My list is long, but my desk is messy and some of the things on the list are challenging…. so I’m doing something easy first: blogging! Then I will figure out health insurance, IEPs, chores, homeschooling and whatever other stuff I’m not remembering that is a-piling up.
Growing curve
Favorite concepts from chapter one of the book my mom friends and I are reading (“Loving our Kids on Purpose”):
– Just like a carpenter does much better with more tools than just a hammer, parents will have more success with more tools than just intimidation.
– Parenting out of fear (of failure, of our kids being failures, of losing their respect, etc.) does not help our kids grow up respecting us.
– God loves us no matter what. He is the best place ever to go when you make mistakes, because he will help you through them. Wouldn’t it be great if our kids thought of us as such a safe place.
– Relationship with our children is more important than….. obedience…. you name it.
And now… some pictures!

Carolyn didn’t roll her pie crust or put cinnamon sugar on it or leftover pie drippings…. she just enjoyed it right away and then rubbed flour all around.

I should have known there was trouble afoot when I heard so much laughing from Maggie downstairs. But at least she cleaned up the mess?

This is a picture of a fly that Anna took for the field guide. But…. here’s a picture of our yard this week! It’s greening up again from some rain.

Pet store! Anna held a guinea pig, a gerbil, a hamster and a turtle. Maybe something else. Hmm. She took notes on the prices of animals and wrote a report when we got home.