Pics of the school room

I thought I would upload some pics of the school room. I am still working on getting that video to work. So, here is where we "usually" do seat work like math and writing. We do bible, read alouds, and sometimes history outside on the screened in porch. LA is usually done inside on the couch or floor. I use the whiteboard ALOT. It keeps
the littles from grabbing at me so that I can teach the oldder ones! You can see on one of the pic that I use a kitchen rooling cart as my desk in this room. Itworks great! That small desk is there for my son Toby because he felt left out.

First Video?

http://www.captivatedminds.com/sept192006.swf
See if this works

Video

Ok, I am thinking about adding some video. It would just be me talking mostly. We got a new camera so I want to play with it....

Lose to Invest

I know the title sounds confusing so let me try and explain. Americans believe that investing is putting something into something else which produces something better than the thing you put in. All of this is supposed to be done with minimal effort. They believe that because they are “smart” it should come easy and quickly. Wrong! Even “smart” people have to sacrifice something to get something. Now, there is upon occasion blessings that come from the Father that we have nothing to do with. Being born into wealth, being very fertile, and being a genius(one that has knowledge above what can be taught). Nobody can really brag on those things because it has nothing to do with any sacrifices that person made. There are many things in our lives that could be called investments, though I don’t think most people look at them that way. For instance:
Spending time with your spouse
Raising your children
Teaching your children
Reading an educational book
Late nights working on a home business
Cleaning your house
Exercising
Eating right
Let’s try to make some investments today!

Why we shouldn't plan beyond today....

Well, as you might have guessed, we have had experience with this lately. 2 events changed our plans this week. We were planning on going to my MIL's this weekend so that she could watch the kids and DH and I could get some time together. That didn't happen. Summer came down with a runny nose, fever, and vomiting. So much for the weekend. Then, on Sunday, I backed out of the garage and was not paying attention to what I was doing. I backed straight into DH's car! The parking gear does not work now. He had to put the emergency brakes on so that it wouldn't roll. I feel terrible about it. Not only that, but now we only have one car and the kids and I are the ones that are going to suffer. The consequences of not paying attention are great!
I was talking to Charlotte yesterday and she asked me why I shouldn't get in trouble for "not paying attention". I told her I am getting in trouble and its much worse than a spanking! She said "How?" I told her that now I have to stay home all day instead of being able to go out. And if we choose to get the car fixed, thats money that needs to be spent. She said "What about lying. You don't get in trouble if your an adult." (You have to understand that she is having a little problem with this herself lately) I said "Oh yes we do! If we get caught in our job lying, they could fire us! Also, if we have kids, then we teach them to lie and they will ultimately teach their children too. So, see we would have affected 2 families by lying! That is definately bad consequences!" She quieted after that.
I have learned this lesson of planning over the last couple of years so it doesn't bother me as much as it might have 5 years ago. I used to get upset over ANYTHING that didn't go as planned. But,we know that God is God. My knowledge only comes from experience and public school(which isn't much!) Therfore, I have no clue what he has in store for me from day to day. Sometimes I like his suprises, sometimes I don't. Ultimately, it doesn't matter. It may stink for a while but I know that I will learn something out of it because his planning is never worthless.

Moving in

Well, we are almost moved in. It's a good thing too because I hurt! Yesterday I spent alot of time putitng together some patio furniture. The table wasn't hard but the chairs, lets just say I was about ready to eat on the floor! Thekids were pretty good yesterday. I took the girls to their first brownies meeting for the year. They love it soo much. I took the three littlest ones to BarnesnNoble. I got to hang out with another homeschooling Mom. It was nice to talk and not worry about moving for a while. Alex is getting BIG!! He did good last night on his feedings. Lately he has not gotten up in the middle of the night and STAYED up. He just goes right back to sleep. I will have to upload some more pics today. I have a lot planned for today but will probably only accomplish about half. I am planning on staying at the house and organizing stuff. Everythings everywhere right now and its driving me and Jason batty.

Emergency Room

Well, there has been some major developments over the last 72 hours!! We went to get the house on Tuesday but something bad happened while we were there. Toby fell and passed out. We took him to the ER and they said he seemed fine. They thought he passed out from holding his breath. The scary thing about this is that I dreamed it. It has been about 2 months since I dreamed it but I have been on "hightened" alert since my dream. It was sooo real and I lived it Tuesday. So, that being said, we decided AGAINST the house. Even though I loved it soooo much, I couldn't live with myself if something else happened, like an accident in the pond. On Wed. we looked at another house that was perfect. I couldn't have asked for a better house for us. The only draw back is that it is 30 min. away from Jason's work. He loves this area though, he wanted to live here before we saw the house on the farm. The house we looked at before that was in this area was very small. This house is 2300 or 2400 sq ft, and has 4 BR, a bonus, and a study!! We will be moving in within the next week or so. This weekend we are going to see my new nephew!!! Hopefully Jason and I will be able to get some alone time together to talk. The best thing about this new house is that it has a screened in porch. I am looking forward to eating out there and talking with Jason. It seems in this small apartment that the sounds just bounce off the walls and make a bee line for your eardrum! The kids are excited as well. Summer is stirring so I have to get Sum Sum the Bum Bum out of her crib.

New house

Well, i think we decided on our rental house. As of right now, I LOVE it!!!! I never thought I would find a house in Columbia that I love. I fell in love with it the first time I saw the front door! Its on a horse farm and has tons of walking trails around it that go on for miles. Here are some pics of the outside. As you can see, the kids can just walk up to the horses. This is right beside our driveway. There is another house right behind ours that the horse keeper sleeps in. She is just hired to take care of them. I am very excited but apprehensive as well. We will only get dial up and it has gas heat. We had gas heat in our last home but it was new. I don't know how insulated this one is. The man that owned the farm actually built the house himself. He used the wood from the farm for the inside and of course you can see that its brick on the outside. We will be moving on the 1st. I am praying this is a wise decision.


We were going to attempt to buy a home but I just don't think that would be wise. We are not very familiar with the city and I don't know how long we might be here. Plus, I REALLY don't won't to get into debt again!! We just finished paying off everything but the car so I don't want to take on 180,000, which is what we would have HAD to do to get a home big enough and in a decent neighborhood. This rental house is 9 miles away from Jason's work yet it seems and feels like 100!! I hope I won't be too scared in it! I am going over there again today to fill out the application but the lady basically told us we have the house. YEAH!! I might try to post some pics of the inside but the lights are off so I don't know how good they will be....

Apartment living and Family Additions

Well, I thought I would TRY and get a word in while the little one naps.It's been really tough lately. This apartment is getting smaller by the minute! I can't wait till November. I really don't know if we will find something we like but I am praying!! We will be renting because we feel that's the best decision for us right now. I can't wait till I can let the office know what I think about this place!
Now for some GREAT news!! I have a new nephew!!! He is gorgeous and big, nine pounds! My sister-in-law did a great job. I can't wait to meet him, hopefully within the month. It is such a wonderful blessing when we add to our families, isn't it!
Well, I sang with my mom at her church last Sunday. We did a great job and I got asked back! I walked away pleased, something that doesn't usually happen! i was especially worried about this performance because we only practiced without the vocals one time before we had to perform it. That is a first for me. I wish I could sing more with her but she lives almost 2 hours away and there is no way we could ever practice. Maybe one day we will move up there again. Mom gave me a bunch of her old clothes too. I've been trying to dress more feminine and even though most of these clothes aren't dresses, they are very feminine. It makes me feel so much better about myself when I dress that way. Well, baby boy is waking up!

Peak-a-Boos and Bahá'í's

You gotta love it when your little one plays peak-a-boo, no matter how many times you play!
Here are some recent pics of the newest addition-adorable huh!


Yesterday we went to the house of a lady from one of our homeschool support groups. We had a blast! Kaitlyn and Charlotte got to play with some kids from their Girl Scout Troup, so that was great. i got to catch up with some ladies and meet new ones too! I had an interesting conversation with one of them about their religion. She is of the Bahá'í faith. She told me that they basically believe that all religions share similar beliefs in God and that they can all come together and worship and learn. I am not a very aggressive person in my beliefs and it's at these times when I wish Jason were around. He has so much more biblical knowledge than me. I just said that it must be difficult with sermons. The "teacher" must only be able to preach uplifting and positive sermons instead of scriptural. She said no, that they teach out of all the "holy books" and it is common that the congregation can't differentiate which one it is!! I thought wow; they must not read them then! On a side note, I do respect these peoples desire to believe in a God and lead a positive life. However, it's sad that some of them will probably never see the fruits of their efforts. The only true way to heaven and happiness is through God's son, Jesus Christ. Believe that he is the son of God, that he came to earth, died, and rose again on the third day. It is by his stripes that we are healed. Believe and you will be saved. Unfortunately, I am not a very good evangelist for Christ. I do not go out and proclaim the gospel. I have a problem with ruffling people’s feathers. Granted, it wouldn’t have been the best place to get into a biblical discussion. I still feel a little bad though.
Today I am planning on going to the library to get some books for Kaitlyn’s school. The ones I got are too difficult right now. I was afraid of that. But, you gotta do what you have to. So, I am taking the book list from sonlight for the intermediate level 2 books and I am going to get them from the library. I think she will do great with those! I really want to work on my skirt today but I don't know if I will get a chance.

Crafts

Don't you just love crafts! Here are some of my crew painting plaques we made out of polymer clay.

Some updates!!

Well, I wrote a whole page of updates but it didn’t go through. So, lets start over!

-We had our 5th blessing on June 23rd! He was 6.7 lbs with apgars of 9/10. I NEVER had a baby with an apgar of 10. The surprising thing is that he has a whole in his heart. They believe it will close on its own. He also has an irregular heartbeat that they are hoping will go away. He has a cardiologist appt. on Aug. 29th. I am optimistic though.

-My SIL will be having her baby within the next week or two. She is having a little boy who I can’t wait to meet! I believe they will be awesome parents.

-We started the new school back with Sonlight curriculum. The girls are doing great so far. Kaitlyn is a little bit of a procrastinator, but aren’t all kids at 6??

-The new homeschooling school year is gearing up. We will begin going to activities this month. Girl Scouts will be starting up Aug. 31st. They are ecstatic about that. The only downside is that I can’t really participate because I have the babies.

-I go back to the Dr. for my 6 wk. postpartum checkup on Aug 7th. I have a cystocele that I will need surgery for later on in life.

-I might be singing with my mother at her church the weekend of the 18th! I am very excited about this because we have never sang together. Hopefully I will be able to travel up there and practice!

That’s all I can think of at the moment. I did want to share how well I am doing compared to my previous postpartum periods. I am so thankful that things have been going better than expected! I have been quite regimental in the care of myself so maybe that is what it is. Dh has been extremely helpful. He takes Alex (the newborn) at night so that my mommy brain doesn’t get any worse. There are several things that I have been doing over the last month that I think are crucial for this time period I am in:
1. Vitamins, SAM-E, Alfalfa in the morning
2. Exercise for at least 15 min.(t-tapp)
3. Quiet Time
4. Get fully dressed for the day( I will talk about this in another post)
5. Go to bed at 9 (I get up at 4)
6. Have snacks(fruit shakes)
I believe that’s it but if I think of anything else, I will post it later. This seems to really ground me. Hopefully once the kids get older I can exercise for longer periods so I won’t have to do it everyday but for now, this will have to do!

Locks

Before I get into the topic of locks I wanted to summarize my weekend. Bittersweet indeed! All week I had been looking forward to the weekend but I now find myself relieved that it's over with! Saturday we had a really good day. We went to a new park downtown and it was awesome! It was open and had lots of stuff for the kids to do yet close enough you could keep your eye on them. I meant to bring the camera but forgot. Sunday was a trip. We went to church which went as expected, tough to get ready but feeling good because we went. :) Then the nightmare started. Toby screamed the whole way home and Summer wouldn't take her nap. When everyone FINALLY got a nap and woke up, we went to the zoo. The first stop was the penguins. They were so neat! They are kept indoors and as we were about to leave I decided I would put sunscreen on the kids. When we made our way to the exit door, we were greeted by God's humor. It was pouring!! I felt so silly. Here I am putting sunscreen on my kids when its pouring outside. Well, we left, and as soon as we did, it cleared up. I kept telling myself maybe there was a reason we weren't supposed to go. I expected to hear in the newspaper this morning how a lion got out of his cage at the zoo and thankfully noone was hurt because of the rain. Funny huh. I guess we make what we can out of our circumstances.
Ok, Locks. Here's some history:
The oldest known lock was found by archeologists in the Khorsabad palace ruins near Nineveh. The lock was estimated to be 4,000 years old. It was a forerunner to a pin tumbler type of lock, and a common Egyptian lock for the time. This lock worked using a large wooden bolt to secure a door, which had a slot with several holes in its upper surface. The holes were filled with wooden pegs that prevented the bolt from being opened.
So you ask why my fascination with locks? I hope this man was rewarded greatly. I LOVE locks!! Think about all the times we use them. The bathroom, house, car, safe deposit box, bedroom!! I am so thankful that I have locks to keep my kids away sometimes and right by me at other times. Next time you turn that key, say a thank you to all those locksmiths!!

Heart update..

Well, it doesn't look like I have the heart of the Grinch! YEAH!! I half expected to see a ball of fire on the ultrasound because of all the heartburn I have. But, the doc said everything looks great. The only thing he saw was that I have a redundancy in one of my chords or something. He said it is fine and shouldn't be a problem. I am very greatful. It was awesome to see my OWN heart on there. I have seen plenty of baby's hearts but not my own.
Today we have just relaxed. The kids watched ALOT of tv today, bad mommy that I am. :) BUT, they needed a break from the weekend. Charlotte learned how to count by fives today. She was so suprised and shocked. She was having a hard time today. I told her baby steps. Like everything, it takes time. It's not "fun" until you learn it. She wants things to come easy to her. I know how that feels! I still struggle with those feelings. BUT she has prevailed and I am happy for her. The kids played outside alot today as well. They dug up rocks and stuff. Summer loves outside! She mostly likes coming in and out. She thinks she is one of the big kids now. Its so cute. When Jason got home we all walked down to the park. She got to ride on the seesaw. At first she was scared but she eventually came over to me and wanted me to put her up on it. She likes it alot now. The kids all played and we came back home. Quiet now... Everyone is in bed and I am thinking about getting a bath with the stuff Emily gave me for mothers day. Its supposed to be very relaxing.....Calgon(or whatever its called).....take me away!!! :)

Recooperating...

Well, its Monday again. Time to recooperate from a great weekend at the in-laws. Jason and I were able to get some time to sit and talk over the weekend and it was SOOOOOO nice! The ONLY downside to a luxury like that is coming back to reality! Sometimes I think its not good to have too much time off from the reality of every day life. It just takes so much effort to be comfortable with the stresses of normal living. By normal living I mean crying babies, fussy five year olds, and NEVER ENDING cleaning!! Don't get me wrong, I actually love cleaning but when its coupled with other distractions, it can get very stressful.
Well, I have decided what I am going to do about the kids school this year. We will be starting Aug. 1st with some supplementation throughout the next couple of months. I want to be able to get past the baby's birth before we dive into the new year. Besides, I want to get Kaitlyn up to speed with the reading that's ahead of her. She will be reading chapter books this year. So hard to believe! Charlotte is really looking forward to her reading books as well. Charlotte has a mind for math though. She loves to add in her head. She amazes me sometimes. Jason will ask her " If you have five tables and each table has 3 napkins on it, how many napkins do you have?" She will spit out the answer in no time. I think she makes a mental picture of the tables in her head. You can see her going from one to the next. She loves to do her math sheets. I can't wait for her to be able to write though. She has a great imagination.
Coming back from my MILS yesterday was tough! We miss it up there so bad. The car trip back home was a nightmare. Jason said he will not be going up there for fathers day. It's just to much. We were told that one of the big companies up there is hiring alot of tech people so he is thinking about applying. I don't know if he will though. I know he likes where he works now. I hate being this far away from family. But, if this is the place we need to be, then so be it. I told Jason that I support him in whatever decision he feels best. He knows how I feel and takes that into consideration but for the most part, I feel like it should be up to him. He's the one that has to go into that office everyday, work, and deal with whatever the people throw at him! We will see where God places us, it's always interesting!
Natalie seems to be doing well. We talked alot about the pregnancies and labor. Its getting so close now and I am getting a little nervous. 3 stair stepped is a little scary! I am now in my 31st week! I had Toby at 34 wks. That really puts things into perspective. God-willing, this one won't come early.
I have a doc. appointment today for my heart thing. They are planning on giving me a heart ultrasound. We will see how that goes. I have a feeling everything is going to be fine. I feel like a big hypochondriac!! I will update later.

Teeth

I just had to write about something that has taken over our household! The effect that teeth has had on us this last week has been a very memorable experience! Summer has cut 5 teeth and Kaitlyn lost her second one! Summer has been extremely fussy as you can imagine. She doesn't handle pain very well at all. Charlotte has been very jealous over Kaitlyns loss. I keep telling her that her time will come but in the mind of a five year old that is not very consoling!

Limbo anyone?

Living in limbo is harder than I expected. We don't know where we will be in 3 months. Its difficult with all these kids, especially living in an apartment with only one car! I do rejoice however. We are in a great position to gain ground with finances and Jason's career. I keep reminding myself that no matter how "secure" we may feel or want to be, we are ultimately in the hands of God. He alone knows our future. I guess I am glad that its not totally up to me! It just gets tough always wondering and not being able to make plans. I pray that God will honor our decision to live below our means and to "tough" it out. I guess I just get tired of survival mode! I must say however that this is truelly NOT survival mode. We have been in MUCH worse situations!! My feelings somehow feel the same though. Funny how they can decieve us so much. Once we take a step back things don't look near as bad as we thought they were. Here is an article on survival mode......

Survival Mode

Most of us are familiar with the term survival mode. It’s that state we find ourselves in when intense situations arise in our lives. I know this state very well. In fact, it had become very comfortable for me. As a child my father was consistently in survival mode. He would say “If we can just get past this”. I didn’t say much back to him because he was my hero. Sometimes I wonder what his response would have been if I had said “Then what? How would things change?” I don’t think he would have had an answer because there was no other way to live that he knew of. He only knew how to live at this state, not “in the here and now”. I don’t remember ever really enjoying a moment. I was always thinking about the moments to come.
Survival mode serves a very important role in our ability to cope through tough situations so I am not saying it is a bad thing. However, if it becomes a way of living, you can never enjoy the moments you have right now. Even when you are not currently in a difficult situation you could find yourself thinking about how much better the future could be if you could just get past today. Today might not be that bad if you take a good look! Slow down, take a couple of deep breathes, and pay attention to what your five senses are saying. Your brain is not one of your senses! Shut it off. Sure our children need to see us successfully cope with life situations, but they also need to see us enjoy what’s going on around us right now!

Some updates

I forgot to add in some updates for the last month.
-I have been wearing a heart monitor but my palpatations have virtually dissapeared!! Can we say hypchondriac!! I was afraid of that.
-Toby is potty trained!!! Yippeeee
-We are contemplating getting a new vehicle soon
-Charlotte is doing awesome with her reading. She is on lesson 70 of "Teach your child to read in 100 easy lessons." I am sooo proud.
-Kaitlyn has taken a step back in her reading and I think its because she is reading too much on her own. She doesn't make SURE the word says what she thinks and she moves on even if she doesn't know what it is. She is not doing as well with her sonlight books and I think this is the reason. I don't know what to do. I don't think she is ready for the level that I was going to put her in. I am going to talk to Jason about it. We will see.
- We got our new curriculum in!!! The kids are excited about starting the new year.
-Summer is doing great with her walking and she will wear shoes now!!! Yeah!! She is soooo cute in the mornings. I love to be her cuddle buddy.
-I fell and hurt my knees REALLY bad but I think they are on the mend. I am hoping it will not effect them in the long run.
There, I think thats it for now......

Continuing on....

Well, I promised myself I would contribute to my blog instead of writing in word so I am just going to start copying over some of the things that I have written over the last month. I don't have much but here goes:

Too Much!

Every mother questions whether she is doing an adequate job in raising her children. Some mothers think they have to be super mom. Other mothers remember to give their children a bathe only when they notice they haven't had to wash towels in a while. Whichever type of parent you are, I am sure you have those days when you feel completely overwhelmed. At the end of the day you look back and think "What did I do all day? I got nothing done!"
As a mother myself I struggle with these thoughts often. Sometimes I can't go to sleep because I am too busy fretting about a day that is already gone! I go over in my mind all that I should have gotten done to be a good mother and wife. If you have this problem I think I have something that might help.
We have all heard of "list" people. These are those annoying people who make lists for everything and have to check everything off in order to cope. I am NOT one of those people! However, I do propose that you at least try my experiment. The first thing in the morning take inventory of how you feel. Pay attention to your body and mind when you do this. Think about the most important things that need to get done for that day and write them down. Be realistic. After you have written down the most important things, start another section for extras. Extras are things that are there for you IF you get to them. If not, at least you got the necessary things done! You should feel great! Remember, give yourself flexibility when making and completing lists. Noboby wants to feel controlled by a piece of paper. The completion of your list creates self assurance that you got what you needed to get done. There is no reason to give away anymore of your precious sleep time worrying about what you could have accomplished.

Yeah! Another week coming to a close. This week went by pretty fast because I had that doctors appt. We really didn't get much done but it sure felt great just relaxing for a change. This evening we will be going to my mom's house to stay. She is having a play Sunday and I cna't wait to see it. The kids always enjoy spending time with the grandparents. My father called last night and we got to chat a bit. He told me that he has had the same problems with his heart that I do! However, they never could find anything wrong with him. I feel silly going to the cardiologist but better safe than sorry. My dad seemed really overworked. If he is not careful he will not be able to last much longer! I worry about that. He is one of those workaholics. Well, today we will be taking DH to work so that I can pack the car. I think we might go to the library this morning and return our books. Last week we got this hilarious video for potty training boys. It is a cartooon and shows their anatomy and everything. It's actually quite cute! Yesterday we stayed at the house. The girls went back and forth from playing the nintendo, coloring, listening to some stories, and doing an easter craft. Toby and Summer played so well together! I will never forget that! Summer is only 1 and she was playing an easy game of hide and seek with him. It was so cute. I am going to try and get some pictures this weekend of the kids. We will have alot of time to hang around tomorrow so maybe I can sneak in some! Well, heres to wrapping up another week!

On a side note......Just a few updates from last week.
-Our peanut butter pine cone got snatched by SOMETHING. We never saw it coming!
-My visit to the cardiologist is next Friday.
-We revised our plan for our website and we are happy now:)
-I didn't get much done to my website maintenance project because the owner is busy and hadn't had a chance to look at my revisions. Oh well.