Sometimes a monkey needs a smaller cage......

Here is my monkey. My climber since he walked, and a lover of all things boy. He

-following the big boys (esp since he is the only little boy) .

-Seeing how many steps he can jump off of,

-climbing the rails,

-riding a skateboard til he's going to fast, then jumping off (sometimes landing on his feet, sometimes on the ground)

--these are things that Jorden loves--

and that means he looks like this sometimes.

banged up and bruised.

But its doesn't stop him!

But on Sunday, he really did it. Playing ball with the big boys, he ran after a ball and fell down over a small wall and hit his head on a little rock.

Four stitches later and he was good to go. The next day he was running , jumping, and climbing.

Only now this mama has made his world a little smaller; put some extra precautionary boundaries in place. I know we can only protect so much, and that I need to trust God, but I think Jorden takes trust to a new level:)

fresh Toasted Coconut anyone?

I've been realizing how I pulled cereal off our store shelves, without a thought of just how easy it was .  Now, even tho we get into PAP occasionally, cereal is expensive and not always available.

Granola is better anyway:) Just  takes a little more work.

I was able to get about 8 coconuts from the market, and here is the process:

1. slam the coconut onto the concrete to break them apart

2. remove the meat from the shell

3. grate the meats

4. Toast the grated coconut

Add to granola, no bake cookies, natural snacks, etc etc.  

raw... toasted

                        My littles are enjoying learning to help with the
                            laundry and the wringer washer. I love their
                              willingness to learn and do new things.

School in La-Baleine

We are blessed to have a little school on the ground level of our house. Miss Karen, a teacher of 20+ years, has made school a fun and wonderful place for our three oldest.

I had a picture of Josh, but I have had a terrible time with internet and loading pictures, so I finally decided to go with what I have.

At 8:25 every school morning, Zoey, Josh, and Abby get their backpacks and head  to the schoolroom. I see them again at 10:15, when they come up to get a snack, and have recess.

They also come up for lunch from 11:30-12:15.

School lets out at 3.

They all have their individual studies, but every day they have gym with Patrick and  Colin, and on Fridays they have art together.

To keep school more "official" and not so casual, they wear uniforms; the girls these checkered dresses, and Josh a gray shirt. Every school child in Haiti wears a uniform, so this is one way we can identify with them, too.

What a blessing and gift, to have a teacher who LOVES to teach, and for the ability to have a little schoolroom. It has been a

blessing for all of us. We are so thankful for the way it brings stability and routine into our days, as well as the academic input they receive.

Cheers to Joshua Becker again!

I think Joshua has wonderful thoughts on the is subject; some of the best! 

http://www.becomingminimalist.com/why/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+becomingminimalistcom+%28becomingminimalist.com%29

"For a cup brimful of sweet water cannot spill even one drop of bitter water, however suddenly jolted" -Amy Carmichael

I came across this quote the other day, and it really made me think. Am I full of JOY, PEACE, WORDS THAT BLESS, KINDNESS, GRACE, MERCY, LOVE?

If not, my springs may need cleaned, my heart cleansed. What is in, comes out!

Home....

After living out of suitcases for 5 weeks, we are so, so thankful to have a place to call home again. I was so ready to make a nest for my Littles and all of us, really.
Thank you so much, EVERYONE, who made our trip south so memorable and for all your hospitality. This includes, but is not inclusive to:
Robert and Lori Showalter
Mark and Bethann Weaver
G-dawg and Yayaa and the whole Schmitt family
Hyatt Place for the amazing and accommodating hotel
Grandma and Grandpa Myer
My parents for the use of their house.

We are so blessed. Thank you everyone for your prayers as we traveled on Thursday too. God surely answered them above what we could have imagined! We were able to check-in outside, which saved a tone of work lugging luggage. We had only minor issues with baggage and were able to head right in through security and no issues there. They didn't even open the sewing machine, serger, or any other bags!

"If I settle on the far side of the sea, your right hand will hold me fast" Ps. 139:9-10

Someone gave me a print with this verse on and we have been so blessed by it already!

Some  of the space we call "home". 

 We were encouraged to bring things that make it feel like "ours".. and I haven't been sorry. It feels like home and its our little haven. There is pretty much no privacy outside the front door, so having space that is ours is important for good family dynamics.

Zoey, Josh, and Abby all ready for their first day of school.

Miss Karen has put a whole lot of time and effort into the classroom, as you can see! She even incorporated Creole into her wall décor and they also work on it in class.

We are so thankful we ask Miss Deanna Hartzler to come along with us. She has been a HUGE help. When you have a house where many people have come, settled in with their things, left (with less than they came with) , and it repeats, things tend to stack up abit  a lot! Now I know pretty much what I have and need, and the rest will be stored or sold at a community "yard sale".

Deanna did some baking for the freezer, helped me squeeze a big tub of oranges into juice (the school wanted the seeds for their agronomy class,) and we've done some ceiling fans, and other deep cleaning. She is quite an exceptional young lady and we are very very thankful for her willing help.

After trying to get pictures onto the blog last night, I finally gave up. I got up early this morning and discovered things work much better early am!

So I think there will be more posts coming soon... as long as I can "rise above the circumstances". LOL

The Charleston Aquarium....

I have wanted to visit Charleston for quite awhile, so this trip gave perfect opportunity. I know we could have spent a week here, but some of the things I want todo here aren't child friendly. Like a coffee shop and a book for instance:)

In our stage of life we found some pretty fun things todo!

This aquarium...

many different tanks of fish.....

Jorden may or may not have felt this was a little to close for gater proximity:)

The bay....
We watched this huge cruise ship leave port headed for the Bahamas. I have NO DESIRE to go on a cruise, but it was fascinating to see.

Aren't they the cutest little crew?

Old building lined the streets.. and we didn't even see half. Maybe another time:)

 

The bay. 

 

 

We left Charleston and meandered on down to FL where we settled into my parents house, a few miles from where Jess's parents live.

Its great to be in a house again,

in a few days, we head to our new home.