School, Fall, and Remembering

SCHOOL~Our school year has officially started...R and D have been in school for over two weeks and things are going well! We have had the smoothest start to this year. God has been so good to us!

While R does her DVD's upstairs, I work with D and S in the basement (S is only two, so you can probably figure out how much she "works"). Our schedule is structured, which I LOVE, but we are also doing some fun things throughout the week.

• Monday evening, we visited a local state park--what a gorgeous evening!
• On Tuesday, we had our first homeschool meeting and had a great turnout (9 families in all!) 
• Our church is preparing for Missions Conference next week and it is the highlight of our year
• Aunt Beth, Caroline, and Quinn came over yesterday for a fun lunch visit

FALL~I think fall has arrived, although the calendar says it won't arrive until next week. Last night was COLD! It was raining and cool, and guess who forgot to take her jacket with her when she went out? me! We had the heater on in the car and everyone loved it! When we got home, the kids wanted their warm PJ's, but the only one who got them was S because R and D's are still packed in storage containers. It might be time to pull those bins.  :)

I have placed all the fall decorations and they are so pretty! Did you know that I love this time of year? ;) I will be creating a new fall wreath for the front door and found some really beautiful accessories for it at Hobby Lobby. I'll post a picture once it gets finished.

REMEMBERING~Today, September 16th, would be my nephew, Darrell's 21st birthday...how time flies...He has been in Heaven since July 2005, and I know my brother and sister-in-law miss him terribly. We all know we will see him again! Thank You, Jesus, for the promise of eternal life in Heaven!

Thanks for stopping by today...here's a picture from our state park visit...we stayed until the very latest possible. Right before we left, Hubbie captured this beautiful shot. Now that I see it uploaded, he captured the "Blue Hour".   :)  Have a wonderful day!

Around the Corner

Spring really is around the corner...even though the temperatures might not reflect that this morning! In my area, it is supposed to be in the 60's by Friday!  WooHoo! Here are a few pictures that remind me of spring...Enjoy!

~the best part about spring--short sleeves and no coats!~

Valentine's Day and a few other days

Happy Wednesday to you! I cannot believe it has been two weeks since I last blogged! Life is certainly busy enough, but I need to do better at recording my family's memories every day! Here's a quick recap so I don't forget...

On Friday, 2/4, we met my parents at a fun country market and did some shopping, and then went out to dinner together.

Saturday, 2/5, we had several activities at church so we stayed busy. We had our visitation program and basketball league for "R".

On Monday, 2/7, I spent getting our house ready for guests the next day. That evening, I attended my Ladies' Group meeting...and had Mexican food...we all brought something to the meal to share. We had chicken enchiladas and beef enchiladas, spanish rice, a delicious soup, 7 layer dip, and Pioneer Woman's tres leches cake.

Tuesday, 2/8, we were busy with our homeschool Valentine party! What fun we had and there were 32 of us in the house! Some of the kids participated in a valentine exchange and that was a lot of fun for them. There was lots of food. I am a planner, so we had party food--bbq meatballs, two different types of chips and dip, fruit with dip, cupcakes, brownies, fudge cake, cookies, candy, and drinks. Everyone seemed to have a good time! The kids all did really well with their "literary" presentations. Moms and kids alike had lots of good fellowship!

Wednesday, 2/9, my sister-in-law came over for lunch and brought her two little ones with her. We had a good time of talking and the kids played well together. My youngest cut her fingernail about halfway down into her nail, so she and I spent an hour or so at the doctor's office while Hubbie took "R" and "D" to church that night...

Thursday, 2/10, my youngest niece came over for a few hours while her parents ran an errand. What fun to watch my oldest learning how to take care of others...she does well with the little ones!

Then, Friday, 2/11, Hubbie had off and we worked on our bedroom some, went out to eat, and "S" went to Grandma's for the night.

Saturday, 2/12, was another basketball league day...the red and blue teams were tied until the very last seconds of the game...and the blue team came away with the win. The girls (and their parents) were so very excited! Go BLUE!

On Sunday, 2/13, our church celebrated "Sweetheart Sunday" and the messages in the AM and PM service were both on "The Invisible Part of Marriage", based on Psalm 1:1-3. I came away from those messages encouraged and challenged to not listen to the world about how my marriage should be...not to listen to ungodly counsel...it was good! After the PM service, we had a dessert fellowship and all the men were supposed to make the desserts! There were some really yummy things! Hubbie made brownies, then covered them with a layer of cream cheese (mixed with crushed Mint Oreo cookies), then chocolate pudding on top of that, followed by a layer of whipped topping...it was delicious!

Then our Valentine's Day~I'll show you in pictures.  :) I think we would all agree~we had a very lovely day!

~breakfast~

pancakes with valentine sprinkles

sausage cut in the shape of hearts

pink milk

 ~pink milk was a definite "hit"~

 ~for a more grown-up palette~  ;)

 ~Valentine's table~

~a dozen roses from my sweetheart~

 ~enjoying breakfast~

~excited about his meal~

~she loved her pink milk~

~one of the valentine decorations and kid's cards~

 ~new Valentine's apron~

~bag full of my favorite scent from Bath & Body~

japanese cherry blossom  :)

~huge rose from Hubbie~

over three feet tall!

 ~Grandma came over after breakfast,

Hubbie and I went out for some shopping,

talking, and fun together! We ate an early Valentine's dinner

at The Cheesecake Factory~

cajun chicken littles

~orange chicken~

 ~we ended our day with a slice of

Reese's chocolate peanut butter cheesecake~

delicious!

But, most of all, I thoroughly enjoyed spending the day with my sweetheart! I hope you enjoyed your day!



Our Newest Addition ;)

~ An R & D creation ~

December, 2010

Hello, Blogging Friends! The new year has come...the old year has gone...and it seems like it was quick! I haven't been blogging for a while, but I appreciate your sweet comments when I do post something!

Our Decembers are always busy~but whose isn't?  :)

Here's a quick re-cap of some of our events:

7th~Ladies Bible Study
10th~Hubbie's birthday
11th~"R" had a Sunday School party
12th~Christmas program for our Bus Ministry in the morning service
12th~Christmas Cantata in the evening service
14th~Christmas Caroling with our school group, then a quick overnight trip since Hubbie was taking a class, and a 10th birthday celebration at a delicious BBQ restaurant
15th~"R" turned 10! On our way home, we stopped for some shopping and eating, and after church, we had 1/2 price appetizers at Applebee's~yummy!
16th~snow  :)
18th~Cookie Day at Grandma and Grandpa's house (and we were thankful for all-wheel drive!)
21st~birthday breakfast for Grandpa and Poppy
21st~our 14th anniversary and a trip to The Cheesecake Factory!
24th~Christmas Eve brunch at Grandma and Grandpa's house (with all the kids and grandkids)
24th~Christmas Eve service at church
25th~Christmas Day dinner at Nanny and Poppy's house
26th~"D" turned 6!
26th~combined birthday party for "R" and "D" with some sweet friends; then the kids slept over til after dinner on the 27th
28th~trip to Granny's house
30th~came back home
31st~attended a beautiful wedding at our church, then rang in the New Year with my family by eating at Silver Diner (and saved over $30 with birthday coupons) and driving around looking at Christmas lights

Whew! While we were busy, we made a real effort this year to get all the shopping, wrapping, and baking done early so that we wouldn't be stressed...I think we were onto something! :)

Thanks for stopping by and reading my blog...I hope each of you has a very safe, healthy, and blessed 2011!

Autumn Banner

Happy Harvest!

God's Paintbrush

Recently, while driving on I-70 and I-68, through Ohio, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, West Virginia (again), Maryland, and West Virginia (yet again!), I was amazed at all the beautiful colors on the trees. It was like God had taken out His paintbrush, and had created a masterpiece...all around us! It was absolutely beautiful!

Then I started thinking~

• None of those trees were exactly the same, just like we are not all "the same".
• Each tree had a special color, just like we all have special gifts. What is/are your special gift(s)?
• Each tree points to God, just as we should point others to Christ.
• Every tree declared God's glory, just as we ought to praise Him for all He has done!

I am so thankful that I have been given the opportunity to see God's paintbrush this fall...and I am also thankful that He reminded me of these simple truths.

Have you seen some of His paintings?

Welcome, Autumn!

My favorite season has arrived!

Yippee!!

I love autumn and all the

beautiful colors that

the Lord paints in our world...

Happy Wednesday!

I just wanted to share a few pictures of some favorite fall things...

~beautiful sunflowers~

~in the colonial city of Williamsburg~

~pumpkin roll~

Around the House~Summer edition :)

I love to decorate our home with seasonal things, and Hubbie doesn't mind a bit! I have probably mentioned that a time or two on this blog! :) Using things I already own is fun...but when someone gives me a decoration, it is so enjoyable to me to find the "perfect spot" for it! When I decorate for Memorial Day and Fourth of July, I usually leave those things out until Labor Day. Here are just a few pictures from around our home this summer...Enjoy!

~dining room table centerpiece~

~I used navy beans as my filler in these cute $1 buckets~

(an idea I saw here)

~the complete table~

~little details that make a big difference to me~

~some gifts from a sweet blogging friend~

~a treasure I found this past weekend~

I hope you have a wonderful Wednesday!

It's supposed to be nice and hot today!

(at least 100 degrees forecasted for today

 +

high humidity

 =

one gal very thankful she has A/C!)

Summertime

Here are some of my favorite summertime things:

~Hubbie's time off from work
~fresh green beans from the garden (not my garden, though)
~family vacations
~a tall glass of sweet tea
~black-eyed susans
~air conditioning
~freshly mowed grass
~rose bush in full bloom by the mailbox
~summer schedule
~the slip'n'slide
~youth camp
~late nights which turns into late mornings...
~4th of July celebrations
~planning for the upcoming school year
~impromptu picnics with friends at a park
~fresh corn on the cob
~more reading time than normal :)

These are just a few things I'm thankful for this summer...

These are a Few of my Favorite Things...

about springtime! Jennifer did a post here about spring, and I thought it was a great idea. :)

Here is my version of things I love about spring.

~my favorite holiday, Easter, is during spring
~the promise of new beginnings
~taking evening walk with my sweet Hubbie
~redbud trees in full bloom (Stephani has some beautiful photos of some redbud trees here)
~daffodils, crocus, and tulips popping up out of the ground
~talking to my brother, William, who lives in Lithuania~I do not talk to him only in spring :)
~birds returning from their winter hiatus
~pansies that are still blooming (we planted them in the fall, and yippee! they survived our winter)
~not having to wear my winter coat
~watching the children enjoy playing on the swings
~cleaning out the flower beds
~spring birthdays
~fresh mulch
~planting the TopsyTurvy~this is our first year trying this out, so we'll see how well it works.
~hearing lawnmowers
~the smell of freshly cut grass
~being able to work outside in warm weather
~cool, crisp nights and warm, sunny days
~browsing homeschool materials for the next school year
~talking over the backyard fence with my neighbors
~looking at gardening magazines

~Crocus~

Thank you for stopping by today. I hope you have a great Thursday!

Snow, Snow, Snow, Snow!

One of my all time favorite movies is "White Christmas" with Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye. One of my favorite songs that they sing (besides their rendition of "Sisters") is the song about snow~while they're on the train traveling to Vermont. Perfect song for today!

Weather forecasters in our area are calling for up to two feet of snow between now and tomorrow night. The snow has started to fall already, most of the schools are closed for today, the grocery stores are insanely busy, but we are nice and warm at home!

We did go out yesterday evening to Home Depot and the grocery store. There were lots of people in Home Depot asking for snow shovels and salt. No luck there! Many people (including us) were getting painting supplies...At the grocery store, the bread aisle was completely bare! But there was plenty of milk and other goodies at Wegman's. :) We will stay busy with all of our little projects.

Well, I'm off to enjoy another day with the family. Oldest Daughter is a little bummed because she still has school...I just keep telling her~"You'll be glad that you worked hard all winter when, in May, you are finished with school, but everyone else is still going..." (I don't think she's buying it.) ;)

Thankfully, Hubbie works from home today, so he doesn't have to travel. I hope you have a safe weekend!