We have just traveled back to the USA.   This week Bob graduates with his MBA.  He has had a full scholarship for distance education because of the work we were able to do in Brazil.  He has been working on this for 3 years now and I couldn’t be prouder of his accomplishments!!   He has worked so hard and diligently for this degree!!     The trip back here was by far the worst trip I have ever been on!   I got sick from Germany to DC – I cannot sleep on planes and I was exhausted, I have a difficult time being in crowds and I started vomiting the last hour before landing in the USA.   I continued to be sick through 2 airports and as we were boarding our last flight, we were almost not allowed to get on the plane because I was THAT sick.  Thankfully we didn’t lose our kids  …  and our luggage was only lost for a few days.    It took me a full week to recover but after that I was ready to walk through WalMart!!     It is such a culture shock going to different countries and it is also a culture shock coming back.  Seriously!!!   My  husband and I were at Target this morning and two women were complaining saying, “They just don’t have any selection in this store” – how SHOCKING to our ears!!!

We will be spending the next 2 months visiting family.  We have been enjoying visiting with Bob’s parents – it has been 2 years since we last saw them!   I am just thrilled that our kids have grandparents that adore them and love them.   A couple of days ago we helped Bob’s parents move from Florida to Alabama as Bob’s dad has taken a pastorate here.

Sophia and Papa.

Bob’s parents and our three kiddos in the front of the church here in Alabama.

Fishing with Papa!!

I cannot believe my Sophie-girl is 5!!   We had a wonderful Mother’s Day this past Sunday.

I am so in love with my children.  Samuel just brought me a flower from the yard and he said God made it just for me.  He is the sweetest little boy God ever made!!

We will be going to Bob’s grandma’s family reunion.  I am so excited to visit with Bob’s amazing cousins and his aunts and uncles and sweet Grandma.  South Dakota is absolutely breathtaking, is it not??!!    I am also looking forward to visiting our loved ones in MN.     My blog is going to be getting a new look soon …  the snowmen have got to GO!      Blessings to you and yours this day, I pray.

Pretending to be “Fancy Nancy” going to school after she just had a tea party in Paris …

creative minds …

instilling correct grammar and spelling skills …

And this is the reality picture:  complete silliness.  Often times I will say “Enough is Enough!!” and separate the three because they feed off of each others jokes and giggles and silliness.  There have been more times than I can count when I have tried desperately to be firm with them about their silliness during school only to completely give in with my own uncontrollable laughter.   And then the kids are separated. 

baking lessons …

love teaching my son how to cook and bake – he made chili by himself last week … love teaching fractions in the kitchen, too..

bubble baths at noon …

siblings learning to be best friends ( as it should be! ) …

night school …  the beauty of homeschooling is that I am free to relate to my child’s style of learning.  Sarah does much better in the evenings with her phonics than in the morning.  So, we will pop some popcorn and snuggle in and do her phonics curriculum before bed.   And, that is Samuel behind me trying to secretly throw popcorn on the top of my head. 

I am NOT making my child iron clothes – you ask her what she wants to do when she grows up and she says “iron for real” – so, I have been letting her iron for real with the iron set at a low setting.  I love teaching my children how to do things around the house.

morning walks in the Botanical Garden …

how can I not be in love with this one??  …  ( Poor Rosebud?? )

and this one?? …

and this one??

While homeschooling is not my highest passion,  people are.  My children are the littlest people in my life.  I struggle with selfishness throughout our homeschooling days because there are things that I much rather be doing.  I miss the days in Brazil when my kids were 3 and under and I spent my days making visits to needy people, bringing them food and milk, cradling a baby just born to a 13 year old girl, helping to rescue those in true need.  That is my ultimate passion – and my heart beats just a little faster as I remember what we were able to do in Brazil.   But, here I am in a new chapter of my life and my kids are in a new chapter, too.  Elementary school.  Learning ABC’s and 1,2.3’s.  And I am learning to be content and rise up to what I need to do for them.       God’s blessings on you and yours, I pray.

So, Sarah wanted another puppy themed birthday this year.  Sophie wanted a kitty cat birthday cake.  Our friends, Matt and Denise,  helped me with the doghouse/puppy cake.  I cannot take much credit for it!  God bless her!  I cannot make a gingerbread house like the one she made.   Isn’t it cute?

Bob suggested we have a birthday party for Sarah and Sophia  at the big play land here.  Unfortunately, I am horrible when it comes to crowds and I have “psyscho moments” ( as Bob calls them ) if I cannot keep track of my kids in such a large place filled with a lot of people.  So, I asked him if I did crafts and such if he wouldn’t mind if we had a party at our home.  I made a pot of broccoli/cheese soup, a pot of chicken and wild rice soup, sandwiches and a big Cesar salad.     I ordered 10 bobble head dogs from the USA and the girls had so much fun painting them and decorating them with bows and jewels and glitter.

Okay, I am not a great cake decorator, but it is my tradition to make a homemade birthday cake of my child’s choice.  I stay up late the night before and when they wake up, they run to see how it turned out.   So, last night was a very late night.  Between Sophie’s cake and frosting the doghouse/dog cake … well, it was rather time consuming.  So, maybe you understand what was running through my mind when Sophia said, “Mommy, I want to eat the kitty’s nose and mouth” and Sarah said, “Mommy, I want to eat the dogs head”.  You know how you spend a good two hours on making a nice dinner for your family only for them to sit down and scarf it down in 5 minutes flat??  Well, that’s a little how I felt … but it was worth it!  Have I said yet how much I adore my sweet girls???

Sarah and Sophia have been wanting Bitty Babies for a long time.  Sarah named her baby Lucy.  And Sophie named hers Ruby and Robert.   We watched the story of Ruby Bridges a few weeks ago – the first African-American girl to go to a “white” school.  What a moving story!!  The name Ruby kind of stuck in Sophia’s little mind.    Oh, and Sarah lost her front teeth, as you can see.   She said the other day, ” I lost my bunny teeth and now I am going to get big beaver teeth like Samuel!”      My babies are growing up.

My handsome boy.   I have so enjoyed the weather warming up here and watching Samuel play outside with sticks and playing Ninja against an imaginary person.  He likes to set up plastic army men and dinosarus outside and have an all-out battle with them.   He has been training our puppy to do tricks.  Last night I laid down with him for a few minutes before he fell alseep and we read a book about weather and all of his questions were making me dizzy.  : )

Now, how in the world can I deny these eyes??  I am in the kitchen so much and when Sophia looks up at me with her dark brown eyes and says, “Mommy can I be your helper?” how can I possibly say no??  This girl has such a spunky personality and is eagar to please.   I am in love with this girl!!

My sweet, sweet Sarah.  My angel girl.  My daughter who states daily that she is “God’s Little Girl”.  She has been such a joy.   I just love snuggling with this precious girl at night … hearing her pray for our puppy and for her Mama and Papa.

I LOVE doing my girls hair!!   I have always had this motto: “No Bow, No Go!”.  Ever since these girly girls were born, they had bows and ribbons in their hair.  Last year we had a little incident with Sophia’s hair and a pair of scizzors … well, she ended up with bangs from ear to ear … it is finally growing out.

I just love this picture … the girls are best little friends.  Sometimes when they are whispering to each other, my husband will sneak up and pretend to be eavsdropping on them and it sends them running and giggling.

God bless you all!

My husband asked me if I could get any more sentimental??!!   Probably not!  I knelt beside her bed the night before her birthday and just watched her sleep – her last few moments of being 3.  I was remembering how 4 years ago how sick I was with preeclampsia in Brazil and although I was a month from my due date, I had this feeling she would be born soon.  I am just so glad God gave Bob and I this girl!!  : )

Caroline and Sarah.

Sophia got a musical jewlery box with some jewelry of her own.

Sophia loves butterflies.  A VERY homemade cake.  : )

Sarah’s poodle cupcake cake.  She loved it because it looks like Mama and Papa’s poodle, Fofa.

Sarah’s present – a puppy dog, of course!  She named it Buscuit.

Sweet sisters.  The outfits were bought by my good friend, Tatyana.

The guys being good sports!  Bob, Dan ( our visitor from the USA ) and Andrew.

The girls bedroom.  Sarah loves puppies so she has her little puppy corner and Sophia likes butterflies.

Samuel’s dinosaur room.

Samuel’s friend Chad.  He is the son of a missionary couple here.  I am so thankful Samuel has this little friend!

My Love.                                                                   Best buddies!

Best Friends.                                                                Sophia Faith – age 3.

I have been wanting to give Samuel a recipe and let him make something on his own for him to learn measurements.  I had to wait for the perfect opportunity, though.  My little Sophia LOVES the kitchen and she takes it over every chance she gets.  And she is only 3!!  So, the other day Sarah and Sophia were watching Lady and the Tramp and Sophia fell asleep so I jumped at the chance to get Samuel in the kitchen by himself and not have his little sister hanging on him ( and telling him what to do – you’d have to understand Sophia’s personailty to understand that ).  So, I asked Bob to print out an M&M cookie recipe and Samuel made them just about all by himself.   So, I will share with you our yummy recipe!

• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1 cup shortening
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups candy-coated milk chocolate pieces
• In a large bowl, mix sugar, eggs, shortening, and vanilla thoroughly.
• Add flour, salt, and baking soda to creamed mixture. Blend well. Add 3/4 cup of M&M candies.
• Drop dough by teaspoonful onto cookie sheet. Slightly push a few candies on top of each dough ball with remaining candies.
• Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 9 to 11 minutes, to your liking.