Happy Birthday, Bunny!

My sweet Beauty, my Bunny...

Wow, you are ten!!! I can't believe it!!! I love you so much...more than you will ever know!
You are an amazing kid!!! You are smart and sweet!!! You are stubborn and kind.. You are amazing!

You are growing into a beautiful young lady. You went to your first POP conference this year, and you loved it!!! I am so proud of you!!!

It was my greatest joy to see you give your life to God and be there when He saved your soul. I wasn't there for your birth, but I got to be there for your "re-birth" and for that I am forever grateful!

You have your own room now. You still love Star Wars and Hello Kitty! You love Camo and want to to be a Designer! You are such a good mom to your doll...as long as no one is around.

You are finding your strength. You are finding your voice... sometimes it gets you in trouble.

You are getting into video games...like the picture below. You love parks and gymnastics! I'm glad you still love to play! Stay young as long as you can...growing is tough.

You are so smart..you have so much to give the world. You have worked so hard this year to pull your grades up and ended the year with amazing grades! You know, grades aren't everything...it was your hard work and dedication that makes me proud!

You are beautiful, but it's your inner beauty that astounds me. You always think of others...from wanting to feed the homeless to taking home every stray animal you see... you love everyone.

There are so many things about you that I love... You are amazing! You are my heart.

 I am so proud to call you my daughter!!!

I love you so much!!!

Love,

Mom <3

Painting in the Summer

My kids are so ready for summer!! That said, I'm not ready for the heat!!! We play outside in the morning, but by noon it's just too hot! So, I have been saving little fun things from the school year... one of them is painting!
Thanks to Netflix putting on Bob Ross episodes we now have our favorite summer activity!

 This is all for fun...no pressure, no perfection~ only fun!

 

In their little imaginations they are in a famous studio! 

Imagination!!!
It's also relaxing...which makes it a great way to spend the summer, well, at least during the hottest times of the day!

The Journey Of A Ladybug...

So we ordered a Ladybug habitat so we could study the life cycle of Ladybugs! I can tell you that we learned a lot, stressed a little, and had a lot of fun..
We received these tiny little things in a tube...fresh from the eggs, a few were still Eggs!
                          

They quickly began to grow as we watched, and watered the gel till they were ugly little Larvae!

 They kind of look like spiders, right?!? 

Then it was time for them to enter the Pupal stage

I kind of thought they had died. ;?

They emerged as little white critters that were super hungry!!! They were ready for their raisins? Yep, soaked raisins cut in half..

...and poop, oh dear heavens the poop! 

They changed to pink and continued to darken.. We loved watching them grow, shed their exoskeletons, and grow some more! 

We also studied Delaware...seemed fitting! 

These little ladybugs kept growing, changing, and developing...

Till it was time to let them go...

...it was a Beautiful Journey~ So with a few tears & song we released them to the garden. So they could fly away home.

I Can't Believe You Are Seven?!?

My Bubbly Middle Girl,

    You are looking more like your big sister everyday! I just can't believe it...you are growing up so fast!!! There are so many things that make you special...you are complex and unique. These are just a few... I love your sense humor~

   You are funny; no matter what is going on in my life you can always make me laugh!!! You are silly, bubbly, and full of joy!!! You are friendly and kind! You know how to light up the room with the smile on your face. Your heart always shines through and that is what makes you beautiful!

   You are so beautiful! I love your smile..especially your sneaky smile even if I'll never admit it to your face! Your dad and I tease that you may be a lawyer someday because you know how to get your way! Just be a good one, OK? You have the beauty and the brains...you are smart!

   You are so smart!!! This is your first year homeschooling and I am so impressed with all that you have learned so far!!! You are reading and writing like a champ!!! I know you will have so much to say to the world and books have so many amazing things to teach you about the world! Bubbly girl, teach them about love, teach the world to have a heart!

   I love your heart! You are so kind!!! You love your dog the most...you can't walk past her without giving her a little love. Compassion is your greatest attribute! You also can't stand for anyone to be left out.. You are such a good sister...you girls are also good at pestering each other! :D Your heart is also what gives your the strength to be so strong!

   You are strong! Umm, sweetie, not just on the inside, but you have some muscle!!! You have started gymnastics this year and I'm so impressed with your bar work...the way you can lift yourself off the bar and then flip yourself over it~ Wow!!! You are strong and that helps you to believe in yourself!

   You are becoming self-aware.. It has been hard at times this year as you have come to understand that you are Deaf and that everyone in the world isn't.. You are so confident in your language, culture, and yourself as a person! I smile every time I see that big, prideful smile cross your face when you tell someone that you are Deaf. You love teaching hearing people ASL and jumping up and down giving "high-fives" when you meet a Deaf adult! You know that it will be you one day...you are growing up!

    You are growing up on me... I am trying to treasure every moment and celebrate the person that you are becoming. I am so happy that God gave me such a wonderful daughter! Daddy thinks you hung the moon; well, I pretty much know it! I am so proud of you, and I thank God for you everyday!
I love you.

Love,
Mommy

Spelling Eggs..Easter Eggs!

We had a wonderful Easter, I hope your day was blessed as well..

Now what to do with the million eggs around this house?!? Use them for homeschooling or course!!!

We have done letter matching and numbers in Pre-K and that is super fun!!!

We also loved doing addition on eggs... Honestly it's endless!!!

This fine day we decided to do a little spelling/word making for reading time...

My kids loved this activity!!! We may add sentences soon...just gotta keep the eggs in order, LOL!

When you can make your kid smile while doing sight words...you know it's a good day!

My 'Why I Sign"

You may have seen the hashtag #whyIsign and wondered about it?? It's simply videos of people explaining why they sign in American Sign Language or ASL for short. These are Deaf, hearing CODAs (Children Of Deaf Adults), SODAs(siblings) and others that have had their lives impacted by ASL in a positive way. These videos are showing support of ASL for Deaf babies and children; especially with certain conferences about Deaf education attacking ASL in preference to oral only education for Deaf children.
Here is my why I sign video:

I messed up a few times... I am super critical and self-conscience when it comes to videos of myself! I honestly can't believe I'm even posting it, but I believe in solidarity of cause. Here is a rough  English version:
 I ask "What's wrong? Sick, are you sick?" She sleepily signs back "sick." I smile back and reply "No, you are tired?" She agrees and snuggles ready for sleep... I face the camera and explain "Why do I sign? Because my Deaf daughter is worth it! She needs to be able to communicate with me, and I need to be able to communicate with her.. Why? Family is important; like just like her~" 

Love~

In this life I have been blessed with this amazing man! He is funny, kind, strong and smart! He is so giving with his time, energies, money, and gifts, and you will never hear him brag on himself. I love him more than words can ever say, and even with all of my flaws, he loves me too! 

 These are some sweets we enjoyed~

 These were actually a gift for my birthday~ Macaroons!