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AbiNoelle’s Inauguration Day

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It’s Inauguration Day! (Yes, we had to ask “What day is it, today?” about ten times before we learned that big word.)

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From the exit at Blair House to the church service and then on to the Capitol, we took it all in somewhat in between all our regular school subjects.We even created a special Americana schoolwork area to help us get our classwork done and get in the spirit of this historical event.

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Getting ready to sing “God Bless America” on the Capitol steps.

The pageanty and significance make this an awesome event in history to view, but all the more real for AbiNoelle since she has personally walked those Capitol halls, stood in the Rotunda, and has sung on the steps of the Capitol!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Today, she clapped, and listened, and held her hand on her heart as we watched America enter a new era.

She learned as we created a special Inauguration Day book and practiced terms like, oath, Inauguration, Vice-President, Commander-in-Chief, and more!

She reflected on all that she had seen and heard:

I’m sure his [Trump’s] children are very proud of him!

Look at all those police guards!

If I were there, I would sit right next to Donald J. Trump.

Ahhh, her[Mrs.Trump] dress is so pretty.

If I were President, I would run this country like God told me to.

(When Trump said there was a new vision — America First — AbiNoelle said:) What’s America Second?

He[Trump] has such strong, great, powerful words….It’s just amazing!

I’m sure she [Mrs.Obama] must be sad, right now because her husband is not President anymore and he’s going to have to go get a job now so he can pay for their groceries.

(She even got a little mesmerized during Trump’s Inaugural Address and began to mimic all his hand gestures – that was too funny!)

Inauguration Day 2017! We are thankful to be an American and glad we could use this day as a teaching moment in Kindergarten! We pray for President Trump, his family, Vice-President Pence and his family. God Bless America!

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The new MLK. Are you bottom-up or top-down? What leads you – a hashtag?

20170117_094317.jpgThe day was off to a typical start – Our DVD program began with Mrs. Reese welcoming the boys and girls to class for the day and the printer was humming with Mommy’s work efforts in the office. As Bible Time concluded, a pensive yet slightly emotional AbiNoelle rushed to my side and spilled out the depths of her heart in just four simple words. Continue reading “The new MLK. Are you bottom-up or top-down? What leads you – a hashtag?” →

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I need a little time alone to…

It seems like just yesterday that we met Mrs. Reese and now it’s already 2017 and Day 100 of K5 is tomorrow! You have never seen so much excitement when Skills time came today. Here we are huddling near the heater as we wait for 6 inches of snow that fell over the weekend to melt and Mrs. Reese delivers a most unusual surprise Continue reading “I need a little time alone to…” →

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She meets Mrs. Reese

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From Mrs. Reese and K5 to levels of higher learning – she’s ready and excited! What a special blessing to visit and introduce our ole alma mater to AbiNoelle. How appropriate that we visit one of the places that we are so grateful for on this Thanksgiving Day.

Our day began with entrance into the beautiful Crown Center to join with the Pilgrims in praise and singing to God for all that He has done for us.

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Next, came a fun time out on college field, enjoying fellowship and food at the alumni tent while watching the Turkey Bowl.

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With a cheer in the last 10 seconds for a winning goal, we followed our noses to the Four Winds and enjoyed a scrumptious feast of turkey, ham, dressing, cranberries, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, green beans, and dessert. (Sorry, all that we left was the placemat – Mmmmm!)

The night ended in a Christmas fine arts performance! (It’s so fun to get all dressed up for a fine occasion. Sparkles and Shiny are always good for little girls!)

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And in the midst of all that we even had time to sneak in a few moments to show AbiNoelle some of our favorite spots on campus. Her imagination took over as we investigated the One Room Schoolhouse and pretended to step back on the prairie for school time. “Teacher” AbiNoelle took a turn while Daddy sat on the disobedient stool and then “student” AbiNoelle practiced reading in a little desk.

The library also held a few other treasures  – a copy of our own The Voice in the Wilderness magazine in the periodical section and the beautiful painting PopPop gave to the Hortons years ago.

What a day!….and to think that the most monumental happened the night before….

Our arrival to campus and Wednesday night church brought what will never be forgotten.

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Early in the day, as we entered town, we stopped by the Academy (or should I say, Mrs. Reese’s school) – how exciting!

But nothing could compare with meeting Mrs. Reese!

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At the first sighting of her (about 2 minutes before service started) the excitement could not be contained. Emotions spilled over and a few tears had to be dodged as we took our seats and church began. Knowing our hearts, we trust the Lord forgives a little one’s lack of attention to the message, for all she could manage were continuous peeks in her teacher’s direction to make sure she was still there. At the last note of dismissal, AbiNoelle dashed toward the seat of Mrs. Reese and called after her as she and Dr. Reese began to exit the auditorium towards our decided meeting place. “Mrs. Reese, Mrs. Reese!” she called. In a moment, Dr. Reese turned and said, “I think I hear “Reese” being called!” And then it was here….the most anticipated moment…AbiNoelle with her teacher, Mrs. Reese.

And then it began – conversation and memory making moments never to be forgotten.

AbiNoelle enjoyed sharing her special card (hand-written in her best cursive writing) with Mrs. Reese. Then came quiz time from the teacher!!

(R) What lesson are you on?

(A) Lesson 81!

And on it went!

(R) Did you just throw snowballs at me in the last lesson?

(A) [Giggle, giggle] Yes, I threw a bunch at you, Mrs. Reese!

(R) Was that really you!?! [giggle, giggle]

Oh, the fun! Mrs. Reese was so accommodating. She must have soooo many students, current and former, and yet she took time with just one and the impact will be long-lasting!

Surely a trip to remember. We are so THANKFUL!

And the cherry on top was AbiNoelle’s first look at the ocean….

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….playing a beautiful handchime trio together in church….

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…and giving a special Books of the Bible recitation.

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PRAISE THE LORD!! Great things He hath done!

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Should you mark that answer wrong?

With a bounce of curls, bright eyes, and a confident smile, she presented the worksheet to her teacher. “Did I do good?” questioned the eager face. To the capable eye, the error was clear, yet not wanting to cloud the happiness, hesitation wondered, “Must I mark that wrong?”
Continue reading “Should you mark that answer wrong?” →

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Feeling Accomplished?

The office was humming, and AbiNoelle was busy about her work. Of course, she is ALWAYS BUSY! – So that wasn’t unique; yet, her concentration and determination with this particular task was longstanding. As she worked, her continual commentary revealed the deeper lesson being learned. “I’m being
Continue reading “Feeling Accomplished?” →

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We should MOVE! The sweet and sour…

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Well…she took Washington D.C. by storm!…or should we say, it took her? Participating in Awake America’s Capitol Connection was filled with many SWEET memories and will be long remembered by AbiNoelle. People, preachers, Congressmen, Senators, and more to meet everyday – how exciting! On our last night in town, as we drove through the streets towards our hotel, she just couldn’t express enough that we must… Continue reading “We should MOVE! The sweet and sour…” →

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AbiNoelle Votes!

“Daddy, what’s the Constitution?”

In preparation for an upcoming trip to D.C., Daddy has been giving some before-bed history lessons. As we entered the “Birth of America” period, the brain wheels were cranking for AbiNoelle. It was during this lesson, that AbiNoelle decided how she would vote and gave her opinion about the Constitution. Wait until you hear the answer. Look out Washington D.C. – here comes AbiNoelle!

Continue reading “AbiNoelle Votes!” →

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3 Things When Life’s too Busy for School

From the hubbub of the holidays to a vigorous start in the new year – life is busy! With the church Christmas play, family events, and other memory-making moments passed, we turned to a new year of scheduling for family and ministry. Traveling for our ministry causes great excitement as AbiNoelle loves to GO anywhere and she loves people and preachers! Daily ministry office tasks are never-ending and constantly growing and vying for attention. Homeschool activities, family time, Ladies Sunday School Tea Party (what a “Tea”-rrific time), personal projects, the list goes on AND the bathroom really needs cleaning!! Life is busy, but life is also brief. Just this month, we have witnessed a lady in a year-long recovery from a horrific car accident, a grandfather’s fall while on vacation causing a tramatic brain injury, and a dear pastor friend passing into Heaven after a sudden heart attack. Busy Life. Brief Life – Two adjectives that give pause when you wake in the morning saying, “There is just too much to do today to do school!” Believe me, I find that thought peeping out from under the covers at least once a week. So, what to do?
  1. Get up and do it! From day one, we established a routine for AbiNoelle’s school days, and we are so thankful! At four, AbiNoelle doesn’t quite grasp the busyness of schedules. She simply gets up, eats breakfast, gets dressed, and expects school to start. Thankfully, we chose a program that allows Mom to prepare boardwork and paperwork the afternoon before so that each morning the school day is ready to start without wasting time trying to figure out what to do first. The A Beka DVD program is great for busy Moms because it allows you to be as involved in your child’s education as you desire, while enthusiastically engaging the student in learning so that Mom can get some needed things accomplished. Building good habits from the beginning makes life a little easier when times get hectic.
  2. Finish the Job! AbiNoelle loves Patch the Pirate and one of his songs has been sung on many occasions during school when we think of quitting for whatever reason: “Finish the job, finish the job, get it done! Finish the job, finish the job, then have fun! When you have a job to do, never quit until it’s through. Finish the job, finish the job…go and get it done – finish the job!” From day one, we have had the policy of finishing the school day before playing, lunch, shopping or other activities. Some days that has meant being flexible, getting up earlier, or even eating breakfast during school so that we complete school and move on to other special activities for the day.
  3. Do it right! I admit, the thought has crossed my mind to just allow “art time” or “craft projects” or cooking, cleaning, etc. to “count” as school time. While those activities are great learning tools to utilize, they can never replace a planned curriculum that insures that AbiNoelle will not miss out on one important topic of learning. I also realize my own weakness in busy times is to skip those needful reviews and extra practices. Life is brief. God has called us to do whatever our hand findeth to do with our MIGHT. That doesn’t mean skimping or half-heartedly. It doesn’t mean talking ourselves into accepting excuses and degrading school from top priority to the bottom-of-the-barrel, extra-curricular option. NOW is the time. Today is important!
And so…with those 3 thoughts, we made up that bed, drank our one-cup-a-day mug of coffee and started school. As each day ended and we returned to the bed, we realized that the bathroom still needed cleaning but much had been accomplished and we had no regrets for completing a successful school day! Enjoy the quick highlights below of some of our fun times!
(From left to right) 1. Our ministry hosted a special Pastor’s dinner with Chef Dave in which AbiNoelle had the opportunity to quote Matthew 28. 2. Time-out for a ministry family pic. 3. Tons of fun in a big snowfall. 4. MeMe, AbiNoelle, and Mommy at our church tea party. 4. AbiNoelle with Chef Dave after the dinner.

 

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Homeschool group activity allowed for AbiNoelle’s first opportunity for roller skating. What a fun time!

 

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Racing with numbers to feed the monkey a banana.

 

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She started writing capital letters. “Look at my capital ‘A’!”

 

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Sharing Bible Verses in churches as we travel for our ministry is a special highlight for AbiNoelle.

 

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Practicing writing her name in cursive.

 

 

 

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