My 100th Post

Oh my goodness. I have finally hit my 100th post. It has only taken me forever to achieve this. Now it is going to be interesting to see how long it takes me to actually finish it. Today is May 27th and we will see now how many days or weeks it takes me to post this.


Here it goes my list of 100 things about me. Some of these may be silly or sad and some may be from my past that were not so Glorifying to God. But hopefully we will all see how God can refine and mold the dirtiest piece of clay into something beautiful. Don't get me wrong I am not perfect but he has cleaned me up a lot and I am hoping that He now sees me as beautiful.


1. When I was two I got into my mother's bright red lipstick and drew all over my neck and chest which in turn looked like I had cut myself so Mom and Aunt Debbie totally freaked out.
2. I have one sister who lives in Oceanside, Ca.
3. My husband and I both come from a family of parents who have been married for 38 years. (What a blessing)
4. I accepted the Lord at youth camp when I was 14.
5. My husband Baptized me in September of 2002 right after he was Baptized.
6. I have 3 nephews.
7.I went to all 4 of my high school proms. (9th, 10th,11th,and 12th grade.)
8.I was not very innocent in High school.
9. I grew up in the same house my whole life.
10. My husband and I have moved 4 times in almost 13 years of marriage.(not bad)
11. I have a true best friend that God put in my life almost 12 years ago, and her names is also Susan. Distance will never keep us apart.
12. I lived in the same house my whole life in Hemet, Ca.
13. My Senior year of high school I was put on school probation because I had ditched so much.
14. I got around that and still figured out ways to ditch.
15. When I was little I always told my parents I wanted 12 kids. (We are half way there)
16. I have had 3 babies at home and soon to be four.
17. When my husband and I had been married for five years we almost didn't make it. We went to a Christian counselor for 3 years and recommitted our lives to Christ. (Thank God for his redeeming grace)
18. When Marc and I got married we were big time partiers.
19. After 2 children we were sure we were done. Well we wer wrong we are now on number 7.
20. Footloose was my favorite movie in high school.
21. My first car was a VW Bug.
22. I played the saxophone in band and yes I was a band geek.
23. I had a favorite cat named Foxy who I used to dress up as a baby and push in a stroller.
24. In 5th grade I wore pink to school everyday.
25. When I was 15 I went to my first Bon Jovi concert. ( I was so in love.)
26 My husband and I dated for about 2 weeks and then I dumped him because I thought he was too nice. 7 month later we were married.
27. Two weeks after we got married he went out to sea for 6 months.
28. I served in the Navy for 1 year, 1 month, and 1 week to the day.
29. My parents met my husband before I did.
30.When I was 15 I wanted to live with my cousins in Iowa on their farm. Now I do live in Iowa.( Boy God really does start preparing us at a young age.)
31. When I met my husband I wanted to be a Doctor in Boston.
32. Well I am a Doctor, just without the paper and of course not in Boston.
33. My Junior Prom my parents said they trusted me to make the decision as to when to come home that night. Well we decided to stay out all night. Wrong choice.
34. When I was a senior in high school I was engaged to a young man and he broke it off 2 weeks before graduation.
35.My graduation is a blur to me because of an altered state I chose to be in.
36. I have no tattoos.
37. I did pierce my belly button when I was 29 and took it out 6 weeks later.
38. My two favorite movies are Anne of Green Gables and Gone With the Wind.
39. When I was about 8 my Gram gave me perm and no kidding it turned out like Shirley Temple.
40.My second born is a little me. (Which can be challenging at times)
41. I hate the game Trivial Pursuit.
42. Monopoly is my favorite.
43. My husband and I went on a cruise for our tenth wedding anniversary we hope to do that again for our 15th.
44. I have been to the Gran Canyon, many times.
45. Never been to New York but dream about going their.
46.My children have never been to public school and I hope to make it that way all the way through.
47. Too be able to stay home without working we moved from Arizona to Iowa. (This has been a blessing even though it was a hard transition.)
48. Most of our friends who lived in Phoenix have also moved so this makes it easier knowing I am not missing my old life.
49.Right now I am reading the Bible, Breaking Free by Beth Moore, and Amy Carmichael.
50. The last movie I saw was Horton Hear a Who.
51.My favorite book of the Bible is Ruth.
52. My favorite person in the Bible is Esther.
53.My favorite color I would say is pink, brown, and black.
54. My in-laws live in Phoenix.
55. My parents live in California.
56. I got really depressed about 6 months before I turned 30.
57. My husband and I always said we would never have children in our 30's. (We are going on our 4th child that will have been born in our 30's)
58. We have no pets.
59. E/R has been my favorite show since it began.
60. I wish I knew how to sew.
61. My favorite place to live would be anywhere that stays a constant 70 degrees all year long.
62. Math is ny best subject.
63. When I am looking at houses to buy the first thing I look for is where to put the Christmas Tree.
64. Christmas is my favorite holiday.
65. I had a surprise birthday party for my 29th b-day.
66. I would love to go on a missions trip someday.
67.Casting Crowns is one of my favorite bands.
68. I was 17 and a half before I got my first driver's license.
69. My first job was in a pizza place.
70. My favorite job was at a seafood restaurant in Oceanside, Ca.
71. When I was a kid I loved being at the beach.
72. I still do just no beaches around us.
73. When I was 15 I flew to Florida to visit my friend for Spring Break.
74. When I was 14 I stayed for two weeks with my Aunts in Indiana and was homesick the whole time.
75. I had a crush on my sisters first boyfriend, John.
76. My favorite food is Crab.
77. Cookies are my favorite dessert.
78. I could eat a whole bag of Taco Doritos in one sitting.
79. In High school my best friend was Andrea, and Leanne.
80. I don't talk to either one of them anymore.
81. My favorite name for a girl was Emily and for a boy it was Drew. (This was in High school)
82. When I was little I collected Cabbage Patch dolls.
83. I used to love going to VBS in the summer.
84. I had knee surgery when I was in 9th grade.
85. I had my tonsils out when I was 5 or 6.
86. I got the chicken pox in Kindergarten.
87. I have one baby waiting in Heaven for us.
88. Nursing babies is one of my favorite things to do.
89. This is really getting old.
90.I love to cook new recipes.
91. Fall is my favorite season.
92. The Amish community intrigues me.
93. Tetris was my favorite video game in high school.
94. I used to smoke.
95. My sister and I never got along until we were adults.
96. Jeremy was my first real boyfriend.
97. Mrs. Nord was my first grade teacher and she was my favorite.
98. I had to walk to my first day of kindergarten with my big sister.
99. Jesus is my saviour.
100. When I get to Heaven I hope he looks at me and says ,"Well done good and faithful servant."

The 2 Year Olds Prayers

Every time we sit down to eat someone is picked to say the prayer to bless the meal. The little ones like to be picked and are always raising their hand so I will pick them. Well lately the 2 year old thinks she needs to pray at every meal even if someone else has already blesses the meal. We let her do that and she feels proud so what does it really hurt. So tonight at dinner Daddy had said the prayer and we had asked her if she wanted to pray. There was no answer so we all decided to go ahead and start eating. Well about 5 minutes into the meal she has her hands folded and is screaming,"I Pray, I pray." At first I couldn't understand what she was saying and then I figured it out and of course we all stopped and let her pray. This is what she said,"Dear Jesus, gibber, gibber ,gibber, AMEN." I have no clue as to what she said but I am sure he does and that is all that matters. I wonder if when we pray all she hears is gibberish and I wonder what God hears. It really made me think about how I talk to Him and I am going to try to make it more meaningful and not just meaningless done out of duty. Thank you little girl for opening up my eyes to my sometimes gibberish talk.

My Dream

O.k. everyone I had a dream last night and I am still in shock. I have had dreams before when I was pregnant about the baby but nothing this graphic. I was above myself in the dream and was able to see the whole delivery. It was amazing and so real. As the head began to crown and then be delivered it was beautiful and the baby looked just like all of my other ones. In my dream I reached down and helped pull the baby out and placed it on my chest. Now this is what really got me It was a BOY. No joke clear as day I was holding a little boy on my chest. I am still in shock as I write this because in my gut I think this is a girl again but now I wonder if God was showing me something last night and we are going to be having our first little boy. We will have to wait and see and either way I will Love whatever God gives us because a child is a blessing no matter whether the package is Pink or Blue. Only a little over four more months and then we will all know who this little bundle of JOY is.

The Pregnant Lady and The 61 Year Old

The last two days we have spent removing wallpaper from the kitchen. It has been interesting to say the least. The kids have been entertained with my Dad over int he little guest house so that leaves my mom and I to a quiet house. But I have to tell you one thing if you were a fly on the wall you would be laughing. Picture a five and a half month pregnant lady whose tummy decided to pop out this week bending and climbing to reach different areas of the walls. I have done o.k. so far but by the end of the day I am so sore I walk like I have stick in a place where it shouldn't be. Then there is my mom,she is wonderful and such a help but I realized the other day that our parents do age and they are not as young as they used to be. So the two people in this house removing wallpaper this week are the 61 year old and the pregnant lady. Seems kind of strange don't you think. I will let you all know how long it takes. I am sure longer than it should but we move a little slower than others. Where is my sister when I need her.

Spring Is Here

It is finally Spring here. Just a few months ago I thought this wonderful weather would never come. These past few days have been absolutely gorgeous. The kids and I have spent many hours outside playing and walking and having picnics. This is the time of year when I really appreciate living here.

The other day I was driving down the street looking at all the green yards and was amazed at how just a few weeks ago we were still getting snow. Now everything is green, the weather is beautiful, and the flowers are blooming. I get to hear the laughter of the children and the chirping of the birds, this is a great season.

It also makes me think about the different seasons we go through in life. A winter season in life can be really rough but then Jesus redeems us with a wonderful Spring or Summer. What a faithful God we serve. We all know that there are seasons that we will go through, but from know on during my Winter's I am going to try to remember that a Spring is just around the corner.

Happy Birthday Ray Ray

Well Sunday was number 3's 8th birthday. We started the day out going to church. When we got home we had a big meal planned but the electricity was out so we couldn't use the oven. She was a real trouper about this and didn't even complain. About 5 minutes later the electric was back on and we could get started with the meal. God took care of that for us. As always he was there to see us through even with the little things. After the meal we opened up gifts and had cake and then watched a movies that she had picked. Alvin and the chipmunks, that is the one and only time I will be watching that one.

I have had some time to think about what this child means to me and how precious the last eight years have been with her. I think about how her Dad and I were so settled and determined that two children were enough and we would be able to give them everything they needed and wanted. Just as we had decided to make the appointment for my husband to go in and have surgery to make this decision final we had a little curve ball thrown our way. That was the best thing that could have ever happened to our family. Nine months later we were blessed with our 3rd little girl and who would have known that this would be the beginning of a new life for us. This was when our faith really began to grow and when we began to see our children as such a blessing. I think about how God knew what he was doing even though at the time we couldn't see it he was slowly changing our hearts and desires. Now as I sit here and write this I am expecting baby #7 and am so elated that God has trusted us with so many of his blessings. Our 3rd child was more than we could ever expect. She was the child that God gave us at time when we really needed her, but we thought she needed us.

My little Ray Ray you have been such a blessing to our family. You always have a smile on your face that is grinning from ear to ear. I sometimes think it is the face of God smiling at me saying ," See I am right here with all of you." Happy Birthday little girl. And thank you God for letting us have her in our lives, she is truly a blessing!!!!

The Disappearing Five Year Old

Every night we have the same routine in our house after dinner. All the children know what to do and each one pitches in to help to get the kitchen cleaned up in a timely manner. Lately we have noticed that when everything is cleaned up the five year old is no where to be found. Everyone is busy cleaning and clearing that we seem to never notice this disappearing act until everything is finished. We seem to always find her in the bathroom doing her daily deed. I tell her how convenient that you always have to do this right after dinner. We have been trying to pay more attention and make sure she is doing what she is supposed to be doing but sometimes she is very sneaky and we don't even notice she is gone.

So the other night it was kitchen cleanup and we were almost finished when I said to everyone,"Where did number four go." We couldn't find her and one of the sisters said she was in the bathroom which is where she is most of the time. Well we were all wrong number five found her hiding in a little ball under the table where no one could see her. Well things are being done differently now. No one does any of their chores until number four is visible and accounted for. We will see how this works.