More than Just Words

Last night we attended a fireside highlighting good communication skills. It was a very good and informative fireside and we really enjoyed being there. It caused me to reflect and recognize a deep sense of gratitude that we have had for the most part, good communication between us as husband and wife and also between parents and children.  As I think back I think that we learned many of those skills in our first year of marriage, but I know I didn't come into marriage with them. I was blessed to have a husband who was able to teach me the importance of good communication in the beginning. He helped me realize that problems have to be talked about - without pointing fingers. That one skill that we worked on together has added strength and fostered a feeling of security in our marriage. We are so blessed to be able to say that while we have had disagreements,  we have never had a disagreement that ended up with a bunch of yelling and screaming at one another. I am so thankful for the opportunity that last nights fireside gave me to again be taught about communication and to be able to reflect on how I can improve. 

Just this morning I came across a statement that sums up how I feel about the blessing of good communication and what it is:

"If we would know true love and understanding one for another, we must realize that communication is more than a sharing of words. It is the wise sharing of emotions, feelings, and concerns. It is the sharing of oneself totally." -- Marvin J Ashton

 What a joy it is to be able to communicate with those we love. I am so grateful for my husband and children.

Our First Real Snow Storm!!!

This has been the most unusual winter ever!!! Only just a few weeks ago we were playing tag in our back yard, and only last month we had a picnic at Henderson Lake! So I guess Old Man Winter didn't like being mocked by springtime activities - it took him a while to wake up but once he did, the kids sure began to enjoy some real winter activities. With today being the first day we've had that it has snowed all day long here are some of the activities that began to happen at our house...

Of course we had to build a snow man...

 You can't really tell, but these are pictures of a snowball fight through the trees.

 If you look close you can see a snowball in Shylah's hand.

 Then there were the snow angels...

 More snowman efforts

 And more...

 And even more...

 The finished outcome!!! They made a colorful snowman. What a fun way to finish off a winter snowman building project... since all the twigs are rocks are now buried under snow.

I love the creativity I see in my family members. They are so much fun to be with. What a fun day we have all had together - doing what we like best... BEING TOGETHER!!!

Sunset Sensations!!!

So phase one of the oil paintings are all dry and happily hanging on the walls of the artists meaning that we are able to do phase 2 - art classes with the older kids. As they say, a picture says a thousand words... so here are the pictures of the project.

Getting Started...

 First Step - The Sky

 Naomi adds a horizon...

 Beth working on her horizon...

 Shylah paints her foreground...

 Alisha doing a waterscape...

 Adding a boat...

 Fine details... Beth is concentrating carefully on her trees...

 Myles shows off his finished work of art! Good job Myles!!!

 Alisha adding the finishing touches...

 Shylah's piece is finished!!!

 This one was mine...

 Beth - still working. Adding detail to her trees...

 Naomi works carefully to sign her name - the mark of a true artist!

 Beth's finished masterpiece!!! Love those trees!

 Naomi's painting finally finished! There is something magical about the colors and shapes she used. Love it!!!

It only took us 4 hours to do the above paintings. It would have taken a lot less but I only have 2 big brushes and 2 palette knives. Those were the tools used the most so we had to do lots of sharing, but it was fun and we had such a great variety of finished pieces this time around. I LOVE doing things with the kids. I love to watch them work together but even more fun is listening to them as they encourage or tease one another. There is nothing like seeing your children get along that warms the heart.

What a JOY each of our children are for Chad and I. We are SO blessed!!!

And All the Rest

The past weeks have been very busy, so busy in fact, that I really haven't written many blog posts. So here is one BIG post to cover it all!

This month has been a crafty month... First I went through all my cloth and determined that there was a lot there that I would never sew into anything. I gathered all the fortrell pieces and began cutting them into strips...

 Once they were cut I threw them into a box...

 Then I ironed them so I could fold them easily (I probably could have skipped this step, but I wanted a nice neat braid in the end...)

 Once they were all folded up, I braided them together until it felt like I had piles and piles of braids just waiting to be sewed together....

 Well, there weren't piles and piles it turned out, but this is the beginning...

 And a picture of the rug to date.. it's still got a long ways to go as the goal is an 8' x 5' rug! YUP, next month will be busy too!

 Aside from rug making I've put together a bunch of crocheted dish rags.

Here is the beginnings of a large crocheted afghan. That is one large ball of yarn crocheted up and just starting the second one.

 Breanna and her bridge making project for school.

Melodee, Breanna and Charity have been learning to do embroidery. Below are Charity's samples.

 Here is Charity showing off her first ever embroidery samplers....

NOW, for my favorite project of all!!! This is a drawer that Chad built for me to hold all our games. It is actually built into a cupboard that is about 30" deep and only about 18-24" wide. It was a very difficult cupboard to use because of it's depth and as such, we never finished it until now....

Chad built a shelf and put it on rollers so that we can open up the cupboard just like an oversized drawer! Here is a picture of it just after it was finished... OPEN...

CLOSED... No we haven't finished the laundry room yet, but that is in the works too...

And the finished project put into good use (I couldn't believe how full it is of games!!! Didn't know we had so many!) We've got the door back on the laundry room here too and a nice handle on the front of the cupboard. 

I am so blessed to have such a handy husband and creative children. It is a joy and a delight to watch them as they create in their own ways and to see how those things contribute to the family and the household is wonderful.

As for the rest of the month it was filled with activities like playing tag in the back yard (love this unusual winter weather we've had), an indoor weiner roast, lots of card games, little TV, a movie day, a sleep-over, and there has been a fair bit of 'horsing' around done by Beth and Melodee. With a week off school we were even able to do some visiting! What a great family month we have had!

PAIN - In It, Through It and Beyond!

Well Happy Valentines Day! It seems we've been celebrating for the last 3 days, but, since Valentines day is all about those you love, technically, we celebrate it almost every day. I love to hear my kids say 'I love you' to each other and to us, their parents. It warms my heart to the very depth. I am so grateful to have a home in which love is openly and honestly expressed frequently. It is a wonderful feeling!!!

This last weekend I started having some back problems, which quite quickly progressed to the point that even just sitting was excruciatingly painful. I've had this problem once before and so as soon as Monday morning rolled around I scheduled an appointment with my chiropractor. While there wasn't much I could do, I did manage to work on a couple of projects.

This one - a braided rug - is one I've been working on for a couple of weeks now. I can't stand up to do the braiding but I've got lots of ironing done in the last few days, so the braiding is going to go fast once I can do it again. The second project I've been able to work on is the beginning of another afghan. This one is huge, large enough for a queen sized bed, and so far it is only about 8" long but it is progressing quickly, and I'm excited about the design that will fill it's center.

So after working on these two projects most of the day my daughter drove me in to see the chiropractor. Turns out that my pelvic bone was out of place, in fact he said it was sprained. Makes walking pretty nasty - let me tell you. So now I am recuperating and again working on the above mentioned projects. It feels so good to be able to stand up straight again, and while there is still, pain, I know that it must be endured before healing will be complete.

I guess life is like a trip to the chiropractor. When we have problems that need healing, oftentimes there is pain to be born before complete healing can occur. Some injuries hurt more than others, and some take longer to heal than others, but by taking the proper steps for healing, it will always come. If I had chosen to try to heal on my own, without seeking help I would have suffered much more, for a longer time, and likely I still would have had to seek outside help before I would be able to walk with ease again. 

Through it all and despite the pain that I was in, my family was very conscious of my needs and left very little for me to worry over. That is the wonderful thing about a loving family... they put their own needs or desires aside to help me whenever I needed it. I am so blessed to have a wonderful and caring husband who has been so conscientious of my needs. He takes such good care of me and the children. My children and husband bless my life every day. What a joy life is when it is filled with people who love you.

English Class

Today in English class, we read from Romeo and Juliet. It had to have been the best class all year long! Most of the students who read opted to read with an accent. There were Irish, British, attempt at British, and 'molly voice' accents. I couldn't stop shaking with laughter, it was hilarious. You'd have to have been there to fully understand why it was so funny. :D