May. 12, 2008 - Family Mini-Vacation
This past weekend we took advantage of my husband's unexpected three-day weekend and went on a little mini-vacation. We have never really gone on a real family vacation as money is always a factor as well as time! But, we found a really great deal and went to a waterpark resort for the night. It was interesting to say the least! We have never tried to have us all sleep in the same room and Peanut was a little too excited about the whole idea. It took awhile for the children to settle down. Thankfully our room had a balcony and WH and I spent about an hour out there just talking. That was among my favorite parts of the vacation! 
The other parts were watching our children have FUN in the water. They went down lots of waterslides - some alone, some with Dad and some (if you can believe it) with Mom. I went down a slide with a family style tube. Sweetheart and Angel eagerly showed me the ropes as they had just gone down with Dad. It was fun and terribly nauseating! The entire slide was pitch black and I rode the whole thing backward! I tend to suffer from motion sickness and get dizzy fairly easily. I almost fell down after I got out of the tube, but it was worth it to make the memories with my girls!
Little Man was happiest in the little kids areas. He would go down the slide and float in the water, stand under the sprays or play with the gysers! He went down some tube rides with Dad and some body slides as well! He enjoyed them after he tried them but tends to take a while to warm up to new expierences! Peanut had fun just sitting in the water and watching all the kids. I think she was a little overwhelmed. She did crawl but the floors of those pools are so rough, I didn't want her crawling too much. She also enjoyed the wave pool as she got to sit with Mom in a tube. 
A vacation is not complete, be it mini or not, without lots of eating. We treated Dad to a resturant that we had gone to one other time and really enjoyed. The kids and I went on little vacation with my brother and his family about two-and-a-half years ago and they took us to this resturant. He enjoyed it and so did the kids! 
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May. 8, 2008 - No Training Wheels?
Today, Angel wanted to have her training wheels taken off her bike! So, since Daddy has a three-day weekend and would be able to help her, he said that he would be glad to. Off the wheels came!
We would hold her seat and run with her up and down the block. I'm not sure how many times we did this, but I can tell you - I am so out of shape 
. She did well until we let her try on her own. Our tough little cookie fell so many times, I lost count at 25! She bravely got back up and got back on - only to fall again. Her perseverance and doggedness were inspiring. How often do we give up on hard things? We may fail but how often are we willing to get back on and try again? Why do we lose the tenacious attitude of youth?
I thought of this today as I sat with my Ladies Bible Study group. We are going through Martha Peace's The Excellent Wife. We are on the chapter on Submission. I know that this is a very touchy subject in today's world. The very word submission has extreme negativity attached to it, as well! If someone is described as submissive they are thought of as weak and easily taken advantage of. The very idea of submitting to one's husband in today's marriages is widely frowned upon. Most Christian women who "submit" to their husband's are thought to be backward and hindering the woman's liberation movement!
While woman's roles in the home have been grossly diminished and those who chose to be stay-at-home moms are thought to be lazy and without motivation; God never changes and neither does His Word. The greatest calling a woman could ever have is to be a wife and a mother! What other profession has the benefits, the perks or the lasting and possibly eternal value? As moms, it is our God-given task to love out husband and our children. To hang in there even it is hard and seems like it is impossible. Those are the times that we need to rely on God and His strength to get us through!
Submitting to our husbands is not an easy task - mainly because our husbands, unlike our Heavenly Father, is at best a sinner! They will fail us, they will hurt our feelings, they do things that we don't think is right. But, God has called us to lovingly support them and encourage them. It is not always easy to get back on after we have been hurt! It is not always easy to try again when we know we will fall again. But, that is what we as wives and mother's are called to do. Lovingly get back on and try again and again! Never give up!
And, just like my daughter with her training wheels, we as wives and mothers are given training wheels - ones that never have to come off!! Our Heavenly Father is our Protector and our Guide. He never fails us or hurts us! The times we fall are the times we go it alone! So, while a child gets excited about taking off their training wheels and growing up. I will hold on to my training wheels!
Just something to think about...
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Apr. 29, 2008 - All Things Bright & Beautiful!
In a recent post I mentioned that Sweetheart, Angel and Little Man would be performing with my four young siblings the song/poem All Things Beautiful by Cecil Alexander. Well, this past Sunday night they got up and did a wonderful job. My parents, my husband, and I worked hard all Saturday to make props/costumes for the children. We had a fun time of creating. Some of the children made their own scenes on big posterboard.
My brother, No. 5 helped make a cloud. We then bought one of those blow-able noise makers for parties - you know, the kind that you blow on and it unfolds. It portrayed the cold winter wind! My brother, No. 6 made a purple-headed mountain. He drew the picture himself and it turned out very nice. My sister, No. 7 made a meadow scene with a river and rushes. She did a great job as well, but was a little overwhelmed by the amount of coloring so Sweetheart helped her color!
My WH made our daughters their props. He drew a ladybug and butterfly for Sweetheart as she was to show all things bright and beautiful. Angel received a bird that she helped color. For my youngest sister, No. 8, I made a flower. We wanted the petals to be shiny so we used sequins. It took almost the whole day but it was worth it. She was very cute. Little Man was the easiest as his costume only took minutes but turned out to be the cutest (in my opinion anyway). He was to be a river. Here is the poem that they memorized:
All Things Beauitful
All things bright and beautiful, all creatures great and small, all things wise and wonderful, the Lord God made them all;
Each little flower that opens, each little bird that sings, He made their glowing colors, He made their tiny wings;
The purple-headed mountain, the river running by, the sunset, and the morning, that brighten up the sky;
The cold wind in the winter, the pleasant summer sun, the ripe fruits in the garden, He made them every one;
The talls trees in the greenwood, the meadows where we play, the rushes by the river, we gather everyday;
He gave us eyes to see them, and lips that we might tell, How great is God Almighty, Who has made all things well.
Here is Little Man as the river running by! We used a blue recycle garbage bag and we made a hole for his head. We also used a blue boa for added fun. The bag was like a cape and as he ran it fluttered behind him. The audience got a good laugh!
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Apr. 24, 2008 - Wednesday Happenings
Our oldest, Sweetheart recently started asking us if she could take part in the Bible Memory groups that our church has on Wednesdays. We had been reluctant to participate in this in the past because of something...well, trivial. You see, the church offers rewards to children and adults when they have memorized a certain amount of Scripture. We felt that the true prize was the memorization of the Scripture itself. However, we have realized that it is a good incentive and finally agreed to enroll the children. I however do not have the mental capacity at this point to start - I will eventually when Peanut sleeps through the night and I am not in such a sleep-deprived fog! (I completely understand that this is only an excuse, but I know that my mind will only store it in my short-term where so many other things have gone).
Anyway, Sweetheart was so excited that when she came in my room this morning, she proudly recited her verse to me! I was so happy that she had remembered! Way to go and keep it up, Sweets!
We are also preparing a special presentation for this Sunday night. My parent's younger children and my three will be be reciting and acting out certain parts of All Things Beautiful. We are working on some sort of costumes or such but my children are excited. Hopefully I will remember the camera and then I can post some pictures after!
Another lovely thing that happened recently (yesterday to be exact) was Angel was playing outside after church last night and ran into her brother's head with her chin. She split it open and we figured she needed stitches - so off to the ER! We got there a little after eight and after the nurse applied the numbing gel Angel was much better! We were there just under two hours (I think our quickest ER visit to date!) and thankfully they were able to just glue her cut together! Amazing! No stitches. She was very happy about that!
Anyway, today my younger siblings came over to play (while M&D went out to lunch) and they were playing in the backyard. One of the boys threw a ball at Angel and accidentally reopened a portion of the cut! So, I put a bandage on and told them NO MORE THROWING!!! This was a little too difficult to accomplish so they all had to come in and watch a movie! (I know, terrible babysitter!) Hey, you do what works when your husband is sleeping and you are watching eight children :)
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Apr. 22, 2008 - Wastewater Treatment Plant Field Trip
Today, Sweetheart and I went to our Regional Waste Water Treatment plant for a field trip. It was very interesting - a little more so for the adults than the children.
We started the tour in the labrortory and were intriqued by the "bugs" that clean our water. The "bugs" are micro-organisims that help filter the waste water and eventually produce cleaner water. The children loved seeing them displayed on a big computer screen - they were magnified 200x's! It was quite interesting. I think they enjoyed this part of the tour the most!
Next we were going to see the other buildings. It was rainy so our tour guide (a very nice older gentleman) took us through the tunnels to the different buildings. The children especially liked exploring all the nooks and crannies! The tunnels reminded me of catacombs -slightly larger but dark and eerie. Thankfully there were lights on all over or it would have been just a little too frightening for some of the children and possibly some adults (myself included). As we walked, the tour guide mentioned that behind the concrete walls was thousands of gallons of water! Okay - a bit unnerving! Thankfully, he also told us that the concrete at the bottom was six - ten feet thick! That set some of my uneasiness aside.
There were rows and rows of pipes (some small and some large) running along the ceiling. The first area we entered was dark and pipes lined the ceiling. One pipe rattled and moved as sludge moved through it. I was a little concerned as the tour guide said that no, it really isn't supposed to be like that but it should be okay:). Oh, the noise level was quite deafening in certain parts - especially the pumps! Overall, it was intriguing and educational. It got me thinking about everything that we put down our drains and all that has to be cleaned out so that we can drink clean water! The whole process is carefully monitered and tested. The conclusion that I came to after this tour is that our drinking (tap) water is much cleaner than bottled water. So, even though I was never a bottled water drinker (could never get passed the fact that you pay more for a bottle of water than you do for a gallon of gas) but now I am even more convinced that tap is just fine for me!
Sorry, I forgot my camera so I do not have any pic's from our field trip!
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