[one thirty five] 1.30.11

More choc chip cookies in the oven; dad's doing a puzzle and listening to music, and all's right with the world.
Sunday we went to Manhattan for church; we met with a family that we've not seen in a long time. After church we went to their place for lunch. They have a little five year old with spina bifida. He is SO cute and SO strong, since he can't use his legs, and SOO talkative. His name is Hezekiah. He has this little lisp too, so he says 'th' instead of 'suh'. He was the most cheerful little guy and Sami and I both fell in love with him.

On another note, I got the sweetest email from Bre the other day... I love her SO much! Bre, if you're reading this..(i'm already home hahha) thanks so much for the email =)
Today we had to go get wood before the big storm hits! We're supposed to get about 16 inches by tomorrow. Sooo, on the one hand yay for snow, on the other hand, go away winter! Ha. So anyway we did wood, then came in and had hot chocolate and read in Thucydides. =) Then we had pretty much the best class ever. Ask me why? Well..... First off, only in online school would you not know if your classmate is a girl or a boy! Everyone was like, "Wah? Oh, you're a GIRL? Wait, *you're* a boy?" Haha. It was great. And then everyone was saying, "I'm a GIRL!" or "I'm a BOY!" and Austin, the one that wants to be a door greeter when he grows up was saying, "Welcome to Schola, I'm a boy!" and Mr. C had to show us pictures of himself to prove his 'guyness'. Also we speculated once more on the correct spelling of 'hott'. Let's just say there's mixed opinions on that subject.

"Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth
Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide;
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow,
Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside!"

Once again let me remind you to click on the pictures for a much better view =)
Joyfully,
Shaina

Sami and Hezekiah =)

[the icing on the cake.. i mean grass]

[one thirty six] 1.31.11

[it's almost summer time... psych!]

Levi gazing longingly at Papa John's cookie.

Gawwwgeous sister

Micah the monkey =)

Sylvia being Sylvia. [one thirty four] 1.28.11

Mommy and her Sami

[one thirty three] made some yummy cookies =) 1.27.11

We went to the park today as a result of the absolutely beautiful weather today! It reminds me of the poem by C.S. Lewis in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe: 

"Wrong will be right, when Aslan comes in sight,

At the sound of his roar, sorrows will be no more,

When he bares his teeth, winter meets its death, 

And when he shakes his mane, we shall have spring again."

Unfortunately I know that winter is not gone forever. In fact, I think it's coming back tonight. =( *raises fist* Curse you winter!!! ;) Anyway, off my winter complain, back to the park. We went to the park. We played and I mostly got cold because I thought it was warmer than it was. Sam and I went to the consignment shop and tried on the most *beautiful* prom dress there. It was like ruby or wine red, and it had those little pinchy gathers in the skirt... it was divine. 

We went to Pizza Hut for dinner.. and had some yummy pizza and got some icecream on the way home. 

Waaaa! I almost forgot! My cute stories from the siblings =) Ok, so last night Weider and Sam, John, and I were on the sofa with Levi's baby before bed. We were teaching him all kinds of useful things like how to burp the baby and what sound effects go with it, and then we asked him what the baby's name was. He ignored us, so I figured he didn't know what we meant, and told him, "Your name is Levi, Sami's name is Sami, John's name is John, and my name is Shaina. What's the baby's name?" and he said, "Baby name Shaina." and then fondled the baby and cooed, "Shaaainaaaa..." so sweetly =) It was adorable! Then this morning I was making bacon, and Micah wanted to put the pieces in. I told him no, because "the grease is really hot and sometimes it pops out onto you." He was like, "That's my favorite part!" hahaha smarty pants. And when we were at Pizza Hut tonight we were thinking about what to order, and Josiah said, "Let's get the Pepperoni's Lover!" hahaha... He also wanted to order beer. Wow. 

wishing it was warm again,

Shaina

[just pictures]

[one thirty one] 1.25.11

[one thirty two] 1.26.11

[my father's world]

[one twenty nine] 1.23.11

 This is my Father's world.
O let me ne'er forget
that though the wrong seems oft so strong,
God is the ruler yet.
This is my Father's world:
why should my heart be sad?
The Lord is King; let the heavens ring!
God reigns; let the earth be glad!

I love this. We sang it in church yesterday.  And I read Psalm 12 today. I love the contrast between the beginning and the end of this Psalm. The beginning is despondent, saying how humans are untrustworthy and not loyal. He then goes to say how the Lord is faithful, trustworthy, just, and loving. His words are pure.

Help, LORD, for no one is faithful anymore;
those who are loyal have vanished
from the human race.
Everyone lies to their neighbor;
   they flatter with their lips
   but harbor deception in their hearts.
 May the LORD silence all flattering lips
   and every boastful tongue— 
those who say,
   “By our tongues we will prevail;
   our own lips will defend us—who is lord over us?”
 “Because the poor are plundered and the needy groan,
   I will now arise,” says the LORD.
   “I will protect them from those who malign them.” 
And the words of the LORD are flawless,
   like silver purified in a crucible,
   like gold refined seven times.
 You, LORD, will keep the needy safe
   and will protect us forever from the wicked, 
who freely strut about
when what is vile is honored by the human race.

[one thirty] 1.24.11

Here's something for all y'all to watch. I think this is awesome for the deaf people. They are able for the first time to experience music! I can't even imagine living without music.

~Shaina

[my intended]

[one twenty seven] 1.21.11 My intended.

World, meet Bertie. Uncle Dale heard that I needed a man in my life, so he brought me Bertie for a Christmas present. Isn't he adorable? So manly. And all that. All I can say is, we were *made* for each other. Uncle Dale, I'm eternally grateful. Haha. I can't say he's everything I've ever wanted, but love is blind I guess. ;)
I've been reading a book called Crazy Love by Francis Chan that I borrowed from a friend, and I decided to post an extract from it that I really liked. To begin, I will belay any concerns you may have (like I did) that it is all about emotions and touchy feely stuff. Which is good in its place, but it's not all about that. Anyway, just from the title, I was thinking it might be like that, but it's not ) =)
"Worry implies that we don't quite trust that God is big enough, powerful enough, or loving enough to take care of what's happening in our lives.
Stress says that the things we are involved in are important enough to merit our impatience, our lack of grace to others, or our tight grip of control.
Basically, these two behaviors communicate that it's ok to sin and not trust God because the stuff in my life is somehow exceptional. Both worry and stress reek of arrogance.They declare our tendency to forget that we've been forgiven, that our lives here are brief, that we're headed to a place where we won't be lonely, afraid, or hurt ever again, and in the context of God's strength, our problems are small, indeed. Why are we so quick to forget God? Who do we think we are?
I find myself relearning this lesson often. Even though I glimpse God's holiness, I am still dumb enough to forget that life is all about God, and not about me at all.
It goes sort of like this....
Suppose you are an extra in an upcoming movie. You will probably scrutinize that one scene where hundreds of other people are milling around, just waiting for that two fifths of a second where you can see the back of your head. Maybe your mom and your closest friend get excited about that two fifths of a second with you... maybe. But no one else will realize it is you. Even if you tell them, they won't care. Let's take it a step further. What if you rent out a theater on opening night and invite all your friends and family to come see the new movie about you? People will say, "You're an idiot! How could you think that movie is about you?" Many Christians are even more delusional than the person I've just described. So many of us think and live like the movie is all about us. Now consider the movie of life... God creates the earth. (Were you there then? Was God talking about you when he called what He had made good? Then people rebel against God (who, if you hadn't realized yet, is the main character in this movie) and God floods the earth to rid it of the mess people made of it. (Francis Chan goes describing the movie of life with God scattered throughout) And then, the climax. The son of God is born among the people whom God somehow still loves. While in this world, the Son teaches His followers what true love looks like. Then the Son of God dies, is resurrected, and goes back up to be with God. And even though this movie isn't quite finished yet, we know what the last scene holds. The throne room of God. Here every being worships God, for He alone is worthy to be praised. From start to finish, this movie is obviously about God. He is the main character. How is it possible that we live as though it is about us? Our scenes in the movie, our brief lives, falls somewhere between the time Jesus ascends into heaven and when we will all worship God on His throne in heaven. We only have our two-fifths-of-a-second-long scene to live. I don't know about you, but I want my two fifths of a second to be about making much of God. 1 Corinthians 10:31 says, "So, whether you eat, or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. That is what our two fifths of a second is about.
So, what does that mean for you?
Frankly, you need to get over yourself. It might sound harsh, but that's what it means.
Maybe life's pretty good for you right now. God's given you this good stuff so you can show the world a person that enjoys blessings but who is still totally obsessed with God.
Or maybe life is tough right now, and everything feels like a struggle. God has allowed hard things in your life so you can show the world that your God is great and knowing Him brings peace and joy even when life is hard. Like the psalmist who wrote, "I saw the prosperity of the wicked... Surely in vain have I kept my heart pure... When I tried to understand all this, it was oppressive to me until I entered the sanctuary of God." (Psalms 73:3, 13, 16-17) It is easy to become disillusioned with the circumstances of our lives compared to others'. But in the presence of God, He gives us a deeper peace and joy that transcends it all.
To brutally honest, it doesn't really matter what place you find yourself in right now. Your part is to bring him glory-whether eating a sandwich at lunch break, drinking coffee at 12:04 a.m. so you can stay awake to study, or watching your four month old take a nap. The point of your life is to point to Him. Whatever you are doing, God wants to be glorified, because this whole thing is His. It is His movie, His world, His gift."

[standing on the promises of God]

Our "Finishing Herodotus Party" ;) This is the "good" picture.

This is the one where we were all the animals we were in King Frog. Ha.

And then Justin said, "Let's all howl! So we made the wolf sign and howled for this one.

‎Hahaha I saw this quote today on facebook and loved it =) "There are moments, Jeeves, where one asks oneself, 'Do trousers matter?'" "The mood will pass, sir." ~P.G. Woodehouse. I love Jeeves and Wooster.

Tomorrow is Christmas!! Haha. We put off Christmas till now for multiple reasons, and tomorrow we're having it =) So the kids are really excited. 

Thoughtfully,
Shaina

It's the super dog!

[it's so hard to come up with titles]

[one twenty four] 1.18.11

Stayed up late doing homework :( But it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. As you can see, I'm trying to *pretend* like I'm interested in sports. See the shirt? See it? Proud of me? I knew you would be. In other news, John broke his arm while the same cousins were here that were here when this happened. Remember that? They seem to be quite the hazard to us.. but we love them anyway. =D Catherine, I got some pictures of our finishing Herodotus party, so I will post them sometime =) They are a little silly, I must warn you! 

[one twenty five] 1.19.11

 This^ is one of my favorite pictures that I've taken in a while.. ok, in a few days. I like it. Veddy much.

[one twenty six] 1.20.11

 After lunch today the kids were being silly.. so I had to take some pictures =)

And last of all, you MUST watch this =) And if you look on youtube there's an episode where they went to the Duggars. You should watch that too. Talk about God changing someone's goals and hearts. And everything, it sounds like!

~shay~

[one twenty three]

Snow beneath whose chilly softness
Some that never lay
Make their first Repose this Winter
I admonish Thee

Blanket Wealthier the Neighbor
We so new bestow
Than thine acclimated Creature
Wilt Thou, Austere Snow?
~Emily Dickinson~

Levi and me last night =) Cutee =)

Had an amazing time in Kansas City. Seriously. We went to the marriage conference which was incredible. REALLY good. And while there we got to see some old friends! It was really nice. Afterwards we went to Karie's house to watch Monsters vs Aliens... ahahaha. That was interesting. ;-) Then we played lots of games..... interesting games... and we played adverbs charades.. and we played King Frog. Then after we were done playing King Frog, Justin suggested that we have a contest to see who could howl the longest. So we did. Karie won =) That girl's got some lungs! And THEN the

[snow art]

"Out of the bosom of the Air,
Out of the cloud-folds of her garments shaken,
Over the woodlands brown and bare,
Over the harvest-fields forsaken,
Silent, and soft, and slow
Descends the snow."

~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

guys had a contest to see who could do a hundred pushups the fastest. Then the girls had a contest to see who could do the most pushups in a minute. Of course, Bre won like we all said she would =) but now my shoulders are sore.. and I could do like five today. =P On Sunday we went to two Ken Ham talks and also one by another guy. They were really good as well. I had the awesome idea of painting our toenails like ^so. I love it =) I used a toothpick rather than the brush to stick it on. Which was Alyssa's brilliant idea. We watched home videos of Bre and Lyss... *dies from all the cuteness* haha. Anyway, to wrap up, we had the most

amazingincredibletotallyawesometimeever. 

AND we finished Herodotus. Finally. =)

Happily,
Shaina

[lemony snickit]

[one twenty one]
Got to go! Off to visit my friends =)
Tata,
Shaina

[one twenty]

1.13.11

Tomorrow Uncle Dale and his family are coming! *rubs hands together* I talked to him just now and he told me that they were wrapping our presents and sampling all the chocolate and gum =) *feels something wet and lifts baby off lap and sees wet spot corresponding with wet spot on his pants* Oh boy. *departs and comes back with clean pants* Errherm. *regains dignity*  Oh yes! I almost forgot. Today I started studying for the GED... I took the first diagnostic test and did fairly well. More than well enough to pass. But that's just Language arts. Sooo... I'll be working in that every day. I have a feeling I'm going to have a very difficult time with the math section. Ah well. 

~Shainabo~ 
P.S. I'm curious to know who's voted in the poll so far, and what you voted =) Comment below! 

[snow longing]

[one nineteen]
I am continually amazed at how quickly the days go by. Seems like just yesterday I was at a hundred! I like the idea for this photo, but I think it could have been executed much betterly. ;]
Last night I went to bed toasty warm [just like Mr. Crook; although fortunately his fate did not befall me] but this morning I woke up frizzen! Our heater went out on the coldest day of the year. Fortunately we were able to start a fire in our fireplace even though the brick is broken out and we stayed comparatively warm until the man came to fix it. We also had a very quiet day because the kids went to school and stayed all day. So I read in Herodotus quite a bit =] Although not as much as I could have. Samantha is making some homemade bread, and mom made banana bread this morning! I feel so spoiled. Rotten. ;] After dinner the kids and I listened to some Twila Paris and danced in the living room. If you have never played follow the leader dancing, you need to =] Micah asked me the other day how old Twila Paris was =] And last night he and mom had the following conversation. Mom: "Are you in love with Twila, Micah?" Micah: "NO!" Mom: "She's already married." Micah: "Oh rats!" and hides his head under his arms. hahha. He's so cute... and such a ladies man! [he's the five year old, for those of you who don't know] 

Signed,
me. =]
P.S. I rearranged my playlist so now you have some rollicking Josh Turner when you first come on! Ennnjoy. I'll try to rearrange it more often from now on.. maybe once a week or something.

[knitted shmitted]

[one eighteen]

My latest creation: a scarf. The purple thing in the middle is the loom I wove it on. Knitting is a perfect activity for when you're sitting by the fire or listening to your mom read out loud from Dickens or *cough* Herodotus. 

Listening: To Il Divo... again. I have my blog up on another tab, and it's playing my theme song =) I should rearrange those so that something else comes up first. 

Thinking: Of this quote from Nathaniel Hawthorne that I ran across in The Scarlet Letter today: "No man, for any considerable period, can wear one face to himself, and another to the multitude, without finally getting bewildered as to which may be the true." This is *so* true. I can't tell you how true it is. Honesty always wins out for you, people. 

Reading: The Scarlet Letter. Heh. 

Annnd... tonight is the first new NCIS of the year! *is pumped* 

So, our fireplace is temporarily out of order. Stink. We have been freezing our hineys off here. And this morning when I went to feed my dog, I couldn't find her bowl because it was buried in snow! But other than that life has been pretty good. I'm making my dad's favorite soup, gumbo stew as we speak. =) He loooves it and he looves me when I make it. And when I don't make it. But yeah. Here's the link, if anyone's interested in a spoon lickin' stew. 

Hungrily,

Shaina

[snow day]

So we had our best friends over... and we had more fun than people should be allowed to have... and the best part is that we're going to their house next weekend and spending the night. *squeals*

 [one sixteen]

 Had to take a groupish goodbye picture before the girls left... and this is what we came up with. =) *laughs hysterically* My siblings... gosh.

We wanted to take some horsey besty friends picturies. =)

 [one fifteen]
(sorry they're a little out of order)

 Before the kiss....

 And after. =)

 All the animals loved Bre!

Besties... yeah. We rock.

Hahah!

 =)

Laughing so hard we fall off the horse... yeah, typical.

"Thank you Meg!"

[snow fling]

[one seventeen]

 [snow. branches. perfection.]

 [snow angel]

Before I say goodbye, let me remind you to click on the photos! You will enjoy them so much more that way! Ok.. so maybe not all of you are as interested in photos as I am... but still.

Excitedly,
Shaina
[why am I excited? Welll.... next weekend we're going to my friends house and staying over, like I said, but also on Saturday we're going to a marriage conference with a great bunch of young people, and on Sunday we're going to a Ken Ham talk! Sooo... that's just pretty exciting. And we're also finishing Herodotus this week. *is excited*]