Every year we whisk away to one of our favorite family destinations. We always look forward to this little getaway and the memory making that takes place, too. Come along, as I share some of our favorite memories... Forest.Deer Park.The boys invented a crazy dance called, "Dance Like A Jaguar." We decided to get groovy and busted some DLAJ moves. (I can teach you sometime, if you want!) See that deer over there on the right?! He was totally checking out our moves. I'm sure he was secretly wishin' he could "dance like a jaguar" too. Flashback to 2013: Deer thought: "Crazy boy, what exactly are you doing?!" I'm happy to share that BW enjoyed interacting with the deer more than their poo this year. Hotel.This hotel is so much fun, even the pictures can't keep up! (Excuse the blurriness!) We always love the time we spend here. There are water parks- and this huge, extra awesome, amazing indoor play area. (That's where we spend most of our time!) It's 3 stories high, and you can shoot foam balls at people. We play until we can't play anymore. It's a blast. Thanks for coming along on our little get away! I have one last photo to share with you- God's creation.
It is amazing in so many ways. This little deer was sleeping on our first walk through the park. Check out his camouflage! When we came through the second time, he was awake, and walking around. I love how his cute little face was looking right at me. After sharing my photos with you tonight, I feel my heart beat with joy. There is so much to be joyful for. While reading my son's devotion tonight, we talked about attitudes. We talked about how we have the ability and strength to CHOOSE JOY. We talked about how joy shows people around us that we belong to Jesus. We talked about the value of joy, and we talked about how no one can steal our joy, unless we let them. We agreed to commit to helping each other remember this. If one of us is struggling with a bad attitude, we'll quietly remind each other of our white board memory verse: 1 Thessalonians 15:18- "Be joyful always, pray continually. Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." If someone is struggling with their attitude, we will ask them if they think they need to pray. If they say, "no," we will pray for them, and then we will talk about joy, and things we can be joyful for. A mini vacation is always good- good for the memories, good for the break from every day life, and good for reflection. I'm thankful for the memories we created, the time we had to be free, and the simple reminder that joy is always available. We just need to choose it. What are you feeling joyful about, reader?
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Corn Maze!Come take a peek at our first ever family corn maze adventure! We loved every second of it- definitely a new fall tradition. We started off as one team, but eventually broke into two: Mr. Mustard Seed and Mr. Sunshine vs Mrs. Mustard Seed and BW. Dum dum dum! (<-- fancy drum roll!) Who won? Take a peek at our photos and you'll find the winner at the end! The maze was carved into the words "WISCONSIN" with other Wisconsin-y things carved in, too. (The green card in the photo above shows the maze design) We had to find 18 hidden punches throughout the maze. Each time we found one, we got to punch a hole on the card. Mr. Mustard Seed and Mr. Sunshine found 10/18. BW and I found 17/18. BW and I also happen to be the best at finding missing objects such as (but not limited to): library books, car keys, ipod cords, missing shoes, missing hats, missing toys, missing _______... What can I say!? We're wicked good at finding things. (Winner dance!) It's okay if I brag about it a bit, right? You can insert your round of applause <here> Apple Orchard!I love the apple orchard. We always make memories there. Don'tcha just love BW's spinny thinking cap?! My mom came with us, and we enjoyed her company. We made some tasty apple pie and some awesome applesauce. (Yep, it was awesomesauce!) What fun memories have you created lately?
We recently walked across one of our favorite trails. The weather was perfect. We certainly couldn't resist doing school at the park! Here are the sugars, on their way across the trail: As soon as we crossed the other side of the trail, we found our favorite reading rocks, and started reading. (Yep, it's true, we have favorite rocks! They're great for picnicking and for reading.) After reading for a bit, we scored ourselves a picnic table. Mr. Sunshine worked on spelling while BW doodled some fantastic doodles. After we finished some school, we enjoyed the day. There's a replica Indian mound near the park. Before crossing the trail to head home, we read about the mound, and the history of Little Lake Butte Des Morts. We learned that Butte Des Morts means "hill of the dead" in french. Our local school is called "Butte Des Morts." If we weren't homeschooling, my boys would be going to "Hill of the Dead Elementary." Interesting, huh? We scored an awesome math game at our favorite thrift store. I always love finding the perfect thrifty treasure at the perfect time. We've been playing this game before math. I love when I'm able to make learning fun. Mr. Sunshine recently mastered adding with carrying. Next week we will begin learning about borrowing with subtraction. Here's a picture of math in action, without carrying. Our friend, over at Simple Joy Crafting recently told us about an awesome free resource. We signed up right away and were surprised to receive this gigantic box of fun in the mail a few days later: I plan to write a review of this sometime soon. My friend shared a bit on her blog- if you're interested, you should visit her blog. Be sure to let her know if you stop by. Some of you may know I'm a letter writer. I've been sending mail since I was in 5th grade. I've had a postcrossing account for awhile, but haven't really used it much. I've never been a big postcard collector. (I'm more about the letter writing!) I recently decided to give the boys my postcrossing account. They were excited to receive their first postcards this week. I plan on using them as a border for their bulletin boards. I hope to write an informative post about postcrossing sometime this month. It's a fabulous site; safe, secure and really quite wonderful. Mr. Sunshine received this postcard from Malaysia. The sender wrote a story about the postcard on the back, comparing it to Peter Pan. We enjoyed reading about it. A few days later, BW received this postcard from Spain. The sender wrote some fun Galacian words on the back, which was neat to see. We've been keeping busy with our Bible studies, too. The boys recently drew portraits of someone with a joyful face. BW drew himself, and Mr. Sunshine drew me! Mr. Mustard Seed recently did some bat science
with the boys on the trampoline. "Grrr" to me, though, because I can't seem to find the photos. If they happen to show up, I'll share them in an upcoming post. Well, that's all for now, folks! I have lots to share with you in the near future. In homeschooling news, I'll be sharing a bunch of field trips (corn maze, apple picking, deer park), a review of the amazing Stamps Teach resource, and an informative post on Postcrossing. In "10,000 Reasons," I plan on sharing a personal post about certain situations God has used in my life to grow my trust in Him, and how His plan is always greater than man's plan. And, in "Oh, Happy Day!" I plan on sharing a book review. I'm quite excited to share these things with you, my friends! While you wait for my upcoming posts, why don't you comment with a sentence or two, sharing a recent joy in your life. I'd love to hear about it! |
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