Happy Homemaker Monday

The Weather...
We had snow this morning and into the afternoon.  Later this week we will be in the mid-70's. 

Right Now I am...
Hurting, angry and upset.  We were denied becoming foster parents.  Why you ask?  Because we homeschool!!  Ok close your mouth.  We also found out today that they also denied us because our daughters have too many special needs.  WHAT?!  They knew about all of this BEFORE we started this 2 year journey.  Our lives have been turned upside down over the past couple of years.  Not only was this a personal inconvenience but it was a HUGE waste of taxpayer dollars.  Especially since they knew all of this before hand.

Thinking...
that God must have something bigger than foster care in store for our family.  I just pray its a good big thing.  haha

On my Reading pile...
Bible.  I'm diving back into deep study of God's word.  I've been reading right along, but I'm going to dig deep into scripture.

What I found on the net...
Not much surfing here.

On the Menu...
Monday~ Beef Stroganoff
Tuesday~

On my to do list...
Laundry
Sweep and mop the dinning room
Clean the schoolroom ~now that we are not "good enough" to do foster care we are turning the extra room into the schoolroom.

In the craft basket...
I'm going to learn how to knit!  I'm excited about that.

Looking forward to this week...
Wrapping up our homeschool group co-op for the year.

Looking around the house...
Just a little bit here and there to clean up after the weekend.

From the camera...

For Mother's Day we went to our favorite museum.  They had a fashion show during that time.  This is one of those beautiful dresses.

On my prayer list...
Our family and God's direction
My friend Sandra and family as they also wait for direction
Katrina and her upcoming graduation

Bible Verse, Devotional...
Proverbs 18:10
"The name of the LORD is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe."

Thank you Sandra for hosting this each week. If you would like to join in please go on over to Diary of a Stay at Home Mom.

Papa's Pearls {Homeschool Crew Review}

So often a book comes into my hands that is something I cannot put down.  This latest review as a part of the Homeschool Crew is just that.  Papa's Pearls written by Diane Flynn Keith is such an amazing book. 

Many times I find myself wishing my grandfather was still with us.  I miss his stories, his witty jokes and most of all his "nuggets of wisdom" as he called them.  He reminds me a lot of the man in this book.  These are real life stories.  The author's father lived these things that are talked about in the book. 

This book is a short book with only 108 pages.  Do not let the size fool you.  We used this as an evening read-aloud with our kids.  They continued to ask me to keep reading when I had finished the chapter.  Instead we grabbed our bibles and read something relating to the "pearl" we had just discussed.  Throughout the book you will glean bits of wisdom to help you lead a better life.  You will read and discuss things like:

When you Fall down, Get back up, Brush yourself off, and Try again!
Ya gotta do what ya gotta do.
Get it in writing.
Let it go-Like water off a ducks back.

and many many more!  Diane's father grew up during the Great Depression.  He learned all of his wisdom from the "school of hard knocks."  One of the greatest Pearls we are taking away from the book is "Be Grateful Everyday".  We have so much in our lives, there is no reason we should not be thanking God each day.  Even when things seem to be a mess in our lives.  There is always something good that comes from it.

You can purchase an autographed copy of the book from Homefires for $21.97.   Amazon also has this book for the Kindle as well as paperback.


   

Our Favorite Place {Family}

If you have been a reader for any length of time you know that we love The Genesee Country Village and Museum.  So it is our tradition on Mother's Day to visit the museum.  Years ago the program on Mother's Day was a lot better.  They use to have women from history interpreting around the village.  I really miss that!! 

We still really enjoy the museum no matter what the program is.  There is nothing better then stepping back into the 19th Century, leaving all of the modern day things behind for a day.  We turn our phones off and just take in the history.  If you are ever in the Rochester, NY area you MUST plan a visit here.

I love it when I am able to capture a beautiful picture of my children.  This doesn't happen too often!  I love these three SO much!

There are benches throughout the village.  I enjoy just sitting there taking in the sights.  This one pictured above is the "Foster-Tuft" house.

Here is the village store.  Here is where a person would purchase the items they didn't make on their own.  Many times the store was also the post office.  There are beautiful displays of fabric.  I just love to stand there looking at it.  The inside reminds me of the one in the Anne of Green Gables movie. 

Many of the houses in the village have beautiful tea sets displayed.  Hannah and I talked about what it would be like to be sitting here sharing tea.  We imagine this would  have been a place where a mother and daughter would talk about things.  Perhaps the daughter was almost the age where she would start courting.  Or they would discuss the goings on of the household.  Ever wonder why things like this are not practiced any longer?  I think it's up to families to bring these things back.

Hannah was able to sit in on a quilting bee.  She honestly did not want to leave!  She was tracing the leaves on the fabric.  Nice and easy for a beginner.  Quilting is something Hannah wants to learn.  I will be incorporating this into her schooling next year.  She is so much like me when it comes to things of the home. 

Our next stop was the Printing Office.  We learned that each letter had to be place into the holder one at a time.  What a job that would have been.  This is for an advertisement.

This is what the advertisement looks like when it comes off the press. 

First the printer loads up the type.  Then he loads it up with ink with this roller.

He then places a piece of paper onto the type and slides it into the press.

He then pulls the lever to pull the press down. 

At this point he pulls the paper off of the type.  It then is hung up onto a clothes line for 24 hours to dry.  That is something new we learned.

The we headed down to the Pioneer Cabin.  Here is Marie sewing up the bed mattress she has just filled. 

She had just finished up her dinner of chicken, fish with biscuits.  I love the smells that come from this cabin.  The chicken was hung up above the fire where it would spin while cooking. The fish was coated in cornmeal which adds an extra crispness.  But in reality it was what the pioneers in this area would have had. 

We sat and watched the chickens for a good 20 minutes.  Just taking in all the museum has to offer.  It really makes me long for a simpler life.  We someday would love a small farm.  Not that farm life is a simple life...but to us its a simpler way of life.  If you get what I mean.  I pray that all of my readers had a Happy Mother's Day.  I know I did!!

What I am Creating Wednesday!

I have so many things I am working on at the moment I'm not sure where to begin.  We have started putting our garden in.

Well I should say, my hubby is putting the garden in.  He's doing the tough work, I will be doing the planting.

My husband taught Andrew how to run the rototiller.  Not bad for the first time.  He now has claimed a part of the yard to plant his own things.  He plans on planting a lot of sweet corn.

Another thing I have been working on from time to time is my needlepoint.  There is something so therapeutic about doing this.  So relaxing, especially after a long hard day.  I really do not need to think about what I'm doing. 

Come on over to Diary of a Stay at Home Mom to see what others are working on.  Or show off your own work.

Happy 16th Birthday to our sweet Hannah!

It does not seem possible that our "little" Hannah turns 16 today!  I am so blessed that God chose me to be her Mom.  She has the sweetest spirit!

She almost always has a smile on her face.  Her eyes show exactly what her mood it.  They are bright blue if she is in a great mood.  They are gray if she is sick or not having a great day.

She loves her sister.  They are such great friends!  Oh do not get me wrong...they do fight like sisters.  There is nothing they would not do for each other.

She loves animals of all kinds.  She loves spending time just being with our animals.  I look at these pictures and get tears in my eyes.  Where has the time gone?  I think of everything she has been through this past year and I can see she has become such a strong young woman.

She is God's little princess.  She loves to serve God.  Never once has she become bitter or angry over what has happened to her.  She praised God through it all.

She is my little helper with all the housework.  She just loves it.  She is going to be an awesome wife and mom someday.  She is the first one to jump up to help out with housework.  She loves much of the same things as I do.  Perhaps that is why she has been called a mini-me. 

I love you Hannah!  I pray you have a very Happy Birthday!  You have taught me so much this year.