Merry Christmas

Coming July 2013

Our 2013 will be filled with joy, and we hope yours will be too!

God looked at everything he had made, and it was very good!

(Thought I had posted this one already, but I guess not.)

Going on a cruise helps to appreciate and connect to nature a little more. Maybe it's being surrounded by a big beautiful blue ocean and a clear sky where you can really see the stars...after the clouds clear out

 Maybe it's eating breakfast by the ocean or staring out into the sunset.

 Maybe it's experiencing God's creation on a hike along the coast in St. Maarten.

 Maybe it's even the not-so-pretty creations.

  (Same type of thorn bush that Jesus 'crown of thorns' was made of.)

 Maybe it's seeing God's ingenuity. These plants grow the direction the sea breeze blows so you can always use them as a compass to know which direction you're going! Who would have thought? God did.

 Maybe it's the sound of pebbles rolling in and out with the tide...such a soothing sound!

 Maybe it's walking in the sand with the waves splashing my legs after hiking for about 2 miles. Ahh...it was so refreshing!

Maybe it's looking down on a beautiful Magen's Bay and the scenery that surrounds it.

Maybe it's the sight of God's creatures roaming around.

 Maybe it's feeling the refreshing ocean breeze and the hot sun at the same time.

 Maybe it's the view of all the different clouds and the sun gleaming through them as we fly home.

It's all of that and so much more that pictures can't capture. Ahh, the nature I experienced this week! I'm reminded of God's power, creativity, thoughtfulness, and love!

Follow-up to S week

(I'm still trying to figure out why the pictures in the last post were sideways/upside-down. I uploaded them from my phone, so maybe that has something to do with it. If you have any tips for me, please let me know.)

We finished up S week this morning (partially because of an extra-long nap last Thursday, and partially because I was missing a few supplies). I found some letter 'beads' to make a necklace with the letter of the week (I'm planning to add a letter each week for 3 weeks, so then we can review our 3 letters on the last week.) Ava was pretty excited to wear her S necklace for school-time.

For School-time today, we did Spice painting. I used Ground Cinnamon for brown, Ground Mustard for yellow, Ground Sage for green, and Paprika for red. I was pretty excited about doing this activity when I found it on Pinterest because I have a lot of Spices I don't use anymore and didn't know what to do with them. I also love how many Senses this one activity involved! It Smelled pretty good, until all the Scents Started mixing.

When Ava was done painting, we Stirred and mixed colors to make new colors. This seemed just as fun as painting with the spices. (Her dried spice-painting picture kind of reminds me of a scratch-n-sniff book!)

Next up, the letter F for Fall!

S week

For the last month, I've been working on plans to make my time with Ava a little more structured...a little more like a dayschool. I planned out letters, numbers, colors, shapes, themes, and Bible lessons for each month, and I have a planning page where I put weekly activity ideas that fit the "objectives." 

This week, with the beginning of September, we started our School time, and S was the letter of the week!

We started School-time by talking about School and putting Stickers on the letter S, followed by outside time Spraying colored water on the driveway (it was so hot, it dried up almost instantly!) We had some Strawberries and Scrambled eggs for lunch.

The next day we went to the library to get some S books: "Mister Seahorse" "How to Catch a Star" "Maisy Goes to PreSchool" and "Little School". Then we went by the grocery Store then back home for Stories and Sleep-time (aka nap-time).

The next day was a beautiful morning, we played at the park for a long time. 

We Sat on the Stairs,

went down the Slide,

Stood by the Slide,

played on the Swings,

 

and Stomped our feet. 

For our School-time, we went upStairs, and found things that started with S--Shoes, Shirt, Seashell, Stickers, Stones, found things that matched a Triangle, and talked about the color Yellow and the number 1.

We Stretched our Sleepies out, Shook a bottle, Sang Silly Songs (like "Starlight, Starbright" and "You Are My Sunshine"). For lunch, Ava had pasta with Sauce, then we Squeezed, Squished, and Smushed play dough, making Snakes, Sandwiches, and S's with our S cookie cutter. After Sleep-time, she had Sweet potatoes and a Smoothie for Snack. 

We talked throughout the day about everything I could think of and Saw that Started with S, and I learned an important lesson (or maybe reinforced it)--to be present, in the moment, aware, and conscious of my Surroundings. I was thinking about and consciously Seeking out S words all week, and I felt like almost everything that came out of my mouth started with an S (I think Evan may have gotten a little Sick of my cheesy face every time I realized it and was proud of myself for thinking of it). It definitely helped to Start this project with S...So many things Start with S. I know this lesson applies Spiritually as well--I need to be thinking about and consciously Seeking God more everyday.

Oh The Food We Did Eat!

As with any cruise, there was food everywhere...all the time, and oh, the food we did eat!!

Roasted Tomato Soup

Chicken Tenders

Pan-seared Tilapia topped with onions & tomatoes, served with glazed carrots, pea puree, and macaroni and cheese. (Ironically, I looked back in my journal of the last cruise, and I had the same meal the first night then that I had on the first night of the this time!)

Fried Shrimp

Minestrone Soup

Evan decided to be adventurous and try a lot of the "Didja" entrees on the menu (as in "Didja Ever," however he did avoid the Escargot.)

Alligator Fritters

Strawberry Cream Soup

Lobster

Spaghetti Carbonara

Apple Crostini

Breakfast by the ocean

Ton Ka Gai (ask Evan what it was, I don't really know.)

Peach Cream Soup 

I was really into soups at the dinners this week (Minestrone, French Onion, Broccoli & Cheese, Ton Ka Gai (I tried it), Sweet Potato, Strawberry Cream), and this Peach Cream Soup was my favorite!! I need to learn how to make it!

Braised Lamb Shank

Beef Stroganoff

Black and White Bread Pudding

Tiramisu

Penne Siciliana

Basa Fillet (some kind of fish)

Spanokopita with Eggplant and Zucchini

Chocolate Extravaganza on the last Day at Sea. Mmm...chocolate

Frog Legs

Bacon Mac n Cheese & Prime Rib in Au Ju

Eggplant Parmigiana

Vanilla Souffle

Mocha Ice Cream Pie

Amazingly, I didn't gain as much weight as I thought I did...with my birthday week, cruise week, and holiday week all back-to-back-to-back!