Do any of you homeschoolers continue to school through the summer? Every year at this time I start thinking about summer school. I am SO ready to be done with the public school schedule and the driving back and forth, but I an NOT ready to be done with school. There are SO many things we didn't get to that I wanted to do. Usually, I plan to continue with school, but the first beach day completely takes care of that. What do you think, can we pull off 1 hr./day of scheduled educational activity? Reading is always a requirement, but I would like to add a little writing each day, flashcards for the ones who need math review and 1-2 science lessons/week so we can finish up our amazing chemistry curriculum. Does that sound do-able or would your kids rebel? Maybe I can sell them on 1/2 hr. each day. The 1/2 hr. of reading is never a problem.
On the adoption front...
Thanks for the encouragement! My impatience is once again simmering quietly on the backburner.
Last week, I found a contest to win a TRIP TO ESTONIA on a link from a knitting site.:) Both Dan and I entered. The grand prize is a 5night/6day stay(including airfare) to Tallinn and Parnu. There are 3 other trips within the country that do not include airfare. All of the trips include 3 days in Tallinn, and have to be used between July-September of this year. Of course, I am planning to win the grand prize.:) Charlotte,one of the packages includes 2 days in Narva. I'll let you win that one. There is also a trip to Tartu. That is my second choice. On our preview trip, we sat with a pastor from Tartu on the flight from Amsterdam. He is the nicest man, and he very politely answered our questions about Estonia. He was such a blessing to us! We would love to see his church, and I would be happy to visit ANY part of Estonia. Don't worry, I am NOT REALLY expecting to win. But, it is a good distraction.:)
Friday, May 29, 2009
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Uh-oh
Yesterday, I mentioned to Dan that it would be nice to hear from the agency today. I didn't really expect that to happen, at least I didn't think I did. As I booted up the computer this morning, I realized I had butterflies in my stomach. Could the email I am waiting for be there? No, but of course it is way too early in the day. I still didn't realize that I was expecting to hear until I discovered a voicemail message on my cellphone. My heart started racing, and I tried to prepare myself for the disappointment if it was not the message I was hoping for. It wasn't, and I was disappointed.:( How did I do this to myself, and how do I stop it?
Monday, May 18, 2009
See What We've Been Up To
Last week, Garrett, Connor,and Meredith sang at the All-City Choral Concert. It was great!
I finally blocked the lace wrap I knitted for one of Andreas' caregivers. What do you think?
Garrett turned 16 on May 13th. These pictures were taken the next night at his choir concert, which was amazing! Doesn't he look handsome in his tux!!
Gavin just finished his first year of Stockade. He,Dan,and Garrett spent the weekend at Stockarama, the Brigade version of a boy scout jamboree. I took a couple pictures of Gav just before they left for the weekend. Isn't he cute.:)
Congratulations Dan and Gavin!! Their post won 1st place overall. Gavin did not win any individual awards, but he scored lots of points in Bible. Way to go, Gav! Congratulations to Garrett, too! His Battalion also won 1st overall. Garrett also helped out with points in Bible. I'm proud of my guys!!
I had the pleasure of spending the weekend with Meredith and Connor. They had seven performances from Thursday-Saturday. Both of them played their parts perfectly! I got to watch 3 performances and spend alot of time at the school with all the kids and a few of the parents. It was fun. Here they are in costume. Meredith was able to be in all 4 productions during her 2 years in middle school. She is very proud of that accomplishment. I am so glad the kids take after Dan. It is so much fun to watch them perform!!!
I finally blocked the lace wrap I knitted for one of Andreas' caregivers. What do you think?
Garrett turned 16 on May 13th. These pictures were taken the next night at his choir concert, which was amazing! Doesn't he look handsome in his tux!!
Gavin just finished his first year of Stockade. He,Dan,and Garrett spent the weekend at Stockarama, the Brigade version of a boy scout jamboree. I took a couple pictures of Gav just before they left for the weekend. Isn't he cute.:)
Congratulations Dan and Gavin!! Their post won 1st place overall. Gavin did not win any individual awards, but he scored lots of points in Bible. Way to go, Gav! Congratulations to Garrett, too! His Battalion also won 1st overall. Garrett also helped out with points in Bible. I'm proud of my guys!!
I had the pleasure of spending the weekend with Meredith and Connor. They had seven performances from Thursday-Saturday. Both of them played their parts perfectly! I got to watch 3 performances and spend alot of time at the school with all the kids and a few of the parents. It was fun. Here they are in costume. Meredith was able to be in all 4 productions during her 2 years in middle school. She is very proud of that accomplishment. I am so glad the kids take after Dan. It is so much fun to watch them perform!!!
Friday, May 15, 2009
Gluten-free Alternatives?
Well, it looks like Dan has Celiac disease.:( They are doing a biopsy next week to confirm the diagnosis. Since last Friday, Dan has completely cut out gluten. We have been busy educating ourselves and finding what's available for food around here. Hopefully, he will be feeling better soon!!
This weekend is going to be a challenge. Dan and the boys are going on a campout with Boys' Brigade. Dan is going to have to bring all his own food! If anyone out there has experience with this, we would love suggestions!
This weekend is going to be a challenge. Dan and the boys are going on a campout with Boys' Brigade. Dan is going to have to bring all his own food! If anyone out there has experience with this, we would love suggestions!
Sunday, May 10, 2009
Quick Post
Thank you, thank you to the person who donated to our adoption account!!! We were so pleasantly surprised.:)
Happy Mother's Day all!
Happy Mother's Day all!
Friday, May 1, 2009
Answered Prayers
Don't get excited. I have no news about the adoption. Last week was a tough week for me. I miss Andreas. I don't want to wait anymore! I want to see Estonia in summer. I don't want to have to travel during the school year. I don't want to have surgery again. I want this pain to go away!! I have been very busy demanding that my "wants" and "don't wants" be addressed, NOW if You please! Well,I guess I wasn't really demanding, but I was definitely whining and pleading. Nothing has happened as far as I can see. I am still waiting,and I am certainly still dealing with pain, but my prayers have been answered.
Over and over again I have "let my requests be known". Over and over again, "the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding" has been given to me. It is not that I pray a prayer and instantly feel better. Most of the time I still feel agitated and impatient. Usually, the pain does not go away. Somehow, though, something changes, and I know I have been heard. Somehow, there is a calm assurance that He is in control and wants what is best for me.
This past week, my prayers have been answered with a picture of my dog, Kody. Kody is not the most popular dog. He is not well-trained, and he isn't friendly to everyone, especially men. He barks too much, and runs away if he can get out the door. I am mostly to blame for his faults because I haven't taken the time to train him properly. But, Kody is completely devoted to me!! He is content to spend most of his time curled up at my feet. If I get up and move to another room, he jumps right up and follows. When I had to spend 2 days in bed because of the pain in my leg, he spent it lying beside me. Kody never complains that I am sitting too long when he would really like to go for a long walk. He doesn't grumble when my activity wakes him from a deep sleep. He just yawns, stretches, and follows me. I adore Kody. How could anyone not love someone who is so devoted to them? Still, I wasn't getting the point when Kody's image would pop into my head as I prayed. Finally, on Sunday, I heard the song, "Word of God, Speak". There is the line, please let me stay at rest, in Your holiness. Then, it clicked. In my mind, there was Kody, lying at my feet, totally at rest, and trusting in me. That is what I need to do! I am not very good at it, but when it happens, I am changed. What an amazing God, we have!!
Over and over again I have "let my requests be known". Over and over again, "the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding" has been given to me. It is not that I pray a prayer and instantly feel better. Most of the time I still feel agitated and impatient. Usually, the pain does not go away. Somehow, though, something changes, and I know I have been heard. Somehow, there is a calm assurance that He is in control and wants what is best for me.
This past week, my prayers have been answered with a picture of my dog, Kody. Kody is not the most popular dog. He is not well-trained, and he isn't friendly to everyone, especially men. He barks too much, and runs away if he can get out the door. I am mostly to blame for his faults because I haven't taken the time to train him properly. But, Kody is completely devoted to me!! He is content to spend most of his time curled up at my feet. If I get up and move to another room, he jumps right up and follows. When I had to spend 2 days in bed because of the pain in my leg, he spent it lying beside me. Kody never complains that I am sitting too long when he would really like to go for a long walk. He doesn't grumble when my activity wakes him from a deep sleep. He just yawns, stretches, and follows me. I adore Kody. How could anyone not love someone who is so devoted to them? Still, I wasn't getting the point when Kody's image would pop into my head as I prayed. Finally, on Sunday, I heard the song, "Word of God, Speak". There is the line, please let me stay at rest, in Your holiness. Then, it clicked. In my mind, there was Kody, lying at my feet, totally at rest, and trusting in me. That is what I need to do! I am not very good at it, but when it happens, I am changed. What an amazing God, we have!!
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Updates
We still haven't received anything from Estonia, but we have heard they are working on it. We also received 2 new forms to fill out and send back. It feels good to have an assignment.:) It is unlikely that we will be travelling this summer even if we get the documents today. We still need to file our I-800 with USCIS, and I'm guessing that will take at least 6 weeks to process. Then we have to send the approval to Estonia and wait for a court date. The courts close around July 10th and don't reopen until the last week of August,so our chances are pretty slim.:( I'm not really stressing about it, just accepting the idea. Who knows, maybe we will get amazingly lucky, and the papers will come this week. Maybe USCIS will only take 2 weeks, and maybe Estonia will give us a summer court date. Here's hoping!:)
Dan is having a cat scan of his heart today. We are not sure what the doctor is looking for. We were told the ultrasound looked the same as the last one. The last one was supposedly "normal",so why the cat scan? Dan's doctor tends to be verycautious. Hopefully, things are fine.
I ended up having a cortisone injection last Wednesday. I was so scared, but it was fine and not painful. I did have lots of pain over the weekend, though. On Monday morning, my foot felt less numb. The numbness comes right back as soon as I start moving around, but it is less than before. I opted to try another shot yesterday. This one was much more uncomfortable! Afterward, my leg was completely gone. I couldn't even stand up without holding on to something. It hurts ALOT!!! I couldn't go to work today. :( Hopefully, this one works better than the first. If I feel better in a few days, I will have 1 last shot. That is not something I really want to do, but I will if it means I can avoid surgery. It will be a huge bummer if I end up with surgery after putting myself through this!!!!
This has been another grumbling kind of post, sorry. I do have some happier news. Garrett has made the decision to attend the Vineyard Christian School next year.:) We both believe it is a good choice for him. I know it will come with its own set of challenges, but I think he will be happier there. It was an incredibly hard choice for him to make. He loves drama, choir and band, and none of those things will be available to him at VCS. We are hoping to get him involved with one of the teen worship bands there. We are also considering voice lessons and helping him to start an improv club at the school. He may be allowed to swim with the EL team. He will not be on the team and his times will only count for exhibition. Garrett is not competetive enough to care about that. He just wants to swim.
Meredith just celebrated her 14th birthday on April 6th. She is doing very well! She has been asked to join the dance team at church. They perform periodically at the teen worship service. She also has been struggling to fit in, so this is a huge answer to prayer, and a boost to her self-esteem. I need to set up an appointment with the high school guidance counselor to enroll Meredith in band and choir at EL. She wants to continue homeschooling, so I will be trying out high school for the first time. I need to do some homework myself to prepare!!
Connor is also doing well. He is riding his unicycle all over the neighborhood. He sometimes goes 2 miles or more! He is hoping to play spring soccer. He and Meredith are enjoying their parts in the middle school play. Right now, he is working hard to get an A in Algebra this quarter. We just learned that all 7th graders who have less than a 90 average for the year will have to re-take Algebra 1. Connor is NOT happy about this! He is pulling an 88. We were thrilled with that. Connor can be a perfectionist, so we were pleased that he was satisfied with a B. He could have gotten an A all year with a little extra effort. We honestly didn't care if he didn't get into Honors Geometry next year. We just want him to continue to enjoy math. The school has decided that if the students aren't ready for honors level, they shouldn't take geometry until the are ready. The reason I put Connor in school for math is so that I wouldn't have to teach Geometry!!! Yuck! There is no way he will agree to repeat Algebra 1. So, I'm praying he pulls off a high A this quarter!!
There is not much to report on Gavin. He is enjoying our pirate unit study. He has had a blast with co-op this year. He has lots of friends there. We spent an afternoon at the park with co-op friends on Tuesday. It was so nice to sit out in the sun!!!
Dan is having a cat scan of his heart today. We are not sure what the doctor is looking for. We were told the ultrasound looked the same as the last one. The last one was supposedly "normal",so why the cat scan? Dan's doctor tends to be verycautious. Hopefully, things are fine.
I ended up having a cortisone injection last Wednesday. I was so scared, but it was fine and not painful. I did have lots of pain over the weekend, though. On Monday morning, my foot felt less numb. The numbness comes right back as soon as I start moving around, but it is less than before. I opted to try another shot yesterday. This one was much more uncomfortable! Afterward, my leg was completely gone. I couldn't even stand up without holding on to something. It hurts ALOT!!! I couldn't go to work today. :( Hopefully, this one works better than the first. If I feel better in a few days, I will have 1 last shot. That is not something I really want to do, but I will if it means I can avoid surgery. It will be a huge bummer if I end up with surgery after putting myself through this!!!!
This has been another grumbling kind of post, sorry. I do have some happier news. Garrett has made the decision to attend the Vineyard Christian School next year.:) We both believe it is a good choice for him. I know it will come with its own set of challenges, but I think he will be happier there. It was an incredibly hard choice for him to make. He loves drama, choir and band, and none of those things will be available to him at VCS. We are hoping to get him involved with one of the teen worship bands there. We are also considering voice lessons and helping him to start an improv club at the school. He may be allowed to swim with the EL team. He will not be on the team and his times will only count for exhibition. Garrett is not competetive enough to care about that. He just wants to swim.
Meredith just celebrated her 14th birthday on April 6th. She is doing very well! She has been asked to join the dance team at church. They perform periodically at the teen worship service. She also has been struggling to fit in, so this is a huge answer to prayer, and a boost to her self-esteem. I need to set up an appointment with the high school guidance counselor to enroll Meredith in band and choir at EL. She wants to continue homeschooling, so I will be trying out high school for the first time. I need to do some homework myself to prepare!!
Connor is also doing well. He is riding his unicycle all over the neighborhood. He sometimes goes 2 miles or more! He is hoping to play spring soccer. He and Meredith are enjoying their parts in the middle school play. Right now, he is working hard to get an A in Algebra this quarter. We just learned that all 7th graders who have less than a 90 average for the year will have to re-take Algebra 1. Connor is NOT happy about this! He is pulling an 88. We were thrilled with that. Connor can be a perfectionist, so we were pleased that he was satisfied with a B. He could have gotten an A all year with a little extra effort. We honestly didn't care if he didn't get into Honors Geometry next year. We just want him to continue to enjoy math. The school has decided that if the students aren't ready for honors level, they shouldn't take geometry until the are ready. The reason I put Connor in school for math is so that I wouldn't have to teach Geometry!!! Yuck! There is no way he will agree to repeat Algebra 1. So, I'm praying he pulls off a high A this quarter!!
There is not much to report on Gavin. He is enjoying our pirate unit study. He has had a blast with co-op this year. He has lots of friends there. We spent an afternoon at the park with co-op friends on Tuesday. It was so nice to sit out in the sun!!!
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