A Walk Thru the Old Testament

Today Bill and I did a Walk Thru the Old Testament Seminar at our church. It was a long, but amazing day. The first session of the seminar was given during the normal worship service, and then those who wanted to participate in the full seminar stayed for the remainder of the day, taking lunch and snack breaks throughout the day. I am so grateful to my wonderful parents who so lovingly looked after the kids while we participated in the seminar. There was childcare available at our church, but I can't even imagine how Amy would have handled such a long day!

We were literally at church the entire day, and I can honestly say it was an incredible experience. The speaker was fantastic and I feel liked I learned so much about the Old Testament in that relatively short amount of time. I've never been good about reading the Old Testament because everytime I start to read it, I get lost in all of the detail and history. This seminar did a great job of breaking it down into key points and providing a means to rememember everything. I tend to be very quiet and perhaps a bit uncomfortable when in large gatherings of people. But this seminar has you standing up and really participating - as in literally performing hand motions and speaking key terms out loud - throughout the session. You even get into smaller groups to practice what you've learned several times. And though my shyness caused me some distress during this whole process, I actually had fun and learned so much. I can honestly say that I don't remember all of the 77 pieces of information we covered today, but I certainly know a lot more than when I walked into church this morning.

If you ever hear about this being given at a church near you, I highly recommend it!

Just Another MeMe

Celeste posted this fun meme and I thougth I'd join in. It's always fun to share a little about ourselves...

1. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE? My middle name comes from my Aunt (Elaine), and my first name (Robin), I believe, was suggested by my Grandmother after a young lady she worked with at Sears.
2. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED? Maybe a week ago?
3. DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING? Sometimes.
4. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT? Boars Head BBQ Chicken.
5. DO YOU HAVE KIDS? Three.
6. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU? I'd like to think so.
7. DO YOU USE SARCASM A LOT? From time to time.
8. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS? Yes.
9. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP? No way.
10. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL? Frosted Mini Wheats.
11. DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF? No, that takes too long.
12. DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG? No.
13. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM? vanilla (or Dreyers Peppermint, but it's only out at Christmas)
14. WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE? Their smile and how they present themselves
15. RED OR PINK? Pink.
16. WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVORITE THING YOU LIKE ABOUT YOURSELF? I am easily stressed and am too impatient.
17. WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST? Bill, anytime he's gone.
18. WHAT COLOR PANTS AND SHOES ARE YOU WEARING? Denim jeans and navy slip-on tennis shoes.
19. WHAT WAS THE LAST THING YOU ATE? A Powerbar (and, if I am to be honest, a couple of french fries)
20. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW? The kids playing - they love their new Surf's Up penguin toys we got from McDonalds today
21. IF YOU WERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE? Cornflower Blue
22. FAVORITE SMELLS? The smell of wood burning on a cold day and most definitely Circle E Candles Apple Strudel and Christmas Spirit - love them!!!!
23. WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE? My sister-in-law.
24. FAVORITE SPORTS TO WATCH? Football
25. HAIR COLOR? Brown.
26. EYE COLOR? Hazel??? They are mostly green with a ring of brown.
27. DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS? Yes
28. FAVORITE FOOD? Ice cream. Does that count?
29. SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDINGS? Happy endings.
30. LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED? I, Robot.
31. WHAT COLOR SHIRT ARE YOU WEARING? Gray.
32. SUMMER OR WINTER? Autumn.
33. HUGS OR KISSES? Hugs.
34. FAVORITE DESSERT? Ice Cream (it's my favorite everything)
35. WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING NOW? Real Learning: Education in the Heart of the Home
36. WHAT IS ON YOUR MOUSE PAD? The Death Star.
37. WHAT DID YOU WATCH ON T.V. LAST NIGHT? King of Queens.
38. FAVORITE SOUNDS? Birds chirping outside, my children's voices (when they are happy), and sometimes no sound at all.
39. ROLLING STONES OR BEATLES? I'm not a big fan of either, but I prefer the Beatles.
40. WHAT IS THE FARTHEST YOU HAVE BEEN FROM HOME? Germany
41. DO YOU HAVE A SPECIAL TALENT? I suppose I can quilt and cook okay, and I've always love to draw. I wouldn't say I'm exceptionally great at any of these things, though.
42. WHERE WERE YOU BORN? Beaumont, TX

Check out what you are checking out!

More than likely, you all do this... But with three little ones running rampant through the children's section of our local public library, I don't always look through the books they have chosen to check out. I'm usually just anxious to get us checked out and back out to the car. Most of the books they select come from the picture book section and are very safe, albeit sometimes, a bit gross or stupid (we tend to only read these once). But this past trip to the library we brought home a book that literally shocked me.

Nathan has been into Superman lately, or at least the idea of Superman. He doesn't know anymore about him than that he is a superhero who wears an "S" symbol on his chest and a red cape. But while they were (supposed to be) sitting and looking at books as I attempted to locate a few educational books for Alex, Alex came across this book for Nathan about Superman... This, of course, was right at the end of our library visit and Amy and Nathan were getting a bit loud and restless, so I simply said "great" and we checked out. Several days went by before Bill and I really took a look at what was in this book. Oh. My. Goodness. Okay, growing up, my brother collected comic books and I would frequently read his X-Men, Spiderman, etc. comics. And of course, the drawings and subject matter were... well... not what I would consider appropriate for young children. I was not little when I read them. I wouldn't expect to find these comics in the children's section of our library.

But here it was. Yes, the Superman drawn on the front seems harmless enough, but look a little further and you find half-dressed, extremely built women, risque illustrations, and very graphically violent pictures. Does this sound like something you'd want your young child to read - or more importantly, look at? Of course, I know that I should always check the content of the book my child is checking out, but I was still shocked by this one. Really. Check your kids' library books.

Nathan asked about his Superman book last night... I felt bad as I ignored his requests and simply turned his attention to a different book. I didn't tell him that Daddy has it and will, first chance he gets, take it back to the library, perhaps even stopping to offer a comment or two on where this book really belongs.

Making the World a Safer Place...

On the way home from an outing yesterday, Alex informed me that when he grows up ("to be a daddy"... to my kids, those words go hand-in-hand with "growing up" :) ), he is going to be a superhero. And not just any superhero. He is going to fight sharks, crabs, and alligators. I can breathe easier knowing that, thanks to Alex, I will be safe from these evil villains of the Earth's waters... Can't you?

Alex the Chef

I've always thought of Alex as being very creative, but lately he seems to be carrying it to a whole new level. From making his 3-dimensional paper animals, to wanting to build a house he could live in, in our backyard (with running water, I might add), he has just been amazing us. Poor thing has been so frustrated by some of the things he's wanted to do that Bill and I have had to say no to. He just doesn't understand why we won't let him make a video game (player and games). We've tried explaining to him that we don't have the plastic, electronics, etc. necessary to build it. But he huffs and puffs and sticks out his bottom lip at us, anyway. He's also asked to build a real rocket with metal. Again, no metal or means to make a real rocket. The model rockets we made last week did seem to help satisfy that request, however, though he was a bit confused by the lack of metal on our models.

So I was thankful this evening that his latest idea I could actually allow. He came to me and said he wanted to make something he could eat. I said maybe, depending on what he wanted to make (I was really scared of what he had in mind). He said he wanted to use carrots, apples, and cheese. Well, it didn't sound very appetizing, but I said okay. He asked to use my Pampered Chef chopper to chop up the carrots and apples, which was definitely the only option since a real knife was out of the question. I had him place the half-chopped (have you ever tried using that chopper?) mixture into a dish, and then he sprinkled some shredded cheese on top. Then we placed the lid on top and put it in the oven for awhile. Of course, the cheese melted and the apples cooked rather quickly, but the carrots were still rather crisp. Alex didn't care. He said it was done and that it looked delicious. And if you didn't know what it was, it did look somewhat appetizing. So I served it up to all three kids with their dinner. Upon seeing the funny expression on Alex's face as he took the first bite, I asked him if he liked it. Immediately he said, "Yes, it's very good." And then after eating much of his other food and not once touching his own recipe, he looked at me and said, "Actually, it's not very good." I think that was the consensus among all who tried it. He informed me that all it needed was small marshmallows on top... Um... Yeah... I'm sure that would fix it. It will be interesting to see what Chef Alex comes up with next!

Happy New Year!

2008 already... It's so hard to believe. I don't think I ever got used to writing "2007"! But the start of 2008 will always be memorable for our family. We started out our New Year's Eve celebration by going across town to my brother's house to let the kids do fireworks together. At first, I wasn't sure Amy and I were going because she'd been a little sick with cold and slight fever. But she was much better all day yesterday and acted like her usual self. So we decided Amy and I would go, too. We had actually been invited to spend the night, but our dog Shelby would need to be let out and we were also worried about her being extra scared from all of the fireworks (Shelby is a very timid dog who is unsettled by even the slightest outside noise). And though the kids were disappointed they would not be sleeping over at their cousins' house, they had a fantastic time eating pizza, doing fireworks, drinking hot cocoa, and indulging in ice cream before finally heading home.

Bill and I had planned on putting the kids straight to bed (an easy task since they'd all fallen asleep on the way home) and then ringing in the New Year with a glass of champagne while watching the New York City ball drop on television. We still did that, but not with the same happy disposition we'd expected. When we arrived home earlier, we noticed water pooled on the garage floor, apparently coming from the door into the house. Upon further inspection, we discovered that a pipe under a sink in the upstairs master bathroom had sprung a leak while we were gone and flooded the bathroom carpet, as well as leaked through the ceiling of the downstairs bathroom. Bill had to cut away part of the ceiling in the downstairs bath to let the pooled water out, as well as cut out much of the carpet in the master bath. This, of course, was not how we were expecting to ring in the new year! I'm trying to look at the bright side - if there is one! Maybe I can get that tile in the master bath that I've always wanted???

On a different note, I guess I should make a few New Year's Resolutions, something I normally do at midnight on New Year's Eve, but our minds were only on our new remodeling project last night. So, here's what I can come up with off the top of my head:

1. Cut way back on the sweets, as I have gotten quite accustomed to grabbing a cookie or piece of candy as a snack lately.

2. Begin a new exercise program. I used to be very good about putting regular exercise into my schedule, but over the last couple of years, my only exercise is housekeeping and chasing after the kids. And although that is some pretty good exercise, it's not quite enough.

3. Plan ahead better on our homeschool lessons. I'm tired of trying to prepare lessons at the last minute. I want at least 3 weeks worth always planned out.

4. Finish some of the home improvement tasks I've began, such as the wallpaper I started pulling off the kids' bathroom walls. I thought it looked bad before I began peeling it away! Let's just say that I've only pulled off small sections, all over the place. It looks dreadful. I really should finish that little project.

5. Spend more time just playing with the kids. I spend time with them when we are schooling and at other times each day, but not so much where we are just playing together. I really want to have more of that kind of quality time with them.

6. I want to make more time for just Bill and I. We used to carve out Friday nights after the kids would go to bed to just sit together and watch a movie or play a board game. Over the past couple of years, however, it seems we always have too many individual projects to keep us busy every night. We need to go back to planning one night a week to spend with each other.

I know there are other things, but this is the best I can do right now.

I hope you all have a wonderful and blessed New Year's Day!