Babies, Babies, Babies

So for everyone who doesn't know yet, I am expecting baby number five. We are so excited. I am only 5 weeks along and figure my due date to be Aug. 27. So far I feel pretty good.

The picture is of all us Andra girls that are pregnant together. First is Theresa who is having her first baby and is due at the end of January. Next is Rosa who is having her fifth and due the First of April. Then Martha who is having her first and due the first of April. Next is Michelle who is having her fifth and due Mid May. Last is me.

It should be a lot of fun when all those babies are born.

Pumpkin Carving

This post is really old, but we have been having such bad Internet problems that I haven't been able to finish it till now. At Halloween I helped the kids carve their pumpkins.
It was so funny to see their reaction to having to clean out the pumpkins. Amita just dug right in without problems, but poor Carter had the hardest time. He was totally grossed out by the slime.

I thought this picture of Melody was so cute I just had to include it.

Corn Maze

This post is a little behind, but here it is anyway. While my mom and Monte were out here for a visit in October, we went to a corn maze. This year the weather was great, and we had lots of fun.
Benjamin having fun with the water pumps.Melody saw this train and wanted to go on it, but as soon as it started going she started crying. I felt so bad, but as soon as we got her out she wanted back on.

Amita in her pretty dress. She loves this dress. A friend of ours gave it to her.

We had lots of fun going through the maze. Once it was dark, we went through the scary maze. It was interesting to see each kids reaction. Benjamin screamed at everything. Carter never made a peep, but held onto my hand. Amita was totally ok because she was on her dad's shoulders the whole time. And Melody did pretty good because I was carrying her.

Natural Bridge

On our way home from Florida, we stopped at a natural bridge in Arkansas. We had a lot of fun taking pictures around the rock formations.
The mountain men of the family.

Amita being a rock climber.

Florida Trip

Isaiah and I have been planning a Florida trip for some time this winter. We were thinking in January, when on a Wednesday we decided why wait, we should go now, so Friday we packed up and headed to Panama City Beach to spend a week.

The crazy think was we had some close friends, whom also decided to do an impromptu trip to Florida at the same time. We ended up only 3 miles from them. It was really fun to hang out with them while we were there.

Some highlights from our trip were:
miniature golfing
snorkeling
seeing dolphins and stingrays
chasing crabs on the beach
Benjamin diving for hermit crabs

The boys with their sand octopus.

Melody loved playing in the sand, but would get so mad when a wave would come up and get her.

Our condo was on the 23rd floor, so we had an awesome view.

There is just something about the ocean that is just magnificent. We had a great trip. I am glad we didn't wait and just did it.

I Passed!!!

This last weekend Isaiah and I drove up to Madison, WI so I could take my final clinical exam. My wonderful mom flew out a few days before and took care of the kids while we were gone. The test was three days of intense exams. I had an examiner follow me around while I took care of patients. She made sure I did everything right and if anything was done wrong or it I forgot to do something then she would fail me. I have never done somethings as stressful as this. I prayed a lot during those three days and I know it was with Gods help that I passes. Passing this test means I am going to graduate with my associate degree in nursing.

Better Late then Early

As I have researched homeschooling, I have found that many people believe in starting their kids formal learning later rather than early. This was a very new idea to a public school kid like me, but the more I learn about the more I like what I hear.

I realize that, kids are institutionalized earlier and earlier. We make this fake world called a classroom and put them into it from the time they are 3 or4 and they stay there until they are in their twenties. We expect them to learn about life, to become working members of society not by being in the world and learning from the example of their parents, but by being in four walls and taking a test on it. To me, something seems a little wrong with this picture.

I listened to this radio broadcast by James Dobson and found it very thought provoking.
http://www.myfamilytalk.com/index.php/2010/09/01/school-can-wait/

I write this not to tell you what to think or believe, but to get you thinking.