Snuggly One

I wish this little Cherub Face liked to snuggle with his mama half as much as he likes snuggling with his blankies and stuffed animals!!

Woodsman

I am so drawn to my camera when my boys take on the appearance of "manly men." So I had to run and capture this picture. How cute is this little red-headed woodsman sitting atop the woodpile in the backyard, complete with Spiderman snow boots, non-matching gloves, and a pine branch he was swinging around?  :)

The Age-Old Volcano Experiment

We've been learning the different kinds of volcanoes (active, intermittent, dormant, and extinct) and some parts of a volcano (magma, vents, lava, crater, gases)  the last two weeks. So, naturally, we HAD to construct our own and cause it to erupt.  :)   Of course, the boys thought it was the coolest! We actually erupted it twice, and the second time was even more fun because it was bigger and faster than the first time. It definitely wasn't the most realistic-looking volcano ever made, as it was covered by various colors of PlayDoh all mixed together  AND it we didn't have enough PlayDoh to build it up around the bottom and make it the right shape, but hey--it was still great fun!

Flags

On Fridays recently I've begun incorporating a history craft time into our schoolwork. We really love it. So we do crafts related to what we've read about that week in history. This week we read about Julius Caesar, and one of the crafts suggested by the book was to make our own flag, like the Romans would have had their flag they carried into battle. As the Romans would have had a symbol on their flag signifying their purpose, we were to do the same. So, with these instructions, our oldest boy drew a "G" on his flag for God, because, he said, "We are in God's army." Then he also wrote "Jesus" in glitter glue. Cutie pie Redhead drew a "cyclops moon" face on his flag.  :)  (Even he catches some of the Greek myths we've read this year!) We glued the two together to make one two-sided flag for the big boys. Here it is!! Oh, and in case you can't tell....I love homeschooling!

Some Cool Drawings

All the boys and I went to a free session of 3D art lessons the other day up in Indiana. It was really fun! Here are some pictures our Biggest drew from copying what the man Mark Kistler drew on the overhead for them. Aren't they good? I'm such a proud mommy.  :)

marshmallow guys

one-eyed hairy Pierre

pyramids of ancient Egypt

43 degrees!

Hallelujah...it feels like SUMMER around here! You might think I'm kidding, but I'm not. Compared to the temps and the snow we've had lately, the fact that the sun is out and big-time bright makes all the difference in the world! The big boys and I actually were outside and playing for an extended time with no gloves, no hats, no boots, and jackets were not even zipped. The driveway snow is almost completely melted, and we had plenty of room to sport about. It was perfect!!!! We played Trac Ball, rode the Rip Rider, and just laughed and smiled at a sunny day. How good it is to drink in the truly simple pleasures of life, like intense sunshine after weeks (and really even months!) of gray skies. You might notice amongst the pictures something exciting I spotted in the yard during our time: the tiniest green shoots springing up! It's true! Spring is coming soon! Full steam ahead!

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A Mommy Loves This Kind of Thing....

Just when I think my boys are growing so fast and getting so big and strong and manly, something like this happens:

We had just said goodnight last night to the Big Ones, and immediately, down came the Eldest, tears pouring from his eyes, because he could not find "Polie." (Polie is a stuffed polar bear that was mine when I was a little girl. I gave it to him years ago when he was scared one time when Daddy was out of town). Anyway, he sleeps with Polie every night, but little did I know how important Polie was to my sweet 6-year-old. We quickly located Polie, and all was well. As we said goodnight the second time, I was wearing a huge smile in my heart.   :)

Fun Things from "The Dude"

I just heard from the third sweetie, "May I pea take water in room?" He was asking if he could take his sippy cup of water into the den. Isn't that good?  :)  I'm amazed at the sentences he speaks prior to age two!!!! (His birthday is next month).

Here are two other cute things from The Dude over the last few days that show his intelligence and fun personality. ("Dude" is short for "Doodle," which is short for "Doodlebug", a name he acquired long ago!)

--Yesterday, I said, "Hi, Punkin Doodles." He responded with, "Hi, Punkin Mommy!"  :)

--Earlier today I greeted him with, "Hey, Stinks!" He said in return, "Hi, Poopy!"  That cracked me up!!!!



What a happy, fun, sweet baby boy! (Not a baby much longer!)

Haircuts

I always have the urge to photograph my boys with fresh haircuts. They just look so good! I really only got one great pic, though. Biggest insisted on being completely goofy and not cooperating, and the Doodlebug is just little and moves around a lot! But that second child--ooo, this pic makes him irresistible to me. What a handsome guy!







After I cut the Pook's hair a touch, I disrobed him down to diaper, and he promptly donned snowboots! Naturally, I could not resist the photo op. Cutie booty!

Second Time Sledding!!!!

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Today was even MORE of a blast than last time when we sledded! It was so totally fun! (I think the 8 inches of snow helped!) Wa-hoo!!!!

Fave Pics from Today--So Far!

We have gotten 8 inches of snow so far here since last night! Much fun has been had making snowmen, having snowball fights, smacking a snow-covered tree, and even eating homemade snow cones with vanilla syrup! More pics to come! Enjoy!

Ice Skating Adventure

Last weekend the boys went to their cousins' birthday party that was at the ice rink. This was a new thing for our family. Never before had the boys been on the ice. We went rollerskating once, and that was it. It ended up being a blast! You can see our biggest skating here. He did so great with falling often and yet just jumping right back up! A lesson in perseverance, for sure!



Unfortunately, our sweet second-born didn't didn't get it quite as easily as the firstborn. We saw more of this from him. Li'l cutie.



But really, even he did exceptionally well for his age and abilities and considering it was the first time! In the end, we definitely had more smiles than we did tears!!!

Our little Greek God!

Our eldest dressed up as someone for our CC class last week. Can you tell who he is? If you guessed Poseidon, you're right! That boy is enthralled with the Greek myths, and we've read many of them more than once. I sure have enjoyed them myself. It was not until this year, teaching them, that I realized how entertaining they are! They truly are great stories, especially the ones about Odysseus. Biggest has read through the Odyssey children's chapter books at the library. So proud of this boy!!!!!

My Baby with His Baby

Lately our Pookie Bear has really gotten attached to various "lovies." A few weeks ago he was in love with Emma, the one doll we have in our house. He wanted her with him always! At the moment it's a lion stuffed animal that he wants to drag with him everywhere. He is our first to actually really seem to like these sorts of things. Our other boys never had on iota of interest in stuffed animals, and certainly not in dolls! I guess the Snookerdoodle is our more tenderhearted, nurturing child! He'll probably grow up and be a sweet husband and daddy one day, if our Lord tarries!

Our Real Snowman

Last month we made a snowman, but he was actually just a snowhead! This time we actually were able to pack the snow together enough and made a snowman. Yay! It's fun to drive into the driveway and have him welcome us home!