Josiah Loves Solids!

Among other exciting world events this past week, Josiah started eating solid foods! I was in no rush to start feeding Josiah solids for several reasons.

1. I don't mind changing the purely-breastfed-baby diapers at all, but the solid-eating-variety really stinks!
2. Introducing solids takes time--time to prepare the food and time to spoon-feed it to the baby. Time is something that's hard to come by these days!
3. I really want to hold on to this final baby-stage as long as possible!  Seriously, why does this little guy have to grow up?

My girls, on the other hand, were eager for Josiah to start eating "real food". So, I finally relinquished my hold on babyhood this past week.  I really expected that Josiah wouldn't like solids at all.  Boy, was I wrong!  This kid loves to eat and he's a pretty adorable spectacle!

  

 

A Backyard We Can Enjoy!

I really liked having a backyard consisting of mounds of dirt for a little while. The relationship turned sour, however, the moment Matthew and Jonathan began to partake of said dirt as a delicacy. Because we are frugally-minded, or, to put it more bluntly, cheap, we really wanted to landscape the backyard ourselves. To help us generate some ideas, though, we had a few companies come out and give us estimates, which, by the way, are FREE! I was astounded at the price tag on a backyard the size of a postage stamp: $20,000! Seriously??? That was all the gusto we needed to plunge head-first into the do-it-yourself-landscaping-project! Now that the backyard project is completed, I kind of understand why they wanted to charge so much. This project was so much more involved than I ever imagined it to be: 9 cubic yards of road base, 2 cubic yards of sand, 6 cubic yards of top soil, 120 retaining wall blocks, 650 square feet of pavers.  That's a lot of manual labor with only one wheelbarrow and two shovels.  We went through five pairs of work gloves combined and three cases of gatorade.  David made new friends at Home Depot's tool rental shop and the local dump (we hauled out FIVE loads of dirt from the backyard).

I am so thankful for my renaissance of a man husband, David.  He worked so hard designing the yard, researching how to build retaining walls and lay pavers, and executing the plan, which, you can see from the pictures below, required a LOT of manual labor and painstaking attention to detail.  In addition to one week of vacation, he dedicated mornings, evenings, and weekends to this project.  The backyard turned out beautifully because of him.

Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men.  Colossians 3:23

This is a picture of the pavers and retaining wall blocks.

A big pile of road base.

Sand and topsoil.

This is a picture of the retaining wall on the left side of the patio.  We are using each of these beds for vegetables.

This is a picture of the retaining wall in the middle of the patio.

This is a picture of the retaining wall on the right side of the patio.

This is a picture of one the in-ground planters between the retaining walls.  Somehow, I forgot to take a picture of the other one.  We opted to purchase all of the plants from a local nursery that only sells plants native to this region of California.

This is a picture of the in-ground planter and pavers next to the house and opposite the retaining walls.

David laid pavers all along the side of the house and planted citrus trees next to the wall.

This is the other side of the house where we planted grapes and lemonade berry.

Mobley Art

I really have zero creative genes in my body, so art has never been a source of enjoyment for me. When I was a kid, we used to do art projects in class and then the teacher would hang everyone's creation, no matter what it looked like, up on the wall. Once, a classmate asked me which one was mine, but I refused to tell him because mine was seriously so bad. Then, he pointed to one and said, "Well, it can't be as bad as that one!" Embarrassed, I admitted, "Ummm...that one is mine." Understandably, I feel so ill-equipped to educate my children in anything artistic, but I also refuse to pay for art lessons.  I also refuse to place them in a classroom setting to fumble around on their own like me, for that certainly did nothing for me but to turn me off of art entirely. This year, however, I used some of our instructional funds to purchase a DVD-based art curriculum, Atelier Art. Now, every Thursday afternoon, we sit at the school table and watch an art lesson on the computer, pausing as necessary to keep up with the instructor. Much to my surprise, what was once drudgery is now a delight!  It is so much fun learning and growing alongside my children!

We learned about different lines.

We mixed primary colors to make secondary colors.

This was a lesson in textures.  We each made an animal with an oval-shaped piece of felt.

This past week, we explored patterns drew clowns.

The 2013-14 School Year

A lot of people have been asking what materials we are using for school this year.  For reporting purposes, our schoolwork is divided into six disciplines: English, Math, Science, History, Life Skills, and Special Interest. Below is what we are using for each child for each discipline.

Mary--2nd grade
English:

• Spell to Write and Read (Fall)
• Vocabulary from Classical Roots 4 (Spring)
• Writing with Ease Level 2
• First Language Lessons for the Well-Trained Mind Level 3 
• McCall Crabbs Test Lessons in Reading
• Handwriting Without Tears Cursive Handwriting

Math: Saxon Intermediate 4

History: Story of the World Volume 3: Early Modern Times

Science: Exploring Creation with Zoology 3: Land Animals

Special Interest:

• English from the Roots Up Volume II
• Draw Write Now Books 2 and 3
• Reformation Heroes
• Maps Charts Graphs Book B
• Critical Thinking Level D
• Atelier Art Level 1

Maggie--Kindergarten

English:

• Spell to Write and Read
• Handwriting without Tears Letters and Numbers for Me

Math: Saxon 1

History: Story of the World Volume 3: Early Modern Times

Science: Exploring Creation with Zoology 3: Land Animals

Special Interest:

• Draw Write Now Books 2 and 3
• Reformation Heroes
• Maps Charts Graphs Book A
• Critical Thinking Level A
• Atelier Art Level 1

Additionally, the girls are taking a physical fitness class that meets once a week (on Thursdays) in Santa Ana.  There is a Target close-by, so I usually take the three boys shopping while the girls are in class.  I am enjoying being able to leisurely shop the clearance at Target.  So far, I've found a new towel for Mary, a clock for the boys' room, super-soakers to go around, items for our next car trip, butterfly nets, and a parachute!  Yep, before long, David is definitely going to have to pull on the reins!

The girls also practice their computer skills by doing math and reading lessons at i-Ready.com.  Maggie also practices math on IXL.

Additionally, we spend quite a bit of time reading books together.  This year, I am taking a new approach to read-alouds and am reading the girls the books which correspond with Mary's writing lessons.

I know it sounds like an awful lot, but it's totally manageable and fun.  There is even still time left over for soccer, riding bikes and scooters, going for walks, flying kites, knitting and sewing, piano lessons, princess school, fencing and chores!

Mama's Bootcamp

Josiah sure is a cutey, but it has been a big struggle for me to lose those extra pounds I gained while pregnant with him.  Josiah is now six months and my most comfortable clothes are still either maternity or what I consider my "fat" clothes!  The primary reason it's been a struggle to get rid of the extra pudge is that it has been really challenging to figure out a way to fit exercise into my schedule with five children. I do get some exercise--I take the kids for a walk every day.  The girls ride their scooters; the twins ride in the double stroller; Josiah rides in the Ergo. Walking is good, but not enough for me. If I could get myself out of bed early in the morning, I would certainly be able to get a workout in, but this is really difficult because Josiah still wakes up to feed at least twice in the night. Plus, my kids are early birds, so I would have to be up and ready by 5am in order to work out and shower in time to wrangle the troops.  Another possibility would be in the evening after the kids go to bed.  But, by that time, I am really exhausted, and I fear that working out would only energize me and keep me from getting the rest I need to fulfill my mommy duties.  On Monday of this week, though, I got desperate enough and started to think outside the box.  I realized that, while I don't have a big block of time, I do have small pockets of time throughout the day that I could use to exercise. So, I googled Boot Camp Workout and found some exercises at Women's Health Magazine.  I am now doing each of the following exercises for 30 second intervals twice throughout the day.

Squats
Pushups
Bicycle Crunches
Jumping Jacks
Back Extensions
Walking Lunges
Squat Jumps
Close-Grip Pushups
High-Knees
Mountain Climbers

An added bonus is watching Mama exercise is really, really entertaining for the kids, especially the jumping jacks.  The kids like to join in, too: Jonathan sits on my back for back extensions and Josiah rides around with me for squats and lunges.

I am really trying to keep my focus on being fit for the glory of God rather than looking a certain way. My goal is to take care of the body God has given me so that I can continue to honor Him by serving my family and my church.  

"So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God."  1 Corinthians 10:31

Happy 5th Birthday, Maggie Moo!

This past Wednesday, Maggie turned five! It was a crazy, crazy week with the plague being passed from one person to the next, so poor Maggie didn't even get to pick what she wanted for breakfast or dinner:( Sweet Maggie didn't utter one complaint, though! We chose not to have a party with friends this year, so our family just celebrated this milestone at home. Now that she is a big five-year old, Maggie has been fastening her own seatbelt, can almost do a perfect somersault, and plans to begin to cut her own food!  Below are some pictures of Maggie with her gifts from loved ones!

A beautiful hat handmade by Mary.

A new princess dress-up from Aunt Alicia!

A new Hello Kitty shirt also rom Aunt Alicia!

A set of colorful dishes from Nana and Papa!

Eagerly awaiting Mrs. Sheryl's Chocolate Pie!  (By the way, in case you are wondering about the blanket sleeper, I think these girls have acclimated to Orange County.  If it gets below 75, it's COLD!)

A pink swim cap and goggles for the little fish from Gramps and Grams!

A Disney Princess towel and washcloth from Grandma Nancy.

A kick scooter like Mary's from Mama and Daddy.

My Bookshelf

We started school this past week, which means that we have a new daily schedule!  With this new schedule, I was able to build in some reading time for myself.  YIPPEE!  I found that Matthew and Jonathan go to sleep faster and sleep longer if I sit in their room until they fall asleep for their nap.  (Of course, I do have to remind them to be quiet, lie down, and close their eyes!)  So, now I sit in their room and read to myself while the girls are reading in the living room.  It's a good thing because I have a huge backlog on my bookshelf.  This is what I am hoping to read in the coming months during my reading time: