It's all about family

Not Exactly What I Had in Mind

2012-01-25T08:07:00.001-06:00

The other day I gave Kiersten a writing assignment: Write about an invention you would like to make, provided you had all the space and materials you needed. Tell me how this would help people.

We’ve been working through the Industrial Age in school, particularly with regard to the United States. We had just finished a book on Thomas Alva Edison. She was quite taken with some of the inventions he came up with like the phonograph, both to play and record sound. He also invented the light bulb and what we would call movie projectors. When the end of the story mentioned a museum on the East Coast we both thought it would pretty cool if we were to travel someday to see it.

Some other inventors we’ve learned about this year and last are Eli Whitney (cotton gin and making guns with interchangeable parts), Benjamin Franklin (electricity, stoves), Robert Fullton (steamboat), Henry Ford (the assembly line)….

My thoughts were on a little deeper humanitarian level when I asked her to do this writing assignment. I have to say we were definitely not on the same page. Or were we? You be the judge.

Kiersten’s invention:

If I had certain parts, I would make an invention called the…”Let-You-Do It Inator.” (LYDI) What it is: a head piece and a remote control that looks like this:

This is how it works. The head piece goes on an adult and the kids gets the remote. When a kid wants to do something, like get two cookies or not do the dishes, the kid flips on the remote that acavates the head piece. Then the kid ask a question, “Can I have two cookies?” And the the adult says, “Yes.” So this invention makes life easer for the kids. THE END

Hmmm…I saw where she was going with this about two sentences in. Slick, real slick. I can see she has a real heart to make life better for other kids. : ) What say you?

I’m a Big Fan of Bon-Bon’s

2012-01-19T14:15:00.001-06:00

When they are this cute, how can you not be? : )

This Bon-Bon had such a fun time and reveled in the experience of being a part of the Nutcracker. She has watched from the side lines year after year. But not this year. This year she joined the ranks of many a dancer.

(Kiersten is the first Bon-Bon on the left.) We may live in a smaller town but this production has been going on for close to 30 years. The last several of which Kiersten and her daddy have gotten all fancied up for and went to watch.

This year? This year it was Mom, Dad and Grandma who got all fancied up to watch. Our eyes earnestly seeking out one little performer in particular.

That’s right, Grandma flew in just to see Kiersten in her first appearance in the Nutcracker. It was already special but Grandma’s coming made it even more so. Such a treat and a blessing that she could be here. I know Kiersten won’t easily forget this year or how special it was.

She did have one complaint about the whole thing. It was putting on make-up, in particular the mascara and eye liner bother her. I think she is fine once it is all on but the getting it on is another story. I didn’t keep count of the times she said, “Make-up is my nemesis.” (And yes, that is her exact wording. I blame it on her Dad. : ) )

I won’t hold my breath that she will still feel that way about make-up a few years down the road. Who knows though, this could be one battle I won’t have to fight! (Hope is a beautiful thing.)

In any case this Bon-Bon did a wonderful job and has made a fan out of me. Honestly they don’t get much cuter than this. Congratulations, Sweets, on an outstanding job as a Bon-Bon.

Four Generations

2012-01-07T22:54:00.001-06:00

I wanted to show you my grandma. I have to say I don’t have many pictures of her…but I remembered this one. When Kiersten was born (she is the doll face baby you see) my mom visited us and brought my grandma along. My mom really wanted to take a four generations picture and so we did.

I am thankful.

I hadn’t seen my grandma in many years but Memorial Day weekend when Ezekiel and I flew out to see my older brother graduate I got to see and hug her.

I am thankful.

This year I made it a point to call my grandma on her birthday. We didn’t talk long or say much of consequence but I heard her voice and she heard mine and I let her know I loved her.

I am thankful.

My dear grandma went to be with Jesus on Tuesday. She quietly and peacefully went into his arms and is rejoicing with all the angels and saints.

I am thankful.

My mom got to be with her during her final moments here. She really wanted to be there and she was blessed.

I am thankful.

Grandma feels no more pain.

I am thankful.

One day, when Jesus calls me home, I’ll see that sweet face once again. It makes me weep with joy. Such a gift to know. I treasure that I KNOW.

I AM SO THANKFUL.

Would You Believe…

2012-01-06T13:00:00.001-06:00

it is 11 years & 4 kids later and I am still the better looking one? : )

Happy 11th Anniversary, Beloved.

(This was taken just after the Nutcracker performance Kiersten was blessed to be a part of this year- thus all the make-up on her sweet face.)

(I couldn’t resist. Beloved and I have been joking about things this week and this is just goes right along with all that. Believe you me the man deserves every bit I dish out. I only give as good as I get! : ))

Would you pray with me?

2012-01-01T19:15:00.001-06:00

It has only been close to two weeks since my mom called to tell me my grandma has terminal cancer. She had been in a bit of pain since Thanksgiving and decided it was past time to have it checked out. Turns out her suspicions were well founded.

My grandma is rapidly declining and is in quite a bit of pain. She has loved Jesus for some time and she is ready. Would you pray with me for a sweet, peaceful homecoming for her?

Thank you so very much.

Thankful

2011-12-08T23:19:00.001-06:00

I haven’t been faithful to keep counting the blessings day to day. Working on it. I have heard how counting your blessings and in general just being intentionally thankful can change the heart and mind…and believe you me I need the change. I think I have said this a time or two before- be patient with me. Here are a few things on my list:

- little dark curls that fly everywhere when she runs & that hide her face a little when she doesn’t

- feet that are still small enough I can kiss ‘em

- a husband who doesn’t mind snuggling and sharing his warmth each night

- colds that are slowly fading away

- pink eye that seemed to skip the youngest two & husband

- the living room all aglow from lights on the tree

- the joy the kids get from doing crafts to go along with advent devotional

- how cute said ornaments/crafts look on the tree

- bright sunny days

- a little one who dances to most any music with his happy feet

- a boy who isn’t too old to ‘wrestle’ with his stuffed Hobbes tiger

- how she gets ready for dance an hour early and soon thereafter puts her coat on to go because she thinks it will come faster, she loves it so

- for other homeschool moms who encourage me with their friendship

- a picture taken months ago of the oldest and I that I just received…very precious

- the tree my mom made for us that carries on a tradition I had growing up

- neighborhoods full of color from all the lights

- how he giggles when he looks at me through the magnifying glass when I change his diaper

- how he twirls his hair when it gets long enough

- how she loves the Nutcracker and gets to be in it this year

- how she sings (Christmas carols) in the shower so loud we hear can it downstairs

- how he giggles so when watching the Charlie Brown Christmas special (original one)

- how she always snuggles in close to her daddy when she sits near him on the couch

- that we have been praying more as a family

- that she wants to pray, even if it is the same one time and again

T.R.O.U.B.L.E.

2011-11-21T15:12:00.003-06:00

This boy is Trouble- with a capitol T! Just look at that naughty grin. You know that is the look he is giving me all the while listening to me tell him, “No, no Zeke. Get off the table please.” (I’m sure it doesn’t help that Little Miss was trying to put Isaiah’s Luigi mustache on from Halloween.)

The reason this one is so much Trouble…he is quiet. Too quiet.

I wish I could tell you of all the mishaps that occur around here that I only stumble upon after the fact. Our main living area where we are gated in together is fairly compact so how I miss his escapades as they are happening in real time is only because he does his naughtiness is silence. He’s a ninja. : ) (You know like on Electric Company- “Silent E is a ninja.” Only he’s not an E, but he is silent and thus he is like a ninja.)

An example you ask? No problem. So the little monster comes by me to get a little lovin’ and I see he is soaked. His legs, his belly, his feet. Immediately I think he has been in the shower (many a time this is true). I shrug it off (it’s only taken me a dozen or more times going through this to get over being truly annoyed) and get him changed. Half an hour or so later I come upon a mess in the corner near the couch. What really happened was he had taken his daddy’s water glass, left there from the night before, and spilled it all over the floor and his graham cracker. Nice. So much better than sitting in shower water.

I’m telling you the kid is QUIET. He has definitely learned a thing or two from those who have come before him. He’s watched them (Katie) get caught in the action being all loud and stuff. Un-uh, there’ll be none of that for him thank-you-so-much.

And the bookshelf clearing? Oh, don’t get me started! It is like he romps from one side of the house to other clearing shelves. And I know you are thinking, how does he do that quietly? (I think the trick here is that there is plenty of background noise he can hide behind. Smart kid that he is, he uses it to his advantage. And my detriment.)

He’s a ninja, stealth-like and up to no good. Man, oh man I am in a real fix with #4. Just tell me- why does he have to be so cute?

Angry Pumpkins

2011-11-17T22:12:00.001-06:00

Oh, yes they were! We had us some seriously angry pumpkins this Halloween.

Every art project we have done this Fall has in some way, shape or form revolved around Angry Birds. At least for Isaiah it has. I should take a picture of a few other projects just so you know I am not lying to you.

(If you don’t know what Angry Birds is, count yourself lucky! It is addicting. We only became aware of it because of the movie Rio. The DVD came with a little card on the inside giving a code that allows you to play a free demo game on the computer. The rest is history.)

Mr. Isaiah wasn’t the only one pleased with how our efforts turned out. When Husbandry came in the house he was chuckling over the black pumpkin. That was the one that got him. Katie liked Mr. King Pig.

Several of the people who visited our house and collected candy commented on our patio decorations. Guess we aren’t the only ones to have been sucked into playing the game.

But just so you don’t think us too sad or ridiculous here are the other pumpkins that we decorated. : )

I’ll leave you to guess which artist painted which pumpkin- Katie or Kiersten? Tough call, I know. : )

Halloween 2011

2011-11-10T21:09:00.001-06:00

This one was memorable. (Aren’t they all though?) Many a story needed to be shared with Beloved once we made it home.

This year we had Luigi, a fairy and a sock hop girl.

Isn’t that mustache hilarious on Isaiah? : )

I wish I could have kept a tally of all the people we passed by who said, “Hey! It’s Luigi!” And each and every time we heard that we promptly heard a little someone pipe up, not to be missed or forgotten, “And I am a little fairy!”

That girl. I tell you, she is something else! I wasn’t the only amused at my little miss so-and so.

I can only say, in this season of battle of the wills, that she definitely keeps life interesting. There is never a dull moment with that child. Never. Did I mention there is also never a quiet moment? Ah, well I suppose that is neither here nor there.

Anyhow, back to Halloween. The cuties and I hit the streets around our neighborhood shamelessly asking for candy. I brought the wagon along – just in case. (If you didn’t know it a three year old feels the need to frequently change her mind. Said parent of certain three year old person has come to learn to be prepared. You know, just in case.)

Trick-or-treating took an interesting turn when a little boy tried to help himself to Katie’s candy as he walked by. The Dad intervened and said she wasn’t handing out candy and then moved the little boy along before a crisis of dramatic proportions broke out. The incident, however, didn’t quickly leave Katie’s mind. From then on any time we came near to another child her hand went over the top of her pumpkin basket and she gave them the stink eye, just daring them to make a move on her loot.

It wasn’t long after this she decided she was done trick-or-treating. We weren’t yet home, in truth we were only a few blocks away, but she gave it up and took residence in the wagon. The other two went up and down many a sidewalk gathering more candy. Several people noticed Little Miss sitting in her wagon but that she was making no move to come collect their candy. They inquired and I just let them know she said she was done. (Oh, she meant it.) Few people still made me come get candy for her not realizing the extent to which she sticks by her guns once she has decided the way a thing should be. Lucky them.

Another mentionable thing that happened was a boycott by the girls’ of certain houses. Some decorations were just too scary. Kiersten, my ever cautious one, refrained from a handful of so houses because she didn’t ‘feel comfortable’ going up to the door. No problem. Katie joined her sister on the curb at a few houses as well. One house Kiersten didn’t go up Katie did but as we were on our way down the steps she said, “Scary, but not cool!” (You’d have to have seen the movie Rio to know where she got that phrase from.) The timing and well use of the movie line brought a smile to my face.

What about Isaiah, you ask? Did he pass by any houses that looked scary? No, indeed he did not. He was on a mission to collect candy. He would still be on people’s porch having barely said his thank you when he would yell, “Mom! I got a (insert name of candy here).” No lie, he reported his treasure from each and every house the moment it landed in his basket. Each and every house. What a nut.

There you have it, Halloween 2011. I’ll be back in a few days to show you their pumpkins. There has been a theme to most all things art where Isaiah is concerned. Pumpkin decorating was no exception.

Love at First Sight

2011-11-04T11:06:00.001-05:00

Oh they tried, those of kids of mine, to get my Beloved and I to love these crazy cuties as much as they did!

We went to this apple orchard nearby to grab a few pumpkins and, of course, some apples. : ) What we didn’t expect to find was a whole litter of baby kittens. These fuzz balls captivated all four kids’ the moment they were spied. Just look at Isaiah’s face. (Those red cheek’s tell me we should have taken that coat off sooner, but his facial expression says, “Can we please take one of these precious kitty’s home?”)

It is a good thing we have built up an immunity to any and all cuteness related to the kids trying to get their way!

(This poor cat owed me one after I rescued it from Zeke. The cat thought to meander away from his grasp and he not so gently grabbed what he could, that little tail was a perfect candidate, and started to reel that cat back in!)

This orchard boasted several different animals, several of which were behind mesh gates. It also had a small hay bale maze-ish type area for the kids to run and jump in as well as a nice little slide. All of these great attractions and they kept coming back time and again to pet and hold the kittens.

Isaiah said, “I just can’t help myself! I have to come see the kittens again.” I finally had to order the kids away from them because other people were trying to get a little lovin’ too. : )

I wish I had been able to get a picture of all four kids but Zeke was having none of staying still. That boy wandered the area like he was in his own back forty. My but he is an active one and he loves being outside.

The kids’ had a really wonderful time, the weather was excellent and we ran into a dear family while there. The latter part being something my Beloved and I were particularly blessed by.

All-in-all it was a gem of a day. It was quite the feat but we came away sans kittens , if you were wondering. They tried, I tell you, they tried. : )

Tasty Fall Goodness

2011-11-01T22:19:00.001-05:00

The kids’ and I recently took a quick trip to visit a dear girlfriend and her young family. She had baby#2 over the summer and had moved 5 or so hours closer within the last year making her house a day trip away. : ) When I knew Beloved would be gone for just shy of a full week for work it was the perfect opportunity to go. So go we did.

We all had a wonderful time meeting sweet Sara’s family.

So the tasty Fall goodness. While at Sara’s house I noticed her Midwest Living magazine lying out on the side table. My mother-in-law also gets this magazine so I knew them to contain some good recipes. This issue was no exception. I stumbled across their gingerbread pancake recipe and knew when we got home we would have to give them a try. (I wrote the recipe out not knowing I would find it on the web. I wasn’t chancing it!)

We tend to do pancakes every now and again…a dinner that the kids’ quickly (& quietly) consume. I don’t think it has anything to do with the Ready Whip and sprinkles on top, do you?

Anyhow, this is a nice warm version of the usual pancake recipe we use (& still love). There is just something about molasses/gingerbreadish food that fits Fall. Now I know I mentioned some toppings to these but to be honest with you I eat them with no syrup cold the next morning. They are that tasty. : )

{photo credit}

How to Make Sense of Something that Makes No Sense

2011-10-28T09:00:00.000-05:00

It isn’t my way to write about things too close to home or too personal. Sure, I share about the family and the day to day goings on. Sometimes I am a bit dramatic or sarcastic depending but usually not overly serious.

It just isn’t to be today.

We, that is My Beloved I, have been struggling a bit. Some weeks ago a co-worker of Beloved’s took his own life. It is a bit of an understatement to say it came as a complete shock. So much so that one person even called the local Sheriff’s office to confirm – it was just that unbelievable.

I cannot say as I was intimately acquainted with this family. We’ve met over Christmas parties and zoo outings. Beloved spoke often to and knew this co-worker well. He’d been there before Beloved and they’ve always shared the same locker room and lunchroom. He was an excellent worker, in the words of my ‘Dree (short for Husbandree).

When I heard I instantly thought of who was left behind, his wife and their 4 children. All faces that came to mind right then and there. I saw them as if they were in my living room. My heart aches. I hurt and I cannot imagine and I struggle to make sense. I wonder what in the world? And how can we help? Can we reach out to this aching, devastated family and walk life with them? Can we love on them and let them be real?

So many emotions, thoughts and feelings. So many.

My Beloved will still say he cannot wrap his mind around what happened. It is one of those situations where you have to tell your mind and heart that short of heaven it will never make sense. You’ll never know and you’ll always wonder. There is no closure. It just hurts.

The Lord is using it to speak to each of us, to draw us closer to one another and to Him. He is using it to renew the way my mind thinks of life, the way I take for granted that I have many days on this earth. How I misuse and mistreat what time I have been given. How I am not purposeful and deliberate but careless.

It isn’t morbid thinking for I am not dwelling on thoughts of death but rather of life and living this one life well. Living full and loving much and not ending each day with so many regrets over words spoken harshly and rashly. Anger that overwhelmed what could have been done in love. The Lord has gotten my attention, opened my eyes and my heart and I am seeing my need and my weaknesses and areas that need cleaning up and handing over. I am thankful He never choses to leave us as we are but always, in love, is pushing us to wear the robe of righteousness, of Christ.

I wish it hadn’t taken this situation to knock me off my feet and really open my eyes.

Would you pray with me for this family? Would you lift them up? Would you also pray for real heart change for me too – that it wouldn’t just be words? So appreciated. Thank you.

Before and After

2011-10-27T07:57:00.001-05:00

This little man has been needing a haircut for some time. I don’t think this pictures does any justice to just how shaggy and long his locks had truly gotten. I was thinking he didn’t look half bad when I saw this picture. I guess for us when your boy wakes up with some serious scary bed hair you have passed the point of needing a hair cut and it becomes a must.

I put it off and put it off because I cut it myself and frankly the last time was a bit exasperating and exhausting. Well, I belted him into his seat to watch a movie with the other kids and figured there was no better time so I went to it. He really did well as a result of the distraction. Now he looks like my littlest biggest man. Something about taking an inch or so off makes Zeke look older. Such a cutie pa-tooty.

Nothing New Under the Sun

2011-10-19T11:45:00.001-05:00

Some things run like clock work around here. The development of an infant to a walker somewhere close to 2 weeks, give or take, of their first birthday. And then from a walker to a climber a few short months later. It just seems to be the natural progression of things around here.

I remember when Katie wrecked havoc on my days with her new found freedom. This season it is Zeke.

Like the others he is quick to get up on something. The table is his favorite haunt. He can pull himself up on the chair (not enough friction to stop his belly from sliding across the top of the chair as he pulls) and from there it is nothing to get to the table top. He sits up there like he is royalty.

I wish I could say this sitting on tables only occurred at home. He kept me on my toes at a recent visit to a friend’s house by climbing up and sitting on her table and then proceeding to throw crayons one by one! Oh dear.

It shouldn’t amaze me or catch me by surprise, how they have each gone through this stage, and yet it still does. Maybe it is a form of hope? A crazy denial of what is sure to come? A sanity saver so the child does indeed make it to and past this certain stage? I cannot safely say anything other than he is quick and I am slow. Oh, too slow Joe! (Let’s not keep track of the number of times he has successfully made it to the top of the table, okay?)

What in the World

2011-10-13T08:25:00.001-05:00

I must know for fear of being locking into a rubber room if someone doesn’t share. What in the world possesses a child to wipe their nose excrement on my walls?!! I mean is the three more feet (probably an over estimate) to the toilet paper roll in the bathroom like crossing the Sahara?!!

And why do all children have this issue? It doesn’t seem to be regulated to just boys or just girls. (I know this for a fact!)

If this were only the first time I have discovered a little person using my walls as their personal hankie. It wasn’t the first time but I think it has to be the most disgusting. (Thus far. There are still two younger’s being groomed in the wings.)

Said offender spent many a minute using baby wipes and the blessing of God given nails to get that most offensive of messes off my wall. I find between those two things small offending children do not render the use of my scrubbing talents to assist in clean-up.

Deep breath, deep breath. The wall is cleaned. Children have been warned…again. No need to go off the deep end. This incident has passed and we’ll hope we won’t (knowing realistically we will) find this kind of mess again.

Until next time dear friends! Until next time.

These Shoes

2011-10-11T09:02:00.001-05:00

Oh they don’t look like much, these shoes. They have been walked in for many a mile, baby miles that is. I bought this pair of shoes for Kiersten when she was just a sprite. I had the intention when buying them that they could be worn by any future sibling. They have worked their way down from the first child to the second to the third and now they are worn by the littlest member of our family.

It took some convincing that he should try them on because he was used to those soft brown shoes handed down from Isaiah. Those were so comfy and these are a bit more restrictive.

He did his little ‘German’ walk, as we call it, the first few times I put them on. One foot would go up and knee locked come back down. He would also bend down to touch those new-to-him shoes. He just didn’t seem sure about them. So funny to watch.

I find it is a bit harder these days to not be a little nostalgic about some of the small things. I’ll miss these sweet shoes and all things baby. It has been a blessing to have been able to use so many things four times. What a smile it brings to my face to remember that she used or wore that thing, then he did, then she did and lastly now he does.

Bee Accepted

2011-10-04T22:00:00.001-05:00

This story, Bee Accepted, within A Hive of Busy Bees by Effie Williams, is truly one of love. (I promised I would share after the last post didn’t I?) The first part of this story is about the love of a shepherd whose very job is to watch over and protect his flock. He takes them out to pasture but returns each evening to put them in a pen, the fold. As the shepherd reaches the pen he counts each sheep as it passes the gate, making sure he has each and every one.

Now I said gate, but the beauty is there was no gate on this pen that the shepherd put his sheep into. At night he would lie down in the opening of the pen acting as a living gate. That way he would know if anything came in or went out. He was their protector and provider and they heeded his voice.

The person telling this portion says wouldn’t it be nice to own the verse, “The Lord is MY shepherd”? Wouldn’t it be nice to be within the loving protection of the fold of the Lord, to be His sheep and He your shepherd? The invitation goes out so eloquently to bee accepted into God’s family.

The second part of this story begins with some men driving past a farm and noticing the sheep out in the meadow. One sheep looked a little off, like his coat was actually sewn on. Upon arriving at the farm they inquire of the farmer about the sheep. He tells them a mother sheep lost her baby and a baby lamb lost its mother. The farmer sees one and one and thinks why not make two? He puts the lost baby with the grieving mother to see if she will take it as her own. She goes near the little lamb and then starts to buck and kick. Before serious damage is done to the baby the farmer takes the lamb out of the pen. He puts the mother back in the pen with her little dead lamb and finds she calms down immediately. He figures she knows her baby by its smell. Getting desperate to make this situation work and to save the living baby lamb he decides to take the coat off the dead lamb and put it around the living one. Once the coat was tied on he reintroduced the little lamb and the grieving mother. She came near again and found that what she smelled was familiar and so she began to nurse the lamb. She accepted the little lamb as her own.

As the family talks over this story it becomes this beautiful depiction of the Lord and his love for us, his lost sheep. How when He looks at us and sees us, sin and all, we just aren’t acceptable to him. However when we choose Jesus, when we are welcomed into the fold of God, we are given a new coat, a new skin, the cloak of Christ. From then on when the Father looks at us he sees the cloak of His Son and we are accepted.

My retelling just cannot do this chapter justice. Such a sweet, sweet message of the love of a Father and the lengths He went to so that we wouldn’t have to be lost but rather accepted as members of His fold.

Character

2011-09-30T20:23:00.001-05:00

I find it interesting that when this is a theme I pick out to develop a little in my children it speaks most to me. We have been reading A Hive of Busy Bees by Effie Williams for several weeks (read online for free).

Each story is centered around a character trait. We recently read Bee Careful. It was about being careful with your words. This has been an area in which I greatly struggle. Sad as it is to say I struggle the most in my words towards the kids’.

In the story the father was trying to get his daughter to have a better feel for the impact of her words so she wouldn’t use them so carelessly. I tend to be a visual person so this example struck a cord with me. He had her pick up a white dandelion and blow as hard as she could. Then he told her he would wait patiently while she went forth and picked up each of the pieces of the dandelion that had blown away. The daughter thought for sure he was kidding for that was an impossible task. He then told her that is how she needs to think of the words that leave her mouth…they carry further then you mean them to and there is no getting them back. Indeed.

The other part of this story had to do with a knot that was put in a baby tree. Once the knot was discovered it was a year later and too late to undo it. The family then called it their learning tree because they were reminded by looking at it that once some things are done there is no undoing them. The impact of that action lasts, regardless of apologies made and forgiveness received.

I should have known better, because isn’t it always the way when you pick something out as a weakness in someone else the mirror comes out and low and behold the weakness is really yours?

(For whatever reason on the free online download versions there are some stories missing and Bee Careful is one of them. Another is Bee Accepted…all about the cross. I’ll write more about that another day because it is a beautiful story.)

A Rare Gem

2011-09-27T13:07:00.001-05:00

I find when I do searches I am overwhelmed with all there is to choose from. I tried to find a decent typing program for the kids at the end of last year (for free, of course). I did find something but it was along the lines of I-don’t-have-time-to-look-too-long-or-hard-right-now-so-this-will-just-have-to-do. Nothing against this program, it did just fine. The only issue was it didn’t spark an interest in typing, made it more chore than fun.

Knowing how important it can be to make something fun and how they’ll run after it all the more if they like it I searched again. I am thankful I did for this time I stumbled upon this site.

It also seemed even more than appropriate since a couple of dear friends of ours are from that land across the Atlantic. Who knew?

Since we bookmarked this site I get asked if they can type and believe it or not I have to put the timer on to make them get off! This is what I call a gem of a find. : )

Now if I could just channel the enthusiasm they now for have for typing to a few other areas of school time I would be set!

{photo credit}

Wonder-filled

2011-09-16T12:46:00.001-05:00

We were full of wonder when we hit the special exhibit at the zoo this year. It was an exhibit filled with different kinds of butterflies.

The exhibit itself wasn’t all that large but it touched a special spot in the hearts and minds of my children. Ever since we found that caterpillar on the swing set a year or so ago and watched it form its chrysalis and hatch they have been hooked.

This exhibit had all these gloriously beautiful butterflies flitting to and fro landing on us and on the surrounding foliage. Isaiah was more than a little tickled when I had him take off his hat and he discovered this beauty had landed on him. From that moment on he kept trying to get butterflies to land on his hand or arm.

It is just amazing the amount of detail God puts on these creatures. And the colors! All creation does indeed testify of the glory of God, no? : )

We were on the hunt this summer for a caterpillar to bring home. We found a few small, and I mean teeny tiny, monarch caterpillars up at the cabin. They were so very small we weren’t sure if we would lose them on the drive home so we left them. I must say I regret that decision a bit, but oh well.

Even with eyes peeled and some intentional stops along areas full of milkweed, we didn’t score another caterpillar find the whole summer long. Thankfully we were blessed to be able to enjoy this beautiful display in a season of no caterpillars to call our own.

Indeed, we were wonder-filled at all we saw and touched and that was just as it should be!

A Boy Thing?

2011-09-12T21:25:00.001-05:00

This sleeping in crazy positions…is it a boy thing?

I’ve seen the girls’ sleep in dramatic positions (arm flung over the head as if in distress) but nothing fancy like these boys’! Aren’t they sweet when they sleep?

He Comes By It Honestly

2011-09-09T23:23:00.001-05:00

If I could count all the number of times I saw my Grandpa, my mom’s dad, in this very position through the years you wouldn’t believe me.

My Grandma tells the story about the time my Grandpa declared he was going to take a nap and one of my younger cousins piped up, “We’ll go get your book for you, Grandpa!”

All of us, my cousins and I, have seen him snooze in this position. You see their room in the cabin up north is a ranch. It is on the end, the corner. It isn’t large but it is lined with windows. The front windows have you looking right at their bed not 3 feet away. It is a bird’s eye view of Grandpa when he naps. : ) He doesn’t get away with much!

Not only would he fall asleep with a book in his hands, where it would stay in perfect position the whole nap through, but he would always tell us, “I was just checking my eyelids for pinholes.” (I am quoting word for word here.) It is a running family joke now since we’re all older and we all know better. But that Grandpa, he can sure spin a yarn when he wants to!

Time will tell if how much more Isaiah comes by honestly, but this sleeping with the book propped open? Priceless.

Nine

2011-09-02T14:40:00.001-05:00

Another year gone by, another year older. Kiersten celebrated her ninth birthday a few weeks ago. It seemed it bit spread out, the celebrating that is. We had a family birthday party shared between her and my nephew the weekend after her birthday and then a week after that we let her invite some friends over for a party.

The afternoon of the friends party did not turn out at all as I had envisioned it would, but that ended up being okay. Thankfully the girls’ had fun and Kiersten was extremely gracious about what we talked about doing and what actually got done. I lack so much in the organizational, planning areas.

The party consisted of 3 sisters, who also homeschool and one of which danced with Kiersten this year, and then another girl who also danced with Kiersten. There weren’t any awkward moments but rather lots of laughter. I won’t repeat any of the nine year old jokes I heard that evening so as to spare you and keep us as friends. : ) (Let’s just say bowel movements figured in heavily and leave it at that shall we? They are young, what can I say?)

I did manage to put together a scavenger hunt for them. I had to slow down Isaiah (Yes, he joined the festivities although he wasn’t entirely welcome.) because he knew where things were once the clue was solved. The kids were also racing ahead and leaving some behind. (Drat that child gate before the stairs!) The scavenger hunt was such a hit with my two that they have been begging me to put another one together for them to do with instructions to make finding the clues a little more difficult! Who knew?

We fed them all some dinner and capped off the night with a visit to a local ice cream parlor. One of the girls ordered and ate almost an entire banana split! Amazing. After that the family mobile taxied all the girls’ to their respective homes.

This doing a party for non-family members was a first for all of us and from what Kiersten says a success. For that I am very thankful and she was very happy. A win-win.

Endearing

2011-08-30T08:53:00.001-05:00

Her pronunciation, or rather mispronunciation, of words is so precious. Today it was, “Mom, I have a beaver. Take my temperture.”

“You mean you have a fever?”

“Yeah, like Zeke.”

I am especially naughty when these cute little mispronunciations come about. I ask or prompt her in some way to get her to say that sweet sounding word again and again. It brings such a smile to my face and warms my heart. I love this about her, her way with words.

Some others are, “Can I watch that on that ba-cute-er?”

“You mean the computer?” : )

It is a gum-brella instead of an umbrella.

She says back-set instead of basket.

It comes out, “No, I did-dent.” (Which my husband can mimic far better than I can!)

She called a sweet friend of hers ‘Farris’ which was rather a mystery to me because her name is Kharis and she could say Katie, Kiersten and Miss Kate. So why the K couldn’t not be included at the start of Kharis’ name baffled me. (This is no longer an issue. Whew! I didn’t want wee Kharis to get a complex.)

I suppose if I were honest it isn’t just the way she mispronounces or rather changes words it is the way she says them. I don’t think it could quite be said she has an accent but there is something to that thought. She says ‘girl’ and it sounds like guirl. Written words cannot to justice to the speak and sound of a 3 year old but just know it is precious, oh so precious.

A Note of Apology

2011-08-23T14:09:00.001-05:00

It’s her birthday and I’m watching her start to write a letter just after breakfast.

“Who’s Christina?” I ask.

“Oh, she’s this girl in my VBS class.”

“Why are you apologizing to her?”

“Well…we were getting ready to play this game and she said, ‘I’m picking Tommy to be on my team because I don’t like you.’ “

“So why are you apologizing? Did you say something mean to her? Did you accidentally push her?”

All these questions and more I ask knowing what the answer will be.

“No,” she replies.

“What do you have to apologize for? I don’t understand.”

And yet I do and my heart hurts for her. My girlie is wanting to apologize because Christina doesn’t like her and she doesn’t know why. She figures it must be her fault.

How do I explain to one so young that kids’ can be mean? (Adults are no exception to this rule, but you know the saying.) How do I tell her that she probably did nothing really for this girl to decide to not like her since they had been together all of 6 hours over a span of two days and had never set eyes on one another before VBS began? How do you explain not everyone will like you no matter how nice you are to them?

But her feelings are hurt and she doesn’t understand what she did wrong. I understand (Seventh grade, need I say more?) and I feel for her, I just don’t know what to say.

I suppose I should have let her finish writing her note- but I don’t. My mama pride and a little bit of anger well up in me so I tell her, “I am not seeing anything you should apologize for so why don’t you just stop?” (When will I ever learn it isn’t about me?)

In truth it might have made her heart feel all the better if she had been able to write and deliver that note. Oh, she might have been rejected again by Christina but then again she might not have. All I know is she would not be left to wonder what she did because she would know that she did her best and tried to be a good friend.

I regret I didn’t let her finish and I am even sorrier she thinks there might be something wrong or unlovable about her that makes someone decide they don’t want to be her friend. But can I say there’s nothing wrong with you, it’s her? I can not. So I’m stuck.

She is a little late to this game, at age 9, since we homeschool. She would have been inducted long ago into this friendship game, if she attended school. She already would have known kids’ will be mean and people can choose to not like you just because. Just because.

Awk, now it’s me who is needing to apologize. Such a bud-in-ski I have been. I’ll be telling her how I love her and tossing in some truths about how much the Lord loves her. About how that love is never changing, always constant, always strong, never failing- the REAL truth about how she is loved and liked.

Summer Reading

2011-08-16T16:25:00.001-05:00

I read the whole Mitford Series by Jan Karon. It is just a wonderful set of books about an older man of the cloth and his everyday life lived in small town America. Nothing flashy or highly romantic to speak of and it isn’t needed. You’ll know what I mean if you decide to pick up the first novel. : )

The thing I most appreciated about the books was although these are a popular main stream series, having won New York Bestseller status, Ms. Karon clearly and deliberating talks of Jesus and a relationship with him. There are several scenes within the books where people pray to receive Christ into their hearts.

It is hard to encompass the whole 9 book series in a brief synopsis. I’ll just highlight three big quotes that really got me.

When talking with a person who attended a Christian church of a different denomination whom he had invited to his church the person replied, “I don’ know nothin’ about nothin’ but Baptists. I guess th’ rest is all pretty different.”

Here’s the part that got me, the reply of this man of the cloth.

“The key is a relationship with Jesus Christ. If we get that right, the differences usually matter less than we like to think.”

Wow. Can I get an Amen?

Another phrase this man often said throughout the series-

“Every saint has a past and every sinner has a future.”

Lastly he would mention the ‘prayer that never fails’.

“Thy will be done.”

It is nice when a book preaches to you! I took some notes and the Lord spoke to me on a few of my own ‘issues’. I’ll not bore you with details. I’ll just suffice it to say this series is well worth the read if you have the time and you enjoy fiction.

(The first two quotes were taken from Light From Heaven, book 9. That last quote was spread throughout several of the books.)

I am currently reading Little Pilgrim’s Progress. I was reading it because someone recommended reading it to the kids’. (I like to read some books first before sharing with the kids. They haven’t heard any of it yet.) I don’t think it is so much for the kids’ as it is for me! Straight to the heart, I’ll say that much. More later.

Hope your summer included a few good reads. Any you want to mention?

Why Didn't They?

2011-08-08T09:32:00.000-05:00

Honestly, I am wondering why in the world the lady at the front desk didn't. And then the lady and several gentlemen I saw when I was wondering Walmart at 5:15 a.m. didn't. I mean where is the decency in letting a person walk around looking like that?!

We have been out and about the country driving hither and yon to get to see some grandparents and other family members of mine. The first night in the hotel I put some toothpaste on my face, just a little dab mind you, to help with an area that was showing the makings of a zit. (I do this often since I don't use a mask or anything such thing.)

Anyhow, when Zeke woke up the next morning at the crack of 5 a.m. I scuttled us out the door quickly so as not to wake the other kids' in order to avoid us having a serious cry-fest on our hands later in the day. I had forgotten Kiersten's toothbrush, and while the hotel one was lovely, I needed to get one for her. So away we went to Walmart.

We walked out the lobby, chatting all the while with the lady behind the counter. Walked into Walmart saying 'hi' and 'good morning' to those we saw diligently stocking the shelves. We were still wandering the store when I reached up and touched my face only to make contact with the offending toothpaste spot!

How could all those nice people let me walk around like that and not say anything?!!! Sweet humility. I turned my own shade of scarlet in the aisle, rubbed off what was there and made a hasty retreat out of the store.

The saving grace? I wasn't home, I didn't see anyone I know and we aren't stopping there on our way home!

It Happens Whenever…

2011-07-20T13:18:00.001-05:00

we leave home. There must be something lacking in the water at home, I tell you, because BIG things change when we leave here.

There was the time we took a trip to Vermont a few weeks shy of Kiersten’s first birthday and she walked. (It might have had a little something to do with the fact 2 boxer dogs were running to and fro and if she didn’t get a move on she was going to get squished!)

Then there was the time we took a trip out of Colorado when Isaiah was just over 2 years old and lost his binks (a.k.a pacifier) at the hotel. He didn’t even know he was missing it. When we got home we did a quick search and threw away any remaining ones. Out of site out of mind, as they say. : )

When we were out and about in North Carolina before Katie turned one she took a few steps and was walking in no time once we returned home.

Zeke, not one to be left out, has followed suite after his siblings. We took a trip up North to see my Grandparents. Prior to leaving he had managed to take 2 steps in succession a time or two. Once we were there however he managed to get a grip on his sea legs and make some progress. He crossed rooms and was able to get himself up off the floor to standing without any aid from furniture or unsuspecting nearby legs.

He’s a champ. : )

You can see for yourself his unsteady, cowboy looking strut.

Zeke Walks from Jess on Vimeo.

This is the beginning of the end of all things baby in the house. (And I can cry if I want to!)

June was…

2011-07-19T08:39:00.001-05:00

a bit crazy. There was the week long dance marathon. We had my mom’s, my dad’s and Katie’s birthday (Grandpa’s is in there too!). Then there was Father’s Day…to celebrate for 3 set’s of Dads’. A family birthday party for Katie. A joint birthday party for Katie and Ezekiel celebrated with a few more family members. We also wrapped up our school year and began swim lessons!

Oh, did I mention all this happened within a span of 14 or so days?

The month felt a bit like a whirl wind with me always 2 steps behind. A planner I am not. A good organized person? Not so much.

Needless to say from the aforementioned activities there was much cake consumption in the month of June (and early July).

As always we have a immediate family only celebration on the actual day of birth. This is usually when the homemade cake is enjoyed.

And how could you not let the littlest man have his own taste?

He was as quiet as a church mouse and busy as a bee. : ) What can I say? The frosting was killer!

We had another party a few days later celebrating with some additional family members and some friends for both Katie and Ezekiel’s birthday’s. Their birthday’s are just about 2 weeks apart and it is hard to get everyone together twice in that short of a time. So rather than have one left out we made a two-for-one party! : ) (Saved me a second sad attempt at getting the house picked up and clean. I still haven’t dusted!!!)

For the bigger party Katie picked out this cake. : ) What a nut.

We grabbed some cupcakes for Zeke and put a lone candle on it. One year old…(almost here)

Good times and a whirlwind of a month. My how the summer flies. I long for it to slow down a little sometimes, this time away from school, but it seems to go all the faster. Well, we will do our best to enjoy the time we have and not lament that things go all too fast! : )

Wow! I never thought…

2011-07-13T10:45:00.001-05:00

I’d live to see the day when I could say:

- that we had a caterpillar that escaped. He was on the tiny side but Kiersten really, really wanted to bring him home. We did. He must have watched some PBS special on famous jail break-outs or some such nonsense because that little bugger disappeared from the cage never to be seen again. We’re keeping our eyes peeled to find another friend.

-I laughed when one of my children thanked me for being mean to them!

Katie has been going through an especially ornery stage. She’ll say she would like something, be it a specific set of clothing to wear or a snack- that kind of thing, I’ll agree and then she’ll immediately yell she doesn’t want what she just said she did.

It is an exhausting and frustrating game to say the least.

Here is how it played out the other day.

“Mom, I want to wear my princess shirt and skirt.”

“Sure, no problem. I’ll just run up and get it.”

“No! I want to get it.”

“Katie, I’ll just run up quick and get it. We need to get going soon.” (She can’t go upstairs on her own just now because the gate is blocking the stairs.)

Up I went while she protested at the bottom of the stairs. When I got back downstairs with said clothing she picked out she threw a grandiose fit.

“Fine. You can go back up and pick what you want to wear but I am not helping you get dressed. You’ll have to do it on your own.”

I put her over the gate. Up she went and then came back down with clothes. I lifted her back over the gate and just reminded her, “You are on your own. I will not help you.” (She cannot get a shirt off over her head on her own.")

Well, Kiersten helped her. Once she was dressed she walked over to me where I was changing Zeke’s diaper. Looked me square in the eye and said, “Mom, thanks for being mean to me.”

Oh dear, how do giggles just work their way up and out without permission?

Needless to say said aggravation waned a little as it gave way to laughter.

I just never thought I’d live to see the day I would laugh when one of my kids would point blank tell me I am mean. I’m sure it had a bit to do with a lack of sarcasm and the earnest way it was delivered. Dang it all- the Lord surely has made that child cute for a very good reason!

Singing in the Rain

2011-07-06T14:50:00.001-05:00

Alright, so they weren’t singing in the rain. They were playing in the rain.

We had a rare nice rain the other day. It was the straight down kind. No wind blowing and no lightening. The ideal Spring rain to go play in, if you are the type who is inclined to play in rain. (Me? Not so much. I’ve gotten to be an old fuddy duddy!)

The neighbor’s boys were outside and Kiersten made a comment to the effect they were lucky getting to play out in the rain. I simply told her if she wanted to play in the rain too, get out there. Oh, her face! The shock, disbelief…a display of emotions all of which said she wasn’t buying what I wasn’t even trying to sell.

‘You’re kidding!” she said. (This is a catch phrase for her. We hear it often.)

“Certainly not,” I replied. “If you want to go play out in the rain, go on out.”

“We need our swimsuits.” (She is seeing other neighbor kids join the fray and they have their swimsuits on.)

“Not necessary. Just head on outside and play in the rain.”

She, Isaiah and the Katie girl made their way outside to the front where a may lay of children had congregated and were enjoying themselves. There was dancing, puddle splashing, umbrellas (or as Katie says – gumbrellas) appearing and much chit chatting.

There was also this one watching from the inside. It isn’t all its cracked up to be being the youngest sometimes. Awk. His time will come. He just needs to wait his turn! : )

The Power Source

2011-07-01T10:23:00.001-05:00

“Mom! Zeke unplugged the computer!”

(This is big going’s on since Isaiah loves to play his Jump Start World. Interrupting or rather disrupting his time? A big no, no.)

“K, I’m coming.”

“The cord is wrapped around his leg. He’s stuck.”

“He sure is.”

“Mom, the screen got all dark.”

“I know Honey, that’s because it isn’t plugged in to the power source.”

Well, well. There it is. You are walking a bit in the dark because you aren’t plugged in to THE power source. Uhmm hmmm. I hear it, Lord. Preach it to me.

Prima Ballerina

2011-06-26T22:44:00.001-05:00

This first year of ballet in addition to tap did wonders for Kiersten. She loved it. I think it made her feel like quite the little lady! : )

Well, with this first year comes the first time performing ballet at the recital. She did two numbers for ballet. There was the Bouquet Dance which was performed before the intermission. (Oh, an intermission is required when said recital is 4 hours long!)

I think it is the bun that adds some years to her…because she doesn’t look little when her hair is all done up in a grown-up fashion. I can give thanks now for this ritual of bun making we did each Friday before class. All that practice made doing her hair for the recital a cinch!

These are some of her ballet classmates- a slightly different bunch then her tap class.

You’ll find Kiersten on the back left next to the young gentleman. Enjoy!

The Bouquet Dance from Jess on Vimeo.

The second ballet number of the evening fell just a few dances shy of the closing number. This meant dancing at around 10:30 p.m. The first night this didn’t pose too much of an issue, the adrenaline was rushing and she was excited. (Did I mention we got home at 11:15 that night?) The second night, however, you could see the tiredness in those small bodies. As you watch the video you’ll actually see her stumble a little. As I was watching I thought she might have twisted her ankle. She recovered nicely and I was happy to see she was only tired, not hurt.

These costumes were definitely more foo-fooey…more ballet style, if you will. Her partner in the dance came up to her and went, “Poof!” while jumping just in front of her making her own skirt fly up. The kind of thing you can only do in an outfit such as this. It was hilarious and gave us a good laugh.

Kiersten is standing next to her partner for this dance…the “Poof!” girl : )

I know these clips don’t do any sort of justice to what is it like to see her in person but I couldn’t let all her hard work this year go unshared. Here she is ladies and gentlemen…Miss Kiersten Girl in Spoon Full of Sugar! (Cue loud voice on speakers and envision the red curtain parting…)

Spoon Full of Sugar from Jess on Vimeo.

Dance, Dance, Dance

2011-06-22T07:23:00.001-05:00

Dance is what consumed one of our weeks recently. Kiersten has an all class dance recital once a year. It is a bit to do. I don’t know how else to put it. On Monday there was practice, Tuesday a dress rehearsal of a full run through of the show and then Wednesday and Thursday the actual recital.

Just to give you a feel for this recital it ran from 7 until 11 both nights.

Kiersten took everything in stride and was quite the beauty. Her hair done up, costume and shoes on she was ready to go.

The first day of practice she leaned over to me and said, “Mom, I don’t really get stage fright anymore. That’s a good thing, right?”

“Indeed it is,” I replied.

This is our 3rd year in dance and our second big recital participation. Each year it is the same stage, same building, same dressing room, same side of the stage she enters, same…well, you get the point. All this has helped her feel at home and for that I am thankful.

Well, without further ado this is Kiersten ready to do the Polka.

These are most of the girls (sans 2 boys) that join her in tap class.

I’ll leave you with a view of the action. Kiersten is center of the screen for the most part. I tried to focus in a bit on her but you’ll see my videography skills leave a bit to be desired. I will say this video is better then a few of the ones to follow. It was a day of practice and I was able to be up close to the stage. : )

Polka from Jess on Vimeo.

“Look, Mom! No…..

2011-06-08T21:25:00.001-05:00

training wheels!”

No training wheels! from Jess on Vimeo.

Isaiah recently mastered the fine art of riding a bicycle on two wheels instead of four. It was only a matter of time but trying to convince your children that this change is good when it hurts a little takes some time. : )

We had been battling some rather unruly training wheels – they didn’t stay on the way they should. They would turn upwards with a little pressure from tilting too much and Isaiah was more than bothered by this. Trouble was you would have to ‘right’ the training wheels every so many feet. This got to be a bit much and my Beloved just told him no more and took the training wheels off.

I think it took Isaiah all of 2 or 3 days to learn. He was so funny about it though. I was out there with him a day or so after my Beloved had taken the wheels off and run behind holding the seat. I did the same only I let go before we were even halfway down the driveway and he went on his own pretty well (excluding the looking back over his shoulder at me part).

He went a few feet, had to put his feet down. We tried again. He was getting frustrated after going a little farther on his own. He said to me, “But Mom, I am not balancing!”

That made me chuckle. Had to tell him that was exactly what he was doing when I let go. Him riding without me holding him upright by the seat is him balancing. No balancing means no bike riding. He was so upset about not balancing. : )

As you can see he has mastered the fine art of riding on two wheels and is quite happy with himself. Now he is just like his big sister!!! Competition, sweet competition.

What is it…

2011-05-23T21:48:00.001-05:00

about the dishwasher that attracts all little people like magnets? Especially those who crawl?

Each one of my kids has climbed on/in the dishwasher. Zeke is at the stage where when he sees it is open he speeds up the crawl to get to it. He likes to fiddle faddle with the silverware (dirty or clean- he’s not picky) and get up on it.

Case in point.

You should see how he gets that little knee up on the edge. He is quick I tell you, quick.

We’ll have to curb this little habit soon as I am confident he does not have enough is his piggy bank to cover the cost of a new dishwasher! : )

The funny thing is I know my mom has pictures of me when I was little doing the very same thing on my grandparents dishwasher! (At least if memory serves me right she does…but I am losing my touch so I could be wrong!)

El Destructo

2011-05-16T11:47:00.001-05:00

At a certain age we have called all our children this simply for the fact when you look where they have been it looks like the path of a tornado. : )

They take out everything of interest as well as tear down anything that is built. It is mass destruction- thus Zeke is now El Destructo (not that some of his older siblings are much better).

Here you can see how the older two were playing a game of Life. Then Zeke ambled along and well….

It is rather difficult to play when the wheel is ‘no longer in service!’

Fortunately for him he is still little and cute.

Just look at that face- doesn’t that spell trouble to you?

Zeke is getting to be such the biggest, littlest man. He crawls all over the place with a love for the two bookshelves and the bathroom. He uses the rocker (a glimpse of it there in the background) as a walker. He is getting bolder in letting go of furniture and taking a few minutes to stand on his own. He has figured out how to scale the stairs and can do so in just about 60 seconds.

He is still sporting only his two bottom teeth – definitely making him the slowest teether of the four. Zeke has been introduced to dear old Sippy cup, but he hasn’t yet figured out how to use it. He loves graham crackers and crackers in general. He also prefers his feet to be bare, giggling whenever I remove socks. Oh, and he has had TWO haircuts thus far in his 10 month life. I cannot say that for any of the previous three.

Not sure how I moved from him being a destructor to an overall report on him! It had to be looking at the sweet pictures (taken several weeks ago already) and thinking on all that he can do and all that has changed. He is such a sweetie boy- although that picture of his naughty face reminds me a little too much of his closest sister! (Worried, definitely worried.)

Too Precious

2011-05-10T07:42:00.005-05:00

There are times when having your children in outside activities feels like a chore. The running here and there. The waiting while they do ‘their thing’.

There is nothing about taking Isaiah to soccer or watching him play that feels remotely like a chore.It is a joy. Both my Beloved and I agree it is a precious hour well spent on a Saturday morning. He is in his element that is for sure. I am so thankful we signed him up.

Here he is (the one with the colorful hat on) in the group of 6 or 7 other kids on his team. They don’t meet any other time but Saturday. For his age group they practice for the first half hour and then the second half hour is a ‘game’ or scrimmage. As with all young, or pee-wee, sports the game is a heard of children running to and fro close to the ball. No strategy or passing- just running and kicking with a little hand-to-ball contact now and again. (They are still learning, after all! : ) )

I took a little video clip of him during practice. I tell you he is too cute! I think I smiled during the whole hour watching him. I was just mesmerized by how much he enjoyed playing. He doesn’t run all out but does his gallop/skip run thing in between, smiles most the whole time and lets his lefty side come out. (He writes right handed but throws and kicks left handed.)

Watch his sweet face closely. I get such a kick out of the prep for his kick to the goal.

Soccer from Jess on Vimeo.

I am not sure if soccer will always be in our future (since the kids are allowed to pursue only one outside activity at a time) but we are fully enjoying the here and now of it! Saturday morning, a cup of coffee and watching Isaiah play soccer…priceless.

Fit for the Queen

2011-04-27T22:52:00.001-05:00

The long awaited tea set has made it to our house. Oh, I am sure you didn’t know it was long awaited, but it was. It was supposed to be a Christmas gift for Kiersten and in fact I ordered it the first week in December on Amazon. They gave me the heads up it was backordered and would be a few weeks. (It was on sale.)

Long story short the 3rd week in February (yeah, you read that right) they cancelled the order. However I could immediately go on to Amazon and order it for the non-sale price and have it shipped a.s.a.p. (Rethinking Amazon for future purchases.)

Anyhow, the tea set. (Oh dear, sorry for getting off topic there!) I thought I would introduce you to it since it is so cute and is indeed fit to serve her majesty, the Queen. This isn’t the original tea set I ordered but rather one Kiersten herself picked out from a little shop here in town.

Now we haven’t as yet served tea in the tea set because Kiersten isn’t fond of tea. However, she is very fond of hot chocolate. So there you go. Hot chocolate it is! : )

The serving plate we grabbed at Goodwill. We needed a little something to set this fine china on. (Ok, you got me, it is porcelain not china. Sheesh! : ) )

It has come out on a few occasions after the older two had spent some time out in the snow (We got it back in March). Kiersten has generously allowed both her younger two siblings to share in the joy of having a spot o’ chocolate served in dainty dishware. Isaiah likes ‘tea parties’. I suspect is has everything to do with those little colored marshmallows you see above. (What they say about men is true for boys as well: The way to a boy’s heart is through his stomach!) : )

I am hoping to set up some regular times for just the girly and I to take our hot chocolate together (minus the other troublesome troublers). That is the intention – mother/daughter time with a dash of chocolate thrown in. And the Queen? Well…. we’ll think about inviting her over some other time!

Six

2011-04-21T22:50:00.001-05:00

I have two littlest men. A biggest, littlest man and just a littlest man. My biggest, littlest man (Isaiah) recently turned six. I love how he is getting big, or rather growing up, and yet isn’t growing up too fast. He still has a lot of little boy in him yet. : )

Things to note:

- His eyelashes are the longest of any of our children. They add a little something special to those sweet eyes.

- He has the most precious giggle, and I do mean giggle! Other children laugh, he giggles. Makes me smile just thinking about how it sounds.

- He has more energy and bounciness than ought to be right for any one child.

- His love for cars has not waned. Hot Wheels are still the in thing and color changers (cars that change different colors in warm and cold water) are tops just now.

- He has discovered and fallen in love with Calvin and Hobbes comics. His first nickname is ‘Calvin’ and his second….’Stupendous Man’.

- He has a faithful companion in his tiger, Hobbes. For a child who never had any use for stuffed animals of any sort it is cute to have him buckle Hobbes in the car, sleep with him, wrestle with him (because as I was told, “You know Mom, Hobbes isn’t real? Except for when he’s with just me?” He gets the whole Hobbes thing.) and then tell me Hobbes needs a bath too (a.k.a “Please put Hobbes in the washer?”).

- He still loves his big sister and thinks she is the coolest. He even made no fuss when she wanted to have a paper hat just like he and Hobbes. (You’d have to have a Calvin and Hobbes comic book handy to know Isaiah is wearing his in just the same fashion as Calvin. : ))

- He also loves his little sister. I suspect that has a bit to do with the fact that she is an action player. She runs around the house with him, hangs upside down off the furniture with him, jumps from things they both know they shouldn’t with him and in general gets crazy with him –which he likes and appreciates about her.

- He likes and enjoys his man time, his Dad and Isaiah time. I find that precious.

My biggest, littlest man won’t carry that littlest title around much longer. For now though? I’ll love and cherish all things 6 and still a tiny bit little about my Isaiah boy.

Face Painting

2011-04-07T22:15:00.004-05:00

I would have to say Zeke ranks up there with messy eaters. Oh, they’ve all had their moments, I mean what baby is a neat and tidy eater?

This is Zeke doing a little touch up on himself.

Face painting ah natural!

I would like to say this was an isolated incident, but well….

I would be lying! : )

If only he didn't look so cute (and happy) doing it!

I will say those dimples make me want to smother him with kisses….but that will have to wait until I wipe him up!

Two Cute

2011-03-30T23:21:00.000-05:00

A little over a month ago my Mom and her Beloved came to visit us. When she comes the older two tend to spend a few nights away with Grandpa and Grandma at the hotel. Thus the younger two get some quality time together. : )

Here are a few shots of them hanging out ....

(Can you tell she had been saying, "CHEESE!" in that picture above?)

Aren't they just two cute? Yeah, I think so too. : )

Funny

2011-03-22T23:12:00.001-05:00

Recently the kids and I were out at the local YMCA for family night. We were getting our coats off and hung up when a little guy, had to be between 1 and 2 years old, saunters up and stares, as only a kid can get away with doing. He was eyeing up the Katie girl and she was giving him her minx of a hello with head tilt and wave. The child was spellbound, I tell you. : )

The funny part, though, is this little boy’s dad came up and I remarked to him that his little guy was quite the handsome little fellow. He replied, “He gets that from me.” All the while he was wearing a grin on his face.

I burst out laughing and could only manage, “Well played! Very well played.”

Amusing thing #2.

Kiersten was doing some drawings on the doodle pad thing, the magnetic pen deal with the swipe clean lever on the bottom. Anyhow Katie asked her to draw a monster. And as a good sister Kiersten drew her a nice looking monster.

Katie proudly went to show my Beloved. “Look Daddy,” she says, “a picture of a monster!”

He replied back, “Oh, a self portrait, eh?"

I don’t know, you might have had to be there for that one. My Beloved and I got a good chuckle out of it.

While Mother is Away the Children Will...

2011-03-10T14:46:00.001-06:00

DRAW

and draw

and draw some more!

I was giving baths to the younger two and to my delight I came back down to some really nice pictures.

Kiersten is a big influence on Isaiah. Art and drawing just aren't really his thing. He doesn't tend to do art things unprompted. Kiersten however loves all things art. She is the one getting scolded during school time to, "Quit drawing and do your work!"

It was no surprise, though, to see his art was tied in with his number one passion- cars! :) Kiersten's are very colorful and different from one another. What fun feast for the eyes these two created for me.

So it Seams

2011-03-07T14:57:00.006-06:00

So it seems another year has been added to my age. So it seems my mom came out just for the occasion. (Thanks so much, Mom!) So it seems there has been many a sleep issue around the homestead these last 2 (now 3) months. So it seems that during a recent midnight escapade with Ezekiel the seams of my pajama pants gave way!

Oh dear. And they were a favorite pair of mine too!

Have you ever had that happen to you? Have you ever heard that retched sound of clothing ripping all because you bent your hind quarters?

Thankfully I had this happen in the confines on my own home with all members of the family sound asleep, save Zeke. Also thankfully, I know the rip/tear was a result of much wear over the years I owned them. (I have lost weight recently, not gained….so we’ll not travel down that road! : ))

Add insult to injury, the very next evening when I am again up in the wee hours of the morning with Ezekiel the small tear that was confined only to my hind quarters with a length of 3 inches or so grew to run down my mid-thigh! They are nothing more than garbage now- too much ventilation for my taste. : )

This all began on the anniversary of my birth. I was wondering if this was any symbol of what kind of year I have to look forward to! The wee hours of any night are not hours with which you want to know me. I am ugly in attitude and spirit if the sleep interruption is more than 5-10 minutes in duration or if the interruptions number on the upwards of 4 times or more. U.L.G.Y. (Thankfully Zeke’s lips are sealed (and the other 3 have no memory of that time)…the apologies he could tell you I have made the next morning!) Just giving you a basis for the frame of mind that would make me correlate pants ripping to how my whole 33rd year of life will go. (Drama abounds in those wee midnight hours.)

Well, sleep did return to me briefly and my birthday did carry on. There was monkey bread to enjoy, kids to watch swim, Mom & step-dad in town to visit, an ice cream cake to consume, beautiful spring promising flowers to enjoy, a card from my beloved starting with “To my wonderful, beautiful wife” (cannot go anywhere near wrong with a beginning like that!) and there was sunshine to brighten all else that needed a lift.

Blessings # 135-150

- Mom & Husband in town for birthday visit

- Mom looks good (stressed look is dying away and joy stealing its place)

- warm, just out of the oven monkey bread

- I own more than one pair of flannel jammie pants

- bright, beautiful, warm Springy flowers that make me smile when Winter gets long

- ice cream birthday cakes : )

- homemade cards

- jeans to wear that aren’t a part of any maternity collection

- Husband who tells daughter I am more beautiful than any bouquet of flowers to him

- Grandparents who are rough, tough and tumble with my children

- children who are quick to forgive

- Grandpa’s who, even though they have been asked a dozen times, still lift kids up high and make them giggle loud and long

- a little girl who makes frank statements, often times bold for one her size, followed by physical gestures to emphasize the point being made

- a Grandma who takes delight in all things sassy and sweet about her grandkids

- Grandpa taking Isaiah swimming as many times as he asks and for as long as he likes

- safe coming and going for Mom & Beloved

You might have a house overrun by colds if…

2011-03-03T23:48:00.004-06:00

- Kleenex is a staple and you are considering getting stock.

- Your shirt looks someone’s personal hanky.

- Vaporizers are running non-stop it seems.

- Coughing is a constant sound any time of the day.

- Your kids wake up looking like they have some sort of facial mask on – oh wait, that is just the remnants from a nose running throughout the night and little hands swiping it across their faces.

- They think all natural booger styling gel is in! (This is a first here. I was wondering what in the world Zeke had in his hair, on the top of his head, when upon further inspection it was all too clear what made its way there. Bath time coming soon!)

- You see that look of a long face, or long jaw, constantly throughout the day while children try to keep what is running down their face from passing the top lip and allowing it entrance to their mouth. (We will be thankful for the attempt!)

- It sounds like a semi is idling in your driveway as you listen outside the doors of your sleeping children.

Double the Trouble

2011-02-25T23:04:00.008-06:00

Oh, these two! I tell you what they won’t try to get away with when my back is turned. You know how you tell them and tell them and tell them not to, oh let’s say, stand on the back of the futon? And then they do it anyway? And you catch them because they aren’t the smartest about when they do it?

BUSTED.

I have to tell you the oldest offender tends to catch the most flack from me. They know better, they truly do. Not only that but they are leading by example. And with leadership comes, you got it, followers. How to teach a child that their actions don’t only affect them but those around them for the better or the worse?

Anyhow, Isaiah and Katie were caught being naughty, for like the umpteenth time, standing on and jumping off the back of the futon, the very nice, very wooden futon. So Isaiah gets sent into the kitchen to keep one of our corners company. They get lonely you know, those corners do.

As Isaiah is sitting there his little sister comes looking for him. “Where’s ‘Saiah?”

“He’s in the corner.”

She immediately sits down by him. “I want to be by ‘Saiah.”

Double the trouble and double the punishment, I guess. Don’t they look thoroughly chastised? Like they’ll never do it again? : ) Where have I gone wrong?

A Declaration

2011-02-07T23:15:00.006-06:00

I am not a huge football fan. Watching the super bowl? Not high on my list. My husband on the other was a little too into this years game because his beloved Packers were in it. : ) It is thankful I am that they won. (I left the house a little after half-time. I won't make privy the things he was saying to the T.V. prior to my departure. My only prayer was that he wouldn't wake the children in his agitation/excitement.)

Anyhow, why the chat about the super bowl when I am not in the slightest bit a football fan? I was thankful and surprised to hear the Declaration of Independence being read just prior to the action by different NFL players.

This year we have begun our 2 part study of the history of the United States. We are on the Revolutionary War, thus my interest and appreciation in the reading of the Declaration of Independence. : ) In addition to the history section of our curriculum we have books that Kiersten reads on her own (I do too, before she does.) as well as read-alouds. It has been so neat to have the books we are reading tie in right with where we are in history. Currently we are finishing up Johnny Tremain by Esther Forbes.

I have to tell you I have a whole new appreciation for what our forefathers went through and did just so that I could live in a free and democratic society. I honestly don't remember learning much of this in my own school days, which is neither here nor there, but am doubly thankful I am learning it now.

Continuing my much slacking list of thanks : )

# 125 - 134

- living in a free & democratic nation

- those dear men & women who have served in the military and given so much from 1776 to today

- a rich national history

- a school curriculum that works hard to bring out the most in what we are studying

- the Declaration of Independence

- the Star Spangled Banner

- Adventures in Odyssey telling Kiersten the story of how the Star Spangled Banner came to be written

- a country that was founded on a belief in the One, True God

-relearning a history I had long ago forgotten and thus greatly under appreciated

- my Mom is home safe (for good) after having served to support our troops over seas in a warring area for 6 1/2 years

Thievery

2011-02-03T22:41:00.004-06:00

I didn’t think that was what I was doing. It isn’t something I meant to do intentionally in my parenting, but apparently I am raising a pack of thieves. Alright, that is a slight exaggeration. Four is a pack. A steady group of two children, with an occasional third thrown in cannot really be classified as a pack.

What pray tell has been stolen? And who are the culprits?

My sleep, it is my sleep that has been stolen. It seems over the last month or so two children in particular are out to steal, kill and destroy any opportunity I might have for a full night’s uninterrupted sleep. It is uncanny I tell you. If I were the suspicious type I would swear there is some sort of conspiracy going on among the children. Perhaps even a coup (to overthrow this parenthood thing). The only problem is the two children mainly involved are the youngest and I am not sure how much communication can be going back and forth between them seeing as Zeke doesn’t speak!

All I can say is their master plan to break me down little by little is working.

Katie and Ezekiel are running me roughshod through the middle of most nights. The uncanny part I mentioned? They never do it on the same night. There is some understanding between them over whose turn it is and each has followed the rules. There is no sharing or too many sequential nights of the same offender. You know, so they’ll still reap the benefit of a full nights sleep themselves every now and again.

What is going on with them? I wish I knew so I could make it stop. Katie wakes up in the middle of the night and comes down to our bed. What wakes her up? No idea. Getting her back to sleep without some production and serious noise (from protesting) is almost an art form. It usually requires that I slip into her bed and remain there until she is asleep or until I hear some grumbling from Zeke. Can I just state for the record she is a fiddle faddler, a real squiggle worm? Some nights she has even lain awake playing, because why isn’t 3-4am a good time to play? And those nights? Oh, how I could cry, scream, have me a good ‘ol tantrum throwing session.

Zeke’s issue – gas pains? I can only fathom because it isn’t a hunger issue. I am not feeding him at any point in the night if he cries out. I am mainly there pounding on his little hinder (instead of rubbing his back) until he gets comfortable enough to fall asleep. Every now and again a little ‘stinky’ escapes and he relaxes. These little sessions can last a few moments to an hour or so and are frequent. It is rarely just one trip I make up those stairs, but rather one every hour or so.

I have to tell you my behavior mirrors theirs when they have little sleep. I am cranky, prone to fits and just down right disagreeable! Dear me, I know it will pass, I do. But knowing doesn’t make the walking it any easier or my disposition any more pleasant. I am working on it, definitely working on it.

Why is it the young run as fast as they can away from sleep and as you get older (or become a parent) you want to run towards it? Those little people don’t know how good they have it.

picture source

Knock, Knock II

2011-01-29T23:46:00.000-06:00

This is how it is done two year old style.

Knock, Knock II from Jess on Vimeo.

Don't you know that if you merely say your joke is 'FUNNY!' then it is? It works for Katie. : )

Knock, Knock I

2011-01-27T15:01:00.002-06:00

As most things go in a family with multiple children, the younger ones always want to be able to do what the older ones can. My children are no exception to this rule.

The older two had been on a spree of telling knock, knock jokes and riddles. Not one to be left out, ever, Katie joined in. She didn’t know any on her own…so she came up with some. Her way of telling a joke is too precious to be told to you in words so I thought I would have her share one by video.

She is a typical two year old and easily distracted, especially by the sight of herself. When she sees her picture on the wall, or sees a picture of any small brown haired looking girl, she says, “That’s Katie!” When asked about her picture she says, “I’m gorgeous!” (No self esteem issues here! : ) Truth be told, she is gorgeous.

Now as you watch the video: 1) Please ignore the chaos that reigns on the house pictured behind her. 2) Make no mention of the Christmas tree you see just behind her that she so kindly points out to you. Yes, I know it is very near the end of January. Yes, I took this video last week. No, I am not obsessed with my tree. It is far easier to get up (small hands do all the ornamenting) then to take back down (Mom must do alone in order to ‘pack’ things away. Alone time? Pray tell, what and when is that?!) 3) Afore mentioned tree is down as of Monday this week. Just so you know. : )

Knock, Knock I from Jess on Vimeo.

Because of her little two year old self being who she is, you’ll notice I only grabbed the start of a knock, knock joke. It was just so very Katie that I couldn’t help but share. Have no fear though I have managed to capture not 1, not 2…..but 3 knock, knock jokes for you. That video? It’ll be coming to a post near you soon!

Oh, and the bruising to her face. Yeah, I had no part in that. I wasn’t even there when it happened. She was shopping for some sweet treats for her Grandma’s 73rd birthday at a confectionary shop and took a dive after catching the edge of the carpet into the corner of their very metal display case. She was fortunate to have missed her eye. That shiner made almost the whole left side of her face look green and purple for just about a week. She has since recovered with no lasting signs of trauma. My Beloved keeps asking me if she is going to be accident prone like my younger brother is…..oh, how I pray it isn’t so!!!

Rollie Pollie Baby

2011-01-13T22:16:00.002-06:00

These last few weeks have brought some milestones of sorts to the house.

The Zeke-monster is now 6 months old. He decided a week prior to the 6 month mark that he was hungry…wanted to start eating more than just milk. We obliged him and gave him his first taste of cereal. He couldn’t get enough! His little mouth was open and waiting and he was gulping! (If babies can gulp runny cereal.) That 1 tablespoon didn’t seem to satisfy him so he is eating one serving of 2 tablespoons worth of the solid (or not so solid…depending how you see it) cereal each day. That hasn’t alleviated our sleep issues as of yet though. He might already be displaying signs of a hollow leg! : )

Zeke has also turned into our rollie pollie baby. Oh, he could role front to back and then back to front but he has discovered he could do more than one at a time allowing him to steamroll around the living room. He also puts himself up on his hands and knees. You can be sure where you left him you will not find him. You can also be sure that if he rolls to some object that said object will be chewed on, slobbered on and made into his own teething device.

Speaking of teeth…well, I suppose there really is nothing to speak of. When Zeke started chewing and slobbering at the end of month 3 we, or rather I, was fairly confident he was going to be an early teeth-er like his brother. Not so much. Here we are 3 months later, he still chews and slobbers on everything in site and not a tooth has popped through. What a tease those teeth are!

Lastly I have cut the apron strings. Zeke now sleeps solely in the crib in his room. I had been slowly moving that way but hadn’t taken the plunge and left him there overnight. He was being a bit fussy after a late night snack so instead of letting him make a ruckus and disturb Dad I took him upstairs. This was an impromptu move and leaving him there was super hard. I cannot tell you the number of times I checked him before I finally feel asleep. It wasn’t a sound sleep mind you, but it was sleep nonetheless! The rest, is as they say, history.

There is never a dull moment around here…change is always just around the corner. More of the other munchkins another day!

Isn't that the way?

2011-01-02T14:33:00.000-06:00

The Katie girl dislocated her wrist today. This has happened one other time. It is one of those things where you are holding her hand and for whatever reason, a trip or fall, slip on the ice or her dragging her feet purposefully, her full weight rests on that joint. As you hold her up her wrist slips out of joint and causes her some serious pain. Last time her wrist slipped back within an hour or so.

This time…things didn’t happen near as quickly.

Fortunately for us she doesn’t remain in constant pain, only when the joint is jostled or moved does it bother her. This allowed her to take a nap while still being out of joint. (You might wonder why we didn’t just take her into the Dr.’s office: New Year’s Day + weekend + small town = nothing open but the emergency room.)

So the afternoon passes to the evening. A little pain medicine administered. Many tears shed. The medicine kicks in and we have a new little girl who still is clinching her fingers and not moving her arm but is playing and moving around now. Her hand looks a little swollen (did last time as well) and we are getting a little uncomfortable about her situation. Beloved looks some information up on the internet and we become more worried.

Then I remember…an on-call pediatrician is available at the touch of a button. I call. The Dr. says try to keep it elevated, immobile and apply some ice. That is what we set out to do. I grab a towel and Beloved and I begin rigging up a sling to lay her arm in. This brings on a whole new onslaught of tears. Oh, not because we are hurting her by doing so but because she doesn’t want the towel on her arm.

We have her rigged up all of maybe sixty seconds when she pulls her arm out and shows us both hands and arms and all is well. Honestly I couldn’t have been off the phone more than 5 minutes and she is ‘cured’! Something about how her arm laid or the way she moved it popped things back to their correct position.

If she weren’t so little, had not been so obviously in pain we would have sworn she was faking. She was better that quickly.

I just looked at my Beloved and said, “Are we going to make it through this parenthood thing?” Then I smiled in pure relief and gave thanks.

Isn’t that they way though! Call the Doctor, mention the word hospital and instantly things are fine. I’ll keep that in mind for the next incident that comes our way. : )

Electrifying

2010-12-14T00:30:00.003-06:00

This weekend was the first of many a snowfall that will grace our dear state. Oh we've had flurries before now but nothing that has stayed on the ground or warraunted a snowplow to grace the streets. Our kids proclaimed it "A Winter Wonderland." I told my Beloved that thought will hold true until the year that they are enlisted to clear the drive way off. : )

Both my Beloved and I have gotten a kick out of the fact that our state now names storms coming as if they were hurricanes. I am not sure if they decided we were lonesome for some personalization to the weather systems or if we have name envy from seeing those ocean side states name their weather systems. Who knows?

We had been anticpating this storm for a few days and knew it was going to be a good one. What we hadn't expected was to see fireworks outside our window in the middle of the night. Oh, not literal fireworks, but there was diffintely some glowing and sparking of electrical lines.

We are always a little weary of the electrical lines because we have some trees that hang close to our line. We've had our line ripped off the side of the house during a similar winter storm by these trees so our weariness is not without merit. Both my Beloved and I went to bed fairly sure we would lose power at some point. When we were awakend to a loud buzzing and a click I simply said, "There it goes." I really thought nothing of the noise. (My curiosity is not easily peeked in the middle of the night.) My Beloved jumped out of bed to look out the window and the noise came again and would you believe the electrical line coming into the house was glowing? I was near another window and noticed some bright light from that direction. We aren't too far away from some more substantial lines and it turns out the sparking and bright light was a transformer going just down the hill. Not sure if the current jumped to our line (closest to transformer line) and that was the result of our line glowing or what. Craziness.

Long story short Beloved called the power company and grabbed the ladies attention with the glowing and bright light info. Two very short hours after we lost power it was back on again...in the middle of a fierce storm.

I've got my eye on that electrical line. I'll be stepping smart whenever I need to pass under it. It better be on its best behavior from here on out....or else. : )

And the thankfulness goes on....

# 113-124

- beautiful Christmas lights

- holiday baking has begun

- beautiful, crisp fallen snow

- a working snow blower (& a man who loves to use it!)

- power only out 2 hours

- the electrical line didn't start on fire or cause damage to the house

- no trees took out our line : )

- nephew ok after seizure last week

- getting to see the sweet faces of some dear family and friends through their Christmas cards

- warm cups of tea (fighting a cold just now)

- kids enjoying and looking forward to Jesse Tree Devotional

- wonderful reading books to go along with era we are studying in history

Nothing Changes

2010-12-07T22:38:00.002-06:00

Every year it is the same. Every year. You would think I would learn and attempt this feat earlier than I do. What feat am I yammering about? Getting a picture of the family or at least of the kids'. I know I have been remiss about posting lately and especially posting pictures of the kids. I assure you this will be sufficient coverage of all four!

Least you think I am joking about how very difficult it is to capture them I'll show you just a small portion of my efforts.

There are always those who refuse to look at the camera.

Those who insist on closing their eyes.

Those who get bored and whose eyes begin to wander.

A random gem that has potential even though each child isn't looking your way.

There are those who are naughty with their squinched up face. (Makes me smile every time. Little weasel!)

Those where they shy away from one another and you hear, "Mom! So and so is touching me!"

And there are those where one child must make it look as though the lighting is much to bright for their delicate eyes.

Since I struck out with the group photo's I took a few individual pictures.

There is the oldest, whom even though the smile wasn't always there, was a faithful child looking at the camera for each click of the shutter. She looks a bit worn but did a wonderful job of hanging on to that squiggle worm of a brother.

Then there is him whose eye lashes truly are ridiculous looking all spiffy in that suit Grandma got for him.

Here is she who thinks smiling means this grimace with her tongue placed between her teeth.

Lastly is him who is just so sweet you could eat him up! Those dimples!

To make sure you know I truly have been busy...keeping up if not posting about it...here are some of my 1000 gifts from the last few weeks. You'll have to bear with the list (Its been 3 weeks! Oh, you didn't notice? Never mind then. Read away and be blessed!)

# 76 - 112

- a warm pair of slippers

- fresh, warm, homemade apple crisp

- a Mom who is intentional about calling no matter how many time zones separate us

- a sweet pen pal for my girl

- few to almost no "accidents" from a girlie who had reverted a bit in the potty training department

- overbites in sweet little mouths

- accountability

- free material for school use from local library

- homemade brownies

- rereading "The Light at Tern Rock"

- a sweet sister making us rethink how we celebrate the birth of Jesus

- the warmth of small bodies on my lap

- that my girl thinks my arms are a safe place to be when the sound of the 'frain' (train) frightens

her

- the easy, no tears loss of a tooth

- vacuumed stairs

- neck kisses = much giggling : )

- a meal at home with some dear friends before they moved out of the state

- plants that merely wither, but don't die, to remind me it is watering time

- a stain stick that removes baby spit-up the 1st time through the wash

- a husband who has the Thanksgiving meal all under control and boots me from the kitchen

- girlfriends

- Cat in the Hat school paper

- brothers who take the time to call me

- a little bit of peace and quiet (around here known as bed time for the kiddies)

- kitchen aid mixer

- homemade bread gracing our house after a few years hiatus

- a girlie who was quiet as a mouse sneaking into my bed while her daddy was out of town

- the smell of baby

-the love story that is Christmas

- flannel sheets

- the safe return of my Beloved after a week away (the return of my sanity as well!)

- a cup of sugar borrowing type of neighbor

- a camera that is only maimed, but not broken, after falling prey to curious little hands

- bath time

- facilities nearby where I can take the kids to run off some pent up energy

- an afternoon watching snow fall that belonged in a movie it was so beautiful

- sunny days in the midst of days upon days of grey

(Yes, I know it isn't Monday...bear with me for being a day late.)

Fumes

2010-11-09T00:28:00.005-06:00

Just the other day my Beloved commented on the fact that Zeke is now 4 months old. “Where did the time go?” he asked. He followed that up by saying, “Are we just running on fumes?”

To which I most assuredly replied, “Yes!”

I am not sure why it has worked this way but with babies #1 and #3 I seemed to bounce right back into the swing of things. I hit my stride, if you will, after a month or two. But with babies #2 and #4 it just feels like chaos reigns and here we are four months out and I still haven’t hit my stride. Yet. (Thinking positive.)

Part of the problem is sleep. Yeah, not getting so much of it again these days. I stay up a bit late with Zeke to get a feeding in. He has had some trouble with gas discomfort so often times he wakes up more than once scrim scrambling crying out in pain. Thus sleep time is not solid but broken up. Add to that Katie has taken to waking up early. By early I mean around 6ish. It would be irritating but she wakes up and comes down to the bedroom in the sweetest way.

“I waked up, Mommy,” she says in her little girl voice. She has her blanket in hand and her binks still in her mouth.

“Climb on in Mommy’s bed,” I tell her. She grabs a pillow and snuggles in the covers close to my side. She doesn’t sleep but does doze from time to time. What I most appreciate is that she isn’t a wiggle worm. She just lays there and snuggles and dozes. That gives me a little more time to lay there and doze myself.

Someday I keep telling myself. Someday we’ll get on track. The schedule of nursing every 3 hours will click with all else that we have going on around here. Someday. Perhaps on that day they’ll be some actual gas for us to thrive on. Until then I am afraid the fumes will just have to do!

Blessings 61-75

- a tank that still has fumes

- sweet little girls who snuggle in my covers with me

- babies who forget/forgive mommies for ugly behavior in the middle of the night

- older children keeping baby occupied so I can make lunch

- good old peanut butter and jelly sandwich

- 2 hours or so of quiet at home with just baby while rest of family went to church

- Husbandry allowing me to stay in bed when older children got up after a particularly rough night

- deal on cutest little shoes for Katie

- empty dirty laundry baskets

- no one is sick

- my Beloved doesn’t give me a hard time for coming home to find me still in my jammies and not showered

- long eyelashes (all four have them) to go with beautiful eyes

- children ‘seeing’ that not all kids live the way they do through Mission India’s My Passport to India

- math doesn’t seem to cause Kiersten anywhere near the frustration and boredom as it has previously

- seeing that Isaiah’s penmanship has improved from just 8 weeks ago

A Bun

2010-11-01T23:55:00.003-05:00

Each Friday it is a mad race to get Kiersten ready for dance on time. It shouldn't be a big deal and yet it is. See the first week she came home after ballet she promptly informed me that Miss Jean said her hair needed to be in a bun.

Ta-Ta.

You haven't met Miss Jean but if you did you would be well aware she is a force to be reckoned with. If Miss Jean says that's what she wants than that is precisely what Miss Jean will get. Or you will regret it. Promise.

Oh, I don't mean to play her out as some mean lady. She isn't. She is just a person who knows how she wants things done and expects you to follow suit. She knows that what she does she does well. Know what I am talking about?

There is that and the fact that she is 80 some years old. You're getting the picture.

Anyhow, I am not a 'hair' girl. Never have been. I just have uncooperative hair with a mind completely of its own so I have never really taken to 'fixing' it all that often. And what I do consists of no more that 30 minutes tops, for a wedding or some special occasion, and 15 minutes on a regular day. To be honest I mostly just brush it after I shower and let it dry as it is with a bobby pin added here and there to keep hair out of my eyes. When it was longer it just went straight into a ponytail, wet and all.

This order to have Kiersten's hair in a bun had me panicked a bit. I seriously set aside 20 minutes the next week in order to ensure it would get done. That was before I realized that bobby pins fight back. I should have allowed for another 10 minutes.

Each week it is still a challenge to get her hair just so. I not only have to get it in the bun but need to make it so that it stays in a bun despite her moving around dancing. (Last week she came out of dance with a ponytail. Oh, the bobby pins were still logged in her scalp. Chalk that down as a win for the bobby pins and a loss for me.)

This week though...ah, I won. She came home with this lovely bun still intact. Bobby pins 1, Me 1. A tie. I hold no grand illusions. I know the bobby pins will win more than I will but each week I am determined to try hard to give my girl a beautiful bun that stays. Why? Because she feels like a ballerina and because it looks beautiful on her.

Blessings # 46-60

- learning the art of making a good bun for my ballerina

- children who have contagious giggles

- a girlie girl learning to apologize without it being asked of her

- babies who smile in their sleep

- a husband who loves to cook

- a husband who always thinks I am beautiful and often tells me so

- cousins who live close enough for sleepovers

- a little girl declaring, "I'm a princess!" at the top of her lungs because she is in a dress

- homemade caramel corn

- a soft, warm head nuzzling into my neck (a.k.a. a cuddle : ))

- coming home to a vacuumed living room

- seeing 3 dressed up kiddos, all with tails (kitty, dragon and giraffe)

- clean sheets

- a stolen nap for myself when my energy tank was low

- the Lord wooing me once again

Blessings to you and yours as we head into the Thanksgiving season. : )

Dodged a Bullet

2010-10-28T19:31:00.001-05:00

Boy did I luck out the other day.

Isaiah lost his second tooth. It had been hanging on by a thread and while playing he wiggled it out with his tongue. So tooth out means a visit from the Tooth Fairy. He seemed to have the idea that so long as he put the tooth under his pillow, no matter the time of day, the Tooth Fairy would come. When lunch time hit and nothing happened he made a comment.

We reviewed what we knew to be true of the Tooth Fairy: she makes no appearance until all are asleep and in dreamland. It is only then that she comes and then that she makes the trade of some treat from the tooth.

That is what she does if she doesn’t FORGET!

The next day Isaiah and I are by the dining room table and it hits me. I did not make a nighttime trip to his room to deposit a ‘gold coin and a lollipop’. How could I have forgotten? (I know how, I won’t bore you with the details.)

The funny thing is Isaiah didn’t say a thing. Not one word.

I needed to get some clean, dry clothes for Ezekiel so I had good reason to be near their bedrooms. As any good Mom can, I gathered together a ‘gold coin and a lollipop’, without any little people taking notice, and made my way to his room. Sure enough there lay the littlest tooth under his pillow waiting patiently to be taken. I made the swap and headed downstairs.

Of course I couldn’t say anything to him right away lest I appear the culprit. I waited for an hour or so and then asked him about his tooth is some sly way. THEN he mentions that she didn’t come.

“Are you sure?” I asked him. “You’re sure she didn’t come? Let’s go upstairs and look. I cannot believe she didn’t show up!”

Up we went. He lifts up his pillow…”She came!” he shouts. The coin went in the piggy bank and the lollipop in the mouth. All was well and right with the world.

My excuse? I told him there must have been an awful lot of teeth she needed to collect in the night. She was busy. She didn’t forget him, she just hadn’t made it here yet. (Good thing he didn’t remind me about what I had shared with him only the day before regarding when the Tooth Fairy comes!)

Whew! That was a close call.

Life

2010-10-26T01:14:00.000-05:00

I fear life has kept me busy enough that right now I am just counting blessings here. : ) Not a bad thing to be doing, mind you, but I know some dear ones (Hi Mom!) are missing seeing the little people with whom I dwell and hearing about their shenanigans. I'll get there again soon, promise. I definitely need to do a post all on the wee littlest man of the house.

To be honest one of the things that has kept my time occupied is laundry. I believe it to be related to bunnies - seems to breed at an alarming rate! I don't water or fertilize my laundry and yet it blooms and grows. It is amazing! If Zeke ever stops being one who cannot hold down his milk or Katie doesn't have any more 'accidents' in her bed (mostly my fault for giving a try at no diaper for rest time and forgetting it one night when I put her to bed) I think I might gain ground. Until then....

So enough with the excuses let's get to counting some of our blessings shall we?

31. a dentist who is amazingly good with children

32. a haircut given by a dear sister that is both cute and a nice change

33. a warm, quiet (non child interrupted) shower : )

34. Friday dates with Isaiah at the coffee shop

35. the game of Sorry

36. the smell of newly bathed children

37. the sound of baby squeals as his neck is kissed

38. a gracious husband (more on that another day)

39. floors that were cleaned by a hand other than my own

40. listening to Scottish friends talk (I love accents!)

41. having friends over for a meal

42. an upgrade to my cell phone (I snatched my Beloved's old phone. This is my old phone 6+yrs of faithful service)

43. catching a good sale on clothes for the kids

44. getting time to read for pleasure several times a day while meeting the needs of the littlest person here

45. laughter

Still honing that eye, training it to see things to be thankful for and rejoice over. Slowly but surely we are learning. (A good night's sleep goes a long way to helping the learning curve I've discovered. I know, I should have been a rocket scientist. : ) ) All kidding aside Miss Ann had a lovely post today and it is worth a read if you have the time. She is the dear lady with whom this 1000 gifts, the art of seeking blessings in the everyday, was prompted. Anyhow she blessed her Mom with a sweet gift. Something like that would be a dear gift for any family member for Christmas. Can't put a price on something that feeds the heart. You'll have to jump over there and see what I am talking about! : )

Alright, I hope to be back before we count blessings again. I'll try, that is all I can guarantee just now. Hope you have a blessed day. Keep counting!

Blessed

2010-10-18T23:45:00.003-05:00

I am tired today so we'll keep it short and sweet. I know you won't mind. :) If you've a mind to see what is blessing others jump on over here. The links are at the end of the post.

We are continuing on our journey to count our blessings...all the way to 1000.

15. Zeke's thrush seems to be gone : )

16. babies who have a snort mixed in their laugh every now and again

17. a husband who readily laughs...makes me smile when I hear it

18. gift cards

19. baby announcements in the mail

20. a boy who dances during church worship

21. sweet girl who looks precious with her hair in a bun for ballet

22. Dora sheets and underwear (making transitions easier and more fun for the Katie girl)

23. a laundromat mere minutes from the house

24. white chocolate mocha's (a weakness of mine to be sure!)

25. little toes on little feet (really all things little)

26. shared recipes to add to my arsenal

27. naps

28. a dent made in the laundry

29. bunk beds

30. Grapevine Bible studies for kids

A Small Smile

2010-10-17T23:00:00.001-05:00

That is what I had on my face a few times at church this morning. Each of the children brought one to my face and all for different reasons.

After my Beloved and I had dropped all but Ezekiel off in their rooms we headed across the fellowship area towards the sanctuary. As we walked I noticed a cute young boy heading our way.

“Look,” I said as I nudged my Beloved.

He looked up but not where I wanted him to.

“Look!” I said again. “It’s him.”

This time he noticed to whom I was directing his attention.

“That’s Ian.”

“Oh!” a dawning realization then of what I was wanting him to see came over him.

Ian.

Kiersten’s crush. Her first crush.

I had a feeling my Beloved hadn’t yet known who the young boy was that had captured his daughter’s attention. Now he knows and now I won’t be alone in my secret smiles each time I see him at church or the dance studio.

Isaiah. I didn’t witness this but a dear friend of mine who helps run our children’s ministry made it known our biggest man was dancing for joy to the Lord during their worship time.

If you had only seen this boy when he was in the room with the 2,3, 4 & 5 year olds during their worship time you would know why this was such a surprise but a delight to know. I honestly never would have imagined my boy enjoying worship at church let alone dancing.

When he was in the other rooms, the 2, 3 or 4&5 year old rooms, he was a totally different person. See they crammed all those kids together in a cordoned off area within one of those rooms. He is not one to be in a crowded room and function well. He would slump to the wall and there he would sit. All the other kids would be dancing, singing or following the motions of the teenager leading them in worship. Not Isaiah. Never did he participate although he would sing the songs on the way home in car. Go figure.

So my point…my boy was enjoying worship so much so he was dancing. : ) What a sweetie that boy is.

Katie girl. She’s at the age/stage where a lot of what she does makes me grin. I’m not complaining. But what she did this morning at church that made me smile was grab my hand, follow me to the bathroom and proceed to use the toilet. This was the first Sunday we let her leave home in her Dora underwear (sorry if that is too much info!). She does a fabulous job whether we are at home or out and about of letting us know it is ‘time’.

She does play this little game when she goes and you are watching.

“I made some tank-le, tank-les Mommy!”

“Make some more tinkle, tinkles.”

“I’m all done.”

“Make some more tinkle, tinkles.”

She does.

“I’m all done.”

We go through this a few times before she says in a different tone, “I’m all done.” And all this is always said with a grin. She knows she is teasing you. Mark my words…she is going to be the ‘fun’ one (and a handful!).

Lastly Ezekiel. This morning was child dedication. This is simply where we dedicate ourselves to live for the Lord, promising to do our best to raise him in the love and knowledge of the Lord with the support of our church family.

Zeke is just such a sweetie. He has the most precious smile. When he flashes it your way, which he will often (he’s not stingy with them), it makes you feel like a million bucks.

As it the usual Sunday morning routine he fell asleep in my arms not 10 minutes after we were up front. I got to hold him and enjoy his little sleeping self. It is a rare thing to do that at home but at church it is a blessing and joy to be able to.

It was just one of those days that I could help but smile over each of these dear ones. Am I blessed or what?

Thankful

2010-10-12T00:55:00.003-05:00

I have decided to try to be intentional about seeing the goodness of God and giving thanks to him in the big and the small.

I find I can find fault easily. That bugs me. I know my perspective needs a different vantage point. In changing how I look at everyday things and in even taking the time to ponder the everyday things I figure to find more that I am pleased with than I am displeased with. And yes, I mean mostly in regards to my family.

Please don’t get me wrong. It isn’t them it’s me. : ) Ok sometimes it is them.

The point is I am with them day in and day out. They school at home so we are never apart. Living life together all day every day helps magnify those things that do get on your nerves…but only if you are looking for them.

So instead of looking for things that bug me I am going to try to look for things that bless me. To get an attitude of gratitude as Miss Ann would say. : ) The eyes of my heart need a new vantage point, a refocusing, to one of thankfulness. So here we go on our journey to counting 1000 blessings.

Let the thankfulness commence!

#1-15
1. a baby who sleeps through the night

2. a husband who supports homeschooling

3. a husband whose job supports my being at home full-time

4. four healthy, happy children

5. a little girl who cries out as we near church, “Friends! I’m coming Friends!”

6. some serious progress on the potty training front

7. all things pumpkin (pumpkin bread, pumpkin pie, pumpkin muffins…..)

8. a big man who gets right down to business with his school time

9. a daughter who has come around in her attitude towards school, math in particular

10. the sweetest smile an my baby boy’s face

11. dimples

12. Fall, the beautiful colors of leaves

13. a warm cup of something each morning (coffee, tea, hot chocolate)

14. quiet, the sound of all sleeping peacefully

15. a soft pillow on which to rest my head

Here’s to our journey of gratitude, being thankful in the everday- cheers!

Family Entertainment

2010-10-08T00:15:00.006-05:00

(Since we’ve been immersed in all things potty training I thought a change of pace would be nice. You’re welcome. : ))

As the summer ended and Fall began we started to see more and more large spiders around the house. I say we, but I mean they (Beloved + children). Until I went out to take pictures I had not laid my eyes on the little, or not so little, buggers I knew to be infesting our yard.

To be sure I had been beckoned, “Mom! Come see the huge spider!”

“Thanks so much. But I’ll pass.”

I leave all that spidery stuff, especially ones still out of doors, to my Beloved. (A spider inside the house? Different story altogether. I wouldn’t be able to rest until I knew I had done all I could to get it. Make no mistake, get it I would.)

Anyhow, what my Beloved decided to do once the spider was pointed out to him was catch a moth or some other small bug or insect and toss it into the web so the kids could watch the spider come down, sting its victim and wrap it up nicely.

That is some serious free family entertainment let me tell you! I’m not much amused by the whole display but then it isn’t me my honey was out to impress. The funny thing is that even though I avoided these ‘shows’ my Beloved would induce by throwing things into webs I recently ended up seeing that very thing. However it wasn't a spider in my backyard I was watching. (Thankfully.)

We are using Sonlight Core 3 as well as their science program this year for school. Incredible Creatures that Defy Evolution is a DVD that is built into the curriculum. I am thankful the topic of evolution has come up. We’ve chatted a bit about it now and again but I think it is hard for Kiersten to understand what all evolution means, entails. (She’s still little. : )) What I am even more thankful for is how this DVD shows time and time again that all these different creatures (us included) are so complexly made and have such individualized tasks our bodies perform that there is just no way we evolved from some other type of animal. We have a creator, who is God, and in His awesome power and glory made all things unique…especially man, his most beloved creation, formed in his image, loved deeply and created to have a relationship with him.

But I am getting off topic.

The point is in this video there is section that shows a spider, a rather nasty looking bugger, catching something in his web, going in for the sting and then spinning his prey up in a nice neat and tidy package!

This same spider, or at least it looks a lot like the same spider (the big ones all start to look the same to me, scary and in need of killing), showed up in a library book Isaiah just adored that same week. This is it…

It is a picture book of letters found in nature. For the letter “X” wouldn’t you know the creepy crawly guy from the DVD would make an appearance. The kids just giggled when I would act grossed out and not even want to look at it. They would cover it, I would sigh with relief, they would uncover and I would cringe. Isn’t it a blessing kids are so easily prone to giggle? And in return make you giggle? : )

Nothing like spiders to keep a family entertained.

Beggars can't be choosers

2010-10-07T02:18:00.000-05:00

I might have begged to have my third child do her business on the toilet, but I most certainly do not get to choose the time at which she does it.

Beggars cannot be choosers.

Why might I ask, can't they?

I'd like to be.

Is too much to hope at 8:30, when your child has called out from her bed for the first time that she has to go potty, when you place that little hinder on your favorite red toilet that she would succumb to the pressure and do what she said needed doing?

Guess so.

How about at 11:30, when she called out a second time that she had business to attend to, is it too much to hope she would do it then?

Apparently it is.

(By now my suspicions are confirmed. I had a feeling earlier in the evening that my sweet girl needed to make more than make potty on the toilet but just couldn't, nay, wouldn't. When I carried her down at 11:30 and her legs were stiff and she was straining there was no doubt what was going on.)

Now, finally, after her third cry out at 2 a.m. that she needs to visit the toilet it isn't too much to hope that she'll follow through. She has done what she thought she wanted to do all evening.

She is relieved and I am exhausted. : )

Good night. Sweet dreams. I'll see you in the morning!

Liar Liar

2010-10-04T23:19:00.000-05:00

Have you ever had your child or children make a liar out of you?

For example making a doctor’s appointment because your child wasn’t feeling well or had a fever only to take them to the appointment and have them smile and act like nothing was wrong?

Or tell someone else your child ‘never’ …. (fill in the blank) only to have them do that very thing right in front of this person?

Me neither. : )

Well, that is just what Miss Katie girl has done to me after my little tirade on potty training. She has made a liar out of me. The day after I wrote this post she took to potty training like a champ! Oh, she’s had a few accidents between now and then. Let me share what else she has done between now and then.

First let me just say that I recently reclaimed a portable training toilet I had lent to another mom. I have never used it but rather trained both Kiersten and Isaiah with those insert toilet seats that fit on a regular toilet. After seeing how Katie was fairing and feeling I was in for something new I decided what could it hurt to try a training toilet?

Oh little red toilet how I LOVE YOU!

This toilet has made potty training more bearable for me and more enjoyable for the Katie girl.

Back to what all has transpired between now and then. Katie has taken to telling us she needs to use the toilet even while wearing a diaper (she was headed up to bed). The diaper was dry. She was waiting until we placed her on the toilet to do her thing. (This makes Mom VERY happy!) This ‘telling’ us she has to go has replaced setting the timer in order to ensure she sits down again to try within a reasonable amount of time.

What else? How about waking Mom up at 3:30 in the A.M. to tell her you ‘pooped’ (code for I made potty) in your diaper. I asked her if she wanted me to change her.

“Yes!” was the prompt reply.

“Would you like to sit on the toilet?”

“Yes!”

Down we went to the living room where I took off her still dry diaper and put her on the little toilet. Within a matter of seconds that sweet, headstrong little thing made her potty! We went through our little routine and we headed back upstairs with her chocolate treat in her hand. She ate it, I gave her some lovin’ and sent her back on her way to dreamland.

I must say a middle of the night potty call is a first for me! I’ll take it though, because middle of the night or middle of the day, any time she tells me she needs to make potty and waits until we are on it in order to do so…well that is some serious progress in my book!

And can I just say a little person running around half dressed in girly underwear is precious?

Thanks again little red toilet ( & Hershey’s Hugs)! Without you I am not sure how I would be fairing in this battle between diaper and toilet. GO TOILET!!! : )

Calgon....

2010-09-29T01:34:00.003-05:00

won’t you take me away? Please? Pretty please?

What?! That is a statement you use on your commercials but don’t mean literally?

Oh.

Scotty? Beam me up?

No can do either, huh? Bummer.

Yeah, I could use a little taking away or beaming up. That Katie girl, you know the sweet minx I spoke of recently? Well, I took the notion in my silly little head to go ahead and give the potty training a try.

Big mistake. What on earth was I thinking?

My husband coined the phrase “intestinal fortitude” with regard to Kiersten back in her potty training days. Let me just say I am not sure Kiersten has anything on Katie. The jury is still out on that one, but that is my contention anyway.

We started yesterday. I use a timer to help give me as a gauge for when the next time is to sit that little hinder on the toilet. Oh, we had a few accidents here and there. To be expected.

Today, however, that child wised up and thought she would give me a run for my money. I kid you not she sat on the toilet for 2 hours. She had had her morning juice, was watching a little Dora and did nothing. Not one little tinkle did she make.

She got off the toilet. Within a few minutes she has tinkled (that word is not cute when it isn’t paired up with the word toilet) upstairs in Kiersten’s room.

So she has to go…she just doesn’t want to go in the toilet. She is holding it until she gets off and within minutes goes somewhere in the house potty most certainly does not belong.

The one up?

She sits on the toilet for a while, makes a little tinkle, we rejoice, she gets her chocolate treat and then with the treat still in her mouth makes a ‘tinkle’ on my dining room floor! While still eating her reward! Can I tell you how much I wanted to snatch that chocolate from her hand and eat it myself?

She had gone on the toilet, released a little, because the dam was full, but didn’t give full vent to all that was behind the dam. She waited until she was off the toilet for that full release.

Wonderful.

Where is Calgon or Scotty when you really need them? Better yet why is there no potty training fairy who swoops in and saves the poor mother whose task it is to teach her child this most necessary of things? Somebody please tell me!

*(I am being dramatic-allowed to a mother of many children every now and again. :) If you don't laugh, which my mother did a little too long and loudly when I shared this with her yesterday, how do you keep sane? And sanity is key. :) )*

"Good Ni-iiight!"

2010-09-24T13:23:00.001-05:00

I wish there was some way to better convey to you what kind of child Miss Katie is since you cannot see or hear her. She is a minx, an imp, a pixie. Her eyes twinkle and she has this mischievous air about her. It is funny because she can be so fun and yet so naughty. Everything she does is done with force. A pistol, my mom calls her and she isn’t far off the mark there. Katie is just something else. I love her so.

Here is her in fine form a few nights ago.

Everyone had been in their beds, teeth brushed and stories read for some time. They, Kiersten and Isaiah, get 15 minutes or so after alls said and done to look at books in their bed or play quietly in their rooms. While this goes on the hall light remains on. Our hall up there cannot be more than 6 feet long so the hall light shines adequately in all the rooms. So although Katie’s light is off she still has some luminescence with which to look at books or play a little herself.

After the said 15 minutes are up either I or my Beloved calls up the stairs, “Lights off! We shut the hall light off and wait for the other 2 lights to blink off as well. Once they do I say, “Good night.”

That night the littlest of voices calls back, “Good Night, Mommy!”

“Sweet Dreams!” she adds having had this said to her on more than one occasion.

“Sweet Dreams,” I mimic.

“See you in the morning!” she chimes in. Again something I’ve said as I tuck her in good night.

“See you in the morning,” I reply as my Beloved and I share a secret smile.

“Good Ni-iiiight!” she says again.

We repeat the whole conversation over and I add, “All Do-ooone.”

Well, she isn’t done because I hear once again, “Good Ni-iiiiight!”

Silence.

30 seconds later a little louder this time, because maybe I didn’t hear her correctly, “GOOD NI-IIIIIIIGHT, MOMMY!!”

I stay the course and say nothing although I am ever so glad she is upstairs and I am downstairs so that she cannot see me grinning to beat the band.

Katie is nothing if not persistent. Several more times she tries to get me to respond by calling out, “Good Ni-iiight, Mommy!”

My Beloved calls up to her, “Good Night, Katie-girl. We’re all done.”

“NO. Good Ni-iiiight, Mommy!”

After that we both held our tongues so as not to drag out this game all night. We held our tongues but nothing could hold back our smiles.

Oh that girl, she is something else alright. Something sweet and special and such a handful! : )

Retreat

2010-09-21T00:12:00.004-05:00

After a rough start to school I was in no way disappointed to cut the week short and take a drive to see my Grandparents and Mom.

The cabin has long been a place of rest, fun, laughter, solitude and family for as far back in my memory as I can go. I wish I had before and after pictures to show you how much the place has changed (inside) over the years. It is truly a special place and as my grandparents get older the reality has set in that there will come a day when I can no longer retreat there. This post might be a little nostalgic and so you’ll just have to bear with me!

This time around our trip, as apposed to the one taken in the Spring, was not based around the lake. The weather was simply too cold to allow for water time. Instead there were many walks in the woods collecting things and having good conversations as well as games to be played.

Kiersten picked up a ton of acorns. The baby ones were the cutest. She also grabbed a few red leaves that had fallen here and there. The tops of the trees were just starting to change so we didn’t get to enjoy the fullness of God showing off his magnificent artist’s hand. We weren’t hugely disappointed as we have plenty of trees here that will soon grow most beautiful in color.

Back to the trip- taking walks in the woods. Here is Isaiah out on a gander. The older two took several walks with Grandma (my mom), Kiersten more so than Isaiah.

I tried to get a picture of Mom with the kids’ on one of their walks. Katie was throwing a fit and had sat down on the hillside (mostly in protest) so I had the others join her there. No one really looked at the camera save my mom and usually she avoids it! That alone made the picture a keeper. What is memorable about it is that when Katie stood up we found she had sat on an ants nest. And not just any ants, red ants! Her pants were covered with them and she grabbed a few bites on her ankles. She needed a distraction (or was it me who needed the distraction?) to allow me an excuse to send the others on ahead and have her and I turn back. No nap = no mood for a decent walk to be had by others.

She did enjoy the boat ride though, all the kids did. Isaiah and Kiersten both got a chance to be captain and drive us around. Does it scare you that Isaiah is driving here and is looking down and not out? It certainly did explain a few things on our trip, I’ll say that much! : ) Kiersten isn’t really all that much better. They’re young yet. (My Beloved says that a crazy driver is synonymous with a woman driver. And yet I am the one with no tickets to her name. Hmmm…whose the crazy driver? : ) )

Kiersten and Isaiah both got a taste of some different games while we were there. When I was younger we always seemed to play cribbage. Both are still a bit young to play…the rules a bit more than they can handle. So instead of cribbage what did they play? Isaiah played “Whacky Blaster” (a game that has been there since I was a kid) and “Battleship”. I have to say I was most impressed by him. We have played this game, or rather attempted to, a time or two at a local coffee shop. He just couldn’t get the gist of the upper and lower boards and how each recorded different things and what to do with the different colored pegs. Things were too complicated for him. This time around however he just got it. I have to give a little help the first 5 minutes or so and then it was all him. He did fabulous and even sunk all my ships! (Ok, he peaked around my board for the last ship’s location. The game was getting long and Zeke needing nursing soon. Excuses, excuses.)

Kiersten on the other hand played some dominos with my Grandma. Here they are with my mom. My sweet Grandpa is in the background on the left. I didn’t manage to get any good pictures of him. He is so near and dear to me. Quite the teaser. It is funny to watch him pull Kiersten’s leg and hear her giggle at his antics. She tells her Dad he is a teaser just like Grandpa is all with a big grin on her face. I just love that my kids love my Grandparents too.
I haven’t said much about Zeke because he was loved on and held by his Grandma, Great Grandma and two Great Aunts. Grandpa gave him plenty of lovin’ too. I really only saw/held him when it came time to nurse him. Would you believe that little bugger let out TWO laughs there? And that neither of them was in my presence? Honestly, where is the love? : ) Ah well, I won’t begrudge my other family members when I know I bound to hear it too and more often then they will.

And Katie? She didn’t play any of the games the other two did (with an adult) nor did she get held by all my relatives. She rode on the chicken swing, walked up and down to the dock naming all the bird statues my Grandma has placed along the steps, took laps up the big hill and attempted a walk or two. It definitely took her a day or so to get used to everybody. She hung out a lot with Daddy there at the start and would have no one else. Then she gave a little sugar to my uncle and took a big shine to my Grandpa. Once she gets going she is a ham and a half!

A good summation of our trip is that everyone had a wondeful time despite the fact that it was cooler this time around and as result no one got to play in the water. : )

Day 2

2010-09-08T23:13:00.002-05:00

Who would have thought? Surely not I.

I would never have imagined Isaiah would take to school like a duck to water. Never.

I thought I would be telling him constantly to sit, stay focused, stop playing- something along those lines. He is so focused and surprisingly just cannot seem to get enough. We do some math…just a little to get us going and he is ready to do more pages. We did handwriting, trying out a few letters, and he is ready to do more. (This is going to be his weak area as even holding the pencil correctly poses a problem for him. We have some grips to help him place his hand properly on the pencil so hopefully that will help.) We also did a little reading. He is flying through and ready to do more.

Funny. It just isn’t how I thought it would be with him.

But then it isn’t how I thought it would be with Kiersten either. I didn’t imagine that I would be struggling with her on day 2 of school. Day 2!!!! *Sigh.*

Let me just tell you that math is our stumbling block. Has been from the get go. I am confident my lack of patience and her lack of listening skills are BIG contributing factors. We even switched math programs this year to see if that would help. And here I am on day 2 (oh, the irony) of school telling you it isn’t the program that is the issue.

It is us.

We just don’t seem to mesh well. Our chemistry is bumpy and we butt heads, often.

Knowing this I set out today to make sure I spent more time with her on her math. (More importantly I committed it to the Lord before my feet hit the floor.) I think I expect too much of her and how she learns. She is a quick learner and a smart girl. This tends to make me think she should just get it from reading the book and seeing the examples contained within. Not unlike a college student sometimes has to do. Did I mention she is only 8? My bad.

Long story short even after spending close to 30 minutes doing some examples and trying to make things more concrete for her she still wasn’t wanting to meet me half-way. She even went so far as to say, “I hate school.”

And that my friends was the last straw.

I did mention this was only the second day of school, didn’t I?

I looked over at her and said something to the effect of, “This isn’t going to work. It just isn’t. We are only on the second day of school and this is your attitude? Do you want me to send you away for school? That is my only option if you won’t work with me and at least try.”

I didn’t say it as a means to manipulate or scare her into doing what I wanted her to do. I said it because it was and is the truth. I don’t have it in me to fight her. This isn’t a season I am willing to or can take on a fight simply to fight. There are others to consider and at the end of the day I don’t want school to be why we don’t like one another. It isn’t worth it.

After our candid little talk she did come around to at least trying. I’ll give her that. And would you believe I think I even saw her smile a time or two while she finished up her math?!

We’ll have to wait and see what tomorrow brings because surely it has to be better than today.

How many days are left in the school year? *Sigh.*

"He's so Fweet!"

2010-09-02T09:41:00.002-05:00

That is a direct quote from Katie. It is something she has been saying since the day Zeke arrived in our lives. And I have to say I agree with her whole heartedly!

Ezekiel is a joy and truly a sweet baby. He isn’t much of a crier except when hungry, getting beyond himself with tiredness or when his drawers are in need of refreshing. Those few things only amount to a very few short bouts of crying each day. I couldn’t be more thankful that he is such a good baby.

It doesn’t hurt that he is adorable in all his little self!

Would you just get a look at the adorable grin? How is one to resist someone so bright eyed with a rock star smile and dimples? It just isn’t possible.

Zeke has turned out to be quite the cooer. He does it in the softest of voices with a little half grin on his face. Oh, he holds conversations with me here and there but he has these marathon discussions with his Father. Must be some man talk that I just wouldn’t understand and therefore he feels he must confide such things to Dad. : ) Here he is just a talking away.

And he is on the brink of letting out the belly laughter. There have been a few teasers in there. It is like when you turn the key in the ignition of your car and you can tell it wants to turn over but it isn’t fully starting up. That is exactly how his little giggle thing is. You can tell he is working up to the laugh but he isn’t quite ready to let it out.

So how do the others feel about him?

Well, it is no lie that Katie is smitten with him. He is her, “Baby Brudder.” She seeks the two of us out and when she sees him it is, “Hi Zeke-ie!” She gives him kisses and lovin’ and if his binks (pacifier) is sitting somewhere she brings it to you and tries to put it in his mouth (even if he is nursing just then). She is a riot where Zeke is concerned and will be his great defender and friend as time passes by. It is refreshing to have her be this way as Kiersten was less than thrilled with Isaiah as a baby and Isaiah is just passive about babies and new family members in general.

I guess that answers how Isaiah is taking to him. He isn’t. Just like with Katie he isn’t mean or nice to Zeke. He kind of acts like he isn’t really there and just goes about his business same as before he came. I don’t know if you would exactly call it ignoring the baby or just indifferent. Time will tell how the two will end up interacting with one another. I hope they’ll be buddies and that he’ll take Zeke under his wing as they older.

And Kiersten, well, she definitely loves him. She likes holding him and talking to him. Now that he smiles she is out to win every smile for herself that she can. Zeke seems only too happy to oblige her need for lovin’ with smiling at her. She also wants to have him ‘talk’ to her as he does to Mom and Dad and tries for that just as hard as she does for the smiles. When Zeke first came home Kiersten described him as a “cup of cuteness”. Suffice it to say she still feels that way.

Beloved? He adores the little guy. As I mentioned they have their ‘man talks’ and then he knows full well I don’t get near the smiles and such that he does. That puffs him up a bit…and warms his heart in all the right places. I think there is something there for him too, knowing that this is to be our last baby, that makes him different this time around. Things we had rushed through before or simply taken for granted are being seen and time is marked. This stage will pass all too quickly so both he and I are enjoying and soaking it in as best we can.

My little clan of 4 complete now with this ‘fweet’ little boy!

Eight

2010-08-30T10:01:00.002-05:00

Do you believe she is eight already? Where in the world has the time gone?

My Beloved and I have been walking down memory lane a bit with the recent birth of Ezekiel. For each child we have recalled their grand entrance into our lives. And even though Kiersten’s is the farthest back in our memories it is no less fresh.

How do you ever forget the birth of your first child? It is nigh impossible.

To be honest I was hoping this last little one would favor Kiersten in coloring. I was hoping for another fair skinned, red headed beauty – be it boy or girl. Alas it was not to be and so I will just have to cherish all the more the beauty that Kiersten is.

Eight years. So many memories.

Such a little lady she has become. So grown up and yet still so little, know what I mean?

As a side note I think she has gotten her first crush on a boy! It is really quite cute. This boy is from church as well as from the same dance studio. He is a one to two years older than her and they aren’t even in the same dance class or small group at church and yet he has caught her attention. How do I know, you ask. Well, when your little girl mentions this boy by name and then says ever so casually (as casually as an eight year old can) that we should have his family over for dinner. She has come to recognize that when we want to get to know a couple or family we have them over for a meal – or two. That is when you know it is serious. Oh to be eight again! : ) (Also noteworthy is the fact that her Dad is no where near ready for her to be taking a shine to any boy!)

Anyhow, back on topic.

We had our own little family party on the day of her actual birthday. She chose to grill out for dinner and then have a strawberry cake with strawberry frosting and rainbow sherbet for dessert. The girl knows what she likes/wants and isn’t afraid to say so. : ) (She gets that from her Dad!)

We gave her a few little gifts as well as the promise of a date with Daddy to go see Nannie McPhee 2 once the weekend came- just her and Daddy, no one else. I am told they shared popcorn and had a lovely time. How can you not when you are on a date with your Dad? : ) Kiersten also got to spend the night with her cousin at their house and enjoyed herself immensely.

All in all it sounds as though she had a good birthday. It was more big girl this year…I fear little girl things are rapidly becoming a thing of the past for her.

She is growing up, too fast. Where does the time go? Eight years….and counting.

His First

2010-08-15T22:50:00.004-05:00

Just last week the Biggest Man lost his very first lose tooth. Wow, his first tooth gone. Where has the time flown?

It was the most anticlimactic event compared to the fake cry/whine thing he does whenever someone (a sister) touches his toys when he’s not in the mood to share. Whenever one doesn’t do his bidding (like pushing him on the swing when he asks/whines for help even though he is more than able to pump his legs and push himself). Or whenever he sits down to dinner and decides he doesn’t want to eat it so he cries (even though last week it was his favorite dinner and he was finished in 5 minutes flat).

All these ordinary day to day things require much drama on his part and yet when the child is sick and throws up nary a sound or tear escapes him. Or like the case of losing his tooth and he says so matter of factly, “Dad! I think I just lost my tooth eating breakfast.” It just ‘came out’ and there were no tears or drama. (Can you tell he has been whining a lot of lot and that it is a trait that is severely working my patience bone?)

He is a quandary that one, a complete mystery. A true ‘big’ man is some ways and yet still such a ‘little’ man in others. I almost wish things were reversed and that the day to day was something he could brave with the shrug of a shoulder and those random, occurring only even so often events were the ones he fussed over. Ah well, there is a lesson in patience for me there!

Nevertheless Isaiah looks so sweet with his tooth missing and he talks in the funniest of ways. It is just like when you put a bandage on their hand when they are real little and they hold their whole hand funny because they are ‘hurt’. He does the same with how he is talking since his tooth came out. The brush of his tongue against that gap must feel weird for he compensates for it with this little lisp things he does now. To put it simply he doesn’t talk the same and thus doesn’t sound the same- all to avoid the feel of that space in his mouth. Cute, sweet and funny sounding my Biggest Man is now.

Oh, and unlike his sister he was willing to let the Tooth Fairy come and relinquish his beloved, or not so beloved, tooth. When asked what the Tooth Fairy should bring him he replied, “A musical toothbrush.” I had no idea where this idea came from since I have yet to see a musical toothbrush and then Kiersten piped up and said, “He wants the same thing Wyatt on Super Why (PBS program) got when he lost his tooth.”

Oooohhh- so that is where that idea came from. Not really feeling bad about it we told him that there would be no musical toothbrush showing up under his pillow the next morning (Walmart doesn’t carry musical toothbrushes. Anyone ever seen such a thing?) and pray tell what else might the Tooth Fairy leave you under your pillow? This time he replied, “A gold piece and a sucker.” The child doesn’t want much. : )

Lucky for him we have some of those one dollar coins. You know, those very 'gold' looking one dollar coins? So the next morning my child awoke to find a ‘gold’ piece and a Dum Dum sucker under his pillow. (The sucker was consumed before he came down to breakfast.) He was very easy to please in this regard, for which we were/are thankful. Since Kiersten has never been willing to part with a tooth this whole Tooth Fairy gig was a bit new to us. But alas all's well that ends well. : ) At least until next time!

Zeke

2010-08-11T23:30:00.000-05:00

Well, the littlest man is coming along. I was a little worried Zeke was going to be a repeat of his brother...the first year, that is. And I confess I was a bit scared/worried. I love my Isaiah boy but his first year of life was the roughest ever for me and for my marriage. Oh, he wasn’t the cause of the marriage issues but I have to say I don’t ever want to relive a year like that one again. So when it looked like Ezekiel was thinking of following just a little too closely in his brother’s footsteps I got awful worried. (Here is the family of four.)

How was he following in Isaiah’s footsteps? You ask. Well, just like his brother he lost 1 pound by the 48 hour doctor visit. Then for his 2 week appointment he had gained no weight (Isaiah had at least gained some- although not back up to his birth weight of 9 pounds 9 ounces). It took Zeke about a month to get back up and past his birth weight.

Oh, but the scare of nursing issues and the possibility of a year of pumping like I did with Isaiah- I wish I could tell you what the last month of mind games has been like.

Thankfully Zeke is nursing fine…slowly and every 3 hours (which translates to 2 hour increments of time between feedings for me) even through the night. At his appointment earlier this week my strapping boy weighed in at 9 pounds 14 ounces making his mother ever so happy! : )

Other than nursing, trying to keep up with laundry, giving the other kids outside time and making sure we all eat I have not much time to spare. You could say I am in pure survival mode, the mode where it is a bit hard to think much beyond today or the end of this week. Do you think 2 hour intervals of sleep factor in there? Hmmm….

Anyhow, this is the littlest man not too long ago. He definitely favors Isaiah and Katie with his dark hair and darker skin. All in all his is a sweet and fairly calm baby which is a true blessing. He smiles in his sleep and is quite the little noisemaker when doing his business- all boy in that department!

More on all the family later…I am cutting into my 2 hours of sack time so I’ll bid you adieu for now!

Was it a Prince or a Princess?

2010-07-13T11:04:00.000-05:00

My Beloved has felt all along that #4 would be a princess. He just knew. I was right there with him until the last week. As I was gathering baby clothes from bins to get washed and take to the hospital I just felt that I really should grab more boy things. I started doubting we were having a girl.

Well, the long and short of it is that Monday, July 5th we welcomed a prince into the family. Little Ezekiel John weighed in at 9lbs 6 1/2 oz and 22 inches long. He looks a bit like the 2 before him...lots of dark hair and dark skin. Kiersten will be our only fair skinned beauty with her copper hair.

I don't have pictures up yet...just haven't had the time to get them on the computer, but I'll get there, promise.

K, just a quick update to say that the littlest man has arrived! : ) Take care and hopefully I'll update with pictures sooner than later.

Prayer Request

2010-07-01T08:53:00.000-05:00

Just wanting to ask prayer for this dear family. Their young son, Jake, will be undergoing brain surgery sometime today to help drain some fluid from an abcess that formed as a result of an infection a little over 2 weeks ago. Mom and Dad (Ali & Mitch) are struggling and just crying out for prayers...and thus I am crying out as well.

Jake has a heart condition, has since the womb, and that has added to some of the distress, some of the worry. These parents aren't new to hospital stays and plenty of doctors, however, they are new to brain issues. The brain was just not something they thought would need tending to and it scares them in ways they hadn't thought possible.

They just need prayers. Here Jake is with his sweet sisters, Olivia and Grace. If you want to stay connected and updated with Jake's family they do have a caringbridge site.

Thanks for the prayers in advance!

Delicious Treats

2010-06-30T19:04:00.000-05:00

Just this week I was looking for a little something sweet to make and came across this recipe. It will work well for you ladies that are a bit more health conscience than I am and still be tasty enough for the rest of us! : )

Without further ado here is the recipe for health honey cookies (I did grab this recipe from a Penzeys One (fabulous spice company) catalog)

1 ½ cups flour                              ½ cup brown sugar
¼ cup ground flax seed                 ½ cup sugar
1 tsp baking soda                          2 eggs
½ tsp salt                                      2 TB milk
1 tsp cinnamon                              2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup applesauce                           2 ½ cups oatmeal (old fashioned or quick)
2 TB butter, softened                     2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
½ cup honey                                  1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 375. In large bowl beat the applesauce, butter, honey and sugars together until well blended. Beat in the eggs, milk and vanilla. Add flour, flax seed, baking soda, salt and cinnamon (I used a bit more than a tsp) and mix. Fold in or mix the oatmeal and then the chocolate chips. The dough will be moist. Drop by tablespoon onto lightly greased (yes, you really should grease the cookie sheets, promise) cookie sheets and bake 10-11 minutes for chewy cookies or 12-14 minutes for crispier cookies. These cookies firm up very nicely after a day if you can restrain yourself from eating them all fresh out of the oven. : )

These cookies truly are delicious. I cooked them 14-16 minutes and they were quite brown- not burnt, just brown. However, crispy is not a term I would use for this cookie. It is more the texture of a cupcake and since we don’t live in a drier area I wasn’t able to try to leave them out so they could ‘firm’ up. It is just a forewarning that these don’t have the texture or ‘bite’ to them that a hard cookie would but they lack absolutely nothing in flavor- really and truly. Healthy or not your kids will gobble these up just as they would any other chocolate chip cookie. Just had to share since the recipe was fresh on my mind! Have a blessed afternoon. : )

Goings On

2010-06-28T15:45:00.001-05:00

A lot and a little has been going on at our house these last few weeks. We’ve had dance recitals, birthday’s to celebrate, Father’s day and of course getting ready for B-day…that is Baby’s birth day.

Let’s start with the recital. Kiersten was in her first ever dance recital the middle of this month. We missed last year’s due to a family commitment we decided to honor. Well, this year was something new for me. Wow! What a production for a small town! We had rehearsals on Monday and Tuesday afternoon with the full show Wednesday and Thursday nights. Thankfully, and I mean thankfully, Kiersten was in the opening number and the one just after. So for each rehearsal and for the first night of the show we only needed to stay for less than an hour getting her ready and having her perform before being able to head back home. This was key for me because I had all 3 of the kids with me and the show started at the time we are normally getting ready for bed. (Beloved had a later working week and just wasn’t able to be home before 7pm each evening.)

She did fabulously. Really and truly she did wonderful. I was thankful for the bright, bright lights that didn’t allow my sweet girl to see how big the audience was and thus get more nervous than she needed to be.

I was also thankful for getting to watch the rest of the show with her the second night. After she performed she changed clothes and we became audience members enjoying seeing all that she might some day learn and be as a dancer. (Should she choose to remain one!)

During recital week it was my Dad’s birthday and the weekend following was Katie’s 2nd birthday along with Father’s Day. We celebrated with a little family party the day before and had leftover cake the day of. What a spoiled little girl she is- chocolate cake two days in a row!!! : )

One of my favorite things about little ones is how honestly easy they are to please and thrill. The night before the party I picked up a foil Dora balloon for her. (Dora is all the rage.) When we arrived home that night she played and played with the balloon, talking up a storm all the while. During all of this she turns to me, talking about her balloon, and loudly says, “Mama! I like it!” So funny and feisty that one is.

Other than celebrating accomplishments in dancing, age or being a Dad I have been doing things here and there to get ready for Baby. I still don’t have my bag packed just yet, a chore I will tackle this very evening. However, I do have the bed set up, the car seat in the car and I have purchased the littlest diapers known to man. Time will tell when he/she will make their grand debut. Honestly though, if another person makes some comment about the largeness of my belly or says to me, “When are you going to pop that kid out?” (Yes, Beloved, I am speaking to you!) I just might feel inclined to take physical action!

Don’t people know that it isn’t wise to contend with a woman at the end of her pregnancy? : )

Happy Birthday Grandma!

2010-06-09T14:26:00.001-05:00

I thought we would forgo the group singing and let each one go solo to wish Grandma a most happy birthday. So without further ado, from youngest to oldest, here are the kids sending you their love Grandma!!!

Katie & Grandma's Birthday from Jess on Vimeo.

Sorry Grandma, but Katie was a little more interested in seeing herself on the camera then actually singing to you. : )

Isaiah & Grandma's Birthday from Jess on Vimeo.

Isaiah being an Isaiah boy...giggling, singing and then running around so he could watch what we just recorded. Hmmmm...I sense a theme going on with these recordings!

Kiersten & Grandma's Birthday from Jess on Vimeo.

Poor Kiersten girl. The phone started to ring while she was singing and I think she felt she needed to close her video up quick. She also didn't exactly get to go solo. You can see the Katie girl honed in on her time just so she could watch herself again. :)

They are all hams, the whole lot of them! Know we love you and we are sending you lots of birthday love across the ocean! Looking forward to seeing your sweet face soon. Happy Birthday, MOM.

The Cabin

2010-06-07T20:39:00.001-05:00

Last weekend we made a trip 'up North' to see my Grandparents. They have this wonderful cabin with a little lake front beach. We didn't make it up there last year but vowed to do so this year...and hopefully twice. Once before the baby comes and then once again in early Fall.

I have to say there is something special about sharing a bit of my childhood with my own kids'. When I was younger we went nearly every year for almost as long as I can remember to The Cabin. If my mom had 2 weeks vacation we drove up there and spent the entire 2 weeks. It is just a wonderful and special place with a lot of good memories and laughter. (Back in the day there was no T.V. or phone and all you had for night time entertainment were games. Cribbage is a family favorite and was played often.)

My kids' seem to love being at The Cabin just as much as I did, and still do. They were eager to don their swimsuits and get wet. Let me tell you that lake is cold in August so it is more than a little chilly at the end of May...but kids' just don't seem to know any better. : )

Katie was particularly funny to watch because we were temporarily putting this life jacket on her until we retrieved the one from the car. (She doesn't look happy in this picture, but that is because she wanted to get up and was saying, "Lease!" to my asking if she would like some help.) Well once this baby was on she was not taking it off even though it looked completely uncomfortable. She couldn't tilt her head down at all because the jacket was right there and not moving. She couldn't get up from a sitting position or from her knees because the jacket impeded her motion. I was thankful she was in the jacket...but man oh mister it was a trial of sorts.

The other two did really well with their life jackets. My aunt and her family was there as well and her twin boys fall between Kiersten and Isaiah. They have a rule about being down at the dock and having their life jackets on at all times which helped us out in a huge way. It just became common to put the jacket on before even heading down to the water and there was absolutely no complaining about doing so! : )

The best part about being at The Cabin besides the quiet, slow pace of things, spending time with some wonderful grandparents and being away from it all is that you have to make no effort what-so-ever to entertain your kids. They will spend hours down by the water 'doing things' and playing. If you keep a cool drink nearby, sun yourself on the sand while playing life guard all will go smoothly and splendidly! : )

P.S. You know the trip was a good one when you are home less than an hour and your son wants to know when you are going back!

Joshua

2010-06-02T12:16:00.000-05:00

Not too long ago…mid-winter or so we decided to buy Kiersten a big girl Bible. We have a couple of kiddy Bibles but not anything for a young reader. Our church was doing this family February event, tying together church and home, and they were selling the Adventure Bible and worship CD’s. I went online to see what I could find because although the Adventure Bible sounded great…well, it just didn’t appeal to a girl’s heart.

I ended up buying this young readers edition of the Adventure Bible. She was sooooo pleased with the purple soft cover. She held onto and flipped through it for days. It was just real sweet.

Anyhow, a few days later for our Bible time we were going to start the book of Joshua. So I handed her her Bible and asked her if she thought she could find the book of Joshua.

This is what I heard in reply, “Sure, Mama. That’s easy, squeezy double ga-beezy! Is that 1st Joshua or 2nd Joshua?”

That one got me just so and I couldn’t stop grinning for the pure sweetness and innocence of response. 1st or 2nd Joshua. It took me a minute or two to reply and to tell her that although there are a lot of books in the Old Testament that do have 2 books Joshua was not one of them.

A memory to cherish, remember and share again with a sweet young soul.

The Reading Corner

2010-05-28T22:27:00.000-05:00

Recently I moved some furniture around the house. We needed a change and some more organization to most of our school materials. Our house doesn’t have any spare rooms left for a play or school room so the dining room is where all the action takes place. Thus this is where I moved the little bookcase necessary to house school things.

I put up this years material and then brought up from the basement last years material. It was so funny to watch the kids sit on the bin I brought up and just peruse what was there.

Kiersten was meeting up with some old friends and remembering stories read before and Isaiah was picking up the science experiment book and finding thing after thing he wanted to try again. Katie, she just wanted to see what the other two were looking at so closely.

The only damage done thus far was to the small occupant on top of the bookshelf just now…a caterpillar we found on a walk. Poor guy has been tossed around a bit and then dropped. Insult to injury if you ask me.

Anyhow, back to the reading corner or area. It is a blessing to have things organized and up for us to find all in one place and I am looking forward to adding many more years worth! I know the kids are as well. (We’ll worry about logistics later. : ) )

Debating

2010-05-27T21:09:00.001-05:00

I have been debating and seriously considering alternate schooling options for our kids come Fall. I have been nervous about #4 coming and could I handle it all (still am). Will I do a good enough job? Will I still have my sanity at the end of the day? Will my kids’ have theirs? How will I be able to keep up with day to day things, school and a new baby? Just mountains of questions and insecurities about what I can or can't do.

So I did what any grown woman would do…I confessed to my husband. I made my fears known to him and asked him how he felt about tentatively enrolling the 2 oldest in the public school system next year. That conversation did not go at all how I had envisioned it going. It wasn’t bad. It just wasn’t what I thought I would hear in response. My Beloved was quite opposed to doing the public school thing.

After that conversation I had to think on the situation a bit more. Another Mom informed me our state offered ‘virtual’ schools. These types of schools allow your child to be registered as a public school student and yet still do school at home. They would receive a laptop, have an on-line teacher and all school materials would be sent to us at the state’s expense. It sounded like the next best thing- the in between of sending them to school and full time home schooling.

But the more I thought on it the more I realized this situation might be even more stressful than doing the home school program we do now. I mean, my kids aren’t big enough (at least the little guy isn’t) to do on-line courses without help. They would still need my physical help for quite a bit AND I would be at the mercy of someone else’s schedule. That pressure of marching to another person’s tune didn’t sit so well with me.

The other thing that made me seriously reconsider doing the virtual schooling option was checking out their curriculum. We predominantly use Sonlight and there are things here and there I don’t love. However, one of the things I do love is the reading material that they have selected, both for us to read together and for her to read on her own. The stories are wonderful. The virtual program didn’t really have a reading program and the math was a bit weak. It just was all around unimpressive. I don’t mean to sound snobby about it.

Then I looked at what we would be doing this year through Sonlight, Core 3 – Introduction to American History, and I got excited again. The Biggest Man has also been making his own strides with reading and we’ve started a different Bible program just this week to bring him into all this schooling business too. That has been neat to see him join the fold a bit and take an interest in learning.

I still have time to say I want to do the virtual school option…but I think I just might pass. After all, even if we can’t stay on schedule in the Fall we can always extend through the Summer and just try to enjoy doing the family thing together.

Baby Dilemma

2010-05-17T22:04:00.001-05:00

Why is it so hard to come up with names for boys’? We are just stuck. We have a few, and I mean very few, ideas but nothing that really strikes us.

It isn’t that we need a totally original name and yet I find myself poo-pooing those names that are more common and highly used… like Matthew, John, David. These are all good names…but not ones I want to use. We have talked about Ezekiel, Eli, Caleb and Ethan. No middle names at all. Hard to head that way when you cannot even come up with a first name that just hits home.

Maybe it is especially hard this time because we both feel like it is a girl. We had trouble coming up with boys’ names when we found out we were expecting the first time. In fact the name we had chosen for a boy, if Kiersten had been one, we recycled when we found out what #2 was. (The only child we found out the sex of ahead of time.) We didn’t even discuss other options. We just went with what it took us so long to come up with the first time around.

With Katie we had an ongoing bet about the sex…so there was something there, in me at least, that made having a boy a possibility. Not that our guts are right about the sex of this baby, but the since we are both on the same team it makes it seem almost unnecessary to come up with a name and yet we know we need to. Does that make any sense?

Now girls’ names? Oh, we can come up with a list of 10. We have one in mind, subject to change. We are thinking Megan, Maegan, Maeghan (spelling it isn’t something we are solid on as of yet : ) ).

All that being said - any help for a boy's name? Anything at all you want to toss in the ring?

Family Fondue Night

2010-05-10T22:24:00.001-05:00

Recently my Beloved and I were able to have an adult night away…and yet not leave the house! : ) We had invited over some dear friends of ours whose children are well past the needing a babysitter stage. We had been trying to get together with them for some time…but do you go out? Stay home? What’s best? We finally decided let’s ask them over for dessert after we put the kiddos down. That way we have the best of both worlds. We can have the date night and not pay a babysitter!

Well, we knew that chocolate would go over extremely well with one member of the couple coming so we decided to try a Toblerone fondue. This is a much loved chocolate treat we hadn’t had until Christmas time when one family member gave us a large bar to share. Anyhow, we made the chocolate sauce and I had a little brand new fondue pot/heater thing with 4 colored forks we could place the sauce in on the table to keep it warm.

We chopped up strawberries, pineapple, bananas, green apple, pound cake, and then had Nilla wafers as well. Can I say scrumptious? Really, really scrumptious!!!

Well, Kiersten was a little jealous because she knew we were having people over and that we were having dessert…all without her. (We had to give her some talking to before sending her up to bed. You know, there is nothing you need down here so please don’t come down unless it is an emergency type of talk. Thankfully she obeyed and stayed up even though it must have been killing her! : ))

Our compromise was to have another fondue night the following evening with the kids. We already had everything…all the fruit and such. We just needed to make a fresh chocolate sauce to dip it all in. I am sure you can tell from the pictures that family fondue night was a complete hit! (Check the level of the sauce in the picture with the kids’ and I.) We did give Katie her own little dipping pile on her plate so the sauce would cool down and then she wouldn’t lose her fruit or her fingers in the other pot.

It was truthfully a simple and fun way to have dessert. This will be something we'll do again, that's for sure! I mean how can you go wrong with a bunch of fruit and a delicious chocolate sauce to dip it in?

Really Sweet

2010-05-06T12:02:00.000-05:00

Believe it or not this post isn't about the kids! *gasp* This actually is about a call I received from my older brother the other evening. He called a few nights ago when there was a storm passing through the area that had a tornado warning associated with it. He wanted to check and make sure we were all right and just hi.

Now this might seem like no big deal to some but to me it was something special. My brother just isn't the keep-in-touch kind of guy. I don't know how to explain it other than to say he just doesn't. He'll come see you when you are in town. He'll send the occasional birthday card, maybe. It isn't a mean thing or an I don't love you or want to know you kind of thing it is simply the way he is...with everyone.

So when he called to check-up on us, and we don't live in the same state or even a neighboring state, it really meant a lot to me. I guess it is just the kind of season we are in because he sent me a funny birthday card this year, as only brothers can, and wrote a very touching note to go along with it. In fact it made me cry. Sure, my hormones are a factor as a result of the pregnancy but it was just that kind of sweet and loving note that isn't typical of him and because it isn't typical it just meant/means all that much more.

Anyhow, long story short he is a sweetie and working hard to pursue his dreams. He's also single and quite the looker for any of you single ladies out there! : ) Love you Jason. Thanks for checking-up.

Can I Just Confess...

2010-05-03T22:37:00.001-05:00

that at any given moment in the day I either feel like I am an old man or a plumber?

Of course I must explain further. Here is my dilemma: my pants are either in need of constant pulling up (because the ever increasing size of my belly) or they are falling down and showing a bit too much of my hinder (because I have not pulled them up in the last 60 seconds or I have bent over).

You will be happy to know in public it is the old man I feel like. I don’t know why I associate the pulling up of my pants as an old man thing other than to say it just seems like you see a lot of old men adjusting their drawers. : )

As for the plumber association…in our family whenever someone was bending over and showing a bit too much of their backside we called it plumber’s crack. I know, I know! It isn’t P.C. or nice. I am just telling you what we called it back in the day. And cut me some slack, I didn’t have any sisters I just had brothers. Anyhow, I tend to feel a lot like the plumber when I am at home as I am forever bending over to pick something or someone up.

I am just so annoyed with pants right now and completely disappointed in a pair of maternity capri I bought the other day I almost cried. Why won’t anything stay up for the love of Pete?! I was able to take all of 5 steps in those pants before they were sagging. Yeah, those babies are going back. I know I didn’t have this much trouble with pants when I was pregnant the first time.

Am I just getting old and crotchety or do they really make some seriously lousy maternity wear for the every day gal? Any suggestions other than suspenders? : ) Heard that one already.

You can be thankful there were no pictures associated with this post. : ) I had to throw a laugh in there at the end of my grumbling!

Up to NO Good

2010-04-28T14:38:00.002-05:00

and apparently enjoying herself immensely!!! That Katie girl, I tell you, she is something else. Today she has eaten her breakfast, licked my breakfast bowl clean (head in it like Winnie the Pooh- and it was honey cinnamon oatmeal, in case you were wondering), from breakfast and any other thing see ate managed to make her hair ‘stiff’ with food, dumped over half of her sister’s orange juice on the table…to end up on my floor, climbed up the bathroom drawers to inspect and dismantle her daddy’s wallet (I was showering at the time and saw her but wasn’t in any position to do much just then), was escorted out of the bathroom to return 10 minutes later and managed to climb up to the actual counter, again using the drawers- where she was found standing and going through the medicine cabinet, from said bathroom counter got the top off of her toothpaste and was sucking it out (There was a reason the toothpaste was no longer on the counter top but in the upper cabinet. Oh, and it was the kiddy toothpaste so no worries that she ingested more than she would have in brushing her teeth.), finally ate her lunch (Hasn’t eaten much lunch for several days. She even asked for seconds – gasp!), and managed to get her short arms around the wall where the baby gate was placed to reach into the kitchen pantry and help herself to two Oreos. Would you believe all of this happened before noon? Some days….

A ‘Cool’ Experiment

2010-04-26T13:23:00.001-05:00

Not long ago, while studying Pluto (an ice planet) we were able to make our own homemade ice cream. The whole point of the experiment was to show, in a rather tasty fashion, how things freeze.

We had wanted to grab one of those nifty soccer ball-like contraptions to make the ice cream in…but as that was not something we could do without ordering it we went with the old school way the book described.

We took two Ziploc plastic bags…1-quart and 1-gallon size. In the gallon size bag we put a certain amount of rock salt and water and in the quart size bag we put heavy cream, powdered sugar and vanilla. Each bag was sealed individually and the smaller one placed within the larger one.

A few minutes of shaking, watching the salt turn from a solid to a slushy mess and we had some not so bad tasting ice cream!

It was still a little troublesome trying to explain to such a young one about freezing point depression and have it make sense as some of the high school and college students who learn about it have a hard time wrapping their minds around it as well. We did what we could.

What she’ll remember? 1) That Pluto is an ice planet (ok, it isn’t a ‘planet’ technically anymore. Nevertheless she’ll remember it does not have a hot inner core as the rest of the planets do). 2) That making ice cream ourselves is fun, yummy and we should try experimenting making some other flavors as vanilla is good but other kinds are even better! : )

A Compliment....of Sorts

2010-04-23T11:51:00.003-05:00

Kiersten - "Mom, you know what's weird about you?"

Me- "Uh, no sweetie. What's that?"

Kiersten- "You look like you shower every day!"

Me- "Thanks. I think."