This Moment::Growing up

{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. 

Linking up here.

The last hurr- (ha ha)

So this is my attempt to be witty.

Yesterday we went on our last "field trip" of the summer.  Our last hurrah, so to speak, and we went to Minnehaha creek.  Get it?  Hurr-haha.  Don't blame me if you hurt yourself laughing.

Anyway.....

Going to the falls was something I've wanted to do since we moved here.  I was a little afraid that I would get some grief from my olders about walking around in nature.  But a few days stuck in the house with nothing to do really changes ones perspective.  They were glad to get out and do something... anything!  And guess what?  They really enjoyed themselves!

Ok, the picture above really made me laugh when I took it.  Do you see there on the right how the middle sister is hanging on the big sister?  She posed like that right at the last minute because she knows that big sis would NEVER let her touch her like that!  Big sister's face is reflecting the shock and horror.  I'm so glad I got to capture this!

So here is the falls.  Amazing that this is next to the airport and really close to downtown.  We climbed down the stairs and ate lunch.  Even though there were a few buses of day care kids (a nightmare for homeschool field trips)  the place was still peaceful.  See a class of them on the top looking over?  They were the yellow t-shirt group.

We walked down the path just a little ways and we reached an area to wade.  We really didn't know what to expect on this trip.  We could not find much information about this park online or even a map when we got there!

This ended our little trip.  It was just long enough to want to come back.  We have some plans for Nana and Grandfather!

And this being our last hurrah, homeschool starts on Monday.

Wish me luck!  (yes, that is my school room.)

Pretty, Happy, Funny, Real.

Pretty

This bench is the one I've wanted for a few years now.  We snagged one of the last ones at ikea before they were gone for good.  This looks SO much better than the gray futon shoved in this space.

Happy

She is SO happy we finally gave in and got her a pet.

Funny

No caption needed here...

Real

This is the way the table looks most of the time.  Well, actually there is usually more school books on it so I'd say this looks pretty good.

Five Minute Friday :: On Waiting

The Gypsy Mama's Five Minute Friday is underway.  I wrote this and then decided that I didn't want to post it and then I changed my mind again.  There is so much I want to say I'll just have to do another post.

Waiting...

Yesterday morning I slip out of bed.  I sleepily get my daughter off to school and when she passes through the doorway out into the world, I sit and read.  I open my email.  Some junk (always the junk) and then I am bolted awake.  There is a message from my father.

My father never emails.  He never calls.  We live states apart.  My grandmother, his mother, is not doing well.  

The last visit I had was last spring.  The once robust woman was now small and frail and quiet.  Afraid of not seeing her again I have been praying that she would make it until our family vacation in Aug.  Waiting until August has been hard.  So many things to miss.   

I remember standing on the field and showing her where she will watch me graduate college.  "If I make it till then..."  She always said that and it sounded ridiculous.  I am now 36 with 5 children of my own.  She definately made it for my graduation.  

Oh grandma, please make it till August.

Stop 

silly girls!

The End of 2009

November



We get a lot of leaves in our yard. The family actually works together (imagine that!) to clean it up. This year they worked harder than ever before. Even Bethany got in on the action.

We also did a photo shoot with our friend.



She got some of the cutest pictures of the kids.



And isn't this a handsome man!



November also was the month of Emma's first Synchronized skating competition. She was so excited. They are a very young team compared to the other teams on their level but they are learning a lot and getting better every week.



November is also Caitlyn's birthday.



December

Benjamin turned four.



Daddy took him to a Monster Truck Show



There are so many things that I can say about this year and I'm sad that I didn't post more often. Christmas was fun and, as always, overwhelming. I always gain weight, go a little crazy with all the stuff that gets brought into our home, and have tons of fun with my children. It snowed here on Christmas Eve and Christmas morning. Very pretty. Abbey received boots, Emma got a personal ATM machine, Caitlyn got an MP3 player, Ben got a wooden work bench, Bethany got a baby. I'm so thankful that we all have Jesus.

Big Brother Sweetness

Just in to show you something really cute. I'll finish up the rest of 2009 really soon.

More of 2009

September

There was a huge change of pace here as there is in every home with children come September. Abigail went to school. REAL LIFE SCHOOL. A Public charter school. We always knew that if any of our kids were going to go to school it would be Abbey. We also always thought that as each child got older we would send them to school eventually. It was definitely time for Abbey and we have seen her grow in many ways in the past few months.



October

The rest of September flew by trying to figure out how to do it all. For the rest of the children we joined a "sort-of" co-op called Classical Conversations. It was a life savor for our homeschool. I was floundering the last year or so especially when it came to history and science. We are in the foundations program and I am a paid tutor. Hear that people... I have a job. I don't really see any of the money though. It all goes to the kids tuition to the program and the books and flashcards that go with it. No matter though, it's really fun to do and keeps me on top of things. In this amazing program the kids are memorizing science facts, history sentences and timeline, math skip counting and formulas, Latin declensions, geography, grammar lists, doing science projects like dissecting an owl pellet and a crayfish, and learning the Tin whistle. Whew it seems like a lot but the kids really love it.

October is Bethany's birthday.



We also went pumpkin picking... well, at least we tried to.



It was pretty cold and muddy and most of the pumpkins were rotten. The fall weather didn't cooperate this year.

We can't forget about Halloween. My kids love it so much they consider the fall to be "Halloween time". I really dislike that way of thinking and try to dissuade those little minds. Futility.

2009... Continued

I'm here again. Two posts in two days. I am amazing myself! I think that I'm only going to post about our Vacation today. We had such a good time and did so many things I don't want to miss anything.

August

We were away from home for most of this month. We took our annual road trip and this year we went to NJ.

We met our cousin Lilly.



Spent time on the boat.



Went to the boardwalk.



Visited the Grandparents.



and went to the real beach.





When our time in NJ was up we headed back in our car and drove down to West Virginia to see some nature and visit our friend's parents.



Our last destination was family camp. It was our first year trying something like this and we really loved it.

We made crafts, sang songs, tried our hand at archery, target shooting, rocket building and launching, rode horses, and saw millions of stars. This camp was amazing for me. We had two family helpers that took the kids to play and sat back at our room when the little ones went down for a nap. We had a date night at the bowling alley in town (that the camp owned!) and I didn't have to cook (or clean up) one meal!

2009

Well another year has gone by and it's time to recap. I haven't posted much. I've gone back and forth with my motives for posting. Why would I post if no one is reading? I've come to the conclusion that it doesn't matter if anyone is reading. I am not here for self promotion. I am not going to post to make myself feel special or smart or a good mom. My goal is to simply record my life with my family and to post pictures and updates for any friends or family that come by this space for a visit. It feels somewhat weird to write my thoughts here and let them out into the world. It is like a journal, a personal journal, a journal I don't want anyone to read. It is so strange, isn't it? Why would I blog if I don't want anyone to read it? Who am I talking to anyway? It's about vulnerability.

And here I go with being vulnerable!

January

The year started out with a trip to Disney... Need I say more?







Ok, I will say that these two lovely people came with us. Actually, they basically took us!



February and March

Spending a lot of time indoors waiting for the snow to melt and the temperature to rise above the teens.

There was skating lessons:



and a lot of pretending it was summer:



April

We had some snow but it warmed up pretty quickly. We spent Easter with friends. I didn't get any pictures of dresses or of the day itself. All in all Easter in Minnesota is not widely embraced (other than a religious holiday - it is the day we celebrate Jesus defeating death! He is risen, risen indeed!). It is still quite cold here and nothing is growing yet. Still brown grass and leafless trees. We did have some bare feet though:



May

We started to visit the Arboretum again. There is a very short window when we can go into the woods without being attacked by monster mosquitoes!



And we can't forget about Emma's birthday!



June

There was a lot of Girl Scout "flying up"





July

Abigail's birthday



And some "beach" time.





Well, that is about half the year and this post is getting very long. I will post the second half of the year tomorrow. I'm sure we will be resting some after staying up late tonight! Happy New Year!