Siblings as Friends

Farewell.

2011-03-07T15:21:00.000-08:00

Over the past few weeks, I've had to face a rather hard decision. This blog is going to stop. I had meant to make it into an online magazine, but after really praying about it, I still wasn't having peace and I felt God telling me to spend more time with my siblings instead of telling others to.

I'm leaving the blog open so that anyone can stop by and read past posts.

The only reason the blog would not stop is if someone else leads it. I an not pointing fingers or hinting at anyone, but if there is someone out there who is interested in picking up the Sibling Blog and leading the team of wonderful writers I have for it, please let me know. If I don't have someone by April 1st, I'll assume God wanted it to just end here.

I might still post every once in awhile about siblings on my personal blog: http://walkinthytruth.blogspot.com, so do stop by there if you want. :-)

May you all be blessed,
~Hannah Grace {Laura}

Hot Chocolate (the best recipe in the world!)

2010-12-24T17:11:00.000-08:00

Here is a recipe for hot chocolate that will set the perfect mood for your Christmas Eve doings.

For one serving, blend in one mug a spoonful of King Arthur cocoa mix*, a spoonful of plain white sugar, a splash of vanilla extract, a pinch of cinnamon, and a pinch of ground cloves. Boil a cup of water on the stove, then pour over the dry mixture and blend. Scatter some marshmallows over the top and drink piping hot. :-D

*You can also substitute a spoonful of powdered cocoa mix and two spoonfuls of sugar, or sweeten to taste.

This spin on hot chocolate is delicious with hot cookies! I hope you all enjoy your Christmas and that God blesses your new year.

Goodness...

2010-12-21T20:04:00.000-08:00

I don't think its my day to post or anything, but its been awfully quiet over here! And I haven't been around for quite some time! I want to thank Emma for covering for me! Christmas is drawing near, and my family always love making cookies, sittings by fires with Hot Chocolate and listening to Christmas music. I love this time of year when you can curl up in a blanket on the couch, read a book and drink something hot. Christmas music playing in the background is always lovely, I enjoy it immensely! What are some of your favourite Christmas songs? I recently came across a new one (For me, I had never heard of it before) The little Drummer boy. I really like that song. I've found several different version's of it, but my two favourite versions are Jar's of Clay version and Celtic Woman's version.

Little Drummer Boy

Come they told me, pa rum pum pum pum
A new born King to see, pa rum pum pum pum
Our finest gifts we bring, pa rum pum pum pum
To lay before the King, pa rum pum pum pum,
rum pum pum pum, rum pum pum pum,

So to honor Him, pa rum pum pum pum,
When we come.

Little Baby, pa rum pum pum pum
I am a poor boy too, pa rum pum pum pum
I have no gift to bring, pa rum pum pum pum
That's fit to give the King, pa rum pum pum pum,
rum pum pum pum, rum pum pum pum,

Shall I play for you, pa rum pum pum pum,
On my drum?

Mary nodded, pa rum pum pum pum
The ox and lamb kept time, pa rum pum pum pum
I played my drum for Him, pa rum pum pum pum
I played my best for Him, pa rum pum pum pum,
rum pum pum pum, rum pum pum pum,

Then He smiled at me, pa rum pum pum pum
Me and my drum.

What are some of your favourite Christmas songs? And what do you enjoy doing on a cold winter's day?

Have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New year!

God bless!
~Lauren

Buttermints

2010-12-15T18:30:00.000-08:00

My apologies for not posting on Saturday. Here is a recipe that I made yesterday that I really like.

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Buttermints:

Ingredients

1/2 cup (1 stick or 4 ounces) butter, at room temperature
2 Tablespoons cream
4 to 5 drops of peppermint extract
3 drops of food coloring
4 cups (1 pound box) unsifted confectioners’ powdered sugar (10X)

Preparation

Place butter, cream, peppermint extract, and food coloring in a large bowl. Beat until well-combined.

Add confectioners’ sugar, one cup at a time, beating on high speed until combined.

Knead the sugar dough, as you would knead bread dough, until smooth.

Roll pieces of the sugar dough into long ropes about ½-inch in diameter. Using a sharp knife, cut into 1-inch pieces and place on baking sheets. Cover loosely with paper towels and place in a cold oven overnight to dry and harden.

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(Note: These are very rich and sweet mints!)

~Emma~

A friend loveth at all times. -Proverbs 17:17

People Puppy Chow

2010-12-01T13:07:00.000-08:00

Hey ya'll! First of all, let me say, I'm very sorry for being late in posting. I was sick on Monday, so I was unable to post. =P

A little side note, Monday was Emma, my youngest sister's, 13th birthday! =)

Now for the real post. Here is a recipe my family just loves to make.

People Puppy Chow

1 box Chex cereal (corn or wheat)

1 stick butter

1 c. smooth peanut butter

1 (12 oz.) bag chocolate chips

1 box powdered sugar

Melt butter, chocolate, and peanut butter. Pour melted mixture over Chex cereal and stir carefully until all of it is covered. Sprinkle the entire box of powdered sugar over everything and stir again. Freeze and enjoy!

Golden Grahams will also work for this recipe in replacement of the Chex. I hope you will enjoy it!

Soli Deo Gloria!

Taylor

I love you!!

2010-11-22T16:18:00.000-08:00

This past Friday was my sister (Hosanna's) birthday but we were busy that day so today Monday we are celebrating her 11th birthday:) she is a joy to all those who meet her and a help to everyone!! she and I are very close and share all kinds of things...Hosanna

Happy
Obedient
Sweet
Amazing
Nice
Neat
Awesome

I love being the sister to you Hosanna!!
I love you!!

Hope S.

Reenacting

2010-11-19T11:05:00.000-08:00

My sisters and I are homeschooled, which naturally leaves a lot of space open for creativity to help us put learning into a certain perspective. Some of my favorite memories from lower grades (I'm a senior this year, graduating in May) have sprung from days when we decided to make history or literature, or some other subject, come alive. Wild science experiments, dressups like book characters, little skits that helped us to remember what we were learning about...our photo boxes are happily stuffed!
But reenacting a Bible story, building a food pyramid out of plastic food, or any other sort of fun hands-on approach to integrating these bits of knowledge into the brain doesn't have to be school-related. Sometimes it's much more fun to come up with something entirely on your own, gathering your siblings together to put on a show for your parents or taking something you learned that morning and making a performance out of it. Giving life to what's on your mind or your lesson plans is one of the best ways older siblings can get involved, and younger siblings to remember what they learned. My parents have often been pleasantly surprised when we decided to perform something we learned on our own; it shows them that we value what they teach us enough to spend unstructured time dabbling with it.
I'll give you an example that happened just today; my two little sisters have been learning about the pilgrims on the Mayflower, so we cut up some cheese and salted some lunch meat, got out some Saltine crackers, and put some leftover rice in a bowl for porridge. We draped a bedspread over our dining table and everybody, including Mom, crawled underneath the table and we all pretended to have a Mayflower meal! We rocked back and forth for the waves and "hurled" into a water pitcher. We substituted cranberry apple juice for ale, but it was still a big hit. If you've read any posts about my family prior to this, you can guess there was some hiccuping going on. But the point is, it was a great way for the Girls to associate something with their study of the Mayflower pilgrims. We actually did this activity a few years ago, when I was learning about that time period, locking ourselves away into a closet with much of the same foodstuffs.
Be creative with this and really make it your own. You might get some "book larnin' " out of this, but you're sure to get some great memories and photos! Post them on your blog and put a link here; we'd love to see what you come up with!
(It should be noted that soon after our Mayflower meal, my baby sister knocked an entire bottle of Italian salad dressing off the counter, and while we were all cleaning it up, my other sister says, "Well...sister Mary barfed again.")

Quotes

2010-11-15T12:50:00.000-08:00

Here are some quotes about siblings I'd like to share. (And just for the record, I don't know who a lot of the people who said the quotes are.)

Sisters

If you don't understand how a woman could both love her sister dearly and want to wring her neck at the same time, then you were probably an only child. ~Linda Sunshine

You can kid the world. But not your sister. ~Charlotte Gray

Help one another, is part of the religion of sisterhood. ~Louisa May Alcott

A sister smiles when one tells one's stories - for she knows where the decoration has been added. ~Chris Montaigne

A toast once heard: "To my big sister, who never found her second Easter egg until I'd found my first." ~Robert Brault

The mildest, drowsiest sister has been known to turn tiger if her sibling is in trouble. ~Clara Ortega

Sister to sister we will always be,
A couple of nuts off the family tree.
~Author Unknown

Brothers

Sometimes being a brother is even better than being a superhero. ~Marc Brown

After a girl is grown, her little brothers - now her protectors - seem like big brothers. ~Astrid Alauda

(Sorry, I couldn't find a lot for brothers!)

Brothers and Sisters

To the outside world we all grow old. But not to brothers and sisters. We know each other as we always were. We know each other's hearts. We share private family jokes. We remember family feuds and secrets, family griefs and joys. We live outside the touch of time. ~Clara Ortega

I don't believe an accident of birth makes people sisters or brothers. It makes them siblings, gives them mutuality of parentage. Sisterhood and brotherhood is a condition people have to work at. ~Maya Angelou

~*~*~*~*~*~

Soli Deo Gloria!

Taylor

Frog and Toad

2010-11-13T12:04:00.000-08:00

I know that when I was younger, I loved it when my mom would read books aloud to me. My absolute favorites were all of the "Frog and Toad" books. If you have younger sibling, and they enjoy reading and/or being read to, I highly suggest these books.

The two main characters of the stories are Frog and Toad. Frog is a rather relaxed and optimistic character, whereas Toad is pessimistic , a lot of the time he is very serious, but usually very kind. Frog is particularly tall and green, but Toad is brown, short, and stout.

They are very cute stories. They have their fun little adventures together, sometimes something happens that they think is scary or startling, but everything is always end up being okay.

(Considering my own opinion of these books:) I have nothing in them that I don't like. I love the characters, the humor, and the cute illustrations. Arnold Lobel did a very good job on these books. (I also suggest reading "Owl at Home" by Arnold Lobel.)

~Emma~

National Bible Bee 2010

2010-11-08T12:49:00.000-08:00

The National Bible Bee Competition is a series of events designed to help parents encourage diligence in Bible study, Scripture memorization, and prayer in their families. There are two focal points: 1) Bible memorization and Bible knowledge competition held at Local Bible Bees organized by volunteer Hosts and Local Event Teams in various locations throughout the United States, and 2) The National Bible Bee competition for the 300 top-scoring contestants from the Local Bible Bees. Family discipleship is reinforced during the time leading up to these events through planned voluntary social interactions around the Word, memory verse games, and Christian fellowship.

On August 28th youth and children across the US competed in what is called a local Bible Bee to see who would go to nationals in November. Someone would volunteer to host it locally and then the competitors would go to the place hosted that was near them and compete against each other reciting Bible verses and then also doing a written test and whoever got the highest score would go on a list to see if they made it to nationals. There are 3 different categories: Senior, Junior and Primary: I had a sister in primary and 2 in Senior. They all studied very hard through the summer and then attended the local on Aug. 28th and all did a fantastic job!! But 1 of my sisters in Senior (Haylee by name:) was anxiously waiting the time when they announced who all was going to nationals: 300 young people total go... 100 from each category. Haylee just made the nationals and has been busy packing and studying for the coming day. She will fly out with Dad and head to Chicago to compete on Nov. 11th-13th. She is flying out late tonight and will be in Chicago at 5:30pm and will be (hopefully) ready for the day she will be on stage competing:):). To check out the prizes and for more info or to watch it live go to: www.biblebee.com and there you have it:) I would like to ask you all to please be praying for Haylee and my Dad as they fly, and also Haylee as she competes!! GO HAYLEE GO:)!!!

Turning Up the Radio

2010-11-06T11:17:00.000-07:00

Today I'm going to share a fun idea with you, something that my two little sisters and I love to do when we have enough time on our hands.
We've always been crazy about music; we'll turn on the radio in the car, sing snatches of songs across the house to each other, have inside jokes about "oh, that guy went so high he sounded like a girl!" or "man, she's yodeling." Music is something that we can all three relate to and share ideas about; this guy shouldn't have had that stupid bridge, this girl should have thrown in another funky vocal trill. We love speculating on all sorts of songs, both the old black and white movie soundtracks and the new Christian stuff coming out on our local station.
So it comes as no surprise that we all love to flop on my bed, turn on my laptop, and listen to our favorite songs. We'll watch music videos and listen over and over to our special picks, taking turns to choose a new song. It's fun to talk about whatever song we're listening to, trying to match the lyrics to an idea floating around in our head, try and fit the song with an actor or a particular person who best emulates the lyrics. And of course, it's always awesome to turn the music way up and dance to it!
Spending time with music, just listening to it with your siblings, is always fun but you don't have to confine music to a certain period of time on blah-blah day. Turn it up while you're doing school with siblings or try singing with them. Teach tiny siblings a new song or get your older siblings' opinion about the current popular music.
YouTube has a feature now where you can create a playlist; pick a bunch of songs that you and your siblings like and let it play! (A note of warning; do use caution on YT, as some ads on the side of the screen aren't for small eyes.)
There is a good feeling that comes with having music flood your house. Good feelings are meant to be shared, so get that radio pumping.
-Pip

Acting?

2010-11-01T11:05:00.000-07:00

A few years ago, my sisters, friends, and I saw for the first time a movie called 'Bleak House' , which was based on a Charles Dickens novel, and, long story short, we became infatuated with it. We would always pretend to be the characters, and we would sometimes even have dinner parties just so we could act like we were back in the early 1800's. My 14th birthday party was even a Bleak House dinner.

One day, one of us decided that we should act out the movie. Our first attempt didn't work out. We were at first acting while the movie was on, reading the subtitles as it went along, but that quickly failed.

Later, we agreed that we should type up the script. It was a great endeavor, considering the movie was about 8 hours long, but after a while, we finally finished typing up what we needed.

Then we had auditions for who wanted to play what role. We had a great time with that. The people who wanted to have a certain part would say a few lines that the character said, and the ones who didn't want the role would vote on who did the best.

Finally, we were ready to act it out. After trying to act out the first part of the movie, we decided we wanted to skip to the second half, because it had more fun acting parts in it. As I look back at how it all went, I laugh to myself. Even though none of us will ever be award winning actors, we had such a good time doing it, and made a lot of memories along the way.

I encourage you all, even if you don't think you are a good actor (I certainly am not), pick out your and your sibling's favorite movie, type up the script, give out parts, and have the time of your life!

Soli Deo Gloria!

Taylor

Candy-Corn Trifle

2010-10-29T00:00:00.000-07:00

INGREDIENTS:

Box of yellow cake mix, plus oil, eggs, and water needed to prepare

Yellow food coloring

2 (4 serving size) boxes instant vanilla pudding, plus mild needed to prepare

Orange food coloring

8 oz tub Cool Whip, thawed

2 ½ cups powdered sugar

Candy Corn

INSTRUCTIONS:

Prepare cake batter according to instructions on the box, adding yellow food coloring during mixing.

Pour batter into a 9x13 inch pan and bake and cool according to box instructions.

Prepare instant pudding according to directions on box, adding enough orange color to make it a bright orange. Place pudding in the refrigerator while you prepare the topping.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese and powdered sugar until smooth. Mix in the Cool Whip until well blended.

Crumble the yellow cake into an even layer in the bottom of each mini trifle bowl. Remove the pudding from the refrigerator and spoon on top of cake layer. Smooth out with the back of your spoon. Pipe whipped topping/cream cheese layer on top with a large star tip, or just spoon it on.

Top with candy corn.

~Emma~

I love the Lord, for he heard my voice; he heard my cry for mercy. Because he turned his ear to me, I will call on him as long as I live. -Psalm 116:1-2

Camp this summer:

2010-10-27T21:26:00.000-07:00

This year we went to a summer worship camp. It was so much fun but also it rained all 3 days we got very wet:) I will now post some pictures...The camp fire.

One of the preachers.
Peeling potatoes:):) Eating under the tarps to stay dry:)
The boys had kitchen clean up one morning:)
that was alot of fun watching them try to wash the dishes and clean the place up:);) they really did a good job surprisingly:)ha ha.


Anyhow all together we had a GREAT time in Gods great outdoors and in the rain:)
we had several GOOD messages and you really could feel Gods spirit there!!

for now,
Hope

Squeezing into Smaller Shoes

2010-10-23T17:23:00.000-07:00

Two people can sit and talk to each other for hours on end, but there is something that people simply cannot find out about each other in an intellectual setting. Even casually chatting on the phone or online. You will never truly know the nature of a person unless you see that person being silly.
Reread that last sentence. It's quite true. "You will find out more about a person's character in one hour of play than in ten hours of debate", or so some dead philosopher paraphrased. There is an odd sort of intimacy that comes with having had a good time with someone. While this certainly does not mean tossing root beer on our siblings or jumping off the roof because, as you joked, you thought you could fly, it plays a hand in how older siblings relate to their younger siblings.
There is a season for crying and a season also for laughing, and people often miss that last part. We can get so caught up in our own "grownup" affairs, so bent on doing our own thing, so distracted by hefty schedules and loads of school or house work, that we forget to be little kids again. We forget how to make a huge mess with caramel apples, gets crumbs in our lap from a sandwich, even forget how to blow a perfect soap bubble. We older siblings have a duty to cater to the needs of littler ones by getting on their levels, shrugging aside our "mature" restraints, and making a point not to act our age.
There is a fine line between immaturity and getting on the level with a younger sibling. Our job is to find that line, darken it with a Sharpie, and make a point not to cross it. Have you found that line yet?
There will be days when our little siblings will want to don a briefcase and suit, and playact at being grownups. But there has to be a mutual exchange of interests when you interact with your siblings. You will be able to tie a stronger knot if no two sides out-balance the other. Share ideas and hobbies and pastimes, always share. Younger siblings are so open and honest and ready to play being "big people"; let's make sure we don't forget how to toss off our big-sibling shoes, don a goofy hat, and eat chocolate cookies at that tea party!
-Pip

Movie Review - The Andy Griffith Show

2010-10-18T09:58:00.000-07:00

Name: The Andy Griffith Show

My Rating: ***** 5 out of 5 Stars

Welcome to the small, sleepy town of Mayberry, North Carolina! In Mayberry, you will meet the kind-hearted Sheriff Andy Taylor, his wiry and comical Deputy Barney Fife, his sweet young son Opie, and his thrifty and helpful Aunt Bee. This town has lots of friendly people, fishing holes, and a load of laughs and adventures as Andy and Barney try to keep Mayberry crime-free.

I love watching this show for many reasons. One reason is that it supplies a lot of laughter. The characters are so lovable, and their lives in Mayberry are so ideal. It's also nice that the plots of the episodes don't follow one person all of the time.They switch from Andy, Barney, Aunt Bee, Opie, and sometimes others. Another reason I like this show is state pride; I'm a born and raised North Carolinian. ;-)

The only thing I can think of that someone might object to is that Mayberry has a lot of moonshiners, and there is a town drunk, but he is very friendly with Andy and Barney, and is actually a humorous part of the show.

On a little side note, I was able to visit Mt. Airy, the town Mayberry is based on, on Saturday. It was a very neat trip, and I encourage you to go there if you ever get the chance.

Soli Deo Gloria!

Taylor

Bendy-Straw Shrimp

2010-10-16T15:41:00.000-07:00

I thought that I may change things up a little, so instead of posting a movie or book review, I am going to post a fun craft to do with your siblings.

Shrimp made out of bendy-straws:

WHAT YOU WILL NEED:
A bendy-straw
A small pair of scissors

STEP 1: Cut a straight line to the bend of the straw.

STEP 2: Cut two slits at the bottom of the straw.

STEP 3: Cut the two slits all the way up to the bend of the straw.

STEP 4: Find the biggest of the three parts of the straw.

STEP 5: Tie one of the smaller parts of the straw around the biggest one.

STEP 6: Tie the other smaller part around the biggest one the opposite direction.

STEP 7: Do this about 3-5 times.

STEP 8: If the two parts are uneven, cut them so that they are even.

STEP 9: Cut the two parts into four parts each and bend them a little higher than half-way up.

STEP 10: Cut the longest part of the whole straw into four parts.

STEP 11: Cut the four parts so that they are a little shorter

STEP 12: Cut the bottom two parts even shorter.

STEP 13: Cut the bottom part of the straw shorter and then round it out.

STEP 14: Cut two triangular slits in the bottom part of the straw, the “tail”.

STEP 15: Flatten the “tail” and pull it out slightly. (OPTIONAL)

And then you have a bendy-straw shrimp!

Sorry if the instructions weren't clear. I used to have pictures for them, but they were deleted.

~Emma

Family Intro...

2010-10-12T00:55:00.000-07:00

Hello Everyone,
My name is Hope Shields and I'll be posting every once in awhile for Miss Laura as she is in the middle of moving:) I thought I would give a little introduction into my family and I will try to keep it brief.

When our family was small and there were only a few of us, my parents moved from Washington state to Texas in search of a good Church. They stayed there for awhile until the Church split then moved to Maine to house sit for a couple. While there, our normal daily life in that old 1800s farmhouse ended in a nightmare as we watched the house go up in flames. Soon after the fire, Papa felt the call to move to Alaska so after lots of red tape, we were able to purchase a school bus which we converted to a motor home. The old yellow school bus became home to our family for two years as we embarked on a long journey across the United States. After much anticipation, we crossed the Alaska border on May 18th 1999 and settled about 10 miles North of the small town of Palmer. (Population approx. 3500)

My Dad is disabled so our family makes homemade soaps and lotions along with other bath and body products which we sell at our retail shop as well as the indoor craft shows during the holiday season.

For a little about myself...my favorite colors are blue and brown, my favorite hobbies are reading, being outdoors, snow machining and singing.I love country and and bluegrass music and basically anything Country:) I LOVE to read!!! I love to take and look at pictures, and I love being outdoors.

I have 7 sisters and 1 brother...their ages range from 21-3. I am very glad that my siblings and I are all very close. I cannot imagine what life would be without them!! I have been blessed to be raised by Godly parents who love the Lord with their whole hearts and who have taught me in the way that I should go. I am happy to say that I was recently baptized into the family of Christ and am glad to be called a child of the King!

Well hopefully next time I'll have something more fun to post:) and maybe pictures but for now...

Hope A.

Movie Review: "A Night at the Opera"

2010-10-10T14:17:00.000-07:00

During World War 2, the film industry became polarized. A genre of film making known as "film noir" (French for black film), which had its roots in German Expressionist cinematography, grew immensely popular because it reflected the confusion felt during the war. People were upset that America had to march into yet another worldwide conflict, emotions were running high, and film noir was a form of venting that confusion. Film noir focused on the dark side of cop-and-robbers type crime, the plots shady and brooding. And while this moody genre was popular with the general public, the other side of the film industry, spawned in Vaudeville and Broadway, showed the other side of human nature, the side that was willing to press on and start laughing again. These types of films contained outrageous comedy, gags and laughs galore, and one family in particular helped the nation to start laughing again.
The Marx family had their roots in Jewish-American heritage, and grew up in New York City. The family had five brothers, all of them talented in acting and music, but only three became recognizable as classic Marx Brothers. Groucho, the oldest, dropped out of school when he realized he could help support his family with his knack for sharp-tongued humor and his nasally singing voice. His brothers, Chico (who picked up a very authentic-sounding Italian accent from the streets) and Harpo (who, after receiving a discouraging review stating that his pantomime was better than his rich speaking voice, used a bulb horn and whistles to communicate and never spoke on film after that), soon followed in his footsteps and the three of them made about 14 movies total, some including appearances from a fourth brother, Zeppo.
My little sisters "got into" the Marx Brothers for their amazing acting abilities and wide range of skills. At my house, we tend to watch a lot of old-fashioned black-and-white movies because, quite frankly, we've seen very few modern movies that were worth watching. The Marx Brothers movies we've seen so far have been fresh. clean, and truly funny. (These were made back when comedy was comedy, and you could watch a whole movie without being bombarded with cheap innuendo.)
"A Night at the Opera" is perhaps the best we've seen out of the movies available on Netflix! Stuffed with Marxesque tricks and puns, the three brothers decide to land a worthy singer with the main part in an opera. After stowing away on a ship and locking the opera manager in a hall closet, fighting with the orchestra using violin bow rapiers and swinging from the lines and pulleys of the big opera stage, the main character gets his girl (and the singing part), the brothers taste triumph, and the movie ends on a literal high note. "A Night at the Opera" also contains the infamous stateroom scene.

The Marx Brothers were making movies during a tentative time; many movies, especially those in the film noir genre, put too much emphasis on spousal betrayal and the depravity of man, and many of the movies born in that time period roughly from the 1920-1950s contain too much objectionable content. The Marx Brother movies are nearly spotless of "mature" themes, keeping on the light side and portraying impossibly amusing feats. The only scenes or remarks in their movies which might cause an eyebrow to raise is slipped into a fast dialog, but they're always put across as charming and quirky, never spicy or sensual. The Dr. Seuss-ish comedy that coats every stunt and monologue has kept my sisters and me quite entertained from beginning to end. In "A Night at the Opera", there are a couple longish singing parts which might cause little mouths to yawn, but on the whole the movie would be suitable for any Friday movie night. Just make sure your popcorn doesn't fly out of your mouth when those jokes start rolling!

Quote Book

2010-10-03T17:44:00.001-07:00

About a year or so ago, I was reading a blog I enjoy. In one of the posts, the author shared some funny quotes that had been said by her friends and family. As I was reading this post, I thought, "Hm, that is a neat idea, collecting quotes. I think I'll start doing that, it sounds fun."

So, I pulled up a word document, named it, "Quotes", and waited for my family, friends, and sometimes even myself to say something funny and memorable so I could write it down. Since then, quotes like these have been recorded...

"Is it legal to rob a bank?"

"I like standing on dictionaries...it makes me feel important."

"Keep a good head on your shoulders or else it'll fall off."

Now my sister has also started a quote book, and I am thinking of buying a big notebook and making a quote book for me and my sisters to contribute to.

Try starting a quote book with your siblings! Write down things that they say that make you laugh. Trust me, you'll have a great time doing it! Also, if you do start one, leave a comment on this post and tell me how you're enjoying it, and some of the quotes that you have written down.

God bless you,

Taylor

Movie Review - North and South

2010-10-01T09:26:00.000-07:00

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Movie Information:

Movie name: North and South

Directed by: Brian Percival

Based on the book by Elizabeth Gaskell

Release date: July 2, 2005

My rating: **** Four out of Five Stars

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Note:

This is a movie about northern and southern England, not the Civil War, as you might think.

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About the Movie:

This movie takes place in the 1850’s when a young woman named Margaret Hale and her family move to a city called Milton, and have to adapt from their simple previous life in Helstone. She meets John Thornton, a mill owner at an inopportune moment, when he is punishing a mill worker. And after befriending factory workers Bessy Higgins and her father, Nicholas Higgins, she becomes prejudiced against the factory owners of Milton.

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Quote:

Mr. Lennox: “Ah, the wonderful Helstone, you cannot be kept away.”

Margaret Hale: “No, I cannot. It’s the best place on earth.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

What I didn’t like:

One thing I didn’t like about this movie was some of the characters. I did not like the personalities of those few, and they sometimes became bothersome. I did not think that Lesley Manville/Maria Hale did a particularly good job acting her part.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Warnings:

There are a few scenes of violence in this movie, early in the movie, there is some blood, and later, you see a man who had drowned himself (but you do not see him doing it), but you still may want to skip it if younger children are watching. Also, this movie is a bit dark, as it takes place in a dirty city. There is some very mild language.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~Emma

You asked for it, you get it!

2010-09-27T18:31:00.000-07:00

Too bad all things in life don't work that way. ;-)

Anyway, you might notice a couple changes here and there. On the left sidebar, under the search tool, is a place to sign up for email updates. Your email address will not be shared with anyone. In fact, I won't even see it.
We're also going to work on possibly doing more posts in a little while, as well as a monthly or maybe bi-weekly poll. If you have any ideas for a fun poll, or want to consider writing a guest post for this blog, feel free to leave a comment with an idea! We're always open to new ideas, guest posts, and such.

Because my family and I are going to be moving sooner than we thought, and I won't be able to have internet access very much, I am pleased to introduce our newest writer who will be writing for me and might even become a full time writer: Miss Hope. :-) She'll do her first post on ~~October 4th.~~ EDIT: October 11th.

Apologies for not having a post this past Friday; Pip was sick and since I was out of town I didn't notice, or even know she was sick, until late Saturday night.

There, a nice business update.

Blessings,
~Laura

Movie Review - Singin' in the Rain

2010-09-20T07:00:00.000-07:00

Movie Name: Singin' in the Rain

My Rating: ***** Five out of Five Stars

Singin' in the Rain is such a great musical! The bright colors, lively music, amazing dances, and lovable personalities make it such a fun movie to watch.

Don Lockwood: Cosmo, call me a cab!

Cosmo Brown: Okay, you're a cab.

The year is 1927, silent movies are all the rage, and Don Lockwood and Lina Lamont are famous movie actors. With the release of "The Jazz Singer", the first talking picture, all the major movie companies are putting in sound equipment so that they can film "talkies" too. But there is a problem. Lina has a terrible voice. Don, his friend Cosmo, and a girl named Kathy try to think of a way to save the talking movie Don and Lina have just made.

This film is a lot of fun. There is much talent to be seen in it, you will be wowed at the dance numbers, and a few days after you watch it, you'll probably find yourself singing some of the songs.

The movie is pretty clean, other than a few immodest dresses and one rather immodest dance, but that scene has nothing to do with the plot, and you won't miss out on anything if you skip it.

Have fun with your movie nights, everybody!

God bless you,

Taylor

Beef Macaroni Casserole

2010-09-16T16:09:00.000-07:00

Hello! As you may have read in Laura's previous post, I am Emma, I will be filling in for Lauren from now until October.

Here's a recipe that I've made twice now.

(Sorry that the images are not very clear.)

Beef Macaroni Casserole

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

(Feeds about 6 people.)

Ingredients:

3 lbs ground beef

1 onion, chopped

16 oz can tomato sauce

2 T flour

1 cup water

2 cups uncooked macaroni noodles

2 cups shredded cheddar

Mix water and flour until smooth. Add tomato sauce. Mix again. Brown meat and onion together. Drain meat mixture. Simmer for 13 minutes. Meanwhile, boil macaroni. Drain, and combine macaroni and flour/tomato sauce with meat mixture. Turn into casserole dish. Sprinkle with cheese and bake 15 minutes at 400 degrees.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I hope you enjoy it!

~Emma

Tattle-Tale!

2010-09-13T08:35:00.000-07:00

One of the biggest problems my siblings and I have is a bad case of "Tattle-Tale".

"You hit me! Moooom!!! He hit meeee!"
"Well you started it! I'm telling Mom, and you're going to get in biiig trouble!"
"I wanted the last cookie! I'm telling! Moooom!!!"

*wince*

Mostly, it is the little kids that do it, but sometimes I do. Mostly when I am trying to write or talk with friends, I'll pull the "You have five seconds to leave me alone before I tell Mom!" deal.

Sound familiar?

Why do we feel the need to constantly drag our problems before our parents? Heaven knows they can probably hear us. [and sometimes the neighbors too, I bet] Now, if Little Sister is playing with matches, then YES of course you should tell your mom. But if Little Sister wants to play with you, let her!

One of my brothers recently started going around, whenever he saw someone get an "angry face", and sing "Do everything with complaining or arguing! And treat others like you wanna be treated!"

Treat others like you wanna be treated. :-)

Again, I'm not saying that running to your parents to tell them something wrong is bad, but every little thing that goes wrong in your world? I don't think so. Emergencies? Sure. But let's try to not be so very picky. You don't go calling your best friend's parents when he/she does something you don't like, right? And since we're supposed to view our siblings as live-in friends...

Think about it. :-) I know that I am certainly going to try and work on my "tattling".

Blessings,
~Laura

Ps: If you haven't already, there are polls on the sidebar that want your opinion. :-) Also, because Lauren and I are going to be very busy with a lot of things soon, during the rest of September and October Miss Emma will be posting for Lauren, and during November and maybe December she will be posting for me. Thank you, dearie!!

"But I want you to play NOW!"

2010-09-10T07:16:00.000-07:00

Many of you reading this have seen me mention how crazy my life has been lately. And while I'm not rushing around town with jobs or anything, my hours have been consumed by the blistering fire of Writing A Book (and thankfully, as of last night, finishing it!), and studying for the SAT. Well good, you might say, she's being productive. Productive yes, but social? Hardly. The amount of work I'm been wading through required me to cut down on the time I spent with my family and while I'm thankful to be spending a lot more time with them this week before school starts, it taught me a valuable lesson in tolerance.
I've bragged to people about my skills in the grand art of annoyance. Ask anyone, I know how to push buttons if I want to. I attribute this to the fact that I'm a little sister, as well as an older one.
When my older sister was at the age I am myself, I would be an unholy terror towards her strain of concentration. I would hide behind her desk and jump out at her, drag her to watch movies with us, whine about how she didn't spend any time with me anymore. I was, I suppose you could say, extremely unsympathetic to the stark fact that she was having to grow out of the home and drown herself in new responsibilities that left me less than satisfied with the amount of time she and I spent together. There is a lot to the relationship that I have with my older sister but if I could reverse time, I wouldn't have complained so loudly. Now that I'm having to step into new shoes and put on more hats, I can understand a lot of her logic. And while this new wardrobe is sucking much of my time, I am learning how to integrate the nifty stuff I learn, the scene I'm writing, into my conversation with the Girls in my spare time. There must be a balance between doing things by yourself and including your siblings in your affairs. Especially little ones, they're into everything and they are interested in what you're doing, what your life is like.
This is a shout out from a little sibling to other little siblings; it's a fine line between being nosy and annoying, and being truly interested in your older siblings' lives, but a line which you can recognize with some practice. Be sympathetic towards the time that they're needing to get things done, and when they do have the chances to talk or play, take advantage of that and enjoy it without hard feelings for your own wants, your own convenience.
Note: I apologize for not getting to a post a couple Fridays ago; thank you all for your grace!

Movie Review - The Great Escape

2010-09-06T09:49:00.000-07:00

Movie name: The Great Escape

My Rating: ***** Five out of Five Stars

The Great Escape without a doubt makes it on my Top 5 Favorite Movies. I would suggest it for ages 10 and older, because I don't think kids any younger than that would fully understand the story, and therefore would not enjoy it as much as older kids.

Here is what it says at the beginning of the movie.

This is a true story. Although the characters are composites of real men, and time and place have been compressed, every detail of the escape is the way it really happened.

When WW2 ally soldiers are brought to a German prisoner of war camp, they are told by the German soldiers to give up their attempts to escape. After many minor unsuccessful attempts to break out, the prisoners meet together and decide to do something that no one else has done before. They decide to dig three tunnels, 30 feet deep and 300 feet in order to escape. How many men are they planning to take out? 250.

It is amazing to watch this movie and realize that all of what you are seeing really happened. These men really did this. They had to be so resourceful. They used whatever they could get their hands on in order to escape. And to see all the jobs there were to do is incredible. Tunnel Diggers, Tailors, Manufacturers, Scroungers, Forgers, the list goes on and on.

There is some mild language throughout the movie, and some violence towards the end, but it is the least amount of violence I've ever seen in a war movie.

I really hope ya'll will choose to watch this movie, you will be amazed if you do!

God bless you,

Taylor

Book Review : Inkheart by Cornelia Funke

2010-09-03T11:34:00.000-07:00

Book Name : Inkheart

My Rating : ***** Five out of Five stars..

One night, Meggie's father, Mo, reads aloud from a book called Inkheart. An evil ruler named Capricorn appears in their living room. Along with a fire eater named Dustfingers. Meggie's mom disappears into the book.

"Rain fell that night, a fine, whispering rain. Many years later, Meggie had only to close her eyes, and she could still hear it, like tiny fingers tapping on the window pane."

Meggie is suddenly caught up in adventures, magic and books. They go to Meggie's Aunts house. Where Mo is fixing the covers of Elinor's ( Meggie's Aunt ) books. Mo hides the book Inkheart from Meggie. But then Mo is forced to read from Inkheart to Capricorn. Meggie must rescue Mo from Capricorns village, and read aloud from Inkheart..

"Some books should be tasted

Others devoured.

But only a few

Should be chewed and digested thoroughly."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This is a great family read aloud book. Though I must warn you that Meggie's Aunt, Elinor, does use some language.. So reading it aloud to your younger siblings/family would be better, than you can skip the language, but your younger siblings can also enjoy the book!

Blessings!

~Lauren

Just have fun.

2010-08-30T04:54:00.000-07:00

Sometimes, you just need to have FUN. It can be so easy for us to be friendly with our friends, but when it comes to playing with our siblings...that can be a different story.

I had been really busy and had a long day the other day. I was a bit stressed and irritated, when I caught sight of two of my siblings tying each other up with...duct tape. Catching sight of me, Sarah decided that my 11 year old brother wasn't the next "victim", I was.

Scared yet? Yeah.

I could have been all stressed out and told her NO. WAY, but part of me decided to go along with it. What was the harm it in? It would make the kids happy [in a weird way], it might be good to laugh, so...? Yes, I allowed myself to get wrapped in duct tape and dragged around the house.

Horrified yet? I don't blame you. ;-)

After duct taping me up to my elbows, I was promptly shoved in the bathroom and the door locked. Yes.

The moral of the story?

It's great to have fun and do stupid stuff with your siblings. Just watch out of they start wielding duct tape.

What are some really crazy things YOU'VE done with your siblings?

Blessings,
~Laura

Ps: Yes, I did get let out and untied. Eventually.

Movie Review - Cranford

2010-08-23T07:21:00.000-07:00

Here is my first post! And for future reference, most of the time my reviews will be better for siblings 10 and older, because I don’t have any very little siblings, and therefore don’t watch movies that little kids would enjoy as much.

Movie name: Cranford

My Rating: ***** Five out of five stars

Miss Pole: Put no further pastries to your lips, for you will choke when you hear the news I must report!

Cranford is a little town where everyone knows each other, and not much changes. But soon many changes appear that no one ever saw coming. With the arrival of a new doctor, the railway, new neighbors, the loss of loved ones, and more, the town begins to whither at the root.

Miss Deborah Jenkyns: I would prefer it if I did not enjoy oranges; consuming them is a most incommodious business.

This movie is very popular in my house. One reason is because all of the characters are so wonderfully done, and they are all so loveable. There are no bad people in it. Another reason we love it is the complexity. There are about three stories going on at once that blend so harmoniously together.

Miss Deborah Jenkyns: We will repair to our rooms... and consume our fruit in solitude.

There are a few scenes that you would want to skip over if you were watching it with little siblings. You will especially want to look out for two scenes that have a lot of blood in it. There are also a few instances of language, but not much.

If you want to know more about this movie, just ask! I hope you will consider this as your next movie, and if you like it, there is also a sequel.

God bless you,

Taylor

Scones and Siblings

2010-08-21T15:37:00.000-07:00

First off, my apologies for posting this post later than expected.

Second, whats this post about? Scones and Siblings.. Interesting title...

I thought I'd share a recipe I like to use like last time.... I've been doing a lot of baking with my siblings this past week. And my younger siblings wanted to have a tea party, and they wanted "Scones" so I made some :) Here are some pictures and the recipe I use :)

Chocolate Scones ~

1/3 cup sugar

2 cups of white flour ( I use Half Whole Wheat, Half White, but All Whole Wheat is very yummy also, you'll just want to cook it for a little longer )

1 Tablespoon of baking powder

1 teaspoon of Cinnamon ( Optional )

1/4 teaspoon of salt

1/2 cup of butter

2/3 cup of milk

1 egg, beaten

1 teaspoon of vanilla

1 1/2 cup of chocolate chips

Heat over to 400 degrees. Combine Flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, salt and chocolate chips. Using a pastry blender or fork ( Wooden spoon works fine ) cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Combine milk, egg, and vanilla in a separate bowl. Add liquids to flour mixture, stir until ingredients are moistened

With Flowered hands, shape dough into 8-inch round on a un-greased cookie sheet. Sprinkle with additional sugar if desired ( I used brown sugar ) Cut dough into 8 wedges ; slightly separate wedges. ( You can do this how ever you want, and even not cut it until its done. )

Bake at 400 degrees "F for 15 to 20 minutes. ( Maybe a bit longer ) Serve Warm.

Enjoy!

Again, I'm very sorry for not posting this post sooner!

God Bless you!

~Lauren

By the way, milk, a tablespoon of cocoa, and a tablespoon of sugar makes yummy chocolate milk if some people don't like tea with they're scones :)

Welcome to our newest writer!

2010-08-16T07:30:00.000-07:00

Everyone, I'd like you all to meet our newest writer...Taylor!

With Taylor, is coming some changes. So if things are a little out of whack for a few days, please be patient! We're working on it!
If you don't mind, please check out the polls on the sidebar, and feel free to leave a comment [or two!] on what some things are that you'd like to see around here. Any suggestions are VERY welcome! :-D

Blessings,
~Laura

Stopping and Listening

2010-08-13T21:31:00.000-07:00

Something that has been really hard for me to remember is the fact that my two little sisters have so much to say, and often when I'm talking, it becomes a race to see who will get noticed by our parents or each other, or whoever we may be talking to. Half the time I don't realize if I interrupt or if I'm getting more attention that I would ordinarily get in a given minute. To continually draw attention to oneself is a trait I dislike in other people, so why exhibit it in myself? I have to repeatedly step back and say, "it's NOT all about me!"
It's difficult to remember how to stop and listen to our siblings; their feelings might be crushed if we brush aside their fears or opinions as useless. They have something to say and as a member of your family, they have a right to say it. Maybe a younger sibling needs to confide in you; how can they confide if you're always taking up the attention of others, leaving no time for them? During a hectic moment, we can become frustrated with siblings' (and especially if they're younger) try to force past the dreaded "wait your turn" rule. If we make no time for their thoughts and views later, they will catch on and it soon becomes a battle to see who's loudest, who's more interesting, who can grab the most attention the fastest. They would be much more willing to wait their turn and keep quiet if the instance is busy or stressful, but only if they are assured they will be listened to. Keep your word and make an effort to pay special attention to them. Don't let their opinions run out like water, to slip through the cracks.
This doesn't only apply to younger siblings; often older siblings will try to instruct younger ones (maybe that's you) and we don't want to listen. We need to respect the experience of older siblings and let them teach us, guide us gently, look up to them. A younger sibling is doing his/her job if an older sibling FEELS like an older sibling.
I chose to write about this because my little sister G.B. is very sensitive to conversation around her, and lately I have been so caught up in my parents' enthusiasm for transcripts and college applications and scholarships to the point that it's taking a dominating stance over my sisters' bubbling ideas and opinions. G.B. told me while we were alone in the living room that she wanted something special to do, by herself, that she would be good at. She felt the need to prove her worth and it made me realize how little attention I'd been paying her. It was difficult to make a special effort after the embarrassment of being humbled, but integrating G.B.'s opinions into the conversation, telling her about college and watching her eyes sparkle as she asked if she would one day go to college, too, asking what she thought about this and that...it was better than feeling that ulterior pang of guilt, the realization that I am talking way too much and frankly need to shut up. We don't want to admit we're paying too much attention to ourselves, or to stop and listen to an older sibling, stop and hear the views of a younger one whose only motive seems to be explaining her made-up game of Sharks. I kid you not, this came up at the library this morning. I was volunteering during Story Hour and watched as my supervisor stopped and listened to the explanation of this pretend game even though she was juggling a billion other loud kids (you reading this with large families understand how this is!), and even though the girl was rambling. I saw how excited that little girl was to be heard, to be noticed, and it convicted me to try the same thing: to listen. Let's swallow our talk and make sure everyone's voice is heard.
Do you struggle with this? Do you find yourself underhandedly "punishing" a sibling by ignoring him/her? Friend, this is the wrong thing to do. Let's embrace them; flesh and blood, knitted together, building each other up and taking time from our day to simply listen. Write and tell us about your triumphs, or failures with a mindset to do better. Never get discouraged!

My sister and I.

2010-08-09T06:05:00.000-07:00

My seven year old sister and I are as opposite as is gets, just about.
She's blond with blue eyes.
I'm brunette with grey-green-blue eyes.
My sister has [relatively] clean hands and almost always has painted nails.
I have rough, inkstained, callused fingers and I bit my nails.
My sister has a very interesting personality.
I...don't.
My sister loves all things pink.
I don't.
My sister always paints her nails and puts on lip gloss before going out in public.
I only apply a little blush and mascara, sometimes lipstick, before going out for a VERY special occasion. Not a trip to Walmart. >.>
My sister is almost always in front of our bedroom dresser, making jewelry, colouring pictures, or doing something girly.
I am almost always at my laptop or wandering around outside looking for inspiration and writing.
She wants to marry Prince Charming.
I couldn't care less about marriage right now.
She likes "fluffy" coffee, with whipped cream and chocolate.
I like mine black, no cream or sugar.
She wrestled with an alligator when we went to Florida for my little brother's Make a Wish Trip.
I stayed safely in the audience with my camera.
She likes tea parties and fancy dresses.
I like a cup of tea while wandering around the backyard in a denim skirt and loose tee-shirt.
She's photogenic [I LOVE taking pictures of this girl.]
I am NOT.

Do you get the picture yet? ;-)
Even though we're different, we still [mostly, ahem] love each other. Last night we were up at 12 giggling over stupid things, I don't even really remember WHAT. All I know is that I love my sister, no matter how different we are.

What about you? Which of your siblings is your opposite? Which one is pretty much your twin, you're so alike?

Blessings,
~Laura

Sisters and Cookies

2010-08-06T12:38:00.000-07:00

My sisters and I like making Cookies :) R ( My younger sister) likes to make up stories of us making cookies, and have us actually play her story as we make cookies. One of the stories she made up was about 3 princess and they're weren't allowed in the kitchen, it wasn't proper. But one day when the "Cook" was out of the Kitchen, they went into the Kitchen, and baked cookies, but they had to be very quite and not leave a mess. It was funny watching R ( My younger sister) and A ( My younger sister) trying not to make a mess, and being quite. One of our favorite cookies to make is Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies :) CCCC! So here is the recipe we like to use :)

~Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies~

Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour ( I use Whole Wheat Pastry flour )
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 egg
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Directions
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets.
Sift together the flour, baking soda and salt; set aside.
In a medium bowl, cream together the melted butter, brown sugar and white sugar until well blended. Beat in the vanilla, egg, and egg yolk until light and creamy. Mix in the sifted ingredients until just blended. Stir in the chocolate chips by hand using a wooden spoon. Drop cookie dough 1/4 cup at a time onto the prepared cookie sheets. Cookies should be about 3 inches apart. ( You can always make the cookies whatever size you want)
Bake for 15 to 17 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the edges are lightly toasted. Cool on baking sheets for a few minutes before transferring to wire racks to cool completely.
If you would like your cookies to turn out softer, cook them for about 12 minutes.

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Please share what you and your sisters like to do in the kitchen!

Have a blessed day!

God bless!
~Lauren

Little things

2010-08-02T12:57:00.000-07:00

Little things DO count, you know. It makes my little sister's day when I ask her to "help" me get the mail, or some other little thing she considers "grownup".

Now, granted not all the time is she willing to help me with cleaning our room, but if you make it fun enough ["help me clear off the table to bless Mommy, because she's so tired today!" "If you help clean up in here, we can make cookies afterward!"] they might just be willing to help out.

So take a moment, next time you go to get the mail, [if you can drive] run to the store, or something like that, and offer to let your little sibling help you. :-)

~Laura

Guest post by Miss Raechel.

2010-07-26T05:05:00.000-07:00

Share the Love God has shared with you

Share the love. We are all qualified to teach the younger – and the older if we don’t over-step out boundaries. We can all be mentors to someone. Even if you don’t realize it, you already are! I think a major spot to start, is with mentoring or teaching, out siblings in a loving manner. God desires us to start in the home. For brothers and sisters to work together in harmony. We’re not going to have that perfect relationship, if we all don’t try. It is possible. The world will tell you and show you, that it is not though.

Siblings are often portrayed as annoyances, and pests. But God meant for us to love one another and work together. I’m reading, “Making Brothers and Sisters Best Friends” by Sarah, Stephen and Grace Mally, and I have found it amazingly true, helpful and good. Though the funny thing is, my older sister and I used to not like the book at all. I’ll let you in on a secret. When we were younger, our Mom would take out this books and read a chapter, or section, everytime Dallas and I would fight. And so it was meant to teach us not to fight, but it just caused my sister and I never to like it. I decided to give it another try now that I am 14. I truthfully don’t remember much about the book when we read it before, except thinking that they were so perfect and no one can be that perfect. And dreading the book when it was removed from the shelf….! Anyway, now that I am reading it, I am thinking differently about my sisters, and how God made us for each other.

This is a quote in the book that I thought was neat: “Be a learner from the big ones, a teacher to the small ones, and a servant to all.” – Making Brothers and Sisters Best Friends. It is not always easy to keep a perfect relationship, but it is very rewarding to do it and have it! Then there is also that verse in the Bible that says: “Let no one despise your youth, but be an example to the believers in faith, purity,” 1 Timothy 4:12 We are to be an example to all. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in Heaven. (Matt. 5:6)

Set a good example, be a godly role model, so that others will see you and want to be that way too! Be the person that others should want to be. Follow God, and trust Him to lead your way. If we all try hard enough, we can change the next generation. Share the love that God has shared with you! May God bless your day!
Love in Christ
~Raechel~
----
Raechel is 14 years old, a strong Christian, she loves the family God blessed her with, and she enjoys doing a lot of things : ) You can find her blog here: On a Mission For the Lord

Review : The Lightening Thief by Rick Riordan

2010-07-23T08:35:00.000-07:00

[note from Laura: I understand that a review of this book may offend some people. If you have a problem with the fact we reviewed this book, please email me, do NOT leave a comment on this post or on Lauren's blog. Thank you.]

The Lightening Thief by Rick Riordan

My mom came home from the library one day with a book for my sister and I.

I think you can already guess the books title, by the blog post title :) It looked fairly interesting, and I'm pretty interested in Greek mythology. So I started to read it. ( What else do you do with a book?)

The book is about a twelve year old kid named Percy Jackson. Percy has been expelled from several schools, in the short period of time he's been to school. After being expelled from the final school, he went home to his mother's house. His mother informed him that they were going to the beach for the week(end). Percy finds Grover, a friend from school, and followed him the whole way. A storm is brewing. Grover warns Percy about certain things, and Percy mother, Sally, sees the danger also. She takes Percy, along with Grover, to a certain camp called Camp Half Blood. Along with being attacked by a Minotaur, they made it to the camp. Percy finds out that Grover is a satyr. He also meets a girl his age named Annabeth.

Annabeth, Grover, and Percy are sent on a mission to find Zeus's master bolt, which Chiron believes Hades stole. Percy and his friends discover different people, and a different world. Percy meets his true father, and in-counters numerous difficulties along the way.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I'd love to tell you much more, but I don't want to give away anything, as you might want to read it :)

So, hopefully my review was enough to get you interested! My younger sister Rachel, really liked the book also. And if you really like the first book, there are three more :) Maybe I'll do reviews on them next time!

Blessings

~Lauren

Foolish?

2010-07-19T06:47:00.000-07:00

One thing I struggle with a lot with my younger siblings is how foolish they seem to be at times. My little seven year old sister goes getting into a craft kit because she wants to do it all by herself instead of waiting for someone to help her? How dumb. My ten year old brother tries to fix himself something to eat instead of waiting for Mum or I to come help him? Get real. Just about every day, at least one of my little brothers or sisters do something that makes them look childish and immature and me grownup and very mature.

Until I realized something. I was once like that.

Yes, I was once seven years old and headstrong. [if you want me to be honest, I still am headstrong. But that's beside the point.] In fact, when I was about three years old, I made a habit of locking myself in bedrooms and refusing to open the door. Poor Mum had to call the fire station or police to come get the door open. I often locked myself in the bathroom and would then proceed to loudly shout "I'm the BOSS, boos, boss, boss." and would not unlock the door until I had done this several times.

But my point is not to sit here and tell you how awful I was growing up. ;-) It is to let you know, next time you get mad at your little brother or sister for throwing balls in the house or making a mess, that you were once like that too. You made mistakes. You still make mistakes, but this time you are old enough to LEARN from your mistakes. So don't be angry, try to understand.

Do tell: has there ever been a time where you wanted to be upset over something foolish your brother or sister did, but you chose not to? How did your sibling feel? How did you feel?

Blessings,
~Laura

Galatians 5: 22-23 --
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

James 1: 19 --
Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath.

Innocence and Good Stuff

2010-07-16T21:16:00.000-07:00

There is something oddly horrible about an older sibling who doesn't take into regard the tender feelings of his/her younger sibling. I've been to many a house where the older siblings vented a chance to abuse their maturity and ran headfirst into a graphic explanation of a wound or a dead animal (we used to homechurch with large families on farms) and time after time, I've heard of little girls hiding their faces in pillows at a scary movie because, quite frankly, the older sibling was too lazy to fast forward or change the channel. Innocence is something that we older siblings should want to preserve and it's a huge responsibility, but when you pay attention to what might be crawling into your younger siblings' heads, it becomes second nature. It would be as easy as kindly asking a friend to stop talking about a subject you know is disturbing to a younger one, or previewing a movie before you all watch it, or sparing the graphic details of that dead snake you found in the barn to inform the parents about later. It's up to the parents and to us bigger kids to make sure that mature themes, disturbing mental content and downright dangerous topics don't worm their way into heads too little to hold all that meat.
It is true that we want to bred a certain sense of maturity and respect for taboo topics ("Johnny, I don't want you saying stupid because it's a bad word, okay?" "Annie, stay away from the fireplace because it might burn your fingers if you get too close.") but scaring our siblings into obedience or impressing them with our broad knowledge of a dissection or a PG-13 movie is not the answer. Steer them away from troubling topics and don't frighten them into submission. It's true that some special situations, such as an ill family member or a subject little minds keep wandering to, should engender a larger discussion and they should understand the gravity of a situation and what they should no do in order to avoid making the situation worse, but it should end there. We have a job as older siblings to teach our younger ones to love the good in life, and while we should be wary of what they allow into their hearts, they will develop a sense of right and wrong as we teach them to recognize the bad and to run from it, diving into the arms of grace and helping them if they stumble or disobey. Innocence is something intimately precious and something that is lost all too easily in this day and age; let's make it a habit to pay close attention and not to be careless about protecting our younger siblings, being someone they truly learn to look up to, to take shelter in, a hand to hold if they are frightened.
If you have any suggestions as an older sibling to an older sibling about how we can take steps to keep little minds fixed on "good stuff", please let us know! Or if you're a younger sibling and remember a time when you were helped by the "editing" protection of your older sibling, tell us!

Augh!

2010-07-07T03:11:00.000-07:00

Okay, I am terribly sorry for not posting anything. On Saturday I became really sick with the stomach flu [or something nasty like that], and was not able to get on the computer until last last night, where I realized "oh shoot! I never posted here!" so yes.

Since the links are confusing and annoying, basically, here's what's going on concerning the mini-challenge. If you write, or have written, a post about your sibling[s] before July 12th, leave it in a comment in THIS POST. The Monday after that, July 19th, I will post my four favourite posts: two posts about a brother, two posts about a sister. There will be a vote for the two best posts, which you can vote in! So, does that all make sense? Yes. Good. Email me if you have any questions!

Blessings and apologies for any confusion,
~Laura

Picnics

2010-07-03T15:24:00.000-07:00

We live in a modern age, where practically any ailment has some sort of prescribed medicine. Lest I begin ranting about how much money is wasted on mock "people-mending", when all we really need is a slap on the back and a couple pieces of chocolate, I'll state here that the pioneer in child psychology and home education, Ms. Charlotte Mason from England, had many views on many things and one of these views consisted of the healing power in sunshine. Whenever someone at my house falls ill, Mom "prescribes" sunshine. Sunshine is a beautiful thing, mellow and steeping or harsh and blaring on your eyeballs, and all those bottles of sunscreen should be thrown out the nearest window. Nothing is more nourishing than running around under the glow of sunshine and letting it permeate your skin.
The weather where I live has been blissful, breezy and cool in the mornings, growing into a sunny afternoon with the light chasing off any shadows lingering over from the night before. Naturally, long summer afternoons mean only one logical thing: picnics! My sisters and I have had several pleasant picnics out in the yard, sitting on a quilted blanket one of our relatives gave us as a present. My suggestion this week is to have your siblings flock together, prepare some finger foods or a simple meal that won't ruin your blanket or spill easily, and spend time warding off ants and enjoying your meal in the healthy sunshine.
Some suggestions for good picnic foods: small sandwiches, such as cream cheese and chive or ham and cheese; hamburgers; stir fried rice; tortilla wraps with chicken salad or tomato-basil-white cheese chunks; macaroni in plastic bowls; even a brunch with cut fruit, scones or muffins, juice in paper cups...picnics are extremely versatile, just like tea parties (see my most recent post), so have fun with this! And don't constrict picnics to summertime; one of my favorite memories is a picnic my family and I had when my older sister came to visit. It was near Christmas and we'd gone to a public park with sandwiches, only to find the temperature dropped from when we'd piled into the car. We ate our picnic in the back of the van, shivering and giggling.
Tell us about your picnic plans or experiences you've had with them. Note that funny stories about failed picnics would add a fun twist to our post! Please give us some feedback if you have something to share, we'd love to hear from you!

week one of the Mini-Challenge

2010-06-28T04:40:00.000-07:00

Well, here we are at day one! However, it is still not too late to join. Since this thing runs for two weeks, I'll have the sign-up linky at the top of the page for another week. Don't forget to tell your friends about this!

I am going to keep this post at the top until next Monday, so scroll down for newer posts. :-) [by the way, blogger has been causing us some problems, so Katie, who was supposed to post today, might be a little late in getting her post up.] The sign-up links for the next SEVEN days [not all the days!] are going to be above this...just enter the name of your post and the link to the POST, not the blog.

Have a great time! See you next week.
~Laura

Swimming! ( Not quite a review)

2010-06-24T11:05:00.001-07:00

First thing, I apologize for not posting a real review.. My family has mostly just been swimming and doing school work. Its really hot where I live at the moment, so swimming really cools us off :) Some of you might like swimming, so you don't have to read this post if you don't want to :)

I like swimming a lot, but I also like playing games in the water!

One of the games I like most is Dead man. ( Ignore the name, it has NOTHING to do with the game). In Dead Man ( Ignore) you pick one person to be it. The " It " goes underwater, and counts to ten with his/her eyes closed. The other people playing ( Make sure you have at least two other people playing) move around the pool quietly. After the " It" counts to ten, she or he comes up, still with their eyes closed, and tries to find the other people in the pool. You want to stay away from the " It ". Whoever the " It" touches first. Is it. IF the "It" can guess the person's name they touched correctly. ( " It" has to guess with his eyes closed.) and then the person that was tagged, is it!

Simple enough huh?

With more people, its more fun :)

Helpful Tip : If you have a pool with a ladder in it, make sure when your " It" that you don't crash into the ladder, and slam your head against it, or bust your lip!

Anyway, there is my post!

( If your wondering why I posted on Friday, Laura changed the schedule around, so I am now posting on Friday's with Pip :) ( Well, every other Friday.)

And so there you have it!

Its not really a review, though I suppose it could count as a game review :)

Have a blessed day!

God bless!

~Lauren

Mini-challenge.

2010-06-21T04:22:00.000-07:00

Ah, the challenge within the challenge. Oh, that sounded...odd. *ahem*
Anyway, for those of you who read my blog, you may have noticed that I am doing a small series of posts in which I talk about each of my brothers. Having five of them, this is going to be interesting. But fun.

Why don't you do it too? So maybe you don't have an insane life quite like mine, meaning you don't have as many brothers as I do. Or maybe you're totally awesome and have MORE brothers than I do. [if that is the case, and if they are anything like my brothers, I suggest you seek sanity immediately.] Or you could even do this about your sisters. Anyway, just write at least one blogpost about each of your siblings, telling your reader[s] what you love most about them, what are some things you admire in them, what have your siblings told you they want to be when they grow up, etc. Come on, it'll be fun. Be creative, too! Maybe you want to have your posts so that it's an interview with your sibling. Or maybe even a vlog [video post].

So here's the deal. You write about your siblings. Let's have this stretch over two weeks, to give the ones with lots of siblings time. Then I chose my six favourite posts, three about sisters and three about brothers, and let everyone else vote on the two winners. Clear as mud?

This will start next week, June 28th, and end on July 12th. If you want to join, enter your name and blog address in the McLinky above. Feel free to email me with questions if you have any. :-) During this time, by the way, we will still have our regular Monday-Friday posts, but we may have other posts as well so keep an eye out for them.

Looking forward to doing this!

~Laura

Spot of Tea

2010-06-18T19:29:00.000-07:00

There is something very homey and comfortable about a large cup of hot tea. Whether it is taken by yourself around the pages of a familiar book or with a friend while commenting on your favorites among the newest flavors lining the grocery store shelves, tea has been around for centuries and has affects ranging from soothing the frazzled nerves to exciting your senses. There's a saying here at my house: if tea or a Band-Aid won't fix it, then you can complain! But let's not keep tea boxes locked away in cupboards or bypass a cozy cup because we're too busy to heat a kettle or pop a cup in the microwave. A newer tradition that my Mom and two younger sisters and I have struck up is to organize a little tea party, every week if we can. I'll tell you "how we do it" and some suggestions on how to plan your own. Take my example as just that: an example. Tea parties are pleasant in that they are versatile. Make this your own!
When setting a table for tea, make sure that the tabletop is wiped clean and dried before putting on a pretty tablecloth if you have one, preferably some fabric like linen or artificial silk. Pay attention to the color; does it clash with the color of the surroundings walls? If you have very little siblings, a formal white tablecloth probably isn't the best idea, but with older "guests," white tablecloths gives the party a high, elegant feeling. If you want a casual look, angle the tablecloth off to one side. If you'd rather it be more formal or if you're throwing a high tea (see below under "Variations"), you might want to plug in an iron (be sure that the heat isn't so high as to damage the cloth you're using) and crisp out the cloth directly after putting it onto the tabletop.
Once you have your cloth in place and smooth nicely over the table, the edges hanging neatly with no unseemly snags in the fabric, begin decorating. This is perhaps the most entertaining part and a ripe opportunity to get your siblings to help. Our tea parties usually include a canning jar or vase of fresh flowers in clean water, a clean tablecloth, and pretty hot pads for the teapot. Be creative with this: confetti, a favor such as a personal spoon with a fancy handle or a flower at each place is always a nice touch, and if you have coasters, use them! Now is a great time. We once threw a French café au lait (coffee with milk) party and made use of some painted coasters that had pictures from France on them. We also play music for every tea party; it adds a nice touch and provides a soft hum in the background when we're all busy sipping. Pick something soothing or cheerful. I still remember one tea party when I was younger. We'd randomly decided to have one, out on the porch during a sunny afternoon, and we popped in a new CD only to find ourselves choking on our tea to the bleak crashing throb of some songs about the Titanic! Be sure you know what the tracks are before playing it at a party. Something gentle and upbeat such as jazz without lyrics or classics play well in the background. If you have permission, find Pandora.com and get a station there. Pandora gives you related tracks and plays your personalized station for long periods of time. (Warning: if you're using Pandora, do be aware that they have automatic ads that you aren't allowed to skip over, and several of these are promoting weight loss products.)
It's always fun to stroll down the coffee and tea aisle at Wal-Mart or some other store, picking out boxes that sound delicious. Have a variety of tea boxes laid out on the table for your guests to choose from, unless you're having a theme to your party (such as an herbal tea party or something related). My sisters always try to stack the boxes to see how high they'll go before they tumble. It's fun to experiment with flavors; you might even combine tea bags or exchange them so everyone has a wide palate. Some of our favorite brands are Twinings, Tetley, Good Earth, Tazo, Bigelow and STASH. Don't hesitate about trying a new flavor, but always have a box of standard peppermint and some decaf options available! You might find it necessary to provide sweeteners and milk or cream for chai or those who prefer their tea weakened. Plain old milk or 1/2&1/2/ works for us, and regular white sugar. For diabetics or sugar-conscious consumers, we usually use a stevia (naturally sweet herb product) supplement for sweetening. Avoid Splenda if possible.
You may decide to have treats with your party. This afternoon, for instance, I made little chocolate chip cookies to go with our tea party. Good treats include small finger sandwiches, trail mix in an attractive bowl, biscuits with jam or butter, toast cut into shapes, donuts, croissants, or cookies. You may experiment with different recipes (baking or preparing the treats is often the best part; again, let your siblings help out with this) or stick with one, to look forward to with every party. Place your treats on a plate or in a bowl that coordinates with the dishware.
Dishware varies greatly. You may each have a personal tea cup and plate, or you may use everyday dishware such as coffee cups and salad plates. Make sure that, whatever you use, it gives the party a special feeling. Tea parties can be a lovely break from the normal routine; make it feel that way!
A tip for those using a teapot at your party: depending on the teapot, yours may be cold material, so before you pour the boiling water into the teapot, run some increasingly heated water into the teapot and out the spout to gradually warm it up. That way, the hot water won't crack the cold china or related material.
Avoid raw conversation or bickering. Tea parties are relaxing, stimulating, regenerating. They're easy to plan for and throw, and great for birthdays or special occasions. Find ways to use your "tea party savvy" to bring people joy. Invite a neighbor or a friend; help a member of your family who might be stressed or going through a rough time; make a date and do one every week if possible.
On a final note, make tea parties personal. Let everyone contribute. You might also say a prayer before beginning your party. On a nice day, open a door if possible or at least a window and let in that delicious air. Enjoy yourselves!
Variations:
French Tea Party- Try your hand at a Frenchie accent and research Parisian cafes. Make Café au Lait by brewing one part strong black coffee and heating one part milk. Stir and serve in a "demitasse" (small cup) as a special treat
High Tea- This tea party is especially good for special occasions. Plan to iron the tablecloth, pick fresh flowers, dress up if you like, place namecards by the places, serve ice cream or slices of pound cake...go all out! The point of a high tea is to have a tea party with more flair and formality than usual. Make each guest feel extra special.
Themed Tea Party- Pick a type of tea and serve as many types of the same as you can find. The types are green, herbal, fruit, black, Oolong (partially oxidized) and white.
Surprise Tea- Pull the labels off the teabags and have the bags ready in the teacups or mugs when your guests arrive. They may discover a new favorite, but be considerate. No one wants to take a large sip of a tea they despise.
British Tea- Be distinctly British at this tea party, accent and everything. Serve scones with lemon zest, Devonshire cream (available at some Krogers), or marmalade. They are fond of light teas and soft music. You may also try a British/Indian tea; many British families settled in India from the early 1600s-mid 1700s, and brought their teas with them.

Tell us about your tea parties! Are you an avid tea drinker? Do you have any favorites? Are you planning on making a tradition out of regular tea parties? Do you have a variation you'd like to share? You might consider taking pictures of your party. If you do, we'd love to see them! Put them on your blog and post a link here. Give us some feedback; it's always appreciated.
--Pip

Movie Review - G-Force

2010-06-13T13:23:00.000-07:00

Movie Name : G-Force

My Rating : * * * * Four stars out of Five stars.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

G-Force is a great family movie!

My family enjoyed it a lot!

Just to let you know, we used Clearplay with this video.

~~~~~~~~~~

Blaster: I'm pretty sure this is animal cruelty. *WOOOHOO!*
[jumps in RC car over toys]
Blaster: But I love it!

________________________

G-Force is a story about these 3 FBI trained Guinea Pigs, and also a Mole, along with a trained fly, and some cockroaches. Their Leader, a human named Ben, is wanting to impress his superiors. Ben orders a unauthorized search/attack at a home where the bad guy, ( As my family likes to call him) named Leonard Saber. Leonard Saber has been investigated by FBI for years. The team is able to successfully retrieve considerable sensitive information about a sinister scheme that is set to occur in 29 hours. But then the Guinea pigs find themselves in a pet shop, with another Guinea pig and a hamster. They get separated, but find themselves together again.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Speckles: We've got a worm to decipher.
Darwin: You're a genius.
Speckles: I'm a mole. I got a thing for worms.
[slurps a rainworm hanging from the ceiling]

________________________

One of the reason's my Family liked G-Force so much was because of the Team Work. How even though the Guinea Pigs got separated, betrayed, and hurt, they kept going as a team!

Walt Disney did a great job on this movie!

Out of all the characters, my favorite would have to be the Fly, Mooch. ( Definitely NOT the cockroaches ) I walked away with a fly sound buzzing in my ear. :)

The reason we used clearplay on this video, was because it had a small bit of language, and crude humor. And in one or two parts, the Guinea pigs would start talking about who they liked. But over all, it was a nice movie for a family night!

So there! My very first post on The Siblings Challenge.

Have a blessed day!

~Lauren

Well, we're back! With some changes!

2010-06-07T05:58:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone!
First off, I would like to welcome two new writers: Katie and Lauren. With them came a slight change in the way we are going to be posting. While Pip and I will be posting article-type posts, Lauren and Katie will be posting reviews on family-friendly movies, books, and such. Here is the new posting schedule. While Katie and I will be posting this week [Katie on Friday], next week Lauren will be posting on Monday, and Pip on Friday. Week after that, Katie and I again, and so on and so forth. Make sense? ;-)

So, thank you Katie and Lauren for joining the team! Glad to have you here!

Also, I would like to say happy birthday to my little brother...he's ten years old today, and terribly excited. I might be posting pictures on my regular blog later.

Have a blessed week,
~Laura
[Ps: please be sure to take the poll on the sidebar. :-) Thanks!]

Temporary Hiatus

2010-05-16T04:15:00.001-07:00

hello all,
well, the title says it all, basically. Pip and I are going to be taking a short[ish] break from this blog [and our personal blogs as well] for awhile. I'm not sure how long Pip will be gone, but I do know that I will be gone until June 5th, which means the next time I post on here will be Monday, June 7th [which also happens to be my little brother's birthday!].

So, until then, I bid thee all farewell. Have a good week!

Blessings,
~Laura

Interview with Miss Hailey M.

2010-05-14T06:39:00.000-07:00

The other day, I got the chance to interview a good friend of mine. I was going to post about middle siblings, until I realized that since I am the oldest sibling, I'm really not sure what it's like to be the middle kid. So Hailey was kind enough to answer some questions for me.

Your name: Hailey M., and I'm 13

How many siblings do you have? 2

In short, what is it like being the middle sibling? It is fun being able to have some "older kid" advantages and some "younger kid" advantages, but then again, you get the same older and younger disadvantages... like you can get bossed around by the older one and then annoyed by the younger. But when something new and different like learning to drive or going into high school comes along, you would already know what it would be like from the older sib, so it wouldn't seem as scary.

Would you rather be the oldest, youngest, or do you like being the middle kid? I generally like being the middle, but I would also really like to be the oldest.

What are some things you have in common with your oldest sister? We both like the same movies and the same books a lot of the time, so we have a fun time watching and reading and talking together. And, she really likes the story I am writing, so we can bond over that.

...and what are some things you have in common with your youngest sister? We both enjoy making movies. We will sometimes film them, but sometimes we will just act them. That is one thing that she and I have in common that allows us to spend a lot of time together. Right now, though, I know I am not spending enough time with her, and I need to find new things I can do with her.

[of course, I had to ask her one last question. ;-) ]

Do you like chocolate? Yes. Dark chocolate is heavenly. Milk chocolate is good. White chocolate can only be eaten frozen.

So there you have it. :-D And thank you so much, Hailey, for answering my questions!

~Laura

Something like a Light Bulb

2010-05-10T12:07:00.000-07:00

A psychologist recently oversaw an experiment where a classroom was divided into two halves, all working on a couple projects of the same nature. One half of the kids were congratulated on their intelligence in finishing the project before being given a second one, and the other half was congratulated for their determination to stick the project out to the end. After all the projects were completed, the grades showed that the group who had been praised for their determination actually did better than those who were praised for their intelligence. The study proves that it's determination, not intellectual capacity, that matters. Instead of stressing that we might not reach our previous level of intelligent accomplishment, we are encouraged that our determination will see us through reaching for that same goal.
This concept should be applied to how we treat our siblings, the younger ones especially. Instead of upbraiding them for spilling apple juice all over the place, help them clean it up and praise them for a job well done. Instead of telling them how stupid they must be for not figuring out the tricky math problem, encourage them to think hard and struggle with it alongside them. (Hey: you were once tearing up over the exact same types of problems!) If your sibling knows that they won't automatically become less intelligent for failing at their task, they'll be much more encouraged to press on in the mindset that everything is possible. Have patience with your siblings and they will be happier in knowing that you cared enough about them to walk hand in hand.
"I have not failed a thousand times; I know a thousand ways how not to invent the light bulb." -Thomas Edison

I love my sister.

2010-05-05T09:05:00.000-07:00

[note: I thought I had posted this on Monday....only to realize just now that I hit "save now" and left the page, instead of "publish post". O.o Golly.]

I really love my little seven year old sister, "Belle". It was foggy this morning, and when she woke up she ran over to the window and said "Look, it's froggy outside!" Dad tried explaining "no, it's foggy, not fRoggy." Her reply?
"Noo, Dad, see, God makes the frogs jump WAAAY up high, they land on the clouds, and push them down here so we can see them better. That's why it's FROGGY. But grownups call it foggy."

Aren't little siblings just the best? :-D

~Laura

Meet the Writers

2010-05-04T10:16:00.000-07:00

Laura
Hi there! You can call me Laura. I started the Sibling Challenge after a desperate need to spend more time with my younger siblings, and I wanted to be accountable for it so I wouldn't be tempted to slack off. Having five younger brothers and two younger sisters, it can be hard to take time off from what I want to spend time doing what they want to do, but the Lord is helping me. It is my sincere hope and prayer that you are blessed by this blog. You can read my personal blog here: Shieldmaiden for God

Pip
[coming soon.]

Katie
[Coming soon]

Bible reading...with your siblings?

2010-04-30T13:49:00.000-07:00

The other day I heard my Mum talking on the phone to a friend of hers. I don't usually eavesdrop, but something Mum said caught my attention:

"Does it ever occur to kids to read the Bible with their siblings?"

That got me thinking. Oh my. Yes, we read the Bible together as a family, and sometimes I pray with my siblings, but have I ever just pulled one aside and said "hey, let's go read a Proverbs together and talk about it"? Sadly, I don't think I ever have.

That's going to change, definitely. What about you? Do you already read the Bible with your siblings, or do you plan on starting to? Sure, little kids won't get it, but I know that I will be doing it at least with my 14, 13, and 11 year old brothers, and reading Bible stories with my 9,7, and 3 year old siblings. [I think the 2 year old who can't even talk is a little too young right now. ;-) ]

I will probably be doing a Proverbs a day with them, or maybe a different book with each brother. Who knows? It will be fun, and good, I am sure. Especially since I tend to keep my Bible reading time private...I still plan to keep some between myself and God, but this way I will be more open toward my siblings.

Blessings,
~Laura

Ps: thanks for the comments on the Monday post! You can still go back and share things you've done with your siblings, if you haven't already. :-D

Something different.

2010-04-26T07:00:00.000-07:00

Today, I'm not going to post on here about my siblings, or ways to interact with your siblings, or anything. Nope, not going to do it.

You are. Leave a comment telling me about things you like to do with your siblings! What are some of your favourite games to play, movies to watch, things to do? Tell us all about it!

Can't wait to see what y'all are going to talk about. :-)

~Laura

Hot off the press!

2010-04-23T05:43:00.000-07:00

[first off, I apologize for not posting on Monday. For several reasons I was away from the computer and I totally forgot about updating here or getting someone to update.]

When I was little, my Mum taught a class at our house for homeschoolers. After awhile it merged into just a history class every Friday, but before that we met every Friday and Monday [see where I my get ideas on when to post here?] and we did several things, not just history. One day, Mum read a book to us: Roxaboxen.
In short, it's a true story about some children who made a play town, called Roxaboxen, because it was mainly made out of rocks and boxes. It's really a good book, and it inspired us kids in Mum's class.
Afterwords, we all went outside to build our own Roxaboxen, or because we had bricks instead of rocks [for some reason there are just a lot of bricks in my backyard] we called it "Bricksaboxen". Bricksaboxen lived on for several years, even after Mum stopped teaching the class altogether. My siblings and I spent many long hours out there building 'houses', buying things from stores [using toy coins Mum got us], and there was even a hotel for 'visitors'. Anyone who came to visit us had to get dragged outside and given a tour of Bricksaboxen.
One time, when a friend of mine was over, we had the idea that we were reporters, so we went around and interviewed my siblings. Mum typed up our stories on the computer, and the first issue of Bricksaboxen News was published. Later on, my brother and I went on and were the reporters.

Why am I telling you this? Because, during the years that we had Bricksaboxen, this is when I was closest to my siblings. We had to learn to work together, play together, be together. In a large family where everyone likes their own thing, it can be surprisingly hard to just all play or be together unless we're at the dinner table, playing a family game, or watching a movie together, and occasionaly going to the park/zoo together. The Bricksaboxen days are some of the best memories I have of spending time with my siblings.

I'm not saying you should go into the backyard and build your own town, though I can assure you that it is actually quite fun, if you decide to do that. All I'm saying is that, espeially if you are in a large family or maybe even if you only have one or two siblings that are always busy, just try to spend time together. Believe me, it's worth it.

And who knows? You might even become a part-time reporter in the process. ;-)

~Laura

Movie Review - UP.

2010-04-16T04:56:00.000-07:00

Movie name: UP

My rating: * * * * * Five out of five stars.
~~~~~
UP is...one of the best family movies I have ever seen in a long time. My family and I, in general, are big fans of most Disney-Pixar movies, and so we already had high hopes for UP.

~Russel: "tehe, goggles."~

UP is the story of a lonely old man, Carl Fredrickson, whose wife, Ellie, recently passed away. When they were children, he had promised to take her to the legendary Paradise Falls, where they would live happily after ever. After getting into trouble, Carl decides to fly to Paradise Falls...in his house. What he wanted was peace and quiet....what he got was boy scout Russel, a talking dog named Dug, and a mysterious bird.

~Russel: "Can we keep him?"
Carl: "NO."
Russel: "but he's a talking dog!"~

My family and I loved UP for several reasons. One, it does not have any bad language or rude humour. The only thing someone might opject to is that one time, someone says "oh my gosh". [in our family, this isn't that big of an issue, but all families are different] Another reason is, it's not so childish and simple that I or my parents would get bored by it, but it's not over the little kids heads. Disney-Pixar did a wonderful job balancing this out.

The movie does have some sad themes to it, for instance, Russel's parents are divorced and so he's confused about that:
Russel: I tried calling him [dad], but Phyllis says that I bother him too much.
Carl: you call your mom by her first name?
Russel:...Phyllis isn't my mom.

And in the beginning, Ellie has a baby, but it dies. So the movies does have a sad feel to it, but there is also enough humour so that you don't walk away feeling too depressed. In fact, I walked away in love with the characters! ;-)

So if your family needs a good movie for your next family night, I highly recommend UP.

Blessings,
~Laura

A Bit of Conversation

2010-04-12T11:07:00.000-07:00

It's unfortunately very easy to allow comments your siblings make roll around your ears without you paying any attention. We so often hear about the wisdom of a child, but fail to recognize that the elusive wisdom does not dwell in the white hearts of strange children across the sea, but rather has been tenderly planted behind the mischievous eyes and sticky faces of our own brothers and sisters.
I was in the basement this morning cleaning, and my little sister came down, "to keep me company". We had a wonderful time, exchanging comments about the dust bunnies being discovered and quoting from old movies we both like. We will probably never realize the true value of speech, but at least we should strive to uphold it above slander and swearing, and use it as a channel to reach our siblings. I mentioned in the previous post I wrote for this blog that reading books aloud is a helpful tool to create stronger bonds with your siblings; they are hearing you speaking and that is impressing something upon their hearts. (I still recall my older sister's voice reading aloud several of my beloved passages in whatever book we were working through at the time!) Taking the time to pay attention to the thoughts and concerns of your siblings, you might discover new insights or fancies that have been developing right under your nose.
Speech is a very powerful thing, so use it wisely, lest you turn honey into acid. Words can break down just as easy as build up.
You don't have to sit your siblings down and have a theological debate, but rather make an effort to truly digest what they are saying; take their opinions into consideration, especially if they conflict with yours--the work you put out to value their views is more than worth it; reply with honesty and good humor. Conversation can be pleasing and happy, but you have to make the first step. Begin by listening. You will not be disappointed regarding the wealth of laughter and sparkling ideas you can share with your sibling. Their confidence in you will be strengthened once they realize you are actually interested in what they have to say, and you will more and more find yourselves digressing into fanciful bits of conversation, making each day something fresher and pleasing to the Lord.

Friday Guest Post, by Taylor.

2010-04-09T04:22:00.000-07:00

I am pleased to be able to post something written by a sweet friend of mine, Taylor. She helped [probably without meaning to] inspire this blog, and the other day she sent me this to post. I hope it inspires and challenges you as much as it did me!

~Laura
~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A little while ago Pip wrote about how much she and her sisters bonded by reading books together. I've found that I can make memories with my sisters by doing goofy things together. Here is how I figured it out:
My family and I were on a long trip from Niagara Falls back to our home in NC, which is a 12-13 hour drive. I think we were about 8 hours into the trip back, and needless to say, we were quite antsy and restless.
We had brought two shows to watch on the DVD player in the car, I Love Lucy and Bonanza. We got terribly bored of watching them. My sister Hailey had her notebook out. One of us said that we should trace the people on the covers of the DVDs and see who could draw them the best.
Well, we each took our turns, and the results ended up being some of the most hilarious drawings you have ever seen in your life! We enjoyed doing that so much that we have often done it at home for some laughs.
Also, on the trip back from Niagara, I was watching an episode of Bonanza. Hailey got bored of listening to it, so she gave the headphones to my sister Emma when another episode started. She pulled out her notebook again, and she started writing down what she thought was happening in the episode, because she could only see what was going on, not hear.
Emma and I started joining in, and it went from a typical Old Western show to one with poisoned ice cream, Lassie, a person named Jakum, a trip to Arkansas, an iPhone, and lots more! Now that we have finished what it is about, we have started turning it into a play!
Just being silly with your siblings can result in memories that will stay with you for ever! I know I can never forget that trip.
Try writing something silly with your siblings, like an episode of your favorite show, or a continuation of your favorite movie. Or if you don't like writing, try drawing some very silly pictures with your siblings; draw the same thing, and see how they turn out.
I hope these ideas have inspired you to have fun with your siblings just like you would with your best friend, because it doesn't take that much to make good relationships and memories.
Have a wonderful day, and God bless you!
~Taylor
http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/TaylorAnne/

sticks and stones will break my bones, but words will never hurt me...,right?

2010-04-05T07:36:00.000-07:00

Once upon a time, I was doing my schoolwork. Being deeply engrossed in my awesome history book, I did not notice my younger brother [the one that I never seem to get along with...more on that some other time.] come up to me with a new lego creation. He kept trying to get my attention, but being previously engaged I told him to hang on a moment. The brave soul waited about twenty minutes before venturing back over to me, where I was now fighting a fierce and bloody battle with my evil math book. It should be a rule in my family to never, EVER, EVER disturb Laura while she's doing her math. My brother decided he had waited long enough and procceded to loudly tell me about his lego creation.

"Shut up." I growled, my nose inches away from the page of my math book. He...ignored me. Typical. Heaving what my mother calls a 'mayters sigh', I glanced up at his lego creation. "Yeah, that's great. Good job." I said briefly. Wow, you're so awesome, Laura." I thought to myself. You actually took time to notice your brother! Now he will leave. you. alone.
Or not. Well, he sort of did. Because I was still wrestling with my math, I didn't notice the look he gave me before walking off. I wish I had. But I didn't, and after a moment it was all out of my mind.

The next day I stuck my head in my brother's bedroom and made a comment about his legos that this time, I truly meant. But I got a cold shoulder from him. What was wrong? He later told me that because I had breezed over him the day before, he thougtht I a) didn't care too much about him, and b) thought his legos were dumb. Oops. All I had wanted was for him to leave me alone, but as it turns out just a few words ended up hurting our relationship.

We have now made up, but that doesn't mean that other things similar to that have happened. And not just between my brother and I. There are times where I get hurt, or hurt other siblings. We've been doing better, but the times they do happen, hurt. Words hurt if said wrong. My Mum is always saying that words are like arrows, once said/shot you can never call them back. You may be able to fix the damage done, but the hurt will always be there.

There is a blessed truth in the song "Oh be careful little tongue, what you say." Be careful what you say.

~Laura

Books as Bonders

2010-04-02T11:15:00.000-07:00

I have three siblings and we have either tried everything, or thought about risking our necks and decided against it. Books have become an integral part of my family ever since we began homeschooling, and we've found the adventures to be virtually impossible to NOT try at least some of the crazy pranks pulled off between those fragrant inky pages. The house in Arkansas bears buried pennies as treasure, plus a note to the poor person who bothers to dig the Mason jar up; the third oldest has taken to dipping sugar cubes in my coffee cup, an idea she picked up from the memoir "I Remember Mama"; jokes are cracked about Holmes and Watson every time a teacup is in view. When I was little, I read several how-to books (books about books, how ironic) and so many of them said fluff like "reading and sharing books creates a bond within the family". I didn't realize how true statements like that are until I saw the richness that has been poured into our lives through the books my three sisters and I have devoured. Being the second oldest has given me the advantage of exploring the novels my married sister loved as a teenager, and also previewing novels for my two little wild things to make sure they're alright. There is nothing more warming to the soul than hearing shared laughter over a phrase well written, or the thrill of recognition when a pleasant sight or smell or sound triggers the patterning of words to come dancing around in two heads at the same time. One of my most precious memories is being buried in the sheets of my older sister's bed, all four of us enthralled as she read aloud "Harriet the Spy". Another is reading paperbacks aloud until I heard my sisters snoring through the thrum of words passing my lips with my attention focused entirely on "doing the voices right". Reading aloud is both fun and worthy; books with accents or ludicrous voices are always hysterical, especially if you have little ones listening. When you are all older and dusting off childhood memories over your coffee cups, wouldn't it be lovely to remember flailing your arms for emphasis on an exciting passage? Or feeling so mature and grown-up when you hand your sibling a book and tell them that it's "so good" and that they should read it? I encourage you to give it a try. If you're considering reading books aloud as an activity to establish with your siblings, start out small; short chapters, a lot of illustrations (be sure to show them!), situations that your siblings will recognize. Or if you enjoy writing, try composing a short story and read it aloud, and then help your siblings draw a picture about what happened in the story, or act it out together. You'll never regret the time it takes to share the inkstained allure of books with the ones you love.

Some things I did this week with my siblings

2010-03-29T04:53:00.000-07:00

One of my brothers LOVES playing legos. This week one of his amazing creations was a two-player game in which you had to try and knock your lego opponent over, using your own lego figure. I wish I had a picture, that would explain it better, but he tore it down to build something else before I could get a picture. Anyway, it was really fun. He kept winning at first, but soone enough I got the hang on it. ;-) The last round, both our guys fell off at the same time and we both started laughing. :-D

Another one of my brothers loves drawing things, not just on paper but also on the computer, using Paint. One morning we sat down together and each tried to draw a picture on Paint. He did waaay better than me. ;-) But it was still fun.

I also made a bracelet and necklace with my seven year old sister. I did take pictures, but I can't find my camera. Dang.

What are some things y'all did with your siblings this past week? Please comment and tell me. :-)

~Laura

Friday Guest post

2010-03-26T13:11:00.000-07:00

Sweet Katie wrote this the other day about the sibling challenge and I thought it would be good to post it here. You can visit her at her blog here: Just One In a Million Faces
~Laura
~~~~~~~

When I first heard about “The Sibling Challenge”, the idea excited me, I jumped right on board. After all, I did need to work on my relationships with my brothers. I'm pretty close to the eldest of them and very close to the youngest, but to the two middle boys, not so much.

Well, I tried at first, I tried fairly hard, took the middle boys on a walk, played a video game with the three oldest, that kind of thing, but it seemed to me that my brothers weren't interested in getting to know me, in fact, they seemed to just get more and more aggravating, so gradually, I started giving up, though I wasn't really willing to admit this to myself.

And now it's really occurred to me that to get know your siblings, it doesn't just take spending time with them, it takes spending time with God. And an attitude change.

The Sibling Challenge is a challenge that goes deeper than just getting to know your siblings, it's also about getting to know God, and yourself. The ride may not be pretty, and it certainly won't be easy, but it's worth it all the same.

And so, I'm gonna try again. And this time, I'll try harder to be patient, try to curb my anger. I'm gonna learn, I'm gonna love.

-Katie

Under construction

2010-03-23T09:54:00.000-07:00

Please excuse the temporary mess! I'm just trying to fix the template. Wish me luck....

~Laura

Pray for your siblings!

2010-03-22T04:51:00.000-07:00

I would like to encourage you all to pray for your siblings. Prayer is very powerful, [I'll be posting about it later on this week on my personal blog] and it is always good to pray not just for your siblings but with them. I've been trying to do that, at least with some of the older siblings I have [I really don't think my 2yo sister could pray with me, lol] and it's a neat experience.

Sadly, this must be short, but I do encourage you to take time to pray for your siblings. It's easy to pray for a sick friend, or just a friend in general, but what about your little brother, yeah, the on that put a bug in your bed today? Pray.

God bless,
~Laura

Using the fruit of the Spirit with your family.

2010-03-19T07:07:00.000-07:00

First Corinthians 13, verses 4 through 8, tells us:

"Love is patient,love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails."

This is SO important to remember, everyday. It can also be helpful if, like me, you have a hot temper and you especially have a hot temper around my siblings. I want you to do something for me. Read the verses again, but instead of saying 'love', put your name.

"____ is patient, ___ is kind. ___ does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. ___ is not rude, ____ is not self-seeking, ____ is not easily angered, ____ keeps no record of wrongs. ____ does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. ____ always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. ____ never fails."

So maybe you don't have a bad temper like me, but maybe you are 'self-seeking' [selfish], or maybe you can be rude sometimes. Maybe you 'keep a record of wrongs', and seek revenge on your siblings for things they did to you.

Or maybe your perfect, in which case you don't need to read this. ;-)

Don't feel bad if you winced when reading the verses with your name. Everyone has a fault; it's human nature. But that doesn't mean you can keep doing wrong, it means that you need to work on fixing it. If you have a brother/sister that you are particularly close to, maybe you two could encourage each other when you see the other struggling.

For the rest of the week, take time to use the fruit of the Spirit on your family. I encourage you to go out of your way to help out, be kinder, spend time together. Twenty years from now, you may not still be in contact with your friends, but you will always have your siblings. It is so important to make a lasting relationship with them.

God bless!
~Laura

The plan of attack.

2010-03-14T08:10:00.000-07:00

Oh my. I'm sorry I haven't updated in over a week, but I have been really sick. Talk about a good time to practice patience with your siblings!

Anyway, I wanted to lay out my 'plan of attack' for this blog. I will [Lord willing] be posting every Monday with an article or something. Then, every Friday, I hope to have a guest post from someone. If you want to write an article, please email me or leave a comment, and I will get back to you. Here are some things I would like to talk about on this blog:

- Things to do with your siblings. I'll probably be writing about this later.
- Ideas for family nights, e.g family movie night, family game night.
- Dealing with 'special' siblings. [siblings with Autism and other things]
- Do you have any ideas? Let me know!

I won't be posting tomorrow because we are probably going to be out of town all day. However, I do plan on getting a post or writing a post myself for Friday.

Until then!
~Laura

Welcome to the Sibling Challenge!

2010-03-06T06:15:00.000-08:00

"Wait! Laura, what IS the 'Sibling Challenge? Do I really want to get involved in this?"

Well, the Sibling Challenge is an experiment right now. See, I really want to get to know my five brothers and 2 sisters better, so I made a challenge for myself. Seeing that I was not alone when it came to wanting to make siblings your friends, I decided to start the Sibling Challenge. As to wanting to join, I can't force you but I do encourage you to join me on the journey of making my siblings my best friends, not just people who happen to live with me and annoy me. ;-)

How do I join?
Leave a comment telling me you want to join. If you want, you can list your siblings and some things you plan to do with them. You can start any time, but I need to know who you are so I can add you to the list. You can also tell others about the Sibling Challenge by grabbing the button on the sidebar.
It might be a good idea to also tell your parents about this. ;-) Or you can just surprise them by suddenly getting along with your siblings...but I recommend that you tell them so that they are aware of what you are up to.
Because no two families are the same, I can't tell you exactly how to do it. But this is how I will be doing it. I have seven siblings [on earth, that is] so for each day of the week I will focus on a certain sibling. Now, if you only have one sibling, or more than seven, then your plan may be totally different than mine. That's okay!

Sound good so far? Awesome. But here's the catch. For the first week that you do this, give up on something else that you usually spend time doing. E.g, sports, spending time on the computer, talking with [non-sibling] friends, watching movies, whatever. Stick with it!

Why would anyone want to do this? Because they want siblings for friends! One thing that really inspired me for this was a question that a friend of mine posted on her blog.
"I've made a little observation. Why is it that it's considered a great thing for you and your best friend(s) to be like sisters, but it's considered a good thing for you and your sibling(s) to be best friends? I just find that rather strange."

The world and your peers don't expect you to be good friends with your siblings; the most they probably expect is for your to 'just get along' with each other. This is a challenge that will defy that, which is a good thing.

I leave you with this Bible verse, which might help you as you start:
Ephesians 4, 31-32:
31": Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice:"32": And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.

I know siblings can be annoying sometimes, especially if you are the oldest. But be ye kind, one to another.

Let me know if you want to join! And feel free to email me at: pioneer[dot]writer[at]gmail[dot]com if you have any questions. :-)

God bless,
~Laura