A Busy Afternoon, Indeed!

Yesterday afternoon about 1:30 we decided to attack the wood that needed split.  Three and a half hours later we were done with it all!  As you can see from the pictures, it was ALOT!



All this and the next picture was split yesterday.





This we split a few weeks ago




Nice center cuts, super dry for the fireplace.



Aunt Kerry Has A Birthday

On Sunday we celebrated Kerry's birthday by going to visit the horses at a good friends house.  Mr. Mack has Belgian draft horses, quarter horses and mini horses.  We all had a wonderful time, even in the cold.  Kerry brought hand warmers and hot cocoa.  The horses got carrots and apples from Kerry as well.  Everyone got a ride in the carriage pulled by Andy the big draft horse.  Some of us even got to ride him as well as the quarter horse named Beech.

Jake was completely taken by the horses, he just wanted to be near them, pet them, ride them, anything.  Sarah of course was the same way.  Alex was a bit intimidated at first but got up his courage and got on Beech for a ride.

Andy, a magnificent horse.



Jake gets to "drive."



Jake leads a mini, what a pro!



Alex & Jake in the wagon drawn by 2 of the minis.



Jake just hangin' out watching Andy.

 

Jake gets to get on Andy with Aunt Kerry.



"Finally a horse my size to ride!"





Kerry gets the first ride on Andy.





Trudi took a spin too!



Jaden gets her ride on Beech.



Alex gets his confidence back once he got up there.








Sarah takes her turn on Beech.





A Trip to see the Christmas Trees

Warther Carvings Museum in Dover has a charity event each year around Christmas.  Local companies and individuals donate a decorated tree to be sold.  The money goes to the local hospital auxiliary.  There was over 100 trees from the traditional to outlandish.  We had a great time with Kathy & her granddaughters.  Alex and Jake particularly like a large stuffed elf and wanted their picture taken with it.



My favorite, but $800 is a bit steep for a tree.



A New School Desk

Bob & Kathy refinished an old school desk from a local elementary school for Jake.  He is SO happy to have his new desk and you can see it in his face.  He told me that now he is "really in school."

Classroom Decorations....

I was at the Dollar Tree store this afternoon and found a wonderful Teacher Supply aisle.  They have all kinds of helps for teachers, decorations, diplomas, award certificates, stickers, school supplies, etc.  Everything is a dollar or less which makes it even better.  I really could have gotten lots of other things but stuck with the ones in the pictures as well as a sheet of static stickers of crayons, pencils, scissors, etc. for the classroom window and some dry erase clock sheets to help Jake learn to tell time in an upcoming Math unit.




The cursive alphabet (yes we have all the letters, not just A through E)




These posters will be a HUGE help, for all of us.  Alex is constantly asking me "Mom, what is a noun again?"



Jake shows off our new door decoration, really bulletin board strips but we liked them better here.

Trick-or-Treat

We went trick-or-treating Saturday evening back at the old house in Zoarville.  It was nice to see former neighbors and friends and the kids had a blast!

Put 'em up!

Clear this road, we have paving to do!

Can anyone tell me how to get to the masquerade ball?

Pumpkin Carving

Before



Jake scrapes his out.




Gotta see what's in there!



Alex was  working so intently he looks stunned at the camera flash.

As always, Saraha poses for her shot

After

Anyone for a S'more?

I was sorting through some yarn recently and found this pattern I had printed awhile back.  I got him done in one evening and I think he looks pretty cute next to my Campfire Marshmallow jar.

One Small Step for Jake, One Big Leap for Mom, (or is it the other way around?)

This week Jake read his first words and small sentences in Phonics.  WOW, I am so proud of him.  And truth be told, proud of me too.  Teaching Kindergarten is challenging to say the least.  I have discovered so many things that we take for granted that we know.  Writing, sounds letters make, using scissors, etc.  Somewhere along the way we have all learned these things and more, but I have never really thought about having to teach them to a wiggling, giggling, smiley 5 year old!  Let's face it, sitting in a chair & listening to Mom ramble on about the number 3 is not exactly the high point of Jake's life.  He'd much rather be watching Cars the Movie, playing the Wii or playing his Leapster.

Sarah is doing well.  I was concerned at first about her Pre-Algebra course but she seems to be doing OK for now.  Things will only get harder so we have arranged, through our school, to have a tutor come to the house to help out.  Math was never my strong subject so I knew I would need some help.

Alex trudges along.  He spends more time counting how many more questions, subjects and lessons are left in the day than he does on actual school work.  He has become alot more self motivated this year and it helps to free me up for the one-on-one that is required for Jake.

Nothing Like It................

Ok, first of all, anyone who knows me can agree that baking bread has never been one of my strengths.  I have made more hockey puck than rolls with my mother-in-laws yummy recipe.  I recently got a new mixer as a gift from my aunt and decided to try a recipe that was in the recipe book that came with it.  I had recently gotten a jar of home gathered honey from a friend so Honey Oatmeal Bread it is!  It was so good warm from the oven and the house just smelled great.  Finally, a bread success.

Well, it is officially the school year already.  We had a great summer but now it is time to get back in the swing of learning.  It is now 3:30 and I think we are almost done for the day.  WHEW, adding Jake into the day sure changes the dynamic of the day.  I dont know how families of more than 3 kids do it.  Here are the kids "First Day of School" pictures.  I cant wait to see how they will change by the "Last Day of School" picture.





Sarah is ready to tackle math!





Alex jumps right into math as well.





Jake just wants to do something, anything!



Quote of the day.......

Recently while at the local YMCA I saw this quote....

"God gave us two ears and one mouth so that we can listen twice as much as we talk."

Good advice for all of us to remember.

Jake Goes Fishing

Earlier this summer Jake stayed overnight at Aunt Kerry's camper.  They had Cars the Movie gummies for breakfast and then went fishing.  Jake caught this fish though when he told the story it was much larger.  As wide as his hands could stretch actually. 

The Wedding Cake

I decided to give it a try and do my first wedding cake for my cousins wedding.  I picked a very simple design, did the research of how to stack and decorate it, baked for an entire day & frosted the following day.  What I didn't factor in was a heat wave with record humidity.  Unfortunately the bottom layer gave way in transport so I had to do some repair work at the reception site.  They were happy with it and I guess that is all that matters.

All the cakes & cupcakes

The cupcakes in their fancy liners and ready to eat.



The finished cake, before the heat got to it!




The cake after its alteration.



Han Solo & Princess Leia, it was a Star Wars theme wedding.



The cake table with all the cupcakes.



Year-End Grades

Well, the grade cards have been received and the results are.......... All A's for both Sarah and Alex.  I am so proud of the both, they worked hard for it.  Alex also received the Head of School Award for Academic Excellence.  Great Job Alex.  Every time the UPS truck pulls in the driveway or even drives up the road Jake gets all excited that his computer has arrived.  Sorry buddy, not for another few weeks.  I cannot believe that 2 months from now we will be back at school everyday!  The summer goes way too quickly.

Happy Birthday Grandpa!

For Grandpas birthday this year he wanted to go mini-golfing then have a picnic at Aunt Kerry's camper. Here are the pictures of golfing. We all had lots of fun & Jake even got a hole-in-one!  His method was unconventional to say the least, but it worked for him!