Good Morning to You, Too!

Our dog found what's been making noises under our porch the past few nights.

A skunk.

Yeah, he got sprayed.

Happy Friday everyone!

Thankful Thursday

Today, Moses made a mess on the carpet, so I put him on the line outside while I cleaned up. Then I read stories and put the girls in their rooms for naps and then...I got distracted. About an hour and a half later, I remembered him...and he was gone.

He'd pulled up his stake and was nowhere in sight.

Oh, he's run away...he could be anywhere. He could be run over by a car. He could be...

First Son was asking, "Mom, where's Moses?"

I decided to go to the front yard and call him from there...and there he was, just outside the front door. Oh, thank goodness.

He was treated to two hot dogs as a reward.

My Small Success XIII

It's hard to believe it's Thursday already, and time for more Small Successes.

1. My mom and I made these lovely jars of applesauce and tomatoes. It was my first time using a water bath canner and it wasn't as hard as I thought. It was also much harder than I thought, but we were had ambitious goals for the day. We also sliced some apples for the freezer, so an apple pie is in order...as soon as I've recovered. By the way, my mom brought her Pinzon Apple and Potato Peeler, Corer, and Slicer and it's amazing. I told her that's what I want for Christmas. I also finally chopped and froze the growing pile of hot chili peppers on our counter. Let's not think about the hundreds still out on the plants.

2. First Daughter's birthday party was a success! I hate birthday parties, not attending them (that's great), but hosting them. I'd much rather declare our family a non-birthday-party-family, but Kansas Dad says they're required. He planned the games (apple bobbing for preschoolers and a pumpkin hunt) and I managed some cupcakes and an apple cake decorated with cut-out apple cookies. First Daughter's favorite part was when the Bob cake-topper got all dirty (with frosting) on the cupcake. The highlight for most guests seemed to be when Kansas Dad showed them how to catch grasshoppers and feed them to the chickens.

3. I did not exercise last Monday, so I missed a session. I planned on missing it because my parents were in town and I wasn't comfortable working out while they sat on the futon right behind me and watched, but I was all prepared to surprise you by making it up on Tuesday. Instead, we adopted a dog. I may still make it up on Saturday. I did, however, exercise at my regularly scheduled time on Wednesday. I'm considering this a success because I didn't let missing a session derail me altogether. (Too convoluted?) I was nervous with the dog, worried he would get in the way, but I put his pillow down and rewarded him a few times with treats and attention. He only strayed a few times right at the beginning. (I don't know what his previous owners were thinking; he's fantastic.)

Bonus: We had our first homeschool field trip (pictures still to come) at the botanical gardens. Still to come this week: our first Nature Study Club meeting.

Head over to Faith & Family Live for more Small Successes!

And Then, There Was Moses

We've had a very busy few days. My parents arrived last Friday. Mom and I and a friend spent most of Saturday canning tomatoes and applesauce, as well as making chocolate cupcakes and an apple cake. We had a small birthday party on Sunday with a few of First Daughter's friends. Yesterday, we had our first homeschool field trip to a local botanical gardens where we ran around and even watched them tag a Monarch for us. My parents left this morning and we were supposed to have lessons today before we have a few more away from home activities for the rest of the week.

Instead, we jumped in the van with Kansas Dad to see a puppy he found on the Humane Society website.

Now before you think we're too crazy, we've been talking about getting a dog since we moved out here. It's one of the reasons we were excited to own a home. It just hasn't been a priority. Kansas Dad saw this darling little puppy, though, and we couldn't resist.

Of course, said darling puppy was adopted by another woman about half an hour after we got there. We visited a few other dogs. One was too jumpy. One didn't pay enough attention to us. We were on the verge of leaving without a dog when one of the volunteers said she thought there was a dog that would be perfect for us.

Apparently, he was, because we brought him home.

Meet Moses, freshly washed:


I'm feeling a little overwhelmed at the thought of keeping three kids and a dog I don't know under control while homeschooling tomorrow (after deciding to stay home rather than venture out for our playgroup), but so far Moses has been fabulous and I think he'll make a great addition to our family.