Bottom's Up

Our pet opossum has become a regular at our compost bucket. For the past three nights, Scott will say, "our opossum is out there", after he has heard some kind of noise made with the bucket. Scott and I peek through our blinds to see it. I imagine most of you would sit the bucket farther away from the house. We kind of like this little guy. It seems pretty cool that our leftovers give him a nice full tummy for his nighttime prowling. Tonight, his supper was a sweet potato and black bean burrito, tasty apples and some blue corn chips.

Tonight, Scott went back to his reading pretty quickly after he saw our visitor. I, however, could not get enough. Creatures just amaze me. I am fond of animals. Now, don't get me wrong, I would not want to hold the guy or sit by him. But watching him eat and clean himself like a cat, with his cute hands, was so interesting.

The kids have not seen these pictures. They will be so tickled to see that this little critter keeps coming back for more.

Please pray that we will not soon find our critter in the road outside our house. :)

"There's an opossum in the mums!"

We got home this evening and I looked through the kitchen window. I saw an opossum sitting down right in the middle of my mums! I kept saying, "There's an opossum in the mums!" over and over again. It had been snacking in our compost bin.

So, Daniel and Jen, we see your spider and we raise you an opossum! That is what Scott said right after he saw it. Hee hee. Your spider was much more beautiful, compared to our pink tailed visitor. :)

Art with Norman Rockwell

Without thinking too much about it in specific terms, I was showing
the America I knew and observed to others who might not have noticed.
—Norman Rockwell

This is a photo of Norman Rockwell at work.


Norman with his Golden Rule painting

~This week, as a part of our Art lesson, we have been learning about one of America's most beloved artists, Norman Rockwell. He was a painter and a book and magazine illustrator.
The kids have really been taken with his work. It is not hard to be fond of these pictures that truly capture such heart and life. We picked up a library book that is entitled A Boy and His Dog by Loren Spiotta-DiMare. It is a children's book that depicts a very sweet interaction between Rockwell, the boy, and Rockwell's new dog.
Rockwell died at the age of 84 in 1978. He had completed close to 3,000 works and is considered America's most loved artist.

Enjoy looking at some of his paintings.



Freedom From Fear



A Boy and His Dog



Pilgrimage




Girl at the Mirror



Moving In


Tough One

Another day at the Museum

This and that

This is a shot of Scott playing ball with his 'boys' at a local park. He plays every Sunday night. He has an interesting story about how he stumbled upon this opportunity. Ask him about it. For those that know the story, you'll appreciate the visual.


Madelyn enjoys making sheep with Legos.


Julian reads every morning to his siblings.


This is a shot of Kalen running at the play place at our mall. The kids love jumping, climbing and running around.


After rest time one afternoon, Kalen asked me to come up and see what he had made. I was delighted to find a big ol' row of little Lego sheep, dogs, and cats. To applaud his efforts, I told him we had to take a picture.

Contentedness

*The only way to make it in this homeschooling life is to reach for God instead of reaching for happiness. Trying harder to be happy or content will not make you happy and content; trying harder to rest in God and depend upon His grace will. It is a spiritual issue, not a practical one. Contentedness will not come from being more organized, sleeping longer, being a better wife, having a better home, using better materials, having more time to yourself, or whatever you think might help. Contentedness is learned in the process of daily accepting life as God gives it to you, and adjusting your expectations to life’s limitations.

If it is God’s will for me to homeschool, then He is not asking me to do more than I am able (I Corinthians 10:13) and He is not withholding from me anything that I truly need (Philippians 4:19; James 2:2-8). If I choose to, I can learn to be content with the life that God has given to me, whether I have a little or a lot to live it with. What keeps me from being content is not what God is or isn’t supplying. The real problem is that I, Sally, will not adjust my expectations to life’s limitations—I want more than I can have, ask for more than I need, strive for more than I can do, and expect more than God has promised.*

-Sally Clarkson From Seasons of a Mother’s Heart

~The photo of the flower was taken by Sisse Brimberg. She calls this type of picture a pinhole photo because she actually shot the flower through a lens cover that had a hole in it. Interesting technique. I found this picture on the National Geographic website. I go there occasionally just to check out pictures and interesting facts about creatures. ~

Our Friend, the World Traveler

Chris Sinclair was in our home today. We were so delighted to spend the day with him. He had travelled 18 hours before stopping at our home in Durham. Mind you, he didn't travel this whole way to just see the Morrison clan. He is a professional photographer. He does amazing work. He is stationed, for the most part, in Thailand. He has a sort of headquarters in Richmond, VA and that is where he will be travelling to this evening. He just recently had an Amazon experience for several days and then did some more work in Brazil.

It is evident that Chris has a deep appreciation for our Creator and all that He has made. His photos depict so much beauty.

Chris is free spirited and mellow. Just being around him is relaxing. The kids really take to him. We enjoyed having him around our table today and sharing meals together. We loved seeing his recent photos. They are breathtaking. The kids loved some photos that Chris had taken of animals like a macaw, monkeys and a cheetah (actually, Julian thinks it was an ocelot). I was fascinated by other photos that he had recently taken in Brazil, specifically of children. The colors of the photos are so vibrant. How he gets the pictures so clear and bright with color, is truly an art.

I have posted about a visit from Chris before. We know him from Boone. I guess it would be almost 10 years. Wow. He played his guitar and sang a song, that Scott had written for me, in our wedding in '98. He has seen our children grow and knows he is always welcome in the Morrison home.

I am posting some photos from today and some that Chris sent us from the Amazon River.

~Chris, thank you for your presence today. We sure do love being around you. Enjoy your travels. You are in our thoughts.~

QT with Family

We spent the day yesterday with my Mom, Annette and my sweet Grandma. The day trip was a lot of fun and well worth the travelling. I am always so grateful for any chance I can get to see my family and especially tickled when I see my kids wrap their arms around them as well.

Today, Scott's parents and sister, Shanda, came our way. We had so much fun, as always. We ate well and ended our time together with a big bike ride. I was surprised and quite impressed with Jan's bike riding skills. I took several pictures. I was thankful to see her and Shanda, out with the kids joining in with one of our kid's favorite things to do. Jerry stayed at the house with Brayden as he napped. That freed me up to venture out with the bike riding crew. I am so proud to be a Morrison family member. The Morrison family is good at having 'QT' (quality time) together.

Quality time is very important to me. If you have not ever read The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman, pick it up! It is a book that changed my life and helped me recognize the different ways that people are loved. Needless to say, the past two days have filled my tank. Now, I get to go have some cookies and coffee with my best friend. Life couldn't get any better.

This Week

(when you hear me giggle and Madelyn laughing loudly, that is when a butterfly landed right on my chest. hee hee. )

I have discovered that there are several things for the kids and I to busy ourselves with around our new city. Yesterday, we prepared ourselves for an adventure to our neighborhood park. This is no small job. It is several minutes away and it does include crossing a busy road. I was quite proud as we took off. I was thankful that we have the freedom and availabliity to do such a neat thing in the middle of the day. The kids really like the park. It is quite wooded and there are a lot of squirrels hopping around overhead in the tall trees that covered us. We had a great time and a safe journey back home. It is an added bonus to get some real exercise in.

Madeyln has been working hard on learning to tie her shoes this week. It may seem like such a small thing, but to a 5 year old, it is huge! I took a picture of her yesterday, as she did it on her own for the first time.

Today, we revisited the Life and Science Center. It is free to Durham residents on Wednesday afternoon. Sweet Brayden sacrificed a nap for us and we had another grand time. Seeing the animals is such a thrill for us. The learning exhibits within the building are amazing as well. The butterfly house was a real treat. We actually were able to see some butterflies being released. They had just emerged from their chrysalises. Julian, Maddie and Kalen were all able to hold one or two. I had to drag Kalen out of there.

Scott is doing a fabulous job in his studies. It is quite a load. There is no doubt he will excel in this program. He is a hard worker and manages his time very well.