"

I had a BOGO coupon for a DQ Blizzard. It came in honor of my birthday. I really do like cookie dough blizzards - a LOT! When you click on a DQ coupon, you ONLY have that opportunity to print. If you close that window before printing or the printer wacks out, it cannot be opened again. You get a message that in essence says you've already used this. (side note: it does say you can contact them if there are technical difficulties, but they ignore you, so that's pretty worthless!)

So here I am last night, trying to print the coupon. Only my printer and computer have not been communicating very well these days (maybe the computer is from Saturn and the printer from Pluto?!? Or not, since "they" say Pluto is not a planet any longer). In fact, sometimes my documents won't print at ALL. Last night falls into the category of "sometimes."

I try everything I can think of - turning it off, letting it rest a bit, and turning it back on. I tried the "troubleshooter" on the computer. I tried to delete it from my print queue and do it again. I tried to copy the entire coupon (ha! ha!) into a Word doc and print it from there. No such luck. I had to shut the computer OFF! Yes, that means the window gets closed and I will NEVER EVER be able to open the coupon again - it's gone FOREVER!!!!

At this point, I look at the time and realize that I have just WASTED 45-50 minutes over a STUPID coupon worth approximately $3.00 - that's THREE DOLLARS!!!!! Is that truly how little my time and life are worth?!?! Am I really SO obsessed over a free blizzard?!? Sheesh!

I just hope I learned something from this . . . I'll let you know if I did and what it is!

Oh, in an ironic twist, when I turned the printer back on this morning, it happily spit the coupon out of its queue - so I have it anyway (insert sheepish grin here).

Ha! Ha! Happy Birthday to me! Hopefully I'm not really getting stupider as I get older.

Tales From the Scales - Week #1

Well, here I am - Week 1, and I'm DOWN (yes, that's down), two and a half pounds!! WOO HOO!! Great way to start the day!

8 Random Things

Robin tagged me for an 8 Random Things meme. So, let's see how utterly random I can be today (shouldn't be too difficult!).





1. The night my husband proposed to me, I thought he was going to break up. Boy, was I happily surprised!

2. When I was a teenager, my parents and sister were saved, but I wasn't. There were occasions upon which I came home and they were gone and I was pretty sure they'd been raptured.

3. Along the lines of Robin's #1, I LOVE Dr. Pepper - NOT the diet stuff, though.

4. I am over the top when it comes to taking pictures. It was bad enough when I used film, but with digital, I can really take this obsession to a new level.

5. I'm extremely fickle about my hair which is why I don't wear it short much or for very long - I get tired of how it looks and want something different, most all the time.

6. I once broke my foot while walking - on a flat floor with flat shoes and no valid explanation.

7. I'm a Scrabble junkie! I play with my mom usually once a week or more and with my sister when the opportunity arises.

8. I don't mind washing the laundry, drying the laundry, or folding the laundry, but I am TERRIBLE about putting it away.


Oh, I'm supposed to tag 8 others to do this. What if I don't really know that many bloggers? Oh well, maybe they'll play anyway.

Sprittibee
Ward & June
Junk in the Trunk - oh no, I was catching up at Deena's place and she's already been tagged - twice! Phooey!
Raise the Cup
Dandelion Momma

No there aren't 8 - as I'm perusing the blogs I read, many of you have already particpated, so this is it. But if you're here reading and haven't gotten to play, join in and leave me a comment. :D

P.S. - I guess if I'm going to list people, I should actually TAG them! LOL!! Although Gina read my mind already. Thank you, Gina!

I Won a Book!

What a cool thing to log into email and find a message stating that I've won a book! Over at Callapidder Days, Katrina has been hosting Books Galore giveaways throughout the Spring Reading Thing.

I won a copy of Mocha on the Mount by Sandra Glahn from her Coffee Cup Bible Series. Here is a synopsis:

"Imagine yourself having coffee with Jesus. What would you ask Him? What might He ask you? This study considers Jesus' words in the Sermon on the Mount and explores how Jesus set the bar so high that we see the key to entering the kingdom of heaven: realizing our deep need for grace and for someone else's righteousness to be credited to our account."

I am SO excited! There are four books in this series and they come highly recommended by Katrina and sound very interesting.

May Day Weight Loss Challenge

This is THE day - the May Day Weight Loss Challenge begins over at Tales from the Scales. This challenge will run from May 8th to September 8th and is open to anyone - bloggers and non-bloggers. So if you'd like to join in, click the button or the link above.

Meanwhile, back here on the bunny trail, I'll be posting my LOSSES (or gains) each week. The idea being that this will provide some much-needed accountability. I'm also supposed to share a little about my weight history, so this is the point at which you can get your nice, cold (or hot) beverage and settle in for some reading, or just find something more interesting to do, like trim your split ends, one at a time, or maybe wax the driveway.

Prior to getting married, I think the weight stayed away from me because I danced - a lot! Naturally, aftger getting married, going out to bars and dancing with other guys (hubby doesn't dance) was completely inappropriate (side note: this took place before I came to know Jesus!). Since my one and only method of exercise was gone, excess weight started following me around and clinging onto my hips, thighs, and other sundry areas.

Over the subsequent years, I tried a few plans but mostly Weight Watchers on and off. WW really is awesome - WHEN I follow it.

I did well with my first pregnancy because I had to carefully monitor what I ate due to borderline gestational diabetes. In fact, at my 6-week post-delivery check up, I weighed 30 pounds less than before I got pregnant! I didn't manage so well with the second pregnancy and have since added and shifted assorted poundage (kids are now 13 1/2 and 12).

At this point, I'm pretty close to my highest weight - ugh! I have been going to Curves which has helped my energy level. Now that it's spring, I always have that hankering to get in better shape for the summer. That, and a hankering for homemade ice cream. LOL!

As it always is with God's amazing timing, today is a beautiful, glorious spring day - following a couple weeks of clouds, fog, rain, and snow. So it's the perfect day to be motivated to begin this challenge. Next Tuesday I'll be posting a LOSS! Either that, or I'll be serving myself a big bowl of crow (baked white meat, no skin, and a salad on the side topped with Bernstein's Lite Northern Italian with Basil & Romano dressing).

Morning Face Challenge

I was over at Seek First His Kingdom and Rachelle participated in a Morning Face Challenge. While it's too late in the day for me to take a "no-makeup, just-got-up, haven't-had-coffee-yet face" shot, I just happen to have one from a few months ago. I'm not exactly sure why I took this picture, other than I found it rather humorous. It also hadn't been that long since I'd purchased a digital camera, so you have to try assorted silly things when you get one (or is that just me?). There was a day that I would NEVER have shared such a picture, but after 40 I started learning (finally!) to not take every little thing so seriously. Life's just too short for that kind of stress. So feel free to join in the challenge and leave me a comment . . . or just laugh at my hair!

This was the one I intended to share. The hair's funnier here:


But then I figured this was more appropriate - no glasses hiding the bags and I'm on the phone!


I especially like the icky yellow tone from pictures in the bathroom! LOL!!

So there you have it - my Morning Face (& hair)!

Update on Heather

I think Heather's response from Saturday says it all, "I am still standing." What a remarkable statement to make - only two days after having a good-sized tumor removed from one's brain! Praise God that she has use of her arms and legs, is getting around, and able to communicate. I'm not sure about speech, but obviously she can type. She also posted yesterday about the type of tumor.

Please continue to pray for Heather, Mark, their kids, their parents, and the medical staff. God is good and He is faithful and I pray that He would be glorified through this.

Mother's Day Giveaway

Well, count me in! I'd LOVE to win something for Mother's Day! Check out 5 Minutes for Mom where they're giving away some fun stuff this week. That pink Ipod Nano is so cute and besides, I don't have one. There's also the Hannah Keeley book, Hannah Keeley's Total Mom Makeover which sounds like a book I should read . . . soon.

They'll be adding other great prizes throughout the week, so be sure to check back.

Messy Modern Math

Back in January, Sprittibee had a post about modern math, including a link to a very interesting YouTube clip by M.J. McDermott. Because my boys were in public school through the 5th grade, I was somewhat familiar with some of this "reformed math." While my kids didn't start out with it, it was being phased in during their elementary career.

I came face to face with it when my then-4th grade son sat down to do his math homework one night and I was completely unable to help him. It was not, however, because I'm bad at math. Quite the contrary, I've always enjoyed math, was in advanced classes and honors algebra. Helping my kids with math homework had never been an issue.

But here was my son with his 4th grade math which used a new method of multiplication. Contrary to all math texts I'd ever used, this was merely a workbook, so it did not contain pages with actual illustrations and instructions for said method. Since it was very new to my son, he couldn't exactly explain to me how it was supposed to work. I ended out going into his class the next morning and letting his teacher know that he did not complete his homework because he didn't know how to do it and I was utterly lost. The teacher chuckled knowingly and informed me that I could have a copy of the "reference book" (the one where they actually teach these methods) to keep at home for future homework help.

The remainder of the year went relatively okay and my son ended with decent math grades. He only had one more year at public school until I began to homeschool him.

A couple of weeks ago I was talking with a mom from my church who has homeschooled her children a number of years and one of her children is currently in a public school where they use this wonderful new math. It seeems that essays are a regular part of modern math. And the explanation for "how" you got your answer is of more value than the actual answer.

Wow! Is that brilliant, or what? How does this prepare a person for life as an adult? Can you imagine telling your boss, "Gee, I'm sorry Mr. Johnson, I realize my final figures may not have been exactly right, but let me show you how I got there." I don't think Mr. Johnson will really care one iota! A well-worded report won't make up for losses incurred by someone who doesn't know how to perform math functions. Or what about your tax return? "Gee, IRS, I don't know why you don't agree with me. Let me email you my essay on how I came up with you owing me $5,000, because I'm just sure that I don't owe you $2,000." Yeah, that'll really fly.

I am not opposed to finding ways to help our children learn. But it was very eye-opening to watch Ms. McDermott's video. Some of these methods seem to be confusing and leave a lot of room for error.

I think what has surprised me the most about all of this is that math is one area I really would never have seen changing to such a great degree. I mean it's based on concrete facts, black and white data. But that's when it clicked. This is a spiritual issue. Satan is using our culture to blur the lines of truth and fact. Once that happens, there are no absolutes. But math and is made up of absolutes. Two plus two is always four. So it should come as no surprise that math is being messed with. Because if being right just means you came up with a good explanation, you are no longer accountable nor responsible for the end result. This is just one more way to try and erase absolute truth. One more attempt to push God out of our country. And one more reason to take a stand and homeschool my boys and teach them THE truth.

"Jesus said to him, 'I am the way, the truth, and the life.

No one comes to the Father except through Me.'" John 14:6

"And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." John 8:32

Heather's Surgery & Prayer

Heather's surgery is scheduled for today at the Mayo Clinic. For the complete story, click here. The last I checked, over $18,000 had been raised to help her and her family with expenses. That is just mind-blowing. While the internet has served many purposes, how awesome is it that the blogosphere could be used for such a blessing?

Please pray for Heather, Mark, the kids, their families, the staff at Mayo, and anyone else who may enter into this picture.

I find it interesting that her surgery is also the National Day of Prayer. Hopefully many of us will spend some extra time in prayer today. The needs are many. Of course, we ought to be on our knees as diligently year round, but maybe a day like today will help get us on track.

Many blessings to you!

The Shield of Faith

During quiet time last week, I was reading through Ephesians 6 and the armor of God. Of particular note to me was the Shield of Faith in verse 16:

"Above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one."

The first thing I see is that God says, "above all." That places significance on the shield - it is an additional defense that I must take hold of after putting on the other armor. Most often, a shield would be used to deflect the items being used in the attack (arrows, swords, etc.). However, God says that with the shield "you will be able to quench." Kind of interesting to think of a shield as quenching something. But if it merely deflected the fiery darts, they would drop to the ground or bounce onto something else. Since they're burning, they could still cause further damage, or worse, I could step on them. God makes sure that they will be extinguished and no longer able to bring destruction.

He also says, "to quench all the fiery darts." He doesn't say I can just put out a few, or some of them, or only specific types. He says all - so that really does mean all of them. God means what He says.

Another significant thing about a shield is that it's not stationery. I can hold it in various directions and maneuver it into the proper position as needed. But I have to hold onto the shield, keeping it in place. If I set it down to rest or even drop it entirely, allowing a fiery dart to hit me, it doesn't just stick me in the arm or elsewhere. Once stuck, its fire will spread, consuming my clothes and my flesh. The damage will be much more than just a little prick mark.

Last, He makes it clear exactly who is shooting these fiery darts. It's "the wicked one." So often it can be easy to forget that I am engaged in a spiritual battle. But verse 12 states it plainly,

"For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places."

When I forget this, it's easy to think maybe my kids are shooting those fiery darts, or the insane driver that flew past me, or even that they're self-inflicted. But that's not the case. They come from the "wicked one." Fortunately, God has provided me with His armor, and just like all of God's provisions, this armor is designed to handle the battle, protect me, and keep me reliant upon Him for my strength and faith.