Mommy Madness

The blog, I think she is dead...

2010-02-02T23:57:00.002-05:00

Life gets in the way of blogging... I think I should just take a "hiatus"... who knows if I'll ever realy update this thing again... Facebook is sooooo much easier ;)

I wanna win some Charlie's Soap!

2009-09-12T07:53:00.000-05:00

I wanna win this!

http://inashoe.com/2009/09/charlies-soap-giveaway/#comment-24117

Talk about neglectful...

2009-06-29T11:45:00.002-05:00

Yeah, I haven't undated my blog in nearly five months... sometimes life comes first.

We have been in the new house since the first week of May, but we're still moving in...

Felicity is *this close* to crawling...

The kids are great...

My camera is broke :(

That's about it. ;)

Focus on the Family - Search for a Godly Spouse

2009-02-11T13:41:00.004-05:00

I just listened to a really good talk given by Alistair Begg about the qualities to look for in a future spouse. You can go to Focus on the Family and listen to it on the site or download and listen on your computer or mp3 player.

Search for a Godly Spouse Part One

Search for a Godly Spouse Part Two

An Update on the CPSIA...

2009-02-10T18:32:00.002-05:00

I received the following letter in my inbox just now.

Dear Mrs. Ethridge,

Thank you for contacting me to express your concerns over new regulatory changes being implemented by the Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC). I have been an outspoken critic of many of these changes as they are both unnecessarily burdensome and overreaching. I appreciate having your input on the issue.

As you are undoubtedly aware, the Consumer Products Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) of 2008 was hastily passed through Congress and signed into law last fall in response to a lead paint scare involving children's toys manufactured in China. Unfortunately, the law places unnecessary burdens on domestic producers requiring onerous testing for lead and other toxic substances for any products geared towards children age 12 and under. It is disappointing that Congress did not see fit to pass a law that protected children from lead in a way that did not threaten so many businesses.

Because of the new regulations which take effect today, small businesses across the country may be forced to close their doors or drastically increase their production costs in order to comply with CPSC guidelines. This foreseeable consequence was one of the main reasons for my opposition to the CPSIA last year. In the current economic climate it is imperative that the government protect individual ingenuity and hard work and not over-regulate the backbone of American enterprise, small businesses.

In response to this reactionary policy I have introduced S.374, a bill to amend the Consumer Product Safety Act to provide regulatory relief to small and family-owned businesses. This bill will help minimize the negative impacts of these new regulations through the following six major reforms:

1.Delay the overreaching regulations six months so that all parties can work together to address the needs of our small businesses and the needs of product safety.

2.Allow small manufacturers to use the testing and certification that their component suppliers have done to certify that the components do not contain an impermissible amount of lead. This will save small manufacturers from having to subject their products -- many of which are made in small runs -- to duplicative and expensive multi-thousand dollar tests.

3.Exempt thrift stores, yard sales, consignments shops and other re-sellers from the prohibitions in the act. Goodwill, the Salvation Army and your local flea market were never the source of the product safety concerns encountered last year, and they won't be in the future. They are good actors trying to provide Americans of modest means with value oriented products. They shouldn't be subjected to tens of thousands of dollars in potential liability.

4.Prevent retro-active enforcement of the act. There are millions of dollars of safe products in the warehouses and stores around the country today, which could become un-sellable under CPSIA. This will prevent thousands of products from being destroyed and the livelihood of thousands of businesses from being threatened.

5.Provide a Good-Faith Exemption. The act and its associated regulations are extremely complex. Small manufacturers are having difficulty understanding what the act requires of them. While many small businesses are doing their best to comply with the act it's possible someone could accidentally run afoul of the act. If they can show that their error was made in good-faith, my bill will provide them with a one-time exemption from sanction.

6.Requires the CPSC to provide small businesses with a compliance guide. This is an extremely technical regulation that impacts a number of small businesses who don't have large compliance departments to decipher the regulations for them. Senator DeMint's bill would require the CPSC, in consultation with the state and federal small business agencies, to develop a compliance guide that addresses the concerns of the small business community.

Currently, S.374 has been referred to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of which I am a member. I look forward to soliciting support for these changes from my colleagues on the committee and will continue to push for common-sense policies addressing product regulation. While I was hopeful that Democratic leadership would have worked with me to enact this change in law last week before the deadline, I will continue to work to improve this law so that business can get out from under these onerous regulations. I look forward to enacting a solution that protects both children and family businesses.

Again, thank you for contacting me to express your thoughts and concerns. Please do not hesitate to contact me in the future with any issues important to you or your family. It is an honor to serve you and the people of South Carolina.

Sincerely,

Jim DeMint
United States Senator

Neglegent blogger...

2009-01-26T13:05:00.005-05:00

Yep, that's me!

Here are some photos to make up for my lack of posts. These were taken with my phone, my camera is usually off taking pictures of the new house to send to the bank...

She looks a bit distressed, like "Somebody save me before my big sister loves me to pieces!":
Isn't she such a sweet looking baby?:

Big grins for mommy:
My dumb finger got in the way, but this is one of my favortie expressions of hers:

The Mom Song

2009-01-06T23:34:00.002-05:00

Is this the end of second-hand kids' clothes and toys?

2009-01-04T11:08:00.003-05:00

Once again, the government screws up. Let's hope that this is changed before our favorite consignment shops go out of business.

Buzz...

2009-01-02T17:02:00.004-05:00

Caleb found a pair of kid scissors and gave himself a trim. You know the type when they put the scissors next to their scalp, right in the front and chop a huge clump out. So I got out the clippers and finished the job. Bye bye golden curls. Then I figured I'd take care of Ben while the clippers were plugged in and I already had hair to sweep up. Of course I had to take photos afterward which prompted much goofiness from the both of them.

A few more photos...

2008-12-26T11:00:00.004-05:00

Look at those cheeks! Momma milk does a body good ;)

Anna Felicity was named after Anna, my best friend:

She's got great neck muscles and head control. These were taken at about three weeks:

I'm getting these off of my phone, so they're not great quality but she's cute even when she's grainy ;)

Daddy News and Baby Photos (finally!)...

2008-12-26T10:25:00.003-05:00

Dad was released and came home last week. He seemed to be improving a lot and we spent the day with him on the 23rd. We were supposed to go back on Christmas Eve but he was having chest pains so 911 took him back to the hospital. He was having another heart attack and this time it was because of a blockage in the back of his heart. They broke up the clot and he may be back home again either today or tomorrow.

Thanks for your continued prayers.

I still haven't been able to find my USB cord for my camera but I have gotten a few photos off of my phone. Please excuse the poor quality. I can't believe she's a month old already, the time just FLIES!

Birth Announcement

2008-11-29T16:57:00.003-05:00

Leave it to me to wait until a kid is five days old before you let people know that she's arrived ;)

Anna Felicity born on November 24th at 11:02am, 7 pounds, 19.5 inches

Photos to follow when I finally get them off the camera.

Update on my Daddy...

2008-11-17T09:24:00.002-05:00

Well, he spent several days after his surgery sleeping. Then they finally took out the balloon thingy and the breathing tube. Then they had him on several different oxygen masks before he graduated to just the nose tube thingy. Day before yesterday my brother helped him sit up in bed and then stand up for a minute. He ate some ice cream and seemed to be doing much better. Then yesterday he said he wanted oatmeal fro breakfast but he said that they put pills in the first bite and wouldn't eat anymore. And now they think that he may have had a stroke. Please continue to keep him and our family in your prayers.

Changed again....

2008-11-11T13:30:00.000-05:00

So now the plan is to induce at MCG on November 24th if baby seems ready by then. If not then induction will take place at ARMC on December 1st. After the most recent appointment I went from being "a fingertip dialated" to 1.5 cm. So the OB is fairly certain that the induction will take place on the 24th. Only two more weeks!

Prayers Requested...

2008-11-11T10:09:00.003-05:00

Sunday afternoon my very hard-headed daddy finally called an ambulance to take him to the hospital for chest pains. Emergency quadruple bypass surgery was performed. They say that they are going to wake him up this afternoon and that he has a long recovery ahead of him. Please pray for him; not only for his physical recovery, but that the Lord would use this to rebuild his spiritual health as well. I don't ever remember Dad being "religious" but I do know that there was a time in his life when he attended church regularly and he was a baptized Christian. It scares me to death that if something were to happen to him, I might not see him ever again.

Changed...

2008-10-28T08:19:00.003-05:00

Induction date has been changed to December 1st. This is actually a better date for several reasons so I don't mind waiting another week to meet her.

The kitchen in the new house is painted and the cabinets are supposed to go up in the next few days. The livingroom is also supposed to be painted this week. Drywall is all up and most of the "mudding" has been finished. Still lots to be done before it's "done":

Prime hallways, bathrooms, bedrooms, etc
Paint hallways bathrooms, bedroom, etc
Paint trim and install
Order and install wood floors
Pick out tile for bathrooms and install
Paint and install floor trim
Bathroom fixtures and cabinetry
Pick out ceiling fans and install
Install gas fireplace
Siding and all that entails

I'm probably forgetting something crucial. Then of course there's all the paperwork and signings and official whatnot that has to be done. Then there's the packing of this house. And the unpacking once the stuff is taken 10 miles down the road to that house.

Call me a pessimist but I don't think that all this can be accomplished in 34 days. If we are moved into that house before Christmas I will be pleasantly surprised. I'm guessing it will be after the new year starts before we get in there.

Sometime in the next two weeks I will be moving one of the desks out of our bedroom and into the already overly crowded storage area in the kitchen so that there is room to set up the portacrib in our room. And then there's my bag to pack and the carseat to put in place "just in case" I go into labor before the induction date.

A woman's work is never done...

I just read over that list up there and realized that I didn't put interior doors... see, I knew I'd forget something! I'm sure that's not the only thing...

Baby Update...

2008-09-24T13:47:00.002-05:00

Monday I had an OB appointment. This is the first delivery I've had at this particular hospital with these doctors so I'm always curious to see how their methods differ from the other two hospitals where I've had babies. This doctor wants to induce me so that they can be prepared for the inevitable "sticky placenta"; she also seems to think that since this is my fifth delivery, my uterus is more likely to prolapse. Oh, joy...

So a tentative induction date has been set for Monday, November 24. I will have an epidural in place, so that after the baby comes out they can manually remove the placenta without all the discomfort I've had during the previous times.

I am more than just a little excited about knowing the day that she's supposed to arrive.

In preparation for the little lady's arrival I have accomplished the following:

I have three dozen cloth diapers, 6 covers, and 3 dozen+ cloth wipes for the impending tiny hiney.
I also made a snazzy diaper bag that is only slightly bigger than the purse that I made myself. And it matches my wallet, too!
The carseat ispurchased, ready, and waiting.
So is the sling.
The clothes/bedding/furniture/everything else have been gone through but are still boxed up at Granny's, because I am hoping that God will perform a miracle and we'll actually be in the new house before she gets here Otherwise I will retrieve/wash the newborn sized stuff/port-a-crib/essentials about two weeks prior to D-Day and we will "make do" here until we can move.

Speaking of the house, here's what there is left to do that I can think of off the top of my head:

drywall/sheetrock
hardwood floors
interior trim
vinyl siding
cabinets
sinks/showers/tubs/toilets
air conditioning
fireplace
interior paint
interior doors
driveway

Can all this be done and allow time for the "legal stuff" so that we can move in before the baby is scheduled to arrive? God only knows ;) I'm so glad that He's in charge of it all.

Win a Beco Butterfly and Beco Toy Carrier

2008-09-15T19:34:00.001-05:00

Check out this contest!

Win a Beco Butterfly Baby Carrier and Beco Toy Carrier from Along for the Ride.

Who couldn't use another baby carrier? Especially such a nice one!

An Update...

2008-08-20T20:54:00.003-05:00

This pregnancy thing gets more uncomfortable every time we experience it. Obviously I'm appreciative of the blessing that this baby is and will be but I feel like a beached whale and I've still got three months to go! Ugh...

My brother's son was born a month early on the 11th. He weighed 4lb 4oz and was 16 inches long. That is TINY! But other than his size he is totally healthy and went home within a few days like any other baby. He originially dropped down to 3lb 13oz but began gaining, so home he went. My mom is travelling this week to PA to go see the little squirt. I cannot even fathom holding a baby that weighs only 4 lbs.

The girls are back at school, the Christian Kindergarten, again this year. Also we will be doing a computer curriculum with Libby, to reinforce what she gets from school. Abby is doing well in 5K. Ben is doing Switched on Schoolhouse for 4th grade and boy-oh-boy is it worth it! He has finished each day before 10 am and requires basically no supervision from me. Caleb is watching "Leap Pad" dvds and we've been reading a lot together. I almost know "Polar Bear, Polar Bear" and "Are You My Mother?" by heart now.

Anyone out there a bat-ologist?

2008-07-21T21:24:00.002-05:00

Today we had a terrible storm; the electricity was knocked out for a few hours. The kids just about went stir-crazy: no tv, no video/computer games, and no playing outside. After the storms passed, Jeremy went outside to walk around a bit. When he came back inside he had a surprise for us. He'd found a very small bat, half drowned in the storm apparently. We're not sure if it's a older baby or a young adult. I've given it sugar water and kept it warm. It has "pottied" (on me, thanks a lot!) and has bathed itself several times.

Does anyone out there in internetland have any bat care tips?

I'll try to get photos tomorrow.

Well it finally happened...

2008-07-14T21:39:00.002-05:00

Waiting for my OB appointment, I was chatting with an older lady. She seemed really pleasant. Then when I mentioned that this way my fifth child she actually said "You need to get your tubes tied!" And went on to tell me how she had gotten hers done after her second child, blah blah blah. Then she asked me if I was "a Catholic" stating the people with too many kids are usually Catholic but that's their business. I told her I was "a Passionate Protestant" and eventually changed the subject.

I don't think I've ever had a complete stanger speak that bluntly to me before. I'm still a little stunned by the whole thing.

Meanwhile the baby's fine and healthy and we found out that this little bundle is going to tip the scales in favor of the pink team in this family. So now it's just a matter of patiently waiting another 20 weeks or so until she arrives.

I need your prayers...

2008-06-27T07:42:00.002-05:00

I have a problem. And it's as serious as any alcoholic or drug addict's problems. I am a spend-a-holic. I know that sounds funny and cute but it's not. It's serious. There have been times in my life when I couldn't control my spending, including recently. In 2005, over the course of a few months I spent nearly $20,000. There was a trip to California involved. Other than that, I only remember a lot of eating out and lots of trips to the mall for new clothes and dvds. I will go along for several months, doing ok and then BAM! something in my brain goes weird and I justify all kinds of purchases. Oh, sure, now it's usually a really good deal on whatever it is, but in reality it's not a necessary purchase and the money shouldn't be spent. This has repeatedly put a strain on my marriage. When you spend money behind your husband's back you're sending a message to him, whether you realize it or not. That message is "What you give me isn't enough, I want MORE!" To show him such disrespect is most shameful. Guys will tease each other about their wives spending habits, but many a truth is said in jest. And so I have wounded my husband and I have shamed him in the eyes of others.

And so I'm coming here today to confess before witnesses, few though they may be, that I need help. I need your prayers. I need God to help me overcome this weakness.

I can do all things through Him who strengthens me. Phil 4:13

Because the only way I'm going to overcome this addiction/illness/foolishness is with His help.

delete

2008-06-25T12:37:00.001-05:00

I'm sorely tempted to delete that last post. But for now I won't. I'll just go on with my blog as I've gone on with my life.

Speaking of which, the kids are making messes so I'd better cut this short. Thanks for the kind words.

Call me irresponsible...

2008-06-11T21:11:00.004-05:00

I am heartsick tonight and it doesn't have anything to do with my blogging absence. That's just due to my overwhelming laziness coupled with my inability to think of anything remotely interesting to blog about. No, tonight I am sad and also disappointed in myself as a pet owner/farmer/responsible adult.

A few months back I mentioned our goats. Frist we bought Clara and Heidi. Then Vito came to join them, and he was quite thankful for the small harem he'd been given. And as these things happen, we were blessed with kids in April. I assumed that Heidi had the buck kid (Alvin) and Clara had the doe kid(Frosting), since they were paired up that way when we found them. What a surprise we had when a month later Clara turned up with a little black doe kid(Sweetness) the day we brought home "Honey" the milk goat. Our herd was growing in leaps and bounds. I was concerned at first that Clara would disregard her new kid in favor of Frosting since poor little Sweetness wasn't as big and strong and might have trouble keeping up and holding her own. But things seemed to be going well. The grass and underbrush are growing in plenty, and there are three buckets of water kept in the pen, so for the most part the goats don't require much thought or attention.

(While we wait for the house on 8 acres to be completed, we live in the city limits in a neighborhood. Call me antisocial but I HATE having neighbors which is probably a result of being raised on a farm out in the country. And our goats, being the way that goats are, love nothing more than to escape from their paddock and roam the neighborhood checking if the grass is greener in this yard or that. So far, we haven't had any backlash from this occurence, but I know it's only a matter of time. )

I noticed lately that the other goats would go for a wander and leave someone behind. Sometimes it was Sweetness, sometimes Frosting, occasionally it was even Clara. I didn't really think much about it until I saw little Frosting standing near the water bucket all alone again. And was it my imagination or did she look a little thin? I mentioned this to Jeremy and he said he didn't think it was as serious as I thought, but I could always go get some "save a kid" and bottle feed her.

Here's where the guilt comes in.

I forgot.

Yep, I forgot that I was concerned. It just went right out of my head.

What with the house construction, and the baby growing, and the a/c quitting, and the tv dying, and my brother coming for a visit I forgot about Frosting.

Tonight on the way to Bible study the goats were actually in our own yard for a change. As I headed down the driveway I glanced and counted heads. Hmmm, Frosting was missing. So I got out of the van to go check on her.

I found her lying under a tree, lifeless. And I have this enormous guilt. Because I should have done something to prevent this.

I called my mom after church. "She might have been sick. A sick goat is a dead goat because once they're sick there's not much you can do."

But my concience is eating away at me. How could you forget?! You let her starve! Poor little orphaned thing needed a new mommy and you were too distracted to take care of her. What are the kids gonna say when they find out? They'll be crushed!

And now I just want to take them all to the livestock sale and sell them to someone more responsible; someone who won't just let them die out of absentminded stupidity.

Why has God seen fit to give me the responsibility of raising His children when I can't even manage a small herd of goats?

Ultrasound results and a building update...

2008-05-26T21:15:00.005-05:00

According to the ultrasound viewing last Thrursday, I am measuring six days farther along than I should be. But since that's an acceptable variation, they are not changing my due date. So we're still shooting for December 6th.

In other exciting news, the house is progressing in leaps and bounds. Here are some photos that were taken today:

What's gonna work? TEAMWORK!

That brown sweaty hunk on the scaffolding is my dearest Jeremy, building a big beautiful house for his family.

When you take into account that 8 days ago I said that they would START the subflooring, this is super duper uber fast! He said that they may be working on the second level flooring tomorow. I'm still trying to stay calm until it's completed; I wouldn't want him to think that I'm unaapreciative of the work that he's doing by rushing him to finish it by next week ;)

Drive by update....

2008-05-18T21:29:00.002-05:00

Last month we went from three goats to five goats when two kids were born. This past weekend another kid arrived and I bought a milk goat. So that makes seven, two bucks and five does.

Elizabeth and Abigail have two days left of school. Their program that they've been practicing for all month is Tuesday evening. I can hardly wait to see it and it will be so nice not fighting with them every morning to get up/dressed/in the car. I think that they might have been on time about thirty mornings out of 180. It's just IMPOSSIBLE to get two very dramatic girls and two very sleepy boys to all cooperate every morning. Somebody ALWAYS makes us late... and the culprit changes from day to day.

I have an ultrasound appointment on Thursday. I think it's the "let's see if you are as far along as you think you are" ultrasound. I know of several family members that are hoping that we'll be seeing double. Even the kids have jumped on the "hoping for twins" bandwagon.

Took the girls to see Prince Caspian today after church. They seemed to enjoy it although Elizabeth was quite figity according to her daddy. Toward the end of the movie Abigail leaned over to me and whispered "this movie is breaking of my heart!" And of course we left the theater counting down the days to the next in the series. May 2010 ... what a wait!

The foundation is being finished tomorrow and then they start on the subflooring. Jeremy is estimating the house could be finished as early as the middle of June and as late as September.

Patience has never been mine ... Lord grant me patience to wait for these things that are so worth waiting for!

Pappaw

2008-05-14T08:59:00.004-05:00

Heather at Oh My Stinkin' Heck has requested stories about grandpas and since my Pappaw was my most beloved and favored grandparent, I ended up with an essay:

My daddy's dad was a very quiet man. Nanny and Pappaw would come pick me up for visits. They would keep me for days and days until my parents missed me enough to come fetch me. I can remember standing on the little stool in the bathroom next to him in the evening; he'd take out his teeth to brush them, and I'd pretend to take out mine, scrubbing the space between my thumb and fingers. I still have that little stool and even the little green toothbursh. On those nights at their house, I slept on a little cot in Pappaw's room, even though Nanny had twin beds in her room.

My Pappaw could make anything: doll houses, furniture, little old fashioned doll desks for certain little girls that desperately wanted to play school, even taking the time to measure the specific doll to make sure that she would fit in the desks.

He read his Bible everyday, slowly making his way through it again and again, year after year. My parents have his Bible, with the small slip of paper on which he recorded each time he finished reading it, only to start over at the beginning again.

He always said Grace in a very quietly mumbled voice. I don't think I ever understood what he was saying but I'll bet God did.

He was a farmer. We'd walk together and feed the chickens, turkeys, geese. He never seemed to mind this litte tag-along. And he always smelled like Old Spice.

Then we moved "a million miles away" when I was five, and I only got to see him maybe once a year.

Once when we were visiting, everyone was going to the state fair except Pappaw... until I asked him to take me. On another visit, I wanted to go fishing so he showed me where to find the big worms, walked back to the pond with me and watched as I tried in vain to catch that big fish. He had Nanny cook the three teeny tiny little fishes that I did catch; and because she cooked them, we ate them.

I think that if I asked, he would have done anything for me, made anything for me. I don't know if this was special treatment just for me or if he treated all the grandkids like this, but I don't think I want to know. It's kinda nice to feel like you might have been your favorite's favorite.

The last time I saw my Pappaw, I was a newlywed and he and Nanny were in a hospital-type nursing home. Pappaw was strapped to his wheelchair to prevent injury and his memories were mostly gone. He held my mother's hand, and occaisionally he would bring it up to kiss the back of it. In his confused mind he was still a ladies' man; even asked us "Are you girls looking for some guys?" It was sorta cute yet very sad. He quietly talked about how he needed to get home and let the cows out. I was given the bedroom suite that he made, along with a cedar chest and a painting of his horse and dog from sometime in the 1960's. I hope I have them always and can pass them on to my children; they are so valuable to me.

A few years later he passed away, but to me, he'd already been gone for a while. I missed him before he was gone. I wish my kids had the chance to meet him, spend time with him; I wish that he'd been able to meet and quietly dote on them the way he'd doted on me.

My parents only live about thirty minutes away and I take them to see my momma and daddy as often as I can. Because I want them to have fond memories of their own Granny and Pappaw.

Lions and Tigers and Bears, etc

2008-04-11T15:17:00.002-05:00

Yesterday we went to the zoo. We were invited to join my parents, my brother, sister-in-law, and their grandchildren. We took along my other nephew as well, so the party was 6 adults and 8 children under 10.

We fed the lorikeets and giraffes. We watched the penguins diving and swimming (my favorite, it's better than cable tv). We saw the big cats snoozing in the afternoon sun, and stood inches away from three silverback gorillas (there was REALLY thick glass between us). And there were snakes, lizards, fish... all the usual residents.

The kids really enjoyed, we only misplaced a few kids a few times and they were quickly recovered. I think I'm going to invest in more of those animal/backpack/harness/leash sets. I already have three, but I'm thinking of keeping spares for when we're out with other families with small children, in case they'd like to use them.

By the end of the day we were tired, sore, sunkissed, and hot as we trekked back up the hill to the parking lot. Whose idea was it to put the parking lot at a higher elevation than the zoo? Obviously some sadist was on the design committee.

Sadly no photos were taken by me, my batteries ran out of juice after the first two photos I took :(

Yummy Veggies...

2008-03-29T12:54:00.002-05:00

This month I joined our local CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) and we've received locally grown organic veggies, delivered to our door once a week. By splitting a full share with my mother-in-law we save $5 a week. Last week we got beets, cabbage, mushrooms, red potatoes, strawberries, and a large bagged salad. I cooked the beet greens the day we got them; boy, were they good! Today I made cole slaw with the cabbage and pickled the beets. I LOVE pickled beets, probably because Nanny used to serve them all the time. While I was cooking the beets, this week's delivery arrived: collards, green onions, winter squash, oranges, broccoli, romain lettuce, cherry tomatoes, and a small salad.

Praise the Lord!

2008-03-24T20:37:00.002-05:00

Not only did Jesus die to save me from sin, but God answers our prayers on a daily basis.

We are getting very close to building a new home... Thank you, God!

We are all healthy for now, no more flu... Thanks you, God!

Despite a recent chill in the air, Spring in definitely sproinging around here... Thank you, God!

We are pregnant with baby #5, due in early December... THANK YOU, GOD!!!!!!!

All I have need of His hand will provide, He's always been faithful to me...
(Sara Groves, "He's Always Been Faithful")

THE PLAGUE!!!!

2008-02-22T21:52:00.003-05:00

You'll never guess what the entire family has....anybody guess?

It all started with an unnecessary trip to the doctors' office last week. My darling-lovable-yet-often-meddlesome-mother-in-law insisted that the baby needed to be seen due to the fact that he was hoarse. So he and I sat in a waiting room, surrounded by every germ-carrying person in town, for FIVE hours... oh the joys of being "worked in". By the way, the baby was indeed getting over his cold... he did however have a double ear infection with nary a symptom, the doctor said he probably would've gotten over it on his own, but she would prescribe antibiotics, since we'd come so far and waited so long... blahblahblah.

Fast forward to this week.... Normally I don't get sick and when I do I tough it out. Doctors are for children and old people... Unfortunately I was pretty sure that I was dying, what with all the achespainsfevercoughingsneezingchestpainacheyyuckyickypoo... So Jeremy took me back up to the doctor where I was diagnosed with bronchitis and sinusitis. Gee, I wonder where I picked that up?

Two days later, everyone in the house woke up with RAGING FEVERS. Back to the doctors' we went, first one set, then another. That was fun. All the physicians concluded that five out of six patients have the flu. I think I was misdiagnosed but refrained from bringing that up, since it was one doctor's wife that diagnosed me. Thank goodness I took the antibiotics prescribed (pointless for the flu); now I've got the inevitable yeast infection, too... oh...good.

As I was writing this post Ben called for the puke bucket... Libby complained that I should put him in the tub, 'cause he was making too much noise throwing up. Abby told me that she had her eyes closed so she couldn't see it. At least Caleb was already in bed... it's gonna be a long night.

Yep... Libby already joined Ben in the vomit brigade... had to wash it out of her hair, poor thing.

Lord, please let my family get well soon!

Shop Update

2008-02-14T16:59:00.001-05:00

Just wanted to post and say that I've added more to my Etsy shop, in case anyone is interested.

http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5182591

Open for Business...

2008-02-08T13:15:00.000-05:00

I've been making wool diaper covers for Caleb and decided that I should try selling them as well. Here's a link to my shop:

http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5182591

Also, I've uploaded some photos to flickr:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/22769628@N04/

Now I'm off to make sides to go with the meatloaf in the oven. Have a great weekend everyone!

It just gets better and better....

2008-02-04T16:39:00.000-05:00

So Libby was throwing up on Tuesday night, right? Well, She laid around all day Wednesday, then on Friday she was throwing up again. Friday night Caleb started vomiting. Saturday we HAD to go to the grocery, Libby seemed to be a bit better, and I wore Caleb in my homemade meitai, he slept. Gabriel came over to spend the night and watch Shrek the Third.

Of course, about fifteen minutes after I fell asleep the boyus came rushing into my room exclaiming that Abigail was coughing and throwing up. So I got her cleaned up and made a pallet for her beside the bed. I spent the rest of the night flipping the bedside lamp on and holding the bucket for her everytime she woke up. Sometime around 4am Gabriel came in to tell me that Benjamin was throwing up.

So the kids have spent last 48 hours soaking in warm baths, and imbibing gingerale. And Jeremy and I have been rinsing buckets and refilling glasses. And of course I've done seventy gazillion loads of laundry as well. But I think my favorite part has been all the requests for momma to "rock" them and sing "rockababytreetop" (that's Caleb-speak).

Under the weather....

2008-01-30T13:55:00.000-05:00

I've been making most of our meals "from scratch" lately. You know, fresh veggies, raw meats, etc. It gives you such a feel of accomplishment for the little extra effort. And I've discovered that I make some AWESOME chicken soup.

That sure did come in handy today. I kept the girls home from school; poor Libby was up all night throwing up :(

Both girls have gone on and on about how good my soup is... makes a mommy so proud!

Musings...

2008-01-17T15:58:00.000-05:00

So as each of my children grows older, marching through the many stages of childhood, I sit back and contemplate each of them.

Ben is nearing the age of "double digits". He reads, he writes(though he detests it) and he is really very selfsufficient in a lot of ways. But he still likes it when Mom makes his microwave pizza, when Mom brings him his clean clothes to put on for school, sitting in Mom's lap and cuddling close. He also loves his younger siblings. Loves to make them laugh and smile, loves to drive them crazy and delight in their screams. He's is your typical boy, but he is very strong in his Faith. And for that I am so very grateful.

Libby is such a character. She is learning so much, picks up so many things along the way to repeat at the next appropriate time and surprise us with her astute obsevation. But in a way she doesn't have any sense of propriety. "Hello, fat lady!" she will say cheerily. How do you explain to someone why a seven-year-old would say that? "Papaw is too old for hugs." she will say. And then I explain, that you're never too old for hugs. You'd think that she'd remember that, as often as we snuggle on the couch together.

Abigail. One minute she's so grown up, taking care of her sister and little brother, talking about happenings at school, singing a song that she heard in a CareBear movie. The next minute something terribly tragic has happened (oh, the mind of a dramaqueen) and she's needs to be soothed and rocked like a baby while she sucks on those two special fingers for comfort. She's an extreme, she's either extremely happy or extremely upset. There are NO inbetweens for this one.

Caleb is growing so fast I feel that he's shot from baby straight to preschooler, skipping toddler in the process. He's talking a blue streak, beginning to show interest in the potty, and so very helpful when Mommy is doing dishes or laundry. And in spite of his nearness to the big 2 he is still having his milkies about twice a day. I cherish those moments when I can pretend he's still a little baby snuggled up in my arms...until he looks up at me and starts talking about the cat or the horse or his siblings or his piggies.

Which brings me to the situation I'm in right now. I am getting "the fever" again... BAD this time. So far, everyone tries to talk me out of it, or at least postpone trying. I've been mulling it over for the past few months and I really really REALLY want another one... RIGHT NOW! Luckily, it doesn't work that way and so we would have at least 9 months from today to build a bigger house and possibly get a more reliable minivan. So I think that the best thing to do would be to stop using "preventive methods" and let God decide. He's always taken care of me.

Going green...

2008-01-16T13:05:00.000-05:00

So I have been trying to incorporate several different factors into my crafting. I find myself trying to be economical, first and foremost, but also environmentally minded as well. Thus the use of thrifted clothes and linens to make into other things, like cloth shopping bags.

As of this week, I will no longer be buying disposable diapers, wipes, or pullups (cue sideways glance in Abigail's direction). Monday, when I finally ran out of disposables, I cut up some of the more worn out of our bath towels, most of which are over 10 years old, and sewed some primitive (possibly even crude) diapers. But hey, they work, right? I also made lots of fleece diaper covers out of an old Finding Nemo blanket. Yesterday, I went to my mom's, queen of thrifting, and she gave me a stack of cloth diapers she'd picked up here and there. She uses them for dust rags and to soak up spills. A lidded trash can from Target (on sale for $3.50) and some tea tree oil and we were in business. I also picked up some vinyl covered training pants for our current bedwetter. I told her they were washable pullups and she hugged them tight!

And although this started as an effort in frugality, it has become slightly expensive... thanks a lot eBay! I can validate my spending though, because even with all the towel diapers I made, and the prefolds from mom, I only have about eighteen diapers. That's just over a day's worth for Mr. TinkleWinkle.

I'm hoping that using cloth will contribute to a speeding training of my little man. But even if it doesn't, I'm actually enjoying using cloth. We'll see how long the enjoyment lasts, right?

By the way, if anyone has any cloth diapering "stuff" that they don't want, you can send it my way ;)

A Lesson in Homonyms

2008-01-10T09:58:00.000-05:00

*Stained Glass*

An area pastor tells of his first Sunday in the new parish and presenting the children's message. Seems the sanctuary in the new church had some magnificent stained glass windows, so his message centered on how each of us is called of God to help make up the whole picture of life (the life of the community of the faithful). Like the pictures in the windows, it takes many little panels of glass to make the whole picture.

And then he said, "You see each one of you is a little pane." And then pointing to each child, "You're a little pane. And you're a little pane. And you're a little pane. And..."

It took a few moments before he realized why everyone was laughing so hard.

Behind again...

2008-01-04T16:50:00.000-05:00

I suppose getting behind during one of the most busy months of the year is excusible, right?

The girls got American Girl dolls for Christmas. I've been searching for patterns and ideas to clothe these since the outfits cost an INSANE amount of money. Of course the matching outfits for the girls are twice as much, nearly as much as the doll itself. But we did splurge and purchase a few of the outfits to go with "Nicki" since she was a limited edition and a cowgirl to boot! Grandma is going to pass along the doll dresser that her dad made for er when she was 7, and Granny bought antique doll bunk beds. Every night they get their "girls" ready for bed. I think maybe it helps them settle down for the night as well.

The AG catalog arrived in the mail yesterday and the girls have been puring over it together, making mental wishlists for their birthdays... what have I gotten myself into?!!

On the same "I'm insane" lines, I bought Ben a remote control spider for Christmas. He loves it for all the reasons you'd imagine: scaring mommy, scaring his sisters, scaring his little brother, scaring the dogs, scaring the new kitten... do you see a trend developing? Luckily I found it while he was schooling with Grandma and tucked it safely away.

I'll have to come back soon and post photos of all the Christmasy goodness.

Long time, no see...

2007-12-12T09:31:00.000-05:00

Wow! I've gotten behind in this thing, haven't I? I've been to Texas and back, been in a Christmas parade, and countless others. Perhaps one day I'll get around to posting about those things but I know if I wait to post about life in order, I'll never catch up!

So I'll leave you with a photo of my favorite blessings:

Recipe for a Pleasantly Quiet Sunday Afternoon

2007-11-11T13:41:00.000-05:00

Take two square scraps of muslin, add embroidery hoops/needles/thread, and a rough sketch onto said fabric scraps and what do you get?

Peace and quiet.

It's especially pleasant if you can find a warm sunbeam to sew in.

Shades of pain...

2007-11-08T11:32:00.001-05:00

Looking at the photos I've taken over the past few days is interesting. Here's what I mean:

Tuesday morning:

Tuesday evening:

Wednesday morning:

Thursday morning:

Please excuse the spaghetti stains on his face... guess what we had for breakfast? ;)

The progression og the bruise that's blooming in the middle of his face is just really interesting, isn't it? Yesterday Ben asked why Caleb looked like "Rainbow Man"? He is definitely reminiscent of a masked super hero, or a raccoon.

The Color Purple...

2007-11-06T19:41:00.000-05:00

The color purple never made me cringe until today. Everytime I look into this alien little face (he doesn't even look like MY BABY!) it's smiling up at me and yet still, I cringe because man, oh man... it just looks so dang painful!

I can't tell if you can see the damage better with the flash on or off...

Little boys keep you on your toes...

2007-11-06T11:24:00.000-05:00

I had several photos of Caleb that I've been meaning to post and now I have more and a story to go along with them.

Remember when I said I took that grey sweater apart? Well, as we wound each section into a "hank" (I think that's what it's called) I tied them off. Then I noticed what a cute turban it would make. Thus the photo of Jeremy and his little genie:

Last week I had to take Ben to the hospital for a minor outpatient-type surgery (although a urethral meatomy doesn't seem minor when you realize what they're cutting on, does it?) and so Daddy stayed home with the others. Daddys aren't used to nap schedules and so when Abby told him that "Caleb looks tired" he took a photo so I could see just how tired he was before Daddy put him to bed:

And finally, last night at about 8pm we heard a loud thud and Libby came in to tell us that Caleb was hurt. From what we've gathered she had "helped" him climb onto the top bunk bed and was helping him down again when something went wrong. "I've made a terrible mistake" she said, as the blood poured from his nose. Several red marks appeared across the tip of his nose and it started swelling as he partook of milkies to keep calm while we continued to monitor him. He kept telling me "Nose. Ow. Hurt. Milkies, please mom." Heartbreaking, really.

Well, I'm not all that familiar with nose injuries so off to the ER we went with Grandma, while Daddy watched the concerned older siblings. Granny met us there and boy was Caleb glad to see her! He clung to her for the duration of his hospital stay, which included a rectal temp check (yikes!) and a CT scan. For the scan he was wrapped in a sheet which was then taped up. Then they secured his head in place with tape but the little squirmy-worm required mommy to lay on top of him and secure his chin as well. As you can imagine, that went over about as well as a lead zeppelin. The scan showed that there were no fractures and no bleeding in the brain, so we were sent on our merry way. He spent the entire night in bed with Mommy, Daddy, and Milkies and seems to be feeling fine, but boy! does it hurt me everytime I look at that purple face:

The Holidays are fast approaching...

2007-11-02T08:06:00.000-05:00

As a follow-up to my last post about knitting I thought I would let anyone out there that actually reads this know that there's a month-long how-to thingy going on at Sew, Mama, Sew. I'm looking forward to daily inspiration ;)

Busy Knitting.

2007-10-26T10:25:00.000-05:00

I've been so busy lately, it's been crazy! I've been knitting practically everyday, trying to finish up Christmas gifts and winter accesories for the kids. The other night Jeremy helped me frog (unravel) a sweater that I saved from the salvation army pile. It's a wool/acrylic blend in charcoal gray. I ended up with 5 nice sized balls of yarn, and I've already started knitting up some armwarmers for my nephew. It's such a nice neutral color, perfect for guys. Counting out how many pairs of armwarmers I'm going to have to make, I think it's five pair of boys armwarmers, and then two more hat/armwarmer sets for girls, maybe more. Just thinking of it in those terms makes me want to give up. So I think that instead I'll allow myself that I can't make them for everyone and when I get tired of it I will stop. Last year when I felt obligated to finish something, it took me nearly a year to pick my needles up again. Same thing with sewing, if I've agreed to do something I just don't wanna do it anymore. I think I work best as some sort of surprise crafter. Like, I'm only inspired if no one is expecting anything. lol.

Well, back to my needles.

Dyson

2007-10-26T10:13:00.000-05:00

Dyson is one of the best vacuum cleaners you will ever use. I've had a Kirby, an Electrolux, and an Oreck and it is by far superior to all of these. I can't tell you how many times I've loaned my Dyson to someone in the family or someone from church because even they could tell it was superior to their own cleaner. I would love to win a pink Dyson for my mother, she could really use a quality machine.

I love that all the basic attachments are "on board". I love that you don't have to buy bags for it, and that it's super easy to empty the canister. There are several places throughout the machine where you can check for blockages. The canister is clear so you can see how much it picks up, it's incredible (my kids LOVE watching the dust swirl around). It's really just a fantastic cleaning machine.

Who says English food is bad?

2007-10-09T17:05:00.000-05:00

So the other night we had boiled sausages-cabbage-and-potatoes which is an old family favorite of mine. Tonight I'm taking the leftovers and making Bubble and Squeak. Mmmmm!

Whoever said English food is bad has obviously never tasted the same recipes that I've made. Bubble and Squeak, Scotch Collops and Stoved Tatties, Roast Beef and Yorkshire Pudding... Yum-YUM!

2007-10-03T09:41:00.000-05:00

Everyday there are those moments where you wish that you had a built-in-camera to catch that look, that pose, that event. But by the time you get up, take the camera out of its case and point it at your subject, the moment has passed, and all you are left with is the memory.

Case in point, this morning my cat, followed my coffee cup wherever I set it down, determined that she was going to take a sip or three. I caught her with her nose hovering over it several times, preparing to lap up the sweet milky goodness, and I knew that getting up to get the camera would endanger my precious java. So instead, I petted her, pushing her head back, and told her "No kitteh, u can't haz coffeh."

Ben's Birthday Loot

2007-10-02T14:33:00.000-05:00

Here's the mysterious cloaked stranger:

Here he is, showing off his fox shirt and soft, comfy pants:

And here he is doing his imitation of Bella Lagosi:

Copy cat, copy cat!!!

2007-10-02T11:05:00.000-05:00

Yeah, I'll admit it. I have abosolutely no imagination when it comes to thinking up projects on my own. But I'm a whiz at seeing other people's creations and copying them to give to family and friends. Imitation is the most sincere form of flattery, right? I hope Erin thinks so.

So here we have coffee-cozies, which also make excellent other-drink-cozies. These aren't just for hot coffee. They're perfect for iced coffee, and cold drinks. Nobody likes icy fingers! So far I made one for my BEST FRIEND, my mom, my mother-in-law, my cousin-in-law, my mom's best friend, and of course MYSELF. Because when I saw them on Erin's blog, I HAD TO HAVE ONE. And once I finished it I HAD TO TRY IT OUT. So my loving, devoted, and indulging husband took me 30 miles to the nearest Starbucks and I bought a grande pumpkin spice frapucchino because it was HOT that day. Which is how I found out that it works fabulously on cold drinks as well as hot ones.

By the way, the mostest funnest thing about this project was the embroidery. I am now as addicted to embroidery as I am to coffee. Especially embroidering the names. I LOVE IT!

You can't tell I've had too much coffee today, can you? ;)

Boys like shirts, too!

2007-10-02T10:59:00.001-05:00

I couldn't leave my little man out now could I?

A little heat-n-bond, some scraps of thrifted fabric, and a short length of brown embroidery floss and VOILA! a turtle shirt. The bonus is, the turtle is hiding a stain I couldn't remove.

When my mom saw this she said "Oh, that's that ugly fabric I gave you. It makes a cute turtle shell!"

Another horsie shirt?

2007-10-02T10:49:00.000-05:00

When you have two girls, you obviously have to be fair and make one each of EVERYTHING. But since I didn't have another brown shirt, I decided to make Libby's shirt a little different. Then Abby wanted to trade. Then she wanted to trade back. I think she's finally decided that they'll share both of them, which probably means that Abby gets first choice and Libby gets whichever one is left. Which doesn't sound fair, but Libby is much less concerned about such things. Except when it comes to her new rainbow-striped-hoodie-sweater. She ain't sharing that one, much to Abby's annoyance. So, to make a long story short (too late) here is Libby's horse shirt.
Basically I cut out the horse that I had used for Abby's shirt to use as a template. A little heat-n-bond and some cute fabric that reminds me of bandanas (I think it was a fatquarter from JoAnn's) and VOILA! instant applique. And I do mean instant. After I secured the horse to the shirt, I machine stitched just inside the perimeter. I like that frayed look after it's been washed a few times.
Mom says that I'm taking $4 shirts and turning them into $15 shirts. Does that mean I get to keep the $11 that I didn't spend? ;)

Busy, busy, busy...

2007-10-02T10:10:00.001-05:00

September is such a busy month! So many birthdays (Dad, Anna, Joel, Denise, Tiger, Benjamin, Fritz, Gabriel M. and Joey M.)...

Some very good friends of ours have moved back to town our little ones couldn't be more thrilled about it. In fact, I think Abby may be "in love" with Little Gabriel. She says she's not, but she sure gets depressed when he leaves, and I spotted them whispering to each other in my rear-view mirror on the way home the other day. They are just so stinkin' cute together!

My first born, my baby, my sweet little darling boy, the answer my prayers, is now NINE! That's half-way to adult! I need to get pictures of him in his presents from mommy, which he wore to "school" today. I made him some lounge-type pants from the softest plaid flannel, thrifted from Goodwill. Then I finally located some freezer paper, so I sketched a fox stencil and painted a shirt. He is apparently most impressed by the pawprint. And I finally got around to making his cloak; I've have the fabric so long that I don't remember whether it's cotton or polyester, but it's so smooth and thick, perfect for running around outside as autumn's chill becomes more evident. And of course, the best gift in my opinion...

Vito the goat. He's so sweet and friendly, a perfect companion for a young farmer.

I finally got some photos of a few things that I've made so I'll try to post those later on this week.

A picture is worth a thousand words...

2007-09-13T17:27:00.000-05:00

Going thrifting...

2007-09-10T14:35:00.000-05:00

I'll try to take photos later of all the "treasures" that I picked up while thrifting yesterday. LOTS of fabric (sheets) to do all that craftiness that I've been doing lately.

Spent today catching up on housework while the older kids were in school. Still more laundry to do...

SMART Habit Saturday...

2007-09-08T16:48:00.000-05:00

I sure hope that leftovers count, or I'm in trouble ;)

This is going to sound so egotistical, but I can't think of another new habit to pick up. I'm not perfect by any stretch of the imagination so maybe I'm just too lazy to pick up any good habits. I already keep the house pretty tidy (but not necessarily "clean", I like a tidy area, but I loathe "cleaning"), keep laundry and dishes cleaned and put away. I've been purging the house of excess, to simplify our lives. I haven't had a cigarette since Monday night. I've stopped impulsivly spending money. I don't even turn the tv on unless Jeremy's home. I don't really participate in gossip because I never really talk to anyone.

I would like to go horseback riding at least three times a week but I'm not sure how I can accomplish this. And I really should stop losing my temper with the kids, especially Ben. I need to work on my scrapbooking stuff, or my sewing. I also have unfinished knitting, and even not-yet-started knitting. I would like to give handmade-homemade things for gifts from now on. I should spend less time reading blogs, but every time I find a new one I read ALL of the archives. Oh well... I'll have to think on this some more.

See? Totally not perfect, but too lazy to pick a new habit. *sigh*

At long last...

2007-09-06T20:05:00.001-05:00

Oh sweet mystery of life how I have missed you... DSL welcome home!

SMART habits so far...

2007-09-06T08:54:00.000-05:00

Sunday night we had spaghetti with garlic toast.

Monday we had steaks and baked potatoes.

Tuesday we had Scotch Collops with mushrooms.

Yesterday we had Roast Beef with Yorkshire Pudding.

We have leftover spaghetti and leftover roast/pudding for lunch.

Our options for dinner include cubed steak, meatloaf, or MM's fav sandwich. I think I'll cook the crock pot roast tomorrow.

So far, so good!

Beef... it's what's for dinner.

2007-09-02T13:41:00.000-05:00

My poor Jeremy is sick. He even missed church this morning! I'm pretty sure that it's a sinus infection, but you know how men can be when they're sick. Feeling bad makes them even more sensitive and A WHOLE LOT grumpier. He had several quiet hours today while I took the kids to church and then to town.

Amazingly enough, the school schedule has improved my waking abilities, so I was up by eight and had the kids at church by class time... all by myself. Then after church, the five of us headed to the grocery store to purchase dinner for the upcoming week. Our menu will include Marlboro Man's Favorite Sandwich, Roast Beef and Yorkshire pudding, Scotch Collops, Meatloaf w/mashed potatoes, Crockpot Roast with carrots and potatoes, cubed steaks. Sometimes I get the feeling we'd save all kinds of money at the grocery store if we raised/slaughtered our own beef. And we could save a bundle on milk, too.

Now I just need to go through the meat and figure out what day we should eat what, based on the "sell by" dates.

S.M.A.R.T. Habit Saturday

2007-09-01T19:50:00.000-05:00

SMART Habit Saturday is something that I ran across in another of my frequently read blogs. If you click on that link you can familiarize yourself with the logistics, but basically each Saturday you decide on a good habit that you want to form and try to do it each day of the following week. They say that if you do somethng everyday for 21 days it becomes a habit.

I know we all have room for improvement. For instance, I've been keeping house pretty good lately. I've even figured out the secret to getting the kids involved in house keeping. But I'm afraid that my culinary escapades have suffered as a result of my obsessive desire to keep the house organized and tidy. So tomorrow I'm going to take my gorcery list and get supplies for next week so that I can cook dinner EACH and EVERY night. Hopefully the house won't go back to looking like a pig sty as a result.

So I guess I'll be back next week to report on my results.

Speaking of School...

2007-08-28T13:47:00.000-05:00

Here is what day one of K4 looked like around here.

And Abigail talks constantly about her new friends Mary (pictured above) and Nikki. It is just so cute to see their little faces light up when they see each other.

And this...

2007-08-28T12:50:00.000-05:00

One of the craft blogs that I check everyday is houseonhillroad. That's where I picked up the embroidery bug. And since Abigail is one of the most horse-crazy four-year-olds you will ever meet, this is for her.

I used Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron as a reference for the sketch that I drew. Then I got some transfer (tracing) paper from my dear mother-in-law and put the image on the shirt. I went over it with my water-soluable pen just to make sure it stayed there until I was done sewing. Then it was just a matter of backstitching the image and I used a french-knot for the eye. After I trimmed all the loose strings in back I ironed some stabilizer over the back, so that Little Miss won't be tickled by all those threads.

This is what I have been up to...

2007-08-28T12:31:00.000-05:00

I've rediscovered my love of sewing. And I'm sure that it has something to do with all the crafty bogs I've been reading. (Don't worry, I'll be updating my list over there with links to all these crafty-type blogs).

Here we have a small group of girls that just can't wait 'til Christmas. Know why? Because that's when they get to go live with some little girls that look just like them! Isn't that exciting? And by the time Christmas gets here, this group will have grown and will most likely include a few boys as well.

Here's where I purchased the pattern for these cuties : http://www.weewonderfuls.com/

Life is Changing....

2007-08-28T11:43:00.000-05:00

I've not been online as much as I used to be. I used to have an unyielding compulsion to check my "friends list" at Livejournal several times a day and I found myself drwn down into un-Christian behaviors and environments. At the time it seemed harmless but I can see where these unwholesome activities were very detrimental to my mental health and my marriage.

Nowadays I find myself instead drawn to "blogs" written by other mothers, Christians, crafters. I have been inspired to do more with my hands and more with the time I am given each day, now that the girls are both in preschool and Ben is going to Grandma's daily for his homeschooling. My house is cleaner, my family is happier, and I feel a wonderful sense of accomplishment when I look around me.

I have been reading a wonderful book Finding the Hero in Your Husband by Dr. Julianna Slattery. Man, I really suggest this book to all women, not just the married ones, or the ones that think that their marriage is in trouble. When I've read passages aloud to Jeremy he is amazed at how much this woman understands men. Our congregation has ordered 10 copies for Ladies Bible Class material. It is really that good. I can feel the Lord working in my life. I think that my prayers for Him to transform me into the person that He wants me to be are being answered and I am so so grateful. Soon, I'll post an update with photos from the girls first day of school and also of some of the things I've been making.

Been So Busy

2007-07-30T09:58:00.000-05:00

My life hardly ever slows down long enough for me to blog, but in the interest of not getting too far behind I'll update on a few things.

Recently I climbed onto my arabian named Kizzam,

grabbed a lead line connected to my mom's horse, Maggie,

and rode about five miles to move them from Jeremy's aunt's house to our house. That was SO fun, but tiring! My two dalmatians, Freckles and Milo, who are both ten years old, stayed with us the entire trip. And so now the horses are here at home, which means we don't have to drive five miles back and forth twice a day to feed them.

Once we got the horses moved I went to the stockyard and bought two small goats

at auction to help clean up the pens that we will be keeping the horses in. Now the kids accompany me twice a day when we go out to feed.

Caleb LOVES this and you should hear him calling those goats. "Goakgoakgoak!" Too funny!

This past weekend we attending a VBS at Beech Island Church of Christ and I got to see some faces from my childhood. The real shocker was how much the kids that I used to babysit have grown. They're now 18 and 14!!! Makes me feel soooooo old.

Also, Caleb thought it would be a good idea to dump an entire glass of sweet tea on my laptop, so I'm now accessing the 'net on Jeremy's desktop until we figure out if Ol' Blue will recover from its sticky bath. Jeremy assured me that if it doesn't make it, he will get me another, but boy do I sure hate to spend the money on something I already had!

Pretty soon I've got to get off my behind at continue cleaning this house....

The Duck & The Devil

2007-06-28T07:26:00.000-05:00

There was a little boy visiting his grandparents on their farm. He was given a slingshot to play with out in the woods. He practiced in the woods; but he could never hit the target. Getting a little discouraged, he headed back for dinner. As he was walking back he saw Grandma's pet duck.Just out of impulse, he let the slingshot fly, hit the duck square in the head and killed it. He was shocked and grieved! In a panic, he hid the dead duck in the wood pile; only to see his sister watching! Sally had seen it all, but she said nothing.

After lunch the next day Grandma said, "Sally, let's wash the dishes" But Sally said, "Grandma, Johnny told me he wanted tohelp in the kitchen." Then she whispered to him, "Remember the duck?" So Johnny did the dishes.

Later that day, Grandpa asked if the children wanted to go fishing and Grandma said, "I'm sorry but I need Sally to help make supper."Sally just smiled and said, "Well that's all right because Johnny told me he wanted to help" She whispered again, "Remember the duck?" So Sally went fishing and Johnny stayed to help

After several days of Johnny doing both his chores and Sally's; he finally couldn't stand it any longer. He came to Grandma and confessed that he had killed the duck. Grandma knelt down, gave him a hug and said, "Sweetheart, I know. You see,I was standing at the window and I saw the whole thing, but because I love you, I forgave you. I was just wondering how long you would let Sally make a slave of you."

Thought for the day and every day there after? Whatever is in your past, whatever y! ou have done... and the devil keeps throwing it up in your face (lying, cheating, debt, fear, bad habits, hatred, anger, bitterness, etc.)...whatever it is...You need to know that God was standing at the window and He saw the whole thing. He has seen your whole life. He wants you to know that He loves you and that you are forgiven.He's just wondering how long you will let the devil make a slave of you.

The great thing about God is that when you ask for forgiveness; He not only forgives you, but He forgets. It is by God's grace and mercy that we are saved. Go ahead and make the difference in someone's life today. Share this with a friend and always remember:God is at the window! When Jesus died on the cross; he was thinking of you!

(Copied from a forwarded email)

2007-06-16T22:27:00.000-05:00

My ten year high school reunion was this weekend (well, actually I graduated a year earlier than the kids in my grade because I could not wait to get away from them...but I digress). Part of me felt obligated to show up, looking fantastically perfect, with my wonderfully perfect husband, and photos of my beautifully perfect children to show those people who treated me badly, to prove to them that I turned out way happier than they ever dreamed of being themselves in spite of their teasing and taunting and hatefulness. But then I remember that, as a Christian, I have to ignore this petty sense of revenge or whatever it is and just hope for the best for them... and I do, really. But still, I wouldn't know what to say to any of them, they didn't hang out with me in high school, why would I PAY to hang out with them now? What would we talk about? What would I even have in common with them?

When I discussed the upcoming social event with my completely perfect husband, he said that if my intentions were to go see people that I cared about and wanted to spend time with, he would be happy to foot the bill for clothes/mani/pedi/etc and escort me to the ball, but if I only wanted to go out of spite then I needed to rethink my motivations. See what I mean? He's just so darn PERFECT!

Luckily for me, I totally forgot that it was to take place this weekend and so I spent the day with my hubby, my kids, and my parents, and then I went to a birthday party for my little second cousin, whom I ADORE. And I feel that my time was much better spent this way.

And now that I've dodged that bullet, hopefully I will stop having these stupid dreams where I am BACK IN SCHOOL and trying to figure out where my books/locker/classes are even though I eventually realize that I'm married, with children and better stuff to do than hang out in a high school, which I've apparently only been doing because it was a "hobby" type thing. So then I show them my diploma and tell them all to bugger off.

2007-06-04T10:13:00.000-05:00

Ow, my legs are killing me. It's got to be all this riding I've been doing this weekend. After being cooped up in the house for two weeks (sick with the "creeping crud") I rode Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. And in spite of my sore legs, I'll most likely being riding again today. Call it an addiction, but I just can't be kept off a horse for very long.

Tomorrow I've got an appointment in town with the local children's consignment shop. I plan on taking as much of my stuff as I can, hopefully they'll take it all in spite of the limit of 50 items on the first visit. What's nice about this shop is that they give you your money up front, so there's no fear of being robbed like I was when the last place I consigned with went out of business and disappeared with my items and my money.

Summer is here and with it the heat, although the reprieve we've experienced with the rain has made life more bearable.

2007-05-22T07:28:00.000-05:00

Libby had her K5 graduation last week and participated beautifully and next year she and Abby will attend K4 together. After a discussion with her teacher we decided that it would be better for her to get a more solid foundation under her, so that she can learn all that there is to learn in the K5 that she will attend again after that (reading, cursive, adding/subtracting). So she will be two years behind other kids her age, but when she was diagnosed they told me that her social and academic age was about 3 1/2 so that put her at the same age as Abby. And Abby is certainly looking forward to going to school with Libby next year.

Caleb is growing like a weed! Well, actually, he really doesn't seem bigger, but he's talking more and more. So I guess he's growing like a ... sponge?

Ben is nearly done with the 2nd grade and spends all his time at his grandma's house, since she took over homeschooling him. I think the reason that she did that was because it makes it easier to homeschool Gabriel... ^_~ My mom mentioned that he should spend more time at home, but I pointed out to her that if I'd had the opportunity, I would have spent all my time with my cousin.

My friend, Anna (the midwife that delivered Caleb), and I were having lunch the other day when she told me that due to the complications I continue to have when delivering babies, the head midwife said that if I get pregnant again they won't take me as a patient. That kinda ticks me off, but the point is moot at the moment, seeing as how we have NO room for another kid in this three bedroom house.

I finally got my horses back from my mom's house. They are now at Jeremy's Aunt Sharon's house, which is only about 5 miles from us. So I've been riding as much as possible. Sunday I decided I would try to get up on my Kizza,'s bare back by jumping, something I've never really mastered. I was almost on him, when I accidentally jerked on the reins, he side-stepped, and I went the rest of the way over his back and landed on my shoulder. (Jeremy said that from across the yard it looked like a swan-dive) It rattled my brain around a little, but I didn't feel too bad afterward. Well now, my neck is KILLING ME! Can you get whiplash from falling off a standing horse? ^_~ I've been taking ibuprofen for it but I may have to break out the oxycodone I've squirrelled away.

I'm a bad blogger

2007-03-13T07:37:00.000-05:00

It's been forever since I've updated and there are a few things that I must share.

Libby was diagnosed with autism in late February. This was not that surprising and yet at the same time still kind of shocking to hear. Really this diagnosis doesn't change anything, but it does give us some insight on why Libby behaves the way she does and so we are able to address issues that arise in a more understanding way. One morning I heard the girls playing in the laundry room and upon inspection, this was what I discovered (of course, Abby may have instigated this stunt) :

Caleb also turned 1 at the end of February. He is such a happy toddler, and since he started eating solid food he's turned into such a bottomless pit! (Case in point: he just stole a banana from me and he's eaten almost the whole thing by himself!) He still gets milkies from mommy and probably will for a while longer. I know you're not supposed to have a favorite child ... so I'll just not finish that sentance ^_~
Abby is also doing well. She is such a fantastic big sister. She even mommys Libby sometimes! And she's such a good little helper. Here she is doing dishes for mommy:

Ben is breezing through second grade at an amazing rate. He is very confident in math, but even though his reading skills have improved dramatically he still lacks confidence in his ability. And I don't have any recent photos of him because he's always over at his grandma's or his granny's or his cousins' house!

Speaking of cousins, Gabriel's little brother Gideon is just as cute as he can be, as you can plainly see:
Hopefully I'll have more opportunities to update this blog, but I'm not making any promises ^_~

2006-10-27T13:59:00.000-05:00

It seems that by the time I get around to blogging about what's happening, I've forgotten what I was supposed to say.

We still haven't gotten the main a/c fixed but managed to survive the last of the summer with three window units. In fact, our electricity bill was lowered by half and so it was indeed a blessing in disguise. And now autumn is here, bringing with it cooler weather, a much needed reprieve from the typical southern heat. Time to pull out the long sleeved shirts and sweaters and start making hotchocolate.

Caleb is so close to walking that he can almost reach out and grab it. He pulls up to stand and the lets go, balancing for a moment or two before gracefully plopping onto his bottom. He has most recently cut his two top teeth, so that makes four in total. He is still exclusively nursing, with just the tiniest of tiny tastes of things here and there, which he always spits out. Most recently he battled a case of strep, topped with a virus (which I also had--NOT FUN!) and then two weeks later was back in the ER with pnuemonia. And yet through it all he's been the most adorable sweet and cheerful little guy, a true blessing from above.

Libby is still attending kindergarten; every morning she gets up excited to go, even on Saturday and Sunday! There has been some concern voiced by her teachers and the speech therapist that she may have a mild form of autism and so we are waiting for word from the specialists in Charleston as to when her appointment will be.

Ben is still homeschooling without too much protest. His handwriting and reading skills have improved greatly this year. And whenever I need to correct him about something, as long as I explain to him that it's God that he's trying to obey, he doesn't resist. He is trying so hard to be a good Christian and for that I am so thankful.

Abigail has finally decided to use the potty again after a long regression (probably caused by the new sibling). Thank the Good Lord for Dora pottyseats! We continue to work with her in learning to control her emotions. She can so sweet but she has a temper like you wouldn't believe!

All in all, I continue to look at my life in amazement. God has blessed me inumerably and I can't seem to thank Him enough.

2006-08-29T15:42:00.000-05:00

Count your blessings...

So many things seem to go wrong, but so many things have gone right that the wrong ones don't really seem so bad. Our airconditioner decided to break. As of yet, I'm not sure when we'll be able to repair/replace it. So here I sit in the hum of the fans and the one window unit... but my girls are playing together, searching under the couches with a flashlight. It's like a treasure hunt to them. They've found some toys and sunglasses and they're having a blast. Caleb is crawling around his playpen in nothing but a diaper, happy as always. Benjamin is playing at Grandma's. Jeremy is out with Josh, doing what he can to make us cool and comfortable again. And I am sitting here, counting my blessings, rather than cursing the heat. AC is a luxury after all, and hey, maybe the eletric bill will be significantly lower if we go a while without running the air.

2006-08-21T15:41:00.000-05:00

Libby started kindergarten this morning. She had a slow start.

It took so long to wake her up that even Ben and Abby tried to help.

Eventually she really was awake, but she liked pretending that she wasn't. Ben decided to help her open her eyes for the photo.

I took this one right before we left the house. Doesn't she look excited?

Here she is standing just outside of the school (a local church runs the 3k, 4k, and 5k program).

She immediately found her assigned desk, having remembered which one it was from the orientation last Thursday.

Mrs. S. had put a book on each child's desk for them to look at while they waited.

Have a good day, sweet girl!

When I picked her up today the teacher's aide said that she'd had a good day, but she'd fallen asleep. *blush* I made sure that she got to bed on time last night but she was wide awake at 4am asking for a glass of milk. Hopefully she'll be tired enough to sleep through the night tonight and we'll have no more napping in school. Also I asked her what she had for lunch (which I packed) and she told me that she had "broccolis, but I saved my carrots". She finished her teddy grahams and carrots while she watched tv.

2006-08-18T14:14:00.000-05:00

You've Changed 88% in 10 Years

You're practically a new person these days, and no one from your past may even be around to notice.
You've moved on, changed your life, and totally transformed your personality - probably all for the better!

How Much Have You Changed in 10 Years?

2006-08-03T18:58:00.000-05:00

Caleb just turned five months last week and he's already trying to crawl on his hands and knees!

2006-06-26T10:14:00.000-05:00

Caleb will be four months old tomorrow. My how the time flies! It's hard to believe that he's been with us that long. He's already such a little person; he loves to laugh, and he's trying very hard to crawl, manuvering all over his crib. He is such a joy!

Thank you, Lord, for my sweet baby boy and for allowing me to be his mommy!

2006-06-04T11:52:00.000-05:00

Wow! I sure have been ignoring this thing!

Caleb is three months old and growing like a weed. Abby had another trip to the ER yesterday for a smushed finger (she's fine; it doesn't even hurt anymore). Ben is pretty much done with first grade and I've been looking at different curriculums for second grade. We're probably going to enroll Libby at the local private Christian kindergarten so that she can continue speech thereapy. I need to get out the camera and take some photos to post here.

Kateri and Josh are expecting a baby in November. I'm so happy for them! Gabriel loves going along to the prenatal visits and hearing his little brother/sister's heartbeat. Hopefully they'll find out what they're having at the next ultrasound.

Life is crazy and busy and I'm loving every minute of it!

Thank you, Lord, for my family and friends and the wonderful life that you're given me that keeps me so busy.

2005-11-01T21:24:00.000-05:00

Pardon me while I have a proud mommy moment.

Yesterday was a big day for our family. I took Libby to school and spent about a half-hour outside talking to a friend of mine when my cell phone rang. It was Jeremy asking where I was. See, the previous night Gabriel (our nephew) had spent the night and apparently he and Benjamin had been discussing baptism all morning. Benjamin got an "Evangecube" and they were discussing how sin seperated us from God and how Jesus is the "bridge" that crosses that sin and allows us into heaven through baptism.

Yesterday Benjamin told his daddy that he wanted to be baptized. So in the very large bath tub in our master bedroom, with his Grandma, Granddaddy, sisters, Mom, and another member of our congregation as witnesses of this most blessed occasion, my little seven-year-old was baptized by his daddy and became our brother in Christ. I am still bursting with love and pride at this event.
Everywhere that we went for the rest of the day, he just had to tell people that he'd been "babatized". We also took him to pick out a real Bible (as opposed to a "story" Bible).

2005-10-04T11:51:00.000-05:00

Had our ultrasound yesterday. The baby looks very healthy, is measuring right on track and weighs 10 ounces. We found out that it's a boy, so I guess I can go through all the tiny baby clothes an pack away all the pink stuff ^_~

2005-09-14T12:07:00.000-05:00

Okay so yesterday I'm taking a nap, the girls are "playing" and so Jeremy steps outside for a moment. In my sleep I can hear that the girls are beginning to quarrel so I get up and go to check on them. On my way out of the bedroom I hear a bloodcurdling scream causing me to hurry toward the room that they share. I encountered Abby, the two-year-old in the living room crying with BLOOD STREAMING DOWN HER FACE! There was a huge gash above her right eye. As I was cleaning it with a wet paper towel all I could get her to tell me was "Libby did it". So as I try to stop the bleeding I ask Libby what happened (Libby is almost five and has a speech delay and could possibly have mild autism or something similar, we are working on getting her evaluated) to which she replies very guiltily "I have to potty." This is her way of distracting us from the fact that she's in trouble. So I locate Jeremy by phone (he had walked two blocks to his mom's house) and tell them I need someone to watch Libby while I take Abby to the ER. Thankfully my mother-in-law brought him home and offers to drive so I can sit next to Abby.
Fastforward to the ER. Abby didn't want them to put a bandaid on it, she didn't even want them to put the ID bracelet on me. Everything sets her off and when they feel that she is numb enough, they wrapped her in a sheet and held her dow to put five stitches across her eyebrow. Such screaming, you can't imagine. And the pitiful begging "I want to go home! I want Daddy! I'm Done! Please!" So once she was freed from the bindings I held her for a while to calm her and then within ten minutes she was released. She kept the 'blanket' (soft flannel hospital gown that she didn't want to put on at first) and has been pointing out her 'booboo' to everyone. Ah the joys of motherhood . . .

2005-09-01T09:45:00.000-05:00

So much for the sweet rat. Three days after I brought him home he bit me. Since I hadn't had him long, I worried about the possibility of rabies, so I took him to be euthanized so that the health dept could pick up the body and send him off to be tested. I havfe since heard back from them, he didn't have rabies . . . *huge sigh of relief*.

Gas prices went sky high yesterday, so I skipped taking Libby to 4K this morning and the girls won't make it to playgroup either.

My sinuses have been driving me mad lately, but they seem to have settled down after I finally took something for it.

I got my haircut on Tuesday, it feels so much better at the tips. I go way too long between haircuts, so that by the time I get around to it, the ends feel like horsehair.

Went thrift shopping with my mom yesterday. Picked up a tall/skinny chest of drawers and a sewing table to organize my bedroom with, along with gender neutral baby clothes and some things for the girls. And of course I got some maternity clothes, you can never have too many of those.

I want to rearrange the bedroom furniture and get rid of one of the bookshelves, mainly organizing to make room for when the baby gets here. I figure he/she will stay in our room in the cradle for the first six months or so unless the perfect house drops into our lap. Everyone thinks we're crazy for having another baby in a three bedroom house, but babies don't take up that much space, and if we end up staying here, we'll fit him/her in somewhere when the cradle is outgrown.

I need to start Ben on school; I can hear him playing a video game in his room.
I need to load the dishwasher. *DONE!*
I need to wipe down the countertops. *DONE!*
I need to do some laundry.
I need to vacuum.
I need to sweep.

2005-08-22T13:12:00.000-05:00

I went to the animal auction on Saturday to see my mom. I came home with $10 from selling rats and a free rat that was gonna be snake food. He's so sweet but I can't think of a name for him. He's really fat and has dumbo ears.

When I got home the kids were all running fevers so I had to go back out and buy Motrin since we didn't have any in the house (just Tylenol). So we skipped church on Sunday, since we didn't want to spread whatever it was, and I kept Libby out of school today to make sure she had fully recovered. Judging from the way she's jumping around, she'll go tomorrow.

Ben started homeschool today. UGH!!! Once he gets into the rhythm of it he'll be fine, but so far he's been driving me nuts. In fact, we still have a few things left to finish, but we needed a break. In fact, I'm not sure who needed it more. This too shall pass.

Lord, grant me strength and patience....

2005-08-15T13:16:00.000-05:00

I went by the elementary school earlier today to see if any spots had opened up for Libby. As I walked down the hallway toward Ms. Sanders' classroom I ran into an old friend that used to teach at Redcliffe Elementary. Libby's speech teacher was also in the hallway and was thrilled to see me there. She accompanied me to the classroom and showed me around. Ms. Sanders said that she was planning on calling me in the afternoon to let me know that there was an opening in the morning class.

I am so scared. Libby starts 4K tomorrow. She has to be in the classroom at 7:35am. Most mommies have the whole summer, or for that matter their whole lives to prepare to send their little ones off to school. I've been planning to homeschool since before the kids were born. But this has all happened so suddenly and I just don't know how to feel about it. It's in Libby's best interests for her to go to 4K, to help with her speech and social development.

Dear Lord, please watch over my sweet little girl. Please help her to gain what she needs from this experience. In Jesus' name, Amen.

2005-08-13T13:21:00.000-05:00

I had a meeting with Libby's speech therapist yesterday. Libby started speech therapy last year through the public school system (it's free if you go through the school system). At this meeting Mrs. Davis emphasized that she thought it would benefit Libby greatly to go to 4K at the elementary school. I suggested the local private Christian school and she pointed out that their environment is much too structured to help Libby. And so after I left the meeting with Mrs. Davis I drove over to the elementary school where I proceeded to register her for 4K. Normally there is a waiting list but Libby takes precidence over other children waiting because she is in speech therapy. I met Amie Sanders who will be teaching Libby if a space opens up in the class. Ms. Sanders is fairly confindent that she will be able to call me on Monday afternoon and let me know if they have a spot for Libby (she doesn't expect one of the little girls to show up; she heard that she moved). So once I got home I called Libby's prediatrician to make sure that she was fully caught up in her vaccinations and they said I could pick up a copy of her shot records on Monday. Then my mom showed up with Libby (she'd spent the night with Granny) and we headed to the walmart where we bought her a backpack, lunchbox, folder, and crayons. We also picked up some cute shirts and little skirts that have shorts underneath from the clearance rack.

And so even though Benjamin will be homeschooled, Libby will be going to 4K at the public elementary school. I am more nervous about this than I can begin to describe.

Lord, please watch over my little girl.

2005-08-12T11:17:00.000-05:00

What a surprise! In fact, days later I am still a little shocked. Apparently my IUD stopped working in June and so I found out that I'm three months pregnant. My due date is February 24 and I am positively ecstatic. It's a good thing I gave in to my nesting instincts and reorganized all the stuff at my mom's house. It made it a lot easier to pull out my summer maternity clothes which I already need. I had noticed that my clothes were growing too small, but I thought that I was just getting fat.

Boy, that first trimester just flies right by, doesn't it?

2005-08-02T16:27:00.000-05:00

Jeremy and I have decided to start trying for number four and now I've got baby fever like mad. It's all I can do not to drive up to my mother's house and start organizing maternity clothes/nursing clothes and baby clothes. The midwife suggested that we wait a month, since I only had my IUD removed on Monday. That will also allow me to build up a month's worth of prenatal vitamins. And last night I lay awake rearranging the bedroom furniture in my mind. After the trying past few months that I've had, this is just what I need to bring my priorities back into focus. The good Lord has given me a wonderful loving supportive husband and three wonderful beautiful clever loving children. This is the path that God wants to stay on, this is the path to happiness.