The Little Pink House

Very Pretty!

2010-12-08T20:28:00.000-05:00

Turn the sidebar music off.....

{this moment}

2010-12-03T15:57:00.000-05:00

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

All About Spelling Giveaway

2010-07-20T09:39:00.000-04:00

The Old Schoolhouse Review Crew is holding a giveaway for a starter set of the All About Spelling program. It looks great! Check it out!

Mrs. H

Loving right now....

2010-02-01T13:21:00.000-05:00

I heard a song on the radio the other week that I fell in love with - the song and the style. I finally got around to looking for the artist's website. Do yourself a favor and go check her out!

Mrs. H

Education for free men

2009-12-18T08:39:00.000-05:00

Read, talk, and listen to the kids.

Continue my own education.

Find what's really important to me and quiet all the other voices.

Less is almost always more.

Memorize various things.

Have kids read for 2-3 hours per day.

Ask questions and think.

Improve my authority and discipline.

Go outside.

Write daily.

New Year school inspiration via Cindy

Acedia and Me

2009-12-17T12:33:00.005-05:00

I picked up Acedia and Me by Kathleen Norris at the library yesterday. I've seen it at various places around the web and decided to check it out.

Chapter 1 is basically a history and definition of the word.

"...at the risk of oversimplifying, I would suggest that while depression is an illness treatable by counseling and medication, acedia is a vice that is best countered by spiritual practice and the discipline of prayer."

Chapter 2 gives a brief introduction to the author's early life citing times she struggled with acedia. I can totally relate to her experiences. Times of falling into reveries where

"the future seemed oppressive, even monstrous."

She muses of times when she wondered if life was a sham, without purpose. Norris says that the emphasis in high school of getting into college taught her indirectly to value the future over the present moment.

Why do those monotonous, repetitive actions like making the bed, showering, going for a daily walk? Who cares? I admit I have fallen into such thoughts at times. She goes on describe the downward spiral that occurs at these junctures and her seeming inability to climb back out. Been there done that :)

I am interested to find out what else Norris has to say.

Leisure

2009-10-06T16:57:00.002-04:00

I am slowly wading through the book Leisure: the Basis of Culture and I am still pretty much lost! I really appreciate everyone's insights. Although I really have nothing to add, I wanted to share a little bit of synchronicity that occurred here this morning. The kids and I are reading every morning from Favorite Poems Old and New and this morning we read the following:

Leisure

William H. Davies

What is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare?

No time to stand beneath the boughs
And stare as long as sheep or cows.

No time to see, when woods we pass,
Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass.

No time to see, in broad daylight,
Streams full of stars, like skies at night.

No time to turn at Beauty's glance,
And watch her feet, how they can dance.

No time to wait till her mouth can
Enrich that smile her eyes began.

A poor life this if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.

Nothing profound by far, but I do love it when things fall in our lap so to speak. Well I was going to pull out a few quotes from the text that spoke to me in a way, but the baby's crying. And thus ends my few moments of "leisure."

Inspiration..

2009-06-25T15:33:00.001-04:00

http://pleasantviewschoolhouse.blogspot.com/2007/05/homeschooling-heresies.html

Summer sweets

2009-06-25T09:21:00.000-04:00

Posts for future reference

2009-06-25T09:09:00.004-04:00

The March of Books

2009-04-15T17:00:00.002-04:00

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets J.K.Rowling

An Inconvenient Book Glenn Beck

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button F. Scott Fitzgerald

Wuthering Heights Emily Bronte

Persuasion Jane Austen

The Good Earth Pearl Buck

The City of Ember Jeanne DuPrau

Stillmeadow Album Gladys Taber

Dumbing Us Down John Taylor Gatto

Love at the beach.....

2009-03-02T15:16:00.002-05:00

Rotten-ness at the beach....

2009-03-02T15:14:00.001-05:00

Sweetness at the beach....

2009-03-02T15:10:00.001-05:00

February Books

2009-03-02T14:55:00.003-05:00

We went on a road trip this month so several of these were audios listened to on the road. Unfortunately I get quite sick if I try to read actual print in a moving car : (

New Moon Stephenie Meyer (audio)

If on a winter's night a traveler Italo Calvino

Frankenstein Mary Shelley (audio)

One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich Alexander Solzhenitsyn

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Universe Douglas Adams (audio)

Heart of Darkness Joseph Conrad (audio)

A Taste of Chaucer Ann Malcolmson

Things Fall Apart Chenua Achebe (audio)

Mrs. H

Stop Motion

2009-02-23T15:59:00.003-05:00

This is the younger boys' first attempt at a stop motion video. Inspired by the one posted

.

Oops, not sure what happened to my link. Here it is again.

Where I've been this past week

2009-02-15T21:30:00.002-05:00

His Mercies.....

2009-02-04T07:26:00.000-05:00

Are New EVERY Morning.

January reads

2009-02-03T08:11:00.002-05:00

The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane Kate DiCamillo
Youth Fiction - Sweet story

Shakespeare's Secret Elise Broach
Youth mystery - not great literature, but I enjoyed the story

The Uncommon Reader Alan Bennet
OK, picked up from another blog reading list

Twilight Stephenie Meyer
Seeing what all the hype was about - not horrible, but I wouldn't reread

A Thousand Splendid Suns Khaled Hosseini (audio)
Really liked this. I think I need to read more about other countries ; )

At Large and At Small Anne Fadiman
Love her essays! Loved Ex Libris too.

The Invention of Hugo Cabret Brian Selznick
Another youth fiction preread. Not bad.

Jayber Crow Wendell Berry
Took me a while to get into this, but I loved it by the end.

A few random pictures......

2009-02-03T08:04:00.000-05:00

The Girls

2009-02-02T08:44:00.001-05:00

Hot Chocolate Drinking .....

2009-02-02T08:39:00.002-05:00

After Christmas Tree Cutting.

Thank you Lord for .........

2009-02-02T07:50:00.003-05:00

ELECTRICITY! Four days without flushing toilets and our other modern conveniences makes me seriously thankful for the inventors that have come before me! Today I have a mountain of laundry to do and extremely dirty bathrooms to tend to.

Books Read 2008

2009-01-22T13:52:00.002-05:00

Honey for a Child's Heart Gladys Hunt
Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict Laurie Viera Riegler
The Secret Adversary Agatha Christie
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone J. K. Rowling

Mr. Knightley's Diary Amanda Grange
Austenland Shannon Hale
Carry On, Jeeves P.G. Wodehouse
The Teenage Liberation Handbook Grace Llewellen
The Innocence of Father Brown G.K. Chesterton
The Cat-Nappers P.G. Wodehouse

Under the Tuscan Sun Frances Mayes
The Thirteenth Tale Diane Setterfield

The Giver Lois Lowry
How to Raise a Healthy Child .... Robert Mendelsohn

Animal Farm George Orwell
I Love Dirt Jennifer Ward
The Creative Family Amanda Blake Soule

The Story of David Livingstone Vautier Golding
1776 David McCullough
At Knit's End Stephanie Pearl-McPhee

Affluenza Graff/Wann/Naylor
The Riddle of the Rosetta Stone James Cross Giblin
The Dumbest Generation Bauerlein
The Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt Elizabeth Payne

In Defense of Food Michael Pollan
Ivanhoe Sir Walter Scott
Hittite Warrior Joanne Williamson
The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin

Eats, Shoots, and Leaves Lynne Truss
The Hundred Dollar Holiday Bill McKibbon
More Than a Carpenter Josh McDowell
How to be a God Chaser and a Kid Chaser Tommy and Thetus Tenney
Poetry of Emily Dickinson

The Book of Stillmeadow Gladys Taber
The Raw Food Detox Diet
Poetry of Robert Frost
The Screwtape Letters C.S. Lewis
Dewey Vicky Myron

Consider These Things Joel Belz
Pride and Prejudice Jane Austen
Marley and Me John Grogan

Education

2008-11-19T07:28:00.003-05:00

I have been enjoying reading about others' educational journeys with their children. Especially here and here. Tonia linked to this great video recently.

Enjoy.

Adorable Shoes....

2008-11-15T16:59:00.002-05:00

Look at these really cute shoes - and you can enter to win a free pair!

Go here.

Check this out ...

2008-10-27T21:31:00.003-04:00

Here is a link to a third party debate held last week.

http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=89B7F36347439816

Quotes

2008-10-14T14:04:00.003-04:00

Here are a few quote I've gleaned from my reading the last few days.

"If you expect perfection or nothing, you'll always end up with nothing." Edith Schaeffer

"Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things." Robert Brault

"The ordinary arts we practice every day at home are of more importance to the soul than their simplicity might suggest." Thomas More

Eyes of Wonder is back....

2008-10-14T08:34:00.001-04:00

One of my favorite blogs is back online. Such lovely pictures and inspirational writing!

http://eyesofwonder.typepad.com/my_weblog/

A story from my favorite blog

2008-09-05T13:25:00.001-04:00

The Barnyard

How Cute...

2008-09-04T17:16:00.001-04:00

The Fox and the Sheep by DS 8

2008-08-28T14:51:00.003-04:00

Once upon a time there was a fox. And he was bad. But there was a sheep and he followed God. One day the sheep was walking. The fox was wily. He was hiding behind a bush waiting for his prey to come. Then the sheep came. The fox's mouth was drooling. The fox jumped out from behind the bush. The sheep started praying and then a bear came out and scared the fox away. The sheep was hiding so the bear went away. The fox came back and asked the sheep, "How do you do that?" Then the sheep said, "I follow God and every day I pray and He will save me. If I baptize you then if you're in trouble God will save you too. If you pray every day you will be a servant of God too. " The fox asked the sheep, "Are you a servant of God? Why don't you do everything He tells you?" "Because He never tells me anything to do. All you have to do is be a servant of God and when you die you go to Heaven and have eternal life. In Heaven no one is bad. In Heaven the sidewalks are gold and the walls are made of diamonds. And then the fox said, "Wow, I think I'm going to start doing that!" And they all lived happily ever after.

The End

Love at the Common Room

2008-08-15T07:30:00.001-04:00

I hope my children can look back and say such things.

http://heartkeepercommonroom.blogspot.com/2008/08/plate-of-vegetablesand-love.html

An inspiring speech ....

2008-08-02T19:50:00.003-04:00

... by the author of a recent read (1776).

http://www.bc.edu/bc_org/rvp/pubaf/08/McCullough_BCCommencement08.pdf

Hurry, Hurry....

2007-11-28T16:36:00.000-05:00

Doug Phillips and Vision Forum are sponsoring a giveaway at inashoe.com to help get word out about the FREE SHIPPING Vision Forum is offering until Midnight tonight

Help spread the word on your website or blog then leave a comment at Life in a Shoe by 8pm today to enter!

Happy Fall!

2007-09-24T07:55:00.001-04:00

Happy Fall Ya'll! This is an old picture of the kids at Silver Dollar City.

Autumn by Emily Dickinson

The morns are meeker than they were,
The nuts are getting brown;
The berry's cheek is plumper,
The rose is out of town.

The maple wears a gayer scarf,
The field a scarlet gown.
Lest I should be old-fashioned,
I'll put a trinket on.

Have a nice day!
Mrs. H

Funny videos

2007-09-21T18:36:00.000-04:00

I saw these videos over at Apron Strings
I hope you enjoy them!

Mrs. H

Blogging Break

2007-09-19T12:04:00.000-04:00

I hope you all forgive me for that extended blogging break! I just kind of left you hanging. Well our boys ended up tied for 13th place at the quizzing nationals. After that we sort of took off the month of August. Over Labor Day we went to Gatlinburg, TN with my in-laws for another mini-vacation. And so now things are beginning to get back to a routine - including school!

If you scroll down to the bottom of my page you'll see I've added a new ticker element.

Yes, that's right, we just found out we are expecting baby #5!

Well hopefully I'll make it back here before another 2 months fly by!

God Bless,
Mrs. H

Goodbye...

2007-07-20T07:45:00.000-04:00

We are off to Missouri for the National Bible Quizzing Tournament. I should return here on July 30. Have a wonderful week!

Mrs. H

A Little Ballerina for Show and Tell...

2007-07-19T12:54:00.000-04:00

Miss Leone and I created this tutu this morning while it was raining. She is having a lovely time dancing around in it.

I hope your day is just as sweet!

P.S. Since we are leaving on vacation, I thought I would use this post as my show and tell this week. Go check out everyone else's posts!

Mrs. H

A little bluegrass...

2007-07-17T11:09:00.000-04:00

in the sidebar in honor of our trip later this week!

Mrs. H

Odd Shots

2007-07-17T09:41:00.001-04:00

Forgive the extreme blurriness of this picture - No1 took it. Anyhow, I wanted to share it to show you a frequented napping place of our cat Goblin. He weighs about 20 pounds, but he climbs up here on top of our computer tower under the desk and lays down! Doesn't look to me to be the most comfortable of spots. Maybe he's trying to hide from the little Miss who likes to squeeze and drag him?
On another note, I finally got out the sewing machine my Mom got me for Christmas! I know It's been sitting for seven months : ( I really wanted a machine, because I've never learned how to sew and I really wanted to. So without further ado here is my first project - a clothespin bag. Now granted all I did was sew a straight shot of stitches, but I did well to get the machine out and threaded! This little dress was Miss Leone's and she got a stain on the front of it. So after seeing other people's bags they had made from old dresses I was inspired! And this is the result. Now maybe I'll have the gumption to attempt another , more challenging, project!

Mrs. H

Summer Sunset

2007-07-17T09:38:00.000-04:00

I couldn't pass up the opportunity to capture this sky!

Happy Birthday!

2007-07-17T09:29:00.001-04:00

Our family has two July birthdays - No. 1 and Little Man. Since we are going to be in Branson for No. 1's day we had a little family party on Saturday for the both of them.
Little Man's was July 15 and No. 1's is on July 25.
The Little Man is now a big 5 years old!

No. 1 is soon to be a huge 11 years old!

Quizzers and Ball Players

2007-07-17T08:58:00.000-04:00

Our Bible quizzers in Indiana.
Our ball players. My DH runs a kids league in our town and these are the awards he picked out for the players this year. The kids all seemed to love them - after the awards ceremony they were all running around getting autographs!
Miss Leone didn't actually play this year, but we pulled some strings and got her a trophy too ; )

We're off...

2007-07-06T07:22:00.000-04:00

I thought for today's show and tell I would share our kittens. If I had had the forethought I would have taken pictures when they were resting, but alas I did not. So here are some rather blurry shots! The first one is a boy and I think we are going to call him Bibsy - unless something better comes to mind.
This one I named Rinkidink. Although you can't tell in the picture, he is tiny! However, he has always been the most active.
This is the girl. Miss Leone named her Lucy. She is really fluffy, but did not want to get her picture taken ; )
Here's a pretty good shot of Rinkidink trying to escape confinement!
And finally all of them together. They were chasing and pouncing on each other. I could sit and watch them play all day - they're so cute!

In other news, this weekend we are off to Indiana for a quiz tournament. Hopefully this will show us what the boys need to study most to prepare for that big trip to Nationals in a couple of weeks!

I certainly don't wish time would move any faster, but I am looking forward to getting through July! August is free of any scheduled activities. We have been so busy lately finishing up quizzing and baseball, so I'm looking forward to just relaxing - with no pressing engagements.

Well I need to get packing! Have a fantastic weekend!
Mrs.H

Happy 4th of July!

2007-07-04T13:34:00.001-04:00

I hope everyone has a beautiful and safe celebration!

Mrs. H

Whew....

2007-07-03T09:33:00.000-04:00

I'm tired! Yesterday I suddenly added three kids to my household - not my own though ; ) I babysat my sister-in-laws three while she was out of town. We had a 10, 7, 5, 5, 3, 3, and 8mo. old. I had prayed that God would give us a lovely day so we could be outside - and boy did He deliver! It was about 78 degrees, sunny, and breezy - a perfect day in my eyes! Who says He doesn't care about the little things?! But I'm still wore out today.

We are still studying hard for the bible quizzing nationals. This weekend we are going to Indiana for a tournament of champions - hopefully it will help us prepare better!

Have a wonderful day (and week actually)- I'm not sure when I'll be back here!

Mrs. H

Please forgive me....

2007-06-27T09:11:00.000-04:00

Please forgive me if my posts are a bit sporadic this month! The time I usually read blogs and post is now being used to help No. 1 (and Stinky to a lesser degree ) study.

Mrs. H

Westward bound!

2007-06-25T07:04:00.001-04:00

Well we are back. The boys placed 3rd at the state competition, which qualifies them to go to the national tournament in Branson, MO. I guess you know now where I'll be spending my summer vacation : ) We have been there about 4 times I think, so I wish it were someplace else! We are really proud of the boys - they just barely missed moving up in the standings -one question away.
The coaches all vote on some special year end awards and Stinky was 4th runner up Rookie of the Year. He was a little confused as he didn't know what a rookie is - hence the funny look on his face!

No. 1 was named the years Most Improved Quizzer! The team lost their most experienced quizzer to TX back in February - so No. 1 has really had to step up and try to fill his place. He has done an excellent job.

So between now and the end of July we will be studying and quoting those 272 verses every day until he knows them backwards and forwards!

Have a great day!
Mrs. H

Show and Tell

2007-06-22T07:32:00.000-04:00

I couldn't think of anything for today's show and tell, so I want to share this picture I took last night at the ball games. I really like the way it turned out. I could take pictures all the time of the sky! I love to look at the clouds and the sun and the colors that are created. I like how the sun's rays are bursting forth from behind the clouds.

Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning! Ps. 30:5

Even though this is a night picture, this verse is what came to my mind.

Go visit Kelli to see everyone else's show and tell!

Well on another note we are off to the Bible quizzing state finals today. The 6 months of studying come down to this weekend! I'll be back on Monday, hopefully with a new trophy ; )

Have a wonderful weekend,
Mrs. H

Bedroom Makeovers

2007-06-21T10:15:00.001-04:00

Miss Leone's room used to be a lovely shade of blue which was painted when we were expecting the Little Man. For her birthday (way back in January) she wanted her room painted pink - so here is the new Princess Room.
Notice these lovely thrifted sheets. I love them!
And here is the wall color we chose for our room - Aviary Blue. It's really 'beachy' looking. As you can see we're not quite finished, but it's getting close ; ) I'm still hunting for nightstands and an armoire and the perfect curtains.

I am really loving the new floor! A huge improvement over the old, dirty carpet.

Thanks for visiting!
Mrs. H

Happy Summer!

2007-06-21T07:19:00.000-04:00

Sibling Rivalry?

2007-06-20T21:29:00.001-04:00

Grubby little feet at the end of the day. I thought it looked a bit like a heart shape, so I've included it here in this post about my youngest two. They are just 18 months apart and the best (and the worst) of friends! I love to watch how they interact. They help each other and share with one another. Play house together. Run races against each other. And much, much more!

However there are those times when they annoy each other intensely ; )

Good Night,
Mrs H

What we've been up to.....

2007-06-20T21:18:00.001-04:00

Here's what we've been doing a lot of the last few days. It has been hot and humid and the kids have been enjoying this little oasis.

Their favorite thing to do - jumping in. They like to make up names for their jumps and judge each other. It's too cute.
I have some pictures of our bedroom project, but Blogger is a little slow tonight, so I think I'll wait until tomorrow to share those : )

The view from the kitchen sink

2007-06-19T19:10:00.000-04:00

Turkeys - sometimes there is upward of a dozen of these out back.
There is also an abundance of the 'white-tailed' variety.

One more sweetie...

2007-06-15T08:13:00.000-04:00

Boy, I'm becoming absentminded! Here I was, signing off and I haven't yet showed off the littlest sweetie. She played her way through all 3 games and is ready for a bath! Next year it'll be her turn to join in the fun. She has already been eyeing the pink bats, helmets, and gloves!

And the smile finally returned to the little man's face. Although he's a little swollen and congested sounding.

Now I will leave!
Mrs. H

The final frontier!

2007-06-15T07:54:00.000-04:00

And now the final game. No. 1 falls somewhere in between the little man and Stinky in his intenseness. He loves the game and the competition, but he still keeps it light. He sort of floats between being serious and playing around.
For some reason he enjoys catching. I can't understand why anyone would want a ball thrown directly at your face, but whatever floats your boat : )
He got a great hit!
Making his way toward home.
The little boy (in my eyes) on the verge of becoming a handsome young man.

Have a wonderful weekend! We are planning to get some more work finished on our home projects that we began last week. We'll also be enjoying a cookout with some church friends. And ending the (hot!) weekend celebrating the fathers in our lives.

God bless,
Mrs.H

On to the next game

2007-06-15T07:35:00.001-04:00

I left the little man in Granny's hands and ran over to Stinky's game to take a few pictures. He is not as intense as the little man as you can tell by these pictures. He is more of a fun loving guy! In fact, his name means 'laughter'. God certainly had His hand in that!
He's a pretty good hitter, even with that funny stance. Every time he gets up to bat he has to be told to switch his hands around on the bat : )
And finally, enjoying his favorite part of the game - the after-game snack!

Thursday Night Baseball

2007-06-15T07:27:00.001-04:00

We started out the night at the little man's game. Stinky was playing on another diamond at the same time. He had a rough start because he got hit in the nose with a ball even before the game started! This is the only time he went in to play. The rest of the game he sat cuddled on my lap.
Little man is the quiet, intense one of our bunch, so when he decided to hit he really cracked it hard!

He was still nursing his injury, but he gave that one run around the bases his whole heart!

Good Morning!

2007-06-15T07:24:00.000-04:00

It's Friday. Really it is this time ; )

500 years of Women in Art

2007-06-14T17:58:00.000-04:00

If you haven't seen this yet, take a look. It is really neat. As someone else noticed, it is interesting how the images of the women change to become more abstract and less feminine as you get to the modern times. Makes you think!

Mrs. H

Rain!

2007-06-14T08:17:00.001-04:00

It has been really dry around here, but yesterday evening a storm rolled through - and left a tremendous amount of beauty in its wake!

Mrs. H

Show and Tell

2007-06-14T07:54:00.001-04:00

Here are a few of the thrifted items I found yesterday. This sewing basket was pretty beat up, but I liked the top.
I thought these would look nice next to each other. One is winter and the other is fall.Now I just need the other two seasons.
Here is a whole collection of items. Some real silverware, in an ironstone dish, a small glass for Miss Leone ( she calls these her big girl glasses), a Japanese bowl, 2 little glass bowls, 9 white plates, a mug in a pretty blue color, candles, and a vintage cookie press.
I thought this little rocking chair was too cute. And behind it another lamp I'm 'testing'. It is a very pale mint green.
This is what is stamped on the bottom of the above dish. I know nothing about ironstone - is this a kind that people collect?

Kelli doesn't have her Show and Tell post up yet, but I'm sure she will later, so go check it out!

Come to my home page and check out my little baseball players too! I'm getting lonely here ; )

Have a nice day!
Mrs H

Edit - My goodness I am a whole day ahead of myself! Check out Kelli's post tomorrow ; 0

Pink House Happenings

2007-06-11T07:32:00.001-04:00

As promised here are pictures of the projects from last weekend. The first is the wall my dad and the Boss built last Saturday in our basement. We created a bedroom down there for the three boys to give them a little more space to move! We still need to frame in a door.

Next the Boss ripped out the carpet in our bedroom. Eventually (hopefully sooner rather than later) we are going to put down a laminate floor. This week we are also going to paint the walls - a light sky blue, I think. See the laundry hamper - I got that last week at the thrift store.

I was sitting in the rocking chair the other day and saw this pretty rainbow on my wall. So here it is for your enjoyment ; )

Last, but not least, these little fur balls arrived at our house last Monday. I'm not sure if you can tell, but there are 5 in there - and all the same color. I was hoping for a little variety , but oh well : ) They are currently residing in a basket in our garage. More adorable picture to come later I'm sure!

Have a great day,
Mrs. H

Opinions Please....

2007-06-08T08:18:00.001-04:00

Here is my living as it looks today. It is open to my dining room and kitchen. I'm not a very good decorator because my mind likes too many different styles : )Therefore I am always changing things and driving the Boss nuts! Notice the the two totally different lamps in the picture? The other day I bought the one shown shown in the other two shots, but I can't decide whether to keep them or not. What do you all think?

The last picture is a little vignette on top of my piano. One of the things I am always changing is the things on my tabletops. I love the look of doilies and lace and pretties, but I don't like moving them to dust! So periodically they make an appearance and then disappear into the cupboard again. Am I the only one who struggles with this indecisiveness?

TIA for your thoughts and opinions!

Mrs. H

Show and Tell Friday

2007-06-08T07:53:00.001-04:00

I thought today I would share the awards No. 1 and Stinky have received so far this year in Bible Quizzing. They have been doing an amazing job and have improved at each tournament. The kids have had to memorize 272 verses this year - and they are hard! The study this year is Bible Heroes from the Old Testament. There are a lot of big names and unusual sentence structures. The team started out the year placing 5th and in the May tournament they placed 1st. They have improved tremendously! We have one more quiz, State finals, coming up in June. We are very proud of all the hard work they have done to hide God's Word in their hearts! It will be with them forever!

As always don't forget to check out the other posts in Show And Tell Friday!

P.S. Please check out my home page. I would love to have your thoughts on some home decor "issues" ; ) Thanks!

Mrs. H

Simply Victorian

2007-06-07T07:41:00.000-04:00

I just wanted to share Mrs. Wilt's new site she recently unveiled. It's called Simply Victorian and it is lovely!

God bless, Mrs. H

Weekend Recovery

2007-06-04T14:12:00.000-04:00

Whew! We're recovering from a busy weekend here. We've been shopping, building walls, and ripping out carpet. I'll post pictures of some of the projects soon. Enjoy your Monday!

Mrs H

2007-06-01T17:18:00.001-04:00

Since I was on the subject of my grandparents, I wanted to put up some pictures of them. The first two I think are senior pictures. The next is Granny, maybe even outside that tiny military house! Next is the two of them together at home and finally, still in love after all those years ; )

Show and Tell Friday

2007-06-01T15:23:00.000-04:00

Now this doesn't look like a very interesting show and tell, but there is a story. When I saw this valance at a local discount store, I just had to buy it. It doesn't look like much, but the attraction for me is in those little swiss dots!

You see, 3 1/2 years ago my Granny died, and I miss her a lot. We were an interesting pair! I would go over to her house, fix a cup of tea, and we would sit together - each of us reading our own book! We didn't need to talk that much, I just loved to be there with her. After I had kids I would take them over and Gran and I would sit and talk and watch them play. I had 3 boys at the time and she nicknamed them Huey, Duey, and Luey because they were so ornery. Four month after her death I had my only daughter, who is named after Granny. It still chokes me up sometimes when I think about how I would like to load up Miss Leone and take her over to Granny's and show her off! I bet the two of them would have made an even more interesting pair ; )

Anyway, on to the curtain. Granny would sometimes tell me stories about her life, and one in particular was about her as a young army wife. She was just recently married and my Grandpa (who died when I was 1) was stationed in Galveston, TX. They lived in a tiny (I'm thinking one room and no bathroom) military house. She told me about how she had sawed legs off a piece of furniture to make it usable in the space and how her mother mailed her material to sew things for the house. One of those materials she said was dotted swiss, and Granny told me how she sewed it into curtains. And so now every time I see that material with its tiny little dots I'm reminded of Granny and the great times we always had together!

If you want to check out more Show and Tells go over to Kelli's blog.

Have a wonderful weekend!
Mrs. H

Edit - I added some music in memory of Gran and Grandpa - she liked Big band music and he fought in WWII - so this made me think of them : )

May Books

2007-06-01T07:48:00.000-04:00

Beauty for Ashes Grace Livingstone Hill
The Pursuit of Holiness Jerry Bridges
The Story of the World IV Susan Wise Bauer
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer Mark Twain
Living a Beautiful Life Alexandra Stoddard

Mrs. H

Still here!

2007-05-30T21:25:00.000-04:00

After the busy weekend, I've been working on finalizing plans for No. 1's school work over the summer months. Hopefully I'll be up and running again soon ; )

Here's a few random pictures from Stinky's birthday back on April 1.

God bless,
Mrs H

Flowers and Hard Work

2007-05-25T19:46:00.001-04:00

I wanted to share some pictures that I took today while I had the camera outside. The first picture is of one of my Dad's flower beds (the largest). He loves flower gardening and always works super hard to make it beautiful. This year he has worked especially long hours preparing it for everyone to enjoy at our Memorial Day gathering/family reunion, which is going to be at their home. So anyway, i just wanted to share some of the beauty he has worked so hard to cultivate : )

BTW, I have inherited not one little bit of his green thumb!

Mrs H

See 'M Streak 'N

2007-05-25T19:35:00.000-04:00

Because it was so warm today, my mom got out 'my' horse today and gave him a bath. I got Streak when I was 11 and showed him very successfully for several years. Now he is 33 years old and living in retirement at my parents. I went out and took some pictures of him to save for posterity. As you can tell we are very proud of how beautiful he is at so old an age!

I added this post to Kelli's Show and Tell Friday list, so go check out the rest!

Mrs. H

More Thrifting

2007-05-25T19:29:00.000-04:00

Just wanted to share a few of my recent thrifty finds.

Mrs. H

Thrifting finds

2007-05-24T08:09:00.000-04:00

I was able to go to a local thrift store yesterday that offers 50% all items on Wednesdays. I got this sweet cut glass bowl that I served my breakfast in this morning. I also got these little saucers that I am going to use for the kids to put their dipping sauces in. I found 6 of these little dessert cups to serve sundaes in. I also got a great green and white polka dot sheet, a set of 4 wooden salad bowls and 3 enamel ware lids that I may hang on the wall. All for $4!

I had intended to make ice cream last night, but the boys all went to their Grandpa's for the afternoon; so I decided to wait for another day. However the boss and I had a great meal of ham, asparagus, and sweet potatoes without them : )

Till later,
Mrs. H

Bible quizzing and camping

2007-05-21T15:32:00.000-04:00

Well we are back and I have lots to clean up in order to get the house up and running again. It's so nice to go away, but when you get back there seems to be double the work : ) Is that just me?

Anyway we had a lovely time camping. The first night was rather chilly, but the rest of the time was just perfect in my book - not hot and not cold!

On the quizzing front, the boys did awesome! They won first place and No 1 won the highest scoring individual trophy.
All in all, a wonderful time was had by all ; )

Mrs H

P.S. I can not figure out how to get my pictures within the text of the message!? And in the right order! So sorry.

Gingerbread and Camping

2007-05-18T08:18:00.000-04:00

AHHH I could scream! I had my post completed and tried to post and Blogger said error! Any way, as I was trying to say, this is where I'll be sleeping for the next couple of nights. My two oldest boys ( 10 and 7) are on our church's Bible quizzing team and there is a tournament tomorrow. The Boss and I decided to make a mini-vacation out of it and camp at a nearby state park. So instead of posting and reading blogs here all cozy and warm, I'll be shivering under my sleeping bag ( lows in the 30's!). Just kidding, we are going to have a blast. The kids are really excited to get the camping season started. We just bought the camper last April so our camping experiences are limited as yet : )

On another note, I made Anna's Schoolhouse Gingerbread yesterday. My goodness, it was delicious - sooo moist! I drizzled it with a glaze of powdered sugar and lemon juice, an idea from Nigella Lawson again ;)

Well, I shall return here on Monday with a ton of pictures, hopefully with no icicles hanging from our noses!

P.S. Sorry the picture are set up so weird, I'm still working on making my posts look the way I picture them in my mind!

Mrs. H

Victoria Sponge

2007-05-16T18:54:00.000-04:00

Ever since I read Nigella Lawson's "How To Be a Domestic Goddess" I have wanted to make this Victoria Sponge cake. I'm not sure why it attracted me so, because everything in her book looks delicious! I think it is because the name of the cake sounds so British, and I love anything to with England. My dream vacation would be an extended trip throughout the whole of England. Wouldn't it be awesome to see those ancient structures in person! Well maybe if I win the lottery someday : )

Anyhow, back to the cake. I decided to try it today; however at the time of this post I haven't tried it yet. We were all too full after dinner so we decided to wait until after church to indulge! It looks pretty though.

Mrs. H

Thank you Mrs. Wilt!

2007-05-16T17:34:00.000-04:00

Mrs. Wilt
has added this great feature to her site - Songspot. Thanks to her I don't want to leave my page because I have put up my all time favorite song played on my favorite instrument! I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

Mrs. H

Literary MeMe

2007-05-15T20:27:00.000-04:00

I saw this over at Country Roads and thought it looked like fun.

How it works:

1.grab the book closest to you
2.open it to page 161
3. find the fifth full sentence
4.post the text of the sentence to your blog
5.don't search around for the coolest book you have, use the one that is really next to you.

Well I have several books laying here on my desk, but the one in the closest proximity to me is "How To Read A Book" by Mortimer Adler.

The fifth sentence on page 161 reads "The first three remarks are related to the author's terms, propositions, and arguments."

Mrs. H

Some Pictures

2007-05-14T14:16:00.000-04:00

I finally got around to downloading some pictures from our camera so I thought I'd share a few. The first three are from a recent trip to the zoo. I love to look at the leopard and this tiger. They are strikingly beautiful. The other picture is of the strangest looking monkey I've ever seen! I can not remember what it was called, but my kids called it "the rainbow butt monkey"!

These are the roses the Boss gave me for Mother's day. They smell delicious.

Finally here is a picture of the dishcloth I am making. As I said before, I just learned how to knit so this is my first project.

Have a wonderful day.

Mrs. H

Happy Mother's Day!

2007-05-13T13:31:00.000-04:00

Wishing all of you a very wonderful day!

Mrs. H

Home to Home

2007-05-12T15:33:00.000-04:00

Peggy over at Homemade Simplicity http://homemadesimplicity.wordpress.com/had this up and it looked like fun, so here are my answers for your perusal.

Lace or Ribbon?Lace
Mountain or Beach?Mountain
Reading or Writing?Reading
Cookie or Cake?Cake
Baked or Mashed Potato?Mashed
Side or Back?Side
Shrimp or Steak?Steak
Scrambled or Fried?Fried
Orange or Apple?Orange
Spring or Fall?Fall
Roller Skating or Bowling?Bowling
DVD or Theater movies?DVD
Wood or Glass?Wood
Blue or Green?Green
Chocolate or Vanilla?Vanilla
Quilt or Knit?Knit
Early Morning or Late Night?Early Morning
Coffee or Tea?Coffee
Watermelon or Strawberry?Strawberry
Lunch or Dinner?Dinner
Cold Cereal or Oatmeal?Cold Cereal
Song or Dance?Song
Carpet or Hardwood Floor?Hardwood
Red or Pink?Pink
Cat or Dog?Dog
Pretzels or Chips?Chips
Iced Tea or Lemonade?Tea
Non-Fiction or Fiction?Fiction
Rose or Daisy?Rose
Sunrise or Sunset?Sunrise
Comb or Brush?Brush
Pottery or Basket?Basket
Bracelet or Necklace?Necklace
Pen or Pencil?Pen
Couch or Chair?Couch
Country or Victorian?Victorian
Farm or Ranch?Farm
Braid or Ponytail?Ponytail
Cash or Check?Cash
Chocolate Bar or Jelly Bean?Jelly Bean
Coke or Pepsi?Neither
Hot Dog or Cheeseburger?Cheeseburger
Blinds or Curtains?Curtains
Dress or Pants?Dress
Sun or Moon?Sun
Adventure or Comedy?Comedy
Cloud or Star?Star
Lake or River?River
Half Full or Half Empty?Half Empty
Truck or Car?Van
Bath or Shower?Shower
Clothesline or Clothes Dryer?Dryer
New or Second Hand?Second Hand
Gum or Lifesaver?Gum
Email or Handwritten?Handwritten
July or October?October
Barefoot or Shoes?Shoes

Mrs H

Still busy!

2007-05-12T08:41:00.000-04:00

We are still busy around here. The Boss runs a kids baseball league here in our town and today he is hosting a mini baseball camp. Our local Bob Evans is donating lunch, so I have to go help set up and serve the food. After that is grocery shopping - again. I would love to go to some yard sales, but I just haven't had the time. I guess I have to content myself with a quick trip to the thrift store ; )

Well I need to be getting on my way.

Have a lovely weekend!
Mrs. H

Finally!

2007-05-09T21:18:00.000-04:00

I finally learned how to knit a little last night. An older lady in our church has offered to help anyone interested in knitting and crocheting, so I took her up on her offer. While the kids were at baseball practice outside the church, I was inside knitting my first stitches!

I have been crocheting for years, but had not been able to figure out knitting so I feel very triumphant! I'll try to share a picture tomorrow. Right now I'm beat, so it's off to bed.

Good Night,
Mrs. H

Old fashioned videos....

2007-05-08T09:26:00.000-04:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p8yY_QP4FYs

I love to watch these educational videos that have been popping up on the various blogs I visit! This one was over at Charming the Birds from the Trees.

Mrs. H

Busy weekend underway

2007-05-05T21:29:00.000-04:00

It's a busy weekend here. Today we spent the day working around the house - especially in our very neglected flower beds! This evening we had a special 75 th anniversary service at our church, which continues tomorrow morning. The service will be followed by a banquet with a lot of special presentations concerning the church's history. After all that we must go to the grocery or the children may have to fast this week! Then we need to finish up the yard work we started. I hope your weekend is good ; )

Mrs. H

2007-05-03T07:46:00.000-04:00

You Are Fall!

Thoughtful
Expressive
Creative
Poetic
Smart

What Season Are You?

Nigella Lawson

2007-05-02T20:27:00.000-04:00

I've been thumbing through two of Nigella Lawson's books today. Everything looks so delicious. I would like to cook more simple and yet elegant meals. The way she describes food in her books makes even the most mundane thing sound so incredibly delightful! So if you haven't ever checked out her books, you are in for a treat that will leave your mouth watering!

Mrs. H

Books read recently

2007-05-01T19:49:00.000-04:00

I noticed a lot of people doing reading challenges so I unofficially started in March. However, between the house, the kiddos, and homeschooling I don't seem to get very far! At any rate here I present my two month list.

March

Deconstructing Penguins by Lawrence and Nancy Goldstone
Jane Austen's Town and Country Style by Susan Watkins
The Private World of Tasha Tudor
The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkein
Tasha Tudor's Garden by Tovah Martin

April

Ex Libris by Anne Fadimon
Vintage Style by Cath Kidston
So Many Books, So Little Time by Sara Nelson
The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Number the Stars by Lois Lowry

I also made a good attempt at Emma and The Story of the World IV, but haven't quite finished.

Happy reading in May!
Mrs. H

A fresh start

2007-05-01T16:35:00.000-04:00

I hope I'll maybe be able to keep up this journal this time! My problem is I like to read too many other blogs and my time at the computer has been eaten up before I get around to my own. I'm really going to make a concerted effort! Well I have I to take my oldest ds to drum practice, so until later.

Mrs. H

So sorry

2006-12-14T09:40:00.000-05:00

I'm sorry I've gone MIA! After being out of town I had a lot of house work to catch up on and this week is our busy week! The kids have practice for our church Christmas program almost every night. Hopefully I'll be back on track by next week - thanks to anyone willing to wait it out!

God bless,
Mrs. H

The view this morning

2006-12-07T15:22:00.000-05:00

OK, I fibbed about that being the last post! This is it! This was the view out the window this morning and I couldn't resist a few pictures. The cardinals were at the feeder in parents yard - I was seeing how much I could zoom in on them.

I'm leaving now!
Mrs. H

Last post for the week

2006-12-07T07:44:00.000-05:00

This will probably be my last post this week. We have a family dinner this evening and early tomorrow morning dh and I are going out of town for our anniversary which is Saturday. These pictures are from yesterday's walk around the property. First there are two picture of our house (the little pink house) and next some picture of my horse, Streak (See 'M Streak 'N). He looks pretty scraggly, but it is winter and he is just shy of 32 years old - something of a miracle! I got him when I was 11 and showed him very successfully for several years. Of course now he's retired and my dad takes care of him. The rest of the pictures are just me having fun with my new toy -um I mean camera! Oh, and also a picture of one of the wreaths I put on my back doors for winter and my crocheted lace curtains - currently in my living room. Sorry the pictures aren't in order, I haven't figured out how to get this laid out the way I mean it to be :)

See you next week!
Mrs. H

A couple of pictures before bed

2006-12-06T21:13:00.000-05:00

Here are a few pictures from today. DH's been on the computer studying so I don't have time to get up our nature walk pictures tonight. Here's ds 10 doing his school work - in the usual position! Next is two very cool young men. The little sheep is a thrift store find that sits on my kitchen window sill as a little reminder. I have some neat pictures from our walk that I'll put up tomorrow.

Good night,

Mrs. H

Great post to check out

2006-12-05T20:48:00.000-05:00

Pop on over to Sara's blog (Walk slowly, Live wildly) on my sidebar and take a look at her posts on want and satisfaction- some great thoughts to ponder. These are certainly areas I struggle with. When I look at too many blogs or watch the kinds of TV shows she mentions, I have a tendency to want to change the perfectly good things I have in my home and get something new. Then I want to go shopping and spend money thus undermining our goal of paying off our debts! So I really need to be on my guard and limit the blogs I read and the shows I watch.

Phil. 4:11 ....for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am in, therewith to be content.

1 Tim. 6:8 And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.

Heb. 13:5 ....and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.

God bless,
Mrs. H

Around the house

2006-12-05T16:50:00.000-05:00

Finally the last pictures! My dining room - my kitchen, dining room and living room are all one big 'L' shaped room. To the right in this photo is the kitchen island and to the left is the living room, which I have yet to get a good shot of. The big white space on the wall behind the table is a dry erase board. Next is a view from the front porch - that's my parents house - very convenient babysitters! Next is our play area and last is a view from the back porch. We set up our pool on the cement patio in the summer. Well supper is ready I've got to run! Thanks for visiting with me.

Mrs. H

Our Animals

2006-12-05T16:40:00.000-05:00

And this is our animal family. First is Shep, an outside dog, then the next two are our kittens, Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy. Next is Liho, our inside Shih-Tzu, and Goblin, our fat indoor kitty. And last is Brutus, another outside dog. Shep and Brutus are brothers and Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy are brother and sister. So that is our little menagerie.