Farm School

A Date With Three of My Favorite People

Random Thoughts

~After insulating our house a few months ago we are now embarking on the huge project of residing it.  At the moment Ryan (with help from our parents) has pulled about a third of it off.  This is very exciting.  Although the process of a huge dumpster in our yard and "siding paper" (I don't know the name of it) flapping in the wind around our house is not.

~ Speaking of things not exciting or inspiring, I realized I'm not really a fan of this time of year.  Or maybe I already knew that but I'm just remembering.  Everything is still brown and bare outside, lost mittens and last year's half finished kid projects (the plywood box that was built and packed with snow to be used as a jump for example) now exposed from the melted snow.  Blah.

~ Oh while I'm on this tangent, I should talk about food.  Not excited or inspired there either.  Last month Katie came over to help me meal plan.  Then I went to the library and left with a stack of cookbooks.  For a few weeks I felt re-energized by the idea of cooking for my family.  I made a lot of new things.  Korean ribs, maple cider pulled chicken, lamb stew, and others I don't remember.  Out of all that only one meal was hit for ALL of my people.  One.  It doesn't help that I'm in my first trimester of pregnancy either I suppose.  But I think what I really need is my garden.

~ On a more positive note, my kids are amazing.  Everyday they ask me how I'm feeling.  They let me take naps.  They surprise me and put all the laundry away.  One day when they noticed I was feeling stressed while getting dinner on the table Grace sat me down and gave me a hand massage while Jackson finished getting the table set.  So amazing.  I am so blessed.

~ Also on a positive note, last week I started school again as well as two internships.  It was a very full week.  Given the fact that my sickness was at it's worst last week and I was feeling so tired, I was very scared I was going to hate all of it.  But instead I felt the opposite.  I'm not sure I can explain it but it feels like exactly what I need in my life right now.

~ While I am not totally over the sickness part, in the last few days I've been able to eat dinner again (as opposed to crackers).  I think I might be over the worst part.

~While early spring is decidedly not my favorite time of year, according to my blog late spring is my favorite time of year here.  I am looking forward to the spring peepers and blooming magnolia tree, which shouldn't be too far away...

Weekend Hightlights

~ Telling our family about baby number 4
~ Having Nora ask every morning since how many days until the baby will be here.
~ Having Jackson come up and hug my tummy several times a day to "snuggle" the baby
~ Having Grace beg me to bring up the baby clothes, which I finally did, and then watching her ooo and ah over each piece of clothing.
~ Getting a lot of next year's firewood chopped
~ Having my dad come out to help
~ Today's warm sun and feeling good enough to be outside in it

Friday Knitting

Spring Break

{Flying kites}




{Even Nora did some climbing}


{New raincoats from the Easter Bunny}


{On and Easter Egg hunt at Grandma's put together by auntie Katie}

We did nothing spectacular for spring break this year, and yet it was such a great week.  There were many playdates with friends and a few sleepovers.  There was some swimming and "rock climbing".  There were a few really nice days to just be outside.  And of course there was Easter.  Given what we have coming up in the next couple weeks (most notably me starting classes and two internships) I think it was just what we needed.

First Haircut

On St. Patrick's Day

{Grace performing at the Landmark Center in St. Paul}

Grace has been hesitant to participate in the various performance and competition opportunities offered for Irish Dance.  Last year (her first year of dance) she simply opted out of all of it other than dance class and the recital at the end of the year.  Never wanting to push things on our children we felt very comfortable supporting her in that decision.  This year she decided she wanted to try a few things.  She tried a feis last fall and she really, really didn't like it.  She was upset with herself for making mistakes (of course she doesn't listen to me when I tell her everyone makes mistakes) and mostly she didn't like the idea of being judged.  I was worried she might let that one bad experience stop her from trying any of the other opportunities, but to my surprise, last month she decided she wanted to participate in the St. Patrick's Day show in St. Paul.  I was so, so, beyond words proud/inspired/moved by her decision. Especially this afternoon an hour before her performance when I could tell she was starting to feel very nervous.  The stage was so huge and bright with so many people crowded around it and the music and dancing were so loud.  It was intimidating even to me.
But she did it...

but before I get to that, let's start at the beginning of the day.

With all three kids wanting to see the parade we decided to make a day of it and arrived in St. Paul around 10:00.  We were able to stake out a great spot in the skyway to watch the parade.  Grandma Lee joined us for the day and met us at our parade watching spot.


{Grandma outfitted all three in crazy St. Patrick's Day wear.}


{Watching the parade}

While Grace and I went to her dance studio so she could practice her performance, Grandma took Nora and Jackson to the Children's Museum for a few hours.  Then we all met back at the Landmark Center.


{Grace all dressed and ready.  Watching the other dancers from the forth floor.}


{Her first dance.  She was smiling!  She later told me it was really fun.}


{Her second dance.}

She really did such a great job!  And while I was so proud of how she did, I was a thousand more times proud of the fact that she did it!  I kept telling her that on the way home, I'm proud of you for doing it and I'm excited that you did so well.  But I want you to know I would be the same amount proud if you had made a thousand mistakes..  I'm just so proud and inspired that you gave it a try.  

She was so proud too, she was beaming the whole way home.

Grace Irish Dance 1
from Amy Miller on Vimeo.

Grace Irish Dance 2 from Amy Miller on Vimeo.

Weekend Highlights

~ A swimming birthday party on Friday with many of our friends
~ Warm sun
~ First time hanging out my laundry
~ Finishing sap boiling
~ Having our friends over on Saturday to play, boil sap, grill and eat maple syrup covered ice cream

A Moment

Friday morning we decided to start school in bed (why don't we do this everyday??).  I was teaching Jackson how to knit in between reading our book and Grace was teaching Nora how to finger knit in between her own knitting.  It was one of those really good moments.  One of the ones that cancels out all the hundreds of not good moments that may have happened earlier in the week.  So at some point I decided I needed a picture of us.  This lead to more laughter as there was no way to capture us without cutting off someone's head.  Not to mention they were all really just pictures of my seemingly huge arms.











I don't care though.  It was a good moment.  You have to capture those in whatever form you can.

Homeschool Group: Spring Scavenger Hunt

Becoming John Audubon

{A close up of her woodpercker}



Today we spent the (beautiful) morning outside watching and listening to the birds just like John Audubon.  Then everyone got their notebook and pencil and set to drawing one of their choice.  I will never forget walking around to the front of the house to see Nora, sitting on a tree stump with her sketch pad, watching a little downy woodpecker peck for bugs in a log pile.  She was so intent and in her element.  As always not everyone is equally as moved by this topic (but that's how it is in school too right??).  But I think I have two out three.  Three out of four if you include me.

This Weekend

This was not my favorite weekend.  There was a visit to the ER for me (chest pains, apparently I tore a muscle in my chest), there was a broken sewer pipe at our rental apartment, my camera broke with all the pictures I took this weekend on it, there was a mouse in my kitchen... you get the idea.  But despite all that there were some good moments and it feels much better to end my weekend thinking about those.

Weekend Highlights...
~ I spent 20 minutes sitting in the hammock with sun on my face
~ It was 56 degrees today
~ Ryan boiled our sap (very short season this year so not a lot of sap) and our house is now filled with my favorite smell
~ My parents came out and brought us lunch
~ Frankie and Frieda stopped on the silo this morning (this means spring has officially arrived!)
~ Ending the day reading books in bed with all three kids

{Grace and Jackson all smiles after skiing down their first black diamond}

After over 6 hours skiing with some of our homeschooling friends on Thursday we had an amazingly fun day quickly turn into a very scary day.  Grace was "ski racing" and either was too focused on speed to see where she was going or lost control on an icy patch (she doesn't remember) and hit a metal pole.  She was briefly knocked out and thankfully another skier was there to stop and help and call the patrol.  After she was transported down the hill and checked out by their medical workers and then checked out again that night at the doctor it was confirmed that amazingly she was "fine".  No broken bones and no concussion- but lots of bruises and sore limbs.  She has been resting up since and is healing more each day.  It was pretty scary for all of us so I'm kind of glad that skiing season is over.  Hopefully by next year we will be ready to go at it again.

Homeschool Group Field Trip: The History Center