Thinking, planning.....

It's really hard to believe that our summer vacation is winding down.  

This is our last week of VBS and all the activity that comes with it.

Most of the other free programs and activities in our community are done with, 

and we're looking at starting up school here in a couple weeks.

We do have a few things planned to do in the coming days, but the pace is slowing down 

and the calendar is emptying out, and my mind is starting to think ahead and plan for the next season.

I find myself thinking of cooler days and fragrant, warm smells of cinnamon, apples, and pumpkin.

We've already decided on our theme for next year's annual "Birthday Bash", and I've started collecting ideas

that will be frugal, easy, and super cute to use!!

See if you can guess what our theme will be:

Here are some other things that have been swirling around in my mind lately:

What I've been reading this summer:   

What I've been memorizing recently:

Philippians 1

What I'm considering for homeschooling this fall:

http://www.arthousecoop.com/projects/sketchbookproject

http://www.currclick.com/product_info.php?products_id=32096&it=1

http://www.texascivilwarmuseum.com/

http://www.currclick.com/product_info.php?products_id=29233&it=1

http://www.dallasheritagevillage.org/

http://www.visionforum.com/booksandmedia/productdetail.aspx?productid=44790&categoryid=32

Recipes I'd like to try in the next couple weeks:

http://raisinghomemakers.com/2010/learning-to-cook-breakfast-from-scratch/

http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/Slow-Cooker-Tamale-Pie

Movies my husband and I have been watching this summer....

after most of the children are in bed!!

Music that we have been enjoying recently:

Adventures from last week.....

Last week was another jam-packed week full of fun and learning.

We are having such a great time this summer!!!

Take a peek....

We finally finished all of the reading logs from our local library and went to claim our prizes!!

We LOVE our children's librarian!!

Craft time at the library

They are painting T-shirts that will double as pillow cases!!

On Saturday, they were all invited to a birthday party at the giant inflatable bouncy place!!

This was Aryn's response most of the time!!

Then, of course, all the children attended yet another fun week of VBS with their best friends every morning.

Here is Ashlyn (third from left) on "Family Night" performing some of the songs!!

Soul-thrilling

There is no other instrument that thrills my soul like the sound of the pipe organ.  I don't think there is any sound more grand, more glorious, more thrilling than the sound of a well-played, full organ in an old European cathedral.  Just take a listen......

Did you know?

"Learning differences are the leading cause of

 CREATIVITY!!"

I saw this on an ad for a school here in our area that caters to children with "learning differences."

I LOVE it!!

Gives a whole new way of thinking to those children with ADHD, autism, dyslexia and the like.

Here's more of the ad:

"Is your child at risk? 

 Extraordinary minds can be hidden in ordinary classrooms.  We're ready to unveil the

MAGNIFICENT 

mind

of your child!"

I just might use that as the motto of our homeschool!!!

I shared all that with you as an introduction to what my oldest daughter spent last week doing.

She just OOZES arts and crafts.  

She has ADHD (a common learning difference).....high on the AD and low on the H.

There isn't a DAY that goes by that she doesn't make something.

And it always involves a mess of some kind which she rarely cleans up without being reminded.

So when I learned about "art camp", I just knew we needed her do this.

Here'a a peek at some of the art mediums she was able to get her hands on with an instructor.....

and the mess stayed there (YAY for me!!)

Clay

Clay

Tile and glass

Tile and glass

I don't have pictures of the painting projects she was able to experiment with, but they included

a wooden box,

a book bag,

an abstract painting on canvas.

She also tried a self portrait with colored pencils, learned how to cut glass, made a necklace, and made some chalk drawings.  

It was awesome for her to get to try so many different things that she doesn't usually have access to.

We'll definitely be doing this again next year!!!

YIKES!!!

While Ashlyn was at camp,

she had a bit of a struggle keeping her blood sugar levels in normal ranges.

Last year was her first year to go to camp with Type 1 Diabetes.

She had been diagnosed just 5 months earlier, so she was still

in that honeymoon period where she didn't have as many up's and down's in 

her blood sugar levels.

Our goal is to see her blood sugar level between 80 and 150.

Normally, we are in the 100's to 200's.

The camp nurse was excellent about keeping juice boxes close at hand,

and keeping her carbed up at swim time and during game times.

So after she got home, I think her body was in a bit of a rebound from all the exercise

she was doing during camp.

A couple days after getting home, she came to me complaining of being hungry.

That is always a red flag for us that she's probably low.

I told her to go check her blood sugar.

So.....this is what she got......

YEAH!!

How on earth this child was still up walking around and talking clearly, I'll never know!!

I was under the impression that when your blood sugar hits levels like this, you're supposed to pass out

or start seizing or something.

Anyway, that was a first for us to see her number THAT low!!!

She drank a juice box, got something to eat,

and laid down in front of the fan.

Before long, she was back up and at 'em!!

Grandma's Homemade Doughnuts

When I was a little girl, I loved getting to spend the night at my grandmother's house.

One of my favorite memories of her was the doughnuts she made for us on Saturday mornings.

My grandmother was a bona fide "hoarder", so if you've watched one of those TV programs about that issue,

then you know what her kitchen looked like.

But my sister and I didn't care.

She always had just the right amount of space left on her stove to make these.

These were such a treat for us,

and I've always remembered exactly how to make these.

They are not packed with nutrition and not something I would recommend on a daily basis.

But their greasy sugariness are DELICIOUS!!

Grandma's Homemade Doughnuts

1 tube of refrigerated biscuits

**I used the tubes of 10 small biscuits, but you could use any size.

I want to try the Pillsbury Grands sometime!!

Fill a large pan half full of vegetable oil.

I use Canola.

Turn it on and heat it until a little ball of biscuit dough starts to fry.

Pinch one biscuit between your thumb and first finger until you've created the "hole" in the center of the doughnut.

Carefully drop about 5 biscuits (depending on the size of your pan, of course)

into the hot oil and fry on one side until lightly brown.

They fry up lightly brown in about 25 seconds, so you have to watch them carefully.

Flip them over with a fork and let them fry on the other side.

Remove from the hot oil when completely browned and let drain

on a paper-towel covered plate.

Then find yourself a helper who is wandering around the house looking for something to do.

Fill a large ziploc bag with powdered sugar.

Drop about 3 doughnuts into the bag and let your helper shake them around until covered in powdered sugar.

I also made a batch of "cinnamon sugar" doughnuts by adding several tablespoons of cinnamon 

to the remaining powdered sugar in the bag.

Our delicious finished product!!!!

Enjoy!!

P.S.  I saw an episode of Paula Dean making these doughnuts, and I was so excited to see her
using the same technique my Grandma used so many years ago!!

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/canned-biscuit-dough-donuts-and-holes-recipe/index.html

Sleepover fun!!

While her older siblings were away at camp for the week, I thought it would be the perfect time for Abby to have her friend over for a girly sleepover.

She doesn't get exclusive time like this very often,

and I wanted to maximize this time for her.

Her sisters are not really into playing with her and her toys since they've outgrown most of it.

So we had such a fun time planning things to do that she doesn't usually have someone to do with her.

Here's a peek at all our fun!!

The girls helped me make these doughnuts for their breakfast,
and I'll post how we did this on Friday!!