That's Cheap!

Ahhh...Christmas morning. I lay in bed waiting, waiting for the kids to ask me, "Can we start?" I feel confident that we have met the children's needs this Christmas, even though there is a recession. It isn't like the good ol' days when Santa could get them what he thought they needed and not what they wanted. Santa could get away with switching a scooter for a bike, because he knew that the kid needed the bike more than the skinny, good for nothing, but a hospital accident Razor scooter. This year he knows he can't get-a-way with the ol' switch-a-roo for a few of the kids.
Santa had it all planned out with the Wii monopolizing most of his gifts. However, two days before Christmas he caught wind that the Ivins' had to send their Wii in for repairs. Santa is a resourceful guy, and he figured that one out with out gaining to many more white hairs. He was confident and set to work in the Ivins' house.
Five a.m. Kaylin comes downstairs to tell me that Jaida has a headache. These headaches have got to stop. I head into Jaida's room and Kaylin could not help, but see what Santa has brought her. She is sitting in the dark room with the tree lights on. "Look what Santa brought me, a DOLLHOUSE!" she says with satisfaction. I can feel that Santa would have been pleased to hear her contintment with the dollhouse. Then before I can even finish putting all thoughts to ease Kaylin says, "That's cheap, that is all Santa brought me!"

I will "live it up" while I can...

I know, I know, I am bragging. But I am just so proud of what $30,000 can buy now. Not just a college education, but fame. It is a shame you can't see the big picture of Isaac holding his dog. He felt pretty special too. And the picture of me is better left unseen.

copy and paste this:
Medford Central Record

Homeschool Picture Day

Well, our computer broke and we had taken our new one back. So we are low tech here. No photo software, so you will have to twist your neck a little. But we are managing. I'm still waiting for the new digital camera that Erman is getting me and Photoshop, (Jamie is lucky, lucky). (Erman, hint hint) However, I think I'll need a new computer before I get those things. My list just keeps growing. I would have been better off Omish or living in Butan. I tried marrying an Indian, but he is not a very simplistic guy. He loves shoes more than me and takes more time doing his hair than I do. But, I have to say...he always looks good and smells good too.

Here is our family and I hope that everyone else is well. I hope that everyone is loving each other with all their hearts and thankful for this time of year. I am thankful for the little things and I love the saying "less is more and more is less".

Happy latest happening all in one post...Halloween, School Icecream, Favorites, and Baby picuture... I am all about being economical with my time...

There is one extra neighborhood boy in the picture. Can you guess?
The First Halloween dressing. Don't we love the many Halloween parties...church, school,(that's why I homeschool), and the official Hallowed Holiday. The second dressing will be tomorrow night. I love dressing up but the candy could do with out. I would rather collect laundry soap, toilet paper, or cans of soup this year.


Here is a picture of Landon doing his vocabulary! Creativity is a must during school!


This was Ice Cream Sundae Night! We celebrated the starting of a new school year a little late. Better late than never!




Here is the latest picture of Nevae...She is getting big. In the 97th percentile.



And my woodstove....my second love. What do I love about it....First, I love to watch Mr. Apache man chop the wood. (Erman will kill me when he reads this). When he is throwing the ax over his shoulder and he has a drip of sweat dripping down his forehead. And of course he always smells good. Next time I'll post that picture.

I Am Queen!

I figured out how to be treated like the royal queen. I have never felt so much attention in one day. Each of my kids were wonderful and so excited for me. My mom came out and Erman catered to my every need, as usual.
I did it!! I graduated!! Try explaining that to a three year old.



It was long day. First, we went to the awards ceremony. I recieved the Arnold Fletcher Award. That is the gold rope you will see in my pictures. That meant I was an extra special graduate!! ahh, it feel so good to be special...

Kaylin was so excited. Her excitment just bubbles out of her! She is fun girl to have on a special day.


Kaylin asked, "so, mom, does this mean you don't have to read anymore book, ever again...?"
Isaac was my personal photographer.
Jaida was little mother and helped with Nevea.


A
nd Erman is the best Husband. He supported me through six long years of running off to the library as soon as he walked in the door. He watched a lot of TV by him lonesome self. And worked his schedule around my tests and cleaned up a lot more than the norm. And He even had to put the kids to bed many nights. This whole experience has made us closer and I know that he will support whatever my heart desires.

The day was very long and by time the College photographer found me to take a picture for my local paper I was pretty wan looking. (She contacted me and wanted to put an add in the paper about me!) Here is her article:


--Jessica Ivins can tell you all about a full plate. The stay-at-home mother of four and one foster child has an always-room-for-more mentality. "I home school my children and we raise seeing-eye dogs for The Seeing Eye in Moorestown, N.J.," said Ivins. "I had attended college for one year and took a 10-year hiatus when my children became a priority," recalled Ivins, who rekindled her academic goal at Thomas Edison State College in 2002. "My husband, ____________, who routinely works more than 50-hours a week pitched in readily while I went to the library to study or take exams."




On Oct. 11, Ivins will be conferred a Bachelor of Arts degree in English at the Soldiers and Sailors War Memorial in Trenton, N.J. "I plan now to pursue my Master's degree in library science and follow my dream to write a book. For now, my degree will help me to be an even better instructor for my children...

I'm going to be out-of-the office Monday and Tuesday of the coming week but will be checking my e-mail from home.



I am still excited about it, but does this mean I have to work? No! I am staying home teaching my kids. I am just taking it day by day and year by year. I will eventually go back to school. (When I pay off this student loan ) Maybe, college prices or government funding will change in a couple of years. The debate mentioned the crazy prices of college and I would have to agree. Who knows, maybe I will finally get real about my dream: to write a best seller.

Homemade Goat Cheese: Home Ec. 101

Kaylin loves goat cheese and crackers. We made homemade goat cheese and crackers. It was good. I let them taste the goat milk before we made it and Kaylin thought it was very gross. It is a bit more salty.

Goat Cheese:

one quart of goat milk

1/2 t. cider vinegar

Warm in a saucepan to 206 degrees. The milk will rapidly coagulate. Let it sit for 15 minutes. Then drain the curd into a cheesecloth. Place curds in bowl. Mix a tablespoon of butter and pinch of baking soda into the curd. Mix. We added fresh oregano and Santa Maria seasoning.

Homemade spelt crackers

1 cup flour
1/2 c. spelt flour
pinch of baking soda
olive oil.
poppy seeds
sesame seeds

Slowly add olive oil just until it forms a ball of dough. Work the dough or give it to the kids to play with for a few minutes, until softened. Spread out on parchment paper very thin!! As thin as possible. Brush with water and add sesame seeds, poppy seeds. Bake at 350 until done, 5-7 min.

Delicious. Jaida loved it. I loved the crackers. Kaylin was not so sure...

My Homeschool prodigies...

Here are my homeschool Prodigies walking across the street to deliver an invitation for a Boy's Night for Friday. Well, Landon has his lightsaber on just incase they run into DarthVadar. Kaylin is laughing and has probably pushed Landon along the way because she can not keep her hands to herself. (She gets this from the Apache Man). Jaida is sporting her new crocheted trench and enjoys her stylish bangs hanging in her eyes. She is a style all her own and can't help think, "I can't wait till I get my next seeing eye dog, because I am better at raising them than my brother." Little Miss Competetive. (She gets this from me). Isaac has to have the wanton look of...I just rolled out of bed and my mom is making me walk across the street so the dog can get a jaunt in the fresh morning air. Even though he may have that look, he is still just the same sweet Isaac he will always be.
I found an old picture of Cameron from summer. He loved the water from the hose and loved being outside.
Nevea is growing fast, as you can see from the picture.

THe social service world...

We went to our first baby's first birthday. Do you remember baby "McCoy"? We had him last year for about a month. He was a cute little thing. His mom gave birth to him two weeks after she was released from prison. This was just enought time for her to do drugs and he tested positive. He had no bad withdrawl so we were allowed to have him. At four weeks old he went to live with the mom's brother. His Aunt and Uncle are adopting him and they are such wonderful people to have kept in touch with us and sent pictures this year.
It was fun to see him. I wish I could have been a perfect person and remebered my camera. Needless to say, I am not perfect. (That's a surprise...sshhh). He is so cute, long eyelashes, big brown eyes, and is chubs. He is one year old and wears a 2T. He gave us all hugs and patted our back.
Well, the small world come into play when his Aunt asks us about our new baby Neveah. We tell her her name and she said she knows Neveah's mom. The Aunt works at the correctional facility where the both baby's moms served time. She said McCoy and Neveah's moms are friends! She took Neveah's mom to the hospital when she gave birth. Neveah's mom asked her to take her baby. She did not want her to get picked up by social services. She said Neveah's mom is 6'1 and is fiesty! I asked as many question as I could because I will not find out any thing from social services.
Both moms are in prison for drugs. McCoy's mom has fourteen years for a 3rd offense of drugs and the other mom has 3 years left.

School finally started here!

Cameron started preschool. He takes the bus to and fro and he thought that the bus driver was going to say "move on back" just like the song "Wheels on the bus". He also thought that the drivers would be singing. Needless to say, he said this morning, "I not go to school, huh mom". (He wanted to stay home). But, every time he gets off the bus, he says "I ride on the big bus" and his smile is from ear to ear! He is a piece of work.
Nevae is doing good. She is three weeks now. All I can say is that I do not like making bottles. Breastfeeding is up there on my chart and I think anyone that uses bottles instead of breastfeeding is missing a few loose screws or is simply a wimp. So many women I talk to about why they do not nurse is absurd. I was at the doctor with Nevae and a new mom with her baby boy. We started talking and she said she did not know if she would keep nursing. I told that woman she had better buck up and get through the tough times, because in the long run it is a lot easier to whip it out than to get up and make a bottle. I hope I convinced her with my non-empathetic talk.
I will have more pictures soon of the homeschooler soccer freaks, but for now this is what I have.

The Cabbage Patch Doll

A week ago we went to The Seeing Eye in Morristown, NJ. Just try to look (past my cheap camera) at the beauty of north Jersey. It is nice to sit and have a picnic there every year in the green rolling hills of North Jersey. And the kids love it when the ice cream man comes with free unlimited treats! Ben and Jerry's, Yum! It is the first school for dogs for the blind in the US. We saw the technology for blind people and see how they train the dogs. A blind man spoke how the dogs are such a ice breaker for the blind and help them to meet more people versus using a cane. He was quite humerous.



But, for the real news, check out our newest little one. Born 8-24. She is our cabbage patch doll. We picked her up today and the kids can not get enough of her. Cameron insists that she is "his" baby. Landon wanted her to sleep with him tonight and Isaac thinks that he gets to stay up late if he hold her for me! And the girls are little mothers, of course. We are going to have to get a chart to take turns holding her. The dog has not asked for a turn yet!

Mom Urmston TOP 10 LIST

1. great cook (erman)
2. fun grandma (kids)
3. amazing mom to have 7 kids plus a lost indian boy (jessica)
4. amazing grandma to remember every grandchild's birthday! Even while on her mission!
5. I am sure she is an amazing great grandma too!
6. wonderful midwife and wonderful mom to help after giving birth
7. great at planning those winsome family reunions
8. good friend to talk to
9. honest
10.amazing woman to put up with Dean (jessica)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MARYELLEN. WE LOVE YOU AND HOPE THAT YOU ARE ENJOYING YOUR MISSION!

Fishing at Keen Lake in the Poconos 2008

We went camping at this lake in the Poconos last week. We fished, swam, and played! The kids had fun and they all got a little darker except for Cameron. Cameron enjoyed it and thought that we were going to live there permanently. "Camping" was his new word for the week and said with a new understanding. Landon caught the biggest fish. Isaac was a little jealous. Jaida was very competitive and wanted to be the first to catch a fish but Isaac was. Isaac counted the fish that got away too. We took the boat out and the boys stayed gone fishing for 3 hours! Erman would not touch the fish, Isaac had to take the hooks out. There were girls that tipped in a canoe and Erman and Isaac saved the day for them by rowing out to rescue them. The bathrooms were tons cleaner and no waiting for showers. We got 5 minutes for a quarter! There was a swimming pool. The only thing missing were all of our family. We would love for everyone to come out to Keen Lake next year. We decided we are having the family reunion there for 2009. See you then. Reserve your spots the last week of July and we will order the shirts.
After we came home we went to a fun BBQ at Black Bear Lake. The kids went rock climbing, played laser tag, on the water trampoline, paddle boats, moon jumping, water slides etc.... and danced the superman!! We got as much food, ice cream, water ice, funnel cakes, cotton candy, popcorn, candy, and soda for free! So, while this was not a trip to Hawaii, the whole shebang cost a whole $0.
It looks like those who did go to Hawaii had a great time and I don't know if I could do the 100 ft jump! Crazy people!

Blueberry, Corn, and Peach Picking..

We went picking fruit and vegetables with the kids and dog. It was fun. The kids rode go carts and it was 100 degress! But that did not stop the kids. The dog was hot though!

Camden River Sharks Baseball Game

The boys, Landon and Erman, went out to the ball game on a hot summer night. The weather held up and they had a wonderful time without the whole clan. Landon definately deserved some "alone" time. It was good for both boys to go out. I don't know if exposing him to such attention is healthy, (being that he only gets it about every 6 years) but it seems to have been a good thing for Landon.