The New Family Member

I got a new kitten for my birthday! She is so cute and the newest

family member. We adopted her from PetSmart. She is 10

weeks old and is a rescue kitty!

I named her Millie, after my favorite book character.

We don't know what kind of cat she is but she has

some brown in her fur.

See pictures of me and my Millie, below:

Isn't she just the cutest?

Blessings, Naomi

Medieval Times

While our family was together at Christmas time, we took a field trip excursion to Medieval Times. It was very close to my parents home and we are studying in Year 2, Unit 1 which covers the medieval time period in history. We had ruled out this field trip previously as it was a bit pricey, but we were able to find a coupon allowing our two youngest children free admission. If you are wanting to do this outing for your own family, make sure to look around for coupons. They often have them on their own website.

The boys made knight helmets and daughter made a damsel hat. I also used burlap and rope cutting a slits in it for the head and the boys had a coverlet and a place to store their swords when the rope was tied around their waist. They were great dress up activities to go along with the theme for the night.
Here is a picture of our family, taken by our server who treated us with royalty.

We all enjoyed the food. The meal of soup, roast chicken and ribs, potato, roll, apple turnover and beverage was served on metal plates with no utensils. Everything had to be eaten with your hands. Soup was served in a bowl that was tipped up and drank. It was a bit messy. They served warm lemon towels at the conclusion of the meal, luckily.

The show was exciting. I did not see one empty seat in the entire arena. We were seated in the 'yellow' section and we cheered for the yellow knight. Here he is with the children at the conclusion of the show. Youngest son was in awe of meeting a 'real' knight. He even had to get his autograph:)

The show was full of excitement with lots of pomp as well as sword fights and jousting. They also had demonstrations of dancing horses and fowl both of which would have been included in a medieval fair. The children were impressed with watching the squire do his job. We have talked a lot about a squire and it was great for them to see one in action.

After the show, we went beyond the gift shop where they kept the horses. They were very beautiful, enormous creatures.
Enjoy the photgraphs. Blessings, Suzie E.

Helping with Family

The children and I are in California helping to care for my parents. We have been here since mid November and are planning on heading home next week. In the next few days I will share a couple of the activities that we have done while we have been here. It has been mostly work, but we had a few days of play along the way.

I continue to solicit your prayers as my parents are ill. My mother has many chronic problems and dad is finishing up his fourth round of chemotherapy next week. God is so good and is answering many prayers in relation to dad's cancer. The doctor expects his cat scan to be clear on February 8th. After that, he will undergo radiation treatments. This has clearly been one of the most trying times of my life, however, I would not change it for anything in the world. I feel that I have grown so much, especially spiritually and as a mother. I look forward to being together as a family, in our home, soon. There is no place like home.

Blessings, Suzie

A Jumping Jack

A jumping jack was a puppet that was sold at The Great Fairs of the Middle Ages. They were typically carved of wood and painted to make lots of fun for children and adults, alike.

Here is our version of a Jumping Jack puppet. The pattern for this puppet is found in Days of Knights and Damsels, Activity Book by Laurie Carlson.

I enlarged the pattern on my copy machine and copied it on white card stock. The total size of this puppet is 20 inches. Youngest son colored it to his preference and it was put together with brass brads. You need to make the the brads loose enough that the puppet will swing its legs.

Next you thread the string. We used yarn and a large tapestry needle for this part. Tie a knot at the end of the yarn and thread the needle. Make a new hole with the needle above the place where the brad is inserted. Do this on both sides and the legs as well as shown below. Trim all the extra yarn. Finally, connect a long piece of yarn to the top horizontal thread connecting the arms and then connect the same piece of yarn to the bottom horizontal yarn connecting the legs. We decided to thread a few beads on the pull string that was hanging down.

And here it is in action!

Tapestry of Grace is a perfect fit for our family. It has such creative ways to teach about all periods in history. We are having loads of fun with Medieval History and this craft is perfect for my 9 year old son. I don't think I would have come up with this creative idea on my own. Thank you, TOG

Blessings, Suzie

Photography Class

Here is a special post from Naomi, dear daughter. I am so blessed to have such a wonderful daughter. I hope you enjoy. Suzie

I have been taking a photography class these past few weeks and these are some of my favorite assignment pictures. They're all about reflection. Take a look:

In this picture it looks like an upside down landscape.

You can see in this picture the neck of the ducks are reflecting on the water.

This is my favorite picture! I love the fall colors on the tree reflecting on the water!
It just seems so pretty.


Jeremiah 16:7-8
"Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord , and whose hope is in the Lord. For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, which spreads out its roots by the river, and will not fear when heat comes; but its leaf will be green, and will not be anxious in the year of drought, nor will cease from yeilding fruit.

Blessings, Naomi

BEST Robotics Competition

This is our homeschool group robotics team video that we created from the events of our 2009 season. It was a fantastic experience. Dh did a great job dubbing it all.

If you want more information or to contact a BEST Robotics hub in your area, go here.

I hope you enjoy. Blessings, Suzie

Fall Is In The Air

I approach with aniticipation, this time of year. It is, hands down, my favorite time of year.

Fresh pumpkins, mums in full fall color blooms, the smell of hot apple cider, the vibrant fall color of the leaves as they change color, smoke burning in the fireplace, all these things remind me of fall.

We visited a pumpkin patch today, and came home with five pie pumpkins. You know what we will do with those. Several of the moms were asking about how to cook them so that you can use the pumpkin and it is not so watery. Here is how you do it.

Oil a cooking sheet that has sides on it. Cut the pumpkin on half and remove the seeds and pulp. Turn half of the pumpkin upside down on the cooking sheet. I repeat this process for the second half, as I tend to pick large pumpkins. If its a small pumpkin, you can put both on the cookies sheet. Place in a 400 degree oven for 2 hours, or so, until the skin becomes dark brown and blistered. The pumpkin is going to cook by steaming itself. You may think you are burning it but you are not. After it becomes brown, take it out and let it cool. It will look like it is shrivelling as it cools and that if fine. After it is cool, the skin will just peel off and that beautiful pumpkin is soft and workable. I usually process mine in the food processor and then freeze in freezer bags, 2 cups at a time. Don't add the excess liquid from the pan back in as you process, as it may make your pumpkin too thin. It will seem thinner than the canned stuff but it has never caused me a problem. Some recipes may just need to bake a bit longer. Also, the cost effectiveness of cooking your own pumpkin is phenomenal!

Also, don't throw those seeds away. My family loves to munch on them. Here is how I process them.

Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

4 1/2 cups raw pumpkin seeds, rinsed and dried

2 T cooking oil of choice

1 t salt

sandwich bags

Rinse pulp and strings from seeds. Drain off excess water. Mix seeds, oil and salt in a bowl. Spread on a cookie sheet lined with wax paper. Let stand for 24-48 hours, stirring once in a while. (I just let the cookie sheet sit in my off oven for a couple days) Remove wax paper and toast seeds in oven for 40 minutes at 325 degrees. Stir once or twice. Drain seeds on paper towel. Store in airtight container.

Another favorite of ours, during this time of year is hot apple cider. Here is how we do that.

Apple Cinnamon Cider

1 gallon of apple juice or cider

3 sticks of cinnamon

1/4 t allspice

5 pieces of candied ginger

1/2 cup fresh cranberries

2 oranges, sliced

Simmer slowly for a wonderful aroma (your nose will be able to tell when it is done) and then serve in mugs. Store leftovers (if there are any) in jar in fridge and reheat in microwave for a wonderful morning treat.

I hope your fall days are delightfully bright.

Blessings, Suzie