an ordinary mom

2011-12-24T22:32:00.001-06:00

Untitled, a photo by Skeins Her Way on Flickr.

Swoon!

An Ordinary Mom's New Home

2010-04-13T18:46:00.001-05:00

Please head over to www.anordinarymom.com and join us there! See you soon!

Back Up and Running, On Wordpress!

2010-03-26T15:35:00.002-05:00

If you're seeing this at springvaleacademy.blogspot.com, it's time to head back over to www.anordinarymom.com ! It looks a bit different, ok a lot different, but we're working on it!

Hope to see you there soon!

A Nice Time for a Break

2010-03-11T08:04:00.004-06:00

It seems that our web server had some sort of brain freeze. Mr. Extraordinary has been running on nearly empty for weeks with too much work and too little sleep, so it may take another day or two until we get it all figured out.

The children and I have been busy as well, it must be that spring is in the air phenomenon. As soon as we can get the server issues ironed out, I'll be back to share some pics of our recent adventures and then get on with new ones...

Have an excellent rest of your week!

Multitude Monday 301-310

2010-03-08T08:36:00.011-06:00

301. a 10 yr old son's heart full of righteous indignation every time he reads of the persecution of believers in The Voice of the Martyrs newsletters, he sees the wrong and prays/pleads for what's right

302. a teenager who sees the sin and brokenness in our society in the daily headiness, and who understands the importance of strengthening his walk with Him if he is to navigate these treacherous waters

303. being able to be there (in spirit & prayer) for a dear sister in Christ going through the heartache of loss, as hard as such a thing is, I'm thankful that because of my own experiences I can have a deeper empathy for others as they walk through their dark valleys

304. tissue paper flowers, I'm sure it won't be long before I see them as clutter and toss them to make room for the next crafty decorations, but for now I'm thankful for the tissue paper flowers that signal our eager anticipation of spring

305. longer days with more sunshine, melting the layer of ice and snow that had crept over more and more of our driveway, our sidewalk, and my energy levels...

306. patches of old grass peeking through, and the sense of urgency to enjoy the last bits of cool air and wintry white stuff before the seasons really do change and we begin to grumble about the heat (and humidity!) and mosquitoes (our unofficial state bird)

307. 9 & 7 yr old girls that can brush their own hair yet will often still ask Mom for help with some braids or a sweet little bun

308. 5 & 3 yr old girls with many more years of needing & wanting help with hair, it's so nice to feel needed in such a simple way

309. a stack of good books

310. years of old pictures and the sweet laughs and giggles of children as they look back on themselves and their brothers and sisters and Mom and Dad, our lives together and our looks through the ages, I remind myself often- take more pictures!

It's overcast today- I notice how spoiled I've become by several days of sunshine, and I notice how obviously the lack of sun affects me. My tendency is to turn inward, to sigh deep sighs of something less than contentment, and to muddle through my dreary days, but I know that is far less than the best I can do. As a Mother, I strive to do better for my children's sake, and yet as a Christian I need to strive to do better for much more than my sake, an for far more than my children's sake. I need to, I can do, better for the sake of Him whose Name I claim. And so I turn my eyes to see my world in another light, in a light that sees my everything as something from Him, and something to be truly thankful for, and it's changing me. From the inside out, it's changing me in such a good way.

Tissue Paper Flowers- Think Spring!

2010-03-05T14:05:00.002-06:00

It's time to think spring! With temps climbing up around 40 degrees (yes, that's warm up here), and more minutes of sunlight every day, it's finally time to take down the snowflakes, the snowmen, the scenes of winter wonderland, and even the tiny sweaters that speak the language of ice and snow. It's time to bask in the sunshine and enjoy thoughts of blooms!

At Macy's Flower Show last spring, there were kids' activities set up in the isles of FAO Schwarz (very strategic, don't you think?) and one of the things that we liked the best were the tissue paper flowers. They had little kits made up, with pre-cut tissue papers and a pipe cleaner (chenille stem, whatever you want to call them...) all ready to go.

We brought home a couple extra sets and they have become the template & inspiration for our first spring crafts this year.

These flowers are so fun and easy to make! You can make them with bright and wild colors or soft and sweet- whatever suits for fancy or whatever you find to work with.

Our original flowers were made with tissue paper rectangles measuring approximately 9" x 11", but 8x10, 7x9, 6x8, or even 5x7 will work... I didn't even measure our latest ones. I simply folded the stack of tissue papers (I used 5 sheets, you can use more or less to get different fullness in your flowers) in half and cut along the fold. Then I cut each half in half again, and then again. This makes 8 flowers of equal size.

Once you have your rectangles, you fold them accordion style, like the paper fans we all learned to make as a child. You can leave the ends alone, or you can round them off like I did on our light flowers, or you can cut points like the bright one on a previous post.

Next, take a pipe cleaner and wrap around your folded tissue paper, in the center, and twist the end around itself to secure.

Then comes the hard part- except that it's not really hard, you just have to be careful not to rip the tissue paper, which you will do if you pull to fast and hard. Carefully start separating the layers of tissue paper to create the fullness of the flower.

Lather. Rinse. Repeat. (Except don't really lather or rinse- just repeat. Wet tissue paper is a disaster of monumental proportions. It isn't pretty. It's not the look we're going for.) Make one, make a few, or make an entire big bouquet...

Enjoy!

Our Hopie Girl

2010-03-03T15:24:00.000-06:00

H is for hearty, she has always been so strong, even when sick with RSV and her asthma, she has weathered it all so well, it takes a lot to get this girl down...

O is for observant, she has a keen and discerning way of discovering the world around her and she finds delight in so much of it, perhaps her O should be for optimistic as well...

P is for playful, she loves to have fun, and she loves to play hard and strong (I wish I had half of her energy!)

E is for enthusiastic, she is a girl who puts her all into everything, and her enthusiasm is contagious- just ask those who know her!

Our Hope turned 5 last month, and what a whirlwind her 5 yrs have been. I should have known this child would have a great big bunch of personality when she burst onto our scene after about 45 minutes of labor, all 9 pounds and 12 ounces of her! When she was hospitalized with RSV at 6 weeks old, I truly think it was her robust healthy size that helped her hold her own against that awful virus which also affected her sister and left the 2 of them with some chronic asthma issues. She was such a trooper last fall, when she ended up in the PICU at Children's Hospital with RSV again, and pneumonia, and asthma flare-up.

Hope is a child who can always make us laugh. She says the funniest things I've ever heard come forth from the mouth of a child. I remember laughing so hard one day, while at dinner with the family at my parents', and I said the oft' said "I really should write all of these down!" and my Dad, still laughing quite hard at whatever her latest quip had been answered "No, you need video... because no one would believe you..." which made all of us laugh so much more. It's so true, some of the things she says are so profoundly funny, that it's hard to believe a 3, 4, or now 5 year old could even come up with that. (You may notice that most of the funnies of my kid quotes posts have been Hopisms...)

I look forward to the next 5 years with her, and the 5 years after that, and as many years as the Lord gives us!

Thank you, Lord, for our precious Hope, for the way she makes us smile and laugh, and the way she touches and manages to melt our hearts each and every day. Thank you for her enthusiasm and zest for life, may it never grow old and tired. Thank you for the chance to be her Mommy. I humbly pray that You would grant me, daily, wisdom and guidance that I may be used by You to mold and shape her little heart and life, that she would grow into the woman that You would have her to be.

Multitude Monday 291-300

2010-03-01T08:56:00.005-06:00

291. children who color so many darling pictures that we don't have enough room on the walls to display them and they need special folders to store the archives...

292. a teenager who volunteered to stay home with a sick toddler (not too sick, but enough to not bring out to play with friends) and insisted I bring the others to our scheduled play date, as they had all worked so hard all week to get their lists checked off, their work all done...

293. seeing my children work so hard all week, with their eyes on a prize they can really push themselves, they did great, my Mother heart beams...

294. morning sunshine making it so much easier to get out of bed each day- I have never been a morning person, having a sleep disorder doesn't help one bit, and neither does a crazy month at my husband's jobs...

295. more birds tweeting each day, the suet rapidly depleting from the feeder

296. thoughts of gardening, I'll grumble in the heat and when the weeds take over, but for now the thoughts of our long winter melting into spring green keep my smiling in anticipation

297. tissue paper flowers

298. sweet toddler grins

299. big brothers enjoying play time with their youngest brother, the contagious laughs spreading through the room like wildfire

300. 8 yr old girl turning 9, last year of single digits, she may be growing up too fast for my heart to comprehend, but I am so thankful for 9 years with my oldest daughter, my mini me, the one who has shown me more about myself than I ever wanted to know, but I needed to know so much...

Sunday Hymn- Great Is Thy Faithfulness

2010-02-28T06:30:00.003-06:00

Great Is Thy Faithfulness

Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father,
There is no shadow of turning with Thee;
Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not:
As Thou hast been Thou forever wilt be.

CHORUS
Great is Thy faithfulness! Great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see;
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided-
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!

Summer and winter, and springtime and harvest,
Sun, moon and stars in their courses above,
Join with all nature in manifold witness
To Thy great faithfulness, mercy and love.

CHORUS

Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth,
Thy own dear presence to cheer and to guide,
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow-
Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside!

CHORUS

***
An all-time favorite of mine, to play, to sing, to hum, to pray...

He is faithful, His faithfulness is great- if only I could be half as faithful as He is.
There is no shadow of turning in Him- unlike in me. I turn far too much.

He changes not- I wish I could say the same for myself.
His compassions, they fail not- oh, how many times have my compassions failed? Too many times, I know it, and I'm not proud of it. If I want to become more like Him, I need to become more compassionate. I need to open up my cold heart to the warmth of His compassion, working in me and through me, today, and every day...

As He has been, He forever will be- He has, after all, been perfect and good from the beginning. I, on the other hand, have not. I was born a sinner, so far from perfect and good, and I am glad that as I have been I will not forever be. I am changing. I am a work in progress. One day I will be made perfect and complete in His presence. What a day that will be!

Here is one of my favorite versions of this song. If you like a relaxing and beautifully played hymn now and then (or all day) to relax and bless your soul, I really think you will enjoy this one!

Junk Out 2010

2010-02-27T06:30:00.002-06:00

Let's see, this week I passed on another box of baby boy clothes to my youngest sister, and I came to the realization that the new duvet cover that I finally got onto my bed just wasn't as nice as it looked. It sure looked nice, and it sure was a great deal. That's why I've kept it this long, in my closet...

While cleaning out my closet, there it was. I remembered that shopping day, at Target, at least a year ago (nope, not kidding), maybe more. I wasn't there for a duvet cover. I was there for the usual things like diapers, toilet paper, and socks, because it seems like socks are almost as consumable as those other single-use items around here...

And then I saw it, sitting all nice and pretty on the end cap, clearanced at 75% of it's original price. A set with bed skirt (which doesn't work with out bed frame anyway...), duvet cover, and 2 fabulous and superfluous fancy pillow cases. Deep red with a gold and green paisley pattern. It was luxurious looking, and it was slippery. That was its downfall. It literally kept slipping off to one side or the other, and it sounded rather loud as it did. It was the taffeta backing. I've never really understood satin sheets, but taffeta surely must be worse. I even put a flannel sheet under it, because, well, we live in Minnesnowta and have a closet full of flannel sheets (2 sets). Taffeta still slips off of flannel.

My husband tried to appreciate the look of this beautiful piece. After all, his wife had finally gone to some extra effort to beautify the master bedroom, to make it the sanctuary of our home (that it should be! I need to keep working on that!), and he didn't want to squelch any of that. After a week of trying, he finally took it off the bed the other night and said it just has to go. "It's like sleeping under a windbreaker." You know, those lighweight, but really loud, jackets? I giggled, and agreed. It really was like sleeping under a windbreaker, a really pretty windbreaker, but a windbreaker nonetheless.

I hope somebody else will appreciate it. It's going to the thrift store.

I can't use it, so, to me, it's junk, and I need to get the Junk Out!

What else? It's also time to toss about 50 (ok, I didn't really count them) little girls' turtlenecks that have been worn by 4 girls for the past 5 yrs or so, and really just aren't in any shape to be passed on. They weren't in the best of shape to be worn by girl #4, which is why she ended up with several new shirts making the pile of older shirts even more unnecessary and downright cumbersome as she has this habit of emptying the entire bin of shirts every time she goes to pick out a new one. When the bin is stuffed full of hand-me-downs it makes for a big pile of shirts on the floor... Yeah, time to be done with that.

Baby clothes passed on, a bedding set thrifted, and a pile of overused shirts tossed. That's a good week for me, and I think I'll finish going through our youngest two children's clothes this afternoon...

How did you do?

What's So Ordinary?

2010-02-26T06:30:00.003-06:00

"I don't know how you do it."
"You must be the most patient woman in the world."
"You must be so organized."
"You are one special woman."

I hear it all the time, often immediately following the frequently uttered, "Wow, you've sure got your hands full." Yes, I do, I think to myself, trying to remember to smile and nod in agreement. "It's a good full", I often respond.

When I hear "You must be busy all the time!", I nod and reply "Yep, it's a good busy", because it is. Life with many children is busy, even when nothing is going on, but it's a good busy, a busy I wouldn't trade for anything.

The thing is, I'm not the most patient woman in the world. I'm so far from the most organized woman in the world that it really isn't funny. Patience and organization are things I am always working on. I'm really not even that special, not any more than any other mother who tries, by the grace of God, to do right by her children.

I'm really quite ordinary.

I try, I fail, and I get up and try again the next day. I have ideals I don't always live up to, dreams I may never live out, and goals I may never reach, but I keep on keepin' on because it's really all there is to do.

I am a Mother.

I have children who wake up every day needing whatever it is I have to give, and then some. Every day they need guidance and direction. Sometimes they need their questions answered and sometimes they need to be pointed in the direction of finding the answers themselves. Sometimes they need help with doing something new or something hard, and sometimes they need further instructions and further encouragement in learning to do it themselves.

I have a job to do-

"Train up a child in the way he should go:
and when he is old, he will not depart from it."
Proverbs 2:26
"And these words, which I command thee this day,
shall be in thine heart:
And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children,
and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house,
and when thou walkest by the way,
and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up."
Deuteronomy 6:6-7

I don't feel qualified to do such a big job, remember I'm just an ordinary mom?

That is where He comes in.

He is my strength when I am weak

(weak in patience, weak in joy, weak in physical pain)

He is the treasure that I seek

("Seek the LORD and his strength, seek his face continually."

1 Chronicles 16:11)

He is my all in all, and He is not ordinary.

He is extraordinary.

IPs and Lots of Lists

2010-02-25T09:02:00.006-06:00

Whew! There are a good many benefits to being married to an IT guy, like how he took care of the whole domain name buying thing and the setting it all up on the web server and entering all of the ftp path mumbo jumbo so all I have to do is hit "publish post"... Then there are the times that he has to do things like reassign IPs because of some new fiber loop and extras like the blogs go down for a bit and are not the 1st priority to bring back up when there are things like entire racks of servers that form the basis of what we hope to be our livelihood soon... and, well...

I had a couple down days. Well, that's not entirely true. I managed to get quite a bit done (I love Getting Things Done with the Autofocus System! and I need to start another notebook!), but the blog had some down days, which is totally no big deal. That being said, it's nice to back up and running.

The kids have been chomping at the bit and really working hard to get this week's list of schoolwork done so we can go on a play date tomorrow. It's so great to see them diving in and making the effort to earn the privilege. Even relaxed homeschoolers have some requirements, and I'm getting so much better at sticking to actually requiring them... (I used to be SUCH a softie!)

I've got another list to attend to and an audio book to pick out for the drive time tomorrow.

It's supposed to be a few degrees warmer here than it was yesterday, which is great, except for the fact that we're still not supposed to get above freezing, sigh... BUT, the sun is out again, and I just know that spring will eventually come, even to this frozen state. Eventually.

On that note, have an extraordinary Thursday!

eta: I'd love to see another link or two on this Saturday's Junk Out post! I know that there are more of you decluttering out there and that whole strength in numbers thing really is true! If you've got a corner or two (or a whole house like me!) to clean out and declutter, join in and take a pic or two if you're brave enough, and write about your progress, or even about your motivation to declutter, tips, or stories about blessing others with your excess!

Multitude Monday 281-290

2010-02-22T06:30:00.002-06:00

281. releasing another several pounds of clutter

282. children who beg for more biscuits, some with sausage gravy, some with butter and jelly, some with butter and honey, some with peanut butter, some with just butter, all made with love and more helping hands

283. a week with more sunny days than overcast days

284. a good night's sleep for my husband and I, on the same night...

285. respiratory crud finally easing up again and making it through this round with only 1 ER visit and no hospitalizations for any asthmatics- I never thought I would be in a place to need to say that I'm thankful for months in a row without a hospital stay, but after the last 5 yrs, ever since our 5 yr old Hope was hospitalized with RSV at 6 weeks old, and the many hospitalizations that Grace and Hope have endured... now I'm in that place, and I'm thankful for every month without a hospital visit...

286. a husband who keeps encouraging me

287. personal character pruning, it hurts to go through, but I trust and love the Gardener

288. time spent holding a sister's new baby

289. a sister and brother-in-law buying their first home, not too far away, bringing the rest of my immediate family close together again (us, my parents, and now both of my sisters and their husbands, and of course their precious children, live within about 10 miles of each other!)

290. the urge to take down the snowflake decorations and start creating some springtime atmosphere in our home!

Junk Out 2010

2010-02-20T01:00:00.001-06:00

This week I didn't make the kind of progress I had hoped for. That's ok, I'm becoming a lot more comfortable with releasing things, and that is a huge step in the right direction. Huge. I passed on a ton of baby boy clothes to my youngest sister today without hesitation. I didn't take a picture, but when I say a ton, I mean a ton, or however much 2 very full garbage bags weighs...

It gets easier, I'm seeing that, but I still have a long way to go. I've realized that I am the type of person to develop an emotional attachment to just about anything I've ever touched, owned, or even seen. Ok, that could be a slight exaggeration, but it's not that far off.

I have single coffee cups that I never meant to collect, and that annoy me because there is no uniform-ness in my cup cupboard. Haphazard cups bumping into each other stresses me out, and yet I've kept them, even a few of the chipped ones. "You never know when you might need an extra cup, right?" "That chip isn't that big." Ok, the one that had the crack spread down the side and then started dripping coffee on me... that one went. You see? I'm not hopeless. I just have too much junk.

I have decorative plates that never get used. Some were gifts, and you know how that can go... I've never once been given a guilt trip by anyone (that I can remember) about not hanging onto a gift of some sort, and yet I have guilted myself into not getting rid of things that someone gave me for years and years. I've gotten better at it, but I do still have that Tabasco glass that one of my sisters gave us years ago. It's really cute, actually, but it sits up in a back corner of the cupboard just taking up space, mostly because it's a lone cup, and I have this thing for symmetry and pairs. It held pens for a while, but then I moved up to a bigger and wider pen holder, and back into the cupboard it went. It's a cute cup, but I don't need it and somebody else might get some enjoyment out of it. It's going in the box.

I have fabric I've never cut into, but that I had an idea for some time ago...

I have sewing pattenrs I'm sure I'll never use...

I have knitting books and patterns that I thought about using once upon a time...

I have boxes of papers that either need archiving or shredding...

I have games no one liked to play...

I have tablecloths that don't fit my table...

I have books I meant to read and school books I meant to use, before I changed my mind...

I still have clothes I never wear hanging in my closet, despite several purgings already...

I have pictures I've never hung...

I have small kitchen appliances that seemed like a good idea at the time...

I have unused Tupperware...!?!

I just keep finding things, things I don't need, things I never use, things I don't even like anymore, and a new feeling comes over me- the feeling like I can give, sell, or toss!

I love the decluttered corners that I've reclaimed, the order that has returned to my closet, and knowing that even an organizationally challenged packrat can find freedom from things- things that clutter the mind as much as they clutter the home.

I love getting the Junk Out!!

Proverbs and Parenting

2010-02-17T18:10:00.005-06:00

A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones.
Proverbs 17:22 (italics not mine, it's printed just like that in my KJV)

This has been one of my favorite verses for years. I love it and read it over and over again. I meditate on it as often as I need to, and that's pretty often.

You see, I have a long history of battling a very real depression. All of my looking for the good in things, the humor in things, the blessing in things, doesn't come naturally. It's a conscious decision, a decision that on some days is so hard for me to make. Those are the days when the decision to be merry or to find the merriment is even more important. For me, it's necessary.

Like so many things in life, especially hard things, it comes easier with practice. And so I practice, and I encourage my children to practice. We practice joy. We practice laughter. We practice merriment. We try to have fun, good clean fun, and it does our hearts good.

"but a broken spirit drieth the bones"- what happens to things that are dried? I've lost enough plants to know about dryness. Things become hard. They become weak. They become brittle. They break.

The opposite of dry is wet. (Brilliant observation, I know.) Really wet is saturated, and that's how I want so badly to be- saturated with joy, soaked through and through, to the bone.

It's how I want to be, for me, which is even more important because of my role as a parent, a Mother, a life and soul shaper. And so I set my mind on things of Him. He's teaching me joy. He makes me merry and it does my heart good. When my heart is doing good, then I am better equipped to be the Mother I strive to be. Then I can share my merry heart and it doeth them good as well. I want to do them so much good. By His grace, I will.

Simple Buttermilk Biscuits

2010-02-16T06:00:00.007-06:00

Oh, how I love a good biscuit. So do my children. And so does my husband. It works out good that way.

The other day, on a whim, I decided to make our 10 yr old, Jaron, my little sous chef/baker biscuit apprentice. It was great fun. We should definitely do that more often. Soon to be 9 yr old Liberty has dibs on the next tandem baking slot.

We made 2 batches, 2 bowls working side by side. I demonstrated. He imitated. Everyone ate a hearty brunch of biscuits with sausage gravy, a little bit of southern comfort food on a cold Frozen Tundra* winter morning. So good.

*Minnesota, or Minnesnowta

I prefer to make these with 1/2 all-purpose flour and 1/2 freshly ground whole wheat flour. You can make them with all white flour, and they'll be tasty, sort of like restaurant biscuits, but they won't have much, if any, nutritional value, and may act sort of like glue in your intestines. Just sayin'. You can make them with all whole wheat flour, but they'll be a bit more dense and gritty, and you'll probably only like them if you're the real crunchy sort. I love them with 100% fresh ground whole wheat, but the rest of my family prefers 50%... I aim to please.

My recipe is similar to, if not the same as, many others out there. Some use shortening, some use 1/2 shortening and 1/2 butter, and some use all butter. I've written mine out to be flexible and listed the options right there. I believe in being creative and making things your own. What makes my biscuits my biscuits is that I almost always use at least half freshly ground whole wheat flour and all butter. I have an ongoing love affair with butter and wouldn't dream of making my biscuits with anything else. Not everyone feels that way, so wrote in the shortening option. You're welcome.

Without further ado, here is my recipe for our ordinary...

Simple Buttermilk Biscuits

2 c all purpose flour (or 1 c + 1 c whole wheat flour!)
3 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
4 Tbsp butter or shortening (I use butter!)
1 c buttermilk

Sift together dry ingredients and then cut in butter or shortening. Mix in buttermilk to make soft dough and turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Gently knead/fold 4 or 5 times and roll out to approx. 1/2" thick. Cut with biscuit cutter, place on greased pan, and bake at 425˚ for about 15 minutes. Serve warm and enjoy!

Perhaps the favorite and funnest part of making biscuits is the hand shaping of the last bits of dough. If the truth be told, and it should, those biscuits are my favorite biscuits! I always have had a soft spot for those 'different' ones, people and biscuits...

So how about you? White flour? Whole wheat? 50/50? Butter? Shortening? Biscuits in a can?

Multitude Monday 261-280

2010-02-15T06:30:00.001-06:00

261. the beauty that is in our frosty land these days

262. a Friday field trip down "in the city" without a headache despite harsh sun while driving, cold air outside, parking too far from the museum and nearly getting lost in the skyway system, oh, and paying to much to get out of the ramp due to losing the ticket... definite headache material, and yet there was none... it was a good day

263. dry roads on Friday and Saturday while we were out and about and I was behind the wheel

264. overcoming my urge to wimp out and stay home on Saturday

265. meeting the sweetest alpacas

266. our first pair of snow shoes

267. 10 yr old son deciding to make our 2nd pair of snow shoes

268. coughing and wheezing, though not subsiding, is lessening day by day

269. more than 1 day in a row with sunshine!

270. finding a couple coupons I think I'll actually use

271. impromptu steak dinner with husband after kids in bed

272. sparkling peach juice shared with my love

273. another 4 yr old turning 5!! Our sweet and silly little Hope is growing up so fast!

274. children who think my cake decorating is g-r-r-eat! beauty, even cake beauty, truly is in the eye of the beholder...

275. sisters wrapping up things of their own to gift to their sister on her birthday! It touches me that our children always do that!

276. the calendar filling up a bit more as spring approaches

277. my husband who works long hours to provide for us

278. my husband who provides more than just money to pay the bills, but an example of hard-working responsibility

279. my husband who continues to tell me I'm cute

280. my husband who doesn't have anything to prove on Valentine's Day, because I already know that he loves me, every day, even on an off day, I still know it

Thank you, Precious Lord, for the many gifts You have seen fit to give to me, today, and every day. All I have to give back to You is my thanks, and my life, and my love- here they are, they're Yours.

The Cold Hard Truth About Me and Minnesota Winters

2010-02-13T16:45:00.004-06:00

If the truth be told, and it should be, I hate winter. Hate is a strong word, and I often caution my kids that they shouldn't just throw that word around carelessly, but I do. I hate winter. Usually.

I was born and raised right here in the Frozen Tundra. I have borne each of my children here and am currently raising them here, here in the cold and snowy state of Minnesnowta.

I detest being cold, though I do love a cozy sweater and I adore wearing knee-highs. Cold makes me tense, literally. My shoulders tense up and it moves up my neck. I have "a bad neck", so extra tension means extra pain, which often creeps right up to the base of my skull and beyond, leaving me with chronic severe headaches. Cold is not my friend.

I also despise the days and days and sometimes weeks and weeks with no sun. Cold and gray is an unpleasant mix which leaves me feeling sad and sluggish and a bit dull in the head. I require full-spectrum bulbs, vitamin D supplementation, and plenty of coffee.

I have been known to have some fun out in the snow, (though I would much rather be basking in some warm sun)- I used to downhill ski. I have enjoyed some cross-country skiing. I love a good sledding outing. I even managed to get out for a wintry walk this year. Like many Minnesotans, I grew up with a snowmobiling Dad, and will admit to enjoying the ride enough not to mind the fuel smell we walk in wearing when we're done. For a few minutes, then I mind. Unlike many Minnesotans, I have not, however, gone ice fishing, and I don't ever plan on doing so.

Living in Minnesota while not liking winter means that in this land of 2 seasons (winter and road construction), I would actually rather be stuck in slow traffic in a congested construction area than cold and surrounded by snow. I would. It's sad. I know.

Most of my children are much heartier than me and seem to be impervious to cold. That makes me happy. I adore their pink noses and cheeks. A pink (and often dripping) nose on my face is far less endearing. Trust me.

All that being said, even I have to admit that sometimes winter in this Frozen Tundra can be beautiful. Breathtaking. Amazing. Don't you think so?

A day like this now and then makes it a little more bearable... and then I wish it would all melt into spring.

A Is For Again

2010-02-11T19:00:00.001-06:00

"Read it again"
"Sing it again"
"Do it again"
"Can we play it again?"

Just as the sun keeps rising and setting , over and over again, day after day, so does a Mother the same thing, again and again and again.

We-
Wash the dishes and the clothes.
Buy, cook, and serve, food prepared in love.
Change the diapers.
Tie the shoes.
Get the crayons.
Adore the pictures.
Brush out her snarls.
Get some more milk.
Wipe the faces and wash the hands.
Sing sweetly the songs of childhood- Twinkle, Twinkle, the ABC's, the Itsy Bitsy Spider, Jesus Loves Me, Amazing Grace, the list goes on and grows as they do...
We do it all again and again and again.

We-
Bake the cookies.
Wipe the noses.
Tuck in the shirts.
Help ease on the socks.
Find the shoes.
Step on the legos.
Smile at another colored picture.
Make the snack.
Pull back the covers and tuck into bed.
Soothe fevered brows.
Clean up the sick.
Wash the hair.
Iron the Sunday clothes, ok, well, sometimes...
We do it all again and again and again.

We-
Dry the tears.
Apply the band-aids.
Say "don't touch", "put that down", "get off the table", and "careful!"
Hug.
Cuddle.
Carry.
Cradle.
Rock.
Hold.
We do it all again and again and again.

They grow and they flourish and we smile. It's all worth it.

Yes, some day we will miss it, all of the agains, and our hearts full of memories will need to carry us on.

May my memories be of the more joy satisfying "yes, we can do it again" and "okay, one more time..." than the disappointing "no, not right now, maybe later". Eventually, there will be no more later, that's when I'll miss it.

Tonight, I'll Mother with intention, again.

Oral Steroids to the Rescue Again

2010-02-10T06:30:00.002-06:00

I heard her sniffle.

"Mom, my eyes are watering, and my throat hurts."

Another sniffle, and a little cough, not a concerning cough, but then, when your child has asthma, isn't every cough concerning? They have become so, at least with this child. When she coughs, I listen, with my ear on her chest and back, and often with a stethoscope.

Sometimes it's nothing, and sometimes it's asthma. Sometimes there's a whistly wheeze, sometimes there's a crackle, often there is noise other than the simple rush of air I wish to hear.

The runny nose and watery eyes called for some Benedryl. At the first sign of the tickly cough, the Albuterol came out. Every 4 hrs is the standard protocol.

9 am on Sunday morning, she 'had a neb' before we left for church. Her next one was at 1pm, and all seemed relatively ok, except for the cough, it sounded more productive. By 3 (only 2 hrs) she needed another breathing treatment, as her coughing increased and her O2 level began dropping through the 90's. Below 95 is not-so-hot, below 92 for any length of time is not good, that has been the benchmark stat that her docs have told us is when she needs to get in on O2.

By 5 she was at 90%, another neb. She dipped to 89%, and got a second one, back-to-back. She lingered around 91-92%, borderline, but it was early, we've seen her drop her stats at night so many times.

More meds at 7 and again at 9, then she fell asleep on the couch, and dipped to 87%.

It was time to go in.

And it was snowing.

It ended up ok, one of those runs where the very act of getting up and walking out in that cold air actually helped her O2 stat come up a bit by the time we got there. She dipped some after relaxing, but only to 91%, so the doc ordered yet another breathing treatment. She had also developed a fever over the course of Sunday evening, which could have meant virus (as opposed to just a typical asthma/allergy type of event) or that she was already developing pneumonia, which she has done rapidly so many times.

Thankfully, her x-ray was clear! Beautiful lungs, and no antibiotics. She is, however, on yet another oral steroid 'burst', never my favorite, but, as I've grown rather fond of saying "a girl's gotta breathe"...

She was not admitted that night (thank you, Lord!), instead I drove home on a snowy night, oh so tired and barely able to see the road in front of me. The snow stuck to the road and I could see no lane markings. My only landmark on that pavement was the little bumpy grooves in the center that make your car rattle when you drift across the lanes... I was thankful it was after 1am and there were few cars on that rural highway that night.

Monday was an ok day, with breathing treatment interruptions every 4 hrs, long nebs with 2 meds, and the steroid behaviors kicking in along with the desired respiratory effects. Tuesday was even better, though she had a few coughing fits that gave me pause...

Tuesday was busy, though we had to get those breathing treatments in between the work and play. Our oldest started a speech class with other homeschoolers, which looks like it will be an excellent addition to our lifestyle of learning. We also made a Target run to pick out a birthday gift or two or three for our 4 yr old who is about to turn 5. There was an abbreviated afternoon of school work before the cake baking, and then the cake eating began. Games were played (the classic Operation- love that game!) and new puppy toy was played with. Pictures were taken and a couple short videos captured. Bedtimes were pushed back for a night while busy children laughed extra long, extra hard, and extra loud- we can never leave out the loud part around here.

It never ceases to hit me, when the asthma rears its head, how blessed we are. We have meds, we have good hospitals, we have good doctors. It wasn't that long ago that a child with chronic breathing issues wouldn't have made it long. We are so lucky to have her, except that I don't really believe in luck. She is a gift from God, and every day with her is a gift from Him. One more reason to keep on keepin' on, to do my best by my children, and not take them for granted.

Today is day 4 of the oral steroid (that started Sunday night) and I do think we have this round under control. She will stay on her inhaled steroid for some time after the oral dose taper, probably until we have our next visit with her pulmonologist. Which reminds me, I need to schedule that for sometime in March, which seemed much further away back in the first week of December...

Mr. Extraordinary scored some tickets to a local event tonight and will be out on a free date night, enjoying a night on the town, while my youngest sister is in the throes of labor (unless it goes fast! pray for fast!) as she is scheduled to be induced to deliver their 2nd son later this morning. If any of you praying Mommas out there would take a moment to offer up a prayer on behalf of my baby sister and her baby, please know you're appreciated! If we time things right, or if she times things right, or if baby times things right, we won't be all that far from the hospital in the evening... maybe we can sneak in for a peak and some pics!

Sweet Sounds of Mercy

2010-02-09T06:30:00.003-06:00

I love the way she says "Otay".

If I could bottle it up, to sip from, to quench my thirst for joy on a day, down the road, when my Mothering seems dry, I would fill a pantry. And then I'd bottle some more.

It's a paradox really, that our little Mercy, the child who has challenged me the most, would be the one who can melt my heart with her cuteness the fastest and the most completely.

It's a bit like how the more I realize what a challenge I must be to Him, the sweeter His love is to me. I said a bit like, because the analogy doesn't exactly work. I'm not quite sure that my cuteness melts His heart the fastest (in fact, I rather doubt it, my cuteness isn't all that cute), but I can rest in the fact that cuteness or ugliness aside (and I do have my ugly days, don't we all? I sincerely hope I'm not the only one), His heart has already melted. His love has already been given.

"For Gos so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life"
John 3:16

He loved and He gave. That's my example. I love and I need to give- give my love, my patience (and some of His, for I never seem to have enough), my time, my forgiveness, grace, and mercy. I love and I need to give of myself, knowing that part of who they become will be because of who I am, just as part (oh, I hope most!) of who I become is because of who He is.

She is a petite pumpkin and has definitely been my lightest 3 yr old (we breed 'em big here). She makes the most of her size and continues to wrap her arms around me and hang on for a ride, and I let her. I keep her close, right where she needs to be for now, so that one day when she's ready to spread her little wings and fly, she will be better equipped to handle herself as she learns to handle the world around her.

Mothering is work, and when the work is extra hard, the rewards are extra sweet. Like the way she squeezes me and the way she says "Otay".

Multitude Monday 241-260

2010-02-08T06:30:00.002-06:00

eta: 7 yr old seems to have been hit with a virus, causing her asthma to act up suddenly, 3 hrs in the ER and another round of steroids, no pneumonia- today we're thankful for no pneumonia!

Not what we say about our blessings, but how we use them, is the true measure of
our thanksgiving. ~W.T. Purkiser

241. safety on snowy roads

242. a minute or 2 more daylight each day

243. feeling the spring fever coursing through my veins

244. leisure time with friends

245. excitement for my youngest sister, nearing the birth of her 2nd son

246. the well meaning "how are you?"s, the ones when dear women make eye contact, and really want to know

247. modern medicine, yet again helping our sweet daughter to breathe

248. Cheetos dust, on the youngest of hands and cheeks, even when it leaves its mark on my clothes, when it's on my baby, even that staining orange stuff is endearing

249. knowing he's my baby, even though he's a whopping 15 months old, he'll always be my baby, right?

250. another stirring message at church

251. a heart in a place and condition to be stirred

252. knowing it truly is in Him that I live and move and have my being

253. a heartfelt hug

254. a genuine smile

255. shared tears

256. another day to get up and try again

257. another daily list to work through

258. a few stolen moments to plan my week

259. new resolve

260. resting in the peace that truly does pass understanding

Deep Thinking Is Not For Wimps

2010-02-06T12:15:00.004-06:00

The problem with deep thinking is that you think deep thoughts, at least I do. Deep thoughts can be the thoughts that inspire. I love it when that happens. I wish all of my deep thoughts were like that. Other deep thoughts can unearth our deepest fears, our deepest feelings of inadequacy, and when those are the deep thoughts being thunk (I can make up words, this is my space, wait, I just looked it up, it's a word), it's so easy to be consumed with fear, anxiety, and utter hopelessness, at least it is for me.

What am I doing?
Why can't I get this right?
Are my efforts all in vain?
Are my words falling on deaf ears?
How many times am I going to make the same mistake?
What have I gotten myself into?
Am I really doing my best?
What if I'm not?
Maybe I'm really just lazy.
Maybe I don't have anything better in me to give.
Maybe it doesn't even matter.

Except, it does. It does matter. What I do matters. What I say matters. What I think matters. I am a Mother. I am shaping little lives, little hearts, little souls, all day, every day, no matter what I do. I can shape them poorly or I can shape them well. I can stand by and let the world shape them, and yet, if it happens on my watch, while they're under my roof and in my care, then it's really me shaping them, by merely allowing the world to shape them.

Passive parenting will not do.

I have never thought that it would, and yet, as I think about my days, I can find times and ways in which my actions betray a lack of purpose, a lack of intention. It's not my best, and while I know that no one can actually be their very best in every situation in every moment (I'm pretty sure the only man who ever did was Jesus, the rest of us are fallen), I still believe the best should be my goal. To do my best should still be my purpose, my intention. And it is.

Sometimes I just need to remind myself. Sometimes I just need a good cry, and then I need to pick myself up, dust myself off, maybe do a jumping jack or two to get the bloop pumping good and strong again, and then I need to get up and get back in the game, with renewed purposed, and reignited intentions. That's where I am this weekend.

I grew up always hearing that the Peace Corps was "the toughest job you'll ever love". I never volunteered with the Peace Corps, but I'm pretty sure that this job, Motherhood, is a tougher job, and no matter how much I may have loved time in the Peace Corps, I know I love Motherhood more.

Another Benefit of Relaxed Homeschooling

2010-02-05T17:00:00.002-06:00

3 yr old little Sparkler informed me- "If I get my shoes on, then I won't have my boots on."

Very true. She is a bright one, I'm telling you.

Twinkler turns 5 next week, and as hard as I find that to believe, she keeps reminding me of how fast these little minds develop. She recalls most letter names and sounds and is starting to blend them, while Sparkler eagerly watches on.

I was a little worried that the age difference between Dazzle, who turned 7 in late November, and Twinkler was going to be a hurdle in our homeschooling. 27 months seemed a bit much to be able to work with them together, but it has turned out to be just right. He knew it would be. Dazzle is getting along just fine, she just moves at a different pace, her own pace. She is one of those kids that needs more repetition than the next kid, so repetition she gets. A lot. More than would be possible in most school settings. For her, perhaps more than any of our other children, learning at home in a relaxed environment has been more than a preference, it has been necessary, and such a blessing.

Our 3 younger girls sit together, and as I work with Twinkler on her ABC's and 123's, practicing the sounds and the mechanics of writing, Sparkler gets some early exposure, Dazzle gets some reinforcement, and I get a sense that everything is OK.

Wanna know what my favorite part of relaxed homeschooling is? The part where I get to be relaxed. I don't worry about what the curriculum schedule says. We are not necessarily behind, we are where we are, and we are almost always getting more out of where we are than if we had only spent 1 day, for 50 minutes, in that spot. Our children move on when they're ready, and when they do, they have a more solid foundation to build on than some minutes of fill-in-the-blank worksheets and a memorized date or 2. They have an understanding, and relaxing has been key to getting it.

And they have time to play! Like this afternoon, after the math and reading have been done, when some friends come up to visit and play in the snow- oh, yes, more snow!

Sparkler will be thrilled for another chance to wear her boots!

eta: She didn't even head out with the big kids today, but she loves her boots! They're girly-girl pink, what's not to love?

Happy Anniversary to Who?

2010-02-03T13:30:00.002-06:00

How many of you got a good chuckle reading Monday's list? Those of you Constitutional scholars surely noticed our case of mistaken lesser known holidays. Did you miss it? It's ok, take a moment, go back and read #236, I'll wait.

I have to admit, I had a good chuckle, at my son's expense, this morning when I went to add the Young People's Concerts we ordered tickets to (if you're local, check them out, how often can you go to Orchestra Hall for $3-$6 a ticket?) to our wall calender. I glanced at this Friday, the day we were planning on having our little Constitution party, just because...

It was one of those child's delight-led learning moments, on Monday, when our 10 yr old was excited to tell about the anniversary (and I didn't think to look it up! that'll learn me, maybe) and I went with it. Sometimes we just go with it, it's one of the sweetest delights of our lifestyle of learning. I said we should celebrate. We have extra cake mixes, why not add a little fun to our Friday?

He had already started reading "Father of the Constitution, A Story of James Madison" (a book he pulled off the shelf for free reading, all on his own) and had the Constitution on the mind. In excitement about a Constitution party, he grabbed some paper, crumpled and flattened and colored it yellow, to resemble an old document, and filled it with lines of scrawled pretend cursive. It was quicker than actually writing it all out, that might be a bit too much copywork. He took the big feather from the woodsman hat (think Robin Hood) to use as his quill pen. He was set, except for the white powdered wig, but there was time for that.

And then I looked. And I laughed. Out loud.

There it was, "(M)".

I guess there is still time to read about Mexico's Constitution...

Maybe we can have some burritos with our cake.

For inquiring minds- September 17th.

(Constitution Day, "US")

Multitude Monday 221-240

2010-02-01T22:30:00.003-06:00

221. a slow morning, with time in the Word

222. not worrying about the slow start

223. knowing I can catch up

224. knowing it'll be okay if I don't

225. gigantic fresh oranges in a Minnesota winter

226. youngest little soul reaching high on tippy-toes to put his own bowl in the sink

227. sweet little future man, gaining independence in baby steps each day

228. 3 yr old wanting up in my lap, again and again and again, she loves to be near, I love to have her near

229. 4 little girls, all eager to help wash the living room windows, especially the part where they get to climb on the furniture to reach the windows

230. children who love to munch on carrots all afternoon

231. homemade ranch dressing, with homemade buttermilk

232. children excited to get back to home school co-op tomorrow

233. 3, 4, & 7 yr olds having fun with phonics, excited to read and to write

234. reading another of the 50 Famous Stories Retold to an eager young audience

235. reading the Word aloud with a 3 yr old by my side, listening so sweetly

236. 10 yr old creating a pretend copy of the Constitution because he noticed on the calender that this Friday is the anniversary of the Constitution, and deciding we should have a Constitution party. Seriously, a Constitution party?! Sure, why not?!

237. children who'll use anything as an excuse to have a party

238. having a 10 yr old very capable of doing the laundry

239. sisters working together to fold and put away clothes for their big loving family

240. a teenage son who doesn't mind getting "dishpan hands" to get the supper dishes done, well, if he does mind, he doesn't complain one bit, and I'm thankful for that as well

Today was full, and tomorrow is packed. Wednesday is busy, and before I know it, another weekend will be here. There are a few more moments and minutes of daylight each day and I can feel the Spring Fever begin to rise in my veins. I think perhaps some time with a seed catalog and a little garden planning, I just may pull through this long winter yet!

Junk Out Week 5

2010-01-29T12:07:00.004-06:00

This week I needed to tackle my entry, again. I think this area needs to have a quarterly clean-out, if not a monthly one. The up side of having a nice big entry, especially for a large family, is having a nice big space for coats and boots and shoes and stuff. The down side of having a nice big entry is having a nice big space for coats and boots and shoes and stuff. Space in my home is like a vacuum, it sucks in stuff.

We have 2 new puppies, who happen to be growing very quickly. They also happen to still be in training, if you know what I mean. (No, not training to sit still in church...) With puppies and their accidents, I'm taking bleach water to the floor pretty frequently, and it would help if there was not a pile of excess coats or misplaced mittens to work around, or worse, to pick up and run through the washing machine... ick.

I've had a few extraneous things in the entry for a while now, just waiting to be sorted through and tossed or donated, or in the case of the extra curtain rods that have been forgotten in the corner, put with the sewing stuff to be used with the puppet theater, once I pick up some cheap satin and/or velvet remnants at Mill End.

The big extra air matress needed putting back in the closet. It was on the floor, where it really didn't belong, for far too long...
A couple extra coats needed passing on the the thrift store,
same with the unused rain coat.
The boots needed organizing
and the shoes needed sorting.
The extra basket needed a new home under the stairs, for collecting toys waiting to go back upstairs.

And the floor needed to be mopped, again. And naybe again, for good measure.

The entry is the 1st thing people see when they enter our home. I know it should be a priority on the cleaning list and yet it seems so easy for me to let that area become overwhelmed with disorganized clutter. Our extra coat hooks have helped, as there are just too many sweaters, jackets, and coats for our little closet in a family this size. I have yet to find the perfect thing to tackle the shoe situation, but I keep trying! My latest idea is to keep a basket and just let them dig for pairs, as I don't have enough room for enough special shoe racks. I'm not sure how long it will last, bit it's working for now.

What about you? Did you get any Junk Out this week? Remember, the linky is kept open all week, so you can come back and link up any time you get to posting your decluttering progress.

Training Little Ones to Sit Still

2010-01-29T07:00:00.001-06:00

The other day, I mentioned training littles to sit still in church. Holly asked, in the comments, if we practice sitting still in church during our weeks. We do, not every day, but as often as I remember to work it into our schedule, we do. Why? In addition to church, having littles who are able to sit still, or at least relatively still, comes in handy in many places, like the dinner table- at home or away, in a waiting room, even the checkout line at the grocery store or Target.

Let me be up front- I am no expert trainer, I'm an ordinary Mom. My children are not expert still-sitters, they're ordinary children, who can wiggle and squirm with the best of them, or maybe the worst of them. I have sought out a lot of advice have been working extra with my two youngest lately and wanted to share some of what I've found to work and perhaps a little insight into why.

A few years back, I read a recommendation about training children to sit still in church. This is just about the Ultimate Sitting Still Challenge, because it's usually a longer amount of time than most dinner situations and children are expected to be much quieter and not doing things like, well, eating. I didn't like the idea of having 2 and 3 yr olds in the nursery week after week when I knew it was not only preferable, but possible, to have them sitting in the service with the family. I read the advice with hopeful and eager anticipation.

The advice I read long ago entailed setting a specified time, like the time your normal church service is at, and lining up the kids on the couch to sit, listening to a recorded sermon or maybe an audio Bible, or even to Mom or Dad reading, rather dryly, from the Bible. Yes, this advice said to read dryly, boring even. The idea was that this was not entertainment time, this was a time to train children to sit still in spite of the fact that they were not being entertained.

We do this, to a degree. Right now I'm working with my 15 month old, just trying to get a good 15 minutes of quiet and sitting still. He's still not convinced it's a good idea, but he is learning that it doesn't matter, it's Mom's idea, and therefore he needs to go along with it.

In our house these days, training to sit still happens on a more ongoing basis than just "couch church" times. Whenever the 1 yr old or the 3 yr old spend any time on my lap there is another opportunity to train, and this is the area I've been focusing more on lately.

It seems whenever I sit down, that one or the other of them wants up. Once up, they tend to wiggle and squirm, reaching for my book or my pen or worse, my coffee. When I make it clear that they are not to touch but they are to sit still, they will almost always decide they'd rather be down, pursuing their own will, out of my reach. This is the moment to train. Once the squirming has begun, the training kicks into high gear.

With the 3 yr old, this is a bit easier. She understands more. I tell her, "Nope, you can't get down. You wanted up, and now you're going to sit nice for Mom until I say you can get down." She may slump back with a sigh, but she stops squirming and knows she needs to wait quietly, usually for 2 or 3 minutes, sometimes longer, at which time I let her down, on my terms. I don't always remember to do this, but as I know that consistency is key when it comes to training, I am trying more and more to remember to work on this and am seeing some real results.

This isn't even really about sitting still, this is about obeying Mom. Realizing this has been the key for me. It's good for a child to learn to sit still, but it's way more important for that child to learn to obey Mom, right away, and all the way.

With the youngest, little Chipper, currently 15 months, things are a little more challenging. Okay, a lot more challenging. This obedience thing is still new to him. When he gets up on my lap, he starts squirming right away. He's quite the active little bugger. He likes to reach for things on my desk, or things on the arm of the couch, or things in my hands, depending on where I'm sitting and what I'm doing. Anything will do, he's a toddler, though the shinier the better. I tell him "No, don't touch". He's heard "No" enough to know that something is going on at that point. He usually pauses a moment, and if he pulls his hand back I will give him an encouraging "Good job, you obeyed Mommy!". If, after pausing, he turns back to what he was reaching for, determined to get his chubby little fingers on it no matter what I may have to say about it, then I will swat his hand, not hard, but firmly enough to let him know that I mean business. Sometimes once does the job, sometimes we go back and forth a few times, and at some point he will try to slither away.

This is where the sitting still training comes back into play. I will hold him in place on my lap. When he arches his back in protest, I will out-muscle him and 'bend' him back into sitting position, while telling him "No, you need to sit still". He'll arch, maybe attempting to kick a bit as well, and I'll hold him up, not letting him get away. This make take a minute, it may take 10, it may even take 20 or 30*. At some point he will give in, he will stop fighting. He usually sits and cries a little bit of a pity-me cry, wallowing a bit in defeat. I will usually pull him a bit closer, giving him a little reassuring cuddle, and tell him "Good job sitting still" (assuming he's actually sitting still in my lap at this point) and attempt to shush the crying. After he's been still for a minute or two (I'll increase the time increments as he gets better at complying), I'll look around for something he might be interested in and may say something like "Are you ready to get down? Should we go build with some blocks?" and I'll set him down and we'll go on with our day, having another training session under our proverbial belts.

Our almost 5 and just turned 7 yr olds were pretty content lap-sitters and I don't remember working quite as hard with those two, or maybe I just look back with my rose-colored glasses and only remember the good times. With the oldest three, I was just learning these very new to me concepts of actually training children to be happy and obedient (yes, obedient children are generally happier children!) and I was just happy that they weren't hitting and kicking each other, or me.

*Please understand that if you get frustrated to the point of anger, it's time for the training to be over, time to switch gears and find something else to do, preferably something enjoyable to play. Yes, in this case, your child will have won that battle, and yes, this means the next battle will be that much harder, but I'd rather see Mommies and children enjoying each other than angry with each other any day. Anger is so destructive in a parent-child relationship, I know, I've been the angry Mom more times than I would ever care to admit. When a child in training decides to make a fight out of it, try to remember not to take it personally- it's not about you. For the child, it's all about me (himself/herself). They want what they want when they want it and they would fight against anyone who stands in their way. When you're the training Mother, that anyone is you. Stay calm, smile if you can, and say "No".

In the past, I started working on training for sitting for longer periods of time, specifically for the purpose of keeping our children with us throughout church services, at about 12 months old. I may be growing soft, in my old age (hehe), as I have been a little slower with the last two. Chipper is 15 months and I am just now really working with him more seriously, and Twinkler, though she has mostly learned to be quiet, still wiggles a bit more (way more!) than I'd like. She's in remedial training these days... The more consistent I can be at home, the sooner these two will gain that self-control that they will need to be the happy and obedient children we know they can be!

Out of the Mouths of 3 Year Olds

2010-01-28T11:00:00.001-06:00

A few of the things I never wanted to hear my 3 yr old say-

"Oh, Mom, I'm going to go potty on your lap"
"You smell like tow poop*, Mom"
*said like cow poop...

And the phrase that strikes fear into my squeamish heart-

"Oh, no, Mom, I'm gonna puke!"

Technically, she was still 2 when she told me I smelled like cow poop, excuse me, tow poop. I feel the need to explain to you that for some couple of weeks everything smelled liked cow poop. Well, wait, no it didn't, at least I'm pretty sure I didn't, but our property is surrounded by farmland, and there are certain times when a certain scent is in the air. It comes with the territory.

Okay, the puke announcements aren't really funny at the time, but I always end up laughing about it later... like an hour later, when my husband calls home to see how my day is going, or a day or two later, when I'm sharing the story with a sister or a friend from church. Eventually, even the puke proclamation tales are funny. I think they have to be, I mean it's laugh about them or break down and cry, right? I choose to laugh, it's better for me.

I laughed when Snapper, now 16, said something funny, I even remembered to write a few of them down. I chuckled when Quipper delighted us with amusing quips. Razzle and Dazzle entertained us with humorous little-speak for quite some time. I was pretty sure that Sparkler said the zaniest 3 and 4 yr old things ever in the history of funny kids. When Twinkler beamed "I like this tow poop cake!", I knew we were in for another couple years of entertainment.

With little Mr. Chipper only a sweet 15 months old, I'm sure we have plenty sillyness to look forward to, and that delights this Mother's heart.

Enjoy your children! Smile and laugh at the sillyness and remember those times when you feel lost in the serious.

I May Be a Cold Wimp...

2010-01-27T14:57:00.003-06:00

It was 9:30 am, 45 minutes before we needed to leave for the day. It was 3 degrees outside, though according to weather.com, it felt like -9, great.

The previous nights' fire had not been rekindled in the early morning and the inside temp had dipped to 63. My hands were cold, my feet were cold, and the tip of my nose was cold, though judging by the number of bare feet running through the house, I'm a cold wimp.

The van ran for several minutes to warm up while we donned our coats, our hats, our mittens, and even our warm winter boots. We packed a few extras and a couple lap blankets, a snack and some water bottles, and we ventured out into the arctic air.

We're Minnesotans, it's what we do.

Tis So Sweet

2010-01-26T16:53:00.006-06:00

I mentioned that maybe we should work on a song to sing and play together the next time we visit one of the nursing homes we've been visiting for the last almost 9 years. I can remember how long it's been, because I remember that we started going along when our almost 9 yr old was just a couple weeks old.

I mentioned that the younger children could work on memorizing the words with me, for the next 2 weeks, and that the oldest two could start practicing on their violins. Razzle (almost 9!!) hasn't played her violin much in the past year- I knew it would be hard to keep up with it on our own when we stopped having the youngers take lessons, but that many lessons adds up, it adds way up. For the time being, it is only our oldest son taking violin lessons. He is at a point where he can help the younger ones along for a while until we have more room in the budget, so it all works out.

I mentioned that she could try to learn to play the song on her violin as well, if she wanted, no pressure. She wanted, and that violin has been played more the past 2 days than it had been the past 2 months. She needed a goal, and now she's got one.

'Tis so sweet to hear her playing,
music as she glides her bow,
Just to hear the sound of trying,
Just to know she loves it so.

We have no virtuosos here, but we have children who are being brought up with a love for beautiful music. I love to hear them play. Twinkle, twinkle never sounded so sweet as it did the first time each youngster eeked it out on their strings. (You know how beauty is in the eye of the beholder? It kinda works that way for music too...)

I'd better get busy working on the littles with their memorizing (I don't want to be the only one singing!!)

Multitude Monday 211-220

2010-01-25T16:40:00.004-06:00

211. seven children, healthy at the same time

212. time spent training the youngest two to sit still in church

213. knowing that time spent training children will mean more time spent enjoying their company for years to come

214. a reading checklist getting all checked off

215. feeling like we accomplished something and learned something new today

216. believing we can do it again tomorrow

217. a tired 3 yr old taking a much needed nap

218. a hungry 15 month old eating his veggies and squawking for more

219. boys working together, hauling in wood to keep the family warm

220. my husband working hard most every day, for us

It was a hard weekend for me. I was the one month anniversary of our loss. My cycle returned, as it should, except that it shouldn't. I should have been 15 weeks along tomorrow, except that I'm not. Ultimately, I know I'm okay, I know the Lord is in control, and I know He's faithful, no matter what, but right now I'm still sad, still missing being pregnant.

Turning my eyes, my heart, my mind towards the many things I have to be thankful for has been such a blessing through this time. It's always a blessing, to thank Him, but even more so in a time of grief. Thanking Him, gets my eyes off myself, if even for a moment. May I have more of those moments each day!

Junk Out Week 4

2010-01-23T12:20:00.003-06:00

(Unloved shoes, now bagged and donated!)

I'm finishing my closet today. Yes, decluttering, cleaning, and organizing my closet did end up being a 4 week process, worked in baby steps, and yes, that's okay. If I get to feeling energetic this afternoon (it could happen...) I may start in the youngest children's closet. There are a few things up there that I know just need to find a new home, a home away from this home- as opposed to a new home within this home.

It's time to stop reorganizing and rearranging the clutter, it's
time to remove the clutter!

Back to my closet, so far I've tossed 2 pairs of my shoes and a pair of baby shoes that were just not in shape to be worn again or passed on. I've bagged 5, make that 6, pairs of my almost never worn shoes and a pair of baby girl shoes that someone will be lucky to snatch up from the thrift store in town. I also pulled yet another skirt that I just never wear. I liked it when I bought it, and I actually still like it, but I never wear it, so out it goes. There is no room for things never used or worn, not in my closet, not in my life.

I've sorted my pajamas and long underwear (this is The Frozen Tundra after all, yes, I do own long underwear and, yes, I have been known to wear them) and may have tossed more old unmentionables than I kept. Seems to me like a good excuse for some new unmentionables.

I also pulled out the pile of old baggy boys' jeans that were being saved to make a scrappy denim quilt. They are about to be cut into squares. Today.

If you've got some junk to Junk Out, and you post about it, the linky stays open all week, so feel free to come on over and link up any time you get a chance. Happy decluttering!

A Few Favorites

2010-01-22T20:30:00.002-06:00

Made me smile, made me think, touched my life-

How to Really Fall in Love All Over Again @ holy experience, I always love Ann's writing, this post had me catching my breath and sighing sweet sighs.

I'm gonna miss this @ mckmama, a great Mommy moments reminder.

Forgiveness is Part of My Story @ (In)Courage, by Kristen of We are THAT family, pretty powerful.

Kids Crack Me Up!

2010-01-22T10:00:00.001-06:00

Dazzle recently turned 7. One of her gifts was the classic game Operation. The first time the children played it together, it was pretty much an unfair fight. Quipper, our current 10 yr old was getting piece after piece out with steadied hand ease, causing the 8, 7, & 4 yr old girls to become a bit discouraged. When Quipper deftly removed yet another piece, he modestly explained "It all comes from getting slivers out." He went on to assure them "You can learn my technique."

- Yeah, the training is fun, you just need to get a bunch of slivers and splinters...

Driving down to the in-laws' a few weeks past, we went through miles and miles (and miles and miles) of farmland. At some seemingly random point in the drive, Dazzle gasped "Ooo, there's that field! And there's that other field! I'd know those fields anywhere!" followed by a pause, and then a "hey, where's that other field?"

-Hmmm, which other field? Did you mean the one that looked pretty much like all the other fields we've been driving past for the last hour...? I laughed out loud at that one, sorry Dazzle, but seriously, that was funny.

My children make me smile each and every day. In the midst of all of the work of raising these future men and women (and it is work, don't ever let anyone tell you otherwise) are these moments of silliness and joy. The sweet moments, the icing on the cake of Motherhood.

And it's good for your heart!

A merry heart maketh a cheerful countenance... Proverbs 15:13a
...but he that is of a merry heart hath a continual feast. Proverbs 15:15b
A merry heart doeth good like a medicine... Proverbs 17:22a

More Kid Quotes...

A Potato Head Example

2010-01-21T14:30:00.001-06:00

I've done a lot of reading, thinking, and praying over the years about how to train my children. I've said before that I'm no expert, not by far, but that we are blessed with relatively well-behaved children. We have never had any serious parent-dissing type behavior nor any truly foul attitudes. That being said, we, like most, do always have room for improvement.

One of the (many) areas (and perhaps one of the most important) that I've been working on is the whole notion of "Say what you mean and mean what you say" or "Say it once" (depending on which book you read). It's amazing to me both how 'well, duh, of course' obvious this seems and yet how seldom I see this idea adhered to. Even more amazing to me is how inconsistent I can still be even after realizing how important, and right, this concept is, and purposing to practice it- I still see examples in our lives daily, where my children are in essence being trained to believe that Mom doesn't actually mean what she says, and that they can pretty much do as they please a bit longer, you know, until Mom really means it.

An example-

The 8, 7, 4 & 3 yr olds were all playing very nicely together with our collection of Potato Heads. The problem was, they were playing up on the dining room table, within reach of their 14, wait, 15 months old today, brother. He was crawling on the table reaching for potatoes. I'm working on teaching him not to crawl on top of the table, but I am also trying to teach the older children not to always play out of his reach, keeping all of the preschooler toys away from our youngest preschooler. I told the girls to move all of the potatoes to the floor, and instructed them that they were to let their little brother try to play along. I added that if they couldn't let him play with a piece or two then they would let him play with all of the pieces and they would be finding something else to do, something like sweeping and mopping a few floors.

I turned back to my reading (mistake #1) and a sentence or two later I noticed that they had moved to the end of the table and were huddled much closer together, sort of circling the wagons (their arms) to keep their little brother at bay. I gave them another order (mistake #2) and told them to move the potatoes to the floor and let him play with a couple. This time they did obey, partly, and without any real attitudinal huffing, puffing, sighing, or eye-rolling. They moved the toys to the floor and let their little brother go to town, then promptly decided to find something else to play with, something without the little brother. At this point, taking away the potato heads was a moot point, they had willingly handed them over, and ran off in search of something else. I let them (mistake #3).

Three strikes and Mommy's out.

First, I was distracted. I often am. I need to work on that, to really work on that. Second, I told them twice, not making sure they did the right thing after the first instruction. Third, I didn't assign any unpleasant tasks, which they should have earned with their partial compliance. I can be a softy, and while my children aren't unruly or outright disrespectful, they aren't really first-time obedient, at least not consistently, and yes, I do think that first time obedience is an achievable goal, but it's a goal that takes work to achieve. With 7 children, I've got my work cut out for me, every day.

What I should have done- I should have watched them as soon as my first command left my lips, for immediate and right-hearted compliance. When it didn't come, I should have walked right over and taken the potatoes away and assigned each girl a room to sweep & mop (not because disobedience = housework around here, but because that is the consequence I happened to blurt out when I first told them to include their little brother in their play). Then, I should have made sure that the floors got cleaned. If I said it, I should have meant it.

I'm working on it :-)

I'm working on them.

More than that, I'm working on me. Notice the work involved here? I'm learning (again, I find myself relearning anew with each toddler) that child training is 3/4ths parent training, maybe more...

It's a Matter of Perspective

2010-01-20T09:34:00.002-06:00

A southern friend mentioned the daffodils popping up. I did a quick reality check, yep, it was still the middle of January. Living in The Frozen Tundra*, we'd have to take a trip to a conservatory, or at least to the floral section at the local grocery store, to see anything green (besides the evergreens, they are after all, evergreen), much less anything actually resembling a living flower.

*Minnesota, or Minne-SNOW-ta, or the Land of 10,000 frozen Lakes, call it what you want, it's still cold a goodly portion of the year.

Winters can be so long. So dreary. So cold. So barren. I begin to struggle with my moods as my perspective is dimmed by perpetual gloom. I battle a mixed-up sleep cycle and actually require caffeine coursing through my system in the mornings. My vitamin D levels test severely low. I fight to find my motivation to get up and do what needs doing each day. Another round of creeping crud works through my children, keeping me home a Sunday here and a Sunday there, and even my personal time in the Word is an uphill battle.

And then, there are days like this, days when I look out and my jaw falls slack. I am in awe of the beauty all around me. It seems as though He painted this canvas just for me. He took the dry, barren, frozen land around me and covered it in His grace.

I'm a certifiable cold wimp. I may have been born and raised in this Frozen Tundra, but I do not enjoy an icy wind beating against my face, and yet, on days like this I am drawn outside. I walk around and breathe deep cold breaths and I don't seem to mind. My heart is warmed by the beauty around me and I know that I can make it through another winter, and that I may even look back and miss parts of this season.

Yes, I think we'll bundle up the ones feeling well enough today, and stop by the county park, with all of its trails, on the way home from this morning's violin lessons. As much as I love to take in the wonder of it all, I think I love watching my children take it in even more. The books can wait today, today we will enjoy some more of our winter.

Multitude Monday 201-210

2010-01-18T08:30:00.001-06:00

201. puppies and all of the smiles and giggles they bring

202. boys to train the puppies

203. biscuits and sausage gravy for weekend breakfasts

204. the art of making gravy from scratch

205. baking shortbread

206. slowly, but surely, cleaning out the closets

207. buckets, bleach, and plenty of washcloths to clean and disinfect

208. a stomach bug that "isn't too bad"

209. overall health, despite the creeping crud

210. knowing this too shall pass, again

Having weeks like these, the weeks "when it rains, it pours", still processing the grief of loss, feeling helpless to do anything but stand by and clean up as children get sick, a Frozen Tundra winter dragging on and on, struggling with my sleep cycle turning upside down for yet another time, missing opportunities to get out and have some fun because of sickness... I could go on.

If I wanted to, and sometimes I do, I could find an awful lot to complain about. I'm thankful for the reminder from Ann, and through her, the reminder from Him, to instead look around me and count my blessings, because as overwhelming as life can seem sometimes due to all the things I could complain about, there is still so much to be thankful for.

Thank You, Lord. You are so good, so good to me.

Junk Out 2010 Week 3

2010-01-16T10:00:00.002-06:00

Sickness is still in the house. I thought it may have been gone- I was wrong. I still plan to get back to the bottom left quarter of my closet today, the part with the old shoe pile, but it may be some hours from now and I wanted to get a post up yet this morning in case anyone is ready to link up. I'll try to get back and edit this post with news of this week's decluttering sometime this afternoon. Until then, here ya go-

Meet Duke & Duchess

2010-01-15T11:32:00.000-06:00

Oh, my, our lives may have just changed forever.

Some friends had puppies, well, ok, their dog had puppies- husky & yellow lab mix.

The children are smitten, the grown-ups are smitten, except for the slightly tired and crabby issues we're having today after last night's whine-fest. What was up with that? Did they program these dogs to sleep wonderfully on night one, and then never again?

On my agenda-

some homemade pizza
mixing up a batch of cocoa mix
deciding what cookies to bake this afternoon
making sure some Math and English gets done around here today
hanging some pictures
finally taking apart and removing the crib that has taken it upon itself to wear out and literally fall apart, seriously, pieces crashing and spindles rolling across the floor, no, no children were inside when the bottom fell out, but there were a couple underneath goofing off who may have actually caused the bottom to fall out, ehem, since several spindles had fallen out several times, well, that was enough, the old crib has got to go...
menu planning and grocery getting
diaper buying, Target, here I come!
sticking to the list (diapers!) = sticking to the budget
bathe kids
pop pocorn
movie and/or game night
plan my weekend
sleep, glorious sleep!

What's on your agenda?

Up and coming- Why We Homeschool, Part 1 and a couple favorite recipes, check back next week!

Random Thoughts and Throwing Up

2010-01-14T05:00:00.003-06:00

Captivating title, eh?

(sorry, not for the faint at heart, nor the weak at stomach, continue reading at your own risk)

Having sickness, specifically gastro-intestinal sickness, in the house is so not fun. The sick one (or two, or three, or...) is miserable. The healthy ones are worried "Will I be next?". And I'm stuck cleaning up after most of it. Mr. Extraordinary has been known to help in extreme cases, especially in the night, which is hugely awesome as I'm not at my best in the night. I need sleep like a fish needs water. Well, ok, I suppose fish need water every waking and non-waking (do fish sleep?) moment, but it's almost that bad.

Recent random thoughts-

what do I do first? clean the child? my lap?! the floor?
ew! it has soaked through my skirt and is running down my leg!
impressive splash factor
awww, his 1st puke, at 14 months, not bad!
I suppose I should wipe down the computer
the smell of Lysol reminds me of puke
I'd rather smell bleach, it somehow smells cleaner, it just does
bleach smell reminds me of swimming
well, the legs of the chairs needed a good wiping down
this thing didn't work well anyway, right?
so I can just toss it rather than disinfect it, right?
why does my house only get this clean when someone pukes?
I'm kind of hungry, but what if I get sick?
at least I don't have to call in sick, I'm already at work
is it unfair that I don't get the day off when a child is sick?
what can I eat that I wouldn't mind seeing again later?
what can I feed them that I wouldn't mind cleaning up later?
I wonder who'll be next
I suppose I should be wearing gloves as I use all of this bleach
eh, gloves are overrated, and I don't know where they are
sheesh, it doesn't take long to fry my crazy sensitive skin this way
will garlic help?
it's been hours, do you think it was a fluke?
well, not the gross kind of fluke, yuck...
I wonder how many extra loads of laundry will be washed this week?
3 yr old is refusing supper, she may be being finicky... or...
remember making Liberty eat when she was 3, and then she puked?
if she doesn't want supper, she doesn't need supper
hmm, he seems better, but clingy and lethargic
Dr. Mommy better keep an eye on this one
so far, the rest of the kids seem fine
I hope I didn't just jinx it
I don't even believe in jinxes, but I still hope I didn't
oh, my goodness, TWO new puppies?!
oh, fer cute! (Frozen Tundra colloquialism=how cute!)
I should sleep tonight, you never know what tomorrow may bring...

It Was Bound to Happen...

2010-01-13T08:40:00.003-06:00

It happens every year, sometimes more than once a year. We were doing pretty good, it had been an entire year, but you can only defy the odds so long...

There was vomit, I'm quite certain there will be more (with 9 people, I don't think there has ever been just one to vomit, ever). Bleach is my new best friend. I'm a natural product cleaner fan on the ordinary days, but extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures. I'd call puke in the house extraordinary.

I'll take a house that smells like a pool over a house that smells like puke any day.

This too shall pass, oh please, may it pass quickly!

Multitude Monday 186-200

2010-01-11T10:30:00.003-06:00

Old pic, because it makes me smile...

186. late night talks with my husband

187. discussions that go beyond computers, kids, and how do you want your coffee today?

188. the yawn that comes on a tired day after a good late night talk, and knowing I'm tired for such a good reason

189. a lighter closet and 3 more bags to the thrift store

190. knowing it's okay to give excess away, if we need more someday He will provide

another one...

191. sweet ladies at church praying for me, for us, as we hurt and heal after loss

192. the sun breaking through on a Minnesota January day

193. 3 & 4 yr olds learning letter sounds, beginning the journey to reading, a journey so full of expectation and promise, a journey to unlock the doors to so many other journeys in life

194. the days when a child pulls out the math book before being asked to

195. baby boys 'playing piano' with feet swaying and toes wiggling in glee

and another one...

196. another late potty trainer having a dry day!

197. a basket of socks to match and fold, the very fact that there seems to be an overabundance of things like socks in this house is not merely because there are 9 people in this house, it is because He has so richly blessed!

198. curls to untangle and the sweet little heads they adorn

199. cereal bits to vacuum (and the working vacuum to do it with) another sign of His provision- that we even have cereal to make the mess that needs to be cleaned up... He has been good!

200. baby boys in button-up collared shirts looking like little men, so sweet (he's 14 months, I know, but he's my baby!)

Junk Out 2010

2010-01-09T06:00:00.002-06:00

I didn't have as much energy as I would have liked to had had this past week, but then I could probably say that just about any week, eh? I did tackle the decluttering the upper shelf in my closet. Oh, the things a person can stash in a closet...

It was time to toss the boxes that my son's and my point and shot cameras came in 2 years ago. Good grief, they've been used and abused, charged and recharged, and are probably well past their warranties- it's not like I was going to need the boxes to return them in, and using them to box a birthday present of some sort just seems like it would be kind of a cruel tease. Old cell phone boxes too, seriously, what is it with me and the boxes I might need someday? Out they went! If I need them next week, well that's just too bad... I'm not worried about it, anymore. (And the boxes from the ball winder I got for Mother's Day a while back, the Danskos I've been wearing for quite some time, and who even knows what else? There were a lot of boxes up there- not anymore!)

There is the issue of the 2 lamp posts pictured in last Saturday's post. I love them. We have these old white nightstands with white lamps by the bed. They don't match the current decor, but I haven't found either new nightstands that would look well or the money to buy them with. I do still plan to remedy that situation, and am seriously considering painting the nightstands an antique-ey black, the kind that's crackled, which would go much better, in my opinion. My point is that I am not decluttering those new lamp posts, but would rather someday soon declutter the current lamps, and find a couple new lamp shades... I looked for some the other day, but the ones I liked the best were the most expensive ones on the shelves, go figure, and I was too cheap to buy them. Soon, though, soon.

I'm a knitter (and a designer), and being such, I have a bit of a stash, and while I'm committed to knitting from my stash, I am not inclined to declutter my stash. Stash is not clutter, it just isn't. If you're a knitter, you probably know what I mean, unless you're one of the unusual kind... My stash my not be destined for the thrift store, like so many things I've been pulling from this closet, but it did need to be tamed, contained, and at least have the appearance of being organized. Getting it out from the monstrous pile that was growing on and beyond the bookcase in my room and onto the shelf up inside my closet, which has so much more room now, is a major improvement.

I have pulled out a few more shirts that haven't been worn in well over a year as well as a couple pairs of my husband's pants which are in great shape, he just doesn't like them. I don't know about the men in your life, but my husband just doesn't wear pants that he doesn't like, hmm, kind of like those shirts of mine... We wear what we like. Things we don't like (and hence, don't wear) really should not be taking up space in our closet, especially if somebody else could get some wear out of them. Off they go to the thrift store, I hope they find a good home, I really do.

As I cull shirts from the closet, one thing I am trying to do, bit by bit because they cost money, is replace our plastic hangers with nice looking wooden ones. I got these at Target. One of the things I LOVE about using wooden hangers is that you can't fit as many clothes in the closet when the hangers take up more space. Seriously, this is a good thing. Fewer shirts means fewer head scratching sessions as I stand there staring blankly into a closet stuffed with too many shirts, that I rarely wear, only to reach for one of my favorites and pull it out all wrinkled from being squished, stretched, and crumpled in among the losers. Tossing and donating a dozen or so tops feels great! Back to the hangers, I've got most of my husband's dress shirts on wooden ones and a random handful of mine. A few more bi-weekly regular shopping trips with another pack of wooden hangers thrown in ought to be good.

More randomness:

toddler clothes hangers
the mantel clock I made in 8th grade industrial arts class
a medieval costume
breast pump
nursing pillow
a bag of old (after Halloween sale) candy I was keeping from my children to bring out on a rainy day sometime that I never brought out and is now quite stale and somewhere towards the bottom of the trash can. Sheesh!

The lower half of my side needs more work this week. That is where I'll be for some time and I'll need to make some decisions on some older pairs of shoes as well as the pile of very random stuff that has grown high enough to reach the bottom of the long skirts and dresses.

How about you? What area are you decluttering this week? Do you have a giveaway box? Have you found anything worth selling? I found 2 never folded/never used Wheaties boxes from when the Twins won the World Series in 1987, cool, huh? I guess I could sell them for $12 a piece, or I could just keep sitting on them until 2037 when they might be worth a few dollars more, hmmm...

Fun in the Frozen Tundra

2010-01-08T11:00:00.003-06:00

It gets cold in Minnesota, affectionately known to some, myself included, as The Frozen Tundra. The past week or so has been really cold, colder than the usual cold. When temps dip this far, far enough to freeze the inside of your nose if you happen to inhale through it while outside on a day like today, we like to have a little extra fun.

We make snow. Yep, when it's "too cold to snow" outside, we make our own, in fact, we did so this morning. If you live where we live, or anywhere that it's currently well below freezing, you can make snow too.

Here's what you'll need:

a big cup of boiling water
severely cold & dry outdoor air
a brave someone to throw the boiling water in the air

Then go outside, and go for it!

It really is quite fun to watch. Our children are fascinated by this (ok, so am I) and we always end up doing several cups whenever the temps are as crazy cold as they've been this week.

***Caution- throw the water away from yourself and away from anyone watching nearby! If it's not quite bitter cold enough for your water to change to snow fast enough, you do not want to do any scalding!***

Have fun!!

Still Processing

2010-01-07T11:38:00.002-06:00

I have a follow-up ultrasound this afternoon and am having such mixed emotions about it all. I know I'm ok, I know it'll be ok, and yet I'm still processing my grief. I'm still sad, knowing I'm ok doesn't make the sadness go away.

This ultrasound is to just make sure everything looks clear and ok in there, make sure there doesn't appear to be anything retained in the uterus, putting me at risk for infection. Getting the 'all clear' will be a very bittersweet relief. I certainly don't want to risk infection, and I really don't want to end up with a D&C after all, but I would much rather see a 12 week baby wiggling about than an empty uterus. I know it's not to be, but it's what I'd rather see.

I'm still processing it all, still trying to regain my strength after losing quite a bit of blood, and still trying to return to our pre-vacation homeschooling schedule. This week, it's all about babysteps as it only took me 'till about Monday afternoon to realize that I wasn't going to be able to jump back in quite as fast I as was intending to...

All in good time.

Wordless Wednesday- Kids in the Kitchen Edition

2010-01-06T06:05:00.003-06:00

New Words for New Readers

2010-01-05T11:00:00.000-06:00

As we get back into the swing of things around here, there are a few changes taking place during this fresh start to a New Year time. New daily checklists, new home school goals, and some new flash cards for a new reader. I know, that was a phrase, not a complete sentence. I just went over that whole concept with Liberty, our 3rd grader, yesterday. Sometimes I write phrases, sometimes I like it that way. I still write the way I speak, even if I am a recovering English major...

Anyway, I took a few moments yesterday to whip up some new flash cards so Grace could keep working on new words. Decoding is finally clicking with her, and it's time to add in a few important sight words. This is a child who is easily overwhelmed if the stack of cards gets big, so we'll be changing it up often, keeping the stack to about 12 words at a sitting, and she'll be getting more than one sitting a day so the repetition will add up to memorization and eventually to instant recall.

I have decent printing myself, and have usually just used a marker in the past. With Grace's slower recall (never ceases to amaze me how different our children are!), I wanted to eliminate any inconsistency with letter shape that might be present in a stack of hand written cards. I decided to print out some words and cut and paste my way to some nice and neat flashcards that are not only consistent, but also pleasing to my perfectionist personality. Kind of nice how that worked out.

Now it's time to read some stories!

Multitude Monday 176-185

2010-01-04T08:40:00.000-06:00

176. a brother-in-law available and willing to help work on a broken car

177. money for a new battery for the van

178. compassionate doctors

179. a quiet and low-key family gathering New Year's Eve

180. time to reflect this week

181. reassurance of His love and faithfulness in a time of sorrow

182. supportive homeschooling friends offering help in a time of need

183. phone calls from friends offering their love and support

184. families at church offering to bring a meal

185. another good sermon hitting another nail on the head

There are gifts to be seen any which way I look, the more I see and recognize them, the more I'm thankful to Him for them, the harder it becomes to grumble about that which I do not have, or that which doesn't seem to go my way...

Sunday Hymn

2010-01-03T06:30:00.001-06:00

Holy Bible, Book Divine
by John Burton

Holy Bible, Book divine,
Precious treasure, thou art mine;
Mine to tell me whence I came;
Mine to teach me what I am.

Mine to chide me when I rove;
Mine to show a Savior’s love;
Mine thou art to guide and guard;
Mine to punish or reward.

Mine to comfort in distress;
Suffering in this wilderness;
Mine to show, by living faith,
Man can triumph over death.

Mine to tell of joys to come,
And the rebel sinner’s doom;
O thou holy Book divine,
Precious treasure, thou art mine.

This simple old hymn is so loaded with truth about that book that I know I should have my nose in more often. "Mine to teach me what I am", so true, for without the knowledge of the goodness of God and of His holiness, I would not know what I am, a sinner poor and needy, in need of Him. "Mine to chide me when I rove", well, I have been known to wander, and His words have been known to convict me, they are, after all, sharper than any two-edged sword. Yet, He is so good, "Mine to show a saviour's love", He is so good indeed.

"Precious treasure, thou art mine", my prayer this morning and this new year, is that I would truly see the Bible as the treasure that it is, that I would hunger and thirst after the words on its pages because they reveal to me who He is and what He has done for me and for anyone who will call upon His name.

I will be attempting, along with many others out there, to read my Bible through in 90 days, starting yesterday. That is a lot of reading, but it is a Good Book, in fact it's The Greatest Story Ever Told. I'm looking forward to what the Lord has for me and for my family this year and I do truly expect to be blessed by reading through His word again (and again and again and again would be awesome!) just by getting to know more and more of my God by reading more and more of who He reveals himself to be in His word. I'm excited to face the beginning of this new year, I hope you are too!

2010 The Year to Get the Junk Out!!

2010-01-02T06:00:00.004-06:00

This is gonna be my year! I don't even care if that's something everyone and their neighbor says every year, I'm still sayin' it!

My year to what? My year to break free from the bonds of clutter, to climb up and out from under the mountain of stuff that I have managed to accumulate (because 'we need it') and to hang on to it (because 'we may need it someday').

I have taken some babysteps over the past couple years and have seen some progress, but not enough. This year is going to be different, because it just is, and I'm hoping some of you will join me, because there truly is strength in numbers, right?

Saturdays will be The Great Declutter '10 posting day, or at least linking up day. Feel free to do your actual decluttering throughout the week, whenever the mood hits, whatever works for you and your family.

I will be describing what specific area I'm tackling, but please don't feel confined to work in the same area- you declutter where you need it most that day, or the spot that seems easiest to tackle that day/week, depending on your mood and/or energy level.

I have so many areas to tackle, but I have decided to start in my bedroom. One of my goals for the new year is to improve my marriage, to bring it up out of average, ok, even pretty good territory and into some real marital bliss! One of the ways I can begin to impact my life in that area is by transforming our bedroom into the warm and inviting sanctuary it can and should be.

I'll be starting in my closet, then moving on through my husband's closet. Clearing the clutter there should make it easier to put the things away that seem to continually pile up in every corner of our room. It is quite obvious to me that there is simply too much stuff in this room, and not enough organized space to neatly store the stuff that shouldn't be pitched. I have my work cut out for me, but i's important, and I know it will be so worth it!

This post was obviously written up as a before post. Next Saturday, I'll post some progress pics along with a Junk Out 2010 graphic/button (I'm still working on it!) for any and all who'd like to join in the fun. Well, facing our mountains of clutter, both physical and emotional, will not always be fun, but when we start seeing the progress, and start encouraging each other along, the fun will really start flowing (or whatever fun does)!

Another thought- I'm planning on doing my decluttering as early in the day as I can manage, leaving the rest of my Saturday for rest and fun with my family!

An Update, The Short Version

2009-12-31T01:20:00.001-06:00

To say the last few days have been hard is an understatement. To say that I'm doing ok seems generic. It is true though, I'm doing ok. A lot has gone through my mind, a lot has gone through my body, and I am still processing everything, both mentally and physically.

The short version (at least as short as a wordy woman in love with run-on sentences can tell it) is this- After spotting last Thursday (Christmas Eve) evening, more on Friday (Christmas Day, and day 3 of the blizzard that moved in on Wednesday), after almost needing to run Dazzle to the ER in the wee hours of Friday morning due to her asthma taking a nasty turn, 5 hrs in the ER & Urgent Care on Saturday as the bleeding continued, laying low with another migraine on Sunday (my recent migraine flare-ups are now making sense as my hormones are going a bit whacky right now), waiting in a back room at the clinic for an hour on Monday before walking out annoyed and asking if I could be seen Tuesday morning instead, I headed home. How's that for a long sentence?

Once home things began to pick up, which ironically, is what I was hoping for at that point. I had been dreading the need for a D&C like I needed after my first miscarriage and turned out to be one of the most miserable experiences of my life, for so many reasons. The bleeding got heavy, the cramping got painful, the miscarriage became very real, no room for questioning or hoping beyond hope. Right about the time I was beginning to get concerned about the amount of blood I was losing, my husband called to tell me his car broke down on the way home from work. Seriously. Not even kidding.

Our brother-in-law went down to rescue him (thanks, Nate!) and help him try to fix it, and ended up bringing him up north and loaning my husband his truck so he could get to work on Tuesday. I ended up not passing out from not losing too much blood and not needing to call an ambulance because my husband wasn't home to drive me and our 16 yr old hasn't had driver's training yet. I did however stay up very late as I was afraid to go to sleep, lest I just up and die right there in my bed. I worry like that.

Things has slowed down by Tuesday morning, and I was getting ready to head to my make-up appointment (remember I walked out the day before?) when we discovered the van (that I drive) was dead. Ka-put. Completely. It was very cold, like 7 degrees, I wasn't up for the 10 mile jog down the highway. (Ok, pretty sure I've never jogged 10 miles anywhere in any temperature.)

I finally made it to an appointment, thanks to a new battery in the van (and my husband's car is still being worked on, or should I say is being worked on again? It died 3 times on the way home from the mechanic's... $400 later...)

I usually see the midwives at the clinic in town, but then, I'm usually having uneventful pregnancies. I was handed off to the OBs, only one of which I'd ever met, so, I met a new doc, and she was lovely and as sweet as can be. We both think that things pretty much took care of themselves (such a weird way to talk about it) on Monday night, and she had me schedule a follow-up ultrasound next week to just make sure everything looks all clear, and then some bloodwork 3 weeks out, just to make sure that my hormone levels all get back to where they should be.

All in all, I'm saddened by the realization that there is no longer a baby due July 20th, and there is no longer a point to wondering how long to wait to let people know I'm pregnant. There is nothing I can do to change that. There is only to carry on, time to put one foot in front of the other and just "do the next thing".

Really, that was the short version! The Lord has been so good to me, to us, I don't know if I can even begin to explain it, I don't even know if I can't understand it all, no, I'm pretty sure I can't, but He has been. It's in His nature. Things have been, or maybe I should say could have been, overwhelming (and I haven't even mentioned how our youngest two have had these croupy coughs that have been sounding rather concerning as well, 3 kids sick, 1 mom sick, and both vehicles dying in one week, sheesh!) but we just keep resting in His goodness.

I'm in full-blown planning for the new year mode, excited to share some of our plans with you soon! Much of my down time has been spent focusing on the future, one day at a time, something I was planning on using this holiday vacation time for, regardless of all of the issues that have arisen...

In closing, I do want to say a heart-felt thank you for those that expressed concern and/or sent up prayers on my behalf, and for those that have shared their own story of grief & loss- it's not something I ever wanted to have in common with any woman, but it sure is something that I'm glad I'm not alone in. Thank you all, and thanks be to God, my comforter, my shield, my rock, my friend.

Multitude Monday 151-175

2009-12-28T22:30:00.004-06:00

151. the loving embrace of a husband sharing a moment of grief
152. the assurance that "He heals the broken in heart, he bindeth up their wounds"
153. Hershey Kisses to share with my children
154. 'smooth dark chocolate with real coffee' to share with my husband
155. time to myself to think
156. time to myself to cry
157. time to myself to pray
158. a house full of children to return to
159. a cozy bed to curl up in
160. another asthma flare-up settling down
161. the two youngest's croupy coughs settling down as well
162. leftover turkey for many a sandwich
163. Mr. Extraordinary taking care of the turkey roasting while I was at Urgent Care
164. a mound of creamy mashed potatoes
165. children who usually eat all of their vegetables
166. candy canes for a seasonal special treat
167. sticky kisses after a candy cane
168. another cup of cocoa
169. Vivaldi's Concerto in G minor for 2 Cellos
170. listening to good music on my phone while waiting...
171. the beauty of fresh white snow
172. rosy cheeks on children after playing in snow
173. clearance priced sweet wooden toys
174. an impromptu meetup with both of my sisters
175. finding a favorite coffee on sale

A Sad Weekend

2009-12-27T13:15:00.000-06:00

It's been a sad holiday weekend here. After some spotting and then more bleeding, it was confirmed yesterday that I am in the process of miscarrying twins. I have a heavy heart, but I do know that "He heals the broken in heart, he bindeth up their wounds" Psalm 147:3. It's going to be ok, we're going to be ok, I'm going to be ok, even though right now I'm just so very sad.

I do have 7 absolutely incredible blessings to keep my mind very, very occupied through this time. I am so thankful for them as I am reminded what gifts they truly are. May I never take a single one of them for granted.

And A Little Croup to Boot

2009-12-22T15:00:00.001-06:00

As long as the asthma's flaring up, why not make it interesting and throw in a little croup? That's what the triage nurse thinks is happening here, after describing, and yes, imitating the sounds that I was hearing through the stethoscope placed on Dazzle's back this morning. While she does have some typical squeaks and high pitched wheezes, a lot of what I was hearing this morning was a different noise, known as stridor, which is indicative of an upper airway obstruction, something along the lines of croup.

Hoping to avoid oral steroids, which I commonly refer to as "the big guns", we're upping her pulmicort to 4 times a day. As she doesn't have a fever, she is probably not developing a pneumonia, at least at this point, though we were urged, as usual, to head on in if she spikes a fever. I know that. They know I know that. They still have to say that.

So the plan is to keep up with the nebs 4 times a day, more often if needed, with both albuterol and pulmicort, for 5 days, and then ease back if she seems to be over it. If it does the trick, then, yay! No oral steroids! Have I mentioned how I don't like putting my babies on oral steroids? Yep, I thought so.

What else is going on around here? (What? You mean life doesn't come to a stand-still when one of our children is sick?) Well, regular schooling is in light mode this week, and next. We may not actually celebrate Christmas ourselves, (uncommon, I know) but with friends, family, & Daddy! having several days off of work, there will be some fun visiting going on, just because we can. We've been doing some rearranging (our bedroom!!) and cleaning (our bedroom!) and there are some pictures to hang and maybe even a little painting to be done soon and very soon!

I'll be using this week and next to plan and plot out the rest of our homeschooling year, and to revamp our daily checklists and schedules, for they are always changing- does that make them living, breathing, documents? Just curious. I may also tackle a new monthly menu and accompanying grocery list, inventory the pantry and freezer, and some more baking. Yep, I just started salivating at the thought of my favorite cookies, there should definitely be some more baking.

Asthma Again

2009-12-21T14:00:00.001-06:00

Dazzle started to cough a bit Saturday morning. That cough. Not the little tickle in the throat cough that comes with a bit of a 'common cold' or a touch of hayfever. She started coughing the cough of another asthma flare-up. It began mild and infrequent, yet she got a neb treatment with albuterol, rather than a quick puff on the inhaler. I just knew. Sure enough, she continued to cough over the course of the afternoon, and the cough grew rather reminiscent of the times she has developed pneumonia in a matter of hours. The nebs came every 2 hrs and pulmicort was added before bed, and again Sunday morning (and will be added morning and evening until this flare-up is good and passed).

We stayed home from church Sunday morning. Her O2 level had dropped down to around 89-91% in the night, but came up to a nice 96-97% after a neb, so she was able to avoid a hospital visit*. She perked up a bit through the afternoon, even tolerating 3-4 hrs between nebs, so I'm hoping we caught this one in time and the frequent nebs have kept the airways open enough for her to cough it up and out and keep things clear. I've actually lost track of how many times she's developed pneumonia, crazy, huh?

*below 92% means in the hospital on oxygen for her...

Her overnight O2 didn't seem to dip as low, when she came down this morning and we checked first thing, she was at 94%, so she seemed to have had a much better night than the previous one, though she told me that she had woken up coughing and then heard herself wheezing in the night. I reminded her to please come down and tell me when she's wheezing in the night, so she can use the inhaler or get a neb treatment in the night. I don't dare just leave the inhaler in her room for her to grab when she needs it, as she shares the room with her 8 yr old and 4 yr old sisters, the 4 yr old obviously more of a concern. She's a curious one, and a quiet sneaky one at times, and I just cannot bring myself to leave strong meds around where she could get into them. Dazzle just needs to learn to come down and get meds when she needs them. The coughing I can hear sometimes (I am a very heavy sleeper, but you know how you just wake up when the baby cries or a kid is sick...?) but the quiet wheezing at night, it scares me that I cannot hear that.

She's playing pretty normally today, though she continues to cough. At least her energy levels seem good. If she is developing another pneumonia, it looks like a mild case. I'm hoping and praying that keeping up with frequent meds another few days will keep this one at bay and that we can make it through without any doctor visits this week or next.

Here's hoping the rest of the week only gets better!

Oh, and PS- my husband and I met the MckFamily last Friday night! They don't live very far from us and they opened their beautiful home for a lovely party. I just have to say that they are genuinely warm and open people and their children are just as special and cute up close and in person! Thanks again, Jennifer and Isreal!

When 9 Degrees Feels Pretty Good

2009-12-16T19:00:00.002-06:00

Yesterday's high was supposed to be 3 degrees. At least they meant 3 degrees above zero, it's rare, but we do get some of those days when the temperature never does make it up to zero... I don't know what it actually got to, but any low single digit is just cold, and today's 9 degrees, that's almost double digits, felt quite comfortable, well, ok, I didn't go for any walks today, but dashing in and out of the grocery store wasn't even painful.

Maybe I'm still numb from yesterday, as we did venture out in the bitter cold and dry air, to make it to our last homeschool co-op day of the year. This was the 1st time our older children, or any of our children for that matter, participated in a white elephant gift exchange. That was interesting. I tried to explain the concept to them, and they just didn't seem to believe me that the ridiculous ruled in this play. They understand now. One lucky child was the recipient of a Belly Button Cleaner (note card with a little ball of fluffy yarn , yeah, nice), and another received a 2-pack of AA batteries ("toy not included" was written in the card). There were bags of toy soldiers, footy pajamas, giant plastic scissors, and who knows what else. Good times. And no, we were not the bringers of the Belly Button Cleaner- just wanted to make that clear.

I've been carrying inhalers and epi-pens (we've never had to use our epi-pens, but we've come close, and after September's episodes, well, I don't want to be caught unprepared), watching and listening to breathing, and while there are some runny noses around here, there has been NO wheezing through this arctic blast- praise the Lord! I even let Dazzle and Sparkler out back with the rest of them this afternoon for some trying out of the thrifted cross-country skis. Yes, they're going downhill, but it's not steep enough to gain any speed, which is a bummer when they're sledding, as it has to be really slippery snow to get zooming on the sleds out back, but it works out nice with newbie skiers. Yes, I know that was a long sentence. Yes, I love long sentences. Yes, I speak like this in real life too. No, I don't start every sentence with yes.

Just think, our children could have been stuck in a classroom, working on some worksheets, practicing walking single-file and waiting in line, and learning that they evolved from primordial ooze. Instead they read some books, played some violins, had some deep discussions, and got out in the sunshine and fresh air, arctic air though it was. We may have some long & hard days on this homeschooling journey, but I wouldn't trade this for the world.

Now, if we could just get some more snow, and a few more degrees to give it some moist stickiness, then we could get our yearly snowmen made, maybe a snow fort or too, and then spring could come, in my opinion. Of course, this is the Frozen Tundra, and it is only the middle of December, and we all know that spring is a long way off...

In the meantime we'll be eating quite a few bowls of chili and plenty of hot cider and cocoa, carefully!

Multitude Monday 101-150

2009-12-14T23:00:00.001-06:00

101. freshly fallen snow
102. a husband safely arriving at work on a slick-roads kind of day
103. time to make cookies
104. the aroma of cookies baking
105. the taste and feel of a warm freshly-baked cookie
106. eating all of the duds right away
107. another cup of coffee to wash another cookie down
108. little hands reaching for "one more, please?"
109. a clean kitchen after cookie-making
110. time to write out a grocery list
111. a husband who will stop for a few things on the way home
112. the silly songs a 4 yr old sings
113. a danish in the morning
114. a fridge full of honey wheat bagels
115. bags of fresh juicy oranges
116. plump grapefruits as well
117. old cookie press for making the old favorite Spritz
118. an easy frozen food supper now and then
119. sale prices on frozen turkeys
120. $0.99 butter, even if there is a limit of 2
121. remembering to use the cranberries before they go bad
122. late evening urges to bake more
123. cranberry orange bread for tomorrow's breakfast
124. another child mastering counting by tens
125. a child looking up and learning a new word
126. white elephant gifts
127. the wonder and excitement of children cracking codes with their Caesar Cipher Wheel
128. soft 1-ply yarn
129. a scarf growing as I knit
130. time for knitting while sweet breads are baking
131. tiny wire hangers for tiny hand knit sweaters for winter decorations
132. soothing piano playing my favorite hymns
133. a quiet home full of sleeping healthy children
134. 2 months with no asthma episodes
135. flashcards with more first words
136. 3D Paper Snowflakes and children eager to make more
137. big fluffy puffy down-like comforter
138. a wonderful gifted new-to-us coffee maker
139. taste tests with the new machine
140. cheese & crackers, shared with my husband
141. a husband who doesn't mind if the floor didn't get vacuumed today, again...
142. alarm clocks
143. snooze buttons
144. newly turned 3 yr old waking early and coming downstairs quietly to wake up Mommy with her sweet "good morning"smile
145. smelling the fresh orange zest, an hour later, aaahhhh...
146. capturing pictures of baby and Daddy playing with new computer gizmo
147. children excited for home school co-op tomorrow
148. like minded friends
149. being able to stay home when the weather outside is frightful
150. a fire that's so delightful

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Winter

2009-12-12T09:00:00.001-06:00

It's about time. Really. I mean, I'm not even a fan of winter, oh yes, it's pretty and all, I'd even say beautiful right after a snowfall, but I don't like being cold, not one little bit. Ever since that time, way back when, that I spun across 3 lanes of 35W in freezing rain, only to be hit by an oncoming car, right at my driver's side door (at least it wasn't the dock truck that hit me, he swerved and missed), leaving me stunned but uninjured and able to drive home, well, ever since then, I'm not a fan of winter driving either. Seeing as I was 18 and I didn't get my license until I was 17, I've pretty much never liked driving in a Minnesota winter. I do it, every year, but I don't like it.

My winter issues aside, it really doesn't seem quite worth it to live in Minnesota and have a year like this. The middle of December and our first real snow? First lasting cold snap? There was that frozen apple weekend, but then it's been beautiful, sunny days even, most of the time since. I had one child that needed new boots, and we didn't get them until this week. A couple more weeks and we probably could have found them on clearance. Oh, and I just bought an ice scraper for my windshield, in mid-December, because I haven't needed one yet!

Well, winter may have finally hit outdoors, but it was time it hit indoors as well! Move over autumn decorations (my favorite!), it's time to bring on the Winter Wonderland at the Ordinary home!

These 3D Paper Snowflakes are so much fun to make. Our 4 yr old was able to make some of the parts, with guidance, and the 6, wait, she's 7 now, 8, & 10 yr olds couldn't get enough. Our precious little 2, wait 3 year old, these recent birthdays haven't fully sunken in, played with extra paper and some decorative scissors and pretended to make some flowers...

They're easy fun, seriously, they're not nearly as complicated as they look, and there's essentially no mess, unlike the confetti-fest you have to vacuum up after when making traditional paper snowflakes. Trust me, if you're making more than one snowflake, that difference is a big difference.

If you can't get through this season without cutting tiny bits and pieces for a traditional snowflake, try this virtual snowflake maker- you'll love it. Seriously.

A Close Call With Hot Cider

2009-12-10T11:50:00.000-06:00

Safety is of the Lord (Proverbs 21:31) I truly believe that. While I don't understand* why the Lord allows some of the things that he does, I do believe that the safety of my family, safety that I too often take for granted, is truly of the Lord. Accidents happen, we've had a few, 2 children with some stitches, one with a broken toe, and more falls, bumps, scrapes, and bruises than any of us can count, but we've been fortunate enough (blessed enough!) to have not had anything serious.

*I don't have to understand it all, I could never understand it all, that's part of faith.

With 7 children in our Ordinary family, statistically speaking, we have a greater likelihood than the average 2.5 household to have about any sort of accident, or illness for that matter. There are just more bones to break, more lips to split, and more germs to spread, in our home.

That being said, last night we had our 1st scalding. Praise the Lord, it was very minor, and could have been much worse.

This being the Freezing Time in the Frozen Tundra, warm beverages are a common drink of choice around here, last night being no exception. A big pot of apple cider, loaded with cinnamon sticks, was not only filling our main floor with a wonderful aroma, it was filling our bodies with warmth & goodness. Daddy had just filled another cup for 4 yr old Hope, and she had just set it down on the table to cool for a bit. She walked away and Baby J, currently 13 months old, walked right on over and reached for it.

I was sitting about 10 feet away, saw the reach and sprang out of my chair, reaching straight for him, while semi-calmly saying "No touch!", but he was determined and down it came, fresh off the stove hot apple cider, splashing the left side of his face and chest. I peeled his shirt off so fast it was almost simultaneous with the splashing, picked him up and headed straight for the kitchen sink, grabbed the hand towel, quickly soaked it with cold water, and applied the cold wet towel to the pink blotches developing on his shoulder and chest, not noticing right away the blotch of pink on his left cheek.

The initial shock from the heat wore off fairly fast and he was soon more irritated with my trying to hold a cold wet towel on his bare chest and shoulder, which stayed pink for a while, but showed no signs of blistering- thank the Lord! With no blistering, we quickly determined that it was, at worst, a very mild 1st degree burn, emphasis on very mild. The pink on his chest and shoulder faded over the next hour or two, while the blotch on his cheek became more obvious. Being overlooked in the immediate response, it didn't have the cold applied right away, and must have stayed hotter longer, though it also showed no signs of blistering, and was starting to fade by the time he was put down to sleep for the night. It was pretty completely faded by morning- again, thank the Lord. It could have been so much worse.

When Googling (yes, I do believe to Google is a verb) burns and children, we learned that scalding is bay far the most common type of burn on young ones. Doesn't surprise me one bit. What does surprise me, is that in this coffee loving, tea drinking, cider & cocoa consuming family of 9, this was our first scalding. Seriously, my husband and I have been devoted coffee drinkers for years. I make up big batches of bulk cocoa mix that is enjoyed most every Freezing Time in the Frozen Tundra day around here. With all of the hot drinks and all of the little hands in close proximity over the years, it's rather amazing that no hot liquids have landed on little people over the years.

I'm still just so thankful that yesterday's accident wasn't worse. I went to sleep thanking the Lord for our sweet Baby J, for his incredible smile, and for his safety- which is truly, of the Lord.

Enjoy your children, and enjoy your warm drinks this cold season, just watch where you set them and whose hands can reach them!

A Far From Wordless Wednesday

2009-12-09T15:00:00.003-06:00

Ok, been a bit busy and a tad drained, ready to jump back in with both feet- back into a whole lotta life and a bit of blogging to boot.

I just have to start off by saying that, although Mn/DOT was reporting some 600 accidents in the Frozen Tundra alone, we were not among them. I paced part of my morning away, secretly hoping our violin teacher would call to let us know he wouldn't be heading to his northern lesson location due to some very bad roads. He didn't call, he's bound and determined, and kind of like the post office when it comes to weather events. Not wanting to be the wimp that I know I truly am, I managed to get the troops bundled, packed into the van, and a few towns over on time even. Impressive, I know. The roads weren't as bad up here as the reports of a few miles south, but they were bad enough in town to feel the anti-lock braking system show us what it's made of. We made it there, we made it back, and I'll be hunkering down drinking hot cider for a while, thank you very much.

Asthma & Pulmonologist Appointment Update:

The girls are doing peachy! Grace (just turned 7) did better than well on her PFT (pulmonary function test), pushing more air and faster than an average 7 yr old of her height and weight, which means that her asthma is under control. After she took "a puff" of albuterol (a bronchodilator) her numbers remained essentially unchanged. If she had shown significant improvement, that would've meant her asthma wasn't under control when she walked in the door, follow?

This was excellent for more reasons than one. It was and is excellent because our darling needs to breathe, and breathe well, but more than that, it is excellent because they didn't have a need to pressure us into putting her (and her sister) on more maintenance meds day in and day out for the chance that she might have a flare-up every couple months. I was not comfortable with the level of daily medicating their initial doctor had wanted to see, combine that with the very uncomfortable feeling that I got as she asked about our homeschooling, sized up my children and said "I guess they're doing okay, they seem happy."

I wish there was a way I could convey the tone in her voice, and the looking down her turned up nose way in which she watched my 4 girls play in her office. It was weird, and I decided I was done seeing her, and by proxy, the girls were done seeing her too. Not all people are going to agree, I know that. Not all people are fond of homeschooling and/or our right to do such a thing, I get that. To each their own, but we don't have to keep seeing someone who so obviously disagrees with a very important lifestyle choice of ours, when there are so many other doctors in their practice who seem so very homeschool friendly, or who at the very least are not so condescending. Sheesh, enough complaining.

We saw one of the docs that we met when the girls were in the PICU at St. Paul Children's a couple months back (time flies when you're having fun, eh?). He was fabulous with the girls and he handled things so well when 4 yr old Hope tried to melt into the corner. She had been terrified ever since I mentioned last Friday that we had an appointment with the doctors down by Children's on Monday... she immediately started crying, and when Hope starts crying, it takes her a while to regain some sort of composure. She had the weekend to recoup, and then it started all over again the minute Dr. P pulled out a stethoscope and started listening to Grace's breathing. It took some convincing, but she eventually consented and got a good report herself. We don't need to go back until spring allergy season, at which time she'll be 5 and able to try her first PFT.

It was cold on Monday, but not single digit cold (I think it was in the low 20s). I'm glad we got our appointment in before this winter storm moved in. I most definitely would not have enjoyed the trip down today, and I most certainly would not have walked several city blocks with 3 young girls (I brought just turned 3 yr old Mercy with as well, to make it easier on the babysitter) to stop at a St. Paul landmark pizzeria for some afternoon food and fun and almost 1 on 1 time with my children.

3 to 1 is better than 7 to 1. It just is, and it's cheaper, at least it would've been if I would've stuck to buying pizza. Cosetta's may have some of the best pizza in town, some of the biggest slices around, and even serve some great baklava, but unless you've got plenty to spend, I'd suggest getting some ice waters to wash it all down. Let's just say that I'm glad I only ordered 2 chocolate milks for the girls to share, and a can of Coke for myself, a can, nothing special. After getting our food and managing to get the girls up the many stairs to the upper level seating, and after managing to find a table, get settled in (coats off), and remind the girls not to touch the little oil candle that was lit right there on our table, my math mind kicked into gear and I started to wonder how our total had ended up $8 more than the price of our pizza, with 3 little drinks. I pulled out the receipt for a closer inspection, and was slightly shocked to see $5.70 for the 2 chocolate milks, and $1.55 for my can of Coke. Seriously?! I just paid $1.55 for a can of Coke?! Whatever, eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we starve, or something like that. I wasn't exactly thrilled about the $2.85 a piece for the chocolate milks either, but that's what I get for ordering without reading the fine print. Oh, well, special occasion, right?

It was special, the girls loved it- the restaurant, the walk in the big city, the people watching, and the Bing Crosby singing his ever so loverly and mellow White Christmas piped in nice and loud, causing Gracie to sigh a big silly sigh and exclaim "this must be a place where people go to get in love." and then start smooching the air around her. Good times.

Our girls can eat, but they were no match for those slices of pizza. Hope came the closest to finishing, but in the end there were 3 partial pieces for leftovers. Who doesn't like leftover pizza?! If for some reason you don't like leftover pizza, first- shame on you! second- I'll have yours, there, problem solved. Ok, maybe I'll arm-wrestle my teenager for it.

So, to make a long story short, the girls are doing great, Cosetta's is a Twin Cities must, and so is knowing the drink prices before you order...

Guess whose piece this is?

I just watched the temp on my little digital weather station thingie go from 7.9 to 7.7 and back to 7.9, I'm guessing there was a cold gust of wind? At any rate, it's below 8 degrees outside and not scheduled to get any warmer for a while. I'm thankful for the 68 degrees in my house, for the wood burning furnace that keeps us cozy, for the husband who installed it, and for the teenage son who keeps the fire going these days!

Big pots of soup, hot cider and cocoa, and warm cozy sweaters abound in the Ordinary home- how are you staying warm this week?

Brrr... It's Cold Out

2009-12-07T09:00:00.000-06:00

Well, it's finally arrived, winter that is. Weather.com says it's a balmy 10 degrees outside our doors. Most who know me, know that I am a certifiable cold wimp, and one fo those mother's who will send her children off to don another sweater "because I'm cold". And yet, today would be the day that I scheduled the girls' follow-up visit with the pulmonologist down at Children's Respiratory & Critical Care Specialists, that's a mouthful.

The homeschooling life is busy. Life in a big family is busy. Life in a big homeschooling family is always busy and then add in the visits to various doctors for girls with asthma and allergies (and a Mother with allergies and migraines, sigh) and it seems that I am always trying to get back into the swing of things, back to a routine. It seems that way because it is that way. We're used to it, it is what it is, rolling with the punches and all that.

So, anyway, today, with an expected high temp of 21, I'll be wandering te streets of St. Paul with 3 young girls (nope, not taking everyone today, not in this season) and plenty of kleenex. I was hoping for a crystal clear totally healthy not a thing to worry about kind of appointment, but another head cold has hit our house and the snot is flowing freely- we're hoping and praying that the colds do not set off any asthma symptoms, especially not today.

After today's appointments & errands, our week fills up fast with 4H and violin lessons, and a winter storm to boot. Fun, fun. Hopefully, we can find some time for some math, some reading, and maybe a little history and science thrown in, and dishes and laundry, there are always more dishes to be washed and more laundry to be washed, dryed, folded, and put away. Oh, the laundry... Good thing my older children are becoming such capable little people- there is a good chance that all of the laundry will be done by thetime I get home. Put away even. What a blessing.

Time to get the bag ready and make sure to-do lists are up, then it's off to "the big city" for the day. Will try to update tonight or tomorrow. Have a wonderful Monday everyone!

Enjoy your children!

Wordless Wednesday

2009-12-02T13:00:00.003-06:00

Spilled Oats, When the Meat Won't Fry, and a Little Baby Boot Camp

2009-11-30T18:00:00.000-06:00

Things I learned today:

-Ground beef fries better when the burner is actually ON. (I'm blaming this one on yesterday's migraine leaving me a bit muddleheaded...)

-One can improvise a meal if one has some meat & potatoes to start with. (I'm blaming this one on lack of planning this week. Time to write out my menu and grocery list...)

-An entire canister of oats covers a large percentage of our kitchen floor. (I'm blaming this one on an impatient 4 yr old who learned why it's important to wait for Mom...)

-Laundry doesn't fold itself, and children don't always fold it without being asked. (This one is due to my slacking off when it come to getting daily lists printed...)

-1 yr olds do not always come when called. (This one is due to lack of training, which is being stepped up this week, due to the whole not coming when called thing, but rather not even acknowledging Mom & Dad's voice(s) and sometimes going so far as turning to run the other direction. Time for that to stop...)

-My children were not born knowing how to clean their rooms. (This could be genetic, as neither my husband nor myself came by it naturally, and might even struggle to this day to set a good example on this one...)

Okay, I pretty much knew all of these things before today, well, except for the oatmeal thing, but I probably could've guessed on that one and still passed the test.

Now is as good a time as any to work on training our toddler, and it wouldn't hurt to include our 3 & 4 yr olds for some reinforcement. Reinforcement helps form good habits, in our children, as well as in ourselves.

Here's an idea of how this looks in our house:

I will usually wait until after the majority of our homeschooling is done for the day, this way if any battles of the will happen, and they usually do, they won't interfere with anything too important, except maybe getting supper on the table, but hopefully it won't come to that.

When the children are all engaged in play of some sort I will call one of them to me. Starting with an older one reminds them that yes, they do still need to come when Mom calls, and it sets an example for younger children to follow. Our children have been taught to not only come when called, but to answer/acknowledge with a "Yes, Ma'am?" or "Yes, Mom?", preferably including some eye contact. They need to come near, not just look up from across the room and grunt "Yeah?" or worse, the disrespectful "What?". Once the beckoned child has come close and responded respectfully, they will be given a small task, "Would you bring that doll back to your room?", or "Please put that book on the floor back where it belongs.", or "Would you go get your baby brother out of the bathroom again?". They are then supposed to return to Mom, or Dad, to see if we have another task to give, or to simply receive a "Thank you!" and maybe even a big squeeze or a little tickle, and then they are free to go back to their play.

I will then move onto one of the younger children, and repeat the process. Everyone 4 and older has been through this several times for several years, and knows the routine enough to quickly comply. In the 4-8 yr old range it's still played out almost like a game. Our current 10 yr old will respectfully comply because he's such a good-natured kid and knows how important, good, and right, it is to set a good example for his younger siblings. Our teenager isn't expected to jump up and come right over, but he is expected to look up from what he is reading (he's almost always reading!), make eye contact, respectfully ask "Yes, Ma'am?" and do what he's asked to do, though he is rarely asked to do things like bring dolls to his room, because, well, yeah, the dolls often found strewn around the house aren't his. With him it's more often "Have you finished your Algebra?" or "Would you please throw away your apple core?".

Our Little Mercy, who just turned 3, will usually come when called now, though we are definitely still working on getting her to do so with a good attitude. She often will make it abundantly clear that she would really rather be doing just about anything right at that moment than practicing obedience to Mom or Dad. This is a very natural expression of her self-centeredness, which is a real problem for every one of us, it's just that at 3 yrs old, she hasn't learned to suck it up and mask her disappointment for the sake of doing right. When she sulks, or worse, whines or cries, she will definitely be given more than one task. If, after 2 or 3 tasks, her attitude isn't any better, or has gotten progressively worse, she will receive a short and sweet reprimand as a last chance to straighten up, and if that fails, she'll be put down for a nap, no matter what time it is. She probably won't sleep, but she needs to be isolated for at least a little while to learn some cause and effect- throw a fit and rebel against Mom or Dad = negative consequence. If she does decide to straighten up and complete a task without a fussy bad attitude, she'll be given at least one more task, for good measure. This is where staying pleasant and not letting frustration show really counts. No toddler or preschooler is going to decide to happily obey a crabby parent who is obviously displeased.

With the 1 yr old, while always working on things like "No", and "Don't touch", we're just now starting work on "Come" (and I admit, we may be a bit late in this game, it would've been better to start as soon as he was mobile). He's really not interested. He'd rather do what he'd rather do, plain and simple. While there are times when he's trailing at my feet throughout the day, wanting to be picked up and held while I'm cooking or doing other things requiring two hands, the times when he's contentedly playing are not the times he's interested in coming to Mommy. In fact, at those times, he'd rather not come to Mommy, which makes for perfect training opportunities, as the idea is to train him to conform his will to Mom's or Dad's (an example of a christian conforming his or her will to the will of our Heavenly Father).

I'll call his name, adding a sweet toned "Come here." He may or may not glance my way. I'll call his name again. If he doesn't glance my way, I'll go right over to him, repeat "Come here" and begin to lead him to the spot where I first called him. I go after the 2nd time, because if I keep calling his name and he keeps ignoring me, all I'm doing is training him to ignore the sound of my voice, training him to not respond to me. That can get frustrating, and the goal of training is to avoid the frustration that causes so many issues between parent and child, and frankly is the reason so many parents end up resorting to yelling, or worse. Frustration leads to anger, and it's very hard not to be angry with a child who continues to rebel and disrespect and disobey. Being proactive, and getting up off of one's rear to train (teach) a child what is expected, helps avoid soooo much frustration and makes for both happier parents and happier children. Training is not the same as discipline, in fact, training makes most discipline unnecessary.

Once I've gotten him to the spot that I had called him to, I'll give him some smiley "Good job!", "You came to Mommy!", and various praises for a job well done. If he pulls away and starts fussing a lot, which will happen the first several times, he'll get a firm but gentle "No fit!" and I'll keep bringing him to the spot I called him to. The "No fit" needs to be loud enough for him to hear over his fussing, but definitely not shrill, this is no time to yell or lose one's cool. We don't want to train our children to only obey when we raise our voices, the idea is to train them for 1st time obedience, not to obey the 3rd or 4th or 7th time because the sound of our voice tells them they're about to get it. It's a pretty rare parent who isn't irritated by the 7th ignored request, again, the idea with training is to avoid the irritation, and to raise happy, helpful, obedient children.

Our youngest is 13 months, a newbie 1 yr old, and he's just starting out with his more 'formal' training, hehe, baby boot camp, if you will. It's light-hearted and easy-going right now, with some quick little "No"s when necessary. When he is a bit older, and I am sure that he knows what is expected, if he still resists, then it will be time for some little reinforcement swats. For now though, it's all about training and not discipline- there will be plenty of time for that... though, if we stay diligent with some early training, the ongoing discipline as he ages should be much less, and our parent child relationship much better.

Our children are not perfect. We are not perfect parents, in fact, it seems we are so very far from that most days. Our children are, however, better than average, if average is what is represented most every time we go to Walmart or Target. Our 2 and unders may cry now and then when tired, hungry, and out for too long, but our 4 and ups would never give us the kind of grief we see children giving their exasperated parents most every time we get to town. Now that I've said that, hopefully no one will act up on me the next time we go shopping, but if it were to happen, it would be a very rare thing, probably not to be repeated. Our children usually look up at me with a look of slight horror that says something like "Did you see what that kid just did?!" whenever we witness a tantrum on display in public, and I usually look back at them with a "Oh, my, aren't you glad that isn't you?!"

Ok, enough for now, time for another round with our youngest troops, then time for supper, some stories, some baths, some bedtimes, and then some quiet time for Mom so I can rest up and do it all again tomorrow!

PS- One of my favorite parenting and child training sites is Raising Godly Tomatoes, if you're earnestly looking for Godly advice on raising happy and obedient children, take some time to read on the site or to order the book. I don't think you'll regret it.

Multitude Monday 51-100

2009-11-30T07:00:00.005-06:00

51. soft blankets
52. flannel sheets in a Minnesota Winter
53. bookshelves
54. our big dining room table
55. quiet nights
56. warm pajamas
57. slippers on little feet
58. a 13 month old little boy who still cuddles with Mommy while drinking his milk
59. 1st haircuts for little girls
60. the pile of laundry waiting to be folded (a sign that we have more than enough clothes)
61. a fairly full freezer
62. a fairly stocked pantry
63. a stack of crock-pot recipes
64. seasonal lists of 30 recipes we like
65. late-night grocery shopping trips by myself
66. children who behave in the grocery store the times we need to go by day
67. big batches of oatmeal w/maple syrup & brown sugar
68. fresh veggies for afternoon snacks
69. big bunches of bananas
70. homemade pizza
71. stock pots of soup
72. big batches of pasta
73. a whole family who loves nachos for snackin' and sometimes for supper
74. hearty whole wheat and oatmeal pancakes for breakfast, and sometimes for supper
75. a big black bench found at a local antique show
76. little bodies to fill up the benches in this house
77. an antique cradle from Nanny to keep the girls' dolls contained
78. dolls to fill it and the girls who play with them
79. a 3 yr old learning to be a big helper and a big sister, caring for her little brother
80. children with memories way better than mine who recite silly movie lines with great comedic timing, cracking me up daily
81. sweet fun from classic toys like Slinkies
82. sisters who make room for each other & squeeze together on the rocking chair
83. popcorn, popped on the stove top
84. the smacking as they lick their fingers after eating the fresh popped buttery popcorn
85. dry erase boards and the blank canvas for impromptu art that they are
86. enthusiastic young artists
87. digital cameras to capture picture after picture of their never ending pictures
88. chubby baby feet
89. a small army of helpers when it's time to pick up
90. a teenager who does the dishes without attitude, seriously, I can't even say enough about how thankful I am for that, and for him
91. counting butterflies in a book with the 3 yr old
92. cinnamon crumb coffee cake
93. a warm cup of coffee after waking from a migraine-induced stupor
94. a more than capable husband who handles it all while I'm in bed with a migraine
95. children who do NOT ask for $100 jeans
96. another lovely Thanksgiving with the in-laws
97. another chance to play their incredible antique baby grand piano
98. safety on the roads, 2 hrs, both directions
99. chicken soup on a cold day
100. eternal promises

May I never neglect to be thankful!

If you've never read Ann Voskamp's inspiring writing, you're missing out. There is beauty, inspiration, and challenge in every one of her posts where she never fails to point the reader in the direction of the Savior. I wish she were my neighbor...

Sunday Hymn

2009-11-29T06:30:00.001-06:00

Count Your Blessings
Johnson Oatman, Jr., 1856-1922
(#370 in "Great Hymns of the Faith")

When upon life’s billows you are tempest tossed,
When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost,
Count your many blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.

Refrain
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
Count your blessings, see what God hath done!
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.

Are you ever burdened with a load of care?
Does the cross seem heavy you are called to bear?
Count your many blessings, every doubt will fly,
And you will keep singing as the days go by.

Refrain

When you look at others with their lands and gold,
Think that Christ has promised you His wealth untold;
Count your many blessings money cannot buy
Your reward in heaven, nor your home on high.

Refrain

So, amid the conflict whether great or small,
Do not be discouraged, God is over all;
Count your many blessings, angels will attend,
Help and comfort give you to your journey’s end.

Refrain

Having just celebrated Thanksgiving here in the States, many of us have spent some time thinking about our many blessings and practicing the habits of thankfulness and gratefulness. My earnest prayer, for myself, for my family, and for anyone who reads this, is that we would make these habits regular habits. Oh, what a change in demeanor we would see in ourselves and in our children, if we could truly keep in the forefront of our minds the many things we have to the thankful for. The 'woe is me' attitudes would drop by the wayside, the 'that's not fair' griping would be seen for the petty thought that it is, the 'if only's and 'I wish I had's would cease, and they would be replaced with a new attitide, a better attitude, one of the best attitudes.

*One of my favorite versions of this song, and the one that still plays in my head every time I hear or we sing this hymn, is from the old Jason & the G-Men album "G" as in Men... of course, it was even better live, back in the day...

Wordless Wednesday

2009-11-25T06:00:00.000-06:00

Kids Crack Me Up!

2009-11-24T07:00:00.002-06:00

4 yr old Hope found a freshly made paper airplane laying unguarded on the table, "Who made this?" she wondered aloud.

"I did." said 10 yr old big brother Jaron.

Holding up a piece of broken crayon, "Do you want it blue-ish?"

"Um, nope."

-Hmmm, why not? Shouldn't every paper airplane be blue? Excuse me, blue-ish? Judging by the marker in her hand, she was hoping for a little impromptu arts and crafts time, to which I say 'better a paper airplane than her skin, or my walls, or the woodwork surrounding our fireplace...

Another Hope-ism: Sunday, after church, when pulling in to McDonald's (I know, I know, shame on me for not having a lunch prepared, seriously, shame, but...), just turned 7 yr old Grace eagerly begged, as she always does, "Can we go inside?! Can we go inside?!" to which Hope replied, very seriously and without skipping a beat, "Haven't you heard it's flu season?"

-Haha! Yep, they're little parrots, and yep, I've used that excuse a few times the fast couple months...

And yet another Hope-ism, 4 yr olds are the best for this sort of thing: the family computer has had some issues as of late. It has gotten pickier and pickier and has decided not to play DVDs anymore, ok, fine, whatever. Yesterday, it decided to give attitude about running any of the kids' games. Hope was trying to start the Living Letters game, it wasn't happening. I told her "I think that computer is breaking." She replied, "Maybe it was Daddy, he knows how to break computers."

-This is extra funny in our family, as my husband, her dear Daddy, is an IT Manager and has been known to fix just about any computer related problem ever presented to him. Of course, he has been known to say "You have to break things before you can fix them..."

My husband brought home a new cell phone and 10 yr old Jaron was playing with his old one. 13 month old Joseph started squawking a bit in Jaron's ear, and he turned to his little brother and asked, "What? Haven't you ever seen me texting?"

-For the record, none of my children have working cell phones, and thus, none of them have ever texted. In fact, I have never texted... yet.

What funny antics could you tell about your children this week? You know if you don't write them down, you will very likely forget them by tomorrow morning. My humorously gifted 4 yr old had us snickering again last evening, and I can't for the life of me remember what she said... I didn't write it down (type it) soon enough.

This afternoon's project- I'm planning on printing these out and scrapbooking them along with some current favorite photos of our children, to bring down to the in-laws for Thanksgiving. I plan to keep adding to it- these Kid Quotes will make such a fun addition to our photo albums and scrapbooks. Memories of laughter and good times make this life so much sweeter!

Multitude Monday 1-50

2009-11-23T13:00:00.003-06:00

I've thought about and focused on things I am truly thankful for, a bit here and a bit there, a scrap of paper tucked in a Bible, a journal page now and then, the notes section of my planner... This list will be my way of keeping it all in one place, a record of gratitude, to look back on and meditate upon in the moments when it all gets hard, the moments when I could use a reminder-

salvation
a Bible in my language
a loving & patient husband
forgiveness
7 beautiful children
8 yr old daughter lost in a good book
the sound of our oldest son playing his violin
cuddly 1 yr old
a good church
12 years of marriage
godly grandparents for our children
sisters I am blessed to call friends
toothy 1 yr old grins
contagious belly laughs
a good cup of coffee in the morning
a husband who works hard so I can be home with our children
his good job
homeschooling
good friends
precious pictures of my grandmother when she was young, beautiful, & full of life, before the cancer took all of that away
a house full of leftover party balloons and the joy of pure fun that they bring
the freckles on our sweet Gracie
the curls in our blonde girls' hair
lovely thick brown hair on our brunettes
girls who like bonnets
children learning to do laundry
reliable vehicles
chickadees at the feeder year round
the variety of woodpeckers right outside the window
a place in the country
space for a garden
room for children to run and play
unseasonal warmth this Minnesota November, extending our outdoor play season
warm coats, ready for when Winter decides to come...
my knitting needles
classic games like Uno and operation
Jane Austen books for lovely leisure reading
pumpkin bars
sweet games of peek-a-boo
a working vacuum for this house of crumbs
yard sale chairs that have become my favorite
audio books so I can listen & knit at the same time
a piano to play
beautiful music to listen to
ears that can still hear it
a warm home
wood to heat it
food on the table
tasty bread recipe
naps, when needed

May I never forget to be thankful-

He Loves Me, He Loves Me Not...?

2009-11-20T08:59:00.004-06:00

Oh yeah, he loves me.

My husband is not the overly sentimental type. Flowers are rare enough around here to still be very special, the potted fall mums he brought home a couple weeks ago brought me to tears, they were so unexpected, and so beautiful.

A few nights ago he came home with an "I got something for you." and handed me this Ghirardelli Intense Dark Twilight Delight chocolate bar. He has been listening and watching all these years. He does know me better than anyone else on earth. (Okay, I can think of several friends and family members that could've told you I have a deep and abiding love for dark chocolate, but right now I'm gushing on about my husband.)

He works hard. He works a lot. He loves his children, and he loves me, even after getting to know me and living with me all of these years. In this season of Thanks, I'm reminded of how thankful I am for my marriage. It's not perfect, no marriage this side of heaven is, but it's a gift from the Lord and I thank Him for it, I thank Him for him.

I'm pretty sure I'd feel the same way without the dark chocolates, but we don't need to test that theory this week.

In other news, after Day 3 of our Reading Marathon, our three oldest readers' totals are as follows:

Ian, The Teenager: 465 minutes

Jaron, the 10 yr old: 244 minutes

Liberty, the 8 yr old: 195 minutes

The reading continues today, amidst some cleaning and baking and general party preparations- Today is Grace's 7th birthday! Girlfriend party planned for tomorrow, so I'm scrambling for some party game ideas and supplies, because, you know, it's the day before and that's when I do things. Time to make the last-minute lists and scoot out the door for some shopping...!!

Reach for the Stars!!

2009-11-18T17:00:00.001-06:00

Sonrise Scholars Reading Marathon
November 2009

Our marathon program benefits the reader (we have 3 solid readers and an emerging reader or two or three), the reader's family, and the Sonrise Scholars Co-operative that our family is so excited about being a part of this year. Students participate by reading as much as possible (yay!) and finding sponsors to support their efforts through pledges.

Benefit program as follows:

60% of the pledges provide new Usborne Books to the participating student (Yay!)
20% of the pledges provide tuition funds for the participating student's family (every bit helps!)
20% of the pledges provide cash to the Sonrise Scholars Co-op (for expenses like the awards they give the children at field day, etc...)

Participants reading 1,000 minutes or more will receive special recognition and a medal (My oldest 3 are definitely shooting for at least 1,000 minutes, my Teenager actually thinks he'll top 2,000 and I believe him.)

They have two weeks. 1,000 minutes in 14 days means 71.43 minutes a day, which should be easy for my eager readers, especially if they keep up with the pace they started out with last night, which was their Day 1. November 30th is their last reading day, everything gets turned in Tuesday, December 1st.

***If I understood what I just wrote correctly, that means we are within 2 weeks of December. Take a moment to collect yourselves, then continue reading***

Would you consider sponsoring one (or more) of our readers? I'd love to drum up some online support for them! Let us know here in the comments, being sure to include your email address so I can contact you with a Paypal invoice. Any amount will help and encourage our readers, I'm sure!

Our oldest 3 are off to a good start, here are Day 1 totals (they only had a while in the evening to read after we got home from a busy day)-

The Teenager, Ian - 90 minutes
10 yr old, Jaron - 60 minutes
8 yr old, Liberty - 30 minutes

Our 6 yr old is finally getting over her reading hump, with some letter sound blending finally 'clicking' the past couple weeks. I'm so very excited about that and can't wait to see her reading take off as she discovers more words she can decode! Maybe watching her siblings get excited about reading, and earning more books to read, she'll cath some excitement herself- a homeschooling Mom can hope...!!!

Day 2 totals are looking good for our oldest 3, that 1,000 minutes looks well within reach!

I'll try to post their daily totals and accumulative totals as we countdown our 14 days of reading- We'd love it if you'd keep checking back and cheering them on!
Thanks, in advance, for all of your encouragement and support!

Wordless Wednesday

2009-11-18T07:00:00.000-06:00

Kids Crack Me Up!

2009-11-16T22:30:00.002-06:00

(blast from the past photo, our current 8 yr old, formerly 3...)

Recently, our just-turned-3 yr old, Mercy, has decided that everything that has a smell that she can smell, smells like cow poop, or in her toddler dialect, "smells like tow poop". It was pretty much cute and funny, at least it was until she told me I smelled "like tow poop". Yeah, then it got less funny, or at least less cute. This past Sunday afternoon, she was enjoying a very rich piece of dark chocolate cake when she very excitedly declared, "Mom, I like this tow poop take!"

One morning last week, when The Teenager emerged from the bathroom, 4 yr old Hope was apparently impressed with his look as she burst out "You put your hair in style! You put in jellyfish!" (Translation: You styled your hair. You put in gel.) We chuckled while The Teenager was like, "whatever", which made me chuckle some more. I'm sensitive and understanding like that.

A bit later, that same 4 yr old Hope came huffing and puffing (after tearing back and forth across the great room a dizzying number of times), to tell me "Mom, I was running faster than I could, without even shoes on!". No, there are no typos in that quote. My husband asked if she's speaking Engrish now, nope, I don't think it's quite that bad...

Our newly-turned-1 yr old son was put in a box, which was attached to 2 other boxes with string, all three of which were being pulled around the room by the 4, 6, & 8 yr old girls. He wasn't convinced it should be fun, in fact, he was starting to protest greatly, when 4 yr old Hope tried to reassure him with a tender and loving "Don't worry, you'll understand it when you're older." I really don't know if he will, honey.

You know how children say funny things, and we laugh until we're crying (it really can't only be my Mom and I that do that, right?) and then we say that famous line- "I really should write that one down."? Only, really, maybe one out of 10 of us, or worse, ever does? I have a few written down, in random places, always intending to start that kid-quote journal, but never actually doing it... Well, I'm at the computer a lot, and it's pretty quick to type them out, so lately I've been doing just that, and I think I'll try to make a regular thing out of it. Those could be famous last words, but we'll see. Our 4 yr old's been on a roll lately, and the newly-turned-3 yr old is coming into her own in the funny department, there is a lot of material here!

What funny things have your kids said lately?

itty-bitty fun

2009-11-15T13:33:00.003-06:00

Another busy week for us- 4-H on Tuesday, violin lessons on Wednesday, an evening at the orchestra (what a fun treat!) on Thursday, a homeschool field trip to our favorite historical farm on Friday, and in true no-rest-for-the-weary fashion, a Mommy afternoon at a yarn shop, meeting Susan B. Anderson, on Saturday. Whew! Kinda tired just typing that (could be from staying up a bit late last night, but we'll all pretend I didn't just admit that).

My Dear Husband was home all day on Saturday. Not only was he home, but he was perfectly willing to oversee the entire brood for some hours in the afternoon so I could have some of that elusive 'me time'. For the record, I would've dragged all of my children to the yarn shop if he wasn't going to be home, well, okay, my two oldest boys could have stayed home and twiddled their thumbs for a couple hours... I was truly thankful that he was home, not only so I could have some Mommy time, but so he could have some Daddy time (notice how that works out opposite- my Mommy time is getting out sans children, his Daddy time is being home avec children...), and because my youngest little guy is just getting over a bit of croup, and he's a wee bit clingy and cranky, and may not have been the sweetest little companion around- unlike my sister's wee one, who was the perfect sweet pea!

Shepherd's Choice is so much more than a yarn shop, and I count myself blessed to consider it's owner, Kathy, a friend.

She makes the most wonderful natural soaps and moisturizing lotions- I just cannot say enough good things about them. Seriously. I told several perfect strangers about how Kathy's lanolin rich moisturizer cured my daughters severe eczema and psoriasis- she had what appeared to be both at the time, it was awful, cracked, bleeding, weepy, scaley, itchy, burning, no fun at all for a 2 yr old! We had a doctor prescribe an ointment (after we had tried every 'good' and 'natural' lotion on the market, Eucerin, Neutogena, Aveeno, you name it, we tried it, all to no avail- and they would sting, poor baby), an ointment we never used. After reading the insert, and learning that this ointment had been shown to cause benign and malignant growths, I refused to even try. Were they serious?! They actually wanted me to rub this stuff on my 2 yr old's precious baby soft skin, okay, baby soft except for where the eczema and psoriasis was taking it's toll... Anyhoo, I stopped by the shop one day, and brought in my 2 yr old for Kathy to see. She gave me a tub of her unscented lanolin rich moisturizer to try, and folks, I'm not even kidding, in a week there was marked improvement, in 2 weeks, she was almost clear, by the 3rd week we were just using a touch here and there for some dryness that threatened to get sore but never got the chance. I was amazed, and thankful, and have bought more of that wonder stuff since.

If you have skin problems, please give it a try, and give it time to work. Kathy is a wonderfully prompt shipper. While you're at it, order a bar of her cinnamon with lanolin soap, because, I mean, cinnamon soap!! I could almost eat it. Who doesn't love the smell of cinnamon? Especially this time of year?! Makes wonderful gifts as well!! Knit a washcloth, give with some of this luscious soap, seriously, the recipient will thank you.

Back to the main point of this post- meeting Susan was like meeting up with an old friend. After reading her blog for some years, tweeting back and forth for some months, listening to her podcasts and hearing her interviewed on others, even her voice was familiar. Just in case you're wondering, yes, she really is every bit as sweet as she seems. It was so fun to finally meet her.

My sister came, with munchkin in tow, and then my Mom stopped by too, so we had to get a couple shots of our designing family with Susan. There is another sister, my Little sister, but she's too cool to knit, or way too busy with her amazing job and her adorable Little guy. She's an amazing person, but she's the odd one out when it comes to the knitting and designing (and the sewing!) in this family. She's young, there's still time...

The sun came out for some moments and I ran over to the window to soak up some rays, cause I'm desperate like that, and then it got warm in the shop. I peeled off my Drops Jacket, 'cause, have you worn Blue Sky Alpacas' Worsted? So warm and cozy. I pulled out my water bottle, which I promptly left on the table so if there's a stainless steel water bottle doing crazy things with the flash in any of your pictures, sorry about that! Winters in the Frozen Tundra (I know it's not frozen yet, but Minnesota is always the Frozen Tundra in my mind) are so dry, my water bottle becomes my best friend, specially when the room suddenly gets warm, and I'm not even in my menopause years...

After mulling around for most if the afternoon, and after stocking up on more yummy soaps, some for me, some for gifts, I headed out to a local cafe with my dear friend, The Blonde Knitter. Avant Garden is a very cozy spot in the old historic downtown Anoka, serving the most wonderful paninis- we split a Roma- tomatoes, artichoke hearts, feta cheese, and I don't know what else, but let's just say it's taking some significant self-control to not hop back in the van to grab another for lunch today. Oh, and in a rare non-latte drink order for me, I went with a hot caramel apple cider, and I have no regrets, yummo!

All in all, a fabulous Saturday, and would you believe, I didn't even knit a stitch?

I'll be back with pictures of children and stories of some of the learning adventures around here soon.

A Night at the Orchestra

2009-11-14T20:00:00.002-06:00

Thursday evening we had an excuse to get prettied up. Not that my girls need an excuse, I mean they could use, oh, I don't know, being awake, as an excuse to get prettied up, but it does make it just a tad bit more precious when there's another purpose than 'because I'm a girl'.

A night out, a night at the orchestra. We got word of a FREE event at a local college, a children's concert, featuring some wonderful music, including a performance of Peter and the Wolf. I've always wanted to see that one done.

What was even more fantabulous, was the pre-concert activities and refreshments (can't forget the cookies.) They had tables set up full of crafty supplies for the children to make themselves some theatrical masks, and they had many a table set up with performers and their instruments for a 'Musical Petting Zoo' where any child patience enough (and brave enough to tough it through the crowds) could try out the instruments.

When I say crowds, um, totally not kidding. Popular attraction, narrow hallway, tables taking up half of the hallway, and hundreds of people- oh, my, after the french horn I reasoned with my children that they could play Daddy's trombone, my flute & clarinet, their own violins, either Dad's or my cello, we've had a harp in the past (and would love one again someday!) and there's always the piano- we have a fairly musical home, we didn't need to fight the crowds.

I don't know how many of you have ever tried to get through some serious throngs with 5 young and fairly short people holding on... (Our Teenager stayed home with our coughing baby. have I mentioned how handy teenagers can be?!)

There was a point when the crowds moving in both directions just sort of stopped, we were all at an impasse, and it only took me a few seconds of that before I told my children to "Just back-up!" and the people behind us seemed glad to lean to the side so we could get by and they could take our place...

Yeah, that was the less-than-fun part, but the rest of the evening was great. Well, until it was time for the concert to start and the extremely unhappy toddler behind us decided to start wailing and thrashing about- oh, that poor mother, how mortifying. I felt bad for her, and then later I felt more empathy than sympathy when my little Merciful, who just turned 3, was wiggling much too much, and did a sudden face plant on her seat. I knew right away that one hurt- and I've known for some time now (about 3 years) that this child cries loud and long. Fortunately it was at a rather loud point in the music, and I think only the people relatively close to us knew what was going on. I pulled her in very close, hugging her little face to muffle things a bit, and I felt the warm drool near her mouth, only it wasn't just crying-too-much-drool, there was blood. She had split her lip- not too bad, but bad enough to be upset for several moments. That was another less-than-fun part.

Aside from the less-than-fun moments, it was fantabulously fun to have an evening out with most of my children, and a FREE evening at that! What a blessing!!

Slower Learning, Ups & Downs

2009-11-12T07:00:00.000-06:00

We have always homeschooled, and while it hasn't always been what I would call easy, it has never really been what I would call hard. I always knew I wanted to homeschool, from the moment I heard there was such a thing, I knew that was what I would want to do with my children. I was young and idealistic, and while I didn't know all the hows nor all the whys of homeschooling, I did intuitively know that it had, in my opinion, the greatest potential for excellence in learning, in just about any and every area of life, so much more than academics alone.

The first bump in my road came when I started to try to teach my oldest son the concept of subtraction. Addition had been a breeze, but this new angle on numbers just didn't click as naturally. To him, 3-2=5, you know, because there was a 3 and a 2, and they make 5. The symbols and even the words minus or subtract meant nothing, at first. I spent what seemed like hours, playing with manipulatives of all kinds- crayons, Lego's, counting bears, blocks, pretzels, candy- you name it, we did math with it.

I could put 3 bears on the table and say "now, if we have 3 bears and then we take away 2 bears, how many bears do we have left?" and he would say "5", despite there being only 1 bear on the table. I was in a mild state of shock, and a total state of perplexed. How can you look at 3 things on the table, see 2 of them taken away, and think there are 5, when you see 1 left?

I was beginning to lose my patience, and worry about what I had gotten myself into; and then it occurred to me- before I knew how to subtract, I didn't know how to subtract.

Brilliant observation, I know. I don't remember learning how to add & subtract. I must have either learned fairly young and just don't remember, or it was a traumatic experience and I have suppressed all of those memories... (Kidding!) Seeing as I was one of those 'math nerds' in high school, and even earned varsity letters (for the varsity jacket I never got) on the Math Team, twice. Yep, there are such things as Math Teams, and I solved many a stumper of a math problem to win points for my school. Cool, I know.

Back to my observation, at some point in time, even simple things like adding & subtracting were new concepts to me. What would've happened if I didn't 'get it' the first time a new concept was presented to me and my presenter (be it my mother or my school teacher) had written me off as 'slow' or 'learning disabled' or even worse, just plain 'dumb'?

I've been thinking about this a lot lately as my 2nd son has struggled some with his math fact recall. He gets it. He gets addition, he gets subtraction, and now he gets multiplication, but he doesn't have that instant recall most of us have after seeing 3 & 7 enough times to just blurt out 21 without even thinking. You can see the wheels start to turn in his head, and you can almost hear the inner dialogue, "let's see, 7 times 1 is 7 and 7 times 2 is, um, lemme think, 14, and then 7 times 3 is let's see, 14 plus 7 more, that would be, um, 21! Yep, 3x7 is 21!".

Math is work for him, and that's okay, I know we're not all wired the same. Some kids can memorize a fact after hearing it once or twice, others need to review it several times, and still others, this child included, just need the repetition of hundreds of times. Yep, I said hundreds. There is no way he would succeed at math without the 1 on 1 tutoring we can do at home and without the hours and hours of repetition he needs. Math lessons, math flash cards, math speed drills, math games, it all takes time, it all takes work, but that's just what we do.

I totally admit it- I went into homeschooling thinking I would produce a whole gaggle of those genius kids you hear about winning spelling and geography bees and math & science competitions. I've learned that doesn't happen in every homeschool family (not many, actually...), and that has been kind of a painful lesson for me to learn; painful in that it can sometimes hurt my pride, but, well, one way to keep that pesky pride in check is to wound it now and then...

My most recent challenge has been with my 6 yr old, who is very close to turning 7, while being nowhere close to reading. I'm no longer one to panic about delayed reading. I've read enough stories and studies and met enough people with late readers to know that most late readers catch up to 'average', and many even surpass those bright & early readers, somewhere around age 12... That being said, this child is pushing me closer to that worry point with the fact that she cannot seem to even remember all of her letters yet. She's close, but then there are some letters that just bring blank stares, even after seeming to have it down pat the day before.

I've got some sandpaper to make letters, some embroidered alphabet bean bags under construction, some tiles to paint letters onto, and about 101 other ideas to make learning to read a fun adventure for her, and who knows, maybe the 3 & 4 yr olds will be reading soon too, with all of the phonics going on around here... it could happen.

Teaching our own children is an awesome responsibility, it can be hard, and it can be tiring, and frankly, it can be quite thankless work- but seeing the glimmer in the eyes of a child who makes a connection, who has something click, who is learning, is so rewarding. Teaching a child how to learn and then setting them loose to explore the world through many great books is an adventure I'm really getting excited about as my 2nd & 3rd children are now fluently reading and beginning to devour books and tell me all kinds of things, sometimes things new to me- now that's the stuff good homeschooling days are made of!

Soup Party 2009

2009-11-10T13:00:00.001-06:00

This past Saturday, we held our Annual Soup Party, with many of the relatives from my side of the family, some families from our church, and a few old friends (oldies, but goodies!). Our children look forward to our soup parties more than just about any other day of the year! They absolutely love them, and what's not to love? Friends (and their children!) bringing loads and loads of food to share- definitely a good thing in my book.

The weather not only cooperated (I was hoping and praying for some degrees above freezing, and none of that fluffy white stuff that makes this The Frozen Tundra), but it kinda got carried away, with sun and temps in the low 60s.

The children not only got to play outside, but most of them even ate their soup outside. Yep, you read right, a picnic, in November, in Minnesota. Will wonders never cease?!

We've done this 6, or 7, or 8 times, I'd have to check the archives to tell for sure... and the only other time we've ended up with a 60 plus degree day, was also the year we had our biggest crowd, around 75 people, with a good 30 or so at any one time (we have it sort of like an 'open house' and people come and go throughout the afternoon and evening...) and 8-12 crock pots going, plus a pot or two on the stove top, including a pot of hot apple cider (yummo!). That got hot. I opened windows, and soon realized that we actually needed to close the windows, and turn on the air conditioner!! Yeah, that was warm. This year was warm, but not so bad...

We had some yummy soups- two of them even got left here for my family to finish the leftovers, bonus! (Thanks!) I made a soup that has become a family favorite ever since I first made it after seeing it recommended in blog land somewhere... It's the Salsa Chicken Black Bean Soup from the Crock Pot 365 blog, which is a gr-r-r-reat resource for crock pot recipes if you're ever in need of ideas and/or crock pot inspiration.

We ended this year's Party early, as it happened to fall on the weekend of our church's fall Revival meetings. Our flesh may have been bummed at the idea of cutting the festivities short this year, but our spirits were so encouraged (and nourished!) by what we heard on Saturday night, and with more on Sunday morning and night, it was so definitely worth it. I have so many thoughts, stirred up by those messages, swirling around in my head, just waiting for some more time to process... It's all good. He is so good.

A big weekend, with bedtimes later than usual, followed by a Monday night, with a soccer awards ceremony for The Teenager, and more getting home late, is making for a relatively slow start to this week. Here it is, Tuesday already, and time for a 4-H afternoon!

Speaking of 4-H, it's time to start getting ready to head out...

This Week at Co-op

2009-11-05T07:30:00.000-06:00

Tuesday was co-op day again, and while the children worked on their speeches, chemistry, European geography, art, phys-ed, beginning sign language, and games, the Moms group was once again such a blessing.

We serve an awesome God. He is awesome, creator of all (John 1:3), and yet, He is a personal God, and He makes himself known to us in the everyday living of life. I love it when He does that.

This week's theme was about relationships, about being real with each other, about bearing each other's burdens. One of the goals for this group of Mothers is to be a support, and not just in the often-used-in-the-shallow-sense-of-the-word support. Our leaders' desires are that we could truly come together and lift each other up when we're down, that we could, and would, graciously and lovingly nudge one in the right direction if one of us starts to exhibit such a need, that we would encourage one another in our daily walk with the Lord, our walk with our husbands, our walk with our children, and our walk through the homeschooling life. Good stuff, I tell you.

I am reminded, once again (may I always heed the reminders!), of His interest in me, little old me. Yes, I'm just an ordinary mom, and yet, the God of the universe, the God who 'made the stars also' (Gen 1:16), reminds me of His love for me when things I've been dealing with, thoughts I've been mulling over, are confirmed in daily life, from a source who did not know yet what was going on in my head. He knew. He is so good. He humbles me.

The kids had fun, I had confirmation, it was a good time, then it was home for some Sloppy Joes, or as my girls like to call them Sloppy Jaloppies! (And salads, did you know salad tastes better when you get to put it on your own plate by your own self and pour your own salad dressing?! Who knew?!)

Wordless Wednesday

2009-11-04T06:30:00.000-06:00

Have Yourself a Very Merry Fall

2009-11-02T07:00:00.001-06:00

We've been enjoying sneaking outdoors whenever the elusive sun decides to peak through the near constant cold and dreary drizzling that's been going on for way too long. Okay, 1 day of cold with drizzle is too long for me, I need sun, but this days and days and days of it has got to go.

Our family decided not to take part in the spreading of the germs* that runs rampant right about now, and stayed home from church yesterday. We had a nice morning around the big table with some hymn singing and the starting of a new Bible Study, called Line Upon Line, which will eventually take us through the entire Bible. It was a nice time, even with all of the toddler potty breaks and the 4 yr old's whisperings. It was also nice to be home for the afternoon, to get out for some fresh air- and sunshine!!

*The youngest two have been coughing and have had extremely runny/snotty noses for about 10 days now, it seems to have come and gone for the 4 & 10 yr olds, all without fevers or body aches- this is not the flu, probably just a seasonal 'common cold' or quite possibly some fall allergies. It's hard to tell, but with the current flu issues, we're not taking coughing children anywhere, especially the nursing home we were scheduled to visit...

The sun is out again today, there will be bundling up and heading out to get some blood pumping right after a little math and reading!

I thought I'd share one of my favorite fall recipes, that I shared over at my knitting blog. It makes a perfect fall snack, dessert, or, if you're anything like my family, even breakfast. Baked oatmeal with fruit, that works for breakfast. Yes it does. Enjoy it! (Our family always doubles this!)

Apple Oatmeal Bars

2 cups flour

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. soda

1 cup brown sugar

2 cups oatmeal

1 cup shortening

9 medium apples, sliced

1 cup white sugar

1 tsp. cinnamon

4 Tbsp. butter

Mix flour, salt, soda, brown sugar, and oatmeal together. Cut in shortening until mixture is crumbly. Spread half of mixture into greased 9 by 9-inch baking dish. Press down firmly. Cover with apple slices. Mix white sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle over apples. Dot with butter. Cover with remaining crumb mixture and bake at 350 degrees for 45-60 minutes. Serve warm, with cream, if desired.

Variation: Add 1/2 cup honey and substitute 2/3 cup butter for shortening in crust.

Now it's time for some vitamin D! This is the Frozen Tundra, we need to get it when we get the chance!

The Lord Hears

2009-10-29T10:00:00.005-05:00

This morning's reading in my Experiencing God Day-by-Day, The Devotional and Journal, spoke to me in so many ways.

"God has designed His kingdom so that Christians with kindred spirits join
together."

Matthew 18:20 tells us, "For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them." The devotional goes on to say, "If you are carrying concerns about your family or your church or your friends (I would add 'or your homeschooling'), ask God to bring like-minded believers around you to share the burden with you in conversation and in prayer. Don't attempt to bear your load of cares on your own. You may pray about them, but you will miss the blessing of uniting together with a group of believers who join together to intercede for one another and to enjoy God's presence. Everything God has woven into the fabric of His kingdom promotes interdependence, not individualism. As you face your concerns, deliberately seek out believers with whom you can stand and share your load."

We all have our very own challenges and concerns. Some days I can't bear to list mine, for fear of admitting just how many I have. Lately, I've been battling the old battle of not feeling adequate or able to do the many tasks set before me, not the least of which being the enormous task of homeschooling my 7 children.

I've known for several years about a homeschool co-op in the town we live outside of. We even visited once, the fall after we moved up here, but I was a bit overwhelmed with the structure of it all, and thought it was a bit much effort for us at the time (then we had an 8 yr old- the only one who was schooling at the time, a 2 yr old, and a nursling). It wasn't a good fit at the time. Fast forward 8 yrs, seriously, they went fast, and we now have a just turned 16 yr old, a 10 yr old, 8 yr old, 6 yr old, 4 yr old, 2 yr old, and a just turned 1 yr old. Things are different, times have changed. Their structure still overwhelms me (it's incredibly organized, with 3 different classes for each age group, hired teachers, supervising Moms, snacks, games, crafts, amazing, really) but I definitely see the need for it, considering the size of the group (I can't remember, but I think there are close to 100 children!).

Our children love it, I knew they would! I love it, too. I'm loving meeting new mothers who face many of the same challenges and have the same concerns about educating and discipling their children. I love that there's a Mom's group, where we can sit and talk. I didn't think I was going to like that. Why?! Anyone who knows me knows that I can chat all night with the best of them, but for some reason I wasn't feeling the 'need' to sit and talk with other Moms, who were complete strangers to me. The thing is, after just one week, I realized that this group of women were not strangers, at least I sure didn't want them to be. These were/are new friends, and I count myself so very blessed to have found them and to have finally taken the step to connect with them.

Last week one Mom offered a praise report that was such a blessing to hear- She had been feeling completely overwhelmed with getting it all done, helping with her husband's business and trying to keep up with homeschooling, and she poured out her heart to a friend who didn't just lend an ear, didn't just pat her on the back with an encouraging 'hang in there, you can do it', didn't even offer the often used, yet ever-so-shallow, 'I'll pray for you' only to walk off and forget about it (not intentionally, I know, but we all get right back into being caught up in our own concerns so easily, admit it, we've all done it). Her friend stopped what she was doing and prayed, right then and there. Now that's a friend, and I really think that's what Christian fellowship should look like. This Mom was so encouraged, and she said that her relief was almost instant, the burden lifted, her stressful times were not so overwhelming anymore, that she's able to find and feel the peace she desires and needs so much right now, in the midst of her personal storm.

We prayed as a group, we prayed for our homeschooling, for our children and our Mothering of each one, for our roles as wives and homemakers. It was such a blessing.

I think that, over the past few years, I've gotten so busy with my growing family (and it's a good busy- don't get me wrong!) that I have, for some time, unintentionally withdrawn from some of the fellowshipping that I used to thrive on. My family is my top priority, second only to my walk with God, and I don't intend to start leaving them high and dry to join every fellowship group available to me- that would be the wrong kind of busy, but I am so thankful for this particular group of Mothers, bearing burdens that look very much like mine, to share with and walk together with on this journey of faith as we endeavor to teach our children and work to prepare them to live and walk victoriously in this life.

Whether you are a homeschooling Mom or not, people need people, people need fellowship. As Christians, we will always have the Lord, even in times of utter solitude, but for those of us not in solitary confinement, let's remember the additional blessing of coming together with kindred spirits and thank Him for them!

Another Bug So Soon

2009-10-27T22:00:00.005-05:00

Big J (10), Baby J (just turned 1!) and Little M (2) seem to have picked up a bit of a 'common cold' bug- very runny nose, watery eyes, a bit of a cough, thankfully no fevers, so no, I do not think this is the flu, seasonal or swine, excuse me, H1N1. I know some people with little ones battling some pretty bad ear infections, so I'm on the lookout for signs of such, but other than that, I'm not really worried, not really.

That being said, when Hope (4 yrs) began coughing Saturday morning, my Asthma Mom radar went off. Both she and Grace (6 yrs) have been consistently taking a controller med ever since the last (and worst ever, for us) flare-up, and have had no asthma symptoms since coming home from the Children's Hospital. That cough meant time to move to the 'Yellow Zone' on the asthma action plan- which for them means increasing to using controller meds twice per day and adding in albuterol nebs or inhaler every 4 hrs or as needed.

Grace doesn't have any cold symptoms, but she is the one who has been the sickest the most often, the one who's given us the most sleepless nights and brought out in us the most earnest prayers of parents truly concerned about the health of a child. Having a virus moving through the house, this soon after being in the hospital puts Grace in the Yellow Zone too, asthma symptoms or no asthma symptoms. If you know me at all, you know that I do not like to over medicate, that I do not like to throw a bunch of meds at a body 'just in case', but I am learning to deal with the current fact that our daughters' asthma isn't like my 'touch of asthma' or 'reactive airway disorder', which from what I can gather is like being diagnosed with asthma-light. Theirs is the scary kind.

Watching a child continue to get worse after having IV steroids and antibiotics pumping through her little veins for days, not understanding why all those meds, in addition to all of the rescue inhaled meds, aren't helping her lung function improve faster, is heartbreaking, confusing, and terrifying, all at the same time. I don't want to watch that again, none of us do. I'm pretty sure neither Grace, nor Hope, want to experience that again. Our hope and prayer this week is that we've started the extra meds early enough, and that we won't even hear a wheeze, but that this cold bug would pass through and be gone with no Dr. visits to speak of.

So, with 4 out of 7 coughing and runny-nosed, again, the extra sunshine (when we can get it!), extra fluids, extra vitamins, and on the days I really get my act together, some extra good food, are not really extras, but so very important parts of our attempts at a healthy lifestyle. There will be chicken tonight, and broccoli- have I mentioned how much I love that my kids all eat their broccoli?!

Last October, Hope had a wheezy cough for 3 weeks straight, but never had any issues with her O2 level, never even needed to see a doc, we just monitored her closely and kept giving her meds 'til it passed. I truly didn't worry. She had never (since a baby) really given us a reason to really worry. After last month, this year's coughing has me a bit more concerned. The pulmonologists stressed, before we left the hospital, that after such an extreme flare-up, the lungs will be extra-sensitive for a while, another minor thing could turn major fast- so we watch and pray, and try to do that thing that can be so hard for us as parents- to trust, trust that our daughter's health, more than that, her very life, is in His hands, and His hands are far greater, far more capable, than ours.

Enjoying them,

because of Him-

ali

Sort of Like Musical Chairs

2009-10-26T21:55:00.002-05:00

One of our local mailmen, no, really...

His name is Elvis, and he has left the building,

'cuz, you know, he's got mail to deliver...

Notice the curled lip? hehe...

Tonight there was a made-up game- there was singing and dancing, and quick sitting on the scattered blankets on the great room floor. There was a bit of confusion and some consternation, some 'not like that' and some 'no, do it like this!'

I slid onto the bench at the piano and started flipping through the hymnbook, and began playing, stopping randomly at very unexpected points in the music, judging by the laughter that would erupt as 4 little girls would realize they needed to sit fast, faster, and fastest! It was sweet, they went to bed singing, and maybe with a little bit of twirling...

These are the moments that just bless my heart.

Enjoying them,

because of Him-

ali

Yep, I realize the pics have nothing to do with musical whatever we were playing, but, you know, I every post needs a picture, or two, or three... and they cracked me up!

Time Is Running Away From Me

2009-10-20T09:14:00.007-05:00

Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it. — Ferris Bueller

Yep, life is always moving fast around here. I'm not really sure what happened to the rest of my summer, and my fall, though I suppose some of it got sucked up into that crazy 2 children in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at the same time fiasco that threw our lives into a whole new level of chaos a few weeks back... Yeah, that had something to do with it, but hospitals or no hospitals, life moves fast, and babies grow so fast, and my youngest will be 1 entire year old tomorrow, and I can hardly believe it.

Seriously, 1. Not one week, not one month, not even one fiscal quarter, but 1 entire year, gone by like that. Wow.

He's been such an incredible baby, he blesses us with so many huge wide-open-mouth little guy grins each day.

Man, I love this baby. I mean, this big guy.

Enjoying them,

because of Him-

ali

Rank Watermelon Blues

2009-10-16T19:55:00.008-05:00

Tonight's PSA: Too many watermelons kept for too long on the counter will eventually lead to one of them leaking- this is not a good thing, that is not a good smell... and the moral of the story is, when one harvests a TON of watermelon at the end of the season, one really should bless friends and family (with several melons each) or sell it at the nearest farmer's market. One's family can only eat so many watermelon in a week...

I turned to my right, and wondered what the liquid was that was dripping off my counter. Who could have spilled their drink all over the overcrowded counter? The one filled to almost overflowing (well, I guess at that point it actually was overflowing, sheesh) with an excessive number of watermelons, and the mail which was soaking in foul smelling juice. Oy.

After scrambling to clean up that, what shall we call it, bump in the road, this evening, things are smelling much better (orange essential oil in my kitchen cleaner!) and we are down to the last 4 good watermelons- one of which is being snacked on right now.

And the knitting? I am currently well into my 2nd skein of a Vine Lace Top-Down Cardigan for my very self. (I really do still enjoy knitting other people's designs!) It's gotten (freezing) cold, and I'm a cardigan kind of gal. I love how quickly bulky knits knit up, and I'm completely in love with top-down construction. I'd love to have this done in a week (I cast on before bed, 10/14). I won't, but I'd love to. A busy mom can still dream.

The designing? I've been working on my transition to self-publishing, but I've been working at a snail's pace, with my family and our homeschooling adventure taking a higher rung on the priority ladder. And that's okay, it's the way it should be for me. I do have several patterns about 95% ready to go, and I'm super excited about that. I just don't know how soon I can wrap up that last 5%, and that's okay too. It will come when it comes, I'm not losing any sleep over it. There are so many other reasons to lose sleep these days...

And the baby? Oh, my, could he be any sweeter? I doubt it, and I can hardly believe he'll be a One Year Old in 5 days!?! Oh, my, he is such a joy & delight, and so very, very, big! As his birthday happens to fall on the same day of my dad's, I have just reminded myself that I only have 5 days to think of something, (or maybe conspire with my sisters, one of whom has a new blog!), to come up with something for him too...

Have a fabulous weekend!

Enjoying them,

because of Him-

ali

I Have Ten Apples Up On Top

2009-10-15T15:40:00.004-05:00

Actually, I have many, many, many, more than that. I fear there may be more than we can get through- but we are trying!

We were blessed with a short-notice outing to an orchard owned by a friend of a friend (you see, sometimes it's all about who you know) last weekend. It was cold, freezing actually, with some snow on the ground and more in the forecast. They needed some bodies, and we have several, so off we headed to glean what we could glean. They told us we could take home as many as we wanted, for free, if we would just help in cleaning off a tree or two. What a blessing!

I washed, stemmed, and quartered way more apples than I ever thought it would take to make 6 quarts of applesauce- that was a bit of work. This afternoon's activities involve the dehydrator- I'm super excited about these, though again with the work, work, work. My children can eat through a bag of dried apples faster than you can say something cute and apple related, so if I'm going to want any dried apple snacks in, say, more than a week, I'm going to have to dry a LOT of apples, and I guess that's okay, because that's exactly what we've got left- a LOT.

There will be a pie tonight, and maybe a crisp, and then another pie...

Apple pies make good breakfasts, don't they?

Enjoying them,

because of Him-

ali

Many Hands Make Light Work

2009-10-10T07:00:00.003-05:00

I sent the children off to tidy their rooms late yesterday morning. The timer was set for 15 minutes, one of my favorite new habits from flylady, and they were working hard to see who could get the cleanest room- the winners were promised a Sprite. Our children don't often get pop, so every now and then when a can is offered for a reward, it's actually quite an incentive for our poor, disadvantaged, high-fructose corn syrup deprived (ok, at least limited) offspring.

A few minutes into the cleaning, I began to hear what was, in my opinion, a little too much joy and merriment coming from the room with the 8, 6, & 4 yr old girls. There was some giggling, there was what sounded to me like some dancing and certainly some jumping around, and there was some singing- yes, I definitely heard singing.

I was about to suggest, sweetly & warmly, of course, that perhaps a little less goofing and a little more focus was in order- when I began to discern the words to the singing I was hearing. It was the voice of our 4 yr old, little Hopeful, and she was singing a little improv song about teamwork, about working together to get the job done, working together to clean up the room.

'You can pick up the dirty laundry,
and I can vacuum the floor,
we can work together,
it's called teamwor-or-or-or-ork'

Oh yeah, it was cute, she's a keeper, and the girls won today, in case you were wondering.

Enjoying them,

because of Him-

ali

Partly Cloudy

2009-10-08T22:00:00.001-05:00

I wasn't sure if the camera would be able to capture the awesome sky we had at a recent soccer game. When I probably should have been taking pictures of soccer players, especially the one that's mine, I was extremely distracted by this glorious sight. Years ago, one of my favorite ladies on this earth, once looked up at the sky on a cool fall evening gathering at our church, and said to her husband and children "Look at the beautiful picture the Lord painted for us in the sky?" and I was struck with how immediate and how natural her reaction was. Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks- truly. Her heart was so filled with awe of God, the Creator, that her first thought upon looking up at that beautiful sight was a thought about He who created that sight, and about His motive- He did it for us, to remind us of Him, and to simply enjoy. I think I've thought of her, and my awesome God, every time I notice a painting in the sky ever since.

I love how you can see the rays coming out of the clouds. It was amazing. I was transfixed.

I snapped a few pics, and thought this one turned out pretty well, if I may say so myself, and it's my blog, so I can. Ok, it would've been better with a bit more of the treeline, but I was distracted by those beautiful rays.

I spent a few moments playing with the original in Photoshop. I've decided I like playing with color. A lot. Well, I already knew that, now I know it more.

I should probably teach my children how to do this. I can think of several children who abide under my roof who would love to learn this sort of thing. I should probably start soon.

We can call it art. They can all start some lovely little art & photography portfolios. That sounds like fun. I cannot even imagine how much more advanced digital photography and art could even get, but I'm sure such art & photography portfolios would be so sweet to look at years from now, when the pictures are fond memories.

Here's the original again, with the color saturation bumped up. Love it. Can't wait to play again!

Enjoying them-
because of Him,
ali

Remain Calm, and I'll Try To Too...

2009-10-07T08:38:00.002-05:00

No really, don't panic. I lost all of my nice formatting when I moved the blog over to my new domain. I just need to find some time to rework it... that should be easy to find, or not... soon, I hope, soon.

In the meantime, I'm still endeavoring to enjoy them,

each one of my children,

as the gifts from above that they are,

because of Him,

ali