Conquerors Of Sherwood Forest

  We recently watched the movie Robin Hood ( with Errol Flynn. One of our favorites!), which has sparked a renewed interest in archery and sword fighting.

"Sir James" and "Lady Emily"

  At Samuel's request, Esther agreed to play that they were the "best archers in the world"!
They successfully conquered all the villains that were plaguing their fair forest, and rescued the peasants under the the reign of Prince John and Princess Adaily. :)

Tending to their faithful steeds :)

Paddles are good for correction and sword fighting!

  

       I have to admit, even I like to have a good duel with Samuel, as does Anna, although we're a bit nervous about getting hit. :)

Chores and Schoolwork

         Lately, Momma has been spending a lot of time creating a chore schedule. She's been using the books "Managers of Their Homes", and "Managers of Their Chores" by Steve and Teri Maxwell. We've been using little plastic pockets with different cards in them, so we know what to do next.

    When we complete a chore, that card can be placed in the back. We've been using them in the morning, and everyone likes them!
It's great for Momma, because she doesn't have to tell us what to do over and over again (or shouldn't have to anyway).
            Jacob is very proud of  his vacuuming the dining room after breakfast job, and Anna is relishing her new ability to cook in the kitchen (she's pretty good too!).

Samuel concentrating on  hand writing

 We've also been focusing on school work. Samuel learned to count to one-hundred last night with Daddy, and Lydia is a number whiz. :)

We Haven't Died

I know I haven't posted in a REALLY long time, but with the beginning of a new year, I decided to start posting more routinely!

      I love the starting a new year. It's a pleasure (or pain) to look back and see what you have (or in my case, haven't) accomplished, and have the chance to try again. Also, it's a good reminder of how fast time flies, and what little time we really have. 

                                    What are your goals for 2012? 

                                                             Mine are:


1.To blog regularly.
    Anna is going to start writing posts, too, so with a bit of planning, this one shouldn't be very hard.

2. To get into an early to bed/early to rise schedule (I'm more of a night owl, so this will be a challenge!). Hopefully, doing this would enable me to have more time in the morning for bible reading and prayer, and keep me from being so sleepy during the day. :)

 3. Learn how to drive. I've kind of been dragging my heels on this one, but I'm starting to see that there are benefits in being able to drive yourself, so I'll try.

4. and last, but definitely not least, grow in Godliness. This one is always on my list of Resolutions!

Birthdays and a Hospital Visit

As you can see from the post title, we've been busy.Life has moved at an accelerated pace the past couple of weeks, especially.

                          First things first,
                                         
                             Who Went to The Hospital?

               Daddy was in the hospital on the 23rd. The day before, he had had chest pains while at work. Because his blood pressure was soaring, the guys at work drove him to the hospital to be checked out. Momma was already out at the dentist, so she quickly drove over there to be with him. At first, they thought he had a heart attack, but not all of the symptoms he told them fit that. So that we wouldn't have to be alone so long, our grandparents came and stayed with us. The next day, Daddy got a heart cath done, and then they let him come home. He brought with him a relieved wife, a fruit basket from co-workers, and a sore back (from lying on a hospital bed so long). We're SO glad he's better now, and thankful that it wasn't a heart attack. Friends and family that offered support and encouragement were such a blessing as well. Thanks!
          
And......

                                                             The Birthdays          

       I turned sixteen on the 23rd. That's right. While Daddy was in the hospital. :(  It was still a pretty good day though, and I got a lot of sweet happy birthdays.  

     My grandparents bought me a cheesecake (one of my favorites!) on my real birthday, and, since we celebrated it on a different day, too, I got a Pea-Picking cake as well!

Sixteen

My pretty candles :)

                  














                          

Anna turned twelve on the 28th. It's hard to believe she's that old!

Opening a present

The cake

                                             



 
       She's loving, mischievous, and one of the most stubborn people I've ever met. I love you (Annie Bananie. Hehe)!

We're back!

 We arrived at home on Friday afternoon, and boy, were we ready to be back!

    Most of our trip was spent in the hotel room since the boys had to be at therapy two times a day, but we did get to go to a few fun places. One of the places we went was the Bluebell Ice cream factory! I would have taken pictures, but cameras weren't allowed. :(  Daddy accidentally brought back one of the tokens though, so here's a picture of it.



This token gets you ice cream after the tour.

 We went on a little tour of the place, and got to eat ice cream afterward. I got chocolate-chip cookie dough (Yum!). Anna, Esther, and Jacob got the crazy colors kind, which turned their tongues blue. Anna's lips and teeth also turned blue, and she had to go for her eye therapy checkup with them like that. We thought it was funny, but she wasn't so amused.  

              

    Momma and Daddy packed new games for us to use when we were in the hotel room, so we played a lot of Parcheesi and Apples to Apples. :)

    One day, Samuel and Momma caught a snail. Me, Anna and Esther decided to name her Nelly (We're just assuming it's a girl). Right now, Nelly is sleeping in a Rubbermaid container on top of a stack of hymnals. And if you think snails are cute, like I do, here is a video of her!

                                                    And another one!



                              

    On the third was Momma and Grandad's birthdays, so we went out to eat with them at supper. Grandad and Grandma Dean brought a delicious chocolate birthday cake for dessert, and we had a good time (If you're reading this, Thanks!).
       All in all, it was a good trip, but, like I said, it's good to be home.

Until next time,
             Sarah

P.S. I really did try to post, but I couldn't get Internet connection when I tried.

Guess What!

                     
        Early tomorrow morning we'll be leaving to go on a trip for twelve days. Today has been full of packing, washing clothes, cooking food, and wrapping things up.

      Anna, Esther, Samuel, Lydia, and Jacob got to go swimming in their normal clothes this afternoon, since the swimsuits are going with us. They all thought that was really cool. :)

        Although this will be a fun trip, we're really going for medical reasons. Samuel and Jacob both need sensory therapy, and I'm going for auditory problems.
              
                Well, I need to pack my bags!
     
          Sarah
P.S. I'm not sure if I'll be able to, but I'll try to post while we're gone.

My New Swimsuit

       At the beginning of summer, I discovered that my swimsuit from  Simply Modest Swimwear was stretched out and in need of replacement. After spending time painstakingly searching the internet, I found this:

Sorry the picture is so fuzzy. The humidity made my camera lens fog up.

                         

     I'm really pleased! The skort and shirt both came from Athleta, which was a bit of a surprise to me. I wasn't expecting to find something so modest from a normal store! I guess a lot depends on how you choose to put your swimsuit together though.

One of the best things about this outfit is that the skort can also be worn everyday! Actually, it wasn't originally made to swim in, but it works for me.

     Sarah

The Evolution of a Jump

                   

              

Our Weekend

       Last week, Mama bought us rackets and birdies from the dollar store. We played badminton all day Saturday! It was so much fun, even though we're not good at it (really, you'd laugh at us).

         On Sunday though, our arms were sore. Ouch.  Esther and Samuel went out and played a few games anyway, but Anna and I stayed in. However, on the 4th we were back at it! We seem to have gotten a little bit better with practice, so we'll keep trying. :)

         Me, Anna, and Esther decided to do a 4th of July performance for our family, so after supper we gathered our things and went outside. Everyone was sitting in the driveway enjoying the neighbor's fireworks. We've never done any fireworks before, but we like watching them (just as long as we don't have to pay for them).We sang a few songs, read a couple of verses, and I played a song on the violin. Afterward, some of us stayed out to watch fireworks with Daddy.  It was a really good day. :)

        
      Sarah 

                   P.S. Don't forget to Pray for America!

Happy Independence Day!

                      

                          My country 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty,

                           of thee I sing. Land where my fathers died,

     land of the Pilgrims' pride, from every mountain side let freedom ring!

                                        Our father's God to thee,

                                  author of liberty, to thee we sing.

                Long may our land be bright with freedom's holy light,

                          protect us by thy might, Great God, our King!

               

 My Country 'Tis of Thee                   
Samuel F. Smith