Photo dump

The kid's participated in the Buddy Bass Fishing Derby again this year.  Sadly, not one fish was caught:(  But they did have a fun time and it was a beautiful day!

 Love Jeff's expression in this one!

 Ry got bored fishing so he played with some bait!

 My Mother's Day breakfast-in-bed.  So sweet of them to prepare and deliver it to my bed:)  They also made a plethora of cards and sweet notes.  And I got a new watch to replace my broken one.

 With Jeff's busy schedule I haven't been able to take as many walks on my own.  The weather has been beautiful finally, so the kids and I just pack up and head out for a 4-5 mile walk most days.  The trail system here in Bentonville is so nice - paved and well-kept.  There are several different trails we take and here's a shot from yesterday's adventure.  This one of Ry running makes me smile - he has such a cute running pose and I am so happy I could capture a bit it!

My allergies are in killing me!  Or it could be allergies plus the nasty cold Jeff had last week.  Either way it makes walking/jogging really hard.  But, I am finding that I really miss my exercise when I don't get to do it, so I'm pushing on through the "pain."  Ha!  Seriously, no pain, just a pain in the rump to deal with the crud, but AR spring weather is so unpredictable, I can't bet on tomorrow being nice.  We just have to take advantage of today!  Sounds like some proverb doesn't it?

We are all so excited about the summer - getting to spend so much time in FL and the kids are super amped for Poppy and Theresa's wedding.  Jack wanted to be the best man!  We have pulled Jack from scout camp - just too homesick and with all the time away for FL it just didn't seem like the best time.  I'm sure we'll find many other things to do - swimming, parks etc.  Ok, off to meet a friend and her son for a walk!

Jeff took Jack and Ella-Kathryn on a practice hike before Jack's Scout hike last weekend.  These two make me smile:)  They do fight, they're normal siblings after all, but man alive they love each other and miss one another when the other is elsewhere.  Hope they are always so close!

 Ryan loves to sort and organize his tackle box!  About once a week he gets it from the garage and goes through everything.  He tells me he's got to get his "hookers" in the right spots!  Ha!

 We finally had gutters installed!  A friend of Jeff's owns his own guttering business and was able to fit us in a couple of weeks ago . The kids thoroughly enjoyed watching him in action!  Jack was so sweet to, inquiring as to whether or not the man knew Jesus, what church he attended etc.  Mr. Minnick called us a couple of days later to tell us how impressed he was with Jack and his bible knowledge!

 These two faithful friends.  Hap continues to show his age - slower to get up and going, lots of naps, and he's rather lumpy these days (fatty cysts.)  But he's still as sweet as ever!  Chewie was diagnosed with a tick disease and after being on antibiotics for 3 weeks we will find out tomorrow if he's ok.

 The one pic from Easter!  I think my sister in -law may have snapped a few so I'll see what I can come up with.

 Ryan teaching Will how to play the piano!  Ryan is actually rather musical.  I'm giving lessons to the older two, and just letting the younger get the feel for the keyboard right now.

 Out for walk one afternoon, I'm pushing Ry in the jog stroller and Will and EK are behind me.  Will says "Mom, I just kicked a fake snake!"  What??? I walk back to him and sure enough there is the snake - NOT FAKE WILL!!!!!!  Luckily it was just a little guy, but still - not a fan!

 Ryan waiting for the pumpkin to grow:)

 Just a little randomness from our house to yours - Ken's head on a an Indian warriors body?  Make's total sense to me:)

And the update:
We are all over the place these days.  Scouts, karate, school, Jeff's 3 jobs!  It is easy to feel out of control and off kilter pretty quickly.  Yet, when I map out our weeks, I can see clearly where we have time, when we need to be certain places etc.  Sometimes, things do fall between the cracks, but Jeff and I are being much more intentional in checking calendars, texting appts to one another and we are doing ok. Remembering that God did not give us our days to be wasteful and lazy, yet balancing that with His reminders to rest in Him and take a sabbath - this is a delicate see-saw!  One more activity and we all fall with an abrupt thump on our rears.  Deciding to 'rest' and we all fly wildly into the air with a lack of direction and chaos ensues.  These people under our care require some structure and discipline in their EVERY day lives!  So do the adults:)  Jeff and I are working diligently to get our health back on track.  To date he has lost 10 pounds and is using an app to track his eating habits.  I too have lost pounds and am faithfully walking the hills of Bella Vista.  It is truly quite the interval training around here!  With my 40th coming in just a few months, I decided I didn't want to drag my wimpy self into this next decade.  I really desired to show up strong, healthy, and confident that God could use this body for his glory without worrying whether or not it could keep up!  I even made myself a hair appt for Fri so that I can cover up these gray hairs:)  I know it shouldn't bother me to see them taking over my head, but I just can't shake the feeling that they are tattling on me!  Ha!
We put in our garden this week and the little boys are so very excited to see the various veggies grow.  They cannot understand why the pumpkin isn't here yet:)  they bickered all day yesterday as to who would water the plants too!  It's going to be a long spring!
Jack had another camp out for scouts.  This was a big backpacking trip and while he did better this time, it is still a challenge for him to not be homesick.  We are still praying about another upcoming overnight trip as well as summer camp.  Not sure which would be the right call for this tender boy of ours.  We are trusting God to make it clear to us - we don't ever want Jack to feel that he has to hide his emotions, yet he also must learn self-control: not every emotion we feel needs to be expressed.  And he's only 11.  Much to think over and process.
Ella-Kathryn continues to amaze me in her diligence and independence.  She is truly a homeschooling delight!    She gets her books, heads to her room and then hours later comes out with the completed work.  Quite a contrast to our first born!  And i say this not to say she's better than Jack, just in amazement in how different two kiddos can be.  She still loves animals and after a recent visit to the vet, was asking about how old one needed to be to work there.
Will and Ryan keep me hopping!  They are both so energetic:)  Will is wrapping up his math curriculum for the year - he did extra work every day so that he could begin his 1st grade math sooner!  He is doing well in his reading too - I'm remembering how fun it is to listen to a little one sound out words.
Ryan continues to make us all laugh out loud every day!  He is so smart and talks NON-STOP!  I have to be really careful to mind my own mouth, b/c there are times when "yes, Ryan?" becomes "WHAT Ryan?" because I am so tired of answering his questions! Oh but that boy is so cute:)
We have been off school this week since we never took a spring break and the older two have their state testing on Thurs.  They did a little math and reading each day, but today I think we'll just do our read aloud.  Ella-Kathryn is nervous, and Jack is just Jack!  We keep telling them that we really dont' give two hoots about these tests so not to worry, but I'm afraid they are their mother's children!

Time

Time just seems to be slipping through my fingers.  I really wanted to make this journal a daily practice, but find that while I think often of writing, I always put it off, replaced by other things.
Like attending Jack's Cub Scout crossover ceremony.  I got a little teary up on stage with him and the new Boy Scout troop he would become a part of.  I think it is a pretty big deal - Boy Scouts embody so many of the qualities I hope for Jack to possess.  To be self-assured, confident, capable, handy, inventive, thrifty, and thoughtful.  His troop seems to be a group of like minded boys, all working towards these common goals.  Jack is already talking about setting goals - wow! That right there is enough for this mom:)

 This little man was attempting the Scout salute during the pledge of allegiance at the crossover ceremony.  He, as well as the little boy in the background there, want to be "Scub Scouts" when they get bigger.

This is from a hike we all took last year - fall obviously, but for the life of me I can't remember when.  We went to a trail Jeff and I hiked frequently in our dating years.  This kind of photo, taken through a hole in a tree, was a fun tradition for Jeff and I - so we decided to pass it on:)

 Oh, New Year's Eve!  What fun we had with our cousins, staying up late (11:00 central time, but midnight on the east coast!)  and eating candy and junk food! 

 Also during our time with the cousins over xmas break.  We all headed to the Crystal Bridges trails, did some hiking and then grabbed some yummy lunch at the Flying Fish.

 Jack and Ella -Kathryn have been doing karate since Jan.  They really enjoy it!  They've learned so much in such a few short months.  I'm really impressed with their dedication and desire to learn.  Belt testing is in a couple of weeks - I'm nervous for them, but whatever the outcome I'm glad they're having fun!

 Valentine's Day celebration, mommy style.  Some homemade hearts hanging from the chandelier; strawberry muffins and hot cocoa with red and white striped straws for breakfast; raspberry soda with heart shaped grilled cheese  and strawberry fruit leather for lunch.  Homemade Valentines for all:)

 Our first real snow of the season - finally enough to build a snowman!  He melted and collapsed only a few hours later:(  But they had a blast while it lasted!

 Mother/Son Scout dinner and dance.  So much fun and such a special night for us.  We got to tour Crystal Bridges Art museum first, then headed to the church for delicious dinner and even dancing.  The boys learned the box step at their troop meeting, as well as the wiggle.  We did some crazy group dances (the cupid shuffle?) and of course the bunny hop.  It really was a fun night, and Jack was so sweet - the boys all wrote their moms a special letter - of course I cried!  can't believe how big he's getting and how quickly time is passing. 

 

Some other things I want to remember:

*Will accepted Christ - 1/26/13!!!!!

*Jeff has three houses listed and is closing on his first house this month.

*Jack had to have 4 teeth removed!  Poor kid:(  They were impacted and had to go.

*During family devo we were talking about Ryan's time in the NICU and I said "seeing you in there broke my heart."  Ryan replied, "mommy, I'm sorry I broked your heart"

*Ryan got out of bed one night and came to our room asking me to help him blow his nose.  Afterwards, I said it was time for him to go back to bed to which he replied that he wanted to see me.  I said, well you've seen me, so back to bed.  He then told me "No I want to see you.  In your bed.  All night."  Ha!

*While working on a grammar lesson, I asked Ella-Kathryn what the punctuation marks were that indicated that someone was speaking.  She said "Italian marks"   HAHAHA!!!!!  She is so funny:)

*Jack asked his patrol leader what he needed for the upcoming camping trip.  #2 on his list was "gillotine"  I looked at him and said you have to bring something to behead someone????  He then confessed that has wasn't sure what his leader had said, something for carrying water - I said " a Nalgene water bottle?"  Jack, "Yes!"  Oh brother!

 

*Jack's 11 Year stats:
Height - 5 ft

weight - 77lbs

He had to get two vaccines (Dtap and bacterial meningitis) and took them in the shoulder.  Ouch!  He was sore for days!

 

 

Christmas Morning 2012

Winding Down

We are only 5 days out from Christmas and we are winding down our homeschool term here.  The changes we made, leaving our unit study method, and returning to our Classical model, has made a huge improvement for me.  We are also pretty well scheduled, using the Maxwell's "Manager's Of Their Homes" as our model.  Our master schedule is color-coded and hung where we do school so everyone, even the littles, know exactly what they should be doing and when.  While there are some days that are a bit less rigid than others, we all know the schedule is there to keep us on track.  It's helped my mood and attitude tremendously, in that I was definitely feeling some burn-out symptoms after Thanksgiving.  Part of it was due to the curriculum issues but the other was certainly because I felt so out of control when it came to how our time seemed to be wasted day in and day out.
We have also been able to work in fun stuff, like the Christmas parade, almost daily walks after lunch, mommy/daddy Christmas shopping, and even a couple of child/parent dates.
Here's Ryan on one of the garden sculptures at Crystal Bridges museum.

 Jack and Ry

 Ella-Kathryn and Ry...Will was there too, I just never got him to be still long enough for a pic!

 Jack's scout pack went to the reenactment at Prairie Grove Battlefield.  It was a huge production, to commemorate the 150th anniversary and we had a great day.  Here are the kiddos at the one room school house.

 Jack and Me waiting for the battle to begin!

 Managed to squeeze us all in this shot:)

 Sweet Ella-Kathryn covering Will's ears during the last skirmish of the day.  He really does not like loud noises and I forgot the big ear protectors that we usually have on hand for this kind of thing (and 4th of July:))  The re-enactors were literally right in front of them - I filmed some of the fight and it is quite loud!

 This silly boy wearing his daddy's motorcycle helmet.  Jeff rides for the Sheriff's Dept and does so for some of the local xmas parades - sadly we missed the ones he was in this year.

Here they are bundled up for the Bentonville parade.  Doesn't Jack look thrilled:)

 My little human chain - stacking firewood on the back porch. It was so cute to see Jack loading Ryan up into the wheelbarrow for the trip back to the wood pile.  Ryan loved it! On Wed. we had temps in the 60's and that night we even were under a tornado watch.  Then Thurs. it was in the 30's and we had snow flurries!  Welcome to AR!   Thank goodness we got a fire going early this morning because right as our lunch was finished cooking, our power went out for a few hours.  School was officially declared out for the rest of the day!  Ryan is napping, and the other kiddos are out playing with our neighbors - it is eerily quiet in the house right now...just waiting for one of my people to need me:)

So now we have one more day of school left and then the weekend is devoted to cookie baking, present wrapping, and waiting...to celebrate Christ's birth and for our family to arrive from FL and TN.  We are so excited to see everyone!
A few more things I want to note:
*In our advent reading this year we've been tracing Christ through the bible from Genesis on.  One of our stories included Jacob's death - ryan remembers this at every reading now and reminds us to pray for his family:)
*Ryan said "awww poor baby" when I told him that baby Jesus had to sleep on hay when he was first born.
*While math continues to be a difficult subject for Jack, I have definitely seen improvement this year.  Praise God!  He is even beginning to do work independently - this is huge for him!
*Ella-Kathryn loves to do pre-school with the little boys and so I've scheduled a half hour for her every day to have fun with them.
*Will is learning to read - it is so much fun to see the light bulb moments when the letters form words in his mind and then he realizes that he's just read a sentence!
*Jeff passed his real estate exam!!!!
*I got to have a night out with Mel and Kimberly - God has blessed me greatly with these friendships - I am so undeserving of this gift, but I will take it gladly!
*I have a bad case of babyitis...crazy I know, but I am missing having a newborn in the house.
* the kids beg Jeff on a weekly basis to please adopt a baby girl.  He is still a firm no in this area:) Although I count it as nothing short of a miracle that he admitted that he had prayed about adoption!
*I was on the phone with Karen one morning and she had to hurriedly hang up because something had happened with Case.  While explaining to my kids that I was off the phone and didn't know what had happened to Case, Will piped up, "I bet I know.  Emily probably put make up on Case."  What in the world?!?!
*Ryan is still coming into our bed at night - never the same time or anything, and I am of two minds on this.  One part of me is tired of the bed hog visiting each night.  The other is holding onto this because he is the last baby in the family and very soon will genuinely be too big for this!  One night I did say to him, "let's go back to your bed like a big boy."  To which he very politely said, "No thanks.  I like your bed."  Sorry folks, I can't say no to that!
*Ryan is struggling lately with using the word "hate" - which we don't allow in our house. Last night I finally broke down and put some vinegar on his tongue and told him that his ugly words made us feel yucky like the vinegar did in his mouth.  then I gave him some honey and reminded him that God tells us that our words show others what our heart really looks like - and that when we used our words to tell others nice things etc. they feel loved.  He seemed to understand (we'll see how long it lasts) but the funny part was as I was coming back into the living room, Jack turns to me and says "Mom, I really liked how you handled that.  What a great teaching moment.  Dad should learn from you mom."  Ha!!  Thanks Jack!

Working it out

As any follower of Christ knows, this walk, this life is sometimes so hard.  Death of a loved one, difficult financial situations, broken relationships, disappointments...sin brought so much ugliness into our world.  We have to choose, daily, to see God in our lives.  It stands to reason that there are going to be days that this choice "feels" easier and those when it seems almost impossible!  Having godly friends can help greatly in this area.  As does having parents and other older relatives who demonstrate how to live out one's faith, in the midst of life.   So it goes here at the Simpson house:)  The daily challenges of homeschooling, character issues, and the overall weariness that can arise in mothering 4 people day in and day out - they all can lead me to feel burnt out and empty.  My friend is writing an ebook which sets out to encourage and demonstrate how to have a quiet time.  My sister is faithful in rising early to spend time with the Lord, and my dad is never far from the scriptures early in the morning.  My time too is before the day really gets underway.  Will often joins me and then the others trickle out.  This time really does prepare my heart for the challenges of the day as well as getting my eyes ready to see the blessings.
Right now we continue to parent through some character issues - lack of diligence, ugly tempers, and negative attitudes.  Unfortunately, God continues to remind me that where the mom goes, so goes the child:)  Where I show a short fuse, so will the boy.  When I feel lazy and cut the lesson short because I'm frustrated, so will the child think  that cutting corners is acceptable.  Time and time again, this "one-piece life" (Ann VosKamp) shows me how lacking I am in every area. Yet, the hope comes in knowing that I don't have to be enough.  Christ will be glorified in my shortcomings.  I must only remember to rely on him moment by moment and extend his mercy to myself and my children.  In this, we pray that they will be drawn to the gospel.
Ok, so some things to remember:
Ryan asking if we know the movie "Black Harry" - finally realizing that he means "Charlie Brown"
Jack working with Poppy to complete his toolbox for scouts - it's really amazing!
Hearing the kids encourage one another
Watching Ryan shadow Jeff - all day long, every move he makes, Ry is right there!  Oh how he loves his daddy!
A great Thanksgiving visit with dad/Poppy - relaxed and fun, we all enjoyed our time with him.

Looking forward to the coming Advent season - trying to prepare our hearts and minds in a way that honors Christ's birth.

Dreams

I had another wacky dream this past week.  Nothing unusual there, but this one made me laugh out loud when I woke up.  Back story:  when I was in high school my whole family, one of my aunts, and my maternal grandparents all traveled to Europe.  It was wonderful trip getting to see so many amazing places.  Back to the present, I just finished reading a memoir of sorts:  an American author and professor, her professor husband and their 2 children move to Paris for a year.  I'm  a sucker for a travelogue/living abroad story, and  Eloisa James (Mary Bly) is a fantastic writer, both touching in her honesty in the passages about her mother's death as well as her own cancer story, and hysterically funny in the bits on her own family, parenting, and the faux pas that come from those cultural and linguistic nuances.  So I can only imagine that these two things, amid others I'm sure, were the roots for this dream.  Ok, so we are living in some city, New York sort of but not quite.  I am walking through this huge library which also operates as the subway station - side note: I think this is a lovely idea, forcing people to spend time in rooms full of books while waiting for their transportation.  As I'm wandering, I am thinking about the fact that my Aunt and I are flying to England later that day and I have neither packed, nor decided which, if any, children I am taking with me.  I am also unsure of whether or not I have a valid passport, but this detail is dismissed from my mind when I become side tracked by a shelf of books, historical romances (this is where I'm sure of the Eloisa James influence, as she writes this kind of fiction) and a woman with her newborn.  Babies will side track me every time, dream or reality.  I find a book that looks interesting and ponder the idea of somehow having another baby, even though it is biologically impossible now. Then I'm in my Aunt's apartment and we are trying once again to determine what to pack and when to leave.  It occurs to me at this point that we should have already gone to the airport because we think our flight leaves in an hour and being an international flight and all, well, security etc. we should have been there hours ago.  Oh well, I think, lets just go now.  Oh, and pack a few things. And decide if I'm taking children.  Then this woman, Beverly, Bev for short, whom I apparently know and rather well at that, chimes in "I'm taking my 3."  Children that is, and  it is completely fine that a) this woman is traveling with us, and b) she is bringing the children, and c) this would have some sway over my own decision to bring/not bring my own.  I woke up at this point feeling both a tremendous sense of relief that I didn't have any major packing to do for that day and that my children didn't need to fear that I would or would not choose to take them to the grocery store that day. Otherwise I was also disappointed in myself for being so woefully unprepared for my dream trip.   It made me think about those yucky thoughts I have about myself: that I'm a flake and typically fly by the seat of my unprepared pants.  No worries, I was quickly able to dismiss the thoughts, but I remained saddened that there is no international travel in my future.