If You Give a Mouse A Cookie

Or in our case.... If your neighbor brings you a raspberry bush, you have to plant it ....
And if you plant it, you need to water it...
.... and if you water it, Jonah will think that it is time for water play....
When Daddy comes out to see what is going on,
he may decide to pull some weeds.
When Daddy starts to pull weeds, it will make us look at flowers... And if we look at flowers, we will have to stop and smell the lilacs....

The smell of the lilacs will make us so happy, we may need to spin around...

Of course, boys who have no interest in lilacs or spinning will have to go jump on the trampoline...

....and boys who jump on the trampoline get very hungry..... So we will go inside wishing we already had raspberries to eat!

Hatchlings!

(Try Clicking on the Photo for a closer look)

After weeks of watching and waiting, our baby birds have finally hatched! The mother Robin has faithfully cared for her 4 eggs, one of which still hasn't hatched. The babies are so new, possibly just hours old. They are just little pink wiggling blobs. But we are so excited to watched them grow in the coming days. Josiah and Siri are so thrilled to get to experience nature in such a tangible way.

Are You Smarter Than A Second Grader

As Homeschooler's, we are required by law to have our children participate in Testing every year. So this week we picked up the test and I have been administering it to Josiah and Siri. I have tried to make it as relaxed an atmosphere as possible so they wont get too nervous... The truth is, I am working myself not to be anxious over the results. There are some things that I just know they are getting wrong. (Things that we haven't covered yet in our curriculum or areas where I know they struggle) It is an interesting mix of emotions I find myself in. I want them to do well, in large part because I know that it is a reflection on me as their teacher, not because I really feel that the stuff they are being tested on is that important.
As I watch them make mistakes (and bite my tongue so I wont try to help them) it is good for me to see areas that we need to step it up a little.
But then I also get to see how much they absorb from just living life in our family and playing and exploring. There are things on the test that I didn't teach them yet and they surprised me by getting it right anyway.
We have a few days to go and we will all be happy to put this week behind us.

Bird's Nest

Among the trees

It's a bird's nest

And in the nest

Her three eggs rest,

And in each egg---

Hush, you'll be heard--

There lies asleep

A tiny bird.

By: H.N. Bialik

We found this beautiful Robin's nest in a low evergreen tree. Today when we went to check on it we found this wonderful surprise. Three tiny eggs! We have watched from afar to make sure that our presence did not scare away the mother bird. She is not daunted in her task by a few curios kids. We are so excited to watch for the arrival of new life.... we will keep you posted.

Fishing and Other Fun

After a week of cold and rain and even a few inches of snow, we have been excited to get a few sunny days. Daddy had an afternoon meeting get cancelled yesterday, so he came home, grabbed the kids and they were off to their first '08 fishing adventure. The fish were biting and they had lots of fun catches.
They came come home all excited with lots of stories to tell.
David will be updating the Family Fishing blog soon for those of you who like the gory details. The Link for that blog is on the right of the screen along with the other blogs.

After dinner, with hours of daylight still upon us, we were off to the park.

Jonah has got quite adventurous these days and was having so much fun with Josiah and Siri and the slides.
We got home around 8:00pm, just in time for a bath, a quick snack and then off to bed.

Spring Is.......

Spring is....the first hint of green pushing through the cold ground. Building a tree from forgotten twigs...
Finding the first new buds as they reach towards the warmth of the sun.

Asking for just 10 more minutes after 2 hours outside.Running our fingers through fresh green blades of grass...


Collapsing into the warm, damp earth with the warmth of the sun on your face and the sound of children playing in your ears.
Searching all day for a nest... and then finding one!

Whittling a stick... just because you can.
This was our glorious day.

The sun was warm but the wind was chill.
You know how it is with an April day.
~Robert Frost

Coyotes

Let me start by saying that the pictures will not do justice to the excitement of this event. Tonight while having an evening snack, we heard the dogs barking as if something were in the front yard. David got up to check and saw two coyotes walking across the driveway. They were headed towards the side of the house. David ran into the kitchen yelling something about "Coyotes". We all ran to the window.
And sure enough, there were two coyotes in our yard. They were not in a hurry but cruised around sniffing for about 10 minutes before trotting off to the cover of the trees.
I know that it is a little hard to see, but there is one of them slightly to the left of the center of the picture. We spent the next 20 minutes on the Internet. First to confirm that they were really coyotes and then finding out everything we could about them. It was so fun.... like science class in real life.

Snowing again.....

Attachment Parenting ~ Kitty Style

Siri is really enjoying her new kitten. Mia is really fun for everyone to play with but she is deffinately attached to Siri. I had made Siri this sling for her to carry her dolls. It turned out to be the percect size for Mia and she loves to ride in it.... but only with Siri.
She even sleeps with her...
Here is Siri doing her math school work.... And of course, there is Mia snuggled up in her sling.
Don't worry though. between the dogs and the boys, she gets all the exersize a little cat needs.

Mommy's Helper

A couple of weeks ago, I fell and sprained my knee. I was completely out of commission for a few days and then on crutches for a week. I really could not do much in the way of house work so the whole family had to pitch in. My sweet Siri was an awesome helper. I would give her instructions and she would carry them out the best she could. Here she is doing my laundry.
Helping to clean up after dinner....
And serving mommy with a glad and sincere heart. Josiah helped out lots too.... with all the enthusiasm a 9 year old boy could muster. They both blessed me so much and continue to help me as I am still hobbling around the house. I honestly don't know what I would have done without the help of my kids and I am so thankful to have them around everyday.

First Day of Spring

Here is the view outside our window on this first day of Spring! So I thought I would take this occasion to share with you a Minnesota Winter Poem.... Since winter seems to be sticking around... for now.

It's winter in Minnesota

And the gentle breezes blow

Seventy miles an hour

At twenty-five below.

Oh, how I love Minnesota

When the snow's up to your butt

You take a breath of winter

And your nose gets frozen shut.

Yes, the weather here is wonderful

So I guess I'll hang around

I could never leave Minnesota

'Cause I'm frozen to the ground!!

Four-Eyes

Don't worry, there is no teasing going on around here! In fact, we all wish we could have some too. Today, Josiah got his new reading glasses. We had his vision tested and it turns out he is going to need some Vision Therapy. But for starters, they prescribed reading glasses.
Dad went this morning to pick them up and Josiah was quite excited. He is convinced that they will make reading and school much easier.
So he wore them today while we did school and so far the report is positive. If nothing else, It has made him more excited to read and certain that he is just a little smarter now.

What happened to Spring?

With the official start of Spring just a few days away, Winter decided to roll up her sleeves and give one more good punch.

We woke up this morning to several inches of fresh snow and my Hero of a husband got up shortly after 5am to clear the long driveway. We all find ourselves lamenting the loss of the sun but we also can't help but marvel at the beautiful snow covered forest. We have the comfort of knowing that Winter will eventually lose her grip and that Spring will arrive the victor. The season's will continue moving forward... each one with new wisdom to impart as we journey Heavenward.

A Little SPRING in Our Step

We are excited to report that Spring is near. The biting cold is gone and, though the ground is still covered with slushy snow, we were able to clear a path to the thawed trampoline.
The kids are so excited to get outside and jump around. Jonah is especially thrilled. Jumping may, quite possibly, be his favorite activity and we are looking forward to the months ahead with lots of sunny, jumping days.

Broccoli

The other night we had broccoli with dinner. It is one of mom's favorites.... But the kids are not big fans of it. Siri doesn't mind it too much and Josiah will eat what he is told even though he would rather not.... but Jonah is a different story. He absolutely will not eat fresh fruit or veggies and pulling the obedience cord just doesn't work with him. But now he has a favorite video of Daniel and the Lions Den in which the Angel turns the lions into Vegetarians. They sing a catchy little song about how they want to eat broccoli and asparagus and so on.
So I put a piece of broccoli on Jonah's plate and much to all of our amazement, he picked it up and took a bite... then another... then another. We all cheered and clapped. I know it may not seem like a big deal in most peoples houses, but in ours, it was reason to celebrate... and we did with some yummy home made Ice Cream for dessert!