Our Past Week

We had a really great past week.  It's too bad I wasn't better at taking pictures.  I'm not a pro blogger.  I just enjoy recording my thoughts for posterity, clarity of thought, helping to remember the special moments and share with anyone who wishes to listen.  The highlights of this past week include a real heart-to-heart conversation with my daughter while we were raking leaves.  It was one where she divulged her soul and became very vulnerable and real with me.  There were lots of hugs, tears and reassurances of love, understanding, forgiveness and grace.  Ever since then Penny has been so light-hearted.  What was interesting was that the very same day that she let it all out to me, we just "happened" to be reading a chapter from the book, "Young Fu of the Upper Yangtze" by Elizabeth Foreman Lewis.

The timing was impeccable.  The story was all about how Young Fu came clean with both his boss and his mom and how they both respected him for it and told him how much that he was growing up.  The applications of the story and our own scenario were not lost on Penny.

Ever since then, she's been trying so hard to act more grown up and mature.  There has been a very noticeable change in her attitude, overall.  I'm not saying that there's never any whining anymore.  But, like I said, overall, the general way that she's dealing with life seems to be more like that of an adolescent wanting to become an adult, rather that a teenager acting like a toddler.  

We also had fun with a group of friends who are either Japanese or have been to Japan or are interested in Japan over at our house on Saturday night.  There were about 10 adults, 1 teen and one toddler.  We had turkey, two kinds of rice, Japanese potato salad, Indian sambar, chili, pumpkin spiced lattes, green tea, cinnamon spiced coffee cake, watermelon, etc., etc.  We also enjoyed singing songs in both English and Japanese and listened to a bible talk about Abraham and his being asked to sacrifice his only son, Isaac.

On the home front, I got one more wall painted in the basement.  Jay got one light switch changed out downstairs.  Jay also got some meds for his bronchitis and seems to be getting healthier. He also fixed a garbage disposal and bought a new printer, since ours died.  You can tell that we use it a lot for our homeschooling. 

I  had fun making my own chalkboard.  I'll post a photo later.  I also spray painted some picture frames I got at a thrift store.  One was for Penny's school photos, that turned out marvelous.  I won't post, since I don't have the copyright and those of you who are family can wait and get yours at Christmas time.

Tomorrow Penny and I will go on a field trip for a free tour of the USGS Earthquake Research Center in Golden.  Perhaps, we'll also take in the Geology Museum.  Should go along perfectly with what we're studying in science.  Hope you all had a great week, too!