Friday, December 10, 2010

Still Here

I am so terrible about updating here regularly.

I guess I feel not much happens that anyone would really care to read about.

So why do I keep this blog? Good question. Because every once in a while something does happen that I feel like sharing. Not that I do today though. lol

Facebook has also cut into my time here. I can condense into a couple sentences and be done.

If anyone cares, I'll talk about today's activities. We got school done this morning. We put together a box mix of homemade marshmallows. I made homemade crackers that turned out really good! I am also making a spinach artichoke dip to have with our hamburgers for dinner.

No major plans for the weekend. But with Brian's 3 day week ends now I'm sure we'll come up with some fun activities.

Hope you have a great weekend!

Leat

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

How I Spent my Vacation from Facebook

So for the past 6 days I have been off of Facebook. I was getting too attached. I was starting to be more involved with my friends lives and less involved in my own family's! Not a good thing. So I decided to take a break.

I found out that the world keeps right on turning. Surprise Surprise.

I also found out I am more creative and enjoy my kids more the less time I spend on the computer. Again, surprise surprise! (please note, I am posting this while everyone is still in bed this am!)

Here are a few of the things I managed to accomplish.

My Father-in-law had given us a bucket full of tomatoes and peppers from his greenhouse. They were just sitting in the back of our frige. I didn't really want to make salsa, so I looked up and adapted a recipe for homemade v8 juice! I got a little over 1/2 gallon. Here is one of the bottles.



Amazingly enough, Caleb and Nathan have a floor is their room! We deep cleaned, AGAIN. Hopefully it will last longer this time!


I got more material and lots of thread from my Father-in-law. I was so excited! Yes, Brian rolled his eyes and asked if I really needed it. But now I'm set for life! Nathan helped me sort the spools by color and put them away.


Our Colorado family is in town for Thanksgiving. The cousins have had a blast playing together. Laura and the kids came over yesterday to visit, make pumpkin pies and choose material for aprons. (gotta start using it up!) ;)


Anna rolled out the dough. Nathan played with the scraps.



Laura brought over some suduku worksheets for the older kids to work on.



The younger boys played downstairs with the blocks and track


Anna finished up a project she had brought to work on.


The pies turned out great!


While I still enjoy FB, I've realized there is more to life than that. I am glad I took a break, and will try to not let it take over again!

May anyone reading this have a blessed and wonderful Thanksgiving!

Leat

Friday, November 19, 2010

1 Peter 1:3-8

All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is by His great mercy that we have been born again, because God raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Now we live with great expectation, and we have a priceless inheritance- an inheritance that is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay. And through your faith, God is protecting you by His power until you receive this salvation, which is ready to be revealed on the last day for all to see.
So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you have to endure many trials for a little while. These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold-though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.
You love him even though you have never seen him. Though you do not see him now, you trust him; and you rejoice with a glorious, inexpressible joy.


Brian has been and is continuing to go through trials at work. These verses are such an encouragement! Earlier in the week he was across the country on a business trip. It seemed a lot harder this time having him away,even though is was a short trip. On Monday I called my SIL and we got the Thanksgiving menu worked out and just talking to her was such an encouragement. That night a great friend called and again just talking was just what I needed at that time. Tuesday evening I decided to take the boys to the library to save time the next morning. As we were getting ready to leave, Nathan ran up to me telling me the Vallejo's had just walked in! I got to sit and hold the sweetest 1 month old little girl and visit face to face with my dearest friend!

I am so amazed when God brings the perfect scripture at the perfect time. Also the perfect friend or phone call at just the time I need it most! He has been doing that a lot lately and I couldn't be more grateful!

Friday, November 5, 2010

Exodus 14:14

The LORD shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace.

This is what Moses told the people when they were near the Red Sea and saw the Egyptian army pursuing them.

So many times when things start to get a little rough and stressful I become like the Israelites. "God, WHY are you letting this happen? Where are you? I wish things were like before."

But God ALWAYS has a better plan, He is ALWAYS in control. I just need to hold my peace and wait on Him.


Monday, October 4, 2010

El Dorado Lake 2010



We spent this past weekend camping at El Dorado Lake. We went specifically for the OK Kids Day on Saturday.

We left Friday afternoon around 3. Bri's dad came with us in his motor home. The weather was absolutely beautiful! We found a great spot near the water and close to the shower house.





Bri got in a short kayak time on the water after getting us all set up. Turns out that was his only time on the water so I'm glad he got to go then.

That evening some friends arrived and camped next to us. Our boys and theirs had a great time chopping wood for our fire with their hatchets.
The wind picked up during the night and we awoke to a chilly morning. Rachelle graciously shared hot chocolate with the kids.

Israel, Jacob and Sam


Nathan


Luke


Caleb


After breakfast we headed over to OK Kids. It stands for Outdoor Kansas Kids. It is a free event held at various lakes throughout the year. The point being to introduce kids to outdoor activities and various demonstrations. This was our fourth year. The boys absolutely love it! It was more special this year to get to introduce their friends and take them around to the different activities.

Bri helping Nathan at archery


Rescue demonstration


Caleb in the petting zoo


Nathan won a tackle box in the drawing after lunch!


Our great friends, The Vallejo's came for the afternoon!
3 of their girls painting bird feeders.


After OK Kids, we went back to camp.
Dinner that night was Chili and corn bread.




After dinner Grandpa cooked S'mores with the boys.


That night the boys slept in the motor home with Grandpa.


Bri and I waiting to watch a video before bed.


We had a wonderful time camping and visiting with friends!

Leat

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Our Boys

Since I am terrible about posting regularly, I thought I would just post some pics of the boys to see when I come to read my friends blogs. hehe





Tuesday, September 7, 2010

Gone Home

My Mother-in-law, Dianne Brooks, went home to Jesus early this morning. she had been in hospice for several weeks.

She was a great mom and grandmother. How she loved her 10 grandchildren with a passion!

She was also one of the greatest prayer warriors. Whenever anyone in the family was sick or going through a difficult time, Brian would say, "call mom so she can pray".

We all miss her terribly but are thankful that she is finally home.

Monday, August 23, 2010

30 Days Day11

This program is going a lot slower for me because I average only 2-4 times a week with it. I've had it for well over a month. Oh well, I'll get there sooner or later.

My curiosity got the better of me today and I did level 3! It went pretty good. I admit I did the modified on a lot of it. The sumo squats just about did me in! Believe it or not I think the walking push ups are easier than regular.

It feels good to get back into it. I usually skip the weekends and that is also when I eat worse than during the week, sweets wise. All things in moderation right?

I think I will start rotating the levels just to keep it interesting. I like level 2 but for some reason it messes up my right knee. No use getting in shape if I end up screwing my knee up.

Hope you have a great start to the week!

Leat

Monday, August 16, 2010

30 Days Day 10

I did the video 3 days last week. I had started level 2. Today I got back with it and continued with level 2. It seemed to go a bit smoother. Hopefully my right knee will not swell this week. I started doing the knee circles from level 1 before starting.

So that's where I'm at. No difference in my clothes yet, but I do have more energy the days I exercise and fell stronger all around.

Have a great day!

Leat

Saturday, August 14, 2010

New School Year

This past week we started our new school year. We got in 3 out of 5 days of actual bookwork. It went better than I thought actually. We still have some tweeking to do with the schedule, but that's to be expected right?

I love reading about what other home schoolers use for curriculum, so thought I would share what we are using this year.

A lot of our books we just keep and pass down to the next boy as needed. Mostly readers and Science and History for the early grades. This past May I went to a local home school used book sale and picked up quite a bit for a huge savings over ordering on line. We got two books used from Amazon and Luke's from Craigslist.

So here is our curriculum for this year.


Luke is in 7th grade this year. He is using Alpha Omega Switched On Schoolhouse for all of his subjects. He really loves working at the computer and is thriving on this format.


Jacob is in 5th grade this year. His readers are Of America Vol.1,Christian Liberty Nature Reader Book 5,Jed Smith Trailblazer of the West and Pinocchio's Quest. Math is Saxon again. The format really works with him. Bible is the same as Caleb; listening to daily reading and copy work from Psalm 119. Spelling is Building Spelling Skills Book 5, as well as extra games and practice from a great website I recently learned about called Spelling City .com. You just plug in the words and then the student can do different activities to help learn them. Science is from Abeka Investigating God's World.English is from Bob Jones. History is Exploring American History from Christian Liberty Press. Geography is called Maps Globes Graphs


Caleb is in 2nd grade this year. His readers are Beautiful Stories for Children,and the Christian Liberty Nature Reader Book 2. For Bible each morning I read the chapter of the day in Proverbs and Acts. Then he and Jacob each have a notebook and copy 1 verse each day from Psalms 119. There are 172 verses in that chapter so by the end of the school year they will have written the whole chapter. Science is from Christian Liberty, as is History. Spelling came from the used book sale and looks to be a great book. English, also from the sale is from Bob Jones. He will be learning about a fictional missionary family in Grenada as he learns writing and grammar. Math is from Modern Curriculm Press.


Nathan is doing the Rod and Staff Preschool work books just like his brothers did. I also picked up an extra workbook at the Dollar Tree. He also does Starfall on the computer, various activities and puzzles, and we will be going through the classic Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons.


For read alouds, we get different biographies from the library and have started reading the Bobbsey Twins series.

Happy Schooling!

Leat

Monday, August 9, 2010

30 Days Day 7

I went ahead and went to level 2 today. I really liked it! It was good to have new moves to do. Also it was great to not have push ups! There is more moves in the push up position, but it is doing leg work and not push ups. Clear as mud?

I also noticed my energy was up all day. It stood out more because I didn't exercise last week and felt sluggish and cranky most of the time. So that is just more motivation to stick to it and get it done in the early morning and reap the benefits all day long!

Leat

Friday, August 6, 2010

Friday, July 30, 2010

30 Days Day 6

The push ups are getting to be just a teesy bit easier! Also can tell a big difference in my arm strength! Amazing the difference the weights make!

Last night I had to quickly grind 2 cups to soak for breakfast this am. I went a lot faster and did not get as tired as I used to!

So excited to see such a difference after just 6 days. Four more days of level one then on to level 2.

Have a great day!
Leat

Wednesday, July 28, 2010

30 Days Day 5

Today was day 5 and my first day using real weights. What a difference! I moved from my salmon cans to actual 2# weights. Glad I decided to start small and work my way up.

Slowly but surly I'll get there.

Have a great day!

Leat

Monday, July 26, 2010

30 Days Day 4

Today was day 4 of 30 day shred. I am starting to have more endurance. Well except for the push ups, don't know if those will ever become easier!

I was amazed at my stamina yesterday when we were kayaking. I did not get tired and worn out half way through like I used to! Yay for arm work! I've been using 2 14.5 oz cans of salmon for my weights during the workouts. I think I will be ready to move into 2 or 3 lb weights soon.

I can feel the difference in my arms and legs. I hope my tummy flab starts to disappear soon!

Have a great day!

Leat

Friday, July 23, 2010

30 Days Day 3

So I took a week off and boy do I feel it today. It seemed harder than day 1!

Taught me a lesson to not put off!

Sorry no picture today. Thought it was too boring looking at my fat belly. Might just do one at the end of the 30 days.

Have a great day!
Leat

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

God Revealed through each book of the Bible

God revealed through each book of the Bible...
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Today at 5:07pm
"He Is" by the Christian father-son duet Aaron Jeoffrey.

In Genesis, He's the Breath of Life
In Exodus, the Passover Lamb
In Leviticus, He's our High Priest
Numbers, the Fire by Night
Deuteronomy, He's Moses' Voice
In Joshua, He is Salvation's choice
Judges, Law Giver
In Ruth, the kinsmen-redeemer
First and Second Samuel, our Trusted Prophet
In Kings and Chronicles, He's Sovereign
Nehemiah, He's the Rebuilder of broken walls and lives
In Esther, He's Mordecai's courage
In Job, the timeless redeemer
In Psalms, He is our morning song
In Proverbs, wisdom's cry
Ecclesiastes, the time and season
In the Song of Solomon, He is the lover's dream

HE IS, HE IS, HE IS....

In Isaiah, He's Prince of Peace
Jeremiah, the weeping prophet
In Lamentations, the cry for Israel
Ezekiel, He's the call from sin
In Daniel, the stranger in the Fire
In Hosea, He is forever faithful
In Joel, He's the spirit's power
In Amos, the arms that carry us
In Obadiah, He's the Lord our Savior
In Jonah, He's the great missionary
In Micah, the promise of peace
In Nahum, He is our strength and our shield
In Habakkuk and Zephaniah He's pleading for revival
In Haggai, He restores a lost heritage
In Zechariah, our fountain
In Malachi, He is the sun of righteousness
Rising with healing in His wings

HE IS, HE IS, HE IS....

In Matthew, Mark, Luke and John He is God, Man Messiah
In the book of Acts, He is Fire from Heaven
In Romans, He's the Grace of God
In Corinthians, the power of Love
In Galatians, He is freedom from the curse of sin

Ephesians, our glorious treasure
Philippians, the servant's heart
In Colossians, He's the Godhead Trinity
Thessalonians, Our coming King
In Timothy, Titus, Philemon He's our mediator and our faithful pastor
In Hebrews, the everlasting covenant
In James, the One who heals the sick
In First and Second Peter, He is our Shepherd
In John and Jude, He's the Lover Coming for His bride
In Revelation, He is King of kings and Lord of lords
HE IS, HE IS, HE IS...
The Prince of Peace, The Son of Man, The Lamb of God,
The Great I Am, He's the Alpha and Omega,
Our God and our Savior, He is Jesus Christ the Lord,
And when time is no more..
HE IS... HE IS...


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x3YhvAffME4

Friday, July 16, 2010

30 Days Day 2

Yesterday I had soo much energy after the workout. I spent several hours weeding the garden. I also noticed a huge decrease in my appitite. That was a good thing!

Today was good again. I think the push ups are the hardest by far!

I am wearing regular shorts and not sucking in so my muffin shows up really well! Trying to keep it as honest as possible. Looking forward to looser fitting shorts for sure!

Again, here is your laugh for the day!




Leat

Thursday, July 15, 2010

30 Days Day 1

Today was day 1 of Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred DVD.

I am going to post a picture of each day I do this work out and see if I can't get a flat,strong stomach after all these years.

So have a laugh with me and we'll look at the first picture.



Leat

Tuesday, July 13, 2010

Bible Study

Galations 5:22-23

Love
Joy
Peace
Long Suffering
Gentleness
Goodness
Faith
Meekness

2 Peter 1:5-7

Virture
Knowledge
Temperance
Patience
Godliness
Brotherly Kindness
Charity


2 Peter 1:8-9

For if these things be in you,and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But he that lacketh these things is blind and cannot see afar off and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.

Monday, July 12, 2010

He Listens After All!

Yesterday Bri took the three older boys to the lake for the day. I wasn't feeling all that great so Nathan and I stayed home together.

We listened to music, watched some dvd's and took good naps. I was starting dinner when Bri called and asked if I wanted to pick up Chinese and bring it out to the lake. So I put dinner on hold until today and Nathan and I headed off to Dillons.

As we were driving along he told me,"The best thing about God is obeying you and Dad". Wow! where did that come from!? I replied, "yes it is. Mommy and Daddy obey God too and when we all obey everyone is so much happier aren't we?"

Then the conversation turned to our new homes in Heaven. "will we need to have sweepers to keep our heaven house clean?" "No I don't think there will dust in heaven." "Will God ever run out of food?" "No, heaven is perfect, there will always be more than enough food."

I love when the boys want to talk about God and heaven. It usually happens when we are having one on one time like yesterday with Nathan. or when I'm working out in the garden. One or another will come out and just start talking.

Sunday, July 4, 2010

Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Give Away

I just entered for a $140 gift basket from Graham's Gardens and you can too!

http://www.keeperofthehome.org/2010/06/1000th-post-party-giveaway-wholesome-family-skin-care-gift-basket-giveaway-140-value.html

Monday, June 21, 2010

Father's Day

I am so blessed to have Brian! He is the absolute best Dad for our sons! Yesterday he took them to a friends house to go horseback riding. The boys were beside themselves with excitement!





The baby horse is only 1 month old!

Monday, June 14, 2010

Big Gig

On Saturday we had a day long rental with all but 2 of our boats. We were part of a company picnic at Augusta Lake.



We set up around 9:30 and left at 5:30.




Brian acted as life guard/chaperon for most of the time. Patrolling the water in his Hobie.



It was a long day but everyone had a good time and the company was so nice to let the boys join the other kids playing on the inflatables,riding the barrel train and eating snow cones.




They also shared their wonderful bbq lunch with our family. All said we probably had around 50+ people in and out of the boats. They kept us hopping at times, but we had a great time and are thankful for the opportunity.


Leat

Monday, June 7, 2010

Tuesday, June 1, 2010

First Loaf

Here is my first loaf of sour dough bread!

I was thrilled with how it turned out. Wonderfully tangy,but not overpowering. It does take some planning because of the two really long risings, but totally worth it!



I made sour dough pancakes this morning, and the family thinks they are the best yet. Looking forward to baking more with sour dough!

Sunday, May 30, 2010

No Video When You Want It

Yesterday we spent most of the day at the lake getting customers in and out of kayaks. In between times we swam and just enjoyed being there. At the end of the day as we were getting ready to load the last boats to come home, a man had his truck on the boat ramp getting ready to pull his boat out of the water.

All of a sudden, the truck starts backing into the water! Everything in his truck bed started floating around. I ran tot he office and had the gal call the caretaker. Meanwhile the truck went completely under. The guy and his dog were in the cab. Everyone was yelling for him to get out. Thankfully his windows were down and he just slid out. Then his dog went out the other window. Cheers could be heard all over the lake.

So scary watching it all just a few feet away and not being able to do anything! Another guy came up and had him hook a heavy chain and towed his truck out of the water. Several police showed up. Not much they could do. We don't know if the truck is repairable or not. Just grateful he is alive and fine. It cold have been a very tragic situation.

Friday, May 28, 2010

Friday

It is Friday evening and I am beat

No exact reason,just maybe the heat

Busy weekend starts this evening

Renting boats coming and leaving

As you see, I'm not too good with rhyme

So I'll sign off until next time


Leat

Thursday, May 27, 2010

God is SO Amazing!

I think I'll temporarily change the next few blog titles to Leat's Natural Adventures.

Yesterday I finally got up the courage to start some sour dough starter! I have been intimidated just by the thought of it.

Why? Because it is a commitment. I need to feed it twice a day. Well, my kids eat 3+ times so I guess I can handle two.

What if it doesn't take, all that flour wasted!
I wasn't sure after the initial start. But can already tell it will work! Big difference from last night to this morning!



And really the amount of flour at each feeding isn't as much as I thought it would be. It really pays to research and get the facts before passing judgement. It only takes 6 Tablespoons of ground whole wheat flour and 4 Tablespoons of water.

I am using the instructions from here: http://networkedblogs.com/3T1TC

After 4 days of diligently feeding and it doubling each time I will be ready to bake my first loaf!

The amazing part to me is that it is just flour and water. The yeast is just floating around in the air and doing it's thang in my jar! I won't have to buy $4 jars of store yeast as often! More $ to put towards fruit and other healthy snacks my hollow legged boys can't get enough of.

God is truly SO Amazing!

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

My day condensed:

Breakfast for the family eggs and toast.

Math with Jacob

Weed in the garden

Read Bible with the boys

Mexican for dinner

Luke mowing

searching craigslist for Bri.

Good night.

Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Switching Gears

I have become one of those bloggers who doesn't blog often enough. So I decided to switch gears for a bit and turn this blog into a daily diary of sorts. I'll just be posting at the end of each day what I ate, did, and maybe thought that day. Basically, I'll be rambling. Just to warn ya!

This morning I got up and made pancakes for breakfast. I didn't have to pack Brian lunch because he is in training for the next three days and they provide it for him. Nice to have a short break. Although I am grateful to be able to pack a lunch for him. Anyways, I am trying to switch our family over to real maple syrup instead of the cheap HFCS stuff. I get the least expensive I can find at the store, which right now is $6.24 for 12+ oz. Anyway, less is more with the real thing!

I got my whole Bible reading in this morning. Then rode 5 laps on my bike.

The boys spent a lot of time picking mulberries today. So I tried my hand at jam making. I got 5 1/2 pints put up. Not sure how thick it will be. If not jam, we have some tasty syrup!

Dinner is chicken broccoli rice casserole.

Leat

Saturday, May 15, 2010

Alabama Judge

This an e-mail sent to me. My husband was in Alabama during this time. Almost three weeks during the month of August 2003.

This is truly sad for a Christian based country.


Alabama Judge

Some of you may be wondering what Judge Roy Moore has been doing since he was removed from the bench for refusing to
remove the Ten Commandments from his courtroom wall. Please read the poem he wrote.

The following is a poem written by Judge Roy Moore from Alabama. Judge Moore was sued by the ACLU for displaying the
Ten Commandments in his courtroom foyer. He has been stripped of his judgeship and now they are trying to strip his right to practice law in Alabama! The judge's poem sums it up quite well.


America the beautiful,
or so you used to be.
Land of the Pilgrims' pride;
I'm glad they'll never see.

Babies piled in dumpsters,
Abortion on demand,
Oh, sweet land of liberty;
your house is on the sand.

Our children wander aimlessly
poisoned by cocaine
choosing to indulge their lusts,
when God has said abstain

From sea to shining sea,
our Nation turns away
From the teaching of God's love
and a need to always pray

We've kept God in our temples,
how callous we have grown.
When earth is but His footstool,
and Heaven is His throne.


We've voted in a government
that's rotting at the core,
Appointing Godless Judges
who throw reason out the door,


Too soft to place a killer
in a well deserved tomb,
But brave enough to kill a baby
before he leaves the womb.

You think that God's not angry,
that our land's a moral slum ?
How much longer will He wait
before His judgment comes ?

How are we to face our God,
from Whom we cannot hide ?
What then is left for us to do,
but stem this evil tide ?

If we who are His children,
will humbly turn and pray;
Seek His holy face
and mend our evil way:

Then God will hear from Heaven;
and forgive us of our sins,
He'll heal our sickly land
and those who live within....

But, America the Beautiful,
If you don't - then you will see,
A sad but Holy God
withdraw His hand from Thee.

~~Judge Roy Moore~~





This says it all. May we all offer our prayers for Judge Moore to be blessed and for America to wake up and realize what we need to do to keep OUR America the Beautiful.




IN GOD WE TRUST!

Wednesday, May 12, 2010

Isaiah 28:10

For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept;line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little.

I had always thought of this verse as just being for raising kids. But really it can be applied to so many things.

Scripture memory

Math & other school work

Running

Pretty much anything you can think of.

Everything has to start at the beginning and slowly build.

I'm finding most things cannot be rushed. I can't skip a day, or week, or month and expect to just pick up where I was before.

Consistency seems to be the key to everything. I'm the first to admit to being the queen of slacking and procrastination. This verse has knocked me up side the head (in a good way).

I need to just keep chipping away in all I do and want to do.

The kids won't just magically become obedient. They won't magically learn to read or memorize scripture and math facts.

This body won't just magically become fit and trim.

Line upon line, precept upon precept.


Leat

Saturday, May 1, 2010

Brooks Bridge



Brian and the boys built a railroad tie bridge down at the pond field over the ditch.