Tah-Dah!!! Here it is...the Holiday Picture! Does anyone else know how hard it is to get 6 kids to look at the camera and smile at the same time? I got 5 out of 6. I love it!
Thursday, December 14, 2006
Tuesday, December 05, 2006
The Flu Strikes Our Household
Yes, the flu has struck our household, specifically ME. Long story short- I thought I had a stomach virus, called midwife, she said based on my symptoms she thinks I have the flu. The reason I am out of bed right now, typing this, is because I am too miserable to sleep. Does anyone feel sorry for me yet? Or am I just being a whiny baby? ha ha
We did get the bad weather last week. It wasn't really bad though, like it was at my parents' house. My kids got out of school early one afternoon and they went in late the next morning, but that was about it. We got a bit of freezing rain, but no pretty snow or icy roads. My parents got 6-8 inches of pretty snow.
Right now dh is in St. Louis. The kids are eating pizza and watching Santa Claus is Coming to Town.
That's about all that's happening around here.
We did get the bad weather last week. It wasn't really bad though, like it was at my parents' house. My kids got out of school early one afternoon and they went in late the next morning, but that was about it. We got a bit of freezing rain, but no pretty snow or icy roads. My parents got 6-8 inches of pretty snow.
Right now dh is in St. Louis. The kids are eating pizza and watching Santa Claus is Coming to Town.
That's about all that's happening around here.
Monday, November 27, 2006
The Last Week of November
We are home from our vacation! We made it home last night, rolling in at about 10 pm. The kids are at school and ds4, Baby Girl, and I have just walked in the door. We went to an appointment this morning with one of my midwives. It went well. I have gained 1 pound so far and everything looks great. Baby is very active and hides from the doppler thingy that they use to hear the heartbeat. :) Last month it took her 15-20 minutes to get a heartbeat and this time it took at least 5 minutes. That seems like forever when you are lying there waiting, especially when you have had 2 times in the past when there was no heartbeat to be found.
This week we're having warm weather (70s) Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. Then Wednesday night and early Thursday we are dropping into the 20s. The high Thursday, Friday, and Saturday is in the low 40s. We are also supposed to have freezing rain/sleet Thursday and Friday. My kids will be thrilled if they get out of school. They love school, but it's always fun to get out for bad weather.
I left the house last week in a hurry to go out of town, which means that I left a mess. Dh and dd12 were here through Wednesday, so I assumed they would do some picking up and make things look nice again. Wrong assumption. So I have quite a messy house to clean this week. I also need to go through storage (the garage) and find the rest of my maternity clothes, the rest of the kids' winter clothes, and the Christmas decorations.
That's all for now! Check back Thursday and I'll let ya know if we really got the sleet and freezing weather. :)
This week we're having warm weather (70s) Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. Then Wednesday night and early Thursday we are dropping into the 20s. The high Thursday, Friday, and Saturday is in the low 40s. We are also supposed to have freezing rain/sleet Thursday and Friday. My kids will be thrilled if they get out of school. They love school, but it's always fun to get out for bad weather.
I left the house last week in a hurry to go out of town, which means that I left a mess. Dh and dd12 were here through Wednesday, so I assumed they would do some picking up and make things look nice again. Wrong assumption. So I have quite a messy house to clean this week. I also need to go through storage (the garage) and find the rest of my maternity clothes, the rest of the kids' winter clothes, and the Christmas decorations.
That's all for now! Check back Thursday and I'll let ya know if we really got the sleet and freezing weather. :)
Tuesday, November 21, 2006
What We're Doing Today
We are at my parents' house for the week. Dh and dd12 are still at home; they will join us tomorrow. On Thanksgiving Day we will go to my in-laws' house in the afternoon.
This morning Annie came over and cut my four boys' hair. Their hair was so long that it was no longer cute. Some boys look good with longer hair (my 4 year old does), but my oldest 3 boys DO NOT look good with longer hair. They look neglected. So, Annie saved them from looking neglected! All of their hair looks so cute!
I got to sit and visit with her wonderful 16-year old daughter, Amanda for a while. That is always fun! I love Amanda. When she was little, she was watching the Miss America pageant with Annie. She asked Annie, "Which one is Julie?" She won my heart right then and there. :)
Now the boys and Baby Girl are playing/watching the Disney station. We do not have cable at home, so they love to watch TV when they are here. Of course, my mom can't stand TV, so she shoos them outside when she gets home from work.
This afternoon I want to bake sugar cookies and just hang out. I have 2 friends I want to go see, but I am enjoying just being home.
The boys are going to build a dog house for Smokey this afternoon. My dad is going to help them. Won't that be fun? and memorable? Yesterday the boys helped Paul (a young man that works for my dad who just happens to be a hottie) unload a trailer of fire wood. They were so cute and so happy to get to be helping do "men's work." And Paul said they were a lot of help. He seemed surprised. Doesn't he know my boys are wonderful little men??
I found out last night that a girl I used to know in high school has a brain tumor. Actually, to tell the truth, we were flat out ENEMIES!!! My first serious boyfriend, if you know what I mean, broke up with me to go out with her. I was 15 and she was 14. They dated forever and are now married with 2 kids, last I heard.
They are starting treatment on Monday. I feel so bad for her, her husband, her kids, and her family. She is only 28 years old. She still hates me, which is sad. The stuff between us happened14 years ago. I feel terrible that we are still enemies and that she is going through this.
I am just going to focus on praying for her. That is all I can do anyway.
"May the Lord bless and protect you; may the Lord's face radiate with joy because of you; may he be gracious to you, show you his favor, and give you his peace."
Numbers 6:24-26 TLB
Happy Thanksgiving!
This morning Annie came over and cut my four boys' hair. Their hair was so long that it was no longer cute. Some boys look good with longer hair (my 4 year old does), but my oldest 3 boys DO NOT look good with longer hair. They look neglected. So, Annie saved them from looking neglected! All of their hair looks so cute!
I got to sit and visit with her wonderful 16-year old daughter, Amanda for a while. That is always fun! I love Amanda. When she was little, she was watching the Miss America pageant with Annie. She asked Annie, "Which one is Julie?" She won my heart right then and there. :)
Now the boys and Baby Girl are playing/watching the Disney station. We do not have cable at home, so they love to watch TV when they are here. Of course, my mom can't stand TV, so she shoos them outside when she gets home from work.
This afternoon I want to bake sugar cookies and just hang out. I have 2 friends I want to go see, but I am enjoying just being home.
The boys are going to build a dog house for Smokey this afternoon. My dad is going to help them. Won't that be fun? and memorable? Yesterday the boys helped Paul (a young man that works for my dad who just happens to be a hottie) unload a trailer of fire wood. They were so cute and so happy to get to be helping do "men's work." And Paul said they were a lot of help. He seemed surprised. Doesn't he know my boys are wonderful little men??
I found out last night that a girl I used to know in high school has a brain tumor. Actually, to tell the truth, we were flat out ENEMIES!!! My first serious boyfriend, if you know what I mean, broke up with me to go out with her. I was 15 and she was 14. They dated forever and are now married with 2 kids, last I heard.
They are starting treatment on Monday. I feel so bad for her, her husband, her kids, and her family. She is only 28 years old. She still hates me, which is sad. The stuff between us happened14 years ago. I feel terrible that we are still enemies and that she is going through this.
I am just going to focus on praying for her. That is all I can do anyway.
"May the Lord bless and protect you; may the Lord's face radiate with joy because of you; may he be gracious to you, show you his favor, and give you his peace."
Numbers 6:24-26 TLB
Happy Thanksgiving!
Friday, November 17, 2006
Kids say the cutest things!
Ds6 #2's teacher said to him, "Your little sister is just so cute!"
Ds6 #2 said. "Yeah, she never gets uncute."
___________________________________________________
This morning ds4 screamed, "MOMMY! Baby Girl is losing her teeth! Look, look, she has lots of missing teeth!!"
He was relieved to find out that she is not losing teeth, but still working on growing teeth. :)
Ds6 #2 said. "Yeah, she never gets uncute."
___________________________________________________
This morning ds4 screamed, "MOMMY! Baby Girl is losing her teeth! Look, look, she has lots of missing teeth!!"
He was relieved to find out that she is not losing teeth, but still working on growing teeth. :)
Wednesday, November 15, 2006
Thanksgiving Program pictures and a short update
Here is a picture from ds6 #1 and ds6 #2's Thanksgiving program. It was the cutest school program I have been to in years. I loved it!
The children sang cute little Thanksgiving songs and recited poems. Then we all had a meal together. That is another story!!
Since we are short on funds this week, I attempted to be frugal and wise. I had a few frozen pizzas at home (the good, crust-rising ones) so I cooked those, cut them up, and put them in a container. When it was time to eat, I took out our pizzas, thinking I was so smart. When I opened the container I saw that all of the cheese from both pizzas had melted! So we had a big cheesy mess. There was no way to get one slice out at a time. I just packed it back up, we left, and went to Sonic for dinner. So much for being frugal!
Dh is in chicago this week. The high there was 44 today. The high here today is supposed to be 58, but we haven't made it past 51. The wind is fierce! We can hear it howling and howling. Last night ds4 thought we had a tornado because he kept waking up thinking he heard the tornado siren.
My boys get out of school early Friday and they are out all next week. Dd12 has to go next Monday and Tuesday and then gets out early Wednesday. I am taking Baby Girl and the boys and going home to Oklahoma for a visit, since I didn't get to weekend before last. That was the weekend Baby Girl was sick. Dh and dd12 will join us in Oklahoma on Wednesday evening.
Baby Girl is no longer nursing. Today is the third day that she hasn't nursed at all. She had cut back to nursing only at night, to get to sleep and now I can just put her in her bed and she goes to sleep by herself. She is sleeping all night in her own bed! This is a first for her. To sleep all night is a biggie and to sleep in her own bed is miraculous!! I am happy! AND. she is napping for 2 hours every day.
Now if I can only get ds4 out of my bed...
Has everyone voted for their favorite Dancing With the Stars man? Of course, my favorite is Emmitt! You can still vote at www.abc.com!
One Thousand Gifts
Y'all need to go to this website http://largefamilylogistics.lifewithchrist.org/ and read her "One Thousand Gifts".
Scroll down and it is on the left.
Enjoy! I love reading it daily.
Here is another link to read the original post on One Thousand Gifts.
http://www.christianwomenonline.net/One_Thousand_Gifts.html
Nat, can you put this on my blog, also?
Scroll down and it is on the left.
Enjoy! I love reading it daily.
Here is another link to read the original post on One Thousand Gifts.
http://www.christianwomenonline.net/One_Thousand_Gifts.html
Nat, can you put this on my blog, also?
Thursday, November 09, 2006
Halloween Pictures
The whole gang, almost! George Bush was taking the picture, so he didn't get in it.
Mommy and Ladybug
Flylady's Holiday Control Journal
www.flylady.net
Go to the Flylady website, then find the Holiday Cruising section. You will find all kinds of goodies, including a Holiday Control Journal. I used it during the 2004 Holiday season and it really helped. A friend called me OCD when she saw it, but that's okay.
The goal of Flylady's Holiday Cruise is to get all Christmas prepping done by December 1st, so you can "cruise" through the holiday without stress. I am not going to be able to get my gifts all bought by December 1st, but hopefully I can do everything else and figure out what gifts I am going to buy. So when I get paid on December 5th, I can go buy all of the gifts and be finished.
Check it out! It's fun!
Go to the Flylady website, then find the Holiday Cruising section. You will find all kinds of goodies, including a Holiday Control Journal. I used it during the 2004 Holiday season and it really helped. A friend called me OCD when she saw it, but that's okay.
The goal of Flylady's Holiday Cruise is to get all Christmas prepping done by December 1st, so you can "cruise" through the holiday without stress. I am not going to be able to get my gifts all bought by December 1st, but hopefully I can do everything else and figure out what gifts I am going to buy. So when I get paid on December 5th, I can go buy all of the gifts and be finished.
Check it out! It's fun!
Monday, November 06, 2006
Baby Girl's Rough Weekend
This weekend has been quite rough for little Baby Girl. Let me tell you about it...
Thursday morning she started running a fever. No big deal. Kids run fever for lots of reasons so I didn't think much about it. Ds4 had also been running a fever for a few days and he was better, so I figured she had his bug.
Friday morning early (3 am) she had what I thought were seizures. It was really strange and scary. I took her to her pediatrician Friday morning and he thought she had had febrile seizures and that she had a virus. He said if the seizures happened again, to take her to the ER at children's hospital.
Saturday morning (5 am) it happened again, just once. We took her to the ER. My mom was here to help for the weekend so she stayed with the older kids. At the ER, they thoroughly checked her out. They did blood work, a urine test, a chest x-ray to check for pneumonia, and also a spinal tap. Everything came back normal except the blood work. Her white blood cell count was high, so they gave her an antibiotic shot and sent us home. DH and I felt confident that she was on the mend and we were so glad we took her in to the hospital. The doctors and nurses were great with her and it was not a bad experience.
Well, she slept the whole way home (1 hour). When we got home, she cried for 2 hours straight and she held her neck while she was crying. Her pediatrician said it was probably a headache from the spinal tap. He said to lay her flat and it would go away within 24 hours. Yeah, right! Have you ever tried laying a hysterical 17-month old flat down? Impossible.
We finally got to sleep and had a very tense night. She was miserable all night.
Sunday morning she was still holding her neck and she was not walking right. Her body was hunched over like an old person and she would take a few steps and then say, "Owie!"
I called the nurse on-call at our pediatrician's office and she said to take her back to the hospital.
We took her back and the dr. said that she was having side effects from the spinal tap. He said to give her Motrin every 6 hours and to follow up with her dr. in the morning. This morning she is feeling quite a bit better. Her fever is completely gone. She is still experiencing neck pain and stiffness, but it seems to be improving.
I have called her dr. and he wants me to keep an eye on her and let him know if she has any other symptoms that alarm me.
Thursday morning she started running a fever. No big deal. Kids run fever for lots of reasons so I didn't think much about it. Ds4 had also been running a fever for a few days and he was better, so I figured she had his bug.
Friday morning early (3 am) she had what I thought were seizures. It was really strange and scary. I took her to her pediatrician Friday morning and he thought she had had febrile seizures and that she had a virus. He said if the seizures happened again, to take her to the ER at children's hospital.
Saturday morning (5 am) it happened again, just once. We took her to the ER. My mom was here to help for the weekend so she stayed with the older kids. At the ER, they thoroughly checked her out. They did blood work, a urine test, a chest x-ray to check for pneumonia, and also a spinal tap. Everything came back normal except the blood work. Her white blood cell count was high, so they gave her an antibiotic shot and sent us home. DH and I felt confident that she was on the mend and we were so glad we took her in to the hospital. The doctors and nurses were great with her and it was not a bad experience.
Well, she slept the whole way home (1 hour). When we got home, she cried for 2 hours straight and she held her neck while she was crying. Her pediatrician said it was probably a headache from the spinal tap. He said to lay her flat and it would go away within 24 hours. Yeah, right! Have you ever tried laying a hysterical 17-month old flat down? Impossible.
We finally got to sleep and had a very tense night. She was miserable all night.
Sunday morning she was still holding her neck and she was not walking right. Her body was hunched over like an old person and she would take a few steps and then say, "Owie!"
I called the nurse on-call at our pediatrician's office and she said to take her back to the hospital.
We took her back and the dr. said that she was having side effects from the spinal tap. He said to give her Motrin every 6 hours and to follow up with her dr. in the morning. This morning she is feeling quite a bit better. Her fever is completely gone. She is still experiencing neck pain and stiffness, but it seems to be improving.
I have called her dr. and he wants me to keep an eye on her and let him know if she has any other symptoms that alarm me.
Tuesday, October 31, 2006
My To Do List for Today
I am putting my "To Do" list on my blog this morning. That way I won't lose it!
Mail eBay package to Australia
Dishes
Sweep kitchen
Grocery store- chili ingredients, hot dogs and buns for tomorrow night
Put dinner in crockpot
Get trash out of van
Wash boys' underwear and socks
Air out bedrooms
Email Aunt Marilyn-called her instead
Put important dates on kitchen calendar
Wash dark clothes
Bathe Baby Girl andds4
Crisis Cleaning: Living Room and laundry
Figure out if dd12 can go on retreat this weekend
Call midwife
Call Cheerful
Shower
Brush Baby Girl andds4's teeth
Throw away pumpkins (rotten and moldy on front porch)
Find mailbox key
Get mail from PO
Clean out fridge
Make chore charts
Thanks, Nat, for explaining how to cross words out! :)
Sweep kitchen
Get trash out of van
Bathe Baby Girl and
Crisis Cleaning: Living Room and laundry
Brush Baby Girl and
Find mailbox key
Get mail from PO
Make chore charts
Thanks, Nat, for explaining how to cross words out! :)
Thursday, October 26, 2006
An Update
Hi everyone,
I wanted to give a quick update. The past week I have had a houseful of sick children and a sick husband. Our pediatrician diagnosed the children with a viral upper respiratory infection. They are back in school now and dh is back at work today. I have not gotten sick, thankfully. I am still battling thsi awful nausea, but it is getting better. This morning I was up at 5:30 mopping the kitchen floor. that is a good sign that I am getting more energy and am starting to feel like myself again. Usually in the 2nd trimester I feel great and have lots of energy.
This morning I am taking dd12 to school late (she got to rest a bit longer than usual because she didn't feel well when she woke up) and then am heading to the nearest Chick fil A. About the only thing I want to drink these days is their lemonade. It is SO good!!!!! I highly recommend it. :) I am going to break down and buy a gallon for $7.95. That is cheaper than driving 15 minutes each day and buying a large lemonade to last me the day.
Next weekend I am taking Baby Girl and going home to visit my parents, and 2 of my very best friends. I am so excited about this!! Dh is leaving on Monday, November 6th to go out of town for 2 weeks. He hasn't travelled like this since Baby Girl was born. When I was pg with her, he travelled a lot. It wasn't too bad, really. But I had awesome neighbors back then. Now I do not have awesome neighbors. They're nice, but they work and I hardly see them.
Oh, one more thing, I see my specialist next Monday and then my midwives again on Wedneaday. They are worried about me because I am losing weight. Honestly, I kinda like losing the weight. I am still 15 pounds heavier than I was before Baby Girl was conceived. I think I will be fine, even if I lose more weight. I still have lots of padding. :)
I wanted to give a quick update. The past week I have had a houseful of sick children and a sick husband. Our pediatrician diagnosed the children with a viral upper respiratory infection. They are back in school now and dh is back at work today. I have not gotten sick, thankfully. I am still battling thsi awful nausea, but it is getting better. This morning I was up at 5:30 mopping the kitchen floor. that is a good sign that I am getting more energy and am starting to feel like myself again. Usually in the 2nd trimester I feel great and have lots of energy.
This morning I am taking dd12 to school late (she got to rest a bit longer than usual because she didn't feel well when she woke up) and then am heading to the nearest Chick fil A. About the only thing I want to drink these days is their lemonade. It is SO good!!!!! I highly recommend it. :) I am going to break down and buy a gallon for $7.95. That is cheaper than driving 15 minutes each day and buying a large lemonade to last me the day.
Next weekend I am taking Baby Girl and going home to visit my parents, and 2 of my very best friends. I am so excited about this!! Dh is leaving on Monday, November 6th to go out of town for 2 weeks. He hasn't travelled like this since Baby Girl was born. When I was pg with her, he travelled a lot. It wasn't too bad, really. But I had awesome neighbors back then. Now I do not have awesome neighbors. They're nice, but they work and I hardly see them.
Oh, one more thing, I see my specialist next Monday and then my midwives again on Wedneaday. They are worried about me because I am losing weight. Honestly, I kinda like losing the weight. I am still 15 pounds heavier than I was before Baby Girl was conceived. I think I will be fine, even if I lose more weight. I still have lots of padding. :)
Thursday, October 19, 2006
First Trimester Almost Over!!
Well, the Zofran is not going to happen. My insurance will only let me get 3 days at a time filled. At $35 a pop, that is $350 a month, I don't think Zofran is an option for me. So, my midwives are calling in Phenergan tomorrow morning.
Today for lunch I made the mistake of eating a normal sized meal. I have been paying for it ever since.
I know this could be worse. I have read about women who vomited every 20 minutes all day long! Can you even imagine? I can't. I think I would be begging my midwives or someone to either give me drugs or shoot me. So, I am counting my blessings and being thankful that I am not THAT sick.
Speaking of being thankful, I am getting excited about Thanksgiving Day and the beginning of the holidays. I always consider Thanksgiving to be the start of the holidays, but this year I may consider Halloween the beginning of the holiday season.
Dd12 wants to be a rock star for Halloween. She wants to bleach her hair blond and add pink streaks. Uh...no.
Ds8 wants to be a football player. That is much easier than a rock star, in my opinion. Ds6#1 wants to be Spiderman or Batman. Ds6#2 wants to be an angel. I'm going to have to think about that one. It may be a bit too girly. Ds4 wants to be a baby jaguar and Baby Girl is going to be either Belle from Beauty and the Beast or Snow White.
I want to dress up as a queen, but I may not be able to squeeze my pregnant self into a costume. We'll see.
Today for lunch I made the mistake of eating a normal sized meal. I have been paying for it ever since.
I know this could be worse. I have read about women who vomited every 20 minutes all day long! Can you even imagine? I can't. I think I would be begging my midwives or someone to either give me drugs or shoot me. So, I am counting my blessings and being thankful that I am not THAT sick.
Speaking of being thankful, I am getting excited about Thanksgiving Day and the beginning of the holidays. I always consider Thanksgiving to be the start of the holidays, but this year I may consider Halloween the beginning of the holiday season.
Dd12 wants to be a rock star for Halloween. She wants to bleach her hair blond and add pink streaks. Uh...no.
Ds8 wants to be a football player. That is much easier than a rock star, in my opinion. Ds6#1 wants to be Spiderman or Batman. Ds6#2 wants to be an angel. I'm going to have to think about that one. It may be a bit too girly. Ds4 wants to be a baby jaguar and Baby Girl is going to be either Belle from Beauty and the Beast or Snow White.
I want to dress up as a queen, but I may not be able to squeeze my pregnant self into a costume. We'll see.
Wednesday, October 18, 2006
Pregnancy
Hi everyone,
All of my faithful readers already know this, but I will announce it anyway...
we are expecting a baby in early May!!
Today was my 2nd midwife appointment. I have been extremely nauseated and have lost a bit of weight, so my midwife prescribed Zofran. I am going to pick up the prescription right now. Hopefully I will feel like my normal self again. I have been sick and lethargic since August!!!!!!!!!
All of my faithful readers already know this, but I will announce it anyway...
we are expecting a baby in early May!!
Today was my 2nd midwife appointment. I have been extremely nauseated and have lost a bit of weight, so my midwife prescribed Zofran. I am going to pick up the prescription right now. Hopefully I will feel like my normal self again. I have been sick and lethargic since August!!!!!!!!!
Sunday, September 03, 2006
7 Reasons ds8 Thinks Baby Girl is the "Awesomest Baby in the World"
1. She can climb ladders by herself
2. She can do “hiney-ups” (lean over and look through her legs, so her hiney is up and she’s looking at you upside down)
3. She can flip over couch by herself, face first
4. She can do belly flops (on the couch cushions)
5. She can play on the computer
6. She can take off her own diapers
7. She kisses her baby dolls
2. She can do “hiney-ups” (lean over and look through her legs, so her hiney is up and she’s looking at you upside down)
3. She can flip over couch by herself, face first
4. She can do belly flops (on the couch cushions)
5. She can play on the computer
6. She can take off her own diapers
7. She kisses her baby dolls
Tuesday, August 22, 2006
Sick
I have bronchitis. I also have asthma that only pops up when I have bronchitis. So, we're not having a fun week. I am super tired, even with the Supermom vitamins.
I joined Flylady's Body Clutter menu mailer. I paid $9.95 for 3 months. I took the grocery list and went to the grocery store this morning with all 6 kids in tow. Challenging while healthy, very challenging while sick.
I spent quite a lot of money on food, but I hope that next week I will already have most of the staples and it will be less expensive.
The website to check it out is www.savingdinner.com
I probably won't post anymore this week. I want to just go to bed and stay there for a few days. That probably won't happen, but it's a very nice thought.
It is 90 degrees in my house because our air conditioner is not working properly. It is HOT!!
I can't think of anything else to say, nice or otherwise, so I will end this post and go to bed. :)
I joined Flylady's Body Clutter menu mailer. I paid $9.95 for 3 months. I took the grocery list and went to the grocery store this morning with all 6 kids in tow. Challenging while healthy, very challenging while sick.
I spent quite a lot of money on food, but I hope that next week I will already have most of the staples and it will be less expensive.
The website to check it out is www.savingdinner.com
I probably won't post anymore this week. I want to just go to bed and stay there for a few days. That probably won't happen, but it's a very nice thought.
It is 90 degrees in my house because our air conditioner is not working properly. It is HOT!!
I can't think of anything else to say, nice or otherwise, so I will end this post and go to bed. :)
Friday, August 18, 2006
Accepting Myself
I realized this morning as I was getting ready for the day that I have spent lots of time in the past few years thinking "when so and so happens I will be happy." "When so and so happens, I will live my life the way I want to."
Do you know what I am talking about? I have heard people say things like, " When the baby is out of diapers, we will go on a nice vacation" or "When the kids are all in school..."
Well, since 2004, I have been saying, "When I lose weight, I will be happy." "When I get back to a size 6 or 8, I will be free to live my life." So what has happened is that I have spent a lot of time planning exercise routines, and planning diets, and joining Weight Watchers, and starting Body for Life and buying workout books and nutrition books, etc. It is exhausting just thinking about it!
People always tell me to enjoy these years when my kids are young because they go by so quickly. When my oldest child was a baby, I remember thinking, "You're kidding. This isn't going by quickly!" But by the time I got to my youngest child, I realized that yes, time is flying by and I am not paying attention because I am too busy planning how I'm going to lose weight. It makes me sad. I spent her whole first year lamenting the fact that hadn't lost all of my pregnancy weight. I really don't remember all the details of her first year, you know the little details that you want to remember. But I remember being depressed and upset about my weight.
What would happen if I just accepted my body for the way I am? Just accepted and actually liked my body the way it is right now? So I may not be a size 6, but what's wrong with being a size 12 or 14? It is hard to shift my way of thinking after years of finding acceptance through my looks. I was "good and accepted" if I was thin, but "bad and an outcast" if I was bigger than I wanted to be.
I don't want to think this way anymore. I don't want to waste another minute of my kids' childhood planning weight loss routines and diets.
I want to wake up each day and be happy. I don't want to wake up and dread getting dressed because I have to put on size 14 clothes.
I want to make healthy choices. Not for the goal of weight loss, but for the goal of good health.
I love to eat, and I want to be able to cook and bake and eat the stuff I have made without feeling burdened by how many points/ fat grams/ calories it has.
I want to relax and live life abundantly. No more obsessing over my body. Self focus is tiring. I am sick of it. I want to focus on someone else for a change.
I want to exercise and enjoy it, instead of worrying about how many calories I am burning or quitting a week into it because I don't see results. I want to measure results by my energy level and overall health, not my clothing size.
So here's my new plan:
Relax.
Buy some clothes that are cute and actually fit me.
Get my hair cut and highlighted.
Pray that God will change the way I think.
Smile.
Do you know what I am talking about? I have heard people say things like, " When the baby is out of diapers, we will go on a nice vacation" or "When the kids are all in school..."
Well, since 2004, I have been saying, "When I lose weight, I will be happy." "When I get back to a size 6 or 8, I will be free to live my life." So what has happened is that I have spent a lot of time planning exercise routines, and planning diets, and joining Weight Watchers, and starting Body for Life and buying workout books and nutrition books, etc. It is exhausting just thinking about it!
People always tell me to enjoy these years when my kids are young because they go by so quickly. When my oldest child was a baby, I remember thinking, "You're kidding. This isn't going by quickly!" But by the time I got to my youngest child, I realized that yes, time is flying by and I am not paying attention because I am too busy planning how I'm going to lose weight. It makes me sad. I spent her whole first year lamenting the fact that hadn't lost all of my pregnancy weight. I really don't remember all the details of her first year, you know the little details that you want to remember. But I remember being depressed and upset about my weight.
What would happen if I just accepted my body for the way I am? Just accepted and actually liked my body the way it is right now? So I may not be a size 6, but what's wrong with being a size 12 or 14? It is hard to shift my way of thinking after years of finding acceptance through my looks. I was "good and accepted" if I was thin, but "bad and an outcast" if I was bigger than I wanted to be.
I don't want to think this way anymore. I don't want to waste another minute of my kids' childhood planning weight loss routines and diets.
I want to wake up each day and be happy. I don't want to wake up and dread getting dressed because I have to put on size 14 clothes.
I want to make healthy choices. Not for the goal of weight loss, but for the goal of good health.
I love to eat, and I want to be able to cook and bake and eat the stuff I have made without feeling burdened by how many points/ fat grams/ calories it has.
I want to relax and live life abundantly. No more obsessing over my body. Self focus is tiring. I am sick of it. I want to focus on someone else for a change.
I want to exercise and enjoy it, instead of worrying about how many calories I am burning or quitting a week into it because I don't see results. I want to measure results by my energy level and overall health, not my clothing size.
So here's my new plan:
Relax.
Buy some clothes that are cute and actually fit me.
Get my hair cut and highlighted.
Pray that God will change the way I think.
Smile.
Wednesday, August 16, 2006
What We've Been Doing
Mommy and Baby Girl are sick. You all know that when Mom and baby are sick, everything goes to chaos. Well, not chaos exactly, but definitely messy. We both have sore throats, coughs, runny noses, and lots of sneezes. Plus fever and general achiness (okay, I'm guessing about Baby's achiness, but that is how I feel so I'm assuming she does, too).
I have been doing lots of reading while lying in bed and enjoying the quiet while the kids nap or while nursing. I have read A Midwife's Tale, based on the diary of Martha Ballard, Better Body Management by Stormie Omartian, and I am currently reading The Well-Trained Mind.
Okay, now it's Thursday night and I have finished The Well-Trained Mind. It is SUCH A GREAT BOOK!!!! I recommend it to all parents who have kids in school, whether public svhool, private school, or homeschool. I love it.
I got new vitamins today. They are called Supermom. Hopefully they will give me super powers and all will be good.
I have been doing lots of reading while lying in bed and enjoying the quiet while the kids nap or while nursing. I have read A Midwife's Tale, based on the diary of Martha Ballard, Better Body Management by Stormie Omartian, and I am currently reading The Well-Trained Mind.
Okay, now it's Thursday night and I have finished The Well-Trained Mind. It is SUCH A GREAT BOOK!!!! I recommend it to all parents who have kids in school, whether public svhool, private school, or homeschool. I love it.
I got new vitamins today. They are called Supermom. Hopefully they will give me super powers and all will be good.
Wednesday, August 09, 2006
The Girls' Room
I am looking forward to having a clean slate to decorate in our house we're building. This is what I want to do in the girls' room...
1. Bed-sand and paint dd12’s bed off white, then “antique” the bed, making it look old
2. Paint walls lavender
3. Paint ceiling same shade of purple or maybe a bit lighter (Annie, what do you think- should I paint it the same or lighter?)
4. White lace canopy over bed with silk rose garland wrapped around top of canopy
5. 2 Bulletin boards for their papers-white frame, large, cork board
6. Dresser-sand and paint off white to match bed, “antique”
7. Curtains-white or pink eyelet curtains, hanging to floor; white sheer panels underneath
8. Small chandelier to replace light fixture
9. Baby’s crib-sand, paint pale pink, then “antique”
10. Stencil girls’ scriptures around top of walls
11. Fancy mirror
I envision a "shabby chic" look for their room. The bad thing is that I will have to wait a while to decorate the kids' rooms because we are going to finish the downstairs of the house and then finish the upstairs as we get the money. We are going to put the kids in the bonus room above the garage while we finish the upstairs.
I want my house to be practical and pretty. I realize that with 6 kids, 4 of them being boys, I cannot have a romantic, pretty house all the time. So I am going to choose a few rooms to make pretty and make sure the kids know not to mess up those rooms. (master bedroom and bathroom and maybe the dining room)
Yesterday I was looking at the house plans with a friend who was over and she suggested that I make the formal living room a school room. That way I can house all of our school stuff in that room and have bulletin boards and posters on the walls. I can have bookshelves for school materials only and cabinets that close and lock for stuff like crayons, staplers, and scissors. My friend suggested that I get a large square table that seats 8. I love square tables!
I also like the idea of painting part of the room with chalkboard paint. Maybe have a chair rail and from the rail down put chalkboard paint. But that sounds really messy and I don't like chalk. I do want there to be certain rooms in the house that the kids can mess up and it's okay. Maybe chalkboard paint is a good idea. It's a contained mess.
Those are my thoughts this morning. DD12 is making chicken soup for lunch and is putting it in the crockpot. It smells good.
I need to go have Bible Time and start the kids on their lessons.
Bye!
1. Bed-sand and paint dd12’s bed off white, then “antique” the bed, making it look old
2. Paint walls lavender
3. Paint ceiling same shade of purple or maybe a bit lighter (Annie, what do you think- should I paint it the same or lighter?)
4. White lace canopy over bed with silk rose garland wrapped around top of canopy
5. 2 Bulletin boards for their papers-white frame, large, cork board
6. Dresser-sand and paint off white to match bed, “antique”
7. Curtains-white or pink eyelet curtains, hanging to floor; white sheer panels underneath
8. Small chandelier to replace light fixture
9. Baby’s crib-sand, paint pale pink, then “antique”
10. Stencil girls’ scriptures around top of walls
11. Fancy mirror
I envision a "shabby chic" look for their room. The bad thing is that I will have to wait a while to decorate the kids' rooms because we are going to finish the downstairs of the house and then finish the upstairs as we get the money. We are going to put the kids in the bonus room above the garage while we finish the upstairs.
I want my house to be practical and pretty. I realize that with 6 kids, 4 of them being boys, I cannot have a romantic, pretty house all the time. So I am going to choose a few rooms to make pretty and make sure the kids know not to mess up those rooms. (master bedroom and bathroom and maybe the dining room)
Yesterday I was looking at the house plans with a friend who was over and she suggested that I make the formal living room a school room. That way I can house all of our school stuff in that room and have bulletin boards and posters on the walls. I can have bookshelves for school materials only and cabinets that close and lock for stuff like crayons, staplers, and scissors. My friend suggested that I get a large square table that seats 8. I love square tables!
I also like the idea of painting part of the room with chalkboard paint. Maybe have a chair rail and from the rail down put chalkboard paint. But that sounds really messy and I don't like chalk. I do want there to be certain rooms in the house that the kids can mess up and it's okay. Maybe chalkboard paint is a good idea. It's a contained mess.
Those are my thoughts this morning. DD12 is making chicken soup for lunch and is putting it in the crockpot. It smells good.
I need to go have Bible Time and start the kids on their lessons.
Bye!
Tuesday, August 08, 2006
Things to do before I turn 30
I was rummaging around in my "Julie's Stuff" folder last night (on computer) and I found something I had written a while back.
Here it is...
I will turn 30 at the end of this year, so I thought an appropriate list would be
30 things to do before I turn 30
1. Lose 26 pounds-I plan to do this by joining weight watchers. Actually, that’s not true. I learned last Fall that simply joining Weight Watchers will not take the weight off. You have to FOLLOW THE PLAN. There’s the hard part for me-Consistency! So, I plan to join WW, follow the plan, exercise, and lose the weight. I also want to keep it off by making lifestyle changes. I type all of this as I drink my 3rd Dr Pepper for the day. Hmmm…
(side note: Now this number has changed from 26 to 38)
2. Grow my hair out to shoulder length-I have been doing the grow-it-out-cut-it-off-because-it’s-getting-on-my-nerves thing for 3 years now. This year, I am going to get through the it’s-getting-on-my-nerves stage and grow it out.
(my hair is officially shoulder length now!! One goal completed!)
3. Finish reading a list of books I made for myself-thing is, I lost the list, so I need to find the list first
4. Finish up every cross stitch project I have going
5. Cross stitch something for my own walls
6. Get Alex’s scrapbook up to date-she’s 11 and I am only up to her third year in her scrapbook
(She's now 12)
7. Buy the boys’ and baby's scrapbooks so when I get ready to use them, I’ll have them-By reading this, you may assume scrapping is a hobby of mine. I only scrap once in a blue moon. I think the last time I sat down and seriously scrapbooked was February of 2005. This explains why I am a little behind.
(I do have Baby's scrapbook now. Mom and Dad bought it for her birthday)
By the way, if I make each of my 6 children a scrapbook that they can take with them when they get married (not when they move out, only when they get married), what pictures will I have left for me and my hubby to look at?? I am going to have to make a scrapbook for us as well as for the kids. That’s a lotta scrappin’!(what if some of my kids never get married? i will let them have their scrapbook anyway :)
8. Read the Bible, the entire thing~I had better get moving on this one-Every year I make this a goal. I usually get through 2 Chronicles and then quit. This year I may start at Ezra and read from there.
(Don't think this is gonna happen but I will try anyway)
9. Make a master schedule and actually stick to it for the year-I am a scheduling wanna be, I make schedules, then make more schedules, etc., never actually sticking to them for more than a week.
(I no longer want to do this. I have come up with a system that works for me- a big to-do list for each day)
10. Take a trip to Mission, Texas, where we used to live
11. While we’re there, I’d like to drive over to South padre for a day or so
12. Okay, it’s really hard to think of 30 things I’d like to do. Does this mean I’m a boring person, or just pretty content with my life??
If I think of anymore, I’ll add them to the list.
Here it is...
I will turn 30 at the end of this year, so I thought an appropriate list would be
30 things to do before I turn 30
1. Lose 26 pounds-I plan to do this by joining weight watchers. Actually, that’s not true. I learned last Fall that simply joining Weight Watchers will not take the weight off. You have to FOLLOW THE PLAN. There’s the hard part for me-Consistency! So, I plan to join WW, follow the plan, exercise, and lose the weight. I also want to keep it off by making lifestyle changes. I type all of this as I drink my 3rd Dr Pepper for the day. Hmmm…
(side note: Now this number has changed from 26 to 38)
2. Grow my hair out to shoulder length-I have been doing the grow-it-out-cut-it-off-because-it’s-getting-on-my-nerves thing for 3 years now. This year, I am going to get through the it’s-getting-on-my-nerves stage and grow it out.
(my hair is officially shoulder length now!! One goal completed!)
3. Finish reading a list of books I made for myself-thing is, I lost the list, so I need to find the list first
4. Finish up every cross stitch project I have going
5. Cross stitch something for my own walls
6. Get Alex’s scrapbook up to date-she’s 11 and I am only up to her third year in her scrapbook
(She's now 12)
7. Buy the boys’ and baby's scrapbooks so when I get ready to use them, I’ll have them-By reading this, you may assume scrapping is a hobby of mine. I only scrap once in a blue moon. I think the last time I sat down and seriously scrapbooked was February of 2005. This explains why I am a little behind.
(I do have Baby's scrapbook now. Mom and Dad bought it for her birthday)
By the way, if I make each of my 6 children a scrapbook that they can take with them when they get married (not when they move out, only when they get married), what pictures will I have left for me and my hubby to look at?? I am going to have to make a scrapbook for us as well as for the kids. That’s a lotta scrappin’!(what if some of my kids never get married? i will let them have their scrapbook anyway :)
8. Read the Bible, the entire thing~I had better get moving on this one-Every year I make this a goal. I usually get through 2 Chronicles and then quit. This year I may start at Ezra and read from there.
(Don't think this is gonna happen but I will try anyway)
9. Make a master schedule and actually stick to it for the year-I am a scheduling wanna be, I make schedules, then make more schedules, etc., never actually sticking to them for more than a week.
(I no longer want to do this. I have come up with a system that works for me- a big to-do list for each day)
10. Take a trip to Mission, Texas, where we used to live
11. While we’re there, I’d like to drive over to South padre for a day or so
12. Okay, it’s really hard to think of 30 things I’d like to do. Does this mean I’m a boring person, or just pretty content with my life??
If I think of anymore, I’ll add them to the list.
Monday, August 07, 2006
Traditions
Yesterday, I was in Wal Mart buying a few things and I noticed that they have their Fall decorations for sale already. This suprised me because it is 105 degrees outside and Fall seems far away.
Anyhoo, this got me thinking about family traditions, specifically traditions for the fall holidays: Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas (okay, I know it's a winter holiday). I have been thinking about the traditions our family had when I was growing up, the traditions my extended family has now, and the traditions my immediate family has now.
We have not celebrated Halloween since 1999. But this year we are going to have fun and participate in Halloween activities. I am VERY excited about this! Those of you who know me know that I am either all into something or not into it at all. Well, this has been the case with Halloween. DH and I talked about it yesterday and decided that there has to be a way to participate in Halloween fun without exposing the kids to all the scary, evil stuff out there. Besides, scary, evil stuff is out there all the time, not just on Halloween.
On Halloween we always dressed up and then went trick or treating. We have also gone to a few Harvest Carnivals and that was fun. We are planning to do that this year. Our church has a carnival and the kids really enjoy it. We are also going to go to a pumpkin patcha and let the kids all pick a pumpkin, then carve it when we get home. We are going to roast the seeds and eat them. I can't wait to see all the pumpkins line sup on my porch all lit up. I am planning to pop popcorn and make apple cider and we can all sit out on the porch and enjoy it and enjoy the lit up pumpkins. Let's just hope the weather cooperates and it's not 90 degrees! I remember in McAllen, the kids had sweat dripping off of them as they trick or treated. Halloween should be crisp and cool.
When I was growing up, Thanksgiving was a time for family to gather, usually at Meema and Grandad's house or at ours, and prepare a meal together, eat the meal together, and just enjoy being around each other. There were also the football games that the guys watched, but I was wither playing with cousins or in the kitchen with the girls. The girls being my mom, grandmother, aunts, and sisters.
I remember Mom making homemade potato rolls and then having a contest with Grandad to see who could eat them most. We could eat those rolls like you wouldn't believe! I remember eating at least 8, sometimes 9 rolls. I think Grandad always won that contest.
Another memory of Thanksgiving is Meema's homemade dressing. From the smell of the celery and onions sauteeing to the taste of the dressing, it always makes me remember Meema's house at the holidays.
I also remember the cool air of Fall and the brown of the trees at our house. I remember warm sweaters and feeling warm inside.
But I can't remember any other traditions we had at Thanksgiving. If you are a family member reading this, help me out here.
A few things I want to do...
*create a centrpiece with the kids, something that we will use year after year
*"Thank you" place cards for each person- the kids each write something about that person that they are thankful for (on their place card)
*Meema's platter- We used to always use Meema's bicentennial platter to hold the turkey. I inherited the platter when Meema died and I want to start using it that way again.
*Wildlife Tree- Thanksgiving afternoon or the next day, string popcorn, make pine cone bird feeders, etc. and hang them all on a tree for the squirrels and birds to eat
At Christmas time, I remember just being so excited to be out of school. Decorating the tree as a family was a wonderful tradition and also getting an ornament each year to hang on the tree. There was a garland with colored lights that Mom wrapped around the stair rail. That was one of my favorite things. We also had a little gingerbread house that Mom would put on top of the piano. It was one of my favorite things as well. We baked sugar cookies, wrote letters to Santa Claus, set out cookies and milk for Santa and hung up our stockings.
Then on Christmas morning, we woke up early (probably 6 am) and opened our gifts from Mom, Dad, and sisters. We then went out to Meema and Grandad's house to have Christmas lunch with them and visit with our cousins who had come in from out of town. The turkey, dressing, and the rolls were a part of Christmas, too.Later on, we went to Granny and Papa's and opened gifts and visited with family there, too.
A few things I want to start doing at Christmastime:
*I want to make it a tradition to put up the tree on December 1st each year. I want to serve Christmas cookies (prefereably homemade, but store bought if we have to) and hot chocolate (ditto the cookies)
*Let the kids choose their yearly ornament- we already get them an ornament each year, but I usually choose it for them and buy it for them
*Wea re going to start getting each child 3 gifts for Christmas: 1 want, 1 need and 1 character building gift (for example, if one child is struggling with patience, we might buy him a model car or airplane that will take lots of patience to put together)
*Sometime during December I want to put all of the pictures from the past year (the good ones) on a CD or make them into a slide presentation and put on a DVD and watch it with the kids. Ditto for home movies.
*After- Christmas cards - after Christmas, get all the holiday cards together and put them in a pretty bowl on the table. Each night as we pray for our meal, pray for one of the families who sent us a card. Then throw the card away, keeping the picture of there is one
*Christmas Eve (?) -drive through town looking at Christmas lights
*Read the Christmas story from the Bible (we usually do this)
*Sing carols around the piano (last year I learned to play lots of Christmas carols)
*Christmas breakfast- we usually have a big breakfast at either Mom and Papa's house or Grandma and Grandpa's house. Whenever we get our house built, I want to start having Christmas morning at home and I want to plan a Christmas morning menu that basically stays the same each year. Less thought for me and the kids will look forward to it each year.
Typing about all of this is getting me excited about Fall and the holidays!
Anyhoo, this got me thinking about family traditions, specifically traditions for the fall holidays: Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas (okay, I know it's a winter holiday). I have been thinking about the traditions our family had when I was growing up, the traditions my extended family has now, and the traditions my immediate family has now.
We have not celebrated Halloween since 1999. But this year we are going to have fun and participate in Halloween activities. I am VERY excited about this! Those of you who know me know that I am either all into something or not into it at all. Well, this has been the case with Halloween. DH and I talked about it yesterday and decided that there has to be a way to participate in Halloween fun without exposing the kids to all the scary, evil stuff out there. Besides, scary, evil stuff is out there all the time, not just on Halloween.
On Halloween we always dressed up and then went trick or treating. We have also gone to a few Harvest Carnivals and that was fun. We are planning to do that this year. Our church has a carnival and the kids really enjoy it. We are also going to go to a pumpkin patcha and let the kids all pick a pumpkin, then carve it when we get home. We are going to roast the seeds and eat them. I can't wait to see all the pumpkins line sup on my porch all lit up. I am planning to pop popcorn and make apple cider and we can all sit out on the porch and enjoy it and enjoy the lit up pumpkins. Let's just hope the weather cooperates and it's not 90 degrees! I remember in McAllen, the kids had sweat dripping off of them as they trick or treated. Halloween should be crisp and cool.
When I was growing up, Thanksgiving was a time for family to gather, usually at Meema and Grandad's house or at ours, and prepare a meal together, eat the meal together, and just enjoy being around each other. There were also the football games that the guys watched, but I was wither playing with cousins or in the kitchen with the girls. The girls being my mom, grandmother, aunts, and sisters.
I remember Mom making homemade potato rolls and then having a contest with Grandad to see who could eat them most. We could eat those rolls like you wouldn't believe! I remember eating at least 8, sometimes 9 rolls. I think Grandad always won that contest.
Another memory of Thanksgiving is Meema's homemade dressing. From the smell of the celery and onions sauteeing to the taste of the dressing, it always makes me remember Meema's house at the holidays.
I also remember the cool air of Fall and the brown of the trees at our house. I remember warm sweaters and feeling warm inside.
But I can't remember any other traditions we had at Thanksgiving. If you are a family member reading this, help me out here.
A few things I want to do...
*create a centrpiece with the kids, something that we will use year after year
*"Thank you" place cards for each person- the kids each write something about that person that they are thankful for (on their place card)
*Meema's platter- We used to always use Meema's bicentennial platter to hold the turkey. I inherited the platter when Meema died and I want to start using it that way again.
*Wildlife Tree- Thanksgiving afternoon or the next day, string popcorn, make pine cone bird feeders, etc. and hang them all on a tree for the squirrels and birds to eat
At Christmas time, I remember just being so excited to be out of school. Decorating the tree as a family was a wonderful tradition and also getting an ornament each year to hang on the tree. There was a garland with colored lights that Mom wrapped around the stair rail. That was one of my favorite things. We also had a little gingerbread house that Mom would put on top of the piano. It was one of my favorite things as well. We baked sugar cookies, wrote letters to Santa Claus, set out cookies and milk for Santa and hung up our stockings.
Then on Christmas morning, we woke up early (probably 6 am) and opened our gifts from Mom, Dad, and sisters. We then went out to Meema and Grandad's house to have Christmas lunch with them and visit with our cousins who had come in from out of town. The turkey, dressing, and the rolls were a part of Christmas, too.Later on, we went to Granny and Papa's and opened gifts and visited with family there, too.
A few things I want to start doing at Christmastime:
*I want to make it a tradition to put up the tree on December 1st each year. I want to serve Christmas cookies (prefereably homemade, but store bought if we have to) and hot chocolate (ditto the cookies)
*Let the kids choose their yearly ornament- we already get them an ornament each year, but I usually choose it for them and buy it for them
*Wea re going to start getting each child 3 gifts for Christmas: 1 want, 1 need and 1 character building gift (for example, if one child is struggling with patience, we might buy him a model car or airplane that will take lots of patience to put together)
*Sometime during December I want to put all of the pictures from the past year (the good ones) on a CD or make them into a slide presentation and put on a DVD and watch it with the kids. Ditto for home movies.
*After- Christmas cards - after Christmas, get all the holiday cards together and put them in a pretty bowl on the table. Each night as we pray for our meal, pray for one of the families who sent us a card. Then throw the card away, keeping the picture of there is one
*Christmas Eve (?) -drive through town looking at Christmas lights
*Read the Christmas story from the Bible (we usually do this)
*Sing carols around the piano (last year I learned to play lots of Christmas carols)
*Christmas breakfast- we usually have a big breakfast at either Mom and Papa's house or Grandma and Grandpa's house. Whenever we get our house built, I want to start having Christmas morning at home and I want to plan a Christmas morning menu that basically stays the same each year. Less thought for me and the kids will look forward to it each year.
Typing about all of this is getting me excited about Fall and the holidays!
Saturday, August 05, 2006
Brownie Brown, May 2, 2004-August 5, 2006
This evening while I was at the grocery store picking up a few things for chocolate chip cookies, my phone rang. It was dd12. She was crying and out of breath. Brownie, our sweet beagle, had died. He was our 8 year old son's dog. We gave Brownie to ds8 for his 6th birthday.
Brownie had been napping under a large bush in the back yard all afternoon, which was pretty typical of him. He really liked his naps. :)
When ds8 tried to call him and wake him up, he didn't come. Dh went over to him and figured out that he had died.
We're not sure what happened. He seemed to just take a nap and not wake up.
We are thankful that we got to have Brownie, even if it was for a short time. He was a good dog. We miss him already.
Goodbye, Brownie Brown.
Brownie had been napping under a large bush in the back yard all afternoon, which was pretty typical of him. He really liked his naps. :)
When ds8 tried to call him and wake him up, he didn't come. Dh went over to him and figured out that he had died.
We're not sure what happened. He seemed to just take a nap and not wake up.
We are thankful that we got to have Brownie, even if it was for a short time. He was a good dog. We miss him already.
Goodbye, Brownie Brown.
Thursday, August 03, 2006
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1. I will be 30 years old in about 5 months. 2. I would like to lose 20 pounds before I turn 30. 3. I homeschool our 6 kids. 4. I recently moved to a small town after living in a big city for 5 years. 5. We will be building a house soon. 6. On our first date (me and dh) we agreed that we wanted to have 6 kids and live in a yellow house with a wrap around porch. 7. The house we are building will be yellow and have a wrap around porch. 8. I am addicted to Dr. Pepper 9. I am the youngest of 3 daughters. 10. My 2 sisters and my parents live within 15 minutes of each other. 11. I am a believer in Jesus Christ. 12. I am living my dream come true. 13. Yes, it was my dream to have lots of kids, homeschool, and live in the country. Links to other Thursday Thirteens! 1. (leave your link in comments, I’ll add you here!) |
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Gigi's Day and Weight Watchers Progress
Today is already "one of those days."
One of those days where I wish I could...
-go to Starbucks alone
-send my kids to school
-or at least take them to a friend's house all day till bedtime
-go back to bed
-lie in bed all day watching TV and pretending I don't have any responsibilities
I woke up late (surprise, surprise), with ds3 whining that he was hungry, and the other 3 boys hollering in the front yard because both dogs were out of the fence. I turned over and tried to go back to sleep. It didn't happen.
Last night was a slight disaster. We were out of dishwasher tabs, so there are dirty dishes from yesterday's lunch and dinner in the kitchen. The kids and dh watched Spiderman and I took the baby to the park so no one cleaned up the dinner mess. We ate dinner on a pallet in the living room while watching the movie. Baby knocked over her plate, then stepped on my plate, then spilled dh's macaroni, so that's when I took her to the park and let the older kids watch the movie with dad.
We had lots of fun though, so who cares if the kitchen is a mess and I slept in today, right?
Today I am going to write out our actual day. I have it all planned out, but today you get to see the reality of my life. Enjoy.
My Thursday
Town Day
Morning Routine
**I did not even hear dh this morning; I was sleeping like a rock
**No cardio this morning because I did cardio for 45 minutes last night
**No shower this morning
8:30 woke up to ds3 whining for breakfast and other boys outside yelling at dogs.
got out of bed, fixed breakfast (oatmeal with maple syrup and blueberries), then worked on blog while children did Chorepacks
tore myself away from the computer and got dressed, fixed my hair and face, and made my bed.
Then we had Bible Time while Baby Girl screamed in her bed.We prayed that God would help us obey the first time we're told and that Mom would not lost her temper and yell.
-Character Building for Families, Obedience, Day 2
Yes, school did get done. It's amazing. We are just using the stuff we have at this point. But I figure we're a little ahead of the game, since most schools don't start for another week. I will hopefully have all of our materials by next week.
-ds6a and ds6b- K workbook
-ds8- Learning Language Arts Through Literature
-dd12- Saxon math for 30 minutes
11:24 am
Baby falls out of cabinet with coffeepot, breaking the glass. She is not hurt, but Mom is about to have nervous breakdown at this point and there is shattered glass all over the kitchen.
11:27 am
ds8 runs out of bedroom, yelling that dog is out of yard again. The leash we had him tied up with is now apparently broken.
Read a few pages of Secret Garden
11:41 joyfully clean up glass while listening to ds3 scream at the top of his lungs that he needs another snakes (toy) and that he is scared (I knew we shouldn't have let him watch Spiderman).
Lunch (Chicken Pot Pie)
We have no lunch foods, so I am taking a dinner that we skipped last week (on menu) and making it for lunch today
ds3 helped me make lunch; he was so excited and it was fun!
12:36 pm Baby Girl is finally asleep for her morning nap; lunch WAS ready, but we discovered that the biscuits were soggy on the bottom so we turned the biscuits over and put it back in the oven.
12:57 Kids ate lunch and watched Dinosaur while Mom cleaned up and worked on computer
Errands to run:
Wal Mart
Pay rent for Aug.
3:50 pm got back from running to wal mart and to pay rent
listened to ds3 cry the whole time for a drink; gave him a drink and put him to bed
listened to dh tell me that I forgot to do something he apparently asked me to do and I didn't realize it
Wishing that dh could step into my shoes for a week or so and then see what he says about me forgetting things
nursed Baby Girl and now she is up and throwing a tantrum b/c I am on the computer and she is not
3:53 pm turn around as Baby Girl falls backward in kitchen chair onto tile floor
See goose egg and bruise on Baby Girl's head; make sure she's okay
Put her in playpen; order baby gate extension for kitchen gate
4:12 pm kids clean up so they can watch Sound of Music
10 minute Tidy
dd12-her bedroom; ds8-boys' bedroom;
ds 6b-living room; ds 6a-living room;
ds3-whine
DH, if you are reading this, tonight is a GREAT night for me to have the NIGHT OFF :)
Home Management Work for Mom
Put away laundry in Master Bedroom
4 loads by 4
Basic Maintenance
Clean Master Bathroom (floor and toilet)
Finish blog
Daddy Time
Supper Treasure Hunt Pasta Salad, Popovers
Bedtime Routines
Start dishwasher
Check calendar
Make To Do list
Lay out clothes for tomorrow
Brush teeth
Take contacts out
Bedtime! (10:00)- if I would get in bed at this time I would probably be able to get out of bed before 8!
Weight Watchers Progress
This is week 3 on WW and so far I have gained 7 pounds!
Seriously...I have been pretty careful about sticking to my points and I have been doing cardio about 5 times a week. My scale says I have gained 7 pounds. There is something wrong with this picture. I thought my scale was messed up because we moved and I thought maybe it got dropped or something. But the kids still weigh the same, so it's definitely not the scale.
I am not lifting weights so I know it's not muscle gain.
Last week and the week before, I was adding 10 points for nursing. That's the only thing I can think of that would cause me to gain weight. So this week I am not adding in those extra nursing points and I am trying not to eat my activity points. We'll see how this week goes.
Of course, my drug of choice is Dr. Pepper and also chili cheese tater tots. That could be contributing to my weight gain. But I have counted those points, so it shouldn't matter.
I'll let you know how I do this week.
One of those days where I wish I could...
-go to Starbucks alone
-send my kids to school
-or at least take them to a friend's house all day till bedtime
-go back to bed
-lie in bed all day watching TV and pretending I don't have any responsibilities
I woke up late (surprise, surprise), with ds3 whining that he was hungry, and the other 3 boys hollering in the front yard because both dogs were out of the fence. I turned over and tried to go back to sleep. It didn't happen.
Last night was a slight disaster. We were out of dishwasher tabs, so there are dirty dishes from yesterday's lunch and dinner in the kitchen. The kids and dh watched Spiderman and I took the baby to the park so no one cleaned up the dinner mess. We ate dinner on a pallet in the living room while watching the movie. Baby knocked over her plate, then stepped on my plate, then spilled dh's macaroni, so that's when I took her to the park and let the older kids watch the movie with dad.
We had lots of fun though, so who cares if the kitchen is a mess and I slept in today, right?
Today I am going to write out our actual day. I have it all planned out, but today you get to see the reality of my life. Enjoy.
My Thursday
Town Day
Morning Routine
**I did not even hear dh this morning; I was sleeping like a rock
**No cardio this morning because I did cardio for 45 minutes last night
**No shower this morning
8:30 woke up to ds3 whining for breakfast and other boys outside yelling at dogs.
got out of bed, fixed breakfast (oatmeal with maple syrup and blueberries), then worked on blog while children did Chorepacks
tore myself away from the computer and got dressed, fixed my hair and face, and made my bed.
Then we had Bible Time while Baby Girl screamed in her bed.We prayed that God would help us obey the first time we're told and that Mom would not lost her temper and yell.
-Character Building for Families, Obedience, Day 2
Yes, school did get done. It's amazing. We are just using the stuff we have at this point. But I figure we're a little ahead of the game, since most schools don't start for another week. I will hopefully have all of our materials by next week.
-ds6a and ds6b- K workbook
-ds8- Learning Language Arts Through Literature
-dd12- Saxon math for 30 minutes
11:24 am
Baby falls out of cabinet with coffeepot, breaking the glass. She is not hurt, but Mom is about to have nervous breakdown at this point and there is shattered glass all over the kitchen.
11:27 am
ds8 runs out of bedroom, yelling that dog is out of yard again. The leash we had him tied up with is now apparently broken.
Read a few pages of Secret Garden
11:41 joyfully clean up glass while listening to ds3 scream at the top of his lungs that he needs another snakes (toy) and that he is scared (I knew we shouldn't have let him watch Spiderman).
Lunch (Chicken Pot Pie)
We have no lunch foods, so I am taking a dinner that we skipped last week (on menu) and making it for lunch today
ds3 helped me make lunch; he was so excited and it was fun!
12:36 pm Baby Girl is finally asleep for her morning nap; lunch WAS ready, but we discovered that the biscuits were soggy on the bottom so we turned the biscuits over and put it back in the oven.
12:57 Kids ate lunch and watched Dinosaur while Mom cleaned up and worked on computer
Errands to run:
Wal Mart
Pay rent for Aug.
3:50 pm got back from running to wal mart and to pay rent
listened to ds3 cry the whole time for a drink; gave him a drink and put him to bed
listened to dh tell me that I forgot to do something he apparently asked me to do and I didn't realize it
Wishing that dh could step into my shoes for a week or so and then see what he says about me forgetting things
nursed Baby Girl and now she is up and throwing a tantrum b/c I am on the computer and she is not
3:53 pm turn around as Baby Girl falls backward in kitchen chair onto tile floor
See goose egg and bruise on Baby Girl's head; make sure she's okay
Put her in playpen; order baby gate extension for kitchen gate
4:12 pm kids clean up so they can watch Sound of Music
10 minute Tidy
dd12-her bedroom; ds8-boys' bedroom;
ds 6b-living room; ds 6a-living room;
ds3-whine
DH, if you are reading this, tonight is a GREAT night for me to have the NIGHT OFF :)
Home Management Work for Mom
Put away laundry in Master Bedroom
4 loads by 4
Basic Maintenance
Clean Master Bathroom (floor and toilet)
Finish blog
Daddy Time
Supper Treasure Hunt Pasta Salad, Popovers
Bedtime Routines
Start dishwasher
Check calendar
Make To Do list
Lay out clothes for tomorrow
Brush teeth
Take contacts out
Bedtime! (10:00)- if I would get in bed at this time I would probably be able to get out of bed before 8!
Weight Watchers Progress
This is week 3 on WW and so far I have gained 7 pounds!
Seriously...I have been pretty careful about sticking to my points and I have been doing cardio about 5 times a week. My scale says I have gained 7 pounds. There is something wrong with this picture. I thought my scale was messed up because we moved and I thought maybe it got dropped or something. But the kids still weigh the same, so it's definitely not the scale.
I am not lifting weights so I know it's not muscle gain.
Last week and the week before, I was adding 10 points for nursing. That's the only thing I can think of that would cause me to gain weight. So this week I am not adding in those extra nursing points and I am trying not to eat my activity points. We'll see how this week goes.
Of course, my drug of choice is Dr. Pepper and also chili cheese tater tots. That could be contributing to my weight gain. But I have counted those points, so it shouldn't matter.
I'll let you know how I do this week.
Wednesday, August 02, 2006
Office Day
Wednesday
Office Day
HM Work
-Menu planning
-Grocery list
-Check kids' schoolwork
-Meet with dd 12 and ds 8 individually
-Think about and plan Quiet Time tape for ds 3
-Email Micala
-Email Darcy re: KONOS
-Call Darlene at church nursery
-Order house plans
-Order gate attachment
-Go through mail and paper piles
-Find WHEEL checkbook
-Straighten up desk area
-Organize my books
-KONOS planning
-Make a list of school supplies needed ASAP and soon
-Plan stops for Town Day
-Clean out one desk drawer or cupboard
-Clean desktop
-Put books in order
-Gather library books & put on bookshelf
-Research Houston trip / THSC conference
Morning Routine
Help dh- Get out of bed when he gets in shower, kiss him goodbye
Cardio for 30-40 minutes (walk outside with kids)
Shower
Get dressed, hair and face, etc.
Make bed
Put away laundry in Master Bedroom
Kids wake up
Baths, Chorepacks
Mommy email and blog
Breakfast and cleanup
Bible Time
-Character Building for Families, Obedience, Day 1
-Work on “Thank You, Lord”
Phonics with ds 6a and ds 6b (Explode the Code 15 min. each)
Put other children in separate rooms
HM Work for Mom
School and Snack
-ds 3PreK workbook
-ds 6a and ds 6b - K workbook and Math
-ds 8- LLATL
-dd 12- Home Ec and Saxon math
-Play outside or in bedroom when finished
Lunch; Kitchen Chores; Recess
Quiet Hour
Read aloud Secret Garden chapter 4
Afternoon Chore Time; Free Time;
Finish HM Work (meet with dd 12 and ds 8);
Finish blog
Put on some relaxing music & Light a candle (1 minute)
Set little ones at the table or in play pen with an activity so they don't undo the work (5 minutes)
Children: Put Away Schoolwork (5 minutes)
10 minute Tidy: Today we’re going to clear level surfaces and straighten things up.
dd 12-her bedroom; ds 8-boys’ bedroom;
ds 6b-living room; ds 6a-living room;
ds 3-play with baby in playpen
Freshen up; fix hair; do one thing to clean your bathroom (10 minutes).
Daddy Time(We usually ride bikes during this time. Tonight I think we will stay home and watch Spiderman. The kids havne't seen it and they really want to.)
Supper Chicken Pot Pie
Kitchen Cleanup
Bedtime Routines
Start dishwasher
Check calendar
Make To Do list
Lay out clothes for tomorrow
Brush teeth
Take contacts out
Bedtime! (10:00)
To do:
Take dh's pants to dry cleaners
Make hair appt. for me and for dh
Get PO box key
Last night we went to some friends' house for dinner. We had THE BEST steak fajitas I have ever had!! They were so good. Then the kids swam and we visited until 10:30 or 11:00. I'm tired today.
Dh and friend want to take a trip to Germany, which is where his wife's family is from. We looked at pictures from their previous trips to Germany and it is beautiful. I would love to go. But I'm thinking it may be a bit pricey to take 8 people across the ocean. I'll have to check on that...
Yesterday was our first day of school. I still need to buy a few things, but we used what we had and the kids did great.
Today we are going to run a few errands, do our schoolwork, and get stuff done around the house.
Office Day
HM Work
-Menu planning
-Grocery list
-Check kids' schoolwork
-Meet with dd 12 and ds 8 individually
-Think about and plan Quiet Time tape for ds 3
-Email Micala
-Email Darcy re: KONOS
-Call Darlene at church nursery
-Order house plans
-Order gate attachment
-Go through mail and paper piles
-Find WHEEL checkbook
-Straighten up desk area
-Organize my books
-KONOS planning
-Make a list of school supplies needed ASAP and soon
-Plan stops for Town Day
-Clean out one desk drawer or cupboard
-Clean desktop
-Put books in order
-Gather library books & put on bookshelf
-Research Houston trip / THSC conference
Morning Routine
Help dh- Get out of bed when he gets in shower, kiss him goodbye
Cardio for 30-40 minutes (walk outside with kids)
Shower
Get dressed, hair and face, etc.
Make bed
Put away laundry in Master Bedroom
Kids wake up
Baths, Chorepacks
Mommy email and blog
Breakfast and cleanup
Bible Time
-Character Building for Families, Obedience, Day 1
-Work on “Thank You, Lord”
Phonics with ds 6a and ds 6b (Explode the Code 15 min. each)
Put other children in separate rooms
HM Work for Mom
School and Snack
-ds 3PreK workbook
-ds 6a and ds 6b - K workbook and Math
-ds 8- LLATL
-dd 12- Home Ec and Saxon math
-Play outside or in bedroom when finished
Lunch; Kitchen Chores; Recess
Quiet Hour
Read aloud Secret Garden chapter 4
Afternoon Chore Time; Free Time;
Finish HM Work (meet with dd 12 and ds 8);
Finish blog
Put on some relaxing music & Light a candle (1 minute)
Set little ones at the table or in play pen with an activity so they don't undo the work (5 minutes)
Children: Put Away Schoolwork (5 minutes)
10 minute Tidy: Today we’re going to clear level surfaces and straighten things up.
dd 12-her bedroom; ds 8-boys’ bedroom;
ds 6b-living room; ds 6a-living room;
ds 3-play with baby in playpen
Freshen up; fix hair; do one thing to clean your bathroom (10 minutes).
Daddy Time(We usually ride bikes during this time. Tonight I think we will stay home and watch Spiderman. The kids havne't seen it and they really want to.)
Supper Chicken Pot Pie
Kitchen Cleanup
Bedtime Routines
Start dishwasher
Check calendar
Make To Do list
Lay out clothes for tomorrow
Brush teeth
Take contacts out
Bedtime! (10:00)
To do:
Take dh's pants to dry cleaners
Make hair appt. for me and for dh
Get PO box key
Last night we went to some friends' house for dinner. We had THE BEST steak fajitas I have ever had!! They were so good. Then the kids swam and we visited until 10:30 or 11:00. I'm tired today.
Dh and friend want to take a trip to Germany, which is where his wife's family is from. We looked at pictures from their previous trips to Germany and it is beautiful. I would love to go. But I'm thinking it may be a bit pricey to take 8 people across the ocean. I'll have to check on that...
Yesterday was our first day of school. I still need to buy a few things, but we used what we had and the kids did great.
Today we are going to run a few errands, do our schoolwork, and get stuff done around the house.
Tuesday, August 01, 2006
Kitchen Day
Tuesdays are Kitchen Days, which means that on Tuesdays I focus on my kitchen (cleaning, decorating, cooking, etc.). Here is my schedule and list for today:
Tuesday
Kitchen Day
Home Management Work
-Sweep and mop kitchen floor
-Bleach sinks
-All dishes cleaned and put away
-Unpack all boxes in kitchen
-Finish laundry from Monday
-Polish table
-Declutter for 15 minutes
-Dust (ds#1 can do this)
-Clean out fridge
-Debone chicken
-Make chicken stock (dd #1 can do this)
-Get chicken and rice soup recipe from Darcy
-Make and freeze
-Put away canned goods (ds #1 can do this)
-Organize pantry (ds #1 can do this)
-Light a candle
Morning Routine
Help Corey- pack something for him to eat, kiss him goodbye (this didn't get done today because I slept in till 8 and he left at 6)
Brush teeth
Cardio
Shower
Get dressed, hair and face, etc.
Make bed
Start a load of laundry
Wake kids
Baths, Chorepacks
Mommy email and blog
Breakfast and cleanup
Read Proverbs to children at breakfast table (this didn't get done because they ate while I was still in bed! oops)
Bible Time -Character Building for Families introduction
-Choose a song to learn together
Phonics with nonreaders (Explode the Code 15 min. each)
HM Work for Mom (switch laundry)
School
-ds #4 PreK workbook
-ds #2 and #3 K workbook and Math
-ds #1- LLATL
-dd #1- Home Ec and Saxon math 1 lesson
-Play outside or in bedroom when finished
Finish HM work
Lunch; Kitchen Chores; Recess
*Laundry Switch, fold, put away
Quiet Hour
Read aloud (Secret Garden chapter 3)
Afternoon Chore Time; School Work that didn't get done; Free Time
Laundry Switch, fold, put away (4 loads by 4)
Put on some relaxing music & Light a candle (1 minute)
Set little ones at the table or in play pen with an activity so they don't undo the work (5 minutes)
Children: Put Away Schoolwork (5 minutes) and Start Daily Afternoon Chore Chart (15-30 minutes)
10 minute Tidy: clear level surfaces.
dd#1-hall bathroom; ds#1-boys bedroom; ds#3-living room; ds#2-kitchen; ds#4-help big sister
Freshen up; fix hair; do one thing to clean your bathroom (10 minutes).
Supper (fajitas at friend's house)
Bedtime Routines
Start dishwasher
Check calendar
Make To Do list
Lay out clothes for tomorrow
Brush teeth
Take contacts out
Bedtime! (10:00)
To do:
Think about and plan Quiet Time tape for Gabriel
Email Micala
Email Darcy re: KONOS and soup recipe
Call Darlene at church nursery
Order house plans
Order gate attachment
**I am going out on a limb here, assuming someone cares what my day looks like! This blog is for my personal journaling, for keeping friends up-to-date on my life, and for making my lists, so forgive me if it's boring sometimes. But this may help all of those friends who ask me, "How do you do it?" :) **
Tuesday
Kitchen Day
Home Management Work
-Sweep and mop kitchen floor
-Bleach sinks
-All dishes cleaned and put away
-Unpack all boxes in kitchen
-Finish laundry from Monday
-Polish table
-Declutter for 15 minutes
-Dust (ds#1 can do this)
-Clean out fridge
-Debone chicken
-Make chicken stock (dd #1 can do this)
-Get chicken and rice soup recipe from Darcy
-Make and freeze
-Put away canned goods (ds #1 can do this)
-Organize pantry (ds #1 can do this)
-Light a candle
Morning Routine
Help Corey- pack something for him to eat, kiss him goodbye (this didn't get done today because I slept in till 8 and he left at 6)
Brush teeth
Cardio
Shower
Get dressed, hair and face, etc.
Make bed
Start a load of laundry
Wake kids
Baths, Chorepacks
Mommy email and blog
Breakfast and cleanup
Read Proverbs to children at breakfast table (this didn't get done because they ate while I was still in bed! oops)
Bible Time -Character Building for Families introduction
-Choose a song to learn together
Phonics with nonreaders (Explode the Code 15 min. each)
HM Work for Mom (switch laundry)
School
-ds #4 PreK workbook
-ds #2 and #3 K workbook and Math
-ds #1- LLATL
-dd #1- Home Ec and Saxon math 1 lesson
-Play outside or in bedroom when finished
Finish HM work
Lunch; Kitchen Chores; Recess
*Laundry Switch, fold, put away
Quiet Hour
Read aloud (Secret Garden chapter 3)
Afternoon Chore Time; School Work that didn't get done; Free Time
Laundry Switch, fold, put away (4 loads by 4)
Put on some relaxing music & Light a candle (1 minute)
Set little ones at the table or in play pen with an activity so they don't undo the work (5 minutes)
Children: Put Away Schoolwork (5 minutes) and Start Daily Afternoon Chore Chart (15-30 minutes)
10 minute Tidy: clear level surfaces.
dd#1-hall bathroom; ds#1-boys bedroom; ds#3-living room; ds#2-kitchen; ds#4-help big sister
Freshen up; fix hair; do one thing to clean your bathroom (10 minutes).
Supper (fajitas at friend's house)
Bedtime Routines
Start dishwasher
Check calendar
Make To Do list
Lay out clothes for tomorrow
Brush teeth
Take contacts out
Bedtime! (10:00)
To do:
Think about and plan Quiet Time tape for Gabriel
Email Micala
Email Darcy re: KONOS and soup recipe
Call Darlene at church nursery
Order house plans
Order gate attachment
**I am going out on a limb here, assuming someone cares what my day looks like! This blog is for my personal journaling, for keeping friends up-to-date on my life, and for making my lists, so forgive me if it's boring sometimes. But this may help all of those friends who ask me, "How do you do it?" :) **
Friday, July 28, 2006
Baby Girl
to do today
1. work in garage some more (I only got through about 5 boxes yesterday. The good thing is that I eliminated 2 boxes and have lots to donate to Goodwill on Monday when they come to pick up my stuff.)
2. Continue looking for our school materials (Right now my oldest child is thrilled that all I can find is her home ec workbook and math book)
3. go to Post Office and let my 6 children run around loudly until they give me a post office box!! They have been giving us trouble about this and dh wants it taken care of today. My plan is to stress them out so that they want me to leave and they will give me anything I want. Sounds good??
4. Return moldy Flat Out bread to Wal Mart- just bought it Sunday
5. cardio- treadmill program 30 minutes (yesterday I rode my bike with baby on the back for 30 minutes)
6. Continue working on implementing schedule - SSSSLLLLLOOOOWWWW process
Almost 14 months
Yes, we actually call you Baby Girl. You can now say dada (Daddy), al-uh (Alex), Doe (no), and sometimes, on rare occasions, Momma.
Yesterday Alex asked me why your legs are so fat. We decided that they are not fat, but very chubby and cute, the kinda legs you just want to squeeze over and over. It makes me happy to do that!
Just this week you have begun sleeping in your baby bed for naps and for part of the night. In the past, you have slept with me. You have enjoyed this because you can latch on and eat all night while I sleep. This may have contributed to the chubby leg thing you have going on. I am really enjoying you sleeping in your bed and you seem to be okay with it too.
Last night we rode bikes together and you had a great time. When we got home, I rocked you to sleep (after dinner) and while I was holding you, I tried to stop and cherish the way you felt against me, how warm you were and how soft and babyish. While I held you I prayed that I would always remember you the way you are right now. Baby days are so sweet and I want to remember them always.
I love you, Baby Girl!
Now I have to go because your older brother (3 yr old) is having a meltdown.
Mommy
1. work in garage some more (I only got through about 5 boxes yesterday. The good thing is that I eliminated 2 boxes and have lots to donate to Goodwill on Monday when they come to pick up my stuff.)
2. Continue looking for our school materials (Right now my oldest child is thrilled that all I can find is her home ec workbook and math book)
3. go to Post Office and let my 6 children run around loudly until they give me a post office box!! They have been giving us trouble about this and dh wants it taken care of today. My plan is to stress them out so that they want me to leave and they will give me anything I want. Sounds good??
4. Return moldy Flat Out bread to Wal Mart- just bought it Sunday
5. cardio- treadmill program 30 minutes (yesterday I rode my bike with baby on the back for 30 minutes)
6. Continue working on implementing schedule - SSSSLLLLLOOOOWWWW process
Almost 14 months
Yes, we actually call you Baby Girl. You can now say dada (Daddy), al-uh (Alex), Doe (no), and sometimes, on rare occasions, Momma.
Yesterday Alex asked me why your legs are so fat. We decided that they are not fat, but very chubby and cute, the kinda legs you just want to squeeze over and over. It makes me happy to do that!
Just this week you have begun sleeping in your baby bed for naps and for part of the night. In the past, you have slept with me. You have enjoyed this because you can latch on and eat all night while I sleep. This may have contributed to the chubby leg thing you have going on. I am really enjoying you sleeping in your bed and you seem to be okay with it too.
Last night we rode bikes together and you had a great time. When we got home, I rocked you to sleep (after dinner) and while I was holding you, I tried to stop and cherish the way you felt against me, how warm you were and how soft and babyish. While I held you I prayed that I would always remember you the way you are right now. Baby days are so sweet and I want to remember them always.
I love you, Baby Girl!
Now I have to go because your older brother (3 yr old) is having a meltdown.
Mommy
Thursday, July 27, 2006
things i want to get done today
1. Go through every box in garage, throw away junk, look for school materials
(3-4 hour job)
2. Figure out what school materials I still need based on what I found in the boxes
3. Cardio-30 minute treadmill program
4. Clean out van because it smells bad, like a vehicle who has been eaten in by lots of kids (and a mom) for 4 1/2 years
5. Work on my MOTH schedule (www.titus2.com)
6. Be embarrassed that the gas company guy just showed up without calling and I let him in my home without a bra on and with unbrushed teeth. Scary indeed!!!
(3-4 hour job)
2. Figure out what school materials I still need based on what I found in the boxes
3. Cardio-30 minute treadmill program
4. Clean out van because it smells bad, like a vehicle who has been eaten in by lots of kids (and a mom) for 4 1/2 years
5. Work on my MOTH schedule (www.titus2.com)
6. Be embarrassed that the gas company guy just showed up without calling and I let him in my home without a bra on and with unbrushed teeth. Scary indeed!!!
Wednesday, July 26, 2006
We have moved
We have officially moved! I am still working through boxes (how did we ever accumulate this much stuff??) but for the msot part, we are moved in. We are enjoying this little small town (17,000 people). It's not THAT small, but compared to a metropolitan area, it is small.
Things we like about our small town...
1. It is quiet
2. We can look up at night and see stars, not airplanes
3. We feel good letting the kids ride their bikes up and down the street
4. Everything is slower here; there's no rush
5. It's not crowded
6. People wave and smile
I hope to post pictures sometime soon. We have bought 10 acres and are starting the process of building our house. I am very excited about all of this!
If anyone knows how to keep cougars and water moccasins away, let me know!
:)
Things we like about our small town...
1. It is quiet
2. We can look up at night and see stars, not airplanes
3. We feel good letting the kids ride their bikes up and down the street
4. Everything is slower here; there's no rush
5. It's not crowded
6. People wave and smile
I hope to post pictures sometime soon. We have bought 10 acres and are starting the process of building our house. I am very excited about all of this!
If anyone knows how to keep cougars and water moccasins away, let me know!
:)
Thursday, July 13, 2006
Proactive vs. Reactive and Weight Loss Journey
Things To Do Today
pack up living room, family room, and dining room
keep up with laundry
take kids for a walk/bike ride
Proactive vs. Reactive
I seem to bounce back and forth between these two. Some weeks I am very proactive~ planning my days, planning meals and activities for the kids. Other weeks (like this week!), I seem to be "flying by the seat of my pants" and reacting to life, instead of being proactive.
I am not a very balanced person. I know this is shocking to those of you who know me well. :)
I am either "hot" or "cold."
This is something I am going to be praying about and asking God to give me more balance. I do not expect to be perfect or to always plan ahead, but I do have a hosuehold of 8 to run and it would run much more smoothly if I was consistent and proactive.
Weight Loss Journey
I rejoined WeightWatchers online yesterday. Since my youngest child's birth, 13 months ago, I have been a definite yo-yo dieter. First Body for Life, then Weight Watchers meetings, then Body for Life again, then starvation (that lasted for a few hours), etc.
I am still 15 pounds above my pre-pregnancy weight, and 30 pounds above my ideal weight.
pack up living room, family room, and dining room
keep up with laundry
take kids for a walk/bike ride
Proactive vs. Reactive
I seem to bounce back and forth between these two. Some weeks I am very proactive~ planning my days, planning meals and activities for the kids. Other weeks (like this week!), I seem to be "flying by the seat of my pants" and reacting to life, instead of being proactive.
I am not a very balanced person. I know this is shocking to those of you who know me well. :)
I am either "hot" or "cold."
This is something I am going to be praying about and asking God to give me more balance. I do not expect to be perfect or to always plan ahead, but I do have a hosuehold of 8 to run and it would run much more smoothly if I was consistent and proactive.
Weight Loss Journey
I rejoined WeightWatchers online yesterday. Since my youngest child's birth, 13 months ago, I have been a definite yo-yo dieter. First Body for Life, then Weight Watchers meetings, then Body for Life again, then starvation (that lasted for a few hours), etc.
I am still 15 pounds above my pre-pregnancy weight, and 30 pounds above my ideal weight.
I want to put a picture of me at my ideal weight and then a picture of what I look like now on here, but I can't figure out how to crop my pictures so they will fit and look nice. I will work on that.
That's all for now. I hear kids needing me in the kitchen. :)
Thursday, May 18, 2006
It's been so long!
Hi everyone,
It has been a long time since I took the time to sit down and type my thoughts here. Tonight I am going to type a little before my baby wakes up.
Tonight was a busy night. We went to church, where a friend's daughter (3 yrs old) fell head first from a step stool onto a tile floor. Her head had a strange looking bruise that was flat, instead of a "goose egg" looking bump. So, having always heard, it is bad if the bump swells in instead of out, we (me, my baby, friend, her little girl) took off for the pediatric ER.
So, we were driving to the ER. Then she talked with her dr.'s nurse and the nurse asked 100 questions and then determined that the little girl was okay.
Back to my house to get her other daughter. When we get to my house, her other daughter is running 103 fever and can barely talk. Great.
They left at around 11 pm and now I am here typing my thoughts.
House Update:
Today we found out that the 2nd mortgage company will not take the deal from the 1st mortgage company. The 2nd mortgage company wants to foreclose and be done with it. Which means we will have to move. Our realtor is asking us to give $1,000 and he will give $1,000 out of his earnings. And he is asking the other realtor to also give $1,000 and the 1st mortgage company to do the same. Total = $4, 000. He wants to take that money and go back to the 2nd mortgage company and see if they will take the deal with $4,000 instead of the original amount that was offered which was $1,000.
This may sound confusing to you. That is because it is confusing.
Today I bought a book called Body After Baby. It is a 30-day eating plan for breastfeeding moms for weight loss. I also bought Lose the Baby Fat! It is an exercise program for new moms. I am hoping to get motivated enough to follow both plans and lose this extra 30 pounds I am carrying around.
Aren't y'all glad to hear about all the excitement in my life?
Goodnight
It has been a long time since I took the time to sit down and type my thoughts here. Tonight I am going to type a little before my baby wakes up.
Tonight was a busy night. We went to church, where a friend's daughter (3 yrs old) fell head first from a step stool onto a tile floor. Her head had a strange looking bruise that was flat, instead of a "goose egg" looking bump. So, having always heard, it is bad if the bump swells in instead of out, we (me, my baby, friend, her little girl) took off for the pediatric ER.
So, we were driving to the ER. Then she talked with her dr.'s nurse and the nurse asked 100 questions and then determined that the little girl was okay.
Back to my house to get her other daughter. When we get to my house, her other daughter is running 103 fever and can barely talk. Great.
They left at around 11 pm and now I am here typing my thoughts.
House Update:
Today we found out that the 2nd mortgage company will not take the deal from the 1st mortgage company. The 2nd mortgage company wants to foreclose and be done with it. Which means we will have to move. Our realtor is asking us to give $1,000 and he will give $1,000 out of his earnings. And he is asking the other realtor to also give $1,000 and the 1st mortgage company to do the same. Total = $4, 000. He wants to take that money and go back to the 2nd mortgage company and see if they will take the deal with $4,000 instead of the original amount that was offered which was $1,000.
This may sound confusing to you. That is because it is confusing.
Today I bought a book called Body After Baby. It is a 30-day eating plan for breastfeeding moms for weight loss. I also bought Lose the Baby Fat! It is an exercise program for new moms. I am hoping to get motivated enough to follow both plans and lose this extra 30 pounds I am carrying around.
Aren't y'all glad to hear about all the excitement in my life?
Goodnight
Monday, April 03, 2006
Great Music and Memories
Hey everyone,
Today I was in bed all day with a migraine. I watched TV and slept pretty much all day. I nursed the baby pretty much all day too. It seemed that way anyway!
One show I watched was 100 greatest Country Duets on CMT. I loved it! When I started feeling better (about 9 pm) I came downstairs and downloaded a bunch of the duets from www.walmart.com. So right now I am listening to "Somewhere in the Vicinity of the Heart" by Shenandoah and Alison Krauss. It is such a GREAT song!! The other ones I downloaded are "It's Your Love" and "Just to Hear You Say That You Love Me" by Faith and Tim, "Meet Me in Montana" by Marie Osmond and someone I can't remember, and "Nobody Loves Me Like You Do" by Anne Murray and another someone I can't remember.
Anyway, so then I got carried away and downloaded lots of fun songs..."Live Like You Were Dying" , "Cowboy Take Me Away", "In My Daughter's Eyes", "Happy Girl"!
I'm very excited about all of this, as you can probably tell from the exclamation points!!!!!
Let me tell you real quick about our first day of spring. We spent lots of the day outside, walking and riding bikes. The kids were very cute and it was a gorgeous day. That's all I can remember about it, so I can't write any details. :)
Have any of you "worked out" to the Carmen Electra Striptease Aerobics video? Just wondering... Not that I would ever work out to that video or (gasp) buy it or anything!!
Tonight I was watching my husband play with our kids and I kept thinking, "I love my life." I do have the greatest husband. He is so sweet and he loves me and spoils me. I am very blessed, even if he won't help me with laundry any more because I have griped and griped over the years about him leaving clean laundry in baskets and on couches so I have to finish it for him.
Gotta go! I hear Baby waking up.
Have a great week!
Today I was in bed all day with a migraine. I watched TV and slept pretty much all day. I nursed the baby pretty much all day too. It seemed that way anyway!
One show I watched was 100 greatest Country Duets on CMT. I loved it! When I started feeling better (about 9 pm) I came downstairs and downloaded a bunch of the duets from www.walmart.com. So right now I am listening to "Somewhere in the Vicinity of the Heart" by Shenandoah and Alison Krauss. It is such a GREAT song!! The other ones I downloaded are "It's Your Love" and "Just to Hear You Say That You Love Me" by Faith and Tim, "Meet Me in Montana" by Marie Osmond and someone I can't remember, and "Nobody Loves Me Like You Do" by Anne Murray and another someone I can't remember.
Anyway, so then I got carried away and downloaded lots of fun songs..."Live Like You Were Dying" , "Cowboy Take Me Away", "In My Daughter's Eyes", "Happy Girl"!
I'm very excited about all of this, as you can probably tell from the exclamation points!!!!!
Let me tell you real quick about our first day of spring. We spent lots of the day outside, walking and riding bikes. The kids were very cute and it was a gorgeous day. That's all I can remember about it, so I can't write any details. :)
Have any of you "worked out" to the Carmen Electra Striptease Aerobics video? Just wondering... Not that I would ever work out to that video or (gasp) buy it or anything!!
Tonight I was watching my husband play with our kids and I kept thinking, "I love my life." I do have the greatest husband. He is so sweet and he loves me and spoils me. I am very blessed, even if he won't help me with laundry any more because I have griped and griped over the years about him leaving clean laundry in baskets and on couches so I have to finish it for him.
Gotta go! I hear Baby waking up.
Have a great week!
Wednesday, March 22, 2006
The First Day of Spring post...coming soon
I have been meaning to write about our wonderful Monday, the first day of Spring. We had such a great day!! However, today was a day from h-ll, so I am not in the mood to type nice things about our Monday.
I have been having much pain in my upper, mid, and lower back so I went to my dr. last week. She sent me to have x-rays and I got the report in the mail today. It just so happens that today I was in constant pain. I was in pain even before I got the report in the mail. So it wasn't one of those things where you feel worse after finding out a diagnosis.
This is what I found out
1. I have chronic muscle tightness in my neck, which is causing my neck to straighten.
2. I have mild scoliosis in the thoracic part of my back, which causes chronic muscle aches.
3. I have an old compression fracture in the thoracic part of my back. Weird, you think I would know if my back had been fractured in the past. I know I am not an observant person, but this is ridiculous.
4. I have disc space narrowing in the lumbar part of my back. This is causing the most pain.
My dr. is referring me to a spinal orthopedist. She said "spine orthopedist" but I think the correct way to say it is "spinal orthopedist." She's only a DOCTOR. Surely, I know the correct way to say it. I am a MOM after all.
This back pain is causing much crankiness in my life lately. I will post on our lovely first day of Spring when I feel less cranky.
I have been having much pain in my upper, mid, and lower back so I went to my dr. last week. She sent me to have x-rays and I got the report in the mail today. It just so happens that today I was in constant pain. I was in pain even before I got the report in the mail. So it wasn't one of those things where you feel worse after finding out a diagnosis.
This is what I found out
1. I have chronic muscle tightness in my neck, which is causing my neck to straighten.
2. I have mild scoliosis in the thoracic part of my back, which causes chronic muscle aches.
3. I have an old compression fracture in the thoracic part of my back. Weird, you think I would know if my back had been fractured in the past. I know I am not an observant person, but this is ridiculous.
4. I have disc space narrowing in the lumbar part of my back. This is causing the most pain.
My dr. is referring me to a spinal orthopedist. She said "spine orthopedist" but I think the correct way to say it is "spinal orthopedist." She's only a DOCTOR. Surely, I know the correct way to say it. I am a MOM after all.
This back pain is causing much crankiness in my life lately. I will post on our lovely first day of Spring when I feel less cranky.
Wednesday, March 15, 2006
An update on my life for anyone who cares to read about my life
One thing I didn't think about when I created this blog was the time it would take to actually sit down and type thoughts into my computer. Finding time to spend in here typing my life so the world can read it is difficult. Well, finding the time is difficult, but putting thoughts together and making sense is the most difficult thing most days.
Having said all of that, it has been quite a while since I last posted and it is because I have been very busy with all of my responsibilities. Homeschooling, laundry, changing diapers, rocking babies, reading stories... Wow, I do have the best profession in the world! :)
Right now is a very uncertain time in our lives. We are living in a house that we may or may not get to stay in and we know that in a few weeks we may not have a job! But we are choosing to trust God and His infinite wisdom and just have peace about the whole thing. I have gotten to a point where I am really enjoying my "free" big house!! At $1 a day, it is basically free.
Today is day one of week 3 of Weight Watchers for me. As of last night, I have lost 3 pounds. Of course, after the Value Sized meal I got at Chick Fil A last night I may have gained a bit. I left the WW meeting feeling famished so I headed on over to Chick Fil A and got my favorite, a number 1 combo, value sized with a Coke, for a grand total of 29 points! That includes a classic Chick Fil A sandwich, large waffle fries, a large Coke, and 2 polynesian sauce packets. Since my points started over today, I just ignored those points I ate last night. Works for me.
Have any of you read Parenting With Love and Logic? It was recommended to me by a dear relative of mine who happens to be a counselor at an elementary school. In the pat, I have not wanted to read it because I kind of felt like I was "above" that particular method of discipline and I was determined to not do something just because my "perfect" relatives did it that way. I now realize the error of my ways and I feel pretty badly about it. I have been humbled and now I am going to listen to her advice and try it out. We are going to read the book and then take the Parenting With Love and Logic class at a local elementary school. I'll keep you posted...
Let's see...what else is new in my world...
Oh, my hubby applied for a job in the Rio Grande Valley. Those of you who know me know that while I was there I was homesick. Now I am homesick for the Valley!! I'm always wanting what I don't have.
Having said all of that, it has been quite a while since I last posted and it is because I have been very busy with all of my responsibilities. Homeschooling, laundry, changing diapers, rocking babies, reading stories... Wow, I do have the best profession in the world! :)
Right now is a very uncertain time in our lives. We are living in a house that we may or may not get to stay in and we know that in a few weeks we may not have a job! But we are choosing to trust God and His infinite wisdom and just have peace about the whole thing. I have gotten to a point where I am really enjoying my "free" big house!! At $1 a day, it is basically free.
Today is day one of week 3 of Weight Watchers for me. As of last night, I have lost 3 pounds. Of course, after the Value Sized meal I got at Chick Fil A last night I may have gained a bit. I left the WW meeting feeling famished so I headed on over to Chick Fil A and got my favorite, a number 1 combo, value sized with a Coke, for a grand total of 29 points! That includes a classic Chick Fil A sandwich, large waffle fries, a large Coke, and 2 polynesian sauce packets. Since my points started over today, I just ignored those points I ate last night. Works for me.
Have any of you read Parenting With Love and Logic? It was recommended to me by a dear relative of mine who happens to be a counselor at an elementary school. In the pat, I have not wanted to read it because I kind of felt like I was "above" that particular method of discipline and I was determined to not do something just because my "perfect" relatives did it that way. I now realize the error of my ways and I feel pretty badly about it. I have been humbled and now I am going to listen to her advice and try it out. We are going to read the book and then take the Parenting With Love and Logic class at a local elementary school. I'll keep you posted...
Let's see...what else is new in my world...
Oh, my hubby applied for a job in the Rio Grande Valley. Those of you who know me know that while I was there I was homesick. Now I am homesick for the Valley!! I'm always wanting what I don't have.
Monday, March 06, 2006
Always Fun Karaoke
Hey everyone,
Right now I am listening to my family and my brother in law's family JAM OUT to our karaoke machine. The kids and dads are having a blast!! We have a professional karaoke machine, huge speakers, etc., that we rent out for parties and events. Here's our website http://www.alwaysfunkaraoke.com/
Anyway, it is so much fun! Oh great, now they're singing "Like a Virgin"!! Maybe I should intervene. My children don't even know what a virgin is. But I have a feeling they'll be asking tomorrow. Okay, the dads got a clue and changed the song...
Now they're singing "Achy Breaky Heart". (Leslie, I know that's your FAVORITE song and it brings back lovely memories of your wedding. You'll have to come over and sing it for us.)
Uh oh...here come the kids...the dads must be ready to quit singing for the night. I thought I was going to have time to type an interesting post, but I am going to have to go for the night. The kids have found me!!!!!
Right now I am listening to my family and my brother in law's family JAM OUT to our karaoke machine. The kids and dads are having a blast!! We have a professional karaoke machine, huge speakers, etc., that we rent out for parties and events. Here's our website http://www.alwaysfunkaraoke.com/
Anyway, it is so much fun! Oh great, now they're singing "Like a Virgin"!! Maybe I should intervene. My children don't even know what a virgin is. But I have a feeling they'll be asking tomorrow. Okay, the dads got a clue and changed the song...
Now they're singing "Achy Breaky Heart". (Leslie, I know that's your FAVORITE song and it brings back lovely memories of your wedding. You'll have to come over and sing it for us.)
Uh oh...here come the kids...the dads must be ready to quit singing for the night. I thought I was going to have time to type an interesting post, but I am going to have to go for the night. The kids have found me!!!!!
Wednesday, March 01, 2006
Whew!!
Wow, what a week it has been! I realize as I type this that it hasn't exactly been a week, just 4 days since I last posted. I felt like a week. I have gotten a lot accomplished though.
Here's what I have been up to...
1. Getting rid of my husband's old car~those of you who know me know that this is a BIG DEAL to me. It was on his To Do list last year. He was supposed to donate it to a charity before the baby was born. Baby will be 9 months old on Friday...
2. Taking care of sick boys~ Last night it was my 3 yr old, this morning my 7 yr old, and currently it is my youngest 5 yr old. Ha! Youngest 5 yr old sounds funny! Clarification: My youngest twin is the one who is ill at the moment.
3. Cleaning house~ Today I set my timer and cleaned house 15 minutes at a time...15 minutes in the kitchen, 15 minutes in the family room, 15 minutes of laundry...you get the idea. The thing is, I cleaned all day and never made it upstairs. The downstairs is really clean though and we all have clean clothes. Next week maybe the upstairs will get cleaned.
4. Homeschooling my 4 oldest kids~ Yes, I am Super Mom because I have kept up with school this week. hee hee
5. Taking trash to my old neighbor's house~yep, we loaded up the van with our trash and took it over to my gracious neighbor's house because our city only lets us put trash in one little trash can. It is a trash can issued by the city and it is small. So, while we are still dealing with moving trash, we are taking it to our previous neighbor's house.
6. Enjoying the spring-like weather here in North Texas~ I love it! The early mornings have been incredible!
By the way, my garage hasn't been cleaned out and therefore I haven't used my treadmill or weights. But I did re-join Weight Watchers this week. I have already used all of my points for the day and I havne't has dinner yet. Guess I'll be drinking water for dinner...
Here's what I have been up to...
1. Getting rid of my husband's old car~those of you who know me know that this is a BIG DEAL to me. It was on his To Do list last year. He was supposed to donate it to a charity before the baby was born. Baby will be 9 months old on Friday...
2. Taking care of sick boys~ Last night it was my 3 yr old, this morning my 7 yr old, and currently it is my youngest 5 yr old. Ha! Youngest 5 yr old sounds funny! Clarification: My youngest twin is the one who is ill at the moment.
3. Cleaning house~ Today I set my timer and cleaned house 15 minutes at a time...15 minutes in the kitchen, 15 minutes in the family room, 15 minutes of laundry...you get the idea. The thing is, I cleaned all day and never made it upstairs. The downstairs is really clean though and we all have clean clothes. Next week maybe the upstairs will get cleaned.
4. Homeschooling my 4 oldest kids~ Yes, I am Super Mom because I have kept up with school this week. hee hee
5. Taking trash to my old neighbor's house~yep, we loaded up the van with our trash and took it over to my gracious neighbor's house because our city only lets us put trash in one little trash can. It is a trash can issued by the city and it is small. So, while we are still dealing with moving trash, we are taking it to our previous neighbor's house.
6. Enjoying the spring-like weather here in North Texas~ I love it! The early mornings have been incredible!
By the way, my garage hasn't been cleaned out and therefore I haven't used my treadmill or weights. But I did re-join Weight Watchers this week. I have already used all of my points for the day and I havne't has dinner yet. Guess I'll be drinking water for dinner...
Saturday, February 25, 2006
Two Great Blogs for homeschoolers and large families
Okay, after writing my uninspiring little post about finding time to exercise, I checked my daily blogs. All was fine until I read the very inspiring posts of Kim (http://largefamilylogistics.lifewithchrist.org/) and Spunky (http://www.spunkyhomeschool.blogspot.com/). After reading those posts, I am feeling like there is so much more I should be doing with my home and my children. I have a lot to think about this evening. I have been working on our chore charts and schedule in my head, so hopefully I can get it on paper this evening or tomorrow. I may even write about it tomorrow night so you can be so inspired!
Time for exercise
I have been thinking a lot about when I can find time to exercise. Homeschooling 6 kids takes up quite a bit of time which is why I don't exercise regularly. Okay, I am lying. The reason I don't exercise regularly is because I haven't wanted to. It hasn't mattered that much to me. And to be completely truthful, refereeing my kids' fights takes up most of my time. Homeschooling only takes a few hours of the day.
In the past, I awakened at 5 a.m. and exercised then. That doesn't sound appealing to me these days. It never did, but I did it anyway and I loved the results.
I have been reading a book by Kathryn Samsone, a mom of 10 children, called Woman First, Family Always. You can find the book at Sam's if you are interested in reading it. In her book, she talks about her exercise routine. Most of her kids go to school so she exercises in the mornings when they leave, I am assuming. She never actually says WHEN she finds the time.
Anyhoo, she does weight training and cardio 4 days a week. I would like to adopt her exercise routine. So, my routine will look like this: Mondays~treadmill for 30 minutes, then weights for 30 minutes; repeat that on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays. BUT, when am I going to do this? I have gotten in the habit of waking up when my kids wake up (8:00 usually) and I am really enjoying sleeping in. The fact is, I am not going to get the exercise time in if I keep sleeping in. My days of snoozing late are over. This makes me very sad.
Tomorrow I am going to work on cleaning out the garage so I can work out bright and early Monday morning. I have also considered working out in the evenings when Corey gets home. I am pretty much worn out when he gets home though so I will try the early morning thing first.
I'll let ya know how it goes Monday morning.
One of my twins, the older one to be exact, just told me that I am the best Mommy he has ever had. Then he started talking about soup and he completely lost me.
Tonight I left to run an errand and came home to a locked door. Since we haven't closed on our house yet, we only have the key that was in the lock box. Hubby took the kids to STAR Time, a family worship time at our church, and he locked the door. He hid a key for me, but since I didn't have my cell phone, I didn't know where to look for the key. I ended up walking around Target for an hour (which wasn't so bad really) and he and the kids came home to an empty house. Bless his heart, he was so worried that I would be upset. I wasn't. Not by the time I got home, anyway.
Have a lovely Saturday night!
In the past, I awakened at 5 a.m. and exercised then. That doesn't sound appealing to me these days. It never did, but I did it anyway and I loved the results.
I have been reading a book by Kathryn Samsone, a mom of 10 children, called Woman First, Family Always. You can find the book at Sam's if you are interested in reading it. In her book, she talks about her exercise routine. Most of her kids go to school so she exercises in the mornings when they leave, I am assuming. She never actually says WHEN she finds the time.
Anyhoo, she does weight training and cardio 4 days a week. I would like to adopt her exercise routine. So, my routine will look like this: Mondays~treadmill for 30 minutes, then weights for 30 minutes; repeat that on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays. BUT, when am I going to do this? I have gotten in the habit of waking up when my kids wake up (8:00 usually) and I am really enjoying sleeping in. The fact is, I am not going to get the exercise time in if I keep sleeping in. My days of snoozing late are over. This makes me very sad.
Tomorrow I am going to work on cleaning out the garage so I can work out bright and early Monday morning. I have also considered working out in the evenings when Corey gets home. I am pretty much worn out when he gets home though so I will try the early morning thing first.
I'll let ya know how it goes Monday morning.
One of my twins, the older one to be exact, just told me that I am the best Mommy he has ever had. Then he started talking about soup and he completely lost me.
Tonight I left to run an errand and came home to a locked door. Since we haven't closed on our house yet, we only have the key that was in the lock box. Hubby took the kids to STAR Time, a family worship time at our church, and he locked the door. He hid a key for me, but since I didn't have my cell phone, I didn't know where to look for the key. I ended up walking around Target for an hour (which wasn't so bad really) and he and the kids came home to an empty house. Bless his heart, he was so worried that I would be upset. I wasn't. Not by the time I got home, anyway.
Have a lovely Saturday night!
Friday, February 24, 2006
My first post
Okay, so I have officially started my own little blog. I am very excited about this!
For my first post, I want to tell you 10 things about myself. I probably should do the Thirteen Thursday thing like my cool sisters, but for starters I am just gonna list 10.
For my first post, I want to tell you 10 things about myself. I probably should do the Thirteen Thursday thing like my cool sisters, but for starters I am just gonna list 10.
- I have been married for 6 1/2 years
- I am a stay at home mom and wife
- I have 6 kids
- I homeschool them
- We have 2 beagles who bark continuously and make the neighbors hate us
- We just moved into a new house (new to us anyway)
- I would love to have more kids
- Yes, I know what causes it
- No, I am not Catholic (not that there is anything wrong with being Catholic!!)
- Today I dropped 2 1/2 dozen eggs and only 1 survived . It was lovely to clean up.
So, there you have it, my first post on my first blog!
Goodnight to anyone who may actually read this!
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