The Joys of Teaching, Working, Playing, Praying, and Serving with your Children

OK, that's a long title just to communicate some of the random things we have been up to lately! First of all, the kids have been studying the 13 original colonies, memorizing them, learning about early colonial life, strife and friendships with the native Americans, the Quakers, the Puritans, pirates, witch trials, etc... and reading some AWESOME living books to solidify their knowledge of this time period. They made a "map" of New England out of different materials and then painted the Atlantic Ocean... Here are some pictures of their work:

 So, we have been busy enjoying our "trial period" of a different curriculum. I'm thinking that we will be making the switch for sure come August.

Our Kezi just had a birthday last weekend (she turned 7). Keilah and Kaleb each made her a present: Kaleb built her a wooden airplane out of some scrap lumber. He sawed and nailed it together all by himself (he designed it too).  Keilah made her a little zippered, lined pouch for putting her toy horses in. I talked her through how to sew it, but she did the work all by herself. Here is a picture of their handiwork: I'm proud of the work that they both did... even though you can't see the fine details in this picture...!

The other thing we have been up to is running! We love being active together as a family, but I thought it would be fun to train for a 5K (the older 3 kiddos and myself). I don't know if we will do an actual, organized race, but we will be trained up for one none-the-less.  Sometimes we train with all of the kids (3 runners and 3 in strollers which means I push the double stroller and Kaleb gets to push the single). Sometimes we go 3.1 miles, sometimes we go 5 miles. Sometimes we run on the road. Sometimes we run trails in the pasture on the hills. At any rate, I'm quite proud of their endurance and heart (even and especially when we are pushing the strollers on the dirt). The best part is sitting down with our water after we are done and talking to each other. I usually tell people that I hate running, but I LOVE how I feel after I run: thankful, refreshed, energized, strong... It is fun to share that feeling with my kids. They are so encouraging to each other during and afterward; it is almost as if running wards off strife! We will probably be ready in a week or two. I'm surprised how quickly the kids have built up their endurance! I would encourage you to get active with your kids: walk, run, bike ride, hike, geocache.... whatever... it is an awesome experience to share and a great way to enjoy God through His creation.  Truth be told, I tried to get my husband to train with us.... He said "no". But he happily volunteered to ride the 4 wheeler with the 3 little ones and carry water for the runners. Isn't he a great husband?

Random Lizard Entertainment!

I am amazed at the amount of time Americans (both adults and children) sit glued to the idiot box (um... TV).  On the average... 40ish hours a WEEK according to the research. I have looked at research from a couple of different sources... and they all pretty much agree. In my opinion... that is just a waste of time. There are so many other ways to spend our time, I don't know why we would choose the "couch potato" route for either ourselves or our children!

Keeping TV viewing at a bare minimum allows our children to use their imaginations and I love to see the latest "game" they have created... which I'm briefly sharing about right now....
Lizard hunting!

Items needed:
a plastic lizard (or other type of toy)
nerf gun
nerf bullets

and a place to adhere the lizard....

I'm not sure who came up with the idea for this very entertaining game... but it really is addicting! We placed the lizard in a grout line of our fire place and took turns shooting at him with the single shot nerf pistol. (Which, by the way, is not sighted in very accurately). I think that if you had a nerf gun that held more than one bullet at a time, you would be more successful. But we use what we have... right??? Anyway, the first to knock down the lizard wins...

Just so you know... Mommy is currently the lizard hunting champion!  This has been great fun and the kids have added in more "targets": a plastic coyote and a Diego figurine.  What silly game does your family like to play?