First Pickin's of the Season

The other day I was on the porch, cleaning....when Lil' Monster calls to me..

 Mamma! I have a surprise for you!!

Flowers! For you.

Because I love you so much!

They are the first flowers of the season...

he picked them just to tell me how he felt.

Warmed my heart, and brought tears of joy to my eyes.

I love this little guy!

Mini-Model for Iceland

When Mr. Elskan, returned from his trip

(to bring up the rest of our stuff from storage)

he brought along a package from dear Amma and Avi.

In it, was the much beloved rain coat/pant set

(Icelanders know how to make decent the best rain/wind clothes - as they should);

Lil' Monster were elated!

He (our clothes horse) was especially delighted

 because his old set was so tight and so uncomfortable.

He immediately dressed and then modeled them.

 I think he should be Iceland's face for such clothing - don't you?!

Where does he learn to do this

- as we don't watch TV, have magazines with models, or shop...?

Maybe he was born with it ;) ?

He was very excited because it rained for several days after.

{Preparing Children to Choose}



Wise parents prepare their children to get along without them. They provide opportunities for growth as children acquire the spiritual maturity to exercise their agency properly. And yes, this means children will sometimes make mistakes and learn from them.

~~~~ Elder Larry Y. Wilson ~~~~

Where the Wind Blows Us

Yesterday, we just had to get away.

We had to leave it all behind...

And let the wind blow us wherever.

It blew us to one of the many nearby

lakes.

It was freezing cold.

It was only 49 degrees.

But with that wind it felt

much

much

much

Colder!

It was an unplanned trip.

We didn't bring anything but ourselves...

and a camera.

Lil' Monster stayed entertained with his toy of choice:

sticks!

Here, he is showing off his horns.

(Remember this post?)

Then the idea of fishing came:
He throws a stick,

the waves bring it in,

and with other sticks,

 he fishes the first stick out.

Clever.

Lil' Monster's catch.

It was great to just go and be blown around.

A day of the simple joys to be found in life.

Our Place



June 2011

This is not an old memory  - not even a full year has passed since this photo.

Lil' Monster  was playing here,

moments later all had gone quiet.

This is what Mamma Sass found.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Our Landing -

into the loft which is currently our little homeschool -

is a place of interest for us all.

It is 4 ft. by 4 ft. 

But it is the most used place in our house.

Our love for this little space has grown in this last year.

In fact,

maybe we should give it an official name;

just not sure what would be clever enough.

For Lil' Monster it is his play house

(even though he has one in the LARGE closet inside the loft room).

One evening Mr. Elskan and Mamma Sass were chatting on the couch in the living room.

When she looked up and this is what she saw.

For Mamma, the landing (as you can see in the background) is an extra storage for things she uses regularly, like the vacuum, or as a temporary pit stop for items between the homeschool and the rest of the house.

 We use it as place for our

intercom

(shouting loudly to the lower levels for instructions etc.)

observation tower

(checking out who is coming and going outside)

Podium

(for singing, speeches, or general announcements)

Hang Out

(we sit and chat out there)

Reading Roost

(a place to pile books and sit and read while watching the folks downstairs)

Our Little Landing has many purposes.

Maybe it is time we name it.

Any ideas?

He Lives

He is not here: for He is risen

Matthew 28:6 



He Lives by Simon Dewey

 

"...they saw a Man descending out of heaven; and he was clothed in a white robe; and he came down and stood in the midst of them; and the eyes of the whole multitude were turned upon him, and they durst not open their mouths, even one to another, and wist not what it meant, for they thought it was an angel that had appeared unto them."

 "And it came to pass that he stretched forth his hand and spake unto the people, saying:

 'Behold, I am Jesus Christ, whom the prophets testified shall come into the world.

 And behold, I am the light and the life of the world; and I have drunk out of that bittercup which the Father hath given me, and have glorified the Father in taking upon me the sins of the world, in the which I have suffered the will of the Father in all things from the beginning.'"

3 Nephi 11:8-10

I know that He Lives.

He has redeemed us.

He is my Savior.

May your

Easter

bring you the

peace and joy

of the season.

Nammi Numbers

An activity we did today

(idea borrowed from My Montessori Journey)

Using cheap dollar store ice cream bowls, spoons, with some fuzzies (pom-poms).

We practiced matching numbers with 'scoops' of ice cream.

Lil' Monster counts out scoops into the bowls: 0-6;

Then mixes up some flash cards;

than matches the flash cards to appropriate bowls.

Some eating pretend eating happens along in the process.

Learning new numbers, I leave the cards in order (7-13).

He uses his memory of how to count orally 1-20,

to match up with what he sees.

Then he counts the right amount of scoops into bowls.

He takes the flash card and bowl and lines them up off to the side when completed.

Then I 'check' his work and encourage him along.

It's an easy thing to do, and makes a big impression.

It is a far cry from just learning to count pictures on paper in order to learn numbers.

For a more hands on child, this really helps to cement his knowledge.

And it is soooo

DELICIOUS!

P.S. Nammi means yummy in Icelandic