Chloe Poppins

Today’s festivities.

The new movie was a great family film and we all enjoyed it. The best part was when Claire turned to me and said, “Go help Woody, Mommy.” If only I could …. This is a hard one for mothers of older boys to watch (tears, tears, and more tears). And it your son is already in that 16 - 20 year old age bracket, take a box of tissues. You will laugh as much, or more, than you’ll cry… but you will need the tissues.

Some of my favorite quotes …

Toy Story Buzz to Woody “You are a sad and strange little man, and you have my pity. Farewell.”

Toy Story 2 Jessie “Sweet Mother of Abraham Lincoln.”

Toy Story 3 Mr. Potato Head “You would not believe what I have been through … tonight.”

Sam’s favorite line from Toy Story 3 (Buzz …upon reawakening from “Demo” mode) ….

“(sniff, sniff, sniff …. That wasn’t me was it?”

Claire reading to Buzz and Woody back in January

The bin of Toy Story Happiness

This is the garden before the 80 degree weather and all the loving attention from Wilson and me.

Before the dirt arrived.

This is the garden in process….

Moving the dirt into the garden.

The kids worked very hard with me to move the “composted topsoil” from the pile in the driveway into the garden.  Due to the low powerlines, the dump truck was only to get within about 8 feet of the garden.

Sam waits for another delivery of dirt.

Everyone worked really hard to get the garden in early this year.  This pictures were taken on Saturday morning, the first day of Spring Break.  The kids were actually anxious to get out of bed and start working. That never happens!!

As soon as I can get back out with the camera… I’ll post some after pictures.  Good News… after the birds ate the first round of bean and pea seeds we planted in egg cartons a few weeks ago, the second round … hidden in a box by the hose … has sprouted.  :-)

Sliding down the road with Dad.

These are photos from our mid-February adventure.

Claire

Sophie

Sam

Wilson during the 2009 Baseball Season

Hitting the Grand Slam

Run, Wilson, Run….

So … yesterday, I took a veteran homeschooler’s advice and asked my three older children what they would like to study as electives as they move into Middle School, and eventually High School.  Here is the list they compiled, in no particular order.

… and a family of six. Just how far will that go? Well, let me tell you. If you’re creative, it can be almost like Thanksgiving in March…. turkey for days. Harris Teeter had a special on turkey breast last week, so we bought one.

That’s the best $5.70 I’ve spent at the grocery in a while. I think we’ll finally run out Friday.

You will need:

You can cook this one of two ways. You can cook it in a slow cooker on low for 5 to 6 hours, or you can cook it as a traditional casserole. For a traditional casserole, see the topping and baking instructions below. If you choose to cook it in a slow cooker, you can double the batch and “can it” if you are ambitious. Mmmmm …. tasty. I suppose you could freeze it too, I haven’t tried that.

For Topping:

Baking Instructions: Mix the apples, cranberries, white sugar, orange juice and cinnamon together and place in a buttered 9 * 13 casserole dish. Mix together the melted butter, brown sugar, corn flake crumbs and pecans. Stir and pour over the top of the apple/cranberry mixture. Cover with foil. Bake at 325 degrees for 1 - 2 hours. You want the apples to be tender, and some cook faster than others. Uncover the casserole for the last 10 - 15 minutes so the crust can get “crusty”. Enjoy!!

Good News!  School did start on the 11th, despite my best attempts to sabotage my own efforts.  We started with a “skeleton crew” and have been steadily adding a little bit more each day.  This week we have added Language Arts (Grammar) to the Literature we already had underway; and we added Latin.  For those of you who know me, this last one will be slightly amusing.  Other than English, the only other foreign language I speak is a little know mountain dialect of le francais known affectionately as “Henry French”.  I can read it, maybe even understand the basics, but let’s just hope I don’t get lost in Paris.

Mark did turn 43 on the 3rd, followed closely by Alex turning 30 on the 7th.  We hosted Piper’s third birthday this past weekend and had a blast.  Although I know her parents are proud of her extensive exposure to different cultures (She’s been farther from home than I have.), I believe I successfully converted her this weekend.  After several rounds of Carolina Girls by the Chairman of the Board, Piper is now a Carolina Girl (not to be confused with a fan of UNC - don’t want to get kicked out of the house).  After discovering this fascinating fact, she then wanted to know if Grandma, and Sophie, and Claire, and Mommy were Carolina Girls too.  Obviously, it goes without saying…. Aunt Chloe is a Carolina Girl!

Dancing Carolina Girls

Well, I’m a little late.  Finally I’m posting the pictures of Wilson’s 7th birthday.  He had a great day and really enjoyed having Uncle Alex and his family visiting over the weekend.  Grandma and Grandpa arrived on the weekend and stayed until the afternoon on the 16th; Grandma even got up early to eat birthday “Ice Cream” cake with the rest of us.