Today was a nice break for us. Monday and Tuesday were busy with many appointments and lessons away from home, so today I enjoyed staying home. I didn't even go outside to get the mail. Maggie taught her three piano students this afternoon. Allen and Alec (one of Maggie's students) had fun building tall block structures that they could knock down domino-style. It was fun to watch.

These blocks are wonderful. Each block is about the size of a deck of cards. They are called Dr. Drew's Blocks, and they are one of the best purchases I have ever made. Most of my children's toys came from thrift shops, but these were recommended by Mary Pride, so I bought a set. So glad I did! Last night Ruthie invited our family into our music room to see her "show." Anyone who's ever been a child knows what I'm talking about. I remember the shows that my brothers and I put on. First Ruthie had a prayer and Bible reading, then we sang a hymn.
After that we had a few games. Here the twins had to crawl to the other side of the room with a ball in their mouth. Glad it was them and not me!

Another game was to see who could make a mummy the fastest. Anna and Maggie won.

Lots of applause and free prizes. Thanks, Ruthie, we had fun.
Last night around 9 pm, Maggie and I were upstairs when we heard a loud kaboom. It sounded like a bomb had been set off a mile away. A while later, Mike heard lots of sirens outside. So we got in our van and tried to find out the source of the noise. We still don't know what it was. Our neighbor also heard it and has gotten our other neighbor, a policeman's wife, on the hunt to figure it all out.

Anyhow, while we were riding around admiring the lightening from a distant thunderstorm, we found this copperhead warming up on the road. Isn't he beautiful?

Allen finally finished his ship model this week. I think he said it's a PT boat modeled after President Kennedy's boat. Allen said the hardest part were the propellers. He has no desire to paint it. I remember my brother spending hours building all kinds of models.
Sarah made dinner tonight. It was tortilla soup that she made without a recipe. It was super delicious. I made the crunchy tortilla strips for her. They don't look like strips to you?! I was too tired to slice long strips, so I just put all the baked tortillas in a bowl and pounded them lightly. As you can see by Mike's bowlful...they may not have looked like much, but they were well-liked!
Today I baked my tastiest bread ever. It is a dense bread that is made with whole wheatberries. This recipe is called Honey Wheatberry Bread. What's different about this recipe? You soak 2/3 cup of wheatberries for an hour, then cook them until they burst open. I then used a handheld blender to pulverize the berries. The rest of the recipe is a typical bread recipe. My loaves were delicious!!

This was the best picture I took. The loaf looks funny because no one wanted to let the loaf cool down when it came out of the oven, so it has a mashed look to it. So if you'd like the whole grain goodness but don't have a grain mill, this is the recipe to try.

Tomorrow is another busy day, and it starts early with Maggie going for traction treatment at 8:45 am. She's not sure if the traction is working yet...she's in too much pain to know if it's working or getting worse. Monday she returns to Walter Reed to see the doctors again.

Thank you for all your prayers for Maggie. That's what makes the whole ordeal bearable, knowing the saints are praying for her. Thank you again.

Many blessings ~ Kathie