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Morning Musing Over Coffee - Learning on the Less Traveled Road



credit: Michelle Meiklejohn

I will praise Thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvelous are Thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well. ~ Psalm 139:14

Our house is not a "normal" household. Our household is made up of many children - biological, adopted, foster or here for daycare we are all "family."  Common terms at our house are Nonverbal Learning Disorder (NLD), Dyslexia, ADD/ADHD, Mood Disorder, Intellectual Disability (ID), Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), Autism, Sleep Disorder,  Static Encephalopathy, Ankle Clonus, and Asthma.  On any given day we discuss hearing loss, physical therapy, medication, doctors appointments, IEP meetings, etc, etc. . . .

But these are not what define us. 

Because our house is also filled with laughter, music, learning, delight, games, creativity, experimentation, prayer and love. And more and more I am learning to look away from the labels - especially the disorder and disability parts of the labels. Because there is an amazing amount of ability and creativity and originality in everyone of these kids. To each of them life is an adventure and they are ready to live the adventure and see where it takes them.

I am learning the value of the following quotes. I'm learning because the kids are teaching me. They have unique perspectives on life that I would probably miss on my own. And I am realizing how these lessons apply to me and how important it is for me to be the person God created me to be without trying to be like anyone else.

Don't think you're on the right road just because it's a well-beaten path. ~ Author Unknown

Most people are more comfortable with old problems than with new solutions. ~ Author Unkown

You don't get harmony when everybody sings the same note. ~ Doug Floyd

Labels are for filing. Labels are for clothing. Labels are not for people. ~ Martina Navratilova

A man must consider what a rich realm he abdicates when he when he becomes a conformist. ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

Not all those who wander are lost. ~ J.R.R. Tolkien

Our wretched species is so made that those who walk on the the well-trodden path always throw stones at those who are showing a new road. ~ Voltaire

The conventional view serves to protect us from the painful job of thinking. ~ J. K. Galbraith

If you keep doing things like you've always done them, what you'll get is what you've already got. ~ Author Unknown

The most damaging phrase in the language is: "It's always been done that way." ~ Grace Hopper

And one more for good measure . . .

Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind. ~ Dr. Seuss

~ Linking Here ~

 



Scenes From Our Saturday

When my day begins with my child sporting an outfit like this . . . I know it's going to be an interesting one.

And it was - interesting and busy, and mostly fun.

Friends of ours bought new furniture for their living room. Doug went this morning and took out the old furniture, intending to take it to the landfill. When he came home with it and we started really looking at it, we realized we could use parts of it. So two parts of a three part sectional are now being enjoyed in our playroom.

The third piece is broken so Doug put it in the garage and is going to see if he can fix it.

Today was sunny and warm so the kids and I spent hours outside.

I'm not sure what all was going on here but I know it involved bear hunting, bear traps and walnut soup.

There was also a tin can drum . . .

. . . and digging in the garden . . .

. . . rides . . .

. . . and toy repair.

We made some more yarn and stick people.

Michael took his stick person (he told us it was his daughter named Isaac) for a ride on his bike.

Unfortunately, daughter Isaac, met with an unfortunate fate, bringing great grief to her father, and we had to make a new Isaac.

All in all (despite poor Isaac) it was a really good day.

Now the little kids are in bed asleep and the older kids are doing quiet activities. We're all hoping for some snow tomorrow, the forecast is saying 4 - 6 inches. If we get that it will be our first real snow this winter. Between now and then, I'm hoping for a good nights sleep.

 

Our Stick, Walnut and Yarn Creations - The Beginning of a Whole New Town

I've been looking at all the sticks and walnuts in our yard and thinking that there has to be something creative to do with them. It just seemed a shame to let all that natural material go to waste. I thought of a number of different ideas and suddenly knew what I wanted to do.

So, with my supply of sticks, yarn, walnuts, scissors and coffee (coffee is the fuel for creativity you know) I had a little fun and . . .

. . . This was the result. (I made the first three and Mykalin made the fourth one.) I honestly can't decide if they look more like aliens or mummies but they are going to be the residents of our outdoor play town. 

This afternoon CJ and Mykalin got in on the fun as well. I love how serious and focused they look.

Michael seemed to pay no attention to what we were doing, choosing instead to ride his bike. And that was fine with me, although if he had wanted to join us that would have been wonderful too. But as soon it was time to go inside to help CJ make dinner Michael suddenly wanted to make a stick person too. And no, it could not be done inside where I could help him, thank you very much. It had to be made outside like everyone else. So I gave him the supplies and let him go try. And then took a couple photos through the kitchen window.

He spent quite a while working at this although in the end he allowed himself to satisfied with one that Mykalin made and gave to him.

I think this is going to be a project that will keep us busy for a while. Because we will need lots of people to populate an entire play town. And we still have the whole town to build.

~ Linking Here~
SUNDAY – Hey Mom, Look What I Did, Science Sunday, Craft Schooling Sunday, The Sunday Showcase, Link & Learn, MONDAY - Learning Laboratory, Made by Little Hands Monday, TUESDAY - Fun Sparks, Noted Show and Tell Blog Hop, WEDNESDAY – All Things Wonderful, Kids Get Crafty, THURSDAY – It's Playtime, FRIDAY – Preschool Corner, For the Kids Fridays, Outdoor Play, The Play Academy, Fun For Kids Friday,

The Simple Woman's Daybook - Friday February 17, 2012

For Today

Outside my window . . . sunshine and 46 degrees.

I am thinking . . . how glad I am that I feel better than I did yesterday. Most of my plans for the day yesterday went out the window. In the afternoon Michael and I took a long nap while the other little ones slept and I went to bed early last night and slept well. This cold has just drained me. But I think the extra sleep did me good because I feel better today.

I am thankful . . . I was thankful for the rain yesterday but today I am glad to see sunshine.

In the kitchen . . . the dishwasher is running and from here I can hear the washer and dryer running as well. Eggs are boiling on the stove so we can have hardboiled eggs for lunch.

I am creating . . . plans in my mind for better integrating Bible into our daily routine - discussion, memorization, etc. Also plans for a weekly day of learning about other cultures both within and outside of our own country.

I am going . . . to pick Lauren up from  preschool later and than that is all the running I have to do today.

I am wondering . . . if the snow in the forecast for this weekend will actually happen this time.

I am hoping . . . for a fun weekend.

I am looking forward to  . . . having the chance to sit down and make a schedule and find resources for these plans I am creating in my mind.

Around the house . . . Austin is washing the kitchen floor, Amanda is outside with Michael and Khristian. Christopher is taking his morning nap.

I am pondering . . . the funny things kids do.

A favorite quote for today . . . A habit is something you can do without thinking - which is why most of us have so many of them. ~ Frank A. Clark

One of my favorite things . . . grits with lots of butter.

A few plans for the rest of the week . . . It's going to be a busy weekend. Besides our own four kids, and the other two who often come and stay most of the weekend, we are adding three more to the mix. They are coming this evening and staying until sometime Sunday. So the majority of the weekend we'll have nine kids ages 2 - 15. It should be interesting.

A peek into my day . . . When I sat down to write this I realized I didn't have a photo for this post. But I had a feeling something would present itself before I was done, because that's just the way things work around here - always something going on. Then I found Michael crawling up on the bathroom counter to wash his feet in the sink. Because apparently he thought it would be a good idea to take his boots off outside in the mud, in 46 degree weather. Oh, and yes, that is a butter knife stuck in the drain stopper because otherwise it won't stay open and the kids let the sink run over. As you can see, we're really fancy around here.



Five Minute Friday - Delight

It's Friday again and that means I get to link up with The Gypsy Mama for Five Minute Friday. Please hop on over and read what others have written and join in the fun.

 The word today is . . .

Delight!

Just reading the word this morning brought a smile to my face.

I have been blessed with so many things to delight in.

My husband, who encourages me, walks with me, sometimes simply puts up with me, and always loves me.

My children. They teach me, stretch me, and give a purpose to every day.

Blue skies, rainy days, the first Robin of the year, hugs from little people, toothless baby smiles, the smell of fresh brewed coffee.

And more than anything else, the love of God, and the fact that he also delights in me. What an amazing thought. And what could possibly be more delightful than that.



Morning Musing Over Coffee - MORE than Conquerors



credit: Michelle Meiklejohn

“Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.” Romans 8:35,37 KJV

What amazing promise. Not only will be conquer those things that come against us, through Jesus we will be more than conquerors.

There are some wonderful examples in the Bible of this concept of coming out on the other side of trouble more than conqueror.

Abraham, in a strange land and childless in his old age, not only had a child, but became the father of nations.

Hannah, barren and despised by those in her own home, was given a son who became a powerful man of God. And after Samuel's birth she was given more sons and daughters.

Joseph, after being sold by his brothers, lied about by his employers wife, and forgotten by those he helped came out on the other side, not only a conqueror of his difficulties, but second in command of a powerful country.

Ruth, widowed and finding herself in a strange land, became the wife of a community leader and a maternal ancestor of the Saviour of the world.

Daniel, found himself hated by petty, jealous, so-called leaders around him, found himself spending the night in a den full of hungry lions. And yet he emerged unscathed and went on to become a powerful ruler.

The one commonality that runs through all these stories is faith. Faith in God and His love. And God honored that faith in wonderful ways. Our lives do have a purpose and a plan and in His own time God will bring that purpose to fruition in ways beyond our imagination. We simply have to allow Him to work and to have faith that He will be true to His word.



The Simple Woman's Daybook - Thursday February 16, 2012

For Today

Outside my window . . . rain and 45 degrees.

I am thinking . . . that the cold medicine I took hasn't done a bit of good.

I am thankful . . . for a nice cozy house on a rainy day like this.

In the kitchen . . . I put blueberry oats in the slow cooker last night before I went to bed so it was ready for breakfast this morning.

I am going . . . nowhere today. This is only day this week I have absolutely nowhere to go. There was an IEP meeting scheduled for today but it has been postponed.

I am hoping . . . for a quiet evening.

I am looking forward to . . . school time this afternoon. I love reading with Austin and Amanda and teaching Michael his new words.

I am learning . . . to pay attention to individual love languages. Some of my kids have love languages that seem to run totally counter to mine so I'm having to learn to be very intentional about using those individuals love languages.

Around the house . . . Austin is feeding Christopher. Amanda is on the front porch with Lauren and Khristian. This way they can still get some fresh air and stay dry. Michael is trying to rescue his outside toys from the rain by dragging them up on the porch where it's dry.

I am pondering . . . the value of placing my focus on the positive and moving forward instead of being stuck looking at what I perceive as negative.

A favorite quote for today . . . The best thing one can do when it's raining is let it rain. ~ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.


A peek into my day . . . Amanda cleaned out our guinea pig's (Little Red) cage this morning. As usual Pepper and Red played while she cleaned. Today while Pepper had her back turned her tail was just far enough inside Red's cage for Red to take a nibble. I don't think it hurt Pepper, it was just enough to make her turn around and start playing again.



Morning Musing Over Coffee - Be Ye Holy



credit: Michelle Meiklejohn

But just as He who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: "Be holy, because I am holy." ~ 1 Peter 1:15, 16

This call to be holy is for each of us. Thinking of this, I felt a little overwhelmed. There are many days I certainly do not feel very holy. I feel frail, weak and flawed, but not holy. But the reality is God calls me to be holy, not in my own strength, but through Jesus. It is not my job to make myself holy, but to allow Him to do His work in me. If I allow Him, He gently cleans, mends and strengthens me, filling me with Him - His love, His strength, His perfection. And since I am His child, He sees me as perfect, He sees the person He created me to be, not the person I see myself as.

So today, I am choosing to "walk by faith, not by sight." 2 Corinthians 5:7, knowing He loves me and is making me into the person He wants me to be, no matter how I feel at the moment.

Yesterday at choir practice we sang the song Be Ye Holy and as we sang I could feel such a beautiful sense of His presence. So today I wanted to share a version of this song that I found with you.

~ Linking Here ~

Spaghetti Sauce Explosion

It's never boring around here. Yesterday we accidentally had Cream of Wheat cookies, today we had a spaghetti sauce explosion. Michael accidentally knocked a large plastic jar of sauce off the top shelf in the kitchen and when it hit the floor this was the result. I'm glad it didn't actually hit him but it did splatter spaghetti sauce all over him which made him upset. Then when he set his sandwich down to go change clothes the dog ate his sandwich. That was enough to make him hysterical so we had to get him clean clothes and make him another sandwich before we could clean up the sauce.

And Amanda thought this would be a great place to draw smiley faces. I think the cat was just amazed at the whole scene.

And as she scooped the biggest pile of it onto a plate to throw away I heard her saying in a sweet coaxing voice "Come on spaghetti sauce, now get on the plate. You know you want to."

Like I said, never a dull moment.