What a wild and crazy week we have had!
Tues night we ended up going to Gainsville which is about an hour and a half south of us. We have a little boy in our church who has Cerebal Palsey and he had to have surgery a few weeks ago on some tubing in his spine. Well after the surgery he was given too much pain medication and slipped into unconsciouness for a day or two giving us all a scare. Then he came out and we praised the Lord mightily as he returned to church. Last Thursday he got real sick and was even worse Friday afternoon his parents were told to rush him to the hospital in Gainsville (once again 1.5 hours away) and he was found with some bacteria in his blook. It looks like E-Coli. They took all of his tubes out and are working hard to keep it from his brain. Our church family has taken turns going to G-Ville to be with the family and after making arrangements with my mom to watch the children (ALL OF THEM!) we took our turn Tues night. He seems to be doing better and we hope he will be home next week.
I went down to the outlet mall in St Augustine (about 45 min South of here) Wednesday with all of the children looking for school clothes for KE and KA. I was sorely dissapointed. Im not sure why our little girls are supposed to dress like hookers but Im sure there is a reason. If you are a mom of a little girl I suggest you never set foot inside a Limited Too even if the sign says 70% off everything in the store. You wont want to pay $1 to these people! I'd never been inside one and thought maybe I could find a shirt or something. One shirt I saw size 5 was skin tight pink with a flirty looking cat on the front and "Kitten" written across the chest. Remember when "Kitten" was a cute word used by daddies???? Not anymore.. this shirt was offensive. Anyways I finally found some solid color pastel tees at Carter's outlet for $5 each. I got a handfull of them and that was our shopping trip. Oh yeah they also have a toy outlet down there where we do most of our Christmas shopping. Since the children did so well I took them in there to find a cheapy toy or something. I dont usually do stuff like this but it was a loooooooong day for them and we did not have hardly any clothes to show the fruits of our labor.... so I broke down. Well they had "party packs" of bouncy balls and flutes and slinky's 8 to a pack so I bought those. They were 3 packs for $5 so I walked out with 24 toys for $5. The children were happy and I was happy.
Yesterday I went to our local mall and was pleased with the clothes and the prices. Not thrilled but pleased. My girls like to wear skirts and that was a disaster. But I did find a few that came to thier knees and since they have shorts underneath I was a little more comfortable. I still have to get undershirts and underwear and school supplies today before tax free week is over. But things are looking better.
And last but not least we left Friday night to go to Tampa about 4 hours southwest of us to see friends who had thier sweet baby girl two months early. She is doing good though she is looking at hospital time. She came in at about 4 pounds.She is so sweet and so tiny. Apparently preemies have a tendency to stop breathing occasionally. And while my hubby was holding her she decided that should would scare him and stop breathing. Everyone stayed calm and the nurse jostled her around a bit and she started breathing withing seconds but hubby said the wait was excrutiating. I believe it. Her mom and dad were not too perturbed by the whole scene and were actually teasing hubby about it a little later. So I guess it is normal. All I know is if she had stopped breathing while I was holding her they would have had to resucitate me as well!
Im waiting on a check to come in the mail. I should get it some time this week. I am going to get a preschool curriculum I saw at our local homeschool store for T and possibly C. His mom wants him in a preschool program but I dont like the thought of sending him away all day. Im hoping that by getting this curriculum and keeping a daily progress chart I can head off the inevitable questioning by his social worker about why he is not in the preschool program. It is not mandatory here but we did pass a law that gave voluntary free pre kindergarten to all four year olds. I despise it because it wont stop there. Soon it will be madatory pre kindergarten and voluntary three year old kindergarten on down the line until they just take them at the hospital because you have no clue how to raise your own child. I see this whole game as a way for the state to get your children in thier clutches earlier and earlier. OF course my children come to me from the state so I have very little to say in how they are raised but I do the best I can and pray pray pray... ok stepping down for soapbox! :)
Around the House:
Nothing much going on here. Been busy shopping for school clothes (which I came in way under budget on! YEAH!)
I have started the girls on thier own laundry. The eight year old can do almost everything though she still needs a little help. The five year old can do most of it. I have to help her transfer from the wash to the dryer and help put away most of the clothes. I also pour the laundry detergent into the cup for her as the bottle is super big. The three year old is mostly in the watch stage right now. She likes to help put the clothes in the wash and pour the detergent in and she can help transfer to the dryer. I got a hamper seperated into three parts and each girl has a section. Its been working out great Im impressed with how well the girls keep up on it! Now I have to get busy on the boys' laundry situation.
I broke down and finally ordered the MOTH system. I have heard such rave reviews and hubby thought it looked good so we invested in it. I am waiting patiently for its arrival.
School starts August 8th. I am trying right now to work out a new schedule. I know school will take up a lot of KA and KE's time but I still want them to have responsibilities around the house. I have a real tentative schedule for them and I of course will tweak it after school starts and they get settled in and we can be more realistic.
Well we were gone most the weekend so I will spend most of Monday getting the house back in order. Usually when I leave my house to go out of town I leave a disaster area in my wake. I know I know this is not the smart thing to do and it is something I am praying about and working on but thats how it is right now. So alas my Monday will be very busy.
Saturday, July 30, 2005
Monday, July 25, 2005
Playing Church
PHEW! I love having six children but is it hard work!
I just want to share something funny/encouraging that my children did yesterday. They played church. And as I watched them sing the songs and my girls give "sermons" on creation holding the Bible open in front of them I noticed something. They all had baby dolls and stuffed animals with them. There were two babies in strollers, one in a baby back pack, and a few sitting on the pews. All of thier babies were in church with them. Thats all my little ones know. They dont stay in the nursery while we worship they come alongside us. As we continue to add to our family praying for a baby someday we will add to our pew. We have a hard time staffing our nursery during the service. I have long advocated for a room to the side where the sermon can be piped through that parents can bring young children to when they get fussy or rowdy. Maybe even section off a part for nursing mothers. If parents were responsible for thier children during church we would not have to scramble to find workers during the worship service. And maybe children would be better behaved. But I dont think that will happen as we have a mainstream church reaching out to today's culture. Our little ones 8,5,4,3,2,and 2 are the only small children in church. Up through kindergarten they have extended care in the back. We practice at home sitting still and listening during family worship. The two year olds get a little antsy but they stay quiet. I let them wiggle a bit but if it gets distracting I sit them up with a reprimand to sit still. Sometimes if the two year old is exceptionally fussy I will get the toddlers picture Bible from the SS class and let him look at that quietly. We have had praise for the way our children behave in church but we have also heard some ridicule. Actually the funny part is the ridicule has never come to our face its been behind our back and just made its way to us. It is from people who have decided that we are missing out on the sermon because of the children, or children should not be made to sit still for so long, or they are bored and need to be doing something constructive. I just smile. We worship together as a family all week long. If I miss part of the sermon because I have to train a child I can fall back on the time I had with God the week before. We worship God through obedience and I am obeying by training my littles to sit in church and have self control. Children are a ton more perceptive then we believe them to be. I am always amazed at what my children pick up from the sermons. I love looking down the row and seeing a line of little people staring at the preacher storing up his words in thier hearts and thier minds so that one day they can pull it out of reserve. I love the fact that they can sit there and not have to have a video game or a book to look at. And I love the fact that during the week I will look out and see all the children lined up with thier baby dolls and teddy bears and little Bibles and they will be playing church!
Around the House:
Same old same old.
I have my Binder ready hoping to get it posted soon.
I organized the girls' closet so that we can actually find stuff. YIPEE!
We went to Sam's Saturday and bought two buggy loads of stuff. Before we left hubby and I sat down and decided that most of our grocery shopping would now take place at Sam's. It is not always cheaper but at this moment in our lives it is more convienient. (I can NEVER spell that word!) So we made a path to an old chest freezer we have and cleaned it out and got it all ready to go. When we got home we went through our freezer in the house and moved some stuff to the chest freezer and some stayed. We did the same with our purchases from Sam's. At the same time we inventoried our freezers. Now we have a nice list and we can keep stock of what we have. Im so excited.
Now I have to finish putting away all the pantry items. We bought a bunch of number 10 can stuff. If you dont know what that is you obviously have one child... Just kidding! Its the big cans of stuff. We bought them in baked beans, corn, and tomatoe sauce. These are things we thought we would go through in one sitting. Now I have to decide where to put everything. Im thinking that the new decor in my kitchen might be canned goods. :) I also want to inventory my pantry as well.
The playroom is not working out as efficiently as I hoped so I might have to revamp. Hubby and I are already talking about a bigger home. Not necessarily for "junk" but so we can have more room to be together as a family. And we are starting to see the need for a little more space for homeschooling and entertaining. It wont happen any time soon but he should have his degree by the end of next year and we are hoping with that he can advance farther in his company and we will be able to finish paying off our debts and then start saving for our new home. Like I said we are talking distant distant future! :)
Anyway back to the playroom there is just not enough room behind the couch like I was hoping to store thier toys. Although I found a great webiste MOMY's and they had some neat ideas for toy storage that I definatly want to explore. It would mean culling even more toys but to tell the truth at this point Im ready to throw everything out and start all over. I remember a year ago I did not have any toys and I had to rush to Big Lots for a few toys for A when they brought him. LOL!
Our bedroom looks a lot better and I even sat down yesterday and worked on a apron I have been trying to sew for like a year now. I messed it up pretty badly but hey it was better then what I had before and my sweet girl thinks its the most beautiful apron in the world!
Well hubby is working late tonight so its Mac N Cheese for the troops tonight! Applesauce for dessert! YUM!
I just want to share something funny/encouraging that my children did yesterday. They played church. And as I watched them sing the songs and my girls give "sermons" on creation holding the Bible open in front of them I noticed something. They all had baby dolls and stuffed animals with them. There were two babies in strollers, one in a baby back pack, and a few sitting on the pews. All of thier babies were in church with them. Thats all my little ones know. They dont stay in the nursery while we worship they come alongside us. As we continue to add to our family praying for a baby someday we will add to our pew. We have a hard time staffing our nursery during the service. I have long advocated for a room to the side where the sermon can be piped through that parents can bring young children to when they get fussy or rowdy. Maybe even section off a part for nursing mothers. If parents were responsible for thier children during church we would not have to scramble to find workers during the worship service. And maybe children would be better behaved. But I dont think that will happen as we have a mainstream church reaching out to today's culture. Our little ones 8,5,4,3,2,and 2 are the only small children in church. Up through kindergarten they have extended care in the back. We practice at home sitting still and listening during family worship. The two year olds get a little antsy but they stay quiet. I let them wiggle a bit but if it gets distracting I sit them up with a reprimand to sit still. Sometimes if the two year old is exceptionally fussy I will get the toddlers picture Bible from the SS class and let him look at that quietly. We have had praise for the way our children behave in church but we have also heard some ridicule. Actually the funny part is the ridicule has never come to our face its been behind our back and just made its way to us. It is from people who have decided that we are missing out on the sermon because of the children, or children should not be made to sit still for so long, or they are bored and need to be doing something constructive. I just smile. We worship together as a family all week long. If I miss part of the sermon because I have to train a child I can fall back on the time I had with God the week before. We worship God through obedience and I am obeying by training my littles to sit in church and have self control. Children are a ton more perceptive then we believe them to be. I am always amazed at what my children pick up from the sermons. I love looking down the row and seeing a line of little people staring at the preacher storing up his words in thier hearts and thier minds so that one day they can pull it out of reserve. I love the fact that they can sit there and not have to have a video game or a book to look at. And I love the fact that during the week I will look out and see all the children lined up with thier baby dolls and teddy bears and little Bibles and they will be playing church!
Around the House:
Same old same old.
I have my Binder ready hoping to get it posted soon.
I organized the girls' closet so that we can actually find stuff. YIPEE!
We went to Sam's Saturday and bought two buggy loads of stuff. Before we left hubby and I sat down and decided that most of our grocery shopping would now take place at Sam's. It is not always cheaper but at this moment in our lives it is more convienient. (I can NEVER spell that word!) So we made a path to an old chest freezer we have and cleaned it out and got it all ready to go. When we got home we went through our freezer in the house and moved some stuff to the chest freezer and some stayed. We did the same with our purchases from Sam's. At the same time we inventoried our freezers. Now we have a nice list and we can keep stock of what we have. Im so excited.
Now I have to finish putting away all the pantry items. We bought a bunch of number 10 can stuff. If you dont know what that is you obviously have one child... Just kidding! Its the big cans of stuff. We bought them in baked beans, corn, and tomatoe sauce. These are things we thought we would go through in one sitting. Now I have to decide where to put everything. Im thinking that the new decor in my kitchen might be canned goods. :) I also want to inventory my pantry as well.
The playroom is not working out as efficiently as I hoped so I might have to revamp. Hubby and I are already talking about a bigger home. Not necessarily for "junk" but so we can have more room to be together as a family. And we are starting to see the need for a little more space for homeschooling and entertaining. It wont happen any time soon but he should have his degree by the end of next year and we are hoping with that he can advance farther in his company and we will be able to finish paying off our debts and then start saving for our new home. Like I said we are talking distant distant future! :)
Anyway back to the playroom there is just not enough room behind the couch like I was hoping to store thier toys. Although I found a great webiste MOMY's and they had some neat ideas for toy storage that I definatly want to explore. It would mean culling even more toys but to tell the truth at this point Im ready to throw everything out and start all over. I remember a year ago I did not have any toys and I had to rush to Big Lots for a few toys for A when they brought him. LOL!
Our bedroom looks a lot better and I even sat down yesterday and worked on a apron I have been trying to sew for like a year now. I messed it up pretty badly but hey it was better then what I had before and my sweet girl thinks its the most beautiful apron in the world!
Well hubby is working late tonight so its Mac N Cheese for the troops tonight! Applesauce for dessert! YUM!
Thursday, July 21, 2005
Friendship that lasts
Today is going to be a good day. I woke up with no headache or stomache problems. YEAH! Im pretty excited. Its been a learning experience having an 8 year old. She can do more on her own than my younger children BUT she is still just a little girl herself. The trick is trying to decide what she is old enough to do and what she still needs to be helped with. *Sigh*
I was hoping to go to North Carolina this weekend to see my friend and her family but I still have an extra child and my van has gotten no bigger. The children start school in just a few short weeks and I dont know if we will make it up there before then. I have already asked hubby if we could maybe go up the week of Thanksgiving. I would like to go for a short trip before then though.
Let me tell you a little about my friend. When I was a young teenager we met this family at church. They had just lost a little boy in a terrible car accident. They asked in lieu of flowers that a donation be made to the church for a children's program they really wanted to see started at the church. AWANA. With the donations we were able to start this program and through working together to get it started I became close to this family. Before long I was spending many weekends at thier house. They had three small children younger than the boy who was killed. I was going over there with about 4 other young ladies from church. They had thier problems but I have to tell you most of my spiritual growth came from the fellowship in this small one bathroom house. Before long the husband who was in the Navy started bringing home young men for dinner and inviting them to church. Before long we were literally one big happy family. I learned about prayer, encouraging, teaching, and learning over there. She kept in regular contact with my mom and my mom told me she never felt slighted. I had always wanted a big brother and now I had three and three or four big sisters at any given time. I was the youngest and everyone looked out for me. When I had a bad relationship my "brothers" threatened to talk to that boy. When I needed clothing advice or skin care advice my "sisters" were always there to help. Some people thought it was odd all the boys and girls together and thinking back I dont think its something I would be comfortable letting my children do but honestly nothing ever happened we were brothers and sisters and that would be gross.
Fast forward.... the years went by and people went thier own ways BUT I could not let this family go. When the husband was transferred to North Carolina in 1999 I cried for a week. But when the wife was literally kicked out of the house with her four children while the husband was out to sea due to a bad real estate contract I drove with her and the children up to North Carolina to try to help her find a new home... all by herself. A few weeks later my husband (then my boyfriend) and I went with her to move into the house we found. She and my husband took turns driving the moving van and we all took turns driving her van full of children and pets. It was an adventure! Now years later we go up there at least once a year maybe more. The Lord has so greatly blessed them with a MANSION! I mean many many bedrooms and bathrooms. :) A big step up from getting 28 people ready on Easter Sunday Morning with one bathroom and still getting to church on time. Her little children that I knew as toddlers are now hulking teenagers. She still opens her home to the world. The doors are never locked and you never know who is going to walk in. They are busy tearing down walls to make a larger gathering room since it is not unusual on a Sat or Sun night after church for the whole church to gather at thier house for fellowship. She taught me about hospitality and how it can bless you. Im still learning. :) Now I get to run to her with questions about my little ones. She always has great advice. She has recipes to feed large families (PRAISE THE LORD) and this year she is going to homeschool so I can even pick her brain over this! I am so impressed with this godly, praying woman! Her children are now 10, 13, 15, and 17. She is emabarking on the "hard" years of homeschooling. As I babystep through these first few years I know that I will have a mentor for the coming years!
Around the House:
ALL THE DISHES ARE DONE!
LAUNDRY IS MANAGABLE!
This is how I judge my home by the above two statements. If I can accomplish these two things I feel I have done something.
The children are right now in the process of destroying the playroom. We have added all of KA's toys to our mix and it is quiet a haul they have. It wont last. I dont allow broken toys or useless toys and I see many of her toys are just that. She and I talked and we are going through them next week and getting rid of the broken ones. I dont mind if they destroy the playroom because they have to clean whatever mess they make and let me tell you I dont let them pick up a few things and walk away oh no I mean clean!
Im reorganizing my bedroom with all the file cabinets I got and its starting to look better.
Hubby is going to mow the grass when he comes home so Im cooking him a special dinner of country ribs and mashed potatoes.
Still need to sort through closets and get an efficient system set up. I want to seperate the girl's clothes so they can find them easier. The boy's closet needs the same thing done.
Well I better get back to dinner.
I was hoping to go to North Carolina this weekend to see my friend and her family but I still have an extra child and my van has gotten no bigger. The children start school in just a few short weeks and I dont know if we will make it up there before then. I have already asked hubby if we could maybe go up the week of Thanksgiving. I would like to go for a short trip before then though.
Let me tell you a little about my friend. When I was a young teenager we met this family at church. They had just lost a little boy in a terrible car accident. They asked in lieu of flowers that a donation be made to the church for a children's program they really wanted to see started at the church. AWANA. With the donations we were able to start this program and through working together to get it started I became close to this family. Before long I was spending many weekends at thier house. They had three small children younger than the boy who was killed. I was going over there with about 4 other young ladies from church. They had thier problems but I have to tell you most of my spiritual growth came from the fellowship in this small one bathroom house. Before long the husband who was in the Navy started bringing home young men for dinner and inviting them to church. Before long we were literally one big happy family. I learned about prayer, encouraging, teaching, and learning over there. She kept in regular contact with my mom and my mom told me she never felt slighted. I had always wanted a big brother and now I had three and three or four big sisters at any given time. I was the youngest and everyone looked out for me. When I had a bad relationship my "brothers" threatened to talk to that boy. When I needed clothing advice or skin care advice my "sisters" were always there to help. Some people thought it was odd all the boys and girls together and thinking back I dont think its something I would be comfortable letting my children do but honestly nothing ever happened we were brothers and sisters and that would be gross.
Fast forward.... the years went by and people went thier own ways BUT I could not let this family go. When the husband was transferred to North Carolina in 1999 I cried for a week. But when the wife was literally kicked out of the house with her four children while the husband was out to sea due to a bad real estate contract I drove with her and the children up to North Carolina to try to help her find a new home... all by herself. A few weeks later my husband (then my boyfriend) and I went with her to move into the house we found. She and my husband took turns driving the moving van and we all took turns driving her van full of children and pets. It was an adventure! Now years later we go up there at least once a year maybe more. The Lord has so greatly blessed them with a MANSION! I mean many many bedrooms and bathrooms. :) A big step up from getting 28 people ready on Easter Sunday Morning with one bathroom and still getting to church on time. Her little children that I knew as toddlers are now hulking teenagers. She still opens her home to the world. The doors are never locked and you never know who is going to walk in. They are busy tearing down walls to make a larger gathering room since it is not unusual on a Sat or Sun night after church for the whole church to gather at thier house for fellowship. She taught me about hospitality and how it can bless you. Im still learning. :) Now I get to run to her with questions about my little ones. She always has great advice. She has recipes to feed large families (PRAISE THE LORD) and this year she is going to homeschool so I can even pick her brain over this! I am so impressed with this godly, praying woman! Her children are now 10, 13, 15, and 17. She is emabarking on the "hard" years of homeschooling. As I babystep through these first few years I know that I will have a mentor for the coming years!
Around the House:
ALL THE DISHES ARE DONE!
LAUNDRY IS MANAGABLE!
This is how I judge my home by the above two statements. If I can accomplish these two things I feel I have done something.
The children are right now in the process of destroying the playroom. We have added all of KA's toys to our mix and it is quiet a haul they have. It wont last. I dont allow broken toys or useless toys and I see many of her toys are just that. She and I talked and we are going through them next week and getting rid of the broken ones. I dont mind if they destroy the playroom because they have to clean whatever mess they make and let me tell you I dont let them pick up a few things and walk away oh no I mean clean!
Im reorganizing my bedroom with all the file cabinets I got and its starting to look better.
Hubby is going to mow the grass when he comes home so Im cooking him a special dinner of country ribs and mashed potatoes.
Still need to sort through closets and get an efficient system set up. I want to seperate the girl's clothes so they can find them easier. The boy's closet needs the same thing done.
Well I better get back to dinner.
Friday, July 15, 2005
4 year olds....
Right now I am typing this while my 4 year old sits on my bed talking nonstop about anything and everything. Mrs. Julie look at the kitties. Mrs. Julie where are the kitties going? Mrs. Julie what did the cat say? Mrs. Julie can I look at this book? Mrs. Julie isnt this the most awesome cartoon you have ever seen? Mrs. Julie can we play this game later? Mrs. Julie is this supposed to be here? Mrs. Julie did you think about buying this toy? Mrs. Julie the babies are playing nicely. Mrs. Julie Im walking around to see something. Mrs. Julie is this your mail? Mrs. Julie are you bout to play that game on the computer.. ya know the one daddy plays? Ya know the Dark Vader one? Mrs. Julie is that your game thing? Mrs. Julie whats under there? Mrs. Julie can you plug that up to the TV. Mrs Julie do you have a TV?
Can you see why I dont have more time to blog??? LOL He is such a sweet little guy and I love him to death!
Getting ready for my oldest girl to come tomorrow. Im so excited. I will try to post Sunday.
Can you see why I dont have more time to blog??? LOL He is such a sweet little guy and I love him to death!
Getting ready for my oldest girl to come tomorrow. Im so excited. I will try to post Sunday.
Thursday, July 14, 2005
Toilet Play
What a wild week we have had. My oldest K moves in Saturday. Today I was shopping for another chest of drawers for the girl's bedroom. I could not find anything in my price range at the three stores I went to so instead I got a 6 drawer plastic rolling cart thingy. It should do for now. I have some reorganizing to do but it will work out ok. Hubby and I are going to get the bunk beds up tomorrow. So the girls will have more room. Im so excited.
Funny story. We took the sides off of our 2 year old A's crib tonight. Mainly because he broke one side. So we talked all night about his new big boy bed and how exciting it would be. So I put him down tonight and he says ," I big boy!" with the biggest grin. Im thinking, "yeah I will be in here all night putting him back to bed." Well every time I went in he was still in bed. I then realized I did not get any pics of him and his first night in his big boy bed. So I snuck back in and he was still awake as were the other boys so I turned on the light to take pictures. It was so funny him squinting through the light and saying cheese! Im a scrapbooking mama so YOU know I have to take pictures of everything! LOL. So I just went in there to make sure he was still in bed... and he was on the floor. All wrapped up in his blanky. It was great and if I was not afraid of waking them all up I would have taken a picture.:)
So today my children decided to play in the toilet. We have had a few weeks of telling them no playing in the bathroom (after we found someone had wasted all the shampoo) and what do I find when I walk to the playroom FROM MY SICK BED! to check on them? Water everywhere.
Me: "Where did you get the water?
Them: Blank Stares
Me: "Is it raining in the house? Why is it all wet?"
Them: "Um...." as the four year old little boy scampers behind the couch.
Then I notice one of the two year olds is not in the room so I inch back down the hallway.. there he is filling his little cup from the toilet.
They all went to bed... they'd been out of bed exactly 3 hours! It was just the safest place for them.
Now before you start saying, oh your babies were thirsty. You must not be giving them enough to drink.
They appeared at my door about 5 minutes before the incident and asked for a drink. I promptly arose and gave them one. Im a good mommy! :)
I had to run to the library to pay some long overdue fines and my mom who had a terrible headache insisted that she must go to Lowes right now to get chairs and would I please drive her. As the least sick of the three of us I did just that. Hubby who was home asked what time the children should get up and I told him.... NEVER! LOL Just kidding but I did say I really did not care. Of course when I got home they were up and happy to see me.
After dinner we had another discussion about not playing in the bathroom. We'll see. I told them anytime they were caught playing in the bathroom they would get in trouble. No excuses.
Consistency is the key.
Around the House:
Not much. Everyone has been under the weather with a stomach virus so we have been vegging out a lot. I keep the dishes done and the living room picked up but the laundry is sky high! I did some of hubby's clothes for work and a few of the children's clothes and some towels but just the bare minimum. Im starting to feel better though so I hope to get more done tomorrow. I need to rework my Home Management Notebook to include my 8 year old so I might do that some tomorrow as I doubt I will have much energy. I need to get into her room and get it ready for her and I promised hubby our room would be clean by the end of the week. I promised this on Monday when I felt good. He granted an extension BUT I want to get as much done today in here as I can. I have a ton of filing cabinets that I am going to use to store my craft stuff. Thats the main problem in our bedroom. I set up my sewing/scrapbook/craft area in here so I can be near hubby while he plays on the computer. And it exploded. I have stuff everywhere. I have not even worked on sewing or scrapbooking because of the mess so Im excited about getting it cleaned up.
Ok Im off to bed. Must sleep so I can accomplish everything tomorrow. Praise God we are starting to feel better!
Funny story. We took the sides off of our 2 year old A's crib tonight. Mainly because he broke one side. So we talked all night about his new big boy bed and how exciting it would be. So I put him down tonight and he says ," I big boy!" with the biggest grin. Im thinking, "yeah I will be in here all night putting him back to bed." Well every time I went in he was still in bed. I then realized I did not get any pics of him and his first night in his big boy bed. So I snuck back in and he was still awake as were the other boys so I turned on the light to take pictures. It was so funny him squinting through the light and saying cheese! Im a scrapbooking mama so YOU know I have to take pictures of everything! LOL. So I just went in there to make sure he was still in bed... and he was on the floor. All wrapped up in his blanky. It was great and if I was not afraid of waking them all up I would have taken a picture.:)
So today my children decided to play in the toilet. We have had a few weeks of telling them no playing in the bathroom (after we found someone had wasted all the shampoo) and what do I find when I walk to the playroom FROM MY SICK BED! to check on them? Water everywhere.
Me: "Where did you get the water?
Them: Blank Stares
Me: "Is it raining in the house? Why is it all wet?"
Them: "Um...." as the four year old little boy scampers behind the couch.
Then I notice one of the two year olds is not in the room so I inch back down the hallway.. there he is filling his little cup from the toilet.
They all went to bed... they'd been out of bed exactly 3 hours! It was just the safest place for them.
Now before you start saying, oh your babies were thirsty. You must not be giving them enough to drink.
They appeared at my door about 5 minutes before the incident and asked for a drink. I promptly arose and gave them one. Im a good mommy! :)
I had to run to the library to pay some long overdue fines and my mom who had a terrible headache insisted that she must go to Lowes right now to get chairs and would I please drive her. As the least sick of the three of us I did just that. Hubby who was home asked what time the children should get up and I told him.... NEVER! LOL Just kidding but I did say I really did not care. Of course when I got home they were up and happy to see me.
After dinner we had another discussion about not playing in the bathroom. We'll see. I told them anytime they were caught playing in the bathroom they would get in trouble. No excuses.
Consistency is the key.
Around the House:
Not much. Everyone has been under the weather with a stomach virus so we have been vegging out a lot. I keep the dishes done and the living room picked up but the laundry is sky high! I did some of hubby's clothes for work and a few of the children's clothes and some towels but just the bare minimum. Im starting to feel better though so I hope to get more done tomorrow. I need to rework my Home Management Notebook to include my 8 year old so I might do that some tomorrow as I doubt I will have much energy. I need to get into her room and get it ready for her and I promised hubby our room would be clean by the end of the week. I promised this on Monday when I felt good. He granted an extension BUT I want to get as much done today in here as I can. I have a ton of filing cabinets that I am going to use to store my craft stuff. Thats the main problem in our bedroom. I set up my sewing/scrapbook/craft area in here so I can be near hubby while he plays on the computer. And it exploded. I have stuff everywhere. I have not even worked on sewing or scrapbooking because of the mess so Im excited about getting it cleaned up.
Ok Im off to bed. Must sleep so I can accomplish everything tomorrow. Praise God we are starting to feel better!
Wednesday, July 13, 2005
Im here Im here
Short blog so you guys know we are still here! :)
5 kids (3 under 3)
1 more child moving in Sat. getting ready for that
1 sick mommy
1/2 sick daddy
school starts soon must get two children ready
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!
This has been the busiest week ever. However I am loving it! Well other than the sick part. :)
My girl K moves in Saturday morning. Im so excited. And we start all the adoption paperwork next month.
Ok I have to go now. Its late Im so tired! I really despise being sick. :)
Thanks Brandy for thinking of me! :)
5 kids (3 under 3)
1 more child moving in Sat. getting ready for that
1 sick mommy
1/2 sick daddy
school starts soon must get two children ready
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!
This has been the busiest week ever. However I am loving it! Well other than the sick part. :)
My girl K moves in Saturday morning. Im so excited. And we start all the adoption paperwork next month.
Ok I have to go now. Its late Im so tired! I really despise being sick. :)
Thanks Brandy for thinking of me! :)
Thursday, July 7, 2005
The Simple Life
Ok I have a confession to make... I am O-B-S-E-S-S-E-D with the Amish. I have read many books about them. My husband laughs at me because he knows I could NEVER be Amish. But I do think a lot about the simplicity of thier lives. (Yes, I know they have problems!) They hold marriage and family in such high regard. It must be nice to know that when/if you get married as an Amish girl your husband will have been raised with the same beliefs you have. He will be a hard worker and good provider for your family. I would love to have been raised with the hard work ethic the Amish women have. Up before sunlight to start their day. Me? Im doing good if I can get up right after sun light. And breakfast... well I shuffle around throwing stuff in bowls and hoping it taste like breakfast! :) But I digress. The Amish people live much like the early church. Relying on thier hard work and each other. And of course God. There are some Amish I have read about who follow tradition more that God but I have read of others who are very heaven bound. Of course I dont believe everything I read but I do enjoy studying Amish culture and history. I think had I been born Amish I would be ok BUT I dont think I could convert to being Amish. I love my washer and dryer, my dishwasher, my AIR CONDITIONING! But as I studied the Amish culture something one man said really made me stop and think. He said you dont have to be Amish to enjoy the simplicity of the Amish lifestyle. You can lead a simple life wherever you are. Of course thats true.
Hubby and I have been discussing end times lately. There are many signs pointing to the end so be alert always! I am not saying what I am about to say to start a debate. Its our view of scripture. I know there are many. We believe that the Bible is a bit mysterious about a Christian's place during the end times. Our motto is "we hope for pre-trib rapture but are prepared for anything." From what we have read in the Bible and studied we see a Pre-Trib rapture BUT we do concede that there are many verses that could point another way. Yes, I read the Left Behind books. I even enjoyed them. They are not my Bible though. I have a reason for bringing end times into this.
If we are wrong and we are not raptured out before the Tribulation we as Christians may be called to live a "simple" life style. We may have to figure out how to get by without electricity. I have a friend who does reenactments and she has told about the tent they have to set up and the stove she has to cook on and so forth and so on. Read here about her reenacting lfe. One day the electricty went out at her house before she was getting ready to start dinner... so she just went into reenactor mode and made dinner without electricty. I was so impressed with this. If my electricity goes out (as it did many times last year during hurrican season! Welcome to Florida) the first thing I think is.... WOW it sure is hot! Then of course we go into.. "what are we gonna eat" mode. Looks like cold Beanie Weanies... MMM! :( Maybe I should study the Amish lifestyle a bit more. It probably could not hurt to be prepared to live without electricity during hurricane season or during the tribulation. I will ponder this some and make a list of some things I would like to learn to do myself and then blog about my experiences.
Around the House:
Tada!! The table has been moved! I repeat the table has been moved! It looks a little cramped... hmmm.... I mean COZY in our great room now but at least I can move in the kitchen! The bad news is the bench I had two children sitting on is broken. The leg fell off. *SIGH* now we are back to having to eat in shirft. I guess I need to get garage selling or post a want on freecycle. I dont know what to do. When we visited friends in Tampa we went to thier Pastor's house and he had a big long conference table as his dining room table. He said he got it free from the local college giving away office furniture. Im thinking this would be just the thing for my growing family. BUT I could really use some more chairs at this point. Please pray with me over this. I really enjoy family togetherness at dinner and we just dont have enough chairs to do it right now.
The rest of the house is a disaster as I had to rearrange a few more things to get the table moved. I better get in there and fix it.
All fixed. I was able to add another bookshelf to my expanding library but now I have to figure out where to put the stereo.
The dishes are all done. Every last stinking one of them! I dont remember the last time all the dishes were done. Im so happy!
Im back to the drudge I mean joy of laundry. It seems everytime I get to a good point I turn around and it has piled up again! I dont mind the washing and drying but my goodness the folding and putting away is driving me nuts. I guess what I really need to do is weed out some of the children's clothing. Maybe they just have too many clothes.
I still have not made the Moravian Sugar cake yet. I need to get on that.
Hubby and I were laughing last night. He was able to sit down and do the taxes finally. When it asked for his occupation I said we could put down fully time procrastinator for both of us. He laughed and considered it. I love making him laugh. He is such a funny guy that when I get to make him laugh it just makes me so happy.
Hubby and I have been discussing end times lately. There are many signs pointing to the end so be alert always! I am not saying what I am about to say to start a debate. Its our view of scripture. I know there are many. We believe that the Bible is a bit mysterious about a Christian's place during the end times. Our motto is "we hope for pre-trib rapture but are prepared for anything." From what we have read in the Bible and studied we see a Pre-Trib rapture BUT we do concede that there are many verses that could point another way. Yes, I read the Left Behind books. I even enjoyed them. They are not my Bible though. I have a reason for bringing end times into this.
If we are wrong and we are not raptured out before the Tribulation we as Christians may be called to live a "simple" life style. We may have to figure out how to get by without electricity. I have a friend who does reenactments and she has told about the tent they have to set up and the stove she has to cook on and so forth and so on. Read here about her reenacting lfe. One day the electricty went out at her house before she was getting ready to start dinner... so she just went into reenactor mode and made dinner without electricty. I was so impressed with this. If my electricity goes out (as it did many times last year during hurrican season! Welcome to Florida) the first thing I think is.... WOW it sure is hot! Then of course we go into.. "what are we gonna eat" mode. Looks like cold Beanie Weanies... MMM! :( Maybe I should study the Amish lifestyle a bit more. It probably could not hurt to be prepared to live without electricity during hurricane season or during the tribulation. I will ponder this some and make a list of some things I would like to learn to do myself and then blog about my experiences.
Around the House:
Tada!! The table has been moved! I repeat the table has been moved! It looks a little cramped... hmmm.... I mean COZY in our great room now but at least I can move in the kitchen! The bad news is the bench I had two children sitting on is broken. The leg fell off. *SIGH* now we are back to having to eat in shirft. I guess I need to get garage selling or post a want on freecycle. I dont know what to do. When we visited friends in Tampa we went to thier Pastor's house and he had a big long conference table as his dining room table. He said he got it free from the local college giving away office furniture. Im thinking this would be just the thing for my growing family. BUT I could really use some more chairs at this point. Please pray with me over this. I really enjoy family togetherness at dinner and we just dont have enough chairs to do it right now.
The rest of the house is a disaster as I had to rearrange a few more things to get the table moved. I better get in there and fix it.
All fixed. I was able to add another bookshelf to my expanding library but now I have to figure out where to put the stereo.
The dishes are all done. Every last stinking one of them! I dont remember the last time all the dishes were done. Im so happy!
Im back to the drudge I mean joy of laundry. It seems everytime I get to a good point I turn around and it has piled up again! I dont mind the washing and drying but my goodness the folding and putting away is driving me nuts. I guess what I really need to do is weed out some of the children's clothing. Maybe they just have too many clothes.
I still have not made the Moravian Sugar cake yet. I need to get on that.
Hubby and I were laughing last night. He was able to sit down and do the taxes finally. When it asked for his occupation I said we could put down fully time procrastinator for both of us. He laughed and considered it. I love making him laugh. He is such a funny guy that when I get to make him laugh it just makes me so happy.
Tuesday, July 5, 2005
Over the weekend and A small Vent
WOW have we been busy? Last Wed night we got a phone call at 10:30pm. It was Central Placement (the people who call us when they have children needing to be placed in foster homes) and they had a sibling group of four just removed. They wanted to know if we could take one or two for the night. I talked to the guy there a long time before agreeing to take the two year old little boy... with the understanding it would be VERY temporary because the spot I have open in my home is for my oldest girl K to come into at the end of July. I actually asked that they find a permanent placement for him by Friday afternoon since we were going out of town for the weekend and wanted to take K with us. Well here it is Tues and the little guy is still with us. Dont get me wrong he is a sweetie and I truly wish he could stay but well... he cant. I just dont have room for him. :( Im sad to because the longer he stays the more attached he becomes to us and us to him. My other children are already used to seeing him around. There really should be no problem placing a two year old. Believe me plenty of people want babies and toddlers. GRR!
We made it down to see my inlaws over the weekend. The kids were a huge hit with my sister in law and her husband. as I said before they have two boys so Uncle Dan just loved playing with the girls and they loved him. Our new litte charge did quiet well for himself as well. Lots of love and affection while we were there.
They had a boat parade and my sister in law and I bonded while we decorated Grandpa's pontoon in festive red, white, and blue colors. I blew up thirty balloons! Thats a lot of balloons! We had my three oldest and her two boys on the boat with grandpa waving flags like mad. Out of the 6 boats that entered ours was the only one with cute grandkids on board so... of course we won first place. A bottle of wine for grandpa and a pack of Hershey's minitures for the kids... and of course Aunty Karen and I. :)
The bad part of the trip was Grandma had a broken wrist. She broke it last Wed. She went in for surgery today to have a pin put in. We have been praying for her but have not heard how it went yet.
My sister in law and her family are leaving tomorrow to go home but first they will stop in Atlanta and see my other sister in law. I am still hoping to make a trip to Illinois to see my sister in law. We wanted to do it in the fall but that might not be possible maybe spring or early summer. Not sure yet.
Hmmm... oh yeah my friend at church had her baby Friday. A little girl Gabriella. Im sure she is beautiful even though I have not made it over to see her yet. Hoping to go one day this week. This baby was a blessing to her and her husband. They tried for a long time to have thier first baby and now three years later SURPRISE! God hears us when we pray. This is a lesson for me as I long for a baby of my own.
Around the House:
Trying to get caught up after being gone over the weekend. Clothes to wash, dishes to finish, children to retrain! :)
Pretty much today I have stayed busy by making up a schedule for July and rearranging responsibilities. Working on my Home Management Notebook and tweaking it a bit.
I have done a lot of laundry. A load of dishes. Im going into the kitchen soon to make sandwhiches for the children for dinner and work on a Moravian Sugar Cake. Even though we have apple pie and ice cream galor from this weekend I have been wanting to try to make this for awhile so I put it on the menu for this week and today is the day to make it. HEY I did not know we were coming home with all this apple pie. :)
We made it down to see my inlaws over the weekend. The kids were a huge hit with my sister in law and her husband. as I said before they have two boys so Uncle Dan just loved playing with the girls and they loved him. Our new litte charge did quiet well for himself as well. Lots of love and affection while we were there.
They had a boat parade and my sister in law and I bonded while we decorated Grandpa's pontoon in festive red, white, and blue colors. I blew up thirty balloons! Thats a lot of balloons! We had my three oldest and her two boys on the boat with grandpa waving flags like mad. Out of the 6 boats that entered ours was the only one with cute grandkids on board so... of course we won first place. A bottle of wine for grandpa and a pack of Hershey's minitures for the kids... and of course Aunty Karen and I. :)
The bad part of the trip was Grandma had a broken wrist. She broke it last Wed. She went in for surgery today to have a pin put in. We have been praying for her but have not heard how it went yet.
My sister in law and her family are leaving tomorrow to go home but first they will stop in Atlanta and see my other sister in law. I am still hoping to make a trip to Illinois to see my sister in law. We wanted to do it in the fall but that might not be possible maybe spring or early summer. Not sure yet.
Hmmm... oh yeah my friend at church had her baby Friday. A little girl Gabriella. Im sure she is beautiful even though I have not made it over to see her yet. Hoping to go one day this week. This baby was a blessing to her and her husband. They tried for a long time to have thier first baby and now three years later SURPRISE! God hears us when we pray. This is a lesson for me as I long for a baby of my own.
Around the House:
Trying to get caught up after being gone over the weekend. Clothes to wash, dishes to finish, children to retrain! :)
Pretty much today I have stayed busy by making up a schedule for July and rearranging responsibilities. Working on my Home Management Notebook and tweaking it a bit.
I have done a lot of laundry. A load of dishes. Im going into the kitchen soon to make sandwhiches for the children for dinner and work on a Moravian Sugar Cake. Even though we have apple pie and ice cream galor from this weekend I have been wanting to try to make this for awhile so I put it on the menu for this week and today is the day to make it. HEY I did not know we were coming home with all this apple pie. :)
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