Spider bite

My second oldest just ran up the stairs right now and said, "Mom a spider just jumped in my mouth and bit my tongue." I ask my self how and try not to laugh. She said, "I was making my bed and it was a baby jumping spider and jumped in and bit my tongue. " Now that she is gone I have to laugh because how could her mouth have been open just at the right time for the spider to jump in and bite her. I love this child but there always seem to be some amazing and silly things happening to her. Thank you Mackey for always making me laugh.

Wild Idea

O.k. yesterday as I was sitting on my couch looking around my house I got this wild idea that I wanted to purge and get rid of stuff. Well let me tell you I am one of those who thinks it all needs to get done in one day. So I woke up this morning and was really excited because Daddy had the day off and he said he would take care of the kids so I could do what I wanted. YEAH!!!!

Well we had a quick change of plans when we went out the freezer to get bagels. Our 9 year old came back in and said,"Dad the meats all squishy." Great you know what that means the deep freezer had quit. Well we did some investigating and it had not quit it had just gotten plugged into a socket that didn't work. Go figure . Had to have been one of the kids. So hubby spent the morning cleaning out the deep freeze and I decided I would go upstairs and start purging all while trying to still potty train. Mistake!!! Lets see she pooped 2 times on the carpet, peed 2 or 3 times and I just kept getting more and more frustrated. After we had lunch I figured I was being really selfish in trying to accomplish this task of purging while potty training and Daddy busy disinfecting the freezer. I guess I will try tomorrow. And we sometimes wonder why we are so stressed out. HMM could it be we bring it on ourselves????

Culture Shock

This week is what we call culture shock for the baby. We are potty training and moving into a big girl bed. So far so good. We put her into a bed on Sunday afternoon and she has not been back in her crib since then. Sunday night was pretty rough but my husband and I know it just takes a few rough nights and then they are pretty adjusted. She did not fall asleep until 10:30p.m. and woke up at 2:30 in the morning. Last night was awesome. We put her to bed and she started to cry and get upset we told her to stop this was her new bed, gave her a few books to read and she was quiet. She didn't wake up until 8:00 A.m. Praise the Lord the transition is easier than I thought it would be.

Now the potty training of course is not always that easy. Yesterday she peed three times and didn't make it to the potty chair. But last night as we were all getting ready for bed she went in sat on her chair came and got us and told us she was done. She had done all this by herself and felt very proud. I think she is getting it. So this week we stay home and do nothing but let her run around in a dress with no diaper and then by next week we should be to the point of wearing panties.

We figure we might as well traumatize them all in one week and then all the work is done. It does make for a long week for mom and dad but once it is over we are all happy. So keep us all in your prayers this week as the baby grows up real fast.

Children are a Blessing

I really don't like to blog about touchy subjects but I have felt the need to blog about this particular subject. This is more for me so I can look back at this when all of my children are gone and raised and remember those days of us committing our family to the Lord.

We have had many people ask us when we will be done having children. Our answer is we just don't know because we have left it up to God. My husband and I decided after our 6th baby that we would trust the Lord in every area of our lives. We mean every area. That includes the size of our family. I know a lot of people don't understand that concept but then I also know a lot of people who have been there to help us along this path. We are currently pregnant with number 7 but are totally open to more if that is what God has in store for us.

This pregnancy has been very difficult financially and physically. There were times where I questioned if what we are doing is right. There were days when my oldest had to prepare all the meals for the family and help get them dressed and taken care of for the day. As the pregnancy has advanced I have watched become more willing to help and not even need to be asked. She has learned to love her sisters even when they are annoying her. We have all become very close and I am thankful for that. At my last midwife appt. I asked the girls if they wanted to go to the museum with their Grandpa and none of them wanted to go because they wanted to be here to hear the baby's heartbeat. It has been such a blessing to have the whole family involved. This birth we have decided to have the older one's be involved and I believe this will be something they will cherish for the rest of their lives.

I guess I just wanted to let people know that when they see a child whether it is one or ten remember they are all gifts from God and they are all a blessing no matter how few or how many. So when you do see that lady in the store with half a dozen children smile and tell her," What a bunch of blessings you have."

And to all of you who are struggling with a decision like this remember God will take care of all the details and all of your children will be just fine if you remember to put God first.

A Day at The Nursing Home

Yesterday we went to the nursng home to do little skit for the residents. We focused on God being Love and all the children got to dress up and do a little fashion show. Then we talked about all the different pieces of clothing and how they represent God's Love. It was so neat to see the smiles on all of the resident's faces. We have been taking the children their every month for about nine months and I can see how the children are beginning to feel more comfortable with everyone. At the end of the skit we sang songs and the residents joined in and sang along.

What a wonderful day we had spreading God's love to a generation of people who I really believe are sometimes forgotten. We all need to remember that we are going to be their age someday and I pray that I am not forgotten. It is so easy to just love someone. It makes them feel so important and needed. I think sometimes I feel more blessed than they do when I walk out those doors. The saying is so true "you are blessed to be a blessing"

Time with Family

Well we are back from the funeral and I am so glad we were able to be there and spend time with family. My children had a wonderful time watching their Dad interact with his cousins that he had not seen in many, many years. The oldest child told us her favorite part was getting to meet new family who she had never met before. The children got to spend time with their Aunt Kristin who they have not seen in a year and a half. They had a blast. She is so great with them and just lets them be kids.

We all enjoyed seeing Grandpa and he was moved to tears by having all of his family their by his side. What a great example of a Godly family. Everyone came together and rejoiced a life that had been full and had given Glory to God. I had time to think about many things and as I watched the three sisters sitting together at the grave site holding hands I was reminded again just how important the little things are. A loving home, a hug, a smile, an I miss you, a sister to be with you during a thunderstorm, etc. This is what life is all about being Jesus to each other and not worrying about everything else. I know that when the Lord welcomed Merces into his home he stood and said," Well done good and faithful servant."

Lord, Just help me to remember the little things in life and stop worrying about the worldly things. Help me to be Jesus to everyone I come in contact with, and Lord I pray that everything I do brings Glory to you. Thank you for Life it is such a wonderful gift.

Life

Well hubby and I had a wonderful weekend at the Homeschooling conference. We were encouraged and refreshed and ready for another great year with our children. It was great to spend time just being husband and wife which I think we all forget what that is like at times in our lives. So to sum it all up it was GREAT.

Know on to my next news. We had received a few phone calls from my husbands parents through out the conference on how his Grandma's surgery had gone on Friday. The news was not good. They had found her completely full of cancer and had found a huge tumor behind her stomach that they were not able to remove. We knew it would not be long and that her recovery was going to be painful and we were just praying for peace for Grandma. Well Yesterday at noon she went home to be with the Lord. She never woke up from surgery and we are so thankful that the Lord brought her home quickly and protected her from the pain.

She lived a long life of 80 years. We are so blessed to have gotten to spend wonderful times with her. She completed her task for the Lord and now she is with Jesus with no pain and full of the peace that we had prayed for. God is so good to his children and we are so thankful that she did not have to suffer.

What an Interesting Week This Has Been

This has been a very different week for me. It has not been bad just a little busy and sometimes not really feeling focused.

At the beginning of the week we got news that my husbands Grandma had ovarian cancer and it was pretty bad. After sitting down with the children and telling them this we all prayed and waited to here the news of the surgery. The next day we were told that the Doctor whowas going to remove the cancer had run some tests and they had all come back negative. Praise the Lord.

Then I saw the midwife this week and it was a great appointment. We have decided to let the 11 year old and 9 year old be at the birth. This wonderful midwife spent about 30 minutes telling them different things that will be going on and each appointment she is going to go over more with them. At the birth she said she would explain everything that is going on. It has been a different pregnancy this time my older ones seem to be very involved. My 11 year old walks up to me a lot and holds my belly and says,"Mom I can't wait to meet my new brother or sister." It has been fun to see the children this excited about a new sibling.

Then as the week went on we have had storm after atorm. We have been here for 3 summers now and I have never heard the tornado sirens go off. The last two nights they have gone off and we have been in the basement. But we have been safe and have had no damage so I guess I can handle the sirens and the basement if the outcome stays the same.

Now Hubby and I are off for the weekend. We are going to a homeschool conference which I love. I haven't been to one in 5 years and I really need a boost. This will do it and the best part is hubby and I get some time alone.

Have a great weekend.

Happy Birthday

My baby is now 2. I can't believe that she is already two years old. These past two years have just flown by. I also can't believe in a few months she will no longer be the baby.

Kharis has been such a joy to our family. From the day she was born we have loved her and have had many laughs with her. Her first day of life was a glorious day and every day since then we have been blessed by her. The children all welcomed her with open arms and I remember the transition being very smooth. We had one little problem and that was one we had no control over. The 4th child was upset it was not a boy. She said, "I told you guys I wanted a brother not a sister." But after a few hours she was happy with her new little sis. Who couldn't be she was just like all the others.

Over the past two years it has been such a joy watching her reach her milestones: rolling over, crawling, sitting up, walking, talking( she has a large vocabulary for a two year old.)

I just thank the Lord everyday for all my little girls and I thank you Lord for our next little bundle who will be here with us very soon.

Happy Birthday Kharis, Mommy loves you.