Roving Reptiles in Owasso...

The Roving Reptiles came and spoke to our Homeschool Co-Op one day last week. The kids had a great time learning about reptiles & even got to pet them. Here's some pics from the show...

Design 2 Stitch

A friend of mine, Shannon Hessert, has started an embroidery business called Design 2 Stitch. Now, it is not your typical embroidery like you might be thinking. They can do that but, the focus of Design 2 Stitch is on the Sports Wear Industry. So if your child’s team is in need of uniforms, sweats, jackets, hats, bags, blankets... you name it & they can get it for you - personalized with your child's name and team name, too. And don't forget mom and dad! They can personalize shirts for you, as well. They also do cute flannel pants with a personalized t-shirt to match for kids and adults. The web site is coming soon, but you can e-mail Shannon at shessert@design2stitch.com with any questions.

Mom, is there really a Santa Claus?

I knew this day was coming. I just didn't know it would be so soon. On the way home from a friend's house tonight, "M" & "A" told us their friends said they didn't believe in Santa Claus. "M" said, "Mom, I want you to tell me the honest truth. Is there a Santa Claus?!" After trying to change the subject or turn her question into a question but with no avail, I knew at that point our "game" was over.

Yes, we're guilty parents of pretending there's a Santa Claus - but we've always stressed the true meaning of Christmas - the birth of Jesus Christ. Steve & I both have fond memories of believing in Santa when we were little & have enjoyed pretending like there is a Santa with our girls. I suppose I should be grateful we got to play it so long. I'm actually surprised "M" hasn't figured it out sooner since she's 8 now & a very logical thinker. On the other hand, I've always been a little concerned as to how they would react when they found out there wasn't a Santa. Would they think we lied to them? Would they be able to trust us about other things in life? Would it affect how they feel about spiritual things? Would they be really upset & cry their eyes out?! They actually took the news really well & even laughed at themselves for believing in Santa.

Then they started asking about other things we've pretended like Mrs. Claus, the elves, Rudolph, the Easter Bunny & Twinkle the Tooth Fairy. In a way it's a little sad - all that is gone in one night. It's like they aren't my little girls anymore - they know too much! After all kinds of questions and a very long discussion, they finally asked, "So does this mean Santa, the Easter Bunny & Twinkle won't bring us gifts anymore?" I said, "No - we've just always pretended like it was a game so we can keep pretending as long as you want to." They were pleased with that answer.

I also had to stress that even though we pretended with those characters, there is one thing we would not pretend about - and that is the Bible. Everything in the Bible is true. Everything really happened. God really did create the world and everything in it. He really did send Jesus to earth to be born as a human baby. He lived and died and rose again. He's in heaven and we'll be with Him, too, someday because we've asked Jesus into our hearts. He's the one true thing you can believe in. "M's" bedtime prayer tonight ended with, "Thank you God for being the one true thing we can believe in." I think they grew up tonight more than they know.

What do you think, Mom?!

A few years ago, we decided to change our girly girlz playroom into a "dance room" since dancing is one of their very favorite things to do. Although it was a lot of work, Steve & I had so much fun working on this project. It was like a mini-version of "While You Were Out" or "Extreme Home Makeover". We sent the girls to Steve's parents for the weekend & got busy right away. The room was already painted the way I wanted it, I just added the wording and pictures around the top border. Then Steve built a stage & I painted it. He also added a ballet bar, curtains in front of the stage & rope lighting. Last, we added a rubber flooring and decorated with accessories. When the girls got home, they totally flipped out! The girls have great fun putting on family performances and shows with their friends when they come over for playdates. These are pictures of what it looks like when it's nice and clean - thus, here's my dilemma...

Yesterday, the girls told me to please not come into the dance room because they were redecorating it. Immediately, my heart started pounding and I thought, "Oh no! What are they doing to the room?!" They were having so much fun and worked on it for hours so I just let them - but not without hesitation. When they were finally ready to show me their "fine" work, I had to bite my tongue not to say anything. They said they had created their own "quiet time places". Furniture was moved and I could hardly see the floor, but they were so proud of their accomplishment. They said, "What do you think, Mom?!" I commended them on their hard work and had to leave soon after or else I would have started fixing things back to how I like them. I tried to remind myself that this is their space and that they should be allowed to decorate it however they like - to a point. If they are into "decorating" their space at ages 5 & 8, what's it going to be like when they are teenagers?! I better start praying now for the Lord to give me patience ;-)

Busted...

I caught "A" today sneaking into my make-up. Luckily, I caught her just before she got into my mascara! I know it's been said many times, but kids grow up so fast right under our noses. Before I know it, "A" will be driving! Oh, I don't even want to think about that! If only I could keep her this age forever ;-) Today, she was praying before lunch - and her prayers seem to be getting longer and longer - and she was praying for her 10 usual things that she prays for but then she added, "Thank You for the food we eat to bless our bodies, trees and grass, alligators, snakes, and especially penguins. I also pray that our crab is having a good time in crab heaven. Amen." Out of the mouths of babes ;-)

Custom-made clothes sold for good cause...

The Children's Pastor at Freedom Church in Owasso and his wife, Karin, are in the process of adopting a little girl from China. In order to raise money to bring her home, Karin makes really cute custom/boutique-style girl's clothes and sells them. Some of her outfits are listed at http://www.mommasdarlins.com/ ; however, the site is new and under construction. You can also e-mail her at peak273@yahoo.com if you have questions or would like to place an order. Be sure to check her clothes out and pass along the word!

Confession time

I have a really bad habit of letting mail and miscellaneous papers pile up on our kitchen island. Of course, the papers are organized into piles - mine, Steve's and the girls. However, I let them pile up so high and don't go through them until I have to. And what's worse, if I know someone is coming over, the way I solve my messy kitchen island mess is I throw all of the piles into Wal-Mart sacks and toss them into my bedroom closet. (My hubby just LOVES me for this!) Needless to say, if I don't go through those sacks on occasion, they pile up, too! Well, after hardly being able to open the closet door any more and after not being able to reach my clothes any longer, I finally decided to clean out my closet this weekend. It took me 6 hours and I'm still not quite done, but I got a lot completed. I even had sacks from three or four years ago that I needed to go through! By the end of the day, I had 4 overflowing sacks of trash! Quite pitiful! I try to stay organized with other things, but this is just one of my many flaws I need to work on ;-) So if you're ever going to drop by my house, please let me know ahead of time, so I can clean off my kitchen island and add a new Wal-Mart sack of stuff to my closet ;-)

Valentine's Day...

Most couples enjoy eating out (without children) for Valentine's Day, but we decided to celebrate as a family. (Steve and I actually went out the weekend before.) The girls first opened their Valentine boxes that my friend, Brandi, made for them. They were filled with beads and necklace threads to make jewelry - also buttons, pipe cleaners, a dry erase marker, chalk & erasers. They LOVED them! I think they will be lifesavers when we go on trips in the car and for times when they just need something to do.

Then, we made a heart-shaped pizza (made from a Chef Boyardee box - close enough to homemade!) and then "A" led us in a game of "pin the little heart on the big heart". As you can tell, they were tired by the end of the night. I love this picture of them sleeping. Occasionally, "A" likes to sneak in bed with her sister - if only they could stay this sweet forever!

Happy 2nd Anniversary to The Pecan Porch!

Happy 2nd Anniversary to the Pecan Porch in Catoosa! Our friends, Chris & Susan Gates, own the Pecan Porch and are celebrating their 2nd anniversary of being in business! When the Gates first purchased the Pecan Porch, it was an old, dirty, run-down building. They totally gutted the place and made it look like new. Susan has a real flair for decorating and has it fixed up so cute. The food is delicious and their cinnamon rolls are to die for! They also have as assortment of delicious smoothies, coffees & teas to choose from. I'm totally addicted to their spiced Chai Tea Lattes! If you haven't been to The Pecan Porch, you have to check them out!

Pecan Porch Coffee & Tea Co Ll

(918) 266-9998

4895 E Highway 266 Unit C

Catoosa, OK 74015

Personalized activity boxes for kids!

A friend of mine makes these adorable activity boxes for kids & I just had to share them with you! She sells them on e-bay and you can check them out at http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=320217639098&ssPageName=STRK:MESE:IT&ih=011 . I bought some for my girls & I'm planning on giving the boxes to them for Valentine's Day. I've filled them with markers, paper and craft materials.They are too cute - you just have to check them out! Here's info on the boxes that she has posted:

ADORABLE WOODEN ART BOXES -- PERSONALIZED

This is a great gift idea as well as a great idea for your own children. kids LOVE these boxes!!!!
You are looking at a wooden art box that has a chalkboard on one side which is personalized with a child's name and a design of your choice, the other side is a white dry-erase marker board. The chalkboard side slides open for storage and also has a carrying handle making it perfect for travel. These are great to keep the kids occupied and they can fill them with whatever they want. Buy one for home and one for the car and even one to keep at the grandparents. I can write specific sayings with the child's name. Example: "Sarah's Travel Box"

Price includes personalization, dry-erase marker, eraser, and chalk. (NOTE: supplies won't be exactly as pictured.) The dimensions of the box are: 11.5"x2"x9.75"Designs to choose from are: butterfly (blue or pink), flower (pink or purple), ladybug, airplane, dinosaur, horse, castle (purple or pink), tutu, bug, cowboy/cowgirl boots (pink or brown), sports theme, train, or car. If you have a specific design in mind email me and I will let you know if I can do that. NOTE: color's won't be exactly as pictured because each of these are hand-painted and won't be exactly alike.

Smashed beans...

I overheard a very intellectual conversation between the girls the other night while we were driving home in the car:

A: "M", did you know Daddy is bringing home Taco Bell for dinner tonight?

M: Ooooh! I hope he brings home those smashed beans that we like!

A: Sissy! You know that beans make people toot!

M: Not smashed beans, though! Didn't you know that when they smash the beans they smash all of the ingredients out that make you toot?!

A: Oh.

Family Watchdog Alert

The following info. is from http://www.familywatchdog.us/freeemail.asp . All parents should definitely check this out if you haven't already. I've already been notified of 2 sex offenders that have moved less than a mile from my house within the last month.


"Do you have any registered offenders near you today? No? Great. But could they move in tomorrow? Sure. How will you know?

Let Family Watchdog tell you when an offender moves in or out of your area!

Our notification service provides you with peace of mind. We will notify you by email/text message as soon as we detect that a registered sex offender moves near you. It's simple and fast.

Get our free email newsletter and notification when an offender moves within 5 miles of you." To sign up, go to: http://www.familywatchdog.us/freeemail.asp

My Little High School Musical Fans...

I'm probably the lamest, uncool mom ever but I just let my girls watch High School Musical for the first time a few nights ago. I suppose I'm just very conservative and protective of what my girls see. We don't even watch shows like Raven & Hannah Montana (although I just read an interesting article about her in Christianity Today Magazine). My main issue with those type of shows is that they deal with "teen" content & I don't think that's always appropriate for young, impressionable minds. I want to keep my girl's innocent as long as possible and I feel when they are exposed, even just a small amount, to teen issues it scrapes away at their purity. They pick up on sarchasm, disrespect for others, boyfriend/girlfriend relationships and fowl language.

As for whether I thought High School Musical was appropriate or not, I guess it wasn't that bad. Of course, I thought it was pretty cheezy when they would just break out in a song - but if I had seen it at their age, I'm sure I would have loved it. And it's much better language & non-sexual content than a movie like Grease was - which I LOVED & memorized every word to when I was little. What's funny is that I think I probably had no clue what any of those words meant until I was much older ;-)

I'd love to know your thoughts on this topic ;-)

My new antique find...

Last Friday, the girls and I did one of our favorite things to do for "girl time". We got dressed up & had lunch at the Pink House in Claremore. They have DELICIOUS quiches & TO-DIE-FOR melted chocolate dessert. And their children's meals are only $2.99! Then we went shopping at the antique stores downtown. The girls love to go looking around at all of the antique babydolls and of course they ask me questions like, "Did you play with this when you were little, Mom? Tell me what it was like to not have CD's. The phones you used back then were really weird looking!" I'm starting to feel a little dated! Anyway, I've been looking for shelving to house all of our CD's and finally found something that would work for me. I wish I had a picture of what it looked like before I painted it but just imagine brown. Anyway, this is what it looks like now! We had a fun day!

It's finally warm enough to play outside!

Just a few days ago we were playing in the snow & today we were playing in the sun! It was so nice today - close to 70 degrees! It hasn't been that warm in a long time! The girls rode their bikes & skooters & helped me clean out our flower beds. Now the beds are ready for spring - and we are, too!

I know! I know! It's February & I still have a Christmas flag on display. That's because I'm on the hunt for a new flag & can't find one I like. Please tell me if you see any cute flags - I can't find them anywhere!!!

Our school room ;-)

Most people know if you homeschool, you can do "school" anywhere. Sometimes we do it on a blanket under a tree, in our pj's in bed, at the kitchen table or on our porch swing. That's part of the joy of homeschooling. Although we do school wherever we feel like it, we do have a designated "school room". Just thought I'd share a few pics...

Our timeline - we didn't have enough wall space in our school room so we decided to hang it in our stairway leading up to our school room. You gotta get creative with space sometimes!

The girls like to read in their tent.

A's "desk"

M's "desk"

Mommy's desk

Our calendar

Cabinet of our school "stuff"

The girl's jumping rope on a break

The girl's daily work is organized in daily files and work that we'll use in the near future is stored in magazine holders.

Cabinet of more "stuff"

Open cabinet of our "stuff"

M jumping on the trampoline on a break - as you can tell, it's gotten a lot of use ;-)

More storage shelving for books, puzzles & games

We store the girl's work in pizza boxes that they've decorated.