We are back from vacation! We took our family vacation last week in St. Augustine, Florida. I guess one word to sum it up for me is....weird. Not weird in a bad way...just...different. And the reason it was weird is that I think this is the first vacation I've ever taken in my life where I was just flying by the seat of my pants. In other words, there was no planning involved. Like....none at all. Usually, I plan our vacation for months in advance, making lists, schedules, looking info up on the internet, searching message boards for tips for theme parks, etc. This time, none of that happened. We only decided to go and booked our room a couple of weeks in advance. At 6:00 PM, the night before we were scheduled to leave, I thought, "Hmmm...might be a good idea to do laundry so I will actually have clean clothes to pack." See a pattern here? I was up until 1:30 AM packing. Got up at 3:30 to leave.
Usually for vacations, this is how prepared I am:
* I make lists - Lists for "Things to Buy" before we go, "What to Do" before we go, "What to Pack" with a subtitle of "Don't Forget This". This year, no lists to be found.
* I pack snacks and drinks for the road (all PLANNED in advance). This year, nada.
* I usually have our vacation planned out to the hour of what we will do each day. This year, we decided to wing it.
* Usually before vacation, I have bought a book like "The Unofficial Guide to Disney" and visited Disney message boards and planned out our route in a theme park to avoid crowds and such. A few years ago, I did this, and we went with my 75-year-old grandmother in tow. I am surprised I didn't cause her to keel over with my mad dash around the park. I kept yelling at everyone, "We have GOT to get on the train by 10:14 AM to get to so-and-so ride on time to see Mickey with no lines! Get a move on!" This year, as you will see, no planning involved.
* I usually have my Christmas list with me so I can shop for Christmas/birthday presents. This year, I left it at home
So, you see, things were different. And it was kind of....nice. No pressure. Now, I won't say that I didn't have moments of panic when I realized that we didn't have a "PLAN". But, amazingly, it all worked out.
We got there on Saturday evening. On Sunday morning, while getting dressed, I bent down, and immediately felt my back go out. I started bawling. I could not believe this had happened. So for a couple of days, Preach had to take the kids to the beach by himself. But he was absolutely wonderful about it. I did make myself go and do some things. But mostly, I just laid around, reading. Pretty nice. The bad thing was the stupid bed. It was a poser - pretending to be a Sleep Number bed. A fake Sleep Number bed. Does it get any better than that? It basically felt like a blow-up mattress. So that didn't help my back any.
We went to the Alligator Farm, which was our whole family's favorite thing we did. It was so cool. If you ever get a chance to go there - GO!! The kids got to get their picture taken holding a baby white albino aligator. For lots of moolah, you could get your picture in the alligator pit with a huge alligator. We passed on that. But we learned a lot there.
On Thursday, we went to Universal's Islands of Adventure. I knew it would be brutal on my back. But Prince is a dinosaur fanatic, and has been waiting anxiously to turn 8 years old so he could ride the Jurassic Park ride. Well, he rode it. Poor thing, I'm afraid he was disillusioned. At the end of the ride, in the dark, there is a huge T-rex that looks like it's going to get you, and then you fall over an 85-foot waterfall. Preach rode it first with just the kids to see what it was like. I was waiting for them to get off. They were pretty wet, and Preach was laughing. He said after they had went over the drop, he tried to talk to the kids, and they were both frozen in shock, staring straight ahead and couldn't talk. I noticed Prince holding his hand over his heart. I thought he was going to tell me his heart was beating fast. Oh no. He tells me that he almost fainted. Preach convinced me to ride it, saying it wouldn't hurt my back. Let me tell you, if you are a tiny bit clausterphobic, don't ride it. I almost had a panic attack in the boat, the way the seats were made and the bar coming down. Then the ride itself was scary. And then we hit the falls. I seriously thought I was going to die. And you should have seen the pictures Universal took of us going down the falls. In the first one, Prince and Princess both looked terrified. In the second one, I had my eyes closed and my mouth open. Princess looked normal, but poor Prince, looked like he was crying. He was so disappointed in that ride.
Now, in previous years, we would have gotten up at 5:00 AM to get ready for Universal. We would have gotten there 50 minutes before it opened to get our tickets (because the guide book SAID so!). And of course, I would have had a plan to have us running to-and-fro to get to the best rides before the crowds. But guess what time we got there?? 12:00! Yep! We didn't even really know we were going to go until that morning.
I'm telling you, it was a very laid-back trip. And you know what? I liked it.
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Review of the movie: Fireproof
Preach and I went to see the movie Fireproof this weekend.
Wow.
I really don't know the right words to express how wonderful this movie is. It's a Christian movie, made by the church that made "Facing the Giants". This movie stars Kirk Cameron, who is great in it. I loved "Facing the Giants", but I will have to say, that this one is 10 times better! Even Preach agrees.
This movie is about marriage. Maybe you shouldn't tell your DH that when you tell him you want him to go see it. LOL! But you can truthfully tell him that there is lots of humor in it! I mean, laugh-out-loud-funny-humor! It has lots of really funny parts in it. Preach says, "This movie just proves that a movie can be made that is funny without dirty language and s**ually explicit material". Too true.
Even if you say that you have a wonderful marriage, you should go see this movie. I promise, you will leave the movie with a newfound respect for your spouse and what they go through and feel. Yes, there is a Christian message in the movie. And when Caleb (Kirk Cameron)'s father illustrates the parallel of our love for our spouse and God's love for us.....wow. It moved me to tears. If you see it, you will know which scene I am talking about. This movie shows both sides of marriage. You will see yourself in some parts of it. You will see how you can treat your spouse better. You will see how easy it is to fall into Satan's traps.
Go see it. You won't regret it.
Wow.
I really don't know the right words to express how wonderful this movie is. It's a Christian movie, made by the church that made "Facing the Giants". This movie stars Kirk Cameron, who is great in it. I loved "Facing the Giants", but I will have to say, that this one is 10 times better! Even Preach agrees.
This movie is about marriage. Maybe you shouldn't tell your DH that when you tell him you want him to go see it. LOL! But you can truthfully tell him that there is lots of humor in it! I mean, laugh-out-loud-funny-humor! It has lots of really funny parts in it. Preach says, "This movie just proves that a movie can be made that is funny without dirty language and s**ually explicit material". Too true.
Even if you say that you have a wonderful marriage, you should go see this movie. I promise, you will leave the movie with a newfound respect for your spouse and what they go through and feel. Yes, there is a Christian message in the movie. And when Caleb (Kirk Cameron)'s father illustrates the parallel of our love for our spouse and God's love for us.....wow. It moved me to tears. If you see it, you will know which scene I am talking about. This movie shows both sides of marriage. You will see yourself in some parts of it. You will see how you can treat your spouse better. You will see how easy it is to fall into Satan's traps.
Go see it. You won't regret it.
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Just Hangin' Around
Sorry I haven't updated in a while. Not much has been going on.
The cat is still hangin' around outside. We feed it everyday. When Preach and the kids go outside, the cat follows them around. He loves to be petted, and purs like a motorboat.
We've slowly started back to school. We are easing into Tapestry of Grace this week. It's going good. I am trying to figure out what Math curriculum to get Princess. She is having a hard time with number concepts. She is progressing on her reading, so I am pleased with that.
We've almost finished with Princess's room transformation. I will post pictures whenever we are done. The only thing we need to do is recover the cornice thing that goes above her window. Oh, and figure out how to put the billions of toys back into her room. My parents came over one day a couple of weeks ago and saw the piles and piles of stuffed animals in our living room. My dad said he is still having nightmares of all those stuffed animals. LOL! It's obscene. Princess wants a stuffed animal of every single real animal there is. She has a snake, a warthog (complete with a baby warthog), a kangaroo, a skunk, a cheetah, a tiger, lion, and much more. She has just about every breed of dog and cat there is. (sigh) And that's not even counting the dozens of stuffed bears and rabbits she has. The list goes on...
The cat is still hangin' around outside. We feed it everyday. When Preach and the kids go outside, the cat follows them around. He loves to be petted, and purs like a motorboat.
We've slowly started back to school. We are easing into Tapestry of Grace this week. It's going good. I am trying to figure out what Math curriculum to get Princess. She is having a hard time with number concepts. She is progressing on her reading, so I am pleased with that.
We've almost finished with Princess's room transformation. I will post pictures whenever we are done. The only thing we need to do is recover the cornice thing that goes above her window. Oh, and figure out how to put the billions of toys back into her room. My parents came over one day a couple of weeks ago and saw the piles and piles of stuffed animals in our living room. My dad said he is still having nightmares of all those stuffed animals. LOL! It's obscene. Princess wants a stuffed animal of every single real animal there is. She has a snake, a warthog (complete with a baby warthog), a kangaroo, a skunk, a cheetah, a tiger, lion, and much more. She has just about every breed of dog and cat there is. (sigh) And that's not even counting the dozens of stuffed bears and rabbits she has. The list goes on...
Saturday, September 6, 2008
"She" is a "He" and other stories
We've had a weird past 36 hours or so. But that's par for the course for us.
Here's a quick rundown for you:
Preach and kids picked up a stray black cat at a gas station. They *said* the cat just climbed in their car. I just wonder if the cat had some HELP getting in!
Brought cat home, fed it, and named it Midnight. Preach said the cat was a girl based on Princess's description of the "holes" it had.
Took cat to the vet that afternoon. Vet politely told us "she" was a "he" (totally embarassing!). Did tests on cat to make sure HE didn't have Feline Aids or Leukemia. Vet told us to expect the worse. We started telling the kids we were probably going to have to get rid of the cat (trying not to tell them we would have to put it to sleep). Luckily (for the cat) tests came back negative. Cat just had a bunch of ear mites.
Took cat home, made it a bed in a box.
I couldn't sleep all night, expecting the cat to come in and jump on our bed. In the middle of the night, I awoke to find the cat on top of me. (sigh) I frantically woke Preach up to move him.
Got up yesterday morning with Princess coming into my room saying she hated the cat - he had peed on her BRAND NEW mattress and comforter! UGH! Sure enough, he had!!! Stripped the bed, washed everything. Sprayed the mattress with Melaleuca Tough & Tender and Solumel. I made Preach smell the mattress last night, and there was still cat pee smell. I told him I wanted to buy her a new mattress. Um, that didn't go over too well.
Cat peed again on my bathroom rug. And yes, we had a litter box set up.
Yesterday afternoon, Prince goes to pick up cat, and cat BITES his arm! Broke the skin. Prince said cat hung on for a few seconds. Sorry, cat - but you hurt my baby - you are GONE!!!
When Preach gets home, cat goes OUTSIDE! We are going to feed him, and hope he sticks around.
We learned out lesson on picking up strays. If we EVER get a cat again, we will be getting a kitten. But this was such a bad experience, I don't know if we will ever again do it. I'm not a cat person anyway. I've never owned a cat. I love dogs! Give me a good ol' dog any day over a cat!
Oh, and if any cat owners out there know of how to get out cat pee smell, PUL-EEEEEZE let me know how!!!!
Here's a quick rundown for you:
Preach and kids picked up a stray black cat at a gas station. They *said* the cat just climbed in their car. I just wonder if the cat had some HELP getting in!
Brought cat home, fed it, and named it Midnight. Preach said the cat was a girl based on Princess's description of the "holes" it had.
Took cat to the vet that afternoon. Vet politely told us "she" was a "he" (totally embarassing!). Did tests on cat to make sure HE didn't have Feline Aids or Leukemia. Vet told us to expect the worse. We started telling the kids we were probably going to have to get rid of the cat (trying not to tell them we would have to put it to sleep). Luckily (for the cat) tests came back negative. Cat just had a bunch of ear mites.
Took cat home, made it a bed in a box.
I couldn't sleep all night, expecting the cat to come in and jump on our bed. In the middle of the night, I awoke to find the cat on top of me. (sigh) I frantically woke Preach up to move him.
Got up yesterday morning with Princess coming into my room saying she hated the cat - he had peed on her BRAND NEW mattress and comforter! UGH! Sure enough, he had!!! Stripped the bed, washed everything. Sprayed the mattress with Melaleuca Tough & Tender and Solumel. I made Preach smell the mattress last night, and there was still cat pee smell. I told him I wanted to buy her a new mattress. Um, that didn't go over too well.
Cat peed again on my bathroom rug. And yes, we had a litter box set up.
Yesterday afternoon, Prince goes to pick up cat, and cat BITES his arm! Broke the skin. Prince said cat hung on for a few seconds. Sorry, cat - but you hurt my baby - you are GONE!!!
When Preach gets home, cat goes OUTSIDE! We are going to feed him, and hope he sticks around.
We learned out lesson on picking up strays. If we EVER get a cat again, we will be getting a kitten. But this was such a bad experience, I don't know if we will ever again do it. I'm not a cat person anyway. I've never owned a cat. I love dogs! Give me a good ol' dog any day over a cat!
Oh, and if any cat owners out there know of how to get out cat pee smell, PUL-EEEEEZE let me know how!!!!
Friday, September 5, 2008
Homeschool/Cub Scouts Giveaway!
I just wanted to let my few and faithful readers know of a homeschool/Cub Scouts giveaway on the Learning By Living blog! She is giving away some awesome things - like Explode the Code workbooks, lots of children's books, Bible storybooks, Alice in Bibleland book series, 6 how-to homeschool books, Leap Frog Fridge Phonics, and much much more - all for just the cost of actual shipping! There is also a post where she is giving away a bunch of Cub Scout things!! Stop by and post a comment - you might win!
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
More Setting It All Up...
I finished putting the first Unit in page protectors. Whew! It took a long time. I'm already trying to figure out alternatives to putting the other units in page protectors. But I know I will end up doing it anyway. LOL!
I am trying to follow TOG's instructions on How To Set Up Tapestry that's somewhere on their website. I am confused on the Student Binders. It's about as clear as mud.
Preach looked at Unit 1 last night, and said he was impressed. He said that he wishes he could go through the curriculum! We have Year 1, and it is Ancient History, which goes through Biblical history.
I still have to order some books to go along with Unit 1. I was doing price comparisons with TOG's Bookshelf to Amazon. And surprisingly, TOG was just as cheap as Amazon! Since I have a $15 Gift Certificate to TOG which came with the package I bought, I will be ordering from them. Gotta do that today. I was surprised that our library system has some of the books, so hopefully I can use those. Does anyone know how Interlibrary Loan works? If I could figure that out, I wouldn't have to buy as many books.
I am trying to follow TOG's instructions on How To Set Up Tapestry that's somewhere on their website. I am confused on the Student Binders. It's about as clear as mud.
Preach looked at Unit 1 last night, and said he was impressed. He said that he wishes he could go through the curriculum! We have Year 1, and it is Ancient History, which goes through Biblical history.
I still have to order some books to go along with Unit 1. I was doing price comparisons with TOG's Bookshelf to Amazon. And surprisingly, TOG was just as cheap as Amazon! Since I have a $15 Gift Certificate to TOG which came with the package I bought, I will be ordering from them. Gotta do that today. I was surprised that our library system has some of the books, so hopefully I can use those. Does anyone know how Interlibrary Loan works? If I could figure that out, I wouldn't have to buy as many books.
Saturday, August 30, 2008
Setting TOG Up
I am going to update my blog often with how Tapestry of Grace is going. I'm going to be honest in my opinions and be "real". So here goes...
I have opened Unit 1 (there are 4 units in Year 1). I went to the TOG online forum and found a link under "Setting It Up" that explains options of setting everything up and detailed list of what to buy. It's a little overwhelming. I printed it off and went to Sam's Club. I know they have the best prices on page protectors and 3-ring notebooks. Some TOGers put page protectors on the whole year's worth of curriculum. It sounds like a good idea in theory, you know, to protect your major moolah investment. But considering you have to buy 1000 page protectors...then you have to put the pages in them. Oh my gosh. I had decided to just page protect the first Unit. Then when I get done with the unit, take them out, and put Unit 2 in there, and so on. Last night I started on putting Unit 1 in the page protectors. Good grief!!! That was a sloooooow process! And frustrating, too!! The pages don't go in there smoothly. So I got to Week 3 before I gave up for the night. Gonna try and finish today.
The Loom CD that comes with it is good. I like how you can print off the Student Activity Pages from it, instead of making copies.
I haven't even looked at the Writing Aids CD yet. Or the Map Aids CD. LOL! Like I said, it's all a bit overwhelming. I really wish I had decided to do this way back in July!
I have opened Unit 1 (there are 4 units in Year 1). I went to the TOG online forum and found a link under "Setting It Up" that explains options of setting everything up and detailed list of what to buy. It's a little overwhelming. I printed it off and went to Sam's Club. I know they have the best prices on page protectors and 3-ring notebooks. Some TOGers put page protectors on the whole year's worth of curriculum. It sounds like a good idea in theory, you know, to protect your major moolah investment. But considering you have to buy 1000 page protectors...then you have to put the pages in them. Oh my gosh. I had decided to just page protect the first Unit. Then when I get done with the unit, take them out, and put Unit 2 in there, and so on. Last night I started on putting Unit 1 in the page protectors. Good grief!!! That was a sloooooow process! And frustrating, too!! The pages don't go in there smoothly. So I got to Week 3 before I gave up for the night. Gonna try and finish today.
The Loom CD that comes with it is good. I like how you can print off the Student Activity Pages from it, instead of making copies.
I haven't even looked at the Writing Aids CD yet. Or the Map Aids CD. LOL! Like I said, it's all a bit overwhelming. I really wish I had decided to do this way back in July!
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