Creating New Memories

Chris had to go out of town last week for work and it was kind of last minute thing.  I had been sick with a cough and allergies and therefore not feeling like doing it alone, but did not have a choice.  Makenna asked if we could have a special night since daddy was gone. Sounded like a good idea to me. So we had bowls of popcorn for dinner and homemade lemonade.  We opened up a big blanket on the living room floor and ate picnic style while enjoying Veggie Tale movies. 

The kids wanted to sleep with me, which was fine give that I am a scaredy cat.  I double checked all the doors and made sure my guns were loaded. Really! I did not sleep all that well given my king size bed was somewhat crowded with two very wild sleeping children.  On top of that they woke up giggling at 5:45 am. Really!  I told them to go get in their bed if they were going to stay awake.  They had no desire to bail out of the big warm bed so they finally went back to sleep till 8:45. Whew. It was a long two days but a very memorable one fore the kiddos. They had a blast.  We are still finding popcorn throughout the living room despite multiple cleanings.  It is driving Chris nuts.  Oh well, that is what he gets for leaving us. Right?

We have been enjoying these cooler days. We put the pool up till next year which left a huge sand pit in the backyard that both children have thoroughly enjoyed.  I do not mind them playing in it but there is a neighbors cat that has found a way under our fence and was caught meandering in it.  If it potties in it and Chris is home, I fear for its life.  

The kids have also fallen in love with the playset again.  The slide is cool enough to slide down and Makenna and I hunted out and destroyed all unwelcome occupants.  It was nice to go out and have a swing for each child.  Makenna can swing on her own now, Emme likes to chew on her swing, and Maddax well he is a boy and just cannot sit still.  I love it.  Lots of memories made in this back yard.  The best money we ever spent.

God Hears ALL Things

The other day I was just having some random thoughts. The first was my little man sure is mature for his age.  He listens so well when I am not in the room.  Let the pruning begin.  God like to use my children to prune me and teach me many things. Well not long after this thought we were doing school at the kitchen table with Makenna.  Maddax was coloring next to us. I look up and find Maddax chomping down on a crayon. He said, "Look mom it is nauqamarine." I found myself scraping and picking out crayon from his teeth for the next 10 minutes.  We finally got his teeth cleaned and our day went on. A couple hours later Makenna was practicing the piano and when she finished playing all her songs with both hands she asked for an M&M.  I told her she could have 2 and to give Maddax 2 for going potty earlier.  I hear her in the closet and then nothing else.  I proceed to walk through the living room and see Maddax sitting on the couch facing the corner.  I really did not think anything about it until I went to get in the closet and found M&M's scattered on the floor but the container was MIA.  I looked over at Maddax again to find him shoveling M&M's in his mouth.  I could not help but chuckle. Pretty smart move for the little guy. Needless to say I have been watching him extra closely lately. 

Then I have been dealing with a stinky disposal for some time.  We really did not want to shell out the money to have it fixed so I am constantly running frozen lemons down it to make it smell better.  We tried cleaner but after a day it is back.  We generally unplug the drain and walk away.  Well I had it the other day.  I told Chris I was calling a plumber the next day if he did not.  The next morning I was doing laundry and at the end of the wash cycle the door unlock signal went off 7 times. I new something was wrong.  The blinking light said E27. It was nowhere to be found in the manual so I googled it. Needless to say ti was "door lock/ unlock" error. Duh!!  I called Bosch and they said there is no reset button and I would have to contact someone to fix it.  Chris finally called all 5 number Bosch gave us and none of them could be here for 3 days. Hello, my clothes are LOCKED in the washer.  We finally got someone to come out that afternoon.  I was so excited to see this man arrive and rescue my clothing that had now been held captive by my washer for more than 7 hours.  He told me it needed a new door lock/ unlock mechanism and it would be covered under warranty including the labor.  I just so happened to mention the disposal and he said he would take a look at it.  He was able to adjust the drainage line under the sink and then ran a cup of ice down the disposal.  It did not cost us a thing.  I was so excited.  God let my washer break (under warranty) so that this nice man would check out my disposal (no warranty).  God has a great sense of humor.

Lastly I have been having a hankering for some sewing.  Nothing major. I thought maybe a skirt for Makenna.  We were browsing the new fabric section at Wal-Mart and Makenna spotted some Princess material.  It was cute but it was almost $10 a yard. I told her not this time. then we walked past the remnant section and there it was, a princess remnant.  She begged, "mommy please." I thought $3 was worth it.  I winged the project from scratch and this is the finished product.

Needless to say she loved it and worn it 2 days in a row and asked me to wash it tonight so she could wear it again.

I have been amazed at how God has been showing himself in my life lately.  I have been asking Him to be real and I want to feel His presence in my life.  I look at all of this and think if He can have a hand in the small stuff then what big stuff can He do if I just let Him?

I am still a work in progress. Thankful God is listening and He is patient.

Yes folks I am alive (For Kim)

I have been wanting to blog for some time but either I just did not have the time or really did not feel like it. I have been battling thyroid issues again. Since the birth of Emme, my medication has been changed 5 times. She was the first baby that I ever had to have my meds adjusted during pregnancy so maybe this is all apart of that. Not really sure what that is. Needless to say I have not been feeling myself. Most of the time my meds have to be increased but over the past month I have been feeling like I did when it was hyper some 18 years ago. My hair is falling out by the handful, my wick is much much shorter, and I always feel like I am at a state of anticipation. I am stuck in "FLIGHT" mode. I do not like it and neither does my family. I have been on my knees alot not only praying but for forgiveness from my 2 and 5 year old. It is hard to get down and apologize and ask for forgiveness from them, I am the mommy. It should be the other way around. But it is not. I have lashed out wrongly and it is my duty to be responsible for my actions just like I expect them.  It is pretty humbling to look into there eyes and hear them say, "mommy I forgive you." So I finally took action. I was two weeks from getting my meds checked again but I would torture my family no longer. I made an appt and guess what? My meds were too high. I am slowing feeling the change and my family is seeing the difference.

My other issue is fear. I am a perfectionist and I worry when things are not perfect. I worry about just about everything. I cover it rather well in public but Chris and Christ know the real me. I have been dealing with this for 10 years now but it always worsens after I have a kid. Probably hormonal. My mom sent me an awesome book called, "Hinds' Feet on High Places" by Hannah Hurand and it really opened my eyes to my fear. It is a very easy read and more driven for a younger audience but I loved it.  I learned to have to let go and let God lead you down the path He has chosen not the one I want. Things will not always go my way and at times will be painful and sad but it is all apart of letting Him be in control.  I want to be able to take my fears head on but I cannot when I loose focus.  I was reading Makenna her Bible tonight and it was the story of Jesus walking on water.  It really spoke to me even though I have heard it hundreds of times. When Peter lost focus on Jesus was when he began to sink. It was only when he kept is eyes on Jesus was he able to walk on the waves that had initially taunted him. Even greater was that the disciples were afraid of the waves on board the boat but Jesus conquered the waves.  Meaning Jesus can conquer my fears.  I know it is a long road but I am a work in progress. "He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Jesus Christ." Phil 1:5-7  "He makes the sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sendth rain on the just and the unjust" Matt 4:44-46  I am making small changes, slowly.  Most important I have been getting up an hour earlier to read my Bible and pray before I start my day.. I was reading a book where a man said he wanted to read and pray before breakfast to show God that his spiritual food was more important that his physical food.  I think it is doing well for me. Or should I say God is doing well within me.

On another note. Makenna started first grade 3 weeks ago. On the first day she looked at me and said, "Am I having fun yet?"  I chuckled.  One day that child will grow a filter. I hope.  Are days are pretty scheduled except for Monday when she has piano.  Lately we have been baking each day. I am showing her fractions on the measuring cups  and teaching her how to work the oven and microwave. So far we have made chocolate cupcakes with buttercream icing, chocolate chip muffins and brownies.  All homemade and from scratch.  She loves it.  She said, "Mommy I think I am the best baker in the world."  The secret is that I love it too and the bond between us is stronger than ever. It is all about turning our hearts toward our children. 

cracked her own egg!!

Her curriculum is My Father's World first grade and Saxon math first grade.  It has alot of fun activities like an ant farm, making scrolls, and planting plants.  She really likes the hands on fun over the worksheets. Chris said man I wish school was this fun when I went.  I agree.  We read in the afternoons while Emme and Maddax are napping (thank you God for Naps, at the same time). She read to me and then I read to her a chapter book and ask her questions. I have been reading her a book called, "Winter with the Moody's" by Sarah Maxwell.  She was a homeschooled child and there are alot of similarities in her book as to our days.  It also gives us ideas on new things to try.  I think I am more eager to hear the next chapter of the story that her at times.

The rest of the house is always changing as well. Chris got a detective position, Maddax conquered potty training, and Emme is rocking on all fours.  Maddax is very excited about being potty trained.  We were outside drawing on the driveway with chalks the other morning and he wanted me to trace his body.  I did as he asked and then told him to decorate it.  I turned around to his sweet little voice saying, "look I potty." He had drawn himself going pee-pee.  Makenna and I cracked up.  He is always offering up a good laugh.

I hope to be back here again soon.

I am overwhelmed by how blessed I am as a mother. To have these three smiling faces look up to and love me like they do is truly amazing. Now life is not always sunshine and smiles. Yesterday was a smile. A big smile.

Makenna had her first piano recital. We had rehearsed her lines and her music over and over. She was ready. I was a nervous wreck. Not because she might fail but I did not want her to have the fear of failing. Failing is a part of life that we must all be apart of to grow but I did not want her to experience the anxiety associated with the mental possibility of failing. Needless to say I was so anxious that I skipped lunch.

We got to the church early to rehearse the steps, check out the piano, and get comfortable with the microphone. I saw it in her eyes the moment we walked in. She had this blank look on her face and she kept mumbling about trying to find the whole in her dress. I distracted her by taking her to the piano. She played her music to practice but did so without even looking at the music which causes her to mess up. I took her to the mic to practice and she looked at me with those big brown eyes and said, "monnie are you going to come up her with me?" I took  a deep breath. While every inch of my body wanted to say yes, I told her no. She looked down at her feet and said, "Can I go sit in my chair now?" I wanted to cry.

She went and climbed in her chair and waited. Chris went over to talk to her and give her a pep talk that only daddy's can give. He came back and said, "She is ready."

The recital began and she was first. I was glad that she did not have to sit and wait for others to go and anticipate the anxiety of her turn. Ms. Neutz called her name and she got up and went to the mic. She did just as we rehearsed. Then she went to the piano. She played her 2 songs and looked at her music as she played. The went back to the mic said thank you and did her cute curtsy. I was brought to tears. She did beautifully. I have never been so proud to be her mamma. But what happened next impressed me even more. She sat in her chair for the next 2 hours while the other children played, without making a peep or squirming. I could not believe it. I had no idea she was capable of such self control. It was great to see that all the tears and praying of this job called parenting had finally paid off. God is so good.

Now on the other had we have Maddax. My 2 year old with OCD!! This child has become a perfectionist. At first it was cute. Closing drawers behind me. Emptying his trash can. Running the Shark in the kitchen. But then he started at night with his bed. If the blanket gets a wrinkle in it he hollers, "Fiss it." And he has a turtle that lights up stars on the ceiling and if it is not in the right place in his room he chants, "Turtle." There is a pillow in his rocking chair and if it is not sitting the right way in the chair he chants, "Pillow." This can go on for up to a half an hour or more. I was giving in and attempting to fix most things but I figured out I am only making things worse. Worse for me. I love this little boy but he has got to learn how to deal with imperfections. He reminds me alot of his uncle Jeff when we were kids. He turned out okay, I guess. LOL! But boy is that a rough road to travel on for both child and parent. So we are doing are best to fix it once and then let him try to adjust. It is a work in progress.

Now on to Emme. Sweet Emme sleeps in our closet. The house is just to rowdy with Makenna and Maddax to have her sleep anywhere else. We have tried. It works well except when we forget to get our clothes out. She is growing big and today she is 3 months old. Time is going by so fast. She smiles alot and loves to be talked to. She is a good baby except for these weird 45 min naps. Maddax and Makenna did it too so I am hoping she will outgrow it soon. We are still trying to find her neck. It seems to have disappears under one of her chins.

She has gone from butter bean to butter ball and I love every little fat roll she has. She is a joy and I am so glad to have been blessed with her sweet little spirit.

She will not smile when I am behind the camera.

My Boy Turns Two

I know it is a little late. Maddax turned 2 on Thursday but free time is not like it used to be.

We got him up and started his day with chocolate doughnuts, his favorite. He was so excited.

Then he got two balloons, Elmo and Cars. Both of his favorite shows. And by favorite I mean walks around all the time repeated these characters. Makenna was a little jealous because she did not have balloons but we had to remind her that she got balloons on her birthday and Maddax did not. This is a concept that we had to repeat several times throughout the day.

Chris went out and bought Maddax a cake. I was to tired to make a cake like last year so Dairy Queen saved the day. We got him a Cars cake. He wanted to make sure he got the piece with Sally on it. She is his favorite Cars character.  Makenna on the other hand wanted to eat Mater. He is my favorite too.

The dye on the cake was staining everyone teeth and clothes. Maddax looked like the Joker from Batman if you ask me.  I am sure his poop will be some awkward color thanks to the red dye. I only had a couple of bites of the ice cream only since I am nursing Emme.

Cake was followed up by presents. We got him a Radio Flyer tricycle, second hand thanks to the Ky Kids Consignment Sale in E-town. He also got a Cars helmet to go with his new bike. He screamed "kikickel". Elmo rides a tricycle in one of his books so he knew exactly what it was. He could not wait to ride it. I was glad to have bought one with a parents handle to save my back.

It was a good day.  Outside of the fact that Makenna is learning that she is not an only child and that other children in our family have special days besides her. I know it will be a work in progress.

I am so glad to have been giving the opportunity to be Maddax's mommy. God knew I needed his hugs and kisses throughout the day when daddy is at work.

Out of practice and energy

I promise I did not fall off the face of the Earth. I feel as big as the Earth but still here. I have been so tired chasing my two little ones around while trying to grow one inside. I am too tired to blog at night, but today I felt like I needed to catch up. Maybe Emme will be coming soon. Lets recap the past 2 months.

November Miss Emme tried to come early at 34 weeks. After two shots of this medication that makes your heart feel like it will leap out of your chest, the contractions stopped. My cervix changed some to I was put on bed rest for a week then modified bed rest for an additional week. Was released after that to do pretty much what I wanted, except work, and we just knew she would be here before the first of the year. Well it is going on the second week of Jan and still no Emme. I have contractions frequently but not TRUE labor yet. I have been cleaning the house from top to bottom but all I tend to get  is a lot of Braxton Hicks and a back ache. Makenna has been talking to Emme, through my what is left of a belly button, telling her to come out. Maddax is still oblivious.

December we celebrated Christmas and Makenna's fifth birthday. My parents surprised us by coming in before Christmas so it made the Holidays even better. Maddax finally got the opening of Christmas presents down and was loving every minute of it. He got a lot of Cars from Disney and his favorite is Sally. Each morning she is the first thing he is hunting for and he has the cutest little lisp when he says her name.  Makenna knows she is his favorite so she is always trying to hide it from him. She gets many a consequences when she is caught doing so.

loves his new lightening towel

Makenna received princess stuff. She had been wanting a princess castle from Disney World and this year she finally got it. She was very excited to play with all the cool features like light up bushes and hidden passageways. Lately however she is more taken with the stuffed Prince Larry and Sweet Pea Beauty from Veggie Tales. That poor doll has been everywhere with her.

her and Uncle Jeff were like peas and carrots

Then It was a bittersweet day. My munchkin turned 5. I had promised her a princess cake but was too tired to make it so I bought one. We wondered where all the princesses were that should have been on the cake. Well Chris was not informed at pick up that they were inside the castle and had to be assembled. Oops. She loved the cake and her balloons that daddy tied to her bed when he got off work at 2 am that night. He said it was kind of hard to explain princess balloons in the back of his cruiser when he had to take a call, but that she was worth the explanation. Good daddy. He also picked up her favorite breakfast, chocolate doughnuts, for her.  We rarely have these because of the plethora of non food ingredients but it was her birthday and she deserved it. 

she has worn this hat at every birthday since she was 2

I cannot believe 5 years ago she was a helpless baby and now she does so much on her own. I am so proud of her and pray she grows into a Godly woman when she is older so we are planting those seeds now.

Now what? We wait. Emme is due Jan 23 but my doc said they may induce at 39 weeks because I am an experienced mother. Do not know what that has to do with the price of tea in China but if it gets her here sooner and smaller then I AM EXPERIENCED! My mom has been fixing up Makenna and Emme's room and did a beautiful job.

I am so excited to welcome this new little joy as is the rest of the family. Thank you God in advance for our soon to be new little bundle.

Tornado Warning

I have the hardest time remembering which is worse a watch or a warning so I just think the shorter word is first and the longer is second so it is worse. I know, I am truly weird. However, I like most of you, I experienced both of these today.

Chris called and told me bad weather was coming so I was prepared. He made it off duty in time to be with us for the tornado warning when it hit or little town. I grabbed pillows and blankets and gathered my chicks to the middle house bathroom. One of the downsides to moving here was giving up or basement which I gently informed Chris I would rather not give up the next time we move. Anyway, we got into the tiny bathroom and waited. Chris spent most of the time in and out checking the weather outside, on the news and reports from dispatch over his hand held radio.  At other times he rested from working since 3 am.

I was perched on the potty, no not using it but very convenient if needed, corralling Maddax and Makenna. We all prayed together for God safety and protection, not only for us but all of those in the storm today.  After a few songs and such Makenna announced that we needed to pray again. I asked her for what and she said, "For Emme's safety in monnies belly during the tormato." I thought that was awfully sweet  and so she prayed. I and Chris were moved by such a selfless act of our little 4 almost 5 year old.

Sometimes God speaks so oddly to us. This time it was seeing our little girl think of others in a trying time. She was more concerned for her unborn sisters safety than her own. No wonder God wants us to have the faith of a child and tells us that to such is the kingdom of Heaven.

All Aboard!!

Chris had the weekend off so we pondered what we could do as a family that was affordable. I had a buy one get one free coupon for the Kentucky Railway Museum so we decided to do that.

Makenna and Maddax have been into trains lately. At Aunt Sherries this past week both of them were loving playing with her Brio Train Set. Maddax spent the next few days saying, "Choo, Choo." Plus the fact that we live in a town where a train goes through about every hour. Maddax has to let us all know when he hears it outside.

We left after church on Sunday and trudged our way to New Haven. This town is not foreign to me since it is were my dad grew up but the roads we traveled were. Most of our trips to my grandmother found me sleeping the entire trip, so I had to pay close attention to the directions I had written down from the Internet. We finally made it, barely, with Chris driving. He was using his police tactics on "Dog legged" roads. Not a good mix especially when there is a prego on board.

We toured the museum first. We did not make it any further than 10 feet from the door. The kiddos were being held captive by 3 train tables. They played and played and would have played longer but the train was on its way to pick us up.

So we left the train tables and stood in line at the bathrooms for what felt like an eternity. Emme found this fun as she made a trampoline of my bladder the entire time I waited.

The train arrived with Maddax in tears. He had never been that close to a train horn and it scared him terribly. He was saying, "Pappy, Pappy." Which translates into Pacifier Please. I had stuck one in my purse for just such an occasion and he perked right up once he saw it.

We boarded the train. The kids were so excited they could not sit still. Chris and I were being wallored on the entire ride by at least one of them. They chanted Choo, Choo. Off we went. They stared out the window naming things that they saw. Maddax would try to repeat everything Makenna would say, but with his still baby like speech and a pappy in his mouth it was difficult to understand. He smiled regardless.

We enjoyed our trip on the train and then loaded back into the car for the long trip home. We had misplaced the directions so we decided to guess our way back home. Yeah we had GPS but where is the fun in that? We made it back to the interstate and both kiddos drifted off into dreamland. I am sure ther were probably trains involved in those sweet little dreams they had.

It was a great day. I love my family.

Fall Farmal

Yesterday we spent the afternoon at Hubers Farm partaking in the "Fall Farmal".  It is not a Hubers activity, but one some homeschool moms developed as a Fall activity for the family. We do not participate in Halloween for many reasons, especially since Makenna is finally over her night terrors but is continually blessed with her sensitive spirit. So we thought this would be a happy alternative.

We all met at Hubers dressed in our Farm apparel. This was our first year to go so being pregnant did not allow me to wear much of farm attire. I felt though like Elsie the Cow. LOL. The kids played on the wrought iron animals, which Maddax loved, then moved onto the slide, petting the animals and riding miniature tractors. They had a blast.

Maddax's favorite person in the world right now is his cousin Chase. Which is a great role model for my little man. The two of them are like peas and carrots. He frequently asks for Chase at home or wants to carry a picture around of him. When we go to my sisters, as soon as we turn on her street he starts repeating "Chase" until he sees his face. It is pretty funny.

Daddy did take a few sweet moments to bond with his little man by a small pond throwing rocks and hanging out.

After all the playing we went over to a nearby apple orchard to take some family photos. There was a Weeping Willow tree that someone had tied swings into on the branches that hung down. Makenna and Maddax had a blast swinging on that tree. I have never heard of such a thing but most of the other kids had.

We ended with dinner at Hubers. Good home cooking. I sure did love my fried chicken, but being pregnant has me lovin about everything. The kiddos fell asleep on the way home. It was such a great time with friends and family. Cannot wait to do it again next year with Emme. Better start looking for her farm apparel now.