Our Busy Little World
Sep. 14, 2008 - What A Week!
This past week was very busy! In it we celebrated Isabelle's sixth birthday, and thus I am no longer the mother of five children five and under. Isabelle is a delight, and as a fresh six year old is reading as much as I could imagine. She's turned into a book worm like mommy, and is currently loving Bobbsey Twins books and the like. Hence I am facing a new dilemna. I once had this grand theory that I would pre-read the books my girls read, making sure they were reading good things. But this child goes through a full size book every two days, and I certainly can't keep ahead of that. Soooo, if anyone would care to recommend their favorite books for little ones to read alone, which they don't have any objections to, please feel free to do so!
Daddy took Isabelle to have her ears pierced, which she is quite thrilled about, even though they're still a bit sensitive. And she is (as are we) also thrilled with the gifts she was given, in particular a special one we got for her. She had asked for over a year for a real bow and arrow, and we decided to get her this little archery set along with a set of extra arrows. Since it's not a suction cup toy set, we have to make sure she's shooting only in the proper area (we set up a little range with stacked straw bales for a great target), and only with supervision, or if her little sisters aren't outside at the time, but we're so glad we chose this one. We have been VERY impressed with the quality of this bow and arrows, especially considering the price. It's made by Bear Archery, which is a very respectable archery company, not a toy company, and is made for 3-7 year olds, so the draw weight and length are perfect for her. We must admit, we enjoy it as much as her, and sometimes want to sneak out for some archery practice. It's definitely a sport we enjoy together!
Other exciting news this week is that our horse, Farah has arrived. We couldn't be more pleased with her! She is adorable, but even more than that, her temperment is amazing! This is a yearling Arabian we're talking about, and they can tend to be on the "hotter" side. Not Farah - she is the most level-headed, calm and sweet horse I could have hoped for. She's not dull by any means - she enjoys exploring her new surroundings and such - but she is so very calm that it continues to amaze me. She also seems to be pretty happy with us. Even without a lead, she'll just follow us around the arena if we're in there. I think she will be the perfect family horse as she grows, and we are quite taken with her. I'll get some pictures up when I get a chance!
I need to get some sleep, so I shall close for tonight with a very random quote. It is from the movie Sleeping Beauty, and it makes me laugh every time the girls watch that movie. We women can be fickle, even in our cartoon princess version!
Aurora: "Goodbye!"
Prince: "But . . . when will I see you again?"
Aurora, in all her princess-like drama: "Oh, never, never!"
Prince, shocked and disappointed: "Never?"
Aurora: "Well, maybe someday. . . "
Prince: "When, tomorrow?"
Aurora: "Oh no! This evening!"
There you have it, folks: goofy quotes that make Melissa laugh, especially when she's tired!
Comments
Sep. 15, 2008 - Untitled Comment
Posted by 4sweetums
Your horse sounds just wonderful. I am sure your children will have a million fond memories. We look forward to the pictures.
BLessings,
Dawn
Sep. 15, 2008 - Untitled Comment
Posted by debhmom3
Oh, I am feeling some of those same feelings only the opposite of yours. When my youngest turns five in March I won't have any children under five. *sniff*
I have had the same type problem with my nine year old and books. To find things at her reading level not dealing with "teen" issues is difficult, so we do a lot of re-reading Little House, Little Women and things like that. :) I bet your Belle would enjoy The Boxcar Children series. Also, we really enjoyed The Magic Tree House series, however, I know some families do not really approve of books with magic in them. I don't object to anything in them and think that most of them are filled with many neat tidbits and facts from history and science. Also, I'm not sure if you liked Nancy Drew as a child (I did!), they now have Nancy Drew books for younger readers. We have also enjoyed some Christian children's fiction. We enjoyed the Cul-de-Sac kids series. Wanda Brunstetter has a cute Amish series for children called the Racehl Yoder series. Love 'em! And lastly, if you have never read The Courage of Sarah Noble, you must! We loved it! Hope you can find something in all of that for your little book worm.
Sep. 15, 2008 - Books & Things
Posted by basketflat
That's very neat about the temperament of your horse. She sounds like a wonderful horse.
I have the same issues on books. How do you know what is alright until you read it? Your little girl certainly seems like a good reader. I'm not sure on the level - but all the Boxcar Kids books are good books and the kids love them. Also Mr. Popper's Penguins is a popular book. I also have William J. Bennett's - The Book of Virtues - it has moral short stories in it. And of course Little House books and Anne Of Avonlea books. I was surprised at some of the mature subjects in The Chronicles Of Narnia at times - if you want to read those ones, you may wish to read it aloud and skip parts until they are older.
I also came across this list for good books here:
http://www.classical-homeschooling.org/celoop/1000-primary.html
Edited by basketflat on Sep. 16, 2008 at 12:53 AM
Sep. 18, 2008 - An actual comment
Posted by Claire
I'm biting the bullet, here, and actually *commenting*, not just "calling later." :-)
Try The Good Master, by Kate Seredy. We're really liking that one at the moment, and (bonus!) there's a sequel. The Misty of Chinco-howeveryoupronouncethat books you already know about. And I second the Sarah Noble recommendation above.
And finally, yay for goofy quotes!
Cheers...
Claire
Sep. 19, 2008 - Untitled Comment
Posted by mamato8
I just chcecked in after a long while. I really enjoyed your pictures. Your family just gets more and more beautiful each month!! Thanks for sharing!
