Unwanted yard guest

Look what we have living in our front yard.  Yes, a critter, varmint, rodent, but probably not a mouse.
Ballerina came in the other day after doing her job of visiting the dog next door, and told me that there was a mouse foraging in the grass, but it wasn't afraid of her.  So I followed her out, and sure enough there was this tiny creature who just kept coming out of the juniper, not seeming to care that we were standing right there.  I have to tell you that for a minute I was afraid it was rabid mouse, as earlier that week I had talked to a mom whose son was bit by a rabid skunk.  Seriously.  Not even kidding a little.
So I called my father-in-law, who knows stuff about most stuff and he assured me that it probably wasn't going to bite anyone's face off. (sidenote that later someone told me that they don't think that mice can be rabid, but I haven't researched that myself yet)
Anyway, my husband (who still doesn't have a blog alias) set up some traps outside the juniper, because even though it is living outside now, we know how proficient at reproducing mice are (no jokes about our 5 daughters allowed) and we don't want a family of mice deciding to try and move in when it gets colder in the fall.
So yesterday we caught it, right??  WRONG!  I watched it foraging beside the trap, happily rubbing up against it, but not stepping into it....which I actually didn't want to see outright - that is one of the great things about being married.  You know, the unwritten rule about husbands exterminating all vermin and dealing with all corpses, you've heard of that one right?

See how behind it there is a very distinct opening into the juniper??  There are also distinct trails that it is running on as well.  So we did a little more research and decided we probably have a vole out there, not a mouse, which actually makes it a lot less likely to try and move into the house, but a lot more likely to do serious damage to our front yard.  So the extermination process continues....I'll keep you posted!

Don't judge me!

Okay, not really - you can if you want!  I have been a bad blogger, I admit it.  I had to reset my password to get in here today and everything - that probably tells you something, doesn't it??

I am sorry - I have thought about it, considered it, even formed posts in my head, but my youngest lovely daughter has been back on the insomniac wagon, and so then, has her mother, namely me...no sleep equals no blogging!  But the last two nights have been better.  Last night I actually got 4 hours uninterrupted, I know, right??  What more can a woman ask for?

I got up so early today, I had a shower, I made baked oatmeal, watched a funny Bart Millard video on twitter (do you follow him??  You should!).  Did the dishes and then made a 54 minute video of nothing, although you can hear me occasionally rocking out to The Generous Mr. Lovewell as I loaded the dishwasher!  ((Sigh))  This is not the first time that has happened.  Once, I made a video of Little Miss Princess' tap solo appointment so we would know the routine, only to find when we got home that I had actually turned the camera on to record when I thought I had turned it off, and recorded the inside of my pocket and a conversation with her dance teacher!  Yes, that is me - Miss Techy!  I told my kids today that they better be sure someone else is recording their weddings, as I am sure to do the same thing and we will have a video of the ride to pictures and the empty car as we are all outside being photographed!

Anyway, all of that before 7:30 - well the oatmeal wasn't done that early, and the video goes longer too, but you catch my drift! Very awesome.  So tonight I am here blogging, acting on faith that she will sleep alright again and that I won't begrudge this time later in the middle of the night!  Actually do you know what??  My whole crew of daughters slept amazingly last night.  I woke up this morning with no one crowding me, no one stealing my blankets, and both Princess and Dash in their own beds!  Crazy, heh??

 I have woken up more than once in recent months  like this - desperately clutching to the last corner of the bed...crazy girls - it is only a queen size bed, there aren't that many places to go!!  See, I took this picture specifically to blog about why I was awake that morning at whatever time, and then just posted it now!!

This post is really just to say hello, and to let you know that I haven't forgotten!  Thanks for being patient!

First competition over

((Here is a post I found in drafts, but never posted!! A bit out of chronological order, but still important! - Enjoy!!)

Here is little Tapper, complete with her first place ribbon for her age group and her trophy - now to tell you the truth, we don't know for sure if it was for Outstanding Tap Solo - beginner, or for Most Promising Tap Solo - beginner.  We didn't really think about her winning so we weren't really listening!
It was very exciting!
My favorite part though was how excited she was for her cousin who won a trophy for a "smile award".  Her grace and good sportsmanship was truly a proud moment for me! Her cousin who won that award wasn't there for the ceremony, so we are waiting for after tonight to send her congratulations - we don't want to ruin the surprise!
It was an excellent weekend actually, a little crazy, but really stellar!  The girls did amazing in their solos, and their group dances, little Dash looked so cute and remembered every step - so cool!  And even though we were there for all 4 days, it didn't seem too crazy or busy, except for Sunday.  We went there straight from church and it was so packed full of people, I couldn't find a place to do Tapper's make-up for her ballet group dance.  I didn't really want to go downstairs because I didn't want to take the stroller.  Anyway, eventually I did her make-up and hair at the top of the stairwell and then when she went down to get ready with her group I did Ballerina's make up and hair one handed mostly as that crazy Baby just grumbled and mumbled.  Whew - once that was finally done it was all good!

guess what's new?

 

Here is what is new around here!!

Enjoy!

Spring

Spring is official on the calendar, but not in reality around here.  I feel so cold....and yet it was only -10 when we went out.  I always wonder if somehow a few days of warm weather just spoils us, or if we have some sort of internal clock saying it should be warmer, so we feel colder...or if I am just a baby. Probably the last one, but I don't care - it is sweater weather!  In fact, if it wasn't so late, I would build a fire!

Speaking of spring,  we are gearing up for dance competitions around here - pretty exciting actually, I think we are getting our annual visit from my bestest cousin (don't tell Tim) early this year, so I am totally excited!  I think I am going to try and plan our Cousin Supper for that weekend that she is here!  Yay!  Not like I need another thing that weekend, but it is turkey after all, and we have to eat anyway, right?  The reality is that Ballerina dances her solo on a Friday morning and then we are done for the day - plenty of time to peel potatoes and baste a turkey right??  Yes, I think so too, and with all good, big dinners, the majority of the work and cooking happens a few days before...cabbage rolls, buns, dessert!  Yay!  I hope it will work out!

Speaking of big meals, I need to find out if I get to make a big supper for Easter this year!  We have had some really interesting Easter celebrations since we have lived here, although my favorite might have been the hot dog/hamburger BBQ we had with some friends, after an Easter Egg hunt in the park in the middle of their crescent.  Fun times!

Speaking of Easter, do you do anything for Lent?  Now, I know that some think Lent is purely a Catholic tradition, and it might even have originated as one, I don't know for sure....but a few years ago we ended up talking about Lent, which is not observed really, or heralded in Evangelical Protestant churches...and what it means, and why it might of originated (which I already said I never really researched....Google was probably not around then) and Ballerina decided to give something up for Lent. Okay, fine, no problem...and this year they talked about it and talked about it, but I wouldn't let them, because it became a discussion of giving up something - just for the sake of giving up something...and I want the girls to understand that is not about giving up something for Lent, it is about giving up something for Christ, during the period of Lent.  Catch the difference?  The difference is what is your focus...on how great you are, or how AWESOME Christ is,and giving up a luxury for the purpose of understanding more fully what He gave up for us...ANYHOW....we did buy a new devotional book that is to be read during the period of Lent. It is by the same author who has penned the ones we have read for the past 5 years during Advent.  I wish I could say that it was going great, but we are so busy we are only on the third chapter.  I think we will have to start reading it during the day without my hubby...

HEH, speaking of my hubby, it just occurred to me that he doesn't have an alias for our lovely blog here...hmmm, what should we call him?  (Feel free to chime in on this one, I think that would be fun!)
Okay, I am off to do something - I should go to bed, but I have all of this energy right now....I will try to post pictures of what we did around here today - tomorrow! Night!

Well, I did it!

I taught my first ever workshop at our local homeschooling convention.  It was a little overwhelming, but it turned out good!  I think that people left encouraged and excited (maybe not all of them, but definitely some of them) and I mostly remembered not to talk too fast (which those of you who know me well, know is a struggle for me when I am in a regular conversation, never mind slightly nervous in front of a room of people).
I had so much fun, I would definitely do it again!

In other news, can you believe I hardly bought anything this year?  Not for lack of trying, I certainly spent enough time in the vendor hall, but maybe for lack of planning.  I don't want to buy stuff just for the sake of buying stuff - that part of my homeschool life is over! I haven't really decided what course of action to take with Ballerina's first year of high school (well kind of, here it is high school - in our previous province it would have still been Junior High.)  I guess I assume we will stay the course, so my resources can be better purchased elsewhere - even if that means I have to pay shipping.  As long as it is less in total I guess I don't care much where it comes from.

Strange place to be in actually, one in Kindergarten and one getting ready to be done in elementary!  I remember walking my sister to school when we were the same distance apart in age.  Difference being there was no one between us! (Weirder still is that when the baby is ready to start Kindergarten, Ballerina will be GRADUATING....I know, right??)

I played basketball in elementary school and I always remember my sister having to bring a bag of dry cereal with her to practice in the morning so we could walk together!  She wouldn't share it with anyone either, except one particular boy!  Haha, I am sure she doesn't remember that - but I do!  He was a nice guy, so that was all good.  As a matter of fact, him and I had known each other since we were younger than she was then! The other memory I have of her in Kindergarten and me in 8th Grade is that I got chosen to be the photographer's helper on picture day (bonus of having good grades) and I tried to get her to leave her cabbage patch doll out of the picture when her class came in, and she just wouldn't do it.  I even threatened her with the classic big sister line "Mom's gonna be mad."  but it didn't phase her!  So yes, in her Kindergarten picture- first school picture ever, she is holding her Cabbage Patch Kid.  Geeky kid!  I think I will e-mail her right now and tell her I love her!

Homeschooling support?

Last night Monday was our monthly homeschooling support group meeting.  It always gets me thinking.  A friend last month says that she leaves those meetings feeling more disheartened than encouraged.  Someone else said last night week that she always feels encouraged but slightly overwhelmed. Another new mom agreed with her, and I felt empathy for both of them.

I feel like somehow I have switched sides of the room.  We are in our ninth year of homeschooling and I remember sitting at CCHEA meetings, being a new mom, wondering what I was doing, doubting that I could do it and feeling overwhelmed with this responsibility of educating my child (remember only Ballerina was school age then). I remember listening to all these other moms share curriculum choices and organizing tips and such.  They were scary!

There was so many curriculum choices, ABeka, Bob Jones, Five in a Row, and all these methods, Unschooling, School-at-Home, Unit Studies, Classical, and who the heck is Charlotte Mason anyway?
And all these people had all these kids - surely it was going to be easier for them with the large family, but for me, with only two, who could do this??  Surely they were more organized, they probably never struggled with clutter, and had shelves and cupboards to store all the wonderful education supplies they owned.  I am sure they all had wonderful housecleaning systems, and never failed to have supper ready on time or never forgot to change the laundry over so you have to re-wash the towels for the third time.  They must be more patient, they probably lived to be asked a thousand questions a day, and loved chasing their children around cleaning up after glitter incidents and finger paint. 

Probably they were smarter too, they probably all had university degrees and had all been to Bible College.  They were probably all 3rd, 4th and 5th generation Christians, they probably all had so much knowledge of what it was God wanted them to impart to their kids....WHAT WAS I DOING THERE??
It seems like yesterday really!

But now I know that those moms who told me, "you don't make her do ALL the practice problems do you?" (I actually heard another mom say that last night and I smirked) and reassured me that I would be fine, and that eventually I would settle in to an eclectic style that worked for me, and that my kids really were learning, and that my kids would be smart, well-adjusted, normal people, because if God had called us to homeschooling, He would be sure to enable us to do it, and if I was there, it meant that I was looking for support and community, so my kids would not be growing up in a vaccuum.  That they would be okay!

I know now that they were right.  My kids ARE okay, they ARE smart, they do excellent on standardized tests, even when I don't 'finish' a book or curriculum.  They are social, and becoming accomplished, and have friends - both INside and OUTside of the homeschooling community.  More importantly, they are all professing faith, and reminding ME to pray about things that are seemingly small.  Awesome! 

Somehow I would like to let those new moms know though, that we are not diminishing their fears and insecurities by reassuring them.  Or we are not trying to - we have all been in the same place of doubt and fear.  These are OUR KIDS that we are talking about.  No parent would enter into any education model, be it homeschooling, private school, or public education without considering the options, at least for a moment.  It goes again to the fundamental belief that as mothers (and largely as parents) we have the best interests in mind for our children...no matter if someone else's manifestation of that differs from our own.

sigh

I would like to let those new moms know that some days we are STILL just as scared as they are (like when we consider that next year we start high school home education with some of our kids - eek!).  That somedays we still have the DOUBTS that they have, but we have just come farther down the road and can see that God has truly enabled us to do this - not by our power or might, but by His grace.  That we still have days when we don't get all we want to done (it has taken me a week to finish writing this post for goodness sake) and that we still buy things that don't work for us. But we know our kids, and what we see in them as they grow is enough to keep us on the road we are on!  I would like to let them know that regardless of what education style they choose, and even regardless of what particular curriculum they buy, it will be good, that God is going to enable us to give our children more than the basics of intellectual education.    Which is why we still come to monthly support group meetings after all these years!  Both to be an encouragement - and to receive encouragement.

sigh

Off of soap box now.