MFW-ECC - Week 19 - Farewell Africa!

This week was much better...thank you Jesus! 

I didn't get around to blogging much of it (as you can tell from this post), but I did manage to snap LOTS of pictures.

The kids had a BLAST doing some African face painting...

S opted for the tribal warrior look

A wanted to look like a cheetah...not bad! She did it all by herself too :)

J refuses to do any face or even hand painting (always has), but he did manage to paint a penguin. Shhhh! Don't tell him, but I think his penguin makes a better crow or black bird instead ;)

 The kids even made their own eggs and sausages all by themselves...

A had her tap, jazz, and ballet open houses...

J and Dad played a little golf...

A got her fingernails and toenails painted...

Purple...with sparkles! Her favorite color :)

And last, but not least, J and S had their very first Christmas band concert :)

A very FULL, but FUN week!

I hope you all have a very merry Christmas :)

MFW-ECC - Week 18 - Africa (Kenya)

This week was pretty...well, weak. 

I did not take any pictures...not a single one.

We didn't have time to do any experiments, any art projects, or any games. 

We managed to complete (for the most part) math, language, Bible, and reading. We muddled through bits and pieces of science, geography, and music. The kids are really glad to be in Africa now. They love all the different animals found on this continent.

One more week till Christmas break. I think I can...I think I can...I think I can...

With God's help, I know we can :)

MFW-ECC - Thanksgiving week and Week 17 - Germany

Well, I didn't get hardly anything done around my house while we had off from school Thanksgiving week.  Instead, I had several doctor appointments to go to and the rest of my time was filled with worry and researching things on the internet, and of course, spending time with different families for Thanksgiving sprinkled here and there throughout the week.

My mom was diagnosed with cancer at age 44, which means I have to start my mammos at age 34. Well, I had my first one the Monday before Thanksgiving and it took f-o-r-e-v-e-r. It's not comforting when you get called back for additional mammo pictures as well as a follow up ultrasound. 

I got my results from both immediately ...which was great (at least I know what is going on...well, sort of).

Bottom line....I have to have a biopsy. The radiologist saw several microcalcifications, which they have decided to monitor closely..for now ...because, in a small percentage of people, these can be the beginning signs of a future breast cancer. They also saw a non-palpable mass he recommended a biopsy on because of my mother's cancer history. He thinks its just a harmless fibroadenoma. Let's pray so...

Needless to say, you can understand why my Thanksgiving week was filled with appointments, research, and worry. (I cried a lot too after my initial mammogram, but...) since then, I have been praying for peace and comfort and the Lord is continually answering my prayers :) God is so good - all the time! I'm also praying for him to guide me in what to do after the biopsy - pending the results.

Now....on to some school stuff...

Our Week in Review

After having a week off from school we decided to have an extra treat to get us in the mood for school. A helped fix everyone hot cocoa and ice cream sundaes. 

My little waitress

Don't ya just love the little straws and spoons in her apron pocket :)

Happy Customers!

Art/Music

The kids couldn't choose just 1 or 2 songs...they wanted to listen to ALL the optional songs listed in the MFW lesson plans throughout this week ;) 


We did not get a change to do the pressed flowers, but hope to go back and complete that activity sometime b/c the kiddos really wanted to do it...and we already have the picture frames for it.

Science

We enjoyed the experiments this week. We were all surprised in our surface tension experiment at how much water bubbled up around the sides of the spoon without pouring over. We watched short videos about pond skaters and a Basilisk Lizard to reiterate how surface tension works. 

The river and mud model was fun, of course. The kids always love an excuse to play in the mud. LOL! 

They did a GREAT job! Love the 'coconut trees' and 'moss'. 

Bible

We finished up George Muller. I'm going to miss reading about him each day. Such a wonderful life story of TRULY relying on God!


We came across a blog with several great pictures of the Ashly Downs Orphanage and other old-timey pictures my kiddos enjoyed looking at.