School accomplishments

School is going well.....and many fun activities are being accomplished.  Reading with Brianne and helping her to recognize numbers, is what we are working on with her now.

Liam is having fun graphing by using trix type cereal.....and Brianne is having fun eating the graphed materials.

Delaney has accomplished another level of math (going from Gamma to Delta in Math U See) and finishing level one of All about Spelling.  Well done!!

Barry spending time with Brianne reading a book.

A Sweet Frog Celebration!

 Yep, it's  academic celebration time!!!  Straight A's for Cailin ( Geometry, AP European History, Honor's Biology and Small Animal Care)  and another 100's chart filled in for the others!!  Way to Go!!  Sweet Frog ice cream here we come!

 

It's a Heart Attack!!

Ahh, Valentine's Day.  My kids have been looking forward to a Valentine's day party with their friends since we picked up a bunch of candy cane's for 10 cents a package to make valentine hearts for their friends.

It was my turn to lead history group, so I ditched the history and focused on a party!!

I really wanted to do something a bit out of the ordinary--service!!  I planned a party where we would give service to someone else!

We played 'conversation hearts bingo' and then, for the service part, we created decorative hearts of paper to plaster all over the door of two people in our ward who we thought could use a friendly "Hi, we're thinking of you."

Our first stop was Pres. and Sister Samples, and then we headed down the hill toward Rick and Sue Zander's home. 

Christine Brame posted this about our heart attack service on our JVAC Facebook site:

I just got the nicest phone call from Sue Zander. She thanks us all for the "Heart Attack" She said it was just what she needed. Rick is in the hospital overnight as they have adjusted one of his meds. He will be back tomorrow. Sue said she got home in time to leave again for lunch and just got home 15 minutes ago (6:30 pm) and found the "Love Team" had been at her house. Sue said it was just what she needed today. "You must have been inspired." She said to thank all the kids. I told her it was Vicki's idea and that the kids had a great time doing it.

You, Jen Mattson, Amber Walker and Tiffany A. Studebaker Freeman like this.

Comments

Vicki Hale Yeah!!! So glad it brought her joy!!

Like · Reply · 1 · 12 February at 18:56

Kathleen Mustian Martin Awesome! And my Aunt is telling everyone about her "heart attack" her children have called saying it really boosted her spirits! She loved them 

Like · Reply · 1 · 12 February at 20:13

We had plenty of hearts left over so, a few of us also walked down the street to Kathy's aunt who is struggling with cancer  to heart attack her door too.  I'm so glad that our gift brought her such joy.

Smiling big at the Sample's home

Shhhh, trying to be so quite to Heart Attack them without them knowing it!

Snow is beginning to fall!

A flake landed on my eyelash.

Raising Chickens

These chickens first came to us as 11 very small chicks just hatched from the egg. At the time they were 10 somewhat white chicks and one black one, which we soon found out was a rooster. A local kinder garden class had watched them hatch and then the teacher, a friend of the family talked Vicki in to taking them, actually I am sure that it was not much work at all to get Vicki to try her hand again in the backyard chicken business. It most likely just consisted of letting Vicki know that they were available.

Chicks grow amazingly fast. It was not too long before we realized our quandary, we did not just have one rooster, we had five of the ill mannered knot heads. It does not do the male gender much good to have compare themselves to these birds. They eat all the time, boss all the hens around and pull their feathers, and take up space in the roost. To be honest, they are not all that different than some of the males I deal with out in the public.

Chickens can fly! Do not doubt that. This is mine and Ryan's attempt to put some netting over the top of the dog run to keep them in. So far it has worked, but you never know with these guys.

I guess it is only fitting that these chickens are now roosting in Pete's old homestead. No doubt that if Pete is looking down from above he has taken an interest in this development. I almost wish he was still around to teach them a little respect. I do understand that for the roosters, they are the baddest boys in their universe. Pete would convince them the error of their ways pretty rapidly.

These roosters are on a fast approaching collision with reality. As the weather gets warmer, their life expectancy starts dropping rapidly. Their two greatest advocates are Delaney and Liam, who hate the thought that these male malcontents will soon end up in the cooking pot. They are quick to argue for life and leniency for these guys, but I think it will all wind down to a final accounting. I do not know yet who will win this battle.

I Just Can't Compete with Snow

While trying to getting school work done today Brianne and Liam looked out the window and saw beautiful large flakes of snow whirling and falling from the sky.  Immediately, they threw open the window and screen and stuck out their heads to feel the wet lovely crystals upon their faces.......no more school work today!!  I just can't compete with that wintry blanket coming down!  You win winter snow, Kids have fun!!

Cupcake Wars, here I come!

This girl LOVES to bake!  .....and she's getting better and better too.  She will admittedly agree that her first few batches of cookies were terrible.  She had willing guinea pigs who would taste her goodies and after many weeks of trying she mastered the chocolate chip cookie.  However, before her cookie baking days she loved to make frosting.  (she's still working on the cake part, but that will come.)  This girl can rock on making frosting.  Ohhhhh, so good.  so much better than her mom!

She loves to watch Cupcake Wars, and so she is now inspired to decorate cupcakes....of course!  Her sweet friend Grace also loves to bake confectionery goodies.  The two are now take a few classes at the local Michaels store to better learn how to use the tips and make beautiful treats for the eyes as well and for the palette..  These two girls have grand ambitions....they hope to sell cupcakes this summer.  

Snowmageddon?

 Weather Alert---lots and lots of snow predicted.  Many people called it "Snowmageddon",  While I think that's quite the exaggeration, we did get about 18 inches in two days.  Not bad. Further east and north the got a bit more....one family in our ward had a family member with 4 feet of snow--they had to tunnel out their front door.
The weather began on a wednesday evening.  Delaney wanted go to the library to get a few audio books to prepare for the big snow storm weekend.  Although I would n't take her to our favorite Radford Library, I did take her to the Pulaski Library--good thing too.  We left home when the snow began to fall, but the roads were still clear.  We spent 20-30 minutes in the building. When we came out the road was covered and a winter wonderland had been created.  Beautiful!  but slippery.  Already cars had slipped off the road. I saw one accident (we only live 5 minutes from the library). It was slow going, but we got home....and there we stayed!  YM/YW and Acheivement/Cub Scouts were cancelled for the night!
There was no more "new snow" until Friday morning.....and it came down, and down, and down....
Everyone had fun.....fun in the snow, fun in school being cancelled (Cailin and Connor--not so for Delaney, Liam and Bri.  They at least had to get a little bit done. :}  sort of :}  And, joy for Barry, he had the weekend off too.

On Saturday we lazed around and did  absolutely nothing.....playing in the snow and movie fest.
In the afternoon, the menfolk headed out to check on a few people.  Connor and Cailin had shoveled some driveways for people in the neighborhood--service and for pay. But mostly it was a lazy daizy sort of day, enjoying the beautiful snow.  while out, Barry picked up the missionaries for an impromptu dinner exchange.  Cabbage soup!  They didn't care they were so glad to get out their apartment.  Their mission president said "Stay inside--if it's not safe to drive, then it's not safe to walk!"
Sunday, church was cancelled and Barry, Liam, Connor, Ryan, Elder Scott and Elder Neilson worked all morning getting many people in the ward cleared from their share of the cold snowy flakes, while the girls and I worked on a hot lunch.
After lunch the plan was to have a snow ball fight!  Ohhh, what fun they had!  Liam in particular loved it.  I'm not sure what Elder Neilson did at one point to tick off Liam, but Liam was bound and determined to make Elder Neilson pay for his wrong doings....Liam clobbered him!

Afterwards, we had a great FHE like Sunday lesson and enjoyed more time together as a family.

Not sure what Elder Neilson did to tick off Liam, but he was out for vengeance.