121. creativity, beauty, and wonder
122. this quote from our pastor tonight: "the repetition of finding wonder in God through prayer" (a la Daniel's thrice-daily Jewish prayer)
123. hope
124. opportunities to encourage others even while I'm inside these four walls
125. the many professionals in our lives everyday, even while we're at home
126. new flavor - Dalgona Coffee (although the syrup is the same as a glaze in a recipe from my childhood ~ currant crescents)
127. bright sunshine, blue skies, pleasant temps
128. the beauty of the lengthening rays at sunset
129. the incredible imagination of a 6 year old boy!
130. the beauty of a tulip bouquet on my kitchen counter (part of my online grocery order!)
Thursday, April 30, 2020
Wednesday, April 29, 2020
Putting sounds & words together
I spent 20 years of my life trying to put Japanese sounds and words together to sound like a native speaker.
And 12 of those 20 years in-country helping Japanese people put English sounds and words together to sound like a native speaker.
For 6 years I have been in constant communication with speech & language pathologists, as they have helped Little Guy hear, practice, and use sounds and words.
Now I am in frequent communication with Little Miss's speech & language pathologist.
My mind is constantly in LANGUAGE MODE. And I love it!
Yesterday I put a hair clip in LM's hair. Every time she talked about it, it came out "bear clip," which reminded her of her bear, so she took the "bear clip" out of her hair and put it on her bear. :)
This morning after breakfast, she kept asking, "Where is my akjd;lakgh;algkh?" All I could get were the vowels, so I guessed at the consonants and put together a word, and asked, "Where is your breakfast?" No, that's not what she was asking. She kept trying. Finally, she paused to think about it, and then asked, "Where is my big chewy?" Aha!! Her chewy necklace! Great job, LM, in compensating!!
And 12 of those 20 years in-country helping Japanese people put English sounds and words together to sound like a native speaker.
For 6 years I have been in constant communication with speech & language pathologists, as they have helped Little Guy hear, practice, and use sounds and words.
Now I am in frequent communication with Little Miss's speech & language pathologist.
My mind is constantly in LANGUAGE MODE. And I love it!
Yesterday I put a hair clip in LM's hair. Every time she talked about it, it came out "bear clip," which reminded her of her bear, so she took the "bear clip" out of her hair and put it on her bear. :)
This morning after breakfast, she kept asking, "Where is my akjd;lakgh;algkh?" All I could get were the vowels, so I guessed at the consonants and put together a word, and asked, "Where is your breakfast?" No, that's not what she was asking. She kept trying. Finally, she paused to think about it, and then asked, "Where is my big chewy?" Aha!! Her chewy necklace! Great job, LM, in compensating!!
Saturday, April 25, 2020
Our days
We made it until 1 PM today without any screen time for the children! (And even then it was only a YouTube of phonics readers, providing Little Miss with auditory bombardment of sounds she's working on in speech therapy.)
In "news to look forward to" Chicken Salad Chick is opening near us this year!
Lunch today for the children (because apparently I've become a short order cook) is a simple recipe I learned from a gap-year housemate years ago. Layer bread slices in casserole dish. Layer cheese. Top with more bread. Pour a mixture of milk and eggs over that. Bake.
Amazon pantry continues to fill our pantry. As Jim says, "Lots of snacks." Yes, desperate times call for desperate measures. Except! I ordered two boxes of gluten-free cookies ... and didn't realize until they arrived that they have buckwheat (which I cannot tolerate) in them. :(
In my last Walmart online order, I purchased two 8-count watercolor sets. :) And, Little Guy needed one in his Zoom class one day. Good thing I added that to our arts & crafts inventory.
We are zooming through books ... Here's a Penny, Penny & Peter (and we have some of the Betsy books by the same author ready to go), the Grandma's Attic series (middle of book 3 so far), and A-Z Mysteries (ready for H). The A-Z Mysteries have been a combination of a few I had on hand from used stores, some audio downloads from the library, and some e-book downloads from the library). Thankful for technology!
We went to town for my allergy shots one day this week (Thursday I think) and to drive-through Chick-fil-A and for a contact-free pickup of Vitamin D drops (due to my choking on the pills). :( Anyway, it was surreal to drive. The children delighted in seeing things out the windows. And, Little Miss fell asleep in the van. She even remained asleep when I transferred her inside to my lap, where we cuddled in the recliner for awhile. Precious memories of a stage that will soon be gone forever.
Facebook memories tell me that ten years ago today was my "Tea Party" in Japan, a very special farewell to many friends. I'm thankful for the pictures I have of that day, and I can NOT believe it has been 10 years. Some of them I will see in heaven. Thinking of the others breaks my heart.
In "news to look forward to" Chicken Salad Chick is opening near us this year!
Lunch today for the children (because apparently I've become a short order cook) is a simple recipe I learned from a gap-year housemate years ago. Layer bread slices in casserole dish. Layer cheese. Top with more bread. Pour a mixture of milk and eggs over that. Bake.
Amazon pantry continues to fill our pantry. As Jim says, "Lots of snacks." Yes, desperate times call for desperate measures. Except! I ordered two boxes of gluten-free cookies ... and didn't realize until they arrived that they have buckwheat (which I cannot tolerate) in them. :(
In my last Walmart online order, I purchased two 8-count watercolor sets. :) And, Little Guy needed one in his Zoom class one day. Good thing I added that to our arts & crafts inventory.
We are zooming through books ... Here's a Penny, Penny & Peter (and we have some of the Betsy books by the same author ready to go), the Grandma's Attic series (middle of book 3 so far), and A-Z Mysteries (ready for H). The A-Z Mysteries have been a combination of a few I had on hand from used stores, some audio downloads from the library, and some e-book downloads from the library). Thankful for technology!
We went to town for my allergy shots one day this week (Thursday I think) and to drive-through Chick-fil-A and for a contact-free pickup of Vitamin D drops (due to my choking on the pills). :( Anyway, it was surreal to drive. The children delighted in seeing things out the windows. And, Little Miss fell asleep in the van. She even remained asleep when I transferred her inside to my lap, where we cuddled in the recliner for awhile. Precious memories of a stage that will soon be gone forever.
Facebook memories tell me that ten years ago today was my "Tea Party" in Japan, a very special farewell to many friends. I'm thankful for the pictures I have of that day, and I can NOT believe it has been 10 years. Some of them I will see in heaven. Thinking of the others breaks my heart.
Thursday, April 23, 2020
Author Highlight
Last night, Little Guy and I started reading, "Little Talks About God & You." I'm not sure where I found it, probably the really inexpensive used bookstore in the city where his school is.
I fell in love with it immediately, and we had one of the best conversations we've ever had.
V. Gilbert Beers has been around since I was a little girl (and maybe longer!). One of my aunts and uncles gave me the book, "The Magic Merry-go-round" when I was young. A year or so ago, when some neighbors were downsizing, they offered us (and I gladly accepted) the 7-book series that that is a part of.
A few years ago at Goodwill I found the Muffin Family Picture Bible series, also by Beers, which I also remember from childhood, though I think I knew it from a friend's home and not ours.
His "One Year Bible for Children" is one of our favorites (found by searching the Sonlight Curriculum website in order to find good books)!
I would be content if our only "Jesus books" on our children's bookshelf were by Beers, Kenneth Taylor, Carine Mackenzie, and Ella K. Lindvall.
Lindvall's Read-aloud Bible Stories series is the BEST! And our 6 year old still loves it (6 years in!).
I grew up on Kenneth Taylor's "The Bible in Pictures for Little Eyes," and have been delighted to find that he has several other books (which are seemingly newer, or at least have more modern pictures)!
I was introduced to Carine Mackenzie when a friend sent a baby gift for LG: "Little Hands Learning to Pray." I have fallen in love with the publisher and Carine's (and her daughter Catherine's) books.
What are your classic children's books that teach and reinforce the Word of God?
I fell in love with it immediately, and we had one of the best conversations we've ever had.
V. Gilbert Beers has been around since I was a little girl (and maybe longer!). One of my aunts and uncles gave me the book, "The Magic Merry-go-round" when I was young. A year or so ago, when some neighbors were downsizing, they offered us (and I gladly accepted) the 7-book series that that is a part of.
A few years ago at Goodwill I found the Muffin Family Picture Bible series, also by Beers, which I also remember from childhood, though I think I knew it from a friend's home and not ours.
His "One Year Bible for Children" is one of our favorites (found by searching the Sonlight Curriculum website in order to find good books)!
I would be content if our only "Jesus books" on our children's bookshelf were by Beers, Kenneth Taylor, Carine Mackenzie, and Ella K. Lindvall.
Lindvall's Read-aloud Bible Stories series is the BEST! And our 6 year old still loves it (6 years in!).
I grew up on Kenneth Taylor's "The Bible in Pictures for Little Eyes," and have been delighted to find that he has several other books (which are seemingly newer, or at least have more modern pictures)!
I was introduced to Carine Mackenzie when a friend sent a baby gift for LG: "Little Hands Learning to Pray." I have fallen in love with the publisher and Carine's (and her daughter Catherine's) books.
What are your classic children's books that teach and reinforce the Word of God?
Wednesday, April 22, 2020
Quarantine Cuisine
So, what have you been cooking? (For those 450 dinners you've cooked in the past month!)
We've enjoyed:
Garden Salmon Loaf
Baked Oatmeal (this was for breakfast)
Lasagna (for Easter)
Sausage quiche (hashbrown crust)
Broccoli Souffle
Homemade cranberry sauce
Hamburgers
Chicken salad
Homemade pizza (a long way to go to perfect that!)
Corndog Mini Muffins
Peanut Butter & Jelly Cookies (pb thumbprint cookies)
Empty Tomb Cake
Chocolate Chip Cookies
Birthday cake (a box mix) :)
Apparently we need to find a few healthier options. :)
We've enjoyed:
Garden Salmon Loaf
Baked Oatmeal (this was for breakfast)
Lasagna (for Easter)
Sausage quiche (hashbrown crust)
Broccoli Souffle
Homemade cranberry sauce
Hamburgers
Chicken salad
Homemade pizza (a long way to go to perfect that!)
Corndog Mini Muffins
Peanut Butter & Jelly Cookies (pb thumbprint cookies)
Empty Tomb Cake
Chocolate Chip Cookies
Birthday cake (a box mix) :)
Apparently we need to find a few healthier options. :)
Monday, April 20, 2020
Insane
Insane ... the number of online meetings/ appointments/ classes we have this week!
Most of these would have happened anyway, and would have taken a lot more time to get to (& get dressed for!), arrange childcare, etc.
But I'm still on the learning curve of figuring out how to do them from home:
Making sure the necessary device is charged, that all of Little Guy's supplies are ready (iPad stand, chair with booster seat, Roger pen, paper, pencil, markers - or whatever was requested for that particular class), correct headphones ready if I need them for a meeting, children fed & hydrated and DVD on or RightNow Media connected to TV before I sign on, cooking & dishwashing & laundry done OUTSIDE of LG's class times, etc.
I have so many alarms set on my phone for all of these. Haha!
That is 32 Zoom sessions this week in addition to ... online grocery pickup, allergy shots, and IVIG.
Not to mention ... cooking 785 meals a week and dispensing 3,469 snacks. Ha!
Most of these would have happened anyway, and would have taken a lot more time to get to (& get dressed for!), arrange childcare, etc.
But I'm still on the learning curve of figuring out how to do them from home:
Making sure the necessary device is charged, that all of Little Guy's supplies are ready (iPad stand, chair with booster seat, Roger pen, paper, pencil, markers - or whatever was requested for that particular class), correct headphones ready if I need them for a meeting, children fed & hydrated and DVD on or RightNow Media connected to TV before I sign on, cooking & dishwashing & laundry done OUTSIDE of LG's class times, etc.
I have so many alarms set on my phone for all of these. Haha!
- Sunday School
- worship
- Monday - Friday 8 AM & 7 PM Facebook live with our pastor (10)
- M-F individual academics for Little Guy (5)
- M-F group academics for LG (5)
- T-Th individual speech therapy for LG (3)
- F individual speech therapy for Little Miss
- small group
- family zoom chat
- telehealth appointment
- post-adoptive counselor appointment
- women's ministry brunch (virtual), and
- the Getty Family Hymn Sing ...
That is 32 Zoom sessions this week in addition to ... online grocery pickup, allergy shots, and IVIG.
Not to mention ... cooking 785 meals a week and dispensing 3,469 snacks. Ha!
Saturday, April 18, 2020
Mary on Horseback
I
spied five books on Facebook this week being sold as a lot by a homeschooling
mom in the next town. Five brand new books they received as gifts but already
own. Jim put $5 under her porch mat and brought home the bag of books.
I am sure the others are good, too (one is a Newberry Honor Book), but I was most interested in “Mary on Horseback.”
I grew up hearing about Mary Breckinridge, because my mom heard her speak while in nursing school, and the week my parents met (at her uncle's Bible camp), she asked her uncle if my dad would take her to see Mary Breckenridge’s place on Saturday.
It is a thin book, only about 50 pages, but the chapter I read first (about a 19-year-old nurse from Glasgow who answered a newspaper ad, sailed the Atlantic, and took the train to the last stop, and had never ridden a horse) was fascinating.
When libraries open, you might find it interesting.
And that’s your daily book recommendation :)
I am sure the others are good, too (one is a Newberry Honor Book), but I was most interested in “Mary on Horseback.”
I grew up hearing about Mary Breckinridge, because my mom heard her speak while in nursing school, and the week my parents met (at her uncle's Bible camp), she asked her uncle if my dad would take her to see Mary Breckenridge’s place on Saturday.
It is a thin book, only about 50 pages, but the chapter I read first (about a 19-year-old nurse from Glasgow who answered a newspaper ad, sailed the Atlantic, and took the train to the last stop, and had never ridden a horse) was fascinating.
When libraries open, you might find it interesting.
And that’s your daily book recommendation :)
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