Four times the fun!

Why did the chicken climb up on the windowsil?

2012-01-28T18:49:00.000-06:00

To tell us it's bedtime for chickens!

Every evening, Melody hops up on the same window and starts pecking the window and singing. She stays there until someone comes to the window and says "Ok, Melody!" and then she hops down and heads over to the backdoor to wait to be carried to the chickens' coop in the garage.

She's either an extremely well-trained chicken or we are extremely well-trained humans.

So long 2011

2012-01-01T18:23:00.000-06:00

I can honestly say that 2011 contained both the worst of life and the best of life. But I'd say it was a good year because our family has experience the refining that only The Lord can offer. God has shown Himself mightily this year. There has been sadness but great joy. But I feel like we are "on track" and though we aren't exactly sure what this next year will hold (who is?), I know we are where God wants us to be at this moment. Praying that next we can say the same 365 days from now! So without further rambling on my part, here is a summary of 2011 for our family.

The was the year of:

The Baby. A baby is an inestimable blessing and I do not take my five children for granted. Jacob is an answer to prayer and has been added to what is on loan to us from The Lord. What a loving and generous God He has been to our family.

The Goodbye. Honestly, I'm still trying to wrap my head around that. I miss my mom so much--more as time goes on. But I know that she is in the most beautiful of gardens and that I will see her again. God is good all the time and this is part of His plan. And I'm ok with that even though I miss her. Grief is a part of life and it isn't meant to destroy us but to draw us closer to Him. I'm choosing to submit to that.

The Broken Bones. Reese broke her arm in May. Hailey broke her ankle in October. Three weeks later Paige broke her ankle. Our orthopedist's office got to know us quite well. May we never see their friendly faces again!

The Family Integrated Church. Only God could have led us to our new church home. We have not formally joined yet but I'm sold. It takes us out of our comfort zone and that's a very good thing. We have met some very nice like-minded families and that has been an enormous blessing on so many levels. I'm so excited to see even more revelation from God in this upcoming year. I want Him to pour that wisdom on.
The Urban Egg Farm. Started the year with 4 birds, lost one to a raccoon (still plotting my revenge...hehe), had the fun of raising 2 more chicks, ended the year with 5 chickens. Not sure how many eggs we harvested but I did not have to buy any eggs from the store for a good 7 months! I'd say The Chicken Project has been a smashing success.

The Hottest Summer Ever. I would like a t-shirt that says "I survived the summer of '11 heavily pregnant" Our lawn may be done in, there is a possibility the foundation of our house cracked (we don't want to know yet), tears were shed upon opening the electricity bill each month, and no one (not even me who is the supreme hater of inclimate weather) has complained about our cold and wet winter. The hottest summer ever led to:

The Fire. One of the most terrifying moments in recent memory was smoke filling our street and ash raining down on us as we frantically packed our cars before fleeing from a fire of unknown size and proximity. I'm an East Coaster and we don't do fires well. Hurricanes, yes. Fires, NO. Seeing all of the heartbreak from the worst wildfire season in Texas history was sobering.

Those are the highlights from 2011. Each member of our family has their own list of things that stand out from lost teeth to AWANA awards, from a job promotion to memorizing addition facts. We are starting this year out stronger in the Lord and ready to go where He wants us.

Praying for everyone a wonderful twenty-twelve

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-25T22:39:00.002-06:00

It's so quiet right now. All the children have finally given into sleep after a wonderful Christmas day. I am so glad that we have plenty of years left with small children in the house because there can't be anything more fun than being with children on Christmas morning.

We had a lovely day (I said that, right?). The girls enjoyed their gifts and got along remarkably well with each other. Jason and I got to enjoy our children--we were waited on at Cafe Expresso, healed by Dr. Paige, admired the new Webkinz additions, played with the stuffed cast of Yo Gabba Gabba, colored, and stacked blocks. Jason is holding a sleeping Jacob right now--the longest he has been able to hold him yet. I wish every day could be like Christmas!

Our Christmas traditions aren't anything incredibly original but they are enjoyed all the same. We always have a big dinner with Jason's side of the family on Christmas Eve and we exchange gifts afterwards. We let the kids track Santa online until bedtime. Christmas morning will find us opening gifts to Christmas music followed by a hearty breakfast (ok, this morning we had sausage muffins and danishes from Costco--the reality of having a newborn baby). Christmas afternoon will find us watching "The Nativity Story". I always cry. So does Jason. And dinner is a feast of leftovers from the big meal the night before. We read the story of Jesus' birth from our Bible storybook. This year we also read from our "Leading Little Ones to God" book and colored a stack of pictures to go with the reading.

Anyway, we had a great day (I said that, right?). These are some of my favorite pictures from our day. I hope our little ones remember how much they are loved by their parents.

O Christmas Tree

Paging Dr. Paige

Expresso Cafe ("The Best Restaurant in the WHOLE WORLD")

Grand opening today at 10:00 a.m.

Owner of Expresso Cafe (with a regular customer)

Baby slept thru the hoopla of present opening.

Jason's sister knows him so well.

The Gabba Gang joined our family!

My boys :)

My crew :) Keeps me oh so very busy but I wouldn't change a thing.

Babyland...

2011-12-11T00:35:00.000-06:00

...where time simultaneously drags and flies by. Two hours go by and you've managed to nurse the baby, change the baby's diaper, change the baby's clothes, chug down two glasses of water, possibly pee, nurse the baby, change the baby's diaper. The big kids are still in front of the tv in their pajamas. If you didn't shower the night before you can give up any hopes of that until late tonight. Breakfast was consumed dangerously fast and most likely standing up.

Yet...

With all my heart I truly love having a newborn baby :) I would happily trade hot food, a complete shower, a clean house, and a decently functioning brain for evenings spent curled up in bed with a milky smelling, snorting, warm little baby. And days spent with a baby in sling or in arms. I am a total baby addict :)

Definitely enjoying Jacob. Loving the time to hang with my girls with no real plan or agenda. I can not even believe it is me saying this but I am glad for the break from school. Such a sweet, special time. Anyway, here are some of my favorite recent pictures:

First car ride.

I'm heading back to this right now :)

First Bath...

2011-12-11T00:06:00.000-06:00

Exceedingly unhappy at first.

Sort of relaxed and at least not crying.

Mom saved me! I was playing the pathetic card!

Uh...no more baths please. Ever.

Welcome Jacob! (birth story)

2011-12-02T20:46:00.002-06:00

Our little baby boy (surprise!), Jacob Bruce, arrived on November 23,2011. Twelve days past his "due date" much to his mother's horror. No, really, it was ok that he took his time and all but we were coming up to the 42 weeks of gestation mark where we'd have to start getting involved with an obstetrician and that was not what we wanted.

I had been having bouts of stronger contractions since around 40 weeks and while they weren't uncomfortable enough or close enough to make me want to time them, they were annoying enough to wake me out of a deep sleep at their peak. I constantly felt on the verge of labor. Which is sort of hard to deal with after awhile because I wanted to make sure I was rested and in good condition to endure labor and that meant staying home and taking it easy as well as trying to maintain the house and care for the girls. Sort of a hard balance to keep up for almost two weeks. I wasn't the only one on edge either--our midwife went to bed every night expecting to be woken up by our phone call. And Jason left work each day prepared to be gone for a week or more, never sure whether he'd be at the next meeting he was supposed to lead. Our world was waiting on Baby Garrett...

On Wednesday, November 23rd our midwife, Patty, called and we decided to have her strip my membranes. We had been hesitant to do this before this point because of my positive beta strep status. I had been taking a labor tonic for a few days and spending some time with the breast pump and labor was just not kicking in. So with two days remaining until the 42 week mark, we decided to up the efforts.

Patty got here around 1:00 p.m. and checked me--2 cm dilated, 85% effaced, Baby at 0 station (I could have told anyone that--Baby felt like he/she was going to fall out!). She stripped my membranes and within ten minutes I was having much stronger contractions that immediately became 5 minutes apart. Patty put me on the breast pump for 15 minutes and boy that kept the contractions coming! About 60-90 seconds long and 5 minutes apart. She listened to Baby with her doppler and everything sounded well. This had to be the day! It was around 2 p.m. and Patty headed home to give us some privacy and to rest up for what could possibly be a long night. She advised that I eat something light and hit that breast pump at least once more to maintain a good pattern of contractions. She said, "I'm thinking I'll be back around 7." I was not convinced, I think I had almost given up hope of ever getting this child out.

By 5:00 things were definitely progressing. I had abandoned watching any t.v. (I don't even remember the episode of that crazy show "Sister Wives" that we thought would be entertaining!) and the classical piano music I had chosen was just getting on my nerves. I was in the rocking chair and that seemed to help. Standing was miserable. Sitting on the toilet was horrid. A hot rice sock on my back helped. Patty called to check on me. I asked if I could get in the labor pool or the shower and as soon as she answered me "Well, the shower for sure..." I practically hung up on her and made a beeline for the shower.

I stayed in the shower for about an hour while Jason began filling the labor pool. The contractions were much stronger and were about 2-3 minutes apart and I could tell they were really working. The water made everything so much better though and I was concentrating and swaying in the shower and sometimes vocalizing (that means mooing like a cow) but handling things pretty well. I started to think that maybe Jason should call Patty but I was really working with my labor and it was hard to muster up the voice to talk. I heard Jason on the phone with a friend of mine--he was bustling around in the bathroom--and he told her that he thought we wouldn't be having a baby till late tonight or tomorrow morning. In my head I thought, "Bull! This is not going to be going on that long buddy!" and I wanted to give him a good hard pinch just for saying so.

Finally he paused in his frantic preparations and asked how I was doing. "Call Patty." I croaked. He was like, "Are you sure?" And then he picked up my cel phone and saw that she had texted him saying "I'm on my way." She knew! She said later that she knew when she talked to me at 5:00 that I was making good progress. She was also right about being back here around 7:00 which I would never have guessed hours earlier.

After Jason told me Patty was on her way I ventured out of the shower because I had been in there for an hour or more and was hot and thought about all the hot water I was using that should be going to the labor pool. I laid on the bed and had a contraction that can only be described as agonizing. I should have known better than to try that because I've never been able to take laboring while lying down. The pool had about 8 inches of water in it and I literally pitched myself over the side of the pool and flopped very ungracefully in the water. Ahhh! The water was heaven. It truly made all the difference between barely bearable contractions and unbearable ones.

I had exhausted the hot water supply with my epic shower so Jason began heating large pots of water on the stove and continued to fill up the pool pot by pot. I didn't say so, but I was really grateful.

I stayed in the pool and found the only position that was tolerable was sitting on my bottom with back against the pool wall and my legs straight out. Things were really getting intense and I was having to give every contraction my maximum attention. I was doing well with relaxing though it was tough. My mind was battling doubt and fear though. I told myself, "Lord, please help me. Remember, you've done this before. You can do it, you are doing it. The pain is intense but it's not hurting you. The contractions will not get worse, just closer. My body is doing exactly what God designed it to do. I'll be holding my baby soon. In a few hours this will be over. Thousands of women around the world are doing this very same work right now--billions have done it in the past. Lord please, help me." That was where my mind went during each and every contraction during the last 2 hours of labor. And ridiculously enough, during the breaks sometimes in my head I'd hear the "Yo Gabba Gabba" song that goes "Ouch, it hurts. It really, really hurts."

(Guess that's an improvement from the song I heard in my brain during Paige's labor--which was a song from an Adam Sandler movie)

People started to show up. Our friend who was caring for the girls, Patty and her assistant, and another midwife Mary. Everyone was really happy and excited. I was not happy. Or excited. I was resentful of their cheerfulness. Darn them. Do they not know how much I am suffering? I'd half listen to their conversations, always with my eyes closed, savoring each break from the tidal wave of pain and rising to my maximum level of endurance to meet the next wave. Patty asked me how I was at one point and I said "Very unhappy." and she said her in usual sweet way "Oh, you're in transition." and I sort of wanted to growl back at her. At some point I heard her say, "Lets get the baby clothes out and warmed." and I thought "She's just saying that to make me think this is really going to happen. This is never going to end!" And Jason, poor Jason. I didn't say anything to him (I think...) but I thought in my head "That jerk. How could he let me do this again? What is wrong with that man?!"

So yeah, Patty got it right when she proclaimed me to be in "transition." Haha :)

Periodically, I would check to see if the baby's head was nearing the exit. I could feel something a few inches in but couldn't tell if it was baby head or cervix but whatever it was, it was causing a whole lot of pressure. I mentioned it to Patty, she checked me and calmly told me I was 9 cm dilated. I asked her over and over again "Really? Really?" I mean, I probably asked her about 12 times. Patient as ever, she assured me she wasn't lying and that it was almost time to push my baby out. Sometime around there I felt a "poof" and that's when I'm pretty sure my water broke. That was something I had prayed fervently for--that my water would not break until very late in labor. Praise the Lord!

I have no idea how long it was after that but Patty asked me if I was ready to push. I went into the crazy "Really? Really?" deal again and I'm glad no one smacked me even though I probably could have used it. I was fearful about getting out of the my sanctuary, the pool, but I knew that I'd have a better chance of not tearing if I got out. Still, just before I made my final ascent out of the warm water I knelt and gave a push to see if maybe the baby would just float out and I'd be done. No such luck of course so I hauled out like a walrus and got nailed by a contraction on the way to the bed. I dropped to my knees and gave another desperate push but again, no luck. Somehow they got me up on the bed and into a pushing position.

Patty checked me and said "You've got a tiny lip of cervix left." I said "Push that damn thing out of the way and let's do this." My courage and determination were at an all time high and I knew it was now or never to get this kid out. I did not want to take one more contraction than I had to.

Jason held my left leg, Mary held my right leg, and Patty held back that cervical lip during the next contraction while I struggled through it. The lip melted away and I got the go ahead to push. Which I did with more gutso than anything I've ever done in my entire life. It hurt so bad, I knew it would from experience, and I knew that there was no getting around this pain. You must push through it and only then will it be over. I honestly felt like I was going to split into two or possibly blow my rectum and intestines out all over the place. But I clung to that burst of courage and pushed with everything I had.

I moved my biggest baby down pretty quickly and I could feel the head moving through. The pressure was absolutely indescribable. After each push I asked for a progress report. After a few contractions everyone got excited because they could see the head appear and then slide back. I kept on it though, pushing to the point where I was pretty sure I was going to rupture some blood vessels in my face or explode my eyeballs. Then Jason said he could see the head and it was staying and I knew I was so close. But still I asked "Really? Really?" over and over again and Patty had me touch my baby's head. Cool but let's get back to work! I had him to a full crown soon after that....then I had to wait for what seemed like five minutes of "the ring of fire" as I slowly stretched. Sure did hear Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire" too. As soon as I got the go ahead though I pushed with everything I had in me--I actually screamed--and then...

Out popped a head quickly followed by the rest of the body and I suddenly had a wet, hot, screaming baby on my belly!

I looked at Jason's face and his eyes were so big. He said "Wow. It's a...well, do you want to see?" and of course I knew it was a boy at that instant but I picked up our son and saw the evidence for myself. The only thing I could do was to laugh and say "Oh wow!"

He looked great and was hollering his little head off. The girls, who had been listening in the other room, quickly poured in to greet their brother. They were so excited and I'm so glad I had the wherewithal to take in their happy little faces as they crowded around us. It was such an awesome moment.

After things calmed down a bit and I nursed Jacob (who has been a pro nurser from the start), showered, and the kids got to put on some gloves and play with the placenta, Patty did the newborn checkup on Jacob. He weighed in at 8.8 lbs, 20.5 inches long, with a 14.5 inch head. Big boy. And I had only a little tear that did not require a repair.

So, that's Jacob Bruce's birth story. I haven't gotten my copy of the labor record from Patty yet but he was born at 9:03 p.m. and that would put my labor around 7 hours with about 4 of it being hard, active labor. Comparatively, it was similar to the length of Penny's labor but definitely my most intense labor. But the Lord answered our prayers: we prayed for my water not to break until very late in labor, a steady labor with no lulls, a day-time labor, a gentle labor (while it was very intense I still consider it gentle because I never found it to be truly miserable), a homebirth, and last but of course not least a healthy baby and momma. Praise be to The Lord!

Jacob's first feeding with his relieved momma.

First time Jason holds his son.

Newborn exam--all is well.

Moment of truth...8lbs 8oz

He was wiggling like a fish in a net.

Dressed, swaddled, content.

Supreme Big Sister

Big Sister 2nd in Command

Assistant the to Supereme Big Sister and Big Sister 2nd in Command (also Official Herder of Family Toddler)

This is the best pic we've gotten of the brand new big sister--Junior Big Sister (AKA Displaced Baby or DB) and her baby brother. We are adjusting :)

We are...

2011-11-15T22:38:00.000-06:00

A bunch of super thankful turkeys : D

We Are All Systems Go

2011-11-15T22:26:00.000-06:00

Birth kit: check.

Baby car seat assembled (with bonus clean toddler): check.

Teeny tiny baby diapers: check.

Labor ball (that no one can stay off of): check.

Labor food/drink (jello, chicken noodle soup, Recharge, coconut milk, orange juice, Martinelli's sparkling cider for the after party): check

Labor/Birth pool: check.

Dog washed (random but necessary): check.

Belly art: check.

40 weeks, 2 days

2011-11-13T11:07:00.000-06:00

Today marks my longest pregnancy to date. I'm not really all that uptight about it...yet. I'd certainly prefer not to be pregnant any longer but apparently Baby is not ready to meet the family quite yet.

Nice thing about waiting on Baby has been that we have gotten a lot done around here. There is nothing like an impending birth to get my husband into a frantic nesting mode. I don't know if it's nerves or what but that man can't sit still from about 37 weeks on. Right now he is out there cleaning the car. Last weekend he bought and assembled a bed frame. I am not exaggerating in the slightest when I say that he was rinsing paint brushes while I was sitting in the car, waiting to head to the hospital for the birth of our firstborn.

If I'm still pregnant by next weekend we might have our master bath tiled.

It's funny where your mind goes when you are due ANY MINUTE with a baby. Every time I put a new roll of toilet paper out I think "Maybe THIS will be the toilet paper I'm using when I'm in labor!" When I mopped every non-carpeted floor in this house the other day I kept musing "This is the LAST time I'll be mopping until after Baby is born!" (and that's the truth. Not doing that again for awhile.).

But then there are semi-sad little moments like when I'm holding my current baby, Penny, and I think "This could be the last time we are reading these books together where she is my youngest." And lying in bed talking with Jason until way past when we should have been to sleep (neither of us can shut up...seems like every time we go to bed on time we still find some way to talk for another hour)--once we are sharing a room with Baby we won't be able to push the limits of sleep deprivation. Of course, whenever we have a baby it seems like both of us are lights out as soon as our heads hit the pillow. But still...I will miss our discussions ("Isn't the whole idea of sleep just weird?" being a good topic to keep someone awake).

I just remembered a few things I should probably do before Baby gets here so I guess I should get on that. The baby car seat needs to be reassembled and installed in the car and by jolly I might as well do some online Christmas shopping. We're waiting on Baby but I can always find "just one more thing to do" :)

The Stork is Circling.

2011-11-06T23:03:00.000-06:00

Well, it's almost Baby Time.

The old trusty due date calendar tells me I have four days until I am 40 weeks along. I've reached the point where I do feel as if this pregnancy will never end. I'm used to children staring at my ridiculously protruding belly. In my whole life I've never been an extra-large anything but here I sit filling out extra-large maternity clothing quite nicely. My body is weird and foreign to me when I see myself in the mirror yet I can't recall not being a ginormous penguin.

I love my babies no matter what age they are, so grateful for them, but I do not enjoy being pregnant. At best I feel okay but never good. The horrid morning sickness I get in the first part of pregnancy can best be described as "debilitating" and I dread that portion of my life more than any other. Truly, it is the most difficult time for me. After that subsides though, I am blessed to escape a lot of the minor discomforts of pregnancy and all of the major ones. The worst things I deal with are heartburn, fatigue, constant trips to the bathroom, and the annoying stuffy nose that has me breathing through my mouth most of the time (contributing to the attractive factor). But I just feel yucky most of the time.

The older girls have been very aware of this pregnancy and that has been a lot of fun. They lay their heads on my belly and talk to the baby and get a real kick out of well, being kicked in the face by their sibling-in-utero. They think the hiccups are hilarious. And they are in awe of the rock-hard belly when I'm seized by a nice strong warm up contraction (oh those are coming much more frequently lately, good relaxation practice time!). They are so sweet and constantly ask how I am feeling. I've noticed that lately when Penny has come in to wake me up in the morning she immediately asks "Mom, where your baby?" and wants to see my belly. Ha--she senses her impending de-thronement of being the Family Baby ;)

Discomforts of the extremely pregnant aside (and the fun of living with a pregnant woman--my poor family), here our family sits at one of the most exciting times of life. We are literally days away from finding out whether we will be blessed with another precious daughter or will be poring over James Dobson's "Bringing up Boys" for years to come. What a special time and how thankful I am to be in this moment (heartburn and all).

Penny + Blackberry= Love

2011-11-04T14:45:00.000-05:00

Imagine me and you, I do.
I think about you day and night, it's only right
To think about the girl you love and hold her tight
So happy together

If I should call you up, invest a dime
And you say you belong to me and ease my mind
Imagine how the world could be, so very fine
So happy together

I can't see me lovin' nobody but you
For all my life
When you're with me, baby the skies'll be blue
For all my life

Me and you and you and me
No matter how they toss the dice, it has to be
The only one for me is you, and you for me
So happy together

I can't see me lovin' nobody but you
For all my life
When you're with me, baby the skies'll be blue
For all my life

Me and you and you and me
No matter how they toss the dice, it has to be
The only one for me is you, and you for me
So happy together

Bawk-bawk-bawk-bawk bawk-bawk-bawk-bawk bawk-bawk-bawk bawk-bawk-bawk-bawk
Bawk-bawk-bawk-bawk bawk-bawk-bawk-bawk bawk-bawk-bawk bawk-bawk-bawk-bawk

Me and you and you and me
No matter how they toss the dice, it has to be
The only one for me is you, and you for me
So happy together

So happy together
How is the weather
So happy together
We're happy together
So happy together
Happy together
So happy together
So happy together (ba-ba-ba-ba ba-ba-ba-ba)

Halloween (Candy, Candy, Candy, Candy, Candy...)

2011-11-02T22:03:00.000-05:00

Ariel and Kitty

Princess Hailey

Snow White

Double lollipops--oh, why not?

Pumpkin Pleasures

2011-10-23T23:14:00.000-05:00

Sitting here staring at my swollen ankles so I thought I'd might as well put some pumpkin pictures on this here ol'blog.

Worcestershire sauce, a bit of butter, seasoned salt. Really good pumpkin seeds! Worcestershire though, who would have thought?

The two oldest girls did their pumpkins all by themselves this year. Paige did most of her own as well. Penny's pumpkin was carved through the combined efforts of Jason and I.

Reese and her Angry Bird.

Paige's was supposed to be a cat. She got a little enthusiastic and pulled out an extra chunk which makes the cat either look pregnant or like a cow.

Hailey and her Angry Bird.

Penny and Brobee. We have a little obsession with "Yo Gabba Gabba". She started to cry when Jason was cutting up the picture of her buddy Brobee. She was happy with the finished product...until Brobee's face fell off. Then Jason nailed Brobee's face back on and all was once again well.

Oh and the swollen ankles. Like that? Me neither.

A Princess and Her Dragon...

2011-10-14T16:58:00.000-05:00

Missing Out

2011-10-13T23:36:00.000-05:00

A week ago at nearly this hour my mom passed away after a two year battle with lung cancer.

I actually miss her more today than I did a week ago. I keep forgetting that I can't call her to tell her that:

after almost four months it finally rained,

Hailey broke her ankle last Saturday,

our stubborn chicken finally resumed laying,

we caught a tiny little toad on the porch,

my tomato plant has a tomato and plenty of flowers,

her newest grandchild is growing well--I can no longer fit into most of my clothes

oh, and my iron count dropped and I'm taking nasty iron supplements but that's probably the reason I'm so tired, can't catch my breath and keep having heart palpitations. You were right about that, Mom!

All of these things she would have loved to know and it makes me sad that she's missed out on hearing these little bits of news from our life.

Just these little snippets of news that even I will hardly remember as time passes by.

She's missing our lives, one moment at a time.

However...

Today in the car we heard the song "Better is One Day In Your Courts"

"Better is one day in your courts than thousands elsewhere"

And I know that's true. So it helps. A lot. Because I know that nothing compares to where she is at this very moment.

And that makes me smile.

Mom, Age 7

Fall 1979 (with me)

1980 (with me)

(with me)

(with my sister, Heather)

2002 (with Hailey)

Great Wolf Photos

2011-10-05T21:52:00.000-05:00

September

2011-10-05T21:40:00.000-05:00

September was so much fun. It wore me out but we enjoyed a much needed change of pace after being locked in the house for the Summer of Extreme Heat and Misery.

Besides the excitement and terror of the The Great Fire Evacuation, we also got back into the swing of AWANA and soccer.

Soccer has been fun so far. I was sort of dreading it because last season was a little crazy and I was struggling to live thru the first trimester of pregnancy. This fall, God has smiled on us and blessed us with practice just one day a week for both Hailey and Reese AND their practices are at the same time! Can't beat that! I'm glad that girls are playing again. They are both finally "getting it" and while no one in this family has ever scored a goal (including old Mom and her several seasons played as a child), the girls are really enjoying playing and I'm happy to have them doing strenuous outdoor exercise that does not involve me ;)

We were fortunate enough to be able to attend Homeschool Day at Seaworld. That was a pretty neat experience. The girls got to feed the dolphins (everyone's favorite) and we got to see a lot of exhibits and a few educational shows. I am super grateful to a friend and her family for helping out extensively with my brood of girls and our bag lady stroller. The trip would not have been a fraction of what it was without them.

We ended our month of fun by spending a few days at Great Wolf Lodge. We are blessed enough to have managed to take a family vacation every year and it is usually to North Padre Island, just south of Corpus. This year we decided that it would be a bit much for the giant pregnant woman to do the beach thing so we opted for a different route. Probably a good choice as four days at the beach and all of the packing/lugging/dragging/etc tends to wipe me out on a normal year.

But man oh man. Great Wolf looked like a lot of fun! I was sad to sit there like a stranded whale while the rest of the family went down water slide after water slide (ok, minus Penny but she had a fabulous time too). But hey, I got a break from cooking and cleaning for a few days so what's not to like?

The two older girls got their initiation to Scary Rides when dear old Dad took them down the craziest water slide at the resort right off the bat. He's a big baby when it comes to rides (me too, we are perfect for each other--eternal bench sitters at amusement parks) and he said the slide scared him to death. He couldn't even act brave for the girls who reportedly whimpered the entire ride and afterwards found me and were in tears, vowing not to ride anything else the entire time were there. After a brief counseling session (for Jason too), everyone decided to stay away from that particular slide and to let Dad (chastised as he was) try the rest of them first.

Happy Birthday to our Birds!

2011-10-05T12:28:00.000-05:00

Happy first birthday to Butterscotch, Blackberry, and Melody! Thank you for all the wonderful eggs you've provided for our family. And for the garden beds I don't have to worry about tilling. Or the plants in the planters I don't need to water (because you know, they were dug up months ago).

Happy four month birthday to Sally and Olive! Ok girls, we're waiting for you to join the egg layers!

Uh-oh

2011-09-19T17:17:00.000-05:00

Someone got the mean end of the chicken. Hopefully someone will learn not to incessantly tease animals.

Fans of Beatrix Potter will be familiar with "Nutkin", the squirrel who danced around and sang irritating rhymes to a fearsome old owl.

"Old Mr. B! riddle-me-ree
Flour of England, fruit of Spain,
Met together in a shower of rain;
Put in a bag tied round with a string,
If you'll tell me this riddle, I'll give you a ring!"

Well, Nutkin ended up losing his tail to Old Brown, the owl.

It appears that we have our own Nutkin.

Thankful for my Shepherd

2011-09-17T00:47:00.000-05:00

My mother is going to die. My mother is going to die. My mother is going to die.

I've heard this refrain in my head a dozen times a day for nearly two years now. Since around the time that my mom told me she had stage four lung cancer.

I have not talked to her in over a week. I've made excuses every single day as to why I can't call. Too busy, kids too loud, Jason out of town, etc. The truth is, I don't want to call her. Because talking to her is awful. She is nearly impossible to understand and appears not to comprehend what I am saying to her. The last time I got off the phone with her, I called my sister and we spent 15 minutes on the phone sobbing together.

Tonight it was my sister's turn to call me and cry her heart out after calling our mom.

My mom did not know who my sister was. She kept calling her by our uncle's name. She now refers to her husband by her dad's name.

I don't think I can call her again. I feel horrible about that. Does it matter if I call her again? I don't know. It doesn't appear to bring her any comfort and it flat out devastates me. I'm eight months pregnant and I'm supposed to be avoiding devastation. Will I hate myself for not calling her? I don't know. Probably.

The last time I will have seen my mother in this lifetime was at the airport gate as she was about to walk down the gangplank. She hugged me, kissed me, smiled into my face and said she loved me. I did the same. Then I turned around and walked away from her. I did not look back. Because I knew if I did I would run back to my mother like a small child, fall to my knees, hug her legs and beg her not to go. Like I did every day for the entire first semester of kindergarten.

But I'm 32 years old. A wife for fifteen years. A mother to soon-to-be five children. A real live grown up. So really, I'm not about to make an enormous scene at the airport.

Right now, I am trying to walk away and not look back. It's not really working though. Everywhere I look, I see reminders of her. She helped me set up my kitchen when we moved here. Her artwork is on my walls. Her travel toiletries are still in the upstairs bathroom because she forgot them and I can't bear to throw them out. Even my damn arms look just like hers so every time I look down, I see my mom's arms.

I know it will be okay. God has more than provided me with a wonderful family. I am not lonely. I'm married to the my best friend and the love of my life. I have children that I was told by doctors that I would not have. And then so much more. Closure will eventually come regarding my mother's passing from this life to the next. We've had two years to get to this place of last goodbyes and The Lord has been oh so gentle. I have perfect peace about seeing her again in heaven and that things will be just fine. Grief is a normal part of life and burying your parents is in the natural order of things.

Psalm 23

The LORD is my shepherd;
I shall not want.
He makes me to lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still waters.
He restores my soul;
He leads me in the paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil;
For You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil;
My cup runs over.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the LORD
Forever.

This is why...

2011-09-13T22:15:00.000-05:00

...I am so fanatical about my putting our chickens away in the evening and why they sleep in a luxurious dog crate in the garage.

My younger sister has dozens upon dozens of chickens. She has been known to pick up her rifle and blow a chicken away for sitting on her porch. Being a true country girl, she's a good shot and usually manages to salvage the bird for dinner.

Of course, she thinks our chicken love affair is ridiculous.

She's probably right.

Odd Week

2011-09-11T00:44:00.000-05:00

You know how some weeks just have a strange feel to them? This one certainly did, at least to me. The whole fire thing put a few grey hairs on my head for sure. But it was definitely a week of ups and downs.

UP:

Jason (sort of) surprised me with a new camera. It's my Christmas present (for the next 5 years probably). I don't know how to use it. I'm not a naturally good photographer. But dang it, I might actually get a few good pics of my kids, pets, and plants with this baby.

UP:

Started baking our own bread again after a six month long hiatus. Yes, just in time to quit again in a few months when The Baby arrives.

DOWN (waaay down, like a rock at the bottom of the sea):

My mother is doing very poorly. I talked to her a few times this week and it's hard to have a conversation with her. The Mom I knew is mostly gone. I don't know if it's the morphine, the disease, or a combo but she is very much out of it. She's on hospice care now. I can't imagine it will be more than a few weeks before I get The Dreaded Call. My sister has been visiting her the past few Fridays and said there is a marked difference from last week and this week. Hurt, hurt, hurt. I guess this is really happening.

UP,DOWN, AND ALL OVER THE PLACE:

My child flew to California without me. Yes, she is with Jason. She is having a great time. She is seeing her great-grandmother and all sorts of fun relatives that live out west (they really are a great bunch). She loved the plane. Loved looking out the window at the tiny cars and houses(more power to you kid!). Her little heart is overflowing with adventure. But I miss her and it's not the same without her. And I miss Jason. Even though I'm happy to assimilate his pillow into my collection for a few nights.

Ending on an UP:

Over the past few weeks I have noticed that my two year old has been drawing faces! Love this picture: her little rectangular foot, the sleep mat in the back of her hair, her pudgy arm. Love, love, love!

Fire, Fire, Everywhere

2011-09-10T23:05:00.000-05:00

The awfully hot and dry summer has finally reached its breaking point. For the past week our area has been plauged by fires. It's a pretty crazy situation and I think most people around here have been un-nerved by it all. Seeing what has happened with the fires down in Bastrop has given me a new respect for wildfires. Previously, whenever the weather service would issue a "fire danger" alert I wouldn't pay much attention to it since we live a few blocks from where the wilderness starts. I'm not sure any of us in Central Texas will be non-chalant about such an alert again--I know I won't be.

We had our own little evacuation scare but thankfully we were able to return home after a few hours. We had no idea how serious or where the fire was when we made a mad dash for our irreplaceables last Monday afternoon. All I knew was that we had billowing smoke coming up our street and ash raining down around us. Jason and the 2 older girls had just gone out for soccer supplies when I became aware of the situation. I saw that smoke and ash and did not need any more information to know that it was probably time to grab our junk and get the heck out! About fifteen minutes later we started getting reverse 911 calls and that really threw me into a lather! Jason and the big girls were stuck in the "fire traffic" and I had no way of knowing how close the fire was.

Jason and the big girls got home and while he helped finish loading the car the girls ran around collecting the pets. We threw the three big chickens in a Rubbermaid container and tossed a towel over the top. That went in the trunk of the van on top of the pet porter that held one of our cats. The dog was on a leash in the front seat. I grabbed our lizard, Gus, and deposited him on Paige's lap. Hailey and Reese sat with towels on their laps with our two little chickens in their arms. We had no carseats in the car because we had cleaned out the car that morning. I strapped Penny into a regular seat and prayed to God that He would protect us as we drove. We couldn't catch our indoor cat, Skinny, and after flipping couches and nearly killing ourselves in the process of trying to catch her decided we had to leave her and hope for the best. The girls were crying hysterically because we were leaving their toys behind. I lost everything I owned to a fire when I was nine years old. I remember that pain. Which is why Jason and I ran back in and spent two minutes grabbing the girls' Webkinz off their beds and anything else we knew was particularly special to them. He piled his car with his large family of guitars and amps and we drove out into the traffic heading away from the fire.

We went to my friend, Alison's house. They live nearby but were not in the danger zone. They kindly welcomed us and our pets and we hung out there for a few hours. What a blessing they were--their family's calm and kind nature brought peace to our family during a nail biting few hours. Alison and her husband ran around getting water for our pets and helping us keep kids and animals under control. The kids were ecstatic to see each other and they all had a blast.

We made it home around 9/9:30 that evening. Thankfully, our neighborhood was ok. Our house smelled awful from the smoke and everyone had red eyes for a day or so. But our house was still here unlike nearly a dozen families on the other side of the road who lost their homes. It was particularly terrible to learn that our local fire was caused by arson. What a horrible thing for someone to do.

There isn't any rain in our immediate forecast. The place is still as dry as a bone and temperatures are climbing back to the 100's this week. This summer needs to end and we need some flooding rains to help with the situation around here. Fires are still burning all around Texas and it's heartbreaking to hear the stories coming out, especially in Bastrop. 1,400 homes lost, at least 2 lives, and who knows how many pets. So sad :(

Kids Suck the Life Out of You...If you Let Them. And Why That's a Good Thing.

2011-09-01T23:08:00.000-05:00

A few months ago I read an article written about whether couples with kids are happier than couples who choose to be childfree. Since it was on CNN's website I should have known better than to be optimistic. But I took the bait, opened the article, and was really sad about what I read. But I can't really say it surprised me.

Our society typically regards children as burdens. It's everywhere. Children are to be dealt with as quickly as possible so parents can get back to the "important stuff". The more that children require, the more they are treated with disdain. Handicapped children usually aren't even wanted if the handicap is found before the child's birth. A mother with a "difficult" baby is pitied. An insecure toddler who refuses to part with mom is considered a real drag--a "momma's girl/boy". Normal childish behavior irritates the heck out of parents, family members, strangers, etc. When parents have to "give up" their time, money, energy, perfect home, perhaps a second income, social life, etc, many of them seem quite resentful of their children.

One of the most difficult lessons of parenting for me has been to change the way I see the daily (seemingly constant) interruptions that go hand in hand with having children. The selfish side of me wants to snap impatiently at the child who just dumped cottage cheese all over the floor. I don't particularly like having to get off the phone with Jason, who I haven't talked to all day, to deal with someone's lousy behavior. Not a huge fan of redressing the toddler because she drenched herself with the hose while "helping" me water the plants. Usually I am not opposed to being called outside to see crazy chicken behavior but with the unbelievable heat of this summer and my advancing pregnancy, truly I'd rather not move more than is absolutely necessary.

However...

Jesus said this to his disciples in Luke 9:23-25: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it. What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit their very self?"

I'm not sure about anyone else, but I don't see a whole lot of "denying of self" in our current culture, particularly when it comes to being parents (ok, in any area but I'm talking about parents). Parenthood has turned into this thing of convenience. Few people seem to see the value in spending the great majority of their time and energy training up their children. They'd rather delegate it to someone else and pursue what the world considers worthwhile (their dreams, unnecessary employment and/or preoccupation with their employment particularly with very little ones, education, fitness, friends, even ministry). And yep, I'm going to say it (who reads this blog anyway?? lol) but it's as rampant in the church as it is in the rest of the world. The same selfishness that is valued in our culture is frequently praised in the church.

Who realizes that Jesus was a huge disappointment to the Jews? They wanted a kick-butt-and-take-no-answers-king who would drive those Roman dogs to their knees. Instead they got this guy who let people slap him around, was flat broke, and encouraged people to do the exact opposite of their human nature. The mother of Jesus was a lowly unmarried teenager. Jesus was born in a dirty stable to poor parents.

However...

God's ways are not our ways. Matthew 23:12: "For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted."

When we humble ourselves and take on the nitty gritty task of really parenting and discipling our children, we are going to lose our life for His sake. We'll be tired. We will have to deny ourselves. We might not get to follow our dreams. We might not have the things we want, look the way we wish we could, go the places we want to go. And we probably aren't going to get much accolades for all of our hard work. But He promises that our life will be saved! True life! Gaining all that this world has to offer will matter ZIP in eternity. It's quite plain in the Scriptures.

Closing thoughts: Children were made the way are (imperfect, LOUD, destructive, needy, etc) for a reason. I truly believe that God made them that way to challenge parents to drop their selfishness. As a parent, you have so many daily opportunities to grow as a person in the areas that really matter (patience, wisdom, discernment, love, selflessness, among other things). When your kid(s) is driving you crazy, there is your chance to rise to the occasion and work on your attitude and character(oh yeah, and don't miss the opportunity to disciple your little one(s). Romans 5:3-5 says "Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us." So, the next time your kid gets a hold of the permanent marker or throws an enormous tantrum, make sure you rejoice in your suffering. It's really a blessing ;)

Flood of Memories

2011-08-30T00:05:00.000-05:00

Last week I was mildly preoccupied with checking on Hurricane Irene. I am a weather nerd. Always have been. Growing up on the eastern seabord definitely prompted my interest. Most years we would have a storm scare--schools shut down, board up the windows, stock up on the storm supplies, and hope and pray no trees would fall on the house. We lived in Norfolk, Virginia which is either below sea level or like 3 feet above it (actually, the Experts have determined the city is slowly sinking...). It's pretty much a swamp. Most people live within walking distance from some creek, river, or bay.

All of the Irene coverage made me homesick. I saw so many familiar sights and pretty soon nostalgia took over. Even the storm surge maps made me recall the different houses we had lived in, my old schools, the library, etc.

The thing about Hampton Roads (the area including Norfolk, Virginia Beach, Chesapeake and other surrounding cities) is that it is perched north of the part of the North Carolina that juts out into the ocean (the Outer Banks). The Outer Banks usually seem to catch hurricanes and then deflect them from Hampton Roads. So we would get rain, some flooding, heavy surf, and wind but would be spared the disaster that has occured with the more southern states. No matter though. When I was a kid I would literally stay up all night staring at the radar watching the storm inch closer and closer to us. I'd run outside and watch the clouds race by. If I could have sneaked by my mother I would have ridden my bike down the three blocks to the waterfront. Truthfully I was a little afraid of being outdoors during a storm though so maybe I was secretly glad my mom was on watch.

When I was six years old, Hurricane Gloria visited the east coast. I got up before dawn, at the height of the storm, and decided to go out and experience hurricane force winds first hand. I literally was blown off our porch (I weighed around 32 pounds at the time)and had to crawl back to the door which was nearly impossible for my weakling self to open against the gale force wind. "My dad is going to beat me!" kept going through my mind.

My dad probably would have beat me if he had known about my super smart decision to personally check the weather conditions during a hurricane. But he really didn't have a leg to stand on. You see, he was guilty of dragging our family through very rough seas trying to haul tail home due to the approach of Hurricane Charley in 1986. It went like this: before we actually lived on a boat we used to take one of my granddad's boats, the "Moonlight Sonata" out on weekends and vacations. It was summer, we were out fishing and cruising around (I don't remember where, just that it was at least a full day's cruise from port). We had spent a few days and nights out and I do recall there was some real good fishing (I was a fishing fanatic as a child). Apparently we were having such a good time that no one remembered to check the weather (I'm guessing...). Well, one morning I was up before the rest of the family and I turned on the radio to discover that a hurricane was coming our way. I'm pretty sure I wasn't allowed to be messing with the radio because I didn't say anything about my newly discovered information for a few hours (again with the "Dad is going to beat me.") Finally, I told my mom who immediately freaked out and told my dad who promptly checked the forecast and had the Moonlight Sonata turned around before he'd even had breakfast.

I don't recall the waves being anything to be excited about when we started out towards home but I do know that by the time we got near the naval base my dad had donned a yellow slicker and my mom, sister, and I were sequestered in the cabin. The boat was positively rolling at this point and waves were splashing over the deck. The wind had definitely picked up. It was impossible to walk around in the cabin without holding on for dear life. I was pretty sure we were going to die (I think my mom was too--she made us put life jackets on which never happened). I peeked out the door at one point (to see if my dad was still steering the boat or if he had been washed overboard). He yelled at me to shut the door and I was glad to because it was terrifying to see all that water. Plus you could tell just how much we were getting tossed around because of how close we were to land--I saw the bay, the land flashed by, and then there was sky, quick glimpse of far away land, then the bay again. Not good.

Anyway, we made it home in time and Hurricane Charley came through. Pretty sure my dad kept up on the weather report after that. I know I have. Ever since that time, 25 years ago, I have been quite in tune with the forecast. If my dad were still alive today he would most definitely have WeatherBug on his computer and the Weather Channel app on his Iphone.

(Thanks to anyone who endured reading this! Rambling old 32 year old fool, haha!).

Want to See Your Kid Squirm?

2011-08-20T09:39:00.000-05:00

Ask them this: "If you had a choice between saving me (your mom), and saving ______ (favorite pet or toy)which would you choose? Remember, you can only save ONE."

These are my two oldest answers:

Hailey: "That's hard..." squirming around in her seat "Uh probably Melody..."
Me (laughing): "Hailey! You mean you would save your pet chicken before your mother?!"
Hailey (trying to disappear into the couch cushions):"Well, it's hard Mom and I don't want to think of Melody dying. That makes me sad. I guess I'd save you..."

I asked Reese the same question a day later while we were coloring. As soon as Hailey heard me ask the question she covered her face up and said "Oh no..."

Reese (after pausing with her coloring and short moment of thought): "I'd save you Mom. But I'd be really sad about Butterscotch."
Me: "What about a stranger? Would you save a stranger or Butterscotch?"
Reese (no hesitation): "Butterscotch."
Me: "Reese! You'd save your pet chicken before you saved a person?!"
Reese: "But Mom, not all strangers are nice."

Random Things I've Learned During the First and Second Weeks of School...

2011-08-17T22:50:00.000-05:00

--Which way the "greater than/less than" symbols go. Why didn't someone explain to me that the pointy end always points towards the smaller number? Huh? Really? Fifteen years after graduating high school I finally understand.

--My 5 year old still likes to cut hair (hers and her baby sister's).

--It's possible for a really cute 5 year old to cut her own hair and look like Rod Stewart (70's Rod Stewart). And 24 hours later, after her mom takes her to get her hair fixed, the same 5 year old now looks like Maria from The Sound of Music.

--I still hate getting up at 7 a.m.

--I don't have to set my alarm because Hailey wakes up at the crack of dawn. She sits on the couch petting the cat until 7:00 and then she joyfully crawls into bed with me. Hailey (breathing right into my face): Mom, you really hate getting up this early don't you?. Me: Yeeeessssss. With all my heart.

--School goes infinitely more smoothly when you have your older kids take turns playing with your toddler. Thank you "Managers of their Homes" for that tip (among others).

--If you put a band-aid on a chicken's toe, it will leave it there.

--If you feel that yourself or someone else is in danger of heat stroke, put bags of ice on their crotch and under their armpits. Fastest way to cool down. Similiarly, if you are working on a near-drowning victim you need to hit them in the crotch in addition to CPR. My midwife shared that with me today. Who knows when those two bits of info could come in handy?

--Our baby is head down and posterior. My uterus is so malleable that you could almost palpate facial features on this kid. You can certainly feel knees, feet and elbows.

--There is nowhere in the house I can safely place freshly glued papers to dry. Nowhere.

--If one of the girls loses an earring, the sure fire way to find it is by Jason walking around the house going about his buisness. Even though the women-folk have traipsed here and there and everywhere from 7 a.m. (UGH) on, all it takes to find the lost earring is for the Family Man to take his shoes off at the door and walk thru the house to the bedroom. Trust me, he'll step on the earring, it will stick all the way into his foot and voila, you've found that 14K gold ear jewelry. Hooray for Daddy!

New Year!

2011-08-08T17:06:00.000-05:00

There's the brand spanking new kindergartner herself! Paige officially joined us in our studies today. She's always been on the fringe of course, but now she's an official student. I think she had a pretty good first day.

Miss Reese started her first day of second grade by losing one of her front teeth. FINALLY! That thing had been hanging in there for far too long! The sister tooth isn't far behind. I forsee this week having more than one visit from The Toothfairy (TF is setting a reminder for herself in uno momento). Reese did great with her lessons. She worked hard on her reading over the summer and has made major improvements.

No picture of the fourth grader starting her day. She was off reading "The Tales of King Arthur" while I took these pictures. I managed to get a picture of her later on though(see below). Hailey's day went well. She was happy that she remembered how to spell.

First day went well, everyone (mostly) behaved and we were ahead of the schedule all morning. No disasters. The Family Toddler seemed happy and kept busy. Totally forgot that I signed the 3 older girls up for a one time afternoon art class about Medieval Times. Got the e-mail reminder LAST NIGHT around 9:00. Freaked me out for a moment because there went my well-planned day. But it ended up working out great--girls had fun, I got a nap with Penny and time to work on some school stuff. We didn't start our math lessons or Hailey's cursive session but everything else got done before the class. I think I can live with that :)

Homeschooling Changed ME

2011-07-19T22:51:00.000-05:00

All homeschooling families are familiar with the same comments they get from friends, family, the general public, etc ("I could never homeschool my kids..." yadda yadda yadda)

And most of us have our pat answers ("It works for us..." yadda yadda yadda).

The one type of comment that I have a hard time giving a one lined response to is the "I'm not patient/organized/educated enough to homeschool." or "I don't get along with my kids/they wouldn't listen to me".

I want to grab that person and head for Starbucks for a nice visit over a cup of coffee and let them know what they are missing out on.

I want to tell that them that when you and your husband together make the decision to educate and disciple your children at home, to teach them to love The Lord, that God takes us as we are (impatient, fearful, disorganized, self-centered, discouraged, unfocused, unconfident, lazy, you name it) and he kneads out those lumps. He grows our character and we are forced to rely on Him to make up for our shortcomings.

I would never claim to have arrived. No way. But I am a much better Christ-follower, wife, and mother than I was before we began our homeschooling journey. Quite frankly, my patience surprises the heck out of me on a daily basis. And I know that the hunger I have to learn about God's story of the world is from Him. My worldview has changed drastically as I strive to stay ahead of my children to help guide them. Both Jason and I can claim that.

I believe those are things that we would have missed out if we had decided to forgoe the responsibility of educating our children at home. I'd miss out on learning the extreme patience and self control it takes to live with multiple little people day in and day out (ongoing process of course--some days my jaw hurts from gritting my teeth). I'd miss out on learning along side my children, seeing things like history and science through the eyes of an adult. All of my nasty character deficets (named above) would go on mostly unchallenged as I had more time to "focus on myself".

I don't have all the answers as a parent or a homeschooler. I don't know exactly how we'll handle teaching high school or how I'll manage teaching 5+ children as time goes on. But God has given me all the answers I need today to continue what He has called our family too. And I'm content with that.

And I'm so very thankful not to be missing out.

Sad Goodbye

2011-07-06T23:45:00.000-05:00

My mom went home to Virginia today. She got to stay a week and a half longer than we had originally planned. That was both good and bad. The good part was that she ended up feeling better because she was put on continuous oxygen after spending two days in the ICU (the bad part). Her cancer has metastisized (the really bad part).

Let me just say that watching someone you love suffer and being able to do nothing about it is awful. It's not the same as when someone has an injury or the flu. That's when your role is to support, help and be encouraging. "You're going to feel better soon!" is appropriate.

When someone has terminal cancer, you can't really say that. Well, you can but you might as add on "...because your going to be dead." There's not really a lot that is comforting that you can say. The pain isn't going to get to better, it's going to get worse. Right at this miserable moment, the person is going to feel the best they will ever feel again in their life. No hope for relief of the agonizing pain...until death.

Which then leads you to sort of wish they would hurry up and die so they wouldn't be in so much pain.

Which leads you to feel like a jerk for even thinking that.

Which is just about the most confusing and awful place to be (at least on your side...the person with cancer has the really awful part).

Anyways, it just stinks to watch someone slowly die.

My dad died in an accident and it was completely unexpected. He lived for ten days after the accident but everyone (over age 12) knew he wasn't going to make it. No chance to say goodbye because of his condition (burns). No chance to say the things he'd been holding back or make the changes he'd hoped to get around to making.

We've been happy to have the chance to say goodbye to my mom. On one side it's heartwrenching for obvious reasons. On the other side, we've been able to make memories and had lots of time to process what is coming. I've been grateful to have this time with her. I consider it a gift from The Lord.

Still not sure which is worse though, the way my dad died or the way my mom is dying. Not sure I'll ever be able to have an opinon on that.

Mom and I agree on this: the only comfort is provided by God. We will all be reunited in heaven. There really isn't much else good to say. She's 54 years old. Soon my siblings and I will be without both of our parents. My little brother is 23 years old and our dad died when he was just six weeks old. I feel especially bad for him. It just plain stinks.

Hate to be depressing but there's not much more to say.

Money Well Spent

2011-07-05T22:08:00.000-05:00

So glad I spent $50 on a chicken dirt bath!

Delighted that those beautiful flowers that were in it for a week were so thoroughly enjoyed by the resident poultry!

Can you see how much our chickens respect me? Trembling with fear, aren't they? (rolling my eyes)

Curriculum Happy

2011-06-15T22:01:00.000-05:00

I'm so excited to be planning our next school year out. I love this type of planning more than I can express (NERD!). So far, I have filled in the daily planner through January and I'm forcing myself to leave it be for goodness sakes for at least a few days. Anyway, this is what we are going to be using for this next school year. So happy to be mostly using what is familiar and looking forward to getting acquainted with what is new.

Tapestry of Grace for History, Geography, Church History, Worldview and Literature. This is will be our third year using TOG and I adore it. Paige will be joining Hailey and Reese this year but on her own level. I have found that TOG is a little much for kindergarten so my approach is to let Paige participate in as much as she wants to (she'll probably love the hands on stuff).

Writing Aids for writing (duh). This goes with TOG and I've been very impressed with it.

Spelling Power for (you guessed it) spelling. This will be our second year using it. Hailey looks forward to this lesson every day and so do I. It is so different from the spelling lists I grew up with (ugh). Looking forward to starting it with Reese next year (it is recommended for third grade and up).

Easy Grammar. This will be our first year with EG and Hailey and Reese will be using it. I've heard a lot of good things about this course and it is also recommended by TOG.

Math-U-See. Second year for both Hailey and Reese. Great program. Short DVD lessons by a real live math teacher (unlike me who has never been and never will be a math whiz).

Sing, Spell, Read and Write. This will be my fifth year teaching with this curriculum and I love it. Can not recommend it enough for a phonics program. So happy to be starting Paige's school career off with this fun program! Hailey and Reese both enjoyed it and I hope Paige will as well.

Apologia Science: Exploring Creation with Zoology 3. This is our third year and the girls and I both adore this extremely interesting series. It is SO well written and like no other textbook I ever had in school. Again, Paige will be included as her interests dictate.

Apologia: What We Believe. This course will be new to us and I am SO excited about it! Basically it is an apologetics course aimed at children between 6-14 years old. The goal is to teach children to discern the truth amongst the ideas they will be bombarded with during their lives. To see things the way that God sees them (as much as we can as people). Jason and I will be leading this lesson together. He will probably do the majority of the teaching if he would like. I can't wait to see what our entire family learns!

The three older girls will also be attending their second year of AWANA. We have been very impressed with this program and again could not recommend it enough! The girls have memorized SO much scripture and the AWANA leaders and program have done a good job reinforcing what we are teaching at home.

Well, that is it. School year 2011-2012 should be a great one around here. We are praying that God grows each member of our family throughout the year. There will be challenges for sure. We'll have our newest blessing joining the family in November, this is the first year I will be teaching three children, and there is always the family toddler to liven things up! But we are looking forward to what this school year brings.

Journey of the Ex-Slob

2011-06-14T20:32:00.001-05:00

I am not a naturally organized person (I have my husband deceived but that's only because I look organized next to him haha). I was the kid who did her homework on the car ride to school and stayed up until the wee hours finishing up papers and digging those semi-crumpled papers out of her Trapper Keeper. As a young adult I lost my drivers license at least once a year until I was about 22 years old. I'd fall into work at 2 minutes till I was supposed to be there and half the time I'd be carrying my shoes or have my shirt on inside out (I usually ate breakfast and did my make up on my commute). When I was put in charge of the controlled drug records at work, I figured I'd probably end up destroying the entire company over some addition error.

When I became a mother at the age of 22, one of the things that God really impressed on me was that I needed to break my bad habits in order not to pass them on to my children (hopefully). So I've spent the last 9 years trying to become the organized person I would like my kids to be (hopefully). I'm definitely doing a lot better--I have a purse (!) and a wallet (!) and they hang on a peg (!).

Ultimately my efforts are to please the Lord. I truly believe that part of being a good steward of the things He has trusted us with is a.) being able to find them and b.) managing them (No, I am not talking about my kids! I know where they are except for that one morning 4+ years ago...old blog entry).

The newest step that I believe the Lord is leading us to take is a tighter daily schedule, more responsibility for the older three children, more structured sibling interaction, and myself being even more intentional about my time. Last year I felt like we had a good routine going but God definitely brought some areas to my attention that need to be tweaked a bit.

I bought a used copy of "Managers of their Homes" by the Maxwells and have been poring over that and praying for direction. This book is a total answer to prayer! I can not wait to get our new daily schedule together and see the results. One of the things the book pointed out was that we are stewards of the time God had given us. That really convicted me as I know there are ways I can certainly can improve the way I use time. I need to ask God how He wants me to use the time He has given me. "You may not have time to do everything but you have the time do everything God has called you to do." is often repeated during the book. Which is wonderful because I often fret about all the things I can't seem to get accomplished. If I seek His will on what I need to do, then I shouldn't feel like a failure when I don't get those other things done. And just maybe, with more self discipline and a schedule I will be find it possible to do more in a day than before (I hope!). And I feel the need to stop thinking of it as "My Time" and instead think of it as "the time He has blessed me with."

I guess this is all part of the journey of an ex-slob :)

Chicken Update

2011-06-03T22:58:00.000-05:00

Would you believe that there are three chickens in that little 12"x12" nesting box? Never would I have guessed it were possible until I came across this little bit of bird brained-ness. Apparently all but one had to lay her egg right that moment.

Also, did you know that if a Rhode Island Red attacks you and you backhand it in self defense it keeps coming back for more? Never would guessed that one either. I had to smack this chicken-with-an-attitude more than a few times, pick it up and restrain it by the neck, and finally hold it upside down to break its crazy spell. Seriously! I was just kneeling down petting one of the other birds and this one just charged me and would not back off! I have worked with animals for years and with birds in particular, you do not back down from them or else they think they are boss. Dealt with geese, ducks, parakeets, parrots, cockatiels, and even a turkey and this little chicken was probably the most fiercest avian I've had to take down a notch in the pecking order!

Weird thing about that chicken--she'll nail anyone except for Penny. Pretty sure that Melody (the chicken) thinks that Penny is the top bird. Penny walks right up to Mel and picks her up and carries all over the yard. It only looks ghetto when Penny is wearing a diaper and no clothing.

Melody is dealing with some hormonal issues hence the sudden aggression. She has apparently gone "broody" which means she would like to hatch some eggs and be a teenage momma chicken. Sorry Mel, a'int gonna happen. We finally got her off the nest and back out with the flock after about 10 days of perpetual nest sitting. Her attitude has improved greatly but I still don't trust her.

Final note on the portion of my blog dedicated to living with backyard chickens: A new little opossum has been coming around our yard. A year ago I would have been enamored with him. Now, all I see is a varmint going after my chickens! I saw him out on the patio the other night so I grabbed the Maglite and a flyswatter and ran out the back door at full speed, hollering insults at him and his mother, etc. I almost caught that thing! I did not know they were so slow! No wonder you see so many dead in the road!

And that's The Chicken Update. Goodnight.

2011-05-29T22:45:00.000-05:00

I have an enormous problem with being assertive. Time and time again, I am caught off guard by the words of others and I immediately resort to being a people pleaser. Then later I hate myself for not saying what I really think.

I always feel a sick chill when confronting someone--whether it's who was first at the deli counter or something actually important like a person challenging me about a decision.

And the thing is, I am not a wimp. I have extremely strong opinons on many subjects and I have no problem relaying them in a written form or a small group of people (even if I already know they disagree with me) if it's a part of a conversation. And just ask my husband--he gets to hear all of my rants and ramblings.

Anyway, I feel especially lousy about my lack of assertivness today because it let down one of my kids. I was so taken aback about a situation that I couldn't even fight for my own precious kid. It wasn't a huge deal but the situation was rather ridiculous and if I had been prepared I would have dealt with things in an appropriately assertive way.

But no. I was left slack jawed and dumb and acquiesced to something I did not agree with because I did not want to cause a scene or be a jerk. That's always my deal: not wanting to make a fuss. And I don't want to come off as a jerk.

Where is the line between being assertive and being arrogant, selfish, and/or pushy?

Are you a pushy soccer mom if you tell your kid's coach that even though your kid isn't the star player they should be playing more than 7 minutes per game? Or should you just go with the flow and tell your kid "Hey, if you practice more then you'll get to play more."

If someone gets in front of you in line do you mention it or just let it go because it really doesn't matter? For the record, I wouldn't say anything because I'd rather wait the extra few minutes then risk being cussed out in front of my kids (and even though that person would be a jerk, I would feel awful for upsetting them).

Most importantly, what does God say about being assertive? Aren't we supposed to be meek? But does "meek" mean doormat (no, I don't think it does). Aren't we supposed to be peacemakers? Isn't letting that person who cut us line just go ahead making peace? Jesus sure wasn't a pushover. But He always had the right thing to say! Oh how I wish I had the wisdom to know what to say so that my words would be pleasing to Him!

Bottom line is that I want my life to be pleasing to Christ and I am having a terrible time reconciling this issue. I know there is a place between doormat and pushy jerk. I just need to find it.

While Studying Ancient Rome...

2011-04-04T21:41:00.000-05:00

One must build an aquaduct!

The Simple Woman's Notebook

2011-04-04T12:56:00.000-05:00

The view from where I sit ...evidence of little people everywhere! I like that my house looks like children live in it. Really.

Outside My Window...beautiful cool evening. Tomatoes and pepper plants probably aren't digging the chilly weather though.

I am thinking...that it's a privilege to change diapers, tuck little people into bed, kiss boo-boos, teach a child to read, play The Tooth Fairy, be "nurse" to someone sick, cheer on a brand new potty trainee, love a child who is acting unlovable.

I am thankful for...a sweet husband who never fails to ask what tempting food he can bring home for me. Just while pregnant though! He is sweet not to ask me that question when I'm trying to practice food discipline!

We are learning...that the caterpillars we found at a restaurant the other day don't like any of the plants in our yard. I don't want to say "I told you so." but I'm this close.

From the kitchen...I flee. Gag!!

I am wearing...my pj pants and a t-shirt. Love living in the pj pants!

I am creating...hopefully a family that will carry on our Christian heritage to future generations. "I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth" 3 John 1:4 (NIV) I'm applying that to my grandchildren, great grand-kids, and so forth.

I am going...to plant cucumbers this weekend.

I am reading..."Baby Catcher" by Peggy Vincent. For at least the tenth time. No joke.

I am hoping...to find our new midwife to be one of the two we are interviewing this week. I hate interviews.

I am hearing...a bit of wind outside. So peaceful.

Around the house...our new microwave still smells like burnt hair after last weeks burnt macaroni incident. Brand new microwave. Supposed to go over the stove but so far it's only made it to the top of our dresser.

One of my favorite things...when my girls come up to me and spontaneously throw their arms around me and promise they'll always live with their Dad and I. Next door at the furthest and always with a sister or two (and a bunch of animals) for roommates.

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week: Midwife interviews. Tour of an organic farm.

Here is picture thought I am sharing...

God Knows.

2011-03-27T14:24:00.000-05:00

Once again, the school year is winding down.

All I can say is "THANK GOD."

It has been very challenging to keep up with our work over the past few weeks since Baby Garrett #5 decided to make her/his prescence undeniable. I usually love our school days but lately it is all I can do to put one foot in front of the other. I'm like a giant baby myself: I eat every 2 hours, spit up, pee constantly, need a nap (I'd take 2 if it were possible), wake up all night long (again with the bathroom thing), and cry a few times a day. In fact, I do want my Moooooommmmmmmmy!

But God is good. All of the time. And with Him, all things are possible. Even making it through the miserable first part of pregnancy for a busy homeschooling momma.

We are a week away from finishing our science course. Reese finished math for the year. See, God knew what was coming even though I didn't. Back during last summer when I was consumed with planning our year out, I thought it was kind of crazy that we would be done with science so much sooner than our other subjects. It sort of bugged me because I wanted all the subjects to end close to same time. And sometimes I got frustrated when Reese would drag her feet on her math lessons. But she finished her book at exactly the right time. Any sooner and we would have started on the next book and it would have been a little tough to justify ending her math lessons for the year right as we started a new book. But God knew! She finished her book the week I found out I was pregnant.

God has given me the amazing gift of feeling pretty good in the mornings. By the afternoon I can barely get off the couch. But that's ok because we have Netflix and a toddler who faithfully takes at least a 2 hour nap in the afternoons. This allows me to get what we need to get done in the mornings and take it easy in the afternoons.

Hailey has soccer at 6 on Tuesdays and Thursdays. When I first heard this schedule, I grumbled inwardly because that would put us home to do dinner and baths after 7. But God knew! God knew that afternoons would be especially tough for me and that it would be a wonderful blessing to have a later practice so Jason could be available to keep tabs on the younger girls and watch Hailey for most of her practice.

Things are a little rough right now. And probably will be for the next 6 or 7 weeks. Gaaaaah--that's a long time. But wait. God is GOOOD. Take it one day at a time. A journey of 1,ooo miles begin with a single step. My help comes from The Lord. And God knows what is coming up. I don't. So I am happy to trust in Him. "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose" Romans 8:28

Who Cares About What Other People Think Anyway?

2011-03-04T14:52:00.000-06:00

Uh, the unfortunate answer to that would be: ME! I care what other people think! And I wish I didn't! And collectively, I really don't but when I am talking to someone face to face it turns out that I do find myself wondering what they think of me.

Particularly when it comes to my little brood of girls.

So the girls go everywhere with me. And no matter what, we always get comments. Which I try to let roll off my back or to take in a positive way. But I don't always succeed. "Don't you guys own a t.v.?" has been my favorite so far, btw.

I understand we probably look a little chaotic thundering down the isle at the grocery store but really, we only have four children! People react like we have 20. I am always ALWAYS careful to respond kindly and cheerfully that our children are a blessing and that I enjoy them very much--yes, even though they are all girls. And most people are very sweet.

But sometimes they say things like "Bet you were hoping that last one was a boy." and it makes me really sad! Because I love the fact that I have 4 girls. And I adore each one and am so grateful to be their mother. And I don't want my girls to ever think that maybe I didn't want them or wanted them to be of the male gender. Sure, we'd love to have a son at some point but if we don't, then we are ok (my husband being part of the "we"--he loves his little girls, too).

And then there is the pressure to have everyone behave super awesomely out of this world when we are in public. If you see a family with two children and one is having a fit then it's "Bless that poor mother's heart." And if you see a family with 4 or more children and one is misbehaving it is "That mother probably doesn't have the time to discipline her children."

Same thing for me. If I am having a bad day or am frustrated with one of my girls and I speak a little too harshly to one of my children or don't have a glowing smile on my face or even look worn out tired (I have allergies--that's where the bags come from!) then people automatically assume that it's because of "all those children" and either feel sorry for me or think that I deserve what I get for being so stupid as to not figure out how to stop the children from coming. No one wants to hear the bad day from a mom of a brood of kids b/c I've made my bed and now I have to lie in it.

So I'm thinking I need a t-shirt that says:

Yes, they are all mine.
No, we are not Catholic.
Yes, we know what causes pregnancy.
No, we are not trying for a boy.
Yes, I do have my hands full but I LOVE it!
No, call me crazy but I am not scared for them to become teenagers.

And I'll start wearing that t-shirt when I start showing with Baby #5 (due 11-11-11)

Hehe :)

We have eggs!!

2011-02-17T21:43:00.001-06:00

Yesterday we noticed our chickens making this horrible racket. BOC BOC BOC BOC BOC BOCBOCBOCBOCBOC BAWKBAWKBAWKBAWK!!!!!. I thought, "Well there goes the whole 'chickens are quiet and great for a neighborhood' idea."

And then one of the girls noticed that "Melody" AKA "The Alpha Chick" was in the coop by herself. And a little while later we had a beautiful brown TINY egg! Which was passed from girl to girl to girl to Mom and never was a chicken egg more adored than that little egg was. I'm telling you, it will be a little sad to crack that thing open tomorrow morning.

We came home from some errands and found another egg right next to the back porch step. It was a little larger but still small and I suspected our Australorp, Black Berry. Crazy that two chickens laid their first eggs within hours of each other! Our girls are synchronized! And today we were gifted with two more eggs, right on schedule and by the same girls who laid yesterday (it was the Australorp--I caught her in the nesting box). Hopefully the other two will decide to join in!

It was really hard to concentrate on getting work done yesterday and today because we all wanted to run out and see if there were any more eggs. I was just as bad as the kids. I found all sorts of excuses to walk by the coop. Oh what fun it is to have chickens!!

The girls spotted Jerry, the neighborhood oppossum in our backyard last night. I hear that oppossoms like to eat chickens and I've found some digging around our coop. We put Christmas lights up and that was the end of the digging marks. I wonder if old Jerry is getting braver though. I don't think he can bust into the coop but we are going to further reinforce it this weekend. Hardware cloth my friends. The big guns. No one gets a free chicken dinner on our watch.

Off to do something besides read about, write about, or think about chickens. The obsession is being put up on the shelf for the evening--after I take another peek at our precious little clutch of eggs!

Snow Birds

2011-02-08T21:02:00.000-06:00

The recent cold weather was not easy on the chickens (or their momma). We left them outside during the first day of the sub-freezing temperatures. They seemed okay, patrolling the yard like usual. But later I noticed that they were bunching up and looking pretty cold. So I wimped out and brought them into their cardboard box in the garage.

We realized they would probably be happier with a little more room so we took a second box and made a little apartment for them. Sort of like a chicken tenement. They stayed there from Tuesday afternoon until Friday afternoon. It all went well until the final night when they decided to escape. I came out into the garage on Friday morning and they were roosting on some chairs that go to a table we were going to Freecycle. Looks like I'll have some cleaning up to do. Gross!

As soon as it hit 25 degrees on Friday morning I threw the birds outside. They clucked loudly at the snow but soon decided they were so happy to be at the end of their confinement a little white cold stuff on the ground wasn't a big deal.

I hope they enjoyed their pampering b/c they are back out to shiver in their coop at night after their little escape stunt during the last freeze. Well, except for tomorrow when the highs are in the 20's--they are in their box tonight with some heavy baskets on top of the screen lids. I am a mother hen myself after all--can't bear for my little princess chickies to suffer! :)

Brief Central Texas Winter

2011-02-08T20:38:00.000-06:00

Besides the horrendous cedar allergies, central Texas is a great place to live during the winter. We usually enjoy a daytime temperature of around 60 degrees give or take 5 degrees. But God must enjoy reminding us of how good we have it down here because most winters we get at least one blast of artic air that tends to last for a day or two. Everyone joyfully busts out the scarves, gloves, and fire logs and we shiver for the day and then the temperatures rebound to where they should be and life goes on.

This year we got an extra dose of winter. We stayed below freezing for 72 hours--extremely unusal for this area. Schools had delayed openings, we had rolling blackouts, pipes froze, plants died, and we had wind chill advisories. As a reward for our 4 days of winter suffering (equivilant to 4 months of winter suffering for all other areas of the country), The Lord sent us some snow to enjoy. First He sent us a bit of freezing rain though so that shut the city down and then came the snow so schools and businesses were closed and most people got a genuine snow day. And sure enough, the day following the snow saw temperatures in the upper 60's. God bless Texas!

We aren't putting the winter gear away quite yet. We have the chance for an ice storm tomorrow morning. Highs in the 20's and then we'll probably be done with our winter weather for the season! Garden time is right around the corner!

More pics from our shoot with Shannon

2011-01-11T23:57:00.000-06:00

I am having the worst time deciding which pictures to order! There are so many good ones from our shoot with Shannon Prothro. I need to hurry up and decide because it won't be too long before we are ready to do spring pictures!

For sure I will be getting the one of the Jason and the three big girls--one of my favorite pictures of all time!

Christmas break is the time to...

2010-12-29T09:07:00.000-06:00

re-organize to the point of forgetting the new "homes" for things. I think I am a perpetual "nester".

pray about and reflect on the previous school semester and tweak our routine.

clean exotic, rarely visited places like the top of the fridge.

have the pre-semester mini panic attack b/c I know how disciplined I'll have to be every single day in order for life to run smoothly around here.

put pictures in picture frames! Third child still hasn't made it in a picture frame past her one year birthday.

clear out the garden now that I'm pretty sure all the wasps and snakes have gone to sleep for the winter. I don't know this guy, but this is the kind of nest I always imagine is lurking just yonder of the compost bin.

fuss over The Chicken Project. Nesting boxes are the next project.

color many pictures with the girls with their fancy Melissa and Doug colored pencils and coloring books.

stay up and watch the lunar eclipse with the oldest child. We were so tired...but it was pretty neat!

teach Paige to write her name. Again.

do seemingly endless fun Christmas projects and crafts (cookies, gingerbread men, gingerbread houses, chocolate covered pretzels, making ornaments, and more cookies).

(and this is the most important of all) be purposeful about celebrating the birth of Jesus, the greatest gift ever given. Christmas is a great time for reflection and soul searching. I always get very emotional when I think of the humble surroundings of the birth of our Savior. The movie "The Nativity Story" brings me to tears every time I see it. How merciful of our Lord that Mary and Joseph did not know what that precious little baby would endure as a man. What a beautiful story that God has written!

December Highlights

2010-12-19T10:58:00.000-06:00

Right now our family is recovering from what will be referred to as "The Christmas Flu". It was a nasty stomach virus that ended up taking the entire clan down. God was merciful though--the night that three kids came down the virus within three hours of each other and spent the night repeatedly throwing up was not the night that Jason was out of town this week. Also, Jason and I did not get sick until after the kids were doing better and as soon as I was somewhat back on my feet, Jason fell ill. And...if there was a week to be down with the barf bug, this was the best week for us. My mom had left last week, Jason's sister had moved out a few days before, and Christmas is next week! So, things could have been a lot worse! Praise the Lord (in all things!!)!

As I said, my mom was here for a visit. We had such a nice time. She didn't feel well but she was quite a trooper. Our house isn't the quietest place but Mom didn't seem to mind. The girls were sweet and helped "take care" of her. And it was nice for our schedule to slow waaaaay down. The only bump in the road was that our water heater went out so we had to make trips to accommodating friends' houses to shower.

My mom got some troubling news from her oncologist the other day. She has been experiencing some terrible pain and her doctor is concerned that the cancer may have spread or that the lining of her lung has filled with cancerous fluid. She has a scan on Dec 29th to see what the story is. One of the things that The Lord has taught me through my mom's cancer battle has been not to be consumed with worry and despair over what might happen. My mom wasn't supposed to live six months even with treatment and here we are 14 months later. When she came out here in May, I was convinced that I would never see her again. So much that I was consumed with sadness when she left. And yet, God gave her enough time and strength to make it to our house six months later. So, I'm not going to get depressed over what this lastest issue could mean. He has helped me replace sadness and worry with joy and thanksgiving.

Chicken news: over the Thanksgiving week Jason and I came up with our great chicken coop idea. We looked at the cost and time of building a coop and were a little surprised at how complicated and expensive it was going to be. Not to mention that neither of us is really all that handy. I joked about just fencing in the bottom of the kids' play scape--wow, what a ghetto idea, right?! My husband recognized a life preserver when he saw one. So, a few days later we had a chicken coop at a minimal cost and managed to avoid any trips to the emergency room!

Lastly, Penny turned 18 months old at the end of November. My biggest wish for Christmas is that time would slow down because I love this season of life.

The Chicken Project

2010-11-18T22:21:00.000-06:00

The Chicken Project is moving along with few complications. Who would have guessed that raising baby chicks could be so much fun? Certainly not me. The girls have been begging for chickens for a few years now and all I could see was more work for me and crushed chick corpses strewn about (we have a lot of predators around here: toddlers, cats, etc). Miraculously, everyone is still alive though the cats have made a few attempts on the little nuggets.

The chickies are getting big. They are five weeks old and are starting to look like real live poultry. Recently they spent their first night without the heat lamp on (and I was out there twice in the middle of the night to make sure they weren't too cold--they are dainty little girls you know.)

These little birds make great playmates--they don't have a problem with being driving around the yard as long as they are together. Apparently "safety in numbers" is a strong belief of chickens.

Hopefully The Project continues to go well. The chicks will be ready to go to their permanent home in a few more months. We are probably going to keep two of them--if we can build a coop (Jason and I aren't the handiest of people...we may just chuck the whole keeping-a-few-chickens idea if we can't put a decent coop together. We would have been the worst pioneers.) The thought of fresh eggs is so appealing. Plus, I think it would be neat for the girls to have childhood memories of pet chickens. Since we've said no to ferrets, hamsters, mice, parakeets, countless kittens, snakes, more lizards, monkeys. Pretty much anything you can buy at the pet store or on the black market.

Fall Fun

2010-10-29T18:57:00.000-05:00

October might just be the most beautiful month of the year in central Texas. The hot semi-humid weather is whisked away by cold fronts and replaced with sapphire blue skies and crisp dry air.

With the change of weather comes one of my most unfavorite tasks: breaking out the cool weather clothes. Bins upon bins of clothing rise up in stacks through out our living room. Sometimes the family toddler succeeds in prying off a lid and merrily distributes the clothing here and there and everywhere. I have to admit that it is pretty funny to see her tearing out of the living room with an arm full of clothing!

The girls are looking forward to diving into some candy this weekend. Or I guess I could call them "Ariel", "Rudolph the Rednose Reindeer", "Snow White", and "The Butterfly Baby". Jason and I are looking forward to robbing their stash after they are in bed. They are pretty cute little kids and people just can't help but fill up their buckets with tasty treats to rot little teeth (and their parents' teeth).

School update: we began our study of Classical Greece this past week! Life in ancient Athens has been a focal point and the girls are appalled that Greek women were not allowed to do a lot of the things that men were permitted to do. Oh boy is it fun to see the reactions of my girls when it dawns on them that life has not always been the way it is now. Today I told them that we didn't have cel phones when I was kid. They were floored. FLOORED. Then my 6 year asked if taxis were pulled by horses when I was kid. Parenthood is endlessly entertaining :)

4 week update

2010-09-25T23:48:00.000-05:00

Jason is watching a creepy apocalyptic movie ("The Road") so I am holed up in another room with classical music blasting through my ear phones. Blog time...:)

We just completed our fourth week of school. We've settled back into the routine nicely. The biggest challenge has been trying to mother the littler two girls. They like to be right where the schooling is going on and while I love them nearby sometimes it's a wee bit distracting. Often times it goes like this:

Me: Ok, Reese, let's read your book."
Reese: "Gus and the---"
Me: Paige, don't draw on the table.
Reese: "bug hut. Gus is a-"
Penny: BAA MAAAAAAAA EEEEEE
Reese: "bug. He lives--"
Me: Penny NO! (pulling Penny off the back of the couch)
Penny (lying on the floor protesting being saved from herself): AAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!
Paige: Momma I poooooooped. Can you help me wipe?
Me: Reese, just go on reading. I can hear you in the bathroom.
Reese: "Gus is a bug. He lives in a"--MOOOMMM!! Penny took my book!!

And so it goes. And by the way, if you are wondering where the oldest child is in this little story, there is an even chance she is either working independently (what she is supposed to be doing) or has settled into writing one of her many stories of the adventures of The My Little Ponies (what is not supposed to be doing until she is finished her independent work).

Wow, does that sound like I am complaining? I'm really not! Or I'm not trying to. It's not always rainbows and butterflies around here but it's good. These girls won't be 8,6,4,and 1 forever. I'll take having to walk around the pile of books (every single book off the bookcase) and listening to my kids fight over gets to the baby deer this time (why can there be only one baby deer?)over peace and quiet. I am so grateful that The Lord has placed me here with these specific children :)

Well, the creepy movie is still on and it's after midnight. I guess I'll do some lesson planning--I'm sort of trapped by the two foot cord on my headphones.

Great first day of school and then...

2010-08-30T21:32:00.000-05:00

Today was our first full day of school. The girls did great. All of them. The baby played happily nearby. The 4 yr old entertained herself by sticking Wikistix all over the bottom of the school table creating an elaborate playground for her Littlest Petshop Pets. Hailey and Reese enjoyed their lessons and had great attitudes. Hailey even played with and read to Penny while I worked with Reese. And most miraculously of all, we stayed on schedule to the minute. I have no idea how that happened and I fully realize that it may not happen again for quite some time!

After lunch all of the good behavior, positive attitudes, and sibling comraderie was sucked out of this place like the last bit of Dr. Pepper in a styrofoam cup. Fighting, whining, complaining, arguing with Mom, COMPLAINING, and MORE WHINING is what our afternoon looked like. It was truly a "Help me, Tom Cruise!" few hours. When Jason called and informed that he was running about 15 minutes late I could have sobbed. Not even an episode of Veggie Tales would calm the crew. And I couldn't throw them out in the yard b/c of the wasp nest near their playscape that I discovered the other day. It's no small victory that I did not yell at anyone or go hide in my closet.

So...hopefully tomorrow will be better. Right now, Jason (MY HERO), is upstairs patiently putting them to bed. I have no idea if they were better behaved for him or not because I have tuned out as best as I am able to. If anyone were to ask me a question right now my answer would be "Huuuuuuuhhhh?" accompanied by a slack jaw.

I hear Jason making his escape so I'm going to crawl over to the couch and try to be some kind of a half decent wife to him since the majority of the afternoon and evening were a bust on the motherhood front.

Back to School

2010-08-26T22:31:00.000-05:00

Summer break is just about over with. This week the girls and I had half days of school where we mostly worked with our new curricula. Hailey has a new spelling program (which she loves!). Both girls are having their first official math lessons and drawing lessons (also huge hits). So far...so good :)

I need to get down on my knees and thank God that Reese remembers nearly all of what she learned in her phonics lessons from last year--I did not have her read to me very many times over the summer. Hailey probably helped her more with her reading than I did. Often I would be downstairs after the girls had gone to bed and hear Reese reading to Hailey and Hailey lovingly encouraging/correcting her. This was nothing short of amazing coming from two girls who spend a good portion of their days irritating each other. Moments like that warm a mom's heart.

On Monday we will incorporate our Tapestry of Grace lessons and our science lessons into our day. It is going to be a full load and we will be busier than ever. Hailey will being doing gymnastics once a week and Reese and Paige will have soccer practices and games and then they will have AWANA (except for Penny of course). I'm sweating it a little--all of this running around we will have to be doing. I am no stranger to slammed packed busy days--I have four small children at home, afterall! But I don't like to spend my life rushing around. If I am super busy and running from one thing to the next then I tend to not be as patient, consistent, and availabe. My mothering suffers. We'll see how this semester goes though. "I can do all things thru Christ who strengthens me..." :)

Regarding summer: too short, too quick!! Can't say it was the best summer we've ever had either. Our sweet old dog, Summer, finally had to be put down. It was definitely her time, which did make it easier, but I miss her more as time goes by. She will always have a special place in my heart--my first big dog and my best dog ever. Probably kind of weird/morbid to have taken this picture but this is the Garrett ladies biding our sweet old girl goodbye.

This summer also had its fair share of family drama. The long and the short of it is that my beloved younger sister and her husband were busted for growing pot in their home. They are facing some very serious charges and I hope and pray that the judge is merciful and recognizes that rehab and probation are what these people need. I'm not going soft--I know they broke the law and they need to face the consequences, etc. These are two very hurting and damaged individuals and I'm not sure prison would do much besides harden them and damage them more.

That's our update. We are looking forward to a blessed fourth year of homeschooling. It blows my mind that I have a third grander and a first grader(and next year Paige joins us a kindergartener!!!) !!

School is out, summer is in!

2010-06-23T16:36:00.001-05:00

Last Friday we finished up our school year. What a GREAT year we had!! Rewind to June 2009 and you would find me very nervous about the 2009-2010 school year. It was my first year to teach two children at the same time, we were introducing new curriculum, and we had a brand spanking new baby! Not to mention a rambunctious 3 year old!

Thanks be to God a million times over for giving us a wonderful third year of homeschooling. I can say without pause that it was our best year yet! Of course there were many challenges. And plenty of days where I taught while bouncing Penny on my lap (or nursing her). And most certainly my house is not as neat as I would prefer it to be. And our dinner menu has been very simple (but still shooting for healthy). And we have not been as connected with our friends--this does make me sad but hopefully we can catch up this summer.

I am so pleased with my students' progress! Reese is a reader! Hailey has become more of an independant learner. We have developed good habits (morning bible study being the one I'm most proud that we have maintained). Paige did well entertaining herself either in the playroom or quietely in the school room. And Penny has been a reasonably good sport throughout it all--though she was the worst napper I have EVER had (really--her issues with napping were quite terrible).

I do believe that I've grown as Christian, mother, and teacher as well. I'd like to think I'm more patient. And that I've overcome my perpetual stress out fest over the house not being as neat as I'd like. God has really kicked some selfishness out of me too. I've been impressed even more to see things His way. I try to remember to ask Him what He would like me to do this day--what does He want me to accomplish? I might desperately want to clean out the closet but He might direct me to deal with a heart issue that one of my kids (or myself) is struggling with. Another thing God has revealed to me: when one of my kids acts up, see it as an opportunity to teach and train instead of an annoyance to just deal with.

I could also go on forever about how much I have enjoyed studying the Old Testament with the girls. I am impressed even more that training up these children to love the Lord, serve Him, and keep His commandments is my most important job as a parent. It was amazing to read how God time and time again told the Israelites that if they obeyed Him, He would take care of them. And how if they did not obey Him, He would allow them to be destroyed. God means business. He meant it several thousand years ago and and He still means it today! Imagine if every family in America brought up their children to fear (respect) the Lord? I hope and pray that Jason and I can accomplish that goal with our family(with tons of help from our heavenly Father!!).

Time to get ready to jet off to swimming lessons. :)

Another YAY for May!

2010-05-18T22:41:00.001-05:00

Our garden!! Tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, and peppers. We have some herbs in pots that have attracted swallowtail butterfiles among other creatures. Right now we have 4 swallowtail caterpillars getting fatter by the day. My girls (and I) are kind of hooked on the whole butterfly metamorphasis :)

The rollie pollies are attacked our squash and cucumbers big time. Not sure what to do on that. They get down low and gnaw on the roots. I never thought I'd see the day when I'd smush a cute little poly (when the girls aren't looking of course). I've also found some snails. The tomatoes and peppers are doing beautifully though. Those are our favorites anyway but still...I want some squash!! And some cucumbers!!

Happy May!

2010-05-18T22:28:00.000-05:00

I love May! It used to be my most unfavorite month. We lost our home to a fire and my dad died in May in 1988 and for MANY years I dreaded the coming of May.

But God is so good!!

May now means "restoration" to me. In the Mays of the past I have been blessed with the birth of two babies and the conception of one! Mother's Day is in May. My birthday is in May and rather than feel depressed at adding to my years I have felt blessed to have made it around the sun yet again! So bravo for May! And thank you Lord for turning sorrows into dancing!

Here is my current favorite picture: my 11 month old sweetheart who is began WALKING two weeks ago! Yay for May!

Goddesses, Pupas, and Faithful Friends

2010-04-23T23:11:00.000-05:00

The end of the school year is on the horizon. I'm really hoping that we can finish up our work by the first week of June. Right now we are studying ancient Greece with Tapestry of Grace. We've enjoyed spanakopita ("spinach squares") and will make a constellarium next week. There are so many cool websites on ancient Greece. Hailey and I have loved checking them out. We've read the kids' version of "Jason and the Argonauts" which the three older girls enjoyed immensely. We are also learning a bit about Greek mythology--the PG stuff at least :) Jason and I honeymooned in Athens so Greece has been of particular interest to me since our visit in 1996. The picture on this post is not mine but it could have been had our camera been working on our trip. One of the great tragedies of my life...broken camera in Greece. What a shame.

For science we are learning all about insects. My girls have had a lasting obsession with creepy crawly things so we've sort of had an ongoing study of bugs for the past five years or so. We are learning lots of new things though! And right now we have many containers lying around our house containing insects in their different stages of development. I think we currently have every stage except for the pupa and that should change any day now when our fat caterpillar decides to grow up :)

One thing I'm not cool with is strolling into my kitchen and finding dozens of inch worms spreading out from a container. One of the girls had apparently found a few eggs on a plant that contained a litter of inch worms. We'll never know what they grow up to be b/c I ordered them out the backdoor. I do have my limits.

Sad news: our 14 year old lab's days are numbered. Looks like the old girl has a mass in her abdomen. Breaks my heart. We've had that dog since before we had the kids. I've cried many tears into Summer's fur over the years. She's always been so patient. Content just to sit next to you. She's the best dog I've ever had. It's not hitting me yet--I'm not going there until I have to. We'll just enjoy her during her time left. We will always remember The Big Yellow Beetle :*)

To Challenge or Accept?

2010-04-14T21:35:00.000-05:00

One of the neatest aspects of parenthood is getting a front row seat to your child's ever developing personality. I really like my children--of course, I love them but I also really like them as people. The younger two are just plain cute and entertaining as babies and preschoolers are. The older two, however, are constantly surprising me with their uniqueness.

Jason and I are getting a better idea of their strengths and weaknesses--the former being extremely exciting and the latter being downright frightening! I see character issues in them that keep me on my knees praying for them (I guess that's a good place to be--on my knees before the Lord :)) But sometimes I feel like I'm holding my breath--like I'm watching a movie and hoping with all my heart for a good ending! Will this child mature out of her laziness? Or despite her training will she grow up undisciplined and unmotivated??? One child has a tendency to blame everyone else for what goes wrong in her life (from a spilled glass of water to not being able to finish her sentence). Will she grow up never taking responsibility for her own mistakes??? AAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUUUUGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHH! It's enough to make me bite my already too short nails to the quick!!!

No matter their flaws, I want my children to know how much we love them. And that we love them not for what they do but for who they are. They are precious gifts from The Lord and to be treated as such. They are not to be molded into what Jason and I desire them to be but into what The Lord designed for them to be.

So that brings to my dilemma. Is it my job as a parent to iron out these little wrinkles that they come with? How do you decide what needs to be "fixed" and what needs to be accepted? One of my kids is extremely helpless when it comes to age appropriate tasks. If pressed, she will make a pathetic effort. And then when I lovingly correct her she falls apart. Now, I believe that she needs to work on recieving correction and she also needs to persevere (and for Pete's sake...quite whining and complaining!!). But I also do not want her to feel like she can't do anything right and all that comes with that. I want to expect excellence from my children but when does that turn into creating children who "perform" well but have many grievious attitudes hidden in their hearts?????

We want our kids to grow up to be functioning members of God's family. They need discipline--desperately. They need to be taught integrity. So many valuable character traits to impress upon them and really, so little time (the years whizz by--I know this). They need to see these character traits modeled in their parents' lives.

Anyway, I'm just typing what is on my mind. I'm really needing some guidance and wisdom from The Lord on this issue. He's the Master Parent :) The kids are asleep now so I think I'll go upstairs and check on everybody. I love to see their sleeping faces :)

2010-03-23T22:14:00.000-05:00

The view from where I sit ... the Dyson staring at me (why bother putting it away?), my handsome husband playing his guitar.

Outside My Window...eerie wind sounds--storms are in the forecast tomorrow

I am thinking...about everything that I would like to get done tomorrow. Also weighing very heavily on mind is the disolution of a friend's marriage. How can someone treat another person so terribly? How can a father's heart grow cold towards his children? How this must grieve our heavenly Father. How I'd like to be the one to deliver swift justice--not my assignment though. Too bad.

I am thankful for...the personal growth I've seen in mine and my husband's lives recently. So thankful that God is in control and that He is SO good!

We are learning...about ancient China for the next two weeks. So fun! We are also studying the courtship habits of birds and all about eggs and baby birds. A certain five year old girl is beside herself with joy. She and I are both wishing we could raise a few ducks. Maybe next year?

From the kitchen...scraping by with what is left from our grocery budget. Brinner tonight, chicken tomorrow. Challah bread too! Our family consumed 11 eggs with our dinner tonight. Jason and I each had 2. The girls polished off 7 eggs between the three of them!

I am wearing... my standard day time uniform: jeans and t-shirt.

I am creating... a plan for tomorrow.

I am going... to vacuum out the car tomorrow if it doesn't rain. I'm trying my best to include this in my monthly chore routine. It must be timed perfectly though--baby napping, weather decent, older girls not needing anything.

I am reading... "A Painted House" by John Grisham. Read it once, did not care for it but I don't remember why so I'm giving it one more try. 100 pages in and not much is happening.

I am hoping...that Penny sleeps all night long tonight.

I am hearing...the same song over and over again while Jason learns it. I'm guessing that this song will be in the background of my mind for the next 3 or 4 days.

Around the house...diapers hanging to dry on the back of our kitchen chairs, seedlings meandering out of the seed tray, pencil marks on the wall that have an appt with Paige and Mr. Clean's Magic Eraser.

One of my favorite things... my husband playing the acoustic guitar. Very relaxing!

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week: library tomorrow, sort baby clothes, mail thank-you notes.

Here is picture thought I am sharing...

Trust and Obey

2010-03-08T12:00:00.000-06:00

"Trust in The Lord with all your heart; and lean not on your own understanding." Proberbs 3:5

Boy that is a tough one, especially in today's culture. So many of the things that God tells us to do are completely opposite of what the world says. Tithe and give when you should be saving up big time for the retirement fund you started a decade later than you should have. Don't reply harshly when someone REALLY deserves it. Pray for your enemies. It all goes against the super strong (weak) human nature.

That's why Proverbs 3:6 is so comforting:
"in all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make your paths straight."

He WILL make your paths straight if you seek Him in ALL of your ways. I love it! All of your ways!

These two verses in particular have been racing through my mind night and day recently for it's been on my heart to trust God in areas that I had not really considered handing control over to Him before. I wasn't conciously disobeying--I was following what the world tells us is just plain good sense! Most definitely I was leaning on my own understanding though--and had never before thought to see if my ways were lining up with God's thoughts on the subject. And if I'm completely honest I will admit that the reason I didn't want to seek God's approval was because quite frankly the issue was too scary to inquire about! And by the way, I'm not quite ready to go public with my struggle and subsequent submission yet. But let me say that I feel like a burden has been lifted--a burden that I had not even thought was there!

I'm going to enjoy my current "so light I could fly away" feelings because I know that soon i will be tempted to question my obedience. I've actually been wrestling with those temptations already but by clinging to God's promises have been able to beat the enemy back. I know what God wants me to do and I'm going to do it.

Butterfly update

2010-02-26T17:08:00.000-06:00

These aren't our caterpillars (b/c I STILL can't find my camera memory stick--the Iphone pictures did not come out very well) but this is what our caterpillars did before they went into the pupa stage. Did not know this but when caterpillars decide to change they do it FAST! In a matter of hours (less?) our little guys went from hanging upside down like this to this:

We should begin to see some butterflies hatching over the weekend. We are on butterfly alert :)

Rare Central Texas Snow Day

2010-02-26T16:24:00.000-06:00

This week's surprising snowstorm was such a fun event. It's been an unusually cold winter here in central Texas and we have heard several snow predictions. So far they've all been a bust. So when the weather was calling for snow the next day I didn't pay much attention.

Tuesday morning brought the screams of four (myself included) happy girls who didn't even wait for breakfast before venturing out into the winter wonderland. We had but a dusting and I figured what we were seeing was all the snow we would be getting.

But no! We received shower after shower of big fat snow flakes! The day went like this: we'd suit up and run outside and play until our warm-weather-loving selves were soaked and freezing and then troop back in and throw all of our wet winter gear into the dryer. Another snow shower would blow in and the race to get outside and experience the falling snow would begin.

I must add that the snow was a fun opportunity for the the girls to learn more about God. That He is a kind, loving, creative, powerful God. They learned new things about the beauty of His creation (snow). We also talked about how nice it was that God gave us all of this snow to enjoy! And that if God wants it to snow in central Texas then well, He has the power to do that! Pretty neat!

The final snowfall total was 2.25 inches for our yard. Oh--one precious picture that I failed to capture: Penny sitting in front of our glass backdoor, absolutely mesmirized by the falling snow. :)

Winter Butterflies

2010-02-15T23:16:00.000-06:00

Reese: "Little smooky caterpillars grow bigger every day"
Hailey: "Yay! They are bigger and there moving!"
--excerpts from the girls' butterfly journals

Observing caterpillars has been one of the coolest things we have done this year. At the moment we have five Painted Lady caterpillars crawling around in a little jar. Since we received them in the mail (bugs in the mail--who'd a thought??) they have nearly tripled in size. It is not an exaggeration to say that they are visibly larger with each day that passes.

The two oldest girls each have a little notebook where they are keeping track of their daily observations of these little baby butterflies. This is one "assignment" that I do not have to remind them about! Any day now the little creatures should begin to tuck themselves into their chrysalises. Super exciting time around the Garrett household :)

So frustrating--I am without a camera right now. The memory card for our camera is M.I.A. I really don't want to drop $30 on a new one but if another week goes by and it doesn't turn up I'm going to have to. Caterpillars and butterflies be darned--we have a little human who is going thru plenty of changes herself. I don't want to miss too many photo opportunities. We already struggle with the "fourth child syndrome" where there is far less video of Penny than of the other three. Don't want to follow suite with the photos!

What else we have been up to...

2010-02-07T17:49:00.001-06:00

Wow. Clearly I have no idea what I am doing when it comes to this blog here. Let's try this again...

We have had the best school year yet! We have found the right curricula for our family. Everything is "working". This is a fantastic feeling. As a mom and a homeschooler I am overcome with thanksgiving to our Lord for the happy home we are enjoying.

I had purposed to update this blog with our school experiences--a sort of record. School has been great and we have done many fun and interesting things but that stuff has not made it to our blog. I'm out of practice with writing and just plain BUSY wifing/mothering/teaching. I read what I have written, don't like it, and decide not to post it. I'm going to try not to be so picky from now on.

We are nearing the end of our first unit of Tapestry of Grace. We are planning an end of unit celebration. My plan is to do our school update around that time. And then when we begin unit two I'm going to update regularly (I will!).

2010-01-30T21:01:00.000-06:00

I can't believe my last entry in this here little blog was nearly four months ago. Life was different four months ago.

If my life was a newspaper then in mid October the headline would have read "My Mom has Cancer." Sometimes I still can't believe it. It was so hard to face the possibility of losing both my parents just as I had crossed over into my thirties. For heaven's sake--my mother is only 53 years old! But cancer doesn't care about that kind of stuff. And lung cancer is especially brutal. Without treatment the doctors gave my mom 6 months. Mom was not sure she wanted to endure chemotherapy--I can't say I blame her. I get wickedly sick and exhausted while pregnant and that has made me appreciate my health more than most people my age I believe.

Mom chose to undergo treatment and as of right now she has two sessions of chemo left. Her tumor has shrank 50%--somethign her doctor did not expect to happen. Her doctor has been happy with her blood counts--another miracle. I don't know if its possible for her to go into remission--its very unlikely she will be "cured." But she is fighting the good fight and hanging in there. I'm so proud of her--she has faced this with amazing bravery and has kept her sense of humor. I know she has terrible days--she doesn't say this to me but I know they have to be there. But above all she has concrete faith in the Lord and His plans and has surrendered herself to his will. This has been an incredible blessing to me--I know she is in the Lord's hands. We will see each other some day! When she gets Home she will have so many waiting for her--my dad and the baby Jason and I lost are two people who come to my mind.

My Mom and I have had more than our share of mother/daughter conflicts. We are both incredibly stubborn people. I think she might actually be worse than me and that's pretty amazing! I love her so much though. She was the best mother ever when I was a little kid and I always felt loved. I hate the thought of losing her but I am ever so grateful that we've all been given the gift of being able to say goodbye. And who knows--we might not have to say goodbye as soon as we think! Who knows what God has in store?!

The Happiest Baby on the Block...

2009-10-12T22:52:00.000-05:00

is MINE :)

I don't think there is a happier baby anywhere! This little girl even smiles when she cries (and
it is not often that she is upset enough to make a fuss)! She wakes up happy, goes to bed without a peep, and smiles constantly (ok--she is a terribly unpredictable napper but we just roll with it). I just had to type that I am so blessed to have this sweetest of babies for my fourth daughter.

New Curriculum!

2009-10-12T22:34:00.000-05:00

After much thought and prayer we decided to make some changes to our home school. We had been doing "Five in a Row" and initially it was a hit. The girls liked it and it was easy for me to plan lessons. That worked very well while I was pregnant and then while we were adapting to baby number 4. I still love "Five in a Row" but school was becoming a battle--the girls were not interested in hearing the same story five days in a row! I secretly agreed--I found myself almost dreading reading the book for the third or fourth day in a row. So we knew it was time for a change:)

We are now using Tapestry of Grace . Today was our first day :) A good friend uses this curriculum with her family and I fell in love with it a few years ago when she shared it with me. I had planned on beginning it with my children in 2010 when (hopefully) both of the older girls were reading (Hailey reads very well, Reese is progressing well but NOT reading yet). No big deal though--apparently it works just fine with me reading the material to both girls. Anyway, I am extremely excited to be starting this new study and I hope the girls continue to share my enthusiasm!

This week we are learning about ancient Egyptians. The girls enjoyed the first book we read today about life in ancient Egypt. Pretty fascinating stuff! When Hailey found out that they didn't have dishwashers back then she decided that she wouldn't have wanted to live back then :) We have a few activities planned for this week and next--we will begin making a salt map to illustrate different geographical terms; next week we will make a paddle doll (Egyptian version of a baby doll). My girls love hands on learning so my goal is to do one craft/hands on activity a week. I am not a crafty person and honestly, I HATE the mess that goes with these projects but its something I am just going to have to get over :) Plus I have helpers to aid in craft aftermath clean up!

Again, I am very excited about this new addition to our school. I look forward to relearning history alongside my girls!

Goodbye Crooked Finger...

2009-09-23T21:31:00.000-05:00

A week ago today Paige had surgery to remove a bony tumor in her finger (technical name: osteochondroma). The surgery went well. She went to sleep happy (she told me this) and woke up happy (I was witness to this). It was a little nerve racking for her parents because the surgery was supposed to take 30 minutes and ended up taking 1 hour and 45 minutes because she's a tiny kid with a tiny crooked finger :) Jason and I know that God is in control and we know that anesthesia is generally safe (this is our fifth experience with a kid being put under). But its still a little tense while you are waiting to hear that everything went ok!

The biggest deal was going to be keeping Paige from removing her bandage. Harhar. Well, we didn't have to worry about that for too long because Paige removed it that very afternoon! I made a frantic call to the surgeon while Paige's incision dripped blood and she remarked at how it didn't hurt (poor kid--the nerve block was still in effect. The pain would come later.). Doctor's orders were to re-bandage it and use the fingers on either side of the affected finger as splints. Oh and to try to keep her from whacking her hand for the next couple of weeks. Hmmm. Real fun considering this is how Paige spends her days:

So we've been trying to stick to quiet games, like dress up.

And playing with rusty clippers.

Oh, this is the finger the evening after surgery. Yuck! It looked much more bruised the following day but I didn't manage to snap a picture.

Storm in the Night

2009-09-23T21:10:00.000-05:00

Last we did "Storm in the Night" by Mary Stolz. Nice story and appropriate for our week because we actually had a few storms (and one was at night too!). We did a little lesson on weather, mainly focusing on thunderstorms. We read the thunderstorm book by Magic School Bus and that was a hit. We touched a bit on the five senses--the girls' favorite activity was when we all piled into my closet and turned off the lights and noticed how much better we hear and smell without our sense of sight.

We also talked about fear and our verse for the week was Isaiah 43:5 "Do not be afraid, for I am with you;". Once again, GREAT story for this past week as on a occasion we deal with a little thunderstorm anxiety around here!

A nice side note: the heavy rains we were blessed with gave us the largest amount of rainfall our area has received since July of 2007! Amazing! This drought has been so bad--our lawn was really suffering (not that this is the most important thing but its where the effects of the drought were most felt by our family). Now its all green and overgrown--gorgeous! A lawn in central Texas is really something worth preserving--locals know what I mean! Huge mushrooms sprouted up all over the yard. I have never seen fungi like this in Texas!

Photo session

2009-09-10T22:09:00.000-05:00

So we decided to do a little photo shoot in our backyard since we have precious few pictures of all four girls together. Oh man. It was like...well...exactly like trying to get four little kids to all look at the camera at the same time (everyone's eyes open and no goofy faces or panties showing). I think we took over fifty photos. These are some of the best:

Looks like I'm about to flip Jason the bird.

Oh I almost forgot...

2009-09-10T17:52:00.000-05:00

Last Friday we went to homeschool day at Pioneer Farms--a local historical site where you can see how the pioneers lived in Texas before the time of air conditioning, running water, electricity, etc. I can say with absolute certainty that I would have turned my wagon back east after spending a summer in Texas under those primitive conditions. I didn't get a lot of pictures because my camera battery died and then I used my iphone and only got a few pictures with that. It was really fun though--the girls loved and we can't wait to go back. Oh--we had rented "Old Yellar" the weekend before and so the girls recognized several things from the movie. They were wondering where the rabid animals were though.

Little girl dressed up in authentic "pioneer garb". The girls thought she lived here :)

Paige next to the "potty". Right after I told the girls this was the outhouse Paige decided to start stripping to try it out!

Big evil longhorn cow. This thing acted nice--was letting the kids pet it and then it started trying to gore people.

Hailey trying out the stilts.

Penny, good little baby that she is, slept a good deal of the tour.

Our first two weeks of school.

2009-09-10T17:04:00.000-05:00

I'm so happy to say that our school year got off to a pretty good start! The first book of the year was "How to Make an Apple Pie and see the World" by Marjorie Priceman. What a fun book! We got to "visit" many countries so the first thing we did was to make passports. We got to borrow Jason's and the girls enjoyed examining it.

We ended the week by making an apple pie (of course). The two big girls helped measure the ingredients and assemble the pie. I don't really do a lot of baking and had never made an apple pie before either (if we are going to eat dessert then the girls and I prefer chocolate and Jason is not a huge fan of pies). It turned out to be so good I think we'll make one from time to time!

The second week we did "Clown of God" by Tomie dePaola. Good story but kind of heavy--it dealt with a lot of social issues (orphans, mean people, homelessness, etc). We spent time talking about why some people feel like they have to be mean and how much it hurts others when they aren't treated with respect. We also made a list of things we are thankful for. We learned how to say "thank you" and "good bye" in Italian. And we watched a few videos of jugglers on youtube (we found a video of a teenager who could juggle knives while riding on a unicycle!!). The girls tried to juggle--each tried it exactly once before they decided that juggling was a lot more difficult than it looked :)

Our routine seems to be working pretty well. I decided that doing school five days a week is a little much at this time--especially for the new kindergartner. She loves her special portion of school ( phonics) but I noticed she was getting a little burnt out when we did three days in a row. In the future I plan on doing different lessons (besides Sing, Spell, Read, and Write and possibly Five in a Row) on Wednesdays and possibly Fridays. Hopefully this will keep things from getting monotonous. That is the last thing I want--for anyone to dread school. We've got several projects that I'd like to do this fall--raising butterflies/moths for example.

Oh this week we are OFF. Monday was lost to a holiday and Wednesday Paige had an afternoon of pre op stuff for her finger surgery next week. This morning we had to be down at Childrens Hospital for for Reese's check up with her gastro doctor. Plus the baby has had a bit of a cold and has been a bit cranky and needing more Mom time :) But next week we'll be ready to get back into the swing of things!

New Year

2009-08-18T15:11:00.000-05:00

This summer is coming to a close. We are back into our school routine next Monday, August 24th. The girls and I are very excited! This third year of homeschooling will be unlike any other that we've had before. For starters, Ms. Reese is ready to begin kindergarten so I will be teaching two! I'm going to use "Sing, Spell, Read, and Write" with her like I did with Hailey. I am hoping it will work for her as well as it did for Hailey. Another new thing, well, is our new family member! Paige was 14 months old when Hailey officially began kindergarten. Penny will be almost three months old so this is the first time we've homeschooled with a little baby in the household. I probably shouldn't be as worried about Penny as I am about Paige. Our resident three year old is "challenging"--you know, the nice way to describe a child that absolutely drives you crazy and wears you out!

Anyway, I'm still mentally tweaking our routine--and will most likely continue to do so until things "work"--but so far I've come up with a daily schedule which looks like this:

7:30: Mom up, everyone eating breakfast, Mom checking e-mail, starting on her chores while the girls watch a bit of morning PBS
8:30: TV off, girls begin their morning chores, Mom spends time with Paige helping her do her chores and reading a story or two to her.
9:30: we gather together for our morning devotional
9:45ish: we have a snack as we read our "Five in a Row" book and then do the associated activities until lunchtime
12:00 Lunch
12:30ish clean up from lunch
12:45: reading time--Hailey reads to us (later Reese will join in), Mom reads from a chapter book
After reading we will take a break and clean up if needed (or just have some "playtime) until...
2:30: get the little girls down for their naps
3:00: work with Hailey and Reese individually
4:30-5: start dinner prep (I'm planning on having each of the older 3 girls taking turns helping me with dinner each night)
6-6:30 (whenever Jason gets home): dinner time
Kids play until 7:30 when we clean up for the evening and do baths
8:30-9: hopefully all the little people are in bed by this time!

Now I am not the most experienced homeschooler but I know that these times are not exact at all--when you are working with little ones things do come up (4 kids+1 mom= plenty of opportunity for character training haha)! Plus I never want to be so tied to a schedule that we don't have time to watch a baby bird hopping on the lawn or read an extra chapter of a book that we are all enjoying. And we certainly want to enjoy our own little baby and all the of growing she's going to be doing :)

Wanderlust

2009-07-22T20:59:00.000-05:00

I am suffering from a seriously strong urge to travel. Not sure if its the hot weather keeping us indoors for most of the day, that I'm feeling incredible now that I'm not pregnant, or that I have not left the Austin area in over eight months (that I can think of...) but I have the urge to get the heck out of town! (Oh and everyone I know keeps going on vacation!) I've taken to perusing websites for cruises, vacation rentals, America's best beaches, and Expedia.com (great deals on last minute trips!!). But so far the furthest I've been able to go has been downtown to the Children's Museum.

Jason says I am this way after I have a baby. I wouldn't be surprised. Even at best, I feel only half way decent while pregnant. It doesn't hit me how difficult it has been until after I give birth and suddenly feel terrific!! I just want to go, go, go right now! Cram Penny in a sling and hit the trails or the beach!

Anyway, here are some pictures from our "trip" downtown. It was fun--the staff from a local vet clinic were there with some creepy crawlies (tarantulas, bearded dragon, turtle, and a python) so that made our visit even more fun! The girls had a blast even though the place was PACKED OUT!!

Future veterinarian?

Experimenting with pulleys, parachutes, and cows.

Penny slept the entire time!

Paige sawing cardboard.

Hailey "milking" a cow.

Shame...

2009-07-18T21:45:00.000-05:00

on this BAD DOG!! Isn't this the face of someone ashamed of their actions? Ha! Don't believe it for a minute! She may look like she regrets the latest mess she caused but she would jump at the chance to do it again anytime, any place!

Trash-eating/counter-surfing/litter box digging dog that she is, I love her to pieces. And she's getting older by the day--well we all are of course but Summer is well into her golden years. We think she's about twelve (I got her from the animal shelter where her previous owners had listed her as four years old). She's in pretty good health for an old gal. Doesn't jump our eight foot privacy fence anymore and no longer drags you while on a walk (the girls can even walk her now), but she's still capable of reaching any food you leave on the counter or table (in the blink of an eye your sandwich is gone and a certain yellow dog is no where to be seen...).

This week we are going to be "babysitting" my sister's yellow lab, Punch. I say "babysitting" b/c this dog is my sister's baby. He is the youngest of her brood that includes 4 teenage/young adult children. He is about the same age as Summer but for whatever reason he is far more decrepit than she is. I don't know why it happens that way--why two people or animals of the same age can differ so drastically in their health. Punch has lived a considerably easier life than Summer. For one thing he's been an only dog for years--Summer walked among four yappy little dachshunds for years (and is still daily nipped by the sole surviving dachshund). Punch also has been an indoor dog for years while we kicked Summer outdoors for most of her days when we started getting overwhelmed by babies combined with an opportunistic Lab with a taste for kitty krunchies.

Anyway, I'm looking forward to having Punch here. He's a great dog (and not unlike a hairy loveseat--he seldom moves these days). He has, and always has had to my knowledge, the energy level of Eyeore the donkey and that helps make him a wonderful pet. I don't know if he's ever done anything really bad--though he does prefer my sister's uptight neighbor's lawn to do his business but he's probably just being considerate and thinks he is saving one of his family members the trouble of getting out the scooper. I hope he has a good time here despite the frequently rowdy atmosphere of our house. One thing he won't have to worry about is Summer stealing his food--she learned long ago that the only sure way to get Punch to drag himself to his feet and turn into an 130lb grizzly bear is to threaten his food supply. :)

The Simple Woman's Notebook

2009-07-08T23:46:00.000-05:00

The view from where I sit ... a box of toys at my feet, double stroller parked, ceiling fan in a box waiting to be installed.

Outside My Window...pitch black but still 95 degrees at midnight.

I am thinking...of school plans, what we are going to do tomorrow, what's for dinner tomorrow, saw "My Sister's Keeper" tonight and reflecting on it

I am thankful for...my four healthy children and husband (also healthy), God's provision and faithfulness

We are learning...to watch our tongue, be kind to each other.

From the kitchen... need to go grocery shopping--this time just with the baby. Its a little overwhelming to take everyone on major shopping right now. Need to get a list going.

I am wearing... jeans (maternity b/c I love them so much!), brown shirt

I am creating... dust? I don't know what I am creating right now.

I am going... to regret staying up this late.

I am reading... A Walk to Remember (again), different blogs by homeschoolers.

I am hoping... that tomorrow my girls will be kind to each other. Way too much fighting and bickering going on. It hasn't been very peaceful in our house this week. Not sure why--bored kids from being cooped up for so long? The heat?

I am hearing... the a/c which runs continuously.

Around the house... we are going to be cleaning up for the lady who cleans on Friday.

One of my favorite things... the beach is heavy on my mind. Wish that we lived close to one.

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week: hang letters in Paige's room, order some school stuff, mail a few things, wash the dog.

Here is picture thought I am sharing...

Humiliating Moments in Parenthood Part One

2009-06-30T23:43:00.000-05:00

The latest entry: Recently Paige has begun proclaiming random strangers "Bad Guys" when we are shopping. Today in HEB she loudly said "Bad Guy! That's a bad guy Mom!" and franctically pointed to a woman who happened to be black.
Possibly worse (?): Hailey had a front row seat when Paige (baby #3) was born at home three years ago. The experience must have made quite an impression on her because Paige's birth became her version of an ice breaker. If a stranger admired our new baby Hailey would pipe up and start talking about how she saw her little sister being born. The most horrifying incident involving Hailey's version of Paige's birth story occurred when we were in a long line at HEB (apparently the grocery store is the mother's stage for humiliation). A man in his 60's complimented a very smiley baby Paige and Hailey said (loudly of course) "That's Paige. She came out of Mommy's private. She was all bloody and was crying. And Mommy was saying "Ohhhhhh owwwwwww OWWWWWW!" The man was like "Oh. Well."
Worst (?): on an airplane I was nursing nine month old Reese. The Irish version of Hugh Grant who had chatted me up for the two hours while our plane had been delayed was coming down the aisle. I was sitting on the aisle seat. He smiled at me and I returned the smile and lifted my hand to wave. At the exact moment Reese flung back the blanket that was covering her and my exposed breast. There is absolutely NO WAY that Irish Hugh Grant did not see my working breast. On the way back from the toilet he stopped to talk to me and I was so horrified I could barely make eye contact with him. Talk about a grounding experience :)
Absolute worst (?): When Hailey (age 4) and Reese (age 2) escaped from our house in the predawn hours of a weekday morning and were returned by the Leander police. Jason had to retrieve them from the back of the police car (ew). I had to convince the police that I was not an abused wife or drug addict (the girls had said I needed "help" and I was groggy b/c I had taken Nyquil for the first and last time in my life the night before b/c I had a really bad cold).

Three weeks old today...

2009-06-20T09:57:00.001-05:00

Look--someone had their first bath (last week). Paige kindly removed Penny's umbilical stump while she was helping me change a diaper. Thankfully the thing was hanging by a thread. :)

Time is flying by a little too quickly. I guess that's to be expected but I still don't like it. I wish Penny (and the other girls for that matter) would stay as they are for a little bit longer. It is nice to be easing into our new "normal" but those early days of having a newborn are so precious.

Penny is doing great. We've had some nursing issues but after a visit to the lactation consultant I feel confident that things will become more comfortable for me soon. Apparently Penny has a tight jaw (who knows why) and as she gets bigger she will open her mouth more. Things have certainly improved and I can feed her for 10-15 mins straight before it gets uncomfortable. She's gaining plenty of weight and taking in more than enough milk during each feeding so that makes this momma feel loads better.

My Mom is here this week so yay for all of us! I think we are going to send her home worn out though. Watching her run around after the three older girls makes me very glad I had my kids young, haha!

2009-06-05T22:28:00.001-05:00

Introducing Penelope Jane :)

2009-06-05T00:20:00.001-05:00

Penelope made her grand entrance on Saturday, May 30th at 9:28 p.m. 7lbs, 8 oz, 19 inches long--our biggest baby by half a pound!

Birth Story:

My water broke 1:30 a.m. Thursday. For whatever reason labor would start up, then stop. I'm Group B Strep positive so the fact that my water was broken before the onset of labor was a concern. Our midwife was comfortable with us staying at home waiting on labor as long as we were comfortable and I didn't run a fever and Baby seemed ok (I monitored the baby with a Doppler every hour and kept track of her movements and made sure my amniotic fluid stayed clear).

Saturday morning my contractions picked up and were very strong. We were all sure this was it! From 3:30 a.m. until 9:15 a.m. I had a pretty decent labor pattern going and then it just...stopped. I called our midwife and she headed over to our house (she had already been over multiple times to check on us, gave me herbs to help labor get rolling, administered an antibiotic injection to protect Baby, offer moral support and make sure we were comfortable with our decision to stay at home).

Our midwife and her assistant arrived and we decided to do our first internal exam to see what was happening--a last ditch effort to stimulate labor and to see if perhaps I was dilated to a 7 or 8 and could be stretched). I was dilated to 3-4 cm--kind of disappointing since I had been laboring on/off for what seemed like forever. We did discover that my cervix was posterior so she pulled it forward and did a "rough" internal exam (no big deal) to try to stimulate contractions. I spent 4o mins on the breast pump and got one kind of lame contraction (the day before I had spent about an hour on the pump and had gotten several good contractions). Our midwife listened to Baby during the contraction and heard a small heart deceleration and recommended that we transfer. Of course we had no argument and we packed our stuff, made arrangements for the girls and then headed off to the hospital.

On the way there labor started up in a big way. By the time I was checked at the hospital I was 6-7 cm dilated and having SUPER strong contractions. After a lot of consideration I decided to get an epidural for several reasons: I had this horrible pain on one side of my butt that would not go away in between contractions, I could not stand all these strangers coming in and out of my room, I had none of the comfort measures that I had counted on using--I had figured I would be having a c-section since I had already had one with Reese, and I learned that my doctor would only allow pushing while lying on my back--and I have never been able to handle contractions while lying down! Plus there was this underlying feeling of hostility from the doctor and some of the staff and that was making concentrating on my labor nearly impossible.

I got the epidural at 8 cm and then relaxed and joked with the people I had asked to attend our birth. My two oldest girls were there and they were very loving towards their old mom :) There were a few run ins with what I call "dumb hospital protocol"--nurse didn't want our kids there, doctor only wanted two people in the room, doctor wasn't too keen when I requested no episiotomy, etc--but overall the staff (somewhat reluctantly) respected our wishes. I protested and our group was "allowed" to stay and I got a nasty tear instead of an episiotomy (no help from the doc there). The birth itself was extremely easy--I pushed Baby out within two contractions and we were all shrieking "IT'S A GIRL!" in no time :)

While certainly not the birth that we planned I can say it was a good experience. I managed to avoid a c-section. The absolute only intervention I received was an epidural--I was very happy to have avoided pitocin (not that I'm sure I could have had any considering I had had a previous c-section). I feel like my baby had a gentle labor and while I don't think the doctor handled her very gently she was in my arms quickly and stayed there. As well as everything went, this experience reaffirmed our love and support of home birth. Once you've had a baby at home, it is very difficult to "go back" to a hospital environment. Not that the hospital is bad--we thank God that it's there! But the two experiences are almost night and day. If we ever are blessed to be pregnant again (overwhelming thought that it is at this moment), we would definitely aim for welcoming our baby at home again!

Some of my favorite pictures from labor:

Checking Baby's heartbeat.

Contracting after pumping (all that colostrum wasted...such a shame).

I like Jason's pose here. I would have stayed on the potty forever if the seat were softer. I was being extremely whiny and felt very sorry for myself in this picture. Huuuuuurt!

It wasn't exactly planned but two of my teenage nieces ended being there for Penny's birth. My sister swears they weren't traumatized by the experience (Grace looks a little pale though...). As you can see, my two older girls thought it was a pretty rockin' event :)

Ahhh-the fruit of my labor. There aren't many moments in life better than this one!!!

Ping Week in pictures...

2009-05-20T13:11:00.000-05:00

Buoyancy The girls collected different household items and we made guesses on what would float and what would sink. They LOVED this!

Field trip to the duck pond.
We've been there plenty of times before but we had just learned a few more facts about ducks that morning so it made for even more interesting observation of our floating feathered friends. I was really happy that I was able to catch a duck (I kind of pounced on it...extremely ungraceful like). The girls got to inspect the duck's webbed feet, special duck teeth, and see the waterproofed feathers. We got to talk about how God perfectly designed the duck for it's habitat. Pretty fun little lesson!

Paige was NOT cool with the duck snatching the entire piece of bread out of her hand.

She really did not expect the ducks to be so grabby!

She got the hang of it though and learned to use her foot to keep the ducks back. Smart girl!

They all enjoyed petting these extremely tame ducks!! We did not see any ducklings and that was a little disappointing (and surprising given this time of year) but maybe we'll have the chance to check out the other duckpond I know of.

Quack

2009-05-17T19:45:00.000-05:00

This week we are going to be doing "The Story about Ping". The girls and I are so excited! We read "Ping" sometime over this past year and the girls loved it. It was one of my childhood favorites as well. My girls (and I) are always especially interested in studying about animals so this should be a fun week.

Some of the things we will be doing are going to the duck pond (where I will try to catch a duck so we can study it (I'm really good at catching ducks--one of my talents-- but I'm also EXTREMELY pregnant!), learning about ducks in general, a bouyancy experiment, "traveling" to China (with a few stories on missionaries in China, some geography, and we'll have egg drop soup with lunch one day), and a lesson or two on discernment. Hopefully I can get myself to get pictures on here from our week!

We are all ready for baby so it will be nice to be able to have a "normal" week--possibly our last week as a family of five. I'll be planning our lessons for the following week too because the last thing I want to do is spend time waiting on baby and obsessively thinking about his/her impending arrival. :)

Tick, tock.

2009-05-14T19:42:00.000-05:00

The countdown is definitely on! According to my snappy little Lilypie baby ticker we have fifteen days until Baby G #4 is due. Obviously the baby is unmoved by something so silly as a date on the calendar but it's nice to know that at this point the end (or beginning) is definitely in sight!

Today was our home visit with our midwife. I'm feeling really productive b/c we did big grocery shopping this morning, came home, ate lunch, and then had our visit. Two big things in one day--at this point that's pretty good! :) The visit went great. Baby is doing well and is in a good position. I'm feeling pretty good for the most part. Having some nausea issues as well as NASTY heartburn but I'm far from miserable. I am thinking this little peanut is going to hang on for at least another two weeks and that's fine with me. I've got plenty to do to keep busy :)

A Pair of Red Clogs

2009-04-28T11:48:00.000-05:00

Last week we used the book "A Pair of Red Clogs" for our schooling. It was a really fun book to read. We enjoyed studying a little bit of Japanese culture. One day we made origami animals. Another day we found Japan on the map and learned a little bit about islands. Hailey was impressed by the Japanese alphabet and said she was very happy that she didn't live in Japan.

All week long I meant to get a hold of some chopsticks for us to practice eating with but due to getting sick (twice), I didn't get around to that until Sunday evening. It was kind of cool though--we went to the grocery store to pick up a few things and the sushi bar was selling sushi packs "buy one get one free" Normally I would take that as a warning to steer clear but I trust the sushi at HEB so this worked out great for us! We got a California Roll sampler and a pack of Summer Rolls. And they had wooden chopsticks! The girls were so excited and the LOVED dinner! They've had California Rolls before but not in awhile (that's one food I don't like to share). The younger two often need urging to eat raw green veggies but they didn't seem to mind that the summer rolls were packed with a good deal of lettuce.

We used the chopsticks the next day at lunch. We watched an instructional video (thanks youtube) and then the girls practiced with the sticks. Reese and Paige were more frustrated than anything but Hailey was very funny--she ate her veggie crisps with her chopsticks! And I cooked a bowl of rice and let them work on that with their chopsticks. It was a pretty fun way to end our study of "A Pair of Red Clogs"

Comparison

2009-04-01T21:33:00.000-05:00

Reese picked up my bra, which was hanging to dry on the towel rack in our room, and asked "Is this for your boobs?" I snorted and said "Yes. Put it back." She then exclaimed "It looks like Wall-e's eyes!!"

On another note about Reese: I'm reasonably sure that her acid reflux has returned. Over the past month she has spontaneously thrown up several times--usually after running around. Sigh. I guess it's back to the Previcid for her. Not a huge deal but I absolutely HATE my kids being on any medication for long periods of time. She did eat a brownie tonight and chocolate can be a trigger for reflux so maybe we can try to avoid potential problem foods? Sigh again. Her reflux was severe when she was a toddler that it worries me not to aggressively treat it though. Don't want her to stop eating again and start wasting away...

Why is it that...

2009-03-24T13:54:00.000-05:00

the times that my children need the most correction consistently coincides with the times that I feel the LEAST like being on their cases???? Or when I sit down to just enjoy them for the people they are, that is the time when I can count on someone to throw a tantrum? WHY???

2009-03-23T15:08:00.000-05:00

Today was my 30 week check up. I can't believe that we are doing prenatals every two weeks now! This pregnancy has already flown by--I'm sure the next ten weeks or so will be no exception--especially since we have done just about ZERO to prep for his/her arrival!

My visit was good. Baby is measuring 29 weeks (my babies always measure a little small) with a nice healthy sounding heartbeat (147 bpm). All my vitals are fine. I've gained two pounds in the last two weeks which is great because I've had a hard time putting weight on. This brings my total weight gain to either 10 or 11 pounds. Hopefully I can keep gaining a pound a week until the baby is born. I really expected to go in and have gained more weight because I've been trying to eat more lately! But I don't have much room so I'm not eating as much--thanks to my good old short torso!

The only down part of the visit was that my midwife is sick! Not contagious-sick but she's got something going on that is making her feel terrible all the time. Gallbladder sypmtoms but all the tests have come back showing a healthy gallbladder--she does not look well though. She's lost weight and is surviving on soup and a few other thigns. Not good. My heart really goes out to her. She is a busy mom and midwife and does NOT have time to be sick! Being a midwife can be such a physically demanding job and I imagine that it's been quite awful for her to keep carrying on with her duties. Selfishly of course, I hope that she is better in time for our birth. You certainly want the person attending your birth to be in as tip-top condition as possible!

I'm cooking up a ham for dinner which excites me way more than it should. Not exactly a healthy food but it should make for easy dinners for the next few nights!

Rain!

2009-03-12T20:17:00.000-05:00

FINALLY we got some rain! Yay! We ended up with almost 3 inches in the past two days--the most we have had since July 2007! Everything looks greener today and most of the trees are getting their foliage back. It certainly is looking more like spring around here. Jason's not exactly excited about this as it means that the lawn will awaken for the year and he'll be out there mowing it before too long :)

Our lessons have been a bit relaxed since a lovely kidney infection landed me in the hospital for a 48 stay three weeks ago. We've read "Mr. Popper's Penguins" and Hailey has worked on her penmanship. Hailey's reading has really taken off this year and I would venture to say the kid reads about an hour and a half a day. Her favorite time to curl up with a book is at bedtime-just like her momma! I'm so happy that she loves to read (I can not understand why anyone would NOT like to read! I read for an hour or more most evenings after everyone else is asleep and it has been a lifelong discipline problem of mine to put down a book and go to bed at a decent time).

Jason's got a good deal of band shows coming up for the remainder of March and most of April. I believe that he has a few lined up for the first part of May as well. Of course we all miss him when he is gone but we stay busy around here. I keep the girls on their regular routine but also enjoy getting to spend a little extra "girl time" with them on the evenings that Jason is gone. And after everyone is tucked into bed I tidy the place up and sink into an evening spent doing whatever I want to do :)

Speaking of...it's bedtime (GLORIOUS BEDTIME!!) for the little people. And then some delicious quiet time for this momma!

2009-02-13T23:36:00.000-06:00

If it weren't for the fact that every single person in this family wants a piece of me (for their own various reasons) I would probably be ostracized for life at this point.

Tomorrow marks the great push of the campaign to save our clothes, linens, shoe laces, and remaining blinds. The notice is printed. It's sitting on top of my car keys lest I forget it in the mad rush to leave tomorrow morning. It's carefully worded and the pictures were calculated selections.

"MR. BILL NEEDS A NEW HOME!" is the title of the notice. It's going up on the announcement board at the vet clinic I've worked at for years.

Yes, after hundreds (a thousand?) of dollars worth of damage I have finally convinced Jason that the cat needs to go. True, Mr. Bill might be the coolest cat that we have ever (or will ever) own. But his dirty little habit is not compatible with rearing a houseful of children (what two year old can remember to close a bedroom door EVERY single time she goes thru it?). That cat has driven me to tears on more than one occasion because he has beaten me in the battle to protect my family's cotton possessions. Well, he may have won many battles but he will NOT win the war, my friends!

I have a dream that one day I will be able to hang a bra to dry in my laundry room and not have it rendered strapless.

I have a dream that one day I will be able to do buy curtains and be confident that they will not be chewed up and regurgitated onto the carpet or couch.

I have a dream that my four little children will be able to have shoelaces that are longer than the gnawed length of about 5 inches.

I have a dream.

(much apologies to Dr. King)

Shining Moments of Parenthood

2009-02-12T23:35:00.000-06:00

Today, Hailey had a bit of trouble with "The Attitude" as she refers to it. She got a couple of spankings and was deprived of computer time because of her little blaze of rebellion.

While I was putting the girls to bed she asked me something and I told her "we will talk about it tomorrow " and she put this frowning, pouty face on (which I privately refer to as "The Brat Look") and put her hands on her hips. Very unacceptable behavior of course.

The inner Brat rose up in me. I copied her expression and her stance. Her eyes widened in horror and she started to cry. "Why are you copying me?!"

I swear I couldn't help my answer: "Just to show you how dumb you look!"

My Precious Hailey...

2009-02-07T02:49:00.000-06:00

turns seven years old today and I can hardly believe it! My wonderful big girl who filled me up with love during her first year, challenged me beyond belief during her toddler years, and has amazed me with her creativity and kindness during her kid years is growing up way TOO FAST! She has been the child that has taught me to refrain from judging other parents too harshly ("MY child would never do that!"). The one who made me caused me to fall in love with nature all over again (bugs are FASCINATING!). She is the person who most dramatically motivated me to mature and slowly shed my selfishness. I am a much better person today than I was seven years ago because of her.

I see so much of both her Dad and I in her. She looks just like him, loves to test boundaries, doesn't need to follow the crowd, and is particular about her belongings (where they go, who touches them, etc). She is a bookworm, a night owl, and hates to be wrong--traits she most certainly gets from me. She can be the sweetest of children--her compassion occasionally amazes me--and then then she can display some of the most rigid, anal retentive behavior imaginable (just knock over her carefully arranged display of My Little Pony and see the total collapse of her self-control). Her independence is sometimes difficult for me to understand and to respect because I was the total opposite as a child (I was shy and so far none of my children have a shy bone in their bodies!).

Hailey has big plans for this year. Today we are taking her to get her ears pierced. She's been wanting this since last summer (we said she had to wait until she was seven) and no matter how many times I have asked her if she still wants to do it, her resolve has never changed. She has informed us that now that she is turning seven, "The Attitude" (as she refers to her ongoing struggle with being disrespectful--she's improving constantly though) is going to go away. She is very excited about her role as big sister to three younger siblings. She talks about the new baby almost every day and loves to feel my belly. She can't wait for the birth and I am excited for her to be able to watch yet another sibling be born. This will be a good year for her--for all of us.

I'm wrapping this up so I can sneak upstairs and take a look at my brand new seven year old--that is if I can even see her because she often sleeps completely underneath the covers!

Happy Birthday My Hailey! :)

Today...

2009-01-28T17:19:00.001-06:00

I have doled out no less than 9 spankings between all three kids (someone got 5).
Paige has fallen off 2 chairs and one dresser.
After administering a spanking I was told that I was being unfair because I had not specifically said that disobeying would result in a visit with the spanking spoon.
I was described as "unfair" on four different occasions. And a "You are too busy to play with me" was thrown in there to make sure I got the point that I'm "World's Lamest Mom"
Two cups of orange juice were spilled on the formerly clean kitchen floor (one spill was an accident, one was an experiment).
I've made one tearful call to my busy husband (shameful).
It took the girls an hour and a half to put up their laundry.
The oldest child spent an hour and a half sitting on a stool until she could speak without whining.
The cat barfed on the floor. Of course I stepped in it.
I discovered several spots of blue play-doh ground into the carpet.
Paige took off her diaper and I still can't find it.
The dog, who was crated in the garage and had been let out already, barked continuously for two hours this morning for no apparent reason other than to join in the quest to drive me insane.
Someone got a hold my car keys and the car alarm went off for twenty minutes before I realized that I was the inconsiderate person whose car was disturbing the neighborhood.

It's been a trying day no doubt. I was talking to my younger sister who is also in on the good fight with her own kids and she was having a low day too (this is not allowed--usually one person gets to be overwhelmed per phone call). She said "It just hit me: I will still be doing this next week. And the week after that! And the week after THAT!"
And then it was my turn for revelation. My attitude changed on a dime and I replied to her "God willing!" :)

What is it about this date?

2008-12-29T21:28:00.000-06:00

The last time I logged on here was exactly a year ago today! Very strange.

I see here that exactly a year ago we were fighting the puke bug. Maybe that's God's way of reminding me not to complain about our current war against pink eye??? After all, the worst thing about pink eye is that we are quarantined here at home (sort of like we've been for the past two weeks b/c of the Christmas Cold the younger two were hacking their way through). I guess it's just the idea of being locked up for yet another week. We did go downtown to the Austin Nature Center on Saturday. It was fun but I'm wondering how many kids we gifted the pink eye with (hey--I thought that Reese was just having an allergy issue!).

'Tis the season for sickness though. If we can avoid vomit, out of control diarrhea, and The Flu then I will consider us lucky. No more visits to the indoor playground at Chick-fil-A though. We haven't had the best luck with that place. I'm pretty sure our Christmas Cold orginated from our last visit there. And then the time before that we didn't even all make it inside before Reese had her toe practically cut off by the bottom of the door (amazing amount of blood--I'll post pictures soon).

Anyway, I'm sick of writing about sick. I'm in a pretty chipper mood b/c I feel GREAT after spending the last few months alternating between hugging the toliet and the couch. :) We had a great Christmas and a pretty good 2008. Many obvious blessings from The Lord.

Well, I'm glad I figured out how to reset my password on this little deal. Fun, fun!!

The Most Dreaded Sound in the Night.

2007-12-29T23:57:00.001-06:00

I enjoy vomit so much. Especially when it covers my neck, hair, and chest, is pizza flavored, and is not mine. I would commend myself for not throwing across the room the person who slimed me...but then how can you be anything but sad for that person when they are 17 months old and have no idea why they feel so badly and the only thing that makes them feel better is clutching mommy and barfing into her hair?

Having children has made me overcome my seemingly insurmountable phobia of all things vomit. It took about two children for this to happen. Child number one received very little sympathy when she had a gastrointestinal bug. If Hailey could remember this then her memory would be of her mom running FROM her covering her own mouth and then only being cuddled after being bathed and disinfected. And then of Mommy covering the couch with every towel in the house and surrounding her by pans and large bowls and being told that in NO UNCERTAIN TERMS, she had to remain on the covered couch. And of Mommy making a frantic call to Daddy that he HAD BETTER NOT BE LATE COMING HOME FROM WORK because as Master-of-Vomit of this house he had a few messes to clean up. I'm not proud of this but all mommies have their weak areas, right? Thank goodness child #1 only had the barf bug exactly two times and one of those times she was old enough to make it in the potty (I will sing her praises forever for that).

Child #2 had it a bit easier because by the time she came along I was so tired that I was unable to muster up the energy to run from the vomit. Plus I couldn't leave that stuff lying around b/c invariably one of the kids (or the cats) would get into it and that is just intolerable on all levels. Thankfully Reese has only had the barf bug twice and she is a very courteous hurler: she brings up very very small amounts of puke probably because she only eats occasionally.

Either because she is the third child and therefore exposed to more germs or because it is her lot in life, Paige has had the throw up bug at least 4 times in her life. Having my sleep interrupted by the dreaded puke sound (known to all parents and pet owners) no longer drives me to tears. Things get cleaned up and the kid comes into our bed and if everyone sleeps thru the next episode then the mess will still be there when we get up. Thank God for laundry machines and for carpet cleaner. And for the Walgreens down the street (it's not 24 hour but really, what do we need at 3 a.m. that we don't already have??). And for the option of taking as many hot showers as one may need to cleanse one's self of the slime. And for husbands who don't travel often enough to escape this joy of having children. And mostly thank God for little people who provoke such strong feelings in us that those of us who have a terrible irrational fear of regurgitated food will willingly offer up our own hair to catch the vomit if it will make things easier for our child for just a moment!!

Look who has a blog...

2007-07-12T23:39:00.000-05:00

We'll see how long this lasts... :)

So I've been reading lately how everyone should keep a diary at some point in their lives. I did when I was a kid and then it got lost or stolen by my sister or something, I can't remember. This probably won't be a diary in the sense that I am going to pour out my secret feelings and bizarre thoughts in it but it might kind of nice to later look back at my life at 28 thru my own eyes. On occasion I will recall specific opinions I had about things when I was say 20 years old and I am constantly amazed at how different my current opinions are. Plus, I really do like to talk to myself and pontificate on things so this is probably a good outlet for all of that.