Fun with Ice...

In an effort to entertain the little ones during this loooooong week cooped up indoors, I tried out an activity that I saw on Chasing Cheerios a few days ago. Using a large plastic tub, I froze water and legos (they were the first things I grabbed!) after the children went to bed. In the morning, we took the tub out of the freezer and set it on the counter during breakfast. Once we had gathered some spoons, salt, warm water, and a few other things, I turned the ice onto a cookie sheet and let the kids at it! It entertained them for a long time and was such a cheap way to get a few thrills on an otherwise boring sick day at home.

Yarn Along...

Casting on is going much better this week. I was able to complete a small dolls washcloth during naptime today and then try casting on for a human sized one before the baby woke up. This week's problem is the fact that I get a long length of yarn between my needles on the first row I do after the cast on. I plan on googling that problem to see if there is a way to avoid that. I am loving these Yarn Alongs... they are keeping my motivated to continue working on my knitting! I am near the end of the blue yarn and am really looking forward to going to the store to find something new to knit with. Any suggestions?

I am in the midst of reading two books this week: Tom's Midnight Garden and The Gentle Art of Domesticity. It is too early to tell what I think about Tom's (it seems a little sci-fi and that is not my favorite genre), but I LOVE The Gentle Art of Domesticity and am dreading the library due date! It is chock full of gorgeous photographs and encouraging essays on creating a warm and lovely home... definitely worth checking out!

Join in the Yarn Along at Ginny's Blog, Small Things!

Little Sicklings...

The little ones are sick again. Sugar Plum and Little Man seem to be on the mend (though they are still coughing too much for my liking). Baby Button, however, was just getting worse. We took him to see the doctor today and it has been determined that he had pneumonia (again!). Hopefully the antibiotics will kick in quickly and he'll be back to his happy little self in a few days. Please keep him in your prayers!

Living and Learning: August...

Faith
Transfiguration
Saint Herman of Alaska
Saint Tikhon of Zadonsk
Dormition
The Beheading of Saint John the Baptist

Homemaking
Serve meals on the porch
Visit farmer's market before it closes for the year
Make S'mores as a family
Organize out of season children's clothing in nursery closet
Buy Children's Hangers
Print Icons to Frame for the Feasts
Frame children's artwork
Plan for upcoming school year
Order Kindergarten Curriculum
Purchase School Supplies
Continue Good Homemaking Habits
Continue Knitting
Update Photographs Around the House
Zinnias Blooming!
Replenish Everyone's Undergarments
Continue Potty Learning for Little Man

Sugar Plum
Read Aloud from Milly-Molly-Mandy
Spend One-on-One Time on Art Projects
Take Her Out for a Hair Trim and Ice Cream (Just the Two of Us)

Little Man
Read Some Special Vehicle Books Picked Just for Him
Play Trains Together
Take Him to the Pool and Out for a Donut (Just the Two of Us)

Baby Button
Read Goodnight Moon and Pat the Bunny
Enjoy Cuddling
Take Videos and Pictures of Him
Finish His Baby Book

Learning Basket Themes
Watermelon
Circus
Bugs
Seashore

Special Days
Five Years at Christ the Savior -1st
Full Corn Moon - 13th
Oksana - 13th
Courtney - 22nd

Learning
Practice being still and quiet during services and prayers
Practice Venerating Icons Properly
Make it a Habit to Tidy the Bedroom Every Morning
Feastday shelf and book basket
Learning Basket for Transfiguration
Prepare baskets of grapes for Transfiguration
Learning Basket for Saint Herman
Learning Basket for Dormition
Purchase flowers to be blessed on Dormition
Go to the Movie Theater to See Winnie the Pooh
Attend a few performances/concerts before summer is over
Look for Toads and Frogs
Catch Bugs
Visit the Beach Once a Week
Visit the Pool Frequently
Weekly Library Trip
Take Morning Walks Before it Gets too Hot
Afternoon Waterplay - hose, pool, sprinkler, etc.
Care for Plants
Peter Pan at the Children's Theater
Boardwalk Rides
Learn Several Nursery Rhymes By Heart: Little Boy Blue and Little Miss Muffet

Learning Basket: Peaches...

Books
Each Peach Pear Plum
Peach and Blue
Three Perfect Peaches
Apples to Oregon: Being the (Slightly) True Narrative of How a Brave Pioneer Father Brought Apples, Peaches, Plums, Grapes, and Cherries (and Children) Across the Plains

Activities
Pick Peaches
Make Peach Delights: Peach Ice Cream, Peach Cobbler or Peach Crisp, Peach Jam, etc.
Practice Cutting Peaches
Explore a Peach Orchard

Learning Basket: Sunflowers...

Books
Camille and the Sunflowers
Katie and the Sunflowers
Sunflower House
Sunflower Houses: Inspiration from the Garden
The Sunflower Parable
Sunflower Sal

Activities
Taste Sunflower Seeds
Plant Sunflower Seeds
Count and Sort Sunflower Seeds
Hang a Sunflower Head from a Branch for the Birds to Feast on
Look for Fields of Sunflowers (they are abundant near our church)
Buy Sunflowers for the Table
Play Flower Alphabet Rummy

Audio Books...

Lately, we've been listening to some really great audio books. We borrow them through inter-library loan and listen to them in the car or in the morning while the children play or color. Some of our recent favorites have been:

Mary Poppins
The Complete Tales of Peter Rabbit and Friends
Winnie-the-Pooh and The House at Pooh Corner
The Complete Adventures of Curious George
Tikki Tikki Tembo
Doctor DeSoto

Our daughter is not far from getting to enjoy so many fun classics... The Little House books, The Secret Garden, A Little Princess, The Borrowers, The Ramona books, etc. It will be nice to re-read those stories with her!

Beatrix Potter and the Last of the Hydrangeas...

The children and I went on a little adventure to a different library than we are used to yesterday. We went to see a little play based on The Wind and the Willows and since the library was located in one of our favorite seaside towns, we walked around a bit. Our last stop was to Little Man's favorite shop... what he lovingly refers to as The Train Store. It is a little bookshop that boasts a big train table with all of the trimmings! While the little ones played, I spotted a beautiful Beatrix Potter puzzle and was able to get it for the children as a little treat (extra fun since it was her birthday yesterday!). We put it together in the evening and the colors are even better inside the box!

Father John trimmed up the hydrangea bush by our front door a few days ago, so we are trying to savor the last vase of blooms on our table. I was surprised how long they lasted this year despite the heatwave we had last week. Summer is not my favorite season, but I am trying to enjoy the special things that only summer offers: dips in the pool, trips to the beach, drippy ice cream cones, the summer reading programs, the abundance of flowers, fruit, and vegetables, outside shows in the evening, and on and on! What are you enjoying this summer?

Standing!

Almost overnight, little Button is standing!
It is bittersweet, this parenting thing.

Yarn Along...

There is not much to report on the knitting front. I was able to watch a few videos online for casting off (thanks to those of you who recommended some to me!) and finished my first washcloth! It was promptly tested out that night in the bathtub and all the little ones approved! Since I'd like a huge stack of washcloths for the bathroom, I immediately tried to cast on to my second one... remember, my sister cast onto the one I finished for me. I have been watching casting on videos all week and ripping out my work over and over again and I am still having a hard time! Hopefully one of these days it will click and I can make some progress. I was expecting to be humbled by learning a new craft and skill, but not this quickly!

I just picked up a very old copy (there is even an ancient wallpaper cover!) of Mrs. Miniver at the library this afternoon and was able to read a few pages while the baby nursed. It is my type of book... very domestic and very feminine.

Join in the Yarn Along at Ginny's Blog, Small Things!

Life is Just a Bowlful of Cherries...

Tiny Milkshakes...

One of Father John's specialties is milkshakes. Occasionally, he'll make them in the afternoon during naptime. Today he waited for the children to wake up and made each child a tiny milkshake. They were thrilled! What a treat on such a hot day!

July's Nature Table...

Naughty, Naughty...

The first of many naughty moments for little Button!

Yarn Along...

I have attempted knitting twice in the past. The first time was a few years ago when I received a knitting dvd for Christmas. I completed a hideous scarf and put knitting aside when I lost patience with my mistakes. Last summer, I discovered that a few ladies in our neighborhood hold a knitting club once a month at different members houses. Perfect! Except for the fact that I had a premature newborn and a fuzzy brain (oh, and two other little ones!). My sister came down for the family reunion this past week and we took a trip to the yarn store. She cast on for me and knit a few rows while I drove us home. Later, I picked up the yarn and knit (messily) without help! I've completed my washcloth, but don't know how to cast off. I plan to take a walk to one of the knitting ladies to see if she can help me cast off and then cast on for my next one. I'd like a pile of knitted washcloths to wash my little ones with.

On to what we are reading: The favorite book in our home is currently Jenny and the Cat Club. We borrowed it from the library initially, but when the children begged to keep it, I gave in and ordered it from Amazon as a gift for Sugar Plum's namesday. It is a wonderful! And so captivating to my children! I have the others on my wishlist. For my personal reading, I plan on starting Our Church and Our Children, which I found on our recent trip to Saint Vladimir's Bookstore.

Join in the Yarn Along at Ginny's Blog, Small Things!

The Blessing of Automobiles and Bicycles...

Prayer for the Blessing of Automobiles

O Lord our God, Who makes the clouds Thy chariot and Who walks on the wings of the wind, Who has sent to Thy servant, the Prophet Elias, a chariot of fire, Who has guided man to invent this (car, truck, motorcycle, etc.) which is as fast as the wind. We thank Thee for Thou hast provided Thy servants with this vehicle to serve their various needs.

Therefore, O Master, pour out now upon it Thy heavenly blessings; assign to it a guardian angel to preserve it from all evil. And as Thou didst grant faith and grace by Thy deacon Philip to the man from Ethiopia who was sitting in his chariot and reading holy Scripture, show the way of salvation to Thy servants. So that helped by Thy grace and always intent on doing good works, they may after all the trials of their pilgrimage on earth, attain to everlasting joys, through the intercessions of our Most-pure Lady, the Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary, by the power of the precious and life-giving Cross; through the prayers of the holy Angels; of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker and of all the Saints:

For Thou art the Provider and Sanctifier of all things and to Thee do we ascribe glory, and to Thy Only-begotten Son, and Thy All-holy, good, and life-creating Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen.

Homing...

After two and a half weeks of running around, we finally had our first day home alone. We did a little bit around the house... sheet washing, grocery shopping, bathroom cleaning, and a little gardening. In the afternoon, a big storm rolled through. We watched the rain on the porch and spent the rest of the day just being home. Truly the best remedy!

Boardwalk Rides...

Visiting the Flower Farm...

Feeding the Goats...