Visit with the Naumov's

Recently, we went into Dallas to collect a few last things that we have stored at people's houses while we were in Russia and this last year.  We were able to stay the night with some of our friends from church---they are a Russian family that began in Moscow, but moved over to Dallas when their firstborn came along.  We have learned some Russian from them, but most of all, we have developed a friendship and bond with our Russian ties.  They have two boys--and they are super fun to visit...it's something that I treasure---no one is nervous around each other.  I know as our girls grow up , they may feel weird interacting with boys that they see from time to time, but not with the Naumovs.  I love that!  The boys are amazing on the piano...boy of them take lessons and I could listen to them all day!   This is our scrumptious breakfast Sunday morning!!

Family Pics

John's sister took our family pictures this year!  She is so talented with the camera!  It catches us in rare but true form!  John is always trying to make me laugh--in pictures...he usually succeeds!!  Thanks Julie for all that you do!

Thanksgiving 2011

 MC---being a sweetie pie as usual!

 Melissa had received a pedicure set from Aunt Laura and all the girls had a blast in Mimer's bathroom painting toes!!

 What does a boy do when the girls are painting toes?!!!

 The kids table---this wasn't Thanksgiving dinner in the picture but this just shows how my mom sets up every Thanksgiving we are home.  I love the pictures of our Thanksgiving times while I was growing up...so I am just staging their pictures!!

 I guess they were playing Mr. Claus???

This is the kids playing restaurant!! Good times!!  I love it when they are creative with their cousins!!

The only thing that would have made this better would have been having my younger brother and his wife here also with us for Thanksgiving.  It's amazing that we all work out to see each other as much as we do...everyone having 2 sides of families to visit!  This Thanksgiving we went to Houston and saw my parents and my older bro and his family.  He has two very sweet girls whom my kids love dearly!

Old News...but cute pics! Happy B-day Mark

 Mark had his 8th b-day back in October and got a skateboard---that he is super happy to have!  Thanks Mimer!!  He has been skateboarding with his cousin Luke and I love that they have a healthy play idea! 
I am hoping to get caught up on real life by setting aside Facebook for awhile...so, I will blogging from the past!  Somehow life without facebook feels healthier already!

Chemistry Lives!!

I once thought about teaching Chemistry---they were some of favorite classes in high school and college, but I didn't ever do it!  Since I am home schooling, I get to do science experiments.  This particular one was determining certain acids and bases.  Acids turned red, bases turned green and neutral stayed the color of the cabbage water.  Cabbage water was our "indicator."

School Day and Math Lesson!

This was our first day doing school...and then a math lesson on another day.  We are home schooling this year and I am really enjoying my kiddos.

The toothless, but love filled boy

Matthew and his ways crack me up and make me smile all together.  He has lost now 4 teeth in the period of 10 days...so, he has put his tooth and, one time, teeth under his pillow.  The kids all know about who the tooth fairy is...and so does Matthew.   The day he lost two teeth, he left me a note---Do you lice legos?  (spelling---needs work).  This time, he left me 50 cents in the bag with his tooth!  So sweet, and so fun to get notes to me and gifts to me!  I think Matthew is showing gifts and words as two of his love languages...like mother, like son!!  The picture of Matthew is after his first tooth.  By the way, I've pulled all but one, by his request.  Brave boy...they are all but falling out when I do it!!

My new Wall Map!!!

Thanks to my friend over on another blog---I wrote a company about a Wallzilla Map.  This map has adhesive on the back and can be placed on a wall without damaging the wall...picture to follow later.
Check out my review for my FREE map!  Can't get much better than that!!!  I love reviewing products.  I wish I had the ability to make photos that I could stick on the wall like this.  It's amazingly easy with zero bubbles!!!

Maps.com�s World Deluxe Political Wall Map contains vibrant colors combined with an abundance of information making it suitable for use in business, education, or reference. This World wall map...

Your Review:

 

Easiest to Display!!!

By Bullwifey from Longview, TX on 11/20/2011

Pros:

Compact, Durable, Easy to move, Perfect for homeschooling, Easy to mount, Easy to read

Cons:

It's big--it's a 2 p job

Best Uses:

Home schooling

Describe Yourself:

Casual/ Recreational

Was this a gift?:

No

Bottom Line:

Yes, I would recommend this to a friend

I received this free to review from Wallzilla. I am a home school mom of four and I need a large map that I can refer to. We also are in limbo as far as where we live. We will be moving in the next year, so I need a map like this one that I can remove and stick up in another location! I was so impressed at how it didn't bubble at all. My husband did help with this hanging because this was a very large map. I am so excited to have this in our home schooling area...and be able to take it with us when we move and not damage this rent house we are in!! Thank you!!

The yellow mat progresses....

here it is...in the next stage of painting...see post below, if you have no idea what I am talking about.

Projects...Purchases.

 This first picture is done by my friend, Kim,--sometimes others have a vision for things that I don't.  Kim used an old door and the hangers and created my entry piece!

This is my project that I just started...we shall see if it works out well.  I am painting a rug/mat...this is the primer coat...I'll journal my way through it.  If it flubs, you may never see the end product---depends on how brave I am!  My camera is on the blink--it's my Russian small camera...and it's not working right now...bummer, so I had to use my daughter's ipod touch.  Yes, she is more techy than I am--by my choice.  I do NOT need anything else to distract me!  So, do they always take such a grainy picture...I'm not impressed.  My daughter bought her own ipt, so no big deal...she loves it!
UPDATE:  camera is still broken, but mat is now yellow...still working SLOWLY!

Boys Dresser

After my oldest son saw the girls dresser, he felt that he and Matthew were being "cheated" by just getting a black dresser(even though it had to be redone to be black).  So, he picked out the color on each drawer of the above dresser!  I counted incorrectly on the drawer handles...so I need to return one kind and get an extra of the other kind.  I'm very pleased with his choice of colors!  Fun!!  He does not feel cheated any longer because he has a "crazy" dresser too!  We bought both pieces at a second hand store for under $200 and dressed them up for less than 50 extra bucks!  Nice!

Aggieland

 parking garage that John and I were both patrons of.

 good ole' Kyle Field--football stadium

 I think this was the vet school.

 where John and I ate every Sunday night...memories!

John and I, my brothers, and one of my sister in laws all went to Texas A&M for our undergrad.  John and I met my first full day on campus through a Christian group called Intervarsity Christian Fellowship(aka--IV, IVCF or Intervegetablecreamcorn fellowship!--yes, we call things by lots of names!).  We didn't start dating til Spring of the following year.  We married 3 weeks after we both graduated...so our lives began together at the lovely College Station.  Our kids have just recently been asking a lot of questions of how we met and about A&M.  They have all but Matthew(our youngest) said they want to go to A&M!  Whoop!  We shall see---I at that age wanted to attend a Christian college in Pensecola then Stephen F Austin--both of which dropped off my list by my senior year.

All this said, I am not a reunion type of gal.  As one person said from my high school class--those who love reunions...say a lot, " Back in the good ole days..."  I say----I like my life now.  I love my family, my kids, my hubby, my life--NOW, not how it used to be back in high school.  So, when high school reunions come around, unless I am dragged or persuaded, I will probably not be seen there at my own.  We did go to John's and had a great time though.

 College reunions, well, that's another story!  My group of friends from IV are still by far some of the greatest friends John and I have met.  So, when IV had a reunion, we went!  A&M had to be visited when we went there.  John is a history buff and could inform all our kids what things meant, when they were built and all the good info that goes into Aggie tradition!   Melissa has started watching Aggie football games with dad too.  She is leaning the most toward Aggieland.  Katie took these pics above and can't wait to go to vet school at A&M!

Modge Podge Dresser

We needed a dresser for the girls, so I went to a resale shop here in town.  The owner is an amazing talented young lady and I just picked her brain!!  She had this dresser(it was a plain off white wood dresser.) and told me about her idea for modge podging scrapbook papers on the drawers, so I looked it up and tried my hand at it.  I love how it turned out.  Yes, I know my own mistakes on the dresser and I am hoping it holds up over time(the design, not the dresser!)  My oldest helped me pick out the papers that I used for each drawer!  Unfortunately, I don't have a before picture---bummer!

What I learned:  Do not use modge podge as the final coat---it's a bit sticky.  The drawers stuck and I had to repaint a coat where it took off paint!!  YIKES--what a project!  I'm not a perfectionist, so I decided today, just to be done with it...and enjoy it.    I sprayed it with a clear type of sealant in the end.  The picture that is above the dresser was painted by my sister in law, Jackie, a few years ago, and it goes wonderfully!  Thanks Jackie-- again!  I love my paintings through out our house that are painted by my mother in law and my sister in law!  It's fun to have artists in the family.  Our artists:  two sisters in laws, my cousin, my paternal grandmother, my aunt, my uncle (my aunt was my uncle's art student in college!) my mother in law, and my own kiddos.

Treasure Hunt

Sometimes, like the other night, my hubby amazes me at his genius way of playing with the kids.  They evidently had built a fort and then had a treasure hunt with these clues!  I will type out what they say, so you can enjoy them also.  (my notes are in ( ))
Clue 1:  Go South to a place of Sparks!(Mark--our son, goes by this nickname at times)  You will find Clue #2 under the place where your bottom moves the fastest!(the boys have a slide on their bunkbed)
Clue 2:  Going on a trip?  You will find Clue #3 if you are packing(there are suitcases from our unpacking in the living room)
Clue 3:  Go East where the Sun rises(our sunroom)  Be careful for the 4th clue may be under your bottom...(it was in the couch)
Clue 4:  I-I-I would tell you where the Clue #5 is but he is so cold, I don't want to visit(in our freezer).
Clue 5:  Your last Clue.  If you follow your heart, it will lead you back to the start. (to the fort).
Enjoy, Love Dad.

I went to a ladies meeting this night and the kids told me about it in the morning.  This is my husband!  Genius!  No tv--just fun with Dad.  Thank you Lord for a great hubby!

Trying this tonight!!

Marinade for Chicken



Prep Time: 10 Minutes

Ready In: 10 Minutes
Servings: 32(This is funny....I just saw this...no wonder it was a lot of marinade!!)
"This simple marinade is made from ingredients many people have on hand (vegetable oil, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, wine vinegar, lemon juice, and seasonings), and can be prepared in minutes."
I am using Chicken Thighs--if you haven't used this part of the chicken---start NOW. Always yummy!! Maybe because thighs tend to be full of fat-haha!!
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
3/4 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1/3 cup lemon juice
2 tablespoons dry mustard
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon black pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons finely minced fresh
parsley
Directions:
1. In a medium bowl, mix together oil, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, wine vinegar, and lemon juice. Stir in mustard powder, salt, pepper, and parsley. Use to marinate chicken before cooking as desired. The longer you marinate, the more flavor it will have. This is from AllRecipes.com

This was super flavorful...will cut the recipe down next time...haha!

Make your own Chalkboard Paint!

Recipe of Chalkboard Paint:

3 teaspoons acrylic paint (color of choice), PLAIN OLD ACRYLIC CRAFT PAINT WORKS FINE
1 1/2 teaspoons glazing medium (water based)
1/2 teaspoon powder UNSANDED tile grout

USING A SPONGE BRUSH, apply 3 OR MORE coats on your painting surface. Sand with 400 (or more) grit sandpaper between coats, however, if you're careful and use a sponge brush, sanding might not be necessary.

When you're done painting, condition your chalkboard finish by placing a piece of chalk on its side and rubbing down the entire surface. Wipe it clean with a felt cloth and then wipe it again with a slightly damp cloth.

Thanks for the idea!!

A Different kind of Giveaway---4 Amish Novels by Beth Wiseman

Watch this trailer to learn about the first book in the series...turn off the music on my side bar first!

MY WINNERS!!!: The 4 books: Sherri! The first book: Nicole C!
These books are not new, they have been read and passed on, so I am passing them on to you...(the winner). You can do the same if you want and host a giveaway when you are done reading them.
Beth Wiseman is one of my favorite authors of Amish fiction. If you don't know much about the Amish, you will learn some things very quickly...I've even learned some German.  My father in law knows German(some) and sometimes asks some questions in German.  One day, I actually knew what he said!! HA!  I use some German in my vocabulary just for fun!  My hubby and I get a kick out of using "wonderbaar" for great/wonderful.

So, this giveaway is for the first 4 out of 5 books in a series...one of the best I've read of my Amish books!
So, for your entries:  Leave a comment about what you know of or have heard of the Amish or that you have "no idea about the Amish."
Post on your blog/facebook/twitter/communities for extra entries...but leave me a comment for each one that you have done.  In all of your entries leave your email--encrypted ---such as: jaime at gmail dot com. I will draw the winner by the infamous random number generator Friday evening after 5pm.

Oh, and for the second runner up, I will be giving away the first book in this series(another used copy, but still good!)

I can only ship to a stateside address, so if you are a missionary, then send a stateside address...if you win.

The reason I don't have the fifth book---I read it from my local library! So, maybe you can do the same!!

If your entry is left anonymous and there is no email with it, I will delete it in the end from the entries. Also, any extra comments that are not entries, I will also take out from the drawings. Please leave that email or a way to get in touch if you win:).


FYI--I had to delete a few comments...b/c I couldn't find an email:
Here are a few that I deleted that had names, but no links...please enter again!!
Tricia, Loretta, Kim, Wearyrn,Dorene, Sherry, Sue Hess, Janet. I did delete anon's, if there was no info. Hope you all get a chance...drawing in 30 minutes!

Our 4th of July Craft Day

I have used our "craft" money for different things over the summer---only fun stuff for the kids---but one of the things we did was a craft day on July 4th that ended in a yummy family picnic at the house!  I love our family!  We had our nephew Grant over for part of it, so he was helping to decorate some cookies!