The 2010 Cow Calendars are in at Chick-fil-A and they are the best calendar deals to date.  NO PURCHASE is necessary for any coupon.  It's 12 months of FREE food for just $6 per calendar.  Right now, several CFAs are offering a free calendar with a $20 gift card purchase.  Tremendous savings!

BTW... According to a book we have that breaks down nutritionally each fast food place, CFA is THE healthiest option out there.  It even beats Subway, if you can believe that.  As I'm watching my blood sugar daily now, I was pleased to see that eating the regular CFA sandwich (even with mayo) did not raise my blood sugar beyond a low-normal range.  Woo-hoo!  (Moo-hoo?!)

We've had a lot going on lately with a diagnosis of gestational diabetes and possibly an outbreak of swine flu, too.

I have never had gestational diabetes before.  The docs are requiring me to finger-stick and test my blood sugar four times per day.  I also have to follow a detailed diet plan (so many carbs per meal) and am required to have three snacks per day.  I hate needles, but aside from that it's been very interesting to record what I eat (content and amount).  And boy, that 1/2 cup of REQUIRED ice cream each night at 8p is tough to swallow.  :o)

On another note, we believe the kids have come down with the 2009 H1N1 (swine flu).   They have the exact same symptoms as several kids from church (one of whom was diagnosed).  It has been an extremely mild case.  They have had sore throats, 103 fever for a day or two (along with the accompanying fatigue and lack of appetite), then the fever goes down and they've been fine.  Six kids have had it thus far, still waiting on the seventh.  Hubby and I have not gotten it yet and hope not to as it can be dangerous in pregnancy!

So we are now playing catch-up on school lessons.  We are also baking and freezing goodies in preparation for the upcoming family Christmas parties.  I won't be eating nearly as many holiday treats as I would have before the diagnosis.  And honestly, that's a good thing, too.

Nancy Wilson has a great new post on infertility, adoption, and discontent here:

Fruitfulness

or just go to:  www.femina.reformedblogs.com and read all the latest posts.  This is one of the few blogs I MAKE time to read regularly as it encourages and challenges me in my Christian walk.

In a biblical preparation for marriage class I took in college, my wise Bible professor told us that "in marriage you get what you deserve."

I've been pondering these words lately and I believe them to be true.  There are a few women who believe they are not worthy of their amazing husbands.  And while this may seem noble, it could be due to an unbiblical self-image.  "You get what you deserve."   If he truly is as amazing as she believes, she may be forgetting that he saw great worth in her to have married her in the first place.  Such women should take care not to boast about their husbands as they could be indirectly praising themselves. They deserve such a man and should be both thankful and humble.

Sadly, I often hear Christian women criticizing their husbands and complaining about the many faults they see in their spouses.   But "you get what you deserve."  This should make women take a step back and carefully examine themselves and their own sins.  For all his gifts and strengths, you have gifts and strengths.  And for all his weaknesses and faults, you have weaknesses and faults.  (Now, lest anyone is being abused in a relationship, please take note:  abuse is biblical grounds to LEAVE a relationship and you should seek godly counsel from your church leadership immediately.  You do not deserve to be abused!)

But as a general rule for most people,  I say "amen" to these words.  Thank you, Professor, for the warning and reminder that in marriage, we get what we deserve.

We attended the second (ever) overnight camp for children with severe food allergies this past weekend at the Center for Courageous Kids in Scottsville, KY.   www.courageouskids.org

The kids had "the most fun they ever had in their whole lives" and we parents got to relax and be encouraged while talking to other parents who understand what life is like with children who have serious medical conditions. 

If you know anyone with a child with a serious medical condition including diabetes, arthritis, spine problems, heart conditions, Down's Syndrome, autism, food allergy, or other (see website schedule for the full list), please tell them about this camp.  It is staffed 24/7 with medical personnel and is 100% FREE for families to attend.  This is a truly amazing place!  www.courageouskids.org

Did you realize that sending just one child to a Christian school (even if it's not a terribly expensive one) costs more than buying homeschool curriculum (which all of the children will be able to use), hiring babysitting help, AND hiring a housecleaning service, too?!  So, keeping all that in mind to give us perspective on the cost, along with realizing how stretched we are for time and energy at this season of life, we have hired help!   

For years I was a serious control freak (compared to being a little bit less serious control freak these days).  I did not WANT anyone coming into my home to clean because I had a certain way of doing things.  I remember the days (years ago) that my towels had to be folded a certain way or I would get upset.  I would rather have done things myself than had help doing them.    After the birth of our fifth baby some family members gave me the baby gift of money to hire a housecleaner.  I was very specific about  how I wanted things cleaned and I would go behind her and do it the "right" way once she left.  (Oh my.  Those days are so far gone!) 

A few months before baby number six arrived I finally realized that I had to let some things go.  My weakness and complete inability to manage everything finally made me pray for help and gladly accept it when it was available.   We found a Christian housecleaning service and now I just say "thank you" and don't worry about the petty details.   We also put word out that we needed teen helpers for babysitting, laundry, and yard work.  It has been such a blessing to have teens from Christian families helping us and I hope we have been a blessing to them as well.

So I didn't always truly need or even want help from anyone, but when I really needed it, God provided for us in the form of hired help.  I had to come to the point where I was willing to accept it and then we had to be willing to rearrange our budget to make it work.  This meant rearranging our priorities to place hiring help in the necessity list!  I do look forward to the days when I can manage it all on my own or maybe 'hire' my own children to help out rather than bring in people from outside our family.  But for now, when our lives are so full and our children so young, having household help is a great blessing and I am very, very thankful for it.

We have found some computer games online that are a daily part of our school day.  The kids have a blast, learn a lot, and it's all FREE.

I cannot say enough how COOL Timez Attack is!  The graphics are  amazing.  It is an action-packed video game adventure that teaches kids their multiplication facts.  We officially start it in second grade, but I have to share my amazement that my FIVE YEAR OLD is currently navigating his way through the dungeon and blasting ogres as he learns his multiplication facts!  You can see a demo and download it FREE here:  http://www.bigbrainz.com/  It is so much fun!

Also starting in second grade, the kids begin learning to type.  Another great free program online is Dance Mat Typing from the British school system.   I love the British accents on the characters and the kids have fun, too.  You can play online FREE here:  http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/typing/

For your preschooler (or even kindergartener) you can download the Zac Browser.  It was designed to be a safe place for autistic children to play helpful games and watch kid-friendly short video clips.  The child is never presented with advertisements or unwanted pop-ups and there is no possiblity of linking to any other website from the browser (unlike www.pbskids.org  which we also like).  The Zac Browser fills the computer screen with an aquarium scene that has links to safe games, music, stories, and videos, and an adult has to toggle "CTRL + L" in order to get back to the internet.  Safe, Fun, and Free for your littlest ones to play online, whether they are on the spectrum or not!  My little ones (as young as three) love it and so do I!  Download it FREE here:  http://www.zacbrowser.com/

School can be so much FUN (and free, too)! 

Because of how often I have to refill the kids' soap dispensers, I suspect we save nearly $100 per year on hand soap by following this recipe from Thrifty Fun:

http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf29957105.tip.html

Buy one foaming hand soap dispenser per sink but DON'T buy the "foaming hand soap refills".  You're paying way more than necessary for foaming hand soap if you do that!  Instead refill an empty foaming soap dispenser with just two tablespoons of regular liquid hand soap (store brand works) and then add 1 cup of water.  Same stuff... a fraction of the price.  It works!

We have recently discovered that we have Asperger's Syndrome in our family history.  Though I don't want to reveal too many personal details, I believe it's important to share some of the information I've learned about this autism spectrum disorder as it may be helpful to someone else.  I don't plan to post on this topic again, but if you have any questions you can email me.

Asperger's Syndrome, or "AS", is the highest functioning end of the autism spectrum.  It has been around for centuries but was not given a name until the 1980s.  So there are many undiagnosed adults walking around with AS.  You probably know a few!  They may simply seem quirky or they may come across as rude, insensitive, egotistical, or uncaring.  But these can be unfair labels because adults with AS may have no idea how they come across to others.  They have a neurological disorder that prevents them from naturally being able to pick up on social cues and nonverbal language, and prevents them from understanding another person's perspective.

Some symptoms that may be present:

1.  Talk on and on about a particular subject without realizing others are yawning, trying to walk away, or are not interested.

2.  Are 'brutally' honest and say what they think without regard for others'  feelings.

3.  Cannot take criticism well and cannot agree to disagree.  They often feel attacked in conversations.

4.  May not give praise or compliments and may have trouble receiving compliments, too.

5.  Have a lack of empathic response--may show little concern when someone is ill or distressed.  May walk right past someone who is crying.

6.  May not have close relationships with friends or family members and may have a hard time keeping friends.

7.  Have intense interests (or obsessions) with particular topics or hobbies, and those interests may change over time.

These are just a few of the signs of AS and not everyone with AS has all the symptoms (google Asperger's Syndrome to read more).  This is a developmental disorder, so as a person ages they often adapt and learn/memorize proper social behavior.

AS is hereditary.  If one person in a family has it you shouldn't have to look far in the family tree to find others with characteristics of it.  It is diagnosed in children best between the ages of 6-11.  The child will not fit in with peers.  They may be bullied and teased or may be the aggressor/bully because they don't understand the unwritten social rules of behavior and conversations that most (neuro-typical) people naturally understand.

I have read nearly a dozen books on AS and there are a few I highly recommend if you want to learn more.

Best General Overview:  "The Complete Guide to Asperger's Syndrome" by Tony Attwood (the leading expert in this field)

Best Parenting Book:  "Finding Your Child's Way on the Autism Spectrum" by Dr. Laura Hendrickson (a Biblical counselor and mom to an autistic son)

Best Relationships Book: "Asperger's Syndrome and Long Term Relationships" by Ashley Stanford (an NT wife of an Asperger's man)

And the online newsletter for Nouthetic (Biblical) Counseling published an article on the legitimacy of autism as a neurological disorder in January:  http://www.christiancounseling.com/en/art/544/