some school pics...

we made butter...

(for a study of the Mayflower/Colonial Times)

minus the whole cow thing anyway.

close enough!

 uh....it is really really YUM!

 fake blood...

 Soccer...

(that is not Samantha there in the middle - it's a friend)

 picture day...no one needed to tell this girl how to pose!
(yes, she wears matching jewlery to soccer...what? you don't?)

 big hill at soccer..

 Lydia's co-op art class...that she LOVES.

our year is going great.

not perfect but really really great.

we miss days or only do part of school on some days.

or like today, we cancel a field trip because mommy is so behind with life and needs a day to clean/catch-up.

but across the board, great.

Nora and Sophie are a challenge because they always want to do MORE.

Samantha is a challenge because she always wants to do LESS.

and Lydia is a challenge because she always wants ME.

and I'm pretty much terrible at getting to all of those things.

but still they are all thriving. (it's called 'God's Grace' - go get you some!)

I'm sure the true test will come later in life when all they have learned or not learned starts to matter but for now, we're good.

And that's about all my brain can handle right now.

I've got one more bathroom and two more rooms to catch up on and then we're off to fill our Operation Christmas Child boxes....

gotta run.

thanks for the break.