The Great Balancing Act and Outsourcing

Photo Via

As I walked through my bedroom to get Huggles ready for bed, I sighed.  Here is our dirty little secret... some of you won't be surprised...  The piles of clean clothes are getting larger each day.  The one thing that I have learned the hard way with homeschooling, is that I do not have time to keep up with everything.  There is a choice to be made daily, and with our many obligations, some things have to take a back seat.

I have a hard time fathoming the soccer mom who drives 2-6 kids (or more) to different activities each day, all while checking homework (or teaching daily lessons in homeschool), keeping up with the cleaning, laundry, and fixing breakfast, lunch, and dinner.  Maybe those mothers have a maid or a house keeper.  All I know is that staying organized is the key to everything.  I'm still learning that lesson.

I have recently added on a new thing as well.  College for me.  It had been weighing on my mind, and Hoss and I made the decision that it was the right time for me to start back up.

So now, I am finding the balance... balancing the many hats that I have to wear in one day.  In all honesty, I can't think of a better way to keep myself progressing than to keep busy, doing great things.

So, I pray that my family (Hoss and the kids) bear with me as I find my balance in this circus!  The girls will definitely be taking on more chores... laundry, dishes, bathroom cleaning, vacuuming, dusting, and even cooking.  These are the life lessons that will help them become wonderful mothers anyway, I do know that!

New Mexico sunsets are the best!

Today we had an extended P.E. day.  We haven't done a whole lot of P.E., but I'm working on coming up with some health lessons for them, and getting out more than we have.  Its easy to stay in the house the whole day getting all the things done we need to.  Anyway, today we tried a new park.  It was so much fun!  There are large trees there, perfect for climbing, large open spaces, with a few different sets of play equipment.  My favorite part of the park was the obstacle course section.  There were bars, and twisty seats, and steps with springs under them that keep you working to stay on them.  I can imagine us burning a lot of energy there!  It was a fun day... a much needed outdoor day.




One of my brothers asked me if he and possibly the rest of my siblings could help teach certain lessons via video chat, skype, or google hangout.  I think it is an amazing idea!  Do any of you have a talent in any areas of the 3 R's (reading, writing, arithmetic?... maybe even science)?  It would be fun to test it out!


We have finished our lessons on The Creation.  However, there are more topics to cover in the hugeness of the subject.  We are beginning the Plan of Salvation, then we will cover the solar system more in depth.  We have already learned a lot of fun things with it, but I know there are more.  We are going to be making a sun dial, and it would be fun to learn how to make a barometer.  If you have any suggestions, or would like to help us in our studies, then please, let me know!  I know the kids would LOVE to see/hear from you!  I'll post more lesson ideas that any of you might like to teach as we move on in our curriculum.

Sincerely,

Evelyn Curtis

Morning prayer

Haircuts

I can always tell when my girls' hair needs a trim... maybe you've experienced this too.  It is evident when just brushing it after it has been cleaned and conditioned is a painful experience.  Those darn tangles!  Bug has been asking me when she gets to have a haircut.  I was thinking about taking her to a salon, but when I found out how much they charge, I began to reconsider.  I've become cheap... much to Hoss's pleasant surprise, I'm sure.

So, finally, after our last fight with the hair brush, I determined to make the haircut official.  I got out the scissors, clips, sheets, combs, and spray bottle, sat Bug on a tall stool, and began the process.  Now, if you know me, you know that I'm no professional.  No no, I'm a close one eye and hope for the best kind of gal.  Ha ha ha.. just ask Huggles about his last haircut (in my defense, he was so squirmy, that it was hard to get it just right).

So my two dear friends Sariah and Sandi, please don't look too closely at these pictures.  I'm sure you will find much to snicker about.  

I'll tell you though, I did some homework before I began.  I watched the following video tutorial on cutting curly hair.  I found it very informative, and helpful!  I followed the lady's directions as best as a novice can, and I honestly feel like Bug's haircut turned out pretty cute!... and just the length I was looking for!  

So if you need some help doing a haircut with layers... go ahead and watch this tutorial.  It helps.  Trust me!  I am thinking about cutting Bunny's hair again in the next few months... with this new information under my belt!

Oh the things we can learn...if we just try!

Here are Bug's before and after pictures!

Before: She was excited!

She's cute!

Not perfectly even, but I think it is cute!

Silly!

Bunny had to get in there!  She's beautiful too!

Sincerely,

Evelyn Curtis

Thanksgiving

The bird was so tender and juicy!
I used the Citrus Rubbed Turkey I blogged about.
No bags this year!  Straight roasting and basting!

 I really wanted to post yesterday saying a Happy Thanksgiving to you all!  I just was so busy trying get dinner ready that I just didn't have time!  Then afterward, that turkey kicked in, and I was falling asleep!

Our dinner turned out delicious!  Beautiful turkey, potatoes, stuffing, veggies, cranberry sauce, and brown sugar muffins!  It was quite the spread for our little family of 5!  We definitely have leftovers!... I don't complain about that, because we have meals made for a day or 2 more!  Ha!

Some of our Thanksgiving traditions are getting a newspaper to look through ads (I never get up with the crazies... I like my sleep too much!).  Then we take a family picture somewhere with hopes of using it in a Christmas card that year.  They we usually end the day with watching a movie.  Whether that is in the theater or at home.

Our table is so tiny that we had to put a fold up next to it to double the size.

This year we planned on watching A Christmas Story here at home.  We ate dinner at about 7pm.  So like I mentioned above, after that turkey kicked in, and we were pretty much done cleaning up, we sat down to watch the movie, and Hoss and I were both out.  We ended up turning it off early and heading for bed.  We didn't even have pie we were so stuffed!  It made a pretty decent breakfast though!

My best apple pie yet! 

We certainly had a wonderful day though!

Things I am thankful for:
My God and Jesus Christ
My family (extended and my own)
Water
Cinnamon
Pumpkins
Christmas music
A house that stays cool in the summer and warm in the winter (our last house didn't do well with that)
My calling in church (the service I've been asked to do)
Good friends
No car payment
Crisp cool air (at least it is today)
My dog
Cows
Chickens
Refrigerator to keep things cold and help preserve food
The ease of life we have with technology
Trees
Grass (I miss grass)
Mountains (I really Really miss mountains)
Dirt roads
Smell of pine trees in the forest

And so many more.

Here's one family pic!  We'll be sending out Christmas cards this year!

Yesterday morning, after we got ready for the day, I took the kids to Home Depot where we bought our very first-brand-new-fake-pre-lit-Christmas-tree!  We have always had a hand me down...its nice to have a new one.. and we only paid $40!  Not so bad I think... especially for only going to one store!  First try... I'm thankful for that!

What are you thankful for?  How did you celebrate this year?  What is your favorite part of the meal?  Did you head out to catch any sales?

Sincerely,

Evelyn Curtis

Gangnam/Mormon/or whatever your Style

I think I should have blogged about this a long time ago!  Here is something that makes me laugh no matter how many times I see it!

Gangnam Style is a song performed by Korean rapper PSY.  From my research, he is classically a comedic rapper...my favorite kind, since I generally don't enjoy rap music.  If I have shared this particular video with you before, the please forgive me for sharing it again... but the second video might be new to you...as it was new to me today!

photo via

 I personally believe you can't go wrong with watching this video.  Its hilarious, and my whole family loves it.  Bunny and Bug have perfected the dance (if you haven't seen it, watch to understand).  Huggles tries to do the dance, and Hoss can be found randomly trotting to the silent beat in his head down the isles of Albertson's.  Which is pretty hilarious in its own right... not because he is doing a goofy dance, but because he does it for all to see.  Last week, one lady gave him quite the look.  It was a priceless moment.  One that I wish I could have captured on camera!  Seriously!  Ah, but its fun...especially since grocery shopping can be so hard on a child....or their daddy for that matter.  Sometimes they need a little entertainment/distracting in order for me to get it done quickly!

So watch the video to get the full visual... its quite entertaining!


Second, Hoss played me this video early this morning.  I had to laugh. Its a spin off/spoof of the original video.

Mormon Daddy Style!

Ah, good times, and great references toward the Mormon culture!

I hope you have had a fabulous day!

Sincerely,

Evelyn Curtis