How often do you stretch your abilities?

I was just thinking about this today. I feel like I am constantly out of my "confort" zone. It seems everyday I have to or need to learn something else. Do you feel like this? Is it just me, maybe I never learned what I should have or something.Like cleaning..

And cooking(or uncooking)

                                                     
                                                   And then of course there's technology...

                                                                   

And those are just the things that I really need to know. I like technology but it gets hairy when you want to learn a skill for money and not only for fun(javascript, no-sql databases, etc). To top it off I have all kinds of things that I WANT to learn. There's music. When will that beast let me rest? Why can't I just say TATAh... Why does it matter so much? Do you know how difficult it is to relearn theory, practice piano, learn guitar, and have this nagging desire to write songs when you know you likely suck? All this knowing that it is likely a hopeless cause? There are so many things that I want to be involved in as well. I would love to be in choir again, there is someone that is wanting to get together to play around with some music he's written, and of course I would love to learn guitar via teacher. And that's just MY hobbies. The girls are learning website design and web marketing. Toby is wanting to get into electronics, and the little ones just want tons of love that requires keen observation on just how that love should be given to them. I feel like I should be learning  right along with them to support them and help them if they have questions. I FEEL LIKE GUMBY!!!
                   

                                                                     
 I know that God, in his sovereignty, has not given me more that I can handle. However, deciding just WHAT areas he intends for me to "stretch" to is a whole different story. Laying down, picking up. Laying down, picking up. What to lay down, what to pick up.

Alex's 5th Birthday!!

Charlotte says "Mom, I am so glad we are taking school off for some of the summer. I can be so productive." I look at her with curiosity "What do you mean Charlotte?" She gets this serious look on her face and says, "Well, I can write and do research all day. We just really aren't productive when we are doing school." I just smile and shake my head in agreement.

 We are finally almost over this sickness that has lasted several weeks. Toby got it yesterday but it seems to be milder with him. He did run a 103 fever and vomited once but he doesn't act as sick as the rest. I want off the vomit comet!! Hopefully Jason won't get it.
  On the funny side we had some really cute things said during the whole thing. I don't know why being sick makes you say the funniest things but man did they have us rollin. We had kids waking up in the middle of the night talking about crazy stuff and Andrew was entertainment on several occasions. Yesterday I was in the laundry room transferring clean clothes to the dryer. Daniel and Andrew were with me and Andrew asked if he could help. I let him after I got over my initial thoughts of "This is going to take even longer". He loads a few things and we close the door. He looks at me and says so sincerely "Mom, thank you for sharing your dirty laundry with me!" It was so adorable and worth every second extra that it took.
  We also have had a major event happen a couple of days ago. Summer finally lost her first tooth! She has been wanting to lose a tooth for so long. It was precious. She was on top of the world. I am so glad `that this tooth came out quickly without any major pain. She just pulled it out and said "Look Mom, it came out!"
  So now that we are soon to be on the mend, we are looking forward to seeing friends again and getting outside(in the coolest part of the day of course) to soak in some summer time.

Rejoice or Mourn?

  My family will come together over the next two days to remember my Grandmother and her life. It has stirred many thoughts within me. I realize that anytime someone passes on from this side of eternity that we will question our own mortality. Is what we believe REALLY the truth?? How do we KNOW it's the truth? Does it even matter? Maybe we just all go into the grave and pleasantly "sleep" forever more. Just a meaningless vapor in this tornado of life. Is our belief in science? That based off of scientific evidence there is no God and no eternity afterwards. DO we realize that we are basing our decision solely on the genius minds of pure vapor particles? Do we even know what genius is? If everything is meaningless then all our beliefs, decisions, hypothesis, and IQ tests are meaningless as well. Because whatever comes out of this meaningless body will be just that, meaningless.
   Maybe, just maybe, we realize that this logic is flawed(because we are obviously not meaningless,right?). What IS the truth and how do we find it? If we can't trust those who claim no creator, then who do we go to? Where can we find solid evidence of where we came from, why, and where we are going? You guessed it, that book that everyone says is silly and not "academic" yet has lasted and proved itself for the last 5-7000 years. The Bible. Simple and complex, easy but hard, eternal and undeniable truth. This Truth has lasted and been confirmed throughout history. People come and go with their philosophies and ideas but the Bible has remained true and steady. It's foundational. So, if you want to know the foundation, if you want to know why, read it. You aren't a genius. The creator is. And because of that, we can trust that what he has said, done, and will do is truth. It will not die because he is eternal.
   All that being said, I am so glad that I have hope. I will rejoice for my Grandmother because I believe in the truth. I don't believe that she just ceases to be. This hope is given to us through faith in Jesus Christ. He says "I am the truth, and the life. No one goes to the Father except through me." There is no other way by which man can be saved. I am so thankful that I have a hope. I have a reason to live AND Die!! No, I will not mourn, I will rejoice that she is being made whole by her creator.

Links missing

This morning I wanted to upload another file and realized that my other files were dead links. So sorry!! I am in the process of uploading them again.
****Well, they somehow have dissapeared. I will create them again and post them as soon as I can.

Pulp Cookies

I can't believe we made cookies out of left over juice pulp. We  made them out of peanut butter, honey, eggs, a little flour, cinnamon, vanilla, salt, and LOTS of left over vegetable pulp(spinach, parsley, carrots, and apples.) I basically just eyeballed it until I thought it might work. The kids loved it. Now I don't feel so bad juicing. This also makes a great snack for the kids. I have been looking for something new because of Kaitlyn's braces. Yay!

Beach Trip

This weekend I will be going with my Mom, Grandma, and Sister to the beach. I am looking forward to a time of fun and reflection. For the last 2 months I have really been wanting to take a trip to the beach so this is a nice treat. I am going to get pictures as well, I know the kids will want to know everything that happened. We are supposed to go to the Opry too and I am really looking forward to that!

The sweetest reminder of Christ's sacrifice

Today I was cooking lunch with Kaitlyn. We were going about our business when Andrew comes in singing "Mary did you know that your baby boy would save our sons and daughters?" over and over again. We hadn't listened to that song in a long while. We did learn it as a family several months ago but to hear it out of the blue today warmed mine and Kaitlyn's hearts. He sang it loud and proud without fear or doubt. Even though we read the account of Jesus' crucifixion today I don't think he understood how that song related to it. He forgave me, saved me, and loved me despite my nailing him to that cross. Thank you Lord for fulfilling your word/promises through the person of Christ. Thank you that we see you even in Psalm 22, long before you were pierced, spilled out, mocked, and beaten. Before they cast lots for your clothes, gave you bitter drink, and long before you cried out "My God, My God, Why have you forsaken me?" Thank you for your final proclamation "It is Finished!" But most of all, thank you that it didn't end there. That you arose, claiming victory over sin and death. Power to pay the debt that I could never possibly pay. Power to change, heal, and overcome. Thank you that you are still working in me and through me until I can be with you, complete and whole. Thank you that one day I WILL be complete and whole by the power of the risen Christ, Son of the Living God.

Some Pics of the kids

Fitted Table Cloth attempt #1

Well, I am not sooo happy with my fitted table cloth. I ran into some problems with the casing that makes it look really sloppy but I CAN prevent it in the future(I hope). I made it for when we go on picnics. It should fit around a small/medium size picnic table. It has a draw string on one side. This is going to be great for my sewing table. Once I get some pretty fabric I will start on it.Sorry for the bad lighting!

Kite flying and Bible study CAN go together!!

A day of kite flying, Bible study, and fun! Here is Daniel sitting in their flowers.

 

Getting ready for Bible study.

 

Here is Summer and her friend Bethanie. Alex is chilling out beside them in the shade.

 

Here is Daniel and Emmi. They are so cute!!

 

Here you can see them flying the kites.

Time4Learning

We were able to have a full month on Time4Learning in exchange for a review. So here goes. My little kids didn't want to get on at all after they saw my 6 year old on. They wanted another similar website instead. In the beginning I tried getting Alex to use it but the navigation system is set up where it's a little more difficult for younger kids. So I can't give a review for those 2 ages. My 6 and 7 year olds used it a little bit but between being sick and school break(we have a different school schedule and we ended our year in early Feb.), they didn't use it as much as I would have liked. One thing that I really liked was that it helped my 7 year old understand multiplication. He went through all of their available multiplication tutorials/practices for the available grades(a grade above his own) and he enjoyed that immensely. He just wanted to learn and I reminded him about the site. It really is a great tool for home schoolers. I wish that I had signed my older 2 up for it just to see what it was like for them. I believe that they would have enjoyed it. Unfortunately it is quite expensive for us. It would be about $64 per month for my oldest 4. For those of you that have been thinking about it and don't mind the cost, I would encourage you to try it out. They have put a lot of work in it and it is worth the money if you have it. Thanks Time4Learning for allowing us to try out your product!

GreenShake how to and Ninja review

Borner Mandoline Review

Fun outside

We had a great weekend, apart from being sick still. We went to the state park and did a mini hiking trip. The kids had such a great time. Here are some pics we took.

Kaitlyn with her hiking stick

All the kids except for Daniel. He was with us behind the camera.

Charlotte posing.

Andrew after getting caught fighting with the bushes.lol

Daniel having fun in the leaves.

Summer taking a break.

Alex taking a break.

And of course the crazy parents. Jason was actually bouncing me up and down and that's why I look like that.lol

Homemade Raw Butter!

We did it, yay! This is so neat. Here are some pics we took during the process. First you take the cream off of the raw milk. Blend it in your food processor for 10-15 min. Separate the solids from the liquid(buttermilk) and rinse thoroughly. You could add salt but we are just going to add it as we use it. I don't suppose it will last very long in the frig but I don't see it lasting longer than 2 days here anyway.lol