Kicking off September

Rory and Sloan cracking up while watching the sheep being sheared.
Jafeth and Mercy in the petting zoo.

Kim and Keri
Most of the gang hanging out.
CHEESE!
Keri, Breanna and I couldn't figure out where everyone was getting the sweet sequined hats... until we found the booth that sold them, dang I should have bought this one, I look totally hip hop in it! Ha!

Rory and Sloan, or as Keri and I refer to them "Jonathon and David"!

Breanna and Jafe
Raami and Cami
Sloan playing goalie at his soccer jamboree game
Olivia and Kim after we finished the Iron Girl
Our new GL Cody and the boys playing foozball in our garage.

Friday was the first day of the Puyallup fair, so the Keri and I rounded up our gangs and headed down to "do the Puyallup". It was so much fun, I love the fair! We looked at all the animals and ate and ate and ate... cotton candy, scones, curly fries, corn on the cob, crusty pups, pizza, bbq chicken, elephant ears and ice cream cones to name a few! I LOVE the fair, I would go every day if I could while it lasts. All the kids had a great time together and Breanna came too! Saturday the boys had their soccer jamboree and picture day, the weather was beautiful and it was fairly relaxing as far as jamboree days go! Later that day I went down to the urgent care because I haven't been feeling good all week, and come to find out I had strep throat! Yuk! No wonder I felt so horrible. Apparently I am no longer contagious and I am now on antiobiotics. Saturday night at midnight Breanna moved out...sad! I have been dreading this moment and it was worse than I thought it would be. She had to move out though because our new GL was getting ready to move in Sunday! She got offered a full ride scholarship to Seattle U. to play basketball and will be moving up there in about a week, isn't she amazing? Sunday morning I got up with Olivia at the crack of dawn and headed to Seattle to run the Iron Girl. I ran the 5k which is only 3.1 miles, but it still wasn't the funnest thing to be doing with strep throat but I figured "what the heck, I am already signed up". We ran really easy, partly because we couldn't break out of the pack until about halfway, but I think my time was about 27:30, so about an 8:50+ mile, which is fine considering our first mile we felt like we were walking!! Then I headed to church where Pastor Dave was the speaker... he is so amazing, so amazing, I miss him so much. After church we had the GL orientation/bbq where we met our GL Cody! So were at church until like 3pm, than he came home and moved his stuff in. We can already tell he is going to do just fine living with us! He played foozball with the boys in the basement and went out to look at their fort in the woods. We spent last night just talking with him and getting to know him a little better. It is going to be a good year!

Our Official "We Aren't Going Back To School Day"

Well, it's that time of the year again, the leaves are starting to fall, the air is getting crisper, and the kids are heading back to school. Except at the Cunningham's! We like to celebrate the first day of the public school system with our own official holiday, the "We aren't going back to school day". Two years ago I took the boys out on the trails all day, last year we went to the zoo, this year we had some of our other homeschooling friends over and the boys played in the woods in their fort all day. Hope everyone had a great day, back to school or not back to school, the sun was shining and it was a beautiful day!

Chapters 5 and 6 Book Study

Well I have been so encouraged by doing this book study on Homeschooling with a Meek and Quiet Spirit, the Lord really knew that I needed to reread this book again! This week I read chapter five, anger and chapter six, Hard Work and Dying to Self. I so loved all of the scriptures that the study book had for chapter five, my favorite one is Proverbs 16:32 "Better a patient man than a warrior, a man who controls his temper than one who takes a city." This scripture always makes me think of my husband. I truly admire him and his patient self-control, he is the one person on this earth that I can look at all the time and wish I was more like... probably why I married him! I, on the other hand, definately need to remember what the author says at the end of chapter five "Let us NEVER, NEVER excuse our anger". Instead of doing the application projects at the end of chapter five, I just read all the scriptures and prayed those over my family and children and self. Okay, on to chapter six. Here are some really good quotes that stood out to me in the chapter:
"The responsibilities of being a mother and of homeschooling do not allow us to have great quantities of time to ourselves. Little children require our constant supervision."
"We spend several hours of each day homeschooling. Is it too great a sacrifice for us to continue to work through hours might otherwise be considered "free" time? Are we willing to give of ourselves, in selfless investment, in the eternal futures of our children?"
It is so true! Thank you for speaking truth Teri, my flesh needs to hear it!

Application project #1. Make a list of the times you would like to have to yourself. Are the items on this list realistic? Are they reasonable? Are they part of "dying to self?"
My answer would be that I would like to have time in the morning to have coffee and pray and read my Bible. I would like to have about an hour and a half to two hours each day to lift weights and run/workout. This isn't always realistic with four boys ages 8, 7, 4 and 2:-) I can most days workout for about an hour before Zach leaves for work, somedays, weather permitting, I can run outside with my boys, which I love to do. It may not seem reasonable to most people, but it is very important to me for my family. They are definately part dying to self and part self motivated, the real key is finding that balance that doesn't rob time from my family. I am NOT a proponent of the "ME time" philosophy, I would prefer to workout with my boys because the Lord has really put it on my heart to teach the value of endurance and hard work that real sweat can give them. I belong to a gym but prefer to go in the morning before my family arises or at like 9pm after the boys lay down, but sometimes go at other times if my husband feels fine with it. I am still daily learning a good balance.
Application Project #2. Make a list of how you think your husband should help you. Commit this list to the Lord through prayer, and commit yourself to learning to be a help meet to your husband.
Well, I have been doing this since I last read this book, and really enjoy her examples in the book. We are created to be our husbands help meets, not the other way around. I guess my biggest struggle is helping with putting the boys to bed and all that good stuff. Zach is incomparable as far as "helping" with the boys, our family is his life, so I am just plain grateful everyday for him.
Application project #3. Spend time considering whether you are trying to pattern your free time after your mothers. Evaluate how your life is different from hers, and what impact that has on what you can accomplish.
You would really need to read the chapter to understand what the author is getting at here. She is talking about the mom of our generation that stayed at home, but kids went to school and they were left with several hours to clean/organize etc. Or the working moms, who could do everything. She is really speaking in regards to the fact that us moms who stay at home and HOMESCHOOL our children, which requires several hours out of our day, are we still trying to pattern our life after our mothers... I would say that I definately don't pattern my free time after my mom. I really enjoy lifting weights and running in my free time, which is something she doesn't enjoy (but she does enjoy that I enjoy it!! hehehe) However, we are alike that in our free time with like to spend time with family too. I appreciate that about my mom. She is a clean freak:-) but never gave me expectations to live up to that were not attainable. I feel like my mom has always been able to accomplish much, and has passed that on to me. She showed me to be honest and live life the way you think God wants you to live it.

So anywho, that is my chapter study!

Random Things Meme...

Okay, Karen, this goes out to you!

Rules of Engagement:
1. Link to the person who tagged you.
2. Post rules on your blog (copy and paste 1-6).
3. Write 6 random things about yourself.
4. Tag 6 people at the end of your post and link to them.
5. Let each person know they have been tagged and leave a comment on their blog.
6. Let the tagger know when your entry is up.

SIX RANDOM THINGS ABOUT KIM:

1. I graduated from college in three years with a degree in political science/business with an emphesis on international relations fully intending to go to law school and then work towards becoming a judge for probate law/family estate law, and possibly campaign managing.

2. I worked at the U.S. House of Representatives in Washington D.C. the summer of 1999 for Congresswoman Linda Smith and then subsequently was her campaign manager for Adams and Whitman counties when she ran for Senate.

3. I never want to go back and be that person who did those above two things. I am totally dependent on the Lord for who I am, and I lay down all my crowns at His feet. God did not call me to be a lawyer, he called me to be a mother. Yes, some may be both, and may be both well, but not me.

4. In my flesh, I am an extremely liberal person. However, I believe that we must "Enter through the narrow gate, for wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and few are those that find it." Matthew 7:13-14. I am in Christ, a much more conservative person (speaking in regards to myself!!)

5. My deepest passion is homeschooling my children. I am desperately pro-homeschooling. "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind." Romans 12:2 I recommend the book "When You Rise Up; A covenantal approach to homeschooling" by R.C. Sproul Jr. Just read it already!!

6. I LOVE to run. I would rather be running with Keri and praying together than just about anywhere else. We are passionate about the exact same things. God, our husbands and families, our church body, GHCC, and running with our children.

Okay, here we go:

People I am tagging:
1. Andrea
2. Holly
3. Julia
4. Shanda
5. Lisa
6. Laura

Homeschooling with a Meek and Quiet Spirit...

Hey, this week I am starting an online book study on the book "Homeschooling with a Meek and Quiet Spirit" by Teri Maxwell if anyone wants to read along. A fellow homeschooling blogger that I enjoy is doing the study on her blog www.homeschoolblogger.com/journeymomma/ the name of her blog is My Cup Runneth Over. I know that I am in need of encouragement in the homeschooling realm as we are about to embark on our fourth year (fifth including preschool) of homeschooling in the Cunningham Clan's household. Even if you don't homeschool, it is a really encouraging book for all you ladies out there... so think about it! Jesus bless you all.

Kids Bunco

Kenna and Andrea, picture perfect!

Beautiful Naomi and her new precious girl, Liberty, or "Libby" so sweet
Me and my friend Brooke that I brought with me, she is a few years younger than us, but she knows some of the ladies too. This gal is a gem, an absolute gem.

Vicki with her sweet kiddos and Tiff with her new 5month old sweet girl!
This is Shana's daughter Penelope... I am in love! Are you kidding me? She is beyond precious. Here are the kiddos in action... Andrea is laying out the ground rules for the kids. Justice and Cami are sitting at the table with her boys Mason and Ryder, my boys absolutely love them!
Andrea, Shana (and Penelope) and Danielle. They are such sweethearts.

Today I took Justice and Cami to "Kids Bunco" at the Cherokee Bay Clubhouse with a bunch of my friends from high school and their kids. The boys had an absolute blast! Andrea S. set it up, she is so creative! The kids all got goodie bags and prizes for winning just like in real bunco. I really enjoy when I get to spend time with all these precious ladies and their sweet kiddos too! I am blessed to be friends with them, they are so thoughtful to always include me and I love just seeing them. Thanks ladies for putting up with me, I am the weird homeschooling mama and they are mostly all teachers, but they tolerate me nonetheless;-) Thanks for a fun day ladies, Justice and Cami had so much fun... the only thing missing was OLIVIA!!

By the River

Today we spent the day at Kanaskat-Palmer state park playing in the Green River, it was a blast! The boys had so much fun playing in the river with Titus, Dad and Breanna. The river is pretty shallow where we went and we brought a picnic lunch with us too. Titus was going crazy in the water, splashing and shaking water over all of us. The weather was warm and sunny and it was just a great day. Now the cousins are on their way over to stay the night.

"The earth is the Lord's, and everything in it, the world and all who live in it." Psalm 24:1