These photos were actually taken by the children:
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Chalkboard artwork
I recently caved and returned my children's confiscated chalk, and they immediately went to work creating chalk-art. At the moment, I am choosing to ignore the piles of chalk dust created from said artwork...clean up will happen some other day.
Monday, March 23, 2009
There's something 'bout the Southland in the Springtime
Ok, so both of these pictures are actually taken in the 'Southland in the Wintertime', but only by a few weeks, and that Indigo Girls song has been stuck in my head since the official beginning of Spring Friday. (I may have to visit Amazon mp3 and download it).
I love the rapidly changing weather here in the South in late Winter/early Spring. You just never know what you're in for. This morning I had to scrape frost off my windshield, and the expected high today is 65 degrees. Lovely!
March 2nd
March 9th
Sunday, March 8, 2009
Fink day
This weekend was Evan's 7th birthday. It is hard to believe he is 7 years old (even harder to believe Julian will be 9 next month). I am supposed to be studying for a biology test tomorrow instead of blogging, but I wanted to add these pictures quickly for your enjoyment!
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Snow
We had a good snowfall - finally - on Sunday afternoon through Monday morning. We didn't use the ruler to measure, but I think we got about 4 inches, more in some places. And for some reason, we got more in the back yard than the front yard and Jason's truck had more than my car....weird!
Here are some pictures....
Here are some pictures....
Friday, February 20, 2009
Julian's DS
The game Julian got for Christmas has been a big hit for everyone in the house. Kathryn likes playing, but even more than that, she likes watching everyone else play. It's like TV! Julian gets a little testy when he plays, so I wanted to get this picture of him letting her watch.
Monday, February 16, 2009
Kathryn
Two updates:
1) Finally, Katie has gotten the hoop earrings she has wanted since getting her ears pierced. They were hard to get in, and I don't think I'll be able to get her to let me do it again (we'll have to get a different kind of hoops for her next time).
2) She lost her first tooth! Somehow, she thinks this means she doesn't have to get braces now?? I don't know why - I don't think braces have even been mentioned for her, but anyway. Losing teeth means no braces!
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
100th day of Kindergarten
Today is the 100th day of school, which they celebrated in Kathryn's class. It was a big day for her, and she is all smiles coming home!!
Saturday, February 7, 2009
Hiking at my school
This morning we went for a short hike on my college's campus. There is a nature trail which is 3 miles long. At least I think I was told it is 3 miles long. I didn't take my pedometer and can't remember if that's what my professor told me. This is the trail my environmental biology labs play around in. We all needed to get out of the house for a bit, and the weather was so nice today. It was forcasted to get to 60 degrees, although I think it may have been warmer even than that.
The trail was nice because we were the only ones on it. Well, we did pass one man with his dog, but that was towards the end of the trail, and I think very close to his house. It was maintained, but not manicured at all. Fallen trees were mostly cut away from the path, but the path was something you had to actively look for. Julian said it was his favorite path so far, which is great since it's only 20 minutes from home. I had only been on the beginning part of it with my class, so it was nice to explore some new ground.
Here are some pictures. Nothing amazing, as you'll see. It was really just a patch of forest with a trail marked. But I really liked it!
The trail was nice because we were the only ones on it. Well, we did pass one man with his dog, but that was towards the end of the trail, and I think very close to his house. It was maintained, but not manicured at all. Fallen trees were mostly cut away from the path, but the path was something you had to actively look for. Julian said it was his favorite path so far, which is great since it's only 20 minutes from home. I had only been on the beginning part of it with my class, so it was nice to explore some new ground.
Here are some pictures. Nothing amazing, as you'll see. It was really just a patch of forest with a trail marked. But I really liked it!
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Congratulations, Julian!
Last night, Julian finished his first T&T book! We are very proud of him - and he is really proud of himself.
Monday, February 2, 2009
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Random things
Just a few words for those of you who check in regularly. I have been unacceptably late in posting blogs lately. I am trying to get into a routine with my new schedule, and have not quite gotten there. This semester is going to be a challenge! Unfortunately, I don't see that I'll have a lot of time for posting, but I will do my best...and I'll try to get some pictures of the kids since it's been a while with that.
The kids: Both are well, although Kathryn is going to the doctor today (actually in just a few minutes). She has had a cold, and really started coughing yesterday - almost constantly. And this morning she had a fever, so no school for her. After Aunt Courtney's bout of pneumonia, I'm too scared to not get her checked out! Other than that, she's well :) She has really taken off with reading and is doing great in Awana. She earned another red jewel last night. Unfortunately, I've given over responsibility for Awana preparation to Jason. I hate to give it up, but I just can't seem to remember to make time to do it during the week.
Julian is also doing great. He was grounded for a week for some school issues, but I think it may have had an impact. He has had some great days at school since being un-grounded. It turns out some of the issues he is having have to do with his work being hard. He has always had such an easy time with his schoolwork, and did not have to put much effort into it. Well, not so for 3rd grade! The math especially has become challenging, and we talked about that. It doesn't mean he is less smart than he was; it just means he has to practice more. It made me sad that he apparently thought it meant he was less smart. Poor baby. Anyway, he's doing great, and I have hope that he'll finish out his year well.
Jason and Robert were finally able (after some weather delays) to get rid of the tree that had fallen across our fence. It was an undertaking, and both were sore when they were done. Going up and down our embankment can be a brutal workout! Our next big improvement project is replacing our shower, which is in pretty bad shape. Hopefully within the next couple of weeks we'll be able to pick out our new shower and get all of the supplies for the project. It's gonna be a doozy! Since I have class Wednesday nights, Jason has started taking the kids to Awana alone. He stays with them for opening assembly and then comes home until it's time to pick them up.
I am 3 weeks into the new semester, and so far so good. I have 2 online classes, which has been an adjustment, especially since one of my online professors is not a fan of the internet and seems to be a bit stubborn about certain things. Oh well, I can relate to stubbornness! There is a lot of writing involved in both - Sociology and World Literature, which makes blogging go a little lower on my list of writing priorities :)
I love my Environmental Science class, although at this point we are only talking about the introductory things - biomes, ecosystems, habitats....We started a semester long experiment to see what the affects of motor oil are on growing things (pea plants and marigolds). Should be interesting. I am looking forward to the sections on climate change and global warming. I've done some research on my own, but you can never tell who put what kind of spin on what you're reading, so I'm anxious to see what an ecologist that I know and trust thinks about it. She did say in one of our first classes that 94% of climatologists agree that global warming is real and that man is making it worse....the further out you go from that specific science, the percentage goes down, but climatologists are people who got their masters or doctorate in the specific science of the climate, so I guess they know what they're talking about. I actually watched a documentary this week on Netflix called Heat (it was on PBS originally, and you can find it on their page if you're interested). It was pretty convincing.
And finally, my first education class has been ... interesting. The professor is unique - I really like her. She tells a lot of stories though, which can be a little frustrating. She has been an educator for almost 30 years, has been a principal in elementary, middle and high schools and is now the assistant superintendent. She actually worked in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg school system, which is where I graduated from. I have already learned a lot about what teaching really is, and some things were not what I expected....I'm thankful for her honesty!
So, that's our life recently in a (quite large and a little rambling) nutshell. I will try to get some good kid pictures this week and post them. I hope no one is going through Julian and Kathryn withdrawal out there!
The kids: Both are well, although Kathryn is going to the doctor today (actually in just a few minutes). She has had a cold, and really started coughing yesterday - almost constantly. And this morning she had a fever, so no school for her. After Aunt Courtney's bout of pneumonia, I'm too scared to not get her checked out! Other than that, she's well :) She has really taken off with reading and is doing great in Awana. She earned another red jewel last night. Unfortunately, I've given over responsibility for Awana preparation to Jason. I hate to give it up, but I just can't seem to remember to make time to do it during the week.
Julian is also doing great. He was grounded for a week for some school issues, but I think it may have had an impact. He has had some great days at school since being un-grounded. It turns out some of the issues he is having have to do with his work being hard. He has always had such an easy time with his schoolwork, and did not have to put much effort into it. Well, not so for 3rd grade! The math especially has become challenging, and we talked about that. It doesn't mean he is less smart than he was; it just means he has to practice more. It made me sad that he apparently thought it meant he was less smart. Poor baby. Anyway, he's doing great, and I have hope that he'll finish out his year well.
Jason and Robert were finally able (after some weather delays) to get rid of the tree that had fallen across our fence. It was an undertaking, and both were sore when they were done. Going up and down our embankment can be a brutal workout! Our next big improvement project is replacing our shower, which is in pretty bad shape. Hopefully within the next couple of weeks we'll be able to pick out our new shower and get all of the supplies for the project. It's gonna be a doozy! Since I have class Wednesday nights, Jason has started taking the kids to Awana alone. He stays with them for opening assembly and then comes home until it's time to pick them up.
I am 3 weeks into the new semester, and so far so good. I have 2 online classes, which has been an adjustment, especially since one of my online professors is not a fan of the internet and seems to be a bit stubborn about certain things. Oh well, I can relate to stubbornness! There is a lot of writing involved in both - Sociology and World Literature, which makes blogging go a little lower on my list of writing priorities :)
I love my Environmental Science class, although at this point we are only talking about the introductory things - biomes, ecosystems, habitats....We started a semester long experiment to see what the affects of motor oil are on growing things (pea plants and marigolds). Should be interesting. I am looking forward to the sections on climate change and global warming. I've done some research on my own, but you can never tell who put what kind of spin on what you're reading, so I'm anxious to see what an ecologist that I know and trust thinks about it. She did say in one of our first classes that 94% of climatologists agree that global warming is real and that man is making it worse....the further out you go from that specific science, the percentage goes down, but climatologists are people who got their masters or doctorate in the specific science of the climate, so I guess they know what they're talking about. I actually watched a documentary this week on Netflix called Heat (it was on PBS originally, and you can find it on their page if you're interested). It was pretty convincing.
And finally, my first education class has been ... interesting. The professor is unique - I really like her. She tells a lot of stories though, which can be a little frustrating. She has been an educator for almost 30 years, has been a principal in elementary, middle and high schools and is now the assistant superintendent. She actually worked in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg school system, which is where I graduated from. I have already learned a lot about what teaching really is, and some things were not what I expected....I'm thankful for her honesty!
So, that's our life recently in a (quite large and a little rambling) nutshell. I will try to get some good kid pictures this week and post them. I hope no one is going through Julian and Kathryn withdrawal out there!
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Snow day ...
Finally we got a bit of snow. It was less than an inch, but it was enough to cancel school for all of us. We went out first thing, before it had the chance to melt away (and before the kids had a chance to whine about going out to play). Our neighbor friend, Jada, came over to play too and was even able to join us for some hot chocolate after playing.
Julian lucked out - he is grounded this week, but I let him go out to play in the snow (since we never know if we'll get more!), and he'll get to watch TV today since I told him he could watch the inauguration...lucky, indeed!
Friday, January 16, 2009
A cold day...
Today, I am so thankful for being warm. I've been thinking all day about all of the people that have no warm place to retreat to when the temperatures drop. Where do they go? How do they survive? I have never seen a homeless person here in my town, but I know there are so many here and further away. I don't know what to do for them, but I am thinking of them and have prayed for them on this cold day (and if it's cold here - it's COLD further north!). I am just so blessed.
Lucy
Lucy lays in the strangest positions. She heard my camera, looked at me and then put her nose right back behind the pillow.
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Our Kitchen
I have been hard at work repainting our kitchen this week. As always, I forgot to get good before pictures, but I did include a couple of the kids in the kitchen just to give an idea of the before....I love the result, but it was a lot of work!
I had to take all of the doors off the cabinets and sand the finish off. Then I primed and then painted them. I had some issues with finding the right place to paint the cabinet doors - a tough job in a small house, and I ended up having to re-do it because it just didn't look good with drips and dog fur. We borrowed Jason's Dad's sander, and that made the job a lot easier, but it couldn't be used everywhere, so I had to do a lot by hand.
Anyway, this was my last "me-time" project before school starts again (tomorrow). I suspect I'll have little free time after reading through the syllabuses (syllabi??) for Sociology and World Literature, which I am taking as online classes (no actual class time!). I will go to "Environmental Biology" and "Foundations in Education" tomorrow, and we'll see what those classes will be like. It's 14 hours total, so it will definitely keep me busy.
I had to take all of the doors off the cabinets and sand the finish off. Then I primed and then painted them. I had some issues with finding the right place to paint the cabinet doors - a tough job in a small house, and I ended up having to re-do it because it just didn't look good with drips and dog fur. We borrowed Jason's Dad's sander, and that made the job a lot easier, but it couldn't be used everywhere, so I had to do a lot by hand.
These are the best "before" pictures I could gather. I really need to work on taking those before pictures BEFORE I start. :)
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Anyway, this was my last "me-time" project before school starts again (tomorrow). I suspect I'll have little free time after reading through the syllabuses (syllabi??) for Sociology and World Literature, which I am taking as online classes (no actual class time!). I will go to "Environmental Biology" and "Foundations in Education" tomorrow, and we'll see what those classes will be like. It's 14 hours total, so it will definitely keep me busy.
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Christmas break
The kids have been out of school for a week now, with one week left before they go back. We've had our moments, but for the most part things have been tolerable. Here is one of those rare moments when the kids were enjoying each other's company and having fun playing Connect 4. (Unfortunately, it didn't take long before Julian was screaming at Kathryn for doing something wrong, and the game ended). Kathryn loves spending time with her big brother, especially those times when he is nice to her, but I think Julian is ready to get back to his school friends....
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Christmas pictures
Some pictures from our travels this week past:
Christmas eve....
Christmas eve....
Christmas morning at home ...
Christmas dinner at Grandma Knight's house ...
And finally, Christmas with the Finks in Charlotte ....
Making gifts
This year, we made some of the gifts we gave for Christmas. It was pretty messy, which made it that much more fun. Here are a few pictures of the process....
Friday, December 19, 2008
A new day ...
Julian must have had a hard day Wednesday. He does not normally take naps after school, but he must have just been too tired to remind me that he is too old for naps. I wanted to post these pictures yesterday:
I can't speak for Jason, but I felt terrible. All is well today, though. Jason was feeling back to normal, and I can get up and move around - I even got the kitchen cleaned up - Julian made their breakfast and part of their lunches yesterday morning. He was so sweet to do it, but I didn't get to clean up after him until this morning. He did a great job taking care of me while I was sick. I'm not 100%, but who cares as long as I can get off the couch!
I can't speak for Jason, but I felt terrible. All is well today, though. Jason was feeling back to normal, and I can get up and move around - I even got the kitchen cleaned up - Julian made their breakfast and part of their lunches yesterday morning. He was so sweet to do it, but I didn't get to clean up after him until this morning. He did a great job taking care of me while I was sick. I'm not 100%, but who cares as long as I can get off the couch!
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Julian singing
Julian has been grounded from TV for a while, and the other day Kathryn wanted to watch a movie, so he had to find something else to do. He got his T&T book with song lyrics, our Awana song CD, and he started singing. He had a little bit of a stomach bug over the weekend, hence the couch - he didn't feel good and wanted to lay down in the kitchen while I made dinner. Isn't he cute?
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Poor baby Katie
Kathryn started running a fever and was up in the night a couple of times Sunday night with a headache and ear pain. Poor baby. I took her to the doctor yesterday, and she has a really bad ear infection - bad enough that her doctor said "you have to look at this". Her ear is really bothering her - this is the most painful infection I remember her having. So she was out of school yesterday and today. Hopefully she'll be able to go back in time for her class Christmas party Thursday...
(She is watching a Barbie movie that has 3D effects in it)
Princess party
On Saturday, Kathryn got to go to a princess party with Grandma. From what I understand, she got to dress up, put on make up, paint her nails, and have a tea party. She had a lot of fun. You can't see in this picture, but she was very sparkly - eye shadow and blush, sparkly hair and nails. Very cute.
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Friday, December 12, 2008
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