Lovin-Laughin-Learnin

Cardboard Testimonies

2009-03-05T17:10:00.002-06:00

A friend sent me this video today - it is AWESOME!!!

If you have just a couple minutes to spare, I think you will really enjoy it....

CARDBOARD TESTIMONIES

Happy Birthday

2009-03-01T13:02:00.003-06:00

My poor hubby

he only gets a birthday every 4 years ~ and this year wasn't one of them!!!

That's what happens ya know

when your a Leap Year Baby?!?
Good thing he is still loved though & he gets to celebrate whether it is technically his birthday or not!

Here our boy made him his own flag, out of PVC pipe, paper, tape & markers! How creative hu?
I think the most amazing part though

is the fact that he made this about a month ago, on his own intuition,
wrapped it & put it in his closet...where it didn't get thought of, or touched until his dad's birthday!!!

Government Movie

2009-02-21T10:50:00.003-06:00

I was sent the following video clip thru my homeschool newsletter. It is actually a very good video clip for anyone to watch - homeschooled, public schooled, or non-schooled! Just click on the following link, it is only a couple minutes long & I think you may find it interesting if you are kind of non-governmental smart like me!

Just Click Here!

Fish!

2009-02-20T13:16:00.010-06:00

The other day my hubby took the boys fishing for an afternoon & they had a little luck. Usually when they are done fishing, hubby is the one who cleans the fish after a short lesson to the boys, but than it gets in the "lets just get it done" mode & he finishes up, with the boys complaining they never get to clean them!

Well, seeing as hubby has a cut on his hand (that should be seen by a doc in MY opinion, not his) by the end of the day, his hand was once-again throbbing,
so the boys got their wish!
They were left in charge of cleaning the fish - all the fish!

They started out very happy that FINALLY they got their wish...they were laughing & joking & having a good-ole-time!
but soon enough-like too much of anything...
the fun starting wearing away!
But they stuck it out...to the bitter end!

and they were rewarded for their patience (or not-so-much)

and got to enjoy a fresh fish dinner - now how can you beat that?

A Winter Ride

2009-02-19T15:11:00.004-06:00

Seeing as it was only 10 degrees below today, my son decided it was warm enough to get his horse out & go for a ride.

Of course his dad made him wait a minute so he could check her hooves & give them a quick trim first...
waiting is so hard.......

for both rider & horse!

Ahhh - finally they got to go out for a nice little ride in the crisp cool air!

Nothing like a good winter ride to redden your cheeks up a bit!

Homeschool Family

2009-02-18T08:27:00.005-06:00

I realize most of you probably don't homeschool...but even so I think you may enjoy this video, if you want to check it out

Click Here

Have a great day everyone!

Food fit for Angels

2009-02-17T09:52:00.008-06:00

My family isn't big on cake...they do love a chocolate sheet cake that I got off The Pioneer Woman, but an all time favorite here is angelfood, which up to this point has been out of a box. Well, the other day when my sister was here, she asked why we didn't make it from scratch, seeing as we get on average about 13 of these a day:

So, I set out to attempt it - finding it was much simpler than I thought!

Here's what I did:

First, I ventured outside to get the eggs, well actually to the barn... of course on the way I got greeted by a few fellow farm creatures
but here are the ones that had what I wanted

and this is what I found

After I was back in the house (and washed my hands good, thankyouverymuch), I proceeded with this recipe:

Sift together 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar & 1 cup cake flour. Sift 3 more times.

In a large mixer bowl beat 1 1/2 cups egg whites (approx.10-12 eggs), 1 1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar, 1 teaspoon vanilla, and 1/2 teaspoon salt at medium speed until soft peaks form. Gradually add 1 cup granulated sugar & continue beating until stiff peaks form.

Sift 1/4 flour mixture over egg mixture & stir in by hand, repeat by fourths with remaining flour. Turn into a UNGREASED 10" tube pan, trying to get less all over the sides than I did.

Bake on lowest rack of oven at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes until baked thru & these pretty cracks form on the top

Invert cake & cool completely. When cool, gently run a knife around edges & get that cake out of that pan. I can't imagine making this cake without one of these awesome pans with removable sides. Actually, why don't they make all cake pans like this?
We don't like frosting on our angelfood, but we do like a little glaze. I just mix together some powdered sugar, vanilla, milk & a little almond extract. It is also super yummy with some strawberries & whipping cream.

You can also try chocolate angelfood.
Yum - Enjoy!

Happy Valentines!!!

2009-02-15T11:20:00.004-06:00

I know...I know...Valentines Day was yesterday! But I tried to post this yesterday & it went "blink" on me, or at least my electricity did & it was gone. So I'm just now back to share with you how we celebrated "Balentines Day" as my youngest says.

So anyhow, basically we started off with the kiddos digging out their candy from the Valentine boxes they made earlier in the week:

Doesn't my boy look just thrilled to be told "smile" while he's still in his pjs looking at his heart box full of peanut butter cups?

Than the kiddos gave mommy & daddy their beautiful handmade Valentines cards:
After everyone was showered & dressed, we had these cute little heart shaped pizzas for lunch. Hubby said our youngest saw an ad for heart pizzas this week & said we should have some of them, so we did! (but we made them ourselves, have I told you before we don't go out to eat much?)
and of course we had to have our heart shaped sugar cookies with frosting (just like my mom USED to make-hint hint mom!)
but like any good thing, it always seems to come to an end!
Happy Belated Valentines Day everyone!!!

Playdough Time

2009-02-07T12:37:00.006-06:00

I printed this new playdough recipe off a website I read quite often & have been meaning to try it for some time now.

When I ended up with 2 more kids for the weekend, thanks to my sis going off to play for a couple days...I thought there was no better time than the present to give this recipe a try.
and guess what? It was a hit.......

even with the big kids!

So if your interested in trying it yourself, here is the recipe:

Fruity Playdough
Mix 1 cup flour, 1 package koolaid (in whatever color dough you want), 1 Tablespoon cream of tartar & 1/4 cup salt.
Add 1 Tablespoon oil & 3/4 cup boiling water, stir thoroughly.
At this point I gave it to the kids (once it was cooled down) & had them beat & pound on it to get it thoroughly mixed.
When done playing store it in an air tight container or ziplock bag & store in the fridge. It should last a couple months!

Have Fun!

GIVEAWAY: Arbonne FC5 Fresh Cells Shower Set

2009-02-06T13:08:00.004-06:00

Do you like giveaways? I do...

Here is a great one on a blog I like to visit quite often. Mandi has lots of neat kids crafts going on all the time & also some wonderful tips on home organization.

Well today she is giving away an Arbonne Shower Set. Go check it out:
RIGHT HERE!

Good Luck!!

Birthday Fun

2009-02-05T10:16:00.004-06:00

For my daughter's 14th birthday Grandma & Grandpa joined us for lunch
than we had cakeand presents
& we finished off the day with a good swim
Happy Birthday A!!!

Bouncy-Trouncy-Flouncy-Pouncy Tigger

2009-02-02T20:22:00.006-06:00

Tigger...

My daughter has always loved Tigger...his silliness, his bounciness, his getting into trouble & making Rabbit mad!

So over the years, she has collected quite a few Tiggers, from just plain ol' snuggly soft ones that do nothing, to bouncy ones, to laughing-silly ones, Tiggers that sing his famous song & Tiggers that just suck up lots of batteries..........

We've gone thru lots of batteries for Tigger!

Here is her latest Tigger, thanks to her auntie:
and here is what he does:
and as you can see, they all love him-7AA batteries & all!
Thanks Stac!!!

What Day is it?

2009-02-01T09:36:00.006-06:00

One of the things we are working on right now, is learning our days of the week, months of the year, seasons, etc.

A great learning tool I have found is this cloth calendar:you can find it to here...but first let me show you why we like it...

Each day my kiddos get to change the calendar-they each have THEIR day & they don't give it up! First they need to figure out what day it isThan they need to make it all correct,
the month, day, year, day of the week (including yesterday & tomorrow), also the season & weather outside.
Everything is self contained, each piece has its own spot to go back to & it even has the years up to 2015! Each piece has velcro on the back, so even little hands can make um "stick"

There! Finished - its always good to know what day it is!

My Baby & Her Baby

2009-01-31T12:10:00.004-06:00

My baby laid on the couch last night to watch some tv, but without a nap yesterday, it wasn't long till she looked like this:Oh, this so reminds me of when I would take one of my tired, crabby kiddos & say "come lay down with mommy for a little bit" thinking he/she would crash...but no....it was mom who would fall asleep

and kiddo would run away to play!!!

Oh What a Beautiful Morning!

2009-01-29T15:44:00.009-06:00

One of my goals for 2009 is to keep up better on my photo albums. I'm so jealous of my sisters picture/scrap books, that are just beautiful & always up to date! And mine...well, not so much!

Anyhow, my goal for myself (besides getting the past 15 years of marriage into yearly photo albums, so my children may actually see their baby years) is to print & get my photos in the 2009 photo album on a monthly basis.

Since January is just about done, I wanted to get a head start, so I was glancing thru some pics I took this month and wanted to share one beautiful morning a couple weeks ago:
What a glorious treat to wake up to & see God's beauty all around! Everyone sing with me "Oh What a Beautiful Morning..."

Snowmobiling

2009-01-26T22:01:00.001-06:00

Snowmobiling...its a big thing around here! Hubby & me got our snowmobiles back when we only had 2 kiddos, now we have 4!

Actually, I got my first snowmobile when I was about 4 or 5~we still have it, though it has seen better days. Here are my 2 youngest riding around a couple years ago:
As you can see it has a few issues, but hey, they still have fun cruising about 3 mph around the yard, given theres no bumps or humps of snow or ice to get stuck on!

Of course, the older they get, the harder to please!

For my older 2, were talking more along these lines:and believe me, the more bumps & jumps---the better!!!

Pizza Dinner

2009-01-24T17:11:00.009-06:00

At our house we have pizza dinner about once a week. We go out to eat very little & I can't stand frozen pizzas, so we make our pizza crusts in the bread maker & are often trying new recipes to come up with that perfect one!

I have also found that my kids enjoy the pizza more if they get to "make their own", so this has become part of the weekly ritual. What I do, is make the crust, than rip off about a fist size piece & let them have at it, rolling it out, making funny shapes & putting all the toppings on they can manage. Sometimes its amazing that when they come out, they can tell which one is theirs, but they always do!

The other night we tried a new recipe & this one was very good, so I thought I would share:

PIZZA CRUST

1 tsp sugar
2 tsp salt
1/4 cup cornmeal
3 Tbs whole wheat flour
3 cups unbleached flour
1 1/4 cups warm water
2 Tbs olive oil

1 Tbs yeast

1. Place all ingredients in bread machine. Program for dough cycle & press
start.

2. After cycle completes, remove dough & let rest 10 minutes at room
temperature.

3. Roll out crust to desired thickness on a floured surface. Place on
greased pizza pan or cookie sheet.

4. Cover with pizza sauce, meats, veggies & cheese of choice. Bake at 450°
for approx 10-15 minutes, or until just starting to bubble & brown (do not
overbrown cheese)

5. Enjoy~Yum!

A Logging Trailer of His Own

2009-01-23T15:50:00.013-06:00

My boy~he loves machinery...
At that wonderful age of 12 he loves all kinds, from big to little. Farming with his dad, he gets to drive the real things around the farm, from bobcats, backhoes, tractors, dumptrucks & pickups.

But when he comes in the house, he still loves his toy machinery... he has a miniature duplication of his dad's big trucks & farm setup in his room, in mini-version. Actually, if his dad had half the trucks in real life that he has in his room, he'd really be happy!

There have been many pieces of toy machinery bought for this boy & his younger brother, some are still here, some have met their fate under a tire or crashed off the top of the stairs. But one thing he has realized, is sometimes the best toys are the ones you build yourself. He has been looking for a logging trailer that loads the logs, much like the one his dad's cousin has in real-life. But he has been disappointed that the toy versions are cheap & plastic (which do not last long in our house!)

So he took matter into his own hands & here is what he came up with:

He is now satisfied with his equipment collection for a day or two, until the next idea pops into his head. For me, the satisfaction lies in the fact that I know if he wants something bad enough, he knows how to be creative enough to make it!

My Title

2009-01-20T15:28:00.004-06:00

Once I decided I was going to try this whole blogging thing, my first hurdle was a title.

I looked thru many different blogs & each one had such a unique, perfect title - for them. I realized a lot had something, somehow connected to them in a personal sort of way. Hmmm, that was a tough one for me, I don't feel overly creative in this sort of thing.

Well after a few days, and lots of time being spent on really giving my title that unique spin, well, I gave up! I was going to just call it quits! Than I saw the sign hanging in my kitchen that my Grandma gave me for my birthday:

Well I figured this was a popular enough saying that there would be lots of them out there. So I gave it a twist of my own & incorporated 3 things that I feel are very important in my family:
LOVE-If you don't got this, well than what do you got?
LAUGHTER-This is very important, it would be a pretty boring life without it!
LEARNING-As a homeschooling mom of 4 young kiddos, this is a must!

So there you have it my friend, the very un-creative, un-exciting arrival at, um, well my arrival-here in the big blogging world!

Thanks for listening, or reading~Sam

Here I Go

2009-01-19T06:48:00.004-06:00

Have you ever laid in bed half awake & thought of the perfect thing to say to someone, only to forget what it was by morning? I have...
That's how I feel with this blog, but first let me back up a bit.

When I first heard of blogging, I ignored it.
When friends & family joined in, I ignored it.
When I kept getting invites to visit their blogs, I would go peek a bit but still wasn't interested in the whole concept.
Then they started inviting me to Facebook...no...no...no...ok just a bit...a bit more...and now too much! Some have links to their blogs from Facebook & oops, I clicked, I read & now I think I'm ready to jump in...maybe?

Here's the thing though, I'm more of a glass half full person, looking for the end results, so I'm reading all these blogs that have pages of past posts & than I go back to the one I have started & there is nothing there. So why, I ask you, would anyone come here, & if no one will visit, why am I typing this post?

I feel like I'm writing a journal & asking everyone to come read it & that is so not me!

So back to the whole middle of the night brainstorm, only to wake up with an empty page...last night I lay in bed, when I should have been sleeping, & thought of some great stuff to write on here~or maybe I just dreamt that I did?