REST of the 1/2 WAY CELEBRATION

At 2:30 we took a break from school (which we did 1/2 of) to have our party. We had 1/2 a chocolate cake (totally healthy and yummy) on 1/2 a plate (messy), 1/2 a scoop of homemade ice cream (really messy) and we talked. The table had 1/2 a cloth again, 1/2 the candles lit - you know the drill.

Instead of sharing our favorite deployment memory (because frankly - in the midst of deployment its really hard to think in those terms) we decided to focus on goals. We each shared what we had accomplished in the first 1/2 of the deployment and what we hope to accomplish in the 2nd 1/2 of the deployment. For dinner we had oven fries, 1/2 grilled hamburgers, salad abd fruit plate. We skipped the 1/2 plates - enough already!

Mike - is working on ACSC - Military education by mail

De'Etta - gained 4 lbs and lost 4 lbs; finished my "rod" study, kept up with the first 9 weeks of school; goals for second 1/2 - will finish 500 miles, will loose some lbs (would like to say 12 - but hey anything is progress), will finish reading *Age of Opportunity* be into the 3rd unit of school.

Josiah - deposited the pay check that raises his account to $4K this Friday - that is his goal for a car and got a bit ahead in school; goals get ahead in school - finish

Jamin - ran an 8 mile route, sent first chunk of book to Christian Writers Guild for a critique, kept up with school; goals for future - find a writing agent (yikes), gain 3 lbs

Jared (photo removed by request)- kept up with school; goals - keep up with 6 day a week workouts

Arielle - finished 2nd grade math and Explode the Code series; goals read 3 "real" books

Nolan - began speech, finished short vowel readers and worked on blending; do speech exercises every day, finish long vowel readers

Zander - huh?....He lived...he wants a one eyed penquin, a one eyed gorilla and a one eyed bear????

Stacia - cut 4 molars and 2 eye teeth; goals cut thr rest of teeth and learn to sleep in my bed

We ended the day with my tradmark comment, "That'll do, pig".

Advent Season
By Nolan

Advent is like people are
coming to your house.
When people come you
clean the house.

Jesus is coming. We
should think about Him.

Advent Season
By Arielle

Advent is from a Latin
word that means “coming”.
This is the season we
celebrate Jesus coming
into the world and into
our hearts. People would clean
up their hearts, like we
clean up the house
when we have special
guests.

They would give to the
poor people. Take care
of others. They would
ask for forgiveness of
sins and fast from food
for three weeks before
Christmas. Some
churches still do the
fasting at Easter time.

ATTACK OF THE APPLIANCES

Last night the grain mill...today the Bosch.

I HAD to make bread and a cake, so bought some King Arthur flour. Store bought flour simply doesn't "act" the way fresh ground does. I noticed the cake didn't rise as high (must be less protein the longer the flour sits???), the bread took less flour and was stiffer.....

I've had the Bosch nearly 3 years and it has NEVER done this. I set it to knead for 8 minutes and left the room. I heard a big crash and Jared and Arielle yelling. Here's the photo Jared took:

I spent the next 4 minutes holding the Bosch down as it finished kneading. Bosch seems fine. I'll have two loaves of bread shortly (we miss the 7 grain and Hard white - but HAD to have bread) and I began making Kate's buttercream frosting.....

I'm trying to decorate the cake and have the "party" before Josiah goes to work. Then dinner tonight.....

Start of our HALF WAY Celebrations

I printed out the chart from the excel program that is tracking Mike's absence. It shows that we are 51% to the day when the Freedom Bird will whisk him away. We've posted this next to the other count down map we are keeping on the bulletin board of our entry way. LOL

Breakfast:

1/2 doughnuts (I was surprised to see that we had LOTS of doughnuts left)

1/2 muffins

Fruit plate (featuring halved strawberries, pineapple and apples on a bed of red grapes)

We even brought out the hot chocolate, tea, and fresh squeezed orange juice.

1/2 table cloth, 1/2 plate, 1/2 napkin and 1/2 the candles lit....add children

PS - this was REALLY cool for the kids because 1. we ate breakfast TOGETHER, 2. We had a tablecloth and 3. I'd changed the table around again. I'm always trying to find a way to make the tables work in our small eating area. IN AK we had two separate tables. Here we usually make a giant square.

I Have ADO - ADVENT DEVOTIONAL OVERLOAD
Here's my confession. EVERY year I go through a cycle called Advent Devotional Overload (ADO). ADO begins innocently enough. I simply pull all the great resources I've gathered.....We usually do Jotham's Journey or Barthlomew's Passage every night (we've done this for years and years - I can remember it back in Great Falls - maybe Hardin). We also go through the chapel devotional - usually one that Mike's written. This is also nightly. We do the Jesse Tree ornaments and devotional - this is daily. We love the Adorenaments and do them daily. We have a family inductive Bible study on Christmas that we do - this is daily.....see the picture? Everyone feels massive guilt to welcome the baby Jesus.
This year the chapel hasn't handed out Advent devotionals - or I didn't get one if they did. I loaned out my *Let's Make a Jesse Tree* to Adrienne, a friend who was interested in it. This year I will simply put up all the Jesse tree emblems on the banner and we'll discuss them as we have time. The Adorenaments didn't get unpacked - the kids voted to put only photo ornaments on the tree and those must have been in an ornament box.
I've not decided about the Family Inductive Bible Study Guide...it was AWESOME and I may do it for myself. I'm not sure I'll have all the children attempt it this year. I will make the coloring sheets available.... You really should check out this study. Mike and I talked about printing it up and making it available for families at the chapel - but he's gone and that's as far as the idea went...maybe next year. ::snort::
When I pulled out Jotham and Barthlomew, Jamin asked if there wasn't another one. Yes - TABITHA. Then I discovered that it was out of print. Copies of these books are going for $70 each. Yowzer! It was mailed to me by a cyber-friend. Jamin was surprised that Tabitha is a GIRL and Arielle is thrilled. We are enjoying these readings. I wish I could find something like this for year round use.
All this to say, keeping it simple may be the most blessed route for us to take. We are doing a lap book on Christmas symbols. I want to make this FUN for the children again - Christmas School had become to school- like in years past. You see now why we HAD to take the month off of school? ::snort:: I really am enjoying reading Tabitha and working on our lap book. I'm not sold on the lap book I bought - where ARE THE INSTRUCTIONS???? I think I liked the Live and Learn better. LOL BUT we are happy making our own and we don't need instructions for it....just piles and piles of paper. So far....a few days into Advent we have no symptoms of ADO.

*SISTERS*

After our reading of "Tabitha's Travels" tonight (thanks again Debbie!), I set to baking a healthy chocolate cake. I sure hope the children like it - their anticipation is high. Arielle had been holding Stacia during Tabitha and told me she thought that Stacia needed another 5 minutes or so to sit before we moved her. I went to get the cake in the oven and came back to this "Kodiak" moment.