Radio Waves

How often have you listened to the radio and the perfect song comes on? I'm not talking about a song you love just 'cause it's got a good beat and you like to sing along. I'm thinking about a song that speaks to what you're living at that particular moment, one that gets to the heart of the matter.

Today while balancing the checkbook the kids were building forts for shelter animals (aka our poor beleaguered cat, Milo), and the radio is going. While balancing the checkbook, my mind was a bit troubled over something in my life that's not working, something that I want to change but am really afraid to make the change.

And then that perfect song came on and spoke to me, as if the words were coming straight from the Throne of Heaven.

I'm finding myself at a loss for words
And the funny thing is it's OK
The last thing I need is to be heard
But to hear what You would say

Word of God speak
Would You pour down like rain
Washing my eyes to see
Your majesty
To be still and know
That You're in this place
Please let me stay and rest
In Your holiness

Word of God speak

~ Word of God Speak by MercyMe

Isn't She Lovely?

I took a few photos of Charlotte on her birthday. They're a little dark and over-processed in Photoshop for my tastes. However, I'm a little prejudiced and think she still looks beautiful, in spite of my bad shooting day.

So what do you DO all day?

I tell Eric at least 84 times a day to focus on his work (I've said it so much, that this morning when Charlotte saw Eric not doing his math, she said, "Do your homework, Eric!" I nearly burst out laughing.)

We have all sorts of subjects we cover each day. My favorites would probably be math and social studies. Math gives me immediate feedback on whether the kids are learning anything, so that's why I like it. Social studies encompasses so much - history, people, places, etc. that you'd have to be trying really hard to make something like that boring. But I'd have to say that the kids' favorites are the art and science experiments we conduct. Here are a few we've done over the past month:

We covered a unit on magnetism, and this experiment called for placing a strong magnet under the paper and sprinkling finely cut up steel wool pads on the top. This allowed the kids to see the magnetic field of the magnet.


We also did a unit on Volcanoes, which both kids really enjoyed. After we completed the unit, they built clay volcanoes around a plastic water bottle. Eric is painting his with cotton balls.

Charlotte painted hers too!

With a little water, dish soap, baking soda and vinegar, we had us a nice lava flow. If you've got red food coloring, put that in there too! I wish I had a picture of when we were setting Eric's off the second time. I have no idea how I did it - must of been the ratio of liquids to baking soda - but once I poured in the vinegar the "lava" shot up about 2 feet into the air and landed on the table with a splat. Eric and I were stunned for a second, then burst out laughing. Eric summed it all up by exclaiming, "Now that's what I'm talkin' about!" Kids!


We also briefly studied architecture, focusing on cathedrals and why they were built so long ago. Our art project for this unit was making a stained glass window. I do have to say they look really pretty up on our slider door where they catch the light! Just a little glue, tissue paper, waxed paper, and black construction paper and you can have a stained glass window too!

Look Mom!

The kids and I were heading to the outlet mall for new winter shoes for them. On the way, Charlotte exclaimed, "Look Mom! It's a cloud maker!"





All I could do was laugh. The thought of a cloud maker just made me smile! I didn't have the heart to tell her it was pollution. So I didn't.

P.S. - I'm glad I happened to have my camera with in the car!