cover to cover

So, as part of my broad New Year's resolution to focus less on the world and more on God, I decided I would read the Bible cover to cover. I've never done it, and don't know as much about the Bible as I would like, so I figure now is as good a time as any. So far God has really helped me with my resolution. Over the past couple weeks I have lost interest in majority of the shows I used to watch on TV. (I don't watch TV during the day, but often would turn it on at night, after the kids go to bed, to entertain me while I waited for Jeremy to get home) I have ZERO desire to turn on Desperate Housewives or any of the other rather stupid smutty dramas that I used to put on. Since now I only like a very few shows, that leaves more time at night for more productive things. There was just one terribly embarrassing problem with my plan: I didn't own my own Bible! Now do not misunderstand, our home is not without Bibles. It's just that the last Bible I personally owned was a teen study Bible. Jeremy has a wonderfully put together study Bible, so after we got married I just always grabbed his when I wanted to read. We also have a kids study Bible that I use with the children, and a good handful of Bible story books for kids as well. I just really wanted to get a Bible of my own. So, Jeremy and I took a trip to Family Christian and I came across this Bible. The Family Life Marriage Bible: Equipping Couples for Life from Dennis and Barbara Rainey. It's not a study Bible, but it has some wonderful commentary, devotions, and ideas for marriage and parenting. I decided it was exactly what I wanted right now, and so far, I've been very pleased. I read through Genesis (and Song of Solomon just for fun, but I'm going to read the whole thing cover to cover), and I was so delighted by some of the commentary/devotions/ideas that I asked Jeremy to read some of them too. He decided he's going to join me on my Bible reading journey, and that we will use our Bibles side by side. His Bible is a fantastic study Bible and provides so much insight to what is happening in the scripture, while mine is just what we need to bring our whole family closer together. He's going to read through Genesis so he can catch up to me, and then we will read through together. I know it's going to take a long time, but I'm really excited to see where this journey will take us.

You mean harmonicas don't help movies play?

The kids complained to me about a week ago that the VCR on their VCR/DVD player was not working. I asked Jeremy if he could take a look at it the other night. He went in, lifted the cover right off, and there sat a yellow harmonica! He picked it up, put the cover back on, and it was as good as new. Jeremy then revealed to me one of his secret parenting tricks: he removed all the screws that hold the cover on the VCR/DVD player so that whenever someone complained it was broken, he could very quickly look inside and pull out whatever a curious child stuffed in there. Who knew!

extended stay...... the good kind

Well, instead of Jeremy just being here for one night like we originally thought, we are going on night #3! It seems their supplier in Moses Lake can't get the shipments right, so Jeremy and his boss are working down in Redmond at the main offices to fix everything so they can take it back to Portland. I'm certainly not complaining though. It's work, and he gets to come home at night; win-win!

kisses at Costco

Last night I needed to do some grocery shopping, but my car is in need of some repairs. My mother-in-law came over to watch the kids, and let me borrow her car to do my shopping. I had a couple stops to make, and was talking to Jeremy off and on during my shopping. While I was at Costco I had a question for him and tried calling him a few times, but he didn't pick up. Then I got a text that said "I'm in the middle of a project that needs tweaking". I knew he was making reference to You've Got Mail and that he was probably up to something silly, but with Jeremy, one never knows what. I was just getting ready to grab some bagels when I was suddenly grabbed from behind and got a big kiss on the neck. Rather startled I turned around to see my mystery grabber and there was my husband!!! I knew he was getting to come up for a night, but I didn't know which night it would be. He told me last night that he wasn't going to be up until tonight, and since I knew he wasn't driving his own car up, I had no reason to suspect otherwise. I guess he had his boss drop him off at Costco and he followed me around the store for a little while waiting for the perfect moment to surprise me. The kids were completely stunned when I walked in with grocery bags, followed by dad. They all just sort of stood there and stared for a few seconds not sure what to say! The best part is that this morning he was able to get my car in working order, he's going to be able to go to the book report lunch to see Genna present (she wanted him to be there so badly, but I told her there was no way he'd make it up for that), and it seems that he'll be here for one more night before heading back down to Portland! Yahoo! Just what we all needed right now.

That's the last invite she's gonna get!

Bella has a birthday party to attend in a couple weeks, and I was asking her tonight what she would like to buy for her friend. Her [serious] response:

"Well, I think Lydia would like the chicken pox"

I told her I didn't think Lydia's mom would appreciate that, to which Bella replied:

"Well then, I'm all outta ideas. What do you got?"

The Singing House

By May Morgan Potter


Fred ate his breakfast dutifully and then slipped down from his chair.
"Now can I go over to Jimmy's, mother?" he asked.
"But Fred," I said, "you were over there yesterday and the day before. Why not have Jimmy come here today?"
"Oh, he wouldn't want to." Fred's lip quivered in spite of his six years of manhood. "Please, mother."
"Why do you like Jimmy's house better than ours, son?" I pursued. It came to me suddenly that Fred and all his companions were always wanting to go to Jimmy's house.
"Why," he explained hesitantly, "it's cause--it's cause Jimmy's house is a singing house."
"A singing house?" I questioned. "Now what do you mean by that?"
"Well," Fred was finding it hard to explain, "Jimmy's mother hums when she sews; and Annie-in-the-kitchen, she sings when she cuts out cookies; and Jimmy's daddy always whistles when he comes home." Fred stopped a moment and added, "Their curtains are rolled clear up and there's flowers in the windows. All the boys like Jimmy's house, mother."
"You may go, son," I said quickly. I wanted him out of the way so I could think.
I looked around my house. Everyone told me how lovely it was. There were oriental rugs. We were paying for them on installments. . . . We were paying for the overstuffed furniture and the car that way, also. Perhaps that was why Fred's daddy didn't whistle when he came in the house. . . .
I . . . went over to Jimmy's house, even if it was ten o'clock and Saturday morning. It came to me that Mrs. Burton would not mind being interrupted in the middle of the morning. She never seemed to be in a hurry. She met me at the door with a towel around her head.
"Oh, come in. I have just finished cleaning the living room. No indeed, you are not interrupting. I'll just take off this headdress and be right in."
While I waited, I looked around. The rugs were almost threadbare; the curtains . . . tied back; the furniture, old and scarred. . . . A table with a bright cover held a number of late magazines. In the window were hanging baskets of ivy . . . , while a bird warbled from his cage hanging in the sun. Homey, that was the effect.
The kitchen door was open and I saw Jerry, the baby, sitting on the clean linoleum, watching Annie as she pinched together the edges of an apple pie. She was singing. . . .
Mrs. Burton came in smiling. "Well," she asked, "what is it? For I know you came for something; you are such a busy woman."
"Yes," I said abruptly, "I came to see what a singing house is like."
Mrs. Burton looked puzzled. "Why, what do you mean?"
"Fred says he loves to come here because you have a singing house. I begin to see what he means."
"What a wonderful compliment!" Mrs. Burton's face flushed. "But of course my house doesn't compare with yours. Everyone says you have the loveliest house in town."
"But it isn't a singing house," I objected. . . . "Tell me how you came to have one."
"Well," smiled Mrs. Burton, "if you really want to know. You see, John doesn't make much. I don't think he ever will. He isn't the type. We have to cut somewhere, and we decided on non-essentials. . . . There are books, magazines, and music. . . . These are things the children can keep inside. They can't be touched by fire or financial problems so we decided they were essentials. Of course good wholesome food is another essential. . . . The children's clothes are very simple. . . . But when all these things are paid for, there doesn't seem to be much left for rugs and furniture. . . . We don't go into debt if we can avoid it. . . . however We are happy", she concluded.
"I see," I said thoughtfully. I looked over at Jerry and Fred in the corner. They had manufactured a train out of match boxes and were loading it with wheat. They were scattering it a good deal, but wheat is clean and wholesome.
I went home. My oriental rugs looked faded. I snapped my curtains to the top of the windows, but the light was subdued as it came through the silken draperies. . . . My house was not a singing house. I determined to make it sing....

When did my life become a Disney movie?

And my children turn into little helpful critters? The other night I noticed the washing machine was full (yes, I'm STILL caught up on laundry....... amazing), but decided I would wait until morning to run it. I also noticed the trash was full, but again decided I would wait until morning since it was very late. The next morning after I took my shower, I went to toss my PJ's in the wash and turn it on, but realized it had already been run. I was completely puzzled and couldn't figure out when I turned it on. For some reason I felt very passionate that morning about not wasting water or soap (really don't know why because in the past I've washed a load 3 times without a second thought because I had let it sit too long), so I decided to empty the trash while I tried to remember when I ran the washer and if I had put soap in or not. Imagine my astonishment when I pulled out the trash can and found it empty with a new bag! Where did the trash go? Now, I KNOW I didn't get up in the middle of the night and take out the trash........ at least I'm pretty sure I didn't...... I was muttering to myself around the kitchen (still debating what to do about that darn load in the washing machine), when Genna heard me and said "oh, I took out the trash while you were in the shower, and ran the washer early this morning when I woke up." I couldn't help but give her a great big hug! Then I went to my room and found Elijah had very neatly made my bed and organized the things on my bedside table. THEN, I asked Bella if she could quickly tidy up the shoe area and she did it quickly and without complaint! Over the past couple days my kids have actually been arguing about who GETS to do which chores. You read that right, who GETS to do them, not who HAS to do them. After a long afternoon at the auto shop, I really needed a warm shower to unwind. I told the kids as soon as I was done in the shower I would make them some juice and popcorn and they could put on a movie. When I got out of the shower, Genna had already made the juice (and made it correctly), Bella had gotten out everything to make popcorn (I make it on the stove so it's safe for Isaac), and Genna and Elijah were once again taking out the trash. (they even got the bathroom trash and took it out too!) I feel like I need to hold an awards ceremony or something for these guys, they are just being awesome! I told them while daddy was gone we were going to need to work together as a team, I guess they really took that to heart. I know that this is hard for them, so it makes me doubly proud that they are all doing their absolute best to help out even though they miss their daddy so much. God has blessed me with a great batch of kiddos!

My man-boy

Tonight Elijah has been rather upset, and missing his dad. I knew this was coming, and I figured he'd be the first one to start getting sad, but I wasn't sure when it would hit. Elijah is such a sweet little guy, and he really loves his family. His emotional development is a bit complicated. He seems to understand that there are certain things in life that you can be upset about, but have to shrug them off and move on; while there are other things in life that it's OK to be really upset about and need time to cry or deal with the disappointment. The problem is, he often cannot differentiate between the two. He tries so hard to be a big boy and not cry when he's upset. Tonight I could tell he was wanting to cry. He was trying to talk to me about how much he's missing his dad (and was extremely upset that Jeremy wasn't here for Nahshon's birthday), but kept looking at the wall so he wouldn't cry. I told him I knew he wanted to be a big boy, but it's OK to be sad and it's OK to cry if he misses daddy. He said "I trying not to cry 'cause I want to be a man-boy". Say it with me now "aawwww". *sigh* I had him call Jeremy, and we made a countdown to help him grasp the concept of how long dad will be gone. I'm so proud of him for the efforts he's been making to help me out around the house, but it's so hard when he's sad about something I can't fix, and especially when it's something he doesn't fully understand. I love my little man-boy.

Not even sure what to say

Does anyone else look at this pic and start singing in their head "love and marriage, love and marriage........." ? I have been trying for 5 long years to turn her into a lady, looks like I have my work cut out for me.

(*hint: Al Bundy from married with children)

Happy 1st Birthday Nahshon!

I can't believe my baby is already one!!! This past year has gone by so fast. We just had a simple celebration at home today with me and the kids, and we'll celebrate again on Saturday with the family. It was nice to spend his birthday at home, playing and just enjoying being with him.

Nahshon Jeremiah
January 21st



First bite of cake

First bite must have tasted OK, because he went in with both hands

yummy yummy yummy!

Ahh, that was good stuff

Can I have more?

These are the gifts the older kids wrapped up, they were very proud

This looks like it might be better than those little ones

WOW!



This toy is neat!

Hmm, clothes are nice but I think I like my toy better

just going on a walk

gotta keep a hand free for playing

A short year in review, from now until back then:

extended stay

Jeremy's trip has already been extended, probably adding another week to the pile. Their glass shipment from Moses Lake was made wrong, so they are having to take it apart and re-build it down there. I really don't understand the details of it, but from the way Jeremy describes it, it sounds like a pretty idiotic mistake. Oh well, it's work I guess. So far things are going pretty well alone with the kids here. It was great that we were able to get the house clean and in order before he left, it has certainly made life a little easier for me. One nice thing is that I'm able to hog up as much of the bed as I want. Being pregnant, I like to stretch out more than usual and have lots of pillows, so it's nice to have the extra room. Tomorrow is Nahshon's first birthday. We're all bummed Jeremy can't be here to celebrate, but the kids are going to help me bake a cake, and I'm going to let them try their hand at wrapping up his gifts. Just trying to take it all one day at a time.

pray

Little Annabelle has to have surgery on her shunt this week. If you are not already familiar with Annabelle's journey, please visit her dad's blog, it's listed to the right under blogs I read. (just click on Annabelle) Please pray for Annabelle, as well as her parents, through this next step in their life.

a little chef in the making perhaps?

Tonight I made home made chicken noodle soup, and I threw in a couple dashes of a few different herbs. I never go heavy on seasoning when I don't have someone here to taste test for me. (I'm a vegetarian, so chicken noodle soup isn't exactly on my menu) As Genna was taking her bowl to the sink she says to me "was that rosemary I tasted?" There was in fact a tiny dash of rosemary in the soup. The fact that she was able to pick out the herbs when there was such a tiny amount completely surprised me, but the fact that she could name the herb shocked me! I very rarely use rosemary, and I really don't discuss the seasonings that I cook with unless the kids are helping and specifically ask. I guess Genna's going to be a foodie.

This is completely normal..........right?

Is it odd that at midnight I see my 2 year old roll past my bedroom and say "hey mom, I ride my bike!" ? Is it strange that at 2am that same little guy wakes me up to play a round of go fish? I'm sure all mothers are used to waking up at 4am by strange sounds in the kitchen only to find their toddlers making themselves a snack which consists of a rice cake with jam and a small bowl of yogurt, right? Is it weird that I also get woken up at 6am because he wants to color in his Curious George coloring book while watching the Curious George dvd? All 2 year olds do this........ right?

Before you even ask, the answer is no, he does not take naps during the day. My mother-in-law has told me many stories about how Jeremy drove her bonkers because he never slept. I always just laughed because my first 3 sleep like perfect angels. They slept all night, and even napped until age 4/5!! I figured my mother-in-law was just exaggerating, and that no child could possibly function on as little sleep as she claimed Jeremy got. Well, I WAS WRONG! Isaac is an unstoppable machine that just keeps going. I make sure he gets plenty of exercise, and we've tried all the "tricks" that usually help normal kids to settle down to sleep. The biggest problem is that when he is tired, he CRASHES ON THE SPOT. It doesn't matter what he's doing, he will fall asleep if he's tired, and there is no way to keep him up. Unfortunately when he falls asleep early (like 7pm), one simple hour long nap can keep him going for another 5 hours. His battery recharges very quickly. Now, I am all for stopping bad behavior in it's tracks, but to be perfectly honest, at 4am it is sometimes easier to just open the jam jar and stumble back to bed rather than tying to argue with a headstrong 2 year old.

Anyone want to borrow a very cute, funny, and "energetic" little boy for a night or two?

up and down, up and down, up and down............

I'm talking about the roller coaster of life. Jeremy has left for this job in Oregon FOUR TIMES! Yes, you read that right, FOUR TIMES!!!!!!! I'll spare you all the ridiculous details, but like I said before, anything can happen on these jobs. His boss thinks this will really be it, and he will be gone for 3 weeks now. It has been an emotionally exhausting week for a number of reasons, but I'm thankful for the extra time we were able to have together as a family this week and I'm thankful that Jeremy has work. I was worried about how I would handle 3 weeks alone with the kids, but after the week we've just been through, I think I'm going to do just fine. Funny how life has a way of putting things into perspective for us.

Maybe he should go away more often after all.........

By some amazing miracle, every single item of dirty laundry has been washed! For those of you that don't know what a big deal this is, let me tell you, it's HUGE! Laundry has always been a trouble area for us. (even before we got married, we had trouble keeping up with our own laundry, so combining the problem made for a disastrous situation) Although I wash laundry frequently, the problem comes with the sorting and putting away. Often the clothes never make it out of the laundry baskets, and the baskets just get tossed into rooms. Then the laundry gets spilled out, dirty clothes get mixed in, we can't remember what is clean and what is dirty, so the whole basket has to get rewashed, and before you know, there is a backup a mile high. Despite being snowed in for almost 3 weeks, we had an obscene amount of laundry back-up. Everything going on in addition to Jeremy leaving gave us the motivation to kick laundry butt and we actually got every last little thing washed, sorted, and PUT AWAY!!!! We also got some things organized that we had been putting off, Jeremy scrubbed my car clean for me and made sure everything was in working order so I won't have any problems while he is gone, stocked up on food and other necessities so I won't have to worry about making emergency trips to the grocery store, and just basically got everything cleaned and in order. I cannot remember the last time I felt this organized! It's WONDERFUL!!!!!! Now as long as I can make it through the next few weeks without losing my sanity, I'll be golden!

Genna my gem

Genna is one of those kids that is just a joy. She is sunshine and rainbows all the time. She's kind, obedient, and helpful. It really takes a lot to "push her over the edge" so to speak, but when it happens, she does a drastic 180. It's honestly more comical than anything because she turns into such a different person that we rarely see. I'm telling you all this so that those of you that don't know Genna well, can understand what her true nature is before I share this next story, and that this isn't typical behavior (or language) for her.

About a year ago, Genna woke up in the middle of the night. I don't recall exactly what it was that woke her, but I set her up on the couch with a movie to help her settle back down. Isaac was about 1 1/2 at the time, and had a bad cold. He woke up coughing and couldn't get back to sleep, so I set him up on the couch to watch the movie with Genna. (Isaac has always been a big boy, and sometimes trying to carry him is more like trying to carry a wiggly bull dog rather than a toddler) About 30 minutes after they were both out watching the movie, Genna comes in carrying Isaac, heaves him up onto our bed, and says "THIS FREAKING CRAP JUST BIT ME!" I was so shocked by what just came out of her mouth that I couldn't hold myself together for even a second to ask if she was OK, it was just too hysterical coming out of my sweet little Genna. When she woke up the next morning she was right back to being sunshine and rainbows, and didn't even remember what happened just a few hours earlier.

Ok then Penelope

Bella has added a new quirk to her ever growing list, she is now a one-upper. (similar to Penelope on SNL) Here's the story:

Jeremy had a pretty big rip on the back of his jeans

Bella: Daddy has a hole in his pants

mom: yeah, I noticed that too

Bella: well I saw it last night

mom: well I saw it last year

Bella: well I saw it NEXT YEAR!

I suppose I could have tried saying I'll see it forever, but she probably would have said she'll see it in Heaven.

horror movies

I do not understand the point of horror movies. They don't make you laugh, they don't make you feel good, and if they make you cry, it isn't that "feel good, I totally understand that person's pain" type of cry. I honestly do not understand how people get enjoyment from watching others be tortured and murdered; even if it is just pretend. The biggest problem I have is the fact that I can't just pretend these vile things don't exist, because even during comedy programs on TV, they show commercials for these awful things! I can't even stand to watch the previews for these flicks, they creep me out. In my opinion, these just fill your mind with unnecessary evil. It bothers me to no end that some people even find these types of movies funny. There are enough heartbreaking, terrible things in this world, why do people feel the need to turn that into entertainment? I really do not understand it.

white wonderland turned mucky mess

When I woke up today all the snow had been officially melted away by all the rain. However, 14 inches of melted snow, plus however many inches of rain, has turned my yard into a mud patch! I am not fond of mud being tracked through my house (especially since right now my living room has been transformed into laundry central), so I'm not even letting the kids out to play. Yuck Yuck Yuck!

school book

At the last minute my instructor for my Medical Law and Ethics class added a novel called My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult to our required list of books. I was very uncertain about this book for a few reasons. First, in all the classes I have taken in college, I have never enjoyed one single required reading text. (and I'm not including standard text books in that category, I'm talking about "normal" books we are required to read) All of the books I've been required to read in my college career have been horribly boring. The type where it's a painful chore to turn each page rather than an exciting journey. Secondly, I was doubtful after seeing it on the New York Times Best Seller list. It seems I rarely enjoy books that are hugely popular among mainstream media. (and this book has stellar reviews all over) I have checked out many supposedly great books at the library only to find them a terrible waste of my time, and returned them before even getting half way through. The only thing that could have turned me off even more was having the Oprah Book Club stamp on it! (yes, I'm one of those women that doesn't subscribe to the church of Oprah) Thirdly, I was concerned about the topic of the book because I'm pregnant. While I normally would love a good medical story, I tend to stay away from this exact type of thing when pregnant. (hormones and all that) Because of that, I will confess, I did some searching on Google to find out the ending of the book. (I don't need any Kleenex filled surprises, thank you) I have to say, I was pleasantly surprised. I read the book in two days. (It's around 425 pages) It was heartbreaking, but intriguing. I think what I found most interesting is that this isn't some science fiction story taking place 200 years from now. This book is exploring a real issue that is happening now, today.

Here is a short synopsis:

Anna is not sick, but she might as well be. By age thirteen, she has undergone countless surgeries, transfusions, and shots so that her older sister, Kate, can somehow fight the leukemia that has plagued her since childhood. The product of preimplantation genetic diagnosis, Anna was conceived as a bone marrow match for Kate - a life and a role that she has never questioned… until now. Like most teenagers, Anna is beginning to question who she truly is. But unlike most teenagers, she has always been defined in terms of her sister - and so Anna makes a decision that for most would be unthinkable… a decision that will tear her family apart and have perhaps fatal consequences for the sister she loves. My Sister's Keeper examines what it means to be a good parent, a good sister, a good person. Is it morally correct to do whatever it takes to save a child's life… even if that means infringing upon the rights of another? Is it worth trying to discover who you really are, if that quest makes you like yourself less?

It is certainly a thought provoking book. It was interesting to read this story from the point of view of being a mother and a Christian. I have to keep the book on hand for my assignments for the remainder of my class, but in the spring if anyone would like to read it, let me know and I'd be happy to lend it out.

wants vs. needs

As part of my new years resolution to live a more Godly life, I'm going to start examining my wants vs. my needs with both my money and time. Some things of course are so obvious you could just stamp "DUH!" right on them, but other things require real thought and honesty. Before I commit to any purchase or activity I'm going to ask myself what will happen if I don't buy this or do this? Will I later regret having spent money on this or my time doing this when I could have put the money towards something else or spent the time doing something else? How will I feel if I do decide to buy this or do this? I can use these questions for everything from watching TV at the end of the day when there is nothing decent on to watch, to the activities I commit the kids to, to those little impulse purchases or purchases just because "it's a gift-giving type of holiday" that over the long run add up to good amounts of money. I feel this is especially important now that we are about to have 6 kids, we are homeschooling, I'm going back to school, and Jeremy is working hard in a very unstable economy. It's time to simplify and streamline my life, and I think this is a great way to start that process.

I blinked and he's a kid

Being a mother of many, I try to always keep in mind that my children are all different with different talents and abilities, and mature at different rates in different areas. I try to not set one standard for each of them to meet, but adjust according to their own capabilities and let them set their own standards. With Isaac being the 4th in line, he sort of went from baby to toddler overnight and joined right in with the rest of the crew. He has already potty trained himself (he started going all by himself a couple months ago, and it really only took a few weeks before I knew I could even take him out in public without a diaper. He was very successful very quickly, all on his own doing) The other night he had a bit of a cough, so I gave him a cup of juice to help his throat. He was playing on the floor while drinking his juice, and Nahshon came over and spilled it. Isaac was upset and wanted more juice, so I decided to pour it in a sippy cup to avoid the spill from happening again. Isaac looked at the cup very puzzled, tried to take a few sips, and then handed it back in frustration saying only "help!". It's then that I realized, he's never used a sippy cup! He's always wanted to be just like the big kids, and he went from bottles to regular cups. He had no idea how to work a sippy cup spout. It was sort of a funny moment to realize that he had kind of skipped right over one developmental stage and moved onto the next without me even realizing it. I guess to Isaac being one of the big kids looked a lot more fun than being one of the babies!

First baby stuff!

I don't need much for little Micaiah, but it's always nice to have a few new things for a new baby. Target had some nice stuff on super clearance (gotta love Target!), so I picked up a little sleeper and blanket. The blanket is so nice, it's like a soft knit sweater. I think it will be just right for a spring baby.

New Year Resolution

It's that time of year again where we all feel a bit compelled to make a promise to ourselves to start doing something we know we should be doing or stop doing something we know we shouldn't be doing. It's always very easy to come up with a list of things I'd like to do/not do throughout the year, but not so easy to actually stick to that list. I've been thinking long and hard about what I truly want to accomplish this year, and what I think I'm actually going to be able to accomplish. I can't overwhelm myself with a laundry list of resolutions because I'll fail before I even begin. I've decided to take on just one, but I'm going to make it a good one that will benefit me and my children forever. This year I'm going to tune out the world more so that I am able to live by the laws of the Bible more without struggle. I often feel like it's a fight to live in society today and be a good Christian. The two just don't seem to go hand in hand. I'm certainly not going to become a recluse, but I'm going to, as my dad always says, "keep my own doorstep clean". I'm lucky that I've come to know many wonderful people who have been a blessing and a very positive presence in my life. I think simply knowing some of these wonderful people will help me stick to my commitment. I hope this year God will help me set good examples for my children that will help continue to put them on the right track in life. Pray for me and wish me luck!

school starts Monday

I really want to get the house all cleaned up and organized because on Monday we are all back to hitting the books; but I'm just dragging! Tomorrow I'm going to head down to the college bookstore to pick up my books for class (the instructor added yet another book to the required list), and stop by the office supply store and grab a handful of things I need for my schoolwork. I'm hoping once my pile of school stuff is sitting on the table, I'll feel more motivated to get the house in order. I also need to make some lesson plans for the kids school work. I'm going to push them a bit for now so that we can be done when the baby arrives in May. I've decided not to continue anyone's activities for the time being because there is just too much to be done. (and it's so hard to get a groove going when we have to go somewhere almost every day of the week) Perhaps I just need to go to bed early and start fresh tomorrow. Yesterday was a long day for the kids, and they are all a bit crabby today. (I think we are all in a mood to just hide in our rooms) I'm looking forward to starting school, but I know Monday will be here all too soon.

I have an announcement

Or perhaps an introduction of sorts? Anyhow, we have picked a name for our new baby boy! It came to us much quicker than I expected it would, but it just "feels" like the right fit. Although Bella had some very creative suggestions (recent ones included Gorg, Digit, Uncle Gadget Bubble Gum, Puppy Bath, and Canoon), we decided to go with something that resembles a name more than the incoherent musings of Isabella.

Micaiah Gregory

For those of you wondering right now, yes, Micaiah is a name directly from the Bible. Gregory, as I mentioned before, is after Jeremy's brother. It's nice to be able to refer to him by name now rather than "it", "the baby", "little bean", etc...... His movements are getting stronger everyday, and Jeremy is even starting to feel the little kicks. He is on schedule to arrive mid-May, and we are all very excited to meet baby Micaiah.