SICKNESS!

What do you do when you have 5 sick kids and cabin fever has set in with the toddlers? You bake these adorable treats of course!

Samantha was so sick she turned down helping with the cookies, but didn't turn down the eating.

Here's one last photo that I really liked show casing these cute cookies. Oh if you want to know how to make them yourself just check out this blog.

The many faces of

Kellina!

Need I say more.

Mushroom tour

Today at my moms I noticed mushrooms growing in her yard. I decided to take some photos. Jennifer these are for you.We then went on a walk down the road and all I could see was mushrooms. I'm sure people wondered what I was doing in their lawns, but I couldn't help myself. My mom informed me that the following mushrooms are edible and taste great. We didn't try any and I don't know that I would just trust my mom, but who knows maybe she went back for some. We saw one lawn covered in the edibles! The look of them alone turns me away, but they are free food!!

Hands on learning can be such a

fun thing to do! This year I have really started to embrace the hands on approach to learning. It real helps the kids to get a more solid grasp on something when they can think back to doing something. In history we are learning about ancient Egypt and we have been having fun with our projects. The first was making golden bracelets like the Nubians would have given the Egyptians. So easy Melia and Kellina did it. Toilet paper tubes painted gold!The more advanced project was making Egyptian death masks. This was a paper mache nightmare. The results were fabulous though. It was my first experience ever with paper mahe. What a mess! I'm sure there are less messy recipes out there.

All the girls did this project as well, but I think only Samantha learned what they are for.(they are to help your spirit, Ka, find your body in the afterlife) Each mask should look like its maker.

In science we have been studying wind, weather, and water. For wind we made kites. So of course it hasn't been windy. We did try our best though to get the kites up.

Samantha's kite was the lightest because it was made out of plastic. It had the best flight. Melia was the best runner so hers had a small flight. Kellina was giving up before starting. Her kite didn't fly and she was bummed. The girls made their kites out of folded paper.(both were super easy!)

Along with wind we are studying air in general. This has had a lot of fun experiments. One was proving air is always around us even when we can't see it. We did this by pouring air into water or better known as making bubbles in water. We also froze a balloon to see which is heavier cold or hot air. Samantha before we even did the experiment said," Mom it only makes sense that hot air weighs less because if it didn't they would use cold air instead of hot air in hot air balloons." She was right of course. I have no photos but it was fun. For water we learned how water molecules move and shift. We put blue dye in a jar of water. Just a drop. No one could stir it or move it. The girls all guessed what would happen then we watched and waited. I think this was the prettiest hands on thing we've done so far!

I hope that this has inspired you to be a hands on learner with your child. It has taught me just as much if not more then my kids!

My new favorite toy

I love our new toy! Jeff picked it up at Goodwill and at any given time all four little kids may be huddled around it. Yesterday Jeff's sister was here and complimented me on my doctors office toy. I don't really know a better name for it, so maybe via photos you can name it.

SPOILED!!!

You may think this is going to be a post about my kids. A mom venting about her misbehaving children, but no its not its about myself. I was recently sharing with some friends about a book I read recently. Its called Safely Home. Its a fiction book about the persecuted church in China. As I spoke with my friends I asked if I was in this situation would I be able to stand firm? After leaving my friend this question kept bothering me. It became so clear I would stand firm. What it truly did though was show me how spoiled I am. How spoiled we all are in America. There are still people who are martyred for their faith. I am so blessed to live where I can freely speak(or blog) about my faith in Christ!

Friends, Treats,Corn Mazes, and Pumpkins

Yesterday was another day out . This time we went to Stoney Ridge Farm and enjoyed all they had to offer. I went with 4 other large families and I think we were a bigger group then some of the school tours. It was a lot of fun. There were friends.There were treats. I love the hot cider and fresh donuts!

There was a corn maze.

And of course there were pumpkins.

More random shots!

Perspective

One thing I have been learning about with this new camera is perspective. Take this tree for example. In one photo it looks like a tree among others. In another it looks like a towering tree that soars above you. In the last it looks almost unrecognizable.As I drove home today from a fun filled outing with friends it hit me how important perspective is in our lives. In trials and joys it is so easy to focus in such a narrow way that things are almost unrecognizable. Other times we may come to a spot where every thing seems to just tower above us. These are the times we need Christ's perspective. We need to remember how small our lives our and how we our only one tree among many. Our lives here are so short to get caught up in the wrong things can be so easy. I pray that I could have Christ's eyes in my life.

I can't resist one last example of perspective. Can you guess what this is with out the full picture. Well maybe you can no problem, but here is the full photo just in case.

What do you do on a rainy day?

Pack up your van and head out to a cider pressing class of course. Yesterday was not pretty, but my friend and I packed the van with 7 kids all 5 and under and headed to an orchard in Pidilla Bay. Samantha decided she didn't want to miss any of her sewing class so she stayed behind. As we left Bellingham we stopped at CostCo to buy umbrellas, but as we pulled into Pidilla Bay the sun was shining. It was beautiful! The ocean, the sun, the crazy kids. Our first feild trip with hands on learning about old fashioned cider making and a tasting at the end. Melia loved it and told me planting the tree was her favorite part. Kellina was quiet, but I'm sure had fun. The boys were good with fussy moments. Since it was so beautiful holding a camera was more important for me then holding a fussy baby. I think I might have a problem. Here are some random shots I loved.

Sisters sure can be different!

Last night I played a game with the girls. I called it the listening game. I know so clever I kill myself. I had Melia put her little chair in front of the TV. Whoever was in the chair got the spot light and whoever wasn't in the chair had to wait to talk(this killed Melia). I started by giving them simple commands to follow. Touch your nose, touch your chin. Then I let them share about their day with out interruption(Melia's favorite part). Next I said, "Melia tell me a story about a brown puppy." Here's her response.

Once there was a little brown puppy. He didn't have a mommy or a daddy. He was all alone. Then a little boy found him and took him and chained him up.

Me-Was he happy?

Melia-Yes he was and they had cake and ice cream.

I then asked Kellina, "Kellina tell me a story about a brown puppy." Her version went like this.

There was a black puppy and, and, he was with other puppies. He wasn't alone. A little boy came and asked his mom "Can I keep all these puppies?" and, and, his mom said yes. The end.

The two stories were so different and so true to each girl I wrote them down to share with all. By the way my story for Kellina doesn't contain all the times she said and which in now her big thing when she is talking. Its her own unique stutter.

Prayer Warriors II

Today it was Kellina that cracked me up.

"Thank you God for my legs, tummy, head, and, and, and, and, and, and, bunser, and, and, and, and, mouth."

She really did say and the most in her prayer.

All by himself!

On this day of October the 19th let it be known that my first born son(Caleb) started STANDING all by himself. We are so proud of you big boy.

Loving leaves!

Since I got the camera all I can think about it what will make a beautiful photo. It turns out I love nature shots. I got it to take photos of my kids, but they sure do move a lot. Leaves and flowers and nature stays still. I will of coarse still take photos of my kids, but God is so good to give me nature! That last comment is meant in sarcasm. Nature is such a great testament of God's glory!

Carving Pumpkins

I have always loved carving pumpkins, but with all the kids it's getting harder to do. So this year my mom decided to do it at her house and she was in charge. That is until she realized how little of it the kids do and how much the grown up does. It all went well in the end and grown ups and kids carved together.Melia does not like the feel of the insides!

Mom you know why I don't sleep?

Melia claims every morning that she didn't sleep at all. Today at lunch she told me why
Melia: Mom you know why I don't sleep?
Mom: Why?
Melia: Because I am an explorer! I want to explore.
Mom: That's good.
Melia: Want to know where I'm going to start?
Mom: Yeah.
Melia: Mt. Baker.
I almost loaded the van and headed off, but decided we needed a little better planning.

Vaccines, bee stings, and upset tummies!

Today was the boys 9 month check up and all is well. Turns out they are happy, healthy, cute boys. Today we saw a resident instead of our regular doctor, so when I said no flu shot the question of why came up. Now with the flu shot my answer is simple. We never get them and never will. Then I was told the boys needed a Hep B shot. Well, Jeff and I have been debating if we were going to continue to vaccinate or not. I didn't think that we had any vaccines this trip so I hadn't put a lot of thought into it. The resident was very good about giving me info and not pushing the shot on me. I did get it in the end because I had no real argument not to. If you have any info you would like to share about why you do or don't vaccinate please enlighten me. I really am curious so I will better informed next time. For curious minds Caleb is 29 inches long and 19.10 pounds. For any Doyles out there his head is average and not huge. Joshua is 29 inches long and 20.7 pounds. His head is also very average. After the doctors we went to my sister's house to deliver birthday photos. Then it was off to Bonnie's house as Kellina called it(my mom's Bonnie is her puppy). Every thing was going well till I got stung twice on the arm and Joshua got stung on his tummy. It wasn't to bad really, but weird since we had been inside the entire visit. We think it snuck in on a pumpkin from the yard. Then we had dinner which was going well until Samantha came in and said "I'm going to lay on the couch for a while my tummy hurts." Luckily she is fine, but then it was Kellina's turn. "Mom! I have to go potty!" Oh what a mess that was. It was followed by a "Mom my tummy hurts." I decided it was time to pack my family up and give mom some quiet time and hope everyone is healthy in the morning.

Training little ones times two!

Do these boys give me a run for my money or what. When in the kitchen their favorite thing isn't the pots and pans. Which I really wouldn't mind. It's my canned goods. No, not the ones from the store in tin cans. The ones my mom and I did in glass jars. The word NO has finally been introduced. Caleb will sometimes even make little ooo sounds back at me. With Samantha all it took was a look and she knew to stop. Not the boys. With the boys it will take time a constancy. I can do it, I can do it. I will not give in and move the jars higher(I can't I don't have the space).
Don't let that cute grin trick you. He was up to no good!

Melia's favorite color!

I will give you one guess what Melia's favorite color is. Here's a hint.

The cutest thing

I know that some of my friends think their babies leg warmers are the cutest thing, but I have to argue. I think in this house at least the cutest thing is pudgy toddler hands with freshly painted nails. Okay baby leg warmers are cute I just don't own any.

Feeling sick and loving my kids!!

Tuesday was sick day for mom! I had a cold or something that drained me. All I could do was the bare minimum. PJ's and the couch were my best friend. Now you may think with five kids I was going crazy, but what really happened was me thanking God for the kids he gave me. As I laid on the sofa this was what I saw of Samantha.
Even though I was sick she was still a diligent student! Melia, Kellina, and Samantha made nests in the middle of the room. No I don't have a photo:( Melia was very protective of hers and was soon asking me how a bird lays down. It was very cute. The boys have been teething, so I braced myself for a lot of crying. Turns out though they did very well. I am so blessed with the kids God gave me.

Prayer warriors

Every day before school this year we start the day with prayer. One thing that is hard for me is to pray out load. This may seem silly, but I worry about what others may think. I think that giving God control over every detail of my day is important and I wanted the girls to see this in practice. I know that they won't judge me so its a win win situation. I practice praying out load and they see the example of giving God control. If we are always giving control to Him then worry shouldn't be around every corner. Anyways, this was suppose to be about how cute their prayers can be. Melia was praying and thanking God for all sorts of things. It made me smile when this made her list "Thank you God for giving us so many kids." In a day where kids seem to be a burden my daughter is catching on that it is a blessing to have children. Samantha continual makes me smile when she prays that we will get done with school quickly and Kellina's prayers are usually the most simple and end in "And thank you for God and Jesus." This was picked up from Melia. Prayer from a child what a wonderful thing!

Learning how..

to take a great photo. Its easy to take a photo these days. Just point and shoot. Well I am now trying to learn about great photos. The first thing I am learning about is aperture and depth of field. I won't explain them here, but I will show you the photos I took and liked. As time goes on I will hopefully have more and more to share.
I love my new camera and taking photos. I really like the photo of the coffee mug. Not only do I love coffee, but I love the colors and lighting in that photo. I can't wait to learn more.