another not me monday~

If you've never checked out MckMama's My Charming Kids blog, you have to go over there. She is always good for a laugh and has a hilarious perspective on her life with her MSCs (many small children.) My Charming Kids is home to Not Me Monday.

So...apparently I must be the only one among all of you that is less than perfect, as none of you have ever written a Not Me Monday post! Come on people, I've thrown out all my laundry here several times, and although I know you love reading about all my mishaps, no one seems brave enough to spill the beans about what really goes on at their house. Not to uh, be bossy or induce guilt or anything :o)

This past week...

I did not forget about the cow we had butchered and buy a huge pile of ground beef to brown for my freezer. Not me, my going-on-seven-kids-in-ten-years brain never forgets important details like that.

And that was not me that got ridiculously offended at the Costco gas station attendant when he told Anna she needed to get back in the car due to their store safety policy. And you didn't see me mutter under my breath that at the other Costco she always helps me clean out the trash in the car and no one ever says anything. And I definitely didn't ignore him when he told me to have a nice day. I would never be so rude.. And I wasn't thinking something like, "Come on, it's not like I'm letting all my toddlers out of the car to run around."

It certainly wasn't me that forgot to put the chicken in the ahem...chicken alfredo and didn't even realize it until my sweet husband said, "Isn't there usually chicken in here?"

And if you see an adorable 5 year old girl wearing Converse in the near future (instead of her super cute brown Mary Janes) it is not Moriah. Because my sister did not take her to the skate park on their spend-the-night outing and she didn't come home saying she wants to be a skateboarder girl and needs some of those star shoes. Therefore, I haven't been hoping she'll forget about it and she hasn't asked me at least once every day if she can puhhhlease get some. My daughter is definitely not a skateboarder girl.

And it wasn't me that Ethan's teacher was talking to when she said, "Oh, are you his Mom?" Because it's not me that's had her sister take her kids to school every week since school started. Remember, I'm the involved parent. And since we're not talking about me, I definitely didn't have to call my sister to find out what time my kids need to be picked up.

On the other hand....

It most certainly WAS me that sent my kids to the homeschool enrichment group dressed in their pajamas on pajama day! Some of you may remember that I uh, have a history of sending my kids dressed up for various dress up days on the wrong day. Poor kids, they were nervous the entire way there that they would be the only ones in pajamas ;o)

What did you not do?

created to be his helpmeet~

long time no blog~

Gee whiz. I just looked at the list of posts and realized it's been awhile. I guess I've been busy.

It seems like I'm always evaluating our routines, school, etc. but January is usually more of an intensely focused time for that. And it took awhile to find a home for the 2,365, 897 new toys. Ugh. Not to mention that for Christmas I got a Kitchenaid mixer and a breadmaker so I've been playing with experimenting with creating one flop after another doing a lot of trial and error baking in an attempt to create a gluten free sandwich bread that is peanut butter and honey worthy for Ethan. My sweet family is so bread-desperate though that they have promptly (as in within minutes) gobbled up everything I have made. Hard crusts, gooey centers and all. Anything tastes good with a little honey or garlic butter on it :o)

On a side note, a good part of my mental and emotional energy has been spent obsessing over and praying over a really difficult situation I'm going through with a very, very close friend. It is definitely one of the hardest things I've ever dealt with emotionally, so prayers would be much appreciated!

Can you believe I'm 26 weeks along? If I can ever figure out how to take one of those mirror shots and have it turn out decently I'll post a photo. If you picture your regular pregnant Mom right around 8 months or so, that's what I look like at 6.5 months. Well, it's how I feel anyway. I've definitely hit the stage where I ask someone else to get anything for me that involves bending and turning over in bed at night is an event. You all know exactly what I'm talking about don't you :o) Regardless of the constant fatigue, awkwardness, and body parts wedged in uncomfortable positions, I am still daily grateful the Lord has blessed us with another little sweetie and that she is healthy. We won't talk about the varicose veins I have in my right leg that I have never had before. I must be getting old ;o)

I am getting very excited about having another little girl. Moriah has been past the dresses and barrettes and cute little baby girl clothes stage for awhile now and I am missing it! I have all the girl clothes washed and sorted into drawers (by size up through 12 months of course!) and am beginning to get anxious.

I have also begun to enter the nesting stage. I think I'm a little overly preparatory compared to most people, but it's how I am and it works for me. Last night it occurred to me that since my birth history now encompasses an entire month of really thinking it could be any minute, I need to be ready at the beginning of April. This plan didn't work out so smoothly with Haven, but both my girls were over two weeks early, and since my dates this time have been a little sketchy tending toward the earlier due date side, I'd rather be safe than caught off guard. So that means that February needs to be my cooking and stocking up month and March needs to be my deep cleaning month. So I ordered a bunch of coupons from the coupon clippers so I can stock up on nine months worth of non perishables. I'm talking about everything from canned goods to diapers to paper towels to clothes for the kids. I do not enjoy shopping with an infant, so I try and get as much stocked up as possible to make grocery day as easy as possible. We don't exactly live down the road from the store and it's usually around 6 months that I can begin leaving the baby at home while I do errands. That's why I aim for 9 months of supplies.

So now I need to begin making a plan for what meals I want to make. We're just about out of what I made back in August. And since my birthday is in March, I'm uh...hinting...that having someone else come and deep clean the house would be an excellent birthday gift :o)

Wow, I can't believe it's already time to be thinking about this stuff!

fourth folder fun~

A blogger friend, Christy, whom I hope to meet in real life one day, tagged me for a funny little post. Take the fourth photo folder on your computer, take the fourth photo from that folder, post it, and explain it.

Here you go....classic me ;o)

This was taken in 2007 May, when I was at the Kdg/1st grade Mother's Day Tea with Caleb who had just turned 7. I used to joke that if we continued going to New Song (the two day per week homeschool co-op we used to attend) that I would be attending the Mother's Day Tea something like 12 years in a row. And probably be pregnant at every other one ;o)

This is the year I was expecting Haven. I think in this photo, I was probably a week away from my due date (and unbenownst to me at the time, still three weeks away from his actual birth day.) It was a very funny May as there were tons of end of year things I was trying to arrange around having a baby. There was the Mother's Day Tea, end of year parties, field day, etc, etc. It eventually became quite comical. My aunt (who helps me a lot in the two weeks following my births) was finishing up her school year as a teacher, and it seemed like everyone had something going on. I kept getting requests to please have the baby by________ or just don't have him on _____ or ______. "Tuesday would be good, but not Monday or Wednesday. The weekend would be okay, but I would really prefer a weeknight." (Have you ever tried to arrange a home birth around your husband, the end of a school year, your mother in law, two sisters, and an aunt? Not to mention my midwife's family was in town. Gee whiz people, you either make it or you don't! ;o) Having previously had all early babies, and knowing May would be busy, I had my house completely cleaned and my freezer completely filled by the end of April, expecting another early baby. Well, Mr. Haven decided to overly accomodate everyone's schedules and not come until the very end of May, a full two weeks late.

Thanks, buddy. That was really thoughtful of you. Being a week and a half overdue at field day was a blast ;o)

i love it...2009 january~

I love it that even though Haven has been walking for probably close to six months, he still is very wobbly and when he really gets going, you can't help but cringe thinking surely he's going to run straight into something any minute. He's still a little top heavy ;o)

I love it that Noah calls Anna, "Nina." Even though he could say Anna if he wanted to.

I love it that even though Ethan is now seven, he still holds my hand.

I love it that Noah could be a genuine "Barney" kid, he can sing while smiling a huge cheesey smile with the best of them. All while swaying back and forth and nodding his head at all the appropriate moments.

I love it that I can buy any pair of roller blades at the Goodwill and bring them home knowing they will surely fit someone.

I love it when Haven takes my hand and says, "Co-, co-" (He hasn't quite gotten the "m" sound on the end yet.)

I'm wondering if Haven is going to have a permanent smiley face scar in the middle of his eyebrows even when he's an adult. But I'm really thankful we were able to take out his stitches at home so we didn't have to drag him back to the hospital again.

I love it that I have enough boys spaced and sized just right that I rarely have to store clothes in the attic. I just move them from one person's closet to another.

I love it that we've been having consistent 2-3 hour naptimes every day since Anna was born so now even my older kids just accept it as a normal part of their day. It's everyone's down time to pursue their own interests in peace and quiet. Or nap. Napping is very important sometimes ;o)

I love it that Anna knows just how to distract Haven and get him interested in something else when I need her to. Often without even asking. She is awesome with little kids and I love just watching her interact with the smaller guys.

And I love it that she is always writing a story. Always.

I love it that Caleb wanted long johns for Christmas so he could work outside in the cold.

I love it that anytime Glen is working on anything, Caleb is right there with him. And I love it that Glen welcomes all the kids to "help" him pretty much anytime he's working on anything, which is pretty much always.

I love it that last week when Glen was putting shingles on the shed he let all the kids up on the roof with him to help.

I love it that Moriah and Noah sometimes disappear upstairs for hours to play house.

I love it that for Christmas Moriah wanted puppy stuff, a scooter, a bigger kid skateboard, and roller blades. And she is always keeping an eye out for a new baseball hat.

I love it that now that Ethan is seven he says his taste buds have grown up. And I am so thankful that he has accepted the no gluten lifestyle with a very matter of fact attitude and I don't think he's complained once!

I love it that when bribed properly motivated, my four oldest kids can have the downstairs really, really clean in under thirty minutes. Vaccuming included.

I love it that Anna spent most of December teaching herself Christmas songs on the baby light up keyboard book and had NO IDEA that we were getting her a real keyboard for Christmas.

I love it that Moriah is loving school and gets out her "work" every day on her own without me having to ask her.

I love it that she has to come and kiss me goodnight twice.

I love it that when it's her day to do errands with me, she loves to count the horses we pass on the way home (47 last time) in between sounding out words and figuring out word families.

I love it that we finally figured out we can occupy play with Haven up to an hour a day in the bathtub if we divide it up between two baths and take turns watching him.

I love that Noah puts his little face up to my tummy and says, "Hi, baby Grace!"

I love it that when I take naps with Noah he still insists on cuddling up as close as possible, and on days when he's not quite ready to fall asleep, he plays with his fingers until he gets tired. So sweet.

I love it that when Haven gets tired, he grabs my hand and pulls me to his bed and points at it. Sometimes he's so happy to lay down that he laughs.

I love it that even though it's *only* 50 degrees outside, my kids think it's warm enough to play berry factory in the woods and eat lunch on the deck while wearing shorts and tshirts.

I love it that when it's cold, Haven likes us to open the door so he can stand next to it and hold his hands up by his head and shiver and say "cold, cold."

I love it that my kids shoes are almost always covered in mud. Even though it's gross, it reminds me of how thankful I am that I live somewhere where they can just go outside and be kids.

And I love it that when it's Noah's turn to pray, he starts out with the Boz prayer (Boz is a kids' video), and speed prays (read as fast as possible) "Thank you, God, as this day ends, for my family and my friends. Taking time to sit and pray, thank you, God, for this great day. In Jesus' name, Amen."

my utmost for His highest~

This is what greeted me yesterday morning...

"My eager desire and hope being that I may never feel ashamed, but that now as ever I may do honour to
Christ in my own person by fearless courage."

Philippians 1:20

What a challenge for the new year!

I love Oswald Chamber's My Utmost for His Highest. I have been reading it since sometime in my teen years. For several years since our last move, it was relegated to an obscure bookshelf, and I just recently pulled it down and am rediscovering what is evidently nothing short of pure inspiration to Mr. Chambers from the Holy Spirit.

Are you familiar with it? For so long when I first read it, I was almost daily astounded at how it spoke directly to whatever I was currently struggling with and needing encouragement in. And I'm not talking about a general feeling of "Oh, what a funny coincidence." I mean more like blown away. I have since heard other people say that same thing. While I try and read it out of my book, I also subscribe to the daily devotional in my google reader. You can subscribe to the feed here. I would encourage you to check it out. It is motivating, encouraging, and often challenging.

So back to yesterday. What struck me is that the past couple of weeks I feel as if I've come to another one of those crossroads in life. The place where I have to choose, again, to die to self, and submit to what I feel the Lord is calling me to do. It's nothing huge in so far as *what* it is, though I'm sure it's huge in the grand scheme of things, it's just another layer of selfishness coming off. You know, the whole "he who loses his life for My sake will find it" sort of stuff. And boy is that hard sometimes. But yet, whenever I look back as these various points in my life, I can see the tremendous fruit and blessing that has come of it when I have, through the grace of God, chosen to go His way.

Oftentimes when I come to these places, it is a gradual building of consciousness. Usually, it begins with my being overwhelmingly and increasingly frustrated at something, and gradually, as I become more and more desperate for God to step in, He causes me to realize it is yet another place of choosing His way over my own. Sadly to say, for me, I usually drag this out much longer than necessary! But thankfully, the Lord is faithful and continues to lead me in the way I need to go.

So it was just in the last few days, Monday specifically, where I was once again desperate and crying out to the Lord for change and breakthrough in some areas of weakness and frustration, asking Him for specific answers, that as I was napping, and going in and out of that place of consciousness, that I felt His answer. And it very much had to do with my laying down *my* life for His way. Sounds simple, but it came to me clearly and I felt as if I came out of a fog.

And as the new year dawned, I read these thoughts from the 1 January devotional...

"...We shall all feel very much ashamed if we do not yield to Jesus on the point He has asked us to yield to Him. Paul says-'My determination is to be my utmost for His highest.' To get there is a question of will, not of debate nor of reasoning, but a surrender of will, an absolute and irrevocable surrender on that point. An overweening consideration for ourselves is the thing that keeps us from that decision..."

"...Shut out every other consideration and keep yourself before God for this one thing only - My Utmost for His Highest. I am determined to be absolutely and entirely for Him and for Him alone."

"...God's order (sometimes) has to work up to a crisis in our lives because we will not heed the gentler way. He brings us to the place where He asks us to be our utmost for Him, and we begin to debate; then He produces a providential crisis where we have to decide-for or against, and from that point the "Great Divide" begins. If the crisis has come to you on any line, surrender your will to Him absolutely and irrevocably."

So I've been really thinking about it and figuring out what specific changes I need to make in obedience to His leading, and so I have greeted the new year. Hoping, desperately hoping for more of Him. That He would come and be here. In this place.

Come, Lord. We need you. We are desperate for more of You. Be here. With me. In this place.