Saw this on Annie's blog, gotta love a good meme

1. What time did you get up this morning?
6:15 a.m.
2. Diamonds or pearls?
diamonds
3. What was the last film you saw at the cinema?
I don’t remember
4. What is your favorite TV show?
american idol
5. What did you have for breakfast?
cereal, banana, dr pepper
6. What is your middle name?
maxine
7. What is your favorite cuisine?
american- hamburgers, fries, steaks, etc.
8. What foods do you dislike?
raw onions
9. What are your favorite chips
cool ranch Doritos or cheese doritos
10. What is your favorite CD at the moment?
john mayer
11. What kind of car do you drive?
minivan
12. Favorite sandwich?
chicken salad sandwich from jason’s deli
13. What are characteristics you can’t stand?
meanness, bossiness, judgemental
14. What are your favorite clothes?
anything comfortable that is flattering (yeah right)
15. If you could go anywhere on vacation where would you go?
Europe, countryside... off the beaten path...
Where is sixteen? Would I want to be 16 again?
no way
17. Where would you want to retire?
where my kids and grandkids are
18. Favorite time of day?
bedtime!
19. Where were you born?
idabel, oklahoma
20. What is your favorite sport to watch?
watching my dh and sons watch OSU basketball- they are way more fun to watch than the actual game
21. Coke or Pepsi?
Coke
22. Beavers or ducks?
hmmm…not sure
23. Are you a morning person or a night owl?
neither
24. Pedicure or manicure?
pedicute
25. What did you want to be when you were little?
a veterinarian, a model, a pediatrician
26. What is your best childhood memory?
Playing until the sun went down
27. Ever been to Africa?
No
28. Ever been toilet papering?
no
29. Been in a car accident?
a few but nothing major
30. Favorite day of the week?
friday
31. Favorite restaurant?
county line,
32. Favorite flower?
roses
33. Favorite ice-cream?
chocolate
34. Favorite fast food restaurant?
sonic
35. How many times did you fail your driver’s test?
I passed the first time
36. From whom did you get your last e-mail?
Annie
37. Which store would you choose to max out your credit card?
Dillards or Macy’s
38. Last person you went to dinner with?
my husband
39. What are you listening to right now?
Dragon Tales on PBS
40. What is your favorite color?
pink, green, yellow
41. How many tattoos do you have?
one
42. How many are you sending this Email to?
None
43. What time did you finish this e-mail blog entry?
9:20
44. Favorite magazine:
Real Simple
45. Coffee or tea?
tea
46. Do you tan easily or burn easily?
I burn then tan
47. Do you color your hair?
highlights
48. What was the first car you ever purchased without the help of your parents?
2000 Ford expedition
49. What is your most dreaded household chore?
sweeping and mopping any floor
50 Who do you tag to complete this meme?
Cheerful, Natalie, Christina

Today, March 26, 2007

Beauty in the Common Things: Monday mornings
Listen In: Dragon Tales
Supper Plans: Taco Meatloaf, potatoes, vegetable
Today I Plan To: finish up the laundry (it has gotten WAY behind lately- you wouldn't believe how much dirty laundry there is!!), lie on the couch and rest, wash baby clothes, look for a bassinet (online, friends, etc.)
View From the Kitchen Window: cloudy sky, green grass

I'm Back!

I'm back after one week of no internet! Did you miss me?

I am exhausted tonight so I am not going to write much. Tomorrow I will hopefully get a chance to sit down and write more.

I'll Be Back!

Hi everyone,
My internet has a virus. Dh is working to get it fixed. I'll be back in a few days!

Today is the last day of Spring Break. Am I sad about this? Not really. We didn't do any of the fun things I had planned this week, but we have gotten to spend LOTS of time together, just like the old days of homeschooling. I must admit I am looking forward to Monday.

Ds4 came down with a fever last night, then stomach pain, then a sore throat, and finally a headache. We just got back from the doctor and he has bronchitis and a cold. He has an array of prescriptions getting filled right now at the pharmacy. This means he will miss a much-anticipated birthday party tomorrow evening. He hasn't quite figured that out yet and I am dreading the moment he does.

I saw our first bluebonnets of the season yesterday! I am so excited about this. In 2005, we took bluebonnet pictures of the kids and then last year we were experiencing a drought so there were no bluebonnets to speak of. I am looking forward to taking pictures this year.


Beauty in the Common Things: Texas bluebonnets
Listen In: Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (ds4 got to pick out a movie to watch)
Supper Plans: Hash Brown Soup
Today I... stressed out about ds4's illness, took him to the dr., and that's about it
View From the Kitchen Window: My van parked in front of the house, sunshine, my Spring flag blowing in the wind

Beauty in the Common Things: time together as a family
Listen In: Baby Girl pushing buttons on the phone
Today I Plan To: finish chore charts, maybe take kids to park, read my book (Child From the Sea)
View From the Kitchen Window: dreary sky

A gift & a menu!!!

My dearest GIGI...

This is the header I have designed for your template... I haven't quite finished it yet so I reverted it all back to original... sometime soon it will change though... in the meantime, here is your menu for this week... enjoy!

love, me

Monday... (day is over)

Tuesday...

empanadas
veggie of choice

salad

Wednesday...

chicken spaghetti in crockpot

french bread

salad

Thursday...

Gyros

salad

Friday...

taco soup in crockpot

with chicken rather than gb...

corn bread from mix

Saturday...

mom's day off (Corey gets to cook or get carry-out!)

Spring Break!

This is Spring Break week for us. Spring Break is a new concept for my kids because, when we were homeschooling, we were always a little behind our schedule, so I never took a Spring Break. They are very happy to be getting a week off!

I made plans to do some fun things this week while they are home. I checked the forecast last night and discovered that it is supposed to rain until Thursday. So...that puts a damper on a few of my plans, but we can still have fun!

This is what I planned:
1. Farmers' Market- there is an awesome farmers' market about 30 minutes from us. People come from all around to visit this market. I want to go check it out with the kids.
2. Arboretum- like a huge park with beautiful flowers, a lake, picnic sites, fountains, etc. I have read lots of great reviews on this place.
3. Zoo or Aquarium- I have been debating on the zoo or the aquarium. We have not been to either of these. We have always visited another zoo that was closer to our previous residence.
4. Letterboxing- We were going to go letterboxing at several parks around our house this week. Don't know what letterboxing is? Check it out here.
5. I have several projects around the house that I want to get finished. Chore charts (our kids do very few chores now that they are in school and with this many people in the family, they need to help out more), make Brownie's memory stone (Brownie died in August and we are just now getting around to making his memory stone), Baby Girl's first handprint stone, de-cluttering projects in bedrooms.

It looks like the arboretum, letterboxing, and the zoo are out, if it continues to rain like the forecast says. We can still do the farmers' market, the aquarium, and the projects around the house.

I found 30 rainy day crafts here. If I am brave anough, we may do a few crafts. I am not a crafty person, so doing crafts is a huge stretch for me. Cross stitching and scrapbooking are my thing, but kid crafts are not.

Have a great week!

A Neat Calendar

Here is a neat little calendar I found! Enjoy!

Kidnapped Newborn Found!

I have been praying that this baby would be found and returned to her mother. God has answered my prayers and the prayers of so many others! Here is the story.

Isabelle's Story

You really need to go over to Annie's blog and read Isabelle's story.

Isabelle's life and the story of her accident is a story of hope, a story of God's grace and healing, and also a story of the tragedy of drowning. Hopefully, you will read it and become more aware.

This is one of those things that we think will never happen to us. Bailey, Annie's 13 yr old son, who was 10 when Isabelle nearly drowned, said to me the day after it happened, "This is something you see on the news. It isn't something that happens to us." I remember feeling that way as well. I couldn't believe this had actually happened to Izzy and her family.
But it does happen all the time. Summer is getting closer and we will start hearing more and more about children drowning.

Please read Isabelle's story and learn from it.

Beauty in the Common Things: painted baby girl toenails (painted by her sweet older sister during "Beauty Shop" last night)
Listen In: Excited boys talking LOUDLY
Supper Plans: BLTs
Today I Plan To: work on my desk for 30 minutes, ask dh to fix laundry room door (it won't latch), take dd12 to a lock-in at school (her first lock-in), play catch up on house and laundry
View From the Kitchen Window: Dh's truck, which needs to be washed

Beauty in the Common Things: the smell of freshly mown grass
Listen In: Ds8 and ds4 playing with Cars toys (Lightning McQueen, Doc Hudson, etc.)
Supper Plans: Taco Salad
Today I... took ds8 to the dr. (woke up wheezing and coughing, he does not have asthma, he has a viral respiratory infection), ate lunch with dd12, got oil changed, got prescriptions filled, got caught up on laundry, wished I was sleeping. Tonight I am going to take dd12 to Girl Scouts (if her homework gets completed :) get dh's oil changed in truck, go to library and sit alone for a few minutes with a book!!!
View From the Kitchen Window: droopy daffodils (I don't think they like the heat)



One thing I have noticed lately is that it takes me a long time to recover after a busy day of running around. So when I have 2 or 3 days of running around I really start to wilt. Yes, I have flowers on the brain.

Speaking of flowers, ds4 truly thinks we are naming this child Flower, if the baby is a girl. He is serious. Poor kid.

I recently purchased a CD series from Walk Thru the Bible/ Living on the Edge Ministries called House or Home? It is 8 lessons presented by Chip Ingram, president of Walk Thru the Bible and Living on the Edge. He is also the pastor at Santa Cruz Bible Church. Anyway, these lessons are so, so good. It is all about having a godly marriage and a godly home. Basically, the message is: "The world has gotten it all wrong and gotten everyone messed up. This is the way it is done God's way." I want to make copies of them and send them to everyone I know. I may do that. Watch your mailbox. You may get a package from me soon. :)

Today

Today I saw Nancy, one of my midwives. She is really sweet. Nothing exciting happened at this visit, which is a good thing at this point. I had to get a rhogam shot, she told me that baby is head-down and weighs a little more than 3 pounds, and everything looks great. I have 2 more 2-week visits and then I start going every week. Isn't that weird? I guess we're really going to have a baby and this isn't a dream. I honestly can't imagine having another baby in my house. I try and try to visualize what life will be like with one more and I just can't! I am not stressing about it or anything, and we are all very excited about this baby, but it doesn't seem real to me. I know when the first contraction hits, it will feel VERY real. Usually at this point I am super ready to have the baby and am already getting impatient. But this time I feel very content and very happy to just stay pregnant for a while longer. :)

We left the house at 7:30 this morning and got home at 3:45. I was pretty much running from place to place that whole time. First we took the kids to school, then filled up with gas, then stopped at Chick fil A and got a drink :), then took the kids to a friend's house, then rushed to see Nancy, then drove across town to get my hair cut, then back to get little ones, then drove an hour back to get the kids from school. Whew! I was so tired this evening that I just put my jammies on at 6 and crawled in bed. Dd12 had to get in bed with me to get help with her homework and I kept falling asleep. She didn't need help from me anyway, she just wanted to be in the same room with me. It's a very good thing she didn't need help because I was no help at all. I did manage to keep my eyes open long enough to watch American Idol and to write this update. Now I am going to bed.

Goodnight!

Oh, one more thing. Thank you for all of the baby name suggestions. However, we still have NOT ONE SINGLE NAME PICKED OUT FOR THIS CHILD. Just thought I'd put some pressure on you guys to keep thinking of names. You are going to have to name the baby because my brain has quit working properly and it is my husband's fault. You see, he thinks it is hilarious to get his pregnant wife upset by throwing out names like Belvedere and Poppy. I give up.

Goodnight again.

Beauty in the Common Things:
Listen In: ds6#2 and ds4 squealing and running from Baby Girl
Supper Plans: The only thing that sounds good is gyros and we had those last night. They were a HUGE hit! Tonight I may make burgers.
Today I Plan To: take ds6#2 to the dr. (asthma re-check), MAIL MOM'S BOOKS TO HER!!!!!, catch up on laundry, work on de-cluttering my desk for 30 minutes, make dental and eye dr. appointments, call hospital about my January bill
View From the Kitchen Window: A robin pitter pattering around my front yard :)

Beauty in the Common Things: a clean, smiling baby face
Listen In: Baby Girl and ds4 munching Pringles
Supper Plans: Gyros! (Annie, I'll let you know how they turn out)
Today I Plan To: Shop for baby stuff at Target, finish grocery shopping, call in ds6#2's inhaler refll, mail Mom's books, call hospital about January bill, plant ds8's cabbage (yes, several of these things have been on my to do list for days. Hopefully, I will get them done today)
View From the Kitchen Window: sunshine and wind

Beauty in the Common Things: can't think of anything beautiful this morning :) I'm a little overwhelmed!
Listen in: six kids and a daddy talking at once
Supper Plans: not sure, something with ground beef
Today I Plan To: take Girl Scout cookie $ to Melody, mail Mom's books, build raised garden beds, grocery store, plant ds8's cabbage (school project), call in refill for ds6#2's inhaler, play catch up on house and laundry :)
View From the Kitchen Window: a sunny, windy day



This is my raised garden bed frame.



Here is the finished project! It is layered with newspaper, manure, humus, leaves, and then topsoil. You can see that there is an unfinished frame connected to the finished one. We are going to finish the other one next weekend. We're going to plant ds8's cabbage plant tomorrow.

Beauty in the Common Things: Happy mornings
Listen In: Baby Girl saying, "Mommy, Mommy, Mommy."
Supper Plans: I don't know yet; nothing sounds good
Today I Plan To: Work on decluttering my desk for 30 minutes, eat lunch with dh, put glass back in china cabinet, put dolls and hats in china cabinet, turn in Girl Scout cookie money, mail Mom's books back to her
View From the Kitchen Window: birds flying past

Our Children's Baby Name Picks

dd12:
Girl Names-Allie, Olivia (Liv)
Boy Names- Tyler (Ty), Abel

ds8:
Girl Name- Lacey
Boy Name- Mason

ds6#1:
Girl Name- Christy
Boy Name- Noah

ds6#2:
Girl Names- Rapunzel, Lillie
Boy Name- Jack

ds4:
Girl Name- Flower
Boy Name- Jackson

Baby Girl:
Girl Name- Baby
Boy Name- Baby

There you have it! If our children got to pick the name, this would be our list to choose from. I personally like Rapunzel and Flower. What do you think?

Baby Names, continued

Girl Names
Star
Landon or Landen
Belle* my absolute favorite, although I can see potential teasing from peers
Sage
Sophia or Sophie
Chloe
Eden
Piper
Faith
Reese
Annie Rose
Julia
Ella
Catherine
Mia
Caroline

Boy Names
Samuel (Sam)
William (Will)
Finley
Reece
Benjamin (Ben)
Landon or Landen

This is my list. Dh does not like any of these names. Oh wait, I take that back. He likes William. But I'm not so sure I LOVE that name. I want to LOVE the name before I name my baby that.

Beauty in the Common Things: smiles
Listen in: Baby Girl digging through my desk drawer
Supper Plans: Chicken Pot Pie
Today I Plan To: eat lunch with ds6#2, read Odd Girl Out
View From the Kitchen Window: bare trees

Baby Name Suggestions

We have not agreed on a name yet. We don't even have any names in the running. We haven't found one single name, boy or girl, that we even like.
HELP!!

Please give us suggestions. Dh wants the name to come after N; I really don't care where the name falls in the alphabet. I just want this child to come home from the hospital with a name.

I'm serious, send us lots and lots of name suggestions!!!

Leo
My sisters were right; I was wrong. We actually got Leo when I was 4, so that would have made him 28 years old on his upcoming birthday of March 9th. That also happened to be my Meema's birthday.

Just thought I'd clear that up.


Don't get your knickers in a knot. Nothing is solved and it just makes you walk funny. ~Kathryn Carpenter

View from the Kitchen Window: cloudy sky
Listen in: ds4 growling at Baby Girl
Supper Plans: Spaghetti, salad, corn on the cob (we had BLTs last night)
What I Plan to Do Today: Go to the library with ds4 and Baby Girl
Beauty in the Common Things: sleeping with the windows open

My Oldest Daughter

We seem to have lost a child around here somewhere. The good thing is, she has been replaced with a new, improved model! Yes, I am talking about my oldest daughter. For the past week and a half, I have been giving her my vitamins, Double X. She takes 1/2 the dosage of adults.

The difference in her is unbelievable. I had no idea that she would change so drastically, I just thought it would be nice to have her taking a very good quality vitamin and that it would help her not get sick as much, feel better, etc. Well, we now call these vitamins "Happy Pills." She is a delight to be around, she is more responsible, she is doing things like cleaning her room without being asked to, getting her homework done promptly when she gets home from school, not fighting with me and dh, smiling more, laughing more, etc. These may not seem like big improvements to those of you who have happy children, but if you know my daughter, you will know why we are so excited about these improvements.

Her change in attitude really is incredible!

(I get them for about $25 cheaper then the price listed on the above link)

Leo

My dad called last night to tell us that Leo, our family horse, had died. We got Leo when I was 2 years old. He was 2 years old at the time, according to Dad. So that means he would have been 30 on his upcoming birthday in March. (My sisters have also written about Leo on their blogs and I think we all have a different age for him)
Leo was a part of our family. That may sound strange to some of you, because he was "just a horse." But he was so special to all of us. I don't remember not having him. Leo is a piece of my childhood that is now gone. I feel so sad about this and I miss him. He was just always there. All of the grandchildren have ridden him except Baby Girl. I have pictures of my two oldest children riding Leo when they were 3 months old! They were riding with Papa, of course. :)

If we happened to be at Mom and Dad's on Leo's birthday, we made him a carrot cake and gave it to him. Ha! Isn't that funny? We just loved this horse so much. My friends in junior high and high school will even remember him, because they rode him, too. I remember one summer day when 2 guy friends stopped by. They decided they were going to play cowboys. They ran out to the pasture and jumped on Leo bareback. Of course, they thought he would take off running and it would be this wild adventure. He just stood there! I think he may have even started munching grass! It was so funny, because he was like, "Boring." I love that memory.

I have so many memories of Leo. He was part of my life from 2 to 30. Another funny memory is when my friend Candy and I wanted to ride him in our front yard. We were probably 7 years old at the time. I rode in the front and she rode in the back. Well, she didn't know that if you put your feet in the horse's flank (I think that's what it's called- basically it's the tender spot between the tummy and the hip) the horse will buck! That's how rodeo horses buck so much, they put a strap around the horse's flank. Anyway, Candy put her feet there and dug in tight to hang on. Well, Leo started hopping! It was like he was just hopping around the yard. We both fell off and were laughing so hard we couldn't stand up. I'm sure it was hilarious to watch.

Ds8 didn't know the word "horse" until he was about 4. Every horse was a "Leo." He still loves horses, but he no longer calls them all Leo. :)

I haven't told my kids that he died. They are going to be so sad. Just a couple of days ago ds6#2 said, "Mommy, can we go to Mom and Papa's on Leo's birthday and make him another carrot cake?" I really don't know of another horse who got cake on his birthday. Not every birthday, but a few. :)

I have lots of pictures of Leo and the kids, but I don't think they are digital pictures. My scanner is broken so I can't scan them in. I'll look for a digital picture of him and put it on my blog if I find one.

Goodbye, Leo.

View from the kitchen window: sunshine and wind blowing
Listen in: It's A Big World
What I plan to do today: restock diaper bag, eat lunch with ds6#1, grocery store, cancel cleaning lady who was supposed to come on 3/2 (I found a better one)
Supper plans: Spaghetti, garlic bread, salad
Beauty in the common things: sunshine

A smile is a curve that sets everything straight. ~Phyllis Diller

View from the kitchen window: the wind blowing my butterfly flag
Today I plan to: restock diaper bag, make beauty appointments for April and also a hair appointment for next week, grocery shopping, take books back to library, cleaning lady coming to give price
Supper plans: BLTs
Listen in: Baby Girl playing in the dog crate
Beauty in the Common Things: kindergarten teachers

May your walls know joy; may every room hold laughter and every window open to great possibility. ~Maryanne Radmacher-Hershey

What American Accent Do You Have?

What American accent do you have? Your Result: The Midland   "You have a Midland accent" is just another way of saying "you don't have an accent." You probably are from the Midland (Pennsylvania, southern Ohio, southern Indiana, southern Illinois, and Missouri) but then for all we know you could be from Florida or Charleston or one of those big southern cities like Atlanta or Dallas. You have a good voice for TV and radio.
The West
The South
Boston
North Central
The Inland North
Philadelphia
The Northeast
What American accent do you have? Quiz Created on GoToQuiz

My Pity Party

I am having a pity party this morning. I feel sorry for myself today. Baby Girl and ds4 woke up with pink eye, again. We had plans today to see some friends who moved to Georgia who we haven't seen since last July. Now we can't go, unless of couse, Leslie wants her twin 3 year old boys to get pink eye and take it back to Georgia to spread around. I'm thinking she won't want that.

I have had sick children since early November. This is not an exageration. I have literally had at least one sick child in my home since early November. The only exception was the week of Christmas.

Also, I have had no extra money since early November. I know a lot of people live paycheck to paycheck all the time and I can now empathize with them.

I am tired. I am weepy. I am irritable. I bit dh's head off this morning because he wasn't feeling as sorry for me as I was feeling for myself. How dare him not feel sorry for me? Another reason for my pity party is that I haven't been to church since my birthday, in December, because every Sunday there is someone sick who needs me to stay home with them. Dh helps in the children's ministry at church and they really need him there, so I won't ask him to stay home so I can go. Also, I have no church clothes right now. I have shopped for maternity dressy clothes, but have found nothing. Thus, another reason to feel sorry for poor little (big, actually) me.

Of course, I know that I shouldn't feel sorry for myself and pity parties are nonproductive. I know that my kids may be sick, but the illnesses they have are normal childhood illnesses, nothing life-threatening or chronic. I know that we will have extra money again soon (tax refund and dh's bonus will pay off a lot of debt and will free up some money). I know that I should not bite dh's head off at all, ever. I know that if I really wanted to go to church, I could go to a church here on Sunday night or Wednesday night and ask dh to stay home with the children. It is a comfort zone thing and I need to get over it.

I know all of these things. But I still feel sorry for myself today.
Aren't y'all glad you came over to my blog today so you can feel sorry for me, too?

This is what my daffodils look like this morning. The funny thing is, they do not smell at all. No scent whatsoever. I am very disappointed, because their scent is my favorite thing about them. They are beautiful to look at though!

Today is a busy day for us. The little ones and I have quite a bit to do~ take clothes to seamstress, take clothes to cleaners, continue trying to find a babysitter for tomorrow (midwife appt.), put away Christmas decorations that are still hiding here and there, stock an emergency bag and put it in the van, and look for a book in the garage (I know the general vicinity of the box). Then I need to call my friend who is in town from Georgia and arrange to see her. Tonight dd12 has Girl Scouts at 6 and ds8 has a music performance at 7. Whew!

Yesterday I found someone to clean my house every other week. I arranged for her to start March 2nd and come every other Friday after that. Dh did not like this plan. So, he asked me to make him a list of things I want cleaned, things that the cleaning lady would do, and he would do those things on Saturdays. He asked me to cancel the cleaning lady's appointment on March 2nd.

He gave me a job to do while he is deep cleaning. My job is to keep the kids occupied and to fix the meals.

This is very sweet of him and I appreciate him offering to do this for me. The thing is, I am going to feel bad letting him do all of the cleaning while I watch the kids. Well, I am not going to feel bad right now, because it is getting physically harder for me to do deep cleaning chores. But after a few months, I am going to be able to do those things again, and the Saturday deep cleaning is probably going to get passed off to me. Maybe that will be no big deal.

But I kinda wanted to cleaning lady to keep coming forever!! ;) I think it would be so nice to have some help with cleaning on a consistent basis.

I know most people clean their own houses, so this is not a huge issue. I just feel like I could use some help right now and especially during the summer when I have a newborn and 6 kids home all day. It seems like the deep cleaning chores never get done. We'll see how long dh wants to keep cleaning on Saturdays. He may be begging me to call the cleaning lady after a few weeks of this. I love him, I really do.

This morning I walked out onto my front porch and I saw our first daffodil of Spring. It is so pretty! By noon there were 3 others bloomed. I love daffodils~ they are beautiful to look at and to smell. They remind me of Christina, because they are her birth flower. She was born in March. What's your birth flower? See this website to find out.

The website actually says that jonquils are the March flower. Are jonquils and daffodils the same flower? According to this Master Gardener, they are from the same family, but they are not the same flower. Well, daffodils still remind me of Christina, even if they are not truly her birth flower!

It is beautiful here today! The weather is gorgeous, 69 degrees right now, and there is a slight breeze. I have the windows open and it smells like Spring.

Tag...I'm it!

The theme is three things we're thankful for and Annie has tagged me!

I am thankful for so many things. Today I was listening to a song by Watermark called Grateful People. It really expresses how I feel toward God for blessing me, His daughter.

1) I am thankful for salvation! This may seem like an obvious one, but I think about it a lot and I truly am grateful for this gift.

2)I am thankful for my husband and children. My wonderful husband is a gift from God, truly. Anyone who knows our story knows that my husband was sent to me directly from God. With a little help from Annie, of course. ; )
He loves me so muchand I completely trust him and his decisions. We are best friends, we enjoy spending time together, we laugh together, and I am very thankful that he is my sweetheart.

I have 6 beautiful children. I am blessed to be their Mommy. Each one of my kids has a unique personality, even my twins, which surprised me for some reason. I guess I thought twins would be the same in every way. My kids are funny, sweet, annoying at times, loving, smart, and beautiful! I am so very thankful for each one of them, and for the one we are expecting in April.

3) I am thankful for my friends. I have many friends that God has blessed me with. I have Annie, whom I have known for 13 years. She carried me through tough times and we are like sisters. I have my sisters, Christina and Natalie, who are very close to me, especially since we have become adults. I know I can always count on them and I know they love me. We have so much fun together. They are 2 of my best friends.
I have friends from Mission, where we lived from 1999-2000. God put people in my life there to help me grow and change into the woman He wants me to become. Siobhan, Lora, and Holly are 3 friends I am still close to. I have friends who I met when we moved to RHCC about 6 years ago. We were all homeschooling at the time and we grew very close. Jill, Tracy, Lana, Micala...to name a few.
Leslie, who was my neighbor is Euless, is a great friend whom I am thankful for. We lived next door to each other for about a year and a half and got to be very good friends. We both moved last summer. She now lives in Georgia, so far away!
And then there's Cheerful! We have only known each other for alittle over a year, but feel like we have known each other forever. Cheerful is as unique as her name, she is fun, and I know God put us in each other's lives. We talk everyday, we are very close, and I am thankful for her!

There you have it, three things I am thankful for.

Okay, Cheerful, Nat and Christina, tag...you're it!

Baby's Layette and Other Things to Buy

What exactly is a layette? According to the American Heritage Dictionary it is a set of clothing and bedding for a newborn child.

I found this list of things to buy for baby:

Baby Needs: Clothing and Layette
5-10 onesies or rompers, depending on how often you want to do laundry
5-7 baby sleepers or nightgowns
5-7 pairs of baby socks
1-2 newborn hats, depending on climate
Baby Needs: Diapers and Bath Items
2 packs of disposable diapers
1 pack of disposable wipes
Waterproof pad for diaper changes
3-5 baby washcloths
1-2 hooded towels, if desired.
1 bottle of gentle baby wash
Baby nail clippers
Digital thermometer
Baby Needs: Bedding and Feeding
3-4 fitted sheets for crib
5-7 lightweight blankets
1-2 heavier blankets, depending on climate
10 burp cloths
5-8 bottles, if you're bottle feeding
Breastfeeding pillow, if desired

Then I found a very extensive list here.


Right now I am overwhelmed by so much to do. I feel like I need to get organized and "get it all together" before the baby's birth. But do I really think I will ever "get it all together"? No, I do not. I am more organized than I was with my first and second children. Thank goodness. But I still have such a long way to go to reach efficiency. Today has been another tired day without much accomplished. I did get our taxes done. That was a big weight off my shoulders.

Enough complaining for now. Hopefully this won't turn into Gigi's Gripey Blog in the next few weeks. : )

Birth Plan- Don't Read This Unless You Want to Know Graphic Details of Our Birth Wishes! : )

( I took off the personal information at the beginning- our names, due date, hospital, and midwives' names)


Special Notes
My blood type is O negative.

General Comments
As we prepare for the birth of our seventh child, we have a few requests. We want to be very clear about our expectations for the hospital staff and our midwives, as well as what we plan to do for ourselves.
We would like all staff to discuss all procedures with us before they are performed.

Environment
We would like to the environment during labor to be calm and quiet.
I would like to be able to wear my own choice of clothes during labor.
I would like the lights to be dimmed, if possible, especially in the bathroom while I am in the bathtub.

During Labor
I would like vaginal exams to be kept to a minimum. I want only my midwives to perform the exams.
I want to avoid an IV unless it is absolutely necessary.
I would prefer to avoid electronic fetal monitoring. I would prefer instead for my midwife or nurse to use a Doppler to check the baby’s heart rate periodically.

**When I first arrive at the hospital I am usually monitored in the observation room and then monitored again when I am moved to the birthing suite. I want to be monitored at one place or the other, not both, if that is possible. It is almost impossible to relax and use natural techniques for pain relief while hooked up to the electronic fetal monitoring machine. **

I would like to deliver in whatever position is comfortable for me.

**I would like to try the squat/birth bar. If that doesn’t feel right, I would like to try lying on my left side during the pushing stage. I do not want to deliver our baby in the semi-reclining, legs-pushed-back position. **

· I want to push only when I feel the urge to do so. I would prefer not to be told to push simply because I am dilated to a 10.

Pain Relief
· I would like to give birth naturally and without medication.
· I want to be in a warm bath as soon as possible and as much as possible.
· I would like to try the shower if the warm bath loses its effectiveness.
· I am going to bring my own birthing ball to use for comfort.

Induction
· We would like to avoid an induction unless the baby shows distress.
· In the event that the pregnancy goes past 42 weeks, I would like to be induced using pitocin, with an epidural for pain relief.

Delivery of the Placenta
· I would like to deliver the placenta naturally, with no pulling on the umbilical cord.

After the Birth
· We would like the umbilical cord to stop pulsating before it is cut.
· We want Dad to cut the cord.
· I want to be given ibuprofen as soon after the baby is delivered as possible.

Feeding
· I will be breastfeeding our baby.
· Please do not give our baby bottles, supplements, or pacifiers without our consent.

If Our Baby is Sick
· I would like to breastfeed when possible
· We would like to have unlimited visits with our baby
· We would like to hold our baby as much as possible
· In the event that the baby has to be transferred to another facility, we would like to follow as soon as possible

Circumcision
· No circumcision is to be performed in the hospital. Our family’s pediatrician will perform the circumcision at a later date.

Eye Care
· We would like to delay eye care until after we have bonded with our baby.
· We would prefer erythromycin eye treatment to silver nitrate for our baby.

Vitamin K
· We would like vitamin K to be given to our baby.
· We would prefer that oral vitamin K be administered, if possible.

We realize that not every birth goes as planned and that unexpected events happen. We also know that we are in good hands and that you, our midwives and nurses, will try to follow this birth plan as closely as possible. We are excited about our baby’s birth and we are glad you are going to share this special event with us.

Super Woman Has Left the Building

Remember my "Things To Do Before Baby is Born" list from January? I have revised it. I took off the things I have gotten done and added a few more things that I want to get done before she/he is born.

1. Go through kids’ wardrobes- get rid of extra clothes and shoes that don’t fit or they don’t wear
2. Totally baby proof the house (so that Baby Girl doesn't get into as much mischief)
3. Clean out the van- clutter, vacuum, Armor All, tires, outside of van
4. Have my garage sale
5. Send dh and kids out of town for a weekend so I can clean and declutter entire house
6. Arrange for house cleaning in last months before baby and few months after baby
7. Cook and freeze lots of meals for month after baby is born
8. Buy new infant car seat
9. Stock up on diapers (newborn, sz1, sz2)
10. Bottles (3 or 4)
11. Plan and stock an “emergency bag” for the car- snacks, water, extra clothes, extra diapers and wipes, toys, blanket, money, etc.
12. Make appointments for hair cut, highlight, wax, manicure, and pedicure for April
13. Plan birth announcements- shop for them
14. Buy birthing/exercise ball
15. Buy/choose 2 books to read after baby is born
16. Finish birth plan
17. Agree with dh on a girl name and a boy name
18. Clean up and organize my desk

Yesterday at noon I got dd12 from school because she had a fever. This morning we went to the dr. and she has...the flu! Plus, an ear infection and a sinus infection. Taking her to the dr. and all that was involved (carrying sleeping Baby Girl for part of the time, then wrestling her in the exam room) and then going to Wal Mart in the freezing cold wind to drop off prescriptions completely wore me out. I came home and crashed on the couch for 2 hours. Of course, I didn't get to sleep much, but I got to rest. That was good. I am just so tired today. A lot of my new to do list will probably get delegated. : )

Today

I walked out of the living room to go make my bed, and when I walked back through the house, I found these 2 little rascals in my kitchen! Ds4 was fascinated by the balloons and Baby Girl was just trying to find some candy!

I have another list today. It is a short, easy one. My lists are getting shorter and easier as time goes by. I am tired today and I want to sleep.

Things To Do Today:
1. Catch up on laundry (fold and put away all clean laundry, wash wet sheets and blankets from bedwetters last night)

2. Get sheets back on beds

3. Take a nap with ds4 and Baby Girl

4. Clean up my bedroom for 15 minutes

5. Clean up my bathroom for 15 minutes

6. Chick fil A for lunch

7. Make a plan for my days Baby Girl and ds4 are driving me crazy and they need more structure

**I made the plan**

Here it is:

8:00 Breakfast and kitchen cleanup (we get back from taking kids to school right at 8)
8:30 Make bed, switch laundry, kids play inside while I fold and put away one load of laundry, put dinner in crockpot (if I'm using the crockpot that day)
9:00 Read 1 story to kids, then play with them inside or talk a walk around the block or run errands
10:00 Give kids their baths, then computer time for Mommy while they watch a cartoon
11:00 Kids watch Sesame Street while Mommy listens to Revive Our Hearts
11:30 Lunch
12:00 Naptime
2:00 Snack, then go get kids from school

To My Husband

Tomorrow morning if you wake up and the sun does not appear
I will be here
If in the dark, we lose sight of love
Hold my hand, and have no fear
'Cause I will be here
I will be here
When you feel like being quiet
When you need to speak your mind, I will listen
And I will be here
When the laughter turns to crying
Through the winning, losing and trying
We'll be together
I will be here

Tomorrow morning, if you wake up
And the future is unclear
I will be here
Just as sure as seasons were made for change
Our lifetimes were made for years
So I will be here
I will be here
And you can cry on my shoulder
When the mirror tells us we're older
I will hold you
And I will be here
To watch you grow in beauty
And tell you all the things you are to me
I will be here

I will be true to the promise I have made
To you and to the One who gave you to me

--Steven Curtis Chapman

Happy Valentine's Day!



















We are having a great day! Dh is here and we are enjoying spending some time with him before he flies out to St. Louis this evening. We took the kids' lunches to school (I had to pack special Valentine's Day goodies in their lunchboxes and it took a while, so we took their lunches to them at 11), then we went to lunch at Chili's. After that, we went to the twins' school parties. When we got home and checked the mail there was a letter from ds6#2. It was a Valentine's card he made at school and mailed to us. So cute!

I have decorated the kitchen with red streamers and pink balloons. I thought it would be fun to have a special Valentine's dinner for the kiddos. They LOVE balloons and, in their opinions, if there are balloons, it is a party!! I tied two balloons on the front porch post also. Of course, my neighbors will think we've had the baby early and it's a girl. Until they see me waddling out to the van, that is.

This morning when I got back from taking the kids to school there was a piece of paper stuck in the handle of the glass door. It was a love letter from my sweetheart. It is the sweetest letter I have gotten in a very long time.

My Love Letter

"To my Valentine, Julie. My wife forever. My love forever. I love you as much as chicken pot pie. I love you as much as ice cream. I love you as much as chocolate. I love you as much as looking on realtor.com. I love you more than you even know.

I just wanted to stop and write you a note, on this LOVE day, to tell you how much I love you. For all that you've been, for all that you are, and all that you will be- I love all of you.

You're a gift from God, who has helped me make decisions that are heavenly sound. You're special to me and I thank God that he chose you for me. I love you more than you can imagine.

My prayer for us on this special day:
God, thank you for my wonderful friend, partner, and lover. You have blessed me in a way that I can't thank you enough. Thank you for my wife, thank you for all that she adds to my life. Please protect her when I'm not around, keep her safe, and help her to always know that I love her- no matter what.

I love you."

My Ultrasound Today

The ultrasound went great. Baby is healthy and just the perfect size for my due date of April 29th. She weighs 3 pounds. Everything is fine!

I saw Baby sticking her tongue out and opening her little mouth. We got a really great profile picture. It was a fun ultrasound! I even got to see little wrinkles on her forehead. So cute!

BTW, I am saying "her" because I hate to say "it" when referring to Baby. So, I am choosing to say "her" even though I do not know if the baby is a girl or boy.

: )

School Lunches

I need ideas for school lunches to pack for my kids. They take sandwiches almost every day, and sometimes they take a hot dog. I usually give them a piece of fruit or applesauce, and cookies or some kind of candy. Sometimes I send yogurt and occasionally string cheese. Dd12 takes leftovers usually and sometimes a sandwich. She has a microwave so she can heat up her food. What are some other ideas for school lunches? What do you send with your kids?

TV Shows

There are a couple of TV shows that I do not like. I can't figure out why so many people love these shows. One of these is Gray's Anatomy. I do think Patrick Dempsey (is that his name?) is adorable, but I don't like the show AT ALL. I have tried to watch it and it is too much for me. I also don't care for Desperate Housewives. We watched it last night and when it was over I thought, "Why did I waste my time watching that?"

There are a few shows I really like. One of them is Super Nanny. I love her! She is so great and I really like watching the bratty kids. Tonight Super Nanny is going to deal with a rebellious teen. We're watching it!
Lots of times I think the kids just need a good old fashioned spanking, but I have read Super Nanny's book and she basically says that nannies can't spank so she had to come up with other ways to deal with kids' misbehavior.

Another show I like this season is American Idol. I have never watched it before or gotten into it at all. I know, I am a little behind. But this season, for some reason, I really like the show. I still think the judges are mean, I feel so sorry for the guys and gals who are good but not good enough, and Paula looks drugged sometimes, but overall it is a fun show to watch.

And there's always Oprah! I really like watching her show most of the time. My SIL warned me that Oprah is a feminist and I shouldn't watch her show or read her magazine, but I think I am a big girl and can decide who and what to watch and read. Lots of times I turn it off because the topic doesn't relate to my life, but sometimes she has really good stuff on her show. She usually has good celebrities as guests. I have specially enjoyed watching her interviews with Carrie Underwood, Faith Hill, and Jennifer Anniston.

Update

I got the garage cleaned out last week. I can't remember what day that was. I cleaned for about 12 hours, with an hour break in there to get the kids from school. I got a lot accomplished, but I didn't find the box of clothes! I think I have already given the clothes to SIL because I remember her baby wearing one of Baby Girl's outfits at Christmas. And I think it was a 6-9 months size outfit.

I went to my midwives Friday. They ordered an ultrasound for this coming Tuesday because they are concerned about the baby's size. I am measuring small and I have only gained 5 or 6 pounds. We're confident that our baby is healthy and everything is fine. I will update you on that Tuesday afternoon.

Baby Girl came down with the flu Friday morning. She already had double ear infections, a sinus infection, and a respiratory infection. She has been on amoxicillin for about a week, so there is not concern that the flu will turn into pneumonia or any other bacterial infection.

This evening we (dh, me, and kids) made Valentine boxes for the kids' school parties. We made ds4 one also, so he wouldn't feel left out. Baby Girl and Daddy made Valentine hearts and glued them onto paper. Everyone's Love Tank is full now. : ) Dd12's box has a picture of Zac Efron on it, of course.

I have a busy week ahead: ultrasound, Valentine parties, dh out of town Wednesday afternoon thru Friday night, plus the normal daily challenges of living with and taking care of 7 other people. It is going to be a great week though and I am looking forward to the fun we're going to have and the memories we're going to make.

Cleaning Out the Garage Tomorrow

Tomorrow I am going to clean out our garage. This is a BIG deal because right now it is impossible to walk through our garage without getting hurt. I do not really want to clean out the garage all in one day, tomorrow, but I am being forced to do it. My SIL wants a box of clothes for her baby and the box is lost in my garage. I located the box of clothes in early December but then it disappeared again. It is a box of 6-12 month baby girl clothes. Some of the clothes are her girls' clothes that I borrowed and some of the clothes are Baby Girl's clothes that SIL is going to borrow. SIL wants the box back and is asking if she can come to our house this weekend and get it.

Anyhoo, my plan is to lay out working clothes tonight and get to bed by 9. I am going to get up early and get everything done that I normally do after taking the kids to school (empty dishwasher, make bed, start laundry). Then tomorrow when I get back from taking the kids to school I will attack the garage. My goal is to be able to park in the garage by my due date. I am having a garage sale on March 31st or sooner, depending on how much stuff I decide to sell when I am cleaning tomorrow.

I have found that if I take my vitamins at night I have lots of energy in the morning when I wake up. If I take my vitamins in the morning, I have lots of energy until noon. I can't figure out how to have energy from noon until bedtime. But at least I can work on the garage until noon. Hopefully Baby Girl and ds4 will cooperate and play nicely while Mommy works. We'll see. :)

Filling Up Freezer and Planting Pansies

Filling Up Freezer

I want to fill up my extra freezer with food for after our new baby is born. My original thought was that I would cook double portions of meals and freeze the extra portion. But, I am spending every bit of my food money already and I don't really have any extra money to buy more ingredients. I am not good at planning my menus around sales and coupons. I have tried it and it doesn't work for me. One time I made me menus based on the sales ads, went to 4 different grocery store, spent 4 hours shopping, and spent $60 less than I normally spent. It was great at the time, but I can't get excited about that kind of work just to save $60. I guess $60 is quite a bit of money, especially when your food budget for 2 weeks is $200. Another problem is that there are only 2 grocery stores in this town. Ha! That would present a problem, now wouldn't it?

I think I will try fixing one cheap meal a week (beans and cornbread, eggs and toast, etc.) and buy double ingredients for one of my other meals that week.

Like last night we had Sticky Chicken and Cheddar Biscuits (I didn't have time to make sourdough bread). I could have bought 2 chickens and made 2 batches of biscuits, or just frozen half of the biscuits. The recipe made 20 biscuits. Tonight we are using the leftover chicken to make Chicken and Pasta with Vegetables. I could have frozen another meal tonight if I had bought 2 chickens and cooked them both yesterday.

Questions for my loyal readers:
*What are some other cheap meals?
*Do you have any other ideas for filling up my freezer without spending too much extra money on food?

Planting Pansies

Today dd12 is out of school and we are going to plant pansies. When I pick up the boys from school in a few minutes we are all going to go outside, the boys and Baby Girl are going to play, and dd12 and I are going to plant pansies in the front flower beds.
I also bought 3 pots of daffodil bulbs that have been started for me. I have never seen pots of daffodil bulbs, but at Wal Mart yesterday (yes, I took Baby Girl to Wal Mart again) I saw lots of pots of planted tulip bulbs and daffodil bulbs. You just leave them in the pot and they bloom there. Perfect! I'll post pictures of my flowers when they get planted and when the daffodils bloom.

Note To Self

"You are pregnant. 28 weeks pregnant, to be exact. Hauling a 20- month old around Wal Mart for 2 hours wearing high heeled boots is not smart. Your feet will scream at you after this adventure and your back will ache. Then you will want to come home and rest but you can't do that because dh has the flu now. Next time, don't take 20-month old to Wal Mart. Don't do 2-hour shopping trips anymore. And DO NOT wear the high heeled boots anymore. Ever."

Beyond Survival

Kim over at Large Family Logistics has invited her loyal readers to join her in her "Beyond Survival" series. Basically, she knows there are times when things fall apart at home because of too many activities, illnesses, a new baby, husband travelling, etc. She is helping those of us who are at that point get it back together. The first post she wrote was about Morning Routines. I'm going to post everything we work on in my sidebar, just for my own personal satisfaction. I really like to see my routines; I like to see what I want to accomplish.

You can go to her blog (listed in my links) and check out her Beyond Survival posts.

Taking Care of Myself While Family Has Flu

I sat down to write this and looked out the window at what I thought were leaves falling. I thought, "It is so windy out there." I was looking through a curtain. Then a looked closer and saw that the "leaves" were white! Snow!

Today was ds8's first day back to school after being sick. I asked his teacher to call me at noon if he hasn't perked up a bit. He still is as white as a ghost and his eyes look sick, but his fever is gone and he is on antibiotics, so he wanted to go to school. I think he's been pretty bored here. TV and Play Station get old after a while, even for an 8-yr old boy.

I realized this morning that I do not take care of myself very well when my kids are sick. I spend so much time taking care of them and taking them to the dr., going to get prescriptions, going to the grocery store to get more stuff, etc., that I neglect myself, and consequently, baby.
I have been staying up way too late because after the sickies go to bed I want to be ALONE or at least sit up and talk with dh in peace and quiet.
I have been drinking too much soda and caffeine. I haven't been balancing my checkbook everyday like I normally do. I have been forgetting to take my vitamins at night before bed. I have been shooting up "bullet prayers" instead of taking time to thoughtfully pray and study. And I have let the house get very messy during our bout with the flu. The house is the least of my concerns, but I do need to get it picked up because I get stressed when my house is in chaos.

I need to focus on taking my aspirin and vitamins, drinking lots of water, taking vitamin c, getting the basics done each day (meals, laundry, house maintenance), and getting more sleep. I think last night I slept maybe 3 hours. Baby Girl was up so many times. I kept thinking, "In a couple of months, I will be up all night with a new little one. I have GOT to get this one sleeping all night in her bed!" Actually, she normally sleeps all night in her bed. She occasionally gets in our bed sometime in the night. Ds4 is the one I need to get out of my bed and into his bed. He cried and cried last night because I wouldn't let him in our bed. But Baby Girl was in there already and it was getting crowded. She likes to sleep horizontally with her head in my back and her feet in dh's back. Not too comfortable. Tonight I hope to go to bed at 9:00. And I also hope to get a nap this afternoon.

Well, by the time I finished this post, the snow stopped. : ( It was pretty while it lasted.

Today ds6#1 is home from school, Baby Girl has a fever, and ds4 seems to be feeling puny again. he has cried all morning and I can't figure out what he's crying about. He won't tell me anything, he just cried. So he is back in bed.

Dr. Visit Today

Well, today is ds8's 7th day to be sick. He started complaining of ear pain last night, so I took him in to the dr. this morning. We switched to a much closer dr., by the way. 20 minutes away instead of an hour away. I like the new dr. a lot.

Anyway, she told me that yes, they all definitely have the flu. I refused the "booger test" as she called it. There's nothing she can do for the flu at this point anyway. BUT ds8's flu turned into an ear infection and sinus infection, so we got antibiotics for him. He has missed 4 daysof school so far, and will probably be out tomorrow again, but I don't care. There's no way I would send him to school feeling this bad.

Yesterday after school, ds6#2 started feeling bad. He went downhill FAST and within 30 minutes or so his fever was in the 104s and he was throwing up and lethargic. It was bad. I was worried about him because of his asthma. But this morning he got up, got dressed, ate breakfast, and went to school. The boy LOVES school and he said he felt fine. He didn't have a fever, so I let him go. I called and checked on him and his teacher said he is doing great. The other twin is home today with flu though.

Last night everyone focused their prayers on ds6#2 since he has asthma and the flu can be scary for asthmatics. Tonight I think we'll focus our prayers on all 6 kids and mom and dad. :)
Then by tomorrow morning all will be well in our household once again.

Symptoms of the Flu

Here are the symptoms of the flu to look for in your kids (in this order):
1. CRANKINESS!!!!!
2. Headache
3. Fever
4. Stomach pain
5. Exhaustion
6. Body pain (everything hurts, even their scalp)
7. Red eyes (looks similar to pink eye, but it's not)
8. (new symptom) sore throat

Ds8 came down with these symptoms Wednesday, starting with #1 and by Friday working his way down to #7. Today he is feeling a little bit better. He has been out of bed all day, but he still has a low-grade fever, a headache, and he is CRANKY.

Now, this afternoon I have noticed ds4 being abnormally testy and irritable. He just came to me and said his head hurts. Oh no!!! I immediately gave him Tylenol and put him in bed to lie down.

I have read that the typical flu lasts a week or two. I hope that is not the case around here. I hope this is a short-lived virus that gets out of our systems quickly.

***Monday Update***
Ds4 is very sick~ I can't get his shaking to stop. He is shaking so badly that it's shaking the bed. He is being calm and good natured about it all though. I have dd12, ds8, and ds4 sick today. Dd12 is going to school at noon. Her school had Grandparents' Day today so there was no real school till after lunch. I kept her home, thinking she would feel better after getting up and around. I was right.
In Family Fun Feb. 07 issue, there are some tips on keeping sick kids occupied. One idea that is neat to help them drink lots of water is to label a water bottle in 6 ounce increments. Then each time they drink 6 ounces, they get to draw a reward out of a hat. Our rewards are things like, "10 minutes of computer time" "a picnic lunch in bed" "Mommy reads one chapter from The Magician 's Nephew to you" "You get to pick out a DVD to watch", etc.
So far, they have been very excited about this. Ds4 is coming out of the bedroom right now to tell me he finished his water bottle!

Please pray for the Morris family

This family needs our prayers as they deal with their grief over losing their son/brother, 3-year old Joel. http://weloveyoujoel.blogspot.com/

Online Conference in March

I copied this information from http://www.christianhomemakingconference.com/

"Imagine!
No long lines at the airport, no hours of travel on the road. No cramped hotel rooms or expensive meals out. All you need is a computer and a high-speed (256K+) Internet connection, and you can join a live conference online with streaming audio and visual presentations! Curl up at home with a cup of tea and listen as speakers deliver sessions on topics that touch us all:
Why full-time homemaking isn't about high heels and pearls.
Homemaking 101: Help! How did my grandmother know how to do all this stuff?
Training daughters to be competent and visionary keepers at home.
For busy moms of little ones: how to avoid growing weary in well-doing.
Why teenage rebellion isn't inevitable and how you can avoid it (panel discussion).
Q&A with speakers
Join us for the first, groundbreaking online conference on March 17, 2007, from 10am to 2pm C.S.T. We're thrilled that technology will now allow women from all over to hear vital messages without having to leave home and hearth to do so. Besides being able to listen to talks live and submit questions for the speakers, you'll have opportunities to chat with fellow attendees in real time for extended fellowship. All sessions will be recorded and available after the conference for free to registered conferees (they'll also be available for purchase afterwards at $12 per session to those who couldn't be a part of the live conference). Sessions can be tuned in from any high-speed connection. You can plug your earphones into your computer or turn up the volume on your speakers and listen while you work!
Consider making this a special mother-daughter event or using it as a one-day getaway for a time of refreshing and encouragement. Group discounts will be available to those who would like to gather together for this conference--including church groups, Bible studies, extended family and friends, etc. This is a neat way to do a very inexpensive local "retreat" without the hassles and high costs of travel! The average costs for an in-person conference can run upwards of $750 when travel, meals, hotel rooms, and such are figured in. Online conferencing is a bare fraction of that cost at $50 ($40 for early birds!) and doesn't require the wear and tear on vehicles and family members. ;-)
Early Bird Discount! The price for those who register prior to February 10 is $40. After that, the price will be $50. Space is limited at this first online event to 500 participants, so be sure to sign up soon! You may register online with a debit or credit card, or you can use the registration form and choose to mail a check (address provided during the sign-up process). To register, please click HERE. For information about group rates, please see the How It Works page. We look forward to "seeing" you online in March! "

I am very excited about this conference. The conference I usually attend is in February in Dallas. It is the WHolehearted Mother conference. I had planned to attend this year as I have done for the past 7 years, but our finances are very tight so I am going to "attend" this conference instead. And I won't even have to leave my house! I guess that can be looked at as a good thing and a bad thing all at the same time. Getting to leave for a weekend and spend time in a nice hotel BY MYSELF was always very fun and refreshing. We'll see how this online conference works out.

The Johnson Holiday Picture

Modified Dream Plan

I have decided the first thing I am going to do to get me closer to the country life I want is plant a garden. I wanted to plant daffodil bulbs in the Fall, but I never felt like it was cool enough outside, then the holidays came and I forgot. Now I think it is too late. But it is not too late to plan a vegetable garden.

I tried to make my garden plan simple, because I am going to have a new baby in 3 months, but I got a little carried away. Those of you who know me are surprised by this, I'm sure.

I found a website that has a gardening calendar for Central Texas. The calendar says that in January I need to order seed catalogs, then decide what I want to plant and order those seeds. I ordered two catalogs this morning~Johnny's Seeds and Territorial Seeds. Those were recommended to me by Kim in Iowa.

This is what I am going to plant in my garden this year:
green bell peppers
big tomatoes
cherry tomatoes
squash
zuchinni
pumpkins
cantaloupes
watermelons
green beans
garlic
herbs in kitchen (rosemary, basil)

My calendar says I can't plant my vegetables until April 14th. That sounds awfully far away. Sure sounds fun to be outside planting vegetables when I am 2 weeks away from my due date.

Well, we'll see if this actually happens. I hope I have the energy to go ahead with the plan. Right now I have energy to spare. I have been cooking and baking bread like crazy. My house smells SO good. I need to be cooking double and freezing half, but we seem to eat it all, no matter how much I cook! And dh loves to take supper leftovers to work for lunch.

Dh and I have agreed on what kind of little farm life we want. This is what we want to do:
We want enough chickens to provide eggs for our family, and a milk cow to provide milk for us and extra to make butter, ice cream, cheese, etc. We eventually want a horse or two, just for fun. We want some fruit trees and a big garden. We want to grow Christmas trees and pumpkins. Dh wants to sell the trees and pumpkins each year, but I am not that ambitious just yet. I just want them for our family and to give away to friends and neighbors.
Oh yes, I also want honey bees and beehives. Dh is not so sure about this one. Actually, he's sure he DOES NOT want this part of the dream life. I think I have told him about my dad having 50+ bee stings on his body after harvesting the honey each year. Me and my big mouth.

So, we figured out that we will need 20 acres or more to have this little farm. The catch is that I want our children to stay in the school district they are in, and it is hard to find that much land around here in this district. We have found lots and lots of land in other, less desirable school districts, but not in this one.

This is a far away dream. Right now we are just going to plan a garden. :)

Dream Life

Over the past several years, I have developed this strange desire to have lots of kids (working on that one), homeschool them (tried it for 6 years), and live in the country. Living in the country is still something I really want to do. We moved to a small town last summer and are living in town in a rental house.

The thing is, I don’t want to just LIVE in the country, I want this whole country experience. http://largefamilylogistics.net/ and www.youredoingwhat.blogspot.com are two blogs that are very inspiring, although very overwhelming at the same time.

See, I would love to have hens that lay eggs, so I can go out each morning and get fresh eggs. Ditto milk, although I don’t want to do the milking. I also want lots of fruit trees so we can just walk out to the field and pick juicy fruit in the summer. I would like to raise organic chickens (for us to eat/sell) and raise organic beef (for us to eat/sell). I would also love to have beehives so we can have fresh honey. We had beehives when I was a kid and I loved to chew on the honeycomb. I do remember my dad having over 50 bee stings after getting the honey out. The bees were not too happy about his interference. I want a garden, so I can have my own little harvest. Growing up, we had a large garden. In fact, one summer Mom got overly ambitious and made a HUGE garden. It got a bit out of control and was nicknamed “Vietnam” because it grew so big and unruly. We had a plum tree that was between our house and my grandparents’ house. I remember just walking over and picking a warm, ripe plum to eat. Yum!

I really want to grow Christmas trees on my little farm. I know. That one is a stretch. I’m wondering how well Christmas trees grow in central Texas.

AND, I dream of being Suzy Homemaker, complete with my homemade quilts, up-to-date scrapbooks, and numerous cross stitch projects I have completed hanging on our walls. The dream goes on to include nutrition. No artificial colors or flavors, no preservatives, limit sugar, everything (almost everything) made from scratch. Yes, I want to grind our wheat and bake our bread.

Here’s the catch: I am not a natural hard worker. See the dilemma? My dream life comes complete with HARD WORK and EXHAUSTION. And, now that my kids are in school, I am going to have to modify the dream a bit. I am happy that we homeschooled for a while and I am happy that they are now in school. They love school and so do I. But I still want all the other things mentioned above. I tend to strive for perfection, then fall off the wagon somewhere around the hard work stage.

I have been brainstorming and trying to come up with a plan to get me to this dream life. But I think having a hubby who grew up on a city block, with no animal experience, is going to limit the dream. Who is going to take care of the cows? The chickens? Oh, and I do want 2 horses, just for fun. I love horses. They smell so good. I'll let you know if/when I come up with a modified plan.

I hope everyone has enjoyed reading about my dream life. In 20 years, my kids will look back on this post and laugh. :)

Snow!

It snowed here last night and this morning! Our children have not seen "real" snow (snow that accumulates) since Valentine's Day of 2004. Schools were closed today and Daddy is working from home. I have the boys' bedroom set up as the Activity Room with board games, coloring books, and crafts, and my bedroom set up with the TV and DVDs.

The snow has stopped and now we are getting freezing rain and sleet. It is not a fluffy, pretty snow like I hoped it would be, but at least it is something.

Pink Eye

Ds4 and Baby Girl have pink eye. We went to a pharmacy today in Dallas that sells naturopathic medicine and got colloidal silver. I have to put drops of it in their eyes 3 times per day for 3 days, or until their eyes get better. The pharmacist also gave me a nasal spray bottle to put the silver in. One squirt in each nostril 3x per day also. According to this pharmacist, usually pink eye is a viral infection that begins in the sinuses and spreads to the eyes.

Putting eye drops and nasal spray in a 4 year old boy's eyes and nose is not my idea of fun. It is AWFUL!! First I tried talking calmly and rationally to him about it. That didn't work. Then I tried bribing. That didn't work. Then I tried the stern approach. Nope, didn't work. Finally, I sat on his hands and pried his tightly shut little eyes open and put the drops in. I never made it to the nasal spray. I was exhausted afterward. When he finished freaking out about it he said, "That didn't hurt."

Baby Girl didn't know to be afraid of the drops, so she opened her little eyes and got the drops and them jumped off the bed to go play. She hugged ds4 and patted him while he screamed and cried about getting his drops. Ha! A toddler comforting her older brother is so sweet. She was truly concerned about him, worried look and all.

The last time our family had pink eye, ds4 was a newborn. We passed it around the whole family for 10 weeks. Yes, 10 weeks. I read that breastmilk is a natural antibiotic and that you can put drops of it in eyes to treat pink eye. I tried it with Gabriel (no one else would let me!) and he got better first. It worked! Everyone else used antibiotic drops from the doctor.

No breastmilk this time though, just colloidal silver.

Things to do before baby gets here

I will be 25 weeks tomorrow, and I have been thinking a lot about the things I want to accomplish before Sweet Pea gets here. Yes, Sweet Pea is the baby's blog name, because I can't change Baby Girl's name and what if this one is also a girl???? See the dilemma??? Sweet Pea will probably change to Baby Boy if this baby is a boy, but for now, Sweet Pea it is. Hhhmmm...I also like Little One. What do you think...Sweet Pea or Little One? I am open to suggestions here.

Anyhoo, I have started a list of things to do before Sweet Pea gets here. My neighbor will remember that a couple of months before Baby Girl arrived on the scene, I made QUITE a to do list for dh. Unfortunately, most of the items were completed after Baby Girl's arrival and I was the one who got them completed. So, this time I am making a list of things for me to do. That way I can control whether they get completed or not.

Here is the list, so far:

1. Arrange for help after baby is born- a friend to watch kids so I can sleep occasionally
2. Arrange for house cleaning in last weeks before baby and few weeks after baby
3. Cook and freeze lots of meals for month after baby is born
4. Find a local pediatrician for kids-Interview pediatricians
5. Decide what we’re doing about immunizations for this baby
6. Buy new infant car seat
7. Buy new toddler car seat for Baby Girl
8. Stock up on diapers (newborn, sz1, sz2)
9. Bottles (3 or 4)
10. Plan and stock an “emergency bag” for the car- snacks, water, extra clothes, extra diapers and wipes, toys, blanket, money, etc.
11. Make appointments for hair cut, highlight, wax, manicure, and pedicure for April
12. Plan “the event”- make a plan a, plan b, plan c, etc.
13. Pre register at the hospital
14. Create birth announcement list
15. Plan birth announcements- shop for them
16. Make an after-baby exercise plan
17. Buy birthing/exercise ball
18. Buy/choose 2 books to read after baby is born
19. Finish my birth plan-which I will publish on my blog, by the way. I know y’all want to read all the details of my birth plan, right? ;)
20. Agree with dh on a name for baby
21. Clean up and organize my desk


That's all I can think of at the moment. If I think of anything else, I'll add it.

It's cold here and it's supposed to get icy tonight. I like it when we can all stay home and be warm and cozy while the weather goes crazy outside. I am very thankful for a warm house, warm clothes, a warm bed, and a heater that works well. God is good to me.

Our Week

This week has been an intersting one. There is never a dull moment around here. Saturday I was checked into the hospital with kidney stones. My mom came down to help us Sunday evening and dh left on a business trip Monday morning. I came home from the hospital Tuesday afternoon.

The kidney stone/stones have not passed and they are making themselves known constantly. I am taking Tylenol with codeine and phenergan for nausea. I am supposed to stay lying around as much as I can, but I can be up if I feel like it. Yesterday I was up quite a bit, but today I pretty much slept all day.

The kids are thrilled that my mom is here and she is enjoying getting to spend time with them in their normal setting. When we are at her house for holidays and visits there are usually 13 kids there and things are chaotic. So it is good for her to get to spend time with them here. She has enjoyed taking them to school, playing with the little ones during the day, picking the kids up from school, listening to them read to her, helping with homework, etc. She has also gotten all of the laundry done, cleaned the house, bought us 2 new dressers, cooked all the meals, and basically taken care of our every need. It has been wonderful, despite the pain I am in.

I will see my midwives and OB next week sometime and they will then figure out how to handle this situation, if the stones have not passed by then.

Dh will be home tomorrow night and for that I am thankful. We all miss him!

2006 At a Glance

January 2006~ We decided it was time to move to a bigger house. We found a house about 30 minutes north of us, made an offer, offer was accepted, then we found out there were major foundation problems and we withdrew our offer. We began looking for a different house.

February~ We found a newer, much larger house that was closer to home (15 minutes from our house, 15 minutes closer to our church). We moved into that house on Feb. 15th in sleet and ice! We found out the day we moved in that our closing was tangled up in a financial mess of the home owners'. We agreed to lease the house from owners and went ahead and moved in.


March~ This was a pretty calm month. We unpacked boxes, homeschooled, played, and spent time together.

April~ Ditto March. Add Easter celebration with 100 degree weather.

May~Birthday season began!!! ds8 had a big medieval knight party. It was a blast!


June~Birthday season continued. ds6a and ds6b had an outer space party, complete with NASA bounce house. Baby Girl had a small family party complete with a pink castle cake. dd12 had a pool party at a friend's neighborhood pool house. We also saw the movie Cars, which is my kids' favorite movie now.
We found out we were not going to be able to close on our house, after all. We made plans to move AGAIN.

July~ We moved to a small town an hour away from our friends and church!


August~ ds4 had a birthday this month! Cars was the theme of his party.

September~ 4 oldest children started school! Mommy found out she didn't have the flu after all; a new baby is due in late April!! We spent September dealing with Mommy's debilitating morning sickness, spending lots of money eating out, and just surviving. Daddy's birthday was this month.

October~We spent this month adjusting to school routines and pregnancy. We participated in Halloween for the first time in 6 years. We all had fun and have great memories of this time.
The kids and Daddy spent a weekend in Oklahoma with Grandma and Grandpa, while Mom came down to help Mommy organize, decorate, and clean the house.


November~Mommy finally started feeling better this month. Daddy spent 2 weeks travelling for business. We had several sick kiddos, including Baby Girl, who spent a weekend going back and forth to the hospital. We had a wonderful Thanksgiving in Oklahoma with family.

December~Christmas parties, Christmas plays, a church musical, shopping, wrapping, travelling. That pretty much sums up December! Oh, Daddy travelled 2 weeks out of this month and Mommy turned 30 this month!

December 24, 2006

Holiday Picture

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!

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.