So, what really happened??

My information was wrong about the Skinny white stallion. Gideon said he never even saw it. So there are 2 ways this can go. One is that Levi got bit, not Gideon. Two is that no one was bit and it was a fabrication of the imagination of a 10 year old boy. 

"old posts I found in Draft"

I just now noticed that I have about 11 posts or more that are saved in draft, but were never published! I guess I did the "preview" but not the post them.  They are all so old that I don't think I will publish them now unless I leave the same dates on them. I'll go through them when I have time & see if it's worth it or not.  :)

God's Favorites

God's Favorites

I was very happy
To see you today...
To see you are doing better.
I will keep praying for you.
Don't give up.
Hang in there.
God sees you-
He cares about your life.
Someone once said to me,
"You know, we're all God's favorites"
I will never forget that.
So, remember if you are feeling down,
You are God's favorite,
And so am I.

The Skinny White Stallion

This morning I went with 4 of the boys from the school here to help feed the neighbors horse. They were all excited to take me. When we got there I found a very skinny, angry & mean white stallion. They fed it scraps out of a container. It ate with angry eyes and even kicked at them. It was in a very small dirt corral with barbed wire on one side and old pallets on the other. I found out from the boys that this horse bit Gideon on the shoulder when he was there.

"Did it bleed? I asked. "Only a little."

Last year at the Deaf School

(I am posting this on 4-26-12, because I "am at the deaf school now." This was written last year though. The last sentence is still true :)   (But only Clemy & are here this time)


We have been at the "deaf" school for 5 days now. In about an hour, we'll leave for the village, so I won't have access to internet.

I have been resting, helping with laundry and helping with the girls' school work mostly. Laurel A., Susannah and Clemy help a lot with the baking and serving meals.

They run this place like military, but they need to or it would be chaos. There are about 30 kids and others for the meals. I can't remember how many stay every night, but a lot do.

Catching up - From September 19th to 26th -

(I am posting all of these on 4-26-12, You may skip over and ignore them if you want to as they are old news, but I want to put them in... for the record)

Saturday, September 19, 2009

Working Together

I didn't get up till 9:00! After that I woke the kids up. Then I picked Greg up where he was working on our Dodge van. We went to the only good coffee shop in town. It was full of tourist wearing cowboy hats and boots. Some people were having pizza and beer for breakfast. We got 2 coffees and 1 big cookie to split. They have 1 free refill there and good coffee.
Despues... (after that) we went to do the "bank" job - cleaning job I mean. All 6 of us worked and we got out in an hour. Some of us worked less and waited for the others' to finish. After that I took Greg back to our van so he could finish working on it. Then, 4 of us went to clean the insurance offices. We got it done in 35 minutes. That's a record, but if you counted all our time separately, it's not as good as when Gideon and I clean by ourselves though.
Now we are home. I'm doing laundry and going to REST.

Sunday, September 20, 2009

BBQ in our yard

Bedtime. We had 2 different families over for a BBQ today. We made shishkabobs. Mostly I have been eating a lot of fresh veggies and more fruit. But today we had meat. I made "pico de pajaro" salsa, which has to be made outside because of the hot chili vapor that gets into the air. It's made by roasting "chili de arbol" over a fire, or burner, and then putting it in a blender with salt, tomato sauce, and garlic. It turned out very hot and good.
It worked out really well having both sets of friends over at the same time. The 2 husbands knew each other from playing basketball together a couple of years ago. Their seemed to be enough in common with everyone for a good visit for all. There were 10 kids here altogether, and 6 adults.
I get Mondays off if I work on Thursday morning, then come back Thursday evening at the doctors' offices (cleaning). I like Monday off!
We are starting home school tomorrow. I have charts for the kids and we'll have a little meeting in the morning of our goals.... I got a really good Algebra 1 curriculum that will be coming in the mail soon. It was made for home schoolers and comes with a CD teaching and text book. If we really like it, I hope to get the same curriculum for Susannah and Clemy. That will have to come later though.

Monday, September 21, 2009

First Day of Homeschool (this year)

Today went fairly well. In the morning I slept in till 8:00. After we had eaten breakfast, I had a little talk with the 4 kids at home about what were our goals for the week. We are just going to stack the morning dishes, then after lunch Susannah is going to wash. Clemy puts them away before Susannah washes and maybe after and also wipes counters, puts food away and sweeps.
I gave everyone their charts. The boys went downstairs to do their schoolwork. I gave Clemy and Susannah some placement tests in Math. Clemy did her schoolwork on my bed and Susannah on the kitchen table.
I spent a lot of my morning sorting through school books and "stuff", trying to find places for everything. We only have 1 bookshelf and it is very full. I put some books under my bed also. After we get some remodeling done, we can put another bookshelf downstairs.
My brother stopped by to visit. While we were visiting Gideon offered to make spaghetti for supper. I really appreciated that because then I could visit with my brother. It turned out good. I did stop by the store and got some more spaghetti sauce and bought garlic bread. I forgot the salad, so we had broccoli with it.
The girls and Levi walked to the library, then I went to pick them up.

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

Anybody like Fried Green Tomatoes?

I am thoroughly exhausted. I got up at 6:40 and got to work at 7:15, which is quite late. Greg and I had coffee at home and I just didn't get out the door soon enough. So, when I get to work late I have to work smarter and faster. I got most everything cleaned before the first office person came. There are 3 rooms I cannot clean unless I am supervised as they have patient files in them. My friend Christy, who is an office worker told me her tomatoes were frosted last night. I had checked the weather report and it wasn't supposed to get that cold. But, my brother later told me that they take the readings and forecasts from the airport. Maybe it is warmer there.
When I got home, I checked our garden. All the plants had succumbed to frost. The fruit was fine, only the plants dead. So we picked all the green tomatoes, jalapenos and squash.
I spent a great part of the day cutting up green tomatoes and jalapenos to put on the food dryer. I also took the food dryer apart and cleaned it out as it hasn't been used for 10 years. I let it dry in the sun before using it. It still works great.
Homeschooling went fairly well, considering that I was busy with other things a lot. Susannah has forgotten a lot of her math she learned last year so she is going to have to review some. The new Algebra 1 textbooks and CD's haven't arrived yet. Clementina got a lot of library books, so when she gets her schoolwork done she likes to read.
Greg took Gideon to work with him. He is framing a house about 20 miles away. The boys will probably work with Greg 1 or 2 days a week still.
For supper I made fried green tomatoes with onions, eggplant and bacon. I also made cookies earlier. My healthy ones wouldn't hold together very well. They were chocolate chip with sesame seeds and wheat germ.
We haven't eaten yet and Greg just brought Susannah back from gymnastics so I have to go now.

Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Our Personal Testimony

I only have a minute to write. A busy day. Sometimes I wish I could clone myself. The Algebra curriculum came, it looks great. My meleluca order came. Home school went OK. I had to take a 2 hour nap in the afternoon because I got to bed too late last night and was tired today. Took Levi to the doctor today to have his thumb checked out. He slammed it in the door Saturday. I wasn't worried about it, but today I realized he could have severed his tendon and wanted it checked out. It is fine and will heal. I learned about how to check if a tendon is severed and how to wrap a bandage.
We went to church tonight. Upstairs in one room was the kids. In another room adults and the missionary challenge class. Downstairs the youth.
In the missionary challenge class he taught about how to write a personal testimony. This class is for Christians, so the writing would be about 1. Before I met Christ - what my life was like. 2. How I met Christ - what happened and 3. How my christian life is going and what I have learned. We each spent 10 minutes writing an outline and then different people shared their testimonies. The pastor encouraged people to write a more detailed and then share it - perhaps with family, friends. He even suggested you-tube. I thought of my blog(s)
I do believe as a christian I need to share my faith. I try to share in a more natural way and intertwine what I say with every day life. But I don't think I have as much courage as some do at times, knowing others will disagree or find fault. I do want to be true to God in what I share and not worry about what people think of me. In some ways I think we should be concerned with how we share and try not to offend as much as possible. But sometimes that is inevitable.
Tonight, after church, there was a lady outside that came up to Greg and told him her story. Her 14 year old son got in trouble for what she said were minor things. They were going to send him to a group home, or a place for teens. A guy in a blue car that she didn't know showed up and told her son he would hide him and took off with him. That is so scary. She asked us to pray for him. His name is Stephan if you want to pray with me. I am really concerned for this kid. Who knows what kind of person took him away. Unless God intervenes she may never see her son again.

Thursday, September 24, 2009

Getting our Computers Connected

In the morning I went to the Chevron gas station and had coffee with Greg inside. There was a policeman just leaving and Greg talked to him about the boy that I had wrote about last night. He was getting into trouble and was supposed to go to a boys home, according to his mom. She also told us that he got into a car of a man she did not know. I was really concerned. The police told Greg that about every 2 days she reports her son missing. He said she was "not all there". I feel bad for her. I wonder how people like her get to be like they are now. Was she always that way or did something happen to her?
It's getting difficult to write at night sometimes. That's when I like to write, but it's also family time.
Today has gone pretty well so far. I still got to work later than I should have, but working fast I got it all done in time.
I did the 1st Algebra 1 lesson with the boys. It comes with a 10-15 minute lecture on CD first. Gideon didn't want to do it, as it was too easy, but I told him we were all going to anyway. He missed 2, so I guess unless he gets 100 % he can't say anymore. It is a fun program with pictures.
I am utilizing the different subjects I have on the computer. We don't have one set "curriculum", so I mix and match different things. It's way more interesting that way. I am hoping to get some friends who have skills in different areas and ask them if they will teach a class.
Levi is a genius. He was able to connect all our computers together so I can use files off of the other ones and vise versa. He still has some bugs to work out, but now I can use the printer from my laptop, as long as the other computer is on. Levi said what he did was actually pretty simple, but it sounds quite complicated to me.
I found a really basic Bible study online. It's free, and if you want you can send in the answers to the quiz at the end. Here's the link for it. It has different levels and looks fun.

Basic Bible Facts
Greg has been working long hours doing construction. His shoulder was hurting yesterday. I'm not sure construction is doing his body any good. Janitorial is less demanding I think. If we were able to get enough janitorial jobs then he would quit doing construction. But if I know him, he probably will keep doing it, because he likes it and if the job is there he will take it. I don't want to get more cleaning jobs than I can do on my own, or I'll be in trouble. We are not in the position to hire employees yet.
I need to go check on all the children.

Friday, September 25, 2009

Another Busy Day

I didn't get up till 8:00, which was very nice. In the morning I did Algebra 1 with Levi. Gideon wants to finish his Algebra 1/2 book and then he can catch up with Levi.
Levi's finger is getting better. It's still sore, but healing.
A week or so ago I paid a bill with Bill Pay with our bank. But, the problem was that the default account was my eldest sons' and had been closed for awhile. The bill was reversed and they suspended my ability to use Bill Pay. I called them today and almost got it straightened out, but got cut off. Finally, in the afternoon I went to our bank and "Tim" helped me get it fixed.
I cleaned one house in the afternoon for 2 hours. The other one I worked for 1 1/2 hours, helping an elderly lady with her laundry, vacuuming, mopping and visiting.
Susannah cleaned the fridge and made cookies when I was gone today. That is one job I do not like to do, and it is so nice when she helps with it.
When I was done I ended up getting U-Bake pizza, as I didn't have time to make supper. Then, the kids and I drove to our friends' (10 minutes late) to baby sit for their 3 kids. The parents had a date night with another couple we know. The other couple are the doctors where I clean offices. They had fun and a much needed date.
While we were at our friends', I left for awhile to take the clothes out of the elderly ladies' washer and hang them up. I hate leaving wet clothes in her washer, as she can't go down the stairs and has to call her son to help her. Or, worse, she will try to go down. She can hardly walk and I don't want her to get work. The other house I work at is a few blocks away, so I stopped by to get my check. I told her $25, when I actually was supposed to get $45. I was tired and wasn't thinking straight. So, tomorrow I have to go back and get another check. I don't want to let it go for a whole week.
I am very thankful for all the fresh veggies and fruits we were able to eat this summer. I wanted to go to the Farmers' Market tonight, but didn't have any time, so I missed out. They will still have at least 2 or 3 more before they close down for the winter. I hope next week I can go and get something good to eat!
Susannah cleaned the fridge out for me today and also made chocolate chip cookies. Susannah cleaned the fridge out for me today and also made chocolate chip cookies.

Well, I need to get to bed.

Saturday, September 26, 2009

A Friend Came by Just At the Right Time

It's getting late, so I'd better write while I can.
I was very glad when we got the 2nd cleaning job done, as I didn't really want to clean today.
I felt a little down. I think I started getting in the wrong frame of mind, saying things like, "I don't have any friends here." Then I remembered Velda, but thought she was so busy all the time.
After that, Greg said he would take me out for coffee. Right about that time, Velda and Richard showed up and they ended up going with us. We had a very nice visit. God knew I needed them to come when they did.
They had some sad news to share though. One of the nice "kids" that worked at the coffee shop died about a week ago. I'm not sure how, but it could have been a drug overdose. There was one this last week with a guy about the same age - 23 -
About a week or so ago I was thinking about him and thought of praying for him. He seemed to be on my heart. Why he died, I do not know. Why I felt to pray for him, (as I don't even know him), I don't know. But God knows why.
I just got off the phone with my daughter in Mexico. She is doing good and I miss her.
I called the lady I worked for yesterday and told her I had said the wrong amount for my check. She's going to pay me the difference next week.
It is still quite warm in the day here, but at night it could get cold. I bring all my house plants in at night. I dug up my flowering cactus and hope to keep it alive all winter indoors. We might buy a grow light to keep our plants healthy.

What's happening in Mexico?

Hello.... I am writing from Mexico. We have been here (Clemy and I) for 1 week now. I have been getting a rest from working, but at the same time I know that Greg & Gideon are working twice as hard for us so we could come here.

I have been working a little around here. First off, there are a ton of kids here at the school everyday. I have helped Petra with her class a few times. Today I learned the signs for: azul, amarillo, verde, morado & rojo, so I could teach them to Danilo. He put little colored plastic bears on colored plastic cards while we did the sign.

I also did a load of our laundry and hung them out in the HOT sun to dry. I put sunscreen on in the morning so I don't burn.

Last night we had corn on the cob for supper. Afterwards I cut corn off the cob for over an hour. We'll probably have it for supper tonight.

Today there was a gigantic aguana on the roof. The only thing we could see was his giant head. He was sunning himself and looking quite happy about it.

Yesterday Petra and I took 9 kids, ranging in age from 8 to 13 to the baseball field so they could use some of their energy. We walked around the field twice, then sat on the bleachers and talked. On the way back to the school we stopped by some kids' mom's and visited. I met his grandmother who was watering plants. They gave us a ton of guavas and some oranges off their trees.

Let's see.... This last weekend we visited with Petra's friend, Jessica. Basically it was to rest. Petra was sick, so spent most of the time sleeping or resting. I did a tiny bit of cleaning and dishes while we were there.

As you can tell by now, if you're still reading this, is that I am not telling this in order. I usually do, but today I will break out of my OCD inclinations. I guess it's in order still, but only backwards.

I have been text chatting with Greg a few times. One time we did video chat. I could see him, but he couldn't see me and we could only text. Another time we did a voice chat. I didn't even know my laptop had a microphone.

I know this is getting boring.... so I will go. We are all fine, the food is good and I miss everyone.  

PS.... I promise all of you that I WILL improve my writing and try to get out of the "reporting" mode. I made my first newspaper when I was 12, I think.

Here's a great article I found if you are interested in journaling. I'm going to read it and I promise I will try to improve my writing!!!

8 Benefits of writing in a journal

Arizona! on to Mexico!

We are in Arizona presently. I am really enjoying morning walks and the warm weather. It is really peaceful here. I am also enjoying spending time with Susannah before her next adventure. Of course I am enjoying visiting with the Hawkins and resting too.

We will be here at least 2 more days before we ride the Tufesa or another bus-line  to Mexico. I bought Dramamine today so I won't have problems with nausea on the bus ride.

Our airplane ride here was good, but we had to spend over 5 hours at the Pasco airport on Easter Sunday. I am glad that the mechanic got whatever was wrong with the plane fixed though!