its time to get back to posting about all the fun we have been having doing "school" this summer here at home. the week after cooking week (look back a few weeks if you are interested in some really yummy and fun to make recipes) was ANIMAL week.
on monday we headed to the library as usual. i told the kids they could pick which ever animal they wanted to learn about. i pointed them in the direction of the animal books and helped them pick. they could each pic two books about the animal they wanted to learn about. kenzie was with us too, so she picked out some books as well.
Brenna picked elephants, raelyn picked snakes, garret picked scorpions, and kenzie picked fireflies. oh well that only one of the pics was really an animal. :)
when we got home we drew names to see which order we would go in to learn about the animals.
tuesday was brennas day so we learned about elephants. i wrote some questions on our chalk board and they had to listen for the answers as we read. the questions were: where does it live? what does it eat? what does it look like? and any fun facts they wanted to add. after reading and learning lots of cool things about elephants i had a little coloring sheet.
wednesday was kenzies day so we learned about fireflies. we read books and answered all the same questions. we made our own fireflies out of construction paper and added glow sticks. i told the kids we could stay up late and catch fireflies that night. they were so excited. since it doesnt get dark here until almost 9 i had them all cleaned up and in their jammies and then we just waited for it to get dark so we could see the first firefly.
the kids had a great time and so did kenzie and i. none of us had ever caught fireflies before. they are super easy to catch but hard to keep in the jar. they all kept wanting to fly right back out. dont blame them :)
after they all said goodnight to the bugs we let them go. i dont normally do things like that. especially when im so tired and ready for bed myself by 9 oclock, but i am so glad we did. the kids still talk about it.
thursday we learned about scorpions. we read our books, answered our questions, and did a coloring sheet.
friday daddy came and surprised the kids and took them out to camp for the day. so we didnt get to learn about snakes but i dont think they minded. they loved spending time with their dad. this also gave kenzie and i a special day to just hang out. jori and i took her out to lunch at a place she kept wanting to go to while she was here and then we went to a few stores and did a little shopping. it was a really nice time for the three :) of us. good sister bonding time!
so that was our animal week. our kids sure do love animals and insects and all of gods creation. i love being able to tell them who created all the things they love to learn about and watch and discover.
her party is this weekend. i might have gotten a little carried away. i just love having parties and i just love celebrating my kids. check back next week for the pics.
remember this little 4 day old baby girl? i hardly do. the time has gone by so fast. faster with each child i think. she has been such a joy. 
and here she is in all her one year old glory! so beautifully chubby, amazingly sweet, curiously adventurous and energetically mobile.
one year milestones: she started walking the day of her birthday
drinks from sippy cup and enjoys all the same foods that the rest of the family does.
fully weened by 11 months, i was sad about this but also relieved. it seemed as though one less pressure was on me. makes me sad to think she will most likely be the last baby i ever nurse. 
(lol... she was not happy with me that i wouldnt stop and help her get the grass off her toes)
she has 7 teeth now
she loves to be with the big kids and be into whatever they are doing. she loves to snuggle her blanket, still takes a paci and every once in awhile sneaks in her thumb. when you say "kiss" she leans in for one instead of giving you one. cuteness. 
she copies some of their sounds, says da da great and knows who da da is. say hi, ki ka (kitty cat) ni ni (night night) but only says momma when she is tired.
she loves to play with her books and i am trying to be more intentional on reading with her and to her. i have not done a very good job of this with her, but she is loving it now so it makes it enjoyable for me as well. 
i love the little wobbly walking pose here. 
gram spent some time with garret reading to him from an airplane book. he sure soaked up the special time too. 
the kids had a great time and so did kenzie and i. none of us had ever caught fireflies before. they are super easy to catch but hard to keep in the jar. they all kept wanting to fly right back out. dont blame them :)
after they all said goodnight to the bugs we let them go. i dont normally do things like that. especially when im so tired and ready for bed myself by 9 oclock, but i am so glad we did. the kids still talk about it. 
doesn't that sound amazing! it is! the goal is to give the kids the best, most energetic, fun experience with the activities and in doing so, gain their attention and respect as we share the gospel with them. some kids have never heard the good news about what the Lord has done for them and are hearing it all for the first time. others come from christian homes and learn how to put their faith into action while they are here. 
doesnt that sound amazing? it is! the food is just as awesome as all the fun activities they get to do. each meal is home cooked to perfection loaded with butter and sugar and there is always a dessert served after each meal, even lunch. if you spend any amount of time at long view you are sure to go home with your shorts fitting a little snugger.
doesnt that sound amazing? it is!
but it is also one of the hardest times for our family.... dont get me wrong it is an amazing place where God is always working and shaping his people. however it means really long days for both dave and i. really long days that are spent APART from each other. before we had children we were able to serve at long view together, but as our family started growing that became harder and harder and it was evident that i needed to be home with the kids and dave needed to be at camp full time. 
