So...

...since it's been almost a month since I posted a "real" family update (excluding birthday posts)...

It's probably about time for one, isn't it ; )?

There's been a lot going on lately, in a fairly quiet way ; ). School is going pretty well... math continues to pose challenges for most of us, but we are making headway ; )! Our history study is especially interesting this year : ). We are using the Answers in Genesis "What in the World?" by Diana Waring : ). Our biology is also coming in part from the Answers in Genesis site, although we are also using the Weaver curriculum and some other resources Mommy has pulled together : ). Andrew's reading is coming on wonderfully : )! Math books, paper and pencils are once again typical decor ; )!

Mommy had a midwife's appointment Tuesday, and we got to hear Seaweed's  little heart beating : )... that is always a highlight while waiting for the arrival of each baby : )!

We took a walk through our neighborhood last night, straight through to the park down by the lake that has the trails running through it : ). Everybody had so much fun, Abbi accomplished the monkey bars in a rather genius way ; )! We'll have to see if we can take the video camera next time we go. She was so funny, haha : )! She also wanted to go swimming, heeheehee! To which Mommy answered "No! Don't try! You don't know how! Like, at all!!!" To which Daddy said to Mommy, "She moves so fast, she probably wouldn't have to swim... she could just walk right across..." Haha!

When we got home, Emmi's first words were "Now can we play on our swings?!" At eight o'clock at night. Heeheehee : )!

Andrew and Tori's birthdays are coming up fast : )! Andrew has his day planned down to the minute, haha ; ). I thought only Bethi made such detailed birthday lists. Oh, wait... since she helped him with the writing part, there was probably some prompting on her part to "plan some more", haha : ). She makes more lists then I do, I believe ; ). She is almost caught up in her "new" bible challenge, though : )!

Tori's and Mommy's bible challenge will end on Tori's birthday : ). They are getting close! And they are both at least on schedule, if not ahead, so they should finish right on time ; ). As for me, I am nine months into a six month reading plan, and only in Isaiah (although I'll be out of it today) ; ). Studying Romans took several months out of our reading, haha, so the casual passer-by might assume I was a very slow reader ; ). There are still verses that pop up all the time out of Romans, and it really makes you wonder, do I notice them more now that we've done the study? Or is Romans literally quoted twice as often as any other book of the bible? Hopefully I'll come to a better conclusion after studying another book of the bible that in depth.... which I plan to do next January, with several friends : ). We're still trying to work out all the details, but I can't wait to start that :)... And Mommy, who has been great at listen to me muse about ideas on how  to coordinate everything, specially planned some of my birthday surprises to be used during that time : ). So sweet : )!

The mornings have been slightly chilly here, this week. The first day of Fall could be on the 21st, the 22nd, or the 23d, this year, depending on who's calendar you are using. The one I'm hearing most is the 22nd (at 4:44 a.m., I heard, due to the time that the earth will make the last "move" of summer and continue with it's "fall" orbiting at that time), but we're going to "celebrate it" on Saturday, the 21st, since Daddy will be home. We'll make pumpkin muffins and fresh coffee for breakfast : ). You do not know how many times over the past week I have heard somebody asking for pumpkin (or, icing, if it happened to be Abbi or Emmi ; ).) muffins ; ). I told them in spring, that we finally had run out of pumpkin after two years, and I wasn't making pumpkin muffins again until the fall ; ). So they can't wait for Saturday : )! I should go make sure that we have all the items for that, Daddy's not going to want to shop tomorrow after working a late shift... ...I might even pop in to post a little something about fall this Saturday, you never know ; )!

(And Thankful Thursday will be posted today!... I'm just not sure if it will be just this week's, or several weeks worth. We'll see : )!)