every captive thought

My kids LOVE crafting.  Love it.  And I love having the cute little remembrances of them.  Here are the fall decorations we made. James Judie Bug Katy Jane And these are the Christmas decorations we just made...copied straight from pinterest.   Jamesies sweet feet Judie Bugs sweet feet Katy Jane's sweet little feet All of their hands and fingerprints James' reindeer The kids have enjoyed the last couple of beautiful days.          

We are loving homeschooling.  Slowly I am learning what works for us and what doesn't.  We've had to make a few changes to better suit learning styles and personalities.  I'm thankful to have so many encouraging people around me that help me to figure out what to try and different methods that have worked for them.  The Lord was even so good to me to provide someone in the grocery store one day to give me just the encouragement I needed.   We are using Saxon now for phonics and it has made a huge difference for James.  Jude is also easily able to join in on several of the lessons at this point.  My sisters used Saxon and really liked it for their kids . During the summer we ordered a butterfly jungle and planet frog.  The tadpoles still aren't in but the caterpillars arrived a few weeks ago.  They started out little bitty and in a plastic container of their own food.     Into the jungle they went and the kids were excited to check them every day.  They grew SO

Around here we like to decorate for Christmas on or around my birthday.  It is one of our very favorite things to do.  We set out snacks, make cookies, drink eggnog, play Christmas music and decorate.   The boys love putting the angel on top of the tree.  Katy Jane...not s'much. So they all took a turn. Their daddy is very patient. After decorating we all snuggled down on the couch to watch Polar Express.  I love this sweet family.  

Our church has a fall festival.  The kids had so much fun!  Katy went as Strawberry Shortcake, Jude went as a doctor (of course), and James went as the Hulk.  Again.   Our precious friend Elaine.     Mr. Robby getting his heart checked by the doctor.  One of the best  hearts around! Our sweet friend Micha had a party.  She made these fabulous caramel apples that James loved!   And Katy Jane loves her Jett kisses!  A. Lot.   My sweet boys have the funnest Daddy in the world!  He makes the most of every second he has with us.   He let them pick out what they wanted and then carved a pumpkin for them.  They loved getting to "help".   And they helped him rake the leaves too.  But only so they could jump in them.   Over and over again.           Somehow James always manages to talk me into letting him play with the shaving cream.  He loves it and I remember how fun that was as a kid. James just takes it to a whole new level.  Next tim