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Now for my daybook…. To participate in the meme is simple. All you do is answer the bolded questions with your own answers and then link yourself at the Simple Woman’s blog each week. You’re always welcome to check out the other ladies’ Daybooks who participated. This is a very sweet homekeeping meme that I’d encourage you to do as well.

For Today…January 9, 2009 2:09 p.m.

Outside my Window…All is quiet other than a slight breeze blowing the Rose of Sharon outside my window. 

I am thinking…I need to round up my scattered (figuratively speaking) kids and get back to school.

From the learning rooms…we had finished spelling and math this morning before lunch.

I am thankful for…good friends and a loving family.

From the kitchen…absolutely nothing.  We need to return to the kitchen and maybe read some history together.

I am wearing…an orange top, brown fleece jacket, blue jean skirt.

I am reading…Created to Be His Help Meet--Debi Pearl

I am hoping… we get more snow.  Yippee! 

I am creating…a few baby blankets.  We are expecting at least 3 new babies at church within 6 months or less.

I am hearing... the dog scratching at the garage door.  He slipped out to the garage when I was throwing something away and now he wants back in.

Around the house…Denny and Grace are playing in the basement, Hannah and Rebekah are upstairs--probably listening to books on tape or CD.

One of my favorite things… spending far too much time on Facebook.

I am praying for... my friend Kim who had to have their 14 y/o Rottweiler put down today.  The dog had cancer and would have lived on another 7 days at best.

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week….school this afternoon.  "Game night" with the kids tonight.  Watching Beethoven's Big Break with the kids on Saturday night.

I accomplished since last week…not a lot other than packing away Christmas decorations and a trip to Creation Museum.

Here is a picture thought I am sharing with you:

I don't know where the picture came from.  Paul had it on our computer somewhere.

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Assignment: This week please post what your planned homeschool routine is.

This is my turn to opt out.  I covered our schedule pretty thoroughly last week. :)

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Okay, I am ashamed that it took me an entire Friday evening to make this happen.  The problem was that I wasn't familiar with the "media" and had to learn as I went.  I believe this is my fifth try (I kept going b/c I had invested so much time into it and I was determined then to finish.  I believe I shall call it "perserverance!"--My luck is that I spelled that wrong but since I have had so much time put into this project, I'm not in the mood to check my spelling!).  So with credit given to Lalaith for giving me the idea and some instruction on how to make this happen:

1. Milo, 2. Dizzyingly Delicious Kababs..., 3. Timken Senior High School Main Building (there is a whole campus), 4. gotcha, 5. Noah Wyle goes for a stroll through the streets of NYC’s West Village on Tuesday with his wife and children=., 6. the way I start my day, 7. Shores on the road to Hope, 8. coffee and chocolate mousse cake, 9. pink and green, 10. Life Passes By, 11. a family dinner, 12. Untitled

Here's what you do.

a. Type your answer to each of the questions below into Flickr Search.
b. Using only the first page, pick an image.
c. Copy and paste each of the URLs for the images into fd's mosaic maker. Choose 3 columns with 4 rows.

The Questions:

1. What is your first name? Carolyn
2. What is your favorite food? Indian food
3. What high school did you go to? (or, What year did you graduate high school?) Timken Senior High
4. What is your favorite color? lime green
5. Who is your celebrity crush? Noah Wyle
6. Favorite drink? Chai latte
7. Dream vacation? Alaska
8. Favorite dessert? chocolate

9. What you want to be when you grow up? doula
10. What do you love most in life? Jesus

11. One Word to describe you: mom
12. Your flickr name. (kid version: favorite animal?)cj

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To participate in the meme is simple. All you do is answer the bolded questions with your own answers and then link yourself at the Simple Woman’s blog each week.

FOR TODAY...September 4, 2008

Outside My Window... the cicadas are singing.  The goldfinches are eating the seeds from the flowers planted around the deck.  The tomato plants have grown into a jungle.

I am thinking... that my tomato sandwich is quite yummy!  I'm so glad I planted so many tomato plants this year!

I am thankful for... my family.  I can't imagine what life would be like without a single one.

From the kitchen... I hear Grace rooting for a spoon--wonder what she is up to--oh, chocolate milk, I should have known.  Doesn't everyone drink chocolate milk with a spoon?

I am wearing... my favorite clothes--lime green t-shirt and denium skirt.

I am creating... homemade sloppy joes per request of my oldest.

I am going... to visit a member of our church who won't we with us much longer.

I am reading... Revolutionary War books with the kids.

I am hoping... that Paul gets to feeling better soon.

I am hearing... Denny rooting around in a bookshelf looking for something.

Around the house... Hannah is getting ready to study with a friend.  Rebekah and Grace are watching a movie about a composer.

One of my favorite things... my downy pillow.

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week: school, thankfully this week is not going to be crazy as last week was.

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One of my pastor's favorite sayings is "God is good all the time, all the time God is good!"  Today I felt His goodness.  I had been dreading today because I knew it would be one of those busy days.  If one thing would go awry the whole day could go downhill pretty fast. 

I had an appointment for my Mom scheduled with her surgeon concerning her knee surgery.  I scheduled it for the afternoon (to allow time for school in the morning) but with enough time to get her home and get Hannah to her piano lesson.  That was until last week when Dad's dermatologist determined that Dad needed allergy testing and we could either do it this week or have to wait until mid-September.  Dad has really had a time with his skin as of late so I decided sooner was better than later.  He had to be to the dermatologist Monday, Wednesday, Friday.  Even worse it was going to have to be at the not-so-nice, have to park really far from the building, doctor's office.  I had Monday scheduled, not a problem, Wednesday I had to squeeze his visit between Mom's knee appointment and Hannah's piano lesson.

I prayed for God's help to get through today--good thing to start off with in the day! We carried on with morning schoolwork, cleaned that up and prepared lunch.  Lunch was uneventful, thankfully, and loaded up for the afternoon.  I was sure to pack Hannah's piano books because it was highly unlikely we would be back home until after the lesson.  We picked up Mom and Dad, I arrived at Mom's appt., that was for 1:10 p.m., by about 1 p.m.  Good, I thought, I might be able to get her in and be out early so that I could get Dad in early so that I wouldn't have to sweat the time factor for getting Hannah to piano.  I scan the lobby, not so good, there was a whole lot of folks there.  I check the roster that you sign when you come in, there were at least 3 other patients to see the same doctor and their names weren't crossed off yet.  Bummer.  I sit down and knit like a mad woman, knitting is one of my therapies to cope. :)  They don't call us back until 1:35.  Ugh, but they called her back within my necessary time-frame.  I was already calculating in my head what my options were.  I was thinking of how I might have to leave Mom there and take Dad to his appointment and come back to get her.  There was also the little problem of the bridge being out between the hospital for her appointment and the hospital for his.  I didn't even have to say a thing to the Dr. about us being on a time crunch.  He examined her walking, asked her a couple of questions and released her until next year.  Whew!  Out the door we went to pile back in the van and on to our next destination.

As I had said the parking lot is far from the building for this Dr., I usually have to drop Mom and the kids off at the door and go park.  I was a bit concerned about that when I pulled in the parking lot and I drove slowly by the handicapped spaces (Mom and Dad qualify for one of those handicap placards) and someone was pulling out of one of those spaces just as I was coming by!  Thank you Lord! Grace fell asleep on the way to this appointment.  I told Mom and Denny to wait in the van and I rushed Dad and the other girls to Dad's 2 p.m. appt.  I was 10 minutes late but it wouldn't have mattered.  The lobby at this Dr.'s office is pretty spacious as lobbies go (I'm quite the judge on the quality of Dr. office lobbies!) and it was packed!  Literally every seat was filled and the rest of us was left standing.  I told the receptionist that we had yet one more appointment and whether it would be better for us to come back.  I was praying, please Lord, call him back.  Again, I calculated how long I could wait before I would have to leave Dad here and come back and get him after the lesson.  Just then, they called Dad back! 

I got to see the type of skin testing they were doing on him.  One spot of the possible 20 or so allergens was already raised up and pink--it looked like a mosquito bite.  I asked the nurse which allergen it was and it turned out to be fragrances.  I will have to ask the Dr. what that actually means--if it is fragrances that touch his skin or even if he is in the room with it.  Boy, that is a lot of things for him to avoid.  I'll be interested to see the final results.  He didn't need to be seen by the Dr. so we scurry back out of the building and into the van again.

We hop of the highway, make it to Mom and Dad's, drop them off and actually make it on-time (Hannah said "Actually a little early") to a 3 o'clock piano lesson which was not in close-proximity to the doctor offices! 

It was just evident to me that God cares about the littlest details of our lives.  He cares if you have to be somewhere at a particular time.  He cares if you really need a good parking space.  He is not a genie in a bottle, don't get me wrong, but He is sensitive to our needs.  He knew I needed His help to get through today.  I need His help to get through everyday but today was especially daunting.  He is good.  His mercy endureth forever.  He loves me.  What more could I ask for?

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Posted in Homeschool Memoirs Writing Assignments

The Assignment: This week, we want to hear about YOU. The author behind the words. The Momma behind all the homeschooling kiddos. Just write up something about you, your family, and your home. How long you’ve been homeschooling and why you decided to homeschool. It doesn’t have to be anything lengthy at all, but we’d love to hear it! You might include a family photo too!

Where to start?  I grew up in Canton, OH.  I went to public schools there which at the time wasn't too bad.  I remember in 3rd grade that not only did we recite the Pledge of Alligence but also recited the Model Prayer (a.k.a. The Lord's Prayer).  I did deal with stuff from other kids though.  I wasn't "popular"--we didn't have much money, I was "chubby" to say the least and my parents were as old as many of the kids' grandparents.  I was different in so many ways that it encouraged others to pick at me.  I did well in school because of my wonderful teachers.  I liked doing well because I received positive reinforcement from them.  I beamed at open houses and conferences because I enjoyed hearing the teachers say good things about me.  I was getting plenty of negative attention from the students but I was getting my emotional needs met from the teachers.  Because I did do well in school and was liked by the teachers (it didn't take much--they appreciated when someone would work hard and be polite), I had yet another reason for the other kids to hassle me.  No one liked a "teacher's pet" but that was the very thing I wanted to be.

My parents didn't have a high school diploma so I was first to achieve that.  I also went on to college which was a first for our home.  I remember vividly when I graduated high school and was going on to college, how fast the time at home with my parents had went by and how once I left it would never be the same.

I chose only one college to apply to, the one I was at for a leadership conference a year or two before I graduated from high school.  I remember at the orientation meeting for the freshman class.  The speaker had said to look around us that many of us would find our mate while at college and they may be sitting in that very room.  My life's love was there.  I met Paul our freshman year at homecoming.  My best friend had introduced us.  About a year later we were dating, and 4 years (almost to the day) of when we met, we married.

We had our first child about 2 and half years after we married.  I never really thought about how we would educate her.  I did decide to stay home from work when she was born but I hadn't thought much past that.  I was at a ladies' Bible Study when I met the lady who gave me reason to consider homeschooling.  I even asked her the question "What about socialization?"--boy was I a product of the "system."  I met her family and was incredibly impressed by the behavior of her 6 children.  I was convinced, homeschooling was the way for us!

I truly don't think the decision to homeschool came about that one day at the ladies meeting.  I think that God weaves our lives together like a tapestry.  I think the experiences I had in my childhood, the man I married, the area I live in, just every detail of my life has been carefully orchestrated by my Creator and that He uses those things to steer our lives.  For me homeschooling is a deep conviction.  I feel like Jeremiah, homeschooling is more or less a fire "shut up in my bones."  I think I would go crazy sending my kids off to school.  My 9 year old seems to understand, she likened me watching the kids learn to read and write to watching them take their first steps--that it was something so special that I wouldn't want to miss it.  I wouldn't want someone else to get to have that special memory.  She is so right.  There are days that are trying and I realize that I need to spend more time in prayer, asking for God's guidance and wisdom in teaching them.  I sometimes try to do things in my own power and that is doing things the hard way that's for sure!  I try to live my life with no regrets.  I think that if I didn't try my very best at homeschooling my children that there would be a day, probably when it was time for them to move on and start their own home, that I would regret that I didn't spend my time pouring myself into them--savoring every moment I can because their childhood flies by so fast. 

Here's our family:

My loving husband and best friend:

This is my youngest and me at the border of Alabama and Florida--the picture was taken at the end of February so we were freezing!

This is my oldest, Hannah, she is a bookworm and is the practical one in the family.  She enjoys volleyball and swimming.  She has always wanted to be a missionary.  She plays piano and is very artistic.

This is my second born, Rebekah, she is high-spirited and sweet.  She is the one in the family who is the caretaker.  If you are not feeling well or need extra help like Grandma does, she is there first to lend a hand.  She is learning how to play flute (which if anyone hears of one for sale, let us know!).  She will be a great wife and mother one day.

This is our one and only boy, Denny (his real name is Paul but there isn't any good nicknames for the youngest Paul in the house).  He is lively and all-boy.  He loves every sport and tries to play them all at the same time (right now he is bouncing around in my living room trying to play tennis with a paddle ball and paddle--all by himself--he plays both sides!).  He is secure enough in his man-hood to like pink--one of the side effects of having 3 sisters.  He hopes to play guitar one day--I've got to be on the look out for one of those too!

This is our baby, Grace.  She is 2 1/2 and quite the charmer.  She has several of the ushers at church quite smitten with her--they all vie for her attention.  She keeps us all company and loves to be read to.

I'd show you pictures of our pets (although you have already met our dog Quincy) but I don't have pictures of each of them on the computer yet.  I will try to do that soon and make an entry of just our pets.  Until then, we have one dog: Quincy, 2 cats: Pumpkin and George, and one teddy bear hamster: Road Runner Houdini.

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We started "school" this week since our school system was to start yesterday.  We never really took a break this summer since our vacation was a long field trip and all of the kids participated in the reading program at the library.  We were able to make to a few Metro Park activities and threw in a session of swim lessons so it all rounded out pretty well.

I decided we would revamp our schedule and see if we could do better with school this year.  A big hindrance for us is my parents' many doctor visits, I needed to find a way to get the important stuff done everyday--even the days when we would be gone half of the day.

I'm trying to start with the kids at 8:30 a.m. (prior to that I take care of "my stuff" like walking the dog, taking a shower, that sort of thing).  We start out with reading the Bible.  At 9 a.m. I start Saxon math with Rebekah while Hannah works on her various independent work.  Denny and Grace play during this time or I work with Denny on some things on the side. 

At 10:00 I work on spelling with Rebekah.  Spelling Power was not working for her at all last year.  She kept missing the same words over and over again even when we did the 10 step studying.  She seems to be doing much better with Sequential Spelling.  I like that she makes an attempt at the word and while it is still fresh in her mind, we review the word.  If it is right--great, if it is wrong I tell her the correct spelling and she writes it down.  That provides some extra practice on the word.  I also like that it deals with words that are related in some way.  She had agree yesterday.  She missed it so we worked on the right spelling.  The next word was disagree.  She knows how to spell 'dis' so she was able to use it and agree to get the word spelled right. 

At 10:30 Rebekah works on copy work (we are using Queen Homeschool's copywork for girls).  At this time I work on Hannah's spelling.  Hannah is doing great with Spelling Power so that is what we use for her.  She enjoys competition so I plan to start mixing in words from the National Spelling Bee booklet in case she decides to participate in the Spelling Bee in January.

At 11 a.m. Rebekah works on phonics--Explode the Code is still my all-time favorite.  I was practically given some Abeka Language Arts materials.  Hannah has been using them for the past 2 years but Explode the Code is much better for Rebekah.  At this time I work with Denny on his Saxon Math and Saxon Phonics.

11:30 we put all of the school stuff back and start setting up for lunch. 

1 p.m. We get back to the books or we leave for various appointments we may have.  So far we have gym on Tuesdays at 1:30 p.m. so I know we will have that on the schedule.  Otherwise if we are home we spend the afternoon covering a few of various subjects such as History, reading a biography, Science, science experiments, English From the Roots Up, flashcards, instrument practice,  or whatever else we need to fit into our schedule.

At least this is the plan so far--it has worked pretty well this week--I certainly have been less stressed by us getting math out of the way first thing in the day.

Hope everyone is having a good start to their year!    

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While walking my dog this morning I thought it would be fun to tell you about our newest family member.  He has been with us a year as of July 20th.  He turned a year old April 18th.  It was hard for us to decide to get a dog.  We had our hands full with little ones so getting a dog seemed out of the question.  When Denny wasn't able to get a brother to rough around with we thought maybe a dog would be a good idea.  We could have gotten a dachund for free but I was afraid that it would get hurt in our house.  I thought about Jack Russel terriers (I love Wishbone) but it still isn't quite the right size for our brood.  I found out from a friend about a homeschool family not too far away that had bred their Golden Retriever with a Poodle and therefore had the very trendy (and expensive) Golden Doodles.  I was sold on the fact that they are hypo-allergenic (at least that is what they think) and Golden Retrievers have a good reputation with kids.

We decide to go see the one last pup this family had.  He kind of looked gangly.  He was 3 months old and was going through his "awkward, teenage years."  We loved him anyway and after a couple days of praying about it we figured he'd be our new pet.  The tricky part was that even though he was only 3 months old he was huge!  When I heard a cross between a Golden Retriever and Poodle--I thought little poodle.  I didn't think of a poodle that is 3 foot tall at the shoulders!  At least he would be durable and able to tolerate all of the loving the kids was going to give him.

We had to come up with a name.  Since it was July we thought a patriotic name would be appropriate.  We already have a George in the house--our cat.  It didn't take us very long to settle on Quincy--a cool patriotic name.

It was funny when I took him to the vet for the first time.  We go to an old country vet--he is down to earth and sweet in a farmer sort of way.  He takes one look at the dog and asks--"How old is he?"  I reply, "Three months the 18th."  "Are you sure?"  "Yes, in fact he is losing his baby teeth."  The poor dog already was the size of most full grown dogs.

During that same visit he had been in the waiting room seated close to Grace in her stroller.  Another dog leaned in to sniff at Grace's shoe.  Quincy growled a low growl.  The owner said "Oh, look at that! He is protecting his owner!"  I was impressed and his value went up a whole lot, part of why I wanted a dog was for him to look out for my little ones when they are playing.  He also has been great when Paul travels, I don't have to lay in bed wondering if I heard something downstairs.  If Quincy is sleeping, I know it is safe for me to be sleeping.  He has been also quite useful when door to door salespeople come to the door. Quincy is a bit intimidating and they step back when Quincy and I answer the door.

He's been a great pet (other than the little incident of chewing the cable wire the day before the championship football game that Mt. Union was playing--it was snowing like crazy that day so Time Warner Cable pretty much laughed at us when we called for them to repair the line.  Paul was able to patch the line with electrical tape but Quincy just about had to find a new home that day.) 

Quincy is the only one in this house who is happy to see me at 7 a.m. and willing to go for a walk in our neighborhood when it is only 10 degrees out!  He walks with me everyday.  He keeps me honest, I can't skip a day b/c he will follow me all over the house wiggling and wagging excited that I'm up.  If I'm up in the morning, he assumes I'm up to take him for a walk.  Well, he is partly right, I get up to walk him every day b/c I know he is downstairs waiting for me to take him out.  It is our little morning ritual.  It gets me good exercise and time to pray and reflect on my day and it gets a little of his energy burned off.  Like I often say, "Boys and dogs are meant to be outside."  He has been a great protector and he has been a buddy for Denny.  They wear each other out.  Quincy is obsessive compulsive about tennis balls so we can easily wear him out by throwing them out in the yard for him.  He aerates the grass at the same time but Paul doesn't buy that.     He fertilizes the grass too but that is a different story altogether. 

He's a good dog and I'm thankful we have him.  Here is some of my fav pics of our "lil" guy.

 This is Rebekah with Quincy when we first got him in July 2007.  That is a three month old puppy sitting beside an eight year old girl. :)

Hannah with Quincy in December.

Grace with Quincy in December.

My all-time favorite picture of Quincy.  He was catching a snowball that the kids were throwing.  They didn't start out throwing snowballs at him but when they were throwing them at each other they realized that Quincy wanted in on the action.  They started tossing them to him.  I couldn't believe I was able to catch this shot considering how bad the delay is on our digital camera.

For those of you that play tennis, Quincy would love a donation of "flat" tennis balls.  I guess that is what the tennis folks call the balls when they are no longer good for tennis.  We were at a park last summer and saw a guy actually throwing away a whole bag of tennis balls.  I was apalled when I realized how happy my pooch would be with those balls that he was throwing away.  He was kind enough to give the ones he hadn't thrown away yet to me for my dog.  We were able to "recycle" what someone else saw as just garbage.  See, it was my "green" moment.  LOL

Thanks for reading about my poochie.  I do enjoy him although I thought for a good number of years I could never come to love another dog after my childhood dog, Spanky, died.  I'm glad too that our kids will have great childhood memories of their dog like I do of mine.

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Thankfully Rebekah had a wonderful day today!  She is feeling so much better and it doesn't even seem possible that she was as sick as she was yesterday.

When she took a nap last evening I decided to make some awesome oatmeal cookies!  I substituted 1/2 c. of the flour with ground flax seeds.  I made sure the cup of flour I did use was whole wheat flour.  And I added a whole lot of raisins to the cookie mix.  These were some fiber rich cookies, I tell you.  There's a problem.  I have four kids.  Three of my kids already eat a lot of fiber--they just tend to gravitate to oatmeal, raisins, fresh apples, etc.  One child doesn't gravitate but repels fiber, hence the need for me to make some powerful oatmeal cookies.  The three kids who love fiber just so happened to love my oatmeal cookies.  The one who needs the fiber, she ate the cookies but purposely removed all the raisins from her cookie.  One of my three fiber-filled children exploded today.  Bad.  Down the leg bad.  Not good.  He doesn't need fiber.  Just thought I would share.  Isn't it interesting how life happens?  Hope this thought, this pondering of mine "to fiber or not to fiber" gives you a chuckle.  Be happy you didn't have to clean that one up or do my laundry today! 

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Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.
My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.
He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound's the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.
The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.

ROAD LESS TRAVELED

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth

Then took the other as just as fair
And having perhaps the better claim
Because it was grassy and wanted wear
Though as for that, the passing there
Had worn them really about the same

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet, knowing how way leads onto way
I doubted if I should ever come back

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence
Two roads diverged in a wood
And I took the one less traveled by
And that has made all the difference


Robert Frost

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there'd be days like this my mama said.

Or a week of days like this.  It has been a tough week.  The kids had their first swim class in 3 years on Monday--not bad.  Only bad thing was that I didn't know where the towels needed to be for all 4 of the kids--who were in 4 different parts of a fairly big pool complex--so poor Denny was shivering. A lifeguard had mercy on him and shared his towel with him until I got over to him.  It is a LONG walk around the pool when you are trying to hurry but not run!

Rebekah seemed to be cold but I didn't think much of it b/c her hair was wet and we went from a fairly cool water place to air-conditioned van to air-conditioned house.  We ate a fast lunch b/c we needed to go get my mom.  We drive over to the nursing home, I go in and sign paperwork promising to bring my mother back in one piece, and get her gingerly into the van.  I drive to Kettering Hospital.  I'm taking her to the orthopedic surgeon that I have taken her to for at least a dozen appointments over the past 2 years and what do I do?  I park in the wrong parking lot!  I'm running a bit late so I know that since I had gotten everyone out of the van and in through the horrid spinning revolving door that they have--who EVER thought that it was a good idea to put that at a hospital??!!--that it would take me longer to get everyone back into the van, put the walker back into the back, buckle Grace back in her carseat to drive back to Southern Blvd., down a block, up by Emergency, into the parking garage, push the little button, wait on someone to answer, tell them I'm there to see Dr. Ames, then wait for the gate to go up, then park the van, get everyone out, grab the walker, help Mom out  of the van, walk in the door, up the hallway, etc., etc.  I knew we'd be later than if we just trek over to the other building and to the Dr.'s appt.  But, that entailed walking past surgery waiting area, through the main lobby area, down a hallway, through the emergency area and out the door, across a drive way, into the Boonshoft building, up a floor in the elevator, then up the hallway (why exactly did they put an uphill ramp and long hallway to get to an orthopedic office anyway??).  By the time we got to the main lobby Mom was tiring out.  I don't blame her.  I was tired too.  Not physically, mentally.  I knew I needed to get her safely to the appointment and go get the van and park it in the correct place.  But I digress (how do you spell that again?).  A KMC employee saw that we were having a tough time and I asked for a wheelchair for Mom.  She flagged down a volunteer and we had Mom off her feet and on her way to the appt.  We got there just about 15 minutes late but just in time to go right back.  (After Denny and Grace had to take a potty break.)  They take the staples out from her knee replacement surgery (second knee done on July 15th), I try to keep Denny, Grace and Rebekah quiet and out of the way.  Mom has an x-ray and the Dr.  releases her to go back to the nursing home (where she is getting physical therapy).

I park Mom and three out of 4 kids in the lobby and run with Grace all the way back to where I erronously (I know I'm butchering spelling today but I'm too tired to care) had parked the van.  I locked Grace in her carseat and drive to the right parking garage.  I get out, get the kids and Mom, take Mom back to Miamisburg, get her checked in and the first thing everyone asks is "When did the Dr. say she could go home?"  Well, I don't know.  He didn't say and I had been too flustered to ask.  I go back to Mom's room and settle her in.  I call the Dr.'s office about 3 times before I get to talk to someone who could help me.  The new problem is that the Dr. is in with a patient and they'd have to call us back.  I notice that Rebekah is now laying on Mom's bed and she's pleading to go home.  I tell Mom that I'd let her know what the Dr. says and leave.

I get home and I have a voice mail from Mom & Dad's home health care nurse.  She said that Dad has a rash the size of a football on his side and that he'd probably wouldn't tell me.  Great, he had just been to the dermatologist less than 2 weeks ago and his Dr. said he was doing wonderful and not to worry about coming back for 6 months to a year unless something comes up.  Here it was.  I called the Dr.'s office--get him signed up for Thursday morning.  Called Dad to tell him about his Dr.'s appt and for him to let me know if by chance it would go away before Thursday.  I call Mom & Dad's nurse and she seems pretty matter of fact, and I let her know that Dad has an appointment and to call me when she saw him on Thursday morning (before the appt.) and let me know how the rash is doing.

By this point, I'm feeling very, very fried.

Tuesday, I had to be over at Kingston (the nursing home) to have a visit with all of Mom's health care workers so we can discuss her progress.  It went well, she's doing well.  They disappointed her by saying she is to stay there until Saturday.  She was counting on going home the next day (Wednesday).  I was able to share my concerns in her physical therapy after she gets home.  They said they would take care of that and we had a game plan in place.  We go back to her room and she is kind of quiet--I think she is a bit irritated with the meeting.  Rebekah is still not feeling 100% so we go home.

Wednesday went pretty well.  Hannah had her piano lesson.  Denny was promoted in his swim class.  I was able to get some really *AWESOME* books from a garage sale of a former homeschool mom.  Rebekah spiked another fever in the afternoon and she is getting a growing-worse pain in her abdomen.  I wait until after I put Grace to bed and then sneak out by myself to take Mom her laundry.  She must have been lonely b/c she really wanted to talk.  About 9:30 p.m. I had to get home.  We had had friends who deal in HVAC take a look at our furnace earlier and we have issues that Paul and I needed to tend to before we went to bed.

Thursday, I had already talked to Dad yesterday and knew his rash was still there.  The Home Health Care nurse (Mary) called and said he still had his rash.  No surprise.  I get everyone up, dressed, fed and into the van.  I pick up Dad, get him to the Dr.'s.  We wait 45 MINUTES to be called back--grrrrrrrrrrr.  Yes, I did go up to the window and inquire about the wait.  I was told they were running a little (understatement) behind and that Dad was next to be called in.  Rebekah, Denny and Grace go back with Dad and I when he is called.  The Dr. brings in a medical student so the small exam room is beginning to look like a volkswagon!  I see Dad's rash for the first time.  Ugh!  It is huge and it is angry.  Bright hot pink and wet.  Great.  I had quizzed Dad about what he had been using on it but of course he can't remember the name of it.  The Dr. said it was a definite allergic reaction--much like poison ivy--and that we needed one medication to dry it up and one medication to calm the reaction.  He then said about having someone to check it every day for signs of infection and someone  to go to his apartment and see what he used on that area that made it so inflamed.  We reviewed the plan of care, said thank you and filed all of us back out of the room.  The kids see stickers so of course we have to stop and get one for the three youngest.  I know, they weren't the patients but they qualify in my book.  Boy, not only am I learning patience with all of these Dr. visits but so are they!  We get to the lobby and I realize that I still have to stand in line just to set up a three week checkup for Dad.  So much for the 6 months to a year that I was told just 2 weeks ago.  

His visit was scheduled so we pile back into the van.  Now I have to formulate a plan.  I have a prescription that he needs filled. Okay, no problem.  I'll just take that to Kroger's--they'll deliver it for him.  But, he needs this Domesboro's or whatever it is called to dry up the weeping rash, hmmm, does Kroger's carry it?  Thankfully I have the pharmacy # memorized so I call them and make it through the automatic stuff until I talk to a live person.  They do have it but only a few packets--they could order some and deliver more to him tomorrow.  Okay, sounds good.  Get to the pharmacy--drop off prescription, update insurance info, ask about Domesboro's or whatever it was.  I wait.  Turns out the lady thought I was telling her someone else's name and had been looking for it in the bins as a patient name.  Ugh.  No, not a name of a patient--medicine that I had just called ahead about.  They find it, they calculate the cost, we pay for it, I remind them to deliver Dad's meds.  In the meantime Paul calls on my cell phone to see when I might be home to have lunch and whether or not leaving lunch out for me would help (since he had to head back to work soon)--yes! leave the food out, we will be there as soon as I get Dad home and I check out his apartment for whatever it was that he put on his side that he is allergic to.

We get to Mom and Dad's.  I park the van, get everyone out, have to tell Denny and Grace more than once that there isn't time right now to look at birds and/or flowers and/or butterflies while we are at Grandma's and Grandpa's.  I get us to the door and hear "That's it, don't you talk to me!"  It was Rhoda from church.  It was her way of saying that we walked right past her without as much as saying hi.  Technically we didn't walk right past her--she happened to see us outside and hightailed it outside to catch us.  I didn't have time to talk.  Rebekah is now in enough pain that she doesn't think she can make it to the apartment--I scan the yard and see a park bench and plead with Hannah to please sit with Rebekah while I run upstairs.  Well, since Rhoda was nearby I told them to go visit her.  I grab up Grace and run up to Dad's apartment.  As soon as he opened the door I see the culprit sitting right there by his chair.  Eucerin.  I should have known.  It gave him a terrible rash back in March (when Mom had her other knee operated) and I had to take him to the Dr. for an emergency visit.  The worst part?  I realize immediately that last Thursday Dad wanted me to run him to the store to pick up cream.  I did.  He bought Eucerin that day and I was the one that took him there.  I should have questioned him about it.  I should have realized that if it gave him a rash on his arm it could cause problems elsewhere.  Chalk it up to experience.  He can't have Eucerin anymore.  I give him final instructions on what to do with his meds.  I scoop up Grace and head downstairs.

Downstairs there are no children to be seen.  The door by Rhoda's which has a sign on it stating "For your convenience, this door will be left unlocked from 9 a.m. until 4:30 p.m." was locked.  Gotta love management.  I go to Rhoda's and there's my kids.  She wants me to sit down, I explain that I need to get us home so that we can have lunch and run to flute lesson.

Rebekah tells me she can't do the flute lesson.  She feels too bad.  I make sure I heard her right because she never wants to miss her lessons.  She really enjoys playing the flute.  She said it hurt to breathe.  I call her teacher, Miss Cynthia, and tell her what has been going on with Rebekah.  She sympathizes because her little boy has had several bouts with abdominal issues.

After I get off the phone I call the Dr.'s office.  They have changed their recording.  After stating that if it is an emergency call 911, it says that the normal business hours are 8:30 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. and that we should call during normal business hours.  As far as I knew, 12:45 p.m. is BETWEEN 8:30 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. so I assume they are trying to tell me that they are out to lunch.  I wait until 1 p.m. and start war-dialing to try to get their normal automated message about press 1 if you are a physician or hospital, press 2 if you want to speak to the nurse, press 3 to schedule an appointment.  Sometime around 1:06 p.m. I actually get a chance to press 3 and schedule an appointment with our favorite "emergency" doctor.  We are to be there at 1:45 p.m.  We clean up from lunch and load back into the van.  I head S on 75 to pick up 675.  We were listening to a book on tape,Ramona Quimby, Age 8, so I must have got caught up in the storyline or maybe it was the slow truck ahead of me that I foolishly decided to pass b/c I soon realized that I missed the exit for 675 N.  I'm trying to head to Kettering and I'm on my way to Springboro.  I DON'T WANT TO GO TO SPRINGBORO!  I WAS THERE ONCE ALREADY TODAY FOR MY DAD'S DOCTOR APPOINTMENT!  But highways being what they are, I was stuck going south until I got to the Springboro exit.  I exited but b/c I was flustered I couldn't remember which direction off of the highway was the on-ramp for northbound 75 so of course, I turn the wrong way!  I turn around in a driveway and get on 75 headed north.  I find 675 and I make it to the Rt. 48 exit.  I normally take the 2nd exit to get to our doctor's office since it is the one that points you directly north on 48.  But, in my hastiness to get to our destination I get off on the lower exit and have to turn right and then left to get to where I wanted to go.  Not too bad, at least I didn't pass the exit!  I get us out of the van and rush the kids into the office.  I sign in and apologize for being 5 minutes late.  I have a short conversation with Rebekah on why she really should sit in the "sick" section of the lobby instead of the "well" section (does anyone REALLY think that it makes a difference? Think about air circulation in a closed area.)  I start to sit down when I was alerted by office staff that we need to update our chart with all of our information but not to worry about putting down the kids social security numbers.  LIKE I COULD POSSIBLY DIG OUT SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBERS TODAY!

We are called back and do the formalities of explaining where it hurts, when did it start, when did she have fevers, how high did they get, etc.  Then I get to play entertain the kids while we wait on the Dr.  It was more like me warning them very quietly and very seriously that we have had a hard day and they needed to be very good.  Grace waited until my purse was unattended and decided to raid it.  I notice when the purse was half empty.  Our "emergency" doctor is so sweet.  We haven't seen her in awhile so it is like catching up with an old friend.  She is very compassionate and she felt awful for Rebekah.  Rebekah was curled up in a ball on the exam table.  We discuss the ailment and decide that we should do a urinalysis and x-ray.  The urine collection was an adventure.  I had to explain to her why it was important to use the little wipe and how they only need a little bit of urine to test.  It ended up with me trying to catch pee and not get soaked in the process.  Fun stuff.  I had to just trust the other 3 weren't doing anything awful outside b/c they were not invited in on our little potty party.

Back into the van we go, we make it over to the Urgent Care but it is during THEIR lunch break.  I was thrilled to be first to get a #, so I got it and drove to the Taco Bell nearby to pick up some free tacos and burritos (thanks to the library reading program).  Paul calls for an update on how things are going.  We head back to Urgent Care, finish our snack in the parking lot and the doors open.  It felt good to be holding #1 since several other families had shown up by then.  They took Rebekah back right away so it took me longer to fill out the paperwork for her x-ray than it took for them to take the x-ray.

Back into the van again, I make it to the 675 S on-ramp and we are on our way home.  I stifle a desire to go to Centerville Library to finish up their reading program.  Today just isn't the day for that.  We get home, unload, and I let the kids vegetate in front of PBS television.  I start this blog entry.  I talk to Mom updating her on Dad.  I get a call from the Dr.'s office.  Our "emergency" doc had the results.  The good news: nothing extremely serious seemed to be wrong (i.e. appendicitis, kidney stones, gall stones, etc.).  The bad news: she is terribly impacted with poo and it is causing the excrutiating pain.  She needs to take Miralax twice a day for a couple of days to get all cleaned out.  I thank the Dr. and try to figure out what to do next.  It is 5:30 p.m., Paul isn't home yet, thankfully supper was in the crock pot, I load everyone up AGAIN, and head to the nearest pharmacy.  Rebekah is just miserable.  She couldn't tolerate walking around in the store (and I really didn't want to unload and load the van again) so I do the unthinkable!  I go through the drive thru and ask for an over the counter item.  I started by telling the guy that my daughter is very sick and I realize that the medicine the doctor prescribed is an OTC drug but could he please get it for me.  He got it and I apologize for asking and he states that it was okay THIS TIME but it isn't policy to do that, etc.  I was just grateful not to have to go in.

And to sum up how it went from there, I gave her some medicine--actually a couple of medicines.  There were tears, and more explanations.  Paul and the other three went on to church (we are having Thursday night mid-week services in July).  Rebekah fell asleep around 7:30 but woke up moaning at 8:30.  She had 103.4 fever.  I have given her advil and had cooled her down with wet washcloths.  Paul got home, we put kids to bed.  He had to go back to work so here I am at 10:15 p.m. thoroughly exhausted, wondering what will be next.

In the meantime I have that cool ol' song going on in my head "Mama said there'd be days like this, there'd be days like this my mama said" with the echo "Mama said, Mama said."

Today is pretty much done and we survived.  Tomorrow is a new day.  Like I told Rebekah, Jesus will never give us more than we can handle with His help.  Boy, I need to remember that just as much as she does. 

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and it interferes with my time to write!  I could back up and tell you what all I have been doing since April when I posted last but that would be cruel and unusual punishment.  I may hit some of the big stuff here in a moment.

A friend of mine that I haven't seen in a LONG time happened to send me her blog address and I spent some time this evening browsing through it--so well written and it made me laugh.  It inspired me to get back to writing again.  I need this outlet and it is such a great way for me to keep friends and family updated on our life--I just need to be better about writing AND letting folks know that I actually wrote! ;)

Let's see...

As you know, April we visited the castle and Oletangy Caverns.  Wait!  I told you about the castle but I don't remember telling you about the caverns.  I am not going to slow my pace right now by looking back to see if I told you or not.  I WILL take the time to find the perfect picture though.  It was memorable to say the least!  BRB.

Okay, not as easy as I hoped. Found the picture although it is a tad blurry.  Still thought it portrayed what I was going to discuss.  I upload it to Snapfish--then remembered that I don't know how to retrieve it from there in such a format that I can put it here.  That's right, I was supposed to use photobucket since I am a little more familiar with it.  Well, I haven't been there since April so now I can't remember my password.  I will go again and see if they emailed it to me yet or not.

Okay, I'm getting closer.  Trust me, this picture is worth the wait.

Success!  Here is a photo of a normally very brave, ambitious 6 year old boy who is absolutely terrified.  Why do I share this photo?  Because parents need to be aware that kids don't necessarily hear things they way they were actually said!

The first stop on our little tour of the caverns had a recording that remarked about all of the wonderful moss that was growing underground.  The recording said that the moss was dependent on the lighting and if the lights were to go out the moss would die.  From that point on Denny was anxious to get out of there!  We couldn't understand why it was such an urgent thing for him.  He was getting more and more upset the further we walked in the cave and the longer we spent down there.  He was so relieved when we finally surfaced back up into the sunshine.  I finally looked into his eyes and asked him why he was so afraid when we were down in the cave.  He said "The man said that when the lights went out, we would all die!"  So, there you have it, kids don't hear what is actually said so we must be more vigilant to find out EXACTLY is making them scream and cry hysterically!

After that incident we decided that we needed a more positive experience with caves for Denny.  Where do we take him?  Why to Kentucy of course!  We took a family vacation to KY to see some caves--we visited Lost Cave in Horse City, KY, Lost River Cave in Bowling Green, KY, Diamond Caverns in Cave City, KY and Mammoth Caves of course!  Denny did have positive experiences at those caves although the highlight for him was probably Dinosaur World.  ****Blinking lights: TOURIST TRAP!*******

Here is a photo from Dinosaur World though.  Important shot since this dinosaur can be viewed from Rt. 65.

Ack!  I just realized that Paul has it hidden somewhere in his laptop so we will have to add that later.

Well, I do feel like I need to give more time to that trip and may do that in a later blog.  I wanted to be sure to make comment about the fact that Denny got saved during the Kids Crusade this past June.  I believe the date was June 11th, I am not going to get up just yet to be sure, it was the Tuesday before Father's Day.  I was praying with Denny at bedtime (Paul was still out--riding home on one of the buses after the crusade)--I prayed that the Lord would touch the heart of a little boy I noticed that night and for that little boy to get saved.  Denny said, "Mommy, can God save that little boy?" 

"Yes, Denny, He can." 

"Can God save me?" 

"Yes Denny!  Whenever you are ready!"

"Well, I'm ready if you are ready!"

"Well, I'm ready if you are ready!"

And Denny asked Jesus to be His Lord and Saviour right there in his room.  He was baptized on Father's Day--what a special Father's Day gift for Denny earthly father and his Heavenly Father.

With that, I must go.  Life is still going on and it is getting late!

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It all started with a Home and Family Conference at our church on April 13^th.  Pastor preached two messages about the home.  Monday and Tuesday we had Bro. Dave McCoy and his wife Trish from Peoples Baptist Church in Georgia speak to our church about marriage (we split up for a session and then came back to the auditorium for a message).  Wednesday night was a family style dinner and a message from our pastor.

After the Wednesday night service we drove to Delaware, OH to stay the night with our good friends Mike and Amy.  We had a sweet visit with them and the kids got a chance to chase their two Jack Russell Terriers.  If we didn’t have our mini-moose of a dog I could see us having a Jack Russell.

We left early Thursday morning for Ashland University where Paul was scheduled to speak to a religion class about homeschooling as a way of Christian education.  Hannah stayed with him to be his beautiful assistant.  The rest of the kids and I escaped to wander around the campus.  I had been there around 20 years ago as a Buckeye Girl State participant.  Nothing of the campus looked familiar except the many purple eagles here and there.

After the class the professor took us to lunch at the faculty lounge.  It was a bit of a fiasco but it was a neat time to sit and talk more about homeschooling.  We found out that she has six children and at this time has two of the 6 at home and three grandchildren there too.  Sounds like fun!  She has a historic home so I can just imagine little ones in an older home like that—can you hear the echo of a door slamming in a mostly wooden house?  I can!

The professor also mentioned a “castle” (Landoll’s Castle) in Loudonville, OH that we might want to visit on our way home.  I pulled it up on line and it looked like a great place and boasted of 40,000 daffodils in bloom.  The website showed some of the rooms too that they rent out.  I figured they had to be terribly expensive but that a tour of the place might be fun.

Landoll’s Castle is on the edge of Mohican State Park so it was in a beautiful area.  It turned out that Mr. Landoll had been stationed in Germany during the Vietnam war and had visited many castles there.  It had been a lifelong dream of his to build his own castle.  He faired well in the publishing business—recognize the name of Landoll publishing?  I didn’t at first but after some thought remembered some children’s books published by Landoll publishing!  He bought 1100 acres of land by the Mohican State Park and after the gentle prodding of his wife, built his own castle!  It had amazing wood and stone work!  The wood was taken from fallen trees on the property and planed by hired Amish workers.  The stone is also from the property there.  It is more amazing to see in person than it was on line (and the on line pictures were breathtaking!).

We took the tour which showed us about 6 different suites there.  By far the most romantic was the honeymoon suite.  We found out that the prices during the week was not near as heart-stopping as I imagined so Paul decided that a good way to finish out our Home and Family week was to stay the night in a castle.  The kids was thrilled to be able to  stay in a “castle.”  I loved the story behind the building of the castle and the history of the property.  It was told that on that property was a German and English church that had a cemetery beside it.  The people of the church seemed to have trouble agreeing on what language would be spoken there.  The Germans supposedly got angry and burned the church to the ground.  They then dug up their dead from the cemetery and moved them down to a cemetery near the entrance of what is now the castle property.  Both cemeteries are still there.  We visited the “English” cemetery that is behind the castle.  Most of the stones are too worn away to be able to read them.  I would say that they are probably all from the mid 1800s.  The eerie thing is that some of the lots are lower than the others—those were the lots that were vacated.  I love a neat old story. J

We stayed in the Hess Suite.  I didn’t really have a preference because I don’t think you could get a “bad” room there.  This suite also allowed access to a tower that was beautiful—it was a spiral staircase of the most beautiful wood.  At the top of the tower was a balcony. 

We all climbed it and took a look around.  Our room was just wonderful!  Paul and I had the king bed that had down filled pillows and duvet.  The bedding was exquisite! 

The room had a sleeper sofa which Rebekah and Denny slept on. 

 Hannah slept on a roll-away bed just because it was offered to us.  There was a gas fireplace,

heated tiles in the bathroom floor, a Jacuzzi tub, a separate glass shower, the toilet seemed “old style” as it had a pull to flush it, there was a CD player with a Celtic music CD to enjoy, a Yankee candle and matches for ambiance, a kitchen area with a table set for two with pretty china,

board games were free to borrow, and continental breakfast was included. 

There was also a health and fitness building, pool, and hot tub we could have enjoyed—just too little time to do it all!  There was a fine restaurant with gift shop on the property and 31 miles of hiking trails.  We walked a little in the woods there and investigated some of the many glacier rocks there.  I’m sure that place is just beautiful in the fall!  We all had a wonderful time and a great night sleep—I hope that we can go and stay there again sometime!

On the way home we visited the state park.  We took pictures at the covered bridge and the gorge.  Paul climbed the fire tower—he is a crazy man!  It was just metal and wood—very simple construction—there would be no way I’d climb that thing!  It looked like it was made from an Erector set!  Paul is such a brave soul—he has bragging rights—I don’t need them!  I see no need to climb 80 feet into the air just to say I did it! J

We stopped at Oletangy Caverns in Columbus.  We told Denny that we were going “spelunking.”  That sounded like fun to him until we got down into that cold, wet cave.  He forgets the time we were at Ohio Caverns because he was probably about 2 years old then.  Unfortunately he heard a recording in this cave that said “if we were to turn out the lights for an extended period of time the moss that is growing on these rocks would all die.”  What he got from that message was “lights go out and we die.”  He spent the majority of the time down there saying “Get me out of here, I want out of here.”  Unfortunately for him we didn’t know what his interpretation of that message was until we were in the van on our way home.  Poor guy, he thought at any time the lights would all go out and we would die.  That will be something else for him to seek counseling for some day.

Well, there you have it, our Home and Family conference week.  Just thought I would share! J

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If I ever learn any life lessons, I think one of them is balance.  It, like patience, is a tough lesson to learn.  Today I feel like I needed to have balance. 

This morning when I walked the dog--it was drizzling--pretty bad.  The dog ended up wet and had a bad hair-do and I had a wet coat and shoes.  I came home, showered, got breakfast going and then commenced to do schoolwork.  As I saw the day brightening, I thought that today would end up a pretty day afterall.  By lunch time I was convinced that today would be a pretty day.  I sent the kids out while I made lunch.

Hubby got home and we compared notes on what the weather would be like for the remaining of the week.  He said he heard snow on the news.  I groaned because while I was fixing lunch I decided I wanted to get the big heavy coats out of the hall closet and get them down to the basement for the summer.  I was again glad I sent the kids outside for a little.

After lunch is cleaned up I normally get the kids started on more book work.  Today I looked at them and gave them a choice--"You can either stay inside and do schoolwork or you can go outside and play."  Being red-blooded, All-American kids they chose the outside.  I don't blame them.  I see the value in teaching them their times tables and grammar rules but I also realize how short their days are as carefree kids.  I often stop and think about when I was their age and it never occured to me that things at the house needed fixed or worried about what we will make for supper.  I was a kid who loved to play outside and enjoyed log-rolling down a grassy hill.

This is my thought about balance for today.  I need to have balance of what my children do that is serious and that which is fun.  Balance of schoolwork and the learning that only takes place outside when you make a teepee out of sticks in the backyard.  Balance of housework and sitting down to read my children a book.  Balance of discipline and love.  Balance of responsibility and living barefoot and fancy free.  Balance.

And considering we live in good ol' Ohio and the weather is sure to change in just a matter of days, I know there will be a better day for staying in the house and doing bookwork.  I think somehow I'm going against the moral code of homeschooling if I insist my children stay in the house on a beautiful day like today just for the principle that we "aren't out of school yet for the year."  Phooey on dates and calendars.  Today is a day to be lived and enjoyed.  When it is cold next week and if the snow does fly, I will be glad that I took this opportunity to let the children play in the sunshine.  That day we can be productive on some bookwork.  Today just isn't that sort of day.

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Was Easter and I was a new mom of 2 beautiful girls.  Rebekah, our second daughter was born at 10:26 p.m. on April 3rd.  I remember thinking as the night got later how it would be to have her born on Easter and what would they do if she was born during the hour of time change.  That Sunday a.m. was also time change Sunday.  Thankfully she came sooner rather than later so I didn't have to wait longer for her arrival!

I was shocked that I was even in labor with her.  Hannah was about as unnatural of a birth as one could be so I had no idea what to expect.  My due date was April 1st.  I actually got sick of telling people when I was due because everyone got a snicker out of it.  If I wasn't such a compulsive truth teller I could have gotten away with saying March 31st or April 2nd but I would have gotten a comment or two of possibly having a baby on April Fool's day.

ANYWAY, I was two days overdue with her.  I think I had seen the Dr. on the Thursday prior and she had said if I hadn't had the baby within the next week we would schedule a c-section at the next doctor appointment.  I so didn't want another c-section.  I didn't want to have a c-section with Hannah and I trusted my doctor when she told me that just because I had one with Hannah didn't mean I had to have one everytime.  I did a lot of praying that my body would deliver this baby naturally but I really wasn't sure what that would be like.

That Saturday, April 3rd, I got up early to get us ready to take Hannah for an Easter Egg Hunt in Moraine (where we lived).  I ate a bowl of Cheerios but that didn't stay with me long.  I ended up being sick again and again.  Paul was reluctant to take us to the egg hunt but he knew not to argue with a very pregnant woman.  I was determined that Hannah would go on this hunt.  I had to run into the bathroom several times at the park and thankfully was well enough to watch the egg hunt and get home.  I crashed on the couch while Paul went out to process our taxes (good to get taxes done before you have a baby). 

At some point we called the Dr. on call to see if there was something we should do about me being so sick.  The Dr. didn't think it could possibly be labor--he suggested Kaopectate (sp?) and fluids.  Neither of which wanted to stay down.  By 5 p.m. Paul was fed up.  He couldn't stand the thought that I could be getting very dehydrated while we could do nothing to stop it.  He called the Dr. this time and they agreed to have me come in for fluids.  We dropped Hannah off with a friend and Paul insisted we take my suitcase.  I fought hard against it.  The Dr. didn't think I was in labor, I didn't think I was in labor, Hannah had been 11 days overdue when she was born and that was with them having to induce labor.  What was the point of bringing the suitcase.

Okay, very long story short, I really was in labor.  What I thought was the flu mixed in with a UTI turned out to be labor and I had probably been laboring all day.  My water broke around 7 p.m. and Rebekah Carly was born that night at 10:26 p.m. 

Paul and my doula almost didn't make it to the birth.  Paul had to leave to get clothes for Hannah (we had my suitcase but didn't work out the details for hers) and he got to the hospital just in time for the birth.

The other surprise was because my pregnancy was so different with Rebekah, and the fact that we didn't get an ultrasound at 20 weeks, I fully thought that I was having a boy.  I literally sat up to take a look when they announced that the baby was a girl!

Another surprise was her size.  The Drs. had said numerous times that the baby was going to be smaller compared to Hannah.  Hannah was 8# 15oz., 22 inches long.  Even I felt as if this baby was smaller.  Turned out that Rebekah was 8# 13 1/2 oz. and 21 1/2" long.  Yes, smaller but essentially the same size as her big sister!  You should have heard the remarks from the Dr. and the nurses when they saw just how big Rebekah was.  We have it all on tape--it is really quite humourous.

And a surprise for me, my body did know how to have a natural birth.  I had a totally unmedicated natural birth with Rebekah and other than the fact it hurt--wouldn't lie to ya--it was THE perfect birth.

It's hard to believe that it has been 9 years already.  I really do remember her birth as if it was yesterday.  She is growing up to be a loving and caring girl who just so happens to have a fiery, strong will.  Paul and I wonder what that will mean for her as she grows up.  We often pray that God has just the right boy out there for her.  It will certainly take a special guy to marry our Rebekah.  I say that tongue-in-cheek but just like our other children--she deserves the very best--he BETTER be a special guy!

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A good friend of ours became grandma for the first time Thursday.  I have enjoyed checking out her blog and her DIL's blog of this new bundle of joy.  I kind of snicker.  I remember our first 11 years ago.  I remember how many changes she brought to our life.

Then I remembered just how much change each one of our children brought to our lives.  I remember with Hannah I kept thinking, "I'm sorry honey but you are our first.  You are the one we have to experiment on."  She will always be the on-going experiment as we will encounter one first after another with her.

I remember Rebekah bringing the meaning of "multi-tasking" to a whole new level as I had not only one child but two children to take care of.  With only 2 years and 6 weeks between the two of them I had my hands full.  It's a good thing I was young.  She is the one is helping me learn how to deal with "sibling rivalry" and always trying to make sure she doesn't come in "second" all the time.

Denny, well, Denny taught me a lot about boys.  The only "boys" I knew (for the most part) were all grown up when I met them.  My Dad, my husband (although questionable on how grown up he was ), even my best friends from high school were at least past 10 years old when I met them.  Denny has always been busy.  He was an incredibly busy baby who has grown to an incredibly busy 6 year old.

And then there is Grace....  Grace is a sweet and mild child, always smiling--well at least until she turned 2, always a joy.  However as she is getting older I realize once again how that our children change our lives.  She is nearly 2 1/2 and much like her siblings at that age, she is deciding that naps are optional.  She has recently crawled out of and then fell out of her crib.  We put the rail down so that she is closer to the floor and then decide that maybe the playpen is the way to go.  I put up the playpen Saturday evening and it had kept her well-contained until today.  I take her up for her nap and then listen to the monitor downstairs while she played quietly in the playpen.  Some time later I notice that she is knocking on the door of her room from the inside.  Great, I think, she got out of the playpen.  I go up to see one book torn apart, baby lotion spread on several stuffed animals that now needs washed, clothes thrown all over the floor, and her sparkly shoes on her feet.  I suppose daily naptimes are nearly over.  I plan to keep the playpen up and put her in it every day in case she would nap but realize that she may not nap.  I also realize that we may end up dealing with a crabbier disposition on those days that she doesn't sleep.  I did a quick baby-proofing of her room at a much higher level.  Trying to guarantee that she doesn't destroy that which is most precious or irreplaceable.  (Yes, it is a given that all things dangerous would need to be removed from her room but for the most part, they already are or were never there to start with.)

Aw, my life changes again as I will be letting go of more and more of the parts of my life that involve a little baby.  She's growing up.  Paul is already trying to talk me into selling the crib--not too fast--I need to take this slow.  I hate to leave this part of my life that has been such a joy to me.  I enjoyed having little babies even if it was the hardest thing I ever did.

I know, I'm walking into a new season of my life and that I will encounter new and different parts of childhood with each one of my four.  I just wanted to take a moment and reflect on how my little ones have impacted my life as I smile at the fact that another family is just getting started.

Truly, children are a gift from God.  May I never fail to praise Him for the wonderful gifts He has blessed us with.

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It has been a busy time for our house.  I can't back us up to my last post but I can catch you up on the more recent past.  This last string of life started with our oldest daughter's 11th birthday on February 21st.  That day Hannah had to spend at Kettering Hospital for 2 hours when it was only to be a few minute trip for some pre-admission testing for my mom--should have known better.  We spent most of our time waiting on the doctor to come in and spend 10 minutes talking to my mom.  The intention of planning the testing on Hannah's birthday was to go out to eat with my parents in honor of Hannah's 11th birthday and my dad's 80th birthday earlier in February. 

Saturday, February 23rd we had a little get together at our house for Hannah's birthday.  It was tricky for folks to make it--everyone had something that day going on--the weather wasn't cooperating either.  It was a great time with friends though and Hannah was thrilled to finally get a webkin or three!

Sunday, February 24th, church and my mother-in-law Judy's birthday.  Paul, the kids and I sang during the evening service--"He's still working on me."

Monday, February 25th, Paul left for Toledo after working all day.  The kids and I were getting ready for our vacation trip to Florida.

Tuesday, February 26th, ran last minute errands, went to gym class, came home, packed the van.  Paul gets home from Toledo at 5 p.m. and we leave for our trip at 7.  He is not feeling well at all.  There had been 7 inches of new snow overnight when he was in Toledo, he never sleeps well in hotels, and he is fighting some type of cold.  He is miserable.   We drive to Elizabethtown, KY and stay the night.

Wednesday, February 27th, after packing the van back up and driving all day, we make it to Destin, FL.  We had snow flurries off and on all the way to Alabama.  Even Florida feels cold to us.  We head to the beach but it is after dark and Denny is freaked out by the enormity of the gulf.  The sky was beautiful though--the stars were amazing!

Thursday, February 28th, we had an easy going day--visited the beach (it's cold!) and a place that advertised alligators.  Paul and I were disappointed in the alligators but the kids were thrilled!  We were able to have an educational moment by sharing with them how cold-blooded animals are very, very, very passive in cold weather.  We had bought some food for the alligators (it was dog treats of all things) but they weren't the least bit interested in eating.  Again, at least the kids enjoyed seeing alligators on their trip to Florida! Ha!

Friday, February 29th, Grace has been falling apart the longer we are here.  I am convinced it is because she is not sleeping well.  She had gotten a fever the evening before and I stayed in the hotel with her while Paul and the kids went out to get dinner and bring it back for us.  She is just wilting.  This morning she had gotten up at 2 a.m. with a 103 fever.  Paul and I were up with her in the bathroom, trying to cool her down from 2 a.m. until 4.  I got up with her again at 7 a.m. when she had a 104 fever.  Not fun.  First order of business is to get Tylenol so we could start alternating acetaminophen and ibuprofen.  We did manage to go see a few things this day.  We visited the Emerald Island Science Center.   Paul was able to exchange email addresses with someone who takes awesome space pictures.  He hopes to use some of these wonderful photos in his Faith Explorer's programs at church. 

After the science center we visited an Indian Mound/Museum and a one room schoolhouse.  The one room schoolhouse was much like the Collins School here locally but it was neat to see the differences that very much reflected the difference in Ohio's climate and Florida's climate.

Friday evening Paul took the kids out on the pier of Ft. Walton Beach.  I was happy to stay back in the hotel room with Grace (Grace was napping) because it is still freezing when the wind blows.  We had a balcony facing the beach so I was able to bundle up and stand out there waving to Paul and the kids while they walked about a mile out into the gulf on the pier.

Saturday, March 1st, the day one of my friends from high school gets married.  We spent the morning at the Air Force Armament Museum at Eglin Air Force Base.  It is like a smaller version of the Air Force Museum here in Dayton.  Denny enjoyed this museum because there were guns, bullets, and bombs!

Mike and Melissa's wedding was on the beach outside the hotel where we stayed at.  It was a beautiful wedding.  The sun was setting and the weather had actually warmed up.  It was a "barefoot wedding" but all of the guys wore tuxes and her dress was beautiful!  Instead of a unity candle they poured sand into a vase--very pretty!  The minister gave a great message and used the symbolism of the sand of how their lives which had been separate could never be separated now.  The reception was at the Officer's Club at the Air Force Base.  We all had a great time.  It was so nice to see friends from my high school days. 

Mike's dad is with me and the kids in the picture.  His dad and mom were just great while we were in high school.  Their house was the place we went to for parties and movies.  Now that I'm a mom I understand the wisdom of them hosting the high school gathering place.

Cute picture of Denny at the Officer's Club:

These are two of my 4 best friends from high school:  Mike and Mike (missing are Terra and Alex).  Mike, Mike and Alex played soccer together in high school.  We were the "fab five"--well, that's what I call us now. :)  We have great memories from high school of all the crazy things we got into.  All of it was good, clean fun which makes the memories even better!

Sunday, March 2nd, we had spent the night in a wonderful Hampton in Pensacola Beach, FL.  I noticed at 6 a.m. (EST) that Grace was feverish again.  I had two choices--get up and give her medicine taking the chance she wouldn't go back to sleep or to let it go and risk her getting hotter.  I decided to do the right thing and give her medicine.  I was right, she wouldn't go back to sleep.  She and I watched the sunrise on the beach from our balcony--it was spectacular!  We went down for breakfast and when she was bored with that I brought her back up to our room.  Paul had gotten up and was getting a shower.  Everyone else was asleep so I thought I could relax on the bed for a minute.  I heard the door start to open so I jumped up to find Grace opening the door and going into the hallway.  I get there and try to pull her back in the room.  She wants to explore so she starts to fight me and drop her weight.  I had to reach out further to get her and then it happened...the door to the hotel room clicked shut behind me.  Paul is in the shower.  The kids are all asleep and even if I could wake them up, they know not to open the hotel door.  Ugh!  Thankfully a Hampton person finds us and lets us back in the room (after running a check on who I was and whether or not I belong to that room).

After everyone is up for the day, washed, dressed and fed, we walk the pier there at Pensacola Beach.  We find that the place to find great shells is here and not at the other beaches where we had stayed!  We scoop up shells by the bag full.

We are now time crunched to make it to Pensacola Christian College to meet up with our bus director's daughter.  We miss seeing her but got to take in some of how beautiful that campus is!  Paul and I decide our kids will go to college there and we will move there to be with them! :)  We pack up one last time and drive all the way to home.  We got in around 11:30 p.m.  We were purely exhausted.

Monday, March 3rd, Paul is back to work.  I'm washing tons of laundry.  It feels like spring--in the 60's--perfect weather for cleaning out our van that looks horrid after we practically lived in it for the past week.

Tuesday, March 4th, Mom is getting ready for her surgery on Thursday.  On to running errands for her and Dad.  The kids don't want to be in the van anymore.  We go to gym class.  It is good to see my friends and get their sympathy.  Paul's mom comes to town to dodge any bad weather that could prevent her from coming to our house and watch the kids during Mom's surgery.

Wednesday, March 5th, Paul is off to work, his mom takes Rebekah on a birthday shopping spree.  Hannah has piano.  Paul flies for Virginia.  I sing at church.  We get home from church and I help get the kids ready for bed.  Paul calls to tell me he has made it to NC waiting for his flight for Virginia.  I leave to go get Mom and Dad.  We get to the hospital and find that the hospital is not expecting Mom even though I had made arrangements for her to be there the night before surgery.  Thankfully the lady I was dealing with ended up being someone I had sang with during a cantata at our church 2 years ago.  She goes to a church in Calisle that our church had shared a cantata with.  She gets Mom a room. 

Once I get her settled in I find out that I have to be back in the morning at 5:30 a.m.  I quickly rush out of the hospital, take my dad home, get home at 11:30 p.m. and into bed.  I still don't fall asleep until after midnight because I laid awake waiting for Paul to call me and let me know he was in Virginia safe.

Thursday, March 6th, I wake up on my own at 4:11 a.m. I laid there thinking "NO!, I have 19 more minutes to sleep!"  Of course about the time I do fall asleep the alarm goes off.  I quietly get showered and ready without waking the house.

I pick up my dad, get parked, get up to Mom's room. They were supposed to take her down to surgery at 6 a.m.--I was still sitting with her in her room at 7:05 a.m.!  I joked with the nurse that I had prayed that the surgeon had a good night sleep and he must have and overslept!

Mom's surgery went well.  Her recovery was a little rough.  The tube in her throat during surgery had left her throat sore and her voice hoarse.  I sat by her bed feeding her ice chips when she would wake up for a moment and then encourage her to use the breathing exercise to ward off pneumonia.  Dad and I left sometime around 2 p.m.  I was just getting too tired.  I had to go home while I could still drive safely.

Friday, March 7th, I try to get out the door as soon as I could.  It started snowing at 8 a.m. and they were calling for a big winter storm.  I took Dad and Rebekah to see mom and we stayed only an hour.  Mom was more awake but her voice was still hoarse--I couldn't recognize her voice over the phone.  I stopped at Wal-Mart for a few last minute necessities and got Dad home and us home too.  The snow did come.  At one point I shoveled the 3 inches off the drive.  Sometime later I gave up.  It was just coming down too fast.  I was conscious that Paul was to fly home that evening.  He got to the airport in Virginia at 3:30 p.m. but they wouldn't move up his flight despite the weather.  Many hours, many prayers, and many checks on the flights later, Paul made it to Dayton at 2 a.m. and to our house just before 3 a.m.  He got the car as far into the drive as he could, stumbled into the house and into bed.  I was so thankful just to have him home.

Saturday, March 8th, major shoveling!  Even Paul when he got up at noon ;) got out there and shovelled.  The kids and I used buckets to move the snow becaue it was just unbearable to shovel it all.  We were able to dig ourselves to the street before we gave up.  At least we could make it to church the next day.

Grace in a snowdrift:

Well, that very long explanation to bring you pretty close to where we are today.  We went to church Sunday.  Paul's mom went home that afternoon.  We are thankful she came and saved the day (or days)!  It was awful timing for Paul to have to travel, thankfully Paul's mom didn't have anything big on her schedule that would prevent her from coming and watching the kids. 

Mom wasn't able to move to the rehab until Monday because she had had a fever during the night on Saturday/Sunday.  We stopped to see her after church Sunday night.  Paul, the kids and I visited her on Monday night.  I was finally able to take Dad to see her today (Tuesday). 

It has been quite a couple of weeks.  I'm hoping that if I'm this busy at the beginning of my year that will mean that the rest of the year can be more laid back.  Can it work that way?

To those of you who are still reading, God bless you!   Thanks for caring enough to read about all of my exciting life!

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Peaceful Sundays are so nice.  We have our van back, thankfully.  We are all healthy.  We had a good church service this morning with several visitors.  Grace is taking her nap.  Paul and Hannah are playing backgammon and Denny and Rebekah are putting together a 3-D puzzle.  I'm getting a moment of peace.  It won't last long however.  Denny and Rebekah are already bickering some about how to put the puzzle together. 

School this past week has gone well.  I'm actually expecting bumps in the road for this next week.  Having the van back is a mixed blessing.  The nice thing about not having the van is that we didn't go anywhere.  The bad thing about not having the van was that we didn't go anywhere.  Denny has his 6 year old checkup tomorrow.  The kids have gym class on Tuesday.  I'm sure Mom and Dad will need me to run them one place or another sometime soon.  We had an excellent school week last week so I'm going to be thankful for that and hope that we do well this coming week.

We went to the Creation Museum yesterday.  That was wonderful!  The planetarium is my favorite place there.  A place to kick back, relax, and listen to a narrator tell us about the wonders of our outer space.  I still marvel at how the Bible says "and He made the stars also" and then listen to how many, many lightyears of expance there is out there.  My favorite part was a place called M3 (or is it M4?) and how it is so full of stars that if you lived in that area you'd not be able to see beyond your own little universe because all you would see is that star cluster.  It is just so wonderfully pretty!  The subject matter for the planetarium and the theater is going to be changing next month so I'm glad to have seen them both one more time.  In fact we bought the DVD for the planetarium's show--it is one I want to see again and again.

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