A Great Sunday

I was excited to help Brittany in children's church today.  It's always fun, but this week the kids were sharing their Christmas song. Bella and Gideon (BreZaak's kids) are second row - left side with the blue arrow pointing to them. 

📷by Bre

 The kids did a great job! We met CyRi for lunch today.  They spent the afternoon with us. At one point, Livie asked if we'd done Advent yet.  Quick thinking pointed out she wanted to be part of the Advent Scavenger hunt. We let her pick the clue. 

Advent Scavenger Hunt Clue: Sine Wave Generator

Yeah, there was a lot of head-scratching over THAT clue. Next came the googling. 

Stacia, Livie, Allie

Meanwhile, the girls were in the kitchen, downstairs....and finally they came back to almost the same spot they'd started. They had googled, which sparked Stacia's memory of a music theory lesson with Michael.  They decided the clue had something to do with music and it would be somewhere by the keyboard. Tonight's gift was a bag of Lindor Truffles. 

Jamin stopped by shortly after the hunt. It was nice to catch up with everyone this afternoon. Bre sent the photo below. They had ordered Power Ranger costumes for the kids and decided not to make them wait for Christmas. LOL 

Bella, Annie, Gideon 📷by Bre

The sky was AMAZING at sunset....3:34 p.m.  We don't often see very much color as we are surrounded by trees and mountains, but it was gorgeous this afternoon. 

Dec 15 -17th

It would appear I "haven't blogged" since Dec 14th. That would be a false conclusion for one to reach.  Our family noticed a distressing trend as we ended 2020. We seemed to go silent every summer and fall and emerge again in late November/ December. Further investigation revealed the silent blog corresponds to the nice weather and the reappearance of the blog to the first snow dates. I still have PHOTOS from all those months - but not a one had been blogged.  When summer/fall hit we are busy outside, playing and working, and I simply don't find time to sit down and capture what is keeping us busy. As this is a family journal (and I don't keep photo albums) this is a trend our family would like corrected.  I set a goal of "catching up the blog and keeping current in 2021."  

I set a daily intention of blogging 15 min a day - regardless. If I don't have time to think, I'd at least get a photo and a caption up - because really kids have an alarming habit of disappearing and showing up a year older. ::Snort::  It seemed like it would work well - except LIFE didn't stop in 2021 because I was trying to catch up 2019 and 2020 on the blog.   By March, *I* was ready to admit the blog would not be totally caught up in 2021. I vowed to keep current and catch up what I could.  What happened? We made it into August before we went silent this year. I thought I had caught up. I knew I had a "few posts" in November to catch up and as the end of the year approaches, I am conscious to find time to catch up so 2021 will be current on Jan 1st.  I was feeling good as I posted the last November post...I knew there were a "few" in October to re-capture...but what is THIS? Not a single thing was blogged in Sept 2021.  Aug was sparse and there was more than I thought to capture in Oct. It would seem we went pretty silent again this year. Facebook makes it easy to think you're keeping up - but Facebook isn't our family journal. It isn't saved in a spot where family can easily re-read the adventures. 

And SO....I am sprinting to get 2021 finished...and I'll carry 2019 and 2020 into 2022. 

This realization came at a good time...just as Bible Babes and Gather ministry are breaking for 3 weeks.  We don't have a gift exchange as a Dec 25th goal and I have free time to focus on blogging.  I have been blogging a LOT the past three days...but I wake up this morning and realize I am in danger of getting behind if I don't keep current in this week too. 

Wednesday  - Allie and Stacia prepared for MAG's Youth Christmas Clash. This involved making snacks to take and coming up with outfits. I did NOT get a photo but Stacia was glorious. She had on reindeer leggings, a cosmos dress from her Aunt Mary, combat boots and an old BDU jacket from Krista's uniform, all topped with a Christmas hat and antlers.  If Allie got a picture I'll add it later.  They took a platter of hot cocoa cupcakes and a plate of Christmas Crack(ers) to group. 

Nolan continues to push in his college coursework and in his local job. Alex works. 

Michael spent a lot of time with Grandpa this week as the rest of us were running. 

I prepped and hosted our Gather Bible study.  Several ladies came with goodies and gifts...what fun. I came home with a plate of Christmas goodies (which we hid from the diabetic in our midst), a jar cookie mix, and a hand quilted "clutch."

Thursday  - Stacia has a weekly nanny gig.  Allie and I drop her at the gig and then go out for our breakfast study.  We have just enough time to work through our material, run a few errands and pick Stacia up.  This nanny gig has only recently started but it's working well for us to have it start before the time Allie and I were already meeting. It keeps Allie and I out an extra hour or so; it simply wouldn't be worth it to drive home, drop Allie off and immediately pull out to drive back for Stacia. It's been good to have scheduled time when I know Grandpa is taken care of and we can run a few errands....in the past weeks we've picked up Allie's glasses, finally ordered new glasses for me, made it to the bank, picked up click it groceries, visited the library and a thrift store...it's a good thing. 

We came home just in time for Grandpa to take a nap and Michael to leave for a doctor appointment. The afternoon was slated for school and blogging...but first....an impromptu tea. We pulled out our hidden plate of goodies and sat down with the drinks we had grabbed in a drive through. 

I tried my hand at making SUGAR FREE CHRISTMAS CRACK(ers) and they are yummy. This has kept the temptation to eat from the "forbidden plate" under control. Stacia made a sugar free naked chocolate cake and Dad has been snacking on that. We do not deprive him - we simply keep the healthier options easily accessible. ::wink:: 

It was fun to hear about Stacia's crafty morning with her sweet charges.  The girls shared how school is going, we chatted about the youth party. It was wonderful to sit together.  Allie and I had found a couple of games we all look forward to playing with Livie. HedBanz is one I remember playing with Maria as she worked to improve her English. Wow - look at her now! That girl is getting her DOCTORATE! So proud of her. ANYWAY....

The girls headed down to school. I put a Christmas coffee house music video on the big screen, grabbed some water, and settled into the couch to blog.... I stayed right there until 5:15 when it was time to get dinner finished up as Michael was on his way home from his appointment and errands. 

I have started uploading photos to google, downloading them to my computer and getting them then extracted to proper files while we watch movies or programs at night. This is just enough mental energy to sort of keep me from falling asleep....and the photos are then off my phone and camera and ready for quick blogging in any spare moments I find. 

Friday - Dec 17th - Stacia and I have Bible study on Friday mornings. We discussed Philemon this week. We have been on the same schedule as Bible Babe and Gather - but both are breaking until January.  I think we'll continue at a slower pace through the break.  We only have the book of Mark to finish, and we will have read through the entire New Testament together this year. 

Michael picked up end rolls of newsprint from a local paper yesterday. I dropped by the girl's homes and left them each with a roll for crafts, an advent book we bought for each family, and hot drinks. It is always fun to scatter surprises. We loved the big rolls of paper when the kids were little - endless possibilities.  Bre sent a photo of the kids jumping at the possibilities. Annie is to intent on her artwork to break for a smile. LOL 

Bella, Annie, Gideon

Michael and Alex left for their Bible study. Grandpa napped. I sat up the music, the HAPPY light, stoked the fire and sat down to spend another afternoon blogging. I have now caught up AUGUST and November. I have one post left and October is finished. I will try to start September today. 2021 will be current. 

The oven repairman came AGAIN. The new part did not fix the problem. They do see some improvement. Now we get some beeps. They are bringing back the first part they brought to see if it will work now that we get beeps from the new part. Bottom line - we still do not have an oven upstairs...but we ARE learning how to work the one downstairs. 😉

Fire danger is fairly low - Michael burned something. LOL   Check out the garden beds asleep under the snow. 

As for these blog posts...we really don't expect most of you will care to read them. If you are subscribed to the blog, you will receive notification or an email copy of any posts whenever they are posted - regardless of the date on them. If you simply visit the blog when you have a moment you won't be aware of the movement in the backfield. If you follow the "Courageous Joy" Facebook page, I do post all blog links there. If you are on my personal Facebook page, I post ones that seem they may still have interest like "Josiah and Carrie's wedding" but not necessarily all the back dated posts as we move forward. Several have asked me to post the blog links on my personal Facebook wall, I do try to remember to share current links from the page to my wall. Clear as mud? 

It is 9:51 a.m.  and it looks like the sun may be up "shortly." I'm going to get folks up and moving. 

Food Co-op & Advent Hunts

This summer we figured out how to order from Wholesome Food Co-op. This has made living in Alaska SOOO much nicer for us. We love fresh produce and there simply isn't TEXAS FRESH produce in the stores up here. BUT when we order through the co-op we get our food much sooner...it's usually juicy, fresh, lasts longer and is always organic...for near the same price (or cheaper) as what we pay for non-organic in the store.  WAY cheaper than organic in our stores. The reason it is nearly the same is because I volunteer every co-op day which reduces my handling fee to 1%.  Sometime this fall I was asked to supervise the second shift. This is worth my time - and is only twice a month. I enjoy the new connections I am making with others in the valley as well.  Today was co-op day. Our Azure order, as well as our produce order, arrived.  We pick up twice a month. 

Sorting at our pick-up location 

Co-op won't work for everyone. There is a "produce pack" which gives one a bag of organic produce for $39 (I think) plus shipping....it comes to $44 (maybe $45).  The packs are figured for 2 people who eat a lot of produce. We liked the produce packs but found we didn't have ENOUGH of some things (like 2 potatoes won't work for us), and we had too much of other things.  We have found splitting cases works best for us. We have to buy at least 1/4 case to participate in a split. For the most part we can handle 1/4 - 1/2 case and we get the things we enjoy.   I discovered 1/2 case of Brussel sprouts and celery is TOO much. ::snort:: Our produce consumption had decreased drastically since moving here. Why pay high prices for quality that disappoints?  I find we are eating MUCH more, WAY more, produce than we ate before joining the co-op. When you have 1/4 case of green beans, 1/4 case of Brussel sprouts, 1/4 case of cauliflower, 1/2 a case of apples. 1/4 case of pears, and 1/4 case of grapes - you are motivated to eat produce, snack on produce, find new produce recipes. ::snort:: I may order the produce pack again in the summer. I did like trying some of the new things they included....and I don't always try new things when ordering 1/4 case. If you are local and would like to try a produce pack, let me know and I can deliver to our town. Pick-up is in the next town over. 

Smallish order today...but YUM. 

This is me time. Self-care at its best. LOL I get a bit of socializing, earn discounts on our groceries, and interact with our community. I'm meeting people I would not have met otherwise.  While I am off "doing produce," the girls work on school and Michael oversees Grandpa. 

I had my act together this morning and got Hawaiin Chicken into the crock pot before I left. We enjoyed a leisurely dinner catching up on everyone's day... 

Mary is making those loops around the wreath

Michael hid tonight's Advent gift. The clue was something about 3 bears, moose and eagles.... Michael had promised an easy one after last night's challenge. 

Quick find

4 gift cards 

At this point we went downstairs and worked on a puzzle Nolan gave Michael. It's 2000 pieces and pretty legit. I was worn out and went to bed. Alex chose video games over a puzzle. 

Gingerbread, Advent Hunt & Cake

Lindsey gave me a gingerbread man yesterday at church. She warned me it had been in her cupboard for a long time. She thought the kids may enjoy decorating it. Stacia pulled out some leftover frosting she had in the fridge. I thought it would be a great activity for Benny and GG while we were out today. We try to get Grandpa involved in things, we have the best luck when it involves Benny or Danny.  Look at those faces! 

📷 by Arielle

Anyone who knows my Dad, knows he's teasing Benny. He's trying to pull the gingerbread man away while Benny smiles for the camera. 

Benny checks the directions to make sure GG is doing it right. LOL 

📷 by Arielle

Benny was proud to show me this man when we got home. 

Benny's favorite feature is the hair. "I used PRETZELS, Baachan!" I think it's pretty great too. 

Millie doesn't love her antlers; Benny was happy to help out. 

Teasing me - he ate a button from the gingerbread man

Nolan was home today. He's finished one class and started the next. It was fun to have him for dinner and this evening's Advent Hunt. 

Advent Scavenger Hunt Clue: Four brings me light, Four brings me dark, Old is above.

Michael WARNED everyone the clues would get harder as we went along. Nolan has the reputation of being able to figure them out. There was a lot of milling around as they tried to figure this one out. 

It went a bit like this - Four things that bring light and dark.... light switches, windows, electrical outlets, and doors were explored. They went to the garage (pictures inadvertently deleted). Allie checked Potter's Closet.  

From time to time we admitted we needed a new clue. 

Finally, Michael gave a hint that it was NOT in the garage or basement and we all focused upstairs.... until he gave us the final hint... it wasn't upstairs either.  We headed to the entry way. 

Allie found it first...the 4 that bring light and dark to me, is the closet door. The bag was hid on the top shelf. Above it is an alcove with lots of antiques. 

Inside the bag were four shirts...

Stacia was busy baking today. She made a 6 in cake that all say was yummy - but RICH. She's practicing with frosting... They celebrated their find and ended the night with pieces of cake. 

Bella & Gideon's Date with Papa and Baachan

I believe this is the last Baachan/Papa date of the year.  Monday's we have Arielle and the boys come over for 3 hours of respite care. It was the perfect way for Michael and I to both be able to take the grands on these dates. Today, Bella and Gideon (BreZaak's children) joined us for an adventure. 

Any trip outside in -9* temps is bound to be an adventure.  We headed for a local shop to find presents for Bre and Izaak. It's always fun to watch the children's thought process. They were successful. 

We asked what they'd like to eat. Bella wanted chicken; Gideon wanted a cheese hamburger. Bella also shared with me, "Grandma, I've never been to a cafe."  Thus, a compromise was born. We did not get a McDonald's cheese hamburger, and we didn't go a cute cafe that wouldn't HAVE burgers.... but we did go to a diner and everyone was happy. 

I think a trip with Bre, Bella, Annie and Baachan is in the future - to visit a real cafe.  After lunch we headed over to the local ice cream shop...because we knew it would be a treat for the kids and we knew they had dairy free ice cream.  The gal there told me sugar free is hard to do unless you use alcohol in it...and they don't want to do that due to all the regulations they'd have to comply with if they "served alcohol." 

We headed back, wrapped the gifts in the car, and wrestled the car seats out of the van. We made it back to the house exactly at the 3 hour mark. 

Every grand gets to choose a "Baachan Shopping Gift." Benny chose a snow globe. Livie chose a Division wrap up book.  Bella and Gideon chose darling stuffed animals. The birds sing. We bought one for Annie and JoJo and took them home to give them. 

Annie, Bella & Gideon 📷 by BreAnne

It was a fun day with the grands! 

Absolutely Allie

 Hey - we tried to alliterate and find something similar to the Simply Stacia title. 

We could not be prouder of Allie.  Last spring, we produced work to earn her an extra 1/2 credit to accompany the 1/2 credit she had in American Sign Language (ASL). She brushed up on her ASL this summer and I researched curriculum and programs which would earn her another high school credit in American Sign Language.  As an aside, it is quite interesting to have the Japanese and the ASL threading through our home...1/2 the time I'm not sure WHAT is being talked about. ::snort:: 

I found a program written and overseen by the Director of Family Partnership, a charter school in Anchorage. Allie would be able to take a proven, teacher-graded, online American Sign Language class. They have three levels of study - for 3 high school credits.  I explained our situation to the teachers, Allie had a previous homeschool co-op class, she had worked through various websites this summer and is a senior. She had 1 ASL credit and we'd like her to earn a 2nd in the upcoming school year.  I asked if we could try Allie in Level 2. They were leery of our coursework having prepped her for the coursework. 

We settled on starting Allie in the 2nd half of Level 1. If she proved she could do the work, they would move her into Level 2 in a "couple of months." I knew Allie could do the work. I also knew that if she did 1/2 of Level 1 and 1/2 of Level 2 she would still earn one high school credit. 

Within 2 weeks Allie had finished Level 1 and moved on to Level 2. As we near the end of the FIRST semester Allie has finished Level 2 and moved on to Level 3.  Both our IDEA contact teacher and Dr. Parker agreed Allie should be awarded 2 credits for her coursework this year.   We updated her Individual Learning Plan (ILP) to reflect her actual progress. She will graduate with 3 foreign language credits! This feat earned us a call back from our contact teacher. We had been told Allie wouldn't be able to qualify for the Alaska Performance Scholarship (APS). I told our teacher our focus was going to be strengthening Allie's transcript so it would reflect well for college entrance, and we'd apply for other scholarship streams. This we set about doing. She has earned 2 math, 2 science, 1 creative writing and 2 1/2 foreign language credits since we were told she'd not be able to qualify for the APS. She is currently taking psychology and Brit Lit - also courses approved by the APS. It seems Allie is a "hair" away from being able to qualify for the APS now.  She needs math.  She has worked hard on math the past 10 months. She finished the math she was doing, did Pre-Algebra, and is currently chugging through Algebra 1.  Her contact teacher wonders if Allie can "kick up the pace" and earn 2 more math credits in the upcoming semester.  That's a pretty thick "hair" away. LOL  BUT it won't hurt to try.  Regardless, we couldn't be prouder of Allie's determination and drive. 

Here is a quick glimpse into Allie's ASL coursework. In this clip she and Stacia are demonstrating how to make a smoothie. 

Allie's teacher works as a deaf interpreter and her husband is a deaf pastor.  We are excited about the opportunity to attend a deaf church and get to know the deaf community. Allie has a gift; we saw it. Her teacher and the director of the course confirm it. Allie has been invited to join the American Sign Language National Honor Society. This will give her more experience with ASL and the chance to apply for scholarships from the society. 

Mom's 4th Heavenly Birthday

Mom was 71 years old when she decided it was time to learn to sky dive.  So, she did. Krista went with her.  Mom had a zest for life which I've only seen matched in my Grams.  Today is Mom's 4th Heavenly Birthday.  I remind myself to try new things. 

I woke at 3:30 a.m. and sat with my loneliness and grief. I miss her phone calls. I miss her stories. I miss the way she kept me connected to the people from my childhood. 

I found myself doing little things to honor her today...things that reminded me of her and keep her memory alive.  At about 6 a.m  I had a sweet cup of tea...

I took care of Dad. 

We went to church and out to lunch. After lunch we went through the DQ drive through (lobby STILL isn't open) and got blizzards and dipped cones. We took them to CoRielle's house and had them in honor of Grandma's Heavenly Birthday. 

Krista, Luke and Reno stopped by in the evening. It was fun to catch up with them. 

Connecting with family is probably the best way to honor Mom's memory. We share her stories and love for Jesus with her great grandkids who never got to know her. 

Four years without Mom, in some ways seems so long, and in other ways it's short. I'm thankful for the memories. 

We'll join you "soon," Mom.