Category Archives: pictures/video

A New Ride

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We discovered a little over a month ago that our current van has transmission trouble. We immediately started shopping on craigslist for a replacement vehicle, hoping to prevent being stranded without a vehicle. The fact that our inspection sticker on our current van expires in December and can’t be renewed with a bad transmission also helped motivate us in our search.

Because we max out a mini-van, we decided to go with something a little bigger. So, I have now been searching a little over a month for a 12 passenger van. What I found is a 12 passenger if you count the wheelchair it is equipped for. Otherwise, it is an 11 passenger. I’m not sure, but I think this one will be big enough! 😉

We call it “The Bus.” What do you think?

Five Stones

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While visiting with friends from Singapore last week, we were introduced to a new game similar to jacks. It is called Five Stones. It is a fun game that can be played with stones or can easily be made. The game would be a cool gift idea this season. It could also save you money to put toward something more useful.

A video really can’t capture the game well because it is done so fast, so watch closely. If you want to try playing, go ahead and read the rules. Have fun!

What to Give for Christmas in 2008

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I realized several years ago that I don’t like going Christmas shopping and maybe not even birthday shopping. I would rather go out and buy something for someone just because I thought of them on a regular day. It makes them feel how special they truly are to you when you present them with a gift for no particular reason.

Forget gifts on their birthday and holidays. They get gifts from plenty of people on those days, and if you are consistently making sure they know how special they are to you, they are probably not going to be upset if you don’t get them something on “that special day.” (Seth Godin’s mom would agree on this point). However, I am sure at least some of them would appreciate a card (especially if you make it yourself) and/or a phone call on that day. Then you can give the money you saved by shopping out of season and spending it on the best gift ever.

According to The Advent Conspiracy, it would take $10 billion to supply the whole world with safe drinking water. Sound like a lot? It actually sounds like a very small amount when compared with the $450 billion Americans spend each year on Christmas purchases!

I did the math. $10 billion is only 2.2% of $450 billion. Do you think you could spend 2.2% less on Christmas purchases this year and give it to a worthy cause? That means buying $9.78 gifts instead of $10 ones; $19.56 gifts instead of $20 ones; $48.90 instead of $50 ones. It means giving less than a quarter for every $10 you spend on Christmas!

It would be easy to make this a family or group project. You can make up a chart for your family and/or church designating $.25 for every $2 spent for Christmas presents. It would be so easy to get children motivated to help out children in other countries. Just take the first step. Reach out to those who so desperately need it.

Thousands of people die yearly because of unsafe drinking water. Let’s give hope to those who could die next year and the year after that! Let’s give a quarter for every $10 spent this Christmas. Go to adventconspiracy.com for more details. If you would like to skip a few steps, click directly on this link to donate.

A Chilly Chili Evening

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Anyone else notice that it is that chilly time of year? In order to celebrate the time of year, we recently ate chili for supper. Bethany got to help cook for the first time, and Candice got to eat chili for the first time. Bethany did a really good job stirring the chili, and Candice did a good job…..well…..eating it (and making a mess)! They both enjoyed themselves thoroughly! Can you tell?

Candice’s New Talent

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Candice has discovered a new talent that none of our other kids learned to do until at least the age of 2! Hopefully she will remember this one later when she is actually using the potty! If you listen at the beginning, you can hear her say “uh-oh” even though her mouth is full of pacifier!
 

Casting a Cast

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About two weeks ago, Candice cast her cast aside and has been running (okay, crawling fast) ever since. I am not really surprised since the cast itself did not slow her down for long! I told you that she was able to crawl and pull up while wearing her cast. Today I have proof! 🙂
 

Too Tired to Move

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On Wednesday nights, most of our little charges are usually asleep when we get home. Phillip was hilarious tonight! I am amazed not only that he slept through being moved, but also that he was able to sleep in the position he was in!

Go ahead. Look closer.

Closer……

This is one tired little boy!

Walking on Water (Almost)

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Mom Unplugged wrote a post about a cornstarch and water mixture that has a wet, yet very solid consistency. She called it “oobleck” from Bartholomew and the Oobleck by Dr. Seuss.

I have to admit that when I saw the mess made with this project on Mom UnPlug’s post, I didn’t think it was worth it. But then I clicked on the link to watch this video and was quite impressed. Maybe it’s worth the mess!

Which is the Turkey?

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Luke worked really hard to make this pinata look like a real turkey. He did a good enough job that he convinced a friend’s chocolate lab hunting dog that it was real. We had quite a battle with the dog while getting these pictures. If you look close on the second picture, you will see her.

Note: Not only was this posted with permission from my hubby, but he actually suggested the title. What a sport!