thougts

I always think I can't post anything here without pictures. (to which you aunts and grandmothers will probably agree) But getting all of it hooked up just takes time and I don't want to put off some of the funny things happening around here any longer.

The list of funny quotables:
Dora says "good grief" when something really is good. For example, when I find something I've lost she'll say, "good grief you found that, right mommy?"

John Patrick uses the word "random" in all the right places but says "ramid". I know he's probably too old to let it go but I'll admit that I did for awhile. It was just so endearing.

Anella and Dora have swapped beds for now. We'll see how long it lasts. I'm not sure Hope appreciates the change. I think her bed was the only place she got a moments peace from her second mommy who would claim Hope as hers if I wasn't here. And, really, she is half the reason Hope eats, baths or gets out of her footy pj's so I guess she deserves some bragging rights.

John Patrick's schooling is still going well. We are walking a balance of enjoying the freedom and time we have to explore curiosities about things like what deep sea creatures eat while remembering those pesky math facts aren't going anywhere and there's no way of getting around memorizing them. We can play games every now and then but let's face it- nothing works quite like a flash card. Competition seems to motivate him so I'm using that to my advantage a little. I've been giving him 3 seconds and then I get to answer but he won by a land slide today so I think it's no more nice mommy tomorrow. :-)

Oh, and Hope started greeting John Patrick in the mornings with a, "ha bubba." I love it.

So now we have Sissy (Anella's name for Dora) and Bubba. Can we get any more KY?

Our First Week

In between moments of near melt down, I'd say it was a success. :-) I didn't have all my curriculum yet so we had the freedom to enjoy a more "hands on" style of learning. John Patrick is seen here as the grocery store owner, telling his customers how much things cost, figuring out what coins were needed and totally up their purchases. We also went to the library to read to the therapy dogs. Definitely a fun thing if you're curious. The dogs are very calm and there weren't many people there. Which was good because we picked up two friends so all six of us reading to just one dog could have been a bit too much for even the most docile creature. Why do people think that just because they love their dogs and think they are the cheese that I want them to lick my 17 month old? I was all ready for a cute picture of Hopey staring at the dog from a distance when the man lets her waaaaay to close for my comfort. I snapped the picture in a frenzy and said, "okay!!! We're all done now!" I'm not afraid of her St. Bernard teeth I'm afraid of the slime that went slinging across the room when she heaved her large self over to get a closer look at this little one with crumbs from breakfast still on her cheeks. Doesn't the dog's face look like, "oh pleeeeeease let me lick them off for you?!"
The snow was very welcome by our kids this week. Hopey had this dejected look on her face when the kids went out so I bundled her up for 3 minutes of fun.
No, she isn't on her knees here:

Things I am thankful for this week:

• friends who also home school but in a wide range of ways and are supportive and easy going about things like style and curriculum. I want to be purposeful but like so many things in life, this is not something that should become who I am altogether to the point that if others aren't doing it my way they are messing up their kids.





• my husband is a genius and figured out what the problem with our mattress (it was the frame, not the mattress at all) is and fixed it.





• my kids are forgiving. Isn't it humbling to be responsible for these little people who just assume you're right? I was convicted this week about the amount of times I force my goals onto them. Obviously we need to accomplish school but I'm talking about when they are trying to play a game and I tell them their too loud "and either quiet down or go downstairs". It's "recess" (as John Patrick calls any break in school) and don't you know that's all about mommy? I'd like to try to serve them more in those moments.





• our piano. I started teaching the two oldest this week and John Patrick seemed to pick up on it really fast and is very interested. I hope this continues because I haven't had a chance to tell him to "buckle down" or "one day when you can't turn a cartwheel you'll be glad I taught you piano". Just a little shout out to Mrs. Iris Lewis... she was right.

One last thing: don't you just love the back splash in this little cottage? and the island... love. I don't know much of anything about interior design but I think the word "cottage" kind of sums up my style. At least, it would be my style if I wasn't so practical. How much do you think that back splash cost anyway?

Update on us

This is what I get for asking a three year old to help feed her sister lunch: Dora's shades. I'm pretty sure I blinded her with my flash. Sorry Hopey.

Well, we had our first "official" day of school here. The kids were soooo excited. I was pretty darn excited myself. I've been trying to choose a curriculum. Whoa Buddy. THAT is no easy task. Do you know how many mom's out there have a strong opinion on it? And they don't seem to mind confusing the rest of the rookies who are just trying to PICK ONE. I lost a little sleep over it the night I got what I thought was my choice for phonics and when I opened it I about cried. I needed 4 years of school and 4 hours of prep each night for a month just to understand the teachers guide. Okay, I'm exaggerating a little but I'm serious that I wanted something much more simple that I could adjust to what we need. Anyway, all is well after John Patrick declared while I was making dinner tonight that I'm the best teacher ever. :-) And then told daddy how much he loves his new school. He also lead us in the pledge of allegiance after breakfast. Which I wasn't prepared for so I drew a flag on a piece of paper. :-)

I'm pretty excited about what the rest of this year will bring. I can't describe the peace God has brought about homeschooling that I've prayed He would give me one day if we were ever going to choose this route. I really didn't know if we would ever home school. I just knew I would need it to be made clear to John and I. And I just want to say that my Father is so good. He answered my prayer even clearer than I would have dreamed and brought the peace only He can. I'm so thankful for the community of friends who are in the midst of this or are veterans. My mom has had some great little tidbits of truth that she just kind of sprinkles in here and there. I've talked with two mom's while in the "curriculum crisis" who also home schooled and have an astrophysicist and a national merit award winner between them. What!?! Can you imagine being used by God to accomplish something like that? Oh, the possibilities. What do you think this little man will be? Right now he says a Navy pilot. :-)

And last Friday our Dory girl turned five. I can't ever decide how I feel about Dora's birthday's. She always seems older than she is so 5 doesn't seem all that much of a stretch. But then, I can't believe our little chubby cheeked princess is already reading and helping make lunch. It really does seem like such a short time ago that she was toddling around here with her big blue eyes and precious cheeky grin. She is such a wonderful help around here. The Lord gave me her as the oldest girl to keep me in line. I think I'm a better mommy with her by my side. :-) She loves loves loves to help nurture anything that needs a little mothering. She is a joy to watch around animals and wants to be a veterinarian one day. It wouldn't surprise me at all if she fulfills that dream. Do you think it's cruel that I don't want a pet right now? Can a future vet grow up in a house without pets? They say absence makes the heart grow fonder.

Here she is just before her breakfast doughnut date with daddy. Always a highlight.

So true

Phyllis Diller: "Cleaning the house while the kids are still growing is like shoveling the walk while it's snowing."

Chicken in a pot with lots of garlic

This is a wonderfully simple dinner. It makes the whole house smell like a hearty meal. and garlic. It comes from a french cookbook John bought me last Christmas by Dory Greenspan but this is kind of my version. For a more simple meal just buy a loaf of crusty bread instead of making one.

Ingredients:
juice of 1/2 lemon **olive oil**2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into large chunks **10 small red or white potatoes (if they're bigger, slice them in half **16 shallots (I used them in this one but I rarely do because who has time for all that peeling? Just slice 3 onions into 6 segments**8 carrots, peeled and quartered**4 celery stalks, quartered**4 garlic heads (yes, 4) separated but not peeled (this is wonderful spread on the bread!**salt and pepper **fresh poultry herbs (you can buy that at Kroger or use 3 thyme, parsley and rosemary) **1 whole chicken, 4 lbs, dry and seasoned with salt and pepper**1 cup chicken broth **1/2 cup dry white wine**one recipe of your favorite white bread dough, ready to use (optional)

Preheat oven to 450. heat some olive oil in a large skillet over high heat, add veggies and garlic, salt and pepper and saute until they're browned all over (which I usually have to do in two batches)

spoon veggies into a dutch oven or stock pot with lid and stir in herbs and lemon juice

return the skillet to heat, add more olive oil and brown the chicken on all sides. This is nearly impossible to do without tearing the skin so don't wig out like me if you can't make it picture perfect.

tuck the chicken into the pot surrounding it with the veggies.

mix together the broth, wine, and a tablespoon of olive oil and pour this into the hot skillet that the veggies and chicken were in. Scrape up the good flavor off the bottom of the pan and pour all that deliciousness over the chicken and veggies.
Now, at this point you can just cover it in foil, then the lid and slip it into the oven and serve it with a loaf of store bought crusty bread. (like I did last night.)

I usually cook it for about an hour and 20 minutes because I'm skittish about undercooked chicken and I've never found it to be dry at all after a little longer. (the recipe says 55 minutes)

But, if you want to live on the wild side like me (translation: if you want to make life a little more difficult and stress out your kids who just want to play Chutes and Ladders) then take your bread dough and roll it out into a long snake. Wrap it around the edge of the pot and press down to secure it to the side. Half of the bread will be sealed into the pot, and half out. Press your lid on tightly and keep an eye on it. About half way through baking you'll need to add foil and even then the inside is probably the best part.

The real recipe seals the pot with a flour/water dough that you can't eat. I was seriously let down the first time I read through the recipe to find that out it wasn't eatable. So this is a work in progress. My only extra advice: don't go all healthy and use wheat bread like I did in the picture below. (This whole post is from pictures I took back in March!) It's already hard to keep it from drying out. This isn't the time to use wheat bread. I don't have a picture of the finished product but you'll find that when you break the seal of the bread the most wonderfully cooked chicken and veggies, drenched in tons of juices. Serve this with little bowls for dipping.