New Year's Eve 2012

This has become one of our family's favorite holidays!  We took an idea that was shared some years ago on the FIAR boards and used it to add excitement and sweet memories to this night!  If you haven't tried it before, I highly recommend it.  You can do it anyway you like - starting earlier or later.  Ending earlier.  Changing the activities, food, etc.  Its just a fun way to countdown the hours!  You could also use this to countdown to other things too.  I enjoy (and so do my children) counting down to the New Year.

We have done this enough years now that we don't even have to do too much planning ahead - which is nice as its not like there is a lot of free time just before  NYE.  We like watching a movie though and that does need to be planned.  I purchased colored bags at WalMart that were 10 for $1.  I printed the clock faces here.  Each bag had a clue pinned to the bag and something in the bag that related to the activity.

 1^st clue:  This was supposed to go with the game Silly Expressions which I couldn't find so I pulled out another game I'd bought at a consignment sale which we had never played.  It was a hit!

People are silly and funny too!

Do you think they are sometimes blue?

Maybe they’re happy or perhaps mad

A game of expressions will make you glad!

 We had teams of 2 and each team drew 8 cards.  On the cards were listed various things that you had to do or find or draw or make.  You were to try to do as many of them as possible - and could be creative.  You had 30 minutes to complete as many as possible.

Just a little cuteness.

 Teammates would divide and conquer and it was great hearing the laughter!

 Making a hat

 Some of the items that were collected, drawn and made.  After 30 minutes, each team shared what they had done for each item on the list.

 This was a really fun game and great for a mix of ages!

 My children enjoy taking turns drawing things out of the bags.    Many of my clues were the same as in years past - or slightly modified.  Nobody seems to mind doing many of the same things!

2^nd clue:  In the bag were things to make noisemakers.

Let’s get ready for some noise.

This is for the girls and the boys.

We’ll also need signs to mark the date.

Take photos of families to start the slate.

 We made them from paper plates.  Simple and each person can do as much or little as they want.

 We used popcorn as our filler.  I love seeing Eliana doing things on her own.

 Draw on a plate.  Fold in half.  Fill with popcorn or beans.  Staple shut.  Couldn't be easier!

 The next bag was a last minute addition to the evening.  And boy was it a HIT!

3^rd clue:

Its time to be silly, time to run free

Open the bag and you will see!

Silly String!

 We headed outside.  It was dark but not too cold.  I just love the expressions on their faces!

 The photographer wasn't immune from getting sprayed.

 Can't you just see the fun they are having?

 All of them loved this and their only complaint was that I hadn't bought more cans of it.  They were from the dollar store.  We will definitely be doing that again next year!

 4^rd clue:

We are eating something different this year.

Its still familiar, delicious and fun

Help us chop and cook and serve. 

Everyone will be glad when we are done.

This was a change.  We usually make pizzas and they each design their own with choices of many toppings. We decided to do tacos this year.  It was not received well by some of mine.  I think we'll have to switch back to pizza next year.  This was just easier to do GF in large quantities.

While we were cooking, they played some games.  Good thing since we ran out of time for some of the games later in the evening.  This was Minute to Win It.  Challenges to do things ... like building a card house.

 Silly races.

 Blowing cards across the table.  Light and fun.

^5th clue:  In the bag - papers with questions, pens and lollipops

What makes you special and unique?      

Getting to know this is a treat.

We’ll look to the future and ponder the past,

Seeking to follow God each day of our path.

I love this part!  Its fun to see what  people will say and I think it makes a neat keepsake from year to year.  After recording the answers, we take turns reading the answers for each question trying to figure out who wrote each answer.

 Its not always easy to answer and sometimes hearing someone else's answer will remind you of something you forgot.  Its funny too to see when your answer is the same as someone else's.

 Just makes me smile.

 6^th clue:  In the bag - sprinkles and other decorating items.

God made you and you can’t beat that!

Glasses, freckles or a funny hat.

Our faces help others know who we are,

But our insides are what make us a star.

My sweet friend Rebecca made these homemade gingerbread men ... GLUTEN FREE!  I'm so blessed to have such a thoughtful friend willing to do this!  

And they tasted good too!

 Cookies are fun to decorate and we saw a lot of creative expression!!!

 They work  hard on these and its fun.  Its not an activity that I do often at all so I'm glad to have this at least once a year!

 Can you guess who this is?

 Does this help?  Have you seen the movie "Tangled"?

 7^th clue:  In the bag - movie Narnia and popcorn

It’s time for adventure and maybe a giggle

Find a spot to sit and don’t wiggle

Does anyone need something to eat

You can have some popcorn while in your seat

We watch the movie on the "big screen" - a sheet hung on the wall with a projector playing the movie from our laptop.  Its such a great movie.  Even though we've seen it before, its fun to see it again!

 8^th clue:

Let’s turn our hearts to God and lift up our prayer

He is here with us and out everywhere.

There are others who need Him and we play a part

We’ll pray for others and seek His heart.

Each person writes something that they want prayer for on the slip of paper.  Each person draws one of the slips and go around the table praying for each other's requests. 

 Family Photos

 It's almost time!

9^th clue:

It’s time to say good-bye to ‘11

Watching the ball drop is a fun time again

A hug, a prayer, a sweet drink for the toast

Happy New Year, it’s 2012!

We watch the ball drop, toast with Sprite (this way we can get diet - its still bubbly - and much better for a diabetic).  

 Don't forget the shakers!

 We also played some fun Charades using a word generator found  at this site.

 What a fun night spent with family and friends!  We have much to be thankful for and are looking forward to the New Year!

 Blessings
Leslie

Time with Family

We visited with my sister and my parents right after Christmas.  My parents moved into their new place just a few days before Christmas.  My sister and her family did a fabulous job in helping to arrange the furniture and unpack many of the boxes so that their place was comfortable (as much as could be when you were moving and there were still a LOT of boxes).

Their place is nice and about 20 minutes from my sister's house.  There is still a lot to be done, but it's a lovely place.  We enjoyed being able to see them and help a little bit.  I keep praying that God would bless them and their time in this new home.  Change is never easy.  I am thankful that they have friends there already.

We had a relaxing and fun time at my sister's house.  The kids had a blast playing outside - with pulleys, balls and more.

 I know this is fuzzy, but can you see the smile on my boy who has come so far that he was willing to do this - and loved it!

 We also exchanged gifts.  My Mom made quilts of various sizes for her grandchildren.

 Sometimes it's just fun to be silly with your cousin!

 Lots of ping pong too!

 I did not do a great job taking pictures.  I did however enjoy my time with my family.  And that is what really matters.

I am so thankful for my family!  I'm thankful that we enjoy being together and that there aren't awkward relationships.  God has blessed us richly!

Blessings
Leslie

Operation Christmas Child & Service project

Wanted to share some photos from our time at Operation Christmas Child.  This is such a wonderful experience!  I highly recommend it to anyone able to do it.  You need to be at least 13 years old and the reservations go quickly!  We called the day that the registration opened (I think it was Aug 1st) to get our group signed on.

There are 7 facilities in different states.  We are blessed to have 2 here in NC.  We drove to the Charlotte facility to work.  Since it was soooo close ... we made a stop by Ikea on the way.  LOL  What a fun store!

 We met some friends to work with again this year.  We started out in the training area, learning about the various steps in the process.

 From inspecting boxes to packaging, each person has a different role.

 We started out in an area where there were lots of extra things donated for the boxes.  More  boxes are filled with these extra things and brought to the stations.  If there is a shoebox that has to have something removed (ex. liquid items that can't be shipped), then more things can be put into the box.  Or if a box just has room for more things, there are options here to add.

 Met my long-time FIAR friend Bo and her daughter too!  Wish we had more time to chat - we'll have to plan that better next year.  :-)

 Lots of smiles because this really is a fun place to work.  Its neat to hear the stories of how the boxes have touched and changed people's lives!  Changed lives ... all from a shoebox!  God is good!

 My girl hard at work!

 A  picture of the "lines" where the boxes are inspected and then packed to be shipped.  The large boxes are labelled for age group (2-4, 5-9, 10-14) and gender.      

 Rebecca and I in front of the filler area.

 Loved seeing this in one of the boxes!  This is a book from our homeschool curriculum and I loved thinking about a little boy or girl in another country reading this sweet story.  :-)

 After working in the filler area for awhile, we then moved to one of the lines.  We again were given different jobs.  Some inspected boxes, others helped label boxes and some helped pack boxes.  This is also the area where boxes were scanned if the person sending it asked for a notice of where the box was sent.

 There is a list of things to look for that can't be included in the box.  Things are only removed if necessary and the integrity of the box is kept intact as much as is possible.

 The goal was to get at least 15 shoeboxes into each large shipping box.  The green and red "official" boxes sure were easy to pack!  It was challenging to pack the various sizes - kind of like working a puzzle so that you could maximize the space and the number of boxes!

 This is a view from the upper level of the warehouse floor.

Just getting ready to leave.  We had a wonderful time working and look forward to going again next year.  Roger was sweet to stay home with our younger children so that Rebecca and I could enjoy this day out.

All the volunteers are given an OCC shirt.

We treated ourselves to Olive Garden on the way home.  It was a long, fun and fulfilling day spent with people I really enjoy being with.

We also did a service project with our FIAR homeschool group.  This is one we have done for a number of years and it has worked well with the age range of our group.  We make fleece blankets to donate to children in a local shelter.  

 We also make cards to go along with the blankets.

 There is something for everyone and we end with a potluck lunch.

 Having done this for a few years now, more are comfortable with cutting and making the blankets and that is fun too.

 I love seeing the variety in all that is made.  I imagine it blessing so many children.

 We pray over the blankets and the people who will be receiving them.  I'm thankful we can serve our community in this way.

 I'm thankful for friends that are willing to serve.

I would love to find more projects that we can do throughout the year that are things a wide range of ages can do.  My youngest is a little challenging in some arenas.  *grin*  Anyone have any suggestions?

Blessings

Leslie

Three guys in the kitchen ...

and what do you get?

Guess it depends on the guys.  And for the record, they were each working independently here on 3 different projects.  I'm going to back up a bit though and give you the full story of our day.

We started our day early with a field trip.  We visited the Art Museum in Raleigh to see the Rembrandt display.  

We were divided into groups by age and each group was led by a docent. 

We had excellent docents who were informative and engaging with the children.  The exhibit was crowded, but well done.  If you are interested in going, it will only be here about 2 more weeks (until 22 Jan).  The picture below was one of the few moments when Eliana was really participating with the group.  LOL  I carried her most of the time (and I can tell she has been gaining weight!)

The younger students learned about being a "Rembrandt detective".  What are the qualities that you can look for in one of his paintings.  She talked about lighting, the "white spot" on the nose, the layers of paint, using the butt end of a brush to remove some layers of paint to create detail in hair, etc.  It really was interesting.

There were obviously no pictures allowed on the tour.  After our tour was over, we headed out.  I had packed a picnic lunch for Eliana.  One of my sweet friends took the rest of my children home.  Eliana and I were headed to the Down Syndrome clinic.  Its been over 3 years since we've been.  Its not that I didn't want to go, but only that the dates available were a constant conflict with our schedule.  But, today it worked.  I sat in the parking lot trying to get Eliana to eat so that her food had time to digest.  I was hoping this might help it all to stay down!

Did I share about our last specialist appt?  Cardiology - two months ago.  She got so worked up about everything - taking vitals, EKG, echo - that once we made it to the exam room she threw up all over everything.  I really didn't want that to happen today!

We made it to the clinic and had a good, but very long visit.  (3.5 hours)  I'm SO thankful for the iPad as it totally kept her amused while we were in the waiting room and as I talked with many people.  Here are the people we met with
    *a geneticist (collecting and sharing information)
    *a speech therapist (about getting additional speech - we go once per week now)
    * a social worker (about services offered through the public school)
    * a nutritionist who loaned me 3 books on Celiac disease and gluten free cooking!
    *an appt to meet with the physical therapist to see about getting inserts for her shoes
    *a doctor who specializes in Ds research
   
I've gotten good information on some local resources and am waiting for more info to come.  It was well worth the time we spent.  All were very encouraging too and positive about the fact that we are homeschooling.  (That was honestly very refreshing as I'm not always sure what the reaction will be.)

The last thing was going to see the phlebotomist.  The part that Eliana had been dreading was finally here.  The *owie*.  Every time someone came close to her, she started crying and saying "go home" or "Mommy".  I could comfort her by saying "no owie".  It won't hurt.  Not this time though.  She started to cry as we walked down the hall toward the lab.  Thankfully this gal is GREAT at drawing blood quickly and on the first try!  After all that Eliana went through last summer, I was very thankful for this!  They are checking her numbers for the celiac screen and hopefully we'll see great improvement.  They will also be checking her iron levels which will hopefully be normal!  We'll go back again in 6 months.

When we arrived home close to 5pm, we began to hear a story.  It was lunch time and *someone* wanted a bowl of soup.  He wanted to heat it up and asked for a bowl.  He was told to use a pot.  So he did.  A metal one.  In the microwave.

Yeah.  I guess I hadn't covered that with him.  You can't put ANY metal in the microwave.  Thankfully, it wasn't in there long, but the handle/button on the lid popped off after 5-10 seconds.  Again, thankfully, his big brother heard it and stopped the microwave.  Wow, that could have been so much worse.

The pot - and the knob that popped off.

 After the long day I'd had wrangling hanging out with my littlest cutie, I was beat!  I went upstairs to rest for a few minutes.  I was able to do that because Christopher had started dinner for us earlier in the day in the crockpot.  (And it did smell delicious when I walked into the house too!)

I wish I had taken a picture of it, but didn't.  Something like this.   Even with the fresh avocado slices.


 Did I mention it was delicious?  Christopher is an excellent cook.  He began to cook at an early age and was willing to experiment with flavors and usually with amazing success.  He is much more adventurous than I am and it serves him well.  It has been fun having him cooking again.  Thank you Christopher!

OK, that was the second guy in the kitchen.  So far, not too bad.  One mishap.  One delicious meal.  Now the last one.  Another mishap.  At this rate, I'm going to be getting some new cookware and things.  LOL

As I was resting, I could smell burning.  I thought it was odd because I knew the soup was in the crockpot and the rest of the meal was a salad.  What could be burning.  I didn't worry too much though because I knew that Roger was downstairs and would take care of it - or let me know if I needed to do something.

What I found out when I came down was that there had been something burning  - only it wasn't food.  It was this.  A cutting board.

 He (can you guess who?) put it on the stovetop.  My first comment was "you shouldn't put a cutting board on the stovetop".  He turned on the wrong burner.  Before he noticed it, the entire center of the circle was melted and liquidy.  (I know that isn't a word, but you do know what I mean, right?)

 He quickly grabbed it off the burner and dropped it on the floor.  (Thankfully the liquid side was up.)  Then worked to get the melted plastic off of the stove first trying to figure out which of my kitchen utensils would be fine to sacrifice in the process.  LOL

 Um, yuck!  What a mess!  Well, I am trying to do some decluttering and the kitchen does need it too.

 Funny thing is that the smoke detector didn't detect anything - and apparently there was smoke.  It does however, go off anytime I cook at 450 or higher.

So that's been my day.  We ended the evening playing games which was a lot of fun.  It's time to get some sleep now.  I'm hoping tomorrow is a calmer day.

Hugs,
Leslie