Jj Is For Jesus

On to the letter Jj!  I found this worksheet online and we decided to make it into a sign.  

First the kids colored their picture of Jesus.  It was funny because they couldn't believe that baby Jesus grew up so fast!  (Wasn't he just born in December? LOL)   The kids found it interesting that the baby Jesus did not remain a baby forever. 

While the kids colored, I prepared some construction paper and lengths of yarn.  I cut the paper down to a size that the picture could fit onto and then hole punched two holes into the top.  

The kids glued their completed pictures onto the construction paper and I helped with the yarn.

This is how it looked completed!  

Jj is for Jesus!♥

It was raining outside and Adam was outside using the saw, so we stayed inside and did some Jamming and Jumping for Jesus!  These boys can really bust a move.

♥♥♥Happy Thursday!♥♥♥

Our tub is being installed today.

This Is Where I Am Supposed To Be

   We spent an amazing weekend up in Mazama at winter camp with the youth group.  It was SO COLD!  I know I was built for a warmer climate.  It was so great to see so much snow, the kids all had so much fun.  Adam loved the sledding activities as well- they had a blast. Especially sledding at night. :)

Here is the sign on the road for the camp.  It is located at Mazama Community Church. 

On the way to the sledding trail for the first time, we couldn't help but just stop and jump around in the snow.  It was several feet deep, and without warning a leg would sink down and surprise us.

At the top of the sledding hill!  It was very hard work just climbing up to the top!  Not only was it maybe 10 degrees, but the snow was so deep on the hill and very powdery.  One step up, two steps back..

 HARD WORK!

Here we all are during one of the evening  bible study sessions.  I always think to myself  "I can't believe this is where I am supposed to be right now."  That God plucked me from a horrible place and plopped me in the middle of something important, changing my heart along the way with a swipe of His hand just amazes me!  Look at all of these kids- each of them hearing about God.  One day I hope that God will pluck them up and turn them around the way I was. 

Meanwhile, last week before we left, Petra helped this little guy with his puzzle.  The kids have really been into the puzzles lately- and the youngest of our group has learned not to destroy them as they are being built.  Hooray!!

♥♥♥Happy Wednesday!♥♥♥

Bathroom Needs A Bandaid

If you have ANY history with children, you know that a bandaid will fix almost anything.  I have one child in particular who used to just wear bandaids for fun.  Pinterest gave me a fun idea to write on a plain bandaid before applying it to the wound.  "Shark Attack" was one of the ideas. LOL  We have a giant supply of bandaids at Henle House, Angry Birds, Curious George,  animal stripes- you name it.   After the noise in the bathroom yesterday, I feel like my bathroom really needs a bandaid.  

Adam was ripping up linoleum and sub floor. Look at the paneling!  The floor didn't come up easily.  Adam had to chisel it out, piece by piece, IN PIECES.  I would hear POUND.. POUND.. POUND...RRRRIIIIPPPPP... (I cringe at the noise of my house being ripped.) OUCH!

What a mess.  

THIS really upset my OCD.  Our toilet, in our BEDROOM. 
With water in it.  

I had to walk away and just not look.  We are managing well still without the bathroom, but the clutter of what should be in the bathroom being in our bedroom is starting to bug me.  I am very happy with the progress so far, though.  It's exciting to work on something ourselves and we are learning a lot. 

♥♥♥Happy Thursday!♥♥♥

Nine Mittens/Free MP3 Downloads

Yesterday we counted and glued 9 mittens onto our papers.  

It was a simple project, one that required no help from me.  I love those kinds of projects because the kids can work at their own pace and not have to wait for me.

We used lots of different colors of paper.  It's so dreary outside, we enjoy a splash of colors on the art wall!

The next step was to use the paint blotters to decorate the mittens. :)

 These are great, and virtually mess free!

Petra joins us for everything.  Right now she is sitting with the kids while they put together a large floor puzzle.  Sometimes she climbs into the box. ☺

I'm loving this art wall!! 

This is a song called Avalon performed by 'Blue Street Jazz Band'.  You can download an entire MP3 Album on Amazon called Green Hill Jazz Sampler, and it has another version of this song.  It's a FANTASTIC album, great for background music.  It creates a cheery atmosphere and we have been enjoying it at Henle House for a couple of days now.  Click this link to sample the album and download.  Also, we found a great album for quiet time by Lullaby Tribe called 'Sleep Like A Princess'. Listen to it here.   It's FREE!!

♥♥♥Happy Wednesday!♥♥♥

Ii is for Ice Cream/ Bathroom Update

We are working on the letter Ii.  The kids know that the letter Ii has two sounds.  We usually create ice cream when working on the letter Ii.  This time I remembered to trace the pieces for the kids to cut them out.

Snip...snip...snip...

Learning to operate with scissors is so scary for me!  It's not a good idea to just give scissors to a group of children under the age of five and let them figure it out by themselves.  It's definitely a one on one job.   I get a little panicky with scissors.  We all survived though!

The kids glued the pieces onto the paper and drew in some lines on the cone.  

Look at all of that ice cream!! YUM! 

Meanwhile, new framing and insulation has gone into the bathroom.

We also replaced the old window.  We hadn't originally planned on doing that, but Adam learned how and now that he knows what to do we can slowly start replacing every window in our house.  

They are all TERRIBLE.  The trouble with this window was that bathroom windows as large as ours are not available.  They have to be custom made.  We just purchased a regular window in a smaller size and will apply the film covering to the glass for privacy.  The next step is to bring in a tub!  Meanwhile, we are managing just fine with the sponge bathing.  I must say that I am thankful that we chose the kitchen sink faucet that we did, it has a nice high arch that is perfect for washing hair in the sink.

♥♥♥Happy Tuesday!♥♥♥

Winter Trees

We wandered outside to see the winter trees.  I think they are beautiful against the sky!  We remembered that the leaves fell down last fall, and that right now the trees are bare. 

They were showing me mittens and gloves because it is winter. :)  We have been talking a lot about why we need to wear warm clothes in the winter.  They ALWAYS bring up that our cats do not need to wear coats because they have fur.  

"Do you see the winter tree?"  Yes, he does.  He showed me where it was. :)

We noticed the little rose that could.  This rosebud has been blooming now for two months.  

It's freezing outside!!

We began our project.  The kids used Q-Tips to paint the winter tree.

They also glued on some snowflakes.  We then learned how to make icicles using silver glitter glue and a toothpick.  Just blob some glue onto the branches and run the toothpick down through the glue.  

You will see icicles!

Brrr!! We are so thankful that we are cozy inside.  I hope you all had a fabulous weekend!  We enjoyed bowling with the youth group and errands to prepare for winter camp this coming weekend. 

♥♥♥Happy Monday!♥♥♥

Story Exploring Thursday/Pink Bathroom

For story exploring we used 'Goodnight Moon'.  We talked and read about the bedtime rituals we all have.  

The kids each chose just one thing in the room to say goodnight to, and then they worked on creating that item on paper.  This guy chose to say goodnight to his closet. 

Goodnight window...

Goodnight friends...

Goodnight elephant..  SO cute!  

Meanwhile in the bathroom, Aiden joined the demolition team to help remove the old sink and cabinet. 

The anticipation was KILLING me!!  I was finally going to be rid of every shred of horrible pink.  I could hardly contain myself.

Aiden enjoyed unscrewing the cabinet doors. :)

Before long, it was gone.  ONLY TO REVEAL AN UGLY PINK WALL!  I had to laugh at myself for thinking the pink would be gone.  LOL!!

♥♥♥Happy Friday!♥♥♥