Journal: back to Summer! and some pictures

TODAY

Out my window:  Warm, muggy, cloudy-ish.  We didn't get near the rains predicted for this week immediately around us, but less than a dozen miles north of us they had seven inches the other night.  Remarkable.  The kids are going to VBS at a neighboring parish this week and wanted to play at their park one day this week, so we picked Tuesday and had a picnic lunch and they played for two hours.  It was a bit muggy but in the seventies.  We couldn't have picked a better day.

Around the house: QUARANTINE IS OVER!!!  WooHOOOOOO!!!!!!!  Other than that, nothing of note, really.  Our sheets and bedspread in our master bedroom are starting to seriously wear out (like, I have mended them multiple times), so I think we may be in the market for new ones at some point.  Christmas maybe?

 

The kiddos:

Gemma has been fantastic of late.  Oh, she has had her not-so-fantastic moments as well but over all, oh my word.  She is really stepping up in her big sister role with the boys... she will play for hours with them at the park.  She has been putting them to bed.  Reading to them for 20-30 minutes at a time.  It is wonderful to see her blossom, and I am enjoying this more-grown-up version of her more and more every day.  Life is so different around here than it was five years ago.

Kolbe is having a BLAST at VBS this week.  I mean, Gemma is having a great time too, but Kolbe, WOW.  He will come up to me a dozen times a day to tell me a long drawn-out story about something that he got to do or something he learned or saw.  This is very un-Gemma.  I have learned just to be quiet with her and let her tell me what she wants, when she wants, and not press the issue if she doesn't feel like talking.  And she usually doesn't.  But I've made peace with that.  I digress...  If this week is any sort of prelude to how kindergarten will be for Kolbe, I think it will be a great year.   

Clement is getting a taste for what it's like to be the only kid at home in the mornings this week.  He plays incredibly well by himself, which really mystifies me.  Maybe it is because he is so used to playing with his siblings that it is a welcome reprieve?  I don't know.  But it tickles me.  His favorite thing to do of late has been making picnics with our play food.  This is a very intricate process which can sometimes keep him busy for 45 minutes or an hour.

In the kitchen: I made bierocks this week.  I think the last time I made them was when I was pregnant with Clement maybe?  They were super-tasty.  We've been having more salads.  They taste good anytime, but especially during Summer it seems.  Planning on a chicken stir-fry next week, but I still need to hammer out the rest of my menu.  The kids have eaten more meals outdoors than in this week.  My kitchen floor has never stayed so clean (relatively speaking of course) for so long.

Learning:  VBS!  The program that they use at our parish (and it's the same one they are using at the neighboring parish) is such a great boost to their faith lives.  I love it.  We've done a lot of reading.  I was telling a friend the other day, I had the best-laid plans to do some more academic things this summer (handwriting practice, math facts, etc.) and we really haven't done anything.  That said, I feel like thus far we've had an incredibly educational summer, simply taking advantage of the opportunities around us.  The kids have written letters, played with pattern blocks and puzzles and some of our more "educational" toys at their leisure, we've had a huge variety of books, especially with our weekly themes. You can learn so much simply from observing and taking advantage of the world around you.  I have often thought I'd be a fan of year-round school, but I am really appreciating the extended break this go-around.

Reading: I've been trying to have some sort of rhyme and reason for the chapter books I read with Gemma so we've been focusing on the early days of Kansas, and the westward expansion in general.  We're currently reading the Prairie Skies Trilogy and it's fantastic. It's giving us so many things to discuss (general premise: an abolitionist family movies to KS in the 1850s in hopes of making it a free state during the time of the Kansas-Nebraska act) .  As an aside though, it was pretty funny (well, it's funny now) the other day she was really mad at me for something, and she yelled, "YOU ARE TREATING ME LIKE A SLAVE!!!!!"  Oh dear...

I'm keeping up with my usuals, although my main focus now (aside from finishing up with Theology) has been Happy Are You Poor.  Wow.  Just wow.  I am also trying to read/mediate from The Imitation of Christ each day.  Good stuffs.

Crafting: I added this category back in so I could show off Gemma's perler-bead prowess!  These were a great diversion for all three kids when we were stuck in quarantine!

Watching:  MLB.  Oh, and also The Hobbit.  I cannot believe it but I think I am finally getting really hooked on this LOTR business.  I know, right?

Bringing me joy: VBS, listening to the kids sing their songs and dance and be so excited about the faith is energizing.  And reading good books...to myself and my kids.  I am so grateful for books.  :-)

Thinking about: the fact that I have at least three other things I should be doing right now, but I wanted to blog an update before it got too far away from me. 

Pictures to share:  

Just a few more...Some new pics for our collage frame.  Love these kids!

Bedtime snuggles.

Eating mulberries on our nature walk.  Won't be too much longer and he'll be too big for his sweet ride on daddy's back. 

Journal: and then it was Spring

TODAY

Out my window:  Sunny!  Warm!!  Spring is in the air for sure, you can just feel it now, even when it's cool out.  The forecast for tomorrow is a little cooler, but then moderate all next week.  For Spring break!!  YAY!!!!!!!

Clothing myself in: Jeans and a t-shirt, so exciting.

Around the house: Ordered a new vinyl seat-cover for our highchair.  Clem still sits in the highchair, and as love/hate as my relationship is with our highchair, if we ditch it for a booster we have to extend the kitchen table and that is really going to make the dining area feel tight, so I am going to stretch his time in the highchair as long as I possibly can.  This will really breathe some new life into it. 

In the middle of getting Spring wardrobes ready for the kids.  Everything is out now, and more-or-less in closets/drawers.  I've taken inventory, the kids and I went shopping yesterday afternoon to pick up some more stuff they needed (got some C.U.T.E. dresses/skirts for Gemma), I've packed away some of the real cold-weather stuff like fleece footie-jammies and sweats and stuff.  Getting there.  The kids still all need summer sandals, but they can do no-show socks and tennies for the foreseeable future.  I'll psyche myself up to get back out and find them shoes soon enough.  We'll probably go with Nike sandals again, but I still need to size them.  Bluuurrrgggghhh.  And speaking of sizes, their clothing sizes are completely schizophrenic this year.  Gemma is anywhere from a 5 to a 7/8 with some 6/6x tossed in as well.  Kolbe has a few 4's some 5T stuff and some 5/6's, and it's looking like the 18mos stuff may work for Clem for a little while, but then after that we really don't have much 24 month 2T.  But that size is huge on him now so I am not really inclined to buy much yet even though I know the 18 month stuff won't last him all summer...  Good. Grief. 

And I had to come back and add...a word to savvy shoppers, never shop at a Carter's store.  Their prices, oh my word.  I actually did buy a pair of shorts for Kolbe there, but they are currently sitting in my basement with the receipt because I still cannot believe I paid what I did for them and I am seriously considering just returning them.  Seriously, they had "clearance" jammies for $19.99.  For real??  I'll choose the leftover VBS t-shirt and $4 cotton shorts from Target please.  That said, we went to Children's Place too (I had never shopped there, but we've been given clothes from there before and I've always been impressed by their quality) and their prices were decent.  I'll go back.

 

The baby/toddler: Started saying "more" (instead of signing it) the other day when we were feeding him strawberries.  It reminded me of the first time Kolbe said "more" and I remembered videoing it because it was so cute.  I figured he was probably about the same age so I pulled up the video and would you believe he and Clem were the same age, to the day (five days shy of 20 months, since I'm sure you care) when they said "more" for the first time.  How weird is that?   

He has also become one opinionated little dude the past couple weeks.  Like, oh my goodness.  He ended up sleeping shirtless the other night because I tried to put short sleeves on him instead of his footie jammies.  He got so mad that his sleeves were short that I took the shirt off to put on some long sleeves, but then in his anger he wouldn't let me put anything else on him.  I even tried to give him a shirt in the middle of the night when he woke up and he grunted at me and shoved it away.  Oy.

The kiddos: Have been enjoying playing at the park and in the backyard on these warmer days.  Gemma has the bike-riding thing aaalllllllmoooooost down, I really am amazed how quickly she has caught on.  The other day she rode from in front of the house three houses down from us down the street and up our driveway all on her own, I wasn't even standing by her.

In the kitchen: Last week we had meatloaf, rice and leftover veggies, Loaded Baked Potato and Chicken Casserole, a fish fry, family dinner and some fried meat and veggie burritos.  Next week I'm making spaghetti (Gemma's favorite!!) and maybe Chicken Picadillo (although the kids really don't like it a whole lot, I am thinking of leaving the raisins out of theirs and putting it in tacos though and maybe it will be more 'edible' to them??), baked fish and some other stuff.  We have fresh asparagus and brussel sprouts in the fridge to be used as sides as well.

Crafting: I renovated the pony house for Gemma, adding a roof, parapets, floor, and bunk beds made of cut apart toilet paper tubes.  Seriously, give me some cardboard and my trusty glue-gun and I can make just about anything.

Learning:  We'll try to keep up with some school-type activities this week and there will definitely be a trip to the library some afternoon.  I've been timing Gemma with her addition worksheet and sight-word flashcards lately, she seems to like the challenge and keeping track from day-to-day.  I suppose I should add another dimension and have her chart her times...  The older two have been really creative with the pattern blocks lately too.  The other day while I was cooking I let Clem play with some chunky beads, he had fun pouring them and trying to string them on a pipe-cleaner.  I have our letter Ss week stuff ready to go and will probably pull some of it out this week and then spread it over the next couple weeks.  Planning on seed-planting in a couple weeks with our little preschool co-op.  Anyone have any cute ideas for decorating little planters?

Reading:  We have some good Spring books from the library, check out And Then it Was Spring if you haven't.  It's wonderful.  In keeping with my better-late-than-never New Year's resolution to order at least one hardcover book a month this year to add to our collection, I ordered a used copy of Gemma and the Baby Chick to give Gemma on her name-day next month.

Watching:  Gold Rush finale was last night, always a little sad when one of our shows is over.  Will be interesting to see what next season brings.  Aaron has his hypotheses and he also thinks there's probably only one season left of this show.  Especially if gold prices continue to go down.  Time will tell. 

I also finally let the kids watch Wallykazam!.  They have seen previews for it at the beginning of another show they watch and have been begging, and I finally relented.  I should have given in sooner, it is adorable.

Bringing me joy: Shopping with the kids, even if it was crazy and I felt like crying in desperation more than once, we really had a nice time together.  And time at the zoo this morning with the kids...there was no desperation and we got to watch them shear sheep!  It was our second year to do this, so fun!!  This year's weather was muuuuuuuch nicer.  Last year I think it was low-40's, cloudy and drizzly.

Thinking about:  Lent, sacrificing, the Church, letting go and letting Christ fill me up.  I have so much to learn and so much progress to make in this life, in my vocation, sometimes it just overwhelms me.  I am a driver, I want to get things done, see outcomes, etc.  Sometimes it is hard for me to just wait and let Christ work.  

I've also been thinking about looking for a new carrier for Clem on my back.  It is kind of ridiculous, I have a mei tai and an ergo and a couple slings, but I mainly just use the mei tai for the first couple months when you can still frog a baby's legs, and the slings are only nice for short in-and-outs.  The ergo is OK, I really want to like it but I wish I had researched more before I got it.  It says up to 45 lbs, but I do not like how he fits in it at all, and he's only 22 lbs.  OH well. Looking at Boba and Kinderpack but not really serious about buying anything too soon unless I come upon a really good deal...  Definitely mulling it over though.

Oh and this article, Seven Steps to a Holier Life.  Such a wonderful reminder.

Pictures to share:  

Enjoying a Spring fishing trip...they were both successful!  Gemma even cast, caught and reeled in a few all by herself.  She needed a bit of help getting them off the hook.

Clem got his first "big-boy" haircut (IE, first time to have any hair taken off the top).  He was not too fond of this procedure, as you can see.  He looks so handsome though (as you cannot see, as I didn't think to take an "after" picture.  Yeah.)  On that note, Happy Spring, everyone!!

Journal: Getting back in the swing of things

TODAY

Out my window: Dark.  Warmer this week.  Makes me happy, the kids can play outside in the afternoon which helps immensely in the sanity department around here.

Clothing myself in: Jammies.

Around the house:  Took the tree down last night.  I was happy to see it go, real-estate is prime in the living room and it was starting to feel a bit crowded.  Still have the Nativity and other winter decos up for the next month or so, probably until Lent (it's so EARLY this year!!)  The kids are a little sad Christmas is "over".  Kolbe kept running over to the corner where the tree was and saying, "Oh, Christmas o-der mommy."  

 

The baby: Likes to nurse every 5 minutes during the night.  OK, maybe not quite that frequently but sometimes it seems like it. 

 

The kiddos:  Gemma has been very into making books lately.  She cuts a piece of paper into quarters and draws things, and asks me how to spell words and then we staple them altogether and read them.  Recently she has made a bug book (to identify various bugs), a Jesus book (to tell the poor people at the park who don't know about Jesus about Him...her words), and a book entitled "Max and Ruby's Firecrackers" that she wrote especially for Kolbe.  It is very cute.

Kolbe, oh my this child likes to help me.  I was going to do a special blog post all about it, but this once a week blogging thing has been a good fit lately so I'll just talk about it here.  Goodness, it doesn't matter what he is doing...playing with toys, watching a show...if he sees me doing chores he is right by my side saying, "help too, help too."  Cooking, laundry, sweeping, vacuuming, dishes, dusting, you name it.  The boy loves to help.  It is sweet and I try so hard to be patient with him.  I know some day it will not be so easy to get willing and eager help.

In the kitchen:  Chili, Chicken Enchiladas, Shepherd's Pie, Smoked Beef and Salmon.  Some Quinoa/Kale salad and sweet potatoes prepared somehow (suggestions?) for side dishes.  I will let Gemma help me plan Friday's dinner as it is her birthday.  I made some homemade cinnamon rolls last Friday to celebrate the Feast of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton.

Crafting:  Does making cinnamon rolls count?  The kids and I made this together (they painted, I did the hot gluing).  It turned out really cool.

Learning:  We're going through Little Acts of Grace during our morning prayer time here the next few weeks.  Am hoping to pick up Book 2 for Gemma's Baptism Anniversary, we've sure enjoyed the first one.  Did a reading lesson today, I was pleased with how well Gemma did, it had been awhile.  Jumped back in to handwriting lessons today as well, and have plans to work on counting/numbers/counting by tens this week with both kids.

Reading: Jesus of Nazareth: The Infancy Narratives, slowly making my way through it.  Keeping up with my daily Catechism readings (or trying to).  Got Adam and Eve After the Pill from Inter-library loan.  Looks interesting.  On the Banks of Plum Creek with the kids.

Bringing me joy: Spending the afternoon at Academy Sports wandering around with the family.  We had so much fun.  Time with the hubby and kids all of us together, I treasure it so much.  Running into people I know.  Taking the Christmas tree down (much as I love it, I was ready to see it go).  Reading with the kids.  Kolbe talking.  Time one-on-one with Gemma.  Reading about Mother Teresa in a magazine from Church.  Getting ready for the kids' birthdays.

Thinking about: Spending less (ideally not any) time on the computer when the kids are awake.  Our days go so much better when I keep the laptop off the kitchen table and give the kids my attention.  Upcoming birthdays, can't believe Miss Gemma will be 5, wow.  Starting to think about Lent plans and what I/we want to do with the kids/as a family/individually. 

Pictures to share: 

Gemma in her "cat hat".  She needed a new stocking cap, and Daddy had seen these at Penney's. Got it on clearance even and it's prefect for her!

My helper, so proud.

Clem's new ride.  Anyone picked up the teething strap-covers that go with this and are they worth having?  As you can see, he sure drools (and occasionally spits up on it) a lot.

Journal (14th edition)

TODAY

Out my window: Sunny.  The wee bit of snow we got is almost melted, and it is actually pretty mild out.  It is supposed to get colder than cold around Christmas though.

Clothing myself in: Sweats, tank, sweatshirt.  Really that is about the only thing I wear during winter unless we're leaving the house, and then the only thing that changes is jeans instead of sweats.  I am beyond help.  I do dress up for Mass though, I just never happen to blog on Sunday mornings. 

Around the house: Cleaned (vacuumed and dusted) the basement.  Even though I have a regular rotation for cleaning chores, I usually only clean the basement once a month (or more likely every 6 weeks).  I also took some extra time with my kitchen cleaning today, and we cleaned the deck doors, which were quite nasty after wind and not enough moisture.  And fingerprints, and face marks, etc. etc. etc. 

 

The baby: He's sooooo cute.  Have I mentioned that?  Some days I feel like he is my little slice of sanity in our crazy house.  He is quite the napper, some days he will nap for close to a four-hour stretch in the morning.  He's gotten pretty regular with his sleep, with a nap in the morning and one in the afternoon and is fairly predictable about his bedtime (depending on how late his last nap is).  Nights are a little much less predictable.  Some nights he only nurses 2-3 times.  Other most nights I lose count.  Co-sleeping keeps me sane and (mostly) rested though so I can't complain, but boy can he be the milk-monster (that's what I call him on his particularly "nursey" nights).  I really shouldn't knock it though, he is such an easy baby during the day, and honestly I look forward to his nighttime snuggles (for the most part). 

 

The kiddos:  Gemma and Kolbe have started going out to play in the (gated and locked) backyard by themselves in the afternoons and this has been a new-found joy for all of us.  They've actually been doing this since late summer, but I am grateful they will still go out on the colder days, bundled up in coats and such.  It is so nice to be able to send them out...good for the mental health of everyone in the house, especially in that 3:30-5:30 PM time range.

Gemma has developed a recent attachment to "Baby Lamb", a stuffed lamb that Clem got from my aunt when he was born.  She is very affectionate and loving with it, errr "her."  She is constantly putting her down for a nap, doctoring her, or pretending she was just born and I have to come visit them at the hospital (Gemma's bedroom).  She also has to sleep with Baby Lamb every night.  It's cute and sweet.

Kolbe has recently discovered his spit and is quite fascinated by it.  He doesn't actually spit (yet) thankfully, but he likes to blow bubbles and do other gross things that I don't feel like talking about with it.  Ugh.  Boys.  I guess I better get used to it.  ;-D Kolbe is typically pretty indifferent about reading stories, but he has requested this one incessantly this week. 

In the kitchen:  Christmas feasting mainly.  Hubby is making sushi to take to his parents' on Christmas eve.  I'm planning on making some Mexican Chili on Wednesday as our friend Fr. Nick will be joining us for dinner.  Just kind of leaving the rest of the week up in the air.

Crafting:  We finished the salt-dough ornaments and their gift-bags this week (picture below, don't look if you want to be surprised ;-D)!!!

Learning: See "crafting", this has been our main project this week along with our regular Advent chain daily activities.  Still hitting reading lessons here and there with Gemma.  Once the new year rolls around (and we get past birthdays too) we'll get back to more regular reading and handwriting lessons, etc.  I sure have enjoyed our Advent though, it's been good.

Reading: We finished Little House on the Prairie today.  I actually found myself crying as the family packed up and left the little house.  And I don't even have pregnancy hormones to blame that one on.  I also found it rather difficult to explain to Gemma the conflict between the Indians and the white people (she had some questions), and to be completely honest it really gave me a lot to think about myself.  I hadn't remembered that being such a prominent part of the story (and I probably read that series a good 8-10 times as a child), I guess we perceive things differently as kids.  We're going to skip Farmer Boy (I think that will be a good one for my boys here in a few years) and begin On the Banks of Plum Creek next.

Bringing me joy: Texting with my sister.  Reading with the kids.  Advent.  Classical Christmas music all day every day this week on NPR.  The O Antiphons.  Anticipating Christmas.  Taking the kids to visit our friend Bertie in the nursing home.  Classical Christmas music all day every day this week on NPR.  Time with Aaron in the evenings after the kids are in bed.  Oh, and the Christmas music on NPR.

Thinking about: Salvation History.  Looking forward to reading this book in more depth.  There's so much I feel like I don't understand about humanity in general I guess.  "Lord I believe, help my unbelief." 

Pictures to share: 

Snowy day (their awesome daddy took them out to play)!

Gemma and Kolbe after making popcorn ball snowmen with our sweet neighbor Miss Jo.

 
This year's ornaments!!

Clem riding around with Daddy (I love Kolbe peeking out of the bathtub in the background).

CHEESE!

Journal (4th edition)

TODAY

Out my window: Dark(ish).  Cloudy.  Coooooooooold.  Fall has come to our neck of the woods for sure.  We have our "winter" bird feeder out on the deck now (as opposed to the hummingbird feeder during summer) and have been enjoying its many visitors.  We sure like our Bird Book.

Clothing myself in: Black sweats.  KU sweatshirt.  My glorified "winter" jammies. It's still early folks.  Just plan on an answer similar to this for the next 6 months or so unless I start blogging at a different time of day.  Then it's debatable.

Around the house: Debating about turning the heater on.  (switching gears) A bit of an increase in our laundry, due in part to the baby and in part to the fact that cool-weather clothes take up more space.  Oh laundry.

 

The baby: Just now waking up.  Not much new with him, he just hangs out with us and does what we do.  Or sleeps.  He's a "go-with-the-flow" kind of kid.  Boy though, he does not like the wind.  I don't remember that with my other two.  Sometimes I feel sorry for him, his babyhood is so different than Gemma's and even Kolbe's to an extent.  But then, I suppose he will never know any better.

 

The kiddos: They had a BIG fun week this week.  Several feast days and activities to go along with those.  A trip to the Pumpkin Patch with friends, playgroup at the park, a family trip to the zoo, time outdoors soaking up the last bit of warmer weather (said wistfully, *tear*).  And more fun planned for the weekend.  Hopefully they aren't too "hung over" from all the fun next week.  ;-D

In the kitchen:  Coming up this week are lasagna, tacos, some beef and veggie stew and focaccia bread for my mom's birthday celebration and chile rellenos with some FRESH (frozen) green chiles. 

Crafting: The kids and I made beaded Rosaries yesterday for the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, and since October is the month of the Holy Rosary.  That was fun and they turned out really cute.  We will use them in the car I think. 

Learning:  (I decided to add this category in order to keep track of some of our preschool activities.  I am enjoying this once-a-week all-in-one-place blogging thing and want to make the most of it. ;-D)  Reading lessons are going well, and we've gotten to the letters part of our handwriting book.  We are doing pretty good at getting a reading lesson a day in, usually while Aaron is home over lunch so that works well.  Handwriting we seem to get to several times a week.  It is a great, ready-to-go activity on days I don't have anything special planned so I am enjoying having that available.  Recently Gemma has really taken an interest at when things are...when is Grandma's birthday?...when are we going to the Pumpkin Patch?...when will it be Fall?, etc. So I printed an October calendar off with the numbers really big, and then wrote simple words or pictures on the days of special activities, or holidays or whatever.  Each evening the calendar goblin (long story, we love goblins around here) crosses another day off and we talk about the date each morning after prayers.  She seems to really like this. 

Bringing me joy: My family.  Oh how I love my husband and dear children.  Goodness, all the gratitude in the world isn't enough to express the joy in my heart that my dear little family brings me each and every day.  God is good. Sooo so good.

Thinking about: The Litany of Humility and how it really applies to life.  Often I pray this but then cringe when this "litany" of events happens.  This week it has really hit me, like, "ooohhhhh, this is what I'm praying for."  SO much to ponder.

Pictures to share: 

Pumpkin Patch fun!!

Fun at Lowe's

What better way to spend the better part of a hot Saturday afternoon with the family than to go wander around Lowe's for an hour-and-a-half.  Besides having to yell across the aisle, "no Kolbe, you do NOT need a box-cutter," and Gemma almost running a complete stranger over while trying to push the cart without us realizing (for which she apologized), things did go fairly well.  I even have pictorial proof.  I was going to call it cheap entertainment, but then I looked at our receipt.  Oh well, it was a fun afternoon anyways.

CONEHEADS!

Sitting in a fun chair on the "quiet" aisle.  Yes, we were there long enough that we determined which were the busy aisles and which were the "quiet" ones.  We actually made a mental note of this for future reference.

Found a safer spot for Kolbe after Aaron nearly ran him over with the cart.

Clement was quite rambunctious as usual.

Gemma had fun with some keychain tape-measures she found while waiting on daddy to pick out a saw blade.  Kolbe resigned himself to sitting on a stack of tiles.  Safe choice, buddy-bear.

 And that's how we roll.  Happy end of summer, everyone!!

Daddy and Kolbe

I thought both of these pictures were very sweet.  Aaron and Kolbe have been spending more time together lately as Kolbe gets older and is less needy for me all the time.  They even went to the grocery store together last weekend, which was something Aaron loved to do with Gemma when she was this age.  As interesting as it is watching the sibling relationship develop (and believe me, it has been quite interesting lately), it is really neat observing/being a part of that developing parent/child relationship as well.

Small successes XXIV

1. Vacuumed the house while wearing my (20lb) baby on my back. WOOT! (Thanks for the inspiration, Mary Elizabeth!) 2. Got our weekly Scripture verses (typically the Responsorial Psalm) that we hang on our fridge and try to recite throughout the week written out on color-coded papers from now through Palm Sunday. If you're not familiar with it, the USCCB has a great section on their website with the daily Mass readings.
3. Survived our overnight family trip this past weekend, with a feverish Kolbe to boot. (He started running the fever after we'd already gotten to our destination...I don't make a habit of dragging my children places when they're sick.) And we all had a really nice time (Aaron and his dad hunted, the kids and I spent the day with my MIL and her parents). I am a home-body through-and-through, so this is big, people! ;-D We had fun and made it home safely and with our sanity intact, so I consider that a success!

Head on over to Faith and Family Live! to share in others' successes!

Gemma the mommy

Gemma is a very good little mommy. I know I've said that more than once. ;-D She can be very nurturing to her little 'friends'. Aaron has a Kelty carrier he sometimes carries Gemma in when we go on walks. Its straps make it look like a big backpack (I guess that's what it is essentially). Apparently Gemma noticed its similarity to her little backpack, because this is how she was carrying her bunny around the other day (I guess she couldn't figure out how to rig it to where she could get him on her back). Anyways, I thought it was cute (sorry, the pic is backlit so it's not very good).

Apple week

Last week was apple week at our house. We had some fun activities and started the week off by making applesauce on Monday morning with some apples from my sister's tree. First we read Applesauce Season together. It was a fun, educational story and worked well after modifying it a bit for Gemma's level of understanding/attention.
It turned out SUPER tasty. We just cooked the apples down in the crock pot and added some butter, cinnamon and brown sugar. Typical Gemma fashion, I think she tried about one bite. Silly girl. Bubby, on the other hand, LOVED it (sans sugar/cinnamon/butter) and I even made another batch later in the week to freeze specifically for him. WHEW! I've peeled a lot of apples lately. 'Tis the season. ;-D
Wednesday was the hilight of the week, when we took a trip to an apple orchard with my sister and her children. The day dawned just perfectly...sunny with a crisp chill in the air. The perfect fall kind of day for picking apples. We had a great time and my sis went all out with some really neat activities for the kids when we got back from the orchard.

Picking apples
Having fun together! Gemma and I ended up in matching hoodies...didn't even plan that!!
Cousins!!
I love this picture.
She dutifully toted her box all over.
Where's Gemma?
Tossing apples in the box is fun, just don't toss too hard!
God's beautiful creation.
Kolbe decided to grab a little snooze.
Our "catch" for the day, around 20 lbs (yea, more peeling for me!)
Time for apple crafts! Gemma got to use paints for the first time!!
Getting their feet painted for the footprint tree trunk.
Blowing the paint around to make the tree-top.
Sometimes fingers work better! ;-D
Adding some sparkly red apples to her tree.
Finished work of art.
Bobbing for apples (slices). "You want us to what?!!"
Taking turns and enjoying some tasty, fresh-picked apple slices!
Who knew bobbing for apples was a full-contact sport!
Sweet Gemma chewed up a bite of apple and crawled over and put it in her bubby-brother's mouth for him. I suppose she's seen me bite large pieces of food into smaller bits for him. It was really sweet.
We also enjoyed reading Apple Harvest a couple times throughout the week. I really like the series from which this book came. The books are geared toward young preschoolers with short concise sentences and wonderful photographs. As we were talking about this book, I was mentioning to Gemma all the tasty things we could do with apples: applesauce, apple pie, apple crisp. I said, "you like apple crisp, don't you Gemma?" To which she looked at me and very seriously replied, "No, I just like grandpa Chris" (who is my dad). Apparently she didn't hear the "p" on the end of "crisp". She cracks me up!!

The week was a success for sure, and we still have lots of apples with which to make yummy treats! Happy autumn, everyone!!