I am Thankful for...

Today I am thankful for my wonderful church. I'm so grateful for the complete gospel in my life and for the direction and guidance it gives me and my family.  Where would I be without my Savior as my guide?!?  I'm eternally grateful for His atonement!!

I am Thankful for...

Today, I am thankful for the opportunity that me and my kids have to serve those around us. Each Tuesday, we go to the church building to help prepare baby wipes or tie quilts. Hannah is getting to be quite the little quilter!  And today, Gabe even did some tying, which he really liked.

I'm so grateful that my kids are with me during the day and that I can guide their education...not just "facts" but how to live their lives and become the best person they can!!

My wonderful kiddoes  :)

My little Gabers learning how to serve others!

Beautiful Hannah who was born with a heart created to serve others. She was born with the kindest and tenderest heart I know!

I am Thankful for...

Today I am thankful for my wonderful Hannah. Sunday mornings can be so stressful but this morning, Hannah made sure to do all the things I hadn't gotten to yet and....we were on time to church!! I was so happy when I realized she was putting together the diaper bag and then again when she was getting the girls into their car seats! She helped Gabe with his shoes and gathered all of our scriptures!!

What would I do without her?!?  She's my miracle!!!

I am Thankful for...

Today I am so excited and grateful for the "Lakeshore Learning" store that's only about 25mins away!!  Since there's only one store in the entire state of Washington, I'm so thrilled to have it so close. I LOVE that store!!!  I found the website while I back vacationing in Houston and I thought I was in heaven BUT when I found out the store was nearby...I knew I was in heaven!! ;) 

Anyway, it's a wonderful store for educational toys/items. Check it out if you're interested!!

www.lakeshorelearning.com

I am Thankful for....

Today I am thankful for modern medicine. I love the fact that we have the ability to see issues within our bodies that not too many years ago would have gone unnoticed and ended up badly. Ellie's kidneys are still not 100% but the fact that we can watch them and fix them if needed, is a complete miracle!!!

"I Was Only Eating Two a Day!!!"

Yes, I am now one of them!

I am now one of the MEAN parents that told their kids that they had eaten all of their Halloween candy!

Jimmy Kimmel had asked parents to do this and showed the results on his show. He said he was surprised at all the crying.

I have to admit, I didn't think my kids would cry BUT I was curious how they would react so....I just had to find out!

Here's Jimmy Kimmel's clip...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_YQpbzQ6gzs

Here's my clip...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gbY_JIzWDuQ&feature=youtu.be


I'm so grateful that my kids are so forgiving!! They were such good sports about it all :)

I do want to say that I was as a doctor's appointment with Ellie all morning so I am not personally responsible for the appearance of my house or the fact that my kids were still in their pjs at 11am....not that I'm throwing Greg under the bus or anything!!  ;)

I love you Greg!!  <3

Lovin' the Groove!

It's been almost exactly a year since I began homeschooling my kids. I year-and-a-half ago, I never would have assumed I'd be where I am today. Not for the lack of "wanting" to homeschool (because I've thought about it MANY MANY times) but for the amount of "stuff" going on in my life.

When I began homeschooling, our family had just moved to the Seattle area, where we had no friends nor family. I had just given birth to our twinners, who were 4 months old. Our lives were far from "the normal" because everything was new!! But I had a relentless pull, tugging on my heart (the Spirit) to make the change...and I'm so very grateful I did!

Right now, I am finding our little family in a wonderful groove. Things seem to be just coasting along. The kids really enjoy "learning time" and I really enjoy mentoring them on different subjects.

At first, I was really stressed about doing things "right" and now I realize that "right" is different for every home....especially in a TJEd home.  I had to simply relax, stop listening to ignorant people, and start believing that, as a mom, I'm inherently the best person to educate my children...do I not know them better and anyone else?!?

I'm finding so much joy in turning our home into a place of constant learning and I'm absolutely addicted to buying good books and adding educational items to our "Learners Closet"!!  This Christmas may be the best one ever because of all the fun items I've purchased that I can't wait to use with the children!!

It's completely AMAZING how fun it is to learn when you're not being forced to... and when you're in an environment that is individualized and filled with the Spirit of God!

I'm so blessed to not only call myself the "Mother" of my four amazing children, but also their "Mentor"!!