Monthly Archives: April 2008

Daniel, Events, Project 366

A Man of Many Talents

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Not only is he a chef par excellence, but Joshua is also a party planner extraordinaire. Perhaps there is something inherently flamboyant about a large family, but ours certainly loves parties and the opportunity for a fun gathering. Birthdays are always a festive occasion at our house. Cheerfully the children have all embraced the joy of celebrations. Joshua, as the oldest, has long been assisting me with birthday parties – everything from planning menus, hanging decorations and organizing games.

the children gather

The party opens with bright skies and sunshine.

Today was no exception. I couldn’t have hosted Daniel’s birthday party without tremendous help from Rachel and Joshua. Rachel was my assistant in the kitchen – baking cookies, wrapping treats, filling goodie bags, and making ice cream/pudding parfaits. Joshua developed and executed a massive treasure hunt – complete with buried treasure bags in the back yard. This book was his inspiration.

treasure hunts galore

I found this “treasure” at a used curriculum sale last spring.

Daniel had eleven guests at his party which made for a lively crew. Throw in a few siblings and the number of children running about the house was seventeen. Last week, of course, it was 80 sunny.

Today – it snowed.
In April.

No matter, Joshua (the game/slave master) had the kids out in the hail and rain racing about looking for clues.

get outside and start shoveling

don't worry about the hail and snow

What’s a little rain and snow if there’s treasures to be sought?

One of the clues was buried underneath Rice Krispy Treats covered with pudding “slop” (leftover from our fancy dinner on Thursday). Joshua was gracious enough to give the kids spoons – only one was brave enough to dive in without using any utensils.

let's eat!

After the treasure hunt (nearly an hour and a half long), Joshua handed the party over to me and retreated to his room. Hosting a birthday party is exhausting.

push up time

Every good birthday party includes push-ups. Very trendy these days.

Exhausting – tell me about it. I still had another hour and a half of time to fill before the parents returned. Crafts, gifts, dessert and a portion of a movie and then I could go hide in my room as well. Ha!

Happy Birthday, Daniel!
Thank you, Rachel and Joshua for helping with the party, and Tim for taking pictures! It is such a joy to watch the older children give of their time and energy to their younger siblings.

Kathy
Project 366 – Day 110

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Joshua, Project 366, Recipes/Food

Chef Joshua

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This year Joshua took a class at our homeschool co-op entitled For Boys Only. They have studied finances, banking, insurance, renting policies, and COOKING.

come for dinner

This evening our family was the grateful recipients of Joshua’s final project.

Dinner for Seven hosted by Joshua

Chicken Bake Appetizers
Fresh Veggie Crudities
Yogurt Fruit Salad
Homemade Rolls (Mesa Manna recipe)
Juice Spritzer Punch
Baked Potatoes w/sour cream, shredded cheese, and turkey bacon
Steamed Broccoli
Salad w/toppings
Grilled Steaks
Layered pudding dessert as the finale

drinks anyone?

Joshua worked for hours preparing the meal. He planned the menu, organized the recipes, and did the shopping. He even used existing groceries rather than spend too much at the store. It was truly a culinary gift to the whole family. He set the table in fine style and helped (through his exhaustion) with the clean up.

dessert

I’ll have to share his chicken bake and layered pudding recipes because they were quite the hit with the family.

hooray for Joshua

Thank you, Joshua, for the amazing meal.

Kathy
Project 366 – Day 107

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Project 366, Works for Me Wednesday

WFMW – Kids Clean then Craft

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wfmw

I believe you should put your children to work.

But first they should dress up.

As everyone knows, mundane chores, like vacuuming and cleaning, require proper attire. A hat if possible.

let's dress up

Sarah is quite the stylish girl.

vacuum time

After sweeping, vacuuming and tidying, it’s time to invite friends over and for an afternoon of crafts. I am NOT an artistic person so when I find friends who are creative, I try to exploit cultivate them.

crafting girls

“Would you like to come over for a visit?” I ask innocently. When they agree, I casually suggest we let the kids do a craft together. “Wouldn’t that be fun,” I say with a smile.

“Oh and could you design the craft, bring the supplies and oversee the project? I’ll provide the house.”

play doh is good enough for him

Christian joined us for play time.

Thankfully I have compassionate friends who take pity on my craftlessness.

bath salts and star boxes

Emma and Sarah show off their bath salts and painted star boxes.

A clean house and some fun crafts Works for Me! Stop by Rocks in My Dryer for other fun ideas.

I can’t believe the Tim and I have written 30 Works for Me Wednesday posts. Wow! We’re obviously incredibly helpful bloggers full of great ideas. Ha! And humble too.

Kathy
Project 366 – Day 106

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Budget & Money, Daniel

Birthdays on a Budget

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This whole budget thing is rather strange. Or perhaps it’s just the actual sticking to the budget that I find unusual.

Daniel’s birthday is this week so Tim and I went shopping this evening. We picked up Rachel at the YMCA on our way and brought her with us. We looked at all sorts of things and ended up purchasing some secret items. I can’t go into detail on the blog, of course, as Daniel is a loyal reader and his birthday surprises would be ruined.

Let sleeping boys lie ...
Daniel rests up in preparation for his birthday …

I will say that it was incredibly difficult staying within our budgeted amount. We are used to buying one substantial gift and then probably 5 to 8 additional presents. We are indulgent parents in this area. Or at least we used to be. Now we are financially wise and responsible parents.

Sigh.

Knowing how many toys are strewn about the house, shoved into corners and neglected, keeps me from being too sad. Our house is bursting at the seams with fun in all shapes and sizes. The children do not NEED additional toys. They enjoy variety and fresh entertainment, but they don’t need it at the cost of credit card debt.

Dan without a tan

Daniel, we love you so much! You are a wonderful boy, growing into a sweet young man. I’m sorry we have been so financially irresponsible over the years and modeled poor behavior to you and your siblings. We are excited about your birthday and eager to celebrate with you. Our love for you will NOT be measured in how much money we spend or how many toys we buy. Our love is priceless and immeasurable, there are not enough presents in the world to demonstrate our joy in being your parents.

Happy Birthday Week!!

Kathy

P.S. How do you all plan birthdays on a budget? I have Joshua running the party itself and the siblings sharing in the present exchange, but I would LOVE some additional ideas.

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Musings

Home From the Retreat

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Wasn’t Tim wonderful to take all those gorgeous pictures and post a blog while I was gone! Thank you, love!

One of my friends asked me if I was going through blog withdrawal during the retreat.

“Are you okay?” she asked? “Do you need to find some wireless connectivity somewhere and get your bloggy fix?”

People are so kind, looking out for my addictions. Thankfully blogging is still a legal. Although my fingers twitched several times and I may have said something like “this would be a great blog” oh three or four times, I actually was fine not blogging. I knew Tim was home keeping the blogging fires burning.

the Amazing Race

The retreat was wonderful. It was nearly perfect in every way. I was incredibly blessed by the entire experience – the speaker, the lovely accommodations, the godly women and great fellowship, the little details that made the retreat special and so much more.

I hardly took a single picture – see how I have fallen – but the retreat photographer is in my small group and I plan to steal her camera data card as soon as possible. Our theme was the Amazing Race and we used the map of the world to “point” us to the giveaway table. It was so invigorating to work with such creative women.

Coming Soon:

Planning a Women’s Retreat

My dear friend, Nancy, has written a detailed post on how to plan a women’s retreat. Look for it some time this week.

giveaways

I hope you had a good weekend. The weather here in western WA was incredible on Saturday and it’s stirred up in me a serious hunger for summer weather.

Kathy

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