summer reading

well, our first year of homeschooling has come to a close, and we are all so happy - with our achievements, the bonding that has taken place, the growth in all of our lives, and the letting go of our routine a little bit! today we woke up to a cold rainy day and just played. relaxed. played some more. made some cookies. and read. a lot. so i thought i'd share our summer reading so far (yeah, i know, it's not officially summer, but summer vacation has begun!)

for starters, one of the reasons we are so proud of stella is her accomplishment with reading! we used the veritas phonics curriculum and boy...she flew. she has been reading small books since before christmas, but really took off around february/march. we were at barnes and noble and picked up their summer reading journal...read any 8 books and get one free! she's read six so far! they are:








for some fun, stella asked me to read them Beverly Cleary's, "The Mouse and the Motorcycle" aloud. we sat down and cleared off five chapters in no time! so fun...

there are some "grown up" books hoping to be read as well...maybe i'll post them next!

happy summer!!

baby needs a new machine

sew mama sew is giving away a husqvarna/viking sewing machine this month. to win would be dreamy...so here we go. a sewing machine meme:

What brand and model do you have?
~singer 401A slant-o-matic
How long have you had it?
~almost 10 years...it was a wedding gift from the smiths (xoxoxo!)
How much does that machine cost (approximately)?
~i've seen them go on ebay for around $225, but i have no idea!
What types of things do you sew (i.e. quilting, clothing, handbags, home dec projects, etc.)?
~clothing, small quilts, home dec, bags, dress-ups, toys.......
How much do you sew? How much wear and tear does the machine get?
~i go in bursts. my machine acts up sometimes and frustrates me, so it gets hibernated for a bit, then wham-o. i make a ton of stuff.
Do you like/love/hate your machine? Are you ambivalent? Passionate? Does she have a name?
~i'm attached to it, but like i said, it acts up and i get annoyed. i think i'll always keep it, as it is SO sturdy and handy. but a new one would be amazing!!!
What features does your machine have that work well for you?
~solid straight stitch, fancy stitch "cogs" that are fun.
Is there anything that drives you nuts about your machine?
~how it jams up regularly despite countless tune-ups.
Do you have a great story to share about your machine (i.e., Found it under the Christmas tree? Dropped it on the kitchen floor? Sewed your fingernail to your zipper?, Got it from your Great Grandma?, etc.!)? We want to hear it!
~a surprise gift from friends of my new hubby...sewed my finger lots of times....nothin' too interesting.
Would you recommend the machine to others? Why?
~yes...it is sturdy and good...just get one that is kept up well.
What factors do you think are important to consider when looking for a new machine?
~what do you want to do? how often do you sew? get the best you can.
Do you have a dream machine?
~i've been looking into janome's memory craft 4400. i want to do more quilting, some embroidery would be fun.

so go check out sew mama sew's sewing machine info...and enter to win yourself!!

Cakeria!

::before::

most of the ingredients...and a tinker toy

::after::

set up...last minute details

the bride's choice...

coconut layer cake with strawberry puree filling
my favorite...

biscuit de savoie with chambord syrup, chambord buttercream filling, and dark chocolate glaze waiting for flowers and the wedding party...

carrot cakes with orange italian cream cheese frosting

classic white velvet cakes with vanilla mousseline buttercream
congratulations ted and kate!

fabric

i was given a very generous gift to a quilt shop from my dear friend, elin, for my birthday...with those funds, i bought myself 2 yards each of these fabrics:

that's ivory lotus pond from amy butler's "lotus" collection
and:

this one is ombre cool blue from the carolina collection from anna griffin and windham fabrics

these were destined to be a reversible wrap skirt for myself, for easter. got them home...so excited and laid them out on the bed to get a good look. i stepped back in shock. i grabbed chris. these were a perfect match to our new bedroom wall color. looked beautiful against our new brass bed (handed down from mommom). oh no! they were not destined to be a skirt...but rather...CURTAINS! and maybe some pillows. and added to a new quilt. works in progress. hoping some of that progress will be done this weekend, so you can see some pics. we're even swapping out our old dressers for some even older new-to-us ones from chris' folks! bedroom makeover! fun!

The Lord has risen!

Happy Easter!

This easter is going to be unique for one very big reason. Every other easter, my entire family would look forward (in one way or the other) to meeting up for an egg hunt and dinner and being greeted by my Mommom shouting out, "the LORD has risen!" and your well-trained and joyful response would be, "He is risen indeed!"

Mommom passed away February 6th. I wanted to write about it for awhile and somehow couldn't. You'll remember me writing about how she developed MRSA after minor surgery, and her battle with antibiotics. We thought she beat it. She came home for about one week, before needing to be rushed back to the hospital. She was so very sick and suffering. The suffering lasted saturday until early friday morning. I think i was so shocked...even though she was obviously ill, obviously suffering. I felt wronged somehow. She should be here now. But that's not really true. God called her home. He had to take a very well woman and break her body to bring her into His presence. And truthfully, I find no other comfort aside from the truth that Mommom KNEW God. She may never have gotten into theology or "deep" thinking of the Bible, but she loved Jesus and hung her hope on Him. I can't help but credit her with teaching us all the simple truth of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, who so loved us that he took on our sinfulness, in full, and hung it on the cross, so that we would never have to suffer it again. So that we would be forgiven. So that we would be returned to our Father, as we should be. So, while today I will miss her deeply, I am eternally grateful. I will see her again!

On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, "Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: 'The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.' " Then they remembered his words.

Luke 24:1-8

...He has risen indeed!

Amen!

preparing for Easter

we've been getting ready for Easter this week by reading from our favorite kids storybook Bible. it's The Jesus Storybook Bible: Every Story Whispers His Name, by Sally Lloyd-Jones, and illustrated by Jago. i got this for stella last year and it made the Bible take on new life for me! it is an amazing book...

i have to share with you from this great book. this is from the story of the last supper...

"My body is like this bread. It will break," Jesus told them. "This cup of wine is like my blood. It will pour out." "But this is how God will rescue the whole world. My life will break and God's broken world will mend. My heart will tear apart - and your hearts will heal. Just as the passover lamb died, so now I will die instead of you. My blood will wash away all of your sins. And you'll be clean on the inside - in your hearts."....."I won't be with you long," he said. "You are going to be very sad. But God's Helper will come. And then you'll be filled up with a Forever Happiness that won't ever leave. So don't be afraid. You are my friends and I love you."

for images from the book and to enter to win a copy of it for yourself, go visit this blog.

what's happenin'

stella lost tooth number 3. this one being the top left. top righty has slanted himself over to try to take over the whole space, thus making our beautiful girl look slightly hill-billy-ish. teeth number 4 and 5 are seriously wiggly. toothfairy's gonna be busy.

10 in 10...from chris to me for january...this amazing chalkboard was completely made up from scratch with a wonderful rim to hold the chalk and a nice big blackboard for me to write all kinds of stuff on for school. it currently has some questions from the catechism for young children and our bible memory verse. we use it for reading, memorization and copy work. pure love.

and just because he's so darn cute.

but while posting these adorable photos...this sat over my right shoulder, trying to be ignored. this is so totally disgusting. go ahead, look closely. nasty.

but, friends, it can be done.

exactly 30 minutes later, we have a clean sink.

hand washed by me. hand dried and put away by chris. time for bed with a clear conscience.