Kite Flying

The wind felt just right today.  Once speech therapy was over, we got home and made a quick decision:  while the sun was still shining, why not go out and fly a kite.  And let's see... where to go?  Oh yes, the lake that we live right next to.  Yes, that would do nicely!

We went down for about an hour, and Madison had such a great time running around with her kite.  We got one kite up through the atmosphere, just as the song suggests, way up high and over the lake, pretty much maxing out our string length.  The wind was on and off, and sometimes pretty strong - you didn't even have to run with the kite.  Just hold it out, and let the wind take it up, up and away!

Today's speech therapy went well, by the way.  It's a bit of a drive down there, but the good news is there is a place to fill our Sodapalooza cups nearby.  So slushies for everyone!  Yes, it's going to be a long two or three months for us with some hardcore slushie consumption!  As for speech, we're still working on the challenging letter 'r.'  Madison is really good with practice, and works very hard to improve herself.  Madison and her teacher Courteney are able to accomplish quite a bit in just a half hour's time.  We've seen progress too.  This year, we've seen so much progress with Madison's learning - with her math skills, her spelling, her writing, and of course her reading.  She finished another "Weird School" book on the way to and from speech therapy.  Daddy got her about six more of these books from the library - Madison helped pick them out online when we reserved them.  She'll be done with all six in about a week's time, just as she was done with the last six in a week's time.  She just reads and reads and reads.

Dinner tonight was most excellent.  Mommy is such a creative cook, preparing wonderful meals for us that appear as if they could be served in a fine dining establishment.  Breakfast too - there are so many creative things she does.  Madison isn't quite at the creative stage yet, content to have tater tots, chicken nuggets, and several gallons of ketchup.  We go through SO MUCH ketchup at this house.  I would say probably about twice the national average.  Or more.  I don't know.  All I do know is that we go through it pretty fast.  Madison will use ketchup to dip anything in.  She will take the tiniest bites of food, just to be able to dip more of the remaining food in ketchup.  And yes, she'll dip things in ketchup that you least expect.  Daddy has ketchup from time to time.  Mommy has it more often.  But Madison has an insane love of ketchup - one I don't think I can truly explain here.  Just picture someone who loves ketchup, and then come to terms with the fact that you're only scratching the surface!

Tonight we finished the latest Anna and Elsa book before bedtime, one that brought up the question, "What happened to Anna's memories, and can we get them back?"  You'll have to read the book, like we did, just to get the answer.  There are two more books out there, I think, #3 and #4.  We'll pick those up in time, but Madison has been eyeing some Star Wars books lately, so we may go in that direction.  Speaking of which, we've been watching quite a bit of the Clone Wars here.  As Star Wars Day approaches, Madison is seeing some of these episodes for the first time, including the one we saw tonight about Jar Jar being a jedi.

He's not a jedi, of course.  And he's not that bad of a character, to be honest.  He gets a pretty bad rap, really.  Sure, he's annoying.  But he's not a terrible character in the grand scheme of things.  Seriously, and I mean seriously, which would you rather see:

A.  Every scene with Jar Jar Binks, or...
B.  Every love scene with Anikin from Episode II

I rest my case.  It is impossible to answer "B" to that question.  Well, I guess it's possible.  But you'd have to be stark raving mad to do it.

Besides, Madison likes Jar Jar, and there's nothing you can do about it.  And okay, Daddy doesn't mind him so much either.

Here's the latest element devotional, hot off the Periodic Table of Elements!

“Prophesy to these bones.  Tell them, ‘Dry bones, listen to the Lord’s message.’“ Ezekiel 37:4 NIrV

CALCIUM

Ca 20

     Calcium is a vital part of your body.  It’s in your bones!  Your skeleton is the thing that holds you together, and as you probably know, it’s important to keep that healthy.  One way is by eating calcium-rich foods like cheese, milk, fortified orange juice and certain cereals.  You’ve got to keep those bones healthy!

     One set of bones that was definitely not healthy is mentioned in the Bible.  In Ezekiel, chapter 37, the prophet sees a valley full of very dry bones.  Things don’t get much more dead than that!

     And yet the Lord told the prophet Ezekiel to speak life to those bones, and watch what happened.  Ezekiel did speak, and with God’s power, the bones began to come to life.  Ezekiel spoke breath into them, and sure enough, they stood up on their feet – a vast army!

     When your hope seems gone, it’s still not over.  Don’t panic, because though things may look dead to you, God has given you the power to speak life!  Choose your words carefully, and have faith in God.  Don’t speak doom and gloom.  Speak life over your dreams, and speak hope into those things you want to see happen.  Seek God with all your heart, and with His help, those dry bones can – and will – come to life once more!