School Logo

I had a few minutes earlier today and did something I've been wanting to do for a long time now. I created a logo for our homeschool. We named our school Integitas Academy last year. Integritas is Latin for integrity. We wanted to choose a Latin name to pay homage to our classical roots. We began homeschool using strictly a classical approach. I'd now consider us eclectic homeschoolers heavily influenced by both the classical and Charlotte Mason approaches.

I created the logo using my Storybook Plus software from Creative Memories. I'm a consultant with Creative Memories. This software was designed to create digital scrapbook pages but I'm constantly amazed at its versatility.

Anyway, this was a lot of fun. My husband knows a guy who prints shirts, so I'm planning on getting some for the kids and us. I'd like to have t-shirts with our logo for play and outside fieldtrips. And I'd like to get some polo shirts with the logo for when we do school trips to inside places like the theater. Pin It Now!

Another post about cleaning...sort of.

Once again, school has been set aside for a day of cleaning. Our house has been on the market for a year now. We felt certain at the time that putting a For Sale sign in the front of our beautiful just-custom-built-3-years-ago-to-raise-our-family-in home was what God wanted us to do. It's been a rough couple of years, struggling to pay a too-high mortgage because we weren't wise home buyers and then having a loss of income, a surgery, a cut in pay, etc., etc. But, alas, the home will not sell. There is simply no one looking.

Recently, there has been a turn of events, and we were beginning to think that maybe it was God's plan for us to stay in the house after all. But, yesterday we got the call...the first in four months actually. Someone wants to see the house.

So mad cleaning has taken place here last night and today. Now, I'm just trying to maintain the cleanliness with six kids under eight living here until 6pm. It feels impossible and somewhat depressing.

Well, I guess I'll try to figure out how to fix lunch without making any mess or using any dishes. Pin It Now!

Blogger Friend Assignment #103

Memory Verse: 1 Timothy 4:15 (NIV)
Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress.

Intro: It keeps going, and going, and going…. (Marketing credit: Energizer)

Housekeeping: that household mess, it keeps going and going and going. It’s a perpetual chore that we diligently need to keep going on to stay on top it. We all have different ways of keeping ourselves energized.

Assignment: How do you keep energized so you can get it all done? bouncy music? treat it like a workout? Do you use a schedule?, a housekeeping binder system? luck of the draw system?.. or is this an area where you need encouragement? Do you need God’s help to keep order and beauty in your dwelling place? Take this week to tell us how You diligently keep going with your housekeeping chores.

Oh, I am far past needing encouragement in this area. I need serious, SERIOUS prayer! Housekeeping is not a talent that I possess. Especially housekeeping while homeschooling and raising six children under eight. I am constantly pushing this to the back burner.

My goal is to have morning chores, afternoon chores, and after dinner chores. In the morning the kids have a morning routine which includes making their beds and cleaning their rooms. I'd like to make my bed at this time as well, though more often than not, I am nursing the baby and/or fixing breakfast at this time. My daughter is supposed to put laundry in and out of the washer/dryer two times a day and fold the clean clothes. I still have to oversee all of this and more often than not the clean clothes lay unfolded in a laundry basket. I do clean the kitchen after every meal, but often let the dishes pile till the evening. (Our dishwasher doesn't work so we have to wash all dishes by hand.) In all honesty, most evenings my husband is the one who washes the dishes and puts the clothes away...if they get put away at all. I'm desperate for the help, but I hate that he has to come home from a long day at work to a house full of work.

I've always saved Saturday as the day to do our really deep cleaning (mopping, windows/mirrors, dusting woodwork, tubs/toilets, etc.). This works well except for the Saturdays we have something planned. About once a month everything builds up so much that I explode and go into frenzy cleaning mode. All the kids are enlisted, which usually means they are given Mr. Clean Magic Erasers and ordered to scrub every visible surface. This happened on Tuesday of this week. All schoolwork stopped and we considered it a day of Home-Ec. I'd love to post pictures of all we accomplished, and we really did accomplish a lot of cleaning...but it's Friday now, so there's no evidence of cleanliness or order left. Pin It Now!

Shorter and shorter

I cut my hair again. I know...I know...everyone thought I had just gotten in cut. But in fact I did that a couple of months ago. It was my "Summer cut". I figured it was time to update my picture since the last one I had posted here was from two babies ago. That's how I measure time...in babies.

Actually, I had a full day of beauty yesterday. Isn't that fun? My husband's high school reunion is this weekend (we met in high school, but I was a year behind him). And since I haven't lost any baby weight in three months, I needed a full day to prepare for the event. I'm just crossing my fingers that every woman there has just had a baby three months ago and that none of them are that "Oh-I-actually-lose-weight-when-I'm-pregnant" types.

So, my husband had his off day yesterday and happily agreed...no really, happily...to stay home with the kids so I could have my day. He even homeschooled them! Aren't I blessed?!

I called up my Dad and asked him if he would want to take me shopping for an early Christmas present...yes, my Daddy still spoils me rotten. So he suffered through a shopping trip (it only lasted an hour) and bought me a new outfit. Then we had lunch together. We usually do this for my birthday, but didn't this year. I was seven months pregnant, and there was really no reason to buy me clothes. So I'm glad we got to spend the time together yesterday.

Then, I rushed off to have a pedicure...OK, really, these are not typical activities for me. The whole day was actually planned around the pedicure, because I won a free pedicure at a homeschool event. It was at an upscale salon and spa and was VERY nice. My toes are now a pretty purple to match the new top my Dad bought me.

I finished off my day at my friend's salon. She has been cutting my hair since three babies ago...remember how I measure time?...and we went to high school with her. She'll actually be at the reunion this weekend. She does a wonderful job and gives us what she calls "the big family discount". I usually just let her do whatever she wants with my hair. Typically, we go lighter in the summer and darker in the fall. I have naturally dark hair.

She really stretched me this time though because she wanted to cut it way shorter than its ever been cut before. I agreed...hesitantly. I actually screamed, "WAIT!" right before the first cut and had to have her reassure me one more time. Not surprisingly, she was right. The cut is very cute.

So without further ado (you should be warned, I'm not wearing makeup...this picture is for informational purposes only)...

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Yes, My Hands Are Full.

Our family creates quite a scene at the grocery store.

It’s not that my children are ill-mannered. To the contrary, my children are usually very well-behaved in public. (Please note that I did say usually…our kids are kids and kids are…well, kids.) But, while at the grocery store, we do implement a “one-hand-on-the-cart-at-all-times” rule that is punishable by death.

Plus, saying “no” to my children is sort of like an art form to me. I have mastered it quite well. Sometimes I sing it to them. Sometimes I say it even before they ask. And sometimes I even say no to perfectly reasonable requests just for the fun of it. All this to say that they have learned very quickly that I will not succumb to the “I wannas” at the store. They don’t even ask.

No, our issue is not in the behavior of our children, but in the quantity of them. I have six children and while I know many large families, it seems that any time we go to the grocery store, no one on the whole green earth has actually seen a family of six before. We get stares, gasps, looks of shock and pity. Sometimes we get very nice comments. Sometimes we get not-so-nice comments. But mostly we get questions…the same questions over and over again.

So because I know you all are dying to know, I have summed it all up for you here in one short paragraph…

Yes, they are all mine. Yes, we are crazy, but that happened a long time ago and has nothing to do with the size of our family. No, neither one of us come from particularly large families. Yes, my hands are full…usually of dirty diapers and baby wipes. No, we are not Catholic. Yes, we do know how his happens and we actually do have hobbies. Yes, we’ve seen Jon and Kate Plus 8. And finally (try not to be shocked now) YES, WE DO WANT MORE! Pin It Now!

How Columbus helps us to share our faith.

We have been reading D'ualaire's Columbus and discussing how Columbus wanted to find riches in the new land and bring them back to the King and Queen of Spain. He also wanted to spread the Good News of Christianity to the natives that he met. So today we made a fun craft to illustrate this.


First, we made treasure boxes. I bought these gift boxes last night at Garden Ridge as the store was closing. It's been years since I've shopped there, but they use to sell kids crafts so I was hoping to find the crafty treasure boxes that kids can color and decorate. However, I was informed they no longer sell crafts (when did this happen?) So we made these gift boxes and necklace beads work.


This is the inside of the treasure box.


Then we made Witness Bracelets. Each bead (and even the knots) represents a different part of the gospel. The following is from this site I found that tells how to make the bracelets:

The First Knot reminds me that I am created to love God and to live with Him.
Genesis 1:27 - God created man (humans) in His own image

The Black Bead reminds me that sin keeps me away from God.
Romans 3:23 - Everyone has sinned. No one measures up to God's glory.

The Red Bead reminds me that Jesus is my Way out of sin and back to God.
Romans 5:8-9 - But here is how God has shown His love for us. While we were still
sinners, Christ died for us.

The White Bead reminds me that my new life with Jesus is clean and pure. No matter what I have done in the past, Jesus makes me brand new.
I John 1:7 But suppose we walk in the light, just as He is in the light. Then we share life with one an other. And the blood of Jesus, His Son, makes us pure from all sin.

The Green Bead reminds me to read my Bible, to pray, to obey & to worship God so my faith will grow.
Ephesians 4:15 We will speak the truth in love. We will grow up onto Christ in every way.

The Clear Bead reminds me to wait for the Holy Spirit to help me.
II Thessalonians 2:13b The Lord loves you. God chose you from the beginning. He w anted you to be saved. Salvation comes through the Holy Spirit's work. He makes people holy. It also comes through believing the truth.

The Blue Bead reminds me to choose to be more like Jesus.
Romans 8:14 Those who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.

The Yellow Bead reminds me that God has a better place waiting for me.
Philippians 4:4-5 Always be joyful because you belong to the Lord. I will say it again. Be joyful. Let everyone know how gentle you are. The Lord is coming soon.

The Last Knot reminds me that God chose me so that I can choose God.
John 14:1-3a Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God. Trust in Me also. There are many rooms in My Father's house. If this were not true, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. If I go and do that I will come back. And I will take you to be with Me. Pin It Now!

TOS Affiliate

I just wanted to let you know that I've just became an affiliate with The Old Schoolhouse magazine. I really love this magazine and the products they offer through their store. If you're thinking about ordering homeschool products or subscribing to their magazine, please consider doing so by linking through my site first. Just click on their button on my sidebar! Pin It Now!