YEAH we got DSL! I have never enjoyed anything more... ok so I exaggerate at times but it is incredibly exciting. Now maybe I can go about updating this blog with a Link section and other stuff that I have been wanting to do. Before it took so long to get anything to take that I would just give up. Another cool thing is being able to listen to music. Right now I am listening to AllWorship.com. (Thanks Brandy for mentioning it in your blog). I am listening to praise and worship.
We started preschool this week. Its going pretty good though I see areas I really need to organize more. Ok just changed to Contemporary Worship... yeah I think this is more what I like. Back to homeschool. The littles seem to be enjoying it. I am also on day 3 of the MOTH schedule. Loving it. We have not followed it totally yet but thats because we are still in the rough draft part.
I have had to keep my five year old home from school for 6 days already this year. When my dad died she missed two days of school. Then she came down with an upper respiratory infection and missed three days. Now she is out again with... ready?... head lice! YUCK! Im at my wits end but she went back to school today. I think I have the buggers licked. If not look for us on the news. Our house will have burned down and our family will all have shaved heads. Can you tell Im not dealing well with this new parenting journey?
We are heading up to Atlanta for Labor Day to see my husband's oldest sister. We are also hoping to hook up with one of his best friends while we are there but we have not heard anything from him yet. We go back to Tampa in a few weeks for the baby dedication of our sweet goddaughter who was let out of the hospital a month ahead of time. She is doing great. I cant wait to hold her. Its a dedication which is different then a Christening in that mom and dad will be committing to raise her in a Christian home. She wont be baptized. Mom wanted her to be but dad argued against it for a long time and stood his ground. Anyway after that we should be home for awhile and then we are going for a week at Thanksgiving to North Carolina to see my friend. Im so excited. I love to travel. In all of this hubby and I are trying to plan a weekend mini vacation. We want to get a hotel room down by the beach and take the children swimming everyday and stay up late playing games and eating takeout. We have been wanting to do this for some time. Just our little family but things keep popping up. But hubby has sat down and really started trying to fit it in lately with the emotional ride we all just went on. We think it will do us all some good to get away.
Hubby and I got up at 6am this morning and spent 30 minutes in prayer together for our children. We have been wanting to do this for awhile but someone kept hitting the snooze button and before we knew it it was 7:15 and I was 30 minutes late for my routine and 45 minutes late for prayer. So last night we put the alarm clock on the other side of the room. When it went off this morning I got up turned it off and stumbled over the bed to wake up hubby. After the 30 minutes were up we both commented that we felt awake and refreshed and he sat down and read his Bible while I got a shower and dressed for the day. It was a nice time. Prayer has really been our hearts the past few months. It all came to a head this weekend when our preacher preached a GREAT message on prayer and the power of it. Sunday night I made sticky note reminders with Bible verses and we put them all over the house so we can remember to pray. Funny thing is you can glance at them and just disregard but when I find myself doing that I force myself to go back and pray. I think its really helped and I am excited about the prayers we have both sent to God. Even our eight year old has had a good time reading the Bible verses and asking questions. I just feel that our house is so peaceful this week and it has to be the attitude of prayer around here.
Around the House:
Following the MOTH schedule has been going GREAT! We are getting so much done. I have not yet completed a full hour of chores in the AM like I would like but we are slowly getting there. There are many areas I have to tweak but thats the great thing about the MOTH is its so easy to tweak.
My kitchen and living room have stayed fairly clean all week. I am on schedule with the laundry. Although I had to mix it up a bit. Typically the girls' laundry gets done on Tuesday and the boys' on Wed but this week since the boys were running low on clothes I decided theirs needed to be done Tues. Did not make a big difference. Im on the third load of girls' clothes right now and have about one load left maybe another small one after that. Tomorrow is towels and Friday is sheets. This is the first time since I came up with the laundry schedule that we have been on task. So its exciting.
I am having to clean all the beds and furniture and toys and bedding really well thanks to the pestilence that has come upon our home. I read somewhere that tea tree oil will help keep the eggs from sticking to hair so we are using that in our conditioner.... IT STINKS but it really seems to be working as I have found only a few nits on my 3 year olds head and none on the 8 year olds. In the past when we have dealt with this plague it has rapidly spread to all the girls. So I am thankful for that.
In the latest issue of Laines letters she suggested toilet bowl cleaner to clean your shower with the admonishment that you scrub and rinse really well. Since the dollar store did not have The Works when I went in the other day I will try the toilet bowl cleaner. I did find the all purpose cleaner that I like the most at the Dollar Store so that was exciting. :)
I am taking over the bill paying. NOT the finances but the making sure the bills get in the mail or get paid on payday. Im excited about it and already have all the bills we are going to pay with tomorrow's paycheck ready to go. The Lord has really blessed us financially the past few months. We are so excited and just praising God.
Oh I just have to share this. The other day I was working in the girls' room so I asked my 8 year old to wipe down the kitchen counters. She did that and came to see me. Then I asked her if she could sweep the kitchen floor. She was very excited but wanted to make sure that if she swept she would get to use the Swiffer mop as well. I told her sure. Now I left ALL of this to her without really checking because I was in the middle of something else. I figured when I was done I would go inspect and then we would go over it together again. A learning experience. OH NO! She did a perfect job. The kitchen looked beautiful. My five year old wiped down the kitchen table and picked up the clutter in the living room and after I sprinkled the carpets the eight year old vacuumed. THEN last night 8 year old helped me clean off the table after dinner and she put all the food away by herself. I am truly blessed to have such great girls. They are so eager to help and learn. The 8 year old wants to learn to sew... Im setting up my sewing area so she can learn straight lines. The five year old is getting ready to do some simple hand sewing projects. Basically straight lines. Im so excited!
Ok better get back to work. My littles are napping and its project time for me. :)
Wednesday, August 31, 2005
Word Verification
I have added word verification because I have had two instances of comment spam. I am grateful for this feature... :)
Tuesday, August 30, 2005
Clarification
DO you not believe that children will get hugs or be told that they are loved in non-christian homes??? that seems a bit narrow minded. i am just going on what you wrote here!!! Anon.
I guess I could have clarified more. I apologize. What I really meant was we need homes which will raise up children to know God's love. That will demonstrate God's love through the love in thier homes. We also need homes where these children will get hugs and be told "I love you". I say again this is not the norm in some foster homes. I have seen children shipped from one home to the next because they broke a rule. They stiffen when you hug them because they have no idea why you are touching them. I have seen children that the very first time you say I love you to them they immediatly parrot it back and then dance around the house singing it because...they have never heard it. My ideal is that all foster homes would be Christian homes so these children could find the love of Jesus and that I dont apologize for but there are some really great non-Christian foster homes too.
I guess I could have clarified more. I apologize. What I really meant was we need homes which will raise up children to know God's love. That will demonstrate God's love through the love in thier homes. We also need homes where these children will get hugs and be told "I love you". I say again this is not the norm in some foster homes. I have seen children shipped from one home to the next because they broke a rule. They stiffen when you hug them because they have no idea why you are touching them. I have seen children that the very first time you say I love you to them they immediatly parrot it back and then dance around the house singing it because...they have never heard it. My ideal is that all foster homes would be Christian homes so these children could find the love of Jesus and that I dont apologize for but there are some really great non-Christian foster homes too.
Monday, August 29, 2005
1 Corinthians 13 for Mommy!
Just a little something I did the other day when my children had driven me to wit's end.
1 Corinthians 13:4 Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,
1 Corinthians 13:5 Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;
1 Corinthians 13:6 Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;
1 Corinthians 13:7 Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.
1 Corinthians 13 for mommy!
1 Corinthians 13:4 Mommy suffereth long, and is kind; Mommy envieth not; Mommy vaunteth not herself, is not puffed up,
1 Corinthians 13:5 Mommy doth not behave herself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;
1 Corinthians 13:6 Mommy rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;
1 Corinthians 13:7 Mommy beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.
Hope you can use this too BEFORE you yell at the children to STOP swinging from the ceiling fan for the 400th time! :)
1 Corinthians 13:4 Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,
1 Corinthians 13:5 Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;
1 Corinthians 13:6 Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;
1 Corinthians 13:7 Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.
1 Corinthians 13 for mommy!
1 Corinthians 13:4 Mommy suffereth long, and is kind; Mommy envieth not; Mommy vaunteth not herself, is not puffed up,
1 Corinthians 13:5 Mommy doth not behave herself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;
1 Corinthians 13:6 Mommy rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;
1 Corinthians 13:7 Mommy beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.
Hope you can use this too BEFORE you yell at the children to STOP swinging from the ceiling fan for the 400th time! :)
Saturday, August 27, 2005
Foster Parent Questions
Wow I love comments especially when they involve questions... especially when they involve questions about my children! I love talking about my babies! So Mina I will attempt to answer all of your questions!
How many kids of your own do you have and how many foster kids? All the children I have right now (5) are foster children. We should begin the adoption process on our three girls sometime next month and then it could take MONTHS to finish it. As far as children of our own we pray everyday that God would open my womb. We have faith that He one day will... kinda funny story. The state of Florida says you can only have five children in your home as a foster parent. (Sometimes they make exceptions as you saw) Hubby and I were discussing it one day and wondering maybe if we were not supposed to adopt our five children from the state and then God would give us our own biological children. We know we would love to have a big family so we are kinda wondering if that is God's plan because like I said before we both firmly believe that the day will come when I have my own baby.
How do you give the foster kids the sense of stability/permenancy that they deserve and need even though they and you know they will be moving on again? PRAYER! The minute the child comes through our door we pray pray pray over them. Claim them as our own and cover them with protection. One thing you dont know is what kind of evil these children have attached to them. We just start at the beginning and pray it all off of them. No we dont wail and scream and shake the child. We simply hold him and claim him as our own. My husband claims fatherhood over the child which puts him in the spiritual leader seat. We believe that as long as that child is with us God recognizes us as his parents. We also have a policy that we will keep the child until they go back to thier parents. NO matter how difficult. Now of course we would have to reevaluate this policy if a child entered our home who was a threat to any other children already in our care. We also accept each child as our own for however long he is here. We take them on trips, to family outings, out to eat... whatever we are doing. Now this might sound like common sense but believe it or not some foster children spend more time away from thier foster family then they do with them.
How long do you typically have foster kids? Well in the year and 3 months we have been doing this we have had our 2 year old for one year and 3 months. We had two little girls from Labor day til the middle of October. We have had our two girls since the middle of October. We got a little boy the Friday before Mother's day and he is still here probably will be til after the first of the year. We got another two year old right before the fourth of July and he went home this week. We got our other little girl in the middle of July and will be adopting her. So out of 8 children so far we have only had three leave us and they were only here for about a month.
Do they get along well with your own kids? We dont have children of our own but I will tell you I am amazed at how well all the different children get along. They basically behave like siblings. Fighting one minute defending to the death the next. They are all rather bossy but seem to handle each other well.
How do you assure that your own kids' needs are met while meeting the special challenges associated with many foster kids? Honestly, we have not had hardly any special challenges. I believe that prayer has kept us from some of the tragic stories you hear about these foster children. Believe me when I say all of these children in my home right now have every right to be bitter, resentful, distrustful.. but they are not. They are happy well adjusted little people. Just like anyone else's children. They get into trouble like other's children as well. They are by no means perfect but I have not seen any behavior that is not typical for another child thier age. I have had someone at almost every agency we have worked with remark that my children do not resemble typical foster children. All I can tell you is that God is the authority over our children. We establish that day one by giving the child to God. We also use consistantcy. Consistant love, consistant discipline, consistant expectations. The children THRIVE on consistency. Its like I tell most people about my eight year old who is my biggest challange to date behavior wise... she has had eight year of inconsistant harsh discipline. With one month of consistant loving discipline I alread see changes in her. Such as true repentance when she does wrong and a heart seeking after God.
I love being a mommy no matter whose children they are. All of my children but one call me mommy and the one who doesnt came from a very loving home where his mom made some mistakes. God gives us strength patience and perserverance when we think we cant take one more step. We are so blessed to be the parents to these children and if we had our way we would NEVER stop fostering. I hope I answered all of your questions. I hope others would feel free to ask questions about fostering. There is a lot of stuff not understood. One thing is sure though we need good solid Christian homes to foster. Too many times these children are put in a godless home where they are given the basics but do not get hugs and I love yous. One goal I have for each child in my care is that they leave my home knowing the words to Jesus Loves Me. If they can sing that song then they can understand that they are never alone and that Jesus always loves them.
How many kids of your own do you have and how many foster kids? All the children I have right now (5) are foster children. We should begin the adoption process on our three girls sometime next month and then it could take MONTHS to finish it. As far as children of our own we pray everyday that God would open my womb. We have faith that He one day will... kinda funny story. The state of Florida says you can only have five children in your home as a foster parent. (Sometimes they make exceptions as you saw) Hubby and I were discussing it one day and wondering maybe if we were not supposed to adopt our five children from the state and then God would give us our own biological children. We know we would love to have a big family so we are kinda wondering if that is God's plan because like I said before we both firmly believe that the day will come when I have my own baby.
How do you give the foster kids the sense of stability/permenancy that they deserve and need even though they and you know they will be moving on again? PRAYER! The minute the child comes through our door we pray pray pray over them. Claim them as our own and cover them with protection. One thing you dont know is what kind of evil these children have attached to them. We just start at the beginning and pray it all off of them. No we dont wail and scream and shake the child. We simply hold him and claim him as our own. My husband claims fatherhood over the child which puts him in the spiritual leader seat. We believe that as long as that child is with us God recognizes us as his parents. We also have a policy that we will keep the child until they go back to thier parents. NO matter how difficult. Now of course we would have to reevaluate this policy if a child entered our home who was a threat to any other children already in our care. We also accept each child as our own for however long he is here. We take them on trips, to family outings, out to eat... whatever we are doing. Now this might sound like common sense but believe it or not some foster children spend more time away from thier foster family then they do with them.
How long do you typically have foster kids? Well in the year and 3 months we have been doing this we have had our 2 year old for one year and 3 months. We had two little girls from Labor day til the middle of October. We have had our two girls since the middle of October. We got a little boy the Friday before Mother's day and he is still here probably will be til after the first of the year. We got another two year old right before the fourth of July and he went home this week. We got our other little girl in the middle of July and will be adopting her. So out of 8 children so far we have only had three leave us and they were only here for about a month.
Do they get along well with your own kids? We dont have children of our own but I will tell you I am amazed at how well all the different children get along. They basically behave like siblings. Fighting one minute defending to the death the next. They are all rather bossy but seem to handle each other well.
How do you assure that your own kids' needs are met while meeting the special challenges associated with many foster kids? Honestly, we have not had hardly any special challenges. I believe that prayer has kept us from some of the tragic stories you hear about these foster children. Believe me when I say all of these children in my home right now have every right to be bitter, resentful, distrustful.. but they are not. They are happy well adjusted little people. Just like anyone else's children. They get into trouble like other's children as well. They are by no means perfect but I have not seen any behavior that is not typical for another child thier age. I have had someone at almost every agency we have worked with remark that my children do not resemble typical foster children. All I can tell you is that God is the authority over our children. We establish that day one by giving the child to God. We also use consistantcy. Consistant love, consistant discipline, consistant expectations. The children THRIVE on consistency. Its like I tell most people about my eight year old who is my biggest challange to date behavior wise... she has had eight year of inconsistant harsh discipline. With one month of consistant loving discipline I alread see changes in her. Such as true repentance when she does wrong and a heart seeking after God.
I love being a mommy no matter whose children they are. All of my children but one call me mommy and the one who doesnt came from a very loving home where his mom made some mistakes. God gives us strength patience and perserverance when we think we cant take one more step. We are so blessed to be the parents to these children and if we had our way we would NEVER stop fostering. I hope I answered all of your questions. I hope others would feel free to ask questions about fostering. There is a lot of stuff not understood. One thing is sure though we need good solid Christian homes to foster. Too many times these children are put in a godless home where they are given the basics but do not get hugs and I love yous. One goal I have for each child in my care is that they leave my home knowing the words to Jesus Loves Me. If they can sing that song then they can understand that they are never alone and that Jesus always loves them.
Tuesday, August 23, 2005
Spiritual Warfare
Well Im back. Pretty much today has been trying to jump back into routine...which did not happen. First my two older girls woke up with terrible colds. Raspy breathing.. you know. So I kept them home from school. Then I got a phone call this morning saying that my two year old E the emergency placement from a month ago was going home to his mom and could I have him ready in a few hours. So mad dash around trying to get him ready to go home. Then after I put the others down for a rest I got a piercing headache and had to lay down myself. I have been so tired today. Im pretty sure its just the emotional come down from this past week.
I dont have much to write about today. I have been reading some Frank Perretti books lately and of course as always they have me thinking about spiritual warfare. I was in my twenties before I knew this was real. I remember having a dream that Jesus was going to come back and I had to be in a specific place at a specific time and if I was not there I would be left behind. Welll..... I woke up from that dream in a cold sweat and seriously doubting my salvation. I remember reading 1 John over and over that night and many other books of the Bible. I contemplated calling my preacher because I was still battling a racing heart and upset stomache. See Id grown up in the Southern Baptist Church and had not been taught about spiritual warfare. The next day when I talked to my soon to be husband he told me I had been under spiritual attack the night before. Since that night we pray together every night before we go to bed. We pray over our children and teach them to pray also. We pray for one another. I have never had another dream like that one. I know some reading this will think me dopey or extremist..believe me I dont go around preaching spiritual warfare but I dont turn a blind eye to it either. It happens. I accept that. I pray for strength for our leaders, for our church. I pray protection over my vulnerable children. I pray for my husband, myself and my other family members. I pray for power over adversaries in the spirtual realm. I read my Bible and stay immersed in the word. This is how I fight. Not with holy words or carelessness but with the full armor of God.
Ephesians 6:11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
Ephesians 6:12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
Ephesians 6:13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
Ephesians 6:14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;
Ephesians 6:15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
Ephesians 6:16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.
Ephesians 6:17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:
Ephesians 6:18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;
Around the House:
My house is in great shape. My friend came down from North Carolina with her two girls this past week. They watched my children while I went to the hospital and helped my mom with funeral arrangements. Of course she went above and beyond and kept my house in tip top condition. I am trying to think of a special way to say thank you to this wonderful family.
I am still working on my MOTH schedule. Had to put it on hold this past week but Im back at it. Almost done. I also wanted to start preschool this week but something else took priority. I have decided though that I will love the flexibility of homeschooling. It has been such a hassle making sure the two older girls go back and forth to school and have all thier work done and everything they need. And now Im sweating it because its the fourth week of school and already they have missed three days. One is the day my daddy actually died, one was for his funeral, and today because they were truly sick. My five year old will miss tomorrow because she has a doctor's appointment and they are only in school for half a day so there is no point in taking her to school for the two hours she would be there. Plus she is not looking any better today so I doubt she could go to school anyway.
My friend that was here from NC is homeschooling her four this year and it was easy for her to come down and help out because she did not have to worry if they started school a few days late.
I have to get my supplies together for preschool. I have a rubbermaid container and I figure I will put everything I need for the week in there and that way I wont constantly be searching for stuff. We will see how that works.
OK Im off to finish the spaghetti.
I dont have much to write about today. I have been reading some Frank Perretti books lately and of course as always they have me thinking about spiritual warfare. I was in my twenties before I knew this was real. I remember having a dream that Jesus was going to come back and I had to be in a specific place at a specific time and if I was not there I would be left behind. Welll..... I woke up from that dream in a cold sweat and seriously doubting my salvation. I remember reading 1 John over and over that night and many other books of the Bible. I contemplated calling my preacher because I was still battling a racing heart and upset stomache. See Id grown up in the Southern Baptist Church and had not been taught about spiritual warfare. The next day when I talked to my soon to be husband he told me I had been under spiritual attack the night before. Since that night we pray together every night before we go to bed. We pray over our children and teach them to pray also. We pray for one another. I have never had another dream like that one. I know some reading this will think me dopey or extremist..believe me I dont go around preaching spiritual warfare but I dont turn a blind eye to it either. It happens. I accept that. I pray for strength for our leaders, for our church. I pray protection over my vulnerable children. I pray for my husband, myself and my other family members. I pray for power over adversaries in the spirtual realm. I read my Bible and stay immersed in the word. This is how I fight. Not with holy words or carelessness but with the full armor of God.
Ephesians 6:11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
Ephesians 6:12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
Ephesians 6:13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
Ephesians 6:14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;
Ephesians 6:15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
Ephesians 6:16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.
Ephesians 6:17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:
Ephesians 6:18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;
Around the House:
My house is in great shape. My friend came down from North Carolina with her two girls this past week. They watched my children while I went to the hospital and helped my mom with funeral arrangements. Of course she went above and beyond and kept my house in tip top condition. I am trying to think of a special way to say thank you to this wonderful family.
I am still working on my MOTH schedule. Had to put it on hold this past week but Im back at it. Almost done. I also wanted to start preschool this week but something else took priority. I have decided though that I will love the flexibility of homeschooling. It has been such a hassle making sure the two older girls go back and forth to school and have all thier work done and everything they need. And now Im sweating it because its the fourth week of school and already they have missed three days. One is the day my daddy actually died, one was for his funeral, and today because they were truly sick. My five year old will miss tomorrow because she has a doctor's appointment and they are only in school for half a day so there is no point in taking her to school for the two hours she would be there. Plus she is not looking any better today so I doubt she could go to school anyway.
My friend that was here from NC is homeschooling her four this year and it was easy for her to come down and help out because she did not have to worry if they started school a few days late.
I have to get my supplies together for preschool. I have a rubbermaid container and I figure I will put everything I need for the week in there and that way I wont constantly be searching for stuff. We will see how that works.
OK Im off to finish the spaghetti.
Monday, August 22, 2005
Thank You
Thank you all for your prayers. My daddy went home to be with the Lord Thursday morning. Thankfully he was very alert Thursday morning and we were all able to tell him good-bye and see ya soon! Please remember my mom in your prayers. They would have been married 35 years this year. Also my brother who is 22 is taking it hard. Although he is talking about going back to church. He has not been in over a year. I am doing ok actually. I am very peaceful and although I am sad it is a bittersweet sadness. I know that my daddy is happy and running and visiting with Jesus and that makes it ok!
Tuesday, August 16, 2005
Prayer Request
Just a quick request. My daddy was rushed to the hospital Sat night around 11:30pm. He is in stable but critical condition. He seems to be fighting right now and he even maintained a good blood pressure today without meds. He is on a ventilator right now and they want to experiment a bit tomorrow and take him off. We will have to wait and see what happens. This might be his time we have known it could come at any time. He has muscular dystrophy which is a disease which slowly decreases your muscle ability. Eventually he will die from this disease. We have been told that even if he survives this he will have to go to a nursing home because he will need skilled medical care around the clock. Please just pray that God's will be done and that we the family can accept it. Thank you!
Thursday, August 11, 2005
Oh the humanity!
Just a note: For those of you who dont know.. I write these up and change the date often. I change the date to the day I wrote them. I try not to do it to much but this is one of those I wrote Friday.
So tonight at 5:30pm C's GAL (Guardian Ad Litem) shows up. Now once this little four year old she is here to see figures out that he has your undivided attention he will talk for HOURS! Now here I am at 5:30 trying to get dinner ready, help KA with her homework AND do all the final preperations for daddy's arrival. I let her in... because I am a big softie. But DH and I have decided that we are going to put a note on the door that states the only people allowed admittance after 5pm are friends, family and invited guests. I had no clue she was coming until she showed up. Anywho we are going to put the sign on our door and I am implepenting my half hour three days a week schedule for all visits. That will be ready to go in plenty of time for the next month.
School has gone well this week. The girls are enjoying it. They had a disobedience problem at home last week which we punished by denying sweets this week. WELL both girls happily reported to me (as did thier teachers) that they have not partaken in the class treats this week. I was so happy. They are truly good girls. They try to do good but as my four year old C is quick to tell everyone... "I cant be good by myself!" I truly think he will be our first child to get saved. Come on thats some deep theology for one so young! :)
Hubby and I have been praying about opening our home more to friends... the Bible really tells us to be hospitable.
1 Peter 4:9 Use hospitality one to another without grudging.
Here is the problem... I have three cats.. these cats are indoor cats. I cant stand the thought of them becoming outdoor cats and one day roadkill. I cant give them to the pound because they are my babies. So alas I must wait until they are no longer around by natural consequences. This brings me to my problem. Our house... cat central... well sometimes the cats rebel and dont use the litter box...nough said? Anyway I have been fighting this battle for awhile. We actually had someone comment on it once after they'd been to our home so once again the doors shut up tight. We are now coming out of it again and trying desperatly to push past hurts behind us and just swing open the door. Love us love our cats.. or something like that. Please pray for us as we prepare to invite people over. We have been using a carpet cleaner pretty regularly along with whatever we find at the pet store that WOWs us (seems to be something different everytime!). I think its getting better but we have to face it. Until the cats go "see the Maker" as we often tell them they are headed there sooner than they think we must deal with it as best we can!
Around the House:
For those of you who have the MOTH book.. I am at the cut and paste part...nerve racking but kinda fun! Of course my computer guru hubby who had to purchase a Project Manager program for his class wants me to use that. We have not installed it yet but it looks pretty cool. He grinned and let me go when I told him that I thought this cut and paste stuff was kinda fun. For those of you who have no clue what I am talking about I will explain.. a little.
Each person is assigned a color. Then you take the color and write all the activities that person does in a day in 30 min or 1 hour increments on thier color paper. Then you cut it out and paste it on this nifty schedule. Actually you dont paste you sticky tak it so you can move it around. Its like putting a puzzle together and pretty amazing! IF YOU ARE HAVING PROBLEMS WITH SCHEDULES YOU MUST LOOK INTO THIS MOTH SYSTEM IT IS AMAZING! Just implementing bits and pieces of our new schedule has really impressed me and made my family function so much better.
Our room is looking so nice. The floor is clean HALLALUJAH!
The boys' room has some little things left to do. Mainly I have to clean out the closet. I barely touched the girls' room but all in due time... all in due time.
I have started Christmas shopping. I know for almost certain sure I will have my 2 year old A and my three girls and more than likely my 4 year old C at Christmas so I figured we better start now. My baby A loves Bob the Builder and it has been impossible to find BTB stuff lately well Praise the Lord Target has started selling a ton of it... blocks, legos, die cast figures, playsets! I already have a few things and Im going to get a few more. He is having a BTB Christmas this year. Speaking of Christmas I heard someone say once that they opened thier presents on Christmas Eve that way Christmas day could be all about Jesus. I thought this was an awesome idea.. though I have not talked to hubby about it yet. I have prayed about it some but have not really felt the time right yet (or the go ahead from God) to broach it. That might not make sense to some but to otheres you know exactly what I speak of.
Well beter go..got things to do! :)
So tonight at 5:30pm C's GAL (Guardian Ad Litem) shows up. Now once this little four year old she is here to see figures out that he has your undivided attention he will talk for HOURS! Now here I am at 5:30 trying to get dinner ready, help KA with her homework AND do all the final preperations for daddy's arrival. I let her in... because I am a big softie. But DH and I have decided that we are going to put a note on the door that states the only people allowed admittance after 5pm are friends, family and invited guests. I had no clue she was coming until she showed up. Anywho we are going to put the sign on our door and I am implepenting my half hour three days a week schedule for all visits. That will be ready to go in plenty of time for the next month.
School has gone well this week. The girls are enjoying it. They had a disobedience problem at home last week which we punished by denying sweets this week. WELL both girls happily reported to me (as did thier teachers) that they have not partaken in the class treats this week. I was so happy. They are truly good girls. They try to do good but as my four year old C is quick to tell everyone... "I cant be good by myself!" I truly think he will be our first child to get saved. Come on thats some deep theology for one so young! :)
Hubby and I have been praying about opening our home more to friends... the Bible really tells us to be hospitable.
1 Peter 4:9 Use hospitality one to another without grudging.
Here is the problem... I have three cats.. these cats are indoor cats. I cant stand the thought of them becoming outdoor cats and one day roadkill. I cant give them to the pound because they are my babies. So alas I must wait until they are no longer around by natural consequences. This brings me to my problem. Our house... cat central... well sometimes the cats rebel and dont use the litter box...nough said? Anyway I have been fighting this battle for awhile. We actually had someone comment on it once after they'd been to our home so once again the doors shut up tight. We are now coming out of it again and trying desperatly to push past hurts behind us and just swing open the door. Love us love our cats.. or something like that. Please pray for us as we prepare to invite people over. We have been using a carpet cleaner pretty regularly along with whatever we find at the pet store that WOWs us (seems to be something different everytime!). I think its getting better but we have to face it. Until the cats go "see the Maker" as we often tell them they are headed there sooner than they think we must deal with it as best we can!
Around the House:
For those of you who have the MOTH book.. I am at the cut and paste part...nerve racking but kinda fun! Of course my computer guru hubby who had to purchase a Project Manager program for his class wants me to use that. We have not installed it yet but it looks pretty cool. He grinned and let me go when I told him that I thought this cut and paste stuff was kinda fun. For those of you who have no clue what I am talking about I will explain.. a little.
Each person is assigned a color. Then you take the color and write all the activities that person does in a day in 30 min or 1 hour increments on thier color paper. Then you cut it out and paste it on this nifty schedule. Actually you dont paste you sticky tak it so you can move it around. Its like putting a puzzle together and pretty amazing! IF YOU ARE HAVING PROBLEMS WITH SCHEDULES YOU MUST LOOK INTO THIS MOTH SYSTEM IT IS AMAZING! Just implementing bits and pieces of our new schedule has really impressed me and made my family function so much better.
Our room is looking so nice. The floor is clean HALLALUJAH!
The boys' room has some little things left to do. Mainly I have to clean out the closet. I barely touched the girls' room but all in due time... all in due time.
I have started Christmas shopping. I know for almost certain sure I will have my 2 year old A and my three girls and more than likely my 4 year old C at Christmas so I figured we better start now. My baby A loves Bob the Builder and it has been impossible to find BTB stuff lately well Praise the Lord Target has started selling a ton of it... blocks, legos, die cast figures, playsets! I already have a few things and Im going to get a few more. He is having a BTB Christmas this year. Speaking of Christmas I heard someone say once that they opened thier presents on Christmas Eve that way Christmas day could be all about Jesus. I thought this was an awesome idea.. though I have not talked to hubby about it yet. I have prayed about it some but have not really felt the time right yet (or the go ahead from God) to broach it. That might not make sense to some but to otheres you know exactly what I speak of.
Well beter go..got things to do! :)
Wednesday, August 10, 2005
School days
Ahh... school started Monday. The girls did great the first day of school and I was so happy for them. I miss them a lot but they have good teachers and the day really rushes by. Im having fun with my little guys at home. They are completly different on thier own. Especially my three year old girl T who is exerting herself a lot more. Its nice not having all the children vying for my attention but I know that this is not the best for them either. I miss my girls. I cringe because I dont know what this year holds. I learned the other day that they start really early getting the kids ready for "evolution training" and what not. My eight year old informed me the other day that we humans are part of the ape family... NICE! I hate that they are getting this kind of information from someone they have been taught to rely on for GOOD information. Dont get me wrong so far (day two) I really like the teachers they have. My kindergartener has a young teacher who is perky and pretty and sweet. My eight year old has a teacher who is an older lady who was sweet at the door yesterday and KA came home with good things to say about her. I guess I just dont feel right having my children being "raised" by someone else all day. They are away from me like 6.5 hours... thats a long time! But we will make do with what we have. I have already volunteered to help out at home with projects for the teachers. I feel like if I am actively involved in the goings on at the school I wont miss anything. God is good and will bless my children this year as I pray for them. Its not the ideal circumstance but then come on... can God not still do a good work? I pray every morning with my girls that they will be a light and bring honor and glory to God with whatever they do. I just turn them over to Him... and mutter many many many little prayers throughout the day.
I have not started with my preschoolers yet. I am hoping to be ready for them next week or the week after. Right now Im just trying to work on my MOTH schedule and get the house organized. I have to admit I have let the munchkins watch a video everyday this week so far. Just a short one while I did some little stuff. Of course that is not a permanent thing at all! It has helped while I work on the MOTH schedule though.
Around the House:
Things are starting to look good around here... not great but GOOD. Baby steps. The boys' rooms is almost completely cleaned and organized. The girls' room is at least neat at this point. This is where I have spent most of my week at. In these two rooms trying to get them nice and relaxing for my little people.
I have started implementing the schedule some.. in bits and pieces and I see a difference already. Although I have to say that I am worn out today. Not sure why but I tried to at least do the basic stuff, pick up, wash dishes, and laundry, today. Then I thought I really needed a break so I thought I would come blog because I have not been doing that this week. Well thats all I have for now. I will keep you all updated on my MOTH schedule and the girls' at school though.
I have not started with my preschoolers yet. I am hoping to be ready for them next week or the week after. Right now Im just trying to work on my MOTH schedule and get the house organized. I have to admit I have let the munchkins watch a video everyday this week so far. Just a short one while I did some little stuff. Of course that is not a permanent thing at all! It has helped while I work on the MOTH schedule though.
Around the House:
Things are starting to look good around here... not great but GOOD. Baby steps. The boys' rooms is almost completely cleaned and organized. The girls' room is at least neat at this point. This is where I have spent most of my week at. In these two rooms trying to get them nice and relaxing for my little people.
I have started implementing the schedule some.. in bits and pieces and I see a difference already. Although I have to say that I am worn out today. Not sure why but I tried to at least do the basic stuff, pick up, wash dishes, and laundry, today. Then I thought I really needed a break so I thought I would come blog because I have not been doing that this week. Well thats all I have for now. I will keep you all updated on my MOTH schedule and the girls' at school though.
Thursday, August 4, 2005
Scheduling...
Today we ran around in circles AGAIN! Im a little frustarted because it seems that out of my six children there are 4 Social Workers. Well three of those Social Workers have been beating down my door (or I guess telephone) trying to set up visits for this week. They have til the 26th to do them! On top of all that I have other people who need to see the children calling as well. I know they are trying to get all the school aged children seen this week before school starts BUT Im home all day. I only have two heading off to school and their worker has not called me at all! Its just been frustrating because Im trying to run around and finish all my last minute stuff and find out teacher's names and orientations and so forth and so on and these people are calling at 8am saying... "Oh I have to see so and so TODAY!" They are so disorganized. But its ok because I have already decided on my new MOTH schedule I am going to allot 1/2 hour in the morning three days a week and thats when visits will take place. It will be during a down time in our day and the children will be available to talk. I think three days a week will give more than enough flexibility and if I have to I will pull the schedule out and explain why I am doing it this way. Too many disruptions in my day! Im usually the type of person that will bend over backwards to be accomadating but with six small children and a household to manage I have to have some boundaries. Most of my workers will appreciate the scheduling but I have one or two who will balk Im sure. But I will stand firm. Im homeschooling (preschool) two this year and I will have two 2 year olds running around as well. Im determined to make my MOTH schedule work with the grace of GOD.
Im dealing with some discipline issues with the 8 year old that Im not used to. She has had 8 years to develop bad habits and bad character qualities. I now have the task of reshaping her. Its taking a lot of prayer and patience and creativity. She wants to do well. I have to say it is not her fault she is the way she is. Since the age of 6 she has been in about 3-4 different foster homes. Most of them offered no consistent discipline. I have seen some improvement with our consistency and love. I hope to see many more. One thing we are trying to do to address character issues is to look up Bible verses. Its easier for her to comprehend why something is wrong when we can give her factual evidence. She is making progress.
Well in three months time we can start the adoption process. I would love to see everything wrapped up by Christmas and depending on how the school year is going take them out of school at Christmas to start homeschooling. I dont know yet though. Thats a very big IF! I dont know if we will be able to adopt by Christmas the Worker (who is one of the ones I absolutly LOVE) has started talking about taking it slooooow. Im not sure why as all three girls are excited about being adopted. But we shall see. And I might not have any problems with one year of schooling. I am going to take a wait and see attitude.
Around the House:
Dishes
Laundry
Dishes
Laundry
Dishes
Laundry
Dishes
Laundry......
Im dealing with some discipline issues with the 8 year old that Im not used to. She has had 8 years to develop bad habits and bad character qualities. I now have the task of reshaping her. Its taking a lot of prayer and patience and creativity. She wants to do well. I have to say it is not her fault she is the way she is. Since the age of 6 she has been in about 3-4 different foster homes. Most of them offered no consistent discipline. I have seen some improvement with our consistency and love. I hope to see many more. One thing we are trying to do to address character issues is to look up Bible verses. Its easier for her to comprehend why something is wrong when we can give her factual evidence. She is making progress.
Well in three months time we can start the adoption process. I would love to see everything wrapped up by Christmas and depending on how the school year is going take them out of school at Christmas to start homeschooling. I dont know yet though. Thats a very big IF! I dont know if we will be able to adopt by Christmas the Worker (who is one of the ones I absolutly LOVE) has started talking about taking it slooooow. Im not sure why as all three girls are excited about being adopted. But we shall see. And I might not have any problems with one year of schooling. I am going to take a wait and see attitude.
Around the House:
Dishes
Laundry
Dishes
Laundry
Dishes
Laundry
Dishes
Laundry......
Monday, August 1, 2005
A Blank Page and Foster Children
A brand new month. I love the first day.... the first day of the year, the first day of the month, the first day of the week. I dont know it just seems that the first day is a blank page waiting to be filled. I have been trying to steer my blog towards daily happenings in our lives but once in awhile I will get this "need" to vent or to kind of share things Im thinking about. My sweet man reads all of my entries before they are ever posted and if he has any concerns he vetos them. No problem. Im not trying to be a younger woman "teaching" but I do believe by sharing somethings that I can encourage other women.
Im working on something in my head about the way the "world" sneaks into our churches and establishes itself. Its another soapbox topic and I just want to warn you ahead of time. Hubby and I have been discussing it and he asked me to write about it so I will!
Now I have been so excited the last few weeks. I knew I had about 4 readers of my blog but lately new people have been popping in with comments or emails. Keep 'em coming girls it so encouraging!
Here is a question from Anna:
I would love to know how you and your husband got involved in adopting foster kids.
Anna, when we first started the foster care process we had to take foster/adopt classes. The classes were the same for everyone. We did not go into this to just adopt because you can get a wider range of kids if you start out fostering. Of course adoptive foster parents have more of a chance of actually getting children placed with them that are either already at the stage of TPR (Termination of Parental Rights) or very close to it. With being foster parents first we generally have to wait for TPR and even deal with the children going back to their Biological parents. We went in knowing this and deciding that if God would grant us any of these children we would take them. My mom gets a little perturbed when we tell her that another child in our home will be going up for adoption. She has told me many times that I cant adopt them all... not sure why though! :) The three girls we will be adopting came to us in the middle of trying to get TPRd. They'd been in states care for a year and a half and mom had left the state. I have one little guy right now who was taken at 6 months of age. The next 6 months of his life were spent in two-three different foster homes. Then at one year of age he came to me and has been with me ever since. He will be 2.5 in October and will have been in care for 2 years (with me for 1.5 years). Supposedly if a child has been in care for 18 months out of 22 months he is to be placed for permanancy (basically TPR or send him back) this is almost never the case as the state bends over backwards to give children back to thier bios. Understandable Im sure but if a mom cant do what the state has asked her to do after two years... well.. that should be the end of it. She obviously does not really care about getting her child back. Its a hard road but we love the children and really feel as if we are doing what God has called us to do. As far as birth order.. the classes suggest you take no children older than your oldest biological child. A lot of people only take children younger than their youngest. We did not have this problem as we had no children of our own but now we have to be a little more careful taking placements. So far the only birth order problem we have found is when we got our other two year old a few weeks ago our two year old A had many problems adjusting! He just flat did not like E and made sure he knew it by hitting, snatching, biting, pushing and yelling at him.
I hope this answers your question. If I can be of any more help please let me know! That goes for anyone who has any questions about foster care. We need good Christian homes to raise up these children and at least give them a foundation.
Around the house:
I got my MOTH book today. I have been reading through it and it is almost exactly like Candy's binder system. I am so impressed. Way to go Candy!
I was going to make baked potatoes for dinner tonight because hubby left for work not feeling well and I thought he would probably not eat with us tonight. Well he surprised me with a renewed appetite this evening. Fortunatly I had some frozen Country Fried steak on hand that only took about 20 minutes to cook. I threw them in with the baked potatoes and we were good to go.
I want to start making bread everyday. I have been reading some books about how the people lived in the "olden" days and noticed that they made bread everyday and had it with every meal. I also read somewhere that if you serve bread with every meal that your family fills up faster. Im willing to try it and see.
Other than that we are just trying to get ready for school to start. I can believe its almost time!
Ok Im off to bed. Just wanted to check in on this the first day of August!
Im working on something in my head about the way the "world" sneaks into our churches and establishes itself. Its another soapbox topic and I just want to warn you ahead of time. Hubby and I have been discussing it and he asked me to write about it so I will!
Now I have been so excited the last few weeks. I knew I had about 4 readers of my blog but lately new people have been popping in with comments or emails. Keep 'em coming girls it so encouraging!
Here is a question from Anna:
I would love to know how you and your husband got involved in adopting foster kids.
Anna, when we first started the foster care process we had to take foster/adopt classes. The classes were the same for everyone. We did not go into this to just adopt because you can get a wider range of kids if you start out fostering. Of course adoptive foster parents have more of a chance of actually getting children placed with them that are either already at the stage of TPR (Termination of Parental Rights) or very close to it. With being foster parents first we generally have to wait for TPR and even deal with the children going back to their Biological parents. We went in knowing this and deciding that if God would grant us any of these children we would take them. My mom gets a little perturbed when we tell her that another child in our home will be going up for adoption. She has told me many times that I cant adopt them all... not sure why though! :) The three girls we will be adopting came to us in the middle of trying to get TPRd. They'd been in states care for a year and a half and mom had left the state. I have one little guy right now who was taken at 6 months of age. The next 6 months of his life were spent in two-three different foster homes. Then at one year of age he came to me and has been with me ever since. He will be 2.5 in October and will have been in care for 2 years (with me for 1.5 years). Supposedly if a child has been in care for 18 months out of 22 months he is to be placed for permanancy (basically TPR or send him back) this is almost never the case as the state bends over backwards to give children back to thier bios. Understandable Im sure but if a mom cant do what the state has asked her to do after two years... well.. that should be the end of it. She obviously does not really care about getting her child back. Its a hard road but we love the children and really feel as if we are doing what God has called us to do. As far as birth order.. the classes suggest you take no children older than your oldest biological child. A lot of people only take children younger than their youngest. We did not have this problem as we had no children of our own but now we have to be a little more careful taking placements. So far the only birth order problem we have found is when we got our other two year old a few weeks ago our two year old A had many problems adjusting! He just flat did not like E and made sure he knew it by hitting, snatching, biting, pushing and yelling at him.
I hope this answers your question. If I can be of any more help please let me know! That goes for anyone who has any questions about foster care. We need good Christian homes to raise up these children and at least give them a foundation.
Around the house:
I got my MOTH book today. I have been reading through it and it is almost exactly like Candy's binder system. I am so impressed. Way to go Candy!
I was going to make baked potatoes for dinner tonight because hubby left for work not feeling well and I thought he would probably not eat with us tonight. Well he surprised me with a renewed appetite this evening. Fortunatly I had some frozen Country Fried steak on hand that only took about 20 minutes to cook. I threw them in with the baked potatoes and we were good to go.
I want to start making bread everyday. I have been reading some books about how the people lived in the "olden" days and noticed that they made bread everyday and had it with every meal. I also read somewhere that if you serve bread with every meal that your family fills up faster. Im willing to try it and see.
Other than that we are just trying to get ready for school to start. I can believe its almost time!
Ok Im off to bed. Just wanted to check in on this the first day of August!
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