Funny Face and Sammy the Sad Snail

School is in full swing for the year. For Pre-K, Phoebe and I have had lots of fun playing different games- all while she is learning to count and learning more colors and shapes. We have these great toys from Lauri that are made from a soft foam. I bought about 4 or 5 different sets, but they can all work together. There are several pieces that can be laced together or put together like a puzzle and there are pegs that can be stacked or the shapes can be stacked on the pegs. They've been great for counting, learning patterns and just for having fun. I was surprised to find that Phoebe can already count to 26 before getting off track. I hadn't worked with her with numbers higher than 10, so I asked her how she learned to count that high, and she said, "I practice in bed every night." I think her big sisters have been working behind the scenes and I didn't realize it. :D

Today we are playing with play dough. Forest joined in and made this sad snail. I'm not really sure what inspired it but its cute. Forest is in 1st grade this year and is continuing to learn to read- something he has definitely approached differently than his sisters. He learned all the letter sounds from last year and can sound words out but doesn't take any initiative to try to read on his own- only if I ask him too. Yet, he still remembers the letter sounds from last year. As far as I can tell, he is right on track for his age, so I think he will still pick up reading by the end of this year; it's just interesting to see how different he is learning from how the girls learned. I'm no expert, but I am convinced boys, in general, learn differently than girls. I am using curriculum from My Father's World for all the kids. This year Forest will learn about different Jewish customs and practices from the Old Testament. His reader for the year is full of Bible stories that he can read himself and he will have drawing lessons, as well as learning about God's creation in science and learning Bible verses. I expect it to be a fun year.

I'll post soon about what my big girls are learning along with some pictures of them hard at work.

Feelin' good 'bout the way I am...

I think I may finally be out of the clearing concerning morning sickness. Thank you Jesus! This time around, I have been a lot more uncomfortable- hopefully not a sign of things to come further in the pregnancy, but possibly a sign of my escalating age. I've tried to keep the promise of I Timothy 2:15 in front of me- a promise that if I will be faithful during this time of discomfort and continue to pursue holiness and love and self-control then God will use the time of affliction( light as it may be) to refine me. I'm not so sure I've done well so far, but I do have 6 more months to keep trying. But for now, I am grateful today that I have found some level of settling in my tummy!

A Prayer of Phoebe

Jesus, you are the most wonderful man in the world. And I am not as pretty as you because you are the handsomest man in world.

I should have known when I started drinking pickle juice...

Without fail, every time that I have been pregnant, one of the things I crave most is pickle juice (along with soy sauce- yes, to drink, and Italian salad dressing-yes, also to drink). So when I looked at the pickle jar about a month ago and thought,"Yumm, that pickle juice looks tasty," then found myself downing some of it, I certainly should have known I was newly expecting. Yes, we have been hoping for another little one, but it really never crossed my mind at the time that I might be pregnant. I am now 9 weeks along and am pretty much living off of ramen noodles and saltine crackers- hold the pickle juice please. But, regardless of how my tummy feels these days, I and my family are very excited to be expecting the arrival of another little one into the family. So, come next March we will again be stretching out our tent stakes and making room for a sweet new baby.