Girls vs Boys

I was tucking Sweetheart in tonight, and as I left the room he said, "Wait! I didn't kiss you!"

He threw his arms around my neck and gave me a sloppy kiss. I smiled into his hair and said, "You are wonderful."

"No, I'm not!"

"You're not?"

"No. I'm not a girl who is wonderful. I am a boy who is cool."

Oh, my mistake. Girls are wonderful; boys are cool. Got it.

Kid funny - Sweetheart

I told Sweetheart to go use the bathroom. While he was sitting there, I told him to try to po*p.

He made some grunting noises, then said, "Nope. My po*p's not crawling out."

What Thanksgiving traditions do you have?

So far the only real tradition to do with that specific holiday is that we make a Thanksgiving tree.

This is NOT a decorated tree, like a Christmas tree. It is a brown tree made out of construction paper or posterboard. We hang it on the wall - bare. Not a leaf on it. Then every day, we each write on a fall-colored leaf (made out of orange, yellow, or red construction paper) something we are thankful for. By Thanksgiving, the tree is full of beautiful leaves.

We start this tree on November 1st and add our last leaves the day before Thanksgiving.

A serger!!! A SERGER!!!

I may be crowing prematurely (and I hope not!), but my mom called tonight to tell me that my grandma (actually a friend of the family that we call Grandma) will be giving me her serger!!!

She says she just doesn't have anyone to sew for anymore, and neither of her two daughters will use it, so she is giving it to me for Christmas!! She also asked Mom to help her go through her stash of fabric to pick stuff out for me.

I am THRILLED!!

Can't stop smiling!!

I think I may not be touching the ground when I walk...

Finally, some progress! *bodily functions alert*

Sweetheart is finally, finally getting there. He only does well if he is naked... at peeing, that is. Pooping is another story. Naked, he will start to and then run to the bathroom to finish. So then I have poop in various places and down his legs, plus the bathroom is a disgusting mess. But if I don't have him naked, then he will pee and poop in his britches.

This does not a happy mama make.

Especially when Squeaker is near Sweetheart, because Squeaker crawls around now and has actually eaten (yes, eaten!!!) his brother's yuckies.

Mothering is not for the faint of heart... or stomach.

Hidden Costs of Peaches

When we bought this house last year, we discovered a peach tree in the backyard. It didn't produce fruit last year, but it has this year. I wasn't able to put away as many peaches as I wanted to, as it's my first year figuring out when to pick them, and I think I picked a bit late.

However, I have lovely fresh peaches sitting in my freezer, swimming in their juices and a bit of sugar. I tasted the juice and YUMMO!!!

But I was wondering... seeing how I didn't even plant the tree, and the tree does all the work for you (we didn't even spray for bugs), would you call these the cheapest peaches I've ever gotten? Or, considering the fact that we bought this house and the tree came with it, would you say they are the most expensive peaches I've ever gotten? *wink*

Glimpses of the kidlets

I thought I'd let you in on how the kids are doing. It's amazing when I think about it how fast they are growing.

Sunshine is in first grade this year. She loves loves loves school. In fact, the girl *enjoys* tests. Can you believe that? Her reading level is wonderful. Tonight she brought the newspaper to me, pointing to an article she had gotten about a couple paragraphs into. And speed drills for math excite her. I love my little nerdy girl! (Made in her mama's own image. I was in Math Club in high school, where I voluntarily spent my Saturdays at math contests.) She's got a couple permanent teeth now and more on their way. I see braces in our future... Also, she has discovered that she loves sewing on my machine. She made a purse the other day for herself.

Sugar-n-Spice is doing preschool and loving school as well. So far, I show her things pretty much once, and she has it. I know it won't always be that way, but it is an encouraging beginning. No one wants the initial experience to be like pulling teeth. She is ever so much like her name, too. We go from sweet moments when she tells me that she loves me even more than she loves her friends (lol) but then we are disciplining her for telling one of said friends that if they don't share, she is going to kick their *ahem*. (I know everyone deals with their kids picking up a few unsavory phrases here and there, but I kinda hoped we'd avoid it for a couple more years.) A roller coaster ride with her for sure, but hey, let's all admit it: we love our rides, don't we?

Sweetheart is soooo enamored with Spiderman/Peter Parker. Mistakenly, some days I call him by his given name and am quickly chastized for not remembering to call him Spiderman/Peter Parker. And it has to be the entire name of "Peter Parker" if that is the day's alternate identity. I can't get away with a simple "Peter." Part of the obsession (or maybe the reason for the obsession) includes all 3 Spiderman movies. We are also still working potty training this little turkey. And just today I found out why it is going so slowly - he prefers the diaper route. He would rather just not be bothered with the toilet, thank you very much. Bribes of candy do not entice him. So we're off to try something he might be interested in: Spiderman stickers. Think it'll work?

Shortcake has become quite the singer. And it is so adorable!! Just today I heard her ask Squeaker if he wanted to hear the song "Fishers of Men." It came out something like, "See Fishuh Men? I may fishuh men, fishuh men, fishuh men..." etc. If you know the song and can figure out toddler-speak, then you totally just understood that! I also canNOT keep that girl out of the refridgerator. She has also found a stubborn streak when it comes to naps and bedtimes, as well as wanting to sit in a regular chair instead of her booster chair. She is two and wants to be seen as a twelve-year-old.

Squeaker is 5 months old now. He been rolling over for awhile, grabs anything within reach, growls in pleasure (hilarious), and loves to watch Shortcake. He is no longer breastfeeding and seems to miss it. He won't take a bottle from anyone else if I'm around - he only wants Mama to give him that bottle. I think he is also entering the separation anxiety phase. I admit sheepishly that I love that he wants me. Oh yes, and if you should elect to hold the kissable bundle, wear waterproof clothing; he drools.

Projects, projects

Don't know what is going on at your house, but ohsomuch is going on here.


I have a to-do list that I've been working on. It has 28 items on it. Oh yes. 28! And that doesn't include the big projects I'm working on slowly, either. Big projects like repainting the kitchen cabinets, taking down the wallpaper in my house, or trying to get ready to do a yard sale. None of those 3 will be accomplished this summer, I'm afraid.

Ooh. And I just thought of another two things to add to my list. LOL That wasn't a joke - I did!

It's self-inflicted. Brilliant.

Last night I started feeling icky. Then the nausea turned into stomach cramps that have wakened me off and on all night. I have spent many minutes wondering what is going on. I recounted how one of my kids had been barely sick on Friday. Thought about what we had for dinner. Should be no problem there - I pulled frozen meat from the freezer that was precooked.

Suddenly, it hit me. Oh no. Not good. Earlier in the day, I'd taken a drink of water from a bottle that had been used to feed a baby bird with a dropper. ACK. I kept thinking I needed to throw that bottle out. And forgot.

So what do I most likely have? Salmonella. From contaminated water. In other words: food poisoning. Yippee.

The good news is, no one else will get it. Not even the baby, as you can't pass salmonella through breastmilk. And the other good side is: hubby is on leave, so if I get it really badly, he is here to feed and tend to the kids whilst I languish on the couch. LOL

So far though, just cramps and nausea. The last time I had food poisoning was when I was preggy with Sunshine. I know what to do: keep from getting dehydrated (throwing up/diarrhea) and wait it out.

Guess what fun is going on at our house?

We are potty training!

I had tried it about 6 weeks ago (or so), and it was a total bust. I'm giving it another go after changing some things, plus Hubby is home for more than a week on leave. That makes a huge difference!

We are training both Sweetheart and Shortcake at the same time. They are 3.5 and 2 years old, respectively. So it is time. Especially for Sweetheart. Can I get an amen?

It is a funny little ritual. All 5 of us - the 4 older kids and myself - go into the bathroom. One of the trainees sit down. We sing two songs all the way through, then practice wiping. Then second trainee takes a turn. Repeat with two different songs. Repeat wiping practice. Then we all file out. So far, no one has successfully made it in the toilet. But as soon as they do, we'll be getting candy. Yay!

Anyway. Wish the kids luck. Pray for me. And my carpet.

Oy Vey

I told Sunshine tonight that her new name was gonna be Scissors.

Why? Oh because of the little matter of about 12 inches. That is roughly how much of her beautiful hair I'm gonna have to cut off to fix what she did today.

She has the most beautiful hair down to her rearend. It is just gorgeous. We get comments on her hair almost every outting. And now, it will be up to around her shoulder blades.

Not only that, but she took the same scissors to her sister's hair (Sugar-n-Spice) which has literally taken us YEARS to get to a decent length. S-n-S's hair doesn't grow. She still has a patch in the front of her head that is only ONE inch long (yes, that is correct). She will be 5 in a few months, and it still hasn't grown past an inch long. Her hair is finally to her shoulders, after 5 years of growing and growing. She has had two trims in her entire life! And Sunshine decided to cut it.

When I discovered it, I felt like laughing and crying at the same time. Still do.

Kids. What do you do with them? Take pictures first, then get angry, right?

Wallet World

Yet again, the van atmosphere leads to deep questions in the back seat.

Sugar-n-Spice: "Sunshine, do animals have wallets?"

Sunshine: "No. Everybody but God and animals have wallets. If they did, it would be a wallet world! Except China. They don't have purses in China."

The only thing we can assume is that since all she really has seen of Chinese pictures are the women in traditional garb, she thinks they don't carry purses.

But oh, how I laugh when I remember this conversation!

The most wonderful news!!

Yesterday, Sunshine got saved!!

She has prayed to accept Christ as her savior several times in the past, but I've always wondered which of them were sincere, since she could answer all sorts of questions about salvation and sin correctly, but something didn't feel right. However, only God can truly judge and know her heart, so I kept hoping that she was saved.

But this last week, she has expressed an interest in it several times, and finally yesterday she asked some really intuitive questions, especially for a 6 yr old. We had a GOOD talk, maybe 15 minutes long or so, and despite the many interruptions from her siblings, she kept focused on the topic. That tells me it was truly important to her.

So we prayed together, and afterward, I told her that she is God's child, and so that makes her and Mommy and Grandma all children of God, which would make us... "Sisters?" When I told her that was right, she got a real kick out of it. Then I pointed out that if God is the King of kings, then she would also be a... "Princess!!" Oh, the grin that spread across her face!! She couldn't stop smiling!

So I am thinking this time is real. Oh happy day!!!!! And I got the honor and priviledge of pryaing with her, leading her to Him. Can there be a greater honor for a mom?

You'd be SO proud of me

(Btw, before I start, I could have sworn that I had posted since I got home...? Guess not, Mater.)

Ok, before I can tell you what you should be proud of, gotta tell you the background. The hubster was gone a month (military stuff) to a state far,far away. He just got back last week. Well, being the only grown up in the house during that time, I got a little tired and in need of a breather, especially since the baby still isn't sleeping through the night.

So I took 24 hours away for a little recharge. I went to a hotel for a night and slept in a marvelous bed, with ten pillows!! I lounged in that bed for hours. I slept in. Around caring for the baby, of course - since he is a nursing baby, I took him, but he is easy to care for, so it truly was a break. I went shopping here and there, and even bought myself a couple things.

And, I've not allowed the guilt monster to attack me over the money thing. It has tried to creep in there, but I've kept it at bay.

So, are ya proud?

Heading home today

I had toyed with the idea of staying for another weekend, but I'm going home. Well, and the Bahamas sounded good, too, but I don't suppose that would work too well. Imagine the look of horror on other people's faces when I would board the plane with 5 tiny children. LOL!!

As far as the sickies, someone has been sick all week. I just checked Shortcake a bit ago, the child this all started with, and she has a fever again! Ugh. Hopefully going home will allow her to rest better.

(Oh, and hello, Tami! It's nice to "meet" you! Thanks for the comments you've been leaving! You've made me smile. )

I despise this guilt I seem to fight!

I am so tired of the Guilty Monster whispering in my ear!

I am referring to the stuff we wives and mothers carry around when we aren't doing anything wrong. While we are here with my parents, I had decided to allow myself to do a few things just for *me*. But spending the money is plaguing me - before I actually spend it, while I am spending it, and after I'm spending it!!

And in case you were going to ask - yep, hubby is totally fine with me spending it. He even said, "Do not feel guilty!" to me. But it's there anyway.

I feel the same way about asking my parents to watch the kids while I go get out alone. Mom told me not to feel bad, especially since they adore the kids and look forward to taking care of the kids. Yet, there it is again.

Argh. Am I not allowed to do anything to recharge or give myself a treat? Where does this come from? Who started this nasty cycle? Is it part of being used to putting the kids and husband first, so to do otherwise is hard for me/us?

Saying hello from my parents' house

We took a break and drove to my parents' home on Wednesday. The kids did great for the drive, including Squeaker, who slept the entire way! We plan to be here for a full week.

Now, this trip was to serve a few purposes: to let friends and family see the new baby, to attend a cousin's graduation (he was my ringbearer when I got married), to finally end our sort of quarantine while baby was so new, and to give me a chance to grab a break here and there.

The funny part about it all is that we aren't getting a chance to see several of those friends and family and right now, plus two of my kids have gotten pretty sick since we arrived. So I guess it is just as well that those folks are not available.

Shortcake starting running a vicious fever yesterday before dinner (it is being managed, but it goes sky-high quickly), and she has diarrhea. Sunshine started vomitting early this morning. So I guess you can say our quarantine from germs is definitely over!

Hopefully, Squeaker will be spared this nastiness and everyone will be well by the time we head back home next week.

Follow the sound of my voice...

You're getting closer...

...closer...

... I'm over here! *one arm is sticking up out of a pile of clothes, waving madly* Can you help me out of this pile?

You see, I'm in the middle of a major reorganization of clothes. I have clothes I never put away properly because our stuff was in storage the entire time we lived with my parents, so organization was next to nil then. And then we moved here and had all that comes with moving got in the way of that...

And now we have a big change in seasons, so I need to get the clothes put away properly.

And I'm drowning. Ever have water up your nose? Well it's like that, only it's a blend of cotton and various other materials. And I'm not making very fast headway. Partially because I'm trying to do it around the schedule of a newborn. And partially because I keep finding clothes that the cat found a way to get into the box and pee on the clothes, so now I'm doing major laundry on top of that.

Someone throw me a life preserver. Made from brownies. Thanks, doll.

Do you ever just get overwhelmed with the mothering thing?

And I don't mean the upteenth try at finding the perfect schedule or routine. I mean, seeing all the things you want your children to know or to be when they leave your home?

I want my girls to be better seamstresses than I am by the time they leave the house. I want them to know more about cooking and meal planning than I did. (And how to pick out good meats, which I still don't know too well.) I want them to have a fire in their heart for God and a true desire to know Him and serve Him, not just be obsessed with the latest celebrity or boys. I want them to realize that while being God's child carries many blessings with it, the greatest blessing is that you have the enormous priviledge of getting to know God in an intimate way. I also have so many things to list for my boys, not the least of which is how on earth do I teach them to be men of God who guard their eyes and thoughts, when I do not truly understand their struggles or how they think? And those are only the tip of the iceberg. There are so many things practical, spiritual, and otherwise, that I want them to learn.

I just sit down sometimes and think, "Oh, today I wanted to do x,y, and z, and I didn't even get close! How will I fit all these life lessons in?"

It all comes to living life with a purpose each day, living life intentionally. Would it be crazy to list those goals and post it somewhere in my house? My first thought is, what if company sees that list? And my hubby would most surely mock the list. (He is just a teaser that way - nothing is sacred. *wink*) But if I don't post it, I won't see it. And if I don't see it regularly, I will get caught up in the day-to-day of laundry, dishes, and diapers.

Thoughts?

Goings on

Squeaker (who lately has earned the name of "Screamer" instead) had a wonderful night of sleep last night, and consequently, so did I. The first stretch was almost 6.5 hours!!!!! So far this morning, he seems to think he can only nap in my arms. Silly boy. Yet, I love it!

I'm in the midst of the reorganizing of the kids' clothes. Not my favorite chore, but it sure does feel good to see it all slowly come together. Once that undertaking is finished, we'll get back into the swing of things, meaning we'll get into a routine again that includes school.

Hubby is gone for a good stretch. He wants to take some time off in July so we can all just enjoy each other again. Poor Shortcake asks every morning, "Daddy home?"

I still have a few thank you notes to finish. Oh, and must have the children write a couple - they've been given presents lately by friends and family. One of which was a child's Schwinn bicycle! We certainly are blessed over here!

Also, planning to go visit some online friends in the southern part of the state this weekend. Hopefully the price of gas will not cancel the trip for us. I'm super excited, and the children don't know yet. They will be giddy when they do know. It's to be a picnic in a park with other families, some of whom I know already and some of whom I do not.

Well, that is us for now. Hope you are doing well!

Can you believe it?

I've done the usual precautions with bringing germs into the house, what with the new baby and all. We been around no one who is sick to our knowledge, and yet...

I have a sore throat, I'm sneezing, and I just feel all over yucky. Nice, eh?

Go figure...? The blessing in this right now is that tomorrow we are having a meal brought to us for dinner, so I can just relax tomorrow. I'm going to rest, rest, rest on the couch, and I'm not going to fret over the sty my house will quickly become while I do nothing to keep up with the kids and their messes. *smile*

Oh, and can you please pray that our little Squeaker does not get what I'm coming down with? Thank you!

Oh dear me - please forgive me!

I cannot believe I've been MIA for so long!!

I seriously thought it had only been at most a month since I posted. GULP.

As an olive branch, may I offer the news of our baby's birth???

We had another BOY! He weighed in at 8 lbs, 10 oz and 20.5 inches long. Labor was fast and and furious at the end, going from 7 cms to birth in just 15 minutes. I ended up going all natural without pain meds, which was not in my plan, lol.

The other children are very happy and pleased to have another boy in the family. They love his squeaks and tiny baby parts. They all love to hold him and give lots of kisses. Watching my children joy in another sibling is such a wonderful thing!

Hugs to you all!