Our Little Corner: Small Pleasures, Big Blessings

Friday, September 28, 2007

Small Pleasures, Big Blessings

What gorgeous weather we have been having! Such a treat! The kids have been soaking up the sunshine. We also had another round of knocking down apples. It was a great stress reliever with our court (crap) stuff & impending lay-offs at Dave's workplace. Dave & I also started in on our growing pile of apples. We've canned 8 quarts of applesauce so far! Lots of spaghetti sauce & tomatoes too. God has blessed us richly with our garden and apple trees this year.

Giant Sandbox!

Since Dave put away the pool the kids have enjoyed playing in the "sandbox" that was underneath to keep it level.

Oops.

One of the hazards of using shoes to knock down apples. :)

Wonderful Invention

We bought this apple peeler/corer a few years ago when we started our annual tradition of apple picking. It's such a time saver! Below I have posted some step-by-step pics in case you are curious how this works.

Step by Step

This is the apple after it has been peeled & cored.

Leftovers

The core of the apple stays on the peeler/corer while the ribbon peel is lying on the table after it has been peeled off. Pretty cool, eh?

Can't Help Myself

Bugs kept coming over to snitch apple slices from the pot.

Caught Ya!

How can I resist a face so cute?

My New Friend

E-boy "adopted" this potato as his new pet. Bugs was intrigued.

That's My Boy!

E-boy announced he was going to have a staring contest with his new pal. Here they are in action. His new pal is quite the contender!

Big Helper

At first I was working the peeler/corer AND cutting out the bad parts on the apples AND getting the applesauce going. Plus I was keeping the kiddos occupied & under control. Dave was canning spaghetti sauce that I made earlier in the week. After he was done he came in and helped me. The work went much faster then! And it was nice to have his company. As you can see he is having a fabulous time! Lol!

Blessings

I couldn't resist taking a picture of some of our labors. This week we canned 10 quarts of spaghetti sauce, 5 quarts of tomatoes & 8 quarts of applesauce (1 has been set aside to take to our friend Al.) There is something about preserving & stocking food for the winter that gives me a cozy, happy feeling.

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SUMMERTIME 2012

2012

It was a year full of learning not only educational-wise but life lessons too. We have come to treasure those we love more than ever. Family time is to be savored and memories to be created and viewed as priceless. And our Lord is to be praised, trusted & loved.

We are enjoying our summer. It is full to overflowing with VBS volunteering & attending, Taekwondo, park playdates, gardening, Staycation, camp, birthday parties, visits from loved ones, adventures & day trips, friends, outdoor fun, swimming, summer treats, church & lots of trips to the library. It is wonderful to have some time to renew & relax.

OUR 12th YEAR

It is hard to believe we are in our 12th year of homeschooling. Where does the time go? It seems as if I should feel like an expert by now. But that's not the case. I learn more every year & always look forward to the opportunity to grow.

This year we have made some big changes. At first I was a little cautious wondering how we would handle this. But God has been amazingly gracious. We have made many new & wonderful friends. Even with cutting back our schedule is full to overflowing with fantastic & fun opportunities & experiences.

I look forward to seeing what more God has in store for us this year and sharing it with you, our friends & family.

Summer, Here We Come!

We are winding down our school year. We've finished our co-op studies & had our last classes of the year. AWANA is almost over as well as TKD. The spring soccer season is in full swing. Soon summer will be here. Swimming, park days, field trips, VBS, popsicles, gardening, bike rides & fun with friends are things we are all looking forward to. We will be doing some fun studies over the summer as well. Some we have already begun!
As always our days are full to the brim. Many like to comment that Dave & I have our hands full. I agree. Our hands & lives are full of fun, laughter, learning & growing. I wouldn't trade it for the world.

A New School Year

School has begun! It isn't officially fall here yet but our fall activities have started. We are now back in AWANA, Wednesday night groups, Sunday school, soccer, homeschool & 2 family learning co-ops. This week we have added Taekwando to our schedule. Yes, we are busy! On top it all off I am co-leading our large, church homeschool support group. We kicked off the new school year with a picnic. It was an amazing time & lots of fun was had though the weather tried it's best to ruin it. God prevailed!

This year we have a 9th grader (How did we get to high school already?), a 6th grader, a 3rd grader and one in Kindergarten. And don't forget our little toddler!!!! As many like to comment yes, we have our hands full. Our hands are full of blessings, of life and of love. Some days bring more challenges & tough times but through it all we grow stronger & closer.

Announcement *

She is here! Safe & sound & BEAUTIFUL! We are all wrapped around her little fingers. Our little princess arrived on
April 6 at 8:06a.m. by C-section. She surprised us all by weighing only 7lbs. 9oz. We had expected her to be at least 9lbs. based on the ultrasounds. She is also 19.5 inches long. A little peanut!
As you can see from some of her hospital photos she is already learning to accessorize. Lol. The nursery nurses at the hospital stuck a pink bow in her hair. I love it!
I will not be publishing her real name on my blog due to safety reasons, (just like I have done for my older children), but if you'd like to know feel free to email me privately and I'd be happy to share.