Roots...Wings & Madi Moments

Wordy Wednesday cont.

2011-07-20T20:08:00.000-07:00

Training Day Part 2

As I said in the end of my previous post I am going to jump right in and recap some of our day.

Our first training moment came pretty much when I expected it...as soon as Madi (almost 4 years old) got out of bed! :) First, I think mornings can be tough for all ages...mommies too! I don't particularly feel like always being happy and polite first thing in the morning. But, starting off the day grumpy is NO GOOD either, so we shoot for the positive. We are fortunate to get to stay home most of the time so I rarely have have to wake Madi up. I love being able to let her sleep until she wakes up on her own and I feel like she is happier that way (I am sure we will have a real "wake-up call" Kindergarten year!). Most mornings she comes into my room and crawls up in bed with me and we kindof ease into our day. One of the mommy issues I have have been working on is trying to get up and ready before her so that I can feel a little more prepared for the day. I feel like this is going to be even more important once baby #2 arrives. So this morning, I had made it as far as the shower when she came into the room. Sometimes, just being too cheerful (or someone else getting too much attention) can make (anyone) grumpy, so I just went for a good morning and asked her if she she wanted to go ahead and get her shower with me. She did, but of course her first instinct is to be fussy, whiny and want it to be all about her. I am fighting it at this point because while I want to excuse all of it and just say "she is tired, she wants to be held, maybe she is hungry" etc. etc. I also am remembering that one of my goals is to reinforce that fussing and whining does not get you what you want. I tried not to make too big a deal of anything, but calmly instructed her that I would address whatever when she did not whine. We have been over this before and this morning she seemed to get it pretty quick and would almost immediately start talking to me in a normal tone.

Out of the shower she of course wants to have my full attention immediately, but I give her a towel and ask her to wait till I can get dressed to help her. Daddy comes in and is getting ready to leave for work offers to carry her to her room to get dressed. "I want mommy!"she whines. This warms my heart :), but is completely unnecessary and I feel like it is part of her overall desire to control me and the situation so I just tell her to let daddy carry her and I will be there. She complies and sweetly lays her head on daddy's shoulder.

A short time later daddy is getting ready to leave and I tell her to tell daddy goodbye. Again, she does not want to. I realize this is not a life/death issue, BUT is part of an ongoing attitude I have noticed with her. She wants your attention when she wants it, but if it wasn't her idea or she thinks it's what you want...well then, alot of times she wants the opposite. AND one of my goals is teaching her to be polite and I don't feel like I can let her by with it. I have to get a little more stern with her and tell her to go catch daddy at the door and tell him bye. Again, she complies pretty quick and goes running. SHEW! All this before breakfast!!

Madi wants a drink (and is cold and wants me to read to her :) and I want to quickly finish doing my hair and getting ready for the day before we get too far into it. We go to the fridge and she wants milk, which is what I want to give her, but unfortunately we ran out of milk the night before. I tell her that we are out and she will have to have juice. She is not pleased, but is not throwing a fit either. I pour the juice and hand her the sippy cup. She puts on a pouty face and does not take the cup. I say nothing, put the cup in the fridge and walk out of the kitchen. This is new for me. In the past I probably would have explained again that we were out of milk, told her I was sorry, and also instructed her that she needed to take the cup and say thank you. But in this case, saying no more seemed to get her attention more quickly. She asks "what are we doing now" as we walk out of the kitchen. I don't respond, but take her to my bedroom and put her in the chair with a blanket so she can "get warm" there till I finish getting ready. She ask again about the drink and I tell her she can have it when she asks nicely. She does right away...and no more whining about the milk either! It does not take me long to finish and she plays and sings contented with her stuffed animal till I am ready for breakfast.

Getting in a little food in her belly always helps and after breakfast she plays contented. Later, while I am in my bedroom folding laundry I decide to have her come in and do two small chores: Take the bathroom trash to the kitchen and pull the laundry basket to the laundry room. While trying to explain to her what I want her to do, she continues to jabber and semi-ignore me. I tell her to please "stop talking" and listen. Immediately she lets off a string of words, that were not even words...just mere jibberish that I felt was in direct defiance to my instruction to "stop talking". This was our first call for "discipline". I have not raised my voice, or fussed at her. I calmly tell her to come to me and explain why she is being disciplined. After that she gets a little giggly and silly and complains that the laundry basket is too heavy and it is very hard work and falls on the floor as she tugs it across the carpet. I know it is a little awkward, but also not TOO heavy and I try to make light of it and not baby her (which would be my first instinct). I encourage her and let her know that she is being helpful by taking all of our dirty clothes so mommy can wash them and that once she gets to the wood floor the basket won't be so hard to pull. This she has to see and she is off lugging the basket and I later see that it is neatly lined up in the laundry room with the others and I heard no more about it.

Sooo...looking back over this post we are not even hardly to noon yet :) So there were ALOT of "training opportunities" that I have not even mentioned. BUT it is getting so late and I need to get to bed, so that my day is not shot tomorrow. There are about 1,000 disclaimers that I want to put out here but will just say this. I am not claiming to be any sort of expert on this subject. I am only putting some of my experiences "out there" and I may very well come back later and say "in the long run this approach did not work"! I also realize that giving so much detail could make it appear that I am trying to micro-manage every situation. There are some general principles I am trying to keep in mind, but I also know that circumstances play a big role in how training/discipline need to be handled so that is why I decided to give details.

I linked my previous post up to Facebook and got alot of good feedback and ideas there. So if you are not my "friend" and would like to see some comments from others, just let me know!

Good-night friends, Natalie

Wordy Wednesday*

2011-07-20T12:33:00.000-07:00

Training Day - Part 1

I rarely do a Wordy Wednesday post because while I'm sure I have alot to say (just ask my man! bless his heart) most of it does not seem blog worthy. BUT today I feel like sorting/recording some things out in black and white and just maybe getting some feedback from some of you!

So what is on my mind today? Well, in keeping with what I talked about in my "Mommy Monday" post...the same thing that has been on my mind almost constantly for the past several weeks: Child training and discipline.

Recently I felt that Madi has become increasingly discontent and disobedient. The 4th of July weekend, I spent some time at my sister's house and it literally seemed like I could not ask her to do one thing (from "put these underwear on" to "get out of the road a truck is coming"...Ok, maybe not quite THAT bad!) with out backtalk or whining. I KNOW that I am to blame for a lot of this. This IS my first Rodeo and in her short (almost) 4 years I have done alot of things wrong. Not the least of which is some whining and discontentment of my own. But also, we waited so long for her to come and she has been our "only" so I know it has been easy to spoil her and frankly there have been days it just seems so hard.

That said, I realize God has entrusted us with one of His little angels and I must do the hard things no matter how I feel about it.

I am so thankful for the promise in Proverbs 22:6 ~ "Train up a child in the way that should go: and when he is old he will not depart from it."

So what specifically am I looking for? In a nutshell the biggest issues we are working with Madi right now on are being:

Contented (happy)

Thoughtful (kind)

Respectful (polite)

Obedient

Ok, so to put that in writing makes even me think I am striving for perfection! I don't feel like I am. But in general I feel children should be contented (not whining and complaining most of the time), treat others the way they want to be treated, have good manners and respect others. I feel like obedience is VERY important and it is a command from scripture (Eph. 6:1 "Children obey your parents in the Lord...") so cannot be overlooked. The "first time" or "immediate" obedience issue is probably a whole other post in it's own. But let's just say for now we stress "fast" obedience :). In the past I have instructed Madi that if she wants to do something different than what I tell her to do, she needs to politely ask (as opposed to just DOING it differently or TELLING me she was going to do it differently). But that has come back to bite me at times where she would RARELY do anything I asked without wanting to do it different. Literally things like if would say "put your clothes in this dirty clothes pile", she would want to start her own pile. Obviously this is not a huge issue, but when it turns into every.single.thing you instruct a child to do in the course of a day then the obedience principal does not really come through.

What I really thought I would do today is just post about several of the issues that we have come up against throughout the day and how Madi and I have dealt with them. I didn't realize that it would take me so long to sort through all this "pre" stuff in my head. Madi has been having "quiet time" in her bed (she RARELY takes a nap anymore) and it is really time that I should let her get up and go dust the house which was one of my main goals for the day. So...I am going to publish these random thoughts and hopefully come back later today to post some specifics.
Love in Him, Natalie

Mommy Monday*

2011-07-18T14:48:00.000-07:00

We are making room for a new little one around here, so I thought I would include some pregnancy updates along with pictures of Madi! As is evident from the date of my last post I have not had a whole lot of motivation. Pregnancy can do that to ya! But I have been starting to feel really good for the last several weeks. So thankful for that. My official due date (as of right now :) is November 4th. I will be having a c-section so the plan is to take the baby a week early.

With Madi I went into labor naturally on my due date, but during the course of labor her heart rate started dropping and we ended up in surgery a short time later. The Dr said he thought the reason for the decrease in her heart rate during contractions was due to the umbilical cord being very short. Of course we were just thankful that she made it here safe and healthy, but our hospital will not do a VBAC, so for now that means a cesarean for me. At the beginning of this pregnancy I had quite a bit more morning sickness than I remember with Madi. Actually it was just kind of a "yucky" feeling all day long, but it seems like after the first trimester or so, that passed and I really have been feeling great! This little one also seems to move more than I remember Madi moving. Madi was really a very "still" baby and there were often days I did not feel her move at all. This one I feel most every day, but not to the point where it keeps me up at night or anything!
I have changed doctors from the one I had with Madi. I moved back to Kansas when I was about 4-5 months along (Seth was already here due to his job). So at the time I just started seeing the general family doctor that I had when I was younger. When it came time for the emergency cesarean he consulted with an OBGYN so this time around I made the choice to go with her for my visits. It is an extra bonus that my cousin (Sarah Schaper Bright) works at the office and I love getting to see her and she always makes sure we get extra special care!

Most of you that care to know, already know that we have also made the decision NOT to find out the gender. A friend ask me the other day if it was killing me not to know and I could honestly say "no, it's not!" I love not knowing and have said that for me finding out would be like opening my Christmas presents in June! I love the "surprise" that awaits the moment the baby comes and it does not bother me at all to just start collecting gender specific things once we have the baby home. I have also realized, after analyzing my feelings on the matter, that a small part of that is maybe not wanting to get TOO attached until baby is in our arms. After waiting 7 years for our first one to come along, it felt like a very real possibility that she would never actually make it to us. I truly felt like it was in God's hands, and of course He blessed us so abundantly!! But maybe not knowing the sex of the baby and not calling her by name before she was here safe, was part of my defense mechanism. MOSTLY, I just love a good surprise!
We have started discussing names but have made very little progress on that front. Our boy name for Madi was Noah and we are still throwing that option around if this one is a boy. The only girl name we have (partially :) both agreed on is Anne (of course with an E!) or Annie. I really like the name and the only drawback I have to it is the main Annie I have known was my dear friend Carla's cat!! LOL! I still like the name, but if YOU have any great name ideas, please feel free to comment!

Below is a picture from my last ultrasound at about 18 weeks.

A few weeks ago Madi was playing outside and I decided to take some impromptu pictures. Between my lack of photography skills and her sheer orneriness...here are some of the results.

As I have said in the past, we can hardly have a Madi post without it including some sort of dress up picture :) She was getting ready to take a bath and thinks it's cool NOT to get her hair wet sometimes. So this night I catered to her and pulled out a shower cap.

This is when it was still somewhat cool outside and she wanted to eat breakfast outside. I love how she had to take her little Bible out with her too.

Madi is obsessed with combing her hair :) This particular night all the girls had to put on headbands.

A month or two ago I remember making the statement to Seth that I felt like I was reaping some of the "reward" of the effort we had been putting into training Madi. I felt like Madi was well-behaved and contented and things seemed to be going very smooth. As of the last several weeks, I have NO IDEA what I was talking about! Oh my...parenting can be such a roller coaster sometimes. Lately I have felt like I have just had to start over. Some of our main issues are attitude and obedience...ya know...those minor issues! :) A couple of books that I have referred to that have given me some good ideas that really seem to be helping are "To Train Up A Child" and "Have a New Kid By Friday". There are days I have to remind myself that she has not "grown up" yet and all of the training cannot be done in a day, but requires consistency over time. The other day I decided I needed to just get her busy doing something and practice doing some chores so I would give her a small job and told her to come ask me "is there anything else I can do to help you mommy?" when she has completed each small chore. Hearing her little voice say those words was so sweet and she seemed so contented and happy to be helping. Even once I told her that she was done and could go play she came back and asked if she could help again. It was good to start seeing some progress again and feel a little of the reward of the time and effort that training takes!!

Madi Monday*

2011-03-14T15:20:00.000-07:00

Madi makes an announcement!

We just found out last week that Madi has a sibling on the way!!

We are so excited that God is blessing us with another child.

Click Here...to see Madi's reaction to the news!

I visited the Dr. today and I am 7-8 weeks along. I will go back in 3 weeks to have an ultrasound and hopefully establish a due date. Right now I am estimating middle to late October.

Madi Monday*

2011-03-07T19:42:00.000-08:00

WHAT SHE HAS BEEN UP TO.....

Well, frankly, not too much! We are ready for green grass and warm weather. We have already started a list of things to do when it gets warm. So far, it includes going to the park and cemetary (because it is next to the park and so she thinks it is a fun place to go :( and going to the lake and riding in papa's boat! Sounds so nice!

We are still working on the potty training...not fun! But I think we are making progress.

She has went through a stage of pulling out her hair! AHHH! Which, of course, is making me a little crazy! I am hoping we have that under control. It seemed to happen mostly at night while she was trying to go to sleep so I put a video monitor in her room (and explained that I was watching her!! :)

Learning to do a new chore. It's so cute how particular she is!

"Where does this one go?" :)

We were letting Deogy lay in the laundry room and Madi brought in a book to read to him.

Helping Mommy make Chocolate Chip Cookies. She was carefully constructing them and making sure to add plenty of chocolate chips! :)

Not so sure what the shades were for!

Hiding in Daddy's guitar case.

Watching a movie with grandma. It cracks me up how serious they both look!

Succumbing to peer pressure...it's stylish with the school girls for their socks not to match and Madi has picked up on the trend! :) She will specifically tell me that she does not want them to match.

Mmmm...licking the bowl! Daddy makes great brownies!

Opening Valentine's package mailed from Memaw and Papa Herring!! Thankyou!

She called daddy and asked him to get a bananna split

on his way home from work... He was all too happy to oblige!

Table Tuesday*

2011-02-08T12:14:00.000-08:00

*Dinner and a Movie*

Typically if I do a Table Tuesday post it's because I have a recipe I either want to share or just journal for reference later...but today is a little different.

First, I just want to add a little disclaimer. I am a big advocate of the "dinner table". I think it is important to spend family time around the table with real conversation and learning manners, etc. But the occasional exception can be fun and also build some great memories. Last night was such a night for us!

I came across a movie that I really wanted to share with the family.

When I initially started to watch it, I didn't get very far because it seemed a little "immature"? But something compelled me to give it another try and I was really glad that I did.

*SPOILER*

I loved the relationship that Mr. Sperry built with with these young boys. He was there in the moment when a opportunity arose for him to share his faith, and he built time for them right into his everyday life. And he spared no words on the message of the Bible and the importance of our using the Bible as the guide for our life.

It was such a simple, yet profound reminder for me about what is really important in life. And the reality that one day we all will spend eternity somewhere.
And the little pre-teen crush was just too cute and made me laugh! :)

*END SPOILER*

Of course with 4 generations already living under one roof, we can have an instant party almost anytime although most of the time it is just everyday LIFE :) But so happened last night my niece and nephew were here with us and it seemed like the perfect time for my plan. With the 8 of us here ranging from 3 years to 86 years we all enjoyed this family film!

In order to save some time in our evening we planned to have finger food for supper in the living room while we watched our movie. We kept it simple, but threw a tablecloth over the coffee table and added a few candles for effect. We happened to have some snack food on hand since we had stocked up in anticipation of the big snow storm last week! Taylar (niece) and I put together summer sausage, cheese and cracker tray, some ham salad sandwiches, popcorn, chips and white chocolate covered pretzels.

Part of what I am taking away from this...a PRAYER in my heart that God will help me know how to reach out to those around me. A neighbor, a friend, even my family.

Make a memory with YOUR FAMILY tonight!!

Madi Monday*

2011-02-07T14:02:00.000-08:00

Whenever the family gets together and we have a devotional time together we often sing some songs. This is a song that Madisons' older cousins learned for a school program. They love to sing it and Madi has picked up on (most of :) the words. Now it has become one of her favorites to sing too. This is the chorus referring to the Bible story of the Fiery Furnace (Daniel 3).

God is able, God is able

To deliver from the fire.

He will rescue those who serve Him

When the flames are burning higher.

Madi Monday*

2011-01-17T03:29:00.000-08:00

I hadn't got any 3 yr pictures of Madi taken since her birthday in September. So the week before Christmas, Maria (LINK HERE) kindly agreed to come to our house and take some for me. Sooo much easier than trying to get to a studio or for me to try to take them! ;) She did a great job! Madi is your typical 3yo and is really not into just smiling for the camera for hours, but Maria got some great shots. Here are a few!

When it came time for Madi to participate in the Christmas program and dress up like an angel, I realized I should have made more of an effort to get her to some of the practices! She did NOT want to do it! So we got dressed up and she sat on my lap with the other children and suddenly when it was time for them to go up front she just went! :) Of course I thought she was the cutest lil' Angel in the choir! :)

Here is one of her recent attempts to make her own hair....I LOVE IT! But not enough to let her go out in public yet!

Building a Playdough house one Sunday afternoon. Yes, we have very unique colors of Playdough! You can't find Olive green or black/white swirl just anywhere!

I am so one of those OCD moms that just had a hard time wanting to get out the Playdough because HORRORS!!! she might mix the colors or get some on the floor. Then I realized...who really cares?!?!

Throw a big sheet on the floor, get out her little pint sized table and let her go town. Put the Playdough back HOWEVER it will fit into the containers and shake out the sheet outdoors. Wallah...a fun time and no stress!

MORE DRESS UP!!! We can't have a Madi Monday post without some dress up pictures!

Madi loves to pretend she is grandma! :) Here she pretend to sleep while lying in grandmas electrical chair. She also LOVES to "take her pills". Too cute.

Poor girl...she spent a couple weeks after Christmas suffering from a cold. The medicine I gave her to help sleep worked a little TOO well and she seemed to be falling asleep in the oddest places!

"I'd love to finish my bed-time snack...but I'm sooo sleepy!" :)

Madi is recognizing most all of the alphabet and numbers 0-10. She is recognizing a few words too! We are not pushing this, but have some videos she likes to watch and she has picked up on this very quickly!

She is going through a clingy stage and doesn't want to go to Sunday School or participate with the other children as much. And it's OK. We just keep working with her and give her opportunities to be with other children when we can.

Every so often she informs us that she wants a brother, or a sister (depending on her mood!) and we would love for God to send her one! She still eats like a bird and has not quite hit the 25 lb mark yet.
"And that's the news, now everyone knows!" :)

LOL! Blues Clues much!?

Wordy Wednesday: Of Giving Care

2011-01-05T10:45:00.000-08:00

I carefully open the door and flip on the light.
I wish I could flip a switch that would rid her mind of the darkness hovering there.

I throw back the covers and tug on her stockings.
I would that I could throw away all the events of the last months that have brought on the changes in her. I tug at her mind , asking “does she know what day it is” and "does she know where she is?" She assures me she does. She has taken a trip last night and now in "these peoples" home or "this facility".

I am disheartened. It's Tuesday and we are home. So I draw back the curtains...hoping to draw on the familiarity of the outdoors to help orientate her. The garden she worked so many hours in is there, just a few yards away. It was beautiful before. "I just haven't been up to working in it", she says. There it is…a spark! I remind her that it is winter so it is OK that we have not been tending the garden.

I help her off with her nightgown and slip on clean disposable undergarments. "Is there someone in the office here I can talk to about paying for what I have used”? Again, I am disheartened. How fleeting that moment of light; how quickly the fog slips back over her mind.

I move on as so many mornings before, hoping that as moves throughout the house her mind will clear.

I help her into a casual skirt and top. She stops me, the shirt half on, covering her face. "I don't want to wear this to church"! Frustrated, I remind her that it is Tuesday. She is frustrated as well. As a Pastor's wife, church was such a part of her life. Now every day seems like Sunday and yet we spend day after day in the same mundane routine. Other family members come and go; working, playing. It troubles her that we are not keeping the Sabbath. Again I remind her; it is Tuesday.

I brush her tangled gray hair. What goes on in the mind that tangles it so? That brings all the events of yesteryear's into today? I want to brush it all away. How frustrating it must be for her as her body is aging, not quite healed from the broken hip, and arthritis taking over; for her mind to be insisting that she must rise before the sun to get the fire going in the schoolhouse. Those children depend on her. I question how she plans to keep up with them at recess time with that walker? Ok, that was not nice I realize. But somehow I think that my voice of reason will jar her back to reality.
It does not.

We finish the routine. She stands, dressed, hair neatly combed, slender. Beautiful.
I am wishing once again that we had a routine for dressing the mind.
I'll have to leave that with her Maker.

"What do we do now"? she asks.
"Well", I reply, "how about coming to the kitchen and taking some pills"?
I say this knowing how much she hates this task and she laughs. I love to see her smile. In that moment it seems like all could be right again. I give her a hug, lingering to rub her undoubtedly aching back. I remind myself I need to hug her more.

We venture on into the day and I don't know what it will bring.
I realize once again that this task of care giving is not about changing her. It is about me learning to change.
To be patient.
To be kind.
To love.
To give, care.
I am learning and I am the one privileged to do just that.

Madi Monday* {Belated}

2010-12-06T06:24:00.000-08:00

For some reason...I don't think these pix are letting me click to make bigger...so here is the text!
"With Madi's love for trying on clothes...It was very painful for her when I sorted ALL of them in the living room and would not let her try on every item! :)

I was relieved when they were all sorted and put away. :)"

Family Friday*

2010-11-12T11:53:00.000-08:00

It's been tooo long since I've posted a family update! But I am over making excuses...my blog just has not been a priority. But, I thought it would be fun to kinda review what we have been up to over the past few months.

Birthday's: Celebrated Seth & Leah's birthday (with family in Indiana). Celebrated Madi's Birthday (for over a week! :) Celebrated my dad's birthday (by taking Dilly Bars and passing them out to all of his co-workers :) so fun... and then with a Family Dinner at El Publito's. Celebrated mom's birthday with a family Sunday dinner here at the farm. Celebrated an elderly friends b-day by attending a dinner party at her granddaughter's house. SEVERAL other of my nieces and nephews had birthdays that I didn't get to help celebrate much at all :( except give them a small cash gift. Celebrated a very special BIRTH day of Tryke Wesley Duane Davolt. Born to to our good friends John and Mendy. Such a beautiful sweetheart.
Help to decorate for and attend a baby shower for Mendy.
Celebrated our 10th Wedding anniversary with a weekend trip to Branson. And combined that with a Meet-up with our good friends Jimmy & Carla and their family. Yeah! Love seeing friends from Indiana!!
Decorated the Children's Chapel Building for the children's services at our General Family Camp. The theme was "Crusin' In My Father's Car" and it was super fun to decorate for. Road signs, a standee of an red convertible, a "highway" made out of tape on the floor, a "body shop", a "diner"...so fun! A friend took some pix for me and I hope to get them from her camera soon!
Traveled to Indiana for a weekend with friends and family. And attended a Going-Away for Drew and Dana for their upcoming move to Cameroon.
An overnight stay with friends in Missouri on the way home from Indiana.
Attended as many services as possible of our General Family Camp.
Spoke at a Women of Worth meeting in Missouri on Home Decorating. It was such an a honor for the ladies in my sister's WOW fellowship to ask me to speak. I was SO NERVOUS!! I had never attempted something like this, but I really enjoyed myself and the women were very gracious! And I got to fit in an overnight stay with my sis as well!
Seth traveled (by air!) with my dad and brother for the Men's of Integrity Retreat.
Seth filled in preaching 3-4 times at one of our churches that is between pastors. This was the first time I have ever heard him speak (he had 1 other time) and he did and EXCELLENT job. God really helped him and it has been a blessing to worship with the people at the Scammon church.
Seth spent several weeks on the road for work. South Dakota, Missouri, Illinois.
Helped decorate for Missions Week at our local Bible School.
Had my sister's kids up for an overnight camping excursion right here on our property!
Finished packing and moving from our house in town. Rented the house to my brother...yeah!! Spent several day unpacking, rearranging and organizing here at grandmas' house. This is still a work in progress!
Attended a benefit auction for my cousin's daughter,Kaitlyn who has Aplastic Anemia.
Helped organize and work a 2-day indoor yard sale to benefit Kaitlynn. This was such a blessing to be a part of.
Cooked supper for a neighbor that had helped us out when Deogy came home hurt. Had some friends over for dinner to discuss/plan an upcoming event.
Had house guests for a week (Adrian and her girls!!) And more house guests come on that weekend Amy (friend from college) and her daughter Chloe. We were so excited to have them come from Indiana and thoroughly enjoyed their visit.
Helped plan and host an all day Fall Party for 80+ guests here at the farm. Complete with a whole hog roast and many other fun activities.
Plan a skit for Pastor Appreciation Month for my Sunday School Class.
Had Drew & Dana (Seth's brother) as house guests for 10 days. Attended 3 of their deputation services. Had as much fun as possible here on the farm and squeezed in a weekend trip to Branson.
Spent a week sitting in the chair sick and being lazy in general.
Decorate the church foyer for Fall/Harvest.
Mom took a weekend trip to Florida and then she and Dad took a weekend trip to Branson (we care for g-ma on the weekends when they are away).
Got to spend a couple days with friends when someone offered to come spend the day with grandma. This was a HUGE BLESSING to me!!
And random other Doctor/Dentist appointments for Grandma and I. Several other family dinner's here at the house and carry-in dinners at church.
This week...Revival services at church. (of which I have only made it to 1 so far :(.

Woah!! I THOUGHT I was JUST a SAHM. If you have actually read through this you are probably as bored as I am tired!

All I can say is...I am as BLESSED as we have been BUSY!!
God has been so good to our family.

Have a GREAT weekend!!

Thankful Thursday*

2010-11-11T09:29:00.000-08:00

A day to reflect on what I am thankful for could not have fell on a more appropriate day this week.

Veteran's Day

11.11.2010

In GOD we still trust...Here in AMERICA!!

THANKFUL FOR THEIR SACRIFICE...

then and now.

Wordy Wednesday*

2010-11-10T12:10:00.000-08:00

WoRDs tO LivE bY

We will LOVE and we will do so without prejudice. Loving God with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength and loving our neighbor as our self. Understanding that love may never be acknowledged or reciprocated. Loving, because He first loved us.