Falling Behind....Catching Up!

We don't carve pumpkins every year, but this year we found a good sale on them at Walmart and decided to have a party. Zack had Friday off, so we invited Kaylee and Nicky over to scoop and carve.



Rebecca dug in and went with a camouflage theme.


I love how Eli's turned out, but when it was lit not much light shone through.


I think Zack carved his the quickest. Should I be worried about that?


Waiting for the evening time to be lit.


In the meantime, taco salad dinner!


Ready for lights out!


Can you see me now?


Nate wanted the moons and stars. I love how it turned out.


Happy boy=happy pumpkin!


James looks like a bandit with his eyes blacked out like that! Don't ya like his cool spider he insisted on having?


Sitting pretty! The extra big pumpkin on the left was Nicky's. He won it at his school party.


That's it for another year!

Happy "Birth" Day, Zack!

I had a good laugh when I read this joke sent to me by a friend! But it reminded me that I have something to share! We have always talked to our children about their need for Jesus, and I remember helping Zack say the sinner's prayer at a young age. Of course, we wonder what about the time when they are past the age of innocence, do they need to say that prayer again, or if they just keep on keepin' on. I'm sure it's different with each child, of course. Dealing with Zack's autism adds a whole other dimension to this subject. I believe to a certain extent, God gives much more mercy and grace to Zack than to my other children. Zack operates within the abilities that his DISabilities afford him. His autism plays out in his behavior. Social situations are hard. The more sensory input he has, the less abilitiy he has to cope. Crowds, noise, visual stimulation, all pushes his coping mechanisms to the max. He reaches overload at the slightest provocation. So, as you can imagine, discipline is an major, ongoing thing in our home. I was recently introduced to The Young Peacemaker and we have been going through the book as a family. It's amazing the difference this book has made. It really is perfect for autistic/asperger's children. This Tuesday, I was asking Zack specifically about "getting" to Heaven and how he thought that was accomplished. He said, "Well, when I get there, God will give me my punishment for being bad and then let me into Heaven." My jaw nearly hit my chest! Where had we gone wrong, and how in the world did he get THAT so mixed up?!? I told him, "No, sweet boy! That's not how it works! When you take your last breath, it's over! You have made your choice and it's time to get your consequence, Heaven OR Hell and Hell IS the punishment!" You should have seen the look of shock that came over his face and he began to cry. Real tears streaming down his cheeks (by this time, I'm crying, too!) I asked him to tell me what he was thinking and he said he realized that he has been "very horrid to Nate and James." The realization that he deserved to go to Hell because of his sinful nature and that his idea of God accepting him into Heaven no matter how badly he behaved was WAY off, really shook him up. Of course, we prayed together and he confessed that he was a sinner in need of Jesus. I tell you, it shook ME up! To see someone realize for the first time that they NEED Jesus was something else to behold! I know that on some level we all experience this on a daily basis. It's called being humble. Realizing our position of desperate need for a Savior. It also made me think about how much MORE my children need us to talk to them about the things of God. How did we miss such a big one like that?

These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.

Deuteronomy 6:6-7

I guess there's no such thing as too much when it comes to talking to our children about God!

We wrestle not against flesh and blood....

School Fun

A couple weeks ago, I excitedly brought out the preschool items I had assembled for Nate and James and announced "Hey guys, you wanna get started on school work?" I heard a rather decided "nope!" followed by another "nope!" (Not sure who went first.) Great, I thought. I must be saying something wrong. The proverbial light bulb lit up over my head and I waited a few minutes before saying, "Hey guys, you wanna get started on school FUN?" Eyes lit up! Score another win for the art of persuasion! It took them a little while to warm up to the routine, but they are really into it now.

This is the book we are using to learn Bible stories, songs, rhymes, ABC's, 123's and art. (and more!) It takes us between 15-30 minutes a day, depending on what activities we have planned. They really like doing the art, so that can stretch the time a bit more. As long as they are interested, we keep going!




This is the Bible that the curriculum recommends using. It begins at the "Beginning", of course. A story a day with comprehension questions built right in. It's amazing how much their little minds absorb!


Here is a peek into the main activities for today. To go with the part of Noah's story of the rainbow: tear up bits of colored paper and glue on black paper. I was getting a kick out of how each of them went at it their own way. True to personality, James GLOBBED on the paper bits, in a hurry to get it done. Nate carefully placed each piece.


In the end they both finished at the same time! So much for hurrying!


Neat, careful rows!


Really getting "into" it! Love the bandaids. Previous injury, not inflicted by tearing up bits of paper.


The letter for this week is B. Guess what week we are on! Using masking tape, we taped out a capital "B" and they placed blocks on it.


~Hooray for school FUN~

Messin' with the Martians

Mary Ellen Huff put this little clip of various moms and their kids together with a song "I'm a Mom". The singers are Joyce Martin McCollough, Karen Peck and Sheri Easter and the words are great! You'll find (thanks to Mary's great sense of humor) our family picture is put along with the words "people ask what planet I'm from". I realize that there are WAY worse last names to have than Martian, and when I read some of them I thank God that I don't have THAT one! The most unusual thing that has ever happened to me concerning my (apparently hilarious) last name took place one afternoon at Walmart. I signed the check and handed it to the male clerk. (why am I not surprised that a GUY did this to me?) He noticed right away that my last name was Martian. He literally tipped his head back and started laughing his head off and said "You MARRIED a MARTIAN!!!" Oh yeah. That was funny.

ZZZZZZZZZZ

Since my day starts early and ends late, this is how I keep my sanity. Just thought you might wanna know! (you know, just in case you were actually worried about me!)