Sydney's Gym Show

Sydney as the top of the pyramid.

Sydney's "bridge move" on the parallel bars.

Sydney's head stand.

It's Gym Show Week!!!!

Prepare yourselves for lots of exciting, action-filled photos showing the VeStrand children performing various death-defying stunts and gymnastic feats usually attempted only by professionals. Rare photos such as these can only mean one thing: it's Gym Show Week at Liberty Christian School!!!

I get to spend three and a half hours watching the kids and their classmates jump, roll, tumble, somersault, and spin, holding my breath and hoping against hope that I don't have to spend that same amount of time in the emergency room.

Really, the kids LOVE the Gym Show and athletic prowess (or lack thereof) aside, this is pretty much the most entertaining event of the entire school year! Today was the First Grade show.

Sawyer waits patiently for his turn on the parallel bars.

Sawyer displays his amazing skill on the vault.

Sawyer balances on the beam.

Jolaade, Daniel, Sawyer, and Joel make a pyramid
with a little help from Mr. Trumbo.

Ta-Da! All applause welcome!

Poetry Progress

Thought I'd update you on Sydney's poetry progress. This is what she's done so far.....

Singing

I really love to sing a lot
Singing talent is what I've got
In the shower and in my room
I always sing a little tune
My singing isn't flat or shrill
I sound just like a whippoorwill
I sing in church
I sing in school
And I sing for God
Because HE rules!

Sydney Paige VeStrand

What are you doing this weekend?

I hope you all have lots of fun and exciting things planned for this weekend. In case you were thinking of calling us or inviting us to join you in those fun and exciting things, I thought I'd save you the effort. This is what we'll be doing this weekend.

Poetry Final Project-Grade 6 English

Original Poem

Your poem must contain at least eight lines but be no longer than a page. You must incorporate at least four elements of poetry in a meaningful way. Your poem should reflect serious effort and exhibit neatness and overall aesthetic appeal.

Essay

You will write an essay analyzing a poem of your choosing. You must write well-developed paragraphs, consisting of strong topic sentences, relevant supporting sentences, and strong concluding/transitional sentences. Your essay should include an introductory paragraph consisting of a hook and thesis statement, a body in which you discuss the poem's meaning, the poet's use of strategies and elements of poetry, and the poem's emotional impact. Your essay should reflect serious effort.

Thank you Mr. English Teacher.

Hope you all have a great weekend!

Don't know much about.....biology

Ahh, once again, we are reaping the informational benefits of the fourth grade digestion unit. However, and not surprisingly, Payton is picking up on totally different "important points" than Sydney did just two years ago.

The other night after dinner, he was kind enough to inform us of the following.

"Did you know that when your tinkle is dark it means you haven't dranken enough water? But if your tinkle is light, then you have dranken enough water."

(I'm thinking they could set aside the digestion unit and spend some more time on grammar.)

And the following day, in the van during carpool. Naturally.

"Mom, does everyone have a rectum?"

Brotherly Love...or at least "Like"

This doesn't happen every day so we figured we better capture it on "film" while we had the chance! Payton and Sawyer are strategizing over a game of Backyard Football. Forget the homework, this is important stuff, ya know!

Monday, Monday

I must be out of "the loop". Whatever "the loop" is. I heard this morning that today is "Blue Monday". Apparently, "Blue Monday" comes every year, but this is the first time I'd ever heard about it.

"Blue Monday", which happens to fall on January 21 this year, is so named because the "experts" have decided that it's the most depressing day of the year. Bad weather, credit card bills, and the failure to maintain those pesky New Year's resolutions all combine to make today the bleakest day of the year. I guess this is such a pervasive problem that the "experts" have come up with a list of things to help you cope with "Blue Monday". So, if you are feeling blue today, cheer up! You're not alone and after all, misery loves company, right??

Ten Ways to Beat the Blue Monday Blues

1. Make sure you get up, get dressed, and try to look good. Don't leave off your make-up. (Just in case you were planning to lay in bed all day, naked and without your lipstick.)
2. Make a list of those you know and how you affect their lives in positive ways. (I guess this is better than wondering how you positively affect complete strangers.)
3. Exercise. It can change your mood. (We're going from bad to worse here.)
4. Remember, it is "Blue Monday." You are not the only one feeling blue. (Gee, doesn't that lift your spirits?)
5. Indulge in a gratification exercise. (No comment.)
6. Buy a light box. (I'm off to Lowe's.)
7. Try to be more disciplined with your bedtime. (What am I, ten years old?)
8. Think like the Opposition Party. (My "Opposition Party" hasn't had an intelligent thought in quite a while.)
9. Try and good book and a glass of wine. (Stay away from "Ivanhoe" and Sutter Home.)
10. Visit Australia. It's lighter there. (Yeah, that's real doable.)

Breaking up ("biblically") is hard to do....

Read this on another blog today and had to "use" it myself (with just a few tweaks.) It's hilarious!

Depending on your religious background and beliefs, you may say or hear something like this when ending a relationship.

Atheist: "The burden of proof is on you to establish the existence of this so-called “god”. But I believe that if there were any such divine entity, “it” would not want us to continue dating."

Intelligent Design Theorist: "Our relationship bears the marks of irreducible complexity, making it too difficult to explain by way of natural causes. Therefore, the most reasonable conclusion is that we were designed to break up since things have gotten so complicated."

Calvinist: "We were predestined before the creation of the world to break up according to God’s good pleasure. I am, on my own power, unable to break up with you apart from the irresistible draw of God’s sovereign grace, which leads me to end this relationship. Those that truly break up will not get back together in the end."

Armenian: "While you love me and have a wonderful plan for our life together, I have the power to resist your will. If I did not, love would not be possible. For our relationship to be loving, it needs to include the possibility of breaking up—something I am doing right now."

New Perspective on Paul Scholar: "Rather than earning God’s blessing, it is established on the basis of our covenant courtship (I asked your dad to date you, didn’t I?), which requires the proper response of an intentional and deliberate pursuit of marriage. Yet, there is no such pursuit, therefore God’s blessing on our relationship is no longer maintained."

Open Theist: "I am not really sure if we are supposed to be together because God isn't sure himself."

Theistic Evolutionist: "The beauty and rhythm of random variation and natural selection over long periods of time has presented us with a world where God has shown us that our relationship is too biologically expensive to maintain and is destined for extinction."

Young Earth Creationist: "No, I do not believe we have been going out for that long. Our relationship is only six days old and the on the seventh God rested. I think we need a rest too."

Emergent: "The question of whether we are in relationship or not is mired in modernity’s obsession with propositional truth. A better a way to look at this is to enter into God’s story about how he led us together and is now leading us apart."

Catholic: "Honey, I feel really guilty about hurting you, but I think the Virgin Mary is leading us in different directions. I think it is her will that we break up."

Postmodernist: "It’s okay for you to like me, and I would love to enter into a dialogue deconstructing the word “like” but I just don’t think it’s worth it. On second thought, is this life even worth anything? Why am I even here? Why am I even trying to validate my meaningless existence?"

Lutheran: "I want our relationship to continue, but first there are a few things that God wants you to change. Here's the list; there's only 95 things. What? Oh, okay then, I guess we’re done.

Episcopalian: "Ummm, I'm gay."

Fundamentalist: "You have tarnished the pure nature of our love by incorporating such heathen elements as 'dating' and 'fun'. I am afraid I can no longer court you—yea, even speak to you—until you repent of this apostasy."

Pentecostal: "I go where the Holy Spirit leads, and I currently sense he is leading me away from this relationship. You see, while I was speaking in tongues, someone interpreted what I was saying, and apparently, I broke up with you three weeks ago."

Can you relate?

Saw this bumper sticker today:

"Some days all I want is to be listed as a missing person."

Feeling that way this week. Can you relate?

Egg-citement

Hard boiled eggs are a HUGE hit at our house. I can't boil them fast enough for the kids. The other day, though, they found a new "use" for them!

Purple Drain

Aside from living in Ohio when the Bengals went to the Superbowl in the late 80s, we have not ever lived in or near a city that has enjoyed any football success. (Remember, we lived near Detroit for 10 years. 'Nuff said.) So we have been amused, and even a bit confused, by the hoopla surrounding the Ravens playoff bid this year.

For instance, yesterday was the locally-designated "Purple Day". All fans were to wear Ravens jerseys or at least purple and/or black in some shape or form. This declaration made the people-watching very interesting around here yesterday. As I stood in line at the post office Friday morning, an elderly (80 to 85 years old) lady came in all decked out in her Ravens jersey, complete with purple turtleneck underneath. Our local weatherman, who recently shaved his head on some sort of bet, had his bald head painted black like a raven's head with the team symbol on the side in gold.

Loyal fans have been spotted wearing purple feathered hats with their faces painted completely purple while sporting blinking Ravens earrings. At intersections, I have to crane my neck to see the traffic light past the Ravens flag (or flags) billowing off the car in front of me. And, I have to say, it's more than a little disconcerting to see grown men proudly walking through the supermarket in purple sweatpants. (Truthfully, it's more than a little disconcerting to see grown men out in public in ANY color sweatpants, but that's a whole 'nother post.)

As I type, the game has ended, and we are celebrating in our house. You see, although we wouldn't admit it to anyone around here, we were rooting for Peyton Manning and the Colts. (Sorry Bruce!) Thank heaven I will be able to go to the grocery store without my blinders on now!

Ain't this the truth???

Men, next time you are out with your wife or girlfriend, you may want to think twice about asking "What took you so long?" after she uses the restroom. You never know what the answer may be!

When you have to visit a public bathroom, generally, the first thing you encounter is a line of women who also had to visit the bathroom. You smile politely and take your place at the end of the line, trying not to make eye contact with anyone and hoping that you can hold "it" long enough without having to knock over everyone in front of you and dive for a stall. When it's finally your turn, you walk gingerly toward the toilets, discreetly checking for feet under the doors. Naturally, every stall is occupied.

Finally, a door begins to open and you make a run for it, nearly knocking down the woman trying to leave the stall. You turn to shut the door and find that it won't latch but you have to go so badly that it doesn't matter. The handy paper "seat cover" dispenser (invented by a germophobic mom, no doubt) is empty. And, you would hang your purse on the door hook, if there was one, but, naturally, there isn't. So you carefully and quickly drape your purse around your neck (because you know your mom would die a thousand deaths if you put it on the FLOOR!), yank down your pants, and assume "The Stance."

As you "settle in" and try to concentrate on actually going, your aging, toneless thigh muscles begin to shake. You'd love to sit down, but you didn't take the time to wipe the seat or lay toilet paper on it, so you hold "The Stance." To take your mind off your trembling thighs, you reach for what you discover to be the EMPTY toilet paper dispenser. As you make this discovery, you can clearly hear your mom's voice saying, "Honey, if you had tried to clean the seat, you would have KNOWN there was no toilet paper!" Your thighs are about to give out on you. Suddenly, you remember the tiny tissue that you used to blow your nose yesterday--it's still in your purse. That will have to do. You dig it out from the bag dangling from your neck and attempt to rearrange it in the "puffiest" way possible. It's still smaller than your thumbnail.

At this point, another lady pushes open your stall door. (Remember that latch that didn't work??) The door hits your dangling purse, which slams into your heaving chest, and you and your purse topple backward against the toilet tank. "OCCUPIED!" you scream, as you reach for the door and your precious, tiny, crumpled tissue lands in a puddle on the floor. Then you lose your footing altogether and slide down directly on to the toilet seat, which is wet, of course.

You bolt straight up, knowing all too well that it's too late. Your bare bottom has made contact with every imaginable germ and disgusting life form on the uncovered seat because you never laid down toilet paper. Not that there was any, even if you had wanted to lay some down. You know your mother would be utterly appalled if she knew, because you're certain HER bare bottom never touched a public toilet seat. Her voice is once again resounding in your head "You know, dear, you just have NO idea what kind of diseases you can get from a public toilet seat."

By this time, the automatic sensor on the back of the toilet is so confused that it flushes, propelling a stream of water like a fire hose that somehow sucks everything down with such force that you grab onto the toilet paper dispenser for fear of being dragged in too. At this point, you give up. You're soaked from the spewing water and the wet toilet seat. You're exhausted.

You wipe as best you can with a gum wrapper you found in your pocket and then try to slink inconspicuously to the sinks. Now you can't figure out how to operate the faucets with the automatic sensors and the soap dispensers are empty, so you wipe your hands with spit and promptly look like an idiot waving your hand in front of the dot on the towel dispenser. You walk past the line of women still waiting. You can't even smile politely.

A kind soul at the very end of the line points out a piece of toilet paper trailing from your shoe. (Where was THAT when you needed it??) Angrily, you yank the paper from your shoe, plunk it into the woman's hand, and say "Here, you just might need this." As you exit, you spot your dear husband, who has long since entered, used, and left the men's restroom. Annoyed, he asks, "What took you so long, and why the heck is your purse hanging around your neck?"

Now, all you insensitive men know why women go to the restroom in pairs: so the other gal can hold the door, hang onto your purse, and hand you Kleenex under the door.

Author Unknown

Soup's On!

It's finally cold enough here to have soup so I thought I'd share another favorite recipe. I love this one because I can get everything chopped up and ready to go ahead of time and then throw it all together at the last minute. Also, it makes a big pot so there are always yummy leftovers! I know there are probably a million broccoli-cheese soup recipes out there. But I think this one is especially easy and very good. (Probably not "good for you" but we won't go there!) Enjoy!

Broccoli-Cheese Soup

1 cup onions, chopped
1 cup carrots, chopped
1 cup potatoes, chopped
1 cup celery, chopped
1/2 cup green pepper, chopped (I don't put this in ours.)
2 cups broccoli (I buy the petite florets and toss them in frozen!)
1 stick butter
1 48-ounce can chicken broth
2/3 cup flour
2 cups milk
1 16-ounce jar Cheez Whiz

In large pot, melt butter then add all veggies. Sauté until tender. Add broth to veggies. In separate bowl, add milk to flour slowly. Then add milk mixture to broth and veggies. Bring all to a boil and let thicken for 5-10 minutes. Add Cheez Whiz. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 more minutes. We always add real bacon bits on top!

The Brooke VeStrand Fan Club

Had to post this pic of my nephews, Spencer and Lincoln,
watching Brooke sing on the blog! Looks like she
already has some loyal fans!

Music for your ears.....

We finally figured it out! This is Brooke singing in her school talent show right before Christmas. Of course, we are prejudiced, but we think she's pretty darn good! Enjoy!

Oh, and sorry about the shaky video! I was taping, and I was nervous for her! And a little teary too!

Friday Fun

It's gray and rainy in Maryland today. So tonight after dinner, we played some games. Jeff taught Payton how to play solitaire (because I had NO idea!), and he won on his first try! We told him that next time we see Grandma VeStrand, he will have to get some pointers. She is the solitaire queen!


Sawyer beat me 2 out of 3 at Uno! He takes his games very seriously!



And speaking of games, this is our new family favorite! Some friends taught us to play over the holidays (Thanks Ferbers!), and we got our own game the next day! We can all play together, and the kids love it. This one is highly recommended by the VeStrands!

A Weather Whine.....

Can someone please clarify for me.......is it January or not??? The calendar says it is, but when I send the kids to school with light jackets and clean out the garage in a tee shirt, I have to wonder. It's supposed to be 62 degrees here today! That's fine for April, but IT'S JANUARY!!! It's downright balmy out there. My turtlenecks are screaming for use!
Would someone please send me some snow?
And, no, I'm not buying any from ebay!

Don't know much about......astronomy

Ok, I admit, science is NOT my area of expertise. I have never enjoyed it and don't pretend to now. Science is daddy's department. I handle those pesky take-home English tests. So, it's clear that Payton did not get his love of science from me! He is studying the solar system in fourth grade right now, and tonight, on the way home from basketball practice, he was sharing some of what he's learned.

Payton: "Mom, do you know what the biggest planet is?"
Me: (Wracking my brain and hoping for the best!) "Hmmm, I think it's Saturn or Jupiter."
Payton: "Oh yes, it's one of those."
Me: (BIG sigh of relief....)
Payton: "Mom, did you know that when you compare the sun to us, we are an olive and Jupiter is a grapefruit?"
Me: (picturing myself as an olive, then gratefully realizing that he meant the "earth") "Nope, didn't know that either!"