Ryan News

So Ryan is fortunate enough to be off the waiting list for speech therapy now. He has been going for about three weeks and this week his therapist said the little ball at the back of his throat is tilted. (I don't remember what it's called -- any help, speech therapist friends?) She also said he has some sort of sinus issue. She is referring him to a doctor and says if it is fixed he should be able to speak more clearly. I wonder if he'll have to have surgery? I find it really interesting.

Summer Fun

I will probably start school again towards the beginning of August this year. Every homeschool family plans their year differently, but I am leaning towards taking less time off in the summer and having the days available during the school year. We definitely prefer to do our appointments in the morning, so if we keep some flex days available it really helps.

So . . . July. To keep July from feeling like a month of waiting for school to start up, the kids and I have been trying to plan something little each day that we can do here at home. The rules? It has to be inexpensive or free. (Free is always good, right?) Here are two projects we did recently.

Spongeballs

Like snowballs for the summer, these are great time-fillers for kids on a hot day. We spent very little money buying some simple sponges. Next we cut them, tied them in the middle, and pulled the ends out to make them fluffy. It was something both of the girls were easily able to help with, which is always nice.
Peanut Butter Playdough

Allie had been begging me to let them make this for a while. The kids love using cookie cutters with this stuff and then eating it. Here's the recipe:

1 cup peanut butter

1/4 cup honey

1/2 cup powdered milk

Mix, play, and eat!

Overwhelmed and Undeserving

There are times when I feel God's love and am completely overwhelmed. This week there have been two significant moments. Two families with unselfish hearts have blessed us in ways that we never could have imagined. I am touched beyond words. I know Ethan doesn't mind if I share this, but we were incredibly disappointed. Besides the bathroom incident, our food disposal stopped working. There are some other details of things that made it seem we had no choice but to use a credit card to get by. I know it probably seems silly, but we have been fighting so hard to not use credit because we feel convicted about it. Ethan really wanted to ignore our committment to God to honor him with our finances. (Again, he said it was okay to share this because he knows other people have struggled with the same thing.) So we prayed about it instead and asked God to please make a way. Within two days, I think, these families came alongside and showed God's love to us.

We are so undeserving! Yet our merciful Father in heaven doesn't just provide us with our needs, but many wants as well. To the kind friends -- we will never forget your amazing kindness and love for us. You have blessed us beyond measure!

How is it possible to have such peace and joy in the midst of this world? Give it all --your worries, frustrations, fears -- to Christ. It is not worth it to hold tight to my plans and desires. I am nothing. He is everything!

Website For Book Lovers!

I am so excited to share a blog with all of you. Particularly those of you who love reading like me. And ESPECIALLY for anyone who loves reading and wants books that are clean. No language, gore, sex scenes . . . just a good story.

So enough build-up. Go visit Homespun Light and get some good ideas for summer reading!