Duck, Duck, Goose! And Nests!

Enjoying the nice weather while we can! Out feeding the ducks and geese and running wild!

The kids love to make nests anyway so it was helpful during our Nest Unit.

Gathering supplies for making a nest.

Sneaking up on a bug.

A little blue bird.

Surfs up, dude. These little cut-outs look like they're surfing when you blow on them across the floor.

Matilda was helping make our bird's nests.

These were rich, chocolatey and peanut buttery.  Next time we'll make smaller nests.

Out on a little nature walk.

Or maybe it was a nature run or a nature skip.

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"No matter which educational choice you make; your children will miss out on things other children don’t, and they’ll experience things other children won’t. There’s no shame in this, no need for guilt, no need for justification. Contentment and confidence in your decision doesn’t come by comparing, but from believing that this is what God has called you to do."

From Growing Home.

Apples!

A week full of apples! Apple sauce, apple pie, apple crafts...apples!

Fun with marbles; apples are a similar shape to marbles...so close enough.

Graphing with apples.

Tree climbing!

Apple crafts.

Finished apple tree.

This is what Abe likes to do...

...and this...

Doesn't this just say, "fall?!"

Mmmmm! Full of love.

Birthday Party!

Birthday party bash was a success thanks to family and friends!

We got a new top for Abe since our last one broke; he missed it.

The kids were in great company and also got some neat gifts! 

My lemon blueberry cake was delicious! We also had a chocolate tuxedo cake because one needs a touch of chocolate. Needs, that's right, I said needs.

Not bad, eh?

Let's Go Fly A Kite!

Out with friends playing in a little wooded area, making poster board sized paper airplanes and flying kites! We always have a good time with our nature friends.

Tavin just loves to collect sticks!

Our little sprite, Matilda.

Once those dollar store kites got up in the air they stayed up rather well! Here are a couple of short videos here and here.

We made alphabet letter pancakes just for you to see, Nana!

Matilda started eating her "M" before I could get a photo! 

Abe's "A" was a blob of an "A" but he didn't seem to mind.

Building something with the cuisenaire rods.

Playing some Logik Street.

Abe takes his Tea Time very seriously.

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Great song and beautiful video to go with it, Simple Gifts.
Simple Gifts 

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 “Let no exhausted mother, with her hands full of home and children, bruise her soul with the conviction either that she has no way of serving Christ in this way or that she is somehow prevented by her children and her home from doing something worthwhile.

 Rather, that is the very sphere of her labor. Her mission field is at her feet (and quite possibly under them and in her arms and on her back and currently drawing something indelible on something irreplaceable).

 Indeed, for her to feel falsely guilty about what she is not doing or to transfer that guilt to her children in resentment and bitterness will only prevent the good that she is called to do as a minister to her children.

Consider some of the earlier examples of Augustine, Spurgeon, and Paton, to name but three. We tend to look at those men and think that they are the evangelists, but each of them was first evangelized by his own parents."

  -Walker, Jeremy. The Brokenhearted Evangelist
(From A Wise Woman Builds Her Home) 

Our children are our something worthwhile!