I always hate it when I sit down to blog and can't remember what I was going to blog about.
We are still trying to do some school through the Summer, but it seems something always comes up. Last Monday I was sure we were going to finish our Bee lapbook (I can't believe we are still working on it..ugh). But a friend called and asked if I would watch her 2 boys for the day. The day went fine and my boys were happy to have friends over.
I guess it didn't dawn on one of the boys that I was outnumbered 7 to 1 until lunch. I had all the cups and plates out and he asked, "how many kids are there?" When I told him he said, "Oh man, my Mom could never handle having all these kids". I laughed, his Mom was 1 of 10 kids and she grew helping with the little ones.
My kids had this conversation today.
Kid 1- I am the smartest kid.
Kid 2-Oh YEAH right (eyes rolling)
Kid 3-Well I am the goodest at math!!!
Kid 2-Ummm you are suppose to say, "I am the best at math"
Kid 3-Yeah, whatever.
I think kid 3 needs to work on his English hahahahahaaaaa
:>Michelle
Jun. 25, 2008 - A Lady with a Power Tool & Her Garden
My husband was trimming the bushes last week, but was unable to finish. Since we have so many bushes around our house I decided to get the trimmers out myself yesterday. Plus some of our bushes were taking over some walk ways. I can't even remember the official name of the trimmer thingy. I am not sure I should be able to use a tool I can't name....hhmmm Oh Well It was pretty fun, although it got heavy after a while. I didn't take any pictures since some of the bushes were a bit lopsided and looking at bushes isn't very fun. Unless maybe I could make bush sculptures..that could be fun. LOL I am not sure I will be allowed to use that trimmer thingy again when Jeff gets a good look at the bushes.hahahaaaa
And here are some before and after pictures of my garden. In the right corner of this picture is some sort of tree that keeps growing. To it's right is our cucumbers then tomato plants. This end has teddy bear pumpkins, green beans, and there are green pepper, and a zucchini plant. farther down.
This area had lots of flowers and bushes I had to clear and here is where I transplanted some.
And this is how it looks now.... Some Hostas popped up in there that I didn't plant. I will be transplanting those to another place soon. And don't mind the sidewalk I was weeding and hadn't swept yet.
:>Michelle
We took Carter's crib down a few weeks ago. He has been sleeping our room on a futon. He will eventually go to the boys room, but for now I like him close. He transitioned perfectly and has even learned to sleep other places. The other night I came in the family room and found Carter asleep on the floor. He laid on a couch pillow and fell asleep. No binky and no blanky. I didn't think that was possible-lol I put him on the couch and when I came to check on him this is how he was. He looked so cute.
Kiley LOVES sour cream. She will eat if by the spoonful if we don't watch her. And everything dipped in sour cream tastes better, in her opinion.
She just needs to work on keeping it all in her mouth.
And not to leave the boys out.
Here they are on our vacation a few weeks ago. We went to a Bird Sanctuary.
And here is a super CHEEESSEY smile. Actually it's a Salami smile.
I couldn't find any of Bailey that she would let me post. So she is spared from the photo shoot.
:>Michelle
I know you all have been wanting an update on "The Swamp". I am so happy to announce that they added chemicals today and closed it up. It now has a cover!! I am sure you are all as excited as me
An Answer to a comment on my last post. I was not able to find Pepsi and I would never give my child Coke-yuck LOL Can you tell I am a Pepsi girl. I actually I prefer Dr Pepper these days. Anyhoo, I was able to find some Mug rootbeer later.
I was also asked about the dresses. A friend is borrowing them for her girls (they are the same age and size of K and B) to wear in another wedding. Then I will be letting the girls wear them to church, they can't wait to wear them again. I must tell you they were a super deal and they are machine washable. The bride found them at Burlington Coat Factory at Easter time and they were only $30 each.
Finally the kids are in VBS this week. They love it and I am so thankful to the church for hosting this event. It's nice to have something for them to do and they get to learn more about Jesus. Double bonus.
:>Michelle
We have been insanely busy this past week. Bailey and Kiley were in our friends Matt and Ali's wedding on Saturday. We felt soooo honored to be part of their day. They are not only an adorable couple, but most importantly they are passionate about Jesus. Their wedding reflected their love for Jesus. It was a beautiful wedding. It also was outside and we had perfect weather. We even had the breeze I prayed for.
Here are some pictures: Here they are at the rehearsal on Friday. Here are the girls with Ms Polly. She is the mother of the bride. She is the sweetest lady. She LOVES my kids. And we love her. Their family is from our church and we have become friends with them all. Kiley was a bit nervous about the photographer. I offered her a Pepsi if she would smile for this picture. She did and he took the pictures. I am glad she didn't hold me to it, since there was no Pepsi. oops A Mom has to do what Mom has to do;) I am not above bribing for big things. Kiley was a bit shy with all the oooohh! and aaaaah's as they came down the aisle. And here are the Bride and Groom.
I can't believe what a crazy morning we had. I was trying to clean up from our weekend mess. The boys were emptying the dishwasher while I went to the family room to clean up. The boys were done and went to work on their room. When I came back I found Carter "helping" to wash the dishes. I went and got the camera to keep me from yelling or crying.
This is what I found: You can see the bucket in the cabinet that he near emptied and the "safety" lock that couldn't stop him
Soon after this he escaped out our front door that one of my boys left open. When I told him to get in the house he signed play.
UUMMMMM NO! it's 9 in the morning and I am in my pj's still. Then not too much longer he got into the bags of birdseed and spilled it on the front room carpet and the foyer. AAAAAHHHHH He hasn't done this kind of destruction in so long. Normally I keep him right with me, but I was trying to clean up and get dressed. My brother was on his way over to have me watch his 2 boys for the day. Oh yeah, and Kiley spilled a box of Kix in the pantry. All of this was before 11am.
The rest of the day went much better. The boys came and the kids were able to go swimming. The pool is still not perfect, but we are working on it still...sigh :>Michelle
should appear. A Giant Silkworm Moth. I went out to the pool to check the chemicals. Again. We had a HUGE storm last night and so I am now adding more chemicals to balance all the rain water. Collin spotted this laying in the rocks by us. You can learn about it here
It is also very hairy eewwwwww!!! We thought it was dead. That is until we moved it for the photo shoot and it started moving. AAAHHHHH!!! We have it in a butterfly net now.
Here is comparison to my mouse I guess even when school is "officially" out we just keep learning
:>Michelle
It looks like another storm is coming our way. We have had storms and the such off and on for a couple weeks. I am hoping it gets all the raining done this week. Next Saturday (14th) the girls are in a wedding. The wedding is outside and so we are praying for no rain and low humidity.
I am excited and a bit nervous about the girls being in the wedding. I am planning early bedtimes for the week. I don't want them to be overtired at all.
Our skies look beautiful, but I am not a big fan of all the colors when I am home alone. Even though I love to watch storms. It's a family thing. My Dad and my brother love to watch them too. Sometimes dh and I sit on the porch if the wind isn't blowing too much.
We have the pool going now, although it's not clean enough to swim in yet. Not to mention I am learning about how to balance the chemicals too.
The kids are chomping at the bit to get in and start swimming. We are hoping it's ready by Friday. That is if the weather cooperates too. I will be waiting until mid July when the pool reaches 80 degrees. heheehee
:>Michelle
When we moved here last July we noticed that our neighbor's pool was GREEN We thought maybe they were trying to get it under control and working on it. They never did. They never even closed it up for Winter. It just kept getting greener and greener. It has become a wonderful place just perfect for mosquito breeding. We had swarms of them everywhere. Not to mention it looks gross. Luckily I am short and as the bushes get taller it's harder to see their pool from the driveway. From our bedroom upstairs we can see it better.
I have been trying to figure out a way to solve this problem since last year. We can't call the village, because they would know it was us. We are the only ones that can see it. I wanted to throw some pool shocker in their at night, but then how does the bag open??? I don't have a bb gun to shoot a tiny hole and I don't want to ruin it. I could throw chlorine tablets over, but that may take a lot. They are also expensive. And sitting at the bottom of the pool may tear the liner too. I just don't know what to do.
There are 2 or 3 woman living their who are in their 40-50's??? I don't think it would be polite to go over and ask them how we can help solve the swamp problem. We don't want to hurt their feelings or cause trouble.
Does anyone have a suggestion? What would you do? How long would you wait to say something? Should we talk to them about it?
HELP!!
And for your enjoyment here are some great pictures taken from our room. I know you can't see the green fuzz, but trust me it's bad.
This is our pool last Summer. :>Michelle
I don't know how each of you handle changes or unexpected things. I have had lots of change in my life. For example, I attended 13 schools before getting my BA. I have lived in 4 states. I have owned 4 homes in 9 years etc.... I never really thought I minded change. It's just part of life. As I get older, I don't embrace it as readily. Not to mention it also becomes more and more work the bigger the family gets and as the kids get older. This time I am choosing to rest in the Lord. I ask the Lord to continuously remind me of times He has been faithful.
God has done some amazing things in my life and yet I often choose to worry and fret.
It reminds of the Israelites who were delivered from Egypt, pass through the Red Sea, were guided by clouds and fire, etc... Yet they complained and wondered how they would be fed or where they were going. They were unable to appreciate the place that God had them. The disciples saw Jesus raise Lazarus, heal people, feed the 5,000, and yet they often doubted. Us humans are so fickle and so easily distracted. And so I am asking the Lord to keep my eyes fixed on Him.
He reminded me that He is a big God and can't be put in a box.
I began to think of miracles I have witnessed and heard of. Here is an example of His power, when His people begin to pray.
In November of 2005 I took my twins for their 4 year old checkup. Dr. M decided to do one at a time and Cameron went first. Everything was fine and so she moved on to Collin. All was going well. When she had him bend over and ran her hand down his back she got a disturbed look on her face. So over and over she does it, telling him stand up and then bend. I am beginning to get very nervous at this point. When she had him stand up she looked at his shoulder blades. Then showed me. They were very lopsided and she could feel a curve in the base of his spine. She told me she was very concerned and that I needed to go and have an x-ray taken right away. I went and had the x-ray done and headed home. Dr. M called me later that evening and said that the x-ray showed that his spine was curved and we would need to see a specialist.
We immediately began to pray. We took him to the pastor and with some friends anointed his head with oil and prayed for his healing. I also prayed God would give me a verse to hold on to. And he led me to:
Psalm 34:17-20
The Righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them;
He delivers them from all their troubles.
The Lord is close to the brokenhearted
and saves those who are crushed in spirit.
A righteous man may have many troubles,
but the Lord delivers him from them all;
He protects all his bones,
not one of them will be broken.
I knew then that God was going to do something big. We continued to pray and seek Him. I remember praying to God that if He chooses to heal Collin I will testify that he had been healed. And if He doesn't heal Him I will testify of His power to help those who are troubled. But I was determined to give Him glory regardless of the outcome.
When we went to see the specialist he looked at Collin's back and couldn't find anything wrong with it. He checked and rechecked and rechecked again and it was straight. His shoulder blades were now side by side too. He looked at the x-ray and with a confused face said that the technicians must have misread the x-ray. My Mom and I looked at each other and smiled, we knew God had healed him.
God can do exceedingly more that we can imagine. :>Michelle
I feel like I have been going for days. On Saturday we had 2 couples over. My husband had visited a local church and invited the Pastor and his wife over. The other couple are our good friends and home group leaders. We BBQ'd and hung out. At dinner we had a very funny thing happen. We were letting the kids eat on the porch. Carter was stealing everyone's fruit and needed to come in. When he came in I asked dh to have him sit by him. My friend insisted he sit by us and I said that I don't like him to sit by me. It's not that I don't love the kid, but he gets messy. I don't like messy When he sits by me he grabs my silverware then it's sticky and I have to go wash it, he touches my arm and then it's sticky, he grabs my shirt and well you get the idea, etc... Carter also eats better for dh. She continued to scoot over and set him up next to us. And so I scooted over and tried to stay clear of his grubby little hands I am not exactly sure of how it happened, but suddenly his plate went flying and his food went flying towards my friend. And one of his noodles ended up landing on her face and the food was everywhere. Luckily it wasn't our new guests, because we laughed and laughed. I being the good host that I am said, " I tried to tell you to have him sit by dh, you should have listened to me".LOL I am very experienced in the disasters that can occur during a meal. I can't say I didn't warn her.
On Sunday we went to a Bible study that meets not too far from our house. Jeff had gone last week with the boys. This time we all went. We all had a great time. I usually get very nervous about going to new places, but I quickly felt very comfortable. The kids couldn't have had more fun.
Yesterday we did nothing exciting.
Today my Mom,the kids and I went to my sil and brother's house. They live about 45 minutes from us. Then just as we were about to eat. Carter hit his face and we ended up at the ER for over 2 hrs. I was praying he didn't need stitches. Praise God he only needed to be glued back together.
:>Michelle
I have been watching my comment count for a while now. I saw someone mentioning theirs and checked mine. At the time I was in the 900's. And today I received my 1000th comment. I wanted to announce that I will be giving a prize, but I wanted it to be totally random.
The funny thing is that the person who left comment number 1000 is my SIL Anna. I will have to find her something and just give it to her. I don't have to wonder if the person will like it, wrap it, take it to the post office, and wait to hear if it arrived. Nope. I just have to stop by her house and hand it to her. In fact I was just there today and was able to hold their new baby. She was so cute and cuddly. You can stop here to see her too. I wish I could tell you her name, it is very pretty and cool.
:>Michelle
I am never going to wash my kitchen floor again. We have been here almost a year and I have never got down on my hands and knees and cleaned it. I have used the Swifter, but not on my hands and knees. Now before you all think I am gross. My husband washes the floor often. In our marriage it kind of became his thing to do. I have spent most of our marriage pregnant and so I couldn't.
OK, back to why I am never going to wash my floor again.
I decided Saturday that I should really scrub the floor and lower cabinets. That night the kids were taking their plates to the sink. Well Kiley was mad about something and slammed her plate, which made it flip out,of course. She was supposed to empty it in the garbage first,which she didn't. There was chicken, buttered corn, apple sauce, and sour cream, all over the cabinets and the floor. Then the next morning I pour Bailey a cup of orange juice and she dropped the cup. Orange juice was all over the floor and cabinets. Then tonight one of the boys ran into the other boy while he was carrying his dinner plate. He dropped his plateful of food on his way to eat at the table all over the floor. AAAAHHHHH That makes 3 major spills on the floor. While Jeff was cleaning it up, he asked me to not clean the floor again. He said it seemed like ever since I cleaned it, things keep spilling. LOL I told him I was thinking the same thing and that I guess the floor will have to be his job forever".lol We don't want to risk more things spilling.
Thanks kids
:>Michelle
We were very undecided about our vacation. We had to do something fairly close, since gas is $4 a gallon. It was actually $4.02 when we returned home. We decided on St Louis, it is only about 300 miles away. We also found a variety of free and almost free things to do. We had lots of fun and I was excited to take my kids to things I did as a kid. We went up inside the Arch at St Louis. They put you in a small tram or as I called it a coffin. It barely fit 5 people so the 7 of us was a real squeeze. I am very claustrophobic and so I was starting to panic as are turn was getting closer. Jeff was very good about keeping me calm. I also kept distracted with the kids as we went up 634 ft in the air. It was also VERY windy and so the arch was swaying, something we didn't realize until we were up inside. It was like being on a ship, but without water . It was actually very fun and neat to see. The kids thought it was very cool!
Here are some pictures: These are the tiny windows you look out. If you look really close you can see the windows in this picture. It is that line of tiny rectangles directly above the word can in the first sentence. Here is what we saw outside one of the windows.
We also took some picture outside. The crazy wind made Carter's hair so funny. Here is me at 6 yrs old with my brother (this is his wife's blog) and cousins visiting the Arch in 1982. My hair is so long in this picture.
And no trip would be complete without a little attitude. LOL We had lots of fun and many memories. Vacation to be continued....
:>Michelle
May. 9, 2008 - Allergies and More Spring Surprises
I have had more Spring surprises this week. I am really glad we moved in this house the middle of Summer, because it is really making this Spring fun. Our tulips are dead and gone. They sure don't last long enough. Our tree on our driveway, started little pink flowers. Then about 2 weeks later it bloomed. Here is a close up. Anybody know what it's called? I don't, so this isn't a contest or anything, I am just curious.
But there is a price to pay for all the beauty that surrounds us. ALLERGIES. I am not talking about the ones I have had most of my life during Spring and Fall that are just annoying. I am talking about allergies that knock you out! They make your eyes water, nose stuffy,sneeze excessively, itchy throats and sleepiness etc... times 10. Living out here in the country has made this by far my worse allergy season. But at least while my eyes are watering I get to see pretty trees, flowers, birds, and fields preparing for planting. Here they are planting our cucumber plants and zucchini.
I can't wait to see what will be blooming and changing next. I went and bought some of the vegetable plants for my garden today. I did plant some myself in cups, but not all of them. Now I need it to warm up so I can get them in the ground
:>Michelle
Today was suppose to be cold and rainy and yipppeee the weather people were wrong again. It was sunny and around 65. When we got home from Bailey's piano lesson we went outside to work. I am still trying to clear that area for our garden. I have tons of plants popping up and I am not sure what is weeds and what is potential flowers for some of them. Remember when I was putting hostas up in the front of the house before. Well when they actually grew I realized they weren't hostas. Now I am not sure what they are. I am thinking day lilies or daisies??? There are a few hostas there I didn't plant, but I am leaving them. I saw the gardening for dummies book at a garage sale, I think I should have bought it
Here is how they look now.
We had a nice surprise of beautiful tulips in the front of our house. The previous owners told us they would be here in the Spring. I didn't know they would be so pretty. I wish they stayed all Summer. Here is a little closer. and closer.
I also worked on the front corner of our house. It was full of dead leaves and weeds. I wish I had taken a before picture. Jeff is getting some new boards to frame it out, but I filled it in with plants. The boys helped a lot. Here is what we have so far.
Then we also took a Lilac bush from the garden area and planted it on the side of the yard with some other bushes. Collin and I used the wagon to bring it to the spot. Cameron was helping with digging too. Collin bringing it to where it goes. I am hoping it will be ok. It looked pretty bad after we moved it. We gave it some water, so maybe by morning it will be lively again.
I wonder how big it will get, and how big Carter will get too.
We may have to retake this picture each year
I am so happy it's Spring!!!!
:>Michelle
Today was Jeff's birthday and so the kids were very excited all day. He is almost 9 years older than me, so I always feel so young on his birthday. I am currently the same age he was when we met. It's kind of weird, because I thought he was so much older. But now that I am here, it's still young.lol...I think. It's all so relative. Ask a kid and I am old, ask a Grandma and I am a kid. Interesting, don't you think.
Cameron and I went out last night and picked up a few things for him. Jeff and I have decided our new home,computer, and some furniture can be our gifts for at least a year maybe more, so we only get small things. Cameron had fun choosing his favorite candy and snacks to give him. They wanted to wrap the gifts. Because I am cheap, I mean wise with our finances, I had to get creative. I couldn't find any birthday wrapping paper around the house, just bags, so we used Christmas paper backwards. I gave the kids stickers and they had so much fun. They thought it was a great idea So my tip for the day is if you need to wrap a gift use paper bags or Christmas paper backwards and have the kids decorate with markers or stickers. LOL
Here are some pictures of their fine work. Kiley didn't really appreciate Collin diving in front of her. She asked me to take another one.
These next couple are the boys in their Easter outfits. Bailey kept telling them they looked like little business men. They thought that was cool. Carter saw us taking pictures and wanted in on the action.
Laura aka Duckygirl is having a SUPER contest. All you have to do is guess when her baby will be born. If you want to take a guess go HERE . She is due next week.
Thanks Laura!
:>Michelle
I am so in love with Jesus and am seeking to know Him more each day. I am a wife to Jeff and Mommy to 5 children (Bailey 7, Cameron & Collin 6, Kiley 4, and Carter 2). My house is often crazy, but always full of love. This blog is a story of my adventures, God's mercy and grace in my life, and funny days that aren't always very funny at first.
It was pretty fun, although it got heavy after a while. I didn't take any pictures since some of the bushes were a bit lopsided
and looking at bushes isn't very fun. Unless maybe I could make bush sculptures..that could be fun. LOL I am not sure I will be allowed to use that trimmer thingy again when Jeff gets a good look at the bushes.hahahaaaa 
In the right corner of this picture is some sort of tree that keeps growing. To it's right is our cucumbers then tomato plants. 
This end has teddy bear pumpkins, green beans, and there are green pepper, and a zucchini plant. farther down.
Some Hostas popped up in there that I didn't plant. I will be transplanting those to another place soon. And don't mind the sidewalk I was weeding and hadn't swept yet.
He looked so cute.
Actually it's a Salami smile.
Here they are at the rehearsal on Friday.
Here are the girls with Ms Polly. She is the mother of the bride. She is the sweetest lady. She LOVES my kids. And we love her. Their family is from our church and we have become friends with them all. 
Kiley was a bit nervous about the photographer. I offered her a Pepsi if she would smile for this picture. She did and he took the pictures. I am glad she didn't hold me to it, since there was no Pepsi. oops A Mom has to do what Mom has to do;) I am not above bribing for big things.
Kiley was a bit shy with all the oooohh! and aaaaah's as they came down the aisle. 
And here are the Bride and Groom.
You can see the bucket in the cabinet that he near emptied and the "safety" lock that couldn't stop him
:>Michelle
AAAHHHHH!!! We have it in a butterfly net now.
I guess even when school is "officially" out we just keep learning
:>Michelle
I am not exactly sure of how it happened, but suddenly his plate went flying and his food went flying towards my friend. And one of his noodles ended up landing on her face and the food was everywhere.
Luckily it wasn't our new guests, because we laughed and laughed. I being the good host that I am said, " I tried to tell you to have him sit by dh, you should have listened to me".LOL I am very experienced in the disasters that can occur during a meal. I can't say I didn't warn her. 
. We decided on St Louis, it is only about 300 miles away. We also found a variety of free and almost free things to do. We had lots of fun and I was excited to take my kids to things I did as a kid. We went up inside the 
These are the tiny windows you look out.
If you look really close you can see the windows in this picture. It is that line of tiny rectangles directly above the word can in the first sentence.
Here is what we saw outside one of the windows.
The crazy wind made Carter's hair so funny.
Here is me at 6 yrs old with my 
Here is a close up. Anybody know what it's called? I don't, so this isn't a contest or anything, I am just curious.
Here they are planting our cucumber plants and zucchini.
Here is a little closer.
and closer.
Collin bringing it to where it goes.
I am hoping it will be ok. It looked pretty bad after we moved it. We gave it some water, so maybe by morning it will be lively again. 
Kiley didn't really appreciate Collin diving in front of her.
She asked me to take another one.
Carter saw us taking pictures and wanted in on the action.
