Posts Tagged ‘Windham Familia’
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I’ve always thought it would be wonderful to speak a second language. I took four semesters of German in college, and while I could speak/understand it then, I can’t even recall any words now. Jonathan grew up in Texas with a Spanish speaking family, but they never taught him and only spoke to the children in English.
When we had the girls, we decided we really wanted them to learn Spanish. Not only do we think it’s an important language to know, we want them to have a strong connection to their heritage. {For those who don’t know us personally, despite having a very Anglo last name, Jonathan is in fact Hispanic.} When Grandma moved in with us we saw it as a great opportunity for the girls to learn Spanish.
Then Jonathan decided that rather than just having the girls learn, we should make it a family adventure. And so, our family has embarked on learning Spanish. We got some amazing books from the library and are constantly quizzing Grandma on proper enunciation and wording. The girls {i.e. Julia} are slowly picking up on different words and I’m putting together sentences {Yo quiero uno vaso de lecha, por favor – I would like milk please}. It’s been pretty fun, listening to Spanish songs and reading through the picture dictionaries. Hopefully we can say a few Spanish phrases for families back in Texas the next time we visit.
Visit Alicia at Alicia’s Homemaking for more Try New Adventures Thursday.
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Our family’s educational plans {at this point} are to homeschool the Windhamettes. For various reasons we love the idea and I have been looking forward to both the challenge and excitement of being their teacher.
At the beginning of September we started “school”. Tuesdays and Thursdays for 15-20 minutes the girls sit in the kitchen writing or reading. Hannah doesn’t do much other than scribble on paper, but Julia has really taken off over the last few weeks. We have books that can be written in with dry erase markers, so she practices her numbers, letters, shapes and identifying colors. It has been an absolute joy {most times!} and she is loving it {most days!}. We’ve taken a couple of “field trips” around the neighborhood to learn about different things in our city {what are/how fire hydrants work, why we don’t feed wild animals, etc}. I keep it pretty low key, going at Julia’s rate and allowing her to decide how things go {like when to stop – she usually wants to go past the time limit but Hannah doesn’t}. Our school days are making me look forward even more to our time when we really start “schooling”.
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College football is in full swing and we are keeping to my plan of actually watching games this year. I’ve seen more games this season then perhaps in the last 10 years {when the Titans first went to Tennessee}. It’s been a lot of fun actually, and I’m really excited about this Saturday’s Texas vs. Oklahoma game.
Jonathan and the girls survived their first weekend without mama this month. I think they might tell you they barely survived. The night I came home, Jonathan kept repeating “I’m so glad you’re home.” He has always been very appreciative of the work it takes for me being at home with the girls, but I think my time away made us both realize how important it is that we are in this together. It was good for all of us {perhaps me more than them ;)} and my time away made me love my time here even more.
Hannah has finally gotten all her teeth, which we’re hoping means less crankiness. She’s started talking more {besides just grunting} and will now say: Mama, Dada, Jack and Thank You. She’s also started signing: water, please and sometimes “more”. She doesn’t sign all the time, but will when prompted. It’s pretty cute to see her get really excited when she’s done it correctly and gets what she’s asked for.
Julia seems to be getting smarter by the minute. We are loosely doing preschool twice a week. I set aside time in the morning to go over shapes, colors, numbers and/or the alphabet. We have dry erase markers and books for her to “write her letters”. She really likes it and seems to enjoy the structure. Today we had “school” outside and learned all about fire hydrants and how they worked. She loved walking around the neighborhood and park pointing out all the fire hydrants.
I’ve had a really great month. My trip to New York, the change of the weather. It’s been a good September and makes me look forward to the next few months before winter hits.
And last {but not least} I feel I should mention Jack. I realize he hasn’t made it into any family pictures. It’s hard enough to wrangle to toddlers let alone a dog. But this month was a pretty big deal for Jack; he was diagnosed with hypothyroidism. He went on some medication last week and already we can see an improvement in his energy. Now hopefully his hair will start coming back.
Very Chic Style of a Toddler
Posted on: September 27, 2010
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It’s Monday and my brain and body are recovering from a looong weekend. Our family has been a little sick and it hit me hard Saturday afternoon and most of Sunday. Bummer. I figured a good way to cheer myself up {and hopefully brighten your day too} is by posting some adorable pictures of the girls.
What you get when Hannah demands to wear socks {even if she technically already is wearing socks}:
Like sister like sister:
{Not sure what Julia’s doing in this picture. Her face reminds me of Penelope.}
I’m a Squirrel Killer
Posted on: September 24, 2010
I poisoned a squirrel the other day. Hear me out before you immediately shun me as an animal hater. I’m not. Promise. I bought these really cute fall decorations that look like little berries:
Super cute, right?
Apparently, they must taste pretty good too, as I saw a squirrel eating them the other day. I shooed him away and decided to leave out walnuts in case he came back. And he did. But rather than eat the yummy walnuts {like his other squirrel friends did}, this little guy went right back for my styrofoam berries.
The next day I saw a dead squirrel at the end of our neighbor’s driveway. I am not totally certain it’s the same squirrel, but what if it is? Did I inadvertently kill a squirrel- that just so happened to be a baby? {Yeah, I forgot that part. I am a baby squirrel killer! I will never live that down.}
I decided to make amends and offer nuts up to the surviving squirrels. The girls and I picked up a big container of acorns at the park and put them in a dish on the front porch. I even went so far as to make it all cute and fally:
It even matches my fall decor.
Hopefully now I won’t poison any more squirrels with my oh-so-not green berries.
Cry Baby Cry
Posted on: September 22, 2010
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Have I ever mentioned that Hannah is a mama’s girl? Never content to be next to me, she needs to be on me {or being held}. For the most part I love it. But let’s be honest, when you can’t set her down to go to the bathroom all day long it gets a little tiresome. We have been working with her, getting her to be around other people without crying. With our friends that she sees often she does fairly well {or maybe not and they are just being kind!}. But if I am in the room and she can’t be with me, this is usually the result:
Look at that sad face!
And that’s when she’s with Daddy and Julia. I’d hate to see her with a stranger!
I know she will out grow this stage. I remind myself of that when the frustration sets in. It’s a sweet time in our relationship and I am learning to love it completely {even if that means I only get to pee when she’s asleep}.
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The weather has gotten beautiful around here. We’ve had all our windows open for the last week and our temperatures haven’t gotten above 75. Fall is on it’s way and I can’t wait!
We’re hosting our first college football game BBQ today, so I’ve been on the prowl for some yummy football appropriate desserts to make. I’ve come across a few that I’m gonna give a try:
Iowa Hawkeye Cupcakes – Clarissa at Next Generation Housewife
Chocolate Rice Crispy Footballs {what’s there not to like about that?!} – Marie at Make and Takes
And since the weather is becoming to fall-y, I loved reading this post:
Ten Fun Family Activities for Fall – Blissfully Domestic
Last {but not least} I read a really great post about mothering that I had to pass along:
An Interview With One of My Favorite Ladies – Alicia at Alicia’s Homemaking
Check out Mandi at It’s Come 2 This for more Saturday Stumbles.
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Organization and I go hand in hand. I love everything having its own place and everything being in its place. I naturally plan out pretty much everything, including our family meals. Needless to say, I was thrilled when Jonathan came home with this:
{And even more thrilled that our week isn’t so crazy busy that there are blanks on the board! Yippie!}
I don’t write everything up on the board, but list the more important things {shared meals, meetings, babysitting, etc}. We keep the board by our backdoor in the kitchen, so that everyone can see it and know exactly what’s going on for the day {and of course what to expect for dinner}. It’s so clean and sleek, I nearly sigh every time I see it. I’m kidding. Maybe.
How do you stay organized? Any helpful tips to pass along?
Visit Jill at Diaper Diaries for more Things I Love Thursday.
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We had an amazing Labor Day weekend. While it was all happening, I couldn’t tell you what made it so great {maybe that the girls slept in, or that we had an extra family day}. But looking back now, I can tell you the top ten highlights from the last three days:
1. The Weather – Nothing puts me in a better mood than cool{er} weather. I am not a fan of summer weather. So each year when fall begins to cool things down, I am like a walking musical. It’s nothing but sunshine and roses {or is that cool breezes and fall leaves?}.
2. Hosting a BBQ – Jonathan and I decided to host a BBQ on Friday night. I emailed some friends and before I knew it, there were 15 adults and 12 kids partying in our backyard. Total bliss.
3. Apple Orchard Visit – There is a local orchard that I just love. Since the weather was so perfect, we decided to spend Saturday morning at the orchard. Hannah was more than thrilled with the all-you-can-eat apple policy.
4. Caramel Apples – You can’t visit an apple orchard without buying a caramel apple. Yumminess on a stick.
5. Pedicure – I went for pedicures with Leah and Rachel. It was my first time going and a great girls time out.
6. Family Bike Ride – Saturday evening we decided to ride into Iowa City for dinner. We biked about 4 miles to The Mill and had their Big Nachos. On the way home we stopped by my former boss’s house {who we’ve stayed in contact with since Julia was born} and enjoyed a lovely chat.
7. Watching The Family Stone – Have you seen The Family Stone with Sarah Jessica Parker and Luke Wilson? If not, it is such a cute movie {especially around the holidays}.
8. Coffee on the Porch – We hosted house church on Sunday and sat on the porch talking about God’s awesomeness and drinking coffee. Beautiful.
9. Playtime at the Mall – Monday morning we spent family time at the play gym in the mall. Jonathan bought me my first pumpkin spice latte of the season. The girls enjoyed running around crazy, while Jon got a little work done.
10. Attending a BBQ – We started the weekend off with good food and good friends, so what better than to end the weekend with good food and good friends. There were a few more adults and kids this time around and much fun was had by all.
I don’t recall Labor Day being this much fun, but I’m hoping it’s a tread for the future.
What about you? How was your Labor Day weekend?
Visit Oh Amanda for more Top Ten Tuesday.
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Amy of Amy’s Finer Things is hosting a link up of birth stories in honor of Labor Day. Cute idea, huh?
After both girls were born, I wrote their birth stories. Check them out below:
Julia Mabel – Born in November 2007, and I really had no clue what to expect from labor. Which might have been a good thing.
Hannah Michelle – Born in June 2009. I thought with Hannah that things were going to go smoother, faster and that I was going to handle it like a pro. Well, I didn’t.
In some ways, I have worn “going natural” like a badge of honor when it comes to the girls’ birth stories. And I really do think it is something I am very proud of {and should be proud of}. However, I have realized that all women who give birth deserve metals. It’s no easy task, watching your body morph over 9+ months and then being thrust into mamahood. The labor part is different for everyone {and every child}, but it is a beautiful experience to behold.
My hats off to you mamas out there! Celebrate your Labor Day!
A Wife Loved Like The Church 
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