The Combs Krewe

I was never good at math when I was in school. I got by but I never truly understood many of the things that I supposedly learned according to my diploma. Now I'm homeschooling Keeleigh and she's beginning to get into some of those math subjects that I struggled with. I have heard of more than one home school mom jumping ship because of this self-same problem. I, however, have been a little excited during math lessons. Why? Because I'm determined not to give up and guess what? I'm really  learning some things. (And, yes, I think it's perfectly acceptable to learn right along with your child!) This morning it hit me. Remember those visual illusion books that were popular a few years back? You know the ones where if you stare at them long enough a 3D image will pop out at you? Math is just like that. Contrary to how I felt in high school, someone is not dumb when they don't "get" math. It was like I was staring at one of the visual illusion books a

Yes!  Before you throw me under the bus, allow me to explain.  So Hilary Rosen’s comment that Ann Romney “never worked a day in her life” has caused a stir lately. It even drew out a response from President Obama who said,  “There’s no tougher job than being a mom. . . Anybody who would argue otherwise, I think, probably needs to rethink their statement.”   Of course, this is not a new subject of argument. There seems to always be some sort of dissension among women.  This group is better than this group for this reason and that group doesn't understand what its like to be that group. Blah, blah, blah. Personally, I agree with President Obama's statement that there's no tougher job than being a mom. However, Mr. President, having a tough job doesn't necessarily mean that job will be performed to the utmost of one's ability. You know that. ; ) President Obama wasn't the only one who rose up to defend Ann Romney and the status of the stay-at-home mother. Fo

April Week 3 Saturday Piper learned to open the cabinet door. We actually installed child locks on them when Ryland learned to open them as a baby but this one is opened so frequently that it has become loose. Babies love playing in the cabinets so much that I hate to stop her. Look at that grin! Sunday We went to the Strawberry Festival where we enjoyed some chocolate covered strawberries (along with some other sickly delicious fair food) and the kids rode a couple of rides a piece. Keeleigh's hair was looking fabulous after a spin on the Remix 2. Monday At the Strawberry Festival--random, I know--Keeleigh bought a pet iguana named Piccolo. We're learning what it takes to raise him and how to tame him. I actually broke down and petted him yesterday. Maybe someday I'll get the nerve to hold him. You know, before he's a 6 foot lizard crawling around our house. = ) Tuesday There was rain drops on the window pane and a storm brewing in the background. I

Last week we were in a cooking rut so I printed off a bunch of recipes I'd found on Pinterest and we made a big long grocery list. Then we got to cooking! We had some definite misses (steak and blue cheese roll ups and stuffed mushrooms--yuck.) but we also had some real hits. Pizza pockets were one of the hits. We had them for lunch one day and they were delicious so I thought I'd share the recipe with you. First Keeleigh and Ryland made some pizza sauce using this fantastic recipe  but you can use some from a jar if you prefer. Then Keeleigh took some canned Pillsbury biscuits and rolled them flat using a rolling pin on a floured surface. Next we spread a little pizza sauce on the flattened biscuits... and added a couple of pepperoni slices and some shredded cheese. Then we wrapped the biscuit around the filling pinching it closed at the top. After that you brush the tops with a beaten egg and sprinkle with Parmesan, Italian seasoning and garlic powde

April 2012, Week 2 Jackie and Keeleigh went to pick up our new (to us) table on Saturday. I was so thrilled to have a nice big table with room for everyone and it came to us 100% free. Thank You, Lord, for Your provisions! Sunday evening Ryland and Piper were hanging out on the bed with their daddy and the thought occurred to me that we're quite the technologically advance family. Ryland knows exactly how to turn my Kindle Fire on and get a game started! Wonder who he gets that from? I had rearranged the furniture in our living room on Saturday for a fun switch and also to accommodate our new table. I ended up setting up the dining area near the balcony door and moving the couch. On Monday Ryland discovered how this set up might work to his advantage! Yes, siree, he was busting out of this place and lookin' cool while doing it! Throughout the week, we've settled into using our big table--it's really quite a change from our old one. We've each tri

Hey look, I remember to do Photo Friday on Friday two weeks in a row! Go me! Saturday, March 31, 2012  Piper discovered the fine art of climbing. She climbed up the steps to the slide then tried climbing up the slide itself! Sunday, April 1, 2012 Jathan had his picture taken with Sir Saint at Saturday's Fun Fest. I tried to get Ryland to be in the picture, too, but he cried and said, "I scared."  Monday, April 2, 2012 Playing with their new letters from the Dollar Tree. Tuesday, April 3, 2012 My attempt at a picture of Jathan's fantastic pouty face. Ever since he was a baby he's had the best pout. His lips turn down in a almost unnatural way. Wednesday, April 4, 2012 Roses for my birthday from Jackie. Thursday, April 5, 2012 Ryland has suddenly become very flamboyant wearing large glasses day and night. Upside down. Friday, April 6, 2012 Piper enjoyed the pastel-colored view today. I wish I could have captured the way her eyes

I was so excited to find a printable Resurrection set to make for the kids to explore the Easter story with. This set came from the blog,  catholicicing.com . She has all of the figures drawn and gives easy instructions for how to put your set together. Something to think about: I wish I hadn't glued our crucified Jesus to the cross because then we couldn't place him in the tomb. This morning we used our set during our Bible reading time (Some dinosaurs showed up!). Jathan and Ryland loved it! I hope that since we laminated our set it will last for several years. 

Today a package came in the mail for the kids. It was Easter chocolate from Nana and Pappy! I got a quick picture or two... then they dug in. Some with more gusto than others. Keeleigh melted hers down and ate it with a spoon. Jathan and Ryland were a little less reserved. Okay, Ryland was a lot less reserved. And Piper? Well, she was just adorable. So adorable that she needed a bath afterwards. Ryland was jealous. "I wanta play with her," he said. Thanks for the yummy treat, Nana and Pappy! I think the fact that all the bunnies were devoured in mere minutes means the kids loved them. = )

Yesterday I went to Dollar Tree to load up on goodies for the kids' Easter baskets. While I was there, I found a *few* extra things. One of the items I was excited to discover was wooden magnetic letters (and numbers). I bought two packs of the letters and one of the numbers. When I got home I used Word to create one-row tables featuring some "W" words since "W" is our letter of the week. I also created tables with Jathan and Ryland's name and printed off a set of alphabet cards from Confessions of a Homeschooler (Go to confessionsofahomeschooler.com, click "My Printables", choose "Phonics", I printed A-Z spoon match up.) Then I just stuck the pages up on the fridge and let them match up the letters with the magnetic letters. I think Ryland enjoyed it even more than Jathan did. Even Piper enjoyed exploring how the letters tasted. = ) The letters on my "W" page were a tad small but I figured out that a size 100 font was pe