1. Don't drive unknown gravel roads in the rain, especially after dark.
2. Children can sit  in a confined space in the dark for 3 hours if there's enough adrenalin to make it exciting.
3. Children can come up with some wild scenarios in that time-frame.
4. Children need lots of reassurance and encouragement to be patient.
5. Sometimes a refresher course on how to relieve oneself on the side of the road is a good thing.  While most of our children took to this refresher course easily, one was rather miserable while "holding out" for our rescue and sprinted to the bathroom when we reached the church again and found out it was unlocked.
6. Chivalry is not dead, and Steve isn't the only chivalrous man who still remains.
7. Kansas is full of "good Christian neighbors".
8. The family of God is the best network.
9. God takes care of His children.
10. My children are pretty much all afraid of the dark. 
    
11. John Deere tractors are cute after they rescue us; 13 yo A really wants one.  We'd better watch out that no young man ever has to rescue her, or he might be so cute she wants to bring him home, too.
12. Silliness helps relieve tension.
13. Baby G can honk the horn with his rear end if he's dancing on your lap in the driver's seat.
14. We know how to make memories, even if we don't intend to.
15. We really love each other.
16. Children fall asleep quickly when they get home after midnight, despite all the Easter candy sugar highs.

Middle-aged Moms

Posted on 2009-Mar-5 at 04:15 PM

I'm 35.  I remember when my Mom was 35, and that seemed SO old.  Middle-aged, I was sure.  Now that I'm 35, it doesn't seem so old.  My friends who are older than I am assure me I'm not middle-aged.  But I'm okay with it.  I'm comfortable as a 35 year old wife and mother.  It's who I am.

I realized I was "there" when I bought a new pair of shoes.  I was excited about my tan suede, block-heeled loafers.  I couldn't wait to wear them to church.  And then I had a flashback to elementary school.  My Mom bought a pair of black leather penny loafers with a block heel.  She was so excited.  I thought they were ugly.  They didn't have pointy toes, pointy heels, or a shiny finish.  There weren't any bows on them, either.  As I put on my own loafers, and remembered my Mom's loafers, I realized I was a middle aged mom.

One of my sisters is approaching 30, but not there yet.  She's single and hip, and she bemoans my lack of fashion sense.   My hair isn't stylish, I wear too many nursing shirts, and my jeans are "relaxed fit".  She teases me that I wear "mom jeans" with the straight legs, high waist, and relaxed fit.  I've watched "What Not To Wear" with her, and I know that they are always encouraging those middle-aged moms NOT to dress like a mom. 

I find that really funny.  I am a Mom.  I'm 35, married, and a Mom.  Why wouldn't I wear "mom jeans"?  I'm not trying to get any one's attention, after all.  Why should I dress like a 20-something young adult when I'm not?

But as I've begun to notice over the past year that many of my clothes were wearing out, stretched out, and needing to be replaced ... I took my sister's comments to heart.  I set out to find some shirts that weren't too baggy (although I still won't do the plunging necklines that are so popular today), and I tried not to buy "mom jeans". 

It was hard.  I wanted to buy the high-waist, relaxed fit, straight leg jeans ... because they make me look tall and thin.  They are the "fit" that I know and they look good on me. 

I set out to find something more modern and updated, however.   I wanted to be able to show my sister that I had bought something that was new and different ... not "mom jeans".  

I first ordered a pair of boot cut khaki slacks with relaxed fit and a "below waist" style.  Not low-rise, but below the waist.  The boot cut pants make me look short!  And not as thin as my straight leg pants, either.  But I decided to adjust to my new "body image" and ordered a pair of boot cut jeans, as well.  Those are more slimming and less shortening ... but I don't like the below waist style.

What is with the below-waist style?  Every below-waist item I've ordered (including 2 pair of denim capris for summer) has not fit well.  If the rear and hips fit well, then the waist is so loose I have to wear a belt.  If the waist fits well, then they're just too hippy!  I don't have large hips, and I consider myself to have fairly normal proportions, so I find this really odd. 

I wonder what mannequins they're using to fit these jeans to.  Apparently not one that looks like me.  In the future, I'll probably stick with the "mom jeans" ... because they look nice on me, they fit well, and I don't have to wear a belt to keep them up.  Besides, I am a mom.  A middle aged one, at that.

So, if you see me around town, and I look a little shorter or heavier to you ... it's the jeans!  But maybe they'll make me look younger, too.  I bet I have the "wrong shoes" for my new pants now.

Trusting in Him,
April

By the way, I just want you all to know that it's really really WRONG for a middle-aged Mom to have to deal with pimples still.  It's especially wrong when she gets a "pimple" on her neck that grows until it's swollen and 2 inches wide.   It's even more WRONG for a second one to start to form on her chin.  It's somewhat a relief when she sees the Dr. to find out that it's actually an MRSA (the bad staph) infection.  However, it's still embarrassing.  Because she isn't going to want to explain to everyone she sees that she has MRSA, but is on antibiotics.  But if she doesn't explain it, then they just are left wondering why she's wearing 2 bandaids, or why her neck is so swollen.  Thankfully, antibiotics work wonders, and swelling dissipates quickly.  However ... it's still wrong!  Believe me!  It's probably her punishment for vainly trying to buy non-"mom jeans".    So, if you're thinking of updating your own style, beware!

The number one reason NOT to fold your laundry ...

Posted on 2009-Mar-5 at 04:14 PM

Aside from the busyness of writing reviews, homeschooling the children, and holding the baby  (likely excuses, eh?)  ... the number one reason NOT to fold your clean laundry is ...




because it makes a handy bed for tired 2 year olds who woke up at 6:30 am. 

Ignore the messy face, she fell asleep eating a chocolate granola bar.  Only a 2 year old could fall asleep while eating chocolate.

Trusting in Him,
April

A family update

Posted on 2009-Mar-3 at 08:50 AM

It's probably time for a family update.  We're doing well here, although we're all sniffling and blowing our noses.  We can't decide if it's allergies or a mild cold.  I was leaning toward allergies until Baby G started doing it, too. 

I've weaned 2 yo L.  Her 3rd birthday is this month, and I've never nursed this long before.  She had her last nursing ten days ago!  Now, she's not exactly happy about that fact, and still asks me almost daily for "milky".  But we aren't going back!  We are reading her to sleep now.  She is usually so tired that she is asleep by the end of a Dr. Seuss book.  Not always, but usually.  And she is drinking cow's milk in a cup during the day when she asks for "milky".  I'm surprised because most of mine didn't transition to drinking cow's milk when they weaned.

We'd been working on getting her to sleep in her bottom bunk in the girls' room since Christmas.  We've been doing fairly well with that.  Some nights she wakes up and comes to us around 3 am, but other nights she sleeps straight through.  Unfortunately, her bed rail was bent by a sibling a couple months ago and had to be thrown out.  We weren't sure if her 3 am wakings were inspired by falling out of bed or not.  Last night we bought her a new bedrail and she slept until 6:30 am.  The next step in this process is to get her to go to bed without reading her to sleep first, and being able to take her back to bed if she wakes in the night.  We don't mind.  By the time she turns four, she'll be potty trained and going to bed with her siblings without all the extra steps.  We've been down this road before.

Baby G is doing well, getting chubby.  He's so alert, always noticing what is around him.  His head just swivels to take it all in at times.  He loves to watch his siblings and will lean out around me to see them. He's also getting grabby ... watch out for your cups, your eyeglasses, the keyboard, your plate of food!  His legs are just as fat as they can be now, which surprises me since he was such a skinny newborn.  He cut two teeth already, and was the earliest of the 7 kids to do that.  His brown hair all fell out and now he's a mostly bald blonde with sparkling blue eyes.  He's 5.5 months old, and he loves his pacifier.  The first two girls loved theirs, but the four middle children all switched to their fingers around 2 or 3 months old.  Baby G seems to be following in the oldest girls' footsteps instead.  We'll figure out how to take the pacifier away later.  I'm not very worried about it.  He CAN roll, but isn't usually interested in doing so.  I'm thinking he won't be crawling at 6 months as some of his siblings have done.  That may be the dog's fault.  I'm nervous about putting him on the floor when the dog is inside.  She has a bad habit of pawing at us for attention.  But that's only a problem if we are sitting right beside Baby G when he's on the floor.  I need to put him down there when she's outside or napping, though.  He needs time to roll and crawl and play with toys ... even if he doesn't think he does.

We had a birthday party for 8 yo J on Saturday.  We had to postpone it a week due to illness, but it was a blast.  We had 10 boys come, for a total of 12 boys.  Unfortunately, we got some snow overnight, and it was a cold day.  So, our outdoor activities were chilly ones, and so much mud was tracked in, it was hilarious!!  I hadn't expected that.  (For awhile, I was trying to wipe it up, but then I realized it was pointless.  So I let them enjoy themselves, quit worrying about the mud, and just mopped the floors after they left.  It was worth it!) 

We had 4-wheeler rides, and an outdoor treasure hunt with two teams (each had their own set of clues to follow).  In between the outdoor activities, we drank mud with rocks (cocoa with marshmallows) and ate dirt cake with worms.  It was lots of fun, and several of the parents stayed to chat for awhile.  Steve was fun to watch with the boys.  That was a new side of him I don't see often (him with a whole group of boys). 

On our way to our 4H meeting on Sunday, we stopped to look at baby chicks at Orscheln's.  It's Chick Days!  We're going to buy chickens this year ... I think.  We're trying to figure out the cost of building a chicken tractor (transportable coop), and the timing of when we can move the chicks outside.  We don't want to get them too early.  When the chickens are out, it will be time to get guinea keets again.  "Last Man Standing" is lonely and needs some new guinea friends.  We want to get Buff Orpington chicks and also Americauna (for the colored eggs).  We looked at the Buff Orpingtons at the store, but we might have to mail order the Americaunas.

Homeschool is going well.  We're 2/3 of the way through our curriculum reviews, settling in with our last set of products.  The very last products are shipping this week.  I still have 13 reviews to write, possibly 14.  It's been an interesting project.  I'm so glad I applied and was chosen.  Testing new products out was fun and insightful. I've learned things about myself and our curriculum choices through this.  It's made me re-think some things, but has also caused me to feel more strongly about other things.  I'll write more about that when the project is finished.  I've enjoyed the writing process, and the flurry of mail at times.  We'll miss the packages!

I'm starting to make plans for our next school year.  We're only halfway through this school year, though.  We won't be getting much of a summer break.  Last year, we had to run right up to July because of the moving break in the Fall of 2007.  We took a 3-4 week summer break and started up early because of the baby coming in the Fall of 2008.  We had our baby break, and then we had to take a 2 week funeral break when Steve's Dad died.    We'll be doing school right up into July again this year.  Hopefully next school year can be a normal one.  I'm starting to look for used curriculum and make decisions based on some of the things we've learned this year with the reviews.  I'm still not sure what changes we'll be making, but we're talking it over and looking ahead.

In two months, the children have to give their "project talks" at our 4H meeting, so we have to buckle down and start our projects.  I am confused about the project notebooks, and worried because they seem to be so crucial, and I have no idea what I'm doing.  I'm finding it hard to know what questions to ask, and everyone seems to assume I already know what I need to know.  There's a meeting at the end of the month that should help me figure it out, though.   I think they need to have a "project notebooks for dummies" booklet to hand out to new families, so we aren't blundering along trying to figure it out ourselves.  I need to talk to a couple families at church about their projects and project notebooks.  They aren't in my 4H group, so I'll need to call them and set up a time to get together with them instead.

Our Persian Mama is due to have kittens "at any moment".  I'm at the point that any time I walk into the kitchen I look for her and check her out.  She's usually in her cat carrier/nursery, which means I bend down, pet her and see what's going on.  I'm watching her at the food bowl ... still eating, so I guess she's not in labor yet.  Which reminds me, I haven't seen her eating yet today.

Well, the kids are up and waiting for school ... so I'd better go.  I hope everyone has a blessed week!

Trusting in Him,
April

Sometimes you know more than the "experts" ...

Posted on 2009-Feb-24 at 08:44 AM

It's February, but it's been a very warm February.  We've had days and days in a row of weather in the 50s and even 60s.  Every now and then we get some 30s or 40s for a day or two, to remind us it's still winter.  But it's been very warm overall. 

We've been having allergy symptoms, but every time I checked weather.com for the pollen forecast, there was NOTHING there.  No data recorded.

Until Sunday.  Suddenly I notice the flashing sign across the top that says our area has HIGH pollen.  So I click on the pollen forecast, and yep ... tree pollen is HIGH right now, and forecast to continue to be HIGH.

I doubt it SUDDENLY became HIGH.  It's probably been creeping up for the past couple weeks, which our bodies have been telling us here in the ElCloud home ... but because it's February, no one was paying attention to it.

I wonder which allergy sufferer finally said "you know, maybe we should be checking the pollen around here, because I'm feeling yucky!"  It had to be a fellow allergy sufferer who would finally think to check the pollen, in February. 

But I'm glad to have the confirmation of what I was suspecting.  My own nose has felt tingly and stuffy, some of the kids have had drippy noses, and a few have had some red puffy eyes.  But what I notice even more is their behavior.  They whine and argue so much more when their allergies are flared up.  My Dad says it is from a decrease in oxygen making its way through their bodies, it makes them tired.  He's a paramedic, so I certainly won't argue with him.  All I know is that the next few months won't be fun, then we'll get a break in the summer, only to have another miserable set of weeks in the fall. 

But, we'll survive.  And we'll consider buying stock in over the counter loratadine.  We'll limit stresses and outside commitments to some extent, and we'll just "circle the wagons".   We'll turn our focus inward, on supporting the family unity during a time of stress. 

Maybe we're the only family that has behavioral issues that go along with allergies.  I certainly don't read about that side-effect very much, but it was the first clue with 12 yo R.  Spring when she was 3 and 4 were terrible, before we finally got a clue and had her tested when she was 5.  She's allergic to trees, grass, weeds, mold, and penicillin.  Not highly allergic, she's not going to have an asthma attack or anything.  But it's so many different allergens that we just can't get a break.  Trees may stop, but then the grass kicks in.

We haven't had the other children tested for allergies, but we know the signs now.  Not just the drippy noses, but the whininess, the temper tantrums, the tears.  I only wish the chewable loratadine wasn't so expensive.  My kids don't particularly care for liquid medicines, but oh well.  When you're doling it out to 6 whiny kids on a daily basis, you opt for the less expensive route.  Actually, most of my kids take it daily for awhile and then reject it.  Fine, feel miserable, but if you start making me feel miserable with your whining you've got two choices ... take a nap, or take the medicine.

I'll be cherishing my early mornings alone for the next few months, because the children's allergies do wear on me.  It's tiring trying to keep the children emotionally steady.  My current 5 year old is often "on the edge" of a meltdown anyway.  When he's sick, he's just one meltdown after another.  Um, I think I'll go to the library alone on the weekends for awhile.  We've had too many meltdowns, or near meltdowns, in that quiet zone already.

It's time to really start doling out vitamin C, as well.  Vitamin C helps the body deal with allergies, too.  And you may find me sipping lots of chamomile tea, to reduce my own stress, for awhile.  Strap on your seatbelts, it's going to be a bumpy ride ... Allergy Season 2009 is upon us.

Trusting in Him,
April

It's confession time!

Posted on 2009-Feb-19 at 07:58 AM

They say confession is good for the soul ... so I'd better confess my laundry sins.  I blame my mother, though.  Isn't that the fashion, to blame your parents for all your problems?  *rolling eyes*

But I do blame my Mom.  Mom would wash the laundry, then bring us baskets to fold as we watched television.  We'd all sit around, folding into stacks on the coffee table together.  Once she started working, she'd wash laundry once (sometimes twice) a week, and we'd just fold clothes all day long ... while watching movies.

I was pondering my struggle.  I've always washed clothes regularly, but often let the baskets sit until I could sit and fold clothes watching a movie.  This often meant waiting until littles were all sleeping, so my piles would not be climbed on.  I slowly overcame this problem, of letting baskets of clean clothes pile up for days, and started folding every night.

I was doing so well with this for a couple years.  But I've fallen back into the old habit of letting baskets sit.  As I pondered this bad habit this week, I was feeling guilty and as if I were just being lazy again.  I tried to pinpoint when the change occurred.  I finally decided that part of it had to do with moving here. I could not fold clothes after the kids were in bed, because we try not to stay up late now that Steve has to get up at 5:30 in the morning.

I haven't yet established the habit of folding clothes before the kids get up.  I usually use that time for my devotions and computer time.    Then Baby G was born, and my afternoons are busy with a baby, and homeschooling.  So the clean unfolded laundry just piles up.

All those things play into it ... but I know I let plenty of opportunities pass by because I'm just waiting for that movie on the couch moment to arise.  And that's when I realized it's my Mom's fault.  Because I started folding laundry in front of the TV when I was young, I still enjoy doing it that way.  Sometimes, when the laundry just HAS to be folded, and the living room is too messy or busy, I'll take it to my bed instead.  But my preference is still the living room couch ... with a movie.

I need to make the mornings my laundry time, or start having the children help me in the afternoons.  I need to overcome my bad habit of letting those baskets sit.  For one thing, it's ugly and messy.  For another thing, it's a pain to have to look in the baskets for that one item you want to wear.  And of course, then you have to worry about someone spilling something on the clean clothes, or throwing up on them when a stomach virus hits. 

So there you have it.  My laundry confession.  I still blame my Mom ... but since I'm not a victim, I need to overcome this bad habit ... again!

Trusting in Him,
April

My favorite musician: Marie Bellet

Posted on 2009-Feb-5 at 06:37 PM

I know I've mentioned Marie Bellet before, and I have her website in my links.  I know her musical style may not appeal to everyone.  I enjoy it, but even more I love the words of her songs.  She writes songs about Christian motherhood, parenting, large families, and marriage.  I listen to her music when I need encouragement, or when I just need a reminder of who I'm serving and why I get up every day to take care of my family.

I thought I'd share this you tube video of her singing.  This is on her second CD, entitled Ordinary Time.  You can buy her music from her website:  Marie Bellet. 




Trusting in Him,
April

Blessing Our Husbands With A Clean Home

Posted on 2009-Feb-5 at 06:35 PM

Have you ever asked your husband what is most important to him, to feel like the house is clean?  You should, because you might be focusing on your pet peeves, and ignoring his.

It took me several years before I realized that my husband's priorities are not the same as mine in a clean house.  For instance, he wants an empty sink.  I want cleared counters.  I would be putting all the dishes in the sink so the counters weren't piled up.  That made me feel better while waiting to fill the dishwasher.  It gave me room to work as I cooked supper and filled plates for the kids.  But when my husband came home, he felt like the house was dirty because he couldn't access the sinks.  He'd huff and pile stuff on the counters to empty out the sinks.

I finally realized his preference and began to pile things neatly on the counters, as well.  Trying hard to not let the pile get too big, because then it bothered me greatly.  Now obviously, it's just best to wash the dishes quickly and not have a pile to move around.  But with 8 people eating meals 3 times a day, that's a lot of dishes, and there's schoolwork, childcare, and other chores to do as well.  Sometimes we only have time to quickly empty the sinks before he's home.  But just doing that improves how he views the home when he gets home.

Thankfully, having cleared floors is important to both of us, as well.  Neither one of us likes to step on or over toys as we walk.  But Steve feels very strongly about having vacuumed floors, especially in the rooms where he is barefoot (the bathroom and our bedroom).  He can ignore a ton of clutter as long as the floor is picked up and vacuumed.

It's hard to homeschool and keep a spotless house all the time.  It's especially hard if you have preschoolers, toddlers, and babies in addition to your students.  But if you ask your husband, "What 3 things are most important to you in a clean home"  you'll have the top 3 priorities to focus on. 

For your husband, it could be a clean toilet, plenty of underwear in his drawer, and a cleared dining room table that doesn't still have schoolbooks on it.  Or it might be a spotless entry room, a clean stovetop, and well-ironed clothes.  If your husband is focused on the toilet, but your focus is entirely the kitchen, you're both going to be frustrated.

So go ahead, ask him what his priorities are.  Then set out to bless him by meeting those priorities for him.  Look at the house through his eyes.

Trusting in Him,
April

Blessing Our Husbands This Valentine's Day

Posted on 2009-Feb-5 at 06:34 PM

As homeschool moms, there is as much pressure as if we were career moms.  Perhaps more since we are with our family 24 hours a day, on call at all times.  Our career is homeschooling our children, and we get burnt out easily.  When we're stressed and burnt out, we often don't pour enough energy into our marriages and our husband's needs.

Likewise, husbands often face the burden of providing for their families on one income, or taking on a second job to provide.  They're tired and stressed, as well. When they come home, they sometimes find a grouchy wife and another "To Do" list ... which can discourage them even further.

So let's lift each other up in prayer, for strong marriages that will be a light to the world around us.  Let's honor our husbands and praise them publicly, which will be a light to the world around us, as well.  Let's pray that we are able to lean on God for the strength to pour out even more love and service than we could in our own strength.

And if it helps, here are some links to some great resources to help us commit to pray for our husbands daily, and specific ways to pray each day of the month.

This link has several different pdf documents to help us pray for our husbands, and please them.  This was a challenge a couple years ago, but the links are still helpful and active.  Print the PDF documents and reuse them as often as you like.  I'm going to re-do the 30 day challenge to pray for my own husband.   http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/SHMILYtime/185025/

Actually, this entire SHMILY Time blog is about loving our husbands.  SHMILY stands for "See How Much I Love You". http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/SHMILYtime

The blog hasn't been updated in awhile, but there is still great information there to encourage you in your marriage.  I just discovered this 30-Week Husband Encouragement Challenge there that I'd never seen before.  I saved it to work through, as well. http://www.acleanheart.com/30WeekHECBooklet.pdf
  This seems to include several of the pdf's from the previous link, along with some additional information.

Living On A Dime is also giving away a free Valentine's Day e-book.  I'm not sure how long it will be available, but you can find it right now at http://www.livingonadime.com/ebooks/valentinespr.html.

I know many have been blessed lately by the movie Fireproof and The Love Dare book.  But the links shared above are totally free and very helpful.

Toddler Science Experiments

Posted on 2009-Feb-4 at 06:33 PM

She did it again!  That toddler of mine, the 2 yo busybody.  This time, she conducted a science experiment ... unsupervised.  She decided to study the conduction of heat.  So she took my long thin crevice tool from the vacuum cleaner and held it up to something hot (so far we don't have a reliable confession as to what) and melted the end of it.  My crevice tool is now curved 90* to the left at the end. 

I found it that way, lying on the living room floor.  I questioned my 5 yo first.  I thought he might be the culprit.  But the 2 yo stepped forward and confessed.  I asked her if she put it on the kitchen heater (we have a stand-alone old propane heater in the kitchen).  I thought she might have touched the front of it while it was fired up.  She said yes.  But she later said she put it on the bathroom electric heater, and it went beep beep beep.  Then she told Steve that she put it on the electric living room heater. 

Those little electric heaters don't get that hot, I don't think.  We just use them to keep the chill off the room when we turn the furnace down a bit, to lower propane expenses.  Although the part about the heater going beep beep beep is disconcerting.  Just what does she do when I'm busy? 

I really think she had to have placed it against the kitchen heater, or stuck it up near the burner on the propane stove when I was cooking something. 

So, this little "sizzler" of mine needs more careful supervision.  Who knows what type of experiment she'll try next!   (If you're wondering why I called her a "sizzler", take a look at the Sizzle-Bop! website.)

Trusting in Him,
April

Birthday cake and a family update

Posted on 2009-Jan-30 at 01:24 PM

It's our birthday season.  Last week we celebrated M's 5th birthday.  He wanted chocolate frosting with sprinkles on his cake ... so that's what we had.  This week we're celebrating R's 12th birthday.  She wanted ice cream cake, so we used the Duggar's ice cream cake recipe to make her an oreo (not butterfinger) ice cream cake.  Yummy!  J turns 8 in about 2 weeks, but he's not sure if he wants a Star Wars cake, an ice cream cake, or a dirt cake with gummy worms.  He's supposed to be having his first "friends party" so he's thinking about what his friends will like, as well.

The kids all seem healthy again.  A few have lingering coughs, but were well enough to go to church Wednesday night.  Baby G is no longer coughing, wheezing, or having a stuffy nose.  That's a blessing!  We still have one child on medication, since M has an infected thumbnail area from biting his nails.  But even that is improving (it got nasty looking, it was so swollen.)

We've begun the process of updating our family photo wall.  We haven't had the children's individual portraits taken in 4 years, except for a baby photo of 2 yo L.  We had a family photo taken in the summer of 2007, but not any recent photos of the children.  They've changed quite a bit in 4 years, as they've been reminding us.  They're so excited to be getting updated portraits ... and they love their individual time with the photographer and a parent!  The star of the show!

 5 yo M had his pictures taken a few weeks ago, and we'll have 12 yo R's taken this weekend.  M was very bashful and it took him a long time to warm up to the photographer.  He never did speak to her.  Being a distractible boy, we had to shoo his siblings out of the room repeatedly to keep his focus on the photographer's instructions.  Next month we'll have J's birthday pictures taken, and so on.  We'll go in birthday order, and get everyone's photos taken this year.  Hopefully we can end the year with a family portrait in the Fall.

Homeschool is going well.  We've finished testing Further Up & Further In, although I need to read it over some more and gather my thoughts on the curriculum.  I have Beyond Five In A Row and Tapestry of Grace to test with the children now.  Auralog Tell Me More Spanish just arrived yesterday, and I need to start that.  13 yo A is still plugging away at the Latin Road to English Grammar, and we need to begin Friendly Chemistry with her.  SpellQuizzer is ready for me to download for testing, and Apologia science (not sure what level they're sending) should arrive in the mail this week.  It's getting busy again, and keeping track of it all can be confusing at times.  But we're enjoying our TOS Homeschool Crew journey.

Oh, 7 yo J is improving so much in his reading!  He's really reading now, although he still lacks confidence.  I'm trying to encourage him, brag on him, and build up his confidence.  I still haven't seen him pick up a book on his own to read to himself, but one day he will ... and I'll rejoice!

I just created our cattery website this week.  I had originally wanted a full website for our Persian Cattery, but I didn't know how to build one and Steve didn't have time to create one.  Then a friend of mine used a blog for her Ragdoll cattery last year, and I've thought about it off and on ever since.  Our Queen is pregnant right now, so I guess I was subconsciously thinking about a website again.  I'd discussed a website with my sister a week or two ago.  The other night, I was researching something for Steve at WordPress, and just signed up for a cattery blog on a whim.  I should have done it sooner.  You can view our cattery blog at http://elcloudcattery.wordpress.com.  See our pretty kitties!?

That's a little update on our life.  Next week we begin (resume for us) Tapestry of Grace, and I'll give a more detailed homeschool update then.

Trusting in Him,
April

Who am I?

Posted on 2009-Jan-20 at 09:17 AM

I wrote an introduction for an email list I'm on ... and then thought it would be fun to post part of that here (with some editing).

Who am I?  I'm the book-loving, home-loving, family-loving, stay at home mom who homeschools her children, uses cloth diapers half the time, nurses until they are 2 (unless they self-wean earlier), sleeps with her babies tucked in bed beside her, was dresses-only for awhile, then dresses-mostly for awhile, and now is just happy if everyone has clean clothes that fit them and don't have holes. 

I'm the mom who loves to read about whole foods and healthy cooking, but rarely bakes her own bread anymore, serves her family corn dogs and frozen pizza almost as often as she cooks a meal from scratch, and loves dark chocolate, Dr. Pepper, Coke, iced tea, and flavored coffee.  I research herbs and other natural methods for healing illnesses, buy them, but often fail to be persistent enough with the natural methods and then break down and go the medical route instead.

I've had 4 hospital births, 2 home births, and then another hospital birth.  I'm starting to think getting an epidural next time won't be such a bad thing ... it wasn't so bad that first time ... other than the fact that my legs were totally numb and useless and I couldn't even feel to push.  Hmm.  Maybe not, then.

I'm the distractible perfectionist organized wife of a distractible perfectionist man who organizes totally differently than I do ... and I have to set a timer to remind myself to go back to the tea kettle whose whistle is broken before it boils itself dry (as I usually end up doing). 

We are the parents of 7 creative, active, distractible, strong-willed children who tend to undo any organization that we achieve.  We watch the 2nd law of thermodynamics act itself out in our home daily.  Disorder prevails, and lots of energy has to be expended to restore order.  Even MORE energy is expended in getting the children to expend THEIR energy in restoring order.

We homeschool using as many living books as we can, since Charlotte Mason's style is what draws us.   I'm relaxed about school, especially with my younger students, and am just starting to add in subjects (like a formal science curriculum and grammar) for my older students.  We always seem to fall on the "relaxed" side of whatever curriculum we use.  We aren't unschoolers, but we use our chosen  curriculum more relaxed than many others do (at least the ones that share about their school on the discussion forums that go along with that curriculum).

I love to scrapbook, and create things ... but I do not give enough time to it.  I can sew, but rarely do.  I used to be a pretty good artist, but haven't created anything since high school.  I enjoy singing, but do not like singing solos.  I nurture my love for reading more often than my love for creating.  Each child has a 1st year scrapbook, and I have a wedding scrapbook, but our "family scrapbook" ends at the engagement.  I'm serious!  I'm missing 15 years of life in that album.

Steve works as a webmaster, and commutes to work 80 miles away.  We live in the country, and love it.  I remember when I felt cramped having neighbors above and below us in our apartment with 2 young babies.  So we bought a house and I felt like I could breathe again.  A yard -- no neighbors just a wall away -- what bliss! 

Then our family grew and I started feeling cramped again ... having neighbors so close to us, feeling like they were always watching us or listening to us, having to keep the kids out of their yards, having to shush the children outside when they were just being too loud for the neighbors, having to keep the kids where I could see them, but knowing they wanted to explore further.

Now we are in the country where we can breathe again.  We can look outside my window and watch the deer, the birds, the rabbits, the squirrels, the wild turkeys, our guinea hen, our barn cats, our dog.  The kids can play as loudly as they want, they have room to run and run and run, and no one is looking at our "personal clothing" if we hang them on the clothes line.  ;-)   Bliss again!  

I love my family, and I love being home with them.  I love writing about them, cooking for them, teaching them.  I love folding their clothes into neat organized stacks all around me on the couch and coffee table while watching a movie. 

I love old movies, musicals, comedies, and action adventure movies.  I dislike tear-jerker chick flicks, horror movies, and steamy love stories.  I occasionally enjoy a good historical war movie, but do not like those created just for the sake of showing violence.  I love movies too much to ever get rid of our television, although we have been living life without television reception ever since we moved here 14 months ago.

I am usually one "bad hair day" away from cutting off my long hair, and saved by the "good hair day" every time.  I am the impetuous woman being stabilized by my careful husband, who keeps me from cutting off my hair and buying new curriculum every time I'm frustrated.  I'm the country living woman who prefers her cozy house rather than feeding animals in the cold, which is one reason we haven't added many animals.

That's just a little bit about me.  I am a perfectionist, but not perfect by any means.  More often than not, I am frustrated because things do not go as I would like, or hoped, or planned.  Often times I am the failure point, not the children.  But every day is a new day to try again, every week is a new week of homeschool.  My husband loves me, "warts and all", and my children are learning that it's okay to make mistakes.  Life goes on, and God is good!

Trusting in Him,

April

Little girls are so fun to dress up!

Posted on 2009-Jan-13 at 09:24 AM

My baby sister is getting married this summer, and 2 yo L is going to be a flower girl.  She'll be 3 then.  I just ordered this dress for her, since my sister's colors are turquoise and silver.  I'm hoping it looks as turquoise when it arrives as it did on the computer screen.  If not, back to the drawing board.  Then this one will be for sale.  LOL!!

But L would be so cute in this ...

I'm sure L will be much cuter as a flower girl than I will be as a bridesmaid.

Trusting in Him,
April

Merry Christmas!

Posted on 2008-Dec-24 at 08:50 AM

I pray that everyone will have a blessed Christmas with family and friends, rejoicing in the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ!  Enjoy every little moment, and don't take it for granted that you'll be with these same people again next year.  Life is precious, and fleeting.  Last year we had no idea we'd be celebrating Christmas without Steve's Dad this year.  Enjoy your family!  Love and cherish your time with them! 

Trusting in Him,
April

How not to wrap your children's Christmas presents ...

Posted on 2008-Dec-22 at 03:51 PM

Do not wrap presents in the middle of the day, in your bedroom, when you know your bedroom door doesn't lock, or even latch shut.  Do not assume that the 2 year old and 4 year old are going to be able to resist popping in on you, through your unlocked bedroom door.  (And what parents in their right mind do not have locking bedroom doors?  I don't know, but it's the bane of my existence, it seems.  In our previous house, the door also didn't latch or lock, and it would only shut fully for half the year.)

Do not get exasperated when your husband is occupied and can not come to your rescue when the 2 yo and 4 yo have popped in for the 5th time in ten minutes.  Do not decide, when they refuse to leave, that you're just going to lock your "old as dirt" door.  Do not grab the skeleton key from the closet door to see if it will fit in your bedroom door.   Do not actually lock the bedroom door and return to peacefully wrapping presents.

Yes, that is what I did yesterday.  Steve finally came along to see what I had been hollering about earlier.  He asked to come in.  Can you see where this is going?  I couldn't unlock the door!!  I tried for several minutes with the skeleton key.  Then I slipped it under the door to Steve, and he tried.  Then he tried to take the door knob off.  That wasn't helpful, so he passed the key back to me, and I tried again.  That time it finally worked. 

I've been instructed to never use a skeleton key in any door in the house again.  And the 4 yo and I finally worked out a system.  I wrapped his presents super fast while he delivered other presents to the tree for me.  When he was in the room, I occupied him by letting him fill out the gift tags.  I'd spell, and he'd write.  So, he doesn't know every single gift under the tree, at least.  Between his writing (on the floor) and gift delivery, I managed to finish wrapping gifts. 

Maybe I should have put a bedroom knob with lock on my Christmas wish list.  *giggle*

Trusting in Him,
April

Congratulations to the Duggar Family!

Posted on 2008-Dec-19 at 06:34 AM

I've had a draft sitting here with the title "We are NOT the Duggars" for a couple weeks now.  I was going  to write a mini-rant on people comparing us to them ... someday when I had time.  Well, I just changed the title.

The Duggars had their baby girl yesterday.   Their 8th baby girl, their 18th child.  Jordyn-Grace Makiya Duggar.   Congratulations to the Duggar Family!  I truly mean that.  If you don't agree with the Duggars or have a "bone to pick" with them, I don't want to hear about it.  Don't leave any comments like that here.  I wish them all God's best.

The reason I had a draft titled "We are NOT the Duggars", is because I get tired of hearing about them.  Someone asks how many kids we have ... we say 7 ... and then the Duggars come up.  Sometimes it's just a "Hey, have you heard of that family with 17 or 18 kids?" 

Sometimes we get "blessed" with a rant all about what they dislike about the Duggars.  I kid you not.  When my Father-in-law was hospitalized, one of his nurses was ranting at Steve about the Duggars and their family rules.    My Father-in-law was in intensive care, and the nurse is going on and on about large families to my husband, while his Dad is in the hospital.  A total stranger! 

Sometimes we overhear whispered conversations about the Duggars while people are looking at our family.  I think I hate those the most ... because I don't know what comparison they are drawing, or if it's a good or bad conversation.

We are NOT the Duggars.  Yes, we have 7 kids, and yes, we homeschool.  But 7 kids is not 18.  The Duggars have 2.5 times MORE kids than us.  (Do the math!)  Their children arrive closer together than ours, and they have a history of twins.  Even when we are their age in about ten years, we will not have 18 kids.

It just blows my mind that people look at our family, see 7 kids, and it's so huge to them (apparently) that they immediately connect it with a family who has been blessed with 18 kids.   To me, that's a huge difference, but maybe not to others.

Please, don't assume that because we homeschool and have a larger than average family, that we are like the Duggars.  Not all large families are the Duggars.  Each family has their own style, their own personality, and their own way of doing things.  Please don't lecture me on what you don't like about how the Duggars do things, because we are NOT the Duggars.  For good or bad, we are not the same. 

Yes, we have let God plan our family size ... but His plan for us isn't the same as His plan for the Duggars.  And He didn't create us to be carbon copies of the Duggars.  We really do have our own personalities, our own style, our own faults and our own good qualities.  Please take the time to get to know US and not just assume we are like the Duggars.

Now, as I said earlier, I have nothing against the Duggars or their way of doing things at all.  I'm glad they've let others see inside a large homeschooling family as they have.  I'm glad they are so open about their faith and their decision to let God plan their family.  I know I would not want a camera crew in my home like that, nor would I want to be recognized everywhere I went.  My issue isn't with the Duggars at all, but with people who make assumptions about US, based on their perception of the Duggars.

Wow!  I just realized that if I am so "blessed" to hear what others dislike about the Duggars ... what about them?  How often do they get publicly lectured by TV viewers who disagree with something they've said or done?  That would truly be horrible.  I could not handle that.  I think each time someone brings up the Duggars to me (for good or bad), I'll pray for the Duggars.  I'll pray for them to have the grace to continue walking the very public path they're on.

Anyway, Congratulations to the Duggar family!  I know Jordyn-Grace will be loved and cherished and well-cared for.  I know she will be raised in the teaching of God's Word.  She is blessed already.

And just in case you're wondering ... no, we aren't a blended family either.  That's another assumption people sometimes make.

Trusting in Him,

April

The Dangers of Elmer's Glue ... and a 2 Year Old!

Posted on 2008-Dec-18 at 08:08 AM

If you're working on a Christmas project, and you suddenly realize your scrapbooking tapes are too large for it,

And if you decide to just use Elmer's glue instead,

And if you leave the Elmer's glue out because you're going to need it again,

And if you have a 2 year old in the house,

And if you leave the room ...

You might come back to find that:

The two year old has filled a toy tea cup completely with Elmer's Glue,

And is pouring it back out onto the table,

Where it will form a dinner plate sized pool of white goo.

In which case:

You'll be very thankful you have a plastic table cloth on your antique dinner table,

And you'll be glad you came along when you did, before it got any worse,

And you'll be amazed at the things 2 year olds manage to come up with,

And even more amazed that they survive!

It must be because they are just so cute, even when being naughty!

Trusting in Him,

April

The Beauty of the Season

Posted on 2008-Dec-17 at 05:17 PM

We have snow at last.  I've enjoyed the beautiful green outside my window for so long, that I'd forgotten how much I love the contrast of snow and trees on our land.  It is beautiful.  I can not imagine moving back into town after living out here.  I was feeling so cramped in town before we moved, and it would be hard to return to that.

While I love sitting at home when it's snowy, not having to go anywhere ... I wish that were the only reason we're staying home.  But it's not.  We have a tummy virus working its way through the kids, and more cold viruses.  Even 3 month old Baby G has a cold and cough now.  His little voice is hoarse, and I'm trying not to worry about it possibly being RSV. 

We finally finished our Christmas shopping.  There are a few small detail items to pick up here and there, but we are basically finished.  I am learning again how to prioritize my time ... deciding what is truly important to accomplish before Christmas?  What can be given (or mailed) late?  What just doesn't really matter at all?  I'm trying to view that as a good lesson, and not stress over the changes in plans.

And now I need to rock a crying baby.  If he gets just the tiniest bit worse, I'm taking him to the Doctor.  Poor tiny baby boy!  I hate when little ones are sick.  I think I'll be sleeping with him in the recliner tonight.

Enjoy the beauty of the season!

Trusting in Him,

April

Experimenting with Clothesicles!

Posted on 2008-Dec-11 at 03:47 PM

My dryer died in November, 3 weeks ago.   I was able to use the clothesline the first week, since the daytime temperatures were in the 50s that week.  We had company over Thanksgiving, and the temperatures fell at the same time my laundry pile grew.  Last week and this week I haven't been able to use the clothesline ... or so I thought.  I've been using my 3 indoor drying racks to dry 1 - 1.5 loads of clothes every day or so.

For some reason, I just couldn't get caught up and stay caught up like that.  I finally had enough this week, and checked the weather report.  Day time temps in the 30s yesterday, 40s today and tomorrow, and 50s on Saturday ... only 10% chance of precipitation.  So yesterday I washed 4 loads of clothes, and all sheets, towels, undershirts, and dress shirts went outside on the line.  More commonly used items were hung inside to dry.  I almost emptied the 3 bin hamper.

Today I washed 2 loads of clothes (one was pukey blanket from the sick 2 yo).  I hung the comforter on the clothesline, and the rest of the clothes inside.  Tomorrow, I should be able to wash dark clothes again, and totally empty that bin in the hamper.  Catching up, at last!

In the meantime, I discovered last night what a clothesicle feels like.  I went out to hang a few last items on the line around 4:30 pm.  The king size sheet I had hung an hour earlier was frozen stiff.  I discovered that when I decided to adjust it and drape it over two lines, to raise it higher up from the ground.  Clothesicles!

I checked the clothes this afternoon, when I was hanging the comforter.  Nothing was dry yet.  24 hours on the line, and still damp.  I'm sure the frost isn't helping at night.  I'll check again tomorrow.  Eventually they'll dry, right?  Since my dryer does tumble dry with cool air, I could probably use it to "dry" the last little bit of moisture out of items.  That, and drape them over furniture indoors, if necessary.

In the meantime, the expirement continues. 

Trusting in Him,

April

A little bit of this, a little bit of that!

Posted on 2008-Dec-2 at 02:04 PM

The children are slowly recovering from their colds.  They're still coughing, but we've returned to our public lives.  We've actually ALL been at church for two weeks now, and today we'll attend our homeschool group for the first time in 2 months.  We missed 3 meetings (we have 2 per month).

We're studying Roxaboxen this week, using Five In A Row, volume 4.  13 yo A pointed out to me yesterday that she's too old for it.  So I sent her to the encyclopedia to research city government and dig in further.  She gladly went. 

This is just a filler, though.  We'll be starting Further Up & Further In, a unit study based on the Chronicles of Narnia as soon as it arrives, hopefully by next week.  We'll be reviewing it, and are looking forward to using the study.  The review is due in February, so we'll be using it that long, at least.  Probably longer.  This is a unit study we had planned to use in the past, but didn't.  We already own several copies of the book, and I just ordered the Companion to Narnia to supplement our study.  It's designed for the junior high age.  We'll try to use it with all the children, but if we need to, we can pull the younger children back to Five In A Row. 

We started reading Tabitha's Travels for our Advent devotions Sunday night.  This is our second time reading through the trilogy, our sixth year using the books for Advent.  We enjoy the books as a family, and keep hoping the author will get his Easter study (Mystery of the Temple Court) published, as well.   I was just reading about it at his website:  http://www.jothamsjourney.com .  It sounds like it will be wonderful.

Besides our usual Christmas preparations, I have 7 reviews still due in December.  You can be watching for those:  Time 4 Learning website, Aleks website, Puppetools website, Motherboard Press  e-book, All About Spelling, Peterson's Directed Handwriting, and Core Learning Crayola Art Studio. 

We're still trying to figure out what our schedule of family gatherings will be this year, and finishing up our Christmas shopping.  The children are working on their artwork for our Family Scrapbook Calendar gifts, and we're preparing to start working on Christmas cards.  I guess we'll watch lots of Christmas movies as we work on the Christmas card and calendar projects.  I know we may be unusual, but we usually send over 100 Christmas cards each year to our extended family, friends, co-workers, and church family.  

We set up our Christmas tree and decorations this past weekend.  It was a nice way to spend our Saturday, and we enjoyed the dusting of snow we received several times this weekend.  A wonderful close to a good Thanksgiving.  We hosted my family here for Thanksgiving.  We were blessed to enjoy the time with my parents, all 3 of my sisters, my nephew, and my soon-to-be Brother-In-Law.  It was especially cherished after our difficult October and early November, with the loss of Steve's Dad.We're looking forward to our Christmas celebrations with family, as well. 

Now I need to finish getting ready for our homeschool group, and doing our Five In A Row lesson with the kids.  I hope everyone else had a wonderful Thanksgiving, and are enjoying their Christmas preparations, as well.

Trusting in Him,

April

Christmas is coming, the goose is getting fat!

Posted on 2008-Nov-20 at 04:54 PM

Maybe no one else sings that song, except my sister and I.  But we sing it around this time of year, whenever we are thinking about Christmas, and preparing for Christmas.

I've been filling shopping carts and browsing online today.  I've got sisters, parents, two nieces and a nephew to shop for.  It's fun to window shop from home.  I just fill a huge cart and wait for Steve to get home and help me put stuff back on the shelf, figuratively speaking.  He helps me set spending limits and decide what to buy, after I've done the brainstorming. 

I do enjoy shopping in physical stores, but as our family has grown, and we've become more busy, I've begun to prefer shopping from home, via the internet.  It saves me from dragging my kids from store to store in the cold, as they grow more tired and more cranky.  I can't lose a toddler or preschooler when I'm shopping from home, either.  We don't have to stop to eat out, or waste gas.  The kids watch a movie, or play, and I shop.  What could be better?

As I speak, my Amazon cart is full, waiting for Steve to review.  I wish I had unlimited funds.  Most of my kids' toys would be replaced with better quality, more basic, educational, imagination-building toys.  Well, one birthday and holiday at a time, I can do that over time.

Christmas is coming, the goose is getting fat.  Please to put a penny in an old man's hat.  If you haven't got a penny, a ha-penny will do.  If you haven't got a ha-penny, then God bless you!

Hmm ... my guineas are getting fat, but we're not going to roast them.  I hope every one else is having a wonderful time preparing for Christmas, too.

Trusting in Him,

April

Cough, sniff, blow, sneeze, cough

Posted on 2008-Oct-24 at 08:51 AM

The sounds of coughing, sniffling, sneezing, blowing, and more coughing have filled my home all week.  It started with 9 yo C ... poor girl.  She has it bad.  Others started sniffling and sneezing a bit.  Yesterday it tackled 7 yo J and hit him just as hard as 9 yo C.  Poor boy.  I wonder who will be next.  Hopefully not me or Baby G.  Hopefully not DH, either, since he's still tired and stressed with his Dad's health situation.

Pray for us, and Steve's family.   I haven't said much about his Dad here ... but he has been in the hospital since early August.  He's diabetic, and had to have both legs amputated below the knee.  He has been in ICU ever since then (over 6 weeks now) and is still on the ventilator.  This week, he began daily dialysis.  He is so weak, and just isn't recovering.  Time just seems to bring new problems, rather than healing and strength.  While health complications from poorly managed diabetes are inevitable ... it has still been a surprise that it came on so suddenly.  And his decline since August has also been a surprise.  We had expected he'd be in rehab therapy by now, not still lingering in ICU.

Steve's parents are Christians, and their hope is in the Lord, but it is still discouraging to them to be in this position.  (Father-in-law in ICU, heading for a nursing home ... and Mother-in-law with alzheimers and also heading for a nursing home before too long.)  They are only in their 60s ... so young to be dealing with this.  Of course, my parents and our Sunday School class (all couples older than us) keep telling us we are too young (in our 30s) to be dealing with this, as well. 

But we don't get to choose the trials in our life, or the timing of the testing that God allows in our life. Our hope is in Him, and we know He provides the grace and strength for any trial that comes our way.  When I think of the trials others face, this one still seems minor in comparison.  My child isn't struggling to overcome cancer, my husband is still living, and our family is strong.  It could be so much worse.

Trusting in Him,
April

Things that 2 year olds say ...

Posted on 2008-Oct-14 at 04:24 PM

2 yo L has been making us laugh lately.  She's very verbal, and she cracks us up.

While my mother was here after Baby G was born, we realized that her apologies lacked something ... sincerity, maybe?

"I sorry.  That was not an accident."    Really?  She says this all the time!

She also makes us laugh when she agrees with us.  She always says, "Uh, huh!  That's right!" 

When she isn't sure what you mean, L says, "Huh? What you talking about?" in a sweet voice.

When she wants to nurse, she says, "Me want mooky.  I like mooky."  Who can refuse that request for milk?  Never mind that it makes me feel like a cow, at times. 

Today, though ... I heard myself say something to her that sounded rather nonsensical.  "Your hands are cold, maybe you should put some socks on."    I know it sounds crazy, but her hands were cold.  So, I reasoned her feet were likely also cold, and her whole body would warm up if she warmed up her feet.  After all, the head and feet are two places we lose body heat rapidly.  But it sounded silly when I said it.

At least she is usually honest.  Today I asked who had dumped out the blocks.  She proudly replied with a loud and cheerful, "ME!"  She even raised her hand.  So, then I told her she needed to pick them up ... and she made a face that obviously said, "Aw, man!  Not that." 


Also, today she was talking with 13 yo A.  2 yo L told her oldest sister that she was Molly, our dog.  So 13 yo A decided to play dog with her.  A told L to Sit, Lay Down, Roll Over, etc.  2 yo L did each thing she was told.  Then, A told L to "shake".  L proceeded to shake her whole body instead of holding out her "paw" to shake hands with A.  A just laughed and brought L to show me how she plays dog ... complete with "shaking" for Mommy, too.  Again, she shook her whole body instead of holding out her paw.  Cute, cute, cute!

Communicating with a 2 year old can be so much fun.

And if you're wondering ... yes, I've been saving up blog posts in my mind all weekend, and just now getting them posted.  No, I haven't started the laundry yet.  Yes, I'm still in my pajamas at 4 pm.  Yes, I have been holding the baby most of the day.  Yes, the kids did resume homeschool today.  No, all my days are NOT like this.  I promise.

Trusting in Him,
April

How to stay humble ...

Posted on 2008-Oct-9 at 09:55 AM

Have a four year old.  Yes, that will do it.

Tuesday we were preparing for homeschool group.  I looked at my 4 year old and saw white undershirt (his favorite shirt lately) and knew it was stained, but figured oh well.  Then I saw blue jeans and cowboy boots.  Okay, that'll do, I thought.  Arrive at homeschool group and take a closer look.  Cowboy boots are wearing out in one toe ... oops!  Blue jeans have a hole in the knee ... double oops!  Tshirt is not only stained, but has several small pinholes in the front of it ... triple oops!  Oh well, at that point there wasn't anything I could do about it.  So, my ragmuffin and I attended homeschool group, and patronized the library before going home. 

Wednesday, he was in a MOOD ... and not a good one.  I knew before we left for church that he was not going to be obedient enough to go to his class.  I'd need to keep him with me.  What I didn't know was how miserable that hour sitting in the car was going to be.  (I had intended to take him, 2 yo L, and baby G to an empty room ... but he fought against that.)  Then we arrived home and more tantrums over bedtime snack arose.  He's determined to learn the hard way that Mommy means what she says ... and to make us all miserable in the meantime.

Then, he was awake twice in the night, whining and fussing.  Plus the 2 yo woke up once in the night.  And Baby G decided to live up to his nickname twice ... Mister Grunt ... so I had to take him out to the living room to rock him to sleep where his grunts wouldn't wake up Steve or 2 yo L.

It wasn't a restful night, and I was not a pleasant Mommy with the whining 4 yo at 1:30 and 3:30.  And I laid there thinking some not so nice thoughts about my dear hardworking husband who had gone to bed at 10 pm because he didn't feel well.  He kept asking me to take his temperature to see if he had a fever, which he didn't.  I'm sure I'm not the first wife to sit and think some of those thoughts in similar circumstances. 

At least things look better by the light of the day, after some coffee and iced tea.  But by evening, I'll be dragging, living on caffeine and chocolate. 

This too shall pass, right? 

And just to encourage me, and anyone else who has had a week like mine with a 4 yo, I'm posting some of my favorite encouraging quotes.

"The most important occupation on earth for a woman is to be a real mother to her children. It does not have much glory to it; there is a lot of grit & grime. But there is no greater place of ministry, position, or power than that of a mother."  – Phil Whisenhunt

“Bricks and mortar make a house, but the laughter of children makes a home”    – Irish Blessing

“The most important work you and I will ever do will be within the walls of our own homes.”  – Harold B. Lee (1899-1973)

"Homegrown children take a lot of hard work -- and sometimes "it ain't pretty."  Other times, it's breathtaking."  ~~ Passionate Housewives Desperate For God, pg. 21

“Biblical motherhood means sacrifice, selfless love, and faithful dedication.  It means we’re there with our families – body, mind, and spirit.” ~~ Passionate Housewives Desperate For God, pg. 21

“What you do in your house is worth as much as if you did it up in heaven for our Lord God.  We should accustom ourselves to think of our position and work as sacred and well-pleasing to God, not on account of the position and work, but on account of the word and faith from which the obedience and the work flow.” ~~ Martin Luther

At least their hugs and kisses and sweet smiles this morning help me forget the frustration of the night before.  I know God makes them cute for their own self-preservation.  They're easy to forgive, and fatigued Mommy brains forget quickly, too.

Trusting in Him,
April

Making Room for One More

Posted on 2008-Oct-6 at 10:17 AM

Every time we have another baby, people ask us where we're going to find room for the baby.  Literally.  Before we moved here, we had a 3 bedroom 1200 sq. foot home, and 6 kids.  Now we have a 3 bedroom home that is almost 1800 sq. feet, plus an unfinished basement.  The bedrooms are smaller than our previous home's bedrooms.  Even though we have a larger home now, we've already been asked how we fit everyone into our home. 

The answer is bunk beds, toy shelves, creative storage solutions.  At the moment, the girls' room has two bunk beds.  2 yo L's bunk is empty, waiting for her to move from the toddler bed in our room to the girls' room.  The boys' room has a twin bed, and a twin daybed with a trundle under it.  Eventually, we'll have to start using the trundle for baby G, but at the moment it's only used when my sisters are all visiting at once.

We have toys in the bedrooms, and toys in the living room.  But, we would get rid of toys and other excess stuff to make room for our children!  I often tell people we don't have too small a home, and we don't have too many children ... we just have too much stuff. 

Baby G has a bassinet in the living room for napping, and sleeps in our bed.  Eventually, he'll move to the toddler bed that is beside our bed.    Finding room for their clothes, and getting new dressers has usually been more of a problem than where the new baby will sleep.  But some creative rearranging usually solves that problem, as well.

This pregnancy, the big issue was actually our vehicle.  We had an 8 passenger Suburban, and were expecting our 9th family member.  We tried finding a front bench to replace our two captain's seats.  Steve called every salvage yard and used parts store we could find in central and eastern KS ... but kept coming up empty.  Finally, just four days before Baby G was due to be induced, Steve located a bench seat for us at a salvage yard in a small town about two hours east of us!!  We didn't get it picked up until Baby G was a week old, and we didn't get it installed until this weekend. 

Sunday was our first time driving anywhere with the new bench seat.  It works wonderfully, although Steve and I are still adjusting to having a teenager sitting between us.  There go our semi-private quiet conversations as we drive.  *giggle* 

It was much less expensive than one of the fourth row benches, and safer.  It was definitely less expensive than buying a larger vehicle, although we do hope to do that soon.  It even matches our interior perfectly.  I had told Steve I didn't care if it was purple or red or polka dotted ... to buy it and we'd put a cover on it.  But it's exactly the same upholstery as the rest of the seats.  Just an additional blessing.

So, we've officially made room for this baby, too.  Praise the Lord!  I had tried not to stress over the seat problem.  I told myself repeatedly that if we had to drive 2 cars to church and not take any family vacations for awhile, we'd just have to trust that it was God's will for us for a time.  I did reach a point of accepting that, and was very surprised and blessed when Steve finally found a seat, at the last minute. 

I'm very thankful for God's provision, once again.  And, as He often does, He provided in His time, at just the right moment ... not too soon, not too late, and not when I thought it needed to be accomplished.  Just another lesson in trusting Him.

Trusting in Him,
April

Did you miss me?

Posted on 2008-Sep-29 at 07:59 AM

After Baby G was born, my mother came to stay with us, and help out.  She came, mainly because she knew Steve's Dad was still in the hospital ... in and out of the ICU ... and that Steve would need to be able to go see his Dad at times.  And that was true. 

When Baby G was 5 days old, Steve's Dad took another turn for the worse.  So Steve took the oldest 5 kids and went to see his parents.  They were gone for 3.5 days, although to hear the children tell it, it was a week ... or a month!!   His Dad is stable now, although still in ICU.  We are trying to decide when to take the whole family out there, so his parents can meet Baby G.

Mom was here, to help with chores and to help care for 2 yo L while I focused on Baby G.  While Mom was here, I felt funny about spending much time online, so I didn't do any blogging.  Then she left, and I couldn't think of what to blog about.  So I just didn't blog.  I've had a window open to start an entry for several days, though.

But this morning, I was lying in bed next to Baby G after Steve left for work, and several different topics were flowing through my mind.  (It's his first day back to work since the Friday before G was born.)  I was composing blog entries as I lay there, so I decided to do some blogging before the kids woke up.

Baby G is doing pretty well.  I'm having oversupply and over-active letdown issues with nursing, unfortunately.  I've been able to control this issue for the past 4 children, by not switch-nursing.  (I didn't learn about it until my second child was 9 months old, but it was an "aha moment" when I learned about it.)  But, this time, with nursing 2 yo L and Baby G, I'm struggling to get it under control again.  I don't remember it being much of an issue when I was nursing M and L at the same time, and I'm not sure what I did differently then.

I realized yesterday that Baby G has a bit of thrush, and I need to get that under control quickly.  And he's having some diaper related issues that I am trying to diagnose ... it's either a result of the oversupply of milk (foremilk/hindmilk imbalance) or a reaction to something I'm eating (like dairy).   So, I'm cutting dairy and trying to gain control of the oversupply and overactive letdown.  Then we'll reintroduce dairy later, to see which issue we're dealing with.

(By the way, kellymom.com is an excellent resource for breastfeeding, as are breastfeedingonline.com, Dr. Jack Newman's website, La Leche League International's website, and Dr. Sears' website. )

We're still having our "baby break" from school.  This will be our third week off, and I need to start thinking about when to resume schooling.  I'll definitely take next week off, but may resume on October 13.  We'll see.

In the meantime, I have to help my children choose their 4H projects this week.  We need to turn in our project lists next week at the meeting.  Some of the children don't really care and have no idea what they want to do, but others are hyper-focusing on all the choices and are paralyzed re: making a decision.  So it's time for me to help them decide.  This is our first year in 4H, and we're still trying to understand what the project choices include, and how it all works.

And that's our little update (although not brief).

Trusting in Him,
April