February In a Nutshell

Here is our busy yet fun month in review....

Missy was playing outside enjoying all of the ice in our field from the big melt then big freeze. She slipped and fell on her head. But as you can see she healed quickly.

Here she is at a birthday party at an ice skating rink learning to skate. Her brothers are in the background. The kids love skating so I have been on a quest to find skates for them. It also helped that a portion of our field turned into a rink. Pete had the best time and went out every chance he could.  Oh why didn't I get a picture?

My Valentine Chalkboard. Not an original design. I am good at copying things and putting my own spin on them.

I found this idea online (of course) and it was perfect for John. I pretended I was sleeping when he woke for his shower and snuck in the bathroom to put love notes on the mirror. He was so surprised and loved it! Would be fun and such an encouragement for your husband for any occasion. 

And of course our Valentine meal. We also had a "red meal" at my parents house the Sunday before. After all the idea originated with my Mom but the pictures must be on her camera.

And the highlight of our month was the 4H Music and Drama Festival. The kids worked so hard for this and they WON!!! I'll post more on that when the video is online.

Pete and RePete wanted to have a kids birthday party last year for their 10th but being that there wasn't any snow and they wanted to go sledding it didn't happen. Last month when it was their birthday the snow had melted but we were not disappointed and got enough for a lot of fun a month later.

I was looking for a Hobbit theme and came across a Settler's of Catan theme they liked better. She even had printable downloads to use to label the food and such.

The boys (12 in all) and one little girl went sledding first then came back to play Settlers of Catan and snack on food.

Then it was back outside to play "war". A favorite thing to play around here. And of course Little Miss gets in on the action too. John and I thanked Pete and RePete for including Missy and Seppy too in their party and they looked confused saying "Why wouldn't we?" I LOVE that everyone is included!

Here she is with her pink gun in hand. Makes me smile. :)

Maybe next month I'll actually get my pictures into individual posts. Haha!

Christmas 2012

Merry Christmas from Our family to Yours!

And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:14

Thankful

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving last week! John's parents were visiting on their way south for the winter...we had our annual Mayflower/Pilgrim meal....and Thanksgiving was at our house this year!

Seppy with Grandma harvesting sumac to make "Indian Lemonade/Sumacade" but we called it "Seppy Tea". While walking with Grandma, Sep picked the berries and rubbed them on his hand and licked it saying how tasty it was. That reminded Grandma that you can make tea from the berries and we thought that would be a good contribution to our Mayflower meal. It was an experiment by steeping the sumac berries (of which we have an abundance) then adding honey but it turned out well after a few tries. Although, we decided to try it next summer when the berries are at their best.

Missy and Pete in the "Mayflower" eating beef jerky and hardtack. We attempted to dress up this year using some of the costumes we had borrowed after singing at the nursing home. How did a Native American end up on our Mayflower? :)

One of our Thanksgiving tables. I had to go out and buy more glasses because somehow a whole set of ours broke between this Thanksgiving and the last time it was at our house 3 years ago. I debated using goblets but just couldn't bring myself to do it.

My Grandpa chatting and eating with his sister. They began our whole gathering. I am so thankful for their godly example to all of us! Grandpa with his gentle quiet manner and Aunt Dorothy for her humble service to many and her hospitality.

The gang with a few to come later.

My sister makes something creative each year and this time it was rice krispy turkeys. Cute!

Annual football game. John cut a portion of our fields to make a larger playing area and put tubing around. Very blurry but I liked John jumping in the air. Look closely and you can see Tank is playing barefoot. It isn't often he wears shoes around here.

My favorite thing this year is my chalkboard! Throughout the day people added what they were thankful for.

So Blessed! So Thankful!

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; 
for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

We Remember

"Those who have long enjoyed such privileges as we enjoy, 

forget in time that men have died to win them." 

Franklin D. Roosevelt 

Dec. 15, 1941

So thankful for both of my Grandfathers!

Easter Egg Tree

One of my favorite decorations leading up to the celebration of the Resurrection is an Easter Egg Tree.

My Mom started a tree when I was a child as her Aunt had a large one that she had admired as a little girl. It began with homemade eggs blown out and decorated with puffy paints but then each year she would add new purchased eggs and now that I am grown the egg tree is quite full even despite more than a few casualties over time. I love to look at the tree each year and reminisce or find the new egg.

Some eggs represent our heritage as with the Russian egg and the Dutch windmill.

Some remind me of my growing up years when Sara and I decorated eggs. While others clearly state the reason for the celebration.

I have wanted to begin my own tree and last year Pete, Re-Pete and I began by making doodle eggs with a sharpie marker from an idea I had seen in a magazine. Being that I love to doodle this was right up my ally and the boys were quick to join in. They turned out so nicely that we decided to make eggs again.

Everyone wanted in on the fun this year and each took a different style with theirs which makes them unique. The only downfall with this is how easily eggs break! Of course you could decorate hard boiled eggs in this manner as well, although your beautiful artwork would be destroyed rather quickly.

There is so much symbolism in an egg at this time of year and some may not agree but to us our hollowed out eggs represent the new life we can have in Christ. Christ died but the tomb is empty. We serve a risen Savior! Hallelujah!


But the angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here, for He has risen, as He said. Come, see the place where He lay."  Matthew 28:5-6

Preparation

Here are a couple of things we've been up to this week in preparation for Resurrection Day. I have wanted to do a full Passover Sedar meal for the past few years and didn't want to put it off any longer just because I didn't have all of my ducks in a row so we did an abbreviated version added to our normal supper. But the children got the idea and Tank asked if we could celebrate the Passover every year. They especially enjoyed the unleavened bread.

Today for Good Friday we made cross lollipops out of Jolly Rancher candy an idea I probably saw on Pinterest. I have seen other versions of this before but really liked the crosses for today and the kids all enjoyed making them and giving them out as well.

Happy New Year!

Wishing you a Very Happy New Year! Here is a video of the children in the church Christmas program singing Listen to the Story. When I watched this I realized how much my little Miss is growing up. All but Seppy are singing here.

December Happenings

December flew by so fast... for that matter the past four months have flown by so fast and my blogging is evidence of that because I never seem to have the time to update it. And too, having extremely SLOW internet service this past month means I cannot upload pictures. Today I am at my parents house where the wireless is so fast I don't know what to do first! :) Here are pictures of some of the happenings from the past month.

Luke lead the gang in making applesauce when I wasn't getting a move on it.

Our family with my Grandpa who still sits at the large red kettle at the mall during the Christmas season. As a little girl I always liked going to the mall to visit my Grandpa with his tape recorder playing Christmas music and handing out War Crys to the passersby. I have tried to continue that tradition with my children. The older boys and I also had a fun time ringing the bells with our 4H club.

Tank and Seppy getting ready to sing at the nursing home.

George playing his guitar at the nursing home.

Singing at the nursing home with other kids from church

My favorites that the children decorated.

All of us on Christmas Eve

Tank pouring sparkling grape juice for Grandma during our Christmas brunch.

Christmas day walking in a bit of a winter wonderland up the "rock road"

Mayflower and Pilgrim Meal

In preparation for Thanksgiving we enjoy reading books about the pilgrims and in past years have had a Mayflower meal as a fun way to get a glimpse of what the pilgrims might have experienced when traveling to a New World. The idea of this came from Doorposts and at some point my goal is to do this on a larger scale, dressing up and inviting friends to join in the fun. This weekend we invited my parents and my Grandpa.

This year for our Mayflower we crowded into Missy and Seppy's bedroom which is our smallest room and pulled the shade to make it dark. While ocean sounds played in the background I read portions from the book ...If You Sailed on the Mayflower in 1620. I really enjoy the "....If You" series of books. We had a meal consisting of hard tack, salted beef (beef jerky) and a bit of beer to drink as that is what they would have drank. The kids turn up their noses at this but it is fun to think of how different things were when the thought was that milk and water were not good for drinking. We even had the baby "Oceanus" on our ship and he would not stop crying which made me realize how crazy I would go in close quarters with all of the noises and smells around. My Dad is great at playing along and pretended to get seasick. :) As we "approached land" I opened the shade and we left our "ship".

Now onto the Plymouth Meal around the dinning room table. Tank opened with reading Psalm 100 and John read a Thanksgiving Prayer from The Valley of Vision, a collection of puritan prayers. I really enjoy reading through them as they are not to be taken lightly and are so adoring of our Lord. I know more times than I'd like to admit I get in a rut or am in a hurry to pray that I am not truly expressing my heart to the Lord. This is not flippant or dumbed down in any way.

O My God, Thou fairest, greatest, first of all objects, my heart admires, adores, loves thee, for my little vessel is as full as it can be, and I would pour out all that fullness before thee in ceaseless flow.

When I think upon and converse with thee ten thousand delightful thoughts spring up, ten thousand sources of pleasure are unsealed, ten thousand refreshing joys spread over my heart, crowding into every moment of happiness.

I bless thee for the soul thou hast created, for adorning it, for sanctifying it, though it is fixed in barren soil;

for the body thou hast given me, for preserving its strength and vigour, for providing senses to enjoy delights, for the ease and freedom of my limbs, for hands, eyes, ears that do thy bidding;

for thy royal bounty providing my daily support, for a full table and overflowing cup, for appetite, taste, sweetness, for social joys of relatives and friends, for ability to serve others, for a heart that feels sorrows and necessities, for a mind to care for my fellow-men, for opportunities of spreading happiness around, for loved ones in the joys of heaven, for my own expectation of seeing thee clearly.

I love thee above the powers of language to express, for what thou art to thy creatures. Increase my love, O my God, through time and eternity.

Our meal consisted of squash, skillet corn, crab cakes and broiled cod and perch. Next year my Mom and I said we'll plan farther in advance so we can include foods like crab legs and I think I'll include some type of a stew which the Indians might have made seeing as John and I aren't big fish eaters (unless it is breaded). George loves fish so he was in his element.

Dessert was not authentic this year but in the past I have made Indian Pudding which tastes very much like pumpkin pie but without a crust. In reading up on dishes that the pilgrims might have fixed I found that any type of squash was called a pompion. On the Plimouth Plantation website they have a note about cooking pumpkin from a book written by a traveler to New England in the 1600's and the last line I found so amusing and I guess pumpkins produce gas??...

But the Housewives manner is to slice them when ripe, and cut them into dice, and so fill a pot with them of two or three Gallons, and stew them upon a gentle fire a whole day, and as they sink, they fill again with fresh Pompions, not putting any liquor to them; and when it is stew'd enough, it will look like bak'd Apples; this they Dish, putting Butter to it, and a little Vinegar, (with some Spice, as Ginger, &c.) which makes it tart like an Apple, and so serve it up to be eaten with Fish or Flesh: It provokes Urine extreamly and is very windy.

We all enjoyed ourselves although some of us may have still been hungry. My Grandpa thanked me for the meal saying it was unusual but nice.