They both scored!

Although Paul always leaves for work before the rest of us get up in the morning, he has been going in later than he did for the first six months. However this morning he got up earlier than usual because he wanted to come to the kids' basketball games. I was surprised when he got home at 9:30 because it meant he had spent two hours on the road so he could spend three hours at work. I really wasn't expecting him to come to the games today since he came last week. The past three years he had gone to all of their basketball games, but since he missed almost all of the soccer games this fall, I assumed he'd probably only come to their basketball games once or twice this season. I am not sure how many Saturdays he will choose to come to their games this year, but he picked a good day to come because both Nadia and Ian score a basket! Ian's game was at 10:00. He played three of the six periods, and he was wearing the color tag that identified him as the weakest player. He dribbled the ball some in every period that he played, and he made several attempts at baskets, but during the last period that he played he scored his first basket. I managed to get a picture of it!

Nadia's game was at 2:00. She played four of the six periods and also wore the weakest color tag, which is a different color because they play four on four whereas they only play three on three in the K/1st games. Nadia didn't touch the ball as much as Ian did, but she did dribble some. Her two big highlights were that she stole the ball once, and she also got a basket! In her case I was so caught up in the moment that I forgot to take a picture. Bummer. She attempted a basket for the first time that game and missed but got the rebound, and then she made the basket on her second attempt. Paul and I were screaming! They supposedly keep score in the 2nd/3rd grade games, but the truth is that they limit the gap between the two scores. If one team gets too far ahead then they don't add any points to that team's score until the other team catches up a little. The truth was that Nadia's team scored 64 points, but the score board gave them credit for about half of that because the other team scored less than 30 points. Grandpa is planning to come next Saturday, and Paul's parents are planning to come on February 4. Hopefully the kids will make another basket when their grandparents are there to cheer them on! I used my 85mm lens today. I am definitely using that one more than I ever did with my old camera body. My 50mm lens rarely left my old camera. The lighting in the gym is less than desirable to be sure, but I am going to try to keep working to figure out the best settings to use for aperture, ISO, and shutter speed. My new camera definitely handles higher ISOs better than my old one did. By the time Oliver starts playing basketball I should have improved my skills.

Third Birthday

This day seven years ago was Ian's due date, but it ended up being the day I had a D&E to remove the rest of his placenta and have a blood transfusion when he was 5 1/2 weeks old. This day three years ago was the day Ian *told* me he was going to become a Christian. I had been trying to push him off because I thought he wasn't ready, but on January 20, 2014 he told me he wasn't going to wait any longer, and when I asked him more questions, it seemed he really did understand. Nadia was also four years old when she accepted Christ, although in her case it was about four months not five weeks later. Oliver is almost four and a half, but I don't think he'll making that decision anytime in the near future.

Last night we picked up donuts on our way home from ice skating lessons. Paul had his last night, but the kids and I had ours at breakfast this morning. Ian requested pepperoni pizza for dinner. We usually just get cheese pizza, but I did splurge and get pepperoni on one of the two pizzas tonight. I also made

brownies for his special dessert. The kids shared a gallon of chocolate milk earlier in the week, and Ian was allowed to skip having fruits or vegetables today. We also didn't do a full day of schoolwork because of his birthday. This meant the guinea pigs spent even more time than usual out of their cages. I gave Ian a new Bible, and my Dad told him he can pick something out at our church's bookstore. Grandpa called to wish him a happy spiritual birthday, which Ian really appreciated.

Today I was I was listening to part of a conversation Ian was having with Nadia in the van I realized that Grandma Harton, my mom, had been in one of his dreams last night. It means so much to me that they still think of her. I still miss her so much. Oliver still occasionally prays for Grandma Harton to feel better, but the other two definitely understand she is in Heaven now. I'm thrilled to know that Ian, Nadia, and I will be reunited with her in Glory some day!

Thankful Thursday

1. Paul got home safely from his five day trip to Baltimore on Friday evening after the kids were in bed, and then he surprised us by staying home on Saturday, which also meant he was able to see Nadia and Ian's basketball games.

2. Paul is feeling better after having a GI bug for a couple of days. I had the same bug on Monday, but in my case it didn't mean spending any extra time in bed - just extra time in the bathroom.

3. I had received some money from Paul's parents and from an Aunt for Christmas. I had been doing research for two months regarding lenses for my camera, and I was thinking of using my Christmas money towards one lens. On Sunday I talked to a photographer who owned all of the lenses I was considering, and he had one of them there with him. The favorite lens (it seems) of people in the photography website I am a member of is the 70-200mm lens, which is VERY expensive and VERY heavy. Talking to him helped me confirm that my next lens should be the 135mm f/2, and it arrived on Tuesday morning! It had been almost 2 years since I got a new lens so it was very exciting. I tried the lens out a little at Nadia's basketball practice on Tuesday night, and I am very happy with my choice. It's not going to be the lens I use the majority of the time, but I will definitely put it to good use. I have also decided to sell my one zoom lens as I seem to always prefer to use prime lenses (fixed lenses that can't be zoomed in or out). After I sell that lens I will own four lenses - 35mm, 50mm, 85mm, and 135mm; the first three were gifts from my parents over the last few years, and the last one is the one I just bought. In the past week I have used all four of those. I also got an extra camera battery because I discovered that is one negative of my new camera compared to my old one. Even though  I have the wifi turned off, the battery doesn't last nearly as long as it did on my old one. I found a generic battery that was MUCH cheaper than the Canon one,, and now I think I'm good to go!

4. Two Sundays ago the pastor started preaching an exegetical series after having done several topical ones. I prefer exegetical ones so I was thankful. We are studying Titus and Philemon. A veterinarian who attends the church always recites the passage from memory right before the sermon (ex. Titus 2 this past Sunday). She does it with great expression. She has memorized 3/4 of the New Testament thus far. Wow.

5. Two Sundays ago was the pastor's mom's 90th birthday. In her honor we sang "And Can it Be" in the second service at church. It had been awhile since I sang that hymn. I loved it. I wish we sang more hymns, but that is not the trend these days. This past Sunday we did sing one of my favorite choruses though - "In Christ Alone." My mom used to get goosebumps when she really liked a song. I wish that was my reaction. Unfortunately for me it's that tears usually fall from my eyes. As I get older it happens more frequently. Anyhow that's definitely a tear jerker song for me (in a good way). I also really loved the lyrics of the choir's anthem on Sunday that were based on Jeremiah 29:11.

6. The Steelers won on Sunday night! We had better get some touchdown's this coming Sunday as field goals will not be enough to beat the Patriots. If we win this next game it means we'll be in the Superbowl! Go Steelers!

8. Last week I received a wonderful and very inexpensive item from Amazon that I wish I had purchased 5 1/2 years ago when I got my first DSLR camera - a little strap thing that keeps my lens cap attached to the camera when its not on the lens. I can't tell you how many times I have searched for a lens cap over the last 5.5 years. That won't be happening any more, wahoo!

9. The kids and I have been enjoying the gift cards we were given at Christmas. Last Wednesday we had dinner at Wendy's and used about $10 of one of the gift cards for dinner for the four of us. Oliver requested something I think very few four-year-olds ask for - a baked potato. He was thrilled!

I enjoyed my cup of chili. I had only been planning to use one a week (at the most), but in light of the fact we were out and about all day last Thursday (11 hours to be exact), I packed our lunches but then we "splurged" and used a gift card at Cracker Barrel for dinner. The gift card covered our 4 meals plus part of the tip. I just paid $2 to make the tip big enough, and that was all it cost us to have dinner at a sit down restaurant. All four of us used apple butter on our biscuits or corn bread. Yummy! Nadia tried fried apples for the first time and discovered she loves them. I always get some when I'm at that restaurant, but we can go years in between visits there.
10. The Dr. Kaboom show on Thursday in Wilkes Barre was excellent. The only expenses were a few coins to feed the parking meter plus the gas to get there and back. I don't remember seeing pickles used as "light bulbs" before, ha ha!

11. The weather last Thursday was just balmy. If the weather were to be in the 50's all winter, that would be perfectly fine with me!

12. I finally found a setting I really love for the diamond from my great grandmother's bracelet. Now to find a jeweler that will make a ring that looks like it. It doesn't have sapphires like the others I had picked out earlier, but I think it is really pretty and has two-tone gold in it.

13. Yesterday Nadia and Ian enjoyed a three hour program about weasels, otters, and fishers at the state park. Oliver did puzzles, played a game, enjoyed looking at the squirrels and birds coming to the bird feeders, etc. I worked on my Bible study lessons. I'm doing I Samuel and Revelation 1-3.

14. Nadia has been exercising with me! In the first seven days we exercised six of those seven days - usually 20 minutes a day. Unfortunately my back wasn't liking the exercise At All. Monday was the last day of exercise for me until I find something that doesn't lead me to be in pain all the time.

15. The kids are really, really enjoying their guinea pigs, and the guinea pigs are definitely calming down and becoming more accustomed to being our pets. I am not keen on the mess they create - bedding and hay ends up in all kinds of places around the house, but the kids are definitely loving having pets. Even though we still have a lot of bedding left in the bag I bought, I put down a blanket in there instead today. I think this will mean far less mess.

Double standards

Nadia is very quick to notice if I do something differently with her brothers than I did with her when she was that age. For example, I offered Oliver a treat for good behavior in the Soul Patrol choir. I said she wasn't in a choir when she was four-years-old, and even if she had been I know she wouldn't have had any problems because she was in the summer musical at the church where they go to AWANA the summer she turned four years old, and that was the program in which she smiled to beat the band and did all the motions (plus a few extra) and sang her heart out. She didn't need any extra encouragement to do the right thing in that instance. Kids tend to think it's unfair if you don't treat them exactly the same. But fair doesn't always mean equal because each child has different strengths, weaknesses, needs, etc. Recently my dad pointed out a double standard my mom had in that she had accepted Facebook requests from men she had dated 50+ years ago, but she asked my dad to decline a friend request from a woman he dated in 1963.

I think a fairly typical double standard between men/women comes to sick days. Paul came down with a GI bug and didn't go to church with us yesterday morning and didn't come down from the bedroom until after 4:00 pm. He did play with the kids and have dinner with us until the kids went to bed and then he disappeared again so I watched my football game alone (but I was able to talk on the phone with my Dad during the game, which was nice). Over the past 8 1/2 years the only time I have had a "sick day" where I stayed in bed while the kids were awake was when I was in the hospital. I used to be able to take a nap when I was sick if I did so when the kids were napping, but now that none of them take naps, the only thing I can do differently when I am sick is go to bed when Oliver goes to bed (8:00). I know I'm not the only mom who doesn't get sick days. It seems to be pretty typical that dads get sick days but moms don't. During the 20 years I had a job I always had to make arrangements if I was going to take a sick day (find a substitute, etc.). Paul didn't let anyone know at work, but I heard his phone vibrating at 6:30 and woke Paul up to tell him someone was trying to call him, and it was his brother checking to see if he was on his way to work (because he's usually already there at that time). I think if any of the workers at the plant didn't show up without calling in sick that would be counted as a "strike" against them. Well the upside to his illness is that we are seeing more of him even though he's staying in the bedroom a lot more than usual. Hopefully he will be feeling better soon and none of us will get whatever he has.

Speaking of "fairness," Nadia commented yesterday that the kids in church said they didn't have school on Monday (Martin Luther King, Jr. Day). I had planned to just have a regular school day (just like last week when many of them had a snow day), but then I said if we completed an art project plus they did a math lesson, we would skip all the other subjects (I won't count it as one of our official school days). We did two-thirds of the charcoal project before lunch, and then they had a break to play with their guinea pigs and then have 30 minutes of screen time (iPad for Nadia and Wii for Ian). We'll finish the project after lunch.

Yesterday in church Nadia and Oliver went to their Sunday School classes in the first service and to the kids' choir rehearsal in the second service. Ian chose to go with me to the first worship service even though it meant he would sit alone for about half of the service while I was on the platform with the choir. He was very well behaved. Way to go, Ian!

I took these bathtub pictures on Saturday morning using my speedlight that I rarely use. I really needed to use the Expodisc also, but I didn't and I had to work on adjusting the white balance in Lightroom. There is definite room for improvement, but I am trying to take a wider variety of pictures. Ian was holding those numbers up and told me that is how old I am. Well it's how old I'll be in three months. Let's not rush things, Ian. Ha ha!

The Steelers WON last night. It wasn't their prettiest win as we had zero touchdowns and six field goals, but it means we're playing the Patriots next Sunday to see which team will be in the Superbowl! Go Steelers! Speaking of football games I'll share one more double standard. It is a BIG deal to Paul that I not schedule anything that would mean he couldn't watch one of his NY Giants football games. Once or twice a season his game isn't aired in our area, but he watches every game he can. Similarly, I like to watch all my Steeler football games if possible. It was mystifying to me that he scheduled the Christmas gift exchange with his parents during my football game - and not just a regular game but a Playoff game. I am certain he would never have done so if it had meant missing part of his game. Go figure. We human beings are complicated to be certain!

Game Day!

Aside from the 90 minute homeschool gym class yesterday morning, we stayed at home all day long. I brought my camera because I am trying to expand my horizons in terms of where I take pictures. I took one of Oliver coming down one of the slides in the play land, but the slide was yellow and it made his skin look really yellow so I converted the image to black/white, which is very unusual for me. I also tried to take some photos of the kids in the gym, but I was limited in that because #1 I discovered even my 85mm lens was not quite enough (I think I see a new lens in my future...maybe 135mm?), #2 part of the time they played glow in the dark hockey (I wasn't even going to attempt taking pics of that!), and #3 Oliver didn't want to stay in there and watch his siblings very much. I was also trying to shoot in manual mode, which doesn't come naturally to me yet. After the gym class we crossed paths with the pastor's wife, and she referred to Oliver as the cute little dinosaur who came into the service on Sunday morning. The picture at left shows the mask he was wearing when he waltzed into the auditorium while the pastor was still preaching. OOPS!

Paul got home from Baltimore at 8:45 last night. Previously I wasn't expecting to see him until this evening because the last two months when he had business trips and got back to PA then he spent the first nights at his parents' house and then came home after work the following day. The kids didn't see him last night because they were all in bed by the time he got home. I found out this morning that since the kids hadn't seen him since Sunday, he decided to take today off at work and stay home. I didn't think he'd be attending their basketball games today because this past fall he only made it to see a game at the end of the season. The kids were thrilled to have Daddy home today as even over the Christmas and New Year's holidays we didn't get a Saturday with him. Ian's game was at 10:00. He played periods 2, 4, and 5. He dribbled the ball in each of the quarters and caused a few turnovers because he stepped out of bounds, but he played aggressively (I mean that in a good way). He attempted to make a basket a couple of times but didn't actually make any. He was assigned the color tag that meant he was the middle ranked player each time he was out, which was an improvement from last year when he was always given the color tag as the weakest of the three playing in that period. He still needs to work on the concept of not playing defense when his team has the ball. Overall, I was pleased with how much progress he showed compared to his first game last year.

On the way home we stopped for some groceries and then went home for lunch. I failed to check my calendar and went from memory (bad idea -in the future I will be sure to check my calendar!) and so we showed up back at the church an hour early for Nadia's game (OOPS!). I felt terrible, but I consoled myself that it was better to show up too early than too late. We drove to our church and let the kids play for 30 minutes before going back for Nadia's game. At her level they play four on four, and she always wore the tag given the weakest player. She didn't touch the ball at all the first two periods she played, but near the end of the last period of the game (there are six periods in every game), she finally was able to dribble and pass a few times. They don't keep score in the K/1st games, but in the 2nd/3rd grade games they do, and Nadia's team had a solid win. The team they were playing was coached by the man who was her coach last year, and some of the kids on that team were ones she had played with last year. Here's to hoping that both kids will get at least one basket during the season!

I woke up at 3:30 this morning and was not able to get back to sleep (frustrating when that happens). I just found out that the Steelers game has been pushed back to 8:20 tomorrow night (instead of 1:00). I had better get more sleep tonight if I am going to try to stay up later than usual tomorrow night to cheer for my team!

Doktor Kaboom

Yesterday we traveled to Wilkes Barre to see a show about electricity featuring Doktor Kaboom. Here's a video someone took at another one of his shows and posted on YouTube. My favorite part was when he put electricity through some pickles, and they lit up like light bulbs! Nadia's favorite part was when a couple of volunteers put on bubble suits and were running into each other illustrating the concepts of electrons repelling each other, etc. Her only disappointment was that she wasn't picked as a volunteer to come on stage, but there were over 1,000 kids there so the odds were not in her favor! Next we drove to Scranton as I had planned to take the kids to Timmy's Town Center (a children's museum), but it turns out they went out of business last year. I couldn't believe that we were 0-2 in a span of two days with driving 30+ minutes to get to a museum that was closed. The kids asked if there were any other museums in Scranton we could visit. It did my heart good to hear them ask me that. We had already taken them to Steamtown (run by the National Park Service), but we contemplated returning there

because we were 1 minute away from it. Since it was so warm out (although a little wet), I decided to try a large park called Nay Aug Park in Scranton. In the summer the swimming pool is open, but all year round you can enjoy many different walking trails - some by a gorge, playgrounds, etc. There is a large treehouse also.

To break up the drive back, we stopped at the Children's Museum in Bloomsburg on the way to dinner and ice skating lessons. Usually we only go to that museum when they're having a special program. On Wednesday we had attempted to attend a program for homeschoolers about the planet Mars. They do two programs a month for homeschoolers, and they also have others on Saturdays that we often attend, but we won't be going there on Saturdays for the next several months because of basketball and then soccer games.  I also am not planning to take them to the second homeschool hangout this month because I chose a program at R. B. Winter state park for our field trip that

particular day instead. So the time we spent at the museum yesterday is likely the only time we'll be there this month. A new children's museum is opening in Lewisburg (much closer to us) in a couple of months. I already purchased a three year membership. I am hoping they will do nice programs like the one in Bloomsburg, but if not we are in Lewisburg on a far more regular basis than Bloomsburg so I am confident we will make good use of that membership. If the one in Lewisburg doesn't end up offering the kind of programs the one in Bloomsburg does, I think we'll maintain memberships at both museums.

To sum up our day yesterday it went like this - leave the house at 8:30, drive to Wilkes Barre (made two stops en route for things like gas for the van), watch Doktor Kaboom show for 1 hour, drive to Scranton, find out museum is closed, spend an hour at a park, drive part of the way home, spend time at Children's Museum in Bloomsburg, have dinner at Cracker Barrel, drive

30 minutes to Sunbury for ice skating lessons, and drive home. We made one tiny detour on the way home to stop and register Nadia for softball so we didn't actually arrive at home until 7:00 pm. Yes, we are going to give Little League a whirl for the first time ever starting in March. Technically all three could play - tball for Oliver, coach pitch baseball for Ian, and minor league softball for Nadia, but I only signed Nadia up. I offered to let her do gymnastics instead of soccer or softball, but she really wanted to do softball. I have no idea how this is going to play out with her softball season taking place at the same time as Ian and Oliver playing spring soccer. It might be the first and last time we do Little League, but I felt like I had to let her try it once. Hopefully it will be feasible for me to get all three kids to and from their practices and games this spring! All in all we had a great day although it's never my preference to spend that much time in a vehicle. I kept telling myself that the next five days we don't plan to go more than 15 minutes away from our house each day. One upside was that we listened to a lot of the book Island of the Blue Dolphins while we were in the van.

When I first got my DSLR camera I stayed in Automatic mode. I can't remember exactly when I made the switch, but at some point I tried Manual mode and then because I was taking pictures outside at the time and the lighting might change quite a bit from minute to minute (if the sun went behind a cloud or something like that), I switched to using AV (aperture priority) mode, and that's where I've stayed for far too long. I am not saying I'll never use AV mode again, but yesterday at the ice skating rink I discovered two things: #1 I brought the wrong lens (50mm is not a good choice for taking pictures at that location now that I have a full frame camera). I am going to try my 85mm next week. Hopefully that will work better. #2 I could do a better job in manual mode than in AV (the camera was choosing too fast of a shutter speed and my pictures were too dark). Did I nail those photos on the ice skating rink? Nope, but the ones I took in manual were better than the ones I took in AV. I have two more months to practice taking pics of Nadia and Ian's ice skating lessons. :)

Thankful Thursday

1. I've used a few different websites/apps for getting money back on purchases made (ex. Ibotta and Checkout 51), but in late December I tried out a different one (Klipem), and it was much better than the other ones I've tried. The particular rebate I requested was for 12 packs of Coke. If you bought four 12 packs, they would give you an $11 rebate either through PayPal or a gift card from Amazon. Most of the other sites I've used you have to accrue at least $20 before you get any money back. I've gotten a check from Checkout 51, but as of yet I haven't hit the $20 mark with Ibotta in part because with that app it matters not only what you buy but where you buy it. Anyhow I paid $13.77 for four 12 packs of Coke at CVS, and Klipem gave me $11 back already, which means I paid $2.77 for 48 cans of Coke for Paul. I hope I can find other good rebates from Klipem in the future!

I am still taller than all my nieces and nephews, but Susie is getting close!

2. It has been three months since Oliver wet the bed. Hoping this means those days are behind us.

3. I really love the Fragrance Spheres I got from Yankee Candle a couple of months ago. I replaced the old ones a few days ago, and now I smile every time I walk into one of the two bathrooms where I am using them. They were on sale for $2.50 each when I got them. Money well spent in my opinion!

4. I took Ian to an orthodontist yesterday, and the orthodontist said that Ian won't be ready for braces for probably two more years. I am happy to wait on that. I'm going to cancel Nadia's appointment.

5. The kids are really enjoying their guinea

pigs, and Nadia has taken over the job of getting both of them out of their cage. Whew. I didn't enjoy chasing them one iota. I'm grateful for the reprieve.

6. I've been watching some videos on photography online in the evening. Usually Paul has the tv on after the kids go to bed which means I need to go elsewhere if I want to listen to a photography video on the computer, but since he's not home this week the tv isn't on in the evenings as the only tv I watch are my Steeler football games. All of the pics in this post are cell phone pics. I

had planned to take pics at the Children's Museum yesterday, but when we got there we found out it was closed because of the icy roads (which weren't icy when we drove there because it was 45 degrees out). Now I know to check online before we head out there in the winter because it takes more than 30 minutes (one way) to get there.

7. The Steelers won on Sunday! Now to see if we can beat the Chiefs again this Sunday (we beat them earlier in the season).

8. Nadia and Ian enjoyed their first ice skating lesson of the year last Thursday evening. Nadia was elated that if she learns how to do *one* more thing then she will be promoted to the level 4 class. The kids and I enjoyed sharing two footlong subs prior to their ice skating lesson using a gift card Oliver was given at Christmas.

9. Nadia and Ian enjoyed playing hockey in their gym class which resumed on Friday. Ian was thrilled that a teammate from his soccer team (the coach's son) joined the gym class for the first time.

10. We were finally able to celebrate Christmas with Paul's parents on January 8. We are thankful for the many gifts we were given by his parents, aunt, brother, and sister-in-law.

11. I enjoyed playing the flute on Tuesday morning as well as eating at the delicious buffet. I also greatly appreciated June watching the kids at McDonald's while I was at the Country Cupboard.

12. The only day I could run since Paul went back to the family business was on Sundays, and I haven't been going at all in the cold weather. I'd go today if I had someone to watch the kids for an hour for me. Anyhow I contemplated asking Paul if we could combine the money we got for Christmas and get a piece of exercise equipment (like maybe an elliptical), but then I remembered that he needs to get new tires for his car. So instead I decided to try exercising in the family room using a DVD. It turns out I have three exercise buddies! Nadia sticks with it the longest, and Oliver does the least. The kickboxing dvd was harder for the boys. Ian liked the DVD that had a lot of push-ups and sit-ups and such. The problem was I only had two sets of weights; so yesterday at Walmart I bought three more sets - five pound purple weights for Nadia, three pound pink weights for Ian, and 2 pound blue weights for Oliver. My goal is to try to do 20 minutes a day as many days of the week as possible. Yesterday was day #2. This will hopefully help me be in better shape and also lose some weight. I'd MUCH rather run outside, but it is fun doing it with Nadia (and the boys when they join us).