Monday, July 07, 2008
Saturday, June 28, 2008
Mexico day 4
The next day I woke up and felt a little better about the previous day. I mean, we did stretch, and stretching is what you do in the name of God. It's very hard to just jump into telling people about your faith if you haven't done that before, but you gotta start somewhere, right?
We went a different direction today to go to the church. I wish we had gone that day every single time, because it was straight highway and no people/bikes/potholes/etc. It was uphill, and downhill alike. When we went up this one hill, just over the crest was a massive neighborhood project that looked like it housed millions of people. They were apartments that the factory owners built especially for the workers. They take the rent right out of the pay. Kind of keeps them there for the rest of their lives.... This was an awe inspiring sight, to see two of these massive neighborhoods, one on each side of the highway. The one side was where most of the children we spoke to yesterday lived.
Got to the church, did our thing, and then went back to camp for hanging out time. The consensus of the group was to go swimming, but the little kids weren't allowed to go. That kind of bummed the little people, but there was nothing we could do, so we brought out the dvd player. They passed the 2 hour time frame with Disney's Cars movie.
We then needed to get ready for the Wednesday night service at the church. It was going to be a late night, with dinner after church. Church service there was kind of different. Everyone got up and either sang a song, or told a testimony, or just gave verses that they liked. That lasted quite awhile, and then our leader did the sermon. Our leader and his wife lost a child in a fire last year, and they talked about that for quite some time. He had went on the mission trip last year, and it was hard for everyone to notice that he wasn't there this year.
Then we got to eat food that was prepared from the ladies of the church. Yummy chicken and vegetables in aluminum foil baked in the oven. That was filling, and greasy, but good!!!! Got back to camp way late, and hit the hay.
We went a different direction today to go to the church. I wish we had gone that day every single time, because it was straight highway and no people/bikes/potholes/etc. It was uphill, and downhill alike. When we went up this one hill, just over the crest was a massive neighborhood project that looked like it housed millions of people. They were apartments that the factory owners built especially for the workers. They take the rent right out of the pay. Kind of keeps them there for the rest of their lives.... This was an awe inspiring sight, to see two of these massive neighborhoods, one on each side of the highway. The one side was where most of the children we spoke to yesterday lived.
Got to the church, did our thing, and then went back to camp for hanging out time. The consensus of the group was to go swimming, but the little kids weren't allowed to go. That kind of bummed the little people, but there was nothing we could do, so we brought out the dvd player. They passed the 2 hour time frame with Disney's Cars movie.
We then needed to get ready for the Wednesday night service at the church. It was going to be a late night, with dinner after church. Church service there was kind of different. Everyone got up and either sang a song, or told a testimony, or just gave verses that they liked. That lasted quite awhile, and then our leader did the sermon. Our leader and his wife lost a child in a fire last year, and they talked about that for quite some time. He had went on the mission trip last year, and it was hard for everyone to notice that he wasn't there this year.
Then we got to eat food that was prepared from the ladies of the church. Yummy chicken and vegetables in aluminum foil baked in the oven. That was filling, and greasy, but good!!!! Got back to camp way late, and hit the hay.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Day 3 of mexico
Okay, so. Sorry about that. I guess I should continue my tales from Acuna Mexico. Day 3 brought more heat and dirt. We went to the church again for VBS and the kids were waiting for us. We did little skits and devotions again. They sang lots of songs. I sweated. Is that a word? We all had to bring water bottles everywhere. I think we would have died if we didn't bring the water. Anyway...i digress. After vbs was over, it was decided that today we would go evangalize the streets. This was going to be hard for me, because well....i didnt want to be left alone at the camp again, entertaining myself with nothing, but it was soooo darn hot. I decided that we would all go with daddy and the group. So, we lathered everyone up with sunblock and hats, and water, and proceeded to go together. This is when Mr. Happy decided that we would be splitting up. I don't split up. I go where my husband goes. And my children go where I go. So, hmmm. A dilema to Mr. Happy. He likes splitting people up, and I could tell that he didn't want our huge family to take any other people with us, so he thought it best that we all (our family) go with him. This irked me some, because he made such a deal over how HUGE we were, and it didn't seem fair....but anyway.
We walked across the street...that was as far as we got. There was a group of children playing soccer, and Mr. Happy aka Ben started talking to them. In spanish. We stood there somewhat uncomfortable, for several minutes. He then just out of the blue wanted my 10 year old to tell them when he was saved, and how he did it. This kind of freaked my son out, and he clammed up. I helped him with prompting, and Ben started talking again. He told us that this group of boys were all faithful catholics, and that this was going to be hard. He then wanted my husband to show the boys the evangacube, which is a cube that has different sides, that shows how to become a christian. My husband had to tell the entire story, which he did quite well, I will say. Then he asked the boys what they thought. They said some things, and then he had them listen to the salvation message via cd. We stood around for some more time, and then they were all done. He asked them if they accepted Jesus, and they all said yes. He then told me to tell them what new believers should do, and I told them what I thought. He handed them some bibles, and we were off to the next group of children.
Now, here is where I should interject what I am thinking about. I really wonder if this is the best way to evangalize. I mean, children are so easily swayed that we could be satanists for goodness sake, and prompt them to enjoy the thought of worshipping satan. I mean, I understand planting a seed and all that, but to talk fast and force them almost to accept Jesus just doesn't seem like a good idea. Give them the bible, tell them about our Lord, invite them to church...but don't just talk fast and hard, and make them listen to a cd? Am I making sense here? These are kids. Where were their parents? Would they enjoy what we were doing?
I was a victim of several "drive by savings" when I was a new parent. They would come scour the neighborhood, because it was a low income one, and knock on all the doors. WHERE WILL YOU GO IF YOU DIED RIGHT NOW???? They always wanted to know. Well, I dont know....THEN YOU NEED TO BE SAVED BECAUSE THE ONLY WAY TO HEAVEN IS THROUGH JESUS!!!! Well, sign me up pastor. And then.......nothing. They would leave, I would be happy they were gone, and I never heard from them again......until the next round of door knockers. I never felt saved. I only did it so they would leave. This probably happened 3 or 4 times over the course of time that I lived there. That wasn't helpful, was it? So, maybe one of these boys really knew what he was doing, and felt it in his heart that Jesus was his Lord and Savior now....and I suppose it would all be worth it then, but what about all the rest??? Would there be follow-up? We got addresses, so maybe, hopefully. But if not, what good did we do?
We talked to tons of kids....or rather, Ben talked and we just kind of kicked the rocks, and stood there. He was big on talking, Ben was....He felt the holy spirit prompting him constantly, which is another topic all together. We actually got a group of older boys toward the end that you could tell just wanted us to go away. But, Ben wouldn't let that happen. They got the whole talk, the cube, and the cd. One guy seemed to understand fully what he was doing. That could have been the whole reason we were there too? Ben told them that if they listened to us, when we were done, they could show us some tricks. They were bikers and skaters. They were pretty good, and enjoyed showing off for us. So, picture this. A huge basketball court, with one group of boys playing b-ball on one hoop with our 6'3" son showing how he could dunk (with no language barrier I might add), another group on the other hoop, bikers and skaters riding on the side of the court, and tons of kids playing soccer in the grass. At one point, I had to take my boys to go water a tree in the field. THAT was fun, let me tell ya. But there were no bathrooms anywhere, but a ton of people probably saw. Oh well. Finally, after 2 hours of this, we were done.
We went back to camp, and had share time. The other group talked to several adults, and probably didn't have the luck that we did....kids are pretty curious. Plus Ben is pretty engaging, but they did plant a few seeds.
Went to bed at a decent hour this night....I was tired. Oh, and hot! Did I mention that?
We walked across the street...that was as far as we got. There was a group of children playing soccer, and Mr. Happy aka Ben started talking to them. In spanish. We stood there somewhat uncomfortable, for several minutes. He then just out of the blue wanted my 10 year old to tell them when he was saved, and how he did it. This kind of freaked my son out, and he clammed up. I helped him with prompting, and Ben started talking again. He told us that this group of boys were all faithful catholics, and that this was going to be hard. He then wanted my husband to show the boys the evangacube, which is a cube that has different sides, that shows how to become a christian. My husband had to tell the entire story, which he did quite well, I will say. Then he asked the boys what they thought. They said some things, and then he had them listen to the salvation message via cd. We stood around for some more time, and then they were all done. He asked them if they accepted Jesus, and they all said yes. He then told me to tell them what new believers should do, and I told them what I thought. He handed them some bibles, and we were off to the next group of children.
Now, here is where I should interject what I am thinking about. I really wonder if this is the best way to evangalize. I mean, children are so easily swayed that we could be satanists for goodness sake, and prompt them to enjoy the thought of worshipping satan. I mean, I understand planting a seed and all that, but to talk fast and force them almost to accept Jesus just doesn't seem like a good idea. Give them the bible, tell them about our Lord, invite them to church...but don't just talk fast and hard, and make them listen to a cd? Am I making sense here? These are kids. Where were their parents? Would they enjoy what we were doing?
I was a victim of several "drive by savings" when I was a new parent. They would come scour the neighborhood, because it was a low income one, and knock on all the doors. WHERE WILL YOU GO IF YOU DIED RIGHT NOW???? They always wanted to know. Well, I dont know....THEN YOU NEED TO BE SAVED BECAUSE THE ONLY WAY TO HEAVEN IS THROUGH JESUS!!!! Well, sign me up pastor. And then.......nothing. They would leave, I would be happy they were gone, and I never heard from them again......until the next round of door knockers. I never felt saved. I only did it so they would leave. This probably happened 3 or 4 times over the course of time that I lived there. That wasn't helpful, was it? So, maybe one of these boys really knew what he was doing, and felt it in his heart that Jesus was his Lord and Savior now....and I suppose it would all be worth it then, but what about all the rest??? Would there be follow-up? We got addresses, so maybe, hopefully. But if not, what good did we do?
We talked to tons of kids....or rather, Ben talked and we just kind of kicked the rocks, and stood there. He was big on talking, Ben was....He felt the holy spirit prompting him constantly, which is another topic all together. We actually got a group of older boys toward the end that you could tell just wanted us to go away. But, Ben wouldn't let that happen. They got the whole talk, the cube, and the cd. One guy seemed to understand fully what he was doing. That could have been the whole reason we were there too? Ben told them that if they listened to us, when we were done, they could show us some tricks. They were bikers and skaters. They were pretty good, and enjoyed showing off for us. So, picture this. A huge basketball court, with one group of boys playing b-ball on one hoop with our 6'3" son showing how he could dunk (with no language barrier I might add), another group on the other hoop, bikers and skaters riding on the side of the court, and tons of kids playing soccer in the grass. At one point, I had to take my boys to go water a tree in the field. THAT was fun, let me tell ya. But there were no bathrooms anywhere, but a ton of people probably saw. Oh well. Finally, after 2 hours of this, we were done.
We went back to camp, and had share time. The other group talked to several adults, and probably didn't have the luck that we did....kids are pretty curious. Plus Ben is pretty engaging, but they did plant a few seeds.
Went to bed at a decent hour this night....I was tired. Oh, and hot! Did I mention that?
Sunday, June 22, 2008
we interrrupt these fascinating mexico tales
forgive my lack of updating the mission trip log.....I just recieved notification from the specialist in chicago about his diagnosis on Rachel. He thinks she is a classic Pontocerebellar hypoplasia patient, and it doesn't look too good. In reading about it off of case studies and the like, it seems to be fatal half of the time.....so all my computer time is going to be spent searching the internet and emailing the doctor, not on my blog. Please forgive me, and pray for Rachel if you think about it.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Why we were in acuna in the first place....per request
The reason for the trip was pretty simple. We have a thing at our church where families are invited to go to either honduras which is VERY expensive and not for little kids, or go to Acuna which is VERY cheap and for anyone. We did the honduras route once and the mexico once before also. We go down and run a vacation bible school for the kids at the orphan home that is next to the church. We also evangalize in the street helping out the pastor of the church we hold vbs at.
part 2 of Mexico day two
Okay, so after the guys have their prayerwalk, they get back to the camp and I made the request to be allowed to sleep in the mens dorm. It is the same set up as the womens...two sides both having doors, and access to the bathroom. It would be totally private, but with my husband who could help with the two babies, and not be loud. They agreed and I was happy again. :)
Dinner was uneventful, and we just kind of hung out together getting to really know each other. We had all gone to church together for awhile, but really never sat and talked. It was nice. Then we went to wal mart. Oh, but wait....Holly didn't bring her passport, her drivers license or her birth certificate. Oops....we were going through the border and they don't take too kindly about that sort of thing. Luckily, I wasn't arrested, or detained at the border once we promised that we were coming back to Mexico after wal mart. Whew!! That was a little scary.
Had a blast at wal mart, got back to camp, and went to bed.
Interesting to note that no one cares about what you are bringing INTO mexico, but boy howdy do they check you when you are leaving mexico. Why is that??? I could be bringing tons of drugs and ammo into their country, and they dont care. I mean, the checkpoint is a random light...if you get red, they check you, but no one ever gets red... weird.
Dinner was uneventful, and we just kind of hung out together getting to really know each other. We had all gone to church together for awhile, but really never sat and talked. It was nice. Then we went to wal mart. Oh, but wait....Holly didn't bring her passport, her drivers license or her birth certificate. Oops....we were going through the border and they don't take too kindly about that sort of thing. Luckily, I wasn't arrested, or detained at the border once we promised that we were coming back to Mexico after wal mart. Whew!! That was a little scary.
Had a blast at wal mart, got back to camp, and went to bed.
Interesting to note that no one cares about what you are bringing INTO mexico, but boy howdy do they check you when you are leaving mexico. Why is that??? I could be bringing tons of drugs and ammo into their country, and they dont care. I mean, the checkpoint is a random light...if you get red, they check you, but no one ever gets red... weird.
Mexico day two
Okay, so I left you at the wake up time on Monday morning. I apologized to Tony, and all was well. We ate our torillas and beans for breakfast, and got ready to leave for the orphanage and church. 10:00 comes quickly in the morning it seems. We drove there behind the main van and proceeded to hit several potholes, and almost hit people/cars. They drive like crazy there. Bicycles are a good mode of transport, and many use it, but they act like cars, bobbing and weaving out of traffic. I about had a heart attack before we finally got to our destination.
When we get there, there is no children to be seen. It seems that no one mentioned to the children that there would be a VBS that week or something. We never got that translation anyway. So, they scrambled and lo and behold here comes some kiddos. It was MUCHO hot in the church and they were working on the airconditioners when we got there. I say air conditioner, but they were more like swamp coolers or whatever you call them. Not really cool, but better than a stagnant hot air. All the kids were excited to be there and my children recognized a few from their trip 2 years ago. I don't know if they recognized my children though.
The whole service was in spanish, and that was hard, because while they translated what we said, they didnt translate back....I stayed outside the church on the balcony because the bass guitar, the regular guitar, and the drums very VERY LOUD. I felt like I was in a rock concert. Apparently, this is how they like it in Mexico. LOL.
Then when VBS was over, we went downstairs to do a craft with the kids and then leave. We get back to the camp sight, and the men were deciding that they were going to go back and prayer walk around the neighborhoods. They were so interesting, the neighborhoods. The houses were made of concrete bricks and galvanized steel roofs. None were finished, because if a house isn't fully constructed, they don't have to pay taxes on them. Kinda fraudulent, don't you think??? But anyway. There were dogs running on top of roofs, and clothes lines on the roof, and trash everywhere. They really do not care about their living enviroment there. Every now and again we would see a wealthy mexican, and that house would blow you away, but that was obviously not the norm. People were everywhere, walking, running, biking, strolling babies, etc. Bars on every fence, and window. Definitely not what you see in Oklahoma.
More later......
When we get there, there is no children to be seen. It seems that no one mentioned to the children that there would be a VBS that week or something. We never got that translation anyway. So, they scrambled and lo and behold here comes some kiddos. It was MUCHO hot in the church and they were working on the airconditioners when we got there. I say air conditioner, but they were more like swamp coolers or whatever you call them. Not really cool, but better than a stagnant hot air. All the kids were excited to be there and my children recognized a few from their trip 2 years ago. I don't know if they recognized my children though.
The whole service was in spanish, and that was hard, because while they translated what we said, they didnt translate back....I stayed outside the church on the balcony because the bass guitar, the regular guitar, and the drums very VERY LOUD. I felt like I was in a rock concert. Apparently, this is how they like it in Mexico. LOL.
Then when VBS was over, we went downstairs to do a craft with the kids and then leave. We get back to the camp sight, and the men were deciding that they were going to go back and prayer walk around the neighborhoods. They were so interesting, the neighborhoods. The houses were made of concrete bricks and galvanized steel roofs. None were finished, because if a house isn't fully constructed, they don't have to pay taxes on them. Kinda fraudulent, don't you think??? But anyway. There were dogs running on top of roofs, and clothes lines on the roof, and trash everywhere. They really do not care about their living enviroment there. Every now and again we would see a wealthy mexican, and that house would blow you away, but that was obviously not the norm. People were everywhere, walking, running, biking, strolling babies, etc. Bars on every fence, and window. Definitely not what you see in Oklahoma.
More later......
Monday, June 16, 2008
Mexico day one........
Driving up there was great...Yeah, it took 14 hours and it was a bit long for me, but it worked out okay. We were loaned a DVD player and that worked when Nathan got to be too much. My room was a welcome sight. Except.....Once we got into bed and was about to snore blissfully, the 2 cooks and their kids decided to join my side and make noise. I specifically took the whole quiet side with no roommates because I had the two babies, and no one else had little people. Needless to say, this little disruption was not favorable by me. They turned on the light, and to be fair, I don't think they knew I was there. HOWEVER, when they discovered that little tidbit, you would think they would have been quiet. NOT!!!
The proceeded to wake up both children several times with doors opening, throwing suitcases around, talking, turning on the light to the bathroom and not shutting it, etc. I was not a happy camper, and I couldn't do a thing about it, because they didn't speak english. And the stupid airconditioner was WAY TOO LOUD, and kept going on and off and on and off. No sleep was to be had that very painful night.
The next morning, I was very grumpy and Tony was unsympathetic. I got upset at him and so we weren't talking. The very happy happy missionary we were working with came into the camp ground and proceeded to make a sermon about how someone in the group was not being very nice, and that if they didn't confess their sins and make things right, they weren't going to go see the kids at the church. Duh....he must have been talking about me...right?? So, I was humiliated because this little sermon lasted about 20 minutes, and so when he was finally done, I started to cry and told Tony I was sorry. Tony thought he was talking to him, so he was just as sorry. This started it all off on the wrong foot that morning. I don't believe in shaming people to make them confess......
More to come.....
The proceeded to wake up both children several times with doors opening, throwing suitcases around, talking, turning on the light to the bathroom and not shutting it, etc. I was not a happy camper, and I couldn't do a thing about it, because they didn't speak english. And the stupid airconditioner was WAY TOO LOUD, and kept going on and off and on and off. No sleep was to be had that very painful night.
The next morning, I was very grumpy and Tony was unsympathetic. I got upset at him and so we weren't talking. The very happy happy missionary we were working with came into the camp ground and proceeded to make a sermon about how someone in the group was not being very nice, and that if they didn't confess their sins and make things right, they weren't going to go see the kids at the church. Duh....he must have been talking about me...right?? So, I was humiliated because this little sermon lasted about 20 minutes, and so when he was finally done, I started to cry and told Tony I was sorry. Tony thought he was talking to him, so he was just as sorry. This started it all off on the wrong foot that morning. I don't believe in shaming people to make them confess......
More to come.....
Sunday, June 15, 2008
The mission trip
The church in Acuna, Mexico
The orphanage next door
Our translators:Erick, Brenda, and Jesica
This was the cooks son, Brayan (pronounced Brian)
Everyone crowded outside the church after services on Wednesday night....they like to crowd.
Some of the kids during VBS
This was a gangster, who was trying to get out of that lifestyle. He was listening to the salvation message on a cd player. When he was finished listening, he started to cry. He accepted Christ right then and there. This was why we were there.
It was hot, and a long drive to get there, and my van suffered many injuries, but that is another post. I just wanted everyone to know that we are back, and we survived. It was good.
The orphanage next door
Our translators:Erick, Brenda, and Jesica
This was the cooks son, Brayan (pronounced Brian)
Everyone crowded outside the church after services on Wednesday night....they like to crowd.
Some of the kids during VBS
This was a gangster, who was trying to get out of that lifestyle. He was listening to the salvation message on a cd player. When he was finished listening, he started to cry. He accepted Christ right then and there. This was why we were there.
It was hot, and a long drive to get there, and my van suffered many injuries, but that is another post. I just wanted everyone to know that we are back, and we survived. It was good.
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
update
we are alive. barely. trying to get house in order before mexico mission trip from june 8th to the 14th. printing and cutting out notes for sponsers to help us raise funds for the trip. getting clothing all situated for 10 people. still no car in site for hubby, and have to give back loaner in 2 days. no period for 45 days. not sure if i am pregnant. that would make sense, huh? best friend had a baby and i am her meal coordinator, plus baby shower thrower.
life.....just stop for a bit....please.
life.....just stop for a bit....please.
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Bits of miscellany
We have been flying planes in the house, and having a blast! Who knew that paper airplanes would keep everyone so happy?? Here are a couple of shots of weird landing places for those planes. The middle picture is the nail that the plane landed on. You will truly have to ignore the dirty refridgerater handle and Ashley's room in the background. I have an excuse for the fridge...They were all playing in the dirt and left prints everywhere. Plus there have been a million stickers applied to the front, and then the sticky junk was left. No excuse for Ashley. Sorry.
Monday, May 19, 2008
No new news....
So, it seems that the illness stopped with Conner. We waited precariously for the rest of the crew to start, but nothing....so maybe it is over. Hopefully. There is nothing like a child with 104 fever and being able to do nothing but stroke their bright red faces. Conner does have a sore throat though, which is weird. Unless Nathan and Rachel just couldn't tell us about it.
Speaking of Rachel. Boy has she been grumpy....No one wants to be around her. This is so unlike her, and I really hope its due to feeling badly, and not a personality change. Woo Boy!
Tonight daddy gets to play softball. This is the 7th year he has played. Its our church league. The kids love going because they get to see friends, and if they get an out of the park foul ball, they get a free candy card.
Speaking of Rachel. Boy has she been grumpy....No one wants to be around her. This is so unlike her, and I really hope its due to feeling badly, and not a personality change. Woo Boy!
Tonight daddy gets to play softball. This is the 7th year he has played. Its our church league. The kids love going because they get to see friends, and if they get an out of the park foul ball, they get a free candy card.
Friday, May 16, 2008
Daddy's day off Friday....
We all walked around our huge lake today. Its 4 miles long. I guess I should say Tony and I walked, Rachel rode in a backpack carrier, Nathan strolled, and everyone else rode their bikes. It was hot but fun. Only took us an hour and a half. Then we went to Taco Bell, where I ate one beef rice burrito and had a few sips of pepsi. Ahh....heaven. But, when I got home, the taco didnt agree with me, and I promptly got sick. That was a waste, but at least it didn't affect my weight gain... Har!. Maybe I am getting sick. There has been a bug running rampent this week. First Nathan was 104 temp, then Rachel 104 temp with vomiting, then Conner 104 temp plus vomiting at 2:30 am this morning. So far that seems to be it. I think mine was the taco. Their seasoning is too rich for me....or it could have been the pepsi. Smirk...
Got the 2nd free swingset yesterday, and bought two swings to hang on it today. Now we have a huge playyard outside. Lots of swings, and slides, and hanging sticks. Both free but we had to buy the swings. Still a blessing.
Rachel fell out of her carseat today. She was at ground level and tipped out the side. She tore her little hanging piece of skin in the middle of her upper lip. Blood everywhere!!!! Her front tooth is loose though. I hope it tightens back up quickly. She was a trooper, but it was sad to see her get hurt.
Got the 2nd free swingset yesterday, and bought two swings to hang on it today. Now we have a huge playyard outside. Lots of swings, and slides, and hanging sticks. Both free but we had to buy the swings. Still a blessing.
Rachel fell out of her carseat today. She was at ground level and tipped out the side. She tore her little hanging piece of skin in the middle of her upper lip. Blood everywhere!!!! Her front tooth is loose though. I hope it tightens back up quickly. She was a trooper, but it was sad to see her get hurt.
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
progress and misc....
Nearly 2 weeks with no pop! This, my friends, is a record. Every single day I want one so bad I can taste it, but nothing is worth it. I feel better, my hair feels better, my nails are growing. Surely, it REALLY isn't related, but for me to THINK it is, is enough to keep me going. I am trying to ban high fructose corn syrup. It is in everything! We eat so unhealthy. But, tonight, we had grilled chicken salad for dinner. A little parmesan cheese, a little bacon bits, romaine lettuce, grilled chicken and a tiny bit of dressing for the picky kids, and no dressing for me. I prefer it plain.
Still no weight loss!! I am getting sick of that nonsense, but maybe it will be a cumulative thing. One day I will wake up and have lost 5 pounds overnight. That would be cool. My husband on the other hand weighs 203 down from 210. Men make me ill!!!!
The check engine light came on Austin's truck tonight. That worries me a bit. I am not a mechanic, so I have no idea what that means. We will take it to Auto Zone tomorrow and have them tell us the error code, and hopefully it will be nothing. He filled up the tank, and it cost him 72.00!! I hope this will curb his constant want to go go go everywhere. He can't afford that much more.
I am thinking about having a Lettkeman birthday bash...I got the idea from the Jeub family, and it sounds awesome. You have one giant party for everyone, and invite all your friends, then your set for the rest of the year. We could cook hotdogs, and have chips, etc. Fun stuff!
Well, that is all my wrists will let me type. i am out of shape in the typing dept.
Love ya!
Still no weight loss!! I am getting sick of that nonsense, but maybe it will be a cumulative thing. One day I will wake up and have lost 5 pounds overnight. That would be cool. My husband on the other hand weighs 203 down from 210. Men make me ill!!!!
The check engine light came on Austin's truck tonight. That worries me a bit. I am not a mechanic, so I have no idea what that means. We will take it to Auto Zone tomorrow and have them tell us the error code, and hopefully it will be nothing. He filled up the tank, and it cost him 72.00!! I hope this will curb his constant want to go go go everywhere. He can't afford that much more.
I am thinking about having a Lettkeman birthday bash...I got the idea from the Jeub family, and it sounds awesome. You have one giant party for everyone, and invite all your friends, then your set for the rest of the year. We could cook hotdogs, and have chips, etc. Fun stuff!
Well, that is all my wrists will let me type. i am out of shape in the typing dept.
Love ya!
Rachel and her vision
Rachel has been diagnosed with CVI, which is cortical visual impairment. This means her neurological condition prevents her from processing visual responses like she should. She gets excited when she sees us, and all, but when she is presented with a toy, it takes her a few seconds to process it and realize she wants it. She also has poor depth perception, because when we hold something out for her to grab, she swipes at it, and more often than not, misses it. So, in light of this, we now have a vision specialist. She suggested the vision board as a way to entice Rachel to play with shiny things etc. She loves it....We can put it in her crib, or in front of her in the bumbo chair. Speaking of Bumbo....We really need to figure out what to do now. They actually make a special needs bumbo, that is taller in the back and with bigger leg openings, but its 200.00!!!! A bumbo is only 35.00. We gave it to her therapist to have him figure out if we can order one through her insurance. Hopefully, we can avoid that steep price tag. She is outgrowing this one quickly.
Sunday, May 11, 2008
Frugal Sunday
Frugal living is essential when you have a large family. If you don't have a large family, then frugal living is essential to saving money. Things that we do that qualify as frugal are these.
1.) Shop at thrift stores. We have found so many neat things there, and name brand clothing for 1 to 2 dollars? Bargain
2.)Go to garage sales. Yesterday my oldest found a phone holder that is the perfect fit for his phone. Price? 25 CENTS!
3.)Buy in bulk. In most instances, it is cheaper. You will have to compare, but it's worth checking out.
4.)Use coupons. I used to hate the thought of coupons, and didn't think you could really save money, but we got ahold of 80 coupons for baby wipes that we used anyway, and save 100.00 on them. Yes, the crunch could be hard at first, spending so much money, but in the long run is when the savings is felt
5.)Buying generic food. They are mostly just as good as name brand, without the name brand price tag.
6.)Filling the toilet a couple of times with tinkles, and then flushing. Don't laugh...its not bad at all, and when you consider the price of water, we save a considerable amount of money. Poop goes down, but pee can sit a little while.
7.) Asking for things. Get over your pride, people! The most someone can say is no. I have gotten hand me downs, and a car recently by just asking. What do you do with your leftover clothing, Sally??? Well, I usually give them away. Why? Do you want them? Why yes, I would love to take them from you. Thank you. Or, does anyone have a car we can borrow for a few weeks until we figure out what to do with our old one? Yes, we do.... Nuff said there
8.) Cooking in bulk. Freeze some, or just cook a lot of meat at once, and stick half back in the fridge. Save it for tacos, or something. Then you have half the battle the next day as the main part is already cooked. Just heat it up.
I will probably think of more things later, but seriously. In today's economy...why would you NOT want to save money? Its little things that add up to bigger amounts. Try some of them. Tell me what you think.
1.) Shop at thrift stores. We have found so many neat things there, and name brand clothing for 1 to 2 dollars? Bargain
2.)Go to garage sales. Yesterday my oldest found a phone holder that is the perfect fit for his phone. Price? 25 CENTS!
3.)Buy in bulk. In most instances, it is cheaper. You will have to compare, but it's worth checking out.
4.)Use coupons. I used to hate the thought of coupons, and didn't think you could really save money, but we got ahold of 80 coupons for baby wipes that we used anyway, and save 100.00 on them. Yes, the crunch could be hard at first, spending so much money, but in the long run is when the savings is felt
5.)Buying generic food. They are mostly just as good as name brand, without the name brand price tag.
6.)Filling the toilet a couple of times with tinkles, and then flushing. Don't laugh...its not bad at all, and when you consider the price of water, we save a considerable amount of money. Poop goes down, but pee can sit a little while.
7.) Asking for things. Get over your pride, people! The most someone can say is no. I have gotten hand me downs, and a car recently by just asking. What do you do with your leftover clothing, Sally??? Well, I usually give them away. Why? Do you want them? Why yes, I would love to take them from you. Thank you. Or, does anyone have a car we can borrow for a few weeks until we figure out what to do with our old one? Yes, we do.... Nuff said there
8.) Cooking in bulk. Freeze some, or just cook a lot of meat at once, and stick half back in the fridge. Save it for tacos, or something. Then you have half the battle the next day as the main part is already cooked. Just heat it up.
I will probably think of more things later, but seriously. In today's economy...why would you NOT want to save money? Its little things that add up to bigger amounts. Try some of them. Tell me what you think.
Friday, May 09, 2008
Progress report
Day #8 of no pop
Day #1 of no cursing. I slipped while driving yesterday. OOPS
Day #8 of no fast food. Subway does not count. Had a chicken sub yesterday. It is healthy.
Weight 249??????
What is up with that?
Best friend had her baby yesterday. Baby #6. Boy named Luke. Cute cute cute!
Day #1 of no cursing. I slipped while driving yesterday. OOPS
Day #8 of no fast food. Subway does not count. Had a chicken sub yesterday. It is healthy.
Weight 249??????
What is up with that?
Best friend had her baby yesterday. Baby #6. Boy named Luke. Cute cute cute!
Thursday, May 08, 2008
A boy and his truck
Okay...this is such an answer to prayer. Austin has been saving his money forever, and we told him once he completed 6 full months of accident/ticket free driving, he could start looking for a truck. That was up in March. He has been scouring the want ads, and internet ads like crazy since. Everything was either too expensive, too far away or sold. He was getting a little frustrated, but held his attitude in check, and was finally rewarded today. This is his new baby. Its a 1996 Dodge Ram 1500 Laramie. He haggled with the guy and got it for 2750.00. Absolutely nothing wrong with it except the paint is messed up in some spots due to the clear coat coming off. This is a blessing.....
Also, we are now borrowing a car from a church friend. Took back the rental and are good for 3 weeks to find something else, or fix Tony's car. This car we are borrowing isnt great, but it will do the job of getting him back and forth.
Thank you Lord for your blessings today.
Oh, and Happy 8th birthday Aaron!!! He got star wars legos, batman glasses, money, and chocolate cookies. He also gets to stay up late today. WooHoo! Where has the time gone?
Also, we are now borrowing a car from a church friend. Took back the rental and are good for 3 weeks to find something else, or fix Tony's car. This car we are borrowing isnt great, but it will do the job of getting him back and forth.
Thank you Lord for your blessings today.
Oh, and Happy 8th birthday Aaron!!! He got star wars legos, batman glasses, money, and chocolate cookies. He also gets to stay up late today. WooHoo! Where has the time gone?
Tuesday, May 06, 2008
progress report
Day # 5 of no pop!!
Day #3 of no curse words uttered from my mouth
Day #5 of no fast food
Why is the headache still there? Weight 248
I can do this, darn it. See....I would have said another word 3 days ago...Yeah me!!
Maybe if we dont drink soda or eat fast food ever again, we can afford another car. Ya think?
Anybody out there??????
Day #3 of no curse words uttered from my mouth
Day #5 of no fast food
Why is the headache still there? Weight 248
I can do this, darn it. See....I would have said another word 3 days ago...Yeah me!!
Maybe if we dont drink soda or eat fast food ever again, we can afford another car. Ya think?
Anybody out there??????
Monday, May 05, 2008
Cars......what are they good for????
They are droppin' like flies, ladies and gents. By they, I mean the cars. We are down to just the 12 passenger van, and boy that doesn't look very proffessional to drive to jobs in. We are down 50.00 for a short term rental that runs out tomorrow, and down 100.00 for a tow and diagnostic to find out that Tony's car will need a 700.00 repair. We need prayers here. Oh, and lest you think we should spend that 700.00 to fix his car, let me give you some history. Its a 1993 Subaru Impreza with 250,000 miles on it. We bought it for 700.00, spent 700.00 to fix something or other right when we got it, spent another 700.00 2 years later, and here we are 2 more years later. It's wanting to die.............
Friday, May 02, 2008
Austin
This child....this man? What do I call him? He is so large. 6'3" tall and muscles to make a lady swoon. So very tender and funny, this one. Rachel has him so wrapped around her finger, so much so that all she has to do it twitch and he picks her up and snuggles with her. He is great to do all those "hard" things that mom finds for him, like get the box off the top shelf, or carry this very heavy box. He does it with such ease and good nature. It shouldn't be this easy, being a parent. People always wonder why we have so many kids, and I have to think that I do because of this one. If they all turn out as great as he has, then I must be doing something right, and its so much fun. He still hugs me with great bear hugs, holds my hand, places his head on my shoulder when he gets up in the morning to say hi, and talks to me. It makes my heart hurt when I hear people saying that their teen doesn't want to do anything with them.....that their teen is embarrased to be around them. I am so close to my children, that it would physically rip my heart out if they shunned me, and blocked me out of their lives.
So, yeah. If they all grow up to be like this one, then I will keep wanting more. Nathan, I am a little worried about...but that is its own little post. Did I mention that he is two????????
whats happening on the home front??
Blogging must be a winter thing...cause who can find time once it warms up? We are outside, hanging out, learning how to ride bikes, playing with bugs, mowing the lawn, cleaning the garage, and just plain relaxing.
This has been a whirlwind week, and now, we are down 2 cars to just our very new, very large van. This is a problem. My husband takes our 2 oldest boys on their paper routes on sunday, and there is no way they are taking the van. The sheer cost of gas would be outrageous, and then you have the wear and tear, plus those dirty nasty papers...Ick! Why did both of our cars have to break down???? One, we just sent to the scrap yard, because it has a blown engine. The other one, my husbands work car, just stopped in the middle of the very busy main street, and refuses to start again.
In the midst of helping Austin get it situated in a parking lot, someone else's car died and so he ran to help them push theirs out of the road. Ever positive me thought, "oh...so thats why God let our car die.....so we would be here to help them!!! Now that we helped them, it will start again, and no worries" Oh, I was a faithful one....but nothing. Didn't start. Do I still have faith that He is using this for some purpose? Yes, I do! But, could ya pray that He provides us with a temporary fix for the next week? Thanks......
This has been a whirlwind week, and now, we are down 2 cars to just our very new, very large van. This is a problem. My husband takes our 2 oldest boys on their paper routes on sunday, and there is no way they are taking the van. The sheer cost of gas would be outrageous, and then you have the wear and tear, plus those dirty nasty papers...Ick! Why did both of our cars have to break down???? One, we just sent to the scrap yard, because it has a blown engine. The other one, my husbands work car, just stopped in the middle of the very busy main street, and refuses to start again.
In the midst of helping Austin get it situated in a parking lot, someone else's car died and so he ran to help them push theirs out of the road. Ever positive me thought, "oh...so thats why God let our car die.....so we would be here to help them!!! Now that we helped them, it will start again, and no worries" Oh, I was a faithful one....but nothing. Didn't start. Do I still have faith that He is using this for some purpose? Yes, I do! But, could ya pray that He provides us with a temporary fix for the next week? Thanks......
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
hello to all
Hi Robyn....I emailed you friday. Did you get it? Huh, huh?
Hi Joann.....I got your email, and will reply sometime...hopefully....if these kids leave me alone long enough to think in coherant sentences.
Any one want some children? They are sorta useful. They give good hugs.
I need a vacation!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Hi Joann.....I got your email, and will reply sometime...hopefully....if these kids leave me alone long enough to think in coherant sentences.
Any one want some children? They are sorta useful. They give good hugs.
I need a vacation!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Friday, April 25, 2008
Pressing life questions
why does it feel like my life is just zooming by at 100 mph? Is this a sign of getting older? Really, I feel like I have one foot in the grave or something. Every day it seems like I just got out of bed, and then it's time to get back in. When I was younger, the days and months just D-R-A-G-G-E-D- by...not anymore. I don't like it at all. Is this common? Am I experiencing a mid life crisis or something? UGH!
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
where have I been today
This is what we have been doing today....all morning was devoted to this, the $3700.00 (no insurance)smile.
Saturday, April 19, 2008
Garage sale over!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Yippee....or something like that. I did it! I had the yard sale. ITS OVER!!!!!!!!!!! We made 853.00 and blessed 3 families with completely free stuff, and donated the huge leftovers (that took a car, a truck and a van to carry) to a mission benefit yard sale. Have huge amounts of clothes left, but will consign those at a consignement shop in May. Big massive yard sale. 10 tables from church, 2 tables from me, a card table, buckets and boxes were not enough, and lots of things probably weren't seen until wayyyy later, but it's all good. Next project is to work on the huge amount of computer stuff in the garage and make several computers to sell. See, Robyn....it was worth it, and we blessed people in the process. Besides being cheap stuff, you can't beat free either. My husband passed out his business cards to lots of people, so he got his name out there. My kids learned how to negotiate, and help people.....and talk to people. No one can ever say my kids are not socialized. That's a bunch of malarky! These pictures were taken very late in the day, so you can see the sheer number of things that were still left. We stopped selling at 7:00 pm. Seriously......... And one picture of Rachel, shopping. She was checking the stuff out from her walker...cute? (pictures later....internet all wonky)
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
randomosities....... (is that a word?)
Woot! I had the big exam today. No, not THAT one....my eye exam. They have gotten worse, go figure. My pregnancies are hard on the little things. My eyeball is very healthy though...just blind. I would like to believe that Lasik would work for me, but I am skeptical....
Still trying to figure out when to hold this silly yard sale. Last week was perfect, but my kids wanted me to hang out with them at the art fair. To make it better for me, they found 7.00 worth of quarters in the big dirt pile that they have every year for the kids to dig in. They got very messy, but it was all fun. We then went and ate our fill of 10 cent hot dogs. Then we came home with enough time for the older ones to turn around and attend a free college football game. Soooo, here we are, still in a holding pattern. The good news is I am still finding more stuff to put in it.
Still trying to figure out when to hold this silly yard sale. Last week was perfect, but my kids wanted me to hang out with them at the art fair. To make it better for me, they found 7.00 worth of quarters in the big dirt pile that they have every year for the kids to dig in. They got very messy, but it was all fun. We then went and ate our fill of 10 cent hot dogs. Then we came home with enough time for the older ones to turn around and attend a free college football game. Soooo, here we are, still in a holding pattern. The good news is I am still finding more stuff to put in it.
Monday, April 14, 2008
Baby girl
One of the rare times she laughs. We can tickle her on one day and not faze her...but the next, she just laughs until she can't breathe. Typical girl....
rant rant rant.......
This is an extension of my dumb people post. I have had it with customer service. In no less than one week, we have left messages to DHS, Dentist, Company who owes Tony money, Doctor office, Lady who needs some items that I have, and someone else who I can't remember. All of these people will not return phone calls. Is this a thing of the past? If someone calls you, call them back already! This is one of my worst pet peeves, right behind being late. I hate being late. No one is so important that they should make people wait on them, except God. My husband ALWAYS makes people wait, and that one thing right there has made me contemplate bodily injury many times.
But, about the phone calls. Several of these people are working for me. If they want to continue getting my money, don't you think they would want to keep me happy? And another of these people have dragged their feet on a goverment thing for over 2 months. Can they legally do that? They claim that they don't know how to deal with a self employed husband, a self employed child who has a large bank account, homeschoolers, and all that jazz. It is not my fault that they are clueless....is it? The one who owes us money is really ticking me off....because I hate to be owed money for a job my husband did, only to have him do another job for the same company. It seems like fraud.
Boy, I am in a mood today, huh?
But, about the phone calls. Several of these people are working for me. If they want to continue getting my money, don't you think they would want to keep me happy? And another of these people have dragged their feet on a goverment thing for over 2 months. Can they legally do that? They claim that they don't know how to deal with a self employed husband, a self employed child who has a large bank account, homeschoolers, and all that jazz. It is not my fault that they are clueless....is it? The one who owes us money is really ticking me off....because I hate to be owed money for a job my husband did, only to have him do another job for the same company. It seems like fraud.
Boy, I am in a mood today, huh?
Friday, April 11, 2008
My Canon affair
Have I mentioned I love this camera? Well, I do. I used a telephoto lens just now and stood in my driveway and took a clear shot of the license plates of the guy on the next block all the way down. WooHoo....
Oh, and a shot of Chewy, with Conner.
Thursday, April 10, 2008
speech graduation!!!!!
Today, we had a graduation from speech therapy party! It was a big hit in our house. All 4 middle boys were in speech therapy, with the same problems amazingly enough. Conner got out about 1 and 1/2 months ago, Braydon and Aaron got out 1 month ago, and finally Adam got out today. We promised them that when they were done, we would celebrate. And celebrate we did. We got a cake, and lime sherbet ice cream for the food, and then had a huge banner with tons of star wars stuff. Surely you remember that star wars is a little big in our house?? They got much stuff, and were thrilled. Then we went out for happy meal thursday and ate at McDonalds. Then, we went to party warehouse to buy Nathan a "saber" too, and to the Dollar Tree to look around. All in all, a good evening. We love surprises, and a surprise this was as well. No one had a clue!
Songs for Thursday
rain rain, go away, come again some other day......seriously!
Our garage-flooded (nothing damaged though, because after the last time, I put everything on plastic buckets.
Our laundry room-flooded. I guess God wants me to do laundry
Our back yard-flooded. No one gets to play outside and that makes a cranky momma
We have had enough rain, God. Thanks for it, but take it away now. Please?
Our garage-flooded (nothing damaged though, because after the last time, I put everything on plastic buckets.
Our laundry room-flooded. I guess God wants me to do laundry
Our back yard-flooded. No one gets to play outside and that makes a cranky momma
We have had enough rain, God. Thanks for it, but take it away now. Please?
Tuesday, April 08, 2008
Aaron
This little toot was just caught reading a story to his younger 2 brothers. It was soooo sweet. The three of them were all curled up in the chaise lounge chair in the library/rachel's room, just having a good time. He is such an awesome big brother.....
Sunday, April 06, 2008
Catching up on a Sunday....
Well, what a week! There is so much to get done when you try to declutter, have a garage sale, feed children, and sleep! I haven't finished the garage sale stuff....there is so much more to do. I am out of hangers! I still have more to put in from my home. I vacillate between having certain people in need come and "shop" through my stuff and take what they need as a blessing, to having anyone from my church come look and take what they need, to having the sale and using the money to fund a vacation or possibly use it to fund a trip to see a very distinquished doctor in the field of microcephaly to find out what his opinion on Rachel is. This doctor is in Chicago, and is probably very hard to get in to see. What to do??? I am waiting on God's direction, and we still have time before we get all the enormous tables.
I can't believe how much I allowed myself and my family to wallow in. There has to be some psycosis involved as to why I bought soooo much stuff, and then couldn't figure out what to do with it. It's almost as if I enjoyed being surrounded by stuff. It was a shelter to protect me from the outside world, partly, but then I do think there is something to only knowing where an item is when it's all over the place. Brilliant people are often cluttered people. You clean their space, and they can't function. They probably didn't have 8 children though, so I can't use that excuse.
We are getting ready for summer. I want to go camping for the first time in my life. I have never been! Can you believe that? I have either been a working mom with no time, or pregnant, in which case I just didn't feel like camping. Or I had a new baby that just didn't seem like the camping type yet. Or the baby who was crawling everywhere, and didn't like to be held, so I thought said children would be eaten by a snake or fall into a river somewhere. But now!!!! I have zero excuses to use, and we WILL BE GOING CAMPING! Come hell or high water. My children are so excited. We have had everything one could possibly need to camp forever, in anticipation of this. So, now is the time. We will probably be coordinating this with another family in our town, who enjoys noisy children, and likes us. That in itself is odd. We aren't real sought out people around here. People either think we are weird, or contagious. LOL!
I really need to figure out what I am going to do about some birthday parties that certain people are wanting. I let them have a cake and punch at the church with their respective youth/children groups, but that doesn't seem to suffice. Are they greedy and only want presents, or do they just enjoy a smaller gathering? I hope it's the latter, because the former makes me sound like an awful mother. I told myself that when Ashley turned 13, that would be it for the parties, but she is saddened by that idea. I would LOVE to have the kind of party the Jeub family has. A big birthday bash for the whole family, once a year. Cook food for everyone, and just have a big shindig. Except my house would not fit that many people, and what are the logistics of presents? Do you just get one from someone who is around your age? What if they all have the same friends? Surely you dont expect one for each kid from a guest? I just know it would be so much easier to do it all at once, and get it over with. Huge parties are fun....Maybe soon I will start to implement something like it.
We are now the "proud" owners of a handicapped placard for our vehicles. It will make things easier the bigger Rachel gets, being closer to stores and doctors offices, but it will feel corny with all the kiddos piling out of this huge van in the handicapped stalls. I hope people are kind and not stare or ask us which one is the disabled person. That would be tacky and put my children in an embarrassing position.
It's funny, but in closing I just thought of this....Yesterday, my children did their paper routes, and saw a couple of garage sales they wanted to go to. I have taught my children to be frugal and look for good deals, and now we are really concentrating on what we NEED instead of just getting all the good stuff. Lord, I don't want them to be like me when they get out on their own. Anywho....this one they went to had a big sign out front that said "Dave Ramsey made us have this yard sale" Isn't that funny? Well, maybe not if you haven't taken Financial Peace, but to those who know....he advocates selling everything that isn't breathing to get rid of your debt. Don't buy stuff just because...and stay away from credit cards. They kill you!!!! It seems everyone we meet lately is taking Financial Peace. It's a great course, but one that will probably need a repeat time to soak it all in.
Love you Robyn, and JoAnn, and MamaArcher( Kristine) and Jane. If you have read this far, your good friends.
Oh, oh!! One more thing! We got that awesome camera I think I talked about before. Did I talk about a camera? I hope so. Anyway, a customer of my husbands has this awesome Canon 30D SLR camera and he wanted Tony to figure out how to use it and teach him. Well, Tony brought it home and I promptly fell in love with it. He figured out some stuff and took it back. Well the guy said it was too complex, and wondered if we wanted to buy it, and he would buy something else. We asked how much? Its about a 1200.00 dollar camera! He wanted us to make an offer. We prayed and each of us came up with 500.00. We told him, and he agreed. But in the meantime, he wanted to be able to use it for family gatherings until his new one came in. So we were borrowing it for free until then. One day he called and said he had been thinking about the camera and how much it was worth, and would we reconsider? He wanted 650.00 We said we would think about it, and came to the conclusion that we were obviously told by God to spend 500.00 and nothing else. I guess Tony told him that it was above our budget, and that we were sorry. 2 weeks pass and he calls us and tells us that he will sell it for the original price. Either God worked on him to hold to his word, or he just really wanted to sell it for this new one. Either way, we have a blessing! This camera is so awesome!!!! I am usually such a penny pincher that it was a huge deal for me to agree to. However, I love taking pictures of my children, so they are worth it. This is a camera I have seen professionals use, so woohoo!!
I can't believe how much I allowed myself and my family to wallow in. There has to be some psycosis involved as to why I bought soooo much stuff, and then couldn't figure out what to do with it. It's almost as if I enjoyed being surrounded by stuff. It was a shelter to protect me from the outside world, partly, but then I do think there is something to only knowing where an item is when it's all over the place. Brilliant people are often cluttered people. You clean their space, and they can't function. They probably didn't have 8 children though, so I can't use that excuse.
We are getting ready for summer. I want to go camping for the first time in my life. I have never been! Can you believe that? I have either been a working mom with no time, or pregnant, in which case I just didn't feel like camping. Or I had a new baby that just didn't seem like the camping type yet. Or the baby who was crawling everywhere, and didn't like to be held, so I thought said children would be eaten by a snake or fall into a river somewhere. But now!!!! I have zero excuses to use, and we WILL BE GOING CAMPING! Come hell or high water. My children are so excited. We have had everything one could possibly need to camp forever, in anticipation of this. So, now is the time. We will probably be coordinating this with another family in our town, who enjoys noisy children, and likes us. That in itself is odd. We aren't real sought out people around here. People either think we are weird, or contagious. LOL!
I really need to figure out what I am going to do about some birthday parties that certain people are wanting. I let them have a cake and punch at the church with their respective youth/children groups, but that doesn't seem to suffice. Are they greedy and only want presents, or do they just enjoy a smaller gathering? I hope it's the latter, because the former makes me sound like an awful mother. I told myself that when Ashley turned 13, that would be it for the parties, but she is saddened by that idea. I would LOVE to have the kind of party the Jeub family has. A big birthday bash for the whole family, once a year. Cook food for everyone, and just have a big shindig. Except my house would not fit that many people, and what are the logistics of presents? Do you just get one from someone who is around your age? What if they all have the same friends? Surely you dont expect one for each kid from a guest? I just know it would be so much easier to do it all at once, and get it over with. Huge parties are fun....Maybe soon I will start to implement something like it.
We are now the "proud" owners of a handicapped placard for our vehicles. It will make things easier the bigger Rachel gets, being closer to stores and doctors offices, but it will feel corny with all the kiddos piling out of this huge van in the handicapped stalls. I hope people are kind and not stare or ask us which one is the disabled person. That would be tacky and put my children in an embarrassing position.
It's funny, but in closing I just thought of this....Yesterday, my children did their paper routes, and saw a couple of garage sales they wanted to go to. I have taught my children to be frugal and look for good deals, and now we are really concentrating on what we NEED instead of just getting all the good stuff. Lord, I don't want them to be like me when they get out on their own. Anywho....this one they went to had a big sign out front that said "Dave Ramsey made us have this yard sale" Isn't that funny? Well, maybe not if you haven't taken Financial Peace, but to those who know....he advocates selling everything that isn't breathing to get rid of your debt. Don't buy stuff just because...and stay away from credit cards. They kill you!!!! It seems everyone we meet lately is taking Financial Peace. It's a great course, but one that will probably need a repeat time to soak it all in.
Love you Robyn, and JoAnn, and MamaArcher( Kristine) and Jane. If you have read this far, your good friends.
Oh, oh!! One more thing! We got that awesome camera I think I talked about before. Did I talk about a camera? I hope so. Anyway, a customer of my husbands has this awesome Canon 30D SLR camera and he wanted Tony to figure out how to use it and teach him. Well, Tony brought it home and I promptly fell in love with it. He figured out some stuff and took it back. Well the guy said it was too complex, and wondered if we wanted to buy it, and he would buy something else. We asked how much? Its about a 1200.00 dollar camera! He wanted us to make an offer. We prayed and each of us came up with 500.00. We told him, and he agreed. But in the meantime, he wanted to be able to use it for family gatherings until his new one came in. So we were borrowing it for free until then. One day he called and said he had been thinking about the camera and how much it was worth, and would we reconsider? He wanted 650.00 We said we would think about it, and came to the conclusion that we were obviously told by God to spend 500.00 and nothing else. I guess Tony told him that it was above our budget, and that we were sorry. 2 weeks pass and he calls us and tells us that he will sell it for the original price. Either God worked on him to hold to his word, or he just really wanted to sell it for this new one. Either way, we have a blessing! This camera is so awesome!!!! I am usually such a penny pincher that it was a huge deal for me to agree to. However, I love taking pictures of my children, so they are worth it. This is a camera I have seen professionals use, so woohoo!!
Friday, April 04, 2008
Where I have been all week
this is why I have been absent again. Finally getting all the stuff organized for the yard sale. One rack alone has 185 clothes on it. If I sell each one of those for a dollar, I will make 185.00 on just that rack. Its name brand baby stuff...name brand girls stuff...and just generic boys stuff. All those boxes on the other picture hold stuff in half, and books in the other half. They are 2 deep and floor to ceiling. This doesnt even show you the other wall filled floor to ceiling with book boxes, or the full sized bed with boxes of clothes that still need to be hung on hangers. I have NEVER had a yard sale this big in my life!
Tuesday, April 01, 2008
Quality hair cuts?? April Fools
Braydon
Adam
Aaron
Nathan- who is always covered in boo boo's
Conner--ha ha. You can see the hairs on his chin!
It's the semi annual hair cut of the boys. Except this year, Rachel got in on the action. She had lots of fly aways on the side, so they are gone now. Its still sorta long on the back. Let the sweating begin!! only pic we are missing is Austin...
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