February and March pictures

The Lambs did well at their first piano contest in IN. It was pretty intense with sight-reading, performance including a memorized piece, theory test, and ear training test. We were all glad when it was over after several months getting ready for it. Lamb 1 was in a more advanced level so he received a blue medal. Some of the Lambs also earned blue ribbons for their theory test.

One day art class was canceled because of weather. The Lambs got up at normal time and got to work on their own art with colored pencils. I slept in and this was at my place at the table when I woke up. Is it bad that my son writes "Keep it Mama" on art work he gives to me?

I have been cleaning out boxes and trying to declutter and for some reason this kit that was a present while we lived in MN was never opened. I thought it would be dried out and worthless, but Lamb 2 and 3 enjoyed creating some sculptures with it.

One week we had a lot of banana splits until the toppings were all gone, just because I was hungry for them.

My sister came to visit and we celebrated my dad's 78th birthday together. We had a nice weekend with my sister and BIL.

Lamb 2 and 3 had homework for their art class to create their own family crest. We pulled out some family history from both sides of the family and talked about it a lot. They did a sample on paper. Then at class they made their own paint and painted some plaster. Our art teacher is awesome!

Lamb 2's.

Lamb 3's.

I let the Lambs borrow my phone to take their own pictures at the Botanical Conservatory. I will spare posting the pictures of plants and flowers here, but I did like this selfie that Lamb 2 and 3 took.

I think I am caught up on posting pictures now so we can get ready for Easter and Lamb 3's birthday pictures!

February family update

We are plugging away at daily routines: 
*Homeschooling with extra work for Lamb 1 to prepare him for high school and Lamb 2 and 3 concentrating on learning to read and spell.
*Our whole family is attending a weekly Bible study on Voyage of the Dawn Treader, the book of Mark, and the Small Catechism. We do the readings together to prepare for weekly quizzes.
*Lamb 2 and 3 are working on memorizing the meanings for the 6 chief parts of the catechism with the goal of confirmation in May.
*All 3 Lambs are practicing for a piano contest in March.
Update on my dad:
He became so weak at the beginning of February that he fell a few times. The paramedics recommended he go to the hospital and get checked out. The hospital was overcrowded and he waited several hours to get a room. He did have the flu and was much better after a few days in the hospital. We thought maybe he would go to a place for rehab, but not counting the hours he was in the hospital hallway that he wasn't officially a patient, he wasn't in the hospital long enough for insurance to pay for rehab. He went directly home and has been doing great since he has been home. We even took him to a high school basketball game last Friday. It is not easy as your parents get older and prayers are appreciated.
Vision Therapy Again:
Lamb 2 competed a long evaluation with a doctor here. We don't regret doing vision therapy in Idaho because it was helpful for several areas for him, but it wasn't enough. He is beginning vision therapy here at the end of the month. This doctor does things differently than our ID doctor and we are hoping these different ways of doing things are going to be helpful for Lamb 2. This doctor does 1 time a week therapy with 20 minutes of daily homework. Lamb 2 will get bifocals. He has 20/20 vision and can see fine in the distance. He doesn't truly need glasses for close up work, but the hope is that this will ease the stress on his eyes as they try to focus to see near work. We are expecting at least a year of therapy here. One nice thing is you pay one price and it covers everything (therapy, doctor exams, computer software for homework, etc.) no matter how long therapy takes. This is different than Idaho and is much better to know exactly how much it costs. Lamb 2 was very excited to go pick out his glasses and is impatiently waiting for them to come in.
After Lamb 2 begins, then we would like this doctor to also evaluate Lamb 3. For a long time he had no motivation to learn to read. Now he does and reading is very difficult for him. I am curious if he also has a vision difficulty and would also benefit from Vision Therapy.
Library volunteer:
A classical school started at our church this year. Our boys are too old as they began with lower grades and are working their way up, but Lamb 2 and 3 take art class there. I volunteered to help with the school library. It has been so much fun to get the books ready for the school children. Most are donated or library discards. The headmaster and his wife are choosing quality literature for the school. It is so fun to see what she finds on the 20 cent library discard shelves.
Lilla Rose:
I just signed up to be a Lilla Rose consultant. I'll blog more about this as I learn more, but if you don't currently have a consultant, contact me for more info if you are interested. I have been wearing Lilla Rose hair clips for about 10 years and I figured it was about time that I had a business card to hand to people when I get a compliment!
Dentist:
Our whole family went at once for dental cleanings and checkups. We all did well except one Lamb needs a tiny filling. Lamb 2 needs an orthodontist consultation because his teeth are so close together plus there is a problem with his canines. After dental checkups we are all extra good about brushing AND flossing AND using mouthwash for awhile...
Cooking:
While Ram is in school I have had to do more cooking than while he was a pastor. I was getting tired of the same old recipes and often 1 or 2 Lambs don't like what I make. I did a little research in my cookbooks and on the Internet to get some new recipes to try. Last night I made beef stew and it went fast even though only one Lamb had more than one helping. Today I made beef vegetable soup and we'll see how that goes tomorrow. I have some more recipes to try this week. The Lambs were shocked that I cooked something new two days in a row!

Third Week of January 2018

Last week was a fun, but busy week. On Sunday we went to church and Sunday School and I streamed the Seminary Epiphany service instead of going to it. That is always a beautiful service.
On Monday our church hosted a one day conference. The Lambs helped acolyte at 2 church services that day. There were sessions for adults during the day and supper and fellowship in the evening. I helped serve soup during lunch and nachos with cheese during our taco supper. We didn't know very many of the visiting attendees this year, but had a good time with our friends from church. Many schools in the area were canceled for MLK Jr. Day so the Lambs had friends to play with during the sessions. It's great to take a day with church friends.
On Tuesday the Lambs had their first piano lessons after Christmas break. Then we planned to go out to the Seminary and see if any friends were attending Symposium this year. But when we went to start the car, it wouldn't start. Ram had a doctor's appointment, his annual physical, so he called AAA and then took the minivan to the doctor. While he was gone they came and jumped the car and I let it run 25 minutes. Ram wasn't home so I turned it off to gather up my stuff and the Lambs to go to the car place. 5 minutes later it wouldn't start again.
On Wednesday a tow truck came and picked up the car. There was no charge thanks to AAA combining it with the call the day before. It was a long day of chauffeuring for me due to one car. When I picked up Ram after his class, we went over to the Seminary for a reception. Last year there were more children at this reception, this year our Lambs were the only ones. They behaved partly because there was food for them. Ram and I visited with one of my college friends and a few other people we knew. It was a nice end to a crazy day.
On Thursday we picked up the car from the shop with a new battery now. We went to a couple of library book sales and had a couple of good finds. On Thursday night our boys acolyted at our church weekly midweek service. I don't often attend that service and it was nice.
On Friday I woke up with a headache, I think sinus trouble from the weather. I was pretty worthless all day. I watched some of the March for Life coverage from D.C. online. I really want to go some year. Ram had an eye doctor appointment. He needs a slight change in prescription.
On Saturday the Lambs had confirmation class and then the church youth group went ice skating. The Lambs were not too excited about ice skating but after about an hour both Lamb 1 and 3 were pretty good at it. Lamb 2 declared that he liked roller skating better than ice skating. It was low 30s and I wonder if he would have liked it better if it was a little warmer. Maybe we'll try to go again as a family before the end of the season. Ram and Lamb 1 went to darts at church. When they got home I went over to my mom's. I am keeping some of our food in her chest freezer. I reorganized her freezer and brought some meat home for us. I had a nice visit with my parents after the freezer project.
Yesterday we went to church and Sunday School. CLHS had an open house so we went for a little bit. Lamb 1 has been accepted so we didn't have too many questions. Lamb 2 and 3 were glad for the chance to practice shooting rifles. We went to an open house for a possible house. It was nice, but not perfect for us, so we are still waiting and looking. We stopped by Barnes and Noble for a treat from the cafe while it was educator discount day. Then the Lambs were anxious to get home to watch football so we came home.
In the middle of all those activities last week, we got some homeschooling done too. This week I hope to be back to full homeschool schedule and Ram is back to full time schooling. I am glad to get back to a routine and hope for no more excitement like car problems this week!

Year in Review-November 2017

While celebrating Reformation 500, we didn't carve pumpkins until November.  Sorry for the poor picture quality. Lamb 2 and 3 each carved a jack-o-lantern, Lamb 1 thinks he is too old to carve pumpkins.

Our church celebrated their 125th anniversary. I made cake toppers and chocolate favors. This is the dessert table with my decorations and other dessert too.

Chocolate Bible favors. Idea was here. The anniversary was really a fun day with both friends that are members and some visitors that day too.

Photo Credit: CLHS Facebook Page
Lamb 1 attended Concordia Day. He wants to be in JROTC now.

Lamb 1 won a t-shirt at Concordia Day. It was perfect for him since he wants to do cross country next year.

I met my mug swap partner. Everyone that sees the necklace she made compliments it.

Only Lutheran homeschooled boys would practice a hymn for Sunday School choir during a play date.

Everyone on Facebook was doing a black and white photo post. I didn't do 7 days of posts, but I did post a photo of our mailbox at our rental house. A delivery man complimented it a few days before I took the photo.

Our public library had an author visit, Laura Numeroff. I was at the end of the line, but she stayed past library closing time and signed everyone's books that were in line. The Lambs came and listened to her talk before signing, but Ram took them home while I waited in line to get my book signed. 

I sold more books to Hyde Brothers. This one surprised me and was worth about $100.

This is the book that got me started on buying books at the library book sale. I thought it would be valuable with the prints inside. It was worth about $25.

I read this biography of Tasha Tudor before I sold it to Hyde Brothers. It is more recent but was still worth about $20. All these books I sold were 20 cents each at the library book sale.

Lamb 1 needed a new coat. I really didn't have time to shop for one and was unsure what size to buy him or where in Fort Wayne to shop for one. A friend messaged me and asked me if we could use a coat that they found when cleaning out their closet. It was Lamb 1's size AND his favorite team is the Seahawks and it was their colors. I am just amazed at when God provides for us, not only just what we need, when we need it, but also when it is absolutely perfect for us! I couldn't have gone to the store and found a more perfect coat for him. Another example of a blessing while Ram is a student!

 

My sister came for Thanksgiving and we remembered to take a picture in our Harvest Raise t-shirts. It didn't turn out the greatest so we'll have to try again next time she visits. I was noticing how much my sister and I look alike in this picture. I have never noticed that before, we used to be so different that I wondered if we were really sisters!

I wanted to buy Lamb 2 a dressy coat for church. When I measured him he needed a men's size M! The sleeves are a little long, but the coat is not that big on him. He loves to dress up for church and was happy to get this coat. I used several coupons to buy it and I think it will fit him for a couple of years.

The pastor asked a question in Bible class about what was on our pulpit. I sit in the front row almost every Sunday and I was drawing a blank when he asked the question. Ram went upstairs and took a picture for me to jog my memory. (John 14:6)

We went to Christmas in the Park which used to be called the Christ Child Festival. The Lambs were a little old for it so we didn't stay long. I just wanted to know what they did. I had grand plans to take a family photo for Christmas, but there was too much in the background that disqualified this photo without a lot of photo editing.

Year in Review-September 2017

We participated in a tour your own hometown day. The Lambs were not happy to spend a Sunday afternoon going to local places, but Ram and Ewe appreciated the chance to see inside buildings that we always drive by.

Usually no cellphones or cameras are allowed inside the courthouse so it was a special treat to be able to take photos inside the courthouse. I wish I would have brought a better camera as there was too much sunlight.

We took a similar picture when we toured the ID state capital, so we needed to take this one at the courthouse.

Allen County courthouse did some restoration a few years ago and it is so beautiful.

After touring the hometown, the Tincaps concessions were open for some discounted  snacks. The Lambs were disappointed to go to the field when there wasn't a game, but they liked the snacks.

Photo Credit: Redeemer Classical School
Lamb 2 and 3 began an art class. They took advantage of the nice September weather and went outside to draw.

Before we moved I gave away a castle toy that we had gotten at a thrift store and I thought that the Lambs outgrew. Almost as soon as we moved in, Lamb 3 started asking where the castle was. At first I told him we weren't finished unpacking and maybe it would turn up, thinking he would find other toys and forget about the castle. When we began studying medieval times in homeschool he really wanted his castle. We looked for something similar at several thrift stores, but you know when you are looking for something thrift stores don't have it. I finally gave in and bought him a Playmobil castle at a discount store. A few weeks after I bought this one I saw a better castle at Costco. Lamb 3 was thrilled especially because he likes Playmobil and we don't own very much.

Ram had a tour of several buildings on his college campus as part of one of his classes. I'm not posting all the pictures he took, but I thought how they hang pictures and artwork is a great idea for our future house.

Our bank had a customer appreciation day and so we ate a free junk food lunch one day. I was glad we homeschool and the Lambs could attend too.

There was a Saturday cross country meet and the weather was pretty nice. Lamb 1 got 8th place boys. The course had a hill at the end of the race, which made the finish exciting for several racers.

My sister came home for our high school homecoming because my brother-in-law had a big class reunion. I knew several people at the football game, but my sister didn't see anyone she knew besides one teacher and me. We did more that weekend, but I (gasp)  didn't take any photos. We all went out to eat that weekend to celebrate my mom's 75th birthday.

My mom's cousin visited and we had dinner at my mom's house one night.

There was a weekday cross country meet when Ram had class. I didn't plan enough time for this out of town meet and we were a little late. They had all the girls race and then all the boys race. Just before the boys race started it started pouring rain. They still raced and most parents of boys went back to their cars to sit during the race and most of the girls went home. As soon as the race was over the rain let up and this beautiful rainbow came out.

We attended an outdoor Reformation church service out in the country organized by several country churches. Rev. Harrison preached and I would estimate at least 1500 attended.  

After the service they organized a Reformation Walk. It was very well planned and educational, but it got to be a little long for the Lambs because it was after the service. 

The Lambs had to "work" in the Printer's Shop.

We didn't stay to watch the video.

By the time we got to the Marketplace, most of the Reformation merchandise was sold out. We already owned Reformation 500 shirts, so we weren't disappointed.

Martin and Katie Luther

Lamb 3's godfather has a new daughter. We went to the baptism. This is his godfather with his wife, daughter, and two of his godsons. (Lamb 3 has another godfather not pictured too.)

We put an offer on this house because we thought it just needed some good cleaning and some interior decorating. We had a house inspection and found out that in addition to a lot of other repairs it needed it had a drain held up by a Lego. After we were done laughing at the inspector's report, we got out of our offer. Ram's dad told us to run from that house and was very surprised that we got our earnest money back pretty quickly. We are still renting and still looking for that perfect house to buy.

A weekday track meet where I took the Lambs because Ram had class. Beautiful weather and a fun day.

Lamb 2's godfather was installed at a new church closer to us than he used to be. We made a road trip one Sunday arriving in time for his installation service. It was a busy day and not very many pastors attended so I was glad Ram could be there to support him.

My friend Joelle's parents attend this church. We had a nice visit after the service.

They have two adorable daughters. We hadn't met the "baby" before this day.

The Lambs had a Saturday cross country meet at Culver, IN. We left before 5am and when we arrived the campus was still dark. We had never been there before and weren't sure where to go. The weather was beautiful and they were done competing and we left around 10am. One advantage of early morning meets is you get home early! It was hot that day so we were glad they competed in the morning and we could get into the air conditioned car.

One of the other Lutherun moms was my high school classmate. If you would have told me 25 years ago that we would have boys on a team together today, I would have thought you were crazy! It was helpful to know someone (even though I had not kept in contact with her after high school) for our first year of cross country.

The CLHS team arrived after we did because high school competed later in the day. Wondering if Lamb 1 will be part of this team next year?

The military academy campus is beautiful.

I participated in a Lutheran women mug swap and this is what I sent to my mug partner.

And this is what I received from my talented and awesome mug partner. I got lots of compliments when I wore the necklace she made. (The one I sent to is different than the one than sent to me.)This year I didn't know either of the mug partners so it was fun to "meet" 2 new friends.

I presented at a Lutheran teacher conference. My session was popular and all these chairs were filled and many more sat in the back. I hadn't done anything like this for 14 years and it was so fun. Afterwards I was asked why I'm not teaching in the classroom. 

My session was about gross motor skills and I talked about what I learned from Lamb 2's vision therapy exercises. During question and answer time at the end several teachers were encouraging to other teachers to have lots of movement in the classroom and to do what I talked about. 

We participated in the last mile of Fort4Fitness together as a family.

Compared to cross country, this was very babyish and too easy for Lamb 1. They got participation medals and begged to not do this next year. We might sign Lamb 1 up for an adult race, but I think we are done with the kid races.

The last cross country meet was unbelievable weather for the end of September. I wore my sweatshirt because I was trying to prevent a sunburn. I hadn't brought sunscreen, just hats, as usually this time of year you are bundled up. Lamb 2 got pretty sunburned in his cross country tank top and the rest of us got pink that day. It was crazy for the end of September.

I don't have a picture, but the end of September we went swimming at a friend's house and then stopped for ice cream at Zesto before the season ended. Some other homeschool friends joined us that afternoon. I was glad to take the opportunity when we had a rare end of September day to go swimming. I want the Lambs to have homeschooling memories like this, especially because Lamb 1 is going to high school next year.