Oh the Bliss!

So if I'm going to embrace this homeschooling thing (all two days a week I do it) then I'm going to embrace all the perks that go along with it. Today was a perk. It was HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOT today. I have dubbed this fall, "The Summer that Never Was". (Feel free to call it that amongst your friends.) It was over 100 degrees, and for my three German friends who may, or may not read my blog, that means it was HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOT. Hot. So we went to the beach. Because you can do that when you homeschool. There is lot's of learning to be done at the beach. Or none. Addison taught the "Safety First" lesson, insisting on wearing her vest - though she hardly goes in the water above her ankles due to her "wave allergy", her words, not mine. She's a serious student, no? One funny thing, (that might be only funny to me and my mom), about our beach trip, excuse me, field trip, was snack time. My mom and I pulled out our snack bags and discovered th...

Troy loves to help. LOVES it. And he's pretty good at it too. He helps me in the kitchen all the time. His favorite job used to be setting the table, although he never really mastered that one. Now his favorite job is unloading the silverware basket into the silverware tray. (He's so good he can do it with one hand holding a carrot.) It's pretty fun because he'll stand there and pull out each piece, one at at time, tell me what it is (or ask if he's unsure) then he sorta squeals and says, "OH! There it goes!" and puts it where it belongs. He's a fresh two year old, keep in mind, so I get a chance to teach him that he's doing a job, he needs it to it diligently and complete it as unto the Lord. He does a great job and he feels so good knowing he's a helper too since he sees Addison and Ben helping me all the time. And for those of you wondering, yes, I let him put the knives away too. GASP! I know, I'm such a risk taker. Not the steak knives...

There are a lot of unknowns out there for the Fitzfam. Will we have more kids? Will we stay in Mission Viejo forever? Will we adopt? Will we ever have chickens again? These are not things we are deciding anytime soon, fyi, but they are questions that come up frequently by us and others. (Addison is particularly concerned about the chickens). Advice has been given that it might be a good idea to share with people early on that we might be considering adopting. I think this is good, not only for adoption, but for most of life's banner-worthy news. It's good because 1. It allows people the time they might need to work out with themselves (and maybe God) their reaction (which may or may not be positive), losing the shock and getting more at the true emotions behind the response. 2. It allows people the time they (hopefully) need to pray for us, as we come to mind, and where our family is heading. 3. It gets people excited and saying things like, "Oh that FitzFam, always keepin...

I'm a soccer mom. I will cheer and scream and don the team colors. I will drive to and fro and happily, no, ecstatically, and be at every game (barring any interference with previously scheduled nap times). I will provide healthy snacks - and bring enough for siblings because I was that sibling once. But I will not, no way, not gonna do it, won't, put any type of "Soccer Mom" decal on my minivan. Period. Go Blue Thunder!

We've already established that I'm no Jesus . So it should be of no surprise that this mothering thing can be quite difficult at times. I feel like I'm treading water trying to figure out how to get it all done. Anyone out there like the feeling of drowning? No? We've started the whole "Big Kid" schedule, which is what happens when you have a big kid I guess. On one hand it's cool because I get to say things like "No you can't - - - -, it's a school night", but on the other hand I have meetings and classes and appointments and places to be and consequences if I'm not there (or not there on time, sorry Ben). It's not that Ben has to be places, it's that I need to get him there AND three other little ones in tow. I don't want to start using the four as an excuse as to why my life feels chaotic, but sometimes... Part of me would really like to just move to the country and homeschool my kids and live without any kind of sch...

This is Chrystal Renn . She's beautiful. Good thing too because she's a model. But not just any model, no, she's a plus size model. PLUS SIZE. This world is so warped.

I've been living in the season of "Less is More" for a few months now and I've made little habits here and there of getting rid of stuff. For example: when I fold laundry I almost always have a TJ's brown bag sitting next to me, so as I fold I can easily put unecessary, rarely worn, (or over -worn), duplicate items (how many brown long sleeve shirts does one girl need?) right into the bag. It's very handy, I highly recommend it. I'm also trying very hard not to buy anything that we don't need, trusting that the Lord will provide for all our needs, and even lots of our wants too ('cause He's cool like that, right C? ). And I feel like I've been doing pretty well with this. In fact; up until yesterday if someone would've asked me what I want for my hugegiganticmega thirtieth birthday that's quickly approaching I wouldn't have been able to think of one single thing. Not one. (Ok, maybe a pair of TOMS , but will that desire ever re...

Just so ya'll can feel like you were there with Ben, here is the play-by-play of Ben's first day at Cornerstone Community School . Woke up bright and early, was really cold, so put on Gma's bathrobe (or housecoat for all you southern folks). He is going to kill me for posting this picture some day. ;-) Getting all ready to go. Lots of hugs... Addie was so sweet, made Ben a card (her own idea) and gave it to him when we picked him up. The school meets in the Education Center of a church, so it's a really pretty campus, with a little lake, and fountains and a rose garden. Ben was juuuuuuust about over all the picture taking. But I told him it was my right, as his mother, to take as many "First Day of School" pictures I wanted, and that I will be doing so on every "First Day" for the rest of his life. Did he learn nothing from his first day of Pre-K? So sweet and so big. I tried not to make a big deal out of the morning, because he hates that sort of th...

I found this online and had to share it immediately. It pretty much sums up how I fee about Disney Princesses. Admittedly, I'm a hypocrite: even though I won't let Addison watch the movies I totally let her dress up like them... Click, or double click, the image to make it larger and actually readable. The only thing this is missing is Tinkerbell and with a quote summing up her sorry body image issues and her terribly bratty attitude. I would like to note that I grew up watching Disney movies and seemed to turn out ok... but my girls are YEARS away from being allowed to partake in actual movie viewing. And while I'm on the Disney movie subject, let's ruffle a few more feathers and discuss the lack of a mother figure in EVERY SINGLE DISNEY MOVIE, except Lion King (but his dad is brutally killed before his eyes), and Sleeping Beauty (but her parents have a spell put on her for the better portion of her life.) What's up with that???