Mistletoe-ing

As we get nearer to Christmas, Brandon is already crazy about listening to Christmas music.  All. The. Time.

So this afternoon we were in the car, and he hears the following lyrics:

It's the most wonderful time of the year
There'll be much mistletoe-ing
And hearts will be glowing
When loved ones are near...

And he asks, "Mom, what's mistletoe-ing?"

I explained about the old tradition of kissing under the mistletoe, and he exclaims, "Yuck! I don't ever want to go mistletoe-ing!"

Family Fun Day

Today (a gloomy November Saturday) is turning out to be a really fun day together!  It started out with me and Brandon having a "date."  First we enjoyed eggs and bacon at Perkins.  Then we went to the new Menards near us, where we were enchanted by the beautifully lighted Christmas trees and festive décor... and our experience was only enhanced by the lovely piano-playing of a grandmotherly-type woman at a grand piano.  Brandon spotted a 3' lighted Christmas tree for only $10 and imagined how cool it would look in his bedroom... so he decided to purchase it!

 

After we returned home and Brandon set up his Christmas tree, all four of us headed out to Kohl's for some shoe shopping.  That trip was, perhaps, a little less pleasant, as there was some trouble with following directions on the little people's part...  But we survived. :)  And voila... shoes a plenty... Tony Hawks for Brandon, New Balance for Mom, and Sketchers for Ryan.

 



On the docket for this afternoon: Trouble and Sorry.  (Hmmm... sounds like a rough afternoon, doesn't it?  Perhaps I should specify that I'm referring to the board games... ha!)

Parenting Tips

So thankful for Jim and Lynne Jackson at Connected Families!!  They give great parenting tips!

Learning (and re-learning)

Another aspect I love about homeschooling is learning things with my son (or, re-learning things that I probably already learned at some point).  I suppose I had little interest in subjects like science or history when I was young... perhaps just not enough life experience or understanding of the world around me to put it into perspective.......

So here's today's experimental science project: How far are the planets from the sun?

As a kid I was like, "Oh. Ok."  (ho hum)  As an adult, I'm like, "WOW! Can you believe that???  Look how far Neptune is from the sun!!!!!!!!"

Follow Jesus

"My fear is that there are a lot of people in the Church following the rules, but not really following Jesus."

"I think that most people in most churches think that they're following Jesus—and it's well intentioned—but the reality is, they have invited Jesus to follow them. And that's a whole different thing."

"The Gospel cost [us] nothing, but it demands everything. Too often we want what God is offering, but we don't want to give anything up in return. And that's where we miss out. I'm afraid that some people feel like, 'Well, if I don't hold out a little bit, I'm going to miss out on what life may have to offer.'  But the reality is, when you hold out on God you're missing out on everything that He wants to do in you and through you."

~ Mark Batterson on Focus on the Family
(broadcast on 10/15/13)

 

The Selfie

The other day, Ryan was sitting at the computer watching Blues Clues on Amazon Prime.  Apparently he reached into the desk drawer and was tinkering around with the camera... as indicated by the evidence...

 

When asked about the last picture, he declared, "That's my tonsils!"  LOL :)

Cute and cuddly

My sweet boy and his monkey!

 

 

By the way, he named his monkey Roy. :)