Christmas is over. We are home. Archie goes back to work today and so do I.
I've been pushing all my regular chores to the side the last couple of months. In Sept. my Grandma died and we went out of town, in October we went out of town for my sister's wedding Nov. 1st, Then my family was here for Thanksgiving just 4 weeks later, and then we went out of town for Christmas as well! So its been a busy last few months!
The business isn't going to end either. In 3 1/2 weeks we are going on a trip to Georgia!
So for the next 3 weeks I want to focus on getting the house back in order, and getting as much school work done as we can. I really want to have the boys finished as early in the year as possible so that we won't have to worry about school the last few weeks we live here.
Today is Sunday. Today I mostly want to get the floors clear so the baby can play without being in danger. I also want to get the tree taken down. Other than those things, I just want to make a list for what I want to accomplish this week, both school wise and chore wise.
Back to work I go!
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Thursday, December 25, 2008
Merry Christmas and Happy Birthday Victoria!
My niece turned 1 year old today!
Though we are also celebrating Jesus' birthday, we do not count His years, because He is ageless. He was before the world began and He will always be.
I think of the babe, wrapped in swaddling clothes, laying in a manger. I think of the wide eyed newborn, quietly taking in His surroundings. I think of his mother, perhaps a little sad that He is born in such a lowly place, but at the same time, she must have been in awe. So amazed to see God incarnate with her own eyes. Wondering if all this was real, knowing that it was. I think of Joseph, completely amazed at it all. Wondering how he was going to provide for this newborn King, believing that it would all be ok.
I am amazed just as they were. Not fulling understanding all of this, but believing all the same. God the Son, became flesh. He lived among us. He showed us the Truth, and became our Way to God the Father.
As the song says "I stand amazed in the presence, of Jesus the Nazarene, and wonder how He could love me, a sinner condemned, unclean."
For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him, shall not perish, but have everlasting life. John 3:16
Thank You Heavenly Father, for Your perfect gift. I could not ever be good enough to be reconciled to You, thank You for making a way. You gave so much to be with me. I want to give my all to You. I pray in the precious name of Jesus, Emanuel, Yeshua, Amen.
Though we are also celebrating Jesus' birthday, we do not count His years, because He is ageless. He was before the world began and He will always be.
I think of the babe, wrapped in swaddling clothes, laying in a manger. I think of the wide eyed newborn, quietly taking in His surroundings. I think of his mother, perhaps a little sad that He is born in such a lowly place, but at the same time, she must have been in awe. So amazed to see God incarnate with her own eyes. Wondering if all this was real, knowing that it was. I think of Joseph, completely amazed at it all. Wondering how he was going to provide for this newborn King, believing that it would all be ok.
I am amazed just as they were. Not fulling understanding all of this, but believing all the same. God the Son, became flesh. He lived among us. He showed us the Truth, and became our Way to God the Father.
As the song says "I stand amazed in the presence, of Jesus the Nazarene, and wonder how He could love me, a sinner condemned, unclean."
For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him, shall not perish, but have everlasting life. John 3:16
Thank You Heavenly Father, for Your perfect gift. I could not ever be good enough to be reconciled to You, thank You for making a way. You gave so much to be with me. I want to give my all to You. I pray in the precious name of Jesus, Emanuel, Yeshua, Amen.
Monday, December 22, 2008
Praise the Lord! Only 3 more!
Dh finished one of his classes last night. Now he only has 3 more to go and he'll be done with Bible College and graduate in May!!! I am so excited!
He has been working towards this for nearly 7 years. We moved out here in June of 2002. (I found out I was pregnant with G half way between California and Georgia). We started out living with my parents while Archie looked for a job. He started out working two part time jobs until he got hired full-time at Home Depot. All the time taking classes part-time. Then we moved down closer to the Bible College.
We had discussed visiting several different churches but then a neighbor recommended one we hadn't heard of. We ended up visiting that one first and immediately felt that we were home. I still praise God that He brought us to this church!
Since then, we've had 3 sons (for a total of 4), moved from apartment to apartment to house, and I think both Archie and I have done a lot of growing up.
Just 3 more classes to go. Wow, all I can say is "Praise the Lord". Without Him, none of this would have happened. He directed us, and He has given us all we need to complete His will.
He has been working towards this for nearly 7 years. We moved out here in June of 2002. (I found out I was pregnant with G half way between California and Georgia). We started out living with my parents while Archie looked for a job. He started out working two part time jobs until he got hired full-time at Home Depot. All the time taking classes part-time. Then we moved down closer to the Bible College.
We had discussed visiting several different churches but then a neighbor recommended one we hadn't heard of. We ended up visiting that one first and immediately felt that we were home. I still praise God that He brought us to this church!
Since then, we've had 3 sons (for a total of 4), moved from apartment to apartment to house, and I think both Archie and I have done a lot of growing up.
Just 3 more classes to go. Wow, all I can say is "Praise the Lord". Without Him, none of this would have happened. He directed us, and He has given us all we need to complete His will.
Sunday, December 21, 2008
If he follows the pattern...
Silas will be my earliest walker!
The other three boys started walking about 2 months after they started pulling up on furniture. Silas started doing this yesterday. Though he still crawls on his belly, not on his hands and knees.
The other three started walking at 9 1/2 mos, 10 1/2 mos, and 10 mos. *I'm* not in a hurry for S to walk, but it looks like he might be. We'll just have to wait and see!
The other three boys started walking about 2 months after they started pulling up on furniture. Silas started doing this yesterday. Though he still crawls on his belly, not on his hands and knees.
The other three started walking at 9 1/2 mos, 10 1/2 mos, and 10 mos. *I'm* not in a hurry for S to walk, but it looks like he might be. We'll just have to wait and see!
To the recipe makers
I just want to take a moment to say "Thanks" to all the men and women, all around the world, since the world began, who created recipes.
I say thank you, for all the times you tried just a little more cinnamon. For all the times you tried to make a batch of fudge before it came out "just right. For all the recipes that got thrown out because they didn't turn out. For all the wasted ingredients from your failed experiments. Thanks for figuring out the perfect temperature, the right amount of liquid, and exactly how much salt to add.
Without your effort I wouldn't be able to make so many yummy things to eat.
So today I say, Thank you!
I say thank you, for all the times you tried just a little more cinnamon. For all the times you tried to make a batch of fudge before it came out "just right. For all the recipes that got thrown out because they didn't turn out. For all the wasted ingredients from your failed experiments. Thanks for figuring out the perfect temperature, the right amount of liquid, and exactly how much salt to add.
Without your effort I wouldn't be able to make so many yummy things to eat.
So today I say, Thank you!
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Heart 2 Heart
Monday morning, I'm up and ready to go at 8:30. Four other ladies and I are all reading the same book. We meet in one of our homes together to discuss it and share what the Lord is teaching us. We read together, we pray together, we share our struggles and our discoveries, both about ourselves and about the Lord. Most importantly, we grow together, lifting each other up, praising the Lord.
This has been the scenario for my Monday mornings once a month for the past year. I've actually read through two whole books! It has been a wonderful experience for me. Learning alongside other women. Learning that I am not alone in my struggles. Learning that no one is perfect and that we all have a lot to learn about being bondslaves, and daughters of Christ.
I have loved receiving godly counsel, I have loved sharing my heart, I have loved praying with my sisters, and I have loved learning.
I hope to take this model and continue to use it. I am already going through another book with a lady from church, and another one with my sister. I hope that when we move to Georgia I will be able to start another group. I am already praying that the Lord will show me which book to use and who to ask to join me in reading it, I know He will.
Women need to have close relationships. We are just made that way. I think this model is such a great way to build those relationships! Its so much easier to say "Hey, would you like to get together and go through a book with me?", than to say "Would you like to build a strong, deep friendship with me, as we grow closer to the Lord together?".
I pray that God will use this ministry here at this church, and I pray that it will spread to other churches, and other women everywhere!
This has been the scenario for my Monday mornings once a month for the past year. I've actually read through two whole books! It has been a wonderful experience for me. Learning alongside other women. Learning that I am not alone in my struggles. Learning that no one is perfect and that we all have a lot to learn about being bondslaves, and daughters of Christ.
I have loved receiving godly counsel, I have loved sharing my heart, I have loved praying with my sisters, and I have loved learning.
I hope to take this model and continue to use it. I am already going through another book with a lady from church, and another one with my sister. I hope that when we move to Georgia I will be able to start another group. I am already praying that the Lord will show me which book to use and who to ask to join me in reading it, I know He will.
Women need to have close relationships. We are just made that way. I think this model is such a great way to build those relationships! Its so much easier to say "Hey, would you like to get together and go through a book with me?", than to say "Would you like to build a strong, deep friendship with me, as we grow closer to the Lord together?".
I pray that God will use this ministry here at this church, and I pray that it will spread to other churches, and other women everywhere!
Friday, December 12, 2008
Our Christmas picture
Well, there it is! I'm starting to think I should have gone with the one where everyone was looking but Silas, oh well, its already done, I already all printed up! I think it turned out pretty good anyway.
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Answering the phone
I read in a book once of a lady who, every time she answered the phone, said something like "Lord, whoever it is, whatever it is, help me to help".
What a great idea! I know I have, unexpectedly, received phone calls from people seeking advice or encouragement, sometimes it has been a very serious situation. Praying that quick little prayer, "Lord help me to say the right things to whoever is on the phone, whatever the subject of our conversation, help me to be an encouragement", seems like it would make a world of difference. Not only would it give me a different perspective, but it would invite the Lord to be part of the conversation.
One day I got an interesting phone call. I did not pray that prayer before I answered but as soon as I heard the question I shot up that prayer really quick!
~The man on the other end of the phone said "Is this the 'such and suck' crisis line?"
~I said no, I'm sorry, you must have the wrong number, what number were you trying to call? maybe I can look it up for you"
~He said "no, thats ok, I just needed to talk to someone. Can I just talk to you?"
~I said "I don't think I am the best person for you to talk to" (me being female) "but I can pray for you"
~He said "oh, ok, thanks"
~I prayed for him, that he would find the help he needs, that he would look to the Lord for the answers, and that the Lord would reach out to him.
~He said "thanks" and we both hung up the phone.
Now I don't know if that was a person that was really in need, seeking someone to talk to, or if it was just some guy making prank phone calls. But I really believe that the Lord gave me wisdom that day when I prayed that prayer.
Lord, whoever it is, wherever they are, what ever the subject is, help me to help, and to offer encouragement.
What a great idea! I know I have, unexpectedly, received phone calls from people seeking advice or encouragement, sometimes it has been a very serious situation. Praying that quick little prayer, "Lord help me to say the right things to whoever is on the phone, whatever the subject of our conversation, help me to be an encouragement", seems like it would make a world of difference. Not only would it give me a different perspective, but it would invite the Lord to be part of the conversation.
One day I got an interesting phone call. I did not pray that prayer before I answered but as soon as I heard the question I shot up that prayer really quick!
~The man on the other end of the phone said "Is this the 'such and suck' crisis line?"
~I said no, I'm sorry, you must have the wrong number, what number were you trying to call? maybe I can look it up for you"
~He said "no, thats ok, I just needed to talk to someone. Can I just talk to you?"
~I said "I don't think I am the best person for you to talk to" (me being female) "but I can pray for you"
~He said "oh, ok, thanks"
~I prayed for him, that he would find the help he needs, that he would look to the Lord for the answers, and that the Lord would reach out to him.
~He said "thanks" and we both hung up the phone.
Now I don't know if that was a person that was really in need, seeking someone to talk to, or if it was just some guy making prank phone calls. But I really believe that the Lord gave me wisdom that day when I prayed that prayer.
Lord, whoever it is, wherever they are, what ever the subject is, help me to help, and to offer encouragement.
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Jelly Telly
Just had to post about Jelly Telly. It's Phil Vischer's new website for kids. Its a Christian TV network for kids.
I love letting the kids watch it. I especially like the Bible songs. They have these two brothers singing about the books of the Bible and telling what each one is about. They also show clips of Drive Thru History. I really like that too.
You can sign up for a free month and then for a very reasonable fee you can continue your membership. We have decided its definitely worth it.
Its just really nice to have Biblically focused "TV" shows for them to watch! I hope that it does well and continues to expand.
www.jellytelly.com
I love letting the kids watch it. I especially like the Bible songs. They have these two brothers singing about the books of the Bible and telling what each one is about. They also show clips of Drive Thru History. I really like that too.
You can sign up for a free month and then for a very reasonable fee you can continue your membership. We have decided its definitely worth it.
Its just really nice to have Biblically focused "TV" shows for them to watch! I hope that it does well and continues to expand.
www.jellytelly.com
Monday, December 8, 2008
Christmas
Its that time of year again! Shopping, trees, presents, baking, candy making....
Of course I know this is not what its all about. This holiday is to celebrate the greatest gift ever given to mankind, Jesus Christ.
The tree reminds me of a couple of things, the cross where Jesus gave His life for me, and the new life I have because I accepted His forgiveness and give my life to Him.
Baking reminds me how the Lord always provides for my needs, and to "taste and see that the Lord is good".
Take some time this year and read the accounts of Jesus' birth in the Gospels. Meditate on the gift that God has given to us. Ask the Lord to help you see this season in a new light.
And ask God to bring you an opportunity to show His love to someone else this year. He surely will.
Of course I know this is not what its all about. This holiday is to celebrate the greatest gift ever given to mankind, Jesus Christ.
The tree reminds me of a couple of things, the cross where Jesus gave His life for me, and the new life I have because I accepted His forgiveness and give my life to Him.
The presents remind me of the gifts given to baby Jesus by the Wisemen, but more importantly of God's gift, Jesus, His only begotten Son. I am also reminded of the free gift of Salvation.
Baking reminds me how the Lord always provides for my needs, and to "taste and see that the Lord is good".
Take some time this year and read the accounts of Jesus' birth in the Gospels. Meditate on the gift that God has given to us. Ask the Lord to help you see this season in a new light.
And ask God to bring you an opportunity to show His love to someone else this year. He surely will.
Sunday, December 7, 2008
Life of a mom...
Please tell me I'm not alone! Ever have one of those days?
Where the children turn into tornadoes?
Where you have to clean and vaccum the living room 3 times in one afternoon?
Where your heart stops because you found a child carrying a lit candle into their room?
Where you have to re-decorate the Christmas tree more times than you can count?
Where your kids are so hyper you wonder if they've found the stash of candy you so carefully hid?
Where you are so excited to have a baby sitter coming over so you can go out with your husband, but nervous about whether or not she'll be able to handle the kids while your gone?
Where your three year olds pants are ripped to shreds and you can't figure out how he did it?
That's about how my day has been.
Of course then there are the other moments of the day...
When the 5 year old sets up a game of "roll the ball" with his little brothers, and the baby puts the ball in his mouth every time its rolled to him, making the 3 year old laugh his head off.
And then the same 5 year old brings the baby to me all wrapped up in a white blanket and says "look momma! its baby Jesus!".
And the 3 year old plays peek-a-boo with the baby with that same blanket.
Then the 8 year old tells the 3 year old "its alright if you can't play the computer game right, you'll learn, making mistakes is how we learn!"
Sigh.
And at the end of the day, I know, without any doubt, that God has given me these children for a reason. He gave me this husband for a reason, this life for a reason. As challenging as it is at times (well, most of the time), its good and I am blessed.
Thanks Lord.
Where the children turn into tornadoes?
Where you have to clean and vaccum the living room 3 times in one afternoon?
Where your heart stops because you found a child carrying a lit candle into their room?
Where you have to re-decorate the Christmas tree more times than you can count?
Where your kids are so hyper you wonder if they've found the stash of candy you so carefully hid?
Where you are so excited to have a baby sitter coming over so you can go out with your husband, but nervous about whether or not she'll be able to handle the kids while your gone?
Where your three year olds pants are ripped to shreds and you can't figure out how he did it?
That's about how my day has been.
Of course then there are the other moments of the day...
When the 5 year old sets up a game of "roll the ball" with his little brothers, and the baby puts the ball in his mouth every time its rolled to him, making the 3 year old laugh his head off.
And then the same 5 year old brings the baby to me all wrapped up in a white blanket and says "look momma! its baby Jesus!".
And the 3 year old plays peek-a-boo with the baby with that same blanket.
Then the 8 year old tells the 3 year old "its alright if you can't play the computer game right, you'll learn, making mistakes is how we learn!"
Sigh.
And at the end of the day, I know, without any doubt, that God has given me these children for a reason. He gave me this husband for a reason, this life for a reason. As challenging as it is at times (well, most of the time), its good and I am blessed.
Thanks Lord.
Monday, December 1, 2008
Give Thanks, Always!
Thanksgiving is past and I did not take the time to write a Thanksgiving blog. But its always a good time to be thankful!
I am thankful for many things, I'm thankful that I have a working washer and dryer, that I have 4 amazing sons, that I have an awesome husband, that I have a wonderful church family, that I live in a free country, that I have the health to be able to take care of my family, I'm even thankful for the internet! It opens up a whole world of ways to keep in touch with loved ones and is a wealth of information.
I am thankful for a husband who loves me even when I'm crazy, and at my worst, and in doing so shows me God's love for me. Mostly, I am thankful for my Lord and Savior who loves me even though He can see into my wicked heart. He knows the worst that is in me and yet He loves me enough to have died for me! I am so Thankful for Him and to Him! I am so Thankful that He is patient with me even when its the millionth time He's tried to teach me a lesson, I am so Thankful that He blesses me just because He loves me and not because I've earned anything. I love Him, because He first loved me.
What do you have to be thankful for today?
I am thankful for many things, I'm thankful that I have a working washer and dryer, that I have 4 amazing sons, that I have an awesome husband, that I have a wonderful church family, that I live in a free country, that I have the health to be able to take care of my family, I'm even thankful for the internet! It opens up a whole world of ways to keep in touch with loved ones and is a wealth of information.
I am thankful for a husband who loves me even when I'm crazy, and at my worst, and in doing so shows me God's love for me. Mostly, I am thankful for my Lord and Savior who loves me even though He can see into my wicked heart. He knows the worst that is in me and yet He loves me enough to have died for me! I am so Thankful for Him and to Him! I am so Thankful that He is patient with me even when its the millionth time He's tried to teach me a lesson, I am so Thankful that He blesses me just because He loves me and not because I've earned anything. I love Him, because He first loved me.
What do you have to be thankful for today?
Friday, November 21, 2008
Waiting
I still have a lot to learn when it comes to patience and waiting. But I've had a few lessons already. Once I was in a line at a grocery store at the help counter. The manager working there was moving extremely slowly. The lady in front of me turned around and spoke to me about how frustrated she was with how long it was taking, I smiled and didn't say much, the she said "wow, you are so patient!". I smiled again and said "On the outside anyway".
Truly, I was smiling, not fidgeting around, not griping or complaining. But on the inside I was thinking "why does he have to take so long? I've been in line for 10 minutes already! I'm going to just leave if its not my turn in the next 5 minutes".
I've had lessons with my pregnancies too, 3 of my 4 babies were more than a week past their due dates.
Waiting and being patient is so important to my walk through life with Christ. Sometimes He says wait when I want to figure things out and act now. I see a problem, or as much of it as I can see, and I want to act now. But I can't see the whole situation from where I stand, I can only see things from my perspective. He sees things from His perspective, and from there He can truly see it all.
He knows when it will be time for me to act and I need to wait for Him to give me my cue. If I act before then, things my turn out disastrous.
I also need to remember that I may not have to act at all! It may be that He will do all the work and all I have to do is be patient and pray while He takes care of things.
Is. 40:31 says "But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings as Eagles, they shall run and not be weary, and they shall walk and not faint".
Ps. 37:9 "For evildoers shall be cut off: but those that wait upon the LORD, they shall inherit the earth."
Rom. 5:3 "And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience"
1 Tim. 6:11 "But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness"
Gal. 5:22-23 "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law."
As much as I don't like hard times, uncomfortable times, painful times, Romans 5:3 is so true, I grow the most under pressure. These difficult times work out patience in me. Something that is vital to the development of my character.
And according to 1 Tim. 6:11 Patience is something we must follow after, seek out.
Lord, teach me to be patient. I have heard that is the most dangerous prayer, but I'm asking anyway. Help me learn to wait on You, and take cues from You alone. Help me know when to act and when to quietly wait on You. In Jesus precious name. Amen.
Truly, I was smiling, not fidgeting around, not griping or complaining. But on the inside I was thinking "why does he have to take so long? I've been in line for 10 minutes already! I'm going to just leave if its not my turn in the next 5 minutes".
I've had lessons with my pregnancies too, 3 of my 4 babies were more than a week past their due dates.
Waiting and being patient is so important to my walk through life with Christ. Sometimes He says wait when I want to figure things out and act now. I see a problem, or as much of it as I can see, and I want to act now. But I can't see the whole situation from where I stand, I can only see things from my perspective. He sees things from His perspective, and from there He can truly see it all.
He knows when it will be time for me to act and I need to wait for Him to give me my cue. If I act before then, things my turn out disastrous.
I also need to remember that I may not have to act at all! It may be that He will do all the work and all I have to do is be patient and pray while He takes care of things.
Is. 40:31 says "But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings as Eagles, they shall run and not be weary, and they shall walk and not faint".
Ps. 37:9 "For evildoers shall be cut off: but those that wait upon the LORD, they shall inherit the earth."
Rom. 5:3 "And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience"
1 Tim. 6:11 "But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness"
Gal. 5:22-23 "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law."
As much as I don't like hard times, uncomfortable times, painful times, Romans 5:3 is so true, I grow the most under pressure. These difficult times work out patience in me. Something that is vital to the development of my character.
And according to 1 Tim. 6:11 Patience is something we must follow after, seek out.
Lord, teach me to be patient. I have heard that is the most dangerous prayer, but I'm asking anyway. Help me learn to wait on You, and take cues from You alone. Help me know when to act and when to quietly wait on You. In Jesus precious name. Amen.
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
I'm slipping
I haven't posted in a while! I've thought about it nearly every day but haven't come up with anything worthy of posting. Well, maybe there have been some worthy issues but I haven't had the energy to think them through well enough to post.
M is going to be 8 on Thursday and we will have a party on Saturday. I think a lot of people are coming but we didn't do RSVP's so I don't know how many exactly. We handed out at least 20 invites though.
Sooooo, I'm trying to get the house in order and clean, decluttered enough to have company. I've definitely made progress but there is still more to be done. I'm trying to have a good attitude though and not get stressed out.
I was going to say "I'm trying not to turn into a Martha" but then I felt sorry for Martha, she is always remembered for that day when she stressed about the serving and chores, she had a bad attitude that day. But you know, I think that later she really turned around, she still did the serving and chores, but she had a better attitude and she really believed in the Lord, she trusted Him and loved Him.
So I'm trying to have a good attitude, get things done, but with the right motivation, to glorify the Lord through welcoming people into my home, to celebrate the life of my son. I hope that when people come over they will feel encouraged and blessed.
That's all for now, hopefully I'll get back to posting more often.
God bless!
M is going to be 8 on Thursday and we will have a party on Saturday. I think a lot of people are coming but we didn't do RSVP's so I don't know how many exactly. We handed out at least 20 invites though.
Sooooo, I'm trying to get the house in order and clean, decluttered enough to have company. I've definitely made progress but there is still more to be done. I'm trying to have a good attitude though and not get stressed out.
I was going to say "I'm trying not to turn into a Martha" but then I felt sorry for Martha, she is always remembered for that day when she stressed about the serving and chores, she had a bad attitude that day. But you know, I think that later she really turned around, she still did the serving and chores, but she had a better attitude and she really believed in the Lord, she trusted Him and loved Him.
So I'm trying to have a good attitude, get things done, but with the right motivation, to glorify the Lord through welcoming people into my home, to celebrate the life of my son. I hope that when people come over they will feel encouraged and blessed.
That's all for now, hopefully I'll get back to posting more often.
God bless!
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Cold Hot Cold Hot
The weather can't seem to make up its mind! Its been quite cool (60's) this past week, and now its supposed to be up to the 90's in a few days! Its in the low 50's right now, but the high today is supposed to be in the 80's.
I just hope its pleasant weather for M's birthday party on the 22nd. I have no idea how many people to expect for his party but I really want people to be able to hang out outside as well as in.
I just hope its pleasant weather for M's birthday party on the 22nd. I have no idea how many people to expect for his party but I really want people to be able to hang out outside as well as in.
Monday, November 10, 2008
Great is His faithfulness
Great is Thy faithfulness, Great is Thy faithfulness
Morning by morning, new mercies I see
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord unto me.
I have been singing this song all morning, partly in praise to the Lord for all He has done for me, and partly to remind myself that He IS faithful and He will provide for me.
Sometimes I start thinking the wrong way, I think "how in the world will this ever work out?" or "We'll never be able to afford that" or "how will I ever get this done?". Its at those times I need to take a look back at all the Lord has done for me. He has never let me down, He has worked out even the most difficult situations I have ever found myself in, He has always provided for my needs. When I think of those things He has done in my life, I have little room left to doubt that He will provide for me now.
Despite my doubts and unbelief at times, He remains faithful. He doesn't give up on me when I am unfaithful, when I worry, when I am afraid. He just keeps on working on me, teaching me, and loving me. Oh how I want to be like Jesus!
Thank You Lord for Your faithfulness. I believe You will always be faithful and always provide, Lord, help my unbelief.
Morning by morning, new mercies I see
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord unto me.
I have been singing this song all morning, partly in praise to the Lord for all He has done for me, and partly to remind myself that He IS faithful and He will provide for me.
Sometimes I start thinking the wrong way, I think "how in the world will this ever work out?" or "We'll never be able to afford that" or "how will I ever get this done?". Its at those times I need to take a look back at all the Lord has done for me. He has never let me down, He has worked out even the most difficult situations I have ever found myself in, He has always provided for my needs. When I think of those things He has done in my life, I have little room left to doubt that He will provide for me now.
Despite my doubts and unbelief at times, He remains faithful. He doesn't give up on me when I am unfaithful, when I worry, when I am afraid. He just keeps on working on me, teaching me, and loving me. Oh how I want to be like Jesus!
Thank You Lord for Your faithfulness. I believe You will always be faithful and always provide, Lord, help my unbelief.
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
This morning
M was disheartened when he woke up this morning and discovered that Obama was President Elect. He asked if it was for sure or if McCain still had a chance. He said he just doesn't understand why people voted for Obama. Funny hearing all of this from an almost 8 year old!
I haven't been a big McCain supporter but I voted for him over Obama. The two most important propositions we voted on have not been determined yet, so maybe if they pass M's spirits will be lifted a bit.
Proverbs 21:1 "The king's heart is in the hand of the LORD, Like the rivers of water; He turns it wherever He wishes."
God is still on the throne, no one will ever knock Him off of it!
I haven't been a big McCain supporter but I voted for him over Obama. The two most important propositions we voted on have not been determined yet, so maybe if they pass M's spirits will be lifted a bit.
Proverbs 21:1 "The king's heart is in the hand of the LORD, Like the rivers of water; He turns it wherever He wishes."
God is still on the throne, no one will ever knock Him off of it!
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
GO VOTE!!!!!
I took my oldest son with me when I went to vote today. I don't think I've ever had to wait in line to vote but I did today!
Voting is something that we are blessed to be able to do in this country. It is also a responsibility that we should take seriously. Sometimes one vote does count, so go vote! Your's might be the one!
GOD BLESS AMERICA!!!
Voting is something that we are blessed to be able to do in this country. It is also a responsibility that we should take seriously. Sometimes one vote does count, so go vote! Your's might be the one!
GOD BLESS AMERICA!!!
Monday, November 3, 2008
Joy
My little sister is married! I have prayed for many years that she would find a wonderful, godly, husband (as I know she has also), and now she has! He is a very sweet sort of fellow a lot like my sister. I think that they will bless a lot of people together!
My other sister, my cousin, and I made the cakes. That was fun, I didn't help a whole lot though. I did end up helping with the decorations and running errands. At the reception my sister and I cut the cake too. There was white cake with lemon (which was very good), chocolate cake with raspberry (which didn't turn out so great but it was OK), and carrot cake (which was a complete hit!).
I have the most fantastic Dh. He helped so much by taking care of the boys so that I could help with the wedding. I would not have been able to help at all if he had not taken care of them. I know it was a big job for him to keep all 4 boys practically by himself for nearly 2 days! I mean, he knows how to take care of them but he usually doesn't have to do it all by himself for more than a few hours.
The wedding went perfectly, except for my screaming 3 year old. Dh took him out near the beginning because he just wouldn't settle down. Dh watched part of the wedding through the window in the back door of the church, but I am sad he didn't get to see the whole thing. The 3 year old was disciplined. I'm glad we don't have any more weddings to go to for a little while.
S screamed his head off in the van on the way there, and on the way back, he HATED being in the carseat. Poor guy. The trip was 11 1/2 hours on the way up and 13 hours on the way back. We had to stop a lot because we just couldn't take his sobbing. We got home at about 1:30 in the morning. Again, we won't have to do that again for a while. The next trip we will probably make is to my parents house at Christmas. But they only live 2 hours away, so if we time it right S will be taking a nap when we drive out.
I'm glad to be home. Now back to teaching school, cleaning house, doing laundry, doing the budgetting (ugh), and planning a birthday party for my oldest (more on that later).
My other sister, my cousin, and I made the cakes. That was fun, I didn't help a whole lot though. I did end up helping with the decorations and running errands. At the reception my sister and I cut the cake too. There was white cake with lemon (which was very good), chocolate cake with raspberry (which didn't turn out so great but it was OK), and carrot cake (which was a complete hit!).
I have the most fantastic Dh. He helped so much by taking care of the boys so that I could help with the wedding. I would not have been able to help at all if he had not taken care of them. I know it was a big job for him to keep all 4 boys practically by himself for nearly 2 days! I mean, he knows how to take care of them but he usually doesn't have to do it all by himself for more than a few hours.
The wedding went perfectly, except for my screaming 3 year old. Dh took him out near the beginning because he just wouldn't settle down. Dh watched part of the wedding through the window in the back door of the church, but I am sad he didn't get to see the whole thing. The 3 year old was disciplined. I'm glad we don't have any more weddings to go to for a little while.
S screamed his head off in the van on the way there, and on the way back, he HATED being in the carseat. Poor guy. The trip was 11 1/2 hours on the way up and 13 hours on the way back. We had to stop a lot because we just couldn't take his sobbing. We got home at about 1:30 in the morning. Again, we won't have to do that again for a while. The next trip we will probably make is to my parents house at Christmas. But they only live 2 hours away, so if we time it right S will be taking a nap when we drive out.
I'm glad to be home. Now back to teaching school, cleaning house, doing laundry, doing the budgetting (ugh), and planning a birthday party for my oldest (more on that later).
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Locks of Love
Donated my hair for the second time! This is only the second time I've ever cut my hair in my life! A friend from church (who is a professional) cut my hair for a tip. It turned out nice and someone who needs my hair more than I do will get it.
Friday, October 24, 2008
Health Insurance and trusting God
As of January we won't qualify for state insurance anymore. I've wanted to be off of it for ages! The problem is that while we won't qualify for free insurance anymore, we won't be able to afford to buy our own either. We are just getting to a place where we can buy food and clothing and pay rent without worrying about where the money will come from. If we were to buy insurance it would cost us around $500 a month minimum. Where does that come from? Dh would have to get a third job just to afford insurance! That sure wouldn't help our family. He wouldn't be able to see us ever, it would be hard on him, on our marriage, and on our family. Two jobs is already hard. I didn't mention the co-payments and deductibles either. There's no telling how much that would add up to.
Health care is outrageously expensive in this country. I'm sure it is everywhere, but does it need to be? I'm all for people getting paid what they are due and getting rich, but at the expense of others? It doesn't seem right. I think there needs to be a way for the rich to help the poor, without welfare. I love the example in the Bible, the rich field owners were to leave the corners of their fields for the poor to gather food for themselves. They were also to only glean a field once, so that the poor could go along behind them and pick what was left over. I have seen fields of perfectly good pumpkins smashed to bits because they don't want people coming through and taking them. There's no telling how many people that could feed!
I know, I know, regulations, safety concerns, laws, and all that. It just doesn't seem right though.
I consider us pretty frugal people. We recycle, we buy mostly generic, we shop at discount stores and thrift stores, we cloth diaper, we budget, we do without, I save the boys clothes that they grow out of to hand down to their younger brothers, we eat a lot of beans and rice, we only have local phone service and use our .01 cent per minute phone card for long distance calls, Dh does a lot of the work to our van himself, we plan out our shopping trips to maximize our fuel economy, I use half the soap to wash the laundry. I'm sure there may be more we could do, but we do pretty well.
There really is no where to cut back so that we can buy insurance. We really aren't even saving money right now, because there really isn't any to save.
It is a frustrating situation, and I'm inclined to continue ranting, but there is something better that I must do. I must pray. I must rely on the Lord. I must trust that God knows our situation and He has a plan. If we trust in Him, and allow Him to work His plan in our lives, whatever the outcome, it will be the best thing for us.
Health care is outrageously expensive in this country. I'm sure it is everywhere, but does it need to be? I'm all for people getting paid what they are due and getting rich, but at the expense of others? It doesn't seem right. I think there needs to be a way for the rich to help the poor, without welfare. I love the example in the Bible, the rich field owners were to leave the corners of their fields for the poor to gather food for themselves. They were also to only glean a field once, so that the poor could go along behind them and pick what was left over. I have seen fields of perfectly good pumpkins smashed to bits because they don't want people coming through and taking them. There's no telling how many people that could feed!
I know, I know, regulations, safety concerns, laws, and all that. It just doesn't seem right though.
I consider us pretty frugal people. We recycle, we buy mostly generic, we shop at discount stores and thrift stores, we cloth diaper, we budget, we do without, I save the boys clothes that they grow out of to hand down to their younger brothers, we eat a lot of beans and rice, we only have local phone service and use our .01 cent per minute phone card for long distance calls, Dh does a lot of the work to our van himself, we plan out our shopping trips to maximize our fuel economy, I use half the soap to wash the laundry. I'm sure there may be more we could do, but we do pretty well.
There really is no where to cut back so that we can buy insurance. We really aren't even saving money right now, because there really isn't any to save.
It is a frustrating situation, and I'm inclined to continue ranting, but there is something better that I must do. I must pray. I must rely on the Lord. I must trust that God knows our situation and He has a plan. If we trust in Him, and allow Him to work His plan in our lives, whatever the outcome, it will be the best thing for us.
Thursday, October 16, 2008
YES on Proposition 8!
I am voting Yes on California's prop 8. I don not believe that any relationship has the right to be called marriage except that between 1 man and 1 woman. God made them male and female. Adam and Eve. Marriage is His design and we have no right to redefine it.
The way our country is going I truly believe it is only a matter of time before homosexual marriage is legal in all 50 states. But I am still going to stand up for what is right. This battle may be lost, but God has already won the war! If this battle is won, I think it will only be temporary. But God still wins in the end.
I absolutely do not hate "gays". They are sinners just like everyone else. They need to repent and be saved, just like everyone else. I do think that this sin is particularly damaging to a person though. There are just certain sins that do worse damage. Sin is sin as far as it all separates us from God, but certain sins damage us as people more in the process of living in them.
There is salvation from this and all other sins. There is only one sin that will not be forgiven, and that is the one of rejecting God, rejecting the free gift of salvation.
The way our country is going I truly believe it is only a matter of time before homosexual marriage is legal in all 50 states. But I am still going to stand up for what is right. This battle may be lost, but God has already won the war! If this battle is won, I think it will only be temporary. But God still wins in the end.
I absolutely do not hate "gays". They are sinners just like everyone else. They need to repent and be saved, just like everyone else. I do think that this sin is particularly damaging to a person though. There are just certain sins that do worse damage. Sin is sin as far as it all separates us from God, but certain sins damage us as people more in the process of living in them.
There is salvation from this and all other sins. There is only one sin that will not be forgiven, and that is the one of rejecting God, rejecting the free gift of salvation.
Monday, October 13, 2008
Boys coming out my ears!
At least that's what a woman at the park told me I have.
Its true I suppose, there are a lot of them. 4 isn't so huge a number though. I know many people with more kids. I have one friend with 6 boys and 2 girls. 4 is just enough to not be a small family, and just barely enough for some to consider us a large family, though not quite enough for others.
I have always wanted a large family. I never expected to have all boys though! I was just thinking tonight how different they are than girls. I think about how I was as a child and how differently I saw things from the way my boys see things. I mothered my siblings and other kids I played with. The boys are more about beating each other to the top of the dog pile! I loved dancing around in dress-up clothes. The boys love running around getting muddy in dress-up clothes. (Not that I never got muddy).
Some days its a lot of fun having 4 boys, other days I feel like I'm drowning in testosterone. I find that I like "pretty" things a lot more now than I used to. I enjoy the company of women more than I used to. Maybe because all I get at home is boy games, boy toys, boy messes, boy play.
Don't get me wrong, I don't mean to complain, I am thankful for each one of the precious boys God has blessed me with! I wouldn't trade a one of them! I am not up for the challenge of raising them to be godly young men, not on my own, but with my dear husband by my side, and the Lord Jesus leading us, I know we can do it.
Perhaps someday the Lord will bless us with a few more sons, or maybe even daughters (though I doubt I will ever bear a daughter). I have prayed and will continue to pray that the Lord will lead us to adopt one day, and that it will be in His time and in His way.
I may never have daughters of my own, but I figure I ought to get a few daughter-in-laws one of these days, should the Lord tarry. If I do, I pray I'll be a good and loving mother-in-law to them.
Its true I suppose, there are a lot of them. 4 isn't so huge a number though. I know many people with more kids. I have one friend with 6 boys and 2 girls. 4 is just enough to not be a small family, and just barely enough for some to consider us a large family, though not quite enough for others.
I have always wanted a large family. I never expected to have all boys though! I was just thinking tonight how different they are than girls. I think about how I was as a child and how differently I saw things from the way my boys see things. I mothered my siblings and other kids I played with. The boys are more about beating each other to the top of the dog pile! I loved dancing around in dress-up clothes. The boys love running around getting muddy in dress-up clothes. (Not that I never got muddy).
Some days its a lot of fun having 4 boys, other days I feel like I'm drowning in testosterone. I find that I like "pretty" things a lot more now than I used to. I enjoy the company of women more than I used to. Maybe because all I get at home is boy games, boy toys, boy messes, boy play.
Don't get me wrong, I don't mean to complain, I am thankful for each one of the precious boys God has blessed me with! I wouldn't trade a one of them! I am not up for the challenge of raising them to be godly young men, not on my own, but with my dear husband by my side, and the Lord Jesus leading us, I know we can do it.
Perhaps someday the Lord will bless us with a few more sons, or maybe even daughters (though I doubt I will ever bear a daughter). I have prayed and will continue to pray that the Lord will lead us to adopt one day, and that it will be in His time and in His way.
I may never have daughters of my own, but I figure I ought to get a few daughter-in-laws one of these days, should the Lord tarry. If I do, I pray I'll be a good and loving mother-in-law to them.
Thursday, October 9, 2008
Slept in
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, woke up at 6 AM. Spend time with the Lord, took a walk, and then started my day. Today I decided to sleep in since Dh had to go to work at 6. I slept till 8. Boy did I need that!
I want to go back to getting up at 6 tomorrow though. I think its good for me. Hopefully it will become a habit.
I want to go back to getting up at 6 tomorrow though. I think its good for me. Hopefully it will become a habit.
Monday, October 6, 2008
My poor baby
I scheduled J's dentist appt. to get all of his teeth filled. I feel so bad that he's got so many cavities. His appt. is for 3 days before Christmas! That was the soonest they had. Although I hate to have it done so close to Christmas, I'd rather not wait any longer. I need to take him and S to the Pediatrician on Wednesday for their check ups. The hospital told me that he cannot be sick for his appt. If he gets sick any time in the two weeks before his appt. we'll have to postpone it. Sigh. I hope we can keep him well!
Being a parent is such a lot of work.
Being a parent is such a lot of work.
Goodmorning!
Wow! I did it! I got up at 6:07 AM, spent some time with the Lord, took a walk by myself, checked my email and now its 7:25 AM and I'm about to make breakfast.
I hope I can keep this up, it really felt great! (Even though I'm a little sleepy still). Hopefully I'll be tired enough to make myself go to bed early tonight.
I hope I can keep this up, it really felt great! (Even though I'm a little sleepy still). Hopefully I'll be tired enough to make myself go to bed early tonight.
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Fireproof
This was an awesome movie!!! NOT for little kids though. I'd say its probably appropriate for teens though. It is totally clean but the subject matter is of an adult nature.
This movie deals with marriage, adultery, pornography, lust, covetousness, selflessness, love, commitment, and respect. It is about a husband and wife who have grown apart and are ready to get divorced. The husband's father steps in and asks "is there any part of you that wants to save this marriage?". He then challenges his son to wait 40 days before getting the divorce. He then sends his son a journal called the "Love Dare". Each day for 40 days it tells him something to do to try and win his wife back. She rejects him at every turn. Finally he realizes that he has been rejecting God despite all of God's efforts to win him, and he turns to the Lord.
There were 3 very intense scenes in the movie, a fight between husband and wife, a car on a train track with an on coming train, and a house fire rescue. The one with the fight was the hardest to watch I think. It was much more intense than I expected. It gave me a sinking feeling. I don't think I've ever witnessed a fight like that. Not that I recall anyway. (Thank the Lord!).
I would recommend this movie to anyone who is married or getting married, or hopes to get married one day!
The most important and life changing message in this movie is the one of Jesus Christ and the salvation that He offers. The story in this movie may be fictional, but the message of Jesus is as real as it gets!
This movie deals with marriage, adultery, pornography, lust, covetousness, selflessness, love, commitment, and respect. It is about a husband and wife who have grown apart and are ready to get divorced. The husband's father steps in and asks "is there any part of you that wants to save this marriage?". He then challenges his son to wait 40 days before getting the divorce. He then sends his son a journal called the "Love Dare". Each day for 40 days it tells him something to do to try and win his wife back. She rejects him at every turn. Finally he realizes that he has been rejecting God despite all of God's efforts to win him, and he turns to the Lord.
There were 3 very intense scenes in the movie, a fight between husband and wife, a car on a train track with an on coming train, and a house fire rescue. The one with the fight was the hardest to watch I think. It was much more intense than I expected. It gave me a sinking feeling. I don't think I've ever witnessed a fight like that. Not that I recall anyway. (Thank the Lord!).
I would recommend this movie to anyone who is married or getting married, or hopes to get married one day!
The most important and life changing message in this movie is the one of Jesus Christ and the salvation that He offers. The story in this movie may be fictional, but the message of Jesus is as real as it gets!
October
September is over, what a long month! All 30 days of it anyway. We went up North for Grandma's funeral, 12 hours there and 12 hours back in the van. We'll go up again for my sister's wedding at the end of this month!
Saw the movie "Fireproof". I'll have to give it its own blog entry, so I won't go into it now.
My weight at the end of Sept. was 179. Not what I wanted. This month I'm going to try something different. I'm not going to weigh in until the day before I leave for the wedding. I'm not going to measure anything, or record minutes exercised. My goal is moderation in everything I eat and drink (except water). Most of all, I want to listen to the voice of the Lord. Grow in Him, read His word, and draw near to Him. I should go put away the scale now before I forget.
Took the boys to the dentist today. M has 3 cavities, G is cavity free!!!!!, and J has about 8 and needs to be put under for his treatment :( We got a referral to a hospital that will do it. I'm a little nervous about it but from what I've read he would have a much higher risk of getting seriously injured in a car accident than he has of being seriously harmed by the General Anesthetic. G is my best tooth brusher and I am so glad he didn't have any cavities. I hope that M will be motivated to brush his teeth better and more often. J is still little and doesn't really understand, I need to be more vigilant in taking care of his teeth.
I have bad teeth too. They got REALLY bad once I started having kids. The dentist told me she thinks that for some reason pregnancy affects my teeth more than most, but that it could be worse. The assistant told me I'm doing better than her, she has 3 kids and has lost 3 teeth, I've got 4 kids and have only lost 2. Sigh.
God is so good. He brings things about in our lives to draw us closer to Him. I didn't see it coming but I can see now how He has used MIL's stroke to draw us closer to Him. Praise the Lord! He is good and His Mercy endures forever!
Saw the movie "Fireproof". I'll have to give it its own blog entry, so I won't go into it now.
My weight at the end of Sept. was 179. Not what I wanted. This month I'm going to try something different. I'm not going to weigh in until the day before I leave for the wedding. I'm not going to measure anything, or record minutes exercised. My goal is moderation in everything I eat and drink (except water). Most of all, I want to listen to the voice of the Lord. Grow in Him, read His word, and draw near to Him. I should go put away the scale now before I forget.
Took the boys to the dentist today. M has 3 cavities, G is cavity free!!!!!, and J has about 8 and needs to be put under for his treatment :( We got a referral to a hospital that will do it. I'm a little nervous about it but from what I've read he would have a much higher risk of getting seriously injured in a car accident than he has of being seriously harmed by the General Anesthetic. G is my best tooth brusher and I am so glad he didn't have any cavities. I hope that M will be motivated to brush his teeth better and more often. J is still little and doesn't really understand, I need to be more vigilant in taking care of his teeth.
I have bad teeth too. They got REALLY bad once I started having kids. The dentist told me she thinks that for some reason pregnancy affects my teeth more than most, but that it could be worse. The assistant told me I'm doing better than her, she has 3 kids and has lost 3 teeth, I've got 4 kids and have only lost 2. Sigh.
God is so good. He brings things about in our lives to draw us closer to Him. I didn't see it coming but I can see now how He has used MIL's stroke to draw us closer to Him. Praise the Lord! He is good and His Mercy endures forever!
Friday, September 19, 2008
Christine
Christine
by me
I see myself like her in many ways. My Momma said I started talking after a visit with her when I was a toddler and I never stopped! When I was with her we never ran out of things to talk about.
She read through the whole Bible each year. I will always remember her in a bathrobe with wet hair doing her Bible reading. No matter what was going on, she made time to spend with her Lord. Her deep love for Him was evident in her life, as was her deep love for people. If you asked her to pray for someone or something you could be certain she would.
I get my sweet tooth from her and Grandpa. When I stayed with them we'd have jam with breakfast, cookies and Mountain Dew with lunch, and cake with dinner. Of course there were always long walks in between to burn off all the calories!
She was a hard worker. She was always busy, always doing something. She didn't have a lazy bone in her body! Of course she could also be pursuaded to take a break to play a hand of 42 or to go swimming in the pond, or to take a walk down to the picnic area. She loved to do the work of the Lord, serving Him in church teaching Sunday School and Singing Praises.
I'll never forget her kisses at midnight when we arrived at the property for visits. Homemade icecream and blackberry cobbler, and especially persimmon pudding will remind me of her.
I'll never forget how much she loved Grandpa. The way they smiled at each other, you knew that no matter what, they loved each other. She always took care of him and he took care of her too.
I thank God for my Grandma. She is such a special person. I thank God for the godly example she has been to me. She wasn't perfect, no one is, but you could see Jesus in her life and I want to be like that too.
I am sad that her life on earth has ended, but I am happy for her too, she is with Jesus! I will miss her. I learned when Grandpa died that one of the reasons we are sad when a believer dies is not only that we will miss them until we too are in glory, but that death reminds us of sin. It is because of sin that death is in the world, but Jesus, through His death and resurrection, has overcome death! In that, we can rejoice.
Just before she passed away I told my son, "Grandma is tired and her body doesn't work well anymore, she has lived a good long life and has loved Jesus since she was a little girl, and now she is ready to go home and live with Him forever."
Although her body is dead, Christine is now more alive than she ever was while she was in it. Today, she began a new life in the presence of her Savior.
"For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then, face to face..."
Grandma, I'll see you when I get home! I hope it will be soon. Come quickly Lord Jesus! Amen.
by me
I see myself like her in many ways. My Momma said I started talking after a visit with her when I was a toddler and I never stopped! When I was with her we never ran out of things to talk about.
She read through the whole Bible each year. I will always remember her in a bathrobe with wet hair doing her Bible reading. No matter what was going on, she made time to spend with her Lord. Her deep love for Him was evident in her life, as was her deep love for people. If you asked her to pray for someone or something you could be certain she would.
I get my sweet tooth from her and Grandpa. When I stayed with them we'd have jam with breakfast, cookies and Mountain Dew with lunch, and cake with dinner. Of course there were always long walks in between to burn off all the calories!
She was a hard worker. She was always busy, always doing something. She didn't have a lazy bone in her body! Of course she could also be pursuaded to take a break to play a hand of 42 or to go swimming in the pond, or to take a walk down to the picnic area. She loved to do the work of the Lord, serving Him in church teaching Sunday School and Singing Praises.
I'll never forget her kisses at midnight when we arrived at the property for visits. Homemade icecream and blackberry cobbler, and especially persimmon pudding will remind me of her.
I'll never forget how much she loved Grandpa. The way they smiled at each other, you knew that no matter what, they loved each other. She always took care of him and he took care of her too.
I thank God for my Grandma. She is such a special person. I thank God for the godly example she has been to me. She wasn't perfect, no one is, but you could see Jesus in her life and I want to be like that too.
I am sad that her life on earth has ended, but I am happy for her too, she is with Jesus! I will miss her. I learned when Grandpa died that one of the reasons we are sad when a believer dies is not only that we will miss them until we too are in glory, but that death reminds us of sin. It is because of sin that death is in the world, but Jesus, through His death and resurrection, has overcome death! In that, we can rejoice.
Just before she passed away I told my son, "Grandma is tired and her body doesn't work well anymore, she has lived a good long life and has loved Jesus since she was a little girl, and now she is ready to go home and live with Him forever."
Although her body is dead, Christine is now more alive than she ever was while she was in it. Today, she began a new life in the presence of her Savior.
"For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then, face to face..."
Grandma, I'll see you when I get home! I hope it will be soon. Come quickly Lord Jesus! Amen.
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Butterfly lapbooks 2
So M had a few butterfly stickers on his, and some extra facts about butterflies and moths. His cards have the picture of the butterfly on the front and the name of the butterfly on the back! He has memorized 8 butterflies by sight!
Butterfly lapbooks
The first picture is of Both the boys front covers. The next one is of the back of G's. Butterfly wings are symmetrical so we painted half of the butterfly and then folded the wings to get a print on the other side. He also did a color by number, flaps on what butterflies eat and what caterpillars eat, and drew some butterflies himself! The cards are a matching game.
I did it!
I got to bed at a semi reasonable hour! I was in bed at about 10:30 and asleep shortly after 11. Unfortunately I was woken up at 5:45 in the morning. I got a little sleep after that but I was up for good at 7:30. Sigh. Yawn, actually. I've been yawning all morning.
There is a possibility that I'll get to bed at a reasonable hour tonight too. Hopefully by 10:30 again. I know Dh will be tired, he got up before I woke up at 5:45, though I'm not sure exactly when. But he'll be working all day today cleaning out abandoned houses.
Its very cloudy today, that probably makes me feel sleepier than I really am. I am pleased that I got to bed so "early". I need to make a habit of it.
There is a possibility that I'll get to bed at a reasonable hour tonight too. Hopefully by 10:30 again. I know Dh will be tired, he got up before I woke up at 5:45, though I'm not sure exactly when. But he'll be working all day today cleaning out abandoned houses.
Its very cloudy today, that probably makes me feel sleepier than I really am. I am pleased that I got to bed so "early". I need to make a habit of it.
Monday, September 15, 2008
Waaaaaaa
I think my period is back already.
Mid last week I was 179 lbs. Today I was 181.2. If its just from water retention I should go back down next week.
No wonder I had such strong sugar cravings this last week!
Mid last week I was 179 lbs. Today I was 181.2. If its just from water retention I should go back down next week.
No wonder I had such strong sugar cravings this last week!
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Checking in
So this last week I had very little self control and ate something sugary every single day! Though not a lot, if I were shooting for moderation I would have been pretty much on target. But I was shooting for NO sugary foods so I missed the mark. I think for the month of Sept. I'm going to keep trying not to eat sweets but next month I think I will allow for some in moderation. My hope is that that way I will say to myself "no, don't eat that now, you can have it on Thursday (or whenever)".
I did meet my other goals however. Except one day I only did 10 minutes of strength exercises instead of 20 minutes. Oh and I obviously didn't do so well on listening to the Lord's leading.
I've been reading a lot about how hard it is to lose weight while breastfeeding (for some women). I think I might be one of those. In the past I lost all of my pregnancy weight rather quickly and then the excess weight I still had to lose didn't start coming off until my babies were about a year old.
I am going to keep trying to stick to my goals and re-teach myself how to be healthy and hopefully the weight will eventually start coming off. In the mean time I am hoping that I can at least lose a little and avoid gaining over the holiday season.
I did meet my other goals however. Except one day I only did 10 minutes of strength exercises instead of 20 minutes. Oh and I obviously didn't do so well on listening to the Lord's leading.
I've been reading a lot about how hard it is to lose weight while breastfeeding (for some women). I think I might be one of those. In the past I lost all of my pregnancy weight rather quickly and then the excess weight I still had to lose didn't start coming off until my babies were about a year old.
I am going to keep trying to stick to my goals and re-teach myself how to be healthy and hopefully the weight will eventually start coming off. In the mean time I am hoping that I can at least lose a little and avoid gaining over the holiday season.
Friday, September 12, 2008
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Cradle Cap
OK, just so you know, baking soda does wonders for cradle cap!
I had tried putting olive oil on S and that helped some but didn't get it all off. A friend told me to try baking soda, so I made a paste of it and put it on his head, rubbed it around a little (gently of course) and then washed it off. The scales were gone! He has a clean head now and his hair is all fluffy again! Another friend suggested Aveeno baby bath to wash his head to prevent recurrence, so I got some of that, we'll see if it works.
Baking soda is awesome! If you are reading this and thinking of other cool things you can do with baking soda, go ahead and post a comment and tell me what they are ;)
I had tried putting olive oil on S and that helped some but didn't get it all off. A friend told me to try baking soda, so I made a paste of it and put it on his head, rubbed it around a little (gently of course) and then washed it off. The scales were gone! He has a clean head now and his hair is all fluffy again! Another friend suggested Aveeno baby bath to wash his head to prevent recurrence, so I got some of that, we'll see if it works.
Baking soda is awesome! If you are reading this and thinking of other cool things you can do with baking soda, go ahead and post a comment and tell me what they are ;)
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Different
I heard someone say on a video the other day that having ADD is like being left handed. Its different, but its natural to the person who has it. Since we live in a world with mostly "right handed" people we have to learn to adapt to get along.
I don't really think God originally intended for people to have ADD/ADHD but I don't necessarily think that those of us who have it are broken either. I'm not totally sure what I think LOL.
ADD is a part of my life though, and I am learning to deal with it. Hopefully I will be able to teach my son not only to deal with it as well but also to use it to his advantage. After all, people with ADD tend to think outside the box, be more creative, more energetic, and have a unique perspective on things. We just have to learn how to control our focus long enough to accomplish things!
Anyway, I like the left hand/right hand comparison. I think that is a very good way to explain how it is.
I don't really think God originally intended for people to have ADD/ADHD but I don't necessarily think that those of us who have it are broken either. I'm not totally sure what I think LOL.
ADD is a part of my life though, and I am learning to deal with it. Hopefully I will be able to teach my son not only to deal with it as well but also to use it to his advantage. After all, people with ADD tend to think outside the box, be more creative, more energetic, and have a unique perspective on things. We just have to learn how to control our focus long enough to accomplish things!
Anyway, I like the left hand/right hand comparison. I think that is a very good way to explain how it is.
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
P.E.
We signed the two oldest up for Homeschool P.E. today! There is a program called EMH which stands for Energy + Motion + Health. The program runs Sept. - May and they do a different sport each month, with the exception of soccer which is both in Sept. and May.
Both boys are in the same group. M was noticibly taller than all of the other kids in the group. I think they both did OK. It was their first time EVER doing anything like this. The coach said that they needed to learn sportsmanship, boundries, and to follow instructions, but that is what the class is all about and the other kids are learning that too. She said her goal is to teach them these lessons so that when they are older they will be able to work on technique rather than basics.
G didn't seem to have as much fun as I thought he would. He misunderstood what was going on a couple of times and got discouraged and started to walk off the field at one point (the coach drew him back in). Hopefully once he gets used to it he will enjoy it more.
M's long time friend from church is in the group also. It will be interesting to see how they get along with the rest of the kids. They tend to set each other off and get wild. M is ADD and his friend is ADHD. His mom referes to M and her son as "Dynamite and a Match". They are easier to handle separately. At one point today it looked like they were playing "Tackle" Soccer!
J was a little bored and wanted to go out on the field with his brothers. There are a few other younger kids there, hopefully he will be able to get to know them and play with them during the weeks to come. I also want to bring a few things for him to do next time (coloring books, maybe a puzzle, etc.). Today Dh took him to the playground for a little while but in the future I will probably be taking the boys by myself so that Dh can study while we are away.
I am glad the boys are involved in this. I have been hesitant in the past to get them into sports but I think this program is just right for them. The committment is only once a week and we can even skip a month if we like. We also only have to pay for the sessions we attend, so that is helpful.
Praise the Lord!
Both boys are in the same group. M was noticibly taller than all of the other kids in the group. I think they both did OK. It was their first time EVER doing anything like this. The coach said that they needed to learn sportsmanship, boundries, and to follow instructions, but that is what the class is all about and the other kids are learning that too. She said her goal is to teach them these lessons so that when they are older they will be able to work on technique rather than basics.
G didn't seem to have as much fun as I thought he would. He misunderstood what was going on a couple of times and got discouraged and started to walk off the field at one point (the coach drew him back in). Hopefully once he gets used to it he will enjoy it more.
M's long time friend from church is in the group also. It will be interesting to see how they get along with the rest of the kids. They tend to set each other off and get wild. M is ADD and his friend is ADHD. His mom referes to M and her son as "Dynamite and a Match". They are easier to handle separately. At one point today it looked like they were playing "Tackle" Soccer!
J was a little bored and wanted to go out on the field with his brothers. There are a few other younger kids there, hopefully he will be able to get to know them and play with them during the weeks to come. I also want to bring a few things for him to do next time (coloring books, maybe a puzzle, etc.). Today Dh took him to the playground for a little while but in the future I will probably be taking the boys by myself so that Dh can study while we are away.
I am glad the boys are involved in this. I have been hesitant in the past to get them into sports but I think this program is just right for them. The committment is only once a week and we can even skip a month if we like. We also only have to pay for the sessions we attend, so that is helpful.
Praise the Lord!
Sunday, September 7, 2008
Weight loss update
I'm not going to weigh in till Monday but I'm going to go ahead and post how I've done this week.
On water, excellent! Except for today. (We ran out of drinking water and I can't stand the tap, so I didn't drink nearly as much as I should have).
On exercise, great! I met my goals!
On eating veggies, great! It takes planning to get them fixed. I try to prepare them during S's afternoon nap.
On not eating sweets, I am a miserable failure. I got some spring form pans from freecycle and I couldn't resist making a cheese cake. I've never made one in a spring form pan before! I did freeze half of it though. But I ate 3 slices. (not all in one day). I also had some soy ice cream stuff because I had a tooth pulled and it was really hard to eat for a couple of days. (excuses excuses).
On listening to the Lord? Good some days, not so good other days. There is just no excuse for it, I disobeyed. Father, forgive me and give me strength to obey. I want to obey, I am weak, give me your strength.
And finally, I did post an update here for the week, so I met that goal.
So hopefully this next week will be better. I'll post my weight on Monday.
I know the Lord cares about every area of my life and He wants me to obey His voice in every area of my life. I pray I will learn to obey, right away, without delay.
On water, excellent! Except for today. (We ran out of drinking water and I can't stand the tap, so I didn't drink nearly as much as I should have).
On exercise, great! I met my goals!
On eating veggies, great! It takes planning to get them fixed. I try to prepare them during S's afternoon nap.
On not eating sweets, I am a miserable failure. I got some spring form pans from freecycle and I couldn't resist making a cheese cake. I've never made one in a spring form pan before! I did freeze half of it though. But I ate 3 slices. (not all in one day). I also had some soy ice cream stuff because I had a tooth pulled and it was really hard to eat for a couple of days. (excuses excuses).
On listening to the Lord? Good some days, not so good other days. There is just no excuse for it, I disobeyed. Father, forgive me and give me strength to obey. I want to obey, I am weak, give me your strength.
And finally, I did post an update here for the week, so I met that goal.
So hopefully this next week will be better. I'll post my weight on Monday.
I know the Lord cares about every area of my life and He wants me to obey His voice in every area of my life. I pray I will learn to obey, right away, without delay.
Saturday, September 6, 2008
Up late
I have always been a night person, I've always preferred to stay up late and sleep in late. I have memories from when I worked on the ship of being woken up by the phone in my cabin at 6 AM because I had the morning shift. My little watch alarm wasn't good enough. Even after my first baby was born he and I would sleep in till 10 every morning after staying up till midnight.
When we first moved out to California I was determined to start getting up earlier. I felt like it would be better for the whole family if the day started before noon. When we got our own apartment we started right off getting up at 8 AM. It was a challenge at first but we soon got used to it. Now it is pretty normal to get up at 8.
Though I am used to getting up at a reasonable hour, I still can't seem to get to bed on time! Lately its been Midnight or later before I finally get to sleep. Part of it is that Dh works late most nights, till 10 or 11, and then he gets home, we talk for an hour or two, and then go to sleep. So I wake up at 8 AM (usually at least 2 or 3 of the boys are awake before me), and feel really tired and regret staying up so late the night before.
I think 10 PM would be a much better time to go to bed than Midnight. That way the middle-of-the-night nursings and diaper changes wouldn't be such a big deal, because I have 10 hours in bed. When I only have 7 or 8 hours in bed those interruptions are harder to handle.
You may laugh, 7 or 8 hours, even interrupted sleep, sounds great to you! Well, I know its not great for me. I really need more sleep. 9 hours would seem ideal to me. Having 4 boys really wears a person out!
Dh gets off work at 6 PM this evening, so I think maybe I'll try to make my goal of getting to bed at 10. I don't know what his plans are for tonight but I plan to have supper ready when he gets home and then maybe go on a walk as a family right after we eat and before it gets dark.
Goodnight! er....Goodmorning!
When we first moved out to California I was determined to start getting up earlier. I felt like it would be better for the whole family if the day started before noon. When we got our own apartment we started right off getting up at 8 AM. It was a challenge at first but we soon got used to it. Now it is pretty normal to get up at 8.
Though I am used to getting up at a reasonable hour, I still can't seem to get to bed on time! Lately its been Midnight or later before I finally get to sleep. Part of it is that Dh works late most nights, till 10 or 11, and then he gets home, we talk for an hour or two, and then go to sleep. So I wake up at 8 AM (usually at least 2 or 3 of the boys are awake before me), and feel really tired and regret staying up so late the night before.
I think 10 PM would be a much better time to go to bed than Midnight. That way the middle-of-the-night nursings and diaper changes wouldn't be such a big deal, because I have 10 hours in bed. When I only have 7 or 8 hours in bed those interruptions are harder to handle.
You may laugh, 7 or 8 hours, even interrupted sleep, sounds great to you! Well, I know its not great for me. I really need more sleep. 9 hours would seem ideal to me. Having 4 boys really wears a person out!
Dh gets off work at 6 PM this evening, so I think maybe I'll try to make my goal of getting to bed at 10. I don't know what his plans are for tonight but I plan to have supper ready when he gets home and then maybe go on a walk as a family right after we eat and before it gets dark.
Goodnight! er....Goodmorning!
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
Butterflies!
We went to the Pavilion of Wings at the L.A. Natural History museum last week. It was really neat seeing the butterflies, and the boys got to hold a caterpillar! One butterfly landed on M. He was thrilled of course. This week we are working on butterfly lapbooks but I think its going to take us a while. I plan to spend most of the day on Friday working on them though so maybe we'll have them finished by the weekend.
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Weight loss goals
I think I'm ready to jump back on the track and get some of this weight off. I'm 181 right now and my ultimate goal is 135ish. My sister is getting married November 1st and I'm going to set a goal to get down to 169 by then.
Here are my goals for September...
1. To eat veggies everyday (don't be grossed out that I haven't always done this).
2. No sweets (with the exception of fruit in reasonable quantity).
3. Drink at least 90 oz. of water daily.
4. Walk at least 3 times a week for at least 30 minutes.
5. Do strength exercises for at least 20 minutes a day twice a week.
6. Post here once a week on how I am doing.
7. Listen to the Lord when He prompts me to eat or not to eat something!
Here are my goals for September...
1. To eat veggies everyday (don't be grossed out that I haven't always done this).
2. No sweets (with the exception of fruit in reasonable quantity).
3. Drink at least 90 oz. of water daily.
4. Walk at least 3 times a week for at least 30 minutes.
5. Do strength exercises for at least 20 minutes a day twice a week.
6. Post here once a week on how I am doing.
7. Listen to the Lord when He prompts me to eat or not to eat something!
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Yippie!
I probably shouldn't be online right now as we are getting ready for church, but I just wanted to post my excitement this morning!
Dh put a shelf in the living room for me, just for school books! I've been just stacking them on my desk and on the other bookshelf (where there isn't anymore room for books). Now the school books have their own spot and it will help the living room look a lot more organized.
My other goal for the living room now is to get it baby proof! Mr. S is only 3 months old but he's already trying to be mobile and I know it will only be a couple more months and he'll be into everything.
OK, that was all. Off to church!
Dh put a shelf in the living room for me, just for school books! I've been just stacking them on my desk and on the other bookshelf (where there isn't anymore room for books). Now the school books have their own spot and it will help the living room look a lot more organized.
My other goal for the living room now is to get it baby proof! Mr. S is only 3 months old but he's already trying to be mobile and I know it will only be a couple more months and he'll be into everything.
OK, that was all. Off to church!
Thursday, August 28, 2008
4 to 1
I've done it, twice! I took all 4 boys out by myself! The first time was a week ago. We went to Wal-Mart to get some pull-ups for our trip to my parents house. We went in, got what we needed and walked out. Well, there were two minor incidences. 1. G ran to the toy section 2 aisles over without permission. 2. J threw a minor fit at the register because I wouldn't buy him "green water" A.K.A. Mountain Dew.
Today I had to go pick up a temporary insurance card for S since I haven't received his regular one in the mail yet. There is a bill that should have been covered but somehow wasn't so now I need the number off of the card to give them so they will charge the insurance. Anyway, I loaded the boys up in the van, drove there, went in, waited in line (the boys were very fidgety in line but there was no one behind us so it wasn't a very big deal). It was a relatively quick trip. We got back in the van, and drove home.
Overall they were pretty good and both trips were successful. I don't think I'm ready for a full on shopping trip with all four of them yet but we'll get there eventually. Hehe, though I think I'll continue to avoid it at every opportunity.
Today I had to go pick up a temporary insurance card for S since I haven't received his regular one in the mail yet. There is a bill that should have been covered but somehow wasn't so now I need the number off of the card to give them so they will charge the insurance. Anyway, I loaded the boys up in the van, drove there, went in, waited in line (the boys were very fidgety in line but there was no one behind us so it wasn't a very big deal). It was a relatively quick trip. We got back in the van, and drove home.
Overall they were pretty good and both trips were successful. I don't think I'm ready for a full on shopping trip with all four of them yet but we'll get there eventually. Hehe, though I think I'll continue to avoid it at every opportunity.
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Took a walk
My first walk through the neighborhood! We moved here 6 months ago but this was the first time I walked around the neighborhood. I took the boys with me, M & G walked or "Le Parkour" ed, and J & S rode in the stroller. We only walked around a couple of blocks and it was only about 20 minutes but it was nice to get out. I need to start getting some regular exercise! The evenings have been pretty nice lately so maybe I will try to get in at least 2 or 3 walks a week to start out with. Tomorrow night won't work because we have church but hopefully Thursday will, Friday we will be at a Homeschool park day, I have no doubt I will get in my exercise then!
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
A lapbook about Music!
Inside the book we have a page with different kinds of musical instruments, you flip that up and there is a picture that says "Music makes me feel..." and drawings of the different feelings we can get from music. Then in the center there is a page with pictures of 9 different Composers and you have to guess who they are, then lift up their picture flap and their names are underneath. On the left side it says "Types of Music" and we listed some of them, and on the right flap it says "I hear music..." and we listed lots of places that we hear music. On the back it says "The most important thing we can do with music is Praise the LORD!"It was a lot of fun to make, though the boys fought a little over who got to do what. Next time I definitely want to have them each do their own. Since we are going to the butterfly exhibit next week I think that will be our next lapbook project. I'm not sure when we will do it though, maybe after we get home.
Our first lapbook
I have been teaching the boys about music this week. We have talked about how we can use music to praise God, and about different types of music. M's favorite is Rock music, none of the others claimed a favorite though.
Today I printed out a whole bunch of pictures pertaining to music, and I dug out a few file folders to make a music lapbook or file folder book. I have never done this before but seeing as how its the latest homeschooling craze I thought we should give it a try! I figure since this is our first attempt we will just do one and all work on it together. Then maybe later on we'll do individual books. One for each kid. Maybe I will help J with one to give an example for M & G and they can make their own. But for now, I think one for all to share will be good enough. I'll try and post a picture tomorrow when we are finished with it.
If we get too carried away with this lapbooking business I'll have to break down and buy some more file folders! I thought we had a box of them but I can't seem to find it anywhere. I did find a small stack of them and I'm wondering if thats all that's left of the box. We bought it a few years ago so it is possible we used them all up.
Today I printed out a whole bunch of pictures pertaining to music, and I dug out a few file folders to make a music lapbook or file folder book. I have never done this before but seeing as how its the latest homeschooling craze I thought we should give it a try! I figure since this is our first attempt we will just do one and all work on it together. Then maybe later on we'll do individual books. One for each kid. Maybe I will help J with one to give an example for M & G and they can make their own. But for now, I think one for all to share will be good enough. I'll try and post a picture tomorrow when we are finished with it.
If we get too carried away with this lapbooking business I'll have to break down and buy some more file folders! I thought we had a box of them but I can't seem to find it anywhere. I did find a small stack of them and I'm wondering if thats all that's left of the box. We bought it a few years ago so it is possible we used them all up.
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Overwhelmed
Yes, its true. I do get overwhelmed being a mother of 4 energetic boys. Sometimes I feel like the whole house is spinning around me. Have you ever seen a cartoon where a character is standing in the middle of the street and cars are flying by on both sides and the character is spinning around in the middle? That's how I feel. I can't keep up with them!
I'll be taking care of one in the living room and next thing I know another one is opening and closing the garage door, and another one is sneaking ice out of the freezer. I go to the bathroom for less than 2 minutes and when I'm done there is screaming coming from their bedroom. I fix supper and only one will eat it, or another day all but one will eat. The house is cleaned to almost spotless one day and the next day it looks like a tornado hit!
Seriously, I can't keep up. If I get all of the laundry done one day I find the hampers full to the brim the next day. I have about two dozen cups for them and they ALL end up dirty each day. I have started hiding some of them so that they are forced to wash out cups themselves when they want a drink.
I am so tired. I get a little bit of a break tomorrow, but only because I'll be in the dentist chair getting a root canal.
Father in Heaven, Thank You for my boys. Thank You for trusting me with them. I know I am not the perfect mother, and I could never hope to be, but I ask You to please help me be a good mother. Help me to keep my head screwed on straight. Help me to know what the right thing is and to do it. Help me to teach my children to love You. Lord, I want nothing more than to see my children grow up to love You and serve You with their whole hearts. Please bring that about in there lives I pray, In Jesus Precious name. Amen.
I'll be taking care of one in the living room and next thing I know another one is opening and closing the garage door, and another one is sneaking ice out of the freezer. I go to the bathroom for less than 2 minutes and when I'm done there is screaming coming from their bedroom. I fix supper and only one will eat it, or another day all but one will eat. The house is cleaned to almost spotless one day and the next day it looks like a tornado hit!
Seriously, I can't keep up. If I get all of the laundry done one day I find the hampers full to the brim the next day. I have about two dozen cups for them and they ALL end up dirty each day. I have started hiding some of them so that they are forced to wash out cups themselves when they want a drink.
I am so tired. I get a little bit of a break tomorrow, but only because I'll be in the dentist chair getting a root canal.
Father in Heaven, Thank You for my boys. Thank You for trusting me with them. I know I am not the perfect mother, and I could never hope to be, but I ask You to please help me be a good mother. Help me to keep my head screwed on straight. Help me to know what the right thing is and to do it. Help me to teach my children to love You. Lord, I want nothing more than to see my children grow up to love You and serve You with their whole hearts. Please bring that about in there lives I pray, In Jesus Precious name. Amen.
Friday, August 15, 2008
Foreclosure
Its so sad to drive through town and see all of the homes for sale. I hear all the time of people who either lost or gave up their homes. So many people were so excited that they could afford new, nice, big homes, just a few years ago. And now people are so short on money they are struggling to just buy food. House payments are so high even couples who both work can't afford them!
I understand and feel sorry for the people who just got in over their heads without realizing it, but on the other hand there are people out there who were just not wise and didn't think things through before buying. There are even some who were just plain being foolish even though they knew better. I can kind of understand what its like to do that too. There have been times in my life where I went ahead and spent money that I couldn't really afford to spend just because I wanted to have something "right now". Of course I later regretted it, as many are regretting buying houses they couldn't really afford.
I hope and pray we can buy a house one day, I also pray that God will give us wisdom in doing so. Its a big thing to do and I don't want to get in over my head and end up with regrets.
I understand and feel sorry for the people who just got in over their heads without realizing it, but on the other hand there are people out there who were just not wise and didn't think things through before buying. There are even some who were just plain being foolish even though they knew better. I can kind of understand what its like to do that too. There have been times in my life where I went ahead and spent money that I couldn't really afford to spend just because I wanted to have something "right now". Of course I later regretted it, as many are regretting buying houses they couldn't really afford.
I hope and pray we can buy a house one day, I also pray that God will give us wisdom in doing so. Its a big thing to do and I don't want to get in over my head and end up with regrets.
Attic
Yesterday I FINALLY! got the "too little/big" clothes sorted. All of the clothes that I am saving for the boys to wear when they grow into those sizes. I gave away a few things but I saved a lot. J and S should be well clothed as they grow. M and G on the other hand are going to need a whole new wardrobe once winter hits. They are only one size apart now! G is really catching up, I figure when they are teenagers G will pass M. We'll have to wait and see though.
Anyway, today Dh put them all up in the attic, I feel better about them being up there than in the garage. He also put the maternity clothes in the attic too. I told him they could be the furthest out of reach since I don't know if I'll ever be pregnant again but even if I am it won't be anytime soon if I can help it.
A friend who just got married in June found out she is expecting! I am so happy for her. I told her they would have to come over and have dinner with us and I would let her browse my library of pregnancy and baby books. That reminds me, I have to get back one of my breastfeeding books from a friend. Anyway, I would loan her some of my maternity clothes but she is a much thinner person than I am. Oh well.
Now I know its late but Dh and I are going to watch Facing the Giants. He hasn't seen it yet and I would really like him to. I'd better go now or we'll never get to it!
Anyway, today Dh put them all up in the attic, I feel better about them being up there than in the garage. He also put the maternity clothes in the attic too. I told him they could be the furthest out of reach since I don't know if I'll ever be pregnant again but even if I am it won't be anytime soon if I can help it.
A friend who just got married in June found out she is expecting! I am so happy for her. I told her they would have to come over and have dinner with us and I would let her browse my library of pregnancy and baby books. That reminds me, I have to get back one of my breastfeeding books from a friend. Anyway, I would loan her some of my maternity clothes but she is a much thinner person than I am. Oh well.
Now I know its late but Dh and I are going to watch Facing the Giants. He hasn't seen it yet and I would really like him to. I'd better go now or we'll never get to it!
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
"death crawl"-Facing the Giants
The boys and I watched the movie "Facing the Giants" today. It was really good! One I'd like to have in our collection actually, and I'm very picky about what movies I want to own.
The movie was about turning your life completely over to God and giving Him your all, no matter what. "If we win we praise Him, if we lose we praise Him". It was also about expecting God to do great things in your life and never giving up on what He has called you to. There were Bible verses scattered throughout and many great lines.
In one scene the coach of the football team asked one of the players to do the "death crawl" ("crawling" on hands and feet with another guy on his back) 50 yards. The player said he could maybe do 20 but certainly not 50. The coach told him to try anyway, then he put a blindfold on the boy so that he wouldn't be distracted by where he was on the field, so that he would go as far as he really could and not just as far as he thought he could. The coach stayed with the boy the whole way, encouraging and pushing him to go on, when the player finally gave up and had no more strength, the coach removed the blindfold and the boy saw that he was in the Endzone, clear across the field! He had gone 5 times what he thought he could!
After that scene M said to me, "I can do that! I want to try it with G on my back!" Haha! I said "OK, lets try it". He made it only half way across the living room though, he kept wanting to try again but G wasn't too keen on it. Then I said "hmm, I wonder if I can do it?" And I did, I made it almost all the way across the living room before G fell off my back, only a couple of feet before we reached the other side. It was fun to get down there with the boys.
There were a lot of good lessons in this movie and we talked about quite a few of them. This is definitely one we'll want to watch again as the boys get older and can understand more.
Praise the Lord!
The movie was about turning your life completely over to God and giving Him your all, no matter what. "If we win we praise Him, if we lose we praise Him". It was also about expecting God to do great things in your life and never giving up on what He has called you to. There were Bible verses scattered throughout and many great lines.
In one scene the coach of the football team asked one of the players to do the "death crawl" ("crawling" on hands and feet with another guy on his back) 50 yards. The player said he could maybe do 20 but certainly not 50. The coach told him to try anyway, then he put a blindfold on the boy so that he wouldn't be distracted by where he was on the field, so that he would go as far as he really could and not just as far as he thought he could. The coach stayed with the boy the whole way, encouraging and pushing him to go on, when the player finally gave up and had no more strength, the coach removed the blindfold and the boy saw that he was in the Endzone, clear across the field! He had gone 5 times what he thought he could!
After that scene M said to me, "I can do that! I want to try it with G on my back!" Haha! I said "OK, lets try it". He made it only half way across the living room though, he kept wanting to try again but G wasn't too keen on it. Then I said "hmm, I wonder if I can do it?" And I did, I made it almost all the way across the living room before G fell off my back, only a couple of feet before we reached the other side. It was fun to get down there with the boys.
There were a lot of good lessons in this movie and we talked about quite a few of them. This is definitely one we'll want to watch again as the boys get older and can understand more.
Praise the Lord!
Saturday, August 9, 2008
Praise God for Clothesline
Well, the first dryer we were loaned, when we moved into this house, came in pieces and we never got around to figuring out what was wrong with it. The second one we were given, to keep, doesn't work either! I am really bummed. It would make my life a lot easier to have a working dryer. At least I still have the clothesline Dh built for me. I can hang clothes to dry, which I actually love doing. Its just that hanging clothes takes a lot of time and with 6 people in the family we generate a lot of laundry.
We will have to come up with something when the weather gets colder because the clothes just won't dry on the line when its cold and wet outside. I know the Lord will provide something. I really believe He cares even about the "little" things, like drying clothes.
We will have to come up with something when the weather gets colder because the clothes just won't dry on the line when its cold and wet outside. I know the Lord will provide something. I really believe He cares even about the "little" things, like drying clothes.
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
a deal and walking
I made a visit to the local thrift store on Monday to look for some extra dishes (I like a certain brand and they have pieces there from time to time). I didn't find any but I found some shirts and skirts I liked. I ended up putting back one of the skirts back because they were both $5 or more. I decided just to get the one I really liked. Anyway, I got up to the counter and the lady says "Skirts are $1 today". I asked her if I could go back and pick up the one I had put back and then quickly went and retrieved it. So I got 2 skirts, 2 tank tops and one t-shirt for $10! I was thrilled. I needed some post-pregnancy clothes.
The one skirt I really like had to be taken in though. It works for now but I think I may have to take it in again, I may have to do something more drastic next time. It says size 16/18 and I'm probably a 14 right now. Hopefully that number will go down before long.
I think I'm ready to start walking again. I haven't in almost a year! I love walking though. I can put S and J in the double stroller and G and M can ride their bikes. We can go for walks in the evenings when the weather cools off a little, get to know the neighborhood and some of the neighbors. And hopefully get some good exercise! First I need to get the double stroller out of the garage and clean it up, I'm sure its covered in spider webs and dust.
The one skirt I really like had to be taken in though. It works for now but I think I may have to take it in again, I may have to do something more drastic next time. It says size 16/18 and I'm probably a 14 right now. Hopefully that number will go down before long.
I think I'm ready to start walking again. I haven't in almost a year! I love walking though. I can put S and J in the double stroller and G and M can ride their bikes. We can go for walks in the evenings when the weather cools off a little, get to know the neighborhood and some of the neighbors. And hopefully get some good exercise! First I need to get the double stroller out of the garage and clean it up, I'm sure its covered in spider webs and dust.
Monday, August 4, 2008
Why I homeschool
Just a few reasons, I'm sure I can come up with more! I started this probably 2 years ago...
#1. God gave my children to me and entrusted them to my care and gave me the responsibility to educate them.
#2. Even when my child has a runny nose he can still do his school work.
#3. We almost never have to miss a day of school for anything because we can do school work at any time of day.
#4. I can set our own hours for school and they can change from day to day.
#5. We can even do school on the weekends!
#6. If my child shows an interest in something we can pursue it.
#7. If my child struggles in a particular area we can either spend more time working on it or we can set it aside till he is ready for it.
#8. The whole family learns! We all participate in school.
#9. I get to learn everything I learned in school all over again! and again, and again (depending on how many kids I end up having).
#10. If my child is gifted in an area we can skip ahead.
#11. We can go on as many field trips as we like.
#12. Everything becomes a learning experience.
#13. Homeschooling gives my child many opportunities he would not have in Public or Private school.
#14. The older children can help teach the younger children.
#15. Less peer pressure.
#16. No Bullies. Less teasing. (brothers still tease each other sometimes).
#17. My child learns to relate to people of different ages, not just those his own age.
#18. He learns there is more to life than the opinion of his peers.
#19. My kids can pray in school! (they can also wear Christian t-shirts, sing praises to the Lord and freely tell others about Him!).
#20. I get to choose the curriculum that best suits each of my children.
#1. God gave my children to me and entrusted them to my care and gave me the responsibility to educate them.
#2. Even when my child has a runny nose he can still do his school work.
#3. We almost never have to miss a day of school for anything because we can do school work at any time of day.
#4. I can set our own hours for school and they can change from day to day.
#5. We can even do school on the weekends!
#6. If my child shows an interest in something we can pursue it.
#7. If my child struggles in a particular area we can either spend more time working on it or we can set it aside till he is ready for it.
#8. The whole family learns! We all participate in school.
#9. I get to learn everything I learned in school all over again! and again, and again (depending on how many kids I end up having).
#10. If my child is gifted in an area we can skip ahead.
#11. We can go on as many field trips as we like.
#12. Everything becomes a learning experience.
#13. Homeschooling gives my child many opportunities he would not have in Public or Private school.
#14. The older children can help teach the younger children.
#15. Less peer pressure.
#16. No Bullies. Less teasing. (brothers still tease each other sometimes).
#17. My child learns to relate to people of different ages, not just those his own age.
#18. He learns there is more to life than the opinion of his peers.
#19. My kids can pray in school! (they can also wear Christian t-shirts, sing praises to the Lord and freely tell others about Him!).
#20. I get to choose the curriculum that best suits each of my children.
First day of School!
We decided to start school early this year so that we have more flexibility to take breaks during the year. For example, we'll take off Monday August 25th because we will be at my parents house for the weekend and will be coming home that day. We may take a longer Christmas vacation as well, who knows.
We are easing back into school. M is in 2nd grade and G is in Kindergarten. This week we will only be doing Bible. Next week we will add in Reading, and the following week another subject, we'll keep adding one or two subjects a week until we have a full load.
Our Bible curriculum is something I just made up. I hope it was inspired! We will be memorizing the books of the Bible, 5 per week at a time. This week will be the first five books of the Bible. We will practice saying them each day, plus we will choose one verse to memorize each week. Each day we will learn about one of the books, today for example, we learned about Genesis. We learned about the author, some of the main stories in the book, and some facts about the book. I also gave the boys some coloring pages about Adam and Eve. Tomorrow we will learn about Exodus, and so on. I know that won't take the whole school year but I figure we'll do review after that and by then come up with something more. Perhaps memorizing the key verses from each book? I'm not sure yet. We may just go over the whole thing again!
Overall I think today went pretty well. We started kinda late since I slept in. We began with the pledge of allegiance to the American flag, then the pledge to the Christian flag, the pledge to the Bible and then prayer. After that we had our Bible lesson and that was it!
One thing that is nice about having school is that it seems to bring more structure to our days. There is more that has to be accomplished each day. We aren't rigid at all but it is good for us to have a routine. For Dh and I as much as for our kids!
My goal is to start getting up at 6 AM before the boys. That is going to take some work though!
We are easing back into school. M is in 2nd grade and G is in Kindergarten. This week we will only be doing Bible. Next week we will add in Reading, and the following week another subject, we'll keep adding one or two subjects a week until we have a full load.
Our Bible curriculum is something I just made up. I hope it was inspired! We will be memorizing the books of the Bible, 5 per week at a time. This week will be the first five books of the Bible. We will practice saying them each day, plus we will choose one verse to memorize each week. Each day we will learn about one of the books, today for example, we learned about Genesis. We learned about the author, some of the main stories in the book, and some facts about the book. I also gave the boys some coloring pages about Adam and Eve. Tomorrow we will learn about Exodus, and so on. I know that won't take the whole school year but I figure we'll do review after that and by then come up with something more. Perhaps memorizing the key verses from each book? I'm not sure yet. We may just go over the whole thing again!
Overall I think today went pretty well. We started kinda late since I slept in. We began with the pledge of allegiance to the American flag, then the pledge to the Christian flag, the pledge to the Bible and then prayer. After that we had our Bible lesson and that was it!
One thing that is nice about having school is that it seems to bring more structure to our days. There is more that has to be accomplished each day. We aren't rigid at all but it is good for us to have a routine. For Dh and I as much as for our kids!
My goal is to start getting up at 6 AM before the boys. That is going to take some work though!
Saturday, August 2, 2008
Project update
OK, so these were the projects we were trying to get done this week...
1. Steam clean the carpet and couch.
Carpet got done, not the couch.
2. Organize the Den/school room/tv room/library.
Started, far from finished!
3. Clean out the garage.
Mostly done.
4. Sort the clothes that don't currently fit anyone.
Not done at all.
5. Fix the van window.
Not done.
6. Get ready for Home School next week.
Almost ready!
7. Catch up on general house work.
Mostly.
Not too bad. I would have liked to have gotten more done, but you probably know how it is.
1. Steam clean the carpet and couch.
Carpet got done, not the couch.
2. Organize the Den/school room/tv room/library.
Started, far from finished!
3. Clean out the garage.
Mostly done.
4. Sort the clothes that don't currently fit anyone.
Not done at all.
5. Fix the van window.
Not done.
6. Get ready for Home School next week.
Almost ready!
7. Catch up on general house work.
Mostly.
Not too bad. I would have liked to have gotten more done, but you probably know how it is.
ADD at VBS
No one can tell me my oldest son doesn't have attention issues!
Last night at VBS families all came together for burgers before the final presentation by all of the kids. The different age groups took turns up on the stage singing songs and dancing (motions to the songs). G's group went up first and he did really well! He kept up with the group and the beat and just did a really great job! I was so proud of him!
Next was M's group. He is 7 1/2 years old and about to go into 2nd grade. He wasn't quite with the group or on the beat but he was doing the motions and singing. Then comes the part of the song where all of the kids squat down on the floor, all that is, except for M! He stands there staring up and waving his hand around almost like he's trying to grasp something. Dh and I are cracking up at this point, he is so like us! We both have many memories of being completely spaced out as kids (um, and sometimes as adults). Finally he realized that he was supposed to be squatting with the rest of the group, just a moment before it was time to stand up again! I'm sure this whole incident lasted less than a minute. It was a perfect illustration of how M is all the time. Later we asked him what he was doing, he said he was trying to catch the dust he could see in the spot lights. LOL, I figured.
We've added Flax oil to his diet recently, maybe that will help some. We've also just recently cut the sugar out of his diet (as much as we can anyway). I'm sure that will be good for all of us.
Last night at VBS families all came together for burgers before the final presentation by all of the kids. The different age groups took turns up on the stage singing songs and dancing (motions to the songs). G's group went up first and he did really well! He kept up with the group and the beat and just did a really great job! I was so proud of him!
Next was M's group. He is 7 1/2 years old and about to go into 2nd grade. He wasn't quite with the group or on the beat but he was doing the motions and singing. Then comes the part of the song where all of the kids squat down on the floor, all that is, except for M! He stands there staring up and waving his hand around almost like he's trying to grasp something. Dh and I are cracking up at this point, he is so like us! We both have many memories of being completely spaced out as kids (um, and sometimes as adults). Finally he realized that he was supposed to be squatting with the rest of the group, just a moment before it was time to stand up again! I'm sure this whole incident lasted less than a minute. It was a perfect illustration of how M is all the time. Later we asked him what he was doing, he said he was trying to catch the dust he could see in the spot lights. LOL, I figured.
We've added Flax oil to his diet recently, maybe that will help some. We've also just recently cut the sugar out of his diet (as much as we can anyway). I'm sure that will be good for all of us.
Thursday, July 31, 2008
More diapers
I got two more diapers and one diaper doubler made today! The elastic still isn't right but I guess that will come with practice. Over all I am pleased though. S is wearing one now! They even fit J, so I can say they can go from 15 lbs. to 30 lbs. Probably could fit a smaller baby but I'm not sure how small, and maybe a slightly larger baby but not by much.It looks like I'm only going to be able to make 6 diapers with the PUL I purchased but that's ok. I'm sure I'll be able to buy more one of these days. Right now I'm thinking I'd like to have about 24 diapers. I've got 6 Kushies, 3 WAHM's, and three of my own now. Hopefully I'll have the other 4 made soon.
This sure is fun :)
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Homemade cloth diaper
I did it! This is the first cloth diaper I've made! I used a soft flannel receiving blanket for the inner and outer layers and I used a cotton prefold for the soaker layer. I put in velcro to fasten it.
Overall I am pleased, I need to get the hang of doing the elastic part though. I did one side just right but the other side was a little too loose.
This diaper isn't waterproof but I have the PUL to make some that are. On one hand I can't wait to cut into it but on the other I am nervous about cutting into something that isn't just scrap fabric. It wasn't terribly expensive but more than I usually pay for fabric. I'm sure it will be worth it though. A friend told me I can probably get 6-8 diapers out of the PUL so I am going to measure carefully and try to get at least 6. I'll have to post a pic when I get those ones made.
This one took me about an hour to make (though I was interrupted a lot and from the time I started till I finished was more than a day). I think now that I have a better idea of what I am doing I can make one in less time. It used to take me about 2 full hours to make a baby sling but now I can probably make 2 in an hour. It's just a matter of having an uninterrupted hour to make them!
P.S. Don't you love those baby thighs!
Grocery outlet
The first night of VBS J had no problems with his big brothers getting to go to church while he stayed home, but last night was a different story. He cried and cried as we drove away from church. He said he didn't want to go home he wanted to go to Grocery outlet, so we drove over there and walked through the store with him. LOL, it was one of the most pleasant trips we've made there! The first thing he grabbed was a fudge making kit. Since it was only $1.50 and I couldn't make fudge for that little, I went ahead and bought it. The only thing that needed to be added was butter and I already had that. We also found some salad, a honeydew melon, yogurt, and mini M&M's. Needless to say J was quite pleased by the time we left.
It was interesting making a trip to the grocery store with only two little ones. It's been a long time! Dh carried S while I kept up with J. One kid for each of us! Just like it used to be when we only had M and G.
When you only have one child its pretty easy passing him back and forth between you when you go out. When you have two its not so bad either because you have one parent for each child. Then comes along number three and it takes a while to get used to handling two at a time. You can take turns handling two at a time though. Then comes along number 4 and you pretty much have two at a time ALL the time! Sometimes you even have 3 at a time when you go out as a family because one is being particularly difficult.
4 are probably easier than 3 though, since you are already used to having at least two at a time, at least half the time.
Not sure what 5 is going to be like. Not sure if we'll ever have that many or more.
It was fun going shopping with just two. When they are all behaving themselves it can be fun shopping with 4 too.
It was interesting making a trip to the grocery store with only two little ones. It's been a long time! Dh carried S while I kept up with J. One kid for each of us! Just like it used to be when we only had M and G.
When you only have one child its pretty easy passing him back and forth between you when you go out. When you have two its not so bad either because you have one parent for each child. Then comes along number three and it takes a while to get used to handling two at a time. You can take turns handling two at a time though. Then comes along number 4 and you pretty much have two at a time ALL the time! Sometimes you even have 3 at a time when you go out as a family because one is being particularly difficult.
4 are probably easier than 3 though, since you are already used to having at least two at a time, at least half the time.
Not sure what 5 is going to be like. Not sure if we'll ever have that many or more.
It was fun going shopping with just two. When they are all behaving themselves it can be fun shopping with 4 too.
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
The Garage
Well, I ended up spending the day in bed. I came down with a case of Mastitis so I need to take it easy for a few days and get plenty of rest.
Dh managed to get the garage looking a lot better! After M & G went to VBS at 6 PM he got a lot done in there. There is actually room to walk in there now! Someone is giving us a washer and dryer this weekend so we needed to be able to get them into the garage. We have another set on loan to us (though the dryer doesn't work) but the set we are being given will be ours to keep. God is so good! I am so excited to get a dryer! I love hanging clothes on the line but there are times a dryer would really be useful.
It is amazing. We've lived in apartments ever since we got married, we've never had much space to store things. Now we've had a garage for 5 months and its already half full of stuff! Now we do have a couple of things we are just holding onto for other people but still, we have a lot of stuff in there ourselves. I am trying to get rid of things we don't need though. I don't want to hang on to things that are of no use to us. There's just no point. It is a never ending job though, to go through the possessions we have and get rid of the things we don't need or want any more.
I think the older boys loved VBS, they were very excited when we picked them up. I am glad, its really nice to have them out of the house for 2 1/2 hours each evening. For this week anyway. J wasn't upset at all about not getting to go with his older brothers, I was really surprised but very glad. Maybe tomorrow we'll take him to the park or something like that.
Dh is off work for one more day so I will try and get as much rest as I can. Its nearly impossible to get good rest when I am here by myself with the boys. Hopefully I will be well by the end of the week.
Lord Jesus, I give myself to You, I surrender to You. My life, my health, my children, everything is in Your hands.
Dh managed to get the garage looking a lot better! After M & G went to VBS at 6 PM he got a lot done in there. There is actually room to walk in there now! Someone is giving us a washer and dryer this weekend so we needed to be able to get them into the garage. We have another set on loan to us (though the dryer doesn't work) but the set we are being given will be ours to keep. God is so good! I am so excited to get a dryer! I love hanging clothes on the line but there are times a dryer would really be useful.
It is amazing. We've lived in apartments ever since we got married, we've never had much space to store things. Now we've had a garage for 5 months and its already half full of stuff! Now we do have a couple of things we are just holding onto for other people but still, we have a lot of stuff in there ourselves. I am trying to get rid of things we don't need though. I don't want to hang on to things that are of no use to us. There's just no point. It is a never ending job though, to go through the possessions we have and get rid of the things we don't need or want any more.
I think the older boys loved VBS, they were very excited when we picked them up. I am glad, its really nice to have them out of the house for 2 1/2 hours each evening. For this week anyway. J wasn't upset at all about not getting to go with his older brothers, I was really surprised but very glad. Maybe tomorrow we'll take him to the park or something like that.
Dh is off work for one more day so I will try and get as much rest as I can. Its nearly impossible to get good rest when I am here by myself with the boys. Hopefully I will be well by the end of the week.
Lord Jesus, I give myself to You, I surrender to You. My life, my health, my children, everything is in Your hands.
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Projects
This week Dh and I have a few projects we want to accomplish. He was off work today and has the next two days off as well!
1. Steam clean the carpet and couch.
2. Organize the Den/school room/tv room/library.
3. Clean out the garage.
4. Sort the clothes that don't currently fit anyone.
5. Fix the van window.
6. Get ready for Home School next week.
7. Catch up on general house work.
I also need to get well! I've been fighting a sinus infection for two weeks now. Considering the average sinus infection lasts for 3 weeks I should be getting better soon. LOL, I need to take it easier than I have been. Easier said than done.
I will be so happy when the couch is cleaned! It's needed it for a very long time. Sometimes I though blankets over it when we have company but that just makes it feel too hot during the summer. The carpet isn't too terrible but a good cleaning will make it look much better.
Hopefully when I go through the clothes I will find a few more pairs of shorts for J. He could use some. I am hoping my sewing machine will be fixed in a few days, I have 3 pair of shorts that just need elastic in them. Oh yeah, hehe, that's my other project, but I don't know if I'll get there this week. I want to make some more clothe diapers for S. We were given some AIO's and really like them and I think I can manage to make a few more. I ordered my supplies so as soon as they arrive and my machine is working I can get started! I am so excited to try.
1. Steam clean the carpet and couch.
2. Organize the Den/school room/tv room/library.
3. Clean out the garage.
4. Sort the clothes that don't currently fit anyone.
5. Fix the van window.
6. Get ready for Home School next week.
7. Catch up on general house work.
I also need to get well! I've been fighting a sinus infection for two weeks now. Considering the average sinus infection lasts for 3 weeks I should be getting better soon. LOL, I need to take it easier than I have been. Easier said than done.
I will be so happy when the couch is cleaned! It's needed it for a very long time. Sometimes I though blankets over it when we have company but that just makes it feel too hot during the summer. The carpet isn't too terrible but a good cleaning will make it look much better.
Hopefully when I go through the clothes I will find a few more pairs of shorts for J. He could use some. I am hoping my sewing machine will be fixed in a few days, I have 3 pair of shorts that just need elastic in them. Oh yeah, hehe, that's my other project, but I don't know if I'll get there this week. I want to make some more clothe diapers for S. We were given some AIO's and really like them and I think I can manage to make a few more. I ordered my supplies so as soon as they arrive and my machine is working I can get started! I am so excited to try.
Blogging again and school
I've been wanting to start a new blog, I've never been very successful at keeping up a blog but I'm going give it another try.
I am planning to start school with the two older boys next week. This week is VBS at church so I should have some time to plan for next week while the boys are there. M will be in 2nd grade and G will be starting Kindergarten! I am really excited about teaching G to read. We've already done a couple of lessons and I know he is excited as well.
This year we are going to ease into the year. The first week we will just do Bible and then add 1 or 2 subjects each week after that until we have a full load. Since its my first year teaching two I wanted to make it easier on myself. Plus I still have the 2 little ones to take care of! S still sleeps a lot, he'll just be 2 months old when we start, and J is pretty good at entertaining himself, although there are subjects he will be able to participate in as well.
The baby wants me so that's all for now. Hopefully I'll be getting on here and typing more soon!
I am planning to start school with the two older boys next week. This week is VBS at church so I should have some time to plan for next week while the boys are there. M will be in 2nd grade and G will be starting Kindergarten! I am really excited about teaching G to read. We've already done a couple of lessons and I know he is excited as well.
This year we are going to ease into the year. The first week we will just do Bible and then add 1 or 2 subjects each week after that until we have a full load. Since its my first year teaching two I wanted to make it easier on myself. Plus I still have the 2 little ones to take care of! S still sleeps a lot, he'll just be 2 months old when we start, and J is pretty good at entertaining himself, although there are subjects he will be able to participate in as well.
The baby wants me so that's all for now. Hopefully I'll be getting on here and typing more soon!
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