Who are you talking to?

“Who are you talking to?” Elijah asked.

That is just one of the crazy conversations I had with my kids while I was trying to record myself.

This weekend I worked really hard to make a video for a post at Ask God Today entitled “Anastacia Maness Speaks Out“. It goes along with this month’s series where you get to meet each of the members of the Ask God Today Ministries’ team.

If you are visiting my site from Ask God Today, welcome to my blog. I hope you find some encouragement while you are here.

As promised here are the Out Takes from that video. You can also view the out takes on my YouTube channel.

Be sure to watch this whole video to see my surprise guest.

Tell me in the comments when you find her. 

 If you haven’t already, please go over to Ask God Today and watch the actual video. In it I share a little about myself, my testimony, and my passion. 

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For the Love of the Game

 

 

UpwardBasketball2015

My daughter, Hannah, is the one wearing the gold number 11 jersey and playing for the Lady Tigers in Upward Basketball this year.

You all are probably wondering what we’ve been up to since the January 1, when I last updated my blog. Well we’ve been pretty busy.

There was a time in my life that I would have never pictured myself as a sports mom. Now you can see me at games yelling at the top of my lungs for my kids whenever they have the ball or are just doing something well. “Go, Hannah!!!” “Go, Jonathan”. “Yea!!!!!” “WoI’ve gotten so into these games that I even yell for their team mates when they get the ball.

If you want to hear what I have to say about sports including a story about Hannah’s love of Sports you can check out my post over there right now entitled “For the Love of the Game“.

You may think that I’ve quit writing for all the traveling back and forth to practices and games but I haven’t. I’ve joined a team of writers over at Ask God Today ministries. We write on different topics. In January we wrote devotionals through the book of Matthew for an email “Way in, Dig Deeper Into God’s Word” 21 day challenge. You can scroll through some of the great posts written by the great team of writers. I wrote 3 email posts in January.  I wrote “Digging Deeper into the Heart” from Matthew on January 8,  “To Judge or Not to Judge” January 17, and “The Cost of Following Jesus” on January 24.

From now on whenever I write a post for Ask God Today, I’ll write a quick post here telling you about it.

If you want to read what we’re doing over there you can check it out anytime at AskGodToday.com by clicking on the “Ask God Today” button in the sidebar that looks like this:Happy to be a contributing writer for (1)

Feel free to check out what we’re doing over there and if you want to read my post today “For the Love of the Game” you can click this link or the picture of Hannah’s game above. I’ll be keeping an eye out for comments over here and over on the Ask God Today site as well. I’d love to know what you think.

Are you a sports fan? Did you watch the Superbowl? If you did who won? What was the funnest game you have ever watched? Tell me about it in the comments below.

Oh and if you are curious my daughter’s team won their game on Saturday and that was probably the funnest game I’ve watched yet.

 

 

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Dog Ears


This morning Hannah showed me her doll and told me that it was a boy doll. I told her that I thought it was a girl doll because of her dog ears. Hannah said that it was a boy with dog ears. Which I told her that boys don’t wear dog ears. She then informed me that dogs are boys. I, of course corrected her by telling her that some dogs were girls, too. At that moment I didn’t catch the logic she was actually trying to impart to me.

She told me, “Well, Ms. Lauwa has a horse and it’s a boy, and it has dog ears. Well, actually it has horsey ears, but it looks like doggy ears.”

Then I understood her meaning. Since boy dogs have dog ears, why can’t boy people have dog ears too? I’m not sure how that argument would hold up in a Logic and Argumentation class in Seminary but it works for her. It’s hard to argue with a 3 year old.

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Tea for Two…


It’s amazing how well our children are able to play together. This picture shows Ruth and Jonathan having pretend tea together. They just turned to smile at me while I took their picture but I had gotten this second picture as well showing Jonathan actually pouring the tea into Ruth’s cup. It was so cute to watch.

Ruth has been doing a good job helping with Jonathan. Jonathan has been wanting to have a “lesson” also, while Hannah is learning. So Ruth has taken it upon herself to teach Jonathan his numbers.

Joshua and Hannah are doing well with their lessons. Hannah has learned the letter F today. She has been really bragging to everyone about how Joshua is her teacher. She considers it a really special honor that he teaches her. Kind of like she has her own private tutor, that no one else has. It is really sweet and I praise him for how well he works with her.

The only problem Hannah has now is telling Ruth that she’s not her teacher. So I explained to Hannah that Ruth is Joshua’s assistant. She can teach Hannah things too. There seems to be a misunderstanding with Hannah as to who a teacher is. I’ve tried to explain to her that anyone that knows something more than someone else can teach what they know. I think she thinks you have to be big to be a teacher. Little does she know how much she teaches Jonathan.

Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.
(Proverbs 22:6)

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A Substitute for the Substitute…

Scott finally took my advice and called the school he substitutes for to let them know he was sick. I couldn’t stand seeing him go into school not feeling well and then come home feeling worse. I also have to thank my Dad for suggesting that it might be the flu. Something about the word flu makes it seem a little scarier and the fact that if he doesn’t take care of himself he might be feeling like this for ten days made him realize that he should stay home. It’s hard for him to admit he’s sick but to have to be this way for that long sounded like misery.

I think Hannah has finally decided that she likes being a girl. This morning she had watched a Strawberry Shortcake movie and said that she wanted to be Blueberry Muffin who is a boy. She gave me the normal because she never got to be a boy before. Then I suggested, “Why don’t you want to be the kitty, you never got to be a kitty before either.”
This of course was an exciting idea. She said, “I can be Pupcake. I never got to be a puppy before either.”

Now she may want to be a Puppy or a Kitty when she grows up but at least she likes being a girl again. I tried to read her the story of Deborah out of her Picture Bible. I told her that she would probably like Deborah because she led an army into Battle. She decided that she didn’t want me to read that one though, because she didn’t like the blood from the battle. So thankfully, Hannah won’t be a Joan of Arc. And she is still proud that her finger nail polish is still on her fingers. So I think I’ve convinced her to enjoy being my little girl.

Of course, Joshua dropped his guard over Jonathan today. Ruth had dressed Jonathan up in her pink sweater. When Joshua found out he shook his head and requested, kindly of course, that it be removed. I asked Joshua if he was glad that he was the oldest and didn’t have older sisters dressing him up like a live Baby doll. He is definitely glad.

I’m afraid Jonathan may be catching a little bit of what Scott has though. He has been acting tired all day. I am hoping a good nights sleep will help him feel better. I hate it when Babies get sick. They can’t really talk to tell you what hurts. They just want to be held all day long, and all you want to do is hold them. Ruth and Joshua have been a big help with Jonathan on that though. If I need to do something, I can pass Jonathan to one of them and they will rock him for me. They are such big helpers.

I’ll try to blog more tomorrow. Hopefully, I’ll have better news on everyone’s health.

I want to end this blog with a thought I find interesting about Deborah. It’s relating to the verse which states.

The inhabitants of the villages ceased, they ceased in Israel, until that that I Deborah arose, that I arose a mother in Israel.
(Judges 5:7)

She specifically mentions herself as a mother in Israel, not a soldier, not a judge but a mother. Of all the amazing things God allowed her to do, she still sees herself as primarily a mother in Israel, that God used for his honor and glory.

God can do amazing things even with someone as simple and humble as a mother.

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Ride a little Horsey!

I finally have some videos for everyone. Yesterday, the kids had an opportunity to ride a horse. They actually will be getting to ride horses quite a bit. We have a couple that have been coming to our church that train and raise horses to sell. They offered to let the kids come out anytime to do a few odd jobs around the place and feed the horses. This is great for the kids, since Ruth has always loved horses and has wanted one for a long time. It reminds me of when I was her age and wanted a horse. I love seeing the kids get to fulfill some of their dreams.

The first picture is of Ruth and Hannah riding on Daisy, a Tenessee Walking Horse.

This one is Ruth riding by herself. The lady that works with these horses says that Ruth took to riding so naturally. Of course Hannah didn’t realize that the video was being taken and is talking the whole time.

This last one is of Joshua riding Daisy. He is learning to be a little more natural. He is doing real well for his second time riding.

I’m so glad that they are getting this opportunity to learn to ride. This will be a great experience for them as they get older.

Thank you, Ms. Laura for putting these videos on youtube!

I have to end with one last video, since I don’t know when I’ll get this chance again. This one is of Joshua unmounting. We had a good laugh. After this video was taken he had said, “Well, at least I tried it.” It was so cute!

You’re never too old nor too young, to reach for your dreams! Find what God has given you an opportunity to do and go for it!

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When I grow up…

Today, Hannah and I were having another one of our detailed conversation about what people like to do. I can’t remember everything we talked about, but she asked me if Papa and Nana liked to do something like walk. I told her they both liked whatever it was she was asking about. She said, “I want to be Papa when I grow up.”
I told her, “Nana likes that, too, why don’t you want to be Nana?”
Her reply was, “But I never got to be a boy before!”

I then tried to explain the advantages she had being a girl. “I thought you wanted to be a Mommy with milk when you gr0w up.”

She said, “I do, but I want to be a boy first and then be a Mommy with milk!”

She was sure she found the perfect solution. I think she thinks being a boy is as simple as a haircut. So I tell her, “How about if we give you a hair trim so that your hair still looks like a pretty girl’s hair and then paint your finger nails. Boys don’t get to paint their fingernails.”

To which she responds, “Ok, I’ll be a girl then. Can we paint Jonathan’s fingernails, too?”

That girl could make a good lawyer.

When Ruth was her age, she wanted to be a Princess. It’s neat seeing all four of their different personalities. It definitely keeps life interesting.

And thanks to big brother, little Jonathan doesn’t have pink finger nails like his sister right now.

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Aftermath of Ike

Here is a picture as promised of some of the damage caused by Hurricane Ike. In this picture you can see a tree down, the church’s steeple twisted and moved, the power line is down, and there was a stick impressively harpooned into the ground. Yes, those are the trees roots you see. It’s amazing how much damage can be done by a hurricane. We have other more detailed pictures of some of the damages but I thought this one made an impressive over all view of the damages.

We stayed with my parents for 2 weeks. When we arrived home we had to find a way to park in our front yard. The entire yard was covered with branches. We came home expecting the power to be out for only a couple of days, it turned out being closer to a week and a half. We were really happy when the electric company finally showed up in our front yard. It’s funny how much you appreciate something after you have been without it for awhile. We really appreciate electricity having gone that long without it.

The kids are doing well. We were doing our lessons over at the church during the week that we didn’t have electricity. We would go over there for breakfast and then I would get the older involved with a lesson, while I figured out what to do with the younger two. It was fine but it is a lot easier to keep them out of trouble in our own house.

It amazes me how much there was for my 3 year old to displace. I walked into a room to get something and saw a large stack of books where she cleared the bottom two bookshelves that she could reach. I, of course, commanded that she put those back on the shelf neatly. Later I found half the church sign numbers moved and set messily on another table. I told her to put those back and she said, “O.k. I’ll put my money back.” Then on another occasion she had pulled all the coffee cup holders out of one of the kitchen cabinets and piled them on a table. I first turned it into a lesson for her by having her separate the cups by colors and then count how many cups of each color there were. Then I had her put them back. That was only some of the things she found to unorganized.

Now that we are able to do lessons here again, I feel like I’m able to keep a better eye on all the children. At least, here I know what she could possibly be doing in another room. There aren’t as many surprises. I can also keep a better eye on Jonathan this way as well.

I have a lot to do this month. I plan to put some of the things the kids are doing in homeschool next time I write. We’ve been pretty busy. I’ll try to get some pictures of them doing some of their lessons. Until then…

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Two’s Company…

This video is of Hannah. She ran into the my parents living room announcing, “I stood on the clock and I weighed 30 feet inches!” So we had to get this video so everyone else could hear her. She is so funny.

We talked to some of our church members and found that electricity is gradually coming back to our area. We were planning to make a short trip there and then come back to my parents, but now we are planning to go ahead and pack up and go back this week. I’m not sure which day. We may have to go a couple of days without electricity but it’s not as bad as two weeks.

My parents have graciously shared their home with us these two weeks. Two weeks is a long visit. Two’s company but eight can be a crowd when your used to two. So I’m sure they will enjoy getting their house and their routine back. I know I’m ready to get back to a routine again. I’m sure it will be quiet around here.

Since we will be going back this week and leaving fast speed internet behind, I will have another blog tomorrow with a few more videos. So check back later on this week for some more cute videos.

For now enjoy the above video and this video of Hannah and Ruth playing on Nana’s piano. You will notice that Hannah is chewing bubble gum in this video. She had bought the gum with her own money that she was saving for a piano like Nana’s. Obviously she has a little ways to go to have saving and spending figured out. Enjoy the videos!

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What Do You Want to Be?

We spent a whole week in our new home. Scott’s back gave out on him while he was at work the week before last week. After seeing the chiropractor he took Friday, August 8, off and then after an achy weekend he called his boss and decided to take the rest of that next week to rest his back.

Monday night, last week, Hannah suffered a little bit of homesickness. We had rocked her world by not going back to our old house. She wanted her blanket that Mamaw made. My explaining that we would get it when we went back the next week didn’t help any. She was better the next morning, but still wanted her blanket. I did find another blanket that was hers when she was a baby.

I went to the store Tuesday, while Scott stayed home with the kids. He had asked them what they all wanted to be when they grew up. Joshua wants to be a zoo keeper, Ruth wants to be a veterinarian, and Hannah wants to be a Mommy with milk, and to eat chocolate cheesecake when she grows up. Whenever Daddy, gives me something that they do not get, he says it’s becuse I’m mommy. So Hannah has decided that being a Mommy is the best job in the world.

She was watching me give Jonathan a bath and she asked if she could help wash his hair. He was very happy and I did not want him to get shampoo or water in his face so I told not right now. So she watched a little while then she asked me, “When I get to be a mommy, will I get to give Jonathan a bath?” I explained that when she gets to be a mommy she’ll get to give her own babies baths. She was quite concerned and asked, “So I won’t get to give Jonathan a bath?!” I tried to explain that Jonathan will be big by then and would be giving himself baths. She can’t imagine him being grown, she thinks he will always be a baby. After finally conceding that argument she asked me, “Well will you get to give my babies baths.” I told her that that was another nice thing. When she gets to be a mommy, I will get to be a grandma and sometimes I will get to help give her babies baths. Another new concept.

“So will I get to be a grandma?” she asked. I explained that she had to be a mommy before she was a grandma. She then decided she would rather be a grandma and give Jonathan baths. As I’ve told the kids many times, sometimes you just can’t win an argument with a 3 year old.

I feel like I must be doing something right for Hannah to want to be a Mommy when she grows up. Of course it may just be all the special “privileges” she thinks mommies have. Of course she does not “see” the work. Right now, washing dishes in a sink looks like playing in a sink full of bubbles. Vaccuuming is fun. She especially wants to be allowed to mop, or rather sling water all over the kitchen floor with a big wet wig. I asked why their was a mop in the girls bedroom, they had been pretending that it was hair. I asked that when they were through pretending that they return the mop back to it’s rightful spot. Yep, being a mom, is a lot of fun. There is never a dull moment.

I’ve been working on my lesson plans for the upcoming school year. I’ll actually be starting the kids classes Sept. 1. I wanted one extra week after we move to get organized, before we actually start our lessons. I have a lot of work to do this week. We will be moving the last of our stuff.

Scott plans to substitute teach, while I am homeschooling the kids. Things should go well. I’m pretty sure he will get enough calls to supplement the income the church will be giving us and to pay the bills. We really don’t need much. We are pretty good at pinching pennies sometimes. We may have to pinch quite a few, but you can actually live pretty well on very little. I’m just glad that we were able to have enough money this summer to get some curriculum and a copy machine for homeschooling. That will help me a lot this year. We’re pretty much all set.

We haven’t got a phone line, nor internet access set up at the new house yet. I will get that sorted out as soon as possible. I may have to blog from the library a few times. I’ll try not to get too behind on my blogs.

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