Wordless Wednesday

This is what happens when a little girl is stuck with 3 brothers:

...the mouths of babes!

I was torturing Reagan by brushing her knotty hair this morning. I was amazed at how awful it was and she was brought to tears by the pain.

Reagan (6): If my hair is dead, then why does it hurt so much Mommy?!

(Nice to know that she's listened in science - human body discussions last year. Poor girl - I had to tell her that the skin part, where the hair's attached it still quite alive and full of nerves!)

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And this week it was my dh that had me laughing!

Yesterday, I was lamenting and complaining to dh about how much time it takes just to do daily tasks for the kids, such as feeding and dressing and diapers. I was just looking for some empathy from dh more than complaining really because I was tired and facing dinner unprepared again. I said, "It never ending with these kids."

DH: Well, there're just so many of them!

(It just sounded so funny coming out of his mouth so bluntly - as if we have 10 children running amuck or something!)

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For more Tiny Talk Tuesday (from real tiny talkers, not hubby) visit Mary at Not Before 7!

How does that garden grow?

I've been a bit bummed about how we've only covered half of our planned science lessons this year for Jefferson (and Reagan too - although not officially in her K program). It just seems to me that when the weather gets warm, one MUST be outside showing and teaching them the wonders of God's living creation while it blooms instead, right?

So I'm thankful that I've had the time to start our small garden this year as well as add some houseplants to our lives. And I'm super excited about flowers too! It gives me such great joy to watch the kids learn to observe and appreciate the vast varieties as well as the needs of all these plants.

Over the past few weeks (we are in a 3 week break right now - these were our last weeks of the past term) we've watched the garden boxes grow by leaps and bounds under the influence of bountiful rain. Here is ours before (4 weeks after planting):

And here is our most recent (2 weeks ago):

We have discovered that the lettuce varieties we planted, Romaine and Summertime Lettuce, are fast growing, hardy, and NOT bitter. ALL four of my kids will eat an entire bowl full of salad with these leaves! They love to pull and wash the spring onions so we can have them chopped up on top (I've been told to thin out my onions and use some early so that the others will have room to grow nice and large).

One of Jefferson's strawberry plants has 4 berries on it, after showing him some pretty white flowers (I forgot to have him sketch them) and he is hopeful his other one will bloom soon. These were his request and his responsibility and so, will be his harvest as well (albeit, a very small harvest!). And our sweet peas have flowers all over so we are anxious for some produce soon.

The plants we choose to start from seeds, heirloom tomato and sage, are teaching us a lot as well! I have no good indoor lights so we've had them under our kitchen counter lights for the past couple months. They seem to be taking a long, long time to grow. *sigh* I want tomato plants already! Jefferson and I replanted them into larger pots to put outside but only used the plain inert topsoil I had. At Mrs. Weaver's farm today, she told us that we needed to mix that topsoil with some of our manure (well duh? Where did I think this poor little stalk would get it's food? I should've figured that much out myself, but am thankful once again for her help!) and use some Epsom salt at the roots, as well as using fish fertilizer about weekly. She also told us not to put more than one in the pot (I guess I have no good eye for how big this thing is really gonna get!). Jefferson said, "Well maybe it won't look so sad and droopy if we do what she said, Mommy? Her garden looks good...." Thanks, J - I know that you are 7 and you know all about gardens too already.... :-)

But while the poor "droopy" things were still inside, I had Jefferson and Reagan draw both the tomato and the sage seedlings (and their seeds). Reagan (1st drawing) took note of the difference in the shape of the leaves as well as the shape of the main branches while Jefferson was more concerned with learning how to draw the little planter pots in 3-D. Aren't they nice drawings for a 2nd grader and Kindergartner? I was pleased with how much they enjoy this type of work though and need to make sure to incorporate it more often in our weekly assignments (especially since J complains about how hard it is to make them look real!).

Our final sketch (just last week) was of our new Wandering Jew (didn't get them scanned :-(). We were given some clippings from a friend and it was fun to see how fast they grew! Jefferson and Reagan both like how unique this purple, hairy plant is but they each drew different aspects of it - Reagan the purple leaves and Jefferson, the angular branches. Reagan loves how it looks like "God put glitter in the leaves" when we look at them closely in the light and Jefferson just likes the hairs all over it.

All in all, I'd say that I'm learning as much as the kids are and we are totally enjoying this spring! I'm so glad that Lincoln is old enough for me to have time to expose them all to more of God's beautiful springtime this year (even if it doesn't fit the plan I had for science this year!).

Wordless Wednesday - Reagan's 1st haircut

SIX years of growth, finally cut off! Reagan as a baby was bald for almost 2 years before I could even put a barrett into her hair and it seemed to take forever for her to grow long hair. It was long with blonde and curls on the ends.

But no more.

She's tired of the painful brushing every day and she can't wash it well enough on her own. So I promised her that if she wore it down for her 6yo photos (a difficult request for her due to her over-sensitivity to the feel of it on her neck), we would finally get it cut (much to my shagrin).

So here are the before and afters. I think it's cute even if it does remind me that my only little girl is growing up!

...the mouths of babes!

The kids are cracking me up as usual with their simple, literal, and innocent observations.

Jefferson (7.5): What do they call that thing we ate if it's just a big chunk of cookie shaped like a triangle?

Me: A scone, honey.

Jefferson: But it's like a cookie?

Me: Yes, but they call it a scone....

(He's right though - the ones from Walmart are a sweet and textured just like a cookie. I hadn't thought that the kids would like them. Still don't think he remembers the word 'scone' since he asks for a the 'triangle cookie'!)

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Jefferson (while really enjoying his dinner): I could eat this meat 24/7!

(Don't think he knows what that means - just that he's heard it somewhere before)

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Reagan (6) (While coloring in a tomato for her garden book): I'm making the back darker so it's looks like a shadow!

Me:What do you mean? What made you know to do that? (Surprised at her understanding of coloring shadows to make something appear more 3-D)

Reagan: I saw them do it on Bob the Tomato. You know - the part at the end where they showed us how to draw Larry?

(Apparently the special features to a Veggie movie has instructions on drawing the characters. She must have been intrigued by this enough to remember how to shade her tomato! Her memory always surprises me!)

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Jefferson: How do you like my pot, Mommy? (As he shoves a sand bucket full of super packed dirt into my face)

Me: Uh... what do you mean?

Jefferson: I planted a seed! Do you think it will be ok? Will it grow?

(I love his enthusiasm and his belief that any seed put in soil WILL grow!)

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Reagan (while observing closely the new growth on our Wandering Jew & with utter amazement): It looks just like God put glitter in the leaves, Mommy!

Jefferson: Yeah! And they're hairy too!

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For more Tiny Talk Tuesday head over to Mary's at Not Before 7!