I Can't Wait!

To contact us Click HERE

It's less than a month away!  The Minnesota Catholic Home Education Conference and Curriculum Fair is coming up on June 1-2. This is an event that I look forward to all year long.  Todd and I secured childcare for the oldest 6 children (no easy task!) and will bring little Peter along for the ride.

I am particularly excited to attend the high school and beyond workshop during the day on Friday.  With Madeline entering 7th grade in the fall, the reality of high school, transcripts, PSEO, and a whole bunch of other stuff is starting to stress me out.  Todd has graciously agreed to be there with me so that we can hear the same information as we tend to process things differently. 

The keynote speaker is Marcel LeJeune.  I've heard him on Relevant Radio a couple of times and think that he'll do an awesome job. They always do a great job bringing in quality speakers.  The past two years featured Andrew Pudewa and Ray Guarendi. They were absolutely amazing and hilarious which is a winning combination if you ask me!


Now I need to sit down and get my "lists" together.  It is so nice to have all the vendors in one location where I can actually talk to them and pick their brains with questions I have about curriculum and different learning styles of my children.  The hardest part for me is keeping to my list of things that I need and holding back on the impulse buys...there are so many fun things that I would like to add to our school!

The best part is seeing all of the other families who are doing what we do.  No matter how secure I feel in our decision to home school, there are days when I feel alone and isolated.  Home schooling is definitely more mainstream than it was 20 years ago, but it is not the "normal" thing to do.  In my neighborhood of over 300 homes, there is only one other family I know of who teaches their children at home.  It's hard to put into words the feeling I get being surrounded by hundreds of people who are walking the same road as we are. 

How about you?  Do you have a home school conference in your area that you attend?  If you live in Minnesota, do you plan on attending this year?  I'd love to see you there!

God Bless!

Heather :-)

Sickness, Baby Love, and New 'Dos

To contact us Click HERE
The past few weeks have flown by in a blur of sickness.  We've had ear infections, sinus infections, walking pneumonia, bronchitis, high fevers, body aches, coughing, sneezing, and just all around misery.  It came to a head last Sunday when the fevers sky-rocketed in three of the children.  We took all last week off from school and just focused on getting better.  Of course, there were two dance rehearsals and recitals late in the week that couldn't be missed...but other than that we laid low.  So, many doctor visits and a few prescriptions later, we're back at it this week!  It feels good to be back in our routine.

Little Peter is 3 months old already!  He is cooing and smiling up a storm.  He is beginning to sleep better at night and will usually have 5-6 hours of sleep before waking to nurse.  He has outgrown his first set of clothes and has moved into size 2 diapers....I wish babies didn't grow so fast!  Needless to say, we are all smitten with our littlest man!

I couldn't get him to take his eyes off of the ceiling fan!

After their dance recitals, Madeline and Lillian both decided to cut off their hair and donate it to Locks of Love.  My girls are so laid back about their hair.  We pulled it back into a low ponytail and braided it.  Then I got out the scissors and chopped it off.  They are both quite happy with their new 'dos and I think they both look adorable. Perhaps I am a bit biased!

Lillian before....

and after!

Madeline before...

and after!

I'm hoping to get back into routine here and do a better job of posting more regularly.  I spend a lot of time sitting and nursing the baby, so I have many thoughts going through my head.  Now if I can just get some time to type them out...I'm sure you can't wait!

God Bless!

Heather :-)

Hearts At Home Give Away

To contact us Click HERE

Here I am at  my booth with little Peter.

Todd, Peter and I just returned from a whirlwind trip to the National Hearts At Home Conference in Normal, Illinois.  Both of the grandmas came to our house to stay with six of the children and we brought baby Peter along for the ride.  What on earth would we do without grandmas?!?  We had a great time away together and enjoyed visiting with all of the amazing mothers, listening to some of the speakers, and selling our products.

There were over 6,000 Christian women in attendance on Friday and Saturday.  There were many smiles and laughter and of course a bit of crying...what do you expect when you get that much estrogen in one location?!  I enjoyed sharing my products and stories of my own mothering journey with all of the mamas who come to see me in my booth.


To celebrate my seventh Hearts at Home Conference as a vendor, I'm giving away a Happy Mom t-shirt in either white or grey.  Just leave a comment telling me your favorite part of the weekend and I'll choose a winner on Monday, March 26th at 9:00 a.m.  Any comments left before that time will be included in the drawing.

Good luck and God Bless!

Heather :-)

Our 9 Pounder!

To contact us Click HERE
Hard to believe, but our little Peter Francis is a month old today!  I know that everyone says it, but the time goes by way too quickly!  His little belly button wasn't healing up properly, so we had to make a trip to the pediatrician to have it cauterized.  Trying to keep a one month old wiggler still is a challenge!  Needless to say, he wasn't exactly a fan of the process, but it is healing nicely and I'm glad that we got it taken care of. The nurse weighed him and he's already 9 pounds!  I can't get over how quickly these little people grow!

His siblings absolutely adore him and can't get enough of him.  There certainly is no shortage of arms to hold him.  I'm having trouble keeping him asleep during his nap times because as soon as he dozes off, someone will inevitably walk by and touch/stroke/pat/kiss him with some form of affection.  But, if that is my biggest complaint...I've got it good!

His face is starting to fill out already!

Thank you for all of your prayers and well wishes.  One of the grandmas left yesterday and the other is staying through the weekend for Peter's baptism on Saturday.  We'll see how it goes next week when I'm on my own and Todd is traveling for work...yikes!

God Bless!

Heather :-)

Peter's Baptism

To contact us Click HERE
This past weekend, we celebrated as the Church welcomed Peter Francis into the fold!  The ceremony was held after Mass with our family, Grandma Pam, and the Godparents with their children. 

Peter was NOT happy.  He had his mind set on nursing and wanted nothing to do with this whole Baptism thing.  He cried and cried!

Father Larry holding newly baptized Peter Francis.

Peter with his Godparents.

Our first family photo with Peter!

Peter's lovely Godmother made these adorable cookies.  Esther could not wait to get her hands on them!

Here is a better look at the cookies after I took the wrapping off.

Going, going, gone!  They were as delicious as they were cute!  If you're in need of cookies for a special occasion, consider contacting Grace.  She really does excellent work!

And as if cookies weren't enough to celebrate, we had a scrumptious cake from the local grocery store....yum!

Peter is happy to wear his new sweater from his Godmother.

There were, of course, many more photos.  Grandma took some fabulous pictures of Peter in his baptismal gown...and I forgot to get them off of her camera before she left for home...ugh!  The gown is an heirloom which Todd wore at his baptism and all of our children have been baptized in it as well.  They each have their own bonnet as a keepsake of their first sacramental celebration.

I hope that your Lent is going well and you are preparing to enter into Holy Week.  We haven't kept all of our resolutions and have had to let many things slip.  We had some fabulous plans laid out.  Of course, those were all made pre-Peter.  So, for now, I am offering up many sleepless nights...such is life with a newborn.  We all do what we can, right?

God Bless!

Heather :-)

I Can't Wait!

To contact us Click HERE

It's less than a month away!  The Minnesota Catholic Home Education Conference and Curriculum Fair is coming up on June 1-2. This is an event that I look forward to all year long.  Todd and I secured childcare for the oldest 6 children (no easy task!) and will bring little Peter along for the ride.

I am particularly excited to attend the high school and beyond workshop during the day on Friday.  With Madeline entering 7th grade in the fall, the reality of high school, transcripts, PSEO, and a whole bunch of other stuff is starting to stress me out.  Todd has graciously agreed to be there with me so that we can hear the same information as we tend to process things differently. 

The keynote speaker is Marcel LeJeune.  I've heard him on Relevant Radio a couple of times and think that he'll do an awesome job. They always do a great job bringing in quality speakers.  The past two years featured Andrew Pudewa and Ray Guarendi. They were absolutely amazing and hilarious which is a winning combination if you ask me!


Now I need to sit down and get my "lists" together.  It is so nice to have all the vendors in one location where I can actually talk to them and pick their brains with questions I have about curriculum and different learning styles of my children.  The hardest part for me is keeping to my list of things that I need and holding back on the impulse buys...there are so many fun things that I would like to add to our school!

The best part is seeing all of the other families who are doing what we do.  No matter how secure I feel in our decision to home school, there are days when I feel alone and isolated.  Home schooling is definitely more mainstream than it was 20 years ago, but it is not the "normal" thing to do.  In my neighborhood of over 300 homes, there is only one other family I know of who teaches their children at home.  It's hard to put into words the feeling I get being surrounded by hundreds of people who are walking the same road as we are. 

How about you?  Do you have a home school conference in your area that you attend?  If you live in Minnesota, do you plan on attending this year?  I'd love to see you there!

God Bless!

Heather :-)

Sickness, Baby Love, and New 'Dos

To contact us Click HERE
The past few weeks have flown by in a blur of sickness.  We've had ear infections, sinus infections, walking pneumonia, bronchitis, high fevers, body aches, coughing, sneezing, and just all around misery.  It came to a head last Sunday when the fevers sky-rocketed in three of the children.  We took all last week off from school and just focused on getting better.  Of course, there were two dance rehearsals and recitals late in the week that couldn't be missed...but other than that we laid low.  So, many doctor visits and a few prescriptions later, we're back at it this week!  It feels good to be back in our routine.

Little Peter is 3 months old already!  He is cooing and smiling up a storm.  He is beginning to sleep better at night and will usually have 5-6 hours of sleep before waking to nurse.  He has outgrown his first set of clothes and has moved into size 2 diapers....I wish babies didn't grow so fast!  Needless to say, we are all smitten with our littlest man!

I couldn't get him to take his eyes off of the ceiling fan!

After their dance recitals, Madeline and Lillian both decided to cut off their hair and donate it to Locks of Love.  My girls are so laid back about their hair.  We pulled it back into a low ponytail and braided it.  Then I got out the scissors and chopped it off.  They are both quite happy with their new 'dos and I think they both look adorable. Perhaps I am a bit biased!

Lillian before....

and after!

Madeline before...

and after!

I'm hoping to get back into routine here and do a better job of posting more regularly.  I spend a lot of time sitting and nursing the baby, so I have many thoughts going through my head.  Now if I can just get some time to type them out...I'm sure you can't wait!

God Bless!

Heather :-)