Posted in Family Life

I've been accused that my life seems perfect, or that I seem to be at peace with where I am in motherhood and life.  I'm at peace, but only because my peace comes through Jesus.  I know I'm where I am supposed to be, but it isn't always easy.  But, I laugh....

Here's an example!

1)  Let me preface this by saying that I have a dear and precious husband whom I don't try to "dump" all my woes on, but who listens to me intently and provides a comforting word when I need one.  He corrects me when I am wrong, but most of all he just listens to me.  I feel so much better after a good talk with my very bestest friend, My Man!

2)  I laugh at myself - a lot!!!

Yesterday we found out that we have a leak somewhere on our property and it was spinning our water meter out of control.  They shut the water off so the problem was temporarily fixed.  Well, as you are aware, life with 4 kiddos can't move forward too much with no water - there are dishes, laundry, baths, teeth that need to be brushed, and toilets to flush!  So, last night, when we were on our way home from church after a close call with a tornado, we stopped to get gallons of water to help with the crisis.

This morning when Big P got up (remember he works nights) he started to work on the problem, but the major amounts of lightening and continuous rain seems to be a "leak fixin' party pooper" and he decided to try another home improvement project - our bathroom tub faucet needed replacing.  He did that because the water was already off.

So, he went to work on that only to find out that the faucet he bought won't fit our faucet.  We live in a mobile home and sometimes things are quirky with fixtures.  No problem, we had a nice afternoon getting things done around the house.

Then I had a "mama meltdown" when I started whining that I don't seem to be able to get on a good schedule and that the physical house seems to be out of control.  He reassured me that with time, we would get back on a schedule and not to sweat it.  The problem was that I seem to be "putting fires out" all day and the important gets skipped by the urgent.  You know the drill, right?!  (This is where you shake your head up and down in agreement).

Well, then the kids decided to go outside and have fun in the HUGE puddles in the front yard.  We have almost an acre that is completely under water right now to give you an idea of the puddles.  They were messy - dirty, gross, caked on mud, grass, having fun kind of gross.  But, they forgot one VERY important thing - the water was off!!!!  C.11.B. has some sort of funky thing happen when he gets cold - he breaks out in hives - no joke!!  He was breaking out.  B.3.B. was freezing and P.almost8.G. was just dirty and fine!

Big P went to the front to turn the water back on and I proceeded to hose them down with the water hose.  All the while I'm thinking there is NO water pressure.  So, we go to plan B.  Strip them down outside and send them inside (remember we live in the country with the closest neighbor completely out of sight).  When we were inside trying to get the water on in the shower, there was no water pressure and no hot water.

That's when Big P started running through the house yelling "oh my gosh, the water, oh my gosh, the water".  I didn't know what he was talking about and then I saw it - the STANDING AND RUSHING WATER coming out of my bedroom - from my bathroom.

He had accidentally left the faucet thingys wide open and water was shooting out at about 20 gallons a minute - no joke!!!

And after we started grabbing towels and realized there was no point in that, we stood there and laughed!!!!  Just cracked up!!!!!!

No one was hurt, everyone was getting washed off, and warming up under blankets, and we had a HUGE mess on our hands - but it was so hilarious!!

And that's when it occurred to me why people might think that I have this perfect life - I try not to ponder on the bad.  I try to move forward from the bad.  I forgive a lot and forget more.  I forgive myself a lot, too.  I laugh at myself a lot.  I laugh at my situations a lot.  I know that God has me here and I'm learning so much from being right where I'm at right now.  He has given me a teachable spirit lately, and I'm taking full advantage to learn and grow from everything possible!  I also have a great husband who can laugh right along with me and who listens to me cry when I need to do that, too.

Do you remember Pollyanna????  Yes, we had a major water spill in our bathroom, but my bathroom floor is REALLY clean now!!!

Oh, and I bargained myself into a special ice cream treat in a bit!! heehee!!

Posted in Family Life

I did it!  I cut his hair!!  My almost 1 year old - L.11mo.B.  He's such a sweetie, but he was looking kinda girly.  Even when his hair was shorter, everyone called him a girl, because he had such a sweet little pretty face.

But...he's a boy and I wanted everyone to know it.  So, as if I don't have enough on my plate, I decide to become a barber and I had the barber shop quartet (actually, it was a triplet) running around the house keeping each other busy, singing, running, and playing!  Quite interesting, actually!!

Oh, and this will be such a surprise to Daddy!!  Surprise!!!

So, here is a before and after of my littlest boy!



And After:

Posted in Family Life

Big P and C.10.B. left this morning for a guy's weekend away.  C.10.B is about to be C.11.B! LOL  He'll be 11 on Tuesday!  I can hardly believe it!!  He has grown up so fast, right before my eyes!!  I remember when he turned 6 and Big P and I talked about how 1/3 of the "formative" years that we have with him were gone.  It really made us evaluate what we were doing as parents and take captive that time and the way that we parented our children.

So, this weekend they are having a Dad/Son weekend away.  They are camping at a state park.  It's so cold here right now, but they are in a cabin type of thing.  Their plans this weekend are to geocache, hike, talk, cook-out, and start the Bible study - Plants Grown Up.

We proposed this idea after I spoke to a friend of mine about how they do their children's birthdays.  They take a camping trip.  We met the Phillips' while we were on vacation in October.  They looked like homeschoolers and since C.10.B. was getting along so well with their 6 yo, they knew we were homeschoolers, too! LOL  Isn't that funny!  So, we talked to C.10.B. about doing this in lieu of a birthday party, promising that we would invite friends over to spend the night more often than we have in the past, so that he didn't think that was just a birthday thing.  He was psyched!!  Check out his excitement on his recent blog post here. 

I miss them both terribly!!!!

To top it off, my 2nd son, B.2.5.B. is at Grandmother and Grandfather's house (B.2.B. affectionately calls Grandfather - Potty - his 'er's come out as "y's" and he just can't get the Grand part out yet).  It's sooo cute!!!

So, I have an empty house with only 3 of us here!  Wow, you look forward to the time when you can have a little break and then your heart literally aches when they aren't all here!!  It's the strangest feeling and I can only attribute it to being a mother - the BEST profession in the world!!!

And for P.7.G.'s birthday we are going to San Antonio.  We are combining it with a family trip.  We were planning to go to San Antonio in May, as my Mother and Father-in-love gave us points to their timeshare for our anniversary.  Being the "family" kind of  family that we are, we wanted to take the kids! LOL  We can still have our time - it's a 2 room suite!   We'll end the "vacation" with her camping trip by going to one our favorite RV resorts (we usually never go to resorts - so that it is funny that I would even think of such a thing) that is down the road about 1 mile from Sea World!  You can check out her excitement on her recent blog here.

I hope your weekend is super blessed!!!  I'll be posting about some of my recent discoveries later in the weekend! :)

Posted in Family Life

Anyone who knows me knows what a computer nut I am.  I'd literally be lost without this thing because I use it for so much in order to better manage our home and activities.  The calendar is on here, the phone book, any information for various activities, my Bible study, friends, relatives, encouragement, and everything in between!  So, it would seem that it would be easy to get caught up in being on here too much and this is where I was.

I knew that I was on the computer too much and yet I didn't know how to stop it.  It's like an addiction!  Can I hear an "Amen!"?

And so, when I was talking to my best girlfriend, b, about this, she, too, had been made very aware of her need to stay away from the computer more.  She told me her plan and it helped me to formulate mine.  It may encourage you as well.

My BIGGEST excuse for getting on the computer was that I needed to handle something.  And this would happen several times a day as things popped into my mind that needed to be done - email this person, check on this date, and so it continued. It was BAD!!!  When the kids came looking for me, they walked in the direction of the computer!!  No joke - even my 10 month old! LOL

I tend to get sidetracked anyway and I would get on the computer for one thing and end up doing 100 other things and never get to the one thing that I needed to do!!!

I've now put a piece of paper on a clipboard and it is on my desk.  When I think of something that I need to do on the computer, I write it down.  That way I can check it off at the end of the night when I get back on the computer and I don't have to try to store it in my brain, only to forget it and remember it at 3am!!

I want to be the best Mama for my kiddos, and sitting on here all day isn't going to get that accomplished.  And so, b, and I talked out the plan and she said something about what we NEED to be doing is taking care of our kids.  So, I took that and ran with it and created a poster for us to post over our monitors.

I'd be SILLY to say that I could get rid of the computer completely, because it is a great tool when used correctly.

The Bible says "If your hand causes you to sin, cut if off.  It is better for you to enter life maimed than with two hands to go into hell, where the fire never goes out.  And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off.  It is better for you to enter life crippled than to have two feet and be thrown into hell.  And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out.  It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell...."  Mark 9:43-47

And so I say, if the computer makes you stumble or causes you to sin - TURN IT OFF!!  That's right!  We are now turning off our computers throughout the day because even with our little signs up, it is too easy at this point to go to them.

Yesterday I was having a rather stressful day.  I don't think it was anymore stressful than the others as it was just random things going on and I was having to deal with them.  What I realized was the in the past, I have run to the computer in my frustration instead of to Jesus!!!  I was replacing Jesus with the computer!  What's up with that?????

The plan is this:  I get up and do my Bible study online in the morning, then I turn it off!  I pull my little sign down (quote at bottom) and move on with my day.  After dinner, when the kids are busy with another activity, showers, etc. then I can get back on here.  The computer stays off during the day.

The kids have had to turn it on to use it for Spanish, blogging, and Typing - all part of school, but they turn it off afterward.

I realized that my day is so full with the kids and just basics of keeping a house - HOW IN THE WORLD DID I SPEND SO MUCH TIME ON HERE????

The quote on the computer is made into a little poster type thing.  I found a picture of a potter working with clay to put on it because it fit perfectly.  And this is the quote that b and I came up with.  Use it if you'd like - we hope that it blesses someone else!!

The ONLY thing that I must handle is my children… to love, nurture, and disciple them!  Nothing else needs my attention more than this!  Everything else CAN wait!

Posted in Family Life

Purity Seekers laundry idea has worked for me for well over a week now!!  I cleared out much of the excess clothing in our house.  I put some away, thew some away, and gave some away.  Some would have been an insult to give away! LOL

The kids have 2 daily outfits, several nice outfits in the closet, and many pairs of socks and underwear.

I've been able to manage keeping up with laundry.  It has been amazing!

Tonight I got caught up on hanging up the clothes.  There is some that just needs to be put away, but everyone is asleep and I'm not a glutton for punishment.  It has taken a lot to get B.2.B. to sleep tonight after a pretty rough day at the doctor's office with more ear infections.

Anyway, just had to tell you all of the success that I am having with this system!!  Praise God - something is working!!!

I'm also realizing for the first time what really a full-time job mothering is.  There are many things that I would love to do - and I just dont' have the time to do them all.  Mothering, training up my children, keeping house, and loving my husband keeps me so busy.  I've stopped my bread-baking, jam business because I know that I just can't manage it all.  God has called me to this place and I want to be about His business - not my own!!

There is still much to be done to get my home in physical order, but we are on our way with the new laundry system - thank you B(PuritySeekers)!!

Posted in Family Life

I have been totally inspired by a blogger's post.  This is a AR (Above Rubies) lady and I was browsing through the recent posts on AR, when I saw the subject "my Laundry Revelation".  Ha, I knew I had to read it.

See, I struggle with laundry - BAD!!  It piles up so fast.  There are 6 of us, and we go through a lot of laundry.

I'm going to give this a shot with a couple of modifications.  Of course, I'll run this all by DH when he gets up.  We'll see what he thinks.  As long as the stuff gets done, I'm sure he'd be a happy camper! LOL

Here are my mods:

3 outfits each
2 jammies each
6 pairs socks
6 underwear
3 nice outfits (only to be worn on Sundays or special occasions)
1 extra pair of pants


The real problem is at Christmas, when everyone starts getting new clothes.  I wish someone would give me new clothes! LOL  This just may revolutionize my laundry piles - they are ever growing!!  We may even be able to get back to our cloth diapers, as I so desire!  The $80 a month in diapers is killing me!!  We are potty training B.2.5.B.  So that just leaves one in diapers.

Anyway - check out the great post here: http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/purityseekers/250732/

Posted in Family Life

I seem to be struggling with order in the home a lot lately!  And not just in the area of physical order, but spiritual order with my children.

I'll try to make this brief, I'm spent for the day!

I know what God has called me to do - be a wife, a mother, and a teacher.  I'm not talking homeschooling here, even though I know He has called me to that as well - I'm talking teaching.  Isn't it interesting how we homeschool to teach our children the Word (well many of us do, at least) and how it seems that academics can easily become more of a priority than just living for and loving Jesus!

These are verses that most of us are all aware of and yet I don't think I've really ever read them as I do tonight.  Taking them in deeply and letting them penetrate my heart, change me, and teach me.

Deuteronomy 6:5-9

Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.  These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts.  Impress them on your children.  Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.  Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads.  Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.

Wow - those are powerful words.  Not only is God telling me to love the Lord with all of my heart, but I am responsible for teaching my children the same!

I haven't been doing that as I should have been.  Life (and everything involved in life) has become more important than teaching my children to love the Lord.  How sad!  The state of our home is horrible right now - or I should say that it was - until I had a wake-up call.

My children are well behaved outside of our home and they are even semi-well behaved inside of our home.  Their actions don't grieve me nearly as much as the state of their souls right now.  And it really all comes down to one fact - I haven't been the kind of Mama that God has called me to be.  Their precious little hearts need my attention and my discipleship, more so when Big P is away at work.

I've been frustrated lately because of Big P's hours at work.  They are rough!  Yes, he has a 4 day workweek.  It helps a lot with gas because he drives soooo far to work, and that is one less day that he doesn't have to drive.  It helps financially, because he also works evenings and gets a little extra for that.  But, it has become a thorn in my side in the last week.  It just seems like we are always rushing.  Rushing to get lunch ready and eaten so that he can get to work on time.  Rushing for this and rushing for that.  Our evenings used to be spent as family time, but with him home during the day, our days are supposed to be our family time and we are always busy!  He drives a total of 3 hours a day to and from work.  That's 12 hours per week on the road.  Man, I'd do quite a few things for an extra 12 hours - or even 6 hours - extra with my husband every week!!

So, all this time I've been trying to blame the state of our home and lack of family time on his job.  But, that isn't the problem at all.  Do I wish things were different?  Yes, I'd be lying if I said otherwise.  But, I'm extremely thankful that my husband has a job and longs to support his family without being a workaholic.  He is a trooper!  He's not a workaholic.  He does his job well and doesn't have to be babysat like many others he works with - but he longs to be with us more than he does them! :)  I'm so thankful for that!

So, it really comes down to me.  And yet, I know that there are things physically that I can do and should do to make the atmosphere in our home better and I'm so spent at the end of the day, that doing those things seems almost impossible.

• I really want to get some laundry done tonight.
• I really want to spend some time working on our chore schedule - which I know would be a major benefit in our home and relieve much of the stress of no one knowing what they need to do and me having to think for them.
• I really have some dishes that need to be washed.
• I am really eager to start a new Bible study.
• I have a week's worth of papers that need to be graded.

And yet, I don't "feel" like doing any of that.  And so, this is when it all comes back down to obedience - which is what I've been trying to teach my children.  There are going to be times when we don't "feel" like doing something, but we just do it!

Tonight I called Big P about my desperation.  He agrees and we both realize that we need to spend some time in prayer and talking and making a "plan" on what steps need to be taken in our home to really teach our children about loving the Lord.  And yet, with his schedule, getting some uninterrupted one-on-one time with Big P is pretty close to impossible.  And so, I'm thankful for the phone company (of course, he works for the phone company! LOL)

I went in the boy's room to tuck them in and C.10.B. asked if I was mad at him.  I'm not mad at him, I'm grieved by the state of his heart.  And it just crushes me to know that Jesus hurts so much more than that when I dishonor Him.  I put Big P on the speaker phone and we talked to C.10.B. about his heart.  His actions are just a manifestation of his heart.  His heart broke and I really think that he wants to change and be loving to his siblings and serve his family.  Now, it's up to us.  It's our job to teach him how to serve the Lord in these areas and how to honor him.  Big P prayed on speaker phone with him.

Then I went to P.7.G.s room.  We did the same and prayed with her and she started crying.  She wants a sister so bad!!!  We talked about how if she would help us more and we would have to tell her a little less about all the things that she leaves out all over the place, that I would have more energy and time to do girly things with her.  I did tell her that I feel like God has a sister in store for her someday.

And so, I'm sorting out all my thoughts on the WWW and this blog! LOL  And I'm seaking the Lord for a plan.  I need a checklist (I'm a list girl) of what I need to do to accomplish all that He needs me to do.  (See* I'm feeling the need for a schedule * here - I need to dust of MOTH!).

Right now I'm going to go do the dishes, then I'm going to work more on that chore thing!

Posted in Family Life

L.6.5mo.B. has his 6 month check up today.  We really like our doctor, because he is pro-life and never razzes me about having babies!  I really like that!!!  So, when we come in, he always asks us how things are going and asking about more babies, etc.  They just had their 4th as well.

Today L.6.5mo.B. was as happy as usual.  He is loving being able to stand up and bounce on our legs.

He weighed in at 17 lb. and 27 in. long!!  He has the sweetest little chunky legs.  Well, they used to be a bit chunkier a couple of weeks ago, but then he started crawling.  He was crawling right before he turned 6 months.  The same week he was sitting up, and now he is pulling up!!!  All in the matter of 2 weeks!!   He'll be cruising soon, I know it!!!

He just started solids, as well.  We started with cereal, and we've also done green beans, and butternut squash.  We make our own baby food, so he is getting the good fresh stuff! :)  Yumm-O!!  Then, B.2.5.B. decided to dump the remaining baby cereal all over the floor!  Oh, how fun that was to clean up.  So, we got another box - and HE DID IT AGAIN!!!  Urgggg!!!

Fortuanately, my good friend, T. Bee, had given us some Baby Museli.  WE aren't supposed to start it until 9 months, but he loves the stuff and is taking well to it!!

Diaper changing has becoming a big adventure though!!  All of his BMs since starting solids have ended him up in the shower!!!

So, my littlest boy isn't so little anymore and it makes me sad :(  Oh, he is so sweet!!

We are trying blanket training and it is working very well.  He is learning to stay on the blanket, but we have to stay close, to teach him - as he is still wanting to wander off after a while.  The first day he threw a fit!!!  Yes, a fit!!!  He did not like us turning him back around and saying "stay on the blanket".  He wanted off that blanket and he wanted us to know about it.  I can see that the blanket training will be very beneficial, though, so we are sticking to it!!  He has gotten lost around here a few times.  He likes to crawl behind the couch! LOL

Sweet, sweet babies....  Oh speaking of babies, I can't wait to tell you all about being with my friend T. Bee during her labor at home!! :)  She needs to post her birth story first, though, so that I can tell my side!! Heehee.

Posted in Family Life

Well, as if we didn't have enough going on, we decided to start a little home business.  Here's the story of how it started out (cut and pasted from our flyer):

We purchased our Homeschool curriculum used over the internet in an effort to be good stewards of the money which God has given us.  The lady that was selling it had thoroughly enjoyed using it, but was using it with her youngest children – so she no longer needed it.  The night before she was to mail it, I woke up in the middle of the night thinking about the curriculum, which had likely not been insured for delivery (she was paying for postage).  It was like God was advising me to take out insurance on it.  So, I emailed her and fortunately she checked her email before she left for the post office the next day to mail the package.  After 3 weeks of us emailing back and forth waiting for the package, she received a notice in the mail that my package had been separated from the label, and was lost.  She started a search, which came up empty, and then filed the insurance claim.  We finally received a check on Monday, but it was short $50, which was the P.O.s error, and they are mailing out a supplementary check.  At this point, we have already started our school year with what curriculum we do have available, but need to repurchase the rest.  So, we are purchasing directly from the company this time, to save time and any more possible misfortune.  We are truly thankful to God that He has allowed us to Homeschool and that He has blessed us to be resourceful to be able to repurchase our curriculum!  Glory to God!!

So, the original intent was to do a fundraiser to raise the additional funds needed to purchase our curriculum new from the publisher - My Father's World.  We are selling fresh homemade bread made from fresh whole wheat flour and homemade jams.  The day after  Big P took the fundraiser order form to work a woman that he works with came to him and wanted to give him a donation for our school.  At this point, we had already received enough in orders to cover the cost of the curriculum, but the donation she gave went over the top and then some, so that we were able to purchase some other "wants" for our homeschool curriculum, as well.

I have been praying since the day that this little venture came to fruition that the Lord would be honored through it and that it would not take a higher priority than Him or my family.  The orders have been pouring in, and there is even a possibility that I could have some rather large orders from a friend with her company for my specialty jame "Kickin' Strawberry Jam", which is a hot strawberry jam.

So, I am praying and thinking about how to fit it all in and not neglet my family.  I believe that I will be doing all jam making in the evenings after the kids are in bed.  With bread, I want to sell it fresh, so some of that will have to be done while they are awake, but I'm thinking of offering deliveries every 2 weeks.  My Mom and Mother-in-love took orders for me at church, work, and through family members.

I spent all of Friday and a lot of Saturday filling those orders.  I've learned a lot about baking bread and making jam in the last week!!

I made another batch of peach jam today and will do another one this afternoon.  Tomorrow I will make 2 batches of my Kickin' Strawberry, as I have orders waiting for that and I feel like the rest will sell easily if they are in hand.

So, that is what I have been up to - and we started school last week.

About to serve lunch, so I better get.  I'll try to update more later.

Posted in Family Life

The other day P.7.G. asked me to come in her room to see what she had done.  Her room is clean, by the way - check out her story here: I cleaned my room!

So, I went in, because I knew that she had L.5 mo.B.

Look what she did with him! LOL


Look at his sweet little (big) legs in that thing!! LOL


I remember when he would have almost fit in that thing!! LOL

Posted in Family Life

This should be one of those rules that we just know and we don't have to learn from a bad experience, right?!  Ha!!  I don't have many of those, I guess, because something always ends up happening to teach me that I did something wrong! LOL



That is the laptop computer - not the one I use, thank goodness!  And all those little grey things around the computer are the keys!!  Yes, B.2.B. managed to dismantle almost the entire keyboard.  If he would have taken off the top keys - you know F1, F2, etc. I would have really gone nuts! LOL  But, he was gracious enough to keep those intact.



So, C.10.B. and I painstakingly reassemble the keyboard - one key at a time and make note to ourselves never to let B.2.B. play Reader Rabbit Toddler alone again!!


See how serious we are!! LOL  This is a really bad pic!! LOL


And I think we got it all fixed, I think! LOL  C.10.B. is trying it out.

Posted in Family Life

Big P and I celebrated 10 wonderful years yesterday.  We had a nice date!  It was really one of our best dates yet, because it was so full and fun and we did lots of talking!

Here's what we did, along with photos.

I woke up to 12 fresh, red, beautiful roses!  He's such a sweetie.  I love roses.  They are my favorite flower.  He works nights, so I'm asleep when he comes home.  They were on the island waiting for me to go into the kitchen!



We dropped the kids off at my in-laws.  They were going to take them to Chickfila and have lots of fun with them - playing games and all that sort of stuff.  They always sit down and spend time with the kids (sorry, no pics).  My father-in-law let us borrow his car.  We have a 12 passenger van, so it was really nice riding around in this.  I'm sure Big P would agree that it is much easier to navigate in the parking lots! LOL

Here's a pic of us before we left:



We then went to Uncle Julio's.  This is our favorite Mexican restaurant.  They serve the best fajitas we have ever eaten.  We haven't been there in a couple of years, due to being so far from there.  This was a real treat.  We had fajitas and chips and salsa.  There was plenty leftover, so we brought it home and had it with the kids that night.

We then left and went to Reunion Tower.  Big P proposed at the bottom of the tower on February 10, 1996 - yes, I still remember the date! LOL  He wanted to propose in the observation deck, but they were having a party there, so we couldn't get in.  I knew then that my sweet dear fiance' wasn't a planner.  And if he was, he couldn't be my husband.  I don't think marriages generally have 2 planners.  It makes life difficult! LOL

We decided to go up to the top and look down.  It was amazing what we saw.  Here are some pics:




The Dallas Courthouse


That big white domed building is Texas Stadium - in Irving.  You can see really far off this thing!


I was playing around with the camera and decided to take a few pics of our "tagalong" or our "attachment" as my Mother-in-love likes to call the newest nursling.

Then we headed back to the car and went for ice cream at Marble Slab Creamery.  I enjoyed a kid-sized Amaretto and Pecan Pralines ice cream.  My sister got me hooked on this one.  One time she got it and I enjoy this one when it is especially warm outside, it's very refreshing.

Big P isn't an ice cream lover, like me.  He enjoys snow cones more.  So, we went to DeSoto to grab a snow cone, but they line was really long.  We were also going to see a movie, so we headed to the theatre to check out times.  With some time to kill, we headed to the local snowcone shop so that he could get his favorite Large Grape Snowcone!

I was so exhausted from going to bed late and getting up early, I asked if he minded if I closed my eyes for a big.  I'm the talker, he's the self-admitted listener.  He talks, just not as much as I do, no matter what I do to try to get him to.  I didn't feel like talking, and I crashed for about 20 minutes or so.

We ended up back at the theatre to see Pirates of the Carribean - Dead Man's Chest.  It was good, a bit confusing at parts, but a good movie overall.  I was glad that we went, as we had fun juggling L.5mo.B.

Then we headed back to my in-laws house to pick up all the kids and head home.  We stayed there a while to tell them about our date and to see what they had done.  They had a great time of course!

That morning we had exchanged cards and gifts.  My husband is the sweetest man in the world - I'd fight anyone about that one! :)  He got me a very sweet card.  It was beautiful, too.  Inside was a printout of an internet order from The Urban Homemaker.  He bought me a Bosch Universal Kitchen System!  No, I'm not kidding!  It even has a blender.  I was astonished, to say the least!  I felt like my gift was a little shabby after that, but we've never really been into the typcial gifts.  He is rather difficult to shop for.  He doesn't have any major hobbies and he just loves spending time with his family.  I usually leave the clothes buying to his mom, because she really loves to do that.  I sent him an e-card, as I'm rarely at the store for any personal browsing time.  If I was to buy a card at the store, I might be in and out so fast that I'd get a get well card for him for our anniversary.  No good!  So, I sent a dayspring e-card.  It looked familiar, but I just loved what it said.  Come to find out, I had already sent him that one before! LOL  I also bought him a walmart gift card so that he could download his music from there.  He loves to do that.

It was a fantastic day with my sweet husband and I am so blessed!!  He is the one that gives in to most of my strange ideas and is almost always game!!  He also protects me from myself and says "no" sometimes, which is a very good thing, I often conclude after the fact.

I'm excited to see what the next 10 years, and many more after that, hold!

We'll be renewing our vows on October 7th this year and having a big family and friends function!!  It will be fun!

Posted in Family Life

Big P and I are celebrating 10 years of incredible marriage today!!  It's almost hard to believe, as it has gone by so fast, and yet we feel like we've always been part of each others lives.  It's amazing how well you get to know each other over 10 years!

My husband is my confidant and my #1 fan!  I'm his #1 fan, as well!!  We are always there supporting one another!  It is such a blessing and truly is heaven on earth to be married to such a wonderfuly, godly man!!

I love you honey, and look forward to another fantastic 10 years!!!

Posted in Family Life

After several days at Grandmother and Grandfather's house - my big boy is going to be home tonight!!  We will pick him up this afternoon.

It's been a very long week without him here.  We miss him so much.  My in-laws don't live far from us - about an hour.  But, on purpose, I haven't even talked to my big boy much since he has been gone.

You see, we were have severe issues with sibling conflict.  I say severe, because they are severe to me.  C.10.B. and P.7.G. seem to be arguing about EVERYTHING.  He also was having a pretty bad attitude about EVERYTHING.  We needed some time to regroup.  My Father-in-love is a pastor and neither one of my in-laws work.  Not to mention the fact that he loves to be with them.  They are strict in some areas, and I knew that they wouldn't go "easy" on him.  We asked for there help last week when I was at a point where I didn't mind asking for help.

I never think it is okay to send your kids off with strangers for "help" in spiritual areas, but I do feel that him having this time with his grandparents, who are godly, Christ centered, loving people, would be good for all of us.

C.10.B. received Christ as his Savior when he was 6 years old.  He was so excited about the Lord and read his Bible so faithfully.  In the last couple of years, we have had a lot of changes around the house, including 2 moves and the inability to find a church where we really were confident in what was being taught.  The basically non-existance of regular fellowship with other believers has been hard on all of us.  I was no longer seeing the fruit of a believer in my son.

I haven't been the best example, either.  My walk with the Lord in the last couple of years has been lacking.  No, I haven't done anything horrible, but I have been discouraged, and it showed.  Only until recently, have I had a regular quiet time of study and prayer.  I've also been praying throughout the day, every chance I get, and I have seen great rewards in closeness to my Savior.  It was my own sin that was seperating me from God.

And so, after a little break to get life back in order - oh we also have been very diligent on discipline of P.7.G., who was becoming very lazy.  This was a source of contention between them - BIGTIME!  Having the opportunity to work on disciplining her without him getting involved, was helpful!

I'm so excited to have him back home!  He is a sourse of antics and chatter that is just his own personality.  It is great to be able to have thoughtful discussions with him as he really puts thought into his answers.

Our whole family will be together again!  It's been rather quiet around here without him! :)

Just in case he reads this - I love you Bubbs!

Posted in Family Life

I can't believe it.  He's growing up right before my eyes.  He is a simply amzing little boy.  What a blessing!!  He's the spittin' image of his daddy - which is a very good thing as I think my husband is just a doll!! :)

Here's some new pics:


EEEEKKK, look at that smile!




Look at those gummies!


He loves to chew on those precious big feet!


The Little boys - B.2.B. and L.5mo.B.

Posted in Family Life

If you've wondered where I have been lately (in the absense of blogging), I've been spending a lot of time potty training B.2.B.  It's been YEARS since I potty trained - about 5 to be exact.  I really couldn't remember if I was doing this right or not!!! LOL  We were given a nice potty chair in March from someone who was out of that stage with her children.  It was such a blessing - it sings (sometimes! LOL).

B.2.B. is doing great!!  We haven't reached the point where he tells us he needs to go - but I know that is coming.  As long as we remember to take him often, he has no problems!!  We are using the White Cloud version of Pull-ups.  When the carrots dissappear, that means he went.  But he has even been going for rides in the car without any accidents.  Yea!!!

So, that's where I have been - well, it is taking up much of my time, at least.  I've also been working on curriculum (another post).

Posted in Family Life

My friend, T's, baby shower was a great success.  I threw a casserole shower for her, after realizing what a blessing this type of shower can be.  The idea is that everyone who comes, brings a casserole, ready for the freezer.  After the baby comes, dinner is a no-brainer.

This is T's 5th baby, so she laughed at me, when I said that I wanted to throw her a shower.  When I explained the casserole shower idea, she was so excited!!

We had a nice turnout of many of T's friends.  Lots of casseroles!!!  Her step-mom came up with a great idea.  She gave her a certificate for 12 salads.  She put a list of salads she could choose from and asked for 1 days notice and there would "home delivery" of her chosen salad.  This was a great idea, so that she would have salads to go with all those casseroles!!  T's mom volunteered her home for the shower.  What a blessing!!  Her home is beautifully decorated and very roomy!! Thank you D!!  She also helped me so much by giving me ideas, helping me accept RSVPs, providing all the dishes, making juice, and even baking 2 breakfast casseroles to serve.

We had a baby blessing time.  I sent around a roll of toilet paper and asked everyone to grab off any amount they choose.  Many thought that it was the wrap it around the Mama's belly game - but instead they had to give a blessing and/or say something nice about T for each square they took.  It was a tear jerker and a wonderful blessing to everyone.

Then we played "Well, I never".  The idea is that you have a bank or a jar and everyone gathers coins from their purses.  The hostess starts out by saying something she has never done.  Then, anyone who HAS done that, has to put a coin in the bank.  It goes around to where everyone says something they have never done.  T ended up with a 1/2 jar of coins as a savings started for the baby.

Then we played Baby match game.  I picked animals and their found the terms for their babies.  Each person had to match the mama to the baby.  There was even a Human with a baby "Blessing". :)

We had a great time!!

Here is (from left to right) Me, T, and her mom D:

Posted in Family Life

Okay, to fully appreciate this, you must realize that we live on 10 acres in the country.  Actually, we are east of Dallas, in an area where many move to get out of the city.  We lived for 8 years in the city, before moving here.  We pray that God never moves us back to the city.  We love it here - where the crickets are LOUDER than anything else!!

So, here is a pic of my little L.4.5mo.B. wearing Daddy's cowboy hat:


Look at that sweet smile!!


Oh, I could eat him up!!!!

Posted in Family Life

The little boys are B.2.B and L.4.5m.B.  They are the little ones that we never thought we would have.  God gave us a 2nd chance.  When convicted to put our family size back in His hands, we went through a vasectomy reversal and were blessed shortly thereafter with B.2.B.  He's always been a smiley thing.  We've had trouble after his ear tubes were put in, with him speaking.  He is making great progress on that and we are so proud.  We've had the full spectrum in kids speaking.  C.10.B. was 9 months old when he was speaking.  At 1 he was saying complete sentences - no kidding!  And he's still a talker! LOL  Must take after his Mama!  With B.2.B., speaking came slowly.  And when he did learn things, he didn't hear them the same after his tubes, so they didn't sound right.  When you have a child that doesn't speak a lot, it makes you hang on every word!  We treat every single word as if it is the first time he has said it - because at almost 2 1/2, it probably is.  It's made things frustrating for all of us.  He gets frustrated easily, because he can't get across what he wants us to know.  But, we are making progress.  It's made discipline even more difficult, because we underestimate his ability to understand, just because of his lack of speaking.  Ha!

When we moved into our home (our 2nd home in the country), it wasn't long until we were expecting our 2nd little reversal blessing, L.4.5mo.B.  We were so excited, and most of our family was too, which was such a blessing!!  Living this conviction out isn't as much of a challenge in our own home, as it is telling our family.  Even though many of them back us 100%, you know they have to be wondering about us! LOL  L.4.5mo.B, has been a blessing since the day God placed him in my womb.  My pregnancy was the easiest yet.  Birth was the easiest and fastest yet (less than 3 1/2 hours) - in the water (yeah!).  Things were rocky at first, just getting to know him and his personality.  He would SCREAM through entire car rids and then one day, he stopped that.  He seemed to be pretty colicky when he was wee little, too, but not anymore.  He is a smiley little thing.  He just rolls all over the floor - never staying on the intended blanket at Bible study.  He grabs at his toys in the car seat.  He kicks everything and munches on his little toes.  He's a chunk, too!  We are just so in love with him.  All of our children are precious to us, but we often think about the Little Boys as being our 2nd chance blessings, because if God hadn't opened our heart, they wouldn't be here.  I just can't imagine that!  Life is so much more interesting with them here. 

In fact, Big P and I were thinking the other day how simple and easy life would be if we weren't taking care of toddlers and babies.  I'm sure we'd find something to do with our time, but it just wouldn't be the same.   We pray that they will rise up and call us blessed!  It's a lot of fun raising all these lambs for His Kingdom!!

And The Little Boys are already so close.  Because they are 23 months apart, they are fairly close in age.  Many thought that B.2.B. would be very jealous of his little brother.  But he's not!  He often crawls up in my lap while I'm nursing L.4.5mo.B.  Every time he says "awwww", or he used to, at least, because this is what we would say when he would "pet" him.  Now he says "Babeeee".  And you SIMPLY MUST say "Baby" back, or he will pull your chin up and say it again, making sure you are looking at him - until you say it.  It's so sweet.  He loves on him and has wanted to start holding him for a few seconds (sitting down with someone right next to him, of course).

So, here are some new pics of The Little Boys:


B.2.B.


Yummy Ice Cream (with Oreos!)


L.4.5mo.B.


He was smiling, but I was having to work at it, so the picture didn't come out the best - then the battery went out!

Posted in Family Life

It seems that all my kitchen appliances have decided to quit at the same time!!  It's quite comical, really! LOL  Sort of!  These are the things that I refer to as my present day servants!  These things work hard - when they work.  Or should I say that I work them hard.

Here are the things that have broken down just this week:

Bread machine - this was actually my mom's.  We traded when I needed a 2 lb. loaf machine for my growing family.  She rarely used it, so I proposed a trade for my 1 1/2 lb. loaf machine.  I've been using the dough feature a lot lately, since we are making our own bread.  It really helped me with the kneading, even if I did have to run it on 2 rounds to get the gluten developed.  We've been having trouble with our electricity blinking and going out.  It did a number on our computer a while back.  So, to my bread machine it made it just quit!  Actually, the timer still worked on it, but the mechanism for turning completely stopped.  After numerous failed attempts, we gave up and called it quits - as apparently, it had too!

Crock Pot (a.k.a. Slow Cooker) - I thought that it might when my beans didn't turn out for Big P's birthday.  They were hard after going on high for HOURS!!!  Finally, after being on high for 9 hours, they were decent enough to eat.  Then, my pinto beans didn't get cooked well - or as quickly as usual last week.  Then, today, after inviting our friends over, we got home to a bland house.  I say bland, because it didn't smell as it should have with beans cooking in the crock-pot.  So, I whipped up a pot of taco soup, made some corn fritters, and started a "Good For You Blueberry Cobbler".  I was praying for Jesus to make it last!!  Remember the fish and loaves?  She has 3 growing children, and we have 2 that eat almost as much as adults, plus 3 adults, and 1 toddler.  God provided!  T had also brought a HUGE salad with tomatoes from her garden.  It was delicious.  I've never liked raw tomatoes.  Apparently, it's because I haven't had one fresh from a garden!  They were delicious and full of flavor.  Anyway, back to the story.  God made it last and we were all full!!!

So, I'm on the search for a crockpot.  I like this one!!  It's a 7 quart, and I need one that big.  This one is by Hamilton Beach and they still make it.  I have the case and all, so I'm just going to get the crock pot itself.  Come to find out, they carry it for 25% off up the road, at the Kitchen Connection - in the local outlet mall!  Praise the Lord!!!  I use this thing all the time.  Although it is a servant, is a well loved one, and we treat it well.  I bought this one used about 4 years ago, or so from a friend who was going RVing for a year. THey were selling their house, and most of their belongings.

Oh - one more appliance is making its way to the Kaufman Citizens Collection Center (a.k.a. junk yard).

The Refrigerator - Right now, this thing is on it's last little toe.  Well, it probably has about 3 toes left.  It was in the house when we bought it.  It's a side by side.  The water comes out very slowly and the ice maker has not held up to its end of the bargain - we've never received ice from it.  This is a modern day luxury, I understand - but a necessity, all the same!  We are praying that it holds out until October, when we will be able to purchase a new one.  My Mother-in-Love has a nice one.  When I asked her what features she liked about it, or if there was anything she'd look for differently, she said she loved it.  A few of the shelves slide out, so that you can reach things in the back.  Cool!!  I think the freezer shelves do the same.  WAy Cool!  You know we all have those things that slip to the back of both the fridge and freezer that never seem to come out - because we forget about them - because we can't get to them easily.

The bread maker is on hold indefinitely.  My hands seem to be working just fine and my biceps are really getting a workout.  I'll be making bread tomorrow!  Yum!

Even though it seems like all these things that I use are breaking down, God is still providing.  I have a big pot for beans, until I get can the crock-pot.  Two very able arms that need a workout.  And we still have a fridge that is chugging along.  Sometimes it makes a noise that is really weird - but funny.  It's like the furnace in the basement on Home Alone.  So, it's a source of entertainment, too!

The kitchen is the heart of our home.  The hussle and bussle always takes place in the kitchen.  I'm in there a lot.  The kids are in there helping me.  Everyone enjoys the warm and yummy food that comes out of there.  We laugh in there, skate in there, and enjoy living around each other in there.  So, no matter what breaks down in the kitchen, it still remains the most wonderful part of our home.  God is so good!

Have you ever prayed while kneading bread?  It's a good practice.  I think I'm going to break out the aprons again and throw the end over my head when I need some peace and quiet and prayer.

Life is great, even without my modern day servants!