Happy Birthday Lane!

15 years ago yesterday I gave birth to a most beautiful baby girl with lots of dark hair and a good set of lungs. Her due date was March 13th and I hoped that she would not come on that day. No it wasn't Friday and I'm NOT superstitious, but a child born on the 13th will eventually have a b-day on Friday the 13th and I never wanted any of my children to have a weird b-day. Dumb I know.

The 13th came and no baby. In fact, I went to my friend's baby shower that day with a gigantic round belly and no hopes of labor starting any time soon. Imagine my surprise when things started moving along quite quickly that evening! Never one to enjoy being late, she made her appearance at 12:22am on March 14th. Perfect!

~Lane is so much fun. Ask any of her siblings. She joins right in with whatever is going on...soccer games, trampoline jumping, tree climbing, whatever.

~She constantly amazes me with the deep and difficult things she is able to understand about God. She takes everything to prayer and has such a sweet heart for the Lord.

~She is quick to apologize.

~This is funny. She is a great etch-a-sketch artist! I've never known anybody who was any good at making anything with an etch-a-sketch, but she is. She can even write cursive on it!

~She is an animal lover through and through. Buzz is coming along quite nicely thanks to her patient and diligent training.

~She is a great sister sitter but refuses to babysit for anyone...even if the child is asleep the whole time. But if you need your dog walked....she's your girl!

~She is careful and rarely leaves things out.

~She likes healthy foods. Yay! Her favorite food is salad.

We had a fun day yesterday with 3 soccer games, the new trampoline, and a movie after dinner.
Her meals...
breakfast - cinnamon rolls
lunch - burgers and fries
dinner - tuna sauce, garlic toast, and salad

We love you Lane!!

Latest Kid Happenings

My loves....

Here's Christian at our last field trip. This picture blows me away. Look past the orange and the funky glasses and he looks so grown up!

~Meg is the yearbook photographer and she has lots of pics of the day. You can see some of the fun of the National Center for Atmospheric Research here. I'm so happy that she has picked up her dad's photography skills. She does some cute edits and is a great help to him on photo shoots.

~I took Joshua to soccer practice. When it was over he jumped into the van out of breath and smiling from ear to ear. He was talking fast about all the fun it was. On the way home he said 2 things that blessed me so much.

"How did I do? Was there something that I need to get better at?"

and

"Thank you for taking me, Mom."

I appreciate his thankful heart and his willingness to seek out correction. I told him that those 2 things are so much more important than anything he will ever do on the soccer field.

~Mally slept in panties last night! Remember when I was just talking about the nighttime potty training issues?

~Lane has picked up the funniest hobby. Etch-a-Sketch! I didn't know that it was even possible to make some of the stuff she has done.

~Zekey can sing "Jesus Loves Me". What a sweet sound from his little mouth.

~Nate has beautiful penmanship at 4yo. He's so careful with his school work and is proud when it turns out even better than he expected.

~LB is sick but on the mend. She's quite stoic and doesn't let it get her down. I like that about her. She rarely complains about any physical setback. (I can't believe we don't have a picture of her new braces!)


~Jes is Jes. Everywhere talking about everything. He got a big bloody nose in soccer practice tonight but seemed proud of it when he got home.

Counting The Cost

I have a tendency to forge ahead without counting the cost beforehand. Today was another example. There was a fun field trip planned with my homeschool group and we were planning to go. I had a plan for dinner and Lane was going to stay home with the napping babies. I thought I had it pretty much mapped out.

Wrong. First of all the morning was rough. Late start, miscellaneous frustrations, sick kid, etc. The field trip wasn't scheduled until noon but I was never able to redeem the lost time of the morning chaos.

The place was in Boulder about an hour away. The tour took longer than I expected. My dinner plans fell through. By the time I got home, Honey was already here and everyone was hungry. Soccer practice tonight and we still needed to move furniture b/c we have new stuff coming in the morning. We ate and it was time to go again.

I feel like I wasted an entire day of my little kids' lives. They were too little to go on the trip. It was too cold to take them to practice. I missed most of their day.

And while it looked like I had a good plan in the beginning, I see now some major things I missed....

What did I give up in order to go on this field trip?
Time with my little kids.
Time to make a good dinner.
Time to clean and work on school.
The margin of rest in the day.

I want to work on being not so short sighted in the future.

How Do You Handle This One?

This is one of my favorite pictures of my boys. Aren't they great?

About boys. If you have more than one you know that one of their favorite pastimes is seeing who can burp the loudest. This carries over to other gas related competition as well. I guess it's all fine and good at home but when you go out and all of a sudden you hear "BLEZZCKK!" it's not so fine anymore. I turn around and see the proud smile (all teeth) on my boy and the surprised (Oh my!) look on everyone else's faces. I tell them no burping (or other gas passing) in public but they either lack the personal awareness of where they are, or they just can't resist...not sure which.

So it seems like the logical thing to do would be banning all such competition at home as well as public but at the same time it seems like I'm denying them a rite of boyhood. What do you think? Renee, Shannon, Janice....those of you with boys.

Misc Happy Things

Here's some random ramblings of the goodness of this week....

I went grocery shopping today in the zippy car. Usually I have a kid or two along with me but since I was leaving straight from lunch with Honey I was alone. It was the best afternoon I've had in a long time. Not that I usually have bad afternoons, but this one turned out to be particularly special.

I loved the time in the car listening to whatever I wanted as loud as I wanted. Windows down or up. It was another beautiful day.

Have you noticed how many things at the grocery store are cheaper these days? It seemed like for a long time every time I would go to the store the prices went up again. Not today! So many things I buy had gone down. Dairy, eggs, nuts....and there was hardly anything that had actually gone up this time. Yay!

A car full...and I do mean FULL of groceries. I unloaded the whole flatbed into the back of the car and thanked God for each thing. I stood back and admired it all. It represents so much....my husband's good job, a house full of children to feed, good health, and most of all God's amazing abundance. I'm so thankful.

As much as I'd love another baby, I sure enjoy not being pregnant. I feel so healthy and strong. I love sleeping through the night. And as I was unloading all those groceries I was remembering how hard shopping was when I had a baby on board.

~~~~

So this is weird and I'm sure it won't come across as I intend it to but I'm gonna try. I went to a homeschool mom's meeting Saturday. It was the first mom's meeting I've been to since I've been here. And although I didn't have much of anything to contribute, just sitting and listening to the other moms made me feel a little closer to them. Some were moms that I hadn't connected with yet and some were brand new homeschool moms. Of course there were those handful that I am close to and I especially enjoyed that. I wouldn't say that it has been particularly hard to make friends here. Everyone has been so welcoming and friendly but I sorta had this feeling before that a lot of these moms had all known each other forever and probably didn't care to get to know me. But at the meeting, I realized it was very similar to the RENEWs at home. Moms are just as busy, have goals for their kids, struggle with similar things, etc. And the really funny thing is that some of my friends here are so much like certain friends in AR. We can talk about the same things, know the same books, etc.

I remember the first time I visited CO when Honey was already here. I was genuinely surprised that the people looked the same as they did at home. Not sure what I expected, but it was a bit of a relief to see that nobody had horns or purple hair or anything like that. The moms on the soccer team were kinda like the EXPRESS moms. People smiled and said "hi"(even though nobody called me "Hon"). Walmart was sorta the same. And there were lots more churches that I expected.

It's all been a revelation of "people are people" wherever you go. That simple meeting where I sat quietly turned out to be a little bit of a bonding time for me.
~~~~~

Meg's fencing mask came in and it fits just right. Fencing is fun and she's all smiles.
First week of soccer practices.

~~~~~

I'm so excited about the new Saturday service our church is starting. I can't wait!

~~~~~

We're adding a hermit crab to the family. Don't tell my boys, they don't know yet. I think they're icky and crawly but my guys will think he's wonderful.

~~~~~

And now for the last happy musing...all kids are in bed, the dishwasher is humming along, and Honey is here to visit with me about the happenings of the day. God is good.

Next Week

The weather is supposed to be gorgeous all next week. So if ya wanna come see me, next week would be just perfect!

I confess that I have a hard time doing school when the weather is so pretty. But the work must get done right? I tend to go through waves of easy and hard weeks of school. We've just been through a hard week...which usually means an easy one will follow with the new adjustments that had to be made. This week should be much better and I look forward to implementing my new schedule.

So tonight is Sunday and I stand on the edge of a new week with new hopes for the days ahead.

~I want to continue my memory work in Philippians. I'm trying to memorize the whole book. I think I need to get it on my iPod so I can hear it as well as read it.

~I want to take advantage of the sunshine by being outside every single day.

~I want to do some painting and spruce up the house. I want to deep clean my bedroom as my plan for that for last week didn't work out. This one is kinda lofty I know, but it doesn't hurt to put it on the list anyway right?

~Babyest has had some character issues that have taken more time. All of a sudden he's decided he's the boss and not me. I want to be diligent to tomato stake him and love on him and not grow weary in doing good.

~There's a couple of sermons I'd really like to listen to. I haven't heard Pastor Dale in like 2 weeks and I'm having withdrawals!

~The Lord has been pressing on me to love others in a more outward way. I'm excited to see just how this looks as I spend time in the Word this week. I hate my selfish nature and I wish I were more aware of the needs of others. I'm asking the Lord to show me those things.

~I have a couple of new recipes to try out for next date night!

How 'bout you? Do you have some hopes for the week ahead?

What Shall I Say?

I woke up this morning to meet with Lord. There was a resounding theme in His words to me today that all centered around the words of my mouth.

"Before a word is on my tongue you know it completely O Lord." Ps 139:4

No one knows me as intimately as my husband, yet not even Honey knows the words of my mouth before I speak them. God says He "is familiar with all my ways". (Ps 139:3) He "perceives my thoughts from afar" (v. 2).

This was encouraging to me this morning. Lately I haven't been very happy with what comes out of my mouth. And because "of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks" (Matt 12:34), it only reveals a heart that is not properly attuned to God.

I find myself struggling with pride the most. With speaking out when I shouldn't. With judging others. I've also learned something about perspective. Unless I can see something from exactly the same viewpoint as someone else, then we're coming from different angles. And from my angle the solution may be clear, until I step into the shoes of another and see it from their side. God rarely allows us to see a situation from every side. And even if I did see every side of it, I will never know all the inner workings of the invisible God who works in the heart of man.

I noticed today that I have posted 851 musings on this blog. 851 things to say? But if you know me very well, you know that that's not so peculiar. I tend to have something to say about everything. And when I think that there will be a day when I "will have to give an account for every careless word I have spoken" (Matt 12:36) I'm sure this blog will be mentioned!

So my prayer today is two-fold.
"See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." Ps 139:24

and

"May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in Your sight, my Rock and my Redeemer." Ps 19:14

Is It Pathetic To Look Forward To Vacuuming?

Not if you have a spiffy new vacuum cleaner!!

Yep, we just got it last night b/c our old one has had it. It was kinda hard to even justify b/c we have so little carpet. However, in our house the hot water heater needs it too and we're about to get new living room furniture. Besides no matter how little carpet you have, any carpet at all will need a vacuum cleaner....as I've noticed since ours has been out of commission for the last week.

So last night Honey and LB headed out to shop for a vacuum. I know this is usually a wifely thing to do but since I've picked out the last few vacuum cleaners and they were all a piece of junk, we decided we better have him do it this time. He has more of an eye for quality where I just usually look at the price.

We plugged it in right away for a test drive and vacuumed the little rug in the music room. Neat b/c you can actually see the dirt swirling around as it sucks it up! Talk about a big show.

Just imagine the fun I'll have today!! I'm thinking it'll be a photo op.

Don't Give Up!

If you're having trouble posting on my book study blog, please try it again...even if only to test. I changed the template and it seems to be working better. Sorry guys!

Storytime Pest

I sat in the back with Babyest on my lap. He loves storytime and tries to participate with all the songs and hand motions. Unfortunately he's not all that steady on his feet if he has to jump or spin around or even clap his hands. I tried to catch him but he kept crashing into the back of the lady in front of us who also had her baby on her lap. She was nice about it at first. But after about the 10th time I could see wasn't smiling anymore. I don't blame her really. Maybe next week we'll sit in the front.

Awesome!

That is the only word to describe our church service this morning. Our church has a spanish congregation that meets there too. La Roca has outgrown our building and they are moving on to a bigger place. This morning we had a combined service to say "Thank you and Good bye".

Both pastors, 2 groups of people, 2 languages all praising God and worshipping together singing the same songs in english and in spanish. 2 worship teams. 2 sets of deacons. 1 united purpose...to exalt the name of our Savior. Oh what a joyful noise!

Honey said it perfectly, "This seems like a little taste of heaven". Oh yes, where every tribe, tongue, and nation will worship together.

La Roca started out with 17 people 10 years ago. The Lord grew them by leaps and bounds and I pray that it is only the beginning. God bless you La Roca and we look forward to worshipping with you eternally!

Today

I got a bit of blogging time, can you tell? BUT, I'm thinking it's not my best use of time since I'm behind on BOTH of my book studies!

~After a good snow last night, the sun came out and dried the street enough for a soccer game. Fun, sun, and vitamin D.

~I already told you what went on in the kitchen so I won't go there.

~The water heater's acting up again. Quite an inconvenience and maybe an expense.

~My baby walked across the floor, picked up a piece of trash, and put it in the trash can!! Without being told. Without someone pointing it out to him. And he doesn't even have his own jurisdictions yet! Perhaps this is a common occurrence in your house. But in our house I am constantly training the children (and myself) to do what needs to be done without being told. And here's this guy, the smallest of our number, setting an example for us all.

~Big date night tomorrow! As in we're leaving the house instead of staying in! A shopping trip with my Honey and I'm not planning on cooking.

I Got Puppy Duty

B/c Laney's playing a game with Dad.

Buzz is not trustworthy with free roam so he still needs to be watched and followed around. I spent a while playing with him and loving on him. He doesn't like me as much as Lane, but that's ok. I still think he's great.

So we have this ugly wall of mirrors in the living room and all of a sudden he jumps up and starts barking at the dog staring at him! Like he's never noticed that before? He stands his ground for while then backs up and sits with me. Chicken dog.

I wish I had a more recent picture so you could see how much he's grown. He's almost as tall as Joey at only 3 months old. He's losing the precious puppy face and starting to look more like a goofy dog.

He finally sleeps through the night (yay for Lane!) and will even put himself to bed....which is where he is now. I guess I'm unofficially off duty.

New Recipes And Other Kitchen Stuff

Well I don't have any to share yet, but hopefully soon. I spent part of nap time going through a couple of magazines and pulling out recipes. I've gotten several free subscriptions to different sorts of magazines. Some are losers. Some are pretty good. Actually my favorite has been a diabetic one. Lots of recipes and nutritional info. Here's some of the new ones to try soon...

applesauce cake
coconut cake
some chicken sausage casserole thing
garden burgers
vegetable barley
chicken taco casserole
pinto bean soup

Don't those sound yummy?

The kitchen was hopping today. The oven was full of bread and banana muffins. I had scalloped potatoes in one crock pot and chicken legs in another. 2 crockpots.....the height of luxury!

The chicken legs were an experiment. They are on sale this week and I wanted to see what I could do with them. I tried the easiest thing I could think of first, which was the crockpot. I threw in the whole 4# frozen bag and turned them on high. After a while, I seasoned them and let them keep going until the meat fell off the bone.

They were a big hit! One bag wasn't enough though so next time I'll have to do 2 in both crock pots.

The left over scalloped potatoes will be tomorrow's potato soup. Again in the crock pot. I boiled the chicken bones to make broth to add to our soup.

We're having a couple of the senior ladies over for lunch after church and one of them made a special request of corn bread. (Isn't that cute?) I'm not too good at making corn bread unless there's a box that says "Jiffy". I guess we'll see.

Blogging Is Therapeutic

The unedited musings of an overly emotional (though I have no idea why!) mom that's staying up way too late....

I don't fit in with this generation.

I think I would've done better about 200 years ago.

I'm ready for the rapture.

I like hymns played on the piano with the words on the overhead....not so much in the hymnal.

I cry everytime I play "I'll Fly Away" on my iPod. They played it at my G'daddy's funeral and I remember him playing it in his church. I wonder if it was his favorite hymn. It's one of mine. I wonder if we can sing it together in heaven one day?

I wish I lived closer to my G'mothers.

I miss my family. And the Wings. And my neighbors. And Mr. Walker. And Mrs. Coffman. And Uncle Robert. And the snow cone place.

I wish I was watching Star Trek.

Isn't it ok to give up on something if it's just not working? To throw up your hands and say, "Well, never mind." To not be a finisher if the thing is not worthy of your time and energy?

God's bounty enables me to share with others. I like that. So his blessing is multiplied as it fills my heart with thanksgiving.

I'm glad there are people who love me even when I'm unlovable.

I'm begging God to teach my kids more than the shallowness this generation has to offer them.

I have the best job in the world and I look forward to jumping into it tomorrow. If I ever go to bed that is.

9 kids are not enough.

Irritations Are A Catalyst For Change

There'll be a lot of changes in our house. Everything from school schedules and work ethics, to words of the mouth and looks on the faces.

I consider irritations as God's prompting for improvement. If things are not going the way they should that is my cue to engage. I need to examine myself first and see where I have allowed things to slip, to seek the Lord's wisdom on what I need to change, and to jump in confidently with both feet.

The weekend is a good time to work and there's work to be done over here. It's been an irritating week.

Today

~First off...A Very Happy Birthday to Drallen! Wish we could've eaten some birthday cake with ya.

~I took 2 of my boys out tonight for a special treat. We went to dinner then out and about running errands. I am convinced that the longer I have these guys the more I like them. I guess they'll just have to stay! It was nice to sit back and hear about life from a 7 and 12 yo.

There is something that happens around the 12/13 mark. I'm wondering how it will play out differently with a boy than with girls. There are times when they leave you rolling your eyes and shaking your head. Times when you wish for the easy days when they were only 4. And then there are the times when they wow you with their sweetness and maturity. I was wow-ed tonight as my son saved a chocolate to take home to his brother and then bought his sister a card b/c she had had a bad day.

~I didn't realize how much I loved our weekly library trip until I decided to skip it. Yesterday we had a rough start so I woke up and decided that we just couldn't spare the time and needed to concentrate on the diligence matter at hand. That announcement was met with sad whimperings all around and it echoed in my own heart. As the morning went on I found we were doing better at keeping on schedule and having good attitudes. I made a last minute decision and we were off. B/c of our better start, we were still able to catch up ok when we got home. It's funny how the early morning can set the tone of the whole day. Story time was good as usual and everyone was happy to come home with new books.

~The new fridge is all set up and chillin' nicely.

~I walked today! That makes 2 days in a row.

~My little boys made a fan and a light bulb with the nifty electric kit they got for Christmas. Who knew those things really worked?

~Laney's looking for Joey throughout the house and calling his name. Finally she finds him lying in the living room but he won't get up and come. She walks over wondering what in the world is wrong with him. Poor dog has his rabies tag stuck in the living room carpet and can't even lift his head!

Today's meals....
Breakfast - we cleaned out the fridge and ate everything that could even remotely be considered a breakfast food.

Lunch - Sandwiches

Dinner - Eldest was busy making pancakes when she suddenly looked up and realized she was following a muffin recipe instead! With a bit of adjusting, she was able to save them. They were a bit sweet and hard to work with but with blueberry syrup, they were just fine.

A Weekend of Bounty!

So much goodness and fullness this weekend.

~Time! I'm savoring these nothing-on-the-calendar weekends as long as I can.

~Another photo shoot and with an adorable 5 week old baby. It felt nice to hold his baby sweetness.

~Company for lunch after church with a new chicken salad recipe.

~Lots of goings on in the kitchen. Lots of food to fix. Lots of people to feed. Lots of dishes to wash. Lots of hands to help.

~A full refrigerator and a full tank of gas.

~Valentines and new coffee cups and little presents from sweet siblings. Pretty cards and pink lemonade.

~We got new appliances and clothes! I know. Cousin Billy is putting in a new kitchen and gave us his nice Kenmore flat top stove, big side-by-side fridge, and dishwasher. We're looking at trying to install them in the garage as a second kitchen. I love my convection oven but there are some times when an extra would come in handy. Along with the appliances we got 2 big bags of clothes. Billy buys *nice* stuff!

~Date night. I burned my other new chicken recipe but it turned out to be salvageable....and even good. Lots of good conversation and family business decisions settled. Star Trek too (!) and Honey even watched it with me b/c he loves me....not b/c he particularly likes it (although I don't know why not).

~My cup overflows and I'm ready for the week.

The Power Of The Written Word

The kids and I went to an Abe Lincoln re-enactment this week. He said something in particular that caught my attention. He was talking about having a few books in his house and when his dad brought home a new book for him, he was awake all night. He wasn't reading though. He was awake b/c of his excitement about what the book had it store for his education...all the new words and ideas and phrases he'd be able to learn.

Isn't that the truth? Books have been one of the biggest shaping influences in my adult life. I love learning from those who have gone before me and enjoy each individual writing style. Books enable me to "meet" thousands of people I would otherwise never have known.

When my daughter was about 7, she was enamored with Dolly Madison. She loved getting the Vision Forum catalog to see if there were any more DM items available. She read the books and longed for the outfit. In one of the VF catalogs, it listed in the description of the book several character qualities of Dolly Madison. Meg slept with this catalog and memorized the words and made it her goal to try to adopt one of these character qualities every day. At that time in her life, Dolly Madison was a wonderful shaping influence.

I've been thinking of my favorite authors and books. My Bible is at the top of the list. I'm ashamed that I don't have more of it memorized than I do. I'm working on memorizing more but Oh, it comes so slowly! I love to look at my G'daddy's old tattered Bibles and see his notes and think about how it changed his life. And while my Bible looks nothing like his, it is starting to come apart. Bad news for me since I'm not so fond of change.

There are others that I love too. Henry Blackaby and Anne Ortlund are 2 of my favorites. I also love the Debi Pearl book (no hissing and throwing tomatoes please!). There are others like Tedd Tripp, Pam McDonald, and Elisabeth Elliot that have been especially helpful over the years. And new "friends" like Elizabeth Krueger and Voddie Baucham.

As I'm typing, my little boy comes in and announces with triumph that he is on chapter THREE!! He's so proud of himself to have read so far in his new library book. He is adopting my love for the written word although our tastes are quite different.

I'm not so crazy about Star Wars.

This Weekend

Another weekend with nothing on the calendar! Life is good.

~We got the frame of our Christmas trampoline up! That thing is HUGE. That's as far as we got b/c we have some digging to do and the ground is still frozen.

~In our 20 years of having dogs I don't think we've bathed a dog as much as we have in the last 2 weeks. I do think it's working though. That and moving the trash cans.

~Saturday was a big kitchen day. We baked 4 loaves of bread, cooked some roasts for BBQ sandwiches, and made potato salad. We made a bunch of deviled eggs and a ton of cookies. I think I messed up every dish in the kitchen.

~2 potlucks in a row! Today at church and tomorrow with the homeschool group. So I've been thinking of what to take that was meatless inexpensive and a crowd pleaser. My daughter came up with the idea of deviled eggs and cookies. Perfect! She also made some of Aunt Barbara's fudge.

~I have my very own laptop! As in I don't have to share with anybody! Did I say that already? Honey came home with 5 that the school was ousting and now they are ours.

~Next week is Valentines day. It's always fun at our house. So we're busy making valentines and planning a fun dinner.

~Date night tonight!
Salmon and fries and salad for us. Pizza for the kids.
Pastor Dale and maybe a movie I recorded.

~We're cancelling Dish tomorrow to save some $$. I'm happy and sad at the same time. We will miss Man vs Wild and Rachel Ray. But I know there are lots of better ways to spend our time/money so it'll be good.

Age Of Opportunity

My other book study is the book Age Of Opportunity. I'm doing this one with some of my homeschool friends in CO. Fantastic book about teenagers.

Here's one of my favorite parts...

Rule of Love or Rule of Desire?

"Our response to others will be shaped by the rule of love, "Do to others what you would have them do to you." Matt. 7:12

or shaped by the rule of desire..

"What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don't they come from the desires that battle within you? You want something but don't get it. You kill and covet, but you can not have what you want. You quarrel and fight." James 4:1-2

Such a simple approach to evaluating our hearts. And as there are many relational issues every day I have been able to use this quite a lot. Coming home from the dentist office I had 2 boys fussing over who would sit in the front seat. Were their responses based on love or desire? Obviously desire since there's apparently an invisible pot of gold hidden under the front seat.

Another creative way to train my children (and myself) with God's Word.

Check out Paul Tripp's book Age Of Opportunity. Great read!

And The Winner Is.....

Toria!! Congratulations!! Meg was wondering what you were going to do with it. Well I have an idea. Most of the days are not marriage relationship specific you could actually put it into practice on whomever you came in contact with on that particular day.

For instance, Day 26 talks about taking personal responsibility instead of pointing fingers and blaming others. You could use this in any relationship with anybody. It's a good book and I'm sure you'll find it useful whether you keep it or give it to your mom. BTW, tell your mom I said "Hi" and I'll mail out your book early next week.

Pray For Me If You Will

It's been a bla couple of days. And when you look at it from the outside it's looks pretty good. The kids are happy, the weather is perfect, the family is healthy. So why am I feeling this way?

I don't know.

Questions rattle in my mind like....Am I really making a difference in the life of anybody?

Am I an utter disappointment to God?

Where's the fruit?

I have been given so much but I give so little. And what I do give, does anybody even want?

Stuff like that.

And while I'm not usually given over to a mood of depression, I'm finding it hard to smile and stay focused. Not grouchiness really, more like confusion. I'm battling with wanting things I can not have and giving over that which is not mine.

I am so distracted with "stuff".

What I Learned Today

~Yogurt starter only lasts 4 times. When you use it the 5th time and take the yogurt out theres all this cottage cheese stuff on top and yellowish juice on the bottom. I usually don't have to worry about this b/c I forget to take out the starter and have to start fresh anyway.

~Kids get sick when you have no juice in the house.

~The bike pump is broken and the tire is flat.

~When you dust your cabinets with too much Pledge it makes a dangerous fun walkway.

~My boys have been taking baths without soap. Or shampoo.

~Just when we're about to cancel our Dish subscription I figure out that Star Trek comes on every single night! Where have I been?

~Never heat up butter and chocolate chips in your favorite plastic measuring cup. 2 holes in the bottom and a sticky microwave.

~I paid $65 to take a stinky dog to the vet when it turns out that he's been in the trash. I know.

~My baby knows another word besides "NOOOOO!!!!" He now says "Thank you" without prompting. Do wonders never cease?

~God cares about potty training.

Super Bowl!

Big event at our house. Everybody's cheering for the Cards. Personally I don't care who wins...I mean it's not like I have a son on the team or anything. But I LOVE the happiness and fun it brings to the house. We have friends coming over the watch the game and eat junk food with us. Football decorations make the house look festive. It's all fun.

Our Super Bowl Menu....

Super Bowl wings. This is our special SB recipe!
Sams wings. Because those are good too.
Velveeta dip
Salsa
Onion dip and lots of chips and crackers
Meg's homemade poppers
Strawberry lemonade
Punch! I love punch.
Cookies

My First Giveaway!

I won an extra copy of The Love Dare from the Fireproof movie and I want to share it with YOU!

Just leave me a comment and I will randomly draw a winner next Friday. If you put my button on your blog, then your name will go in twice. Just let me know on your comment. Scroll down my sidebar for the button.

Good luck!

In Psalms Today

Just wanted to type out some things that were special to me in the Word this morning.

First some gardening verses...
"You crown the year with your bounty, and your carts overflow with abundance." Ps. 66:11

"May the people praise You, O God; may all the peoples praise you. Then the land will yield its harvest, and God, our God will bless us." Ps. 67:5-6

I don't mean to grumble against the cold but I do look forward to a garden this spring!! I so enjoyed it last year and have bigger plans for this year. Now I have some verses I can pray over it in advance and look forward to the warmer temps.

And now my favorite of the day....
"Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens." Ps. 68:19

The same God who has prepared eternity in the "someday" of Heaven is the same God who walks the footsteps of today with me. I don't know the burdens of the day but God does and says He will bear them.

It's a good day already!

What's For Dinner?

Emily called and asked to come over and spend the day with us. She's our only CCU student at church. We had a fun afternoon chatting and playing games.

My son comes upstairs and says, "Emily, Dad wanted me to ask you if you wanted to stay for supper."

My heart stops in my chest. WHAT??? Does Dad know what ya'll are having for supper??

It's date night and the kids were eating Spaghetti-O's. Although I grew up on the stuff (and still love it), I have this stupid idea that *real* moms don't feed their kids Spaghetti-O's. Not only am I feeding it to my own kids but now I'm serving it to company?!

Emily liked the idea. We had 2 family sized cans of ravioli and 3 cans of spaghetti-o's. We mixed them all together and the kids thought they were wonderful.

So did Emily.

Happy Saturday!!

~I woke up earlier today than I have all week. What's up with that??

~Laney came out with Buzz and asked me if I'd take him while she went back to bed. He's still not sleeping through the night. Honey got up too and had fun playing with him and doing a short training session. Kinda fun to have him to ourselves.

~Nothing on the calendar and bright sunshine. Time to take advantage of this while we can. Soccer season will start up soon and that'll be fun too.

~My dinner plans fell through. I thought I had lots of enchilada filling in the freezer. Nope. But I did have some refried beans, taco meat, and rice in the freezer. So I'll mix them all together, make some salsa and tortillas and have burritos. I like my new tortilla press!

~Here's my dinner menu for next week. I had a couple of meals left over from last week as plans changed.

• Chicken salsa pasta
• enchiladas
• roast w/mashed potatoes
• tomato and spinach frittata w/hashbrowns
• pizza
• Superbowl Sunday foods(!)

~I'm working on book study #2. I have 2 going simultaneously. One is done, the other is still in progress.

~Fun in the kitchen with lots of helpers. I had LB, Nate, Mally, and Zekey helping me make bread, chicken broth, potato soup, yogurt, and muffins. That's a lot of people in the kitchen at once! I put Nate, Mally, and Zekey up on stools to watch until I had something for them to do. They put in flour, pushed the button on the grinder, mixed in salt, and things like that. Meanwhile I taught LB how to make broth from chicken bones. Then I turned her loose on the muffins. It was her own recipe that we were adapting to be healthier. After awhile I heard her tell everyone, "OK, I don't need anymore help!!" I guess too many little hands don't make the work light after all!

~Tomorrow is church, 2 of my girls will be out babysitting, and DATE NIGHT!! I'm making some Rachel Ray portabella pizzas. I did something new for my kids for date night. I let LB look through all my coupons and pick out something for everybody. She picked spaghetti-o's. Most of my kids have never had those before so it'll be a fun surprise.

~Any tips to getting a 3yo to stay dry through the night? I'm so paranoid of having a bed wetter. I don't know what age is considered an official bed wetter. I'm thinking of getting her up right before I go to bed for another potty trip. Has anybody ever done this? And do you have to keep it up forever? I'm about to bite the bullet and buy some pull-ups. Sigh.....

I Have Such A Big Mouth!

From the council of my husband and the wisdom of a friend I'm posting an addendum to my previous post.

To the sweet moms at my church who had lunch with me Tuesday, I was NOT talking about you!! It was totally soccer related.

I do not mean to judge others' parenting styles when it comes to homeschooling vs. public school, cloth diapers vs. disposable, time out vs. spanking. In my opinion those are disputable matters. However there are issues that I feel totally violate Scripture and *that's* what I hate.

The Sacrifice Of Thanksgiving

This has been quite a week at my house. I've been shown more in this one week than I have in a year. And every day it has been something else. Something new. Something unexpected than leaves me shaking my head.

Monday started the week with our 5th robbery since we moved here.

Tuesday I got a glimpse into the world of vastly different parenting styles...that I hated by the way.

Wednesday we were spared from a very serious accident.

Thursday we witnessed an altercation on the soccer field in which no one would admit to wrong doing. Horrible attitudes.


Everyday there has been danger for my kids' physical or emotional well being. Anger, tears, and confusion has marked this week. I have felt threatened every day. It's been an eye-opener and has put me in a "mood" as my husband called it. A mood of reflection to be sure. And wondering if some of this falls under the "disputable matters" that Pastor Dale preached on recently. I think not...but that's another post. In any case my kids have had to endure many sermons as I've tried to work this out in my head.

"He who sacrifices thank offerings honors me, and he prepares the way so that I may show him the salvation of God." Ps 50:23

I read this this morning and the Lord prompted me to turn my heart toward thanksgiving instead of myself.

It is easy to give away those things that don't cost us anything but a sacrifice is something different. A sacrifice does cost something and when we are angry, confused, threatened, or intent on blaming others then to offer up thanksgiving is a sacrifice indeed. It is those times that we are hard pressed to show thankfulness.

But ya know what? When I turn my eyes toward Jesus He does show me how to be thankful in a threatening world. Thankful for His mercy and care this week. Thankful for the education and confirmation. Thankful for so much. In whom do I place my trust? Parents doing a horrible job of raising up the next generation or a loving God that will be exalted in the earth?

Look at the return on that sacrifice...honoring God and preparing the way for salvation to be revealed!

In this verse, the word "salvation" is "yesa"...translated to mean "deliverance, protection, implying that a victory of God is at hand".

"Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth. The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress." Ps 46:10-11

Beautiful Savior, Wonderful Counselor, Star Of The Morning, Risen One, my hope is in YOU and I do offer up thanksgiving with all my being. You are the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

Yesterday

Yesterday was quite a day. Full of disappointment, tears, thankfulness, forgiveness, a myriad of emotions really.

My sons were playing with their air soft guns when a kid no older than 14 rode up on his bike, stole them, and sped off. My boys were left speechless, mad, and defenseless.

And I have to ask...where was his dad? And what is his mother doing all day that he is loose to ride the streets and steal from others? How has this young boy been taught that he has no conscience whatsoever? Will they even notice that he comes home with 2 brand new air soft pistols that have somebody else's name on them?

So of course my immediate reaction was fury that my boys were violated that way. Then thankfulness that my eldest son kept his head and did what was right. The rest of the day I had to work through the forgiveness part.

And I do forgive him. We lost 2 guns. Big deal. This boy lost a lot more. Now at 13/14yo he is a thief.

Yesterday morning we started the day with Psalm 37. It speaks of God's blessing on the righteous and destruction on the wicked. I pray that the Lord will have mercy on this kid. And I know that if not for the grace of God it would be my sons in his place.

The Shoe Prayer

"If the Lord delights in a man's way, He makes his steps firm." Ps 37:23

Here is a prayer to pray with your little one when you're tying her shoes. And if you pray it out loud, you'll soon hear it on her lips too!

Please Lord, make her ways delightful to you and make her steps firm. Amen

This Weekend

~A long lazy weekend with nothing on the calendar. Beautiful weather and healthy kids. God is good.

~Eldest is loose! Sorta. She got her driving permit anyway. Now she has to have it for one year, log 40 hours of driving experience + 10 hrs of night driving. I took her driving yesterday for 30 minutes. I thought it would be scary but it was kinda fun. Only 49 1/2 hours to go.

~Honey has another wedding scheduled in the spring!

~G'ma and Paw Paw gave Lane some money to spend on Buzz. We took him to Pets&Stuff, weighed him (23# @ 10 wks), and she got him a new leash and a couple of toys. The owners even threw in 3 free toys as they were trying to get rid of Christmas merchandise. I think he's set. He was quite the attraction and Lane liked showing off her baby.

~Shhhh...my house is quiet. Honey took 7 kids and 2 dogs to the park for 3 hours. Is he wonderful or what? Babyest is sleeping and Bird is playing quietly.

~After Mally's nap I let her make stew and cupcakes with me. She loves the kitchen. After Christmas I bought these star cupcake cups on sale. A perfect time to use them. We just used a plain cake mix and when everyone else comes home I'm going to let them decorate their own star with icing and sprinkles. They will be so surprised.

~During the quiet time I cut out all my coupons and planned out my shopping for the week. I also got the little boys school figured out for next week. They are at the growing stage where things are changing fast. New flash cards every week, different things to consider. I like this time.

~Here's my dinner menu this week + a couple of extras that were requested that I don't wanna forget to make. I stopped menuing breakfast, lunch, and tea as I found that to be overkill. I just try to be careful to think ahead.

• enchiladas with beans and rice
• spaghetti, salad, bread
• turkey w/ stuffing, cranberry sauce, green beans or broccoli
• chicken salsa pasta, salad and bread
• spinach and tomato frittata with hash browns and toast
• Pizza and salad
• Salmon (date night) and onion rings
• brownies
• apple salad
• carrot cake

~Plans next week...2 soccer games, 1 parent meeting, worship practice, and Joey's b-day. Story time, get back in the flylady routine, and cook with COW

~2 new rules at our house. See if you can guess the stressful time of day.

• Cow helps with dinner EVERY SINGLE NIGHT.
• No asking Momma any questions while I'm working on dinner. Not "what are we having?" Or "Who's your favorite character in Winnie The Pooh?" Nothing. You can talk to me and help but don't ask me any question that I have to think about!

~Please consider my book study and hurry and order your book! We have 6 so far and I think it'll be a good discussion.

My New Blog

Come join me in a new online book study. I think it'll be fun to review this very practical book together.

The pace is slow so it will be NOT be overwhelming. And PLEASE don't lurk...just jump right in and join us.

Check it out here.

It's MINE!

Two of my kids were fighting yesterday. It was a misunderstanding involving ownership of a tape measure. It wasn't even a nice tape measure. It was one of those junky free ones you get when you buy mini blinds.

Neither of them could see anything that was their fault but instead blamed the other with the prideful angry countenance that comes from being "completely in the right".

It reminded me of the many fights misunderstandings that I've had with Honey over the last 20 years. It's never my fault. It's always his. And then somehow this annoying thing happens where the Lord slowly softens my heart and I start to see my side of it. My sin is revealed and his isn't quite so offending. It happens every single time. Every Single Time.

In our regular reading was Psalm 32. The theme is forgiveness. Imagine that!
It turned out to be a good reminder for all of us. So we talked about it and slowly I saw the faces of my children change. They apologized to each other and my mother heart smiled.

Boy could I relate! Like my 2 squabblers I tend to cling to my right to my tape measure, willing to risk relationships in an effort to keep what was never mine to begin with. It always seems important at the time but later it turns out that it was all silly and didn't matter at all. As I was listening to my kids explain what happened, I just wanted to roll my eyes and to somehow make them see how dumb this was.

I wonder if God does that with me??

A Perfect Gift

Several years ago my daughter had the opportunity to bless someone with a perfect gift. My cousin was a missionary and was off to a country where believers do not have the same freedoms we enjoy. In addition, it took about 8 months worth of wages to purchase one Bible.

With the help of her siblings, she purchased several Bibles to send with Eddie. He passed them out as the Lord led and reported the joy of those who received them. He even made a video of a couple thanking her personally!

Imagine saving up 8 months wages for something and finally having it in your hand. How careful you would treat it, how precious it would be. Never tossed aside. Never misplaced.

I am thankful to live in a country where I have the freedom to read God's Word without fear. I have the provision to own several Bibles all full of Truth. And if I ever want another, I need look no further than my local dollar store!

This morning I was reminded in Psalm 19 of just how perfect a gift God gave us through His Word. It is a gift that.....

• is perfect, reviving, trustworthy, and able to make wise the simple
• right and gives joy to the heart
• radiant and give light to the eyes
• pure, enduring forever, sure, and altogether righteous
• more precious than gold and sweeter than honey
• warns us and by keeping His laws there is great reward.

We received several nice gifts at Christmas time but none met even one of the attributes listed above. I am thankful of this reminder and pray that I never take the gift of God's Word or the freedom to enjoy it for granted.

Boring Stuff But I'm In The Mood To Blog

Is it really only Tuesday? It feels like we've been schooling for like 2 weeks straight. Apparently the weekend was too short. Or maybe, well probably, I was totally spoiled by being on vacation. And now I just can't seem to keep up. I feel busy and pulled and way too tired. Can I be on vacation again?? To tell the truth if I'd just get up and clean my room I know I'd feel a lot better. My bedroom serves as my headquarters and when it's a mess I feel like everything else is too whether it is or not.

~Life with a puppy is busy. Especially for Lane. She's up in the night with him and scrambles around while he sleeps to get everything done before he wakes up. He's one busy boy and requires constant attention when he's awake. He's keeping her on her toes. He reminds me of a new baby in the house only he's messier if ya know what I mean. But ohhhh is he soft! He's learning a little more every day and seems to have a teachable spirit. He likes to please.

~Lots of snow this week. Sledding and snow ball fights and shoveling and hot chocolate.

~I had a good visit with a friend today and we're planning our next book day. We're doing Age Of Opportunity. I'm considering hosting an online discussion with it too. Anyone interested in joining me?

~We dropped our long distance and other frills to save on our phone bill. Instead we're using Skype. Great idea but I have to be sitting at the computer to actually talk on the phone. I can't walk around and do other stuff. Plus there's no door on that room. And I have to share a computer with everyone else. And, and, and.......I obviously haven't gotten the hang of it yet.

~My g'mother sent me a surprise in the mail. She's such a love!

~My cousin Carri had her baby boy this week. You can see how handsome he is here and pray for them on their long journey. I do wish we lived closer. Praise God for His perfect creation!

~Off to clean my room.

Here He Is In All His Funness

He got home last night about 9:30 to a very excited family.

Look at his pretty eyes!

Happy girl!!

Daddy teaching Buzz the sign for "sit". He is deaf as most white Danes are. He is also part Blue Merle and that's where he gets his pretty coloring.

It's hard to get used to not being able to say his name or tell him "no" and get him to respond. You have to wave your hands to get his attention or stomp your foot so he can feel the vibration. He seems smart though and we're already working on signing with him.

He's all puppy! He's everywhere. He's all over the place. He's tons of fun!

Free Buddies Soap!

Here's another $2/1 coupon for Johnson's products. Buddies soaps are around $.97 so you can get 2 free! Thanks Moneysavingmom for posting this.

Buzz

Check him out! Isn't he a love? And by bedtime tonight he will be home. This is our daughter's late Christmas present.

Buzz is a 9 week old Great Dane puppy that is deaf. We are all looking forward to working with him and welcoming him into our family. My daughter loves animals and hopes to work with them one day. We think Buzz will be the perfect introduction to that.

We're adopting him from the Rescue. Wow, what a big deal that is! References, background checks, home visits...goodness. All that is behind us though and Buzz comes home tonight from a foster family in WY.

Welcome home Buzz.

Nevermind

I'm recalling the Southbeach coupon deal at Walgreens. The coupon is for a box of 6 bars and Walgreens only carries the 5 bar box. Too bad.

The other ones work though, I promise!

Freebies At Walgreens!

Go here and print 6 $2/1 coupons (hit your back button). These are on sale 2/$5 with a $5/$15 rebate. Buy 6, use all 6 coupons. Pay $3 OOP and submit rebate. You just made $2!! Hurry though b/c this coupon deal won't last long. Usually the limit is 2. (Thank you Shellie!)

Reynolds foil is .99. Use the $1/1 MQ from a recent Sunday insert to get it free.

Electrasol power balls are free with a small overage when you use the $2.50/1 MQ from Sunday's paper and submit the $1.50 rebate.

Also Fructis shampoo is .99 after coupon in the Easy Saver book. Add that with the $1/1 MQ from Sunday's paper to get it free!

Oatmeal Pancakes

This is our favorite pancake recipe. It's from The Two Sisters cookbook.

Oatmeal Pancakes

5 cups of milk -I like to use 5 C water + 1 1/3 C powered milk
2 sticks of butter melted
1 C flaxseed mixture (below) or 4 eggs
4 T honey

Mix all wet ingredients.

4 C. flour - good with whole wheat
4 C. oats
2 T baking powder
2 t. baking soda
2 t. salt

Mix dry. Combine. Cook on a griddle as you would any pancake recipe. You can also add blueberries, apples, or chocolate chips. Top with Apple Spice Syrup (below).

Flaxseed Mixture

This mixture works as an excellent substitute for eggs. It binds ingredients together and has worked in everything I've tried. Flaxseed is a rich source of fatty acids, which can assist in lowering high cholesterol. They are also pretty inexpensive. I like using this in baked goods and saving my real eggs for something else.

Grind 1/2 C. flaxseed in blender on high speed for about 1 minute.
Add 2 C. water and continue to blend for 2 minutes.

1/4 C. of flaxseed mixture = 1 egg

You can store this in the frige for 2 days.

Apple Spice Syrup

I think I posted this before but last night I made it with honey and it was delicious! Here's the honey version...

6 C. apple juice (use 1 can of concentrate and add 6 C. water)
1 C. honey
1 t. cinnamon
1/2 t. nutmeg
5 small apples, peeled and chopped small. You can also use pears.
1/2 C. Sure Gel or cornstarch

Combine 5 C. apple juice with the honey, spices,and apples. Bring to a boil and simmer until apples are tender. In a small cup, combine the remaining 1 C. apple juice with the cornstarch stirring to remove lumps. Add this mixture to the boiling apples and stir until thickened. Serve hot.

Happy Birthday #1

"I will praise you, O Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all Your wonders. I will be glad and rejoice in You; I will sing praise to Your name, O Most High." Ps 9:1

Happy Birthday to Eldest! My baby girl is 17.

I look at her and I do praise my God for bringing us so far, for leading us every step, for growing our family the way He has.

He trusted two very young, selfish, and immature people to raise up this beautiful creation and He did not abandon the work. You see, He has grown us far more in these 17 years than He has her. Oh yes, "I will praise you, O Lord, will all my heart!"

The teen years are such a time of change. She has proven that change can be sweet. We are so proud of who she's become and humbled to have been entrusted to her.

I see great things in store for Eldest this year, Lord willing. Learning to drive and taking the ACT just to name a couple.

Today we're spending the morning at the library--her favorite place. No school on birthdays!!

~She's a huge football fan. Huge.

~She loves sword fighting and air soft wars. Weapons are great.

~On the other hand, she is quite pink and pretty and girly. When she was little she wanted to wear dresses every day.

~She's the prefect first born. She invests in her siblings hugely and they all adore her.

~She is a fun participant and ready to jump into the action--except in board games. Or as she calls them "BORED" games.

~She has read her Bible all the way through 5 times! I know!

~She has a solid sense of right and wrong.

~She loves God, her family, writing, music, her iPod, and computer. She's quite the techy...is that the word?

Her meals today:

Breakfast- breakfast burritos

Lunch - burgers

Dinner - tacos

Dessert - cookie and ice cream

Happy Birthday Sweet Girl! WE LOVE YOU!!

Happy New Year!

The first full week of the new year and that means back to school and work. Part of me could stay on vacation forever but the other part of me is eager to get things in order.

Honey asked me if I had New Year's resolutions. I decided against that this year. I've found I don't do as well with long term goals and usually just wind up forgetting what they were in the first place. Besides they are usually *my* plans and maybe not necessarily what the Lord would have me concentrate on.

So this year I've decided to take it one day at a time asking the Lord what He has for me this day. I want to give it up to Him and grow in the areas that are needed.

Today I read Psalm 8. Verse 2 says, "from the lips of children and infants You have ordained praise." I can think of no sweeter sound than that of my children praising their Father. I'm thankful for the opportunity to teach them to love God and how I long for His praise on their lips!

So today I consider that my special goal and I can't think of a better way to start the new year than by paying special attention to the words and hearts of my kids.

We have several things to pray about. We'll read and work on memorizing Psalm 1. I want to smile and have patient words. I want to resist "sending them off to play" but instead keep them close so I can be consistent to discipline them when necessary. And I will pray for wisdom to not waste any of the time He's given me with them.

Thank You Lord for another year. Please guide me through each day of it. Amen.

Christmas Highlights

What a fantastic wonderful super fun Christmas this year! I won't bore you with every detail but I'd love to share the highlights. Here goes....

~We're getting a puppy! (Lord willing) We're still waiting for our application to be approved by the rescue place. Quite a process really.

~A pleasant and unexpected visit from the in-laws.

~A card from my g'mother with her own voice. I've never gotten one of those before. Neat since I don't get to hear her voice often.

~My mom sent us all embroidered blankets with our names on them. She also sent everyone individual cards with notes. That took a long time.

~Lots of new books!!

~A new book mark from Nana.

~A whole bag of M&Ms for Bird. She stashed them in her new lunch box and checks several times a day to make sure they're still there or to show them to whomever walks by.

~iTunes cards and Walmart cards to enjoy all year long. Actually we already put some of the WM cards to use upgrading the air soft guns.

~Did I mention LOTS of air soft guns??

~A way too short but loads of fun Wing visit!!!!! Ahhhh.....

~A few air soft war wounds. LB is a good shot!

And now it's New Year's Eve. We said a tearful goodbye to our Wing family this morning. Spent the day cleaning up and switching the kids' rooms around. Tonight is a Star Wars marathon with the kids. Appropriate since we got new light sabers I guess. And tomorrow the cousins come over for more air soft wars and dinner.

Good thing we got more BBs.

The Wings Are Here!!

So I haven't been blogging much. Too busy having FUN!! After a great Christmas (which I will highlight later) we now have great company to play with.

Lots of.....

air soft wars
food
talking
movies
air soft wars
church
gaming
air soft wars
getting kicked off the playground for air soft wars
zoo
talking
egg nog night again

You get the idea.

The Church Family

Last night at the Christmas program I told everyone that I wouldn't be at church today. You see, Honey and Eldest are shooting a wedding at another church and wrestling Babyest during the service isn't much fun by myself.

Before bed I was reading A God Centered Church by Henry and Melvin Blackaby. He quoted Eph 2:19-22

"Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God's people and members of God's household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit."

As I read this coupled with Blackaby's thoughts, the whole idea of my church being my family hit me anew. We're a family of brothers and sisters in Christ brought together to love each other, help each other, and honor God. Did we really want to stay home and watch a church service on tv when we could be with our family in person?

When we entered the church my pastor said "Welcome!" with surprise in his eyes. Several family members told me how glad they were that I changed my mind. We sat on the front row and enjoyed the singing, the message, and the prayer time. A little fellowship followed with one more chance to say "Merry Christmas!"

Shortly after we got home the phone rang. It was one of our senior ladies calling to tell me how glad she was that I made the extra effort to come. She told me how the children always bless her and said that I was a good mom.

No, Babyest wasn't wonderfully behaved and needed to be taken out twice. The littlest kids were squirmy and didn't want to pay attention. But the inconvenience was more than made up for by the love we received. Look what we would've missed if we'd stayed home.

I will close with some Blackaby thoughts....

"God has called us to join the family gathering and enjoy the benefits of that relationship. In God's family we will receive strength, encouragement, and much-needed fellowship. We will grow in wisdom and maturity as we benefit from those who have walked with God for many years. We will find security in the family's watch care of our life and respond to its comfort and accountability. More than anything else, God our Father manifests Hie presence in special ways when two or three are gathered together."

A Good Idea

I felt like I had hit a road block with Bird. She's such a helper and wants to do everything Momma does. I had exhausted every idea I had on how to help in the kitchen. Sometimes there's nothing to stir, nothing to open, nothing to take to the trash can....just big jobs that she can't do.

I was left with either having her sit on a stool and watch or shooing her out of the kitchen. I prayed about this b/c I don't like either of those options and felt like there was something I was missing.

It wasn't long before the Lord showed me something new. Actually 2 somethings! The first being place mats. She could set out place mats all by herself. She liked this new job and enjoyed getting just the right place mat that she thought each person would like best. Of course I had to explain to the boys that it was HER special job and they could not do it. They have their own.

Next was getting water for everyone. By sitting up high on a stool she can reach the water on the fridge and the cups on the counter. She fills up each one then has to climb down and carry each one to each place. (That takes a while!)

She can also unload the silverware from the dishwasher if someone will carry it to the counter for her. Yes, she puts the forks in the spoon place and most of them are upside down but she's proud to have such an important job. The boys are glad to have another dishwasher unloader in the house!

The Lord is full of good ideas and our Bird is happy with her new responsibilities.

John 17:23

"May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that You sent Me and have loved them even as You have loved Me." John 17:23

This is a prayer that Jesus prayed for future believers. I've been praying this for my church. That b/c of our peace and love for each other the world may know of God's perfect love.

I've been asking the Lord to show us how to love one another to that extent. If our own small bodies of believers can achieve unity within ourselves then we will be a light to a world that suffers from a self-serving, me first mindset that is begging for love.

How can we work toward this kind of relationship in our church? God gives us practical steps for holy living in Col 3. Please take a minute to read it and pray for your own family of believers.

Let The Fun Begin!

Honey is done! Off work until 2009! Ahhhh......

Time to finish up the shopping, practice for Christmas program, some soccer, Christmas program, photograph a wedding, a family photo shoot, help with a mystery dinner, Christmas, and the Wings!

I love this time of year!!

Come And Behold Him

Introducing...my new book!

I've been pondering the propriety of our various Christmas traditions wondering if I'm caving to commercialism in the fun of it all. I took it to the Lord in prayer.

The very next day I was browsing the shelves of the used book store at the public library and my eyes fell upon this....

Perhaps I am premature to recommend it since I'm only on pg 31 but so far I have enjoyed every page. It is not divided into chapters but more like short readings....minus the overuse of poetry thank you very much. The first reading deals with decorating our homes. Here's a short excerpt....

"If God commissioned angels to roll back the night and fill it with blazing light, if God provided a mighty celestial choir to serenade a few startled shepherds, if God graced the heavens with a miracle star, if God went to all this trouble to open our eyes to His entry into our world, then we needn't apologize for festooning our home with a few seasonal reminders!"

He encourages us to open our homes up to our neighbors saying, "It is a witness to our neighbors when they see a believer actually happy about life!"

Jack Hayford has a style that is neither ultra sensitive nor overly intellectual. There's a "smile" to his writing that makes you feel like you're enjoying a visit with a friendly neighbor. There is an air of seriousness mixed with fun as he uses Scripture, song lyrics, and personal examples to show us practical ways to Come And Behold Him.

What God Is Like (Guest Post from my 7 year old)

Dictated to Momma from The Adventure Bible.

Psalm 38 pictures God as an archer. His arrows wound a person who does wrong. But God hurts us only to help us. When we feel bad about doing wrong we confess our sins. Then God will forgive and heal us.

Psalm 43 :2 says that God is like a stronghold. A stronghold was a walled city or fort where people went when an enemy army had invaded the land. To say that God is a fortress means that He will keep us safe in times of danger.

Psalm 61:3 says that God is like a strong tower. Strong towers were built inside walled cities. Even if the walls were broken down the people of the city would be safe inside the tower.

Psalm 71:3 says that God is a rock of refuge. Some cities and forts were built on high rocky mountain cliffs. It was extremely difficult for enemies to attack such cities. To call God a rock of refuge means that we are safest when we trust in Him.

Psalm 89 says that God is Lord God Almighty. He is the One who created the whole universe and stars, the sun, the earth, and everything on it, including us. Such a powerful God is surely able to take care of us.

Psalm 103:13 says that God is like a compassionate father. This means that God loves us very much. He made us and He knows us better than we know ourselves. He will not stay angry when we sin, but He will forgive us.

Psalm 119:97 says that God is the lawgiver. He gives us rules to live by, to keep us from doing wrong. God is good, and He shows us how to do good. The writer of this psalm loved God's rules, thought about them "all day long," and obeyed them.

Out With The Old

The Lord has been working on me in the area of letting go. I never knew this about myself, but I like things to be the same and not change. Oh, I like change in things that don't matter...like living room furniture or the dinner menu. But not so much in the things that hit me personally.

When those things do change against my will then I tend to rebel either inwardly or outwardly. And even though I might not say them out loud, the phrases "it's not fair" or "that's not right" take a prominent place in my thoughts. My character is revealed by my reaction to the unplanned.

And while I try to surrender I find myself still working hard to order my life in the way that seems best to me. I want to avoid these unnecessary and uncomfortable changes. I'm good at justifying my own "needs" to skirt around an unreasonable rule or others' advice being sure that they really don't understand my unique situation.

In 1 & 2 Samuel there are so many different situations that make me want to rise up and cry "INJUSTICE!!" The story of Michal, David's first wife, is a perfect example. I feel sorry for her. She was taken away from a husband who obviously loved her to be just one of many in the king's palace. And what about her husband who followed behind weeping??

But the thing that really made me sit up and take notice was Michal's reaction. When she saw David dancing in the street she despised him in her heart. No doubt still bitter from what she had lost. Did she have a "right" to be? Doesn't it seem natural? Not to God. All the days of her life she was cursed to have no children.

So what would've been right? To forgive. To surrender. To be content in all circumstances. To love her husband David. I'm guessing that a smile wouldn't have hurt either.

It has made me reflect on this feeling of fairness and justification. Of not willing to give of myself unless it is perfectly comfortable. Of manipulating circumstances to please myself. And I think, "how is that Christ like?" How am I following my Savior that willingly gave up everything for me?

Lord help me not to be a Michal. Help me to surrender fully from my heart and hold nothing back. Help me to embrace every new thing and willingly give of all that I am. Amen.

Today

~This has been such a fun Christmas season so far. We haven't done anything different than previous years so I don't know why this one seems funner. I love the dark nights, the snow, the bee-youtiful Christmas tree, the music, and all the prep.

~I was lying in bed thinking about this this morning and wondering if it was ok that some of the things that I'm so crazy about have nothing to do with Jesus. There's egg nog night, the gingerbread house, stuff like that. I know that some families do every sort of Christmas thing around Jesus. They have Spiritual meaning behind every gift, all the ornaments are Spiritual. Every tradition has a lesson or Scripture involved. I like that idea but it's not us. So I was wondering if that means that we sorta have a foot in both worlds or are sitting on the fence. I don't know.

~I ordered more Christmas pix. I just couldn't bring myself to shorten my list much. PLUS I have new friends in CO!

~We are having the best time making Christmas crafts this year. The kids' stuff is so cute and I know the g'mas are going to love it! Today I did some canning for gifts. Those little jars are so satisfying. I love to can.

~Speaking of canning, I found some jars at Savers! They put them together in bags and sold them as a set. Not my favorite idea since I only wanted some of the jars and not all. They were still cheaper than buying them new.

~Today we did our gingerbread house. It's one of those kits with the pre-made gingerbread and all the icing and sprinkles and candies. It is always sure to bring out lots of laughs as the walls cave in or the baby eats the chimney. I think this one is the best so far.

~My daughter asked, "Why is a gingerbread house a Christmas thing? Seems like it should be a Hansel and Gretal thing." Hmmm...I don't know. I asked Honey as he doesn't know either. Anyone know why they sell gingerbread houses at Christmas time?

~When my older kids were little we loved The Beginner's Bible. You know the old one with the white cover? We read it until it fell apart and we finally had to throw it away. Now they have a new version which is just as good but I'm a bit partial to the old illustrations. In the last few weeks I've found 2 of the older ones in great shape at Savers for $.69 each. They are both for gifts for our little bittys. I'm happy to still get to share this with my younger kids.

~I had an old iTunes card and bought the new Bebo Norman Christmas cd. It won't be a favorite but it's ok. We need some new Christmas music. Any suggestions?

~I had this big piece of meat in my freezer and I didn't know what it was. It had obviously been in there since before my parents brought us meat b/c there was ice all over it. I thawed it out and stuck it in the crockpot all day. It was actually good....if roast could ever be called "good" that is.

~I planned creamed spinach as a side dish for tonight. My daughter was helping me and instead of pulling out spinach, she got broccoli from the freezer. Not paying attention (they're both green, right?) I thawed it out in the microwave and didn't notice until the recipe was well on it's way. We substituted the broccoli for the spinach and it was just as good.

~I wish I could visit my family for Christmas. BUT I'm praying for a way to visit in the spring. My boys (and a couple of girls) would love some farm time. I want some time w/my moms and dads. Maybe a trip to AR too?? I guess we'll see.....

Homemade Egg Nog

This is not as rich and thick as the store bought stuff but tasty just the same. (Cheaper too!) Everyone likes it at my house although my son did request that we buy the real stuff for Egg Nog Night. Can you believe we have a Christmas tradition centered around egg nog?

Eggless Egg Nog

8 C whole milk
1 small box of vanilla pudding
1 t. nutmeg
2 t. vanilla
1 C cream
1/4 C. sugar

Mix pudding w/some of the milk w/a wire whisk. Add everything else and mix well. Let stand in the fridge overnight. It will thicken as it sets and will need to be stirred.

Enjoy!

Christmas Shopping

Honey and I went Christmas shopping last night. Shopping for the kids is one of my favorite Christmas traditions. We went with our list in hand (after a trip back to the parking lot cause I forgot it) and hit the store.

After we got home we continued our shopping on line. Isn't internet shopping great?! Remember the days of catalog shopping...."allow 4-6 weeks for delivery" ? I can't wait to see the UPS truck in front of my house.

This is one of the first years that I had the forethought to save for it all year long. Whenever we got our monthly expense check or any rebate checks or whatever other "bonus" checks I cashed them and saved them. It proved to be helpful last night.

Shopping the grocery sales will help for Christmas foods I hope. I bought 4 turkeys during the Thanksgiving sales and I hope they go on sale again. I wish I had bought about 5 more. I've also been stocking up on my baking supplies. (Thank you again for hanging cabinets in the garage Honey)

This year I've decided to save some money on our Christmas cards. I usually send out lots of cards/pictures and it turns out a little pricey. This year I think I'm only going to send to close friends and family and those that I will get to personally hand deliver. (But if you want a Christmas picture then let me know and I'll send you one too! ) This idea might not pan out since I love sending out pictures...and getting them! Wanna sneak peek?

Look here !

Our Outa Hand Junk Drawer

The junk drawer was getting unmanageable. It was so bad that you had to rearrange stuff before you could shut it. What's in there anyway? Junk of course.

I didn't have time to pull the whole thing apart so I just spent a couple of minutes on it. I pulled out countless pencils and crayons, a golf ball, 5 screwdrivers, dead batteries, paint sticks, b-day candles, some sort of clippy thing, ....shall I go on? Because I can. It was (and still sorta is) a mess.

Does everybody have a junk drawer? I don't ever remember not having one. And when we were moving we actually had a box labeled "junk drawer stuff". Seems like you wouldn't want to move junk with you but what else do you do with it?

I thought about taking before and after pix. Now I'm glad I didn't b/c it's hard to tell the difference between the two. At least you can shut it now though.

Today

~Monday Night Football means I have the computer to myself and I'm a little bit blog happy. Can you tell?

~We got a new table for the music room! I love it. Out with the swirvy recliners that never stay put. This is much more practical and gives not only more seating, but also another school table.

~Do you know what I love? My husband that comes home all noisy like. It's like the real fun begins when he steps through the door. Some sorta game in the cul-de-sac cause the snow's almost gone. Then loud beautiful worship music with drums and guitar while I'm finishing up dinner. And while there are times when I wanna clap both hands over my ears and run for cover, there are other times when the noise of the house is just lovely.

~My daughter that doesn't like to cook so much made a delicious dinner. I enjoyed working with her in the kitchen.

~Our new school table is handy. It's funny how just something as simple as a new place to work necessitates a slight change in schedule. We used to do preschool at the coffee table and now I need to move to 3 places instead of 2. My babies can't crowd up to the new table b/c it's too high, my big kids use the dining room table, my middles are at the new one. Anyway I like it.

~I have a ridiculously messy laundry room. Snow clothes will do that. And Christmas stuff. And diapers. And, well laundry.

~We took a cabinet down in the laundry room and behind it was wallpaper that says "I HATE LAUNDRY ROOMS". I took offense to this. If you've ever lived without a laundry room, you will certainly come to love it when you do get one. That ugly stuff has got to go. I am thankful for my laundry room.

~My new bread machine doesn't work after all. I give up. It was really too small to help me out much anyway. But if I ever find a replacement pan for my Zo I will be so happy. THAT is a good machine.

~I'm not communicating very well with my teenagers. Things I think they should've understood, they don't. I gotta work on my communication skills.

~December is a good time to pray over things the Lord would have me change.

~25 more days until our Wing visit!

Wanna See Some New Pix?

All of us at Mally's party except photographer Dad. He made a comment about how in a big family every single b-day is a party. It's so fun.

Mally got a lot of new food for her kitchen set. It was irresistable to even the big kids. They went into Babyest's room and had a little party of their own with lots of plastic pie. I love this picture b/c they are all so happy and enjoying each other. There is no barrier of age difference.

LB and Babyest. Yes, it's a girly pink snow suit. That's all we had. I'm sure he'll be scarred for life. Never fear, now he has a blue one thanks to my local thrift store.

Excited kids loving the first snow fall!

Wrestling with Daddy.

Isn't he beautiful? I mean REALLY!! I just love his dark brown eyes and perfect smile.

He's such a love.

From Elisabeth Elliot..

My friend Lisa sent me a card with this quote. I've read it over and over again. It was so timely for my circumstances and mood. It is from her book Keep A Quiet Heart.

"The choice is ours. It depends on our willingness to see everything in God, receive all from His hand, accept with gratitude just the portion and the cup He offers. Shall I charge Him with a mistake in His measurements or with misjudging the sphere in which I can best learn to trust Him? Has He misplaced me? Is He ignorant of things or people which, in my view, hinder doing His will?...The secret is Christ in me, not me in a different set of circumstances."

Vegetable Dip

This is an easy versatile recipe that goes with chips, crackers, or veggies. I make this for tea sometimes.

1 brick of cream cheese softened
2 T sour cream
2 garlic cloves pressed

Mix these together then add whatever combination of...

minced onion
chopped broccoli
chopped olives
tomatoes
sun dried tomatoes
shredded carrots
cucumber.....you get the idea.

Mix that together then add s/p to taste. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.

Today I made this with tomatoes, black olives, onion, and broccoli and we had it with crackers and Gollum juice. Yum!

Today's Meals..
breakfast - oatmeal muffins
lunch - chicken soup
dinner - tuna sauce w/garlic bread, green beans, salad
tea - veggie dip and crackers