Look! What we did! Wednesday

Yesterday, enjoying our last day of Easter vacation, I took the kiddos to a local moon bounce center.  We were excited to see that they have added a pool table,

 air hockey,

foos ball

and ping pong. 

This is all in addition to MONSTER moon bounces.  And I mean big....

We (including me!) all really enjoyed (and exhasted) ourselves!  Our afternoon gave new definition to "family fun!"  :-) 

I have tried each Easter Monday to spend a day doing something special with the kiddos, but there was dissection class yesterday, so our Easter Monday tradition was moved to Tuesday this year.  It's wonderful to be able to have that flexibility, isn't it?  :-)

We finished off the afternoon with monster donuts from a local bakery.  They just seemed to fit in with the theme of the day, lol! 

I am linking up today with Look! What we Did!

Try a New Recipe Tuesday- April 10

This week I am going to share my Sugar Cookie recipe.  My kids love making them for every holiday because they get to use the cookie cutters!  :-)

They enjoyed making them for Christmas and Valentine's Day and are asking to make them again.  We just may have to make some "spring" ones soon!  :-)

Lisa's Sugar Cookies
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 large egg
2 tsp. baking powder
2 3/4 cups flour
2 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to to 375 degrees.  In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar with an electric mixer.  Beat in eggs and vanilla.  Add baking powder and flour (one cup at a time), mixing after addition.  The dough will be very stiff, blend last flour in by hand.  Do not chill dough.  Dip cutters into flour before each use.  Bake on top shelf of over for 6-7 minutes.  Enjoy!  :-)

Now it's your turn!  I look forward each week to what delicious recipes you all will share!  :-)

Make Life Meaningful Monday- April 9

The last few days have been extremely meaningful to me as we remembered and celebrated the events of Holy Week and of Christ's triumphant Resurrection on Easter morning.  I was privileged to take part in many of these at our church, whether it was having my feet washed on Thursday (what an incredible, humbling experience), lectoring (reading) parts of the Gospel of Luke during our choir's magnificent concert on Good Friday night (what an honor!  They were excellent) or reading from the book of Exodus Saturday night.  It all went really well, thank God!  I asked Him for strength (and courage!) and was so touched when people came up to me and told me how they were moved by my proclamation of the Word.  I did my best to do so with reverence and expression.

I wanted to include some photos of the weekend, as well.  I do not have any photos of church, but do have a photo of the kiddos together in their dyeing eggs. 

I also love the photo of them together after church.

There was also our egg hunt on Easter morning,

as well as the one with our extended family when they arrived for dinner. My daughter and I made cookie "prizes" for our family to win when they found their eggs. :-)

These are truly the things that make life meaningful! :-)
What a beautiful and blessed Easter it was!  He is risen!  Alleluia!  :-)

I am linking up today with Michelle at Changed by the Maker for her Make Life Meaningful Monday.  Come over and share what makes your life meaningful!  :-)

A Most Joyous and Blessed Easter

to all of you, my family and friends!  Rejoice!  He is Risen, Alleluia!  :-)

Homeschool Mother's Journal- April 6

I am writing this post early, as I do not want to be spending time on the computer on Good Friday, but have so much to share about our past week.

In my life/homeschool this week:  On Friday, after our studies were completed (still amidst some sneezing and sniffling), we read an amazing book.  It is called "The Very First Easter" by Paul L. Maier.  I would HIGHLY recommend it.  The illustrations, first of all, are absolutely stunning.  The premise of the book is a young boy and his parents dyeing Easter eggs.  He begins to ask his parents about the Easter story.  They get out their Bible, have him read passages and answer every question he has along the way.  The questions the young boy has are very typical ones that kids may ask, and his parents patiently answered each and every one, sometimes with the young boy reading from Scripture to find the answer, so it was very real and engrossing for my kiddos.  I know this is going to be a classic in our house that we read again and again.  Even my oldest asked to see it when we were done and wanted to look through it again.  :-)

On Saturday night, we attended a Spring Fling BBQ at our church.  It was a lot of fun-- good food and fellowship with friends.  :-)  During the day, Kiddo #4 helped her grandmother make baked eggplant.

You can read (and see more photos!) about that and other wonderful, little things for which I am grateful here.

On Sunday after church, we got ready for a pot-luck dinner, ending our Lenten Faith Sharing group.  It was attended by 8 families (and all of our children!).  More good food and friendship.  :-)  My husband made his trademark taco salad and I baked chocolate chip cookies.  I posted the recipe here.  Come take a look at all of the other delicious recipes that were linked up, as well.

On Monday, we continued with our Holy Heroes Lenten Adventure and our other studies.  No music lessons or dissection class this week.

On Tuesday, Kiddos #3 and 4 worked on some contraction and homonym matching cards while their brothers were busy with their Pre-Algebra.  :-)

Tuesday afternoon was our bowling league.  3 of the 4 kiddos broke 3 figures again!  :-)

Wednesday, our last day of school before Easter vacation, we made a really wonderful craft for Holy Week. 

You can read all about it and see more photos here.

On Thursday, we tidied up and prepared for Easter.  I also made pizzelles.  :-) There is still some coughing and sneezing (thus albuterol and other meds), but everyone is on the mend.  :-)  We will be spending a lot of the next few days in Church and getting ready to celebrate the Lord's Resurrection, so we used the day to get as ready as we could.

Holy Thursday evening, we were in church, celebrating the Lord's Last Supper. It was so beautiful that it brought me to tears.

I hope everyone has a very blessed and holy Easter!

Photo or Quote to share:

"It takes a mother to raise a child, not a village.  Villages are for raising idiots."--unknown

"Give your child a single valuable idea, and you have done more for his education than if you had laid upon his mind the burden of bushels of information"--Charlotte Mason

Here is a photo of sweet, little Mittens trying to see what we were doing on the kitchen island.  She climbed up the side of the step stool.  :-)

I am linking up today with The Homeschool Mother's Journal and Weekly Wrap-Up.  Come over and share about your week.

Look what we did Wednesday- April 4

Today we made a beautiful Holy Week wreath that I found at Oriental Trading.  I thought it was a wonderful way to begin our Easter vacation and try to get us in the right frame of mind for remainder of this week.

I am linking up with Look! What we did! Wednesday.  Come join us and share something special you have done with your family today.  :-) 

I hope everyone has a very blessed remainder of their Holy Week!